Author's Note 2/24/2011: Ok the poll is over. Now since Yuugao and Fu are so close, I mean neck and neck, I will put both in. Now I still have my choice. I will reveal her soon. Oh wanted to give a shout out to a reviewer. He/she caught some mistakes that I didn't take care of. The main one I saw that he/she had a problem with will be discussed briefly in this chapter. I really don't care for criticism. If you notice something is off like a plot hole or something just P.M. me. I have absolutely no qualms with that. Well that's all I have for now. You know and I know that I don't own Naruto so let's get started.
Previously on the Legendary Swordsman
Jinpachi said, "Naruto, while the small exhibition is a small sample it is more than enough to see something. Well the first thing I see is the fact that you are able to use the medical knowledge that I taught you in more than just medicine. What I didn't see is that at the end, you did not disarm Zabuza. When you don't disarm your opponent you will get hurt.
The final one was Kisame. Kisame said, "Well I guess you guys saved the best for last. Well the Gaki's strength in this little scuffle is that he can transfer different focuses. What everyone did not notice or see is Naruto's reaction time. Zabuza came at a speed in which most seven year olds can keep up with. Now what I personally didn't like is the fact that you didn't slice that big muscle brute up. On a serious note your weakness is the way you conducted the battle. Maybe it's because you didn't consider Zabuza a threat to your life but it definitely showed. It is a cause for concern since that lack of the intent to kill will get you killed."
Zabuza had to agree with Kisame with that last part. He said, "Naruto, what Kisame said is true. I remember when I was a Genin, I beat this Jonin because I was little and didn't take me seriously."
Naruto mumbled under his breath, "yea ok, you were probably born this way. Maybe those steroids I know he takes is the reason he has no eyebrows. If that Jonin didn't take that behemoth seriously then I dare to see his height." Zabuza's eyes and ears started to twitch.
He grunt, "what was that Gaki?" Naruto's eyes went wide. He forgot that they could hear almost everything. He looked up to see all the seven were gone except Ameyuri and the behemoth. Naruto quickly ran behind Ame to stay safe. That was until Ameyuri burst into a puff of electric particles. This left Naruto alone with the Behemoth.
Chapter Eight: To Yougan no Kuni!
Naruto was sweating his ass off. Surprisingly it is not because of his vigorous training schedule. No, it is because of the heat of being on the boat going towards Yougan no Kuni (The Land of Lava). The boat ride lasts about two weeks. The ice is being sustain because the molten simply isn't strong enough to melt it.
Naruto couldn't exactly deal with the lava and it's ultimate heat. He said, "Man, it's so hot in here. When will we reach Yougan no Kuni?" Zabuza was sleeping on the deck. He even grunted while he slept. The others were talking using their hand signs.
Ameyuri said, "Do you think we should create it here?"
Mangetsu said, "Not yet. We will be at the Land of Lava for about a good six months. Let's see his progress before we do anything."
Ameyuri sighed and leaned back. Ameyuri kept thinking about if Naruto saw the Forehead Protector. He thought about the repercussions of such of an event. He sent a letter to the Sandaime that some of his ninjas attacked. He hasn't received anything back yet. He knew that he will get something back soon. He didn't know what's going to happen next. He shook his head to get the thoughts out of his mind.
He looked around to see what his band of brothers were doing now. Kushimaru was sewing himself a pillow to put his head on. Jinpachi was looking with his 'eye' for intruders or enemy ninjas. He became even more paranoid after the incident. Jinin was smoking a cigar and talking with the sailors. Kisame was eating his homemade ration bar. Mangetsu was drawing a kanji, painting, or a seal. Ameyuri didn't know for sure.
They heard the sailor say, "Yougan no Kuni is right ahead!"
Naruto exclaimed, "Finally!" Yup, Naruto is back to his old self. Naruto was jumping up and down. He has every right to as this is a turning point for Naruto Uzumaki.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXX Konoha XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Jiraiya stood there in front of his leader. His face was impassive and blank. He just finished his great
conversation with the Sandaime. He closed his eyes for a moment thinking of a something to say.
He said, "Sarutobi, you know I want to kill you right here and now but I realized that it would hurt my image. I might be a smut writer and go deep into the underground but to kill you here and now would make me become lower than almost anything. I simply can't kill a pathetic old man.
I surprise myself on how many times I could have been killed because I decided to keep people like you alive. You just told me that I need to be outside the village to make sure Naruto doesn't get hurt by the likes of Iwa. Then if you think about it what would Iwa want with Naruto as they don't know who the hell he is. I was the stupid one there.
Then when I thought about it maybe I could check on him every once and awhile and for the life of me I couldn't find him. I never thought I could be so stupid as to not look into a hospital. After all it is so natural nowadays to find a kid in the hospital for over a hundred stabbings. How stupid of me to not think of taking him with me. It would have been much better.
That is once again my fault. Even after all that, you come here and tell me that you practically gave Naruto up to the Seven Swordsman of the Mist. They are practically the most dangerous non kage team to ever exist. Now I'm wondering what they could ingrain into Naruto's young mind.
With all the potential Naruto has you gave him up. What's worse is that you didn't even notify me about such event. I could have had my contacts watch him. Six months blindly walking around thinking my godson is fine. Then I get a message from one my informants Maria, telling me that a boy with blonde hair and blue eyes over there.
So I go there and they're throwing a bash for young Naruto. Then I find out that not only did he have his first kill, but my informant who became friends of some sort with the boy, died right in front of his by enemy ninjas. What's worse is that the assailants were none other than Konoha ninjas. Yea, Sarutobi it was our own trying to kill our own. Now how does that work that the group of Kiri ninja has to save a native of Konoha no Sato from Konoha ninja.
And for some reason you though that I wouldn't find out about his disappearance. You have to be the most pathetic person that could exist. Because how am I to protect Naruto if I don't know where the fuck he is? Don't worry though Sarutobi. Because I'm about get the hell out of here and I'm going to follow Naruto. I'm making sure the boy will be safe.
Don't try to stop me. If you send a ninja after me well let me make something clear, they will be in a body bag. I'll make sure of that. If something happens to Naruto well lets hope it doesn't happen."
Jiraiya jumped out of the window and disappeared. Sarutobi's eyes were wide. Which Konoha ninja attacked Naruto. He saw a scroll on the desk left by Jiraiya. He opened it to see a Konoha Forehead Protector. He sighed as there was nothing he will be able to do. If you don't have a body to tell who gave the orders or was it that they did it by themselves.
He saw the other letter from Ameyuri. He opened it and started to read it. His eyes got wider and wider as everything Jiraiya said about the battle was true. His anger grew and he needed a release. Sometimes he believed that Jiraiya could be a blowhard and exaggerate the truth. Yet if Ameyuri's story coincide with Jiraiya then it's time to start investigating.
He kept reading the scroll. He saw a word that made him stop reading, Ne. His chakra exploded. Everyone outside felt the chakra of their Sandaime explode. Some passed out on the floor. Some were on their knees. The one affected most was his secretary. She almost died, literally. Her lungs lacked the oxygen.
He calmed himself as much as he could possibly can. He said, "Ms. Hikari, bring me Danzo immediately."
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX Naruto XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Naruto and the Seven landed on Yougan no Kuni. Naruto naturally wanted to jump out and go. Mangetsu grabbed him by the collar and brought him back. Mangetsu put his hand over Naruto's mouth. He whispered, "Naruto, you got to be quiet." Naruto simply blinked indicating he didn't know what was going on.
Mangetsu sighed as he pulled Naruto back onto the boat. Naruto noticed that the seven were put something on. Naruto was going to ask what was it but Mangetsu cut him off first. "Naruto, its time to learn a trick of the trade."
Mangetsu pulled out a piece of paper. It looked harmless until Mangetsu said, "Kai" the paper revealed about fifty to sixty kanji symbols in seal complex. He said, "Naruto right here is a Kiri ninja secret. This seal is a covering/change seal. We put these on because a lot of people do not... well like us all that much. So what we created is seal that covers or a better term masks our chakra signature. We can make it a small baby if we want.
It is not easy as it sounds you must concentrate all your chakra into the seal. It also gives you the ability to mask your appearance. That way you can get by without being noticed. Think about it, Naruto. Naruto how in the world could we some of the most powerful ninjas to exist get into Konoha undetected.
It is only as effective as to how much chakra you have. I'm going to put this on your back." Mangetsu put the seal on Naruto's back. The seal started to disappear into Naruto's skin. Mangetsu patted Naruto on his back to make sure the seal was on. He said, "Naruto, to activate it you must put chakra into the seal like I taught you."
Naruto had a question, "Mangetsu-sensei, why would I need one? No one really know me so what's the point?"
Mangetsu said, "Great observation Naruto. The reason is this place has been on a lock down for a few months. They are looking for people who has at least a Genin level chakra. They are rumored to be taking the people and they disappear. We don't know what happens and don't want to. So if you don't want to get caught then make sure you don't lose concentration. Ok, Naruto?"
Naruto nodded. In the back of his mind though, he wanted to know what was happening to those people. He vowed that he will find out about it. He concentrated his chakra onto the seal. His appearance changed. Naruto's hair became black with two blonde streaks on the end. His eyes became black. His whisker marks disappeared. His whole attire became a robe with a lion on it (think of Gryffindor's robe).
Naruto was looking kind a cool there. He saw the rest were ready to go. He started to walk into the village and he was slightly disturbed. He saw women on the floor crying as they can't find their children. The men were wearing tattered clothing as they were bending iron. As they kept walking he saw the guards peering down at him as if they were superior to him.
He wanted to punch them in their faces but he knew that would start a commotion. He looked up to see a castle across the river actually it was a volcano. The place is called the Royal Palace
The Royal Palace is situated in a vast, beautiful estate, filled with lush gardens and ponds. The wall encircling this estate separates the Palace from the rest of the city.
The Palace itself is a single structure, an elaborate tower with triple eaves is at the center, with three distinct wings joining it. The two smaller wings stand on either side of the main entrance to the Palace building. There are towers at the ends of these wings as well. Directly opposite of the main entrance is the third, larger wing, which houses the Lava Lord's Throne Room.
Naruto's eyes were wide. Mangetsu bent down and whispered into Naruto's ear, "I know it's big but don't make a scene. We're about to enter and convince the Lava Lord to stay here. You most likely will enroll in school here for a little bit. Don't do anything stupid."
After a few minutes, they reached the Palace. Naruto went inside and his eyes went wide. Inside, the palace is comprised of enormous halls and retains an intricate array of wings and chambers. Large tapestries line the walls and elaborate fire-themed images and moldings are laid out all throughout the numerous sections of the structure.
Naruto wanted to say something but couldn't. This place was better than Konoha's Hokage Tower. He looked around some more seeing if there anything that he has missed. He saw that they were heading straight. Naruto saw they reached the throne of the Lava Lord.
The Seven bowed as Mangetsu knocked down Naruto. Naruto bowed as well. The Lava Lord was outwardly smirking. He said, "Hello gentlemen what is it that you need?"
Ameyuri said, "Lava Lord Ozai-sama, we are nomads from all over. We want to settle down and there is no better place than Yougan no Kuni. We have things to offer your land. We have different trades that can be influential to your land."
The Lava Lord smiled as he said, "How interesting. May I ask who is this little one is?"
Ameyuri said, "Ozai-sama, this little one is Naruto Uzumaki." Ozai's eyes went wide then closed slowly. Inwardly he smiled. This was perfect.
He said, "Well little Naruto-kun are you going to join the academy with my son, Zuko?"
Naruto said, "Umm sure Ozi-sama." Ozai's eye started to twitch at the name. He had a ghost of a smile. He said, "Well Naruto-kun, why don't you and your friends can stay at the palace here. It would be great for Azula-chan and Zuko-kun to have a playmate."
Ameyuri's eyes narrowed. The Lava Lord is never generous. This was very suspicious but they should milk this for what it is worth. He gave the members a look suggesting what they should do. They came to a consensus but Naruto beat them to the punch.
Naruto said, "Sure that's fine." Naruto better be glad that the Seven chose the exact the same answer or else there might be repercussions. There still might be repercussions. Lava Lord's smile widened as he possibly could. He said, "That is great Naruto-kun. Why don't you let my personal guard take you to Azula-chans' and Zuko-kun's play room."
The guard took Naruto to the place. Meanwhile the Lava Lord went onto to talk with the Seven.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX Sarutobi XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Sarutobi was calmly waiting for his guest to appear. He has something been too lax about the situation. He packed his pipe with the finest tobacco in Hi no Kuni. He lit his pipe as he waited.
He heard his door shuffle open. It revealed Danzo Homura. Hiruzen calmly said, "Danzo, please have a seat. Would you like a pipe? Would you like something to drink?"
Danzo said, "No that's fine. I have a lot of things to do after this meeting." Hiruzen took a puff of his pipe. He nodded as Danzo has much stuff to do.
Hiruzen knew how he was going to start.
He said, "Danzo, do you know what today is?"
Danzo said plainly, "March 2. Why do you ask, Hokage-sama?" Hiruzen once again nodded his head. He pulled a glass bottle of sake from under the desk.
He said, "Danzo, today is of great significance. Remember fifty-seven years ago on this very day. Today is the day where our teams were surrounded by Ame-ninja. Do you remember when our sensei Tobirama Senju said? He named me his successor as the Sandaime Hokage. Right? And do you know what this bo staff does?"
Danzo nodded. He resented the fact that Tobirama had chosen Hiruzen to be the Third Hokage. He was a smart man but he didn't know where Sarutobi was going with this.
Sarutobi continued, "Now that being the case, please explain to me two well actually three things. The first is why the hell is Root still in existence? Second is why the fuck did you attack the Seven Swordsman of the Mist with the inclusion of Naruto Uzumaki and trying to capture Naruto? And lastly why shouldn't I kill you with my Bo staff?"
Danzo's eyes went slightly wide. He inwardly cursed as this is definitely not a position he wanted to be in. Due to the fact, that he can keep a straight face, he thought that he could put this off him for the meantime. Then when the meeting was over he could 'tie' loose ends. He said, "Hokage-sama, I do not know what you are talking about. I stopped my proceedings in Root after the Yondaime disbanded them."
Sarutobi had other tricks up his sleeve. He secretly sent ANBU members to 'abandoned' Root stations. He is going to merely stall Danzo. Then he will strike. He said, "Danzo, why would you lie to me. I have someone who can pinpoint-"
He was cut off by Danzo. Danzo said, "Who was it? I can guarantee that it was a member of The Seven Swordsman of the Mist." Sarutobi could tell that Danzo has an edge in his voicing. Normally Sarutobi would get angry too but he was going to milk this for what it's worth. More and more information started to come in through his invisible ear piece.
He said in a calm cool voice, "Perhaps."
Danzo thought he had something with this. He said, "How do you know that he wasn't lying and trying to get something out of it? It seems like the information you received is corrupt. Does it not Sarutobi?"
Sarutobi put his hands under his chin. He said, "Danzo, you are right how can I trust the likes of the Seven Swordsman of the Mist. Yet, how can I trust a little kid to not steal a piece of candy from the store, or an old man to protect a man's son from the terrors of the world? Better yet how can you trust your rival to the throne of the leader of Konohagakure no Sato not to try to usurp the position by taking a Jinchuriki and conform him to the way he believes ninjas should think to plot an overhaul of Konoha? You can't really trust anybody can you? Because no matter what betrayal is always bound to happen to everyone even if you want to deny it. Isn't that right Danzo?"
Danzo was stoic on the outside. Inside however Danzo was gritting his teeth. He sighed as he said, "I don't believe you are correct in your assumption. I believe that the people of Konoha should stick together."
Sarutobi closed his eyes as more gruesome and disturbing news came in. He sighed as he saw between the facade of his former friend. He said, "Danzo, you know and I know that you have experienced betrayal. In fact the betrayal that happened today all those years ago created who you are today. You have become this cold, dead, decayed, and most likely deranged person. I see through all of it and see a spoiled, heart broken boy in you that is still grieving over the fact that you weren't chosen."
Danzo almost lost it right there. He barely held on to his composure. He said, "Words coming from the so called peaceful Hokage. You know and I know that Konoha is a facade of the ugliness that is the shinobi world. It should have been burn to the ground. Yet here we are thinking that Konoha is the best. If it wasn't for my ninjas, Konoha would have been dust by now."
Sarutobi knew he won but sometimes it he question if it is worth it. He said, "Danzo, just shut up. You unfortunately incriminated yourself. Now I'm going to tell you some facts. The first is that ANBU have been investigating your secondary bases that lead to your main base. We have found all your loose ties such as the maiden of the orphanage all the way to the list of missing kids from the Kyuubi attack. We even found the file on the plans for Naruto.
It is over Danzo. I gave you a way out by letting you confess personally but you decided to lie to me. Everything will be out in the open. Everyone will see the facade that is Danzo Homura."
Danzo tried to say something but Hiruzen stopped him in his tracks. He said, "Danzo, I'm giving you five seconds to leave Konoha and all of its inhabitants or I will KILL YOU!"
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX Lava Lord XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
During the night Lava Lord Ozai was alone in his throne room. He made sure no one was around. He then did a few hand signs and said, "Kushiyoshi no Jutsu". As he said it a blue mystical ball appeared. Inside the orb was the Master. The Master asked, "What is it, Ozai?"
Ozai smirked as he said, "The Chosen One is here."
A/N: Done. How do you like this chapter? Now the next chapter because of Wyrtha's suggestion of time skip there will be one next chapter. To those who believe that Azula is a part of the harem well your wrong or are you? Lol. Now the reason I didn't let Sarutobi have Danzo's ass and kill him is because he part of the plot line.
Naruto will be different in the next chapter. Also if you want to know the Harem list is Hinata, Samui, Mikoto, Mei, Yugito, Fem. Kyuubi, Fem. Haku, Anko, Yuugao, Fu, ?, and ?. If you have any questions just ask. Also if you are a Beta Reader contact me because I need some help. Thanks.
Review, review, and review. Ja for now.
JK10