~NRK~
The news had spread like wildfire a single hour later.
That same amount of time found Naruto groaning against his desk as his entire friend group sat in the Freshmen classroom along with his parents, Utahime, Ieiri, and Riko while principal Yoshinobu stood before the blonde and Kokichi's desks.
The old Sorcerer's eyes never moved from the two, his gaze mostly focused on the blonde as Naruto's phone rang.
"Thmere hme ims," the monkey boy said, muffled by his desk as he pulled out his phone and answered it on speaker. "Ymou're Mon."
-Sup, cuz! What's this craziness you got involved in this time?- Satoru Gojou asked over the line. -The higher-ups are losing their freaking minds and, while I love it, I'm just confused on what's going on so I figured I'd go to my first clue and called you-
Naruto handed the phone to Kokichi as his snores began to come from his desk.
Taking it gently, Kokichi rubbed the back of his head.
~NRK~
Satoru raised a brow as he sat on the floor of the dojo, most of the student body of Tokyo High surrounding him along with Yagamichi, Kuroi, Nanami, and Kuma.
Listening to this so-called healed Heavenly Restricted boy, Satoru had one thing to say.
"Man, that's crazy! Next thing you know, he'll be on the news as a miracle healer!" The Strongest said with a look of wonder before the phone was snatched out of his hands. "Rude!"
"Please, do the usual," Yagamichi said into the phone. "... Ah, yes, Kokichi-kun that means to ignore him."
-I… Yes?- The healed young man said unsurely. -The point stands, that's why things are so volatile for Naruto-kun at the moment. I'm the reason-
Yuta tilted his head at that. "Is… Is there such a big difference between normal healing and what Kokichi-kun dealt with?" He asked the others.
"I mean," Ino tried to find the right words. "I think we'd have to ask Nanami or the others though, I guess… I guess it's because of Heavenly Restriction?" He shrugged as Megumi nodded.
"That seems to be the big part of it," he said as cupped his chin. "Aniki's 'element' must be the reason. Otherwise, why wouldn't Kokichi-senpai have gotten healed before?"
-Correct, Megumi-kun- Kokichi said. -And, even then, this isn't permanent but it's more than I ever expected. I can't thank Naruto-kun enough-
Yuta smiled as Maki smirked. "I'm glad, Naruto-kun always seems to be going around to different places and helping people," he said as Rika formed behind him and nodded. "Though, how serious is this, really?" He asked Satoru who hummed.
"I'm honestly not sure. In the grand scheme of things, this should be significant but it's the scope I'm unsure about," how 'far' did this go, basically?
What did this reveal about Naruto's healing abilities? Beyond the fact that they weren't like normal positive energy/Reversed Curse Technique?
Satoru was sure Ino had a point about this being deeply tied to Heavenly Restrictions and their rules but the Gojou didn't see what 'line' this crossed or not.
"Tuna mayo," Toge said with a cupped chin, Panda humming at the idea.
"If big bro's ability to heal is great enough to, for a bit, fend off Heavenly Restriction, would that be useful to anyone, specifically?" The cursed corpse puppet asked.
Tsumiki considered the idea, her frog shikigami on her shoulder while one of Megumi's Kage Usagi sat in her lap. "Well… Wouldn't this make him valuable regardless?" She offered the group. "By this point, Naruto-kun was important beforehand but wouldn't this just make him more so? I don't think there's anything really 'special' to note, he's just proving he's more of an asset to the Jujutsu World than anything else."
Kuroi considered it.
-I don't think she's wrong- Riko said. -Still, um, h-hey, principal…-
-The higher-ups have simply asked to get reports on the matter. Boy- A muffled groan came over the line, likely from Naruto. -What exactly did you seek by doing this?-
-Mm?- Naruto made a confused sound. -I don't follow-
-The higher-ups would like to know what you wished to learn by healing Kokichi Muta. No more, no less, and they asked if you did learn anything-
Naruto hummed for a bit before giving him an answer that had Satoru smirking.
-Um, I was doing it to see if I couldn't help out Kichi- Naruto said simply. -It doesn't really get more complicated than that-
-?-
Maki snickered. "Sounds like the knucklehead," she said as Tsumiki giggled.
"It does," she grinned.
~NRK~
Yoshinobu raised a brow at the yawning blonde.
"I-It wasn't really about anything else," Naruto groaned quietly. "He's my friend, he wanted to be healed, it's not that complicated," the blonde Gojou said as Mai smirked while Todou wore a look of triumph.
"That's basically who he is, Yoshinobu-kocho," Momo grinned as Noritoshi nodded with a smile.
The old Sorcerer hummed as Utahime smiled encouragingly. 'The boy's likely going to cause waves,' out of kindness no less.
Not to say he wished the boy ill will, not at all, he held no strong feelings about the blonde but he wasn't sure if the boy was heading down a proper path or one strewn with hazards.
'They'll likely get a bit antsy,' nothing he could do about it, the blonde just seemed like an altruistic sort. "Hmph, very well then, I'll inform them of your testimony," he turned to Kokichi. "And what of you, Kokichi-shounen? Your body wasn't previously functional, what now? Any side effects?"
Kokichi blushed a bit but shook his head. "Naruto-kun's already helped me test out my limits," he explained. "At present, like this, I'm not much stronger than a Semi-Grade 2 and can handle one puppet at a time."
Yoshinobu stroked his beard. 'Ah, a trade-off then?' Well, if the boy was just inexperienced, he'd likely be able to at least hit Grade 2.
If he was as skilled as Yoshinobu felt? He was sure Kokichi could reach his previous rank once more.
Time would tell.
So, as the man walked out to go and inform their superiors, Mai got an idea.
"Ya know?" She began with a grin as the others perked up. "Yo, Kokichi, you don't have normal clothes, do ya?" Mai smirked as Kokichi froze while Kasumi gasped.
"Oh my God, YES! Let's design him a wardrobe!" She grinned excitedly as the puppet-user blushed bright red.
"L-Let's not go too far with t-" Kasumi turned her glimmering eyes towards him and Kokichi's words died in his throat. 'I have become error.'
~NRK~
Going around the streets outside of Kyoto High was a downright mesmerizing experience for Kokichi.
"I-It's so… It's rather enchanting," he said with a look around, eyes going every which way with a sort of fascination only a restricted boy like he could have. "The smells, the number of people," his eyes went up to small, weak, floating figures coming and going every now and then. "And even the cursed spirits are just… It's all so much."
"You'll have to get used to it!" Kasumi grinned as he blushed again, Naruto patting his back with a chuckle. "Oh! Actually, you have to budget for food and items, Kokichi-kun, it's like a whole different world out here," she whispered sagely as he sweatdropped… Before realizing, oh God.
She was RIGHT!
"I-I didn't… T-That's a new consideration!" He whispered in shock as she nodded rapidly, Momo rolling her eyes at him with a smirk. "Food… I-I haven't had normal food in a long time," and hopefully he'd be able to consume it. "... I'm going to consume more herbs than any man on earth," Kokichi declared with fire in his eyes.
"Ah, yes, the healthy path," Noritoshi smiled. "I can offer some insight into a lot of herbal coffees and some teas."
"That sounds perfect, Noritoshi-kun."
They talked, walked, and just hung-out with such casualness Kokichi almost cried.
He pretended his eyes were irritated, wiping at one and then the other, as they reached their destination.
"Men, it's time to shop," Aoi said and Kokichi felt dread fill his entire being. "We must introduce Kokichi to fashion that he must master himself."
"When were you a snappy-dresser?" Mai asked.
"My master made sure I knew the wares that my preferences like."
Mai raised a finger, likely to reject his entire existence, before shaking her head and pulling Naruto in.
"No, I'm not dealing with that much crazy today," she uttered as the blonde boy sweatdropped.
"Look at me, getting dragged into a store against my will, who'd have thought this would happen so early?" Naruto joked.
"Smartass."
"No, I'm an idiot."
The laughter that garnered got his grin.
Kokichi's look of sheer disbelief could be felt on several levels, Nanako laughing to herself as Miwa grinned knowingly.
"Yes, it's that obvious," she whispered as his jaw remained dropped.
'I-I thought it was obvious before!' How did being here, in the flesh, make it so much worse and OBVIOUS? "How?"
"It's the age-old mystery that's stumped men for years," Aoi said and Nanako even agreed with him! "You see, Kichi, the male mind is a place full of vast wonders and wants. We're on a mission, we don't notice the beautiful flowers on the way and that leads us into pitfalls of ignorance!"
Noritoshi grumbled as he blushed a bit. "Ahem, I believe you're overexaggerating," he said as Momo cleared her throat off to the side, cheeks red.
The look Aoi shot him set Noritoshi's nerves on edge. "You poor fool."
~NRK~
"Alright, big spender-"
"Mai, I'm not even like that."
"It's time to update your wardrobe!" Mai declared in front of the boys with all the girls. "We've all been on a mission, now, good-paying ones," she grinned as Miwa nodded rapidly. "We've got some yen and it's time to address you boys."
"We're waiting with gusto!" Aoi said as Nanako rolled her eyes.
"He does not speak for us," Noritoshi groaned as Momo chuckled.
"This will be… Curious," Kokichi muttered with red cheeks as Miwa grinned.
Naruto just shrugged. "Here we go, I guess," he smiled as Mai nodded.
"We can handle you all, one-on-one, so let's make this session efficient. Boys, colors, give us," the Zenin said, confusing Noritoshi and Kokichi.
"Orange, yellow, red, blue, I can deal with black," Naruto shrugged, confusing them. "She means our preferred colors."
"Damn right, I have a lot of options with you," Mai snickered as her crush shrugged once more.
"Cloth away."
"Hmm…" Aoi nodded. "Purple and black, I'm open to other colors."
"That's honestly not the hardest thing to work with," Nanako cupped her chin in thought.
"... If I had to assume…" Noritoshi began slowly. "Black… Perhaps some red and some yellow, maybe?"
"That's fine, black goes with a lot and itself," Momo grinned. "It's just making sure it doesn't make you look like an idiot who does nothing but sleep during the day."
He sweatdropped.
"Black, white," Kokichi began as he did his best to be discreet. "Maybe a bit of purple and blue?"
"Alright, I think we'll have to try really hard to make that work," Miwa declared with fervor.
"Alright, spread out!" Mai ordered.
"So, buddy-buddy, clothing types, gimme," Mai told Naruto as the blonde tilted his head.
"Well, I mean, I do like jackets," he admitted. "Jumpsuits are awesome, not really bothered by pants-type, and I'm not really a fan of closed shoes."
Looking down at the blonde's ninja sandals, the Zenin girl tried to think up something. 'Is it crazy that his sandals go together with a lot of things?' In a weird way, that is. "Let's see… Hmm, I guess we'll allow ya to have some orange."
"Yes," the boy fistpumped as she chuckled.
"Still, we gotta balance it out, Naruto. Orange with black is pretty obvious but, maybe, we could also do orange and red… I'm thinking."
They walked through a couple sections before observing some baggy orange pants that stopped at mid-shin.
"Oh, these aren't that bad," she considered as Naruto nodded with a tilt of the head. "If we did orange pants, that means the other colors should be matching brightness or not. And, being honest, you might wanna keep 'em darker, Naru-kun."
"I understand that, at least. Looking at it in my head, maybe a black shirt?" He offered as Mai cupped her chin at the idea. "Maybe one with a red spiral? A fox? Or, like, a fire symbol?"
"Mmmm… I've got an idea," Mai grinned.
Kokichi cleared his throat as he looked at his white dress shirt, sky-blue tie, baggy black pants, and black boots. "Huh… I-I actually like it a lot," he said, surprised at his reflection before blushing as a grinning Kasumi fixed his hair a bit. "T-Thanks, Miwa-chan."
"No problem~" She smiled as they observed their reflections. "Hmm… I wonder if I should do anything, too," Kasumi considered as she looked down at her own clothes.
Only then did Kokichi realize, in embarrassed horror, that they wore matching clothes!
He froze, face going neon red as Kasumi cupped her chin at her own reflection.
'SHIT!' He hadn't seen this coming! 'W-Wait, calm down, it doesn't have to mean anything. It's likely just her clothing sense,' Kokichi told himself as he cleared his throat off to the side before looking back at Kasum-Was she unbuttoning her top?!
Kokichi's face went white as the blueberry undid her top's top three buttons, looking at her own attire with a determined eye.
"What do you think, Kokichi-kun-HUH?!" She'd turned to get his opinion only to gawk at the unconscious man on the ground. "Ack!?"
What happened?!
"Hmm," Aoi considered the long-sleeved purple top that Nanako had suggested, the article of clothing having a v-neck.
"Abuse the muscles," she smirked as he took the top. "You're not really the shorts type so we'll stick with baggy pants," Nanako explained as she threw three pairs of pants at him. "Try those on!"
Being a man of 'understanding and knowledge', Aoi knew better than to say anything before he hurried inside of a dressing room.
It took him a mere three minutes to come back out in the first pair of pants.
Nanako observed the slightly taut baggy pants with purple ribbons running down the knees, her upper-half moving back and forth with a discerning eye.
"I'm getting it slowly but the flats don't work with those pants. Alright, next," Nanako clapped twice, sending him back in.
Coming back out again with some baggier kinds, she nodded with a full-body tilt on one foot.
"It's working."
'Ah, truly, the mind of a woman is one I can't easily assess like sensei,' Aoi learned many things about the female mind since becoming a Sorcerer.
One, female Sorcerers had it rough in the Jujutsu World.
Two, they were all snappy dressers!
Truly, the dichotomy was beyond him!
"Alright, I got you, Nori-kun," Momo said with a smile as the Kamo teen cupped his chin, surprised. "Duh, now, let's see… These pants are a lot fitting the martial artist theme," she added as she placed said pants in his hands. "Then, we've got this sash for your waist," she chuckled, adding the item on top of that pile. "Finally, did you want something under your top or no?"
"Hmm… I'm open to it," Noritoshi nodded.
"Then, I've got a skin-tight white top with your name on it!"
Getting all the items together, Noritoshi hummed before going into the dressing room.
Awaiting his return, Momo deliberated on this whole event.
'Dammit, Aoi-kun,' maybe it was just the fact that, now, there was romantic tension going on with four of her friends but Momo felt increasingly anxious and yet embarrassed. 'This is so difficult after you said it out loud!' It was honestly not so surprising.
With all the love in the 'air', Aoi's apparent need to embarrass them to all hell, and just Kasumi's new attitude, Momo was left thinking about feelings that had long since developed.
And who'd be her target other than Noritoshi? Honestly, she was, and wasn't surprised by his lack of popularity with women. Considering his familial situation, she knew he had it rough but surely he was good-looking enough for fans.
She blushed some more, muttering as she pulled out a short haori with cross-implied latches to keep it secure.
They reconvened with everyone else back in a single spot, the four boys coming into play in some new outfits.
Naruto chuckled as Kokichi blinked out of his stupor.
Aoi flexed as Noritoshi lifted his arm to observe a sleeve with interest.
The first was the blonde.
Wearing pair of black martial flats, a pair of dark orange baggy pants that tightened around mid-shin, a black sash, and a long-sleeved black top, the 'finisher', as it were, was a vermillion red short-sleeved coat that held a swirly leaf-like design across the bottom as his tail curled around his waist securely.
"Hehe, crazy thing? Orange is, in fact, his color," Mai smirked. "And since we dimmed it, that red's so good."
Then, came Kokichi's new, 'Kasumi-inspired', outfit. Wearing a new thick white ascot, he looked like he'd just 'recovered' from some sort of 'event'.
"Hehe~ We're gonna go for a mixed-set!" Kasumi grinned. "I've got an idea for when I've got more money, girls!"
Next, in all his flexing glory, was Aoi who'd simply received… A black short-sleeved, skin-tight, top that really conformed to his torso.
"There's literally no reason to get him something better," Nanako said with an exasperated look. "He's honestly such a hassle who doesn't keep his shirt on in battle."
Finally, Noritoshi nodded with his arms at his side.
Wearing a pair of flats not unlike Naruto's, he had on a pair of slightly baggy black pants, a white sash sporting 'Family' in purple kanji on it, a skin-tight black shirt, and a loosely-tied haori, the coat's white colors offset by the simple black trim for borders and on the cuff.
Momo smiled with her hands on her hips. "Girls, I think we've outdone ourselves!" She declared as the others nodded or looked like they'd gotten their own ideas. "It's a good look for you guys, don't forget to thank your 'benefactors'," the witch grinned.
Naruto crossed his arms with a chuckle before blinking at his ringing phone, the blonde young man pulling it out and answering it. "Yo, Yuta?" He asked before chuckling as the call went from normal to video. "Hey, everyone," he smirked as Mai grinned before sneaking into view.
-What are you all doing?- Maki asked, looking amused.
"Shopping~," the other Zenin said as her sister's eyes narrowed in competition. "In fact, come on, boys, let's show you off!" Mai declared as Aoi grinned.
Kokichi burned.
And Noritoshi rubbed the back of his head as Naruto smiled.
Getting in front of Mai, the Zenin showed the four off in front of Naruto's camera.
~NRK~
"They look so handsome!" Tsumiki grinned as Mimiko chuckled.
"She's got a point, you guys look good," she agreed as Megumi raised a brow at the quartet.
"Aniki's usually a lot more uniform," he noted as Naruto grew sheepish. "Nee-chan helped, didn't she? I mean, it was kind of obvious from her words."
-Exactly- Momo smiled. -And now you guys get to see Kokichi in the flesh, in style- She declared as the scar-faced boy burned while looking down.
-T-This isn't a normal amount of embarrassment, what's wrong with my body?- The former-invalid muttered. -Please, don't give her what she wants- Kokichi pleaded as Aoi hummed before flexing on screen.
-Ah-hah! Yes, observe the Kyoto experience!- The large teen said with a 'suave' smirk and flex. -We are truly comrades who win in all aspects-
-The worst part is, I'm kinda on that train- Nanako admitted sheepishly as Mimiko's jaw dropped at her. -N-Not to say anything but, hey, gotta have those stats-
'What's become of my sister?!' Agreeing with Aoi? Really?!
"Hmm, I guess things are going well? We just had our first missions," Yuta said as Naruto nodded.
-Ours were last week, ya know? We fought a pair of Semi-Grade 1s that had control over, like, fifty Grade 3s- Naruto explained as Maki looked intrigued.
"For us, it was just one big Curse. I think we did pretty well," she said proudly as Panda chuckled with Kuro in his lap. "Honestly, that's the biggest Curse I've ever seen. Megumi's Hebi doesn't even come close despite it getting super-big and long."
-Hmm? Ten Shadows grows with the user? As in, literally?- Kokichi asked, intrigued.
-There's a reason many within the Zenin clan are rather protective of it- Noritoshi elaborated. -To this day, Naruto-kun, I do not know how you got away with not having Megumi-san hounded by his former clan-
Naruto rubbed the back of his head in thought. -Thing is, I guess it's cuz of both Toji-sensei's part in it, Naobito-jiji's fondness of me, and just me being a weirdo- He admitted as Aoi cupped his chin.
-You're an odd case, Naruto. You're likely going to gain 'benefits' befitting your actual abilities- The tallest of them explained as the blonde looked curious.
-Like, I guess? The Gojo Elders already kinda got in the way, is that really gonna happen?-
-I believe there are simply powers even they can not ignore or circumvent. After all, your abilities grant you the production of Positive Energy, that'd be a hard thing to not sell-
-Aoi-kun's probably got a point- Momo said as Ino hummed.
"All things considered, I'm surprised nothing has happened during the past couple weeks, ya know?" He said. "I mean, surely, something would have happened by now."
Toge cleared his throat, gaining the group's attention as they saw his nervous expression. "S-Shake," he said weakly, confusing them sans a now-worried Panda.
"I think he means something did happen," the panda added nervously. "Sadly, he can't tell us outright due to his abilities but we can assume it's not great."
-How has my cuz not said anything?- Naruto asked.
And, as if summoned, who'd show up other than Satoru… On the Kyoto side, what?
-You took my dad's way here, didn't you?-
-How'd ya guess?- Satoru asked, the 'first' Special Grade Gojo wearing his casual clothes. -And, well… I might need to talk to ya, cuz, about some clan stuff-
-... There's no way I'm gonna like this, is there?-
-If you didn't have 'positive' skills, you'd be a seer. Nope, not at all-
~NRK~
Mai raised a brow at Satoru as he led Naruto away, the blonde leaving his phone in her care. 'I wonder what it is?' She considered. "Any invasive ideas, guys?"
"Maybe they wanna talk about being petty?" Momo offered optimistically. "Or is that too much?"
"... Probably too much."
"If Satoru Gojou wasn't happy with but had such a casual time getting here, is it 'bad' bad?" Aoi considered as Kokichi ran that sentence around in his head.
"I… I think I get what you're saying. You mean, is it truly something severe or just annoying," the scarred young man said as Aoi nodded. "In this case, I think it will be the latter then. Satoru Gojou's temperament is well-known, we all know this, there's no way this would cause 'harm' to Naruto in any physical or mental matter… Possibly just politically."
-Ah, I hate politics- Maki groaned as Yuta scratched his cheek.
-They're honestly not great in the normal world so I can't imagine how bad it is in the Jujutsu World- The Special Grade boy said as Rika formed in his lap, form small thanks to a glowing talisman on her forehead.
-Is it gonna be super-weird?- She asked. -What if it's something crazy like in anime?!-
"... T-There's no way, right?" Mai wondered, looking conflicted over a series of emotions. "What if it is anime crazy?!"
"T-Then he could get out of it!" Kasuma declared. "Anime always gives us a way out!"
"Is that so?" Nanako said even if she was already more… 'Aware' of the possibilities. 'Bro always said that the Superiors wouldn't hold off for too long.'
Naruto's powers were too abnormal and, if they ended up the 'way of the clan', if you will, that meant it might be inheritable.
There was no way they'd ever leave such a thing alone and would choose to 'preserve' it one way or another.
And 'another' mostly meant to keep it in the Jujutsu World by blood.
'They'd totally want him to start an actual Uzumaki Clan,' there was little more she could see happening. 'It'd either be that or trying to mix him with Tengen but bro was pretty sure that, one, it'd likely just end up with Naruto taking over,' an honestly curious positive scenario. 'Or… Or it'd expand the range of Tengen's fields beyond understanding.'
Geto had told them that Naruto's ability to 'sense' went beyond normal for his age and that Tengen, as well, had such long-reaching sensory skills.
So, what would the hypothetical mix between them have other than an outrageous expansion of their senses? It'd likely reach over half the world.
-Hmm, well, from what Minato-sensei always tells us- Yuta began. -It's gonna be deeply clan-related. There's likely going to be an issue with Naruto's Grade, for one, but I think the next big thing is how does this affect the Gojo Family? What does having Naruto's powers within it, despite his disposition, mean for the Big Three Families?-
The group went silent at his words, Maki & Mai frowning at the 'clan politics' being brought up.
'He's right,' the twins thought in unison. 'But what could that mean?'
~NRK~
Tsumiki looked down in thought before blushing at a… At a crazy, totally NOT possible, idea? Right?
She could totally be being silly… But after everything she'd learned from not only Minato, Naruto, Megumi, the others, and Geto from years back…
"W-What if…" She burned as the others shot her weird looks, the young woman taking a deep breath before blushing more. "What if it's about keeping his Blessed Technique within the Jujutsu World?"
The call went oddly silent at that, a sort of mounting 'horror' building within the two sides that came to a head with Mai's red face.
-Oh fuck me, please tell me you're wrong, Tsumiki-chan- She said with a pleading expression as the Fushigoro girl shook her head.
"I-I don't know, I could just be ignorant to how it works here but… But as the others said, Naruto's powers are too unique. If they're as powerful as they've been divined, that means he has potential no other Sorcerer has, he has the Inverse of the Six Eyes, and he just demonstrated his powers work on individuals like Kokichi-kun. How would that be seen?"
Megumi's jaw dropped in horror as Mimiko covered her mouth in shock.
Kokichi wheezed as Aoi wore a shaky grin.
-I believe our brother-in-hearts has become too noticeable- Even he admitted.
-I'm not even addressing that title but oh my God- Kokichi groaned.
Noritoshi looked curious as it dawned on him. -In that regard, though, how would they even choose to pursue such a thing?- He asked, shocking the, now mostly-blushing, others. -All things considered, I won't lie to you, I've considered this being possible for a while now. I've delved into the politics of our world for a long time, you all, you have to understand that it was bound to happen-
Nanako, though embarrassed, was the most accepting of this fact. -Well… Yeah, I guess he has a point- Even if she knew, she hadn't expected someone else to just say it out loud. -Geez, is this the difference between a normal Sorcerer and a clan heir?-
-I'm sure that if you studied it as well, you'd understand how convoluted it all is. Trust me, I'd like people to understand but not wish it upon anyone-
-Succinct but we're branching too much…- Momo cleared her throat. -What the hell do we do if that turns out to be true?-
Ino looked dumbfounded as he looked to the others for answers they really didn't seem capable of offering. "I don't think any of us got anything," he admitted. "I mean, like, what's the worst-case scenario?"
The teens grew confused. -How do you even quantify something like that?- Mai frowned. -I guess we can look at it as 'what'd be the worst for Naru?' and keep on that-
Maki crossed her arms in thought. "... Well, what if they try to move him from Kyoto?" She offered worriedly.
-Among all else, I don't think that is possible- Noritoshi said, coming to the rescue. -In fact, I think it'd be more likely they'd move him back to Tokyo's branch, at the worst, but Kyoto and Tokyo don't always see eye-to-eye, remember this fact. For now, they're likely considering candidates-
Candidates?! For what?!
~NRK~
Mai swallowed as it hit her.
Marriage.
"T-They're gonna marry him off?!" She nearly shrieked as they all moved to a private area. "D-Dammit, don't say it's gonna be that."
-I-If that's true…- Yuta wore a strained smile. -How would we even change that? Not to say anything! I mean it! I just… What kind of political power would we, as a group, have?-
That one hit all of them in the gut.
What kind of political power? Outside of, say, Noritoshi, possibly Megumi, Satoru who didn't seem so confident as is, and maybe Naruto's mom, what else did they have?
-I don't wanna think about it- Maki grimaced. -That's not… We don't have much in that arena. No offense Nori, but you're still just an heir, you're not the head-
Noritoshi frowned with a nod. "No, I didn't think I'd have had that much say in the first place. I'm important but not that important," he admitted before his expression relaxed a bit, the young man cupping his chin. 'But you all likely aren't considering the real option,' as he'd said.
He'd been studying politics for a while, he knew most of the ins & outs, history, rules, and even 'bends' in the Jujutsu World from the Three Big Families down to the basics.
So, he knew of one option but… But there'd likely be a 'shift' in the group when he revealed that a 'clan' did not just start with one wife.
"I… There is possibly one thing we could do," he started slowly as everyone looked at him for answers, his blushing visage not doing them any favors. "... You all understand that, if this is the case, there's an avenue here but it's a bit 'damning'," Noritoshi twitched his fingers. "For the ones involved."
-You're making it sound like it'll be a group effort- Panda said as Kokichi cupped his chin with furrowed brows.
'What is he implying?' There was something here that the puppet-user felt he was missing, another 'half' to the situat… Oh bloody hell. "N-Nori-kun," his eyes widened as his jaw dropped. "Y-You don't mean what I think you mean, d-do you?!"
Noritoshi nodded. "You seem to understand the single option we have at our disposal," he said.
"W-What is it?" Mai asked, worried. 'I won't give up on Naruto to some random woman those old bastards choose!'
Her friend, her closest friend, was someone who deserved the world a-and she wanted to give it to him.
She couldn't just let some random hussy come in with plans!
"... Suggest brides."
'That silence' returned like a breaking dam, the group's jaws droppings as they all blushed in unison.
"Put up candidates for this possibility," Noritoshi stressed one more time. "If the Superiors decide that is the 'solution' there's nothing here that can stop them. Satoru Gojou, despite being a Special Grade amongst Special Grades, can't just stop this. What possible provocation could he even remotely put up? Never mind that, despite being head of their Clan, he can be overruled here due to the nature of the subject at hand. This doesn't just include the Gojo Clan anymore. This is a 'tip' in the scale of balance and all families will likely get involved."
That brought the 'weight' down on them.
Because if he was right, this hadn't just gotten 'complicated'.
-... W-Wait, Nori-kun?- Tsumiki burned bright red. -You… You used the term candidateS-
The group was silent as he cleared his throat.
"A clan does not just start with one pair-"
"OH MY GOD!"
~NRK~
Naruto's brow twitched as Satoru rubbed the back of his head.
"Yeah, um… They want ya to go and 'seal some deals' babies if you get my drift," he said slowly as his cousin blushed before slamming his face into his palms. "Turns out, any 'potential' I might have had has gone out the window. They're dead set on you having a 'clan' within our World and Kyoto put its damn nose into things and escalated the problem. They're fighting over which branch you belong in and came to the obvious conclusion," Satoru rolled his eyes. "That having one child in both bases would be for the best."
"W-What kinda bullshit are they on?!" Naruto shouted, the Curtain around them hiding their voices. "F-For God's sake, I'm sixteen!"
"Yeah, you do remember they're traditionalists, right?"
Naruto choked on his breath on that 'topic'. "Y-You're saying…"
"Unless you're gonna try and disappear, they're looking for some answers to some 'questions'," Satoru said. "I tried to talk to our clan about it, really tried to grease that paper, but they're being hardasses about this."
"What's to stop me from not doing it?"
"I don't wanna push this envelope, maybe those old bastards are a lot more understanding," Satoru said flatly as Naruto grimaced. "But… We aren't the only ones in this World, Naruto."
Utahime, Mai, Megumi, the others, and more. Would… Would they drag them into this?
Naruto felt his anger flare up. "Freaking, they're serious about this?" He whispered. "What the hell is wrong with them?"
"I've been asking that question for years," Satoru sighed as he adjusted his sunglasses. "... Look," he began with a wince as Naruto groaned.
"You've got an idea?"
"One that will, hopefully, be in your favor, yeah? The thing is, I still had some leeway, of course I did, I'm me. The thing is, that only saved you for until your eighteen. By then, they're gonna be plottin', Naru, they're gonna find some wives for you. If that's gonna be the case, do so on your own terms."
The blonde burned up. "Y-You're saying… I-I gotta…"
"Yep. If you wanna make this as 'in your favor' as possible… Well, yeah, that," Satoru winced. "And, in the grand scheme of things, cuz, if you get married that doesn't mean an auto-baby situation. I think they're fine with you just being more 'locked-in'. They want to ensure your connections to the Jujutsu World are deep."
"This is so stupid."
"Yep. So…"
"Aniki, please don't ask me about that right now," Naruto said, holding the sides of his head as his tail wigged out. "... H-How am I supposed to go back to everyone else with this in my head?"
"I know how this sounds but it doesn't have to be in your group of friends. God knows how weird that'd make your lives," Satoru said.
"Aniki, how would I even go about finding brides with people I've never met? I-I turn seventeen this year!"
Satoru's finger raised in a moment of a rebuttal before it hit.
'That's why they were so lenient?!' He'd forgotten that little fact.
Naruto would be seventeen by the end of the year! Shit!
"Crap, that's all my fault."
"I don't blame you, alright? You gave me time but now I gotta… I-I gotta find wives," Naruto released a shuddering sigh. "My life became a stupid-ass rom-com in a couple weeks after I came back!"
"Yeah, it's not great. I haven't even gotten to bringing this up to Hime-chan and, uh, you know how that's gonna go, dontcha?" Satoru said as the blonde crumbled away like frightened stone. "Alright, well, you have time. Just don't freak out too much so everyone else doesn't freak out."
"Yeah… Yeah, I just…"
"I get it, weird as it sounds, I was almost in that position, once."
Naruto shot him a weird look. "How? And I'm being serious, what was it?"
"I think it was because I was simply too strong to argue with," Satoru said, not looking arrogant or anything.
It was just the truth.
"And, well, I didn't have anyone they could so easily abuse to try and force me to do anything. Aunty was super-strong back then, I didn't know that many people outside of our clan, and anyone I did become friends with was either Special Grade or someone the Superiors cared too much about the value of, Ieiri, if you're wondering."
"Huh," Naruto considered that. "So, if my friends had been amazing Grade 1s before all of this…"
"You'd have nothing to worry about, sorry."
"..." The blonde sighed before he nodded. "I'm still gonna try some stuff, ya know? I won't just let 'em push me around. Maybe, if I get into Special Grade, I can push back"
"Anything's better than nothing but, at the same time, cuz," Satoru reminded him.
"I know, I… I have to keep that in mind in case what I do doesn't work, huh?"
"Sadly."
"..." Naruto crossed his arms in thought, cupping his chin with a hum. "Alright, let's get back to the others. I don't know how to work with this but I'll figure something out."
~NRK~
Returning, the Gojou duo raised some brows at the group currently sat down and working on something with Mai at the epicenter.
The girl looked embarrassed to high heavens but seemed focused enough for whatever the hell they were discussing. Noticing the Curtain around them alongside a lack of noise, Naruto groaned.
"Y-You don't think… No, no way they figured out this bullshit, right?" He asked his cousin, suddenly very nervous at this possible outcome. "Aniki."
Rubbing the back of his head, Satoru wasn't sure what to do if they had. "At least, if they did, you'll have an easier time, maybe?"
"How?"
"I'm honestly pulling at straws here."
Observing the serious 'discussion' for a bit, the two decided to just re-introduce themselves back into the situation by having Naruto poke his head into the Curtain with a flat expression.
"Yo~ We're back," he said apathetically as the entire group jumped before turning to face him with red faces. "I'm gonna go and buy this outfit before headin' out," Naruto told them before shooting them a wave and leaving.
"Crap, did he hear us?!" Mai trembled as Tsumiki wheezed over the line.
-Man, Tsumiki, I'm still surprised by how daring you are- Maki broke out of her embarrassment to laugh as the oldest Fushigoro burned up while her brother scratched his cheek.
-... Hmm, it could be a worse situation- Megumi considered even as the others looked at him like he was crazy. -W-What?-
-NO?!- Ino wailed in the background. -Is this how it is, universe?!-
Satoru chose then to peek in, smirk, and then shrug.
"What's up, council of teens?" He asked as most of them grumbled, muttered, or sighed. "I can bet you guys were brainstormin' on what that whole talk was about," Satoru said as their red faces returned. "Yeah, figured. Well… Man, that's gonna be rough," was all he gave them before leaving.
"Wait., no, what does that mean?!" Nanako called out to him but found the man heading off with a whistle. "D-Dammit."
~NRK~
Naruto folded his arms behind his head as he chilled in his room.
'They have my phone,' well, nothing he could do about that but wait.
No offense meant to any of his friends but the blonde just… He really didn't want to see any of them at the moment.
He closed his eyes as his shopping bag sat beside him.
The door to his dorm room slid open before it closed, allowing that familiar feminine figure to come over before sitting down beside him. The perfect-picture of femininity as she did.
"Naruto-kun?" Iori spoke to him, the blonde's eyes opening to see the woman sitting there with her hands folded in her lap. "... I can't imagine what's going through your head right now."
"Nee-chan," Naruto sat up, crossing his legs beneath his frowning form. "I'm not sure what the hell is going on anymore. I'm assuming aniki told you, yeah?" He asked as the miko nodded, his fellow Semi-Grade 1 looking embarrassed but thoughtful. "The Superiors really said, 'let's make his life embarrassing' and did this to me. And, now, I'm pretty sure the others figured this out! How am I supposed to live my life normally when those old fogies couldn't figure out how awkward this is?!"
Patting him on the back, the woman tried to see a way out of this. "... They really don't care for Satoru and my situation to such an extent," Iori considered as Naruto grumbled. "I don't know how to even remotely approach this, Naruto-kun. I've never seen this happen before," it was like something out of her dramas but worse.
She didn't want one of her favorite students getting pushed into marriage, or even 'worse', parenthood so early.
'I question how Mai's taking this information,' likely, the girl didn't know about the baby-part but, if she did, would she even be bothered? '... I think I'll tell her that, right now, may be the best time to tell Naruto,' but that only solved one 'side'.
The Superiors wanted a child from both branches made this so frustrating. With Mai as a 'Kyoto Branch Mother', who'd be the 'Tokyo' one? Would they have to wait and see what family came forward with their daughter's hand for marriage? Would the higher-ups choose for him?
Would Naruto find someone in that amount of time? She couldn't imagine him trying to have a child with Mai only to then move on to having another with another woman.
"Truly, they've made life so uncomfortable," Iori frowned deeply as Naruto rubbed the back of his head.
"I figured they know the marriage part, by the way," he began as she nodded. "And I left my phone in Mai-chan's hands because I just… I couldn't look at anyone there, not right now," Naruto sighed. "Nee-chan, I have no idea what to do for this entire situation… E-Even if I'd, say, came up with one choice," he admitted in embarrassment as Iori perked up.
She leaned forward with a tilt of the head before coming to a rather obvious conclusion. "... I'm being 100% honest with you, Naruto-kun, do you mean Mai-chan?" Iori asked him straightforwardly.
Burning up and looking down, Naruto's face went through a large range of emotions before settling on an exasperated one with a nod.
"I… I know Mai-chan's pretty, to start," he admitted as she nodded with a smile. "She's literally my childhood friend and one of the best I've ever known. We've been through a lot to get to this point and I think she's amazing. Mai chose to follow this life because she wanted to find a spot beside us and I think that, despite it bothering her, it takes a lot of bravery & courage for that… And despite our shared idiocy, Aoi made me more 'aware' of her and that's gotten to me a couple times this past week."
Iori blinked at that. "Wait, seriously?" She asked, utterly floored as Naruto chuckled weakly.
"Nee-chan, he's a whole different animal, I swear to God."
"Yes, I just… I didn't think he'd coerce any form of inkling out of you," well, color her surprised. "Hmm, so, you'd be fine with trying to make something work with Mai-chan, that's the simple and whole truth."
Naruto, still red in the face, looked her dead-on in the eye and nodded.
"I don't wanna force her into something she might hate but, yeah, if I had to choose someone I know would have my back through thick and thin, it'd be Mai."
She was proud of this maturity, truly, Iori was happy to know that her students had such wise heads on their shoulders.
Still, that was only half the 'equation'. She knew Mai would accept the blonde's literal proposal in a heartbeat, without question, but that left the other 'vacancy'.
Who'd be the Tokyo Branch's choice? What would Naruto do?
"Well, no matter what, I'm sure Mai and you can build something great together," Iori encouraged as Naruto colored something fierce but nodded.
"Y-Yeah,well, I'd still have to spring that on her and then there's the other side, nee-chan, this isn't good. For one, I'm never even thinking about Maki or Mimiko, not even close."
"Really?"
"Yeah. For one, Maki's cool, awesome even, but I'm not that socially dumb to think trying to marry someone along with her twin would be a good idea," Naruto said with a pale face. "No, I'd likely be dead before dawn, and Mimiko's got this crazy crush on Megu."
Iori was alarmed yet intrigued! "She does, does she?" The woman looked happy as Naruto chuckled weakly.
"And I don't… There's no way Megumi would be fine with me trying to bring his sister into this, ya know? I couldn't do something like that to him, not unless he, she, me, and Mai were all cool with it," Naruto stated with finality and a focused gaze. "I'm not going to take advantage of my friends, never, especially not with THIS SHIT."
Iori smiled some more as Naruto let out a breath.
"So, I'm not exactly filled with 'options'."
"What about Mei-Mei?" The miko chuckled at his look of disbelief.
"P-Please don't joke about that, I'm scared to think that's even remotely an idea, much less an option."
"Hehe, I'm sure it'd satisfy the Superiors."
"And put me into an early empty-wallet grave."
She chuckled at his misfortune before patting his back once more. "I kid, I kid, though, being absolutely honest? I'm sure Mei-Mei wouldn't hesitate to help you out in this situation," Iori said with a small hum of thought, cheeks coloring at the insinuation alone. "T-That is, last resort," she clarified as Naruto rubbed the back of his head nervously.
"... I-I guess?" He said, feeling all kinds of weirded out by this whole thing. "What's going on with my life?" The blonde asked the room, utterly terrified.
"Hmm… What about, once again a last resort, Riko?"
"... I'm not sure? No offense to Riko-nee but I'm not sure if we'd even be able to make that work."
"That's perfectly fair. Let's see…"
They chatted on the options he had going for him for, honestly, thirty minutes, much to Naruto's disbelief.
"I didn't even know we knew that many people," Naruto blinked.
"It's more of a friend of a friend of a friend's relative but you're not wrong," Iori chuckled. "So, feeling better?"
The blonde drummed his fingers against his knees, the two seated seiza-style towards the wall of his room. "... A lot better, nee-chan, even if I'm still feeling all kinds of weird about it," he let out a long breath. "Haaa… I think I can just go to the others and, just, take it in stride," he ruffled his head of hair. "Though, um, if Mai says 'NO', I'm pretty sure I'll never recover and will be out of options."
'She won't,' Iori thought. "You can only try," she said as they got up before stretching. "Where to now?"
"Cafeteria?"
"Very well."
~NRK~
Mai nodded to the phone in her hand, following Naruto's signature all the way to the cafeteria alone. 'I gotta just be honest,' she thought with vermillion cheeks. 'Naruto, make me your wife, let's both get out of these crazy-ass situations,' honestly, when she put it like that?
She did feel more confident about this. It was like a shared goal that Tsumiki might get involved with due to her kind nature and, amusingly, Megumi's blessings.
Never before had the normally serious-seeming young man been reamed for being so weird about that topic.
Opening the cafeteria doors, she smirked at the sight of five trays stacked atop one another beside a tea-drinking blonde monkey boy, the young man sitting next to a tea-drinking teacher.
Hurrying over, Mai felt her heart thump faster and faster the closer she got before, halfway, she was a blushing mess that could barely put one foot in front of the other.
'C-Come on,' just do this and get what you've always wanted. 'J-Just walk a bit more…'
It felt like she was walking through syrup, each step barely finding a 'motive' to keep moving forward before she just… Couldn't ⅓ away from her target.
Mai felt her entire body buzz in embarrassment as her eyes locked onto that closed-eyed blonde, Naruto putting his cup of tea down before he got up and turned to face-!?
The Zenin fumbled for thought as the Uzumaki made it over to her and opened his eyes when they were face-to-face.
Locking eyes with him, she looked down & away while offering him his phone.
"Thanks," Naruto said, cheeks reddening as he took it back gently before looking nervous. "... H-Hey, Mai-chan?"
"Y-Yeah?" Mai smoothed out her hair as the blonde rubbed the back of his head. "S-Sup? I guess you wanted some time away, earlier…"
"I did. The Superiors are nothing but a bunch of old fogies, you know? They like putting everyone in weird situations, very awkward situations, that we have to deal with… That I have to deal with."
Mai had a feeling this was going where she thought it was and swallowed, neon red face mechanically turning to see Naruto's bashful expression.
"You guys seemed like you knew what was going on. I guess Nori's political side came through and gave you the weird options I'd be left with. So, being honest, yeah, they want me to marry a woman from each branch."
Mai blinked at that before realizing why. "T-They want you that in-depth into the Jujutsu World?" She asked him.
"Y-Yeah, they do… And I have until I'm eighteen," Naruto admitted as she choked out a breath, eyes widening at his exasperation expression. "That's basically until the end of next year, Mai-chan, they put me in the worst situation."
'T-Those old bastards! They couldn't give him more time?!' How dare they? Naruto was only sixteen! "I'm so sorry for you, I'm serious," Mai rubbed the back of her head as he groaned but nodded.
"Thanks, you've always got my back."
"I wish that had more chances to happen, ya know? It feels more like the opposite."
Naruto considered her words before chuckling. "I think you're putting too much thought into it. You're my friend, you're in my corner, I don't need you to keep on getting into fights to prove anything."
'Here we go,' damn him and that wisdom of his, making her feel butterflies & making this whole thing harder. "Always, you know that."
"Y-Yeah and… Dammit, I don't want to do this to you but I do need your help… again," he blushed as she nodded. "If you figured it out, you know what I'm gonna ask, right?"
"Yeah, I… It's just, is this for real, Naru?"
"Trust me, I wish it wasn't. Not to say anything about you, definitely not, but this… This is so wrong. Forcing people to marry? Wanting kids? How do you throw that at someone just because you want something out of them?"
Mai's eyes just stayed on him for the longest time as it clicked.
"... Naruto."
"Yeah?"
"Do you remember what I asked you about that? That night before we came to Kyoto?" Mai said seriously, confusing the blonde. "... Look, I'm in a similar boat, like, 100% the same situation as you," she added, shocking the blonde as she moved a fringe out off her cheek. "W-When I decided to join the schools, I had to get Zenin-sama's wishes, ya know? And, weird as it was for me, he didn't even seem all that bad when I asked… But then Naoya opened his big fucking mouth a-and made it so I'd have to… I-I'd have to have a kid by the time I was seventeen."
Naruto's jaw dropped as Iori came over with a nod. "W-Wait, nee-chan, you knew?!"
"Yes, I… In a sad way, this was mostly my own fault," the scarred woman admitted as Mai frowned. "Despite what Mai might say, I did offer her the idea of a Binding Vow."
"But she didn't know what they'd come up with, it's not all on her," Mai defended as Naruto frowned before sighing. "So… I know exactly what you're going through, Naru. I'm only fifteen, after all."
"Why is it that these guys love causing us problems?"
"I wish I knew."
The monkey boy rubbed the back of his head as Mai looked down in thought. "... S-So," Naruto said slowly. "Is that fine? That was the thing you wanted my help with?"
"Y-Yeah, I just… I just wanted to try dating, first, before all of this bullshit hit the fan," Mai said, surprising him as she took a deep breath. "Naruto? I've liked you for a long time," his jaw dropped as she rubbed the back of her head. "L-Like, you don't seem to get it, I've liked you-liked you. I didn't see this coming but it wasn't unaligned i-if ya get my drift."
The blonde blushed while Iori chuckled with a smile. "O-Oh no, I-I didn't make you, like, wait or something, right?!" Naruto asked, terrified of having another 'Hinata' in his lifetimes. 'If I'd never known…' He didn't want to think about it.
The fact remained, they were both fine with this 'situation' and so he had one thing… Two things to say.
"O-Okay, so, one… You wanna go out for a date sometime?"
Mai squawked as Iori laughed.
"Y-Yeah! I'd love to!"
"Okay… Okay then," Naruto said slowly before groaning. "T-Then, number two, you might not know it-"
"You mean about it being wives and not 'wife'?" Mai said, the blonde groaning louder into his palms. "Nori wasn't hesitant in informing us of the full truth, ya know? He's a thorough kind of guy."
"Yeah, well… Dammit, that's… We'll cross that road when we get to it."
Mai's cheek twitched as she considered whether to reveal that option. "... H-Hey, Naru-"
"Also, um, I gotta show you guys a thing I'd been working on, now, before it's too late," Naruto groaned into his hands. "I-It'll never be cool," he said slowly, realizing it with a sort of horror that confused Mai. "Oh my God, everyone outside of my friend group, not so hopefully, is gonna think I'm some super-pervert!"
"Hmm, well, yes, this situation isn't normal, Naruto-kun," Iori said before Naruto's face turned rigid.
"No, I'm not talking about this situation."
"What?"
~NRK~
Maki rubbed the back of her head as Naruto had everyone on video call once more in the Freshmen classrooms, the flat-faced blonde standing ahead of all the others in or on desks.
-So, one, before I show this off so I never get reamed on for it- Naruto began flatly. -... Sorry about earlier, I kinda… There's no way to take what I got told so easily, ya know?-
"We get it," Yuta admitted bashfully. "T-The whole world seems so much more mundane with this situation," he muttered as Rika nodded in his lap.
"There are perverted old people everywhere," the Curse thought as the others choked on their tongues, Satoru, Ieiri, Nanami, and the Masamichis snorting in the background of both branches.
"I wonder what it is," the Gojou man said. "But, if I had to guess? It's gonna do with your last Great Talisman, right?"
-Got it in one- Naruto said as Kushina and Minato came inside the room with looks of disbelief on their faces. -... Yeah, uh, the situation got crazy while you two were gone-
-W-Who the hell gave them the right to this?!- Kushina asked in shock. -Those old bastards!-
-It's certainly one piece of news to come home to- Minato said as the two of them stood on the sidelines. -Naruto, what exactly does this demonstration have to do with your… Other situation?-
-Not a lot but everything, socially-
~NRK~
Yoshinobu raised a brow at this oddness, the blonde pulling out an odd black tag with golden scripture. "Hmm? This isn't like the others?" He asked.
Naruto's face colored as he grumbled. "Yoshi-jiji… Trust me when I say this, you'll see why I'm doing all of this right now before too much time passes," he said as he applied the tag to himself? "Haa…" He made that handsign.
That one that was built into his very soul by this point.
"Kage Bunshin Jutsu."
There was a flash of smoke and a glow before, once the cloud cleared… Well.
"Oh my God!" Momo shrieked as the others gawked with her.
At four Narutos, what the hell?!
"So…" Naruto began as Satoru began laughing with Ieiri. "This was my last Great Tag, let's be clear about that," he stressed with a facepalm as his copies looked sheepish or downright embarrassed. "These are my Shadow Clones, they're my energy given my shape and form and stuff so no one gets to call me a PERVERT because I had this!"
Most of the others were still gawking at the fact the boy could multiply himself!
-N-Naruto?! When was this a thing?!- Yuta asked, utterly baffled.
"Um, half a year ago?" The one on the far right said.
"Yeah, this was honestly the first one I came up with," the first said.
The third second nodded as the real Naruto, the third, groaned.
"I had this whole thing planned out, I was gonna bust this out during the Goodwill Event! And now, because of a bunch of old fogies, I gotta do this now before they think I made it for this situation!"
Mai blushed at the implication, Nanako laughing against her desk as Aoi wore a look of wonder of very intense intrigue.
Kokichi's jaw dropped as the number of implications ran rampant about his mind. 'Oh no,' was the blonde ignorant to the possibilities surrounding this skill or was he too disturbed by his current situation? "N-Naruto-kun, this isn't… I mean, they're just copies, correct?"
Naruto sighed as the copies moved about. "Let's put this in dad terms," he began as Minato looked sheepish. "They're totally autonomous, they can think for themselves even if they're still all basically me."
Kokichi looked faint.
"And, well, when I truly finished them, I gave 'em this ability in exchange for splitting my energy up to four times," the monkey boy declared. "Everything they learn, I learn-"
Kokichi hit the ground as Kuroi looked awed and yet horrified.
-Naruto-kun! Do you understand how sought-after such a thing would be?!- She asked him, the blonde's squinty eyes telling a horrifying tale. -Kushina!-
"Yeah, um, boyo? My son? You do realize this will never leave your bloodline, right?" Kushina said with a shaky grin as Minato smiled nervously.
"Huh? I don't really get what ya mean. I mean, duh, imagine all the trouble this would cause if curse-users learned about it-"
"No, my son," Minato began. "You need to understand, every SorcererALIVE would kill for that tag."
Naruto blinked, head tilting along with his clones. "What are ya talkin' 'bout, pops?"
-Naru-Naru~- Mei-Mei called out from the back of the room, looking excited in all the worst of ways. -Have you considered business opportunities?!-
-She's gonna be like that for a while, isn't she?- Ino asked Nanami, the man slowly removing his glasses with a squinty stare.
-Yes… Naruto-kun- The straight-lace man began as Naruto tilted his head. -Do you understand the amount of, not just versatility, but convenience you'd offer many within the Jujutsu World?-
The real blonde rubbed the back of his head as Mai scrutinized one of his clones along with Aoi in one corner.
"So, he'll learn everything you do?" Aoi asked with an intrigued raised brow as the clone shot him a flat look.
"Why am I hating what you're about to do already?" He asked before Aoi pat his back and whispered something.
Mai, meanwhile, shook the clone in front of her's hand, marveling at the embarrassed monkey boy copy which just threw her for a loop she was not prepared for.
Iori stared at the one beside her before leaning forward with a focused expression, observing him on all sides before coming back around to the front.
"So… All of you is the same?" She asked, looking at his tail. "Naruto-kun."
"I just thought it was a cool idea! Besides, the boss'll probably remember it in a moment," the copy began, surprisnig her with the 'boss' comment. "Duh, aneue, we are composed of positive energy, there's likely nothing good that could come from doing this with cursed energy made from negative emotions."
The woman's eyes widened both at just how autonomous the blonde's clones were and the fact that, yes, that might very well be true.
And it seemed the real blonde realized it a moment later. "Actually, it'd probably be a bad idea for people to do this with cursed energy," he considered with a frown. "Remember, guys, my powers are mostly positive energy, ya know? Unless you're able to do that it'd probably be a bad idea regardless."
Half the group looked relieved or curious while the other half looked at either Yuta, Satoru, or Ieiri for answers.
"I wonder how useful that will end up being," the doctor considered with a hum. "Naruto-kun? When we get the chance, I'd like to observe this tag of yours."
"Sure," all four said, getting an amused smirk out of her.
"So, this is really real," Noritoshi said, looking at the copies with a studious eye. "Naruto, you could possibly learn everything in the world with a skill like this."
"Um, I wouldn't want to?" Naruto shot back as the heir raised a brow. "Um, ya do remember me and books have a hate-and-hate relationship, right?"
"Ah, that's the balance. Sometimes I forget."
Then, Naruto's brow twitched as he blushed and shot a thumbs-up giving Aoi a look. "Aoi, dude, come on!" He shouted at the fully-convinced teen standing alone in his corner.
"Yes, it seems that his clones truly do pass on their knowledge," the junior said, getting a worried Nanako for his troubles.
"What did do you show him?" She asked.
"Nothing. That conversation will live between only our minds."
"I'm sorry," she immediately said to her fellow, now-facepalming, blonde.
~NRK~
Tsumiki blushed at Maki's abrasive nudges.
"Heheheh, so, looking like life ain't too bad, huh?" The Restricted girl said with the biggest of grins as Megumi blinked before cupping his chin and slowly nodding.
"Well, seeing as aniki's ability is so powerful, she's right," the Ten Shadows-user said with one more knowing nod as his sister nearly blushed out of existence. "Congratulations-"
"MEGUMI, CAN YOU NOT?!" His sibling squeaked as the adults raised some brows. "I-It's nothing!"
Kushina's eyes squinted at the screen before her jaw dropped. -You kids didn't- She uttered in shock as most of the teens blushed or looked away from her. -... Mmm! For later!-
-What's she talking about?- Naruto asked.
-Ignore it, boyo, I'll get around to it-
The blonde shrugged. -So, yeah, uh, this is my greatest skill. I want to try and make it a Maximum Technique one day- He hummed. -Still not sure on how to do that yet but I'm sure it'll hit me eventually-
"You really made a mini-army and don't think much about it," Maki said as Panda cheered with Kuma. "So, what? They got a radius?"
-Radius?-
"He's going to hurt himself one day, I don't how he doesn't see it," she said to Yuta with a dropped jaw as the Special Grade boy rubbed the back of his head. "Y-Yu, this guy's not real, I swear!"
"Naruto's a total weirdo, we knew that already," Rika said with a sagely nod that Maki completely agreed with.
Yuta sweatdropped. "I know too many weird people," he muttered. "Well, glad to see you're still thinking straight?" He offered as his friend shrugged once more.
-Man, at this point, I've kinda bottomed-out- Naruto admitted. -No idea where to go from there so… Yeah-
"Eloquent, aniki," Megumi said with a cupped chin. "Hmm, I really wonder what your skills in total are like," he wondered.
"It'd p-probably be ridiculous!" Mimiko said as he nodded. "Making a Maximum of that would be too much!"
"It'd depend on how that skill 'gains understanding' to produce something different," Satoru told her with a smirk. "So, like this, well, you've got two out of three covered, yeah?"
-How'd you even… Uta-nee, come on-
-Apologies but it was a nice topic to speak on- The scarred woman admitted.
~NRK~
"Whatever, I've still gotta figure out that other thing," Naruto admitted with a red face as Mai blushed before nodding.
"U-Um, principal?" She raised her hand at Yoshinobu, the man looking at her with a calculating eye. "S-So, um, that thing with Naru is open to candidates, r-right?" Mai asked.
"?" The old man raised a brow before humming. "Likely, from my position, yes."
"Then let me be that option!"
Those not in the know looked alarmed before 'understanding' hit them way too easily for Mai's tastes!
"W-Why do you all look like you accepted it already!?" The Zenin girl burned.
-Um, duh, it was obvious- Ever the tactful one, Satoru told her. -Like, wow, totally didn't see that one comin-Oi?!- He hit the ground.
-Ignore him, we're glad for ya!- Riko said as the man squawked after being tripped.
Naruto groaned. "I guess I'm just glad this is all over with. I've got ramen to eat," he said before taking his leave, closing the door behind him as he left.
"So, what about the Tokyo side of things?" Kushina asked the group. "Right, Tsumiki-chan?"
The other adults looked alarmed, eyes snapping to the steaming statue that was Tsumiki Fushigoro.
"I mean, wow, you guys figured this out real quickly."
-I-It's just to help!- The poor gal squeaked. -I-I didn't know how this would work out!-
-Hmm~ Man, you must be thrilled, Megumi- Satoru smirked as the shadow boy hummed. -I mean, your sister getting what she wanted-
-I gave my blessings already- The boy said with a raised brow.
The adults wheezed as Mai found it in her to snicker.
-Ahem! I… I see?- Yaga said with a rather surprised expression. -... Then, I'll cast her in as my candidate- He declared as Kuroi looked at the horribly bashful Tsumiki with a kind look.
-I won't say anything on how you feel but you're doing Naruto a big favor despite how odd this situation is- The woman grinned as the Fushigoro girl muttered.
-Yuta, this is crazy- Rika whispered, rather badly, to the blushing but sheepishly chuckling Special Grade. -I've never seen this outside of anime-
-Y-Yeah, well, they say art imitates life, so- The newcomer said as Maki laughed.
-Well, at least she knows she'll never be lonely- The Restricted girl grinned.
~NRK Out~