Disclaimer – Kishimoto owns Naruto and the characters therein.
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Memories Of Others
Chapter 45
A Chunin Amongst The Toads
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"Welcome back, Naruto." Fukasaku said as the blond human walked up to where he was sitting.
"It's good to be back." Naruto smiled, then he glanced round. "Where's Shima?"
"She's helping Gamabunta deal with something that came up regarding one of the other summon clans." Fukasaku said, pulling himself onto his feet. "It isn't a big thing, but it does need dealing with. Now, you… is that a chunin vest?"
"It is." Naruto grinned, stroking the zip of the vest that showed from under the edge of his Haori. "I was promoted yesterday."
"Congratulations." Fukasaku smiled as he started up the path to the grove. "One step closer to your dream of becoming Hokage."
"Yeah, but still a long way to go." Naruto sighed. "At the end of the invasion, I got loads of technique-memories from the Hokage… I had to write them down before I forgot them, then check with him that I'd got them right and had permission to learn them..."
"Ah yes, your memory-skill that Jiraiya was complaining about." Fukasaku chuckled. "You're still doing it?"
"Mainly to enjoy time with Hinata." Naruto admitted. "We're mainly using the clones to do housework together and stuff… I'm getting pretty good at pressing flowers. Oh, and I'm getting plenty of lessons on how to act in different types of situations. My old Grin stupidly and shout greetings method wasn't a good one, in retrospect."
"With great power comes great responsibility." Fukasaku intoned, then he caught Naruto's quizzical expression. "Arachnid Clan saying. It means the more power you have, the more responsible you are for what you do with it and the outcomes that using it creates."
"…that's deep." Naruto finally managed, then he glanced round. "Gamamaru-san?"
"Hello there." The eldest of the Toads smiled from his seat on one of the stone slabs. "I hope you don't mind, but I wanted to have a talk with the child of my old friend."
Was that Uncle Gama? The Kyuubi asked and Naruto nodded slightly.
It is and he was hoping to talk to you. Naruto sent back.
"Shall we begin?" Gamamaru asked and Naruto scurried to the stone slab that had served as his seat the last time he had been in the clearing.
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Tsuchi Kin looked up at the looming figure of Morino Ibiki and tried not to let her bladder empty itself as he simply looked at her.
Her sense of vulnerability was increased by the fact that she was tied to a hospital bed (with a cast on her left arm and bandages holding her cracked ribs in place) with only a sheet (and a few bandages) protecting her modesty.
Despite her attempt to show defiance, she flinched as Ibiki reached into his pocket. A few seconds later, his hand reappeared, but it was holding two items that Kin recognised instantly.
"Those are…"
"The hitai-ates worn by your two team-mates before Orochimaru sacrificed them to aid in his attempt to kill the Hokage." Ibiki rumbled and Kin felt her eyes start to tear up briefly before she drew on her anger.
"As if we were a proper team." She scoffed, then she shrank back as Ibiki raised an eyebrow.
"Indeed. Not that it matters any more. Orochimaru is dead."
Kin felt her heart stutter at the news. If he was dead, then Otogakure was effectively gone, meaning that she was an independent shinobi…
No more beatings to drive out the weakness, no more fear of being the next test subject…
…no more private quarters with a seal-enhanced lockable door…
…no-one who would watch her back during a mission…
"…damn…" She whispered and Ibiki nodded.
"Most of your information is now useless to us. You cannot buy your freedom by informing on one who is dead."
Kin felt herself greying out in panic and forced herself to pay attention.
"You have no Kekkei Genkai to barter with, no treasures to use as bribes."
"What… are you going to do with me…?" Kin whimpered and Ibiki stepped aside to reveal two people, a blond male and a black-haired female.
"You have a choice." Ibiki said from behind Kin, where she couldn't see him. "You can have your chakra sealed and be cast into prison, or you can have a loyalty genjutsu implanted in your subconscious and become a provisional Konoha shinobi, although you will be required to divulge all your techniques."
"At least you're giving me a choice." Kin sighed. "I'll take the genjutsu."
"Then just relax." The blond man said, reaching out to place one heand on her forehead as the woman began to make a long, complex series of hand-seals.
"Will I still be… me?" Kin whispered and the man nodded.
"You will. All that will change will be your loyalty. You have my word."
Kin nodded slightly, then she closed her eyes as the world began to spin away.
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"Uncle Gamamaru?"
"Hello, Kurama-kun." Gamamaru said, reaching between the bars to tousle Kurama's forehead-fur.
"It's been so long…" Kurama whispered. "I've missed you… how's tadpole?"
"If Gamabunta hears you still call him that…" Gamamaru chuckled while Naruto simply gaped in shock from behind him. "He's doing well, he's become quite the leader."
Kurama reached up and took Gamamaru's paw in his own. For a long moment, the giant fox and the slightly-smaller toad simply stared silently at each other, then Kurama's gaze settled on Naruto.
"What's my jailor doing here? And why?"
"Because it was necessary." Gamamaru replied calmly. "Give me a moment…"
Naruto thought that he must have blinked or something since suddenly Gamamaru was holding two large pieces of parchment, a writing brush and a bottle of ink. Putting them down, he drew a complex seal on one piece, a seal that looked like it was not only moving, but somehow existing in more dimensions than actually existed, then he raised the seal to the paper tag holding the gates closed. The seal writhed, then almost exploded outwards, forming a complex pattern of moving lines, rings and orbiting runes with two golden orbs floating near the middle.
"Interesting…" Gamamaru mused, leaning forwards to examine one of the orbs. "And it gives me an idea, but you will have to become a Sage before you can use it, Naruto."
"Like Jiraiya?"
Gamamaru nodded as he picked up the writing brush again. Once more, it danced across parchment, leaving a trail of ink that occasionally rose off the page or seemed to sink below it without actually emerging from the other side.
"Father was right…" Kurama breathed in awe. "You are the greatest at fuuinjutsu."
"I dabble." Gamamaru chuckled as he finished the seal which promptly glowed before expanding into light just like the first seal. "Now, Naruto, your knowledge of Kage Bunshin is the thing that allows me to do this."
"Is this going to screw up my chakra control again?" Naruto asked suspiciously, causing the aged Toad to laugh.
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"Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!" Hinata called out and two copies of her appeared, one on each side. Pausing for a moment, Hinata held out her hands for her clones to hold, then all three of them vanished in a pulse of golden light, reappearing on the training ground used by Team Eight.
"Amazing." Kurenai breathed as the two clones dispelled, leaving Hinata to catch her breath. "Well done!"
"Thank… you, Kurenai-sensei." Hinata panted as she recovered from the exertion. "I don't think I'll be… up to transporting… other people for a while, though. It's quite… draining…"
"Although it is a viable strategic advantage, the tactical capabilities that your capabilities present are, unfortunately, rather limited compared to those of your fiancee." Shino offered, causing Kiba to give him a look.
"And that means…?"
"It isn't very useful for most of the things we do." Hinata offered and Shino nodded in confirmation.
"Well, for now, we have a meeting to get to." Kurenai said after a long moment.
"Yeah, let's go!" Kiba shouted as he bounded ahead, then he paused. "Um, where are we going?"
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"By my father, it feels so good to be out again!"
Gamamaru smiled at the waist-high multi-tailed fox jumping around excitedly.
"It is good to have you around once more, little kit."
"Huh?" Kurama paused in his gambolling to stare quizzically at the Toad Elder, then his gaze snapped to Naruto, who was failing to hide a grin.
"I never did that." He declared, sitting down and wrapping his tails around his paws. "You never saw me do that. I'm too dignified to jump around like a small kit. You can't prove anything."
Gamamaru shook with suppressed laughter and Kurama sulked.
"Stop laughing."
Naruto turned away in an attempt to hide the fact that he was almost about to fall over laughing.
It was truly amazing what learning a new type of clone technique and an hour or two with an old Toad could achieve.
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Orochimaru swept out of the ritual room, leaving the comatose form of Tatuya lying unattended in the middle of the floor, the area where her Curse Mark had once been now showing only inflamed but otherwise unmarked skin.
"Welcome back, sir." Kabuto smiled. "I am glad that it worked."
"I'll need a new member for the Sound Four, but other than that, I think things went… not quite as badly as they could have done." Orochimaru said as he donned the Kimono that Kabuto had handed him. "Going up against a dozen copies of my old teacher and his pet summon was certainly rather… unexpected. If you add that brat's Hiraishin to that… come."
Kabuto followed his master down several long corridors, then they stopped at a large vault door. Orochimaru reached out and carefully tapped several portions of the seal engraved into its face, then stepped back as the vault door rolled to one side.
"My trophy chamber." Orochimaru explained as he led the way inside. "Over there, the bow of Otsusuki Hamura, a bow which forms arrows of pure chakra, although the cost is quite high. Here is the hilt from Senju Tobirama's sword. Note the seal on the pommel, it let him summon it to his hand whenever he wanted. Although I cannot say for certain, I believe he used the same seal as the basis for the Hiraishin, the technique that my team-mate's student improved and became known for. And here we are… the ring."
Kabuto stared at the displayed item. Inside a glass jar was a severed hand with a ring adorning the little finger, a ring which had the kanji for void inscribed on it.
"It has been a long time since I last used this." Orochimaru mused as he lifted the jar. "But now that I am aware of the threat that the Yondaime's son poses, it is time to bring him to the attention of those more likely to be able to counter his abilities."
Kabuto raised an eyebrow in query as Orochimaru removed the ring from the severed hand and put it on his own little finger. A moment later, Orochimaru seemed to be surrounded by tiny chakra distortions.
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Orochimaru looked around, his gaze taking in the dark cave and the stone pillars upon one of which his chakra-projection stood. A moment later, another chakra silhouette appeared, its eyes bearing a series of concentric rings.
The Rin'negan.
"Orochimaru." The new figure stated, displeasure infusing its voice.
"Lord Pein." Orochimaru replied with a slight smirk. "I come bearing word of a grave threat to your plans. You will find it extremely difficult to capture the Kyuubi because the host has learned the Hiraishin."
Pein froze for a long moment. "Are you… certain of this?"
"I witnessed it with my own eyes." Orochimaru replied. "He was able to use the Hiraishin the same way that his father had. I had already known about him using it in conjunction with his clones, the Hokage Guard version, but now he can do it on his own."
"This is… troubling." Pein slowly mused. "Why have you come to me with this?"
"He can duplicate others as well." Orochimaru continued, ignoring the question. "He duplicated my old teacher… I found myself facing over a dozen Sarutobi Hiruzens at their full strength. Even by using Edo Tensei to bring back the first two Hokages and bind them to my will, I was overwhelmed."
"You… have perfected the Edo Tensei?" Pein asked almost eagerly and Orochimaru nodded. "Then perhaps between the information you have provided and the abilities you have, I may yet be persuaded to allow you to rejoin our ranks."
Orochimaru smirked triumphantly.
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Authors Afternote – Yes, the Snake survived and no-one in Konoha knows about it.
I needed to bring him back, I've overpowered Naruto a bit too much and I needed something to hit him with…