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Uzumaki Naruko

October 11th

1:21pm

Outside the Hokage Tower

I stepped outside and started to walk with no real destination. My kaa-chan was the container for the Kyūbi no Yōko. The only time that the seal holding it weakens is child birth. The Kyūbi attacked the village on my birthday. That mean that I'm inadvertently responsible for the deaths of my kaa-chan and the Yondaime as well as the Kyūbi's attack on the village.

A tear welled up in my eye before I whipped it away. Looking around I realized that I was just outside the Clan District. I kept my head down and kept walking. After a few minutes I heard shouting. I followed the sound and eventually came across a group of three boys picking on a girl, all of them about my age.

The girl caught my eye though. She looked like she was only a few centimeters shorter than me with short dark blue hair kept just above her forehead with chin-length strands framing her face and her eyes looked to be the same featureless pale eyes of the Hyūga Clan.

I looked back at the boys and saw one push the girl to the ground while another dump a half-eaten ice cream cone on the girl's head. I growled in anger. The way they were treating the girl hit too close to home.

"Hey! Leave her alone!" I shouted as I stepped out from behind a tree.

The group turned to look at me and the boys laughed. "Or what, Girl? We're Shinobi in training!"

"No. You're no Shinobi. You're all just bullies picking on someone who won't fight back."

The boys scowled and moved to surround me. Before they could I grabbed a branch on the tree that I'd just come around and broke it off. The branch was about two or three centimeters thick and about a hundred and forty centimeters tall, putting the end about a third of a meter above my head.

The boys just smirked and started taunting me. I ignored them as I gripped the branch in the middle with my right hand and put my left hand much lower on it. I shifted into a wide fighting stance with my right foot forward and the branch pointed forward.

One of the boys, the defacto leader, growled in frustration and shouted, "Get her!"

His two lackeys ran at me shouting. I calmly spun towards the closer of the two on my left and struck him in the side with my branch. He yelped and fell to the ground clutching his side. I reversed my spin and came at the other boy with a downward strike. He leaped to the side, but I continued my spin and bent down to a crouch so that my branch could take his legs out from underneath him. He fell to the ground, hitting the back of his head.

The first boy shouted at me and I turned, bringing my branch up in an upwards strike. I caught him in the chin, snapping his head back, and possibly making him bite his own tongue if the amount of blood seeping out of his mouth was any indicator.

I stood and looked towards the leader. He was staring at me in fear as he took a step back. He put his hands together in a Ram seal and said, "Bushin no Jutsu (Clone Jutsu)!"

Two copies of the boy shimmered into existence in front of him. I made a single handed Tiger seal and said, "Suiton: Teppōdama (Liquid Bullet)."

I launched a weak Teppōdama (Liquid Bullet) at the bully that passed through the Bushin (Clone) in front of him and struck him in the chest, drenching him and knocking him on his back. I turned towards the other two bullies but saw that they'd already ran away. I looked back at the leader and saw that he'd gotten to his feet and was running away too.

I dropped my branch and walked over to the girl. She yelped in fear and curled up in a ball. I raised my hands saying, "Hey, Hey, I'm not going to hurt you. I'm Naruko. Who're you?"

"Hi—Hinata," she said, raising her head enough to look at me.

"Hinata. That's a very pretty name." She blushed before shivering as melting ice cream dropped down her face.

"Here, let me help clean you up," I said as I dug a hole in the ground.

Hinata looked at me curiously as I made a Tiger seal again and used another Teppōdama (Liquid Bullet) to fill the hole with water. I filled my hands together and scooped up some water to pore over Hinata's head.

She continued to blush and whispered, "A—ari—arigatō, N—Nar—Naruko-S—san."

"You're welcome," I said as I used my sleeve to wipe away the last of the ice cream and water. "I can dry your hair and your clothes if you want."

She gave a jerky nod. I focused my chakra into my hands and let my Katon (Fire) chakra overshadow my other affinities. I set both my hands on Hinata's shoulders and let my Katon (Fire) chakra flow over her. She gasped in surprise at the warmth but quickly calmed. After a few moments she was completely dry.

I cut the flow of chakra to my hands and pulled them back. "That should do it, Hinata-San."

"A—arigatō, Na—Naruko-San."

I nodded and helped her to her feet. "It was nice meeting you, though I wish it'd been under better circumstances."

"Y—yes, s—so d—do I."

I gave her a short bow and walked away. After a few meters I heard someone drop down onto the road. I looked behind me and saw a Hyūga member escorting Hinata towards the Clan District. I nodded to myself seeing that Hinata wouldn't be harassed again.

I kept walking. Once I was a distance from where the fight'd been I asked, "How much did you two see?"

Kakashi and Yūgao dropped down from the trees. "All of it," Kakashi said.

I nodded. "Did Jiji ask you to keep an eye on me after I met with him?"

"Yes. He summoned us immediately after you left his office and asked us to watch you."

"You mean after I found out the I'm the reason why my kaa-chan and the Yondaime are dead and why the Kyūbi attacked the village."

"No!" Yūgao practically shouted. "You're not to blame for any of that!"

"The hell I am!" I shouted back.

"The only time my kaa-chan's seal could weaken was child birth! My birth! The Kyūbi escaped and killed hundreds! The Yondaime gave his life to seal it into me because my kaa-chan was too weak! It was all my fault!" I felt tears on my cheeks but couldn't tell when they'd started falling.

Kakashi and Yūgao were silent as I saw a blur out of the corner of my eye. In an instant arms were wrapped around me and a face was buried in my shoulder. "I didn't know, Naru-Chan! I'm so sorry," Anko-Nee practically sobbed into my shoulder.

I wrapped my arms around her as tears continued to fall from my eyes. "It was all my fault... It was all my fault..."

"No it wasn't," Anko-Nee said. "It's no more your fault than I am a traitor because my sensei is a nukenin."

Then I broke down and started sobbing. I didn't know how long I stayed in her's arms, crying and berating myself about what happened on my birthday. The entire time she just held me and and whispered that it wasn't my fault. Eventually I calmed and wiped the tears from my face.

"Thank you," I whispered to her.

She gave me a soft squeeze and helped me to my feet. I looked around and saw Kakashi and Yūgao a ways in both directions, to keep anyone from bothering us.

Seeing that I'd calmed down, they both came over to us. "We're sorry, Naruko. We only wanted to protect you," Kakashi said.

"It's alright, you were just following orders." I looked at each of them and saw that Kakashi and Yūgao had looks of sadness on their faces and Anko-Nee was almost trembling over the revaluation of the events on my birthday.

"Did either of you know my kaa-chan very well?"

"Yes," Yūgao answered. "She was my sensei."

"Would you... would you mind telling me about her over some tea?"

Yūgao gave me a sad smile as she said, "I would love to, Naruko-Chan."

I gave her a weak smile and started walking towards the main village. Not long after we started walking Anko-Nee came beside me and wrapped her arm around my shoulder. I reached up and held her hand as I whispered with a small smile, "Thanks, Anko-Nee."

She squeezed my hand saying, "Anything for you, Imouto."

Uzumaki Naruko

October 11

2:14 P.M.

The Peaceful Teacup

Once we'd all taken a seat in a booth and ordered our tea and snacks I asked Yūgao, "What was my kaa-chan like?"

She smiled off into the distance before saying, "Kushina-Sensei was probably the kindest and most generous person in the entire village. She treated almost everyone as an equal and could make a friend out of almost anyone, even a Hyūga and an Uchiha."

"But the one thing even a fool knew not to do was to make her angry," Yūgao said as she shivered at a memory. "One of her nicknames was the Akai Chishio no Habanero (Red-Hot Habanero) because she beat four boys to a pulp because they insulted her hair when she first started at the academy. That incident combined with her temper earned your mother her nickname."

"She was also headstrong, impulsive, eccentric, and as stubborn as a mountain when she wanted to be. Often times she'd end up hitting someone she was arguing with if they angered her."

I chuckled lightly as I imagined my kaa-chan arguing with someone then hitting them on the head. "How skilled was she?"

"She was a master Kenjutsu user," Yūgao answered. "She was so good that the Kiri no Shinobigatana Shichinin Shū (Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist) feared her. Especially after she killed two of them and beat the rest during the Third Great Shinobi War."

"Wow," I said in awe. "What about Ninjutsu?"

"Her affinities were Futon (Wind) and Suiton (Water). She used both affinities to deadly effect. Futon to attack enemies from afar and to enhance her Kenjutsu, Suiton to attack at close range and again enhance her Kenjutsu. But when she fought on water she became almost as deadly as the Yondaime."

"How?" I asked as the waitress came back with our tea and snacks.

Yūgao paused to sip her tea before saying, "She would spread her chakra through the water and manipulate it however she wanted. Even down to the smallest drop. One moment the water you're standing on is calm and the next it's trying to kill you, all the while a master Kenjutsu user is trying to take your head off. The Yondaime himself said that he would never consider fighting you Kaa-San on water unless he had no other option."

I nodded in amazement as I pulled my plate of pork dumplings towards me. I pressed my hands together and said, "Itadakimasu."

Then I broke my chopsticks apart and popped a dumpling into my mouth. Once I chewed and swallowed I asked, "Do any of you know who that Hinata girl that I helped is?"

"Yes," Kakashi answered as he looked over his book. "She's the oldest daughter of Hyuga Hiashi, the current clan head of the Hyuga Clan."

The dumpling that I'd raised to my mouth slipped out of my chopsticks. "That was the Hyuga heiress? Why didn't she fight back or something?"

"From what I've heard she's pretty shy and timid. She probably got that from her kaa-san. Hitomi-San always was a little timid, even when she was with Kushina-Sensei," Yūgao commented. "Now that I think of it, Hitomi-San also struggled with some hero worship towards Kushina-Sensei after she saved her during a skirmish with some Kumo nin."

A groan escaped me as I said, "So that means that Hinata-San might end up following me around?"

Anko-Nee laughed and put her arm around my shoulders. "Looks like you're already building your own fan club, Naru-Chan. My awesomeness must've rubbed off on you."

I groaned again in response and glared at Yūgao and Kakashi as they laughed at my expense. "Laugh it up you two. Just wait until I'm able to kick your asses into the next century."

I sighed and leaned back as I contemplated what I should do about Hinata if she were to develop hero worship towards me. "I guess it wouldn't be too bad of an idea to get to know her," I said to myself. "Though I guess I'd have to wait until I see her again."

I glanced over at Yūgao and her sword before asking, "Yūgao-San, could you teach me how to use a weapon?"

She raised an eyebrow and asked, "Why to you want to learn how to use a weapon?"

"Well, I was able to take on all three of those boys that were picking on Hinata-San with the branch and I might need something like that again. I'd at least like to know how to use something effectively."

Yūgao smiled before saying, "Sure, I can help you. We can visit a weapons shop that many ANBU go to after we finish our tea."

"Arigatō," I said as I picked up my dropped dumpling.

Kakashi gave me an eye-smile, thing. "It's probably good that you start learning how to use a weapon now. It's a lot easier for the mind to remember something when it's taught it at a young age."

I nodded I agreement and swallowed. "That's part of the reason why I want to learn how to use some sort of weapon now. Do any of you have a suggestion on what I should learn?"

"You can never go wrong with kenjutsu," Yūgao suggested. We all gave a small chuckle since the kenjutsu user was suggesting kenjutsu.

"Something that'll surprise people is a kusarigama, a sickle on a chain," Anko-Nee mentioned. "The kama'll keep people from wanting to get close to you while the weighted chain'll keep them further back. Plus if you manage to wrap a person in the chain you can channel you Katon or Raiton nature into the chain to injure them."

I raised my eyebrow at her. "That was surprisingly well thought out. Who are you and what've you done with Anko-Nee?"

We all chuckled again before Anko-Nee shrugged and said, "Eh, I have my moments."

I turned to Kakashi who was tapping his chin with his book in thought. "From what I saw during your fight with those boys I think that the naginata would be a good match for you. It's an unusual weapon for a shinobi, but an effective one."

I nodded as I ate another dumpling. "Those all seem like good suggestions. I guess I can try each weapon at the store."

We continued to eat our snacks and drink our tea for another fifteen minutes or so before we paid for everything. I wiped my mouth with a napkin and slid out of the booth only to bump into someone. My arm flew out to catch the other person as I said, "Gomen, I wasn't looking."

The first thing I saw as I steadied myself was a mop of pink hair. Looking lower I saw a girl about my age with a somewhat large forehead, emerald eyes, and a rounded face with a pointed chin. "Um... it's okay," she said hesitantly.

"I'm Uzumaki Naruko."

"Ha—Haruno Sakura."

"Sakura-Chan? Where'd you go?" someone from the front of the tea house called.

Sakura turned and said, "Here, Kaa-Chan."

A moment later a woman with the same color eyes and face came around the corner of the row of booths. She came over to us and asked, "Why did you run off like that, Sakura-Chan?"

"Um... I... I had to use the... the bathroom."

"Well let me know next time. Okay?"

"Okay, Kaa-Chan."

Sakura's mother looked at me and gasped. "Kushina-Chan?! No, wait, you're her daughter. Naruko-Chan, right?"

I nodded. "Hai, Haruno-San."

"It's Mebuki, Dear." She looked past me and smiled. "Kakashi-San, Yūgao-Chan, how are you?"

"We're good, Mebuki-San. We were just leaving to get Naruko-Chan some weapons," Kakashi said.

Mebuki gave me a warm smile saying, "I'm so glad that you're becoming a kunoichi like you kaa-san, Naruko-Chan. If you ever need anything please come to me, I at least owe my former teammate's daughter that."

I bowed low saying, "Arigatō, Mabuki-San."

As we walked towards the entrance I heard Sakura ask, "Kaa-Chan, who was that?"

When we stepped outside Yūgao took the lead and we started walking to the west. After a while we reached the craftsmen section of the market district and followed Yūgao to a building close to the center of the craftsmen section. I looked over the building, noting the forge attached to the back of the building, the living quarters above the store, the sign saying 'Hashimo Weapons and Equipment', and the racks of weapons in the window next to the open sliding doors.

As we walked into the store I saw an older man with greying black hair, brown eyes, and a burn scar covering his left cheek at the counter on the left. On the right was row after row of brightly lit racks and shelves of various weapons and equipment. The man looked up from his book and smiled. "Yūgao-Kohai, Kakashi-Kohai, good to see you two."

He turned to Anko-Nee and myself before saying, "And you brought friends." He walked out from around the counter, with a slight limp, and held his scarred hand out to shake. "I'm Hashimo Musano, proud owner of this establishment."

Anko-Nee shook his hand first. "Mitarashi Anko. Good to meet you."

As I shook his hand I said, "Uzumaki Naruko. Why is it that you call Kakashi-San and Yūgao-San kohai, Hashimo-San?"

He smiled saying, "Call me Musano. As for why I call them kohai, it's because I was an ANBU member back during and after the Third Shinobi War. I worked with them several times until I nearly lost my leg during a battle."

I nodded and gave him a slight bow. "So what do you people need from me?" Musano asked.

"We came here because Naruko-Chan wants to learn how to use a weapon," Kakashi answered. "So far we've narrowed the weapons down to a sword, kusarigama, or naginata."

Musano raised an eyebrow at me. "Those are some interesting weapons you want to learn how to use. Why those weapons?"

"I have four nature affinities and those weapons seem to match both my affinities and my fighting style."

He blinked at me then tried to clear out his ear with a pinkie. "I'm sorry, Naruko-San. I could've sworn that you just said that you have four affinities."

"I do."

"Kami above!" He almost shouted. His head whipped towards Kakashi and Yūgao who both nodded in confirmation. "How can a seven year old girl have four nature affinities?"

I shrugged. "Maybe good genes?"

Musano put his head in his hand and shook his head muttering, "Of course her daughter would have four affinities. Kami or Akuma or whoever would do something like that to her family."

He picked his head up and said, "I'll get you some of the weapons that should fit your hight and reach. I've got a small dojo in the back that you can test which one feels the best."

"Arigato," I said with a bow.

Musano wandered down an isle before I asked, "What did he mean by Kami or Akuma having something to do with me having four affinities?"

Kakashi shrugged and walked towards a doorway at the far end of the counter, opposite of the entrance. Yūgao patted me on the shoulder saying, "What Musano-Sempai meant was that your kaa-san would have either impossibly good luck or the absolute worst luck possible. She seemed to switch between the two at the most random or worst possible times."

Then Yūgao motioned for us to follow her. We stepped through the doorway at the end of the counter and into a hallway. At the end of the hallway was the smith and halfway down the hall was a doorway to the dojo. The dojo was twenty meters square with thick tatami mats covering the floor and had sturdy wooden walls. Lined up neatly along the right wall we're a variety of humanoid target dummies that showed generous amounts of ware and tear. Kakashi was leaning against the left wall reading his orange book. I sat down next to Kakashi and after a few moments Musano came in, his arms full of weapons. He laid them out on the floor and motioned for me to come over.

"We can start off with the kodachi. It's a short sword made in the same style as a katana but shorter and lighter. Pick one that feels right in your hands while I get a dummy for you."

I nodded and looked over the three blades that he'd brought. The shortest blade was thirty five centimeters long and the largest was forty five centimeters long, the last one was forty centimeters long. All three had a small guard at the base of the blade and a hilt long enough to be gripped with two hands. I picked up the mid-length kodachi and made a few practices swings. As testament to it's fine craftsmanship it felt well balanced in my hand, but seemed a little light to me.

I set the blade down and picked up the longer one. This blade felt right in my hand, as well balanced as the last one but with enough weight behind it. I walked over to the practice dummy and took several slow and controlled slashes at it. Once I'd gotten a feel for the reach of the weapon I sped up. I started making fast and deadly attacks that were still well controlled, leaving numerous marks on the dense wood. I stepped back and switched the kodachi to my left hand then repeated my slow then fast strikes.

I stepped away from the dummy, somewhat out of breath, and turned to the others. Anko-Nee and Yūgao were smiling, Kakashi was actually looking at me instead of his book, and Musano stood with his arms crossed. "Not bad, Girl. You seem to be a natural with a sword like your Kaa-san was."

I bowed to Musano saying, "Arigatō," before setting the kodachi down and picking up a kusarigama. The sickle like kama wasn't nearly as well balanced as the kodachi had been, but that was to be expected with a metal blade and wooden grip. The weighted chain attached to the base of the kama was about two and a half meters in length. I held the kama in my right hand and a length of loose chain in my left.

As I moved towards the dummy Musano instructed me on how to use a kusarigama. "Typically you spin the chain above your head and launch it at the enemy's weapon to disarm him by either making him drop his weapon or wrapping the chain around his weapon and pulling it out of his hands. Then you deliver the killing blow with the kama. That doesn't mean the the chain itself isn't deadly too. A blow to the right spot with the weight can disable, cripple, or kill your opponent. Even better is if you can wrap the chain around them and channel a Raiton or Katon jutsu down the chain at them."

I nodded as I started spinning the chain. After a few spins I lashed out at the dummy. The chain hit across the dummy's neck and wrapped around it. With a pull on the chain, I leaped at it and struck with the kama. My first slash came across the face, the second along the stomach, then I stabbed into the collar.

"Not bad," Musano said. "Looks like you also have a knack for kusarigama-jutsu. I haven't seen someone execute a good wrap-and-strike combination like that on their first time in a while. Let's move onto the naginata."

I nodded as I unwrapped the chain from the dummy then carefully wound it up. I'd just set the kusarigama down when I heard someone run into the store shouting, "Tou-San! Kaa-Chan! I'm home!"

Musano stepped partway into the hallway and called out, "I'm in the dojo with some customers. Your Kaa-San is out shopping."

Musano stepped back into the dojo followed by a girl. She had brown hair pulled into two buns on either side of her head with bangs hanging over her forehead and brown eyes. She wore a red Chinese style shirt and brown pants.

"This is my daughter Tenten."

I gave her a small bow of my head saying, "I'm Uzumaki Naruko."

Tenten smiled and said, "Hi, Naruko-San. You're buying a weapon?"

"Yes. I'm about to try a naginata."

I picked up a naginata that was one hundred forty centimeters long, thirty centimeters of which were blade length. I set the butt of the staff against the ground and saw that the simple hand guard was almost perfectly level with my eyes. The entire weapon seemed to be balanced at about shoulder height where I gripped it with my right hand. I faced the dummy and settled into a neutral ready stance, my right foot towards the dummy, my left hand below my right, and the naginata held level. I made slow several thrusts and slashes then made several strikes in rapid succession.

I stepped away from the dummy and set the naginata down with the rest of the weapons. "All these weapons feel natural to me, Musano-San. Would it be possible to get one of each?"

"Of course. It'll cost you, but the more weapons you know how to use the better your chances of staying alive are."

I bowed to Musano as I said, "Arigatō."

He smiled saying, "No problem kid." As Musano started collecting the weapons Tenten came over to me.

"Are you training to become a kunoichi?" I nodded. "Me too! I want to be a great kunoichi like Tsunade-Sama! Though, how come haven't I seen you around the shinobi academy?"

"It's because I don't go the the shinobi academy. My adoptive sister, Anko-Nee, along with Kakashi-San and Yūgao-San are teaching me with the Hokage's permission."

"Wow..." Tenten said in awe.

"What rank are you," she asked the others.

"Kakashi-Sempai and I are both ANBU," Yūgao answered. "Anko-Chan is still a genin, but she's getting ready to become a chunin."

"Damn strait I am," Anko-Nee said. "I'll definitely become a chunin during the next exam when I show everyone how awesome I am!"

I looked back to Tenten when she asked, "Hey, do you want to train with me? I could use someone who can give me a challenge."

I smiled. "Sure, Tenten-San."

Tenten smiled as she said, "Yay! You can call me Chan if you want."

"Alright, Tenten-Chan."

Tenten's smile widened. "I can meet you as training ground one in about two hours if that works for you."

"That works for me."

We walked out into the store and I saw Musano standing behind the cash register with two kodachi, a kusarigama, and a naginata next to him. He looked up as I stopped next to him. "The cost'll be thirty thousand eight hundred Ryō. I'm guessing that I should bill this to the Hokage."

I nodded. "Arigatō, Musano-San."

I collected the weapons but saw that the cost didn't match with the price tags. "Musano-San, I believe that you've short changed yourself. The cost should be forty seven thousand Ryō."

He shook his head. "No. I gave you a one third discount on each item."

"Why?" I asked, knowing that he was losing a substantial amount of money.

"I respect you and your mother too much to charge you the full price."

I bowed deeply as I said, "Arigatō, Musano-San."

"Here're a few scrolls on different styles to use with the weapons," Musano said as he placed half a dozen scrolls on the counter. I nodded as I slipped the swords over my shoulder and hooked the kusarigama onto my belt. I held the naginata in my left hand and reached for the scrolls before Kakashi picked them up.

"I'll carry the scrolls for you Naruko-Chan." I nodded in appreciation and turned to leave.

Once we were outside Anko-Nee said, "Let's head to training ground one so that you can learn how to use your weapons, Naru-Chan!"

I nodded in agreement and leaped to the roof tops.

Uzumaki Naruko

October 11

4:21 P.M.

Training Ground One

I leaped down into the main clearing to join the others. Looking around I could see a few trees scattered around the clearing, a large pond in front of us, and rows of targets off towards the left. I leaned my naginata against a nearby tree and took my kusarigama off of my belt. I glanced over at Kakashi and asked, "Can you hand me the scrolls on kenjutsu?"

The first one was the standard Leaf Style taught to any Konoha shinobi who wanted to learn kenjutsu and the second was a style called Kodachi no Kage (Shadow of the Kodachi). "Yūgao-San, have you heard of the Kodachi no Kage Style?"

"The what?!"

I looked up and saw Yūgao staring at me in disbelief. "You've heard of the style?"

"Any swordsman worth their blade knows about the Kodachi no Kage. It's one of if not the most difficult styles to learn or defeat. Your mother and I only got the basics down before she died."

I looked down at the two scrolls in my hands before tossing the Leaf Style scroll back to Kakashi, who caught it without looking up from his precious book. I scanned over the scroll and immediately picked up that the Kodachi no Kage style required the user to use two kodachi at once, one in a reverse grip and the other in a standard grip. The kodachi in the reverse grip served as both a shield and a second weapon while the one in a standard grip was the main attack weapon. The style also called for the user to switch grips on the swords to confuse the opponent and attack them from different angles. I set the scroll down, unsheathed my kodachi, and squared off with Yūgao.

I settled into the ready pose detailed by the scroll. I stood in a low and wide fighting stance, left foot forward pointing forward, right foot back pointing right. My right kodachi was held in a standard grip pointing forward, level with my shoulders. My left kodachi was held in a reverse grip over and level with my chest, also pointed forward but parallel with my arm.

Yūgao got into her ready stance. She stood in the same position as myself but her feet were closer together then mine and she stood more upright while she held her katana in both hands in front of her. I nodded to her and she came at me with a slow and controlled downward slash.

Picturing the diagram from the scroll, I brought my left kodachi forward and angled it so that it was pointed down and back. Yūgao's blade slid down mine as I slashed my right kodachi at her side. She countered by shifting the her katana to the other side of her body to block my blade. With her blade locked with both of mine Yūgao bore down on me with her superior hight and weight. I struggled to stay up as I tried to think of a maneuver from the scroll to get out from this situation.

Just as my knees were about to buckle I remembered a diagram. Using the point where Yūgao's katana ground against my left kodachi as a fulcrum I spun my entire body to the left. Without something to bare down on anymore Yūgao fell forward as I continued my spin and slashed at her back with my right kodachi, careful to only leave only a light cut on her flak jacket. I followed up by slashing my left kodachi over her head.

I took several steps back as Yūgao stood and turned towards me. She nodded saying, "Very good, Naruko-Chan. Let's go again."

We both entered our respective ready stances before moving to engage each other.

By the time Yūgao called for us to stop I was covered in healing scratches and my clothes had several cuts. I glared at Yūgao saying, "These clothes were brand new."

She smiled unapologetically. "You can stitch them up later, Naruko-Chan."

I huffed in mild irritation before walking over to Kakashi and Anko-Nee who were sitting under the tree. I sat down next to Anko-Nee and slid my kodachi back into their sheaths. I pondered how to wear the sheaths in a way that would still let me draw them in the way that I needed to hold them. "Anko-Nee, do you have any wire?"

"Of course," she said as she reached into her pouch and handed me a reel of wire and a kunai to cut it with. I set the sheaths down so that their curves lined up with each other but with the hilts opposite of one another. I took the wire and started weaving it around and between the sheaths as finely as possible before cutting it every five centimeters. Once I reached the end of the sheaths I set the reel aside and started tightening the sections of wire as much as I could. Satisfied with my work, I took my double sheath and slipped it over my shoulders so that one kodachi hilt rested over my right shoulder and the other my left hip.

I reached for my naginata jutsu scrolls as Anko-Nee said, "You look awesome with your kodachi across your back like that, Naru-Chan."

I smiled as I looked over both scrolls. After a few moments I picked the Onna-bugeisha no Odori (Dance of the Female Warrior) style. The style focused on graceful flowing movements combined with circular and thrusting attacks. I scanned over the scroll before standing and picking up my naginata.

I squared off with Yūgao again as I fell into a neutral ready stance, a standard fighting stance with my naginata held horizontal at stomach level. Yūgao got into her ready stance and started circling to my left. I turned with her, keeping my left shoulder toward her and my right shoulder back. I turned ninety degrees before she came at me.

I blocked Yūgao's hip-to-shoulder slash and used the extra length of my naginata to keep her at a distance but thrusting and slashing at her. Using a technique from the scroll I spun to the left and slashed at shoulder level. When Yūgao blocked my slash I continued into the second part of the technique by spinning to the right and slashing at knee level. She blocked that strike as well I used the final part of the technique by spinning to my left again but slashing downward this time. Yūgao stepped back to avoid my blade and nodded in satisfaction.

Before either of us could re-engage someone off to the side shouted, "Look out!"

Yūgao and I both leaped backwards just as a Gōkakyū (Great Fireball) passed between us. We both looked to the left and saw two boys coming towards us. Both boys look similar enough to be brothers with the same black eyes and spiked blue tinted, dark hair. The older one looked about twelve while the younger looked to be my age.

"Sorry, Yūgao-Sempai, Naruko-Chan. Sasuke-Kun is still trying to learn to control the Gōkakyū (Great Fireball)," the older brother said as they came to a stop in front of us.

Sasuke looked away in embarrassment as Yūgao said, "It's okay, Itachi-Kohai. Everyone has trouble controlling a jutsu that they're just starting to learn."

"Niisan, how do you know these people?" Sasuke asked as he tugged on his brother's sleeve.

"I've worked with Kakashi-Sempai and Yūgao-Sempai several times in the past and I've protected Naruko-Chan several times since I joined ANBU."

I nodded to Itachi saying, "Thank you for helping me again last night, Itachi-San."

He smiled softly. "You're welcome, Naruko-Chan. I just wish that the rest of the village could see you in the same light as I do."

"What do you mean by that, Niisan?"

I spoke before anyone could say anything. "I was born on the same night that the Kyūbi attacked the village and was defeated by the Yondaime. Because of that many people think that I'm the reincarnation of the Kyūbi."

Sasuke frowned before saying, "That's a stupid thing for people to think."

I glanced at the others and saw Kakashi, Yūgao, and Itachi giving me subtle nods at my story. Anko, meanwhile, was blushing lightly and stealing glances at Itachi. I looked back at Sasuke and asked, "Do you want to practice your Gōkakyū (Great Fireball) with me?"

Sasuke seemed to forget his disappointment at my treatment by the village as he said, "Sure!"

I nodded to the others and followed Sasuke to the pond. "I assume you know the hand seals for the Gōkakyū (Great Fireball) so tell me how it feels when you use it."

We stopped next to the pond as Sasuke considered what I said. "Well... I feel the chakra build up in my lungs. Then I convert it into Katon chakra. After that I launch it all at once. The Gōkakyū (Great Fireball) usually either fizzles out quickly or flies off in a random direction."

I nodded. "Try showing me then."

He nodded and turned towards the pond. He carefully made the needed hand seals then shouted, "Katon: Gōkakyū (Great Fireball)!"

A ball of fire the size of a soccer ball formed in front of Sasuke's mouth before it flew forward. It traveled about six meters before it fizzled out.

"Try putting more chakra into the technique, Sasuke-San."

"Alright, but that's usually when the jutsu goes off in a random direction."

Sasuke went through the hand seals again and made a Gōkakyū (Great Fireball) the size of a beach ball, but when he launched it it went far to the right for about thirty meters. I nodded at the display and fell into thought. "How did the flow of your chakra feel when you used the jutsu?"

He looked at me as if I was speaking another language. "How did your chakra feel as it moved through your body when you used the Gōkakyū (Great Fireball)?"

"Oh! Well... um, I can feel my chakra build up in my chest and then explode out when I cast the jutsu."

"Try the jutsu again, expect this time imagine that your chakra is traveling down a hallway with a bunch of sliding doors. Instead of throwing all the doors open at once and letting your chakra explode out, open the doors halfway in time with your chakra as it flows out."

Sasuke looked at me skeptically before shrugging and going through the hand seals. This time his Gōkakyū (Great Fireball) went fairly straight for about twenty meters.

"Good job, Sasuke-San." When no response came I turned and saw Sasuke staring at the spot his Gōkakyū (Great Fireball) had landed in shock. I snapped my fingers in front of his face making him jump in surprise.

Before I could say anything he threw his arms around me in a hug as he shouted, "Thanks, Naruko-Chan!"

When he realized what he was doing, Sasuke leaped away from me with a strong blush on his face. "S—s—sorry, Naruko-Chan! Uh, San!"

I just smiled and patted him on the shoulder. "It's alright, Sasuke-Kun. The key to any jutsu is how well you can control your chakra while you cast it."

His blush faded and he gave me a nervous smile. "Thanks, Naruko-Chan."

I nodded as I heard someone call out, "Naruko-Chan!"

I looked around and saw Tenten running across the field with a backpack. I waved to her as Sasuke asked, "Who's that?"

"That's my friend Tenten. I met her earlier today and promised her that I'd help her train."

Sasuke nodded as Tenten came to a stop in front of us, panting slightly from her run. "Hey, Naruko-Chan! Who's this?"

"This is Sasuke. I was just helping him get control of a jutsu that he was struggling with."

"Really? What jutsu was that?"

"The Gōkakyū (Great Fireball)," Sasuke answered with some pride.

"Wow... to know an elemental jutsu already..."

"What do you want to train with, Tenten?" I asked.

"Weapons!" She said as she took off her backpack and pulled out a number of kunai. I took one of her kunai and tested it's balanced then it's sharpness. I raised and eyebrow at both it's near-perfect balance and it's razor sharpness. I looked at the maker's mark and saw that Masuno had made it.

"Your Tou-San makes excellent weapons, Tenten-Chan."

"Thanks, Naruko-Chan." Tenten picked up her backpack by a strap and we all made our way over to the throwing targets.

About half the targets were wooden circles about a meter and a half across with bullseye rings and the other half was human shaped with bullseyes in the center of the chest and face. We stopped about fifteen meters from the human targets and Tenten passed us about a dozen kunai each.

I took my weapons and moved over the the target on the left. I tossed a kunai and watched it hit the outer ring of the chest bullseye at about one o'clock. I nodded to myself and readjusted my grip slightly and threw again. The kunai struck the middle ring at one o'clock again. I readjusted my grip again and threw the kunai dead center. I threw the rest of my kunai before I looked over at the others targets. Only three of Sasuke's kunai were outside the bullseye while all but one of Tenten's kunai was in the bullseye.

"That's some impressive aim, Tenten-Chan."

She blushed slightly at the praise. "Thanks. My Tou-San says that a shinobi that misses is a shinobi that dies."

"He's right," I said as I walked down to my target to retrieve my kunai. The others followed and we inspected out throwing skills. Out of the twelve kunai that I'd thrown only two of them were out of the bullseye. The rest were clustered in a group the size of my hand. I pulled them from the wood and walked back to the throwing line.

We kept practicing with our kunai until Sasuke asked, "Do you two want to practice taijutsu?"

I nodded while Tenten said, "Sure."

Sasuke and I passed Tenten our kunai before we both settled into the opening stances of our respective stances. Sasuke stood with his shoulders square to me, feet wider than his shoulders, and his tucked his fists into the sides of his waist, the opening stance of the Uchiha Saegiru Ken (Intercepter Fist) Style. I took step back so that my right foot was behind my left, angling my body to Sasuke, and brought my open hands up to chin hight.

Sasuke raised an eyebrow and asked, "What style is that?"

"It's a style that I'm making myself with the help of Kakashi-San and Yūgao-San. I haven't come up with a name for it yet, but it is effective."

I took a moment to go over everything that I knew about the Saegiru Ken (Intercepter Fist). Like my style it relied on counter attacks, but my style was much more aggressive while the Saegiru Ken (Intercepter Fist) was meant to keep the opponent at bay until the user's Sharingan could copy and counter the opponent's style. I nodded to myself and rushed him.

Sasuke grinned as my left hook flew past his face, but it quickly disappeared as he moved to block my follow up roundhouse kick. My kick staggered him but he recovered quickly enough to block the barrage of punches that I threw at him. Then he started throwing counter punches at me.

My punch to the face was deflect enough for it to miss before it became an elbow strike to Sasuke's wrist to counter his punch. As soon as his lunch was deflected my elbow strike became a palm strike to the chin. Sasuke took a step back and swept his arm across his body to knock my hand aside. Then he threw a straight punch at my head.

I block his punch with my forearm before snaking my arm up and around his. I trapped his wrist in my armpit and brought my forearm up across his elbow, stopping in time to cause pain and not hyperextending his elbow to breaking point. He yelped in pain and I kicked his knee out from under him. I let go of his arm and wrapped my other arm around his neck then jerked my arm, and his head, to the side. Sasuke froze as he found his vision pointed in a drastically different direction than it was a moment before.

"Looks like I win our first fight, Sasuke-San," I said as I let go of him.

He slowly go to his feet, staring at me with surprise and a hint of awe. Then I heard Anko-Nee shout, "Ha! Pay up, Itachi-Kun!"

I looked over at the others and saw Itachi handing Anko-Nee and Yūgao several Ryō. Kakashi was still reading his book, but I was almost certain that he'd seen every moment of our fight. Tenten, however, was looking at me with stars in her eyes.

"That was so cool!" Tenten cried as she suddenly appeared in front of me with her hands held together, making me take a step back in surprise. "You have to teach me your taijutsu style!"

I scratched the back of my head as I said, "Uh... sure. I can teach you tomorrow around ten or so."

"Yay!" She shouted as she threw her arms around me and picked me up in a bone crushing hug.

"Ten—ten-Chan! Can—can't—breath!" I rasped out as my vision started going dark

She yelped and quickly dropped me shouting, "I'm so sorry, Naruko-Chan!"

I dragged air down my throat until my lungs were full then started coughing. Once I regained my breath I groaned out, "You've got a pretty strong grip, Tenten-Chan."

She blushed and looked away. "Sorry, Naruko-Chan."

"It's alright," I said as I got to my feet. "Do you two want to spar or go get something to eat next?"

A growl from both their stomachs answered my question. Tenten rubbed the back of her head in embarrassment while Sasuke said, "Let's get something to eat. Do you know any good places to eat?"

"I usually eat at Ichiraku. It's one of the few places that won't kick me out or serve me spoiled food."

Tenten frowned and asked, "Why would restaurants do that to you?"

"It's because she was born on the day the Kyūbi attacked," Sasuke answered. "The stupid villagers think that Naruko-Chan is the Kyūbi reborn because of that."

Tenten scowled as she said, "That's stupid. Naruko-Chan's obviously not the Kyūbi, she's too nice."

I gave them a small smile. "It's alright guys, I've gotten use to it. Besides, at least you two know who I really am. Now let's go eat."

They both nodded, but were still upset about how the village treated me. We walked over to the others and I said, "We're going to Ichiraku for dinner. Anko-Nee, can you take my naganata and kusarigama home? "

Anko-Nee nodded. "Sure, no problem."

"Sasuke-Kun, I'll pick you up after you finish eating," Itachi said.

"Okay, Niisan."

I motioned to Sasuke and Tenten and we started walking back towards the village.

Uzumaki Naruko

October 11

5:31 P.M.

One block from Ichiraku

I paused as I felt the presence that'd been following us since we entered the village stop again. I glanced behind us and saw a cream colored blur dart into an alley. Turning back to the others I said, "You two go on ahead, I'll be there in a moment."

"Okay Naruko-Chan," Sasuke said cheerfully. Tenten nodded in agreement and they kept walking towards Ichiraku.

I turned around and walked back to the alley and leaned my shoulder against the wall next to the entrance. A moment later Hinata leaned out from behind the corner and froze when she saw me. "Hello, Hinata-San," I said in greeting.

"EEEPPP!" she cried as she leaped back and tripped on her own feet.

I reached out and grabbed her by the shoulder to steady her. Once I was sure she wouldn't fall I let her go and leaned back against the wall. "Any particular reason that your following me, Hinata-San?"

She blushed and stuttered out something incoherent. "I'm sorry, Hinata-San, but I couldn't understand that."

"I—I—I wa—want—wanted to—to th—thank you f—f—for he—hel—helping m—me ear—earlier to—today."

I pushed myself off of the wall and said, "You're welcome, Hinata-San. Would you like to join me and my friends at Ichiraku?"

"H—hai."

I nodded and started walking towards the stand, hearing Hinata following behind me. When we reached Ichiraku I held the privacy curtains open for Hinata who said, "Arigatō," quietly.

I sat down on Tenten's right and Hinata sat down on my other side while Sasuke sat on the other side of Tenten. "Naruko-Chan, you're back," Teuchi said with a smile as he handed Tenten and Sasuke their orders.

I smiled and said, "Yeah. These are my friends, Uchiha Sasuke, Hashimo Tenten, and Hyūga Hinata."

Teuchi's smile widened. "Any friend of Naruko-Chan is a friend of mine. Your orders'll be on the house tonight."

"Wow! Really?" Tenten asked.

"Yep. Do you want the usual, Naruko-Chan."

I nodded. "Excellent. And how about you, Hinata-Chan?"

She blushed at the affectionate suffix and said, "I—I'll ha—have the s—soy sauce ra—ramen with fi—fishcake, egg, a—and corn pl—please."

"Coming right up," Teuchi said as he turned back to the stove.

"So, Hinata-chan," Tenten asked, "how'd you meet Naruko-Chan?"

"Sh—sh—she fought o—off some bu—bullies tha—that were pi—picking on me ear—earlier to—today."

"You just met her today too?"

Hinata nodded before Sasuke said, "Same with me. I'd just met her when you showed up at the training ground, Tenten-Chan."

They all looked at each other in amazement before turning their gazes towards me. I shrugged and said, "Maybe we were all destined to meet today."

Before anyone could say anything else Teuchi handed Hinata and I our ramen. I clapped my hands together and said, "Itadakimasu," before starting to eat. The others followed my example and soon the only sounds were those of us enjoying our ramen.

I finished my bowl before anyone else and motioned to Teuchi for another. He nodded as I heard the privacy curtains part and someone say, "Naruko-Chan."

I turned and saw Mebuki and Sakura entertaining the stand. "Hello, Mebuki-San, Sakura-San."

"It's good to see you again, Naruko-Chan."

It's nice to see you too, Mebuki-San."

Sakura tentatively stepped around her mother and said, "H—hi, Naruko-San."

I gave her a small smile and nodded to her as Teuchi placed another bowl of ramen in front of me. As I turned back to my ramen Sakura took the seat next to Hinata and Mebuki took the seat after that.

"So, Naruko-Chan," Mebuki said after she and Sakura places their orders. "What weapon did you decide to choose?"

"I chose three actually. The Naginata, kusarigama, and dual kodachi. Tenten-Chan's father, Musano, gave them to me for a reduced price."

"Ah," Mebuki said to Tenten, "So you're Musano-San's daughter."

"Yep. I'm going to become a great konoichi like Tsunade-Sama!"

Mebuki smiled. "That's a fine dream to have, Tenten-San. Naruko-Chan, I'm surprised that you decided to train with three weapons at once."

I shrugged. "It doesn't seem that hard to me, though Kakashi-San, Yūgao-San, and Anko-Nee say that I'm a prodigy."

"Wh—why d—do the—they s—say that, Na—Naruko-Ch—chan?"

"Mainly because I learned how to use Katon: Gōkakyū (Great Fireball), Raiton: Jibashi (Electromagnetic Murder), and Suiton: Teppōdama (Liquid Bullet) in three hours today." Sasuke spat out the ramen in his mouth, Tenten's jaw dropped, Hinata stared at me in disbelief, and Mebuki's glass slipped out of her fingers and broke against the ground.

"What?"

"Naruko-Chan," Mebuki said slowly, "no one except for an Uchiha using the Sharingan could hope to learn three jutsu in three hours."

I blinked at her in surprise before saying, "Oh... I guess I really am a prodigy then."

I turned back to my ramen but noticed that Hinata was moving. "Hinata-Chan?" No response.

"Hinata-Chan?" Still no response.

I reached out and shook her shoulder. She blinked and said, "Wha—what h—hap—happened?"

"I just told everyone that I learned three jutsu in three hours."

"bu—but th—that's—im—impos—impossible."

I shrugged and said, "Well I did it earlier to day."

After that we started talking about each other's lives. Both Sasuke's and Hinata's fathers were hard on them because they were potential clan heirs. Sakura would get teased by other kids about how smart she was and how large her forehead seamed. Tenten wanted to become the next Senju Tsunade, but couldn't seem to be able to get anywhere with anything except for weapons.

Everyone was outraged when I told them about how the village treated me. Especially when Sakura and Hinata were told that the village thought that I was the Kyūbi reborn. When I told them my fake story about why the village hated me Mebuki gave me a subtle nod for coming up with a believable story.

Then Itachi came to take Sasuke home. He left after I promised to help him train tomorrow with Tenten. Not long after that a Hyūga member came to bring Hinata home, pausing only give me a thinly veiled glare. Then Mebuki and Sakura left with another promise of training at ten tomorrow. I looked at Tenten and said, "Well, I guess that we should head home now."

"Yeah," she said half-heartedly.

We bid Teuchi and Ayame goodbye and left the stand. When we got to the point where we'd have to separate I turned to Tenten and said, "I'm glad that we met today, Tenten-Chan."

She smiled and said, "Me too, Naruko-Chan," before pulling me into a short hug. We went our separate ways and I headed towards the apartment that I shared with Anko-Nee.

The apartment complex was about five stories tall and held about ten four room apartments on each floor. Most of the building itself was in various states of disrepair since everyone including the manager had moved out years ago after Anko-Nee and I moved in.

I walked up a stairwell, ignoring the peeling paint and water stains. I made my way down our hallway, stepping around holes in the floor. I didn't bother opening our door, it'd been broken off it's hinges again. Inside Anko-Nee was sweeping up broken glass, shattered plates and bowls, and splinters that raiders from last night had left behind in the kitchen/living room. "Did they spare anything this time?"

Anko-Nee shook her head. "Nope. Bastards trashed everything they could get their hands on last night. Can you check the stash in your room? I haven gotten to mine yet."

I nodded and made my way down the hallway to my room at the end. I idly noted that I'd have to fix the doorframe again since the door itself had been kicked in. Inside my room the remains of my bed and dresser were pushed against the left wall, the few photos I had on the walls were torn down and smashed, and my ceiling fan in the center of the room was dangling by a single wire. Instead my closet my clothes were ripped to pieces and the shelves torn down.

I pushed the debris out of the way and started pulling up floorboards until I could reach the crawl space. Then I started reaching around until my hand brushed cloth. I grabbed the large duffel bag and pulled it out, grunting a little at the weight. I hauled the bag out into my room and started pulling stuff out. I pulled out two sleeping bags, two backpacks of clothes, a small camping stove, a couple pots, a couple cans of stew, a loaf of sealed bread, and a packet of utensils.

I laid out the sleeping bags next to each other and set up the stove. I opened up the cans of stew and pored them into a pot before lighting the stove and setting the pot over top of it. Stirring the stew I could see pieces of carrot, potato, onions, beef, sausage, and some beans floating around in the gravy-like stock. Once the stew started to simmer I set a lid over it and lit it cook. Soon an intoxicating aroma began to permeate the air, drawing Anko-Nee into the room with her own duffel bag.

"That smells sooo good, Naru-Chan," she said, sniffing the air.

She set her duffel bag down next to mine and pulled out another camping stove, a bag of rice, a canteen of water, and a couple of bowls. While she got her stove ready I pored the rice and water into the other pot before handing it over to her. With both pots cooking I shifted closer to Anko-Nee and leaned my head against her shoulder. She wrapped her arm around my shoulders and kissed the top of my head. "I love you, Naruko-Chan."

"I love you too, Anko-Nee."

Beta-ed by Nightwing1287.

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