" It is time Naruto, wake up ".
An hour before dawn, Naruto woke up from his sleep with the pillow he had placed his head on, now in his arms, hugging it tightly. Naruto opened his eyes, he looked towards his new wardrobe several feet from him. Then he closed his eyes, diving into the sanctum of his mind.
Within his mental sanctum, Naruto laid upon a cloud of golden chakra, which floated from left to right in front of Kurama, whom was eyeing the Jinchuriki with skeptical expression.
" What are you doing? " asked the fox, " nothing " He said
" I'm not the only one who benefits from your training you know, or have you lost the will because of last night, " as the words left Kurama's mouth, the fox immediately regretted it. That exact event was what he spent the previous night trying to take Naruto's mind off, but now he brought it up, causing the fox to feel a urge to slap himself.
" Wow, and here i thought you were helping me not to think about it last night, " Kurama looked at Naruto with a bit of surprise.
" You knew? ", " I might be an idiot, but it was obvious you were trying to help me feel better... Unfortunately, it's really hard to feel good this days, something is wrong with me and i don't know what it is, I can't seem to grasp it, " said the blond haired hero with a solemn smile.
" I won't try to raise the topic, but if you think it's a real issue i could search inside of your emotional sanctum, " " don't. I'm afraid of knowing what is wrong with me, i doubt it is anything good "
" What then will you do? " Kurama asked, " what i have been doing for the past seven months, keep cultivating to get back everything that i lost after fighting Sasuke " said Naruto.
Kurama growled.
" I thought you had forgotten, how your sage and tailed beasts chakra had gotten severely depleted to only a spark after that battle, it's all thanks to that hyuga girl. If not for her chakra, you might have never been able to wield the six paths senjutsu again, " said Kurama still visibly pissed at what the last surviving member of the Uchiha clan did.
" I didn't think about it, since i could still use your chakra and a careful amount of mine. But having tasted my six paths senjutsu abilities again this past few months, i realized with it, there is no way i wouldn't be the strongest Hokage since the village was established " Naruto replied.
" Then you should get out there, and start traininh, if you want to surpass the level you were at the war, and even Lord first himself in his prime. The stronger you are, the more people you can protect "
With those words, Naruto emerged from his mental sanctum, Naruto threw his pillow back; the pillow dropped on the tatami floor, in between the bed and the wall.
Naruto got off his bed, left his bedroom to brush his teeth. He returned a little while after, and opened up his wardrobe. Naruto takes off his white undershirt, which he should have taken off but forgot too.
' I'm such an idiot ' He thought.
Naruto picked out orange pants with red flames, which length was a few inches below his knee cap, he also took out a orange hoodie with four white band designs around the sleeves. Naruto changed into this clothing, once done, Naruto bent down and took hold of two wrist weighted bands, dragging them out of the foot of the wardrobe.
They made a startling noise when they hit the tatami, Naruto takes hold of the ankle bands as well and dragged them out. Naruto takes up one wrist band, puts it on his left wrist, and the other on his right, he did like wise to those of his ankles.
Immediately Naruto felt the pressure of 500 kilograms worth of weight, each band weighing a total of 125kg. Naruto rose with slight difficulty, he took a step back and he found himself staggering to the point of falling unto his bed. The world's most famous shinobi looked up at the ceiling of his room, and sighed.
" This is crazy, I should have stuck with 250, " " get used to it, the more the pressure the better it is for you. Now stop whining, and go run " said Kurama.
Naruto swung himself up into a seated position, then he stood as slowly as possible to avoid any misstep. Naruto approached his wardrobe, lifts his arms and takes hold of each side of its door before closing it...
Naruto's bare foot came down upon, the white snowy ground of an hour that was still too dark to call dawn. For several months, Naruto had begun to use weights to train, since he had no idea of how to procure them himself at first, he had asked rock Lee for it.
Something bushy brow was glad to help with, since then Naruto would use weights to run laps around konoha as many as possible at this hour of the day when he doesn't have any mission, it's helped increase his physical stats.
But not once has he tried 500kg, the last he'd used was 250, Naruto wanted to regret his decision and the fact that he allowed Sasuke (who knew he was trying to get stronger) to coerce him into it, and through a piece of paper no less.
" Damn you, Sasuke, " " Hey! You idiot, what did i say about whining? " Kurama yelled.
With a frown Naruto bends down, arms wide and fingertips on the snowy ground, one leg drawn back and the other drawn forward. He looked ahead of himself, then he took off running, but as his first lap began, Naruto realised he had become a lot more slower than he was when he had gotten used to the 250kg, which in all honesty wasn't much speed.
That was to be expected, so he kept pushing on as his sprint was reduced to a jog. Later, at the crack of dawn, Naruto had gotten a bit more used to the weights and had began to run slightly more freely, though he consistently felt the throbbing veins in his glutes, hamstring and quads, including his obliques which were not spared from the horrors of his exercise.
Whilst running Naruto glanced up, and noticed sunlight had begun to paint the skies with warmth, and color. The day had begun to glow, and the people of konoha also had started to emerge from their houses.
Naruto knew in that moment, that it was time for the cultivation of his six paths senjutsu, so he ran towards one of the third training ground, swinging his arms back and forth... Naruto arrived, and there was not a single soul around, which he knew would be the case since this used to be team 7 training ground, as such not many people visit in this hour, civilians and genins or chunins come by much later, as the place had become somewhat monumental due to the hero team having trained there.
Naruto after a few seconds of observation went deeper into a field, which had now been covered by snow, eventually he found himself a good spot and down there in the cold, which he hardly felt due to his warm clothes and his ridiculously heated body.
Naruto crossed his legs, and sat down, placing both his arms down on his thighs, he breathes in and breathes out. He made a repetition of this several times, to calm all his nerves, and his jackhammering heart.
Naruto exhales deeply, then he began taking off his weighted bands, once they were discarded he felt a lot more free. Then he unzips and takes off his hoodie, leaving his tanned upper body to be revealed. Veins throbbed across the length of Naruto's arms, down his bulging biceps, beads of sweat covered his built wing like trapezius.
Whilst sweat trickled down his chiseled obliques.
The cold wind swivels in the ambiance, and the serenity helped him to close his eyes for a moment, after he reopens, his irises had thus became yellow with black cross-slit. Naruto drops his eyelids close again, then he began gathering nature chakra, which also swivels through the air...
- SEVEN MINUTES BEFORE NARUTO'S CULTIVATION -
Both Sakura and the blond Ino Yamanaka laid side by side on Sakura's bed staring up at a white ceiling.
" This sleepover is so weird, " said Ino, " how so, didn't you have fun? " Sakura asked.
" I did, but you were really quiet the entire night, it almost felt like I was alone in here ", " oh, sorry my mind must have drifted away last night. But we can have fun today, I haven't received notice for any mission " Sakura said with a smile that didn't quite reach her emerald eyes.
Ino took a glance at her friend and noticed the pseudo smile, and she frowned.
" Spill it, don't make me dive into that crazy mind of yours " she said sternly.
Sakura groans, " alright fine. It's Sasuke " she blurts, and immediately turns her head away.
Ino's frown deepens.
" What did he do, and how did he do it, so I can pay him back for it ", " he didn't do anything. That's what's got me down, he hardly ever shows up and when he does he spends more time with Naruto than he does with me. HIS GIRLFRIEND! " Sakura exclaimed.
Ino sits up, and looks down at Sakura whom still had her face turned away, to avoid Ino's scrutiny.
" Dump him, if you don't i'll take over your body and do it, " " Sasuke will know right away that it's you- " " that just means that you should do it then " said Ino.
Ino leans back as Sakura sits up as well, Sakura turned her skeptical gaze to Ino. " I'm not sure if I'm capable of that " she said.
" You're stronger than you think, being with Sasuke is a waste of time. He won't ever love you the way you want him too, if you weren't so blind by your, and I quote... 'love' for Sasuke, you wouldn't have lost the shinobi world's greatest catch to Hinata " said Ino in an unforgiven tone.
At Ino's words, Sakura glares and she clutches the bed sheets.
" Don't you ever say that! " said Sakura in a threatening tone, Ino scoffs unfazed by Sakura's overreaction.
" Why are you getting angry, cause you know it's the truth, that you were blindly being in love with a guy that even if he marries you, will never show you the kind of affection you deserve, or be home to raise a baby he his definitely going to put in you to further the Uchiha legacy. " Ino retorts.
Sakura felt confounded by Ino's harsh but truthful words, yet she retained her glare for a while before she turned her gaze back to Ino.
" You have a point, but it has nothing to do with Naruto " said Sakura with equanimity. " No one said it should, Hinata is a kind girl, she makes him happy, "
Sakura looks away again, Ino knew all about reading people, and she could see Sakura had become somewhat skeptical about what she had just said.
" doesn't she? ". Sakura snapped her head back to Ino, in such a way Ino was stunned and slightly scared that Sakura's neck might snap.
" I didn't say that, I didn't say anything. Don't go and start spreading awful rumors, or making speculations about their relationship. It's their problem, let them deal with it " said Sakura fast paced.
Ino could almost laugh at this one question, twenty answers situation, but Sakura has invoked a curiosity that can only be satiated by the truth.
" So there is a problem? ", Sakura opened her mouth to speak, but stopped and no words or sound escaped.
Sakura closed her mouth and grit her teeth, looking away.
" I shouldn't have said anything, just forget it, it's not our concern " Ino ended up saying, knowing she had stirred up strife within Sakura's mind.
Ino sort out in her mind to change the subject to something else, something much safer, to not make Sakura indignant.
" Umm... So, are you going to break up with Sasuke? ", " i don't know " said Sakura, unwilling to meet Ino's piercing gaze.
" You don't know? ", " what would people think of me, they might say I broke up with the last Uchiha survivor to break off the relationship between Hinata and Naruto ".
Ino scoffs. " Fuck people and what they might and might not say, it's your life, your happiness. You decide how to live and how not, it's not for people to say ".
" Hey, don't swear. It's fine, I'll think about it. I just don't want to disannul our relationship, then later regret it " Sakura said calmly.
" You're right, if only Sasuke didn't have such an insoluble mind, he could have been as open as Naruto " said Ino patting Sakura on the shoulder, feeling somewhat bad about her situation.
' Could Naruto be becoming insoluble as well? If so, would Sasuke be to blame ' Sakura thought.
" I think I'm going to go ahead and wash up, I forgot to brush my teeth last night and I feel disgusted by it " said Sakura getting up, " especially after the ramen " she added in a whisper, but Ino heard.
" I caught that, which reminds me, I never got to ask how your team outing at Ichiraku went last night, since I was here waiting for you. I haven't gotten the chance to hear the amazing team 7 outing tale from Sai "
" There's nothing to hear, we just ate and departed. As you know, I came home early. " said Sakura looking forward.
Ino leaned back with a smirk, she was going to get the details from her boyfriend. Ino had been feeling happy for getting Sakura flustered, even when she wasn't intending to, when she felt it rush through her senses.
" Unbelievable, this guy doesn't quit " Ino blurts.
Sakura turned towards Ino, wondering why she had suddenly spoken out of context.
" What guy? " Sakura asks slightly puzzled, " Naruto of course... This guy just keeps hounding my senses, " Ino got up walked over to the window, and pushed it open, causing the cold breeze to pour in.
" Naruto! How long will you keep disturbing the peace of every sensor? " Ino yelled into the wind, despite knowing the blond haired hero will not be able to hear her.
" Naruto? What are you talking about, what's he doing, " " what's he doing? The hell kind of question is that, are you going to tell me that you don't know he's been gathering natural energy for the past seven months, he hardly misses a day... I can't believe I let myself forget " said Ino getting more upset by the second.
Ino however, soon noticed that her friend was not joking when she had spoken. Causing the beautiful blond to look at Sakura in perplexity.
" Seriously you didn't know? ", Sakura shook her head. " How many times have you guys talked or met in the last seven months? " Ino asked.
" I don't keep count, since we've both been busy. I'm always at the hospital, and you know he goes about doing his occasional missions, " she said " and Sasuke is also barely around as well, much more than Naruto, since he hasn't been here in nine months, "
" Sakura, I think you're losing your boyfriend and the only male friend who knew you the most " Ino said,
Sakura scoffs and chuckles, " that's nonsense, why would I lose either of them " she replied trying her best to feign ignorance.
" You don't believe me, go wash up. Naruto gathers energy for about two hours a day, we should catch up, " " why? "
" To see if Naruto is a best friend, or just a friend ".
Sakura stood there thinking.
' That's impossible, Naruto's my best friend '. . .
" Naruto, focus. You're getting distracted " said Kurama in a warning tone, " sorry, I just can stop myself from feeling guilty that I didn't go after Hinata last night. She must be angry " Naruto said.
Naruto had his eyes closed, but Kurama's chakra had begun to flow out, incommoding the harmony between his physical state and spiritual state, causing Kurama's chakra glow to fade in and fade back out.
" You can deal with that later, for now focus. Or you are at risk of sending seven months of cultivation down the drain, Naruto get a fucking grip! " Kurama roared, as blood had begun to trickle down Naruto's nostrils.
' Fine '
Naruto breathes in and breaths out, like he had been carefully doing for over an hour, till he allowed guilt in, causing his lung to gradually fail, increasing his breathing difficulty.
Naruto thinks back to the conversations he had with his mom and his dad respectively, and all the good times he had with the toad sage: Jiraiya. The more he thought about them, the calmer he became, and the calmer he became the quicker natural energy synchronized with his physical and spiritual state.
Bringing an end to the disharmony in his chakra networks, as well as the glow of Kurama's chakra. Naruto safely tucked away Kurama's chakra, which was harming him due to the emotional manner by which he was attracting it.
Several minutes later, everything had settled and his nosebleeds had stopped, dried off also by natural chakra flowing into his body allowing him to cultivate his six paths senjutsu without worries or delays.
A few minutes passes after Naruto's harmonious settlement, and the two kunoichi arrived. Once close enough, Ino gestured they should stop.
" We should observe Naruto from here, since he still seems to be busy with what he's doing, " said Ino.
" Why, I thought we were out here to disrupt his training, and prove that we are no longer friends, " " disrupt yes, and I'm proving you're no longer best friend's, stop being extreme ".
' Will Naruto actually get mad at us, if we disrupt his training and how will that prove that he's not my best friend, wouldn't it be normal to get angry stopping his meditation? ' Sakura pondered.
" The disruption is all up too you, use those destructive fists of your's to destroy one of these trees, " said Ino with a grin, excited to finally give Naruto a piece of her mind for always incommoding her with the crazy amount of natural energy he gathers, which she'd once wondered what it's for, but figured out no superficial reason.
" Naruto, we have company " alerted Kurama whilst Sakura was deliberating within herself whether it was right or wrong to disrupt Naruto's training, ' I know, I believe we are done for today ' replied Naruto.
" Indeed ".
Naruto ceases the cultivation of his six paths senjutsu, and immediately natural energy stopped being drawn to him, disconnected from the flow of external natural energy. Naruto's six paths eyes withdrew, returning his eyes to their normal sapphire.
Naruto opens his eyes, took hold of his hoodie and rose up to his bare feet, when he did, the two kunoichi were close enough to see Naruto's winged trapezius flex, much to their surprise, as neither of them has seen him shirtless in a long time.
Before their eyes, Naruto vanished from the spot he stood in the distance, which isn't true as the blond had merely turned around, and ran over to them. However, in their eyes, Naruto vanished and reappeared three feet in front of them, with his hoodie in hand.
" Good morning Sakura, good morning Ino. What brought you two here? " Naruto asked with a broad smile, appearing affable, even though he remained slightly annoyed to have not been able to cultivate for two hours straight.
Sakura and Ino staggered back, while staggering, Ino trips over a slightly raised portion of the earth, but before she could fall unto her back. Naruto caught her by her waist, one warm big hand on her waist and the other on her shoulder.
Naruto steadies her, then steps away. Ino's gaze went towards Sakura's stunned one, and Sakura's stunned gaze looked towards Ino's red cheeked gaze.
" Are you alright? I'm sorry for startling you both, I guess I was just overeager to greet you both, " said Naruto apologetically, something he might not have done when younger, but seeing every body's outstanding qualities in the war and three years in learning how to deal with people in his pursuit of being Hokage, has taught him a thing or two about decorum and respect towards others.
" I- it's okay. You didn't mean too, A- and thank you for helping me " Ino said.
Both girls could not get their eyes off Naruto's body, which to them was just a mighty work of art.
' That's insane, Naruto's body was never like that in the war, and am sure it couldn't be like this last year. What the heck happened in just a year ' Sakura thought flabbergasted, by her friend's physique.
Naruto however was still too stupid to realize what was going on, cause if he knew what had begun to run through Ino's mind, he would not be in a three meter distance of her. But he remained clueless, and ignorant, which Sakura thought must be a gift from the heavens.
" Yeah, no problem. Sakura, are you okay? You were startled to " Naruto asked.
" Oh I'm fine... And we were in the area, so we thought we should come over here and train as well " replied Sakura with a forced smile, as she found her heart to be racing.
' This is preposterous, Naruto has never made my heart race like this, it's the only reason that kept me from falling for you despite how kind and caring you always were to me ' she thought.
" Liar, " said Kurama, ' I know. Ino is a sensor ninja, and a damn good one at that. She would have known I was training here, and neither of them are dressed for training as well ' Naruto replied.
" They came here for you, but they weren't expecting all that package " Kurama said suggestively.
' What package? ' he asked, " nothing " Kurama sighs.
" That's nice, you should go ahead then, I'm going to return home now to wash up and change. I have to visit Kakashi sensei, ya know " Naruto said with a wink he hadn't intended on doing, it was the effect of a vein.
Sakura saw it, and Ino did also, leaving both speechless, as Naruto vanished again and reappeared in the same spot he had abdicated. Naruto puts on his hoodie, zips up, then wears his weight wrist bands and ankle bands.
The pressure returns, and thus he jogs off in a different direction than the two stunned Kunoichi's were.
" Ino, did you see that? " Sakura said, " I doubt the blind can miss it " she said, " he just winked, Naruto just winked at me " said Sakura in disbelief and horror of the fact that Ino might actually be right.
" I fear we might need to help our Hyuga princess out " said Ino gazing at the direction Naruto jogged away into. " And ourselves " Ino added.