Naruto Fan Fiction ❯ Lacking Sight ❯ Questions ( Chapter 8 )

[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]

Ichiraku Ramen had not had so many customers at one time since the introduction of Teuchi's “Diet Ramen” three years previously, and even then there had not been quite so many. Fortunately, the shop had been able to expand itself to nearly three times its original size in recent months, and the new tables and reupholstered bar stools just barely fit the large group inside. Old man Teuchi had closed the store to additional customers; it did not seem like this little private party would be going anywhere fast. The tall man in sunglasses was still shoveling out money for the ramen as fast as the party could eat it.
If there was such a thing as bliss, Naruto was very near to it. His stomach was happy to have its fourth bowl in it, his spirit was happy to have exercised its growing power for all to see, and his soul was happy to be surrounded by his friends again. They crowded around him, commenting on his new attire (Ino had happily scoffed at the “tacky, stealth-compromising” shade of orange while exhibiting a smile of exceptional caliber), laughing at his stories about the illustrious Jiraiya, marveling at the tall man with the rapidly-emptying wallet as Naruto sang his praises, and asking questions about Haruka and about all the new tricks he had learned. In particular, they asked about the flashy, unique jutsu involving the powerful chakra “tails.”
“Well, Keisuke knows more about it than I do,” he said, his mouth full of noodles. He took a moment to swallow before continuing. “I only really got the hang of the Tomoshibi no Kyuubi a few months ago. It was hard enough trying to learn the Rokujuuyon Reiude in between Ero-Sennin's sessions.”
Naruto suddenly experienced a sensation of awe as he realized how many sets of eyes were focused on him. He'd known that people would want to know about the Reiude, but he'd never expected anyone to be this attentive to him in his entire life. Not that he minded; it definitely felt like something he could get used to. Filling his voice with as much pride as he could, he kept speaking, the ramen before him temporarily forgotten.
“We're not really sure exactly what the Reiude is. Keisuke thinks it might be some emerging type of Kekkai Genkai jutsu, but neither of us can tell. My hopes are high, though... If it is, nobody's going to be able to forget me!”
If it is, thought Neji, seated at a table nearby with his teammates, then he's going to find himself in the spotlight, that's for sure. But he's also going to find out just what kind of burdens the possessors of bloodline-specific jutsus must assume. If he lives to have children, they'll have to be trained in its proper use, how to conceal it from enemies that would eliminate or steal it... In short, Uzumaki Naruto will have figure out how to manage a Kekkai Genkai clan system. The idea didn't sound so bad... if one did not take into account the fact that on the average day, Uzumaki Naruto appeared to have little else on his mind besides eating ramen, finding his lost teammate, and learning to become the best shinobi in the village, for the village's own protection. Noble goals, the latter two, but they wouldn't help to keep a powerful bloodline limit technique under control.
And Uzumaki doesn't seem to have any desire to learn anything else at the moment, Neji thought. Watching the laughing blond a moment longer, the Hyuuga prodigy came to a decision. As much as it still pains me to admit it, I still owe that happy idiot. Images of his younger self in the dirt before all of Konoha in the Chuunin examination, learning a painful lesson from a dropout who made his own fate rather than resigning himself to it filled his mind. If this “Rokujuuyon Reiude” is what we think it is, then I'll teach Naruto a few lessons in return.
One table over, Neji's cousin had been fairly quiet. Hinata had laughed along with the others at Naruto's tales of Jiraiya's misadventures, and listened with the same curiosity as everyone else to his rough explanation of his new powers, but she had not said a word herself since they had arrived. She now sat, slightly pink-faced and wide-eyed, contemplating all that she had seen and heard.
Uzumaki Naruto had grown to be all that Hinata had hoped he would be. He was still the high-spirited, tough-talking, orange-wearing kid that she had admired three years ago. He still cherished a dream of becoming the Hokage and protecting the village, still had the indomitable instinct to push forward, no matter the cost to himself. His inner strength, the strength that truly endeared him to her, was strong as ever. But now, Uzumaki Naruto actually possessed much of the outward strength that he had been striving to obtain when she had last seen him. His “flashy” display near the academy earlier that morning had been a true wonder, coming from so young a person. Jiraiya's training had, apparently, paid off extremely well.
But it was this “Rokujuuyon Reiude” technique that was most catching her attention, and the attention of their peers. She had taken a quick look with the Byakugan at him when they'd arrived at the restaurant, but she hadn't been able to see anything unusual then. The strange “arms” that continuously protruded from Keisuke's tenketsus seemed to have retracted, in Naruto's case.
Their mark, however, still remained burned into her teammate's memory.
“Argh, Naruto,” groaned Kiba, “Those 'tails' you have... like hitting a damn brick wall...”
“They ought to be,” Naruto beamed, grabbing his fifth bowl of ramen, “Since it takes more than half of the Arms to make them. Four arms per 'tail' and nine 'tails' is... what, thirty-six Arms out of sixty-four? Not a whole lot left over for trap seals and other stuff... so yeah, it costs me something.”
Once some of the group had gotten over their shock at Naruto's sudden knowledge of multiplication tables, they proceeded to murmur softly to themselves in various states of mild awe. Hinata, however, had a different thought pattern going through her head.
“Nine Tails...” she whispered, “Tomoshibi no Kyuubi... Naruto-kun?” She raised her voice to an audible level as she said his name, seeking his attention.
“Huh?” came the intelligent reply as the blond turned her way. She watched as his eyes settled on her, widened a little, then returned to normal as he appeared to shake something out of his head.
Damn, he thought, I'm still having trouble remembering that Hinata looks like this now... Throwing off his minor amazement more quickly this time, Naruto settled back into himself.
“Yeah, Hinata? What's up?”
“Well, I was wondering... the 'tails' technique is very good... very creative...” and cute, in a way... and generally incredible... “But I was wondering, Naruto-kun... why nine of them?”
She could see Naruto's face pale a little at these words, and wondered what she could have done to produce that reaction. Hinata was about to continue questioning him, but Shikamaru beat her to it.
“I've been wondering about that, myself,” he said. “It's a very creative jutsu, that's for certain. What's most interesting about it is the way it seems to allude to the nine-tailed fox demon which almost annihilated Konoha.”
Several people glanced at Shikamaru's bold statement. Many of them had been wondering about that, themselves, but Shikamaru had been the first to act on his suspicions. As everyone's eyes settled back on Naruto, Hinata could sense that the blond was beginning to get a little bit uncomfortable.
“I'm not saying it's all bad, Naruto,” he continued, “But I'm curious to know what might have been running through your head, conscious or subconscious, that inspired you to take on the semblance and, partially, the name of that beast.”
Naruto seemed as though he'd been backed into a corner. Hinata could see that gears were turning in his brain, and he had the look of a stressed man attempting to make up an answer that would satisfy his friends without giving away the truth. It lasted only about two seconds, but that was more than enough time for her to discern that there was more to the story of this jutsu than Naruto was about to tell.
“Well, with a name like that,” he said, the big grin returning to his face, “You can't really expect anybody to ignore it, can you?”
Most people in the room seemed to buy his explanation, and they returned to their meals happily, some of them reengaging in excited conversation. But all over the restaurant Hinata could see the faces of those who seemed to know better. Shikamaru and Neji, like her, had noticed the discomforted expression and caught his frantic search for a good lie. Others though, such as Iruka-sensei and old man Teuchi and the newcomer, Keisuke, exchanged unmistakable silent communication in the form of grave, slightly sad smiles.
What is Naruto-kun keeping from us?
A knock at the door ended her chain of thoughts. Teuchi moved to intercept the newcomers, indicating that the shop was closed, but stopped when he recognized the ANBU masks. Bowing to them, he moved aside to let them pass. They strode into the center of the room, where the eyes of everyone present fell upon them. The leader unrolled an official-looking scroll and proceeded to read.
“By order of Godaime Hokage, we ANBU are instructed to take Uzumaki Naruto and his guest, Keisuke, to the executive office in Hokage tower.”
Sighing in relief, Keisuke slipped his now-empty wallet into his pocket.
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Shizune opened the door and stood aside for the Hokage's guests to pass. She gave Naruto a big smile, happy to see him and witness his great development, but said nothing. This was official village business, and she had to remain silent, as was procedure... at least until Naruto shattered all pretense that this was business as usual with his unquenchable rebelliousness.
As the two men came to a halt before the great desk, her superior, the lord of all the ninja in the village in Konoha, raised her head, grinned broadly, and opened the meeting in her usual diplomatic manner.
“I am Konohagakure's Fifth Hokage, Tsunade. It gives me pleasure to welcome you both back to the village.”
“It is an honor to be welcomed here, Hokage-sama. Your reputation, and the reputation of Konoha, precedes you, even in the remote parts of the world from whence I come.” The stranger bowed low in reverence to Tsunade. Shizune marveled at the grace he had for such a tall man, and more so at his apparent ease in a diplomatic setting; not all ninja had such traits.
As Uzumaki Naruto proceeded to demonstrate. “Aw, can the formalities, Baa-chan. You should know better around me.”
“And you should know better than to talk like that in front of your superiors, brat,” Tsunade said. Then she swept around the desk and came to stand before him, a huge grin prominent on her mien. Like many in the village, she was pleased to see him back.
“Jiraiya has already made his report. I thought I'd bring you in here to make sure there was nothing that he 'missed' in his excitement at being back home.” Grins on both sides turned sinister, knowing the kind of thing that the Toad Sennin was likely to 'conveniently forget.' However, Naruto was feeling merciful today, so he decided to keep his mouth shut for now. He'd get a little more blackmail out of Ero-Sennin before he blabbed.
Tsunade wasn't pleased at her lack of reason to smash Jiraiya, but was too glad to have Naruto back to care at that moment. She turned to the stranger, whom Shizune presumed to be the Keisuke from Jiraiya's report, and began to question him.
“Keisuke of the Grave, correct?”
“Speaking, Hokage-sama.”
“Jiraiya told me that you are skilled in the shinobi arts. He reported that you fought alongside him many times during your travels, and that you have, on some occasions, handled multiple journeyman-level ninja.”
“That is accurate, Hokage-sama.”
Tsunade appeared to be scrutinizing him very carefully, though what she was searching for exactly, only she knew.
“Is it also true that you have defeated the A-Ranked renegade ninja, Daisuke of the Rotting Blood gang?”
Keisuke's face twitched a little at the memory of the annoying bone tank, but he kept his composure.
“I take partial credit for the destruction of Daisuke, yes. My power enabled his defeat, and the killing blow was mine, but I alone was not equal to the task.”
Tsunade paused a moment, considering what she had heard.
“You're honest, at least,” she said. “A quality you don't always see in shinobi without a village affiliation.”
“Why deceive when deception can serve no purpose, Hokage-sama?”
Tsunade smiled again. “Indeed.” She walked back around her desk and returned to the comfort of her chair. “Uzumaki Naruto! You are hereby restored to full active duty. Since both Kakashi and Sakura are away on another mission at present, you may spend your time as you wish until called for.”
Naruto gave an invigorated salute. “All right, Tsunade Baa-chan!” Tsunade nodded and then addressed Keisuke.
“Keisuke of the Grave, I welcome you again to our village. Please feel free to treat Konoha as your home for as long as you wish.”
“Thank you, Hokage-sama.”
“Also, because Jiraiya has vouched for you, and I have no doubt that Naruto would if I asked him to, I would like to extend you an offer of work–as a shinobi under my command.”
Both Keisuke and Naruto balked at this. They had talked among each other about possibly getting Keisuke accepted into Konoha's ranks, but Keisuke had not expressed any confidence that this would happen–Hidden shinobi Villages generally did not tend to hire outsiders, lest they be spies or assassins from other countries.
“Are... are you certain, Hokage-sama? You haven't known me more than five minutes...” Keisuke was uncharacteristically bashful. Tsunade raised an eyebrow.
“Are you at all uncertain of your ability to serve this village with honor and loyalty?”
Keisuke exhaled deeply and set his face straight. “No, Hokage-sama.”
“Good.” Tsunade withdrew a stack of papers from her desk drawer. “Fill these out, and then report to training area seventeen on the date indicated. One of my Jounin shinobi will be there to serve as your examiner.”
Naruto piped up. “Examiner, Baa-chan?”
“Yes, of course,” replied the Hokage. “It's obvious that Keisuke is at least a Chuunin-level shinobi. However, we do not have enough evidence of his higher levels of performance to promote him to the Jounin level right away. The examiner will fight him, and if he performs well enough, then the examiner will recommend him to me for promotion. Once it's done, he'll get his Hitai-ate headband and his vest and we'll be ready to use him in the field.”
Naruto grinned wide and said, “So, a test, huh? You'd better not fail it, Keisuke, or I'm never going to let you live it down.” Keisuke restrained himself from smacking his little brother upside the head and bowed deeply to Tsunade.
“I am honored that you put so much faith in me, Tsunade-sama. I accept your offer gladly.”
Tsunade rearranged the paperwork on her desk, picked up her pen, and resumed her daily workload. It was quite large; on a less joyous occasion, she might have grumbled over it.
“That'll be all, you two. Dismissed! Shizune, please show Keisuke to the human resources department downstairs and see to it that he gets himself some decent housing.”
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Hatake Kakashi woke from his slumber feeling completely drained and badly sore. He could remember very little of the events of the past few days. He knew that they had left Suna partially victorious, the Kazekage–Gaara of the Desert–saved at the expense of a venerable and wise old woman's life, but the Bijuu known as Shukaku having been taken despite their best efforts to thwart Akatsuki's plans.
He remembered that Hyuuga Haruka, a woman that had joined them early in the fight and been a great assistance to the entire effort, had volunteered to escort Kakashi home, along with Sakura and the young Jounin from Suna, Temari. He also remembered a brief period of wakefulness in which the group had suddenly been attacked by a renegade appearing to be Naruto, his former Gennin student. He hadn't had a chance to see how that encounter had ended before sleep had taken him again.
Finally able to stay awake for longer than a few moments, Kakashi silently resolved (not for the first time) to forever after be much more conservative when using his Sharingan eye.
The other occupant of the room saw him stirring feebly, and came to his side. Squinting in the bright light, Kakashi could make out the form of Haruka standing over him. He made an attempt to raise his head, but Haruka stopped him.
“Save your strength, Kakashi-san,” she said. “You're going to need it to recover from the strain of using your Sharingan, among other grievances.” Held fast by both her kind intent and her firm grasp, Kakashi complied. However, he could not relax his curiosity.
“The Naruto copy that charged us,” he said, “What happened to it?”
“Ah, you were awake for that?” Haruka asked. Her expression was apologetic. “I tried to keep that quiet, seeing as how you needed your rest...”
“That's all right,” Kakashi returned, “What happened to it?”
Haruka heaved a sigh. “The clone did not remain a clone for long. After a day, it lost that shape and returned to its original form.”
Kakashi pondered. “Was its true form anybody that you or Sakura recognized?”
“No. It was pale and nondescript. Neither of us could remember anyone like him.”
“I see,” Kakashi said. Well, no help there.
“Have we reached Konoha?”
“Hai, Kakashi-san.”
“So the impostor is being interrogated.”
Haruka nodded. “Tsunade-sama asks you not to worry. Morino Ibiki is seeing him as we speak.
“Hm,” Kakashi said, satisfied. Ibiki would get the truth out of the little worm, whatever he had to do.
For a moment, they were silent. Both of them were wondering the same thing: When the true identity of the culprit was determined, and the name of his superior dug up, would it be just some random troublemaker? Or would something or someone more sinister be behind this? Thoughts of the dark Snake Sennin and his favorite apprentice as well as of Akatsuki agents made Kakashi cringe. For two of their greatest enemies to strike one after another in such rapid succession...
“Naruto-kun and Keisuke arrived only a day before we did,” Haruka said, breaking the silence. “It seems that Keisuke is going to be accepted as one of the shinobi here, and they'll be testing him for Jounin level within a week.”
Kakashi didn't reply verbally, though his uncovered eye widened in surprise. He knew as well as anyone else how rare an occurrence this was. Yet he did not question it; he knew Jiraiya, and trusted his judgment. That, and Naruto tended to pick good people to befriend.
Instead he asked, “Who will be testing him?”
“Tsunade-sama didn't say.”
“Ah.”
“It might have been interesting, Kakashi-san, if you were well enough to do it; after all, both of you have special abilities that you were not born with.”
Kakashi could not nod, but he made an effort to show assent. “The Sharingan... and this Reiude that you've told me about.”
“Hai. It would have been very intriguing, I think, to see how those two matched each other.”
Kakashi wondered only a moment, and then it clicked. “To see how Naruto's ability might compare to Sasuke's... right?”
Haruka's turn came to widen her eyes. “Your powers of insight are as good as I've heard,” she said. “Naruto-kun is a good young man, as I've learned from my two years in his company, but I do often wonder about this Uchiha Sasuke that he sometimes talks about. From what I've heard, he could be very dangerous.”
“Indeed he could be,” Kakashi said. “Naruto and Sasuke share a bond not uncommon among boys their age. They are the fiercest of rivals outwardly. But unspoken between them is a bond of deep friendship.”
Haruka stared at him as he went through his monologue. Naruto had only told her the bare bones about Sasuke's involvement in his life. It seemed that it was a painful memory to talk about, or else Haruka would know more already. She cared for the boy as something halfway between a mother and a sister, and knew he'd had a hard life, but she hadn't even dreamed that he could have gotten himself into a situation so painfully complicated.
“Both of them have led extremely painful lives up to this point. Both are striving to be stronger. Both possess incredible powers. But the similarities end there. Naruto is a class clown, a pariah who fights with the Rokujuuyon Reiude and the strength of Yondaime's legacy. Sasuke is an avenger, a survivor who fights with the Sharingan and strength born of lust for revenge.”
Kakashi paused to let his body recuperate before finishing. “Inevitably, one of them must defeat the other decisively. But nobody has seen Sasuke for three years, and who can say what this Reiude technique will do for Naruto? We can't predict from their different drives alone which one is stronger.”
“So all we can do,” Haruka took over for the exhausted Jounin, “Is put our faith in Naruto-kun's motivation to succeed, and do what we can to help.”
“Yes.” Kakashi finished. He sagged into the hospital bed, fully ready to go back to sleep.
Haruka stood, a resolved look on her face. “Thank you, Kakashi-san. I'm sorry for disturbing you... You need to recover, and it probably is not easy to speak of this. But you've put my mind a little more at ease. Rest well.”
And she walked out of the room, leaving Kakashi to his fitful dreams.
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Haruka approached the Hyuuga compound with mixed feelings. She had not been here, in the presence of other Hyuuga, for many years. As an outsider, an independent, she was still supposed to be welcome upon the property. In spite of this fact, however, she could not shake off the eerie feeling of forbidding she felt as she entered. The courtyard felt cold to her and unforgiving, as though she were treading thin ice.
For many paces, she met nobody, and began to think that perhaps the family had relocated. As she turned to go out the way she came, though, Haruka found herself face-to-face with a middle-aged woman who blocked her way. She had the same silver-white eyes and dark hair that characterized all Hyuuga, but these eyes were not looking at her with any sort of welcome. Suddenly, Haruka believed she knew why she had begun to feel so cold.
“I know you,” the woman spoke. Her voice was venomous. “Kin-abandoner.”
Kin-abandoner. Haruka could remember her father being called such in the early days of her childhood, just before they had left Konoha. Apparently, this woman was a branch house member who had known her and her parents then, and resented them for leaving. Haruka steeled herself, resolving not to be drawn into a conflict. In a calm voice, she addressed the angry woman.
“Greetings, sister. Is Hiashi-sama here tonight?”
The woman's expression did not change. “Yes, he is here. What business does an outsider such as yourself have with him?”
“I have returned to stay in Konoha for a while, where I will be helping some friends of mine. I intend to give my report to Hiashi-sama and then to ask him to allow me house room.”
The face of the woman contorted into a sneer. “Hiashi-sama will not be able to hear your report, as he is occupied with family and village business. There is no more room available to you. Leave at once!”
Haruka was rapidly becoming confused. She also was Hyuuga, even if she had lived outside the village for most of her life. Why was this woman so cold to her? Haruka knew that the spacious estates of the Hyuuga could easily accommodate her. What compelled this woman to tell such a blatant lie in order to make her leave?
Annoyed now, but in control, Haruka spoke again in a firmer tone of voice. “I am certain that we can come to some kind of arrangement. May I wait inside until Hiashi-sama has a spare moment?”
“Hiashi-sama will have no spare moments for some time, Kin-abandoner. Leave!”
Exasperated, Haruka dropped all pretense of following protocol.
“No, I will not leave until I have spoken once to Hiashi. You are obviously doing everything in your power to prevent me, though you should have no reason to. But I will not yield to you unless the clan head commands me to do so.”
Haruka turned to head back into the compound, only to find herself facing three more Hyuuga with the same malefic expression. These were somewhat younger than the first woman, and evidently more adept at combat. All of them bore the Caged Bird Seal upon their foreheads.
“We will not permit you to simply walk in here like a haughty noble, as though the Hyuuga owe you something. No, you will leave now, Kin-abandoner, or have your comeuppance given you by our hands.”
Angry now and afraid, Haruka could neither go forward nor back away. “What gives you the right to deny me, your own flesh and blood, passage into my own ancestral home? What makes you think that you are in any position to claim that I warrant any sort of 'comeuppance?'”
The Hyuuga branch members advanced, slowly, cautiously, measuring the strength of the invader. Their Byakugan eyes blazed with white anger as they raised their palms before them. Then, at some unspoken signal they charged. Haruka braced herself for the impact of three Jyuuken palms.
A voice crying out to the evening twilight stopped everything.
“Enough!”
The branch members halted their advance, turning to see their clan leader standing wrathfully in the front doorway. Immediately, they sank to their knees in deference to Hiashi. Their Byakugan eyes receded.
“Leave us,” commanded Hiashi. His order was obeyed instantly. The first woman, however, made sure to give Haruka one last vengeful look before vanishing.
“Come with me,” Hiashi said, and turned to go into the main building.
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Morino Ibiki emerged from the interrogation room, finding the Hokage waiting for him. His face grave, he adjusted his head cover and drank from a flask on his belt, preparing himself to give his full report.
“Well,” he said at last, “The prisoner has finally responded to us. Very interesting news, Hokage-sama...”
Tsunade's face held a stony expression, prepared to hear the worst.
“All right. No mind games, Ibiki. What is it?”
Ibiki was quiet for a long moment, pondering what he had heard and trying to make sense of things in his own head. He turned it over again and again until the Hokage finally snapped him back out of it.
“Morino Ibiki! What have you learned from the captive?”
“...He has returned, Hokage-sama.”
OoOoOoOo End Chapter Seven oOoOoOoO