The New World

Konoe Konoemon took a sip of tea from the white and gold tea cup. It was good tea, he decided. The flavor was subtle but with a hint of sweetness to it. He would have to remember to ask for the name; he doubted he would find it in Japan. No, this intoxicating drink had been a recent gift from England courtesy of Takahata Takamichi – the man seated across from him this very moment.

Konoemon was quite the old man; far into his later years in fact. He had a moderately long white beard and freakishly long, bushy eyebrows that stretched down to his chin. His head was completely bald except for a long white ponytail, and his pierced ears were stretched all the way to his neck.

In comparison, Takahata Takamichi was far younger in his late thirties. He had short light grey spiky hair, and a pair of rectangular glasses. He wore his common attire of a very pale tan suit; a requirement for his work. Although he was usually quite serious, he had a small smile as he talked about the subject of his latest visit across the seas.

"He really is impressive," Takamichi said. "A true prodigy if I ever saw one. He'll definitely graduate at the top of his class in a few months."

Konoemon placed his teacup down and stroked his beard. "Good, good; then I should expect him before the end of third term?"

Takamichi gave him a troubled look. "About that…are you sure this is a good idea? He's only ten years old after all. Like I said, he's a true prodigy, but it takes more than smarts here. Even compared to most ten years old, he doesn't have much life experience."

Konoemon waved him off. "It'll be fine; even people with a great deal of life experience still have trouble when they first start. I still remember how you were when you first arrived…"

"Um, yeah," he said with a blush, scratching his cheek. "That was an embarrassing few months… But, I'm not just worried about life experience."

"Oh?"

"He's quite a few years younger than the girls. I'm not sure they'll really listen to him. He doesn't exactly come across as strict and he's quite easily flustered. Those girls…are wild. I've never seen such a rowdy bunch."

"Hmm, that's true," Konoemon said with a chuckle and a careless shrug. "Oh well, I'm sure it will work out."

Takamichi gave a deadpan stare. "Please take this a bit more seriously."

"I am; my precious granddaughter is among them after all," Konoemon reminded him. "If I didn't trust your reports, I would never even consider him."

"And, yet, despite the little I gave you two years ago, you put those girls together."

"Oh, so you noticed?"

"Everyone in the know noticed." Konoemon merely smirked. "I thought Eishun-san didn't want Konoka-kun involved in our world."

"True, true, I did promise not to reveal anything to her, but Setsuna-kun would never have accepted that class if Konoka wasn't in it."

The conversation lapsed into silence and Konoemon took a sip of his delicious tea. He watched Takamichi gather his thoughts; clearly looking to figure out how to argue his case. It is not that he did not see where he was coming from. Ten years old was quite young for this profession after all, but the boy was no ordinary boy. He would figure out other measures if need be but he wanted the boy here to watch him grow.

Right as he was about to take another sip – it was starting to get a bit cold now – there was a sudden crack of energy in his office. Konoemon's eyes sharpened and Takamichi sat up straight. His office was quite well protected from teleportation spells, so whatever caused such a flux of magic was indeed quite powerful.

Another crack, much more powerful this time surged through the room. He felt his teeth rattle and his hair stand on end. Takamichi stood up, his arms put up in attack position; a telltale sign that he was completely serious. Konoemon followed suit and grabbed his staff.

One more crack and a black portal appeared. It looked almost like it punctured through time-space. He had never seen a portal like that before; most teleportation spells had a signature magic circle as a sign. Instead this was a jagged portal that almost looked like it punched through. Even for a seasoned man like himself, this felt otherworldly; dangerous almost.

That's why they weren't expecting the person coming through to shoot through like a rocket and slam his head into the wall. The unexpected visitor crouched and clutched his head, muttering soft curses in pain. Konoemon turned to see the portal disappear; a pity, he wanted to study it.

He turned back to the young visitor and studied him. He was a young man of about seventeen or eighteen years old. He had spiky blonde hair and bright blue eyes. On each cheek were birthmarks that looked like whiskers. Most noticeable, however, was the state of his dress. His orange pants were dirty and frayed; his fishnet shirt however, was torn around the bottom and his entire right sleeve was completely destroyed.

The young man looked like he had been through a very serious fight.

Konoemon cleared his throat and the young man turned to look at him. "Care to explain?" he asked simply.

The young man scratched the back of his head sheepishly. "Uh, hey there, Gramps. I'm, uh, Uzumaki Naruto, and…how the hell do I explain this?"

Takamichi stepped forward; he looked relaxed with his hands in his pockets. "How about you start with explaining what sort of teleportation magic you used to break into here?"

"M-Magic? Um, no, that's not right…" Naruto shook his head. "This wasn't magic; it was a…hmm, can I call it a ninja art? Well, it was sort of that but not really. Um, you know what ninja are, right? Damn it…"

"How about you start at the beginning?" Konoemon asked, gesturing a seat in front of him; his staff still clutched in his hand. "Where are you from? Why did you use that…ninja art?"

Naruto took a seat, a nervous expression. "Right, so like I said, I'm Uzumaki Naruto. I'm a ninja from the Village Hidden in the Leaves found in the Land of Fire."

Konoemon and Takamichi shared a look. "I'm sorry, but I've never heard of these places before," Takamichi said carefully. "Even on Mundus Magicus."

"Right so there was this war," Naruto said, ignoring their confusion. "Like a really big war and one thing lead to another, and I fought this lady named Kaguya. We beat her but when I lost protection from the Old Man, it turned out she left a trap and well…basically she sent me here, a different dimension apparently."

Konoemon stroked his beard. "I see, dimensional travel. The theory is not unheard of, but I haven't ever seen it put into practice. This woman you mentioned…Kaguya, was it?" Naruto nodded. "She sounds quite powerful."

"She's who all the chakra in my world comes from so I guess so."

"Chakra? The word exists here but is nothing more than a myth. It's more than that where you come from?" Takamichi asked.

"You guys don't use chakra? No wait, chakra comes from the tree, right? And her clan planted it and if even they can't get here easily…" Naruto muttered. "Um, right, where I come from, chakra fuels everything; especially out ninja arts."

"I see, I see," Konoemon said, nodding. "Here we use magic or rather mana for our abilities. If the power I feel coming from you is any indication, it is quite different from us. How very curious."

Konoemon stretched and relaxed his grip on his staff. The conversation was enough to judge Naruto's character; at least to a seasoned old man like himself. He was earnest and honest, but not exactly the brightest. Still there was a quiet confidence about him.

"So, Naruto-kun, I have a proposal for you."

Naruto perked up. "Yeah?"

"In this world, things like magic and such are hidden from the public. In fact, you are quite lucky you appeared before two people in the know otherwise you'd be in a great deal of trouble."

Naruto tilted his head. "That's weird; where I come from everyone knows about chakra and everything."

"And, how many wars have you had because of it? How many people have suffered for it?" Naruto's expression turned stony. "Exactly; we wish to avoid such things here. Please understand."

Naruto nodded his head slowly.

"Good, now onto the proposal. As I said, most people are unaware but not all. Quite a few people here know, but so do many others. Not all with good intentions and many would attack those of us here; especially in recent times. That why I want to ask, would you like a job here?"

Takamichi gave him a startled look that Konoemon blatantly ignored and focused on Naruto. "What exactly is here?" Naruto asked.

Konoemon blinked for a second and the chuckled. "Sorry, I guess we never did introduce ourselves did we? I'm Konoe Konoemon, headmaster of Mahora Academy; a school in the country of Japan. The man over there is Takahata Takamichi, one of my teachers."

Naruto blanched. "A…A school?"

Konoemon chuckled. "I take it you didn't enjoy school, Naruto-kun? That's fine; I'm not asking you to be a student."

"Then what…Don't tell me you want me to be a teacher!"

"Hmm, more of an assistant teacher actually. Just helping out a new teacher we're expecting in a few months."

"You're out of your mind, Old Man. If my old teachers heard you say that, they'd think you were drunk."

"Oh is that so?" Konoemon chuckled. "Well, that's no matter; if you think you can get by without any knowledge of this world or money, you are free to do so. Just make sure you don't reveal anything to the world. We can cover up little incidents here, but well, you won't have our protection anywhere else. It was nice meeting you, Uzumaki-san. Takahata-sensei, please show him out."

Takamichi slowly nodded his and turned to see Naruto glaring. "That's blackmail," Naruto said through gritted teeth. "I know what you're doing."

Konoemon waved his hand. "I don't know what you mean; I just told you the truth. Oh well, it's not like you have managed to get up to snuff by March anyway. Have a nice life."

"Screw you! I will learn everything I need to and be the best damn teacher you ever saw, Old Man!" Naruto yelled, his hands balled up and shaking. "You think I'm not up to snuff? I'm Uzumaki Naruto, damn it! I can handle anything you throw at me, ya know!"

"Oh? So you agree to become an assistant teacher then?"

"Damn straight!"

"Very well," Konoemon said smiling. He scrawled out a note and handed Takamichi a card. "Here, Naruto-kun, this will give you permission to use Library Island to do some studying. Just give your name and show this note, I'll send them a list of books for you to use. Wait a couple of days though. The card is for some clothes and food; we'll work out payment later. I can't have you walking around campus in rags."

Naruto blinked. "Wait, what just happened?"

"Now if you'll excuse us, I think Takahata-sensei wishes to speak with me about something privately. Just wait outside in the hall."

A dazed Naruto stumbled outside of the room, the door closing quietly behind him. Konoemon chuckled and turned towards Takamichi. "Now, you have something to say?"

"Why did you just do that? An assistant teacher? For Negi no less?"

"Hmm? Weren't you the one that wanted Negi-kun to get more help?"

"Yes, but from someone I know! To offer an unknown a job like that…To not even suggest him becoming a student…What are you thinking, Headmaster?"

Konoemon looked at him seriously. "You could feel it, correct? His power? It was close enough to ki that you had to have noticed."

Takamichi nodded slowly. "Yes…I haven't felt power like that in a very, very long time."

"Exactly, but it wasn't just his power. His stature, his eyes, his confidence… All of it spoke of experience. Experience born from pain. Listen, problems are starting to arrive. I've received notice from the Kansai side of a building resistance to our treaty. Evangeline is sure to take notice of Negi-kun and make a move. The World Tree's magic will be especially powerful this year. Someone of Naruto-kun's aptitude would be very much welcome; especially if he can keep my granddaughter safe."

"So, the reason you made him a teacher…"

"Is to make sure he keeps in contact with Konoka and protect her? Partially." Takamichi waited for him to continue but Konoemon shook his head. "Now, I believe Naruto-kun is waiting for you? Best not keep him waiting."

Takamichi knew a dismissal when he heard one, but gave the headmaster one last searching look. When he said no more, Takamichi sighed, bowed, and left the office.

Konoemon watched the door for a moment before he grabbed his teacup. With a sip, he grimaced at the ice cold flavor. Sighing, he placed the teacup back on the saucer and looked out the window. Yes, he offered Naruto the position of teacher out of a desire to protect his granddaughter; he would bet on the Kansai rebels going after her.

However, his offer was far more for Negi Springfield. He was a mere boy and very much unlikely to keep magic secret from his class; he grew up in a magic village and school around other mages. It would be a miracle if he makes it through his first day without being caught.

He had been very careful with the class he assigned to Negi because of this. Of course, on the record it was by lotto, but for a mage like him, manipulating the class assignments was easy. He kept watch on their primary school years and evaluated their possible ability to cope and assigned classes based on such an arrangement. He decided Negi would work for years now, and planned it out accordingly.

Negi's would be class had the highest adaptability rating, magical knowledge rating, and kindness rating. All worked towards the benefit of Negi's slip ups…and to help him find partners for that dream of his. That class would be able to handle the discovery of magic, but they aren't all fighters.

Negi was a prodigy, but Takamichi was right about his lack of experience. There were not many mages that would be able to help Negi or protect his class though, so Konoemon was content to hope for the best. They were strong girls, after all, but Naruto was a perfect opportunity. He was strong, he could feel it. Naruto could protect them until Negi got stronger and until the girls got stronger too.

He just hoped his gamble would pay off.

Outside the office Naruto stood there dazed as he watched Takamichi walk out. He motioned him to follow and started down the hallway.

"We'll make our way to my apartment first," Takamichi explained. "I have a suit you can use and you can take a shower as well. We'll go shopping for some extra clothes as well. If that's all right with you, Uzumaki-san."

"Naruto."

"Hmm?"

"Call me Naruto. It's weird being addressed the other way."

Takamichi blinked and looked at Naruto; he chuckled at the sour look on his face. "Very well, Naruto-kun."

Mahora Academy was more of a city in miniature than a school. Several dorms, and club activity based buildings existed along with the various school buildings. Most noticeable the gigantic tree that stood above them all. For Naruto, it was the second largest tree he ever saw but this one looked far more natural compared to the Ten Tails tree.

So far, Naruto did not see anything too different from his own world except strange devices people seem to talk in…and write. Otherwise, it was pretty normal, which was a huge relief.

A few minutes later they arrived at the teacher's lounge and made it up to his moderately sized apartment. Takamichi directed him towards the washroom for his shower while he pulled out clothes for him. Naruto disrobed and stepped into the hot shower; he felt his muscles finally relax as he washed the grime off him.

Naruto enjoyed this more than he expected to. Two days of nonstop fighting had built up a lot of grime for sure, but honestly it was the feeling of renewal that he loved. He was in a new world, about to start a new life. He was a ninja; he endured the pain of loss. He promised to be happy here and washing the old away would help this promise. He had cried as he crossed to this world for what felt like years, but he wasn't sure. The day seemed to be the same going by the calendar on the old man's desk but who knows if that was just a coincidence? It did not matter; he had his goodbyes and his tears. Now all that was left was to push onward. He will live.

But, if his friends ever found out he became a teacher, he gets the feeling they would laugh at him.

Two hours later, Naruto walked out, a towel wrapped around his waist. Takamichi looked him over and nodded satisfied. "There, feel better, Naruto-kun?"

"Yeah, I really needed that. Sorry for using up your hot water."

He waved him off. "It's no problem, now hurry up and get dressed. I laid out some clothes that should fit you. You can keep them by the way."

Naruto blinked. "What? But…"

"Don't worry, they don't fit anymore. If you hadn't showed up, they'd go to donations."

"Thanks!"

Laid out on the bed was a black suit with a white button up shirt and an orange tie. He grimaced at the formal attire but did not complain. He was giving these nice clothes to him for free after all. So he hurried and put on the clothes, but grimaced at the tie. He had no idea how to put the thing on. He walked over to Takamichi, sheepishly holding it.

Takamichi smiled understandably and helped him out. "There, that's better. You should know, Naruto-kun, that the teaching faculty is required to wear clothes like this. You should learn how to tie it yourself from now on, okay?"

Naruto grimaced but nodded.

"Good, now how about we go shopping?" Takamichi asked.

Suddenly a loud growl vibrated around the room and Naruto sheepishly held his stomach. "Okay, food then shopping," Takamichi amended.

Naruto looked grateful and the two headed to a nearby ramen stand. Takamichi was amused to see Naruto's face light up in delight. "I take it you like ramen?"

He nodded his head quickly. "It's my favorite."

"Well…order as much as you like today. My treat; consider it a welcoming gift."

"You sure?"

Takamichi nodded, smiling encouragingly.

He looked at his near empty wallet an hour later in despair. Takamichi definitely did not expect Naruto to eat twenty-five bowls. He made note to remember any treating for Naruto would have a hard limit or he'd go bankrupt.

"Thanks, Takahata-sensei," Naruto said rubbing his stomach. "That really hit the spot. Treat me again sometime."

He gave Naruto a strained smile. "Maybe." He shook his head. "So…shopping?"

"Sounds good, but I don't have any money."

"Don't worry; the card the Headmaster gave me will let me pay for your stuff. There're a few cheaper stores around here, so we won't have to go off campus to get some necessities. We'll go clothes shopping another day. For now, I packed you some of my other donation cloths if that's all right." Naruto nodded and accepted the bag. "Good and then we'll look for a place for you to stay. If we can't find anywhere, you can bunk with me a couple of nights."

So the two walked around, picking up necessities like tooth brushes and deodorant. Naruto was super impressed by the card; his world did not use something like that. Near the end of their trip, Naruto asked if he could try to use the card and Takamichi decided it was best he got used to this kind of thing. He and Naruto split up in the last store, looking for anything they might have forgotten.

He was worried when a half hour passed without any sign of Naruto. Thinking on it, he decided to ask the clerk if they saw him. "Excuse me, have you seen a blonde hair young man?" he asked politely.

The clerk looked up from her magazine. "Ah, are you Takahata-sensei?" He nodded. "Yeah, the kid left you the card and a note."

Takamichi gratefully took both, confusion on his features. He pocketed the card before unfolding the note. It read:

Hey, Takahata-sensei, don't worry I figured out a place to stay so you don't have to worry. Thanks for the help! I'll pay you back later.

He pursed his lips and decided to just let it be. While he could track the young man down, he was sure; Naruto was not a child and did not need his coddling. He doubted Naruto was someone who would renegade on an agreement so no doubt he would show up eventually. He even left the card so he did not run away with the money.

Yes, Naruto would be fine.

pg. 9