14 Infiltration
For the fourth time in the last eight years, Jiraiya singlehandedly destroyed a bandit encampment. Each time, he used only taijutsu. There was something oddly therapeutic about smashing things with your fists, he now understood why Tsunade seemed to like to punch him every time she caught him peeping.
Covered in blood, none of it his own, and breathing heavily, he stood amongst the ruins of the bandit camp he laid to waste, pondering the different kinds of news he had heard over the years that required him to vent.
(Flashback, 8 years ago)
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"Fucking Kumo." he snarled, kicking his chair into the wall, shattering it in the process. Jiraiya had planned to come back to Konoha to visit the twins. Hiruzen told him how some of the civilians were rude and sometimes emotionally cruel to his godchildren. He had everything planned. His spy network would be set to work without his overview for a couple of months. He'd give the time to show that Sensei wasn't the only one that cared for them. But then he received an encoded letter from Hiruzen.
Kumo had nearly succeeded in abducting the Hyuga clan heiress whilst under the guise of signing a peace treaty. Hiashi evidently killed the man who tried to take his daughter. The manner and way he was killed gave a varied possibility of what occurred from the perspective of a third party. Kumo demanded Hiashi's life and body as compensation. Jiraiya had sent a letter back to Hiruzen. Jiraiya had expanded his spy network to cover sections of the land of lightning just a few short years ago. He could paint the targets where ROOT Shinobi could ambush and kill Kumo nin without it being traced back to Konoha.
He was within travel distance of the region. If war broke out, he would be able to launch a First Strike on Kumo, a great deal of time would be needed for any of their forces that could threaten him to reach him before he, an S rank Shinobi, caused severe destruction. But no war happened. Hizashi volunteered to die for his brother. War was prevented. Jiraiya still received a request for the troop movements of Kumo's forces that were within a certain range of the border.
Jiraiya had gotten drunk and got kicked out of a bar after starting a fight. It took several of the women to calm him down. He'd solo'd nearly a dozen men who tried to kick his ass. Didn't even need chakra, I'm just that good.
Kumo found out what happens when you fuck around and try to kidnap a kid. ROOT killed around 15% of Kumo's Jonin in the course of two years. That, as well as Hizashi putting explosives on his body before dying as a present to the Kumo iryonin who would dissect his corpse, told Kumo a clear message.
'Fuck with us, we'll fuck you.'
Jiraiya had to delay meeting his godchildren. Sensei had told him that things will calm down in a year or so. He could come then. Jiraiya grudgingly accepted it, but still angry at the situation.
///////////////////////
One year later
:
His rage was tearing him apart. The betrayal. The lies. The deception. Orochimaru.
The person who he saw as an uptight bastard when they were kids. Someone who he eventually started to see as a comrade, and later a friendly acquaintance, and finally, his best friend. He had betrayed them. He could see from the handwritten letter from his Sensei that he was hurt by it deeply. The shakiness in the writing looked far too similar to his own in the following months after Minatos' death.
Jiraiya knew about his friend's experiments. The wars gave a great deal of prisoners to work on. Orochimaru had promised that the more invasive experiments would only be done on the ones that were caught doing things that would warrant execution anyway. Executing surrendering forces. Raiding farms and small civilian villages and/or raping prisoners and civilians.
"Monsters worthy of neither pity nor mercy." Orochimaru had told him. Jiraiya had still been hesitant on saying that he was fine with his friend doing this... Until Orochimaru had looked him in the eye and told him something he would never forget.
"I've lost far too much. The knowledge I learn will stop you or Tsunade from dying. I don't want to lose what precious things I have left." This was something he had been told when they were in the Second War. After Hanzo.
Hanzo had shaken his friend to his core. Never before had the three of them come that close to dying. They didn't get their name "Sannin" from fighting Hanzo the Salamander, they got it from surviving him. That monster of a Shinobi was capable of killing S ranks like it was a game. Only their teamwork had made him fight seriously. Their teamwork made them something greater than a "simple" three man squad of S Rank Shinobi, it made them capable of engaging one of the most dangerous men in history and survive.
Orochimaru was never the same. Jiraiya had felt guilt when he heard of Dan's death. He wasn't there for Tsunade and Orochimaru was ill equipped to console someone going through an emotional breakdown. He had decided to ignore any warning signs. Orochimaru was just doing these things because he didn't want to see us hurt again. He had deluded himself. He'd received the news of what happened. The innocent experimented on. Civilians. Kekkai Genkai wielders. He had tracked his friend to outside the village, near Hi no Kuni's borders. Even after he had heard of what his friend did, he couldn't bring himself to try and kill him.
He let him go. To his eternal shame, he let him go.
He'd gotten blackout drunk and goaded Gamabunta into a fight after destroying a bandit hideout several miles out from the small village he was staying in. Ma and Pa called the two of them idiots after the two staggered away from their fight, bruised and in Jiraiya's case, bloodied and with a couple broken bones.
Another round of tracking anyone who thought they smelled blood in the water ensued. Konoha lost one of it's best Shinobi, just about 5 years after the Kyuubi attack and a year after the Hyuga incident. Konoha would need to know if any of the hostile nations were itching for another war.
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6 years after the Kyuubi attack.
Jiraiya smiled at the letter he had received. Naruto and Rin loved the gifts he had given them for their birthday. The copy of the book he gave them was his personal one. It was the first one printed. His Sensei had also put the report of Naruto's yin chakra issues that were in every letter he received. His godson was doing much better. Aside from a couple issues that would arise, lasting no more than a day, he was getting better. Jiraiya was planning to arrive in the village at the beginning of spring to loosen some of the tightenings he had placed on Naruto's seal. Hiruzen had told him of Inoichi's plan, and it was a sound one. Setting down the letter, Jiraiya prepared for sleep, thinking of how soon he'd finally get to meet them.
'That's odd. Why did I get another letter from Sensei?' Jiraiya thought himself. He'd received a letter just a couple days after the twin's birthday. Opening the letter, he read the contents. People on the same floor as him were wondering fearfully why they felt a wave of dread overwhelm them, followed by shouting, profanity, and the sound of things breaking.
Jiraiya read the letter, his hands shaking, his breathing audible. His chakra ended up igniting the letter right as he finished re-reading it.
Naruto had been attacked. Not only attacked, but nearly killed. His yin chakra looked fully stabilized, but Inoichi discovered something terrible when he mind walked.
He remembers that night.
A night that no child should ever remember. He saw and felt his mother and father die. Hiruzen had also put that Naruto wanted to be trained, something not necessarily bad. Jiraiya would have promptly dropped all his duties to get to Konoha. But the last part of the letter had changed his mind.
'Find who did this. The attack happened October 11.' A drawn image of the man's face, which Inoichi had drawn based upon what he had seen in Naruto's memory, was enclosed in the letter.
After trashing his room and finding something bigger to destroy, Jiraiya went out to track down the Shinobi that tried to kill his godson. He'd found him venturing away from a drop off point with his employer based on what he had done. Jiraiya wasn't able to get to the employer, but he did manage to get a name out of the man after several hours with him.
Orochimaru.
After Jiraiya was finished with the man who tried to kill his godson, not even Tsunade would have been able to have identified what was left as human.
He would find out everything he could about his traitorous teammate. He'd track him to the ends of the Earth if he had to. He'd tried to kill innocent people by breaking Naruto near a hospital.
He. Would. Pay.
////////////////////////////
8 years after the Kyuubi attack.
It never ends.
Everytime he was ready to get back to the village. Everytime he would have a chance to see the children he had vowed to protect, something always happened.
One of the worst days Konoha experienced since the Kyuubi attack, and there was a great deal to choose from, happened. Uchiha Itachi had slaughtered his entire clan, except for his brother. Hiruzen had not said clearly what happened, but Jiraiya could fill in the blanks. Itachi had acted under orders, orders that weren't from the Hokage. Probably Danzo. Hiruzen had said in the letter to expect info coming in about the Akatsuki. Meaning Itachi is likely acting as a double agent for Konoha.
He would need to maintain the network for longer now. No rest for the wicked.
////////////////////
Now
.
The newest letter from his Sensei filled Jiraiya with no small level of concern. Evidently, an unknown individual succeeded in infiltrating the Hyuga clan's compound, after subduing and taking the seals Naruto had been making off of him, and threatened to kill the entire clan. The man had skill, as well as information that nobody should have. No one had been told that he hadn't fully mastered Senjutsu. The man knew certain things about the Akatsuki that few had information of that magnitude.
Hiruzen had ordered him to find what he could to verify what the mysterious man had said, and to prepare his network for his temporary departure. Jiraiya would be returning to Konoha in less than a year.
'After so many years, I'll get to see them.'
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The day of graduation had arrived. After six years in the Academy, we were graduating. The Rookie 9 were a little bit better prepared for things, but I still had my concerns. They were still naive to the workings of the world, even though most were from Shinobi clans. Kakashi and Anko both demanded that if I were to continue to help train Hinata and Rin with my own little strategies and techniques, I would need to educate them on the nature of a Shinobi's life. They could tell I already knew. Death and killing was the way of the world.
Despite Man professing to be sophisticated, we're not as far separated from the beasts as we'd like to think. Predator animals don't generally target other predators for food. There's too much risk to do so unless you're desperate for sustenance. The same goes for Hidden Villages. Don't piss off the strong ones or you'll get claws and teeth to the throat. Said teeth and claws would be the Shinobi of the Village. Strong Shinobi equal a strong Village. A strong Village equals a stable home. A stable home is a good home.
This was something that Kakashi thought he would have to try and explain to me in terms that he thought I would need to hear it in. He was suprised when I gave him as much of an in-depth answer as I did. He told me that a strong body and technique means nothing unless you have the mental fortitude to carry through with it. A six year old with a knife and the will to kill is more dangerous than the Shodai if he were completely unwilling to harm someone.
So, I had to make a choice, continue to help Hinata and Rin in my spare time, requiring me to do what Kakashi instructed, or let their future team Senseis do it.
He's wanting to see if I'll pass the buck off to someone else.
It would be better for a close friend or a sibling to help them through it, than a jonin instructor that they may not know as well. So I did it. I had Rin and Hinata take care of a rabbit. Care for them for a week. Let them start to like the rabbits. Then, at the end of the week, have them kill the rabbit.
Rin was hit hard by it, but she knew the details of what I did at times when I ventured out on my own. I'd often place snares and traps in the forested area surrounding the village to get ahold of animals for food. The market's bullshit price hikes made sure that our monthly stipend would make it difficult to put enough food on the table, plus adding rent. Much of what I caught was rabbits. I'd shown her how to trap animals and skin them. This was the first time she'd done the killing herself.
Hinata's reaction was something I still thought about.
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Months prior
Hinata had been dedicating herself to her training. Ever since the infiltration of her clan's compound, she saw how vulnerable her family really was. Her father had been far kinder and more affectionate to her and Hanabi. Something had to have effected him severely. Naruto had told her how a man had interrogated him on where she was. Her affection for him grew when she found out that he refused to help the man get past the security seals, even after a great deal of torture.
Naruto was always protective of Rin. The strength of will Hinata saw in him was something she desperately wanted to have herself to protect Hanabi, so she worked harder.
With the help of Naruto and Rin, she'd been able to improve her taijutsu, her Ninjutsu, and overall physical fitness. Every week, Naruto would comment on her progress, saying how proud he was.
But this week was different. She saw Hatake Kakashi and Naruto speaking from a distance. Naruto looked displeased at something Kakashi had said. Their conversation lasted several minutes before Naruto gave him a nod, before returning to their training, he'd been giving her a basic rundown of Fuinjutsu, specifically storage seals and how to make them.
He broached the subject of how ready she was for the Shinobi life a few days later. He'd told her to bring the rabbit she had been caring for the last week.
"How much do you know about the details of what will be done?" he asked her, his voice slightly flat.
"I know that we will be doing D-rank missions for several months before our training begins to help and we can go on more dangerous missions." she said quietly, making continuous eye contact with him.
It had been difficult initially. He and Rin had helped her to not stutter when she spoke, as well as maintaining eye contact when she spoke. She was still a very reserved person, but she now wouldn't be a mess when she was the center of attention.
Naruto just looked at her, face set in stone. "You know that's not what I asked." he responded, voice neutral.
Hinata dreaded this conversation. She knew what being a strong kunoichi entailed. Shinobi that were considered strong were the ones best at killing.
"I'll need to kill people." she whispered.
Naruto just nodded, putting his hand on her shoulder comfortingly.
"I know." he said, "It will be hard, but the three of us will get through it."
Hinata nodded, before asking something that she was curious about.
"Why did you ask me to bring the rabbit?"
Naruto's face tightened, before answering.
"Please take him out of his cage."
Hinata was confused, but did as he requested. Holding the rabbit, she gave him a look of continued confusion.
Naruto exhaled audibly, before pulling a kunai from his holster.
"I want you to use this and cut its throat." he said firmly.
Hinata's eyes widened, shocked at what he had just said.
Kill it?
"Why?" she asked, horrorstruck at the thought. "Why would I need to kill it?"
"If you can't kill a rabbit, how can you hope to kill a person?"
"B-but," she started, her stutter coming out slightly, "The rabbit d-didn't do anything t-to me."
"Hinata," Naruto said calmly, looking directly into her eyes. " I've killed many rabbits. I've had to. Rin and I wouldn't have been able to afford to replace the equipment that is damaged when we train, pay rent, and put food on our table without me trapping and killing animals for food. I make explosive tags with my clones and sell them to the Village at a low price. Those tags are used to kill people. By my hand, there will be people who die that I will never see."
Hinata just stared at him, a look of sadness on her face.
'I think I know what he is trying to tell me.'
"I need to not hesitate when it matters." she said quietly, a tear going down her face. "I'm weak." she finished softly.
She felt Naruto's hand grip her shoulder tightly. "Don't you say that about yourself again." he scolded her, very little heat behind his words. "You are not weak. Neither Rin nor I would be friends with someone weak, or a coward."
"But I can't even kill a rabbit." she cried almost hysterically, "I'm weak just like the elders sa-"
Before she could finish her sentence, Naruto pulled her close, looking straight into her eyes, a fire dancing in his own.
"Those elders," he spat, "are fucking liars that fear a kind heiress being clan head. They fear that either you will be clan head, or they fear that Hanabi will take after you in being kind, since she looks up to you as her older sister."
Hinata was shocked at the venom in his voice aimed at the Hyuga elders.
"B-but-" she started.
"No buts," he interrupted, " Your kindness is not a weakness. It's something that few people have in the world. The elders don't want a clan head that could bring both branches of your clan back together."
Hinata had told Naruto and Rin about how terrible things were in the Branch house of her clan. They either hated the Main house, or they demeaned the haters for "shirking their honourable burden" to protect the Byakugan. Hinata saw all this hatred from the Branch house, and arrogance from the Main, coming from the use of the Seal.
She just wanted her clan and family to be whole.
Before she could say something, Naruto continued.
"Did Rin ever tell you about my yin imbalance when I was younger?" he asked quietly.
Hinata shook her head. She knew that he had had issues when he was younger, but no details on what the issues were.
"My yin chakra was unstable." he explained, "It caused me to lose focus, have difficulty thinking, temporary amnesia to the point where I couldn't even recognize my own sister's face."
Hinata almost felt ill at the thought.
'Forgetting Hanabi's face.'
"Did she tell you how I almost died?" He asked, his voice barely more than a whisper.
Her eyes widened at hearing that. She never knew he almost died.
"Rin said something to me and I misunderstood. I screamed at her and ran. Somebody attacked me an alley and I was stabbed in the chest and couldn't breathe."
Hinata started to tear up, horrified at what she was hearing.
"It hurt so much." he said quietly, "I almost wanted to die. But one thing kept going through my mind." he trailed off for a second.
"I couldn't leave my baby sister alone."
Hinata wasn't surprised at all that what made him refuse to give up was leaving his sister.
"Do you think I'm weak?" Naruto asked her.
"No." Hinata replied, shocked that he would even ask that.
Naruto got in her personal space, their faces just inches away, his eyes staring into hers. "I see the same fire in your eyes when I look in the mirror."
She couldn't believe what she had just heard.
'I remind Naruto of himself?'
"I saw how much more dedicated to training you were after you heard about somebody hurting me and breaking into your clan's compound. You want to be strong to protect what's precious to you. You'd never let your sister be hurt if you had anything to say about it. You're just like me."
"But you've always been strong." she said, trying not to think of what he had just told her. "I've only gotten better because yo-"
"You haven't seen me at my worst." he whispered. "You didn't know me after I was almost killed. I was terrified of being weak. Too weak to save my sister. I trained till my bones broke. I trained till I smelled like a trauma ward. I broke my body only to be healed and re-broken again, just so I wouldn't feel the fear of failure."
Hinata never thought that almost dying would do that to Naruto. He'd always seemed so strong. Someone who could shoulder any burden.
"It took several people to knock some sense into me. Kakashi, Anko, the Hokage, and Rin. I stopped being around those that were motivating me to get better in the first place. I wasn't living, I was just going from one broken bone and stab to the next. I'm not strong. I'm a mess. A mess of fears, worries, and terror that I can't save anyone precious to me."
Hinata could see his eyes glistening. He'd likely bared his soul to very few people in this manner. He must truely believe that she wasn't weak.
"I killed animals so Rin and I could eat. I made tags used to kill people to pay for equipment for training. Shinobi of Konoha kill so they have a home to come back to. I'm fighting so I can have a home to come back to. I don't want you or Rin to get killed because you hesitated." He finished, his voice hoarse.
Hinata now understood completely why he explained this to her. She was capable of being just as strong as him, she only had to believe in herself.
She picked up the kunai, her grip slightly shaking. "Does it get easier?" she asked in a trembling voice.
He took a deep breath, before exhaling. "It's not as bad when you remember why you are doing it." he said, his tone a kind one. "I've never killed an animal out of enjoyment. I'll do everything I can to make sure it doesn't happen." he finished firmly.
Hinata looked down at the rabbit, its eyes meeting her own.
"I'll be right here." he said quietly. "You won't be alone."
She gripped the kunai tightly. A slash across its throat. It struggling slightly for a moment. And then, silence. The light from its eyes fading.
Dropping the kunai, she started sobbing before being engulfed into a hug by Naruto, his hand going to her hair soothingly.
"You're ok." he whispered, her sobs racking her entire frame. " You're not alone. You're still you."
They sat there on the the training ground for several minutes, the boy she cared for deeply being there for her when she needed him. After some time had passed, she wiped her eyes and gave him a watery smile.
"Thank you, Naruto." She said. "Thank you for being here."
"That's what friends are for, Hinata." he said, pulling her into another hug.
'Yes.' she thought sadly. 'Friends.'
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'It was painful.' I thought to myself.
I couldn't tell her that I'd been killing animals since before she had been born, technically speaking. I also couldn't tell her that I'd killed a person. I knew my aim had been true. The man fell like a puppet with its strings cut. People don't fall like that unless the light had been switched off in their heads.
Gutting and skinning an animal is child's play compared to mustering the will to force the muscles in my hand to respond to my mind's command to squeeze a trigger to end another human being's life.
Rin was familiar with what I did. She only took a few minutes to talk with.
Hinata had to understand that she wasn't weak. I knew what she was capable of if she believed in herself. I was still irritated with myself that I couldn't find another way to make the elders back off aside from what I did. At least it made Hiashi aware of what he stood to lose. It made him become a better father.
The notes I'd copied from the Hyuga library was better than what I had initially thought. The scroll that concerned the Fuinjutsu knowledge that the clan had container a partial explanation on the Caged Bird Seal. It also said who made it.
The Uzumaki clan had been contracted out to design it several decades before Madara and Hashirama were even born.
If I could find out how the seal worked, I might be able to design one that is far less noticeable and doesn't have the debilitating part of it. A fitting present to a close friend.
I was initially worried about telling Hinata the details of certain fears of mine. It's a type of emotional intimacy that I'm uncomfortable with. But I saw how close she was to regressing into thinking she was a failure because she was hesitant about killing the rabbit.
'Freaking Kakashi.'
I knew Kakashi was right. I knew that me telling Rin and Hinata that everything was alright, that I understood how they felt, would mean more coming from me than it would Kurenai, him, or Anko.
Kakashi stressed how important it was for kunoichi to be prepared for Shinobi life. He never went into detail, but I knew what he wanted to say, but did not wish to give details, and likely didn't realize that I understood him 100%.
There was an interest in captured kunoichi to be used as "merchandise". I knew this world was capable of the same morally rancid behavior as the one I was first born in. But it was different to look at accounts of what happened at Nanking, to look at pictures, to read what people said happened, than it is to be confronted with the very real possibility that your female friends and sister have a greater chance of being kept alive for something that is nearly incomparably evil.
The day I realized that, was the day I made a vow to everything I held sacred. Whether it was my own life, my sister's, or the name of God himself, I vowed that not one. Single. Person. who did that would be shown any sympathy. I would give them the same mercy that they showed their victims.
It was why I was so fanatically "cruel and vicious" to the fangirls. Traffickers don't care that you want to be a skinny little bed warmer for an emotionally damaged 12 year old. They don't care that you have hopes, dreams, and a desire for a good future. They'll chew you up and spit you out to line their own pockets. I still gave a silent Thank you years after goading Sasuke into saying he liked strong girls.
This world wasn't a manga or anime. Neither of those gave details about Fuinjutsu. Neither detailed how the mortality rate of blond Konoha Shinobi near the Land of Earth rose exponentially after the death of Namikaze Minato. The amount of Yamanaka kunoichi that were found in pieces, having the misfortune of having a slightly more golden hue to their hair. The men that were found nailed to trees with tri-pronged kunai through their hands reminding me of some sick comparison to crucifixion when I first read about it.
I snuck into the chunin section of the library, the jonin library was one that I wasn't willing to risk, and found some accounts of what areas to have a henge on you, depending upon your features.
'Maybe that's why Kakashi wore a mask.He looks just like his father... Just as I do.'
If Iwa even thinks about targeting Rin the way they have with other blondes, their wretched Village will end up far worse after I'm done than what Konoha looked like after Pein.
My chakra started to froth a little bit and my Killing Intent started to leak out due to my emotional state. I reined it in when I started getting looks from the other students. Calming myself down, I growled irritability.
'When the hell are Iruka and Mizuki supposed to get here?'
Iruka didn't have as close of a relationship with me and Rin as he had with "Canon" Naruto. He was still kind and polite, after his initial spell of dislike, but it wasn't the close one that would have occurred. What was surprising, was that Mizuki was actually kind to me and Rin. Unless he wasn't a traitor in the service of Orochimaru, which I highly doubt it, there'd be no reason why it'd be different from his "Canon" self.
Sparing a glance at Rin, who was sat right beside Sasuke to irritate the fangirls, me, and Sasuke himself, she gave me a nervous smile, unsure of what the future entailed. I assured her and Hinata that everything would be fine. The graduation test wasn't that difficult. I could probably down a keg or two and still pull it off.
Pushing out my sensing ability, I felt Iruka and Mizuki not far away.
'Finally.' I thought. 'I've got an idea to screw with some people.'
I'd decided to test out how perverted people reacted to a jutsu that I reverse engineered from the series. The oiroke no jutsu worked almost as well as it was portrayed. Perverts didn't fly back from a blast of blood shooting from their noses, but they did get nosebleeds and I swore I saw a couple swaying afterwards. Say what you will about violating "guy code" for getting a guy's girlfriend or wife pissed at him for ogling a pretty girl in public. Bite me. It's hilarious.
Iruka finally arrived in the room to begin the exam.
Things mostly went the way I expected. Sasuke scored the highest of all students in everything but taijutsu. Me and Rin were at the top, with Hinata just one point behind Sasuke. The taijutsu scores for Ino and Sakura was higher than I expected, thankfully, but was still lower than they should be.
Things then moved on to the written test. I noticed that there appeared to be a minor error on my paper. Bored and wanting to know what the hell would happen, I ignored it, writing down answers that I knew would be incorrect.
Things finally got to where the Ninjutsu test was up next.
'This should be fun.' I thought.
Everybody who I knew who passed it did fine. Sasuke henged as Iruka as an example. Rin henged as the Hokage and demonstrated a perfect substitution and used a kage bunshin instead of a regular bunshin.
My turn came up next. Rin saw the smirk on my face, knowing I was going to pull something.
I substituted with Sasuke, getting a shout of suprise from him. I then henged as something that I had been working on for months in honour of the "Canon" Uzumaki Naruto. A buxom female nearly naked, save for a few wispy clouds, with the basis being Anko's frame, stood before Sasuke, giving a look of unmatched desire.
"Oh, Sasuke-kun." I squealed, managing to keep the revulsion out of my expression and voice. "Do you like how I look. I made it just for you." I said, approaching him even closer.
The looks from the guys in the class is what I expected. The fangirls had unmatched hatred when they saw that Sasuke reacted to the Henge more so than how he reacted to them. Hinata looked slightly embarrassed, while Rin looked irritated that I pulled the "Stupid pervert trick".
Sasuke's face turned pink, his eyes widening at the sight in front of him.
I broke him out of his thoughts when I switched back to my normal voice, still maintaining the Henge.
"This doesn't help your case, Uke-kun."
Sasuke's face drained of all colour when his mind connected the dots at who he was ogling.
"Wait," he sputtered, "I wasn't sta-"
"You have blood coming from your nose, Sasuke." I said flatly.
He checked, only to feel nothing.
"Ha, made you check." I snickered.
His face turned red and was ready to hit me before I said something else.
"Hit me and I'll give you another round in public." I threatened, no joking in my voice.
Sasuke's fist froze mid air. Growling to himself, he went back to his seat.
"Idiot." he muttered.
"Perv." I muttered back.
Sasuke didn't respond.
"Well," I said, Cheshire grin on my face, "Now you girls know he likes blondes that are stacked. Sorry to break it to you Ino, Sakura."
The two girls glared at me, pissed that I got a reaction from Sasuke, as well as what I was insinuating.
"As amusing as this is," Iruka cut in, his look an annoyed one, but his face slightly red, "You've still not done the bunshin. Please continue, Naruto."
This'll be fun.
Making a couple handsigns, even though I didn't strictly need to, I made two Kage bunshin. Before the smoke even cleared, I henged the two to look like Sakura and Ino.
Rin snickered when she guessed what I was going to do.
"Egh," 'Ino' exclaimed, "Now there's two of you. Too much forehead."
"It smells like a pig pen now, Ino-pig." 'Sakura' growled, turning up her nose.
The two 'girls' started arguing and wrestled each other to the ground, pulling each other's hair. Most of the boys were laughing at how accurate the depiction was. The two girls were horrified that this is what their arguments looked like to everyone else.
The cherry on top came when I henged as Sasuke. I pulled the two "girls" apart.
"Girls, girls there's no need to fight over little old me." I said with lecherous grin. "There's plenty of me to go around."
I then made a Kage bunshin also henged as Sasuke. The two "girls" squealed and one ran to the clone, the other to me.
Sasuke looked like he was going to have an aneurysm. I saw Shikamaru mouth the word "troublesome", Rin was shaking trying to hold in her laughter at the spectacle, Ino and Sakura looked like they were ready to kill me.
I dropped the henge on me and the clone henged as Sasuke. The two "girls" squealed louder.
"Naruto-kun." They shouted, stars in their eyes, "Oh, your so smart and handsome. Your hair doesn't look like a duck's butt. Please marry us, Naruto-kun."
Rin lost the battle with herself and started cackling and nearly fell out of her chair. Sasuke put a hand in his hair, muttering something about "No it's not". Everyone else was laughing at Sasuke, Ino, and Sakura's expense. I dropped the henge, dispelled the clones, and gave a grandiose bow.
"I aim to please." I said, a face splitting grin on my face, before going back to my seat next to Hinata.
"You're terrible." she giggled.
"I know." I said simply.
After the laughing and clapping had been calmed down by Iruka, he spoke.
"Yes, yes, very funny, Naruto. Now collect your Hitai-ate." he said.
I passed.
Picking one up, I wrapped it around my forehead, relishing in the sensation.
Everyone I expected to pass did so. Hinata slightly edged out Sakura as kunoichi of the year, which I was only slightly surprised at. Hinata had dedicated herself to being the best she could be.
I'd been in the middle of the pack, as was Rin. Getting the highest score would bring attention, as would being the deadlast. I didn't need comparisons to Jiraiya, at least not those kinds of comparisons.
After Iruka dismissed everyone, saying team placements will be announced in two weeks, Mizuki stopped me before leaving. Telling Rin and Hinata I'd meet them at Ichiraku's later, I turned towards Mizuki.
"Yes, Mizuki-sensei?" I asked, fairly certain what he was going to ask me about.
"Congratulations on passing, Naruto." he said warmly. "You must be very proud."
"I am." I said simply. "Soooo, what do you want to talk to me about."
"I noticed how good you were with stealth compared to the other students." he started.
Even with me holding back to the best of my ability, I still couldn't suppress the instincts browbeaten into me by Kakashi and Anko. It's difficult to unflip a switch like that.
I just shrugged my shoulders. "Yeah, I noticed that to."
"Do you know that there is a second test for skilled infiltrators?" he asked.
I gave a look of mock suprise.
So that's where he's going with this."No." I said, surprise in my tone. "I didn't know that."
"You can get extra credit if you can pull off an infiltration mission in the village." Mizuki said. "You could rub it in Sasuke's face that you did something he couldn't."
"I thought teachers weren't supposed to play favorites." I responded, a cheeky grin on my face.
"Well," he said, chuckling. "I think we can keep it a secret between the two of us."
I nodded to him, my thoughts starting to race.
'Why the hell was he nice the whole time? He was a bastard at times in the show, why the change? If I didn't know the stunt he's wanting to pull, I'd almost trust him.'
"What's the mission, Mizuki-sensei?" I asked excitedly.
Mizuki just grinned.
"You need to sneak into the Hokage Residence , grab the Scroll if Seals and bring it to me."
"Sounds hard... but I'll do it." I said firmly.
"Good." Mizuki smiled, "Bring it out passed training ground 26, I'll be there at 8:00. Don't be late."
I nodded before leaving the Academy.
'I need to tell the Hokage.'
//////////////////////
Hiruzen was busy at work behind his desk, when he felt Naruto's presence closing in.
'A suprise, but a welcome one.' He thought.
Naruto entered the room, a look of seriousness on his face.
"Yes, Naruto?" he asked, concern in his voice.
"Yes or No, Jiji," he started, " Is there a second extra credit test for infiltration for Academy students?"
Hiruzen was suprised at what Naruto asked.
'Second what?'
"No, of course not." he said, "Why would you think that?"
"Mizuki told me otherwise and said I'd get extra credit if I infiltrated the Hokage Residence and got ahold of the Scroll of Seals and brought it to him." he said simply.
'What?'
Mizuki wanted the Scroll of Seals. The scroll containing information on some of the most dangerous jutsu known to the Hokages. And he planned to have Naruto try and get it.
"You understand what he's trying to do, don't you?" he asked.
"That's why I came here." Naruto said. "Something didn't seem right."
Hiruzen was silent for a moment, collecting his thoughts.
"We will apprehend Mizuki." he finally said. "Thank you for bringing this to me, Naruto."
"If I may," Naruto started, "Why don't you let me try it?"
"What?" Hiruzen asked, suprised by what he'd heard from the boy.
"Let me explain," Naruto started, "You'd only have my word, "demon brat", compared to a school teacher. I don't want any of the civilians thinking your playing favorites. They already pull dumb stuff anyways."
Hiruzen understood what Naruto was saying. The Shinobi council was one that was established with the founding of Konoha. The Nidaime made a law where civilians had the opportunity to form a secondary council for their own concerns, so long as it was approved by the Shinobi council. Several merchants and other financially affluent civilians offered low interest loans with no strings attached to help rebuild the village following the Kyuubi attack. The only request from them was to have a secondary council made.
The civilian council had been raising a fuss about Naruto and Rin getting training from two Jonin. They stopped complaining only after it was pointed out that Anko and Kakashi were doing this off the clock and weren't being paid for it. At least, Kakashi wasn't. Anko got dango as her payment from the twins.
Hiruzen just growled irritably at the thought of having to go through paperwork involving idiotic merchants again.
"I sense this isn't the only reasoning." he said simply.
Naruto nodded his affirmative. "It'll also show me where my Infiltration skills are at."
Hiruzen just raised a brow. "You do realize that you would have to get past me to get scroll?"
"Then you shouldn't be worried." he grinned.
Hiruzen thought about it for a minute. It would solve any issues involving the civilian council trying to overreach out of their jurisdiction, like they often did when it concerned the village jinchuriki.
Sighing, he gave Naruto his answer.
"Fine," he said, " You will attempt to take the scroll. A fake one will be supplied. If you can get the scroll and prevent a fight with me, I'll let you learn one jutsu, so long as I approve."
Naruto's eyes widened at what he had said. Most things in the scroll were kinjutsu.
"Okay," Naruto said, regaining his composure. "Mizuki said for me to meet him at 8:00, near training ground 26."
Hiruzen nodded. "Kakashi will be their to intervene. You were wise to tell me this Naruto, I'm very proud."
Naruto gave him a smile, one full of admiration and respect.
"I've learned from a good role model."
Hiruzen dismissed Naruto, telling him to get to the Hokage's Residence at the time he needed to. After Naruto had left, Hiruzen looked towards the portraits of the Hokage's.
'You'd be proud of your children, Minato.'
/////////////////
"I was chosen by heaven. Say my name when you pray, to the sky, see Carolus rise." I sang to myself quietly, relishing in the memories that kind of music brought to the forefront of my mind. No music in this world could compare to the soul igniting capabilities of Metal.
It was almost time for me to try and infiltrate the Hokage's Residence. I already knew how I was going to get in, I'd scoped it out with Henged clones after what I did at the Hyuga compound. I knew there was a chance that the currently unfolding event could occur just as it had in "Canon". I'd been hoping that I would be able to look in the scroll to learn more than a couple techniques. Edo Tensei was something that repulsed me. I have no damned clue how Senju Tobirama justified doing something as debased as pulling someone from their eternal rest. Perhaps he made it so he himself could be called upon to protect The Village he helped create alongside his brother and Madara. Or maybe it was used as a scare tactic. 'I'm gonna rip your guts out and have you kill your friends before I release you back to the Shinigami.'
Nobody wants to fight an enemy that can do that. Hashirama had Wood release. Madara had his eyes. Tobirama had Hiraishin and Edo Tensei.
The fact that Hiruzen offered me a jutsu from the scroll was good. I didn't want to go behind his back and try to learn some of the ones that would help me in the future. I understood his concerns. I'd be worried if a percieved child was as driven as I was. I'd been curious how much I reminded him of Orochimaru when I'd grasp a concept fast, or when I put my whole focus and energy into something. He'd sometimes get a wistful look when that would happen.
Focusing on the matter at hand, I made my way to the building after a couple of my clones synchronized a sensory ping before dispelling so I could get a full 360 layout of anyone in the house. I was very disturbed that I only felt a faint residual chakra outline.
Hiruzen had the strongest chakra level behind me or Rin. Fire affinities stood out the most. Hiruzen was suppressing his signature to the point that nearly a dozen pings caught nothing.
Being able to sense his residual signature, but not him, was akin to a dog being able to smell your scent on a shirt that you threw in the corner but is unable to smell you yourself when you're 10 feet in front of him.
'If I get hit by a jumpscare Genjutsu I'm gonna be pissed.'
Getting into the building, I snuck towards where the scroll was located. I had dozens of henged clones outside and in the building in the form of mice. I didn't need to worry about their chakra burn rate, I'd only need them for a distraction.
I'd finally reached the scroll. I grabbed it and made my way to leave, and I wasn't even suprised that I heard something behind me before I fully turned.
"Better than I expected, but not good enough."
Turning, I saw Hiruzen standing in the doorway, a fake look of disappointment on his face.
"How could you do this, Naruto? You have betrayed the village in your quest for power."
'Oh, so we're playing the alibi game.'
"You can not stop me. The circle is now complete. When I left you I was but the learner, now I am the master." I said, a barely perceptive grin on my face.
"I will do what I must." Hiruzen said solemnly, pulling a kunai out, it pointing out to his right.
'No. Freaking. Way. This man did not just stumble across that coincidentally. Fate... Thank you for giving me this.'
Taking all my will power to keep a straight face, I dropped the scroll and prepared myself.
"You will try."
Before Hiruzen could approach, I used the jutsu I'd planned on since the very inception of my plan.
Oiroke no jutsu.
Sometimes, oversights can be forgiven. They oftentimes are detrimental to what you were trying to do. But in this case, the oversight is what led to my triumph.
I'd forgotten to make the clouds.
Hiruzen's eyes bugged out and fully dilated, a steady trickle of blood coming from his nose. I heard the kunai fall from his hand with a clatter, and his unconscious body crumbling to the ground.
'Oh shit, did I kill him?'
Dropping the henge, I went to check on him. I heard him giggle slightly.
"Don't scare me like that, you old bastard." I said, slipping into English.
I was never going to let him live down the fact that he was defeated by a jutsu as asinine as what I just used.
'Anko will fuck me up if she found out I used her frame as inspiration, and not in the good way.'
Pulling out my Fuinjutsu pen and ink, I got to work. I put the word "pervert" right in the center of his forehead. His hat would hide it, but chakra conductive ink tends to itch for a few hours after application.
Turning back to pick up the scroll, I exited the building, the tension I'd felt lessening greatly.
Hiruzen planned to have a general announcement sent out to the Shinobi about me taking the scroll. I'll need to hurry.
Racing towards the training grounds, I set the scroll down. Wanting to sell that it was the real one, I opened it up to read. It had things written on it, just not what you'd expects
'What the hell is this? If this is Hashirama's I'll never think of the man in the same light.'
The scroll had descriptive details on how certain jutsu could be used to spice things up in the bedroom.
'I don't need to think of this when I think of the Kages.' I thought before closing the scroll.
I only needed to wait around 15 minutes before Mizuki arrived.
"Well done, Naruto." he said, a look of suprise on his face. "You did it sooner than I thought."
"Cut the shit." I said flatly. "I know there is no test. You wanted the scroll."
Mizuki's face shifted to shock, before shifting to one of confusion. "How did you get the scroll?"
"Snuck in, avoided the Hokage." I said simply.
Avoiding the Hokage was no small feat for a recently graduated 12 year old.
"Join me." Mizuki said. "The one I work for values talent. He could make you great."
"Your employer?" I asked, playing along.
"Orochimaru of the Sannin." Mizuki said. "He'll give you everything you could ever desire if you give him the scroll."
I made a show of running the statement through my mind, eventually frowning.
"What can he give me that the Hokage won't?" I asked, "He was the student of the Shodai and Nidaime, what can a Sannin offer in comparison?"
"He could tell you why you and your sister are hated."
So that's where he's going.
"Please," I asked, "Tell me. What is it that makes them like that? What did we do wrong?"
Mizuki evidently took the bait from how his chakra shifted excitedly.
"They fear the two of you." he started. "You two were born the day of the Kyuubi attack, as you know. But unlike what the history books say, the Kyuubi can't be killed, only sealed away. Bijuu are pure chakra and can't be destroyed. The Yondaime sealed the Kyuubi away and it was sealed into a prison that would hold it... a human."
I still kept up the act.
"Please," I begged, "What are you saying?"
"The Yondaime sealed it into you and Rin."
I adopted a look of horror at what I heard.
"W-what?" I stuttered, taking a step back.
"Yes," Mizuki said, "The village thinks you and your sister are demons. They won't hesitate to kill you."
"The Hokage won't let that happen." I said simply, injecting some worry in my voice.
"Do you really think he'd let the containers of the Kyuubi hate him?" Mizuki asked, "He has lied to you so you won't leave the village and be free."
I started wringing my hands and took a shuddering breath.
"No," I shook my head, "He's not like that. He'll protect us."
"He's an old man." Mizuki said matter-of-factly, "He won't be able to protect you forever. Come with me, and Lord Orochimaru will make you one of the most powerful Shinobi in the world. Powerful enough to protect your sister."
I flinched at the last part.
How the fuck would he know to approach it from that angle?
"I see the worry when you see her fighting Sasuke." Mizuki said, giving a sad smile. "You love her and want to protect her. Lord Orochimaru can help you with that."
I stood there, slightly shaken by what was happening.
'If this NPC worthy prick can see how much I care for Rin, and is willing to use that to manipulate me, what happens when the heavy hitters come around? His master? Akatsuki?'
Mizuki probably misunderstood my silence for serious thought on accepting. I saw a ghost of a smile appear on his face.
My head sharply turned to my left. I felt a familiar presence.
'Why the hell would Kakashi let his suppression slip? Probably to let me know he's arrived. Not many people are as good of a sensor as I am.' Mizuki noticed my abrupt shift towards something in the trees.
"Please, Naruto." He implored, "I won't be able to offer this again."
I just stood there silently.
"I'm sorry." Mizuki said, before charging towards the scroll.
I pulsed chakra into the storage seal stitched into the inside of my sleeve, depositing a kunai into my hand. I coated it in some lightning chakra before flinging it at Mizuki.
Whether I'd gotten good at throwing from training with two Jonin, one who was quick and flexible and the other being one of Konoha's best current Shinobi, or Mizuki wasn't prepared for it, or if it was a mixture of both, I don't know.
But it all seemed to go in slow motion. The kunai was on target. He didn't get his hand up in time to block it, nor did he have time to dodge. The chakra enhanced blade tore straight through his throat, severing his spinal column from the front. He dropped to the ground in a nearly identical way that the man I shot had.
The difference being that I spoke just moments ago with the person I just killed.
Kakashi had dropped from his cover to intervene, but had stopped mid sprint when he saw me fling the kunai. I turned to him with a flat expression on my face, his own showing shock.
"Are you ok?" he asked as he got close to me.
I looked to Mizuki's corpse, then back to Kakashi.
"No." I said quietly, trying to control the tremor in my hand, "No I'm not."
Kakashi put a hand on my shoulder.
"You didn't mean to, did you?" his voice laced with concern.
"I didn't think his reflexes would be so much less than yours." I said hollowly, "I didn't mean to kill him."
Kakashi just nodded, keeping his hand on my shoulder.
"The first is always the worst," he said, "I wouldn't have been surprised if you had vomited."
"I still might." I said shortly, the memory of my own death being forcibly dragged to the front of my mind.
Kakashi made a clone to "inform the Hokage that the scroll and thief were located".
We remained there for several minutes, me lost in my own thoughts with Kakashi's presence keeping me from falling apart.
"You're the best one to talk to me." I said, breaking the silence. "I trust you over anyone else. You understand this. Rin and Hinata needed me, and you're here for me."
Kakashi nodded.
"Never forget that you aren't alone, Naruto." he said quietly. "You don't need to have the whole world on your shoulders. Others are there for you."
'Weight of the world. You have no idea, Kakashi.'
"Rin has you," Kakashi continued, "And you have me."
I just smiled softly at the thought.
"I'm her big brother that protects her, loves her, and helps her when she's hurting." I said, my voice barely above a whisper. "And you're like an older brother for me."
Kakashi slightly stiffened at the last part, before relaxing.
"Yeah." He said, a slight phantom sadness in his tone. "Just like that."
//////////////////
END CHAPTER:
I put his disdain a fangirls in here because of how vicious he is concerning being protective of Rin. He can't help but visualize his own sister being in danger from potentially not being prepared for what's out there in the world. So call the fangirls not prioritizing being prepared reminds him of what he fears most.
