So, that's wrapped up. Granny Tsunade's gonna fill us in on our new teammate before dawn, so nothing to stress about anymore, I guess.
Since I'm already out, how about a stroll through the village? It's been ages.
As I saw Shino standing at the side of the road..
"Yo, Shino! What's up? What are you doing here?"
"Long time no see, Naruto," he said, straightening up from leaning against the tree.
"Yeah, it's been a while, but you haven't changed a bit," I replied.
Just then, there was a commotion. Something fell from the sky outta nowhere, and if I'm not mistaken, it's...
"Hey, what's up? You're early, Shino," called out Kiba.
"Hey, Kiba! What's going on? I see you and Akamaru have grown up," I said.
"Heh," he chuckled, jumping off Akamaru's back and walking towards me. He sniffed the air, confirming, "Yeah, no mistake in that scent. It's Naruto."
Akamaru barked, giving me a warm welcome.
"Look at you! All grown up and taller. And you've switched up your style too," he said with a grin.
"Style? Yeah, I guess so."
"Hinata's not here yet. Do you know where she might be, Shino?" Kiba asked.
"Hey, Hinata, why are you standing here all by yourself?" I said, sneaking up behind the nearby tree where she was hiding.
Her face turned beet red. Did I embarrass her? Oops. And down she goes, face-first into the dirt, unconscious.
A while later, I strolled down the road, thinking about how Hinata fainted as soon as she saw me. Kiba said he'd look after her, so I waved goodbye.
Man, it feels amazing to walk around the village I grew up in after all this time.
"Hey, Naruto! Where are you heading?"
I turned to see Shikamaru standing there. "Hey Shika, just wandering around the village. What about you?"
"Nothing much, just gearing up for work, as usual," he replied.
"Hey, Naruto," another voice joined in. "How's it going?"
"Hey, Choji! I'm good. How about you?"
"All good. I heard you've gotten super strong after your training. What did you learn?" Choji asked.
"What did I learn? Oh, you really wanna know?" I sensed something interesting coming up. "I guess I'll just have to show you."
"Your sensing ability has really improved," Shikamaru noted.
"And my power too," I replied, spotting a tiger charging at me. "Like this." With a flick of my finger, I obliterated the tiger instantly.
"What was that?" Shikamaru asked, eyes wide. I grinned as I sensed another attack from behind, but Choji smashed it before it got too close.
"Nice work, Choji," I said, giving him a nod.
"Wow, Naruto, you've really gotten strong," Choji remarked, impressed.
"Over there!" Shikamaru pointed toward the source of the attacks.
"That's our enemy? And he's got a sword. Reminds me of my own," I said with a hint of nostalgia.
"Your sword? Since when do you use a sword?" Shikamaru asked, curious.
"Picked it up during training with Pervy Sage. But I lost it. Guess I'll have to craft a new one."
"A sneak attack? And he's wearing a Leaf headband," Shikamaru observed, narrowing his eyes.
"I wonder what his motive is," I mused.
"There's only one way to find out: capture him," Shikamaru replied, activating his Shadow Paralysis Jutsu. "Now, Naruto!"
Without hesitation, I teleported directly in front of the enemy. "Where did he go?" Shikamaru questioned, momentarily confused.
"Hey, who are you, and why did you attack me and my friends so suddenly?" I asked, standing behind him. He nearly fell off the rooftop in surprise.
"When did you—? I see you're strong. That's good to know," he said, recovering quickly. "I'll leave for now. Meet you soon," he said, using the Body Flicker Technique to escape.
"Did I allow you to leave yet?" I teleported in front of him again, startling him once more. He fell onto another rooftop, and as he stood up, I swiftly moved in front of him again.
"You'll answer my questions, and then..." I tapped his forehead, rendering him unconscious. "I'll decide if you leave or not."
After a while, as he finally came to his senses,
"Where am I?" he asked, trying to free himself, while we stood in front of him.
"No need to struggle; those bindings are crafted with my chakra. Although, now that I think about it, I haven't named them yet. Hmm, they're yellow, so let's call it... 'Curse Technique - Yellow,'" I said with a smirk.
"Naruto..." Shikamaru called out, sounding a bit exasperated.
"Oh, sorry! Got a bit carried away. So, who are you, and why did you attack us?"
"Why haven't you handed me over to the authorities? Why all these questions here?" he questioned back.
"I didn't sense any malicious intent from you, that's why," I replied. "Now, answer my question."
"Alright, I'm actually assigned to be your new teammate for the next mission. I just wanted to test your strength, that's all," he explained.
"Testing Naruto's power? New teammate? What's he talking about?" Shikamaru asked, puzzled.
"I'll fill you in later. So, you're the guy Granny Tsunade mentioned? Interesting choice, but why would she pick someone so weak to be my teammate?"
"Do you think he's telling the truth?" Shikamaru asked.
"Yeah, for all we know, he could be lying," Choji added.
"Nah, I don't think so," I said as I untied him. "You can go."
"You're supposed to be a genin, but I didn't know you were this strong," he said, looking a bit surprised.
"Just leave," I replied.
"We'll meet tomorrow then," he said with an odd smile.
"So, you let him go, huh?" Shikamaru remarked. "I won't even ask about the strength you just displayed."
"That's probably for the best," I said.
"But you didn't even ask his name," Shikamaru pointed out.
"I'll find out tomorrow anyway," I shrugged.
"Fair enough. Now explain what he meant by the new team and teammate," Shikamaru asked.
"It's like this..."
[Thanks for reading the chapter of my fanfiction, if you liked this Chapter ... DON'T FORGET TO DROP POWERS TONES TO SHOW SUPPORT TO THIS SERIES, ALSO ADD TO YOUR LIBRARY IF YOU DIDN'T ALREADY, THANKS]