Chapter II
And here's the newest chapter. I worked on it a bit while I was unable to do my other stories so I ended up finishing this whole chapter. I have a coauthor now, the always trusty seeker of true anime fan fic, and he's helped me a lot since I've started the idea. I've also added a few crossover elements to the story for the future but I figure it's alright to keep this marked as a Naruto-only story since those elements are minor and are just a few characters. But that could change. Anyway, I guess it's time for reviewer responses, not that there are a whole terribly lot of them.
BruddaJokka: I know that's how some feel. I really wanted to do this as a story for me. So if you don't like I'm not forcing you to read it, I've also still got my other stories going so do as you please. I'd like you to read it of course and see where it goes but I don't have a Mangekyo Sharingan so I can't control you.
coduss: Cool. Dunno yet. Originally it was going to be neither. She was going to be just an older sister figure to Naruto but I've since come up with a few different ideas on what to do with her that I'll think about as time goes on.
God of Thorns: Uhm...want a cookie?
That's it for now. So that means it's time for the story itself. As usual, let me know what you guys think, like, hate it or don't care a review is usually welcome. Unless you're just here to shit on my day. :p
Naruto and Hinata were playing in the Leaf's main playground, merely enjoying the day as they moved from activity to activity.
Unknown to them, Itachi and Anko stood in the shadows watching them.
Hinata looked past Naruto with worry after the sun began setting.
Naruto noticed this and looked at her puzzled. He turned around and saw why.
Ko, a man with short, backwards spike brown hair, featureless white eyes as with all Hyuga, a broad, well-defined nose, and wore the standard Leaf jonin uniform with a bandana style headband to hide his hair. He was also Hinata's appointed bodyguard. And he looked angry.
Itachi narrowed his eyes as Ko approached, unsure of what he would do to Naruto.
Naruto felt the same as Itachi as Ko approached.
Ko walked up with a stern expression at Hinata, causing her to flinch. "It seems you've been off playing."
Hinata nodded guiltily.
Naruto began to glare as he watched Ko.
Ko looked at Naruto and smirked, then reached out a hand to Hinata. "It's getting late. You can come back and play with him tomorrow."
Several people froze in response, Naruto himself included.
Hinata looked up at Ko shocked. "R-…really?"
Ko nodded with a smile as he led Hinata away, both of them waving to him.
Anko and Itachi couldn't help but chuckle at Naruto's dumbfounded expression. Anko, still feeling playful, walked out from the bushes.
"Soo…you found a friend?"
Naruto flinched and then turned around to see Anko behind him. He began to sweat heavily as he was worried what she would say.
She just smirked. "Good. Someone else to tort-er…I mean train."
Naruto then got an idea and began to run off.
Anko realized what it was, grabbed his collar, turned him around, and sent him off in the opposite direction, to where Itachi was.
Hinata and Ko arrived back at the Hyuga compound shortly. Hinata was very scared what her father, Hiashi Hyuga, would say about her playing with Naruto.
As they entered the building, Ko bowed as Hiashi, a man with long brown hair, featureless white eyes and wore traditional, loose-fitting robes with a brown haori, walked up to the two of them.
Hiashi waved a hand at Ko, dismissing him.
Hinata then turned to her father worried, now no longer having any support on her end.
Hiashi narrowed his eyes dangerously at Hinata. "What did you think you were doing, playing with that child? How many times have we told you to stay away from him?"
Hinata merely tried to curl up into herself in response, hoping he would stop.
Instead, that action made him angrier. "Well?! What reason would you have to so obstinately disobey my orders? Why would you-!?"
"Hiashi, Hiashi, calm down," a male voice almost identical to his own said placating.
Hiashi turned to see a man that looked almost identical to him, with the exception of green markings on his forehead. "Hizashi. What do you need?"
"I simply think you should ease up on her a little. She's a child. She's going to naturally explore the world around her. For now, let her do it while she's still Daddy's Little Girl, before she starts rebelling because of your sheltering."
"Hmph, you should keep opinions like those to yourself, Hizashi."
"Now, now brother, you're only older than me by a few moments, there's no need to act so roughly to me." Hizashi then turned to Hinata with a smile. "It's alright Hinata. That boy's simply someone that poses a threat, so your daddy doesn't want you to be around hm too much."
Hiashi turned up his nose at Hizashi's light words about Naruto.
Hinata curled up some, but then seemed to gain some ground, an almost defiant look on her face. "But Naruto's not like that!"
Both men's eyes widened in surprise. Hiashi in anger and fear, Hizashi in surprise.
Hiashi then began to clench his fist and was about to shout again when a slender, fair-skinned hand rested on his shoulder. "That's enough Hiashi, I don't think you need to say anymore."
Hiashi sighed in resignation as he turned to the woman, his wife. "Hanari, you're too easy on her."
Hanari was a beautiful woman with long, dark eggplant hair slightly past her waist and long bangs framing her face, white, featureless eyes with a tint of lavender and who wore the traditional Hyuga clothing, albeit more regal with her position as wife to the clan head, and looked like an older version of her daughter. She smiled warmly at Hinata and knelt down to her, rubbing a hand on her hair. "It's alright Hinata. You needn't be frightened of that boy. You can play with him as much as you like."
Hiashi gasped. "No! I object! That boy is-!" a stern, almost terrifying, glance from Hanari shut him up. It was obvious who led in that relationship.
Hanari patted her daughter's head softly. "Now run along. Dinner will be prepared soon."
Hinata nodded with a wide smile and ran off.
Hanari dropped her smile and turned to Hiashi with a frown.
Hiashi merely put his hands in his sleeves and looked at annoyed. "She has no reason to be around that boy. He's a monster and a menace."
"Have you ever stopped to prove that, Hiashi?"
"I don't need to. He has that beast sealed inside of him."
"Correct. Inside of him. Not part of him."
"Bah! It makes no difference!"
Hanari just sighed and walked away.
Hizashi shrugged and left as well.
The next day, Naruto and Itachi sent their clones to do the normal training while Itachi sat in front of Naruto contemplating his next actions, which also left young Naruto feeling rather uncomfortable.
Naruto just looked at him uneasy. "Err…sensei?"
Itachi looked at him momentarily, having zoned-out in thought. He then sighed heavily. "Naruto, let me ask you something."
Naruto nodded.
"Do you know why everyone treats you the way they do?"
Naruto lowered his head sadly. He shook his head slowly in response.
"Do you want to know?"
Naruto nodded slowly, worried about the reason.
"Can you trust me? The reason won't be easy to hear."
Naruto frowned sadly but nodded. He at least wanted to know why everyone hated him, even if it was painful.
Itachi nodded. "Do you know about what happened six years ago?"
Naruto looked at him puzzled and then widened his eyes before nodding. "The Nine-Tailed Fox attacked the village, but the Fourth Hokage killed it."
"Close. It is actually impossible to kill a Tailed Beast, one of nine that the Nine-Tails is."
Naruto looked at Itachi confused. But then he flinched.
"The only way to stop a Tailed Beast…is to seal it."
Further they widened.
"And the Nine-Tails is special…as no inanimate object can hold it."
His mouth began to gape as realization hit him like a ton of bricks.
"Only a human can contain it. And Naruto…you…are that human." Itachi narrowed his eyes as he observed Naruto's reactions, wondering if he made the right decision telling him so early.
Naruto's eyes went blank, his head dropped and his shoulders slumped as he just looked at the ground, taking in and processing the information he had just been given. It all made sense. The evil glares, the hate. The cruelty, the mean actions and poor treatment. Why he was called "demon" and "monster."
The silence was tense, even Itachi found it uncomfortable. Anko merely stayed silent, knowing how important it was for Naruto to process this information fully.
Naruto then slowly picked up his head. He looked at Itachi with wide, solemn eyes, scared eyes. "Sensei…am I-?"
"No!" Anko intercepted, to the surprise of both Naruto and Itachi. She caught herself momentarily, slightly embarrassed, but then decided to roll with it. "Not a chance. You and that thing are most definitely one and the same. You're two completely different creatures."
Naruto put a hand over his stomach unconsciously, not realizing that's where the seal was. "But…it's seal inside me…"
"So? If you seal a kunai inside a scroll, is that scroll a kunai?"
Naruto looked at her in disbelief. "Are you stupid? There's no way a kunai inside…a…scroll…could be…" His solemn face widened into a brimming smile as the realization hit.
Anko just grinned. "Get it now? You ain't the fox, you're just its cage."
Naruto smiled happily. He then turned to Itachi and bowed from his sitting position.
Itachi raised a confused eyebrow.
"Thank you sensei. I get it now."
"Get what?"
"Why everyone treats me so badly. Why everyone acts so angry and scared towards me. They think I'm the fox. Well…I'll prove'em wrong! And I know just the way to do it!" He stood up proudly, looking at the village's Hokage monument. He put a hand out and declared, "I'll become Hokage!"
Itachi and Anko widened their eyes in response, then laughed. Though Itachi's was more a slight huff into his fist.
Itachi smiled at Naruto. "That's quite a goal."
Naruto just grinned. "Yup! But I'll do it! I'll be even greater than the Fourth Hokage, y'know!"
Itachi smiled, but then frowned again. 'That still leaves me to explain that part…how do I tell him who is parents are, and that they doomed him to this existence?' He then looked at Naruto as he joked with Anko and brought on a new thought. 'If he can take this news that well he should be fine. But not now.' Itachi then stood up and flexed his neck. "Alright, time to start."
Naruto nodded emphatically. "Right!"
The day finished with Naruto's clones dispelling in groups, now he was able to put up to five clones in each group, so he didn't get an overload. The very first time he used the clones they all dispelled at once and the information overload, combined with the exhaustion, knocked him out for several hours.
As Naruto bowed respectfully to Itachi he ran off back to his apartment.
Anko lightly elbowed Itachi's side. "So, how ya going to tell him about his parents?"
Itachi sighed. "I haven't answered that part yet."
After eating his dinner for the night, Naruto decided to flop into bed, but then had an idea. He thought he might try to "find" the fox. The same way he found his own chakra he wondered if he could find the Nine-Tails'. Not to draw on it or anything, but just to know it is there. With that in mind, he sat in seiza and calmed his breathing, pulling out his own chakra then using his senses to examine his chakra. At first he felt nothing there, but then he decided to look deeper. To try and sense deeper into his chakra network. The first thing he found was the specialized network for his Sharingan set in unison with his regular chakra network. Trying to dig deeper he eventually found it. A large, powerful chakra hidden deep within his own. Just within his grasp should he want to take it, but not near enough that he could do anything substantial with it.
That wasn't enough. He dug deeper. Deeper into his network, deeper into his body.
However, the deeper he felt, he started notice his consciousness waning. He had assumed that it was just fatigue, until everything suddenly went dark.
He wasn't certain how much time had passed, or what had happened, he just knew that he was no longer in his room.
He felt water around him as he lie on his back, he opened his eyes and saw nothing until they adjusted. He stood up and looked around. Then wondered with a disgusted face, "Am I in the sewers?" He sniffed the air and realized it didn't smell foul or toxic and was thus confused but stood up and looked around. The place itself was a dark series of tunnels with water that came up to just below his knees, tall, almost featureless beige, brick walls that extended high towards the ceiling where a series of cables and pipes flowed along the top.
He noticed the cables seemed to transport a blue substance in one direction while the pipes transported a red substance in the other direction. He activated his Sharingan, which had gained a second tomoe in his right eye since his training began, and looked around. The place he was in was filled with chakra. But it wasn't normal chakra. To his activated eyes it seemed as though the tunnels were filled with a thick, slow moving red mist.
Out of curiosity and seemingly nothing better to do in that place he decided to follow the red pipes.
He followed them for quite a while, what he assumed was minutes, possibly an hour, before he found what seemed to be the place they all converged.
A large, tall, wide hallway the size of a small building that seemed to extend as infinitely as the rest. This proved not to be the case as he followed it.
He could clearly see there was an end. And when he approached it, he was surprised and confused as to what it was.
A massive set of iron bars that formed a set of double doors that were as wide and tall as the hallway they were in. In the direct center of the doors was a piece of paper with a symbol that he recognized as, "seal" on it.
He looked through the bars and saw what appeared to be an endless darkness with no top or sides going off in every direction. Curious he inched towards the bars, feeling fear grow in his heart inexplicably, to see what could have been inside when four large claws attached slammed in from between the bars.
The sudden motion was enough to make Naruto scream and fall backwards roughly.
The claws sat for a moment and then retracted into what he now thought was a cage.
Naruto narrowed his eyes and then widened them in shock, awe and horror at what was inside the cage.
A massive fox with bright orange fur, the torso and arms of a human, black marks covering its eyes and the insides of its ears, canines that stuck out below its top lip and nine, long, swaying tails behind it. Though its most shocking feature were its eyes. Large eyes with red irises and slit pupils.
Naruto gulped fearfully. "Y-you…you're the…"
"I am the Nine-Tailed Fox."
Hearing the beast speak, a low, almost demonic voice, Naruto snapped out of his shock and stood up, looking the fox straight in the eye.
It narrowed its own eyes in curiosity. "Defiant. Are you not afraid of me? Do you not hate me?"
Naruto clenched his fists at the beast. "I want to. You're the reason. You're the reason everyone hates me and loathes me. You're the reason everyone wants me dead. Because they think I'm you."
"HAH! What a joke! To mistake my greatness for a pipsqueak like you! It's almost insulting if it weren't so funny!"
"I don't think it is. My life's been a living hell because of you!"
"Do not mock me cretin! Do you think I want to be locked up inside your tiny body like an animal?! Of course not!"
"Is this the part where you offer me something for your freedom?"
"Peh. No."
Its answer confused Naruto.
"The seal on you makes that impossible. Normally, if you were to die I'd be set free. But that damned Fourth Hokage used the damned Reaper Death Seal. Meaning if the seal is broken by you or your death then I'd be killed too. And don't go getting any funny ideas about tampering with the seal. All that charka you've got inside you is mine. Purified but still mine. Your body by itself is too weak, so it siphons my chakra, the seal purifying it. So we're stuck with each other. If you die, I die. And the opposite is true as well. So get used to it brat."
Naruto snarled at the fox. "So!? Then what am I supposed to do, huh?! I don't want you living inside me!"
The Nine-Tails slammed its claws against the bars. "Are you deaf?! I just said I don't want to be sealed inside you either! I'd be much happier and warmer out there than in this damp sewer. But we're stuck. So the best we can expect is you leave me alone and I don't try to make your life hell."
"But you already are!"
That seemed to annoy the fox, though not anger it. "And here I was expecting you to be different. You should know by now that I am not the one making your life miserable. The idiots out there who do not know the difference between a container and its contents are. I am merely the cause of their hatred. The hatred itself and where they place it is all their own however."
Naruto heard its words and thought about it for a moment. He then looked back up at the fox. "That doesn't change that were you not in me I wouldn't be in this situation."
"And if God hadn't made the moon or this planet I wouldn't be here either. We can't change the past. So stop blaming me for it you cretin."
"Grrr, stop calling me a cretin!"
"Then stop blaming me for your village's stupidity."
Naruto clenched his fists at the beast before finally sighing in resignation as he flopped onto the ground.
The Nine-Tails raised an eyebrow as it watched this happen.
Naruto just sat on the floor, looking into his own reflection for a few minutes, the Nine-Tails sitting curiously by, its tails swaying behind it.
"I don't hate you."
"Huh?"
"You asked me before if I hated you. I don't. I hate that you being inside me makes the village hate me. I hate that they see me as being you. But I don't hate you. I can see you don't want to be inside me anymore than I want you in here. And I don't know what it is you did to get sealed inside of me, but I just feel that it wasn't truly your fault."
The fox chuckled with a light smirk. "Oh? Do you now? You do know people call me the Embodiment of Hatred, don't you?"
Naruto nodded.
"And yet you still don't hate me."
Again he nodded.
"You…are a weird one. You, out of an entire race of humans that hate and kill each other, and that see my kind as either tools or monsters. And you're the one that I get sealed in. I can't decide if I should feel lucky or worried."
Naruto grinned mischievously. "How about both?"
"Eh?"
"How about you feel both? Then you won't have to pick."
The fox just sat there staring at him for a few seconds before tilting its head back in loud laughter. "Now that is a most unusual answer! I can't say whether I hate you yet or not, boy, but I can say you are amusing. And now that you've come in here for the first time I'll have a mental link to you."
"A mental…link?"
"It means you'll still be able to hear me, and I you, when you leave. You've proven to be an amusing one to speak to. My other Jinchuriki couldn't even provide that."
"Other?"
The fox nodded. "Yes. My two previous Jinchuriki. Mito and Kushina Uzumaki."
Naruto's eyes widened. "U-Uzumaki!?"
It raised an eyebrow. "Haven't you been told yet?"
"I just learned about you today!"
The fox narrowed its eyes. "I see…well it's not important now, brat. So get out of here and let me sleep."
Naruto was not given a choice as the fox forcibly kicked him out.
Naruto awoke in his room and looked around. He sighed and then flopped over, actually going to sleep this time.
Naruto woke up groggily that morning and sat up slowly. He looked around curiously as the events from last night flowed into his mind. He then thought about what the fox had said about a mental link.
'You can hear me, can't you?'
"Gah! Who said that!? Where are you!?" Naruto shouted nervously as he jumped around.
'It was me nitwit.'
"Y-you mean…the fox?"
'Yes me. Now stop talking out loud. You'll look like an idiot in public.'
"Then how do I talk to you?"
'Just think it asswipe.'
'Hmm…how's this? And stop insulting me, y'know!'
'Stop being worth my insults. And yes, that's fine. Now you'd better get moving or that Uchiha scum will get angry.'
"Hey! Don't insult Itachi-sensei!"
'Heh…he may be helping you but he's still an Uchiha. And I suppose in a way, you are too.'
'I…am?'
'Has this "Itachi" told you nothing? He didn't even tell you about me until yesterday. So he hasn't told you about your family?'
Naruto's eyes went wide hopefully. 'I…I have…a family? I was always told…always told that I was abandoned by my parents because of you.'
The fox sweat-dropped. 'Well…that's not entirely inaccurate. I suppose.'
'Why? What do you mean? Who were they?! What were they like!? Were they-!?'
'Slow down meatbag. I'm not in any mood to tell any of that to you. If you want to know ask him.'
Naruto frowned in mild defeat. He was really excited about learning about his parents.
After eating his breakfast he made his way down to Training Ground Seven, but was disappointed to find Itachi absent.
He looked around and noticed a seal on the ground. He approached it cautiously, uncertain of if it was a paper bomb or not, but then saw it. He didn't know what it was but he knew it didn't have the design of a paper bomb.
So he grabbed a stick and poked it. At which point a burst of smoke occurred, revealing Itachi.
Naruto tilted his head in confusion. "Why were you hiding in a paper bomb?"
"I'm not the real Itachi. I am a Shadow Clone. He told me to inform you he was called out on an urgent mission in the middle of the night. He is likely to be gone for a few days. So train at your own pace without him."
Naruto frowned somberly and nodded weakly as the clone vanished. His mind was racing with thoughts and concerns, questions and all sorts of other things. He needed time to think. So, he did the only thing he could think of given the situation. He went to find a place to sit and think.
He didn't know why, but sitting atop the Hokage monument, specifically the head of Fourth Hokage, made him feel calm and comfortable, so he merely sat up there for a while, thinking.
He watched the people below, indistinct specks from his spot atop the monument, as he perused his thoughts, seeing if he could come up with acceptable answers to his problems. He found none.
He sighed heavily as he continued to think.
After a few minutes he sighed again and then stood up. "I guess I won't get any answers sitting here. Might as well go train."
With that in mind he returned to Training Ground Seven to begin his solo training. He took out a small scroll Itachi had given him for that purpose which had several different courses on it. He made his usual batch of six groups of Shadow Clones and set them about the training.
He decided to go ahead and do his usual, but then stopped when he noticed that a strange part of the scroll was sticking out. A few words he didn't recognize on it. He raised an eyebrow and unrolled it further.
"Sealing…Jutsu…what's that?" He scratched his head and then noticed a seal on part of it and then connected the meanings. He smiled mischievously as he popped the seal, releasing a book on novice sealing. He cracked it open and decided to begin reading it on his own.
It was, as expected, very basic. What confused him is it was mostly about calligraphy.
But shrugging it off he decided to begin, following the lessons in the book.
His first works at it were…admirable. Hideous but admirable. That's roughly how he felt when looking over his doodles that were supposed to in some way relate to actual calligraphy. Sighing he decided to make a few more Shadow Clones and had them start on the task. He himself went back to strength training.
After finishing up his training for the day, despite ending it two hours before Itachi normally would, Naruto decided to make his way to the park again, just for the hell of it.
As he walked on the path there he stopped and noticed someone down on one of the small docks sticking out over the river.
A boy with black hair that spiked in the back.
He looked at the boy curiously until said boy turned back and saw Naruto there. Naruto just looked at him in a huff.
The boy frowned and then turned back around, throwing a stone into the river.
"Yo!" Naruto said as he popped over his shoulder.
The ravenette shouted in surprise before losing his balance and tumbling into the river.
Naruto fell backwards laughing.
The boy managed to pull himself up and glared at Naruto. "Just what do you think you're doing?!"
Naruto grinned. "You looked so lonely just sitting there."
The boy looked at him incredulously. "So you thought you'd knock me into the river?"
"That wasn't the plan but it sure was funny."
The boy twitched an eyebrow in response. "Who the hell are you anyway?"
Naruto pointed to himself and answered, "I'm Naruto! Naruto Uzumaki! And I'll be the Fifth Hokage, y'know!"
The boy looked at him in disbelief. "You're an idiot."
Naruto grumbled. "Well who the heck are you?"
The boy gave an annoyed response, "Hn. My name is Sasuke Uchiha."
"Uchiha?"
"What, don't know the name?"
"Oh I do. So what were you doing down here, shouldn't you be with the others?"
That seemed to sullen Sasuke's already depressed mood as he just stared into the water. "I don't want to be there right now."
Naruto folded his arms in thought. "Well…I'm going to the park. Wanna come?"
Sasuke looked at him confused. He then sighed with a shrug. "Guess I've got nothing better to do."
Naruto groaned. "You sound so enthusiastic."
"I'm an Uchiha. You should be happy I'm playing with you."
Naruto gained a tic mark in response, but then grinned deviously. "If you're so special," he then paused as he pushed Sasuke into the river, "then how come you get wet like regular people?!" Naruto then stuck his tongue out and ran off.
Sasuke just sat there fuming before pulling himself out of the water. He then couldn't suppress the laughter that broke from him.
Naruto continued running until he reached the park. He walked up the steps and noticed that none of the adults were pulling their children away, which was a relief in itself, but they also weren't letting any of them off on their own. He moaned in frustration and decided to go off on his own.
He found his way to a set of monkey bars and hopped up, using his greater strength to make it in one go, and climbed up on top of the metal structure. He then sat up there and watched the village.
After a few minutes he heard chatter from the ground below. He turned around and saw that a group of children had surrounded another and seemed to dogging him. Flowing some chakra to his ears, a trick Itachi had taught him, or specifically his clones which he had then picked up, he was able to increase his hearing. He couldn't risk flowing chakra to his eyes to increase his eyesight as that would reveal his Sharingan.
"Come on, fatso! You just gonna sit there?!" one of the kids shouted.
"Isn't your family supposed to be super important? Then why are you such a crybaby?!" another taunted.
The boy in question, a young boy with spiky brown hair, red swirls on his cheeks and, a fact the other children were crudely teasing him about, was slightly more robust than other kids. He was huddled against a tree as they shouted insults at him. "I…I just don't want to hurt anybody."
Naruto frowned when he continued to listen to the other children bully the kid. He finally had enough when he heard the sounds of attack and jumped off the metal bars, nearly ten feet in height, and landed squarely, before charging over to the other kids. "Hey! Back off!"
They let up on their assault on the round kid, the boy in question looking at him puzzled as Naruto stared them down angrily.
The leader of the group, a boy wearing a blue beanie, looked at Naruto with a disgruntled expression. "Che, what're you gonna do? Our parents tell us to stay away from you, but you're just a blonde-haired freak! So why don't you just back off?!"
Naruto grit his teeth as one of them was still insulting and assaulting the other boy. He then brought up his hands in the Shadow Clone sign.
The leader of the group reeled back in fake horror. He then said in a mocking tone, "Ohh noo! He's gonna use ninjutsu on me! Bah, you moron! That's not even the sign for a real jutsu!"
Naruto smirked. "Bet me! Shadow Clone Jutsu!" Five clones of Naruto then burst into existence, charging at the bullies.
It was only a few seconds before the other boys ran off, bruised and beaten.
Naruto panted and then turned to the boy that was being bullied. "Hey, you alright?"
He nodded weakly as he stood up. "Yeah…that was cool…but why'd you help me?"
Naruto grinned in response. "Because, you were in trouble. I couldn't stand those jerks picking on you like that. And it didn't look like you were going to fight back, so I did fer ya!"
The boy smiled happily. "Thanks! I'm Choji. Choji Akimichi."
Naruto nodded. "Naruto Uzumaki!" Naruto then laughed uncomfortably. "I know it's late but…wanna play?"
Choji nodded as he stood up. "Yup!"
"Oy! Choji!"
Choji and Naruto turned as another boy came up to them, a boy with black hair pulled back in a pineapple shaped ponytail and a lazy expression.
Choji looked at him surprised. "Ah! Shikamaru!"
He saw Naruto and Choji and walked up, lazily of course. "Choji, it's time to go. Huh, who's this?"
Naruto stuck out a fist, "Naruto!"
Shikamaru nodded. "My mom's always saying to stay away from you."
Naruto dropped his fist and frowned.
Choji nodded hurriedly. "Yeah, yeah, mine too but…but Naruto helped me."
Shikamaru raised an eyebrow curiously.
"A bunch of the other kids were picking on me, Naruto drove them off."
Shikamaru sighed. "What a drag. Well…I don't know what's up with my mom, but if you're willing to help Choji you can't be all that bad. But we got to go. But we'll be back tomorrow."
Naruto grinned. "Great! I'll be here later too!"
Shikamaru nodded as he and Choji left the park.
Naruto just hummed happily to himself.
'And what would you be so happy about?'
'You kiddin'? I just made three new friends. Well…two and one weirdo.'
'All Uchiha are like that.'
'I guess…but sensei doesn't seem that bad.'
'If you've known as many Uchiha as I have then you'd know what I meant.'
'You know…you're really talkative all of a sudden.'
'I spent six years inside your seal with no connection to the outside world. Now that I have it the least I can do is entertain conversation with you. It's better than chasing my tails.'
'You do that?'
'…Sometimes…'
'Hmmm…'
'Silence.'
Naruto just laughed to himself.
Naruto arrived back at his house and noticed instantly the front door was cracked open. His eyes widened at what could be there, or rather who could be there. Gulping nervously he inched over to the door and peeked inside.
His heart fell. His house was a mess.
He fully opened the door, at that point not caring if anyone was there or not.
His bed had been torn into by some sort of blade, his food had been strewn across the floor, his table was broken and the chairs shattered. He also noticed hateful words and phrases etched on the walls. He clenched his fists in anger and pain as he looked around the room. He walked over to his now torn bed and plopped down onto it, holding his head in his hands as silent tears began to flow.
He heard a quiet, reserved knock at the door.
He looked up and saw Anko standing in the doorway with a sympathetic frown.
He looked at her for a moment before dropping his head back into his balled fists.
Anko ran a hand through her hair as she looked around. "Damn idiots." She walked over to Naruto and sat down. "It'll be alright brat."
Naruto pulled his head out from his hands momentarily to look at her, eyes still wet. "How? My house is wrecked. I don't even have any more edible food."
Anko patted his back. "I went through the same stuff."
"Y-you…did?"
She nodded. "Yup. Wanna know a secret?"
He nodded weakly.
"I actually used to have a sensei."
"Every ninja did."
She lightly rapped him on the head, "Not the point."
"Ow, ow."
"My point is not that I had a sensei, but who that sensei was."
"Who was it?"
"Orochimaru of the Sannin."
Naruto just looked at her puzzled.
"Oh…you don't know who he is yet, do you?"
Naruto shook his head. "No, I've heard the name before but I don't know who he is."
Anko nodded. "Well, he's basically a monster. And I mean the real kind, not the type that go bump in the night."
'Like me?' the fox remarked rhetorically.
"He was, or, I suppose still is, a genius. Incredibly smart and immensely talented at ninjutsu. Unfortunately he's also completely crazy. He's obsessed with learning every jutsu in the world. So much that he created his own sick jutsu that essentially allows him to live forever."
"How…?"
"By switching bodies. He takes over someone else's body and it becomes his new one." Making disgusting motions she added, "He wears them like a new skin."
Naruto felt a shiver go up his spine at the thought.
"He also developed something called the Curse Mark of Heaven. He uses it to mark potential 'sacrifices' for his sick technique. He even marked me once." She pulled down her collar so Naruto could see the assortment of three tomoe in a circle that was placed on the back of her neck. "He trained me and twisted my mind and body to try and make me into his new body, but eventually he decided I wasn't worth it and threw me out like trash."
Naruto frowned sadly. "That's horrible."
Anko sighed. "Yeah, well, that's only the half of it. A little while after making me his student he went crazy and was made a rogue ninja by the Hokage. As a result anyone associated with him was given his reputation, for good reason or not. And that included me."
"Seriously? How?"
"Because, I was personally trained by that jerk and he even taught me some of his own twisted jutsu like the Striking Shadow Snakes, and so people made the connection I was some sort of pawn or agent for him. They hated me and despised me, pretty much exactly the way they do you. They feared and hated me for a situation beyond my control and for something I really wasn't. But, after a while I decided that if they were going to call me the Crazy Snake Lady I might as well embrace it. So I did."
"But…isn't that just helping their insults?"
Anko shrugged in response. "I eventually stopped caring what they thought about me. And I got strong enough that no one bothered me because they knew I could kick their asses if they did something."
Naruto snickered at her answer but then frowned. "But I want people to like me, not fear me."
Anko chuckled and patted the young blonde's head. "Well…you can bet your ass becoming Hokage would mean you've done it."
Naruto blinked in confusion. "What do you mean?"
"The Hokage does not become the most respected ninja, the most respected ninja becomes Hokage," a new voice said.
Both turned and saw Hiruzen standing in the doorway, a sympathetic smile on his old face.
Anko shrugged. "The words were a liiittle different but I was gonna say the same thing."
Hiruzen walked in and looked around, frowning in frustration at the damage to Naruto's small room. He sighed and walked over to the boy. "I am sorry the village treats you the way they do, Naruto."
Naruto just looked at Hiruzen with a weak expression before jumping up and wrapping his arms around the old Hokage.
Hiruzen lightly rubbed Naruto's back before gently pushing him off. "Now, why don't you get some rest? I have an ANBU team returning in a few hours I need to prepare for." He then turned and walked out the door, closing it behind him.
Anko just smirked and gave a comical salute. "Yup. And the boss needs me to tor-er, 'interrogate' some prisoners." She then vanished in a burst of smoke.
Naruto sighed and then flopped over on his side, falling asleep quickly.
Naruto awoke the next morning and made his way to Training Ground Seven and grinned when he saw Itachi standing in the center. He ran over to the ANBU who turned as he approached.
"You certainly seem excited."
Naruto grinned happily. "Yup! I made some new friends yesterday."
Itachi smirked. 'It seems he has an innate ability to focus on the positive. That will serve him well.' "I see."
"Hey, sensei."
"Hm?"
"Do you know someone named Sasuke?"
Itachi twitched lightly in surprise, though Naruto didn't seem to notice. "Why? Did you meet someone with that name?"
Naruto nodded slowly. "Uh-huh. A boy that looked like you, but he was sitting out by the river in the village and looked really sad. So I made him forget about it."
Itachi sweat-dropped. "Do I want to know how?"
"I pushed him into the river!"
'That explains why Sasuke was sopping wet when I got home.' "I see. Anything else?"
"Well, do you know him?"
Itachi nodded. "Yes. He's actually my younger brother."
Naruto's eyes widened. "Seriously!? That's so cool!"
Itachi smiled mirthlessly. "I suppose." He then steeled his features. "Now. Let's resume training."
Naruto returned a comical salute and then made seven groups of clones.
Itachi raised an eyebrow. "Seven?"
"Yeah! I looked at the scroll you gave me and started on sealing jutsu! Although…my calli…cali-whatever stinks."
Itachi looked at Naruto in mild surprise. "Very well. I hadn't intended on you starting sealing jutsu just yet. But…it could help your handwriting."
Naruto sweat-dropped. His handwriting was abysmal.
So with those preparations set up, Naruto, Itachi and their various clones began training.
However, rather than just do strength training, Itachi decided to give Naruto a light test to see how he had been progressing, since testing the real Naruto was better than testing clones. First he test chakra control, getting Naruto to levitate a leaf on the end of one finger. It wobbled slightly but stayed up there.
Itachi nodded as they continued testing.
At one point Itachi had Naruto test his kunai throwing abilities.
He handed Naruto a set of kunai and set out several wooden targets. "All you need to do is strike the circles. A bull's-eye isn't necessary."
Naruto smirked proudly, he was going to make a bull's-eye. He flipped a kunai into the proper grip, pulled back his arm like a spring and launched it forward. Not only did he make it hit the target right in the center, he used so much force it blasted right through.
Naruto was prepared to grin and boast when both he and Itachi heard a shrill shriek from the bushes.
Both of them ran over to check what it was and saw Hinata cowering under a tree, anime tears flowing from her eyes as a kunai was impaled just above her head.
"H-Hinata."
Itachi sighed in resignation. Things just got complicated.
Hinata looked at Naruto and Itachi fearfully.
Itachi reached out a hand and the girl looked at it puzzled. She stuck out her hand timidly and he pulled her up. "So, mind explaining why you're here?"
Hinata began to sputter and mumble nervously.
Naruto looked from side to side, also nervous. "Well…you see she's…she's my friend."
Hinata then bowed deeply with an apologetic expression. "I'm sorry. I was prying. I was just curious where Naruto went every day, so I…I followed him."
Itachi sighed. "Well, now you know."
Hinata then looked between Naruto and Itachi puzzled. "Naruto. Why are you with an Uchiha?" She then looked at Itachi frazzled. "I-I-I-I…"
Itachi put up a hand. "I've been training him."
Naruto grinned. "Yeah! He's my sensei!"
Hinata tilted her head confused. "But you're not a ninja."
"There are extenuating circumstances," Itachi answered as he put a hand on Naruto's shoulder.
Hinata furrowed her brow in thought, not knowing what the words meant.
Then a gruff female voice remarked, "It means there's stuff going on in the rest of the world that's causing Weasel-Man to train Goldilocks."
"G-G-Goldilocks!?" Naruto shouted in frustration at his nickname.
Anko just smirked. "Yup. 'Cuz ya got golden colored hair."
Naruto frowned, annoyed but enjoying the compliment.
Itachi then looked at Hinata and asked, "Shouldn't you be back at the Hyuga compound training?"
Hinata looked down crestfallen. "I'm not very good at my clan's style. I also don't like fighting so…I lose a lot. And then my dad yells at me. So I follow Naruto since he always seems so happy." She looked at the three sadly.
Naruto frowned and then grinned. "Hey! What if she trains with us?!"
Itachi raised an eyebrow and then looked at the girl. She seemed happy at the thought. And it obviously made Naruto happy. He sighed in resignation. "So be it. But she will train on her own with one of my clones, she'll start from the beginning."
Naruto jumped for joy and Hinata smiled happily.
Itachi sighed and created a Shadow Clone that took Hinata off to the side while Naruto and Itachi returned to their training.
Itachi, or more specifically Itachi's clone, was surprised how well advanced Hinata was. Her chakra control was quite good, she was already able to make a stone stick to her forehead with no problems and her taijutsu skill was nothing to mock. She wasn't particularly strong but she was fast and had good aim. She hadn't yet learned to use her clan's Kekkei Genkai, the Byakugan, but she was already learning the Gentle Fist style acceptably well.
At the moment, the clone was training her chakra control for starters, by having her stick stones to her fingertips with chakra alone while facing her palms to the ground. She grunted as she held the stones.
The clone looked at her and then raised an eyebrow. "It's easier if you stop holding your breath."
She gasped in surprise, ruining her concentration, and causing the stones to drop, before turning to the clone and nodding.
She put the stones on her fingertips and tried again, this time trying to remain calmer while breathing slowly.
Naruto, as a result of being the real Naruto, was training his strength as normal. He had progressed to a surprising level. He was doing handstand pushups. He was currently attempting to do twenty pushups in a row.
"Seventeen…eigh…teen…nine…" his counting was interrupted as he lost his balance and suddenly fell onto his stomach. "Owww…"
Itachi sighed as he stood. "That was a good number. You can take a break for now. I suppose we should start breaking your strength training up on different days. I'm starting to notice problems with your movements."
Naruto chuckled weakly. "Yeahhh…I'm feelin' kinda sore."
Itachi nodded. "In that case I suppose we will alternate. Every other day we will focus on something other than strength training. There are still a few hours left in today so we could switch. How about a new form of chakra control?"
Naruto moaned in response.
"It's tree climbing."
"I already know how to do that."
"Without using your hands."
Naruto face-faulted. "How is that even…poss…ible…?"
Rather than answer in words, Itachi answered in the way he knew Naruto understood most, actions. So he walked up the side of tree with his arms folded, parallel to the ground.
Naruto just stared at him agape. "I'm in!"
Itachi jumped down. "Thought so. It's actually very simple. You must concentrate charka into your feet to act as a suction to the surface. It also trains charka control because your feet are the furthest part of your body and you need to perfectly regulate the chakra flow in your feet to make it work."
Anko then added, "It's also a necessary part of being a ninja since you need to be able to run up trees to get into the branches and tree hop. You won't always have the time or place to climb with branches. Plus using chakra like that you can climb almost anything, not just trees."
Naruto thought about for a moment before a kunai landed in front of him.
Anko pointed to it. "Use that to mark how high you get."
Naruto picked it up and nodded.
"You might want a running start."
Naruto ran back away from the tree, brought up his hands in a sign to focus his chakra and then ran at the tree, ran two steps up the tree and then slipped off.
Itachi nodded. "You weren't using enough chakra."
"Yeah…" Naruto grumbled, running back and trying it again.
He pumped more chakra into his feet and ran at the tree again. He made it five steps up that time but then had to mark the tree when the bark suddenly buckled under him and he went blasting off the tree.
He landed face down in the nearby dirt with a resounding thud.
"That time you pumped too much kiddo," Anko remarked.
Naruto rubbed his sore face and tried it again. He kept trying for the majority of the day.
After finishing up training for the day, Itachi and Naruto's clones dispelled and Itachi's last clone returned Hinata to the two and then vanished.
Naruto turned to Hinata happily. "So, how'd it go?"
Hinata smiled with a nod. "Yes. It was fun." She then frowned. "But I think it would've been more fun with you, Naruto."
Naruto smiled sheepishly.
Itachi looked at Naruto curiously and the blonde just nodded. Itachi nodded in return and then regarded Hinata. "In that case, if you think it will help your own training then I will start to train you two in unison. That would mean Naruto is held back some and you would need to catch up. But I can foresee it being generally positive in the future."
Both children smiled happily before Itachi told them to return home.
As Itachi walked away from Training Ground Seven he closed his eyes and sighed. "You can come out now."
Ko then walked out of the thicket. "I see you were training Lady Hinata today."
Itachi nodded and looked at him incredulously.
Ko then smiled. "You needn't worry. I am more along the lines of Lady Hanari's train of thought. I don't feel it is good to isolate ourselves from the rest of the village. It would be especially poor judgment to make enemies of a clan as powerful as the Uchiha. So, I won't do anything to stop your actions. I will, however, need to lie to Lord Hiashi. It would be best if he is unaware of this until sizable improvements in Hinata's abilities are on display."
Itachi turned with closed eyes. "Do as you please." He then teleported away.
Ko just smiled and did the same.
That is the way it remained for several months. Itachi trained both Hinata and Naruto in secret. Naruto was held back in his own training by Itachi, however, rather than complain about it like Itachi expected, Naruto suppressed his own skills to appear even with Hinata and at points displayed less skill than her.
Hinata was aware that Naruto was much stronger than that already but she was happy he was being so nice to her.
However, matters became rough shortly after Naruto turned seven. One day, he was training with Itachi alone because he was told that the Hyuga were involved with negotiations with the Hidden Cloud Village, hoping to bring the two villages to peace.
Naruto was disappointed Hinata wouldn't be joining but knew how important something like that was.
After a few hours of training, an unknown ANBU appeared before Itachi.
Itachi put up a hand to Naruto and regarded the random ANBU. "What do you need?"
"We have an emergency. Lord Hokage has requested you personally. The heiress of the Hyuga Clan has been taken hostage by a Cloud Ninja."
Itachi narrowed his eyes but then glanced at Naruto.
Naruto's eyes widened greatly. "T-that's…Hinata!" Naruto turned and ran at the tree behind him, having done great strides in his tree climbing, and ran up and over the branches.
Itachi sighed. "Which way did they go?"
"Reports say northeast, in the direct direction of the Land of Lightning."
"Simplistic. But swift. Anko."
She nodded and both jonin jumped up into the trees and sped off.
A short way ahead they found Naruto, already becoming tired since he was only now practicing tree hopping.
Anko got up close to him. "You should calm it down kiddo. You've never done tree hopping before, you'll hurt yourself falling at this height."
"I don't care!" he shot back.
Anko looked at him puzzled.
"Hinata's in danger! I won't let her get hurt, y'know!"
Anko looked at him surprised and then smirked, extending a hand out.
Naruto momentarily gasped as he felt something wrap around him. He looked down and saw Anko's snakes around his torso.
"You better hold on tight. I'll carry you like this most of the way. But then you're playing magic missile when we find little Miss Princess."
Naruto looked ahead assuredly. "Perfect."
Anko couldn't suppress her chuckle at the boy's determination. Even Itachi had a light smirk.
A small group of Cloud ninja ran through the treetops of the Land of Fire's vast forest, the leader of the group holding a small sack over his shoulder.
"Heh, heh," one of the ninja chuckled darkly. "It's insulting how easy it was to get this girl. It's like the fools were just asking for her to be taken."
The ninja holding the sack, which presumably had Hinata inside, chuckled in response. "I know. Those idiots didn't realize a thing."
One of the other ninja then turned. "Shit! We're being followed!"
"What?!"
They all turned and saw Itachi and Anko, the latter of whom still had Naruto wrapped in her snakes, catching up to them.
Anko smirked deviously and thrust her arm back then forward. "Anko's Personal Jutsu: Goldilocks Missile!" She flung Naruto at full speed at the center ninja.
Despite his small frame Naruto packed a powerful wallop as he slammed into the man's torso and knocked him to the ground hard, causing him to drop Hinata.
Naruto managed to catch her and free her from the bag as they fell. He frowned at the fact she was unconscious and howled in pain when he landed on the ground back first, although still clutching Hinata tightly.
The Cloud ninja stood up angrily. "You little brat…you'll pay for that." He pulled out a metal club on his back and approached Naruto.
Naruto reacted and turned around, using his body as a shield for Hinata as the man began beating the boy over the back with great force, Naruto going unconscious quickly but never releasing Hinata.
After a few seconds of swinging he felt a very tight, very angry fist grab his hand and then jerk it back and down, the wrong way. He howled at the pain as the visceral snap was heard from his arm breaking. He looked back with clenched eyes into the angry Sharingan of one Itachi Uchiha. He then looked ahead and watched Anko approach, equally as pissed. She raised her right arm and shouted, "Striking Shadow Snakes!" Three vipers appeared from her sleeve and lunged at the Cloud ninja, biting his neck three times and injecting with copious amounts of venom, killing him off swiftly.
As Itachi released his dead body he looked around at the dead bodies of the other four Cloud ninja, then saw Naruto, sitting against the tree, completely unconscious but still holding Hinata tightly in his arms.
"There!" he heard a familiar voice shout as Hiashi Hyuga and several other Hyuga and ANBU appeared. He saw a battered and bruised Naruto holding Hinata tightly and growled in anger. "I knew that little brat couldn't be trusted."
"Actually, he protected Hinata," Anko interjected.
"What? Doesn't matter either way. Take my daughter from that thing," Hiashi ordered.
One of the Hyuga walked over and attempted to lift Hinata, seeing that as he attempted to do so Naruto came with her. He attempted to do the same thing, holding Naruto down but discovered the boy had a strong hold on her despite his age. "Sir, he's holding onto her extremely tightly."
"Then rip his arms off."
"That won't be necessary," Hanari ordered as she walked up. She saw Naruto sitting there, unconscious but still protecting her daughter. She frowned at Hiashi. "Even unconscious from injury and he's still protecting our daughter with all his life. And you wish to cripple him." She then turned to Itachi. "Would you mind carrying the two of them back to the compound for me?"
Hiashi and several others gasped. "You must be joking! He's an Uchiha! I forbid it!"
Hanari looked at her husband sternly, then to Itachi. "It's fine, do as I say."
Itachi nodded and picked up both children before the entire group vanished into the forest and back towards the Leaf Village.
Naruto slowly awoke in a strange place. He looked around and did not recognize where he was. After a moment his mind rebooted too and he remembered last night, shooting up to a sitting position and looking around frantically. "Hinata!"
"She's alright," he heard a soft voice say.
He turned and gasped as Hanari walked in. 'So pretty…'
'Oh boy…'
Hanari walked in and sat down next to Naruto. "Tell me, are you hurt Naruto?"
Naruto raised an eyebrow and looked around himself and then shook his head. "More importantly, is Hinata-?"
Hanari raised a hand calmly. "You needn't worry. She is alright. In fact, she sustained very light injuries thanks to you."
Naruto smiled thankfully, then frowned regretfully.
"Now what's with that face? You aren't possibly feeling regret about not being there, are you?"
Naruto's frown deepened, he didn't realize he was that transparent.
Hanari smiled warmly. "Even Lord Hokage wasn't able to predict this, so you don't need to feel any guilt. Sadly events such as this are not uncommon in clans with well-known abilities. The Uchiha also experience such occurrences from time to time."
"Why did you…?"
"Compare it to the Uchiha? I am aware of your training with Itachi Uchiha. As well as my daughter's."
Naruto's eyes widened.
"Now don't worry. I have no intentions of stopping it. In fact, I encourage it. Hinata has been so happy lately. Actually, you're all she can talk about. She has gotten so much stronger as well." Hanari then giggled playfully. "Of course my oaf of a husband believes Hinata's recent developments are all his doing, and I have no intentions of disavowing him of those notions. I feel my husband's head getting a little bigger is an acceptable compromise for Hinata's happiness."
Naruto smiled in return. "Thank you Miss Hyuga."
Hanari giggled at him lightly. "Fufu, you needn't be so formal. Please, call me Hanari."
Naruto grinned, "You got it, Hanari, y'know!"
"Well, well, you look energetic."
Naruto turned and saw Anko entering the room. He smiled at her and then asked, "Hey, where's I-?"
"He's with the old man right now. Seems the Cloud somehow turned last night around and made it our fault."
Naruto frowned in anger. "How can they do that?"
Anko shrugged. "Don't ask me. I'm not a politician, I just kill things."
Naruto chuckled at her answer. "Yeah, you have a point."
Hanari giggled in amusement as well and then turned to Naruto. "Naruto. If you're truly worried about Hinata, I could show you to her room."
Naruto immediately stood up.
"Fufufu, I see. Then come with me."
Hanari proceeded to lead the young blonde through the large, old-fashioned building the compound was formed from towards Hinata's room.
Naruto hung his head as even there, in an isolated compound, the stares, the angry looks, the insults still hit him.
"Pay them no mind."
Naruto looked up at Hanari surprised.
"They simply do not understand. They are merely afraid. So don't hate them for that. In fact, most of them should be thankful." Hanari then looked at Naruto with a warm smile. "You protect us all every second that you're alive."
Naruto's eyes widened as he listened. While Itachi and Anko were certainly nice to him, no one had ever been so kind before. He then stopped as he began wiping tears from his eyes.
Hanari turned to him in confusion and knelt down. "What's wrong, dear?"
Naruto responded by merely hugging the Hyuga matriarch. "No one's ever said…such nice things."
Hanari gave an amused chuckle as she wrapped her own arms around him. "That's unfortunate." She then stood up. "All of it is true. Now, why don't we get you to Hinata's room?"
Naruto grinned and nodded.
Inside the Hokage's tower, a small meeting was being held. Hiruzen, Hiashi, Hizashi, Danzo, Homura, Koharu, Itachi, and several other ANBU of the same rank scattered around were in the Hokage's main office.
Hiruzen took a heavy drag from his pipe with a sigh. "So, they're really trying to pin this on us?"
Homura nodded. "Yes. It seems that one of the shinobi that was killed was their head of shinobi affairs. The others were guards with him."
Hiruzen turned to look at Itachi. The latter nodded in response. "I see. So, Hiashi, they were after the Byakugan?"
Hiashi nodded. "That is why they took my daughter instead of someone from the branch families, because in doing so they wouldn't need to worry about the Bird Cage Seal."
Hiruzen sighed. "So, that would explain their demands. They refuse to complete the alliance with our village and will start a war unless we bring them your head as recompense for their loss."
Hiashi flinched in response. "I see."
Hiruzen took another drag from his pipe. "So, Hiashi Hyuga. Will you accept this?"
"I…"
A few days later, the Third Raikage had arrived in the village with several of his own shinobi to meet with the Third Hokage.
The Third Raikage looked at Hiruzen sternly, a deep frown on his face. "So, do you have it?"
Hiruzen grit his teeth and stuck out his hand, a casket next to him. "The body of Hiashi Hyuga, just as you requested."
Several people, including Hiashi's brother and several other members of the Hyuga, had shown up to the offering. Hanari was among those who was most discontent.
Naruto sat nearby with clenched fists.
The Third Raikage opened the casket and looked over the body, Hiashi's forehead covered in bandages. The Raikage nodded and covered the body. "We will accept this for recompense after you killed five of our ninja in your so-called rescue."
A young boy next to Hizashi widened his eyes as the Cloud ninja left.
Hizashi clenched his fists as the Raikage and his entourage left, the onlookers doing the same.
After a short travel outside the village, the Raikage turned to his men. "Tear off those bandages."
"Yes, sir!"
They removed the bandages and gasped, the Raikage clenching his fists. "Damn Hokage…"
The body they had been given was in fact not Hiashi, but his identical twin, Hizashi.
After returning to the compound, "Hizashi" removed his own bandages and exposed his clean forehead.
The boy that was with him looked up at Hiashi somberly. "Why did they take my father?"
Hiashi looked at the boy and winced. "Because…it his fate to aid the main house."
Hiashi prepared to give the Hokage his answer. "I-"
"No!" Hizashi objected.
Hiashi turned to him with narrowed eyes. "This is not your decision to make, brother."
"You may be right brother, but I am making this decision. I will take your place. You know as well as I do that they are only doing this to get ahold of the Byakugan, they don't care about those five ninja."
"Be that as it may, if we give them a lie it will start a war."
"Not if they don't realize it's a lie. You and I look identical, Hiashi. I will take your place as the offering to the Raikage, and we will both have bandages. I am certain not even the Raikage would be so foolish to publicly doubt the Hokage in that way. No, he wouldn't check my body until he left the vicinity of the village. And I am also certain the Raikage could not risk the social breach it would create to accuse the Hokage of lying in such a way."
Hiashi narrowed his eyes angrily.
"Hiashi, do not get the wrong idea. I am not doing this for your sake."
That caused Hiashi's eyes to widen.
"I am doing this for the sake of our clan, our village, and to prevent war. I am also doing this…to decide my own fate for a change."
Hiashi then just dropped his shoulders. "I see…so you will take my place then, Hizashi?"
"Yes. Please, tell my son, Neji, my reasons for doing this. I've spent his whole life thus far putting my own worries on him. Tell him I did this of my own accord. And for no other reason."
Hiashi clenched his fists. "Very well."
Hiashi then turned away from the boy, Neji, and returned to his room.
Neji just looked down in sadness before walking away.
However, as he walked, he passed by Hinata's room and happened to overhear the conversation inside.
"Naruto…"
Naruto turned to Hinata curiously. "Yeah, what's up?"
"Why did uncle Hizashi have to die?"
Naruto shrugged. "I don't really know. But my guess is those Cloud jerks didn't like that their ninja got killed when I rescued you."
Hinata frowned but then smiled. "Well thank you, Naruto."
Naruto just grinned. "You got it Hinata, y'know!"
Neji's eyes widened greatly as he was suddenly overcome with rage. He clenched his fists to the point of shaking, but then loosened them as Hiashi's words came into his mind. 'It was his fate to serve the main house.' "Fate…" Neji mumbled. He then looked at Naruto angrily. "If it was fate for my father to die…then fate will even the score. And I will do it…Naruto Uzumaki."
He then turned and walked away.
Several more days passed after that. It took Hinata and Naruto a while to get back into the natural flow of their training. However, on one day, a new member to their little group arrived.
Naruto, Hinata, Anko and Itachi were busy training in their usual place.
Naruto was sparring with Hinata, something that Itachi had decided would be a good weekly practice based on their performance.
After watching the first few spars and then witnessing this one as it happened, an idea began to formulate in Itachi's mind. After a few more seconds he waved to the two children over.
They halted their spar and ran over to him.
"What's up Itachi-sensei?" Naruto asked.
Itachi nodded and turned to Hinata. "Tell me, how much do you know about your clan's taijutsu style, the Gentle Fist?"
Hinata tilted her head in thought. "I…know a little. Why?"
Itachi nodded. "I've noticed that your style involves pulsing chakra from your hands for extra damage."
Naruto gasped. "Wah?! Seriously?!"
Hinata nodded hurriedly, frightened by Naruto's sudden outburst.
He clenched his fists and then looked at her with stars in his eyes. "That's…so cool, y'know!"
Hinata couldn't hid the blush on her face. She suddenly found amusement in her toes as she also pressed her fingers together. "Y-you…you really…think so?"
Naruto nodded. "Yeah. You can hit a guy without even touchin'em! It's so cool, y'know!"
Itachi nodded in agreement. "That's the same line of thinking I was having. Hinata, how well do you know your style?"
Hinata thought for a moment. "Uhm…not a whole lot. Momma knows the most. She's the one who teaches it to me."
"I see. I suppose there's nothing I can do then. I was considering helping to teach it to Naruto."
Naruto raised an eyebrow. "Really?"
Itachi nodded. "It would make a great combination with our Intercepting Fist. Allowing you to not only predict, counteract, and move in on your enemy, you would be able to land hits without needing to contact your enemy. In opponents with chakra-based armor or high-speed movement it would be invaluable. As it is, I will just see if I can gather a few scrolls on the style."
"I have a better idea."
Everyone turned in surprise as Hanari entered the field.
Itachi raised an eyebrow. 'I was wondering when she'd come out. Like mother like daughter I suppose.' "Lady Hanari, can we help you?"
Hanari giggled demurely. "I was merely passing through the area and happened to overhear your conversation, so I thought I'd chime in."
Anko sweat-dropped at the woman's obvious lie.
Itachi nodded. "It would be greatly appreciated. Hinata tells me you are a master in the Gentle Fist."
"I wouldn't go quite that far," she said kindly, "but I know enough to teach it to Naruto if you would like."
Itachi nodded again. "I believe it would be best. He has a group of clones nearby who are training with one of my clones in taijutsu. Explain the situation to him and take half of Naruto's clones to train them."
Hanari brought a hand up to her mouth and started laughing quite sweetly. Almost too sweet. "Fufufu…that almost sounds like an order, Mr. Uchiha."
Itachi began to sweat heavily at the intense Killer Intent the woman was releasing. "Ah…I apologize."
"It's no problem. I would be glad to help Naruto. And my daughter of course, when I can."
Itachi then sighed heavily. 'Why do I get the feeling facing the Nine-Tails would be an easier challenge than running on her bad side? Hopefully I needn't discover the truth in that statement.' He then turned back to his two students and gave the signal to begin, the two of them bowing and returning to their spar.
Hanari continued to aid Itachi in training the two of them over the next several weeks, even taking over the training on the days Itachi would need to be called away. Thanks to Naruto's ever increasing chakra reserves he was able to form more and more clones, increasing his training capacity further and further.
He had increased his number of clones in training to twenty per group, his growth in his skills had begun to boom. He had mastered the tree walking exercise in only a few days, rather than a few weeks, and had already begun to move onto water walking.
His other skills had improved greatly as well. Hanari was more than surprised at how quickly he was progressing through the points of the Gentle Fist. Naturally he couldn't master it to the extent that a Hyuga could, lacking the Byakugan's ability to visualize the chakra network within a human body.
After one particularly successful day of training, Naruto walked on his way home in the waning sunlight and passed by one of the Leaf's many playgrounds.
However, as he did, he heard strange sounds from one of the trees in the park.
He sweat-dropped, worried why a tree would be making such a sound.
'Idiot, there's someone over there.'
Naruto face-faulted. 'Oh...yeah...guess I shoulda thought of that...huh?'
'Moron.'
Naruto sighed and made his way around the tree to find who was making said sound.
On the other side he found a young girl sitting against the trunk crying.
It was a girl around his age with shoulder-length brown hair and brown eyes who wore an orange, sleeveless blouse, a black skirt, mesh stockings, and sandals.
"Hey," Naruto said plainly.
The girl stopped crying momentarily to look at him, sniffling a few times. "What…?" she asked through sniffs.
"Why are you crying?"
"Because…I'm lost and I can't find Granny Cat anywhere."
Naruto took a moment to think. 'G-…Granny…Cat…?' Shaking his head he looked at her puzzled. "Okay…where do you think this 'Granny Cat' would be?"
Looking at him curiously she stood up and wiped away the tears in her eyes. "At the Uchiha district. I just don't know where it is…"
Naruto grinned. "Don't worry, uhm…"
The girl nodded slowly. "Tamaki."
Naruto smiled again. "Don't worry Tamaki, I know where that is."
She smiled hopefully. "You'll take me there?"
He nodded. "Yup! I can't really…go in with you but I'll show you where it is."
She nodded and followed Naruto away from the park.
Up on the rooftops, Itachi was making his way home when he noticed Naruto below him. He raised an eyebrow and then saw Tamaki with him. 'Why is he with Granny Cat's daughter?'
He decided to follow them just to be safe.
"Well, here we are," Naruto said happily as he pointed to the entrance to the Uchiha clan district.
Tamaki looked from Naruto to the gate puzzled. "Why won't you go any closer?"
Naruto began to answer when a familiar voice intruded. "Because my clan doesn't appreciate outsiders."
Both children turned to see Itachi behind them.
Naruto started to address Itachi when the ANBU gave the now familiar "I don't know you" look. Naruto nodded subtly and then turned to Tamaki. "Alright then, I guess I'll leave you with mister ANBU."
Tamaki nodded with a smile as Naruto turned to run off, suddenly grabbing his hoodie, unintentionally tearing the already weak seam.
Naruto coughed for a moment before turning to her. "Ack, what?"
"Uhm…I never got your name," she said shyly.
Naruto grinned. "Naruto Uzumaki!"
She smiled and nodded in return. "Alright then, Naruto."
Naruto nodded and left the area, Itachi leading the young girl inside.
And that's the end of this chapter. Tell me what you guys think about it, in reviews of course.
