A strange new life

6.22.n – Sunshine brat in: Where is this granny-ttebayo? Part 1

“Go on a mission.” Naruto held Gama-chan, shook his deflated wallet, hoping a coin had gotten stuck inside and survived the Ero-sennin. None did. “It will be fun.”

The Ero-sennin walked up ahead, without a care in the world. Not a thought spared to Naruto's murdered wallet.

Naruto stomped the ground. Yelled. “Where the hell is this granny?”

“Ehh, I heard from that nice lady back in town that Tsunade is in the next city over.”

Naruto eyed the perverted frog guy with distrust. It wasn’t the first or second time the Ero-sennin had said that.

“Wasn’t you going to teach me a jutsu stronger than Chidori?”

If Naruto’s voice had a bit of whining, he couldn’t be blamed for that. That had been the whole reason he agreed to travel with the old sannin in the first place.

“Alright,” Jiraiya said.

Naruto squinted his eyes. “Really?”

The frog sannin nodded.

“Then hurry up and teach me something!”

Jiraiya smiled. “Now, don’t be impatient. It would be pointless to just train without collecting intelligence on Tsunade at the same time.”

Naruto narrowed his eyes again. Wasn’t this the same line the Ero-sennin used in the past three towns as an excuse to spend all night drinking?

“Focus, focus.”

Naruto repeated the mantra, imagining the chakra moving toward the drawing in his palm. He wasn’t alone; there were a few others him trying the same. He hadn’t forgotten Hinata’s advice. Her face popped on his head; a smile appeared on Naruto’s face.

Would Hinata try to learn this jutsu from him as well?

“Focus, focus.” One of the nearby clones said.

Naruto focused harder, thoughts of the semi-mute girl and her cupcakes reluctantly pushed aside. The chakra moved like a whirlwind, gathering on the palm of his hand at the leaf’s symbol he had drawn there.

“Now!”

With one last push, the chakra moved, and the rubber ball exploded. It created a small crater on the ground. Naruto flew away at the impact, fell a dozen meters away.

“I did it!” He muttered, looking at his burned palm.

“Looks like you’ve mastered the second stage,” Ero-sennin said.

When had the old lecher arrived?

“…Of course I did. Let’s do the third stage now.” Naruto said, then he closed his eyes. Just for a bit. He was exhausted.

“…” Naruto looked at the balloon the Ero-sennin had tossed his way, not believing his eyes. “Isn’t this just a normal balloon?”

“First stage was rotation,” Ero-sennin said, raising one finger. “Second was power.” He took another empty balloon from his pocket, filled it, then held it in his hand. “And this is the third step.”

Naruto looked at the balloon. It was just a regular balloon. Nothing was happening.

“You’re messing with me? Nothing is happening!”

Jiraiya laughed. “It might seem like that to you, but let me show you.”

He raised his other hand, and a tight coiled ball of swirling chakra appeared there.

“Like a mini cyclone. Isn’t it beautiful?” Ero-sennin asked.

Naruto looked at the unmoving balloon. His voice wavered. “…The one in your right hand, is the same thing happening there?”

“Yes,” Ero-sennin said. “You have to take everything you learned and contain it.”

“Not interested,” The young-looking Obaa-san said.

They had finally found the old lady, but she looked like a young woman. Had the Ero-sennin mistaken this pretty young lady for the granny they’ve been looking for? It was a sort of open bar or restaurant, where half walls separated the tables between the customers.

Together with the young Obaa-san, there was another woman and a piglet. A spread of skewers and drinks on the table between them.

“The title of Hokage is a joke. Only an idiot would want it.”

Naruto acted before his brain could process things. He was on top of the table, trying to punch her drunk face off, but a hand held him by the scruff of his neck.

“Lemme go!”

“Calm down, Naruto, this is a bar.”

“I won’t let her just stand there and insult the Old Man or the Fourth Hokage!”

Naruto clenched his fists. Glared.

“I don’t care if you are an old lady or not; I’m gonna hit you!”

Tsunade got up, leaned in, her face closer to Naruto. “Outside, brat.” She taunted.

Naruto tried to disentangle himself from the crater on the ground. He had tried to hit her with a Rasengan. It hadn’t worked the way he wanted. He shivered. That young lady created this huge crater with a single finger. She was scarier than Ino and Sakura when angry!

“You taught him that?” Tsunade said, looking at the Ero-sennin.

Jiraiya nodded.

“Why?” Tsunade asked. “There’s no way he’d master that jutsu. Isn’t it cruel teaching him a jutsu he has no hope of mastering?” The young Obaa-san looked at Naruto.

“That’s how dreamy-eyed brats get duped into the whole “I’ll be the Hokage” farce.”

“Shut up!” Naruto yelled. “It’s not a farce!” There was a moment of silence. “Three days, and I’ll have that jutsu mastered.”

Tsunade smirked. “You’re all bark, brat. But a man doesn’t break his words.”

Naruto glared back. “I never go back on my word. That’s my shinobi way.”

“I’ll give you a week then,” Tsunade said.

“A week?”

“If you master the jutsu, I’ll give you this necklace,” Oba-san said, showing the pretty green necklace tied to her neck. “If you don’t, this is mine.” She threw Gama-chan up, caught it.

The pleasant jingling of coins was a stab in Naruto’s heart. When had the granny taken his wallet?

It was the fourth day since the bet, and Naruto wasn’t sure if he could do it. It didn't seem enough even with Hinata-chan’s secret training method. He couldn’t compress the chakra enough until it stayed inside the balloon. Was there a secret to this no one told him? Was that why the Obaa-san waged the bad luck necklace?

Naruto thought back on the thing. It looked silly, a green piece of stone, but he thought Hinata-chan might like it as a gift. He felt his face burning, remembering his first and best friend. He had never forgotten that first academy day when she sat with him and offered him food, while all the other kids did their best to avoid him.

“Yosha!” Naruto yelled. He wouldn’t go back on his word. He would win this stupid bet, win the silly necklace and gift it to Hinata.

Maybe she’d pinch his cheeks again? A silly smile crept on his face. That one time Hinata’s clones crowd-piled him just after they returned from Wave came to mind. It’s a shame she never did it again.

“Are you Naruto?”

The voice was young, a boy. Naruto turned and looked at the newcomer.

It was a teen dressed in a strange black cloak with red clouds on it. He had white hair and two red dots on the forehead near the eyes. But what caught Naruto’s attention was the eyes. One was a vivid green, the other pure white.

“Who are you?” Naruto asked.

“I’m Kimimaro,” the boy said. 

There was a moment of silence before he raised a hand to his shoulder, parting his cloak to reveal bare skin beneath.  He pulled a sword-like bone from inside his body.

“You’ll come with me.”