Chapter 5: Scars and Kinship
Since their first meeting, Anko hadn't left Naruto alone.
Not that he minded anymore.
She just showed up, like a specter in the trees—one moment the forest was silent, the next she was beside him, a bag of dumplings in one hand and a grin sharp enough to slice steel.
At first, Naruto didn't know what to think. He figured she'd check in once, toss a cryptic warning, and vanish again. But no—Anko kept coming back. Every day. Sometimes to talk. Mostly to beat the hell out of him.
And Naruto, being Naruto, kept standing back up.
Even if he had to crawl.
"You're dropping your guard again, brat," Anko called out, flicking a kunai that barely missed Naruto's cheek. "Are you trying to catch them with your face?"
"Maybe I just like the pain," Naruto shot back, panting, sweat pouring down his face.
She smirked. "Kinky."
Before he could reply, she was in front of him, faster than his eyes could follow.
A spinning kick cracked across his ribs. Naruto flew into a tree, coughing. His body ached. Every nerve screamed. But his instincts screamed louder.
He pushed off the trunk, a blur of motion—chakra strings snapped forward from his fingertips, aiming to trap her leg.
Anko laughed and twisted mid-air, dodging like a dancer made of smoke.
"Better," she said as she landed lightly. "Still trash, but better."
Naruto collapsed to a knee, breathing hard—but smiling. "I'll take that as a compliment."
The days bled together like bruises under skin.
Anko trained him like a demon. She didn't coddle, didn't hold back, didn't care about his excuses. She taught him through pain, through repetition, through fire. Not because she wanted him broken…
But because she knew he could take it.
Even when Naruto's chakra kept acting off—clunky, unstable, and muted—he kept fighting through it.
Eventually, he told Anko about a strange seal Orochimaru had placed on him during the second phase of the exam. It was located on his stomach—directly over the Nine-Tails' seal. A creeping black mark that flared cold whenever he tried to pull deep from his reserves.
Naruto hadn't told Kakashi. He didn't trust him anymore. After being tossed aside in favor of Sasuke, Naruto had shut the door on that bond.
And honestly… he kind of forgot about the seal at first. He was too used to powering through pain.
Anko examined it but admitted she'd never seen this one before. It wasn't the Curse Mark she had been given—it was different. Unknown. Dangerous.
"We'll figure it out," she promised. "But you're not dealing with this alone anymore."
With just two days left before the Chūnin Exam finals, Anko finally gave the order.
"You've done all you can out here," she said, standing over him as he sat by the smoldering remains of a fire. "Go back to the village. Rest. Eat something that isn't bear meat and salt for once."
Naruto raised an eyebrow. "You kicking me out now?"
She smirked. "Please. You're not that lucky. I'll be seeing you before the big day."
Naruto returned to the village.
The bath was heaven. The ramen was divine. The bed? Soft enough to make him forget every broken rib and bruised knuckle.
For one night, he let himself breathe.
The next morning, he woke up with a kunai pressed against his throat.
His eyes snapped open.
"Good morning, sunshine," said Anko, crouched on his windowsill.
"WHAT THE HELL?!"
He yelped and fell off his bed. She laughed so hard she almost fell too.
"You should really lock your windows," she said casually. "Rookie mistake."
"I live on the second floor!"
"Still a mistake."
Before he could yell back, she dropped a cloth-wrapped bundle in his lap.
Naruto blinked, opening it slowly.
Inside was a new outfit: black shinobi pants, a deep-orange high-collar sleeveless shirt with red trim, and a long black trench coat lined with orange flame designs and stitched with a stylized red fox tail on the back.
It looked sleek. Fierce. Like him.
"You got me a trench coat?" he asked, stunned.
She smirked. "You're starting to fight like a beast. Figured you should look like one."
Naruto was quiet for a second, touched. "…Thanks, Anko."
She looked a little awkward, then cleared her throat. "Alright, enough sappy stuff. We've got one more thing to do."
They went to the Hokage Tower together.
Hiruzen Sarutobi was seated behind his desk when they entered. He looked tired but sharp, and more curious than anything as Naruto pulled up his shirt and revealed the seal.
Anko stood back, letting the old man study it.
"This is… a Five Elemental Seal," the Hokage said gravely. "Orochimaru's handiwork."
Naruto frowned. "What does it do?"
"It disrupts your chakra network, especially over an existing seal. Your Nine-Tails seal is stable, but this one was layered over it to make drawing chakra difficult—unstable. It's no wonder you've been struggling."
He stood and moved around the desk.
"Hold still, Naruto."
Naruto nodded.
The Hokage's hand lit up—each of his fingers wreathed in blue chakra flame.
With a firm motion, he slammed his hand into Naruto's stomach.
A flash of heat. A searing pain.
Then—freedom.
The seal vanished, and his chakra surged like a river through shattered stone. Wild, fierce, unchained.
He gasped, then grinned.
"That feels… amazing."
The Hokage smiled. "Good. You've come a long way, Naruto."
Naruto looked toward Anko.
"I'm just getting started."