Chapter 7

Lessons

" Thinking "

" Flashback thoughts"

Naruto stood at the north gate of Konoha as he waited for his team and sensei to arrive so they could go on their mission.

Today marked their first C rank mission ever and Naruto could not help but feel a little excited.

The night the Kumo shinobi had attempted to kidnap the Hyuga heiress, the Hyuga Clan as well as the shinobi council had been extremely thankful towards him, Itachi and Anko since if it was not for Naruto and Itachi holding the ninja back and Anko going to warn the Hokage then they may have lost the Hyuga heiress.

As a reward, they made the rescue a completed A ranked mission and all three genin got the pay. It also set a new record as Naruto, Itachi and Anko became the youngest team to ever go on an A ranked mission.

Mikoto of course gave them a small scolding but they knew that was just the mother in her talking. Though she was extremely proud of her first genin team and knew from that moment that Naruto, Itachi and Anko would go on to do great things.

They had their test the next day, which was basically to let Mikoto see their level of strength.

She was not disappointed and, on more than one occasion, had found herself on the defensive before managing to push them back and subdue them. It made the trio realize that Mikoto was a very powerful woman who had rightfully earned the title of Fire Mistress of the leaf.

Since then for the next six months, they went on simple D rank missions all around the leaf village. They came up with a simple routine, which was to perform D rank missions in the morning, and then they would break for a lunch break before meeting up again for a few hours in the afternoon to train.

Mikoto had managed to find certain aspects with each of the three to help train them in which she was thankful for since she was not the type to leave one out while focusing on the other two.

With Itachi she helped him with his ninjutsu and genjutsu since they both had the Sharingan. Anko was taijutsu and she would spend a good hour or more just blazing it out with the girl while also focusing on her elemental ninjutsu, which she decided to learn after seeing the two boys use theirs for the first time.

Not surprising she had fire element as well which was a bonus.

With Naruto she struggled with for a short while before she could also help him with his taijutsu and kenjutsu. Though she used a tanto as a weapon other than a katana, the dynamic were similar plus it gave Naruto plenty of time to practice his kenjutsu skills against his sensei and improve them.

As Naruto thought of his skills he looked down to the ground and stared at his two hands.

He had always wondered what could help him stand out from his parents and teachers since they were all very world-renowned. His father had the Hirashin, his mother had her Kenjutsu and both had fūinjutsu, Mikoto had her fire jutsu, Tsunade her healing skills and super strength, Mana had her Water Jutsu and Earth and super strength, Jiraiya had his toad jutsu's, Kakashi had his chidori, Itachi his Sharingan and Sarutobi with his bojutsu and decades of experience.

He had wondered what would set him apart from the rest. And it was one month ago when he finally found just what that was.

Hiruzen nodded, knowing that while the Tsunade created was indeed amazing, it had its drawbacks by shortening one's life span.

'A day I will never forget.' Naruto thought as he and his three teachers came to the conclusion that somehow which they were still trying to figure out, that Naruto had received the most legendary bloodline Konoha had ever had.

The Mokuton and Swift Release

For the time being they kept it a secret since if word got out to enemies of Konoha or even to some of the higher-ups in the village like the elders or Danzo that Naruto had the legendary Mokuton of the Shodai Hokage, Naruto's life would never be the same.

"Naruto-kun." He heard snapping him out of his daze as he saw Mikoto along with Itachi and Anko at her side coming towards him.

"Do you have everything you need?" Mikoto asked as he showed a scroll in his right hand.

"So to recap what was the mission again?" Naruto asked wanting to familiarize with the mission as much as possible.

"It's very simple really. We are to take this scroll." Mikoto said waving a small scroll in her hands before sealing it away into her wrist. "And we have to deliver it to Mifune, the General of Iron Country. The scroll has updates on the next shipment of chakra metal that we get traded with from Iron Country."

"I thought Iron Country was a neutral country. Plus it has samurai's not ninja." Anko asked.

"It is, but even though it does not align itself with the other nations, it does trade with them since Iron Country is a cold nation and it needs thing like food imported since they can't grow food well in cold climates."

"Then let's go. I can't wait. This will be my first time out of the village." Naruto said. Itachi quickly said the same while Anko stayed quiet.

Team 13 set off from Konoha to the cold conditions of Iron Country.

Naruto, Mikoto, Itachi and Anko sat on two logs as they stopped for a short moment to take a breather from tree jumping and to get some food in their stomachs.

Two days of travelling were an interesting experience for the three genin since their D ranks only ever took a few hours at the most.

Naruto was currently eating a few onigiri he had made prior to the mission. Another thing his nee-chan Shizune had drilled into his head was how to make simple basic meals that could be taken on missions and which would not take up much room. Onigiri had quickly gone to the top of the list and he made sure to make enough for the trip there and back.

Mikoto and Itachi were eating some leftover stew that Mikoto had made for dinner before they left while Anko was eating some dango she acquired before they left Konoha.

As they ate Naruto began to pick up on multiple signatures closing in around them and were coming towards them at a fast pace.

He looked towards Mikoto who had already picked it up as had Anko and Itachi. The four nodded to each other and silently readied their weapons.

A minute later a swarm of arrows suddenly flew out of the woods around them and hit them, only for all four members to burst into smoke and be replaced by a log.

Naruto blocked a sword strike from an overweight bandit before he kicked the man in the gut, which knocked him back and knocked him out.

A dozen or so men, who were obviously bandits, ran into the small area where they had been eating. They obviously thought they could win against three children and a woman.

"Where did they go?" One asked as they looked over the logs that were now on the ground.

Just as another was about to speak, a rustle from above them made them look up to see Team 13 drop out of the tree's and in the center of them before they began to attack.

Naruto dropped between two and managed to split kick them both in the face making them get knocked back. When one of them got back up he ducked a strike and landed a strong strike on his left knee cap, making it break in the process as well as the bandit fell down holding his knee in pain.

The other got up but before he could do anything Naruto threw a bunch of shuriken towards him, pinning him to the tree.

From his side he watched as Mikoto and Itachi easily took out the bandits around them, though Mikoto just looked bored if anything and was simply chopping the back of their necks and quickly tying them up or drove her tanto through their chests.

He watched as Anko shot a snake out of her sleeve to which the snake then bit down on the man's jugular causing blood to pour out of his throat and drop to the ground like a sack of potatoes. Anko had killed and he noticed she had no problem with it. It made him wonder if she had ever killed before.

He dodged a swing of a large wooden club and kicked the man square in the face making him fly back and hit a tree. He sensed around and felt there were only a few of the bandits left which quickly were taken out by Itachi and Mikoto.

However he suddenly felt a small burst of killing intent hit him. It was nothing in comparison to what he was use to during his spars with either Mikoto or Tsunade, but it was enough for him to notice it.

His body acting on autopilot he turned round readied his blade and threw it forward. When he did he felt a small warm splash hit his face.

He wiped his other hand over the wet splash and looked at his hand in front him.

Blood

When he looked forward he saw a man in his early twenties wearing similar clothing to the other bandits around them with a chipped sword in his hand. Naruto's blade was in front of him, currently stabbing the young man in the chest.

Naruto had a look of horror appear on his face as he realized what he had done and his hand began to shake. His eyes stared into the man brown ones and watched as they suddenly rolled into the back of his.

Naruto slowly took his blade out of his chest and just stood there as the man fell to the ground as his breathing stopped completely.

"Naruto?" Mikoto asked from behind him as Anko was seen standing behind Itachi who had just thrown up. He had taken his first life as well by snapping one of the bandit's necks. Anko patted his back gently as Itachi just stared down at the ground.

As Naruto was their not caring really he was protecting his comrades

" I'm ok Obāsan don't worry." - as Naruto smiles at them and Itachi and Anko thought

" How can Naruto can be so heartless or not feel anything to kill?" - Both thought

" I kill to protect my comrades or my family i won't ever my family died that's my nindo my ninja way." - Naruto said as Anko and Itachi threw up behind a bush.

As he did that Mikoto began collecting the bodies of the dead bandits and placed them in a pile. She then performed a few fire jutsu's and set the bodies on fire so that the bodies could be properly disposed of.

The ones that were still alive did not stay alive for long before Mikoto slashed their throats with her tanto and added them to the burning fire.

Afterward her gaze softened towards Naruto and her son. This was one of the reasons she wanted this C rank. The way to Iron Country was known for having a lot of bandit encampments and she wanted Naruto and Itachi to have their first kill. It was always tough for a genin to kill but killing was in the job description of being a shinobi.

She saw Anko was okay which she knew she was. Anko had already killed due to her past tutoring.

By having their first kill, they would not hesitate to do so again later on. Though she was thirteen when she had her first kill and the memory of the man she killed still appeared in her head from time to time, but Naruto and Itachi were strong, a lot stronger than others their age and she knew deep down that they could take it, handle it and rise above it.

"Come on." She said patting Naruto and Itachi's shoulders and rubbing them gently. "Let's get moving. We should cover as much ground as we can while we still have light." She said making the three genin nod.

Naruto and Itachi were a little slower than normal but that's because their first kills were on their minds and would be for a few more days.

"The scroll we were sent to deliver Mifune-sama." Mikoto said as she, Naruto, Itachi, and Anko stood in a large office that was had numerous blades and samurai armors decorating around it. On one of the walls was three picture frames hanging up showing three men all dressed in samurai armor and all looking very powerful and intimidating.

"Thank you Uchiha-san." A man said from behind the desk as he took the scroll politely from her and began to read the contents of it.

Mifune was an elderly man so to speak, perhaps in his late forties, early fifties. He had long purplish hair that showed signs of graying along with bandages that wrapped around the top of his head along with a small moustache. He wore a simple navy blue kimono with black sandals.

Strapped to his side Naruto saw a katana with a black handle strapped to his side.

Beside him were two samurai wearing the traditional Iron country armor along with the helmets which Naruto had to admit looked a little strange.

After a few minutes of reading with an expressionless look on his face, Mifune nodded and gave them a small smile.

"The terms in this scroll are agreeable. Allow me a few minutes to right up a reply scroll." He said as he brought out a blank scroll and some ink. He began to write as the team stood their silently as they waited.

After he finished he handed the new scroll back to Mikoto who bowed and thanked him. They were about to leave but Mifune stopped them.

"If I were you Uchiha-san, I would stay in town for a day or two. There is a strong blizzard that will be coming through the area tonight. Anyone who gets caught in it will most likely freeze to death." He said.

"I see. Thank you for the information and looking out for my team." Mikoto said bowing to him again to show her thanks.

As Naruto, Itachi and Anko began to leave the room Mifune used a few hand signals to send a silent message to Mikoto. The two boys had looked so emotionless and both had a tired and worn out look on their faces.

What is wrong with the two boys?

Mikoto sighed a little sadly and made a few hand signs in return.

First kill.

Mifune immediately had a look of understanding cross his face since it did explain everything. He nodded to her as they left and sat back in his chair while putting his sword in his lap. He noticed Naruto's blade in his right hand couldn't help but feel intrigued.

He knew that not many from the leaf practiced in Kenjutsu and it made him a little curious at how the he was progressing.

Naruto lay on his bed as just stared up at the ceiling spread all over his futon with the image of the man he killed still on his mind. Every time he tried to fall asleep he would see that man standing in front of him.

'I wonder if this happens to others who kill for the first time.' He thought as he looked out the window to see it was still dark outside though the morning sun was slowly pushing its way through.

He looked over to see Itachi was asleep having spoken with Mikoto for a few hours about it the night before and he looked a lot better than he did. Mikoto did the same for Naruto, however even with her words; it would not leave his mind.

Realizing he would not be getting anymore sleep for the time being, he got out of his futon and put his clothes on. He carried Shusui in his right hand and made his way out of his room, which Mifune had kindly given them during their stay in Iron Country and not get caught in the blizzard during the night.

Making his way through the hallways as well as looking at some painting and decorative samurai armors that were presented on display, Naruto eventually stopped at one of the indoor training room that they were told they could use.

Since the environment of Iron Country was not the best to train in, the samurai had multiple giant rooms made for the sole purpose of training. In the room Naruto went in there were training dummies made of both wood and stone, a large circle about ten meters wide for small time spars to take part in as well as racks for weapons of various kinds.

He went over towards one of the wooden training dummies and unsheathed Shusui and began to train with his sword. The blade didn't feel very heavy to Naruto anymore since he had carried it around for nearly six months and had both grown accustomed to it as well as got physically stronger.

For about thirty minutes Naruto danced around the wooden dummy slashing and stabbing at the straw dummy though since he had no specific sword style, he was just sort of going with the strikes.

From behind him a pair of eyes rested on him as they watched him attack the straw dummy.

Where Naruto was, he could feel someone watching him but did not let on that he knew. They did not feel like a threat but more like they were curious. As if they wanted to see what he would do next.