True Path of a Jinchuuriki Ch 2: The Results (Revised)
(Italics: Thoughts/Flashbacks/Dream sequence. Bold: Title and Kyubi's / Demon's / Inner Characters's Speech. Underline: Time Skips)
Sakura was speechless at Naruto's skill with a blade, after a moment of silence Naruto spoke.
"And that's only one of my new techniques, pretty awesome huh?"
Sakura merely smiled as she gazed at Naruto with admiration, Naruto caught her staring and he gazed back at her with confusion written across his facial expression.
"What is it?" Naruto asked.
Sakura merely smiled and shook her head.
"Say Naruto it's been a long time since we talked like this, want to grab a bite to eat and catch up some more?" Sakura asked with a hint of hope in her voice.
A hollow smile appeared on Naruto's face.
"No thanks, I have something to take care of anyway but it was nice talking to you Sakura..." Naruto replied quickly.
And with those words Naruto turned around and started walking back toward the village, vanishing in a burst of high speed. Sakura seemed rooted to the spot as she asked herself one thing.
"Did Naruto just turn me down on a date?"
The Next Day...
Naruto jerked upward from his bed violently as his old, obnoxiously loud alarm clock beeped in his ears, with a powerful slam of his palm he accidentally smashed the clock to pieces, the noise ending as well as the life of the appliance.
"Shit..."
Naruto muttered to himself as he rose from bed sleepily, after heating up some hot water on the stove he quickly undressed and hopped in a cold shower, scrubbing his body down with soap quickly as he rinsed himself off, with a quick motion he turned off the shower, slipped out and dried himself, and put the towel back on the rack. Naruto walked over to his bed and grabbed his clothes from yesterday and proceeded to get dressed in his all black outfit, a black t-shirt with the Konoha symbol in the middle in a bright orange emblem, and a pair of ANBU shinobi pants, Kunai holders and Shuriken Holsters attached to his sides, his sword lied across the foot of his bed, with an extended palm he grasped his sword's handle and attached the sheathed blade to the left side of his body.
Just as he was finished getting dressed the familiar sound of his kettle began to whistle from the kitchen, the sound got louder as he quickened his pace, putting the hot water on an unheated burner as he buttered up a pan and put it on the already heated burner, he quickly went into his fridge and pulled out two eggs, cracking them into the pan with a sizzle as he threw away the egg shells, after Naruto peppered and salted his eggs he opened up a packet of ramen and poured hot water into it as he stirred, as his ramen finished so were his eggs, with a flip of his frying pan he slipped the eggs into his ramen, as much as he liked ramen he needed some form of protein as well if we wanted to have his usual abundance of energy he had when he had just became a Genin...
After finishing his meal he grabbed his backpack and slung it over his shoulder as he was about to head out the door, as he extended his palm and was just about within reach of the handle a knock sounded on the other side of the door, Naruto opened the door immediately and came face to face with none other than his former master, Kakashi. Kakashi raised his hand slightly.
"Yo Naruto, you got taller since I last saw you." Kakashi said to his former apprentice.
Naruto grinned wide in response.
"Hey Kakashi what's up?" Naruto asked.
Kakashi laughed slightly from beneath his mask.
"Naruto you may have gotten taller and stronger by the look of you, but there are things about you that will never change. As much as I'd love to catch up with you and your training with Master Jiraiya I'm afraid I'm here on business, Lady Hokage requests your immediate presence." Kakashi replied.
Naruto flashed his former master one of his trademark fox-like grins.
"Lead the way Kakashi!" Naruto said with a grin on his face.
Tsunade sighed and took a deep drink from her bottle of Sake, she had a long day and she needed a drink damn it! After feeling the alcohol's effects settle in she put the bottle away, she was suddenly snapped back into reality from her daze however as a loud, knock sounded from the outside of her office door. Tsunade quickly sealed her bottle of Sake into one of her many scrolls, stashing it within a hidden pocket among her sleeves as she cleared her throat.
"Come in!" She called out.
The office door was suddenly swung open as two figures emerged from the doorway. The form of Kakashi stood to her right. Her suddenly gaze shifted to the Shinobi on her left. After a few moments of observation a smile appeared on Tsunade's facial expression. "Naruto it's good to see you again." She said, the same smile written into her facial expression.
Naruto grinned wide at Tsunade.
"Didn't recognize me huh?" Naruto asked happily.
Tsunade merely smiled in response.
"Let's just say I hope your appearance isn't the only dramatic change." Tsunade said with a smirk on her face.
Naruto grinned and slid his Katana from it's sheath, holding the blade up in an offensive stance, a confident grin on his face.
"This sword isn't just for show you know..." He said to Tsunade.
Tsunade couldn't help but grin, the young hyperactive knucklehead she had met five years ago had grown up so much.
Jiraiya must have done one hell of a job with him...
Tsunade thought to herself as she eyed her favorite blond up and down. Naruto slid his blade skillfully in it's respective sheath followed by a moment of silence.
"Anyone can hold a sword... But let's see you use it... How about a test of your skill?" Tsunade asked.
Naruto grinned darkly.
"What exactly did you have in mind?" He replied.
One Hour Later...
Naruto stood in an open field, across from him was his opponent, a powerful-looking older male who appeared to be in his late twenties, a monstrous muscular form giving the man a larger-than-life look to him, as a gust of wind blew past them Tsunade spoke.
"Begin!" She announced.
The larger man's body became enveloped in a bright green chakra, he performed a few sets of hand signs.
"Earth Style! Stone Body Jutsu!" He announced, the incantation echoing.
Suddenly the earth surged upward, and surrounded him, the green glow from his chakra getting brighter, with one big burst of chakra the earth cracked apart revealing what appeared to be a living statue of himself.
Naruto smirked and slipped three Kunai from his Kunai holder and threw them directly at his opponent with a slight curve to his throw, the man stepped to the side and dodged the attack with ease.
"Fool! No Kunai can pierce my body." The man said victoriously.
Naruto smirked.
"Fool..." He muttered to himself.
Suddenly the three Kunai Naruto had just thrown vanished in clouds of smoke, shadow replications of Naruto suddenly unsheathed their swords and charged forward with a burst of chakra-enhanced speed.
"Ninja Art Chakra Blade Trinity Attack!" They called out in sync. The incantation echoing through the forest around them.
With those words the runes running down all three black blades began to glow a bright crimson, the blades glowing as concentrated chakra reenforced the blades and they all sliced forward in unison, the three clones appearing next to Naruto and vanishing in clouds of smoke. The man appeared to be unaffected by this and started laughing.
"What are you trying to hit kid!? You didn't land a scratch on me! Now come at me with everything you got!" The man taunted.
Naruto began to laugh darkly.
"Fool you still don't get it, I already did."
The man had an enraged expression.
"What!?" He practically yelled.
But before he could say another word he felt a wave of pain rush over his body as his shell of earth shattered like a fragile piece of glass, shallow cuts running all across the surface of his body as he screamed out in agony, blood squirting out of his open wounds before he suddenly collapsed to the ground.
Tsunade's eyes were wide at what she had just seen and was about to tell Naruto he took it too far when Naruto spoke first.
"Don't worry I purposely missed all his vitals, get him to the hospital within an hour and he'll be fine, he'll just have problems breathing for a few days..." Naruto told Tsunade.
Tsunade smirked in response.
"That was very well done Naruto, now let us talk about your promotion..." She said.
Naruto grinned and eyed Tsunade as if watching something amusing, a curious expression of disbelief reflected in his facial expression.
"Me? A Chunin?" He asked Tsunade, a hint of uncertainty in his voice.
Tsunade nodded in response.
"Your abilities surpass Genin Level yet they are still not refined enough for you to be considered Jounin level, therefore your rank will now be Chunin." She replied.
The same grin from before did not leave Naruto's face as he sighed and spoke casually.
"Well at least I put these past four years to good use, Chunin is a big step toward Hokage..." He said with a confident grin.
Tsunade seemed to be lost in thought as she eyed her favorite blond and thought to herself: Naruto you've really changed haven't you?
Tsunade smiled at the hyperactive blonde shinobi before her.
"Nobody has ever been promoted from Genin Rank straight to Chunun Rank without taking the Chunin Exam, not since Itachi Uchiha and the Fourth Hokage himself." She said with a grin on her face.
At this comment Naruto's grin if anything got wider as he stared out the window, an overwhelming aura of happiness emitting from the young Jinchuuriki. After a moment of silence Naruto decided to break it.
"So will there be anything else Lady Hokage?" Naruto asked, putting extra emphasis on the title.
Naruto asked in a sarcastic tone, a smirk on his face. Tsunade smiled at her favorite blond.
"That will be all Naruto Uzumaki, you are dismissed." She replied with a smile.
As Naruto turned to leave Tsunade spoke again.
"Oh and Naruto?"
Naruto tilted his neck and gazed back over his shoulder out of curiosity. "Yes?" He asked her. Tsunade smiled lightly nodded.
"Welcome home." She replied.
Naruto smiled to himself and turned around and started walking toward the office door, opening the door and disappearing through the doorway.
"It's good to be home." He muttered to himself as he walked out of Tsunade's office.
And with those words he shut the office door behind him as he proceeded to walk down the long, spiral staircase.
Hinata rose from her bed, tensing her body, a determined look in her eyes as she gazed at herself in the bathroom mirror.
I have to be strong... For you Naruto-kun... Today I'm going to talk to you and tell you my feelings the first place we meet! She told herself with a triumphant smile on her face.
And with a smile and that same determined look in her eyes the Hyuga Heiress leaped out her window and jumped from rooftop to rooftop, activating her Byakugan to hasten her search efforts. After looking all over the village she nearly dropped from exhaustion, walking forward through the business district with a tired, unfocused look written inter her facial expression.
Naruto grinned as he sped up a bit, after that hard training session a bowl of ramen was in order, he was so excited he forgot to focus on what was around him as he turned a sharp corner, Naruto hit something hard and whatever it was fell to the ground in front of him, Naruto shifted his gaze downward and noticed the raven haired Hyuuga Heiress on the ground struggling to get up. Naruto dropped to his knees and helped her up.
"Hinata are you alright?" He asked her, a hint of concern in his eyes.
Hinata was in a daze as she got to her feet, struggling to balance herself as she said in a dazed tone, her eyes blinded for a moment. "What happened?" She asked as she rubbed her aching head.
Naruto smiled in response.
"Thank God you're alright." He replied.
Hinata gasped as she noticed who was talking to her.
"N-Naruto is that you?"
Naruto smiled and threw up a peace sign.
"Of course it's me who else would be in such a hurry to get some ramen? Now I do believe I owe you an apology Hinata." Naruto said with a large grin on his face.
Hinata blushed in response.
"It's fine really, I'm alright..." She muttered to herself.
Naruto smiled at her.
"How about we grab a bowl of Ichirakus? My treat!" Naruto offered the Hyuuga Heiress.
Hinata's face seemed to shift to a brighter shade of crimson as she appeared to be frozen to the spot.
Did Naruto-kun just invite me on a date? She thought to herself.
She was suddenly snapped out of her fantasy as Naruto shot her a foxy grin.
"So I'll take that as a yes?" Naruto asked hopefully.
Hinata merely smiled and nodded her head.
Ichiraku grinned and rubbed Naruto's head, messing with his hair.
"Look our best customer's back, and Hinata is with him." Teuchi said with a grin on his face. Naruto smiled at Teuchi in response.
"Hey Old man Teuchi what's up?" Naruto asked.
Hinata smiled and bowed slightly.
"G-Good evening Teuchi s-sir." Hinata managed to say.
Teuchi smiled messed with Hinata's hair too.
"Just call me Teuchi okay Hinata?" He said happily.
Hinata merely smiled and nodded, as Naruto and Hinata sat at their table Ayame walked up with a beautiful smile.
"So what can I get you two?" She asked them.
One hour and ten bowls of Ramen Later...
"...And Jiraiya-sensei was so wasted I had to drag him halfway to the next town before he could even move again." Naruto said with a big grin on his face.
Hinata smiled at Naruto's story, she and Naruto had both finished eating, gathering up all the courage she could.
"Say Naruto?"
Naruto looked up at her with interest.
"Yes? What is it Hinata?" Naruto asked her.
Hinata blushed slightly.
"W-well Naruto there's something t-that I've been w-wanting to tell you a long t-time now..." She said as she nervously pushed her forefingers together.
Naruto shot Hinata a foxy grin.
"You can tell me anything, you know that right Hinata?" Naruto told her.
Hinata's face grew an even deeper crimson, nervously pushing her fingers together as she continued.
"Well Naruto... You see I-"
But she was cut off however as Kakashi emerged from the doorway, his gaze shifting in Naruto's direction as he walked over.
"Oh good you're both here. Sorry to interrupt but Lady Tsunade has summoned you both." Kakashi said.
Hinata's head dropped in defeat. Shit a mission... She thought to herself miserably. Naruto's grin widened. Finally a mission! He thought to himself happily.
Naruto stood up, turning to Hinata.
"You coming Hinata?" He asked her.
Hinata snapped back into reality as she smiled and nodded, standing up and joining Naruto and Kakashi. Naruto left the money on the table.
"Thanks for the meal Teuchi I'm off!" Naruto announced as he walked off with Kakashi and Hinata toward Tsunade's office.
And without waiting for a reply Naruto, Kakashi, and Hinata began to venture towards the Hokage's Office.
A/N: I'm quite happy with my story although I'm amazed by the overwhelming amount of e-mails and reviews, I guess the original themes I worked with were the most popular huh? Anyway I hoped the NaruHina fans enjoyed the suspense built up towards the end, I needed to throw a cliffhanger at the end to be able to flow into the next chapter but I'm sure you'll all forgive me. Anyway please REVIEW if you care!
Peace! - DL5