Just to make sure that everyone understands, this is in fact a fanfiction, and as such I'm allowed to make certain rules. Naruto will not be in the same class as Rukia, Hinamori, and Renji; he and Sasuke are actually around twenty years before them, and seventy years before cannon starts. Also, Toshiro is allowed to be captain because I said so, he got training early; so what? Anyways, on with the show!
"Talking"
Thoughts
"Zanpakuto speech"
Scene Change
Naruto Chuuten: Rising Into The Heavens
By: Draco Kamikaze
When Naruto and Sasuke first entered the academy, neither of them were prepared for what they would go through. In all essence, it was almost exactly like the shinobi academy. This meant that Sasuke was able to follow the work quite easily; whereas Naruto found himself struggling through the written materials. What could he say? He just couldn't retain any of the information from those classes.
Surprisingly, they were both at the top of their practical classes where they actually preformed the techniques that were being discussed in the other classes. This was a relief for Naruto, because it mean that he didn't have to worry about whether or not he should mold his reiatsu one way or another; he just had to get a good enough result to pass. And that, was something that he found he was quite good at.
As time went on, throughout the entire academy, word was beginning to spread about a new prodigy unlike anyone they'd ever seen. A guy who the girls adored, and the guys envied. He was strong and smart, yet playful and (unknowingly) flirtatious. He made things further difficult for himself as he tried time and time again to avoid or reject their approaches; despite the fact that he told them he honestly wasn't playing 'hard to get'. This was the unfortunate second life of Uchiha Sasuke.
Just like in the living world, Sasuke tried to avoid the girl's affections to better study his work. However, he wanted to try a different version of Naruto's child-like behaviors to try and see if they would avoid him like they did Naruto in the living world. Unfortunately, the modifications were too good, and his child-like behaviors were seen more as cute rather than appalling. And he was not going to give in to Naruto's suggestions of publicly saying that he was gay, or that he already had a girlfriend. He just didn't want to lie to them one way or another, and it would be quite humiliating to even think of the first.
He couldn't help the fact that girls seemed to flock to him wherever he went; even he didn't know how he did it. He soon found that many of the guys respected him for being able to hold his own against the hordes of girls that attempted to subdue him. After a while, he finally became friends with two guys who were in their fifth year; Ikkaku and Yumichika. They believed that they were set for the Eleventh Division, and were more than happy to fight with Sasuke during Hakuda and Zanjutsu seeing as everyone, other than Naruto, was scared to fight against the prodigy.
On the other hand, Naruto had his own little following of girls slowly chasing him. However, unlike in the living world, he acted a little more mature around the women which seemed to earn him more admirers. He even was able too take a few of the girls on dates. This meant that the girls didn't have to fight each other for his affections, and he was able to have a lot of fun dates with a lot of different s. Some guys would say that he was a 'player', but he would constantly deny it as it wasn't true in the slightest. However, if he were called a 'flirt'…now how was he to deny that? After all, it was quite true, and even the girls would tell him that on their dates.
Naruto also found that he had a gift for listening to people. This usually meant that if the girls had any troubles, they could be found talking to Naruto. Just talking usually seemed to help them get over whatever it was and made many of the other guys jealous when they'd hug him…or give him a kiss on the cheek before running off. Sasuke didn't really care when they were outside of their room, but if one listened closely, they could hear both Naruto and Sasuke laughing at the memory of the guys faces before they went to bed.
Some of the other guys soon began to swarm Naruto, trying to understand how he could get so many girls to go out with him while they would just get a rejection for even looking at them. When some of they less bold guys would ask them what he said, they would just laugh and tell them that he knew stuff that was so advanced that some captains didn't know it.
In reality, he'd just shrug and said, "You know guys…it's just what I do."
He also became friends with a few other people; Hanataro and a guy named Sora being a just a few he could name. Hanataro quickly becoming someone who he could rely on as he was obviously zoned to be in Fourth division. Whenever he and Sasuke would fight, Hanataro would be on standby, waiting for it to end so that he could practice his medical Kido on them. In return, Naruto was trying to help him with Hakuda so that he wouldn't be defenseless against a Hollow should some blockhead from the Eleventh division decided that helping guard him wasn't as fun as cleansing Hollows and deserted him. He'd heard way too many stories to just let his friend go into a fight without any way of fighting back.
Currently, they'd gotten through the first two years of the academy without too much trouble…other than the trouble that Naruto would bring on himself by pulling many pranks. Having all those girls meant that he heard about a lot of guys who would pick on them for this and that, as well as being able to listen to all the local gossip to find out other things. Once, he'd facepalmed as he realized that most women would be the worst kind of spy network ever with they way they openly shared their secrets.
The people he heard about would eventually find themselves in very…peculiar positions. One guy even had to come into class with a pink yukata that had light blue butterflies all over it. When asked why he was wearing such a peculiar outfit, he told the teacher that all of his clothes were in that condition and he swore that it wasn't a practical joke he was trying to pull on him. He then had to sit through the entire class like that, with most of the guys trying console him while the girls talked about how pretty he looked. He was both ashamed, and embarrassed. While he'd sworn to take revenge on the person who did it, no one ever figured out how Naruto was able to do it.
Of course, that was a prank that was named the 'Level One Punishment'. This usually happened because the person said a rude comment to one of the girls, or to an Eleventh division hopeful who picked on a Forth division hopeful. However, should there be something of a higher offense, meaning that they take it too far; they find themselves faced with a 'Level Two Punishment'. And when that happened, everyone knew what was happening as mini explosions went off from around the person's room.
It was actually very simple. By molding his reiatsu into thin little strings all around the person's room using Bakudo, he then sent different Hado's through the string and knocked on the door. When the person walked out, they tripped over the strings and found themselves having to rebound away from all kinds of different Kido as the oncoming destruction ensued. No one, no one, got away unharmed…unless Naruto was using it for training. Then he wouldn't take the time for the complex Hado's, and would use most of the simpler ones. It was only because he practiced it that he was ever implied into the different destructions that happened to several different people.
Sasuke had raised an eyebrow at this technique. To think that Naruto would waste so much reiatsu just to set up a trap that didn't even have a high chance of actually hitting confused him for a while…until he realized that the trap was simply for fun, rather than for battle. And considering the fact that it didn't endanger anyone, he figured he could live with it, after all, it wouldn't do to destroy them before their careers, and the real danger, began.
As time had gone on, due to how boring things had been for the two of them, they'd eventually come up with a rather fun game to play afterwards. They called it, stealth. By taking many every day things they used to do while they were alive, they'd eventually created a game where the two of them could hone their skills in speed, stealth, and Hakuda. Since they didn't have their zanpakuto's yet, they decided to make it a rule that they could only use Hakuda. The point of the game was to take the other person's 'life', which was a red slip of paper located on the person's back. Once the tag was taken, they were out…or 'dead', which ever way you wanted to see it.
After a while, they began to get a little bored of the game seeing as they couldn't play it by themselves forever. As such, they began to look throughout their classmates and create their own teams to try and defeat each other. That's when the games got really interesting as you had to watch you back more often than in a one-on-one fight.
Naruto glanced around. He knew that with his group of eighteen people, including himself, he didn't have nearly as many people as Sasuke did. Plus, with Ikkaku and Yumichika, his group was going to have a hard time. Closing his eyes, he thought up a quick 'plan' that might actually work.
His team sat back, watching as Naruto surveyed the area. Most of the people in his group were people who'd played the game on more than one occasion, and understood how Naruto did things; with absolutely no forethought. It was actually more fun to fight on Naruto's side, even if Sasuke's was always more organized and planned out than theirs. After all, when else would your captain trust you enough to let you do whatever you feel like to get the job done?
Naruto slowly turned to his group. "Alright, here's what we're going to do. We're going to split into two groups. Sora and I will be the team leaders, with at least one medic one each team. I'll take them down to the lower portion of the valley to draw Sasuke and his team into a trap. Sora, you'd better make sure to get them before they hit us too hard."
Sora grinned. "Don't worry! I'll make sure that they don't even know what hit them. Come on guys!" He jumped off into the trees, half the team quickly following him.
Naruto chuckled. Sora was very much like he was, only with dark red hair, and more skill in Kido than he had. He looked to be around fifteen years old, but when Naruto had asked, he'd told him he was closer to one hundred years old. Scary.
Naruto turned back to his group. "Alright, here's what we're going to do. We're going to move in a standard three line formation. I'll take center as it's the best place for me to get everywhere at once to help you guys. Hanataro, I want you behind me; no need to give them a clear target, neh? Everyone else, form up!"
The eight other people in his group scrambled forward, quickly forming the formation. Naruto's plan only gave them one shot at hitting the other team hard, and if the second group didn't do their job, they weren't going to last. Sasuke had made sure that he had plenty of members who were more than able to take a hit and dish it right back out.
But Naruto wasn't their leader for nothing. He knew Sasuke better than anyone else, as well as what he would do if he were caught in a movement like this. So as they moved, he quickly thought out what they would do once they had both Sasuke and his team in sight.
After only a couple of moments, they found themselves in the clearing. Naruto stopped, glancing in all directions. He couldn't see through the dense foliage, but he was sure that Sasuke was around…somewhere.
"Hanataro, can you tell where they are at?" Naruto asked, his eyes darting about as he tried to figure out where they were.
Hanataro glanced around. "Um…I think…that way?" He said, pointing to the left.
Naruto closed his eyes and concentrated, trying to feel in that direction. As he did, an animalistic grin suddenly began to cross his face. "Let the games begin." Snapping his eyes open, he quickly shouted, "Scatter!"
The moment he issued the command, his group quickly began to rush about. In the same moment, members of Sasuke's group began to fall out of the trees. They quickly realized that their ambush had failed, and they would have to fight them. For the Eleventh member hopefuls, it was the perfect for them, as it was a chance for them to crush their competition.
"Take down anyone who gets in your way!" Naruto yelled as he aimed himself at one of the guys.
He ducked under a wild swing and slammed his right hand into his stomach. Reaching out, he quickly yanked the tag off the guys back. He then wrapped his right leg around the guys, and slammed him forward. He never had a chance as he was slammed onto his back.
Naruto grinned as he watched his group fight. They were actually doing fairly well; even Hanataro was managing to throw some of them around. He laughed lightly as he quickly slammed into another guys back, ripping his tag off. This was way too easy.
…it was too easy. Naruto stopped as he realized that things were going too smoothly for things to really be going right. After all, Yumichika usually fought against Hanataro to prove that the clumsy teen wasn't as 'pretty' as he was. And Sasuke always made sure that he fought either Naruto or Sora.
Naruto whirled around, realization on his face. Seeing that his team was handling the group quite well, he grimaced. Leave it to Sasuke to think of the hardest decisions for him to make. Closing his eyes, he tried to figure out how he could handle the situation. He could abandon his group, heading off to help Sora's group. Or he could finish up here, and hope that Sora could hold his own.
His eyes snapped open. He'd left Sora in charge because he knew that he could hold his own. So if he got caught by Sasuke, he'd do everything he could to take him down.
With a loud battle cry, Naruto slammed into another member of the ambush team. Their numbers were quickly going down, and Naruto couldn't help but laugh again as he fought. It was fun, simple as that.
As they finished up the last of the members, someone began a slow, sarcastic clapping. "Bravo…I'm surprised you handled this as well as you did."
Naruto craned his neck around, a grin still plastered on his face. "So what Sasuke? I've always had a team that can fight well together."
Sasuke chuckled. "That you may, but you seem to be missing a few members. Care to enlighten us?"
Naruto just shrugged. "You know how I do things; even I don't know how things are going to work out."
Sasuke sighed. "Still as unpredictable as ever."
Naruto grinned. "You bet I am. Come on guys, let's go! Spike shape formation!"
Naruto's team quickly formed around him, forming a large V with Naruto as the point. Sasuke narrowed his eyes as they began their charge. Just as he was about to issue his own command, another voice rang out. "The cavalry has arrived!"
Sasuke's eyes widened as Sora and the rest of the group suddenly slammed into the side of his team. At the same moment, Naruto and his team hit the front of his group, tearing through toward Sora's group. Within moments, every one of his members had their tags ripped of besides his own, Ikkaku's and Yumichika's. Sasuke glanced between the members of Naruto's group, mentally counting the members. Finally, realizing that there was no way that he, Ikkaku and Yumichika could take on ten people at once, he held up his hands in surrender. Realizing that they too couldn't do anything, Ikkaku and Yumichika also held up their hands in surrender; albeit, much more reluctantly than Sasuke.
Naruto and his team gave a loud cheer as they quickly celebrated their victory against Sasuke's team. They'd done it before, but somehow it always felt like the first time whenever Naruto was with them. Like his energy was constantly bringing in a positive energy, that brought them closer. Like his last name was an actual trait, having an inner energy that was constantly pulling others in. That was what made Naruto a great team leader.
Later
Naruto and Sasuke lay back in the grass, both of them enjoying the silence that was around them. It was something they did every day; just taking a moment or two of silence to review whatever they were thinking about. It helped calm their nerves, as well as brought our any concerns that they might have had about their previous life.
"Hey, Naruto?" Sasuke said, rolling onto his side to look at Naruto.
Naruto turned his head. "Hm?"
"Why do you think we can't perform any jutsu outside the Chidori and the Rasengan?"
Naruto looked back up into the sky, quietly thinking about the question. He himself had asked it on more than one occasion, but neither of them could come up with a reasonable answer. They just couldn't seem to think of anything that would satisfy their confusion.
Naruto sighed. "Well, I don't know…maybe we just can't use any of our other jutsu."
Sasuke shook his head. "I know, but that doesn't make sense. If we're able to perform one jutsu, we should be able to perform more than one. I should be able to perform my Katon techniques."
Naruto nodded. "I know…but I can't give you a reason as to why you can't. I mean, it would be awesome if you could, or if you could teach me, but there's just some mental block that we just can't overcome."
Sasuke rolled onto his back. "I know, but I would still like some closure."
Naruto nodded. Ever since they'd found that they could perform the Rasengan and the Chidori, they'd been trying everything they could to recreate other techniques. But for some reason, it was like trying to look left and right at the same time; without someone else to help them, they were stuck. After all, Kido was a cinch to perform compared to the normal jutsu, which meant that the jutsu were probably stronger. And they were able to manipulate their reiatsu easier than…their…chakra…
Naruto suddenly bolted up. "I've got it!"
Sasuke propped himself up. "Uh…what are you talking –?"
"I know why we can't perform jutsu!" Naruto said, a small fire in his eyes as he glanced over to Sasuke.
Sasuke blinked confused. Did the dobe think of something that I haven't? What could he know? He grinned. "What do you know?"
Naruto grinned, opening his mouth to speak. Then, he stopped. I don't have to tell him…yet. It'll be fun to see him try and figure it out. He turned away, a playful smirk on his face. "I'm not telling you."
Silence.
Then, "NARUTO I'M GOING TO KILL YOU!!!" Sasuke yelled as he attempted to tackle at Naruto.
Naruto dodged to the side, playfully laughing as he ran away. "Catch me if you can!"
They ran around the field; Naruto playfully laughing as he led Sasuke on, while Sasuke was obviously trying to kill him with his bare hands. Unknown to either of them, two shadows were watching them; one looking on curiously, while the other had an almost hungry, ful glare.
Things will definitely be interesting around here…I'm sure of it. The second shadow thought as it slowly melded deeper into the shadows.
Next Day – Halfway Through History
Naruto tried not to bang his head against the table. They were going over the history of the Seireitei, and as always, it felt like they weren't getting anywhere. Just going over the Quincy history, the construction of the shinigami academy, and other such things could only entertain him for so long. Today probably wouldn't be any different. The teacher would walk in, smiling, and tell them that they were going to do something new.
A moment later, "Alright class, it's time for something new."
"Great." Naruto moaned, gently placing his head on the desk. She was now going to say that it was some kind of history lesson that they'd groan about.
"Today, we're going to explain the Nine Levels of Hell."
Naruto's head shot up. Okay…I wasn't expecting that.
As he glanced around, most of the other kids seemed to be a lot more excited. Apparently, this was a big topic that they were going to be talking about; no one wanted to miss it.
The teacher smiled. "The Nine Levels of Hell were originally designed to contain Hollow souls that had been purified and help them become normal souls again. Each level shows how progressively bad a person was. It took longer to finish purifying in the Ninth level, than it was in the First."
Sasuke raised his hand. "Um, why are you speaking in past tense?"
"That's a good question." The teacher said, smiling lightly as she went on. "The Nine Levels of Hell still exist; however we have no idea what goes on down there anymore."
A random kid in the class spoke up. "Why don't we?"
"Because each level was guarded by its own guardian. These guardians prevented the Hollows from leaving to the Rukongai. However, after an undisclosed amount of time, the overexposure to Hell's reiatsu, they lost conscious thought and went berserk."
"So, if we go to Hueco Mundo, we won't survive?"
The teacher shook her head; obviously flustered by how many kids were suddenly questioning her on things that she was having a hard time with. "No, the Hueco Mundo is filled with Hollow reiatsu, which is technically partially negative reiatsu; due to the fact that it is driven by the negative emotions, and intentions of their…minds. You wouldn't die from overexposure to it. However, Hell's reiatsu is different. It is like Hollow reiatsu, but being a compilation of only negative energy and emotions, it is a thousand times more potent."
There was a wide spread chatting as people seemed surprised by this. Naruto however, was in a state of shock. After a couple of seconds, he slowly raised his hand. "Sensei, what happened to those guardians?"
The class fell silent at the question, turning towards their teacher. "Um…I'm not sure. However, there were rumors of where they had ended up. They call the place, the Between. It was supposed to be where they rested, taking a moment before coming out and destroying the world around them. Obviously, they're probably not alive, seeing as they haven't come out in over one thousand years or so."
At those words, Naruto's ran cold. He tried to piece what he'd heard together to something he could understand. As he did, realization dawned on him. He'd figured out who the guardians were, and where they'd gone off to. He almost passed out from an overload of information, and had to take a couple of breaths to steady himself. He leaned back in his chair, slowly going over what he believed he'd heard.
If what he'd realized was true, then it would explain so much of what had happened to him while he'd been in the Seireitei. He just needed to better understand some of these things if he was going to use the knowledge correctly.
Suddenly, a piece of chalk suddenly slammed into his head. "Uzumaki! Did you hear what I said?"
Naruto shook his head. "Um…could you repeat the question?"
The teacher sighed. "Will you please report to the Sotaicho? He wishes to see you."
Naruto blinked. "The Sotaicho? He wants to see me?"
"Yes, now get a move on! Don't leave Kaien-fukutaicho waiting!" The teacher yelled, pointing towards the door. She didn't have to ask twice as Naruto bolted out the door, a smile on his face. After a couple of seconds, she turned back to the class. "Alright, now as I was saying…"
Sasuke groaned as he listened to the teacher. That dobe has no idea how lucky he is…this is so~ boring! I mean, even Sakura ranting about how good my hair looked was more interesting! Lucky freaking dobe.
Konohagakure
"ACHOO!!!"
"Bless you Sakura-chan."
Sakura nodded, a little shaken by her sneeze. After a second, she leaned back against a tree. "Thank you Lee."
"I think someone is talking about you!" Tenten said, a smile on her face as she nuzzled into Neji's chest. The four of them were sitting in the shade of a couple of trees. Tenten was snuggled into Neji's chest, while Lee was sitting next to Sakura. Lee had finally convinced her to go out with him, though at a great cost for himself. However, he didn't regret a moment of it. However, who else shown with such exuberant youthfulness as his beloved Sakura?
Sakura shook her head. "Why would anyone other than you guys talk about me?"
"Maybe…THEY WERE SPEAKING OF YOUR FLAMES OF YOUTH!!!" Lee yelled, his eyes on fire as he punched a fist into the air.
The air suddenly became cold as Sakura glared at Lee. "Lee…what have we talked about?"
Lee gulped. "Uh…less yelling, less over indulging in training, more attention to you?"
Sakura slowly returned to her normal, cheerful self. "That's right Lee. Now would you please be a dear, and get me something to drink? And yes, you can make a goal this time."
Lee's eyes sparkled. "Yosh! I will get you a drink in less than ten minutes! If I cannot, I will do one hundred push-ups consecutively! And…"
"That's enough Lee." Sakura said as she pulled out a stopwatch. "Go!"
As the three watched Lee run off, Neji glanced at Sakura. "You know, we tried for years to train him to do stuff like that. How did you do it?"
Sakura shrugged. "I just encouraged him…with my fists."
Neji shuddered as he remembered her massive strength. Yes, that would be an excellent incentive to change a few things.
Seireitei
"ACHOO!!!"
"I think someone's talking about you Naruto!"
"Shut up Kaien, it's not funny!" Naruto mumbled as he strolled through the street of the Seireitei on his way to the Sotaicho. After a moment, he glanced up at Kaien. "Uh…do you have any idea what I'm being called for? 'Cause, if it's anything to do with what happened to Jio, he had it coming! I mean, do you even know what -?"
Kaien shook his head. "I'm pretty sure that the Sotaicho isn't really concerned in trivial matters as to call you out of class."
Naruto sighed in relief. "Oh."
A mischievous grin quickly crossed Kaien's face. "On the other hand, I would like to know what you did to this guy."
Naruto shrugged. "It wasn't much. I simply used a combination of Bakudo 1 and 9 to prevent him from getting anywhere. Then, once I'd done that, I used a fusion Hado 1 and 4 to knock him up face first against a wall and make his hair stand up. After that, it was a simple matter of several different colors to give him very…pretty hair. It made it easier to convince Yachiru-fukutaicho to show no mercy when she visited us."
Kaien shuddered. While it was quite childish to do such things, it was also too complicated to perform for your average academy student. He'd used two spells as a fusion, which was much to advanced for someone his age to perform. And for two Hado at the same time…that was twice as difficult.
After a moment of silence, he glanced over at Naruto. "Uh…what exactly did he do?"
Naruto shrugged. "I don't remember. I think he was picking on Hanataro…again. Luckily, he doesn't do that anymore."
"You're quite the vigilante; seeking justice for people who can't fight for themselves…not sure what to say to that."
Naruto smirked. "Can't fight back? Please, Hanataro's more than able to crush guys like him without breaking a sweat… he's thrown me around on more than one occasion. It just kills his confidence when he's belittled by someone. I'm trying to break that, but it's a lot harder than it looks."
Kaien looked forward again, trying to figure out what to say about that. When they'd first met, he'd been so sure that Naruto was the sort of person to help others up when they were down, and not take anything from anyone. But as he'd come to know him, he was starting to notice other things. Naruto tried his best at everything he did; he could do stuff off the top of his head better than most of the other stuff others did; he was more loyal than anyone else he'd ever met; and he had power that was growing at an exponential rate. He couldn't figure out why, but there was something about Naruto that seemed to draw people in…like people couldn't stay away from him.
After a couple of seconds, he realized Naruto was still talking. "…plus, with all the girls that he's got, you'd think he'd just pick one and move on!" Naruto practically yelled, grabbing his head.
Kaien blinked. He suddenly realized that he had no idea what he was talking about, and that it was not a good idea for anyone to come into Naruto's conversations without any idea about what he was saying.
Naruto waved his hand in front of Kaien's face. "Hello~, anyone there?"
Kaien shook his head. "Uh, yea."
Naruto grinned. "Good, because I'm pretty sure that I'm not allowed to knock."
Kaien was confused for a moment, until he finally realized that Naruto was referring to the fact that they were currently outside of the First Division. He glanced at Naruto, chuckling nervously. Well, that's embarrassing.
As they walked into the room, Yamamoto glanced up, several large folders in his hands. "Ah, Naruto. I'm glad you could make it here on such short notice."
Naruto shrugged. "It's alright; I was just in the middle of history class. You know, you guys should update the curriculum, the stuff we're learning is so boring."
Yamamoto chuckled. "Yes, I'm quite sure that with you hands on way of doing things it would be quite boring." After a second, he held out one of the folders to Naruto. "There's something that required your help. If you could?"
Naruto nodded, taking the folder from Yamamoto. He opened it, trying to figure out what was so important that he needed to be called here. As soon as he saw what was in it though, he needed a lot more explaining. "Uh…why do you have information on Orochimaru?"
"Orochimaru is just one of a few people we know quite a bit about." Yamamoto said, showing that he had quite a few folders that were obviously on other people. "We're simply concerned by what he can do, and how far he's trying to reach into our society. We need you to try and confirm as much as possible on him so that we can be prepared for when he dies."
Naruto shook his head, confused. "Why do you want to know more about him for when he dies?"
"Because he perfected a technique that allowed him to live 'forever'; by inhabiting the bodies of other people. This means that when he dies, there is a high possibility of him becoming a Hollow. We simply need to know what to expect before confronting him. Now please, what do you know about him?"
Naruto shook his head. "I…I don't know. I mean, I could tell you a few things, but I'm sure that they wouldn't be as useful to you as someone who actually worked for him. Heck, even Sasuke might be better."
Yamamoto raised an eyebrow. "Sasuke?"
Naruto nodded. "Yea, he was marked by Orochimaru with a strange seal. It happened in the Forest of , right after I passed out. I didn't find out about it till I fought him in the Valley of the End, where we died. The seal was like…three little comas spinning in a circle. And when Sasuke was completely covered by the 'flames' he turned into this, ugly, bird-like thing."
"The cursed seal of heaven?"
Naruto shrugged. "I guess so. I mean, I wouldn't know the exact terms that Orochimaru used…or why he wanted Sasuke so bad. All I know is that he was up to no good…and he's a very, very greedy guy. Freaking snake."
Yamamoto bowed his head, thinking over what Naruto had told him. "I see. What you've said will be put into consideration. Thank you for your time….and do try to prepare for you history exam."
"What exam?" Naruto asked, looking somewhat confused as Yamamoto gathered his folders and walked away. "WHAT EXAM!?!"
Kaien just sighed. "Even when it's told to his face, he doesn't completely see it." He glanced over at Naruto, who was trying to figure out what had happened and grinned. "I wouldn't want him any other way."
Hospital
"He didn't know anything…just like you said." Yamamoto said, sitting next to a hospital bed. The person in the bed was covered by bandages, so people couldn't see who it was. It also muffled his voice slightly, making it more difficult for other people to hear what he was saying.
"You see Yamamoto-san; I do know more about Naruto than you think."
"Yes, you do." Yamamoto said, tapping his staff on the floor. "However, I'm more interested in the information about Orochimaru…and his seals."
The man sighed. "It's rather simple. The seal draws on an inner energy that makes a person much, much stronger than they would normally be. Each seal draws on a certain negative emotion, forcing the person to become consumed by that emotion."
"So…in other words, it draws out on of that energy?" Yamamoto asked, glancing at the ceiling.
"Yes. This usually makes stronger Hollows in the afterlife, but from what you've told me, Sasuke didn't turn into a Hollow, or hasn't yet. I'm not sure why, or how, but there is definitely something we're missing about him."
Yamamoto nodded. "Yes, I'm sure that we are. However, we are not going to bother ourselves until we absolutely have to." After a moments silence, he glanced back at the man. "How are you feeling?"
The man chuckled. "Well, normally that's the first thing a person asks when walking into a sick persons room."
"I was trying to get the business portion done before, so that you would be relaxed when I left. It wouldn't do for you to continue to deteriorate in health."
"No, we don't need that. Thank you for your concern. I am doing rather well, despite the mild discomfort that's come from having that kind of treatment."
Yamamoto's head lowered ever so slightly, almost looking ashamed. "I don't believe that it was intentional. However, it would be good to see you in good health soon."
The man chuckled. "I know. Please, give my regards to them…will you?"
Yamamoto stood up. "Yes, I'll make sure to do that. Please, have a good day."
Giving the man a small bow, Yamamoto quickly walked out of his room. After a moment, the man chuckled again. "So…Naruto and Sasuke both managed to get here? I would never have guessed it. I guess that explains the explosions that I've been hearing… and his pranks. I just hope no one's been hurt by them."
Kido Room
BOOM
"Holy crap, that was big!" Naruto said, grinning widely as he looked at the damage caused by his Kido.
Everyone else in the classroom gapped at the size of the destruction. It was…huge. The entire wall behind their required target was completely blown away, leaving very little behind. For someone to take a small Kido that was supposed to be more accurate than anything else, and turn it into something of mass destruction…was simply amazing.
Sasuke chuckled. He'd seen Naruto do so much more destruction with smaller Kido, and less reiatsu. But he knew that Naruto just wanted to show off a little bit. He couldn't do it with his studies, so he did it in Hado, Hakuda, and Zanjutsu. He himself was better at Bakudo, Hakuda, and Zanjutsu…but Naruto was just a brute when fighting that made him harder to beat.
"He's strong, isn't he?"
Sasuke mentally nodded, not quite sure of what had been happening. He'd just woken up one morning, and this strange voice was speaking to him. It held so much power behind it, that he was somewhat frightened at first. But, after a while, he'd managed to get used to the little comments that it would make about Naruto or school life.
Sasuke sighed. He wasn't sure what it was, but it was supposed to be a good thing. After all, a few people actually made contact with their zanpakuto spirits before they'd even gotten their zanpakuto…like that midget Toshiro. He'd managed to hear his, and quickly became captain. He slightly hoped he could do the same, but…
"Only time will tell."
Sasuke smiled. It had a bad habit of completing his thoughts, even if he wasn't directing them at it. But, it was nice to know that someone understood him so well.
As he watched Naruto getting praise from the other kids and a few of the teachers, he closed his eyes. He wasn't sure why, but he felt slightly jealous of Naruto. Everyone was around him, trying to talk to him, trying to be like him. He had similar things happen to him back in the shinobi academy, and so he understood what was happening. However, he'd rejected everyone, so he had no idea what Naruto was really feeling right now. It had too feel pretty good considering how large his smile was.
"There is no need to feel envy for what you could have had. Look forward to now, any you will succeed."
Sasuke nodded. It was weird to be getting advice from someone within himself, but who else knew him as well? And the advice was actually starting to make his life easier to live through.
"Hey Sasuke! Come over here!" Naruto yelled, pulling him from his thoughts.
Sasuke glanced up, seeing Naruto and the rest of his classmates staring at him. After a couple of seconds, he smirked.
Undisclosed Location
"How is our progress?" Pein asked, glaring at the projections of the other members of the Akatsuki.
Kakuzu spoke first. "We've managed to kill the Sanbi, Gobi, and Shichibi; basically the ones who haven't been sealed yet."
Pein nodded. "And how are we progressing there?"
Hidan suddenly spoke. "Why do you want to know you -?!"
"Hidan, please be respectful." Itachi said, glaring towards him. After a couple of seconds, as Hidan began to mumble something about Jashin, he turned back to Pein. "We've already sent Sasori and Deidara to kill the Jinchuriki of the Ichibi, and Hidan and Kakuzu will be going after the Nibi as soon as possible."
"Why are you volenteering us for this assignment?" Kakuzu asked.
Itachi glanced at him. "There is a chance that after the Nibi is killed, you will be able to give her body for a rather large bounty. After all, she's managed to make quite the name for herself."
Kakuzu nodded, an almost ful grin crossing his face. "I see...thank you Itachi. I do believe that this will be most benificial."
Pein sighed. "Itachi, what is the status of Orochimaru's lair?"
"We've come a long way. We've talked with Sasori, and he told us that he has a spy within Orochimaru's ranks. He's planning on meeting him in three weeks or so to obtain any infromation that he can before we attack Orochimaru."
Pein nodded. "Excellent."
Itachi nodded. "Indeed. However, not to be the judge of Sasori's sealing technique, but I do believe that Orochimaru will be at the meeting place."
Pein raised an eyebrow. "And what makes you say that?"
"He is no fool. He needs to be aware of all his ranks status, or they may turn against him. It would be a simple matter to find, and remove the seal placed on this person."
"What do you suggest?"
"I wish to take Kisame and observe the meeting. Should anything go wrong, and Orochimaru shows up, we will move in and take him out then and there." Itachi said, a small trace of malice in his voice.
Pein noticed this. "I do believe that you are looking forward to this confrontation, are you not?"
Itachi nodded. "Hai, I am. And I will make sure that Orochimaru falls before he can continue to interfere with our plans."
Pein shook his head. "Don't let your emotions get the better of you. Attack him only if Sasori needs help, or gives you some kind of signal that suggests that he might need help. Understood?"
Itachi nodded, and quickly faded out. After another moment, everyone else began to fade away as well, disappearing to go and do what they'd been asked to do.
As Pein left, he glanced over into a corner of his room. "Hello...Madara."
From the shadows, a figure wearing a completely black outfit, with an orange mask that swirled toward his right eye, the only open portion of the mask. Pein locked eyes with him, knowing full and well what Madara was here for. After a moment of complete silence, Madara spoke. "Why are you killing off the Bijuu?"
Pein spoke impassively, not reveiling any emotion as he spoke. "I am doing it so that no one else can obtain the Bijuu for their own purposes."
"Yes, but that also forces my back up plan to fail." Madara said, rage apperent in every word he spoke. "Did you even think about that?"
Pein nodded. "Hai, I did. However, it is too risky to allow that plan to go into effect. As such, I deemed it necessary to finish them now."
Madara stared at Pein, looking into one eye, then the other. Finally, realization dawned on him. He growled as he spoke, "You don't trust me."
Pein nodded. "No, I do not."
"You think that you're version of 'peace' will work out better than mine? Mine, which has been planned out for over a hundred year; compaired to your pitiful excuss at peace?"
Pein nodded again. "I know that it will work...because I am a God."
"You are trying to betray me?"
Pein shook his head. "You have never been the true leader. You have hidden in the shadows, not taking command as you should have." He suddenly turned to a nearby window. "If you wish for the organization to follow your command, than take my position from me...if you can."
Leaping through the window, Pein signalled Konan to bring out the Animal Realm. He would need all of his bodies to defeat him, and he would defeat him.
After a second, he stood in front of Madara again, all six of his bodies moving together after Animal Realm had arrived and summoned them. Madara glared at him, as he and the six Pein's charged at each other, both sides attempting to take the other out of the picture. It would be a fight that no one would remember, and yet would be the turning point of many lives.
A/N:Alright everyone, listen up! There are a few things that need to be made clear right now, so please pay attention.
1) Naruto won't be paired with Unohana. After much review and discussion with multiple people, I have found no reasonable way to put the two of them together. I appologize to everyone who was cheering for this pairing.
2) Sasuke's pairing has been decided. It will be...Sasuke/Hinamori! That is all.
3) While I'm not doing an Unohana pairing, there are a few Bleach women who he could be paired with: Soi Fon, Tatsuki, Orihime, Neliel, and Yoruichi. If you have any other suggestions, please alert me.
Thank you for taking the time to read this. A special thanks to Kento Namikaze and Raidentensho, for helping me complete Naruto and Sasuke's zanpakuto's. I also have their inner spirits figured as well, so thank you everyone! :D
Finally, do you people think that I should bring in more Naruto characters? Or just do what I'm doing now?
Thank you,
Draco Kamikaze