(Yesterday; At Kusagakure)
The village leader of Kusagakure, after reading and carefully reviewing the diplomatic scroll sent to him by the Hokage, was in deep thought. It was hard for him to believe what the Hokage was asking of him, but the explanation Konoha's Sandaime gave made sense.
Kusa and Konoha were on good terms, though it was hard for the man to deal with the fact that several of his Genin lost their lives during the Chuunin Exams hosted in Konoha. The only surviving Kusa Genin was Karin, and now Hiruzen was stating that she's an Uzumaki by birth and belongs to the Uzumaki clan, which resides in Konoha. Part of the man wanted to refuse the Hokage, but he knew that such an action wouldn't be without repercussions. The village leader knew of the Uzuamki clan and how renowned and feared they were throughout the elemental nations. But he thought that clan was wiped out after a coalition of shinobi nations joined forces against them.
"It speaks volumes about that clan if it took nations of ninja just to go to war with them," the Kusa leader said to himself before a knock came to his door.
"Yes?" the village leader asked.
"Sir, there is a man named Zabuza and his partner Haku who wish to have an audience with you," the secretary explained from behind the door. The village leader was surprised to hear that name.
"Send them in," the village leader said.
"Yes sir," the secretary said in compliance. A moment later, the door opened to reveal the two people wanting an audience with the village leader.
"Sandaime of Kusa," Zabuza greeted in his gruff and somewhat respectful tone while holding a duffel bag over his right shoulder.
"Sandaime-sama," Haku greeted in a more polite manner with a short bow.
"Zabuza, a former member of Kirigakure's Seven Swordsmen, and now a missing-nin," the village leader stated, "Are you trying to seek amnesty here with your record and background?"
"Hardly," Zabuza answered, "We're simply here to collect on some bounties Haku and I managed to track down and deal with."
Zabuza opened the duffel bag to reveal the contents hidden inside the bag. The village leader gave Zabuza a grave look and saw that the swordsman truly lived up to his reputation as the "Demon of the Bloody Mist."
"That's all thirty of them," the village leader said in disbelief, "They were wanted felons and even my best Jounin team had a difficult time tracking and fighting them. I can't believe you managed to accomplish finding and beating them in such a short time."
"These men were strong, but not experienced enough to take on both myself and Haku here," Zabuza said, though he was the one that did the actual killing. "We did the job of taking these men out and request the payment for the bounty that was placed on them."
The village leader nodded and went over his desk to sit down on his chair. Zabuza and Haku watched as the man wrote out a scroll and then summoned his secretary. The secretary came in and went over to the village leader.
"This is the payment that's owed to Zabuza and his friend," the village leader explained, "Take this scroll to the treasurer."
The secretary nodded her head and took the scroll from her Kage before leaving to do as instructed. While alone with the village leader, Zabuza's eye caught sight of a name written on the diplomatic scroll the village leader was reading earlier.
"Uzumaki Naruto," Zabuza said, catching Haku and the village leader's attention.
"You heard of that Konoha Genin?" the village leader inquired.
"Haku and I met the young ninja while we were in Nami no Kuni sometime ago," Zabuza said.
"Naruto-kun happens to be dear and precious friend of ours," Haku said.
"While "dear" and "precious" wouldn't be the exact words I'd personally use," Zabuza remarked dryly, "I consider him to be a valuable comrade."
"You both hold that Konoha Genin in high regards," the village leader asked, "May I inquire as to why?"
Zabuza and Haku briefly related their encounter with Naruto in Nami no Kuni and everything they witnessed Naruto doing there. The village leader was carefully considering what he was being told.
"That's quite a story Zabaza," the intrigued Kusa leader commented, "Thought it's still hard to believe that Konoha somehow produced a Genin with skills you say match if not rival those of your own and your former fellow swordsmen. It's interesting that Naruto's own Jounin-sensei and teammates had no clue as to how strong he truly is based on what you both explained."
"Trust me, I wouldn't make such a bold statement if I didn't believe my own words," Zabuza replied, "Naruto is a ninja I would advise you not to make an enemy out of. And the only other ninja who was able to wipe out an entire army by himself within seconds was Konoha's Yondaime, who many knew as the Yellow Flash."
"Are you saying that this Uzumaki Naruto might be the second coming of the Yellow Flash?" the village leader asked with a bit of skepticism.
"I'll leave that for you to decide," Zabuza replied, "I think I've said enough."
The Kusa leader was about to make a reply when the door opened and revealed the secretary with a black briefcase in her hand. She went over to Zabuza and opened the briefcase in front of him, showing him the money the captured bounties were worth. Zabuza smiled behind his mask and nodded in approval. She closed and handed the briefcase over to him.
"Thank you Sandaime," Zabuza said, "Our business here is over."
Zabuza and Haku turned to leave. As they were leaving, Haku turned to the Kusa leader and said, "Naruto-kun fights to save and protect those precious to him. That's what makes him a strong and formidable ninja."
After speaking her peace, Haku followed Zabuza out of the office, leaving the village leader to his thoughts. Turning to the secretary, the village leader said, "That'll be all. Thank you."
The secretary bowed and exited the office. The Kusa leader then looked back at the diplomatic scroll once again and thought about what Konoha's Sandaime was requesting concerning Karin.
(Later)
Zabuza and Haku were alone making their way back to their little hide away with the nice sized bounty they racked in.
"Not bad for a first pay," Zabuza commented, "But it's still not enough for me to carry out my goals for Kirigakure."
"I'm sure something will come up to aid in the fulfillment of your dreams, Zabuza-sama," Haku assured, "No one ever built an army overnight."
"No, but we still need a large amount of income if I'm to build an army to overthrow the current Mizukage and end that atrocious bloodline limit purge that stupid fool started up," Zabuza said. But then Zabuza stopped when both he and Haku realized that they were being followed.
"Ninja from Kiri!" Zabuza said with a deadly tone as he pulled out his large sword, getting it ready for a fight. Haku also got ready to fight when three Kiri Chuunin appeared in front of the duo.
"Zabuza-sama," the lead Chuunin greeted respectfully, "We were informed by your friend Naruto-kun that we can find you and Haku-san here. We mean you no harm, otherwise Naruto-kun wouldn't have revealed to us where to find you."
Seeing the way he and Haku were addressed and how they spoke of Naruto made Zabuza give the three Kiri Chuunin the benefit of the doubt, though they still kept their guards up.
"You met Naruto-kun?" Haku asked in surprised.
"We did," the female Chuunin confirmed, "Though I still say he can do without that horrid orange jumpsuit of his. It hurts the eyes to even look at it."
"So you three did meet Naruto," Zabuza said, "I'm surprised that you three got the boy to talk."
"It wasn't easy convincing him that we had no intention of harming either of you. We actually came here in hopes that you'd accept our offer," the other male Chuunin teammate said.
"What offer could you three possibly have that I'd consider accepting?" Zabuza asked. The lead Chuunin pulled out an authentic scroll written by their leader. He went and handed it over to Zabuza, who then opened and read the scroll. Zabuza read the scroll carefully and found the contents in it rather intriguing as a smile started forming under his mask. Haku soon picked up on Zabuza's gradual change of mood.
"Zabuza-sama?" Haku asked lowly with a curious expression as she watched Zabuza read the scroll before returning his sword back into its sheath on his back. The three Kiri Chuunin sighed lowly in relief, knowing full well that they weren't a match for any of he legendary Seven Swordsmen of Kirigakure and they knew Zabuza would kill them instantly if he didn't trust them.
"So a coup d'etat against the Yondaime Mizukage is being led by your leader, Terumi Mei," Zabuza acknowledged after reading the scroll.
"Yes, and she really hopes you'll accept the offer in becoming her lead general. She respects and praises the fact that you were the first to rebel against what the Mizukage has done and believes that your return will help strengthen the morale of our fellow shinobi who joined our forces.
"Oh, and pardon me for not introducing myself from the beginning; I'm Chōjūrō," Chōjūrō said as he then gestured to his other two teammates, "And the girl next to me is Suiko and our other partner to my left is Hikaru."
Zabuza looked at the three carefully and found that they were being sincere. After giving what they said some thought, he came to a decision.
"Let's not talk here," Zabuza suggested, "Let's go back to my place where we can further discuss that interesting offer for an army."
Chōjūrō and his two comrades nodded their heads in agreement and followed Zabuza back to his and Haku's place.
(Present Time)
"Blood manipulation?" Hinata asked quizzically, "That's sounds rather creepy."
"We're ninja Hinata-chan," Naruto said plainly, "We're not known for cuteness and sometimes we resort to creepy and oftentimes forbidden means to achieve our ends. And before you get the wrong idea of what this new manipulation entails, let me explain how it works."
Hinata stayed quiet as Naruto began his explanation.
"To start off," Naruto began, "Blood manipulation does not mean that you'll be controlling somebody's bodily functions or blood with water manipulation. Even Senju Tobirama, the Nidaime Hokage whose mastery over water manipulation was said to be unrivaled, at least from what I've learned, wasn't able to control another person's movements through water manipulation. The only way he was able to control anyone in whatever way he wanted was through an S-class kinjutsu he created known as Edo Tensei. That person though would have to be already dead and summoned from the grave while sacrificing another living person's life for the kinjutsu to work."
"You mean our Nidaime created such a horrid kinjutsu?" Hinata asked in shock.
"Like I said earlier, we're not known for cuteness. But you need not worry. I won't be teaching you that kinjutsu," Naruto assured.
"You mean you know how to execute Edo Tensei?" Hinata asked.
"I read and studied through the Forbidden Scroll the same night Mizuki tried to trick me into stealing it for him," Naruto explained, "But we're getting off topic; so back to the main topic. Blood manipulation in truth is actually an advanced jutsu that my ancestor Uzumaki Takumi, one of the previous leaders of my clan, created."
"So it's your clan's jutsu?" Hinata asked.
"It's my clan's kinjutsu and you're going to master it. That kinjutsu wouldn't prove effective with me," Naruto confessed.
"And why not?" Hinata asked, "It originated from your clan."
"The catch is that it's designed for someone with a high affinity for water manipulation, which I don't have, but you do and it helps that your chakra control was very sharp even before I gave you the restraint seals. My ancestor was trying to fuse water manipulation, chakra, and blood cells," Naruto continued, "His aim was to create a kinjutsu called Ikite'ru Bunshin no Jutsu (Living Clone Technique)."
"Ikite'ru Bunshin no Jutsu?" Hinata repeated. Naruto nodded his head.
"What is it about Ikite'ru Bunshin no Jutsu that makes it different from Kage Bunshin no Jutsu?" Hinata asked.
"I'm glad you asked," Naruto said, "Recall your answer about the human body being composed of 70% water." Naruto explained, "With blood manipulation, unlike Kage Bunshin, you use blood infused chakra; a sizable amount of chakra is required for the blood to be infused with. Once your blood and chakra are merged and combined with water manipulation, the clone becomes a "living" copy of you with your bloodline limit. The living clone is 70% water while the other 30% is your blood infused chakra. But there's more to this.
"Remember how when a kage bunshin is either dispelled or "killed" off, the user absorbs the memories and experiences of that clone? Well, with blood manipulation, you can do something that one can't do with Kage Bunshin."
"And that is?" Hinata inquired.
"You can see what your "living" clone or clones see and know in real time no matter the distance," Naruto answered, "Let's say you made two such clones and hid them in two different locations. Without the need to dispel them, you can see what both of them are seeing at the same time and know what they're thinking. And if one of them is using Byakugan, you can see what that clone is seeing without the need to activate your own Byakugan.
"Also, let's say you stationed your two clones in one spot and your second clone in another spot close by, and you have an enemy ninja coming to attack you from behind or from a blind spot. Your "living" clones, being your eyes behind your head or your hidden cameras, will allow you to see what they see, therefore allowing you to become alert to the danger and counterattack. It sort of helps give the Byakugan that 360 degree perception your clan always claims to have."
"More like completes the missing piece to the 360 degree perception my clan desires," Hinata commented.
"Oh but there's still more to this jutsu, Hinata-chan," Naruto added.
"Really?" Hinata asked with a hint of excitement.
"With this jutsu you can also become your "living" clone," Naruto pointed out.
"Become my clone?" Hinata asked in confusion.
Naruto explained, "You know how members of the Yamanaka clan can jump into the minds and bodies of their targets with their chakra and take over their bodies, in the form of possession? Well, blood manipulation allows you to do something very similar to that as it allows you to link with your "living" clone and in a very similar manner "possess" your clone's mind and body while your real body is hidden elsewhere. This is made possible through your blood infused chakra giving life to that "living" clone.
"Another thing that makes this jutsu so useful is that unless you either die or stop providing chakra to it, the ikite'ru bunshin won't die easily regardless of the severity of injuries as the clone will just keep healing and regenerating. But once the clone dispels, all traces of your blood cells vanish with the chakra, leaving no way for your blood or bloodline limit to be taken from the clone."
"That's an amazing jutsu your ancestor created!" Hinata complimented.
"It is, but that's not what makes Ikite'ru Bunshin no Jutsu a risky kinjutsu," Naruto pointed out.
"What about it does?" Hinata asked.
"Your blood infused chakra will have you connected and channeling chakra to your "living" clone at all times. The clone will continue to exist and won't "die" so long you continue transmitting chakra to it. Whatever ninjutsu, kinjutsu, or genjutsu the "living" clone or clones can use will depend on the amount of chakra you have because you'll be the source of all of their chakra. Death can result from extreme chakra exhaustion through this kinjutsu," Naruto warned.
"I understand," Hinata said after seeing the seriousness of her boyfriend's words.
"Merging your blood with your chakra in order to execute blood manipulation will require very strong chakra control and a large amount of water to utilize afterwards, and for that reason we have the river at our disposal," Naruto said, "Once you got your blood infused chakra stabilized you'll combine that with with a set of hand signs."
Naruto went on to take a kunai and used it to cut his right hand. With his hand bleeding, he began focusing chakra into his blood. The flaring chakra absorbed his blood cells and gradually the blue chakra change into a metallic reddish color.
"Your chakra changed color!" Hinata remarked in surprised as she observed what was happening.
"The pigmentation of your chakra will change into this color once the perfected infusion of blood into your chakra is achieved," Naruto explained, "After that..."
Naruto slowly demonstrated to Hinata seven intricate hand signs and said, "Ikite'ru Bunshin no Jutsu (Living Clone Technique)."
Hinata didn't see anything happen. Seeing the look on her face, Naruto clarified, "That was just half of the jutsu. The other half requires water manipulation which I don't have. You have to use water manipulation while executing those hand signs I showed you."
Naruto cancelled out his red chakra as his right hand healed up.
"But before we do that, would you mind increasing the levels of your gravity and chakra restraint seals?" Naruto instructed.
Hinata nodded and did as instructed. Soon she felt the increased heaviness on her body and chakra coils. Naruto allowed her time to adjust and waited until she gave him the signal that she was ready.
"Now, how about we take it from the top, Hinata-chan?" Naruto said, "Remember how I demonstrated it for you."
Naruto watched as Hinata tried again and again and again to execute the jutsu. The Hyuuga heiress found that combining her blood with her chakra wasn't as easy as Naruto made it appear to be.
"Looks like we'll be here for a while, my Moon's Eye Rabbit," Naruto stated, "And please try not to bleed to death on me."
"Funny, Naruto-kun," Hinata snorted with a frown, "How were you able to master blood manipulation so fast?"
"I never did," Naruto admitted as he shrugged, "Like I said earlier, you're going to be the world's first blood manipulator."
This now left Hinata confused, which led her to ask, "Then what was that red chakra I saw around your right hand moments ago?"
"I was merely using both mine and a minimum amount of Kurama's chakra as visuals for my imitation of blood manipulation and how it's suppose to look like once it's mastered," Naruto revealed, "Kyuubi's chakra healed my hand in the process. However, after blood manipulation is achieved your hand will heal up also."
"You're now able to utilize the chakra of the bijuu sealed inside you?" Hinata asked in surprise.
"Only when Kurama is willing to cooperate and when he feels like my life is threatened since that would mean death for him also," Naruto answered, "Other than that, I mostly rely on my own strength rather than using Kurama as a crutch. To do otherwise would give me a handicap."
'Aren't you noble,' Kurama sneered mockingly.
"Kurama?" Hinata asked in confusion.
"That's Kyuubi's real name," Naruto said.
"I see," Hinata acknowledged, "Did he tell you?"
"No, I found out from a different source but that's not important," Naruto replied, "Now, let's continue with your training."
Hinata then suggested, "Perhaps if I use kage bunshin, I can speed up the learning proce-"
"No Hinata-chan; using kage bunshin for this training will not work," Naruto interjected as he shook his head, "You need actual blood coming out of your body while performing blood manipulation. Kage bunshin can not produce real blood, therefore they can't perform blood manipulation and ultimately Ikite'ru Bunshin no Jutsu. However, the ikite'ru bunshin can execute Kage Bunshin no Jutsu."
"But this is a hard task you're putting me up to," Hinata replied.
"I warned you that you'll be in for the long haul on top of whatever genjutsu training you're getting from Kurenai, and you have less than a month to perfect this training in order to use it against Gaara during the Chuunin Exam Finals," Naruto said, "Keep in mind that my Jinchuuriki brethren intends to show you no mercy and kill you in front of me and everyone. I'm doing what I can to help you prevent that from happening."
"I understand Naruto-kun," Hinata said, "I won't disappoint you. I will master this before the finals."
"That's what I like to hear my future Uzumaki matriarch," Naruto replied causing Hinata to blush brightly at being called his future matriarch. Hinata took her kunai and made a small cut on her right palm as she practiced blood manipulation again. She was determined not to fail Naruto.
(At The Uchiha District)
Tayuya had returned back to her room in Sasuke's house and stayed there for the rest of the morning. She sat there on her bed thinking about what happened between her and Sasuke a few hours ago. She had been bothered by her outburst at Sasuke after leaving the dojo to cool down. She hadn't spoken to Sasuke since.
"What do I care about how that stupid dumbass thinks no one else know the pain of losing their entire family?" Tayuya said to herself, "I don't know why I allowed myself to get consumed by my anger because of that when I should be focusing on getting that numb nut prick to get over that Hyuuga heiress and concentrate on his training. And speaking of that fool with the duck's ass for a haircut..."
Tayuya stood up from her bed and walked out of her room. She walked and made her way back to the dojo, only to find that Sasuke wasn't there anymore.
"Damn! He stepped out somewhere!" Tayuya deduced, "Goddamn it! Now I have to find something to do to keep myself occupied and not bored out of my ass."
Tayuya left the dojo in the same manner she entered.
(Elsewhere)
Sasuke was with Kakashi at a remote training ground. Kakashi saw a difference with Sasuke in terms of his performance and focus. The Jounin didn't need to be told that Sasuke had greatly improved in a relatively short time.
"Very good Sasuke," Kakashi said, "You lasted longer this time and with less injuries than before. I would say that's a surprising amount of improvement from the first day we started this training."
Sasuke was catching his breath after enduring Kakashi's brutal assaults on him. However the Jounin was still not going all out against him and Sasuke knew this.
"Naruto is way ahead of me, Kakashi, and I still have much to do if I'm to match him," Sasuke replied. "It may not be as soon as I would like it to be, but I'll still keep pushing myself to reach that goal."
"Determined, aren't we?" Kakashi remarked, "Take a short break and then we'll continue."
Sasuke said nothing as he did as he was told. He stood where he was and dusted himself off. As he did, he deeply thought about what happened between him and Tayuya earlier that morning and everything he was told by Tayuya and the Hinata genjutsu. He then thought about what Tayuya said to him about knowing what it means to lose a family. He saw in her eyes that she was telling the truth.
'Tayuya was right. I've been so obsessed over the years with trying to get Hinata that I allowed myself to lose focus as to why I want to become stronger,' Sasuke meditated, 'I lost so much valuable time and energy I could have used for my training all because I wanted what Naruto had so much. I can't believe I let myself fall so low and I'm nowhere close to matching Itachi because of my foolishness! Well, as of today that en-'
"Sasuke!" Kakashi called out, "Earth to Sasuke!"
Sasuke snapped out of his train of thoughts to see Kakashi staring at him.
"I see that you came back to this side of reality," Kakashi remarked, "Shall we continue?"
Sasuke grunted before he saw Kakashi pull out a small piece of paper.
"What's with the paper?" Sasuke asked.
"This, Sasuke, is a special kind of paper. It's used to determine an individual's nature affinity. Naruto has an affinity for wind, which is a rare affinity for anyone in our village to have. Now, let's see what affinity you have," Kakashi said as he handed the paper to Sasuke, "Now focus chakra into the paper. If it tears in two, then you have a wind element like Naruto. If it crumples, then it's lightning. If it turns to dust, then you have earth. If it burns, then it's fire. If it gets wet, it's water."
Sasuke nodded and did as instructed. A moment later, the paper crumbled up.
"Well Sasuke, you clearly have an affinity for lightning," Kakashi stated. "That means you can utilize lightning style jutsu and manipulation more effectively. But that training will start another day, as I have something else in mind. I recall you asking me about kenjutsu the other day."
"Naruto is highly skilled in kenjutsu. It's a skill I don't have and want to build on," Sasuke said.
"So you say," Kakashi replied, "Well, I brought a friend to aid you in that department."
Kakashi made a hand gesture to someone hiding behind a large boulder. Sasuke looked to see Gekko Hayate appear from behind the boulder and walk over to them. It was noticed that the Special Jounin was carrying something in his left arm that was wrapped in a sheet of some sort.
"Sasuke, I believe you already know Hayate from the preliminaries," Kakashi introduced, "He'll be the one to instruct you in kenjutsu."
"Sasuke, knowing that you watched the match between Naruto and Tenten a few days ago, you're very well aware that the art of kenjutsu will be no easy skill to master, and you correctly deduced that Tenten was nowhere near Naruto's caliber," Hayate said, "In that match, Naruto used his sword as an extension of himself. Using that along with his other skills, he was able to outmatch his opponent and win.
"For each person, it varies how long it takes to master the art of kenjutsu, and there's always something new and innovative to learn. I can't promise you that you'll pose as a threat to Naruto by the time the Chuunin Exam Finals start, but I can say that if you put all your of effort into your training, at the very least you'll have formed a foundation for kenjutsu."
"Anything that can aid me in getting stronger, I'll take it," Sasuke replied, "I'll do whatever I must to accomplish that, no matter how difficult. So when can we begin?"
"Now actually," Hayate said before unwrapping the items hidden underneath the sheet, taking out one of the two sheathed swords, and tossing it to Sasuke. Hayate took the remaining one and unsheathed it.
"Now Sasuke," Hayata continued, "We'll start with the basics."
(At The Hokage Tower)
Hiruzen sighed after going over Jiraiya's report about the match he had with Naruto yesterday. It was hard for the aged Hokage to believe that two of his former students had to resort to stronger and more dangerous means to take on Naruto. What troubled Hiruzen was that Naruto now had access to Kyuubi's chakra to the point where the bijuu within Naruto appeared to cooperate with him. Being told that the match between Jiraiya and Naruto ended in draw concerned Hiruzen.
"That boy was already a force to be reckoned with during his days at the academy," Hiruzen said to himself, "Now he's at a level where even the Sannin are having a hard time fighting him in one on one combat, and he even destroyed one of Orochimaru's giant summons by himself."
The aged Hokage recalled Naruto's words to him the other night:
"I care more about Hinata-chan than anything else in this village, and if I have to pass over you to protect her, I will, consequences be damned...So if you think for even a second that I won't fight any of you or this entire village and die in order to protect Hinata-chan, then you're very wrong!"
"Considering everything that's transpired since Team 7's mission in Nami no Kuni," Hiruzen commented quietly to himself, "Naruto would do serious damage to both Konoha and this village's ninja force were he to ever turn on us. And even now I still don't know Naruto's full strength."
What also bothered Hiruzen was the incident regardling Lee's mysterious revitalization. There was no known doctor currently within Konoha capable of such a feat. The only Konoha medic nin capable of healing all of the severe damages done to Lee's body was Tsunade, and she hadn't stepped foot in Konoha for years. Things just weren't adding up.
"Damn it Minato!" Hiruzen grumbled lowly, "I'm far too old for this! Why couldn't you have found a successor in your last moments of life and let me enjoy my retirement?"
Hiruzen knew it was a silly question, but he felt the need to get it off his chest. And there was also the matter regarding Karin and the diplomatic scroll he had put together and sent to Kusagakure. He spent a good amount of time writing out the contents in that scroll before placing his official signature and seal stamp on it two days ago. He knew Kusagakure wasn't going to be happy about losing one of their ninja but Hiruzen carefully chose his words and resorted to the laws the Shodai put in place regarding Konoha's clans. Kusagakure was a minor shinobi nation and Hiruzen was aware that they couldn't really pose a threat to them, but he figured that they would want some kind of compensation for Karin regardless of her being a rookie Genin.
In the end, Hiruzen settled for giving Kusagakure a reasonable amount of financial compensation in exchange for Karin's release from Kusa's ranks.
"I can only hope that Kusa doesn't attempt to start an issue out of this..." Hiruzen sighed, "But Karin is an Uzumaki. Speaking of that girl, I wonder how living with Naruto and Honoka has been for her."
(At The Uzumaki Residence)
Honoka was making her way back home after making a private and secret visit to the Forest of Death. She took the day to study the environment and the hostile creatures living in that region, and thanks to her special chakra, she was able to keep the animals docile. She had been making these secret visits to the Forest of Death for the past two days.
Honoka entered the house before locking the door behind her. A moment later though, she heard sounds of...
"Mmmhh...Oh yes, that's the spot," Karin moaned in bliss from behind the door to her room, "Ooooh Naruto-kun, it feels so good..."
"What!?" Honoka shouted in disbelief before she stormed into the room and busted the door open. What she saw next wasn't exactly what she thought she was going to see. Startled by Honoka's sudden outburst, Karin, who was lying on her stomach and breasts with nothing but a towel around her waist and without her glasses on, looked up from her futon to see Honoka staring back at her and five of Naruto's kage bunshin giving her a full body massage and oil rub down.
The awkward moment between them left everyone briefly in total silence. Thankfully, the curtains to the windows were closed, denying everyone from the outside sight as to what was happening inside Karin's room. After a few moments...
"There's something called "knocking" you damn harpy!" Karin barked.
"Would someone please care to explain what the hell this is!?" Honoka asked with a baffled expression.
"Karin asked boss for five kage bunshin to be her personal manservants she could have under her command. As you can see our 'mistress' requested a full body massage and oil rub down from us. The five of us clones being her personal manservants and playthings was what "Karin-hime" wanted as payment for fully healing his friend Lee," the fifth and lead clone explained, "We're under instructions to grant whatever Karin request of us and she wants to make the most out of it."
'Not to mention that I'm keeping my mouth shut about you peeping on Honoka and the rest of us girls at the bathhouse a few days ago,' Karin thought with a mischievous grin.
"So you were responsible for Lee's mysterious recovery," Honoka replied, "It's a mystery everyone else outside this house haven't solved yet."
"Oh well," Karin said, "But at the very least I get to have Naruto-kun's hands and stamina take care of my body and soul now as I relish in his personal touch."
"You're such a damn pervert Karin," Honoka snorted, "...Though I admit your moaning and calling out Naruto-kun's name gave me the wrong idea of what was actually happening in here."
"And yet you call me the pervert," Karin retorted, "Now Honoka, please see yourself out of my room and allow me to have my Naruto playthings all to myself."
"Whatever," Honoka replied, "Just keep the noise down if you will."
"Not making any promises," Karin answered, "It's not easy trying to handle five Naruto-kuns all at once."
"You know what, I think I'm going to step out of the house for a while and try to get what's happening here out of my head," Honoka said as her right eye started twitching before she quietly turned and left the room while closing the door behind her. A moment later, Karin heard the sound of the house door opening and closing before being locked.
"Finally," Karin said happily, "I thought she'd never leave."
Karin turned around and lied on her back, exposing her breasts and the rest of her body.
"Now boys," Karin cooed, "I want this to be an experience I'll never forget. Make it splendid."
"And splendid it shall be," the lead fifth clone stated, "We're yours to command, Karin-hime."
(Hours Later; Later Into The Afternoon)
Deep in the forest, Hanabi, exhausted and sore, was making her way back to where Naruto and Hinata were. Despite how difficult things started out on her first day of her new training, she was happy about Naruto keeping his promise to train her in Drunken Gentle Fist. Following behind Hanabi was the smiling kage bunshin that Naruto assigned to see to her introduction into Drunken Fist.
"Later tonight, I'll stop by and give you those scrolls and movies I told you about," the Naruto cloned reminded, "They'll help in giving you better visuals of how Drunken Fist is done."
"Why don't I just watch the movies at your place Naruto-kun?" Hanabi suggested, "Besides, were I to be seen watching those action movies back home, Father and Neesan might get suspicious and try to find out why I'm watching drunken martial arts movies all of a sudden."
"Good point," Naruto clone agreed, "In that case, I'll have to arrange it so that no one else but the two of us are at my place when we watch those movies. While watching the movies together, I'll be testing you to see what you've learned. Understand?"
"Completely," Hanabi said, "Though this will be the first time you ever had me over at your place."
"I wasn't sure if your father would allow it," Naruto clone replied, "You know how protective fathers are of their daughters."
"Was that why you always waited till dark to come see me, Naruto-kun?" Hanabi asked, grinning toothily.
"What are you implying, masegaki?" Naruto's clone snorted. Hanabi giggled after seeing the look on his face. A moment later they arrive to see Naruto and Hinata eating together by the waterfall.
"And this is as far as I go," the clone remarked before dispelling himself in a cloud of smoke. Seeing that the clone was gone, Hanabi proceeded on her way to where her older sister and Naruto were. Upon reaching them, she sat down with them and picked up one of the rice balls and fried fish strips. As they were eating, Naruto commented, "You know, this is actually the first time Hanabi-chan is picnicking with us Hinata-chan. How does it feel being here with us, Hanabi-chan?"
"...Nicer than I thought it would be," Hanabi admitted after swallowing a bite of her rice ball, "I like it here more than Iruka-sensei's class."
"We can relate," Naruto remarked, "Hinata-chan and I didn't like it anymore than you do."
"Naruto-kun!" Hinata lightly chided.
"Well it's true," Naruto said, "I had to liven things up just to make life at the academy more interesting; that's where my pranks and jokes came in."
"I still remember the look on Father's face after he saw how you managed to deface the Hokage Monument under everyone's nose and escape the two Jounin who chased after you," Hanabi said, "Even I was taken by surprise at how you pulled it off."
"My pranks and running from those ninja while trying not to get caught by them served a purpose besides giving people something to laugh at," Naruto explained, "It's something the academy lacks even now."
"Really?" Hanabi asked.
"Actual training against experienced ninja," Naruto said, "So many leave the academy thinking they're ready to take on seasoned ninja, only to end up failing the teamwork test their Jounin sensei gives them. Worst case scenario is that they're killed in their first dangerous mission against stronger ninja they have no expertise fighting against or escaping from.
"Pranking and running from the ninja I target served to train me in setting traps for enemies and escaping capture from them. I even pranked and escaped the Hokage on a few occasions. And when it came to hiding, they had a very difficult time finding me, even with the Byakugan. I learned how to escape being found when I don't want to be."
"I know that for a fact," Hinata remarked, "Though I do manage to find you from time to time."
"You're not someone I want to hide from, my Moon's Eye Spring Rabbit," Naruto replied with a grin.
"Well you won't have to hide from me either gaki," a voice above them said. Naruto, Hinata, and Hanabi looked up to see Jiraiya sitting on one of the tree branches up against the tree while looking down at them.
"I must admit it was rather difficult to find you, Naruto," Jiraiya said, "But then I thought about where I would personally go if I didn't want to be bothered. Interesting how we have similar tastes, wouldn't you say?"
"Whatever Jiraiya," Naruto replied, "So what's your business here?"
"We have training to do, gaki," Jiraiya said going straight to the point, "Not to mention you owe me back the money you stole from me yesterday."
"There was some research I had to do, and I needed some revenue to see it through. I found you had just the right amount for what I had to do yesterday," Naruto replied. Jiraya stood up on the branch and flipped down to the ground in front of the group. Hearing the word "research" gave Jiraiya an idea of what Naruto did.
"I'll give you another hour with the Hyuuga sisters, but seriously, we have much to do before the day ends," Jiraiya said putting all humor aside, "Nice new clothes by the way."
"Thanks. I didn't forget about my training with you by the way. I'll be there," Naruto replied. Hanabi looked at the older man and said, "So you're the famed Jiraiya-sama I heard about from Iruka-sensei."
"That's right," Jiraiya said, "I'm one of the three Sannin."
"You're also the writer of the Icha-Icha Paradise book series," Hanabi added.
"How does someone your age knows about that book?" Jiraiya asked.
"Naruto-kun loves to read them all the time," Hanabi answered, "It's no big secret really; just about everyone knows that about him. But it's not like he reads that smut in front of me. Not like Neesan and I care anyway."
Jiraiya looked at the three of them with a look of interest. Despite Naruto's infamous perverted character, Hiashi still allowed his daughters to be this close with Naruto.
'I'm seeing it and yet it's still hard to believe. Hiashi would sooner shut off all of my chakra points before he allows me to get close to his daughters if I was younger and in Naruto's position. Naruto truly made a huge impression on Hiashi, seeing as the man allowed his daughters to become this attached and loyal to Minato's son. It'll be interesting to see how things progresses between the three of them,' Jiraiya wondered with fascination, "It's nice to see who you keep in female company, Naruto. You really made a huge impression on the Hyuuga clan as a whole, especially after they saw Hinata's recent match with Hiashi."
"Everyone has been talking about both that and my match with Neji-niisan," Hinata said, "But I still have much more to learn."
"Aren't you modest; it's not like you let Father come out of that match unscathed, Neesan," Hanabi remarked.
"Look, we're getting off topic here," Jiraiya stated, "Naruto, I'll be waiting for you later. Don't be late, and I want an in depth report later from you about what you uncovered from your research."
Naruto frowned at Jiraiya, knowing what the perverted Sage was asking.
"Get your own resources, Jiraiya!" Naruto replied.
"Whatever gaki," Jiraiya retorted, "Anyway, I'll see you soon."
Jiraiya turned and walked off from the trio, leaving them alone again.
"Naruto-kun?" Hanabi asked.
"Yeah?" Naruto replied.
Hanabi requested, "This research you acquired must have been of high value if even a Sannin like Jiraiya-sama wanted intel on it. Would it be alright if I sit in with you next time when you conduct your research and see how you go about gathering such invaluable information?"
There was an awkward silence amongst the trio until Naruto explained, "Sorry, but I can't allow you to accompany me when I do my private training in information gathering. I have various styles of finding out things I want to know, and this particular style helps me to find out things about my target while working to keep myself from being caught and captured. My latest blunder yesterday is proof enough that I still have more to work on. I almost got killed for that. Thankfully, though, I learned some things about that ninja that helped me in my escape."
"I understand," Hanabi accepted with a tone of disappointment.
"But don't worry my Little Nighttime Firecracker," Naruto assured, "Like I said, I have other methods and styles of information gathering," Naruto looked at the younger girl and grinned, "And under my watchful eyes, Hanabi-chan, I'll make make a trained and professional spy mistress out you."
"You really mean it?" Hanabi asked with a hint of excitement.
"I never go back on my word," Naruto promised, "It's my nindo."
Hanabi smiled and nodded her head happily at hearing that. Hinata looked at the two and saw how close Hanabi became with Naruto. The Hyuuga heiress was seeing how Hanabi started reminding her so much of herself when she was younger. She recalled how excited she'd get whenever Naruto would train her in something new and resourceful and how Naruto would put so great an effort to help her reach her goals.
'Even now, Naruto-kun is putting his all into training and making me stronger not only for my sake but for his sake also and by extension his clan's sake,' Hinata thought, 'I'm still amazed at how Hanabi's bond with Naruto-kun changed and grew stronger over the course of time. She must really love Naruto-kun if she's willing to overlook his faults and imperfections...But it's not like I won't work on getting Naruto-kun to control that perverted side of his character. That in itself will be a project for me to work on and I honestly can't say how long that'll take.'
(Thirty Minutes Later, At The Uchiha District)
Tayuya was back inside the dojo. She was spending her free time playing her flute, which helped to soothe her mind. It was something her father used to do whenever he was bothered by something, she recalled. It was a habit Tayuya eventually picked up herself.
She stopped playing her flute and turned to find the main entrance to the dojo slide open to reveal Sasuke entering the dojo.
"So you finally returned," Tayuya greeted dully.
"I was with Kakashi," Sasuke informed.
"I trust your time training with the cyclops got you closer to reaching Naruto's level," Tayuya mocked.
Ignoring her sarcasm, Sasuke replied, "Each day I train gets me closer. But I will say that I had a lot of time to think about what happened earlier today and everything else that took place over the past three years."
"So what's your point, Numb Nuts?" Tayuya replied.
Sasuke sighed, "...My point is that...you were right. I wasted so much time in pursuit of Hinata and failed to focus that same amount of time and energy in my training, which led me to where I am today: beneath Naruto's level."
"After three years, it took me bitch slapping your stupid ass to make you to see that," Tayuya spat offhandedly, "At the very least that's useful shit I accomplished today."
Ignoring her comment again, Sasuke said, "You mentioned earlier that you once had a family before they were murdered. You said that you understand the same pain, sadness, and loneliness I suffer from while wanting revenge against the one responsible."
"...I did," Tayuya admitted, "I lost control of my emotions and allowed that secret to slip out because I was so pissed at you."
"Be that as it may," Sasuke replied, "But if it's alright with you, I'd like hear about what happened."
Tayuya looked at him carefully and asked, "You actually want to hear my life story? When the hell did anything about me become of interest to you, Numb Nuts?"
"The look you gave me this morning before you stormed off left me with a lot to think about while reevaluating what I've been doing all these years," Sasuke said, "If it's not too much to ask for...I'd like to hear your story."
Tayuya didn't know how to respond at first, since none of her teammates cared to ever asked about her past and what life was like before coming into contact with Orochimaru. Reaching for her hat, she grabbed and removed it off her head, giving Sasuke a full view of her head without her hat on. Despite her vulgar and crude character, Tayuya was a rather attractive young red-haired teenage girl, and her appearance without her hat on made her look more feminine and less tomboyish.
"I guess it couldn't be that much of a pain in my ass to share something about me since everyone knows your life story Numb Nuts," Tayuya remarked as she went over to the wall and leaned against it before sliding down and sitting on the floor, "I'll tell you about my past, but I'll only tell you once, so don't ask me to repeat myself."
Sasuke simply nodded his head and went over to sit right next to her against the wall. He couldn't bring himself to figure out why his body went on autopilot and did what he just did. But Tayuya didn't seem to mind his presence and closeness.
Tayuya held out her flute towards Sasuke and started explaining, "This flute once belonged to my father. It's the only surviving legacy of him I have. My parents weren't musicians, but my father loved playing the flute, and he was quite skilled at it. My mother knew some things about genjutsu and taught me all she knew about it. She was more of an entertainer for the small town we lived in at the border of Hi no Kuni. My father would play the flute for me every night before I went to sleep. Eventually, I decided to learn to play the flute myself because that.
"I was close to my parents; they were the only people I cared for back then. There weren't many children my age for me to interact with at the time so I practically spent all of my time with my mother and when he was home, my father."
"So you pretty much started out living a carefree and peaceful life," Sasuke noted.
"If you can call it that," Tayuya replied, "But what I didn't know about my father at the time was that he was a skilled bounty hunter and it was his skill in catching bounties that made us the most money and enemies. His former partner was a close friend and confidant of my father and my mother also respected him. I'm disgusted to admit that I, at one time, had a crush on that bastard."
"I'm taking it that your father's friend caused you and your parents a lot of trouble?" Sasuke asked.
"My father trusted him, since they worked together for a long time," Tayuya continued, "We had no idea that he was plotting to betray us for a large sum of money to a loan shark my father made an enemy out of after some deal between them went south. We started moving from place to place, trying to escape a group of three mercenary ninja hired by that loan shark to come after my father. They were able to easily track us because we didn't know my father's former partner was secretly sending information to the three ninja about where we were relocating.
"That pattern continued until one night when they eventually found us. They were three Chuunin, missing nin from Amegakure. My father tried to protect both my mother and me. He fought as hard as he could, but he was outnumbered and they killed him in front me before turning on us. My mother's genjutsu was no match for them as they killed her as well. I was too scared and weak to fight them as they considered the option of killing me too. All I was able to do was cry in fear as the spineless eight-year-old child I was."
"You were the same age I was when I lost my clan," Sasuke noted.
"Coincidence no doubt. Anyway, before they decided on what they should do to me, my father's traitorous friend appeared and told the three Ame ninja that their only job was to deal with my father. When they asked about what should be done with me, he told them to leave me and that I wasn't worth the blood on their blades since I wasn't a threat."
"Sounds similar to what Itachi told me the night he slaughtered my clan and parents," Sasuke recalled, "He told me that I wasn't worth killing."
"I see...After saying what he said, that man knocked me out before setting the house on fire with my parents' bodies and myself still inside the house. They were going to let the fire finish me off. Thankfully, I woke up in time to escape the burning house. Once outside, I could only watch helplessly as the house burned to the ground with my parents' bodies left inside. I cried until I couldn't cry anymore with only my anger, hate, and desire for vengeance left in my soul."
Tayuya took a moment to catch herself, trying to resist the urge to become emotional while remembering that traumatic event in her life as she wiped a few tears away from her eyes. She hated that remembering that event in her life got her to become this emotional. All the while Sasuke listened to her story and found no pretense or fabrication in what she was saying as he felt a kindred spirit with her. All the while, Tayuya's scent started coming off her body again as it reacted to her emotions. Sasuke's nose was inhaling her scent in loads to the point that all thoughts of Hinata were forgotten and replaced with him wanting to know what else happened in Tayuya's past and how it related to his life and past.
After taking a few breaths and getting her emotions back in check, Tayuya continued, "The next morning, I woke up to the pouring rain that had put out the fire. While it rained, I went through the smoking rubble of what was left of my family's house and retrieved my parents' burnt bodies and my father's flute which, to my surprise, remained completely intact.
"It was while I was burying my dead parents that Orochimaru-sama appeared and found me in the destitute state I was in. At first, I didn't know who he was and I thought that he was another Ame ninja who was hired to finish the job. But that assumption was removed from my mind as soon as I heard him inquire about what happened. He watched quietly as I buried my parents as I told him everything about what happened and the people responsible for killing my parents. Orochimaru-sama wasn't big on comfort then, nor is he now, but he listened to everything I told him. And that was when he offered me the one thing I wanted and readily accepted without hesitation..."
"Power," Sasuke answered.
"Exactly...Power to become a strong kunoichi, power to make sure I was never helpless or defenseless again, power to exact vengeance against my family's murderers. Orochimaru-sama however warned me that my training would be hard and brutal. But I didn't care, I had nothing else to live for; all I wanted was to see my parents' murderers dead at my feet. I was willing and ready to do anything and everything to make that happen."
"And Orochimaru helped you do just that," Sasuke stated.
"You're goddamn right he did," Tayuya confirmed, "Under his guidance, teaching and training over the next five years, I changed from the helpless eight-year-old girl I was into who I am now. Orochimaru-sama held true to his words. Seeing how I was knowledgeable in genjutsu and playing the flute, he had me take up more advanced training in genjutsu while combining that with my father's flute. I even learned summoning through the use of playing my flute.
"Regardless of how harsh and sometimes creepy and sadistic his methods of training were, all that mattered to me was getting that power he promised me. Receiving the Cursed Seal was one of my hardest tests. Shit, it hurts remembering how it almost killed me, but my will to avenge my parents pushed me through all of my trials until I finally mastered the full use of that seal.
"And when I was ready and strong enough, Orochimaru-sama sent me out to track down and kill the ones responsible for my parents' deaths. It was my final test to see how far all of my time training with him went before being allowed to join the Sound Four."
"Did you find them?" Sasuke asked.
"All of them, including the loan shark who hired those three Ame ninja; I saved my father's betrayer for last, though," Tayuya explained, "It took me a month to find those three missing nin. But when I did, I summoned my Doki and had them ambush and trap them. After I got them to tell me where I could find the loan shark who hired them to kill my parents, I watched as my summons beat those three men to death before leaving their bodies in the woods to rot after I removed and sealed their heads in one of my scrolls.
"Knowing where I could find the loan shark, I wasted no time in going after him next. I eventually found him in Ocha no Kuni (Tea Country). That greedy imbecile took me for a potential client and sucker. But that changed after I took out that scroll possessing the heads of those three ninja he hired and released those heads onto his desk. After he realized who those three were, he put two and two together realized I was the daughter of the man he had killed. I didn't give him time to think or say anything further as I embedded my kunai deep into his throat."
"I'm assuming you went after your father's betrayer soon after," Sasuke commented.
"I did, though it took me almost four weeks to find that man," Tayuya continued, "He was living alone at the border of Kusa no Kuni, spending his time sleeping with hookers and drinking. On one of those nights, he was waiting for his favorite whore to come by. It was easy having him fall victim to my genjutsu as I led him to believe that his favorite whore came by for a wild night of sex and booze."
"What actually happened?" Sasuke asked.
"As soon as he was about to hug and kiss his thought to be favorite whore, I dropped my genjutsu, allowing him to see the terror of an angry grizzly bear that was recently bereaved of her cubs standing tall in front of him," Tayuya revealed, "That blood thirsty grizzly bear tore him apart as she ate him.
"After completing my test, I took my place amongst the Sound Four as one of Orochimaru-sama's loyal ninja and bodyguards, which led me to where I am now, sitting next to your dumb ass as I tell this story to you while trying to get you to take your training with me more seriously."
Sasuke looked at Tayuya after listening to her story. He found nothing but truth in her words, eyes, or expression.
"You successfully avenged your tragic past through Orochimaru after he, regardless of his nature and character, held true in fulfilling his promises to you," Sasuke said, finding that fact something to give serious thought to as he turned from looking at the older girl.
"I did," Tayuya replied, "And I'll help you to do likewise if you really want the deceased souls of your clansmen avenged, just as I did for my parents."
After a minute of silence, Sasuke stood from the floor and turned to Tayuya. He looked at her and said, "Being honest with myself, I know it'll be a long time before I reach Naruto's level, but I'm willing to break and drag my body and soul to hell and back if you'll carry out your promise help me become stronger and learn how to use the Cursed Seal."
He extended his right hand out to her and said, "Prove to me that you'll hold true to your word."
Smirking, Tayuya took his hand before he pulled her up off the floor.
"It's a promise, I swear to that. But don't think that this means I'll be going soft on your ass, Numb Nuts," Tayuya said, "I'm still going to be a hard teacher who'll bust a cap in your ass again if you slack off and start bitching for Hinata again."
"Do your worst," Sasuke challenged, with his and her right hand clasped together, "Know this though: my days pursuing the Hyuuga heiress are over. I won't try to pursue her anymore."
"That's what I like to hear, Numb Nuts," Tayuya replied, forgetting that she still had her hat off her head, "Perhaps now you'll have one less distraction to worry about."
"Whatever," Sasuke said before letting go of her hand.
"You can stay here and practice all you want," Tayuya said as she headed towards the exit of the dojo, "But I'm going home now."
"My house you mean," Sasuke corrected.
"Where else Numb Nuts?" Tayuya retorted. When she reached the sliding door, she stopped and said, "Sasuke..."
The young Uchiha took notice of how Tayuya addressed him just now.
"...You wanted to hear my life story, and in doing so, I shared with you a side of myself I never shared with anyone, not even with Orochimaru-sama. You saw that you now have someone who understands your tragic past and wants to see you succeed."
Tayuya turned her head to face him as she gave him a calm but serious look and said, "Don't make me regret that."
Tayuya left the dojo, leaving Sasuke there alone.
"Reminds me of yesterday, except the reason is now different," Sasuke commented to himself before noticing Tayuya's hat on the floor next to him. He went and picked it up off the floor and said, "It's odd how she forget about her hat all of a sudden."
Putting her hat in his pocket, Sasuke walked out of the dojo and closed it behind him before he returned to his house. Once inside, he didn't see Tayuya anywhere.
"I guess she went out somewhere," Sasuke figured as he made his way to his room. Inside his room, he removed all of his clothes and underwear before wrapping a towel around his waist. Wanting to clean himself off after a hard day with Kakashi and Hayate, he headed to the bathroom to shower.
Opening the door to the bathroom, he came to find Tayuya, barefoot with nothing but her gray t-shirt and panties on, leaning over the sink washing her face. Her t-shirt was pulled back as a result of her leaking over the sink, giving Sasuke full view of her purple panties and peach shaped butt with some of her red hair flowing down her back towards her rear end. The unexpected sight of her and the bent over position she was in gave the hormonal teenage boy a full blown erection under his towel. He believed that Tayuya was intentionally and shamelessly teasing him in spite of the fact that he walked into the bathroom unannounced.
A minute later, Tayuya turned the sink water off and grabbed her towel to dry her face off. Walking towards the door with her towel in hand, she looked to Sasuke and said offhandedly, "Don't act like it's your damn first time seeing me like this, Numb Nuts. Start getting used to it. If the idea of me wearing less clothes makes you weak in the legs, then grow a pair of balls."
Tayuya didn't wait for his reply as she left the bathroom and made her way to the kitchen. Sasuke closed and locked the door before removing his towel, which allowed his arousal to be free of its restraints. Sighing, he went and opened the shower and adjusted it to be less warm than usual.
"That Tayuya," Sasuke muttered in annoyance as he stepped into the cool shower after bracing himself for the lack of warmth the pouring water possessed. While in the showers cleaning himself, Sasuke's mind drifted to the girls that were in his and Tayuya's age group in Konoha. He wanted to pick out a strong kunoichi to revive his clan with after his carried out his plan to avenge his clan. He wanted her to be intelligent, strong and have the makings of a true ninja. He didn't want some weak girl that couldn't do anything. He thought about the girls he met throughout the years during and after his time in the academy. When his mind came across Hinata...
"In spite of her being a strong ninja," Sasuke said to himself, "she can't relate me at all in terms of my experiences in life and our goals completely conflict with each. It would be more trouble for me than it's worth. I see that now. As for the other girls in Konoha, they're all a joke and I'm sickened by them. If I have to pair up with one them after I kill Itachi..."
Sasuke didn't want to finish his sentence as he didn't want to visualize what type of children he would produce with one of those girls.
"Only the Chuunin and Jounin level ones have grown out of whatever it was that make girls in this village so weak," Sasuke said to himself. And speaking on Jounin level girls, Sasuke then thought deeply about what Tayuya told him regarding her past. When he replayed what she him told about her past, he saw that she didn't allow what happened to her at such a young age break her. Instead she did everything she had to in order to become a true ninja and hunt down the ones responsible for what happened to her family.
"She did what I failed to do because she was focused and kept her mind on what was most important," Sasuke said lowly. The more he thought about, the more disgusted he felt about himself for all the wasted endeavors he put into in trying to pursue Hinata.
"...I'll help you to do likewise if you really want the deceased souls of your clansmen avenged, just as I did for my parents...It's a promise, I swear to that."
Those were Tayuya's words to him as she swore to help him to become the formidable ninja he seek to become. Though she was originally sent by Orochimaru to teach him how to use and control the Cursed Seal, she took it further in wanting and swearing to help him avenge his fallen clan.
"You saw that you now have someone who understands your tragic past and wants to see you succeed...Don't make me regret that."
"She's the only girl who understands me," Sasuke acknowledged, recalling her final words to him in the dojo before shutting the showers off and drying himself with his towel. With his towel around his waist, he returned back to his room. Looking at himself in the mirror, he made a mental promise that he would do everything his power to fix his mistakes and become the ninja he was meant to be.
(Later That Day)
It was the evening hour now as the sun was gradually setting. Currently in the another section of the forest, Naruto, after Hinata and Hanabi had both returned home, was practicing his knowledge of lightning manipulation he acquired through his clones many private hours of studying and practicing. For the past half hour, Naruto had been practicing hard in his secondary affinity. Due to the great power that his lightning had, Naruto had trouble controlling it. Every time he fired his lightning, he would be blown back by the recoil. True, Naruto's ancestor Susanoo infused his knowledge and experience into Naruto's mind, but Naruto didn't possess the needed physical experience, which was what he was presently working on.
For the first half of his training, Jiraiya had Naruto focused on strengthening his stances and hand signs so that he could withstand the recoil of firing his lightning, while at the same time be able to control the amount of lightning he fired. Due to the strength of his lightning, he didn't need to put as much chakra in it as most lightning type ninja would to get a certain result. To help speed things up, Naruto had summoned over two hundred clones and had them practice the required stances and hand signs.
Naruto's new training wasn't easy, as he knew he would spend nearly every day practicing both of his elements. But he knew that slowly and surely he would make progress and improve in his dual elemental control.
"You're doing good, Naruto," Jiraiya complimented, "Now let's move on to your training with the Kiba Blades while your clones handle practicing those stances and hand seals."
Naruto nodded and extended his right arm forward. Then Toad Sage watched with curiosity as Naruto focused chakra into his arm to reveal a seal written on the bottom of his forearm. The kanji for Rai Kiba ("Lightning Fangs") was written in the center of the seal writings.
"Kai!" Naruto commanded before the two Kiba Blades were released from his seal that was on his forearm.
"Nice hiding spot," Jiraiya commented as Naruto swung the blades around to get a feel for them, "Now let's get started. You'll have to incorporate your knowledge of lightning in order to get the power behind the blades to work properly."
Just then Naruto mind was being infused with the memories of the clones he left with Karin. He saw that Karin had his five clones give her a complete massage and rub down while feeding her grapes, strawberries, fried shrimps and other treats and drinks as they pampered her. He blushed hotly from the sensations his hands were feeling but realized that only four of his five clones dispelled and the the fifth and last one was still with Karin. From his clones memories, Karin had one last request she wanted granted to her and she only needed one clone for the job.
'I guess I'll have to wait until my clone is done with fulfilling Karin's last request before he dispels himself,' Naruto accepted before he resumed his training session, 'She had my clones calling her "mistress" and "hime"? I should have seen that coming when she said personal manservants.'
For the next hour, Jiraiya guided and watched Naruto practice using his lightning affinity with the Kiba Blades. He was learning how to control the power of the blades by practicing cutting through a large boulder in one swing. However he was having trouble due to his lack of experience with his secondary element while trying to keep the swing of his blades in a perfectly straight line. As this was happening, a thought came to Naruto's mind. He recalled Kakashi's Raikiri attack in Nami no Kuni which would have killed Zabuza had he not stopped it in time. Then he thought about his Rasengan and how he's been working on combining and perfecting that with his wind element.
'I made excellent progress in combining it but it still isn't perfected just yet. And now that I have an affinity for lightning,' Naruto thought as the wheels in his head started turning, 'Maybe I can combine this with my Rasengan, too. But I'll have to use my Kiba Blades as my central manipulation point. The Kiba Blades will help give it a form similar to a pointed drill and that can give rise to multiple ranged attacks with deadly accuracy and speed. And since I can shunshin and run with my wind element, what's to prevent me from doing likewise with lightning, especially with the resourcefulness of its speed?'
Jiraiya noticed how focused Naruto's lightning strikes were becoming until they began slicing clean through the boulder. He noticed that something got Naruto to focus hard and clear with his moves and stances becoming more polished and accurate. He knew it wasn't the clones, since they didn't dispel yet.
"That gaki is a shockingly fast learner," Jiraiya remarked to himself, "Just like his father."
For the next thirty minutes, Naruto mapped out his new jutsu theories and what it would take to perfect them. His mind was working hard through his calculations, figuring out all the needed factors to make his goals happen. While he was doing this, his body went on autopilot, practicing his art with the Kiba Blades as he went from boulder to boulder, slicing them to pieces.
Soon though, Naruto decided to stop and take a break before he wore himself out from chakra exhaustion. Jiraiya looked around to see the number of boulders Naruto destroyed.
"Twelve boulders," Jiraiya complimented, "Not bad, gaki. You must have been focusing with all of your might to have pulled that off."
"To be honest," Naruto admitted, "My mind wasn't there. I was busy contemplating creating three new raiton jutsu. Two of them will require the use of the Kiba Blades while the third one I'm still working out how to make it."
"Have you thought of what these jutsu will be called?" Jiraiya asked.
"My first raiton jutsu I'm contemplating is a pointed drill type jutsu. Once I find a way to perfect combining my chakra with my lightning manipulation, it'll be known as a Rasen Raikiri (Spiraling Lightning Blade). The second raiton jutsu which will be a long ranged jutsu once perfected will be known as Rasen Raidama (Spiraling Lightning Bullet). I'm also working on combining my lightning affinity with shunshin and speed, but I haven't completely worked out how I'll get it to effectively work yet, or if it'll work at all for that matter.
"I'm also working on combining my wind element with my Rasengan. But with my other new jutsu in the making, I'm still trying to figure out what pieces I'm still missing to get the maximum results out of them."
"Your mind is just as innovative as your father's was," Jiraiya praised, "I have no doubt that you'll surpass the Yondaime at the speed you're going."
"I should hope so," Naruto remarked, "It took my father three years to perfect the Rasengan. I'm trying to perfect these new jutsu in a far shorter time." 'Not to mention that I have to come up with an effective method to master Sage Mode, if not make it last longer than I can now. I have so much to do and so little time.'
Suddenly Naruto's mind was bombarded with the memories of his fifth clone that dispelled himself after seeing to it that Karin's last request was taken care of. The result was instantaneous when Naruto saw and experienced what Karin had his last clone do to her and with her, which was far more than what Naruto counted on as he slapped his right hand over his mouth with the color of his face changing into a dark shade of red that would have been envied by Hinata. While holding his mouth, he felt a small trickle of blood seep down his nose.
Jiraiya looked at Naruto with a curious expression and asked, "Did...something just happened?"
"Far more than I counted on," Naruto replied quietly, but loud enough for Jiraiya to hear, 'Honoka-nee was right! Karin is an even bigger pervert than I am! When Karin told me that she wanted five of my kage bunshin to be hers to command, I never expected she'd have done that with one of my clones! Then again, I neglected to properly explain to Karin that my clones transfer all of their memories and experiences back to me! And my clone was hushed before he could properly warn Karin about it!'
"Would you like to talk about it, Naruto? I'm willing to listen and hear you out if you want to tell me what happened," Jiraiya offered. But when Naruto looked to Jiraiya, he saw that the Sannin had his pen and notepad in hand ready to take inspirational notes at Naruto's expense.
"Fūjin Bakuhatsuteki!" Naruto yelled as he thrust his right hand out and released a powerful wind explosion that blasted his godfather off the ground and away from him before having the screaming Toad Sage plunge hard into the river and down to the riverbed.
"Itami o shire (Know pain)!" Naruto replied before he wiped away the blood from his nose. He then sealed his Kiba Blades away and walked away into the woods to clear his head and deal with what his mind and body were presently experiencing.
'Let this be a lesson to me. I'll never let Karin use my clones as her personal playthings again,' Naruto stated to himself while still feeling the sensual sensations his last clone experienced.
Meanwhile, Jiraiya emerged from the river completely soaked and sore from taking a direct hit from Naruto's fūton jutsu.
"What the hell got into that gaki?" Jiariya asked no one in particular as he went to look for Naruto.
Elsewhere, Naruto was walking through the woods working on getting his head and body back in gear. After a good amount of walking, Naruto managed to relax and calm himself from the sensual sensations he was experiencing.
"I never thought Karin would go so far as to-"
Naruto didn't get to finish his sentence when kunai suddenly came his way. He narrowly dodged the kunai that now stuck to a tree it hit. The lone Uzumaki turned to his left where the kunai came from, only to find an unexpected ninja holding two katana, looking for a fight...
As the Chuunin Finals approaches, several questions remain:
Will Zabuza accept the Kiri resistance offer to become their lead general of Mei's army? Will Hinata master the Uzumaki clan's kinjutsu of blood manipulation and Ikite'ru Bunshin no Jutsu? How will Naruto come up with a plan to master his Sage training and his new arsenal of fūton and raiton jutsu and the Kiba Blades?
With Sasuke training under three teachers, how will things turn out for him? And with Sasuke and Tayuya having a better understanding of each other's past, what kind of student-teacher relationship will those two develop? What perverted act did Karin do with Naruto's last remaining clone that put Naruto in state he was left in? And who's this ninja that came looking to fight Naruto now?
Find out next Time