Disclaimer: I have decided to lay down a challenge to both Kishimoto and Togashi. I don't know what that challenge is yet, but you can be sure it will be both youthful and difficult. So youthful that only one of extreme youth will be capable to completing this challenge. Which is why I choose Rock Lee as my second.
You see, this is all part of my master plan. After choosing him as my second I will fake sick, then Rock Lee will step up for me and kick their ass in the youthful tournament by exploding with the power of youth. By having him as my second I am guaranteed to win any contest of youth, and neither of my opponents will be able to find such youthful seconds.
Because we all know that Rock Lee, the Beautiful Green Beast of Konoha is the most youthful person in Naruto. His youth will defeat all!
YOUTH!
Chapter 19: What you Bring to the Bargaining Table
It was early in the morning when Naruto began making his way towards Konoha's North Gate. He had decided to go with an outfit similar to Raizen's, in honor of his ancestral father. He was wearing a pair of baggy pants similar to the one's Raizen's apparition had worn when appearing before Naruto, only the blond's were black. Wrapped around his ankles half-haphazardly as well as his forearms were white bandages and he was wearing a pair of black knees guards. He was wearing black boots and an orange sash that wrapped around his waist and was tied in a knot on the left side. His headband was also orange, having changed the cloth from his standard black.
The only thing he was wearing that Raizen had not was his haori. It was white, and looked much like his father's except with orange flames instead of red, and it was sleeveless instead of short sleeved. There were numerous seals on the inside, all of which held the gear Naruto felt he needed, as he disliked having his equipment visible. He had even foregone wearing the sheathed blades Kyuubi had given him to use, instead having them sealed inside a pair of storage seals he had placed on the palm of his hands this morning.
There was a smile on his face and an added spring in his step, which was due to the wake up Kyuubi had given him this morning. Since they had no clue how long the negotiations with Iwa would last, she had decided to make the most of their morning and woken him up with a blow job. Once he was fully awake they had enjoyed each other to the fullest – three orgasms in quick succession was pretty nice considering they had been short on time – before letting him get up to get dressed and have a quick breakfast.
When Naruto reached the gate he saw that both his father and Jiraiya were already there. The latter was glaring at him, no doubt due to the beaten he had taken last night from Kin and Tayuya. Not that the white haired man's glare actually did anything. Even were Jiraiya inclined to try and kick his ass the simple fact was that Naruto was stronger then him. So the blond was not worried. Besides, Jiraiya had deserved the beating he received last night.
An old man should not be peeking on fifteen year old girls. It was just wrong.
"Tou-san, Ero-Kyofu," Naruto said, smiling as Jiraiya's eye twitched. "I hope you two are well rested?"
"I am," Minato said, looking back and forth between Naruto who was sporting a pleased grin, and Jiraiya who looked like he had swallowed something foul. In the end he shook his head, deciding that he didn't want to know what had happened between the two. "And I take it you are as well?"
"Oh, I don't know about that," Naruto commented with a lecherous grin. "I only got a few hours of sleep. But I don't need that much, and there were more pleasurable things I can do then sleep." Honestly, Naruto didn't see how people like Shikamaru could sleep when that time could be better spent having sex. Not only was the act more fun, it was also good exercise.
Jiraiya grumbled about 'lucky good for nothing brats' and 'damn blond idiots getting all of the hot red heads' while Minato just shook his head, he wasn't sure he even wanted to think about his sensei's thoughts on red heads, nor that his son was sexually active at such a young age. "Well, if your both ready, we should get moving. I want to get to Tetsu No Kuni early so we can get a feel for the place before our meeting with Ōnoki."
The pair nodded, Jiraiya becoming semi-serious and Naruto just moving into his normal mission mode. The blond doubted anything interesting would happen during this mission, and unless Akatsuki attacked there was very little chance of him getting a good fight.
Birth of the New Demon King
(Two days later – Konoha)
With Naruto gone Kyuubi decided that now was a good time to speak with the two women she had determined were worthy of being with her Naruto. There were only two that she would consider, there had been three but Naruto didn't even respect, much less like one of the women she had suggested.
The first was Mitirashi Anko. Kyuubi already knew that Naruto had formed a tight friendship with Konoha's Snake Mistress, and the red head couldn't deny that the woman's violent nature and blood lust appealed to Kyuubi's more demonic side. While she herself had not had much interaction with the woman, aside from sharing a few drinks with her on occasion. She knew that Naruto had spent a lot off time with Anko. Often the two of them would spar, either in a training field or the Forest of Death, though they did other things as well. Kyuubi knew Naruto had taken Anko to see the Princess Gale Movies done by the famous actress Yukie Fujikaze, and she had also caught Naruto and Anko sleeping together on the woman's sofa one night with a movie running when he had not returned home.
Anko was also strong, being a Tokabetsu jonin it was obvious she knew how to fight. But she was also mentally strong. From the information Kyuubi had gathered, Anko was the first person Orochimaru had subject to his juīnjutsu, which at the time of him giving it to her had been a prototype. For someone to have enough mental fortitude to resist the allure of using it's power meant they were extremely strong willed. She also knew that like her Naruto, Anko had been subject to wariness and outright hostility from Konoha thanks to her association with Orochimaru after the man had turned traitor. That she had not broken under their treatment was a testament to her spirit. If there was anyone Kyuubi would allow to mate with Naruto, it was her.
The second one was on the fence. Naruto didn't know her as well, and while Kyuubi respected the woman, neither had a clue how she would react to being in what more or less amounted to a harem.
Finding them both wasn't that hard. As the rumor of Jiraiya being out of the village on a mission had spread, many of the kunoichi that had been refusing to pay a visit to the hot springs while the legendary pervert was in town had decided to use this opportunity to relax there now. That was where she found both of her targets, though she would have to wait to speak with the pair due to the number of women in the hot springs at the moment.
"Anko-chan," she said in greeting. The crazy and fun loving jonin had demanded that she be called Anko-chan by her after being introduced to her via Naruto, that or Anko-Sama, but Kyuubi would never call a human by that title. It was actually amusing because she was sure that Anko disliked her due to her relationship with Naruto. And was just being friendly because she was Naruto's 'girlfriend'.
There was no outright hostility. In fact, the purple haired snake summoning Tokabetsu Jonin was downright friendly to her. It was just the general feel she got whenever Naruto and her were intimate.
With the same smile on her face she greeted the other woman she had marked as potential mate material. "Kurenai."
"What's up, Kit-chan!" greeted Anko with a happy smile and red cheeks. It was obvious the Tokabetsu jonin was a little drunk, and if her physical state wasn't enough to determine that then the bottle of sake she drank out of a second later was.
Kurenai rolled her eyes a before smiling at Kyuubi and greeting her as well, "Kit-san. How are you doing today?"
"Well, thank you" Kyuubi said as she leaned her back against the rock that made up the wall. Around her she received several jealous stares from various woman, including an envious one from Kurenai. Her coming to the village had garnered much attention, not just because she was seen on Naruto's arm, but also because she bumped the Yuuhi Kurenai – who was considered the most beautiful woman in Konoha – down to second place on the list of most beautiful female in Konoha. While she didn't care what humans thought of her, she took perverse pleasure in showing everyone what true beauty was.
Not to say that she thought Kurenai and Anko weren't attractive females. With Kurenai's luscious and messy black hair, red eyes that were almost as exotic as hers and a body many woman would kill for she was definitely a beautiful woman. And Anko wasn't far behind, though she lacked the main quality that gave Kurenai her beauty, which was the red eyes and long black hair. Still, much like Kurenai, Anko had a figure that many woman had tried and failed to gain.
"With Naruto out on a mission I figured I would spend my time soaking in the hot springs," the red-haired beauty added. It was a subtle reminder to most of the women currently sitting with them. Naruto was hers, and anyone who wanted a piece of him had to go through her.
It seemed to have the desired affect, as many of the women who were close enough to pick up her words glowered at her. Anko also looked slightly put off at the reminder, but unlike the satisfaction Kyuubi got from the other women's anger, Anko's reaction got a different sort of satisfaction. It was obvious she was attracted to Naruto, and that meant she may be willing to hear her out.
Kurenai frowned at her as well, though whether from the reminder or for some other reason Kyuubi couldn't fathom was unknown. Since she didn't know the dark haired woman that well, she was unable to get a fair reading on her thoughts. "Yes, I heard he actually went out on a mission with Yondaime-Sama and Jiraiya-Sama to somewhere. Though no one is saying where."
It wasn't hard to figure that Kurenai was fishing for information. While the woman was a serious kunoichi and took her job seriously, she was still a woman. Gossip was something most woman did as a pastime.
Some just took it to more extremes then others.
"I believe they went somewhere up north," Kyuubi said with a shrug. She knew about the situation between Iwa and the two Namikaze's, and she also knew that they were trying to keep it quiet. While she could tell everyone where they went and be relatively certain that no one would find out why, it was better to be safe then sorry.
Kurenai frowned at not being given a complete answer, but nodded. "It must be important to the village if Yondaime-Sama is leaving. And with two of our best shinobi as well."
"Personally, I'm glad that lecher, Jiraiya, is gone," Anko made the idle comment after she just finished taking another swig of sake. She shook the bottle once, and realizing it was empty set it aside before leaning in so she could join the conversation. "I mean, I haven't been able to take a trip to the hot springs for weeks because that damn pervert has been staking this place out."
"You should be more respectful of Jiraiya-Sama, Anko," Kurenai chided, though Kyuubi noticed it was half-hearted at best. She likely felt the same way, but was just too respectful to authority figures to say anything.
"Why should I be respectful to some pervert who only sees me as a piece of meat?" asked Anko with a huff. She crossed her arms under her chest and looked at Kurenai with a slightly petulant expression. "All that man ever does when he comes here in peep on us girls in the hot spring so he can write those trashy porn novels of his."
"Trashy porn novels that you read," Kurenai said with a hint of a smirk on her lips.
Anko blushed, but tried not to let that little detail get to her as she continued on. "That's not the point! It's pathetic that he has to actually peep on us to get his material..." as Anko began to rant on Jiraiya's bad habit peeking on women, and how, if he wanted material for his books, then he should get it the old fashioned way and have sex, Kyuubi allowed her mind to wander.
Naruto was probably in Tetsu No Kuni by now. She had rarely ever been up that far north, but she knew that the Samurai country was extremely frigid.
"Isn't that right, Kit?... Kit... Kit!"
"Huh? What?" Kyuubi looked over at Anko who was giving her a prominent pout. Realizing that the woman had asked her a question, she had the decency to blush. "I'm sorry Anko-chan, what were you saying?"
"I was just asking if you agreed with me that Jiraiya is nothing more then a perverted, self-serving lecher who deserves to be castrated," Anko said.
Kyuubi smiled. "We~ll, I would agree with you, but he knows better then to peek on me." Her words got two curious stares from the pair and she grinned. "After all, if he wants to keep the single nut I left him the last time he tried spying on me he'll keep away." She smiled pleasantly when the two women gave her awed stares, and more then a hint of respect shining in their orbs.
Conversation tapered off to more pleasant things after that, Anko spoke of some of the people she interrogated and her methods. While Kurenai found this slightly distasteful, Kyuubi was very interested in the subject.
She may not hate humans, as shown by the fact that she was actually suggesting that her Naruto mate with a few, she disliked many of them. The idea of learning new ways to torture those humans she disliked was very appealing to her.
Because she needed to talk with the pair Kyuubi stayed with them until they were ready to leave the hot springs. As they left she grabbed both of them by the hands, pushing aside the small amount of revulsion she felt at touching a human – she's been getting better, but still had a long way to go as far as 'liking' humans went – and began dragging them along behind her.
"H-Hey! What are you doing? Where are you taking us?" asked Anko as she stumbled a little in surprise. Kurenai was also surprised, she had only just managed to regain her balance and was looking at the red head with undisguised curiosity and the hint of possible violence if Kyuubi didn't answer Anko's question.
Her respect the revan-haired, red eyed kunoichi went up a knotch.
Kyuubi looked back at the two of them and simply said, "we need to talk."
Birth of the New Demon King
Anko and Kurenai were dragged to an out of the way bar, a low-key dive where only a few patrons came to at any given time. It wasn't a bad looking place, the tables were clean, the floor was clear of grime and dust, the bar tender was a decent man with a mild temper, and the food and sake were good. It was just one of those places that was so far from the entertainment district, where most of the people normally went when looking for a good time – unless you were looking for something more then just a simple drink, in which case the red light district is where you would go – that only Shinobi who had just gotten back from a mission ever really came here.
Kyuubi proceeded to sit them down and quickly ordered several drinks and several servings of dango. The pair looked at each other in equal amounts of confusion, which increased when Kyuubi took out a small sealing tag with a very complicated array they couldn't even begin to read on it, and slipped it on under their table.
"Alright," Anko started, her curiosity to know what had gotten into the red head reaching it's peek. She had been patient enough with the woman so far, but now it was time to find out what the hell was going on. "What the hell is going on?"
There you go.
Kyuubi leaned back in her chair, arms crossing under her prominent bust as she prepared herself for the coming conversation. "I wanted to speak with both of you, and I didn't want anyone else to over hear it."
Kurenai raised an eyebrow at this knowledge. If she didn't want anybody else know what she had to say, it was either very important, very embarrassing, or there was another reason that she just couldn't fathom.
She was going to go with the first one.
"About?"
"Hold up, let's wait for our food and drinks first so that we're not interrupted." The two woman looked put out by this, but figured if it was important enough that she needed a seal – which they only now realized must have been a silencing seal – then it was pretty damned important. So the pair leaned back and waited with Kyuubi as a waiter came with their food and drinks, sporting a rather large blush on his face when he took in the three beauties at the table. However, he quickly scampered away when Kyuubi growled at him.
"You have to teach me how to do that," Anko said when the waiter had run off like the hounds of hell were nipping at his heels. It was a very impressive display, to be capable of sending someone scurrying away, tail tucked between their legs with nothing more then a look and a growl.
Anko at least needed a healthy dose of killing intent to do that, even to a civilian like that man.
"Maybe later," Kyuubi said with a sly smile. "Now, I wanted to speak to the two of you about Naruto."
"Naruto?" the two said at the same time. The two kunoichi who had no clue about what was going on looked at each other after having their small bonding moment, before Anko took up the question they both had.
"What about him?"
"I want to know what you two think about him?" said Kyuubi, not elaborating further. She looked at Kurenai, determining that the one she was unsure about should go first.
"W-Well," Kurenai stuttered about for a moment, clearly unsure of what she wanted to say, or if she even wanted to say anything at all. However, after a moment of squirming uncomfortably from Kyuubi's penetrating gaze she said, "I think he's a very nice and honorably young man. He helped me out quite a bit when I was having relationship problems with Asuma."
After Naruto encouraged Kurenai not to put up with his pushing she had gone to confront the man. Thankfully Hana had stopped her before she went to see Asuma while drunk, and convinced her to wait until tomorrow when she was more sober. The next day she had talked with the son of the Sandaime Hokage, and like always they had gotten into an argument, with Asuma claiming that he had been more then patient with her and it was time for her to give him something. It was a claim most men tended to make of the woman they're dating, and one Kurenai had heard before in the only other relationship she had. Surprisingly enough, with a little digging Kyuubi had found out that relationship had been with none other then Hatake Kakashi.
Surprising because she didn't take Kurenai as the type who would go for a man who openly read smut in public. Then again, maybe that was why she hated Icha Icha and perverts so much.
However, this time Kurenai had decided she didn't want to put out and sleep with Asuma unless she was one hundred percent sure of his commitment to her. When Asuma had tried offering false platitudes that he needed time before committing to a relationship she had left him and not looked back.
A good thing to because less then two days later she had seen him wining and dining some civilian woman.
"However, I don't know enough about him to give you an honest assessment on what I think of him," Kurenai finished honestly.
"I see," Kyuubi said with a nod. "Do you think he's physically attractive?"
"What!" Kurenai was lucky she had not been drinking anything, otherwise she would have spit it out in her surprise at the question. Anko, who had just taken a sip of sake, and subsequently spit it all over the floor was proof of that. With a large blush staining her cheeks, the raven-haired kunoichi asked, "W-Why are you asking me something like that?"
"Just answer the question please," Kyuubi said, still looking at the raven haired beauty with that serious and penetrating stare. How a woman, that as far as they knew was a simple civilian, could give such a stare and use it effectively against a trained killer was beyond them.
Too bad they didn't know that she was one of the single most powerful entities in the world.
"W-Well I – that is to say he's – he's um..." had the question not been that important, and had Kyuubi not been all that interested in the answer, she probably would have been amused. As it was, seeing the woman stuttering over her words was only serving to annoy her.
"It's a simple yes or no question, Kurenai," Kyuubi said, her voice holding a slight strain letting on that she was losing her patience.
"...Yes," Kurenai said after a moments hesitation. She blushed a bit and looked away. "Yes, I think he's attractive. Though I still don't know what his looks have to do with why you called us here."
"I'll get to that in a moment," Kyuubi stated before turning to Anko who blushed under the woman's gaze. "Since Kurenai already went, I don't think I need to tell you what I want to hear?"
Anko shook her head. She paused for a moment, her eyes glazing in slight thought as she tried to come up with the words she wanted to use to describe Naruto. "I think... I think Naruto-kun's an amazing and kind person. Despite what he's been through he's still willing to help others with their problems, though I am glad he doesn't put up with peoples shit anymore."
That was something of an understatement. Though Naruto was now widely loved in Konoha, some of the people praising his name was only for public appearances. A few people only hailed him as a savior so they wouldn't have to face the wrath of the Yondaime. This was proven when Naruto had run in with a villager who had been so drunk Kyuubi had thought the man had literally swam in a tub of alcohol that was how much he reeked.
It was the night after Naruto returned from the village with Tsunade, and he had decided to take Kyuubi out on their first ever date. While she would never admit it, the red-haired beauty had been ecstatic about actually going on a date. Demon mating rituals were much different then the human equivalent. When a demon of great power claimed a mate, it usually happened within the first few days of meeting each other. Once marked, the female demon would then be bound to their mate for life, or until said mate died. After that, the female was duty bound to produce children and that was more or less their lot in life. There was no dating in the demon world, no extravagant dinners, no trips to the movies, there was nothing for a couple to do there.
Makai didn't even have a movie theater for movies.
So Kyuubi was understandably excited about actually being able to go on a date and get to know her mate in a more public forum. Not only was it a chance to do something she had never done before, but it also allowed her to stake her claim on Naruto and let everyone know that they wouldn't be able to get the blond without going through her.
Their first date was rather simple. Naruto had made several kage bunshin to create a variety of food and had it placed in a picnic basket. He had taken her to one of the many parks that littered Konoha and they had a picnic.
Kyuubi still fondly remembered their first date. After eating they had played a game of twenty questions in order to get to know each other better. It was fun because, even though she had been sealed inside of him and knew quite a bit, there was still a lot more to the blond that she didn't know. And Kyuubi was, well, she was far older then she looked, and there was a lot about her that Naruto didn't know.
It was something that came with being the mate of a demon.
However, their little game took a very different turn then what either of them had expected. Each question they asked went from innocuous, normal questions, to ones that were designed to fluster and frustrate the other. Naruto had ended up winning that game, as despite being somewhere around one thousand years old, she didn't have much experience in flirting. Not that Naruto did either, but he had more confidence then she did when it came to doing something so... human.
After the game however, they had just cuddled on the blanket, letting the sun warm their bodies. Of course, being who they were simple snuggling didn't last long. It had started with a simple kiss, which had become more impassioned as the seconds went on. Eventually she and Naruto had gotten involved in a heavy make out session with dueling tongues and wandering hands. They probably would have ended up going further were it not for a little boy who found them and asked his parents what she and her mate were doing. Kyuubi still snickered at the memory of how the boys parents stuttered through the atypical parental answer relating to all things sexual to a six year old boy.
"We'll tell you when your older."
After that the pair decided to head back home so they could enjoy each other without worrying about traumatizing some little kid – and their parents – with their blatant sexual acts. They had decided to walk as it had been a nice day, and they both knew that the moment they got started neither would stop until well past midnight. It was on their journey back that they had run afoul of the drunk. Kyuubi didn't know why the man had been drinking so heavily, and truthfully didn't care. It had only been Naruto holding her back that spared the fool from her wrath once he had stumbled upon them.
The moment the man had laid eyes on Naruto he had ranted and raved, claiming that the demon had probably tricked them into believing the Yondaime was alive and that he was the man's son. The idiot had then gone on to say that Konoha would be better off of he had died. Through out the whole man's rant Naruto had been getting more and more angered and likely would have beaten the crap out of him.
Then the drunkard had done something unforgivable. At least to Naruto.
The idiotic and drunken man had begun hitting on Kyuubi, claiming that she shouldn't be with a demon and if she went back with him, he would show her what a real man was like in bed.
There were truly no words to describe what Naruto had done to that man. He hadn't killed him, as the blond believed death was far too light of a punishment. No, the man was still alive. But he had been permanently placed within the psychiatric ward for the criminally insane. The man was now nothing more then a raging lunatic that spent all of his waking hours screaming incoherently and running into walls due to how badly his mind had been shattered.
Kyuubi snapped out of her reminiscing and nodded. "And do you find him attractive."
Anko squirmed a bit but she nodded. "It's not hard to." She sighed and both Kyuubi and Kurenai bore witness to the sight of Anko gaining a dreamy look on her face. An impossibility if their ever was one. "He has a smile that just makes me melt inside, and those bewitching eyes that I could stare at for hours... his hair reminds me of the sun, radiant... and kami that body..." she was interrupted when a pair of snickers came from Kyuubi and Kurenai.
"My, my, it looks like Anko-chan has gained quite the crush," Kurenai teased.
Kyuubi grinned, "well, I think we all know what you think of Naruto-Sama."
Anko's cheeks flared red. She quickly did her best to cover up her embarrassment by glaring at the two and managed to hiss out, "if either of you say anything about this, I'll kill you!"
"Oh relax," Kyuubi said with a chuckle. "Our lips are sealed."
"Now that we've managed to thoroughly embarrass Anko. Why don't you tell us what this is about?" said Kurenai.
Kyuubi sighed as she tried to think of the best way to say what she wanted to say. After going through several different speeches in her head she decided to just wing it. "Very well," as she began to explain the reason she had wanted to speak with the pair, Anko and Kurenai felt their eyes getting wider and wider, until they were sure it would pop out of their skull.
Birth of the New Demon King
(With Naruto – Tetsu No Kuni)
It hadn't taken that long for the three S-ranked ninja to reach Tetsu No Kuni, having been running towards the country at a full shinobi sprint. They had gone on much of the time without rest, only stopping to eat and make camp when the daylight had faded completely to black. The speed of their movements had been the kind that only ninja of their level achieved, and it had made it so that the three of them managed to reach Tetsu no Kuni in two weeks, instead of the standard month it would take most ninja to get there.
As they reached the front gate of the village where their meeting with Iwa was to take place, several Samurai stepped in front of them. Naruto watched as a man stepped in front of them, no doubt the leader of the Samurai. This man had long grey hair, which almost reached down to his waist, with bandages wrapped around his head. He had black eyes with distinct wrinkles underneath them. He also had a grey goatee and moustache. Naruto figured he was the guy in charge as not only had he stepped up to them, he was also the only one not wearing a helmet.
"I would like you to welcome you three, Namikaze Minato-san, Uzumaki-Namikaze Naruto-san and Jiraiya of Dansetsu No Sannin, your reputations proceed you. I am Milfune," the man said in greeting. He also bowed to them, an action which Minato, Jiraiya, and after a few seconds, Naruto replicated. "Before you enter I would like to warn you of the repercussions of acting out within our land. We have allowed this meeting to take place as a way for two enemies to meet on neutral and protected soil, and as such we expect both parties to follow all of our laws and to not antagonize the group that will be coming from Iwagakure No Sato. Also, we would ask that you not disturb or disrupt the lives of our citizens. Know that we will be watching you during your stay, and any misuse of our hospitality will not go unpunished."
"We understand," Minato said with a respectful bow of his head. "And you have nothing to worry from us. Myself and my two guards will conduct ourselves with utmost respect for your laws. We have no desire to antagonize a country like Tetsu No Kuni."
Milfune nodded. "I thank you for your words. Try not to take them as anything overtly threatening. We always give the same warning to any foreign dignitaries that step on our soil." Giving a bow Milfune stepped back, and the Samurai that had been blocking their path previously split apart, allowing the group to pass through. "Though you three are early we have already set up accommodations for you. Please allow us to escort you to your hotel."
As the three Konoha shinobi moved into the village proper, following Milfune who was leading them, five of the Samurai broke off and from the guards and surrounded them in a pentagon formation. As they walked along, Naruto found himself looking at the Samurai as they walked, one hand grasping their sheath, and the other lightly resting on the handle for quick draw if necessary.
During there journey to the famed Samura country, Minato and Jiraiya had briefed Naruto on what they knew about the Samurai of this nation. Therefore it was no surprise that Naruto was able to figure out that the formations purpose was designed to protect both them from potential threats, and the citizens from them.
It was an admittedly genius formation and one that gave the Samurai great advantage as they could deal with both anything that threatened those they were guarding, and the citizens in case those they were guarding decided to get violent. They were also spaced out in such a way that they could cover each others flanks equally, with enough space to swing their Katana in any direction without fear of hitting one of their own and still protect the comrades closest to them.
While they journeyed to their hotel, Naruto studied the general layout of the city. The city itself was very traditional as far as architecture went. It was about the size of Konoha, maybe a little bigger, and all of the buildings were created in a classical Edo style, with Dōzō storehouses being used to contain goods and supplies, and Sukiya-zukuri residential buildings. While many of Daimyo's still held similar taste when it came to their palaces, walking around Tetsu No Kuni felt much like walking in the past.
There was very little in the way of modern architecture.
Likewise, it's people held a very traditionalist view on things. Many of the people seemed to ignore the shinobi, only glancing at them for a second as if they were an idle curiosity. They did not even appear to be all that concerned about having three of the worlds most powerful ninja in their midst. Not that Naruto could blame them, with the five Samurai not including Milfune guarding them, and the Samurai that the blond could see watching them, only a fool would actually make an attempt at attacking them.
Or a demon, but that was neither here nor there as Naruto had no desire to attack the people of this country.
They were shown to their hotel room, an extravagant three bedroom suite with lavish furniture. In most cases Naruto would have assumed that the room they were given was a place designed to impress foreign dignitaries. However, given Tetsu No Kuni held a very traditional look and seemed to enjoy it's posh and expensive looking architecture, ended up going on the assumption that most hotels were similar in appearance to this one.
The three of them were left alone after that, though Naruto could sense the presence of two Samurai outside their door. No doubt they going to be the groups permanent escort detail while in the country. He ignored them and turned his attention to his father. "So what now?" he asked.
"We'll rest up for now," Minato answered. "However, tomorrow I am going to speak with Milfune to see what security arrangements have been set up for the meeting. While I do that, I want the two of you to walk around and get a feel for the village. Tetsu No Kuni is much different then any other nation in the Elemental Countries."
Both Naruto and Jiraiya gave a nod, understanding the hidden meaning in Minato's words. They were to figure out the layout of the village and discover any weaknesses that Iwa might exploit, or that they could use in the event of Iwa betraying them. It would be important to keep any fighting that might happen as a result of Iwa betraying them away from the citizens, so a couple of escape routes would also be necessary.
"In that case, I'm going to get cleaned up before hitting the sack," said Naruto as he made his to the bathroom.
Birth of the New Demon King
(Three days later)
Naruto took a sip of his tea as he and his father were sitting in at a table outside of a quaint restaurant. Jiraiya was no where to be found, and Naruto figured the man had already found the closest hot spring and was peeping on the women there to gain more inspiration for his novels. He only hoped the Samurai wouldn't be offended by the man's terrible habits, and if they were that they only took it out on Jiraiya for being stupid enough to peek on women while in a country that did not have a treaty with Konoha.
The past few days had been an interesting affair for the blond Uzumaki. The day after they arrived in Tetsu No Kuni, he and Jiraiya had walked around the village, taking the sights while secretly mapping out any escape routes and back alleys they could use in case Iwa decided to stab them in the back during the negotiations. Thanks to the village itself being very organized in how it was built, the two had been able to create a map of the entire place, including coming up with a schedule on the guard shift changes in each of the exits they had mapped out.
During that time they had been followed by the Samurai that had been sent to protect, and no doubt ensure that they did not cause trouble. It had been amusing to watch the Samurai following them as they had walked around the village, mostly because of how easy it was to spot them. Not only did they make no effort to remain invisible, but their armor clanked and changed every time they took a step. Though with that armor, Naruto figured it would be impossible to be silent anyways, and as they were not ninja stealth mattered little to them.
It had also been kind of nice, staying in the cold town. While it was obvious that they were known, not just by the Samurai but the civilians too, it was equally obvious they didn't care. To most people that might be annoying, but to Naruto, who was getting sick of the sycophancy that the people of Konoha were showing him, it was very pleasant. The only time Naruto had ever been able to truly relax while not in the privacy of his room, was when he was out on missions.
Of course there were a few problems about being in a foreign village, chief among them being that Naruto found himself missing his friends. It was a novel experience for the blond, who had never actually had friends before. At the academy he was the dope, the dead-last loser that everyone made fun of. While he had on rare occasion hung out with the likes of Kiba, Choji and Shikamaru, that was only when they were all in trouble with Iruka. Once detention was served, either by ditching or actually serving detention, the three of them had always parted ways with Naruto, leaving him to himself.
What amused Naruto the most was that while he and the people in his age group were on friendly terms, he still wouldn't consider them true friends. True, he spent time with them on occasion, but that was rare and he only did it once in a blue moon. Also the fact that his friends were their jonin-sensei's and shinobi twice as old as the Konoha nine was another entertaining thought. Before he had left, Naruto's Burgoyne friendship with Anko, which had started when the woman attacked him during a training session, had become a very permanent part of his life, and one he would not give up.
Of course, with her came his friendship with Kurenai, who was the woman's best and only true friend in the village. While he and Kurenai were not as close as he and Anko, the woman had spent occasional time with him. Especially after he had given her advice on what to do about Asuma. It had still amused him when he heard of how Kurenai tore into the man, not that he had anything against the son of Sarutobi, but really, he should have known better then to try and force a woman of Kurenai's caliber to put out without him committing to their relationship.
There were others he had befriended, namely Inuzuka Hana, who had decided after their mission to retrieve Tsunade that he was the coolest person in his age group, a fact which he knew she rubbed in Kiba's face. He still remembered the time she and him had pranked Kiba good by pretending to be having sex in her room, once the poor boy had heard their moans and cries he had barged in, not even bothering to notice the air did not smell of sex. Though Naruto wasn't sure Kiba would have recognized the scent anyways.
He had a lot of bark but his bite left a lot to be desired.
He also spent time with Shiranui Genma, Izumo and Kotetsu (when they were not on gate duty), Ibiki and of course Shizune who had become something of an older sister figure to him. All of them were fairly interesting people, and didn't seem to care whose son he was what who he used to contain (they still think he contains Kyuubi).
"Naruto," at the sound of his father's voice, the Demonic Shinobi snapped out of his thoughts. Looking up he saw his dad staring at him with a raised eyebrow, causing him to grin sheepishly.
"Uh, yes? Were you saying something?" asked Naruto, scratching the back of his head.
"I swear, you may look like me but your personality is almost all Kushina-chan's," Minato said with a sigh, though a smile was still in place. It was nice, to be honest, knowing that his son took more after Kushina in personality then him. "I was asking why you refused to train under Jiraiya-sensei. He's a great man you know, and you could learn a lot from him."
"So you've said," Naruto replied, blowing out a large breath. The day he and Jiraiya had scouted out the village the white-haired Sennin had asked Naruto to become his apprentice. Truth be told it was an intriguing offer, and he knew the man had a lot of knowledge. However, in the end Naruto decided not to accept the man's offer to become his apprentice. "I'm surprised you would ask a question like that when the answer should be obvious?"
"Look, Naruto, I know your powerful and all. But Jiraiya-sensei's not a weakling either," Minato said in defense of his sensei. "I'm sure if you accepted his offer you'd find that he can teach you much."
"Be that as it may, I'm not going to, and we both know why," Naruto said. "Unless you told him everything about me while I wasn't around, then Jiraiya doesn't know everything there is to know about me. That includes our heritage." Naruto sighed as he leaned back in his seat. "The fact is my power works differently then anyone else's. Even my human chakra is different then most peoples, because I am an Uzumaki who activated the highest stage of our bloodline. Combined with your... kekkei genkei, I'm simply too different for anyone but Kit to properly train me."
"Granted, but he can teach you non chakra related lessons," Minato said. "Fuīnjutsu for one, or bojutsu, I myself never learned it but I know that Jiraiya-sensei knows the basic style of the Sarutobi clan. There are a lot of things he could teach you that don't necessarily have to do with chakra." Noticing that Naruto still didn't look interested he said, "at least think about it. Jiraiya-sensei was hoping to teach you what he knows, he is your godfather after all."
"Alright, alright," Naruto said irritably. "I'll think about, okay?"
Minato grinned, "that's all I can ask for." He then frowned and said, "speaking of, where is Jiraiya-Sensei?"
As if beckoned by his words the screams of Minato's teacher could be heard all across the village.
"AAAIIIIEEEE! NOT THE FACE! NOT THE – OH KAMI! YES THE FACE! YES THE FACE!"
"Well, I think that answers your question," Naruto said with a chuckle. "Talk about de ja vu. Haa... that man never seems to learn."
Minato just sweat dropped, a large blush on his face as he listened to Jiraiya's unmanly screams of pain. While he loved his sensei like a son loves a father, sometimes that man was just an embarrassment to mankind.
Birth of the New Demon King
(Tetsu No Kuni – the meeting)
Ōnoki felt a sense of dread as he and his two guards, Akatsuchi and Kurotsuchi walked to the meeting hall in Tetsu No Kuni. Not since his fight against Uchiha Madara had he felt this kind of fear. Even during the First, Second and Third Shinobi Wars had never felt this kind of fear. He once again took this chance to curse himself for even thinking of trying to assassinate the Namikaze brat.
When he had first learned that Namikaze Minato was not only alive but also had a son that had been living in Konoha for the past twelve years, he had admittedly freaked out. The moment he had heard from some of the few spies he had managed to sneak into Hi No Kuni that the child of Namikaze had left Konoha on a mission, he had authorized the boys assassination. He would not allow the child of Namikaze to become as powerful as his father. It had been Ōnoki's hope that Kurotsuchi and a squad of his best ninja could kill the boy and cover up the evidence, making it look like the child of Minato had been killed by a missing ninja so that blame would not be placed on his village.
What he hadn't counted on was that blond boy would be every bit as powerful as his father. Because Konoha and Iwa were still the most hated enemies, not only that but thanks to the last war Iwa still had yet to recover, getting a spy inside of Konoha even during a prestigious event like the Chunin Exams was impossible. It was because of this that Ōnoki had been unable to make an informed decision and jumped the gun when he tried to have Naruto killed. He had no clue that the Namikaze brat had the Rinnegan, much less that it was actually he who killed Orochimaru. Had he known the kid possessed the legendary doujutsu, and was powerful enough to kill a Sannin, he would have never sent Kurotsuchi and her squad to kill him.
And now he had to suffer the consequences for his actions, to the pay the piper as it were. While assassination was very common in the shinobi world, whether to off a rival or to kill off a hated enemy assassinations happened very often. However, there were also steep consequences should the person one is trying to kill survive, and it's even worse when that person discovers who it was that tried to kill them. If they survived, security around them was often that much tighter, making another attempt impossible. If they survived and discovered how it was that ordered there assassination the issues that arose were that much worse.
For the attempt assassination of someone like Uzumaki-Namikaze Naruto, who was the son of a kage, it was very much akin to a declaration of war, much like what would happen were a Daimyo or the close relative of a Daimyo killed. Such acts were often dealt with very harshly, wars had been made on less intense issues after all. Worse still was that Iwa was in no position to actually fight off Konoha, especially now that they had the Yondaime Hokage, his son, Sarutobi Hiruzen, Jiraiya and Senju Tsunade of the Dansetsu No Sannin. That was five S-ranked ninja, with them and the combined force of Konoha behind them their power was nearly unmatched. Ōnoki doubted that even Akatsuki would be capable of defeating such a powerful group of ninja.
"Tsuchikage-Sama, we're here," said Akatsuchi, snapping the old village leader out of his stupor. Ahead of the three Iwa ninja a pair of double doors were opened by two Samurai. Walking into the room they saw that the Yondaime and his escort was already there. Beside him, Kurotsuchi stiffened. Not that it was hard for Ōnoki to understand why.
Standing on either side of Minato – who was a fearsome figure in and of himself thanks to his reputation – were both Jiraiya and Naruto. As Ōnoki stared at the young son of Namikaze Minato he couldn't help but feel a chill pass through him. Aside from the powerful build the young teenager was sporting, which while not large and bulky like that brute of a Raikage's stilled looked very powerful, he also had his Rinnegan active. Staring into the blue and silver ripple like patterned eyes it was not hard for the aging Tsuchikage to understand just why Kurotsuchi shivered in fear at the mere mention of the blond's name.
"Ah good, you're here," Milfune said as the the Tsuchikage was seated with his two bodyguards standing behind him. "Now we can start this meeting. I am Milfune, and will be the mediator for you two during these negotiations. I want you both to know that, as a neutral party, I will not take sides in this, and am only here to ensure that there is no misconduct between you two while in Tetsu No Kuni."
Minato nodded his appreciation to Milfune before turning his gaze on Ōnoki, while his glacial cold eyes did not cause the same chills that Naruto's Rinnegan did, they were still fierce. "I'm not one for beating around the bush in matters such as these so we will get to the point. You tried to kill my son, and in many instances such an act can be taken as a declaration of war. I am sure this is something you wish to avoid as much as I do. After all, your village's shinobi force is less then a third of what it used to be."
Ōnoki winced as Minato mentioned his forces strength, or to be more accurate it's lack there of. Ever since the Third Great Shinobi War Iwagakure had been a mere shell of it's former self. The amount of men that had been killed in the war, many of which were slaughtered by the very man in front of him, had been enough to shatter the backbone of his ninja forces. Combined the amount of shinobi lost during the war to Minato and the demobilization of his forces thanks to the peace that had pervaded since then equated to the current strength of his village being less then even Suna, which had always been the smallest of the Great Five.
He had been hoping to bluff his way into a better position, but now that Minato had called out his villages lack of strength, any advantage that was to be had was now lost.
Sighing, Ōnoki felt all of his ninety plus years of life. "What you say is true..." he winced, hating to admit such a weakness. No doubt Naruto had pulled that information out of Kurotsuchi's mind with that blasted Rinnegan of his. "However, I am still a kage of my village. While I am willing to negotiate with you, we will not bend to Konoha."
"And there's that famous stubbornness your so well known for," Minato commented lightly. It was a mocking comment, and Ōnoki knew it, Kurotsuchi had always referred to him as a stubborn old goat. "Should you not agree to my demands make no mistake I will return to Konoha and inform the council of your actions against my son. Right now, Konoha is unaware that you have attempted to assassinate Naruto, that however, can change very easily. I'm sure you know what would happen should news of this get out to the citizens."
Ōnoki grimaced, his face a mixture of angry, humiliated and fearful, though he did his best to hide these feelings from the three Konoha ninja. He knew what would happen if word got out that he tried to kill the Namikaze brat, the citizens of that damn tree huger village would be braying for his blood.
"So what is it you want then?" asked Ōnoki quickly, wanting nothing more then to get this out of the way. In response to his question, Naruto pulled out a scroll from his left hip pouch. Ōnoki, as well as his two bodyguards, tensed, an instinctive act when seeing something with unknowing eyes.
The blond must have noticed this, because he smirked a bit as he handed the small scroll off to Minato. The Yondaime Hokage took the scroll from his son, set it down on the table, and unrolled it. He then bit his thumb, swiped some blood along the scroll, and unsealed another scroll.
This new scroll was given to Mifune, who came over, took it, and walked over to Ōnoki, where he presented it to the old Tsuchikage. The aging man looked at the scroll, suspicion evident on his features. However, after a moment of looking between the scroll, Mifune, Minato and Naruto, he ended up grabbing the scroll.
Instincts told him this was the safest poison he could take in this instance.
However, when he read the scroll, and saw the demands listed on it, Ōnoki's face took on a shade of red that few could match.
"These demands are ridiculous!" he spat, tossing the scroll back onto the hardwood surface. He glared across the table at the man he hated almost as much as Uchiha Madara. "I don't know how you expect my people to meet such demands. They violate the very rights and beliefs of my people!"
"Your people must be a bunch of barbaric fools then," Naruto commented idly.
"Watch your tongue when speaking to your elders boy!" The old Tsuchikage grit his teeth angrily as his glare shifted from Minato to Naruto. Just because Ōnoki was petrified of the child of Namikaze didn't mean he was going to put up with any of the brats lip.
Naruto however, just smiled. Seeing this, Minato quickly sought to head off his son before the boy could say something that would likely start a war.
Sometimes, he regretted that his son had Kushina's personality.
"I do not think these requests are unreasonable at all," Minato said. "It's not like we're asking you to cut back your military, nor are we stopping you from building up your army."
"No," Ōnoki cut in bitterly. "You're just asking us to give up our autonomy."
"Surely you jest," Minato fired back swiftly. "There is nothing in there that says you must swear the lifeblood of your village for Konoha. These demands are merely being put in place so that you cannot attack us again... or assassinate somebodies son." He saw the older man flinch and gave a grim smile. "Consider this an insurance policy."
When it Ōnoki looked like he was still on the fence, Naruto decided to cut in once more. "Would you prefer we just leave? Perhaps you would prefer it if we inform Konoha of your actions and decide that going to war is preferable over letting your village continue breathing?"
Ōnoki grit his teeth, his hands underneath the table clenched until they became ghostly pale. He knew the blonds words weren't an idle threat, and even though Minato sent his son a sharp glance, the one he turned back on Ōnoki told the old man that what his son spoke was true.
He wasn't being given much of a choice.
"There are still a few things about these demands that I don't like..."
But that didn't mean he wasn't going to gripe and complain.
"Oh?" Minato raised an eyebrow, as if pleasantly surprised. "And what about these demands don't you like? I am sure that if you tell me, we'll be able to find a... suitable compromise."
Ōnoki shivered at the words spoken at the end, there was an implied threat in there and even though he didn't know what it was, he knew it could be good. Still, he had to at least try to lower the demands they wanted him to meet. To not do so would not only be an utter humiliation, it would end up crippling much of his villages economy.
If nothing else, he had to try getting a better bargain that wouldn't end with his village being destroyed either way.
Even if he didn't have much hope.
Been awhile since I updated this Truthfully, I had everything but that last scene written out. It had been eluding me for some time, but then last night I woke up in the middle of the fricken night and just began writing. Only finished it a little while ago.
Now, while you all read this, I'm going to be running a 5K Marathon. Fun shit, yeah?