The many clones ran around the three Dokis, and every time a thunderous rumble shook the land, it would be followed by the squeals and cries of these clones.
If not for such a big commotion, would Naruto have put up a barrier? The shouts and shaking of the house made Haku groan as he covered his ears.
"Dad, can you put a stop to them?" He said with a bitter expression
Zabuza looked away
"Do you dare to look out the window?" Zabuza responded
"...." Haku covered his face in embarrassment
"How did I acknowledge that person as my brother" He muttered
Zabuza sighed, was Haku not the one who asked Naruto to call him nii-san in the first place? So if there is anyone to blame, it's himself.
Meanwhile, Naruto threw a metallic ball towards Tayuya, which she deflected with her flute. But when she struck the ball, it exploded, filling the air with smoke that blocked her vision.
Tayuya blew her flute, which created a powerful sound wave that blasted the smoke away, but once her vision returned, she saw chains binding the three Dokis.
Her expression darkened as she began playing a different melody
The clones that were running around suddenly all froze up on the spot, while Naruto's expression sunk a little.
[Your clones are done for]
'I can tell, her genjutsu is no joke after all'
[Brace for impact]
One by one, the clones revealed looks of terror, before dispersing, transferring the images and pain they have suffered directly back to Naruto. Naruto held his head and sucked in a cold breath.
"Tsss" He winced in pain, the genjutsu tormented the clones, and with so many clones, the backfire on it was intense.
Tayuya took this chance and had the Dokis break out of the chain before leaping at Naruto, who was in a vulnerable state. Their massive arms were raised, and smashed down towards him.
Naruto looked up as his pupils shrunk
But a smile then crept onto his face
"Just kidding" He stuck out his tongue and teleported away, avoiding the strike that shattered the tree, and pushed the tree trunk underground.
Tayuya immediately launched another sound attack towards Naruto the moment he teleported, but this time, the chakra tails behind him wrapped around, and blocked the strike with relative ease.
The tails extended towards Tayuya, but a Doki jumped in front of her, and grabbed the one of the tails.
The Doki clenched the tail tightly, allowing the other two to approach Naruto quickly.
"Oh no you caught me, what ever will I do~" Naruto gasped with an overly exaggerated look of surprise, making Tayuya's expression sink even more.
Since the start of the battle, Naruto kept pushing her buttons, doing whatever he can to annoy her. But she had to admit, he's damn good at it!
The two Dokis raised their fists up, and smashed down upon Naruto.
*Bang*
Naruto looked up at the fists that came down, and raised both arms up to block the strike. It was heavy, so much that his entire body was bashed into the ground, practically buried alive by it.
'Did I go overboard?' Tayuya thought to herself
But she quickly realised that the chakra tails were still active, and even wrapped around the two Dokis near him, before lifting them into the air. His hands then burst out from the ground as he pulled himself out.
"Phew, almost suffocated down there, well, it's about time to wrap things up" Naruto smiled as the Doki who was grabbing one of his tails also got pulled into the air by him.
With all three in the air, Naruto slammed them all into the ground.
Tayuya's expression became more solemn, Naruto's control over Kurama's chakra was greater than she had anticipated, as she didn't expect him to be able to just lift all her Dokis up as if they were feathers.
If that was the case...what was the point of his previous clone mess!
"Tayuya, you must be wondering, why did I create that mess with my clones earlier, right?" Naruto smiled
Tayuya remained silent
"Well, let me show you" Naruto chuckled
From underground, a hand struck out, and another clone emerged!
Tayuya frowned, not knowing what the point of that clone was.
"The main point was to distract you while the clones hide away" Naruto smiled
Naruto then pointed a kunai at the clone's neck
"Three"
"Two"
His eyes curved into a crescent shape
Suddenly, a hand reached out from behind Tayuya, and grabbed her arm
!!!!!
She struck behind her with her flute, but it was too late. The two clones switched places using the flying raijin mark, and before she could destroy the clone, the kunai in Naruto's hand was already on her throat.
"That technique is my father's [Flying thunder God mutually instantaneous revolving technique], well, scratch the revolving part since I didn't use a rasengan, but the concept is the same" Naruto smile
Tayuya's lips twitched
"That name sucks" She said
Naruto's smile vanished instantly, replaced with a stern look of hostility
"....I'll give you five seconds to rephrase that before I drop a tail beast bomb on you" Naruto said with a dead serious expression
"Hah? It's just a name, and you're in the middle of the village!" Tayuya rolled her eyes
"Four" Naruto said, his eyes were terrifyingly serious
"You're joking, right?" Tayuya asked
"Three" An orb of condensed chakra began forming in front of Naruto's mouth
"Uh, you can't be serious, do you know how many people will die if you drop it here!?"
"Two" Naruto continued, and the beast bomb got bigger
"F**k, I'm sorry, it's a great name! You win!" Tayuya flailed her arms around and screamed in terror, it's just a damn name!
Why is he so defensive about it!? The name is awful! But sadly, she can no longer make any negative comments about it anymore...
The beast bomb vanished, and she was met with Naruto's bright smile
"Aw, thanks, I like that name as well, my dad is incredible in terms of naming his techniques" Naruto said with a cheerful laugh
"..."
It was at that moment that Tayuya realised what type of person she was dealing with. This isn't just a kid, nor is he someone she can look down on....this is a full-blown maniac, a crazy man who is willing to do anything to get what he wants.
He was dead serious at setting that beast bomb off as well, and for what? Because she said the name of a technique is bad? This is no longer a person, it's a ticking time bomb, no, a ticking beast bomb!
The word insane doesn't even begin to match the instability of his mind, and calling him crazy may as well be a complement to him.
"Do you still want to continue our battle?" Naruto asked
"...no" Her voice was a little quiet, no longer carrying her previous flare in it.
"Fantastic" Naruto grinned
"Since the battle is over, you will be good, and follow me, right?" Naruto clasped his hands together as he leaned in closer.
Tayuya wished she could rip him apart, but from what she has seen during this battle, he isn't an easy opponent.
'If I use the curse mark, perhaps we can fight more evenly, but I still don't know all his cards while he now knows most of mine' Tayuya sighed in her heart
"Let's go" She muttered
"What's that? I couldn't hear you" Naruto leaned in closer with his ear pointing towards Tayuya,, clearly mocking her.
Tayuya's fists clenched tightly
"LET'S GO!" She screamed into his ears, even using her jutsu to enhance her voice
Naruto leaned back slowly, he then rubbed his left ear...
He took a deep breath...
"Fu-"
-Flower shop-
"Na-kun, you're here, eh? Why do you have a band-aid over your ear?" Ino noticed that Naruto's left ear seems to be injured for some reason the moment he appeared with his two 'bodyguards'.
"Nothing, a little accident" He replied stiffly, his gaze couldn't help but shift back to Tayuya, who returned with a look of contempt.
Ino looked behind him
"So....I'm guessing one of them did that to you?" She said
"Just to clarify, I won the fight" Naruto said with an upright expression
"Yes, yes, you won the fight but lost the war" Ino responded casually
"I will neither confirm nor deny that" Naruto crossed his arms and huffed
"I screamed in his ears after he won" Tayuya said
"...Tayuya, can you not right now?" Naruto grumbled at her
Tayuya simply crossed her arms and shifted her gaze away. Naruto sighed as he turned back to face Ino, who was now trying to suppress her laughter.
"So, why are you here? Could it be you miss me already" Ino leaned on the desk and grinned
"Nah, my clone met you earlier, and its memories were transferred to me" Naruto waved his hands and said
"Oh, then why are you here?" Ino tucked her lips as she pouted
Naruto pulled out the scroll Orochimaru had given him
"There are four more puppets in here, they are smaller, but more balanced than the one you currently use, I want you to familiarise yourself with them when you have the chance" Naruto said as he placed the scroll on the table.
"Ah! Thanks Na-kun~" Ino picked the scroll up and hugged it in her arms tightly, her face lighting up brightly as a joyful grin replaced her earlier expression.
At this moment, a stern, but confused voice came from the back of the store.
"Puppets? What is this about?" Inoichi stepped out from behind and furrowed his brows.
His sudden appearance made Ino straighten her back instantly
"N-Nothing" She replied quickly
Naruto was stunned
"Ino...don't tell me, you never told your dad about it!?" He gasped
Ino stared back at him as she clasped her hands together, then gave him the 'tee hee' expression.
"Sorry" She said
"Ino, he will murder me!" Naruto exclaimed
"I know, I know~, but I just never got the chance to tell him, y'know?" She said as she stuck her tongue out cheekily.
Naruto gulped
"We're leaving!" He turned around to grab Tayuya and Kimimaro, but Inoichi moved faster than he did, and grabbed his shoulders.
"What's this about puppets? Huh?" He asked Naruto, his eyes looked as if they were about to pierce a hole through him with how intense his gaze was.
Naruto turned around with a wry smile
"Inoichi-san, I promise it isn't what you think" Naruto said
"Oh? What was I thinking, do tell me" He replied
"You think I had Ino give up on her clan jutsu to play with puppets, right?" Naruto said hastily
"It does seem that way, no?"
"I promise, she is still training her clan jutsus with all she has!" Naruto exclaimed
"...you didn't deny anything about the puppets" Inoichi spoke in a low voice
"...she is currently using puppets" Naruto couldn't lie about that
Pfft
Tayuya covered her mouth and laughed, it felt really good seeing Naruto be this frightened, though it did make her wonder why he was so scared of Inoichi. Is it because he is Ino's father?
"You taught her to use puppets?" Inoichi crossed his arms with a dark expression, but he didn't explode in anger, as if he was awaiting an explanation.
Naruto noticed that he was giving him a chance to explain, and was relieved
"I'll be direct, I am worried about Ino's safety, and the Yamanaka clan's jutsu is not great for self preservation when in dire situations" Naruto said
Inoichi's fingers tapped his arms constantly as his patience began to run dry.
"So you had her focus on something she had never done before? What difference is there in hindering her growth then?" He spoke as his arms unfolded
"I believe the results speaks for themselves" Naruto replied
"Yeah, I've gotten a lot stronger than before" Ino said hurriedly
But despite that, Inoichi didn't seem convinced
"Inoichi-san, please trust me" Naruto said firmly
His determined expression was genuine, but Inoichi couldn't understand why Naruto had Ino train in puppeteering of all things!
"Naruto, the Yamanaka clan jutsus requires incredible concentration during battle, but do you know what happens if puppets are added to the mix?" He asked
Naruto nodded
"Under normal circumstances, the user will become distracted, and unable to utilise the jutsus and puppets well, resulting in fatal flaws and gaps" Naruto replied
"Yes, and you still-"
"But! That is only under normal circumstances, in this regard, Ino is not bound by such an issue and can utilise both perfectly" Naruto said
Inoichi was taken aback
"She...can? You better not be lying to me right now" Inoichi's brows furrowed
"Have I ever lied to you?" Naruto winked at him and said
"...kid, the words that come out of your mouth is less trustworthy than Jiraiya's" He replied
"Oi oi oi, how can you talk bad about that old pervert who is even less than human scum? He's one of the three Sanins for goodness' sakes, not someone you can bad mouth so easily" Naruto said with a serious look
"..."
So you can bad mouth him however you want???
Inoichi sighed
"So, how can you prove it to me then?" He asked
"Ino will spar with someone using her puppet while making use of her clan jutsu, you can determine whether it's a waste of time or not afterwards" Naruto smiled, seemingly confident in this matter.
Ino has improved a lot since she first started, so he is confident that Inoichi will be impressed.
"Fine" Inoichi relented on this matter, and decided to see Ino's growth.
"Dad, do you not trust me" Ino tucked her lips and said
"Of course not~, my baby girl is the best!" Inoichi immediately smiled from ear to ear
Ino huffed, it was obvious Inoichi didn't trust Naruto's methods. But from a normal person's standpoint, it was completely normal to have such distrust, after all, who has ever tried to pull such extreme stunts of studying two different expertises that both requires such high concentration during battle?
"Inoichi, I have promised you before, everything I do for Ino, will not harm her" Naruto said with. a sincere look in his gaze.
Inoichi also felt that Naruto wants to do whatever is good for Ino, however, he is only thirteen, the same age as his daughter. He may be a genius, he may be talented, but his age makes it hard to truly show trust in matters related to Ino's future development.
Nonetheless, he still gave them the chance to prove it, as Naruto has already proven himself to be much more mature than kids his age.
"Before anything, I would like to request we do it at my courtyard, I have a seal set up to block out sound and perception, I want Ino's cards to remain hidden from everyone outside her immediate social circle" Naruto added, though, rather than hiding Ino's cards, it was more so to hide his own, since only a selected few knew of Naruto's control over Kurama's chakra at the moment.
"Secrecy is good, let's not waste time, but if what she shows me is not up to my expectations, I will manage her study from now on, you are not to intervene" Inoichi spoke in a low voice
"And if she meets your expectations?" Naruto asked
"I will not intervene in her current training with you" He responded
"Rather than that, I hope you still keep training her, I do not know your clan jutsu well enough to give her feedback on her current ones, so instead, can I call you fath-"
"No, I will of course keep teaching her the clan jutsu, but your request will not happen any time soon" Inoichi sneered
"So it can happen in the future?" Naruto's eyes lit up
"Are we going or not!" Inoichi growled
"Right away sir!" Naruto laughed and teleported everyone back to his courtyard where the barrier was set up once again.
'If I knew it was such a quick trip, I'd have just followed quietly' Tayuya cursed in her heart, it seems she was losing her mind for nothing during that fight....
With everything set up, Inoichi sat down by the side to observe.
"Yo Haku-nii, wanna spar with Ino?" Naruto called towards the upstairs window
Haku was watching the whole thing from above
"Nah, I'll just watch" He replied
"Tayuya can you-...no, never mind"
'She must still hold a grudge against me, she'll surely hurt Ino on purpose, that petty lil sh*t' Naruto thought to himself
"Oi, you just thought of something rude, didn't-cha?" Tayuya stared and him and said
"That's right, I called you a petty lil sh*t in my head, what can you do about it?" Naruto flipped her off and said
"....f**king sh*thead" She cursed
Naruto sighed
"Fine, I'll spar with her" He turned around to face Ino
"Like usual" He said to her
"Nope~, you can't use your seals, or I'll never beat you" Ino said
"Urgh, fine" Naruto grumbled
Naruto activated sage mode, and after contemplating for a bit, he also utilised Kurama's chakra, up to two tails worth.
"His control over the tailed beast is more impressive than the reports say" Inoichi muttered
Ino took out a scroll and summoned her origina puppet, which towered over the tree in the courtyard. Inoichi's eyes widened upon seeing that massive puppet.
'I thought it would be a normal puppet, but this...this is insane' He gulped
The puppet also seems to have an enormous amount of chakra being stored within it, meaning, Ino wouldn't expend much chakra when she controls it!
'Impressive, with that, Ino doesn't need to worry about overusing her chakra, he's well prepared, I'll give him that' He was feeling a little better when he saw the quality of the puppet, though, he did wonder when Naruto got such a high quality puppet.
"Ready when you are" Naruto smiled
"Here I come!" Ino jumped onto the puppet and began controling it
[The battle between lovers, who will win!] Kurama roared in Naruto's mind
*Bang*
Every step the puppet took sounded as if the earth as rumbling, and with how smooth it was moving, it shows that Ino's mastery over puppets isn't shallow.
*Whoosh*
The puppet's arm swept across the ground at Naruto, who leapt up to avoid the strike. Ino ran down the puppet's arm and threw thin needles towards Naruto who was still in the air.
"Ino, I made those for you so you'd use them on enemies!" Naruto exclaimed as he used the tail formed by Kurama's chakra to slam the ground in order to avoid the needles.
"Hehehe, I haven't spared with you in so long, I need to make the most of it" Ino grinned as she jumped off the arm of the puppet and engaged Naruto up close.
[What a twist, to think the kid will feel betrayed because his own girl used his inventions against him, what crueld fate! But totally deserved!] Kurama laughed
'Dammit Kurama, why are you commentating on this of all things! I didn't hear you commentating when I fought the bandit!'
[It wasn't as interesting] Kurama chuckled
Ino held needles between her fingers as she slashed at him with them. Naruto stepped back and grabbed her wrist with one hand, giving her arm a light twist.
*Ding*
Ino's face distorted with pain as the needles fell out of her hand.
"Tsss, Na-kun....I got you" She stuck out her tongue and in return, grabbed Naruto's wrist tightly while the puppet behind her had both arms raised up high above his head.
[Oh? Looks like the lass has the kid caught, and what's this? It was a vicious setup so he will be forced to take the strike of her puppet! What an ingenious strategy by the lass!]
Naruto then felt Ino injecting her chakra into him with the mind body disturbance jutsu, which he blocked out. However, that gave the puppet enough time to slam both arms down towards him.
*Whoosh*
His two tails became hands that reached up to block the incoming attack from the puppet, with each tail grabbing an arm.
[Looks like the kid has resorted to his usual cheats of outside help, I cannot blame him, he is simply too shameless!]
'Kurama, you are literally living inside me!'
[Fufufufu, I guess this is an insider operation then]
'...damn that's a good one'
[I learned from the worst] Kurama replied
"Ino, you are not making this easy for me, are you" Naruto said with a sharp smile as he pulled his arm away from Ino's grasp.
Ino giggled
"You taught me to not let my guard down after all" She replied
"I did, didn't I?" Naruto chuckled, the two tails were struggling to keep the puppet back, but he didn't seem to be in a rush to move from his position.
"But, if you are so on guard, why did you try close combat?" Naruto asked
"Huh?" Ino realised a seal began glowing on her wrist where Naruto had touched when she grabbed him.
Ino's expression changed as Naruto appeared in front of her in an instant.
*Whoosh*
Naruto grabbed Ino's collar and flipped her over his shoulders.
[What a throw! To think this brat is even willing to act with such brutality against his own girlfriend! What a shocker!]
'Kurama, can you shut up for one moment!'
"Gah" Ino coughed, but Naruto saw chakra strings flash past him.
Naruto quickly stepped back, and a massive fist brushed past his face, barely missing him. But the shoackwave still made him stumble back, and Ino took advantage of this to widen the distance between them.
Inoichi, who was watching by the side was in shock, although the battle hasn't gone on for long, it was enough to show how incredible Ino is. She is not only able to fight in close combat, she is able to use the puppet to her advantage whenever she can without losing focus.
"This is enough" Inoichi said
"Eh? But I just got started" Ino tucked her lips and said
"Ino, did you want to win that bad?" Naruto asked with a perplexed look
"Of course!" Ino replied eagerly
"Any reason?"
"Not really" Ino said with an innocent look
Naruto sighed helplessly as he walked over with a smile.
"Ino....you're not winning against me" Naruto grinned
"....you're as tactless as always, you know that?" Ino's eager look dropped instantly
Naruto rubbed his nose
"Look, I cannot lie, I'm as honest as a human can be" Naruto said proudly
[And the scary part is, you actually believe that] Kurama scoffed
'Huh? I'm an honest person, very upright' Naruto retorted
[Heh] Kurama merely laughed at his words and didn't argue.
"So, Inoichi-san, what's your opinion of Ino using puppets?" Naruto asked as he placed his hands behind his head.
Inoichi's expression was complicated, he knew that Ino is currently beyond most kids her age with how she is, but a part of him was still hesitant. But when he saw Ino's bright smile as she fought, that bit of hesitation gradualy faded.
"I will allow it" He said with a deep sigh
"Awesome"
With Inoichi approving of this, Naruto was a lot more at ease. He then waited for Ino to store the puppet away before releasing the barrier around his house.
"Since you're here, would you like to go see sensei?" Naruto asked Inoichi
Inoichi wanted to say no at first, but when he remembered who Naruto was referring to, he actually hesitated for a bit.
"Why not" He revealed a pleasant smile which took Ino by surprise
'Dad smiled at something aside from me...*gasp*'
[That lass is making a 'how is that possible' look] Kurama chuckled, enjoying Ino's look of surprise
'I mean, it's not everyday you get to see Inoichi-san smile at something aside from Ino' Naruto responded
[Fufufu....by the way, the fight ended in an anticimactic draw, the audience won't be happy]
'The only audience is Haku, Tayuya, Kimimaro and Inoichi-san, who the hell cares here?' Naruto rolled his eyes
"Sensei, Inoichi-san came to visit" Naruto walked through the backdoor and called out
"Tell him I'll be there after I finish preparing the food" Zabuza replied, his voice carried a hint of excitement that Naruto has never heard before.
'Damn, he was not this excited even when I became brothers with Haku, the obsession between fathers are truly a mystery of life' Naruto thought to himself
Inoichi went in and sat down in the lounge, while Tayuya went to find Haku without giving it much thought. Kimimaro was left in a rather awkward position as he just sat down next to Inoichi, not knowing what else he could do.
"You are?" Inoichi asked
"Naruto's bodyguard" He replied
"Oh, I see, though I doubt the kid needs one" Inoichi smiled at him
Kimimaro gave off quite the innocent aura from the tone of his voice, even if he has a mask covering his face. It felt much more pleasant than Naruto...
"Kid, why can't you be more like your bodyguard?" He pointed out
"Hah!?" Naruto was taken aback
"Wh-What do you mean What's the issue with my attitude?" Naruto exclaimed
"I mean, first off, he seems to have no second intention when he speaks, you on the other hand, I'd be surprised if even half the things that come out of your mouth are truths" Inoichi sneered at Naruto as he stared at him with disdain
"...Ino, do you feel the same?" Naruto turned to Ino with a disheartened look, how long has Inoichi known Kimimaro for? Not even a minute, yet he's already favouring that guy over him!?
"Of course not" Ino reassured him
'Is that why Sai-san had no issue with marrying Ino? Inoichi-san liked how little motives are behind his actions!?' In made Naruto tear up a little.
[What drama, kid, eat more variations of popcorn for me next time, I'm getting sick of the flavours I currently have] Kurama's voice sounded in his head
'Where did the popcorn even come from!?'
[Your memories, I pull out copies of your memories to simulate a feeling of taste, but you have only eaten so many flavours, so I can only simulate so many]
'You really know how to enjoy yourself, huh?' Naruto grumbled