005
"Er...Hokage-sama..."
Hiruzen's ears perked up as the small intercom on his desk crackled to life and his secretary's voice filled the room. "You have visitors."
"Ah yes, Thank you Naomi-chan. I've been expecting those two. Send them right up," he replied. Setting down his pipe, Hiruzen took the disheveled stacks of paperwork cluttering his desk and gathered them into on neat pile before placing it in one of the many drawers lining his desk. With a heavy sigh, the God of Shinobi collected his thoughts. This had been a day he'd been reluctantly waiting for this day to come, all the while dreading it at the same time. 'I just hope they come to understand it was for the best...'
Just then the door to his office exploded open, barely remaining attached to its hinges. Zero Two waltzed into the room, humming a soft tune. Trailing just after her was an exasperated Naruto.
"Zero Two that's cheating!" He pointed an accusatory glare at her.
"All is fair in love and war Darling~!" The rosette sang.
"Oh?" Hiruzen commented nonchalantly as he relit his pipe. "It's not often someone gets the better of Naruto."
"What?!" The aforementioned blond blanched, barging his was into the room. "She was the one that wanted to race here in the first place and she pulled my tail when I got ahead!"
"I just couldn't help myself Darling," Zero Two latched onto Naruto's arm and stared at him with big, puppy dog-like eyes. "It was just fluffy~!"
'Damn...even she knows it!' Naruto cursed as his found himself lost in his girlfriend's eyes. He, along with rest of the boys in his class, were convinced that the dreaded "Puppy Eyes" was a secret genjutsu taught to girls at a young age. It was more than just a simple expression because none of the males could recreate it, and Kiba practically half dog himself.
"I'm glad to see you two are getting along," Hiruzen chuckled mirthfully before taking a drag on his pipe. It would seem he'd been worried for nothing over their meeting, as Zero Two had already charmed the young lad. He was taken aback when Naruto suddenly approached his desk and bowed deeply.
"I'm sorry I stole the scroll Gramps," he apologized sincerely. "I was...just so excited at the thought of finally becoming a ninja that I...I..."
"It's quite alright Naruto. You were unfortunately used in the schemes of someone that had been placed in a position of trust. I can not fault you for that," Hiruzen waver his hand. But it didn't stop a crestfallen expression from shadowing the boy's features.
"But I-"
"Did a marvelous job at stopping Mizuki. Even in the face of adversity, you did not falter and protected an invaluable asset to the village." Hiruzen shakily rose to his feet and stepped from behind his desk, slowly approaching the blond. He placed a withered hand on Naruto's shoulder, causing the boy to look up to meet his gaze. "You've come so far Naruto and I couldn't be any prouder." As much as he tried, Naruto couldn't suppress a small smile at the elderly Hokage's words. He stumbled forward slightly but managed to catch himself. Turning to his side he saw Zero Two hooked on to his arm.
"I helped too ya know..." she pouted shabbily.
"That you did Zero Two. I'm proud of the both of you," Hiruzen smirked as he ruffled her hair, much to the girl's annoyance. "I may have been wrong about you Zero Two. Unlike the others, Naruto isn't showing any adverse side effects." The others had developed symptoms almost immediately, but hours had passed by now and the boy seemed to be perfectly fine.
"I already told you geezer, Darling is the only one fit to be my partner. I would never hurt him," Zero Two grumbled.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa," Naruto interrupted. "Side effects?!" He watched the Hokage sigh deeply as he slowly returned to his chair.
He reached into his desk and pulled out a small silver canister that bore the symbol of the Hidden Stone Village. Lasting grudges aside, even he couldn't dispute that the Land of Earth had the highest quality of tobacco in all of the Elemental Nations. He also happened to know that the Tsuchikage had a guilty pleasure for rice wine. More particularly a specific flavor brewed in the southeastern coast of the Land of Fire, far from the western border they shared with Earth. He had an...arrangement with the crotchety Fence-Sitter, one that had proved mutually beneficial for the last 18 odd years. "Where to begin..." Hiruzen mumbled. The small can cracked open with a small 'pop' and he began meticulously loading his pipe with the preserved shag inside. "We'll need some privacy first."
Hiruzen clapped his hands together, causing mysterious black symbols to appear on the wall. They began to glow with chakra and coiled around the room. "Now then..." Hiruzen spoke again a she lit his pipe. "Naruto my boy, you will have no recollection of these events. And that's because I had your memory erased."
"W-What...?" The blond could only stare at the Hokage as if he'd grown a second head. He was honestly quite surprised. He didn't think the Hiruzen had it in him to pull a prank. This must've been payback from the time he painted a giant nosebleed on the old man's face on the Hokage Monument after he found his secret stash of Icha Icha books. "Very funny Gramps, for a second there I almost beli-"
"I'm being completely serious."
Naruto flinched at the words. The Hokage's face was calm, yet stiff and his tone was grim. Sparing a glance at Zero Two, he noticed she was gnawing away at one of her thumbnails. Her eyes were hidden away behind a curtain of pink, refusing to meet his gaze. He could feel her hand quivering as it tightened around his own.
"Oi...this isn't funny Gramps...what do you mean you erased my memories?"
"I mean just that. Tell me Naruto, have you heard of a Klaxosaur?" Hiruzen queried.
Naruto's eyes narrowed marginally at the question. He vaguely remembered hearing that name before. Iruka had covered them briefly during a study on mythology. These "Screaming Lizards" supposedly consumed chakra and terrorized the land centuries ago. They're mentioned frequently in old literature, yet there has never been any physical evidence found to prove they existed. But he didn't understand what that had to do with the situation. "You're avoiding my question Gramps," Naruto replied frostily. "What does a fairy-tale Monster have to do with you erasing my memories?" He glared.
"Everything," Hiruzen spoke evenly, unfazed by the boy's ire. "When you were 5 Naruto, you suddenly ran away from the village."
"I...ran away?"
"Yes, and even at such a young age you were very crafty. It took the team of ANBU I sent after you a whole month to track you down." Hiruzen chuckled as he took another drag on his pipe. "When they found you and Zero Two, who absolutely refused to leave your side, you all were attacked by a Klaxosaur. You ended up using the Nine Tails' power to defeat it, but the toll was so great on your body that you were left unconscious for nearly two weeks." Hiruzen discarded the ashes from his pipe into a small tray and continued on, not missing a beat. "You were still too young to know about the Nine-Tails Naruto...I didn't want you being exposed to that. Not at such an early age. So I-"
"Just when exactly did you plan to tell me then?" Naruto spat. His eyes flashed red and Hiruzen flinched at the malice in his voice. "Everyone was in on this little secret except me. You even went out of your way to create a law forbidding people to talk about it. If it weren't for Mizuki-teme I wouldn't have found out the truth! How long...how long did you plan to keep lying to me Gramps..?"
The Hokage's heart sank when he saw the downcast expression marring the young jinchuriki's features. He looked tired and defeated. "Naruto that was not my intention. I was trying to give you the most normal life possible-"
"Normal?!" Naruto chortled. "Exactly what part of my life is normal?! I don't have a family to go home to at the end of the day. Everyone in the village treats me like a plague. No one cares about me! And now you're telling me I managed to find someone who did and you erased my memories of her!"
"I understand your frustrations Naruto. And you're right, I've let you down. There's nothing I could do to ever make amends for that." Hiruzen admitted solemnly as he discarded the ashes from his pipe once more. Sparring a glance at Zero Two, he was rather surprised at how docile she was being. She simply elected to hold on to Naruto, supporting the fervid blond. Then again, this was a conversation he'd had with her many a times over the years. "But I don't regret erasing your memories or keeping the both of you apart. In hindsight, it was in the best interest of you both."
"And what the hell is that supposed to mean old man?!" Naruto snarled.
Hiruzen remains unfazed by the boy's ire as he packed more tobacco into his pipe. "You see Naruto, Zero Two isn't a normal human. She has Klaxosaur blood running in her veins. These creatures are violently destructive and they feed on chakra. Back then I separated you two for your own safety, and hers as well."
"So what? She's different like me so you isolated her as well?"
"You misunderstand me my boy. Yes, I initially thought Zero Two would be a danger to you. The first time she ever escaped, she forcefully drained a chunin of all his chakra in a matter of seconds and went on a rampage," Hiruzen spoke, shocking Naruto. He glanced down at the girl attached to his side, who turned away from his gaze in an effort to hide her embarrassment.
"They found her in your hospital room, desperately trying to wake you up. But you would not budge. She would've burned the entire hospital down when they attempted to remove her had I not stepped in. I was only then that understood the bond you two had forged. But but by then, it was already too late. Inoichi had already purged the memories from your mind." Hiruzen hung his head in shame.
"But that was for the best. Zero Two had absolutely no control over her bloodline then. Even a simple touch was enough to siphon a substantial amount of chakra. I had no reservations about reuniting you both, but only after she had learned to properly control her bloodline. What good would it have done if she ended up killing you? She would've most likely destroyed herself in grief as well."
Naruto gritted his teeth as he listened on. As much as he hated to admit it, the fossil of a ninja had sound reasoning. But that didn't mean he had to like it. "I...I won't forgive you for this Gramps. Not ever..." Naruto ground out. He stared down at the floor, refusing to meet the elder's gaze as his fists clenched tightly. He was desperately trying to fight back the tears threatening to spill over but failing miserably, which only added to to his frustration. White suddenly obscured his already blurring vision and he felt a gentle pat on his head.
"I wouldn't expect you to Naruto. As Hokage, you have to put the well being of the village first, which can sometimes force one to take...regrettable actions," Hiruzen replied softly. "That's why all I can do now is assign you both to the same team. Zero Two has more than proven herself and I realized that I should have more faith in you two," he admitted. "And I've honestly been wanting to see how changing to a five man cell would affect team dynamics. I'm hoping it will improves mission success rates and lower casualties. So Team Seven will be an experimentation squad of sorts. I'm counting on you all."
Naruto stiffly shrugged away from his touch and quickly wiped away the moisture pooling around his eyes. "Erasing memories...tearing people apart..." his voice was broken and weak. "If that's what it means to be Hokage...then I don't want the job anymore..."
Hiruzen could only frown. Naruto was the most upbeat and jovial soul around. He hated seeing the lad look so defeated. "Naruto I-"
"Come on Zero Two," the blonde spoke suddenly. He turned away from the elderly Hokage in one sharp motion, pulling his companion along and eliciting a soft yip from the girl. "I'm sure our new sensei is waiting for us."
"R-Right..." Zero Two was quick to regain her composure and fell in step alongside her beloved.
A tired sigh escaped the aging Hokage as he watched the teens depart just as swiftly as they arrived. His hands slowly made their way to his backside, trying to message out the numerous knots. Today was just not his day. Firstly, his back was killing him and no amount of medication or practical medical ninjutsu seemed to be helping. And secondly, he didn't get very much sleep last night, which put even more strain on his already worn out body. He was no spring chicken after all and decades of Shinobi work had left his body beaten and brittle.
'Minato...Kushina...forgive me. You entrusted your son to me and I failed him. I sincerely hope Zero Two can fill the void left in his heart...'
The soft pitter-patter of footsteps reverberated off the hallways of the academy as an awkward silence permeated the air. Zero Two found her being led away from the Hokage's office. She fell in step behind Naruto, who had been silent ever since they left. His hand was clammy and moist with sweat. His shoulders sagged yet, held an agitated stiffness to them. It made her head sink to see him in such a state. She didn't know how he would react to the geezer's words, but he was clearly upset. Part of her was glad that he felt the same way she did but if she were being honest with herself, the old man had a point. She wouldn't have been able to live with herself had she accidentally killed her darling with her bloodline.
"Darling..."
"What."
His tone had a sharp bite to it, clearly reflecting his ire. She hated seeing him like this. It was nothing like the gentle and kind-hearted boy that had she'd fallen in love with all those years ago. Planting a foot, Zero Two came to a sudden stop, jerking Naruto to a standstill as well. Confused, the blond turned around only to be wrapped in a gentle embrace.
"I missed you ya know," Zero Two said softly, resting her chin on his slumped shoulder. Naruto was caught off guard by the sudden display of affection. Before a response could even form in his mind, she spoke again. "Quite a lot actually. I hated the old man for what he did to you and keeping us apart. In fact, I hated just about everyone and everything about this village," she giggled.
"But this was your home. And I wanted nothing more than to be at your side. And the geezer is far too trusting for his own good. I was rather...difficult growing up," The rosette admitted, a faint blush coloring her cheeks. "I was an outsider, and not even a human one at that. I used to lash out, and nearly killed my caretaker once. But the geezer let me stay regardless."
After listening to him speak minutes before, she found herself thinking that all this time, he had managed to see past her facade. Unlike Naruto, who masked his pain behind a cheerful personality and bright smile, she obscured hers with a cloak of petulance. She was prone to violent outbursts and it didn't take much so set her off. The ever growing frustration of being kept apart from her dearly beloved chipped away at her everyday. All she had to do was learn how to control her bloodline. But it seemed no matter how hard she trained, even driving herself to the point of absolute exhaustion, her proficiency remained stagnant. It was a grim symbiosis, constantly feeding one another and driving her further into the depths of despair. Zero Two retreated slightly and locked onto the pair of cerulean orbs focusing intently on her.
"Through it all, you were my pillar Naruto. Even at such a young age, with the world bearing down on your shoulders, you put on a big smile and tackled life head on without wavering in the slightest. You're the bravest person I know and I wanted nothing more than to be like you. So I persevered, growing stronger with each step I took and more determined with each breath I drew. Even if it was just a chance meeting, words alone can't express how much meeting you changed the course of my life Darling."
Naruto silently stared at the girl, observing her every motion. Her eyes were soft, completely void of their usual impish luster. Her smile, one that seemed to only be reserved for him alone, was tender and radiated a loving warmth that resonated with her words. To be quite honest, he was rather taken aback. He knew that she loved him dearly, but he never expected her to think so highly of him.
True, back in his younger days he felt like he was unstoppable. Even if he was all alone with no one else in the world, he wasn't going to let that dissuade him from accomplishing his dreams. But one can only put on an act of bravado for so long. The facade itself was easy enough to maintain. All he had to do was smile and put on an asinine display like everyone expected of him. But it was draining, mentally more so than physically. And what made matters worse was that he had not formal training beyond that of what was taught at the academy. Unlike him, many of his classmates extra training outside the regular curriculum and excelled in a variety of subjects. At best, he had taijutsu going for him. He was a bit of a brawler and his moves, while unrefined, were quite effective. His chakra control was abysmal, which left both ninjutsu and genjutsu off the table and his shurikenjutsu was...acceptable. With such an underwhelming skillset, it became slowly evident to even him that aspiring to be Hokage was nothing more than wishful thinking. Contrary to the perennial saying phrasing, all men were not created equal.
"I...I wish," Naruto began hesitantly, trying to find his words. "I wish I could say the say the same Zero Two. But I don't remember anything. You...the time we spent together...none of it. Gramps...he took that from me!" He ground out frustratedly.
"That he did. But what's done is done. We have each other now that all that matters." Zero Two reassured him.
"Yeah but-"
The blond was cut off by a sharp flick to the forehead, causing him to wobble back in pain. "Ow! What was that for?!"
His irritation quickly subsided when noticed the look his girlfriend was giving him. She was standing before him indignantly with her hands on her hips, bearing down on him with a ferocious glare. "Would you stop being so mopey already!" She barked, making the boy flinch.
"There no point dwelling on the past," she said in a more gentle tone. "All we can do is make up for lost time. I know you're upset Darling, and you have every right to be. But I don't want to focus on the negatives. We have our whole lives ahead of us to make new memories. So cheer up already. Or so help me god, I will burn your entire stash of ramen!"
"You wouldn't!" Naruto gasped, taking a step back in horror. Anything but the ramen!
"Try me."
"Alright, alright geez!" He shot forward, enveloping her in a hug. "There's no need to drag innocent ramen into this ya know. And here I thought you loved me."
Zero Two smirked victoriously as she settled into his embrace. "All's fair in love and war Darling~!"
"Yeah, Yeah," Naruto grumbled. He had to admit, her words did wonders for his mood. She had a point after all. Resenting the old man wouldn't return his lost memories, nor would moping about it. But that didn't mean he would forgive him anytime soon. And despite his shortcomings, he had still managed to become a ninja. "You're troublesome you know that?" He said, quoting his notoriously lazy classmate.
"Yep~!" Zero Two giggled.
A smile found its face to Naruto face. Even if he didn't remember her, in just the short time after they had reunited Zero Two was quickly growing on him. If he was her pillar of strength, then she was his light in the darkness. He still couldn't claim to know what love was, but he was definitely willing to discover it with her.
"Neh...did you really almost burn down the hospital when you came to see me?"
Zero Two's haughty confidence immediately shattered and he face flushed the same shade as her hair. "O-Of course! They tried to keep me away from you ya know..."
"Ha! Talk about hotheaded," Naruto couldn't help but chuckled. His amusement earned him a swat on the arm.
"Dahliiing!" The rosette whined. "I-It's not funny!"
She was silenced when the blond shot forward, overtaking her lips with his own. Zero Two was stunned by his sudden forwardness, but happily welcomed the chaste kiss. Naruto released the rosette, much to her disapproval, and rested his forehead on hers. "Thanks Zero Two...for cheering me up. I feel much better now."
"Now there's my Darling," she grinned in response. Taking hold of his hand, she stepped past Naruto and began leading him back towards his classroom. "Now come, we still have to meet the Scarecrow."
"Scarecrow?" Naruto's eyebrow rose in confusion. Her mood was noticeably less enthusiastic than before.
"You'll see..."
Sakura sighed wistfully as her head slumped onto the desk. They had been instructed to wait in the classroom until their newly appointed Jonin teachers came to fetch them. By now, all of the other teams had been collected, leaving just Team Seven. Though, she couldn't complain really considering she was all alone with the object of her affections. Casting a sidelong glance at brooding teen, she couldn't help but admire him. He was clad mostly in black, donning a tank top, long pants, and standard shinobi sandals. Over it he wore a high-collared, grayish blue button down shirt that he opted to leave open. Sewn onto the back of it was the symbol of his clan.
With that pig Ino and the rest of the girls gone, she'd been hoping to win over the last Uchiha with her womanly charms. But alas, she shot down again. 'Well at least I get to be on the same team as him, which is much more than the others can say. It's only a matter of time before Sasuke-kun falls in love with me!' the pinkette swooned in her head. 'If only that loser Naruto wasn't on our team as well everything would be perfect.' As if on cue, the door too the classroom slid open, and the aforementioned blond waltz into the room, followed by Zero Two.
"Huh? Looks like everyone's already gone," Naruto said as he looked around the room.
"Good! We can finally have some much needed alone time~!" Zero Two sang as she jumped onto his back.
"O-Oi!" the blond called out as he stumbled forward before catching himself. Sakura's mood immediately soured and her face distorted into an irascible glower. She let out an unladylike snort, alerting the couple to her presence.
"Oh right, the rest of our team. Prince Angst and the bitchy one," Zero Two smirked. Sasuke showed no outward reaction, while Sakura's nostril's flared up in anger.
"What's your deal?!" she snapped. "Why do I have to be teamed up with someone like you?!"
"I don't know what goes through the geezer's head," the rosette shrugged. "All that matters to me is staying with my Darling," she smiled as she affectionately rubbed her cheek against Naruto's, much to the boy's chagrin.
"C-Cut it out Zero Two!"
"Let me love yooou!"
Sakura felt her stomach turning flips as she watched the couple. But just as she was about to voice her irritation, the door slid open once more, drawing the teens' attention. Out of the hallway emerged a man in his late twenties. He was dressed standard Hidden Leaf infantry clothing, consisting of dark blue pants and a long-sleeve shirt that was covered by a forest green flak jacket. He also wore fingerless gloves with metal plates on the backside. He had spiky, somewhat gravity-defying silver hair that oriented towards his left side. But most notable of all was the black mask that covered up the entire lower half of his face. Even his headband was shifted down slightly, shrouding his left eye. In his hand he held a bright orange book that had the words "Icha Icha Paradise" printed on the front cover. Looking up from his book, he scanned the room with a relaxed, heavy-lidded expression. When he caught sight of Naruto and Zero Two, his lone eye widened ever so slightly. 'Oh?'
"Is that...the scarecrow...?" Naruto whispered over his shoulder.
"Yeah," came Zero Two's clipped response. She was staring intently at the man, almost as if she we're trying to burn a whole through him with her eyes alone.
"I see what you mean now..."
Sakura rose up from her seat, a look of exasperation etched onto her face. "Are you our new Sensei?" she queried.
"I am," the man answered simply.
"You're late!" She pointed an accusatory finger at him.
"I am," he repeated, further annoying the pinkette.
"Hm...how can I say this. As far as first impressions go..." The man pondered as he stashed the book away inside his pouch. "I hate all of you."
All four teens faulted at the tasteless remark. But before any of them could voice an opinion, he spoke again. "Alright then, let's get this over with. I want you guys to meet me on the roof. You have two minutes," As soon as he finished speaking, the man exploded in a cloud of smoke.
"Onward Darling! After him!" Zero Two exclaimed.
"Oi! I am not a horse ya know!"
"You're my noble steed. And he's getting awaaay!" the rosette whined as she vehemently shook his shoulders, urging her boyfriend to move.
"Zero Two stop it, you're gonna me dr-"
"Dahliiing!" She began playfully swatting at his head.
"Alright, alright just stop hitting me!" Naruto relented as he ran out the door.
"Tally Ho!" Zero Two squealed in delight.
Sakura's eye twitched as she watched them depart. 'You know what, I'm not even going to bother. who's care about them anyway?' Her inner self huffed. As long as she had her Sasuke-kun, nothing else mattered. "Neh, Sasuke-kun! Do you wanna walk...with...me..." She turned around only find that the Uchiha had disappeared. The pinkette stomped her feat heatedly as her face broke into a pout.
"Ugh! Could this day get any worse?!" She griped before storming out of the room.