-13- Huge surprise

Nobu leaned in close, whispering, "So why do you want to be a ninja so bad? Would you really pick it over your family?"

"I don't know," Renji lied, "But I think I would pick being a ninja. I mean, I love my family more than anything, even being a ninja, but I have to be a ninja. There's nothing else I want more in this life than being a ninja." Renji, this time, didn't lie. He did love his family more than being a ninja. It was just that he loved his little brother just a little bit more than his parents, and the only way to see him again was to be a ninja so he would be allowed to leave the mystic realm.

And besides, even if his parents forced him to move out if he wanted to be a ninja, he would still be able to see them and know that they were alive and okay. But with his brother, he had no clue where he was or how he was. Was he training to be a ninja, or would he forever be a civilian? He just didn't know anything about his brother's situation, and that killed him every time he thought about it.

Soon, it was time for class to start, and Takeshi walked in and said, "Good morning, everyone. I hope you all had a nice summer and trained well."

"Good morning sensei!" the class echoed in unison.

"Good," Takeshi nodded, happy with the class's enthusiastic response.

"Today we will have a brief overview of what we will be doing this year."

"First, we will be focusing heavily on chakra control and nature training."

"Second, we will focus on close combat, and you all will need to decide whether you want to focus on taijutsu, kenjutsu, bojutsu(staff), or something else."

"Third, all of you need to excel in shurikenjutsu. Every good ninja is good at shurikenjutsu."

"Fourth is ninjutsu. We will be learning the 3 basic jutsus: transformation jutsu, clone jutsu, and substitution jutsu."

"And lastly, fifth is your training regime. You are all a year older, with most of you being 7 now, and with a year of training under your belt, it's time to knock your physical training up a notch."

"These are the 5 things you will be tested on at the end of the year for your ninja skills," Takeshi announced, his voice steady and commanding.

Takeshi then started the day with civilian classes, and after lunch, he quickly went through all 5 things they would be tested on during the final exam.

He even passed out 196 scrolls that had the 3 basic ninjutsu on them so they could start training them after school.

Before long, the first day of school was over, and Renji and Nobu were on their way to training ground 36-NE.

When they were almost there, Nobu finally couldn't hold his excitement anymore and said, "I've got a huge surprise for you, Renji!"

Renji's eyes had a glint of curiosity. "Oh really, what is it?"

Nobu's grin widened. "My parents got me a retired jounin to start training me, and they even paid a little extra so that he would train you too."

Renji was in complete shock. He did not expect this at all. He knew that Nobu's parents liked him, especially since he was Nobu's only real friend, but this gesture was beyond his wildest expectations.

"Are you for real?" Renji asked for confirmation, thinking Nobu might be pranking him.

"Yeah, I'm for real. He's going to go over everything we are supposed to be learning in the academy this year, and he's going to train us both in kenjutsu and teach us how to be a sensor." Nobu said, his face glowing with excitement.

Renji was stunned, a mix of shock and joy rendering him almost speechless. "Wow," he finally managed, the enormity of the opportunity sinking in.

"Unfortunately, he's only going to train us on Mondays and Wednesdays, but still, we're going to have a jounin to train us twice a week." Nobu said, unable to hold his excitement.

"Well, what are we waiting for? Let's go!" Renji exclaimed, darting ahead, his eagerness evident as he raced Nobu to the training ground.

The two 7-year-old boys quickly made it to the training ground, where they found an old man sitting on the ground, lost in deep meditation.

"Should we tell him we're here?" Nobu whispered.

"I don't know. Maybe we should just leave him be, and when he's ready, he will let us know." Renji whispered back.

The old man's voice interrupted their hushed conversation, sounding as ancient and wise as he appeared. "No, it's fine. Please, come take a seat."

"Yes, sir." x2

The two boys were quick to find a seat in front of the old man, who, after 1 minute of sitting there, finally opened his eyes and stood up.

He was about 5'11 with a lean but muscular build. His hair was short and black, but with some graying. He had sharp brown eyes with a look of calm and wisdom in them, and lastly, he had a long scar running from his left cheek down to his jaw.

"My name is Hiroshi Sarutobi. You should be Nobu Kaji," he looked at Nobu, "and you should be the Namikaze and Uzumaki who's been lying to his parents, Renji." He looked at Renji with what he thought was a small look of disapproval.

"Yes, sir." x2

'Is it my mind just wanting it to be true, or does he kind of resemble Hiruzen?' Renji wondered.

"Well, I don't care who you are or what you've done or the reasons you've done them. I'm here to train two young ninjas, and that's what I plan to do. So to start with, we will begin with physical training to clear the mind," Hiroshi declared with a steely resolve.

"Now follow me and do as I do," Hiroshi said, his voice firm yet calm.

"Yes, sir." x2

'This guy seems like the real deal,' Renji thought, struggling to hide his excitement at finally having a mentor in the Naruto world.

The two boys' excitement was quickly doused after 2 hours of training.

Thanks to the ruthless but kind-looking old man, it was the two most hellish hours of the boys' lives.

His training regime made the academy's look like a cakewalk. Halfway through, the two boys ran out of chakra, but not only did the old man not slow down, he instead increased the tempo with only one line of words, "You're not efficient enough. You both have enough chakra to finish the exercise. So do better next time."

After the exercise, Hiroshi commanded, "Sit."

The boys collapsed onto the ground, panting heavily.

"I expect you two to follow this routine every day, even when I'm not here. If I find out you're not, and believe me, I will find out, then that's it. I will no longer train you, regardless of the money your parents offer since I'm not doing this for the money to start with. Am I clear?"

"Yes, sir." x2

"Good, now eat this," he commanded, tossing a pill to each boy. 

"These are called soldier pills. They will periodically give you a boost of chakra. They allow a ninja to fight for days at a time, but they come at a price. On the 4th day, you will crash, so every 4th day, you two will rest and meditate, calm your mind, and think about the smallest details of every movement, of every technique, of every jutsu."

"Yes, sir." x2

"Good. Now as you rest and get some of your chakra back, I will tell you about myself."

He settled down, the stern lines of his face softening. "First, you can stop with the 'yes sir' crap. I'm not that strict. Just call me and treat me like a grandpa, and I'll treat you like I do my grandkids."

He paused as if considering where to begin. "Next, I've been with the Hand since its inception. I was among the first group of ninjas that was recruited by Kazan himself. I'm a Jounin level ninja and would likely be ranked as an Elite Jounin if I could be bothered to go in for an evaluation right now."

"I'm also Gold rank in body tempering, and I've completed over a thousand missions. I've worked in various sects, including the Eyes, the Blades, the Shields, and the Minds. But I retired years ago due to the Hand starting to turn away from the very ideals we were founded upon."

"Now, I spend my time practicing calligraphy and meditation to clear the mind and have just decided to mentor you two to try and give back to the Hand that has treated me so well."

The boys nodded, absorbing his words. 

"Sensei, I've got a question," Renji asked.

Hiroshi gave him a look, then sighed, "I told you to treat me like your grandpa, but whatever. What's your question?"

"When can we start body tempering?"

Hiroshi laughed, "You ready to start feeling the pain now are you?"

'Pain? There's going to be pain?' Renji wondered; he hadn't heard much about body tempering, but he never heard anything about pain.

Hiroshi continued, "Well, most kids start to learn that in either their 3rd, 4th, or 5th year at the academy, so we will see if you two are ready for it next year or not."

"Okay, the soldier pills should have kicked in by now, so we will start with chakra control."

"Show me what I'm working with."