lRed Sands

Chapter VIII

[Koutetsu, Capital of Tetsu no Kuni]

"This is the capital city of Iron Country?" Naruto asked Sasori as they walked down a busy street with shops lining either side of the road. People – samurai, merchants and civilians – lined the wide avenue as well as the odd carriage that carried a noble or the goods that one shop or another that was either importing or exporting. The one thing that nearly everyone on the street had in common was some sort of weapon on their person, whether it was a blade of some length, a kanabo or some other means of protection. "Is it a dangerous place? Why is everyone carrying a weapon?"

"Koutetsu is a very safe city. You need not worry about being attacked. No, it is a sign of strength here to be able to wield a weapon of some sort, with blades being a sign of finesse and objects such as kanabo being more for those wanting to be seen as a brute. The weapon you carry is very important in Iron Country. The very highest honor that can be derived from skill with a weapon is a wielder of a katana and wakizashi, as the samurai do."

He nodded at what the puppet master spoke, taking Sasori's word. His vision then was drawn to a large building atop the highest point of the city, which he assumed was where they were heading. It stood three floor high with a very traditional Japanese aesthetic, a stone wall surrounding the property and guarded at the gates by two men in samurai armor, a katana on their backs and a wakizashi at their hip.

As they walked up the hill's path, right to the mansion, Sasori was given deep bows by the two guards and let through without any resistance. Past the gates, there was a cobblestone walkway that led to a set of stairs leading up to the mansion. Waiting at the base of those steps was a boy who bowed at the waist when the two redheaded puppeteers arrived.

"Sasori-sama, Mifune-sama is expecting you. If you will follow me, I will lead the two of you to him." He turned and began walking up the stairs. Sasori followed without question, Naruto right behind him.

"Who is Mifune-san, sensei?" Naruto asked curiously. The puppet master turned to the apprentice and smiled a little before explaining.

"Mifune is the general of Tetsu no Kuni's military. Unlike the Great Five Nations and the nations with minor hidden villages, Tetsu no Kuni houses a very extensive, very skilled military that is exclusively samurai, not a single shinobi aside from those whom work independently for the nobles of the country. Mifune himself is an extremely adept swordmaster who went toe to toe with Hanzo the Salamander and survived. I'm hoping that I can convince him to teach you the style of your mother's father."

As Sasori finished that statement, the boy stopped in front of a sliding door, bowing and then leaving the duo. The puppet master knocked upon the wood frame of the door, waiting for the invitation to enter, which came not a moment later. Opening it, he then led Naruto within before closing the door behind them. There was only one person in the room, a man who appeared to be at least sixty years old. He was wrinkled around his large nose and wore bandages around the top of his head all the way down to just above his black eyes. His grey hair swept down his back and he wore a pointed beard as well as a thin moustache that hung off of his face past his chin. He wore a purple haori with a white trimming tied by an obi, his katana and wakizashi on the floor beside him where he sat.

As they entered, the man stood and walked to them. "Welcome Sasori-dono. It has been some time since you've visited Koutetsu." The two gave slight nods to one another, showing their mutual respect. The grey-haired man then turned his line of vision to Naruto and smiled. "And you must be the apprentice that Sasori wrote of in his letter.

Naruto considered the respect that Sasori had for this man and bowed his head, though not too deeply. "I am Uzumaki Naruto." He introduced himself politely.

"Hm… I am Mifune, Naruto-san." The man introduced himself in kind. "Sasori tells me you are descended of Kenichi. I would like to teach you his style, but I made a promise to Kenichi I would teach his style and grant his weapon to his heir. Is there any way you can prove that you are?" Naruto tilted his head. Kenichi was the name of his maternal grandfather, so how could he prove that?

"Onii-chan!" Naruto saw Shiyore materialize in front of him and grinned widely. "Show him my seal! Since Kenichi was kaa-chan's father and kaa-chan was the Kyuubi jinchuuriki and she was the only Uzumaki in Konoha, then that should be proof enough, right?" Naruto widened his eyes at that information and nodded.

Naruto grabbed the hem of his shirt and channeled chakra to his stomach, lifting his shirt as Mifune and Sasori watched. "This is the only way I can think of to prove it." He explained as his Shiki Fujin showed itself on his abdomen. "It's the seal that holds back the Kyuubi no Kitsune within me, a burden that I shared with my kaa-chan." Mifune's eyes widened as he knelt down, looking at the seal. He was no Fuinjutsu master but Kenichi had taught him some of the practice, the theory of it anyways.

Mifune stood, after which Naruto let his shirt go, and nodded to himself. "Alright, Sasori-dono. I will accept this as proof. Please call me Mifune-sensei from now on, nephew." Naruto widened his eyes at what the samurai called him. Noting the surprise, Mifune smiled a bit. "Oh? I suppose that Sasori-dono didn't tell you then. I was your grandfather's brother. That's why I wouldn't teach you Kenichi's style unless you could prove you were his direct descendant." He then turned to the puppet master. "I will have someone get you two for dinner, but for now please relax in your usual room, Sasori-dono." Sasori nodded, motioning Naruto to follow before the two redheads left Mifune on his own once more.

[Next Day, Mifune's armory]

The blonde couldn't help but be amazed as Mifune led him through a room dedicated to several dozen weapons, bladed and blunt. He could sense the power radiating off of them, residual chakra from their former owners. He imagined that this was the final resting place for the weaponry wielded by Mifune's family until the next member of the clan came to pick it up. "This is amazing…" He breathed out.

The samurai chuckled. "Yes, that is usually the first reaction of children that come in the first time. This is my family's armory, holding the weapons of our clan either forged with blood, sweat and tears by their wielders or gained as trophies of battle from worthy opponents." Lightly stroking a katana that hung on one wall, Mifune seemed to be lost in reminiscence. "These weapons could tell you the most amazing stories of their owners. Blades are like that, more than mere tools. They are more like trusted companions than just a weapon of blood and steel."

Naruto nodded, thinking on what the man said, though not really understanding. "Ah, you are young. You will understand it soon enough however." Leading the boy further into the room, the man grasped a very particular staff made of black steel and handed it to the boy. It was a full six feet long, meant for an adult. On either end of the staff there were seals inscribed as well as seals along the staff itself running its entire length. As soon as he grasped it, Naruto watched as it shrunk to just six inches taller than him.

Instinctually, the boy channeled chakra into it and watched in amazement as blades made of the unique purple chakra-yokai mix he channeled appeared from either end, changing bo to a twin-sided naginata. Focusing, he channeled his chakra so that it only traveled to the seal atop the staff, creating a normal naginata. Mifune smiled and nodded. "It seems to be working properly. Given you are not experiencing pain, I will also assume that you are the legitimate heir of my brother. The… effects of my sister-in-law's seals, while amusing to watch on those who think they are entitled to that which is not theirs, is unpleasant for the participant to say the least."

"Um… did someone try to take my ojii-sama's staff before?" He wondered, to which Mifune simply smiled. "On second thought… I don't think I want to know." The samurai nodded before motioning the blonde to follow him out.

"Now that you have Higosha, let us begin our training." Naruto nodded as he grabbed his heirloom, Higosha, and followed his new sensei.

[Umigakure]

Back on the coasts of Sea Country, one might find Isaribi. In the time since she had spoken with Naruto she had certainly kept busy. It might not look like it to the outside observer given she appeared to just be drawing in the sand with a stick, though. Even that was her working at improving herself. To the casual passerby, she might seem bored and just moving it around in random shapes. To a shinobi, they'd think she was up to no good given the intent focus she was using as she drew in the sand – that wasn't really any different to how the shinobi treated her usually though. To a veteran, they might think the girl had taken up a particular shinobi art before waving it away given the girl hadn't even gone a day to the Academy. To an Uzumaki, they'd immediately recognize the sealwork she was practicing. To Uzumaki Honoka, who was three of those things in addition to the girl's new sensei, Isaribi was sloppy and slow at learning, but still made progress. Sasori-sama had given her an order, so she would follow it. The girl was intriguing, nonetheless.

Isaribi looked down at the kanji for Water she was working on and the many symbols around it. She hadn't been taught much in the way of fighting since Naruto left, but she had been learning a lot from her new sensei. A few days after the redhead had left, Honoka had introduced herself. Apparently, she had noticed how Isaribi had been showing up at the training grounds after the shinobi left and taken their discarded weapons. The woman had seen how she tried to become a competent weapon user and even watched other shinobi's spars as a way to try and learn through osmosis.

Honoka had then proceeded to offer to help the girl train. Isaribi never asked why the woman wanted to help and – if she were honest – she didn't care. She was just glad that she didn't have to keep teaching herself things from books she borrowed from the library. Even though it had only been a few weeks, Isaribi could feel the difference in her strength. The seals that Honoka had her draw every day were only part of her training. The constant exercise she did helped improve her body – which was already stronger than anyone else her age thanks to that insane snake of a man – and she knew she wasn't even close to her potential in that department. Honoka had also taught her how to use chakra to walk on walls and had promised to teach her how to walk on water soon. There was no ninjutsu or genjutsu so far, but Isaribi knew this was a long process. She needed to wait and that was just fine with her. If she could see parts of her progress, she couldn't imagine what else there was she wasn't seeing.

"Isaribi, stop." The bluenette halted the movements of her stick and turned to look at Honoka. At her signal, Isaribi walked over to the Uzumaki. "You let your mind wander, didn't you? I told you that you must have the utmost focus when using seals." Isaribi looked at the ground. Honoka's voice was nearly devoid of emotions and didn't change tone, but the girl still knew that she was upset. Even disregarding her words, Isaribi had picked up small tells that helped her figure out the woman's emotional state given she didn't show it on her face or in her tone. "Give me the stick." Isaribi complied and watched as Honoka coated it with her chakra and threw it with unerring accuracy like some sort of javelin. As it hit Isaribi's work, the experiment stepped back in shock.

What was supposed to be a seal that dowsed for water under it had, instead, become a geyser of sea water that shot into the air with enough pressure that an airborne gull flying overhead exploded. Honoka looked at the girl even feathers and a small amount of blood rained from the sky. "One mistake, one misalignment, one misstroke and a seal will be completely different than you anticipate. You must be extremely careful when you work with them and you must ensure you are using complete focus. Do you understand?"

Swallowing the lump in her throat – and a bit of bile that had showed up as well – Isaribi nodded. "Yes, sensei. I'll be more careful from now on."

[Koutetsu]

Mifune was quiet with his hands behind his back as he watched his nephew practice a kata from Kenichi's personal style. The Uzumaki bloodline was always interesting to watch. It really did seem unfair for someone to pick up skills more quickly because someone else had mastered them, but given this was the last heir to his younger brother Mifune was actually grateful. It would mean that Naruto would be able to protect himself that much quicker.

Naruto had been training the last few weeks with Higosha and had progressed very well. Each exercise, each kata, each lesson was taken with the utmost focus and Naruto took to it like he was simply remembering something he once knew before. As Naruto finished one of the kata with a forward jab followed by a skyward slash of the purple naginata blade attached to his polearm, Mifune signaled him to come before him. When the child arrived, the elder looked upon him.

"Your training is moving along very well, Naruto-chan." He remarked. "I think its time we saw how far along you've come along. How do you feel about sparring with one of the students from our Academy?" Naruto looked at Higosha and then back at Mifune with a grin.

"Sure thing, oji-san. When should I expect to do it?" Mifune smiled at his student's enthusiasm.

"I'll have it set up for later today."

[Naruto's Mindscape]

After Mifune left, Naruto had begun meditating as a way of entering his mindscape. As the calm training ground disappeared, it was soon replaced with the familiar throne room. He noted that ever since his first time here, the entrance to his mindscape had changed. The throne above the chamber was still there, but now the walls were made of red bricks. Torches hung around the circular room to illuminate the room with a warm, orange glow. In addition, he noted that the throne he sat in was raised above the rest of the are on a dais. The dais itself was atop the top layer of the room, the circular edge around the wall that looked down upon the center. Down the stairs and on the lower section of the room, a single, black scorpion the size of a small dog scuttled around; a fox about the same size slept on the other side of the room, curled into a ball.

As Naruto stood and walked down the stairs, the fox looked up at him before shifting its form into Shiyore. "Hello, onii-chan!" The child exclaimed as Naruto reached the lower floor. He smiled at her as she hugged him. Patting her head, Naruto waited for her to separate before leading her out of the chamber through one of the halls branching out of the chamber. "How was your day, onii-chan?"

Naruto thought a moment before speaking. "I think it was pretty good. Mifune-oji has been training me more and Higosha feels like its moving more smoothly to me." Shiyore nodded as they reached Kushina's chamber. Moving deftly through the chains based on memory, the two children reached their mother.

"Welcome back, Naruto-chan!" Kushina greeted as he rushed to her and gave her a hug. Shiyore followed behind him, her form shifting into that of her adult self. "Are you doing alright?" Naruto nodded fervently.

"Oji-san said he's going to let me spar today after seeing how far I'm progressing with Higosha!" Kushina smiled and ruffled his spikes.

"I'm so proud of how far you're coming along, Naruto-chan." After a moment, the woman added something else. "I'll tell you what. If you can win, I'll teach you how to use my chains, how does that sound?" Naruto's purple orbs lit up at the suggestion and he wrapped his mother in another hug.

"Thank you, okaa-chan!" He exclaimed. "I'll make sure to make you proud!" Kushina just smiled and laid a hand on his head.

"You already have, Naruto-chan…" She whispered and hugged him back.

[Mifune's Dojo]

Prior to the spar beginning, Naruto found himself settling into a stance with Higosha in both hands, purple chakra blade pointed at his opponent. While Naruto was dressed in his usual blue yukata with red obi, his opponent wore a white gi. A few years older than Naruto, Yamashi stood a full foot higher with a ponytail of brown hair, green eyes and was wielding a bokken wrapped in its own chakra shell. He also held his weapon in both hands, pointed at Naruto. Mifune stood between the two and glanced from one to the other to assess their readiness. When he was content, he raised his hand. "On my signal, you shall begin. The match is over when one forfeits, is knocked unconscious or if I call the match to prevent permanent injury. Do both of you understand the rules as I've explained them?" When both of them nodded, Mifune stepped back and waved his hand down.

Knowing he was likely at a size disadvantage, Naruto channeled chakra to his legs and took off in a burst of speed. Unfortunately for him, his opponent was quick enough to react in time and parried his naginata. Yamashi was silent and stoic as he thrusted forward with his bokken. With his weapon spread wide, Naruto let go of it and rolled under the boy to dodge. Pulling Higosha back to him with chakra strands, he went to slam the butt of the polearm into Yamashi's back.

Yamashi, being more experienced in terms of bukijutsu, sidestepped the attack on instinct and came around in a pivot slash aimed for Naruto's head. Ducking under the blow, he jumped back and looked at his opponent, waiting for the next move. Being aggressive hadn't got him anywhere against the more skilled opponent. It was time to fall back into Sasori's teaching: observe, plot and counter. All he needed was to figure out what Yamashi was weak to and he could win.

Yamashi looked at him, sizing him up but still remained silent. Taking another stance, the boy held his bokken in both hands and pointed low to the ground. In a burst of speed even faster than what Naruto had used before, the ronin in training began a flurry of attacks that Naruto only evaded due to all the reflex training Sasori had forced upon him. He had never been more grateful to have Koutei firing poison-laced needles at him many times a week as he was just then. As Yamashi went for a high swing, Naruto rolled under the strike and slashed with his own naginata. The older boy transitioned his swing into a block, locking the chakra shells in a clash of strength. As the Uzumaki felt his arms giving way, he pushed Yang chakra through his tenketsu in both his arms and legs. Pushing forward, he saw Yamashi losing ground ever so slightly. Feeling Yamashi's chakra moving through his feet, he pulled back on the force in time to catch himself when the boy jumped back. Naginata and bokken were pointed at one another as the two combatants watched the other for any movement.

Yamashi rushed forward once more, but Naruto thrust forward with the blade of his polearm. The boy was forced to alter his path and tried to flank the younger boy only to find a second naginata blade in his way when Naruto funneled chakra into both sides. Facing Yamashi as he flourished his weapon, the redhead eyed his older opponent. He thought he finally understood his opponent's style. He was funneling a majority of his chakra into the bokken which left him unable to utilize any enhancements to his legs. When he moved, the chakra in his bokken was momentarily funneled to his legs, leaving him unable to enhance the strength or speed of his blows. He didn't use a shunshin to become faster than Naruto, he only enhanced his physical strength in his limbs to such a degree that it appeared that he was. In actuality, it was actually more impressive the way he was doing it. It took extremely fine-tuned chakra control to do such a thing, which allowed Naruto to narrow down what strategies might work. If he kept Yamashi at a distance, he could control the flow of combat. If he was out of range, he'd need to enhance his legs, which meant he likely wouldn't be able to parry any blows from Higosha.

From the slightly distressed look on Yamashi's face, he could tell that the boy understood that he'd figured out as well. Now all it took was for him to properly utilize this opening. While Yamashi had incredible control, he had an idea that could work. Manipulating his own chakra as he rushed forward, Naruto began to launch a series of lunges, slashes and spins of his weapon. Yamashi countered each of them with near perfect timing but Naruto continued to press his advantage until his chakra had formed exactly the way he wished.

Suddenly, Yamashi fell to his back as he lost his balance. A single stone jutted from the training ground that had tripped the boy. By sending his chakra into the earth itself, Naruto had been able to make even that small shift in the terrain. Mifune approached the duo as Naruto's blade was pointed at Yamashi's neck. "The victory belongs to Naruto. You are progressing very well, both of you, but it seems that my nephew is a bit more skilled." Naruto retracted his chakra before helping Yamashi to his feet. "Why don't you two change into something cleaner. Yamashi, if you'd like you can join us for dinner as well."

"Thank you, Mifune-sama." Yamashi finally spoke, his voice formal and cool. "I appreciate it." Both of the children left to the hot springs he had on his property to clean up the sweat they had accumulated from the fight. The samurai settled into silence as they left with a smile. It seems that you will be truly great, Naruto. I can't wait to see how far you go.