Naruto: Summoner 2

Chapter Two

Seeking out the Hokage

Sakura sat before the Fox Demon, utterly amazed more than afraid. She thought that the creature would be terrifying, ready to tear her apart. But the first creature she had ever summoned in her entire life turned out to be a boy instead. Despite the picture, what was called was not what was drawn on the scroll.

The boy before her did not look much older than her; she was tempted to say he was even the same age. His puffy, soft cheeks sported three scars across each and the ocean-blue orbs that were his eyes looked energetic and exciting. With his ruffled, all-over-the-place sunny hair, he looked more of a loud child than anything.

‘And he called himself Uzumaki Naruto,’ Sakura thought, trying to piece things together. Her mind began to zone away from the outside commotion as she thought things through, her eyes falling to the floor and her hands gesturing. ‘Master said to take on her legacy, but what exactly am I supposed to do? I’ve never seen her summon a living creature before!’

The Demon Fox Naruto looked down at the girl curiously, suddenly amazed by the pretty, soft, exposed skin . . . His cheeks flared as he turned away, but after a moment he peeked in her direction again. She didn’t even seem to mind the fact that she was uncovered, and in front of a boy no less!

His curious wide eyes traced her features until they saw her hand. While he had already seen light smeared blood on her shoulders, chest and cheeks, it was most heavily among her fingers and palms. Suddenly his senses felt riled by the sight, and he licked his lips; something about blood just brought out a strange temptation.

“So,” Sakura continued, looking like she was counting her fingers, the digits curling into her palm as she numbered them off, “There are two things. Uzumaki Naruto and the Demon Fox can’t possibly be one and the same. It just doesn’t seem- Hey!”

Sakura was snapped out of her thoughts when she felt Naruto’s nails dig into her soft-skinned wrist and pull her forward towards him. It was then that she had unconsciously picked up the towel to cover her breasts, but he wasn’t after such a thing. She shut her eyes, but opened them again when she felt something warm and ticklish against her hand.

Naruto had only taken her close enough to lightly lick away at the blood in her hands, his tongue lapping up so much that in no time her hand was only lined with a light layer of saliva. When finished he wiped what little blood that had trickled down his chin and suckled on his fingers, grinning widely once he had finished. “That was so good!”

For a moment, Sakura only stared in shock. However, once she had snapped out of her state she quickly stood upright, pulling the towel that slightly covered her extra close with one hand while her other pointed into his chest with an index finger. She suddenly felt absolutely livid! “What are you thinking, you disgusting monster! That was Master’s blood you just drank!”

“Your master?” Naruto repeated, looking up at her while taking a few momentary glances at finger that poked him. He took a small step back; despite her frail body, the girl obvious had some strength hidden inside of her. “That wasn’t your blood?”

“No!” she shouted back. ‘How dare he! This is so degrading . . . I never would have tried to summon him if he was like this!’

“Hey, hey,” Naruto started slowly, holding up his hands rather defensively, a childish grin on his face. “Calm down now, Master.”

Sakura didn’t seem to understand what he had said; it took her a moment to register his words. While she contemplated in her head again, Naruto took the chance to look around just a bit in the kitchen. His eyes closed only a little as he lifted his chin and sniffed the air, then he scowled as he covered his nose.

“Geez!” the Naruto growled, his sharp canines protruding. “This place reeks of those people . . .”

“Those people?” Sakura asked out of nowhere, curious. But before he could answer, she shook her head, shouting just a bit louder than she had to for his attention. “No, wait! Forget about that! Why did you call me Master? You’re just a boy! I don’t own you!”

Naruto chuckled a little at her words, as if the answer were plainly obvious. She gave give a curious expression, begging for what he knew. What did he knew that she didn’t? This was frustrating! “What are you talking about? You summoned me, the Fox Demon, right?”

‘What?’ Sakura wasn’t sure what to say to that. Yes, of course she had summoned the Fox Demon, or she thought she had tried and failed. She was so sure she had made some sort of mistake when she called him boy instead, but . . . ‘Have I really done it? This . . . this boy is really the Fox Demon? Then that means . . .’

Out of nowhere she hugged Naruto tightly, pulling his head over her shoulder as she squeezed him with all her might and cheered. She was already forgetting all of the questions and momentary confusion that she had felt; she was just proud. “I’ve done it! I’ve correctly summoned my first one! My first summon!”

“Uh . . .” Naruto kept his hands wide apart at his sides, making sure not to touch her in any way that she, or any girl for that matter, would normally deem inappropriate. So far, however, his master had turned out to be a not so modest girl. He blushed heavily, then waited until she had pulled away. She was very giggly at the moment, but at least she had remembered to hold up her towel again.

“Wow,” she said, a girlish grin on her face, “I can’t believe it . . . Master always said I was good, but to go and finally be able to summon the Fox Demon . . . the great and powerful Fox Demon, no less!”

“Proves that you have a lot of potential, huh?” he said, smiling back. For a moment the two exchanged a sort of mutual feeling for one another, one of comfort, but that had quickly withered away and they averted their eyes. What did one say to their master, or their new summon? Naruto covered his mouth slightly and coughed. “So . . . do you have any clothes or anything, Master?”

Sakura looked down at her body, finally noticing what she seemed to have completely forgotten about the entire time. While she unconsciously remembered to keep herself modest, as most people learned to, she had truly remembered that she was close to naked until he said it. She turned red as she hastily tried to cover up even more, then she turned.

“I-I-I’m going to my room!” she said as she round the corner to go down the stairs. “Just wait up there, Fox Demon!”

“You don’t have to call me that,” he said with a pout, but he did as he obeyed. Naruto kneeled down onto the floor, his toes curling into his sandals as he stayed patiently in his spot before the broken treasure chest.

Right before him, slightly stained with blood from Sakura’s hands was the scroll he had been locked into. But this time, there was no such design of him in his true form, or even the forest behind what had been. It was empty; clean as a slate. He stared resentfully as his prison for a moment, then he ripped it to shreds. ‘I hate that place.’

Naruto heard a clank over nearby him and turned, unexpectedly bumping his head into a floating bowl. He shut his eyes momentarily to protect them, then a sweet aroma filled his nostrils, and while the bowl kept bumping into him as if he were in the way of its path, he captured it in his hands.

For a moment it struggled, then the magic that had possessed it seemed to have faded. Many loud crashes could be heard then, and as he looked at the kitchen next to him there were salt shakers and spoons all over the stone floor. Shrugging and ignoring them, he looked in the bowl and tasted the dark mesh. A tingle of pleasure ran down his spine.

‘This sweet stuff,’ he thought, now taking in even more by the handful and swallowing it, ‘It’s really good!’

This sudden new food entertained him as something not just for eating; he laughed as it slowly dripped off his fingers like a slimy goo, and just for fun he tossed it across the kitchen and onto a far wall. A huge splat struck against it and he giggled mischievously.

“Humans,” he said in between bites, “They have so much fun!”

But even through the tasty meal he was taking in, another smell wafted into his nose, heightening his senses. It was the blood he had before; just as fresh, just as enticing. Still, another scent lay even within that, one he felt disgusted by. He placed the bowl down onto the floor, careful not to make too much of a clank, then he followed the scent down the small hallway.

As soon as his eyes came to the floor, he knew. Despite his hate for the woman before him, there was a solemn resonance in his eyes. Naruto kneeled down towards Tsunade’s dead body and felt her stiff, pale cheeks, shivering at the sudden cold he felt. He lightly traced down her figure towards her open chest where the wound was still bleeding from. Ironically enough, the blood was warm to the touch. “Old woman . . . Were you my master’s master?”

Sakura pulled the dress over her head, tugging on the end of it just slightly to tidy it up. It was a thin, white top that stopped squarely below her collarbone, hugged at her breasts than flared down to her waist. While it was already quite feminine enough, the lace around the ends and the small, silky bow on her back added even more of a girlish touch.

With that, she put on a skirt of hers that was mid-thigh of the same color; Tsunade always told her that one who traveled had to be able to move, and a long dress would tire her quickly. ‘Master . . .’

Sakura frowned as she looked back into the tall mirror before her, slowing down her movement as she ran her hand through her rather tangled hair. It was still wet from her bath. Then she turned to look at a brush on her desk, which normally would be dancing about from her master’s magic, ready to straighten her hair and make it most beautiful.

“Please,” she started, thought there was more of a saddened tone in her voice than a strong command, “I know that Master is no longer here, but would you work for me? I have to pack and ready myself, so I’m afraid I can’t brush my hair with as much care as you give it.”

It took a moment but the brush did come to life, sauntering off the table before tripping over the side. It looked as if it were going to fall for the ground for a moment, but magic possessed it further and it began to float towards her hair, already beginning to straighten it to perfection. Sakura smiled softly as she slipped into some comfortable walking boots, hopping a bit since she had nothing to sit on.

As she finished tying her second thigh boot she flinched at a noise she heard above. At first it sounded like a slow dragging noise, one she had hear before but not quite registered, then she heard a thud and someone cursing. She had figured that was Naruto, the one she decided herself to call Fox Demon. ‘I wonder what he wants me to really call him . . .?’

For now Sakura decided to ignore the noise; she knew full well that no matter what you summoned, they had to obey their master no matter what. Even if it was the powerful Fox Demon, she commanded that he stay where he was. In her long years of research as an apprentice, she had learned that and many other things. Instead she packed.

Another rather loud noise was up stairs, only now it seemed to be outside. Sakura panicked slightly, but tried her best to continue thinking of other things. ‘Right . . . do I have clothes? Things to clean myself? What about a staff . . .?’

Come to think of it, she hadn’t needed a staff when she had supposedly summoned Naruto. Was that normal? She knew just how difficult it was to summon even the tiniest things, yet she had been bestowed the power; and she didn’t use a staff! ‘Maybe I’m special! Or Master was such a great teacher, that . . .’

Finally, the brush had dropped onto the floor with a thud, and right after closing her travel bag Sakura picked it up and put it on her dresser table. It was automatically supposed to stroke through her hair a thousand times, just how many times it took to make a girl’s hair perfect. She was almost ready to go, but she had changed her mind about leaving the brush behind. She opened her bag momentarily to put it in, then she closed it again and headed up the stairs.

“There we go . . .” Naruto wiped a light amount of sweat from his forehead, then he swung around his hands to get off the mix of disgusting liquid and dirt. While there was mouth-watering blood mixed in as well, he didn’t feel like having to try anything else to get it. “ . . . For my master.”

He was sure he was in the backyard of Sakura’s house, which really wasn’t more than a small patch of grass heavily surrounded by woods. He sensed a sort of enchantment about them, but then again ever since he came here he felt the present of magic. Tsunade’s body had it especially strong, even stronger than he had even remembered.

Naruto sat down next to the large pile of dirt next to him, patting it lightly. He smiled, part of it glad that he did his duty and the other part of him feeling unusually sad. Underneath the ground his hand had touched was the body of an amazing woman, that was for sure. “Old woman, I’m sure you’ll be missed.”

Now Naruto lied fully back on the ground, linking his fingers behind it head and making himself as comfortable as possible, though some of the longer grasses tickled his cheeks. He sighed as he looked up lazily at the sky, a sky that was a clear blue, swirling with fluffy clouds. It was a nice day, one that acted as if no one had died.

Naruto closed his eyes. “It’s been forever since I saw the sky . . .”

“Naruto!”

The Demon Fox opened his eyes again and sat up, seeing his new master standing at the back door to the small home. She was dressed in all white with the exception of her traveling boots, which were made of a light brown, somewhat fuzzy animal skin. Her hair, now dry and properly flowing past her shoulders, made her look adorable. He tried his best to deny the pink rising to his cheeks. “Master!”

“What did you do with Master’s body?” she asked hastily, and swiftly he recognized her expression looked angry. Sakura almost looked ready to cry. “Please, tell me! Where did she go?”

Naruto smiled, then he pointed down at the patch of scuffled brown dirt in front of him. “No worries, Master. The Old Woman is right here, buried properly . . . I think that’s the most respectful thing for her, right?”

Immediately Sakura’s senses stirred and stopped at the same time, and mix of relief and wonder. So far, Naruto had shown her nothing but kindness, if anything. For such a dark creature that he was known to be, he was kind and even considerate here. She slowly stepped towards the fresh grave of Tsunade’s, kneeling down before it and feeling the soft soil between her own fingers.

Momentarily, she looked to Naruto but turned back to the grave. “Master . . . you really gave her a proper . . .”

“Huh?” Naruto tried to peek at her face, which was hiding underneath her hair, “You okay?”

Sakura couldn’t help it. She tried to keep strong during this, even if it had only happened earlier that day. She decided that she would leave her tears behind and go on her journey like she had been asked. Go out and be a Summoner, stop Orochimaru, bring peace to everyone and everything before they even realized there was danger, but . . . Sakura wiped away at her face, sniffling a bit.

‘Master . . .’ she thought, her other hand squeezing the dirt between her hands, ‘I’m going to miss you! You taught me so much . . . you were so important to me . . .’

“Master,” Naruto called lightly, averting his eyes a bit. He wanted to make her feel better, but he knew that it wouldn’t be the case. A death of someone so close to her would be a wound that would take time to heal, and all he could do was wait. “ . . I . . .”

“Please,” Sakura said slowly, though her voice was shaky, “Please call me Sakura.”

For a moment, he was rather surprised. A first name basis? He had really found a good person indeed. He could tell from this she was someone who cared, who was strong, and who could really pull through. He nodded, more to himself since she couldn’t see. “Then don’t call me Demon Fox. Call me Naruto.”

“Oh . . . Uh-huh . . .”

Naruto waited until Sakura was ready and her tears were completely gone. Once she was finished, however, her mood seemed to be very nice. The two walked through the house to get through the front, Sakura picking up her travel bag in her kitchen first.

When they went out to the front, they were surrounded by just as much woods as the backyard, and only a thin, dirt-like path lay before the two of them. The village Tsunade and Sakura had lived in was quite well-knitted and small, but because her master was a celebrity, they kept her home in hiding.

“So,” Naruto began, looking to his master, “Where to? There must have been a reason if you summoned me.”

“Yes, there is,” Sakura replied as the two walked. “I’ll explain as we go, but the first place I’d like to go . . .”

“Yeah?”

Sakura thought for only a moment, then she approved herself before she spoke. “I’d like to go to our village master, the Hokage. I want to let him know what’s happening.”

Naruto smiled; there wasn’t any idea of objection in his mind. “Alright then. Let’s go!”