Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. But if I did, oh the possibilities…
Author's Note: At the beginning this time, a departure from my norm I know. But I always do seem to be told that variety is the spice of life. This chapter may seem a bit heavy on technical information, but I wanted to flesh out the way I think Mokuton works. And, by the way, the (limited) information I've given about plant physiology is all scientifically accurate; so you just might learn something. Funny, how this is the first use I've had for what I learned in that course. But I digress, here's to hoping you enjoy this latest installment.
All told, Tenzo mused, Naruto had learned remarkably quickly. It took Naruto a mere month to learn how to mold chakra, two more to bring his control to a high enough level to begin thinking about elemental manipulation. From there it took him five weeks to learn earth manipulation. And using the lessons learned from that was able to manipulate water chakra in another three. In short, it took Naruto five months to go from learning how to mold chakra to being ready to start learning how to consciously call upon Mokuton. He'd done it much more quickly than Tenzo had.
Of course, Tenzo hadn't had a jounin-level ninja working almost exclusively with him over the course of that period. Nor had the experiments performed on him been quite so…extensive. But even so, remarkable. Those months had been spent bouncing back and forth between the Shodai's Grove and Konohagakure. It was a bit too long of a time period to spend exclusively at the grove. But the solitude and conditions it provided for training, especially training in anything that had to do with nature, was quite simply unmatched. So he always took Naruto there when starting to teach him something new, and stayed there long enough for the boy to get a grasp of it before returning to Konohagakure to polish the skill.
They were currently back in the grove, seated in a small clearing bisected by babbling creek. It was time for Naruto to learn how to wield his birthright. "Mokuton is one of the most revered abilities of Konohagakure, formed by the combination of earth and water chakra. In that respect at least, it's similar to quite a few bloodlines, there are several of them that function by combining two different elements. But once you get past that it's much different. Different than most kekkai genkai, different than most jutsu.
"Usually a shinobi uses chakra to create what they need. It can be sculpted into blasts of fire, wind, and lightning. Even water jutsu, famous for needing a water source, use chakra to create water. Though most need an outside source to help stabilize and maintain it. But with Mokuton you don't create wood, you grow it. Water chakra provides the water the plants need, earth chakra the nutrients, and regular chakra the energy. Once you provide those the plant can grow, and your will can be used to direct that growth to suit your needs."
"How do I combine the different types of chakra?"
"The water chakra soaks into the earth chakra; much like actual water does to actual earth. And the traces of standard chakra remaining infuse them both and push them along. When you figure out how to do that, perform these hand seals," Tenzo performed them slowly for Naruto's benefit, "and let a small amount of the chakra combination trickle into that sapling in front of you. And be sure to hold the final seal or your connection with the tree will break."
So Naruto sat, and meditated, and waited. It turned out to be a lot more difficult than he'd anticipated. The first thing he tried was to create one type of chakra, hold it in reserve, and then create the other. But he remained completely incapable of maintaining a store of water chakra while molding earth chakra and vice versa. Then he remembered one of the demonstrations Tenzo had given him. He distinctly remembered his sensei mentioning something about earth on the right and water on the left. Or maybe it was vice versa…though he supposed it shouldn't really matter too much.
So there he sat, doing his best to simultaneously mold a different type of elemental chakra in either hand. It was a feat most shinobi would have had a great deal of difficulty with, were they even able to manage. And, of course, combining the two elements would have been all but impossible. But with Naruto it was a bloodline. And one thing bloodlines tended to have in common is a semi-instinctive quality. He'd already used it subconsciously, so it was only a matter of time until his sustained and concentrated effort was capable of the same effect. And by the end of the day he managed it, gathering one type of chakra in each hand as he finally merged them together. Then he performed the seals Tenzo had demonstrated. As the final seal was completed and held he pushed at it with his regular chakra, pressing it forward and spreading it into the sapling in front of him.
He could feel his chakra spreading through the wood, and in his mind he could sense the tree. His chakra permeated it; highlighting every twist in the grain, every branch and every shoot. A complete mental image was constructed, feeding the young boy an astounding and dizzying array of data as he obtained a three dimensional structural image of the sapling. And scattered throughout the tree were these…what he could best comprehend as bright spots. At the base of each branch and leaf, at the end of each shoot of growth, the tip of each root. "Wow," he murmured, "it's amazing. And there all those…those…"
"Points of light?"
"Yeah…"
"Those are meristems, the growth centers of plants. They contain what are called pluripotent cells; capable of changing into leaf cells, the cells in the trunk of the tree, root cells, any cell you'll find in the plant. And since they're necessary for a plant's growth the tree leaves them at the tip of each growth as well as wherever there is a branch in growth. The base of every branch and leaf; the tip of every trunk, branch, and root will have a meristem. And they're also what you'll need to use Mokuton. Eventually it will be possible for you to undifferentiate other groups of cells back into meristems, and even use your own body as a source of them. But for now, you'll have to use what the tree gives you. Now, focus your chakra into one of the meristems, then push it back out in a cylinder protruding out from the tree."
Naruto's brow furrowed slightly in concentration as he did what Tenzo had told him to do. The meristem he'd chosen began to glow more brightly as he poured in his chakra into it. Then he pressed it out, a perfect cylinder forming in his mind and extending from the tree. He let it grow for several inches before snapping open his eyes, eagerly looking to see what he had wrought.
His face fell as he saw it. The cylinder wasn't nearly as perfect as it had been in his mind's eye. It was crooked, width varying greatly as it gradually tapered to a hooked point. And it seemed to be composed of some twisted and fused amalgam of bark, leaves, and actual wood. "It's…it's…"
"Don't worry about it. For a first attempt that's actually pretty good. It'll take a bit of practice until you're able to get the wood to grow exactly as you want it to. And the reason the growth is composed of so many different types of the plant, well, that's partially my fault because I forgot to tell you something. When your chakra was in the plant you noticed how it felt different in the different plant tissues right? Wood, bark, roots, leaves…"
Naruto nodded, "Yeah."
"When using your Mokuton to grow more plant material you have to give your chakra the type of feel that corresponds with the type of material you want to grow. If you don't, well," he motioned towards Naruto's first conscious attempt at using his bloodline, "That will happen. And even when you're consciously choosing the tissues to grow it will take a great deal of practice until you're able to make uniform growths."
But even as the words left his mouth Tenzo saw Naruto's eyes narrow, the boy almost seeming to take that last statement as a challenge. His eyes screwed themselves shut immediately as his hands flashed through the seals again, quicker and more assuredly than they had the last time. Tenzo suppressed a chuckle as more new growths began sprouting from the sapling. The boy was as determined as anyone he'd ever seen. But then, he could hardly consider that to be surprising.
Tenzo sat patiently in the clearing, letting Naruto exert himself feverishly as he continuously worked on and improved his Mokuton technique. The sapling he'd started working with now resembled an organic pin cushion as much as anything else. Tapering columns of woody growth shot out of it at all angles until it scarcely even resembled a living tree anymore. He'd eventually had to abandon the sapling, having used up all its meristems and not yet knowing how to create new ones. So he'd moved on to the ring of trees circling the clearing.
But the most notable feature, was that an observer could fairly easily tell what portion of the ring Naruto had started with. The growth there was similarly messy to those on the sapling. But as one moved clockwise around the clearing a noted improvement could be observed. The growths were more of a uniform, tapering width. And they went from a bizarre mix of various plant tissues to something much more orthodox. Gone were the chaotic twists of wood, bark, and leaves. They were now all primarily wood. To be certain he hadn't mastered it yet. But now it was just an occasional leafy section, or perhaps an area where a root could be seen twisting around Naruto's impromptu branches.
Tenzo's appraising eye swept across all the new growth, his trained gaze noting all the details at a glance as they usually did. "You're doing pretty well so far. Figuring out how to successfully combine and manipulate the different types of chakra is usually the most challenging part of learning Mokuton and you're taking to it more quickly than I did. With a little more practice you should be able to make growths of uniform tissue in whatever shape you want. After that, it's just a matter of working on speed, strategy, and technique."
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And so for the next year Tenzo worked Naruto through a wide variety of training exercises, designed to improve both the boy's basic shinobi skills and his proficiency with Mokuton. At first it was simply growing trees, giving him practice until he could sculpt them into a shape indistinguishable from that of a naturally grown tree. Then came sculptures. He grew carvings of faces, miniature buildings, life-sized statues, objects of all shapes and sizes. Then came the exercises to work on the speed of his mokuton techniques. He grew shields to block projectiles thrown at him by Tenzo, grew branches to catch him as he fell from the tops of trees. Over time the practices grew more advanced; Naruto growing shields with engraved images, or arresting his falls with chairs instead of branches.
What Naruto was currently doing, however, had to be the most annoying exercise Tenzo had come up with by far. All of the other training methods his sensei had devised had an easily discernable practical application. From growing wooden shields, to using swiftly grown branches to attack his foe, to growing screens of camouflage to escape notice. But this, growing blankets, how was this going to help him? He didn't see the point, and wasn't at all reluctant to share that viewpoint with Tenzo…often.
And so did Tenzo step up to defend his mode of instruction, eventually. If he had to listen to the kid whine the young blonde could at least have to stew in his own frustration for a while. "The purpose of this exercise is to hone your technique, give you a feather's touch. It's true that Mokuton often consists of rather blunt and straightforward techniques; most attacks that utilize earth chakra are like that. But there are times when you need to be more subtle with it. And this exercise teaches that. You're not working with large blocks of wood, but instead growing tiny fibers. You have to keep them uniform, smooth, soft. And as you're growing them you have to twist them to form thread, weave the thread to form cloth. True, you're not likely to ever need to do this, but you probably will need the control it imparts. It may very well save your life some day."
Naruto remained silent for several moments before responding, even sounding a bit apologetic as he did. "Oh…now I understand…"
"And…there's one more reason why I've chosen this training exercise, the most important of them all."
That got Naruto's attention, "What is it!?"
"I need some new sheets." Tenzo ducked as soon as the words left his mouth, just in time to avoid the wad of crumpled blankets that flew over his head.
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Another couple of months passed in similar fashion, with Naruto becoming decently well-versed in a variety of ninja arts. The time was fast approaching where Naruto would be entering the Ninja Academy, and that the time Tenzo was able to spend training the boy would be drastically reduced. Even so, the training he had been able to give the boy would leave him in good stead. He'd probably be able to go toe to toe with any of the clan members that would be in his class, benefitees of the training provided by their clans that many other shinobi didn't have access too. And his work with Mokuton would likely put him well ahead of even those illustrious peers when it came to ninjutsu. Still, there was one last thing he wanted to teach Naruto while he still had an abundance of time with the boy, how to grow wood from his own body as opposed to being reliant on nearby plants.
This was more difficult than simply tapping the growth potential of plants, and the reason why was fairly obvious. One didn't have those plants to work with for a starting material. Instead it was necessary to go from animal cells to plant cells, no mean feat and one that in all the natural world was only possible through the use of Mokuton; at least as far as Tenzo knew.
He had brought Naruto back to the Shodai's grove for this, both of them sitting cross-legged in the clearing where Tenzo had first instructed Naruto in Mokuton techniques. "Now the trick to using yourself as the source of Mokuton techniques is to obtain the plant cells. Once you get the pluripotent cells, it's no different than regular Mokuton techniques.
"The cells of your body are constantly undergoing division, replicating themselves to help a person grow and heal. Now normally, the human cells that make up your body will reproduce to make more cells that are just like them. But, if you infuse a cell with enough of the chakra you utilize for your Mokuton techniques you can cause one to divide and form a pluripotent plant cell. Once you have that you can make more pluripotent cells, and then produce wood as usual. Just remember, it'll be anchored to your body so don't do anything that'll throw you off balance too much. And once it's time to disconnect you can infuse the wood cells with normal chakra and cause some of them to divide and form regular human cells. It lets you pinch off the wooden growth, so to speak."
"That sounds…complicated."
"I know it does. But kekkai genkai are largely instinctive. It's going to take you a bit of practice to get it down, but once you get used to the technique it won't be so bad. Now, the first step is to practice infusing cells throughout your body with Mokuton chakra. It'll be easiest to do with your hands, so start there."
And so Naruto began by doing his best to infuse his hands with Mokuton chakra; closely followed by his wrists, forearms, upper arms, and more of his body as the young blonde practiced by progressively channeling the chakra to cells further and further from his hands. Tenzo kept one hand on the boy's forehead throughout much of the training, using his own abilities with Mokuton to keep track of the boy's progress. And it was as Naruto was working his way down his torso that he cursed himself for overlooking something that he really, really should have anticipated.
But he hadn't, and so was he caught flat-footed by Naruto's question. "Hey, why is this weird chakra leaking out from my stomach?"
That got Tenzo's attention. "Weird chakra?"
"Yeah, it almost feels as though it's angry or something. I don't know how to describe it." Naruto's blue eyes looked up, locking with Tenzo's and for just an instant saw the flash of recognition within the older man's darker gaze. "You know! What is it?"
Were Tenzo not currently in the presence of a seven-year-old he'd have sworn aloud. He should have been able to conceal his emotions from one so young, and should have taken greater care to given the circumstances. But the Kyuubi no Kitsune always had been a subject that brought forth the emotions of those who had survived its rampage, and he'd let himself get careless. And now that Naruto knew that Tenzo had the answer to his question he'd never rest until it was divulged. Something made just a bit complicated by the Sandaime's law on the matter. He heaved a deep sigh, and readied himself against the outburst that he knew was soon to come. "I can't tell you that."
The look on Naruto's face changed instantly; going from one of curiosity to anger, determination, and just a hint of betrayal. "What! Why not? It's about me isn't it? Why can't you tell me?"
"Because I am a shinobi, and you are fast becoming one. I take no pleasure in hiding anything from you. But we live in a world filled with intrigue and secrets, and I know of many things that I cannot share with you. The presence of that chakra touches upon one such secret. If you want to learn more about it, we will have to speak with the Hokage." He was going to say more, but Naruto was gone almost before the word "Hokage" left his mouth. Tenzo groaned in exasperation as he formed a hasty Moku Bunshin to swing by the cabin and grab their gear. Impatience was one thing he'd been unable to break Naruto of by this point. He created one additional Moku Bunshin as well. It would have to circle around a ways to make sure Naruto didn't spot it, but both Tenzo and his clones were a great deal faster than the young blonde. It would be able to beat Naruto to Konoha. This was something that the Hokage would probably appreciate a bit of a heads up about.
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Tenzo's clone did arrive in Konoha long before Naruto did, giving the aged Hokage plenty of time to rearrange some appointments and clear his schedule. In short, to make sure he wouldn't be disturbed while speaking with Naruto. Given the topic of the upcoming discussion he owed the boy that much at least. Tenzo, the real one, actually arrived first. He'd jetted ahead of Naruto once they entered the village and the boy's safety was assured. It stood to reason that the Hokage would appreciate the opportunity, however brief, to speak with him before Naruto's arrival. The Hokage heaved a sigh of his own, using the seals carved along the interior of his pipe to ignite the tobacco within. "So he figured it out."
"Not much of it. I had him working on growing wood using his body as a source, forcing him to infuse his cells with the chakra needed to utilize Mokuton jutsu. He was able to sense what I can only assume is the Kyuubi's chakra. I should have anticipated it. I've been able to sense demonic chakra fairly easily throughout my life, and the Shodai was too according to the writings he left behind. It has to be connected to the use of Mokuton and I should-"
"Enough Tenzo, you don't have to blame yourself for this. I knew firsthand from Hashirama-sensei how easily he could sense bijuu and I didn't anticipate this situation either. None of us have had extensive dealings with Jinchuuriki, and Naruto's the first Jinchuuriki ever to wield Mokuton. This may be the first of many such surprises we'll get from him."
Naruto arrived a few minutes later, and per Hiruzen's orders was ushered straight up to his office. The boy entered without the bounce and exuberance he usually portrayed upon entering this office. His stride was purposeful, eyes hard and clear. They boy had had some time to stew on the return trip to Konoha, and he clearly wanted answers. "Why does Tenzo-sensei have to keep something about me a secret from me?"
"Because I passed a law that forbade the entire village from speaking of it. Naruto, know that I'd never conceal something from you out of malice. What I did was to protect you; there are far too many dangerous secrets in this world. And while I will answer what questions you have about your discovery there are other secrets that I must still keep from you. A Hokage rarely has the luxury of making easy decisions."
Naruto seemed slightly taken aback by the answer, that the secret was to protect him apparently not a possibility he'd considered. "I…guess I can accept that."
Sarutobi hid the signs of relief from his face as he continued to gaze at the young blonde. "Good. Now, can you give me a basic summary of the abilities of Mokuton?"
Naruto's eyes narrowed slightly, "What does that have to do with this?"
"You'll know soon enough."
"Fine; Mokuton allows its wielder to combine water and earth chakra to accelerate and control the growth of plant materials, also allowing such materials to be grown from the wielder's body. Additionally the Shodai Hokage was able to use it to exert influence and control over the nine bijuu, suppressing their power almost completely if necessary."
"Yes, and even Hashirama-sensei himself was unable to completely explain how that last ability worked. He theorized that it allowed him to "filter" the bijuus' demonic chakra, much the same way that plants are able to filter the air they breathe and even the water they use." Sarutobi paused for a second, steeling himself, "He also found that he was able to detect demonic chakra much more easily than other shinobi, even those whose chakra-sensing ability was on par with his own."
Sarutobi could practically see the gears turning in Naruto's head. He'd had plenty of opportunities to observe the boy's intelligence over the years, as had Tenzo. Both of them knew that Naruto now had the information he needed to answer this question. "I-it's demonic chakra that I sensed…"
"Yes."
"And it's coming from me."
"Yes."
"So I must hold one…the Kyuubi attack when I was born…the Yondaime didn't kill it."
"He couldn't kill it. The Kyuubi, all the bijuu, are beings of living chakra. It's unknown if they even can be killed, and there's certainly not a shinobi who's ever lived that has been known to be able to do so. The only way he could stop it was to seal it into a human being, and it had to be a newborn. Since your chakra coils weren't fully-developed they were able to adapt to the sudden presence of demonic chakra. Had he tried to seal the beast into anyone older, they would have been killed and the Kyuubi released once more."
Naruto sat silently for several long moments, seemingly processing the information before speaking again. "Why did he choose me?"
"There weren't many children born that day. And it was already known that you'd be able to utilize Mokuton, which certainly factored into the decision due to its ability to suppress bijuu. There may be more reasons that I do not know, and there are more that I cannot tell you about. Like I said before, there are some secrets that I must still keep."
"And it's the reason why so many people I've never met seem to dislike me."
"Yes, the Kyuubi attack was a catastrophic event. And there are all too many in the village who turned out to be willing to make you a scapegoat for it. To make matters worse their dislike towards you has been picked up on and perpetuated by many of their children, even if they don't know the cause for it. But it is completely undeserved. You're a kind young boy, with seemingly unlimited potential and not a trace of the Kyuubi's malice. I'm sure that you'll be able to show that to the rest of the village."
But even with the comforting words it was easy to see that Naruto was taking the news a bit hard. It was scarcely surprising; Sarutobi knew many veteran shinobi who may well take the news much less calmly than Naruto was now. Even so, he hated to see the usually exuberant child this depressed. Thankfully he was still just that, a child, and thus prone to rapid mood swings when presented with exciting news. "On an unrelated note, a new year of classes will be beginning at the Konoha Ninja Academy a month for now and I have enrolled you in one of them."
Naruto's gaze snapped up to the Hokage, and his expression almost instantly brightened. To be certain pangs of more negative emotions concerning the recent Kyuubi revelation still lingered in the depths of his brilliant gaze, but hopefully the more positive news would prevent the boy from dwelling on it too much. "Really!?"
"Yes, children enroll in the academy when they will turn eight in the upcoming school year. And the training you've undergone with Tenzo should allow you to compare favorably with your peers. You will need to undergo a physical before the semester begins. I've arranged so that you can go and take it now."
"Thanks…I think I'll, go get that taken care of now." He turned and headed back to the door, and neither of the elder shinobi in the room failed to notice that the typical bounce was gone from his gait.
Tenzo breathed a sigh of relief after Naruto left, leaning back against the wall of the room. "Well, that went a bit better than I thought it would."
"His composure is commendable, and natural proclivity isn't the only reason why. You're training has done the boy a great service."
"But he just learned that he has a burden no one should have to bear. How do you think he'll handle it?"
"He's been ostracized by a great deal of people most of his life, and displayed extraordinary resilience despite that. It's no surprise that he's taking this news a little hard, but I doubt he's going to get too depressed over this. Just in case though, keep an eye on him. There are few enough adults in this village who've given him cause to trust them."
"You don't even need to ask."
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True to the Hokage's word Naruto found him himself brought to an examination room almost as soon as he arrived at the hospital. It didn't take long for the medic administering the physical to arrive either. Though he wasn't exactly what Naruto had expected. And, being Naruto, he didn't hesitate to express what he was feeling. "Aren't you too young to be a doctor?"
He heard a soft chuckle in reply. "Don't worry Naruto-kun; I can assure you that I'm fully qualified to give you a physical. I'm the son of the head of Konoha's Medical Corp, Yakushi Kabuto."
