-A few days later, in the Hokage's office-
"Jiraiya, won't you consider it? My age is getting to me, I can't sit on the Hokage seat for much longer" Hiruzen was with several other elders, who were all trying to persuade Jiraiya to become the next Hokage.
However, Jiraiya was firm on his rejection, not showing an opening at all.
"I enjoy my freedom, and I have plenty more 'research' to conduct, so I cannot be tied down to this role" He replied
Hiruzen sighed, where else is he supposed to find another candidate? He shook his head, at this rate, he will never be able to retire.
Thus, his determination to have Jiraiya take over was stronger than ever, as he began coughing as he clutched his chest.
"Hokage-sama" The elders all expressed their concern for him, whilst giving Jiraiya occasional glances.
Jiraiya frowned, he knew that Hiruzen wants to drop the gig, but he really didn't want to pick it up either. And seeing Hiruzen's weakening aura as he coughed even harder, he sighed.
"Sensei...I really can't take over, but I promise, I will find a candidate" He said with a helpless sigh
Hiruzen glanced at him, he covered his mouth and coughed even harder. Before long, there were traces of blood in his hand...
"..."
'Old man, aren't you way too dedicated to the act? I know the blood is fake, but when did you learn to act this way!' Jiraiya's lips twitched, and his opinion on Hiruzen was plummeting really fast.
"Tsunade would make a better candidate than me, so I am planning on travelling to find her and convince her to take over as the fifth Hokage" Jiraiya said
Hiruzen's sly gaze shifted over as he thought about it
"If...If you can bring Tsunade back, that will be for the best" He said solemnly
"Of course, sensei" Jiraiya promised before leaving the room
Once he left, Hiruzen stopped coughing and stood up straight.
"If he cannot bring back Tsunade, spread rumours that I'm becoming ill, I refuse to believe he won't cave in" Hiruzen said to the elders
"Yes, Hokage-sama" Though they acted obediently, Hiruzen knew that they were only acting this way as they felt that they indeed needed a new Hokage to take over.
Hiruzen sighed faintly
'I really want to retire...and leave those paperworks behind...'
-At the hospital-
Sasuke's eyes trembled as he slowly sat up. But as soon as that happened, he was invaded by intense pain all over his body, but mainly his face. Memories resurfaced, as well as his humiliating defeat.
He clenched his fists as a strong feeling of indignance rose in his heart.
"Naruto..." He gnashed his teeth
Not only was he thoroughly defeated, but Naruto even punched him repeatedly on his face with a vicious smirk on his face, not that he knew that the one smirking was actually Kurama.
"Sasuke, you're awake" A pink haired girl walked in, revealing a dazzling smile as she walked over.
Sasuke stared at Sakura, who began checking his wounds with a cheerful smile.
"Where's Naruto..." He asked
"Huh? Naruto? He took an A rank mission outside of the village a few days ago, so he's probably gone by now" She replied
"Hm?" Sasuke was stunned
"A rank? I thought Chunins can only take C to B rank missions?" Sasuke asked with a perplexed look
"Oh, right, you were still unconscious, Naruto prevented a major accident during the exam..." She began explaining what happened during the chunin exam right after he passed out, and as Sasuke listened, the more uncomfortable he felt.
'That's a lie, right? Naruto not only stopped the Ichibi, but also saved Hokage-sama?' He clenched his fists so tight that they began bleeding, as he was unable to accept the fact that Naruto, someone he deemed as less talented would achieve all these feets.
'Didn't Itachi say that only a Sharingan can defeat a Sharingan? Then how...how did I lose so badly? How am I so far behind him!' He was unwilling, absolutely unwilling!
"Sasuke? Is something wrong?" Sakura asked
"It's nothing" He replied with a low tone
*Thud*
Outside the room, they heard a lot of footsteps going by the room they were in
"What's going on?" Sakura went to ask someone who was passing by
"Kakashi Hatake is in critical condition apparently, it seems someone formidable snuck into the village" The person replied and headed off in the same direction
Sasuke stood up
"Kakashi sensei was hurt? Is it that bad?" He muttered as he followed the crowd, ignoring his aching body.
Sakura quickly followed to make sure he didn't get hurt along the way, and when they arrived, they found Kakashi laying on the bed with Guy and Kurenai by his side.
"Sensei, what happened?" Sasuke and Sakura came in, which made Kakashi's heart rate increase.
He cursed at whoever spread news of his injury, but responded calmly
"Nothing much, I overused the Sharingan again when I tried to repel the invaders" He replied
"Oh, then-"
"Kakashi, it is confirmed that one of the attackers is indeed Itachi Uchiha" A man burst in and said
"..." Kakashi pinched between his brows and sighed, what are the odds?
That person didn't come sooner, nor later, they just had to come when Sasuke was about to be sent off by him...
"I-Itachi!" Sasuke's expression changed as a bloodthirsty aura rose from him.
"Guy, stop him!" Kakashi yelled
"O-Of course!" Guy turned to grab Sasuke, and picked him up with ease
"Now, Sasuke, I know what you're feeling, but you can't run off, he was able to put Kakashi in this state, you cannot beat him" Guy said with a solemn expression
Sasuke gnashed his teeth, as his eyes became bloodshot, and no, not because of his Sharingan, it was simply bloodshot.
He was in no state to listen to anything, so everything Guy said to him went in one ear, and went out the other without a single bit of resistance.
-Deep underground in Konoha-
Naruto ventured down a small tunnel. The entrance was obscure, and he would have missed it if not for Orochimaru's note.
His gaze was sharp, wary of every step he took. Along the way down, he left flying raijin marks in case he need to ever return to this place.
'Danzo, oh Danzo, just what are you hiding?' Naruto's lips curved into a smile as he snuck into the hideout.
He kept scouting the area with his chakra in case anyone approaches, and he even had Kurama keep watch in case.
Naruto soon arrived in the main lair, where he caught glimpses of many cloaked figures, standing guard within the room.
'What were they called again? Hokage-sama has mentioned it before...right, root, Danzo's personal squad' Naruto picked up a small rock and placed the flying raijin mark on it, as well as a seal that reduces presence before throwing it into the room.
The seal worked wonders, allowing him to throw it past them all without their notice.
*Swoosh*
He promptly teleported into the next room where the rock landed, and looked around. It was Danzo's office.
He scrabled through the documents quietly, and as he read some of the content, his gaze became cold. After looking through it all, he sorted everything back to how it was before, and planted more flying raijin marks around, with even a few on the documents he read.
His fists clenched
'Danzo...you are dead to me' He gnashed his teeth at the thought of the content
-In the Hokage office-
Naruto teleported into the office
"Sup Hokage-sama, I'm here to report my mission" Naruto said as he placed a bloodied headband on the table.
Hiruzen lifted a brow, he was surprised that Naruto hunted down the missing-nin in just a few days! These types of missions usually takes weeks, maybe even months, yet it was completed so easily...
As for why Naruto took this mission, it was an excuse to go find Zabuza to help him train in swordsmanship. As for the mission, he just had Orochimaru help him find the person, which took him less than a day to hunt down.
"I'll be going now" Naruto said as he teleported away
Hiruzen sighed, just when did Naruto grow to this degree?
-Outside the village-
Jiraiya was heading towards a nearby town to gether some intel when a golden light flashed behind him. He turned around in a hurry, and saw Naruto, who landed beside him.
"You...why are you here?" Jiraiya asked
"To go with you to find lady Tsunade, Hokage-sama said I can be of use" Naruto grinned, lying without batting an eye
"Hm...alright"
Along the way, Jiraiya glanced around as he constantly scanned his body with chakra, but no matter what, he couldn't find the flying raijin mark that Naruto used to teleport to him...
"Don't bother looking for it, I added concealment seals onto it, as it is now, even the third doesn't know he has a few dozen in his office" Naruto said casually
Jiraiya stared at Naruto in bewilderment
"Just how did you improve so much in this field? You're only thirteen" Jiraiya sighed
"I'm an Uzumaki" Naruto responded
Jiraiya's lips twitched, he has heard that Naruto only started to dabble in seals recently, he'll be damned if that is the only reason why he's so good at it.
"Anyway, kid, why are you smoking?" He stared at the cigarette in Naruto's mouth
"It's a special drug I made, it doesn't harm the body and can revitalise your stamina, wanna try one?" Naruto replied
"Drug? You dabble in medicine as well?" Jiraiya asked
(Note, this is drug as in medicine, not the type that makes you high)
"Yeah, it helps with plenty of things" Naruto smiled as he tossed one over to Jiraiya
Jiraiya was hesitant at first, but after some convincing, he decided to try it out. Much like Guy, he responded with an energetic roar of amazement.
"My goodness, the effects aren't small" He gasped as he felt his body burst with energy
Naruto chuckled
"Of course, I don't joke around when I made these things, it's related to my survival after all" He said casually
Jiraiya nodded as he took in a deep puff
"Phew, not bad kid, got any more?" He asked
"How much will you pay?" Naruto replied, he may give out trials, but he would never give them out in bulk.
Well, Ino is an exception, but otherwise, he would give samples, so people know what type of goods he handles...
[That sounds shady as f**k]
'Hush, my goods are good for the body'
[That sounds even less trustable...]
'You're the one missing out' Naruto scoffed
Kurama rolled his eyes, as a chakra being, as long as he has chakra, he would never run out of stamina, so what could he possibly be missing out?
They soon stopped by a small town, where they decided to stop for a break, and possibly gather intel on Tsunade. Well, at least that was Jiraiya's reason when he was heading towards the local hot spring...
Naruto rolled his eyes and found himself an inn to stay until departure.
As he laid on the bed, he felt that he was forgetting something. Something important that he should probably remember...
After some time, he decided to forget it, if he couldn't remember, it probably means that it wasn't too important.
*Knock*
'Why the f**k am I getting disturbed even when I'm not in the village!' Naruto wanted to cry, even when he is not in Konoha, he still can't get some proper rest!?
Why! Why do people keep knocking on the door just when he is about to sleep!
He stood up and walked to the door. But just as he was about to open it, he paused slightly...the chakra he felt outside was unfamiliar, and a sense of wariness rose in his heart, so he promptly decided to be safe and formed a few seals.
Outside, Itachi was waiting outside with Kisame, both wearing the black robe with red clouds on it. When he saw the door open, he was going to act immediately, but...
'Br-Brother???' When he saw Sasuke's face, he was thrown off completely!
He could have sworn that it was Naruto who walked in here!
"I-Itachi!" The moment their eyes met, 'Sasuke' burned with anger as he roared
Itachi was stunned, but he quickly activated his Sharingan and saw through it. It was just a simple transformation!
However, it was that moment of shock that Naruto teleported away...
"..."
Kisame looked around
"Uh, wasn't there a kid here just now? And where's the nine tails Jinchuriki?" He asked cluelessly
Itachi pinched between his brows, he of all people, actually got fooled by a simple transformation jutsu! Kisame falling for it is one thing, but Itachi!?
"That kid was the jinchuriki, he transformed into someone else to fool us" Itachi said in a low voice
Kisames eyes widened from shock
"That brat, I'll rip off his legs when we catch him!" He gnashed his teeth tightly
Just as they were about to give chase, seals appeared right under their feet!
"Hm!" Itachi jumped back quickly, but Kisame wasn't as quick to react as ropes shot out, tying him up.
When he tried to struggle free, he realised that his chakra was sealed!
"Oi, Itachi, help me out!" He yelled
Itachi was stunned yet again, Kisame couldn't break free himself?
*Poof*
Right at that moment, Kisame burst into white smoke, and when it faded, Itachi nearly choked upon what he saw...
Kisame was now...a woman!? And why was he tied up in such a-a-a...such a perverted way!? To make matters worse, there is another seal that activated, it didn't do anything to Kisame, but it made him uneasy...
Itachi frowned, he cut the ropes on Kisame and destroyed the seal that sealed his chakra.
"The information was wrong, he isn't as easy to handle as we expected" Itachi frowned
"Dammit! What is going on! My chest hurts every time I move" Kisame yelled
Itachi glanced at his chest, and...
*Cough*
They were swaying around, moving up and down whenever Kisame stomped his feet. Not to mention, his face now looked like that of a mature woman, so the action was rather provokative...
"I can't even undo this stupid jutsu! Itachi, do something!" Kisame yelled
Itachi frowned, he activated his Sharingan to see if he could figure something out, but he found nothing wrong with Kisame's body.
"Ignore it for now, we need to chase the kid" Itachi said
Kisame groaned, but after thinking about it, he agreed.
But the moment they took another step, rasengans appeared right in front of their faces.
!!!
The rasengans slammed into Kisame's face, whilst Itachi blinked away with his flash steps. The impact was more than Kisame expected, as it sent him flying back, and left his face battered.
'A full force rasengan only did that much?' Naruto frowned, his full force rasengan wasn't even able to put a scratch on Kisame, but that didn't stop him from continuing his attack.
He summoned more rasengans and began throwing them at him in vollies.
Kisame glared at Naruto as he quickly unwrapped his sword, revealing a jagged sword that looked quite like a sharp dust cleaner. It had a mouth at the top, which opened and absorbed the rasengans immediately.
"That kid has so many tricks" Kisame spat, feeling the pain in his jaws. The attack didn't deal much damage to him, but damn did it hurt!
Itachi nodded, at the moment, they were actually thrown into a passive situation by a thirteen year old boy!
"Yo, the fish man is looking real nice, phew, not a bad body" They heard a playful voice behind them.
There, Naruto was sitting on some rocks as he chuckled. In his hand was a strange seal that they have never seen before.
"Brat, I will slice off your hands when I catch you so you'll never make seals again!" Kisame roared as he dashed at him blindly
"Wait!" Itachi called out, but Kisame ignored his warning and kept running
*Shing*
Just like before, he was instantly tied up with ropes...
"..." Itachi groaned
'This is the type of idiot I have as my partner...' He sighed
He stared at Naruto from afar and revealed a sinister glare.
"You're quite impressive" He said coldly, his expression remained empty, showing no emotions.
Naruto chuckled
"Thanks" He shifted his gaze to Kisame, who was flopping on the floor, trying to cut the ropes with Samehada, the blade he carried with him.
"Yo fish man" Naruto called out
"WHAT!" Kisame roared at him
Naruto grinned, the seal on his hand glowed, and turned into a projection. What was on the projection? It was Kisame when he first got turned into a woman and tied up!
"Sadly, Itachi avoided it, otherwise, Itachi-chan will also make her debute" Naruto chuckled
Kisame stared at the projection in stupor, is that what he looks like right now!? He wanted to curse so badly right now, but held it back and called for help instead.
"Itachi, get that brat!" He shouted
Itachi sighed, he didn't use his mangekyou sharingan, instead, he just kept it at its base as he used a genjutsu on Naruto.
'Up to you now'
[Got it] Kurama chuckled, instantly breaking the genjutsu through brute force with his chakra
Seeing that Naruto didn't get trapped in his genjutsu, Itachi frowned.
"Itachi, what are you doing!" Kisame roared
"Something is off about the kid" Itachi responded with a frown
He threw a kunai at Kisame, and cut through his ropes with relative ease. His gaze remained on Naruto, not letting him leave his sight. Kisame got up, and held Samehada in one hand as he glared at Naruto.
"Brat, don't think the seals will work on me for a third time" He said in a low voice
"Oh? Let's try it then" Naruto snapped his fungers, and ropes shot towards Kisame.
However, an enormous amount of chakra suddenly poured out of Kisame, and even when the ropes bound him, his chakra density made it impossible to seal him, which allowed him to rip the ropes to shred with ease.
[Oh, that's quite a bit of chakra, I'd say it rivals a tailed beast] Kurama said with interest
'Hm, how should I handle this?'
[I suggest a retreat, with how you are now, you can't beat him, not to mention, there's that Uchiha kid next to him, he feels quite dangerous]
'Agreed'
Naruto made a hand sign, and clones burst forth, all of which smirked at them.
"Instant sage mode" They all yelled, instantly activating sage mode when they created a seal.
"..." Itachi frowned even more
They all then created five rasengans on each hand and began pelting them with the rasengans.
Kisame sneered at this as he pointed Samehada forward, which opened its mouth and began eating any rasengan that flew his way.
"Useless" Kisame growled
However, amidst this, a purple mist began spreading through the air
"Kisame, back off, it's poison" Itachi warned
"Do something then! I have yet to see you take a single action!" Kisame yelled
Itachi wished this dumbskull would understand, it's not that he didn't act, it's that it didn't work! He didn't want to use his mangekyou sharingan against Naruto as it was simply too valuable to use this early.
As he was in thought, a shout echoed through the air.
"ITACHI!"
"Huh? Why is he here???" Naruto turned, and saw Sasuke
One might wonder how Sasuke escaped Guy...well, it was simple, Guy was an idiot...
Guy took Sasuke with him to train since Kakashi said he couldn't let him out of sight. But half way through the run, Sasuke fell to the ground, panting.
"You all go ahead first, I'll catch up" Sasuke said
"Alright, but don't tire yourself out too much" Guy laughed, forgetting he had to keep watch at all times!
As a result, Sasuke dashed out the moment they were out of sight...
Back to the present, Kisame backed off from the mist, and stared at the black haired boy who was glaring daggers at Itachi. He then shifted his eyes to Naruto, who was enjoying the show...
"Brat!" Kisame dashed at him, and formed a wall of water around him to block out the poison.
Itachi glanced at Sasuke, but turned his attention back to Naruto as he followed up with Kisame.
"He-He ignored me?" Sasuke gnashed his teeth, just why!
Why is Itachi ignoring him, and going for Naruto instead? Is he not a big enough threat?
Kisame appeared in front of all the clones
"The one to the left" Itachi said
"Got it!" Kisame slammed Samehada down on Naruto, destroying the nearby ones, whilst the one Itachi pointed out jumped back.
"Hey now, that's cheating" Naruto grumbled as he formed another seal, and chains burst from the ground, wrapping Kisame up.
Kisame sneered as his muscles bulged, ripping the chains apart. Itachi used the body flicker jutsu and appeared behind Naruto. His kunai shot forth, and pierced Naruto's shoulders.
But once he did so, Naruto grabbed his hand and grinned, enduring the pain.
"Got ya" And created five rasengans that he pushed towards Itachi's guts
However, before he could touch him, he saw Itachi's eyes spin. Before he knew it, he was thrown into a momentary daze that Kisame utilised to kick Naruto's back, sending him tumbling on the ground.
"Tch, this brat actually took us so long to capture" Kisame picked up the unconscious Naruto and clicked his tongue
"Hey!" Sasuke suddenly yelled at them
In his hand, the Chidori was formed, and his glare on Itachi became even fiercer
"Do you know him?" Kisame glanced at Itachi and asked
"Hm, a foolish brother of mine" He replied
"Die, Itachi!" Sasuke yelled as he dashed at Itachi
Itachi sighed, he simply used the body flicker technique and appeared by his side, before kicking Sasuke into the wall. He then grabbed him by his neck as he slammed his body against the wall.
Their eyes met, and he could see Itachi's gaze. Indifferent, as if what he just did wasn't even worth his time...
"Your hatred is lacking, and that pitiful skill of yours, it's laughable" He said coldly
"I know right, why are you even here" An agreement came from beside him
"Huh?" Kisame's pupils shrunk as he stared at the blonde boy next to Itachi who was nodding his head, then at his own hand.
Naruto was gone!? Wasn't he unconscious!? Or perhaps...he was never unconscious to begin with!
He gnashed his teeth
"Itachi, forget the black haired brat, grab the Jinchuriki!" Kisame yelled as he dashed over
As this went on, a loud laughter filled the air
"Hey now, didn't I say to not leave me out of parties?" Jiraiya landed between them and let out a chuckle
"Sup old perv, how's your research?" Naruto smiled
"Not bad, found some great inspiriations" He laughed
Seeing Jiraiya, the two of them frowned a little. Itachi dropped Sasuke and prepared to attack.
"Let's take this battle elsewhere" Jiraiya grinned as he pressed his hand down onto the floor
The environment around them suddenly began shifting, as if it was moving and squirming.
"Urgh, what is this stench!" Naruto pinched his nose and grumbled
Itachi and Kisame looked down, realising that their feet were sinking into the ground, which looked somewhat like flesh.
"Kisame, we're retreating" Itachi said
"Tch" Kisame didn't want to, but he could feel that Jiraiya was no simple opponent, and with Naruto behind him, it would make the fight ten times harder.
Naruto may not be a huge threat, but the fact that he could hold them back for so long proved that he was going to be an issue.
Itachi's pupils began spinning, turning the three tomoe into a shuriken shaped pupils, the mangekyou sharingan.
"Amatarasu" He said
The flames burned the wall down, creating a hole in which they escaped from.
Once they left, Jiraiya heaved a sigh of relief
"I did not want to fight those two, thankfully they left" He said in a low voice
"Definitely not because you couldn't react in time, right?" Naruto asked
"Of course not! They could burn through the stomach of a stone toad, that thing has the strongest defence capability of all my jutsus, if they can do that, then fighting them would just lead to a mess" Jiraiya shook his head and replied
"I see..."
"So, what do we do about this kid?" Jiraiya glanced at Sasuke, who was on the ground, battered and bruised.
The place where Itachi had kicked him had fractured, and the impact caused some internal injuries.
"Can we just leave him here and pretend we didn't see him?" Naruto asked
"...are you serious? Isn't he your teammate?" Jiraiya asked
"Yeah, and as much as it hurts me to leave him back, I think that it's what he would have wanted, after all, we are searching for a candidate for the Hokage seat, he would want what's best for the village, even if he perishes" Naruto said with a touched expression, even wiping a drop of tear from his eye.
"..." Jiraiya's lips twitched, so he's even killing Sasuke off now?
The kid isn't even in critical condition, where did the perishing part come from!?
"I'll have a toad send him back, you lil prick" Jiraiya scowled at Naruto, who merely chuckled
He was currently thinking of something else.
'I wonder when the seal will activate and send me the replay' He chuckled
In the instant that Itachi stabbed him with the Kunai, and he grabbed his hand, he left a seal on Itachi's hand without his notice...
-At Itachi and Kisame's location-
"Tch, what a disaster, we almost had him" Kisame spat
Itachi sighed
"There's no helping it, we'll target the other jinchurikis first"
"Mn..." Kisame groaned, the sense of defeat left by a thirteen year old made him furious.
He was played like a fiddle initially...
*Poof*
Suddenly, white smoke puffed from Itachi, causing Kisame to turn over, and when he did, he began laughing.
"Hahahaha!"
"What?" Itachi frowned
He walked over to the river, and stared at his own reflection...
!!!!!!!!!!!
Although his expression remained stiff, his eyes were widened from shock and disbelief. He actually turned into a woman! Kisame had turned back to normal a few minutes after being transformed, so he knew he'd turn back soon.
But the main issue isn't this, it's that Naruto had a recording of Kisame's transformed state, so he was worried that Naruto also somehow got a recording of this as well!
And indeed, Naruto had a seal form on his hand, which projected the scene of Itachi transformed into a woman...
"Bwahahahaha! I'll definitely send this to Itachi when I make a copy" Naruto was rolling around on the ground as he laughed.
"Get up already, I don't know what's gotten you like that, but stop, it's creepy" Jiraiya said as he gave Naruto a kick
"Bah, you old pervert, you're one to talk" Naruto clicked his tongue and got up
Having sorted everything out, they began their travels once more and started to visit the nearby towns in order to see if they could catch wind of news about Tsunade.