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Ever since the attack of the Kyuubi, Naruto was shunned as 'Konoha's Demon' when he was born with the Kyuubi sealed in him. His life was miserable beyond grief. Time passed by and he has slowly proven himself as its jailer instead of its incarnate. But despite this, love never truly touched the young jinchuuriki's heart until death came over him.
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A/N: I do not own Naruto, Bleach or any other canonical characters. If I did, I wouldn't be here in FF now would I?
A/N: I am terribly sorry for the slow update. I tend to become single-minded when I start watching an anime. And the culprit for my slow update would be the anime Shakugan no Shana. It gave me inspiration for the next few chapters of this fic.
Talking
'thinking/flashback'
Kyuubi Talking/Jutsu
'Kyuubi Thinking'
Chapter 14
Flames of Love
The next morning in Konoha…
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Morning had fully risen as it painted the sky with its bright radiance of light. As the people of Konoha take to another day of toil in their lives, Naruto was busy training in his old training grounds. Although it would be better to train back in training ground forty-four where he lived, he could not afford to give away his position since his training there has created a shroud of suspicion among the nearby shinobi patrolling close to it.
The sweat on his brow and half naked body showed how much he had trained in that area as he made another downward vertical swing with his handmade bokken. Around the young blonde were trees used as pin cushions for his kunai and shuriken, several fallen trees indicating the use of jutsus, and several smashed rocks indicated by the rubble left behind. If one where to look now, they would see what looked like the aftermath of a battle and the young blonde that stood in the center was the survivor.
Naruto then dropped his bokken as he too dropped onto the sweat dampened grass. He was panting hard from a tough morning of training. He felt his strength slowly return as he slowly dozed off to sleep. When the young blonde opened his eyes, he saw that it was dark. He could smell the fowl odor of fur, sulfur and water in the humid atmosphere. He had once again entered his mindscape. Naruto got up from the wet sewage floor of his mind and looked into the bars where his furry friend lay. The Kyuubi gazed back at his master with his crimson slit eyes.
Gaki, as much as I'd like to see you train hard for the upcoming battles, it would be wise if you stopped to listen once in a while.
The young blonde looked at the fiery kitsune with curiosty.
"But I need to train hard for the chuunin exams and for the battle with the elemental gods. I'm not sure if I can stand a chance against them if they decide to fight. Remember, they have an army guarding them. We can't involve the ninth division or the shinobi village for the battle with them."
The young blonde had his point but his tenant saw how exhausted his master was. For the past six years, he has been pushing his limitations in chakra and reiatsu control. Alongside the control exercises, he has been practicing the jutsus, kido, and shunpo as well as his taijutsu and zanjutsu. If that wasn't enough stress as it is, currently, he has been practicing control of his youki and learning how to gain control of the balanced energy in between chakra and reiatsu. Overall, he was exhausted both mentally and physically.
Naruto's fiery tenant was both annoyed and irritated at his master's current state and voiced out to him.
Even if you do train hard, what use is it to drain yourself to a near death state every single time? How do you expect to save your loved ones if you end up killing yourself first?
Naruto chuckled at the kitsune's well made counterpoint. After letting his amusement escape, he then answered,
"Alright, I understand, I'll rest more. I just can't let myself stay lax if I want to become strong enough to save my precious people. But while were at it, lets recap everything we've done so far."
Kyuubi then sat back down in his cage as his nine tails swayed in the background. The red mane fox let out a sigh as his master sat down on the wet floor with his arms crossed and his face in his serious mode as they both eyed each other in absolute concentration. The Kyuubi was the first to break the deathly silence.
For the past six years, we've trained hard in chakra and reiatsu control which has become second nature to you.
The young blonde nodded in acknowledgement, urging his tenant to continue as he lent his ears.
Included in those six years were your basic jutus and some low grade kido to avert possible suspicions. Part of those jutsus you practiced secretly, were your elemental jutus as well. Though we didn't touch up on genjutsu since it really won't be necessary yet, we did manage to finish your own original jutsu that your father never achieved.
"Don't forget that it isn't the only original jutsu I've created. But that should sum up everything we've learned for the past six years."
Naruto said to his fury tenant. Kyuubi then continued his assessment as the young blonde paid heed once more on Kyuubi's words.
Currently you've been training in youki control and your higher level jutsus and kido. But you have yet to bring out my zanpakuto form or find the correct balance of chakra and reiatsu to create your fusion techniques. At the very least, you could do that.
Naruto sighed as he bowed his head in defeat. Until now, he had been unable to bring out Kyuubi in his zanpakuto form. He knew it would be a difficult task since he was trying to bring to reality an ethereal weapon out into the physical world, but he never expected this much of a difficulty.
"You know Kyuubi, it would be hard for you to appear in the real world in your zanpakuto form because it would mean materializing my reiatsu based sword into the real world were chakra is predominant. It's actually as difficult as it sounds."
Both master and tenant were stumped at how to perform such an act. It was hard enough to channel enough reiatsu in the living world, but to materialize it so that it retains a tangible form without restrictions, is quite the challenge. Unless Naruto manages to find the energy balance between chakra and reiatsu soon, materializing his zanpakuto would be a far cry.
Time had past for quite a while now as morning settled in the sky. Naruto took note of the time and gathered his clothing. But before he took off to leave, he performed a simple fire jutsu and burned his bokken till only ashes remained to flutter in the wind. Even the very equipment he used could leave traces and he did not want the ANBU or any shinigami to find out about his current location.
When the young blonde left his home and began strolling through the streets of Konoha, he remembered that he needed to have his picture taken for his official papers that signify he is a registered shinobi of Konoha. He quickly returned home, took the necessary papers as he filled them up on his way to the photographer.
Normally he would have made a scandalous prankster picture for his official photo, but this time, he knew it was serious business to be a shinobi. So he just gave his foxy grin with a 'thumbs down' gesture as his photo. He then took to the academy and handed his papers to the waiting Hokage and took his seat in front of the old warrior.
Sarutobi looked through the form briefly and occasionally eyed the blonde. The old Hokage wasn't a fool and could see through the fake smile of Naruto. The young blonde was determined by the flaring azure color that dominated his eyes. Sarutobi knew that something had changed in him. Those once deep cerulean eyes of sadness now had a fiery determination pouring out from them. Sarutobi sighed as he looked at the young blonde.
'Naruto, I don't understand how you could have changed so much, but something is definitely amiss here. Whatever happened to you Naruto? I have no choice but to pry deeper. I hope you will forgive me for my intrusion.'
"It looks like everything is in order Naruto."
The old Hokage said to the young blonde.
"I'm surprised that you actually took a picture that wasn't very prank-like."
Naruto smiled again as he scratched his head and replied,
"It's an official document so I need to be as serious as I can. After all, I'm a genin now."
Sarutobi smiled at the words of the young blonde. At least he was sure that Naruto was maturing in the right direction. He then put down the paper on his desk and stamped it with his seal of approval. He then ordered the jounin next to him to have it added to the list of genin teams in his office. When the jounin finally left, Sarutobi then placed his elbows on his desk and leaned his chin on his hands as he eyed the young blonde carefully. Naruto could easily see where this was going and dropped his smile as he curiously asked,
"Oji-san, what's the matter?"
Sarutobi then smiled once more.
"Oh, nothing Naruto. Actually, I wanted to know how you've been doing lately. Have you been training hard? You are after all a genin now."
Naruto then smiled as he gave the Hokage a determined look and leaned his right arm on the backrest.
"I'm doing great oji-san! I've been training as hard as I can so I can take your place soon!"
Sarutobi chuckled at that bold statement.
"That's great to know Naruto. Maybe when I have time off I can see you train. But really…"
The old Hokage begun to eye the young blonde seriously.
"How are you doing? Ever since you witnessed the Uchiha massacre, you've been changing a lot. Are you alright Naruto? Is something bothering you?"
Naruto looked down on the floor as he thought hard on what to say. This action of course caused the old Hokage to soften his approach as he thought he struck a nerve.
"I'm really sorry for bringing this up Naruto. I've just been—"
"Worried about me?"
The young blonde looked at the old Hokage with confidence after finishing the old man's words.
"Thanks for worrying about me oji-san. But I'm fine. Actually, ever since that thing with the Uchiha happened I really thought hard if I still wanted to become a shinobi. Well, I think you can see my decision now."
Sarutobi still kept his inquisitive gaze as he replied,
"But even a shinobi needs to let his feelings out. After witnessing something like that, it would be very traumatic for the person. Are you sure you're fine? I'm always here if ever you need to talk about anything Naruto."
Naruto didn't break his confident gaze though he could see that Sarutobi was prying hard for the information.
"I'm really fine oji-san! Stop being such a worrywart. I can take care of myself! I'm not a baby anymore, I'm a genin of Konoha!"
The young blonde said as he flailed his arms around to exaggerate his reply. Sarutobi knew that he wasn't going to budge one bit. If he pressed any harder, it might bring out some things that Naruto wouldn't want to give willingly and strain their relationship. The old Hokage nodded in defeat
'I guess Naruto needs more time. But I do hope he does open up to someone soon. And I hope that that person will accept him wholeheartedly. I think I know just the team to place him in! It's very well balanced and perfect for him to work in without much worries.'
Amidst the conversation, Naruto felt another presence close to the room. He knew who it was and still went on as if he weren't there in the first place. And right on cue the door slid open revealing none other than Konohamaru charging recklessly at the Hokage with shuriken in hand.
"Oji-san fight me! The title of the Fifth Hokage belongs to me Konohamaru"
Konohamaru took his shuriken and was about to make his blow until he tripped over his scarf and fell flat on his face. Ebisu followed after and screamed when he saw the fallen form of Konohamaru.
'Some things never change. Looks like I have to get his butt into gear as well.'
"Is this a trap?"
The brown haired boy said as he rubbed the hurting area of his face.
"Are you alright Konohamaru-sama? There are no traps by the way."
The blue clothed man said as he adjusted his black, round shades. Konohamaru stood up and upon childish instinct, walked over to the young blonde and blamed him for his fall. Naruto calmly picked him up by the collar as he eyed him menacingly. Ebisu panicked at the situation his student was in.
"What do you think you are doing? He is the grandson of the great Third Hokage!"
Naruto briefly looked at the shade wearing man and back at Konohamaru. Konohamaru inwardly smirked at his luck.
"What's the matter? Why don't you hit me if you can? You're no match for a grandson of a Hokage!" 'Good…just like all the others. He won't hit me. I'm the Hokage's grandson there's no way that a coward like him would ever dare to…'
"Like I care about that baka…"
Konohamaru's pride cost him dearly as Naruto elbowed his head. Konohamaru fell to the floor face flat once again leaving a panicked Ebisu and a sighing Hokage as Naruto calmly walked out the same way he came in.
'I knew my grandson would learn his lesson one of these days. But of all people Naruto was the one to teach him that lesson. Well he had it coming to him and Kami-sama decided that it would be the former Hokage's son to carry it out. Minato would be laughing his hair off at the irony of it. But hopefully, Naruto will be just like you Minato.'
Sarutobi crossed his arms and nodded at that thought.
----------o)0(o----------
Naruto walked through the streets with his hands in his pocket as he made his way towards the Konoha Library. He still had a lot of training to catch up with and wished not to slack off. The young blonde went on his merry way without a care in the world. Of course, it didn't mean his senses weren't sharp at all. While the young blonde traveled the streets, a shady figure kept following him in the shadows. The young blonde casually turned at the next corner and made a clone of for the shady figure to follow as the original shunpo'd his way to the Library just in time for the shady figure to see the clone walking. The trick was flawlessly performed and worked perfectly as the shady figure did not notice the sudden body double.
The clone's misadventure
The shady figure kept creeping in the shadows as it followed the clone. The body double kept on track and walked at a steady pace despite knowing it was followed. The clone kept moving until it halted at one alleyway and turned around and screamed,
"Don't follow me! What do you want?!"
He said to the badly camouflaged young boy who stuck to the wall. The boy didn't flinch thinking that his disguise still had its effect.
"Um, that's really obvious."
The clone said as his face twitched in annoyance.
The young boy dropped his wooden fence painted paper and smirked causing the blonde to sweatdrop.
"Nice job detecting me. I should have expected it from the guy I've heard rumors about."
The young boy walked up to the blonde and pointed at him as he said,
"I don't mind being your follower."
Naruto sweatdropped once more at the antics of Konohamaru. Inwardly though, he was laughing his heart out at the scene that unfolded before him. The young blonde knew that Konohamaru's determination was real and decided to play a little prank with him to lighten the mood.
"Well if you're going to be my follower, you'd best catch up to me and work hard!"
With that, the clone ran off with Konohamaru giving chase. He ran to and fro without speeding up too much to lose him or allowing him to catch up. Konohamaru never had run this fast in his entire life.
"Boss! You're moving too fast!"
"Don't complain if you want to follow me around!"
The game of cat and mouse kept dragging on until they both arrived at a nearby forest. The Naruto clone stopped at the clearing and waited until Konohamaru finally caught up. He panted as he collapsed face first into the blanket of grass that paved the field.
"How…do…you…run…so…fast…"
Konohamaru huffed.
"Well those laps in the Academy do wonders for your stamina and chakra."
Naruto said as he smiled.
Konohamaru sat up still panting. Naruto ran much faster than Konohamaru could ever catch up to that it took all of Konohamaru's strength to at least keep the young blonde in sight.
"Why so down? Don't tell me you gave up after all that? We just passed by three corners, jumped over five trash cans, dove under twenty passing merchants, evaded fifty of those merchants for accidentally wrecking their stuff on the way, and ran around fifty five times till they lost track of us."
The brown haired boy pouted at the young blonde. Naruto sweatdropped at what he just said when he saw the boy's expression. The clone then reached out his hand and pulled up Konohamaru to his feet. The brown haired boy tried really hard but was thoroughly tired from all that running and it was easy to see. Naruto took this opportunity to teach the young boy his first original jutsu.
"Since were all warmed up, how about I show you something cool?"
Konohamaru brightened up at the sound of learning a new jutsu. He nodded and paid attention carefully at the young blonde. Naruto then placed his hands together in a familiar seal and shouted,
"Henge!"
Naruto transformed into a naked female version of himself with smoke covering the breasts and womanhood of his female form. Konohamaru's nose began to bleed as he fell backwards to meet the grassy floor once again. When Naruto returned back to his original form, Konohamaru livened up once more as he said in excitement,
"Boss, that was cool! Can you teach me how to do that?!"
"Sure! It's called Oiroke no Jutsu. All you have to do is imagine a beautiful babe and transform into her."
Konohamaru gave it a shot as he molded his chakra for the technique. When he shouted 'Henge', he ended up transforming into a fat and ugly female counterpart of himself.
"Konohamaru…you've never seen a naked woman before have you?"
The brown haired boy shook his head. Naruto then explained how to perform the technique properly and the basics of the perverted jutsu. Konohamaru tried again and again all to no avail. The pair then took a break near a vending machine as they sat down on a log nearby and relaxed.
"By the way Konohamaru, Why are you so obsessed with Hokage-ji-san?"
Konohamaru frowned as he remembered the reason.
"Oji-san gave me the name Konohamaru. He took it off from the name of this village. But even though it's a name that everyone should have heard many times, no one calls me by that name. Whenever anyone sees or calls me, they only see the grandson of the Hokage. No one recognizes me as an individual."
He paused as he thought hard upon that subject while Naruto looked at him in concern.
"I hate that…so…so I want the title of Hokage right now."
He said as he clenched his fist. Naruto was not pleased by what he heard. He then crossed his arms and said,
"Who's going to recognize an idiot like you?"
"What?!"
Konohamaru looked at the blonde in confusion.
"It's not a title that a kid can carry so easily."
The vexed Konohamaru stood up in angst at the pre-teen who he looked up as his boss. Naruto didn't show surprise or flinched at the sudden outburst of the angry Konohamaru.
"It's not easy. You keep saying 'Hokage', 'Hokage'. If you want the title so badly…"
"What?"
Konohamaru responded. He waited until Naruto made his infamous foxy grin and eyed the brown haired boy with his eyes now burning a cyan color. Determination poured out of the young blonde as Konohamaru subconsciously backed away one step in fear and awe at the immense dtermination the young blonde emitted. Naruto then sharpened his gaze as he said,
"You need to defeat me first."
Konohamaru was speechless, but determined nonetheless. And as luck would have it, Ebisu appeared just in time to do 'damage control' of the situation.
"I found you!"
Both Konohamaru and Naruto eyed the man as they instinctively got into a defensive stance.
"Now Konohamaru-sama, let us go home."
Ebisu said as he approached them.
"NO!"
Konohamaru shouted back before throwing his fists up.
"I'm going to defeat the geezer right now and get the title of Hokage right now! Don't bother me!"
Ebisu failed to hear his words as he slowly walked towards them to forcibly take Konohamaru away. He began to lecture Konohamaru as he approached.
"A Hokage is a title you receive when you understand the principles of morality, knowledge, loyalty, getting along with family, and can use more than one thousand techniques…"
Konohamaru did the only thing he could do, perform the first jutsu he learned from Naruto.
"Henge!"
Konohamaru transformed perfectly into an older, hot, naked female version of himself.
"Take that! Oiroke no jutsu!"
After Konohamaru transformed back to his real form, Ebisu stood as still as a statue. He was jawdropped at the newfound 'power' of his student and how perverse it was. Konohamaru on the other hand was confused.
"What? It didn't work. But it worked properly when Naruto-nii-san did it to me."
Ebisu blushed in embarrassment and anger at what he just saw and heard.
"What an indecent technique! I am a gentleman! I will never fall for a technique as base as that. Konohamaru-sama, you're just going to get dumber and dumber if you hang around him!"
Ebisu said as he tried to yank at the scarf of the brown haired boy from his spot. He continued his rants of Naruto as he said,
"The quickest path to becoming Hokage is to listen to me! Now let's go home."
Konohamaru resisted but despite his efforts, he was slowly being pulled from his spot. It was a one sided tug of war until a cry was heard.
"Kage Bunshin no jutsu!"
Thirty clones appeared beside the clone that performed it. Konohamaru was shocked at the sheer number of the clones that appeared.
"Wow! That's amazing!"
Ebisu let go of Konohamaru and adjusted his shades.
"This is silly. I am an elite teacher even if I do not look like one. I am different from Mizuki."
Ebisu calmly approached the large squadron of Narutos. All of them tensed as Ebisu prepared for battle. Naruto made the first move.
"Henge!"
All the clones shouted in unison. Smoke engulfed them and when it finally subsided, it revealed the thirty clones have transformed into naked female versions of themselves.
Ebisu was shocked as his jaw dropped and lost his fighting nerve.
"Ebisu-sama!"
A unison cry of the vixens echoed through the shade wearing man's ears right before they jumped on the helpless man. Ebisu had blood streaming from his nose as he fell back on the hard ground from blood loss. He was defeated in the most embarrassing and perverted way. Naruto then dispersed the remaining clones and grinned at his victory.
"I call it the Harem no jutsu!"
After Ebisu's defeat, Konohamaru was burning with anger.
"Kuso! I couldn't even defeat glasses-teacher again! I want the title that will make everyone recognize me, so why?!"
Naruto looked at him and said to him once more.
"It's not that easy."
"What?"
Konohamaru looked at Naruto once more still in confusion.
"You're trying to take the title of Hokage, the ninja that everyone in the village will recognize. I'm sure there will be a lot of unpleasant things, and things that will baffle you. I finally have one person that recognizes me, but it still took a lot of work. You need to be prepared."
Konohamaru was still confused.
"Prepared for …?"
And right on cue, Naruto eyed the brown haired boy with his flaming azure eyes.
"To be able to receive the title of Hokage, which everyone will look up to and the fact there is no shortcut to become one."
Konohamaru was wide eyed in astonishment before he gazed at the blonde with determination in his eyes. The brown haired boy then turned around and said,
"Lecturing me like you're all that? I quit being your follower…"
Suddenly a kunai shot out behind Konohamaru and landed on the top of the tallest tree in that forest. It easily stood fifty meters. Konohamaru looked back and saw it was Naruto who threw it. The young blonde smirked.
"Good! From this day on you make your own path! Until you're able to grab that kunai from that tree, then I will be your boss and Hokage and you will do as I say. But if you do grab it, then show it to me and fight me with it for your freedom. I will be a ninja starting tomorrow so it will be hard for me to see you again. Until then…Ja ne!"
Naruto then waved his hand goodbye and dispersed himself allowing the wind to drive the smoke into nonexistence. Konohamaru then saluted the wind and turned to look at the black blade that shined in the setting sun.
'I will take that kunai Naruto-nii-san. And when I do, I will fight you for the title of Hokage. Just you wait! I'll show you and everyone else what I'm made of!'
Konohamaru began climbing the tree and stumbled but he never gave up. Sarutobi who was watching everything unfold before his eyes from the crystal ball smiled at the determination of Konohamaru and the change in attitude.
'The real path to become a ninja has only begun.'
Sarutobi then left the room to attend his remaining duties for the day…catching up on his reading. He pulled out an infamous orange book and giggled pervertedly in between pages.
Original Naruto's misadventure
The original Naruto shunpo'd his way through and finally entered through the double doors of the Konoha Library. He saw stacks and shelves of books lined up and many people seated or looking through the several shelves in search of the knowledge they seek. He was about to ask the librarian for the information he needed until he remembered the last time he wasn't allowed inside and rejected completely.
Flashback
"Excuse me…"
A young Naruto asked the head librarian at the desk. She turned around and saw the young blonde.
"AHH! D-demon child! Get out of here before you taint this place with your evil!"
Naruto was utterly confused.
"But I need to get in and look up for some help about jutsus."
"What?! The demon wants to learn how to kill us! In the name of the Hokage, I will not allow you to enter this place for a demon child like you to learn how to slaughter us again!"
The head librarian began squealing profanities at the young blonde who just backed away. Soon, several people in the library began to throw the books at him until he ran out with bruises all over his head and a wounded eye.
End of Flashback
Naruto turned on his heel and left through the same doors. Many glares accompanied him as some who exited with him and intentionally bumped him causing him to land on the puddle of mud just at the steps.
"Ha! That oughta teach you from steppin' in human territory fox demon!"
The man spat at the blonde and left on his merry way. Naruto wiped the spit of his face and performed a one handed jutsu and whispered,
"Suiton, Mizukei no jutsu."
He then used the saliva and whipped the man's belt off causing him to fluster in embarrassment as several female onlookers laughed at his predicament. When he looked back to see the one who performed the dastardly deed, he saw no one.
'That should take care of him. Now, on to business.'
The blonde mentally said as he entered through the ventilation once more in his fox form. As he peered through the vent opening, he poured chakra to his eyes. His vision extended tenfold as he easily saw even the tiniest of dust particles and flakes shake of from a person's hair on the other end of the library thirty meters away. With his enhanced vision, he scoped through the racks until he found his desired books.
Lightning began to erupt from his body until it leaped out in seven directions and ran through the pipelines until they jumped to the electrical ones. When they reached the area where the books were located, the tiny currents of electricity dispersed in to the ground before rematerializing as clones of the original. The clones then disguised themselves as regular civilians.
'This is actually quite handy. Ok, clones, search through the books for information on the ancient sealing technique and what language it is. Search what you can about chakra, reiatsu and youki. And finally, everything you can know about the elemental gods and shinigamis.'
The white kitsune mentally said to his clones. Kyuubi on the other hand was curious about his master's actions.
What about jutsus? Aren't you going to search for some in here?
'No. The Konoha Library doesn't have jutsus aside from the basics. They aren't stupid enough to allow the public knowledge of high level jutsus. Besides, we already have jutsus from the scroll and the black book. That reminds me, I better get the book that we stole from the Archives.'
Naruto then molded reiatsu until it materialized into the black book that was dearer than his life. He flipped through the pages until he found the inscription and released the sealed book within his black book.
Each of the kitsunes had their tasks set. The original would look through the book about the ancient sealing technique. One of his clones would look through the information concerning the sealing technique while another on the language used. The third one would search through the books about chakra. The fourth clone would look through what he can about reiatsu and the fifth one about youki. The last two would look through information about the shinigamis and elemental gods. Naruto didn't expect much, but he knew that he was bound to find something through these halls of pages.
In about an hour of research, the clone working on chakra dispersed itself allowing the original to absorb all the data.
'Obviously chakra was the first to go. I now understand chakra to a deeper aspect. Looks like I don't need to ask Kakashi-sensei about the yin and yang of chakra anymore. But now that I understand, it makes making fusion techniques much harder with all the new possibilities.'
Naruto used his tails to write the knowledge down in his black book. Within the next hour, the next clone dispersed himself allowing the second wave of information to sink in.
'Not much info was found concerning youki. Aside from the fact that youki is harmful to human beings for obvious reasons, very little was written and researched. This needs to be written down as well.'
The next wave of knowledge sank in after three grueling hours. The day dragged on as Naruto continued writing in his black book.
'Like one elaborated lie, the next set of info sucks. They know next to nothing about shinigamis. But we can't blame them though. Since there are no hollows in this world, shinigamis are scarcely seen.'
Soon, another clone dispersed itself.
'So they know about the elemental gods. But most of the info I gathered about them revolved around folklore. It's not exact, but at least I have a vague idea about where they could possibly be located. And from the way they were described, it means I have a huge battle ahead of me.'
By the time sunset had come, another wave of intelligence poured in as two clones simultaneously dispersed. Many were already leaving the library at this time so Naruto had to quicken his research as the librarian began inspecting the library for lying books and scrolls.
'Nothing about reiatsu. That goes to show how limited their knowledge of Soul Society is. There was nothing as well concerning the sealing technique aside from its legendary name, Kaikin.'
The librarian was now headed for the location of the last clone after inspecting most of the area. The clone of course sensed this before she was within earshot. He quickly sealed a book into small sheet of paper, rolled it up and placed it inside a pen which he then threw inside the vent where the original caught it with his teeth. Just as the librarian looked through the small table with several open books, the clone had already dispersed himself.
"That was close. But at least I got what I needed. I can read the rest later."
The young blonde said as he walked out of a dark alley. A grumble came from the young blonde's stomach. So the only thing he could do was head over to Ichiraku Ramen. As he passed by, he noticed that aside from the many glares he normally received, he saw several girls whispering to each other as blushes formed on their faces. From what he heard with his sharpened hearing, it made him feel flattered and flushed as he hurried to his favorite ramen stand.
However when he got there, he noticed someone he hasn't seen for the entire day. The young blonde slowly approached and sat down beside a now startled lavender eyed girl.
Of course, both Teuchi and his daughter noticed the young blonde as he entered. A smile formed on their faces as Naruto said,
"Oji-san! I want six beef ramen and three miso ramen!"
Ayame smiled as she took the bowls of ramen to be reheated while Teuchi went to the back room to take out some fresh bowls for the ramen.
Hinata glanced ever so slightly at the blonde before darting her gaze away. She had expected him to come, but so suddenly was something she wasn't prepared for.
'Naruto-kun is here. What do I do now?'
The young blonde looked at the girl beside him and smiled.
"So Hinata-chan, How are you?"
The Hyuga heiress blushed as she twiddled her fingers and gazed at her reflection in the half finished ramen bowl.
"I'm fine Naruto-kun are you? I saw you yesterday with Mizuki-sensei."
Naruto chuckled as he leaned in a bit closer and said,
"I'm doing fine! Take a look at my forehead."
Hinata complied and smiled as she saw the metal plate shine dimly from the light of the setting sun.
"Congratulations Naruto-kun! But I thought you didn't pass when I saw you by the swing without your hitai-ate? How did you pass?"
Hinata said to the young blonde. Naruto continued smiling as he happily told her about the incident.
"Actually, I didn't pass. But then Mizuki-sensei said that there was a way for me to pass. It was a trap all along. He told me to get the Forbidden Scroll and wait in a clearing in the forests of Konoha. But then Iruka-sensei found me in the clearing and Mizuki attacked us. I then beat the shit out of Mizuki-teme and Hokage-ji-san made me an official genin for returning the scroll."
Hinata was delighted to know how brave and strong her long time crush was.
"I'm glad that you passed Naruto-kun."
She said as a blush formed on her face. Naruto took note of this as he gave her a charming smile to which she looked away in embarrassment. Ayame and Teuchi laughed at the cute couple before them as Ayame set down the bowls of ramen before Naruto.
"Itadakimasu!"
The young blonde said as he slurped the ramen. Hinata then began to finish hers. She was delighted that Naruto was there beside her. She mustered all her courage to get here and wait for him in this stand and now all her patience paid off as the young blonde happily ate beside her.
"So Hinata-chan, I never expected you to be here all by yourself."
The young blonde said as he looked at the lavender eyed girl. Hinata finished her bowl and said,
"I was going to congratulate you yesterday after the exam. But when I saw you without the hitai-ate, I was worried and waited for you here until I had to go home early."
Naruto looked at her in astonishment. She actually waited for him here despite her shy and timid nature. He looked at Ayame looking for answers to which the ramen girl replied,
"It's true Naruto-kun. She waited here for you until a boy with long brown hair came to escort her home. Was that your brother Hinata-chan?"
She said as she looked at Hinata. The Hyuga heiress gazed back and shook her head.
"No, he's my cousin Neji-nii-san."
Naruto looked at her curiously.
"So he's your cousin. Does he stay at your house or does he live somewhere else?"
"He lives elsewhere. The branch family is rarely allowed to stay in the main family's houses aside from special occasions."
Naruto nodded at her statement as he finished another bowl of ramen.
"Special occasions like the appointing of an heir or marriage right? Boy, it sounds like some old caste system I kept reading about in the academy."
The young blonde said as he rubbed his chin.
"It is."
The Hyuga heiress said with a frown. Naruto knew where this was going and decided to make his move. He took her two hands in his as his flaming azure eyes lovingly met hers. She blushed bright as a tomato at what he was doing.
'Na-na-Naruto-kun's holding my h-hands…am I dreaming? No, this isn't a dream, he's really holding my hands and gazing at me. Please don't look at me like that Naruto-kun…I can't hold myself together like this.'
Hinata was about to look away until Naruto spoke up.
"Hina-chan…"
Hinata paid close attention to his voice as did the Teuchi and Ayame. The Hyuga heiress' heart fluttered and beat wildly as she felt his warm palms. They were calloused, but all that mattered to her was that he was holding her. She didn't know what was keeping her together, but she resolved herself to see this through as the young blonde began to open his lips once more.
"I could tell by your expression that you don't want to talk about it. But if ever you need to, I'll always be here for you. I'm actually flattered that you waited for me even now. I wish there was something I can give in return."
The young blonde blushed as he looked down sheepishly.
"It's alright Naruto-kun. You don't have to give me anything in return…"
The young blonde immediately placed his finger upon her lips as she flustered in the color beet red once more. Naruto then reached in his pocket with his free hand and released his other hand. He then cupped her hands and took out his hand from his pocket and placed what looked like five seeds in her soft white skinned palms.
"I know it isn't much but I really want to repay you for your kindness all these years. They're seeds of the Konoha Fire Lily. What's great about these seeds is that they bloom to become the most beautiful flower in all of Konoha. They don't grow normally like other plants do because where they grow and what their fed dictates how they will look like when they bloom. They are special plants found only in Konoha because they don't have to live off water. Instead, they truly grow by living off fire. The hotter the flame, the bigger and more beautiful the flower will become. And the better its fruit will be."
Hinata cupped the seeds and placed her hand on her heart as she thanked him. After the meal, Naruto strolled alongside her to escort her home as his clone with Konohamaru had just dispersed alerting the young blonde of what had happened today.
The cute couple kept walking along the street talking about sweet nothings and what would happen the next day.
'I'm here with him again. I'm walking with him on the way home. It feels like I'm on a date with him. I never intended for this to happen, but I'm glad it did. To think that I would be with him for the rest of the night…Kami-sama, thank you for bringing him here to me. I've never been happier.'
The Hyuga heiress mentally said to herself. Naruto, on the other hand, had thoughts of his own flutter in his mind.
'Little by little Hina-chan. I will tell you everything. I don't know if you'll accept me for who I am after you know…but just like in my dream, I will always watch over you and take care of you and love you for the rest of my life here and in the afterworld. I want you to know me just as much as I want to know of you.'
Unknowingly to them, their hands had subconsciously held each other as they passed the next corner.
"Naruto-kun, ano…where did you find these seeds?"
Hinata asked of him. Naruto smiled as he replied,
"I have some growing where I live. At first I tried watering the seeds. After several days, it grew, but it wasn't really healthy. I then accidentally poured some oil on it that I was going to use to cook. At first I panicked since the flowers were already unhealthy looking. But I was surprised when the flowers began to perk up from the oil. I took a closer look and felt the flowers become warm. Then the sunlight began to heat the flowers until they were literarly on fire. I panicked again but when I took a closer look at the plants, they were actually feeding on the flower and grew from it. The fire then subsided leaving the plants to glow and sparks flew in the wind. It was really awesome."
Hinata smiled before asking the young blonde once again.
"You know so much about plants, that's really wonderful. But it must be hard living alone. How do you manage?"
Naruto looked up in the sky before looking back at her and replying,
"Well, it's not so bad when you get used to it."
"But to bravely face every single day alone…you're really amazing Naruto-kun. I wish I was as brave and confident as you."
Naruto then stopped and stood in front of her. He then picked her chin up making their eyes meet. Hinata turned a deep crimson as she stared into his loving eyes.
'Those burning azure eyes of his…I feel like I'm being consumed by them but in a good way. Those eyes of his…they're not the look of hate…but of love. No Naruto-kun is just being nice. There's no way that he has that sort of feelings for me right? But what if he does? What do I do? What should I…"
"Hina-chan…"
The Hyuga heiress snapped out of her trance but still kept her blush as she looked at him. He blushed back in return as he gazed deeply into her lavender eyes.
"I'm not as brave as you think. I just act brave until I think I can make it. To be honest, I'm just as scared as you are."
Hinata's eyes widened at what he just said. Naruto, scared? It just didn't make sense to her.
"I know I live alone, and that's what scares me. I am alone. I've always been alone as long as I can remember. That's why I worked hard to earn love because I thought that it was the only way to gain it so that I don't have to be alone."
'Naruto-kun…'
The Hyuga heiress' eyes began to water. She understood what he was saying, but somehow he wasn't telling the complete reason.
"Just like those Konoha Fire Lilies, I can't live without the fire that is love. I live upon it. It is my fuel for my existence. To be honest, I find it amazing that you're always so nice to me and always so pure and strong and humble. You may not see it in you but I do because I've known you for six years now. And I admire you for that."
The last sentence struck her heart deep. She just heard something that she thought she could only hear in her dreams.
'I knew it. I'm dreaming. He's saying that he admires me.'
"I guess this is the part in my dream where you confess to me and tell me how much you love me. How I wish this was real."
Contrary to what she believes, it was as real as Naruto's hand cupping her cheek. She could feel his calloused hands on her smooth skin and see him lean in closer while his eyes never averted from their gaze. Her heart still fluttered despite her mind fully convinced that it was an illusion. When their faces were just mere inches from each other, Naruto then said the words that would shock her for her entire life.
"You are my inspiration Hina-hime. Because of you, I can continue on living despite the loneliness and pain I face everyday. Whenever I see you, I can really smile because I have such a kind and caring friend like you. I know about your crush on me and that you were the one giving me those tips that you pinned to the wall every time the teachers would refuse to teach me. And you were always so sweet and kind and cute, how could I resist?"
Naruto then leaned in and pecked her on her other cheek. A blush formed on both their faces as she felt a trickle of his saliva from his lips on that cheek. When Naruto finished he then said the next words of impact upon her soul.
"I love you, Hina-hime."
The lavender eyed girl felt her knees give way. She was melting as he released his hand from her and smiled. It was a genuine smile. Her consciousness cracked at that point. She was now unsure if this was still a dream. The young blonde backed away two steps and said,
"I know this is awkward, but I can't tell you now since it's already night time. But I want to tell you everything so that you know me completely. I trust you with my life Hina-hime. And by the way, everything that I said is true. This isn't a dream."
The wind blew as the cold breeze swept by the blonde carrying leaves with it. As it passed by the couple, Naruto smiled once more as he blushed. And when the wind had left them, Naruto was gone. Hinata slowly placed her hand on her cheek and felt the trickle of saliva on it. She then attempted to release the genjutsu all to no avail as nothing happened. It was then she realized what just happened. But before she could fall to her knees, a voice cried out with the sound of hurrying footsteps accompanying it.
"Hinata-sama! Are you alright? Where have you been and why is your hand wet?"
Hinata then looked at her hand with a bit of Naruto's saliva on it. She then looked back at the guard and smiled.
"It's nothing. I accidentally wet my face when I spilled some water on it."
The servant then took out a small napkin and wiped her face and hand as she ushered her inside the compound. Surprisingly, Hinata didn't notice how close she was already to home during her walk with Naruto.
When the guard bid her goodnight, she then dashed to the kitchen and looked for whatever oil that was flammable and a torch. She managed to find some gasoline inside and took out the small barrel and carried it to the backyard. When she saw the small pond there, she then poured the gasoline over the pond until the surface of the water turned dark orange with it. She then threw the seeds she received from Naruto and threw them on the pond. And then she lit the pond with the torch allowing a blazing fire to erupt from the pond.
It was at first a bright radiating yellow, but then the flame died down and changed color into black. The unusual color of the flame indicated that it was being changed by the seeds that began to sprout and take root in the pond. When the flame finally subsided, the pond darkened in color into midnight blue. White sparks would once in a while rise from the pond as it flew in the wind.
The Hyuga heiress smiled as she rubbed the cheek she was kissed in and began to giggle in delight.
"He called me princess. I feel happy and stronger now. He loves me for me. This has been the best day of my life. I will never forget this day for the rest of my entire life."
The young Hyuga heiress was in paradise as she saw the sparks of light rise from the midnight pool. Despite all that she believed, he loved her more than life. He could not last a single day without her and she felt stronger seeing that he loved her just as much as she loved him. It was beyond words to describe the feelings of elation she felt that night for now she no longer had a flickering flame of passion, but a bright one of love because of their love for one another was real and no longer a fantasy. For their love like the Konoha Fire Lily that kindled and grew in her pond, was a fire. It was a beautiful Flame of Love.
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I am really sorry about the huge delay. I had a huge mental block when I was writing this and that made things take a while. But now Naruto has finally confessed and Hinata now has the fire in her eyes. The next chapter will be their team assignments and some of Ichigo's adventures in Naruto's world. I will hurry up in finishing the next chapters quickly to make up for lost time. Anyway, thank you for reading another chapter in Naruto:Death's Second Chance.
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Suiton, Mizukei no jutsu(Water release: Water whip technique)- plain and simple. It creates a whip out of water that can slice through objects if desired by the user or grapple objects. The length of the whip is directly proportional to the amount of water and chakra used to create it.