The Cloud Over The Leaf

Akumu made it back into the Leaf a few days after Hii's "late" incident.

He reported directly to Kaya once again, bringing both of them back into the Hokage office.

[That's all I learned for now.]

The participants in the room all sat with grim faces.

Minato and Shikaku both seemed deep in thought as they mulled over the information.

The new guest, the 3rd Hokage, was sitting with a tired look on his face. No one said anything as they digested the news until a tired voice called out to the group.

"....I see. I'll be ready then to take him out when he comes."

Everyone turned to the 3rd Hokage and saw his face was at peace with his decision.

"Lord Hokage?!"

"It's fine, 4th. I should be the one to correct my mistakes in failing to guide him properly."

Hiruzen seemed to become invigorated as he accepted the situation.

He would have to face Orochimaru, just as he had faced Danzo.

He couldn't back away from this match even if he wanted to.

"I'll leave the rest of the planning to you, 4th. Just inform me of what you decide. The future will be in the hands of the young. Allow these old bones to atone for his past mistakes."

Hiruzen stood up slowly and headed for the door. No one could stop him since he made up his mind. They could only shake their heads and hope they could keep the two from battling altogether.

"Haaa. We should do all we can to make sure that this attack is contained and neutralized effectively."

Shikaku nodded his head in agreement.

"It would be best to use this information and deal as much damage as we can to Orochimaru and any force he ends up bringing as well."

The group nodded their heads and started to dive into different methods to counter their attack.

[I'll get going then. Come find Hii if you need me.]

Akumu disappeared into a nearby shadow, leaving the Hokage office.

Minato looked at the spot Akumu disappeared to and nodded his head.

"Well, let's go over our options. Let's just set up an overall plan for now. We'll go into more detail in the future."

*********

Hii sat at his desk with a scroll in front of him. He wrote down notes of techniques he could and needed to improve on it for reference.

'Lightning style moves and sword techniques can be improved with Grandpa still. Water techniques also have Mom as the best option. If only she didn't play so much.'

Hii crossed out those options on his list and looked at the rest.

'Taijutsu is definitely done with Guy-san, so the only thing I could possibly do is find training for my Wolf Armor. Who is good at fighting like a beast though?'

Hii stretches softly as he looked around the classroom for ideas.

Scanning the classroom, he noticed Sasuke and Maka looking like they're paying attention in class, but Hii could tell they were probably playing tic-tac-toe again. He wanted to play against Maka one more time.

Naruto was asleep again in the back while Shizuka looked over him with mischevious eyes.

'She'll probably prank him again.'

Hinata seemed to want to wake up Naruto, but she couldn't seem to muster up the courage. Shizuka even   gave her enough space to do it, but she didn't seem to want to disrupt Naruto's ramen filled dreams.

'You can do it, Hinata.'

Hii checked a few more spots for ideas in places he never usually looked.

Some of his other classmates seemed to be having problems with materials, some were studious, and others were asleep.

{This classroom is a mess...}

[I agree.]

Akumu had finally come back after the meeting with the 4th and resided in Hii's shadow once again.

Hii couldn't look at Akumu at first as all he asked about as soon as he came back was " Who was Hii's first kiss with?".

Fuyuki was happy to tell him all the details as Hii just buried his face in his pillow.

'Well, looks like there is no way to try and improve it from class.'

[What about Kiba?]

Hii tilted his head.

'Kiba? ThatCaname sounds familiar.'

[He's the kid in the back with the dog im his hoodie. His family partners with dogs for their signature moves.]

Hii spotted the only boy with a dog in class, Kiba Inuzuka. He sat back in his seat with Akamaru in his hoodie, desperately trying not to fall asleep and failing at it.

'Can't hurt to try. I guess I'll have to see if he's interested after class.'

*******

"Hmph! I've been waiting for this!"

"Arf!"

"Huh?"

Kiba was more than eager to spar with Hii, which confused him quite a bit.

After Hii invited him to spar at the training grounds, he was becoming more and more confused by Kiba's enthusiasm.

"Uh, were you trying to fight me before this?"

"Heh! I figured you would have to beat me since I'm top dog!"

"......?"

Hii was baffled by this kid's confident illusion.

'Do you know what's going on here, Akumu?'

[Haaaa. He's...very confident, I guess.]

Hii was a bit confused, but he could sort of understand the logic in his head.

'Maybe it's like a pack mentality.'

Hii looked over to his right and tried to figure out the deal with the other person who came with them.

"Um, why is he here exactly?"

"I thought he was someone you brought?!"

Both of the boys look over to see another boy covered in a long coat with black glasses.

Hii jogged his memory a bit and remembered his name from roll call.

"You're...Shino Aburame, right?"

"Yes. I'm disappointed that you'd question who I am even though we've been in the same class for years now."

Shino spoke candidly as he pushed up his glasses.

Hii and Kiba had no idea how to respond.

"Ruff!"

" I think so too, Akamaru."

"What did Akamaru say?"

"He said this guy is pretty weird."

Hii had to nod his head to that.

"That's not very nice to say to someone who's right in front of you. Have you never considered me as a comrade?"

"I have never spoken to you! How can I consider you a comrade if I never even knew you existed?! I know Hii more than I know you and we barely speak at all!"

"Arf Arf!"

"That just shows you're not observant of your surroundings."

"What was that, weirdo?!"

Hii felt a massive headache coming on.

{ Are all the kids like this, Akumu?}

[....Some.]

"Haaa. Okay. We've gotten off track. I wanted to ask Kiba how to fight in a more beast-like manner. Why did it become a fight for top dog?"

"I don't care about the reason you have to fight me! I just want to fight you since everyone says you are the strongest in class!"

Kiba cracks his knuckles and placed Akamaru on the ground.

Shino nodded his head.

"Indeed, you are said to be the best ninja in class. I want to see how far I truly am from you as well."

Hii couldn't help, but sigh. He had just wanted to find a way to improve his technique, not assert dominance in class.

[Well, just fight both of them. Makes it simple for you.]

"Haaa. Ok, fine. Let's say I am the strongest in class. Wouldn't you have to fight Sasuke, Maka, or Shizuka after that to be the strongest? I'm not the only strong ninja, you know."

"Urk!"

 Kiba seemed shaken at the news Hii gave him.

'Even Hinata being serious is a contender for class strongest. Why am I being targeted?'

"Grrr! Whatever! It's too complicated! As long as I take you out, I'll be on my way to the strongest anyway."

"Hmm. He's not wrong."

Shino kept his hands in his pockets as he observed the situation.

"Ugh. Fine. Let's just fight then."

"Heh! Here we come! Let's go, Akamaru!"

"Arf!"

Hii stretched his arms as he readied himself.

"Haaa. Here we go, I guess."

Kiba and Akamaru charged over to Hii!

"Yahoo!"

Kiba jumped high into the air and struck towards Hii!

Hii casually dodged the attack and started to analyze Kiba's moves.

"Grrr! Get back here!"

*Swish Swish*

Kiba kept trying to claw at Hii as best as he could, but Hii kept dodging while studying him.

'He's definitely feral-like, but he doesn't really have anything that truly makes him special from what I was doing before. Let's try a different approach then.'

"Arf!!"

Akamaru tried to sneak up behind Hii and pounce, but Hii grabbed him in mid-air and lightly tossed him to Kiba.

"Why you!"

Hii pulled out a smoke bomb and threw it on the ground!

*Poof*

"What?!"

Hii quickly darted out of the smoke and observed the cloud while running around it.

'He couldn't see where I went, so how will he attempt to find me?'

"There he is!"

"Arf!"

Both man and beast flew out of the smoke and surrounded Hii, stopping him in his tracks.

"Heh! You won't be able to escape from us!"

"I see. How did you guys know where I was through the smoke?"

Kiba brushed his nose with a grin.

"Your scent. Akamaru and I can smell your wherever you go."

"Arf!"

Hii nodded his head.

'Dog-like senses. We should be able to do that as well, right?'

[Hmm. I don't think I can. I usually track with footprints and Chakra. Never noticed any enhanced smells.]

{I think I can do that!}

'We'll have to test it out later.'

Hii nodded his head as he decided he had held back on Kiba enough for today. Hii quickly weaved a hand sign!

Shadow Clone Jutsu!

*Poof*

A single clone of Hii appeared and distracted Akamaru while the real one attacked Kiba!

"Ugh! Why you!"

*Pow Bam*

Kiba tried desperately to fight Hii off, but Hii wouldn't get intimidated from a knock off beast.

'This is nothing at all compared to the other beast.'

Hii quickly subdued Kiba to the ground and pinned him.

"Well, that wasn't too bad."

"Tch! We lost!"

Kiba got back to his feet and sighed.

"Ugh....Mom is gonna kill me!"

"Hm? Aren't you overreacting?"

"Haaa! You wouldn't understand. That lady is brutal all the time!"

Kiba shook his head and started to head back home.

Before he walked too far, he turned back around and pointed at Hii.

"Look! I'll let you win this time! Next time, you'll be the one on the ground!"

"Arf! Arf!"

Kiba and Akamaru darted away after their declaration, leaving Hii stumped.

"How did it escalate to this?"

"Well, Kiba has a very one track mind. It was inevitable that you two would cross paths eventually."

"Right...."

Hii started to feel cold sweat forming on his back.

'.....I nearly forgot about Shino again.'

"You forgot about me, didn't you?"

"....No. So we have to fight as well?"

*Buzz Buzz*

A small swarm of beetles suddenly came out of his shirt collar, forming a blackish fog above Shino.

"That is only natural in a battle for the top spot."

"Haaa. Who even told you I was strong?"

"Uzumaki-san told me."

"?"

Hii's head tilted.

'Who?'

"Naruto did?"

"No. Though he did mention you are really strong. His sister told me."

'Shizuka!!!!!'

Hii clenched his fists as he could already see that teasing face of hers when he will ask her about this.

'Haaaa! No wonder! She sure loves to be a troublemaker. When did she even talk to him anyway?'

Hii sighed and looked at Shino.

'How can I make him back down. This fight won't help me much.'

Hii wracked his brain a bit before an idea came to him!

"You know, would you be mad if I killed off a lot of your beetles, Shino-san? I assume you took a lot of care in raising them."

Light reflected off of Shino's glasses stared at Hii.

"I would."

"Then we shouldn't fight at all. All my Jutsu are pretty much bug killers. It would be better for you to fight me in Taijutsu. Are you as strong as Kiba in it?"

Shino thought about it and nodded his head. The beetles flying around quickly entered back into him and disappeared.

"You make a good point. I wouldn't want my beetles to die for me to prove myself. If you can take down Kiba without much issue, then my chances against you would also be abysmal."

Shino thought for a moment and nodded his head.

"I'll have to train hard to be your match."

"Well, good luck, I guess. You can fight me when you feel ready."

"I won't give you a lackluster battle like Kiba. I'll show you the power of the Aburame clan. Until then."

Shino silently walked away as Hii shook his head.

"Great, two new challengers for me to deal with."

{It's great to have rivals! You all will improve off each other.}

"I'm already rivals with Neji. I don't need more."

[You can never have too much experience. More rivals means more training with others with different styles. It's good to get as much experience as you can while it's safe.]

"Hmm. I guess I can look at it that way."

Hii sighed and decided to just take it one day at a time.

"Hii."

"Hm?"

Hii turned around to find Di coming towards him.

"Grandpa?! What are you doing out?"

"Training. Get your sword out."

"Alright!"

Hii smiled and pulled out his scroll from his backpack.

He knew he was going to get some good training in today!

********

"Ahhh! Where did our Nee-sans go?!"

"Shut up, loser. I don't know where they went. Why are you following me?"

"Because my Nee-san is most likely with your Nee-san. We might as well go together, right?"

"Haaaa."

Sasuke sighed, but he didn't say anything else as the two looked around for any sign of their sisters.

"Oh! There they are!"

Naruto shouted as he pointed to the direction of a Dango shop. They could see a large group of girls surrounding their sisters with smiles on their faces.

"Come on! Tell us what happened, Maka-chan!"

"Hmph! You probably already heard a out it from another girl in the class!"

"Maybe~, but I want a first hand perspective on it! Please!"

"H-Hmmm. Maybe I could tell you?"

"Come on, Maka! They want to know for reference! Not everyone can get their crush to like them back."

Maka's face became red as the girls giggled around her. She kept her hands on her Lotus necklace, playing with it in her fingers.

Naruto wanted to call out to them, but Sasuke quickly covered his mouth.

"What are you doing, idiot?!"

Sasuke quickly stopped Naruto who was going to head over and pulled him behind a corner.

"Puah! Why did you stop me?!"

"You can't go there!"

"Why not?!"

"It's girl's talk, Naruto. No guy can get close to that without getting caught as a target."

Sasuke felt a chill crawl down his spine as he remembered some unfortunate boys getting caught in that trap.

"Ugh! I forgot!"

"How do you forget that?! Come on, let's get out of here before they notice us."

"Since when were you the leader?!"

Naruto complained, but he followed behind Sasuke anyway.

He definitely didn't want to get caught in girl's talk!

The two walked around the village, looking for something to do.

"Man! Where did everyone else go?"

"....."

"It's like all of our other friends disappeared."

"...Yeah."

"Hey, if you went over to the girl's talk circle, would anything happen to you?"

"...Probably not the same thing if you did, but it would be just as annoying."

"Man! Must be nice to be popular with all the girls."

Sasuke scoffed at him as they walked.

"I'd happily pass it over to you if you wanted the title."

"Naw! I'll be like that too one day! I don't need your sympathy!"

"How long will that take?"

"....Hopefully not too long."

Naruto sighed as he put his hands behind his back.

*Clang Clang*

""?!""

Both boys stopped as they heard the sound of fighting coming from a training ground.

"That sounds pretty intense..."

"Hey! We should go and check it out!"

Naruto started to move towards the sounds without waiting for Sasuke to answer!

"Wait!"

Sasuke followed behind Naruto as the two ran up a nearby tree and observed.

"Eh?!"

"What is it?"

"It's Hii-Nii!"

Naruto watched as Hii was sent flying across the training grounds.

*Tsssssh*

His feet dragged hard against the grass as he forced himself to stop. He had light cuts over his bare chest and arms as his shirt was folded up and set on the side.

"Haaa. Haaaa. Haaa."

"Need a break?"

Di stood over Hii with his blade on his shoulders, his chest also bare.

Hii struggled to his feet and clenched his hands around Ame no Tsume.

"No. I can keep going."

Di nodded his head. 

"Good. Make sure your armor is as optimized as possible. I'm striking now!"

*Tzzzzzt*

Di cloaked himself in lightning and attacked Hii!

*Tzzzzzt*

Hii activated his own armor and swung his blade against Di!

*Clang Clang Clang*

The two flashed across the training field at high speed, clashing at each other at every chance they could get!

"....."

"...Woah."

Naruto and Sasuke watched the battle in silence. Both boys clenched their fists watching the fight, marveling at the power of their "older brother".

'Hii trains like this all the time?! I have to work harder as well! Maybe Nii-san has time to train me to this level. I can't lag behind him!'

'If I want to be Hokage, I have to be able to fight like Hii when he's like this! He never used that technique when we sparred before. I should ask Dad or Mom when they aren't busy to train me!'

Both nodded their heads at their own thoughts while Hii was sent flying and fell down.

"Good. You maintained it pretty well. How does it feel to fight with a real blade this time?"

Hii laid on the ground and tried to catch his breath. The little cuts were stinging him, but he felt they could help him improve.

"Scary. It felt so different compared to with the practice sword."

"That's because your life is on the line now. Learn to hone that fear into your senses. It can save your life someday."

"I'll remember that, Grandpa."

Di nodded his head and walked over to Hii. He picked him up and carried him over his shoulder.

"G-Grandpa?! What are you doing?"

"Carrying you back. It'll start to get dark soon. Or do you want to squat on the wall again?"

"N-Nevermind! Carry on then."

"Hahaha. I thought as much."

Di picked up their stuff and started to head home. Before he got far, he looked back into the distance and shouted.

"If you two want to train with us next time, you're free to do so! Make sure you're ready because I don't hold back!"

""!!""

Di smiled as he continued on back home, making Hii shake his head.

"You didn't have to call them out like that."

"Those two are your friends, yes? They shouldn't have to hold back on getting stronger. I just gave them an opportunity. They can decide if it's what they want."

Hii nodded his head and rested on his Grandpa's back as they headed home.

Naruto and Sasuke watched as Hii and Di left the training grounds with fire in their eyes.

"Hey, Sasuke? You want to spar a bit?!"

"...Hmph! Don't get mad when you lose!"

"Hehe! Bring it on!"

'I won't lose!'

'I can't let him win!'

The two sparred with intense vigor as they remembered how hard Hii fought.

They felt they needed to get to that level more than ever before!

Many days like this passed as time seemed to quickly pass by.

Graduation from the academy was around the corner.