Before the chapter begins, I'd like to make note that I'm going to start setting dates between any major time jumps (two weeks or more). If a date isn't listed, I've either forgotten to list it or less than two weeks have passed since the last scene. This is to keep the reader in the know when it comes to the general period. Keep in mind I don't know the date of all major events, but that won't matter as the plot diverges more and more. If I want the period to be unknown, I'll write something along the lines of "Unknown time" or "Month/Day, ?bNb/aNb)". Some of you may find it a little direct, but honestly sometimes it's annoying to even orient myself around the current period, considering all of the events I have in mind for the future.
—-
May 5th, 1 bNb (before Naruto birth)
Before heading home after training, I stopped by my friends' houses to invite them out for some dango. As a gesture of good will? Not really, I just wanted to see Gai, who I hadn't trained with or seen in almost three weeks, and take my sister out for dango as promised.
Not to be mean to my other friends, of course, though I had seen them much more than Gai as of late. I'd encountered Anko and Hayate while doing D-ranks in the past few weeks. Iruka was on my team, so I saw him plenty. I managed to catch Aoba and Raidou before they were sent off on a C-rank, as well. Obito accidentally helped Team 4 finish a D-rank by accident while he was doing his usual friendly deeds on the way to his team training, so I got to catch-up with him and hear about the usual 'Bakakashi' rant.
I couldn't actually be sure anyone would join us, considering how last minute I was about it. Sensei ruined any semblance of planning with her last minute decisions. Thankfully, though, Anko, Hayate, Obito and Rin agreed to come.
I wasn't surprised that Anko or Obito decided to come. One had a notorious weak spot for dango, and the other would take any excuse to slack off with Rin. All in all, it was a strange set of people meeting up. Two chuunin and a bunch of genin, all of us were a bunch of weirdos, too. Except for Hayate and Iruka.
To my disappointment, Gai told me that he would be training during that time, and training is his number one, meaning he couldn't make it. I can't say that I disapprove of his discipline, and it truthfully didn't really matter to me that he chose training over what many shinobi would see as a waste of time.
We agreed to meet up and train sometime soon, since it's been a while. I'm anxious to see if I stack up any better against the brute, and there's something that I need to talk to him about.
—-
"...These damn D-ranks're gonna rot my brain, ya hear?!" Anko exclaimed while slamming her fist on the table. Rin grimaced sympathetically at the raging girl. She looked at Rin and Obito who were sitting together and stood up, pointing at them.
"You guys're chuunins! How long didit take ya to get a more excitin' mission?" she asked hurriedly before realizing that she didn't know their names, "... Rito and Obin?" she guessed. I chuckled at Obito's offended expression. Rin thought it to be funny, though.
"Hehe, Anko-chan, was it?" Rin snickered brightly, "Because of the war, we didn't have long to wait to start with higher ranked missions. I think it depends on Sandaime-sama's and your sensei's choice." she hypothesized. "And our names are Obito and Rin!" Obito interrupted with a sigh.
Anko ignored Obito's correction. "Orochimaru-sensei ain't a softie that gets worried about a mission…" she said to herself, "and I'm plenty strong now! I can handle a lil' C-rank!" she ranted.
I brought my hand up to my chin, "Then maybe it won't be long, huh? I bet the Hokage is itching to get Orochimaru back on active duty. He's one of the three sannin, right?"
"Yup, he's a total badass! Scares everyone by just lookin' at 'em, and he's crazy strong! My whiney-ass team is all spooked by Sensei, but not me! I wanna be like 'im as a shinobi!" she bragged, absolutely obsessed with him.
Oh, yeah. Anko may be a gifted kunoichi, but she's something of an airhead. She won't realize that Orochimaru is just gonna take advantage of her and her team until it's too late. Even with her proximity with him, her bias over the first adult to acknowledge her will prevent her from spotting anything wrong about him.
I felt a poke and looked down. Izumi was next to me, having of course come along for her promised dango. Seems like she wanted it now.
"Oh yeah," Hayate bragged, "speaking of getting stronger, I've been getting a lot better with my sword recently, thanks to Aburame-sensei. He's been helping me with bug clones…." he continued on while I got up to order Izumi's dango. It's cool that I can use my own money for things like snacks, though food is about all I can afford with D-rank payment.
I kneeled down to the thinking girl, "Which one do you want? There's-" I was interrupted by a finger on my lip. "Lemme read it!" she demanded before taking a menu. She scrunched her eyebrows in concentration.
Kaa-san has taken time to teach the four year old how to read and write, as well as other basic skills like how to read a clock or count. Regardless of if she's going to the academy or a civilian school, why not teach her?
She lit up. "How'bout Mi-ta-ra-shi dango?" I nodded and smiled at her. "Kobayashi-san, we'd like two orders of Mitarashi Dango, please." I asked politely. Kobayashi Junko, who was apparently not related to kaa-san's old sensei, nodded and got to work. "Comin' right up!" she said.
Everyone was becoming stronger. Growing closer to the people I knew they would turn out. If nothing changed, Anko would get marked by Orochimaru. Hayate would be cut down for his loyalty to Konoha. Rin's death would be organized by Madara to manipulate Obito.
Most of the people at this table have terrible fates. Some would die. Not unless I made some changes, and the time I had to save even Obito and Rin was running out. I'll have to make some moves.
Kobayashi-san gave us the order with a warm smile. I paced back to our seating and overheard some kind of competition.
"Who cares about some snakes or a damn sword, I'm a chuunin!" Obito shouted, slamming his fist on the table. Was a minute all it took to get these idiots in an argument? "Nicely said, dunce! What're ya gonna do? Use your sharingan? Oh, wait!" Anko smirked back in retort. "I'm still an Uchiha! You think you can deflect a fireball when it's sent your way!?" Obito shot back. "A swordsman wouldn't even give you the time to form a hand seal, idiot!" Hayate mocked, gesturing a slash with an invisible sword.
Iruka and Rin were busy trying to play peacekeeper on each side, probably wondering how this happened. Izumi was loving it, though, turning her head enthusiastically to follow the banter, her eyes shining in awe.
This was probably the most specific she heard about the shinobi arts in a while. Kaa-san didn't like talking about her service much, and I seldom went into details when she asked me about things like training.
While I appreciate conversation at a gathering I organized, the whole point was to relax, not make a scene in a public place! Other customers and even people on the streets were staring at our group because of this. Isn't it embarrassing for them?
Enough's enough, and I have a good idea. I knocked on the table a couple more times than I thought would've been necessary to get their attention given our legal status as adults in this village.
"What!?" they all snapped their heads at me at once, outraged that I dared to stop their bickering. "You guys should take this up in sparring," I deadpanned, "that way we don't have to disrupt the quiet at a local business, you idiots!" I scolded them.
"In fact, let's organize ourselves a little group spar and see who comes out on top. We could make it a tradition." I pointed specifically at Anko and Obito. "That way, I can shut both of you up!" I said smugly. Taunting is a sure-fire way to .
"Fight! It's a fight!" Izumi cheered, throwing her arms up in celebration. "Shinobi battle!"
The offenders in question glanced at Izumi, and then turned to each other shortly, narrowing their eyes dangerously before turning back to me. "You're on!" they shouted at the same time. An alliance? Rin raised her hand excitedly, "Then, I'll come, too. The least I can do is provide everyone with some healing afterwards."
"No, Rin-san. If you come along you have to participate, too." I argued with a disappointed frown. She frowned back at me before nodding reluctantly, and I pretended to not notice the scornful look Obito shot at me.
I knew that Rin was actually quite a talented medic. At her young age, she could use the Mystical Palm technique pretty well, but what's more impressive than that happened during the Kannabi bridge incident. She was able, while exhausted, grieving and panicking, to transplant a Sharingan eye into Kakashi.
I might be wrong about this, but I think that she has more potential than Sakura as a medic. Now, if only I could prevent her from being kidnapped or killed in the first place. Isn't that a nice thought?
A group spar would be great practice for all of us. Not only will it give us more live combat experience, but it can be yet another tool to analyze our strengths and weaknesses and give us more direction for our future skill sets.
The rest of the get-together was peaceful in comparison, filled with idle chit chat. We got lost in conversation talking about usual shinobi things like training and missions, and of course gossip.
"But yah, Orochimaru-sensei told me that the son of the Senju head just entered the academy. 'pparently the little guy's some kinda prodigy." Anko commented thoughtfully, "Sensei says that the kid has an amazing heritage, his mom's an Uzumaki."
Nawaki has a kid, that's news to me. I guess it shouldn't surprise me considering I already know he was married to that unknown Uzumaki lady. "Do you know his name?" I asked Anko. She tilted her head and hummed. "Was it … Dokarama? No, wait. T'was Takarama. Sensei said that Tsunade-san's brother wanted'ta honor Lord First and Seconds' name."
An interesting tidbit, but something tells me I shouldn't get excited over more unknown variables this early on. I need to figure out what's caused these changes, but I don't know where to start.
On the other hand, Orochimaru doting on a Senju child who's apparently a genius does nothing but fill me with worry. I'm not some kind of hero who has to save every innocent person, but I won't lie and say that I don't care in the slightest about what people like Orochimaru and Danzo are doing.
As far as I'm concerned, a world without those two will only be better.
"Oh, I heard of that. A couple kids from the Clan are making a fuss about being his rival, but they say he doesn't even have to try," Obito said before grimacing, "reminds me of someone else…" he grumbled into his crossed arms.
I guess he'll graduate quickly, huh?" Iruka wondered out loud. That's true, if he's anything like Kakashi… "Maybe his clan will push his graduation back if they're worried for him." I added, "I mean, the Senju's numbers are only shrinking!" I mentioned it with some urgency.
"Ya, and he's only like 5." Anko offhandedly commented, taking a bite out of her 3rd dango stick of tonight. "Poor boy, he's awfully young, right?" Rin pondered, worried frown on her face. "Well, Sensei said he's real mature for his age." Anko said casually.
"He's as old as me!" Izumi shouted with her hands up, like a kindergartener saying 'pick me!', " I'm gunna meet him!" She buzzed with excitement.
Ah, true. If he's 5 now, he's around Izumi's age. She turns 5 in 10 months. "Yeah," I affirmed, looking down at her, "you might be able to meet him someday if you enter the Academy." Keyword is 'if', truth be told, I almost don't want Izumi to be a shinobi.
A potential acquaintance of Izumi's, huh?
—-
After a while, we all got sick of sitting around and eating sweets so we decided to call it quits. Between mine and Izumi's love for dango, I didn't have much of my own money left, not that I needed it very much.
But first, I have a very important conversation to have.
"Hey, Iruka-san," I gestured at him to come closer, "could you take Izumi back home for me?" I asked sheepishly, shooting a guilty smile at the exaggerated betrayed expression she made. Iruka tilted his head at me, "I don't mind, but why? Did something come up?"
I guess you could say that. "Kinda, but I need to have a chat with Anko alon-" I was interrupted with the others OoOoOoooOo-ing, "It's nothing like that!" I irritatedly snapped my head back towards Iruka, who's face held a smug grin. "Anyway, thanks for the favor. Bye-bye, Izumi! Cya tomorrow, Iruka-san!" I said cheerfully, which had Izumi sticking her tongue out at me.
Anko heard what I'd asked of Iruka earlier and was waiting for me, though a scowl occupied her. "So, 's this a confession? I like ya Daisuke, but not like tha-" she grumbled dismissively, before I interrupted her.
"No, there's something actually serious that I want to talk to you about." I took a deep breath as her face cleared in relief. "And what's that?" she asked impatiently, tapping her foot on the ground.
There was no way I could bring this up naturally. Well, maybe I could have brought it up while she was talking about her beloved Sensei back when we were sitting with everyone, but it didn't feel right to talk about something like this in front of others.
"I know it'll be hard to believe me, but just… try to keep an open mind, okay?" I sighed again as she impatiently tapped her feet, waiting for me to continue. "Your sensei, Orochimaru, he," ah, screw it, "you need to be wary of him, Anko."
She blinked at me, scrunching her eyebrows up in confusion, "Whaddya mean?" I leveled my gaze at her, grimacing a little under my hands. "The guy's dangerous. Don't ask me how I know, I won't answer honestly, but please be careful around him."
She narrowed her eyes and smirked, "You jealous or somethin'?" Frustration rushed through my limbs like a jolt of electricity. "I told you that I'm being serious!" I shouted at her, then shrunk back a little, "Sorry for yelling, but you need to listen to me, at least a little." her body tensed.
"Where'd this come from? Yer not the type ta believe any rumors." she asked defiantly, finally understanding what I'm saying. The ground was interesting, all of the sudden. "I can't explain myself, but those rumors, they aren't necessarily wrong." I warned gravely.
"Ya haven't even met him, dude!" she raised her voice in outrage, "Ya call me out with this solemn voice, run yer mouth about Orochimaru-sensei, and just ask me ta believe you?" She stomped and shot her index finger at my forehead. "Why don'tchu explain yourself, if you expect me to believe you!"
What am I supposed to say? That I come from a world where this story exists as a comic book and cartoon, so I know way too much about everything? The answer is obvious, no, I can't. If anyone important somehow found out about that specific part of me, then I don't wanna imagine what kind of experiments would be run on me, or how they would try to dig up information.
"You don't have to believe me now, but please," here goes nothing, "if he mentions anything about a Mark or Seal, and says he's going to share a some kind of power with you, then you have to get out of there and tell me, or even better, tell Lord Third or Lady Tsunade." I looked at her disbelieving face and shook my head.
Her face held a complicated expression, like she was fighting between two sides in her head. "Ya can't just say this kinda stuff, all of the sudden! Do ya realize what you're tellin' me to do?"
She gritted out in frustration.
"I know this is unfair to you. I know how much Orochimaru means to you, but I can't let you get hurt without at least trying to do something about it!" She flinched when I said 'get hurt'. Maybe I said too much. "Look, please just be a little skeptical of him, that's all I ask"
Stunned silence loomed over Anko as she stared at me with wide eyes. Her expression then morphed into a scowl as she stomped her foot. She was… thinking about what I'd said.
Tears brimmed around her eyes and her expression grew angrier, face reddening. "Shut up! Orochimaru-sensei, he's… he's-!" 'the first person to acknowledge me' went unsaid, "he's not that kinda guy! Why're you bein' so cryptic?! If this is so damn important fer ya, then say something concrete!" she roared at me, fury and desperation drowning her tone.
"I-..." I tried to say something, but a strangled sound came out instead. I grimaced at her, eyes begging her for understanding.
My face met the dirt after a force collided with my cheek. Suddenly all I tasted was dirt. I looked up at Anko's face. She was stomping away after.
"Anko! Wait!" I scrambled up to my feet in a hurry. "Please, just think about what I said!"
"Screw off, Daisuke! Don' talk to me!" she shouted back, before using a shunshin to get away.
I let out a disappointed sigh. That can't be good.
If I'm lucky, Orochimaru might not even be doing anything wrong in this timeline, with Tsunade staying in the village. If she caught wind that he was doing anything like in canon, she might actually kill him.
That being said, everyone is distracted by war, and Orochimaru is one of the sneakiest ninja in this village. He's the same guy who was able to evade all manhunts and spies trying to track him down for years. The only person who might know about any of his actions would be Danzo. The child-experimenting, ROOT-leading, sleazy Shimura Danzo.
The only thing I can hope is that Anko says nothing to Orochimaru about what I said. Hopefully he'd just dismiss me as the average kid who considers him creepy, even if she tells him about this.
I wiped blood from my lip, my cheek ached. That hurt.
—-
Instinct tells me that that is not going to end well. Though I suppose I don't need instinct to tell me that, considering I'm about to have a spar with Gai. I felt my arms and legs aching in advance, looking at his enthusiastic stretching from across the training grounds.
Gai and I haven't had time to train with each other recently. For the past month, something has always gotten in the way. Gai on a mission outside the village, team training for either of us, even my own puny D-ranks had managed to ruin our timing.
We were going to rectify that during the next little while. His sensei, Chouza, had put in a request to take a two weeks' break from active service under the guise of his team needing extra training. Apparently what actually happened, according to Gai, is that Ebisu and Shiranui Genma have been complaining to their sensei about their workload, and the Akimichi head had no more patience in listening to their whining.
It's kinda funny to me. Team 7 would whine to their sensei and Hokage about the opposite problem at some point. Differences in ambition? Or maybe they were overworked? The latter is probably true, not that I would know from Gai's biased perspective, the guy's (no pun intended) middle name is 'Hard Work'.
"Are you awake, Daisuke-kun? You have been staring at me for the last 10 seconds!" Gai shouted from a distance. Oh yeah, a spar was happening. "Yeah! Sorry! We can start now!" I shouted back, slipping into my stance.
With an unmistakable shared glance, the spar began. Gai opted for a full-on spar, which meant that everything goes, including ninjutsu. Gai may completely outclass me in taijutsu, but hopefully I could make up for it.
"Dynamic Entry!" Gai spun towards me using a signature of his. I sidestepped to the side to avoid it, weaving familiar hand seals. I took in a deep breath and Gai seemed to recognize the jutsu, quickly retreating to avoid the incoming fireball.
The fireball roared forward, but I'd lost sight of Gai because of it. Not good. I scrambled to find him, but despite the open field, I couldn't see him anywhere around me. I heard wind whistling above me. Shit!
Gai was sailing towards me, right leg rushing down towards my head. I hurriedly held up both of my arms to block the Guillotine drop-esque kick. The impact made my arms cry out in pain, but this was the type of pain I'd been made used to. The force had my heels digging into the ground under me.
Gai's mouth formed a grin, which was probably not a good sign for me. His right leg pushed off my guard, and he landed in front of me. It allowed him to get his footing back. Before I could blink, he had a punched aimed at my temple. Making use of the distance, I hastily formed a snake seal, instantly sinking me underground with the Hidden Mole jutsu to dodge his punch.
Now underground, I sent 4 regular clones back up if only to distract Gai for a fraction of a second, and made my way up to Gai's direction, expecting to find his feet. Find his feet I did, only in the form of another kick aimed at my face.
I hastily substituted with a branch using the Substitution jutsu. Gai was relentless and was already on a mad dash to my direction. I took out a kunai and threw it at his head, causing him to slide down to avoid it, giving me the chance to get closer.
Training with Tsume-sensei had to have improved my reflexes and my taijutsu skills. If you want a fight, Gai, then I'll see to it to give you one. While Gai was still sliding towards me, I launched a punch from my right, aiming for his now lowered jaw. He raised his arm up to parry the blow and tried to sweep my legs down. I jumped to avoid his sweeping kick and spun my body to kick his side, but he closed the distance too fast and shoved me away from him.
Even after all of this training, I still get this treatment in a taijutsu encounter, huh? He must've gotten stronger, faster than I did. My hands moved to weave hand seals, but I was interrupted by Gai appearing in front of me again. He's faster than before…!
I struggled to block and dodge the next couple of strikes but I couldn't make any distance. With each blow, pain exploded through my limbs, and I'm pretty sure that I just lost feeling of my forearm for a second there.
The thing about Gai is that he has an insane battle sense and the strength of someone double his size. Even if you could keep openings to a minimum, you're bound to fight a losing battle as your bones rattle and limbs ache.
A blocked uppercut aimed at my chin managed to hurt both of my arms enough for the pain to prevent me from reacting to a heel kick aimed at my abdomen. Even with my core flexed, the air was knocked right out of me. I may have distance now, but I can't use a Fire Jutsu like this!
Gai made eye contact with me and instantly decided that the fight wasn't over from my expression. I need something to stop his advance.
Well, here goes nothing. I concentrated on the chakra in my stomach as I completed the necessary hand seals for the Stone Pistol jutsu. Rather than feeding chakra into the Earth that I formed in my stomach, much like I did for Fire Style, I condensed my chakra as much as I could. I could feel a stone take proper form. This was it!
The high-powered stone flew out of my mouth at a higher speed than I could throw a kunai, which Gai didn't expect. The jutsu, which I aimed at his chest, managed to pelt his ribs. Thankfully my first successful attempt at the jutsu lacked the power to pierce him, but judging by the pain on Gai's face, it hurt much more than one of my punches would have.
I needed to take the opportunity to hit him. Gai may have been incredibly fast - faster than me - but I had trained with Gai for years, and my speed was also nothing to scoff at, especially considering I was lighter and smaller than Gai due to our age difference. I took an enormous breath of air and in no time I was up in his face.
I had no delusions that I could actually beat Gai in a taijutsu confrontation, but I didn't plan to play fair. I targeted where my Stone Pistol jutsu had landed, and I managed to shove my shoulder into his wound, which had Gai hissing in pain.
I desperately threw attacks at Gai after that, which forced him on the defensive. No matter how hard I tried, he wouldn't let me near his ribs again. I was nonetheless happy to force him to go on the defensive.
It was obvious that the pain was fading for him, though. He'll get a nasty blue bruise and maybe some scratched up skin, but adrenaline quickly dulled most of the pain. A punch slipped through my guard and hit my solar plexus, leaving me gaspingfor air for the second time in this fight.
I bit down on my lip and tried to shake off the injury, but by the time I looked up, there was a kunai against my neck.
I shot a pained smile at Gai. "You win." I said with my hands up, satisfied with the spar. I took the hand he offered me to stand up. "That was a great spar! And long overdue! I am glad to see that you haven't been slacking off, Daisuke-kun."
I dusted off my clothes, "How could I slack off, with how much you beat me up during our matches?" I chuckled at his widening smile. "That jutsu was quite formidable. What was it?" he asked, feeling up his wound and wincing at his own touch.
"It's the Stone Pistol jutsu. It's actually the first time I managed to use it. Not bad for a first try, huh?" Gai slapped me on the back. " 'Not bad' is an understatement, Daisuke-kun! I haven't felt that much pain in a while!"
"Sorry, Sorry!" I laughed guiltily after he waved off my concern. "It's been too long, Gai. I'm glad we're gonna be training together more often again." He nodded at me. "That being said, I'd like to add another person to our training." I explained with my index finger raised. He tilted his head at me.
The person doesn't know he's coming, I'm gonna drag him out of his bed with Gai's help if I have to.
"I don't mind! It is always better to train with others! So who do you propose, Daisuke-kun? A teammate of yours, perhaps?" he guessed, voice brimming with excitement.
"Uchiha Obito!" I answered with my own excitement. "Kakashi's teammate? I didn't know the two of you were on friendly terms." he responded, clueless. Did he seriously not see me staying with Obito on several occasions after many of his own challenges to Kakashi? This guy's attention span…
"Yeah, Gai." I deadpanned, "We're on 'friendly terms'. And he's gonna train with us whether he wants to or not."
I know I've put some effort into helping Obito already, but it's not an understatement to say that almost all of the world's future problems will come directly from the results of the Kannabi bridge. I'm done with taking the sidelines so much. Obito's gonna be ready for that damn mission.
Gai was happy to hear about another training partner. "I'm glad to give anyone the opportunity to grow into a more youthful version of themselves!" he looked over to me, "Does he have any goals in particular?"
"He wants to become the Hokage, and I think he has the potential to become incredibly strong."
To make change, I can't just be a reactive force. I can't wait for these events to happen, only relying on myself and my foreknowledge at the last second. I knew of a number of examples where a problem could've been solved if only the person had chosen to get support in times of need.
The person who appeared in my mind first was Itachi, who was forced to make possibly the worst decision ever, because of his reluctance to properly communicate with the Uchiha and the Hokage, a decision that he would go on to regret and try to rectify even in death.
Ah screw it, "Or rather, I know how strong he will be." I blurted out, nervously fidgeting. Gai shot me a confused look, "You are that familiar with his abilities?" he asked. I shook my head.
"That's not what I meant," I took a deep breath. I could think of ways this would go bad, but Gai is one of the safest people to tell this to, "Look, I don't really know where to begin, so I'll just come out with it."
"You can tell me anything! he said, patting my shoulder, "Is something the matter?"
"I'm not from here." I said cautiously, "And I don't mean I'm not from Konoha or the Land of Fire. I mean that I'm not originally from the Elemental Nations to begin with. This is the second life I've lived." I explained anxiously, my tongue felt as heavy as rock.
The words felt like ice freezing its way out of my stomach into my throat. My hands trembled in anticipation. What is he gonna say to that? I watched his passive face. He didn't… look like he had something to say.
After a short silence, Gai opened his mouth. "Are you going to continue with what you had to tell me?"
"W-wait. Gai, you heard what I said, right?" my voice was shaking.
"Yes! You are telling me that you came from another world. I thought your statement was still going somewhere, though." he explained with a nod. "So go on, my friend."
"You aren't doubting me? Do you realize what I told you? Doesn't it sound ridiculous, like I'm trying to l-lie to you?!" I shouted desperately for an answer.
Gai's lips drifted into a shiny grin. "Daisuke-kun, don't you remember when you told me you weren't friends with liars?" He grabbed my shoulders and shook me. "It goes both ways! A man's promise is the foundation of Youth!"
I stared at him, speechless. "You believe me? Just like that?"
"Yes!" he said with a thumbs up. "So Daisuke-kun, what were you going to tell me?" I shook myself out of my nervousness. I guess there's a reason I wanted to open up to Gai. Maybe reincarnation is an easier pill to swallow in a world like this, who knows.
Am I being pranked or something? I feel like he should be urging me not to lie pointlessly. I thought this was going to be dramatic. I expected a gasp, a look of surprise, at least. I knew Gai would be one of the safest people to say this to, but I couldn't imagine it being so easy.
"R-right." I regained my words, "In my previous life, I had the opportunity to observe this world from several limited perspectives." I explained. I don't think I will ever admit to anyone that I watched and read the history of this world through anime and manga.
Gai's expression held some faint curiosity. "What does that mean?" he asked. "It means that I have a certain amount of foreknowledge. In other words, my eyes sailed up to meet his gaze, "I know about the future."
His eyes widened in surprise as they sparkled in realization. Two and two came together in his head. "Obito-kun has something to do with the future," he stated blandly. My grimace gave away that answer.
"The future that I know is not necessarily a bad one, in the long run, at least. It leads to the most peaceful era that the shinobi world has ever seen, after all."
"But?" Gai asked, sensing an incoming twist.
"But not before terrible things happen. Out of all of my friends and family, only you, Iruka and Anko will survive." I stated gravely, "No matter how selfish it sounds, I would rather change their fates and let the world change than let them die."
His eyes held some resolve as he offered a handshake. "Yosh, Daisuke-kun! How can we save everyone?" I smiled in relief and shook his hand.
I told him about the Kannabi bridge incident. About how Obito would survive, witness Rin's death and become Tobi, which would eventually lead to the Nine Tails' attack and the Uchiha Massacre. I told him shortly about Madara's plan and the Fourth Great Ninja War, and I told him… about his father's death.
The whole explanation colored Gai all different types of surprised, angry and scared. His body stiffened each time Obito was mentioned, like he was in disbelief that the goofy Obito he knew could cause so much pain.
"We cannot let that happen to tou-san," Gai gritted out. His expression was more of a combination of nervousness and resoluteness than anger. "Don't worry. We have a few years until it happens. We'll find a way to save him. "
The tension in Gai's shoulders lessened to some degree. "I-I suppose you are right, Daisuke-kun." he breathed out in an attempt to calm down, "I assume that our plan is to captivate Obito's heart and prepare him for this upcoming mission."
Preventing Obito's capture may have the added effect of delaying the Nine-Tails' attack, because Madara, or rather Zetsu, wouldn't know about Kushina's pregnancy without Tobi stalking Kakashi. It probably wouldn't outright prevent an attack, but it should, at least logically, delay it.
"We only have a few months' time at most to train Obito, and we need to help him hone two of his skills in specific;" I held my two of my fingers up, "One, his speed. He's gonna need to be able to reach Nohara-san quickly or be able to retreat with his team quickly." I put down my middle finger, "And two, his reflexes and detection skills. If he can protect Rin and avoid injury, Madara will have no chance to capture anyone. It's also a good idea to improve his genjutsu awareness and dispelling skills, but I have no skills in genjutsu, we're gonna need some outside help. I don't think it's as important, considering Kakashi's on their team."
He considered what I said with a thinker's face. "Do you know anyone who can help?" he asked. I had a few ideas of trustworthy people, though I would have to prove my knowledge to them. "I'm not sure if it's possible in the near future, but I plan to recruit Uchiha Itachi, Uchiha Shisui and Namikaze Minato."
"Itachi, he is the boy who…" he shuttered, "...would eliminate the Uchiha clan, right?"
I nodded, "Yes, but there is more behind that story than I explained. He's actually a pacifist and has the same long-term goal as me, but he's only as old as my sister right now. I don't plan to meet him for a few years."
God, that sounds creepy.
"I see that you have put a lot of thought behind these plans," he praised, and how could I not? I've had almost 8 years to think. "Do you have everything planned out?"
By no means have I planned everything out. I can't plan much past the future, considering everything that changes if Kannabi is avoided. "The timeline I was able to observe is largely the same as this one, but there are a few key differences, apart from my existence, of course."
"Really?" he asked, raising an eyebrow after hearing the 'my existence' part. He expected me to also exist in the other timeline, too?
I nodded for what felt like the millionth time. "Tsunade-sama, you know her, right?" He ushered out an excited 'of course!', "In the timeline I'm familiar with, she's abandoned the village by now." He shrunk back from his excitement. I mean, who wouldn't. Konoha's head of the Medic Corps and the head of its Hospital, leaving the village she's done so much for? Impossible.
"Originally, she left the village because of overwhelming grief. Many of her clan were killed off the in war, but the final nail in the coffin were the deaths of her partner Katou Dan and Senju Nawaki."
Gai's mind quickly pieced it together as his realization showed on his face.
"As you know, Nawaki-sama is still alive, even if he's permanently injured. I don't see this as a negative outcome, but I think the factors contributing to his survival and my reincarnation are linked somehow. There must be a common denominator there somewhere."
It was a theory of mine. The only two differences in this timeline, from what I could tell, seemed to be my existence and Nawaki's survival. Something delayed his entry into that trapped building.
It would be a coincidence. It could be a force of nature. It could be just about anything. Perhaps the divergence goes further back than I realized. It's something that's made me anxious for a while. In a world where I should know what's coming, there's an unknown that could derail everything.
"Whatever it is, Daisuke-kun, we will do something about it together!" Gai exclaimed, noticing my growing nervousness. I've gotta make that less obvious. "Don't get nervous now, Daisuke! The Springtime of Youth will never fail us!" He chucked his arm around my shoulders.
I smiled fondly at Gai. "You're right. Thanks, Gai."
"No problem at all, Da-," He hesitated and scrunched his eyebrows. "You had another name, did you not? During your last life."
I chuckled. How considerate. "Yeah, it was Dean."
"Dinu?" he made a face as he tried to mimic the foreign sounds.
"Close enough, but you don't have to call me that. I've… already accepted that I died once, you know?" I smiled remorsefully at Gai. "I'm Uchiha Daisuke now. Dean died nine years ago."
He muttered a silent 'I see…' and didn't pry any further. "So, how old are you, Daisuke-kun?" I brought a hand to my chin. Hmmm, I died at 18, so… "I'm about 27 years old, mentally. I'm already 27, huh? Time flies."
Many shinobi die before reaching their 20's. Those in their late twenties don't exactly have pretty chances for survival. Hell, 27 might be old in Gai's eyes, imagine that! I nearly laughed at the thought.
"The Springtime of Youth never ends as long as you keep moving forward! You, too, are Youthful, Daisuke-kun, and don't forget that your body is still 9 years old!"
His statement brought a genuine smile to my face. I'm glad Gai is my friend. "Can't argue with that logic,"
There's no way I can fail now. I've got Konoha's Green Beast in my corner, after all.
—-
"You're coming with us, Obito!" I laughed maniacally, watching Gai chuck him over his shoulder. Obito struggled but couldn't get free of Gai's tight grip. "What the hell are you guys doing!?" Obito screamed wildly.
Kakashi was shocked at seeing Gai arrive to not challenge him, but quickly shook it off in relief. The blonde jounin was smiling sheepishly at us. Yeah, he didn't care either. Well, probably because their team training is already over. I imagine he sensed us while we were camping out in the trees.
"Daisuke!? Maito-san?! What are you two doing?!" she shouted in alarm. I shot a reassuring smile at her. "Nohara-san, we'll be taking him! This'll be good for him, promise!". She frowned at me thoughtfully for a second, then she shrugged and turned towards her sensei and teammate.
"Sensei, Kakashi! Stop them!" Obito pleaded but was easily ignored. "Rin, tell them to put me down!" his desperate whining raised in pitch at the last syllable. She turned around with a wide smile plastered over her face. "Have fun, boys!" she advised pleasantly.
"NOOOOOoooooo!" his dramatic yelping filled the air.
(several minutes later)
Obito had exerted himself trying to break free. "What…" he said in between breaths, "What- Where did you guys take me!?" he demanded, trying to seem more intimidating despite his weariness.
Gai wouldn't have normally been able to just take him like that so easily, but we strategically waited until his group training was over. He would be exhausted after that, and the rest of his team would be less likely to stop us. Although, Gai had some kind of talent when it came to forcing people to train.
"Training grounds 19, but that's besides the point," I glanced at Gai, "wanna do the honors of explaining?" I asked him. He nodded back.
"You may be wondering how we could possibly kidnap you, considering how truly villainous and unyouthful it is," Gai started. "So you admit it-", Obito was ignored by Gai continuing at a higher volume, "However, a necessary evil must be permitted in important times! I couldn't keep still after hearing of Uchiha Obito's Youthful desire to ascend to the ranks of Hokage!" he explained in his usual eccentric way.
"So we're gonna help you, Obito. Forcefully or not." I added with a devious smile at the end. "Wait, you guys can't just decide that for me! It's true that I wanna be Hokage, but…" he complained. It's whining all the time with this kid!
"Obito, think about it," I put on a thoughtful face, which slowly grew devious as I spoke, "don't you think that after some extra training, you could maybe beat Kakashi?" Obito and Gai flinched for different reasons, "It might be enough to make Rin fall for you! Come on, Obito!"
His eyes widened before he made a giddy smile. Oh, he was so in.
He faked an irritated expression as soon as he realized he was smiling. "Fine! Even I can work hard for my goal!" Gai offered Obito a hand. "That's the spirit, Obito-kun! Let us begin!" Obito smirked and took his hand. "What're we waiting for?"
–
As Gai and I discussed, we wanted to focus on improving Obito's speed, reflexes and detection skills. Speed and endurance drills along with fast-twitch muscle training in the legs were great for the speed aspect. Another way to help develop his speed and reflexes, was, well…
"AAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Obito screamed, narrowly avoiding attacks from me and Gai. Hopefully he's screaming because the situation is not life-threatening. As you can tell, Gai and I have decided to brute force part of the training. By attacking him.
It was a little more complicated than that, obviously. We were hiding our presence and creeping up on him when he wasn't running, making sure he was used to a state of tenseness. He needed to be used to keeping his senses spread out.
Every once in a while, we would attack him and chase him around… It seems pretty primitive, yeah, but this kind of training works pretty well. A real experience will be better than a mock exercise, says Gai. If there's anyone who knows how to train, it would be Gai.
And it's not like we didn't do any traditional training. I loaned him the chakra weights that Gai gave me and we did some exercises and drills. He wore them while running from us, too.
I wasn't participating as much as Gai, besides occasionally throwing Earth Release and Fire Release techniques at Obito, but Gai knew exactly what level to limit himself at. A level where our unfortunate victim could barely keep up with. Functioning as a shinobi while teetering on the edge of exhaustion, being forced to remain aware and take action at the right time. It's a skill that shinobi have to get used to at some point.
And for a chuunin, Obito was surprisingly lacking in the discipline department. He makes up for it in determination and resilience during the Kannabi bridge mission, yet the mission still ends in tragedy. Not this time, though.
By the end of the day, Obito was laying on the ground, looking pretty awful. He had scratches and bruises littering his body, having dodged attacks ranging from flying kicks to fireballs to shuriken throws. The training could be called pretty intense by some. Gai probably saw the intensity as standard, though.
"A-are we done yet?" Obito asked, desperately looking at us for the answer 'yes. I looked to the slowly setting sun. "We've been at it for a few hours, so it's probably for the best if you get some rest." Gai was disappointed at my judgment. I sighed, "Look, he's gonna do this tomorrow too," I explained to Gai, making Obito wince, "He'll need a few days to get used to this."
"I suppose that makes sense." He turned to the fallen Uchiha, "Obito-kun, do not fret! We will get you up to par in no time!" the taijutsu master declared with a thumbs up, not realizing that he accidentally insulted Obito, who scowled right back at him. He was right, though. Obito was too focused on his ninjutsu, leaving his taijutsu and overall physical attributes less developed than they should be.
"You guys, how long do you plan to do this for me?" Obito asked, gulping in anticipation. Hard training it was, but he had to realize its value. "For a few months, at least." I answered casually, stretching my shoulders.
He frowned at us, "It's weird," Obito started, scratching his face nervously, "I mean, to everyone else I'm just a dunce. No one thinks I'm even a proper shinobi, let alone Hokage material. Except you guys. And Rin, maybe." he stared at the two of us, surprisingly speaking seriously. Not so typical of the chuunin. "What makes you two certain that I can do it? Become the Hokage. Why bother wasting time trying to help someone like me?"
Me and Gai looked at each other for a second. It's true that I probably wouldn't try to bother helping him in my free time if I didn't know about the future. It's true that he's kind of an idiot, undisciplined and loud. Kind of like Naruto, but more pathetic. It's true that he's kind of a crybaby.
Wow, I am actually mentally insulting a kid right now.
That aside, even without my foreknowledge, Obito has something special. It's not his potential as a shinobi. Not (necessarily) his Mangekyo Sharingan's ability. It's something that even the likes of Madara spotted, and the reason he would choose to manipulate Obito.
"... It's your kindness, Obito." I finally said. He flinched, taken aback. "Don't think I don't know why you're late to your training every day, or how much you care for everyone around you, or how much you love Rin. The front of annoyance and anger that you display doesn't fool me."
Gai looked pleased, like he'd reevaluated his opinion of Obito. Obviously, I should've told him about this side of Obito. I kinda just assumed it was obvious.
"A Hokage has to be strong, sure, but a Hokage has to be empathetic and caring. It's the difference between a leader and a tyrant." I explained, passionately clenching my fist. "You're the right man for the job. There aren't a lot of shinobi, let alone people who act like you."
Obito's mouth gaped. He opened and closed it, looking for a response. I could spot tears licking the corners of his eyes. "I won't let you down." he finally said, determination shining in his demeanor.
Damn right you won't.
—-
June 13th, 1bNb
It has not been long at all since my graduation in late April. Tsume-sensei has done a lot to prepare us for shinobi life. She mentioned it before, that she wanted to ensure that we were ready before we were sent to war.
A month of intense training, especially for genin, could really whip us into shape. It was kind of like 'newbie gains'. Growth, for unskilled academy graduates, could be exponential for the first few months. As a hero from a certain story said, a Level 1 can progress much faster than a Level 50.
I guess the analogy applies poorly to this situation, but what I'm trying to say is that following the beginning of our Inuzuka Sensei's training, we have all gotten quite a bit stronger.
Especially Iruka, who was the weakest of us three.
A fist sailed towards my head. The punch was much slower than what I was used to, having fought both Gai and Tsume-sensei. I planned to block it as I would a normal punch, but a smirk on Iruka's face warned me of something else.
I jumped back instead, watching Iruka's smirk turn into a disappointed frown. I put my hands together in a Tiger seal. "Kai." I whispered to myself, watching as Iruka's position shifted about 20 centimeters to the right.
Iruka had been picking up genjutsu in the last month, and it was really irritating and impressive at the same time. Our teacher never fell for any genjutsu that Iruka would cast, but Shimada and I found ourselves getting hit by a punch we thought we dodged, running into trees, even getting cut by some kunai that we had 'deflected'. Iruka's genjutsu weren't always successful, but we were forced to remain on our toes because of it.
Oh yeah, and he'd also gotten physically stronger. He leaped at me with his fist cocked back. My hands flashed with three seals. 'Earth Style: Earth Clone Jutsu!' I said internally, forming the necessary seals.
Sensei had been happy to see that I'd finally figured out the Stone Pistol jutsu, and was happy to get me started on this jutsu. A clone reached Iruka dove for his feet, dissolving into stone to prevent him from moving easily. 3 Earth Clones and myself surrounded Iruka from all sides. "Give up, Iruka-san! Or else!" our hands flew through familiar seals. Iruka recognized them, too, judging from the widening of his eyes.
It was a bluff. My earth clones could use some ninjutsu, but the best I'd managed with them were weaker versions of the Stone Pistol jutsu, which Iruka had seen me do. From his perspective, I was about to shoot four fireballs at him at once. Considering his feet were ensnared with stone, he had no chance to substitute with a nearby object.
Heh, like I could do that with these shoddy clones. The same clones that collapse after a fast enough kunai hits them, or with a well placed strike to a vital area.
"Shit! I yield!" Iruka announced without much disappointment. I let the chakra built up in my chest flow back into my tenketsu and coils as I exhaled deeply. I held my hand out in a seal of reconciliation. He returned it. "Good match, but for the record, those clones could not use Fireball jutsu." He scowled at me good naturedly. "I'll catch up soon…" he sighed, shaking his head.
Tsume-sensei approached from the spot she'd been watching us from. "Not a horrible spar, all in all, but…" she faced Iruka, "Scarface, 'ye underestimate yerself too much. Learn when ta give and when ta give it yer all.", then she faced me, "Mophead, stop relyin' so much on ninjutsu. It's a waste of yer well built body. You could give a newbie chuunin a run fer their money in a foot race."
Iruka and I nodded at her advice, ignoring the nicknames. Despite knowing our names now, it didn't seem like she wanted to use them. The advice was good advice, but it was easier said than done. Iruka and I had some nasty habits in our fighting styles.
Sensei took a second to sniff the air, and then faced a tree. "Diva, get out 'ere! Big news!" she shouted. The trees shook a little before Shimada appeared before us with an apologetic face, aimed at sensei.
"Yesterday, the old m-, 'er, the Hokage asked me if my pups were ready fer real combat." she grinned at us, "and I said that 'ye were."
We all stared at her in anticipation, processing her words. Our first real mission. A swirl of emotions swam through my body, fear, excitement, nervousness, pride. I'm sure the other two were feeling something similar.
"It's a C-rank, of course." I breathed a sigh of relief, eliciting a glare from Shimada. "A mission 'ta deliver some intelligence to a Konoha outpost. Fairly close to tha village, so don't shit 'tcherselves. Rest up good tonight, and meet by the village gates at 6 o'clock sharp."
And just like that, she vanished, leaving behind leaves in a shunshin typical of all Konoha jounin.
My first real mission. Nothing bad will happen, right?
—-
Hello everyone. Sorry for the late update, it's been almost two months I believe. I don't have much of an excuse for the late update, but I do have a job now. The job isn't entirely to blame for my lateness, I've just found it difficult to write more important moments and I often skipped days where I should've at least written a page or two. I tried to make this one a bit longer than the ones before to make up for it. I also planned to write an OMAKE for team 4's graduation photo, but I have to sleep soon and I kinda want to upload the chapter ASAP, so I'll save it for another time. This chapter clocks in at about 8400 words or so, but I didn't count exactly.
I wanted to start moving to plot along after so long. I'm still not sure how to bring up and explore certain plot points, so tell me what you thought. We had a few important things happen. A confrontation with Anko, Gai finally learns about Daisuke's past life, Obito's training, and the team's first C-ranked mission.
The original draft of the Anko part had Anko basically being like "I believe you, Daisuke!" and accepting caution about Orochimaru, but after a day of thinking, I found that it would be really stupid, considering Anko's blind following of Orochimaru in canon and how the story portrays Anko as a kid who was utterly glued to the man.
So not only was it out of character, but who the hell would listen to a dumbass kid awkwardly and vaguely warning you about the most important adult in your life? No one. At the moment, Anko wants nothing to do with Daisuke.
I don't know if you guys thought the Gai part played out well, but I tried to write Gai's character as a trusting and caring friend into it, while also playing into previous times of vulnerability between the two friends.
I hope it doesn't seem too bullshit or crack to you guys.
You may have noticed that Shimada and Obito didn't get an update after the tiny timeskip. I wanted to save it for next chapter, during the mission, and a POV section from Obito. I don't want to alarm you guys, but I plan for Kannabi bridge to take place around Mid-Late July, which corresponds roughly to canon. We will move forward with the assumption that it IS the canon time, since I'm pretty sure there was never a date for the event. Get ready for that one, probably in chapter 13. There's a lot to cover in the next chapter.
