Naruto pushed himself forwards as he ran along the tree branches with his eyes focused on the route ahead of him. Beside him Anko and Mikoto jumped along his right and left all looking towards the front, keeping their eyes focused and their wits about them.
The trio were currently on a scouting mission along the border between Fire Country and Grass Country. They had gotten reports that a missing-nin was seen along this route and had been causing trouble to travelers and merchants who were trying to get to Konoha and Iwa for trading purposes. They originated from Wave since Wave was a major trade point in the Elemental Nations and this missing-nin had caused the trading to get many major delays.
Naruto was sent to investigate alongside Anko and Mikoto. Anko since she wanted to get out of the village for a little while with the Torture and Integration division taking up a lot of her time. While Mikoto was sent since Minato wanted a well known shinobi on this mission in case things did not go their way.
Itachi meanwhile had joined the Anbu and was quickly rising to the rank of an Anbu Captain. Naruto though offered to become an Anbu, settled instead with becoming a Jonin. The life of an Anbu was not the one he wanted.
Anko not wanting to be left behind had managed to get pushed to Special Jonin. While her taijutsu and summons were easily Jonin level, she still had to work on her ninjutsu and stamina portion of her skills, something Mikoto was helping her with when possible.
The trio were running almost on the border between the two countries and they were surprised that they had not run into any Iwa shinobi yet since most would have had patrols in the area similar to what they were doing.
"Do you sense anyone Naruto?" Mikoto asked as Naruto focused on his surroundings. He spread his sensory abilities to two miles wide.
After a moment of silence he opened them and shook his head. "Nothing so far."
"In that case it may be best to stop for the night. It is almost sundown and we do not want to be running during the night since our view would be obscured and it will be more dangerous continuing."
Naruto and Anko nodded and quickly found a small cave formation a little ways off that would be perfect for a camp set up. It was only about twelve feet long into the mountainside but it did give them some cover and would likely be the best thing they would find.
Mikoto had been going on missions more regularly lately since it helped to prove the Uchiha's loyalty to Konoha. When the other clans, shinobi and civilians discovered and were told about the almost rebellion, the Uchiha Clan lost a lot of trust and respect.
Since then Mikoto had become the head of the Uchiha Clan and was grooming Itachi to one-day take over since he was the eldest child. She was teaching him what he needed to know so that when he took over he could be an efficient leader and know when to be kind and when to be strict.
Something unfortunately Mikoto's second son Sasuke seemed to need. When finding out about his father, Sasuke had become a very quiet, broody boy who preferred being alone and shot any one down who wanted to befriend him.
A few times Itachi and Mikoto had to stop Sasuke from pushing Ria around since he did not want a weak sister. Mikoto would quickly discipline her son which only made him brood more. He made his life goal to defeat his older brother and become the head of the clan.
Itachi's only response to that was a flick to the forehead and telling him he would be waiting.
It seemed that while Itachi and Ria had taken after Mikoto mostly, Sasuke's personality was leaning more towards his fathers and his way of thinking.
The one clan though that thrived off the Uchiha Clan essentially being cut in half was the Hyuga Clan. Before the Uchiha Clan was the most powerful but now with their numbers halved, the Hyuga Clan was now the largest of main clans and as well as the most powerful.
That was something the Hyuga's obviously knew since some became quite pompous and walked with an air of superiority. But the clan head Hiashi Hyuga quickly stopped that and punished anyone who tried to think that way.
The Hyuga clan head may have been strict and most times cold but he refused to have his clan looked down at because of a few members trying to act better than everyone else.
"Naruto you find us food whilst Anko and I will set up camp. You know what to do if anything goes wrong."
Naruto nodded. "Throw a kunai in the air with a flare seal strapped to it. I got it." He said as Mikoto nodded at him and watched him leap into the bushes.
With Naruto
Naruto searched the nearby wooded areas and managed to come across a small river about eight feet wide and went up to Naruto's knees. He guessed it must have connected to one of the bigger rivers and towards a lake since he found it was teeming with fish.
'I was hoping to find a deer or maybe some rabbits but I guess this will do.' He said as went into the river. He closed his eyes and sensed the fish in the water as they gently and quietly swam past him.
Waiting for a few moments his hand suddenly struck the water and a moment later his hand left the water and had a fish in his hand.
Smiling he threw the fish onto the river bank and he copied this movement five more times until he had about six fish all resting on the riverbank.
Nodding and thinking to himself he just stood in the water for a few moments as he took in the clean air of the forest.
He enjoyed the forest when it was peaceful and in a strange way felt one with it. Whether that was because of his Mokuton or it was just him.
'I should get back. No doubt Anko and Mikoto will want their dinner. Anko after all has a stomach that seems endless.' He thought though the same could be said about him.
Stretching him arms and cracking his shoulders Naruto got out of the river and shook his legs, making small splashes of water hit the dirt and grass. He picked up the six fish three to a hand and began walking; though before he could move a chakra signature appeared to his surprise coming from behind him.
He frowned when he felt it was panicked and possibly injured from the erratic feelings he was getting from it.
A moment later a second, stronger signature appeared and quickly determined that the first signature must have been running from the second one. The second signature was definantly Jonin level while the first was lower than a Jonin but a bit higher than a Chunin.
'Looks like they're about a mile away.' He thought and could feel the stronger of the two closing in fast.
Biting his lip, Naruto quickly made a shadow clone. "Go back to Mikoto-sensei and Anko, tell them what I have sensed. I will put a flare kunai in the air when I have arrived to where the two signatures are."
The clone nodded and took the six fish before he ran back to the camp while Naruto turned, made sure his blade was strapped to his side before he pushed off as quick as he could and towards the location.
As he ran, he could sense the two signatures getting closer and closer before he felt the first suddenly stop, almost like it was making a last stand. The second drew closer and flared its power.
Naruto ducked under some branches and moved quickly and quietly through the trees, hardly leaving a mark on the branches from how fast he was going.
Pushing off from the tree's he quickly found himself very close to the two signatures and found that they were in a small clearing. He pocked his head through the bushes as quietly as he could and observed who the two signatures were.
He first focused on the stronger of the two. He was a man in his late twenties, maybe early thirties and had blue eyes with a darker ripple around the pupil, waist-length green hair with the top two bangs falling down on his cheeks on each side, and having dark fleshy lips. He wore a grey hooded mantle with three red stripes. Under the mantle was a dark-brown sleeveless vest falling to his knees where the inside was purple, a light brown belt, a light grey pants. All over his body were various protective bandages on his chest and legs.
Naruto knew who he was from the studying the bingo books. This man was Raiga Kurosuki, a missing nin of Kiri, former member of the Seven Swordsman, wielder of the Duels swords Kiba and A ranked shinobi.
'A very deadly foe.' Naruto thought before he turned to the other signature and almost fell out of the tree when he saw who it was.
Four years it had been since he last saw her and yet she looked almost exactly like the last time he saw her, other than the fact she was four years older as well. Her black hair was still short and stopped just past her chin. Her uniform was similar as well though now she had the pale brown Chunin jacket added to it.
'What are the chance of her being here?' He thought to himself before he saw the swordsman raise the twin Kiba blades.
The pair of swords was slim and straight double-edged blades. Both blades also have an upward-curved bladed prong near the tip of one side of blade and another one near the base of the blade's other side.
'Mikoto sensei will probably yell at me for this.' He thought before with a burst of speed pushed himself of the tree branch and landing between the two. The two Kiba blades were coming down at him so he drew Shusui out and managed to block the strike.
When he blocked it, he threw a kunai into the air making the flare though no one was paying any attention to it.
Naruto interference caused both to be surprised seeing another shinobi nearby though Kurotsuchi had her jaw hanging open as she looked at Naruto.
'What is he doing here?'
Raiga though pushed himself away a couple of meters and looked at person in front of him.
'Kiiroi Senkō?' Was his first thought before he realized the person in front of him was too young and the hair was too short as well as the eyes.
"Who are you boy? Why are you interfering?" Raiga asked as he took two steps forward with the Kiba blade held tightly in his hands.
Naruto shrugged. "I was in the neighborhood and I heard fighting. I came to check it out and you can imagine my surprise when I find a member of the Seven Swordsman fighting an injured Iwa kunoichi."
"So why interfere? Last I checked Konoha hated Iwa and vice versa."
"Oh they still do, but I think it's a stupid rivalry. Personally I have no problem with Iwa and this girl here I know in a way. I don't really want to see her get killed."
Naruto looked behind him for a moment to look at Kurotsuchi injuries. Her right leg had a big gash in it and a small bit of the bone was lodged out of her skin. It was a surprise that she managed to run as fast as she did with that kind of leg injury.
He turned back to look at Raiga.
"You can't beat me brat. I was once a member of the Seven Swordsmen, seven of the best kenjutsu users in all of Kiri. You think you can hold a candle to my skills?"
"There is one way to find out. I have always enjoyed fighting strong opponents and I have always wanted to fight one of the seven."
Kurotsuchi who was lying behind them watching this unfold did not understand it. She did not understand why he was protecting her. Shouldn't he hate her? After all Iwa and Konoha were like Oil and Water. They just don't mix.
As Naruto readied himself again he felt his Kage Bushin from earlier disperse and now knowing that Anko and Mikoto were on their way.
"Kurotsuchi." Naruto called getting her attention. "If you can move then I suggest you move out of the clearing unless you want to get involved in your current state." He said.
Kurotsuchi gave him a mild glared, but quickly dropped it before she did her best to crawl away.
Focusing in front of him, Naruto eyes went slightly wide when he saw Raiga now just a few feet from him with the Kiba blades coming down on top of him.
He quickly brought Shusui up and blocked the strike and held it there as Raiga slowly began pusing him back, using his superior physical strength against Naruto.
As Naruto got pushed back, he releases the hold from the two blades and ducked a swing. He then cocked his fist and threw it towards Raiga's side.
Raiga though saw it coming and jump a few feet away only to see the punch caused a crater to form into the ground.
'I have to watch this one carefully.' He thought now recognizing that Naruto was not some run of the mill shinobi.
"Raiton:Raikyu!" Raiga said as a ball of lightning formed in his hands and he threw it towards Naruto.
Naruto though saw the ball coming. "Futon: Daitoppa!" A burst of wind shot forward stopped the lightning ball dead in its tracks and making the lightning dissipate.
Naruto pushed off from the ground and went to deliver a hard kick to Raiga's stomach. Raiga however caught Naruto's foot and twisted it, making Naruto's body twist in air before he fell to the ground.
A little dazed Naruto saw one of the Kiba blades coming towards is head and move it to the side, narrowly dodging the top of the sword. He brought his left leg up and kicked Raiga away, making the swordsman's feet skid along the ground a few meters before he stopped.
Naruto got back up but Raiga threw one of the Kiba's towards Naruto face and Naruto narrowly dodged it again but this time felt the tip of the blade slash against his cheek as a bit of blood tricked down it.
Naruto pushed himself away. "Suiton:Mizu Dangan no jutsu!"
Raiga quickly did the same. "Suiton:Mizu Dangan no jutsu!"
The bullets from each side collided with one another neither managing to hit the opponent and the jutsu's quickly cancelled each other out.
Raiga and Naruto battled both trying to get the better over the other as Raiga swung one of the Kiba's at Naruto who managed to block the blade. Raiga then brought the second Kiba up and aimed it at Naruto abdomen from the side.
Naruto saw it from the corner of his eye and the blade hit Naruto. Kurotsuchi gasped a little seeing Naruto get hit but then saw his from burst into smoke and be replaced by a log.
Raiga looked around for a few moments before he saw a shadow forming beneath him. He looked up and saw Naruto coming down towards him.
Naruto aimed to split Raiga right down the middle but with his swords in an X shape, Raiga blocked the strike as the two again fought for dominance.
This time though Naruto used his footwork to his advantage and managed to slip his right leg between Raiga's. He then leaned forward as their blades were crossed and head butted the swordsman, making him stumble back. Taking the chance Naruto threw a chakra enhanced kick to Raiga's stomach making him tumble and skid to the ground.
Raiga fumed as he got back up and felt a small trickle of blood go down his forehead before quickly swept it away.
From the side of the clearing Kurotsuchi was watching in slight awe. She looked at Naruto and could not believe that someone her age was managing to hold his own against someone as strong as one on the seven swordsmen.
'I thought he was strong before but in these last few years he has not been slacking. I can barely keep up with their movements as they are.'
"Alright brat you're not bad. I'll give you that and your sword is a fine blade. But it's time to stop messing around." He said as Naruto watched as Raiga held up his right hand and made a sign.
"Kirigakure no Jutsu!" He said as Naruto watched in panic as a heavy mist began to form around the field. As the mist settled in, he managed to notice as well before the mist covered the top that the sky had darkened and thunderclouds had set in.
As the mist finally settled Naruto could barely seen six feet in front of him. His view was completely obscured and he quickly knew that eyesight was not going to help him here.
'I have to use my sensor abilities for this one. They might be the only thing I can use in this situation.'
"Now you are in my territory boy." Raiga said as though his voice could be heard from all directions. Naruto guessed he must have been projecting his voice with his chakra. "This is a little trick I learnt from my old pal Zabuza. Well more like stole it from him but it's all the same."
"If you are trying to scare me then you will have to do a lot better than that." Naruto called but heard a low chuckle.
"We shall see." He said before Naruto heard thunder rumble over heard and could scarcely see a bright light suddenly strike not far from him. He sensed Raiga was about twenty meters to his left and threw a few shurikens in that direction.
He heard some clanging before Raiga's voice was heard again. "Ikazuchi no Kiba!"
Naruto could barely see as a lighting current that must have originated from Raiga shoot towards the sky and saw it ripple along the skyline. After a moment Naruto's eye widened and quickly jumped to the side and rolled away just as a bolt of lightning formed and shot down towards the ground making a small explosion occur.
'That was too close.' Naruto thought before he went back to sensing for Raiga who was now ten meters behind him.
He quickly turned around and blocked a strike from Raiga.
"Sanjuroku Pound Hō!" Naruto called as Naruto slashed the air and made an air strike sail towards Raiga. Raiga though only grinned as he duck and rolled out of the way and went back to using the mist.
"Ikazuchi no Kiba!" Naruto once again heard as he saw lightning shoot into the sky again and Naruto once again managed to roll out of the path of the falling lightning strike.
However as he rolled he inadvertently rolled towards Raiga who was waiting for Naruto and drove the Kiba into Naruto's side; Naruto sensed him at the last second and moved to the side but still the blade managed to cut his side and make blood begin to pour out of the wound. Naruto jumped away and clutched the wound.
'This is not good timing.' He thought as the hand over the wound began pumping healing chakra into the cut, hoping to heal it enough.
"It looks like the young swordsman is now injured. I guess he is not as strong as he thought he was." Raiga taunted.
Naruto took a calm breath. "Okay enough is enough. No more letting him toy with you like this. The next strike he might land on me could be the last. Use the training your sensei's have given you."
As his left hand poured some more healing chakra into the wound, Naruto brought his right fist up and slammed it into the ground causing the entire field to quake and become dislodged as large rocks and debris shot all over the place.
Raiga who was going to strike Naruto again lost balance and stumbled just as Naruto managed to sense where he was again. Pushing himself forward Naruto clashed blades with Raiga again as Raiga tried to force Naruto back.
He managed to do so but watched as Naruto burst in a puff of some.
'Where is he?' He thought as he tried to look around only to realize that the tables had now turned and Naruto was now using the mist to his advantage.
Not wanting to let a kid beat him Raiga put his blades in the air as lightning hit the blades and electricity covered his entire body. "Raigeki no Yoroi. This is only good for one attack but I will kill you."
Naruto listened nearby as he closed his eyes and sensed Raiga. He could tell that jutsu in particular had taken a lot of chakra from him and sooner or later the guy would be running on empty while Naruto's large reserves still has plenty in them. His wound on his side was now partially healed though as soon as the battle was over he would need to finish the job and bandage his side.
The armor was similar to what the Raikage used only nowhere near as strong. Naruto gathered chakra and built it up in his body.
'If I can use a powerful burst of chakra to release a genjutsu then it should be possible to do something similar for this jutsu.'
"Nothing can get through this armor. Be thankful that afterwards I will give you a proper burial."
'I'll pass.' Naruto thought before he gathered earth chakra in one hand and water in the other. He slammed them together and was thankful that the mist was in full effect.
"Mokuton:Mokuzō Chikyū Yari!" He said silently and grinned as moments later he felt Raiga become panicked and a loud cry echoed out.
"Where is he?" Raiga said to himself as he looked all around for Naruto, hating that he was now the one being toyed with.
Trying to get a lock on the young shinobi, Raiga was about to push off towards where he thought Naruto was but before he could move, he felt two sharp objects pierce into his ankles, going straight through the bone.
"AHHHHHH!" Raiga cried out as he dropped one of the Kiba's making the lightning around him disperse and leave him. He crouched down as his hands held his ankles; pain was shooting along his ankles like fire.
From afar, Naruto heard the dropping of a blade and used this moment to his advantage and perhaps now would be a good moment for him to use a new technique of his.
"Ittoryu: Kumanbachi!" He said as he ran towards Raiga and jumped into the air. As he descended down towards Raiga he positioned his blade into a stabbing position.
Coming down from the air, he saw Raiga stand up shakily and at the last moment saw Naruto coming down towards him.
He tried to move but his ankles were in too much pain. He tried to block it but he was too slow and his last technique had taken a lot out of him. Naruto's blade came down upon him and went straight through the right side of his chest.
Naruto stood like that for a moment as his sword impaled the former Kiri shinobi before he drew it out and put Shusui back into its sheath. He then gathered a big amount of chakra before a few moments later he released it all.
The result was what he wanted as the mist around him began to disappear and clear up. As it faded, he saw that beside Kurotsuchi were Anko and Mikoto both looking worried. Though he saw Mikoto's shocked look when she saw Raiga slumped to his knees on the ground.
"Whoa." He heard Anko say as Kurotsuchi nodded from her seat on the ground.
"I wondered when you two would get here." He said. He saw Mikoto look at him with a scowl on her face but then saw her attention focus back behind him.
Turning around his eyes widened when he saw Raiga starting to stand up and grabbed his two Kiba blades.
"Wow. What a guy. Now I know why he was a member of the Seven."
"This is not over yet brat. Now until one of us is dead on the ground." Raiga managed to wheezed out even though his hands were barely able to hold the two blades.
From the side Anko was about to step forward but stopped when Mikoto put an arm in front of her.
"This is not our fight Anko. This is a battle between two swordsmen. If we intervene now then we would only shame them both. This will most likely be Raiga's last stand." She said they saw Naruto turn back around and grip his sheath as he got in a position that all three recognized.
The whole field was silent as the two Kenjutsu users stared at one another. Raiga despite the pain in his ankles ran forward as the Kiba's lit up covered in lightning again. Every step he took sent waves of pain through his ankles but he ignored it for this last moment, knowing it might be his last.
He swung his blades down. "Rairyū no Tatsumaki!"
As he closed in, Naruto closed his eyes and put his hand on the handle of the Shusui and once Raiga got close, he snapped them open.
"Ittoryu Iai: Shishi Sonson!"
Naruto disappeared and then reappeared behind Raiga as Raiga stopped dead in his tracks.
A small trickle of blood went down his chin before he managed to turn his head towards Naruto and looked at the blond who know turned his head around to look at Raiga.
"Y-You are a fine swordsman. I-I may have started out your enemy…but know I am glad that I could fall to the sword of one who will become a great Swordsman in our world."
Naruto said nothing, but nodded as he made the final clink sound as his blade hit the sheath. When it did, blood spurted from Raiga's chest as a long diagonal cut appeared and forced Raiga to the ground.
As he hit the ground his eyes closed permanently while Anko, Mikoto and Kurotsuchi now had one thing on their mind.
'Naruto/He just killed a member of the Seven Swordsman.'
Naruto looked at his fallen opponent and offered a small prayer as he wished for his opponent a good life in the afterlife before he put his hand over his left shoulder where a long cut now lay.
'I guess Raiga's last cut did manage to hit its mark' He thought. The wound was not life threatening or anything but he knew that it would scar over and for that he was actually happy.
It would be a scar that would serve as a memento from his battle with a member of the Seven Swordsman and a powerful Kiri shinobi.
Silently Mikoto, Anko and Kurotsuchi who was being carried by Anko reluctantly made their way towards him. They saw his wounds and knew he would need to get them checked over soon but for the moment let him lament in his victory.
Well almost before he felt a whack on the back of his head. "Ow what was that for?" He said looking towards his sensei who scowled at him.
"What were you thinking challenging an A ranked shinobi and member of the Seven Swordsman to a battle? You could have been killed."
"But I wasn't. That count for something doesn't it?"
"Perhaps but if it did not go that way, imagine what your family will think when we might have had to take your body back to Konoha. Think next time Naruto. Is your life worth risking for somebody who is a shinobi from another village?"
Naruto shrugged. "Probably not but I did so anyway. It would have been wrong of me to of just stood there and let him kill her. I won't let that happen on my watch. Not even if they are from another village. Personally I don't care about the silly rivalry between our two villages and I did the right thing."
Mikoto and Anko rolled their eyes but knew Naruto would have intervened any way you look at it.
"So what exactly do we do with the body?" Anko asked as Mikoto looked to Naruto since he was the one who defeated Raiga.
"I guess I will take it with me back to the Leaf. Raiga had a big bounty on him since he was an A ranked missing-nin and member of the Seven Swordsman. It would be a nice income addition to have."
"Plus we now have the Kiba blades to deal with." He said as he walked over and went to pick the twin blades up, only for a new presence to appear and land in front of Naruto.
The figure was a Kiri hunter-nin that wore the Kiri Anbu uniform. He had light blue hair that stuck up straight and Naruto could sense he was at least Jonin level. On his ears he had talismans hanging from them and behind his mask he could sense one of his eyes was different from the rest of him.
Mikoto and Anko prepared themselves as Mikoto clutched her tanto in her right hand while Anko readied to bring out a snake summon.
The figure stood in front of Naruto and looked down at the fourteen year old before looking at Raiga and shook his head.
"What is it you want?" Naruto asked as the hunter-nin etched a bit forward as Mikoto and Anko took a step forward while Kurotsuchi just watched as she held onto her leg.
"The Kiba blades. They are property of the Village Hidden in the mist and I will be returning them as such. My future Mizukage Mei Terumi will need the assistance of those blades."
Everyone looked at him in confusion. "I thought the Mizukage was Yagura of the Three Tails?"
"He won't be for long. Our Kiri rebellion will soon gain victory and Yagura's reign of terror will soon end. The Kiba blades will help in his end and the nickname Bloody Mist village can finally be put to rest."
Naruto looked towards the Kiba blades that were right in the middle of the two of them. He saw the rebellion hunter-nin reach for his kunai pack slowly. Not wanting to cause any problems Naruto took a step back.
The hunter-nin took this as a signal that Naruto would not take the blades. He leaned down and picked them up before he sealed them in a storage scroll.
But when he went to collect the body of Raiga, Naruto stopped him by putting Shusui to his neck.
"I don't think so. I triumphed over Raiga and I will be collecting his bounty."
"This will not be tolera-"
"Listen buddy. If you have not noticed you are outnumbered three to one. I could have fought over those two blades, but I didn't because I knew there could be problems between Konoha and Kiri if I did that. The last thing I want is to bring unnecessary battles or war to my home. But this is where I draw the line. I will be collecting the bounty from Raiga's head."
Naruto then leaned in and whispered in the hunter-nins ear. "Unless you want me to tell the Hokage and the Hyuga clan that you have a Byakugan in that eye of yours." He said making the blood run cold through the hunter-nin.
He looked towards Naruto and retracted his hand away from Raiga.
Without missing a beat, the Kiri hunter-nin jumped away onto one of the tree branches and sped off. Naruto meanwhile sheathed his blade and stored Raiga's body in a storage scroll.
He walked back over towards his comrades and guest and headed back to their campsite.
Naruto picked up Kurotsuchi bridal style making the girl blush and wriggle, but a raised eyebrow from Naruto quickly made her stop and go quiet.
As the ran along the tree tops and Naruto verifying that Kurotsuchi was okay to be go with them, the Iwa girl made the best of what she got and leaned into Naruto.
Next Day
The next day Kurotsuchi was in a similar position as she held onto Naruto's neck from behind as he piggy backed her with Mikoto and Anko slightly in front of him.
The rest of the night had been uneventful as Naruto healed Kurotsuchi's wounds while Mikoto used her limited knowledge of medical jutsu to heal Naruto. But once they got back to the village he would have to go to the Hospital to get them checked over.
Not much had been said from Kurotsuchi other then thank you for the food and shelter from the Leaf shinobi.
Currently they were escorting Kurotsuchi to the border between their two countries and would drop her a little distance away from a patrol station. Mikoto did not want to risk the Iwa shinobi thinking they were hostile. Since Grass country was between their two countries, they would drop her off at one of the spots Iwa shinobi stop at regularly in the border country.
"You okay back there?" He asked as Kurotsuchi nodded.
"Are you going to say anything other than nod or shake your head?" He got his answer in the form of a shaking head.
He pouted a little before shrugging. "Suit yourself. Be a shame not hear that pretty voice of yours. I'm sure it makes many men and some women tingle when they hear it."
Naruto smirked a little when he saw her face heat up and felt her flick his ear. "Don't say such things."
"Fine, fine." He said back just happy that she finally spoke. "So…what have you been doing since our battle during the Chunin exams? Getting stronger I bet."
"Of course, I said I would and I will still want a rematch one day for that humiliating defeat you gave me. I thought you were going all out against me, but your match with the Uchiha was even more earth shaking. I hate it when people hold back against me."
"Hey you can't blame me for not going all out. I had a genius Uchiha to go up against. I needed some tricks up my sleeve and I could not reveal them all in the match with you."
Kurotsuchi huffed. "Yeah well don't think you're going to win next time. I will show you how strong I have become. My father and grandfather have both been training me nonstop for the last four years."
Naruto nodded. "Well when you want your rematch then I will be happy to give you it."
Kurotsuchi nodded back. She turned to look at Anko and Mikoto and could see they were both looking at her from the corner of their eyes, obviously making sure she did not try anything.
"So why did you help me?" She asked as she saw Naruto turn his head to look at her.
He shrugged again. "Why not? I mean I know we are from two different villages that happen to not like one another very much but I could not just let you sit there and die."
"You do know that most would have just let it happen right?"
"I know, but I guess I am not like most people."
"Most people would say that, thinking they have something different that make them stand out."
"True, but I guess in my case it is true."
Kurotsuchi looked at him before she nodded again and leaned closer towards him as she looked into his violet eyes. She had to admit that his eyes were very beautiful. Since she knew the Yondaime has blue eyes, she guessed he inherited his violet eyes from his mother.
That and she would also admit that he was quite handsome.
She looked over towards Mikoto and Anko again to see that they were not watching them anymore. Gathering a bit of courage and hoping no one found out about what she was about to do, she leaned over his shoulder more which made him look towards her.
Before he could do anything or react, Kurotsuchi's lips pressed against his.
It was quick and did not even last a second but he felt her soft lips against his and could taste cinnamon on them. It made him wants to lean in and kiss her back, but stopped when he almost tripped over and fell to the ground.
"Tell no one. That was just a way of saying thank you. Don't look into it!" She said before she looked away.
Naruto could not say anything since he was too gob smacked to even respond so he settled for nodding. He then turned back in front of him and kept running along the treetops.
The group stayed silent for the rest of the time before they eventually reached the spot where they would drop Kurotsuchi off. She was able to walk slowly towards the patrol station and she watched as the trio of Leaf shinobi left the area. Though she saw Naruto turn his head to look at her and the two just looked at each and their faces went a little red and heat up before turning away.
As they left both had a tiny smile appear on their faces while Kurotsuchi shook her head.
'Calm down girl, it was just one kiss. A kiss you initiated.' She thought before making her way to her destination.
Naruto meanwhile thought similar things. 'It was just one kiss. It did not mean anything…right?'
Konoha- Three Days Later
Minato sighed and leaned back in his chair to take a moment rest as the paper work just built up and up on the table. He did try the Kage Bushin to conquer it, but his wife put that idea down saying he could not cheat his way through it and had to man up.
"She is so cruel to me." He cried inwardly before shaking his head and sitting up right as Kushina and Mikoto walked through the door both happily chatting and smiling.
"How is he?" Minato asked referring to Naruto.
"He's fine." Kushina answered. "Shizune said most of the injuries have already healed but the bigger wounds like the one on his shoulder and side will scar over."
Minato nodded and leaned back again and whistled. "Our son who is fourteen years old managed to defeat one of the Seven Swordsman. Who would have thought it, even if Raiga was not one of the stronger members?"
The moment they returned Mikoto sent Naruto straight to the hospital to get his wounds looked over and sent Anko with him. Then when she arrived at the Hokage office, Minato and Kushina were in the office making out on the desk. Mikoto quickly spoke up since she did not think the village needed an Uzumaki-Namikaze baby no.5.
After relaying what happened on the mission and get to Naruto, Kushina had completed blurred out of the room as she ran so fast to the hospital that most only saw a red blur barreling past them. When she arrived she all, but smothered her son into her chest and was checking him over before lecturing him about fighting a member of seven swordsmen saying he could have been killed.
Minato was the same though inwardly he could not have been any prouder.
As the trio spoke, Jiraiya jumped through the window and threw a bingo book at Minato who quickly caught it.
"There a reason you threw this to me sensei?"
Jiraiya frowned. "Take a look on page 165 and see what your baka of a son has done."
Everyone frowned at the tone but Minato quickly opened up to page 165. Mikoto and Kushina looked over to see what they were supposed to be looking at before they all went pale and eye wide when they saw the brand new member of the Bingo book.
Name: Naruto Uzumaki Namikaze
Age: 14-15
Gender: Male
Origin: Konohagakure
Shinobi Rank: Jonin
Calibre Rank: A
Known Alias: Konoha no Tsubasa Akuma (Konoha's Blade Devil)
Known Clan Affiliation: Uzumaki Clan
Known Element Affinities: Fuuton, Doton, Suiton.
Skill List
Taijutsu: 4
Ninjutsu: 4
Genjutsu: NA
Intelligence: 4
Strength: 3.5
Speed: 3.5
Stamina: 4.5
Hand Seals: 3.5
Weapons: Katana made of black metal with a purple guard and black sheath
Physical Description: Stands five foot six and weights one hundred and fifty five pounds. Golden blonde hair and violet eyes; tanned skin and is known to wear traditional Leaf Shinobi attire.
Special Abilities: Known to have Chakra sensor like abilities. Despite age he has Kage Level Chakra reserves
Known Family: Minato Namikaze (Yondaime Hokage, Kiiroi Senkou), Kushina Uzumaki (Benihime)
Other Information: Is known to have killed Raiga Kurosaki in a sword fight and is known to be able to use the Rasengan in battle
Bounty: 25 Million Ryo- Dead or Alive stationed by Iwa
25 Million Ryo- Alive stationed by Oto
As they read the bingo book, everyone just stared at it in fascination and with a single thing on their minds.
'Incredible.'