I DO NOT OWN NARUTO IN ANY WAY SHAPE OR FORM.
Before I begin, I would like to thank everyone who subscribed or favorited this story. You have my gratitude, and you guys keep me going. Thank you *bows*
Chapter 2: the apprentice
"How the hell do you find the square route of 7 ?!?!?"- Naruto Uzumaki, training in algebra.
(taking off from where we were last chapter)
After an eventful day of mobs, strange guns, and ramen, Raigin was walking Naruto home. If it were anyone other than Naruto, he would have just left, but he feared for the boy's safety. Even if the villagers were scared of Raigin, they still attempted to hit Naruto with bottles and rocks, but every time Raigin looked in their direction, the civilians would act like nothing happened. When he finally couldn't take the abuse, after a couple hand signs, Raigin cast the Hidden Mist Jutsu, and the villagers, who couldn't see anything, stopped throwing things at them. Naruto looked up in surprise.
"where did the fog come from?" he asked, puzzled. Raigin looked at him,
"I cast a Jutsu to make this fog Naruto. Now no one can see us." Naruto was floored.
"YOU'RE A NINJA?!!?" shouted Naruto, his excitement making him forget about his promise to stop shouting. Raigin just smiled at him
" Not really Naruto. I know several ninjutsu and genjutsu, but I was never a ninja of any village." Naruto looked puzzled.
"if you're not a ninja, why do you need jutsu?" he asked Raigin.
"well, in the world of a sniper ninja, you need to occasionally defend yourself if the enemy spots you. So all snipers are required to know at least two types of clone jutsu and the replacement technique. It would also help if you could learn a few offensive ninjutsu, as well as a minor genjutsu, as you will still need to go on standard ninja missions." explained Raigin.
"aawww! Come on, that's a ton of work!" whined Naruto. Raigin turned serious "Naruto, this path is not an easy one. Being a sniper are considered the most dangerous occupation in the military. Even a captured Hokage isn't tortured nearly as much as a sniper is." Naruto looked up at the Raigin, a look of confusion on his face. "why?" he asked. Raigin's eyes hardened as he began to think about it. "snipers are in the most danger because of what they do. On most missions, they assassinate valuable targets, like a crime boss or a clan head, and occasionally a feudal lord." Naruto nodded to show he was paying attention. "Now imagine that someone had killed the Hokage. Pretend he was your best friend in the world." Naruto shifted uneasily, as the Hokage was his best and only friend, other than Raigin and the ramen shop people. "now imagine that the old man was killed. Not in a battle, but walking down the street. And there was no one around for hundreds of feet." Naruto thought about it, and he was surprised to find he felt very angry at the very thought of this.
But Raigin wasn't done. "now, finally imagine if you had found and caught the person responsible for killing the Hokage. Now don't answer, but what would you do when you got him?" Raigin finished. Naruto was lost in thought. If anyone had ever done that to a friend of his, Hokage or not, life would be very painful and short for whoever did it. Naruto was surprised at his thoughts.
"where the hell did these thoughts come from?" he thought. "I never think like this." He looked up at Raigin.
He just nodded. "I understand Naruto. To one as young as yourself, this train of thought is unhealthy. So lets move on with our conversation." Raigin smiled. "anyway, you need these skills to protect yourself if you are ever caught on a mission. Most of the skills you need you will in the ninja academy. I'm judging by the way you are wearing your goggles you attend the school right?" asked Raigin still smiling.
Naruto looked surprised. "is it that obvious?" he asked, starting to laugh at himself. Raigin laughed with him. "well, I had a 50-50 chance of getting it right, and I think you want to be a sniper right?"
Naruto nodded. "you bet I do. Your job is one of the coolest I've ever seen!" said Naruto, shaking with excitement. "I want one of those guns! And I want to be able to hit a cigarette out of someone's mouth!" said Naruto, Eyes sparkling with this happy prospect.
(AN: think Monkey D. Luffy from one piece, when he gets real excited by something. See episode 88, around 11:30-11:45 or so, its hilarious)
Raigin smiled at Naruto, glad that the boy had really taken interest in his art. Not many people did. Everyone he showed it to usually walked away mumbling "kids and their damn toys" and didn't pursue this further. But Naruto really wanted to learn, and Raigin was willing to teach.
During their conversation, the pair had arrived at Naruto's apartment, supplied by him by the Hokage. "well Raigin, this is where I live." said Naruto with a happy face. " thanks for walking me here."
"no problem Naruto." said Raigin. "hey Naruto, do you think I could speak with your parents about the sniper path? It is really important that they know, as it is extremely dangerous." Naruto's happy face disappeared, and was replaced with a sad expression.
"Raigin, I don't have any parents. They died a very long time ago." now no one had actually told him this, but being eight years old, Naruto was able to piece together why he had no parents. Raigin looked shocked.
"really? You live by yourself?" he asked. Naruto nodded. "that would explain why no one would help him during the attack." thought Raigin. He turned to Naruto.
"ok then, seeing as your all set, I have to go and meet with the Hokage." He said to Naruto. Naruto looked sadly at him.
"can I see you tomorrow?" he asked hopefully. Raigin smiled, but it hurt him inside to see that look on Naruto's face. A look of loneliness, and sorrow.
"of course you can." said Raigin. "how about this, I'll even look for you tomorrow." he said, smiling at the blonde boy's reaction.
"you will? Really?" he said, a look of pure happiness on his face.
"of course I will, we're friends aren't we?" responded Raigin. And with that, he jumped away, leaving Naruto happier than he has ever been in his entire life.
On his way to the Hokage tower, Raigin was absorbed in his thoughts, all of them about Naruto (no pedophile lol.:) ) "why does everyone seem to hate this boy, he is only around eight years old and yet he is openly hunted by the villagers." thought Raigin, frowning at this memory. "if it wasn't for me, the poor kid would have died. I just can't get over it."
He continued roof jumping until he reached the Hokage tower. He entered the building and the receptionist sent him to the Hokage's office. After a brief wait, the Hokage called for him, and Raigin entered the room. Almost immediately, the Hokage smiled at his visitor.
"why Mr. Tomayoko! What a pleasant surprise! How is the "legendary Eagle Eye" faring these days?" asked the aged Hokage, a look of amusement on his face. Raigin smiled back at him.
"well I'm doing fine, but it appears that more time has passed than I thought, you got old since you left my village." he said with a smirk on his face. The Hokage merely took the jab in stride, not letting it bother him. "so what do I owe the pleasure?" asked Sarutobi.
Raigin looked at the wizened Hokage with an amused expression. "are you telling me you are also senile? What happened to the "Professor"?" said Raigin. "but if you really forgot, I'm here about my sniper training course." said Raigin, still smiling.
The Hokage nodded at him. "of course. I know why you are here Raigin, and I already have a list of candidates for your class." the Hokage reached into his desk and handed Raigin a scroll.
"on that scroll you will find all the info you need about your future charges. As well as any Blood Line Traits (BLT's) or mental issues that may come up. As you can see, not many volunteered for the class." Raigin nodded, as there were only three names on the list.
"well let's see here, Shikamaru Nara, Ten-Ten… does she have a last name? and Hinata Hyuuga. Interesting selection here. I'm particularly interested in the Hyuuga. Her clans Byakugan will prove invaluable to the sniper pair she is assigned to." Said Raigin nodding again. The Hokage smiled.
"well after I described what a sniper does and their role in the battle field, Ten-Ten and Shikamaru volunteered immediately. I think Shikamaru just wants to be lazy while Ten-Ten is the best ranged weapon master I have ever seen." explained the Hokage.
"Hinata I think chose it because she doesn't think she is strong enough to be a combat ninja. While I disagree with her self image, she still wants to be a sniper." finished the Hokage. Raigin looked up from the list and nodded. He knew that after the sniper training, Hinata would surely be strong enough to rival any of the combat ninjas, as every sniper must be able to defend his or herself in order to graduate from the program. Raigin hesitated, as he had another few questions he needed answers to.
The Hokage noticed this and said, "you seem preoccupied. Is there something wrong?" Raigin sighed and looked at the old man that was his friend. "Actually yes, Hokage-sama. I had a few questions regarding a young boy I met today his name is-" "Naruto?" finished the Hokage.
Raigin paused for a second, and nodded. "what do you want to know about Naruto?" asked the old man. Raigin took a deep breath, let it out, and said "why is this boy despised as much as he is? He is only eight years old, yet the people treat him a demon." Raigin said, hoping that the Hokage could tell him something about the villagers behavior. "also, earlier when I showed up to save him from a mob, as soon as I drew my weapon, he looked at me like I had betrayed him, and believed I was there to hurt him. Why does he think that? It's not normal for a boy to think that way." Raigin finished, looking to the Hokage.
The Hokage looked at him, sighed, and stoop up. He turned and face the window, and seemed to be debating about something. With a final sigh, he turned and faced Raigin. "what I'm about to tell you can never leave this room." said the Hokage, casting a silence jutsu over the office. "know what I'm going to tell you may very well change your opinion of Naruto. I hope for his sake that you don't take this the wrong way." said the Hokage.
Raigin nodded "I will try to keep an open mind Hokage-sama." the Hokage smiled at him. "at this stage, that's the best I could hope for. Now please listen and hold your questions until the end." Raigin nodded again, and the Hokage continued. "eight years ago, a giant Nine-Tailed Fox attacked our village. As I'm sure you know. But anyway, the fox was slowly making its way toward the village, and we were losing ground and ninja. Just when all hope was lost, the Fourth Hokage appeared on his toad summon. The fourth did what no other ninja could do. He "defeated" the kyuubi." the Hokage paused, and then continued. "the truth is, the fourth never defeated the Kyuubi. He actually sealed it in the body of a newborn child. And that child is Naruto." the Hokage finished. Raigin looked a little surprised.
He thought about it for a second and looked slowly at the Hokage. "so Naruto is the Kyuubi's container? As in he keeps it from returning to our world?" asked Raigin, trying to understand.
The Hokage beamed at Raigin. "Exactly!!! You are probably one of the first people to ever see it that way! But here is the real question, do you still like Naruto?" asked the Hokage.
Raigin looked at the Hokage, a smile on his face. " why would I be mad at the boy that probably saved the village?" said Raigin "besides, I really like the loudmouth little guy! He is a curious little man that just brightens my day!"
the Hokage smiled at Raigin's response. "Excellent! Thank you Raigin. You are probably Naruto's only real friend in this village." Raigin face turned serious again. "but why do the other villagers hate him? I assume they all know?" he asked.
"Well, most of the villagers are just frightened. They fear things they don't understand. Unfortunately, it's likely that they will never see Naruto as anything other than a demon." the Hokage finished.
Raigin, after hearing this, decided to ask a question that he had been debating on asking. Honestly, Raigin wasn't sure if he should ask the question, but after hearing why people hate him, he felt that he had no choice. Besides, it might be nice.
He took a deep breath and said "I was wondering Hokage-sama, would it be alright if I adopt Naruto and train him to be a sniper?" he asked. The Hokage looked taken aback at the suddenness of the question. "you want to adopt him?"
Raigin started to shift a little uneasily. "Yes, I do want to adopt him. I think that anyone who has suffered as much as him deserves some happiness at some point. Granted, I don't know if he will be happy with me, but I think he will be happy to live with me. Besides, I want to train him to be a sniper. He is really good at it."
he Hokage looked a little surprised at this information. "he's good at it? When I made the presentation at the academy the other day he showed no interest." said the Hokage.
Raigin smiled "well, I let him try using my pistol, and on his very first shot he just barely missed the bull's eye. And he was aiming for my hole that I had made. He's a natural at this." Raigin said, a bit proud.
Sarutobi raised an eyebrow. "well if you say he's that skilled, then I suppose an adoption can be arranged. You'll have to ask him though." at this Raigin smile grew larger. "I wouldn't have it any other way."
It was the beginning of a new day, and Naruto had just woken up to find that there were no traps set on his door this morning. God he hated traps. They were there almost every morning when he woke up, and they are always obvious. The worst part about them is the fact that they were all set to kill him if he tripped one, so he devised a safe way to check for them. Using a 6-foot pole, he opened the door and just swung the stick inside the door frame. Doing this usually sets off a kunai knife or a small paper bomb. But today, there was no trap. And his proof came in the form of Raigin.
True to his word, Raigin had come to him, and no sooner had he done so, Raigin brought him the Hokage's office. At first Naruto was confused. Why the hell would Raigin bring him to the Hokage? Was he in trouble? His thoughts immediately changed when he saw the old man, who was smiling at Naruto, assuring him that he was in fact not in trouble. After a quick hello and a hug for the Hokage, they told Naruto of their plan to have Raigin adopt him.
Throughout the entire conversation, Naruto had a stunned look on his face. Some one actually wanted to adopt him? Is it for real? Is he dreaming? Anymore stupid questions to ask himself? Nope. Good.
"so that's what we were thinking Naruto." said Raigin. "if I were to adopt you not only would you have a family to live with, it will also be easier to train you to be a sniper. No the choice is yours and your alone, what do you want?" said Raigin, already knowing the answer by the grin that was slowly spreading on Naruto's face.
Naruto looked up at Raigin, a look of total happiness on his face. Then he shouted as loud as he could "HELL YES!!!!" and tackled Raigin in a hug.
The Third Hokage, who witnessed the entire thing, just smiled at the pair, happy that something finally went Naruto's way.
Well, there's the next chapter. I again would like to thank all of you who favorited or kept an eye on the story. I know that this was kinda mushy but there will be more rifles, team mates, and kick ass fights later on. Just working the plot. Please review and thank you