Birth of an Assassin: Heir to the Namikaze
Chapter 18
Give and Take
DISCLAIMER: I do not own Assassin's Creed or Naruto.
"Speaking"
'Thinking'
Text/Writing
"Jutsu"
"Tailed Beast Speak"
Well, I'm glad I got into the mood and wrote this. Any progress is good progress in my book, considering how busy it is with university work. I have to say, watching the Naruto movie that was recently released definitely inspired me to get to writing again, and I would recommend it. It was lacking in certain areas as far as engagement and plot consistency, and I was disappointed we didn't get to see more of the AU characters, but seeing Naruto interact with Minato and Kushina was worth it alone.
And a busty Shizune, come on.
Hope you enjoy the read.
000
The Creed
Stay your blade from innocents
See but be unseen
Never compromise the Assassins
Nothing is true, everything is permitted.
000
Land of Fire
000
Naruto ran up a group of rocks and found himself on the top of a hill. It overlooked a vast area of grassland that spanned the entirety of mountain Jofuku. A glare emanated from the low plains as the colorful flowers reflected the sun's rays back into the sky.
He shielded his eyes and attempted to figure out the best route down from his vantage point. There was no reason to be careless now, even if his objective was so close.
'When I said I wanted to help Natsuhi recover, this isn't exactly what I had in mind.'
Naruto grunted and adjusted the pack that hung on his back, its weight shifting. When Sakura told him of a flower that could expedite the healing process, he had been quick to begin searching for it. What followed was a two day journey to the Land of Fire's border to find that elusive ingredient.
Because he was unfamiliar with the land, he had Sakura and the others remain behind. It was his wish to see Natsuhi healed, and so it was his duty to take the risk alone. Though they protested, he told them they would be more useful if they kept their eyes on the village and told him if anything interesting happened after he returned.
Before leaving, Anko had told him the village had received an important message from Jiraiya's group: Tsunade was on her way back to the village. Though he did not know Tsunade outside of what little his father had told him, he knew it would be important to meet and understand her if he wished to continue to operate freely.
If he could get her on his side, then he would be free to focus on much more important things than just the village's missions.
After a bit of a walk down, Naruto finally arrived in the meadow containing the flowers, and was taken aback by just how unique they looked. Each flower's petals reflected a wide variety of colors, and they reminded him of a rainbow. It was also shocking to find such a useful ingredient in medicine was so bountiful; they stretched as far as the eye could see.
"No time to dawdle.." Though he had a soft spot for grand vistas, he had a mission to complete.
He fell to one knee and carefully uprooted a flower. With a careful eye he looked over the roots and the petals themselves to ensure it was what he needed. A nod meant that it was as Sakura described, and so he put it within the rucksack for safekeeping.
"Perhaps I should take another, just in case."
As Naruto reached down for another, a shadow enveloped him. His eyes flicked up to the new presence, just fast enough to see the foot that slammed into his jaw. Sent flying, Naruto only allowed himself a moment of surprise before he recovered, rolling safely along the grassy field.
Naruto looked to see who the opponent was, but was shocked by what he saw. What was she doing here?
Gaara stood on the hill, her chilling aquamarine eyes staring him down. Her outfit had changed to that of something similar to his own; beige robes covered her body and a beaked hood protected her from the blinding sun.
As sand began to fall from her gourd, Naruto struggled to understand what she could have been doing there. It was then that he remembered something else Sakura had warned him about before leaving, and he wanted to kick himself for not remembering sooner.
"Damn flowers..." Naruto cursed, standing to full height. "So..you are an illusion of my mind? A strong illusion.." He brushed his hand over the bit of blood that escaped his lips.
Everything seemed to fall into slow motion as Naruto brought his hands together and went through a flurry of hand signs. He didn't know why Gaara's illusion appeared differently than what he remembered, but he knew she wasn't going to be easy to defeat. Hallucination seemed to be an effective defensive measure for the Jofuku flowers, and he was starting to understand why no one had cleaned them out before.
"Kuchiyose!" Naruto pulled up his sleeve and pressed the blood against his tattoo, calling forth an ally.
Kogane, the great eagle launched from the ensuing smoke and into the safety of the air. Naruto stood on the bird's neck as they circled Gaara like true birds of prey.
"What is going on, Naruto?" The booming words echoed in Naruto's ears as he struggled to find the right words to explain.
"I'm fighting a hallucination and I thought you could assist." The bird looked over the battleground but seemed to be confused as its eyes gravitated back to the assassin.
"I see nothing, Naruto. How can I hunt if I cannot see or hear?"
It seemed that the pollens only affected those in the immediate vicinity. Kogane could not see Gaara as he did. That meant he would have to adapt a different strategy.
Unfortunately, his opponent wasn't going to afford him such time. During that conversation, Gaara had released the entirety of her sand to cover the battlefield below, preventing Naruto from landing anywhere near her. Her arm pointed up toward him and spikes of sand began launching toward him and his summon.
"Kogane, move!" He wasn't sure if the summon could be harmed, but he did not want to find out.
"Hang on!" The eagle angled itself down and picked up a great amount of speed, easily dodging the heavy projectiles.
Naruto leaned over the side of the bird and watched as they flew directly over Gaara. His only chance was to close the distance and deal a decisive blow to the hallucination. With the sand all around her, he would only get one chance at the strike.
'...Now!'
In a dive, he leaped from his mount and dropped straight toward his unflinching opponent. With a flick of his finger, the hidden blade emerged from his wrist. A quick strike to her jugular was all that he needed to finish her off.
Unfazed, the illusion brought its hands above its head in an arc. Sand picked itself up from the surrounding area and covered Gaara in a dome.
'This old trick?' Lightning chakra enveloped his blade arm.
Before impact, Naruto reared his arm back and then slammed it into the top of the dome. Sand shattered as the strength of the attack began to destroy the defense, but it was fixing itself much faster than he expected. When he tried to remove his blade, the sand held onto it and prevented him from moving.
Out of the corner of his eye, Naruto spotted sand spikes forming around him in the field. Under his feet planted on the dome, he felt the sand shifting in shape and knew she was about to strike. Gritting his teeth, he growled in annoyance and began to build up lightning chakra in his free hand.
"Just as persistent as last time..but now I don't have to hold back."
As if sensing his attack, the spikes began to close in on him. He had to admit the hallucination was stronger than before, but he was faster.
"Chidori!" Naruto slammed the ball of chakra into the sand dome and watched as it collapsed on itself.
Gaara's clone looked up at him, no emotion showing on her face. If he hadn't reminded himself it wasn't real, he might have flinched. All he could remember was Gaara's smile from the end of their last battle, and he knew that the illusion was nothing like the real one.
That was why he could strike down that enemy. It was because it wasn't anything like the Gaara he had seen at the end of the exams.
The chakra pierced his opponent straight through, his arm sticking out the other side of her chest. They remained frozen like that for a moment, neither able to move; the clone's power was sapped, and Naruto took a moment to relish in victory.
Then, as soon as the battle had started, it was over. The clone and its sand disappeared with the blink of an eye, and Naruto found himself alone in the clearing. Kogane had unsummoned himself when he realized Naruto had been victorious, so all that was left was for Naruto to retreat.
He looked back down at the field of flowers and this time thought better of trying to take another. One was enough to last him a lifetime.
000
Some time later..
Konohagakure
000
"What did you say?"
"Tsunade, the sannin is to be the next Hokage, and she is here. In the village."
Naruto held his chin in thought as he and Anko spoke in hushed tones. They were in a back alley, far from the curious eyes and ears of the village's shinobi and civilians. Recent events had forced Naruto to seek out his servant for information.
The assassin had only recently returned from his mission to obtain the important medicine needed to save Natsuhi's life, but Tsunade had already arrived by that time. She had taken it upon herself to inspect the village, and Anko had been trailing her since in an attempt to gather information.
"Do you have any idea what she's doing right now?" The way he asked, Anko figured he wanted to meet her.
"Yes. The last time I saw her, she was with her apprentice in the hospital. Considering her background, I'd wager a guess she's there to help the staff take care of patients."
That made sense, Naruto thought. After he heard about Tsunade, he consulted the Namikaze records that were quite detailed in her abilities and background. Granddaughter of the Shodai Hokage and a hero of the Second Shinobi World War, Tsunade was well known for two things: her healing abilities, and a streak of bad luck.
"Not just any patients though. The elders wouldn't waste her time like that. Who has recently been admitted to the hospital?"
For a moment, Anko had to think of anyone important that had been laid up in the hospital. Her eyes widened in recognition, bringing Naruto's attention back to her.
"Kakashi..." She whispered, and Naruto raised an eyebrow in confusion. "Kakashi was admitted after an encounter with enemy shinobi."
That peaked Naruto's interest, but why hadn't he heard of it before? Had he really been that disconnected from the going ons of the village during his time in Bear country? If so, that was disconcerting.
"From the reports I read, they were supposedly looking for the nine tails jinchuuriki." Naruto's body tensed as she said those words; even Kyuubi let loose a low growl.
Confused, Anko looked at him for guidance.
"What does this mean, Naruto-sama?"
He didn't know, but that wouldn't last for long. They had been talking long enough, and there was little else he needed to hear from Anko. It was time he found some answers to the growing list of questions.
"Anko, return to your duties. I need to go and see this Tsunade for myself." He got up from the wall he had been leaning on.
Anko looked at him with a concerned eye. Bowing low, she watched him run up the wall and wished him farewell.
"Go safely, Naruto-sama."
000
Tsunade walked out of Kakashi's room barely able to suppress the smirk on her face. Even after a good while of being away from the village, she still had it. Not but after five minutes of healing did she get the man to wake up when the doctors there had been trying the same technique for days.
"That was great work, Tsunade-sama." Shizune, her raven haired apprentice beamed.
"Of course." She responded as if it was obvious.
The hallway was void of staff or patients, though it felt like it had been so busy before she had arrived. Were they hiding from her? It made her feel a bit unsettled.
A gust of wind made her turn to look down the hallway. The window there had been opened, and a young man was climbing inside. His robes were almost as white as the sun's rays, making it almost impossible to measure his height or body type.
"Who is that?" Shizune whispered to herself, holding Tonton a bit closer to her chest.
The pig squealed uncomfortably and looked at Tsunade for guidance. Confusion had left her shortly after she identified the boy as one of the Namikaze; now that he was in the hallway and walking toward her, she could identify that cloth easily. What was he doing there?
Maybe there was some truth to the rumor that the Namikaze had eyes and ears everywhere.
"Excuse me." Naruto called out as he approached the two women, sizing them beneath his hood. "...You must be Tsunade."
A twitch of her lip was all he could get as a reaction out of her, but there was no mistaking his intuition. The woman at her side was obviously a subordinate, the apprentice. There was also an aura of power that demanded respect from those around the blonde. Even through her elaborate genjutsu, he could see she had aged; there was something about the trained eyes that watched him with intrigue, and it told him she had experience.
Shizune narrowed her eyes, sizing up the new arrival as a possible threat. It had been too long since she had seen an assassin up close, so she could not recognize him as her master had. Nonetheless, it was clear he was at least trained in the shinobi arts by his stance, and that worried her.
"What if I am?" Tsunade responded with a challenging tone, her eyes locked on his.
Their eyes met as a silent contest of wills began. Who would back down first?
"I don't have time to indulge you." Naruto said after a short pause, his hood again covering his eyes. "Are you Tsunade, of the legendary sannin?"
It was clear from the way he said it, Naruto had no intentions of showing the same respect as her title afforded her.
For some reason, that made her like him more. He had guts.
"How dare yo-" A hand quieted Shizune before she could make a fool out of herself.
Tsunade knew just how to handle their new acquaintance. Two could play at the game of superiority, and it was something she was good at.
"I am. And you must be Naruto Namikaze, the son of the Yondaime." She pretended to size him up again, a smirk growing. "My, how you have grown into such a handsome young man."
From her tone, it was obvious she was going to keep the same attitude Naruto had until they leveled with one another.
Naruto clenched his jaw to show some discomfort: She was good. Before he could go onto explain his own reason for being there, Tsunade decided to speak first.
"It's convenient you showed up here, since I was going to need to find you soon anyway. You see, I've inherited a lot of paperwork from the Sandaime and I found something interesting." Her smirk turned into an annoyed frown. "It's also tedious, for me and you."
Naruto said nothing, but crossed his arms and allowed their eyes to meet again. He had to make it clear he was willing to listen if they were going to get anywhere fast.
"As it turns out, your performance during the exams and the resulting battle impressed the right people." She too crossed her arms and let out a small sigh before continuing. "Long story short, you've been considered for promotion to chunin. Congratulations."
Tsunade clearly wasn't as inspired about the whole thing as the village was, but what she found most interesting was that the assassin wasn't much amused either. She expected him to at least shift his feet or possibly even smile.
Naruto seemed unamused about the whole thing.
"Thank you, but my concerns are more important than the village trying to appease me. Is there anything else?"
"Hmph." She sighed, he was becoming less fun to play with.
That quip about the elders though, now that was something she could appreciate. They must have thought promoting him was a full proof way to get him closer to their side—clearly not.
"There is one more thing." Her posture implied it was just as annoying if not more so than the promotion. "Jiraiya. He wants to speak with you, now."
Now that got more of a rise out of him. She watched with no small bit of amusement as Naruto's jaw clenched and unclenched a few times—no doubt trying to beat down his anger.
"I refuse to speak with him. He tried to tarnish my father and my clan's honor." Angrily, Naruto waved his arm in finality, in an attempt to cut off the conversation.
"A fair point, but now that you are a chunin, I have more leverage over you as the Hokage. If I wanted, I could order you to speak with him."
Naruto narrowed his eyes.
"You aren't Hokage."
Tsunade smirked.
"Yet."
A standoff, but Tsunade broke it first. If she wanted to get Naruto on her side, she couldn't fight for dominance forever. She had to share, at least a little.
Give and take would be a necessary evil.
Naruto watched her uncross her arms and raised an eyebrow as her face softened. What was she thinking of now?
"I'm not completely naïve to what has been going on in the village, so I know what happened between you and Jiraiya. If it's any consolation, I sided with you. If anyone knows how forward and difficult Jiraiya is to deal with, it's me."
Tsunade rolled her eyes just thinking of all the times she had to deal with his stupidity.
"If you side with me, then you won't make me speak to him."
She frowned, this time in honest sincerity.
"I'm sorry Naruto, but I can't do that. You both need to work out your problems instead of avoiding each other, so I will order you if I have to."
"Then I refuse the promotion. I wasn't keen on getting it anyway." Not complete truth, but he needed to regain leverage if he wanted the conversation to turn his way.
Tsunade bit her lip in annoyance; the kid was born to be a manipulator, a damn good one. The conversation wasn't turning out the way she wanted it to.
No matter if she wanted the job or not, Tsunade was the right choice for Hokage. She knew that the village needed Naruto and his contacts close in order to prosper, and that would require some ass kissing. Too stubborn to do it so directly though, she would have to worm her way into it.
"How about this." She sighed, signifying it was obviously hard for her to say. "If you take the promotion and speak to Jiraiya, I will owe you a favor."
That surprised Naruto; from what he had learned about Tsunade, she was generally known as being stubborn and uncompromising. He had expected the conversation to be a fight, but why was she caving so easily? Was she actually taking her duty as Hokage..seriously?
For a short while, there was nothing to be said as Naruto contemplated her offer. Really, he was just trying to ensure she knew he was not going to be a pushover in future agreements.
Fortunately for him, the sannin already knew she was going to have to fight him tooth and nail to get anything useful out of him.
Just the way it should be.
"Very well, but I refuse to be forced to agree with anything that man says." He was not going to back down on that, but she had no plans to argue.
In fact, she smiled in relief. That was one less she favored the hermit.
"That's fine. All he asked me to make sure of was that you talked to him. Good riddance, if you ask me."
"If that's all, Tsunade-sama really needs to attend to her next patient." Shizune finally spoke with a sharpness to her tone; they were running late.
"There is one more thing." Tsunade hadn't even taken her first step when Naruto raised his voice.
She was even more inclined to listen as he almost sounded..reluctant.
"I have a patient I need you to heal. Consider the favor taken care of, if you do."
Her smile grew after thinking it over. If that was all she needed to do, then maybe her luck was turning around.
000
It had been a long past few days for Kakashi, literally. Having just awoken from his coma, he obviously had a lot of catching up to do. Within just a few minutes he found out that the next Hokage, Tsunade, was already in the village and was the one that healed him.
Not only that, but one of his students had been wounded by the enemy shinobi before they were forced to retreat.
'Sasuke..are you so focused on your revenge that you can't see what's right in front of you?'
The door slid open, forcing Kakashi's eye from the ceiling above his bed to the new arrival. It widened in surprise when he registered who the visitor was.
"Naruto?"
"Kakashi."
Well, that was a nice greeting.
"..What are you doing here?" The jounin was able to croak out after a bit; his mouth was still dry from inactivity.
Naruto approached the bed, stopping just within reach. He seemed unsure or nervous about something, but what, Kakashi did not know.
"Naruto?" He reiterated after a long pause, concerned.
"I came here to tell you something. After hearing about your close call a few days ago, I felt I couldn't put it off any longer." His gloved hands turned into fists, struggling to support him. "It is a bit late, I suppose."
His voice shook a bit, surprising Kakashi. He had never seen Naruto so flustered.
"Whatever it is, you don't-" A hand gripped Kakashi's shoulder, quieting his protest.
Their eyes met as Naruto told him something he had been waiting so long to hear.
"I forgive you..for what you did." It was obviously hard for Naruto; showing that kind of weakness made him uncomfortable.
There was a pause as the teacher tried to figure out what the boy was talking about. When he did though, his eyes widened in bitter recognition.
Kakashi had to be sure though, he had to know that Naruto meant what he thought he did.
"You mean..when I left you at your father's.." He trailed off, remembering the harsh goodbye the two suffered.
Naruto nodded and Kakashi sunk back into his bed, unable to think. A weight seemed to have lifted from his shoulders, and he realized just how much the guilt had weighed on him. In the years that followed that event, he always asked himself if he had made the right decision, leaving Naruto behind. If he had ignored his sensei's wish and held onto the boy, would it have been better?
Naruto had one other thing to say, and it was just as important.
"Thank you..for making that decision, and shouldering the burden. Because of that, I grew up to be a proud Namikaze, and I can make both my father..and you proud."
A tear streamed from Kakashi's eye as he heard that. Those words justified the past decade of self-doubt and guilt that had festered in his mind. He knew now that, no matter how much time had passed, Naruto had not forgotten him.
"Arigatou, Naruto." The boy nodded, but turned to leave.
The older man watched him leave in silence. It had taken him a lot of courage to say those things, and Kakashi still wasn't sure what brought him to want to say them.
But, that just made it mean all the more to Kakashi.
000
Some time later...
Konoha Hospital
000
The hospital. It felt odd to return there so many times when he was never wounded, but circumstances out of his control had Naruto return. There was someone he needed to check on.
Nurses and doctors scurried to attend to their patients as he walked the halls. Though the war had been over for a month now, there were some cases that were too extreme to be taken care of with cursory treatment. That must have been why they considered Tsunade a choice for Hokage; with her in charge, the hospital wouldn't be allowed to fall into decline as it had been during peacetime.
As Naruto walked the halls, many saw him and bowed in respect. Other shinobi like him that were visiting friends bowed their heads in acknowledgment.
If he had to suspect why the subtle change of pace had happened, it was due to his promotion. Though the ceremony itself was relatively low key, news spread fast.
Held in the Hokage's office, Anko and the other proctors attended the ceremony that saw Naruto and fellow genin Shikamaru promoted for their display during the exams. Though she wouldn't admit to it, Naruto's caretaker wore a real smile for the rest of the day.
The chunin vest he wore now was the physical representation of his promotion. He wore it where he once wore the leather vest—over his white robes. It would need a few changes to be of better use to him, but its visual impact was clearly working.
Despite himself, Naruto did feel somewhat proud to have ascended to a higher rank. That was why he held his head high as he entered the room the head nurse had sent him to.
Inside, Tsunade and Sakura were doing a final checkup on their patient. Since Naruto had cashed in his favor, Tsunade had been working on saving Natsuhi's life from danger. With the necessary ingredients already collected and turned into an effective medicine thanks to Sakura, they were able to start treatment right away.
The two had been working closely since, and it was clear a sort of mutual respect was forming between the girls.
The door quietly closed as Naruto carefully entered the room, not wanting to disturb their work. He had ulterior motives in coming to the hospital though, and because of that he needed to observe how the sannin interacted with his student.
"Well done Sakura, I think we've done all we can." Tsunade said as she lifted her glowing palms from Natsuhi's chest: the treatment was complete.
Now all they had to do was wait for her to awaken.
"I didn't really do much, Tsunade-sama. Your healing technique is more precise than anyone I've observed so far." Sakura bowed to the older woman. "It was a pleasure watching you work."
Tsunade chuckled, she wasn't sure it was fitting to hear herself held to such a high regard. It was flattering though, to be sure.
"Please, Sakura. There isn't any need to sell yourself short. Without your herbalism skills, we might have never been able to make the healing agent in time."
The pink haired girl said nothing, but her face was flushed. Naruto saw her flustered smile and couldn't help but chuckle, which brought their eyes toward the door.
Sakura reacted first, bringing a hand to her blushing face. For her crush to see her like that; it was so embarrassing she couldn't think of anything to say.
Taking a more intrigued approach, Tsunade crossed her arms and looked between the two of them. Now that she was on that vein, the similarity between Sakura's robes and Naruto's was uncanny. That made her wonder just how close those two were.
"Naruto, I see you're checking in on your special patient."
Crossing his arms, Naruto took up a neutral gaze. It would take more than that to find his weakness.
"Naturally. I made the request to have her taken care of, so why wouldn't I?"
The challenge only entertained Tsunade more, but she held her tongue. For now.
She decided to make a tactical retreat and change topics. It would better smooth things over as she moved to the next order of business.
"That vest looks very good on you. As if you were born to wear it. How is it being a chunin?"
Naruto shrugged.
"It doesn't feel any different than yesterday, but we will see what increasing my rank gains me."
"Hmph." Cheeky of him, the sannin thought. "I can tell you one thing: you will be getting more stares from the female population now. They love to see a man in uniform."
Out of the corner of her eye, she watched Sakura's reaction. Without her hood on, it made reading her quite easy. The narrowing of the eyes and tightly pursed lips meant she was not amused by the comment.
'As I thought..' Her eyes gravitated between the two of them. 'Naruto, you are an interesting one.'
"That doesn't concern me." He deflected the question, probably the smartest thing to do. "I have something I need to speak with you about."
Their eyes met and she realized he was serious, as if it was surprising. Just like the rest of the Namikaze, he was secretive up until the point he actually wanted something, and then they became as blunt as a hammer.
"How convenient, I have something I need to talk to you about as well." Naruto uncrossed his arms in curiosity, though he had a sneaking suspicion of what it was.
That left one person as the odd one out, but Sakura took it well. She quickly recovered and bowed to Tsunade before making her way toward the door. After bowing to Naruto but before she could grab the door handle, his hand grabbed her arm.
Tsunade watched as Naruto whispered something in Sakura's ear before sending her off. It seemed important enough to warrant another bow and she almost seemed happy as she walked out.
"You first." Naruto said, steering the conversation forward.
Tsunade was glad to know they wouldn't be playing a game of tag with their words. She soon adopted a scowl as she remembered the conversation she had with Jiraiya. Somehow, the blonde assassin had gotten out of meeting him for the past few days, even though the sage said he would actively try and find him.
Tired of the boy's elusiveness, he went to Tsunade for help. Though she was annoyed of his incompetence and his continued pestering, she was the one that promised the Namikaze would speak to him.
"Jiraiya is waiting for you on the roof of the Hokage's office. See him after you leave here."
It seemed Naruto expected that as he barely flinched.
"Very well." Naruto said, though he was still bothered by the situation. "I will hold you to your promise that I do not have to agree to anything he says though."
She waved a hand dismissively, as if it was a matter of course. There was no doubt in her mind he would seriously invoke it if he needed to, and she knew she couldn't get them to meet again if things turned sour. If all else failed, at least the Namikaze would be on her side.
"Of course, of course. Now, what did you want?" Her eyes narrowed a bit.
After taking care of Natsuhi with no questions asked, she had wondered if that was all the assassin would ask of her. Being the newly welcomed Godaime, having her on his side would mean they would see each other more often. From what she had heard of Naruto's dreams of restoring the Namikaze's glory, he would need more than just himself to do that.
"I have another request to make, as I've watched you and Sakura." No honorific used in her name, interesting. "Please consider her for medical training."
Tsunade raised an eyebrow; along with his request, Naruto threw in a small bow with his head. It clearly meant he wanted to see it carried out. Since he came to her, that must have meant he wanted her to personally train Sakura.
The girl had potential, but she hadn't been sure if it was good idea until Naruto came along.
"And what do I get out of this?" Again with the give and take, she was a harsh diplomat.
Naruto had nothing to personally offer her, so he did the only thing he could think of.
He copied her.
"Consider it a favor that I owe you, if you oversee her training personally."
Tsunade crossed her arms to think it over for a moment. Obviously Naruto had plans for Sakura, and that was something she wouldn't pry into. That said, Sakura had to be aware of the deal.
"As long as Sakura agrees, you have a deal."
"Very well."
Naruto and her spoke a little bit longer about Natsuhi's improving condition before he excused himself to meet with Jiraiya. After he left, Tsunade had to cover her face with a clipboard to not give herself away.
'You can bet I'll hold you to that favor, Naruto-kun.'
Tsunade's conniving smirk grew by quite a bit that day.
000
Hokage Tower
Roof
000
Naruto climbed the stairs that were rounded along the building in order to reach the roof. His footfalls felt heavier than usual, and he realized he was dreading the encounter more than he let on. Out of respect for Tsunade, he had told himself to restrain from harshly judging Jiraiya, despite the less than favorable interactions they had in the past.
He made the final step up and saw the toad sage leaning against the railing. The wind was powerful that day, and his ponytail was being pushed to one side. Despite that, the man looked quite serious as Naruto approached, though his face softened a bit as their eyes met.
Naruto stopped walking while they were still far apart from one another, though they could talk just fine. He crossed his arms and waited for the old man to start.
As far as he was concerned, he could live without having the conversation. Since he had nothing to gain, he had nothing to say.
Jiraiya couldn't help but smile a bit with Naruto's attitude. That stubbornness he had seemed to be shared with so many people Jiraiya had met in his life, himself included. It reminded him why that conversation was so important to have, so that things wouldn't have to be so tense between them.
The fate of the world might be in the balance, so he had to make things right.
"Naruto-san.." Jiraiya got up from the railing and stood up to full height, his body becoming as straight as a plank.
Before Naruto's eyes, the elder shinobi bowed low in order to show respect. Something like that was unheard of, even between shinobi; for one to bow to an assassin, it was madness.
But there was Jiraiya, bowing low to the young clan head.
It was so uncomfortable Naruto had to shift his stance, uncrossing his arms.
"Please forgive me for the words I have spoken about Minato Namikaze and the clan of the Namikaze. They were uncalled for."
There was a pause as Naruto tried to find something to say. Though he enjoyed the fact that Jiraiya was lowering himself in order to apologize, he could not help but think the man was somehow mocking him. It was so ludicrous that the idea wasn't so unfeasible after all.
"What did you think you would get out of me by acting like this? Can't you see how uncomfortable this is for the both of us? Don't mock me!"
He shouted at the old man who ended his bow and met Naruto's gaze with one of his own.
"This was the only way I could think of that would make you listen to what I have to say. I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable, but I don't want there to be anything ominous between us."
Naruto had to keep his anger, or else he would lose his edge. Shaking his head in condescension, he crossed his arms again and waited expectantly.
"I hope you have brought me here to do more than apologize. My time is worth more than that."
'Minato, you trained him so well in combat, but couldn't you have made him a little bit nicer?'
Jiraiya bit his lip but was able to hold his tongue. There was indeed a reason he brought Naruto out to talk.
"I'd like to tell you of a prediction made by a very wise old toad. The only reason I find it worthy of believing is that so far, all of his predictions have been correct."
Naruto wasn't one to believe in superstition and found himself already doubting the man's words. What reason did he have to stand there and listen to him babble?
"And why should I indulge you?" Jiraiya's eyes narrowed.
"It could mean the destruction of the world as we know it."
As an assassin, it was Naruto's duty to contribute to the world's stability. His duties were carried out in order to seek peace between the peoples of the world. If there was truth behind Jiraiya's words then perhaps he should listen.
The silence that followed made the toad sage believe Naruto would humor him.
"Very well then. It began with me being summoned to Mount Myouboku, home of the toads..."
000
"And that's it. If the world is to be saved, the right robed figure has to accept my teachings."
Naruto had listened to the so-called prophecy and continued to hold doubts. The wording was too vague for him to buy into it, let alone allow Jiraiya to have his way. He would not adjust how he lived just on some old man's hunch.
"I accept your apology, Jiraiya of the sannin. However, I am not convinced that this..prediction is anything more than wishful thinking. I refuse to become your apprentice."
Despite himself, Jiraiya felt himself growing tired of Naruto's rhetoric. How could he not see the danger? Did he know what they risked if they indulged his stubbornness?
"How can you say that after I've told you what we are risking here? Don't let your emotions get in the way of-"
"Perhaps.." Naruto cut off the angry sannin, his level tone urged calm. "You should be telling yourself that same advice. It is you now that is driven by emotion to seek this prophecy's conclusion, not me. From a rational standpoint, I have no reason to believe what you say outside of your own words."
"Naruto.." Perhaps he had overstepped his bounds, but it did not make the sage's words any less threatening.
"My father spoke of you with a certain level of respect that I expected to be reciprocated. When it was not, it colored my opinion of you. I'm sorry, but it will take more than an apology for me to take your words for truth."
Naruto sighed, he felt he would regret what he was going to say next. At the same time though, he knew that severing his connection with Jiraiya would not benefit him in the long run.
"However.." The toad sage perked up, as if the boy was going to change his mind. ", out of respect for my father, I will accept what advice and training you can give me. When we meet and how often it is, is up to me."
It wasn't exactly what Jiraiya had in mind, but the boy wasn't giving him a lot of maneuver. His earlier behavior didn't give him much stand on as an arguing point, either.
"Prove to me you are worth listening to, then maybe I'll take what you said into consideration."
Naruto bowed his head a slight bit before turning to leave. He had said all he needed to.
Jiraiya watched him leave, his mind deep in thought.
'You've made your point, Naruto. With what time we have, I'll make sure you see things my way.'
000
Namikaze Compound
000
Sakura waited somewhat patiently for Naruto in the main room of the clan head's home. She had been sitting there for hours, waiting for him to return. Fidgeting nervously, she silently cursed him and wished he would hurry up in order to calm her nerves.
Since he had told her there was something very important the two of them had to talk about, she had been on edge. At the hospital, when he said there was something he wanted to discuss with her and that she should go to his home, she thought it was finally time to advance her training.
Then she wondered if that was just wishful thinking on her part.
'I can't get impatient. Naruto will know when the time is right..'
'Don't forget what Tsunade said about our skills! We are ready for the next level. Cha!'
Her more confident, inner self weighed its own opinion. It was true that after working with Tsunade in the hospital, she felt a lot more comfortable with her abilities. Perhaps that was why Naruto-
The door slid open and she jumped with anxiety.
"Sakura, are you alright?" Footsteps hurriedly came from behind her as Naruto rushed to her side, concerned.
When his arms wrapped around her shoulders, she let loose a happy sigh. Training or no, she was just glad he was there.
"I-I'm fine, Naruto. You just got scared me." He chuckled and sat down next to her.
"Sorry, I'm still used to this place being deserted."
They got into a comfortable silence before Naruto broached the subject that was on both their minds.
"About when I said there was something important to talk about..it involves you and I."
That got Sakura thinking on a wild tangent of subjects, of which not all were appropriate to talk about out loud. Teenage girls would be teenage girls, or so the saying went.
Naruto had no such distraction and continued with his explanation, rather than leave it open.
"Because of my promotion to chunin, I'm taking it upon myself to advance my rank in the clan. That will make me what is called a journeyman, which is the basic equivalent to a chunin shinobi."
Interested, Sakura turned toward Naruto and listened quietly. She still had a lot to learn about the culture and terminology used by assassins, so that was her first time hearing that information.
"Unlike chunin though, journeymen can more openly teach the assassin craft and take on apprentices."
The gears in Sakura's head started to turn as she realized where the conversation was going, and her heart leaped. Did he really mean to train her?
"Does that mean.." She trailed off, not wanting to disappoint herself with a wrong guess.
Naruto smiled.
"Yes, Sakura. Today is the day I can promote you from an initiate to a novice assassin. From then on, I can fully begin to teach you the assassin art."
Though the girl began to get excited, Naruto lost his smile. The next part was not as uplifting as the last, but it had to be said.
"Taking that leap is a big step though, and I want you to be sure that you want to join the clan. If you do this, you will not be Sakura Haruno, but Sakura Namikaze. All the privileges and limitations that come with being a member will be yours." Naruto saw her face sour a bit, and he knew it was a lot to put in front of her at once.
"I will give you what time you need to decide, and I will understand if you refuse." Their eyes met. "There is something I want you to know though, before you choose."
Naruto removed his gloves and put his hood down so they could see each other completely. With both hands, he gently grabbed her own.
Sakura's eyes looked down and saw his hands. They were still growing to their full size, but they resembled the hands of a full grown man. Callouses and scars told her of the work he had put in to get where he was, and she wondered if she could say the same. The tattoo of the Namikaze emblem stood out to her the most; its elegant design was something anyone would wear with pride, but was she ready?
"I want you to know..that I believe in you. If it was up to me, I would have you stay here and train and live with me. But it isn't that easy. You have a family, a life outside of this that I don't want to ruin. That is why I can accept a no from you."
There was a long pause before Sakura found the will to speak. It wasn't a decision she wanted to make lightly, but she wanted to make sure Naruto knew how she felt.
"For everything you've done for me, I want to say thank you. If it wasn't for you..I.." Sakura cursed silently before wiping a tear. ", I might have never learned anything. This entire time, I've been chasing you, trying to reach your level."
Naruto listened silently as Sakura spilled her emotions out. It was hard for him to bear seeing her so conflicted, but it was something that had to happen.
"Now I know from working with Tsunade that I don't have to copy someone else, but I can do something that not very many others can." Her eyes met his, filled with determination. "When you said I could become a healer, I wasn't so sure. Now I am."
He felt her hands grip his, tightly.
"It may take some getting used to, and I'm not sure if I can meet your expectations, but I have a goal now. Please.." Sakura bowed her head. ", continue to teach me."
Naruto felt his eyes water a bit, but he quickly blinked them away before Sakura could see. Carefully, he removed a hand from her grip and held her chin up so their eyes could meet.
Sakura's eyes widened when she realized how close their faces were. As a red glow began to take over cheeks, Naruto's eyes looked her once over, as if to check for any doubt. Finally, he smiled and leaned in.
"I can't say no.." His lips brushed her forehead, deepening her blush. "..if you say it like that."
Their lips met for a moment before Naruto began to pull away.
Not one to have such a rare moment ripped from her, Sakura's arms reached around behind his neck. Aggressively, she surged forward and had their lips meet again. And again. Until their lips were sore.
Perhaps there was more of her 'inner' self on the outside than Sakura would admit to, after all.
000
Wow, glad to get this chapter done. It was a rough start but it just seemed to roll right off the page today. I was really worrying whether I would get the proper interaction between Tsunade and Naruto, but I think I nailed it.
Jiraiya and Naruto's relationship is finally reset to give me some room to work. Sakura and Naruto's relationship is solidified, and Natsuhi is ready for a real debut in the future. Kakashi got the closure he needed which will hopefully let Naruto and him start over properly, or perhaps their relationship never stopped?
But what of Sasuke? And the Akatsuki? Karin? Tayuya?
All of it will finally have a resolution next chapter as we leave off for Part II.
I had hoped to finish everything in one, just like with Rise of Darkness. Also like Darkness, however, the chapter ended up being too long and it wasn't going to convey the right feeling if it was all shipped together.
I can say that there is only one chapter left for either story, and I will soon start working on Blonde Uchiha Part II in my spare time. Things will hopefully pick up as summer starts.
For now though, I hope you enjoy and be sure to leave a review.
See ya!