A/N: Hey everyone, here's the new chapter. The goal is weekly updates, but that's not a promise, just a target. I still don't own Naruto.
Chapter 3: The Power of One
Around two and a half years later finds two brothers who look nothing alike sitting in their favorite restaurant, Ichiraku's Ramen, enjoying lunch and a conversation with the owner and his young daughter. The younger, blond brother was, as usual, begging his older bro to teach him how to fight, while the older brother kept insisting that there was no reason to be in such a hurry.
"Come on, bro! You're an awesome fighter! Why won't you teach me?" demanded Naruto with an extremely angry glare.
"Whoa there, little man. You better crank down the intensity on that one, you almost look serious!" cracked Ken, clearly having a good time getting a rise out of his brother, much to the amusement of Teuchi and Ayame. Ken got a somber look on his face before continuing, "I've told you before, when you start the academy, you'll have the rest of your life to fight. For now, why don't you just enjoy being a kid for a bit? Trust me, the grass isn't always greener on the other side."
Naruto's face changed from a glare to a pout. "Who cares about the grass? I'm gonna be Hokage someday, so I need to know how to fight!"
Ken just let out a sigh, before turning to face Naruto and asking, "Look, bro, I know it's your dream to be Hokage. But why? I mean, yeah, the Hokage is the strongest ninja in the village, but still, his life is mostly boring meetings and paperwork. Why would you want that?"
Not missing a beat, Naruto jumped into a standing position on his stool, and with a voice holding far more passion than anyone believed a boy his age could have, declared, "I don't care! Everyone respects the Hokage, and I am gonna show all those people who've disrespected me that they were wrong! Even more than that, though, the old man always protects everyone. I want that strength, I want to be able to protect everyone precious to me, just like you do for me, bro!"
Flashback to the festival one year after Ken moved in
Naruto and Ken were walking back to their apartment after a fun filled day at the Kyuubi festival. Sure, Naruto had noticed all the dirty looks the two were getting, but Ken didn't pay it any attention, and as long as his big bro was there, Naruto was sure nothing bad would happen. Sure enough, anytime someone got a little too intense with the glare, or looked like they were going to speak up, a quick death glare from Ken sent them back on their way. Now that they had had their fun, Ken said it was time for bed. Naruto didn't know what it was, but something seemed slightly off with Ken, like he was in a hurry for some reason. Naruto found out why once they reached the street their apartment was on. In between the boys and their home were five ninja, one of whom had a jonin vest. As Ken turned to go back, another five ninjas rounded that corner.
"Just hand over the brat and we'll call it a night," slurred the jonin. "Otherwise, I don't really mind the idea of killing you both instead."
"And what makes you think I'd ever give my little bro to a drunken fool like yourself?" Ken asked as he pulled Naruto in close behind him.
"You aren't even really broth…" was all one of chunin was able to get out before Ken buried his fist in his stomach, making him spew blood before passing out.
"I don't recommend dismissing our family," Ken practically growled, with his face taking on a blank and professional look Naruto had only ever seen a couple times.
"Quick! While he's over there get the dem.." began another chunin, only to be stopped midsentence by Ken's sandal connecting with his jaw, shattering it on impact. This time, however, Ken didn't pause to speak. Instead, in a series of attacks which Naruto could only see as a series of blurs, each ending with an unconscious chunin, Ken reappeared by Naruto with only the pissed off and drunken jonin remaining.
"I also don't recommend you hurl any more idiotic insults at him," he said, his voice now matching his expression, completely devoid of any emotion. In Naruto's opinion, this version of his brother was way scarier than when he was upset and yelling.
"Please. Your stupid dull blade might be enough to stop a couple chunin, but I'm a jonin. Don't expect this to be easy," the jonin yelled at him as he hurled a handful of shuriken and kunai at the pair.
His voice still devoid of emotion, Ken shook his head and replied, "Now you've really done it. Insulting me is no problem, insult Naruto and you pay, but Matomeyaku is very sensitive, and she demands death for any who insult her." With this, Ken pulsed his chakra into the sword, causing a shift in the blade. It was subtle, but standing right next to it, Naruto could tell the blade was now much sharper. Sure enough, with no effort at all, Ken sliced through each thrown projectile as though they were warm butter. "Care to apologize? It may yet save your life."
"Hah! Not likely." With that, the jonin pulled another kunai and charged at Ken, only to disappear from sight just before they should have collided. Ken looked up quickly, expecting see the jonin, but instead finding the empty night sky. "Think again!" was all he heard, giving him just enough time to dodge the kunai stab coming from behind him, though not entirely. Rather than hitting him in the spine, it was instead lodge in his shoulder. Refusing to give the ninja the satisfaction of hearing him cry out, he simply gritted his teeth and threw the kunai to the side. As the two rushed at each other yet again, they both realized they had forgotten something very important as Naruto picked up the discarded kunai, and threw it at the ninja. It was easily dodged, but the drunken jonin's rage got the best of him, and he took his attention off of Ken and charged at Naruto. "Die, you damned monster!" he screamed as he prepared to bury another kunai in Naruto's chest. Before he could begin his downswing, however, a blade tore through his shoulder like the bone and muscle weren't even there. While he was crying out in pain, Ken sent another chakra pulse through Matomeyaku, dulling the blade again before swinging the now blunt club into the base of the man's skull, knocking him out cold.
Flashback end
While the council attempted to press charges against Ken and Naruto for attacking Konoha shinobi, Ibiki's interrogations corroborated Ken's version of the story. The jonin had not yet been able to tell his side of the story, as the man was still in a coma and had almost certainly suffered permanent brain damage as a result of the hit to his head.
Placing his hand on his chin like he was in deep thought, Ken gave his little bro a quick once over. 'I'd love the little dude to have as normal a childhood as possible for as long as possible, but it'd be good for him to have some way to defend himself. After all, I can't shadow him when he goes to the academy. Oh crap. Thinking of that, all the snotty little clan bastards have probably already started their training with the clans. I can't have my bro falling behind before the race starts. Besides, his motives are solid, and the more strength he has of his own, the less likely he is to fall back on the damned fox.' Nodding to himself over the decision he had made, he looked at Naruto again, seeing the hope welling in his eyes. "Alright bro, quit looking at me all pathetic like that. Starting tomorrow, I'm not only your bro, I'm also your slave driver. I'm gonna work you 'til you beg me to stop training you."
"No way, bro!" the blond ball of energy practically screamed with a face splitting smile. "I'll never quit, and I'll never give up!"
"Yeah yeah, that's what I like to hear," Ken said, clearly amused by his little bro's response. "All kidding aside though, there are a couple things you need to know. First, I can't teach you to be a ninja, 'cuz I ain't one. Second, I'm not gonna teach you any sword techniques until you are at least a genin, and maybe even later than that. All I can teach you are the things that cross over from my style to the world of shinobi. I'll help you increase your chakra reserves and control, and once you have that down, I'll help you learn how to use chakra to make you stronger, faster, and improve your senses."
"Really? That's awesome, bro!"
'It's totally worth caving to see him all happy like this.' "Alright, little man, say bye to Mr. Ichiraku and Ayame. We have some shopping to do before we head home for the night," he said as he put down the money for the twenty bowls of ramen the two had consumed. 'Man, we really need to learn a little restraint. A couple more visits like this and I'll have blown my wages for the month. But then again, it's totally worth it.' It hadn't taken Ken long to find that Teuchi and Ayame were two of the few people who really looked out for Naruto, so he did everything he could to help their business, and he also made a point of helping 'educate' some of the citizenry who thought targeting the stand for graffiti would be a good idea. With the bill paid, and a happy wave good bye from Naruto, they walked to the grocer's before they returned to the apartment. As they walked into the store they were greeted by a smile from the owner. Naruto still had trouble believing what a turnaround had happened in such a short time. Sure, even the kid could tell it was a forced and phony smile, but on some level that made it even sweeter for the boy.
Flashback to 2 Days after Ken arrived
"Hey bro, you gonna help me with the shopping or what?" Ken asked with mild concern, seeing his new little brother hanging back at the corner of the street.
"Um, nah, I think I'll just wait out here. I'll help you carry them back though!" the boy sheepishly offered, his face and voice both clearly showing a fake happiness that Ken saw through.
With a heavy sigh, Ken walked over to Naruto, undid the buttons on his cloak, tilted his hat back, and knelt down to look Naruto in the eye. "Listen up, little man. If we're going to be bros, you've gotta trust me. So tell me, why won't you go into the store?" Naruto was torn. On the one hand, he didn't want to hurt his new brother by lying to him, but he was too ashamed to tell him that the store owner refused him service and chased him out with a broom, causing the little boy to run crying in front of the other laughing customers. Seeing the distress written clearly on the boy's face, Ken decided to try another approach. "Tell ya what, how 'bout a compromise?" When he saw the boys face relax and look into his, he continued, "You don't worry about telling me what happened, but you still come with me. You hold my hand, guiding me to the things you like, so I can make an awesome dinner, and I renew my promise. Do you remember what I promised you?"
Naruto's grin came back full force as he nodded his head and repeated with love and pride the oath he heard the first time he met Ken. "If there is still breath in your lungs and your heart continues to beat, then these people will not be getting past you."
"Damn right, bro! And I never break my promise. Ready to go in?" he asked, extending one hand for the boy to hold while the other ruffled his golden locks. After getting a nod and a small hand in the folds of his much larger one, Ken and Naruto entered the shop. The shopkeeper first smiled at Ken, but quickly changed to a scowl when he recognized the demon brat clinging to his hand.
Now, the owner was an aged man and a long retired ninja. He was never very strong, never making it past genin, but still, ninjas don't reach retirement age by being stupid. That being said, he knew better than to chase the boy out of the store again, but figured he'd settle for gouging them with his prices. He waited patiently while they picked out their supplies, a mix of vegetables, a couple fish, and some fruit. It made his blood boil watching the two apparently joking around, as the elder of the two would reach down with a free hand to tap the demon on the shoulder, just to move to the other side before the little devil knew what was happening. Sure, with any other kid the old man would be amused, but he knew better. In spite of the boy's appearance, he was nothing more than the Kyuubi. As he watched them approach the counter, he put on his best salesman smile and addressed the pair. "Hello young sirs. I take it you found everything you needed?" Receiving a nod from the elder of the two, he looked over the two bags worth of groceries quickly, saw that it was probably only about 100 worth of goods, and announced, "That'll be 300 please."
"I beg your pardon, sir. I believe that the prices listed on these items were about one third of that. Care to explain the difference to me?" Ken said in his all business voice, once again making Naruto a little nervous.
The old shopkeeper recognized it as well, but maintained a strong front. "I'm sorry sir, but this is my shop, and I may charge what I like to who I like. If you feel my prices unfair, then I welcome you to try my competition."
Ken looked down to Naruto and said in a happy tone of voice, "Hey, Naruto, I forgot to get carrots. Why don't you go grab a few real quick while big bro and this nice man have a conversation?" Seeing Naruto start to get nervous and looking at the hand he had held since before they entered the store, Ken tried to soothe his worries. "Don't worry, bro. You'll be in sight the whole time, and like I said, I'll never break my promise." Still a little anxious, Naruto decided he trusted his bro more than he was scared, so went to do as he was told. No sooner had Naruto left his side than Ken turned back to the merchant. "Listen well, because I only have time to say this once. I know about how you bastards have been treating Naruto, but that's done now. I don't want any damned discounts, and I don't want any trouble, but if you think I'm gonna sit here and let you bully my new little bro, you have another thing coming." Seeing the old man getting ready to speak, he held his hand up, signaling the old man to keep his mouth shut. He lifted up the brim of his hat just enough for the old timer to see his eyes before he continued. "I assume you heard about the seven chunin defeated on the night of the festival? About the stranger who stepped in and saved Naruto?" Seeing the man nod slowly, and also seeing Naruto starting to make his way back with the carrots, he leaned in close to the old man and whispered dangerously, "Just one more question. You ever seen me before, old timer?" Stepping back to get the carrots from Naruto with a smile on his face, he then looked back at the clerk to see the man sweating bullets, clearly having pieced together what this man was saying. Back in his all business voice, Ken asked the clerk, "So now, with the carrots here, how much will it be?"
With a forced and terrified smile, the shopkeeper stuttered out, "Th-that'll b-be 105, p-please s-sir."
"Excellent!" Ken said, his voice now jovial and friendly. "Here's 120. By all means, keep it. Consider it a thank you for your present and future services." The old man simply nodded his head, keeping the smile in place, until the two left the store and he finally released the breath he'd been holding.
End flashback
Ever since that incident, Naruto had never been refused service or overcharged on anything, even if he went into a store by himself, anywhere in the village. Naruto had asked Ken what he had said to the old man, but Ken would only laugh and say, "Grown up talk, bro. Don't worry about it." Now that the two had their shopping done, Ken handed all the bags to Naruto. Before the boy could even begin to pout, though, Ken had swung the boy up to sit on his shoulders. "How's that, bro? You carry the groceries and I'll carry you? Sound good?"
He couldn't help but laugh when the six year old started laughing. "Works for me, bro! But are you sure? I mean, I can still walk."
"Hey, if I didn't want to do it, I wouldn't have. Besides, we both know you're way too slow!" It took all his will not fall down laughing when he heard the angry 'hmph!' from above him. "You know I'm messing with you, bro. Besides, once we get started on your training, the only thing that will ever slow you down is yourself. Remember this Naruto, nobody is born great. We are all born good, but from there, it's up to us to become great. I'll never give up on you unless you, so you can't give up on yourself. Deal?"
Without a moment's hesitation, the boy practically shouted, "Deal!" But then something made him pause. "Hey bro, how come you go back and forth between joking and serious all the time?"
Ken just laughed. "You know something, bro? I have no idea. Guess I've always just been that way. Anyway, we're home. Let's keep this stuff in your place."
Naruto just chuckled a little at his weird brother. 'Yeah, he's weird, but he's the coolest bro ever!' "Sure thing, bro." As they opened the door, Naruto couldn't believe how clean the place was. It wasn't spotless, but come on, it's a bachelor pad. Especially since the bachelor is a little kid, what do you expect? What blew Naruto's mind was that he hadn't even had to clean it for two weeks. Not too long ago, he gave up on cleaning the place because at least once every few days everything would be trashed when the villagers broke in. Now, well, now there hadn't been a break in since that night two years ago.
Flashback to two years ago, a couple months after the store
The brothers had just left their favorite spot, Ichiraku's, and were ready to call it a night after a day of fun at the park. Naruto still couldn't believe that his new big bro was willing to push him on the swings for so long. All in all, it was one of the best days of Naruto's life. Admittedly, the standard hadn't been set too high. Regardless, both were in extremely high spirits. Until, that is, they got to the doors of their apartments. Both doors were destroyed, as well as almost everything in the apartments. The wall connecting the two had a humongous hole in it, all the furniture was in pieces, and the walls were covered in spray paint. Lovely messages like, "Go to hell, demon spawn!" and "Why don't you just die!" and Ken's personal favorite, "Death to the demon and his devil guardian!" While Ken was only slightly annoyed, he could see his little bro was badly shaken. He decided it looked like another case for Super Bro, as he had taken to calling himself in his own head. "Can you believe these pranksters? Crazy jokers," he announced with a laugh. Naruto looked around, confused. A joke? Was he out of his mind? "Don't worry about it bro, it's late, you go take a shower and get ready for bed. By the time you're done, it'll all be fine again. Don't you worry." Seeing the disbelief written on the boy's face, he said the words that Naruto knew by heart, but never got tired of hearing. "Naruto, if there is still breath in my lungs and my heart continues to beat, then these people will not be getting past me. This is my promise to you, and I'll never break my promise." Naruto wiped his eyes, gave his brother the biggest hug he had ever given and then went to shower with a smile on his face.
About thirty minutes later, Naruto came out to the living room in his sleeping clothes, looking for his bro, and boy did he find him. There was his bro, with his coat and hat off, Matomeyaku resting on his shoulder, supervising the work of six badly bruised and beaten chunin as they put the finishing touches on the wall repairs, polished the floors, put the new furniture in place, and repainted the walls that had been tagged.
End flashback
After they were done, Ken had warned them all that if anyone, them or others, ever "pranked" he and Naruto again, he would hunt these six down personally and carve the word prankster into their foreheads with Matomeyaku. After the chunin scampered out, quaking with fear, Ken turned to his little bro with a huge smile and said, "See? I told you it was just a couple jokers."
Tonight, no jokers had made an appearance, so Naruto went and got ready for bed while Ken put the groceries away. When Naruto was ready for bed, Ken came and tucked him snugly into his bed. "Sleep well, little man. Tomorrow, you get your wish. You get to enter hell, so you'd better be ready."
"Hey, I'm your bro! There's no way I won't be able to handle anything you throw at me! That's a promise. And I never break my promises, that's my ninja way!"
Ken just chuckled. "Sounds familiar, bro." Naruto got a hint of a blush, having been caught stealing his brother's creed. "No worries, bro. I'm honored that you'd want to adopt my way." As the boy's smile came back full force, he couldn't hold back his yawn. Chuckling at his little brother's sleepiness, Ken repeated what had become their nightly routine. "Always remember, little bro, if there is breath in my lungs and my heart continues to beat, then these people will not be getting past me. This is my promise to you, and I'll never break my promise." With that, he finished tucking the boy in, ruffled his hair and turned to exit the room.
Just as he reached the door way, he heard Naruto say, "Hey bro? Thanks. I won't let you down, I'll get strong, and when I'm Hokage, I'll protect you just like you protect me."
Ken felt a feeling that had become shockingly familiar to him, a feeling that he had thought he'd never feel again a mere two years ago. He felt peace. "Sounds good, little man. Tomorrow, you take the first step towards that. Now, get to sleep." After hearing his brother's yawn, he turned off the lights, and went to his normal resting place, the door to Naruto's apartment. 'The little man's already stronger than me where it counts most. I swear, mom, dad, I'll do everything I can to help him. As long as there is breath in my lungs and my heart continues to beat, no one will be hurting him. This is my promise to you, and I will never break my promise again.' And with that, the two brothers drifted into the land of dreams.
Well, what did you think? Let me know. I want to do a good job, so if you saw something you liked, let me know so I can keep it going. If there's something that needs work, let me know so I can work on it.