Naruto Fan Fiction ❯ Imouto Trilogy :: Hatake :: Even After All These Years ❯ Chapter 3: The Sensei ( Chapter 3 )

A/N: Welcome back! This is the chapter where the main arc of the story starts (grins). As will start to become clear, half of this story will actually revolve around Naruto. Kyomi is still the main character, of course, but Naruto's like the...co-main character. You'll see that quite a few chapters will be told from his point of view. Well, please read, review, and enjoy! Ja ne!

 

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.

 

Claimer: I do own Kyomi and the story plot.

 

(1) - Imouto means "younger sister" or "little sister".

(2) - I know that in the canon those lines aren't actually scars. They are in this story however, due to certain reason that won't be explained quite yet.

(3) - Obaba means "old lady" or "Grandma".

(4) - Ero-sennin means "perverted hermit".

 

Thanks to my beta reader, BattleStations!

 

----------------------------------------------------------------- ----------------------

 

Even After All These Years

 

Chapter 3

The Sensei

 

----------------------------------------------------------------- ----------------------

 

With a sigh, Kyomi slowly trudged down the dirt path through Konoha's forest. Around her, an orange ball of energy was jumping up and down, bubbling with excitement and rambling on. About what, she had no idea; she had learned a while ago to tune him out whenever he rambled, which turned out to be most of the time anyway. It was almost as if the boy rarely had anyone to talk to!

 

Holding back another sigh, Kyomi let her head drop down. She really had no idea why she was there, walking with him. She had just been talking to Naruto when, bam, she found herself walking down the path towards one of the shinobi training grounds, agreeing to meet Naruto's team. Why? She, once again, had no idea.

 

"Come on, Kyomi-san!" Naruto said with a wide grin. "We're almost there!"

 

"Yeah, yeah," Kyomi grumbled, offhandedly wondering where the kid got all his energy from.

 

Just as Naruto had said, they were nearly at Team 7's meeting spot. In fact, as they cleared a curve in the path the two were walking down, a little bridge running over a small creek appeared not ten feet from them. Standing on the bridge were three people, two of them Naruto's age and the third much older; a Jounin by his vest.

 

Kyomi started to study the two Genin, for that was what they obviously were, when she did a double take on the third figure. Letting her mouth fall open in shock, Kyomi just stared for a few seconds before turning to Naruto.

 

"He's your sensei?" she asked incredulously.

 

Naruto blinked, surprised at her question, but just as he opened his mouth to reply, Kakashi, who had turned toward them when he had heard Kyomi speak, broke in.

 

"Eh, Kyomi-chan? What are you doing here?"

 

"You!" Kyomi growled, turning from the confused blonde Genin. She pointed an accusing finger at Kakashi. "You're Naruto-kun's sensei?" Kyomi then turned back to Naruto and put a hand on his should, an apologetic look on her face. "I pity you," she told him. "I really do."

 

Kakashi sweatdropped. "Imouto(1)," he began. "What are you doing here?"

 

Now it was Naruto's turn to be shocked; his mouth fell open and the other two Genin on the bridge mirrored his actions. "Imouto?" Naruto gasped. "You're his sister?!" He closed his mouth and glared at Kyomi, crossing his hands over his chest in a stubborn gesture. "Why didn't you tell me?"

 

Kyomi shrugged and, now over her shock, she let her stance fall into a nonplussed and relaxed one. "How was I supposed to know that Kakashi-nii-kun was your sensei? It's not like you told me his name," she shot back.

 

Naruto turned his head away, stubbornly sticking his lower lip out. Kyomi just chuckled in reply, ruffling his hair a bit with her hand. Naruto protested loudly of course, but was ignored. Instead, Kyomi looked past her older brother to study the other two Genin.

 

The first was a kunoichi with emerald green eyes and short pink hair. Kyomi flinched at the hair color, as she had been an avid hater of pink since she was very young. It came of a certain incident, which Kyomi would forever be tightlipped about. The young kunoichi--probably about Naruto's age, so she couldn't be more than fourteen--was wearing a mid-thigh length red dress with a pair of navy blue shorts beneath it. Her hitai-ate was worn on top of her head like some fancy headband.

 

Turning from her, Kyomi looked to the last Genin and promptly froze. Her eyes widened in shock and her breathe started coming in short gasps. 'Itachi...' Or at least that was her first impression. He looked nearly exactly like a short-haired Itachi. Granted, he didn't have the two scars beneath his eyes(2)--which had in fact come from the same incident that caused Kyomi to hate, and even fear, pink--but everything else about him down to the stoic expression on his face was exactly as she remembered it.

 

Looking a bit closer at the boy, however, Kyomi saw that there were a few minor differences. The largest was the Itachi-look-alike's stance; his was more cocky and arrogant rather than Itachi's silently confident one. There was only one other person that this could be then: Sasuke, Itachi's little brother. Kyomi let a small breath out and glanced at Kakashi. He refused to meet her eyes. Kyomi had to hold back an annoyed growl then, and struggled not to let her emotions show. Why hadn't he told her that little Sasuke-kun was on his team?! Kyomi hadn't seen the young boy for nearly nine years.

 

Pushing thoughts of Itachi out of her mind, Kyomi looked the older Sasuke over. He was wearing a pair of cream colored shorts and a navy blue shirt--with the standard Uchiha fan on it of course. Itachi was probably the only Uchiha she had ever known not to have the symbol somewhere on his clothing. Kyomi had once heard from Itachi himself that there were a few Uchiha who even had the famed symbol all over their boxers of all things. Talk about obsessed.

 

Kyomi then turned from the two Genin and focused back on her older brother. She gave him a meaningful look, one that promised pain later for not telling her exactly who his pupils were. Kakashi just chuckled nervously, his hand rubbing the back of his head apprehensively.

 

"Erm...Yes, well..." Kakashi coughed uneasily, before turning his attention to the three Genin. He then turned serious again, or at least as serious as one such as himself could. "Sasuke, you are going to be working with me again today, as there are a few things I want to teach you. Sakura, I believe you are scheduled to train with Tsunade-sama...?"

 

"Yes, Kakashi-sensei," Sakura said with a polite nod to said man.

 

"Good. You can head over to the Hokage tower now then."

 

The pink haired girl complied with a wave to the Uchiha and a polite little bow to Kyomi as they were new acquaintances, before dashing out of view.

 

Kakashi finally turned to the short, blonde Genin. "Hmm, Naruto..." he said slowly, obviously thinking. After a moment his eyes drifted towards his sister and his face immediately brighten with the appearance of an idea. "Kyomi-chan!" he said happily. "Would you mind taking over Naruto-kun's training for today?"

 

Kyomi shrugged. "Sure, why not. I've got nothing else to do for today."

 

"Great!" Kakashi replied. Then, to Naruto, "We haven't got any missions today, so when Kyomi-chan lets you go you can head home. Have fun! Now, follow me Sasuke-kun. We'll be using a different training ground today for what I have in mind..."

 

As the voices of the two Sharingan users faded out of hearing range, Naruto began to pout. Why did his sensei always train Sasuke?! Why was it never him! But just as quickly as the pout appeared on his face it disappeared. At least now he would get to train with his new friend. If she was Kakashi's sister and Kakashi himself asked her to train him, then she must be strong, right? The memory of Kakashi recommending that that baka Ebisu to teach him flashed across his mind, but Naruto quickly pushed it away in favor of more hopeful thoughts. At the very least he had been introduced to the idea of water walking by that closet pervert.

 

Glancing up at the silver haired kunoichi, Naruto wondered why he hadn't seen her resemblance to his sensei earlier. Her hair, while much longer than Kakashi's, was exactly the same color as the older Jounin's. Their eyes were completely different colors however, hers being a chilling ice blue and his a charcoal black. Kyomi still had the same laid back air around her though...

 

Naruto shrugged out of this reverie and grinned up at Kyomi. "So," he asked. "What are you going to teach me!"

 

"Hmm," Kyomi said thoughtfully, plopping down onto the grass carelessly. "Well, to start with, do you know the tree exercise?"

 

"Of course!"

 

Kyomi just motioned to a nearby tree, obviously asking for a demonstration. The hyperactive blonde complied, quickly running up a tree and then back down. As he stood in front of Kyomi once more, said kunoichi tapped her chin thoughtfully.

 

"Good, good," she said distractedly. "How about water walking?"

 

Naruto nodded once more, though this time without words. He jumped over to the stream and landed on top of the water, already knowing that Kyomi would want proof. He walked around in circles on the water for a few moments before jumping back up onto the bridge's hand railing and then leaping over to where Kyomi was still sitting.

 

Kyomi nodded her head in approval. She continued to think for a few minutes, with Naruto fidgeting in the background--as he almost never could keep still--before the young blonde couldn't take the silence anymore.

 

"Come on!" Naruto yelled. "Teach me a jutsu! Teach me a jutsu!"

 

Kyomi shrugged, not really having a better idea. "Alright...Hmm, but which one?" And she once again lapsed into silence.

 

Naruto stared at her a few minutes, surprised. 'Great!' he thought. 'She's just liked Kakashi-sensei!' Just as he began to sigh however, Kyomi leapt up onto her feet.

 

"Ah! I know the perfect one!" she exclaimed. Naruto perked up at this, straightening up and waiting for Kyomi to speak.

 

When she just continued to stand there, grinning, however, he immediately spoke up. "Well, what is it?" Naruto asked loudly, waving his arms around wildly. "What awesome kick-ass technique is it?"

 

Kyomi continued to grin. "It's a jutsu called Doton: Retsudotensho (Earth Style: Split Earth Turn around Palm)."

 

Naruto blinked. "Erm, okay...What does it do?" he asked, still mulling over the interesting name. "It doesn't sound that powerful."

 

Kyomi snickered. "Don't let titles fool you!" she told him in a sing-song voice. "This is one of my favorite techniques because it's so versatile. It is only a C-rank, but the only limit to its range is your chakra." She continued to grin, obviously excited. "What it does is allow you to control any and all nearby rocks to surround and attack the enemy with. Of course there are many other ways to use this particular technique, but that's what it was originally made for."

 

By the time Kyomi finished, Naruto was gaping. "That's so cool!" Naruto yelled, pumping a fist into the air in his excitement. "You have to teach me!"

 

Kyomi laughed, "What did I say I was going to do?"

 

Naruto rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly, laughing as well. His expression quickly turned expectant. "Well?"

 

"Hmm," Kyomi said, looking the blonde Genin up and down and ignoring what he had said. "Well, despite being only a C-rank, this jutsu is pretty difficult to master because it requires extreme control. While you do seem to have a pretty high level of control, especially considering the amount of chakra you have, it might not be enough for you to be able to do the technique."

 

Naruto looked crestfallen. "Does that mean I can't learn it?" he asked quietly.

 

"Of course not!" Kyomi replied. "I said I was going to teach you a jutsu, so I damn well am! All this means is that you're going to have to work hard and improve your control over your chakra first." Naruto grinned again, excitedly waiting for the sliver haired kunoichi to finish. "...Hmm, well, how does Kakashi-kun normally have you prepare for learning a new jutsu?"

 

"Huh?" Naruto said dumbly, blinking again. "...Prepare us?"

 

"...Yes...You know, whenever he teaches you a jutsu?"

 

"Erm..." Naruto hesitated shifting his eyes away. His paused for a moment before answering in a quiet voice, completely unlike his usual one, "Kakashi-sensei...hasn't...taught me...any jutsu..."

 

Kyomi stared at him, her face wiped of any emotions. "...Then what does he do when he teaches you nearly every day."

 

"Well..." the blonde Genin hesitated again. ”He usually has us spar against each other, works on our chakra control, or has us go on missions. Other than that he just takes Sasuke-teme off to train." Naruto's hair shadowed his face for a moment, cover his expression. "...And then Sakura goes off to train with Obaba-san(3)..." When he looked up again however, a large grin was stretched over his face. "But that's okay because Ero-sennin(4) trains me whenever he's in Konoha!" However, the smile didn't hide the sad pain in his eyes, especially when he murmured a last sentence, "Even though that's that not very often..."

 

Kyomi blinked at the two latter names that Naruto had said--Obaba-san and Ero-sennin--wondering who they were, before sighing and rubbing the back of her neck. She really wasn't that great with people and emotions, and she worried that this situation might be over her head. "So then...Kakashi-kun has not taught you a single jutsu yet?" Kyomi asked. "Even though you've been in his care for over two years?"

 

Naruto coughed slightly and, looking away again, said in that same small voice, "...Yes..." And then, brightening again, "But our Taijutsu and chakra control has really increased!"

 

Kyomi sighed once more, squatting down to the blonde's level. "I think I may have an idea why." Naruto whipped his head back around, staring at the older kunoichi with wide, shocked eyes, appearing to be the lost young boy that he was rather than a shinobi, a warrior. "You may believe that he hasn't really taught you because he cares more about the "precious Uchiha" than you, but this isn't true. In fact, it's probably the opposite."

 

Naruto's eyes widened even more, truly surprised. He stared for a moment before his eyes narrowed into slits and he glared at the ANBU before him, his lips curled back into a snarl. "Then why," he demanded, uncharacteristically angry. "Does he always ignore me? Why won't he be the sensei he says he is for once and actually teach me something?"

 

Kyomi sighed again, rubbing her temples. "It's because you're so much like Obito." Naruto's snarl stopped at that, his glare falling from his face as he blinked in surprise and no small amount of confusion. "I haven't even known you for more than a few hours and I can see that as well," Kyomi continued, paying no attention to the blonde's reaction. "It's not so much the way you look--in fact your appearance is near opposite of his--, but your personality is almost exactly the same."

 

"...Obito...?" Naruto asked tentatively after a moment.

 

Kyomi blinked, as if breaking out of a stupor and looked back at the blonde from where she had been staring off into space. "Yes," she replied, a soft smile on her face. "Uchiha Obito. He was Kakashi-kun's teammate and, even though he wouldn't have admitted it at the time, his best friend." Kyomi's smile turned sad. "Unfortunately, he was killed on a mission...But...he still taught Kakashi-kun more than anyone else I think. As he lay half crushed under a boulder, Obito's last gift to Kakashi-kun was his sharingan. That's where he got it from if you didn't know.

 

"Well the point," Kyomi continued. "Is that loosing Obito crushed him. He even started adopting some of Obito's habits, such as being chronically late and always coming up with the most ridiculous excuses for it." Kyomi chuckled here and even Naruto had to grin. "Then seeing you, a near carbon copy of Obito's personality, come along and having to teach you everyday must be pretty hard on him, even if he doesn't show it. I guess that he's probably afraid to get to close and then loose his "best friend" again. Plus, you probably bring back a lot of difficult memories."

 

"I..." Naruto murmured, looking towards the tree line. "...I think I understand." He looked back at Kyomi, a smile, a true one, not at all like the large idiotic ones that he gave everyday, on his face. "Thank you." His blue eyes sparkled with joy, relief washing through him at the thought that someone really did care for him. Looking at the kunoichi before him he couldn't help but wonder if perhaps it was two someones...

 

Kyomi grinned, chuckling slightly. "No problem!" On the inside, she was sighing with relief. Dealing with people, emotions, and such like were difficult and something that she hated dealing with. It was also so difficult to predict how people would react. "Now then, I guess it's up to me to get your chakra level up a bit more. This exercise should also help to get you ready for the jutsu as well."

 

"Really!" Naruto asked, bouncing in the balls of his feet, all smiles and energy again. Somehow the smile seemed less...forced...though this time. "What is it?"

 

"What you're going to do is 'wrap' your chakra around some rocks."

 

"...Huh?"

 

Kyomi chuckled at his completely lost expression. "Here, let me show you." She then picked up a medium sized pebble from the ground that fit perfectly in the palm of her hand. "You just take a rock like this and gather a small amount chakra in your hand." She then did just that, though it wasn't visible to the blonde. "And then you spread the chakra over the surface of the rock in a thin layer. It has to be as thin as you can get it without the layer breaking. It's a very tedious balance."

 

"Don't worry," Naruto said with a large grin. "I'll get it easily! After all, I'm going to be the next Hokage!"

 

Kyomi sweatdropped at the outburst, somehow getting the feeling that the hyperactive Genin had barely listened to a word she had said. This premonition was proven to be true when the rock that Naruto had picked up just seconds before and was staring intently at was abruptly covered in a thick layer of chakra. A very thick layer of chakra. Kyomi's eyes widened and she immediately leapt towards the blonde, but she was too late as at that exact second the rock suddenly exploded, sending small fragments everywhere. Naruto gasped in surprise, staring at his now empty hand in shock.

 

Kyomi sighed as she stepped back from the blonde, putting a hand on her face. "That's what I was trying to explain, Naruto-kun," she said, her voice slightly muffled from her hand. She looked back down at him, exasperation clear on her face. "You must only use a very small, yet precise amount of chakra. Too much and the rock will explode under the pressure, as you just saw, too little and the layer will break. It will take time and practice to get this balance right, but it will expand your control tremendously as you will learn how to call up only the exact amount that you need."

 

Naruto nodded excitedly, having now listened to what Kyomi was saying and determined to continue trying until he got it right. Then he could learn that sweet jutsu. That reward ringing in his mind, Naruto picked up another rock and began to try the exercise again, more determined than ever.

 

Kyomi watched in amusement as the rock exploded once more, even though Naruto had used quite a bit less chakra. The boy wasn't deterred in the slightest however, and simply picked up another rock and tried again. As the kunoichi continued to watch the Genin try and fail time and time again, only a few times from having too little chakra, she couldn't help but feel a bit of pride swelling up in her chest. She was teaching him. She was the one spurring on such determination. Was this what Kakashi felt whenever he was teaching?

 

'No, it couldn't be,' Kyomi thought, a bit of bitterness entering her mind. 'Since Kakashi-kun never really teaches Naruto.' Grief over his best friend's death was no real excuse for Kakashi to neglect one of his students, especially after so many years.

 

At that moment a thought entered Kyomi's mind. It was a bit irrational, but perfect at that moment. A small almost indistinguishable smile lit up her face. "Naruto-kun," Kyomi called out, causing Naruto to halt from where he was brushing dust off his clothes from the latest explosion. "I have something important that I need to go attend to now, but I want you to continue with this exercise. I'll meet you tomorrow at the Ichiraku Ramen stand when you're done with your meeting with Kakashi-kun to see your progress."

"Alright!" Naruto said. "I'll have this mastered by then! You'll see!"

 

Kyomi grinned at him, chuckling again, before turning around and walking away. Naruto large grin turned into a soft smile as he watched her go and he murmured under his breath to himself, "Thank you. Thank you."

 

----------------------------------------------------------------- ----------------------

 

A few minutes later Kyomi found herself standing in front of the door to the Hokage's office for the third time in just two days. With a sigh she lifted up her hand and knocked on the door.

 

"Enter."

 

Kyomi did so, truly beginning to question her sanity for really going through with this idea. "...Hokage-sama..."

 

----------------------------------------------------------------- ----------------------

 

Preview of Chapter 4: The Hokage

 

"...Well, that's interesting..." Kyomi suddenly said, breaking the Godaime out of her thoughts. Kyomi looked up and met the Godaime's honey brown eyes and a small smirk slid across her face. "And it explains a lot. He also must be pretty emotionally strong, then. It adds to his potential."

 

The Godaime had to stop a sigh of relief from escaping her. She returned the silver haired ANBU's smirk. "Yes, it does. Did you know that he was able to master Rasengan in a week?"

 

Kyomi's composed stance fell apart in a second as she openly gaped at the Hokage. "He knows the Yondaime's Rasengan!" The Godaime just continued to smirk. "And he learnt it in a week! It took the Yondaime Hokage years to master it!"

 

"Mm-hmm," the Godaime agreed, still grinning. "The brat was able to get Jiraiya to teach him. He also got the toad summoning contract from him."

 

Kyomi continued to gape. This was certainly a new development. Naruto was a lot more powerful than she had originally thought. And yet Kakashi still wasn't teaching him very much...? Kyomi was going to have to have words with Kakashi when she got home. At least Naruto did have Jiraiya to teach him though...