Chapter Four: Crossroads
"Naruto."
The station was filled with giant crowds of people; men, women, children and even families trying to pass by and get onto their respective trains; thankfully there hadn't been too many that they wouldn't be able to move. The only problem was the culture shock they had received up on arriving; a place where Shinobi didn't exist, except in fables, fairy tales, and folklore. That alone had been enough to shake them and only added for the needed of concealment for the mission at hand. It wouldn't do to scare people by destroying their ignorance. Still, while it was strange to hear of places where Shinobi had been degraded into nothing but fiction they nonetheless found themselves rather fascinated by the technology and advancements that they had come across while being in London.
One of which had caught Naruto's attention: Cellphones.
Shikamaru paused as the blonde continued to snap his head around gazing at the cellphones with glee. "Naruto." The Nara had adapted himself by wearing a grey t-shirt underneath a green coat similar to what he usually wore back home in Konoha with blue jeans and sandals. The lazy boy blinked tiredly at the other. "Naruto, will you calm down already?"
"But it's SO cool Shikamaru!" The blonde gushed out energetically, as his eyes danced with awe.
The boy's eyes twitched. "Troublesome, we have a mission remember?"
"Yeah, yeah. I know don't worry about it!" Naruto grinned widely at the other boy before adding in his peace sign at the end. Just like Shikamaru, he had been forced to change into something less suspicious and wore an orange jacket overtop a black shirt with the circular spiral on the back and black pants and around his hands were a pair of fingerless gloves. "This place is just so DIFFERENT then back home, we should take time to look around right?"
Asuma chuckled. "Fun as that would be Naruto, our orders are strict: Escort Kurama-san and Tsukikaiyou-san to this... Hogwarts place and report back within the time limit, unless disaster strikes of course. He highly doubted that the any disasters would happen despite it being a C-Rank mission."
It nearly took all of Naruto's willpower not to flinch openly in front of the group; recalling the incident in the Land of Waves and the battle on the bridge. The deaths of Zabuza and Haku were still fresh in his mind. He was unable to stop them from replying in the depths of his dreams and while the pain of faded over time it was still there; tormenting him in the back of his mind. It wasn't as bad or as horrifying as his usual ones. He had expected that one day death would eventually cross his path it was just that... Naruto hadn't honestly thought he would have become acquainted with it so early in his career. Suppressing a cold shudder he forced a smile on his face while giving the instructor of Team 10, a thumbs up before folding his arms over his head.
Mastering his emotions had been the first thing he been able to cover, despite what he said or his facial expressions. It was easier to fake being cheerful, excited and happy then to be sullen and depressed; it was a good cover to through off people that were trying to determine what he was feeling. Very few people could see past his emotional guard; one of them was the Hokage and honestly Naruto, even was surprised that the old man had been able to see past the mask. The other was Umino Iruka, the only man whom was willing enough to befriend and get to know him rather then ditching him to the sidelines like a sensei who-would-not-be-named *coughKakacough* due to the man's own emotional deficients growing up similar to Naruto himself. It was also the reason why Iruka had sought him out in the first place, because he had been there just where Naruto was now. An orphan, lonely and lost. Not that he'd ever admit aloud. Konohamaru was a close third but...
There had was one more person. He didn't know the guy's name but, Naruto appreciated what he done for him all those years ago...
He had only been around five, or six years old at the time. After finishing his first day in the Ninja Academy and several months after meeting Iruka, he had decided to treat himself to a bowel of Ramen at Ichiraku's; in his opinion it was the best Ramen the world had ever seen! The old man and his daughter, Ayame had also been very kind to him and treated him whenever, unfortunately not for free of course; though in all honest Hokage-Jiji and Iruka-sensei had always taken care of the bill in the past.
"Hey isn't that..." A voice whispered behind him, it nearly made Naruto want to freeze up. Feeling the harsh, heavy breath behind him filled with alcohol in the air. "Yeah... that's him. The little bastard."
A round of chuckles were heard. Wasn't it too early for people to be going out and getting drunk? Footsteps echoed and the shadows stretched across the buildings. Ever sense of Naruto's body had began to scream at him and run, run and don't look back!
He had hadn't been fast enough...
The very back of his shirt had been caught and before he had even registered it, his feet had been lifted off the ground. His body went straight into panic, however it remained utterly still like a statue. What should he do? What could have he done? There was no way he could take on all four of these adult men! Civilian or not, there had been no chance of him winning at all. He shivered feeling the contact of flesh brush against his own slightly as the towers of these men began to form over him, blocking the rays of light from his eyes. The urge to shout and scream were obviously on his mind but really... would anyone come to his aid at all?
"Well, well, well. Little demon, out here all alone?" Dark. Tone. Sinister intentions. Didn't take a genius to figure out where this was going.
He wanted to get away. Away. AWAY!
For a brief moment he had felt nothing at all until his body suddenly became light and soared straight through the air, the dark-filled eyes that promised pain. Looking around him, hoping that someone... anyone would come to his aid!
No one did.
Instead they gazed at him with deep resentment and twisted pleasure at seeing him suffer like this. Like it was a game to the civilian populous, none of them would dare help him without losing their precious game. In a way, he had come to accept it despairingly.
The power of belief and faith, no matter how much he preached it endlessly it never seems to come through.
"I highly suggest you unhand him." A saviour? A man wearing a strange uniform appeared, his appearance clouded in darkness and a white mask covering his face. The mask itself was stained with red marks painted each direction. "Now." Spiky brown hair, too.
"And whatta you go'in to do about it?" One of the drunkards spat angrily, a bottle still being held in his hand. Empty as could be as he smashed it against the wall and the small shards of glass landed on the ground as he placed straight towards the kid's neck. "C'mon any closer and i'll...Gwah!"
The guy never knew what hit him. His arm twisted in several painful ways while the two blue orbs widened in awe as the man screamed and shouted pitifully, the others tried in vain to aid their comrade only to receive the same treatment and end up laying on the ground holding their bruises.
The guy didn't even need his eyes to install fear. "Get lost. Never do that again."
"That was awesome! Teach me! Teach me! I wanna learn how to do that!" Naruto beamed trying to get the man's attention.
The man's body language shook with amusement. "When your older, Naruto. Let's get you home." After that he never saw the guy again, however the linger memory and words remained carved within his brain. He had tried to look and search for the man only to come up empty handed.
That man just where was he-
"NARUTO!"
The blonde flinched at the sudden outburst from Shikamaru. "What?"
"Keep your head in the game, will ya? Your so damn troublesome..." The Nara repeated under his breath eyeing him tiredly. The blonde had started to be drawn in too deep into his own thoughts, wearing a look of sorrowful longing. Because he didn't know much about the blonde haired boy due to lack of information and interaction with him also left Shikamaru at a total loss of how to evaluate his current team for the duration of the mission. At the same time, Naruto was friendly and held an eagerness to learn despite being dense and disruptive at the Academy. Then again none of the teachers with the exception of Iruka-sensei really showed any interest in helping and correcting the boy's methods.
Maybe he was looking far too deep into things. Shikamaru's gaze switched over towards Kurama Yakumo and Tsukikaiyou Yuushi, the new team mates for Team Twelve. The fact that a civilian had turned into a Shinobi had been a bit unsettling. Though, Shikamaru was a simply Genin. The Hokage's Orders were orders, thus he would carry them out.
"Who were we supposed to meet again?" Yakumo asked looking around curiously and trying to not to look suspicious. Unsure in the rather loose clothes that civilians were use to wearing, along with a short shirt that reached just to her knees while wearing a pair of jeans. "What were their names...?"
Yuushi smiled, slightly. "... Weasleys. The family name is Weasley."
Being the eldest bar Asuma the teen eyed the young Shinobi carefully ready to come to their aid when necessary. The month before left a bitter taste in his mouth and mind that weakness of his had forced him into becoming what he was now, someone who would not fail again. This new team, while not entirely overjoyed with the circumstances Yuushi knew that it was the most logical outcome. His face hardened.
Never again would he be weak, never.
"They're here now." The quiet voice of Shino broke the silence. The insect-using teenager looked directly towards the horde of red-haired children chatting away happily slowly making there way towards the general vicinity. A younger girl with bushy hair had her lips pressed together eyeing the train station worryingly, her mind obvious open other matters. "Should we proceed Asuma-sensei?"
The smoking Shinobi's slitted eyes rested upon the red horde carefully. "Let's wait for now...I want to see what kind of people they are." Sarutobi Asuma, Leader of Team 10 had received a rather rude awakening prior to accepting the mission, which disturbed him greatly. Needless to say his mood and feelings had gone under left him with having second thoughts about first impressions. His eyes narrowed gazing at Shino briefly before returning his full attention on the group. A rather plump woman spotted him and smiled.
"Are you Mr. Sarutobi?" The woman asked kindly, smiling at him parentally.
Asuma nodded, remembering customs here. "Yes, I am." His broken english evident and shaky, gesturing to his team. "These are my students, please treat them well."
The woman nodded," Oh! I forgot to introduce myself where are my manners? I'm Molly Weasley. These are my children, Percy." The boy with the glasses and pompous look on his face nodded. "The twins; Fred and George-"
"Mum!" One of the identical boys protested. "I'm George, HE's Fred."
The second shook his head. "Honestly woman, you call yourself our mother." The entirely thing said in mocking sorrow as Asuma and Naruto snorted audible understanding the mechanics that was being played between the twins, didn't take a genius to figure out.
"Oh, I'm sorry George." Molly sounded apologetic at the boy.
The boy grinned. "Just joking, I really am Fred."
"Of course you are dear, keep thinking that." Molly responded as the Twins gawked in the background. Ignoring the twins utterly, "This is my youngest son, Ron. He'll be in third year this year," The small red haired boy gave a small smile and wave. "And my little girl, Ginny."
"Hi..." Ginny blushed shyly at them looking away.
The bushy haired girl looked at them, eyes opening in realization. "Oh, I'm sorry. I'm Hermione Granger, pleasure to meet you."
"Na... Shikamaru Nara." The lazy boy introduced a bit tiredly, his thoughts revolving around sleeping and staring up at the clouds.
Shino pushed his glasses up. "... Shino Aburame..." before returning to the shadows, ignoring the rest of them.
"Naruto Uzumaki!" The blonde chirped rather happily and grinning like a fool, the blue orbs dancing with delight and young boy looked ready to jump place to place, it was actually humorous to watch the boy struggling to remain still.
"Yakumo Kurama, pleased to meet you." The red haired girl gave a rather weak and shy grin followed up by a polite bow. The physically-inept girl had manners and customs instilled in her since being born, the very idea of not bowing to a person seemed alien and difficult to comprehend.
Yuushi nodded briskly. "Yuushi Tsukikaiyou."
Molly beamed at them. "Now then, do all of know how to get onto to the train?" Dumbledore had informed her several days prior that a group of foreigners would be needing assistance in finding the Hogwarts Express, the poor dears must've been overwhelmed by the shock of being in a new country. Shaking her head, Molly continued to smile on the surface. "Do you see the platform with 9 and 10 on the board?"
"Errr... Yes, why?" Asuma was confused by the question.
Molly smile remained. "Percy, please give them a demonstration."
"Of course, Mother."
Naruto wrinkled his nose. What a pompous ass, the taller boy sounded so smug and almighty while holding his nose high to the air, as if he was someone actually important. It was quite funny really, the blonde thought with a silent snort.
"What is he doing!" Shikamaru exclaimed, horrified while watching the pompous teen ran towards the pillar of platforms 9 and 10, ignoring the obvious dangers could come after. His shouting ceased as the boy vanished. Right. .Wall. The Genin felt his eyes bugging out as he gaped.
What the hell?
"It's a barrier," Hermione explained noticing the perplexed look upon the foreigner's faces. "It only LOOKS like a pillar, in reality it's a doorway that leads straight to the Hogwarts Express Station. It was forged and built by Helga Hufflepuff during the late years of the school and was later continued upon after the last of the founders died." Saying this all very fast, "The barrier itself was designed for students and parents to get to the platform without being noticed by muggles, the area it self has a 'Notice-Me-Not' Charm and Muggle-Repelling charms as well."
Naruto frowned. "Muggle?" Clearly not understanding the world. "Is that some type of food?" horrified
"Muggle means person that doesn't have magic," Molly answered.
Shikamaru raised an eyebrow. 'A bit derogatory and unnecessary classification. Simple because some people are unable to preform this 'magic' labels are given to them? Troublesome.' It was too troublesome for him to say out loud, plus he didn't want to cause a troublesome commotion anyway. Yawning lazily, he went through the barrier chasing after a rather hyperactive blonde Shinobi.
Shino, on the other hand seemed mildly agitated by the labeling. The mere idea of it highly offended the young Shinobi and was unable to see a logical reasoning as to why these wizards would willingly not only separate themselves from the open world and do everything in their power to distance themselves from it. Observing the family before them, it was quite obvious that they held an interest about these people they called 'muggles' , from what the lazy teen could see the exception of the pointless fear and need for secrecy gleamed brightly in their eyes. The lack of embracement and boldness, irked the silent boy. What sense was there to hide themselves from society? Sooner or late someone was bound to discover and eventually, expose them.
By that time, Shino sincerely hoped he'd be as far away as possible.
"O-Oi Naruto!" Shikamaru's cry got the boy's attention, noticing that the blonde was gripping the edge of his stomach rather tightly.
"Are you alright?" Yakumo asked quickly making her way over towards the blonde. Frowning as she tried to get a glimpse of the boy's face only to be blocked by the bangs and resistance that the other boy was putting up, the red head wished she knew medical Jutsu or some minor genjutsu. That way at least then she might be able to pinpoint the origin of pain.
The blonde winced, forcing a grin. "Y-yeah.. f-fine!" weakly holding up a thumbs up sign.
"Troublesome," The Nara murmured looking annoyed. "Stop trying to act tough, idiot."
Naruto simply grinned response.
"Are you sure you'll be alright?" Hermione questioned passing through the barrier just moments after Shino, her eyes clearly dancing with worry and disbelief. The huffy tone in her voice made the Shinobi tense at the tone of superiority in them. "I'm sure the Medi-witch on the train wouldn't mind taking a look at you."
"Nah!" The blonde grinned rubbing the back of his neck. "I'm fine, really!" Plus the blonde wasn't entirely certain how this 'Medi-witch' would react to seeing a containment seal on his stomach. Recalling the previous encounter back in Konoha just days before the mission. "C'mon, let's go guys!"
Asuma shook his head, grinning.
"... He's quite hyper," Yuushi remarked a bit surprised at the overwhelming energy the younger boy had. He had few interactions with Uzumaki-kun, thus it was still quite a surprise to witness his endless energy and stamina. "Is he always like that?"
Shikamaru looked at him. "You've spent time with him for a week, shouldn't it be obvious?" He said a not unkind way while folding his arms behind his head, his eyes piercing the tall teen with a look. "He's always been like this since I can remember. Not that I mind, it's just so damn troublesome."
'Typical Nara behavior,' The blue haired teen thought lazily following after the team while Yakumo talked with Hermione for a bit. He felt pretty bad for her since she WAS the only girl in the group at the moment thus Yakumo may not receive the... proper instructions or guidance. Damn. This sucked.
As they made their way straight to the compartments, Hermione gestured to one of them. "Would all of you like to join us?"
"Thank you for the offer Granger-san, however it seems like the compartment is nearly full." Asuma thanked the girl gesturing to compartment where the several figures could be seen through the glass window. "Maybe next time, don't worry we'll be right beside you in case something happens."
The girl opened her mouth to say something, then stopped. "Well..." she seemed a bit trouble. "Alright." She and Yakumo exchanged a small smile before separating ways.
Shikamaru sighed slipping straight onto the couch. "Troublesome..."
"Can't you say anything else?" Naruto question irritably still holding the side of his stomach. The blonde strained when he felt the eyes of Asuma settling on him and knew full well what was going through his head, it wasn't like it was his fault! The damn thing just started hurting for some reason, besides maybe it was just him being hungry, right? Scratching at the source of the pain the blonde began a bit of argument with the brunette haired teen whom replied with flat remarks.
"Yakumo?" Yuushi questioned the girl curiously. "Are you alright?"
The red haired girl blinked. "Hm? Oh..." blushing. "I'm fine. Thank you, Yuushi."
"... Okay then." The hell was that about?
Asuma lend back into the couch and smirked. Damn these things were comfy!
The door began to open as a teen became visible to them, the boy had wild jet black hair and the greenest eyes that they've ever seen. His face was masculine with a number of scars and he wore a simple gray shirt with beige jean was eyeing them cautiously with amusement. Around his hands were fingerless gloves with bandages wrapped in an 'x' like fashion across each glove while on the front of his shirt was a spiral, which some of them found rather odd. That detail didn't strike them as being too important.
"Can we help you?" Shino spoke up his attention being torn from the window to the stranger. There was no hostility in the newcomer's body language nor could he sense malice either however the Aburame didn't relax.
The boy scratched his head. "Well... I was wondering if you knew how many fire leaves would be seen during time of year..."
"Wa..." Asuma's nearly chocked on his own voice for several minutes staring at the teenager, before a smile slid on his face. "The answer is six. I'm guessing you're the new recruit, right?"
The boy nodded his head. "Yes, my name is Harry. Please to be meet all you, I promise I won't let any of you down." Bowing to them politely and respectively before resuming his stance. "Would it be too much to ask if I could join you in this compartment?"
Naruto was the first to respond. "Sure! The more the merrier!" The blonde was absolute beaming always ready to meet a fellow Shinobi and friend. "My name is Uzumaki Naruto, the future Hokage! Believe it!"
"I know," Harry answered as he took a seat beside Asuma, smiling at the slightly smaller boy. The young boy didn't seem bothered by the stares that he was receiving from them. "Can I help you?" His voice was controlled and very polite without a hint of agitation or annoyance.
Yuushi coughed. "No, no, no no. Everything's fine. Sorry. My name is Tsukikaiyou Yuushi, you're new team mate. Nice to meet you." He gave a half-bow since he was sitting in a seat.
"Kurama Yakumo, please treat me favorably." The shy red head requested with blush, nonetheless smiling at the other boy openly. Her eyes shifted upwards at the boy before flickering quickly back to the ground, the boy seemed rather friendly. Kind of like Naruto, just without the blonde hair, blue eyes and hyperactive attitude. Giggling to herself she readjusted her gaze and saw the warm smile on his face, her cheeks tingled a deep pink.
Shikamaru looked at Harry, lazily. "You're the new recruit? How troublesome." The boy looked like he had been through hell though. How troublesome, another pragmatic person he had to deal with. The boy however, thanked himself that Ino hadn't come along with him or else he'd probably be hearing the endless talking of how 'cute' the boy looked compared to Sasuke. Groaning, it didn't bother him that much it was just simply annoying to listen too on a constant basis. Then again...
Ino was the only reason that Team 10 even worked. The blonde haired girl pushed them to train and train, despite the very girlish attitude she had towards life.
In fact, now that Shikamaru thought about the girl there was a dramatic change after graduating from the Academy even though the majority of her talking still revolved around the Uchiha, the girl still was adamant into turning the three cell team into a fully fledged and capable unit. That being said, Shikamaru was fully aware of the unfortunate outcome of Yuushi's former team with the exception of fully in depth details. After interacting with the rest of Team Asuma, Shikamaru's previous analyzations (of Shino and Naruto) and the news ones (Yakumo and Yuushi) had been an eye opener for him.
Shino had been a rather withdrawn and quiet kid growing up and hardly ever allowed himself to be bothered with interacting with others or even speaking up, unless it involved school work or a question. Now, the Aburame had begun to talk more openly though his facial expressions were still difficult to read his body language had become clear making it a bit easier to read the other boy. His skills still remained a mystery to him leaving Shikamaru at a bit of disadvantage of how to utilize their skills if need be. Not their had been any type of difficulty during their mission to Hogwarts, but it was better to be safe rather then sorry.
The next person on his list, had been Naruto. The blonde was still an idiot and loud as he had been before leaving the Academy, the only change in him was his stiffness and reactions. The boy was trying to do something, trying to keep something from becoming known; something dangerous. It didn't take Shikamaru all that much to actually figure out to be honest.
Even now, Naruto was still an open book.
it made Shikamaru wonder what exactly had changed the blonde into a desperate secret keeping boy from a usually loud, open idiot?
Troublesome.
"So what exactly can you do?" Yuushi asked boy, curiously eyeing the young teenager. His lips turned into a faint smile. "My main points are in Weapons and Taijutsu."
Harry blinked, stunned by the blunt question. "Me? Ummm... Medical Jutsu." Blushing at the surprised and incredulous stares he was receiving.
"Medical Jutsu, seriously?" Shikamaru gapped openly. A civilian up until a month ago had developed an affinity with medical based jutsu?
Shino pressed up his glasses. "An impressive feat."
"Really? AWESOME!" Naruto exclaimed at the top of his lungs, grinning like a child. "You must be an awesome Shinobi then!"
The boy continued to bluster. "I... I still have a lot to learn, thank you for the sentiments though." Harry replied.
"You should give yourself more credit, Hari-kun. A civilian turned into a Medic-Nin in month's time is outstanding." Asuma chided gently at the boy. "Don't sell yourself short. Having faith in yourself own abilities will help you grow."
Though grow into what, the Jounin thought to himself eyeing the child with interest. What was his father trying to do and what were is intentions anyway? Was he trying to build another branch outside here in England?
That would be with Konoha's economy and lack of Shinobi. He rationalized to himself, this magic he hadn't even thought about until encountering it. The bearded man had been taken back by the barrier having being unable to even sense the damn thing which could be used to aid Konoha if they could ever gain the technique from these Wizards.
Then again, the man's train of thought continued; what exactly was stopping them from attacking us?
Trust was a very delicate thing in the Shinobi world, it would either prove beneficial or end up stabbing the person in the back, traitors and cowards were everywhere within the Shinboi world. The information received from an enemy could result in the death of many comrades on the field.
His eyes hardened, Asuma wouldn't let that happen to these children who fell under his protection.
Meeting with the two emerald orbs for a brief second, him too he decided. As far as his father was concerned Hari-kun was a Konoha Shinobi thus that meant the kid was his responsibility too. There was something about this kid though that reminded him of someone... shrugging. Maybe it was just his imagination.
"My abilities revolve around Genjutsu." Yakumo continued chatting rather animatedly with her new team mates, her eyes shining brightly. It was rather strange for her to act this way, not that she was an unpleasant or rude person to be around; she was really quite kind. Growing up, she had little time for being around others as most of it was spent either learning to be a proper heiress for the clan or learning how to be a proper Shinobi so that the Kurama Clan would once again gain the prestige that it had lost since the heavy decline in births. "My Taijutsu needs some work though..."
Yuushi smiled. "I'll help you with that, Hari-kun will too, right?" He asked turning towards Harry.
"Sure. Mind teaching me how to use axes?" Harry responded with a smile already getting along with the two rather well. "I could teach you two some Medical jutsus too."
"That would be good, though I doubt that I'd be able to use it." The older boy wrinkled his nose. "My Chakra control needs a lot of work... despite being a Genin for several years, I mainly work on my Taijutsu and Weapon training rather then my Genjutsu and Ninjutsu..."
Asuma frowned. "You're leaving yourself rather open." The man didn't even wince the boy's eyes turned frigid.
"Don't worry." The distant and firm voice of the boy reassured. "I plan on fixing my mistakes as soon as I can."
So the kid really did blame himself? It wasn't even his fault to begin with, how could he have known what was going to transpire, let alone prevent what happened. No person could be a lone army. No one.
"They seem to be getting along rather well." Shino remarked once again pushing up his glasses watching the new team interact with one another.
Naruto nodded. "Yeah!" Grinning he added, "They'll probably be one hell of a team! Just like Sakura-chan and I!"
"Oi, oi!" Shikamaru interrupted with a pointed look. "What do you mean 'Sakura-chan and you? Ino tells me that Sakura constantly complains about you."
Naruto squawked.
Asuma blinked, looking at his students briefly for a moment before withdrawing deep into his thoughts. Did he use to act like that? Surely not. Shaking his head the Konoha Shinobi began to deeply crave a certain nicotine stick right now and let out a ferocious gruff, gazing at the window. Not having his fix was really starting to pry on his mind. Maybe Kurenai was right, quitting smoking might just be good for him.
Shino shifted a bit. "Someone is coming." His voice controlled and calm, ignoring the tensionthat had been created. from his words. They waited as the doors opened, only to realize it had been the opposite compartment that had been visited.
"Don't scare us like that Shino!" Yakumo scowled the stoic boy only to be met with a masked look. Pouting, the girl folded her arms over her chest and turned away. "Making us get defensive and everything..."
Shikamaru shook his head and sighed. "... Troublesome woman-"
"What was that?" She glared. HARD.
"Er... ah... w-well..."
Yuushi's lips curved into a soft smile. "Don't worry about those two, the Nara family is known for considering everything as 'troublesome' and are generally very lazy. So if he says something along those lines, just ignore it." He reassured Harry catching the bewildered look upon the younger boy's face. Ignoring the scene being played out by the two beside him while Naruto seemed to be trying to defend Yakumo, ultimately having Shikamaru make several Nara-type remarks. "The two of them are being rather loud." Shino commented calmly not even remotely phased by the other three's antics.
Harry nodded slowly, deciding to trust the words of his new team mate. "Well..." beginning slowly, nodding in the end. "If you say so."
The doors then slid open, revealing a platinum blonde haired boy with silver eyes. Beside him, were two kids that Asuma was pretty damn sure had just evolved from gorillas. And that wasn't saying much to say the least, while the blonde haired boy gazed down at them with a look of superiority and an arrogant grin that was filled with malicious and childish bullying.
Snorting quietly, it surprised the older male of how far some kids would go to establish power.
"Well, well look who we have here? Potty has some new friends. What? Get tired of the blood traitor and mudblood?" The blonde boy sneered trying to sound intelligent while his eyes flickered with glee at his insults.
Harry looked at him, bored. "Is that the only thing you could come up with Malfoy? Really, it's starting to get old. Try coming up with new insults rather then repeating the same rubbish you keep on spewing out."
"You'll pay for that one, Potter!" Malfoy hissed his hand sliding into his sleeve and whipping out his wand.
Or at least, that's what he tried to do.
Behind him, a cold metal was pressed against his neck. The young boy's body went rigid with fear and surprise and saw that his wand was now laying on the ground before Yakumo bent down and picked it up, holding it close to her chest. His free arm had been twisted backwards and placed right against his back and he shivered with pain, which he never experienced before in his entire life! Surly this mudblood should have known that, a pureblood like himself wasn't meant to be touch by such FILTH!
"Goyle! Crabbe! DO SOMETHING!"
Yuushi didn't even bother glancing as the two gorilla-like children cracked their knuckles ready to charge at the foreign boy.
"H-hey!"
Crabbe grunted in frustration. "I-I c-can't move!" Shadows suddenly connected to them.
"Success," Shikamaru commented his hands in the form of a seal, gazing at the two other boys while Naruto aided his comrades by knocking Crabbe and Goyle onto the ground helping the Nara keep the two in place.
"Let me go you filth mudbloods! My father-" Malfoy began to protest at the very top of his lungs.
"Will do NOTHING." Yuushi hissed coldly pressing the blade playfully against the irritating blonde's throat. "I severely doubt that he has any type of power to do anything to us," Sneering at the younger boy watching him shivering like a coward. "Man, your pathetic." Shaking his head and removing his kunai, Yuushi flashed over back towards Yakumo. "Get lost and don't bother us again."
Asuma simply looked at Malfoy. "I suggest you do as he says," Sounding rather amused at what had just been played out. "I won't hold him responsible for his actions."
"Who are you?" Malfoy sneered grabbing his injured arm carefully, glaring at the man. "Why did you stop him?"
"Why should I?" Asuma retorted calmly staring at the boy with coldness and contempt. "Actions come with consequences, kid. You should have realized that when you came in here parading around like you own the place, like your some royalty." Chuckling mockingly," judging by your reaction and attitude, your from a pretty old family aren't you kid?"
Malfoy glared. "I'm a pureblood! I should be treated with respect, not like some insignificant ingraft." All of this coming out of the boy's mouth with a very annoyed tone and filled with the same aristocrat attitude that many clan members, such as the Uchiha and Hyuuga family had displayed now and then, Asuma himself never really believed that clan members should be treated higher above that of a regular Shinobi. It took until a Jounin instructor or real life experienced to install the idea of these... privileged Shinobi that they were not all powerful nor did the world revolve around them. However, at the same time it didn't work, most of the time.
Prime example? Look at Hyuuga Hisashi, Hatake Kakashi (despite his father bring disgraced) and Uchiha Sasuke. "Blood isn't everything." Asuma stated calmly gazing at the boy. "There will come a time where you will come to understand that."
The blonde looked at him for several moments before sneering, and stomping his way out of the compartment like a little child. Shikamaru decided to release his Jutsu and watched carefully as the two gorilla-like kids quickened to stand up before following after their leader without hesitation and filled with fear. The lazy genius resisted the urge to sigh.
This was all just too troublesome for him. However.. his eyes narrowed into slits. That little brat... he didn't trust the civilian to not keep quiet about it. Hopefully the members of Team 12 would be able to handle it.
Yakumo wrinkled her nose, returning to her seat. "What a spoiled brat," her fingers playing with Malfoy's wand.
"How long do you think it will take him to realize that you still have it?" Yuushi asked wearing a grin over his face.
"A while." Harry commented with a small smile on his lips which grew when the blue haired teen snorted. "Sorry I didn't do anything..."
Naruto looked at him. "Hm? What's with the look?" Grinning widely," It was fun, besides I got to kick some ass!"
His hand still placed on his stomach, from the angle it looked like he was gripping it tighter then previous time.
"Calm down, you idiot." Shikamaru snapped at him dryly. His eyes flickered towards the boy's chest. "Oi... are you sure you're alright? You've been holding that spot for a long while now."
Naruto struggled not to wince openly. Had he been that transparent? "Y-yeah..." forcing the positive and bouncing energy to his face. He hated admitting weakness and this was the same, "Really! I am!"
"Do you mind if I took a look at it?" Harry offered gaining the blonde's and brunette's attention. "I known some medical jutsu and healing magic, maybe I could be of some assistance?"
"I'm FINE." Naruto stated his eyes narrowed just a bit in order to look intimating. To his surprise the raven haired boy simply raised an eyebrow as if challenging him. Crossing his arms and turning away with a pout he forced his attention towards the window gazing at the dark cold night.
Asuma sighed. God, why did he feel like a father on a sunday?
Shikamaru's eyes narrowed focusing on the blonde boy, a bit startled by the reaction he had gotten out of his teammate. Since when had Naruto ever acted like this before? Recalling the memories from their days in the Academy, rarely did anything truly sent the boy off with the exception of Uchiha (then again, he AWAYS pissed people off) and being scoffing at his proclaiming (rather loudly) at becoming the "Future Hokage!". But this... this was something entirely different. What exactly was Naruto trying to hide from them? Now that he had begun to think about it, the Nara thought to himself calmly. Ever since that night before their graduation, Naruto had mysteriously was given a headband and officially made a Shinobi of Konoha. There had been rumors that a traitor had tried to make their escape with something of high value. Other then that, no other information had been accessible.
It didn't take a genius to figure out that their was definitely a connection between those two events and Naruto's change in mood swings.
Suddenly, the temperature in the room began to drop. At an alarming rate while the sounds of the wheels began halt as the shrieking of the metal began to echo through their ears like bells on steroids. Naruto, whose hearing was stronger then that of a normal person gripping his head trying to block out the sounds that awakened a headache deep in his head while the area of where he was gripping began to tighten considerably. The clouds outside had darkened and became wild, the flickering light coming from them caught their attention.
Harry frowned. "Why are we stopping?" His body stiffed a bit at the strange abnormality of the Hogwarts Express. "It's never done this before."
"An enemy?" Yuushi quickly snarled, whipping out one of his concealed axes. His eyes became considerably cold and filled with a dark murderous fury within them.
Yakumo gulped, struggling to ignore the fear that had began to make it's self known in her stomach. Not even reaching their destination point and they were already in possible danger! She knew, of course that death and danger was apart of the being a Shinobi. It was something that had been drilled straight into her head and psyche ever since she had been born, nevertheless it still frightened her. Shakily raising her kunai the girl began to breath in and out helping calming down and gathering the resolve needed in order to fight if need be.
While Asuma was slouching on the seat he was far from being unprepared for the attack as his hands rested near his sides, playing with the handles of his daggers. The change of temperature from his experience was definitely not normal and from what the kid had told him this wasn't normal either. Glancing towards the door as the coldness started to become solid ice that wrapped around the metal and glass, whatever was make it's way towards them.
Everything could feel it, even the lights. Flickering and dangling off and on until the ice reached on top of them, effectively shutting them off.
It was like something out of a horror film.
"Be careful." The Jounin barked sharply, his face serious and stern. This wasn't a normal type of enemy something native to this place, thus an unknown. His eyes locked on towards the door as his daggers slipped straight into his hands, his chakra wrapping around the very edges.
"Cooool!" Naruto nearly exclaimed before Shino silenced him with a look. The smile that was plastered upon the boy's face instantly vanished. His eyes widened paralyzed in place as a cloaked figure pulled open the door. The scaly, grimy and certain inhumane hand... claw, revealed it's self to the group.
No words could be formed from anyone's lips as the grotesque figure slipped into the small compartment. Hissing came from the strange thing, no... abominations that hovered into the room looking as if it was looking for something. Or someone. None of them dared allow themselves to make a noise or sound as the cole atmosphere began to intense the longer the creature's presence remained indicating that it was the source of the frozen ice that had spread across the train like the wind.
Asuma struggled to keep himself from collapsing. What the hell was this thing? He couldn't even SENSE the damnable creature!
And his head! Ohhh, his head! Cold whispers of those long forgotten and events that he had wished could remain forever at the back of his mind. He didn't want to remember! HE DIDN'T WANT TO REMEMBER!
He heard a thump hit the floor as his eyes snapped open, charging his chakra straight to the blade.
"WIND RELEASE: RAZOR GALE FALCON!"
It was cold... so very cold. Why was it so cold? The darkness consumed him utterly like it had before, during that time...
The strain on his eyes stung a bit, opening them. Once again, there was nothing more then a vivid darkness like before. The screaming he had heard from his subconscious still rang clearly in his ears before slowly vanishing, his hand gripped where his heart rested feeling the twist and painful ache that emitted from there. It felt familiar to him somewhere carved gently into is memory, something he knew that had remained apart of him for years; but was unable to place the sound to a face or a name.
He place its self reminded him oddly of a tunnel, while it was dark and damp the place felt wide and rather spacious.
Pushing his legs forward, he began to walk. Where was he walking? Anywhere, he had to try and find the others; and soon. Wrapping his arms around his body trying to contain his body heat will stalking down the long dark path, the ground felt hard and hollowed as if it didn't exist. Snorting to himself at the idiotic thought glancing at the pitch blackness.
What was this anyway? Some kind of fog or something?
"Close." A male voice purred with amusement. "Not entirely wrong, nor is it right. It was a rather good guess, child."
The boy felt his body freeze. "Whose there?"
"Hm?" The voice question curiously as a pair of eyes made themselves visible. Two strange colored eyes that were clear as day. The gleam of curiosity and amusement was dancing handsomely in the darkness. "Did you not receive my message child? You know, creating those trees are rather hard to go." A necklace of beads echoed through the darkness much like ripples in an ocean keeping with the beat of a tune while the man in question stared at him. The faint lines his clothing could also be seen, only just though.
"Wait, what?" He remembered, that three with those giant dials! "What was the message then?"
"Wasn't it obvious?" The man was definitely amused, if the humorous smile now appeared in the night. "It warn you of my arrival."
"Your arrival?" That REALLY wasn't helping at all. "I don't understand," Admitting softly while staring at the figure, or lack there of. "Why are you appearing before me and who are you anyway?"
The man smiled, mysteriously. "You already know who I am. Now then, wake up."
"What?"
"Wake up."
His body instantly snapped up, sweat drench all over as his clothes sticked to his skin. Blushing embarrassment at having such a stupid and childish reaction to such a dream, it made him feel vulnerable and weak. Looking down at the white blanket he realized that once again he was in the Infirmary of Hogwarts, sighing irritably. And, once more he was sitting in the left side bed at the end of the room. Really, it was like the bed was reserved for him!
Scoffing to the side, landing upon white clothing that laid upon the floor with red flames painted upon the cloth a quarter way near the end as the emerald pools began to widen as the blonde spiky hair caught his attention while tilting his head to get a glimpse of the handsome man's well developed face and concentrated blue eyes as he, the man, sat there staring worryingly at the patient.
"Y-Yondaime-sama?"
- Chapter Four-End.
End Note: Yea, I brought the Yondaime back! Of course, can anyone say SUBPLOT? Anyway, on a completely different note I have decided to look for a SECOND beta; if interested just say so in your review and I shall get back to you. Also no Golden Trio Interaction, no worries there will be on during the next chapter - so look forward to it! Plus, you'll find out how Harry acquired Medical Jutsu as well!
kirallie: Thanks! The bonds between Harry and his teachers will be more developed and shown as the series goes on. As for who Harry reminds Sarutobi of... well, you'll just have to see.
RedValentino: Thanks! Well, It depends on how you view the word 'Genius'. An example being, Naruto is a Genius at creativity while Rock Lee is Genius of Hard Work; I view Harry being a Genius of Motivation, which is why he's able to get down the Jutsu and training so quickly, it's his motivation that's pushing him towards reaching and understanding them. Thanks, I LOVE Utakata along with all the other Jinchuuriki that were never shown, as for the timeline... several months before the Chuunin Exam that's all I can say. And Water and Lightning are NOT Harry's Chakra natures or affinities, he simply knows a water Jutsu and a lightning jutsu.
Kazukimi: Thanks, and I totally agree. ANYONE would be a better teacher then Kakashi, ANYONE. Well my thought is, Harry's mind went like this: "If Chakra can do this and I can do with with Chakra, I'll try do THIS" which is how he was able to gain Super Strength.
curve-goddess: Thanks, as for the pairings they are still up for debate. Kimimaro... well, let's just say I have plans for him and leave at that.
mishap: Have I told you how much I love your reviews? Please do it more often! Honestly, I don't really understand why Chakra should be better or stronger then magic since really, they are the same thing just utuilized and evolved differently. Poppy getting her hands on Hayate *muses* hmmm... ANYWAY, I'm glad that you enjoyed that little image *grins* Thanks, and I sincerely hope that you keep on reviewing.
Dark Neko 4000: Perhaps, you'll simply have to continue reading.
Rhyssia: I am very aware of how... lack of my grammar and how I need to improve it. I am assure you, I am doing the best I can. Grammar is not forte unfortunately, however I am willing to have another beta, are you interested?
xXxOtAKU-444xXx: Thanks.
frannienzbabe: I'm trying not to bashing characters to be honest, with the minor exception of the rest of Team 7. If you read the third chapter, there is a list of possible love interests for him that I am currently considering.
Ireadtomuch: I think Utakata would be an interesting lover for Harry, and thank you for casting your vote. I DO have a beta, if you read the last note of the previous chapter, however I am currently looking for a second. As for the description, ask and you shall receive.
Mazentius: I think Harry would be great Shinobi in any area, it really depends on the writing of how he develops and the circumstances that influence his decision. Also, Ancient Runes is FAR better then Divination by far! I do like Itachi, that's no life, however I'm still considering. I'm not leaping ahead with love just yet. Also ShikaNaru FTW! It's my favourite pairing next to PeinNaru and ItaNaru. Thanks for review!
917brat: Unfortunately, no. It isn't a poll, it's potential people I may pair Naruto and Harry with. I'm still considering things. As for the the Venom and Phoenix mixture in his veins, hmmm... you've give me something to think about it.
Arfa: Thanks! I'm glad that you enjoy!
Male Tsunade: 12
Clone! Minato: zero.
Other details-
Medic-Nin with Ninjutsu and Genjutsu: 1
Tsunade Route with Seals: 3
Tsunade Route with Runes and seals: 5
Tsunade Route with Mediwizard and Ninjutsu: 1
Genjutsu Master: 1 Remember to leave a constructive Criticism!