De-Raz: Hey guys, hope you all liked that prologue for Tale of the Ninja Mage, cause Chapter 1. Not only that, but I have some excellent news:
MY COMPUTER IS BACK!
And that includes the documents I had saved for chapter 1 of the RosarioxNaruto story and chapter 10 of Ninja and Senshi Clash! So expect those as soon as I finish them up. So you all know, the notice I put in Ninja and Senshi Clash! will be replaced by the real Chapter 10 when it comes out.
One comment I'd like to say is: EIGHT TAILS NARUTO IS KICKASS!!! Not to mention seeing the Yondaime talk to him was pretty cool. Glad that Kishimoto was smart enough to actually give Naruto inner conflict over whether he loved him or hated him for sealing the Kyuubi, and not just make him forgive him like it was nothing.
I'd also like to thank all of the people who've been kind enough to review so far, and I hope to see plenty more coming from this chapter. Now, to read and enjoy!
Disclaimer: Don't own Naruto or Negima, blah blah blah, you know the rest.
Another three hours later of wandering stuck Naruto roaming through the halls of the school that Konoemon's office was supposed to reside in. Even with the map, Mahora was just so expansive and busy; it reminded him a lot of his first experiences in the busy areas of the village. The blonde couldn't help but be taken up by the sights and sounds of this technological society. There were just so many new things! The tram had just been the latest thing! On the way to Mahora, the blonde had seen what looked like smaller copies of the thing traveling along designated roads in innumerable amounts. All in different shapes, colors, and some made such loud noises while others made only a little, though to Naruto's sensitive ears it had been torture the first couple of days to get used to it. He wondered how nobody could be deaf from all the noise and not just from the cars as he heard people call them.
And the blonde saw many other devices too! There were pay phones, cell phones, bikes that looked to go as fast as those cars, TV and radio. His world may have had the latter two devices, but they were incredibly short-sighted in scope. Seeing some of the things he had seen, he knew they could be used for so much more now! They're building were incredibly tall, hell they even reached the sky! And he had seen metallic contraptions that broke through the very heavens themselves! These people had actually built a device to fly! Sure, he could fly as well, but that was because of his…unique…talents. At least unique on his world. He knew mages could use levitation and flying spells if they were powerful enough. But these things could launch regular people in the dozens up high into the sky.
And the people! While it was obvious that his world and this one contained similarities in looks and fashion, the people still acted so different! They didn't seem to carry any fear at all of possible dangers around them. Even inside a ninja's home village, a good ninja kept watchful, not to an extreme, but it was still there. These people carried even more ignorance than his village's regular civilians! Only a rare one in one-hundred maybe carried some kind of defensive tool, one that Naruto couldn't identify at all. The blonde had seen some people wearing what must have been some kind of uniform that carried sticks and that strange barrel looking weapon, but that was the majority of any weapon-holders. None of them looked to be watchful for an invasion or an attack from somebody, they weren't wary of the actions of people walking by them. The seal master had considered himself lucky he had the foresight to seal all his valuables away in a couple of body storage seals. Naruto's entire journey had consisted of watching these people help each other or ignore each other, even people who looked to hate each other, but none of them were actively suspicious or mistrustful, and they didn't use violence to solve their problems…at least, nothing beyond petty fights.
There is so much our world could learn from this one the young Namikaze thought to himself on his way to Mahora.
But now isn't a time for pleasurable thoughts Naruto shook himself away from his wanderings, reasserting I need to find and introduce myself to Konoe-sama.
"I REFUSE to live together with someone like you!"
The disguised teen was jarred out of his mind's monologue and lifted an eyebrow in confusion as he heard a loud voice echo through the hallway around the corner. From what he could tell, it belonged to a female as loud as he used to be…well, maybe not as loud.
I did use to be pretty loud back in the Academy. Though I do wonder what's going on over there.
Of course, the jounin hadn't stopped walking as he was thinking these thoughts.
"I'm going ahead! See you later sensei!" Naruto could hear again, just as loud as before.
He grinned a little, feeling a bit sorry for the person she was yelling. Heh, she sure sounds mad at whoever that guy is. Then again, if he's anything like my senseis, it probably isn't very surprising that he's getting yelled at.
Still lost in his thoughts, the jounin's guard and senses were lowered a bit, which could help explain why what happened next did occur.
SMASH! CRASH!
"Kya!" a familiar voice yelled for a second in surprise as the two stumbled onto the floor.
Wow, wonder if those car things can go indoors too. It sure felt like I got hit by one Naruto thought to himself, rubbing the part of his head that had smashed into the floor. Got to take this as a lesson to never let my guard down, I must have been way too relaxed if a person could just run smack dab into me like that without my knowing.
He began attempting to get up, but was stopped by a weight on his chest.
Oh right, must be the thing that bumped into me. As the young jounin opened his eyes, however, what met his sight wasn't a thing, but instead a person. A girl he corrected himself, seeing the long orange hair (which he definitely liked, it was so rare to see a person with hair his favorite color after all) piling over the girl's head from the fall. He could see a couple of bells tied in her hair as he shook her shoulder, absently wondering if the fall had knocked her out.
"Excuse me, miss, are you okay?"
"Excuse me, miss, are you okay?" she heard a voice call out to her as she felt a hand shake her shoulder.
Aw man, now somebody just saw me trip and fall like a total klutz, this day just keeps getting better and better.
Asuna Kagurazaka was definitely not having a good day, even though at first she had such high hopes for the day. It had been the first day of the last semester for her second year of middle school. Now having school again in itself wasn't great, she hated school, but it did mean another semester with Takahata-sensei, her true love, as her homeroom and English teacher. Sure, he may not have shown romantic interest in her yet, but she just needed to tell him her feelings and hope he'd return them then.
But all the trouble in her life today began with that damn brat, Negi Springfield. First, he just comes running by while she was heading to class and tells her that her love would be unrequited. Seriously, who taught that kid his manners? That wasn't too bad though, he was just a stupid kid, what did he know about her or love anyway? And not even two minutes later, he ends up stripping her down to her underwear in front of Takahata-sensei himself! She didn't know how the brat managed it, but she knew it was him that did it! But still, the worst part of their first meeting was the realization that Negi was apparently a new teacher here. Not just any class, but the red haired kid was taking over Class 2-A, her class. That meant that kid had replaced Takahata-sensei, her future love, as her teacher! Even Takahata-sensei and the principal had told her it was true! Who in their right mind lets a ten year old brat manage a class of teenage girls anyway!? Meeting with Konoka's grandfather had made the arrangement even worse, because now that brat was living in her and Konoka's room! Wasn't there supposed to be some kind of rule or something that made that illegal!? Well…there was no way she was going to let that kid mess up anything else today, and so had resolved to avoid him as much as possible.
This of course had led her to tripping over herself as she rounded the corner that some stranger had witnessed and probably thought of her as some ditzy klutz. The bell-wearing girl did wonder why Konoka wasn't the one helping her up though? And why the floor on this particular spot felt much different than she expected the hallway floor to feel like? It was definitely solid and rock-hard, but the texture felt more like a…shirt? or something.
Suddenly she opened her eyes wide as a possible explanation drove its way through her mind.
Please, don't let it be what I'm thinking it is.
She slowly lifted her head up to see a young man's face, framed by a pair of blonde bangs that could rival the sun in brightness, and a pair of oceanic eyes were staring back at her. Now, while you could call her unintelligent, you couldn't say she wasn't perceptive. The orange-haired girl could see his eyes had a whirlpool of emotions swimming in it, only a couple of which were a strange mix of confusion, relief, and amusement.
The amusement did nothing to stop the burning of her cheeks as her worst-case scenario proved to be right.
This just isn't my day.
After a few seconds that the orange haired girl failed to respond to his actions, Naruto began to worry a little. Maybe she had hit her head or something? He could feel her breathing was regular, if a bit quickened from falling unexpectedly. Too bad said breathing didn't really help the fact he felt two soft objects pressing against his chest, if you know what I mean. It would really help if the girl just hurry and woke up.
As if in answer to his prayers, the blonde finally felt her beginning to stir, before her head lifted up, where he saw a hetero-chromatic set of eyes framed by bangs that nearly hooked underneath them, stared back at him. The left one was almost like his, a blue eye that was a shade or two darker. The other was a green-blue combo that would've made it difficult to tell the difference from a distance, though definitely obvious from this close. Naruto also noticed that her face began to turn a bright red, suggesting she already knew the position they were in.
"Umm, miss, if it isn't too much trouble…could you please get up?" He hoped trying to ask politely would make sure she didn't punch him for being perverted. Women on his world tended to do that when something remotely perverted happened to them, and he wondered if it was the same here.
SMACK
Ouch, that girl has some impressive strength for her punch to actually hurt me the blonde thought to himself, rubbing his cheek as he started getting up, the strange girl already up. Absent mindedly, he saw that the bells in her hair were used to manage her orange hair into high twin tails that fell down a little past her rear.
"What do you think you were doing, you hentai!" The girl yelled, pointing accusingly at him.
It wasn't until then that Naruto noticed another girl trying to grab the orange-haired girl's attention. She seemed to be the same age of fifteen, with long brown hair and a matching pair of large doe-like brown eyes which communicated a sense of urgency and worry. He could see underneath that worry, however, a glitter of amusement, and despite her worried expression, Naruto knew when a person was trying to hold back a laughing fit. He himself had to do it enough during his old pranking days.
"Please calm down Asuna, it wasn't like that at all!"
"Oh yea, than how was it Konoka?" the girl, whom he now knew as Asuna, turned to the brown haired girl, Konoka.
Said girl took on a thinking pose. "Well, when we were running around the corner, you…sort of bumped into him, Asuna. That's why you fell."
Naruto could have sworn the somewhat pale girl became whiter than a ghost before she turned to him and bowed in a speed that left even him impressed. "Summimasen (Excuse me) sir, I was just so mad before, and the way it looked, and I thought that-"
The young man just waved a hand at her to stop her from becoming a blabbering mess, laughing it off as his other hand rubbed the back of his head. "Hahaha, don't worry about it so much. I understand, it was just an accident, no harm, no foul, right, miss…?"
"Oh, um, my name's Kagurazaka Asuna, sir." The girl, Asuna, looked very relieved, and had apparently calmed down finally. "I'm sorry again."
The brown haired girl then popped up next to her, a cheerful smile on her face that made Naruto grin wider. "And my name's Konoe Konoka, happy to meet you, Nagaremono-san (Stranger)."
Konoe? I wonder how she's related to Konoemon. She's likely a decent mage already if she's related to him.
"Alright, alright, enough of this sir and –san business. I'm only 18 after all, you two are making me feel old" he replied, shocking them both a little. I mean, he was so tall, he was more than half a foot their height after all.
The two blushed a little as the comment finally made them scrutinize his looks, Asuna a little more. After all, that suit hid the more detailed aspects of his build from Konoka, but she had felt what was under there.
Ack, what am I doing, being unfaithful to Takahata-sensei like that! Asuna quickly shook the thoughts out of her head, literally shaking her head making Konoka giggle at the funny sight.
Naruto, on his part, was being very amused by the two's antics. Heh, these two girls sure are fun. "Since you two were kind enough to introduce yourself, I should probably do the same. My name is-"
"What is going on over here? We heard Asuna-san scream."
The two girls turned around to see two familiar people, one of whom Asuna didn't want to see. Konoka took the reigns of playing peacemaker, noticing the worried look on their faces.
"Nothing is wrong anymore, Shizuna-san, Negi-sensei. It was just a misunderstanding."
Naruto had taken the chance to study the two newcomers. The taller one, a woman with sea green hair, glasses and a bust size that left him impressed, though wasn't as affected as most males probably would be. His own anti-pervert attitude and prolonged exposure to the sight of large breasts, courtesy of his surrogate mother/grandmother, made him take a quick notice only. The woman looked nice enough. His attention turned to the other person, especially when Konoka had referred to him as Negi.
The young boy looked to be about ten years old, and his features seemed to be from a different origin than the locals Naruto's witnessed. The boy had a head of full brown-red hair that fell down in spikes, although there was a bang in the front that stood up. His clothing consisted of a green suit and pants, with a white undershirt and red tie that tucked underneath the suit. A small pair of glasses fell on the bridge of his nose, and looked much too small to be of any practical use. Reading glasses maybe? Or he might be trying to look more official.
So, this is him, Negi Springfield. I admit, I thought he'd be a little more…imposing. Though, looks can be deceiving.
His study of the two ended just as Shizuna-san took notice of him, where her eyes widened a little in recognition. "Oh, you must Uzumaki Naruto! Konoe-sama been waiting to see if you accepted the offer or not. You are a bit late from what we were expecting."
The other three people in between just looked at the newcomer, Negi especially. The young boy wondered if the blonde was new here like him. Not only that, but he looked so cool and confident, it was like seeing Takahata for the first time all over again.
Naruto rubbed the back of his head again in embarrassment. "Sorry about that. I was just having so much fun looking around that I lost track of time. So, think you can escort me to Konoe-sama's office now? I'm afraid that it'll take me a long time to find it otherwise."
The woman just nodded her head, a smile on her face. "Of course, Uzumaki-san." Shizuna turned towards Negi. "I apologize for leaving you like this, Negi-kun, but I think it is about time for class to start. You three better hurry along before you are late." The two older people began to make their way back from where Konoemon's office laid, whilst the other three looked on.
Why do I have a feeling this isn't the last time we'll meet was the sentiment shared by the three unknowingly. That was until the school bell rang, making them panic as they made their way into the classroom a couple of doors down.
Shizuna and Naruto could have sworn they heard a crashing sound along with the sound of laughter coming from said room, followed shortly by what could only be deemed a chorus of 'Kawaii' and other adoring remarks. Whilst the woman deemed it unimportant, Naruto smiled both in delight and pity.
Hehe, sounds like Negi-kun's gotta deal with a couple of pranksters. Hope it doesn't get too bad. "Think he'll be alright, Shizuna-san?"
The woman smiled in reply. "I think Negi-kun will do just fine. It'll just take some time for him to get used to. Besides, that is what you are here for."
"Huh?"
"Ah, welcome Uzumaki-kun. I hope your trip wasn't too difficult, hohoho" Konoemon asked the blonde in disguise, stroking his beard all the while.
Naruto bowed in respect for the headmaster. He could feel the old mage's hidden magical power, hell it was proved at the very start by the fact he could control a golem across different worlds for an entire week. "No, the trip was…mostly uneventful, but nothing too bad. Oh, and the name's Namikaze Uzumaki Naruto, but I can understand you not knowing, I hadn't myself till a couple of years ago. I'd rather you just call me Naruto anyway."
"Very well then, Naruto-kun. Now, I suppose the time for pleasantries is over." The older male's face became more serious, prompting the blonde to don his 'Shinobi Face'. "Now Naruto-kun, while you probably don't know this, before he…disappeared, he gave me instructions to contact you if Negi was brought to Japan for his Magister Magi training. It was fortunate that Negi ended up here, where it was much easier for me to be able give you a viable mission for coming."
Naruto smiled sadly, his memories recalling a past long gone. "So, he didn't forget about me, huh?"
Konoemon smiled sadly back. "He had always wanted you to join his family, Naruto-kun. Whenever we met, he'd always tell me of the great potential you held and how hopeful he was about how you were going to turn out. Seeing you here like this, I can see his hope was well founded."
Naruto couldn't help but blush a little under the praise. "Thank you Konoe-sama, but if you would be so kind as to continue."
"Ah yes" the old man cleared his throat. "Now, as for your mission. Your mission is to guard over the class of 2-A, including Negi-kun, as well as any other student you may find in trouble. You'll find that this campus can be a bit more dangerous than your typical one, for reasons you could possibly guess."
"I don't suppose it'd have anything to do with all the magical energy permeating through the city? I can feel that a lot of the people around here are not normal humans, is that what you're trying to tell me?"
The man nodded in reply. "It is. Now, usually the mages in the faculty would be suitable protection against any forces that'd wish to do harm, but I feel that an extra hand couldn't hurt."
The blonde nodded as well. "It does always pay to be careful. Oh, and by the way, I met who'd I guess to be your granddaughter, Konoe Konoka?"
The old man's visage took on a mirthful twist. "Ah, taking an interest in my granddaughter already? Perhaps I should schedule an omiai for the two of you?"
The blonde blushed. "Um, no thank you. I really don't enjoy the thought of marrying another through an arrangement." Naruto failed to mention why such an arrangement would only turn out badly in the end.
"Very well then, but the offer still stands if you reconsider, hohoho" he stroked his beard in amusement. "But on a serious note, there is something you should know about Konoka-chan."
"And that is?"
"Well…while Konoka-chan may be related to me and while she has a great amount of hidden power, her father decided to raise her away from the world of magic and mages and other such things." This news made the blonde's eyes go wide. "Yes, Eishun-kun felt that it'd be best if she grew up normally, hence why he sent her here, away from the Kansai organization, with her childhood bodyguard Setsuna. I want you to not tell her anything about our world, in accordance with Eishun-kun's wishes. Though if she does manage to find out about it, be sure to protect her diligently."
The blond nodded in confirmation. "Is there any way you'd prefer I watch over the students, Konoe-sama?"
"Yes, since you're primary objective is the safety of class 2-A, and Negi-kun could use some help managing a class of rowdy teenage girls, I'd like you to become his teaching assistant."
Naruto began laughing, trying to keep himself standing, however it was all in vain.
HAHAHAHAHA! Yea, like I could be a TEACHER! Man, this guy's sense of humor. It took a couple of minutes before Naruto was able to open his eyes, only to see the old man's visage hadn't changed.
"…Wait…you were serious?!"
"Completely serious, Naruto-kun. You will be the assisting teacher for Class 2-A during English with Negi-kun."
"English, what the hell is English?"
At the blonde's question, the old man's super large eyebrows rose. "English is one of the most commonly used languages in the world, and has penetrated itself into societies around the world. Do they not have it on your world?"
Naruto stared confusedly at the principal; you could almost see the question marks above his head. "We only have one language on my world, Konoe-sama, and it's the one I'm speaking to you with right now. We didn't really have a need to name it because of it."
"Hmm, well at least it is good news that our languages are the same. Well, Naruto-kun, I don't see a problem so long as you stay a couple of lessons ahead of the girls, hohoho."
Naruto sighed in resignation. Guess that's it then. At least it won't be too hard, with Kage-Bunshins, even if it took me five years to learn it otherwise; I can be done by week's end. "And what about my sleeping arrangements?"
"Ah, don't worry, I already planned for that. You'll be staying with two people who live a bit…differently…than the others around here. They've received special rooming conditions due to special circumstances which could easily house you as well. I believe that it'd be good for the two of them to have another roommate…they can be very…anti-social."
At this, Naruto grinned that almost sent shivers down the old mage's spine. "Oh, don't worry about them, Konoe-sama. If there's one thing I know I can do, that's dealing with unsocial people…hehehe."
Perhaps I should be concerned? No, I'm sure Evangeline can handle it, hohoho. The principal chuckled mentally.
The man gave Naruto a piece of paper that turned out to be another map of the campus, along with a red circle near the forests. "The red circle is where their abode is; I trust you'll be able to find your way there. I believe that is all, now if you hurry you should still be able to catch a good amount of Negi's class today. I'm sure both him and the girls could use a break from their first class to accommodate a new addition, don't you think?"
Naruto smiled in return. "Yea, they're probably dying of boredom, and I know just the introduction to liven things up." He began to make his way towards the door, but just as the blonde began to open, suddenly turned towards his newest client. "Oh, and Konoe-sama, there is one more thing I need to ask you."
His large eyebrows raise a little. "Oh, and what would that be, Naruto-kun?"
The jounin's face became serious again. "You see, Tsunade-sama gave me one condition to accept this mission." Naruto began to tell Konoemon about the situation on his world, and what it meant for the condition he was given. "As you could guess, the fact is that my village is in desperate need of military aid, and I had already told her about the Kanto and Kansai organizations I was taught resided here in Japan. I would like to speak to you later about possibly creating an alliance between us, and I tell you now that I'll be extending this offer to the Kansai organization as well. Can I ask now if such an offer could possibly be accepted?"
The old man seemed to be deep in thought as he considered the young man's words. At first, Naruto was worried that the principal was going to reject the offer, until:
"Naruto-kun, I can tell you now that I will consider this offer, as you can guess this is a very large offer to be given so suddenly. However, at the same time you'll face difficulty convincing the Kansai organization to join this alliance if we join and vice-versa as there has been a great tension between us for many a year now. Not only that, but something as great a magnitude as a cross-dimensional alliance, there is only so much we would be permitted to do without the approval of the Home Country…especially considering how you'd be calling for said alliance in full force immediately. If you really want the alliance you're seeking, your true destination lies in Mundus Magicus."
"…Thank you for the help, Konoe-sama." Naruto's serious face brightens again with a fox-like grin. "I guess that just means I'll have to ask for a vacation sometime in the future, doesn't it?" The boy's response prompted the older man to chuckle a little.
"Yes, I suppose it does, doesn't it?"
"Then if all our business is done, see you later old man!" The blonde replied, quickly exiting the room to begin his newest excitement.
Back in the office, Naruto's nickname for the old mage made his eyebrow twitch, though nobody could mistake the delighted smile that spread over his whiskered face. Again his hand strayed to his beard, stroking it as he silently chuckled to himself.
"Well, I guess you were right" he spoke out to seemingly nobody. "You're adopted son there definitely has that spark inside of him. I can only imagine what he'll be able to accomplish in the future, hohoho."
In another room in the same building, Class 2-A was sitting in their desks, listening with rapt attention to their newest 10-year old teacher as he read a passage from their textbook in English. While they all were still interested in just who the kid was and why he was a teacher at his age, they also couldn't help but be somewhat bored. It was still school after all, and the usual daily fight between Asuna and Ayaka had already started and ended. Some of them were thinking at least that the class only had around twenty minutes left.
CRASH!!
The entire class nearly jumped out of their desks as they heard something crash through the window before landing in front of Negi-sensei, creating a cloud of smoke as the apparent smoke bomb detonated. All the girls were brought to full attention as they calmed down from the random crash to see the smokescreen disappear, only to reveal a sign that was standing up from two poles embedded into the classroom floor. The ten year old teacher came out from underneath it to observe what the object was that had interrupted his lesson. As he did, he saw the words that were presented to the rest of the class of teen girls that read:
HELLO THERE CLASS OF 2-A!!
Just as suddenly as the crash, the door to their classroom opened up, taking their attention away from the banner to see a young man walk into the class, completely nonchalant as if there wasn't a broken window and giant banner right in front of him. After walking to the middle-front of the classroom, the man just stood there looking at them, prompting the girls to all stare at him strangely.
While that was happening, three certain people instantly recognized him from earlier.
Naruto-san?! What is he doing here in my class? Negi thought with curiosity.
Oh no, why is that man here now? Asuna thought to herself, trying to hide her flushed face as the memory of their first meeting came back to her.
Wow, that was sooo cool! I wonder how he did that!? Konoka looked at him with starry eyes, having linked the banner incident and him together.
"Um, Naruto-san…if you don't mind my asking…but why are you here in the middle of class?" Negi asked the much taller man, who smiled down at him assuring.
"Oh, well you see, Negi-kun, apparently I've been assigned as your new assistant. Konoe-sama provided me with these papers right here." As the child teacher started looking through them, Naruto's attention turned to the rest of the class. "Now I think some introductions are in order…Hey there, the name's Namikaze U. Naruto, you're new assistant sensei! My likes are ramen, training in martial arts, ramen, the color orange, ramen, and my precious people. My dislikes are arrogant people, those who judge others prematurely, and people who use others for their own selfish reasons. My hobbies include training, comparing different ramen and hanging out with my precious people. My dreams…well, I'll leave that for you to find out."
The young Namikaze had all eyes on him as the girls examined him from head to toe, and truthfully most were exerting all their self control to keep from jumping him like they had Negi.
While Negi was the epitome of cute boyish charm, Naruto was the young, athletic male hunk! Though his style of clothing was unusual, what with the dark orange buttoned shirt with a blue swirl on the chest and a pair of black pants, all it did was highlight the bright blue eyes and sunny hair even more. The man was definitely tall with a height of a little over six feet; he was well over half a foot taller than most of them, even a few inches taller than Kaede and Chizuru, a couple of the tallest girls in the class! While the suit did hide most of his figure, the fact that he said he practiced martial arts was a good indicator the man was well built underneath.
Man, we get both a cute child teacher and a hot older one? This semester is awesome! Was the idea shared by most of the girls.
A new sparring partner-aru/-de gozaru? Thought a smaller dark-skinned girl with dark blonde hair and a tall forest-hair girl who had thin eyes.
Great, now I have to deal with him all year too Asuna thought, wondering if this was just all a bad dream.
Hm, this person looks to be more than he appears was the notion unknowingly shared by a pale girl with short brown hair that tied into a short ponytail with a long item leaning on her desk, along with another dark-skinned girl whose hair fell behind her back, with two tied bangs going down her front.
When the blonde grinned though, his deep blue eyes brightened up and it became too much for the class's relatively small amount of self-control.
Only three seconds after the end of his introduction, the Namikaze found himself swamped by the class of girls, each asking him questions in random succession.
"Wow! How old are you?"
"Where are you from?"
"What do you like in a girl?"
"Hey! Do you have a girlfriend?"
"Can we see your martial arts-aru?"
"Are you still a virgin?"
Naruto tried in vain to follow along as Negi was stuck outside the swarm, trying to mitigate the chaos.
"Um-well-I'm 18, uh can't really tell you where I'm from, uh what? No, I don't-Maybe later-am I what?"
"Come on class, please calm down!" Negi called out to the crowd. In the end, it took another five minutes for the question barrage to end, with Naruto deflecting most of their questions as the two new teachers got them all into their seats. After they were taken care of, the small red-haired teacher handed back Naruto's papers.
"Well Naruto-san, all those papers look correct. I look forward to working together with you." The polite boy finished up with a bow. Because he was bowing, Negi couldn't see the wicked grin on his co-worker's face.
BONK!
The class of girls gasped in surprise as they saw their newest teacher send their first new teacher crashing into the floor. The red-head recovered quickly though, staring at the blonde with tear-filled eyes that again nearly caused a rampage at its cuteness.
"Itai! Why did you do that Naruto-sa-"
The blonde interrupted "Because calling me –san makes me feel old, and I'm still not even twenty" The taller man bent forward so that his mouth was near the 10-year old's ear. "And besides, there's no need for that kind of formality. We're comrades facing a dangerous threat, the least we can do is try to be friends, ne?"
"What dangerous threat-Naruto-sa-I mean Naruto?" His reply was to grab the Springfield kid's head and twist it. The child teacher couldn't help but sweat drop as he saw the girls itching to jump him again after seeing his teary eyes. "I suppose your description isn't too farfetched, Naruto."
"Good, then Naruto it is Negi-kun" the blonde finalized it with a pat on his coworker's head. "Now, time to survive the rest of today."
Luckily the rest of the class period wasn't too bad, and it had been a lot less embarrassing for Negi now that he had Naruto to write on the chalkboard as he read from the textbook. As the bell rang, the girls cleared out quickly, saying goodbye to their two new teachers on the way to their dorms, eager to gossip about the cutie and hottie pair they were given as teachers.
The two new teachers followed after them, Naruto sighing in relief that the first day was over and done with. I really should give Iruka-sensei more credit. He had to deal with this kind of thing all the time, with preteens none the less.
"Hello there, Negi-kun" the pair heard a voice call out, causing the two to turn to see a middle-aged man with a short beard, a lit cigarette in his mouth.
Do they allow smoking indoors here? The blonde idly wondered, curious about the newcomer. His body tensed a minuscule amount as he could feel the magical power the guy contained, though curiously it had a familiar feel clinging to it, almost like chakra. I wonder why his energy feels like chakra, more so than the usual magic energy?
"Oh, hello there Takamichi!" Negi called out, happily waving at the older male.
It looks like Negi knows him though, so he must be alright he thought, relaxing his stance a little more.
"What are you doing here, Takamichi?"
"Just wanted to check up on how you were holding up, Negi-kun. I know my old class can be a bit of a handful." He took a puff from his cigarette. "That, and I wanted to see the newcomer assigned to your class."
The blond caught a meaningful look from the male. In other words, he wants to decipher my trustworthiness to be around his old students. I can respect that. Naruto decided to try and act as cordial as possible, holding out his hand as he introduced himself.
"Hello there, Takamichi-san, the name's Naruto, Namikaze Naruto."
The man quickly studied him for a second, before grabbing the new assistant teacher's hand with his own, a knowing smile formed around his cigarette.
"Takahata Takamichi, and I wish you luck with your new position, Naruto."
I'm trusting you with the care of my students, Namikaze-san.
At the news of his name, Naruto's eyes widened. So this is Takamichi? He looks older than I thought he'd be, isn't he only in his thirties, early forties at the most?
The sunny blonde grinned at the older, gray-haired man. "Thank you, Takamichi, you can count on me.
Don't worry; your students are safe with me.
Takamichi returned his attention to his old (or maybe young?) friend. "Well Negi-kun, I think with Naruto here you'll be just fine as a teacher. Just make sure those girls don't cause too much trouble, alright?"
The small red head just looked between the two of them, feeling as though he missed something important. He just smiled shrugging off the feeling.
"Alright Takamichi, I'll try my best!"
The cigarette smoker nodded towards the boy in acknowledgment as he began to walk away.
Takamichi smiled a knowing smile the two couldn't see as he waved lazily behind him.
I believe those two are going to do just fine.
After the old Class 2-A teacher disappeared around the corner, Negi turned to Naruto.
"So what are you going to do now, Naruto-san?" the young boy asked curiously.
Naruto looked down at him. "Well, I need to go find the place I'm going to be staying at, but once I get acquainted I'll find you so we can work on the lesson plan, okay?"
Negi nodded but stared at him confusedly. "Wait, but how are you going to find me, Naruto-sa" he saw Naruto's grin morph into something very malicious. "Uh, Naruto?"
His grin became normal again, making the boy wonder what if he had just imagined it. "This school is very big."
"Don't worry about that, Negi-kun, just leave that to me" the blonde smiled again before saying goodbye to his co-teacher, making his way outside.
As he stepped out of the building, Naruto couldn't help but return to his interactions with the boy mage today.
Hm, Negi is a lot different than I thought he'd be, maybe it's from his mother. I'll have to ask him about that, but right now I have to find my new home, at least it is out near the forest. As long as I keep my roommates unaware, it'll be the perfect training spot.
Looking around to make sure nobody was around to watch, the blonde began to move much faster than before, disappearing at one point only to reappear at another point maybe a couple hundred feet away.
Man, I'm so glad he left me that spell book to learn from. Those shundo techniques kick way more ass than shunshin, especially since they can even work in midair.
Being the reckless guy he is, Naruto let out a loud whoop of excitement as he approached the destination at speeds an ordinary person would gawk at, if they could even spot him.
Too bad for the young jounin that a not so ordinary student had managed to spot him. Luckily the teenage girl couldn't identify the person she saw, and with the training she'd undergone it only made her more interested on who it could be.
If I can find who that was, maybe I can ask to train with them-de gozaru.
In the forests by Mahora campus, all was relatively peaceful. A person that was there could hear the sound of birds and animals running through the trees and brush. Everything was as it should be.
Of course, such a calm setting had to be disturbed by a quick gust of wind as a person suddenly appeared in the clearing.
Naruto adjusted his suit quickly before pulling out the map provided for him by Konoemon. The blonde judged himself to be pretty close to his destination, thinking what the lodging would be like and who his roommates were as he walked the final leg.
Walking past another batch of trees, Naruto found the answer to his first question in front of his face, and he had to think it was pretty cool.
It was a fairly large log cabin that had a stone foundation and two floors with a triangular roof. There was a balcony jutting out the front and two different staircases that led to the raised porch before the front door. Another feature from what he could see was some kind of storage room right next to it…either that or it was the bathroom. Naruto really hoped it was the former. There wasn't much décor that could be said for the outside, but the craftsmanship in its creation could not be denied. Again, Naruto hoped he wasn't dealing with some spoiled brats. Sure, he had an innate ability to change people like that for the better, but he rarely got any fun out of it.
But something else he could feel were the trace amounts of magic permeating the air around this clearing. True, he could feel it all over the campus, but it was a little thicker here, meaning either these roomies knew magic or somebody else who did.
Well the blonde figured as he stepped up to the doors, I'm never going to figure that stuff out just standing here!
Whoops, almost forgot the blonde recalled a very important fact shortly before knocking on the door. He quickly pulled the orange sleeve of his right arm up, then biting his left thumb with his exceptionally sharp canines. Another body modification, courtesy of his affliction.
Shaking those thoughts away, he wiped his bleeding extremity over the underside of his forearm, suddenly revealing what most people, magical or not, would consider as strange looking tattoos. Applying chakra to the design, in two puffs of smoke appeared two medium sized bags. After all, it'd look suspicious for a new roommate to move in without any baggage, right? Especially when they could see his room furbished afterward with his stuff.
KNOCK! KNOCK! KNOCK!
"EXCUSE ME! ANYBODY HERE!?" Naruto yelled loudly after the three just as loud knocks, sending a flock of birds soaring away from the tree line and scaring away several smaller animals. Well, that better get their attention.
From the sound of the door opening, Naruto guessed that it did. Although, no amount of preparation could steel him for the sight beyond the opened door.
She was definitely a girl, that much was obvious. She had pale green hair that nearly resembled emeralds, with a pair of sky-blue eyes to match the nature-inspired, impassive visage. Though that wasn't what caught his attention the most. The new acquaintance, instead of regular ears, had two long rectangular shapes that extended up and back from the sides of her head, shielded somewhat by her hair. Although, the blonde had seen much stranger stuff than that in his short life, and that still wasn't what shocked him the most.
What got his attention even more than the not-average ears was the fact said young woman was the fact she was wearing a maid's outfit, frilly apron and tiara in all, though with long sleeves that frilled out at the wrist. It definitely wasn't something revealing, but did accentuate her bust that was well formed for a girl of 15.
Naruto blushed slightly at the sight in front of him; made all the more awkward for him by the fact the girl seemed completely uncaring about the fact a stranger had seen her like this.
"Good day sir, is there something you require?" The maid-girl didn't fail to notice the bags he was carrying.
Regaining his composure, the blonde coughed in his fist before grinning happily at her. "Well yes, I'm a new addition to the Mahora faculty, and I was told by Konoe-sama that my room assignment was here. Is your boss here? I'm curious to know who the teacher's I'm living with will be" he ended, rubbing the back of his head.
The girl observed him a few more moments, and to the jounin in disguise he could feel her judging his possible threat level. Strange, what would a girl like her be doing judging if I'm a threat? Then again, maybe those ears mean she has some sort of Kekke-Genkai?
Her observation completed, she turned around, making a welcoming motion with her free arm. "I will go retrieve my master. For now, please make your self comfortable" she told him, her tone never wavering from its impassiveness.
He bowed slightly to her before picking up his bags. "Thank you" he replied, taking note of the interior décor as he took a seat on a nearby couch next to a table. Whoever this teacher was had a strange taste in interior design, as there were dolls everywhere! Naruto really hoped it wasn't a guy who lived here, both because of the really girly environment and the fact there was a teenage girl working here as a maid!
The young maid-girl had already disappeared, leaving him to spend the time wondering on who this teacher might be, and why they had a maid with a kekke-genkai.
Luckily for the unpatient young man he didn't have to wait long, as he heard a loud yell exclaiming "WHAT!" not a minute later. Hmm, only a woman could scream like that, but why does it sound young?
Naruto got his answer immediately as he heard footsteps on the staircase behind him, before seeing a small girl rush into his line of vision, followed after by the green haired kekke-genkai wielder.
She looked to be no older than Negi; any ordinary person would have considered her to be a very cute ten-year old. Her pale blonde hair reminded him of his priestess acquaintance Shion, although the dark emerald eyes were a major difference. Her facial structure still denoted a possible regal background and the sunny blonde teen could tell she'd be a looker when she grew up. The pale girl also wore what could be described as a 'gothic lolita' outfit, another detail that would send females screaming 'Kawaii' and attempt to hug her to death.
But Naruto was no ordinary person and could feel the negative aura swirling around the girl that screamed 'danger' and 'death', which probably kept those possible admirers far away. This little girl, whoever she was, had killed many before in apathy or bloodlust; that much he could sense. The fact that she looked very pissed only amplified that negative aura as she looked about ready to kill somebody. Luckily he didn't appear to be the target of her rage.
The young jounin had a foxy grin on his face despite the killing intent surrounding the girl before introducing himself. "Hello there little girl, my name is Namikaze Naruto. What is your name?" His little girl comment only pissed her off further, her eyes narrowed dangerously at the intrusion.
"I do not care who you are, only why you are here claiming to be moving into my home?!" Naruto widened his eyes in surprise hearing it was her home.
"Wait, so you and that girl in the maid's outfit are the roommates Konoemon told me about?" he asked. Then again, the aura of this girl is a pretty clear indication she ain't very social.
"So it was the old man who is up to this, is he? Grrr, I'm gonna rend the last bits of hair right off the man's scalp for this!" Suddenly, the girl turned away from him, stomping out the front door before leaving a resounding SLAM to reverberate through the now silent room.
A few seconds passed between the remaining two occupants, besides all the dolls of course, before the green-haired girl bowed to the blonde-haired boy and spoke.
"I apologize for my master's actions, she is not the most…easy of people to be around." Again her monotone voice did not waver, although her response just made him laugh a little, waving a hand to tell her to rise.
"Oh, don't worry about that. I know what it's like to hang around moody people, I've seen much worse than that little fit." His answer garnered only a blink from the impassive girl to show off her confusion. "Can I ask you a question, though?"
"Yes, that is acceptable Namikaze-sama."
He sighed a little in frustration. "Please, just Naruto, I can't tell you how much I get that treatment back home. It's very annoying." Again, all she did was blink, prompting another sigh from him. "Anyways, why are you two doing out here in a cabin like this? I thought the girls all stayed in dorms?"
The servant-girl thought for a second for an answer to his inquiry. "You can say that master and Konoe-sama have an…agreement due to a few special circumstances that I cannot tell you of."
"Well, I guess that makes sense…uh, I'm sorry but I don't think I got your name."
"My name is Karakuri Chachamaru…Naruto-sensei." She said using his first name, getting a nod in approval from the Namikaze teen.
"Also, why is it you work as a maid for a ten-year old girl if you two are roommates?" Naruto asked.
"My apologies, Naruto-sensei, but I am not at the liberty to answer that question."
He just chuckled again at her formality. "Oh don't worry about it, I'm sure you two have reasons." I just hope it isn't for the wrong ones. The blonde began to get up from his spot on the couch, heading to the front door. "I'd like to stay and chat more, but I promised Negi-kun that I'd find him and begin making lesson plans. Do you mind if I leave those bags there for now, Chachamaru?"
"Not at all, Naruto-sensei."
"I'll see you later then, Cha-chan!" He called out from the other side of the door before closing the door, leaving the girl in the maid's outfit alone in the house. She stared at the door, an inflection of emotion finally appearing her stony face.
'Cha-chan?' she thought confused. 'My files indicate that the act of calling another in such an affectionate manner expresses some sort of friendship or emotional attachment. It does not make sense for Naruto-sensei to use such forms of address for me, who he has only met today. How…abnormal.'
Said blonde was already tree hopping towards the main Mahora campus, searching for Negi's unique energy signature. Cha-chan seems kind enough, soft spoken and with the emotional range of Sai, but nice. Nothing a little Uzumaki-brand fun won't solve. As for the other girl…well, it'll be just like having Sasuke-teme around, only louder. Much louder.
I can't believe it Naruto thought, his eyebrows twitching at the scene he stumbled on, hiding from the two involved person's up in a nearby tree. And I thought he was supposed to be some kind of genius? Well, I guess that answered my earlier question.
Now, what scene was the blonde shinobi hiding from, you might ask? Well, after spending ten minutes searching for his new co-teacher, he found him…using magic to catch one of their new students from falling off a staircase…in front of Asuna.
Now, Naruto couldn't blame the kid too much, all he was doing was saving his student after all, but still.
Better keep watch over them, if Asuna tries anything I might just have to step in. I hope she doesn't, don't want the surprise to be wrecked this early.
So for the next ten minutes, Naruto watched the show in front of him, highly entertained by Asuna's intense interrogation and her wacky conclusions (seriously, a super hero? What were they, some kind of manga characters?), hardly allowing the young mage to respond. However, Naruto was impressed to see Negi try to utilize a memory-erasing spell on the orange haired student, there were very few jutsus that effected the mind in that way, most of which are known only to the Yamanaka. There was a fuuinjutsu, but that was a long and complicated process to create, while this spell only required a chant and magical power.
Of course, what didn't impress the young jounin was the fact that the little Springfield had messed up, erasing all her clothes except her overcoat.
Up in his tree branch, half of Naruto's brain was cursing his choice of vantage points while covering his eyes, as he had gotten an excellent view of her…lack of dress. The other half, on the other hand, was holding back a mental nosebleed as it prompted his fingers to spread just enough to maintain viewing the scene.
Dammit, I really wish Ero-sennin hadn't made me edit those damnable books now!
So distracted was he, the blonde missed Takahata's arrival and Asuna's subsequent meltdown of embarrassment. By the time he managed to regain control over his bodily functions, everybody had already disappeared.
Crap, lost them. Hope they didn't get too far away. With that hope in mind, the blonde disappeared from the clearing as well, following the faint trail of Negi's energy. Another fifteen minutes of running left the blonde in front of the middle school area, making the new teacher wonder what they needed to do here. Determined to find out, he reached for the door handle, but just as he was about to grasp it, the door swung wide open, ending with a resounding SLAM as it hit the wall. Only his quick reflexes saved him from taking a shot straight to the face from the large wooden object.
Recovering from the near collision, the jounin looked at the open doorway to see the culprit of the unintentional attack, only to see a middle school girl looking back at him with a cheerful grin.
Her skin tone was much darker than most other girls, and had blonde hair a much darker shade than his sunny yellow hair. Her hair was shoulder length, but was tied up into two buns on top of her head before flaying out to the sides in three spikes, and two bangs framed her face. Like the ten year old girl from the cabin, who he still had to get the name of, she also had green eyes, although more of a forest green shade and without a malicious gleam. Not only that, but the girl didn't seem to share the same ethnic appearance as most of the other girls in class 2-A, which is what Naruto used to recognize her.
"Hello there, you're one of my students…um…"
She bowed low as she introduced herself. "My name is Ku Fei-aru. But now we need to hurry Naruto-sensei." She quickly ran up to him and grabbed his hand, before dragging him into the building and through the hallways.
Naruto didn't bother to ask what she was doing, being too busy trying to stop being dragged like a large doll. Though seeing how Ku Fei was almost dragging him through the school did leave him with one inquiry.
"Hey, Ku-chan, ouch, may I ask you, ouch, a question?" He asked, the wood floor starting to hurt his backside.
The Chinese girl considered it a blessing that he was behind her so he couldn't see the light blush on her face from the affectionate suffix. "Yes Sensei?"
"Are you, ouch, a fighter?"
Suddenly the girl stopped, and Naruto looked at her worried he may have asked a bad question. That is, until she turned to look at him, flames in her eyes that Naruto had seen way too many times with Lee.
Crap, what did I unleash?
"I am Mahora Academy's best fighter-aru!" Ku Fei shouted energetically. "User of Chinese Kenpo and undefeated in years!" As quickly as it came though, the flames disappeared from her green eyes as she looked at him confusedly. "But how did you know that, Naruto-sensei?"
"The way you carried yourself" he explained, finally able to get up off the floor as the girl had stopped dragging him. "It told me that you had excellent muscle control, much more than a regular person. That and the fact you actually managed to drag me through the halls."
The Chinese fighter's face flushed a bit red in embarrassment as she rubbed the back of her head, just like the blonde shinobi would. "Sorry for that, but we don't want you to miss the party-aru."
"What party?" He asked curiously. Realizing what she said, the bun-haired girl's face became confused and nervous.
"Uh, what party? I don't know this party you're speaking about-aru."
He chuckled a little at the smaller girl's bad attempt of a cover up. "Don't worry Ku-chan, I won't tell anybody."
She looked at him relieved. "Thank you Sensei. Iincho (Class President) and the others would be really mad if they knew I spoiled the surprise-aru."
"Well, I had a small feeling that you girls would try something like this" he replied. Of course, having your Kage Bunshins dispel themselves with memories of people buying party supplies and decorating the classroom helps a lot in that regard.
Man, now I'm gonna feel a bit guilty though. Me and my classmates never threw Iruka-sensei a party. I need to remember that when I return to Konoha.
The teacher-student pair saw they were only a few doors down from their classroom, but when Naruto tried to walk towards it, Ku Fei stepped in front of him. Raising an eyebrow in question, she looked at him hopefully.
"Naruto-sensei, you said that you practiced martial arts too-aru, so…would you spar with me sometime?"
The jounin shinobi looked at her forest green eyes a few seconds, like he was searching for something. Whatever it was he appeared to be looking for he seemed to find, though, as he grinned, a grin that made the Kenpo user think of a fox. "Sure, a spar sounds fun. Just don't expect to come out the winner, Ku Fei."
"We'll see about that-aru." She grinned back, as the two finally went through Class 2-A's doorway to see his new class all talking, probably about their new teachers, drinking punch and having a generally good time. The blonde teacher saw Negi-kun talking with Takahata, who was sitting with Shizuna-san. For some strange reason, however, the child teacher was holding a hand over the old 2-A teacher's forehead as he talked with him. As the party participants recognized the second guest of honor arrive, however, they all began to gather around him as they all tried to converse with him.
Trying to make it in the mosh-pot of teen girls, the young Namikaze couldn't help but grin at all the attention. Hm, maybe being a teacher won't be so bad, after all. I guess this mission has officially begun.
De-Raz: Well, that's the end of Chapter 1 of Tale of the Ninja Mage, I hope you all enjoyed it. Just remember to read and review. And don't forget to watch out for my next updates (see top of chapter if you were so lazy you couldn't be bothered with reading it the first time. Sucks for you!)