19 Ch 17. Last day and Goodbyes.
Izana had finally finished the last of the D-rank missions inside of Konoha that he would have to finish. It was one of the few missions he could do in his own without a team. Considering he would be without one for three years, it was only safe to save up some money, as the missions outside the village would surely be more difficult. So, he had taken on multiple missions in bulk, finishing them all in record speed to collect his pocket money. After this last mission, Izana and Jiraiya would depart outside of the village.
Izana notified the results of his mission to Jiraiya, who as usual was hidding somewhere with a lot of women. Izana didn't want to get on Jiraiya's bad side, so he quietly reported the results. Having done that, Izana went to spend his afternoon with Naruto. It would be two years before Naruto would enter the academy, but Izana wanted to give him a little head start.
When he arrived, Naruto was happily munching on the content of a ramen cup. It was the instant cup ramen, those that were quickly prepared but were too easy to throw in a random corner of the room. Something Naruto had become proficient in. The room was again a huge mess, so Izana began his usual cleaning routine again. This would be the last one in three years. Fortunately aunt Mikoto had announced she would take over his weekly visit, as well as hammer some crucial clean up routines into Naruto before he returned.
Naruto noticed the increase in clones of Izana, the trash in his home disappearing at a crazy speed, running quickly as he made his way towards the entrance.
He knew that Izana's main body would be there, as they had made a promise to do it that way if Izana came by. Naruto greeted Izana happily, offering him a cup of ramen.
Izana ruffled Naruto's hair, declining the food, before he took him towards the third training ground. In the middle of it were three poles stuck deep in the ground. It was a usual addition to most training grounds these days.
It was quiet and peaceful, a perfect place for Naruto to practice.
"Naruto. Tomorrow I'll be going outside of the village with my sensei, Jiraiya. I'll be gone for at most three years and won't be able to see you in that time. Though you will join the academy in two years, I wanted you to get a head start, so I'm going to teach you how to train your chakra."
Izana said as he motioned for Naruto to sit down in front of him. Naruto had tears in his eyes when he heard Izana talk about leaving, but still sat obediently down in front of him.
Izana taught Naruto how to circulate his chakra, a way to improve his control and increase his chakra. Naruto messed up in his first few attempts, the chakra simply evaporating into thin air, but quickly got the hang of it. It was still slow, but there was progress. When he entered the academy, Naruto's control should be adequate enough to master a few jutsu's.
"Now keep training and you'll be great at it in no time. Along with this technique, I will teach you the transformation technique and how to increase your chakra control to the next level."
Izana showed Naruto the kata for the transformation technique and explained how it worked. Naruto seemed to have a sort of enlightenment as a wicked smile appeared on his face. This sort of grin was never a good sign if Naruto did it.
Izana could already imagine what he had in mind, but didn't bother to stop him as he wouldn't be in the village anyway when Naruto executed his plans. He wouldn't regret teaching this to Naruto. None. He wouldn't be the recipient anyway. No regrets. None at all. He didn't care about the victims. Better luck next time.
Izana thought about the future troubles the Third would have and couldn't help but smile at his misfortune. Should have looked after Naruto more carefully. The hands off approach never works in child care.
Izana coughed slightly and showed Naruto how to increase his chakra control. He showed it by letting a leaf stick to his forehead, by walking on water as well as by walking upwards on a tree.
Izana quickly explained how it worked and wrote down notes if Naruto didn't remember the techniques anymore or if he had difficulties performing them. While it might be hard for Naruto to understand, he would surely figure something out. That's just how Naruto works around certain issues.
Deciding to leave Naruto to his own thoughts, Izana went to spend the rest of his day with his family. It would after all be the last day he would see them in three years.
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Back at the Uchiha residence Izana was happily spending his time with Sasuke. Uncle Fugaku was away on some clan meeting and Itachi was on a mission, so it was only him, aunt Mikoto and little Sasuke.
Sasuke was around the same age as Naruto, but he had Itachi to teach him all about Shinobi stuff and Mikoto to take care of him. So instead of teaching Sasuke shinobi related stuff, Izana rather played with Sasuke.
Right now, Izana had Sasuke on his shoulders as he jumped through the trees at a fast pace. Sasuke was yelling in excitement as he reveled the speed. He was even shouting at Izana to go faster. What a fearless little brat Sasuke was.
Izana happily laughed out loud as Sasuke was steering them in different directions by pulling on Izana's hair.
Mikoto was looking at this scene with a gentle smile on her face as she was glad the two boy were having fun. Not long after Itachi returned too. It seems the mission had gone well and he had returned earlier than expected.
Izana was happy that Itachi was back, that way he would see him one more time before he left Konoha.
"Yo, Itachi. Been a while since you were home." Izana said waving at Itachi. Sasuke imitated him making a funny scene of Izana and Sasuke doing the same motions as Sasuke was still on top of Izana.
Despite Itachi's serious demeanor, he laughed out loud at the funny pair. Sasuke and Izana looked at each other as they too started to laugh.
"Ara ara, am I missing out on something?" Mikoto said as she came back with a plate filled with dango.
Itachi wiped the tears of the laughing from his eyes as he shook his head, a smile still on his face. "Izana and Sasuke were just being a pair of little monkeys, that's all." Itachi said as he could still see their actions in his mind.
Mikoto placed her hand against her face as she seemed a bit sad. "Ara, I really wanted to see those monkeys too." Mikoto said.
Izana and Sasuke both slanted their heads in confusion. Monkeys? Where were the monkeys? Didn't see them at all.
This time Sasuke didn't do it on purpose so it was quite comical to see it again. Mikoto smiled at the scene. Little monkeys indeed.
Sasuke slid down from Izana's shoulders, as they all happily ate their snacks. The evening passed uneventful, as Fugaku was back quite late from the meeting and went straight to bed.
Itachi, Izana and Sasuke spent their night together on the porch as they slept beneath the night sky, sharing a futon. It was really pleasant to share the night sky with the three of them. Izana smiled as he curled up besides Sasuke and went to sleep. His day was pleasant, more so than usual.
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The next day, Izana bade farwell to Konoha and his family for the next three years. The Uchiha waved them goodbye when Izana left, making for a sad scene. Especially when Sasuke hugged him and said he hoped Izana would come back soon and that he had to write letters about his adventures and experiences.
Izana nodded as he patted Sasuke on the head. He waved goodbye at the Uchiha and departed.
Izana looked back once more, spotting a well hidden Naruto. Izana winked at him and gave him a small wave, after which he turned his back towards Konoha and joined Jiraiya on his journey towards their destination and many possible hotspring trips.
