Three teams of Genin closed on the Tower just before noon.
Team Ten was waiting to ambush Ino and her team, reclaiming the Cat Tora.
Ino and her team. Carrying the precious cargo of the cat Tora.
And KB Team Seven, having finished the Ninken bathing and grooming.
As the KB Naruto approached the Tower, Shikamaru and Kiba stepped into his path.
Not him." The Inuzuka sneered. "But… the smell of you …"
"The Whelping is Today." KB Naruto smiled at the boy and puppy. "Make sure you get home in time to wash up… both of you."
The KB team entered the tower and headed to the mission room.
Across the street, Ino, holding the Real Tora, gripped Naruto-kun with her knees, and Tenten riding a Shadow Clone, stood at ease… under the Shadow Cloak.
The real Naruto nodded at his clone and led the way to a cable that ran from the top of the Tower to a roof three streets over. Both Narutos jumped and caught the cable and swung up the iron vine like monkeys. When they got close enough to the tower, the swung down and crawled along the buildings wall to the Window of the Mission Room.
As they entered the room, Naruto-kun dropped the Cloak.
A Chunin female screamed and whipped a shuriken into the face of the Naruto carrying Tenten. As Ino was two steps behind Tenten, the first Naruto took it and popped, as Tenten caught the four sharpened pointed piece of iron.
"My Baby!" The Daimyo's wife flung a string of coins at the Chunin nearest her, and grabbed the cat out of Ino's arms. She sniffed him. "Why does he smell…"
"We picked him up behind a Sushi bar." Ino explained, "We ended up outside the Inuzuka Compound and as they were washing every Dog that was in the Village, we had Hana look him over before washing and grooming him. We didn't know what he could have picked up. Besides, you like to snuggle with him, we didn't want him to transfer any… unpleasant smells to you." The Lady frowned. "At no charge. All part of the service."
The Massive Woman smiled and exited the room.
Ino shifted about to face the Chunin on the Desk. "Please mark the Tora Mission complete and credit Team Ten."
"Why should they get the credit?" Tenten frowned at Ino.
"Because they were the ones to take the mission." Ino smirked. "Besides… we cost them BBQ. Now next time… we will win and take the money too."
KB Team Seven entered, took the pay for the mission as a single draft, which was handed to Naruto.
"The Mission to the Sewers was more complex than the D rank it was posted as. The entire team, backup included, were destroyed when the blockage blew crushing or impaling everyone you sent." A Jonin stepped forward. "It turns out that a hidden lair of a former Shinobi of the Village has gone uncared for and without the tunnel maintenance, the debris built up and…" he offered a bank daft to Naruto-kun. "Your efforts undid most of the blockage and uncovered the Lair. It has been declared a B-rank mission. Thank you for your services to and For the Village." He vanished in a swirl of leaves.
"Okay. First to the Bank to cash your drafts, and then you are taking me home. Next week, you are taking us girls to the Baths. Now, out the front, I need to rub this in Shika-kun's face." Ino pulled on Naruto's ear.
As they exited the Room they found Choji leaning on the wall.
"Thanks Ino." The hefty boy fell into step with Naruto. "I heard what you said."
"No worries Choji-kun." Ino smirked at her childhood friend.
"You ever think of carrying Shikamaru?" Naruto-kun asked.
"It would increase my shadow…" Nara appeared before them. "But it would interfere with Choji's Jutsu…"
"It would be interesting to find out." Naruto smiled at the two. "Because we cost you BBQ, I will even offer two clones for you to practice with."
"Well, that's not completely true." Asuma-Sensei appeared just as they exited the tower. "The mission is to teach you to work together… and you two teams just took the mission to the next level. Shikamaru was actually involved, Choji was moving, and Kiba was focused. Shikamaru and Choji have a table waiting for us right now and Kiba has a ticket to call in a team feeding during the next month. He had to run home for something."
As what was left of Team Asuma headed out, Kakashi-sensei stepped forward. "Asuma and I have agreed to a weekly game of Pass the Pussy. Team Seven's real training begins on Monday. As today is Friday…" he trailed off as a black alley cat strolled by.
"Kakashi Sensei, I am going to need a personal day tomorrow." Ino straightened up from where she was seated. "And I have no idea how long I will need."
"I need to see Gui Sensei for a day, and Yūgao-sensei could oversee Tenten and a few clones for sword drills… and isn't your next book due out tomorrow?" Naruto-kun smiled at the Cyclops.
"I think that can be arranged." Kakashi nodded. "Team dismissed."
Ino guided Naruto-kun to the branch where she and her Father banked. Tenten followed.
As they entered, the Security Guard went to block Naruto-kun from entering.
"Oh, good." Ino chirped. "You have come to escort me as I close the Yamanaka Clan's Accounts."
The managers were at their sides like ninjas springing an ambush. "Closing accounts?"
"Well, seeing as your employee is barring us from either depositing or cashing our bank drafts…"
"The Civilian Council has warned everyone about the boy… an orphan troublemaker…"
"Orphan, yes. But a Clanned Orphan." Ino smirked at the man. Before turning to look at the silent woman just behind him. "I do believe that this bank and even this branch, hold the Uzumaki Accounts."
The Woman swallowed. "Uzumaki-dono. This way please. Are you just cashing out or were you planning on depositing today?"
"Just cashing out." Ino answered from his back. "He promised to take us shopping."
At the window, the two drafts were exchanged for a pile of Ryu notes, which Naruto-kun was quick to tuck away into his jacket. Ino then guided them to the flower shop.
At the door, she dismounted. "Naruto-kun. Be here at eight in the morning on Monday, Tenten-chan, your call, but it would help if you were here also." She then entered the shop, closing the door behind her.
"Well, I am going home." Tenten smiled at Naruto. "My Father is the owner and smith of the Broken Kunai."
"Mount up." Naruto-kun smiled back. "Unless you want to stop for Ramen first…"
"Okay." She swung up like a Cavalry Officer onto a horse. She shifted her weight, and like the well trained beast, he turned and trotted off… before picking up speed and was soon running along the walls and leaping carts on his way to his favourite noodle hut.
SCNS
After a filling meal of noodles in a salty broth, Naruto-kun carried the weapon mistress into her Father's shop. After dismounting she called for her Father.
"A little Dagger. I see you found a little something interesting."
"Ah…Sir." Naruto-kun smiled at the Man. "I think she will be a disciple. Of Mother's."
"Go find something in the Oddities." The Shopkeeper tossed his head towards the back. As the Blonde bounced off, he looked at his Daughter. "Do you have any idea as to what he was saying?"
"Not really. I know that his Mother is a big deal. No idea who she was, but…" Tenten drew a Kunai and walked it through her fingers. A nervous tic she picked up from him.
"She is where he gets his Name. She was sent here to learn from the wife of the Shodai Hokage. She was a monster on the battlefield. Only Senju Tsunade was her superior. She had a temper, and the skills and reserves to back it up. Many of the Females are either direct disciples or students of them. Your Kenjutsu Sensei is a Disciple. As a rule, they only teach women. He is learning because he is the Uzumaki, if not the Last Uzumaki. Ask Yūgao about the Order."
"You might be interested to learn that I am no longer on Team Gui." She turned to watch the blonde poking around. "I am with him on Team Seven, and I spent most of the morning riding him around the Village rooftops. Or rather a clone of him. Our other teammate was Yamanaka, and she was piloting a clone of him. We are being trained as an infiltration specialist team."
"And how are you feeling about this?"
"I had fun. I think Yūgao-sensei will see that I am trained properly. And any danger I will be in will be minor. Naruto-kun won't leave his teammates in danger. I get taken, and he will burn his way through them to find me."
"You say burn… not cut?"
"No daddy. Cutting, especially with Yūgao-sensei, is a clean, controlled act. Clean, controlled, and Quick. But Fire is messy, uncontrollable on the field, and it will take them hours to die from their wounds. Since we took the mission to hunt the cat, until we ended up in the Inuzuka Compound, my feet never touched the floor with the exception of when I hit his head for a comment he made about the part of my raising that you had to outsource."
"Did he learn!"
"Him… no idea." She grinned. "But his clones know."
Naruto returned with three weapons. A Kursarigama, a pair of wicked chained Kama, and a Tanto-Kyoketsu-shoge.
"What are they made of? That's not normal steel." Tenten asked.
"Chakra Steel or Metal." The smith informed his daughter, "And why did you choose these items?" The smith raised an eyebrow at the boy.
Naruto-kun pointed at the tail of the Kursarigama. A Diamond cage of black 'steel' around the Uzumaki crest. The crest was on two planes. "Clan weapons."
The Kama blades and the tanto were stamped with the crest of Uzu and the Tanto tsuba was like the one on his Katana… but different.
"Why the difference in the tsuba?" Tenten asked.
"The Katana is older. The Master probably died before the Tanto of the Kyoketsu-shoge was even commissioned." The smith picked up the Tanto and inspected the Tsuba before peering over at the Tsuba rising over the blonde's shoulder. "I think that the Tsuba on the Katana is even older than the Blade. The Tsuba were prized equal to if not above the Blade. They were said to improve the blade in any number of ways."
After writing up and paying for the weapons, Naruto looked up at the shadow near the door.
"Yūgao-sensei!" He grinned his warm grin. "Have you come to…"
"I have heard from my sources that you have learned to channel your Chakra through your weapons." She walked over to peer down at the weapons on the counter. "And just what are you going to do with these?"
"Learn them… after my Sensei says it is time."
Yūgao nodded. "Good to know." She leaned her hip on the counter. "You remember that file of Vixen Ventures? Well there is an apartment building that has some vacancies. A couple of my friends are interested in acquiring the third floor units and rebuilding the whole floor to suit our needs."
"Like a Jakuzzi in the eastern corner?" Tenten asked. Everyone looked at her. "Anko-chan was visiting Hana-nee-chan. After the boys were sent to wash Tora, she let slip a few details, but they chased me and Ino-chan out before they got to the juicy gossip about him." She stabbed her Kunai at Naruto.
"So… what are you asking?" Naruto-kun smiled at his teacher.
"Well, we will need to get the owner's permission to remodel the floor, and I have a Favor owed me by a couple of contractors. I kinda bullied them into teaching the brat the basics of the trade and promised them a cheap labor source."
Naruto-kun nodded with a big smile at the word Teach.
"He learns best through his clones, and we were hoping to get some sword training tomorrow." Tenten smiled, "While he visits Gui-Sensei for his Taijutsu lesson. If you can get your friends to meet the group of clones at the complex, because I know that with even the simplest construction, you need to know what you are working with."
Yūgao nodded.
"The Boy said something…" Tenten noticed that Naruto was getting fidgety. "Dad clarified a bit. Disciples of Uzumaki?"
"Oh… that. Only his Father's group call themselves Disciples. But yeah, I'll see who is available for tomorrow." Yūgao smiled. "I actually came looking for him, because a Clothing shop near my current apartment is stocked up in orange…"
As Naruto-kun's head snapped about at the word 'Orange', Tenten holstered her kunai and grabbed Naruto's shoulder and swung up.
"Race you." Tenten smirked.
"That's unsettling. You mount the boy like you have been doing it for years." Her father grumbled.
"He makes a great pony." Tenten smirked, before being serious. "If we ever get to that stage, I will be in good company. He has a few other girls watching him. For now he is just my transportation and Kenjutsu sparring partner."
"It's still unsettling. Have fun sweetie." He lumbered off.
Yūgao smiled at the pair. "Follow if you can." She bolted into the street and was lost in the crowd.
TBC