28)Foxy Adventures: Ch. 28

As I stood on Hokage Rock and looked over its edge at the vast village below me, I pushed away the awe I felt every time I looked at this scene while focusing on my current predicament.

Namely…

'Where the hell do Kurenai and Hinata live?' I thought with a frown as I continued to scan the village, knowing that it was near the center of the village.

The problem was the fact that Central Konoha was also the residential district, meaning that almost every shinobi and civilian that did not belong to a clan lived there.

In other words, there were dozens of apartment complexes built in that area along with houses that would make it impossible to find them on foot.

'That is…unless you're Naruto Uzumaki.' I thought with a smirk as I raised my hands into my signature sign, a thick cloud of smoke exploding behind me before the clones saluted in unison.

Got to love the Multi-Shadow Clone Jutsu.

“You do enjoy abusing it.”

“Hey, if you have the ability to make hundreds of yourselves that can do complex orders, it would be a travesty not to use them.” I answered with a shrug, rolling my eyes at Kurama's snort before looking at the gathered clones.

“All right, clones! You guys know what to do!”

“Could this be considered public disturbance and/ or a crime?” One of the clones asked and we all looked at him before all of us crossed our arms in unison with frowns.

“New plan. We're not writing on the wall…We're going from door to door and asking where she is instead.”

“Or you could have just asked the Hokage where I live.” Turning around, I stared at the amused smile on Hinata's face as she landed, the clones dispersing immediately as I shrugged.

“Eh, that's too boring. Excitement is what keeps the soul alive.”

“Of course. So…did you have time to think about what…happened?” She asked, a light blush staining her cheeks as I looked at her before nodding.

“I did.”

“And?”

“It…was nice.”

“…Just nice?” She asked with an incredulous look before frowning with a pout as I chuckled.

“Okay, a little bit more than nice.”

“A little?” She asked as her eyes narrowed and I smiled while wrapping an arm around her before she blushed as I gave her a soft kiss on the forehead.

“To be truthful, it was really nice. I guess I just wasn't expecting it, especially from you.”

“Hinata, the last time I tried to hug you like this, you fainted because you could and I quote 'Smell me'.” I spoke with an amused smile while gesturing to my arm wrapped around her shoulders and she turned a bright red before shaking her head.

“I-I didn't faint. I just…rested my eyes when I lost my balance momentarily.”

“Of course, must have been a hot day or something.” I spoke while moving my arm down to her waist, smiling as she simply blushed while pulling herself closer to me.

“You're the worst.”

“Huh? The Hinata Hyuga calling someone bad words? The apocalypse must be upon us.” I spoke with a mock-gasp while looking up at the sky, smiling as she giggled while lightly swatting my chest.

“Shush you.”

“Hey, I got you to giggle. That's got to count for something.”

“Sure, it does.”

“Honestly, though, I didn't think the little playful banter during our training session would lead to…this.”

“And what is this?” She asked, putting me on the spot while turning my chin to make me look at her. Truthfully, it did make my heart skip a beat and her eyes had me in a daze as she looked at me.

“You're dangerous.”

“Dangerous how?” She asked in a surprisingly seductive tone and I smiled as I turned and placed both hands on her hips.

“Every time I look at you like, I start thinking less like a shinobi and more like the guy that wants to kiss you in front of the entire village.” I spoke and I don't think I'll ever get tired of how easy it is to make her blush.

To my surprise, she didn't look away and instead kept my gaze with a smile.

“Maybe I wouldn't mind that.”

“I think I'm starting to wonder where the old Hinata went? Not that I mind the new bold one.” I answered and she laughed, her voice soft and melodic but filled with the same bold confidence she had shown during our first spar.

“Maybe I just stopped hiding how I feel. Maybe…you bring out the brave young woman that wants to be with you.”

“That's not fair.”

“What isn't?”

“Tempting me like this. Makes me want to do stupid things.” I whispered and she smiled as she leaned forward.

“Like kiss me?” She asked and I paused before shaking my head.

“That's not stupid. That's just making a good decision.” I answered and she smiled amusedly before her eyes widened and fluttered as I leaned in, pressing my lips against her.

I was a bit careful and gentle, but soon find myself being pulled in when she kissed me back, wrapping her arms around my neck as her sweet scent filled my senses.

We stayed like that for a few seconds longer than we should have before finally pulling apart, the sun slowly beginning to set and a slight breeze beginning to pick up as I looked into her eyes.

“…This isn't just a 'little more than nice' anymore, is it?” I began and she just smiled, her face still flushed as she spoke.

“What do you think?”

“…First date? Me and you at Ichiraku?”

“Right now?” She asked, though she didn't seem to say no as I shrugged.

“I've got until later tonight to meet Jiraiya and we could celebrate this new relationship. If Ichiraku doesn't fit you, we could always go to somewhere fancier.”

“I'm not one for the fancy places and I do wish to see the restaurant that has you in such a chokehold.” She said and I smirked before we began making our way to the stairs.

“If you say so. Just saying that if you like ramen, you're going to be hooked on this place.”

“That a promise?” She asked and I chuckled before nodding.

“Oh, definitely.”

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“Huh, I was starting to think you weren't going to show up.” I began as I closed the book I was reading, looking at Jiraiya as he sat down on the sofa and shook his head.

“Had to take care of some stuff.”

“Spying stuff or 'researching stuff'?”

“A bit of both. How did your reading go?” He asked and in response I just picked up my calligraphy brush before beginning to draw on the two empty scrolls I had rolled out in front of me.

With ease, I drew the kanji and symbols for 'Containment' on both before placing a shuriken on one and a kunai on the other. Pulsing my chakra with a smirk, we watched as both objects were sealed away before I pulsed it again, smiling proudly as the shuriken and kunai appeared once again with no damage shown on them.

I didn't say anything as Jiraiya hummed and picked both up, channelling chakra into them and spinning them around in his hands before nodding with a smirk.

“Not bad. How long did it take you and did you make these on your own?”

“It took me about four hours and fifty clones before I deemed it safe and I just followed the steps of the book.”

“…Seriously?” He asked with a raised eyebrow before shaking his head as I shrugged.

“Seriously.”

“Hah, that Uzumaki talent shines through. Very well, I was going to start you on seal copying and theory questions, but clearly, we're going to have to bump up the difficulty.”

“I thought you were going to leave a clone?” I asked with a raised eyebrow before shaking my head as the guy smirked while continuing to take out a small tag.

“I am the clone. Like I said, a bit of both.”

“Of course you would use a clone to work while you go off peeping.”

“I was the one who peeped. The original is still busy with stuff. Anyway, back to your final test.” He began and I focused as he placed a paper tag on the table in front of me. However, I raised an eyebrow as I saw half of the seal array missing in random places as if done on purpose.

“This is half the sealing array. What I want you to do is tell me what is missing from it and you pass. If you can guess what kind of seal it is, you pass..”

“I thought I was going to draw or write a test to be honest.” I said as I looked at him and he chuckled while sitting back with a smirk.

“Nope. Now, I want to see if you can actually understand how a seal works and not just if you can copy them.”

'I see. This might be how someone using the Flying Thunder God Seal is able to make their own marker.' I thought with a frown as I climbed off the couch and sat down in front of the table, taking out my own tag before slowly redrawing the half-seal over onto it.

“Take your time. Think about the structure, the design and see what you can learn from that.” I could hear Jiraiya talking in the back of my mind, but my attention was more focused on analysing this seal as I began to look at the missing parts.

The part of the framework I got looked very familiar, its design circular and not too complex. The half of what I could see reminded me of the advanced chapter of storage seals, but…it also didn't fit those as the kanji were written more in a way to…disrupt something?

'Disrupt. Redirect. Suppress.' That was the general chain of kanji I could read, but there were deliberate gaps right where the chakra intake path should be for when one wanted to activate the seal and no symbols to lock the seal's effects to one specific target.

“The kanji for 'Anchor' and 'Restrict Flow' are not here. Also, there's no 'Receiver' kanji as well, but that could have been done to make sure the tag is universal and not just fixed to one specific chakra signature.

“Meaning?”

“Meaning this is a chakra suppression seal. It's a seal meant to suppress the target's chakra flow and limit them from using any jutsu, but without the aforementioned 'Anchor' and 'Restrict Flow' kanji, all this does is tickle the chakra network.”

“…Not bad.” Jiraiya spoke up and I looked up to see the wide grin on his face before he burst into laughter and snatched the tag up from the table.

“Hahaha~ I'll be damned. You actually nailed it spot on.”

“That's what you get when you let a hundred clones read the same ten books and scrolls over and over again for an entire day. The migraine made it hurt, but it was worth it.”

“Most Jounin can't explain the difference between a storage seal and a binding array nowadays. Yet, here you are reverse-engineering a suppression tag from half of it. You keep this up and even the old man might start believing you're Hokage material after all.”

“Really? Th-Wait, what the hell do you mean 'after all'?” I asked with a frown and he chuckled while patting my shoulder.

“What I did. Anyway, you pass the test…as well as the hidden ones I had planned. Next up is the fun stuff.”

“Such as?” I asked and leaned back a bit at the wide grin he gave me.

“Explosive tags, containment arrays. Maybe we'll even get to creating and modifying that seal on your belly.”

“Really?” I asked as I felt excitement flooding in before blinking as he frowned.

“That last one is only if you're ready. One mistake and instead of the seal, we'd be modifying your organs instead.”

“…Okay, not that excited anymore. Let's just stick to what I know.” I answered and he chuckled as he nodded.

“Good. Now then, let's get started on the first one: Delayed Trap seals.”

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'Hah, I'm getting too tense now. Just calm down.' I thought with a deep breath before exhaling softly, drawing a bit of attention from the civilians walking to and fro in the front of the Hokage's residence before turning as an ANBU landed next to me.

“Naruto, the Hokage will see you now and he said to use the front door, not the window.”

'I swear no one in this village likes using the windows. It's fun.'

“Got it. Thank you.” I nodded and the ANBU vanished as I began making my way up the stairs, preparing myself to meet the guy that has been looking forward to meeting me.

Although, I can't say the feeling is mutual considering that it is Gaara and I know I'm being a bit of a coward here, but the guy did try to kill me. He is a lot better now according to Jiraiya's clone, but I guess my mind is just hard-wired to be a bit wary of people that tried to kill me.

Just a little bit.

It did not take me long to get up the stairs and I made my way to the office door before knocking softly.

“Come in.” The old man spoke from behind it and I took another deep breath before opening the door and walking up, closing the door behind me before staring at the three siblings standing in front of the old man.

Surprisingly, Kankuro and Temari smiled when I entered the room, the blonde even giving me a rare nod which I returned and nodded at the Hokage before looking at the red head who had not looked away a single second.

Gaara looked as if he wanted to say something before hesitating, which I didn't mind as I stared at the 'Love' kanji on his forehead that also had the familiar symbols for the Four Symbols Seal around it.

'Wait, if the seals are there, then that means the Love kanji was his actual seal. Well, it's no fucking wonder the guy went insane then.'

“Even I have to admit that was idiotic on their part, which is saying a lot considering how stupid you humans already are.”

“Remind me, who was the one that got caught and sealed away by the First's Wife again?” I asked before hiding my smirk at his growls.

“Be glad I do not wish to upset Karin and Hinata or else I would have pulled you in here and torn you apart.”

“Sure, bud.”

“…I would like…to thank you, Naruto Uzumaki.” Gaara's words drew me back from my mental discussion and I blinked a few times to make sure I heard that right.

“Thank me?”

“For stopping me before I could…lose control. Before I could set Shukaku free.” He clarified and I raised an eyebrow before shaking my head with a smile.

“I couldn't stand seeing you get used like a weapon instead of being allowed to be your own person so I just took advantage of the opportunity that was given.” I said with a smile and he looked at me before nodding.

“After Ms. Tsunade and Jiraiya helped fix Shukaku as well as helped me through it, I finally realized…I didn't want to keep feeling how I did. I didn't want to be consumed by anger anymore.”

“Hey, I know the feeling. That loneliness and anger…it hurts so much and you just want to get rid of it, but you can't because it does not want to leave.”

“You do?” He asked and I smiled as I looked to the old man who nodded, looking back at Gaara and lifting my shirt. The next, his eyes widened along with that of his siblings' as the Double Tetragram Seal appeared on my stomach.

“Like I said, I know the feeling.”

“I see. I still wish to thank you. Unlike everyone else, you didn't hesitate to help even when I was trying to kill you.”

“Because I think someone would have done the same for me had I turned out like you. Fighting was never what I intended. I simply wished to help a fellow Jinchuriki get a better life. Speaking of Jinchuriki, has he been quiet?” I asked while gesturing to my eyebrow and Gaara looked contemplative before nodding.

“He has. He keeps shouting, but I can push his voice away and get a good night's sleep.”

“Ah, good. Can't say I know how that feels considering I've only just started talking to Kurama, but I'm sure if you give it time, you and Shukaku would be on good terms like how Kurama and I am.”

“I highly doubt it.” I heard Kankuro mutter and ignored him as Gaara looked to be in thought before I grinned as he nodded.

“I…would like that.”

“Glad to hear it. So, I'm guessing since you guys have your weapons, you're on your way back home?”

“Yep, got the terms and everything.” Kankuro said as he held up a scroll and I nodded before raising an eyebrow as Gaara held up his hand to me.

“I'll never be able to fully repay for you've done for me, Naruto Uzumaki, but I will try my best to do so.” I looked at his hand before shaking my head as I held up a fist, confusing him as he looked at my grin.

“No need for the hand shake. A fist bump is more than enough.”

“Fist…bump?” He asked even as he curled his hand into a fist and held it against mine.

“Thank you, Naruto Uzumaki.”

“Anytime, Gaara of the Desert.” My eyes widened as I heard my voice and Gaara's echoing in my hand and he seemed to have heard it too as he looked just as surprised before we slowly lowered our hands.

“…Until we meet again.”

“Until we do, Gaara.” I spoke with a nod, which he returned before his siblings left as they walked out of the room and began their journey to the Hidden Sand.

“Did something happen?” The old man asked and I turned to see his raised eyebrow before shaking my head with a soft chuckle.

“Just some Jinchuriki stuff.”

“Of course. So, I'm guessing you're here for what you asked for?” He began and my grin grew as I nodded.

“Very well. Follow me.” Watching as he stood up, the old man walked out of his office and I followed after, the two of us making our way away from the exit and towards the deeper part of the building.

'Looks like it's time to get some blood~'

A/N: And we end the chapter here~!! I was going to add the Akatsuki scene in here, but I've decided to save that for next chapter.

Anyway, Naruto and Hinata do some bonding, Naruto trains a bit with Jiraiya and the Uzumaki and Gaara are now buddies~!!

Next Chapter: Power Boost and…A Bigger Akatsuki?!

As always, read, enjoy, review and until the next one…

Ba-Bye~!!