Kapitel 35: Takechi the Advisor
"I'm Gaara of the Desert, I summoned you here," I told the eagle. The eagle merely cocked his head and looked at me with an annoyed expression.
"Gaara of the Desert? You're the son of Rasa, the current Kazekage. Your also a jinchuriki of the One Tail," said the eagle blandly. I flinched, how did he know so much about me?
"Surprised? Don't be, you would be shocked what eagles see and hear when humans think they are alone. The eagles of Cloudtip Mountain take great pride in knowing the affairs of the world beyond our mountain," said the eagle with slight pride in his deep voice.
"Wow, you must know a lot then. How come you never reveal yourself," I questioned curiously. The eagle chuckled as if I had just said a joke, making me frown.
"If we went around revealing ourselves as taking eagles that hold great knowledge, then our survival would be threatened. We only reveal ourselves or listen to humans that are deemed worthy by our leader," said the eagle as if it was basic knowledge. I saw his point though, many nations would look to exploit the eagles and their ability to spy on humans with ease.
"Who is your leader," I asked. The eagle paused, thinking for a moment.
"His name is Ametaka the Wise," said the eagle finally. I guess he had decided to trust me with the name of their leader after all.
"How did you come into possession of this scroll? It is a valuable artifact of ours that was lost during one of your human wars," said the eagle while nodding his head at the Eagle Scroll.
"I took it from the Hidden Leaf Archive. I also possess the Eagle Staff as well," I told him. I quickly grabbed the summoning scroll from my sling, summoning forth the Eagle Staff. The eagle observed the staff with a guarded expression, obviously uncertain about what he should do.
"Both of these were entrusted to our last Honorary, do you know what happened to him," asked the eagle softly. The avian now seemed quite sad, still looking at the Eagle Staff with blank eyes.
"Honorary? What is that," I asked in confusion. The eagle sighed and cleared his throat.
"An Honorary is a human that has been chosen by Ametaka to be gifted with our knowledge and resources. We allowed them to study in our library as well as teach them how to harness nature energy if they want to," explained the eagle. So the Eagle Sage that had died sometime during the last few wars had been an Honorary. I wondered how he had come to be chosen for such an amazing opportunity.
"I was told the last Honorary, or the Eagle Sage as we call him, perished during a war," I told him. The eagle flinched, he hadn't expected my answer. How was it possible that the eagles didn't know the fate of their own Honorary? There were only two signatures besides mine now on the summoning scroll, so it wasn't like there was a bunch to keep track of.
"He perished in battle? Do you know who brought him down," asked the eagle with a strained voice. This eagle had known this Honorary well, judging by how he was speaking.
"I don't, that was before my time I believe. What did you think had happened to him," I asked as nicely as possible. The eagle narrowed his eyes, offended by my rudeness.
"We believed that he was simply traveling in a land beyond our reach, he was quite the explorer," said the eagle stiffly.
"How did he end up fighting for the Hidden Sand then," I asked with confusion. The eagle let out a sigh, yet again as if what I had asked was common knowledge.
"His name was Fukugi Chomoru, he was from Sunagakure just like you. Even though Master Fukugi left your village to explore, he was very proud to be a Hidden Sand shinobi. That is why he answered the call to defend his village," said the eagle. He sounded defensive but also had pride in his voice.
"What is your name," I asked the eagle finally. The eagle once again paused, looking me over with his piercing gaze.
"I'm Takechi the Advisor, you may simply address me as Takechi since you are the new master of the Eagle scroll," said Takechi with a bow.
"Takechi the Advisor? Ametaka the Wise? Are you all named like that," I asked skeptically. It felt like he was messing with me, who was named Takechi the Advisor? Takechi's eyes narrowed even further and I immediately began to regret my question.
"We are given a title like Wise or Advisor once we achieve something great. For me, I taught and aided both of the previous Honoraries, which is why I'm known as Takechi the Advisor," he said dryly. I guess that made sense, at least they weren't given that name at birth. Thinking about that suddenly made me realize something.
"Wait, how old are you," I asked Takechi curiously. He just said he had taught both the previous Honoraries, meaning he had to be quite old. Yet, the eagle looks young and healthy instead of decrepit.
"I am one hundred and twelve," said Takechi matter of factly. Wow, talk about being ancient while still looking young. His feathers were streaked with gold gleaming and silver while the majority of his feathers were a dirty gray. Takechi was certainly muscular and his claws were quite noteworthy, they looked as sharp as my kunai. Takechi glanced around, noticing our forest setting and just how dark it was.
"Why have you summoned me here Gaara? I sense no immediate danger," asked Takeuchi as he vigilantly watched our surroundings. I wondered how well he could see when compared to me.
"I've only just stolen the Eagle Scroll, my siblings and I are camping out here until the Hidden Leaf ANBU give up searching for us," I informed him. Takeuchi gave me an unimpressed look, at least I thought was giving me one. It was kinda hard to read the expressions of an eagle.
"I will overlook your blatant disregard for the secrecy of such a valuable artifact due to your ignorance. However, now that you have signed the summons contract with us, you must be more careful with how you use it. I will talk with Lord Ametaka about this unusual situation and see what his verdict is," said Takechi. I nodded, realizing that the implications of me signing this scroll were much bigger than what I had previously thought. Only the previous two Honoraries had been allowed to sign it, while I hadn't even considered whether or not the eagles would care if I signed the contract. Did that automatically make me an Honorary? I kinda hoped it did, sounded like it came with a lot of benefits.
"Will I still be able to summon you or other eagles if I need help," I asked hopefully. The eagle gave another disappointed sigh.
"If you truly need help then only summon me or some of the wolves. Anybody else would give you trouble," said Takechi finally.
"Wolves? Why not other eagles or those lizards," I said while pointing to the icons in the scroll. Takechi flapped his large wings and landed on the scroll. He used his tons to point at the small images of the lizards.
"The lizards only have a few among them that can speak like me. Most aren't good at fighting either, they are much better at spying or concealment," explained Takechi. I guess that made sense, I did won't show big they could be too. Shukaku mentioned how there was an eagle as big as he was, so it could be possible the lizards and wolves had large ones among them.
"What about the wolves then, why am I allowed to summon them," I asked the eagle. Takechi switched from pointing his talons at the lizards to pointing them at a group of wolf icons.
"The wolves on Cloudtip Mountain are very loyal, they don't take the summoning contract lightly. They also love to fight, so I wouldn't summon them unless you need help in a fight. Only summon me if you need advice," said Takechi. Of course, why would I summon wolves for advice when I could summon an eagle who was named Takechi the Advisor?
"So only summon the wolves or you? If I remember correctly, visualization is all I need to summon something specific," I said. Takechi nodded, hoping off the scroll and walking towards me.
"I will be honest Gaara, this situation has never happened before. I do not know how Lord Ametaka will react to you having signed the summoning contract," he said bluntly. I winced, this really was turning out to be much more difficult than I hoped it would be. Then again, I guess I was still gaining Takechi and wolves as summoning animals so it wasn't all bad.
"Thank you Takechi for explaining everything to me. I will guard the Eagle Scroll until Ametaka decides what to do with me. I hope you will put in a good word about me. I'll summon you if I need you," I said awkwardly. It was kinda getting a little weird to be talking to an eagle, it wasn't the same as talking to a person.
"As much as this may surprise you, I actually hope that Lord Ametaka will be generous in his decision. It has been too long since an Honorary has been chosen, I hope you will be the one to be blessed with our knowledge," said Takechi with what I thought was a kind smile. I smiled as well, mostly in relieved that at least Takechi was happy I had signed the summoning contract.
"Goodbye," I said with a wave. Takechi nodded and with a poof of smoke he vanished. I stood up and grabbed the Eagle Scroll after a little bit of fumbling around in the dark. I also recalled the Eagle Staff back to its scroll and then hooked the scroll back onto my sling. I stood there for a moment, mulling over all the information that had just been dumped on me.
"Shukaku," I said after several moments of thinking.
"What is it Gaara," he grumbled with annoyance. I wondered if he ever wouldn't be annoyed at me asking him something.
"What do you know about Ametaka the Wise? Takechi told me he was their leader, I'm sure you heard if you were paying attention," I said to him. Shukaku let out yet another sigh of irritation before loudly clearing his throat inside my head.
"Ametaka isn't as wise as they think, he's just some old vulture that leads everything that lives on Cloudtip Mountain," he said vaguely.
"I already know that, is there anything else you can tell me," I said while trying to be patient. Shukaku could be such a handful, especially when trying to get information out of him.
"He's about my size, he's got a golden coat of feathers, and has some weird thing going on with his eyes," said Shukaku. Weird thing going on with his eyes? Did Shukaku mean that Ametaka was blind?
"What's going on with his eyes," I asked curiously.
"I'm not completely certain about this but Chomei the Seven Tails once told me that he can see all the way around the world. Apparently, his eyes are stronger and can see farther than you can even imagine. If it's true, he could probably see you from Cloudtip Mountain right now," said Shukaku with a grumble. If Shukaku was correct, it meant Ametaka could see across all of the Land of Wind and the Land of Rivers. That was quite the ability, I truly did wonder if it was true.
"Do you think they will make you an Honorary," I asked him finally. Shukaku stopped his grumbling and paused. Several moments passed which made me wonder if he had decided to just ignore me.
"If Ametaka truly is wise then he will make you a whatever it is," said Shukaku with unexpected sternness. I'd never heard such a tone in his ghoulish voice before. I also hadn't expected him to reassure me, an insult was what I had been expecting. Instead, he was giving me the support that I had hoped for.
"Shukaku," I said softly.
"What now," he said with some of his annoyance returning.
"I'm glad I have you to talk to, even though we have our disagreements. I'm grateful for your advice," I told him honestly.
Neither of us said anything after that, not even when I walked back to Kankuro and Temari. Both of them were asleep, Kankuro finally having given up on Crow for tonight. Temari was still sitting in the same position with her head leaned back against a tree. Kankuro also was leaned up against a tree, along with Crow bundled up next to him. The chilly air nipped at me as I sat down and leaned against a tree for support. Sleep would not come easy for me tonight. A sudden warmth passed over my whole body, causing me to flinch. It was chakra but not my own. Concern spiked throughout me as I wondered if Shukaku was trying to escape. I readied myself to tighten the seal but nothing else happened. The warmth of Shukaku's chakra stayed though, keeping me nice and comfortable. I could sense him watching through my eyes, judging my reaction.
"Thank you Shukaku," I said before slipping off into sleep. I could have sworn I heard him say something along the lines of you're welcome but I couldn't tell due to my sleepiness. It was probably just my imagination anyways.
----------------------------------------------
"How long until we can leave," asked Kankuro impatiently.
"Until Baki comes and gets us Kankuro, you read the message," I told him firmly.
"Yeah but it's so boring out here," mumbled Kankuro. He wasn't wrong there, it was quite boring out in the forest. Especially since we couldn't leave our makeshift hideout. Baki had sent us a message early this morning via a messenger hawk. He told us that the Hidden Leaf was still on high alert and not to attempt to re-enter the village. Baki said he would come and get us once the Hidden Leaf was done investigating him. All outsiders were primary suspects, meaning that Baki was under a large amount of suspicion. Kankuro said that the excuse Baki had made up for our absence was a mission of great importance, so the Hidden Leaf probably wasn't too suspicious of our absence. Though I wasn't too sure how well that terrible excuse would hold up if the Hidden Lead actually looked into it. Luck would play a huge factor in whether or not we had actually been caught. Hopefully, they hadn't seen my sand in the darkness and thought it was something else.
"Do you think this will blow over," asked Temari. She had been pacing around our small shelter ever since the sun had risen. She was quite anxious about whether or not we would be able to get away with our little heist. Temari hadn't even been able to stand still long enough to read any of the scrolls we had taken.
"I don't know Temari. We will just have to wait and see," I said blandly. Temari flicked her eyes to me, an unimpressed look inside of them.
"You're terrible at reassuring people Gaara, that didn't make me feel good at all," said Temari dryly. I shrugged my shoulders at her, what was I supposed to say?
"You're just realizing now that Gaara isn't exactly a master with words? He gets the point across, that's all you need anyways Temari," said Kankuro with a chuckle. He was working on Sparrow instead of Crow, examining its many parts and contraptions. At least he was making good use of our free time, unlike Temari. I had also been productive, reading over a scroll on the Uchiha early this morning. I already knew basically everything in the scroll, it hadn't been too helpful. It barely mentioned the Mangekyou Sharingan and only talked about the strengths of the ability. The only weakness that I really knew of was that Sharingan took a lot of chakra to use constantly. It's why people who weren't from the Uchiha clan had such a hard time using it. Kakashi using the Mangekyou Sharingan against Deidara had almost killed him because of this drawback. Then again, the Uchiha didn't have as hard of a time with this weakness. Sasuke in specific would go on to absolute abuse the Sharingan's power in almost every encounter of his, he wasn't one to take lightly. With him learning Chidori soon I would have to be careful in our fight.
"Temari, why don't you read up on the kid that uses that shadow Jutsu? You might end up facing him in the chunin exam final," I said while practicing with my iron sand. She merely scoffed at me and continued her pacing.
A rustle of leaves in the distance made us all freeze. Temari's hand immediately went to her iron fan while the iron sand I had been messing with transformed into a dozen senbon-like needles. Chakra threads shot from Kankuro's fingertips and latched onto Sparrow, bringing it to life.
"Could that be Baki," asked Temari softly. I shook my head, Baki wasn't sloppy enough to make a noise like that.
"You two stay here, I'm going to go check it out," I told them as I stood up.
"That's a terrible idea," said Kankuro from where he was sitting.
"I know, but it's better than sitting here and doing absolutely nothing. Come looking for me if you hear anything odd or I don't come back," I said as began to exit our hideout.
"Thanks for the great advice," mumbled Temari. I ignored her and quietly moved through the forest while looking around for whatever could have made that noise. Right as I was being to think it was an animal, a yell of frustration made me jump. Looks like there actually was someone out here with us. If they were hunting us, they sure were doing a bad job of it. So that scratched both the Hidden Leaf ANBU and Baki off the list of possible people that could be out here. I was beginning to think maybe it was a random villager who had decided to go for a stroll, or possibly a lost traveler.
"You have got to be kidding me, why does this always happen to me," shouted out an all too familiar whiny voice. Of course, it was him, my luck wouldn't allow anything else. I eased up a little but still kept on my guard in case he wasn't alone. Though, if I remembered correctly he should be alone. I stepped into a clearing and there he was.
Naruto Uzumaki, had a stupid look plastered on his face as he looked around confusedly. He hadn't noticed me just yet, which was a good thing since I still had my iron sand in needle formation. I quickly put it back into the gourd right as Naruto turned around and saw me.
"Ahhh, what are you doing out here," said the knucklehead ninja as he jumped.
"I'm currently on a mission. What are you doing out here," I said simply. Naruto loosened up, immediately relaxing at my lie even though he had no basis to believe it. Naruto really was a bit of an idiot, it was much more apparent in person.
"I'm supposed to be training with Pervy Sage but I can't seem to find the place he told us to meet," said Naruto while he scratched his head.
"Don't know your way around these woods," I asked with a raised eyebrow.
"What? Of course I know my way around these forests, I just wasn't given very specific instructions by Pervy Sage," complained Naruto. I nodded, this conversation was much more enjoyable than I thought. A question popped into my head, one that I just couldn't not ask.
"Naruto is your name, right? What is the goal that made you want to become a ninja and take the chin in exams," I said as innocently as possible. In reality, every bit of my essence was leaning forward, waiting for his answer. It was something I had never grown tired of hearing, especially during the more dramatic moments of the anime series. Naruto paused, seemingly thinking about his answer which kinda unsettled me. Naruto shouldn't need to think about the answer to this question, or at least so I thought.
"I don't know why I became a ninja really. I want to become Hokage but after seeing you and Bushy Brows fight, I'm not really sure," he said with his eyes to the ground. What? What was even happening? Naruto had been an exact copy of the one in the anime, why was he acting differently now? Was it really because I had amped up my fight with Rock Lee?
"What about that promise you made to that girl? You said you would defeat that Hyuga kid," I said with a neutral of tone I could muster. I needed to fix this, it was all my fault. If I didn't fix this right here and now, who knows what would happen to Naruto? I could see Naruto flinch at my statement, he obviously still had his promise on his mind.
"I've always been told that ninjas follow through with their promises, ridiculous or not," I continued. Maybe I could pull him out of this if I reminded him of his nindo, or ninja way.
"Why are you helping this kid? This brat has the stupid Nine-Tail's inside of him," complained Shukaku. I hadn't expected him to stick his nose into this but I couldn't have him distract me right now.
"Because it's what I think is right okay? I'll chat with you after I'm done, I promise," I told him quickly.
"Fine," he grumbled.
Turning my attention back to Naruto, I found a clear look of uncertainty on his face. Naruto wanted to follow his ninja way of never going back to a promise, but there was something else making him hesitate. My fight with Rock Lee must have really shaken him up, I guess I did almost bring the building down.
"I really want to beat stupid Neji, he was awful to Hinata. But what chance do I have against guys like you," he asked skeptically. I took a deep breath, this is the exact moment where I had to turn him around.
"I plan to become Kazekage someday Naruto. You said you wanted to be Hokage, but here you are whining and complaining about how strong some of your future opponents might be. Instead of getting scared, go train and get stronger. You'll never be Hokage and you'll never defeat Neji if you think you can't. With enough work, maybe you'll defeat me someday," I told him as firmly as possible.
Naruto's eyes seemed to change suddenly, from uncertain to full of determination. A dumb smile radiated from his face and he jabbed his thumb towards his chest.
"Your right, I don't what I was thinking! Thanks sand dude, I guess I just had a bit of a bad moment there. What was your name again," said Naruto as he returned to his usual self. I smiled and reached out my fist.
"My name is Gaara of the Desert. Wanna give me a first bump," I asked politely. Naruto paused for a moment before finally bumping my fist. Immediately, an overwhelming sensation gripped my body. At first, I didn't understand what it was but then I felt Shukaku growl with disgust. The Nine-Tails and he must be able to directly sense each other since Naruto and I were touching. The world around me suddenly vanished as I was pulled into my mindscape. I was met with a sight that made my eyes bulge. The Nine Tails, or Kurama, sat directly in front of me. The only thing separating us was the bars that held him back. From behind me, I heard an all too familiar growl of Shukaku.
"Long time no see, you stupid tanuki," said Kurama while his red eyes looked at me. I couldn't find the will to move, he was just so intimidating. This hadn't been what I was hoping for at all, I needed to get out of here.
"Your the Nine Tails," aren't you," was all I managed to say. Kurama laughed and gave me a devilish grin.
"I am, I see you've been cursed with having the weakest of the Tailed Beasts," laughed Kurama. That statement suddenly pulled me out of my daze. I felt a defensive feeling come over me, who was he to call Shukaku weak? Shukaku slammed into the bars holding him back, making my seal on my back grow slightly warm.
"Shut your mouth you stupid fox! You are trapped inside a human that doesn't even know how to use your power," he said with rage. Kurama merely laughed again.
"You've been letting your human use some of your power? I didn't think even you would go so low, to grovel at the feet of a human," remarked Kurama. I couldn't hold it back anymore, my blood was boiling.
"You have no right to say that. Shukaku is stronger, stronger than you in my opinion. While you've been stuck in here rotting, we have been making the most of our situation. I'm grateful to be the One Tail's jinchuriki," I said proudly. Everything suddenly went quiet, from both Shukaku and Kurama.
"You insufferable brat, I could kill you in an instant if I wasn't stuck in here," roared Kurama abruptly. I didn't even flinch, I simply turned my back on the Tailed Beast and walked to Shukaku. I close my eyes and concentrated, managing to bring myself out of my mindscape.
Once there, I quickly brought my fist away from Naruto's, causing the connection to vanish. Naruto just stood there, oblivious to what had just happened. I guess he hadn't been pulled in since he didn't know how to talk to Kurama yet.
"I won't take up any more of your time. It was nice meeting you, I hope you'll follow through on your promise," I said to him quickly. I didn't want to stick around after such an uneasy meeting between Shukaku and Kurama. Naruto gave another one of his grins before pumping his fist in the air.
"I'm going to be Hokage, believe it," he shouted. I laughed a little as I walked away, a smile on my face as well. I forgot about what had just happened for a moment and looked back at Naruto. He may not know it, but the stranger he just met actually did believe in him. I stopped and said one finally thing.
"I'm going to hold you to that Naruto. When I become Kazekage, you better become Hokage in my lifetime," I said before finally leaving.
"What do you mean in your lifetime? I'll become Hokage way before you become Kazekage," yelled Naruto angrily. If only he knew how wrong he was. I didn't bother to respond back and simply strolled back to our hideout. Kankuro and Temari jumped when I entered the hideout but immediately relaxed after realizing it was me.
"What caused the noise then," asked Kankuro. I did my best to conceal my smile.
"Just a lost traveler," I told them vaguely.
"Great, all that worry over nothing," said Temari.
"Better to worry rather than not," said a voice behind me. We all whipped around to find Baki standing there. I expected nothing less from the jonin, being able to sneak up on us like that.
"Why do you have to scare us like that sensei," asked Temari with frustration. Baki stepped into our little hideout, making it even more cramped.
"Pay attention to your surroundings and it won't happen. Now, the Hidden Leaf ANBU has scaled back its search for the stolen scrolls. They believe it might be Hidden Cloud ninja that did it, so we are in the clear. Temari and Kankuro, you two will return to the village and prepare for the chunin exams final. Gaara, you and I will be leaving right now for the Hidden Waterfall," he informed us. We all nodded in agreement, packing up what little stuff was still in the hideout. When I got to the Eagle Scroll, I wasn't sure what I should do with it. I had promised to guard it but I couldn't haul it around with me during my mission. That meant my only option would be to leave it with Kankuro and Temari. I walked up to Kankuro and handed him the scroll.
"Whatever happens, make sure to keep this safe for me," I said to him sternly. Kankuro gave me a look of confusion but quickly understood I was serious. He nodded and began to wrap the scroll in bandages so that no one would recognize it.
"Take whoever materials you want from the bag that you think might be useful to you. There is a Hidden Sand ANBU team waiting for you a few miles from here for you to give them the rest of the scrolls," said Baki as he unfolded a map. He quickly showed Kankuro and Temari the location before folding the map back up. We all stood there for several moments, looking at each other.
"I guess this is goodbye until the chunin exams final," said Temari. I nodded, I wouldn't be seeing them for quite a while.
"Keep training you two, I expect both of you to win your matches," I told them.
"Just don't get yourself killed on this mission okay," responded Kankuro jokingly.
"Alright, time to go," said Baki as he leaped out of our hideout. I nodded to Kankuro and Temari before following him. I heard Temari and Kankuro jump in the opposite direction, heading to drop off the scrolls. I caught up with Baki quickly, both of us moving in silence.
Hidden Waterfall, here we come.
Wöchentlicher Energiestatus
-- Power-
Rangliste 
-- Power-
Stein