Ahhhh man I missed constantly checking my reviews to see what everyone thought about my latest chapter. I love you guys so much.
I know there's quite a bit of wonder about Jiraiya and his dickish attitude. Answers shall be coming forthwith this chapter have no fear. See, if there was one thing I have to say I was severely disappointed about with Jiraiya's character in canon, was how he completely ignored his duties as a godfather. Now, this isn't to say I don't like Jiraiya, I think he's hilarious and was a good match with Naruto, I was quite sad – and this is a spoiler for anyone who may have not yet seen, so I warned you! – when he died. However, I've always had this nagging thing about why in the hell he didn't take care of Naruto. Now mind you, I'm not the most caught up with the storyline and somethings escape me. But for the most part all I've seen is that he was away on intel gathering and his mission for peace. But come on, Minato and Kushina trusted him to be his godfather for fucks sake. Least he could of done was drop by with some cash or a present or something, Shit! I honestly think that Kishi threw that in as a side note, something he thought would be cool and having not considered it when he first made the character, which would explain a lot. That, or Jiraiya is a colossal dickwad.
But, with the idea that it was always present, I'll be exploring that and presenting a different Jiraiya. He will be OOC from the cannon version, but for good reason. I hope you enjoy.
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The way to Uzushiogakure was going to be a rather long one. At the speed they were traveling it would take at least three days to reach the coast, and that would only be if Naruto could keep the pace without using too much chakra. At his current state, even an expenditure of his own chakra would bleed in the Kyuubi's, and thus risk ill effects. But for Naruto, what was really going to make the trip long, was the stoic and unfriendly ninja that was his escort. Naruto was already not in the greatest spirits due to the thought that, if he couldn't find the answers he sought, this morning may very well be the last he would ever see Konoha again. To see his friends again, and even far worse, to never see Hinata again. Having a moody old man who wouldn't even look at him without a scowl was not exactly helping things.
By Naruto's calculation, they had been tree running in silence now for around six hours, and would more than likely break the great forest that surrounded Konoha soon. After that, it would be intermittent forests and plains until they hit the coast. Sweat was trailing down Naruto's body, the long run being more than he had done before, not to mention he'd been using minimal chakra, instead focusing on brute strength and a practiced eye to traverse the forest. He refused to complain however, feeling as if showing any weakness to the grumpy old man would be a personal loss.
Naruto's ears soon caught onto the sound a nearby stream however, and his already parched throat constricted at the memory of cool water running down his throat that the sound brought. Just as he started contemplating suggesting a break, as he saw the stream come into view, his silent companion spoke. "Set down here. We're taking a break."
Naruto's surprise at hearing him speak was overwritten by the burning need to quench his thirst. Dropping next to the stream, Naruto threw off his bag and dunked his head straight into the stream. Naruto sung praises in his mind to what ever merciful gods had put this stream here, as he drank deeply.
Jiraiya watched from the tree he was leaning against, as he took a sip from his canteen. He almost laughed, as he watched the bubbles rising up from either side of the blonde's neck. He soon regained his scowl however, as he thought back to the discussion he had with Sarutobi.
"JIRAIYA!" Sarutobi yelled at the top of his lungs, slamming both palms down on the table. The older ninja could not contain his rage, as he felt his temper that was usually hard as steel, now melting into slag. "Why must you continue to act beyond childish?!"
Jiraiya grit his teeth, as he squared off against his old mentor. "I don't have to like being forced into this!"
Sarutobi grit his own teeth, trying to contain the urge to act as if he was forty years younger and leap across the desk to pound the living daylights out of his old student. "Damn you Jiraiya! Have you no shame of how you act to your own godson?!"
"Don't you even start with me." Jiraiya growled, as he clenched his fist. "I already told you why I wasn't able to take care of him!" Jiraiya's angry tone faltered, and his face betrayed his own disbelief in what he said. But his anger soon spiked again, as if he threw more fuel onto his fire and continued, "Besides, last I checked, you were supposed to be the all mighty Sandime of Konoha. Why didn't YOU take care of him if it was so goddamn important!"
Sarutobi's eye twitched, and he stomped around his desk to get closer to his unruly pupil. "So that's it then. You abandon your duty to village, godson and common sense because I could take care of it all! All so that you could go off on some wild goose chase after a woman who has never once wanted you in her ENTIRE LIFE. How I pity you, you wretched fool of a man!"
Jiraiya's breathing turned ragged as his fists shook from the force he had to exert to not punch the older man. He fixated on Sarutobi's wrinkled face, grinding his teeth, trying to think of a retort.
"Bah." Sarutobi spoke again, letting out a hard grunt and his face reflected the clear disgust he felt for Jiraiya. "I'm only repeating myself at this point." He turned his back on Jiraiya and walked a few feet away, before turning back to look at his enraged ex-pupil. "How I lament how you've become Jiraiya. You've lost yourself to your own grief and anger and can't even live in the present where people need you. What would Minato think of you now, and how you've blatantly ignored his son? The man he thought to be the greatest ninja whom ever lived?"
Jiraiya's face twisted, as the Hokage's words hit him in an unguarded place inside his heart, a place that had been all but forgotten. His glare faltered, and he broke eye contact for but a moment, but it was all Sarutobi needed to see that he had won this particular contest. Sitting back down at his chair, he took a deep breath. Making eye contact with his student again, he spoke, "Go then and meet Naruto. I expect you to see him to and from Uzushiogakure. While he may mean nothing to you, he means much to me. He is turning into an exceptional young shinobi and man. You only do a disservice to yourself to ignore him as you do."
Jiraiya's scowl returned, albeit troubled, and walked out of the room wordlessly.
Jiraiya let out an irritated sigh, as he capped off his canteen and replaced it at his waist.
"Bwah!" Naruto yelled as he emerged from the stream and inhaled as massive of a gulp of air as he could. "Phew! Man I needed that!" Naruto exclaimed further, feeling an amazing sense of relief from finally vanquishing his thirst. He lingered in his state of euphoria for a moment, before rolling his head to the side, seeing Jiraiya watching him. Noticing the irritation playing out across his escorts face, Naruto clicked his tounge and shook his head. Now that he was re-hydrated and cooled down somewhat, he figured it was best just to ignore the old man and enjoy himself. Rolling his head back, he stretched a moment before collapsing backwards onto the side of the grassy creek bank. He felt a wave of comfort, as he felt the scorching summer sun be filtered by the canopy of trees, instead blanketing him with a warm feeling, as he listened to the gentle sound of the water nearby, and felt the mattress of grass underneath him. He closed his eyes, imagining if Hinata was curled up beside him. He would have to take her camping here sometime, this was way too nice of a spot. A content smile spread on his face as he started to think about getting some shut eye, when a voice interrupted his pleasant time.
"Break's over, let's get going." Jiraiya spoke, pushing off the tree.
Naruto's eyes shot open, his peace being shattered by the annoying voice, and he turned his head to stare at Jiraiya. "Seriously? We just got here." Naruto sighed out. He closed his eyes and turned his head back. "Try relaxing a bit. Maybe that stick you jammed up your ass will loosen up and fall out."
Jiraiya grit his teeth as he felt a vein bulge on his forehead. "Listen here brat, this isn't a pleasure trip it's a damn mission, now get off your ass and move before I make you!" Jiraiya growled as he made his way to Naruto. Every minute he spent having to babysit, was a minute he didn't have to continue his search.
Naruto cursed as he sat back up, glaring at Jiraiya. "What the hell is your problem you old bastard?!" Naruto was starting to get some flashbacks from when he was a child, and the looks the villagers would give him, along with the whispering behind their backs. Jiraiya's look wasn't the same, but it didn't give him any relief. Feeling a spark of anger in him, his nostrils flared and he tried to calm himself as he stood, before it erupted into an uncontrollable blaze.
"My problem," Jiraiya started, "Is that I'm having to escort around a rude brat -" That is also your godson, Jiraiya heard creep into his mind, making him flinch and stop talking mid-rant. He looked down at Naruto who was glaring at him, yet also confused as he was, as to why Jiraiya stopped mid-sentence. Jiraiya cursed in his head, telling the voice to be quiet, but he couldn't help but see Kushina reflected in Naruto's face, only strengthening the notion the small voice brought. "Tsk," Jiraiya spat out as he turned his head. "Never mind, let's just get going already." He spoke turning his back and moving towards the nearest tree. His thoughts were confused, as he once again felt a familiar doubt in himself return that he thought he had buried years ago. Now it resurfaced, and was only causing to give him a headache.
Naruto scowled, as he considered arguing but decided against it. Taking a moment to refill his canteen he mumbled to himself as he really wished the Hokage had put anyone else besides this asshole as his escort.
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The rest of the day went quietly, neither shinobi saying anything to the other. Naruto hated it, he always took care of his problems head on, and having Jiraiya not come clean on why he was being such an asshole was irritating him. He would just chalk it up to the older ninja being just a miserable old bastard, but Naruto could tell there was something else. He swore to get to the bottom of it.
The sun had finally finished it's journey for the day, saying it's final farewell in a glorious fashion by painting the sky purple and orange from the western horizon. The grass on the long plain that the two ninja ran along was affected as well, giving the green grass all around them an orange hue. It was the signal to Jiraiya that they would have to set down for the night, as much as he would have preferred to continue going on. Looking to his left, he saw a large rock jutting out from the ground with little grass growth around it. Deciding it wouldn't be necessary to be overly concerned about stealth, being so far in the Land of Fire's territory, it would make a fine spot to set camp. Slowing to a halt, he spoke out, "We're stopping for the night." He pointed towards the rock he had surveyed.
Naruto nodded, trying to get his ragged breathing in check. He was more than proud, having ran for a solid six hours with only one ten minute break somewhere in the middle. His training was really showing for itself in this forced march Jiraiya was putting them through. Irritatingly enough though, the other man didn't show any sign of fatigue. Shrugging his pack and sword off, he walked towards the rock he saw Jiraiya heading for, already scouting for a nice spot to plant his butt on.
Jiraiya turned, looking towards Naruto as the blonde started to set his pack down. "Don't get comfortable yet. Go get some firewood." Jiraiya ordered, sitting at the rock.
Naruto shot his head towards Jiraiya, "Wha-?! You old bastard, are you going to fucking help or just sit there?!" Naruto yelled out, glaring at the other man.
Jiraiya returned the glare with equal ferocity. "You're the junior here brat! Go get the damn firewood! And my name is Jiraiya!" he replied, pointing his finger at the boy.
"Are you fu-" Naruto cut himself off, as he seethed with rage, grinding his teeth and clenching his fist. He could start to feel the Kyuubi's presence however, and knew he had to calm down, as much as he hated the idea of it. "Fine." He spoke through clenched teeth. "And if you want me to call you by your name, how about calling me by mine?!" Turning away hard he ran for the forest, cursing up a storm in his head, all aimed for the senior shinobi.
Jiraiya watched Naruto run off with a frown, as the blonde's last words echoed in his mind. Feeling the troubling sensation he had earlier start to rise up again, he scratched his head in frustration before getting up to start setting a fire pit.
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It wasn't until nightfall when Naruto returned with a large bundle of firewood held in his arms. He dropped it unceremoniously next to the set up fire pit, plopping down with an exhausted sigh. Hearing some rustling noises from the wood pile, he looked up to see Jiraiya grabbing some larger pieces of wood and arranging them. Naruto scoffed, "So you're actually going to do some work after all? I should be thankful." Naruto spoke sarcastically, though the effect was lessened some by his tired tone. He was truly feeling exhausted, between having to physically exert himself all day, fighting with Jiraiya, and contending with the fox spirit inside him.
If Jiraiya made any reaction to Naruto's dig, the blonde didn't notice. Glancing over, he watched Jiraiya finish piling up some wood and then go through a set of hand seals Naruto was familiar with, which caused him to gasp and start to scramble to his feet. Jiraiya finished the hand seal, and put his pointer and thumb together in front of his mouth, to blow out a tiny stream of fire, no wider than a pencil to light the dry wood instantly.. Naruto stopped his frantic flight, looking down at the older man with a small amount of awe. Forgetting his grievances with the older shinobi for a moment, he moved back towards the fire pit, the area now illuminated by a strong fire. "How did you do that?" Naruto asked. He understood the basic idea of how Jiraiya would have been able to downgrade the technique, but it still amazed the teen.
Jiraiya looked up at the boy with a raised eyebrow. "Didn't they teach you about chakra control in the Academy?" he asked, for once his tone not containing any of it's usual bite.
"Of course!" Naruto replied sheepishly, realizing his question made him sound like an idiot. "But I mean how the heck did you manage to make it so small? I've seen impressive chakra control before but even using the smallest amount of chakra I could for that jutsu, it's still a massive fireball."
Jiraiya looked at the boy for a moment, before sitting back down away from the blazing fire. "Chakra control takes extreme dedication and no small amount of skill. Some people are born with an inherent ability to have superior control over their chakra," Jiraiya paused for a moment, his face pained as he was referencing Tsunade, and memories of her came to him. But with a quick breath, he continued, "You're probably the opposite of that, however."
Naruto looked almost offended, as he cocked his head back. "What's that supposed to mean?"
Jiraiya clicked his tongue, "I didn't mean it like that. With you having the Kyuubi's chakra output and power, due to what the Kyuubi did to the seal, using that small amount of chakra is next to impossible." Seeing the boy turn his head and cross his arms, thinking about what Jiraiya said, he sighed, "Look. It's like this. Normal humans have around this much chakra." He grabbed a smaller fist sized rock, and held it up. "You have a chakra pool like that." He pointed behind him to the large rock outcropping behind him. "If both were to use five percent of their chakra for a jutsu, yours would dwarf this rocks output by leaps and bounds. Understand?"
Naruto opened his mouth in an 'O' shape, the idea getting through to him. "So basically if I try to use only a little bit of my chakra for a jutsu, it would equal or be greater than a normal person's jutsu due to our definitions of small amount being different? And that if I wanted to use the tiny amount you just did I would have to use like zero point five percent of my chakra, right?"
Jiraiya nodded, "Exactly. And getting to that level of chakra control would take years if not your entire life to reach."
"Huh." Naruto said, as a thought crossed his mind, looking at Jiraiya. "I guess you're not that bad - when you decide not to be an old asshole." Naruto's stomach growled at him then, letting him know it was time to eat some of the instant ramen and jerky he'd brought with.
Jiraiya scowled at Naruto, "And I was thinking that maybe you weren't such an insufferable brat." Jiraiya replied, wanting to wring the blondes neck. Seeing the boy forage in his pack for food, he reached to his side. "Catch brat."
Naruto looked up just in time to see a skinned rabbit fly at him, causing him to jump in fright as he barely caught it. Looking down at the terrifying hunk of meat that once resembled a cute bunny, Naruto looked back up towards Jiraiya. "The hell man?!"
"Shut up and cook it." Jiraiya replied as he grabbed another skinned rabbit, both he had hunted and skinned while Naruto was getting firewood, and skewered it on a stick.
Naruto grumbled to himself, any previous amicable feelings towards Jiraiya gone. He looked down towards the remains of the rabbit and closed his eyes as he skewered it himself. Sorry Mr. Bunny. . .
Both remained quiet through the process of cooking and eating their respective meals, neither wanting to talk to the other. Naruto chewed the rabbit with dissatisfaction, the meat was tough and gamey, but he supposed that it was better than going through his food ration. After dinner, Jiraiya leaned against the rock, closed his eye and crossed his arms and remained that way. Naruto knew he wasn't asleep, but decided he preferred Jiraiya quiet and not watching him. Reaching into his pack, he pulled out a yellow scroll and reclined against his pack as he unfurled it and began reading.
Jiraiya opened his eyes, after feeling himself start to fall asleep, not wanting to sleep just yet. He looked over towards Naruto, and saw the scroll. He squinted his eyes, looking through the fire and onto a visible portion of the beginning of the scroll that was hanging down, as Naruto continued to read and unroll more of the scroll. Jiraiya's eyes widened a bit, as he recognized the handwriting and the formula contained within; it was Minato's.
He felt a strange twisting feeling in his heart, as he looked back towards Naruto. The blonde's spiky hair was somewhat concealing his eyes, the boy having not gotten a hair cut in a while and his forehead protector wasn't on. The fire danced and flashed infront of Jiraiya, and as it did, his memory over layed the image of a younger Minato on top of Naruto, and the resemblance was surreal. The fire danced again, and brought an old memory to Jiraiya.
"Jiraiya-sensei!"
Jiraiya, much younger and missing the lines of age from his face, looked over at his young blonde pupil. It had only been a month since their team was formed, but already Minato showed great promise as a shinobi.
"What's up Minato?" Jiraiya asked, putting down his pen. He was in the middle of practicing his writing, something he found he rather enjoyed.
Minato seemed a bit awkward, trying to find the right words to say. After a moment, the young boy finally spoke. "Can you teach me fuinjutsu?"
Jiraiya arched his eyebrow. "That's kind of advanced Minato. I wouldn't really be able to-"
Minato looked as though he had expected that, and then held out a small red paper. "Before you say that look at this!" The boy had a look of pride and expectation as he held his arm out firmly.
Jiraiya reached out, grabbing the paper and examined it. Recognizing it, he looked at Minato. "It's an exploding tag. What about it?"
The boy's grin grew even wider as he rubbed the back of his head, now seeming embarrassed. "I made it!"
Jiraiya was visibly shocked, as he did a double take. Looking back down at the exploding tag, he looked at all the seals and the symbols that comprised them on the tag. The kanji for 'explode' was written perfectly, as well as the outline around it that connected it to four pathways to each end of the tag. Inspecting it further, he saw that in each corner, one for each function of the tag, the writing got a bit messy, an obvious beginner mistake, yet it showed dedication. Furthermore, the chakra that was infused with the tag was weak and uneven, and wouldn't be guaranteed to work properly if at all; not to mention the risk the carrier took of it exploding accidentally.
Jiraiya looked back up at the boy, with a mix of concern and wonder. "Minato, did you really make this yourself?" Jiraiya asked.
Minato beamed with a bright smile as he nodded, "Yep!" to which he was replied to with a hard chop from Jiraiya ontop of his head. "Ow! Sensei?! What was that for?!"
Jiraiya gave the kid a hard look as he held up the tag. "You made an explosive device that could have gone off in your face if you messed up bad enough. Making something like this is dangerous normally, but even more so for a genin! Look at this," he pointed towards the area on the tag where one inscribed the 'instructions' for the tag to explode if the person who threw it formed the snake seal, "this line here is what allows for a shinobi to mark his exploding tag with his own chakra and activate it, and be the only one who can activate it. You did it incorrectly. Furthermore, you didn't draw the chakra flow correctly so this thing is always primed! If anyone you had walked by formed chakra with the snake seal, the tag could have reacted and blown you to hell!"
Minato shrunk away from his sensei, looking obviously ashamed and somewhat afraid, as his head dropped. "I-I'm sorry, I just . . ." Minato started, trying to find the words as his sensei's harsh lecture hit deep.
Jiraiya sighed, ending it with a small laugh. "Well, that's the bad part of what you did." He started, making Minato look back up at him, "The good part, and I use the term good lightly, is that you were able to not blow yourself up in the process of making this and you made very accurate except for those few major flaws. You clearly have talent for this."
Minato's eyes brightened, as his previous sorrow was forgotten and replaced, "Does that mean –?!" Minato didn't finish his sentence as Jiraiya's hand fell onto his hair gently, rubbing his head.
"Only because if I don't, you'll probably blow yourself up," Jiraiya replied with a grin, "And do you have any idea how long it takes to train a new genin?"
Minato jumped for joy, his jubilation uncontrollable. "Thank you Jiraiya-sensei! I swear you won't regret this!"
Jiraiya's memory faded away, and his attention was brought back to the present. He saw that his unwavering gaze hadn't gone unnoticed, by Naruto clutching at the scroll like a jealous husband and scowling at him as if Jiraiya was a thief come to steal his love away. Deciding that it was going to come up at some point anyway, Jiraiya asked, "Where did you get that scroll?"
Naruto's eyes narrowed, "What's it matter to you?" his tone conspiratorial, knowing something was up. He started slowly re-rolling the scroll up, ensure the older man couldn't catch a glimpse of any of the writing within.
Jiraiya scoffed, crossing his arms. "What matters," he started, raising one of his hands to point towards the scroll, "is that I helped write that very scroll and I'm curious as to where you got it." Jiraiya of course knew very well where Naruto must have gotten the scroll from, but for some unknown reason that was lost to him, he felt the need to get it out of Naruto. The small voice in the back of his head spoke to him once again, Perhaps it's because you're ashamed of yourself and don't want to face your failure? It taunted, with an irritating tone that made Jiraiya want to punch himself in hopes of hurting it.
"Pfft," Naruto replied, "As if some stupid old man like you could be on the same level as my da- the Fourth." Naruto kicked himself, not only almost saying the identity of his father, but then letting this other ninja know who the scroll belonged to. Naruto didn't trust this old bastard, and the less he let him know the better.
Jiraiya sighed irritably, "I'll have you know I trained the Fourth you little bastard! I was the one who taught him fuinjutsu!" He spat out, glaring at the blonde. He of course didn't mention that Minato had surpassed him in the field long before he had become Hokage, but that was something Naruto didn't need to know, as far as he was concerned.
Naruto looked at the older man, his face full of disbelief, as he put the scroll back into his bag. "Uh huh. Sure you did."
Jiraiya was feeling his temper rise, frustrated that this kid was throwing his reputation aside like nothing. Maybe if you told him about how you knew his father and mother, he would believe you. Of course that would mean admitting that you were the reason he lived such a shitty life. "SHUT UP!" Jiraiya roared loudly, as he grabbed his hair in frustration at the mocking voice that would not leave him alone! Then, in a moment of clarity, he realized that he had shouted that out loud. Looking up, he saw Naruto sitting further away from the fire, his hand on his sword with a wary expression.
"You okay there old man?" Naruto asked, wondering if the older ninja had finally gone over the deep end. He was getting ready to bolt as fast as he could if needed, slowly dragging both sword and pack to him.
Jiraiya grumbled with chagrin, as he just looked away from Naruto and got up, walking away silently into the dark. His mind was a jumble of anger and uncertainty, both at his own sanity and at his outlook on his life. Whatever this voice within him represented, it was going to drive him insane. Starting to run, he needed to get away from the blonde that was making him feel this way and decided to take his anger out on something else.
Naruto watched Jiraiya run off with caution, trying to decide if he should try and stop him or take his chance and run from what was clearly a mentally unstable old man. However, Naruto's gut told him that whatever was wrong with Jiraiya, wasn't directed towards him. The only sounds he was left with, in the growing darkness of night, was the faint crackling of the wood in the fire. The logs in the fire broke with a loud crack, falling into a disheveled pile, releasing embers into the air. Taking it as a proper sign, Naruto reached over for three medium logs and carefully placed them in the fire, giving it enough fuel until he was asleep. Naruto slowly laid back down onto his pack, but kept his sword close and his hand on the handle. Sleep wouldn't come easy to him that night, as he listened for even the smallest sound that would alert him. As he started to feel the embrace of sleep take him, the warmth of the fire making his body relax, his free arm felt empty as it laid limp against his side. With a wry chuckle, Naruto admitted to himself that he missed Hinata's body laying against his more than he thought.
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The next morning, Naruto was abruptly awoken by the sounds of someone moving in the camp. Lurching up with trained precision, his mind already free from the haze of sleep, Naruto held his sword at the ready. His leap into action however, seemed to be for naught, as the source of the disturbance was Jiraiya, getting ready to leave the campsite. Naruto noticed that Jiraiya's eyes showed an ever so faint trace of fatigue, with just noticeable dark semi-circles under them. He waited a moment for Jiraiya to give him a mocking laugh, or to taunt him in some way for his actions, but nothing came. Instead, Jiraiya looked over towards Naruto, with an expression that conveyed his fatigue well. Naruto could almost feel the older man's state seep into his own bones, his eyes speaking of something beyond just lack of sleep.
"Get ready to go. We still have a long way to go." Jiraiya spoke solemnly, his voice empty of it's usual backlash and curt. He turned, and started walking back towards the road.
Weird. Naruto thought, as he start to get his sword and pack back on, making sure he left nothing behind. Watching Jiraiya continue his slow gait towards the road, Naruto's something-the-fuck-is-up meter starting going off. What the hell did you do last night? Naruto thought, as he jogged to catch up to Jiraiya, once he did, they began to run at a pace just a bit slower than yesterday.
As they continued through the plains, about thirty minutes away from the campsite, Naruto saw a large area of destroyed earth, massive craters had been formed by something almost perfectly spherical. It seemed so out of place, that Naruto couldn't help but wonder if the silent ninja had caused it the night before.
Jiraiya was silent the whole trip, giving time for longer breaks throughout the day, that Naruto chalked up to the old man not getting any sleep the night before. While he was correct for the most part, the other reason was Jiraiya no longer knew how to deal with the blonde that he was escorting, and his constant state of mind was taking it's toll. Last night had been hell on him. He was no longer able to justify his reasoning for why he left Naruto behind. The voice in his mind had become clear as day, presenting contrary information to every single one of his reasons why he abandoned his godson.
Jiraiya roared out in anger, "Rasengan!" as he demolished an unsuspecting tree, slamming through the mighty trunk with a deadly sphere of pure chakra. His breathing was harsh, not from overworking his body, but from rage. This voice within him had almost taken sentience. It was impossible, but he had no other way to describe how it could speak so contrary to how he thought.
'You done yet?' the voice mocked, it's almost cheerful tone, it's voice mimicking his own, echoing within his skull.
"Shut up!" Jiraiya yelled for a second time that night, wondering if he had truly gone mad.
'Try as you might to push me away, you know that I'm right. You abandoned your duty to your godson coldly, and without a shred of remorse for it. Haven't you even thought about how terrible it must have been for him to grow up alone, with the cold eyes of the villagers upon him? How he lived cold, and alone within walls that never knew the warmth of love.'
Jiraiya grit his teeth, looking at nothing in particular. He knew that this voice had to just be his imagination, some mental trick brought on by stress. "I had to find her - I have to find Tsunade!" Jiraiya replied to the darkness beyond him, knowing full well how insane he would look to any passer by. His thoughts were taken up once more by the buxom blonde, her smiling face still enrapturing his soul. His attempt at thinking about the object of his desire however, was shattered in a single swoop by the voice.
'And? You could have easily brought him with you. Or you could have just not chased after a woman who either doesn't want to be found or more likely, is dead. You hide behind your foolish love, using it as a crutch. When even you have to admit that if you found her, she wouldn't just suddenly change her mind and fall into your bed. The only man she loved died long ago, and her eyes have always only been for him, not you.'
Jiraiya felt himself falter a moment, as the words hit him deep, cutting like a jagged knife through his stomach, causing his gut to clench. He racked his brain for a proper rebuttal to the voice, but he found none, knowing it's logic was not flawed in the least. Then he saw a small sliver of light in his dark thoughts, a way out.
"Orochimaru. . . I had to find him too, and bring him back!" Jiraiya spoke, drawing upon another reason why he had been gone from the village. After he heard his best friend had fled from the village, branded a traitor, Jiraiya had also tried to keep tabs on the snake sannin.
'Oh please, you barely looked for him. Your all consuming quest to find the woman who almost killed you took all your attention; Nice try though. Are you ready to just admit you could care less about Naruto? About the promise you made to his parents?'
"That's not true!" Jiraiya shot back, before he even had time to think about what he said properly.
The voice laughed, echoing inside his head. 'So you do understand just how disgraceful you've been these long years? Just admit it already, you decided that you had better things to do than look after some kid that was only named your godson due to his naming after one of the heroes in your novel. We both know that Sarutobi is one hundred percent right about you.'
The voice's condescending tone hit Jiraiya like a sledgehammer, as he fell to his knees, the corner of his eyes bringing a small tear to them, as the truth the voice presented was too much. His body felt weak, the cold of the night seeping into his bones and chilling his soul. Jiraiya did understand fully that he had abandoned his duty that he himself had agreed to. No matter what reason he had for leaving Naruto and not being there for him, could not be justified. All this time he had just been running from the truth, that he had chosen his own foolish desire over his duty. This understanding, this realization of how much he had failed echoed within him, seemingly without end. Closing his eyes, trying his best to keep himself calm, he asked the voice, pleading, "Who are you?"
As if the voice had quieted to just a whisper, he could 'feel' it lean in closer within him, if such a descriptor could be used. He heard, no louder than the silent wind around him, 'Your conscience.'
Jiraiya covered his face with his palm, dragging it down, trying to shake the memory from him. Since then, the voice hadn't returned and neither had his previous attitude and thoughts towards Naruto. He still couldn't stand to look at the blonde, however. Instead of being upset that his search was postponed due to having to escort Naruto, it was instead replaced with an almost crippling guilt. At the moment, they were taking a break on a large hill that jutted out from the forest below, and it was mainly devoid of any trees — save for a large one that grew at the crest of the hill, where they currently rested under.
Jiraiya knew that he was going to have to do something about this feeling he had and soon. He could tell that Naruto knew something was up with him, the blonde kept looking at him when ever he thought Jiraiya wouldn't notice. Jiraiya frowned, as he closed his eyes. But how am I supposed to tell him that I could have prevented him from living a childhood full of such pain?
XXXX
After traveling a few more hours into the afternoon, Naruto was almost to his wits end about the weird change that Jiraiya had been undergoing. It unnerved the blonde, he could honestly say he'd never seen anyone go through such a radical change in a short time frame. He had been joking with himself about the old guy going off the deep end, but he was starting to wonder how right he had been. He kept trying to think on how to broach the subject of it, but he also wondered if it was just best to leave it be. Chances were after this trip, he wasn't going to ever see Jiraiya again, so maybe there was no need to dig into why he was the way he was.
They had once more hit a large area of forest, this one feeling much like the one that surrounded Konoha, although Naruto noted with some interest that the climate felt just a bit cooler, he wondered if that had anything to do with only being another day from the coast. They were currently following a side road, that ran a few miles parallel from the main road. It was mainly unused, but as the two ran along the trees they occasionally passed over travelers and locals. In the distance, Naruto saw what looked like a large wooden lodge nestled into the trees.
"We're going to stop here for the night."
Naruto looked over at Jiraiya, used to his short sentences and abrupt stopping of their trek by now. He followed his escort to the wooden lodge, landing just a few feet from the main door. Being closer, Naruto saw that the building was rather recent, the wood still somewhat fresh looking, with very little water damage or anything of the like. Above a large wooden door that he assumed was the entrance, a red sign sat above it with black letters spelling out 'Raven's Nest'. Jiraiya walked ahead of Naruto, heading for the front door with a confident gait, that told Naruto that he had been here before, as he grasped the door handle and opened the door.
Inside, Naruto was greeted by a low roar of a small crowd of people, most seeming to be travelers and locals. They ranged from merchants, to farmers, fisherman and woodsmen, all drinking and eating some rather delicious smelling food, making his mouth water. The tables they sat at were arranged in no particular order, with a staircase on the left side of the large room that led up, and a bar that occupied most of the back side of the wall, with a single man attending the bar.
Jiraiya began to expertly navigate the crowded room, weaving through the chairs and people, offering slight nods and halfhearted smiles at any that made eye contact with him. Naruto followed him as best he could, using his hand to push his sword vertical on his back to avoid clipping any chairs or people. They reached the end of the room, reaching the bar, giving Naruto a better look at the bartender. He was of average height, with pale skin, and long black hair that was pulled back into a loose ponytail and had two loose portions of his hair framing his face. As they neared, he looked towards them, his eyes black, and the most interesting feature was two odd lines that ran from just under the edge of the inside of his eyes, diagonally to almost the end of his nose.
The bartender regarded him with a nod, before turning to look at his older companion. "Jiraiya, it's good to see you again," he spoke, his voice low, yet was friendly. "What brings you here today?"
Jiraiya leaned against the bar, his fatigue showing clearly. "Not the usual. I'm actually here for some food and a room."
The bartender nodded, seeming to understand. "I see, will you be needing a separate room for . . .?" he looked over towards Naruto, mentioning towards the blonde that stood a few feet from Jiraiya.
Taking that as his cue, and trying not to stare at the other man, Naruto stepped forward. "The name's Naruto Uzumaki, and two rooms would be awesome." He spoke with a large grin, loving the idea of not having to share a room with the moody old man.
The bartender smiled with a small laugh. "Very well, two it is. I'll put it on your tab then Jiraiya. If you take a seat, Rei will come take your order. I'll join you in a bit, and we can catch up"
Jiraiya nodded, as he pushed off the bar and headed for a table. Naruto followed him, looking forward to resting his body, and filling his rumbling belly. Jiraiya and Naruto took seats across from each other, Naruto propping his sword against the table next to him. He let out a satisfying sigh, as he felt the hard wood of his seat take his weight off his legs. Leaning back, he took slow breath to enjoy the moment of rest.
"Jiraiya-sama, it's good to see you again." A cheery voice called out from the side of the table.
Naruto lurched up, sitting straight. Looking over, he saw a very beautiful woman with long black hair and light brown eyes. Her face was soft and possessed a comforting smile. She wore a simple kimono, patterned with red and yellow stripes with a white apron tied on. She held a wooden tray pressed against her mid-section, and looked at them both in turn with a nod.
Jiraiya let out an actual smile, he was glad to see the woman, she had a way of making anyone in a room calm with her presence. "Rei, you're looking beautiful as ever. I'll have whatever you have on special tonight with some sake."
"You got it Jiraiya-sama, you flattering cad. The special is a soup made from local foraged food that I made myself. What can I get for you?" Rei giggled, and then she looked over towards Naruto.
Naruto, not knowing what was on the menu, replied simply, "Whatever has a lot of meat. And a bowl of ramen if you have it. I'll just take water to drink, thanks." His stomach rumbled hard, in response to the idea of food. He chuckled with some embarrassment, wishing his stomach hadn't unleashed itself in front of such a pretty woman.
Rei held a finger to her lips, thinking for a moment. "Well, how about I surprise you? I can make both those things in the same dish." Naruto nodded quickly in response, clearly pleased by this, causing Rei to laugh. "Alright, I'll be back." She turned and walked off briskly back towards the kitchen entrance that was marked by half-curtains to the side of the bar.
Naruto looked back towards Jiraiya, who was leaning onto the table, his arms on the table and his hands clasped together. Naruto bit the inside of his cheek, as he tried to think of something to say, maybe some topic of conversation they could talk about to break the awkward silence, but he then remembered they had done nothing but shout at each other since they left Konoha, he knew very little about the other man. Thankfully, his problem was solved by the bartender appearing to his right, pulling up a nearby chair, causing Jiraiya to look up and nod towards the bartender.
"So Jiraiya," he started, as he leaned against the table, "what brings you here, if not the usual, with Naruto?" he asked, looking between the two of them with a soft smile.
"We're traveling to Uzushiogakure, to try and find something for Naruto." Jiraiya replied, causing Naruto to look towards him with some worry.
What the hell are you doing sharing this information with a civilian?! Naruto thought in his head incredulously, staring at Jiraiya with a slack jaw. Then, remembering something, he looked towards the bartender. "I never caught your name, mister. . .?" Naruto spoke, referring to the bartender.
The bartender studied Naruto for a moment, before looking towards Jiraiya. "It's okay." Jiraiya spoke, which caused the bartender to look back towards Naruto, his gaze unreadable. His soft smile had been replaced with one that spoke of practiced caution before he spoke.
"My name is Itachi."
XXXX
And cut! Another one for all your reading pleasure, and I hoped you all enjoyed. We're starting to get into the part of the story I've been looking forward to a looooong time. I usually have more to say here but I can't think of jack shit. So I'll end it like I usually do, If you liked this chapter, please review and let me know, so that I can be reassured and then hit that favorite button so you know exactly when this is updated!
Look forward to the next one soon my loyal fans! (Also I don't know how many of you keep up with the recent manga, but FFFFF- dammit Kishi! Don't you dare kill off _! I'll hate you for real!)
Until next time,
Shinobi no Ryu