Chapter 10: Fragile, Developing Ties

Toriyama Creek, Konohagakure no Sato (1547 hours November 30, 7 AK)

It was time.

Sasuke had practiced diligently throughout the course of the week to perfect this jutsu. He was certain that, should he display a magnificent fireball, he would gain the admiration and respect he always sought from his father.

This was more to him than merely a "rite-of-passage." To him, his family's love was on the line. If he could impress his father, then his brother would be proud of his achievements. Maybe then could his brother finally come home and get along with their father.

Though Sasuke pretended not to, he noticed the strained relationship between his father and Itachi. Fugaku used to be so fond of Itachi, but something happened (Sasuke did not know exactly what had occurred), and it caused Itachi to lose favor in the eyes of their father. Sasuke assumed that Fugaku thought of his younger son as nothing more than a substitute, one that could not possibly be worthy of the Uchiha clan. Well, Sasuke is going to prove that all wrong, right here, right now.

The deluge had been coming down roughly for the last couple of hours. Yet, Sasuke could care less about the weather. Rain or shine, nothing was going to stop him from impressing his father.

He stood atop the pier at the mouth of the creek, awaiting his father's instructions. Fugaku was rather annoyed at the prospect of coming to watch his son's rite-of-passage while the weather was glum, but he arrived nonetheless, with umbrella in tow.

Sasuke felt surprisingly calm during this moment. He thought he would be more terrified of the outcome of this test, but his heart was at ease and his thoughts were paced evenly. Sasuke was as cool as a shinobi should be at any given moment. He attributed his serenity to the rain; it felt as though all of his troubles were washing away as he stood under the pouring shower.

He lifted his head to feel the full force of the relentless torrent on his face.

It was time.

"Well, Sasuke." Fugaku said, his patience wearing thin. "I hope the last week of training was worth it. Demonstrate to me that you burn bright with the will of the Uchiha. Breathe the greatest flame you can muster upon the heavens. Then and only then will you be considered an adult, and my son, under my eyes.

Sasuke nodded. Fugaku could not see his son's face, as his posture was opposite his line of sight. But with the rain pouring down, causing Sasuke's hair to obey gravity, he couldn't help but consider his resemblance to be strikingly similar to his wayward elder son.

Sasuke closed his eyes. 'Clear my head.' He thought as every little idea vanished from his conscious mind. He allowed his senses to take full control of his body. Every single droplet of rain was being perceived by Sasuke's mind, as was the aroma of the creek surrounding him.

He was ready.

'Snake…' Sasuke thought as he made the seal associated with "Snake." He continued this process as he blasted through the seals at his own leisure. While he desired more than anything to impress his father, he knew that haste makes waste. So he created the appropriate seals as calmly and as efficiently as possible for an Academy student.

Ram…Monkey…Boar…Horse…

Tiger…

Sasuke lifted the Tiger seal up to his mouth. He inhaled as much air as he could to supply his fireball with the necessary magnitude.

Resolution coursing through his body, Sasuke bravely lifted his eyes.

"KATON: GŌKAKYŪ NO JUTSU!"

Fugaku dropped his umbrella.

The subsequent fireball could not even be referred to as such. An adequate description of Sasuke's flare was a recently birthed celestial object, generating heat equivalent to that of ten thousand suns.

Sasuke's Gōkakyū was approximately 10 meters in diameter. It was gargantuan, to say the least; far larger than even Itachi's. The most surprising, though, was that Sasuke showed no sign of letting up. For several seconds, Sasuke continued to stream the pyre out of his mouth and into the rain clouds above him.

The wonders would not cease from there. Fugaku could very well determine that the fireball was immensely hot. Not only did he feel the temperature rise slightly, causing him to fan his collar using his shirt, but he also observed the clouds above him forming into cumulonimbus clouds. The flare was more than enough to trigger the condensation of suspended droplets midair, generating the necessary conditions for a thunderstorm. Although the forecast hinted merely at a shower, no thunderstorms or anything of that sort, the vicinity around Toriyama Creek was tormented by the devastating claps of thunder and the brief flashes of lightning.

After several more seconds of releasing his flames into the heavens, Sasuke's chakra began to dissipate. The size of the flame diminished over time, until nothing was left of it. The initial heat wave had waned into normal temperatures with the end of the Gōkakyū, and the cumulonimbus cloud that was created dispersed, leaving nothing but the original rain clouds.

Sasuke stared into the air for a while before turning to meet his father's astonished gaze. Mustering up whatever strength he had left, Sasuke forced a smile. He had done well, he figured, if his father were to have looked at him with such pride.

Sasuke collapsed from the resulting chakra exhaustion. A mere genin would not have the reserves necessary for the Gōkakyū. In fact, the rite was supposed to be reserved for experienced genin, or genin preparing to take the Chūnin exams. Itachi had graduated the Academy at 7 years of age and subsequently succeeded in the rite. Yet…Sasuke was not even an Academy student at the moment. He was scheduled to begin his first semester on April of the following year. To create a Gōkakyū of that scale with no proper instruction and only a week of training…could it possibly be?

Fugaku was quick to catch Sasuke as he was falling. He lifted him into the air, careful that he may not rouse his son from his slumber. Sensing the rapid approach of a Shunshin, Fugaku hastily met the attention of the arriving ANBU. Of course, the creation of thunder clouds when the forecast predicted only rain was one of probable concern. Fugaku just was not expecting the reaction time to be this quick.

"Uchiha-sama, it has been brought to our attention that peculiar weather patterns were reported in this vicinity. Do you know anything about it?" The Cat masked ANBU inquired.

"Nothing to raise the alarm about, Cat-san." Fugaku reassured, raising his hand in a peaceful gesture. "My son was just performing the Uchiha rite-of-passage."

"Ah," Cat responded. "That would explain the spike in temperature. But what about the sudden formation of cumulonimbus clouds around Toriyama Creek?"

"I'll leave that to your imagination." Fugaku replied with an arrogant smirk.

"…You don't mean…" Cat stuttered, realizing what Fugaku was implying. "Surely you jest…"

"I'm afraid not." Fugaku answered proudly. "My son," He lifted his son's unconscious body to show to Cat, "Is the source of all the weather anomalies that occurred in the last 15 minutes."

"But he's just a child!" Cat said in disbelief. "He couldn't possibly-"

"You forget who you are talking to, ANBU." Fugaku interrupted with a sting in his tone. "Of course he would be fully capable of such feats. He would be no son of mine if he was unable to perform a measly Gōkakyū."

"Y-you're right, Uchiha-sama. I apologize." Cat bowed in apology. "Very well then, I take my leave. I pray you know that I must report this to the Hokage."

Fugaku smirked mischievously. "Oh, by all means. Inform the Hokage of the blatantly obvious fact: the Uchiha is, was, and will forever be the preeminent shinobi clan in all of Konohagakure. Not like this information will matter to him to begin with."

Taking those brash words into heart, Cat disappeared in a Shunshin, leaving naught but traces of leaves in her wake. The atmospheric disturbance of her departure woke the young Uchiha wrapped gently under his father's arms.

"O-otou-sama…" Sasuke muttered weakly. "Did I…did I do it?"

Fugaku smiled at his son. "You are indeed worthy of inheriting the will of the Uchiha clan. Henceforth, you can proudly display the Uchiha emblem in your clothing. Teach everyone what it means to be of the Uchiha clan…my son."

With those final words, the largest smile appeared on Sasuke's face. He couldn't believe what just happened. It still feels a bit hazy, considering that he did lose consciousness after that Gōkakyū. But he did it. He won the respect and admiration of his father. He could now wear the red and white uchiwa insignia on his shirts and pants. He can now go around and proudly display his Uchiha might to all those that would stare in awe. But more importantly…

He could finally catch up with his older brother.

Undisclosed Location, Konohagakure no Sato (1230 hours December 21, 7 AK [Winter Solstice Begins])

Suzu sat comfortably inside her warm cabin, watching each snowflake fall in this fine day. She was thrilled that it began to snow on her birthday, and she was absolutely content with just observing the snow fall for the rest of the day. The snow had greatly accumulated throughout the day, littering up to inches across the grove that was her new home. The grove was practically a winter wonderland, a majestic gathering of snow, unrivaled by any sort of beauty nature could possibly create.

Suzu wanted to go and play outside in the snow. There was so much snow everywhere that it would be a terrible waste of time not to have fun along the snowfield. But she had to adhere to Weasel's warnings. She still remembered the day she almost caught pneumonia from training in the rain. Weasel warned her never to act that brashly during severe weather conditions, such as today. So Suzu settled on just looking at the snowfall.

To the impressionable girl, every snowflake looked to be a Yuki Pixie, one of the legendary beings from Konoha mythology. The snowflakes danced merrily among the gentle breeze that blew amidst the snowstorm, appearing to be a ballroom of pure white and tender essence. It was captivating beyond words, so Suzu was satisfied in merely being a spectator to the performance.

Beside Suzu was a crackling fire, providing the cabin with the vital warmth during the harshly frigid climate. In spite of the exquisiteness of the day, the cold was biting to the skin, and Suzu did not want to prolong any contact with the cold for any longer than was necessary. It was a quiet day, aside from the occasional howl of the wind or the fizzing of the flame. But Suzu didn't mind.

After nearly three months of this isolation imposed on her by the Hokage (Suzu could no longer find herself calling Hiruzen by his affectionate nickname "Jiji-chan"), Suzu had since adapted to and called this place her new home. From the call of the wild during the late nights, to the early morning chirping of the local birds, Suzu grew used to the sounds, smells, and sights of the cabin and the surrounding grove and forest. She was not allowed to leave the vicinity farther than about 30 meters from the cabin, but she no longer minded the restriction. Everything she could hope to have was within her grasp, and she was…happy.

Actually, not everything was made available to her by the cabin and the surrounding environment. Very often she found herself longing for her precious Naruto. At nights, she would stare into the moonlight, wondering how exactly Naruto was fairing these days. Was Hyūga-teme kicking his butt again for the 100th time? What kind of pranks did the blond trickster pull off to annoy the locals? Did Teuchi-san and Ayame-san make any special ramen for him during his birthday?

The more she thought about Naruto, the more anxious she became, and the more impatient she was for the day she would be enrolled into the Academy. But she knew that all she could do was wait for the time being.

She wondered if Naruto was thinking about her too. She hoped so; she thought about him during his birthday.

Regardless, today was a day to enjoy in peace and relaxation. Eventually, Weasel-san will drop by with her rations for the day, and that would make the day even better.

Over the last couple of weeks, she had grown attached to Weasel. He reminded her very much of herself. He was quiet, only talked when he needed too, and was overtly polite. He was also very mysterious, besides the obvious mask. He never talked about himself or how his days went, unlike Dog, who was willing to disclose that information. He never talked about his ideas or his opinions, gratified with just watching over Suzu during his stays.

He would watch her practice over and over repeatedly, giving pointers whenever she asked for them. Surprisingly, Weasel was not very good with the bokken, preferring the tantō as his primary weapon of choice. Given the relative size difference between a typical bokken and the tantō, the advantage should go to Suzu during all of their practice bouts. However, Weasel had the eerie ability to transform any of his presumed weaknesses into his strengths.

Weasel could weave flawlessly into Suzu's defenses and strike her with a "killing" blow every single time that they battled. No matter how unpredictable Suzu became with her strikes, Weasel would always find a pattern he could exploit, allowing him to win the match with ease.

This pleased Suzu though. She knew that Weasel would never hold back in their practice sessions, and with each failure Suzu etched even closer to reaching Weasel's skill level. She knew that she had a long, long way to go before she could fight the ANBU evenly in close combat, but she was satisfied with the progress she was making. Maybe she could impress Naruto with her kenjutsu skills whenever the they were match up with one another for spars at the Academy. Just thinking about that possibility made Suzu jitter uncontrollably.

A frigid gale crept its way into the cabin, causing Suzu to whimper closer to the fire. Reaching her hand over the flame, she took careful notice of what her palm was like. She examined it thoroughly, as if to assess her overall skill. Closing her hand to a tight fist, she subconsciously resolved to become even stronger than she was right now. She had no doubt that she could do it; Weasel said he believed in her, as did Dog when he used to work with Suzu. She was certain that the old Gama Sennin also believed in her, and she was absolutely convinced that Naruto believed in her. So that's what she was going to do.

The door to her cabin creaked open. Suzu felt goose bumps crawling up her skin as she shivered in her blanket, protecting against the unrelenting cold. Weasel walked into the cabin, hanging his cloak at a rack near the door. Suzu never noticed it until recently, but she really enjoyed the standard ANBU uniform. She thought that the flak jacket covering the black clothing looked really cool, and the metal arm guards and bandages wrapped around their right leg only boosted the appearance dramatically. She was not particularly fond of the tattoos inked on their shoulders, but it matched surprisingly well with the rest of the ANBU attire, so she did not mind it as much.

Weasel noticed Suzu's lengthy gaze, brushing it aside as he continued undressing himself from his heavy winter gear. Today was a special day for Suzu, so he would allow her to do whatever she pleased, granted that it did not severely risked her general health. Now that Weasel thought about it, she was about as old as his younger brother. Maybe he really is getting attached to the young girl. He wondered what kind of reaction his brother would have upon meeting the polite, yet headstrong, young girl.

"Good afternoon, Weasel-san!" Suzu said, huddling up in her blanket.

"Un," Weasel grunted. Weasel was a man of few words, but Suzu did not mind. She was happy communicating with simple body motions, as long as he stood by her side.

"Neh, neh Weasel-san, what's for lunch?" Suzu asked curiously.

"Considering the weather, soup would be best." Weasel answered.

"What kinda soup?" Suzu asked. "Did you know? Naruto really likes ramen. He especially likes extra-large miso ramen with roasted pork fillets."

"I know." Weasel answered, preparing the thermos that contained Suzu's soup.

"Really?" Suzu asked. "How'd you know?"

Weasel did not reply to that question. Instead, he poured the soup into a bowl and served it to Suzu.

"Man, you never answer my questions, Weasel-san." Suzu lamented. "I was pretty sure I was going to get an answer from you this time."

"Fujibayashi-san, you always ask me these types of questions." Weasel retaliated. "You should know by now that I cannot answer them. Sworn to secrecy after all."

"Yeah, but it's my birthday! You should make an exception for me!" Suzu argued.

Beneath the mask, Weasel smiled. He really did enjoy Suzu's company. Maybe he really did think of her as a younger sister.

Subconsciously, Weasel brushed Suzu's forehead with his index and middle finger.

"Maybe another time, Sasuke." Weasel said. Then he froze.

"Owie!" Suzu shouted, softly rubbing her forehead. The poke was actually harmless, but she enjoyed making a huge fuss over the littlest situations. It gave Suzu and Weasel even more of an opportunity to talk with each other. "Why'd you do that for?"

Weasel did not respond. He just sat in place, practically frozen. His inaction was cause for concern for little Suzu.

"Weasel-san?" Suzu called out. No response. Suzu's worries increased, grabbing his leg and shaking it as hard as she could. "Weasel-san? Weasel!"

Weasel snapped back into reality. He had been stupefied after inadvertently releasing some vital information to the girl. Namely, the identity of his younger brother.

He did not know what came of him. He only reacted in the most natural way he could. Yeah…that's what he normally did to Sasuke whenever he asked for the impossible. So why did he do his usual habit to Suzu, of all people? More importantly, why did he confuse Suzu for Sasuke?

Maybe…maybe he was not cut out for this type of work. He was only 13 years old, and he was already the captain of his own platoon of ANBU agents. He…he never wanted this. He never wanted to fight. He never wanted to shed the blood that has stained his conscience. He just…he just wanted to be with his family. With Sasuke.

But he knew that was impossible. While Weasel cherished peace and love, his father and the rest of the Uchiha clan valued power and submission. Increasing tensions from a lack of voice within the Konoha government has brought dissention among his people. He could never go back to his old life, especially with war around the corner.

But he yearned to go back. His time with Suzu made him realize how much he truly cherished his family; how much he truly cherished Sasuke. He would do anything to protect the younger brother that he abandoned, feeling as though it was his only form of redemption for going against the ideals he pledged after witnessing the carnage of the Third Shinobi World War.

Being with Suzu, in a sense, gave him hope. Hope for his own future. No matter how dark it may tread, Weasel had an idea on what he should make of it. Of course, he is praying to the gods above that the crisis does not need to turn to this predicament. But Weasel was a shinobi, first and foremost. As uplifting as ideals are, they have no place in the heart of shinobi, who thrive on realism for survival in this cruel world. He had to prepare for the worst, should the need arise.

"…I…I apologize, Fujibayashi-san." Weasel said. "I…I was just thinking."

"About…?" Suzu asked innocently. No response. "Figures…" she pouted

For the first time in the weeks that they knew each other, Weasel laughed. Suzu stared for a couple of seconds, baffled at the sudden display of emotion from the usually stoic ANBU, but she quickly joined in on the laughter.

"Oh!" Weasel remembered. "I almost forgot."

Weasel reached into his satchel. Digging in deep for a while, Weasel pulled out what appeared to be some balls wrapped in plastic and skewered with a wooden stick. He also pulled out a small packet of syrup, making Suzu salivate subconsciously.

"Here you go." Weasel said, heading over the skewered balls to Suzu. "This is a little gift from Dog. In celebration of your birthday. He himself wasn't able to give you the dango that you've always wanted, but he gave this to me and asked me to send it to you with his warmest wishes."

"D…d…d…dan…dango…?!" Suzu whelped in ecstatic glee. "Really? Dog gave this to me? Is it really for me?"

"Yes Fujibayashi-san." Weasel answered.

Her hands shivered in anticipation, graciously accepting the glorious bounty from Weasel's grasp. When she was nervously unwrapping the dango from its plastic containment, Weasel felt the need to explain the significance of the syrup.

"Fujibayashi-san, what you hold in your hands is called Mitarashi dango. It's a type of dango that is supposed to be eaten while smothered in the syrup you also have."

"Really?" Suzu asked again. The anticipation was killing her salivary glands, as she failed to halt the endless stream of drool leaking from her mouth. She just wanted to devour the tasty looking morsel right this very instant, and she almost could care less about the syrup. But syrup was so moist and sugary… It would be a sin against the gods above to not lather the dango in the sweetening condiment.

So Suzu poured the entire packet onto the dango, carefully licking any excess syrup that dripped out. She didn't care that Weasel was watching. She didn't care that she was supposed to be a little girl, all clean and primped. She was going to eat the dango. And she was going to enjoy it.

So down went the first dango. She gently bit the dango out of the skewer and chewed on it after several seconds. She was lost in the taste of the dango, randomly dropping her head.

"Fujibayashi-san, are you alright?" Weasel said, quickly approaching the downed girl.

"It's…It's…" Suzu muttered weakly.

"Fujibayashi-san…Suzu…" Weasel said, concerned for the girl. If the dango was poisoned, he was going to find Dog and-

"IT'S SO GOOD!" Suzu cried, literally with tears streaming from her eyes. Shinobi were not supposed to cry…Well, never give a child a taste of their first sweet-treat.

Forget savoring the flavor. Forget trying to remember this moment for lifetimes to come. The taste was so overwhelmingly delicious that Suzu wolfed down the entire skewer of dango in an instant.

"DO YOU HAVE MORE?!" Suzu screamed demonically.

"N…no?" Weasel whispered, slightly taken aback by Suzu's change in demeanor. This girl was most definitely a sweet tooth.

"Aww…" Suzu lamented. She licked her fingers to get whatever syrup was remaining in the crevices, but she was sorely disappointed with the lack of dango to commemorate this fantastic occasion. What's worse was that, in her blind desire to consume, Suzu was unable to savor the flavor into memory.

"When I come back next time, I'll go get you another batch of dango." Weasel told the girl.

Suzu looked up at him with the most innocent "puppy dog" eyes she could possibly create. "W…will you really?" She pleaded.

"I promise."

Naruto's Apartment, Konohagakure no Sato (2146 hours December 21, 7 AK)

"Man, why is this technique so difficult?!"

Naruto was studying one of the core jutsu required to graduate the Academy. It was the end of the second trimester of the school year, and the students were taking the New Year's break in preparation for the next trimester. For Naruto, however…

He was forced to do remedial homework because of is ineptitude when it came to performing jutsu.

Already he had failed to perform the Kawarimi no Jutsu, one of the most basic E-rank jutsu in the curriculum. He couldn't understand why. He practiced day and night memorizing the hand seals, repeating them over and over again until it became second nature. Yet, every time they would take a practice examination, Naruto would end up with bruises from his inability to dodge wooden shuriken using the technique.

Surely, the puff of smoke indicating a successful dispersion of chakra would always appear, but Naruto would remain stationary, taking the shuriken painfully in the face…or worse…

Try as he might, his attempts always ended in failure. He had originally assumed that it was because he mixed up signs with each other. When he was certain that he perfected the sequence of signs, he next tested if it was the speed in which he initiated the seals. When that theory ran its course, he confirmed whether or not he slipped up each of the seals. After confirming that each seal was absolutely precise to the posture, Naruto was at a loss for words.

Unfortunately, the Kawarimi was not the only jutsu Naruto was failing horrendously. Naruto could not figure out the Henge no Jutsu at all. Another simple E-rank jutsu that Naruto was flunking miserably. Except that the Henge was actually technically easier than the Kawarimi, requiring two fewer hand signs.

'Dog…Boar…Ram…' Naruto thought to himself as he repeated these signs with his hands. Gushing out as much chakra as he could, he attempted to transform into an exact replica of the Hokage.

"Henge no Jutsu!" He screamed as he was engulfed by a puff of smoke. "Alright! Let's go check out how I look…GODS I LOOK ATROCIOUS!"

Instead of transforming into identical image of the Sandaime, Naruto had transformed into what the Hokage would look like if he was an amateur sumō wrestler. His cheeks were bulging with fat, as was his lips and eyes. The flab under his arm hanged like a podium in a grotesque manner, causing even the most daring to turn away queasy. His pupils shrunk dramatically to the size of dots, and his nose enlarged and deformed. Hideous would be a complement to how monstrous this Henge was.

"Ugh!" Naruto shouted in frustration, dispelling his Henge and sighing in defeat. "I can't do anything right! At this rate, I'll fall behind even Rock Lee! And that kid can't even use ninjutsu! Something about coiled toils? Soiled boils? Argh, this is so frustrating!"

He scratched his hair furiously trying to come up with a solution to this problem. From the corner of his eye, Naruto saw one of the…erotic magazines that he…borrowed from a vendor that had flipped him off earlier in the day. Naruto thought the man would not miss such a treasure, considering it a donation to a noble and just cause (i.e. himself). He thought that he could take his mind off the stress of his remedial homework by checking out some of the masterpieces within the magazine.

"Huehuehue…" Naruto chuckled like a pervert. With each flip of the page, the grin on his face grew larger and larger, becoming a full grown smile that would make all perverts worldwide tear up in pride. "HOLY SHIT! Those can grow that large? Wow! Who knew?"

For whatever reason, the creative juices were flowing inside Naruto's mind as he scanned the pages and observed the vixens in their various poses. The next great prank.

"Let's try it out!" Naruto said, tossing the magazine to some random corner of his room. 'Alright, I just need to imagine the figure in my mind and…' Naruto thought as he experimented with his new idea. Going through the signs of the Henge, Naruto molded chakra and exploded in a puff of smoke.

What came out was…not his best piece of work. It was certainly better than the Henge of the Sandaime, but lacking in many departments. "Naruko," as Naruto will henceforth refer to this transformation, was slightly chubby, with short, dirty blond hair, and miniscule breasts. She was not drop-dead gorgeous like some of the ladies in that (incredible piece of) literature, but it was progress nevertheless. Somewhat satisfied with where he got with his new idea, Naruto resolved to perfect the technique and add it as a part of his repertoire ingenious pranks. Suzu would totally be impressed with his brand new "Oiroke no Jutsu!"

'Neh, Suzu-chan, I hope you are doing better than me' Naruto thought to himself, staring out into the stars from inside his apartment. 'In just a few more months, we'll be reunited. I promise that I won't ever leave your side again, 'ttebayo!"

Naruto was eager for April to come. He was tired of spending his days all alone and without anyone to share his experiences with. Hiruzen was always busy these days, and after that foolish proclamation of his and Suzu's subsequent revelation, Naruto did not feel that Hokage-jiji was as trustworthy as he makes himself out to be. Ichiraku Teuchi was too old, and although he may be kind, he really only cared about Naruto's patronage. Not that Naruto minded. Anyone who could treat him like a real person was alright in his book. Ichiraku Ayame was old too. Not as old as Teuchi, but old enough to have different interest and hobbies than Naruto. She was a big sister type of person, but Naruto couldn't hang out with Ayame like he could with Suzu. And, recently, Dog retired from ANBU service. He was mostly alone all over again.

That was soon going to change. Soon, he'll be reunited with Suzu. He'll be her sempai, and show her all the ropes to becoming a shinobi. Maybe the both of them can find new friends to hang out with. That would totally be sweet for Naruto.

For now, Naruto looked out his window and gazed upon the bright, starlit sky. Gently closing his eyes, Naruto whispered his hopes and dreams for the future, as well as his best wishes for his best friend. For the moment they were to come together again.

"Happy Birthday, Suzu-chan!"

Jutsu Mentioned

Katon: Gōkakyū no Jutsu (Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique): [C-Rank Ninjutsu] The Uchiha signature technique. The user kneads chakra within himself and expels the fire via the mouth. The resulting fireball can travel a short distance before dissipating from rapidly cooling external temperatures. The fireball's size varies on the user's experience with the technique and general chakra reserves.

Kawarimi no Jutsu (Body Replacement Technique): [E-Rank Ninjutsu] An Academy-level technique. The user, upon receiving damage, replaces his body with an object nearby the vicinity. The object must be of reasonable mass, otherwise the technique will fail (i.e. The user cannot replace himself with a pebble). The standard object of replacement used by Konoha shinobi is a block of wood, but shinobi of various different villages can use other objects of similar mass.

Henge no Jutsu (Transformation Technique): [E-rank Ninjutsu] An Academy-level technique. The user exerts a steady stream of chakra in order to create an illusionary appearance. The user must have a clear mental image of the appearance he wishes to create, as well as supply a constant stream of chakra in order to maintain the jutsu. Also, while the user can create illusions of persons or objects of different sizes to the user, the user's own mass does not change. If an external factor, for instance, were to touch a user's illusion at a location higher than the user's actual height, the touch would phase through and dispel the illusion.

Oiroke no Jutsu (Sexy Technique): [E-rank Ninjutsu] Derivative of Henge no Jutsu. The user transform into a sexually arousing female. Like the Henge, the technique requires a clear mental image of his appearance in order for the jutsu to succeed. As such, the more perverted the user, the clearer an image the user can provide, the more effective the technique.

Hey Y'all!

Chapter 10 complete! And with this chapter, this fan fiction officially has double digits! Thank you all so very much for sticking with me, or joining me, through out this journey. It's been an amazing run so far, and I hope that we can continue this progress for the next 10 chapters. I love milestones, so the next one has got to be 50 chapters! Or hopefully 50 chapters, anyways. I don't know when exactly this fan fiction is going to end.

The Introductory Arc is about to head to a close, ladies and gentlemen. Get really excited, because the action is going to pick up in the Academy Arc! Man, I've been looking very much forward to releasing the Academy Arc for weeks! I'm already half-way done with the Academy Arc too, so expect epic action and super amazing plot twists coming your way.

Just a side note: Episode 357 of Naruto Shippuden shows footage of a 6 year old Sasuke being picked up from the Academy by an 11 year old Itachi. In this fan fiction, Sasuke has not yet been registered into the Academy, and will only do so at 8 AK. Please note that I will maintain my basis for the Academy as disclosed by the Author's note on Chapter 7 instead of using canon.

I feel like, if I had just read the manga a little more, than I would have at least had a better understanding of the shinobi Academy system. This system has been confirmed since chapter 220 of the Naruto manga. Man, I really do suck at digging underneath the underneath.

Anyways, my system works better for the story that I'm telling, so that is what I'll be sticking to. Besides, canon doesn't really explain the inconsistencies of the differentiating graduation years. Some graduate at 5, others at 6, some at 7, 10 and finally 12. Seriously, how exactly does the Academy actually work in Naruto?

For anyone who is interested in Heterochromia Iridum, the next chapter will probably be released in 2 to 3 weeks. I want to at least complete several chapters before I publish the next one. I'm half-way done with chapter 2, so it's going to be a while before we can continue Ishoku's quest.

Update on story stats: 30 Reviews, 26 Favorites, 37 Followers, 1 Communities, and 3,090 Hits.

Once again, thanks a lot for reading this story, and I will see you all next week.

-Blackrazgriz 4/22/2014 11:10PM EST