Chapter 03: Secrets Are Hard To Keep
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As Naruto and Sasuke headed to a small clearing in the forest near the academy that they had found after the war Hinata and Kakashi followed. Due to their exhaustion neither time traveler sensed the two. Dropping to the ground they sighed.
"So now what? We already changed some things. Your performance for one. Kakashi-sensei was watching so I know that he will be suspicious. I honestly think that if anyone else noticed it would have been Hinata. We need a more definite plan." Sasuke said rubbing his forehead.
"I know but it is hard to think on an empty stomach and with a pounding headache. Did our storage seals transfer?" Naruto whined sitting a little straighter. Rolling his eyes Sasuke pulled his arm warmers off. Lucky for them the seals were still there. Unsealing some bentos from one and a medicine kit from another they set about devouring their food. For once Sasuke could agree that food was making everything better. After finishing off the bentos and swallowing some pain killers for their migraines they sighed feeling some of the exhaustion abate. From a distance Kakashi and Hinata were struggling to hear what they were saying. They could both read lips but they needed their dojutsu for that and using/revealing them would run the risk of alerting the two they were watching.
"For one I think we should make a time line of what needs to change so that we are better equipped for Obito's temper tantrum. Hopefully this time we can dismantle the Akatsuki before they start removing the bijuu." Naruto said rolling up his sleeves and revealing his own storage seals. Unsealing some scrolls, ink and a brush they got to work.
"Haku and Zabuza would be a valuable asset in the fight. Zabuza was already an A-rank shinobi so a little more training and he should make S-rank and be able to fight the Akatsuki. So we will have to make sure that we get the Nami mission again. Perhaps try to snare a few more C-rank missions so that our teammate, please don't let them be Sakura or Kiba, has the experience necessary for the Chunin exams. We were seriously under prepared. We need to get you into your family estates. I know that you studied your father's scrolls but that was just what was salvaged after Nagato attacked and only the ones that had been stored in the Hokage vault. We need to get the rest of his research and your Uzumaki clan scrolls."
"I need to finish pouring over the clan's scrolls as well. I never even got an eighth of the way through when I left Konoha and when I got back I found out that they had either been confiscated or destroyed. We'll need everything that we can get our hands on." Sasuke began. Naruto nodded quickly drawing a timeline of what had happened and underneath notes as they were brought up about how they had to change. One the side they were also making notes about what they needed to do to make the changes.
"Orochimaru will still come after your sharingans, what do you propose about that? Kill him in the forest, capture and interrogate or just prevent the heaven seal?" Naruto asked. Sasuke sat back.
"Depends do you think that you can teach me senjutsu and if you can will there be enough time for me to master it like you have? Cause if not I propose getting the seal and then having you alter it. That way he can't control me, I won't abandon Konoha again and I will have a source of senjutsu without the use of Susanoo." Sasuke reasoned. Humming Naruto sat back and after a moment nodded.
"We'll make that decision based on how far along you are with your senjutsu training by the start of the exams. Speaking of the exams there is Garaa we need to contend with. Should I approach him before the exams and repair his seal? I could ask him to pretend to still be insane. At the same time I could tell him an abridged version of why. Or should I wait and just try to prevent Lee's injuries?"
"That is a hard one. I think that Lee's injuries made him a better person that appreciated his talents more than before. At the same time it would be hard to just stand there and watch as his limbs are crushed again."
"What would you know about that? You were already unconscious from the sealing." Naruto taunted. Feeling his physical age Sasuke couldn't help but stick his tongue out. After a few seconds of shock the two burst into much needed laughter. Meanwhile the two spies were attempting to get close enough to hear them better or at least see the scroll.
"The invasion needs to be changed. We can't afford to lose so many shinobi. The Sandaime though, I could honestly care less." Naruto hissed. He had been okay when he had found out that the Sandaime had hid his lineage from him. He understood why. He had thought about it for a while and come to terms with the way that he had handled the massacre as well. What he couldn't handle was the lies that he had been told about not having living family. The way that the Sandaime had allowed him to live in the apartment building that should be condemned. How the Sandaime turned a blind eye to the way that he was treated by the village and the obvious sabotage in the academy. He had found out about that after becoming Hokage and started going through the files left behind by his predecessors.
The nail in the coffin that shattered any trust or faith he had left in the old man was when he had discovered that the so called God of Shinobi had let Uzu fall when he could have helped. His family had been massacred because the Sandaime had allowed it. Had the Sandaime sent reinforcements they could have evacuated and assisted in the move of the civilians to Konoha. Instead he had refused to send any aid at all and allowed hundreds of innocent people die because he was an asshole. Looking over at his leader and friend's face Sasuke knew what he was thinking. His family had also been massacred by the Sandaime's decision just with a different tool. He too could care less about the old man but he did have to try and calm him down before he started leaking the fox's chakra.
"Dobe calm down a little okay?" He whispered. Blushing the sixth fire shadow slumped in his spot and took a deep breath.
"Where were we?"
"The invasion and the old fool. We were trying to figure out what to do about it. If we kill Orochimaru in the forest or even capture him, the invasion may not happen. At the same time we run the risk of Kabuto or Kimmimaru orchestrating the invasion in his place." Sasuke mused.
"Kimmi is too sick to run the invasion and Kabuto wouldn't do something so brazen at this point. He would wait and probably run the same experiments on himself that he did in the future. We also need to find a way to prevent the Edo Tensei from being used again that was a real hell." Naruto replied. He rubbed his temples this was getting complicated.
"So our action on the invasion will be dependent on the forest. Tsunade does need to return either way. We need a medic program in place before the Akatsuki moves, competent field medics and we have to make sure that the old drunk doesn't make Sakura her apprentice again. Gods she must have been more than just wasted to have made that decision. Anyone could see that Hinata or even Ino would have been a better choice." Sasuke lamented making Naruto laugh. At the same time he had to agree. Making Sakura her apprentice had been a really bad choice.
"Jiraiya needs to get his act together as well. They both need to get back in top physical shape. They let themselves go too much." Naruto growled.
"Dobe they are pushing sixty at least. They can't get back into top shape." Sasuke reminded the blonde.
"Yes they can!" he sing-songed. The raven haired time traveler started to worry about his companion's mental stability. Shaking his head he returned to the list.
"We have to get the rookies in gear to. They were way under prepared as well. Especially Choji and Shikamaru. It took Asuma's death before they started to take the world more seriously and a war before Choji learned that sometimes fighting your friend can be the best thing that you can do for them. Ino needs to get her attitude adjustment faster to. So far we have up to your training trip with Jiraiya for the most part." Sasuke quipped.
"We can adjust as needed. We need to get back to the academy anyway. Um we should also sit down and make plans just in case for during the three year break and after just in case." Naruto said rolling the scroll up and resealing everything. Standing the two turned and headed back to the academy their two watchers shrinking back so that they weren't spotted. Both Kakashi and Hinata cursed under their breath returning as well after they realized that they had heard nothing of value and had only made the picture more confusing. As Hinata headed back as well she noticed that the jonin hadn't spotted her.
As everyone settled down into their seats in the classroom Iruka looked over at the genin candidates and couldn't suppress a grin. They were doing amazing, with a few exceptions of course. Naruto, Hinata and Sasuke on the other hand were exceeding expectations. Especially Naruto. How he had hidden so much talent for so long still eluded him. The main test would be in ninjutsu. Mizuki on the other hand was fuming. The demon was passing with flying colors! At this rate he would never be able to trick him into stealing the scroll, unless he could still use his desire to become Hokage against him.
"Alright everyone we will now move into the genjutsu portion of the exam. After we call your name you will move into the next room and once you have finished the genjutsu portion you will immediately move into the ninjutsu. You will be given your final grade in there as well as your headband and final instructions. Questions?" When no one raised their hand Iruka began the exams calling everyone in alphabetical order. So far no one had failed and that was to be expected with the pathetic test and curriculum. Naruto found himself being shaken awake by Ino as Iruka called his name again.
"Did I fall asleep?" he asked groggily.
"Duh." Ino replied. Shrugging he stood and followed Iruka from the room. As soon as the door closed he flared his chakra and released a very fine yet powerful pulse of chakra that washed over the room and village dispelling every genjutsu it was struck by. Blushing he mentally cursed.
'Dobe I felt that. Did you need to use so much chakra?' Sasuke asked through their link.
'Didn't mean to. I was trying to control it the best I could and use as little as possible.' He replied sheepishly.
"Naruto what was that?" Iruka asked.
"Um it was a chakra pulse. Since I had so much trouble stopping my chakra flow in order to cancel the genjutsu I tried to find another way. So instead of stopping my chakra, I release a wave that disrupts the caster's chakra instead and releases the genjutsu. I still have problems with it though. I think I hit the whole village with it. Any genjutsu struck by the wave is released if the right amount of chakra is applied." He explained. Iruka's jaw dropped. He had never thought something like that was possible. Yet an academy student had designed and developed the technique on his own. Shaking his head he marked Naruto's passing grade and looked up only to see the potted plant from the classroom two doors down disappear and Naruto take its place in a flawless substitution.
"Impressive now I need to see the transformation and the bunshin." Nodding Naruto transformed into a flawless replication of the Yondaime, his father. Iruka shook his head as Naruto canceled the technique.
"Um Iruka, can it be any clone jutsu or just the one taught in the academy?" Naruto questioned.
"Any but why the inquiry?"
"Well I still have problems with the bunshin. I can do it but I make way too many and it's hard to keep them inside. So I learned another type of clone thanks to Sasuke loaning me the scroll. So I was wondering if I could just use the one that I have mastered."
"Go ahead. There are no rules denoting that it has to be the bunshin no jutsu." Nodding Naruto smirked as three fire clones materialized into existence. Not a single hand seal used.
"Perfect Naruto. You pass." Iruka beamed. "But why did you wait so long?"
"I didn't like the other two graduating classes. I wouldn't have worked well with any of their teams but there are quite a few people in this one that I can work with so I figured that I would pass this time." He bluffed. Iruka nodded and informed Naruto he would have to come back in a week in order to receive his placement. Nodding he left as Iruka called Ino into the room. Outside he quickly met up with Sasuke and they started towards the Uchiha estate. Hinata and Kakashi following once again. This time however, Naruto sensed them.
"We have a few stray cats following us Teme. Do you think they smell food on us?" He asked casually.
"Maybe. Then again with the way that you eat ramen and your name being Naruto they probably think you are a fishcake, dobe." Sasuke replied. Naruto pouted as they entered the complex and headed towards the clan's library. As the door shut, Hinata felt herself whine as she headed home and vowed to learn their secrets tomorrow. Kakashi contemplated his actions and headed towards the tower. Granted he would be early but at the same time he needed to make sure that he got his team. In the past he had never requested a specific team and he wanted to make sure that he got the one that he wanted.
"That was close. I think they followed us earlier to. I was too tired to notice though. Think they heard anything?"
"Doubt it dobe. We were too far away and the clearing has very few hiding places. Using their chakra might have tipped us off so they didn't read our lips either." Sasuke replied. Nodding they got to work on reading the jutsu that the Uchiha clan had stock piled that matched their primary affinity. It would be a hard job but it was worth it.
Naruto left the Uchiha clan compound near midnight with another headache. He had read far too much. After Sasuke had returned to Konoha he had helped Naruto with his memorization skills and he had refused to let Naruto stop until he had a photographic memory. He had cursed a lot during the process but he was so thankful now that he had.
"Naruto there you are! Can we talk for a minute?" A voice called out from behind him. Turning he raised an eyebrow at the Chunin and nodded hesitantly. 'Do you think he is going to try and get me to steal the scroll again?' he asked his tenant.
'More than likely. But I see it as a blessing in disguise. You get to capture a nuke nin, steal the scroll, get another look at the Edo Tenseiand maybe make a complete copy before turning it back in.' the fox replied.
"What did you need Mizuki-sensei?" Naruto asked.
"I was watching your exam closely Naruto and to be honest I think that you would be wasting your skills as a genin. So I wanted to offer you the chance to take an advance placement exam so you can go straight to chunin." He lied smoothly.
"Is teme being offered the chance to?"
"No. He still has some problems from what happened that bar him from taking the exam. You on the other hand have nothing stopping you from taking it." Naruto tipped his head to the side as if contemplating the offer.
"What would I have to do?"
"I can't tell you unless you decide to take the exam. If you fail there is no pressure, you will still get your assignments in a week and no harm done."
"Okay! Tell me!" Naruto faked the enthusiasm. Mizuki grinned. 'Hook, line and sinker.'
"Sneak into the Hokage's office and steal a scroll that is labeled forbidden. Don't worry he is in on the exam. All you have to do after that is get away and keep the scroll for three hours while you are being chased. A typical chunin type mission. Plus you get to learn a jutsu from it as a bonus." Mizuki explained the 'test' to the boy.
"Where do I go?"
"If you can get the scroll to this location while keeping it safe within the time allowed and learn a jutsu you pass early. But you have to demonstrate the jutsu and get the scroll there unharmed." Mizuki said pulling a map from his hip pouch and showing the eager genin. Nodding in 'excitement' Naruto beamed.
"When does the exam start?"
"It starts now. Good luck." He said and snickered as the boy took off. 'I'll just wait about half an hour after he leaves the tower to alert people. Then not only will I be allowed to kill the demon but I'll also be out of the village and on my way to Orochimaru-sama.'
Naruto slipped into the office to easily and quickly swapped the scroll with a realistic fake before slipping back out and into the forest. It was pretty much the same except he was in and out before the Sandaime could find him. Plus he set a trap for Mizuki. He will go around and tell everyone that the scroll was stolen and look like an idiot when the Sandaime 'checks' and the scroll is still there. Heading to an entirely different clearing he sat down and set his shadow clones to practicing the safer jutsu he didn't already know. Meanwhile he was thoroughly dissecting the Edo Tensei. He knew there had to be a way to stop the jutsu, he just didn't know how. After nearly the whole three hours he headed to the clearing that Mizuki mentioned after sealing the scroll away and dismissing his clones. Mizuki was waiting a little worse for wear.
"Mizuki-sensei what happened?" Naruto faked concern. Mizuki had growled. He hadn't expected Naruto to switch the scroll for a realistic fake. At first the Sandaime had thought him drunk or delirious but at his insistence he checked the scroll and found it blank. Unfortunately, instead of blaming the demon they blamed him for the theft and he had just spent almost two and a half hours running from shinobi.
"Nothing Naruto. Just part of the exam. Now where is the scroll?"
"What scroll?" he asked innocently just as a squad of ninja arrived in the surrounding trees much to Naruto's amusement. Mizuki didn't even sense them. The ninja, Iruka included, watched the exchange cautiously.
"The scroll for your exam!" Mizuki exclaimed.
"What exam?"
"The one to promote you to chunin! You were supposed to bring it here to pass early!" He said panicking a little.
"I have no idea what you are talking about. I came out here because I couldn't sleep anymore and wanted to work on my clone jutsu some more. I saw you here looking beat up and was worried." He said feigning ignorance.
"The one that I told you about! The one with forbidden written on it!" Mizuki was thoroughly incensed. He knew that the demon had taken the scroll! He had watched him leave the tower with it!
"Mizuki-sensei, do you have a fever? Or are you drunk?" Naruto queried innocently. Growling Mizuki pulled the fuma shuriken from his back and dropped the act.
"Well I was going to do this the easy way. Tell me where the forbidden scroll of sealing is and I may only remove one of your legs." He threatened. Naruto stood unperturbed.
"I still have no idea what you are talking about. What is the forbidden scroll of sealing? Besides if it was forbidden doesn't that mean that it is off limits to everyone?"
"Brat! Tell me where it is and I will tell you why everyone hates you!" He tried to reason. Naruto looked at his nails as if inspecting them.
"Because I have a giant 500 foot tall nine tailed fox stuck in my stomach that everyone seems to be mistaking me for because they are sheeple and believe whatever they are told? Or is it because I supposedly 'killed' the Yondaime by being born? Perhaps it was just because I was born on the same day that a lot of people died because of said giant fox? Take your pick. They are all true I suppose. I was born on the day that the fox was sealed away, the fox is sealed in me and the Yondaime did die sealing the fox in me. So what else could there possibly be?" Naruto deadpanned. Mizuki stumbled backwards. 'How could he know about the fox?' In the trees all of the observers were thinking the same way.
"How did you know?"
"I talked to a psychic and they said that the day I was born the stars were aligned in a very ominous way so that must mean that the fox was sealed inside me because seriously where else could a giant fox go?" Looking at the disbelief etched onto Mizuki's face he groaned.
"I have a weird tattoo on my stomach that only appears when I use chakra. People call me 'demon' 'fox' 'kyuubi' 'kyuubi kid'. I was born the same day that the fox attacked. The Yondaime is said in the history books to have used a powerful kinjutsu to 'defeat' the fox not 'kill' the fox. The Yondaime's specialty was fuinjutsu and I have a brain that I use every day." Naruto summed up. That seemed to be the breaking point as Mizuki threw the shuriken and before the spectators could intercept it Naruto shot forward dodged the shuriken and caught Mizuki in the chin with his foot. Despite not wanting to Naruto knew he put far too much power behind the kick as soon as it connected. Flinching a little as Mizuki's head snapped back at a very bad angle, obviously broken, he sprung off of his hands and landed back where he started. Looking down at Mizuki's corpse he shook his head.
"Traitors are among the worst kind of people that walk this planet. If you betray your village the penalty is death. Attacking another shinobi in good standing is treason. Your attempt to obtain a scroll clearly called 'forbidden' was another mark of treason. Blaming me for your stupidity was irritating and I know that you are still in the trees. You might as well come out." Naruto called out making many eyes widened in surprise. As the ninja dropped in the clearing Naruto yawned and stretched. He really need some sleep.
"Naruto are you okay?" Iruka asked tentatively.
"Sure. Why wouldn't I be? It was me or him and to be honest I value my life to much for the answer to have been him. Besides I think that I may be in the 'shock' phase. It probably won't hit me until I have more sleep. So can I go home?" Naruto whispered.
"Uzumaki, do you know where the forbidden scroll of sealing is? Do be honest." One of the ninja demanded. Naruto turned and glared at the shinobi.
"I know that you are just doing your job but why does everyone keep asking me that? DO you want me to go find a psychic and ask them? Geeze I don't know anything about a forbidden scroll of sealing. Especially where it is. If I had to wager a guess, wouldn't it be in the Hokage's keeping where it would be safe?" He snapped.
"Get Mizuki's corpse to T&I. Have them do mind walk. Make sure that they locate the scroll. It has far too many secrets to let someone else have it." 'Kit what about his memories of convincing you to get the scroll. Or him seeing you leave?'
'Seals my friend. They will never find my connection to the scroll.' He replied. As he got the go ahead to leave Naruto jogged from the clearing and headed back to his apartment. Halfway there he met an unexpected obstacle.
"Who are you and where is Naruto-kun?" a pair of angry byakugan's glared at him and in front of him was his future wife ready to attack. Naruto gulped.
"ah….Hinata-chan you see the thing is…"
:To Be Continued: