115Chapter 20: Team 20 Reunites!
Naruko was both excited and anxious as she made her way to the assigned portkey point. She was about to return to Konoha. It had been almost a year. She wondered how much had changed in that time. She knew those who made it of her old classmates would have graduated not too long ago.
"I wonder who all passed the actual Genin test," she thought. She was sure the students from the prominent clans all made it. Sadly, that meant Sasuke did as well. She had a theory they were all given teams that couldn't really fail the real test.
After all, Konoha would want to show their strongest clans had a bright future. Naruko also suspected there would be a tremendous showing of the main clans' children at the upcoming Chunin exams in Konoha. Her team would also be included with the others.
Ultimately, there was only one way to find out. Naruko took in a deep breath and activated the pedant that would take her home.
[-] [-] [-]
"Welcome back, Naruko-chan," a familiar voice said. She could almost hear the grin in it.
"Jiji!" Naruko cried in happiness. She quickly gave him a tight hug causing him to chuckle. "I'm back," she said with a smile.
"So it would seem," the Hokage said. "I'm sure you have plenty to tell me."
Naruko nodded and turned serious. She was happy to tell him everything, but it was also an actual debriefing for her 'long-term training mission, phase 1'. "Before I start. I know who my father is," she said.
The Hokage gave a sigh. "Dumbledore told me as much. I wanted to tell you later. It was something I planned on saying once you became a Chunin. That being said, I think I agree with the Headmaster. You were ready to know. I just couldn't see it," he said.
"I was a bit upset you never told me, though I did understand why," she said.
"Then you know how important it is to keep the knowledge secret. For now at least," he said.
"I do. Harry Potter knows, since he was there at the time. He also realized how important it was," she said.
"For now, I suppose that is all I can ask. Were there any developments regarding the Kyuubi?" he asked.
"Other than the fact he briefly had a conversation with the Sorting Hat? No," Naruko said.
"The sorting hat… I guess it would know all about the Kyuubi from your mother," Sarutobi said.
Naruko nodded to that.
"Before your official debriefing, I have news of my own to share," he said. "Your unofficial mission regarding the stone is classified as a low B Rank. Professor Dumbledore and I agreed this seemed fair. You and the others encountered a dark wizard of infamy and thus confirmed important information regarding the one known as Lord Voldemort. Hopefully this won't be a common occurrence, but given your friendship with Harry Potter. It is very likely it will be."
Sarutobi gave a stretch and sat down as he motioned Naruko to do the same. "Now then… Let's begin," he started with a smile. Naruko grinned brightly in return.
[-] [-] [-]
By the time Naruko finished her debriefing, word already began to spread of her return. The Hokage's assistant for the day came in a few times to provide them with refreshments. They then mentioned Naruko's return to others, who spread the word more.
The thing that would have surprised Naruko, is how her return wasn't dreaded and hated as much as she would have thought. In fact, there were a number of people excited by her return. This is why Naruko was surprised when she left the Hokage's tower to see a few familiar faces. All of them were wearing their own headbands.
"I didn't expect to run into you all so soon. Congrats on graduating and passing the real test," she said with a smile.
"Good to see you returned," Kiba started. He then gave a grin as he added, "You better not have been slacking during your trip."
Naruko laughed to that. "I would never. Besides, I'm pretty sure my 'rival' would correct that mistake right away," she said with a grin of her own.
"Ha! You know I would have. I can't have a rival for the coolest hat coming up short. It would look bad on me once I get the hat instead," Kiba said with an Inuzuka grin.
"Obviously," she said in reply with a giggle.
She then turned to Shikamaru. "I'm a little surprised you bothered to actual graduate," she said jokingly to him.
He gave a sigh and said, "Mom would have been too troublesome if I didn't."
"Plus, someone has to be there for Choji," she added.
"They might have graduated him just because I did," Choji said with a chuckle.
"I'm guessing you're on their team as well Ino," Naruko said.
"How did you know that?" Ino asked as seh blinked in surprise.
"The abilities of your clans work too well together and someone has to make sure these two don't just slack off the whole time," Naruko said with a giggle.
Ino looked pleased by that and tossed her hair while smirking. "For better or worse that's only natural," Ino said.
Naruko laughed to that and smiled brightly. Despite all that happened here, she had to admit she really did miss home and the people here. She next looked to the last girl in the group who was blushing a little. Naruko came over and gave Hinata a hug. "Hinata-chan! It's good to see you," she said.
Hinata blushed more and stammered a little as she said, "I-I-I feel the same way. N-N-Naruko-chan." She may be blushing but she was happy to see Naruko again. She just never got completely used to how friendly and intimate Naruko was.
What made it even worse is how Naruko was her partner during the special kunoichi classes. Hinata wasn't complaining. It was just embarrassing how great it felt and it was a little fun with Naruko as a partner. She did wish she could just come right out and tell Kiba that was why she always got the way she did around Naruko. Unfortunately, that would only be a million times more embarrassing than with him. He liked to think they had some kind of hot girl-on-girl relationship.
Hinata didn't know it, but there was a reason Naruko liked hugging her so much. Naruko just found her so huggable and really cute and sweet. She also liked how strong and focused Hinata could be when she wanted to be. It was mostly how huggable she was though. It was a toss-up with Naruko if Hinata or Hermione was the more huggable girl.
[-] [-] [-]
To celebrate her return, Naruko and those present went to get ramen. It was only Naruko who ate. The others just tagged along to catch up a little. Half way through the many bowls Naruko was having Shikamaru asked her, "I'm a little surprised you haven't immediately gone to meet up with your teammates again."
"I will after this. I know how their schedules go. They're in the middle of training right now. As soon as I finish here and go meet them, they'll have done enough to take a break for a bit. Then we might very well train together to get used to each other again. I will be going on missions with them now that I'm back. We need to figure each other out again to work well together. We might also just celebrate for ourselves a bit today and start training together tomorrow," Naruko answered.
"You know this how?" Shikamaru asked.
"Jiji told me. You honestly didn't expect I would be gone all of this time and not have a debriefing with him, did you?" she asked.
"You go on a training mission and still gather intel. You really are troublesome. Can't settle for just one or the other," Shikamaru said.
Naruko chuckled. "Not all of us are lazy geniuses. Some of us put in lots of effort," she said.
"See. I keep telling you that," Ino said with a vindicated smile.
"All women are troublesome…" Shikamaru said.
Ino huffed to that.
Naruko giggled and said, "Even so… One day you'll find a girl either not as troublesome as the others, or at the very least worth the troublesomeness."
"Troublesomeness isn't a word," Shikamaru said.
"It is when it comes to you," she said with a grin.
"I think I'll have to use that idea with him," Ino said in thought.
Choji gave a chuckle. "I think they almost have you figured out Shika," he said. Shikamaru gave him a look that wasn't quiet of betrayal. That would have been too much effort.
"So Kiba," Naruko started. "What's your team like?" she asked.
"It's great! We've already been on a couple of C-Ranks to help others track down people. I'm on a team with Hinata and Shino," he said.
"That's good to hear," Naruko said. She turned to Hinata and smiled to her, "Sounds like you have a good team."
"I think so. Kurenai-sensei is really nice too and she knows how to keep us on track," Hinata said cheerfully.
"Good to hear. I pity the team who got a lazy sensei," she said.
"That would obviously be Sasuke-san, Sakura-san, and Zane-san. They have Kakashi-sensei and have numerous times complained about how he shows up at least 2 hours, many times 3 hours, late to everything," Shino said.
"Oh hey, Shino! I didn't know you were there," Naruko said a little nervously.
"I've been here the whole time," Shino sulked. It was the story of his life. Sometimes even his own teammates and sensei briefly forgot he was there.
"Damn, you're good at stealth," Naruko said in hopes of covering for herself.
Shino seemed a little happy about that.
"Kakashi-sensei… Yeah. Glad I'm not on their team. I probably would have been if I didn't graduate early. Even Salma-sensei has complained about him," Naruko said.
She then gave a giggle. "Jiji has actually fed him false information a time or two, just so he shows up on time to really important meetings," she said.
"Really?" Ino asked in shock.
Naruko giggled and nodded to that.
"So long as Kakashi-sensei doesn't figure it out that only seems a logical precaution to take," Shino said.
"That's why Jiji only does so on really important meetings. That way Kakashi can't rely on it to the point he counters," Naruko said.
Kiba nodded to that. "That's why he's the Hokage. Got to know things like that at the very least," he said as Naruko nodded.
[-] [-] [-]
Naruko took in a steeling breath. She omitted part of the reason she celebrated with the friends who came to see her first. The whole truth was she felt even more anxious and more excited to meet her own teammates. She wanted to see them again so badly. She wanted to see how much they grew during her time at Hogwarts.
She also had a worry, a very silly worry, but a worry nevertheless. Would they want her back? The Hokage chose well when he placed Lulu with them while she was away. Naruko also did her best to make sure Lulu would be the teammate Roku and Tougi deserved when she met with her a few times.
Naruko knew it was silly to worry about that. They agreed to be teammates in heart if nothing else. But she was still away for so long… She literally couldn't be there for them while she was away. Lulu was really pretty too.
That was another dumb worry, but it was there. The truth is… there are reasons teams first starting out almost always have a kunoichi on them. Kunoichi often provided emotional or other forms of support for their teammates.
That didn't mean anything would happen between teammates, but kunoichi were intimate with the others. That intimacy could take on different forms with each team and teammate. That intimacy could include being sexually involved with them too. Naruko couldn't really fulfill that role because Tougi and Roku saw her as a good friend and even a little sister of sorts. She wasn't the type of little sister that needed to be coddled, but she was younger than them and seen like that at times. She was fine with this setup, but it had limits to it.
Naruko was worried her teammates might decide they prefer Lulu to her. Though she didn't show it, that terrified her. She would admit she grew rather quickly attached to people at times. She needed precious people and strong bonds in her life, but if those bonds ever broke… She would carry on and act like they never broke. She would do that because otherwise it would be too painful considering how her life was in the past.
Naruko finally appeared at the training ground she knew her teammates would be using. Despite all of her worries, she still gave a big grin when she saw Roku and Tougi sitting under a tree. Her heart felt lighter than ever when they noticed her and stood up eagerly. Roku waved enthusiastically to her.
"Naruko!" Roku said happily.
"You're back," Tougi said.
Naruko wiped away unshed tears and smiled brightly as she came over to them. "Great to see you both!" she said as she made a few shadow clones and hug piled her teammates with them.
Her teammates looked momentarily frightened when the gang of Narukos charged towards them with their arms wide spread. They had no choice but to accept their doom by Naruko hugs. It wasn't really too bad of a way to go. They all broke out into laughter after a moment.
"Where is Salma-sensei and Lulu-chan?" Naruko asked as they all stood back up and the clones dismissed themselves. Naruko would really enjoy the memories of their hugs.
"They thought we would like some time alone together first," Tougi said.
"That's not it," Roku said. He grinned to Naruko and said, "They're busy setting up the party for your return."
"That was supposed to be a surprise," Tougi said.
Roku laughed and said, "You were the only one who thought that. The rest of us figured Naruko would already know we were having it."
Tougi sighed. "Fine," he relented.
Naruko gave a giggle. "Either way I'm sure it will be great," she said.
"I'm a little surprised it took you this long to come find us," Roku said.
"I ummm…" Naruko started. She knew she was supposed to just play it off, but she couldn't.
"You weren't worried we wouldn't want to see you. Were you?" Tougi asked.
Naruko sighed. "A little… I mean… Lulu's been with you two longer than I have by this point," she admitted.
Roku shook his head. "She is great. A good friend. A good teammate. But she isn't a Naruko-chan," he said.
"He's right. You were and always will be our first teammate. The three of us are Team 20. That won't change, even if the worst were to come to pass," Tougi said.
Naruko sniffed happily and grabbed them both into a big hug. "I know it was a silly worry…" she said.
"Just always remember it, Naruko." Roku said.
"Yep. The three of us are team 20. In fact," Tougi started. "We actually renamed ourselves while you were gone, even if it was only unofficially."
"Why would you do that?" Naruko asked.
"The way we see it. Us and Lulu-chan make up a different team," Roku said.
"As long as you two don't hold that against her," Naruko said.
"It was actually her idea," Roku said.
"She understood us. She feels the same way about her deceased teammates. That team name can never be taken from her or reused in her mind," Tougi said.
"What do you call your team?" Naruko asked.
"LTR," Roku said with a shrug.
"Really?" Naruko asked hiding a giggle.
"Yep. We know it isn't very creative, but we like it," Tougi said.
The three then sat in silence for a moment together.
Once the moment was over, Naruko gave a grin. "I want to see what you two have learned," she said to them.
"As we do, for you," Roku said. He then gave a grin. "Hopefully you haven't been slacking off while you were away meditating in mountains or whatever," Roku added jokingly.
"Ha! You wish. Then you two might actually get to be the cool ones on Team 20," Naruko said grinning brightly back at them.
"Only one way to find out," Tougi said. The three got into ready stances.
[-] [-] [-]
Naruko, Tougi, and Roku were all three laying on the grass breathing in deeply and covered in sweat. Naruko thought it felt extra great. She missed feeling like this. She trained at Hogwarts and learned a lot of new and amazing things, but there was nothing like good old-fashioned team training. Maybe one day she could get to experience this with Harry and the others, but that was a way off most likely.
"What was that you did? Tougi?" Naruko asked. They sparred individually and took turns doing two on one matches.
Tougi smiled in pride. "The first of hopefully many support Genjutsus. I call it, Rata Style: Sen-Support. Not the most creative name, so I might change it later, but it essentially improves the target's senses and perception," he said.
"It's very useful," Roku said.
"I already have heightened senses, but it still gave mine a boost! It was… really something to experience," she said in a bit of awe. She had no idea her senses could get that much sharper. She made it a goal to improve to that level on her own.
"It isn't complete. I want to make it last longer. I also want to take it a step further for a different support Genjutsu idea," Tougi said.
"Well," Naruko started. She grinned and said, "I'm your girl! You can use my shadow clones to help with that. It will probably help me too."
"I was hoping you would say that," Tougi said.
"I might even be able to help you take it further. How do you want to improve it?" she asked.
"I'm not sure if you can there. Not for a long time anyways. I want to see if I can get it to also provide a boost to the target's reflexes, even if only momentarily and slight," Tougi said.
Roku nodded to that. "That would be great. Having better senses is fine and all, but if the body can't keep up with the change… you're only more aware of your incoming defeat," he said.
Naruko was in thought on that. She nodded and gave Tougi a wide grin.
"I'm guessing you have an idea," Tougi said.
"Naturally!" she said.
Tougi shook his head but smiled. "I should have known you would," he said.
"She is the Kunoichi who always has something up her sleeves, even if she isn't wearing any," Roku said.
"I do. Also… There isn't anything wrong about having no sleeves. Some people really like girls sleeveless outfits," she said giving a less than innocent giggle.
Roku and Tougi were dumbfounded she said that. They also had a strange look in their eyes. It was like their minds were going somewhere else.
Naruko burst out laughing and caused them to shake out of it. She then gave a gentle smile and said, "Again. I am your girl. I can help you in a way no one else can. Shadow clones have a chakra network and nerve system of their own. It is rudimentary, but it is there and that is why they require so much charka to make. Even someone who is an elite Jonin wouldn't usually make more than one at a time."
"And you can make an army," Tougi said. He was seeing where she was going with this. He was very excited, even if he didn't show it.
"Exactly! I can even make them withstand more than a few hits too. Can't make as many at a time in that case, but I can do it," she said.
"Man… We really got lucky having you as a teammate," Roku said.
Naruko actually blushed a little in happiness to his words. "Thanks…" she said quietly, but loud enough they heard her.
"When I get further along in progress, I'll let you know," Tougi said.
They talked a little longer together. They discussed more of what they could do now and caught up in general. It was actually a very amazing day for Naruko, as far as being a Kunoichi went.
"Well… Looks like it's about time we go and meet with Salma-sensei and Lulu-chan," Roku said as he stood up and stretched out.
"I half wish we had more time, but I also half want to really see them both again. If only I was closer to having my Time Dilation Seal completed," Naruko said as she stood up.
Ruko gave a laugh. "Figures you would come up with even more amazing seals in the time you were away. A Time Dilation Seal… That sounds like it could be very handy," he said.
"I don't know how it would be in combat, but it should be very handy when it comes to support and training and such," Naruko said.
"I'm sure you'll find a way to make it even more impressive than you ever first dreamed it could be," Tougi said.
The group then left to go and meet their sensei and Lulu.
[-] [-] [-]
Naruko let out a sigh as she held a cat which had resigned to its terrible fate of being returned to Fire Lord's wife. "I know we need to get back into the swing of things. I also know, though I don't like it, that requires some D-Ranks… But really? The Tora mission?" she pouted.
Salma-sensei couldn't help but chuckle a little. It was almost criminal how cute Naruko pouts could be. "Look at the bright side, Naruko-chan. We broke the record," she said.
The Hokage chuckled as well. "Salma-san is right, Naruko-chan. Team 20 also has the least amount scratches I've seen on a Genin team," he said before taking a draw on his pipe.
"Still…" Naruko said.
"I actually kind of agree with Naruko-chan," Roku said.
"Perhaps I should make a Genjutsu to activate whenever Tora escapes that causes the cat to return on its own after a set amount of time…" Tougi said quietly to himself. He could see why the cat wanted some freedom from its owner, but the mission was still a pain.
"That would be great! I'd really owe you for that, Tougi," Naruko said with a grin. Any way to avoid more Tora, even if the mission paid unusually well for a D-rank, was appreciated.
"Future plans aside," Salma-sensei started. She wouldn't mind Tougi doing that. It would make him rather famous around Konoha. No one had yet to find a way to improve the Tora missions. "Tomorrow we will be taking a C-rank," she said.
"Indeed. The paperwork is already finished and this mission is right up your alley. You even know the client. He specifically asked for your team and paid a little extra," the Hokage said.
"Does that mean?" Naruko asked.
"Yep. The same merchant. It should hopefully be easier than last time, but you all are more than ready if things go bad. You earned a lot of trust on that mission. Trust is very important for return business," the Hokage said.
"I hope it doesn't get complicated again, but It will be nice to see Haru-tan again. I bet he's grown a lot since last year," Naruko said with a smile.
Haru was the merchant's son. His name was spelled with the kanji meaning Eternal Treasure. It was very fitting for a merchant to name their first child.
"I think we all agree with that. Which means, you three have the rest of today off to rest and prepare. Nothing more than light training and be sure to pack for such a mission," Salma-sensei told her Genin.
"Hai, Sensei!" they replied together before leaving.
"Do we know of any extra threats to watch out for?" Salma asked once she was alone with the Hokage.
"A ninja should always be ready for the worst. We are not aware of any whisperings or rumors of bandits in the area though. The problems will more likely take place once you all arrive at the destination," he took a draw on his pipe.
"There is a business man getting a bit of a reputation. He is currently focusing his less than polite efforts elsewhere, but he might still try something. Our merchant friend, Riku, is getting a very good reputation. The kind of reputation the head of The Gato Company might try to aggressively squash," Sarutobi said.
"This is just a C-Rank?" Salma clarified.
"Gato is a cheap bastard and he will have to be more subtle in how he acts at Riku-san's destination," the leader said.
"Why won't he try something while we're on the road then?" Salma asked.
"As I pointed out, he is focused elsewhere at the moment. And due to the nature of your team's last trip, not even the most desperate of bandits will dare try to occupy the area. Even rouge ninja are less than enthusiastic to work in the area. For better or worse, most Missing nin prefer to keep low and out of trouble," the Hokage said.
It was true. People were usually only aware of the high-profile missing ninjas. They were very much a loud minority. Most missing ninja were runaways and cowards. Usually ninja of some worth who left a village chose defection, even if it meant being under close watch and on short leashes at the new village. They also usually put in a lot advanced planning before such actions.
"Are there any more questions?" Sarutobi asked.
"No, Hokage-sama," Salma-sensei said with a bow.
"Then you are dismissed. Do keep in mind that earlier discussion we had," Sarutobi said as she bowed and left.
Their earlier discussion was about her team plus Lulu taking a high-ranking mission after this one. It would be a test of sorts for Lulu. Salma-sensei would be evaluating her as she led the mission where even Salma-sensei herself was under Lulu's command. Lulu was very talented and there was already talk about her being prompted soon to Tokubetsu Jonin. It was still a long way off, but it was something she was already being tested for during her time as a Chunin.
[-] [-] [-]
As Naruko took a stroll around Konoha, she was a little surprised people weren't too hostile towards her. It was clear they didn't like her, but they weren't glaring at her as much as they had. She was curious about that. It wasn't really something she would count on staying though.
Something else she noticed was a familiar sheet following her. She couldn't help but smile. "I know you're there, Konohamaru," she said.
"Told you…" a young girl said.
"It's only because Naruko-neechan is so incredible!" Konohamaru said as the sheet fell to reveal three academy students. The leader of the group was smiling broadly. Konohamaru was the Hokage's grandson and Naruko's self-appointed greatest rival.
Naruko grinned to them. "I won't refute that claim, but there was also the fact your stealth sheet was being held the wrong way," she said.
"Oh…" Konohamaru said sheepishly.
Naruko smiled to him. He was a cute kid at times, even if he could be bratty. She met him while visiting Jiji one time. Konohamaru thought he could off the old man and that would make him Hokage instead. She wasn't happy with him for that. That wasn't the way to be Hokage. If he did somehow get the old man, that wouldn't make him Hokage. He would be labeled a traitor and summarily executed for his crimes before a new Hokage was chosen.
Konohamaru thought he found a short-cut to the top. The boy had been obsessed with short-cuts at that time. Naruko straightened him out. She told him while ninjas look for cheats and short-cuts, they never do in regards to their training. Not even the Uchiha Bastard did that.
For all his brooding, bad attitude, and many faults, Naruko could not fault Sasuke's drive, especially when it came to training. He didn't seem to do much apart from what the academy taught, but he did train regularly. She had kind of omitted that when she used him as an example to Harry.
After that encounter, Konohamaru saw her as both a role model and rival for the Hokage's hat. He eventually came to also see her as a big sister of sorts. Naruko found it all too adorable to be upset with him once he got over his short-cut obsession. She kind of blamed that on his tutor, Ebisu.
Ebisu always told Konohamaru he was quickest way for the Honored Grandson to make it to the top. Naruko didn't like Ebisu, but as a tutor for Konohamaru she mostly faulted him for not better explaining what he meant by those words. He didn't mean he was a short cut. He meant he would teach Konohamaru everything he could. It was mostly his ego as a tutor speaking when he said he was the quickest way for Konohamaru to get to the top.
"It's good to see you found some friends, Konohamaru," Naruko said as she got down to his level.
Konohamaru grinned and said, "Konohamaru Crops! Sound off!"
The girl went first and said, "The cute one! Moegi-chan!" She then struck a pose and winked.
"T-T-The," the boy with a runny nose started. He gave a sniff and said, "The quiet genius. Udon!" He too struck a pose.
"The Leader and Naruko-neechan's Greatest rival! Konohamaru!" Konohamaru said. He then struck a 'cool' pose as well.
The three then said together, "We're the Konohamaru Corps!"
Naruko was still in her eager to get attention phase when first meeting Konohamaru. He thought it was cool and she loved the praise at the time when she acted similarly. Now, she saw it as more embarrassing on her part and kind of wished she hadn't rubbed off on Konohamaru in such a way. She applauded them anyways.
Still... Poses were kind of ridiculous. What kind of a ninja introduces themselves with a pose?
The embarrassing kind that's who.
[-] [-] [-]
A man in green spandex with a bowl cut looked around. "I sense a disturbance in the Spring of Youth Plane! I shall look into this! If I can't find the problem in three minutes… I'll climb the Hokage monument with three fingers! If I can't do that… I'll lift weights with my teeth for two hours straight! If I can't do that…" and so his list of training punishments continued and got more ridiculous with each one.
A man far away from Konoha with a large mane of spiky white hair, red marks trailing form his eyes and a wart on his nose gave a sneeze. He grinned to himself. "Someone is talking about me… I wonder if it is a beautiful buxom beauty who will help me with my research," he said with a laugh that was only a little perverted.
[-] [-] [-]
"Konohamaru Corps huh?" Naruko started.
"Yep!" Moegi said with a smile.
"Big name… Can you three live up to it? After all, your leader does want to be Hokage. Would you say they are up to the task? Konohamaru?" she asked.
He gave nod. "Of course!" he said.
Naruko gave a grin that was only a little mischievous. "Let's put that to a test," she said. She was allowed light training. Plus, she had to make sure her self-proclaimed greatest rival would live up to the title.
[-] [-] [-]
The three academy students were laying on the ground breathing heavily. Konohamaru's Naruko-neechan was definitely for sure an awesome kunoichi. She really put them through the paces. She wasn't even winded it seemed.
"Wow…" Udon said.
"You three actually weren't too bad, for academy students. Don't start slacking though. What they teach you in the academy is only the very basics of the basics," Naruko said giving them a smile.
"You got it, Naru-neechan!" Konohamaru said as he quickly recovered and bowed to her.
Moegi and Udon both found it impressive Konohamaru was able to do that much. Then again, he was their leader. He really got them taking things seriously while also having fun.
"So… Can you teach us something?" Konohamaru asked brightly. Naruko would swear if he was a puppy his tail would be wagging up a storm in hopefulness.
"Can it be something useful? Unlike that jutsu…" Moegi asked.
Naruko blinked to that. She then looked to Konohamaru. "You didn't…" she started.
Konohamaru blushed a little and his eyes didn't meet her own.
Naruko sighed. That was one of the more embarrassing moments. Konohamaru kept asking her to teach him a jutsu. She didn't have anything else and wanted to show off something original… She blamed her past behavior on being that desperate for attention and praise and wanting to show off.
"I'll admit that jutsu is a bit well… you know… But it does work surprisingly well! We are ninja. We are all about throwing opponents off. The Sexy no Jutsu, when used correctly, can even do that to Kages," Naruko said as she looked to side. She was not blushing. Nope not at all.
"No way!" Moegi said in disbelief.
"Oh yes it does," Konohamaru said. "I actually used it to prank Ebisu-sensei and Grandpa herd it when he dropped and came to see what happened. He too fell backwards from it. He did recover and for some reason instantly knew Naru-neechan taught me it."
"It is perverted so it only works on boys then. Only boys can be perverted," Moegi said.
"Oh? Want to bet perverted stuff only works of boys?" Naruko said. She really should act more mature, but she was too in the moment.
"You're on!" she said.
"If I win, you have to master the Sexy no Jutsu too," Naruko said.
"And if I win?" Moegi asked.
"I'll let you get straight to learning something different," Naruko said.
"Agreed!" Moegi said.
Naruko stood up and grinned as she said, "Bishounen no Jutsu!"
There was a puff of smoke and in Naruko's place was a very handsome young man covered only by wisps of smoke. He was tall with a lean but muscular build. His features were far too dreamy and his hair was a wonderful mess of intentional yellow blonde spikes.
Moegi had hearts in her eyes.
"Good afternoon, Moegi-chan. You look lovely as ever," the man said in a very suave voice.
Moegi fainted with a dreamy smile on her face, which wasn't innocent.
Smoke appeared again and Naruko stood before them once more. "Hmmmm… Maybe it was a bit much…" she said. She then blushed. "I can't believe I just did that!" she screamed inside her own head. What was she thinking?!
"I think I know why Moegi didn't like us doing that jutsu, Konohamaru," Udon said to the leader of their group. Konohamaru nodded.
Yep. That jutsu shouldn't be used as freely as he had in the past. Being on the other side it was so embarrassing and for some reason kind of annoyed him. Still it was a tool to use and he had other ideas on variants of the jutsu. If it could work on girls too… That only gave you more options.
Naruko gave a pout as she dropped to her knees. "I really need to get a hold of myself…" she muttered. She then nodded to herself in determination. She would make it up to them!
There wasn't much she could really teach them jutsu wise, only Konohamaru had a substantial amount of chakra so far. They were still really young and weren't in her situation. There was still something she could teach them, or start teaching. She could also encourage them some. There was one exercise she wished she had taken more seriously. They should be learning it now anyways.
She carefully woke Moegi-chan. She gave the girl a gentle smile. "Sorry about that… I got a little carried away there," she apologized.
Moegi just nodded as she blushed.
"However. Even girls can be perverted. I know of one girl with bright pink hair, who scored the highest grades in her class, but also really likes Boys Love manga. The perverted stuff is just part of who we are. Some just happen to let it really carry them away," Naruko said. Moegi would learn what she meant by that in a couple of years, once she took the special kunoichi classes.
"I'll… learn it," Moegi said.
Naruko sighed. "You did make a bet. We all have to learn to be careful with such things," she said.
"Yes. Naru-neechan," the little girl said.
"However," Naruko started. "I will start teaching you three something else. It will be a bit boring at first, but there is a lot you can do with it. It is also pretty cool," she said.
The three brightened up to that.
It wasn't long until she had them going through some writing exercises. They were curious, but she explained to them it was important for learning sealing. That really lit a fire underneath them. When they were stretching their patience too much, she had them take a break and asked them about the leaf exercise.
"We just started that. It's kind of boring… And hard," Konohamaru said. Their plan regarding that was to just learn it enough to pass.
"True. I get you there. But it is important. And once you learn it well enough… You can start practicing this," Naruko said. She then walked straight up a nearby tree.
"See?!" she said.
"Whoa!" the three shouted in unison. They immediately grabbed leaves and started training. Konohamaru decided if he tried with three at once it would speed up his practice three-fold!
"That's not really how it works," Naruko told him. "You start off with one then move up to two, then three."
She also taught a little hand to hand as well. She kind of wished she was able to do more than just teach them stuff covered at the Academy. Sadly, there was a reason it was taught at the academy. When you weren't hated by the senseis and you actually studied, it was very good ground work.
[-] [-] [-]
"Thanks again, Naru-neechan!" the three said once it was time for them to go for the day.
"Remember what we went over today. I will be leaving on a mission tomorrow, so I won't be able to meet with you three for a few days," she said to them.
Konohamaru grinned as he said, "Then we'll just make sure we get so good you have no choice but to show us more when you get back!" The others nodded eagerly in agreement.
"I'll hold you to that. You know how I feel about people making promises," she said.
"Never go back on them," the three surprisingly said together right before they left.
Naruko was a little caught off guard by that. It seemed despite her embarrassing mistakes and behavior rubbing off on Konohamaru, some good did as well. She kind of liked teaching others. Maybe one day when she was a super awesome Kunoichi, she would be a Jonin-sensei. She really didn't want to do the whole academy instructor thing. She couldn't stand that and had a deep respect for the two teachers she saw as taking it seriously.
After stopping for ramen, Naruko went home for the night. She packed for the mission tomorrow and collapsed on her bed. She felt pretty happy with the day. That really said something, considering it was a Tora mission day. It felt good getting back to doing missions with her teammates.
She had been back for only a few days, but it felt right to her again. She was really happy so many people didn't decide to hate her while she was away at Hogwarts. She was further surprised Ino saw her as a closer friend than before she left. Naruko decided next school year, she would write more often. Fukami was more than up for it. She grinned as she looked to her owl.
"Hoo," Fukami said to her as he tilted his head and looked at her.
"Just thinking of how great an owl you are," she said to him.
He hooted and bobbed his head to show it was only natural. He was her owl after all. No ordinary wizarding owl would do. That was exactly why he chose her when they met.
Naruko got up and stroked his feathers a little as she smiled to him. Maybe he played a part in why things were better than she expected them to be. Most people in this world saw owls as good luck and protectors. She was pretty sure that wasn't it at all, but it was still a nice thought.
She would have to make some time to write her friends from Hogwarts soon. She was pretty sure Harry would be very thrilled to hear from anyone while he stayed with the Dursleys. She spent a little time before going to sleep thinking about that. There had to be options. There had to be ways to get Harry away from the Dursleys. There just had to be. She would find them.
A/N: And so the Year 2 story starts. Summer will last a good while. That can't be helped because of all I have planned for it. Harry wasn't really a part of this chapter. I will probably check in on him some here and there, but most of his summer is at the Dursleys. Not much really going on there.
Hopefully the OCs weren't too bad. I am not a fan of OCs, but I saw no other choice here. She was graduating early and needed a team. I didn't want to do something like throw a member of Team Gai on to another team.
We will see how things go with the story now. Part of what took time here, was how to improve her teammates' skills. I still didn't go into too much detail, but I did do some and more will follow. I am going to do what i can to make sure my OCs don't take over story-wise on the ninja side of things.
When it comes to summons for Naruko, I am weighing my options. I am tempted to try and give her a different contract, but I also like the idea of having her sign with the toads, like in canon. I'm not sure if I want to give her both. The contract I would have her sign instead would be Owls, partly because of Fukami.
Also... I know it is kind of dumb, but I really wanted to make sure team 20 reunited in chapter 20.
