Kakashi sat down on the roof of the hotel where they were staying, looking up at the night sky. He usually struggled to sleep most nights, but tonight was especially difficult. He noticed Naruto's out-of-character behavior earlier while they were out in town. It was subtle, but he was slightly less talkative and expressive.
Not to even mention the apparent attempt for him to speak to Anko alone. His curiosity was piqued, so on their way back, he asked Sakura and Sasuke for more details about what had happened during the exams. While Sasuke's confrontation with the blood manipulator was something he needed to look into in the future, the detail that caught Kakashi's interest was focused on the clan name of the girl they rescued.
Naruto had found out his true heritage. A mixture of guilt and sorrow flooded Kakashi, weighing him down like an anchor for the rest of the evening. As soon as he returned to the hotel, he said his goodbyes to Sakura and Sasuke and went off to sulk in peace. His mind was waylaid by the memory of Kushina and Minato. After their deaths, he truly felt he had nothing outside of duty, and even now, the grief was still suffocating.
Kakashi noticed Naruto come down the hotel's path; his eyes were puffy and red, and he looked exhausted. Kakashi decided it was best for him not to speak to him since he was not in the best state of mind. He watched Naruto enter the building and stared at the door for several more minutes before he looked back up to continue looking at the night sky.
Around an hour and a half later, another person landed on the roof beside him. Kakashi, still staring up at the sky, acknowledged their arrival. "Hey, were you out doing some late-night exploring?"
Anko walked toward Kakashi, and as she took a seat next to him, she said
"Nah, I was just out looking for some deadbeats."
"Ah, so you've already talked to Jiraiya and the Hokage. I guess I'm next on the list, huh?"
"Not in the same way; trust me, I've already gotten most of my anger out; at this point, I'm just trying to hear the full story; I can't wrap my head around it; how can the kid of the most beloved man in the village, be treated as a nuance and a pariah," said Anko
Kakashi sighed
"I wonder that myself, too, the kid's had a tough go of it, that's for sure."
Anko turned to Kakashi.
"I have to know. Did you know all this time that Naruto was the Fourth's son?"
Kakashi nodded
"Minato and Kushina kept me close after I lost my teammates. I was one of the first to know of Kushina's pregnancy. I remember being very happy for them."
"So what happened? Because from what I can remember, the first time Naruto met you was during the bell test?"
Kakashi closed his eye, and took a deep breath as his mind raced through the painful memories. He had thought about Kushina and Minato over the years, but this was the first time he had discussed his relationship with them and Naruto with anyone.
"That part of my life is a haze; I was more machine than man; I was only worried about three things: eating, sleeping, and working, while sometimes skipping the first two. I didn't know Naruto was alive until a few days after the Nine-Tails attack, but I couldn't face him because I wasn't strong enough." Kakashi looked down at that shame filling his voice
"And with the village being in disrepair, my role in the Anbu increased tenfold; I would go on month-long mission marathons, hopping from one assignment to the next. Some people call it my "prime". I completed hundreds of missions and saved the village's ass more times than I could count. I would have died doing that if it wasn't for Gai a few years back; he organized a few of the others and demanded the Hokage to take me out of Anbu."
"That definitely sounds like something Gai would do," Anko said as she smiled at the thought of their eccentric friend.
"After I got out, I was faced with the reality that it had been a decade, and the kid of my sensei was being treated like the plague around the village."
"Did you ever introduce yourself to him"
Kakashi shook his head.
"If I was going to enter Naruto's life, I would need to explain everything, who he is and who his parents are. I couldn't lie to him and pretend I didn't know his parents. Plus, the Hokage forbade me from telling Naruto about Minato and Kushina, so instead, I made the Hokage promise that I would be Naruto's sensei."
Anko did not respond, trying to take everything in. The two of them remained silent for several more minutes until Anko broke the silence.
"I don't blame you."
Kakashi's eye widened in slight shock, as he was expecting at least some anger from Anko.
"I mean, how old were you, like fourteen shit? When I was that age, I was in a very dark place too. I didn't have your issue of being numb, but it was that I felt everything too much; every comment made me irrationally angry, sad, or paranoid. I would threaten civilians, fight teammates, and be a menace for the smallest of things. I couldn't imagine trying to help a child during that time; I mean, I couldn't even help myself."
"I guess being a ninja isn't exactly the most healthy career mentally," Kakashi tried to say in a joking tone, but the truth of his words nullified it.
"Yeah…"
The two remained silent for another long moment.
"So what are we going to do tomorrow? You never really explained to me fully how you want this training plan to work," asked Kakashi as he sparked a new conversation
"Most of their skills are already up to par for the tournament, but you know better than I do that they need to start focusing on becoming elite in just one of two areas; focusing on that will make them better ninjas in the long run."
Kakashi nodded
"Makes sense. Do you have any ideas"
"I do have some suggestions, but at the end of the day, each of them will have to make that decision for themselves. I'll give them until tomorrow evening to come up with an answer, and after that, we are going to move heaven and earth to get them to their goal."
Kakashi and Anko continued to converse until both of them retired to their rooms prepared for the following day.
Sasuke, Sakura, and Naruto were awoken by a loud noise. They shot up out of their beds, ready to engage any potential enemies, only to see Anko holding a metal pan in her hand.
"Why, sensei, you know we had a hard few days," complained Sakura as she covered her pillow over her head.
Naruto leaned forward, still drowsy. He had a lot of trouble falling asleep last night, and Sasuke fully got out of bed and began stretching.
"Why did you have to wake us up so early," asked Naruto as he rubbed the sleep out of his eyes
Anko grinned
"Like I told you yesterday, the three of you will have today to decide how you want your training to progress."
"Don't you and Kakashi sensei decide that?"
Anko crossed her arms.
"Up until now, we have, but going forward, for the three of you to reach your full potential, you will have to decide for yourselves how you want to get stronger."
"I'm not opposed to the idea, but is there any particular reason why?" asked Sasuke.
"Take my word for it. I became a much more versatile and stronger ninja as I moved away from my sensei's teachings, and the same was true for Kakashi. What we have taught you so far should be the foundation, and going forward, the three of you should build off of that into the ninja you want to become." Anko said, confident in her words from her own experience
"So what do we do?" asked Sakura
Anko shrugged
"Anything really, explore the city, relax, talk to friends, meditate, but by the end of the day, I want the three of you to have an answer."
Sakura felt anxiety race through her.
"But what if we don't come up with an answer by tonight?"
Anko beamed a smile at Sakura.
"I have full confidence that each of you will"
She then turned to Naruto and said
"And Naruto, you will have most of the day free, but there's someone who wants to speak to you."
Naruto looked puzzled, but his mood immediately dampened as he thought of the revelations of the previous night, the morning haze blocking out the memories.
Sakura and Sasuke noticed Naruto's change in mood, but Anko gave them both a look that said they should leave him alone for now.
Anko then opened the door and began to exit.
"Well, Sasuke and Sakura, I hope the two of you have a great day. Naruto, after you get ready, you can meet me by the front of the hotel."
Naruto acknowledged her with a nod, and Anko left the genin to their own devices as the three of them prepared to make a decision that would affect the rest of their ninja careers.
As soon as Sakura left the hotel, she made her way to the hospital to visit Ino. She had heard from Anko and Kakashi about her condition and was eager to see her friend. As she entered the building, she saw a familiar face at the reception.
"Hinata," Sakura said as she made her way toward her friend.
Hinata turned around and gave a gentle smile
"Hey Sakura, it's good to see you. "
Sakura went to embrace Hinata, and she graciously accepted; after they let go of the hug, Sakura took a slight step back and said.
"I heard about what happened from Sasuke. Are you okay"
Hinata nodded
"Thankfully, thanks to him, no one suffered significant injuries," Hinata's face then darkened slightly.
"Are you here to see Ino as well?"
"Yeah, I wanted to visit yesterday, but apparently, she was still going through treatment."
"Would you like to go together then?" offered Hinata
"Of course."
The two of them then checked in and made their way to Ino's room, where she had been moved into a regular hospital room earlier that morning. As they approached the room, the door opened, and out exited Shikamaru yawning; upon seeing them, he raised a hand up in a lazy greeting and said
"Hey, you two here to see Ino?"
Sakura nodded
"Yes, has she been awake yet, "
"A little. She was awake for a little bit after she moved rooms. She said she felt okay, just really tired. She's been asleep for a while now," Shikamaru said as he stretched.
"Anyways, I promised Choji I would bring him something to eat, I'll be back later."
Hinata and Sakura said their goodbyes to Shikamaru and made their way into Ino's room. As they both entered, they saw a sleeping Ino. She had some stitches on the right side of her forehead where a wound had opened up, her right arm was in a cast, and both her legs were in big casts and secured on the bed.
Both Hinata and Sakura were slightly taken aback by the sight. Both of them had heard of the severity of Ino's injuries, but to see them up close was disconcerting. Both of them took a seat as they gazed at Ino's sleeping form.
Hinata looked away and turned her eyes downward.
"How terrible! I don't even want to think about how much pain she was in."
Sakura's expression tightened as she looked over her friend. From what she heard, the majority of her injuries were dealt with in one strike, which caught her off guard. The thought disturbed Sakura to her core. To think that a person as vibrant and headstrong as Ino could be reduced to this after one attack—something like that could happen to anyone not named Naruto—it could happen to her.
What if they were to come across the man that Team 10 came across? Would this be her? All of her training and preparation become useless in the face of a single lapse of focus. Sakura began to spiral deeper into her anxieties, but it was interrupted as Ino began to stir in her sleep.
Sakura and Hinata sat up at attention as they hovered over their friends. Ino's eyelids began to flutter before she opened her sky-blue orbs and saw the smiling faces of her two friends. A small smile came across Ino's face as she said weakly.
"Hey guys," her voice was dry and raspy, and she began to cough.
Hinata immediately went to grab a nearby water bottle and began to serve it to Ino. Ino took deep gulps, trying to hydrate her throat. Hinata moved the bottle away and asked.
"Are you okay, Ino"
"As okay as I can be, compared to how much pain I was in a few days ago, I feel like I'm in heaven now."
Ino looked over to Sakura, who hadn't spoken to her yet
"What's up forehead? Come to visit me, not to even say anything."
Tears began to well up in Sakura's eyes as she went to hug Ino,
"Ow, ow, watch you idiot, I'm not exactly 100% here. What's gotten into you?"
Sakura quickly let go.
"Sorry, it just,"
Sakura paused for a movement.
"You almost died, Ino, and it took me seeing you like this for me to realize it."
A slight frown came over Ino's face.
"Well, I'm alive now, aren't I? So there's no use thinking about it," Ino tried to say confidently, but it was clear that her close brush with death had affected her as well.
Sakura wiped some tears from her eyes and began to take a seat
"Yeah, you're right; I should just be happy you're alive."
Hinata looked over to Ino, hesitant in her next words
"If you don't mind, would you like to talk about what happened? Only if you want to, of course."
Ino thought for a moment and nodded, then began recounting the events leading up to her attack.
"To think that one attack could do all this, you should have been more observant," said Sakura
Ino rolled her eyes
"Thank you, captain. It's obvious, but we were already on edge big time. We hadn't spotted him for a solid ten minutes before he swung at me. The only way I could have avoided that attack was if my skin deflected it."
A spark went off in Sakrua's mind, and she turned toward Ino to fuel it further,
"What did you say?"
Ino raised her eyebrow, confused.
"What about us not seeing him for like ten minutes?"
"No, the last thing you said."
"That the only way I could have stopped his attack was if I deflected it with my skin."
An explosion went off into Sakura's brain as ideas began to surge forth
"Oh my god, Ino, you're a genius."
Ino gave a blank look.
"Wait, I am." She then took on a smug expression
"I mean, of course, I am, among many other things."
Hinata looked over to Sakura.
"What do you mean, Sakura?"
"I don't know right now, but I'm sure Anko or Kakashi sensei might know something?" Sakura said more, mumbling to herself.
Ino laid back in her bed and smiled
"Whatever, you little weirdo."
Ino's off-hand comment noticeably lightened Sakura's mood as the three of them continued to talk for most of the day.
Sasuke wondered about the various pathways leading through the land of Hot Water. The paved roads led to many small villages and markets that sold a variety of goods. He ignored them as he was deep in thought about where he should take his development as a ninja next.
His goal was to be elite in just about every skill he could, but having to focus on one or two for the next month was turning out to be a difficult decision; he could pick up a new skill or aim to improve his others. He, without a doubt, wanted to improve his ninjutsu capability and continue to alter and create new techniques from the ones he had, but it was not the only thing he wanted to focus on.
For a while now, he had felt that he was missing something from his repertoire, and he was taking this walk to focus on what that was. His thoughts were interrupted as he heard the distant sounds of metal. Sasuke then looked around his surroundings. He had traveled quite a distance from the hotel and was in an unfamiliar area. He heard the noise again and, in his curiosity, chose to follow it.
It led him to a clearing. Nearby, standing in it, was a girl he immediately recognized from the first exam, Kurotsuchi. She was standing in the center with her eyes closed. She was surrounded by a bunch of vaguely human-shaped rock pillars, with her hand on her sheathed. In an instant, she unsheathed her blade and began a dance as she slashed each of the rocks, slicing through them like silk.
Her speed was incredible, as she managed to slice each pillar with ease and precision, decimating all of them in a matter of moments. Sasuke watched in awe at the display. Kurotsuchi then returned to the center of the clearing, went through a few hand signs, put her foot on the ground, and out of the ground came a new set of similarly shaped pillars.
She then spoke
"Are you here to watch my skill in person, Uchiha? I will warn you: My greatness cannot be copied, even with those eyes of yours."
Kurotsuchi turned, wearing an impossibly smug expression on her face, instantly causing some anger to rise in Sasuke. Sasuke collected himself and took a deep breath before responding.
"I was just taking a walk and stumbled upon you. I was just leaving, actually." Sasuke began to turn around and leave, but Kurotsuchi yelled after him.
"A likely story from a leaf in, to think your village would steep so low that they would send you here to steal my swordsmanship techniques, despicable," Kurotsuchi spat.
Sasuke took the bait and turned around.
"As if I would try to copy anything from you, it would be a disgrace to my clan to copy your sloppy technique."
Kurotsuchi's face somehow grew more smug as she tsked at Sasuke
"Now I'm sure you're lying because my swordsmanship is nothing short of perfection; it would take an amateur, a fool, or a liar to say otherwise."
Sasuke's face turned red in rage, but he calmed himself and took a deep breath. As he collected his thoughts, he finally found out what his answer to his teachers would be later in the day. He looked up at Kurotsuchi.
"You're right; I've never picked up a sword in my life, that's why, over the next month, I will learn to weld one and beat you in the second round with only a blade," Sasuke said, his tone making it seem as if it was already a fact.
Kurotsuchi laughed at the absurd declaration and yelled
"As if I've held a sword in my hand for as long as I can remember, an absolute tool like yourself could never think about catching up to me in a lifetime, much less a month."
Sasuke ignored her as he walked away with her, putting daggers on his back as he left.
Naruto followed Anko, his head down, as he was still struggling to come to terms with everything he had learned the previous day. His dad was the Fourth Hokage, his hero. Each time he thought about it, it felt fake, as if he was in a dream or one huge prank was being played on him.
Anko spoke
"You must really be deep in thought; you haven't even asked any questions about where we're going or who you're meeting."
Naruto looked up
"Oh, sorry, it's just a lot, you know"
"Don't worry. I get it. You probably still have a lot of questions, but luckily, the person we are seeing has quite a few."
Naru perked up
"Who is it"
"Your father's sensei and your godfather, Jiraiya."
Naruto furrowed his brows and crossed his arms.
"Hell now, there's no way I'm going to see that bum; he didn't want to talk to me for twelve years; why does he want to talk to me now?"
"Trust me, I would prefer you not talk to the guy either, but outside of his status as a bum, he is one of the best teachers in the world and is probably the only guy who can help you with your fox problem."
"You want him to teach me, no way."
"I'm not forcing you to be his student. All I'm saying is that the only reason I'm considering this is because of what he can teach you. Like I said earlier, you don't have to be taught anything by him. You can walk away and choose never to speak to him again, but you should hear what he has to say first."
"Fine"
The two of them continued until they made their way to a set of stairs that led up to a shrine. Anko then looked to Naruto and said
"He should be at the top sitting at the shrine."
"Are you not coming up with me?" asked Naruto
Anko shook her head
"Nope, this has to be a conversion between you and him."
Naruto sighed, and he began to make his way up to the top of the shrine. As soon as he reached the top, there was a puff of smoke as he saw the old man sitting on top of a large toad. He then stood up and smiled brightly. You may be wondering who I am; Jiraiay then dramatically began to swing his long hair in a circle.
"I am the man who has no enemies in the North, South, East, and…"
Naruto turned around and started to make his way back down the stairs.
"Oh, wait. Don't go yet," Jiriya yelled as he leaped off the toad and dismissed it.
Naruto turned around, his face full of disinterest.
Jiraiya then dropped his smile and spoke
"I'm sorry,"
Jiraiya then sat down crossed-legged and patted them down in front of him
"You deserve answers, and I will be willing to give as many as you want."
Naruto took a quick look back down the hill and sighed as he approached Jiraiya and took a seat on the ground.
"Okay, before anything, I would like to start off with a story."
Naruto growing impatient, said
"I thought you were going to tell me about my parents."
"Don't worry, I am, but this is important."
Naruto sighed and waved his hand, signaling his acceptance.
Jiraiya cleared his throat and began.
"This one is called the coward's tale. It begins with a boy whose dream is to become the greatest ninja the world has ever seen. The only problem he had was that he had very little talent for the craft at first. But through hard work and guts, he managed to land on a team with two people; one of them turns out to be his first love, and the other his best friend."
Naruto, at first, was wholly disinterested in the tale, but as it continued, he focused more and more on Jiraiya's story.
"As the boy became a man and the three of them grew, they ended up becoming strong and began to prosper, but there was something the man was looking for outside of his life as a ninja; he was looking for a pupil that would change the fate of the world for the better, a foolish task, but one he put his whole being into."
"His first pupil was strong, born with eyes that made him destined for greatness, and set on a path to change the world. But sadly, after leaving him and his friends, the man later learned of their deaths."
"Still on the path of his goal, the man eventually took on another pupil, a young boy smart enough to solve any problem with his mind; the pupil eventually went on to surpass the man in strength, and the man thought he had completed his mission."
"But as the years went by, with his first love long gone and his best friend going astray, the only solace left was his pupil and his beautiful wife, who they entrusted with their soon-to-be-born child." Jiraiya's voice cracked, and tears began to stream down his face, but he continued the story."
"He accepted the honor, not expecting to have to take the role, but one day, a great disaster struck, and a great beast attacked; the pupil and his wife sacrificed their lives to defeat the beast, leaving behind their child and the man who had promised them to take up the honor, instead overwhelmed with grief, ran and hid away like a coward, getting lost in worldly pleasures, delusions of duty to his village."
Jiraiya then performed a deep bow, his forehead touching the dirt in front of Naruto, as he finished his story through tears.
"And now, years later, he sits in front of the boy he abandoned, desperately asking for forgiveness for his cowardice."
Naruto sat there stunned and in silence. He didn't know what to expect when meeting his godfather, but it wasn't this. Naruto awkwardly rubbed the back of his head,
"Come on, old guy, you can get up."
Jiraiya raised his head and wiped away some tears
"Sorry, I shouldn't even be the one crying right now,"
After that statement, the two of them didn't utter a word for several minutes until Naruto spoke.
"Could you tell me about my parents"
A small smile came over Jiraiya's lips
"Certainly"
Jiraiya then recounted to Naruto stories of his parents, from their youths to how they met to their adulthood. Naruto hung onto every word as he began to feel closer and closer to his parents after each story. Early morning turned to afternoon, and afternoon turned into evening as an orange hue overtook the sky.
Jiraiya looked up and said
"It looks like we've been talking far longer than I expected; look, Naruto, there is more I wish to offer you than stories of your parents."
"You mean training?"
Jiraiya nodded
"I could teach you how to control your tailed beast, as well as some other things if you'll allow me."
Naruto sat silent for a moment.
"Listen, I won't forgive you for what you did, but you actually seem sorry and that you want to make things right, and I know if I did something wrong, I would want a second chance, so I'm willing to train with you, but you're on thin ice."
Jiraiya beamed a smile at Naruto
"Thanks, kid. I really appreciate it."
Naruto smiled slightly and said his goodbyes as he made his way back to the hotel to inform his senseis of his decision.
Kakashi and Anko gathered the three of them outside the hotel as the sun began to set.
"So, have the three of you come to a decision," asked Anko
The three of them then respond in unison
"Yes"