Chapter 42

His four, now five eager students sat in front of him with the innocence of pre-school children. Little did they know that what they're going to experience in the next week will probably be anything but a walk in the park.

"I have been trying to master my eyes for the past year whilst I trained you all, and now I have gained enough proficiency to try what I'm about to do today.

The girls nodded.

"What is it, sensei?" Hinata asked.

Ino, Sakura looked at him eagerly whilst Haku and Sarada remained as stoic and reserved as ever. Though there was no denying the glint in their eyes.

They, too, wondered what he was going to do in training them.

Naruto Hagoromo nee Uzumaki was anything but an incredible teacher, whilst also keeping them on their toes with his often unorthodox methods.

Naruto only smiled, before turning to his mother who seemed oddly happy after his student's acceptance of his past.

"You're coming too," He simply stated.

Before Kushina could so much as arch her eyebrows, Naruto snapped his fingers.

And the world around them changed.

Not in the way that signified the passing of time, nor the movement of nature, but the transformation of reality itself.

In one moment, they were in the Valley of the End, the two symbols of a legacy looming over this place like twin mountains, then they were…somewhere else, and those statues had all but disappeared.

Naruto's eerie purple eyes blazed and his tomoe spun.

He smiled wide and gestured around him.

It was a place of unbelievable setting. Trees loomed overhead yet the ground was filled with desert sand, the sky was as blue as a midsummer's day yet stars could still be seen through the blanket of clouds.

"Welcome to the Animal Kingdom," he said as if nothing at all made little sense around him, "Do be careful of what you touch as nothing is as it seems. Follow your calling. Find your path. Seek and be found."

Then, breaking his mystical demeanour he waved at them.

"You girls have a good week now!"

With that, he was gone.

And the six women cursed at his theatrics.

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Naruto now saw the reason why Hagoromo Ootsuki liked to be as puzzling in his words as he was–the notebook a prime example–and he would be lying if he said he didn't enjoy the look on their faces as they swore his name for leaving them there.

Ofcourse, when he explored the complexities of the animal path, he found that summoning hypnotised creatures as pain used to do was but the barest of its full potential.

When he stumbled upon this distorted place, he thought he was yet transported to another world once again. But then he noticed that it was different. He felt that his soul, at the time, was linked to another place, an anchor, almost, that could pull him back at any time he wished.

With his human path, he could sense those ankers in the girls as well.

Naruto chuckled as he watched them stumble around and he could only hope that they would be able to find their path in this place, unlike him.

His own sense of belonging was…so far away. A place where he could not reach and could not find yet was calling to him like the ringing of a bell.

He thought his connection would be to mount Myoboku, the very place where he learned to be a sage…and yet when he stumbled upon the toads of the forest, he felt no connection to them.

It seemed that even with his biology and DNA changed, it was not the only thing that was different about him than his past self.

Perhaps, his connection would reveal itself when the time is right.

He turned his gaze once more to the girls, and to his surprise, it seemed that some were already following their senses.

Sarada was the first to diverge and despite the calling and shouts of her fellow students, the moment she stepped away from them, it would be impossible for them to find her again.

Her path was hers now.

Kushina had been next, perking up her head like she'd surprised before she, too, was on her way.

Slowly but surely, all six of the women split from one another, each going different directions.

Naruto was curious to where their path would lead.

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Sarada hated it when Naruto didn't explain what they were doing before throwing them straight into the fire.

This place, weird as it was, was oddly comforting in its environment. The soft breeze rustled the leaves above and blew tiny motes of sand onto her clothes.

It was like there was a subtle genjutsu in the air, one that made them tranquil and at peace.

Sarada huffed, and looked towards her friends.

"What do we do now?" She asked.

Most of them shrugged, all except for Lady Kushina.

The respected matriarch smiled and seemed amused at her ward's actions.

"It seems we're on our own to figure it out. He's probably still here though, making sure that we're not in danger and all that," Kushina said.

"Perhaps we should look around," Hinata suggested and both Sakura and Ino nodded, agreeing.

It was at that moment when Sarada felt a chill run down her spine.

It was like someone was looking at her.

…or rather something.

It had the feel of a wild beast, a gaze that looked upon her like she was prey.

She was not prey. She would show it so.

When she turned around, brandishing her sword, everything changed once more.

She was no longer in the desert jungle but somewhere else entirely.

A forest, one with rocky terrain and unforgiving winds, so unlike the calm of her previous location.

She looked back only to find that she was alone, and her friends along with Lady Kushina were gone.

She slowed her breathing and stayed calm, just as Naruto had taught them. It was no place to panic. Panic flayed judgement. And a lack of judgement invited death.

She heard a growl, wild and feral, then a snarl, then a howl.

She slowly turned to face her monster.

A giant wolf stared back at her with disdain…and rage.

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When Sarada suddenly disappeared right before their eyes, they were all alert.

Kushina even more so, though she trusted her son to keep them safe.

"Sarada?" Sakura called out, checking to see if she was alright with a worried voice. The two teammates had grown irreparably close despite their initial animosity.

No response came however, which made them all the more vigilant of danger.

Then, like smelling an all too familiar scent, one of honey and apples, Kushina perked up.

"Naruto?" She called out before she, too, stepped towards the source.

And she, too, was gone, just like that.

What awaited her was the cunning snicker of a fox.

She almost cursed out loud.

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"Say Naruto wouldn't knowingly put us in danger, right?" Ino asked no one in particular.

No one answered her, which showed just how false that statement was.

After all, all those months ago he'd all but bullied Sarada into seeing straight again.

And with how rough he sometimes was in their training…

"This is just great," Ino muttered before she felt something yank her feet from beneath her.

She immediately twisted and cut the intruding limb from dragging her away from the group.

It was too late, she realised, as once she got up, she was already separated and her friends were nowhere to be found.

And she also realised that it hadn't been a hand that grabbed her ankles…

…It was a tentacle…

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Sakura had given up on keeping a calm head.

She was the one with the shortest temper out of all of them after all.

"Oh this is bullshit!" She screeched. "What I get my hands on that blonde-haired smug face of his, I'm gonna—"

She felt something nudge at her toes, something small.

She glanced down as Hinata had her back.

It was…an axolotl?

Strange…and incredibly cute!

"Kai!" Sakura said, testing to see whether or not this was just a petty genjutsu casted by Naruto to give them a headache.

Nothing happened.

Nothing changed.

The adorable pink amphibian was still there, looking at her with cute beady eyes that just screamed innocent.

It even tilted its head at her.

She couldn't help it. She picked it up.

…and she was no longer where she was a moment ago when she stood back up.

"Goddammit!" She exclaimed, embarrassed to fall for such a thing.

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Hinata and Haku were the only ones left and despite only knowing each other for a day, she had already chosen to trust the pale skinned female. If her sensei trusted her, then she trusted his judgement in trusting her.

And thus, she didn't hesitate to go back to back with the ice-wielding kunoichi, whose hands were holding two senbon.

"Is this a test?" Haku asked her, "I've only trained with Naruto-sama for three months so my sample size of his methods are limited compared to yours, Hinata-san."

Hinata shook her head. "He's never done anything like this with us before."

Haku, surprisingly, chuckled. "I'd imagine not, otherwise I'd worry for his student's mental health."

'Did she just…make a joke?' Hinata thought.

With her activated byakugan eyes, she could see the faint redness of Haku's face. She was blushing!

It was honestly rather funny that such a stoic woman would resort to making subtle humour to integrate herself into Naruto's circle of friends.

Hinata giggled. "I'd worry too, if he didn't care for us so much."

She could see the sag in Haku's posture, signifying relief.

"Hoot~" a noise interrupted their small talk and Hinata turned her head to look around, though her byakugan had seen nothing strange in particular.

"Did you hear that?" Hinata asked.

"Hear what?" Haku responded.

"Hoot~"

"That!" Hinata pointed out.

Haku only tilted her head in confusion but remained vigilant.

"I didn't hear anyth–"

Haku felt the pressure on her back suddenly disappear as Hinata was whisked away by an unknown force.

Now…it was just her, and she hated being alone.

As if answering her fears, a growl was heard. One unlike a dog but one she was incredibly familiar with. It was the same sound that plagued travellers of her homeland.

So she turned, senbon raised, to greet the spotted feline who was looking at her curiously.

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Naruto hummed as he watched his students along with his mother follow the path of their connections.

The kingdom of animals was a dangerous land, even for him.

Unlike Mount Myoboku, this world acted sort of like a way point which led to each of the animal's territories. Even time worked differently here, though it was inconsistently slower than the real world. Sometimes he could be here for hours and only minutes would pass in the elemental nations. Other times, he'd be here for days, and days would also pass in the outside world as well.

Each of the animal territories had their own lords that, if combining their strength, could even drive Naruto away as he was now.

It was no wonder that pain only managed to hypnotise a few from this plane of existence.

His approach to this whole thing, however, was entirely different.

Over the past year, he took the time to frequently travel around the territories that allowed him entry. He'd talk to the animal elders of each clan and surprisingly, most were receptive to him once they saw his eyes, if a bit guarded.

Once he'd gotten to know them and subsequently, they got to know him, it was rather smooth sailing to establish a cordial relationship with most of the clans.

Thankfully, all the clans that his students were invited to were ones he'd already made good relations with.

Sakura's axolotls were the friendliest of the bunch.

Kushina's foxes were the most mischievous yet the most respectful towards him, after they'd learnt of his story. It was ironic that they would bond with his mother as she'd had a bad history with foxes in her life.

Sarada's wolves were the most fierce and territorial, yet were the most loyal once befriended.

Ino's octopuses…were a weird bunch who liked to make lewd jokes more often than not, which Naruto was used to after travelling with Jiraiya for three years.

Hinata's owls were the most observant and liked to listen more than talk. They were incredibly elusive and took Naruto very long to find them in his path of exploration.

Haku's snow leopards were agile and independent, liking to surprise Naruto multiple times on his journey just to get a kick out of it.

All in all, it seemed that things had worked out for the better.

He was hoping that they weren't chosen by clans he didn't know of. The animal kingdom, as unending as it was, had far too many clans for him to explore fully, even with the use of shadow clones. It was saddening to him that nearly all of those clans had lost contact with the human world as their contracts were lost to time or destroyed voluntarily as they had lost trust in humans.

If a rather unsavoury clan like the snakes had chosen one of his girls…

Well he'd have to give them a visit to make sure things would go along smoothly.

He was glad that he didn't have to.

If only he could find his own calling here, his own path.

There was a distant resonance that sang to him, and vibrated through his body every time he heard it.

Yet no matter how hard he searched, he could go no closer to it than when he started. It was frustrating yet…he could be patient. He just hoped that he'd find it within his lifetime.

With his all-seeing eyes, he observed his students. Unlike Pain, where he'd hypnotised the host animals to do his bidding against their will, his own bonded animals were befriended and control of what they saw were given voluntarily. It was a miracle with how many partnerships he'd formed from just being friendly with them and gaining their respect.

And thus, he connected with Skoll and Hati, members of Fenrir's pack, who were their pack leader. Sarada…was not having a fun time.

She was being mobbed by packs of wolves that nibbed and poked at her where she was too slow to react or too shortsighted to perceive.

Fenrir respected strength above all, as one required it to survive the harsh environments in his domain. He also respected loyalty and friendship, which came after.

Sarada would have to show him both strength and loyalty to be considered worthy of joining his pack.

Naruto could only hope that Fenrir would accept her.

If he didn't…another bond could be formed with other clans but the compatibility will be far from one's original chosen path.

His sight flickered over to Kuzunoha, the very leader of the foxes themselves. When she'd met him, she'd explained how the many-tailed foxes existed to be, forming from the energy of Kurama, the Kyuubi no Yoko as he roamed since the beginning of the chakra world.

Kuzunoha, being five tailed herself, could still hold no candle to the strength of her bijuu predecessor but was a far more deadly foe for other reasons entirely.

Kushina was undergoing her own trial, and being a former container of Kurama herself, she was also given the same respect as Naruto but slightly less so due to the fact that she never befriended him.

Naruto would be lying if he didn't find Kushina's spirit animal slightly ironic.

He shifted his sight once more to Kanaloa, his octopus friend, who served Cthulu, their king.

Ino seemed to be having a great time with tentacles crawling over her body.

A lewd joke made into reality, Naruto supposed. Though it was funny considering that the octopus folk hold no attraction to human females. Naruto wondered where they got their sense of humour from.

He shifted his attention to Pinky, his aptly named Axolotl friend. It seemed that they'd already accepted Sakura and began her training. Sakura, pink haired and a medical practitioner? How could they not accept her as a potential contract holder with their clan who specialised in those two traits.

Naruto chuckled before he made a hooting sound, watching from the gaze of Athena, his owl friend. Hinata, too, was readily accepted. Their compatibility was too much of a coincidence to not do as such. She had also begun her training to earn their contract.

Last but not least, he made contact with Snowsnatcher, a snow leopard with the uncanny ability to show up from nowhere.

He found his sight to be looking at…himself?

Then realisation set in.

"Goddammit, Snowsnatcher!" Naruto cried out as he felt someone headbutt his backside, causing him to fall forwards into the sandy floor of the forest.

The ensuing snickering was unsurprising, and a little irritating.

"You're supposed to be scouting on my student, Haku!" Naruto said, spitting the sand out from his mouth. Even with his sensory abilities these snow leopards were in their home turf, and thus, could hide their presence like they weren't there at all.

"I know," Snowsnatcher said, licking his paw…right on top of Naruto's back.

"...And why aren't you doing so?" Naruto questioned, voice flat.

"Because I didn't want to," The leopard said just as nonchalantly.

"...I hate you sometimes."

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When the week ended, the girls were all smiling as they all held giant scrolls in their arms, their names written inside of it.

Naruto was rather jealous.

Maybe he should contract with the Toads once more…

"If you think this is over, then you are all mistaken," Naruto said to his students, who froze at his words.

"Wh–what do you mean?" Sakura asked, "We succeeded didn't we?"

Naruto scoffed. "This, Sakura-chan, is just the beginning. From what Jiji told me, the chuunin exams start in three months' time. When we arrive at Konoha, training for that will begin immediately, preferably with the help of your respective sensei."

All four of his original students perked up at that while Haku and Kushina sat off to the side, talking between themselves about their own experiences with their animal clans.

Naruto turned his attention to them.

"Don't think you two are going to sit this out," He said.

Both Haku and Kushina looked at him quizzically.

He gave them a mischievous smile that sent shivers down their spine.

"I have something planned for you two as well!"

It was going to be a long three months.

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