Naruto was disgusted. Not with himself, but with the Hokage, and the 2 chunin he had testing him. If you can call that a test. All they did was have him do the basic academy stuff that almost anyone could do by the age of 9. They didn't have him perform any ninjutsu, taijutsu, swordsmanship, or anything else besides the basic stuff. Why they didn't test his skill, and give him a rank befitting it was beyond him. The only conclusion he could come up with was so petty and short sighted he refused to even acknowledge it. So here he was irritated and stomping his way towards the academy not even noticing Tenten waiting outside the gates with a box in her hands. As he walked past her unaware a tick mark appeared on her forehead, and doing what any konoichi with her weapon skill would. She threw a kunai at him. What she didn't expect was for him to suddenly catch the kunai but the handle spinning to face his would be assassin. Seeing Tenten standing there he grinned sheepishly.
"Sorry, Tenten. I had a rough weekend, and am still a little upset about the so called exam." Naruto said as he handed her kunai back.
"It's ok, Naruto-kun. I just came by to give you the last of the supplies you ordered." She said holding out the box to him.
Smiling he took the box, and put its contents into the seals on his arms before handing the box back to her. "Thanks I appreciate this a lot. You know you didn't have to deliver this. I could have picked them up this afternoon."
"It's no problem, Naruto-kun. Today was a rest day for my team so I have a lot of spare time today. Speaking of which…..Would you like me to show you around town this afternoon? You probably haven't had a chance to get oriented with being in the hospital and the exam."
He smiled thinking she looked cute with the slight blush as she coyly ducked her eyes towards the ground. "Sure that sounds like a good idea. Plus it would help me get my mind off of certain things."
Beaming a smile at his acceptance she didn't see the shadow of sadness in his eyes, and promised to meet him at the gate after classes before running off. Naruto headed inside following the directions on the paper given him by the Hokage after his exam. He stood in front of the door to the class pocketing the paper, and schooled his features since he was still in a bad mood. Opening the door we walked up to the teacher he had met at the Hokage's office. "Good morning, Iruka-sensei."
Iruka smiled at the boy having heard the cover story the Hokage and Naruto had come up with. "Good morning, Strife-san. It's good to see you found the class without any problems. When I get everyone's attention I want you to introduce yourself. Ok?"
Naruto nodded just wanting to get this over with knowing he would learn almost nothing from spending time in the academy, and faced the rest of the class. It took Iruka several minutes to get the class's attention, and only managed to do that by using the infamous Big-head jutsu. After making sure he had their attention he told the class about the new student, and motioned for Naruto to introduce himself.
"My name in Naruto Strife. Age: 15 Blood type: B Height: 5'5 Weight: 140 lbs Hair: Blonde Eyes: Green. It is nice to meet you." Naruto bowed formally hoping the information he gave would help him to avoid any awkward questions. Seeing Iruka gesture to a spot towards the back of the class he walked over and sat down. As Iruka began taking role call he took note of the names and faces of those in his class. As the day slowly passed for Naruto he was proven right in his assumption that he would learn almost nothing from this with the exception being history. When the lunch bell rang he came as a relief. His lunch was spent lying against a tree in the shade wondering how he was going to get through this without going stir crazy. The only option he had come up with by the time lunch was over was mimicking the boy Shikamaru, and sleeping during class. In a better mood then he was this morning but still more then irritated at the situation he made his way back to class.
Having missed that morning's fangirl race between Sakura and Ino he felt more than a little disgust, and strongly considered casting Stop on them when they ran in like banshees fighting over who got to sit next to Sasuke. While he was listing the pros and cons of casting a Materia spell on them he didn't notice a rough looking boy with a puppy on his head walk over to him.
"What's wrong? Jealous they aren't fighting over you?" The boy said with malicious humor in his voice. Kiba's motives behind this were simple. Coming from a clan that had a pack like organization he was going to show the new kid he was the bottom of the pack. Little did he know he had just made himself an unwilling victim of Naruto's pent up aggression.
Looking up at the boy that smelled like a kennel Naruto quickly sized him up, and found him to be severely wanting in the threat department. "Are you kidding? Why would I be jealous of some closet gay emo, and his pathetically oblivious banshee whore harem?"
Kiba snickered at the names Naruto had used for Sasuke and his fangirls before moving on with his plan. "A new guy like you would never have a chance with any girl so it would only be natural for an omega like you to be jealous of your betters."
Naruto having learned a lot about nature and animal behavior from Nanaki narrowed his eyes at the insult, and smiled as an idea came to him. Flaring his nostrils dramatically in Kiba's direction he then spoke in a curiously humorous tone. "Is that virgin I smell? Must be since a flea bag mutt like you wouldn't even get looked at twice by the village stray even if she was in heat."
Kiba, who viewed himself as an alpha, was pissed. Here was this guy on his first day at the academy insulting the son of the head of the Inuzuka clan, and at the same time insulted his manhood not 10 feet from his crush. "What would you know? You probably don't even know what this difference is between boys and girls yet!" he growled out loudly catching the rest of the room's attention.
Seeing how easily Kiba was riled Naruto leaned back lazily, and spoke in a bored tone. "Instead of wasting my time trying to explain things you obviously are unable to comprehend I'll give you the short answer. Yes I know what the difference between men and women are. My ex-girlfriend made sure of that almost a year ago." Naruto finished looking at Kiba with a smirk.
Really not liking the look that on Naruto's face that said "I'm more of a man then you will ever be, and you will have nothing but pity from me." Kiba growled flexing his claw like fingers. "BULLSHIT! There is no way a nobody like you could have a girlfriend let alone had sex!"
Seeing that everyone including the narcoleptic was watching with interest Naruto casually reached into his pocket, and pulled out a picture that Cid had taken of Yuffie and him in bed asleep. The picture show the covers half off the bed, Naruto in boxers, and Yuffie wearing a halter top and panties while she was laying on her side with an arm and leg draped over him. Slowly holding it up so that everyone near him could see what the picture was, he waved it under Kiba's nose. "That is a picture of me and my ex-girlfriend Yuffie taken by my uncle Cid on our 9 week anniversary." As he spoke his voice turned sad towards the end not noticing the looks he was getting from some of the girls. Some of the less fanatical fangirls had already thought he was cute, and couldn't help but feel their hearts go out to him at the loss that was plain in his voice and face. Surprisingly even the vice-president of the Sasuke fan club, known more commonly as Ino Yamanaka, was one of them. Wanting to hear more they kept quiet silently trying to coax more information from him.
Kiba's eyes had widened at the picture and he even had a slight nosebleed from seeing a nearly naked woman in such a cutely seductive position. Shaking his head he wiped the blood off his face before digging his grave even deeper. "Yeah right! That's probably just some hooker you paid for the picture. I bet such a whore wouldn't even fuck you no matter how much you begged." Oblivious to the massive wave of killer intent directed at him Kiba laughed loudly not realizing he was so close to death that even Shinigami-sama was double checking the paperwork on when Kiba was supposed to die.
As his killer intent grew to the point where some of the class was passing out, and others were fighting for control of their bladders Naruto slowly stood up his face promising an agonizingly slow death in the most torturously painful way possible. Naruto's muscles stood out against his skin with the force of trying to resist the urge to turn the mutt into a stain on the wall. Kiba's laughter ended abruptly when Naruto grabbed a hold of his throat, his arm shaking with repressed rage. As Naruto's grip tightened slowly cutting off the air to his lungs Kiba could have sworn he saw the Shinigami standing behind Naruto.
"This is the only warning I will ever give, boy. If you ever say anything demeaning about Yuffie again I will make the extremely short time you have left is far beyond anything your puny brain can imagine." Kiba tried to nod as he fought to stay conscious only to have Naruto throw him across the room with such force his body left an imprint on the chalkboard. Staring death at Kiba's prone body Naruto stood, fists clenched at his sides using everything he had to calm down. It was at this time Iruka walked back into the room. Rushing over Iruka quickly checked Kiba's vital signs before looking up in time to see Naruto sitting back down.
"What happened here?" Iruka asked taking note of the scared and admiring looks sent Naruto's way.
"The dobe just got taught a lesson by the new guy." Sasuke said in a disinterested way as he looked back out the window. Though his thoughts were another story. 'This Naruto seems pretty strong. I wonder if I'll finally have someone to truly test my strength against.'
Iruka seeing the few nods of affirmation sighed picking up Kiba. "I am taking him to the Nurses office. While I am gone I want you to read Chapter 4 of the Yondaime Hokage's reign, and Naruto we will talk about this after class."
When Iruka returned he could tell that whatever Kiba did Naruto was still pissed about it, and decided to leave him alone until class was over. The time seemed to pass with a snail's pace for everyone as they could feel the rise and fall of Naruto's killer intent. Even Shikamaru who thought everything except sleep was too troublesome kept a careful eye on Naruto. Some of the girls however had their thoughts in turmoil thinking about what they had witnessed. Ino kept glancing at Naruto wondering what had happened to the girl he had spoken of with such sadness of. She could also tell that he had cared for her deeply, and still did, if the rage he had shown when she was insulted was any indication. Near the end of class Naruto had taken out the picture of him and Yuffie, and just sat staring at it his face full of sadness, loss, and love. He continued to sit like this even after the bell rang signaling the end of class, his whole world consisting of the photo and the pain in his heart. As Iruka gathered his papers giving the boy more a few more minutes several of the girls kept glancing at Naruto talking softly to each other as the foundations of his fan club were laid. Sighing Iruka walked over to Naruto, and sat down next to him before speaking.
"I can tell that whatever Kiba did to anger you is about that girl. Why don't you tell me about her, and why you felt the need to send one of you fellow students to the hospital?"
Naruto stared at the photo for a few more minutes while Iruka waited patiently knowing that whatever was going on the girl in the photo was very important to him. Finally taking a deep breath Naruto pocketed the photo before telling Iruka about his relationship with Yuffie, and what had happened in the classroom leaving out the parts that were deemed secret after his conversation in the hospital with Saratobi. Iruka was silent through it all though his face showed sympathy for he knew many shinobi that had lost loved ones including himself. Standing up he patted Naruto on the shoulder in encouragement. "Go home and rest. I will talk with Kiba's mother, who is head of the Inuzuka Clan, myself tonight. I know what you are going through. I lost my parents 15 years ago and a lover when she died during a mission. I will be honest with you. The pain will never truly go away, but it will lessen with time. Just don't let it eat you from the inside." Iruka squeezed his shoulder before heading over to the Inuzuka compound wondering if Kiba would be able to come to class when Tsume was done with him.
Tenten was still waiting at the gate having heard what had happened from some of the girls in Naruto's class, and was pacing nervously when he finally left the academy. Seeing the emotional state he was in she began to worry that he would turn down the offer for her to show him around Konoha. Hearing Tenten's feet shuffle nervously Naruto looked up, and gave a sad smile as he walked over to her.
"I'm sorry, Tenten. Today was a bad day for me, and I really don't want to be alone right now. If it's ok with you could you still show me around? I'll understand if you don't want to with my mood, and having been kept waiting so long." Naruto's voice was filled with sadness, but his eyes held a silent plea not unlike a child hoping for the light to be left on at bedtime.
"It's ok, Naruto-kun. I don't mind at all." Tenten said smiling. Not wanting to make his mood worse she changed the subject by pointing out different places, and describing them. As the sun began to set they were at the Hokage monument standing above the Yondaime Hokage's head. They stood there in silence watching the colorful sky darken. "Beautiful." Naruto whispers causing the blush Tenten had from watching the light play through his hair to deepen. "Yes you are." Said Tenten, catching Naruto's attention. "I'm sorry. What did you say?" He asked wondering what she was thinking since he had missed most of what she said. Thanking Kami for the lack of light as she could feel the heat from her deepening blush she tries to think of something to say when her stomach growls loudly. Laughing lightly at what he thinks her just her embarrassment at her hunger he puts a hand on her shoulder. "Since it's getting late, and you're obviously hungry why don't I treat you to dinner?"
Tenten was afraid of what would come out of her mouth next considering what she's said the last time she opened it so she just nodded. She really didn't care where they went as she was praying to Kami that he didn't think her a fool. After they had made it down from the Hokage monument, and entered the restaurant district she finally managed to get her voice back. "I know a good place that's only a couple blocks over." She said pointing in the relevant direction. Looking up at Naruto she was captivated by his smile, and found herself getting lost in his blue eyes until he spoke.
"That sounds great, Tenten." Naruto took her hand, and started walking in the direction she had indicated. He did not see her blush because the shock had made her slow to start walking, and was a step behind him. Getting a hold of herself she slightly tightened her grip on his hand, and matched his pace. Although she kept her head forward, and continued to tell him about the places they passed her eyes would constantly dart to his face and their hands.
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To say Tsume was upset was like saying the sun was hot. Correct, but one hell of understatement. Iruka had just left after talking with Tsume about what her son Kiba had done in class, and how he had barely escaped being turned into little more than a memory. She had called her daughter in after hearing what Iruka wanted to talk with her about. While Tsume was growling with her fists clenched, Hana was grinding her teeth at the dishonor Kiba had not only brought upon himself, but their clan as well. As clan heir she was justifiably pissed, and would have sent her little brother to the hospital if he wasn't there already.
"Hana, send a message to Anko, and Kurenai telling them I request a meeting at the Akimichi BBQ restaurant in 1 hour. Tell them that I wish to discuss with them some of the students Kurenai may have since she will be a sensei this year, and the possibility that Anko may have a new plaything soon among other things. It is best we get this done before Kiba gets out of the hospital or I may just end up giving Kiba to Anko until he graduates."
Hana bowed to the clan head before leaving to dispatch a messenger to the two jonin. When she returned telling her mother that the messages had been sent Tsume gestured for her to follow. The two remained silent as both envisioned the punishments Kiba would receive, and the ones they thought Anko would deal out as they headed to the meeting place. They walked along the roads instead of jumping over the rooftops to give themselves time to cool off. The sun had just started to set as they walked in seeing the two women they were to meet already there.
"I heard your son got sent to the hospital today after getting his ass kicked. Is that why you wanted to talk with us?" Anko asked as they sat down.
"Partially yes, and if Kiba doesn't stop acting like a fool I may just give him to you as a graduation gift, Anko-san." Tsume growled out before signaling the waitress to send over some sake, and meat.
Anko and Kurenai exchanged a look having thought Tsume would be calling for the other boy's blood instead of her son's. Confusion clear in her voice Kurenai gave voice to the question they both had. "What did Kiba do? From what I hear he's the one that got beat up."
Tsume flexed her fingers leaving gouges in the table from her claw like fingernails. "That is exactly why I am pissed at him. His teacher, Iruka, came by after class to tell me what happened. Kiba had started a pissing contest with a new kid, who apparently is the guy that showed up at the hot spring last week, to affirm his so called alpha status. It was no big deal until he insulted the boy's exgirlfriend by calling her a whore, and was thrown across the room with enough force to leave an imprint of his body in the chalkboard for his efforts. From what Iruka said it seems his exgirlfriend died recently, and they were very close."
At this point the meat and sake was delivered, and the other women placed their own orders. Kurenai had been deep in thought as the orders were placed waiting until the waitress left before speaking. "If that is the case then his reaction is understandable, and Kiba deserves what happened to him, and more." Laughing Anko set the now clean dango stick on her plate. "If I was in his shoes they're be cleaning up what was left of Kiba with a mop. Maybe you should hire one of the Nara to tutor him 'cause it sounds like he isn't that bright."
Hana had remained silent content to listen to her superiors talk so she could learn more about how to be a clan head, and how one should act when she noticed a couple entering. Her eyes widen in surprise before getting the group's attention, and pointing to the entrance. "Well well. It looks like that boy liked what he saw, and decided to get a better look at her naked and wet." Anko laughed seeing Naruto and Tenten still holding hands. Kurenai elbowed Anko in the ribs as Tsume motioned the teens to join them. Naruto looked at Tenten to see if it was ok before heading over to the table the 4 women were at. Each one took appraisal of Naruto taking note of everything from his body language to him pulling out the chair for Tenten before sitting down himself. After introductions they refrained from comment as the newcomers placed orders of their own. While the others were assessing what they had seen Anko made the first comment.
"I take it you like what you saw so well you had to get a better look huh?" She said with a lecherous smirk causing Tenten to blush deeply.
"What do you mean, Anko-san?" Naruto asked in confusion as he didn't remember seeing them at the hot spring. Anko was about to comment before Kurenai stomped on her foot, and receiving a glare in return.
"Please excuse her, Naruto-san. It is good to see your injuries have healed." Standing up she bowed deeply from the waist at Naruto. "I wish to apologize on behalf of the Inuzuka clan about my son Kiba's behavior today. I promise you he will be appropriately punished for his actions."
Naruto's jaw clenched at the reminder of the things Kiba had said before he schooled his features. "It is alright, Tsume-san, but if it happens again I can promise you that his career as a shinobi will end. I will not allow anyone to insult the woman who held my heart so completely without reprisal."
The adults exchanged a look before Tsume replied. "I hope it doesn't come to that, but I can understand with how recently your girlfriend died."
Sighing sadly Naruto looked down and too the side. "She is not dead. At least I don't think she is."
Tenten not having heard what happened looked at Naruto with concern, and placed her hand on his. "What happened then, Naruto? If she's not dead then why did you two break up?"
Naruto stayed silent as several emotions played across his face. Finally he began telling them about Yuffie, the time they spent together, and how their love blossomed after the first time they made love. Over the half hour he spent talking his expression was one that spoke volumes about how much he truly loved her. When he got to the part about being hired to guard a merchant on his way to Calm he suddenly stopped talking and closed his eyes as if trying to hide from a great pain. Slowly he opened his eyes, and looked at each of the konoichi at the table his expression deadly serious.
"What I am about to tell you the Hokage has made a SS class secret punishable by death, and interrogation of yourselves, your families if you tell anyone this." Seeing their eyes widen in surprise the konoichi exchange a look that seemed as if they were carrying a conversation with their eyes. As the senior and ranking person there Tsume nodded for him to continue. Naruto took a moment to make sure no one could overhear before he went on with his cover story.
"As I already said my time there was limited, and set by specific guidelines. When I was sent to train a seal was placed on me by my father that would allow me to be summoned back under 1 of 2 conditions. When the threat had passed, and he summoned me back was the first one. The second was that my father had died, and I would be automatically summoned back at the age of 15. Since my 15th birthday was October 10th it's obvious which of conditions were met. Because of this I had no say in when I returned." Naruto's eyes turn hard as he takes a deep breath. "Not only did I lose the woman I love I also find out my parents died 15 years ago, but that my twin brother was murdered on our birthday 3 years ago." All the women had looks of sincere empathy Tenten had tears in her eyes. Leaning over she gave into her crying as she wrapped Naruto in a hug. It was several minutes before he spoke again as he spent the time calming her down, and drying her eyes. "The reason this is a SS secret is because of who my family is. My brother was Uzumaki Naruto. My mother Uzumaki Kushina." He paused here looking at each konoichi seriously before relating the part that made this so serious. "My father you all know. He was one of the greatest shinobi this village ever produced even though he was an orphan himself. He was Namikaze Minato. Yondaime Hokage. Konoha no Kiiroi Senkō."
The shock on each of their faces could not have been greater if the plates had stood up and started a conga line. Tenten looked like a pole axed ox at the news that the cute boy she had a crush on was the son of the man that had saved Konoha from the Kyuubi at the cost of his own life. Anko leaned back and whistled before downing an entire bottle of sake. She remembered the Yondaime from when she was a child, and had no clue he had any kids let alone a wife. She had also known Uzumaki from her time spent as one of the watchers the Sandaime Hokage had ordered to keep him safe. To learn that the boy that so many villagers had loathed was the son of the Yondaime brought a kind of self-loathing and anger that was only match by what she felt when she thought about Orochimaru. Kurenai didn't know what to think. Having learned about Uzumaki, and his being a Jinchiriki upon her recent promotion to jonin her shock was mostly due to finding out he had sealed the bijuu in his own son. Hana being a medic nin had learned of what the villagers had done to Uzumaki during her training at the hospital, and her sadness at injuries he had was compounded by who his father was. The anger she felt to Minato only increased the chaos of her current emotional state. Tsume's reaction was more schooled due to her position as Clan head and Council member, but it was no less shocked then the others. Even with the extra information she had as a council member she had not known that Minato was with anyone as he spent almost all his time as Hokage in the office dealing with village matters. Following Anko's queue she downed her sake and waved at the waitress to bring another round.
Naruto sat silently gauging their reactions, and let out a mental sigh at not seeing any of the hate he had grown so used to from the villagers as a child. Calmly he finished his food waiting for them to get the information settled in their own eyes. It was nearly 30 minutes, and 4 rounds of sake later before the first words were spoken.
Having settled her thoughts quickly thanks to the sake which also made her mind focus on the more intimate parts of his story Anko leaned forward showing a good bit of her barely concealed breasts. "So, gaki, do you have a photo of this girl? She must be a piece of work to catch your heart so fiercely."
Naruto reached into his pocket for the same photo he had shown Kiba earlier. He looked at it for a moment before placing it on the table for them to see. "That is Yuffie and I on our 9 week anniversary. We had gotten tickets to a major resort from our closest friends. A man I considered my uncle took this picture. It's a good thing he mailed it to us or Yuffie would have fed him his balls." He chuckled a little at the memory of how pissed she was that day, and how badly his back got clawed that night.
Seeing the girl in the photo Tenten couldn't help but feel a little despair. The picture showed a very pretty woman about Anko's age with a well toned body. 'At least I don't have to worry about my breasts being too small since her's are barely bigger than mine.' She thought trying to keep her hopes up.
As Anko whistled he returned the photo back to the safety of his pocket. "Damn! For a kid as young as you get a girl twice your age is something. Especially considering that she is such a nice piece of ass that I wouldn't mind having a go at her."
Seeing the look of Naruto's face darken to dangerous levels Kurenai elbowed Anko in the ribs, and nodded her head toward him. Glaring at Kurenai while rubbing her ribs she glances at Naruto. Her expression becomes sheepish at his expression, and she holds her hands out defensively. "Hey that was a compliment. I only meant she was very attractive, and that you are one lucky man to have a woman like that."
After a few minutes, and some pleading from Tenten Naruto finally relented with a sigh. "Just don't ever insult her again. Not only was she a beautiful woman, and a great konoichi. She was my heart, my best friend, and the greatest sensei I ever had." His eyes had changed as he spoke to seem as if he was looking far into the distance. "There isn't anything I would not have done to stay with her. I would have cut off my arm and laid it at her feet if she had asked it of me." His hands drew into fists as tears began to flow. "The time we spent together is irreplaceable, and I shall forever hold the memories of her in my heart even though I will never see her again." Feeling someone squeeze his hand he finally notices the tears wetting his cheeks. Drying his face he clears his throat as he pulls himself together. "I am sorry, but I need to call it a night." Pulling out his wallet he places enough ryo to cover his and Tenten's meal with a generous tip. "I had fun today, Tenten. I hope we can do this again some time. Hopefully with less tears." He finished softly before waving goodbye, and heading home.
The konoichi watched him leave each with their own thoughts. After a few minutes Tsume's cough brought them back to reality, and they talked with each other about what they had found out as well as the time Tenten had spent with Naruto. They talked until almost midnight before going their separate ways. As she headed home she resolved to talk with the Hokage tomorrow about this Naruto Strife, and see if what he said was true. Either way the situation was very serious, and if true must be handled delicately.
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Lit by the harsh glare of fluorescent lights, a woman dressed in black shorts, and t-shirt walked down a hospital hallway. Upon reaching her destination she hesitated with her hand mere inches from the doorknob. Sighing deeply she opened the door seeing a slightly younger woman on a hospital bed staring out of the window in the same way she had for almost a week. Moving to a chair by the bed the older woman started talking to her despite knowing she wouldn't get a response. As time went on her thoughts turned deeper inward, and very quickly went to her adopted son. Not even realizing her words began to match her thoughts she didn't notice the hospitalized woman turn to look at her. Several minutes later she was jerked from her thoughts as the woman on the bed spoke for the first time in nearly a week.
"Yuffie?" She asked not hoping she had heard her speak, and wasn't just deceiving herself with hope.
Yuffie looked at Tifa her eyes filled with pain, and haunted with a loss no woman should have to face for a moment before speaking in an almost dead tone of voice. "A son…Our son…I've betrayed him…"
Tifa was at a loss at what she was hearing. She leaned forward to look into Yuffie's eyes, and took her hand. "You can't blame yourself, Yuffie. I know how much you wanted to be a mother. The doctors say it the only way to have prevented it was to have been in the hospital from the end of your 1st trimester. I know the pain you're in. Naruto may not have come from my womb, but I loved him as if he had."
"If I hadn't pushed myself so far trying to find any trace of him our son would be alive right now." Yuffie said as silent tears slid down her face. "I killed our son, Tifa. I can't bare the shame. Even just thinking about Naruto coming back rips me apart on the inside. Part of me prays that he'll walk through that door any minute, but another wants nothing more than to curl up in a ball and die."
Tifa sighed pulling Yuffie into a tight hug as her own tears were let free. "Stop this, Yuffie. There is nothing wrong in searching for the man you love, and father of your child. You did the best you could. There is no shame in wanting you child to know his father. Do you really think Naruto would want to see you like this?" She said softly as the two women shared their grief. Tifa held Yuffie for a long time as the younger woman cried with all of her heart and soul. Eventually Yuffie had cried herself into unconsciousness prompting Tifa to gently lay her back in bed. She sat watching over her for a while before leaving to see Cloud. Tifa sighed deeply hoping Cloud was ok since he was taking Naruto's disappearance the hardest next to Yuffie.
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The week went by slowly except for the time Naruto spent with Tenten when she wasn't training or helping at her family's shop. He would train on the days she was busy, and sometimes stop by the Hokage's office to talk. When Kiba returned to class one Wednesday he glared at Naruto, but apologized for his actions as Tsume and Hana had made sure he would. On Friday Iruka announced that after lunch they would be doing the weekly sparing matches. Sasuke perked up at this eager to see how his skills would match up against Naruto's. Kiba thought this would be a great time for payback until he remembered the feel of Naruto's hand around his throat, and Tsume's warning which his dog Akamaru reiterated with a few barks. Naruto smiled in a way he had not since he had returned to Konoha causing Hinata to gasp slightly briefly thinking she had seen a ghost.
The way Naruto smiled reminded her so much of her childhood love. It had broken her hard when Uzumaki Naruto had been declared dead, and she had locked herself in her room crying for 2 weeks. When Naruto Strife had first entered the class she had thought her love had returned to her. He looked so much like him with the blond hair, and blue eyes. He even had the same first name. She had turned on her Byakugan, but there was none of the unique red chakra Naruto Uzumaki had. This combined with the fact he treated her as just another member of the class, and he spent so much time with Tenten caused her to feel the pain of his loss all over again. This time she was able to deal with it better thanks to the vow she made to herself at the end of the 2 weeks she spent locked in her room. She had vowed to honor Naruto's memory by becoming a stronger person. The kind of woman he would have been proud of. Seeing the fox-like grin on her classmate's face made her heart beat just as it had on Monday. Berating herself for wishful thinking she shook her head to clear her thoughts, and returned her attention to Iruka-sensei.
The rest of the morning went by quickly for those hesitant about the spars, and all too slowly for those eager for it. Though Naruto was eager for it he was having an internal debate about what he should do during the match based on what little he knew of his potential opponents. When the time finally came Naruto had decided to keep it to taijutsu as much as possible, and take it easy since it seemed there were few if any that could come close to matching him. This was not his ego talking just a simple statement of fact based on his training, as well as the types and number of fiends he had defeated. When they were all at the sparring grounds Iruka explained the rules while Mizuka, Iruka's assistant went down a list of names to make sure everyone was accounted for.
Most of the matches were uneventful, and were nothing more than a school yard brawl or a slap fest depending on who was in the match. When there were only a few left to go Naruto heard his name called as well as Sasuke's. As he took his position he watched his opponent sneer, and saunter over while his fan girls cheered him on. Naruto decided to play defensively to see just how good the supposed genius was. Iruka made sure both were ready before yelling "FIGHT!"
Sasuke attacked head on with a right hook that Naruto slapped aside making the punch go wide. Sasuke followed up with a sweep using his momentum to add speed and power to the attack. Naruto countered by jumping forward connecting with a knee to the underside of Sasuke's chin knocking him backward. As Sasuke stood up rubbing his chin Naruto took up his stance once more, and smirked making a gesture that said "Bring it." Sasuke's anger flared at being mocked by the new guy, and charged forward in a flurry of punches and kicks trying to get through his guard. This went on for several minutes with each attack being blocked, parried, or dodged. Sasuke's anger was steadily growing with each failed attack, and it finally got the better of him when Naruto landed a double palm thrust to the middle of his sternum.
Sasuke jumped back rubbing his chest as he raged in his mind. 'I am an Uchiha! This should not be happening! I am an elite, and this guy is a nobody. He should be begging for mercy right now!' He finally snapped when he saw Naruto snort, and decided to put the boy in his place. Running through the hand seals he had years of practice with, he inhaled deeply. When he completed the series of hand seals he exhaled shouting out the name of the technique not caring that there were classmates behind Naruto including some of his fan girls. "Katon: Gōkakyū no Jutsu." Naruto couldn't believe that Sasuke would endanger his classmates like this, and ground his teeth preparing to beat some sense into this stuck up prick. As he quickly raised his hand palm out it began to glow with green chakra. Holding his palm toward the approaching fireball he yelled out "WATER" sending a blast of water at the fireball. Having braced himself he sprinted through the explosion of steam as the two attacks collided. Planting his right foot he forcefully threw his left side forward almost sliding as he put his left fist in the palm of his right hand. Using the full force of his momentum he thrust his left elbow forward adding the force from his right hand he hit Sasuke in the chest with an elbow uppercut thrust. The force of the blow threw Sasuke back causing him to cough up blood when he impacted the wall.
Seeing Sasuke's body drop to the ground with a limpness that only unconsciousness brings he turned looked around asking if everyone was ok while unnoticed steam rose off his body making some of the girls drool. Everyone that wasn't drooling just nodded in the affirmative too shocked to form words; even Sasuke's fan girls were unable to find their voices. After Iruka checked Sasuke over he ordered Mizuki to take him to the nurse's office. Iruka then strode over to Naruto his expression clearly not pleased.
"What was that, Naruto? A cracked sternum, 4 broken ribs, and a punctured lung is more than a bit excessive! Why did you feel the need to injure one of your classmates again?!" As Iruka opened his mouth to berate him further Naruto's eyes narrowed as he harshly cut in.
"Why?! He used a very dangerous jutsu that could severely injure or even killed several of the people here including his own fan girls! What I did was stop that from happening, and incapacitated him so he wouldn't endanger anyone else! If you had done your job like you were supposed to, Iruka-sensei, I wouldn't have needed to do that. If you want to place blame somewhere put it on yourself, Mizuki-sensei, and Sasuke where it belongs!" Naruto was all but shouting by the end of his tirade, and stood glaring at Iruka before heading inside. Iruka stared at Naruto's back ashamed of himself because he knew he was right. After a moment he shook himself, and turned back to the remaining students. Seeing them shaken by what had happened he sighed, and told them to head back to class.
After class ended Naruto needed to clear his head. At first he just wandered around, but soon found himself wandering in the forest outside the city. Eventually he came across a huge fence surrounding trees larger then he thought possible. As he stood there in awe of them he was unaware of someone appearing behind him.
"Impressive isn't it, gaki?" The sultry voice inquired.
Turning around Naruto was surprised to see Anko standing there. Idly he noticed she wasn't wearing a bra under her mesh shirt today before he was able to meet her eyes. "Yes they are. I can't even imagine how old they have to be to grow to that size. Is the fence there to protect them?"
Seeing him having to tear his eyes off of her breasts she smirked, and then outright laughed at his question. "No the fence is there to keep things from getting out not in. This is training ground 44, also known as the Forest of Death. It is the single most dangerous place in all of Konoha, and my little playpen. Now that you know where you are tell me what you're doing here."
Naruto told her about the spar with Sasuke, and how he had gone off on Iruka before wondering here lost in thought. As he spoke there were several times he had to tear his eyes away from Anko's assets which only made her smirk grow. After the 3rd time she moved her body in alluring ways occasionally causing Naruto to see more than just a little of her ample breasts. From there the conversation went into greater detail about the Forest of Death until Naruto said that it sounded a lot like where he spent a lot of time training.
Hearing this Anko laughed before leaning forward causing her trench coat to hang open slightly. "So you think you can handle it in there, gaki? Why don't we see if you can, or if your sword is just overcompensating for something?" Waving him to follow she headed to the closest gate, and walked with Naruto into the forest after relocking the gate. Anko lead him deeper into the forest showing him some of the more deadly flora and fauna describing each in detail. When they reached a well shaded clearing in the C ranked section of Training Ground 44 she signaled a stop, and sat down with her back against a tree. Initially she was going to use him as cannon fodder for her humor, but decided to find out more about this boy when she could feel not just see that he was angry, hurt, sad, and a myriad of other emotions. Despite all of that he was still very conscious of his surroundings, and had shown considerable skill for someone of his age.
"Take a load off, gaki. Now that I've shown you some of my personal playground why don't you tell me what's got you in such a funk?"
Naruto sat down a couple feet from her, and looked up at the sky in thought. After several minutes he decided to tell her some of his story as well as what happened at the academy. He knew he could trust her at least somewhat seeing as she was one of the few who had actually helped him escape from the mobs in his younger days even if she didn't know it had been him. At first his words came out angry as he told her about the spar, and how he had to protect his classmates from the Uchiha-teme. His words came slower, and the heat left his voice as he told how it had brought back memories of his training. The sadness and pain could be felt as he told her how those same memories were connected to his ex-girlfriend Yuffie.
Anko had been listening and cracking jokes until she heard the agony in his voice, and it struck a chord in her having felt much the same way years ago when she had been betrayed by Orochimaru. Oddly she found herself drawn to the boy when he began speaking of Yuffie, and could hear the love he still had for her clear in his voice despite the emotional pain he was in. As his story ended she found much to her surprise that she had tears running down her cheeks. Who would have thought that he would have been able to break through the mask she held so tightly just by hearing his story. She spent the next few minutes lost in thought of her own past with Orochimaru, how the village treated her after his betrayal, and of her only true friend. As she came back to reality she noticed Naruto looking at her, and was shocked to see that he was looking at her with similar pain, the same fragile hope she had when she first confided in Kurenai, and most of all understanding. Seeing him silently looking at her like this broke the last vestiges of her mask causing her to pull him into a hug burying his face into her chest telling him of her own past between sobs. Naruto simply listened to her gently rubbing her back, and shedding tears of his own as she told her story as a bond formed between them the likes of which can only be shared by people who have known such hardships as they have.
When the emotional storm had passed they continued to talk while sitting shoulder to shoulder under the massive tree. Though only words were exchanged they both felt lighter then they have in a long time. The sudden growling of a stomach broke into their conversation eliciting an apologetic smile from Naruto. "Sorry, Anko-chan. I guess we've been here longer then I thought."
Smiling Anko waved away the apology. "No need to be sorry." She looked up to check the position of the sun to check the time. "Why don't you join me for dinner? I'm supposed to meet a friend of mine soon. You're welcome to join us."
Naruto thought about it for a moment before answering. "Sure. I haven't enjoyed a meal with a good friend in a long time." Standing up he held his hand out to her to help her up. "Plus it's not every day I get asked to dinner by such a beautiful woman."
Laughing Anko took his hand before being pulled up. It only took them about 30 minutes to get to their destination. The doorman was going to turn Naruto away since the place was for upper echelon shinobi only, but let him in after a brief talk with Anko. Sitting at a table they continued to talk as they waited for Anko's friend to show up. Only 15 minutes had passed by the time an attractive woman standing 5'6 walked over to their table. She was a konoichi with long dark hair, and very unique eyes that are red in color, with an additional ring in them. She had make-up consisting of red lipstick and purple eye liner. Her outfit consisted of mesh armor, as well as a red blouse with only the right sleeve visible. Over this is what resembles bandages with a pattern on it similar to those of rose thorns. Her hands are also wrapped in bandages and she wears the Konoha forehead protector and regular shinobi sandals.
Anko greeted her closest friend, and introduced her and Naruto to each other. Soon their food arrived causing the conversation to slow a little. During the course of the meal Kurenai noticed something that totally surprised her. Anko was comfortable enough with the teen to actually let some of her real self show. Kurenai watched this wondering what had happened between the two since there was no sexual tension between them. She decided to find out just who this guy was, and to get some answers from Anko. They chatted some more after their meal, and much to Kurenai's shock she realized Anko hadn't had any sake the entire time. It was not long after this that Naruto stood up, and bid the ladies a good night. Before he left he placed a hand on Anko's shoulder and smiled at her as he gave it a reassuring squeeze. Kurenai's eyes widened as she saw Anko give him a real honest smile in return. She watched Naruto leave with narrowed eyes suspicious of someone getting so close to her friend in one day. She turned to look at Anko as the restaurant's door closed behind Naruto.
"Ok, Anko, spill it."
Several days had passed with Naruto spending most of his time outside the academy at training ground 44. This day he was heading to a weapon shop to replace the massive amount of kunai, shuriken, and explosive tags he had gone through. Pushing the door open he heard a chime from a bell at the top of the door. Looking around he is amazed at the amount of weapons on display. After a few minutes of walking around admiring the quality of the weapons he heard a man call out behind him.
"Sorry about the wait. Is there anything I can help you find?"
Naruto turned, and smiled at the man. "Yes, sir. I was hoping to stock up on some shinobi tools. Mostly kunai, shuriken, and explosive tags."
The man smiled as he walked over to the counter. "No worries, m'boy. We have everything a shinobi could need. Were you wanting anything specific or just the general tools of the trade?" As he spoke he pulled out a piece of paper and a pencil to make a list of the customer's needs.
Naruto smiled and pulled a list out of his pocket before handing it to the man. "Here's a list I made. On it are the specifics as well as some of the customized designs I would like made if possible."
The man looked over the list rubbing his chin in thought for a few minutes considering what would be needed to fill the order. "Hmmmm. This shouldn't be a problem all though it will take a while since we are understaffed at the moment, and have fallen behind on some of our orders. As things are now I should be able to have them ready in about 5 weeks."
Naruto crossed his arms while tapping his lips as he thought this over. While he was weighing the pros and cons of cost, time, and quality Tenten walked out of the back of the shop. Her hair was tied tightly back, and her skin was flushed from having just come from the forge. She was wearing tight leather pants, thick leather boots, and a sleeveless vest that was tied tightly across her chest causing her breasts to display an impressive amount of cleavage considering she was a B cup. Naruto's eyes tracked to her out of training not really registering what he saw. It was when he realized that his eyes were following a bead of sweat as it slid down between her breasts that he snapped back to reality with a startled exclamation. Tenten hadn't noticed him standing there was very surprised to see her crush in her family's store. It was then that she noticed where his eyes were aimed at, and quickly covered her chest with both arms blushing from embarrassment. The red of her face quickly drained away as she realized she looked a mess with her hair unkempt, and her body soaked with sweat.
'OH NO! What is he doing here?! He must think badly of me after seeing this. I can't believe I didn't notice him standing there! What am I going to do?!' Tenten thought wishing she had known Naruto would be coming over so she could have showered and dressed better. Her eyes darted around for something to clean up with until she heard Naruto's voice.
"I've gotta say, Ten-chan, sweaty is a good look for you." Even though he tried to keep his thoughts from getting too perverted he couldn't help grinning in appreciation of what he saw.
Tenten's eyes widened in shock at his words. She tried and failed to find something to say until she heard her father chuckle while rubbing the side of his nose.
"Ten-chan huh?" he said with a smirk aimed at his daughter. "It seems my little tomboy has finally found her feminine side, or did somebody else help you find it?"
At her father's words her face turned a deep crimson in both anger and embarrassment. "DADDY!" She yelled punching him in the arm. "It's not like that! Naruto-kun is just a friend!"
"Naruto-kun must be a very good friend then." He said continuing to tease his daughter. Taking a glance at Naruto he sees him smiling at Tenten with an admiring look, and decides to make one last jab. "Despite her masculine habits she is still a girl. Considering that I'll give you some advice. Take it slow, be gentle, and don't forget to use protection."
Tenten looked at her father in total shock sputtering at the sexual context of his words. Naruto jerked looking carefully at Tenten's dad wondering if he should run until he saw the mischievous twinkle in his eyes.
"No need to worry about that. I know just how to make sure she is always more than satisfied with our time together." Naruto said this with an eyebrow raised, and a voice that was almost a purr.
At this Tenten just stared at Naruto with an expression that said she couldn't be more stunned if Gai had hit her in the head with a mace while he had 5 of the Gates open. Her jaw was hanging open as her mind replayed what he said, and to her his voice sounded like the promise of silk sliding across bare skin. This proved to be too much for both of the men, and at almost the same time they erupted in laughter. Tenten looked between the two for a moment before realization dawned upon her slowly rebooting mind. As she finally processed that they had been teasing her she started to growl in anger. Both men raised their hands defensively as they managed to gain control of themselves.
"Sorry, Ten-chan, you just looked so cute like that I couldn't help myself. How about I make it up to you, and take you out to dinner my treat?"
Tenten crossed her arms in a huff not realizing that this only caused a more prominent display of her still sweaty breasts. She glared at both her father and Naruto for a moment before sighing and shaking her head. "I would take you up on that, Naruto-kun, but I have to help out here. We are way behind on filling orders. I've even asked Gai-sensei if I can have some time off to help out here more."
Naruto looked to her father as an idea came to him. "How about this? I take you out to dinner, and then I will help out here any way I can free of charge."
Tenten looked at her dad as he seemed to be scanning Naruto. After a moment he nodded. "That sounds like a good idea. Even if you don't know anything about forging there is still a lot you can do around here, and if you do well enough I'll even give you a discount on the supplies you ordered."
Naruto smiled and held out his hand to seal the deal. "It sounds good to me. My name is Naruto Strife. It'll be a pleasure working with you, sir."
Tenten's father shook his hand glancing at his daughter. "I'm sure it is." He said with a smile. "I am Tenten's father. Roshi Hisagia. We'll talk more about the work after you two get back." He looked over at Tenten. "You should go get cleaned up and changed. I wouldn't want you to catch a cold wearing that out at night."
Tenten who still had her arms crossed looked down at what she was wearing, and realized that her clothes were almost like a second skin, and she was still sweaty. Blushing slightly she nodded and ran upstairs. Naruto and Roshi talked about what Naruto had ordered going into specific details for some things, and what they were going to be used for so they could be properly made. It was about a half hour later when Tenten came back down the stairs with her hair in the usual "panda" style. She was wearing a long Chinese style dress that had a slit on one side that reached to mid thigh. The pattern on the dress was of a cherry blossom tree spiraling upwards with many sakura petals seeming to float through the air.
Naruto whistled in appreciation of the site before chuckling. "Well there goes any chance of getting away with a cheap meal." Stepping forward he bowed to Tenten before kissing her hand. "I am honored that you grace my presence with your beauty, Hime."
Tenten blushed at his actions, and especially his use of suffix. Smiling she held her arm out to Naruto. "Shall we?" She asked before he took her arm, and they headed towards the door. Before the door close however Roshi called out to them. "Don't do anything I wouldn't do!" Chuckling to himself he shook his head. "Ahh to be young again." Picking up the notes he had taken from Naruto he headed back to the forge to continue his work.
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Hiruzen Sarutobi sat in his office looking at the two in front of him. It had been 3 weeks since the reports started coming in about loud noise coming from training ground 44. At first he dismissed it as some jonins getting over enthusiastic with their training. The reports kept getting worse until he finally had to send a squad of ANBU to investigate after an enormous explosion that could be felt in the Hokage's tower. The report that his fingers were tapping now stated that when the ANBU arrived they saw massive destruction covering nearly a ¼ mile with Anko, and Naruto standing in the middle of the smoking devastation. What disturbed him the most was how the report stated that Naruto and Anko were making out, and well on their way to doing things someone who had yet to graduate the academy should not be doing. Sarutobi sighed knowing there wasn't really anything he could do to stop them and truth be told he wasn't inclined to considering that they both deserved to have someone in their lives that cared for them the way they apparently did for each other. Shaking his head dismissively he took a long draw from his pipe before speaking.
"Do you care to explain why you felt the need to obliterate a large section of one of the training grounds?"
Anko and Naruto shared a sheepishly mischievous grin with Naruto scratching the back of his head. "Sorry, Jiji. I guess we got a bit carried away while playing with the spiders."
The Hokage cocked an eyebrow, and sighed wishing he had put a stop to two of the most volatile ninjas in the village training together when he first heard of it. At the time he was too distracted from learning that Naruto had told some of the konoichi he was Minato's son, and let it slide. "I'm too old for this shit." He muttered to himself wishing that Jiraiya or Tsunade were here so he could foist the Hokage position onto them. Sighing he watched the two as he tried to think of a way to limit the destruction they would cause thanking Kami that Naruto's abilities were bloodline. Just the thought of Anko with that kind of destructive capability nearly caused him to have a stroke. Lifting up the report he addressed the two obviously unrepentant people before him.
"Since this happened at a training ground, and according to the report you wiped out at least 1 nest of the spiders I won't officially reprimand you." Seeing them grin he narrowed his eyes, and made his voice stern. "BUT. If I ever hear of either of you causing anything more than C rank damage like this again I will put you both on sewer duty for the next year, and make it so the only missions you can do involve catching Tora. Do I make myself clear?" The question was asked with a large amount of killing intent, and a voice that conveyed the authority of Hokage. Seeing that they both understood he nodded to himself, and waved a dismissal before glaring at the bane of his time as Hokage. Paperwork.
Stopping in the doorway Naruto turned to look at the Hokage with a curious expression on his face. "Hey, Jiji, why don't you use a clone to help with the paperwork? Is there a law against it or something?"
The man who had the nickname "The Professor" stared at the boy in shock wondering why he hadn't thought of it earlier, and numbly shock his head to clear his head. "Naruto come here." He said as he reached into a drawer pulling out pen and paper. After writing on it he handed it to Naruto. "Take this to the mission office. If they have any problems with it tell them to contact me."
Naruto stared at the paper in surprise for it was a mission completion form for an S rank mission with classified details bearing the Hokage's signature and stamp at the bottom. He looked over to the old man who just shook his head as if to say "Don't ask." Naruto shrugged before closing the door behind him as he left. Sarutobi glared at the stacks of paperwork on his desk for a moment before grinning evilly as he started to make hand seals. "I've got you now." He said as several Kage Bunshin appeared, and immediately got to work.
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As the setting sun covered Konoha in gold, red, purple, and grey shadows Naruto was sitting on top of the Hokage monument. His sword was stabbed into the ground a few feet away while he sat at the edge with one leg hanging over. It was quiet and very very peaceful here, and Naruto needed the solitude to help him think. Naruto still had not come to a decision about what he and the Sandaime had talk about when he had first arrived. He knew he had to make a choice before team placements, and even though he was tempted to say yes just to spite the council he knew doing that would be a long term mistake. Soon his thoughts went back to the time he spent on Gaia, and began to relive his memories of Yuffie.
Tenten always loved the site of Konoha as the sun set. That is why she would watch from her favorite spot whenever she got the chance. As she made her way there along the trail her thoughts turned to how Naruto had helped at her family shop. His help had been invaluable over the last few weeks, and had not only allowed her father to catch up on orders, but to actually get ahead of schedule. This soon led her to picture a bare chest Naruto pumping the bellows of the forge as sweat rolled down his well muscled body. A few minutes passed as she saw the play of muscles under his heat touched skin, and how his arms flexed as he beat the heated metal looking like a god. She was rudely brought back to reality as she stubbed her toe on a rock. Biting back a yelp of pain she slapped her cheeks to rid herself of the image, and walked the last few yards to the tree line.
After walking a few feet passed the last tree she came to a dead stop, her feet seemingly rooted in place by the scene in front of her. From her vantage point Naruto seemed to be enveloped in a halo of light with his hair practically glowing causing her heart to race at how gorgeous he looked. She stood like this for several minutes not even noticing the increasing wetness between her legs so enraptured by what to her was a scene of Naruto being blessed by Kami herself. A small bit of drool escaped her mouth as she watched the last rays of light seem to caress his face. In a daze Tenten slowly walked over to Naruto slowly sitting next to him, and laid her head on his shoulder. Naruto was so lost in his thoughts about his past that they evoked near physical sensations in his mind. Unconsciously his arm slipped around Tenten's waist pulling her tightly to his side. Blushing Tenten looked up at Naruto only seeing the side of his face. With a slowness that was born of her mind processing not only what she was seeing, but the numerous emotions she was simultaneously feeling her hand moved to his cheek turning his head to her as she leaned up to kiss him. So deep had his thoughts swallowed him he mistook Tenten for Yuffie, and returned her kiss with the same feeling that those cherished memories held. A soft green glow enveloped the two before they slowly started to rise up until they were a few inches above the ground. As the kiss went on the passion in it rose as well. While Naruto tightened his grip pulling her tightly to him Tenten's arms were around his shoulders with one hand slipping through his hair.
The firm grip and tugging on his hair brought Naruto out of memories causing him to blink in surprise breaking the kiss. "Ten-chan?" He said as his mind struggled to clear the fugue state it was in. At the sound of his voice the fog covering her mind cleared, and she quickly took stock of the situation. Her eyes widened in shock at floating in the air when the memory of the last few moments sped through her head. Her face turned flushed in embarrassment, and she acted on instinct slapping him across the face causing the minor float spell to be dispelled. When their feet touched the ground Tenten backed away a few feet trying to stabilize the chaotic mess that passed for her mind and heart, while Naruto stood looking at her in total confusion as to what was going on.
At a loss as to what was going on and why Tenten had slapped him he noticed her face was red, and she was fidgeting nervously. He took a step forward confusion and concern warring on his face. Tenten took a few hurried steps back shaking her head wanting to keep her distance until she figured out what was going on with herself. Naruto dropped his hand to his side hurt plain on his face. Sighing he grabbed his sword, and placed it on his back before walking over to the edge above the Yondaime's head. He turned to look at her as the last rays of the sun fell beyond the horizon. They stayed silent looking at each other as the sky went from red to purple with the edge of night fast sweeping over the landscape. Taking a deep breath he spoke with sorrow in his voice. "Ten-chan…. I'm sorry." With that said he launched himself of the cliff in the direction of his apartment.
Gasping in shock she ran to the cliff only to see a soft green light briefly surround Naruto as he neared the ground. She dropped to her knees as she watched him land with the softness of a feather before he went rooftop to rooftop speeding his way home. Tenten sat there for over an hour as night settled over the village deep in thought as she tried to understand what had happened as well as how she truly felt about Naruto. 'Did he know he was kissing me?' She asked herself unsure what he meant by the questioning tone of voice he had used when he broke the kiss. 'Just what are my feelings about him?' She thought to herself not knowing if what she felt was, love, lust, or something else entirely. Finally sighing she picked herself up her mind still a jumbled mess. On her way home she considered who she would be able to talk about this with quickly realizing she didn't really have anyone she was comfortable discussing this with. She racked her brain the whole way home, and even into her bedroom unable to come up with an answer. As she pulled the blanket over herself she decided to see if Gai-sensei knew of anyone that she could talk to about "Female issues", and fell into a depressed sleep.
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As graduation approached Naruto's time was spent mostly training with Anko, and Tenten, and helping at Tenten's family shop. Things had been awkward between him and Tenten for nearly a week by this point which is why on this Sunday morning just after sunrise, Naruto could be found heading to Anko's apartment. He was headed there to see if she wanted to train with him in the Forest of Death or maybe even pull a prank or two. Naruto knocked on the door several times before the door finally opened. To his great surprise there stood Anko with her hair down showing that it fell to the middle of her shoulder blades. Naruto was bug eyed as he watched her rub her eyes wearing only a red lace g-string. Anko smiled as she stretched her eyes still fogged over with sleep and sake before jumping on Naruto, and wrapping her arms and legs around him as his back hit the railing with a thud.
"Mmmm, Naru-kun, come back to bed." She said as she nuzzled his neck thinking she was still dreaming.
Naruto sighed having smelled the remnants of sake on her. Leaning back he moved his hands to her ass to make sure she didn't fall before heading inside Anko's apartment. Quietly he carried her back to her bed, and tucked her in as he thought about what to do since training was out. Resigning himself to this he decided to let Kurenai know about Anko's situation before grabbing something to eat. He kissed her forehead before creeping back out careful not to make any noise locking the door behind him as he left.
Ino was heading back to her family's flower shop after delivering some flowers a customer had ordered. She was grumbling to herself about being up and about this early in the morning when she heard a loud thump. Looking around she spotted Naruto with a woman she recognized from the times her father had brought her with him to ANBU's I&T division where he worked. Her jaw dropped when she saw the woman's arms and legs wrapped around him seemingly naked. She was stunned that one of her fellow students from the academy, or anyone for that matter, was that close to the "Psycho Snake Bitch" as she called Anko. She stood there in shock watching the naked woman nuzzle Naruto's neck before he grabbed her ass and carried her inside. She snapped out of it when the door shut, and immediately knew she had to tell Sakura, and spread the news along the gossip hotline. She took a moment to consult the mental map she had of Konoha before running off at such speed that she left not only a dust trail, but caused a turbulent wind to follow her passing. If she would have stayed another minute she would have seen Naruto walk back out and lock the door behind him. Unfortunately for Naruto that since it was Saturday the entire town would have heard about this by Monday, and as with all gossip the tale only grew with each telling.
Kakashi as normal was walking down the road to the memorial stone with his face buried in the infamous orange book he always had with him. Things were going calmly for the lazy elite jonin until he glanced up at the sound of someone knocking on a door. He took a moment to study the young man with a zanbato style sword at what he knew to be one Mitirashi Anko's apartment. His one visible eye widened in surprise seeing the delicious looking woman open the door in what amounted to about 2 square inches of cloth on her body. Eye smiling he put his orange book away, and began taking notes as she jumped onto the young man. As he scribbled into his notepad he was giggling perversely wondering if Jiraiya-sama would use this in his next book. He was still eye smiling as the door shut. He finished what he was writing before taking out the orange book, and continuing to the memorial stone. Suddenly he was thrown into a wall dazing him slightly. After shaking his head to reorient himself he wondered what had hit him before he broke down crying at the sight of the now shredded pages of his precious book fluttering through the air. Tears streaming down his face he picked up the tattered remains of the cover holding it to his chest as one would do with a loved one that had just breathed their last breath. Throwing his head back he screamed in agony. "WWWHHHHHHYYYYYYYYYYYY!"
Ino's lack of restraint where information that could be considered "juicy" was the reason Naruto was now being glared at by most of the boys in his class. This wouldn't be so bad if 1/3 of the girls were looking at him with either an expression of desire or disgust. Naruto could only look around in confusion since he had no idea what was the current main dish of the rumor mill. This had been going on for 10 minutes when he heard a familiar laugh coming from the hallway that made him wonder what Anko was doing at the academy. The hushed conversations ended as the door slid open, and a woman in her mid 20's wearing a purple skirt, a mesh body suit that showed she didn't have a bra on, and a trench coat that barely stopped her from being arrested for public indecency. Looking around the class as she stood in front of the desk she wore an evil smirk before walking up to Naruto with a sway in her hips that had the adolescent boys hypnotized. Anko slipped her arms around Naruto, and rested her head on his shoulder.
"Naru-kuuuun, you're so mean." She said with a pout. "Why didn't you wake me this morning?" Glancing around she was glad to see her little game was having an effect, and that the class had heard the rumors.
Meanwhile Naruto just sighed, and spoke with an even voice. "Anko-chan, you do realize we are in public right?"
Anko purred tracing his collarbone with the nail of her index finger. "You didn't seem to mind last time, and anyway what happened to the breakfast you promised me?" She asked with a perfect imitation on a disappointed lover.
"I'm sorry, Anko-chan, but you were passed out, and I couldn't wake you in time to cook breakfast, and get to class on time." Naruto shook his head. "What I want to know is where you get all that stamina from. I thought you'd have called it quits after 6 hours. How was I to know you'd last more than 13 hours?" Naruto said in reference to a bet they had about who would last longer fighting against the spiders in the Forest of Death.
The class at this point was divided between shock, awe, jealousy, and disgust at this point. The girls that weren't Sasuke fan girls were looking at Anko with jealously as they tried to stop the nosebleeds they were getting from the mental images. Most of the guys were looking at Naruto like they had just found their hero, this group included Kiba who looked at Naruto with newfound respect. Shikamaru had raised his head up watching the display in curiosity before shaking his head and muttering "Fuzakennayo", and going back to sleep. Ino did not bother to hide the blood that dripped from both nostrils as she was lost in a daydream of 13 hours with Naruto. As they continued to watch the events unfold not knowing it was an act by either party Naruto's reputation very quickly gained more than just a few points with his classmates, as well as several more fan girls.
Kurenai had been watching this for a couple minutes amused at the students' reactions. Deciding to play along to see how well they dealt with the unexpected she glided into the room using the seduction techniques all konoichi learn by the time they reach jonin rank. "The only reason she lasted 13 hours is because we took turns, Naruto-kun." The red eyed konoichi said with a smile as she licked her lips. Dead silence could be heard in the class as they tried to process what they were hearing now. Hinata was shocked to hear Kurenai say this as she had thought that a relationship was starting between Kurenai, and the Hokage's son Asuma. "Wh…what about Asuma-san?" The girl asked starting to wonder if this really was the same jonin that had been hired as her chaperone outside of the Hyuuga clan compound.
Kurenai's face took on a dreamy look as she spoke in a husky voice. "He can't use his hands the way Naruto-kun can." After a few minutes of perverted daydreams Ino remembers something one of the gossip circle had told her. Realizing this would be a golden opportunity she did not let it pass. "How big is the dragon?" Anko smirked before nodding her head. "Let's just say the little thing is awe inspiring." She said still playing "Guess the truth behind the innuendo".
Curious Hinata activated her Byakugan only to see a dragon covering about ½ of Naruto's back that had so much detail on it that it almost seemed real. "You call that little?!" The heiress exclaimed in surprise not realizing just yet that everyone in class had heard her until she heard Kurenai giggle, and saw Anko grinning like the cat that got the canary. She blushed deeper then she had before her childhood crush died then promptly fainted. Ino's reaction to hearing this was to nosebleed with such force she was launched backward into the wall.
Suddenly some killer intent was felt from the front of the class drawing everyone's attention to the most feared man in Konoha, one Ibiki Morino. Looking at Anko with an eyebrow raised before sighing. "Don't you have some prisoners to play with, Anko?"
Said woman pouted as her boss at the interrogation and torture division put a stop to her fun. "You're no fun." What she did next had 2 reasons behind it. The first reason being that she enjoyed messing with people very much. The second was because over the time she had spent with Naruto she had truly become attracted to him. Slowly she ran her hand over Naruto's chest while she caressed the outer edge of his ear with her tongue. Standing up slowly she smiled seductively. "I'll see you later Naru-kun." Anko said huskily before walking with a sway in her hips that promised untold delights.
Naruto watched her leave thinking about his and Anko's relationship, and about Yuffie. Deciding now was not the time to think about such things he shook his head to clear his thoughts before speaking. "Nai-chan, I'm a little disappointed in you. You should know how to keep secrets better." Naruto sighed having wanted to keep their training in the Forest of Death a secret.
Kurenai pouted before putting a serious look on her face. Before she could speak Ibiki took control of the class. "Enough of the games now settle down." He said with enough killer intent to cause the class to obey instantly. Satisfied at the reaction he wrote his and Kurenai's names on the chalkboard before facing the class again. "I am Morino Ibiki, and this is Yuuhi Kurenai. We will be teaching this class since Iruka-san, and Mizuki-san have things to take care of." Ibiki directed his gaze to Naruto before speaking in an even tone. "You and I will talk after class, Naruto-san. Anko's behavior has been….interesting of late."
Several hours, and an odd conversation with Ibiki later Naruto was deep in thought about what Ibiki had said. Abruptly his train of thought was shattered as Tenten yelled a greeting to him. Seeing her in an almost jubilant mood Naruto couldn't help, but smile at his friend hoping that things were back to normal between them. Waving a greeting as he walked over he chuckled lightly seeing her bouncing on her toes. "What's got you in such a good mood, Ten-chan?"
Tenten's emotional turmoil had lessened somewhat since their kiss, but when she heard the academy students talking about what had happened in class with Anko and Kurenai threw them completely out of whack. Unconsciously she had started bouncing on her toes to burn off the excess energy, and slowly turned to Naruto when he spoke. Seeing the cause of her discomfort grinning as if he didn't have a care in the world sent her temper to heights unknown to her before. In a flash she had grabbed a scroll, and sent every kunai and shuriken it contained at Naruto pinning him to the wall.
"Wha….." Naruto started to say before he saw Tenten bearing down at him with what he swore was an Oni over her shoulder. He started to swallow when suddenly his sweat froze on his skin as she summoned a halberd with a huge axe blade positioning it uncomfortably close to a very sensitive area. Tenten leaned forward slightly causing the wood beneath Naruto to groan in protest.
"What is this I hear about you sleeping around with women over twice your age in public, and bragging about having sex with them for over 13 hours?" She said in a disconcertingly quite voice.
"I don't know what you're talking about. I haven't slept with anyone besides Yuffie."
"Really? Then why are the students talking about 2 women showing up in class talking about it with one of them hanging off of you?" The wood gave another groan as Tenten brought the blade slightly higher cutting deeper into the wood between his legs.
Naruto swallowed hard sweat pouring off of him. "That was Kurenai and Anko. We were talking about a bet we had made as to whether or not they could out last me against the spiders in the Forest of Death." Naruto was praying for all he was worth that she believed him.
Tenten stared into his eyes, hers as hard as agates, for a long moment before slowly withdrawing her weapon. "I believe you, but if I catch you doing something perverted in public again you will wish I had only castrated you." She said with a growl. She took a deep breath to help calm herself, and ran her hand through her hair before turning to him with a smile. "I almost forgot. I have good news."
Still wary of her he was unsettled by the sudden change of mood. "Uhh what is it, Ten-chan?"
"They are all done! Father finished the last one this morning." She said grinning from ear to ear.
"Finally! I was starting to get worried that it would be after team placements before they were ready." He said with a grin to match her own.
"Come on!" she said as she grabbed his hand, forcing him to quicken his pace to keep up. In short order they were at Tenten's family weapon shop, and lead him to a room adjacent to the forge that was used to store the more important orders that were finished before delivery. Reluctantly she let go of his hand she unlocked the door, and gestured for him to follow. The room was of medium size with various shelves, and stands for holding every weapon imaginable. Some of the shelves had packed crates with labels ready for shipping. Along the walls were similar if larger crates and barrels some only partially filled showing the carefully packed weapons inside. Naruto followed Tenten over to a shelf that held the items he had specially commissioned, some he had even helped make during his time spent helping at the shop. Tenten picked up the weapons that were the last of the bunch to be created, and held them out for Naruto's inspection.
Gently he took them from her, and went through a brief kata with them to test their balance finding them just as perfectly crafted as he expected them to be. Carefully he wraps them in the case that was specially made to hold them before putting them in a storage seal on his left forearm. "They are definitely the work of a master. I have no doubt they will be well received by the Aburame. Now the only question is when to deliver them."
Tenten smiled her pride in her family's work clearly showing at the praise. "Actually I've already set up a meeting for tonight when father told me he was going to finish them this morning."
Naruto couldn't help but laugh as he envisioned how the next council meeting would go after this week was over. When the looks the civilian council would have on their faces entered his mind he lifted Tenten up spinning her around in mischievous glee causing her to laugh along with him. Tenten leaned against his chest when he finally set her down hiding the flush on her cheeks. The feel of his muscles under his shirt made her think about the strange feelings she had been having around him recently when her stomach growled reminding her that she had skipped lunch because of that morning's D rank mission. Backing away from him she blushed in embarrassment silently cursing the harridan that made the mission longer than it needed to be.
"I hope you haven't started getting any of those fangirl tendencies to diet, Ten-chan. You should know how unhealthy those things are." Naruto said with concern on his face. He hated fangirls, and would hate to see such a good friend turn into what was the shame of all konoichi.
The color on Tenten's face deepened from anger upon being compared to a fangirl. She hated fangirls even more then she did perverts, and considered Tsunade of the Sannin her idol. Growling she punched Naruto in the chest making him cough from the force of the blow. "That's what you get for being an asshole! I had to skip lunch because of the mission my team was on this morning. A civilian needed her barn repaired, and was not satisfied until everything was perfect." She said glaring at Naruto with her arms crossed.
Rubbing the spot she had hit he smiled apologetically. "Sorry, Ten-chan. With the number of fangirls this village has I was beginning to think it was infectious. Why don't we get something to eat before meeting with the Aburame?"
Tenten only slightly mollified nodded her grunt in acquiescence. "Fine, but you are buying. You owe me after that remark."
"Hai, hai. You pick the place, and don't worry about the cost. Consider it a form of apology." His thoughts went to what he would say to the clan heads over the next few days as Tenten locked up.