Chapter 18: Back home

Not the first time for the last six months and always because Riku was involved, Hiruzen was smoking his pipe in silence. He didn’t quite know what to make of the group standing in front of his desk.

On the left were Izumo and Kotetsu that had left for a mission a week earlier and should be back in the middle of this one. They were accompanied by Riku who was next to them, right in the middle of the group and was sporting a grin that said ‘I did it again and I’m not even sorry one bit’. Right next to him was perhaps the last person he thought he would see again in his office right at this moment. Orochimaru included. Tsunade looked as radiant and young as the last time he had seen her with perhaps an even bigger chest. He knew better than to let his eyes wander south to be sure of that. Her face was impassable but he knew her so well that it was clear to him she was annoyed. He thanked Kami for small mercies because a more than annoyed Tsunade was a destructive and yelling Tsunade and he wasn’t in the mood for that. Lastly, next to his student was her apprentice. The last time he had seen her she was but a child. Now she was a beautiful woman holding a little pig with a pearl necklace, against her chest.

Predictably, Sarutobi Hiruzen blinked. Once, then twice.

“Boar.”

An Anbu with a tiger mask landed with a knee on the ground next to him. Without a word and without averting his eyes from the group, he used his only hand to pick his tobacco pouch and handed it to the masked Shinobi at his side. After a quick check he got his pouch back.

“Everything is in order, Hokage-sama.”

“No one switched my stash with drugs then.” he stated and Riku snorted. “Let me start with… Tsunade it’s good to see you again after all this time. You too, Shizune.”

Tsunade didn’t move a muscle and didn’t show any acknowledgement of his greeting. Shizune on the other hand had a small smile on her face and nodded.

“Now… I’d like to know why the three of you are here so early? Granted I’m sure the one at fault is Riku, here-”

“Hey!”

“But I’d like to know how, in your mission to get material for the reconstruction for the village, you came back with my wayward student and her apprentice when I sent Jiraiya and Naruto to look for her?” he asked Izumo and Kotetsu, who didn’t hesitate to throw their young friend under the cart.

““That’s on Riku!””

“Yes. I established that already.”

“Enough sensei! I’m back and that’s all that-”

“She punched me into a coma and I guilt tripped her into coming back for the hat.”

Riku’s words instaurated a very palpable silence in the room. Looking at Tsunade, who was both angry and remorseful, made Hiruzen think that it was the truth. Looking at Riku’s teammates nodding slowly and Shizune’s ashamed face confirmed it. He took a deep breath and spoke.

“Is the mission complete?” he asked the two older chunin who nodded. “Then you can go, we need those materials urgently.”

Riku opened his book of seals and tore a few pages that he handed to his teammates who quickly left the office.

“Did you really come back to succeed me? On your own?” Hiruzen.

“Yes.” she replied, rolling her eyes.

“After I punched her to the-”

This time it was the dirty blonde that was interrupted by the other one. Tsunade, fast as lightning, put her hand on his mouth to stop him from talking further. Knowing he wouldn't get an answer that way, Hiruzen turned his head to look at Shizune.

“I wasn’t there when Tsunade-sama and Riku-san met and began fighting but I was there at the end. From what I understood, Riku-san said some harsh truths that… put Tsunade-sama back onto the right path?” she wasn’t sure if she had worded her explanation correctly.

“I see.” The old Hokage said then looked back at his two students. “In other words, he verbally kicked your ass prompting you to kick his physically but the damage had already been done. You thought deeply about what he said, agreed and decided to come back. Did I miss something?”

Tsunade released Riku and begrudgingly agreed. Or not.

“Does it matter?!”

“She came back because she was curious about my Boo-”

This Time Tsunade purely and simply knocked him out by hitting him behind the neck.

“Tsunade-sama!” exclaimed Shizune, putting down Tonton and rushing to Riku’s aid.

Hiruzen didn’t know if he should laugh, cry or reprimand her for that because after a month of teaching the young man, he knew that something embarrassing would have come out of his mouth. That’s how Riku got introduced to the One Thousand Years Of Death in the first place to Neko’s and Boar’s hilarity.

“You seem quite familiar with him.”

“Well… He is my apprentice.” she replied with a shrug.

Hiruzen’s eyes went wide open in shock at the news. He wondered how Riku could have not only pushed Tsunade to come back to the village with the intent on becoming the Godaime Hokage but also taking him as an apprentice and thus after she punched him into a coma.

‘Remarkable. Nevertheless this is goo- no, this is great news! Riku finally has a teacher fit for him. I did everything I could but I’m more of a ninjutsu specialist than anything, something that Riku has not really much of interest in. Things couldn’t go any better.’

While Shizunen tried to revive Riku, Tsunade went around the desk to stand next to her sensei. She picked the empty sleeve that was hanging, rolled it and took a look at his stump.

“The cut was clean.”

“Ninja wire embedded with wind chakra.” he replied and she nodded in understanding.

“Good choice. I do wonder how come it’s already healed without any scar tissues? I doubt someone has found a way to do that.”

“You’re correct. It’s… a clan secret.”

“The Sarutobi clan doesn’t have any med-”

“I never said it was a secret from my clan.”

Tsunade looked at him in silence for a moment then let go of the subject. It was touchy and she knew she shouldn’t pry further for information, she was from a clan herself after all.

“Regardless. This is perfect work. Whoever did this, you can thank them.”

“I did.”

“BOOBIE EXPANSION JUTSU!”

Breaking eye contact, both sensei and student turned their heads to look at the young chunin that was brought back to the world of the awake. Hiruzen, after decades as Hokage, had mastered the art of talking in a dignified manner. That is why his question was a graceful:

“... What?”

Tsunade sighed, then facepalmed with her hands and screamed into them.

“She wanted to know-”

“Riku.” she warned with a bit of killing intent and he shut up on the spot. Seeing that her sensei would not let it go, she sighed again and gave him a short explanation. “He used a deadly but experimental jutsu on me. It worked but not as fully intended with side effects and those… are the results.” she said, crossing her arms under her heavy breasts which put them forward on display.

“Ah. I wondered if they were… Nevermind. I understand why the name. That reminds me of a question that I forgot to ask you, Riku.”

“Yes, Hokage-sama?”

“How in Kami did you recreate my Shuriken Shadow Clone Jutsu?”

“He did what, now?!” a dumbfounded Tsunade exclaimed in shock.

“Oh, that? Well from the notes of the Nidaime on the Kage Bunshin you lend me. From them I simply… I guess I got the idea to tone down the amount of Yin chakra and dial up the amount of Yang chakra. It was difficult at first but once I realized that it was the opposite of how a genjutsu works it became easier. It may not sound like it but it was the easy part in truth. What was difficult was the series of hand seals to make it work. The hand sign for the shadow clone was not a good fit so I had to improvise. I needed a strong base so I went with Ox, then stability so Dog, then strength but not explosive, so not Tiger but Dragon. After that Rat for the shadow element then another Dog to stabilize it then afterwards it was trials and errors and I ended up with Boar then Snake and finally Tiger.”

Both Tsunade and Hiruzen looked at him as if he had two heads. Everyone in the room did, in truth. Shizune and the Anbu guards hidden in the ceiling included. Hiruzen knew that Riku was a prodigy and perhaps a genius but he didn’t know how much until right this instant.

“What? Isn’t it your sequence? Did I get something wrong?” he asked in worry, not liking the looks he was getting.

“I’m going to demote the Jonin-senseis back to the academy, sensei.” Tsunade said, still looking at Riku.

“Good idea. Fools that they are.”

“Hum…”

“You got it right, Riku. This is the correct hand seals sequence of my jutsu. We’re just surprised that… well… you’re that knowledgeable about hand seals and yin and yang chakra. Especially the hands seals. What you know, that’s something many don't and the few that do… It’s only because of years of experience in ninjutsu and jutsu creation.”

“... You’re serious?” asked the disbelieving chunin.

“Very.”

“B-but… I got that from looking at the basic jutsus of the academy and the genin level at the library! I just… compared the hand seals sequences of low level jutsus. That’s nothing impressive.”

“Not many have the mind to do that. In fact I believe you’re the only one I know who did it like that. I sure didn’t.” said Hiruzen chuckling. He was amused and also distressed at how simple Riku found out about something it took him years to understand.

“Me neither.” added Tsunade.

Riku looked at Hiruzen then at Tsunade to see if they were pulling his leg. They weren’t.

“Well, that was a fascinating tale. Now you should go, Tsunade and I need to discuss her new job.”

“Yes, Hokage-sama.” Riku replied with a bow and began to leave before turning back. “Hum.. Sensei, where do we live?”

“We?” she asked in confusion.

“Well, aren’t I your apprentice? Shouldn’t I live with you?”

“No.” she replied with a chuckle.

“Oh.”

“You like me that much?” she teased.

“Not really. It’s, just.. I guess I'll live at the hotel a bit more then.” he replied with a shrug.

“The hotel? Why do you live there?” inquired Hiruzen.

“My house is now a pile of rubble. Anbu put Karin and I there when they picked us up after the assault, since we had nowhere to go. With the money she won during the exam she can easily find a more permanent place to stay but…”

“Shizune, bring him to the compound and give him a room.”

“Yes, Tsunade-sama.”

“I don’t want to impose if it’s not required of me to-”

“You shut up and you follow her.” the next Hokage said with authority.

Riku simply nodded and followed his senpai outside but before that he turned back again.

“What happened to… page 87?”

“You were right. Neko dealt with it herself.” Hiruzen answered.

“Good.”

And with that Riku left the office for good this time, closing the door behind him.

“You seem to know about his logement problems. Care to share?” the Hokage asked his student.

“He told me about his mother and his treatment from the villagers. Since Orochimaru attacked the village…”

“They’re even more suspicious of him if not down right blaming and treat him even more like shit.” He finished with a tired and discontent sigh.

“Yes. I know he has the money for it but I think he believes that if he pays it would be accepting that they are right to treat him that way. I don’t need to tell you how wrong it is sensei.”

“No, you do not. He’s not the only one dealing with that. Uzumaki Naruto is suffering from the same thing unfortunately. I tried to do my best, but I'm only one tired old man with a village to run.”

“Uzumaki?” she perked at the name.

“The kyubi’s jinchuriki. He left with Jiraiya to search for you. If you want to reconnect with very distant relatives there is also Uzumaki Karin. She’s a new addition to the village. In fact I advise you to do so.”

He didn’t say anything more but Tsunade understood that there was something more to that girl.

“Perhaps. When I have some free time.”

“She’s Riku's only friend of his age, so it won’t be difficult for you to meet her.”

Tsunade nodded and the conversation shifted to her new duties.

“What exactly am I getting myself into?”

“For now, not much. I’ll still be there to pass the power over to you over time. You have two first tasks however. The first is dealing with Suna. Orochimaru, killed the Kazekage and impersonated him during the finals. Suna claims that they only followed his orders because they believed him to be Rasa. His body had been found near the border between Wind and River country.”

“What a load of bullshit. Such an operation takes time to prepare.”

“Indeed. Rasa probably made a deal with Orochimaru for the invasion and got both backstabbed and double crossed. The fact that they sneaked the ichibi’s jinchuriki among the examinees of the chunin exam is proof enough. Though they can argue it was circumstantial. The jinchuriki’s Jonin-sensei was well aware but we can’t use him because… One since he’s officially MIA he may be disavowed as a traitor to Suna in favor of Orochimaru and two… he’s dead.”

“What happened?”

“Riku captured him because he believed he killed his friend Tokubetsu jonin, Gekko Hayata, during the month before the finals. He wanted justice.”

“Page 87?”

“Yes. Baki, that was his name, was sent to T&I and sang like a canary. The truth of the invasion was that Rasa was an asshole and didn’t get along with the Wind Daimyo who decided to outsource most missions to us.”

“Crashing Suna’s economy and prompting them to retaliate. Hoping that by crushing Konoha the Wind Daimyo would change his mind or simply increase Suna’s reputation in the Elemental Nations, meaning more clients. Orchimaru then entered the game and proposed an alliance.”

“That’s exactly it.”

“Why though? That’s not his style. A whole invasion just to kill you? It doesn’t sound like him.”

“I think that Konoha burning to the ground and my death were just a bonus and a distraction. His real objective was Uchiha Sasuke.”

“... The sharingan? Now his actions make sense. The greatest tool to learn jutsus could only interest him. Did he-”

“No. Not completely but there is worry. He put his cursed seal on Sasuke. Kakashi sealed it but it will only last as long as Sasuke refused to use his power. Considering his state of mind and recent events he’s a flight risk of the highest order.”

“Why? What happened? Besides the massacre, I mean.”

“His only goal is to kill his brother Itachi. It’s more than a goal in fact, it’s an obsession and I believe he will try anything to get power. Especially after his recent humiliation and losses.” he explained and seeing the look Tsunade was giving him explained further. “Sasuke was always compared to his prodigious brother and considered lesser thus he developed an inferiority complex. Unfortunately he is an Uchiha.”

“So supposedly better than anyone else giving him also a superiority complex.” Tsunade added, knowing well how the Uchiha were. They were the Senjus’, her clan, rivals after all.

“Yes, except Riku completely trashed him at every turn at the academy. He kept losing again a clanless orphan classmate. Even with the blatant help and sabotage from the instructors at the time, Sasuke was seen as the rookie of the year only in name. Now fast forward to the finals, Riku completely humiliated him. Your apprentice won the match in 16 seconds and by using the One Thousand Years Of Death as a final hit and before that it was a one sided Taijutsu onslaught.”

Tsunade snorted when she heard that and began to laugh.

“He really…?”

“Oh, yes. That was a glorious sight. Perfectly executed. Anyway, the day when Jiraiya and Naruto left, Itachi came back to the village, not for Sasuke but for Naruto.”

“The Kyubi?” she asked, already knowing that that was what the Uchiha had been after because that would be the only reason he was after Naruto. She just wanted confirmation.

“Yes. Since Naruto wasn’t there, he followed. Not before putting Kakashi into a coma with an unknown genjutsu. Sasuke learned of it and went in pursuit, leaving without authorization, and caught up. Itachi proceeded to humiliate him even further by easily beating him down and then putting him under the same genjutsu used on Kakashi, or so the doctors believe. Now after so many humiliations and proofs of how weak he was compared to others…”

“You think he might defect and join Orochimaru for a promise of power?”

“Yes.” he confirmed and then changed the subject. “We went off topic by a mile. Suna. It’s up to you to deal with them. I won’t help you in any way with that, except maybe, to give you information. See it as a test.”

“Great. Should I be thankful to clean up after you?”

“No, but it is what it is. Your second task will be perhaps more enjoyable. You are to determine which examinee of the Chunin exams earned their promotion or not.”

That made her groan. She didn’t want to watch hours upon hours of footage and read dozens of reports. Especially genins fighting.

“Don’t worry. Someone else already made very detailed reports and edited all the footage to only leave the essential.”

“Who in their right mind would do that? And didn’t you promote Riku?”

“Umino Iruka. He’s the fourth year academy instructor and takes his job seriously. After discovering some instructors weren’t doing their job properly he took upon himself the duty to watch the progress of the graduating students. Since ten of them participated in the Chunin Exams, he exceptionally included the few other examinees. As for Riku… Well with the situation the village is in we need all competent shinobi active. Riku earned his promotion during the second phase. tHe finals were just a formality. Everybody else either failed spectacularly or needs time to review their actions in my opinion. Don’t worry I’ll be there to help.”

She almost pouted and began to regret having accepted the job.