Haku heard the sounds of violence dying down and risked opening an eye. He felt bad for not having jumped in to help, but the jonin of Konoha seemed to have had things handled and he'd be risking not only himself, but Gozu and Meizu if he revealed himself. When he opened his eye he met Kakashi's gaze staring right at him, he'd forgotten the man would actually be able to tell it was him and mentally cursed himself for not thinking of that sooner.
"What are you doing?" Kakashi asked with a raised eyebrow, his question loaded with many meanings.
"Shit." Meizu muttered under his breath and Gozu resisted the urge to stop pretending to be asleep in order to slap his brother.
"I came to watch Naruto-kun compete." Haku confessed contritely with a slight pout.
Kakashi glanced over his shoulder to see the other jonin still occupied, "Alright," he sighed, knowing that Naruto likely wouldn't forgive him if he captured the feminine boy, "I'm too tired to try taking you three prisoner right now, get the hell out of here before someone with enough energy to do their job notices you." he demanded.
Gozu and Meizu were grateful to whatever deity Haku had been rambling about lately and left with the girly boy using shunshin, the three disappearing before some more Konoha jonin came up behind Kakashi.
"Who were they?" Gai asked, although he assumed that they weren't a threat since the silver haired jonin had let them go.
"Just a friend of Naruto-kun, and some guards." Kakashi answered vaguely, "Is it done?" he asked to steer the conversation away from that.
Asuma nodded, "Suna and Oto retreated, no casualties among the audience or any sleeping genin." he commented, "Although that Kusa jonin made a wrong move towards the contestants and one of Naruto's Daemons impaled him in the heart, that might cause an issue." he added with some concern, there were only two of the Daemonettes left and they stood protectively over Kiba, Akamaru, Lee, and Karin still.
Kurenai sighed, "I'm grateful to them regardless, I saw them protecting Kiba-kun." she informed, "For a jonin to end up as collateral like that is alarming though." she added.
"We can take about my adorably terrifying students after we finish taking stock of the situation." Kakashi spoke with authority, he had been Anbu commander once after all.
Across the village stock of the damage was taken, mostly structural damage but some casualties had occurred, even some collateral civilian casualties. Orochimaru had apparently escaped, his guards managing to fend off the Anbu. At the site of the battle between the Sandaime Hokage and his student were two corpses, Hiruzen himself with the Shiki Fujin emblazoned on his chest and the mutated corpse of Dosu Kinuta, the latter decomposing faster than anything naturally would.
Shino Aburame's father, Shibi, returned to the village from picking up his son. Returning with his child, team seven, and the three Suna genin as prisoners of war. Kakashi was both alarmed and exasperated to see Gaara wasn't even tied up, Naruto was just supporting the other boy to help him walk. Sasuke and Sakura flanked their teammate, keeping an eye on the prisoners but of the two only Sakura seemed on edge. That girl was always on edge lately though, so Sasuke being moderately relaxed was enough to calm Kakashi.
Karin opened her eyes blearily, wondering where she was. The last thing she remembered was watching the fight between Sasuke and Gaara, Kiba was sitting up with Akamaru in his lap nearby as his jonin sensei had apparently woken her up, "What happened?" she asked, worried she'd fainted somehow.
"Oto and Suna attacked Konoha," Kurenai answered plainly, "as a Kusa shinobi you are not being held accountable and are free to leave. Your surviving teammate, Jinpachi, has already left without you insisting he needs to report to the village." she explained calmly.
Karin narrowed her eyes at that information, something seemed wrong with the explanation, "What about-?" she began to ask as she sat up only to see the results of the battle around her.
"Your jonin sensei was killed in the crossfire," Kurenai informed the girl, taking note that, as Kiba suspected, the girl was trying to hide her relief at those words, "Jinpachi took his body to return it to Kusagakure no Sato." she explained.
Karin frowned, confusion obvious on her face, "Why am I-?" she wondered, trailing off as she looked around.
"My student, Kiba-kun, insisted you were being mistreated by your village." Kurenai answered the unasked question, "Your survival was not mentioned to Jinpachi, I hope this is amenable to you." she explained, hoping Kiba's intuition wasn't wrong.
Karin slumped, obviously relieved as she pulled off her hitai-ate, "So, I no longer have a home." she said, smiling as tears welled up in her eyes. The cost of her freedom seemed too great, and despite her feelings about the place Kusagakure no Sato had been a relatively safe place where she had food and shelter in exchange for her services.
"We could probably use some helping hands in Konoha," Kiba spoke up, scratching his cheek, "if you want to I mean. It sounds like you've got blood ties here, even if he is confused about them at the moment." he finished, not really sure if he was allowed to offer such things.
Karin looked around when the Inuzuka mentioned blood ties, "What about the other contestants?" she asked, concerned since three of them had been Suna genin and she'd just heard that Suna was one of the aggressors in the battle.
Kurenai smiled gently at the worry the red haired kunoichi displayed for Konoha ninja, "Naruto Uzumaki, Sakura Haruno, Sasuke Uchiha, and Shino Aburame chased down and captured the Suna genin who tried to make an escape during the fighting." she explained, "They're all alive, even the Suna genin. They're being treated at the hospital right now." she added, "If you'd like I'm sure Kiba-kun can escort you, I understand Naruto-san provided some manner of protection to you while you were out." she finished as she stood up to see to other matters.
Kiba stood up and put Akamaru on his head, offering a hand to Karin. The kunoichi hesitated for a moment but placed her hitai-ate in her jacket and accepted the hand, getting up to follow the Inuzuka to the hospital.
Naruto, Sakura, and Sasuke were in a hospital room being checked over under the eye of Kakashi and Shibi, Shino standing uninjured off to the side. The Suna nin had been taken away to be held in holding cells as war prisoners, Temari had been startled by Gaara hiding behind her once Naruto let him go.
Sakura's parents had arrived as well, and her father had given her his own green jacket before turning on the three male genin, "And just why exactly did none of you offer my daughter something to protect her modesty?" The pink haired man questioned protectively.
"I don't have a jacket." Sasuke answered dryly.
"Sakura-san refused my offered jacket." Shino said, sounding slightly like he was sulking.
"She punched me when I offered." Naruto laughed, sounding like he thought it had been funny.
Kakashi sighed, "Yup, that sounds about right." he muttered under his breath, "How are they?" he asked the iryonin more seriously.
The iryonin frowned, "Well, uh, I'm not sure how to put this." he confessed, scratching the back of his head, "Sasuke Uchiha is fine, some superficial injuries on his left hand, likely from using it as a weapon like that." he started with the easiest, "The other two are similarly fine, but uh, I'm not sure how to put this..." he continued as his frown deepened, "Sakura Haruno seems to be running a fever, the brass choker seems to be completely fused in place, and despite the fever the air around her is cold. Also I think she developed some kind of dojutsu." he explained.
"What!?" Sakura snapped to attention, startled by that information, "I mean, my body feels hot but-" she began.
"Her blood sets things on fire." Shino spoke up, "I have no idea how or why." he added. Shibi raised an eyebrow at that, and Maemi wondered if she should explain.
Kakashi had a vague idea of what was behind these changed, "Moving on, why are you hesitating on Naruto-kun?" he asked.
"Uh, well, I've never seen a boy with such a hormone imbalance." The iryonin confessed, "I'd have to do a more thorough exam to figure out the cause, but he has far more estrogen than a boy his age ought to. It could be a sign of an abnormal puberty." he explained. Naruto blinked owlishly as his cheeks turned pink, wondering why he had to have the most embarrassing medical issue, "Also he has venom glands for some reason, they're connected to the, uh, upper-inner canines?" the iryonin added, seeming confused by the number of teeth the horned blonde had.
Kakashi gave a pointed look to Maemi, "We'll worry about that later," he decided, "if they're physically fine then you can give a more thorough check up later. I have a mission report to receive." he ordered, the iryonin bowed and left without further comment, "I'm afraid I'll have to ask you two to leave as well, Kizashi-san, Mebuki-chan." the silver haired jonin added to Sakura's parents.
Mebuki, the mother, looked like she wanted to argue, "It's fine if we wait outside, right?" Kizashi asked, and when Kakashi nodded the blonde mother was coaxed out by her husband.
"Alright, report." Kakashi said, unconcerned with Shibi staying since the man was a jonin commander and clan head. All three genin of Kakashi's cell tried to talk at once, "Stop." he ordered, rubbing the bridge of his nose, "One at a time, please, Sasuke-kun?" he requested.
"After Gaara's team retreated under the orders of their jonin sensei, the proctor ordered me to chase them down. I did so and managed to halt them until Naruto, and eventually Sakura and Shino, could arrive." Sasuke explained curtly.
Kakashi sighed again and again rubbed the bridge of his nose, "Damn it, Genma." he grumbled, "Naruto-kun, what happened when you gave chase?" he asked,
"Hebi-chan smelled, or maybe it was tasted since she used her tongue, some ninjas trailing us, Maemi-chan translated that nine enemy were chasing after us." Naruto began quickly, "I tried to suggest holding them off with Kuchiyose, but Sakura-chan was sick of riding Hebi-chan and jumped off to fight them herself, so I continued the mission alone. But she did catch up with Shino." he explained.
"Hebi-cha-? Whatever." Kakashi sighed at the very bad name Naruto had decided on for his Daemonic mount, "Sakura-chan, what the fuck?" he continued.
"I set an ambush and killed three of them, five were too injured to bother finishing off, and Shino got the last one." Sakura responded with a grumble, when no further explanation came Kakashi looked to Shino.
"I overheard the mission and moved to assist, as I had placed a female kikaichu on Sasuke-san." Shino began simply, "I caught up with Sakura-san first, and finished off the last enemy who was hiding from her so we could move to catch up with the others. I attempted to help deal with Kankuro but only Gaara out of the three had any fight left in him. Team seven fought him until Gaara transformed into a hengeyokai, a tanuki specifically made of sand, and Naruto-san summoned," here the Aburame paused, "I don't even know, but it terrified my kikaichi. Kankuro and Temari attempted to make an escape, but were hesitant to leave Gaara behind, they surrendered when Gaara was finally subdued by Naruto-san." he explained at length.
Kakashi stared at the four genin for a moment longer, "Alright," he sighed, "first of all, Sasuke-kun you followed orders admirably and carried out your part in the mission. Your power is well above genin but there is more to being a chunin than power, risk assessment is important and I'll be giving Genma Shiranui a talk about sending my genin on A rank assignments solo." he explained dryly, "Sakura-chan, excellent work defeating eight enemy shinobi in order to protect the mission, don't do it again." he continued, "Naruto-kun, you disobeyed my directive by refusing to take Kiba Inuzuka, excellent work, you completed the mission with no undue casualties and I honestly can't fault you for not keeping Sakura-chan under control." he finished.
The three genin of team seven looked confused for a moment by the mixed messages, "What about Shino?" Naruto asked as he scratched the skin around his right horn.
"Shino-kun assisted despite not being ordered to and aided in the capture of two prisoners of war from Sunagakure," Kakashi said carefully, "it's unfortunate he didn't get to show his stuff in the proper final phase of the exams because it sounds like he deserves the promotion more than any of you." he finished dryly, much to the displeasure of his genin.
"I disagree with the second point." Shibi spoke up, "My son did well, and I commend him for assisting your own genin, but motives are important to consider." he pointed out, "I suspect my son went to their aid in order to fight with Kankuro."
Kakashi almost didn't even see the younger Aburame look down in shame, "Well, regardless, the four of you completed an A rank assignment with no casualties and three important prisoners for our village to use in negotiations." he praised, "At worst they'll be ransomed back to their village." he added with a shrug, "It sounds like we have guests, so I'll discuss further with the three of you later." he finished, going to open the door and making a gesture to indicate those outside could come in.
Sakura's parents followed behind a procession of genin, namely the rest of the nine rookies, Tenten, Neji, and Karin, "Is bushy brows okay?" Naruto asked and Sakura glared at him.
"Lee-kun is okay," Tenten answered before the pink haired kunoichi could snap, "his injuries haven't recovered fully and just coming to see the fights was a bit of stress on his body so he's resting in another room." she explained.
Naruto grinned, "Well at least he's alive." he said with relief before turning on the two Hyuga, "Hinata-chan, did he apologize?" he asked.
Neji bowed, "I have apologized, and I wish to thank you for opening my eyes." he said in a humble tone, "I think I am done resigning to fate and wallowing in despair, I shall endeavor to find pleasure in life from now on." he finished with a smile.
"Do you just beat your philosophies into people until they agree with you?" Sasuke asked sarcastically with a raised eyebrow directed at his blonde teammate.
"Yes." Naruto answered with a cheerful grin, "It worked didn't it?" he asked as his expression became smug.
"How is he already okay?" Sakura asked as she remembered Naruto had hit the male Hyuga the same way Hinata had been hit.
"Neji-san probably shouldn't be up yet to be honest," Tenten spoke up, "but according to the iryonin he's lucky Naruto-san's Juken was off by a little bit." she explained.
"So what happened?" Ino spoke up with her question, "I heard you guys went after Gaara, so I'm glad you're all okay." she said.
"You just wanted to see Sasuke-kun." Sakura accused with a growl.
"Nope!" Ino insisted quickly, "Absolutely not! I'm not competing with you at all!" she added hastily, "Sasuke-kun is a total hottie but uh, he's all yours." she said, not wanting to verbalize that she was terrified of Sakura killing her over Sasuke, "I'm sure I can find a different hot guy who actually wants my attention anyway." she added, trying to play it off.
Sakura narrowed her eyes at Ino, trying to detect a lie, "She's telling the truth." Maemi spoke up plainly and the pink haired kunoichi looked smug.
"I don't want either of you." Sasuke piped up bluntly in an annoyed tone and the pink haired girl immediately slumped in defeat. Kizashi and Mebuki felt bad for their daughter, hoping she'd just take an interest in a boy who reciprocated.
Naruto was looking thoughtfully at Ino, narrowing his eyes and rubbing his chin, "What?" the Yamanaka asked with a raised eyebrow.
"We would make beautiful babies." Naruto mused idly, Ino blushed at the blunt and forward statement. Hinata cast a slightly jealous glance at the blonde kunoichi, and Karin's jaw dropped in shock.
Sakura stared blankly at the horned blonde, "I'm not sure if I should be mad at you or amused, I'm going to default to quiet anger." she muttered, narrowing her eyes into a glare. Kakashi supposed that was progress, as far as Sakura's violent temper went.
Kiba snorted, "Damn dude, are you trying to build a harem or something?" he asked with a teasing smirk.
Naruto blinked owlishly, "Ah! That's a great idea!" he exclaimed with a sudden grin, "Thanks Kiba!" he laughed, giving the Inuzuka a thumbs up. Sakura groaned and rubbed her temples to help keep down the urge to punch both of them. Hinata cast a very slight glare at Kiba when she thought no one was looking.
"Perverts, both of you." Ino grumbled, mortified by the conversation and her cheeks tinged pink with embarrassment.
"Seriously though, what happened with Gaara?" Shikamaru asked, "I assume a jonin must have come to save you guys, Shibi-san right?" he guessed.
"Naruto beat him." Sasuke answered, jabbing an annoyed thumb at the blonde. Naruto just grinned proudly, baring his apparently venomous fangs.
"No way." Ino said in disbelief, "Y-you're just being modest, right Sasuke-kun?" she asked, stunned.
"Naruto-kun is strong." Hinata insisted hotly, eager to jump to his defense. Maemi smirked at the fact the Hyuga was coming out of her shell, privately taking undue credit for it.
"Yeah, Naruto has way more chakra than any of us." Sasuke confirmed with a shrug, "I can still take him though." he added with a confident smirk.
Naruto gave his own challenging smirk, "You wanna bet?" he asked.
"None of that you two." Kakashi interrupted, "No challenging each other, any of you three." he added towards Sakura, "Save it for enemy shinobi." he finished. Naruto pouted and Sasuke huffed in annoyance, Sakura just looked offended at being included in that.
Karin was surprised no one mentioned her presence and kept quiet, scared of being rejected despite her lack of Kusa hitai-ate.
"So uh," Kiba spoke up, scratching his cheek nervously, "did any of us become chunin?" he asked, curious about that.
"Not for us to decide." Kakashi answered with a shrug, "The jonin council will have to come to a joint decision regarding that, then whoever is being promoted will be informed." he explained, "We want to get a new Hokage first though." he added sadly.
Naruto frowned, almost tempted to make a joke about the old man finally retiring but he was far less oblivious than he used to be, "What happened to Hokage-jiji?" he asked instead.
"Sandaime Hokage-sama died fighting Orochimaru." Kakashi answered bluntly, well used to death by now to report that without a shift in his body language or expression.
Naruto looked devastated for a moment before he took a deep breath, "I know I should set aside wrath," he began, "but I really want to make Orochimaru suffer." he added, his pupils narrowed to slits from his anger.
Kakashi scoffed, "Get in line." he retorted, "In any event, Shibi-san and I have other things to do, but before I go I need to ask, why is the Kusa kunoichi still here?" he asked with a raised eyebrow at Karin, who flinched.
Kiba scratched the back of his head, "Ah, Kusagakure wasn't treating her very well, so she's kind of defecting." he explained with a nervous chuckle as the attention turned on him, "I, uh, think she wanted to say something to the other Uzumaki." he added, feeling a bit bad for putting her on the spot.
Naruto blinked a few times, "Oh right that's me!" he realized after a moment and Sakura covered her face with both hands and doubled over in mental agony at how long it had taken him to realize that.
Karin blushed in embarrassment, "I just wanted to thank you for, uh, protecting me while I was unconscious." she said bashfully, "Also I wanted to return this, if you really are Uzumaki." she added, pulling out the sleeve he'd given to her in the preliminaries.
"You've been carrying that around?" Ino asked with a raised eyebrow.
"I-I washed it first!" Karin insisted, blushing harder.
Naruto frowned, "Kakashi-sensei," he began, turning to his sensei with a serious look in his eyes, "the chunin exams are over." he pointed out, "I still want to know who they were." he added firmly.
Kakashi sighed, "Your mother was an Uzumaki," he confirmed, "she had the red hair, hiden fuinjutsu, everything." he added, "I'll tell you her name in private, another time, but for now Shibi-san and I really do need to go." he said, retreating from the situation to avoid further questions.
As soon as the two jonin were gone Sasuke spoke up, "Alright, I'm just going to say it, the fact that they're that secretive about your parents is absolutely terrifying." the Uchiha said bluntly, his expression not exactly portraying what his words did but no one disagreed.
Tenten frowned, "If she had the fuinjutsu, then she was probably a ninja right?" she pointed out, curious about the mystery.
"That doesn't mean she was a Konoha kunoichi." Shikamaru pointed out logically.
"Naruto-san is a Konoha shinobi, it stands to reason his parents were citizens." Shino pointed out with equal logic.
Naruto accepted the white spiral on the orange sleeve from Karin with a frown, "Well, I guess I'll find out eventually." he said with a forced smile.
Later that day Kakashi returned to meet up with his students, "Alright, Maemi-tan, spill it." he ordered, "What happened to Sakura-chan?" he clarified, "Also why does a medical check up insist one of Naruto-kun's testicles is an ovary!?" he added, that one had alarmed him.
"I have a what now!?" Naruto was startled by that information more than anyone. Sasuke just raised an eyebrow as Sakura gawked.
Maemi chuckled nervously, "Uh, so you remember that whole thing about challenges?" she asked rhetorically, "One of the boons of Slaanesh-sama is to become a hermaphrodite, the perfect blend of the two human sexes." she answered the most alarming thing first.
Kakashi rubbed the bridge of his nose, "Why is that a boon?" he asked.
Maemi frowned, "Why wouldn't it be? He has the pheromones of both now, seduction is a part of being shinobi too." she pointed out, "Besides, it's a divine form!" she insisted.
"What about my dojutsu?" Sakura asked, curious about that.
"Oh that's not a dojutsu." Maemi answered, "You got lucky there though, your soul is connected to the realm of the Ryuketsu no Kami, you're basically sucking all the heat out of the air around you." she explained, "Eyes are the windows to the soul and all that." she added with a shrug to explain the eyes, "You've basically got a Kuchiyose contract with Ryuketsu no Daemons and can channel their killing intent through you even without summoning them."
Kakashi found that statement about eyes being windows to the soul combined with Sakura's pupils seeming to be smoldering flames to be very alarming, "And the blood setting things on fire?" he pressed.
"Her blood was replaced with a molten liquid that now acts as her blood." Maemi answered plainly.
"Are we even human anymore!?" Sakura snapped, startled by that answer.
"Technically yes." Maemi answered with a shrug, Kakashi did not find that answer comforting.
"So what's this? Am I just his pet or something?" Sakura asked angrily, tugging at the brass choker around her neck.
"They're Kami, so again, technically yes." Maemi retorted dryly, "More than that though, much like Naruto-sama has received blessings that indicate Slaanesh-sama favors him highly with the horns and hermaphrodite body, that collar and the contract burned into your soul are both big signs that your new patron is fond of you." she explained, "The choker is what was protecting you from the sand." she clarified.
Sakura seemed concerned by this, Sasuke seemed thoughtful, but Naruto just seemed to realize something, "So that's why my chest is bigger than Sakura-chan's now." the blonde wondered aloud and was promptly slugged in the face for voicing it by the pink haired kunoichi in question. Kakashi decided Naruto's boons were the scariest of all.
Over the next few days it came out that the Kazekage had died before the invasion even began, Sunagakure no Sato offered their surrender which Konohagakure graciously accepted. The Suna genin were free to leave and although Gaara hesitated to return home, he followed Temari and Kankuro despite his reservations.
Similarly it was revealed the head of Kusagakure no Sato had been killed en route to Konoha, with only one of their genin returning alive out of two entire teams the hidden village was incensed. At first they attempted to blame Konohagakure for the deaths, but upon being told it was Orochimaru they surprisingly backed down without further issue.
Further, Sakura's parents finally confronted her about the changes. Unsure of what to say the young kunoichi explained that she was the champion of a Meiyo no Kami now, but she felt guilty about telling her parents lies of omission by leaving out the less savory aspects of the Ryuketsu no Kami. Kizashi and Mebuki had both been concerned, especially regarding the brass choker, but had accepted her explanation and bought her replacement clothes of the same design as her old outfit.
Sakura Haruno was aware that she had a contract to call her own Daemons now, technically, but also she didn't really trust the Muse who had said it. There was also the issue that even though she had indeed seen the jutsu performed she didn't actually have Sharingan so she didn't really know the seals, "Kakashi-sensei," she greeted as she finally found the man privately, "what are the hand signs for Kuchiyose no Jutsu?" she asked.
Kakashi raised an eyebrow, "Why do you want to know?" he asked, concerned since the idea of Daemons of rage and blood running around didn't seem like the best idea.
"Naruto and Sasuke-kun have their own Imps, having one of my own to help explain things would be nice." Sakura answered, "Also I don't really trust Maemi fully, or that Aoki thing, having something connected to Meiyo no Kami would be more trustworthy to me." she pointed out.
Kakashi could understand that and rubbed his chin thoughtfully, "Alright, it requires a small blood sacrifice and the signs are boar, dog, bird, monkey, and ram." he explained, figuring that it would help the pink haired kunoichi train at least.
"Thank you, Kakashi-sensei!" Sakura said with a quick bow of gratitude and ran off to find somewhere it would be safe for her blood to drip, ending up going to the training grounds where she and her team had officially become genin. The kunoichi ran through the signs a few times to make sure she had it down, then carefully cut her own left thumb with a frown of annoyance when the metal of her kunai actually glowed slightly.
She supposed it was a good thing the blood didn't burn her as she weaved the hand signs and focused on the idea of an Imp, not sure what to expect the girl slapped her left hand to the ground. At first Sakura thought she'd summoned a humanoid horned beetle barely taller than Maemi, then she realized the carapace was a suit of thick plate armor of black metal, with a chain loincloth of brass links and what seemed like the jagged blade of an axe coming from the left pauldron.
The Imp looked around, or at least that's what Sakura thought it was doing as the horned helmet of the thing moved around, it had glowing red dots for eyes inside the helmet behind two eyeholes but everything else was impossible to make out due to the full covering of the horned helmet. Each horn curved out and went straight up, giving the Daemon slightly extra height.
With how heavily armored it was and the makeshift 'weapons' built into its armor she could see why it was considered a Sento Familiar, "Hello, my name is Sakura Haruno, I guess I'm a champion of the Ryuketsu no Kami?" she introduced, although the last part came out as a question.
The Imp hummed, a deep and gravely voice with a heavy bass to it, "I see, so you're the one Khorne-sama made that tiny collar for." he greeted rudely, "You may call me Genkei, do you have a weapon for me? What glorious battles are we set to fight with that tiny body of yours?" he introduced bluntly.
Sakura's eye twitched, "Well, we're at war with Otogakure no Sato I suppose, but mostly I need to train." she said, resisting the urge to punch the metal Imp.
Genkei cocked his head to the side, "Understandable, you need much in the way of physical training. Am I to be your Familiar then?" he questioned.
"Correct, so are there, like, special jutsu you can teach me?" Sakura confirmed and followed up with a question, raising an eyebrow at the rude little Imp.
Genkei laughed, "Khorne-sama does not need such base tricks, his blessings will make you better at the only kind of fighting that matters. We will train your body. Taijutsu, bukijutsu, shurikenjutsu, these are the only jutsu you will need." he explained, "Also you need to eat more meat, you're a fucking waif." he added in an annoyed tone, "You need more protein and fat, the fat of slain animals is far better for you than sugary fruits." he insisted.
Sakura raised an eyebrow, "So, uh, how do we do this bond thing?" she asked, cheeks turning pink as she remembered how Naruto did it with Maemi.
"Give me that knife." Genkei responded with a gesture at the kunai, no longer glowing. Sakura shrugged and handed it over, startled by the Imp snatching it and stabbing itself in the right palm. She wasn't sure if the creaking sound of metal straining was her blade or his gauntlet or both, "Now, cut your right palm, and we'll shake on it." the Imp explained, "I will be your Malice, your ally in battle, and your tutor in Meiyo and Budo." he intoned ritualistically.
Sakura frowned but did as instructed, only slightly surprised when her blood didn't seem to hurt the Imp.
Kakashi stared incredulously at one of the Densetsu no Sannin, "You want to what?" he asked in a flat tone.
"You heard me, I'm requesting to take Naruto Uzumaki with me on a mission." Jiraiya answered with a grin before his expression turned more serious, "I want to see what he can do, maybe give him some training, and Tsunade-hime will make a decent Godaime Hokage if we can find her." he explained.
Kakashi sighed, "I can't technically refuse, but please, explain to him who you actually are to him." he requested, surprising the man, "Naruto-kun met another Uzumaki during the preliminaries and had an identity crisis, he practically renounced the name Uzumaki!" the jonin continued, startling the white haired Sannin further, "It took every ounce of willpower I had not to go off at Sandaime-sama." he finished sadly.
Jiraiya frowned, "I can't tell him about his father yet, you know that." he said regretfully, "Even learning about his mother would let some more savvy shinobi figure out who he really is." he pointed out calmly.
"Sandaime-sama promised him that much, and if you don't follow through I will." Kakashi responded with a narrowed eye, "Impress upon him that it needs to be secret, a few genin his age already know that his parentage has been kept secret from him which is suspicious enough already."
Jiraiya groaned, "Way to put me on the spot." he grumbled, "Fine, fine, I'll tell him." he agreed, "I owe him that much." he said in a guilty tone.
Hinata could barely believe it, she was on what was practically a second date with Naruto. The fact Karin was along put a damper on things but she reminded herself that they were both Uzumaki, blood relatives. The shy Hyuga tried to ignore the fact that clans commonly married within the clan, usually not siblings or cousins at least, but the fact was that she had no idea how distantly related they were.
The white eyed girl convinced herself that Naruto was just showing the girl around, and mentally insisted to herself that she did not feel like a third wheel. It helped that Naruto was somehow paying them equal attention, but somehow that also made it worse. The horned pretty boy also wasn't wearing his 'war paint', which everyone was pretty sure was actually make up, but he was still wearing the orange kimono, navy blue umanori hakama, white 'kajo' haori, and purple sash.
"It's just as I heard, you really do eat nothing but ramen." Jiraiya's voice caught the attention of the three young genin, although Karin technically no longer had a shinobi rank.
"Supfer perf!" Naruto exclaimed in full mouthed greeting, somehow not losing any of the noodles in his mouth. Maemi sighed, things had been going so well.
Jiraiya blinked a few times, double taking between the two young girls and the Daemon, "How in the-?" he began, sounding oddly offended, "How does such a girly boy like you, with almost no table manners, get so much attention from girls?" he asked with a raised eyebrow, both of the young girls blushed.
Naruto swallowed his mouthful, "Huh? What do you mean?" he asked before grinning confidently, "I'm attractive, strong, and damn I'm pretty." he laughed, "If it makes you feel better I get attention from guys too." he added, thinking of Haku. Jiraiya considered trying to explain that your sensei buying you food was not a date, but he decided to cross that bridge when it came up to bother him.
Karin adjusted her glasses, "Naruto-niisan was just showing me some of the sights in the village." she explained calmly despite her flushed cheeks, Hinata nodded in agreement.
"Wait this isn't a double date?" Naruto asked obliviously, Karin almost had a heart attack and Hinata looked mortified.
"A double date is two couples, Naruto-sama, that means four people as two separate couples on the same date." Maemi explained simply, used to the blonde being rough around the edges by now, "Taking two people on the same date is just a date." she added with a slight smirk at how flustered the two girls were getting.
"Oh," Naruto said, processing the information for a moment, "a date then, whatever." he decided with a carefree shrug, "So what's up, perv?" he asked the Densetsu no Sannin with a grin.
Jiraiya was astounded at the absolute size of the balls on the horned blonde, metaphorically speaking of course as he still had no interest in literally seeing them, "You-" he began, eyes tearing up with pride, "You will be my greatest pupil!" he decided.
"Eh?" Naruto asked, raising an eyebrow at the strange old man.
Jiraiya coughed into his fist, "I'll explain later, I actually came to get you for a mission, sorry to steal your boyfriend, girls." he said, more calm after composing himself, "This is serious by the way, your sensei approved and there are things you'll want to hear from me, plus if you put some respect on my name I might teach you some ninjutsu." he explained. Hinata and Karin both glared at the old man, unknowingly cementing in his mind that they were Naruto's girlfriends.
The horned blonde himself just frowned, "He's telling the truth." Maemi spoke up, noting that was practically becoming her catch phrase, but she was curious about what things the man was convinced her master would want to hear.
Naruto scratched the skin around his right horn, "Fine, but I want to know what the jutsu is before I call you anything else." he demanded.
Jiraiya's eye twitched, "I'm a Sennin, damn it." he grumbled at the lack of respect, "I'll tell you more on the road, it's an A rank ninjutsu." he informed, eager to get moving.
"Keep your pants on," Naruto retorted, pulling out some money, "I gotta pay for my dates before I go, and I need my travel gear." he said, handing over some money to Teuchi, the old ramen chef smirking in amusement as he accepted the coins. The blonde had become quite the source of entertainment while he worked.
Jiraiya raised an eyebrow, "Is that a purse?" he asked.
"No." Naruto lied, putting his purse away, "Anyway, see you two when I get back, Hinata-chan, Karin-chan. Duty calls I guess." he said apologetically as he left with the white haired old man, Maemi following behind with a quick wave to the two girls.
Hinata and Karin glanced at each other, both pink in the face, "You didn't even try to deny any of that." the Hyuga girl grumbled with a pout and the Uzumaki girl turned almost as red as her hair.
Naruto frowned, they were already out of the village and Jiraiya still hadn't explained anything. Maemi could tell the man was hesitant and nervous, emotions that served to make her wary, "You still haven't told me what this A rank ninjutsu you're offering to teach me is." the blonde decided to point out, growing bored of the silence.
Jiraiya suppressed a flinch, "Right, you'll like it. I heard you were interested in that Chidori, this one is even stronger." he bragged with a grin, "We shouldn't discuss ninjutsu training or mission details in the open though." he reminded the boy.
Naruto just grumbled again, following the man to Shukuba Town a short distance from Konoha. Maemi was baffled that the old man would get a hotel on a street called Fun Fun Avenue, she was pretty sure they were right next door to a brothel. The shamelessness of the white haired Sennin impressed the Daemon.
Then of course Jiraiya was distracted by a pretty woman giving him a wink, Naruto couldn't blame him, the woman was very pretty, but he was still annoyed when the man gave him the room key and shooed him off with instructions to practice manipulating his chakra. Actually he was probably more annoyed because the woman was so pretty, Naruto wanted some of that.
Regardless the young blonde did as instructed and went up to his room to practice manipulating his chakra, Maemi sorting through some of the things she'd brought along as he did. The Muse had mostly brought dried herbs, cloves, poppy seeds, and some dried mushrooms.
Soon enough there was a knocking at the door, "Did he get rejected already? No wonder he needs me along." Naruto sighed, feeling bad for the poor old man as he got up and approached the door and the knocking continued, "I'm coming! Keep your pants!" the blonde called out in an exasperated voice as he unlocked the door.
Jiraiya was not the person on the other side of the door, for one Jiraiya's hitai-ate didn't have the Konoha symbol or a slash through it and for two Jiraiya did not have the Sharingan. The black cloak with red clouds was also not something in Jiraiya's wardrobe, and the nail polish probably wouldn't suit the old man. Naruto made a mental note to get nail polish.
The horned blonde stared up at the stranger for a moment, thinking they looked like Sasuke but different, "Damn you're pretty." he mused, deciding that was the main difference between the Uchiha in front of him and Sasuke. The stranger blinked in surprise, raising an eyebrow at the genin.
A taller blue skinned man, like a cross between a shark and a human, with a slashed Kiri hitai-ate, a bandaged up weapon of some kind on his back, and the same manner of clothing as the Uchiha chuckled in amusement. Naruto looked at him in surprise, having been distracted by the eyes of the strange Uchiha for a moment. It took the blonde a moment to remember Sasuke was supposed to be the last Uchiha and he frowned, glancing between the two in confusion until he noticed their rings.
"Ah, sorry, I didn't know you two were, uh, you know." Naruto said, waggling his pinky. The blue skinned man stared at the horned boy incredulously, "Actually I didn't even see you there." the genin added with a laugh.
The blue skinned man blinked owlishly, "Is this weird girly kid seriously the one with the Kyubi?" he asked the Uchiha, who slowly nodded. Naruto's eyes widened at that, his face expressing his concern that the kitsune had been brought up.
"Naruto-kun, why don't you come with us?" The Uchiha asked, looking into the purple eyes of the blonde with his Sharingan. Maemi was alarmed, getting the sense of power and danger from the two.
Naruto moved to do so but his cheeks flushed slightly as he stepped out of the apartment, "Oh wow, two older guys, a couple too. Maemi-chan told me about this swingers thing." he said with a nervous smile, actually just trying to throw them off guard. The Uchiha closed his eyes and counted backwards from ten, wondering what the hell was wrong with the blonde genin.
"Itachi-san," The blue skinned man began, reaching for his weapon with a twitchy eye, "can I take this kids legs off?" he asked. Naruto's eyes widened in alarm, sensing the malicious intent and listening for the Tatakainouta. He could hear it building up and he realized with growing horror just how strong these two were.
"Long time no see, Sasuke." Itachi said suddenly, halting his blue skinned partner. Naruto tilted his head in surprise, not even having seen his teammate behind the two men in dark cloaks with red clouds. Maemi frowned, not able to risk making sudden movements towards her master due to the blue skinned man.
"Itachi Uchiha..." Sasuke greeted coldly, Sharingan active and glaring at the older Uchiha.
"My my," The blue skinned man began, sounding amused, "today is an unusual day indeed. Seeing other Sharingan than yours twice." he commented to the elder of the two.
"I will kill you." Sasuke said with faux calm, his eyes wide and his expression completely blank.
The blue skinned man chuckled, "Well, that kid has a Sharingan, and he looks just like you." he mused, "What's up with that?" he asked with a smirk.
"He's my little brother." Itachi answered plainly as Naruto started to put the pieces of the puzzle together, although the blonde still wasn't the quickest with such puzzles.
"That's funny, last I heard the whole clan was wiped out," The blue skinned man continued, "by you." he pointed out with obvious amusement. That was enough for Naruto to finally realize Itachi was the one Sasuke wanted to kill, this made the blonde frown. Then it occurred to him Sasuke might grow to look like Itachi as time passed, but he realized that was probably a no since, while there were similarities, the older brother had much fuller eyelashes.
Sasuke considered his options, Itachi was dangerous and for some reason after Naruto. Aoki was trying to calm him down but he ignored the Familiar, "Aoi-en!" the younger Uchiha suddenly exclaimed, twisting his hands in the air in front of him.
Itachi narrowed his eyes as Sasuke's chakra shifted as if manipulated by hand seals, but they weren't signs he recognized. Suddenly the two shinobi with slashed hitai-ate were engulfed in coruscating blue flames, but the blue skinned one swiftly swung his weapon, "Damn, even with Samehada eating the chakra out of those flames this kid almost got me, never seen a jutsu like that before." he mused, "Huh, no damage? Was that genjutsu?" he wondered, confused by the lack of burns.
Sasuke frowned, it seemed like Itachi had been dealt with but, "No, Kisame-san," the elder Uchiha spoke from behind the younger, naming the blue skinned shark-like man, "look closely at the log I left behind." he pointed out as Sasuke leaped away from him with an alarmed expression, "Burned in some places, but new life has sprouted from others." he explained, "An utterly unreliable jutsu, but powerful nonetheless. Curiously, I have never seen such a jutsu either." he finished with a look of curiosity towards his little brother.
Sasuke shivered with fear, he'd known the strange properties of the flames made it a gamble but neither of his targets being even slightly hurt by the expenditure of chakra was irritating. Aoki scolded him in his mind, reminding him that those flames were best used against large groups and not a pair of incredibly powerful individuals.
Naruto's purple chakra flared and he raised his right arm back to suddenly whip it forward, Kisame's eyes widened in alarm and he swung Samehada to intercept the purple whip of chakra, "Well damn, these two brats are pretty good for their age." he mused with a grin that bared his sharp teeth.
Naruto gripped the scabbard of his sword in a white knuckled grip in his left hand, wishing he'd bought a replacement before leaving Konoha. Sasuke tried to think of a way out of the situation, a way to kill Itachi, and scowled at how unhelpful Aoki's suggestions were.
Kisame frowned, "What the-? Samehada?" he muttered, casting a confused look over his weapon, "Hey, Itachi-san, there's something weird about their chakra." he informed the older Uchiha.
"Oiroke: Same no On'na!" Naruto announced suddenly, startling the two older shinobi when what seemed to be a female member of Kisame's clan was in the smoke where Naruto had been, flashing the two a sharp toothed grin and a predatory wink. There was a moment of awkward silence, Sasuke was glad Sakura wasn't there to see Naruto attempt that.
Kisame's eye twitched, "Scratch that, there's just something weird about this kid." he decided bluntly, although he had to privately admit the kid had good eye for detail with his henge. Itachi just rubbed the bridge of his nose, privately impressed with how easily the blonde could completely ruin an ominous atmosphere.
"Damn, that usually works." Naruto said as he reverted to his true form with a pout.
"Naruto, you're an idiot." Sasuke said bluntly, hoping those weren't going to be his last words.
"Well," Jiraiya's voice interrupted as he appeared behind the blonde in a flash, "he just needed to stall for time in this situation, really," the man said with a grin, the woman who had caught his eye earlier over one arm, "so that jutsu was perfect." he praised.
"You just say that because you like naked ladies, perv." Naruto pointed out dryly, too disappointed it hadn't worked to be perked up by the praise.
"You've been calling me a pervert when you have an entire jutsu dedicated to looking like a naked woman!?" Jiraiya snapped angrily, baffled by the cheek of the young blonde.
Kisame cackled, "Ah, Jiraiya-sama, touted as one of the Densetsu no Sannin." he greeted with a smirk, "No matter how much of an unrivaled woman-chaser you are, I didn't think our delaying tactic would succeed that easily." he mused mockingly, "But, it seems you undid the genjutsu on that woman." he finished.
Jiraiya carefully put the unconscious woman down, "Placing a genjutsu on a woman to separate me from Naruto, very cowardly." he retorted dryly, "I know he's the one you're after." he added.
"Unfortunately," Naruto added with a frown, "they're not even interested in me." he finished with a pout, confusing Sasuke.
Kisame stared blankly at the blonde before turning to Jiraiya, "What the hell is wrong with that kid?" he asked bluntly.
Jiraiya sighed, "I honestly have no idea." he confessed sadly.
"Slaanesh-kaasama told me to sate my every hunger and deny myself no adventure!" Naruto declared with a proud grin, puffing out his chest with his hands on his hips.
"Kisame-san, we're leaving." Itachi decided, turning to leave.
Sasuke scowled, "You will eventually die by my hand." he declared, glaring at the older Uchiha as he left. Itachi paused for a moment, and seemed to consider something, but continued leaving.
Kisame frowned, "Seriously? Just like that?" he asked, raising an eyebrow only for the second one to join it as the walls around them became pink and fleshy.
"Kuchiyose: Gamaguchi Shibari." Jiraiya intoned, "Why would I let two S class nukenin who are after my newest pupil get away?" he asked rhetorically, raising his own eyebrow, "Now then, neither of you are escaping the inside of this rock-dwelling giant toad." he declared.
"Woah, neat!" Naruto praised, looking around and wondering if he could do any similar applications of his Kuchiyose no Jutsu.
"Let's go!" Itachi insisted, the Uchiha and Kisame moving to leave. Sasuke glanced around as Aoki warned him not to move, that the pink walls were apparently dangerous.
"No one has ever escaped this jutsu!" Jiraiya declared proudly with a smirk, focusing his chakra to control the insides of the toad. He intended on crushing the two nukenin, but was startled when something went wrong. The Sannin rushed to see the corner they had escaped, black flames covering the hole.
Sasuke and Naruto followed, the remaining Uchiha narrowing his eyes at the black flames. Aoki seemed curious, apparently that wasn't one of the types of fire he'd learn to use with Mahojutsu.
Translation: Sento - Combat
I feel like this one is obvious, but Aoi-en - Blue Flame.
Same no On'na - Shark-Woman