My New Life is Harder Than Expected(Naruto SI-Waifu Catalog) (Patreon)

Chapter 20

(Mount Myoboku)

Arriving at the secret land of the toads I had to stop myself from tripping as my senses were almost overwhelmed by all the Nature Chakra, I could feel around me.

It was so much in fact that I unconsciously entered Sage Mode gaining a red pigmentation around my eyes and a circle on my forehead.

“Hey! What’s the big idea!?” I exclaimed as I dodged a black rod from striking me in the back of the head and looked towards the perpetrator.

“Oho? Jiraiya-chan never mentioned that our guest today was a sage. And a perfect one at that.” An old green looking toad commented in curiosity as he looked me up and down. “Sorry about that boyo. I thought you might have been overwhelmed by the Nature Energy of this place.”

The toad in question was Fukasaku, one of the two Great Sage Toads along with his wife Shima and the toad that taught Naruto Sage mode.

“Tsk, of course the kids a sage as well. Why wouldn’t he be?” Jiraiya childishly pouted in the background.

“Haah, I guess it’s fine.” I said relaxing after finding out I was not in actual danger and introducing myself while dropping out of sage mode.

Now more relaxed I took a look at my surroundings and couldn’t help but marvel a bit at what I saw. ‘The places uninhabited by humans are truly the best.’ I thought with a smile forming on my lips.

“Hahaha impressed, are we? Now come along young Akari, the Great Honorable Geezer is waiting for you.” Fukasaku said with a small laugh before asking me to follow.

“Right.”

It only took us a few minutes before we finally reached where Gamamaru was.

‘Of course, he’s sleeping.’ I thought with a small sweat drop as I heard the old toad snoring before suddenly wincing at the yell that came next.

“YOU SENILE OLD TOAD! WAKE UP!” Fukasaku yelled at the top of his lungs.

“Hmmm? Oh, Fukasaku. Is there something you needed?” Gamamaru asked after finally waking up only making the small green toad madder.

“I have brought young Akari as you requested.” Fukasaku said with a twitching eyebrow while pointing his cane at me.

“Ho ho~ It was indeed I who summoned you…er…umm…Who’re you again?”

‘I knew this was coming yet I still can’t help but feel a bit annoyed at this.’ I thought slumping forward a bit. “It’s Akari Senju.”

“Oh, that’s right, that’s right. It’s Akari.” Gamamaru finally recalled before appearing to look down at me. “Hmm…Your chakra has a very nostalgic feeling to it.” He murmured quietly before shaking his head.

‘My chakra?’ I thought with a raised eyebrow. ‘Maybe because I have the chakra of both Senju and Uchiha reminding him of the Sage of Six Paths?’

“Listen, young Akari. I have seen a prophecy involving you.”

“I’m ready.” I nodded preparing for the worse. ‘What did you see?’

“In that case, listen carefully. In the near future I saw you fighting against beings from beyond the stars in a battle that would decide the fate of the world. However, for some reason I can no longer see that future in my dreams since the first time I dreamed it years ago.” Gamamaru said letting out a sad sigh at the end.

‘So, he only dreamt about my battle with those pale fuckers huh? That’s a relief.’ I thought silently. ‘His power of divination must also be clouded by Trace Defense since I plan on involving myself in all major events going forward.’

“That’s…ominous. Did I at least win?” I asked with a raised eyebrow.

“I don’t know.” Gamamaru shook his head. “The only thing I can say for certain is that the battle is fast approaching, within 3 years at most.”

‘Damn. Does this mean that the Fourth Shinobi War never happens then? And in its place, I will have to fight the Otsutsuki?’

“So, I ask you, child that reminds me of an old friend…Will you protect this world?” Gamamaru suddenly asked pulling me from my thoughts.

Looking up at the old toad I saw him looking at me with a serious expression.

“He’s wary of you. He knows something.” Kurama suddenly chimed in confirming what I had already suspected from the beginning.

‘Yeah, I sensed that too. So, he did see something that made him cautious of me.’ I thought in silence before closing my eyes pretending to think about his question.

“I don’t like this world.” I revealed knowing that the two toad sages were paying close attention to me. “It is full of never-ending war and hatred. To be honest I’d rather not risk my life for such a world.”

I could hear a pair of disappointed sighs at my words but I ignored them and finally opened my eyes with a serious expression on my face.

“However, I have people I love who live in this world, who are part of this world. So, I promise you this. As long as the people I love live in this world, then I will do my best to protect this world that I hate. You have my word.” I said meaning every word I said.

“Hmph, you are one sneaky bastard. I’m impressed.”

=====

After my declaration, I was allowed to finally leave the place with the two toad sages thanking me for agreeing to their request.

The only thing of any concern was if Jiraiya would come to be wary of me in the future since Gamamaru hadn’t shared anything of what he had seen with the man based on what I felt from the pervert during our interactions.

I arrived home to my Demiplane later that evening after healing Lee and checking with my team on who would require training. I had only been able to heal Lee so quickly thanks with my Template allowing me to control matter otherwise I would have been there for hours.

The good news though was that other than checking in on Sasuke on the orders of the Hokage, I mostly had the month to myself after finding out that my team already had plans for training with their respective clan.

“I’m back girls.” I said with a wave as I entered the kitchen and found Kushina and Izumi already seated around the table along with our two new residents Hikari and Karin.

“Akari~ / Akari-san!”

It took a few minutes until everything settled down again when the girls all got up to greet me with the exception of Karin who remained in her seat but was giving me a shy smile.

“How have you been enjoying your stay so far Karin?” I asked now sitting at the head of the table and having a light dinner made by Izumi.

“This place is amazing.” Karin whispered with an embarrassed smile on her face at being the center of attention. “There are things I have never seen before with all the advanced technology making me think if I’m in some sort of story book.”

“To be honest, I sometimes think this is all a dream and any minute now I’m going to wake up back in Kusa having dreamed all of this.” Karin finished looking down at her lap and nervously fidgeting with the hem of her shirt.

“Well let me assure you that you are definitely not dreaming or in a story book. Just relax and with time you’ll see that I’m right.” I reassured the girl.

“Yeah! Akari is right Karin. Soon everything will appear normal to you.” Kushina shouted in support for the girl with the other girls also agreeing.

“Anyways Akari, when will Karin be able to live with us back in Konoha?” Izumi asked a few minutes later grabbing Karin’s attention.

“As soon as the war ends and a new Hokage is installed. So in about a month or a month and a half at most.” I was quick to answer getting Karin to gasp in shock.

“W-war?”

“Oh, that’s right. Since you just joined us, you haven’t been informed of what’s happening in a month.” I said in realization remembering that Karin had only been with us for a day, heck I hadn’t even received credits for her capture yet.

I took the next few minutes explaining to the redhead of the upcoming war with Sound and Suna.

“T-that’s crazy! Why do all of you look so relaxed?” Karin asked in confusion looking around the table and not seeing anyone looking worried in the slightest.

“That’s because we’re strong but more importantly, we have faith in Akari to keep us safe.” Kushina was the first to answer turning to me and giving me a soft kiss on the cheek making me blush a bit in embarrassment.

“That’s right.” Hikari agreed with a nod of her head.

“Relax Karin. You won’t be participating at all and you will be safe here. There’s no one in existence that can breach our house.” Izumi further clarified and tried to calm the scared girl.

“Don’t worry the battle won’t last more than a few hours and by then everything will already be over.” I added in with a smile.

It took a few minutes but Karin was finally able to relax after our reassurances before taking on a confused expression. “Wait, how do you know Konoha will need a new Hokage?”

“Our current Hokage is an old man so regardless of whether he lives or dies in this battle, he will be forced to step down after everything is over.” I explained my reasoning getting a nod from the girl.

“Hihihi speaking of that…I wonder who our new Hokage is going to be?” Kushina asked as she turned to me with a teasing grin on her lips.

“Hmm, well it would have to be someone that was groomed for the position, someone obviously strong and someone well-liked by the majority of the village and shinobi.” Izumi continued also turning to me and looking up pretending to ponder on the question with a smirk on her face.

“Can you think of anyone that could fit such a description Akari?” Hikari also joined in while looking at me with an innocent look on her face that was obviously fake.

“Haha laugh it up you three.” I said with a roll of my eyes not feeling amused at all as I knew there was a very real possibility of me being chosen as the next Hokage.

The atmosphere turned light again after that and we went back to enjoying our meal while talking about trivial topics.

‘Well, ‘Aunty’, it looks like I’m going to be seeing you rather soon’

=====

(Half a Month Later Third POV)

“Aaaargh! Damn it! Another tadpole again!?”

A frustrated shout could be heard coming from deep in the forest which was strangely followed by perverted giggles.

“Huh? So Akari was right after all. And here I thought it was dumb when he told me I would find you two if I just followed the sound of yelling in the forest.”

Came a feminine voice out of nowhere startling the two people.

Turning towards the voice Naruto and Jiraiya found none other than Kushina Uzumaki standing in the middle of the clearing with her hands on her hips and a big grin on her face.

“Sup pervert, shorty.” Greeted the girl with her grin increasing in size when they finally noticed her presence.

“HEY! Who are you calling short, you tomato girl!?” Naruto was quick to respond with his own insult.

“Hah? What did you call me you fucking punk? Want to say that to my face?” Kushina quickly responded back with a menacing growl while shaking her fist threateningly at Naruto.

“I said-”

WHAM!

Naruto never got to finish whatever he was about to say as he was hit with a left hook sending him flying for a good distance before landing with a thud with swirls in his eyes and a bloody lip.

“Yikes, it’s like watching a mini Tsunade.” Jiraiya muttered quietly with a small sweat drop.

“You say something pervert? Want a piece of me too?” Kushina turned towards the man with a glare on her face.

“Hahaha of course not. Anyways, how are you doing brat? It’s been a while huh?” Jiraiya said attempting to deflect the conversation.

“Hmph. That’s what I thought.” Kushina muttered before letting out a sigh and finally relaxing. “And I’m doing good. Couldn’t be better actually.” Kushina said with her mood doing a 180 and displaying a blissful look on her face.

“Ho ho, that’s quite the face you’re making. Akari is a lucky man.” Jiraiya said with a genuine smile forming on his lips.

“I’m the lucky one.” Kushina muttered quietly with a blush before shaking her head and looking at the man seriously. “Anyways, Akari told me to come find you for some reason but I’ve been busy lately until now so here I am.”

“Ah, that’s right. For a while there I was starting to think that he had forgotten to tell you. Well, you’re here now so that’s what matters, here catch.” Jiraiya said before grabbing the big scroll off his back and throwing it at Kushina who caught it with both hands.

“A scroll? What’s inside here?” Kushina asked in confusion while looking down at the big scroll in her hands.

“It’s a summoning scroll for the Toad summons. Sign it.” Jiraiya said simply.

“A summoning scroll?” Kushina asked blinking further in confusion. “And you’re allowing me to sign it just like that?” she asked skeptically.

“I promised Akari I would have a look at you and if I thought you were up to snuff, I would let you sign it. Call it a gut feeling but I believe you were meant to sign that scroll.” Jiraiya said with a shrug.

“Awesome! Now I’ll have my own summons as well. Take that Akari, Izumi! Now you can’t rub it in my face anymore.” Kushina said in excitement before quickly unfurling the scroll and signing it.

“Haha that’s some good excitement there but I should warn you that it’s not as easy as you might think.” Jiraiya said in amusement with a shake of his head. “Just take Naruto for example, the kid’s beet at it for weeks now and still nothing.”

“Ha! Just watch! I’ll summon a toad on the first try no problem!” Kushina boasted giving Jiraiya the peace sign with a big grin on her face.

“Don’t say I didn’t warn you.”

=====

“Woohoo! I did it! And on my first try too ttebane~” Kushina yelled at the top of her lungs with her fists raised up in the air in a sign of victory.

“…”

“…”

“I give up.” Jiraiya said with a sigh as he turned his sight away from the form of Kushina on top of a giant green toad with two swords on his back.

Naruto, who was currently hunched over and drawing imaginary circles on the ground, had woken up just in time to witness a newbie do something that he had been struggling to do for weeks now further crushing his spirits.

“Just who is that girl Ero-sennin?” Naruto asked Jiraiya with his depressing aura suddenly disappearing and rudely pointing at the still celebrating Kushina.

“That’s Kushina Uzumaki. A girl I met a few years back and brought to the village.” Jiraiya answered the boy causing Naruto to let out a gasp of surprise when he heard her name.

“Uzumaki?” Naruto asked looking at the girl again with an uncertain look on his face.

“Ho, so this is your first time meeting her huh?” Jiraiya asked curiously. “That’s right kid, she shares the same last name as you since you both belong to the same clan.”

“I-I belong to a clan?” Naruto asked incredulously looking back at Jiraiya. “How come no one ever told me?” He asked with some hurt coloring his words.

“Belonged to a clan I’m afraid. The Uzumaki Clan were all but wiped out long ago and now only remnants remain like Kushina and yourself. And as for your second question, I don’t know what to tell you kid.”

“The Academy should have taught you all about this stuff. Heck you’re wearing their symbol right now.” Jiraiya explained pointing at the swirl pattern on Naruto’s back and shoulder.

“I-I never knew.” Naruto muttered quietly while touching the swirl pattern on his shoulder.

“What’s with the dour mood all of a sudden?” Kushina butted in after dismissing her summon and landing between the two.

“The kid just found out the Uzumaki were actually a clan.” Jiraiya explained briefly making Kushina blink in confusion.

“But there was a whole course about it at the Academy and everything. I clearly remember that class.” Kushina said with her head tilted to the side.

“I m-might have skipped it.” Naruto revealed in embarrassment before suddenly looking at Kushina with a glare. “Forget that, how come you never told me we belonged to the same clan?”

It was the wrong thing to say apparently as Kushina gained a glare herself.

“Haah? I never even knew you back then, heck the only thing I know about you now is your name and that’s still fishy as heck. As far as I know and based on what mom told me, every single Uzumaki has had red hair like mine so how come your hair is blonde huh? Answer that?” Kushina exclaimed in return.

“How the heck am I supposed to know that?” Naruto yelled back.

“Alright kiddos break it up.” Jiraiya said coming in-between the two before tempers got any higher.

Kushina suddenly took a deep breath calming her temper and looking at Jiraiya. “I’m leaving. Thanks for letting me sign the summoning scroll.”

Then Kushina turned to Naruto and looked at him with a blank look. “Just because we came from the same clan, it doesn’t mean I owe you any answers. Especially when you demand them like that.”

Her piece said Kushina disappeared a moment later with a swirl of leaves.

“Haah, well kid that was one hell of a first impression you just gave to your fellow Uzumaki.” Jiraiya said with a shake of his head setting his hand down on Naruto’s head as a sign of comfort.

Naruto could only look down at his feet with a downcast expression.