Tip Of The Spear
Chapter 19
As Tazuna lead Naruto's family deeper into the town of Wave proper his grandson Inari was bonding with the three adopted children of Naruto and Sakura. Zabuza and Haku walked alongside Umeko and was pointing out some of the sights of the town. Haku was showing delighted surprise that the market place was crowded with shoppers and the stalls were over flowing with goods once more. Tazuna noticed and smiled,
"Ah yes, the market place. Once we got rid of that malignant dwarf and got the word out the blockade was over things started flowing in. It seems that our merchants that were forced to stay outside the country had stayed busy buying goods on speculation," he told the party, "It seems their suppliers had as much faith in them as they in their home."
"That's good then," Haku replied with a closed eye smile, "It was one of my biggest regrets that we had to work for a man like Gato after seeing what he'd done to this land. Tazuna-sama, we never apologized for the harm we did to this country."
Tazuna waved her off, "Forget it, the only thing you did for that rat was try to kill me, you two never harmed the townsfolk or the people living in the outlaying settlements so you're fine. Besides, the brat seems to be happy that you're around so it's all good."
"Thank you Tazuna-san, your words have eased my heart and I'm sure that Father feels the same as I do," Haku answered as she shot a menacing look towards Zabuza, her father figure.
Zabuza began to sweat under his adopted daughter's glare before he also turned to the old man, "What Haku-chan said. For what's it worth, it was nothing personal, it was just business."
"Well. Like I told Haku, it's in the past," Tazuna said a he held Zabuza's gaze.
As they toured the marketplace the Uzumaki family, kids included, began the time honored tradition of haggling with the vendors. While Naruto and Sakura were old hands at this, stemming from living on the local economy of wherever they were deployed, the kids were still learning. The boys would get lucky from time to time as a vendor would have a moment of kindness and lower his prices just to make them seem like they won. Moegi was the most successful of the three, no one, not even her adopted father, could resist her Sad Kitty Eyes no jutsu. This was something that little girls were naturally adept at and was three to five times more poerful than the Puppy Eyes no jutsu. It was so powerful that it was deemed a forbidden jutsu by generations of Kage and in realier days war lords and clan heads.
Moegi was a natural adept and her version was devistating. Naruto joked that had they brought the little girl on their fiirst visit and were able to unleash her on Gato the loss of life would have been little to none as the shipping mogal would have given the child everything she asked for. As it was she had been sold everthing she'd seen at a loss to the vendors. Finally Sakura decided to let the market off the hook and called her daughter off but left the boys alone seeing how they were even agreeing to prices higher than they had started at. Eventually the family and their escorts, including their ANBU bodyguard of Baboon and Weasel, had grown tired of spending money.
Seeing that the shopping for the next few days were done Naruto smiled and turned to Tazuna, "Well, let's be on our way. Tazuna, I'd like for you, Tsunami and Inari to come over for dinner tomorrow. Before you say no hear me out, it's our way of paying you and your family back for the meals and such that you gave the teams that were here last. Besides, I think Inari and Tsunami would like the change of diet, since you still travel from time to time you have had a better chance at new foods, so, see you around eighteen hundred?"
Tazuna was taken aback, he and his family were being asked to dine with the Lord of these lands and the reason was to return the favor of feeding his teams from Konoha. To him it made sense and didn't at the same time. Naruto, he knew was the kind of person that would return kindness with kindness and it showed in his first trip to Wave when he and Sakura had told the genin teams that were staying with his family to share the venison they had packaged in scrolls. So, after serving the royal Uzumaki clan Tazuna understood that side of his new lord.
On the other hand, it was unheard of for the Whirlpool Lord to invite a common family to dine at his table. Before he could voice his concerns Inari took the decision away from him, "That sound great nee-chan, moms going to be very happy that you're back and having us over for dinner!" the boy that was a sort of brother to Naruto exclaimed.
Smiling Naruto turned to the older man, "Well, that's that then. Shall we head for our home for the month?"
That evening the Uzumaki compound was alive with the sounds and smells of a very lively party. It was a tradition, Naruto had told his guests, that he and Sakura had participated in more than a few times while in exile. At the start of a deployment a party would be held as a way to relax for the upcoming mission as well as getting to know the more important members of the communities that they would operating out of and protcting. This was done primarily because once the mission started there wouldn't be time to party let alone just go into town. Another party would be held at the end of the tour to relive the stress that everyone would have developed during their time on the mission as well as to thank the local community and forces for their hospitality. That party Sakura had asked Tsunami to plan out.
As Naruto sat down talking with Tazuna and Akai the rest of the baby genin (who secretly hate that name) milled around and caught up with each other since they had left in staggered groups. At the moment Shikamaru and Hinata were telling the other heirs about the first meeting with the Suna delegation. Kiba was slack jawed at the news of the rekindled romance between the former Third Hokage and Lady Chiyo of Suna,
"No way!" the dog boy yelled at that news, "I mean that's just...they're so old!"
"Yip yip rawlf!" was Akamaru's response to his master's out burst.
"What do you mean he's a real man?" Kiba asked, "No, I don't think that makes him a true alpha."
"Rorwlf ralf yip!"
"Tch, what ever. I still don't see it."
"Ummm, Kiba-kun, you should respect Akamaru's opinion," came Hinata's voice, "But what Shikamaru said is true, Lord Third and Lady Chiyo are planning to get married as soon as the details are worked out."
Kiba sighed in defeat, "Yeah, yeah, look, all I'm saying is that the man's old. I mean, can he even get it to stand up on it's own? If he can after from what Shikamaru said about that lady from Suna, if he can then I'll agree with Akamaru. But seriously, I don't think he can."
At that Hinata slapped a light juken strike on Kiba's arm, "Kiba! Don't talk about Lord Hiruzen like that, it's not proper."
Kiba didn't answer, he just rubbed his arm in an attempt to open the partially closed chakra point. After seeing Naruto literally die from having the points in his heart and lungs shut down Kiba was a little frightened of his girlfriend and her method of fighting. At the same time he adored her and silently gave thanks to Naruto and Sakura for helping Hinata gain confidence and inner strength. At one time the Hyuga elders had strongly disapproved of Hinata as clan head and pressured Hiashi to 'break' Hinata and concentrate all his attention on his youngest daughter, Hanabi, in order that she become clan head. As much as the man resisted his father and uncles it was only after the purge that Hiruzen enacted that any internal threats to Hinata were eliminated. It took a while for Hinata to overcome here shyness and increase her level of confidence, thankfully Naruto and Sakura were able to bring out her true nature.
While still polite and demur, Hinata no longer feared hurting someone on the battlefield. It happened when she was talked into sparring with Moegi at the Uzumaki compound on the northern edge of the village. While Naruto had been given his inheritance including his mother and father's compound, he and Sakura preferred living in the Haruno district. While not a true compound it was inhabited with people that respected and treated the young couple warmly. However, on weekends the family would switch residences and spend their free time in the country like setting his parents compound offered. It was during one of those times that Hinata and Moegi squared off, Hinata, was soon defeated by the first year academy student much to the disgust of the Genin Commander.
After letting Hinata catch her breath after losing the spar, Naruto took her aside. Asking what happened out there Hinata just looked at the ground before saying that she can't harm someone smaller or less experienced than her. Naruto's next question floored her, "Do you dislike my daughter that much?" He asked her, when to she didn't Naruto's next words were painful to hear, "Then why are you withholding her chance to learn and grow? Moegi doesn't need hand holding, she needs her ass handed to her. That way she'll learn from her experience."
At those words Hinata realized that her leader and crush wasn't talking about Moegi but Hanabi and the attitude the young Hyuga had developed. She decided to take his advice to heart and that evening she gave Hanabi the ass kicking she'd been begging for. Those to spars were some of the most important turning points in her life.
For now she was enjoying a nice time with her friends and savoring the meal that Naruto and his clones had cooked up. It was called a deep pit BBQ and she laughed seeing and hearing Choji complain that Naruto's cooking was better than his family's restaurant. Naruto smiled at hearing Hinata's laughter ring out. Sakura was talking to Ino about the meeting she had attended with her husband before they left the village. The subject of concern was the offer of marriage between the Kazekage's daughter to a suitable male from Konoha. Ino was aghast at that idea and was trying to keep her anger in check.
"What do you mean you'd be okay with it? I mean she's not from the village and you and Naruto would just let that outsider marry someone like Shika?"
"Well yes," Sakura answered her best friend, "I mean the Nara are a very well respected clan and besides, Shikamaru is too lazy to object. She was stealing glances at him and Naruto an..."
"Naruto huh? So, if she is to marry into this village why not Naruto? I mean look at him, he's getting taller and his voice is soooo much better now that his voice box is fixed. I mean he can get me wet just by saying hello. I'm sure this Temari would make a great second wife for your husband," Ino teased sure that she had pushed Sakura's buttons.
The thing was, Sakura knew how to push Ino's buttons right back, "That's not a bad idea Piggy but she's not Naruto's type. Before we got married the girls that caught his eye in school had a little more color. Now, Shikamaru, he'd be a good candidate for a political marriage, I mean, he's the heir to a clan of genius and near genius tacticians as well as a provider of very rare medicinal herbs. Think about it Ino, Shika is rich just from the sale of those plants alone."
Sakura was smirking as what she said set into Ino's brain. After a five count the platinum blond was off and running towards her teammate. As she approached Ino yelled out, "Shikamaru we need to talk, now," as she said that she grabbed his hand and yanked the lazy man up off the ground.
"What do you want now you troublesom..." as Shikamaru looked into Ino's eyes the words died in his throat and he let her lead him away from the others.
Half following and half getting dragged Shikamaru allowed Ino to take him to a private area in the Uzumaki compound. When they stopped Ino spun around and hurled herself at the Nara. Shikamaru was surprised when he felt her lips on his and heard her words, "Shika, tell me that you're not going to marry that girl from Suna, please, tell me! I told you after SERE that I can't live without you so tell me you're not thinking of going along with that political marriage bullshit!"
Shikamaru looked at Ino in confusion, then it hit him. Ino had found out about the Kazakage's daughter and her being an offering to solidify the alliance between the two villages. True he had found her interesting but as he listened to her conversations with the Uzumaki he had the feeling that she'd be more annoying and troublesome than his childhood friend. Now he understood why Ino was acting like she did, she was scared that he'd leave her behind. For all her bossiness deep down she was a girl that was unsure of herself.
It was also at that time that Shikamaru realized that what their parents used to say about them was something they really meant, that they made a cute couple. He wasn't blind to her looks and how much she's matured over the past two years, it was her overbearing nature that annoyed him and to a degree Choji. Choji had also noticed how much attention Ino had been giving Shikamaru and how much she stays next to him since the SERE exercise. In fact he's running a betting pool behind their backs on when they finally stop dancing around each other.
As Shikamaru stared into Ino's eyes he felt drawn back to her lips. As he closed the distance he was able to get a few words out of his mouth, "No Ino, I have the feeling that she'd be more annoying than you and I really don't want to break in a new girl to spend my life with," as he said the last few words Ino's eyes opened wide in surprise.
She's known the lazy Nara since they were toddlers, she knew all there is about him, his likes, dislikes and how he expresses himself. Calling Ino 'troublesome' in Shikaspeak was the same as Naruto calling his wife Sakura-chan. Annoying, however, was to him just that, annoying.
But to him Ino was anything but annoying, she was, he realized, his everything, the person that occupied his thoughts as he watched clouds and inhabited his dreams. Simply put, he not only loved Ino but was in love with her and he knew exactly when that happened. It was after his hearing, the one that brought forth all his failures and shortcomings. The one where he realized that he had lost the trust of his peers. As soon as it was over Ino had begged him to make a dire promise, should they be on a team together and a mission goes wrong, Shikamaru was to take her life should they be in imminent danger of capture. After SERE they both knew now what happens to kunoichi taken prisoner. Even if he'd lost the trust of other shinobi it was no matter, Ino still trusted him with her life, and, should it happen, her death as well.
Ino was by now more than just a childhood friend, the feelings were now deeper than that and to Shikamaru it looked like Ino wanted to cement their bonds in a more intimate way. He now had to make a decision, and for a young man at the height of adolescence it was difficult. Stopping his kisses and breaking loose from Ino's grip Shikamaru took her face in his hands. Looking around to see if they were alone he then spoke to the seemingly desperate girl,
"Ino, stop. I know what you want to do and you think it's the only way but it's not. If you feel that strongly about us then I'll be your boyfriend," seeing the look on her face he continued before she could get started, "Look, it's just too troublesome to dance around each other and I feel more than a brotherly kind of love for you. I'd rather put off making you a woman until the time and place is right. Making love to you in a barracks is not the first time I had planned for you."
Ino looked up in surprise, "First time for us? You've thought about our first time even before tonight?"
"Yes, ever since that other annoying blond returned and you started paying attention to him. A crush on Sasuke I could live with, but you spending more time with Naruto in the hopes of joining his family is something I can't, it's beyond annoying or troublesome, it infuriates me that you'd look at him and not me. So yeah, I've thought about how I'd make your, our, first time special."
"You did? So since I don't want you to marry that girl from Suna and you feel the same with Naruto and I, does that mean you and I are...?
"A couple, yes, as of right now, Lady Ino Yamanaka, the heiress of the Yamanaka clan is off the market and the girlfriend of Shikamaru Nara," the teen proclaimed as he sealed his words with another kiss.
Not sensing any onlookers they continued while a hidden Naruto and Sakura smiled at each other, "That's two couples out of the way love. Ino would have been a wonderful addition but I saw the looks Temari was sneaking at you. She's the one for the second slot, we just need one more for you and the council can shut it's collective mouths," Sakura told her husband via their mental link.
Naruto just smirked at his wife's words, Temari made a very good first impression and should they meet again Sakura would broach the subject, "I agree, Ino is more like a little sister to us. I can't see her as someone to share our bed with. Temari though, a marriage to her has potential besides bringing the villages together. Did you remember what she said about her brother? We need to help him out, the idea of another jinchuriki being mistreated like I was is unthinkable. Ero-jijii's spy network has passed on intel on the kid from time to time. It's not good, any of it. Sakura-chan, he's what I could have turned out to be if Uncle hadn't taken us under his wing and I stopped caring about the villagers and wanting their respect."
Sakura just gasped at that as she knew that Naruto was still borderline on some days with how he felt about the village and it's people. Those days were fewer and further between lately thank goodness as her husband was now seen more as the son of their beloved Fourth Hokage and a promising leader in his own right. After the last raids were made public and the fact that Naruto's friends had planned and carried them out the message was finally acknowledged, 'The Godaime Hokage was not the daemon and never was. Any further attempts on him or his family would be dealt with in a very bloody and, from now on, public manner.'
Seeing that all was right with the world and confirming the birth of another strong relationship the married couple returned to the party. As Naruto dug into his sixth serving of deep pit beef he saw Tazuna and a man he recognized as one of the leading boat builders in Wave.
"Evening Tazuna-san, care for some more food? Maybe a drink or two? I've got something here that'll make your sake taste like water."
"Really?" the old man asked with a skeptical look on his face, "Sure I'll try some, just don't tell Tsunami."
Naruto grinned and handed the man a shot glass full of a bluish tinted clear liquid with a few words of caution regarding said drink. Tazuna and the man next to him just smiled and knocked back the drinks before gasping for air,
"Wh...what was that stuff? It's like drinking liquid fire."
"It's a drink from one of the countries I visited while in exile. It's called agave tequila. They make it from the agave cactus, this one is a special brand," Naruto explained as he held up a liter bottle of the stuff, what caught everyone's attention was the rather large worm at the bottom.
Sakura rolled her eyes at the reaction before explaining that the worm was a tradition and was thought to hold psychedelic qualities. She also mentioned that any man that ate said worm was considered to be a man's man. That got Kiba to beg for some of the drink but cooler heads prevailed and the dog boy was soon subdued by a few juken strikes by his girlfriend.
After the shock of how strong the liqueur was had worn off Naruto and Tazuna and guest sat down to one side of the party and began to talk in earnest. There were a few things Naruto wanted to do with not only the captured ships but the building of a new class of vessel for Konoha and Wave's maritime forces. As he sat down Naruto pulled out a large file folder from a seal on his wrist and set it on the table with is opened to a particular section.
"Okay, the first thing is this, I've some connections with the lands that I fought in while in exile. They have a more advanced civilization than we do at the moment. While we in the Elemental Nations stagnated they flourished. Unfortunately their advancements didn't curb their love of warfare. In fact nearly all their strides in medicine, leisure, cooking, communications and transportation were all driven by warfare and the need to advance faster than the other guy."
Seeing the grim look on the elder men's faces as he began his spiel Naruto continued, "The ships we took from Gato, those three iron clad freighters, can they be dry docked here in Wave?"
The boat builder was the one to answer, "Sure, we can dock up to two of them in our largest dry dock. We usually use it to overhaul the fishing fleet in one or two go's, usually we lay up half the fleet at a time so that we still can have boats on the water. Why would you need theses ships reefed though? I mean they're nearly brand new."
"Yes, they are," Naruto agreed, "But as new and cutting edge as they are here they fall short of what we need. As agreed, one vessel will be flagged in Fire country and the others will be flagged and home ported her in Wave. I noticed that there is a nice sized refinery on the other side of the island, what does it produce?"
"A variety of substances, there's a rather large system of tar pits near that plant that provides the raw material," Tazuna supplied, "We don't have the ability to break the tar down as far as your clan's chemists theorized but the products range from a purified clear gel like material on up to different grades of oils. The lightest is used to fuel the lamps we use in our streets. If we had the means and a use we could break the tar down even further."
"No, that's fine, how much of that lamp oil does the refinery produce?"
"Annually? About five hundred thousand barrels, why?"
"I'll explain in a bit but now I need to know if Wave uses that much in a year. Does it?" Naruto asked.
"No, we export a the majority of it to Kiri and Snow. Nearly three quarters are exported to those two nations. The other products are shipped through out the continent but Iron takes the lion's share of those. They use the oils and greases in their foundries and factories."
"I see, well, as of now all exports to Kiri are to be halted. If you recall they were behind Gato's take over. Kiri's share is now Konoha and Uzushiro's. Now as to why I ask about production amounts. As I said, I still have contacts in our old home in the west. The nation we lived in has a type of engine that's very small for it's type but very powerful, I intend on installing one into each ship along with a new type of propulsion system."
"What do you mean new propulsion system?" the boat builder asked.
"Well, I've gone over the different kinds of vessels that Wave and Konoha use, of those they can be classed as such, oar, sail or an electrically driven screw. I want to install a system called a jet drive. The engines I want to install will power two high pressure water pumps that will expel water at such a high rate that the jets will move the vessel, no matter it's size."
Both men were stunned, a new way of moving a vessel in water. Knowing Naruto as he now did, Tazuna had a feeling that whatever the teen had put into those ships would give them a large speed advantage. Sensing he had more to say both men held their questions for later.
"Now, what I need is to add a interior bulkhead along the hull in these locations to hold the lamp oil that will power the engine. These bunkers will need to be plumbed to transfer the fuel from tank to tank as well as to the engine. Now, not only will these boats be getting new drive systems I want to install a system of sensors that will let their crews 'see' for miles in the dark as well as bad weather, a communications suite and upgraded armament. The vessel going to Konoha will have other upgrades as well but those can be discussed later, yeah?"
"What do you mean 'see at night and all weather?" the boat builder asked.
"Just as I said," Naruto replied, "I want to install a sensor suite that will send radio waves out and then translate the return echo into something that's visible on a TV like screen. Another system will send high frequency sound waves into the water and then listen for any echoes. Now these waves, sound and otherwise, travel at a known speed. The time lapse between the sent pulse and the return will give the operator the distance from the ship as well as it's bearing."
"A side benefit of the underwater system is this, a less sophisticated type can be fitted into your fishing fleet that will let you not only find shoals of fish but give an estimate of it's size so you can decide if it's worth the effort to go after or continue searching. Now back to the freighters, all but one mast will be removed, the sails will be a back up in case something happens to the engine or the ship runs out of fuel. I'll need platforms placed on the remaining mast for the sensor's antennae, the higher they are from the water the greater the distance they can see. So can Waves shipyards handle this request?"
"I believe we can, the larger ships aren't a problem, but you mentioned smaller vessels. Do you have an idea of what you had in mind?" the boat builder asked.
"This," and with that Naruto pulled out a set of plans. The craft was about ten meters long with a three meter beam*. Looking closely the builder saw that it only drew, the depth it sank into the water at it's heaviest load, just over half a meter. Looking at the engineering notes he saw that the power plant was a smaller version of the one that was to be installed into the freighters.
"This is an improved version of the craft that supported my unit in the shallow waters. The power plant and jet drive in the original gave it a top speed of 40 knots," Naruto began to explain, "The new engine should be able to push 50-55 knots tops. You'll note that this design has a shallow draft of less than a meter. This will let us work in the river systems of the continent. With these boats and the freighter that Konoha has claimed the traitors Danzo and Orochimaru are now vulnerable from water born attack."
Tazuna and his friend began to grin like predators, with a fleet of these, larger, more predatory nations and villages like Kiri would have a hard time pulling the the underhanded operations like Whirlpool's downfall and the hostile near take over of their own. Any waterborne invasion would be hard pressed with such fast and nimble craft harassing them. Tazuna looked at the yougd fryv 4e zxcv c Lord of Whirlpool with proud eyes. Naruto had delivered Wave and what remained of Whirlpool a way of protecting themselves and possibly regaining their lost territory.
"How many are you wanting to build?" the former retainer of Naruto's grandfather asked.
"One hundred hulls initially, fifty to Konoha and fifty to Wave. The weapons fit will take some working out since we need to have them as powerful as we can but still fit into the hulls. I have an idea but I need to talk to the leader of the land of Iron. The weapons that we used to liberate Wave can't be used for political reasons, ones that I highly agree with. So I've a few things in mind. It's clear that gunpowder based weapons are coming into existence on this continent. Those are primitive compared to what we use but they still are too dangerous for the time being."
"Now, if you don't mind, this is a party and Sakura-chan hates it when I discuss business at such an event or even in our home, so let's see if there's any thing left because I see Choji Akimichi isn't moving so it's a reasonable assumption that he's ate his fill," with that the three pillars of the community rejoined their comrades in the feast and festivities.
The next morning found the remaining 21 genin assembling on the athletic field of Wave's maritime and military academy. Once again they found themselves doing push ups with their feet in an elevated position, only this time they weren't resting on logs. Instead there were five inflatable rubber boats that were assigned to six or seven persons each. Three for the 21 genin and two for the 12 jonin senseis. At the moment a small but athletically built girl with pink hair was once again leading the mornings exercises, while cadets in the academy stood around and watched in curiosity.
Earlier that morning the whole of the advanced training program mustered on the field at 0430 hours and the first thing they all noticed through the haze of varying degrees of hangover was the five rubber boats. As the stood there gawking and wondering what torture their fearless leaders had cooked up Naruto began calling names. As he called them many noticed that he wasn't going by alphabetical order. Rather he was jumping from name to name in a seeming random fashion. Those that were extremely sharp noticed that the names were in order but broken down to what seemed like teams.
Naruto and Sakura, along with Kakashi, Asuma and Kurenai all had sat down before the first group left. As it stood a member of Team 9 was in charge of each boat. Since they were the senior genin team Naruto had decided long ago to give all three positions of leadership.
Neji was performing as expected and over time had begun to trade his animosity towards his cousin for something akin to respect with a hint of tough love. The fact of the matter was that Neji was now acting as the big brother Hinata viewed him as. Long talks with Naruto had seen to that, to the you Hokage to be family was the most important thing in the world so he took it upon himself to change Neji's opinion on certain things that had happened to him in the past.
The defining moment that seemed to change the young man's mind was Hinata's performance during SERE. It was during that period of mock interrogation that her inner strength had shown through. Curious he broke down and asked his cousin what had made her so strong to withstand that kind of mental and physical stress. Her answer shocked him. She endured, she told him, because what T&I had subjected her to was child's play compared to the daily ordeal the elders has placed on her, even though Hiruzen had arrested and executed those that had conspired with Danzo, others had taken their place and were much more subtle in their treatment of the shy girl. Neji was seething when she told him all that they did to her, either personally or through her father. Knowing what he knew now, the older Hyuga cousin vowed to be more protective of his younger cousins, like a good big brother should.
As for the other members of Team Nine, Tenten had grown into her role as mentor to the younger girls. On the first day of training she had called all the girls, Sakura included, to a private meeting. In that meeting she laid out her expectations for the future kunoichis and her dislike of fan girls and girls that refused to take their jobs as ninja seriously. Sakura backed her up and endorsed Tenten's long term plan and goals for the girls. Over time the same kunoichis in training that had hated the senior genin came to see her as a sort of den mother, one that they could go to with their problems. And believe me, they had problems, lot's of problems from trying to stay motivated to wanting to know how to deal with boys asking them out for dates when they weren't ready.
Being in a relationship with Lee helped with the last type of problem her charges had to deal with, the others she had to rely on her past experiences or consult with Sakura. In the pecking order of the female genin things had changed from the genins academy days. Sakura was on top while Tenten was next in order. Ino, who had been Sakura's right hand in class was now number three, her status as the Yamanaka princess and heiress assured her of that. Ami was next followed by Hinata. These girls weren't just the leaders of the new female genin but were seen as role models by the girls still in the academy as well. It was a given that Hinata and Ino would be assigned to Iruka after advance training finished to mentor the next batch of kunoichis as they took missions with who ever they were assigned to. Clan heiresses were a special breed of ninja and were protected as much as possible.
That didn't mean they were exempt and hidden from danger. It just meant that they had other more special non-combat duties to learn. Ami and the other girls would be the ones to lead from the front as it was, and get the dirtiest jobs. For those girls were seen as the most promising field commanders as well as field medics that had no equal. In fact all of the genin that were trained in medicine were the most valuable and therefore the most in need of protection. It was a fact of life for Konoha's newest ninja that one medic was worth ten combat ninja, it was also accepted by that same group of ninja that they would put their lives on the line for any of the medics they had trained with. Tenten in fact was tougher on the medics then the other girls as they were so valuable they needed to be able to protect themselves and their patients for an hour or more until help could arrive. While the girls hated the extra training they loved their bun haired den mother and her eccentric boyfriend.
Simply put, Rock Lee had changed the most since his team's fateful meeting with Naruto and Sakura. He listened to what his leader had said of him being a one trick ninja that acted more like a circus clown than a trained killer. After the meeting he sat down and talked to his teammates and began to pick their brains on what he could do to improve. After he was told, in sometimes brutal fashion, Lee did something that surprised everyone there. He listened, to everything, good, bad or otherwise, he took what was said to heart. He also discarded the green spandex jump suit that emulated his mentor and idol, Maito Gai, with Gai's blessing.
He still retained the bowl cut hair style but he found comfort and acceptance wearing the green fatigue uniform that was issued to everyone in the advanced class. He was the physical fitness trainer and in that task he found fulfillment. He also found confidence that was vastly different from his loud and brutish exterior that he had shown for years. He quieted down to the point that he could just speak normally and everyone nearby would stop to listen. He also learned the new taijutsu form that Naruto and Sakura taught working to be the instructor for that part of training. In fact he would be the next classes taijutsu instructor when not on missions.
Of all of Team Nine the Uzumaki's were proudest of Lee to the point that if Naruto was in need of a tough workout or spar Lee was the one he went to. Lee was also a master marksman and the only one besides the Uzumaki's that were allowed to openly carry firearms on missions. This was to compensate for his damaged chakra coils. While Tsunade had performed a very lengthy and complicated surgery on the teen there was only so much she could do. Regardless of the outcome, Lee was happy to at least use minor D thru G ranked jutsus as well as use chakra to walk on walls and other unconventional surfaces.
As it stood now, Team Nine will have no trouble in the upcoming chunin exams. The others are going to have to wait for their turn to advance. Right now those exams were far from Naruto's mind as he watched his troops finish their morning routine. Now came the fun part, "Class 01! Ahhhhh tennnn shunnnnn! Very good,stand at ease. Today is the start of your last phase of training. Desert survival will be put off until we can work a deal with Suna to allow you guys access to their territory as that was the plan the Namekazi clan had decided to go with. It seems that Rice has closed their borders to my clansmen so they have no reason to take us in that direction for training."
"This means that we have a little more time for this phase and it begins now. Team Nine! Front!" Naruto bellowed out and watched as the genin of called team ran to stand before their leader.
Neji saluted as he and his teammates stood in front of Naruto who smiled and returned the salute, Team Nine reporting, sir!"
"Very well, you three will follow behind Sakura and I. The others are going for an elephant walk," turning to the rest, jonin included, Naruto began to call out, "This elephant walk is designed to make all of you use team work to move these boats around the academy and Uzumaki compound, so, on the count of three you all will stand three to a side and then on another three count you'll pick the boat up and place it on your heads. After that, a walk to the galley for breakfast okay?"
Seeing the looks he and Sakura were getting, especially the jonin, Naruto smiled wider, "1...2...3 hut! Very good, so very, very good. Now one more time, 1...2...3..Hut!"
This time it was was a mess as everyone scrambled to steady the boats on their heads. As expected the genin's boats were tilting all sorts of ways. Seeing that Naruto began to bark orders, "Team Nine, each of you take a boat and straighten up the teams. The faster you do it the more time we have to eat! GO!"
It took just two minutes of pulling, shoving and cursing to get everything looking right. As soon as the rafts were more or less on a level plane Naruto called for the formation to start moving. It took another ten minutes of 'marching' to arrive at the academy's galley or cafeteria. One of the first things the genin noticed was that everything on the academy grounds were labeled in nautical terms so a wall was now a bulkhead, the floor a deck and the restroom the head. There were other terms for things as well and to top it off there was a whole other language that only Naruto and Sakura seemed to understand.
Shaking off their confusion the genin were processed through the serving line and were allowed to eat anything they liked within reason. Some like Choji were still on a monitored diet but his restrictions had become less over the months as he did his best to eat like a normal Akimichi. Once done the class was marched, boats and all, across the parade ground or grinder, to their first class. Stacking the boats one on top of the other, they then filed into the classroom.
To no one's surprise Naruto and Sakura stood up to speak. As everyone got comfortable Naruto walked to the center front of the room, "Good morning, I hope you all enjoyed the meal. Before we get started I want you to memorize this saying," as he spoke Sakura had written the saying one the chalkboard, "Si vis pacem, para bellum, 'To have peace, prepare for war. One is coming that much I know, when is the question. ANBU and other elements have been keeping our enimies off balance for the last few years, all that is for later. Let's just get things rolling here.
Today is the start of you last phase of training, it's also the most important one. Because of past actions on the part of Kiri, Konoha and Wave have been engaged in a sort of Cold War, a raid here, a ship taken there. All of these seem minor in the grand scheme of things as the status quo is maintained. That's no longer the case. Kiri's covert action of taking control of Wave via the Gato Corporation was ill advised but had they left it at just Gato things wouldn't have heated up. No, what the Mizukage did was to position three advanced freighters in this country's waters, each holding 100 ninja a piece. They were in place and waiting for Gato's signal to begin the seizure and subjugation of this country, directly threatening Fire country and Konoha. It was just pure luck that Tazuna-san requested a mission from Konoha to ensure his safety while he built that bridge there by introducing a small force of shinobi into this land. Had the decision not been made to remove Gato and the others in power at the time then the situation here wold be of a hostile neighbor and Fire country in constant danger of attack. This is the situation as it is now and this is where you all come into the picture."
"Konoha is known for it's team work and having the flexibility to adapt to new situations. We have many talented shinobi and kunoichi to call on and can tailor each team of chunin and jonin to the mission. Having said that, this class will be experts in waterborne and covert operations. You will use the coastal waters, rivers and streams as you would the trees of our home. Once training is over, I plan on sending a company sized force of genin and chunin into Kiri to lend assistance to the rebel forces operating there. My cousin Zabuza will be leading this force."
"I see the looks on your faces since this class is considered a company in it's self. That's not true, you 21 are the future leaders of the shinobi forces. You may not know this but there are two training centers for Konoha's ninja forces. The academy is one but not the main one. The main one has no name other than the Konoha Military Training Center. This is where the ones that in the past were sent when they failed the second genin test, the one given by their prospective senseis. For the most part members of clans were sent back to their compounds and taken off the ninja rolls since the clans seem to think that their kids are to be the leaders and anything else is an embarrassment and insult. The ones who are rolled back are the offspring of civilian families that can't afford the repayment penalties levied on the clans. This is why I changed things, it's because of the inequity of the program. No matter what the penalty is it's still far short of the 11,000,000 ryu spent on your education.
"With being rolled back into the Center we, the village, have given the washouts a chance to advance through a remedial program. Most if not all that graduate will have worked their way into leadership positions and are placed in charge of their own team. The others are placed in the center from the start. That test everyone takes before entry to the academy is a placement test. Those with potential for being a leader are sent to the academy, those that fall short are sent to the Center. These are the true combat ninja of the village, our hidden strength. The academy grads are the public face of Konoha shinobi, the ones that do all the little things for the village, the dreaded D rank missions."
Looking over his audience Naruto smirked a bit, this was not what they had expected. Each and everyone of the genin in this room as well as some of the very naive jonin like Kurenai, thought that they were true ninja by taking the D rank missions. Now they were learning the truth about how the ninja world works as Naruto spoke again,
"Do any of you know the true purpose of the D rank missions that are carried out in the village where everyone can see? I'll tell you, those missions, chores to anyone else, are designed for two purposes. The first is to keep up the lie we tell the civilians, that the shinobi are there to help the civilians with doing things they're too busy or too lazy to do themselves. That's the public face of us, that we're just young public servants that are learning the ropes before we take on more high profile missions. It gives them the illusion that their village and beloved Hokage or as in our case, Regent, would never send children to schools whose sole purpose is to train them to kill. That's other villages like the 'Bloody Mist' or Iwa, Kumo or Suna, they do that but not us. BULLSHIT! It's exactly what we do, we're the same as the others in that regard, they tell the same lie as we do."
"Now, the second and real reason for the D rank missions, that's to make you all good leaders. The first thing a leader must do to be a leader himself is to follow. Those missions are to knock that "I'm from a clan so I don't have to do this" bullshit from your minds. Of course you have to do it. Even in exile I had to undergo training that makes what we put you through seem like a game and in a shorter amount of time. D ranks also allow you to get some practical experience in a controlled environment. The cat from hell for example, anyone know the real purpose of the mission? Anyone? Anybody at all. Anybody? Beuller?" SMACK! "Oww! What the hell Sakura-chan? Anyway since you all don't know, not even the jonins, but they may just not telling, I'll tell you.
"Now, don't you think that by now the Fire Lord's wife would know how not to hold her cat? Well, trust me she does and that little furry bastard is spoiled rotten, even has his own bedroom. Anyway her ladyship and the cat are in on this mission, once a week the cat 'runs away from home' thus generating the mission. The core of this mission is not returning the cat to it's mistress but let's the jonin sensei look over your skills in tracking, information gathering and capture. Remember, madam Shimiji would be very upset if something were to happen to little Tora-chan, who by the way is related to Sakura-chan's cat summons. Just like a summoned critter Tora can speak and will actually go willingly if he's asked, so far no one has tried to do just that. So, this mission is not about finding a wayward cat, who by the way is given a meal of fresh tuna after the mission is over. It's his motivation to take part and the longer he stays gone the bigger the portion of the fish he's given. I'm guessing that since he got a whole one on Kiba's outing that's a record set. It's also why your payment was so small, someone has to pay for that meal and it ain't the Hokage's office or his owner.
"Now, the capture Tora mission is actually practice for a 'snatch and grab' mission. A taking of a live prisoner in other words. Tora makes a great target and unless you look deeper into the picture it just looks like it is, trying to find a missing cat. The villagers have a picture of what a ninja should be and that's the one you guys present, a bunch of clan or other exceptional kids that are doing their duty to the village. Those in the know are willing to continue this myth and provide plausible explanation to your training. In other words, you and your predecessors have been doing your intermediary training right out in the open and no one but other ninja were the wiser."
"Most of you and your clansmen, if you come from a clan, consider these missions beneath your station. This is a foolish way of thought. These missions are to train all of you in how to serve and follow as well as other skills. A good leader is a good follower first. Those that know how to serve others will in turn understand the hardships their troops face. The four man genin cell that are assigned D through B missions are more of a public relations gimmick to bring more money into the village coffers. We're Konoha's prized show dogs, no offense to Akamaru," this got a laugh from the assembled shinobi and broke the tension in the room, "we're the public face of the village, the ideal that every child and academy student aspires to be."
"This is not unique to Konoha," the genin commander continued, "In the country Sakura and I were exiled to the officer class were given more education and some military training while the enlisted class, the ones that actually do the fighting, were given intensive training for their specialty. The officer class are upheld as the ideal and heroes in peace time while the enlisted do all the dirty jobs. This is how it's always been here and in other places the world and I dare say the universe over. It changes with this class. In the coming months some of you will be sent with the combat groups assigned to aid the Kiri rebels, others will be staging raids to unbalance the traitors that did great harm to our village, Sasuke's clan and my family."
"I've said this once before but it bears saying again, we...are the tip of the spear, the sharp edge of the blade that protects Konoha, Fire country, Wave and our other allies. We are death from the shadows, chaos in the minds of our enemies. We are true ninja. Death to those that desire harm to our home, our families and our allies!"
At Naruto's rallying cry the room exploded in cheers and cries of Banzai. Letting his friends settle down Naruto just smiled at them. Turning to his wife he raised an eye brow as if to send her a message. Sakura just smiled back and took her husband's place,
"Okay, you've heard what our leader has to say, now let me give you a brief of what to expect. The first week, starting today, will be classroom work. You'll be expected to know your way around any size ship or boat and you have three weeks to do so. Beginning the fourth week you'll be learning basic underwater operations, how many in here know how to swim underwater?" Sakura looked over the group and saw all but one hand raised. Nodding she continued her briefing, "Everyone but Kiba, that's good. Kiba is exempt as he has a genetic mutation in his nasal passages that allows him to have a greater sense of smell. In exchange nature has made it so his body can't close off his respiratory system when his head is forced under the surface of water. It can't be medically modified nor can he help it, this is what makes the Inuzuka clan such wonderful trackers."
"Having said all that, you'll have one week of classroom and theory in underwater operations. Kiba, you'll also attend so you can be our eyes on the surface should anything go wrong in the future. Once the classroom work is done we'll have a week for practical experience with the re-breathers, unlike other villages you will use your re-breathers only in the water. The fools we took down in our escort mission, the Demon Brothers, were slowed by the weight of their underwater equipment hence the restriction we've placed on their usage."
As Sakura spoke she began to pace in front of the classroom, "Now, the rubber boats you're now humping around. First the reason you're practically living with them is to get you all used to their weight and size as well as how to carry them without killing yourselves. Second, the second week after the classroom work is done you all will be learning how to operate them in the water. By the time we're done you'll be doing rough water rock portages," seeing the confusion on the genin's faces Sakura smiled and continued, "Don't worry, we'll teach you the meanings to the terms we're using. Once you've learned to operate those rubber boats you all will be handed over to different boat and ship crews to learn how the different types work. From fishing boats to ferrys to freighters and later the frigates that we're soon to be using you'll be given the practical knowledge to operate and fight from them. Any questions?"
"Exactly what are we if we're not as Naruto said 'real ninja'?" Sasuke asked, "I mean, half of us are going to be deployed with your cousin and ninja teams our age that we know nothing about, so, where do we fit in the chain of command?"
"Good question, next?" Naruto replied with a grin showing that he was messing with his friend, "Seriously though, it's a good question. As for the answer, all that go will have an officer's rank of Ensign. In fact all that go through this training will have naval rank and titles, the class after us will be taking training in desert combat and will be given traditional ground forces ranks. So back to the question, you all will be assigned to a four man team as an apprentice to the team leader. This will be your finishing school so to speak. I'll give you a piece of advice given to Sakura and I before we started our initial training, the maker gave you all two eyes, two ears and one mouth for a reason. When under instruction or with those you don't really know, keep your eyes and ears open and your fucking mouth shut. Do that and you'll learn quicker and make a better impression. Should you be confused or something is unclear in that case speak up and ask questions that are clear and to the point. Got it? Okay, next?"
"How long are we to be deployed in Kiri?" one of the civilian born genin asked, a kid named Gendo, no last name as he was just another orphan from the Fox's rampage nearly sixteen years ago. The only reason Naruto knew his name was that he wore white gloves at all times, held his hands in front of his face and wore some orange tinted glasses. Naruto thought the glasses were cool but Sakura beat that out of him in a New York minute.
"That depends on what the situation is on the ground up there. This is another reason to pay close attention to what is taught here. Kiri is a land of Islands and carrying out raids on enemy camps and infrastructure is going to be your main focus there with the skills and equipment you receive here . You will follow Zabuza's orders to the letter, however, should the situation drastically change to the point the mission plan is useless then you are to determine the best course of action," Naruto answered, "Look, I speak from experience, no mission plan remains intact once contact has been initiated. I'd rather you err on the side of caution than charge in blindly. In other words don't be an idiot and die in a fight that you can't win but do have a chance to escape."
There's an old saying in one of the lands we fought in, 'Better to live and fight another day than die in a pointless fight'. Just use discretion and listen to your team leader, they've more experience in combat than you all do. It's a dirty secret the village holds but here it is, we've been in a shadow war for years with Iwa and Cloud. They cross into our lands and make a few kills, we retaliate in kind and it all gets blamed on bandits and missing nins."
At this point Sakura speaks up to emphasize the looming threat on the horizon, "Let us not forget one important thing, on our arrival the intelligence reports gave us three to four years before this cold war begins to heat up. Naruto's orders to the main forces have unbalanced Iwa and Cloud to the point that they can't even think about open warfare for another six years. Kiri is in a civil war whose rebels are being funded and supplied by Konoha and Wave through the Namikaze clan. When they are successful the new Kiri government will be allied with the Leaf through treaty and Uzumaki bloodlines. Along with Sand the Leaf will stand strong to take out our primary target, Sound."
"Sound as you know is a new village in the land of Rice. What you all didn't know until today is that it's leadership consist of the traitors Orochimaru and Danzo. That's where the second section of forces are going to be operating in. We can access Rice via a river that open into the ocean along the coast of the Land of Iron. At the moment Lord Third and Lord Jiraiya are negotiating a treaty of not only mutual support but an open border with us allowing us passage in and out of the country via the waterways and sanctuary in designated areas such as riverside towns and villages."
At this point Naruto walked towards the class, "Now, what you've heard is an X class secret. You don't mention what you said to anybody that includes friends, lovers if you have one, family. The first rule of," at that he looked at his wife with a wary eye, "The first rule of fight club is you don't talk about fight club, or in this case any plans to make our enemies lives miserable."
"Now the first lesson is this, any nation that desires to be strong in the eyes of it's peers will have a strong naval presence. To guarantee defense of it's coasts and security of it's sea lanes and waterways for trade and diplomacy ..."
*Beam- The widest part of a water craft from side to side.
A/N;
Okay, first I'm sorry that I'm late with this, I had both a writers block and I'm acting as a beta for another writer. I also have pressing family matters in real life so there are just days that I'm too tired to even think about righting. It's also hitting 110+ most days where I live recently so that heat takes the piss out of everyone.
One thing I want to address before anyone comments on it. Naruto is not Danzo, he's not hungry for power like the mummy. He is however realistic enough to know that the two traitors will do all they can to either destroy or take over Konoha if the Leaf do nothing. He's seen it on Earth during his exile. Remember, he and Sakura were children at this time in the real world so the out come of Syria, Afghanistan and other places have not played out yet. In the future though I do see a literal war on the drug cartels and other groups as public opinion begins to pressure their governments for action.
Naruto, is trying to not only build a strong alliance with Wave, Suna and later on Kiri but is raising a shinobi force that's versed in fighting in every climate and terrain. As he said, to have peace, prepare for war, and that's exactly what he's doing. He's also having his mentors negotiate a treaty for open borders with Iron for freedom of movement into and out of Sound's territory. As Sakura said, they have almost five or six years before open warfare begins, that period won't be shown as a whole but there will be multiple time skips.
Okay, where did Naruto's speech and explanation of the two tiered education system come from? It was inspired from a very old story called "Naruto Captured" started in 2008 and last updated in 2014. I PM'd the author for permission to use that idea in my story but I never did get and answer back, another reason I'm late with this chapter. I think that four weeks is a reasonable time to wait for a reply so after that time passed I decided to use the idea as planned.
Naruto Captured answers the question that everyone has after the second jonin test, where to the wash outs go? This answers that and others. No to spoil it but both Naruto and Sakura grow more than in the first years of canon but also makes a little fun of a certain sexually ambiguous Uchiha. It's worth the time read even if it's incomplete.
I know that there's no action in this chapter but that's how I planned it. Hopefully this will be the last slow chapter for a while but the world and character building is over for the most part. The next chapter will open slow but pick up pace once it get's going.
Now, a new couple appears, Shikamaru and Ino are now official. Truthfully, I was going to have her marry Naruto under the CRA but as I wrote this chapter I thought of how much Shikamaru and Ino care about each other with Ino going so far as making him promise to kill her if a mission goes wrong and they're going to be captured. I also think that they'd make a good couple.
And since it's out there, Temari will be wife number two, she just doesn't know it yet. I feel that she's going to be they key later on in how Konoha reacts during the Chunin Exams, yes, they're going to happen, just not on the canon timeline. She's already made a good impression on Sakura and thinks Naruto is cute but a bit goofy.
As to how Naruto is acting more mature than normal, remember, physically, he's the current age of his peers. Mentally, he's twenty-five or six and, along with Sakura, a very experienced leader. He still has him 'idiot moments' and will continue to do so. Sakura is more grounded and as you've seen, stands beside her husband through everything but his outburst with Sasuke. She made her mind up as a child long ago when they were just street rats no one wanted that she'd stay and support Naruto no matter what. That doesn't stop her from hitting her baka when he needs it.
As for their children, really, I didn't have much planned for this chapter except that they would be tagging along with their parents. That and a little rivalry with Inari. Sorry if I didn't expand their roll this time but I will say this, their time in Waves academy will be long remembered by their classmates and teachers.
That's all I have for now, if you want to know what the ships look like for the frigates, those are the ones captured from Gato, look up the Star of India sailing ship. It's tied up in San Diego and open for tours. If you remove all but the main mast amidships then you have a general idea. For the smaller boats search for Special Operations Combat Craft. These are what the SEALs use in rivers and coastal waterways. The power plants for both till be based on the Garret Auxiliary Power plants used in helo and fixed wing aircraft. They run off of nearly every kind of flammable liquid and deliver a lot of horsepower. To install them and the sensing and communications suites Naruto is having some of the fox clan that lived on earth either raising them or set things up for their appearances. Now they're going to be Naruo's specialists on engines and radar.