disclaimer: Naruto isn't mine, G-Gundam isn't mine, Ouran High School Host Club isn't mine, Clannad isn't mine either.
a/n: I've been hit with writer's block for Arcane Heart's last two chapters the size of Axis. It sucks.
So I'll work on this in the meantime.
Kinda short, but it will showcase more of Naruto's changed philosophies and more flashbacks to yet ANOTHER senpai of his in the School.
(Do the greeting of the School. You know you want to. :3)
Naruto: Moeagare Toushi
Chapter 4: Talk to the Fist
Uzumaki Naruto currently had a big problem.
It wasn't Uchiha Sasuke trying (and failing) to land a hit on him in their impromptu sparring session.
While the Uchiha WAS skilled, Naruto could literally run rings around him, but that wasn't what got Naruto all worked up.
He had gotten into many spars, battles, and combat engagements as his master's disciple - but for all that, he could not understand his Master's statement: "upon reaching a certain level of mastery, you will know that a warrior expresses himself through his fists".
Naruto always thought it was one of those things that you'd get when you became a master.
It was a poor time to learn it firsthand, as with every desperate blow the Uchiha threw, he was projecting the darkest of emotions: hatred, despair, self-loathing...
...and those feelings were beginning to affect the boy.
"Stop it..." he said as he redirected the momentum of a punch thrown by Sasuke into a palm strike that sent the Uchiha skidding several feet back - the first blow he threw in the spar.
Sasuke resumed his assault, the force of his (unknowing) psychic assault on Naruto growing even more stronger.
"Stop it!" Naruto shouted, his patience at its end as he preempted Sasuke's attempt at a spinning kick by rushing at him and throwing a punch in the midsection that temporarily stunned Sasuke.
"I'm not going to lose... not to one like you..." Sasuke gritted out, and deep inside, he was a bit happy to see the transfer student's composure finally break.
"Why do you wish to win?" Naruto asked quietly.
"Because... I'm not going to get revenge if a mere... transfer like you gets to beat me!" Sasuke yelled, resuming his attack only to be brought down in one hit.
"...Sasuke," Naruto began, "...don't take this the wrong way, but I'm not going to spar with you any further if you keep carrying on like a child."
"My childhood came to an end the day of the Massacre," Sasuke spat out.
"Massacre, huh? Tell me more about it."
And so Uchiha Sasuke ended up telling Uzumaki Naruto the sad story about his hapless Clan, massacred by his brother just to "prove his ability"...
"You know what?" Naruto asked after Sasuke had told his tale, "When I was on my training trip with Shishou, the only things we had were the clothes on our backs and the School in our fists. We'd only head back to civilization every couple of months, where Shishou would check up on some of my fellow students. One time, when I was getting a good learning of the moves, I started getting cocky. Shishou then had me spar with this little guy. Blond hair like mine, carried around a stuffed bunny, and all the girls in his school thought the kid was the cutest thing in the history of the world."
"What happened?" Sasuke asked.
"He kicked my ass," Naruto answered, "seven ways to Sunday. My elbow had a tic for six months after it."
Sasuke laughed.
"You got your ass beat by a kid?"
"He only looked like a kid. Actually was a high school student. Anyway," Naruto continued, "what my Master taught me was that no matter how far I progress, there will always be obstacles to overcome, challenges to face, and characters to meet."
"I don't follow."
"You're only after beating your brother, right? For killing the clan?" Naruto asked. "That's all fine and dandy, but what about after you do it? IF you could..."
"I'll rebuild the clan."
"What if he gets a lucky shot on your two best friends before he dies?"
That shut the Uchiha up as his face turned slightly green.
Naruto laughed. "See, you have to be prepared for any eventuality. If you do that, you'll find happiness in the most inopportune of places."
"Did your Master teach you that?"
"No, my mother left me a letter... so what about it?"
"I'll give it some thought."
Naruto smiled. "That's great. So, how often do you wanna spar?"
Umino Iruka was aghast.
So THIS was what Uzumaki Naruto could do under the tutelage of that man the Elemental Countries called "The Undefeated of the East".
Pity Iruka didn't expect his student of five - no, six - weeks to be such a ham about it though - it must have been passed from master to student.
"Foolish wretch! To think that you have been backing your horse with the enemy of your home for a mere pittance of power!" Naruto yelled after getting the wounded Academy Teacher to a safe distance. "A disgraceful and dishonorable pest such as you will be excised off this world, in the name of the School of the Undefeated of the East!"
He had easily passed the genin exam due to subtle use of the Juuni Ouhouhai, got extra credit for a "special" technique taught by the one sealed within him, and had been practicing more advanced moves on the forests outside of Konoha when he had heard the Forbidden Scroll was somehow stolen.
Stealing things in a ninja village?
From the Hokage's library, of all places?
If Naruto could smack his head on a tree, he would have at the sheer ineptitude of it all. Still, the School's mandate required him to use his power to rectify injustice, and what was ongoing in the village smacked of that.
He closed his eyes and whispered to the (female) entity within.
Finally, a chance for you to sate your need for battle.
Not just mine. Ours.
I assume you want my emotions to pass through, then?
We'll see. Maybe it's not the right time for that, yet.
A sultry laugh echoed in Naruto's ears as he went through the trees...
"Who's the wretch here? You think I don't know what you really are... demon brat?" the thief yelled, and Naruto recognized the voice.
Mizuki.
The breathy whisper returned to him.
Beat my feelings into him.
Naruto closed his eyes and let out a wicked chuckle.
Sounds good.
That laughter again echoed within his mind before fading out.
"Demon, eh?" Naruto asked, going into his combat stance. "I guess it's okay, then..."
"Naruto! Mizuki's a chunin! You're sorely outm-"
"Iruka-sensei..." Naruto cut him off, "...sorry for talking out of line, but I've got this. And you..." he continued, turning to Mizuki, "are going to find out what a demonic beatdown is."
He dashed down from the treetops and buried a fist in Mizuki's gut before anyone could blink.
"...Firsthand..." Naruto whispered as his eyes flashed from blue to red, signaling the start of the rout.
"Hey, hey, Iruka-sensei..." Naruto began as they made their trek back to Konoha proper, "so how about that bowl of ramen?"
"I gotta return this to Hokage-sama, first... and then check myself into the hospital," Iruka said. He barely managed to catch with his eyes every blow the boy threw - Naruto even asked the would-be missing-nin if he wanted to give up, and upon hearing a no, sent another flurry of blows into the man's breadbasket.
Iruka flinched as the beating a few minutes ago returned to him.
"You give?"
"I'm not gonna give to a demon brat like..."
And then he stopped as the boy stepped up his psychic assault. The blows themselves didn't do much damage, but the rage and bloodlust delivered by Naruto's punches, combined with his red eyes, did the trick.
Each blow was an expression of hatred and rage the likes of which Mizuki only saw that fateful day in October, 12 years ago, and against it there was nothing he could do...
"...please, stop! I give up!"
"...okay," Naruto said, before backing up and grinning evilly again. "And this one's for laughs."
He threw an uppercut that hit straight and true, mercifully sending the former Academy teacher into the hands of unconsciousness.
"You're getting rusty, sensei. Must be all that teaching all those not-really-relevant names, places and events you call history that caused it."
"Maybe, maybe... so, was what Mizuki was saying true?"
"Some of it, Iruka-sensei. I heard from a new friend. The fox got your parents, right?"
Iruka stopped for a moment. "Yes... yes, it did."
"Well," Naruto said, "since she's not up to apologizing, I guess it's my job to say her 'I'm-sorry-will-you-forgive-me', eh?"
"You're not the demon fox," Iruka said after a while, as they kept walking back to Konoha.
"Maybe... but that's what everyone else thinks."
"Don't let them get to you, Naruto. You're one of this year's best rookie genin."
"Only because I got back with six weeks left before graduation, right, Sensei?"
Teacher and student exchanged a laugh as they returned to Konoha, a scroll strapped to the teacher's back and a roundly beaten and unconscious Mizuki on Naruto's shoulders.
What was especially amusing to several ANBU - those in Torture and Interrogation - was that Mizuki decided to spill the beans (and the contents of his bladder, too) the moment the name "Naruto" was dropped.
Everyone in that department was satisfied, except for one Mitarashi Anko, who never had the chance to play finger puppets with the rogue nin.
Chapter 4 - END
a/n: I decided to make Umeko Sakagami (later Tamura) and Tomoyo Sakagami related. Who's Umeko? Google is your friend. *flees from the angry mob*
Also, Hani strikes back. Naruto is strong here but not godlike. As an aside, Master Asia training Haninozuka Mitsukuni is probably more plausible than you think. Guy makes mushroom clouds from martial arts, for God's sake.
The Nine-Tailed Fox is likewise neutral to Naruto: she's seen him train, fight, and get into all sorts of adventures and come out without tapping into her power. A previous training incident to be revealed in future chapters will show how Naruto managed to carve out a truce between him and the bijuu within him.
Why make the Fox female? One reason is that the Nine-Tails in "Arcane Heart" identifies himself as male. Also, potential Shippuden spoileriffic stuff that will come into play much, much later.
Next chapter: Team assignments, D-Ranks, and a favor from the Hokage.