Notes: Phew! Took me longer than expected so hope you enjoy.
Dialogue:
"…" - normal speech.
'In italics' - thoughts
-: Flashback :-
Chapter 2 - Those of Worth
Seagulls could be heard throughout the fishing town as they squawked over food. Since he had forgotten to bring his alarm clock with him, Naruto had used this as wake-up call the past few mornings. His right eye slowly opened as he brought in the light of the new day, with his left gradually following. The Genin sat-up, yawned, stretched and wiped the sleep from his eyes. Taking off his treasured night hat, he scratched the back of his head. 'Uh, what day is it?... Oh that's right, today is the day we set sail to kill the Sea Monster!' He sprung up and out of bed with unknown energy to most. 'Ah, what time is it? We have to be there at 11:00, preferably 10:30.' He questioned whilst looking around desperately for a clock. Realizing there hadn't been one in his bedroom since they had been staying there, he ventured out and into the apartment's living area. Finding the main clock of the apartment, Naruto squinted and read the time, "10:15... OH NO WE ONLY HAVE 45 MINUTES MAX TO BE THERE, SHIT!"
Running into ero-sennin's bedroom he found his sensei sleeping the most unusual position and making giggling noises. Naruto shivered at even contemplating what was going on in that dirty brain of his. "HEY ERO-SENNIN WAKE UP! WE'VE ONLY GOT AN 45 MINUTES AT MOST TO GET DOWN TO THE DOCKS!" He screamed.
"Ugh, huh... wha... What!" Jiraiya exclaimed jumping out of bed, wiping the saliva from his mouth. "Why didn't you wake me up sooner brat!"
"I've only just got up myself; my new alarm clock is even more unreliable than my old one." He answered. Jiraiya gave him a confused look. "No time for explanations now, we got to pack up and head down there as soon as possible." he spoke whilst they walked back to the living room.
"We'll have to find it too, that may take a while." The Toad Hermit added as he made breakfast.
Naruto smiled, "That's why i did some 'research gathering' myself yesterday and went down to the docks to find out just in case. A ninja must always be prepared, right sensei?" The blonde boy said as he began to eat his first meal of the day.
"Right Naruto, good job on that. When you're done with your breakfast meet me at the entrance of the hotel, i'll have to check us out before we leave." Jiraiya said as he got up and headed to the bathroom.
Once the young Leaf Shinobi had finished breakfast, he made his way to his bedroom, got dressed and packed his equipment over his back. He looked out the huge window which filled the room with light. The hotel was backed a short distance away from the sea as Naruto watched the waves splash against the ships in the docks and the small promenade. Opening the window, the Genin peered down to see the road below, which was a fair distance down.
'Hmm i think this is a good time to practice my chakra control' he thought as he lifted himself onto the ledge and shut the window behind him. 'Concentrate to the hands...' His right hand touched the wall below the window, followed by his left. '...and release in continuous amounts...' Feeling that he a successfully attached himself to the wall he shot his legs up in the air, '...then to the fingers...' To a person below it looked as if someone was climbing down the building the wrong way, without the use of feet and places to grab onto! '... and slowly move down.'
He had long ago mastered walking on solid objects and even water by controlling the amount of chakra used through his feet. By using this method, he could bring more chakra to his hands and fingers when performing jutsus so they would be more powerful in combat and even for adding power to his punches, another skill he had learned whilst practicing his Kage Bushin using the newly found knowledge that he had uncovered about the jutsu.
Naruto took his time since he knew that the longer it took him, the more concentration and effort would be needed to stay stuck to the wall. This provided an excellent training exercise since it increased the users focus and built up strength and stamina, though he wasn't lacking much in that department, aswell as chakra control. There was that and the fact that ero-sennin probably wouldn't be down for another 15 minutes. Naruto rolled his eyes.
Finally reaching the bottom he pushed away from the wall and flipped over landing with precision on the ground below. A small boy had been watching him make his way down for the past 15 minutes and was in awe of the sight. He walked up to the Genin and pulled his jacket. Naruto responded by crouching down to the boy's level and giving him his foxy grin. "Hey kid what's up?"
"Wow, how did you do that? Are you a ninja?" The boy said, still star struck from what he'd witnessed just moments ago.
"Hehe yeah, that was an exercise i do to help me improve my ninja skills." He answered as his teeth sparkled in the sunlight.
The young boy bounced up and down, "When i get older i want to be a strong ninja just like you!"
Naruto's smile widened even more, "Well remember to fight for those precious to you and you'll be stronger than me one day!" He stood up and gave the boy a swift 'nice-guy' pose.
"Yes sir, thank you sir!" and with that he ran off still bouncing up and down with each step.
Naruto sighed 'Why is it that all the younger generation i meet don't hate me?' He questioned, 'Yeah, i guess if they knew what i was they'd probably be scared of me and hate me too.' Sadness struck his face. He turned to the entrance of the hotel to find Jiraiya coming out.
He pushed the loneliness and sorrow he felt to the back on his mind and donned a fake smile. "Hey, ero-sennin! We need to go now if we're gonna get that free ride!" He shouted. With that, his sensei turned around, walked over to him and gave him another smack to the head. "Ah stop doing that ero-sennin!" The Leaf Genin whined as he rubbed his head.
"Brat, STOP calling me that everywhere we go, I am the Legendary Jiraiya and while we travel you will show some respect to me! Even if i have to beat it out of you!" Jiraiya snapped.
Naruto frowned, looked at the seriousness across his sensei's face, and gave in for the time being. "Hmph, yes Jiraiya-Sensei." He said sarcastically.
"Good, now we better head off to Bay E7. Since you know where it is, lead the way." The Hermit said as he motioned Naruto to start walking.
'Baka ero-sennin, if he wants me to respect him then he should do the same to me by helping me improve my skills and not scolding me all the time' Naruto mused as they headed off in the directed of the docks.
By the time the arrived at the correct bay, the last of the supplies were being lifted aboard. The pair found their way to the ramp that gave access to the ship located at the back end. On reaching the ramp they found Barlock standing with his arms folded, waiting for them to show.
" Aar, so you made it after all. I was beginning to wonder if you were going to show up." He spoke with a grin on his face.
"Hey i told you Barlock, i don't go back on my word and..." before he finished his sentence he was cut off by Jiraiya.
"Ah yes sorry about that, we had a little trouble this morning, but we made it on time to help you." Jiraiya explained to the Captain.
The man couldn't hold back his admiration any longer. "Oh yes the Great Jiraiya-sama, welcome! Please come aboard, the crew are dying to meet the man who spawned such wonderful work!" he replied with beaming delight. The two walked onto the ship, shoulder to shoulder in high spirits as if they'd known each other for years.
'Gah! This is going to be a long trip'. The young Leaf Shinobi followed his sensei and the Captain onto the boat. 'And the ship is too small for me to do any real training!' Naruto looked to the sky and groaned. 'Yep, this is going to be a very long trip!'
They had been travelling for 2 days straight across the never ending ' Great Sea'. Naruto had decided that he didn't like this form of transport since the first hour of the journey. When he wasn't feeling i'll, he was throwing up over the side of the of the ship. He couldn't eat much since it would only be a matter of time until he saw it again. Even worse was the way the crew laughed at his misfortune, but it was nothing new to him as he blurred it out. If only he'd known that sailing affected him this way, he wouldn't have bothered to make that deal with Barlock. Naruto sighed at his bad luck; it never seemed to go right for the blonde.
Currently he was on deck in an attempt to let the warmth of the sun heal a little of the pain he felt. It was a beautiful day, with just the right conditions. He wished he was on solid ground to enjoy it, but such was not to be. Walking around the ship nulled the headaches somewhat and he was able to concentrate. 'I hate this; if we manage to kill the monster and make it to the Pangeran Port i won't eat Ramen for a month.' He thought, 'Maybe if there was some training i could do to take my mind off the pain'
Just then Jiraiya came out of the cabin and walked up to him, "Ah Naruto, i've been looking for you. How are you doing, are you still feeling i'll?" He asked in a worried voice.
"Wow ero-sennin, are you actually concerned for my well being! That's a first isn't it?" Naruto retorted, trying to show it didn't bother him.
Jiraiya couldn't see the seriousness of his answer since Naruto had become a master at hiding his emotions infront of others if need be, and instead took it as a joke and a sign that he was over his condition. "Very funny brat, anyway, i just came to inform you that we will be nearing the location of the sea monster pretty soon so you can prepare yourself. Since you're obviously over your little sickness you won't need me to help you get ready. I'll be back for you when we reach the right co-ordinates." And with that he turned and retreated back into the cabin from where he came.
Naruto tilted his head to the floor below, his outward expression showed nothing but apathy. Inwardly he was crying. Not only had Konoha tossed him aside and ignored him like some piece of trash, but so did his new sensei. It wasn't his fault the way he'd reacted to Jiriaya's kindness, it was just a defence mechanism that he' put in place long ago to protect himself. The spiky haired blonde blinked as a single tear escaped his eye. Was it worth it? Was all the training with his baka of a sensei going to make the people re-evaluate their opinion of him when he got back? He was a 100 percent certain that nothing would change, even if he somehow became Hokage. Naruto contemplated the idea of destroying all that hurt him, but he pushed that thought away. If he did that then he would be no better than them, even if revenge could give him the satisfaction he deserved. By this time the sky had turned a dark colour and it began to rain, fitting his mood.
'Come on Naruto, you're stronger than that, don't let it get to you.' he tried to comfort himself. He created a chakra reinforced Kage Busin so that it could take a large amount of hits and started to practice his tiajutsu with his clone to help get his mind off what had just transpired. Upon engaging combat, Naruto noticed that both he and his clone had become much faster, more precise with their attacks and also their strength had increased. 'Wow! The training i've been doing at the town has helped me increase all aspects of my tiajutsu this much! I've only been training moderately the past 2 days and now i feel twice as capable in combat as i was before!' Naruto and his clone stopped, looked back at each other and nodded. Jumping back a few feet they both extended their right arms. A few seconds later, blue swirls began to form and intertwine together growing in speed. All of a sudden, the whirls of blue came together and formed a sky-blue orb. Both version of Naruto smiled, he had finally mastered the technique. A few of the crew who were on deck at the time gaped at the sight. This boy had immense power at his age!
They where about to launch at each other when something knocked against the ship, nearly causing the Genin to fall down with the fully formed Rasengan in hand. His clone had managed to hold onto a beam near the edge to steady itself. Quickly, they dissipated both orbs. Naruto dismissed the clone and went to find what was responsible for the interruption. At that moment, Jiraiya, Barlock and the rest of the crew burst out from different areas of the ships and immediately covered the main deck.
"This is it men, today we kill the beast of the sea and take revenge for what it did to our friends and family!" The Barlock bellowed. Cheers and roars erupted across the ship; however the young shinobi could be seen with his head to the floor. He'd heard that speech somewhere before. "Everyone to your positions, and wait for the signal!" The Captain finished as the crew frantically scrambled around the ship with various weapons in hand. By this time Jiraiya had once again found Naruto and jogged to him.
"Hey Naruto, i'll take care of this thing, it may be too big for you to handle. Go help the men defend themselves if they come under..." before he got a chance to finish the boat was hit from it's starboard side, knocking most of the crew over. Naruto picked himself up, normally he would argue with Jiraiya or anyone else who doubted his abilities, but right now it wasn't worth it as others where in trouble.
Creating the seal need for his favourite jutsu, "Kage Bushin no Jutsu" he whispered summoning 10 clones to assist the men. 'I'll show ero-sennin that i can kill the monster and prove to him i can back up my words' he thought.
Another wave crashed against the already damaged frame of the ship. If this didn't end soon the boat would be crushed by sheer force. Just then, a loud screech sounded off the Port side of the ship. The pitch was so intense that most of the crew had to cover their ears. Naruto looked out into what had now become a violent storm and treacherous downpour. He could barely keep his eyes open with all the water running down his face, his favourite jacket already soaked through. Brushing his hair back from his face he noticed movement in the sea below. It zigzagged underneath the boat to the other side where his sensei was standing.
"Ero-sennin, its over on your side underneath!" He yelled.
Jiraiya, who could barely hear his student over the noise turned and stuck his thumb up to Naruto to acknowledge what he said. With that another rumbling was heard just off where Jiraiya and Barlock now stood along with a few crewmen. What appeared to be the monsters head began to rise out of the water, it snarled and ascended quickly to reach its maximum height for full intimidation. Naruto was a little shocked at what he witnessed, never had he seen a creature so big in size. It had scales like a snake and a long neck that appeared to also be its body. The colour was that of the sea and would be extremely hard to recognise unless it showed itself as it did now. The face of the creature was purely menacing; it had a black eyes either side of it's head that sparkled like gems. After a few more unusual noises, the monster opened its jaw and a huge slithery tongue came out showing a few frontal teeth.
'Damn what a huge snake! And i hate snakes!' Naruto gazed, 'I bet this thing would get on with Orochimaru like a house on fire!'
Some of the crew began screaming at the sight and cursing to Kami. Never had they imagined the beast to be this big and one ship full of people would just be sending them to their watery grave.
"It's a huge demon!" One guy shouted as he ran around the ship, looking for an exit with a few others following suit.
"What did you think it was gonna be baka, a little fish that could be killed with ease! When you said a Sea Monster i was expecting something bigger and more powerful!" Naruto roared with excitement at the challenge that awaited, his fear now completely faded.
"Come on men we can take it if we work together!" Barlock cried out as he through a long sharp ended metal staff at the beast. As it impacted against the creature's upper body it deflected off and into the see leaving a barely visible dent in its shell.
Seeing this made even the Captain worry a little but he didn't show it. He was about to throw another when the blue serpent began a frontal assault on the ship. It attacked with such furiousness that the boat swung round and faced the other way and parts of the ship had broke off. A scream could be heard from its jaw as a member of the crew was seen to be chewed and swallowed whole by the monster.
Jiraiya who had been thrown aside got back to his feet and raced to the edge of the ship the creature was at. "That's it; i'm taking you down Demon!" Forming a few hand seals he shouted out;
"Suiton Suiryuundan no Jutsu!"
The sea serpent looked underneath its head where a swirling of water had gathered. Suddenly a huge sized water dragon appeared from the water and lashed out at it, breaking more of its protected armour that shielded it. Screaming back in pain, the monster subsided to regroup.
Naruto ran over to the Toad Hermit, "Hey ero-sennin, nice job! Is it dead?" Naruto asked.
"No, this battle is far from over Naruto, i'm sure it will come back, be prepared." answered the Legendary Sannin.
The Leaf Genin ran to all the men that had been too afraid to fight and shook his head, "For people claiming they can beat the Sea Monster so easily, you guys sure aren't doing much to help." The men looked up at him with fear in their eyes, fear that he saw in all the adults he walked past down the streets of Konoha. But this fear wasn't directed at him for once, he would take that advantage now. "Come on, if we all work together now we can defeat the monster!" He lectured.
By this time the Serpent had made it's second entrance and stood just off the port side with it's head hung over, its mouth becoming larger. "Look..." He turned and pointed to it, "... it's becoming weaker with each attack! If we act now we can stop it!" He yelled, and ran back to aid Jiraiya who was preparing to counter the monsters next attack.
With an explosive force, the best released a giant water-ball from its mouth headed straight for the ship. Jiraiya acted instantly
"Katon Goukakyu no Jutsu!" Jiraiya screamed, churning out a huge amount of fire from his own mouth that turned into a massive fireball. Naruto watched this with awe and anger, since he'd always associate that jutsu with Uchiha-teme. Both balls hit midway causing an enormous wave to be made which headed for the ship. The hermit thought fast, "Donton Doryuuheki!" spitting out a gooey substance into the sea below.
Just before the wave impacted the ship, a great wall of solid earth came out of the sea in front of them, effectively shielding the ship from the boat as the water crashed into it and around them. Jiraiya had had enough of being on the defensive and wanted to take it to the monster. He jumped from the boat and ran up to the top of the wall he had created. The beast was still there as it slowly began to submerge.
'Him, it looks tired, it may not be used to using that attack.' Jiraiya concluded. 'Now's my chance before it descends again. I don't have a great deal of chakra left from using those jutsus. I'll have to put most of my reserves into this and hops it does the trick.' He did a few quick seals and inhaled.
"Katon Karyuu Endan!"
A missile of fire headed straight towards the creature that was unaware of the imminent danger. At the last second the serpent looked up and gazed at the flame coming towards him with fear, an emotion it had probably never felt before, in its eyes. The stretch of fire engulfed the monster as it howled in pain. A smell of burning flesh floated through the air. As the flames slowly died down, the Sea Demon fell back, crashing down. It slowly sank showing no kinds of movement.
Naruto had followed up his sensei to the top of the Earth Wall and saw everything. "Wow! That was amazing ero-sennin you did it! Though i wished i could have helped." He said sadly.
Jiraiya, who had finally caught his breath, breathed a sigh of relief. 'Phew, if that didn't work, i'm not sure what else would.' he wondered. He turned to his pupil and gave a triumphant smile, "Aren't you glad you've got me as your new sensei for the next 3 years brat!"
Naruto smiled aswell, he had to admit it, ero-sennin was a great ninja when he wanted to be. They ran down off the wall and had to swim against a strong current back to the boat, which had drifted off because of the continuous waves. As they climbed aboard, the crewmen held up their weapons and cheered for their new heroes who had saved them. Though he didn't do anything, Naruto, who wasn't one to let attention like this go to waste, ran round the ship giving his foxy smile and holding up a peace sign.
When he got back to the Toad Hermit he felt a tap on his shoulder, as he spun around Barlock stood with a smile on his face. "Well lad, it looks like you've kept your end of the bargain, now i'll have to keep mine."
"Thanks Barlock, i promised the sea monster would be defeated and now it has."
"Yes, thanks to you and the Great Jiraiya-sama we can now re-open trade routes with the Pengaran Port which we so desperately need. Sadly, there is no sign of my son, or any others, but if that thing came after them they didn't really stand a chance." He said depressingly.
"I'm sorry Barlock." Naruto said gloomy. Then smiled, "The best thing you can do now is look to the future and make it a good one!"
Barlock snapped out of his depression, "You're right, it's not good being stuck in the past which cannot be undone." he turned round and put up his right arm. "TO THE FUTURE!" he shouted. His men, chorused back to him.
Jiraiya, who had been watching the scene folded his arms and smiled, 'That's the effect you have on people Naruto. I know, one day, you will truly become the Hokage of The Hidden Leaf Village and you will gain their respe...' he didn't have a chance to finish his thoughts when a sudden booming noise sounded behind him. He looked around to find the cause of the noise and stood frozen with his eyes widened. The sea monster had returned! It's skin was scared all over from the fire jutsu that he had just used on it and it's face was contorted in pain. With another deafening sound it assaulted the ship once more.
The happiness that the ship had just been carrying now emanated with horror and fear again! Naruto looked round to the find his sensei tired from chakra depletion and too stunned to do anything about it. 'This is my chance, now i'll show them that Uzumaki Naruto is a strong ninja. I'll save all these people!' With that last thought he created two clones beside him. They grabbed onto his arms and flung him high into the air in an attempt to intercept the creature and dispersed. Seeing the small snack, the scared serpent turned to greet him, mouth wide open.
"No Naruto!" Jiraiya screamed, but it was too late and he could not stop him.
Naruto stuck out his right arm and concentrated. A gathering of blue swirls could be seen before the monster swallowed him whole.
"Noooo Naruto!" He shouted even louder than the last. The sea demon turned to face the crew to resume attacking his intended target. Suddenly it stopped. Its head started shaking side to side and a loud screech was let out as a blue flash could be seen exiting it's mouth. It's eyes too began to turn a shade of blue from their cold black. In a blinding explosion, the beast was no more. It's head had been completely destroyed as its limp body fell down.
Jiraiya, who had witnessed the event along with all the crew, stood shocked at the way the young blonde had so easily sacrificed his own well being of his sensei and strangers. He ran over to the edge of the ship and looked out into the vast blue. The last remains of the scared body could be seen slowly going under to the bottom of the see. Jiraiya frantically looked around; he couldn't find Naruto's body anywhere. Jumping in, he swam to where the final act had just taken place in attempt to find his student. There was nothing. He dived down as far as he could go to locate Naruto but there was nothing in sight...
Naruto awoke with coughing water from his mouth. As he sat up, he felt a headache and pains all over his body. He looked around to try and gather his bearings as the sun shone down full force. He found he was lying on a beach in the middle of nowhere. The Genin stood and coughed some more water up. He clutched his head and stomach as he stumbled through the pain and up the beach. Even if he didn't want to admit it, the Kyuubi's special healing powers probably saved him from certain death. The clothes he wore were thoroughly drenched and he'd lost his equipment holder that had been attached to his belt part, along with leaving all his possessions on the ship. Notching a tree-line ahead, the ragged Genin staggered into the cover they provided from the beating sun.
'How did i get here?' He wondered sitting down in the shade of a tree. 'The last thing i remember was using my Rasengan inside the sea monster which had come back for more... and then... it all went black.' His eyes flickered as he tried to remember anything else. When nothing came to mind Naruto let out a deep groan. 'Why do these things always happen to me? I probably saved all the people of that ship and what do i get for it? Oh that's right, i get washed onto, what looks like a deserted island, in the middle of nowhere without water or food!'
After resting for a short while the blonde made his way through more of the forest in the hopes of finding any sort of civilisation. He grunted as his stomach started making sounds of hunger. Wearily, he looked down and patted it in an attempt to quieten it for the time being. The noises kept increasing in volume. 'If i ever get back i'm going to eat so much Ramen that i'll burst since that deal i made is now void!' Unfortunately for Naruto because he was so deep in thought, he stepped on a piece of earth that had no foundation and the ground beneath him crumbled away.
Falling fast, there was nothing he could do to slow his decent. A few seconds later he hit the floor with a loud 'THUMP' sound. He didn't know how much more punishment his body could take, but he would be damned if he died now. Ever so gradually he got to his feet once more, and studied his new surroundings. The floor he landed on was hard, inspecting it closer he saw it shine back at him. "What's this? Some kind of metal?" he asked no one in particular. Lifting his head up he glanced around for anything that would tell him where he was.
Finally, he saw a light a fair distance away. Walking over to it, Naruto examined what was before him. It was 5 times his size and looked like a giant square of pure metal, it gave off a golden light that pulsed every few seconds. Two staffs pointed out from the top that spiralled up and connected together. He walked inside it, and out the other side. it couldn't have been more then a meter in length. He turned back and entered it again and looked all the way around. The young blonde noticed what seemed to be an operating device to his right. Naruto squinted as he tried to read the language.
'What hell does this say? I've never seen a language like this before. Don't they know kanji?' He grumbled to himself. As he touched it with his right hand, the blonde slowly went over the inscription. Below the writing he found what looked like a hand print carved into the metal, though it was much bigger than his in size. Sticking his right hand in it, Naruto felt a sensation like no other, like his life-force was being drained from his body. Frantically, the Genin tried to pull his hand away but it wouldn't budge.
Suddenly the 'giant square' seemed to become active. It made a low humming sound at first that increased in volume. The square pulsed in a blinding flash of light. The side Naruto was facing had become what looked like a swirl of blues mixed together. He felt the control let go of his hand. Weakly he walked up to the whirls of intertwined blue, it reminded him of his Rasengan jutsu. Naruto extended his right hand to touch it, before he knew it he was being sucked in by some invisible force and in an instant he disappeared. The machine powered down and went back into its standby state. All trace of what was Naruto had vanished.
End Chapter Notes
Please let me know your thoughts.
Just going to start on the next chapter now, not sure when it'll be done.
See you then!