Toltiir sent a picture of it.
"Okay. I can live with that."
"Hiashi, I am asking you for a personal favor."
Hiashi raised an eyebrow at that. For the Hokage to request his presence and then ask for a favor was certainly unusual. "Why me?" After all, they weren't exactly personal friends or something. They weren't adversaries either, so maybe that had something to do with it.
"There is an Academy student with significant chakra control issues," said the Hokage, smiling slightly. "The Hyuga can be said to specialize in control. Control of chakra, environment, information?"
"Translation," thought Hiashi Hyuga. "This is to be kept secret and away from the general populace."
"This will eventually come out, despite my efforts, but it would really be best if such revelations were at least controlled." The Hokage settled back and waited for the inevitable question.
"Who is this student and why is it so important?" asked Hiashi.
"The student is Naruto Uzumaki, and he has chakra amounts which are not only beyond my own - you would be shocked to see how much higher they are. Better he learn control now before it gets even worse," said the Hokage.
"The Hokage has a gift for understatement," thought Hiashi to himself as he saw a stone pillar become a puddle of magma.
"Uzumaki," said Hiashi aloud. "The firepit in front of the pillar. Not the pillar."
"Eep!" said Naruto as the elder Hyuga began to loom again. Bulgy eyes and all.
"Ko," said Hiashi to a branch family member. "Continue to drill Uzumaki. Ko. Ko!"
"Ye-yes, Hiashi-sama," said Ko, wrenching his eyes away from the little boy.
Hiashi turned his Byakugan on the boy again, wondering why the various branch family members came to a stop and gawked at the child. Sure he glowed like the sun and sent little streamers and fireworks off as he tried to control his chakra, but surely that wasn't a big deal. Trying to find his tenketsu might be a problem though, particularly if he got even brighter as he grew older.
"Uzumaki. I have duties to attend. Follow Ko's instructions. Do not abuse my hospitality," said Hiashi. He stopped in the process of walking away, noting his daughter was partially hidden and staring at the Uzumaki boy. Apparently it was not just the branch family that found these chakra emissions to be interesting somehow.
The Hokage sat behind his desk, listening to the nine-year-old boy try to describe something to him. One did not become a Hokage without some patience being cultivated.
Finally he held up a hand. "What you are describing is called a sensory ability, and usually it requires a great deal of chakra control. However, this might be something of your heritage. Tell me, Naruto, what do you get from me?"
"Regret, jiji." Naruto closed his eyes and then frowned as he tried to get a better handle on the confusing jumble. "Fire and earth. You're strong too. Stronger than Iruka-sensei. Stronger than the three guys hiding in this office."
"Oh?" said the Hokage, amused. "What about the North Gate of the village. Can you tell me about those there?"
Naruto's head turned in that direction and he frowned for a moment. "Two of them, male. One's mainly Earth the other's mainly Water. One's asleep. The other's annoyed. There's a third one moving through. Stronger than both of them. He's snakey?"
The amusement dropped from Hiruzen Sarutobi faster than his pipe. In an eyeblink he was next to Naruto and put one hand on his shoulder. "Point him out."
There was a sudden blurring sense of motion and Naruto abruptly found himself concealed behind a wall near the Gate.
"That guy," said Naruto, nodding his head in that direction.
One of the unseen presences moved to the top of the wall briefly and then went off in a different direction. Naruto could feel her circling around before rejoining them, becoming visible as she did so.
"Identity?" asked the Hokage, nothing of the "kindly grandfather" role showing at the moment.
The woman with a bird-mask regarded Naruto briefly before speaking. "Yoroi Akado. Genin. Bosabosa is his jonin."
"Naruto. Do not speak of this to anyone." The Hokage gave a tight smile. "Not that you don't have experience keeping secrets, eh?"
"Right, Hokage-sama," said Naruto.
"Such respect from you, Naruto?" asked the Hokage, a bit surprised.
"Well, this is kinda an official thing, and if I don't act respectful around Hiashi-sama he kinda looms," explained Naruto. "And he can REALLY loom."
"Ah," said the Hokage, nodding once. "Yes. He can indeed."
"Okay, class, now we're going to measure your chakra capacity. Form the Ram seal and try to pull out as much chakra as you can without passing out." Iruka nodded. "Except you Naruto. The Hokage's already talked to me."
"Gotcha," said nine-year-old Naruto, still not entirely sure WHY he was supposed to keep his chakra level secret.
"Why is NARUTO getting a pass?" complained Sakura. "Because he's too lame to have chakra?"
"Interesting thought," said Iruka, not correcting Sakura because secrets were supposed to be secret. Not discussed with classmates of the secret.
Academy, 10th year class:
Naruto sat back, closed his eyes, and just let his control over one aspect of his secret loosen a bit.
He could feel it. Everyone had their spots of darkness and their streaks of light. Some had more of one, some were weighted towards the other, but there was no one in range who didn't have some of each.
Naruto-kun is asleep?
The corner of Naruto's mouth twitched despite himself. Hinata. Frequently present during his control training. Water element, though she wasn't all that strong yet. He could tell though. She had a kind heart and he could tell she felt friendly towards him. He couldn't understand all of it, but he got that much.
Shikamaru. Suspicion, sharp-edged under a level of lazy. Watching, calculating. It was weird how there were many levels of Shikamaru, each ticking away at different things.
Choji. Warmth and strength, bit of a temper at times but right now just kind of content.
Sasuke. Dangerous. Dark edgy anger and despair and some loneliness. Frequently annoyed too - especially when Ino and Sakura started arguing about who sat next to him.
Iruka-sensei had just entered. Time to get back to the mask he usually wore.
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(Posted Tue, 28 Jul 2015 16:06)
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