Helloooo everyone :D I hope you're all doing well!
I struggled a lot to write this chapter. Most of the scenes didn't turn out as planned, and they kept getting longer and longer, and the scenes I had planned had to be cut for the next chapter. I swear this story was first supposed to be a one-shot, then a short story of 10 chapters, but now we're easily heading to 30 chapters. GOSH THE SLOW BURN IS GETTING ON MY NERVES I WANT ROMANTIC FLUFF UGH
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Chapter 8
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Immersed in the subdued light of the bar, Shibi was sitting in the far corner, his eyes unfocused, his mind deep in thoughts.
A week earlier, he had received a missive from Inoichi. Although both their clans weren't that close, they had been faced with a common problem in the past. Danzo had wanted to take children from their clans; Fuu, of the Yamanaka Clan, and Shino, of the Aburame Clan, and Shibi's own son at that. In the end, Shibi's nephew, Torune, had volunteered to take his place, the Aburame Clan needing their heir after all. Both Clan Heads were aware of the honour that Shimura Danzo had bestowed upon them, and they truly felt proud at first… but they didn't like what their children had become.
Shibi had no more influence on his nephew, who seemed to distance himself from the clan. In fact, Torune seemed like he was losing himself, emptying from his personality, and Shibi couldn't do anything to help him.
It was usually considered that the Aburames were cold and distant by nature, that they didn't like to meddle with people, but they were actually just reserved and had a vast wealth inside, both emotionally and psychologically. Shibi knew the difference between an intellectual and analytical person and one who didn't have any more control over their own mind. So, when Inoichi's letter had informed him that something was going on underground, Shibi decided that he had to take action. Why? Because Aburames may be calm and reserved people, but when a situation called for it, they hit.
A quite complicated seal had been drawn on Torune, and if Shibi wasn't a specialist in Fuinjutsu, he could recognize a basic seal of control. Moreover, the fact that it was put in the tongue was meaningful. The pronounced information was being controlled. And the fact that a loyal ninja of Konoha - of the Aburame Clan - would be bound to bear such an insulting and degrading seal, and without Shibi's knowledge, no less? Impardonnable.
"You're gloomier than usual, Shibi. A penny for your thoughts?"
Awakened from his reverie by Tsume's raucous voice, his eyes focused again behind his glasses, his hand tightening around the drink he was holding.
"No need for a penny, Tsume."
She was watching him sharply, waiting to know the reason why he had called her.
After all, although it wasn't unusual for them to have a drink together, most of the time, Tsume was the one to drag him out of his compound and would share with him the latest news she had heard of. As shinobi bars had private tables surrounded by privacy seals, it allowed them to speak more freely than in any other place.
Shibi insisted that he wasn't into gossiping. It was gathering intel, a very, truly important task for a ninja.
And the information he had now was of utmost importance.
Of course, he had to let his former teammates know about them.
The clans would not stand by anymore, not when the safety of their clansmen wasn't as indisputable as it should have been.
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"Oh my! If this isn't Kakashi-kun!" a joyous voice laughed at the sight of the young ANBU who was leaning against a tree. "It's been a while! Your hair is as untamable as always I see." A pause. "Not that I have much to say in the matter."
The kid nodded at him. Maybe he should stop thinking of him as a kid but, meh, even Minato was still a kid to him, and Kakashi was Minato's kid, so. The kid.
"Jiraiya-sama. It's nice to see you seem to be doing well."
Raucous laughter echoed in the park. "So, why did you call the great Jiraiya the Gallant? Need some help to woe a fine lady?" the toad sage grinned as he wiggled his eyebrows.
When Minato had passed away, Jiraiya had promised himself to be there for both his children if needed. He knew that Naruko was safe in the village as of now, but Kakashi had always worried him.
Minato had put Kakashi in ANBU to keep him close to himself, and in extension, to Kushina. Letting Kakashi drown himself in the organization was not part of the plan.
After Minato's death, the teenager had refused to go back to do regular missions, and Jiraiya was in no place to intervene, but he could at least help by keeping an eye on him.
He was far from mastering the Hiraishin no Jutsu that had made Minato so infamous, but he was good enough at fūinjutsu to understand its functioning and to decipher the theory behind the seal around his special kunai.
Although Jiraiya couldn't teleport himself to the location of said-kunai, he had managed to tamper with it enough to be able to locate someone who would launch an alert by infusing their chakra in the seal. He had given the kunai to Kakashi, telling him that if he ever needed his help, he just needed to call him and he would come to him.
Unsurprisingly, Kakashi had never used it in the last seven years. He probably couldn't bring himself to lean on anyone anymore, and frankly, Jiraiya understood the sentiment.
So, when he had received an alert that led him to the borders of the Land of Fire, he had felt both relieved to know that his proposition hadn't fallen on deaf ears, and a bit concerned, because, what could push Kakashi to ask for his help?
"I'm barely acting as a messenger, actually," Kakashi clarified as he took a letter from his scroll pouch. "My teammates are resting a bit farther. We should be fine here."
Jiraiya raised an eyebrow and took the letter, not wasting a moment in reading it.
If Kakashi contacting him was out of the usual, Shikaku doing so in such a secretive manner was even more suspicious and worrisome.
"The clans are feeling uneasy," Kakashi explained as the Sannin read the letter.
Jiraiya raised his eyes to his disciple's student, and a lopsided grin formed on his lips despite the calculating look on his face. "This sounds a lot like a rebellion, kid."
Kakashi turned his eyes to the side in a seemingly nonchalant way, but the Toad Sage knew him well enough to recognize the barely restrained anger hidden behind the movement.
"Did you know that Danzo had let Minato-sensei die?"
All traces of humour disappeared from Jiraiya's face.
The kid knew how to make him listen.
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Ever since Ino had learnt about Naruto's family - or rather, about Naruto's lack of knowledge on her family, she couldn't stop thinking about them.
She had talked to Sakura about it, and they had both agreed to look into it and inform their friend about any discovery they may make.
If Naruto's parents had been ninjas, Ino was sure that her dad would know about them. She had tried to ask him many times over the last two weeks, but he had always found a way to get away without answering her. That wasn't like him; usually, he was always eager to teach her everything he knew and enlighten her in whatever questionings she may have. His evasive answers and the way he always disappeared when she brought up the subject were getting annoying. In the end, she lost patience and decided that if he didn't give her a straight answer, then she would look for it herself.
Since he was not at home that day (he had been busy lately, somehow), Ino entered her father's study and undertook to search for pictures if he had any. Usually, she knew not to look into his stuff when he wasn't there, but hey, he had asked for it.
After closing the door behind her, Ino scanned the room thoughtfully. A few piles of paperwork were organized on his desk, but they had to be related to his current work. She wouldn't be able to learn anything from them about people who had died years ago, and even if it was a possibility, she wouldn't mess up with her dad's work. Her eyes trailed off to the walls surrounding the desk. They were draped with bookshelves, and Ino didn't understand the meaning of half the titles of the books.
She walked inside the study and read a few titles, but none of those could help her.
When she looked around her again, her attention was drawn to the shelf behind the desk, on which a framed picture was put. She grabbed the chair in front of the desk and pushed it right under the shelf before she stood on it.
Near the shelf, an old ninja vest was hanging. If she remembered correctly, it was the one her dad had worn during the war. Now that most of his work was done in the village, he didn't wear it much anymore. The photograph that she had spotted earlier was that of his genin team, and she recognized easily Shikaku-ojisan and Choza-ojisan. Shikamaru looked so much like his dad! She didn't recognize the woman standing behind the three of them, but she could easily guess that it must have been their teacher at the time.
Her eyes suddenly lit up at the sight of a book near the picture. There! That was what she had been looking for! She grabbed the picture album her father had once shown her and sat on the chair before putting the album on her lap. Her mom always said that her dad was a nostalgic person, which was why he tended to keep old stuff from his young days in there.
Ino browsed through the album and smiled at the sight of all the pictures of her dad when he was young. When he was her age, his hair was way shorter than it was now, tied in a short ponytail, and she was amazed to see how much they looked alike. That was probably the reason why her mother called her "a daddy's girl"; she was every bit like him after all. Below each picture, there was a little note written by her dad. If she could find a note about an Uzumaki, that would be it! And well, seeing how much Ino looked like her own father, chances were that Naru would also look like her parents. She needed to look for someone with her friend's colouring and a similar face.
The photographs were taken over the years, from when her father entered the Academy to when he became an adult, and at some point, she was so engrossed in the images relating her father's life that she almost forgot her first purpose. She got her focus back when she turned a page, and for a moment, she could have sworn that she saw Naruto. But instead, it was a teenager who was wearing a white hoodie and had a ninja headband tied around his head. His spiky blond hair was just like Naruto's and he had the kindest eyes she had ever seen, coloured in the same shade of blue as Naruto's.
He. Was. So. Pretty.
And that smile was so angelic. How had she never met him?!
Many people were surrounding him. Her dad was above him, ruffling his hair, and other ninjas were around, grabbing his shoulders or headlocking him. The guy was just grinning at the camera, his hands in his pockets, as if he weren't even trying to get away from his situation.
Her eyes trailed to the note under the picture.
'Minato's the first to become a jōnin at 15! Still a sissy pretty princess.'
Uh-uh. Even her dad called him pretty. Because he really was. Of course, Sai was the love of her life, but she could stare at this picture for hours and not get bored.
After a long moment, she shook herself, trying to remember what she was doing there in the first place.
Right! Naruto's parents!
Could it be that this guy was Naruto's father? They didn't have the exact same face, but she had never seen anyone with as many similarities with Naruto as him. And, if he was Naru's dad indeed, then… Then he was dead. Which was why she had never met him.
Her heart sank. It was a bit strange. She already knew that Naruto's parents were dead, but seeing this face, this grinning and happy face, and thinking that he was gone… The memory of Shin's death came back to mind, and she shook her head. She shouldn't be having negative thoughts now. Sai was busy during the day, but she always wrote to him at night, and in the morning, she never failed to find a drawing in response. There was no need to be sad about it. Sai was fine, and so was Naruto. Now, she had to find information about her friend's parents, and she seemed to be on the right path of doing so!
She continued to browse through the album, keeping an eye open for other pictures of Minato and notes about his last name (was he really an Uzumaki?). She did find many more pictures of him until she reached a photograph where he was wearing a long cloak over his uniform, and the Hokage hat, and the note said 'Long live the Yondaime Hokage'.
Ino stared at the note, then back at the picture, and her eyes widened at the realization that this was the Yondaime Hokage and- Minato, the handsome-pretty-boy, was maybe Naruto's dad and the Yondaime Hokage and- Naruto's dad was the Yondaime Hokage ?!
This wasn't possible! Everyone would have realized it if Naruto was the Hokage's daughter, especially if they had the same last name, and why would the villagers mistreat Naruto then? Why wouldn't Naruto be aware of her heritage anyway? She had been told that her parents were ninjas, so obviously, they weren't unknown; it didn't make sense that their identities wouldn't be revealed to her…
Another fact clicked in Ino's mind. The Sandaime Hokage was the one who told Naruto about her parents. And he was the one to name her as well. If the old man Naruto was so familiar with was the Hokage himself, it must have been because she was someone important. And if her parentage was to be kept a secret… It was because her parents were important people.
Ino still remembered when, at the beginning of the Academy year, her father had told her about her classmate's incident, Hyūga Hinata.
To be from a famous family meant that enemy villages would target her. Ino had been taught early on to never talk about clan secrets and to be able to keep her mouth shut about important matters and relationships concerning ninja families. Moreover, like ninjas, they had to lead secretive lives and missions, so that was a skill she had to develop from a young age.
This being said, keeping the information a secret from enemies or from the public was one thing, but… To keep it from Naruto herself? About her parents? That was too much! Naruto just had to keep secrets as well, and if she didn't know how to do so just yet, she would learn to, as Ino did. She had to anyway, if she wanted to become Hokage.
Slowly, she stood up on the chair and put back the photo-album into place. She had first thought that if she could find a picture from at least one of her parents, she would take it so that Naruto could see it as well. But if it was really the Yondaime Hokage, they could find pictures of him in bookshops as well, and her dad would never find out about what she had done. If he had refused to answer her about Naruto's parents for the last weeks… well, she knew the reason why, now.
Once the album was settled, Ino was about to get off the chair, when she noticed a black book with a card stuck on it.
'Happy birthday Goldilocks!'
Letting curiosity get the better of her, she grabbed it to have a look. Who knew what she could find there.
The names of many people were written in different colours inside the cover of the book. She recognized quickly the names of Shikaku-ojisan and Choza-ojisan. There was the name of Minato as well! The Yondaime Hokage had given a birthday gift to her dad! Did that mean that Naruto's father and hers were close friends then? That was… such a nice thought!
She looked at the first page, and her eyes widened when she read the title.
Iwa Bingo Book, x67.
Bingo Book? What did that mean? Now that she thought about it, the title wasn't even written on the front page, the cover was just black. Ino frowned thoughtfully. It could have been a diary, but she didn't understand what it would have to do with Iwa… and why it would be nice enough to be given as a birthday gift to her father.
Each page presented a ninja, with a frontal picture, a profile picture, and a picture of their back. Below the photographs, there was information on their names, ninja village, and a quick description.
As she turned the pages, Ino pouted, perplexed, her frown still in place. It was a strange birthday present. She hoped that her friends had better taste than that.
It wasn't until she reached the Konoha ninjas section that her interest was awakened. The first one to be presented was none other than the Yondaime Hokage! Ino sighed wistfully. How could a man be so beautiful? If Naruto ended up looking like him when she grew up, she would be such a looker!
Namikaze Minato, the Yellow Flash of Konoha.
S-rank jōnin.
Killed a thousand Iwa-nin in a single night, alone. One-man-army. Incredible speed. Only flashes of yellow are seen when in action. Wide range of ninjutsu. Beware of kunai. Flee-on-sight.
Wow. Ino didn't understand everything, other than the fact that Yondaime-sama was definitely a legend!
A few notes were written in different colours. She recognized them as the same colours used to write the names at the beginning of the book.
'Flee-on-sight, Shinobis, or you'll end up forever smitten with this pretty face!'
'So much for an S-rank. They didn't see him bawling his eyes out when he watched Princess Sana at the theatre' 'They would still have ended up smitten though'
'Imagine if they saw him in his pink apron.'
Ino blinked. She really wanted to know what the Yondaime looked like wearing a pink apron as he cried for a children's theatre play. She put her head between her hands. She was getting so curious about him. She wondered if her dad would agree to tell her stories about him. Then she could tell them to Naruto.
She did a double-take at the thought.
But… His last-name was Namikaze, not Uzumaki. Did that mean that… he wasn't Naruto's dad? But they looked so much alike!
She scowled. She couldn't give false information to Naru, it would be too cruel to give her such happiness that turned out to be fake in the end. But it would mean that she was back to square one. Unless Uzumaki was a fake name?
She looked at the rest of the pages, deep in thoughts.
She didn't recognize the next few faces but was surprised to see that some were very young.
It wasn't until she stumbled on the page of a woman with long, deep red hair that sported a wide grin and was doing the peace sign at the camera that she stopped again. She was the first person who didn't look serious in the book. And that attitude was so...
When Ino read the description though, the beat of her heart quickened and she gasped in surprise.
Uzumaki Kushina, the Red Hot-Blooded Habanero of Konoha.
A-rank jōnin.
Insane. Chains. Fuinjutsu. Uzumaki. Beware of the hair. Carries a frying pan, not to cook.
Uzumaki. Uzumaki.
She looked back at the picture. At the grin. At the pose.
That was so Naruto!
On the page, the word Insane was crossed, and below it was written the word Badass.
Other notes were scribbled on the paper in different colours.
'Actually, I believe that insane is spot on.' 'Who's the bitch who wrote this?'
'Who weaponizes their HAIR?'
'Who weaponizes a FRYING PAN?' 'It's actually pretty dangerous in her hands, she knocked me out once while we were cooking together. She took the habit of carrying it in a scroll ever since.' 'Insane, I'm telling you.'
Ino couldn't believe it. This Kushina had to be Naruto's mother! Trust Naru's mom to use about anything to prank people. What's more, she was sure that she had seen her face before.
She hurriedly stood up to get back the picture album and she leafed through the pages, focusing more on long red hair rather than on spiky blond this time.
And she found it. It wasn't just pictures of Kushina though; Namikaze Minato was always with her. She wondered how she had missed her the first time around.
On the first picture that she had noticed of the Yondaime, when he had become a jōnin at 15, Kushina was one of the people standing by his side, with an arm around his shoulder, their cheeks crashed against each other and matching smiles on their faces. Now that she paid attention to her, her face was remarkably similar to Naruto's; how had she not noticed it before?
Ah. She was far too focused on Yondaime-sama's beauty, that was why. Ino had to work on her resistance to beautiful persons.
And that red hair was so eye-catching. But it was so long and seemed so silky, her hair was beautiful. Ino passed her hand in her short hair. She should probably let it grow as well. Furthermore, didn't they say in the black book that she used her hair as a weapon?
The next picture she stumbled on with the Uzumaki lady (and Naruto's mother, Ino was sure of it) was one of four people, Uzumaki Kushina, Namikaze Minato, and two other persons that… seemed familiar somehow.
Below it, her father had written another note.
'Guess who's on a double-date? Can't believe the village hasn't been blown up yet. '
A double date. A DATE.
Naruto's parents were out with another couple!
She leaned to look at them in detail. Both Kushina and Yondaime-sama were sporting cheeky grins while they were grabbing a man, a man with black eyes and dark hair; and she had definitely seen that frown somewhe-
Her eyes widened in recognition.
That was the Police Chief! Fugaku-sama was being hugged (or strangled) from behind by Naruto's parents while a lady was looking at them, laughing and pinching his cheek. Fugaku-sama just looked annoyed and utterly done.
And if she had had any doubt about the Yondaime Hokage being Naruto's dad left, and of Uzumaki Kushina being her mother, now they had to be. Naruto was a perfect mix of both of them.
She found a few more of Kushina's, but one especially caught her interest. And for once, Yondaime-sama wasn't on the picture.
She was standing on the side, her belly huge - wait, she was pregnant! -, grinning and making the peace sign with a hand. A little boy (who looked just like Sasuke-kun?!) was grabbing her green dress with his tiny hand, a little smile on his face, and near him, Choza-ojisan was holding a plate of biscuits. In the background, Ino's father and Shikaku-ojisan were standing back to the camera, glaring and shouting at each other. Each of them was holding a paintbrush, and half of the room (and half of their clothes) was painted in orange.
As usual, a short description of the picture was written below it.
A-rank mission to decorate the Habanero's future little devil's room. (Taken by Kakashi.)
Oh.
Oh!
This was Naruto's room!
And it was orange.
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In the quiet of the library, Sakura was sitting comfortably on a beanbag, a book between her hands.
When Ino had suggested that they find information about Naruto's parents, Sakura had had to think of a way to do this research. She had no one to whom she could ask about ninja figures, so she went to her usual source of information: books. She wasn't sure that she could find anything about Naruto's parents specifically, but maybe about her family?
She had asked the librarian about where she could find a book about ninjas families, and Sakura was led to an aisle about Clans and Ninjas. Most books were technical, relating how to found a clan, the internal functioning of most ninja clans, clan politics and so on. She wasn't sure that Uzumaki was a clan name anyway, but that was her best shot. After browsing the titles of the books at her disposal, she found a huge encyclopedia on the History shelf.
Clans Repertoire.
Sakura grabbed it with both hands and laid it on the ground before she sat, legs crossed, in front of it. It was far too heavy, so she preferred to first see what it was about before taking it.
On the back cover, she could see that it had been published 20 years ago, and it listed all ninja clans known through history and wars.
She skipped the introduction and started to look directly at the content of the book.
She stumbled on the Tsukino clan who had a double-page dedicated to them. Under their clan name was drawn their clan symbol, a crescent moon, as well as the drawing of a person. The spaces where their eyes, nose and mouth should be located were blank, but in the middle of their forehead, there was a purple crescent moon and their shoulder-length hair was painted in light violet colour. Underneath, in the legend, a little text described the physical specificities of the clansmen, apparently recognizable thanks to the tattoo in the middle of their forehead and their hair colour. The next paragraphs explained what was known of the clans' history during the Clan Wars, their known abilities as well as their usual affiliation in the nations and their most famous clansmen in the last fifty years.
Sakura's eyes lit up at the realization. The information was not very detailed, but it was more than enough! She quickly searched for the name Uzumaki, but as she leafed through the pages, she soon realized that the clans were put in complete disorders. That meant that she would have to read each page to find them; if they existed. She let out a long suffering-sigh. She really, really hoped that there would be an Uzumaki Clan because reading this book was going to be very long. The things that she wouldn't do for her friends. Even so, she reasoned that even if she didn't find anything about Naruto's family name, she could find something about ninjas with blue eyes and blond hair like Naruto's, and she would at least learn about the ninja clans all over the world, which was a really nice kind of knowledge to have. Filled with determination, she nodded to herself and started to read on the spot, still seated on the ground in front of the bookshelves.
Since it was an important book, she wasn't allowed to take it home, so she had to come back to work on it every day and allowed herself one to two hours.
She had spent days and days reading it, and she still had no clue about Uzumakis. It didn't help that she had found many interesting clans to read about, and she might have lost some time reading about them instead.
The first one to hold her attention was the Senju Clan. The Senju name was one of the first ones to pop up during class when she had started the Academy, being the last name of two Hokages.
The Senju Clan didn't seem to have specific physical features, although most of the time, their hair was either black or white. They were the co-founders of Konohagakure no Sato, the first shinobi village, and it was entirely affiliated to Konoha. They were infamous as The Clan with a Thousand Skills, their skillset ranging from kenjutsu to ninjutsu (symbols of water and earth were put in parenthesis), and senjutsu, hence their name. Sakura knew that ninjutsu was the art of wielding chakra, but she had no idea of what kenjutsu and senjutsu could be. She noted them to read about it later on.
As for the famous clansmen, the most notable ones over the last fifty years were Senju Hashirama, the First Hokage who had a kekkei genkai (noted), the Mokuton (noted), that he wielded so well that he had apparently grown the forest of Konoha himself, which was how he earned the name Senju of the Forest ; Senju Tobirama, the Second Hokage who was rumoured to have created over a thousand techniques and became infamous for his kinjutsu (noted ) and for setting up the Ninja Academy System (but how did they learn the ninja basis before then?); and finally, Senju Tsunade, a kunoichi who had revolutionized iryōninjutsu (noted) and became the unique medic-nin who was allowed to be a frontline fighter as well as being a healer.
Sakura was awed by the information that she read about Senju Tsunade. She was the first kunoichi Sakura read about, and she sounded so strong and amazing! Just in case, she noted her name as well. It would be nice to have a role model after all.
Another clan to especially hold her attention was the Yamanaka Clan; it made Sakura especially excited to learn about her friend's family. She tilted her head at the sight of their clan symbol. It looked strangely like an umbrella. She wondered if it had a meaning? They also usually had a light hair colour, ranging from light brown to auburn to blonde, as well as pupilless eyes. Sakura nodded. Yeah, it made sense. Ino corresponded completely to this description.
The Yamanaka Clan was affiliated to Konohagakure no Sato, and they had joined the village at the beginning of the Foundation of the Five Nations. They were mostly known for their mind manipulation techniques. It was rumoured that their pupilless eyes allowed them to stare right into people's souls. Sakura gasped at that. She had first wondered if it were true, but after pondering for a bit, she had decided that it had to be. Ino always knew everything and was a good judge of character. She would have to ask her what a soul looked like.
The most famous Yamanaka over the last fifty years was Yamanaka Yuu, who had been able to read an entire army's thoughts during the First Shinobi World War, leading Konoha to victory. Sakura shivered, in both amazement and worry. She would never lie to Ino or have any nasty thoughts around her.
And she had kept reading more and more, taking notes whenever something caught her interest, learning about the many clans across the nations, and of Konoha's. She was surprised to realize that quite a few of her classmates were part of a clan as well.
When it came to Naruto though, she had seen many pictures of people with blonde hair and blue eyes, resembling her friend's, but they were from Kumogakure. None of them was Uzumaki though. She didn't quite like the idea; what if she told Naruto, and the latter didn't like it? Or, worse, what if Naruto decided to leave Konoha for Kumo? That would be terrible!
It was at the end of the second week, while she was immersed in her reading and comfortably seated in her beanbag, that she suddenly found it.
Uzumaki Clan.
She had first read the name, had started reading the description, before she looked up quickly at the title of the page again.
Uzumaki Clan. The Uzumaki Clan!
She had screamed before she covered violently her mouth with both her hands, and she stared with wide eyes, disbelieving.
They existed. The Uzumaki Clan existed. She had found Naruto's family!
She was so giddy she would barely contain her excitement, and she quickly went back to her reading.
The Uzumaki Clan's clan symbol was that of a red spiral that seemed awfully familiar to her, but for the life of her, she couldn't remember where she had seen it. She drew it on a new page because she didn't want to waste time trying to remember, but she also knew that she had the answer at the back of her mind. Physically, they usually had long straight red hair. Sakura hummed. Weird, that didn't look like Naruto. But the book said usually, so it meant that it wasn't necessarily true.
The Uzumakis were the leaders of the Land of Whirlpool, and were affiliated to Uzushiogakure no Sato. Sakura blinked. Wait, what? She re-read the description before her eyes were drawn to a tiny drawing of the Land of Whirlpool, and Uzushio was located at the edge of the land. Whirlpool… was… a country? The Uzumaki Clan lead a country, just like the Land of Fire, and the ninja village inside it? She didn't know that to be possible! She stared at the drawing of the land for a moment. The land seemed to be small, tha village made for one fourth of the whole country. She wondered how they worked, it must have been very different from the other countries, like in the Five Great Nations. Then again, maybe it was a regular thing in smaller countries?
Uzushiogakure was considered as the sister village of Konohagakure. The Uzumaki Clan was called the Clan of Longevity because of the incredible life-force of their clansmen. It was rumoured that drinking an Uzumaki's blood could extend one's lifespan. Sakura grimaced. What kind of ability was that?! It was crazy.
They had a specific kenjutsu style that they mostly mixed with water techniques, and they were infamous for their mastery of fūinjutsu (noted). The most famous ones were Uzumaki Ryuzen, the last Daimyo of Uzu no Kuni, as well Uzumaki Kouen, the last Uzumaki Clan leader, who could take one's soul if they ever stepped on his territory, taking their lives to prolong his. Wow. Scary. What was it with all these clans that could reach people's souls?
However, a week after the end of the Second Shinobi World War, on the 11th of April of the year 50, the Land of Whirlpool was completely destroyed during a night by the joint alliances of a few hidden ninja villages, as their ability in fūinjutsu was too feared in the nations. The few survivors had scattered all over the elemental nations and stayed hidden most of the time, as the simple ring of their names was enough to bring back enemies to end their slaughter.
Sakura's shoulders sagged, her spike of energy suddenly lost, and she stared at the pages with horror in her eyes.
Naruto's whole family had been destroyed. Everyone was killed because they were too strong at… at a ninja art? What was even fūinjutsu? It was said that there were a few survivors though. Maybe not in Konoha, or even in Fire Country, but they were alive, somewhere. They had to stay hidden if they didn't want to be killed but, but then, why didn't Naruto hide as well? Unless…
Dread filled Sakura's chest and she let out a silent whimper. Was that the reason why everyone was so mean to Naruto?
That was… That was horrible. It was so unfair.
With the book open on her lap, Sakura leaned slowly against the beanbag and wondered whether she should tell Naruto about it. What if it made her sad in the end? That was not what she wanted. When she had started researching this, she had wanted to find information that would make Naruto happy. Not… Not tell her that people wanted her clan dead and that she was most likely treated the way she was because of... of the said- clan name.
In spite of her doubts, she wrote everything related to the Uzumaki Clan on a paper, just in case, and put back the encyclopedia in place before she went back home.
Once she found herself alone in her bedroom, she put all of her notes on her desk and laid down on her bed sloppily, her eyes fixated on the ceiling and her mind full of questions.
The best she could do was probably to tell Ino about it. But she felt bad about hiding something like that from Naruto. Then again, her friend had never asked her to find out about her family, could she get angry because of her? Sakura didn't think that was possible, Naruto never got angry at her but… She could be sad. And Sakura wanted to avoid that at all cost, her friend had enough trouble as it was.
But she didn't want to wait until the next day to talk about it. And her parents were out of the question; they didn't like Naruto either.
Sakura's eyes watered. That was unfair.
All of a sudden, she stood up and wiped her unshed tears before she went to fetch a brush on her desk. She sat on her chair promptly, and she started to write to her soulmate her questioning. After all, he may be annoying, but he was a good listener, and he was… nice when he tried to be. Maybe he would know what to do in such a situation.
Say, if you know something about your friend that she doesn't know, but you're scared it's going to hurt her, will you still tell her about it? I want to help her, but I don't want to make her sad.
She waited for an answer, but nothing was written back for quite a few hours. In the end, she gave up; maybe he didn't like talking about problems.
She was proved wrong, though, when she went to sleep after dinner and felt a light tingling on her arm. Oh! He had probably been busy then, she had judged him too fast!
It depends. You should probably ask your friend about her opinion on the matter.
Or not.
Sakura pouted. Come on, if she could, she would have done just that already.
You're not helping.
Another answer followed quickly afterwards, more complete and more telling this time.
You can always try to say it in a way that won't hurt her, try to subdue the pain. And ask her just how much information she wants to have. After all, it might be better that your friend learns whatever you know from you, who care about her, rather than from someone else.
Oh. It was better that Naruto learnt about her family from her rather than from someone else. Yes, she cared about Naruto. And if she told her, she would make sure to remind her that they would still be friends no matter what. Sakura had noticed how uneasy and insecure Naruto would get whenever the subject of people was breached, and she wouldn't let her keep on being unsettled by that. It would be terrible if one of the ill-intentioned people were the ones to tell her about her family and use it to hurt her. She wouldn't let it happen.
Thank you.
So, she would tell Naruto. She just had to find a way to tell her nicely about her clan. Maybe insist on the fact that she still had family alive, and she just had to find them. Of course, Sakura would help, and she was sure that Ino would be in as well.
But there still was a question weighing on Sakura's mind. And her soulmate was proving very efficient in getting her answers.
By the way, do you know what's fūinjutsu?
Why the question?
She blinked. What was that question?
I asked first. I read it in a book and I didn't understand it.
He took some time before answering, but he still did in the end.
It's the ninja art of sealing. It consists of locking or freeing an object or chakra in or from another object.
Sealing? Locking and freeing? In or from, what?
That… still didn't make much sense to her. She copied it on a paper so that she could think about it the next day after resting. She had already done a lot of reading, and she needed to sleep now.
Thank you. It's about what I learnt about my friend. That's part of what I have to explain to her. Good night.
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.
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What.
Kakashi stared at Sakura's answer, his eyes round, the drumming of his heart resounding in his ears, and he would never admit it to anyone, but that baby brat of a soulmate of his had actually managed to freak him out more than anyone had in the last five years.
Fuinjutsu? A friend? It was going to make her sad?
As in, Naruto was her friend and something to do with fūinjutsu (like a giant monster sealed inside of her body by her father) was going to hurt her?
That damned little- what the hell - how did she even find out, in a freaking book no least- and what did she mean by good night - he was losing it.
Of course, he just had to be paired with another little genius.
A little genius who had apparently fallen asleep because she wasn't answering him anymore.
What do you mean?
What did you find out?
What friend are you talking about?
You didn't fall asleep on me did you?
I answered you nicely, you could at least answer me back, don't you think?
You better not have fallen asleep.
Oï, Ribbon.
Wake up.
I have no scruple in writing on your whole body you know.
"Kakashi-senpai?"
"Don't," Kakashi muttered. "Don't say anything. Just go back to sleep, Itachi, we're leaving early tomorrow."
He didn't even look up to see his subordinate staring at him as if he had just gained another Sharingan eye.
Little geniuses and their way of making him feel like he was an idiot.
That was supposed to be his thing.
Did you know that bees sometimes sting other bees?
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A faint and warm tingle propagated in Naruto's arm, like a sweet caress. She slowly came to consciousness, a happy smile outlining her face when she opened her eyes to see the message her soulmate had written to her.
Good morning, Beautiful. Time to wake up.
Ever since her soulmate's comeback from his long mission, Naruto had begun to write a morning message to him whenever she woke up. For a few days, he had simply answered her, but after a while, he started to write to her first, helping her wake up in the process. She was becoming more and more sensitive to the writings, in a positive way. Whenever he wrote to her, she felt warm and calm and light, as if she were walking on a cloud.
She grabbed the brush on her nightstand and wrote right under his message.
Good morning!
She stood up and went to her bathroom to wash her face, when another message came in response. Strange, in the morning they didn't talk much usually.
I'll be absent for a little while. I'll contact you when I'll be back.
Naruto stared in surprise. And maybe a bit of disappointment.
When will you come back?
It should be just a few days this time. Probably a week at most.
Oh. That… was still pretty long, but that should be fine.
Okay. I'll be waiting for you then!
She wondered though. What did he do during his absences?
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"Oh, Sakura-chan is here, dattebayo!"
Upon entering the classroom and hearing her name be called, Sakura looked towards her friends who were already seated in their place. She joined them stomping her foot loudly, an exasperated expression on her face and anger burning in her eyes.
Naruto's smile tensed and she lowered her waving hand. "Eh… Sakura-chan, are you okay?"
"I'm fine!" she screeched as she sat down. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath before she turned her gaze to her friends. "Sorry…" Sakura mumbled apologetically. She shouldn't unleash her anger on them.
Naruto was staring at her like she had gone crazy, contrary to Ino who looked barely curious, her chin resting on her palm.
"Your husband?" Ino guessed.
"He wrote all over my body!" Sakura whined with volume. "There was scribbles everywhere, even on my back and, and on my butt! I had to take a shower and scrub for hours and now my skin is aching!" She banged the table with her fists, itching to hurt someone. "When I find him I'm gonna shave his hair!"
"Oh!" Naruto raised her hand. "If you wanna prank him, I can help!" Then, she looked up thoughtfully. "Unless he's already bald…"
Sakura groaned and crossed her arms as she sagged in her seat.
That idiot couldn't be helpful without going back to writing nonsense! So, what if an entire town in the Land of Earth was constructed under a rock? Well, she might have found that a little interesting, if she didn't have to wash everything up before going to school! It didn't help that her mother had gotten curious about everything that he had written and she had tried to read his stupid facts while Sakura was taking her shower. The beginning of the day had been so weird! The only places that hadn't been covered with ink were her toes, her fingers and her shoulders! Those were, like, the easiest places to wash!
After taking a bath, she had asked him what the little stunt was for, and he had just… asked her what she had discovered about her friend?
Was he lonely or something? Couldn't he sleep and talk normally during the day? She was so annoyed that she didn't even want to keep him company at the moment!
Because Sakura was still a nice and polite girl, she had answered him that she had found out information about the friend's clan, although it wasn't much.
His answer?
Ah.
He had just replied "Ah" before he went completely silent despite the messages that she wrote back to him. She was going to stab him with a carrot at their first meeting.
Because of that stupid Dog, she had arrived two hours late at school, all of her visible body parts were pink and she was in a foul mood.
A light tug at her sleeve made her glance at Ino who was sitting by her side.
"Hey," her blonde friend whispered, "I found something about Naruto's parents."
Sakura's eyebrows shot up and all her anger dissipated, the information she had found on the previous day coming back to mind.
"Oh." Sakura leaned towards Ino, shooting a look at Naruto who was headbutting Kiba a bit farther for a reason that she had missed. "Me too," she added to Ino in a subdued voice. "Not her parents, but her clan."
Ino gasped at her revelation. "Naruto has a clan?"
Her question put a grimace on Sakura's face. "It's… a bit complicated. I'd like to explain that when we're alone. Actually… maybe you'll have an idea of how to tell her about it."
The blonde heiress's eyes narrowed, but she still nodded in silence. "I understand. What I'm gonna say has to stay a secret too. We should tell Naruto after school."
Sakura agreed, although she couldn't help but wonder what else Ino had found that sounded so sensitive.
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As soon as she got out of school, Naruto had dashed to her apartment, her mind screaming that Sakura-chan and Ino-chan were coming to her home! For some reason, they had both decided to come to visit her, because they had something important to tell her. They just had to tell their parents first, before joining her right afterwards.
When they had arrived, Ino had insisted so much on the fact that everything that would be said had to stay a secret, because it could become too dangerous, that Naruto had started to freak out.
It didn't help that Sakura had confessed that she had hesitated to talk to them about whatever she had found out, because she was worried her knowledge would do more harm than good.
"But we have to tell each other everything, remember?" Naruto had parroted the words that Ino had told her shortly after they had become friends.
Naruto hadn't, in no way, expected them to talk to her about her family.
There was so much information that at some point, her head had started to hurt and her vision had blurred slightly.
She had a clan. People from her family who were somewhere around the world. She could recognize them with their red hair and they were known for being strong ninjas, just like she wanted to be!
She truly had parents. Ninja parents with names and faces.
"I took a picture in Daddy's album, but I didn't tell him I took it," Ino explained when she had handed to her a photo of her parents. "I hope he won't notice. But there are more pictures so if you want to see them, you can come to my home when Daddy's not here and we can break in his study together."
After all the revelations that they did, that had been the last straw, and as she looked at her parents' faces, Naruto started to cry like she had never before.
Her mom had long red hair ( like the people of her clan), and she was an awesome ninja, and Naruto absolutely loved her smile.
Her dad had her eyes and her hair and he was the Hokage. The Yondaime Hokage that she admired so much!
They were standing, cheek against cheek, both of them doing a V sign with one of their hands. Naruto's father, Minato, was wearing a light blue yukata with patterns of white leaves, and her mother, Kushina, had her long hair tied in a long braid and wore a dark violet kimono with red flowers drawn all over it.
Both girls had enveloped her in a hug, at a loss of what else to do.
She was so happy.
She was so happy.
"I'm sorry that I couldn't find happier news," Sakura said, "But we'll help you find your family!" she added with conviction.
Naruto shook her head and buried it between her friends' shoulders as she hugged them tighter.
It didn't matter.
Because when she was with Sakura-chan and Ino-chan, she felt that she knew what having a family was like.
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To be continued
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Yeah, I know, Ino and Sakura have great timing; bear with me this is fanfiction u.u Or, you know, Fate?
It feels like I'm neglecting Shisui, despite the fact that the summary makes it sound like he's the main focus, I miss him ;_; I'll have to rewrite the summary. If anyone has an idea for a more fitting one, I'm all ears!
Also I really want to thank you all, you're all so nice and lovely and encouraging, I wouldn't enjoy writing this story as much as I do without you. Your comments make me so happy, thank you so much for your support, you're amazing!