Welcome to Part 2. If you made it this far, thank you. I hope the story only gets better from here.
Despite 2 years between chapters we had 2k views on Saturday, and 1k on both Sunday and Monday. I couldn't wait a full week to come out with this one because I was too excited. I have through chapter 36 written though 35 and 36 need some work they're a little clunky. We've been following the main plotline pretty closely so far, and will continue to do so through basically the first arc of Shippuden. There are plans for it to diverge from there, though the largest plot points will still be relevant as I believe many of them would still happen just in different ways.
On we go.
Three years was a long time. Naruto walked the dirt road back to his home. Some would question why he still considered the Village Hidden in the Leaves his home. After all, he'd spent as much time away from it as he had living in it. For Naruto though, it wasn't a question. He felt it in his heart. The warm feeling that spread through him when he thought about it. The contentment when he smelled its unique smell as he got closer.
And now, as the walls came into sight, he felt the excitement. His whole body buzzed with adrenaline, his immense chakra reserves responding to his emotion. A subtle shift in his weight as he got ready to take off running was interrupted.
"Now Naruto, you know me better than that," Hiruzen Sarutobi said. The years had been good to the man, for it almost looked as if he had aged in reverse. The lines on his face didn't cut quite so deep. The mask on his face wasn't that of a hardened soldier, but of a sly grandfather and teacher.
"But Sensei! We're SO CLOSE," Naruto argued. "I can smell Ichiraku's ramen from here!"
Hiruzen chuckled. The boy had grown while they were away. He towered over Hiruzen now, nearly as tall as his father was. His frame was lithe, but had filled out considerably. Though he looked kindhearted and aloof now, Hiruzen knew that when Naruto wanted to, he could be intimidating enough to make the average jonin sweat.
He had grown more than just physically too. He might still occasionally act like a child, but Naruto was becoming mature beyond his years. His discipline was immaculate, when it needed to be. He wouldn't give an inch when he made up his mind on doing something. Every day for the last three years he'd been up before daylight to start his training. Even when he'd been participating in the chunin exams. He hadn't even taken a day off when Hiruzen had taken him out drinking to celebrate. They got to their hotel room at two o'clock in the morning. Three hours later Naruto was already covered in sweat from working so hard.
No, Hiruzen didn't think Naruto would actually run off. He knew he'd do as he was told, and wait.
A flicker of black breached his eyesight. The Anbu team had arrived. Hiruzen rolled his eyes. Naruto may be disciplined but he was still mischievous. The build up of chakra certainly would have alerted the guards.
"Lord Hokage" one of the masked guards said, kneeling down. "We mistook you for a threat. Why are you flaring your chakra?"
"No need to kneel, Lizard." Hiruzen glanced at Naruto. "That wasn't me, Naruto here just got a little excited and stopped suppressing his chakra."
The Anbu guards turned ever so slightly towards Naruto. The blond haired teen grinned and waved dramatically. "Hey guys, any of you up for a spar? Fighting the old man here for the last three years got really boring." He bounced on his toes anxiously.
The masked heads tilted slightly as if questioning his sanity. That, Hiruzen knew, was Naruto's intended reaction. The Anbu hesitated, before their captain turned back to Hiruzen.
"The guards at the gate have orders to bring you directly to Tsunade for a debrief, sir."
"Can't you spare a moment for an old man to see his family first?" Hiruzen asked, laying the guilt on thick. "It's been three years after all." Perhaps Naruto wasn't the only one who could occasionally act childish.
"I'm sorry Lord Hokage," Lizard said. "Orders are orders. We must go."
"Very well," Hiruzen said. Naruto chuckled. They started for the gate with the Anbu, where they would be handed off to the standard gate guards. As they walked, Naruto threw a subtle hand wave up behind him, as if saying goodbye. Perhaps to his training trip, perhaps to his freedom, or perhaps to something else.
—
"Lady Tsunade, I have yesterday's hospital reports for you."
"Sakura," the Fifth Hokage looked up from behind the scroll she was reading. "I thought I gave you the day off."
Sakura blushed lightly. "You did Lady Tsunade." She bowed short, holding the pose, "forgive me. One of my patients had his last day of rehab and I wanted to be there to see him through it," she said. Her short hair bobbed lightly as she rose back up to her full height. Though not an intimidating figure like Tsunade, Sakura had grown and matured considerably in the last three years.
She was becoming more and more of an adult every day, Tsunade realized. The Hokage was certain if she looked down at the scroll long enough, Sakura would be fully grown by the time she looked back up. She was proud, but soon she wouldn't have anything left to teach the young woman, and that made her wistfully sad.
A knock on the door broke the mild tension in the air. Sakura tilted her head, knowing that Tsunade didn't have anything on her schedule for this particular time of day. She looked back to her Sensei, who nodded her head absentmindedly. Sakura slid gracefully to the door. She gripped the thick wooden handle, pulling the large slab open with easy strength.
"Naruto!?" Her face was a look of shock. "Naruto!" She rushed forward to hug him. She gripped him hard, before pushing back and looking him over. "Look at you! You're so grown up! When did you get so much taller than me? Look how long your hair is!" She said, seeing the end of his yellow locks swaying behind his back as she jostled him about. "And look at your face, you've lost all your baby fat!"
Unlike Sakura, Naruto was beginning to cut quite an imposing figure. The 16 year old stood well above her in height, though not nearly as tall as his guardian. Though he was still sleek, she could see the muscles bulging ever so slightly through his blue long sleeved shirt. His green vest, unzipped, fit snugly to his torso.
His body could easily pass for that of a jonin, though that wasn't what made him imposing. She last remembered him as a goofy kid who was serious too often, and often seemed to pull miracles out of his hat. This Naruto was different though. He seemed aloof, but she could tell it came with a confidence that he was in control and ready for anything. He had the aura about him that only ever accompanied those that were truly powerful. Kakashi-sensei, Jiraiya, and the Third and Fifth Hokage's were on that short list. And his chakra…
She'd learned quite well the ability to sense chakra. It came with the territory of being a medic with such strong chakra control. She typically had to mold chakra to find the beacons that relayed information. Some people had sturdy and massive reserves, like Lady Tsunade. Some, felt more like a whisper in the night, like Kurenai-sensei. The third Hokage had no signature, though that wasn't expected from somebody who had mastered chakra. Naruto felt different to her.
Most signatures were like a light in the darkness, shining enough to pick out that they were there, and perhaps a feeling for its elemental affinity. Simple information. Naruto's felt like a storm, but its focus wasn't on her. It overwhelmed her, but in a serene way. She didn't feel any danger. It was as if she were in the eye of a hurricane, and its terrible fury was in another dimension. It felt as if it flowed throughout the room, touching everything, and giving it life. It was odd, but then again, it was Naruto.
Naruto rubbed the back of his head shyly. At least some things didn't change.
"Yeah hehe. Saru-sensei only let me eat ramen as a treat when I created a new jutsu so I really spent most of my time eating a healthy diet," he said. He looked more than a little disappointed. "I guess that helped me grow a bit?"
Sakura was, naturally, surprised that Naruto would mention the creation of jutsu so mundanely. Part of her felt it sounded right coming from him though. If anybody could do it, well…
"Hey!" He cut her thoughts off, pointing at her bicep. "You're wearing the band. It looks great!"
She looked down, holding her arm up so it could better be seen. "Well how could I not? It's not every day you get to wear the sigil of such a prominent shinobi clan, Uzumaki-sama," She teased.
Naruto's face grew red. That, of course, hadn't been his intention when he'd sent the bands out the day he departed. He just wanted to let those closest to him know that he was their ally. He also was afraid that they would forget about him while he was gone. Three years was a long time, and he'd already missed so much time in the village early in life. He didn't want to lose his friends.
"Yes," Tsunade said, holding up her own arm. "The bands are great, though it would've been thoughtful to perhaps offer more colors than just this dark red. It may go well with Sakura's outfit, but it's dreadfully dark compared to the Leaf Village's colors. Perhaps try green next time?"
She still hadn't looked up from the scroll, going about her bureaucratic work with seasoned skill. She was wearing it though, and that meant the world to him. Of course, a Hokage wearing the symbol of a clan could be problematic, and there had been a few grumbling complaints. That is, until Tsunade reminded them that not only was her grandmother of the Uzumaki, but that they all bore the clan's symbol on their chunin and jonin vests.
"Can't please everybody, Granny." Naruto shrugged. "Besides, red is the color of the clan. It would be against tradition to change it."
Tsunade shook her head. Naruto of all people holding up tradition? She had half a mind to look out the window to see if TonTon was flying.
Hiruzen clapped his hands together. "Well then, should we not be off? I'm sure the boy has plenty of people who want to see him."
Tsunade rolled her eyes. She closed up the scroll, finally having finished reading it. With the flick of a wrist, and some perfectly applied chakra, the scroll became a deadly weapon. It struck Hiruzen Sarutobi directly in the chest. The last thing anybody saw from him was a sly grin on his face, and then he disappeared. Curiously, there was not a puff of smoke.
Tsunade leveled a glare at Naruto, who was trying very hard to hold in a laugh.
"Sorry, Granny," Naruto said once he got it under control. "The old man wanted to go see his family, so I swapped a clone with him."
"It's an admirable thing to do, Naruto," Tsunade said. "But do you think it's wise to play those tricks on my Anbu?"
Naruto grinned again. "Well none of them would spar with me so I had to test my skills against them somehow. Do you know how boring it is to train with Jiji?" He said, working himself up.
She raised an eyebrow.
"Who am I kidding, of course you do. Everyday its basics this, theory that, 'no Naruto, you can't light that on fire. No Naruto, you can't use an explosive tag to play a prank on a civilian'." He waved his arms around wildly, venting his frustration. "He didn't even let me use any cool jutsu in my chunin exams!"
"And yet," Tsunade said. "You passed your exams easily, from Jiraiya's report. You tricked my Anbu, you pulled off a near flawless clone of the Third Hokage, one that would've been difficult to spot if not for the extra arm."
Naruto rubbed his arm dramatically, as if experiencing a phantom pain.
"And your shadow clone had next to zero excess chakra in it, not to mention the fact that its chakra was fully suppressed. So it seems Sarutobi-sensei knows what he's doing." An evil grin spread across her face. "Or are you questioning the ability of the Third Hokage, and the decision of your current Hokage to have him train you?"
Naruto's face showed mock horror. "N-n-no Granny, it's nothing like that," he said, holding his hands up in front of himself. "It's just that it was repetitive. And I only got a few missions and they weren't that hard! I'm just itching for some action!" He punched the air in front of him a few times in mock boxing form, fists cutting sharply through the air.
Tsunade looked at him, contemplating. He was such an odd boy, but she couldn't deny that he had a certain charisma about him. He could anger her in a heartbeat, but she could never stay mad at him. A more genuine smile crept onto her lips.
"Well then, as our jinchuuriki, I think it's fitting that I get a feel for where your skill level is at. I've even prepared an opponent for you to spar with."
"No way, I'm not fighting the cyclops, that's boring! I just trained my butt off for three years. I'm fighting Jiraiya or you're gonna see a nine tailed temper tantrum!" Naruto crossed his arms, huffing.
"How did you know I chose Kakashi?" Tsunade said, more confused than upset at his disobedience.
"The perverts sitting outside the window reading the first Icha Icha novel for what? The 20th time now?" He said.
The window slid open, Kakashi was crouched in its frame, silhouetted by the sun. "Now Naruto, give me some credit," Kakashi said, his single uncovered eye smiling. "It's my 21st time."
Sakura fumed as Naruto rolled his eyes. Tsunade ignored it all.
"Naruto," Tsunade said. "Kakashi here has been off missions for a week awaiting your arrival. I'm sure he'll present plenty of a challenge for you."
"He's just gonna copy all my new jutsu!" Naruto said. "Besides, it's not about the challenge as much as it is paying Jiraiya back for all the whooping I've gotten over the years."
His words said one thing, but Tsunade saw that his eyes said another. He wanted to show off to Jiraiya. He wanted to make him proud.
"Kakashi? You'll be allowed to watch of course," Tsunade asked, the question implied.
"Fine by me," Kakashi said, masked nose already buried in his book. There was an intrigue in his eye though. He was just as curious as Tsunade was.
"It's settled then," Tsunade said. "I've got no idea where Jiraiya is though. He got the week off, same as Kakashi. I suppose your first task can be finding him."
"Oh I think I know just where to find him," Naruto said, a blinding grin alighting the room. "Thanks Granny!" He turned to Sakura. "It's good to see you, Sakura. Dinner with everybody tonight, on me!" Naruto said, waving goodbye. He disappeared without any sort of sign that he'd left. No smoke, no movement, just the subtle sound of air rushing to fill the space he had once been. If Tsunade didn't know any better, she'd have sworn he teleported.
"That brat sent not one," Tsunade said. "But two shadow clones to report to his Hokage? Where does he get the nerve?" She huffed.
"Well," Kakashi said. "He did pull the switch off in front of a team of Anbu. If I hadn't had my sharingan out even I would've missed it. That's gotta count for something." Kakashi said, and then he leapt out the window.
"Doesn't anybody have respect for this office anymore?" Tsunade lamented.
Sakura appeared to be thinking something over. She spoke after a brief moment. "Lady Tsunade, how come Naruto said his missions weren't that hard. I saw the last three you sent him on, they were all A-rank. Surely even he can't find those to be easy?"
"They were A-rank, correct, but I mislabeled them as a sort of test," she said. "He doesn't think he's been on anything tougher than a C-rank mission since he left the village."
Perhaps Naruto was an idiot, or perhaps he was special. Perhaps he was both. The fight with Jiraiya would show her a lot.
—-
The real Naruto strode towards the outskirts of the village. He'd switched with a clone nearly at the same time that he'd substituted the old man out. He'd then split off enough clones to go catch up with everybody he'd missed. The original, though, wanted to be the one to greet Jiraiya.
Nearly three years away from him was a long time. Aside from the seven or so years he spent without him at the start of his life, years he barely remembered, he hadn't been away from him for more than a month or two.
He walked up the road, the homes becoming less and less cared for, the population becoming more sparse. He hadn't been in this area much in his life, but he knew what he'd find. After all, he'd scouted the area before he left. It would have been ridiculous not to, considering he was going to buy it. And bought it he had.
It came into sight just then, at the end of the dirt road, on the very edges of the village. The Uchiha compound. Or rather, formerly the Uchiha compound, now… it would be called the Uzumaki clan lands. The walls loomed large, the gate nearly as big as the main entrance to the village. It'd been one of his last acts within the village, to purchase the Uchiha grounds. Whether the village technically owned the grounds for him to buy it from them or not wasn't really a big deal. There were no Uchiha in the village, and nobody else wanted it.
He approached the gates, large and wooden, looming above the area. They were open, but only enough for a single ninja or two to slip through. The project was still a secret, but he doubted anybody would venture into it. It was haunted, after all.
The sight that greeted him was much as expected. Lines of houses down a row, with a large space front and center reserved for the clan heads house. Only there was no house. There was, in its place, a garden. It was circular in shape, and quite large. It took up the entire plot of Fugaku Uchiha's former home. The garden was lush, the grass green, and alive with flowers. The flowers were all varying shades of red, but predominantly roses. They covered the entire circular area save for a few small sections. It stepped down shallowly, the steps being roughly ten feet each, until it reached the low point. The center was black concrete that formed a shallow pit.
It was beautiful, it was serene, and it was solemn. It was a tribute to the Uchiha. A way to remember the past, while moving toward the future. It wasn't complete, but Naruto was proud of the progress regardless.
After circling the tribute several times, he broke off in a tangent. Passed the rows of houses that made up the district, and into the nearby forest. Deep into the trees, surrounded by life, he found an opening. It was only a five minute walk, but this area felt different. It felt alive.
He'd chosen it specifically for this reason. Something had drawn him to it before he'd left the village, and so he had hand selected it. In the clearing, there was a house.
It was a fairly simple, two story build. Thick pillars of wood held up an outcropping that covered a porch. The porch, made of the same wood, wrapped around both sides of the house. He knew it would continue all the way around to the back. He was the one that had drawn up the plans, after all.
Of course, he'd gone back and forth with Jiraiya and the builders, through letters sent by toads, over the plausibility of some of his ideas. Eventually he settled on simple. There was plenty of room for expansion, and he had plans for that too. For now though, he was content to see that the structure was built, swallowed by the forest, yet with no trees encroaching on it. The house almost looked small, in its current form. The view though, was large.
The clearing wasn't a surrounding clearing. The trees opened up, but did not close again. Instead, a semi circle had seemingly been carved by nature. The round part led to the trees, the flat part, to a drop off. The house was settled safely away from it, but he knew at the bottom of it there would be a river. He could hear it now, if he stilled his breathing. Powerful and ever flowing. Beyond the river, the land began to undulate in big rolling hills. The tops of trees, as far as the eye could see. If he stared long enough, and the breeze hit just right, it almost felt as if he were flying.
He took the first step towards his new home, breathing deeply as he did so. Life had changed over the last three years, but it had changed for the better.
Thanks for reading.
Quick note:
Naruto's outfit is basically Minato's jonin outfit, with a few small changes. He keeps the hand guards that Jiraya wears, and the vest will be green but custom.