Special thanks to my friend, Beta Reader, and Soundboard, Midnight Lost.
Chapter two: School days.
Naruto yawned as he woke up and found himself staring up at an unfamiliar ceiling… it took him a few moments to shake off his drowsiness and remember yesterday's events. Meeting Rukia, their close encounter with that Hollow creature, Rukia's transferring her powers to him… and of course his wrecked apartment.
After Rukia had erased the Sandaime's memories, the aged Hokage forced Team Gai to profusely apologize, almost comically, to the point that they forgot what they were even apologizing about, most fortunately, no one asked any further questions about the damage that had been done to his former home. In exchange for not pressing charges and to keep the blonde quiet about that whole mess, the old man promised to move him into a much nicer apartment.
Naturally, the Uzumaki accepted and had been moved into a hotel until his new apartment had been acquired with the Sandaime footing the bill and a very generous increase in his stipend. Overall, a definite improvement over his previous conditions.
He wondered what happened to Rukia after she had left him and where she was. While she promised to find him again, he still couldn't help but feel a little worried about her. Nevertheless, he would trust her to return when she was able to. He made his way over to the nearby closet to get a change of clothes, most fortunately, a great many of his belongings survived the Hollow's attack.
The items that didn't survive were quite easily replaceable or not even worth replacing at all. He put on a spare set of his usual orange jumpsuit, while briefly glancing at the Shinigami robes he had attained after gaining Rukia's abilities. He decided to forgo wearing them for the time being so that his classmates wouldn't question his sudden change of clothes. On another note, with his increased stipend, he would be able to afford better and more presentable clothes without having to rely on bargain bin sales as was the case with his usual jumpsuit.
Now dressed and ready, he cast a glance at his new sword that was currently resting in a nearby corner. A small part of him thought about leaving it behind… but something in him told him to take it, like they were meant to be together, meant to be inseparable. It didn't take him long to surmise that the blade must be a key part to his new abilities, ergo it was essential for him to take it… not to mention he had always wanted to practice the art of Kenjutsu but never had the money to buy a proper sword.
Now that he had one, he could begin to learn. Perhaps Rukia could assist and coach him? Now that he thought about it, they would also need a place to train as well. Fortunately, there was no shortage of training grounds to choose from. Though the real issue was… would he have to worry about others spying on him or discovering the true nature of his newfound abilities?
He shrugged to himself and picked up his sword and carried it over his shoulder with the assistance of a pair of crimson sageo cords that were wrapped tight around the jet black lacquer scabbard which made it easier to carry around. He then sighed and made his way towards the Academy, a small part of him hoping that today things would be different.
He pocketed his room key and exited the hotel room before leaving and began walking down the village streets. As he marched, he heard the sounds of various villagers speaking in hushed whispers, they were being much quieter than usual today, though he didn't get the feeling they were talking about him… for once.
He couldn't hear exactly what they were saying, but he definitely heard the words 'Sasuke' and 'Academy'. If he had to make a guess, the rumor mill was beginning to make its rounds. Without question, his classmates told their parents about what happened, who then in turn spread it to their friends and neighbors, and on and on it went with the rumor also being helped along by Ino the 'Queen of Gossip' herself.
He guessed that those who didn't see the event firsthand were questioning the validity of the rumor, not very surprising , especially since he could understand why. Still, there was something else that he should consider. Regardless of if it was a 'fluke' or not, Sasuke wasn't going to let his broken undefeated streak go unanswered, if the Uzumaki knew the golden boy, he was certain that the Uchiha, with his wounded pride, would come at him with a vengeance the next time they stepped into the sparring circle.
On another note, it was kind of refreshing that he wasn't receiving the usual looks from the villagers as they were too absorbed in their gossip to even acknowledge his presence. It wasn't much longer before he arrived at the Konoha Academy and his classroom. When he entered inside, a hushed silence came over the room as all of his fellow classmates stared at him.
As expected, the Sasuke Fangirls all glared at him scornfully, with the exception of Ino who seemed to have a sly smile on her face as she seemed to be enjoying the potential drama which would inevitably lead to even more juicy gossip. Most of the other students seemed to have more subdued expressions, though their eyes flicked nervously in the direction of the Uchiha himself who was openly glaring at the Jinchuuriki, his onyx eyes smoldering with hate.
The blonde wondered why many of his classmates were afraid of the Uchiha, perhaps it was due to his political backing? It was common knowledge that there were people within Konoha's governing body that would bend over backwards and would do anything to please Sasuke, especially if it meant getting a cut of the Uchiha fortune that the unfortunate Heir was sitting on. Perhaps they were afraid that even the slightest insult would get them in trouble with the Uchiha's backers.
Not that it bothered the whiskered teen, there wasn't much anyone in the village could do to him especially since he didn't have that much, if anything to lose. "Hey! Dobe! The hell is with that sword? You trying to overcompensate for something?" Shouted the familiar voice of one Kiba Inuzuka, breaking the silence.
The whiskered teen didn't even feel the sting of that intended barb since he himself didn't choose the shape, form, or length of his new blade, still he didn't want the horn dog to get the last word in as he replied "No, nothing like that. It was a gift." His words and tone being neutral, while he couldn't tell the actual truth, it wasn't technically a lie that the blade was indeed a 'gift' of sorts.
"Yeah? Who'd be crazy enough to give you a nice looking sword like that?" Kiba questioned incredulously. Fortunately, the whiskered teen was saved from having to answer and further prodding as the forms of Iruka and Mizuki entered the classroom, the former of the pair giving a funny look to the blonde and the blade that he was carrying. He looked as if he wanted to ask about the sword as well, but bit back his question as he cleared his throat and asked for everyone to take their seats.
The Jinchuuriki had to suppress a relieved sigh as he took his place in his usual seat, keeping his new sword at his side while taking notice of the fact that he could see Sasuke leering at the Odachi from the corner of his eye. Either the Uchiha himself had an interest in Kenjutsu, or he just wanted the blade so that he might take something from the whiskered blonde, perhaps both.
At the front of the classroom, Iruka cleared his throat once more, but instead of taking roll call, he began to make an announcement as he spoke in a loud and clear voice "Attention all students, today, we are receiving a transfer student. Please give a warm welcome and treat your classmate kindly."
At this piece of news, many students began to whisper amongst themselves. A new transfer student? While not unusual in itself, it was kind of odd for them to transfer in the middle of the school year which would put them way behind the rest of the class. The scarred Chunin then gestured for someone to come in, prompting the classroom door to open, and then someone entered which proved to be a figure that the whiskered teen immediately recognized.
It was Rukia herself who was sporting a confident smirk on her face as she was now wearing a white sleeveless shirt with a blue trim, jean shorts with a brown belt, and shinobi sandals. "Hello. My name is Rukia Kuchiki. I hope we can all get along." She greeted politely as the students once again began to whisper amongst themselves.
Some of the whispers came from the boys who found the newcomer to be cute. Most of said whispers however, came from the girls, most particularly the Uchiha fangirls who viewed the ravenette's presence as potential competition for Sasuke's affection. The whiskered teen came to the conclusion that the raven haired Shinigami must have used her memory modifier and some other methods to implant herself in the Academy, most likely so that she may stay close to him.
As she promised, she had come back… now the other question was, why was everyone else now capable of seeing her and acknowledging her presence? Was there some kind of trick involved? Somehow, she must have obtained a corporeal form to interact with the living. He was absolutely buzzing with questions, but knew better to make a scene in front of everyone else, though that didn't stop him from giving a small and friendly wave towards Rukia, her smirk widening just a bit as thanks for the gesture and for maintaining his silence.
After this, Iruka dismissed the new 'student' and instructed her to find an empty seat. She nodded and took one that was a few rows back, but directly behind the whiskered teen. Even at a distance he could feel her gaze upon his back and felt a form of understanding from her that she would answer his questions in due time when they were alone and had some privacy.
A few minutes later, after a quick roll call, Iruka began his history lecture of the day… particularly focusing on the Kyuubi attack, which was possibly a jab at the whiskered teen himself as he frowned. No doubt his 'teacher' was trying to get under his skin or send some kind of a message. The prick.
He wasn't a fool, he had long since known about his Jinchuuriki status. It wasn't difficult to connect the dots given that he was born on the same night as the Kyuubi's rampage and how the village populace treated him. The only way he could not see the truth was if he put blinders on and deliberately ignored it. One thing was for sure, he had no intention of giving the Chunin 'teacher' or any of his other tormentors any form of satisfaction.
He took a brief glance over his shoulder to look at Rukia who was attentively listening to the lecture while jotting down notes, which made the whiskered teen wonder just how out of touch the Shinigami were from the mortal realm. He supposed that aside from hunting Hollows and reaping souls, they didn't have much reason to interact with the world of mortals, he also suspected that they did not age as humans did, or perhaps the concept of time was different for a Shinigami.
He hummed in thought and found himself subconsciously running his thumb along the hilt of his Odachi and for a brief moment he could have sworn he sensed a feeling of 'contentment' from his blade. He shrugged to himself, wondering if he was imagining things as he pretended to listen to the lecture while still running his thumb along the hilt.
Every so often he would check on the raven haired Shinigami, who was completely absorbed into the lecture. Poor girl. She hadn't yet realized the hell that she was currently in. He gave her a week, maybe less, before she began complaining of potential brain death after listening to Iruka's repeated lectures.
The blonde then snuck a glance towards the Uchiha, knowing that he would be paired against him yet again in the coming class spar of the day. While the whiskered teen wasn't sure if he could reactivate that precognitive ability on command, he did remember that in many of the potential futures he witnessed that Sasuke had a habit of leaving his left side exposed. Hopefully that tidbit of knowledge could give him an edge. Additionally, perhaps it was for the best that he couldn't yet access that power, he did not wish to rely on it too much to the point that it became a crutch.
After some time, the lecture finally came to a merciful end as the scarred Chunin concluded with the Yondaime's sacrifice and the Kyuubi's defeat. He then cleared his throat and announced "Today, we'll be doing things a little differently for Class spars. A special student versus teacher matchup. When your name is called, you will face off against myself or Mizuki in a little spar. If you can last three minutes against us or successfully force us out of the ring, then you win."
This earned a ripple of murmurings from the students with Naruto frowning a bit. Student versus teacher spars were pretty rare, though not unheard of since it was a chance to see how they stacked up against their Senseis. Though in the Uzumaki's opinion, it was a curious coincidence that the teachers chose to have this done the day after the Uchiha's loss. Either this had been already planned prior to Sasuke's defeat, or more likely, it was Iruka's way of trying to teach the whiskered blonde the status quo or perhaps for personal satisfaction.
In the background, Sasuke had a look of obvious disappointment that his chance for a rematch with the 'Dead-last' had been delayed, but he would still get some pleasure from seeing Naruto struggle against the teachers. It was all the same to him, sooner or later, he would defeat the blonde once again and prove that his loss from yesterday was nothing but dumb luck or perhaps cheating.
As per usual, the students uniformly marched out of the classroom with Rukia following everyone's lead. Naruto had to hand it to her, she seemed to be blending in quite well, almost as if she were used to being part of what was a military academy. It made him wonder if the Shinigami had one to learn and train as well.
The students gathered around the sparring ring, the Uzumaki himself hanging back at the rear of the assembled crowd in case Rukia decided to approach him. The first student to be called was a Civilian kid that he couldn't remember the name of, if he were honest, he was kind of expecting to be the first one called up by Iruka. Perhaps the scarred Chunin was warming up before he decided to invite the Jinchuuriki to the ring.
He supposed that it didn't matter, sooner or later it would be his turn all the same. The whiskered teen watched as he observed the Chunin casually bat away the student's blows with an open palm, he then sensed a presence sidle up to him as he heard a feminine voice speak "I told you I'd find you later. I'm sure you have questions."
He smirked as he looked to the side and spotted Rukia now standing next to him, her words were loud enough for him to hear but quiet enough that others couldn't. Then again, with everyone else focused on the class spars, he doubted that anyone would be paying attention to them. "I'll start with the most obvious. How can everyone see you now?" He questioned since that one had been on his mind for a while now.
"I'm inhabiting a Gigai. A temporary body that allows me to blend in amongst humans. Since I lost my powers, I need to remain in this Gigai to rest and recuperate." She answered him in a soft voice, prompting the blonde Uzumaki to nod since she did mention something about needing to get supplies before leaving him yesterday.
"How did things go? That old man, he was your village leader, yes? What happened after I modified his memories?" She asked, gesturing towards the Hokage mountain where the stone faces could be seen throughout the village.
"Funny story. Apparently there's a certain Genin called Rock Lee that goes on wild rampages whenever he drinks alcohol. Don't ask about it. Thanks to your intervention, the Sandaime didn't ask me any further questions about what happened and is trying to sweep everything under the rug. He's got me in a nice hotel for the time being until he finds me a new apartment, also gave me a pretty sweet increase in my stipend." He answered, his words earning a nod from the ravenette who was glad that it all turned out okay.
"I see. The memory replacement is… well… random in nature. Whatever memories that are formed are derived from both past memories and imagination. Still, it's good that it worked out." Rukia spoke with a small sigh of relief, if the blonde had been pressed for further information, it could have led to trouble for the both of them from their respective superiors.
"New question: if you don't report back to your bosses soon, won't you get in trouble?" He asked her with some concern, this was but an educated guess, but he supposed that the Shinigami might be some sort of military organization. If Rukia was declared as being 'AWOL' then she could be punished.
"I still have time. My investigation was slated to last anywhere from a few days to a few weeks. I estimate that my powers will return before then. Nobody has to know." She responded, earning a nod of understanding from the whiskered teen.
"I'm guessing you're not supposed to share your powers with a human?" He asked with a raised eyebrow, if that was the case, then Rukia would need him to be discreet to avoid potential punishment.
"Yeah. It's forbidden for a Shinigami to do so. If it is discovered, it could land me in hot water. Hopefully the dire circumstances will mitigate the punishment. Regardless, at the worst, I'll probably spend a decade or two in prison. Easy time." She spoke with a casual shrug.
"I was wondering about that earlier. You Shinigami don't age like humans, do you?" He inquired with the ravenette chuckling a little bit in response as she shook her head.
"I may not look like it, but I have lived approximately ten of your lifetimes." She answered him in a somewhat cryptic manner, obviously refraining from giving him an exact number. He supposed that even female Shinigami were sensitive about their age. He decided not to pursue that line of questioning further in case he accidentally insulted her.
"So then, how long do we have before more of those Hollow things show up? Do we have enough time so that we can get some training in before they start appearing?" He asked since it wouldn't be good if they got caught with their pants down and were unprepared for the arrival of new Hollows.
"Hard to say. At a guess, maybe a few days. Don't worry though, I'll receive an alert that will inform me when and where one will appear." She replied, prompting him to nod and feel grateful that they had some sort of early warning system. At least they had a little time.
"By the way… your sword…" She spoke while glancing at his Odachi, her words falling short as if she wanted to ask him something but wasn't sure how to phrase her question. Naruto raised an eyebrow at her and asked "Mmm? What about my sword? There something weird about it? Something I need to know?"
She adopted a thinking pose for a few moments before she nodded to herself and was about to voice her question… until someone else cut in, that someone being none other than Iruka was pushed his way between the two, his partner Mizuki having tagged in for him. "Rukia-san, sorry for interrupting, but mind if I have a quick word with you? I won't take too much of your time." The Chunin spoke with a smile, his rude interruption and fake apology making the whiskered teen's eyes narrow as he glared daggers into the teacher's back.
"Umm… sure?" She responded awkwardly, since she thought it a little strange how the teacher butted in. What was it that he needed to speak to her so badly about? She didn't do anything wrong, did she? Or did he hear what they were talking about? She hoped that wasn't the case since it would be bad if asked her things that she couldn't talk about openly with mortals.
While she could modify his memories if it came down to the wire, she did not wish to unless absolutely needed. The scarred teacher guided her a short distance away from the whiskered teen and then spoke to her in a hushed voice "Rukia-san, I know you're new here and all that, but you shouldn't associate with someone like Naruto."
"I… excuse me?" She muttered in complete confusion, out of all the things that he could have said… she certainly didn't expect that. What in the hell was that all about anyway?
"Let me be more clear, Naruto is nothing but trouble. It would be wiser for you to not get friendly with him." The Chunin stated, however, his 'advice' sounded more like a demand to her ears. Also… that wasn't any more clear.
"I don't get it. Why should I stay away from him?" She asked, trying to get more information. The scarred man glanced over his shoulder at the whiskered teen; Iruka seemed like he wanted to say something else but wasn't able to put it into words.
"Just stop getting chummy with him if you know what's good for you." He warned her with a sneer, her eyes narrowing in response. Now that sounded like a threat to her. There was something definitely off here. She quietly stared at the Chunin as he gave a small scoff and then marched off back towards the sparring ring.
"Okay… that was really weird." She whispered to herself as the form of Naruto approached her with a deep scowl, though his expression wasn't directed at her as he could be seen glaring at Iruka's retreating form. The Jinchuuriki let out a soft growl as he asked in a clearly annoyed tone "Let me guess, did he say something about staying away from me? That I'm nothing but trouble?"
"Pretty much word for word. What the hell was that all about?" She asked as there was obvious enmity between the teacher and student. Was there something that she was missing here?
"I'll explain later." He promised her, for the time being she accepted this with a reluctant sigh. Hopefully the blonde's explanation would clue her in as to this rather strange situation. Now that she thought about it, she could sense eyes upon them as a number of students were already giving weird looks and whispering amongst themselves. Just what was going on?
From what she could tell, it seemed that Naruto had a negative reputation around here. Why was that? Despite the extremely short time that they knew each other, he didn't seem like a bad person or someone that deserved this kind of treatment. It was definitely odd.
Her musing was interrupted by the sounds of loud cheers from a number of girls who were cheering on a boy by name of 'Sasuke'. She observed through the crowd a boy with black hair with a funny haircut that reminded her of a duck's rear end who was currently sparring against the silver haired teacher. It seemed that this boy was quite popular amongst the female students. The cheering suddenly spiked in volume as a girl with bright pink hair started to screech at the top of her lungs, making the raven haired Shinigami cringe in discomfort as she felt a strong urge to clap her hands over her ears.
Luckily the shrieking quieted down, making her sigh in relief as she stated "Someone sure is a hit with the ladies." At her words, the whiskered blonde let out a scoff and shook his head.
"Trust me, it's not for his dazzling personality. That's Sasuke Uchiha, he's currently slated to be the school's Rookie of the year." The Jinchuuriki spoke as he scratched his nose with a lone finger.
"Sounds like someone's a bit jealous." She responded with a chuckle and gave a saucy grin, which then faltered as she took notice of Naruto's unamused expression as he replied back "Just a bit, but not for the reasons you think. Also, I want you to pay attention, take a closer look at Sasuke and Mizuki."
She raised an eyebrow at this. Pay attention? To what? Had she missed something? She took another look at the match between the Uchiha and silver haired teacher, her eyes narrowing as she tried to look for whatever it was she hadn't taken notice of… that's when she saw it. At first glance, it seemed like Sasuke was driving the teacher into a corner, slowly pushing the Chunin towards the edge of the ring… but on closer inspection it was all a ruse. Mizuki was holding back and allowing himself to be pushed back, step by step.
"The hell? It looks like that teacher is letting him win. Is he taking a dive for that Sasuke kid?" Rukia questioned, earning a nod from the blonde.
"Yeah. Sasuke's the golden child around here. Before you ask, I strongly doubt that he would ask the teachers to take said dive for him, he's far too prideful for that. Still, that wouldn't stop them from doing it to make the little punk look good or get in his good graces. After all, Sasuke is sitting on a fat pile of cash, and there's a lot of people that would love to get a slice of it." He answered with a small frown, which caused Rukia to frown as well.
Seemed like there was a story there, she would have to ask him for more details later. If she was to blend in, she was going to have to know about the major players in the class. Suffice it to say, this Sasuke person was definitely going to be someone that she would need to give a wide berth to.
As expected, Mizuki 'fell' out of the ring and made a big show of congratulating the Uchiha who was the first, and so far only student to successfully knock a teacher out of the ring for this session. The Uchiha fangirls began to squeal in delight and shower praises on their crush, which made both the Uzumaki and Shinigami sweat-drop.
"Hey Naruto! You're up! Also, no weapons allowed so you'll have to leave that sword behind!" Iruka called out as he took his position in the ring and gave a 'friendly reminder' about the rule of there being no weapons permitted. The whiskered teen wouldn't put it past the teachers to make his weapon go 'missing' while his back was turned. Fortunately, he had someone that he could entrust it to.
"Mind holding onto my sword for me?" He asked the ravenette as he offered his new Odachi to her. She smiled and gave a nod as she accepted it and promised to look after it for him. The whiskered teen then cracked his neck as he entered the ring, already suspecting that the scarred teacher was probably gonna try some kind of dirty trick.
The blonde then took a defensive stance while the teacher had taken his own Taijutsu stance and was shuffling about a little to loosen up. "Ready? Set! Fight!" Iruka called out as he dashed forward and delivered a powerful swing towards the whiskered teen's head. Naruto deftly ducked under the blow and side-stepped Iruka, almost causing the Chunin to lose his balance before he regained it.
"Not bad Naruto-kun!" Iruka spoke in a praising voice, but the warmth in his voice was completely phony. The Jinchuuriki guessed that the Chunin was planning to knock him into next week with one shot, but had underestimated him and put too much strength into the blow. The teacher straightened up and decided not to get careless as he delivered a barrage of blows towards the blonde teen/
Rukia's eyes widened a bit as she took note that the Chunin wasn't holding back against the Uzumaki. The teacher was clearly using his full strength to try and hurt Naruto. "Hey! Take it easy! You could hurt him like that!" She cried out, but her voice was drowned out by the cheers and jeers of the other students.
"Come on Iruka-sensei! Kick his ass!"
"Teach that Dead-Last a lesson!"
"Make him suffer for humiliating Sasuke-kun!"
These were but some of the words she was able to discern from the crowd as she looked on, noting the grins and looks the students were giving as they watched and waited for the Chunin to land a blow against the 'Dead-Last'. As this went on, Rukia couldn't help but wonder what was wrong with these people. Did they seriously want to see Naruto, a fellow classmate get hurt? Why?! Did they seriously hate him that much?
There was but a sparse few in the crowd that didn't cheer to see the blonde harmed, but the ravenette couldn't put names to faces since this was her first day here. "Come on Naruto! Knock his block off!" She shouted, hoping that Naruto could at least hear her voice over the crowd so that he would know there was at least one person in his corner.
Meanwhile, Naruto continued dodging the scarred teacher's blows with shocking ease, the teacher's constant barrage becoming more desperate as his frustration mounted, the thought that lingered on his face being all too plain to see: 'Why can't I hit him?'
The Jinchuuriki was certain that under normal circumstances, his own ass would have been handed to him long before now… but these were NOT 'normal circumstances'. He didn't notice it before now, but his body felt much lighter now, and from his perspective, Iruka's fists were coming unusually slowly. There was only one plausible explanation, when Rukia transferred her powers to him, it must have amplified his natural physical abilities somehow.
As strange as things had become, he wasn't about to look a gift horse in the mouth, especially since it gave him the edge he needed. The blonde grinned and knocked aside one of the Chunin's fists, surprising the teacher himself and the other students. The moment of shock was all the opening the Uzumaki needed as he delivered a strong blow to Iruka's midsection, knocking the wind out of him as he clutched at his gut.
Not wanting to give the man a chance to recover and counterattack with a vengeance, the Uzumaki grabbed him by the Chunin vest and threw him clean out of the ring, sending the scarred teacher flying and crashing to the ground with enough force to cause a huge cloud of dust to rise up, making a number of gathered students cough and cover their eyes.
When the dust settled, Iruka could be seen sprawled out on the ground with swirls in his eyes. At this, many students could only stare in disbelief… Naruto had just defeated a teacher, in a much shorter span of time than Sasuke did. Could that possibly mean… the Dead-Last's victory over the Rookie of the Year… was legit?
"Ummm… Winner is… Naruto…" Mizuki spoke out halfheartedly due to his surprise as he helped his partner to his feet. For a moment, the whiskered teen saw the scarred man tremble with rage before hearing him inhale and sigh before turning around to face him, plastering a huge smile on his face as he approached the boy.
"Wow Naruto! Congrats on your win! You certainly surprised me!" Iruka spoke in a too-friendly tone, which made the whiskered teen frown. Surprised? Yeah. Sure. Surprised that he had lost after not bothering to hold back.
"You know what comes next, right?" The teacher asked as he extended his hand towards the whiskered teen before adding "It's the seal of reconciliation. A showing that we are still comrades, regardless of the outcome of the match."
The blonde supposed that the explanation was meant more for Rukia to hear since she was the new girl in class. Regardless, the Uzumaki couldn't help but sneer in disgust." Are you serious?" The whiskered teen questioned angrily, feeling rage in his heart, the same rage that overcame him as yesterday when the Uchiha insulted him.
"Excuse me?" Iruka questioned, taken slightly aback by the boy's tone.
"Stop with the 'friendly big brother' act! Us? Comrades? Is that a sick joke?! You've never treated me as a comrade, much less a student! Who's the one that forced that 'Dead-last' moniker on me?! You! Who's the one that enables the other students to treat me like dirt?! You! If it weren't for that stupid fucking Clone Jutsu, I wouldn't even be here!
Whenever I came to you for help with the Clone Jutsu, you would snub me and brush me off! You weren't even holding back against me at all just now! Hell, you just told Rukia to stay away from me out of sheer petulance. Here's my response to your 'seal of reconciliation' and your 'teaching'!" Naruto ranted and then spat on the Chunin's hand, making him recoil in disgust as the whiskered teen stomped off.
"In case it needs to be said… we will NEVER be comrades." Naruto spoke in a grave tone before he continued on with a low growl. As he departed, Iruka's eyes narrowed at the blonde's sudden change in attitude and behavior. A part of him wondered if teenage hormones were involved… or perhaps it was something else. Fine then, let him act like a brat. It would only further ostracize him from the other students, which would only work in the teacher's favor.
He watched as the blonde returned to the new girl's side as he accepted his sword from her. The Chunin then put on another fake smile as he called out "Sorry you had to see that Rukia-san! Why don't you join me for the next round?"
The purple eyed girl looked between him and the Uzumaki a few times as if contemplating something before shaking her head and replying "Forget it! I forfeit! I'm not gonna waste my time with someone that treats my friend like that! I may be new here and ignorant of what's going on, but even I can tell there's something wrong here!" She shouted and then turned her back to the Chunin with a huff while crossing her arms.
Naruto did a double take at that… she had called him her 'friend'... that meant quite a lot to him as a genuine smile filled his face. "Come on Rukia. Let's ditch this crowd. I think I'll skip class for the rest of the day. I'm just not in the mood anymore." He spoke while offering an invitation for her to join him.
She tilted her head and asked "Is… is that okay? Won't you get in trouble? He could expel you if you keep pushing the envelope." She pointed out the last part in concern, which made the whiskered teen guffaw in amusement.
"Much as he would love to do that, he can't do it without the Hokage's approval. That aside… they literally can't expel me." He spoke the last part in a somewhat cryptic manner as he departed, deciding that he wasn't going to waste any more of his time or energy with a bigoted teacher like Iruka.
Rukia hesitated since she didn't wish to stand out… but came to conclude two things. One, she was already standing out just simply by associating with Naruto. Second, she wasn't meant to take up permanent residence here anyway and sticking close to him was obviously more prudent. That aside, she had no desire to associate with people that would treat her friend so poorly regardless. If he was to be an outcast… then he wouldn't be alone as an outcast.
"Right behind you." She spoke with a small smile as she followed after him, leaving behind a stunned crowd of students while Iruka could be seen grinding his teeth in frustration.
"Well, it seems that both Naruto and Rukia have decided to become good-for-nothing delinquents. Now where were we?" Iruka spoke, getting the attention of his class yet again. In the midst of the crowd, a certain wallflower was poking her fingers together as she was in deep contemplation, and a blonde mindwalker was grinning as she seemed to be taking notes for potential gossip knowing that the usual monotony of the Academy may finally be broken. Yes. She was certain that things were going to be far more entertaining now.
Meanwhile, with Naruto and Rukia, after exiting the school grounds, they stopped in front of a vending machine for a cool drink. The blonde Uzumaki slipped in the needed money and bought himself a soda and a bottle of tea for his new friend as they sat down on a bench, which was quite conveniently in the shade. She unscrewed the cap off and took a long sip of the refreshingly cool drink while crossing one leg over the other.
The blonde pulled on the tab of his soda can, popping it open with a hiss as he took a sip of the citrus flavored drink before speaking in a blunt tone "I'm sure you're the one with questions now."
Her expression softened as she turned to him and placed a gentle hand on his shoulder. "I think I'll start with: 'Are you okay?'" She asked him at the end in concern, which made the whiskered teen smile a bit as he nodded.
"Kinda lost my head for a minute, but yeah. I'll be okay. Been bottling some stuff up for a long, long time. Feels good to finally let it out." He answered with a somewhat relieved tone.
She pursed her lips and asked him "Why are people so horrible to you? All those other students… they WANTED to see you get beat up. That 'teacher', he wanted to hurt you. Why?" At this line of questioning, he sighed since he figured she would ask him about that. No point in hiding anything, not that he was keeping secrets from her to begin.
Instead of answering her directly, he instead asked her "You remember Iruka's history lecture earlier? About the Kyuubi attack? How much do you know about Bijuu?" At his words, the raven haired Shinigami took a sip of her tea and thought for a moment as she searched her mind for what little information she knew about the famed beasts.
"I remember, yes. Admittedly, I know extremely little about your Bijuu. What I do know is that they're pretty infamous, even in Soul Society. They are creatures of almost calamitous power. There are some in Soul Society that debate or argue if the Bijuu are some sort of subspecies of Hollow, but this has never been concluded nor any evidence has turned up to support this." She answered him truthfully since she was largely ignorant of the beasts.
"No easy way to put this, but I was born that night. About fifteen years ago, on October the tenth. The very night of the Kyuubi attack." The whiskered teen spoke with a sigh, his words making Rukia's eyes widen.
"You… were born that very night?" She parroted in surprise, with the blonde boy nodding in confirmation.
"Yep. That night, the Yondaime Hokage used me as a vessel to seal away the Kyuubi. To put it as simply as possible, I am a walking prison for the Kyuubi. I'm what's called a 'Jinchuuriki'. To a large portion of the village populace, I'm a constant reminder of all the people that died that night, and they resent me for the losses they suffered, using me as a scapegoat for their grudges. Many of them act like I'm some kind of accomplice, never minding the fact that I was but a newborn baby." He stated with a weary expression as he took another sip of his drink.
"I… I don't understand. Didn't your Yondaime defeat the Kyuubi? Why'd he seal it away? Why not just kill it?" She questioned in an almost rapid-fire manner as she was now confused by this new information.
"The keyword that was used in class was 'defeat'. Not 'kill' or 'sealed'. As you mentioned just a few moments ago, Bijuu are insanely powerful. It's almost impossible to kill them. The real issue though, is that even if they are 'killed' they don't stay dead. From my understanding, when a Bijuu does 'die' it just reforms at an unspecified time and place. Hence, the only practical method to stop them is to seal them away. I dunno about you, but I wouldn't want to tango with a Bijuu carrying a grudge." He clarified, allowing his new friend to absorb the information.
"That Iruka… did he lose people too? Is that why he is so awful to you?" She asked him, which made the whiskered teen cup his chin in thought as he answered her "I wouldn't be surprised if he did. A lot of people died that night. Civilians and Shinobi."
Rukia gripped her bottle tightly with an almost white knuckle grip as she crushed it in her hand, spilling the contents as she muttered "That… that's wrong. That's just wrong! Forcing their hate on you. Making you suffer for something that you didn't do." She spoke through gritted teeth, as she then turned to look at him with softening and sympathetic eyes as she asked him "Did… did they hurt you?"
"In the physical sense? Nah. No mobs with pitchforks or torches came after me, the Hokage would never allow that. I had protection. An odd drunkard would occasionally take a swing at me, but I was never hurt and my protection would deal with them pretty promptly. The most that folks would do is keep their kids away from me or sell me nearly expired goods or overcharge me for stuff. That stunt that Iruka just pulled in the sparring ring though, that was new. He must be getting bolder." Naruto answered as he took a big gulp of his soda.
"Curious… you had protection? You also mentioned something a little odd… that they 'literally couldn't' expel you?" She asked him, which earned a small chuckle from the Jinchuuriki.
"Yup. Technically speaking, since I'm a Jinchuuriki, that means I'm essentially a military asset. I'm supposed to be a deterrent against other Bijuu, Jinchuuriki, and invasion. Not to sound arrogant, but that makes me pretty valuable, especially since I carry the Kyuubi which is the strongest of the bunch. That offers me some protection in a number of ways. Unless I do something seriously bad, there's nothing Iruka can do to expel me without permission from the Hokage." He explained adding more context for his new friend as she quickly understood now.
"They kept calling you 'Dead-Last', what does that mean exactly?" She asked him as she recalled how the other students kept shouting that epithet. From the sound of it, it was definitely meant to be derogatory in nature.
"Oh, yeah, I almost forgot about that. You see, I tried and failed to pass two graduation exams, as a result, the teachers gave me that nickname and it caught on pretty quickly. Now people use it to belittle me and remind me of my academic failures." He explained and then crushed his now empty soda can before depositing into into a nearby recycling bin with a sigh.
"Is there anything they won't do to put you down or torment you?" Rukia asked, her voice just above a whisper, though the question seemed more rhetorical so the whiskered teen didn't bother answering.
"Mah. I don't think it matters anymore, maybe it never did. Besides, we have way more important things that we can be doing besides sitting around in a classroom. We could be training and preparing for whenever the Hollows may come. Also, I'm strongly confident that you could learn way more from a book than from Iruka's lectures; the Class spars are meant more for showing off than actual training anyway since they're constantly used to stroke Sasuke's ego." Naruto explained, making a mental note to take Rukia to a local library to borrow some books so that she may better learn about the village and its history.
"That reminds me, what's the story about that Sasuke boy? Why would the teachers show him such favor? Is it really just about money?" She asked since she didn't fully understand why the boy was being offered such special treatment.
"Kinda, but there's more to it than just material wealth. You see, Sasuke's clan, the Uchiha's comprised the village's military police force and were a co-founding clan of the village. Bunch of bigshots. A few years ago, Sasuke's elder brother Itachi slaughtered the majority of the Uchiha clan in a single night, young and old, without discrimination. The only survivor was Sasuke himself who had been spared.
With Sasuke being the only Uchiha left in the village, and the son of the Uchiha Clan Head Fugaku, he has a massive fortune just waiting for him. An entire district, a veritable library of Jutsu, and a huge piggy bank. A lot of people want to get in on that and have been trying to set up their daughters with him to marry him, or at least… what's the term? 'Baby trap' him?" He asked at the end of his explanation since he was uncertain if that was the correct phrase.
"Wait… they actually want to have his kids? Why? To continue the legacy of a co-founding clan?" Rukia asked with a raised eyebrow, feeling increasingly perturbed at just how shallow the people of this village were and just how low they would sink.
"In a way, yeah. What a lot of people really want is for him to sire some bastards so that his Sharingan will be passed on. A special ability of the Uchiha clan that enables the user to see and copy Jutsu techniques at a glance… It is also the very same eyes that Madara Uchiha, one of the village co-founders and the first Rogue Ninja of Konoha, used to control and manipulate the Kyuubi back in the day." Naruto answered, prompting the ravenette to slowly nod as she digested this information.
"So there are people who not only want him for his clan and status, but to also spew out potential Sharingan users to use as soldiers with special abilities. Question, do you think they also want to use this Sharingan to control and manipulate you? You are the Kyuubi Jinchuuriki after all." She asked him, prompting him to shrug a bit.
"I definitely wouldn't count out that possibility. On the surface, Konoha may seem like a nice enough place, but if you look a little deeper, you'll find that the beauty and tranquility only goes skin deep. There's a lot of bad people here that are rotting the village to the core, if it wasn't already rotten." He spoke and gestured with a sweeping motion with his arm towards the village.
"Yeah. I can see that." She muttered bitterly before straightening up and then inquiring "So… what are you going to do?"
"For now? I need to help you with the Hollows. After? Who knows? Maybe I'll aim for becoming Hokage, if only as a form of 'revenge' against anyone that has ever bullied or picked on me or mistreated me." He answered with a small chuckle.
"Why stop there? Why settle for just that? What purpose would it serve? You could do better. You could join the Gotei 13 in Soul Society. I think you would make a great addition to our ranks. You could even become a Captain! Though… we'd have to be careful. We can't exactly let it be known that I passed my powers to you. That would get us both in trouble." She spoke encouragingly, her words making him raise an eyebrow.
"Gotei 13? He parroted, making the ravenette nod with a smile.
"Yes. The Shinigami corps comprises thirteen squads, the Gotei 13. There are 12 captains who head their own squad who are in turn headed by the Captain Commander who leads the 1st Division. I'm part of the 13th Division." She explained, adding a bit more context for the blonde.
"You seriously think I could become one of your Gotei 13's Captains?" Naruto asked, feeling touched that she had such confidence in him despite the fact he had only just gained Shinigami powers.
"Absolutely! I know you can! Once you train and learn about your powers that is. Once you learn to control your powers, you would be a huge asset! Think of it! You'd have a clean slate! A chance to start over!" She spoke with a beaming smile, making the whiskered teen hum thoughtfully as he looked up at the sky. A chance to start over, eh? That was a tempting offer. Very tempting. Definitely something to think about.
"Well… it would be good to keep my options open if things don't start looking up around here." He spoke with a small smirk, while a part of him relished the idea of leaving the village… he also felt like that would be the same as running away from his problems instead of facing them, or it would also be like admitting defeat to those that tormented him. He refused to let the villagers have victory against him in any shape or form.
"Just think about it. I won't force you to commit to anything you don't want to. In fact… I didn't say this before, but I'm grateful that you were so cooperative in offering your assistance." She stated, her eyes full of warmth as he smiled back at her.
"We're friends, right? You said so yourself a bit ago. I may be a pariah, but at least I'm a loyal one. I always look out for those I care about or do right by me." He stated as he offered his pinky to her, making Rukia smirk as she extended her own pinky as they connected to make a pinky promise.
"Then let's be pariah's together." She spoke with a small chuckle, the Uzumaki's grin widening even further at that. Pariahs together? He never had anyone promise him such a thing. This gave him the assurance that he wouldn't have to be alone again, not with a friend like Rukia at his side.
Once that was done, the Uzumaki set his new Odachi across his lap and spoke in a curious tone "By the way, before Iruka butted in, what were you about to say about my sword?"
"Oh! Right. I almost forgot. Your Zanpakuto… it's way different from the norm. I've never seen one of that length before." She stated as she finished her tea and tossed the empty bottle into the nearby recycling bin.
"Zanpakuto?" The whiskered teen repeated, the name translating to 'Soul Cutter' or 'Soul Slayer'. His query prompting his new friend to cross her arms over her chest and give an affirmative nod.
"A Zanpakuto is a Shinigami's weapon. It is used to fight Hollows and send human souls to Soul Society. However, that is no ordinary piece of metal. It is an extension of you. It is as much a part of you as your arm, your lungs, or your heart. Each Zanpakuto is completely unique, like their owner, and carries a spirit that dwells within. To attain mastery of your Zanpakuto, you must discover its name by communicating with it, which will enable you to unlock even greater power. Mastery of your Zanpakuto is a requirement to become a Captain in the Gotei 13." She explained as she gave him the basic rundown.
The whiskered teen drew his sword and admired the blade as he held it up towards the sky, the sunlight glinting off of it as he inspected the pristine and razor sharp weapon. "A name, huh? I wonder what this one's name is. Anyways, is the size of my sword really that odd?" He questioned at the end as he sheathed his blade, noting how light the Odachi was in his hand despite its size.
"Technically there is no 'set' or 'standard' form of Zanpakuto. Still, it is much larger than the norm. I hear that the size and length of one's Zanpakuto can be affected by the spiritual power that courses through them.
Given that you were able to see and interact with me even before I transferred my abilities to you, suggests that you must have had a high amount of power to begin with. It makes me wonder if your Kyuubi may be an indirect influence. Another weird thing is that you're able to manifest it while still in your physical body. I've never heard of anyone being able to do that, but then this is a highly unusual case." She mused at the end while adopting a thinking pose.
He simply shrugged since there was no real way to tell if the Bijuu did or did not have an influence on his new abilities. On another note, this talk of there being a spirit within his sword… he remembered hearing about how the Samurai of the land of Iron would forge their own blades themselves, that way, they were instilling a piece of themselves into the metal, a part of their very soul and being added into the metalwork. It would seem that this was doubly true for the Shinigami themselves.
"There's one more thing I want to ask you… you said you were an orphan… what happened to your parents? Did no one ever adopt or take care of you? She asked him as she pursed her lips before adding "Sorry, if you don't want to talk about it, I understand."
He smiled softly as he replied "Nah, it's fine. Not exactly a secret. Let's see, I spent a few years in an orphanage but I got moved out into my own apartment when I was… ten? Ten, I think. The Hokage gave me a stipend to live off of till I officially became a Shinobi. I don't know exactly what happened to my parents, hell, I don't even know their names.
I'm pretty confident that my mother must have died from childbirth related complications, and my dad was a Shinobi that perished in the Kyuubi attack. Can't think of any other legit reasons why they aren't around, and I refuse to believe that they up and abandoned me. As for adoption… Well, if anyone did want to adopt me, they probably chickened out because of peer pressure or something from the rest of the village. Suffice it to say, I had to learn to look out for myself pretty early on."
The ravenette's eyes glistened a bit as she gave a sympathetic expression. Kami, Naruto's tale had to be the saddest story she had ever heard in all of her life. The isolation, the psychological abuse and poor treatment. It amazed her that he didn't snap or become some sort of violent thug, or worse. Aside from his earlier outburst, he seemed… unusually well adjusted. He must have a very strong mental and spiritual fortitude. This just further proved that he would indeed make an excellent Shinigami.
Before she could speak further, a shadow fell over the two, and from the shape of the silhouette, it didn't take long for the Uzumaki to discern the identity of the shadow's owner as he didn't even bother to look up from the ground. "Heh. That's new. The Academy's golden boy ditching class? Gracing the 'Dead-last' with his divine presence?" The blonde asked mockingly with a chuckle while the female Shinigami narrowed her eyes at the form of Sasuke.
The Uchiha's hands were stuffed in his pockets as he glowered at the duo. "You. Dobe. How'd you do it? First you beat me just yesterday, shattering my undefeated record. Then you made Iruka look like an amateur in front of the whole class, beating him way faster than I beat Mizuki. Now the other students are talking, wondering if I'm losing my touch, wondering if my loss against you was for real."
In response, the whiskered teen chuckled a bit as he replied back "Maybe you are, Sasuke Uchiha. Not sure what you've been told about your martial skills, but you're not all that you're cracked up to be."
"What did you say?" The Uchiha asked as he clenched his fists in a white knuckle grip, the Jinchuuriki's words being like stinging barbs.
"Hmm? You that sensitive about it? Kami, I heard that you had a superiority/inferiority complex, but this is ridiculous. Fine then, lemme spell it out. I'll even try to use small words for you to keep things simple. Sure, you got talent Sasuke, not even I will deny that, but people have put you on a pedestal for so long, you're actually believing all the praise.
What you don't know is that you're being softened up and spoiled, albeit unintentionally. I'm willing to bet good cash that once you go up against a real Shinobi, one that has actually spilled blood, you'll end up choking when the chips are down." Naruto explained with a grin as he watched the 'Elite' trembled with anger.
The Uchiha then grabbed the Uzumaki by the collar and yelled in Naruto's face, causing small droplets of saliva to land on the blonde's whiskered cheeks "Who do you think you're talking to, Dobe? I am Sasuke Uchiha! I'm a member of the Uchiha clan! I'm a Prodigy! An Elite!"
Rukia took a defensive stance, ready to leap to her friend's defense and throw the Uchiha off of Naruto, but was stopped as the Jinchuuriki raised a hand to tell her to stand down… for now. The blonde Uzumaki then let out a scoff as he spit back "Elite? Isn't that some sort of honorary title amongst the Uchiha's? A prodigy? What have you actually accomplished? Hmm? What does the term 'Uchiha Clan' even mean anymore? I don't think I've ever heard of a clan of just two people."
Sasuke snarled in anger and raised a fist, ready to pulverize the blonde for his insolence, but his fist was intercepted by Rukia who was now glaring at the Uchiha as she kept a tight grip on the Avenger's wrist. "You touch him, and I'll break your arms. I swear it." She promised as she emphasized her point by tightening her grip further which in turn caused a series of popping noises. Even in a Gigai and without her Shinigami abilities, she was still a trained combatant and was stronger than the average person. She may currently be powerless, but she wasn't completely helpless.
"You ever heard the phrase: 'All that glitters is not gold'?" Naruto asked in a nonchalant manner as he smacked the offending hand that held his collar, forcing the king of brood to release him. The Emo king didn't bother answering the question as he reluctantly relaxed, prompting the blonde to gesture for the female Shinigami to release Sasuke.
"This isn't over Dobe. I'll prove that I'm the special one, that I'm the deserving one, and that you are just a loser that should know better than to challenge his superiors." Sasuke swore as he jabbed a finger towards the whiskered teen, who didn't even seem bothered by the threat.
"Keep telling yourself that." Naruto quipped in a disinterested tone, not impressed by the Uchiha's bluster. Still, it wouldn't be wise to completely discount Sasuke's threats given that he had a lot of political backing. More than anything else, Naruto knew that there were only perhaps two things that Sasuke cared about after the death of his clan.
The first and most obvious was Power so that he may defeat his brother. The second, was his pride and belief in both his own superiority and the superiority of his clan, regardless if it was nonexistent or not. Most likely, the Uchiha would try to make a public spectacle and attempt to goad him into a rematch… to which he wouldn't have any choice but to oblige, if only to shut up the arrogant prick and get some payback.
Sasuke then glanced at Rukia, regarding her existence for the first time as he spoke "You… you're not weak like those other girls. You're not loud and annoying either. You might have some use."
The whiskered teen then felt a flash of genuine anger, and without thinking he shoved the Uchiha to the ground and drew his sword, pointing the tip of the blade at the Avenger's neck. "Lemme tell ya something Sasuke Uchiha. Rukia is my friend, and she is a person. She's not some tool that has 'some use' that you can exploit and then throw away." Naruto spoke with a twitching eyebrow, his words making Rukia blush a bit at the fact that her new friend was so quick to come to her defense.
This seemed to please Sasuke a bit, a ghost of a smile crossing his lips as he had just discovered the Dobe's soft spot. He then turned to the raven haired female and spoke to her "You could do much better than a loser like him." He then used the back of his hand to push the blonde's sword away and marched off with his hands in his pockets.
"All that glitters isn't gold. I see what you mean." Rukia muttered venomously as she watched the form of the Uchiha head back towards the Academy. The way he looked at her and spoke to her made her feel as if she had just been violated.
"Mmm. I've got a feeling that Sasuke may try something. He'll probably demand a rematch at some point and use some dirty tricks too. At any rate, I want to work off some steam, maybe get a little practice in soon. Want to scope out some training spots?" The Uzumaki asked, prompting his new friend to perk up a bit and nod since she wanted to explore a bit more of the village.
If they found a good spot to train, it would allow her to better visualize and plan out a potential training regimen for him. With that said, they departed to find their potential training area… however, they couldn't help but feel a sense of wariness as a dark cloud loomed over them. Not a good sign. They had no doubt that Sasuke would try to make good on his threat, and they had best be prepared for whatever may come. One thing Rukia did know, was if Naruto could handle an Adjuchas then he could definitely handle an arrogant bully.
The two of them exchanged looks and smiled at each other, the both of them very much looking forward to thwarting whatever the self proclaimed 'Elite' had in store.
End Chapter two.
