Chapter 32: Secrets
Naruto has a talk with Kakashi and Hiruzen about a certain uncomfortable subject, something that neither are looking forward to.
Anyway, here's a new chapter.
Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or anything I write. This is a work of fanfiction that I make no money off of.
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'What I remember about the Fall of Uzu is... is how quiet it was. During the waning weeks of the alliance with Konoha, our main reserve army was discreetly transferred to the coast of Uzu. It was a silent trip. We all knew what was about to happen, what we were about to do. Did we have any doubts? Any private, traitorous thoughts? Perhaps, but no one said a word. Not on the ride to Uzu, not when the order to wipe the Uzumaki, the men, the women, and the children, came down, and not when we marched into the streets of Uzu. Not a word."
Account of Yuki Haru, Jonin Hunter nin of Kirigakure, battle of Uzushiogakure, Second Shinobi War.
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'Why do I smell wild flowers and cinnamon?' I thought to myself, groaning slightly as I felt the sunlight hit my eyes.
I had trouble remembering what happened. I'd waved off any of the girls that wanted to dance with me, some of the older ones being a little more open in their gratefulness. Do they have any idea what that did to an Uzumaki going through puberty? Hell, one of them offered to do a certain particular act with her mouth in front of Rin.
Apologizing about offering in front of my 'girlfriend' managed to make it even worse, the girl several years older mistaking Rin for my girlfriend because of her reaction.
Rin had been angry throughout the day and evening, the celebration had left her near murderous from all the boys giving her attention.
Kakashi didn't make it any easier when he was saying how proud he was of what the two of us accomplished, looking straight at Rin when he made that comment.
I knew a lot of her anger came from me fighting Zabuza, but more so the fact that I had been holding back when fighting her during training.
I could hit harder and faster than just a couple years ago, scaring me into thinking I would hurt her.
I knew I was a damned hypocrite for trying to treat her with kid gloves sometimes, the same treatment by Kakashi years having pissed me off.
But I also had held back because of not wanting to have as much of a target on my ass early on, but that plan was in flames right now due to the damn Iwa nin getting away, and I wasn't holding out on Zabuza remaining silent.
I cracked open an eye and saw the sunrise coming through the trees, the light being what woke me up.
I yawned and tried to stretch my arms, but realized I couldn't when I felt a weight on both my arms.
I realized where the scent was coming from.
Ino and Hinata were curled up to me, each of them holding an arm.
The memory of last night came back. I'd been tired from my injuries healing and the chakra I used and had decided to sit down by a tree and let a clone be used as bait for the girls. Hinata had seen me with her eyes and she and Ino gave me some company. We'd then talked for a while, mostly me explaining some seal formulas to them. We obviously fell asleep since my book was in front of me.
I started panicking slightly from the realization, trying to shimmy out of their grip without waking them up.
Hinata groaned slightly and shifted a bit, her face burrowing into my chest.
'God help me.' I prayed silently, knowing I couldn't get out now.
I heard a twig snap and looked up. The sight that assaulted my vision filled me with a sense of anger and horror.
Kakashi was standing in front of us, visibly shaking from holding in his laughs.
"Fuck. You." I mouthed towards him, fixing him with a glare.
Still giving him a death glare, I closed my eyes and focused on trying to make a single shadow clone with my right hand.
Right as I was starting to get the chakra to shape properly, with a decent amount of difficulty, Kakashi chucked a rock at my head, making me lose focus.
"Fuck." I hissed in English, blinking repeatedly from the rock hitting my forehead.
Ino evidently heard something and shifted around, mumbling "Naruto-kun." under her breath.
Sending another glare at Kakashi, I tried to make a clone again, but the jackass decided to come towards me, pissing me off even further.
I had to piss and I had two girls pressed up to me when I had a certain morning problem guys get. I was embarrassed and wanted to get away as fast as I could.
Kakashi made a shadow clone and Henged it to look like me, pointing towards his clone and me, the clone mouthing the word, "Kawarimi."
I sagged in relief, Kakashi seemed to actually offer me an out for once. He was willing to switch me with a clone.
I nodded and smiled, the clone coming towards me.
I realized something was about to go wrong when the clone grinned at me and gave a wink.
"Ino-chan, Hinata-chan, it's time to wake up." The clone said softly but clearly, using my voice.
The clone popped and Kakashi Shunshined away, leaving me alone with two girls who stirred and opened their eyes.
'You're an asshole, Kakashi.'
I heard Hinata make an "eep" sound and let go of me, her face glowing red.
Ino pulled away as well, her face also reddening.
"N-naruto." The both said at the same time, probably trying to explain.
I managed to clear my thoughts and try and talk to them.
"I didn't think I was that boring when talking about seals." I tried to play it off as nothing, leaning forward and grabbing my Seal journal and putting it in one of my storage scrolls.
"You're not upset?" Hinata asked quietly, still looking embarrassed.
"Pff," I snorted, waving dismissively, maintaining a nonchalant look to hide my discomfort, "Not a problem, just my neck feels a little sore and my arm fell asleep from someone holding it." I looked at Ino amusedly.
"Sorry." She said quietly, looking down slightly in embarrassment.
I stood up and stretched, groaning as my joints popped slightly. I then bent down, then backwards to stretch my back, exhaling audibly when I felt my back pop.
"Ah," I sighed, "That's better." I then looked at the watch I built into the compass I had in my pocket, seeing it was about eight.
"8:00, hmnn, seems like it's time for breakfast." I mused, turning to Ino and Hinata. "You two wanting breakfast?" I asked the two suddenly, noticing how the two of them looked like they were still trying to adjust to the light.
Ino answered first and smiled to me nervously.
"Yes, that sounds nice."
"That's sounds lovely, Naruto." Hinata said as well.
I nodded to the two and grabbed a seal from one of the pockets I had at my thigh, pulling out a storage scroll.
I enjoyed the look of surprise Ino had on her face when I pulled out a pan.
"Why do you have a pan in a scroll?" She asked incredulously, her gaze aimed at the pan.
"Because I can't put a scroll in a pan." I smirked, making a hand seal to make a few clones with orders to find some small game for food.
Ino huffed at my response. "Really?" She deadpanned.
"You have your gear stored in backpacks, Team 7 and I have them in storage scrolls."
Ino seemed to understand why I had so many different knick knack items in my scrolls, not wanting to miss any item I might need.
Ino's face then shifted into slight irritation.
"Can't you make a scroll for me?" She asked.
I shook my head. "Your chakra is different enough from mine where it'll be difficult."
"What about Sasuke and Hinata's?" She almost demanded, tapping her leg against the ground.
I gazed out and saw that we weren't far from where Tazuna's house was, which happened to be where the celebration had been near.
"Rin made theirs'," I said simply, "It takes me longer to get a seal to work with someone else's chakra than she can."
Ino just shook her head.
"I'll never understand seals." She muttered under her breath, Rin's name being said as well.
"I can explain basic things while I'm making breakfast." I shrugged gesturing for the two of them to sit next to me.
"Actually," I said suddenly, "I need to go do something, be back in a flash." I then Shunshined into the trees to get out of sight, dropped my pants, and took a piss.
'Ahhhhh, better.' I thought after close to 30 seconds, turning my head to see a couple of birds nesting.
I got distracted and didn't go do my business because Bakakashi decided to be a dick to me.
"I bet you found that hilarious, cyclops." I muttered, pulling up my pants, "God, you're an ass."
As I made my way back to them, I felt one of my clones pop, giving me a message that they got a rabbit to skin. Being a sensor is straight up unfair for anything I hunt, especially when I have more than one clone on the prowl.
I made two more clones to collect some wood for a fire, feeling in the mood to fix it like I was camping.
I walked back to Ino and Hinata, seeing the two of them talking to each other.
The two stopped talking when Hinata spotted me, turning sharply towards the tree line where I was at.
I got back to them and sat down on the ground, pulling out the scroll I dubbed as my 'egg scroll'.
I loved eggs, freaking loved them. An entire scroll was dedicated to their storage for me. Not even Rin was allowed to have them unless she asked.
The storage scroll took hours for me to make properly, hours that were 100% worth it.
I pulled several out and cracked them in the pan, mixing and beating them until they properly mixed.
My clones arrived with the rabbit and the other two came back with some wood that they probably cut with a chakra blade.
Pulling out utensils and other cooking supplies, I pointed at the ground for my clones to drop the wood.
Arranging it in a pile, I pulled out some accelerant and poured it on the wood. This type was much better than any kind I used before, having fire chakra laced into it to make it hotter.
"Hinata," I asked kindly, looking into her pale eyes, "Would you be a dear and light the fire with some of your chakra?"
Hinata nodded softly and leaned towards the fire, making a couple hand seals, putting a weak puff of fire into it, the accelerant igniting it properly.
I let my clones do the rest and looked between Ino and Hinata both, pulling out one of the Seal manuals for beginners I kept on me.
"So," I stated simply, "You wanting to know about seals?" I asked Ino, a look of question on my face, "Hinata knows the basics, but I can give her a refresher for today... if, that's okay?" I looked at Hinata questioningly. I didn't want to be presumptive.
"That's alright, Naruto-kun," Hinata didn't seem bothered, "I can listen."
Ino looked between me and Hinata, almost like she were debating. After a few seconds, she nodded.
"Yes," She said, "I'd like that. I want to be stronger."
I nodded at her reasoning, pleased that she wasn't shutting herself off from everyone after what happened yesterday.
At least that was one thing I wouldn't have to worry about. I already knew I'd be having it out with Rin when we got home, knowing how she'd be when she felt slighted. I'd try to explain to her why I had been keeping a lid on my proficiency, even around her.
I cracked open the book and began explaining the basics of the Sealing arts to Ino, giving Hinata small reminders of what I'd already covered with her.
The two girls were paying rapt attention, focusing on me intently.
After a little while, my clone chucked a rock at the back of my head, letting me know the food was done.
"I hate my clones." I muttered to myself, rubbing the back of my head. At the look of question on their faces, I explained. "Food's ready."
I closed the book and moved towards the finished food, dividing it up and putting the helpings on some plates I unsealed, handing them to the two.
We were mostly quiet as we ate, me just leaning back and reaching out with my sensing to feel the chakra of the environment.
It had been easier to feel the difference between nature chakra and the chakra of people, possibly because chakra didn't exist where I was from. It could be that people, even those who weren't sensors, were accustomed to the "buzz" of chakra, much like how you zone out background noise if it's on for too long.
Nature chakra lacked "personality", for lack of a better term. There was no unique feel to it like how an individual was. It felt more, something that would consume you under its massive weight if you weren't careful. The feeling left me worried about learning Senjutsu, but also thrilled.
Jiraiya took down 3 of the paths, and I think one of them was after he had his arm ripped off, not sure. Sage mode was something I needed to learn if I was going to prevent Obito from getting Pein's Rinnegan, I needed to be strong enough to kill him and more than likely destroy the eyes if I couldn't kill Obito swiftly.
'Don't think of the future right now.' I scolded myself. 'Think of more relaxing things. Training can wait til we get back to Konoha.'
I smiled slightly at how much the two enjoyed the food I made, their expressions bringing back memories of Rin's excitement when I'd fix food when we first moved into our apartment.
Even if it was just a little thing like fixing food, it still made me feel like I wasn't failing at something at least.
I just let a smile dance across my face and dug into my breakfast.
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Rin POV:
He will never forget you.
She hated this entire mission, her Tanto that was laced with wind chakra cutting into the wood of a tree, sinking a couple inches in.
She had to deal with having killed for the first time, and Naruto ended up getting a flashback to when he was almost killed, giving her a view of what her dying looked like.
Growling at not cutting further, she let the wind blade dissipate and drew a kunai from her holster, flinging it at another tree after coating it in wind chakra.
She heard a crack and a groan, the tree falling over from having a hole drilled through the center.
She'd had a rough night, not being able to go to sleep, her anger constantly keeping her awake.
Even after the long day, her chakra kept itching under her skin and she felt she could train for hours without tiring, so she went out into the woods to destroy some stuff.
Just like how her brother would.
"Fucking boys," She gritted out, hating the attention she'd gotten last night.
She didn't care if Naruto would scold her for swearing. She didn't even know what the word meant, just that Naruto used it as a pejorative when he was angry.
"Fucking girls." She thought of that slut who offered to 'suck off' Naruto as a thank you for saving Nami from Gato.
And again, someone just had to call her Naruto's girlfriend.
The thought sickened her, feeling bile rise up in her throat from thinking of it.
The girls in Konoha that started giving Naruto googly eyes, now that they were older, were the same ones that called her a whore and demon, while the boys that started to look at her looked at her like something dangerous just a couple years ago.
How could she ever trust anybody being honest to her, and not a mask to exploit her?
And Naruto was doing the same thing.
Lying.
Snarling, she made a Rasengan in her hand and shot towards a tree, smashing it into the bark. She enjoyed the feel of it break under her palm, the wood disintegrating from her jutsu.
Brushing the wood chips off of her shirt, she winced when she felt a stinging feeling in her palm. She looked down and saw a chunk of wood lodged in the soft part of her hand, a bit of blood coming out.
She grabbed the slither of wood with her index and thumb, pulling it out with a hiss of pain.
She looked at her hand with hatred as she saw the wound slowly knit back together.
The Kyuubi was the reason the two of them healed faster, both a blessing and a curse for them.
She hated every reminder of what the Kyuubi did, the faster healing being one.
'My hands never callous, I eat more than Hinata and Sasuke combined, and I can't keep still.'
Her hands always healed too quickly for callous' to form, making her hands always soft. She didn't noticed that until Sasuke mentioned it after the upteenth time she patted his face jokingly after knocking him to the ground in a spar.
She couldn't not eat massive amounts of food, even more so than Naruto, and she struggled to focus if she didn't train excessively to burn off energy and calm down some.
"I hate you." She voiced aloud, aimed at the demon she had in her gut, "You hear me, demon?!" She shouted, beginning to breath heavily in anger, "You took tousan and kaasan from me!"
She charged at another tree, punching it repeatedly, ignoring the pain in her knuckles.
'You lied to me. You said no secrets. You said no secrets.'
The Kyuubi nearly got her brother killed from making his mind unstable, causing him to run from her.
'It wasn't enough that you took my parents from me, you tried to take Naruto from me!'
She heard a crack sound as she punched the tree.
'I'll never be free from you.'
Another crack, seeing bark fly off the tree.
"Why?!" She shouted, her last punch driving her fist through the tree, getting stuck almost elbow deep.
Growling, she violently yanked her arm from the tree, feeling it tear her sleeve.
Feeling her chakra almost burn under her skin, she lashed her arm out diagonally, making a few hand seals.
Futon: Beast Tearing Gale Palm.
A massive claw of wind chakra shot from her hand, shredding several trees almost 50 yards in front of her.
She stared in shock at how destructive it was, looking down at her hand. She had several cuts on her arm from getting cut by the tree, but they healed faster than cuts she had ever had.
She was shaking from anger and she was struggling to put a lid on it, clenching her teeth from trying to not give in and start smashing more trees.
That was when she realized her canines felt slightly longer than they should have.
She realized she might be pulling on the Kyuubis' chakra unintentionally from being angry, based on how Naruto described it.
Taking a shuddering breath, she sat down in the middle of the clearing, breathing in and out to calm down.
'I won't let you mess with me. I'm not Naruto. I don't keep secrets.'
Why did he not tell her he had improved that much? Did he not trust her? Why did he not tell her?
'Would you still love me if I kept a secret from you?'
"Stop it." She scolded herself, not wanting to think of that memory.
As much as she tried, she couldn't. Naruto had consoled Ino about killing for the first time, but he didn't console his twin sister.
"Maybe Kakashi told him that he'd already done it." She mumbled to herself, not wanting to think of the alternative.
Naruto wouldn't toss her aside just because a girl liked him, because Ino was showing interest in her twin brother.
'I don't know you.'
"Shut up." she growled, trying to push aside the thoughts trying to torture her.
"I will never forget you. Don't let anyone, not even me, tell you that." She repeated what her brother said to her from a hospital bed years ago.
She took a few more breaths and was able to calm herself, feeling her chakra calm down.
After sitting down for a few seconds she noticed how shredded her sleeve was from disemboweling the tree.
Some blood was running down her fingers, the wounds having already closed.
Scowling at her loss of control, she grabbed a scroll out of one of her pants pockets and pulled out a new shirt, taking off her torn up one.
With just an orange training bra on, she shivered when a breeze hit her damp skin, sending a chill up her spine.
Putting on the new shirt after wiping the blood off of her arm and hand with the torn shirt, she then put the old one in the scroll.
"Damnit." she muttered again, feeling like she just came down from an adrenaline rush, her feeling almost emotionally fatigued.
'Why the hell would Naruto do something like using the Kyuubis' chakra if it did something like this to him? Was he still paranoid about things?'
She kept thinking about that for a minute, when she heard a slight movement in the trees.
She sharply turned and flung a kunai at the sound, hearing more movement and a yelp.
"Who's there?!" She shouted, flipping herself to her feet by arching her back and legs for momentum, drawing another kunai and forming a Rasengan.
"It's me, Shikamaru," She heard the dark haired boy's voice grumble out, revealing himself to her, his sleeve having a slight tear in it from the kunai, "Troublesome." She heard him add on as a mumble to himself, causing her to frown.
"What do you want?" She asked irritably, not in the mood to talk with him.
Scoffing, he walked closer to her and eyed her hands. "Can you stop? I'm not an enemy."
"Tell me something only you would know." She said, feeling already on edge.
After pausing for all of 2 seconds, Shikamaru answered.
"You're a troublesome blonde." He deadpanned.
Rin glared at him and put her kunai back in her holster, clenching her fist to end her jutsu and made a bunshin to grab the kunai she flung at Shikamaru.
"Lazy ass." She snarked, wiggling her fingers discreetly from her healed cuts itching slightly.
"I prefer 'selectively motivated'." He shrugged, walking slightly closer to her.
Rin scowled at the comment, that type of answer reminding her of her brother.
"Just like Naruto." She grumbled under her breath in her and Naruto's language, noticing Shikamaru's brow raising.
"I don't speak crazy," He continued even when she glared at him, "But judging by you saying "Naruto", you're comparing me to him."
"I'm not crazy." Was her only reply.
"Could've fooled me."
Still glaring at him, she voiced her thoughts. "Why are you here, Shikamaru?" She couldn't understand why he was here out of all times. He wasn't awake at around 8:00.
"I was cloud watching," He started, giving her a knowing look, "Until I kept hearing trees get exploded by a certain someone flinging jutsu. I thought it was Naruto doing his own stupid stuff."
Rin didn't miss how he compared what she was doing to what Naruto did when he was being an idiot.
"Bullshit," She said simply, finding the use of those words cathartic for now, "You're not awake this early."
"Choji snores."
Rin blinked for a moment, not expecting that. "Oh."
"So if you don't mind, can you stop making noise and killing trees? We're supposed to be leaving today."
Rin just nodded absentmindedly, spotting her bunshin holding the kunai she threw. She waved her hand and pulled her fingers back to her in a gesture for the clone to throw it to her. Her bunshin complied, flinging it at her and getting caught without issue.
Shikamaru scowled at what just happened and threw his hands up in exasperation.
"Are you just a blonde Naruto, or are all girls this troublesome?"
Rin gave him a withering gaze at what he just said.
"What is that supposed to mean?"
Shikamaru sighed and shook his head, easing himself down and laying on his back.
"My mom is on me about everything, Sakura and Ino were fangirls for Sasuke in the Academy, at least Ino's not like that anymore, and you have your bunshin throw kunai at you. The rational conclusion is that either Naruto made you this way, him being the most troublesome guy I've ever met, or all girls are troublesome."
Rin got a tick mark near her head and threw her kunai right next to where Shikamaru's head was, landing just a couple inches away.
Sighing, Shikamaru shook his head again.
"Troublesome. Blonde. Girl." He stressed each word like each one explained his predicament.
"Will you stop it?" She asked hotly, stomping towards him and planting her hands on her hips, looking down at the insufferably laid back boy, "I'm not in the mood for dealing with you acting just like how Naruto does when he wants to talk."
Shikamaru just shrugged at her. "You're not as scary as Ino. She threatens to mind jump and make me strip naked and run around in public. Something about her Dad doing that to mine once."
Rin wrinkled her nose in disgust at the thought, not being able to imagine the mortification of having that happen to her.
"Sounds like something Naruto would do to Sasuke if we were Yamanaka." She admitted, snickering slightly at the thought of a naked Sasuke getting chased by fangirls.
Shikamaru lifted his head up and looked her up and down, his gaze on her eyes and especially her hair.
"Eyes are off. So is your hair, wrong shade of blonde. That and your name is Uzumaki."
Rin just snorted and rolled her eyes, running a hand through her hair.
"How much do you know?"
"My dad filled me in some," He shrugged, setting his head back down to look at the sky, his arms folded back as a pillow, "Something about you're all stamina freaks. He didn't say about how crazy you two are."
"I'm not crazy and it's not hereditary." She grumbled, walking forward to sit down next to him.
She didn't talk with Shikamaru as often as Naruto did, but she could see why Naruto liked him. The boy, while annoying at times, was serious when he needed to be and was never rude towards her or Naruto, at least aside from the talks of 'Troublesome' he'd describe the two of them.
Shikamaru simply raised a brow at her, noticing how she'd sat next to him and her response.
"The only Uzumaki I've seen are crazy, how else am I supposed to view them?"
"I. Am. Not. Crazy." Rin glared at him, leaning closer to him.
Shikamaru again gave a dismissive shrug.
"Judging by the trees, I'm not incorrect on my opinion."
"I'm having a bad day." She replied, looking away from him.
"Last night?" He asked, his tone having a little more softness in it.
Rin remained silent.
"I heard what the girl said," She heard him say, his voice shifting slightly as he sat up, "And I saw how much attention he got."
She'd seen how uncomfortable her brother was, how he was almost clinging to Hinata and Ino to ward off the girls that looked a little on the thin side from the near blockade on Nami and the likely offers he got as a thank you for fighting Zabuza and killing Gato. They were older by a few years, even if they were skinny.
She huffed at the memory, not liking it.
Shikamaru leaned towards her and started inspecting her expression, making her slightly uncomfortable.
"Are you jealous of people giving Naruto attention?"
Rin flinched at how he seemed to notice what had her angry and worried, even if she knew better.
For the longest time, it was just the two of them, but that turned into Hinata becoming her best friend, followed by having Anko and Kakashi there for them.
But then the group training sessions and Ino happened.
Rin didn't have an issue with Naruto spending time with Hinata to help her with training, being her friend and all, but she hated Ino, even if she knew it wasn't fair to still hate her, knowing that her father and Asuma didn't tell her to avoid using any clan jutsu on Naruto or her.
But she couldn't forget how helpless she felt when Naruto was on the ground gasping for air, grabbing at something blindly, his eyes the exact shade of violet they flashed to when he ran from her.
Rin focused on Shikamaru's eyes. "No." She answered.
Shikamaru tilted his head to the side and gave her a 'Really' look. "I can tell when someone's lying. Why lie?"
Shikamaru's face went flat for a second and his eyes darted around slightly, his eyes then widening slightly, before he ended up laughing slightly.
At her look of confusion, he answered why he was laughing.
"He's not going to stop looking out for you just because girls are trying to get his attention. Kami, you're just as troublesome as Ino, probably spending time with Naruto makes you that way."
"Stop insulting my brother." She gritted out, raising her hand to slap him.
As she went to smack some sense in the Nara, her arm froze in midair, before her arm jerked back and she slapped herself in the face.
At the sting of her palm striking her cheek, her eyes widened in pain and shock.
"Wha-" she started, then noticed how Shikamaru's shadow was touching hers, "Stop it." She growled, trying to make her arm move.
"Let me talk." He requested, his face tightening slightly when she flexed her chakra to try and break his hold.
"Let. Me. Go."
"Will you refrain from hitting me?" He asked, "I don't need another blonde hitting me."
Breathing through her nose forcefully, she relaxed and nodded, feeling his chakra stop touching her own.
She shivered slightly as his shadow felt like it slithered off of her, not liking the ticklish feeling.
"There," She said irritably, "Talk."
Sighing, Shikamaru started to explain. "Naruto isn't going to leave you or stop loving you as his sister, a blind guy can see how much he loves you. You didn't see how he was after he thought you'd been attacked."
Rin shivered at the memory of seeing the light leave her eyes, the Genjutsu that Naruto saw.
"He helped Ino afterwards...and not me." She mumbled the last part.
"Did you hear what she said? Do you have any idea how she was feeling after killing people?"
She shot him a glare. "Any different from me?" She asked rhetorically, not seeing how she was more worthy of having Naruto's attention.
'It bothered me, but I got through it, Asuma could have talked with her.'
Shikamaru scowled at how dismissive she sounded about his teammate, his voice adopting an icy tone. "You're not a sensor. You don't know what it's like to feel the actual light fade from the person you killed. And that was the first time Ino killed."
Rin shrunk into herself at his voice, feeling awful now that she had been told that.
"I didn't think of that." She whispered to herself.
"Ino can feel emotions," Shikamaru continued, his voice lightening some, "Could you imagine how scared they felt when seeing us? We're what civilians tell their kids about when they misbehave, the monsters that go bump in the night, and my clan excels at night time."
Rin remained quiet, not wanting to look at Shikamaru.
"You know what she said?" He asked, "I don't know if you heard it."
Rin just shook her head. She'd been listening to Kakashi talking to them when Naruto had consoled Ino.
"She said 'If only I'd trained like Rin, they wouldn't have died.' She envies you." He said quietly, taking a deep breath and exhaling.
Rin had no idea how to react to that, being at a loss.
"She's jealous of me?" She asked incredulously, finding the whole thing ridiculous to fathom.
'She has her parents. She's loved by them. She had friends. People didn't call her a monster or get starved in a damned orphanage. Why would she be jealous?'
Shikamaru seemed to notice how she had gotten silent, because he began talking. "You're the strongest girl of our class by a massive amount, something that makes her feel weak whenever she spars with you or compares herself to you. She'll probably be pissed if she found out I told you, but you're acting stupid when you're definitely not an idiot."
Rin didn't dispute what Shikamaru said about her being the strongest, but that still reminded her about Naruto misleading her.
"Not as strong as Naruto." She mumbled to herself, still not knowing what to think.
She saw Shikamaru roll his eyes and made an annoyed grunt, fixing her with an irritated look.
"He's terrified of losing you. That's why he's been secretive about himself."
Rin shook her head at what he said. "I know he's scared, but why hide it from me? I'm his sister."
"How would you feel if you realized how much your existence hurts him by him worrying for you?"
Rin felt a chill at the words just used, not wanting to imagine that she was a burden to Naruto emotionally.
"What do the words 'makeitstop' mean?" He asked, roughly pronouncing the three words.
Blinking in surprise at Shikamaru saying that in their language, Rin answered. "Make it stop."
"Naruto kept saying that after he killed the Iwa nin that told him you were attacked." He sighed, looking like he understood things better, "He was completely out of it and had a red chakra cloak around him."
At Rin stiffening in fear at Shikamaru stumbling on to something, he raised his hands up to placate her, "I won't dig. It's probably a bloodline thing that is difficult to control. If it were dangerous, my Dad would have told me to avoid you two instead of encouraging me to be Naruto's friend."
Rin sagged in relief, not wanting someone like Shikamaru trying and likely finding out about the Kyuubi.
"But back to Naruto being scared for you," He said quickly, getting back to the subject, "I asked him the same thing, wondering why he kept it hidden. You know what he said?" he asked her, seeing her shake her head, "He said four names. Hatake," He raised a finger, "Namikaze, Itachi, and Orochimaru." He finished with a forlorn look.
All four of the names were prodigies, Shinobi that became some of the best of their respective generations in Konoha.
But she noticed something each of them shared.
Loss or betrayal.
Itachi and Orochimaru were murderers and traitors, Kakashi lost practically everyone he cared about, and Namikaze, the less said the better.
"He's probably scared that other nations will target him, possibly using you as a way to get to him if he's showing how good he is. That's obviously no longer his motive because he just killed a billionaire and beat an A-rank missing nin."
The next part was an unwelcome add on.
"Maybe he's frightened that he'll end up like them." Shikamaru mused, looking up at a strangely shaped cloud, "The Yondaime died, Kakashi-sensei lost his teammates and Sensei, and I don't need to explain the last two."
"He'll never be like that." She growled, giving Shikamaru a borderline hateful look.
"I know that," Shikamaru snapped at her, probably not enjoying getting glared at, "I'm just talking out loud. I know it's because he doesn't want you to get targeted because he'll probably be S-rank before he's twenty."
Rin calmed down after his explanation, giving him an embarrassed look. "Sorry."
Shikamaru just waved it off. "Bad last couple of days would get on anyone's nerves. I won't judge."
Rin smiled slightly and just sat next to him, not knowing what else to say. She decided to lay on her back and cloud gaze with Shikamaru, looking up at the sky, the blue almost reminding her of her brother's eyes.
The two laid for quite some time until Asuma showed up to tell them everyone was up and they needed to get ready.
Rin hopped up and thought of having a little fun and grabbed Shikamaru by the arm and hoisted him up, laughing as he yelped in shock.
He staggered slightly from the shock and gave her a glare after he regained his footing.
"Troublesome." He shook his head.
"Lazy ass." She quipped, noticing Asuma grinning.
Shikamaru just shook his head and scowled, the two of them following Asuma.
"Thanks for talking to me." Rin whispered as they followed the Jonin instructor for Team 10.
Shikamaru didn't show any reaction to what was said aside from a slight nod.
With that, they remained silent as they went to meet up with everyone else.
//////////////////
Naruto POV:
Everything was ready to leave, all the gear and weapons were packed, and I'd just finished speaking with a temporarily infirm Zabuza, Haku hobbling around trying to help him even when she had several cracked ribs.
I made no small threat if I found out anything being said about me that could be traced back to him. He promised to not mention anything since he was planning on meeting up with Terumi Mei and work alongside them in the Kiri civil war, taking the share of Gato's money that wasn't returned to Nami or given to us for payment of an A-rank mission.
After telling him to go fuck himself in the kindest way possible, I left their little hideout and met back up with Kakashi, the man already knowing where I was.
We were at the edge of the village, saying our goodbyes, when I noticed Inari come up to me.
"Yeah, squirt?" I asked amusedly, keeping my tone playful.
Inari frowned slightly, but went back to smiling seconds later.
"Thanks for saving us," He began to say, but I stopped him.
"I wasn't the one that saved you," I said, leaning closer to him and meeting his gaze with my own, "Your grandpa saved you all, we just happened to help. We wouldn't have been here if your grandpa didn't come to us."
Inari nodded at the reminder of what I said repeatedly about how it was Tazuna's choice to risk himself that saved them.
"Will you come back to visit?" He asked, looking nervous at a possible no.
"I'll make sure I can." I smiled, patting him on the shoulder.
I then turned to see Tazuna talking with Asuma and Kakashi, nodding and smiling constantly. I walked over towards Rin and smiled to her, relieved when she smiled back.
Her face then shifted to a slight frown. "Can we talk when we get home?" She asked quietly.
"Yeah." I whispered back, knowing I wasn't going to enjoy the conversation.
Kakashi and Asuma finished up saying their farewell to Tazuna and took point for us to head back, glancing back towards us.
"Let's go." Kakashi said, Team 7 following him while I followed Team 10 since I was originally on mission with them.
Feeling the sword I'd gotten resting on my hip with a rudimentary scabbard made, I looked forward to testing it out some more and preparing for what lay ahead.
///////////////////////
"Oh, Konoha!" I sang loudly in English, joy radiating in my voice, "Our home our native land!"
The front gate was in sight and the view was so breathtaking, I couldn't believe I took it for granted for so long.
Ino gave me a look of amusement, probably sensing my emotions, while Shikamaru, Choji, and Asuma were beginning to get annoyed by what was the eleventh song I'd been singing since we left Nami.
"That's getting annoying, Naruto." Asuma said flatly, "Please stop."
"Your input is very much welcome," I said in a monotone, failing in keeping a straight face, "Please hold as the playlist is not yet finished... Kandosii sa ka'rota, Vode An!"
Asuma scowled and gave me a glare. "I'm ordering you to stop. Happy?"
I started snickering at how I was able to annoy him into abusing his rank.
"I bet Kurenai loves that assertive voice of yours."
I expected better of Asuma, because I ended up getting the handle of a kunai drilled into my forehead.
"Aghh," I flailed my arm up too late to stop it, "This is abuse of power."
Asuma shrugged dismissively. "Jonin and son of the Hokage."
"I wonder if the son is like the father. Kurenai would be very curious."
Asuma blinked for a moment. "I don't follow."
Glancing to see we were close to the gate, I made my joke quick.
I pulled out a book, pretending it was Icha Icha, Henged as Hiruzen, and began giggling.
"Oh, Natsumi-chan, you little minx you."
Asuma eyes widened and gave me a threatening look. "Don't you dare joke about that to Kurenai. She'll skin me."
Shikamaru was shaking his head and muttering under his breath, Choji was trying to hide his snickering by eating chips, and Ino looked annoyed at how I was acting like a perverted Sandaime, not realizing that it was an accurate depiction.
"Why would a simple friend be mad at you." I stressed the word, looking up at him with a grin.
Even if I was taller than most my age, it was still disconcerting that Asuma was about a foot taller than me.
Asuma just shook his head and stopped talking, knowing I'd keep it up.
Spotting Kotetsu and Izumo at the gate, I gave them a mock salute as we got towards the entrance into Konoha.
"Have a nice C-rank?" Kotetsu asked, probably remembering when we left.
"A-rank," I grinned, twisting my face to look excited, "It was fun."
Izumo scoffed, likely not believing me.
"Go on in." He gestured, letting us in.
I nodded and the five of us made our way to the tower, my sensing picking up Kakashi, Rin, Hinata, and Sasuke's chakra.
"Damnit, they beat us." I muttered, finally getting to the tower.
I saw them just outside the door, grinning at the idea forming in my head.
Asuma was about to warn me, but I shot forward and grabbed ahold of Rin from behind, hearing her shriek in surprise.
"I missed you, Rin." I shouted, twirling her around, and giving her a noogie.
She started shouting obscenities at me and tried to punch me, but I kept ahold of her to stop her from hitting me.
After I had my fun, I let her go and pushed her away from me, trying to stifle my laughter from the state of her hair.
She just growled at me and tried to fix her hair, the golden locks a tangled mess.
"Quit touching my hair." She grumbled, wincing as her finger got caught.
"But it's so soft and pretty." I cooed, knowing that talking to her like a little girl pissed her off.
She kept muttering about me being a baka under her breath.
"That's Sakura's pet name for me." I said with mock astonishment, "How dare she share such a torrid secret with you."
I didn't expect all three girls to glare at me from the joke.
"Naruto," Kakashi said flatly, "I think you made it worse."
I scoffed at what he said. "Tough audience."
Kakashi just shook his head and looked at Asuma. "Ready for the debrief?"
"There goes the afternoon." Asuma muttered, nodding at Kakashi and opening the door.
We all entered and saw Hiruzen was relaxed at his desk, smoking away merrily.
At the sight of us, he leaned forward and removed the pipe from his mouth, exhaling the smoke from his lungs.
I managed to stifle a cough, but Rin didn't, coughing slightly from how strong the tobacco Hiruzen used was.
"Sorry." He said sheepishly, "I wasn't expecting you to be back right now."
Rin wiped her eyes and waved her hand forward dismissively. "You didn't know."
Hiruzen smiled slightly, turning to his son and Kakashi. "How did your missions go?"
Kakashi glanced at Asuma, Kakashi turning his head in a gesture for Asuma to explain first.
Asuma stepped forward and began explaining what happened for his team, including the ambush by Zabuza and the Iwa nin.
I could feel everyone's eyes on me when the ambush was mentioned, not feeling comfortable about it.
Kakashi changed the subject and began explaining what happened when Team 7 was ambushed, giving a great deal of detail in it.
After Kakashi finished explaining everything up to me facing off against Zabuza, Hiruzen turned to me.
"Care to explain why you disobeyed Kakashi's orders?" He asked simply, fixing me with an unyielding gaze.
Sighing, I met his eyes with my own.
"Innocent people were at risk. I was confident that I could defeat him and save the hostages, but that wouldn't have been possible if Kakashi or Asuma had intervened."
"And what if you had been killed? What then?"
I just shrugged. "I've come back from worse."
I wasn't joking about that. I died died and got to experience getting born again.
Hiruzen frowned and grabbed a sheet of paper from the desk, looking over it.
"Be that as it may, Naruto, you disobeyed orders from not one, but both superiors on a C-rank turned A-rank. As it didn't cause terrible backlash or result in a mission failure, you're punishment will simply be completing D-rank missions of my choosing for the next month, free of charge."
I nodded, accepting the punishment. Getting shit on my boots and chasing cats for a month was worth the lives I saved.
"Now that that's settled, I'll move on to the others." He said, looking to the other Genin.
He cleared his throat. "As your Hokage, I am proud of you sticking to the mission and getting your comrades home, as well as completing the mission and saving a great deal of lives. The money for a completed A-rank will be deposited in your accounts by tomorrow. You are dismissed, but I wish to speak with you Kakashi and Asuma." He tilted his heads towards them.
The others left, Rin walking towards me. "I want to talk."
I frowned grimly, accepting the inevitable talk.
"Where at?"
"Our training ground." She then left with the others.
When the door shut and I felt there presence move out of the building, I looked at an expectant Hiruzen with Asuma and Kakashi still there.
"Tell me what happened." Hiruzen said gently, knowing I wouldn't explain anything around the others.
I took a deep breath and explained what had me falling apart, or at least the theory I had. I also said how Rin and I seemed to be connected by the Kyuubi, his face tightening at that. After I explained everything, Asuma looked at me with sympathy.
"I didn't realize that was what you saw." He said grimly, his eyes downcast.
"That's why I hate sparring against Kurenai." I said quietly, not liking the reminder of how a Genjutsu feels.
I turned to Hiruzen. "What's going to be done about a possible connection?" I asked, "I don't want Rin in my head or me in hers."
The mortification of her seeing me doing things or me seeing her wasn't what worried me, it was whether she would see certain memories, memories of a life lost, of the things to come. Thinking your very existence was simply an entertainment medium would cause an existential crisis in anyone, even if I myself operated under the assumption that there was likely more than one reality and I just happened to stumble in the one that Kishimoto might have seen in a dream or something.
But I wasn't a physicist, so I don't know about the multiverse theory's validity. But I was living it.
"I'll speak with Inoichi about checking your minds." Hiruzen promised, "It will probably take some time, but he'll get around to it."
I sighed in relief at that being covered, but I had another question, a question I wanted kept private.
"Can Asuma leave?" I asked, looking between Hiruzen and Kakashi.
Hiruzen raised a brow in question. "What you want to say can be said in front of him."
"No," I said firmly, "It can't."
Hiruzen stared at me silently, not saying a word.
"Asuma, can you give us some privacy?" He asked his son.
Asuma rolled his eyes slightly and left. "You can fill in everything else, Kakashi, I'm headed to get something to eat."
With that, Asuma left the room, the door closing with a clack.
At the absence of everyone else, Kakashi took a breath and exhaled. "What is it you want to say?" He asked, shifting his posture slightly.
Not wanting to beat around the bush, I decided to be blunt.
"Who is our father?"
Kakashi's eye widened, his breath hitching.
"What?"
Turning to look at Hiruzen, my tone was flat.
"Is the Yondaime our father?"
Hiruzen looked down and seemed to look resigned to answering.
'I let you have six years, but it's time.'
"Yes."
I took a deep breath and refused to look at either of them.
"Fuck." I muttered to myself in English, trying to work through what I was going to say.
I decided I was going to go with the route of saying I had heavily suspected it for a year or two, but decided to not say anything.
"I wish you hadn't said yes." I whispered to myself.
"I can tell you either knew or suspected." Hiruzen said quietly, "How long?"
I took a deep breath and looked at Kakashi, his face extremely pale.
"Since we had our affinities tested."
Kakashi's eye widened even further. "Two years?"
Blonde hair may have been a bit of a stretch, a wind affinity as well, but the both of them was a plausible reason for suspicion. That didn't even count the memory of being born.
"You obviously both had a reason not to say anything," I said quietly, but my tone hardened with the next words, "But I still want you two to justify why you hid it from us."
I looked to Kakashi first.
"Explain why you didn't take care of us. Was it out of guilt? Did you not know at first?... Did you not care?" The last one had me feeling his chakra sharpen and crackle.
Kakashi stepped towards me and gave me a serious look. "Don't ever accuse me of not caring. Kushina was the only woman that was like a mother to me and your father was there for me when I lost everything. I felt you two kick in your mother's womb when she was pregnant with you. I was her ANBU guard when she was pregnant."
I wasn't expecting that. I'd thought I felt something in my peripheral sensing before I was born, but had dismissed it, thinking it was my imagination.
Was that him?
"That was you?" I asked quietly, trying to keep my voice from shaking.
Kakashi took a shuddering breath and pulled me into a hug.
"I was barely older than you are now. I lost everyone and could barely take care of myself, let alone two newborns. I was almost killed from being reckless just weeks before you were attacked. Would you be able to take care of a child if Rin just died days ago?"
I shouldn't have asked it that way. I didn't want this. Kakashi obviously had guilt over it. I evidently brought up some bad thoughts of his because I wanted to have a realistic reaction to having information kept from me.
"No. No, I wouldn't."
I pushed myself from Kakashi gently, looking at Hiruzen.
"I," coughing slightly, my throat feeling tight, "I assume you didn't tell the village because of Iwa?" I asked, giving the old man a hint that I understood.
"And Kumo," Hiruzen said softly, "Your father having two Jinchuriki children would have sparked hostilities once more."
I looked down for a moment, chuckling mirthlessly. "This feels like a fucking nightmare that I can't wake up from." I kept laughing," Everyone wants us dead because of this," I yanked at my hair, "Or because of Rin's. No one can let go of the past and are TRYING TO KILL US!" I shouted, breathing heavily.
Everything tied to me was from a bunch of bastards lost in the pain of the past. I didn't kill children because I died choking on blood. If a flawed, selfish, and cruel person at heart like me could let go of my hate, So can they!
Hiruzen started to get out of his chair, but I reined in my breathing.
"I'm pissed," I said simply, "Not at either of you, you just wanted to protect me. I guess I saw both parents die for us, not just Kaasan." I whispered the last part.
"I'm not wanting to do anything for a couple days. Can I have some leave?"
"That won't be a problem, Naruto," Hiruzen said kindly, "I understand."
I closed my eyes and breathed through my nose, clenching and unclenching my hand.
"Can Gai train me tomorrow?" I asked Kakashi, "I need to get my mind off this."
Any time I got stressed about something, I'd spar with Lee, later turning to Gai when my speed caught up to Lee's. Getting punched and smashed into the ground helped me work through things I was thinking about.
I turned to leave, but I decided to make sure they didn't mistake my emotions as their fault.
"I don't blame either of you," I said truthfully, "You're burdened with thousands of lives," I looked at Hiruzen, then turning to Kakashi, "And you see your Sensei's face and hair when you look at us."
I started walking away, saying one more thing. "I just need a day or two to think about it. Don't tell Rin, I will when I think the time is right. She hates him most out of anyone outside of Iwa."
I turned away and walked out of the room, trying to center my thoughts as I made my way to the training ground Rin and I frequented.
I got to the training ground and felt Rin before I saw her, her blonde hair sticking out in the sun.
I reached the center of the training ground and got within speaking range of her, but I sharply turned to my right when I felt a chakra signature charge me.
What I thought was Rin turned out to be a clone as the actual Rin Shunshined straight at me and swung a punch at my head.
I leaned back and pivoted to my right, pushing my palm against her wrist to drive her arm away from me.
"What the hell, Rin?" I demanded, backing away from her several feet, startled by what she did.
"Fight me." She said simply, dropping a kunai into her left hand and drawing her Tanto in her right.
I raised a brow in question as I was trying to decipher why she was acting this way.
"Why?"
"You keep holding back. I want to know how much stronger you are than me."
I shook my head at her foolishness. "There's no reason because I'm never going to fight to hurt you. You're my sister."
Her face twisted into an angry look.
"Quit keeping secrets from me," She gritted out, her chakra spiking, "Do you not trust me?"
"Yes, I trust you." I rolled my eyes, not in the mood for this, "I came here to talk with you, not fight."
"This is why I wanted to talk," Rin bit out, "You keep hiding how strong you are and it's pissing me off."
I explained to her again what I told her multiple times.
"Other nations target the families of S-ranks and prodigies because it's easier to do that than kill the Shinobi." I said in English, feeling a headache build from aggravation.
"And I won't be an S-rank?" She demanded, jabbing at her gut, "I got half, you the other. I'm better at seals than you."
"You. Are. My. Twin." I said harshly, "I don't want you know how much it scares me to lose you. You're what's precious to me." I whispered the last part.
"And you're my twin," Rin said, glaring at me, "You don't think I'm not just as scared? Shikamaru already talked with me about you being a baka, but I want you to explain."
She was angry from me keeping secrets from her.
"Damnit," I growled to myself, walking towards her, "Every single S-rank I can think of that was a prodigy either broke from pressure, became a kinslayer, or had blonde hair and sealed Bijuu away." I added the last part for effect.
Before she could start speaking, I kept talking.
"You will not interrupt if you want to know why," I said firmly, before continuing, "Jiji hasn't shared stories about his team with you as much as he has me. I've also asked Kakashi about Itachi when he was in the ANBU."
I'd told Rin Kakashi was former ANBU after he said it was okay to tell her.
"You want to know what they didn't tell me?" I asked, looking straight into her violet eyes, just inches away from her face.
Rin shook her head slightly.
"I'm a reminder of what they were like." I whispered, "Orochimaru and Itachi."
Rin gasped and looked at me with shock. "You're not them."
"How can you be so sure?" I asked rhetorically, "Itachi adored Sasuke, based on what Kakashi said, and Orochimaru killed hundreds of Shinobi in the Second war to protect Jiraiya and Tsunade. Hell, he helped kill the bastards that wiped out Uzu."
It came as a shock to me when Hiruzen talked about the fronts that the Sannin and Sakumo fought on, ranging from Ame, to Iwa, to Uzu, the last one extending the war by another couple years due to the tide turning back into Konoha's favour, possibly how Jiraiya even had the time to train an Uzumaki refugee with special eyes in Ame.
Rin was quiet, wanting me to get to the point.
"Not looking at what they did later, you'd almost think I might have sounded like that. I love you, and I'd fight in a war to protect our friends."
"You're. Not. Them." She enunciated, "Quit being an idiot and thinking you're a demon in the making like the idiots believe."
Our entire conversation had been in English, now that I thought of it.
"They weren't always that way, Rin," I said, "Nobody is born evil, the world beats people down and we either end up the better for it, or it makes us monsters." I said, knowing from all my life experience how true it was.
The best people I ever knew, people far better human beings than me, endured hell on Earth and became near saints from it. The same went for the most disgusting filth I was cursed to be in the presence of, having been broken by the world.
"Itachi was an ANBU when he was younger than us. Enemy nin kept targeting him when on missions because if a kid is in the ANBU, they're obviously dangerous enough already."
Kakashi had shared details on Itachi when I requested information, siting how he and Orochimaru were the most dangerous missing nin Konoha produced and it was our duty as Konoha Shinobi to put them down like the dogs they were.
"The Sharingan makes you remember everything you saw with perfect recall. How would you feel if the memory of killing everyone you fought was burned in your head? Anybody would be effected by it, let alone an 11 year old."
Rin looked progressively paler at me talking, her hands shaking.
"The Sannin were known as Jiji's students, Orochimaru being his prized one. They tried to target his teammates because they thought they were the weak links."
Hiruzen, at my prompting, talked about the exploits of his students, me masking it as interest in Jiraiya and Tsunade, one being the resident seal master of Konoha and the Sensei of the Yondaime, while the latter was the last known living relative of ours.
I needed to know everything I could about Orochimaru, the fact that he got his ass kicked by a 14 year old Itachi didn't change the fact that he was a Kage level Shinobi that planned to destroy my home.
"Everyone knew how good he was. They tried to get to him by taking what he had remaining...He lost his parents when he was young and cried at their graves."
Rin kept shaking her head, not wanting to see what I was saying.
"I killed someone in cold blood because I'm scared of losing you," I said, putting my hand on her cheek, "Orochimaru was still respected by some Shinobi even after he turned traitor. Mizuki offered me the chance to be trained by him to protect you."
"You wouldn't though," She swallowed, her eyes starting to shine slightly, "You're not a monster."
"Neither was Orochimaru when he almost lost what family he had against Hanzo the Salamander."
Tears started falling from Rin's eyes.
"He was targeted constantly because they knew he was a threat, trying to kill his friends. They just happened to be S-ranks like him too."
Rin needed to know why I had hidden it from everyone, even her.
"I wouldn't survive losing you. Anything that would buy more time before it's known how capable we are, the better. But I messed it up when I got angry and let the Iwa nin get away."
Rin leaned into my touch and wrapped her hand around my own. "We're in this together. You don't have to hide it now. I'm not ever leaving you. I'll become as strong as you if I have to, I don't care if you're smarter."
I smiled softly and pulled her into a hug, feeling the warmth of her chakra.
"I'll never leave you," I whispered into her ear, "I will never forget you. Don't let anyone, not even me, tell you that." I repeated the promise I made to her years ago after I had run from her.
She started shaking in my arms and I could hear her sobbing.
We both sank to the ground slowly, me holding her. I felt tears fall from my own eyes and I rested my chin on the top of her head, holding my baby sister, without a single care in the world except for her.
///////////////
Kakashi POV:
Kakashi was at a loss, not knowing what emotion to feel.
On one hand, Naruto didn't hate them for keeping the secret, but on the other, he'd been suspicious for at least a couple years.
Looking back with the lense of knowledge he had now, Kakashi could see the reaction Naruto had at Rin having a wind affinity making sense. He'd tried to hide how much it was bothering him, his attacks were more vicious and he seemed more motivated for several weeks afterwards.
Naruto had been gone for perhaps thirty seconds when Hiruzen broke the silence.
"That could have been worse."
"It could have been better." Kakashi shook his head, unsurprised by how angry Naruto had been.
"He at least understands why you weren't able to care for them and why we didn't tell them."
Kakashi snorted and shook his head in irritation. "And here I thought all the problems stopped in Nami."
At the way he said it, Hiruzen raised a brow. "Did you leave something out?"
Kakashi pulled off his Hitai-ate and combed his fingers through his hair, putting it back on afterwards.
"Hurin paid a visit." He said simply.
Hiruzen eyes widened in shock, a gasp escaping his lips.
"What?"
'Didn't expect that, did you?' Kakashi thought.
"He was the one that bought all the food last week." Kakashi said, paying attention to the growing look of irritation on his superior's face, "He ended up giving it out to the civilians in Nami."
"Oh, Kami have mercy on me," Hiruzen muttered to himself, taking off his hat and massaging his temples, "What all happened and was said?"
Kakashi went on to explain everything, the mentioning of an old man, the thugs tied up and branded, the fact that baby formula was purchased, the pursuit and the shock on Hurin's face at the sight of him, and finally, the contents of the conversation.
Hiruzen sighed and pulled out a bottle of sake and popped the cork off, standing up and going to a table to grab two tumblers, filling them up.
He walked to Kakashi, handed him one, and went back to his desk and ignored the tumbler, drinking straight from the bottle with a large gulp.
"It's 3:00 in the afternoon." Kakashi pointed out, glancing at the alcohol in his hand.
"I don't care." Hiruzen shrugged, taking a drink from his glass, "This isn't exactly a normal day."
Kakashi didn't dispute the man's logic, taking a drink from his own glass, lowering his mask beforehand, of course.
"Obviously an Uzumaki, and an old one at that." Hiruzen mumbled, "Any distinguishing features?"
"His eyes were like Rin's in colour," Kakashi said, "But not quite the same."
"Anything else?"
"Above average build and used to have red hair. I already mentioned he had the same ability as Naruto."
"Could he have been using a Henge?"
"Unlikely," Kakashi shook his head, "I had this uncovered," He gestured to his left eye, "I didn't see a chakra halo, not even a faint one, until the clone popped."
"Seems rather sloppy, unless he doesn't care about his real face being shown. Could you perhaps give a sketch?"
"Let Inoichi sift through the memory," Kakashi said, "I can't draw."
"Fair enough." Hiruzen shrugged, taking another drink.
The two were quiet for a few minutes, the older of the two taking a few more drinks.
"Not even my Sensei knew that much about the Sharingan, unless he didn't say all that he knew." Hiruzen said aloud, almost to himself.
"Who could you think of that might know that much that wasn't an Uchiha?" Kakashi asked, being at a complete loss.
"The Shodai, the Nidaime, and possibly Uzumaki Ashina from the fact that he lived for decades longer than my predecessors."
Kakashi was running different theories in his mind, trying to find something.
"You said before how you think he could have been a student of Ashina's?"
Hiruzen nodded. "Neither of his sons survived and his grandchildren were also killed from fighting. Naruto, Rin, and Tsunade are all that's left."
The mentioning of grandchildren reminded Kakashi to talk with Hiruzen and Gai on whether it was safe for Naruto to open any of the Celestial Gates for combat purposes, but it would be later.
"He has to be a student," Kakashi said, "But I'm still stuck on how he flat out refused to give blood. Could a grandson have survived?"
Hiruzen shook his head grimly.
"I don't see how. Kushina would have been his last niece and would have tried to get to her, and it wouldn't have been her father."
Kakashi scowled to himself and set the empty tumbler on Hiruzen's desk.
"Why is it that everytime something involves an Uzumaki, things get complicated?"
Hiruzen chuckled at what he said and shrugged his shoulders.
"Seems to be something that their clan excels in. Can't keep things simple with Fuinjutsu, so of course nothing's simple."
Kakashi hummed to himself and shifted slightly, scratching at his ear.
"Is there anything else?" Hiruzen asked speculatively.
Sighing, Kakashi made it as blunt as possible. "Naruto wants to know if it's safe for him to learn how to open the Gates from Gai."
Hiruzen looked at Kakashi with an expressionless stare, remaining completely still.
His face twitched slightly, the edges of his mouth quirking slightly, a laugh breaking out, followed by him throwing his head back and laughing loudly.
After several seconds of laughing, he managed to control himself, and straightened his robes.
"Fight off an ambush by an A-rank on his first mission? Not enough. Frees a land from the oppressive rule of a Billionaire? Still not enough. Learn to remove the natural inhibitors on his chakra, while being an Uzumaki and a Jinchuriki? Sure, why not?" He shook his head in bewilderment.
"I'll speak with Gai about the safety of it." Hiruzen muttered, waving his hand at Kakashi in a shoo motion, "Go ahead and take the rest of the day off, I'll put that the debriefing was streamlined, no point in grilling you about all the nonsense he got up to."
"Thank you, sir." Kakashi nodded, exiting the room without another word.
He Henged as a random civilian and made his way to his home, not wanting to talk with anyone right now, the emotional rollercoaster he'd been on with Naruto making him tired enough to sleep the rest of the day.
Naruto recognized his chakra from before he was born, something he never knew.
Kushina had ordered him, being the boss as she put it, to pulse his chakra slightly when his hands were on her stomach to let the baby know that he had his big brother there.
'She was certain the baby was a boy, Sensei thought it was a girl. Turns out they were both wrong technically.'
She wanted it to be a surprise, not letting the Iryo-nin tell her. The woman had a knowing smile on her face constantly, giving a wink that went unseen.
He got to his front door and pulled out his key, unlocking the door and entering.
He stripped off his jacket and shirt, heading to the bathroom.
He closed the door to his bathroom and stripped the rest of his clothes off, turning on the water for a bath.
After the water was hot enough, he climbed in and let out a groan of pleasure, sinking into the water as he relaxed.
He didn't know how long he laid in the tub and he didn't care, the day being difficult enough already.
After an unknown amount of time, he got out and toweled himself off, got dressed with clothes he wore when alone, and collapsed on to his bed with a sigh, reaching for the new reading material he'd been hooked on for the last few weeks.
Whoever the author was, he made a decent story, the plot being fairly good.
The protagonist, or at least the group of warriors he wanted to be a part of, reminded him of some of the philosophies of certain monks he'd heard about and the respect for elegance and civilized eras reminded him of the Samurai.
Cracking open the book, he began reading where he left off.
'When I left you, I was but the learner. Now I am the master.'
'Only a master of evil.'
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I have long feared, that my sins would return to visit me. And the cost is more than I can bear. Over ten years ago, we exterminated an entire clan, a clan that was allies with a village we betrayed.
And the same has happened to my own.
My clan is gone, my last daughter is missing, and I, Yuki Haru, buried my wife and three children with my own hands. No forgiveness or mercy awaits me in the afterlife, for I showed no mercy to the Uzumaki I slaughtered.
If you are aliv- *The rest is damaged beyond recognition*
Letter found on the corpse of a Yuki killed during the Bloodline purges of Kiri.
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End Chapter:
A new chapter is out and I'm not sure if I put too much emotion in the part concerning Rin. Naruto keeping things secret hurts her, even if he's doing it in an attempt to shield her from things.
Another thing that I'm at a complete loss on about the route I'm going to take with the story that I'd like some input on.
I'm planning on another Naruto OCinsert story in the future. It won't be until after the two stories I'm writing now are complete.
I'm thinking about making it where Sasuke is the insert at either the moment after he wakes up from the Tsukuyomi cast on him, or a little bit before he graduates from the Academy. If I go with Sasuke as the insert in my future story, I might not pair Rin with Sasuke in this fic. The reason I'm putting focus on Sasuke is because he's alot more likeable in part one of the series, especially if an outlier event or situation guides him to being less obsessed with killing Itachi. When I thought of how to write Rin, I thought of how much content I could write from her basically dragging Sasuke out of the hole Itachi dug with what he did, with Naruto being disappointed in how he is a better brother to Sasuke than Itachi has been for years.
But anyway, I'll stop with the long ass Author's Note, I don't like unwieldy ones and I do this regularly.
Good luck and have a wonderful day.
Raging.
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