You guys are the best! I am always humbled by how many people read this story.
There are several AU changes in this chapter. First, given that we don't really know how Konoha is set up, I created a shinobi shopping district. While it makes sense that the village would have it, we aren't told that it exists so I'm marking this as an AU change. Secondly, Hiashi Hyuga undergoes quite a bit of character growth this chapter. I'll put my explanations as to why he is acting the way he is at the bottom to avoid spoiling anything.
Responses to your awesome reviews are at the bottom.
This chapter is a bit smaller, but I'm planning on releasing the next chapter soon as I can. One that train of thought, I start my new job on next Monday. It has better hours and benefits. What this means for you guys is that I will finally have a set schedule each week, allowing me to get back to my weekly updates.
MachFarcon doesn't own Naruto.
And here is the next chapter! Chapter Nine: Technicalities
Kakashi slowly ambled towards the Shinobi shopping district. Naruto had moved into his apartment early this morning. Originally the grey-haired ninja had planned on simply buying Naruto new kunai or shurikens, but after seeing Naruto's awed expression when told that someone believed in him, Kakashi knew that he needed to give Naruto something more than just a few simple weapons. Kakashi had talked with Kurenai, Team Eight's sensei, and was pleasantly surprised to learn that Naruto was attempting to figure out how a sealing scroll worked on his own.
Kakashi casually strolled into an alleyway. A moment later, a non-descript man with brown hair and brown eyes strolled back out of the ally. Kakashi chuckled to himself as he walked towards the biggest Shinobi book supplier. Who knew that over-charging the Henge gave it better results? The disguised ninja headed inside the book store, intent on finding the item he was looking for. Several minutes later, he located his prize.
"Will this be all?" The store clerk asked, her tone bright and cheery. At the brown haired ninja's nod of confirmation, she asked, "Do you have our membership card?"
"No." Kakashi shook his head, wanting to keep his interactions to a minimum. It wouldn't do, after all, if someone figured out that the brown haired ninja and Kakashi Hatake were indeed the same person, especially considering the book that the normally grey-haired ninja was purchasing.
"Would you like to sign up for the membership club today?" Seeing the brown haired ninja shake his head in the negative, she persisted, "Are you sure? It's free and signing up only takes a minute! And once you are part of our membership club, you save ten percent!"
"No. I do not want to sign up. Another time perhaps." Kakashi silently prayed that his answer would satisfy the bubbly associate.
"Oh." The associate's demeanor drooped slightly. "Ok." She returned to her normal bright self a moment later. "In that case, your total is 3623 Yen." Kakashi quickly paid the woman, wanting to leave the place as soon as possible. He felt exposed here, bereft of weapons or gear. Putting the book into the bag, that associate handed the brown-haired ninja the bag with a cheery farewell. "Have a nice day!" Kakashi nodded and returned the gesture.
After heading deeper into the district for about ten minutes, the brown-haired ninja walked into the alleyway. A few moments later, Kakashi exited the ally, his purchase safely sealed into his pouch. The grey haired ninja pulled out his beloved orange book and began to slowly ambled his way towards the Hyuga compound.
Naruto couldn't contain his happy smile as he headed back to his apartment. Today was one of the best days ever! He had gotten presents, had a great spar, Kakashi had bet on him for some reason, then had said he trusted him, and then he started learning a bunch of new techniques. It truly was a good day!
Naruto was still smiling when he entered the house. He sniffed the air and was rewarded with the tantalizing smell of something delicious cooking. "I'm home!" He announced, still getting used to having someone to come home to. It was...a pleasant feeling, he decided. After changing and grabbing a quick shower, he wondered down to the kitchen, figuring that Haku-Chan was the one who was cooking such mouth watering delights. As he entered the kitchen, he spied Haku stirring some delicious looking ramen on the stove. As he took another step into the kitchen, he noticed that the oven was on and was the source of the tasty smells. Beside the oven on the counter was a rather thick cookbook, open to something called "garlic chicken".
"Naruto-Sama!" Haku greeted, bowing once she had finishing stirring the pot. "How was your day?" She inquired, interested in her master's day. While she was already interested in finding out how his day went, she had picked up a magazine that had been full of techniques on how to turn a house into a home. She was already employing several of the techniques, including making her master food and finding out how his day went.
"It was great!" Naruto began happily. "After we left the house we met up with Team Ten..."
As Haku listened to Naruto's exuberant recounting of his day, she privately filed away the information given about those he fought. She wasn't sure of Team Ten's feelings towards her Naruto-Sama, so she figure it would be better to be safe than sorry. After all, their teacher could have been one of the people who hurt Naruto-Sama. After Naruto finished his tale, Haku sent him to the dining room to wait for the food to finish. After he left the room, Haku's tenuous hold on her facial expression broke and her face reflected her feelings. Her emotions swirled within her in an almost painful chaotic froth. The main issue of her conflicted feelings was Kakashi Hatake. Kakashi had killed her beloved former master, Zabuza. On the other hand, she could see how much Kakashi's words had helped her Naruto-Sama. The warring feelings of anger, hate, and gratefulness towards Hatake almost made the young ice-user feel sick. The sound of the oven timer startled her out of her emotional turmoil. She was half-way to creating a senbon before she realized that it was just the oven and not an enemy. Haku took several deep breaths and stuffed the chaotic feelings deep inside. She had to serve her master now. Tools weren't allowed to be compromised by emotion.
"Here you are Naruto-Sama! Freshly cooked ramen and Garlic Chicken!" Haku set the delicious looking food in front of Naruto. As Naruto dug into the food with a grin of happiness, Haku focused on the warm feeling she got from serving her master. That feeling, she decided, was the best feeling in the world. She wouldn't trade that feeling for anything.
"I'm home!" Sakura called as she threw open the door to her home.
"We're in the living room!" Mebuki called to her daughter. Sakura slowly walked into the living room, curiosity written plainly across her face. Confusion and concern bled onto her face as she spotted the serious looks on her parents faces as they sat on the couch. "Sakura-Chan, sit down. We have much to talk about." Mebuki urged, her normally kind face drawn into a serious expression.
Sakura hesitantly walked over to the chair and sat down, open concern now visible on her face. "What is it?" She questioned her parents, feeling a vague sense of dread. "Is something wrong?"
Mebuki glanced at her husband, Kizashi. Kizashi sighed. "Sakura-Chan, nothing is wrong with us." He paused as Sakura relaxed slightly. "But that doesn't mean there isn't anything wrong. When your mother told me about you wanting to stay with Naruto-San, I was hesitant to agree." Seeing hurt begin to flare in his daughter's eyes, he hastened to explain more. "It's not that I don't trust you or Naruto-San, but I don't think you are fully aware of the situation surrounding your blonde friend."
Mebuki took her turn to explain, her voice containing a trace of both indignation and sadness in equal measures. "Do you remember little over a year ago when Naruto-San first came over our house?" Seeing Sakura's confused nod, Mebuki continued, her sadness now undisguised in her tone. "And after dinner, do you remember when I gave him a small hug?" Sakura nodded again, frowning. What was her mother getting at?
"But what you don't know is what Naruto-San said to me after I finished the hug." Mebuki said in a watery voice, tears forming in her eyes as she remember the young blonde's heartbreaking words. "Naruto said that he...he didn't know what I did!"
"Naruto didn't know what a hug was?" Sakura questioned unbelievingly. How could anyone go for more than a few days without being hugged? Seeing the truth in her mother's watery eyes, the pinkette looked to the ground as she thought, considering all of the facts that she knew. Fact: Naruto was an orphan given a random clan name. Fact: Most of the village didn't like Naruto. Fact: Two ninja had tried to kill Naruto. Fact: Naruto didn't seem to have any friends besides her and Hinata. "And perhaps Haku." Sakura admitted to herself grudgingly. As Sakura slowly considered the facts, she slowly came to a horrifying conclusion.
"Naruto didn't have anyone did he?" She whispered out, tears silently making their way unnoticed down her face. "No one to hold him when he had nightmares, no one to make him food in the morning, no one to make him soup when he got sick, and no one to hug him."
"No. He didn't." Mebuki's saddened words weighed heavily on the occupants of the room. It was one thing to simply think that Naruto had a terrible life, but somehow saying the words out loud made the situation concrete; real in all of its heart-breaking tragedy. "But," Mebuki said, her words containing the slightest traces of hope, "While we can't change the past, we can change how we help Naruto."
"If you move in with Naruto as a friend," Kizashi began, his voice even more serious, "Realize that Naruto might not understand some of the things your other friends might. I'll bet that he didn't even understand why Mebuki-Chan gave him a hug!" His voice then gained a note of finality. "Moving in with him will not be easy. You'll be pushed to be his friend each and every moment you are with him." Seeing Sakura's now conflicted expression, he gently added, "Take your time and think about it. There's no rush. I know Naruto will understand either way."
Mebuki tilted her head at her pink-haired husband, seemingly having an entire conversation with him with a mere glance. Kizashi nodded, and gave his wife a quick kiss before heading into the kitchen to start making dumplings. He knew that this was one of those important 'mother-daughter moments' and he was perfectly content to make his two beautiful girls some comfort food following such a heavy conversation. Sakura was like her mother in that regard, given that both of them tended to consume vast quantities of food after a very serious conversation.
"Mom," Sakura's voice was small and hesitant. "What should I do?" Mebuki's heart broke as she looked over at her daughter. Instead of the confident and strong ninja Mebuki knew her daughter was, all she saw was her little girl hugging her knees with a lost and sad expression on her face. Mebuki was at a loss for a few minutes. How could she help her little girl?
"Sakura," Mebuki began gently, remembering the words her mother spoke to her long ago, "What does your heart tell you?"
A look of disheartened frustration crossed Sakura's face. "I've been thinking! And I just don't know what to do!" A few frustrated tears slid down her cheeks. "I can see logical reasons for both sides!"
"Sakura." Mebuki shook her head. "We really are alike." She mused silently. "You're not listening. You are thinking with your head! What does your heart say?" Mebuki watched Sakura retreat inside herself, attempting to listen to her heart. After a what seemed like a lifetime, Mebuki watched resolve slowly gather within her daughter.
Sakura raised her head and looked over at her mother. "I'm moving in with Naruto-Kun. I know that the road won't be easy, but he's worth it. How could I call myself his friend if I can't, or won't, stand beside him?" Sakura's resolve hardened. "And if anyone tries to hurt him, I'll stop them. Just as I know he'll do the same for me."
Sakura stood up. "I'm going to train for a bit. I'll be back later tonight." Mebuki nodded, knowing that hitting something to relieve emotional stress seemed to be Sakura's solution. And with that, Sakura Haruno, a proud member of Team Eight, headed towards the training field.
Kizashi hurried out of the kitchen as the door closed. "So," His voice was a forced casualness, "What did she decide?"
"She has decided to move in with Naruto-San." His wife answered.
A sly grin slid onto Kizashi's face. "Oh? Well then. It looks like you will have to be the one to give her the talk." He smirked at his wife's expression of denial. "Come on dear, you really don't want someone else teaching her?"
"Aren't you supposed to be chasing away all of the boys?" Mebuki questioned weakly, not looking forward to the extremely awkward questions Sakura would undoubtedly ask.
"Maybe." Kizashi shrugged. Seeing his wife's stern expression, his face turned serious. "If it was any other boy, I would have chased him off by now. But I know that there's isn't a better person then Naruto for Sakura. He'll never let her down, he'll love her with everything he has, and he'll protect her above all else." Kizashi shrugged again. "So no. I'm not worried. But...I still applaud your efforts on trying to skimp out of giving our Sakura the Birds and the Bees talk."
"But she's going to ask so many questions!" Mebuki pouted, her tone becoming equally teasing. "Unless..." Her tone took on a breathy quality. "I get a refresher course..." She slowly stood and grabbed her husband's hand.
"Work work work." Kizashi sighed as he let himself be dragged upstairs to their bedroom by his now giggling wife.
Kakashi raised his hand to knock on the door to Naruto's new house. A moment later, Naruto threw open the door. "Kakashi! Hello!" Naruto greeted, slightly confused to why the grey-haired ninja was standing on his doorstep. "Come in!" The blonde invited, knowing it was rude to leave someone stand outside. "So," Naruto asked as the two ninjas walked into the living room, " Why are you here?"
"Can't I just come over to see Kurenai's little ninjas?" Kakashi asked, making no real attempt to fake an innocent tone. Seeing Naruto's unbelieving face, his lone visible crinkled up slightly as he smiled. "I just brought over a house warming gift." He explained as he pulled a bagged book out of his pouch.
"Oh!" Naruto exclaimed, again surprised that he was getting another gift. He quickly accepted the offered bag and looked inside. The blonde pulled the book out of the bag, reading the title out loud. "The Beginner's Guide to Seals and Seal Making." Naruto's eyes widened. "How did you know I needed a book like this?"
"Well, Kurenai mentioned something about you attempting to modify your sealing scrolls, and so I figured you could use a bit of help instead of going in blind." Kakashi suddenly grow serious. "Naruto. You can't tell anyone you don't trust completely about your interest in learning seals!"
Naruto looked confused to Kakashi's strange order for a moment before a bitter look of understanding crossed his face. "It's because of the Kyubi isn't it?" He asked flatly. It really wasn't a question.
Kakashi nodded grimly. Kakashi broke the silence between the two a moment later. "I must admit I wasn't surprised that you were interested in sealing." Seeing Naruto's curious expression, he elaborated. "After all, all Uzuamaki's were naturally good at sealing techniques." Keeping the casual tone, the grey haired ninja mused to himself out loud, "I wonder if the library still has the listings of all of the ninja clans..." Kakashi shrugged. It didn't really matter. It was just an idle curiosity mistakenly spoken out loud after all...
"Oh! I almost forgot." Kakashi started, his voice not showing a hint of surprise, "I found this note with some word I can't read." The grey haired ninja pulled a piece of paper with one word written on it from his pocket and handed it to Naruto. "Could you read this out loud for me?"
Naruto tilted his head at the grey haired ninja in suspicion. This was all very strange. He glanced down at the word. It didn't seem like any word he knew, but he supposed there wouldn't be any harm in saying it. "Dattebane."
As nothing happened for a few seconds, Naruto handed Kakashi back the paper. His eyes widened as he felt something jolt though his system like a shot of pure adrenaline. His eyes widened and a startled gasp forced its of his throat. It hadn't fully even left his throat before Haku rushed into the room, her eyes hard and unforgiving. "You should go!" Her normally soft voice was harsh as she positioned herself between the temporarily stunned blonde and the grey haired ninja, her ice senbon already formed and held defensibly in front of her. "You've done enough!"
"Maa maa," Kakashi waved his hands in front of him in surrender. "I'm sorry Haku-San. I'll be out of your hair now." The grey haired ninja casually backed out of the home, stuffing his hands into his pockets as he reached the door step. "See you around Naruto and Haku-San!" He called over his shoulder as he strolled towards the village proper.
"Are you all right Naruto-Sama?" Haku asked anxiously as she checked for any visible injuries that had escaped her sight when she had first rushed into the room. Sensing more than normal chakra emanating from his navel area, the worried ice user pulled up her master's shirt. The most intricate seal she had ever seen stood out in stark contrast against Naruto's slightly tanned skin. "W-What is that?" She stammered, concerned that Kakashi had somehow placed a seal on her master without her noticing.
"Huh?" Naruto glanced down. "I wonder why the seal is reacting now." He mused, seeing Haku's anxious expression, the blonde decided to explain what the seal was. While he didn't want her to hate him, removing the almost distraught look on her face was more important. "I'm a jinchruiki. This is the seal to keep it at bay." He explained, not daring to look at Haku.
To say he was understandably surprised when he was pulled into a tight hug by Haku would be an understatement. "Oh Narut-Sama!" She murmured sadly, now understanding why the village hated her master so much. She silently cursed the village for all they had done to her master, someone who was quickly becoming very dear to her.
"You don't hate me?" Naruto's confused and hopeful voice broke her from her thoughts.
Haku shook her head violently. "No!" She cried, tears forming in her eyes at the mere thought that her Naruto-Sama could think that she hated him. "I will never hate you Naruto-Sama!"
Naruto was almost awed at the girl's words. While Sakura and Hinata also didn't care if he was a jinchuriki, they had spent years getting to know him first. "Naruto-Sama," Haku hesitantly began, could you tell me how you came to be a jinchruiki?" Seeing Naruto's surprised face, she quickly added, "You don't have to tell me anything you don't want to!"
Naruto considered Haku's request for a brief second. He nodded. Haku-Chan was a friend after all..."Would you like to hear my story now, Haku-Chan?" Seeing her nod, Naruto slowly broke away from the hug and sat on the couch. Haku quickly moved to the chair opposite him and awaited his story with anticipation. "It all started over three years ago one afternoon. I had been kicked out of class by a teacher named Mizuki. I was practicing my kunai throwing skills when I accidently threw the kunai the wrong way..."
Ino Yamanaka waited eagerly for her father to get home. While she had easily lost to Sakura this morning, the pinkette had given her the opportunity to regain some of her pride when Sakura had given her the notes for Ino's father.
"Here to gloat some more Forehead?" Ino bitterly questioned. Her battle with Sakura was humiliating. Sakura had dictated the battle from the moment it started, not to mention the pinkette had used techniques far beyond Ino. And the most humiliating part of all was that Ino never even touched Sakura.
"Not unless you want me to!" Sakura said cheerfully, her mood boosted her recent win against her former friend. "I'm just here to drop off the notes for your dad." She explained. Sakura was about to turn around to leave when a calculating look flashed across her face. "By the way, Ino-Pig," She began, being careful to keep her tone nonchalant, "While I'm not telling you who the notes are about, I can tell you that if you figure it out..." Sakura paused to let the tension build. "...It will be the biggest piece of news you will ever see..." The pinkette walked away, having set the proverbial hook.
The sound of the front door opening broke Ino from her memory. She looked up to see her father, Inoichi Yamanaka, walk into the house. Ino waited until her father closed the door before she made her move. She skipped over to her father, stopping just a scant few feet in front of him, making sure to keep her most sincere and innocent face on as she did.
"Daddy!" She greeted, giving her father a quick hug. "How was your day?"
Inoichi chuckled as he returned the hug from his only daughter. "My day was great as always. What can I do for you Princess?"
"Why do you think I want something?" Ino questioned, keeping her face innocent.
Inoichi smiled. "Princess, you don't greet me at the door unless you want something."
Ino pouted, crossing her arms. "W-Well, that might normally be the case, today it isn't for me!"
"Alright Princess, just let me set my things down and we can talk about what you need." A few minutes later Inoichi headed back down to the living room where Ino impatiently waited. "So, what do you need?" He asked as he settled down into one of the chairs.
"Well Daddy, I need you to look at these notes! They're about someone's mental disposition, and I need to know for...ninja stuff!" Ino handed her father the notes, slightly jealous of Sakura's extremely neat handwriting. She plopped down in the chair opposite her father and started her vigil, determined to figure out who the secret person Forehead hinted was the biggest piece of news she had ever come across.
Ino watched a variety of emotions flash across her father's face as he carefully read the notes. He had originally scanned the notes briefly before he suddenly started over, carefully reading each page. As interesting as watching the various facial expressions, Ino quickly grew bored. One could only watch alarm, surprise, or concern flash across his face so many times before it grew boring. She was awoken from her light nap by a gentle shaking. She turned to see her father shaking her with a grim and serious expression on his face.
"What's the matter Daddy?" Ino questioned, wondering what he could have read that caused him to be so serious.
"Princess, do you know who these notes are referring to?" Inoichi questioned. Seeing his daughter shake her head in the negative, he sighed. "I was afraid of that." Inoichi carefully set the notes down on the table in front of him, buying time to gather his thoughts. "The person described in the notes has a very serious psychological issue." He began his tone slipping into the same tone he used while reporting his finding from the Intelligence Division. "The person in question, presumably male, has extremely low self worth, almost to the point of it being non-existent. He seems to view himself as disposable when compared to others he cares about." Inoichi frowned again. He trusted his daughter when she said that she didn't know who the notes referred to. He resolve to meet with Shikaku Nara, his old teammate, to see if they could figure out the identity of the person in question. The person's low self worth was a great risk to not only himself, but to anyone who was close to him.
"Thanks Daddy!" Ino said brightly, hiding her disappointment at not finding out the person's identity yet. She quickly stood and gave her father another hug before disappearing to her room to recheck her makeup and clothes. After all, she didn't want to go outside to tell Sakura what her father said looking badly. And if she was really lucky, she might even run into Sasuke-Kun! Ino allowed herself to briefly fall into a day-dream of the stoic Uchiha finally confessing his undying love for her. She shook her head a few moments later to resume her primping.
"Absolutely not!" Hinata froze mid step as she heard the angry raised voice of her father echo across the compound. Glancing around quickly, she didn't see anyone within view. The Hyuga heiress closed her eyes for a brief moment. She opened them to expose the white eyes of the Byakugan. Hinata focused on the elder meeting room where her father was at, listening in by reading their lips.
"Be reasonable Hiashi!" One of the elders tried. "We need to gain more insight into the jinchuriki before the other clans do! If we are able to somehow gain his complete trust, we will never have to worry about the clan's status ever again!"
"And all you ask of me is to sacrifice my daughter!" Hiashi snarled back, his normally composed expressions long since gone.
"Two months ago you didn't even care about her!" Another of the elders snapped back.
Killing intent flooded the room. "How dare you!" Hiashi's voice had a deadly edge to it. The elders paled, realizing the line they had just crossed. "If you even speak another word about forcing my daughter to live with Naruto Uzumaki," Hiashi's expression hardened. "I'll challenge you to a fight to the death!" The elders swallowed, seeing first hand why Hiashi was feared in the Third Shinobi War. For standing before them wasn't the head of the Hyuga Clan, but a ninja who had single handedly turned several battles into victories. It was a ninja who now declared his intent on protecting his family from threats, both abroad and at home. A stunned silence fell on the room. Hiashi strode from the room, purposely turning back on the council as he left the room. "What should we do now?" One of the elders questioned shakily, still stunned by Hiashi's declaration. "I do not know." Another of the elders answered him. "Hiashi was our only chance at getting Hinata-San into direct contact with the Uzumaki when not on missions or at team training. We cannot force her without Hiashi's word. To do so would invite the jinchuriki to destroy us all!"
"Perhaps we are going about this the wrong way." The head elder spoke, gaining the other elders attention. "Instead of attempting to manipulate Hinata-San into joining with the jinchuriki, perhaps we should invite him into our clan for training and relaxation." He paused before continuing. "And furthermore, I have recently gotten information that Uzumaki-San isn't allowed in several stores. We will ally ourselves with him and offer to buy goods on his behalf. If he is open to that, we can expand our alliance." Murmurs of agreement from the council prompted him to continue. "We will draw the paperwork up today and present it to Uzumaki-San tomorrow."
Hiashi let out another snarl as he slammed his hand into the training dummy. "How dare they?" He raged silently. Hadn't he given enough? His brother gone. His first daughter rendered almost useless by his careless actions. His second daughter turned into someone he barely recognized. And for what? The glory of a clan that wouldn't bring back those he cared about?
After several more angered strikes, Hiashi let out a sigh, the anger flowing out of him. It was ironic, he mused, that the jinchruiki had just as much of an effect on him as his daughter. Naruto's words still haunted him from when they spoke to sign the lease for the house the Uzumaki would be renting. He recalled the Uzumaki's words...
"You don't get it do you?" Naruto spoke, his voice showing frustration. "I care about my friends! And I'll protect them against anything and anyone! Even if they are in this village!" Naruto's voice turned disgusted."You're Hinata-Chan's father! But you don't care! You'd sacrifice her in a second for the village! That's not what family does! You belittled her and called her useless! What kind of father does that?" Naruto locked eyes with Hiashi. "It's simple. They don't."
Naruto's words had shaken Hiashi deeply. He had spent most of the night agonizing over the blonde's words. He had slowly come to the terrible realization that he had broken his family. He had pushed Hinata to become something she was not. He had belittled her and practically turned her into a useless civilian. It did not escape his notice that Naruto Uzumaki, the supposed demon, was the one to turn his daughter back into a effective ninja. It was Naruto who protected his daughter. It was Naruto who trained and helped his daughter. Hiashi had exited his room in the morning a changed man. He understood that if you failed your family, if you failed to protect your family, you couldn't protect anyone; let alone the village. He would be the father that he had failed to be, standing between his family and the threats to them; be it at home or on the battlefield.
He resolved to speak to Naruto the next day to thank him for being there when he was not, when he chose to not be there.
"...And that's when you found told me about wanting to be my servant." Naruto concluded. Haku was spellbound by his tale of the life he had gained since he met Sakura. She resolved to apologize to the pinkette, now knowing that she had stood by and helped her Naruto-Sama since the beginning.
"Well, I'm still pumped, so I'm going to go train for a bit!" Naruto commented as he stood up. It was nearing dusk, but thanks to the upgrades from the Kyubi, he could see well into the night. Haku bowed and informed him that a fresh meal would be waiting for him when he returned.
Naruto sprinted towards the training grounds. As he entered the more dense forested area, a glint of metal caught his eye. Curious, he moved closer to see what he had glimpsed. As he rounded a tree, he was surprised by a large metal gate in front of him. A high metal fence extended on either side of the gate. "The Forest of Death." Naruto read, seeing the sign next to the gate. "The Forest of Death..." Naruto mused, "I wonder if I can train here. Being surrounded by death should make me stronger so I can protect all of my precious people!"
Anko Mitarashi wasn't the nicest of people. She would even happily admit it herself. But due to the stigma of having been once trained by the legendary traitor Orochimaru she had few things she could truly call her own. The fabled training ground, The Forest of Death, was her training ground. So when she saw some brat eying one of the gates to the training ground, she was understandably angry.
Anko crept closer to the seemingly oblivious blonde, preparing to scare the shit of out him. As she eased a kunai out of her pouch, she recognized the little Genin. It was one of Kurenai's little ninjas. And given that he was male, she could safely say that the Genin in front of her was Naruto Uzumaki. Anko let out a slight growl of frustration. She had promised that she wouldn't mess with Kurenai's students after the red-eyed woman had begged her not to. Given that her friend rarely asked anything of her, Anko had agreed.
The thump of someone dropping down to the ground behind him prompted Naruto to turn around. He was slightly taken aback when he saw a young woman, perhaps early twenties, standing thirty feet behind him. She had light brown eyes and blue-tinted black hair. She wore a tan overcoat and a mesh bodysuit that conformed to her figure. She also wore a dark orange mini skirt and a forehead protector. A small snake fang on a think brown cord hung from around her neck. Naruto blinked, having cataloged her appearance within several seconds of initially spotting her.
"Hello!" He greeted Anko with a smile.
Anko was befuddled. Normally when a men spotted her they either looked at her with lust-filled eyes or terror-filled eyes. Never before had someone she just met smiled and greeted her. "You're Anko right?" Naruto's words ended her shock, and alarm prickled down her spine.
"How do you know my name?" She asked warily, cursing herself for not checking if it was someone else under a henge.
"Kurenai-Sensei told me about you." Naruto explained, "During the down time on our last mission, I asked about her friends. She talked about you."
"Oh." Anko was stunned yet again. She knew the she considered Kurenai her friend, but she wasn't exactly the best person to talk about to a child. Anko knew she was brash, stubborn, short-tempered, and sometimes bloodthirsty. Granted, Anko was proud to have those traits, but still...
Anko shook her head, her playful personality resurfacing. "So...what are you doing all alone out here?"
"I was on my way to the training field when I saw the gate." Naruto explained, not sure why Anko was slowly walking closer to him. She didn't have a weapon and she was Kurenai-Sensei's friend, but that still didn't explain her behavior.
"We're all alone here in this deep, dark forest..." Anko's voice pitched deeper, becoming more silky. "Whatever shall we do to pass the time?"
"Train?" Naruto guessed, feeling more than slightly uncomfortable by Anko's proximity.
"And just what kind of training were you thinking?" Anko purred, enjoying the blonde's obvious discomfort.
"With our hands?" Naruto guessed again, taking a step back away from the still advancing woman.
"That's quite bold of you! You haven't even taken me out to dinner..."
"Why would I take you out to dinner?" Naruto questioned, now completely baffled. He just didn't understand! Weren't they talking about training?
"Wow. Kurenai was right." Anko mused out loud, stopping her advance in Naruto's direction. "You are completely oblivious."
"Am not!"
"Are too!"
"Am not!"
"Are too!"
"Am not!"
"You wanna go?" Anko leaned close to Naruto, almost butting heads with him as they continued to argue.
"Yeah!" Naruto exclaimed. "Training time!"
"You're on!" Anko pulled back and chuckled darkly to herself. While she had promised Kurenai, training was completely different. And if she managed to put a little fear into the cocky blonde while she was at it, well, some things couldn't be helped. Spotting Naruto's happy grin she couldn't help but grin as well.
Ino knocked on the door to Sakura's house. After she had primped herself she had carefully studied the notes Sakura had given her, hoping to figure out a clue to the person it was referring to. She had initially thought that it was Naruto, but the blonde was always smiling and was generally a happy person; the complete opposite of the typical signs a person suffering from low self worth displayed.
"Coming!" Sakura yelled from somewhere inside. A minute later the pinkette opened the door to see her former friend standing there with the most peculiar expression on her face. "Your dad looked at the notes?" She questioned the blonde, her tone a mix of hopefulness and expectation.
Ino nodded. "I got Daddy to look at them." Her face turned slightly grim. "Could I come in? It's not something that I want to say out here." Sakura nodded and fully opened the door, motioning for Ino to follow her. As Ino slowly walked towards the living room, she couldn't help but remember all of the times she had been to Sakura's house when they were younger, back when they were best friends.
"So what did he say?" Sakura asked impatiently, having watched Ino get lost in the memories of a time before they let a boy tear apart their friendship.
"Well," Ino began, settling herself into one of the chairs, "As it turns out your mystery boy has some severe problems." She barely withheld a grin as she watch Sakura stop her instinctive reaction to defend the boy. "His main issue is that he doesn't have any self-worth, like any at all!"
"W-What?" Sakura stammered, not comprehending what the blonde was saying. Or perhaps it would be better to say that she didn't want to understand; for to understand would be to acknowledge it, to make it real. "What do you mean Nar- the person, " She quickly corrected herself, hoping that Ino hadn't noticed her slip-up," doesn't have any self-worth?"
"It means that he doesn't value himself at all." Ino explained before grinning at her former friend. "So It's Naruto is it? The one you're worried about?" Ino shook her head, "I think you are mistaken, Naruto is always smiling and happy. So he couldn't be the person in the notes."
Sakura's eyes narrowed. "You know nothing! Naruto has struggled everyday of his life! Everyone in this village seems to hate him!" Sakura took a deep breath before continuing her rant, "And all of the parents encourage their kids to make fun of him! And not a single one ever bothered to ask why." Sakura glanced directly at the blonde Yamanaka. "I remember all of the names you called him; All of the names I called him."
Ino, realizing that she had touched a nerve, stood up to leave. As she left the room, Sakura called out to her in a soft tone. "I don't want Sasuke-Teme anymore. But as long as you belittle Naruto-Kun, we can never go back to the way we were." Ino opened her mouth several times only to close it. She whispered out an apology before she quickly left the Haruno home.
Sakura's tenuous hold on her emotions broke as soon as she heard the door close. Tears spilled down her face as she realized what a terrible friend she was. She had taken advantage of Naruto's lack of self-worth, pushing him to constantly put himself in danger for her. "Never again." She vowed, "I'll train myself as hard as I can! I'll always be there for Naruto-Kun! I will help him understand how much he is worth!"
"We have called this meeting to discuss several distressing issues." The shadowy figure began, addressing the other members in the room, "We have intercepted a letter from the Hokage to the demon. Apparently he has found out that we are denying the fox access to our stores." Worried whispers broke out at his words. "Luckily," He raised his voice, regaining their attention, "It appears that the Hokage believes that only a select few stores were denying the demon."
"How did he find out?" One of the other members demanded. "We had taken every precaution to ensure that he was far too busy to investigate himself!"
"It appears that he sent several ANBU to investigate for him." The leader explained, "And it looks like one of the members, a Bear-San, is secretly a demon-lover. He is the one who told the Hokage about the stores."
"That's not good!" Another of the members worried, "If the demon has followers in such high ranks as ANBU, who knows what trouble it could cause!"
"Perhaps we should...take care of the ANBU problem." Another suggested. Seeing the room's attention on him, he elaborated. "We could arrange a mission for Bear-San. Our loyal ANBU will accompany him. Once they are far enough away, they will kill him." Murmurs of agreement followed his words.
"What about the ANBU Cat-San?" One of the members suggested, "She is close friends with Bear-San and would not rest until his killers are found!"
"You are both right." The leader declared. "What I officially propose is that we send the ABNU members Bear-San and Cat-San on an S-Rank mission within the next two days. During the mission the other members of their team of ANBU will kill them, eliminating the demon's influence in our great ANBU forces!" He raised his hand. "All in favor, raise your hand!" The vote was unanimous.
"The motion is passed." The leader declared. "Now onto the second order of business. The demon fox has recovered great strength in the last few weeks, if the report from their last mission was any indication. More distressing however, was the fact that the demon was able to use the demon cloak during battle!" Worried shouts and panicked whispers erupted at his words. "Order!" The leader commanded, "We will have order!"
Eventually the voices tapered off. "What are we going to do?" One of the members worried.
"I think it is time we looked to outside help." One of the previously silent members spoke. He rarely spoke during these meetings, so he gained the entire room's attention when he spoke. "We should contact assassins to take care of the demon and his team."
"But the demon hasn't suffered enough yet!" One of the other members protested.
"I realize that," He acknowledged, "But we must be realistic. We have to strike against the demon while we still can!" He shook his head. "While we all want the demon to feel the pain of every person it killed, we have a responsibility to the village to not let it destroy the village again!"
"And how do you propose these 'assassins' deal with the demon? We tried killing multiple times ourselves!" Another member pointed out.
"They will use Chakra Poison." Came the simple reply. The room was stunned. Chakra Poison was one of the most feared poisons in the entire shinobi world. It had the unique quality of consuming the body's chakra to propagate itself. It could kill a Jonin within mere minutes. And each of those minutes would be spent in timeless agony. The poison was so terrible that it was banned by every major ninja village.
"A sound plan!" The leader congratulated. "What I officially propose is that the Demon Fox's team, Team Eight, be sent on a mission to a far away location within the next week. While they are there, our contracted assassins will eliminate the entire team. They will use Chakra Poison to deal with the demon's increased healing." He raised his hand. "All in favor, raise your hand!" The vote was almost unanimous. One member abstained, not wanting to be part of a motion that involved a dangerous substance such as Chakra Poison.
"The motion is passed." The leader declared smugly. "Now please break into huddles so we can figure out the exact logistics of how to bring these plans into fruition. " As the members discussed the various ways to realize their goals, they all failed to spot a spider in the southern corner of the room. Had they looked closely, they would have seen it's extremely odd behavior. Unlike a normal spider that simply wove it's web and waited for its prey to enter it, this spider was instead perched on the edge of its web facing the gathered members. And if one looked even closer, they would have realized that the spider was listening.
So Hiashi's behavior in this chapter. Given that we know that he can be remorseful of his actions, evidenced by his extravagant apology to Neji at the Chunin exams. But since no one has bluntly said to him, "You are a really terrible father" before, I realized that if someone who earnestly believes in family would say such a thing to him, he would consider their words. Given that since Naruto never had a family, it is easy to figure that he built up an idea of how families should act towards each other. Thus Hiashi realizes exactly how terrible of a father he has been, and resolves to change it. Since he doesn't have a good example at the clan, he unconsciously adopts a small portion of Naruto's beliefs.
To my reviewers:
RikudoNaruto1: To be honest, when I first started this story Haku wasn't a main character by any means. In fact, she was a he and he died. But when you guys decided that Haku was a female, she slowly grew into a fully fleshed-out character in her own right. I can't promise if Haku will be a part of Naruto's little group, but what I can say is that a relationship of that nature between the two right now would have disastrous effects on their mental dispositions. That said, the all of the characters will grow organically, so who knows what will happen in the future.
Vanishing Raptor: Thanks! And you are right. The more bonds Naruto develops with others the more heroic he will get, given that currently he is only interested in saving his precious people.
Kit: I'm guessing you mean Naruto. And yes, unless Neji and Sasuke have some massive trick up their sleeve, it's not going to be much of a fair fight. Exactly how much of a beat down will depend on if they made him angry or not.
bloodbrother 18: Here's the next chapter! In all honesty, it's really nice to start writing Naruto getting help. As an author, you tend to get attached to certain characters more than others. And so seeing Naruto get help, even if he doesn't know it, is a treat for me just as much as it is for you guys.
Guest: Yep, the ANBU are corrupt like many of the village. I honestly don't see how anyone could beat up a small boy and not be. And I think everyone will be surprised when they learn the identity of the mystery person. I look forward to your guesses on who it is! I believe that Sakura and Hinata will accept Haku once all of them sit down and have a serious talk about why they don't like each other. Given what Haku learned this chapter, I foresee Haku and Sakura getting along much better. Hinata is not quite there yet.
midnightscar17: That would be telling. And personally, as a reader, I hope that Sakura will end up with Naruto. As an author, I realize that it's way too early to force any such pairing, Sakura or otherwise.
Animaman: Thanks! Ino received her wake-up call this chapter. Hiruzen is now getting actively manipulated instead of just passively like before. And generally, when you are doing something actively, there's much more room to make a mistake. And as far as Haku goes, I'm not sure if she's going to fall for anyone else or not. She currently has a master who respects and cares for her. Granted, it's just friendship, but compared to Zabuza, it's practically a shower of affection. Given that she is completely focused on helping her master, it is easy to see her developing feelings for him. What she does with those feelings will be explored in future chapters. It's building up to the moment when Hiruzen finally gets to talk to Naruto. And everything will change for the village because of that. I wonder if Hiruzen can handle the truth? And as far as the Uchiha go, it's easy to see why they are considered the best on paper. They have magical eyes, I say magic since their abilities aren't explained beyond the basic "it requires training", that can predict enemy movement, copy techniques, and create unquenchable fire. That said, nothing is invincible. And you can't coast on your families legacy forever.
Guest: Thanks! I'm glad you enjoyed it!
sagar: Yeah, I eventually was able to track down some information that confirmed that. As far as the clan heir goes, I can see a clan, especially one who emulates dogs and wolves, have a more "alpha-style" of leadership. Kiba can directly produce heirs, while Hana has to marry someone to produce them. Given that they can't marry too close to the family line, Hana's heirs, in theory, would be less powerful. It's not fair by any means, but it seems like something a ninja village would do. I look at the reason Tsuma is the clan head of the Izuzuka clan is simply because none of the clan members are strong enough to challenge her. I could be wrong however.
bankai777: They presumably will be. They are part of the ninja world, and thus will be effected by the changes wrought by Naruto's influence. I can safely say they won't appear for a while yet.
Grand Cataclysm: Here you go! And your review humbled me to be honest. I am rather critical of my own works, so to hear such praise made my day.
Ann: To be honest, that bugged me too. That said, the cold truth is that Naruto will outstrip his teammates, given that he has more chakra, can heal quickly, and can train long after they can't move. That being said, Sakura and Hinata will not be left behind. They will become extremely dangerous legends in their own right. Especially given that their crush/love will be fighting people who are strong enough to attempt to take on jinchruki. So they will not be left behind nearly as much as cannon.
So what did you guys think? Drop a review and let me know!