Chapter 68: Preparation...: Part Two!

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Shisui had never intended to become a Jounin sensei. He had planned to retire after he had aided his village in stopping the Uchiha Coup. The whole affair had soured his motivation to be a shinobi. While he would never regret the choice he made. It still weighed on him heavily for so much of his family to be imprisoned with his aid, no less. But Itachi, before disappearing, had asked him to look after Sasuke.

Itachi had been Shisui's best friend, a brother in all but blood. He would ensure that his wishes of him would be followed. But often, Shisui found himself lamenting his task. Sasuke felt very strongly about his clan and seemed to hate that they were arrested. Insisting there must be some level of more profound truth to the event. Saying his father never would've betrayed their home. Shisui had spent much of Sasuke's life assuring him that was the case, but the Uchiha often seemed to doubt him.

Sasuke worried him; he was seemingly focused on rising up in the ranks for his promotion. He had been distant from his teammates before, but they rarely met outside of training and missions after Kabuto's disappearance. He seemed to only get angrier over time as well. Impatient to "redeem" his clan and bring them back to their former "glory."

Shisui personally never put the clan over the village. After all, the Leaf had always been the home of the Uchiha. But over the years, the Uchiha had slowly felt slighted. They had little political powers these days, the Police Force was often undermined by Anbu, who had seniority over them, and they had never had a Uchiha as Hokage. Never mind that most of the clans haven't or the fact that they kept themselves distant from the other non-Uchiha. Instead, they tried to take over, got caught, and paid the price. Fair to Shisui, but he had a feeling Sasuke felt differently.

"Shisui, I'm done." Sasuke panted out, breaking his sensei from his thoughts. Shisui looked up to see the small forest of trees that littered the edge of the grounds had all been caught down with only charred stumps remaining. Sasuke stood in the middle in burnt clothes and his Sharingan spinning wildly. He seemed to be a force of nature at times.

"Well done. Are you ready?" As Shisui often did, he avoided addressing the subject. He didn't want to push Sasuke away, nor was he blind to how Sasuke would react. It's better to keep an eye on him for now.

"Of course, I merely hope there is a challenge," Sasuke stated simply as he marched forward. Exhausted but much too proud to collapse.

"You seem challenged enough by gravity."

"Shut it."

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Jiraiya's POV (Forest of Death - Hidden Leaf Village)

Jiraiya had never considered himself a great teacher. He had assisted Minato in becoming the man who had become infamous worldwide. But in truth, the man had only needed advice and some slight guidance. Jiraiya would never claim to be responsible for what Minato had done. Minato had been something of an enigma, quick to learn, dedicated to the craft, and with a gutsiness Jiraiya was fond of. Most of what Minato had accomplished had been by his own merritt. Yet now that he had the chance, he seemed to just know Naruto was meant to be taught by him.

There was something about the blonde. He held the will of his mother and focused determination of his father. He was impressive surely, yet he was no prodigy. He was no genius, but was crafty, often finding alternative solutions to problems. He was certainly interesting, but most would not find him remarkable. Jiraiya supposed Naruto reminded him of himself. Perhaps he could help his godchild avoid the many mistakes he had made.

Admittedly, the Toad Sage's prophecy influenced it somewhat, but he had never been entirely sold on destiny. However, Jiraiya pondered if the prophecy was merely one way to achieve peace. But truthfully, as much as he craved peace, he wasn't sure he could reach it in his lifetime. Part of him had been confident Minato would one day achieve it. After all, the man had shared his dream, but his death had convinced Jiraiya that he may never achieve his dream.

His decision to train Naruto had been decided more as a reasonable way for Jiraiya to meet and spend time with Naruto. To honor his position as a godfather. With the needed secrecy, he could not be around. Unlike Kushina, whose relationship with Minato had been a secret, he was well known as Minato's sensei. The original idea was to keep his distance until Naruto did something worthwhile or had garnered a suitable level of experience. To justify one of the Sannins taking a keen interest in him. But Hiruzen had decided with Naruto now being known as a jinchuriki, it was merely a matter of time before his other secret was discovered. The risk of Jiraiya's presence was worth it to ensure Naruto would have the skills and strength to face the repercussions of such.

While he had been unable to be an active presence in Naruto's life, he occasionally kept an eye on him whenever he arrived home. He had even delivered secretive gifts to Naruto. But despite those efforts, he couldn't say he truly knew his godson. Kushina had told him plenty, so he had an idea of the man Minato's son had become. And meeting him in the circumstance had reinforced the image. At first, it had been hard to believe he was Minato's child. Indeed, he looked like Minato; he had his eyes and golden hair. But personality-wise, it had reminded him more of Kushina than anything else. Only once he had returned from his last-minute errand did he see such a prominent trait of Minato. They worked their way back up with laser focus whenever they fell down.

Naruto had come back, obviously somewhat crestfallen. At first, Jiraiya feared he was going through a moody, emotional phase most young adults would've defaulted on. He had prepared a routine that would make Naruto focus off of his woes and instead focus on improving himself. Naruto had gone silent. Instead, his eyes held disappointment and frustration. Naruto had asked what his training was and immediately thrown himself into it.

From the endless sprints he made the blonde do, never could have too much stamina after all. Or the painful Taijutsu spars, Jiraiya had never been the best at holding back luckily Naruto could take a beating. Even hours of chakra control and mediation training was met with silent indifference.

Jiraiya had been surprised by the efficiency Naruto was capable of. Upon hearing Jiraiya's plan, he added his ideas and quickly engaged in them. All the while summoning clones throughout the days and ordering them to pursue something new, sometimes seemingly nonsensical. But would invariably manifest itself in odd ways. Jiraiya saw his impressive kenjutsu and worked with him to incorporate it into his taijutsu as opposed to him switching back and forth as he was now. Naruto had taken to this like water, quickly adapting poses and moving into his arsenal with frightening ease with the aid of his clones.

Jiraiya had been disheartened once he learned that Naruto had become another clan's summoner. But knew there must be more to it. Frustratingly, Naruto kept silent about it. Saying the clan had sworn him to secrecy. Jiraiya had let it go; he knew better than most how complex being a summoner could be. Besides, he had some ninjutsu for Naruto to master. With the clones at his use, he learned them shockingly quickly during the three weeks.

Finally, they worked on the technique Naruto insisted on creating. This was when Minato's influence shined the brightest. Naruto had a vision of a technique that would be quite the doozy. The mechanics of what he intended to create were quite complex. The chakra control and shape manipulation alone would make most Jounin balk. But Naruto Uzumaki seemed tireless in his pursuit. He tested his idea in unique and often risky ways. He would probe at the problem from various angles when he encountered a hitch. Trying out things at a speed others would need help to think at. He was no genius in the usual sense, but he was a natural when it came to jutsu. Soon, Naruto managed to perform the technique, just as he first described. Indeed, it would work; even Jiraiya needed to figure out what kind of Genin Naruto had run into to develop something like this. But he feared for them.

Jiraiya had been unsure; he should've pushed Naruto so hard. But Naruto held strong even at a pace he had seen Jounin struggle to maintain. And even more shocking, Jiraiya discovered two weeks in that Naruto had been disappearing. He was not just going off alone; his chakra signature would vanish. The first time had terrified him; it had been late into the night, and he had been sure somehow someone had taken him. Before fully panicking, he had heard the telltale poof of a summoning jutsu. Following the sound, he discovered Naruto lying on the floor, talking to a small raccoon. Their whispers had been much too quiet for him to hear, but it was clear from Naruto's exhausted prone form and the creature poofing away shortly after. Jiraiya figured Naruto was sneaking out to his summon's land for extra training. Likely geared towards their collaboration. Jiraiya had debated confronting him about it but knew the blonde wouldn't let anything slip.

At first, Naruto had seemed despondent; he trained hard and seemed determined but was silent. The playfulness he had heard of, the goofiness, and lightheartedness were missing. Instead, it was replaced by a grim focus. Other times, Jiraiya convinced the blonde to talk about things several times. And while Jiraiya doubted his words always reached the blonde, he seemed to slowly perk up. More than likely thinking things other silently and perhaps had found some peace while doing so.

It was undoubtedly a bit forced, but soon the two got along well. Jokes were told, pranks pulled (Naruto more than him, but Jiraiya had always believed in returning the favor), and discussions were held, often about safe topics unrelated to his troubles. Towards the end of the training, Jiraiya felt closer to his godson. It had brought a peace within him he had not felt since Minato's death. But time marched on regardless; soon, their training was due to end, and Naruto had just discovered a way to perform his jutsu.

Naruto stood among several boulders he dragged into the clearing they used for training. Each one had been huge, durable, and heavy; it took Naruto hours to move. We're now reduced to a pile of rubble, each with a pile of sand on top. Such was the power of the Uzumaki's newest weapon. Mixed in with rubble and dirt were shards of clay cups. Naruto looked exhausted; his left hand was covered in minor cuts. As if he had been crushing glass with his bare hand.

"I've never seen such a wind technique, such concentrated power. It's a shame you haven't managed to do it without the cups. It's a clever workout for the exams, but it'd be better if you don't use it. Between your impressive power with Riptide and the technique I taught you, surely you have more than enough firepower." Jiraiya commented.

"Don't get me wrong, it is certainly badass, but I feel raw power won't be enough for the exams." Naruto countered. "This new jutsu was an idea I had for someone I'm sure I'll run into."

"You designed this for a Genin? Do you realize they don't condone killing? I mean, you won't get in trouble…" Jiraiya rambled.

"I don't intend to kill him," Naruto responded. "Besides the small amount of run-ins I've had with him, he seemed on a different level. He beat a full team of Genin solo and did it with no damage. Worse yet, I landed one of my strongest hits on him before the exam. I've seen it slice through trees, boulders, and people. But it barely breached his sand, and I feel he can do much more with it than he's shown."

"So the rumors regarding him are true…" Jiraiya mused out loud. "From what my informants say, he is powerful for a Genin, easily killing Chunin and being a threat to most Jounin. I assumed it was propaganda, but if you are sure, it must be a genuine article. I stand corrected; then, you can't afford to hold back. If it's not the finishing blow, then what is it?"

"I won't go into full detail, but there's an aspect of this jutsu that should allow me to momentarily breach his defenses; once I do, I'll use our technique to put him down." Naruto explained.

"So you intend to kill him?" Jiraiya asked with an expressionless face. He didn't want to tip Naruto into his thoughts. If he did, Jiraiya wouldn't shame him; such a thing could be unavoidable in this line of work. Especially when Naruto had made it clear Gaara intended to either kill or capture him. But it would sadden him to see Naruto dabble openly into the murderous side of shinobi.

"No, he won't die so easily for one… besides…" Naruto said with a troubled expression. "After all this with the village, I can see how Gaara became the way he did, especially if he suffered for years. It must be painful. Instead, I'm gonna kick his ass badly and make him see that his view of strength is flawed. Maybe once I humble him, he'll understand; maybe we'll be friends."

"Maybe he'll kill you." Jiraiya reminded him. "Fighting without intent to kill will weaken you slightly. Your thought process is admirable, but he may kill you for it."

"I won't die, and I won't allow him to suffer alone. He only respects power; I have to beat his ass into the light." Naruto replied evenly. Jiraiya was silent; the way Naruto thought often contained Minato's logic or certainty. Kushina showed in Naruto's emotional decision seemingly justified with odd logic.

"You have guts, kid; I like that." Jiraiya concluded. "Are you ready for the name then?"

Naruto sighed. "It's not going to be something stupid, is it? I still feel like my name was fine."

"One, your name was terrible; it's a curse you inherited from Minato. Two for helping you; I asked for naming privileges." Jiraiya countered, casually prepared for it.

"What's so wrong with the Suction Crushing Cup of Explosion?" Naruto replied with a frown.

"It's wrong that you even attempted to name it that; even worse, you don't understand why it's bad." The Sage replied, thinking back on Minato attempting to name the Rasengan. He supposed some things were bound to repeat themselves. "Anyway, I was thinking something more like I was thinking something like Wind Style: Implosive Rejection!"

"I guess…" Naruto trailed off with a frown. "Still feel like mine was pretty awesome…"

"Boys! Time to eat! Don't make me come get you!" Kushina called out.

Naruto, immediately forgetting the argument once the food had arrived dashed forth. The recent stress he had gone through had undoubtedly changed him, but he still had a bit of that shine.

Jiraiya smiled with bittersweet joy; he was proud of how far the man had come in the short time. Overjoyed that they had the time. And regretful it would end.

It mattered little.

He was sure Naruto Uzumaki would make a splash worthy of his blood.

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 Temari's / Gaara's POV (Surrounding Desserts of Village Hidden in the Sand)

Temari walked through a sandstorm with veteran ease. Most residents of the Village Hidden in the Sand could do the same, but they needed to have her level of mastery over the wind. The sand was parted around her like she was wrapped in an invisible force. Next to her walked Kankuro, who also benefited from this. Both marched more deeply into the storm with a grim determination. They needed to deliver a message to Gaara.

While their younger sibling had always been dangerous and terrifying, Temari always did what she could to maintain their relationship. But it had been straightforward to her. Gaara was pained by her hidden fear and Kankuro's apparent fear. Temari could see over the years the resentment built up in Gaara. Rampages became more frequent and violent. He would disappear for days at a time. Only offering that he was training and often coming back looking like he had fought a war. It became clear Gaara was changing; the truth was thrust in their face. Gaara had been killing an assassin with glee when Kankuro had asked him to kill him quickly. Kankuro had attempted to leverage the fact they were family to escape punishment. Gaara's cold response still sent chills down her spine.

"God dammit! Stop torturing him and kill him already! You need to listen to your older brother!" Kankuro had screamed. Gaara merely shoved him back, sending the much larger sibling flying around with ease.

"You're not my brother; we're not even of the same species." Gaara had replied, eyes looking empty except for rage. "I only spare you two since you know your place. Don't think that makes you safe."

Just like that, he had said it, plain as day. "Don't think that makes you safe." A subtle way of reminding them they were useless. She certainly felt it as of late. She held no illusion of winning the exams, not with the powerhouse of Gaara or his apparent rival. She would surely impress; she could do nothing less. But in time, it would indeed be tested. It could be Kankuro instead of her, but either was unacceptable. She did not wish to die or lose a brother.

Moments like this often made her relax from her fear. Knowing for now this powerful young man was on her side.

Gaara, indeed, was something else.

He sat in a massive cavern in the ground on a floating platform of sand. The sand he controlled shot out of the ground and into the air, making it clear the sandstorm was man-made.

The other Gennin had yet to learn what they were in for. They were lucky Gaara was still playing games and away from home during the exams. In the desert he would be unbeatable.

Gaara's POV

A bead of sweat flowed down the face of Gaara. Even for a being like him, such chakra and chakra control levels were incredibly draining. With a mere errant thought, he sent a building-size wave crashing into a dune. As he did so, several spears of sand shot, covering the ground in a layer of hardened sand. Even with this all being juggled, he also had sand reaching deep into the underground, gathering and grinding down the hardest minerals to increase his inventory of sand.

He often trained like this; he needed to be stronger than these humans. He needed power that even a Hidden Village would shy away from. He required his brethren to stand with him. Jinchuriki was a cursed creation; fusing a Tailed Beast with a human should be impossible. Yet somehow, humans had cheated that. Creating an endless line of sacrifice throughout their world. Nine humans were transformed into something else, powerful if used but hated for their differences. He supposed he hated them, but he had figured something out the humans would never consider.

Jinchuriki were genuinely superior to their human creators. They treated them as abominations, but they were short-sighted. They looked the same, but the differences were massive from there. They could take more punishment and could heal whenever it became too much. They lived longer lives by proxy of this healing as well. They had access to absurd chakra levels, often portrayed in unique traits limited to certain users. This allowed him to manipulate sand with his mind and limited movements. How it moved on its own was a mystery. Shukaku claimed he could do such but was not in these instances.

Ah, yet another advantage, the presence of the beast themselves. Shukaku had from the moment Gaara could understand speech whispered to him. It had begun with Shukaku attempting to have Gaara free him, but when Gaara had made it clear he could not, Shukaku changed tactics. Threats at first, but as Gaara became more and more alone, Gaara lost his fear of Shukaku. Gaara attempted to befriend the beast but had been rejected for years. Eventually, Shukaku decided to at least speak to his jailor. It didn't take long for the two to bond from there. It became clear to both of them. Jinchuriki should stand united, while it was limiting in some ways the tailed beast would always be pursued. Humans were much too weak and ignorant to stand. But together, they became more robust, they became wiser, they became something more.

It had led to a troublesome question for Gaara. If he was superior and not the only one, why would he allow the humans to be cruel to him and his kind? Why would he let them discriminate against them and others as they always did? Why even let them rule over him? There wasn't a good reason. He supposed them vastly outnumbering and systematically trapping them was reason enough.

His face showed no emotion, yet it was clear when nine massive pillars of sand surged absurdly quickly into the air before they smashed into the ground at tremendous speeds, causing intense cracking sounds to fill the desert. A thin wall of sand dispersed through the air, intensifying the sandstorm surrounding the redhead. In the desert, few could match Gaara's power.

But how to free themselves? Humans, as detestable as they were, were powerful and clever. Rasa, the man who forcibly posed as his father, was the perfect example. Gaara had yet to defeat the man despite his considerable power and inherent superiority. Rasa could match, if not surpass, his power and did so at a speed Gaara could only dream of. Worse yet, the man was clever; he kept Gaara on edge by hiring frequent assassins. His siblings were two of the few humans he had any liking to. (Mostly due to their knowledge of his power and their attitudes. They may have been humans but were amusing in small doses.) We were often told of Gaara's likelihood of snapping. His disregard for human life. His odd views on what he was. It ensured Gaara was distant from the two. But Gaara minded little as much as he was fond of them. He had no want for a human family.

The answer had occurred to him just last year. He needed to gather his brethren. If jinchuriki from all nations united, they would be nearly unstoppable. With their raw power, unique physiology, and counsel from the wise-tailed Beast, they would rebalance the scales of the world. They would be enough to cover the Hidden Villages. Force the world to change; a new order would undoubtedly be needed. A world fairer with the jinchuriki treated as they should be.

When he had formed this plan, he had realized a hitch of sorts. From immense study and breaking into several vaults which held hidden knowledge. He had discovered there were nine jinchuriki throughout the world. Each is distributed evenly throughout the world. Hashirama clearly had seen just how valuable jinchuriki could be. But one thing he had discovered sent chills down his spine. It was rumored the number of tails directly correlated to the power the beast held. Shukaku had denied it, but even the proud beast admitted there was one beast even they should be wary of. The Kyuubi, Shukaku, refused to tell him its proper name. It was the strongest and likely his jinchuriki would be one to be concerned about.

Excitement had overwhelmed him once he had felt its presence. Truthfully, he had felt two others while in the Land of Iron, but they weren't as interesting as a man who carried a beast even Shukaku was wary of. Naruto Uzumaki.

He hadn't expected someone who would look him in the eye boldly and even attempt to harm him. Naruto had known Gaara was a predator and had tried to fight him off. The clash had been short; Gaara didn't want to fight. Just had been interested to see what he could do. The slash Naruto had unleashed had been on a level he hadn't expected. Caught off guard, he could only react somewhat, raising a quick shield of sand. The attack shockingly cut through his sand with ease. It even cut through his sturdy armor. Sure, it would never truly harm him; his sand could usually easily repel such an attack. But it had been enough for him to be interested. If he could gain him as an ally, all the better for his goal.

Naruto Uzumaki had not been amused. He had rejected him, seeming unable to see his point of view. Unlike him, he had been untarnished, so he had thought him foolish. He was sure now he understood what they were subjected to. In time, Gaara would show him just what a jinchuriki could do, the difference between them and humans. He couldn't wait to fight a being on his level. Battle and killing were among his few pleasures, after all.

Gaara would win, of course. Naruto stood no chance against him truly; no mere Genin could. When he won, he hoped Naruto would see the light. Naruto would be a valuable ally. But he could not afford to have the nine tails against him. So, he would introduce him to a different one if he could not show him the light.

As his mind settled, the sand slowly did as well. His platform slowly drifted to the ground as well. As suddenly as the sandstorm had appeared, it dispersed. Revealing a fully sand-coated Temari and Kankuro, both he could tell were annoyed, but he knew they would offer no complaint. They would fear his reaction.

Soon, Naruto Uzumaki and he would clash. But what was needed was….more…