Opening - Eternal Blaze by Nana Mizuki
Zabuza woke, and immediately groaned at the pain of two needles, still embedded in his neck. He reached up and ripped one out, then the other. "Haku, you cold little bastard. You could've at least pulled the needles out." he sat up and looked around, finding himself to be in a shack so ruined, he could see between each individual rotting plank. He had been laid on a table that looked ready to collapse under his weight. "Haku?"
"Behind you." Zabuza turned, and saw his fellow missing-nin seated in a comfortable chair, the only piece of furniture in the shack that looked serviceable. His fake ANBU mask sat in his lap. "How the hell could you let yourself get beaten by one Jounin? You're getting soft."
"It wasn't the Jounin. He was no problem, but that blond kid..."
"What?" Haku put on an exaggerated look of surprise. "You didn't get beat by a Jounin, but three Genin? Konoha Genin, no less?"
"Don't push me, Haku." Zabuza scowled through his mask, and turned away so he could properly slouch forward. He ran his hands through his spiky black hair. "That kid, the blond Genin... Of everyone there, not counting me, he was the closest thing to a real ninja. Cheap shots, double teaming, strategy. He protected his team but didn't let them slow him down, didn't hesitate to shoot when his sensei was right next to me. And aiming for my sword instead of me... clever." Zabuza chuckled darkly. "Shame I've gotta kill him, and all his friends too. It's a waste really, but better him than us."
"I don't believe this," Haku teased. "You really are going soft."
"Bullshit. You can call me soft if the kid lives, which he won't. Just because he reminds me of myself doesn't mean I won't eviscerate him."
X
Asuma found Naruto and Hinata sitting on a boulder, taking a break from their training to share a few boxes of the local takeout ramen. Despite the events of the previous few days, they were smiling, as was usual for them in this situation. Asuma was halfway through his latest cigarette, and he'd decided to bring two months' supply of them, just in case this mission lasted far longer than expected.
He looked around at the kunai embedded in large trees, the smaller saplings ripped out of the ground with Wind and Water Release, along with logs clearly chopped to bits with a Wind Blade kunai. "...Not bad," he observed, and blew out a small cloud of smoke.
"Hey, Asuma-sensei," Naruto greeted without looking up from his meal.
"Hey, Naruto." Asuma took a seat on the boulder, with Naruto between him and Hinata. "Can you explain something to me?"
"I guess so," Naruto mumbled, only half paying attention.
"It's illegal for you to know the Shuriken Shadow Clone Jutsu." Naruto choked on his ramen and started coughing. "Where'd you learn my father's jutsu?"
When he was done choking, Naruto steeled himself and looked his sensei in the eye. "I'd rather be executed than tell you that," he said, deadly serious.
"Ah. Thank you for that perfectly clear explanation." Asuma smirked.
Naruto went white. "H-huh?"
"The only reason for you to hide that secret would be to protect a friend who gave you the jutsu." Hinata started blushing faintly, since she knew where Asuma was going with this. "Specifically, a friend in one of the noble clans that were given scrolls of the jutsu. You only have one such friend, and she happens to be from the only clan that would have little interest in that scroll, since they focus on taijutsu." Hinata's blush spread over her cheeks and darkened. "Don't worry about it, though. Since the Uzumaki Clan has an adult member once again, they're to be considered a valid noble clan, albeit one with little influence in Konoha. If there isn't already a copy of the scroll in your clan's library, there will be soon."
Asuma smirked at their expressions. "I gotta say I'm impressed by the devotion and loyalty you two have for each other. Hinata, you stole top secret documents from your own clan, and I doubt Naruto even asked you to. There's no way for him to have even heard about the jutsu before you brought it to him. And you, Naruto, seemed legitimately ready to die, just to protect that secret for Hinata." He cocked his head slightly to the side. "This seems to run a little deeper than two Genin working as a team."
"What do you mean?" Naruto asked, at the same time Hinata shakily mumbled "I-it was n-nothing, I was j-just helping a f-friend..."
"Oh, come off it." Asuma chuckled. "How long have you been dating? Two years now?"
Hinata jumped at that. Naruto quickly replied, "No way! If I was dating Hinata, I'd be taking her somewhere nicer for lunch. Ichiraku Ramen is great, but it's not... you know... it doesn't fit." Naruto looked down thoughtfully. "Come to think of it, I'm a rich noble Uzumaki heir now... I could afford to do that... Hey, Hinata?"
"Y-yes, N-Naruto-kun?"
"I saw this really fancy restaurant a little while ago called Shiro Kyuuden. You wanna go there for dinner tonight? I mean, Gatou's probably the owner but..." He cut himself off when he saw Hinata slump forward and fall to the ground, spilling what was left of the ramen she'd been furiously eating. "What the...? Hinata, are you okay?"
Asuma shook his head and laughed. "Thank me later. I gotta go train Kiba in the Fire Release."
"Since when does Kiba have Fire Release?"
"Since maybe ten minutes ago, when I gave him a chakra-receptive paper." Asuma turned to walk away, calling over his shoulder, "Oh, and don't worry, Hinata should be fine. She just fainted."
Asuma returned to Tazuna's house, and found his remaining student arguing furiously with Tazuna's grandson. "That's a coward's way of thinking! You don't give up if you wanna be the alpha male. You know what you are? You're a meek little omega wolf, born to be the lowest of the low. You've got no spine, brat."
"That's not how it works at all!" Inari shouted back. "People aren't wolves!"
"I know a whole clan of ninjas that would disagree with you. We're just the same as wolves. We hunt and thrive in packs, we have alphas like me and omegas like you, and we spend our whole lives looking for three things. Power, a mate, and the next meal. Don't you ever forget that, kid. We're exactly like wolves."
"Gatou's too strong," Inari said in a low voice. "He'll kill you all! He's not a wolf, he's a demon!"
"He might be a demon, but I'm a fricken ninja, kid. I like my chances." Kiba turned to see Asuma approach. "Hey, Asuma-sensei! How're Naruto and Hinata doing?"
Asuma supressed a chuckle. "They're doing pretty good." Inari started crying loudly, and ran away. "What got into him?"
"He's a wimp, it's that simple." Kiba glanced over his shoulder in distaste. "I think he might grow out of it, though. There's hope for him."
"Poor kid," Asuma observed. "Living here, under Gatou... it can't have been easy."
Kiba nodded. "We can always learn to rise up, though, to be strong. No matter how young we are or where we grow up, we can learn to be strong. I just hope he figures that out one day." Akamaru gave a soft bark of agreement. "So, Fire Release. What's the plan with my training?"
"We'll start with a basic Fire Ball Jutsu. It's a simple, effective projectile, meant for damaging or outright killing the enemy, a staple Fire Release jutsu than even Jounin with Fire Release will use. It's easy on your chakra and still deadly."
X
It was dusk, the sun having just slipped past the horizon, but the Shiro Kyuuden's white, polished walls still gleamed. It was like a temple, or a palace out of legend. Being an expensive and luxurious restaurant, it was near the heart of the tourists' district Gatou had ordered built and cut off from the rest of Wave. It was a massive source of income for the corrupt businessman, but since Naruto planned to overthrow him by the end of the month, he had no qualms about paying for one little meal here.
Hinata stared blankly up at the extravagant, two-story restaurant. She and Naruto stood side by side. The walls in front of them were concrete and covered completely in white marble, so perfect that Hinata found herself looking for signs of a genjutsu. "N-Naruto-kun?"
"Hm?" Naruto looked away from the Kyuuden and back to Hinata, who was blushing and poking her index fingers together, for the first time in nearly a year. "What's wrong, Hinata?"
"Um..." she trailed off and looked down. "I-is this..." a date? She winced and blushed even deeper. "Um... never mind. L-let's just have a n-nice night."
Naruto nodded. "Yeah, it'll be great." They made their way to the entrance, two doors of solid white marble, thin so they weren't too heavy, and engraved with the image of a phoenix with wings spread wide.
The entire lower floor wasn't a restaurant at all, but a forum of some kind. Naruto whistled as he looked around; the inside wasn't genjutsu-white as the outside was. The floor beneath them was hardwood, spotless and polished until it looked like glass. In each corner of the room was a fountain, in the shape of a gilded lion rearing over a pool of glistening blue water. The water trickled out between each lion's bared teeth.
In the center of the room was a tightly spiralling staircase to the next floor, with water flowing down around the staircase. An arch was installed over the base of the stairs to deflect the water for people to walk through. As soon as Naruto and Hinata spotted it, however, they saw a waiter dressed in a black linen robe, who was approaching through the arch and didn't look happy. "Hey," Naruto called with a grin and a wave, "Uh, table for two?"
"How old are you, brat?" The waiter glared at him. "Ten? You need either a reservation or one and a half million ryou cash to dine here."
"I'm twelve," Naruto replied, "And I don't like your tone." He turned to Hinata, and whispered very subtly, "Go along with this," and winked. He turned back to the waiter with feigned but convincing fury, channeling the insulting words Zabuza had spoken to him mere days ago: "Do you even know who we are?"
"Should I care?" The waiter replied sarcastically. "You're dressed like commoners, am I to assume you're in disguise or something?"
"Why, yes. You are! How else could we stroll through Wave without being swarmed by the masses? I am..." He paused to consider an alias, but managed to make it sound dramatic, "Ichigo of the Kurosaki Clan, and this is my fiancee Rukia of the Kuchiki Clan. You said one and a half million ryou, correct? I suppose I could just hand it over, it's petty cash to me after all, but to be quite blunt, I don't like you. You called me a brat. So," he declared, and paused again, "I'll try this again. Table for two, please, and after our meal, you are to bring Gatou, or whoever it is that runs this... establishment, to our table that we might speak to him. He really ought to have a list of noble clan names handed out to you people."
The waiter blanched. Kurosaki... Kuchiki... the names do sound a bit familiar... some far-off noble clans, maybe? "M-my apologies, Kurosaki-sama, Kuchiki-hime, but the Shiro Kyuuden is blacktie only. I have to ask you to leave and return in formal wear."
"Leave? I think not. It's getting late, and speaking for myself, I'm quite hungry. Don't you agree, Rukia?"
'Rukia' nodded. "Yes... it's best you simply escort us to our meal," she said with as much steel in her voice as she could. Naruto clasped his hands together, and Hinata followed suit, getting the idea. "Transformation Jutsu!" They called in stereo, and the waiter blinked in surprise.
Ninjutsu? Are they shinobi nobles, or did their parents buy them ninja tutors or something?
Naruto had transformed into a version of himself wearing a deep orange, unadorned robe, with a white belt tied in a bow at his waist and white trim at his collar, wrists and ankles. Hinata's clothes were replaced by a pristine white kimono with subtle lavender swirling designs. "Is this acceptable?" 'Ichigo' asked.
"It's fine," the waiter replied after hesitating. "Table for two, right this way."
He led them up the spiral staircase, and sat them at a table comfortably secluded in the corner, with a view out the window to the ocean surrounding the Land of Waves. "K-Kurosaki?" Hinata finally asked when they were alone.
"It's a reference to a manga I read once." Naruto looked down at the table and smiled thoughtfully. "You know, my parents decided I wasn't supposed to get access to the Uzumaki Clan funds until I was a legal adult. I think I know why now." he nodded to the waiter in the distance. "If I could've talked to people like that from birth, with no parents to keep me in line, imagine the kind of brat I'd be today, assuming I hadn't bankrupted the clan by this point."
He looked around at the upper floor of Shiro Kyuuden, which had a distinctly Western theme to it. The place was lit with chandeliers and softly scented candles, and the tables and chairs had legs carved in elaborate swirls. each table was stained dark, varnished, and polished, to be beautiful and easy to wipe clean. The table faintly showed the rings of the tree it had been made from, fitting since it was circular.
"What's this?" he reached out and plucked a white ceramic bottle from the dead center of the table.
"It's sake," Hinata explained. "Expensive restaurants sometimes provide free alcohol, so their rich customers are less conscious of how much expensive food they're buying. It's a low tactic, but effective."
"I don't get it. How does that work?"
"Naruto, don't you know what alcohol is?" she took the bottle gently, and set it down where it had been. "It's a drink intended for adult consumption, that dulls your mind slightly, and gradually takes away your inhibitions."
"Huh." He picked up one of the ivory saucers next to the bottle, filled it with sake, and fired back his first drink ever. "Oh dear Kami that's disgusting," he choked.
"You're not supposed to drink it that fast!" Hinata said, shocked. "Watch." she poured a saucer of the alcohol, and a single sniff told her it was sake of the same quality Hyuuga nobles would buy. She brought it to her lips and sipped it delicately.
A rosy blush spread over her cheeks in a matter of seconds, and she giggled. "I can only handle one saucer of this stuff before bad things start happening," she said in an eerily cheerful voice.
Naruto put his empty saucer over the bottle as a lid. "Bad things?"
Hinata mumbled something very quietly. Naruto only caught the phrases "Drunken Fist," "Dad's birthday," and "ruined the whole party." He decided not to press the isssue; from the look in Hinata's eyes he could see it wasn't a happy memory.
The same waiter from before brought them two scrolls, his demeanor markedly changed. He actually smiled when he noticed the alcohol-induced blush on their cheeks. "Kurosaki-sama, Kuchiki-hime, here are your menus. I'm sure you'll be happy to hear, that Gatou-sama has accepted your invitation, and will meet you after your meal. He's a polite man and will not intrude on your romantic evening, which I personally hope you enjoy."
"Your cooperation is appreciated," Naruto replied stiffly.
"I would also," the waiter continued, "like to apologize for my behavior earlier tonight. It was an error I will take great care not to repeat."
"Good." Naruto unfurled the scroll and read through the menu, and the waiter bowed.
"I will return in a few minutes, when you have made your decision," he said, and retreated hastily.
"I kinda feel bad about doing this to him," Naruto admitted. "I feel... evil, you know? Maybe I should apologize, when we leave."
"Sorry, Naruto-kun, but I really think that's a bad idea. It could blow our cover completely."
He nodded solemnly. "Good point."
"But why did you do it? If he'd seen through your act, we might have had to fight, and that would risk the mission. I mean, it was convincing, but... why put that much on the line?"
Naruto looked down sheepishly. "Sorry, Hinata. I hadn't thought of it... I just wanted to give you a good time."
Her eyes widened, and she blushed. "You did that... risked our lives... to take me to dinner?"
"Aw, man," he mumbled, even more apologetic. "Now I feel really bad. I could've gotten us both killed..."
"No," Hinata replied firmly. "Don't think like that. It was reckless, maybe, but... it worked. And it was really sweet of you." The blush from the alcohol darkened sharply, and she murmured something incoherent, before opening her menu and finding something that looked suitably delicious.
"Umm..." Naruto stared down at his own scroll, squinting in his confusion. "Huh... nothing here is anything like ramen... I have no idea what to pick."
"Just skip straight to dessert," Hinata advised. "I know plenty of Hyuuga nobles who do that all the time. In fact, I think I'll try it myself..."
As if on cue, the waiter returned, smiling amicably. "Have you made your decision, Kuchiki-hime, Kurosaki-sama?"
"Yes," Hinata returned the smile. "I'll have this foreign confection." she pointed to the image on the scroll. "Cheesecake... I'm not at all familiar with the name."
"An excellent choice," he said with a nod, and scribbled it down. "And you, Kurosaki-sama?"
"Hn." Naruto nodded thoughtfully. "I think I'll try it as well. Bring two of them."
The waiter bowed and left the two to their own devices. Naruto asked, once they were alone, "Any idea what we just ordered? I never looked at what it was."
"It's... how should I put this?" She stared at where her scroll-menu had been. "From what I read, it's a brick of heavy, sweet soft candy, made with a lot of milk and sugar. It's really rich, a small one should be enough for the whole meal." She paused, then added, "It's impossible to eat with chopsticks, you need a foreign utensil called a fork. I've seen those before, they're not hard to use, but it's a strange concept..."
Almost twenty minutes later, the waiter laid their meal before them, and Naruto grinned down at the cheesecake. It smells... delicious! The waiter inclined his head with a soft smile.
As he turned away, Naruto caught a glimpse of the smile turning into a sneer. "Rukia, hold on a moment," 'Ichigo' said, with a subtle hint of urgency. As the waiter left, Naruto reverted to his true character. "Let me check for poison. I don't trust this."
Hinata's eyes widened, and she set down the fork that was almost to her mouth. "P-poison?"
"I think that guy got the Bleach reference."
"I don't understand..."
"Our names. They're a reference to a manga, and I guess that waiter made the connection after he let us in." Naruto made a hand seal, and held one hand over each cheesecake. "Yeah. There it is, a slow-acting poison coupled with a truth serum."
"Truth serum?" Hinata blinked. "Of course! Gatou's going to come out here and talk to us, expecting us to confess we're shinobi, and tell him if we have allies here, or a mission to kill him..."
"Typical manga villain's move, too," Naruto added. "Rather than send a proxy or even a convincing body double, he'll come right out here and meet the two people he knows are the ninja heroes. Well, actually we can only get that far if he knows we've eaten the food. And we will."
"Ah... medical ninjutsu."
"I never was much good with it," Naruto admitted, "but I can eliminate a poison when it's concentrated to one place like in food. With a person it's different, flowing all around in the blood... so much harder." he held his hands out over the food again, and sent a soft green light out from his palms. "...There. To be safe," he added, "dodge that spot there." He pointed to the center of the cake. "That's where the poison was injected."
"That's impressive, Naruto-kun."
"Not really. Anyone with the slightest training in medical ninjutsu could manage it, even if they sucked as bad as I did. Thanks though." he took a bite of his cake. "Get past the poison, and this stuff is pretty good."
"Mmm..." Hinata sighed as she took a bite as well. "Not bad at all..."
When they were half finished their meal, a short, balding man in a Western business suit approached them, snatching a chair from a nearby, unoccupied table and placing it between Naruto and Hinata. He sat, smirking with satisfaction. "I see you've enjoyed your meal," he sneered.
"Gatou, I presume?" Naruto replied coldly, then took another bite of his cake. "Yes, the meal is quite nice."
Gatou chuckled. "So, 'Ichigo Kurosaki,' what brings you to the Land of Waves?"
"Oh, we've mostly been sightseeing," Naruto looked him in the eye with a false smile and waved his hand. "I couldn't help but notice the impoverished and oppressed people that surround this little tourists' attraction."
"Who are you two, really? I know you're not who you say you are."
Naruto glanced at Hinata, who nodded subtly. "My name, and this is the truth, is Naruto Uzumaki. I'm a Genin of Konoha, and sole heir to the Uzumaki Clan, former main clan of the ninja village of Uzushio, in the Land of Whirling Tides. I suppose you could say we were royalty there."
"And your little girlfriend?" Gatou sneered, liking where this was going.
"I can speak for myself," Hinata said with a piercing glare. "I'm Hinata Hyuuga, also a Genin of Konoha. I'm a princess of the Hyuuga Clan, wielder of the Byakugan doujutsu, and I can kill you by poking you in any one of the three hundred and sixty-one chakra points on your body, which I can see quite clearly."
Naruto, oblivious though he was, clearly noticed her not objecting to the term girlfriend.
Gatou nodded at her introduction, eyebrows raised over his black sunglasses. "And why are you really here?"
"Why?" Hinata echoed. "To enjoy this delicious cheesecake, of course." she held up a forkful of the confection, and popped it in her mouth.
"So you're not here to kill me?" Gatou asked.
"Straight to the point then, hm?" Hinata replied.
Naruto saw the oppurtunity, and seized it. "No, we're not here to kill you. That said, I wouldn't mind ending you at all. You're a blatantly rude little man, since you sent your waiter to tell us you'd meet us after our date, then interrupted us without warning."
Date? Hinata turned to look at Naruto, her heart pounding immediately. Did he just say date?
Satisfied, Gatou withdrew a small bottle from the inside pocket of his suit. "I can't have guests dying in my restaurant... this is the antidote for the poison that was in your meal." He stood.
Naruto called, "Wait." Gatou froze mid-step. "Consider the fact you're alive payment enough for this meal, particularly since you poisoned it."
Gatou turned, fury written on his face, but he forced himself back into a cool, smug demeanor. "Fine. Get out of here," he spat.
Naruto stood, and Hinata followed suit. He took her hand, drawing a quiet gasp from her, and the two walked side by side toward the staircase. Naruto made certain to knock his shoulder against Gatou's. The short man was no taller than the twelve-year-old Genin, so the hit connected and knocked him aside. He growled, but held his peace. Little ninja brat! I hope you choke on that antidote!
As soon as they were outside, the Transformation Jutsu dispelled, and their clothes returned to normal. Naruto looked up at the clear night sky, and the moon shining in it. "You know, that was pretty exciting. Maybe we should do it again sometime... mmf!"
Hinata considered pulling back, breaking off the kiss a moment after it began, but she was frozen in place. She couldn't move forward or back; she simply stood where she was and thought, What have I done?
I... kissed him. I'm kissing Naruto-kun. I shouldn't have... I shouldn't... it was too early, I never even told him I... she shut her eyes tighter, flinching from the thought. Her heart was in her throat, no longer with excitement but with unbridled terror. I never told him. But he said... girlfriend... date... I... The fear receded for a moment, then came flooding back through her thoughts. I rushed it and I just ruined everything. After this, he won't even be able to look at me...
She opened her eyes wide, finally realizing that he was kissing her back. Now that she was looking, she saw that he was just as bright red as she was, and shaking slightly just like her. He's... scared too. He's like me; he doesn't know what to do here. She sighed softly, closing her eyes once more. And one of us has to figure that out; we can't just stand here forever. But now that her fear was gone, now that Naruto was kissing her back and everything felt happy again, she mused, I guess I wouldn't mind...
She pulled away slowly, hesitantly, looking down and blushing a brighter red than she had ever before. Now that she'd moved back and his eyes were open, he could see her again, and he'd never looked at her like this before.
"T-that was the b-best night of my l-life," she breathed, hating her stutter more than ever before. She consoled herself at least with the knowledge that Naruto was used to it by now, he could follow her trembling voice without much effort. Still, it was just one more reason to blush after all the others thus far.
Naruto scratched the back of his head nervously. "...M-mine too," he admitted after a long pause. "So... any ideas for where we could go next time?"
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