A/N: Sorry. Late update (I think) and I passed my exams (barely) but whatever. Hakuna Matata (and work harder).
dch448- well yes Sakura was the one who threw the kunai because logically, you can't throw a kunai aimed at the bells from the side while engaging a Jounin in taijutsu if you're an academy student. Oh and you have to remember I was having a headache. I couldn't think straight so it was a miracle I managed to type anything at all. (I don't do well with headaches.)
Thanks for reviewing! My heart always skips a beat when I see that I received a review. It makes me so happy!
Chapter 7: Suspicions about Naruto
"Kiiro in position" a voice whispered into the headset.
"Kuro in position" the headset crackled to life.
"Momoiro in position" the message interrupted by short bursts of static.
"Shiro here. Target in position. Move out!" was communicated to all three squad members and they reacted immediately, dashing out of the dense forest and towards their target, which had taken up residence in the middle of a wooded clearing.
The three members of Team 7 dog-piled on top of Tora, fighting valiantly against the demon cat, trying to capture alive. After a brief struggle with Kakashi watching from the sidelines, Minato managed to grab it by the nape of its neck and held it away from him as if it were a poisonous spider. Tora clawed desperately at the air, trying to get away before Minato had had enough and struck a pressure point in the cat's neck and the cat froze up before hanging limply in Minato's grip.
"If I have to catch this damn cat again I am going to kill it!" he shouted, emphasizing his point by shaking the limp cat in his grasp.
"Now now Naruto, no killing the pet of the Fire Daimyo's wife okay? Let's just report back to Hokage-sama. Though sometimes I do wonder why I passed you all in the first place." Kakashi drawled.
"That's because we got the bells from you remember?" Sakura piped up.
"That's only because I underestimated you guys." Their sensei said with an air of nonchalance.
"You know better than anyone that underestimating people can be fatal though."
"Touché"
"Let's just report to Hokage-sama. This debate is pointless." Sasuke deadpanned.
"I agree." Minato chimed in, jabbing at the pressure point on the cat again when he felt it rousing. He leapt ahead of the rest of his team, the others following closely behind.
"Psst… Sakura." Sasuke said in an attempt to get the attention of his female team mate.
"What is it Sasuke-kun?" she replied while dodging a branch that threatened to smack her in the face.
"Don't you find it strange that Naruto knew so much about our new sensei? I mean, I doubt he's seen him before. He even knew that our Kakashi-sensei would be two to three hours late. He also knew what the bell test was all about. On top of that, he still managed to grab the bells from Kakashi-sensei. Even though he let his guard down, Kakashi-sensei is still a Jounin and should have sensed it so how is it that Naruto managed to snatch the bells from him?" Sasuke whispered once the blond was out of an earshot.
"You're right Sasuke-kun. Who is he really, what is he capable of and why is he posing as our team mate? What do you propose we do?" Sakura asked wincing as the sunlight assaulted her eyes upon exiting the thick forest.
"Let's follow him after debriefing and see where he goes." Sasuke concluded. Sakura nodded her assent and broke off their conversation just as they arrived at the front of the Hokage tower. They entered and strolled soundlessly through the corridors before arriving at a particular door and entering.
The sight that greeted them was rather awkward. There was a little boy sprawled on the floor I front of the Hokage's desk, a Tokubetsu Jounin standing behind the boy in sunglasses was fussing about the boy, looking like a chicken with its head cut off. The Hokage just sighed and invited them in. Minato plopped the limp cat onto the Hokage's table and turned to face the boy on the floor who was now struggling to right himself.
"Konohamaru, what the hell? Last time I saw you, you were in the same position. What happened to training hard to become the Hokage?"
"Mysterious Onii-san!" the now identified Konohamaru cried while nursing the bump on his forehead.
"Mysterious Onii-san?" everyone in the room chorused save for the Hokage and the Tokubetsu Jounin.
"Yeah! He's rather mysterious, going off all alone after dark. Maybe he's a vampire!" Konohamaru blurted excitedly, jumping into Minato's arms.
"Konohamaru, you know that makes no sense." The Hokage sighed, saying what was on everyone's minds.
Just then the Fire Daimyo's wife ambled in, smiling happily as she pulled Tora into her arms and proceeded to squeeze the life out of it. Tora woke up instantaneously and flailed around, trying desperately to escape its owner. 'That's right! Squeeze harder lady, harder! Squeeze that demon to death!' Minato thought evilly, not happy with having to relive his Gennin days and catch Tora all over again on top of doing chores for the villagers under the title of a D-rank mission. He was much happier overseeing them or assigning them.
When the Fire Daimyo's wife left, Minato groaned in disappointment that the demon cat was still alive and kicking. No one realised that Konohamaru had taken 'Naruto's' headband from his neck and tried it on, leaving the choker exposed. "Hey!" Minato shouted and grabbed the headband back, Konohamaru spilling from his arms and landing on the floor feet first. Minato hastily retied the headband as Konohamaru ran out of the room, cackling like a madman, the Tokubetsu Jounin trailing after the boy.
"What a handful." The Hokage commented. "Anyway, mission report!" he barked. Kakashi gave a short, summarised report and they were dismissed for the day. The sun was already setting as it disappeared beyond the horizon, drenching everything in an orange and gold hue. Sasuke and Sakura trailed behind their blond team mate, whispering to each other.
"Did you see the pendant on his choker just now? I could've sworn it was Yondaime-sama's signature weapon but that can't be right," Sakura mumbled as they walked down the corridors towards the exit.
"You're right. Makes him all the more suspicious." Sasuke replied in a hushed tone as they neared the exit.
Minato was in a foul mood. First, they had been assigned a mission to catch Tora, then, Tora had survived the 'Hug of Death' and lastly, Konohamaru had had the gall to take his headband like that. He decided to vent some frustration on the monstrosities in the Forest of Death. He let his feet take him towards the training grounds as he reminisced the time he met Konohamaru.
*Flashback*
It was the day the identification photos were being taken and also the day after Minato had decapitated Mizuki. Minato had just taken the photo when he had been summoned by the Hokage. "Naruto, I understand that you had your first kill yesterday so if there is anything you need to tell me, just let it out." Sarutobi said, concerned for the boy that was his grandchild in all but blood.
"It's okay, I can deal with it," Minato said calmly, knowing that Hiruzen must have heard about it from Iruka.
"Well, if you're sure-" he was interrupted by a little boy bursting in shouting that he was going to defeat his grandfather at last or something or other. A man in sunglasses and a bandanna covering his head entered the room, fussing over the boy who had just tripped over and fallen flat on the ground, face first.
The boy sat up and noticed Minato sitting in the chair opposite the Hokage and shouted, "You! You were the one who tripped me!" a whine hiding just beneath the surface of the boy's bold proclamation.
Minato sighed tiredly, asking him "What do you want to kill Hokage-sama for?" irritation lacing his words.
"Don't speak to the Hokage's grandson like that!" the man in the shades, who was clearly a Tokubetsu Jounin, said, words dripping with disdain. Clearly he, too, held great dislike for the Jinchuuriki. 'Now he'll start apologising and kissing up to me just like the rest of them.' Konohamaru thought with satisfaction and yet with a hint of sadness.
"I honestly don't care so, answer me. Why do you want to attack Hokage-sama?" Minato asked nonchalantly. This stunned Konohamaru because this person had treated him differently from everybody else, but in a good way.
He shook himself out of his stupor and shouted excitedly, "To defeat him so I can become Hokage!" Minato scoffed at first then outright laughed. "What's so funny?" Konohamaru shouted indignantly, feeling heat rise to his cheeks.
"Well if that's so then you have a long way to go! I would suggest that you train more and I seriously doubt your sensei's teaching methods if he put the idea in your head that you could possibly defeat Hokage-sama now!" Minato said between barks of laughter.
"You should learn not to insult your betters Gennin! I am providing him a shortcut to becoming Hokage." The Tokubetsu Jounin spat.
The temperature in the room dropped several degrees as Minato turned on Konohamaru's sensei, a fire burning in his eyes "There is no 'shortcut' to becoming Hokage. All of them have earned the position with hard work, experience and for their skill and perseverance. They have all slowly worked their way to the top and have constantly pushed themselves to the limit to get stronger to protect this village, so don't think that there is a short and easy way without pain and sacrifice because there isn't!" He turned and left the room, leaving a stunned Tokubetsu Jounnin and a very drained Hokage.
"Ebisu, where's Konohamaru?" Sarutobi asked, noticing Konohamaru's absence.
The now identified Ebisu snapped out of his stupor and went out to search for his charge, his last words floating in the air as he left "He must have followed that no good brat." The Hokage returned to his paper work, suddenly feeling about a hundred years old.
Minato was walking towards Training Ground 3 when he felt the presence of the boy, Konohamaru was it?, from the office. He turned around and called out "Konohamaru, I know you're there." The fence rippled before revealing that the boy was indeed there. Minato turned and continued towards the training grounds but Konohamaru jogged after him, following him to the training grounds. "Why are you following me?" Minato asked exasperatedly.
"I want you to teach me! Then I can become Hokage!" the boy trilled.
"No, I can't do that but your current teacher can, and didn't you hear what I said in the office, there is no short cut to becoming the Hokage." The boy deflated significantly after hearing this.
"Come on, I'll even call you boss." The boy pleaded.
"That sounds stupid" Minato brushed him off.
"Pleeeeaaaasssseeee!" the boy let loose a long, drawn out, full on whine.
"Alright… But only one technique." Minato caved.
"YES!" the boy did a little victory dance.
"So, what do you want to learn exactly?" Minato asked, curious.
"I want to learn a technique that can defeat the old man!" Konohamaru shouted.
"I don't know any techniques that can do that… There is one but it's very unorthodox." Minato speculated.
"Ooh what is it? Teach me! Teach me!" Konohamaru danced circles around the older boy.
"Okay. It's called Oiroke no Jutsu." Minato said, reminded of the sudden love for pranks in his new body. He pulled them occasionally but no one seemed to be able to catch him at all, which was weird. 'They seriously need to beef up security around here.' Minato thought as he showed the hand signs to Konohamaru. A cloud of smoke erupted and when it cleared, standing in Minato's place, was a busty blonde lady, about Minato's age when he was in his old body.
She had sunshine blonde hair falling limply around her, drenched, drops of water glistening on her naked body. Her plump, glossy pink lips were parted as thin clouds of smoke wafted to cover her genitals, giving people a fleeting glance before taking it away and dangling it before their noses. Konohamaru stared wide-eyed before Minato changed back in a puff of smoke, causing Konohamaru to come back from lala land and shouting "Whoa boss! That was incredible! Teach it to me!"
"Firstly, don't call me boss. It makes me feel old, which I am not. Secondly, I promised to teach it to you didn't I? But you have to promise me that after this, you'll work hard to reach your goal." Minato said, bending down to stare Konohamaru in the eye.
"Alright b- I mean Onii-san! Now teach me!" he shouted, hardly containing his excitement. Minato sighed and showed him the hand signs, guiding him along the way, constantly asking himself why he even invented such a stupid technique, let alone teach it to a kid.
Meanwhile, Ebisu had given up looking for his wayward charge and settled for waiting at their usual training ground, determined to punish him if he was late. He settled down on the grass and pulled out a small orange book, the title cover screaming 'Icha Icha Paradise'. He opened the book and proceeded to read it, giggling perversely every few seconds.
Afternoon was melting into evening by the time Konohamaru managed to nail down the technique. "Oh crap! I'm gonna be late!" Konohamaru shouted, dreading the punishment his tutor was going to mete out if he was late getting to the training grounds.
"For what?" Minato asked, curious as to why Konohamaru looked so frantic.
"I have to get to Training Ground 5 before 6 or Ebisu sensei is going to kill me!" Konohamaru yelled getting up from the log they were just sitting on.
"It can't be that bad. What's the worst that could happen?" Minato said, sure that the boy was overreacting.
"Oh it's bad. He'll XXX and XXX then he'll XXX and make me XXX" Konohamaru said, shuddering involuntarily. (I'll leave it to your imagination nyan because I lack in that department…) Minato stared at the boy, stunned, wondering how he was still sane after going through that kind of punishment. (I know I'm being over the top but I need a base, so… yeah…) 'Ohmygod! That is horrible! I think I placed a Hiraishin seal there once before. I'll just take this opportunity to test out something.' Minato thought, grabbing Konohamaru by the arm.
"I'll get you there, so just hold on to me and close your eyes," he voiced to the younger boy.
Konhamaru nodded and did as he was told. He grabbed onto his 'Onii-san' and squeezed his eyes shut. He felt his Onii-san's grip tighten around his arm and felt a tugging sensation that lasted only for a few seconds. "You can open your eyes, Konohamaru." His Onii-san said softly. He opened his eyes and blinked as he found himself in a totally different location. He was in Training Ground 5 and his Onii-san had disappeared. 'Maybe Onii-san's a vampire! That's so cool!' Konohamaru mused. He then noticed his sensei sitting in the clearing and decided to test out the jutsu he had learned from his Onii-san. With a silent poof of smoke he had transformed into a brunette replica of 'Naruto's' Oiroke no jutsu and sashayed up to his sensei. He eased himself next to his sensei and started moaning softly into his ear.
Ebisu was sitting in the clearing, so completely and utterly absorbed in his porn that he didn't sense his student approaching him, let alone the spike in his chakra. As he was getting to the climax of the sex scene in the novel between the protagonist, Shin and his brunette lover, Nana, warm breaths tickled his ear as erotic moans were unleashed next to his ear. He turned and saw a dripping wet and naked brunette and shouted "Nana?" before a geyser of blood shot out from his nose and propelled him backwards, knocking him out on a tree.
Minato watched from the shadows as Konohamaru turned back in a cloud of white smoke and laughed his ass off, rolling on the floor and pounding his fists on the ground after having doubled over and fallen onto the ground. Minato smiled, having gotten his payback against the closet pervert tutor in a roundabout way, before vanishing, leaving a swirl of leaves in his wake.
*Flashback end*
Snapping out of his reverie, Minato noticed that he had arrived before the chain-link fence of Training Ground 44. Sensing his team mates, he turned around before deciding against it and entering, sure that the ginormous sign outside that screamed 'DO NOT ENTER WITHOUT CLEARANCE! HIGHLY DANGEROUS! MONSTROUS ANIMALS INSIDE WILL EAT YOU IF FIRST TWO WARNINGS ARE NOT OBEYED' would be enough to deter them. Ripping off the hideous orange jumpsuit he always wore in public, he sealed them into a scroll, having learnt his lesson, before disappearing through the gates.
Sasuke and Sakura had trailed him throughout the village, whispering among themselves, wondering where their blond team mate was headed. He finally stopped outside a chain-link fence and stripped, which elicited a blush from Sakura, who looked away, thinking that he was going to enter nude. Sasuke spun her around and prised her hands off her eyes to reveal that 'Naruto' had clothes underneath his jumpsuit. Sakura sighed with relief before following Sasuke into the forest, the latter having already gone into the forest. Neither noticed the giant signboard outside in their single-minded goal of finding out what their blond team mate was doing.
Minato had just slain a giant rabbit THING that looked to be the size of a house when he felt something enter the forest. Convinced that that something was his team mates, he used Hiraishin to get to them before they could manage to get themselves killed, forgetting that he was in his original form.
"AAAAHHHH HEEELLLPPP! WHAT PSYCHOPATH COMES TO THIS SORT OF PLACE?" Sakura screamed as she and Sasuke ran for their lives from a giant tiger-like…MONSTER! With FOUR FRICKIN' EYES! Well, she was solely running, Sasuke kept twisting around to throw kunai at the monster but only succeeded in making it angrier as the kunai lodged in the coat of the monster. They had just set foot in the forest when the beast just appeared from out of nowhere, snarling and drooling, and started chasing after them.
Adrenaline kept them going but fatigue was slowly winning over. They burst into a clearing, the beast tearing after them, causing the trees to explode outwards. Sakura ran onwards, screaming as hard as she could when a flash of yellow sparked in front of them, stopping them in their tracks. "Naruto!" she shouted partly in relief and partly in surprise.
Only then did she notice that there was something wrong. He was significantly taller than them and he looked older. Although his hair was still blonde, his clothes were still the same but had been coated in blood at some time and his eyes were still a soulful cerulean, but the most obvious difference was the lack of whisker marks on his cheeks. They were unmarked and unblemished. "Yondaime-sama" Sakura breathed. Sasuke glared at the new arrival, unsure of where to put himself. Between the monster and Sakura or between the Yondaime look-alike and Sakura. Either way he had to protect his team mate.
Minato cursed inwardly, how could he have been so careless? First Iruka and now his team mates. He ignored Sakura's question and unsealed his tanto from the tattoo at his hip and beheaded the beast threatening his team mates faster than the untrained eye could see. Crimson blood erupted from its wound and drenched Minato in the fluid, the head on the floor still set in an expression of rage, not quick enough to process what had just happened to it when it died. Minato turned away from the corpse of the beast and walked towards his team mates who were dry heaving at the sight. He knocked them out with a swift chop to their necks and shunshin'd out of the forest, his training interrupted.
He flitted soundlessly across the rooftops, speeding towards Sakura's house before depositing the latter in her bed, careful not to leave blood stains on anything while doing so. He placed a Hiraishin seal with an illusion overlay on her thigh as a safeguard if she were to get into trouble again before taking out a small device with what looked like a duck's head on the top and pressing a button just as Sakura was waking up. A muffled "Aaahh" rang out as Minato covered Sakura's mouth and allowed her to sag in his arms before laying her back in bed once again. He disappeared in a swirl of leaves as he headed towards the Uchiha compound.
Sasuke felt like his head was about to split open as he groggily opened his eyes. He could feel something cold dancing swiftly over the skin on his arm. It was a pleasant feeling, like a summer breeze. Then he noticed a blurred image of yellow, red and black all melting into each other. The image slowly sharpened and he saw 'Naruto' labouring over his arm, a pot of ink at his side and an ink brush in his hand. "What-" he murmured before his blond team mate shoved a tube with a duck's head on it straight into his face and pressed a button, causing an explosion as the duck's head hit his face and he passed out, but not after crying out in surprise.
Minato had just finished the seal and was adding chakra in it to make sure it could not be washed off when his team mate woke up. He hastily pulled out the Kiokuchikan once again. Once Sasuke was unconscious again, he left the compound for his own home, thinking, 'Damn the randomness of the memory replacer! I wish I could choose what memories they get.' He entered his apartment through the window, peeling the blood encrusted training clothes from his body and throwing them into the wash.
He padded over to the bathroom for a shower, deciding that there was no point in him going back to the forest that day. As he stepped into the shower, he felt the drops of water rushing up to greet him and cleansing his body. He stood in the shower, turning over the events of that day in his mind, wishing that he could turn back time and bring his Kiokuchikan with him and prevent Iruka from learning his secret. Sadly, he had only just bought the memory replacer and time travel was out of his reach.
He stepped out of the shower, watching droplets of water slid down his body and pooled around his feet. Rivulets of water dripped from his forehead and into his eyes, forcing him to blink. He opened his eyes and pulled the towel off the rack, glancing at the foggy reflection in the mirror. He dried himself off and pulled on his pyjamas before stepping out of the bathroom. He flopped down into bed, letting the excess moisture in his still damp hair seep into his pillow. As he drifted off, he hoped that the replaced memories would not be too ridiculous and 'I hope that jiji would be willing to give us a C-ranker. I swear if I don't get a mission that's more interesting than a doorknob, I'll go berserk.' Was the last thought that flitted through his head before wandering into the arms of Morpheus.
A/N: Happy Deepavali! And Happy Halloween! For those who actually celebrate it! Halloween seems so fun! It's so sad we don't practise Trick or Treating (at least I don't think we do) in Singapore. My way of celebrating my recovery and these Holidays is a longer chapter! (It's not that long though… haha) If you're wondering why Konohamaru's hiding skills are better than in canon, it's because it breaks my heart seeing that he is used for comic relief too. He can be bratty but he's like Naruto and is a 'genius of hard work' of sorts so, I think that his stealth skills at least shouldn't be so shoddy. Bleach fans should know what a Kiokuchikan is. If you still can't place it, it's the thing Rukia used to replace Tatsuki and Orihime's memories after Hollow-Sora's attack. Oh yeah... very late poll but anyways...
Poll:
HAKU
1) Haku should live
2) Haku should die
3) Haku should remain a male
4) Haku should be female
If Haku lives...
5) Haku should go back to Konoha with Team 7
If Haku lives and is female...
5) Haku should fall in love with Minato
6) Haku should be grateful of whomever her saviour is and yet hate someone on the team (if so tell me who her saviour is and who she hates. They can both be the same person as well.)
7) Haku should be grateful of whomever her saviour is and falls in love with him and yet hates someone on the team
8) Haku should fall in love with Sasuke
If Haku lives and is male...
9) Haku should fall in love with Sakura
10) Haku should fall in love with Sakura and yet hates someone on the team
ZABUZA
11) Zabuza should live
12) Zabuza should die
If Zabuza lives...
13) Zabuza should go back to Konoha with Team 7
14) Zabuza parts ways with Team 7
If Zabuza goes back to Konoha with Team 7...
15) Zabuza falls in love with a Konoha Shinobi (pick one if so)
BOTH HAKU AND ZABUZA LIVE
16) Both go back to Konoha with Tewam 7
17) Both part ways with team 7
18) Both are grateful to (choose someone) and work for him/her
PM or review your choices by putting the numbers you see before each option(you can choose more than one). If no one answers the poll, I will simply go with how I want the events to unfold. Please review. Thank you for your support.