A/N: Thank you ALL for your reviews, favorites, and follows! 20 something reviews and the story has 140 followers now! I appreciate every single one of them! By the way, if you want to play a part to this story, I have a poll open for Team selections! Go ahead and vote please! Reminder at the other end of a/n!
To the Reviewers:
Shigure Toshiro: Ah, I meant to imply that the kunais in Naruto was taken out; not the kunais in his eye. Sorry! I reconstructed the wording to clarify it a bit more!
95: Lol. The pink banshee made me laugh… however, we will see on the pairing. I'll have a poll out later for pairings. Your comment has been taken into consideration though!
Aramus13: haha! Samuel L Jackson's voice would be pretty epic lol. By the way, if you're interested in an image of the mastiff, I posted the URL in my profile!
Thank you everyone else for your kind words! Please review!
"Speech"
'thought'
"Jutsu: in use"
'Kyuubi/Summon thought'
"Kyuubi/Summon speech"
Disclaimer: I own nothing except this fanfiction story! all rights belong to their RIGHTFUL owner. cheers!
Allow Me To Re-Introduce Myself
Chapter 3: Break It Down
X
Naruto jabbed his punches repeatedly trying to recreate the same image he had seen with the caterpillar man. Naruto had been at it for weeks but he wasn't improving nearly fast enough.
When Naruto had saw the man exert rapid kicks and punches against some training posts, the whiskered blond had stood watching in awe. The man's punches and kicks were so ferocious; air seemed to have coated his movement with friction due to the intense speed. As soon as the punch or kick extended as far as it would go, the air that coated his hand would then slam into whatever was in the direction of his kick or punch.
Apparently, the man in green was just going that fast and strong…
It had been a whole day since the incident with the puppy and every day since then, Naruto had been working on his Taijutsu… Well, he was trying to, but he didn't know how to make himself as fast as the caterpillar man…
Quite frankly, it was pissing him off.
Naruto let out a frustrated growl, "How the hell does he do it?! Is he even human? Like how the hell does someone-"
"HELLO MY YOUTHFUL FRIEND!" Came a booming earnest voice.
Naruto paled, 'Shit.'
Naruto turned and faced the eccentric man as he forced a tight smile on his face, "H-hello sir…"
The man let out a booming laugh, "HAHA! MY DEAR YOUTHFUL FRIEND, THERE IS NO NEED TO ADDRESS ME IN SUCH A MANNER! IT IS MOST CERTAINLY AN UNYOUTHFUL FEELING TO BE ADDRESSED AS SUCH! YOU CAN ADDRESS ME AS THE GREEN BEAST OF KONOHA! OR RATHER THAN THAT, YOU CAN CALL ME BY MY OTHER YOUTHFUL MONIKER. THAT TITLE IS NOTHING OTHER THAN KONOHA'S NOBLE BEAST! MAITO GAI THE MIGHTY GREEN KONOHA GENTLE BEAST AT YOUR SERVICE!"
Naruto sweat dropped, 'This guy is weird as hell… I better get the hell out of here.'
"Uh… okay… erm Gai-san… I was just going to go and leave, so uh pardon me-"
Suddenly, the exuberant demeanor of Gai ceased to exist as a more ominous presence exuded from his person.
"Hmm… why must you go? You seemed keenly interested in my training… It is certainly most unyouthful for someone to watch someone with introducing themselves beforehand…"
Naruto gulped and paled once more, 'Shit! He knew! He's probably gonna kill me! I don't stand a chance against someone like him! What the hell should I do!? Should I try and run or should I just apologize and get my beating now…?' Deciding that running away might incite a more brutal beating; Naruto kneeled and bowed touching his forehead to the ground.
Visibly shaking, Naruto managed to crack out an apology in a broken voice, "I-Im S-s-sorry sir! I-i-i was just training when I s-stumbled upon you sir! P-please don't hurt m-me too m-much…"
Guy frowned, the voice was quiet and broken, 'Just what have they done to you Naruto-kun?' He wished he could have been there for the boy but as one of Konoha's top jounin, Gai was forced to do many 'A' to 'S' ranked mission. Hence the reason he wasn't in Konoha majority of his time. O
Oh, he knew of the rotten behavior of the villagers and various shinobis but he never expected the usually cheerful boy to be this…
Broken.
Gai could see the fear and shame in the boy's eyes. The sorrow and the suffering… Gai shook his head and took on his usual exuberant manner; it would do no good for him to reprimand the boy.
Naruto waited with his head bowed trembling with unbridled fear. So it came to him a great surprise when he heard an equally unrestrained laughter. Confusion on his face, Naruto looked up to see the bowl cut man had thrown his head back with his hands on his hips.
"NEVER FEAR THE POWER OF YOUTH MY DEAR BOY! STAND PROUD AND NEVER FALL SHORT OF YOURSELF! LET THE POWER OF YOUTH GUIDE YOU!"
Naruto was confused, just what the hell was this Guy (Pun intended) saying? Did he want him to stand up? Naruto slowly got up all the while watching the man rant on about the springtime of youth. Seeing that the man didn't seem to focused on him, Naruto slowly backed away before turning to leave.
As Naruto walked away, he let out a sigh of relief, that Gai was dangerously happy. In fact, if he hadn't gotten away in time, Naruto was sure he would have been involved in some bat-crazy shit with that-
A strong grip found itself on Naruto's shoulder; effectively stopping him from moving.
Yep. Kami sure must have hated him.
"And where are you going my friend?! WITH THE SPRING TIME OF YOUTH GUIDING US IN THE WILL OF FIRE, WE SHALL BE THE GREATEST NOBLE GENTLE BEASTS TO HAVE EVER LIVED!"
Yep. It was confirmed, Kami hated him alright.
X
Naruto fell face first into the grass and groaned as every muscle in his body screamed in protest to any movement. He had spent two weeks with Gai-sensei and found it to be the worst idea… ever.
Apparently, Gai-sensei knew all along that Naruto had been watching him train. So Naruto had asked why it took so long for him to actually confront him if the man knew he was there the whole time…
His answer was absolutely absurd.
"Youth?"
That was all he said.
Literally.
Youth.
With a big ass questioning tone ending the answer.
What kind of backwards ass answer was that? Whatever, Naruto knew he couldn't possibly understand anything about the strange man. The man was just too damn… youthful. That was the most…appropriate way Naruto could put it.
Well, there were other words he could use to describe the man but it was borderline insulting if not insulting at all.
The conversation steered to Naruto and Gai actually introducing themselves to each other. That in turn, led the conversation about why Naruto was watching him. Hesitantly, Naruto told him he was trying to train himself by watching the jounin, because no one ever tried to help him.
Waterfalls gushed out of Gai's eyes as he embraced the jinchuuriki into an extremely bone crushing hug. Screaming things along the lines of how youthful this generation was and how everyone was unyouthful for neglecting the hidden gem that was Naruto.
Naruto felt touched even though he was running out of air. The pressure was immediately released and he was given some space as Gai kneeled and placed both his hands on the blonde's shoulder. Naruto hurriedly sucked replaced the oxygen that was sorely missing in his lungs.
"MY DEAR YOUTHFUL NARUTO-KUN! I WOULD BE HONORED TO HAVE YOU UNDER MY TUTELAGE! PLEASE ACCEPT MY YOUTHFUL PLEA!" Gai all but begged.
Bewildered, Naruto simple nodded and rushed out a care-free, "S-sure Gai-sensei! Just stop crying for please!"
Unbeknownst to Naruto, those words would forever indebt him into a cycle of torture for kami knows how long.
That very same day, Gai-sensei decided that the free time Naruto had for the rest of the month due to the Uchiha massacre incident should be taken advantage of.
Every single second of it.
So Gai had Naruto stretch out right then and there… right before forcing him into a brutal workout regimen. Pushups on top of pushups, sprints after sprints, sit-ups after sit-ups, it was a continuous cycle of plyometrics (Exercises that uses bodyweight as the primary conditioning factor).
That was his first day training with Gai-sensei and his body was absolutely destroyed. He could barely get home and once he did, he simply sat in the tub with the showerhead running. He was so god damned tired that he almost fell asleep in the bathtub.
A freaking bathtub.
Of course, the very next day, he found himself going back to that training ground like Gai-sensei had told him to. To his horror, he found that he would be put through the same damn torturous routine! Only with added repetition of all the exercises.
This repetitive yet grueling training routine continued for the rest of the first week. When Naruto had asked why all he was doing basic exercises. Gai just looked at him with a knowing look.
"Ah! My dear Naruto-kun! You must be patient! But I suppose I could tell you so your youth doesn't diminish! This week was dedicated to enhance your physical traits; especially your speed! We will continue this for the rest of this week before I teach you my own personal style!" Gai finished with a cheery smile and his patent nice-Gai pose.
Naruto ignored the hideous pose with stars in his eyes, "Your own personal style!? YATTA! I'M GONNA BE SUCH A BADASS DATTEBAYO!"
Gai chuckled before beaming with his ultra-white teeth, "INDEED NARUTO-KUN! WE WILL INDEED REACH THE PEAK OF YOUTH!"
Pumped up, Naruto cheered with his exuberant sensei, completely unaware of the torture- er, training he was in for.
X
"Yo jiji!"
Sarutobi Hiruzen smiled and looked up to the source of the voice.
"Ah… Hello Naruto-kun. How are you…?"
"I'm feelin pretty youthful, dattebayo!"
Instantly hearing the word "Youthful", the Sandaime stood in front of Naruto with a very serious look on his face. "HOW FAR DID YOU FALL NARUTO? HOW DEEP HAS HE ROOTED HIS INFLUENCE INTO YOU? I WILL NOT ALLOW FOR THIS TREACHERY TO STAND-"
"Nani! What the hell are you talking about jiji!"
"EMPTY YOUR BELONGINGS RIGHT NOW." The village leader screamed.
Needless to say, when the most powerful ninja in the entire village, and arguably the entire elemental nations screamed at you in a wild and crazed manner, you obey. Without missing a beat, Naruto threw out all his stuff, which wasn't a lot… just a bunch of random snacks and a green leotard suit that he had received from Gai-sensei several moments ago.
Immediately spotting the heinous clothing apparel, the man known as The Professor weaved through rapid hand signs before screaming, "KATON: GOKAKYU NO JUTSU! (Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique!)." A giant ball of flame crashed into the leotard, effectively obliterating it from existence.
Sarutobi Hiruzen sighed as he plopped down into his seat, he wiped a sweat that had been rolling down his forehead, "Phew, crisis avoided, right Naruto-kun?"
Naruto stared blankly at the pile of ashes in front of him.
"Uh-huh… sure… if you say so jiji."
The Sandaime clasped his hands together with a serene smile on his face, "Now Naruto-kun, what did you come here for? Or is this just a surprise visit?"
Naruto sweat dropped at the fact that the village leader was pretending that the event of what just transpired didn't even happen.
Oh well.
"Actually jiji… I know this might sound a bit crazy," Naruto pursed his lips, " but erm… I was maybe wondering… i-if I could drop out of the academy…"
A mixture of surprise and horror fixed itself onto the old wizened man, "Naruto! I thought you wanted to become a ninja!" Sarutobi paled, there wasn't anything he could do to stop the young boy, but seeing as he was the Yondaime's heir, Sarutobi didn't think there were any other avenues for the Fourth's legacy.
"Oh no jiji!" Naruto hastily spoke, seeing the mini panic attack that the old man was having, "I still want to be a shinobi dattebayo! I was just wondering if I can get an apprenticeship… I think I found a teacher and I recall reading apprenticeships takes you out the academy until the genin exam or something like that, right?"
Sarutobi nodded, "Indeed. If one were to find a Jounin or a Tokubetsu Jounin (Special jounin) that was willing to teach them, they could, with the hokage and council's approval, skip out on the rudimentary years of the academy… are you still with me?"
Naruto nodded excitedly, he had read something along those lines before he got kicked out of the library several days ago. Now if he could just get Gai-sensei to agree with being his mentor, he could finally get out of the damn academy.
"If you were to successfully find a jounin sensei, someone who I would evaluate and deem worthy, you would train with him or her after a few pieces of paper get approved and whatnot. You would then be taken out of the academy, as I told you, until either the last few weeks of the academy or the last year; whichever your mentor and I think would suit you better. No matter what tthough, you will be placed back into the academy for team placement and tests."
Naruto frowned, "Would I have to be on a team? Couldn't I just continue under the apprenticeship of the teacher?"
Sarutobi shook his head, "Unfortunately no, there are very few exceptions in that case but usually no. Konoha's shinobis should be building a sense of familiarity with each other hence the four-man cell that consists of three genins and one jounin. It is essential for a team to work together as a unit. In fact, you should try and build a sense of camaraderie amongst your classmates while you can, it may even save your life one day."
Naruto's frown became even more pronounced, "But jiji! How am I supposed to build a sense of camera- a sense of comma-camry- ugh what was that word jiji?"
Sarutobi chuckled, "Camaraderie is the word you're looking for; it means a bond that has been developed because you spend time with the person a lot."
"Oh." Naruto took a blank look, but then he took on an excited look, "So does that mean we have a Camara- caramel- care- GAH! The fancy bond word? Do we have one of those jiji?!"
The Sandaime Hokage laughed heartily, "We sure do Naruto-kun, one of the closest."
Naruto beamed before his face fell into a somewhat of a distraught state, "But jiji how am I supposed to build that bond with others if no one is willing to try. It takes two people trying to have any form of relationship…"
Sarutobi looked thoughtfully at the now ten year old boy; it surprised him that such a young child could voice that kind of a deep thought.
"You're right Naruto-kun, it seems in my old age that I tend to forget about a lot of things… I'm sorry."
Naruto waved him off, "It's okay jiji, cause we still have that bond and as long as you're there, I think I'll be okay."
A pang of sadness shot through the heart of the Sandaime, how could one boy who bears the weight of such a massive burden remain so vigilant? The Hidden Leaf's Hokage gave Naruto a fond smile, "Indeed Naruto. Now, who or what gave you the idea of taking on an apprenticeship?"
Naruto rubbed the back of his head sheepishly, "Well… no one actually gave me the idea, but I've been training with Gai-sensei lately and he's such a great teacher and on top of that the academy… well… y'know, I don't really have a lot of friends there… and it feels like some people are out to get me."
Sarutobi Hiruzen face-palmed, of course it was Gai, that would explain the 'youthfulness' of Naruto's verbal use of the cursed word earlier. The Sandaime then narrowed his eyes as he registered the rest of the young jinchuuriki's words.
Sarutobi sighed, "I'm sorry Naruto-kun, but Maito Gai is one of our top three jounins of Konoha and Konoha is in dire need of her strongest ninjas. And because-"
"What! TOP THREE? SUGOOOOI!" Naruto screamed excitedly.
The Hokage sent Naruto a look.
"Whoops, sorry jiji… i just got a bit excited… hehe…" Naruto apologized bashfully.
"It's fine, just make sure to let other people finish their speech…" Sarutobi coughed, "Ahem… back to what I was saying, because he is such a powerful shinobi, dangerous missions often dictates him to take it. Usually, he can back out of it, but… at the moment, we need every ninja we can get… I can try and talk to him and the council but there is no guarantee."
"YATTA! THANK YOU JIJI!"
"Naruto, I'm not promising anything." The Sandaime warned.
"I know… but you trying for me is more than enough for now." Naruto honestly replied.
The hokage rewarded him with a warm smile before playfully scowling.
"Alright, now scramble on Naruto, these paperwork aren't going to do themselves."
Naruto waved goodbye and eagerly ran to find out just where the caterpillar eyebrowed jounin was at.
The Sandaime then spoke to seemingly no one, "How much did you hear?"
An ANBU member suddenly materialized and replied lazily, "Enough for me to know he wants to get an apprenticeship with Gai."
The wizened old man chuckled, "Indeed… so how is that going by the way? May I remind you that this is your first report for the task I've given you."
The tall inu-masked jounin with a combination of white and silver hair yawned, "Hai hai hokage-sama… Regarding the A-Ranked mission of investigating what Naruto Uzumaki has been doing for the duration of the break from school… Do I have to do this?"
The Hokage simply glared in response.
Kakashi sweat dropped, "Alright alright, back to it… Um. Lets see, he's been learning some Goken (Iron Fist). He has the basic beginner katas down already-"
The hokage looked surprised, "Wow… one month and he's already caught up? Most impressive…"
"Actually Hokage-sama, he's only been training with Gai for a few weeks now, and he's only started the Goken style several days ago…"
The Sandaime's eyes widened, "What! That's insane! You are telling me that it took him two to three days to learn the basics?"
Kaksashi nodded.
"For him to learn that in a few days would indicate he's a prodigy… Wait, that would actually make sense seeing as he learned the Kage Bunshin (Shadow Clone) in a single hour… but the academy shows that he's the dead last… but judging from what Naruto said earlier about the people out to get him- unless… oh no…" The Sandaime murmured to himself softly, yet loud enough for Kakashi to hear.
Kakashi was a bit confused, how did the boy knew how to perform Kage Bunshin No Jutsu (Shadow Clone Jutsu)? That technique was an A-Ranked jutsu, how the hell did a ten year old boy learn that?
"Uh… Hokage-sama, did you figure out something regarding the academy? And may I inquire as to how the boy knows the Kage Bunshin No Jutsu (Shadow Clone Jutsu)?" Kakashi asked with a curious look.
The Sandaime rubbed his head in frustration as an upset visage was adopted upon his face, "At the moment, it is no more than a hunch… but it seems as if the boy's grade are based on a slightly skewed standard compared to the other students. This hunch will be investigated very thoroughly of course, but still… to think that the academy teachers were sabotaging a student… it is most disgraceful."
Kakashi nodded in agreement, he deduced the sabotaging of Naruto's education to the Kyuubi No Kitsune, it made sense, after all; many people were still wounded from the traumatic event a decade ago. To Kakashi, Naruto was his sensei's son, as soon as his ANBU services was over; he was going to see that the boy was taken care of one way or another.
It was the least he could do for his late sensei.
However, the Sandaime's response didn't answer the question of how Naruto learned an A-ranked Kinjutsu.
"And what about the kinjutsu hokage-sama? Who taught him to use such a dangerous Kinjutsu?" Kakashi inquired.
"No one." The Sandaime replied gravely, "No one would ever teach him anything Kakashi-kun. That is why he is so obsessed with Gai and becoming his apprentice, Gai isn't biased towards him at all and he is actually willing to help Naruto-kun."
Kakashi took on a perplexed expression, "So how did he learn it? If there was no one to teach him, how could he have learned it?! Unless he had a scroll and taught himself it… But even then, it's nearly impossible to learn that jutsu from a scroll with a teacher to aid you, much less teach yourself… so how did he-"
"That is exactly what he did Kakashi, he taught himself without a teacher… in a single hour."
Kakashi's eyes narrowed, "Wait how?! How did he get his hands on the scroll… unless…" Kakashi's eyes widened as he realized how the boy got his hands on the scroll.
"The Mizuki incident."
The Sandaime nodded solemnly.
Kakashi slumped into a chair as he took off his mask.
"He's a genius." Kakashi whispered almost reverently.
"Indeed he is, but he may be more of a kinesthetic genius like his father. Nonetheless, he has an unknown amount of potential and that is why it is most troubling that the academy teachers were- and most likely still are -hindering him. For this reason, I'm sending you on a mission to figure out which teachers are sabotaging him… Do you accept Hatake Kakashi?"
Kakashi's eyes hardened, "Hai, Hokage-sama."
X
The last week and a half went by fairly quickly, yet Naruto found himself unable to conjure the courage required to talk to the Taijutsu master about becoming his apprentice. Naruto didn't know why he was so scared; maybe it had something to do with asking for something from someone. He has never ever in his short entire life asked someone for something like this. Sure he asked for little things like questions, but that was shot down with the teachers screaming at him or throwing his stuff out the window. Well he suppose he asked for ramen every once in a while…
But that was neither here nor there.
Deep down inside, Naruto knew what he was scared of.
Rejection.
He was ashamed to admit it, but he didn't like rejection even though rejection played a big part of his whole life. He had promised himself and Iruka-sensei that he would become better… but that particular facet of his misfortunate life was always there, looming over him like a never ending storm.
Sure, every once in a while there was a ray of hope like Gai, Jiji, Iruka-sensei, Itachi and the Ichiraku family but good things never lasted; Iruka and Itachi were prime examples of that. It was just how his life went. Regardless, even if Gai-sensei rejected him, it wouldn't be anything new to him. Still, Gai was quickly becoming one of his precious people.
But being rejected by his precious people is Naruto's ultimate fear. This thought was realized when Itachi had left him. In a way, Naruto had interpreted Itachi leaving Konoha was a way that nothing had tied him to the village; not even Naruto himself. The feeling of rejection from a person Naruto had held in such a close and high regard tore him apart.
Maybe his life wasn't meant to be enjoyed? Hokage-jiji told him that there was a balance in this world. Maybe his life was weighted in misery in sorrow so others could be better off…
Naruto chewed on his inner cheeks as he mulled over his somewhat gloomy thoughts.
He sucked in a deep breath and exhaled as he came to a decision, 'I have to do this today before it's too late. Otherwise I'll be stuck at the academy forever…'
So with that thought in mind, Naruto set out to find his current Taijutsu teacher. Naruto looked all over the place but couldn't find him. Naruto frowned and tried thinking of where the man could possibly be… he decided he would recheck Gai-sensei's favorite training ground so he headed to team 9's training ground; something about this training ground is where he was taught to open gates from his father or something like that.
What the hell was that supposed to mean anyways?!
Everyone knew how to open a gate. You get a key and put in the hole, or you can pick it! Either way works, Naruto knew how to do both so opening gates wasn't all too impressive to him.
Sigh…
If only the boy knew.
He searched for hours, he made a bunch of Kage Bunshins and directed them everywhere. Through several trials, he learned that he would gain their memories and regain his chakra on top of that.
He briefly wondered, 'Hmm… I wonder if they could work with training? Nah… that'd be too overpowered…'
Naruto sighed tiredly, he felt as if he checked every nook and cranny for the self-declared. He decided he would mentally disable his clones in a few minutes if he had no further luck. A few minutes had passed and gave a frustrated growl, he sent a mental signal to his clones to dispel themselves and instantaneously felt the effects.
He promptly blacked out.
X
Waking up with a searing migraine, Naruto groaned as he up righted himself with some difficulty. Eyes half-lidded, Naruto let out a prolonged "uuuuuuughhh…"
'Note to self; do not dispel a hundred clones at once…' he dully noted to himself.
Naruto smacked his lips and tasted the vague hue of morning breath, 'Gross… smells and taste like rotten ramen…' He must've been sleeping for a short amount of time because the sun was still overhead shining brightly down on the training grounds he was currently occupying.
'Well I guess I'll go home for now, Gai-sensei doesn't seem to be around Kono-"
SNAP!
Naruto suddenly became alert as he heard the snapping of a twig. The sharp crack came from behind him as Naruto jumped to his feet and tensed. His eyes panned around the area in which he thought he had heard the disturbance from. As Naruto scanned the area before him, he tried smelling the air for a sign as to who or what was near him.
As he took a particular big whiff of air, he relaxed and let out a breath of relief before he called out, "Gai-sensei! I know it's you, you can come out dattebayo!"
A shiny-eyed Maito Gai suddenly appeared before Naruto, "AH NARUTO-KUN! AMAZING YOU WERE ABLE TO DETECT ME! YOUR YOUTHFUL SENSES ARE STILL TOP NOTCH I SEE!" Much to Gai's surprise, the young jinchuuriki didn't respond… in fact, he looked a bit nervous rather than his usual response of being annoyed or happy with his youthful speech.
Gai, with a serious visage, kneeled before the boy and asked the young whiskered blonde before him with slight worry, "Naruto-kun, I sense that there is something troubling you!"
Naruto gave a nervous chuckle, "Eh heh… uh… well you see Gai-sensei… I was talking to the hokage jiji about apprenticeships and I was, uh, wondering I-if… erm… you-"
Gai, immediately seeing where Naruto was going with this, interrupted.
"Naruto, as much as I'd love to mentor you, I don't think I'll be able to… Konoha is in a dire need of their jounin at the moment. As soon as school starts back up for you, I'll be taking a lot more 'A' and 'S' ranked missions." Gai explained.
"Oh." A crestfallen Naruto responded. "Okay… well thanks anyways Gai-sensei, I still appreciate with what you've taught me so far-"
"AND WHO SAID OUR YOUTHFUL TRAINING WAS OVER?! YOU MUST REMAIN YOUTHFUL MY DEAR NARUTO!" Gai cried out.
Naruto looked confused, "But didn't you just say you can't train me anymore?!"
Gai jumped into the air and did multiple flips before landing in his nice Gai pose, teeth shining, he responded with enthusiasm, "MY DEAR NARUTO-KUN! I SIMPLY SAID I WOULD BE TAKING MORE MISSIONS! HOWEVER, THE SPRINGTIME OF YOUTH WAITS FOR NOONE! FROM HERE ON OUT, WEEKENDS AND BREAKS SHALL BE DEDICATED TO TAIJUTSU AND YOUTH TRAINING!"
Naruto beamed as the man continued to rant about youth, some training was better than nothing. The fact that Gai would make time for the class dobe and the village pariah spoke volume to the young jinchuuriki.
So happy in his thoughts, the young blonde ran and tackled the leg of one surprised Maito Gai. Said man looked down in surprise, this was the first show of physical affection that Naruto had shown for him. Gai smiled and reached down to pat the young boy's head, but just as quick as the young boy had hugged him, the jinchuuriki jumped back with morbid horror on his face.
The jinchuuriki felt an intense terror wrench at his stomach, he had accidently hugged the man out of the immense gratitude he was feeling. Although he had taken to training with the man, in all the few weeks, he never showed any sort of affection a normal ten year old would attach to an older somewhat fatherly figure.
Naruto breath became frantic as he felt a slight shiver of anxiety take place in his heart; there was no doubt Gai-sensei would feel disgusted at the fact that that the village pariah had touched him. The azure-eyed boy averted his gaze downward and quickly apologized, "I'm sorry Gai-sensei, I didn't mean to touch you! I was just so happy that someone wanted to spend more time with me and I forgot that no one likes me even looking at them, much less-"
Again, Gai understood the implications the boy was making before he finished his statement. The green-cladded jounin then scooped up the boy in a tight hug and had a ridiculous amount of tears torrenting down his cheeks, "OH NARUTO-KUN, YOU MUST NEVER BE AFRAID TO SHOW THE PASSION OF YOUTH! DON'T YOUR WORRY ABOUT NOTHING MY CUTE LITTLE STUDENT! YOUR YOUTH WILL NEVER BE HELD BACK AS LONG AS I, KONOHA'S NOBLE AND GENTLE BEAST, RESIDE HERE IN KONOHA!" Gai then went into another speech about super youth as Naruto lost conscious from the lack of air.
Still, Naruto smiled as he fell into bliss, he had heard enough of Gai's youthful speech to know he didn't do anything wrong.
X
The rest of the break from school went without much incident.
Brutally train.
Eat.
Train some more.
Sleep.
Repeat.
That was the cycle that Gai had thrown Naruto in. During that time, Naruto had managed to get the intermediate katas down for the Goken style. Naruto begged Gai to start teaching him the advanced katas but apparently the blonde wasn't physically able enough.
Guess he had to be taller, quicker, stronger, and most importantly, needed to be faster.
Basically, he had to become un-Naruto like as possible.
Which, by the way, was total bullshit to him.
When Naruto heard the prerequisite to learn the advanced katas, he became a bit confused, "Gai-sensei, I thought being faster and quicker were the same thing."
Gai nodded sagely, "Actually, that seems like a common misconception amongst the general consensus. Being fast means you are capable at moving at a high speed. Quickness is how fast you can accelerate…"
"Oh, I see." And truth to be told, Naruto actually did understand. It made sense to him.
Gai furrowed his massively thick brows in confusion and slight astonishment, "You do?" He had thought the boy would've needed more explaining.
Naruto scowled and nodded, "I'm not a baka y'know!"
Gai gave a hearty laugh and patted the boy, "Regardless my youthful student, your quickness is surprisingly- I'd peg you at about a high-chunin level."
Naruto pouted, "What! Is that it?! Man I thought I'd at least be a jounin!"
Gai simply shook his head, "I am sure you'll get there one day my youthful student! After all, it's not every day a ten year old can say they possess skills of a chunin!" To this, Naruto pouted before looking up with determined eyes. He then went on a verbal splurge of how he was gonna be the best.
Gai simply looked at the boy with disguised observance, 'If I were honest Naruto-kun, you'd be mid-jounin level but we don't want your youthfulness to overflow...'
Obviously that's an analogy for his ego.
Gai smacked the boy in the back, "Also! I got a gift for you!"
Naruto halted mid rant and looked at his Taijutsu sensei, "ARE YOU SERIOUS SENSEI! THAT'S FREAKING AWESOM-Wait! Gai-sensei, how am I supposed to get taller? Isn't it all genes or whatever?"
Gai's visage turned from slightly speculative to morbidly serious, "Naruto, listen to me. I NEED you to listen and comprehend; this may be the most life-altering lesson you will have ever heard."
Naruto gulped.
"In order to get taller…" Gai started.
Naruto nodded furiously with rapt attention.
"YOU MUST STOP EATING RAMEN!"
…
Wait for it…
"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"
X
A sullen Naruto walked in into the academy. Gai had taken the entire weekend to revamp Naruto's lifestyle. The Mighty Taijutsu specialist had dragged Naruto back to the young jinchuuriki's apartment screaming how unyouthful Naruto's diet had been.
Naruto had begged his Taijutsu sensei to not do what he thought the eccentric man was about to do.
Unfortunately, he did just that.
In a fit of green blur, the man had cleaned out Naruto's apartment in mere seconds...
He had found everything.
And Naruto meant everything.
Nothing related to ramen was spared.
He even found the secret stash of the limited edition underneath the floorboard and as soon as he finished, Gai quickly shouted a heartfelt 'YOUTH' before running to the grocery store and returning with vegetables.
A lot of vegetables.
Apparently, Gai had somehow managed to obtain several cookbooks from wherever-the-hell while he went to the store. He came back in a rush and dumped them unceremoniously on the kitchen table before walking over to Naruto.
"YOSH! MY DEAR YOUTHFUL STUDENT, YOU MUST STUDY THESE COOKBOOKS AND FIX YOUR UNYOUTHFUL LIFESTYLE OR WE SHALL RUN TO AROUND KONOHA FIFTY TIMES ON NAUGHT BUT OUR PINKY FINGERS!"
Naruto paled; he knew full well that Gai was being completely serious about that.
So for the remainder of his break, Naruto was constantly reading on how to cook healthier and more nutritious food while being guided under Gai's tutelage for his Taijutsu.
So here he was, reading a freaking cookbook in class. Naruto sighed as the first telltale sign of the academy students entering filtered through his ears; he was probably going to get shit for reading a cookbook in class.
Whatever, if he wanted to get any better, then people's opinion of him shouldn't matter to him.
Well, that's what he wanted to think… but alas, he was still a ten year old. Although to his credit, he managed to ignore all the questioning whispers about the 'dobe' having a cookbook and the feeble attempts of his classmates trying to goad a reaction out of him.
"Why does the dobe have a recipe book?"
"Probably for a prank."
"Look he has a book on nutrition too!"
"It's probably just has that as a title, it's probably porn though…"
Naruto's eye twitched but he reeled his irritation in and read on.
A particular civilian classmate's annoying whisper reverberated through the classroom, "O-M-G, WHAT IF HE'S DIETING?! HE'S PROBABLY FAT UNDERNEATH THAT BAGGY JUMPSUIT HE HAS!"
Naruto mentally cringed at her voice and inwardly sighed, that was by far one of the stupidest thing he had ever heard.
Suddenly everyone laughed as another random student responded to her not-too-subtle whisper, "THE DOBE IS A SHRIMP! HE'S THE SHORTEST AND THE WEAKEST IN THE CLASS!"
Naruto fought the desperate urge to scowl and challenge them to show how 'scrawny' he was; Being shorter than everyone else was a sore spot for him because he wasn't just shorter than all the guys… he was shorter than all the girls too.
Even the timid Hinata.
However, instead of beating that particular owner of the last insult, Naruto gritted his teeth and continued on reading instead of reacting crassly; If he did, that would of meant that they had successfully got him to react to their stupid insults.
So he kept calm and maintained his slightly irritated but mostly calm composure.
However, there was one thing he couldn't ignore. The sound of a group of fangirls squealing and stampeding in the hallway to walk next to a certain object of their affection announced the arrival of a certain Uchiha.
Naruto turned his attention back to his book, 'great…'
Sasuke Uchiha walked into class with a glare that radiated hatred. Needless to say, the massacre of his clan didn't bode well with him. When his eyes briefly scanned the room and fell upon a certain Uzumaki, whom was propped on a hand supported by his elbow, looking down at a book without a care in the world, Sasuke saw red and marched over towards the class 'dobe' with his fangirls right behind him.
Sasuke didn't know why he felt such anger towards the blonde whiskered boy, but he didn't care. It probably had something to do with the fact that Naruto was the only thing that Sasuke could tie to the memories of his brother. Sasuke knew it wasn't justifiable reason- it wasn't even a rational one, regardless he just simply did not care.
Sasuke stood in front of Naruto in a position that demanded attention. He had his arms crossed on his chest and stared at the boy with a raging stare. Students had mostly filled the class by and had noticed the dark atmosphere. When they pinpointed the source of it, they sucked in a huge breath of anticipation.
At the sound of the collective intake of breaths, Naruto looked up, finally bringing his attention out of the book and to his surroundings. He looked to his right and found a brooding Uchiha shooting daggers via eyes at him. Naruto stared at the boy not one foot away from him for several moments.
Naruto blinked.
Then he shrugged and returned his attention back to his book.
Sasuke growled; no one should be ignoring him! He just had his clan massacred. Granted, he didn't see the horrors because before he could even step inside the clan compound, his brother appeared before him and knocked him out cold with a simple neck chop.
Regardless, having to wake up to your clan being killed was a very tragic event to wake up to. When he woke up, he decided that he would kill his brother. But first, he needed to get stronger and he was gonna do just that
And he was gonna have everyone witness it.
But for everyone to witness it, he needed their attention.
At all times…
Even the dobe's.
Naruto, noticing that Sasuke seemed a bit irritated, decided to move to the corner of the room; It was weirding him out that Sasuke was all up in his business. The emo survivor of the Uchiha clan was way too damn close for comfort.
X
Ino Yamanaka and Sakura Haruno along with the rest of the class stood in front of the room staring at the very… odd scene before them. Even the Uchiha Fangirl club had stopped following the brooding Uchiha and went to the front of the room to witness what was going on along with their classmates. Currently, Naruto was moving about the room and taking seats in different spots.
Normally, they would have chalked this off to Naruto just being Naruto… but the odd thing was wherever the blonde boy moved, a very baleful Sasuke Uchiha would follow at an eerily close distance. When Naruto sat down, Sasuke would be right there, like a second shadow.
No one really knew what to do.
Naruto sighed for what seemed like the tenth time since class started. The Uchiha survivor was seriously starting to piss him off. Naruto was seriously debating if it was worth using Gai's gift; he was really that mad.
But just as he decided to do something, A disheveled Inuzuka heir pushed his way between the crowd panting. Kiba Inuzuka looked like he hasn't slept in a week. And truth to be told, he hasn't.
The source of his disgruntled ire was currently tucked into his armpit. It was taking all of the Inuzuka's patience not to obliterate the damn thing. Kiba ran through everyone like a bull and saw Naruto sitting in the corner with the last Uchiha glaring at the blonde.
Kiba didn't care. He needed this problem taken care of ASAP. So he marched on over, shoved the survivor of the massacre away, and proceeded to thrust a 'ball' into the arms of Naruto.
"IT'S YOUR PROBLEM NOW!" The sleep-deprived Inuzuka shouted before sitting down next to the young blonde. Akamaru was perched on top of Kiba's head looking as tired as his owner.
Naruto looked at the downed Uchiha before putting his attention on the 'ball' that was shoved into his hands. Noticing the texture of said 'ball', Naruto frowned, since when were 'balls' furry?
Suddenly, the 'ball' unfurled and two brown eyes peered back at him. The ball then protruded a wagging tail.
And it barked.
Naruto blinked furiously.
"KIBA! WHAT THE HELL IS THIS!?"
X
A/N: Cheers! Another chapter finally done. Finals are kicking my ass, hence the reason for such a slow upload. I apologize to my followers and readers!
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