/~/
Fall in Konoha was always beautiful. The Land of Fire earned its name during the summer months, but the combination of colors that left the lush forests looking like an open flame in the sunlight had a special place in Ino's heart. She smiled as she strode through the always-busy merchant quarter, the cool air on her unmasked face a welcome relief after days upon weeks of drilling with Epsilon.
Almost there, she told herself, feeling herself suffused with a familiar determination. It was a mantra at this point.
Containing her near manic excitement at the prospect at finally – finally – being ready for the field, she stepped off the main thoroughfare and onto a side street. It was more alley than street, really, though well-lit even at night from the overhanging lanterns that would burn a warm, homey orange. Outdoor patios encroached on the road itself, lending it a far more intimate feeling as the larger, louder carts couldn't pass. A gentle hum of conversation washed over her as the blonde shifted through the foot traffic, seafoam eyes darting back and forth looking for her destination.
Alighting upon a simple, wooden sign with the words Torae Torae painted a vibrant red, she made a beeline for a set of narrow stairs that led down. Ino entered the small restaurant to a chorus of "Ohayo!" and waved back at the chefs absently. She spotted her quarry sitting alone in the corner, per usual, and made her way to the back.
"Hinata," she called with a soft smile. The heiress rose at the sound of her name, her trademarked shy smile thrown back in return.
"Ino-chan," Hinata greeted, wrapping the blonde in a gentle hug. Ino felt herself deflate a tad, her ever-present determination fading in the face of the Hyuuga's seemingly never-ending kindness.
She sat down across from her friend and the determination rose once more at the reminder of why they had become close to begin with.
"Ano, I've missed you," Hinata told her, still smiling.
Ino's returning smile was more grimace than anything else. "It's been a long month," she said in lieu of an apology she knew would be waved off. "Everyone told me basic would be hell, but I still didn't really believe it, ya know?"
"Was it truly that bad?" the heiress asked, milky eyes wide with concern.
Yes, Ino thought vehemently, remembering four-a-days that pushed her body to the brink. Endless teamwork drills, more strength training than she'd ever done, and endurance courses had sharpened her. While she knew she wouldn't really feel like a proper ANBU until she'd left the village with her mask firmly in place, the month long slog had affirmed her place on the team.
Even Daisuke's constant ribbing had become just another part of her routine.
"It wasn't easy," Ino said at length. "The six month ramp really only gets you up to speed to be able to handle the rigors, and even then…"
"You've grown strong," Hinata told her, reaching out to cover one of the blonde's hands with her own.
Ino gave her an encouraging squeeze and a quick smile. "You and me both, right? How's the last month been? Did you get your rotation?"
White eyes turned downward slightly at the praise, but Hinata's smile held firm. "Father was adamant that I not leave the village until he had thoroughly vetted my new team, but yes. An opening came up just last week on a team that won't be leaving Fire Country on its next mission."
A familiar, protective sort of anger rose at Hinata's father's ever-present meddling. Ino's eyes cut to the single man seated at the sushi bar, a bandana wrapped around his shaved head – the familiar form of Hyuuga Ko, Hinata's bodyguard. How her friend was ever supposed to develop while Hiashi vacillated between over-protectiveness and outright scorn was beyond her.
Her friend had a quiet, understated fire in her. In her own way, Hinata was just as driven as Ino herself was. If only her dad could see it with those eyes of his, she thought uncharitably. It wasn't like Ino's own drive, even though they were motivated by the same thing. Where Ino's burned hot and angry to the point where she had posted his face right where she could see it every morning when she woke, Hinata needed no such reminder.
"Ano…I –" Hinata shook herself. Ino quelled her irritation. The heiress had interrupted her training, after all. "I know Naruto-kun was your boyfriend, Ino-san, but I…"
Ino felt her irritability melt away. Poor girl, she thought. Hinata's feelings for Naruto hadn't escaped the Yamanaka – they had been more than apparent on the fiasco that had been their joint mission to Rice Field Country.
Hinata took a deep breath and her eyes rose to meet Ino's. "Naruto-kun meant – means – so much to me. I know that you're training to bring him back. I want to help you."
"Why?" Ino burst out, feeling her center tipping precariously at the direct mention of him.
"I used to watch him in the Academy. The instructors, they…they wouldn't help him," Hinata said. "But that didn't stop him. He was so determined to be strong, and he was. Ano…he inspired me."
A hot bolt of shame speared her. She'd quietly lorded her closeness with her ex-teammate turned boyfriend turned nuke-nin over the Hyuuga, and seeing just how much Naruto had meant to her...well, it didn't feel good.
Tossing her hair back, and her thoughts along with it, Ino grinned. "Good enough for me," she declared, infusing her voice with as much confidence as she could muster. "Ready to get started?"
Ino leaned back in her seat, eyes flickering down as one of the servers deposited a small bowl of agedashi tofu on the table. Sparing a grin for her friend's thoughtfulness at ordering ahead, she grabbed her chopsticks and dug in with gustso. The dish wouldn't last long between the two of them.
"What's the mission?" she asked around a mouthful of lightly battered tofu.
Hinata chewed and swallowed, her manners allowing nothing less, and said, "Bandit and ronin clean up near the border with Grass Country."
"B-ranked?"
"Just C-ranked," the heiress said. "There haven't been any reports of nuke-nin activity in the area. It will be nice to get out of the village at last."
"Tch, I bet," Ino returned, polishing off the final piece of tofu and resisting the urge to drink the sauce. "More like nice to get away from dear old dad, am I right?"
Hinata ducked her head, eyes cutting to her bodyguard, sat out of earshot. "Father means well," she defended dutifully, though her small smile betrayed her. "Though it has been odd being around the village without missions to do."
Ino cackled. "Miss D-ranks that much, huh?"
White eyes narrowed immediately. "Not even slightly," Hinata said mildly, which was downright vehement for her. "I do miss my team, especially Kurenai-sensei, but from what Chouji-kun said, we might end up back together in a few months once we've all completed our first rotations."
"That'd be nice," Ino said absently, eyes raking over the menu. Such an outcome was utterly out of the question for her, never mind Kiba's own placement into the Hunter-nin. She'd somehow managed to lose two sensei in her first six months as a genin, which had to be some sort of record. And while she hadn't spared any tears for Yamato, she wished he was still around; he'd become an effective sensei toward the end.
"And I think father would be far more comfortable with me completing missions with Kurenai-sensei," Hinata continued. "It would give me more opportunities to grow, though I'm sure I won't be able to catch up to you anytime soon."
"Don't sell yourself short." Ino marked her paper with two orders of sashimi – she could afford to splurge here and there – and brought her gaze back up. "You're plenty strong, Hinata. Who knows, maybe you'll join me before too long," she said with a smirk.
Hinata smiled. "It would be nice to be able to train together again."
"How long's the mission for?"
"Sixty days. We leave next week."
Grimacing, Ino said, "At least you'll be home before me." ANBU rotations were ninety days away from the village followed by fourteen days of mandated rest. Even with the Godaime pushing standard ops on longer missions to make up for lost manpower during the Crush, she'd still be pulling longer hours than everyone but the elite jonin.
"You'll be back before you know it," Hinata assured her. Her eyes turned downward again. "I am jealous, though. You have a much better chance of finding him than I do."
"Fat chance," Ino scoffed, quelling the surging emotion that arose whenever he was brought up. You're getting better, she told herself proudly. It wouldn't do to lose her shit on the off-chance she did stumble upon Naruto. "If anyone's gonna find him fast, it'll be Kiba."
But then she doubted any of them were about to find Naruto all that soon. The Sannin were legendary for a reason.
Hinata's countenance shifted, becoming concerned. "I hope not…" The heiress shook her head, gleaming raven tresses swaying with the motion. "Kiba-kun was so angry. He would hurt Naruto-kun before he ever had the chance to explain."
Ino's grip tightened where it had fallen to the wooden bench she sat on. Seven months after his defection, Hinata still refused to believe the evidence in front of her all-seeing eyes. She was convinced he'd been coerced or kidnapped or anything other than what the Hokage had told them.
"There's too much good in him," she would say whenever Ino futilely tried to – gently, of course – prepare her for the reality that Naruto just didn't care about them anymore.
In a way, Ino envied her. Hinata's naiveté didn't hinder her prowess as a kunoichi in the slightest, though that likely had to do with blood more than anything. The blonde ached for the days when she was similarly convinced of Naruto's innocence; when she could talk herself into thinking Sasuke had simply decided to run off and Naruto had just gotten caught up in it. But then he wouldn't have killed those poor chunin if he had been.
The sheer hurt at knowing he'd left them, left her, was far from gratifying, even as it pushed it past her limits on her lowest days.
"I doubt Kiba'll find him. His nose was never half as good as he claimed it was," Ino said after a moment. She was rewarded as Hinata giggled, the mood lightened.
"I can't imagine he's half as bad as you always claim, Ino-chan."
"'Cause he's worse," the blonde grumbled.
As her friend's giggles devolved into full-blown laughter, Ino felt her resolve crystalize that much more. She wasn't the only one Naruto had hurt when he'd disappeared. She wasn't the only one who had a score to settle, though it felt like it most days as she slogged her way through her team training.
Hinata, like her, deserved better. And they'd get it, even if they had to beat him bloody for it.
/~/
Naruto's hands came together in a flurry of seals – ox, boar, bear, rat – and he slammed them to the ground. Doton: Doryoo Dango!
He felt his chakra ripple outward into the ground and pushed it further. Bigger. His arms flexed as his chakra poured through them. Bigger. He gripped the soil beneath his feet, gritted his teeth, and shoved. Bigger!
A hairline fracture split the earth ten meters in front of him and Naruto reared back on his heels. Chakra firmly anchoring him, he jerked his arms skyward, and the earth followed. A great slab, ten meters long and five deep, was torn forth as his Doton chakra simultaneously hardened and shaped it into a sphere.
Perfect, he thought, gazing up at the polished, shiny sphere of what used to be soil and rock clutched above his head. His arms held it steady despite its heft, he noted with satisfaction. You've gotten stronger.
Refocusing a moment later, Naruto took one step forward and hurled the earthen sphere. It flew, casting a brief shadow over the ground, before crashing down loud enough to deafen and shaking the earth. It rolled, leaving a deep rivet in the ground as it passed, the grinding noise it made not dissimilar to the Rasengan. With a thunderous thump, it finally came to a rest some hundred meters away against the mountainside.
Wartime technique, he noted distantly. It was far too easy for a single enemy to dodge, but could play havoc against numbers.
Not wasting a second more, he blurred through hand seals again. Rat, rabbit, dog – Fuuton: Shinkuugyoku! Naruto inhaled deeply, felt the wind chakra in his lungs harden and expand, and exhaled sharply. His control shaped the wind into a tight sphere the size of a small boulder that tore through the air with a high pitched whine.
It slammed like a bullet into his earth jutsu a second later. In a blink, the compressed ball of air had shattered the massive sphere into a thousand pieces of shrapnel, each the size of Naruto's head. And now for the test…
Tiger, ox, dog, rabbit, snake – Fuuton: Daitoppa!
The blond reared back once more, the sheer amount of spinning air in his lungs expanding his rib cage painfully, and expelled the column of wind. Naruto felt his ears pop as the hurricane strength winds ripped the topsoil from the ground under his feet, and fought to maintain his balance as his body sunk into the earth.
The wind howled, drowning out all else as it hammered into the shrapnel leftover from Naruto's earlier jutsu. The flying rocks were tossed back like nothing from the sheer force of the Daitoppa, and the blond watched with a grimace as they were pulverized into progressively smaller and smaller pieces before finally being crushed to dust against the mountain.
The winds died as he cut his chakra flow, and Naruto heaved a breath to regain his equilibrium. His left hand swiped the sweat from his brow as he surveyed the leftover dust cloud that had once been a B-ranked Doton technique. He stepped forward into the cloud, a small application of wind chakra shifting the particles around him to make it easier to both move and breathe.
"A valiant effort," Orochimaru spoke. Naruto cut his eyes to his master who stood off to the right, his own wind manipulation mostly obscuring him from sight. The snake summoner held a small stone in his hands and stared down at it for a moment before tossing it to the blond. "You have improved, my friend."
Naruto caught the stone and rolled it around in his palm. It wasn't much bigger than his hand and rough around the edges where it had been buffeted and pummeled. The pressure is there. The force is there. "It won't cut," he said quietly, doing his best to quell his frustration.
"The Daitoppa's single flaw, I'm afraid," Orochimaru said. He stood with his arms crossed, yellow eyes staring into the cloud that was finally beginning to dissipate. "A serviceable technique to be sure, yet lacking in one key way."
The blond knew he should feel some satisfaction at being able to push the C-ranked technique to such an extent – hell, Orochimaru hadn't critiqued it in days – but he could see only room for improvement. If only it was sharper…If he could combine the sheer strength with the cutting that could make Fuuton techniques so lethal, he'd be on to something.
"I'd have to add shape manipulation," he realized aloud.
"Very good, Naruto-kun," his master praised, satisfaction plain in his voice. "Why?"
The blond puzzled over it for a moment, knowing well from the last month that Orochimaru preferred silence to impulsive answers. He thought back to his training for Sabaku-no-Gaara, and his frustration with the Fuuton: Renkudan.
Harder, faster, stronger…
But then, the Renkudan was designed to pierce. It required very basic shape manipulation to be used at all, lest one simply wish to hit an opponent with an aggressive breeze. It also took more hand seals than the Daitoppa's five.
"I don't fully know, Orochimaru-sama, but it must be something to do with the jutsu's structure and the number of hand seals," Naruto said at length.
"The scrolls left in your room are not simply 'light reading.' They are for your benefit," Orochimaru admonished, though it lacked bite. After a month of travel with the older man, Naruto had finally gotten decent at avoiding his worse moods; the bursts of killing intent were fewer and farther between.
What that said about his own acquiescence, he didn't bother pondering.
"It is a rare technique that manipulates shape without specific hand seals," the older man was saying. "Rarer still that it has nature manipulation at all. To do what you suggest, you would perhaps take the Daitoppa as a starting place. To add shape manipulation at the level required, however…" Orochimaru trailed off, clearly thinking. His thin lips quirked into a smile as his tongue lolled lazily. "Yes, very difficult."
Withholding a shudder with what was now practiced ease, Naruto asked, "But it's possible?"
"All things are possible. The question you should be asking, however, is why hasn't someone done it?" the Sannin asked, turning to regard the blond fully. An eyebrow lifted questioningly, on the edge of mocking.
"I don't know."
A small hiss escaped Orochimaru, his version of a sigh. "Just because one can does not always mean one should." Naruto fought incredulity from his face before it had the chance to manifest. "There are few truly new ideas, so why? Does the reward outweigh the amount of work required?" He chuckled. "Who is to say."
Well you clearly don't think so, Naruto thought uncharitably. His interest was piqued. Even if it took years, there was something special about creating ninjutsu of your own. Never mind the advantage of using a truly original technique in battle, there was a prestige to it. Konoha's Nidaime had been a renowned jutsu innovator.
Yondaime wasn't far behind, the blond thought, mind drifting to his most potent technique. As far as he could tell, the Rasengan was as close to flawless as a jutsu could be. A pure usage of shape manipulation with enough punch to kill just about anyone. A tinge of pride in his father suffused him before he banished it.
He knew better than to think of such things.
Shaking himself from his thoughts, which Orochimaru had, surprisingly, not interrupted, Naruto asked, "Do you plan to stay here much longer, Orochimaru-sama?"
It was their second morning at the base of the rather unremarkable looking mountain somewhere in eastern Fire Country, which was already an oddity; they hadn't stayed more than one day in any location on the winding trip Orochimaru had led him on. Blue eyes turned upward, surveying the rocky outcroppings that looked ready to succumb to gravity at any moment. It certainly wasn't the most hospitable looking place, he mused.
"For however long it takes," Orochimaru answered cryptically. He smiled widely, and Naruto fought the urge to take a step back. "You, however, will be entering the mountain."
A blond eyebrow rose even as his stomach bottomed out. A test, of course. "And what will I find?" he asked, doing his best to hide his sudden trepidation even as he spoke around clenched teeth.
"A great deal. Within the mountain lies Ryuchi Cave, the sacred home of the Hebi clan: my summons." Naruto felt his eyes go wide. Orochimaru had neglected any mention of what the actual purpose of their trip was, resisting all probes until the blond had given it up as a bad job.
"Should you pass their tests, they shall become invaluable allies to you," Orochimaru continued. "I have learned more than I thought possible from the snakes of this mountain."
Naruto turned his gaze upward once more, the shaded outcroppings now possessing a wealth of possibility. "And if I don't pass?" he asked, already knowing the answer.
"Failure in your life appears to have a remarkably consistent outcome, Naruto-kun," his master said with humor.
Death. How shocking. The blond shook off the thought. "Where's the entrance, then?"
"For you to find, I'm afraid. It moves, just as the earth turns beneath us."
Naruto bit his cheek to keep from saying something he'd regret. "I assume you'll be at the top."
Orochimaru cackled. "Naturally. But worry not, I am never far so long as you remember what I've taught you."
A lance of anger that had nothing to do with the Kyuubi's chakra pumping through him made Naruto's fingers twitch toward his knives. He said nothing in response, electing to stride forward toward the mountain.
His master's sibilant voice carried to his ear on the wind as he leapt upward to meet whatever this next trial would hold. "Good luck."
/~/
Unsurprisingly, finding the entrance was about as hard as Orochimaru made it out to be. The mountain itself wasn't all that large – the most remarkable thing about it from the outside was that it even existed in Fire Country at all, a land not exactly known for hilly terrain. He'd happened upon a crevasse about a third of the way up after an hour of circling the sides; it had barely been wide enough for him to shoulder into, but once he had, it had opened into a wide cavern that was easy to walk through.
If not for the damn mist. He could only see a few meters in front of him at a time, and the blanket was giving him flashbacks to Wave Country. He'd considered trying to banish it with a Fuuton jutsu, but, call it a hunch, he'd have been surprised if it worked.
He also wasn't eager to throw ninjutsu around a place where contracted summons resided. While he'd likely already woken everything that had been resting by crashing his jutsu against the base of the mountain earlier – and he was not happy with Orochimaru about that – pushing his luck seemed rash.
Naruto paused at the sound of a pebble cascading down, but didn't bother to look up. His breathing slowed as he extended his chakra as far as it could go. If only I wasn't useless as a sensor type, he groused a moment later, finding nothing at all.
He started suddenly at the feeling of scales brushing up against his right foot a moment later, and glanced down to find a small, white snake slithering its way between his legs. No longer than Naruto's arm, it paused, turning toward him and flicking its tongue out, before continuing on its way further into the mist.
"Not gonna get a clearer sign than that…" he mumbled, re-holstering a kunai he'd drawn on reflex. Mind on high alert, he followed at a sedate pace, but was careful to keep the reptile in sight even as he continually scanned his surroundings.
The mist was only growing thicker which each step he took, and he extended his awareness as far as he could in search of answers or, more likely, threats. The sounds of the mountain – falling pebbles, mostly – became quieter as the white snake led him deeper and deeper into the cavern. Naruto bit his lip hard enough to draw blood. No change. The mist was as thick as ever, and it was just as quiet. Not a genjutsu, then.
Whether the mist was natural or not remained to be seen, but he took some small comfort that his perception wasn't being turned against him.
"I don't suppose you talk," he said in the direction of his guide. The white snake paused and turned its head to him. The blond felt a brief moment of hope before it simply flicked its tongue at him and continued slithering forward without a word.
Helpful. Naruto managed to hold his tongue despite his frustration threatening to boil over, an impulse telling him he didn't want to offend any of the snakes of this mountain. Even so, it was a close thing.
Nothing, it seemed, could be straightforward. He knew it was wishful thinking for a shinobi, but he couldn't help but crave simplicity. "Someday," he murmured, so low he could barely hear it himself. Someday, when he was strong enough to not be looking over his shoulder every other step, he would…what exactly? You'll figure it out when you get there, he told himself, willing his mind away from a nebulous future.
The mist was beginning to thin, he noticed, and with it came the echo of his footsteps. Naruto paused for a moment and strained his eyes in search of answers. Pale stone that was nearly white laid beneath his sandals. A quick glance about the area revealed more of the same. I'm in a cave, he realized.
Steadying himself, he quickened his steps to catch up to the white snake ahead of him, casting his eyes about as he did. On closer inspection, the white stone was porous, with the occasional gap the size of his fist every few steps. Passageways? he wondered. His eyes slid over a clearly visible skeleton in the stone and he grimaced.
Finally, after a few dozen more steps into whatever cave this was, the mist had disappeared entirely. Naruto found himself in a cave that was more cavern in scale, with no end in sight. The air was humid, but not stale. The hairs on the back of his neck stood as he took in his surroundings; the white snake had stopped in its trek, electing to coil up on itself and stare back at him, tongue flickering.
Hackles rising, Naruto glared back. "What do you expect me to do?"
"Submit."
He whirled at the word spoken directly behind him in time to catch a glimpse of pale skin and dark hair before two fangs sunk into his neck. The blond lashed out with a palm strike and a bastardized application of wind chakra that blew his assailant back a dozen feet. Knuckles knives found their way to his fists as Naruto got his bearings. He slapped a palm to his neck and felt twin trickles of blood.
"Such strength!" His assailant had righted herself and was now hovering a few feet above the ground. She was clad in an ornamental white robe with red stitching; her long dark hair was tied in a single, elaborate bun atop her head. "Your chakra will make quite the meal."
Ignoring the disturbing words, Naruto straightened and began circulating his chakra. "And who're you supposed to be?"
The woman smiled widely. "My name is Tagitsuhime. I am one of the guardians of the Ryuchi Cave, and you have a choice, traveler."
Sparing a glance behind him, Naruto noticed the white snake had disappeared in the commotion. Figures. "Name it," he ordered.
"Either return the way you came, or submit yourself to my trial. Should you pass, I will allow you to continue. If you fail, your chakra becomes my next meal," she declared with a beatific smile.
Blond eyebrows rose incredulously. "Does anyone ever turn back?" he asked irritably.
"I find myself quite well-fed, if that is what you're asking."
I'll bet. Naruto shook his head. Turning back was never an option. "Get it over with, then."
The smile morphed into a fanged grin that promised nothing good. "Keep your wits about you, traveler. I like to work for my food." Tagitsuhime nodded in the direction over his shoulder, and the blond whirled.
He leapt sideways to dodge the downward strike of a gunbai. Naruto rolled right and came up in a crouch, eyes wide as saucers while his heartbeat did its best to deafen him.
"Your defiance is amusing," Uchiha Madara said, his deep voice dripping with condescension enough to put Orochimaru to shame. He stood at ease in red battle armor, head cocked to the side as he considered the jinchuuriki before him. "Admirable, if pointless."
Doing the best he could to ignore the sound of blood rushing in his ears, Naruto inhaled deeply and sped through seals. Tiger, dog – Fuuton: Shinkuu Taigyoku!
The compressed sphere of wind blasted from Naruto's lips and hurtled toward the apparition. The blond formed a ram seal to cut his chakra flow and break what was clearly a genjutsu, only to freeze as Madara contemptuously batted the B-ranked technique away with his gunbai.
What?
Madara grinned as his body morphed. His hair shortened to close cropped spikes; his battle armor rippled and became a black cloak with red clouds; his smug face disappeared behind an orange, spiraled mask.
"You don't know what you're dealing with, boy." A single Sharingan eye regarded him balefully behind the mask. "The greatest shinobi your little village produced fell before my plans. Who are you to challenge me?"
Focus! Naruto screamed at himself. He bit down on his lip hard, his razor sharp incisor slicing through the flesh and spilling blood into his mouth.
Unadulterated panic coursed through him as the apparition merely stepped toward him.
"Pathetic," Madara hissed as Naruto scrambled back. "Look at you. You can't even defeat an illusion, how could you ever hope to defeat me?"
What is this jutsu!? "You're not real," the blond declared, voice wavering.
"Truly?" Suddenly, Madara was in his face and had planted a fist in his gut. Naruto gasped at the force, blood spraying from his lacerated lip, and sank to his knees.
"I am as real as your deepest fear," the apparition said with a voice Naruto had only ever heard in Kyuubi fueled nightmares. He brought his eyes up to meet Namikaze Minato's and recoiled.
His father dropped to one knee in front of him. "I am as real as everything that has made you what you are." Compassion stole over the Yondaime's expression as he reached a hand out and laid it on Naruto's head. "It's ok, son. You can't always win the fight."
Naruto felt something snap within him as the hand bunched in his hair. He wrenched himself away with a cry. "You don't know me," he choked.
"Oh, but you are so wrong," Ino's voice told him. Seafoam colored eyes pinned him in place. "I've seen your mind; your loves, your fears. Everything I've seen has made me everything I am."
Ino's body dissolved and grew into Itachi's familiar, cloaked form. "I've seen what hunts you, Uzumaki Naruto. And I know you have no hope."
Enough! Naruto's mind screamed. He reached blindly for the Kyuubi, whose power had been conspicuously absent in his mind since Tagitsuhime had bitten him, and found it right where it should have been.
Searing heat suffused him. Naruto felt his split lip heal in an instant as his incisors suddenly became too large for his mouth. He knew without seeing his reflection that the marks on his cheeks had deepened and his eyes had bled into crimson.
Itachi's form disappeared as the genjutsu shattered into a million pieces before Naruto's eyes. All that was left was the cavern and a wide-eyed Tagitsuhime.
He snarled and leapt without wasting a moment. His shoulder drove into her chest as he tackled her to the cavern's floor and rolled. His claws found purchase around her neck, and Naruto halted their momentum a moment later, leaving him straddling her chest with his other claw poised to tear the skin from her face.
"Have I passed your test yet?" he growled.
Tagitsuhime managed a choked chuckle. "It appears you possess hidden depths. Pity." Her face abruptly flattened, her dark eyes flashed yellow, and Naruto was bucked off as the body beneath him transformed into a snake as thick around as his shoulders.
He rolled backward onto all fours and his fangs flashed in the light as he beheld Tagitsuhime's true form. Her formal wear had disappeared with the transformation, leaving nothing but pale, purple scales. She coiled upon herself and regarded him from a distance, yellow eyes reminding him of Orochimaru.
"I had hoped to feast upon your chakra today. I see now that that would not be possible," Tagitsuhime hissed. "Tell me, what does the Kyuubi's jailer want with the Ryuchi Cave?"
Naruto's lip curled. "What does anyone want with your clan?"
A tinny hiss greeted his words and he realized the snake was laughing. "The same that all men want: power."
He nodded. "You gonna keep getting in my way?"
"You've passed my test, traveler. I have no quarrel with you. You may find your next test more difficult, however. Just know you can still turn back," Tagitsuhime said.
Naruto snorted, relinquishing some of the Kyuubi's chakra back into the seal. He kept enough to stave off the immediate exhaustion that lurked beneath the surface – now was no time to rest. "If you've seen what I'm up against, you know that's not an option for me."
"Perhaps not," the snake allowed. "I wish you luck. You will need it."
A thousand thanks, he thought sarcastically. The white snake had reappeared in the middle of the cavern, which of course showed no signs of damage from the encounter. "Lead the way," Naruto told his guide.
/~/
His guide led him through winding tunnels lit only enough for Naruto to see where to place his feet. Snakes, it seemed, didn't need much in the way of light to see. He was thankful that the cavern he'd battled Tagitsuhime in had been as bright as it was. Dealing with her genjutsu had been difficult enough without fumbling around in the dark.
As a result, he walked far closer to the white snake leading him than he'd otherwise like, making sure to be mindful of his steps. He wasn't about to tread on the creature and find himself stranded.
All the while he tried to quiet his mind. His father's face was burned into the back of his eyelids, hand outstretched toward him. Was that what Namikaze Minato had been like? His only memories of the man, if they could be called that, were the Kyuubi's rage filled visions of the night Madara had set it loose on Konoha.
Jiraiya's remembrances hadn't done much to fill out the picture of who his father had been. "Focused…I think he knew just how talented he was and wanted to reach that peak more than anything."
Try as he might, there was nothing in his mind that could reconcile the kind, compassionate face of his father reaching out for him with everything he had done. Namikaze Minato had signed his death warrant the moment he'd sealed the Kyuubi into him, then left him alone to face it with his death. And while he knew, logically, that everything Tagitsuhime had thrown at him in that illusion had come from his own mind – his own fears – who was to say how the faces had been manipulated? Heavens knew Ino had never looked at him with such derision.
Stop dwelling, he told himself. The snakes aren't done with you yet. He was probably playing right into their hands by letting his mind linger on the previous test.
Coming to a decision, he reached for the Kyuubi once more. As awful as it would eventually leave him feeling, it helped to focus him on the here and now without fail; sharpened his senses. He couldn't afford to waver.
Feeling the telltale stirrings of malice in the back of his mind to go along with the sharpening of his incisors and nails, Naruto pushed onward. The white snake had led him from the tunnels into yet another cavern, this one far less lit than the last. The white stone was familiar now; the bones that littered the floor to each side of him were not. Skeletons larger than he was were scattered about the cavern without rhyme or reason.
The hairs on the back of his neck standing, Naruto kept a close eye on his guide. You're not running out on me again...
The limited light caught something to Naruto's right. His eyes cut to a faded purple that stood out against the stark white. A scale, he realized, taking in the diamond shape. His heartrate sped up at the size of it; it was wider than he was tall. A scale that size can only mean –
"Hello."
Naruto spun at the word spoken placidly to his left. He came face to face with a pair of light green eyes that peered at him out of the darkness. The head of a dark skinned snake swayed slightly at the blonde's eye level. It was thicker around than Tagitsuhime had been and, coiled upon itself as it was, Naruto figured it was longer too.
A quick glance revealed his guide had managed to disappear on him while he was distracted, and he cursed himself. He tightened his grip on the kunai he'd drawn as he responded at length, "Hello…"
"My name is Aoda. Who are you? I haven't seen you here before," the snake said in a low, slow voice.
Blinking, Naruto shifted his weight slightly, concealing the kunai behind him. "Uzumaki Naruto," he growled in response. "What do you want?"
Aoda blinked at him. "Not much, really. I'd like to stop training with grandfather down here."
What?
"Great-grandmother says I'll be big just like grandfather, so I have to learn. But I wish I didn't have to. He's not very nice."
Naruto cut his chakra flow, only to see nothing happen at all. Aoda was still in front of him, swaying gently. With the Kyuubi's chakra coursing through his coils, this was no genjutsu. Alright, I'll bite.
"Where's your grandfather, Aoda?" he asked, remembering the massive purple scale.
"Almost back. Should just be a couple of more seconds," the blue snake responded plainly, turning his eyes down to the cavern's floor. "Did you want to meet him?"
Wasting no time, Naruto blasted upward, avoiding an explosion of rock beneath his feet a split second later. He landed on all fours and pushed off onto his feet fifty meters away. Dark green eyes regarded him from inside a head as large as most one-story buildings. Four horns adorned the snake's massive head, and concentric black circles ringed a purple body that was still half buried under the cavern.
"Manda," Naruto breathed.
"Orochimaru has taken in another pathetic runt, I see. Perhaps you'll be less disappointing than the last."
Mitarashi Anko, Naruto's mind supplied. He well remembered the examiner from the Chunin Exams second stage who had grilled him about his encounter with Orochimaru in the Forest of Death.
"Name your test."
The boss summon lowered its head to the cavern floor. "Do not confuse me for one of the guardians of this mountain, brat." Manda bared fangs longer than Naruto was tall. "If you were led here, then Orochimaru either believes you competent enough to become partner to my clan, or has sent you to die."
No turning around. Naruto bared his own fangs as he dove headfirst into the sentient malice of the Kyuubi's chakra, flaring it outward in a wave. Manda reared back at the suddenly palpable malevolence, and Naruto exploded forward. The cavern blurred to a haze of white as he sprinted, knuckle knives finding their way to his fists. He leapt upward at the reeling boss summon, flying to its eye level in the time it took to blink.
He twisted in midair and punched out to counter Manda's massive purple tail as it rose from nowhere to swat him like a fly. The tail snapped back as Naruto's fist impacted it, but the blond was sent careening away from Manda's from the force of the blow. He landed adroitly on a stalactite as the boss summon turned to regard him with narrowed eyes.
"Do not be so eager, jinchuuriki," Manda hissed.
Naruto cut the chakra to his feet in time to avoid a massive globule of venom spat at him. Sheathing his knives, he sped through seals as he fell – tiger, dog – and expelled a swirling sphere of compressed wind at the snake's body. He'd hoped to create space, but he might as well have missed for all the good it did him.
Manda didn't even twitch as the B-ranked ninjutsu crashed against his scales. His tail whipped around and only the Kyuubi's chakra coursing through Naruto's coils kept his body from shattering as it caught him full on. The blond plowed through two stalactites and rebounded off the roof of the cavern before dropping bodily to the ground in a shower of pale dust. He scrambled to his feet and sprinted away in a shunshin on reflex to avoid any follow up.
Tendons screaming in protest as he came to an abrupt halt, Naruto dove out of the way as Manda's tail crashed down where he was about to appear. Fuck this.
Five shadow clones popped into existence and body flickered across the cavern, surrounding the boss summon on all sides with two looking down from the roof. They sped through seals in the blink of an eye.
Fuuton: Daitoppa!
Katon: Gokakyu no jutsu!
The cavern erupted into a firestorm that utterly obscured Manda from view, the Kyuubi's chakra augmenting the ninjutsu into a miasma that burned blue. The clones dispelled with a thought, but even from all the angles Naruto couldn't tell how the giant snake had been affected by the jutsu combo.
He squinted through the leftover haze as the burnt husk of a snake slowly appeared. The head wilted after a moment and floated gently to the cavern floor as Naruto's eyes widened. He shed his skin!
Leaping out of the way of Manda's tail as it burst from the ground in front of him, Naruto channeled chakra to his left hand and swirled it. An explosion of rock behind him forced him to abort the jutsu, and the Rasengan fizzled into nothingness as the blond suddenly found himself in range of Manda's gaping maw.
Naruto threw his hands up desperately, grunting as the great snake's jaw closed. Furiously channeling chakra to his arms and legs, the blond pushed frantically. He gagged as Manda's breath enveloped him even as he managed to keep the mouth from shutting fully.
The pressure suddenly spiked and Naruto withheld a scream as it was joined by a burning sensation in his hands. He reached out with his chakra wildly, honed in on a jagged piece of rubble, and willed himself into a seal-less kawarimi.
Chakra slamming back into his coils, Naruto couldn't stop the scream torn from his throat as he crashed into the cavern floor. He rolled once, twice, three times before channeling chakra to his hands and feet, pushing off, and exploding upward toward the roof once more. Landing on his feet, and seeing no immediate counterattack, Naruto stared down at his hands. The skin of his palms and the inside of his fingers was knitting back together from where it had been burned away by Manda's venom.
"Uninspiring," Manda said. Dark green eyes stared Naruto down with utter dispassion. "I'd say I expected better from Orochimaru's new apprentice, but there's no use lying."
A hot bolt of rage shot through him. I fought the fucking Ichibi, you overgrown lizard. He crossed his fingers as he bared his fangs. Tajuu kage bunshin no jutsu!
The cavern's roof was flooded with thirty clones, blanketing it in black and blond. The telltale sound of chakra grinding against itself suddenly became deafening as thirty blood-red Rasengans bloomed to life. He watched as Manda coiled upon himself below, clearly bracing. "Think again," Naruto snarled.
He jumped away as all thirty Rasengans were slammed into the cavern's roof simultaneously. Grinning savagely as Manda's eyes widened below, Naruto anchored himself on the largest stalactite he could find. The grin remained as the explosion of all thirty jutsu deafened him and massive shards of falling rock completely obscured his vision.
The entire cavern shook as the roof fell. The blond wrapped an arm around the stalactite to supplement the chakra anchoring him to what was left of the ceiling. The impact of boulder after boulder hitting the floor vibrated up the cavern walls and through his body, jarring him and making his teeth grind as he grinned. He glanced upward, away from the settling rubble and dust, and spied a slim column of sunlight that now shone down. It was barely a pinprick amidst the dust, but present all the same. Naruto spared a thought for how much damage he may have done to the mountain as a whole, but pushed it away a second later; Manda had had no compunction about tearing tunnels through the rock to try to kill him.
If the great snake took issue, too bad.
After a few seconds observation allowed for the dust to settle below, and Naruto relinquished his hold on the stalactite. He fell in a graceful arc into the dissipating dust cloud and landed gently on the flat side of a large rock. Pushing a thin stream of wind chakra to his skin, the blond allowed the dust to flow around him, breathing cleanly. He surveyed the cavern, what was left of it, with satisfied eyes. I made a new floor.
The sound of shifting rock behind him had him whirling, only to see a much smaller head than expected poke its way out. His fingers twitched as his Kyuubi fueled instincts warred with his better judgment.
"He's not going to be happy with you," Aoda cautioned.
In spite of everything, Naruto guffawed. Running his tongue along the edges of his elongated incisors, he smiled at the smaller snake. "He's still alive, then?"
"Yes, Naruto-san."
"You don't seem all that mad."
Aoda's head tilted to the right and his tongue flickered out. Absently, Naruto wondered how snakes shrugged.
"I told you he's not very nice."
"Y'know, you might be onto someth–"
Naruto was cut off as the rubble to his left exploded in a shower of dust and shrapnel. He flattened himself to the stone beneath his feet to avoid the worst of it, wincing slightly as a few smaller pieces pinged off his head.
"BOY!" Manda roared as he cleared the debris.
Naruto rose to a crouch, prepared to sprint for his life. His crimson eyes narrowed as he fought another grin. Manda's own eyes were rimmed red and he could clearly see rivers of dark red blood sluicing off the great snake's body. Not unscathed, then.
"You utter imbecile! You've no idea the damage you could have caused."
Rising to his full height, Naruto sneered up at the boss summon without fear. "You set the terms. Either I'm worthy of your clan or I die. Where do I stand now?"
"You stand in your tomb, brat." Naruto crouched low as Manda lowered his head to glare him in the eyes. "There will be nothing left of you but the excrement I expel after I've finished digesting your remains."
A crimson Rasengan bloomed in his hand, filling the cavern with the sound of grinding chakra once more. "Still not impressed," he growled, creating and discarding battle plans at the speed of thought.
Manda reared back and Naruto cut left in a shunshin –
"STOP."
He came out of the shunshin a blink later to see Manda frozen, the echo of the reedy voice still ringing. The boss summon's head swiveled upward toward the tiny shaft of light that had been opened in the wake of Naruto's devastation. "Mother," he hissed. "You cannot be serious."
"Should your little tiff continue, there will be nothing left of this mountain. I will not have my home reduced to rubble by a pair of unruly children," the voice continued.
"He has desecrated –"
"The boy played by your rules, Manda. Tagitsuhime didn't challenge him to a death match, did she? And what have you to show for it? From what I can see, it is you who is the more injured."
"You cannot –"
"I can and I will. Let him pass. You may have what's left of him should I find him wanting."
The feeling of scales brushing past his feet turned Naruto's eyes downward as Manda's massive head lowered to glare at him balefully. His guide had returned and was slithering easily over the wreckage, away from Manda. Naruto let the Rasengan die in his palm as he moved to follow the white snake, keeping his eyes on the boss summon for good measure.
"Do not think for a moment that you and I are finished, boy," Manda hissed.
Knowing he was spared the great snake's wrath for the time being, Naruto turned his back without a word. He followed the white snake over the rubble, hopping adroitly from boulder to boulder. At the edge of the cavern, he could see a small passageway his guide was making for.
"Naruto-san." The blond turned to see Aoda had followed him across the wreckage. "Good luck," the young snake said.
Naruto's lips twitched upward as his eyes flitted to a livid Manda who was now glaring at the two of them. "You too." He turned back and made for the tunnel. "I'll see you around."
/~/
"I can already tell you're a troublesome child."
Naruto stood with his hands hanging loosely at his sides and stared openly at the behemoth in front of him. The White Snake Sage was a few orders of magnitude larger than even Manda had been; the cavern in which he now stood was only slightly smaller than the one he'd wrecked below, and more than half of it was taken up entirely by the Sage. Can see why she was concerned, he mused. Her body had all but fused with the rock around her – if he and Manda had done what she'd worried about and collapsed more of the mountain, it was unlikely she'd have been able to escape unscathed.
The Sage wore a turban with two pointed edges and a red orb on top, and an orange headdress framed her thin face. A chain with an orb that glowed a pale green rested just below her mouth, where a large, long cigarette rested.
"I apologize for the damage. Manda didn't leave me much choice," Naruto said at length.
"Hmph. There is always a choice."
"I hope you can understand why I didn't take it." Considering the other option was death…
The Sage shifted slightly and yellow eyes regarded him fully. "Certainly. And I hope you can understand why I wish you had. I would not have my son become more irritable than usual if I can otherwise avoid it."
"So it's not just me he doesn't get along with."
"You would do well to watch your mouth, child. I haven't given you leave to speak ill of one of my clan," the Sage said. Her reedy voice didn't change an iota, but the threat was clear in how the air suddenly became heavier.
Naruto contained a wince and straightened slightly. "My apologies," he gritted out.
"You're a poor liar for a shinobi. You reek of resentment." Naruto's eyes widened. "Though perhaps that's the demon inside you. The two of you are rather entwined at the moment, I sense."
Not missing the implication, the blond cut the flow of the Kyuubi's chakra into his coils. He staggered forward a half step as the last battles caught up to him all at once. Exhaustion and pain thrummed through him from head to toe, and his coils physically ached from the holding the fox's chakra for an extended time. He felt sweat bead on the back of his neck as his heartrate momentarily spiked.
Inhaling sharply and gritting his teeth to keep from screaming, Naruto straightened his spine. Eyelids suddenly heavy, he faced the Sage, who had leaned forward to regard him more closely while he'd been distracted.
"Quite the change. I don't mean to cause you pain, yet I fear I cannot truly take your measure with that beast so clearly influencing you." A note of apology entered the Sage's tone that rang genuine in Naruto's beleaguered mind. Uncaring of how he looked to this creature, he shook his head in an attempt to stave off the fog descending over his head.
"Name your test, Sage," he said in the most respectful voice he could muster.
A great puff of smoke enveloped him as she exhaled. Still better than Manda's breath, Naruto thought as he fought not to cough. "Do you even know why you're here, child?"
"My master wasn't specific." He grimaced. "Orochimaru only said that if I passed your tests, your clan would become my allies."
"And why do you wish to ally with my clan?"
"A group of powerful shinobi is hunting me. I need help."
"And why should my clan choose to ally with you?"
Naruto opened his mouth, then closed it immediately. His mind whirled, trying to remember all he knew about summoning contracts. He came up blank. "What would you have me offer?" he asked hesitantly.
A deep rumbling shook the cavern as another cloud of smoke tried to choke him. The Sage was laughing. "Humans have not changed since the gift of chakra. Always asking what can be done for them without a thought given to what they may offer in return."
Naruto blanched and felt his heart drop to his feet.
The cavern shook with continued laughter as the Sage regarded him. "Don't look so terrified. In truth there is very little you can offer. To know it, you would have to be a creature far greater than you are now."
"You desire power, as all men do. Orochimaru came to me wishing to discover the world's secrets. You come to me to protect yourself and defeat your enemies. I do not care about your motivations, only your actions."
Naruto nodded, panic receding. "What would you have me do?"
"This mountain has stood protected from the world for over a thousand years, since the time of the one you call Rikudo Sennin." Blue eyes flew wide. "My clan will aid you in your battles, child. In return, you will defend us and the Ryuchi Cave with the same fervor you defend your own life. Should it be threatened, you will be called upon to protect it. Should a member of the clan be killed, you will be called upon to deliver justice."
"A fair trade," Naruto said, nodding.
"Hmph. A bargain for you should you prove capable. You've proven your will and your strength; as such I will permit you to sign a contract with all the snakes of my clan," the Sage declared. A puff of chakra smoke heralded the arrival of a jet black snake a bit larger than Aoda. Its body bulged grotesquely a moment before a large scroll – too large to fit inside the snake comfortably – exited its mouth.
Naruto approached the remarkably dry scroll and unfurled it. This, at least, he was familiar with. It opened to reveal only three names he was familiar with: Orochimaru, Mitarashi Anko, and Uchiha Sasuke. When did Sasuke have time to come here? Banishing the irrelevant thought, he bit his thumb hard enough to bleed freely, and wrote his own name in looping kanji.
"Thank you, Sage," he demurred as the scroll rolled back up automatically. The black snake snatched it into its mouth and disappeared in another puff of smoke. "I will be a strong ally for your clan. You have my word."
"I would not permit you to call upon us if I thought otherwise." The Sage regarded him almost lazily through a cloud of smoke. "Tell me, child, what do you know of senjutsu?"
Naruto's brow furrowed. His mind was clouded in the aftermath of forcing the Kyuubi's chakra back into the seal, but he was certain he'd never heard the term. "I've never heard of it."
"A nearly forgotten art among humans, sadly. Would that it wasn't so; this world would be a better place," the Sage said, sounding almost wistful. "To learn senjutsu is to become one of the world's tenketsu. It is similar to signing the contract you just did, however, all of nature would be what you are tasked with defending. Of course, all of nature would be present to fight your battles, as well."
"Power the likes of which you cannot imagine." Naruto spun to find Orochimaru standing behind him, arms folded into the billowing sleeves of his shirt. "He is not ready."
"You give him so little credit?" the Sage asked rhetorically. "He passed the tests with as much ease as you yourself did."
"He can return for the final test in due time. There are other, more pressing matters he must attend to."
"I want to learn!" Naruto burst out. "You said that the snakes of this cave could teach more than you ever thought possible. I make it all the way here and you want to keep it from me?"
Orochimaru turned cold eyes to him for the first time. "You know not what it might cost you, apprentice."
"My life? How is that any different from any of this?"
"I sent you into the cave with complete faith that you would pass the trials. It is no simple test of valor to become a sage. Their kind have not walked the world for centuries with reason."
"Always so certain of your convictions, Orochimaru. Why not let the boy try?"
"I will not allow him to have his chakra devoured by you when he fails. He is not ready, and this is not up for discussion," Orochimaru said, voice broking no argument as he stared Naruto down. "I took you on this journey to impart the knowledge you need to begin hunting Akatsuki in earnest. When we return, you will assume leadership of the Sound Four. If, when Akatsuki lies dead at our feet, you still wish to hurl yourself into oblivion, you may do so then."
Naruto felt his teeth grind, but knew better than to keep pushing. It was a lost battle; he'd simply be dragged back bodily if he persisted.
Sensing acquiescence, Orochimaru turned to regard the Sage fully. "I thank you for your hospitality, as always."
"Bah, I see you haven't changed," the Sage hissed. Orochimaru said nothing in return. She turned to Naruto. "Know that we will be watching you with great interest, Uzumaki Naruto."
Unsure of what to say, and not trusting himself to speak, Naruto etched a deep bow. Footsteps behind him said Orochimaru was taking his leave, and he hastened to catch up, leaving the great white snake behind.
They said nothing as Orochimaru led him through a tunnel as dark as night, and it was only when a rock moved to the side, revealing the outside world, that the older man stopped.
"Everything I do, I do for your benefit," he began.
"Really? It's hard to tell sometimes," Naruto snapped before he could stop himself.
"Be silent." A spike of killing intent punctuated the command as Orochimaru's lip curled. Naruto took half a step back at the baleful expression. "That I understand your frustration is the only reason you can still move freely. I am not withholding this power from you out of pettiness or spite. You would not survive the trial, and all the work we have done would be wasted."
"I abhor waste." Naruto remembered.
They came to the opening in the rock, and looked at the sprawling forest of Fire Country from the top of the mountain. Nothing but lush green covered the land for as far as Naruto's eyes could see. "How can you be so certain?" he asked, voice carefully level.
"Because I did not survive it." Naruto's head snapped around. Orochimaru stood, expression unreadable, staring out at nothing. "I am here today because of the steps I've taken toward immortality. You have no such safety."
Nodding, askance at the admission and mid awhirl, Naruto said, "Understood."
"Good. Let us be off. It is a three day journey back to base, and there is more for you to learn."
That said, the older man leapt off the mountainside toward the ground. Hesitating a moment, Naruto turned back to stare into the inky darkness of the tunnel. Shaking himself a moment later, he followed.
/~/
And as you can see, I'm not dead. This chapter is way too long, but there wasn't a good break point. Thanks, as always, to the folks over at DLP for the editing help.
Feel free to drop a review my way if you enjoyed (or hated). For the record, I don't much care about any inconsistencies with Boruto canon. I don't watch/read Boruto and never will.
Thanks for reading.