Celestial Path Chapter 6 (Patreon)

There was a tense moment of silence before Kushina brushed a hand down her face and after taking a breath she said with bemusement. "I am Kushina Uzumaki... I am the Fourth Hokage's wife. So while he is busy doing other important work, I am helping doing some of the menial work." 

I blinked at hearing that and honestly, I easily accepted that as I knew this world needed Kage-level ninja's running around sometimes due to demi-gods, monsters and other entities causing issues that not even Jonin could deal with.

To say nothing of the older ninja's looking on edge about the rising tensions after the last decade-plus of peace. For all I knew, Minato had teleported across the Land of Fire and was currently butchering some foreign anbu equivalent who were causing issues.

But at the end of the day, as a mere academy student even if I had shown off having the Mokuton, it wasn't my place to ask questions here.

"Akari Sadra... Now, what happens?" I asked after introducing myself even if I highly doubted that she didn't already know my name.

There was a slight pause before Kushina gave a slight hum raising up an eyebrow before she spoke. "Well... Part of that is up to you. You will be moved up to Class 1-A to get the best training with the clan children heirs, and genius's. But whether you want to expose your Mokuton is up to you."

Kushina took a breath and said frankly. "If you can keep it to yourself and just keep training your chakra till you are a Genin properly, you will have a lot more rights and protections from clans trying to 'adopt' you or likewise press you for a marriage."

"Or you can unveil yourself and take advantage of the spotlight to get the best resources for training... Hmm, I would rather you unveil yourself as having another Mokuton user will do wonders for village morale even if you are still a pipsqueak like my daughter." She mused more to herself than anything.

After a moment of hearing that... I considered her words, while in Class 1-A I would have the best training resources Genin could have access to in some crippled retired Jonin coming to give some occasions lessons and having clones teach other bits of training.

'Do I live the saying of 'Playing the Pig to eat the Tiger' In hiding my power only to face smack some uppity clan heir, young masters... Or do I just take advantage of my talent in a military that is heavily incentivized to help me grow as much as possible.' I mused.

Though... Admittedly if I didn't have my immortality I would be worried about some foreign ninja slitting my throat in my sleep or something that snuck into the village. But so long as I wasn't sealed away I would be A-OK.

So after taking a breath, I smiled and said. "Alright. I will go to class 1-A, and I will work myself to the bone in training... But I want one favor in return."

Kushina raised an eyebrow with her snickering in amusement as she asked bluntly. "A favor for something that is already going to happen? Do you think a Mokuton user is going to be allowed to be an eternal Chunin or some nonsense?"

At seeing my face twitch at the incredulity crossing her face she shook her head and waved a hand as she said indolently to me. "Go ahead. Let me hear this favor you want, I am curious what you want. A house of your own? Some jutsu scrolls, a lifetime ticket to the Akimichi restaurants spread across the Land of Fire?" 

"I want Anko Mitarashi to take me as her apprentice." 

The room went silent at my blunt request with Kushina going still before her eyes snapped to me and she lost her easy-going if not lazy stance as she eyed me seriously before she said slowly. "That... That could be bad for your career young man. Anko has some baggage that will be an issue."

I looked her at her straight in those blue eyes and I said. "She will take responsibility for mooching off me and then causing me this stress... I will be her problem as I want more hands-on training I pick stuff up too easily and I hate trying to figure out what the hell to train in."

Kushina's face twitched as she looked at me before shaking her head and saying. "I mean you got some decent chakra for your age... But you aren't some super genius besides the Mokuton, nor are you Dai-Youkai or a demi-god."

And just to be an asshole I casually sat down... But not on the ground, I activated the Mystic Agility perk/ability I got before I got into the Hokage Building and the moment Kushina realized I was floating in the air with my legs tucked in like I was a jedi meditating in the middle of the air was perfect.

Although the levitation trick was great for running faster and crossing a great amount of ground, it was easily made into actual flying once I began using a small stream of wind chakra that was expelled from my tenketsu across my body to keep my body floating at a slightly wobbly position in the air.

"You can fly... You figured out the Tsuchikage's levitation technique..." She stated as she stared at me with her lips twitching at the realization that I wasn't just blowing smoke out of her ass.

I looked up at the ceiling as I put on the most sorrowful of expressions as I spoke in a soulful voice. "Being matchless in the martial world is truly lonely..."

And before I could react I smashed into the ground as my nose burned before another impact hit my face and I blinked as a fucking slipper fell off my face that Kushina obviously hit me in the face with. 

"I hear that crap from my daughter all the damn time! I swore to all the gods that I would not hear that nonsense in my office... At least he doesn't have a verbal tick to go along with it." She groaned while I sat up with one of the Anbu visibly giggling at the size eight slipper mark across my face before Kushina's muttering went away as she looked at me.

"How did the mark go away so fast? Not even my daughter heals... Wait a fucking minute." Kushina muttered as she pulled out of her seat and before I could react she blurred towards me and I felt her hold my shoulder as her hand glowed with chakra as she seemingly inspected my innards. 

"Ok! I am done with you Akari, get out of my hair before you make my luscious locks go grey!" She demanded pushing me slightly as she threw up her hands making me wonder what the hell she did as her hands didn't glow green with medical chakra.

I felt a hand firmly land on my shoulder with a male Anbu speaking in my ear. "You have been dismissed. Please follow me."

Turning around, the previously invisible Anbu nodded to my gaze and I followed the male ninja outside of the Hokage office even though I was very curious as to where Minato was. 

And after leaving the room, I realized I never got an answer for if Anko would take me as an apprentice. As I wanted a teacher that I knew had some strength, but wasn't going to be as much of an issue in terms of trying to keep me on a leash.

Plus... Having some eye candy would be fucking nice to say the least as I am breaking my knuckles in punching rope-wrapped logs.

"Go back home to your apartment... A pamphlet for your movement to Class 1-A will be on your bed by the time you get home." The Anbu said with a dull voice before his form flickered with my face twitching as he used a Shunshin to all but teleport away from my senses.

'Dammit, Shunshin is too damned fast for my eyes to follow for now.' I thought with annoyance before I sighed and quickly made my way back home to my apartment without anything happening.

Though... I had no doubt that I was almost certainly being followed by another Anbu to make sure I wasn't fleeing the village or something stupid.

I got home, and I locked and blocked my windows with some extra pillowcases for more privacy... As Kaori had the right of things in that an unlocked window was basically an open door to a ninja.

But as I was making myself a light dinner I felt the Grimoire shudder as it reached for a star in the ether of its core... And I blinked as I held out a hand and I groaned as I realized I got something troublesome but it was too damned useful to try to destroy or hide it too hard.

[Black Knife of Death] [A ritual was performed on this curved, jagged-hilted dagger to imbue it with a portion of the stolen Rune of Death's power. Only through it were demi-gods assassins able to strike down a divine immortal being. The imbued power can also be unleashed as a blade-like projectile, and both it and strikes delivered by the blade hasten mortality beyond the norm and continuously wreaked harm on inflicted wounds for some time as conceptual death runs rampant within a target's body.]

I carefully held the jagged three-pronged curved dagger in my hand... As I was honestly a bit scared of this dagger, as it technically had... Yeah fuck that, this knife couldn't kill me who drank the Hourai Elixer, I was protected even by enforced death effects.

But wanna know who didn't have such protections? The Youkai, ghosts, and supernatural creatures of this world!

"Well... Now how the hell do I explain this knife then?" I thought before I shrugged as I came up with an explanation as I found the pamphlet of my transfer papers to Class 1-A making me wonder how Kaori was going to react to hearing me move there.

'I will just say I found the knife on the bed next to the pamphlet, and I thought it was a gift. Its not technically a lie as I 'found' it in my apartment.' I thought before I gave a slight hum as I realized this knife was going to be a bitch to carry around with me due to its odd shape.

After investigating the 'knife' a bit, I realized that I could probably have a sheath made to cover up the first two prongs on the side. But in reality, calling it a knife was a fucking lie, as in truth, it was more of a short sword due to the Black Knives of Elden Ring who used it being like eight feet tall or something.

'Whelp, I got a good weapon. Let me trace this knife out and take the design over to a fabric shop to get some leather.' I thought.

As I certainly wasn't going to let anyone else handle the blade... What if some dumbass wanted to try to see how sharp it was and instantly aged/killed themselves with the damned thing?

-

After stashing the dagger inside my mattress, I quickly went over and bought some thin leather to make quickly a stitched-together sheath that although not all pretty or matching the deadly grandeur of the Black Knife, it did its job of making sure I wasn't going to get stabbed bit it and allow me to hide the 'knife' inside my jacket.

'Gotta appreciate downloaded memories of being an orphan in an orphanage.' I thought as the memories of actually stitching my clothes fixed certainly helped as I knew having the ability to stitch things closed could also help in closing some wounds as a ninja.

Well, other people's wounds. I healed too fast to worry about that.

I quickly returned home and after retrieving the Black Knife and making sure it fit, I then used took the stitching kit and worked to make a small clasp inside my jacket so I could draw the large knife safely.

But with everything done, I sat on my bed with the knife in hand and after taking a breath, I wanted to be sure it wasn't going to be an issue... So I ever so gently slid my finger across the blade and hissed.

A small flame crossed my finger and I felt my vitality lowering as a flame lingered on the small wound on my finger... And after ten seconds, I went. "Uh-oh." As the flames only began dimming after the minute mark as my endless vitality and immunity to death effects pushed away the conceptual death.

And only five minutes later did the small wound heal over... Which for me with my instant regeneration? That was fucking huge. Imagine if I stabbed the whole huge dagger into someone's stomach?

Yeah, they would be uber fucked honestly.

Either way, with my Black Knife secured even if I could recall it to me if it was stolen or whatever. I decided to go to sleep early as I was pretty damned sure I was going to be run through the wringer in Class 1-A.

But as I was relaxing in my bed that I had moved across the room so I was sleeping right next to the damned window anymore... I heard a series of knocking on said damned window.

I went over to my window and I met the glowing eyes of a Sharingan and as I felt a hint of foreign chakra touch me, I raised an unimpressed eyebrow. 

I opened up the window and Kaori spoke bluntly after it was opened. "Our training will resume tommorrow at the appointed time."

But even as she pulled back, I coughed and said. "Kaori wait. I got moved to Class 1-A."

She stilled and her eyes that had faded back into her typical black Uchiha eyes lasered onto my eyes as though trying to find a lie being told to her... And after finding nonse she visibly sunk her shoulders before she dragged a hand down her face at the news.

"What then? You got some divine blood like three or four generations ago? You got some youkai blood?" She asked partly out of curioisty but I could tell the questions were hollow.

She didn't give much of a crap, she was mentally reviewing her thoughts as she tried to put together the fact that she needed to find another ticket to show the promise she had to the Uchiha clan as a ninja. Not just a bride to be sold off to a powerful merchant or noble.

Which with her circumstances... Fair enough, I wasn't going to be insulted.

However... I decided to wake her ass up as I held up a hand in the Ram sign of a couple fingers pointing upwards and flared my chakra getting her attention with her eyes widening as the empty pottery plants hanging on my front porch grew a small tree in each pot with its roots breaking free of the pots.

"Yeahhh, not so much. I got the Mokuton actually." I answered with a grin as her Sharingan flashed to life and she looked between me and the tree's and muttered.

"You and the plants share the same chakra signatures..."

I could see she was in deep thought for a brief moment before something in her mind clicked and she looked at me with a dead serious expression across her face as she spoke. "The Uchiha Clan has scrolls depicting the chakra movements and handsigns Hashirama Senju used throughout his life. From when he just learned of his Mokuton to the point where he wasn't really even using handsigns as much with how powerful and skilled he had gotten."

'Why is she telling me this?' I wondered while I silently raised an eyebrow for her to go on.

And after a while... She took a deep breath and said. "I can look into the clan's archives and memorize the information with my Sharingan... But in return for me sharing such information I want you to help keep me from being married out of the village with my bloodline getting sealed away." 

There was a moment of silence as I digested that information, and then I asked slowly. "Wouldn't you get in big trouble if you share such things from your clan's archives?" 

Kaori raised an eyebrow before she leaned in closer and I could see myself reflected in her eyes as she spoke. "Normally yes... Though the information is normally useless with how no one can use it, but should I share the information before such information then has value. When the clan elders actually hear you have the Mokuton?"

I looked at Kaori with a bit of a frown before I asked bluntly. "What do you actually want from me Kaori? Be specific." 

The older teenager leaned back slightly as she folded her arms under her sizable breasts as she huffed slightly and said with annoyance. "I am going to use you as a shield to avoid getting married off to a man who is quite literally five times my age and already has a dozen concubines let alone his actual wives who probably haven't even had their first period yet."

'Ok... That's a fucking gross thought.' I thought before shaking my head and I sighed and drew a hand across my face as I spoke. "Fine. Go ahead and use me for a shield. If teaching me some basics and being a sparring partner is all I need to do then thats fine."

I didn't really see how I was losing out in this situation. Though I was sure that there was more... Maybe the Uchiha's would want Kaori to honeypot me or something, I don't even fucking know.

Either way with that statement given, I finished things off as I said. "Alright, I will be at the training grounds tomorrow at the appointed time."

And with that, I closed the window and brought down the drapes, and went back to bed to scream into my pillow before going back to sleep without any more interruptions.

-

Across the village, Kushina Uzumaki strode through the wards and seals surrounding her home and as she closed the front door, she sniffed and exhaled with a wide crossing her face as she called out. "Naruko, I am home!"

A feminine voice called back in turn and she hurriedly kicked off her shinobi sandals at the entryway and followed the heavenly scent.

Kushina all but bounced into the kitchen where she beheld her daughter Naruko cooking at the large stove that had two burners going to properly cook the stock for the massive pan being cooked via the two separate burners.

Naruko was an older teen who had blossomed into a beautiful kunonchi under her mother's guidance and care. She was full of figure, yet no matter how much of a tomboy she was, she still retained plenty of feminine beauty even if she could cave in a civilian's skull with a single half-hearted punch.

"Ughhh, Mom you are still wearing the seal!" Naruko pointed out and Kushina's entranced expression at the smell of pork ramen dropped a bit before she chuckled and pulled back her sleeve to press a bloodied thumb on a seal on her wrist.

A sharp crackling noise broke apart and to Naruko's eyes the previously solid appearance of what was supposed to be her father broke apart to display her mother's appearance with their only major difference being Naruko had inherited Minato's blond hair.

"Sorry hehe... I was thinking about work, and then I got absorbed by the smell of dinner." Kushina said sheepishly making Naruko shake her head sending her long blond hair in waves while she worked on the noodles of the ramen.

"Cut up the Chashu while I am dealing with the noodles mom." Naruko spoke more seriously and Kushina hastened to obey knowing the seriousness of getting their ramen done just perfectly... As Kushina knew, even divine favors should only be sampled at most once every couple of days so as to not diminish the beauty of the favor.

The two ladies carefully made the ramen, using the exact methods the Uzumaki's had discovered made the best ramen over millennia of study.

And only once the large bowls filled with a gallon of broth, pounds of noodles, and many other ingredients hit the large table and they began to dig in, did the two ladies relax slightly.

"So how was school today?" Kushina asked Naruko.

Naruko's face curdled before she said with annoyance. "I am still having issues with the basic clone jutsu... I can do water, wind, and earth clones without issue. But I just have too much damned chakra to make simple clones without spawning several thousand of the damned things."

Kushina nodded with a wry smile as she faced the same issues as her daughter did when she had the Kyubi inserted into the seal on her stomach. But either way, she asked. "So how's the classes integration going with the civilian genius's and talented youkai-blooded?" 

There was a dark giggle that escaped Naruko as her eyes glowed slightly and turned into slits. "Hehehe... There is that son of an Oni Dojus who beat Sasuke, Tenma, and Shikamaru with Choji's body when he grabbed Choji by the leg and used him as a flail haha!"

The older Uzumaki rolled her eyes at the thought... Though she couldn't help a small grin at the Shikara Nara learning his son got beat up by one of his best friend's sons being used as a flail.

"The civilians though?" Kushina pressed and Naruko blinked before shrugging.

"Ehh? I mean they are fine? Like they are learning fast enough, and they are keeping up in elemental, and jutsu training. They are getting the shit kicked out of them because they don't have the years of taijutsu training we have though." 

Kushina slurped up a long noodle and then gave a grunt as pointed her chopsticks at her daughter before speaking. "Well, a new student will be transferring over... He has the Mokuton so I need you to keep an eye on him, the Youkai blooded are going to be on his ass, and Uchiha are going to have a reaction with how restless they have been without a major outlet."

"A good reaction... Or a bad reaction?" Naruko quipped earning a pointed look from her mother who then rolled her eyes as both of them knew the Uchiha's had been going a bit stir-crazy with the rising tensions between the major villages and the Daimyo's prodding the neighboring lands to expand their ambitions.

"Mikoto will keep them from doing anything stupid... But it's likely they will tell Sasuke to beat the shit of him to show the 'superiority' of the bloodline or whatever seeing as they share the same age."

Naruko's face turned dark at the mention of her rival before she blinked with her grinning and saying. "Ah! So... I kick Sasuke's ass before she can challenge him right!?" 

An eye roll from Kushina was Naruko's only answer before she took a breath and said. "Not so much. I just rather the Uchiha don't try to bully an orphan civilian-raised who doesn't have much in the way of friends besides his other fellow orphans. Of whom none of them managed to get into Class 1-A."

"Hmm... Well if he isn't a dick or anything, I will try to become his friend haha." Naruko said confidently after a bite of ramen.