Well this the second chapter of The Perfect Ninja. I actually didn't expect any reviews at all, but I got two in the first day, about two-hundred and ten hits, and three faves and four alerts. I've never written a story before, so I don't know if this is good or not. I guess it is.
Oh, and this is an AU. Sort of. So any things that go with Naruto Canon, I might change it if don't like it. If you don't like it, well, that's just tough love, ain't it. Wow. Ain't actually is a word. It didn't come up on spellcheck. :)
Disclaimer: I don't think I need another one. Maybe I do. It depends on if I get any calls from some lawyers.
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Naruto and the old toad were traveling through Konoha forest on a perfect day, the sun was shining, there were no clouds, it wasn't too hot, or too cold, but there was nothing to do when you're traveling through a forest, and Naruto was starting to get bored. They were going at walking speed, he had no forms of entertainment, and the toad creeps him out a little much for him to start a conversation. So he found some way of entertaining himself. He started kicking rocks. That kept him busy, until he hit one into the back of the sage's head. So he thought of another way to keep him busy. He started humming. His lack of tone, and almost pitch deafness, got him a subdued reprimand. So then he started daydreaming. That seemed to have worked the best, until he fell right on top of the toad, by tripping on an iceberg boulder.
"What is your problem!" exclaimed the toad, but not quite so loud, as he was being squished to death.
"Oh! Uhh... sorry Fukasaku!" Naruto quickly apologized, and got off of the toad, but his brashness got him smacked upside the head by the toad staff.
"Hey, what was that fo-" he got cut off by the toad.
"You didn't answer my question. Why are you so out of it?"
The kid was an enigma. He was as strong as Jiraya, in his prime, and just tripped over a rock. Of course, Jiraiya was subject to such things, from time to time.
He was bumped out of his thoughts by Naruto.
"Well.. I'm bored!"
"Why, are you bored?"
"Because! Were going so slow, I haven't got any way to keep myself busy, and I have no clue where we're going. Your supposed to be strong, can't you move at a decent speed, or at least, tell me where we are going."
"Naruto, I'm an old toad. You think I can move fast?"
"Jiraiya was old, and he can keep up with me."
"Yes, but I am much, much, older. But I can tell you where we are going. Our main destination is a place called Mt. Myobokuzan. But first we are going to make a pit stop."
"Where!"
"Hakaba no Erabereta," Said the old toad, after which there was a long, almost unnatural pause.
"The Cemetery of the Chosen? Why are we going there first?"
"To test you, to see how strong you are."
"I know how strong I am. I as strong as Jiraya."
"That is true, but we need to be exact. In the Cemetery, hordes upon hordes of undead... beasts... come upon you in waves. There are a maximum of 100 waves, and each wave has stronger opponents. There has only been one man in history to go through all 100, defeat every opponent, and come out alive."
"Who was that? Come on, tell me"
"Your father."
Naruto's eyes went wide.
His father? His father was the only one to defeat all the waves? Who was he? He didn't know he came from such a powerful... bloodline.
"Who was my father? Please, tell me!" Naruto cried out desperately.
"You don't know?" Naruto shook his head.
"If you do not know, it is not my right to tell you. That was once up to Jiraiya, and now Tsunade. You will have to ask her when you get back from our training." Naruto seemed to accept this, and asked, but a little more... dejectedly, how far away that was.
"It is about six more miles, until we reach the Cemetery... you know, we could get there faster if you let me hop on your shoulders," the old toad stated, trying to get Naruto there faster, in an attempt to stop various things that may hurt him.
"Okay! Jump up!" Naruto said, and was about to crouch down, when Fukasaku jumped up on his shoulders, without him squatting down.
Fukasaku looked at Naruto with a smirk, and then they shot off into the horizon.
Only if Naruto knew the horrors that await him.
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"Pein?" said Madara as Pein came through the room entrance," What took you? Was the old man Jiraya actually a challenge for you?"
"No... The man lives up to his reputation, but he could barely touch me, and he would have died in an instant, if I was going all out," Pein retorted.
This fool. Acting like he could beat him, the great Madara Uchiha. He was centuries too old for Pein to even stand a chance against him.
"Stop acting all high and mighty, Pein. You may say you are, but you are not a god. You will learn your place, Pein," That should get him to stop acting all high and mighty. He, Madara Uchiha, is the leader of Akatsuki, not Pein. He must learn his place.
"Hm... if you do not believe me, perhaps I can show you my power. I, of course, will not kill you. But, you will be shown... True Pain!" Pein exclaimed as he threw off his Akatsuki cloak, and his five clones gathered around him.
"Pein, you are a fool. You must know common knowledge..." Madara trailed off.
"And what would that knowledge be?" Pein questioned with an uncaring frown.
"That an Uchiha... can only be beaten... by another Uchiha!" blasted Madara as he rushed forward, throwing his mask off.
And the leader of Akatsuki will be chosen.
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"Here we are," stated Fukasaku, as they traveled into a surprisingly well kept cemetery, "Hakaba no Erabereta. This is where you will be tested, and we will see where to start you off on your sage training."
"What place to start me off at?" said Naruto, confused,"Don't I just start at the beginning?"
"Most do, yes. But there are exceptions. Your father for one, would have started off on the level of sage training of expert. There are few who have ever even gotten to the intermediate level. Jiraiya was at the intermediate level when he died. He could progress no further. It is a shame that your father is... never mind, it is not my place. When Jiraiya went through these at the age of 17, he got to wave 34, and then failed. Jiraiya went through here a second time, as all students, when he finished his training. He was able to get to wave 63. Jiraiya was one of my best students. I will forever miss him."
The toad was silent for a few seconds then continued.
"I base you off of this. Under 20, you are not worth my time. 21-50, beginner. 51-75, intermediate. 76 and up, expert. Only three in the entire history of the world who have started off above beginner. Only one of them was expert, and do you know who that was?"
Naruto shook his head, indicating that he didn't know.
"A man named Nagato. No one knew who he was, but at the age of 16, he got to level 90. He had almost won, but he was worn out, and could not battle anymore. The strange thing was, that he did not accept my training. He said,'I have my own ways of gathering strength,' and then walked off," explained Fukasaku, trailing off.
Naruto looked puzzled for a second, but before he could ask any questions, Fukasaku continued.
"Naruto... do you know what this man calls himself now?"
Naruto once again shook his head.
"The name he calls himself now is..."
"What!" asked Naruto impatiently.
"Pein."
There was silence. Naruto didn't move, he couldn't. That much power... how could he attain so much? There's no way he could be able to do that. Right now, he probably couldn't even get to 50, let alone 99. Pein, Nagato, Kami, whatever he is, that man is to strong. He can't possibly gain that much power... and he'll disappoint everyone. He's the loser, the dead last, dobe, fool, idiot... demon.
"I see doubt. Do not doubt yourself. You are Naruto. Naruto Uzumaki. You have the strength to surpass your father, and you will. This Pein will be no match for you when you are at your full potential. You will save the world Naruto. You have to."
Naruto looked off faraway, contemplating... he looked scared for a second, but then his demeanor changed. He looked determined and confident.
"Alright. But I have a question." Naruto said.
The old sage nodded, telling him to go on.
"Why are there these levels? I mean, I don't know anything about sage arts. Why start me off on anything higher than beginner?"
"Because of your learning curve," The sage explained, but Naruto still gave him a quizzical look, so he elaborated,"If you can control chakra easily, would it be easier to control something like chakra? If you already knew how to fight, I would not have to teach you again. Half of the beginning level is learning to control chakra and how to fight. If you could already fight better than a beginner, why need to teach you again, half of intermediate training elaborates on chakra skill and fighting skill, as well as expert. They just do it to a different degree, so that you are not overwhelmed. The levels are just an amount of learning curve,"explained Fukasaku
"So, if I defeat over 76 waves, you will teach me as hard as you can, so that I can learn it all at a speed that fits me? That's the purpose of the levels?"
"Exactly. So are you going to start, or not? I do not have all day."
"Hell Yeah!"
"Then step into the middle of the cemetery, and on three, the waves will begin. Oh and one more thing. This is not just a battle of skill and power, it is also a battle of attrition. There are no breaks between any waves. This means your stamina, as well as your skill, will be tested. Good luck!"
Naruto walked into the middle of the fairly large graveyard, and spake to Fukasaku."
"I'm ready!"
"Okay! On three! One! Two! Three!"
And the fun began.
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Madara and Pein were at a standstill, fist for fist, kunai for kunai, jutsu for jutsu. Pein wasn't using his clones, and Madara wasn't using his Sharingan. Pein's formed changed when he started the fight. Instead of looking like of the Pein he usually does. He had long hair, about the length of his shoulders, pulled back around his ears so he could see. He looked like he was always lethargic, but he was never out of energy. But one thing stayed true. His Rinnengan was activated, and his usual stoic face was on.
Madara and Pein pulled into a deadlock, Madara's kunai fighting against Pein's strange sword for dominance. When they pulled apart, Pein began to speak.
"This is dull, Madara. I'm going to take it up a few levels. I hope you can follow," Pein robotically said as four of his now six clones swirled around him.
Madara activated his Sharingan, only at the second level, and got into a ready stance.
The first Pein shot forward, a small, skinny one that engaged him in taijutsu. As he kicked the clone away, he saw the second one, a large, fat one that tried to hit him with a punch. Madara dodged, jumping over the fat one, and making the handseals for Katon: Gokakyuu no Jutsu. When he landed on the ground, he blew the flames toward the man, who was still recovering from his miss. When it hit the man, Madara waited for the smell of burning flesh, when he realized there was none. The man was absorbing his jutsu! So he sought a counter for that, just pouring more chakra into it, and blasted the man by the chakra itself.
As he turned around, he saw another Pein, one that had a samurai hakama on, and was of a moderate build, with one scar through right eye, and another starting below his left eye, going across his nose, ending a little past the scar one the eye, making a strange cross shape. This Pein had the strange sword drawn, and was engaging him in kenjutsu. Madara and the Pein crossed swords, and pulled away, with Pein going high, and Madara going for a high block. When they clashed again, Madara spun around and went for a spin swipe to the Pein's midsection. The Pein dodged by bending backwards, and he did a back flip, landing about two meters away. Madara sped right into his face as they begun their dance, sparks flying as blade met blade, barely blurs as they moved their weapons and themselves. Madara finally got through with an uppercut to the Pein's face, and a powerful roundhouse kick that sent the Pein backwards into the caverns wall. Madara saw another Pein coming, and this one was preparing handseals for a powerful fire jutsu. Madara had no time for a counter, and just dodged, jumping up into the air as the Pein shouted the words Katon: Karyuudan.
Madara landed on one of the Akatsuki base's columns and studied his ninjutsu wielding opponent. He had the look of a Fuuma about him, but otherwise indistinguishable, other than the usual piercings. The Pein jumped up, making handseals for what seemed to be a doton jutsu. Madara started seals of his own doton, the most powerful one he knew. The Pein had the same handseal speed as him, but started earlier, so completed his jutsu earlier. The Pein shouted Doton: Taihen Maruishi no Jutsu, and an enormous boulder bolted out from the side of the cavern. Madara countered with Doton: Enchuu Ayatsuri no Jutsu, manipulating the column on which he stood to ram into the large boulder while Madara was still standing upon it. Right before the column hit, Madara back flipped off the column, timing it perfectly, so the that the dust covered his jump. Madara jumped on and evaded the boulder's debris, and directed the column towards Pein, in which he predictably dodged. And jumped right into Madara's Katon jutsu, sending the charred man into a wall.
Madara looked around at his defeated opponents. The skinny man unconscious against the wall, the fat man unconscious on the ground, the samurai Pein lying on his face, by the wall, and the Fuuma Pein charred, he too against wall.
Madara looked at the real Pein with his level two Sharingan and smirk.
"That all you have to offer Pein? Or do you have more clones that I can destroy?"
The Pein remained stoic, and sent out his last two Peins, the one he usually talks with, and another one, a girl, but she looked very frail. The male Pein summoned a giant wolf, and the girl turned into thousands upon thousands of small papers.
Madara just took his Sharingan up to the third level, and beckoned them.
The Pein on the wolf charged forward, and the paper Pein turned into thousands of arrows. Madara was ready for both. Disappearing from view, Madara then reappeared a little bit above and in front of the summoning Pein, and tried to hit him with what seemed a vicious kick, but the Pein dodged. Just how Madara wanted him to. He planted around ten explosion tags on the wolf, and then jumped off of him. Madara then prepared his most powerful fire jutsu. About half-a-second later, his handseals were complete, and then roared Katon: Taihen Kazan no Jutsu. A half a dozen miniature volcano's sprung up from the cavern's walls and ceiling. The volcano's (predictably) gushed lava from them, covering the arrows of paper.
Madara was sure that this would defeat this Pein, but the arrows emerged from the lava and brimstone. So Madara went to his last resort. Madara conjured up the Mangekyou Sharingan, and called forth it's ultimate ninjutsu. Ameratsu.
Madara unleashes the attack, but before the black flames could hit, the female Pein changed back to her normal form. She still suffered quite a bit. Some of the fire still got her, so she had to cut off her hand, and she was most likely out of chakra, so she hit the cavern floor. From about eighty feet in the air. With no chakra reinforcement. She was taken out for the moment.
Madara looked around for the real Pein, but then remembered something important. He didn't hear a boom.
Madara turned around and saw a fairly large tiger running at him, at full speed. The damn Pein must have released the wolf before it could explode in this dimension.
But Madara was in no panic. On his new column, he just turned around, and looked the tiger straight in the eyes.
"Tsukiyomi," Madara whispered. The tiger fell down right in front of him.
Without his summons, the Path was easily dispatched.
Madara looked around for a second, and was about to speak, but an ominous voice beat him to it.
"I am tired of these games, foolish Madara. This will end now."
"Good, I am tired as well. Let me defeat you and this will all be o-" Madara never had time to finish his sentence.
Because he was knocked out cold, with Pein standing over him.
"Take him to the medical wing," said Pein to one of his now revived clones.
"Yes, Pein," Said the lady with the blue hair.
Madara was shown who is the most powerful in the Akatsuki.
And his name was Pein.
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Woo. Some plotty things going on, and Naruto's evaluation begins. How exciting! (not really)
I know that some of these Peins are not the real ones, but I like these Peins.
Hope it was an enjoyable plot scene. Thank you
Oh, and for a follow up on the 'ain't is a word thing' the word spellcheck, isn't, according to spellcheck. Weird.
Review, if you could.