Author: R. Anthony Roth
Pairing(s): Naruhina & potentially others
Language: Canadian English
"Speech"
'Thought'
"Kyuubi/Inner Sakura speech"
'Kyuubi/Inner Sakura thought'
(Clarification, fun fact or author's musing)
Anything bolded indicates emotion or extraneous content
A/N: Yes I know its been like 5 months or so since I last updated, my apologies but I had a bout of laziness/business. Have no fear however, as I will continue to update as regularly as possible, this fanfic is gonna be one of those huge timeless epics, so the show will go on! For all you Celestial Gate fans out there, its coming soon, but don't expect overpowering, as I have already stated my views on that subject.
-----------------------------------------In Zabuza's Crib---------------------------------------------
After completing her reconnaissance mission, Haku returned to Zabuza to report her findings and potentially garner some information over Naruto's strange chakra capacity. When she arrived she found him conversing with the one who hired them, the altogether distasteful Gateau, though as an S-class wanted criminal Zabuza hardly had the luxury of choosing whom he worked for.
"Zabuza-san I have returned from my mission and with your permission I will begin my report."
"Heh Heh Heh! Sending a little girl to do your work for you eh Zabuza? What happened to the feared Demon of The Mist?" taunted Gateau
"She is a perfectly capable shinobi, and at least I have a reputation, look who's talking cake boy…" Zabuza responded nonchalantly
"Why you insolent whelp!" shouted an enraged Gateau as he motioned for his bodyguards
At the sight of this Haku reacted instantly, suddenly appearing at Gateau's side with a senbon in hand, "Touch him and die a thousand painful deaths" noted Haku coolly as she held the sharpened point at his neck.
Caught off guard by her speed, Gateau could do little except back down, "Cocky now eh? Well you had better complete your mission, otherwise you would do well to watch your back for the hunter-nins of your village!" he responded haughtily before leaving the room.
"Haku you know defending myself from such a man is no more than trifle, and although I despise this wretch of a man, angering him will do us no benefit" calmly stated Zabuza after Gateau had exited the room
"Gomen Zabuza-san, I shall not act so rashly again" conceded Haku
"Heh! The funny thing is, if you had not acted when you did I might have done something far more short-sighted" Laughed Zabuza "Anyways down to business, you may deliver your report"
Thus Haku provided a detail report of her encounter with Naruto, and the visual information she had been able to gather when spying on the other Konoha ninjas. She carefully glossed over her accidental face to face meeting with Naruto, as even now it still brought a faint red tinge to her cheeks. It had been the closest she had ever gotten to a boy, and she was still unsure what to make of the entire experience, thus she kept it to herself. Finishing up her report, she then proceeded to bring up her puzzlement over Naruto's strange capacity for chakra, a line of thought that had been tumbling around in her mind ever since she came to realize it.
"Zabuza-san, after studying Naruto I have come to a troubling enigma, how can one who is so young have such a massive chakra capacity, it is easily at jounin level and no level of training can explain it…" queried Haku "I have never heard of an Uzumaki clan, or any such kekke genkai, perhaps you would know of an answer to this enigma?
Upon hearing the question, Zabuza considered it very carefully, it was true that the clan name was unknown to him and so would be such a bloodline, and Konoha had never been the type to hide their clans (cough Uchiha/Hyuuga cough). There was however one idea that came to him as he considered the circumstances.
"Haku what would you estimate the boy's age to be?" asked Zabuza
"Around 12 or 13 I'd say, a year younger than me at the most" Haku replied
"Hmm yes that would be about right… Any odd physical characteristics he possesses?" furthered Zabuza
"Well nothing really…Wait! He did have whisker like marks along his cheeks, like some sort of cat or fox. Why is that of importance, do you know him specifically?" replied Haku, still somewhat unsure of where this line of questioning was leading
"Personally no, this is the first time I have met him but I do know of him, though anybody conscious of current events 12 years ago would too." Zabuza answered mysteriously
"Is he a ninja of great power or skill, should we be worried Zabuza-san?" asked Haku somewhat sceptically as she wondered if such a person could be the Naruto she had met
"Great skill, probably not. Great power, sealed but most assuredly present. Worthy of caution, most definitely." Zabuza continued rather vaguely
"Sealed…?" Haku asked curiously
"You know of the tailed-bijuu correct?" responded Zabuza with another question
"Creatures of chaos, each with a unique number of tails numbering from 1 to 9, many of the countries have encountered them" noted Haku in a matter-of-fact tone
"Well 12 years ago the greatest of the bijuu entered The Land of Fire, Kyuubi no Youko a monster of no equal" began Zabuza, "No weapon could pierce its hide, even the most powerful of jutsu failed to do anything more than slow its rampage. Each sweep of one of its tails would create a cyclone, its kitsune magic burned downed forests and villages alike, and its mere footfalls caused seismic devastation."
"But Fire Country is prosperous and Konoha remains a prominent shinobi village, so if jutsu and weapons could not stop it, then how was it vanquished?" wondered a puzzled but intrigued Haku
"The Yondaime Hokage… The Yellow Flash of Konoha, the most feared shinobi of his time, he battled head to head with the monster at the gates of Konohagakure. However even he was unable to stop it through conventional methods, so he resorted to an ancient forbidden jutsu known only to the Hokages of Konoha." Furthered Zabuza
"…" Haku was held speechless by the gripping tale
"The outcome was grim, though the village had been saved it had come at a price, the technique had used the life of the Yondaime as a bargaining chip with a Shinigami, who in return sealed the great demon into the body of a child." Finished Zabuza
"Naruto…" whispered Haku in amazement
"So it would seem… Jinchurikki like Naruto generally have special traits, his seeming to be access to a voluminous chakra reserve. Though here is where the caution comes in." warned Zabuza "Should he deplete his chakra by great necessity, or should he go through intense physical or emotional duress, there stands a chance that he will unconsciously draw on the kyuubi's youkai"
"How would that have an effect on us should we confront it?" asked Haku, preparing for the worst
"From what little I have seen and heard of Jinchurikki, I know that their youkai is powerful and dangerous to both the user and their opponent. What is to be expected from the most destructive of the bijuu I cannot say, but you should you be faced with such a powerful youkai you will run!" ordered Zabuza
"But Zabuza-san!" Protested Haku
"We cannot predict what the boy is capable of when filled with the power of such a chaotic demon, and should the seal weaken and break, all the shinobi nations will be in danger! For the good of humanity we must avoid such an outcome even if it cost us our mission." Proselytised Zabuza
"Hai, I shall abide by your orders." Haku conceded
"Well the we'd best begin planning our strike on the bridge builder, Gateau is getting impatient and I'd rather not end up on the run again" Zabuza began
Thus they began to strategize, taking into account the potential dangers of Naruto, and working to accommodate what Haku had learned during her reconnaissance mission, planning their attack 3 days from then. Four opponents, a taijutsu oriented sensei jounin, the Kyuubi container Naruto, a Byakugan user, and a taijutsu focused genin. Their jounin sensei was the clearest danger and would have to be dealt with immediately; his taijutsu forms belied superb technique, and the full extent of his abilities remained a mystery. The Byakugan user could prove troublesome, as Zabuza knew his mist would do naught to conceal him from her piercing gaze, potentially inhibiting his "Silent Assassination" style of combat. Naruto would have to be subdued efficiently lest the Kyuubi's youkai be released, and the other genin seemed harmless enough.
Mulling over the gathered analysis, Zabuza came up with a strategy worthy of the "Demon of the Hidden Mist". Haku would isolate Naruto and the Hyuuga, her superior speed and capability as a ranged attacker would nullify the Hyuuga style of combat, and her senbon posed the best chance of subduing Naruto. Zabuza would then face off against the other two, attacking from the mist and harassing the helpless genin to create openings in the jounin's defences. Though outnumbered, Haku and Zabuza would be in their element, a fact which could easily spell the defeat of Team 9.
-----------------------Meanwhile in a conveniently located forest clearing----------------------
Team 9 was called together by their exuberant sensei to continue their training, in light of the fact that the bridge was nearing completion, which meant the enemy attack was not far off either.
"I see you all took joy in the completion of your previous training task, no doubt fuelled by the burning passion of your youthful spirits!" exclaimed Gai in his usual cheesy tone
"Hai sensei! Each hit stirred my soul to passion" Lee replied (equally cheesily)
"Yeah… real fun…." Mumbled Hinata and Naruto in unison as they massaged their aching hands
"Well then, while I advise to continue such training in the future, for now I will have each of focus on a different challenge. I know this may be hard for your burning hearts, but pace yourself now, after all we do need to be in condition for the fight"
'Yatta!' thought Team 9 (excluding Lee)
"Each of you will focus on an individual training task tailored to your strengths and weaknesses. Naruto, you will be practicing chakra control by climbing trees." Began Gai
"Trees…?" asked Naruto quite sceptically
"Yes, with the slight condition that you do so using only the soles of your feet, do so by concentrating your chakra into your feet to connect with the chakra of the tree, thus allowing you to stick to it."
"Heh, channelling chakra is easy, this is gonna be a cinch"
"While your youthful confidence is inspiring, I caution you to limit how much chakra you channel, it is a difficult task to control chakra so precisely, too much or too little will give poor results"
"Well then I guess you get to be amazed when you see me swinging on vines using my feet" boasted Naruto
'Swinging from vines… I will definitely add that to my training regiment, except I shall do it with only 2 toes, Kakashi will never expect a reversed swinging attack from above!!' thought Gai, making a mental note
---------------------------------------Back in Konoha-----------------------------------------------
In the middle of training with his team, Kakashi's body involuntarily spasmed, and a chill travelled up his spine. In response to which he immediately scanned his surroundings, expecting an attack.
"What's wrong sensei?" asked Sakura
"Nothing… I just get the feeling that something, or someone, is going to ruin a good day for me in the near future"
'That was oddly specific…' thought Sakura
----------------------------Returning to The Clearing of Convenience----------------------------
"I look forward to the results of the burning springtime of your youth, you may begin now, and I would suggest the trees in our previous clearing, as they are quite tall." responded Gai
This last statement was made to empty space, as Naruto had already left to begin his training. The thought of which brought tears to Gai's eye as he contemplated the beauty of youth's fiery devotion. After a few minutes of which he brought out a log, which seemed to be carefully hollowed out.
"Hinata this device is for you, contained within is a glass vial filled with a tiny amount of purified chakra. Your task is to attack the log using your family's Jyukken strikes, the goal of which is to hit the small chakra orb which will consequently emit a chiming sound." Gai announced
"But sensei, any genin could hit the orb by forcing enough chakra into the log…" Hinata noted
"Ahh but that would break the glass vial as well, the key here is balance and form, produce enough chakra to penetrate the log, but control it enough not to break the glass. Additionally, be warned that even a controlled burst can break the glass if it doesn't not hit the orb dead on."
"That sounds difficult sensei, but I will try my best…" replied the now apprehensive Hinata
"In essence this exercise has the same principal as Naruto's, however this one also emphasizes shaping, and is more applicable to your combat style. Approach the task with caution, but don't worry I have replacements should you accidentally break the vial"
'I can do this! I don't want to let Naruto-kun down, so I gotta do my best!" thought Hinata as she went off to find a secluded place to practice
"Now Lee, it is just you and I, which is perfect as we will be beginning special taijutsu training."
"YOSH SENSEI!" shouted Lee who was clearly excited at the prospect of special training
So the plot is heating up as both sides ready themselves for the impending final battle!