The Works of Quill of Molliemon Discussion

[Quill of Molliemon]

Sasuke still has one in reserve, it appears. I'm leaning towards the idea that he would have held on to his Deino, but he didn't call it out, despite the call being for all walking or flying Pokemon.

Deino (and zweilous) are supposedly blind according to the pokedex, and while I don't think they're completely sightless, I believe that they have terrible eyesight. Even though Kitsune's illusion powers means that the searchers can't trust their eyesight in searching for her, it doesn't make much sense to use a monster that's going to blunder into things because it can barely see where it's going. If Sasuke were to depend on his deino, it could very easily overlook something, and that's a lot more embarrassing than calling on one less pokemon than Sakura.

For that matter, Naruto keeping Eve in reserve seems strange to me as well. I can understand keeping Vee back, as he probably wouldn't understand what they're doing, but Eve would probably be able to help more than most, having been exposed to Kitsune more than most of the other monsters.

Naruto's holding Eve back because he's rather sensitive to losing things at the moment, and Eve is very shy. She deals with Vee well enough, but with the horde of strange monsters milling around he's afraid that she'd become too timid to be of much use. If he was more familiar with her and wasn't so nervous about losing any other monsters he probably would be having her search too.

As for why Kushina doesn't just tell him right then, I imagine she only wants to have the conversation once, not once for each family member.

Exactly. She also doesn't want anything getting in the way of finding Naruto's lost pokemon ASAP, and taking the time to explain things to Kenshin could take a long time if he comes up with a lot of questions. Properly introducing Naruto to his uncle (and other relations) can wait.

First off, Naruto and Kushina have mentioned Naruto's badge count as including Gaara's badge, but all references to out of League badges mentions that they don't count within Fire Country. Can you clear up this discrepancy?

Gaara's badge counts, as would a badge earned in the Land of Earth, the Land of Lightning, or the Land of Water. A trainer from the Land of Fire can have up to three badges from any gym of the other four major nations count towards his or her badge total. There are also a few gyms in the minor nations of Grass and Waterfall that count, but most gyms' badges--including all four Whirlpool gyms--aren't accepted. So if Naruto was to go after the Spiral Badge and get it, it would be an accomplishment, but it wouldn't get him any closer to the tournaments that lead to the championship of his nation's league.

Four, have you given any more thought to the story idea posed a while back, "10 Adventures Naruto Missed"? I think it would be interesting.

It's percolating in my brain, I swear!

You actually managed to squeeze one more in, you sneaky goose. Nicely done.

[MrRigger2]

Deino (and zweilous) are supposedly blind according to the pokedex, and while I don't think they're completely sightless, I believe that they have terrible eyesight. Even though Kitsune's illusion powers means that the searchers can't trust their eyesight in searching for her, it doesn't make much sense to use a monster that's going to blunder into things because it can barely see where it's going. If Sasuke were to depend on his deino, it could very easily overlook something, and that's a lot more embarrassing than calling on one less pokemon than Sakura.

Hmm. Looking at Bulbapedia, it appears you're correct. Deino are apparently blind, but it's unknown if Zweilous can see or not. I did not know that. However, you're right, having a blind Pokemon on a search party would probably end up pretty embarrassing for Sasuke.

Naruto's holding Eve back because he's rather sensitive to losing things at the moment, and Eve is very shy. She deals with Vee well enough, but with the horde of strange monsters milling around he's afraid that she'd become too timid to be of much use. If he was more familiar with her and wasn't so nervous about losing any other monsters he probably would be having her search too.

The problem with that is that Eve will never get used to other Pokemon if Naruto doesn't expose her to other Pokemon. Also, that's another reason to store Kitsune and start pulling out his other Pokemon. Familiarize all his Pokemon with each other, especially the old guard with the new guard. This wouldn't just be for Eve's sake, but also for Ginsu's. Explaining to him just what is food and what isn't seems like it would be an important thing if he's going to be on the team for any real length of time. However, I can understand the feeling of not wanting to lose Eve. Personally, I think Eve might be stronger than Naruto's giving her credit for. She was able to survive in the Safari Zone for quite some time, and if there's any place that can be described as a menagerie of strange Pokemon, it's the Safari Zone.

Exactly. She also doesn't want anything getting in the way of finding Naruto's lost pokemon ASAP, and taking the time to explain things to Kenshin could take a long time if he comes up with a lot of questions. Properly introducing Naruto to his uncle (and other relations) can wait.

Aww, she's trying to be a good mother even if it means she's kind of a crappy sister. Of course, it also fits with her habit of running away from her problems. Putting off the conversation for even a few hours fits with what we've seen of Kushina. However, I do think she could be a bit more considerate about it. "Yes, he's my son, we can talk later," or "Yes, he's who you think he is, we'll discuss it when we're done with this." Brushing him off and running off to search in the other direction seems pretty rude to me, especially considering Kenshin seems to be Kushina's favorite brother.

Gaara's badge counts, as would a badge earned in the Land of Earth, the Land of Lightning, or the Land of Water. A trainer from the Land of Fire can have up to three badges from any gym of the other four major nations count towards his or her badge total. There are also a few gyms in the minor nations of Grass and Waterfall that count, but most gyms' badges--including all four Whirlpool gyms--aren't accepted. So if Naruto was to go after the Spiral Badge and get it, it would be an accomplishment, but it wouldn't get him any closer to the tournaments that lead to the championship of his nation's league.

I see. That makes sense, but it's never been explained anywhere. If you ever have Naruto participate in one of the League Tournaments, I'd make sure to explain it. And speaking of badges, that reminds me. I reread the series over the holidays, and I remember a comment that while Sasuke had five badges, Sakura only had four. They had both visited the same gyms (Kakashi, Kurenai, Asuma, Aburame, and Jiraiya), so which gym wasn't Sakura able to beat? I don't think it was Kakashi or Kurenai, but if Asuma has a bunch of Fire types (for the Fire Will Badge), Sakura could have had trouble considering she's got two Grass types and no Water types. Alternatively, she might have issue with the Aburame's Bug types (Grass types are weak against them and she's got a personal issues, apparently), or Jiraiya may have simply been too much for her (as you mentioned he's strong enough to be a member of the Elite Four, if Fire Country had such a thing).

You know, I was discussing this with the chat earlier, and they suggested I post it. I want to preface it by saying I love the stories, really all of them, and this comes down to finding the smallest nitpicks it seems. However, to stop beating around the bush, I simply feel Molliemon has a bit of a love of lists that tends to cut into the story a bit, very dry and unengaging. This chapter was the most egregious of this, I think, what with so many trainers releasing their Pokemon at once. However, instead of making this actually interesting, it was simply cookie-cutter. It would be so easy to write their releasing their pokemon and actually tell us something about the characters, about the Pokemon, and so on. Instead, there is just a list. A this, named that, and then a this, named that. It just seems so out of place in an otherwise extremely well written story.

I do have to agree with this. I do think the description of the teams was a bit lacking. I liked that we were shown just what the teams are, and I realize that with so many Pokemon being released, you can only make it so interesting, but you have written better chapters. Of course, I think the story will pick up a lot once you resolve one or two of the plotlines that are currently running.

MrRigger

[Tempest Kitsune]

I loved this new chapter. We finally have the meeting between Naruto and his extended family, as well as seeing how Kyuumaru deals with Kitsune. Man, she must have really tried his patience if he decided to actually leave the area around the shrine. And I just thought of something. If Kyuumaru has the Flash Fire ability, Naruto might decide that the best way to get him warmed up after the torrential drenching he got would be to have Demon use some low-impact Fire-type attacks on Kyuumaru, carefully of course, no reason to burn the house down. I imagine that Kitsune is going to be less than pleased about finding herself back in Naruto's care, but hopefully she'll be recalled after getting dried off. Not even Naruto is going to simply recall her while she's that miserable looking.

I can't say that Asuka's reaction to Sakura having badges was unexpected. The fact that Asuka is a total stranger and the surprise at her venom seem to be the only reason that Sakura hasn't either gotten angry with Asuka, or seemed to be hurt by the older woman's disdain. I can't imagine that Sasuke is too impressed with the harridan either, as his own mother is probably a decent trainer, and likely has at least a few badges to her name.

[Quill of Molliemon]

If Kyuumaru has the Flash Fire ability, Naruto might decide that the best way to get him warmed up after the torrential drenching he got would be to have Demon use some low-impact Fire-type attacks on Kyuumaru, carefully of course, no reason to burn the house down.

Since Kyuumaru was acquired by Mito (I) somewhere in the Land of Fire as a vulpix, it's safe to assume that his ability is flash fire as the only other ability that vulpix/ninetales can have (drought) is "hidden", accessible only if the mother had it or if, at an early stage of development (egg), the pokemon is exposed to munna/musharna's dream smoke and no munna were around the Land of Fire, especially not way back then.

[Tempest Kitsune]

Ah. Heh, so it is.

[MrRigger2]

Not a bad chapter. I enjoyed it.

It's probably a good thing in the long run that Kyuumaru ended up "playing" with Kitsune. Even if he didn't necessarily enjoy the impromptu hide-and-seek, the fact that he didn't react violently or get upset enough to seriously hurt Kitsune is a good thing for his mental state. Of course, Kitsune should probably have realized that trying to impersonate objects in a territory her seeker had studied for centuries wouldn't work. Though I suppose she was having fun.

Now, when Kitsune says that she doesn't know her trainer's name and isn't completely sure about the name Uzumaki, is she being deliberately obtuse or was she honestly not paying attention during her time with Naruto? Given her attitude towards humans, it's possible she doesn't know, but since she doesn't want to go back and enjoys tricking others as much as possible, it's also entirely likely that she's just being difficult. What does Word of God say?

I hadn't anticipated Kyuumaru taking Kitsune to the Uzumaki household, but it makes sense. However, it's definitely a good thing that he was able to push himself into leaving the Sealed Shrine. Personally, I think Kyuumaru would be a lot better off if he took a stroll around the entire island every week, or even every month. My only worry is that he'll fall back in his old habits if he isn't pushed to break them.

Inaho getting that breakthrough on Minato and Kushina's relationship is good to see. Even if it might make life a little more difficult for Minato and Kushina, it means a long-running plot point gets wrapped up, which I enjoy. I don't like dangling plot threads, especially not when they can be resolved.

I have mixed feelings about the last scene at the Uzumaki house. On the one hand, it advances the plot and there's some nice character interaction. On the other hand, you jabbed at my pet peeve button over and over and over. More specifically, you kept referring to the characters by their relationship to Naruto (Naruto's mother, Naruto's father, his mother's father, his mother's aunt, etc.) Writing like that annoys the hell out of me. It isn't clear writing, and adds to the confusion of the scene. I know why you did it (or I believe I do), it was to put the scene more from Naruto's PoV, and to reinforce the fact that he doesn't know the rest of the Uzumaki clan well enough to know names and faces, but the practice was still off putting to me. Maybe it was just me, but it took away some of the enjoyment of the scene for me.

Now, as for the scene itself, there was some nice moments. I think Kenjiro is in for a shock when he really finds out how much fame his fight with Minato will bring him. Fire Country is one of the major countries in the area, and Minato is the best trainer in Fire Country. The fact that Kenjiro just gave him a fight equivalent to other National Champions (Minato compares his monsters to Oonoki's and Kenjiro uses tactics only otherwise seen by Mei Terumi) and knocked out four of Minato's Pokemon, three of his oldest and a shiny Gyarados. That's damn impressive.

I'm still curious as to which badges Sakura missed compared to Sasuke. Did she end up doing the Battle Contests in two of the cities and have Sasuke refuse to wait around for her to challenge the Gym as well? And as for Sasuke's seventh badge, did he also challenge Orochimaru/Kabuto's gym, or did he find a different one?

I can't help but worry that Kyuumaru's going to freak out when he sees just how many people are in the room. He's hardly used to people, much less that many people (including strangers) all in one place. Not to mention Kitsune's reaction is not likely to be particularly positive. And given that Kitsune is probably going to attempt to escape at least once while in the Uzumaki house, what is Kenjiro's reaction going to be when he sees Naruto having trouble controlling his Pokemon? Kenjiro does have some strict views on how to raise Pokemon, and an uncontrollable Pokemon is not going to make a good impression on him. Of course, with seven badges, it might even out.

MrRigger

[Tempest Kitsune]

Regarding Kitsune's behavior, I think that Mollie is basing this off the anime, as in the show badges do not equate to respect from your pokemon. Also in response to your pet peeve, remember, this chapter is being told mainly from Naruto's point of view, and he's just learned these people's names. It's easier to assign them titles in his head. And as Kyuumaru not only managed to get inside, but didn't freak out as soon as he caught sight of all the people, I think he's going to be fine for now, though probably wary. The fact that half the people in the room look like "proper" Uzumakis will probably help settle him some.

[MrRigger2]

I know the badges don't necessarily command respect from your Pokemon in this universe, but I wasn't talking about the seven badges making things even out for Kitsune. I meant that having seven badges would prove to Kenjiro that Kitsune's behavior is the exception, not the rule, for Naruto's Pokemon.

I know that the scene was from Naruto's point of view, and that having him get all the names right off wouldn't necessarily fit Naruto's character, but for me, the way it was done was more immersion breaking than it would be if Naruto got all the names. Like I said, maybe it was just me, but it really plucked my nerves.

And while more than half the people in the room may look like "proper Uzumaki", Kyuumaru has issues with people. And just because all the local Uzumaki recognize Kyuumaru (he is the only Ninetails on the island that they know of), that doesn't mean he'll necessarily recognize them. Who knows, maybe having this many Uzumaki in the same place will make him flash back to the violent feud between the Uzumaki and Kurohi.

MrRigger

[Quill of Molliemon]

Now, when Kitsune says that she doesn't know her trainer's name and isn't completely sure about the name Uzumaki, is she being deliberately obtuse or was she honestly not paying attention during her time with Naruto? Given her attitude towards humans, it's possible she doesn't know, but since she doesn't want to go back and enjoys tricking others as much as possible, it's also entirely likely that she's just being difficult. What does Word of God say?

Kitsune was deliberately not paying attention to what the humans around her were saying or what their names were. In her mind, she's going to ditch them and once this is accomplished she's never going to see them again, so what's the point of learning about them? And the only reason she picked up on "Uzumaki" is because the word struck her fancy, otherwise she wouldn't have been able to tell Kyuumaru anything beyond a vague physical description.

I have mixed feelings about the last scene at the Uzumaki house. On the one hand, it advances the plot and there's some nice character interaction. On the other hand, you jabbed at my pet peeve button over and over and over. More specifically, you kept referring to the characters by their relationship to Naruto (Naruto's mother, Naruto's father, his mother's father, his mother's aunt, etc.) Writing like that annoys the hell out of me. It isn't clear writing, and adds to the confusion of the scene. I know why you did it (or I believe I do), it was to put the scene more from Naruto's PoV, and to reinforce the fact that he doesn't know the rest of the Uzumaki clan well enough to know names and faces, but the practice was still off putting to me. Maybe it was just me, but it took away some of the enjoyment of the scene for me.

Yeah, I was a bit worried about that.

It's written that way because Naruto is the point-of-view character of that section. So Kushina becomes "his mother" and Minato "his father" since kids don't think of their parents by their first names unless they have a terrible relationship. All the other adults in the room are strangers to him and even after they are introduced to him and he realizes that they're relatives, they are still strangers in his mind as he's never met them before in his life.

I'm still curious as to which badges Sakura missed compared to Sasuke. Did she end up doing the Battle Contests in two of the cities and have Sasuke refuse to wait around for her to challenge the Gym as well? And as for Sasuke's seventh badge, did he also challenge Orochimaru/Kabuto's gym, or did he find a different one?

I need to sit down some time and add to my lists as to who has what badges...

Sakura has fewer badges than Sasuke because he doesn't stick around a town long after he's gotten the badge that he's come for and if she wants to keep travelling with him she has to leave when he leaves, whether or not she's gotten the badge as well. Early on it wasn't too hard for her to keep up with him, but the later gyms gave her trouble. Her ribbons are mainly from when she and Sasuke happened to cross paths with Ino's group, and so to compete with her friend/rival Sakura enters into Battle Contests (since she feels that the battle aspect will also impress Sasuke).

Sasuke did challenge Orochimaru's gym, too. He was the last challenger that Orochimaru took before he left the gym in Kabuto's care to take care of other business, and he and Sakura left town mere hours before Naruto reached the area. And now that Sasuke has seven badges, he aims for his eighth badge to be from his brother's gym.

[MrRigger2]

Hmm... If Sasuke is angling for his eighth badge to be from Itachi's Gym, I wonder how long he's going to wait before challenging it. Patience is hardly one of Sasuke's virtues, so he might not want to wait long, but he wouldn't want to put in a poor showing either, and most of his Pokemon aren't fully evolved. Sasuke had a Larvitar in Ditto, and given the rarity of such a Pokemon, I imagine that it was a gift from his parents (as a number of the other trainers got (Kiba's Growlithe, Shino's Nincada, Hinata's Riolu Egg)). Since I remember it being mentioned that the Uchiha Gym specializes in Fire and Dark type Pokemon, I think it's reasonable to think that Itachi would have a Tyranitar, and if Sasuke challenges his brother before his Pupitar evolves, I'll be surprised. He might not wait until his Deino evolves (because holy crap that's a lot of grinding), but if Itachi really is as tough as he's made out to be (and he should be), Sasuke has a lot of training to do. Of course, he may not be able to wait and get crushed by his brother.

MrRigger

[Farmer_10]

I miss Molliemon.

[Quill of Molliemon]

I'm sorry. I got distracted, then caught the flu, and now I'm more distracted and on a David Weber reading binge...again.

[Farmer_10]

Eh, life happens. You'll get back to writing when you're ready and we'll be waiting.

[gamebrain89]

Weber does that. My dad's binging through Honor Harrington. And I went on a Safehold binge a few months ago.

[MrRigger2]

Just got done re-reading the PokeNaru series again, waiting for the next update (poke, poke, just making sure nothing's wrong), and I've come across some things that I haven't commented on yet.

One, in the latest chapter, CitW 19, Kenshin is going to the post office for his father. Now, he could just be going there to mail in that month's bills, but I'm thinking it was something else. Specifically, a letter to Kushina. I'm thinking that after reading all of Kushina's letters, Kenjiro is taking the time to write back to her and say all the things he can't say in person. Kenjiro is very much a reserved person, and after Kushina's explosion at him and Asuka, he may believe that any conversation with her is going to be difficult, to say the least. And he's probably not wrong.

Considering that no one had any idea that Naruto was going to be in Uzu (I understand why Ken-Ichi didn't call his mother, but why didn't he let his father know what he was doing, Kenshin could have run interference for Suzume), Kenjiro's letter probably contains both apologies/reasons for his actions as well as permission to give Naruto an Omanyte. Kenjiro's realizing just how big the mistakes he made were, and I think the best way a character like Kenjiro could get his feelings across to a character like Kushina is through a letter, not through a conversation. They're both too strong-willed and opinionated to have the conversation they need to have, at least at this point, with tensions running high. Also, if he is serious about making things up to her and wanting to be part of her life again (which seems likely, given how he maintains a relationship with his father in law so many years after his wife's death, and his desire to establish a relationship with Naruto through giving him a Pokemon), not stepping on Kushina's toes by asking her permission to give Naruto an Omanyte is a good start. Granted, it's only a start, but going through a form of communication where both Kushina and Kenjiro can take the time to calm down and carefully consider what they're going to say to each other, instead of just the first thing that comes to mind (most likely hurtful).

Two, the relationship between Demon and Bolt. In most of their appearances together, they don't really seem to get along. I think I've figured out why this is. They've both with Naruto for the same amount of time, Demon only being Bolt's senior on the team by one day. However, while Bolt has always been the good Pokemon, never disobeying Naruto, Demon has had behavior problems. Because of this, Bolt believes he should hold the top spot on the team, not Demon. After all, if they've all been together for the same amount of time, and he's never misbehaved, why shouldn't he have the top spot? He's never humiliated Naruto by not obeying or running away.

On the other side, Demon isn't able to get along with Bolt because Bolt is a threat to his position. Demon's had experience where he gets left or cast out, and he knows Bolt represents that possibility with Naruto. Granted, it's no longer nearly as likely as it once was, but after so long not cooperating (in Falling Down, four badges into the journey, Bolt's first assumption on seeing Naruto injured is that it's Demon's fault), they've fallen into patterns that neither one seem inclined to break (Bolt and Demon not getting along as of Shadow and Ash).

Thoughts, everybody?

MrRigger

[Lthayer3]

*jumps around happily*

Also, poor Eve. Though I'm sure things will work themselves out somehow

[Tempest Kitsune]

Heh, well, there are worse ways to be introduced to your spawn I suppose. Like how Minato finally met Naruto. And who knows, Eve may get a surrogate big sister role, or a role as favored Aunt since neither of Vee's parents can exactly keep an eye on him. Personally I think that Aquarius might be showing some nastier traits soon, as not only has he been upstaged, he's been cockblocked by a hatchling.

[MrRigger2]

Nice chapter. Good to see you back on the horse.

It was interesting seeing the entire chapter from the point of view of the Pokemon. From what it seems like, Kyuumaru is already doing a little better, even with minimal exposure to humans. Granted, he's still thinking in terms of "Uzumaki", "Non-Uzumaki", and "Not-Mito", but he's able to quickly start associating the correct names with people, which I find promising.

Reading the reactions of Senkou, Aquarius, and Uzu-chan throughout the chapter, I can't help but wonder what sort of impact the different Eeveelutions have on the personality of the Pokemon. Obviously, every Pokemon has their own personality, but evolution is a big thing, and I can easily see it having an impact on the Pokemon in question. Senkou, a Jolteon, seems to be very energetic and playful, almost always in motion and quick to react, while Aquarius and Uzu-chan, Vaporeons, are more stand-offish and cold, but with the tendency to flow easily between moods (Uzu-chan went from friendly towards Eve to cold towards Senkou to motherly towards Vee pretty quick). Looking at the personalities of other Eeveelutions, Shadow and Dawn, I think we can say that Espeon and Umbreon are always going to put their Trainer first. We know how much Shadow loved Naruto, enough to sacrifice himself for Naruto, and from what we've seen of Dawn so far, she puts a lot of thought into how Sakura is going to react.

Now, this isn't to say that an Evolution is the only thing to determine a Pokemon's personality. Depending on all of the other factors that affect personality, you could easily have a cool-headed Flareon, a loving and open Glaceon, or a calm and collected Jolteon. It just seems like the various Eeveelution paths allow for general predictions of how an Eevee will be.

Moving on, I know other readers see Aquarius as a jerk or ladies-man, but I'm not so sure. He's hardly perfect, I'm sure, but I'm not sure he'll be as bad as some are expecting. After all, you can easily be an antagonist or obstacle without being a villain, and I haven't really seen anything so far that really makes me think Aquarius is a bad guy. His initial reaction to Senkou is entirely understandable to me. Senkou is an unknown Pokemon on Uzumaki family land, a fully evolved Eeveelution (which could easily mean mating rival), barging in on a private moment, Uzu-chan apparently doesn't want him there, and Senkou has a type advantage (which we have seen makes some Pokemon uncomfortable, like Al), so Aquarius didn't do anything wrong in my mind.

I enjoyed the line about how it was Kyuumaru, not Demon, who was the wrong color. It amused me, but Demon is the only Ninetails Vee's seen up until now, so it makes sense, which makes it even better. Vee's realization of who Senkou is was well done, and a pretty touching scene. I read it as Senkou wallowing in grief over Uzu-chan, and Vee coming up to him, slowly realizing who Vee is, and when Vee asks him to play, he thinks "Well, I can at least do this right."

Aquarius snapping at Vee also makes sense to me, even though I don't endorse it. Aquarius is a Contest Pokemon, so he's learned to make all his movements and actions as deliberate as possible. Running around carelessly and running into other Pokemon are things that would destroy his chances of winning Contests, so he wouldn't approve of it.

Another possible explanation for Aquarius's behavior is Akane. According to everything we've heard, Akane doesn't necessarily have the best judgement in men, and her three major relationships have been bad for her. If we look at Aquarius's previous behavior towards Uzu-chan, and his attitude towards Eve versus his attitude towards Senkou and Vee, we can see that Aquarius is much more open and friendly towards females and more closed off and wary towards males. Having seen his owner, Akane, hurt by men in the past, it makes sense that he would want to protect her from men who might want to hurt her, no matter if they're human or Pokemon (though he obviously hasn't gone as far as Kyuubi, who has decided she is the only female that's needed in Minato's life). This feeling could have also extended to wanting to protect Uzu-chan (though a good portion of that protective feeling is doubtlessly his own feelings for her).

I do have to feel sorry for Eve. She's seeing this touching family scene right in front of her, her family and friends have all been split up, and now Vee no longer needs her. She must feel miserable. However, Eve fails to take into account the fact that Uzu-chan and Senkou won't be traveling with Vee and Naruto, but she will be. Vee will certainly still need her. She also fails to realize that Vee seems to have enough love for everyone, and isn't going to abandon her just because Vee has found his parents.

Seeing that the Gym now has a permanent mural depicting Mito-sama, Kyuumaru, and the rest of the team is a good thing for Kyuumaru, I think. Hearing Ken-ichi tell Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura stories about Mito-sama is also going to help. It proves to Kyuumaru that Mito-sama is not forgotten, and will not be forgotten. That's important.

MrRigger

[Quill of Molliemon]

Nice chapter. Good to see you back on the horse.

Well, at least I'm hanging off the saddle...not sure if I'm properly seated again yet.

Moving on, I know other readers see Aquarius as a jerk or ladies-man, but I'm not so sure. He's hardly perfect, I'm sure, but I'm not sure he'll be as bad as some are expecting. After all, you can easily be an antagonist or obstacle without being a villain, and I haven't really seen anything so far that really makes me think Aquarius is a bad guy. His initial reaction to Senkou is entirely understandable to me. Senkou is an unknown Pokemon on Uzumaki family land, a fully evolved Eeveelution (which could easily mean mating rival), barging in on a private moment, Uzu-chan apparently doesn't want him there, and Senkou has a type advantage (which we have seen makes some Pokemon uncomfortable, like Al), so Aquarius didn't do anything wrong in my mind.

Aquarius snapping at Vee also makes sense to me, even though I don't endorse it. Aquarius is a Contest Pokemon, so he's learned to make all his movements and actions as deliberate as possible. Running around carelessly and running into other Pokemon are things that would destroy his chances of winning Contests, so he wouldn't approve of it.

Aquarius is no villain...antagonist, maybe...obstacle, definitely.

A fascinating and thorough character analysis. *tips imaginary hat*

Seeing that the Gym now has a permanent mural depicting Mito-sama, Kyuumaru, and the rest of the team is a good thing for Kyuumaru, I think. Hearing Ken-ichi tell Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura stories about Mito-sama is also going to help. It proves to Kyuumaru that Mito-sama is not forgotten, and will not be forgotten. That's important.

Kyuumaru certainly appreciates mural in a place of honor, but at the moment his mind is on a cinnamon roll with his name on it...

[MrRigger2]

Kyuumaru certainly appreciates mural in a place of honor, but at the moment his mind is on a cinnamon roll with his name on it...

Well, it's good to see his priorities are in the right order.

MrRigger

[Farmer_10]

*big hug* Quill, you're back! Everything is awesome again!

[Aldraia Dragonsong]

*joins in the hug* Hooray!

[MrRigger2]

Let's get right too it, CitW 21 review starts now!

Mmm, cinnamon rolls.

Now, I liked the part with Sakura and Inner Sakura. We obviously see that she has the right idea, but her objections are based off of old facts and incorrect beliefs. Inner Sakura is right, but Sakura isn't quite ready to change her world outlook just yet. Not that I can blame her, she's still a kid, and the idea that she would have been lied to by the adults about something like this is probably uncomfortable. And if we were looking at Naruto from the start of his journey, Naruto probably would have been crowing about the Champion being his dad, but Sakura doesn't seem to have realized just how much Naruto has matured. He's spent more than a year traveling on his own at this point and been in a number of dangerous situations that have forced him to grow up. And honestly, I can't really blame her for not realizing how much Naruto has grown, because during their time together since the Safari Zone, Naruto has been running around trying and failing to keep Kitsune under control. To the outside observer, Naruto still looks like the foolish kid who couldn't control his Pokemon back in Shinobi Town, and it isn't hard to translate that immaturity to other aspects of his personality.

Yes, there is something wrong with the fact that Sasuke can eat tomatoes like apples but won't touch cinnamon rolls. That's just weird.

Looking at the conversation between Aquarius and Eve, it's obvious that Aquarius is a showman at heart. And while Aquarius doesn't have the same prejudices and mindsets of human men on Uzu, Aquarius does seem to have pretty firm ideas on how Pokemon should act. And from his "Contests aren't stupid!" comment, I imagine this isn't the first time he's had some other Pokemon criticize him partaking in Contests. Living with five teams of hardcore, manly battling Pokemon (six, actually, since Ken-Ichi's Pokemon are boarded there), he's probably been made fun of for taking part in such a "girly" practice instead of battling.

Once again, we're shown that Kitsune is still very much a child, who wants nothing more than to see her mommy. Which is a feeling people can get behind, I suppose, but her general attitude is still off putting enough that I would be just as inclined to send her to Sarutobi's lab as keep her on the team. Now, it's clear that Naruto cares about his Pokemon, since he comes out and is immediately concerned about Kitsune crying, but honestly, he's got options now that he didn't have when he was having this same problem with Demon. Before, he had to get Demon to listen to him because he didn't have anyone to take his place. But now, he's got plenty of Pokemon to train instead. If Kyuumaru's lecture doesn't have her shaped up by the end of this story, I can't think of much reason to keep Kitsune around. She's hurting his team effectiveness, keeping her out with him means that she'll keep trying to run away and now she clearly knows how to pull it off right, and if he wants the prestige/honor/uniqueness of training a completely foreign Pokemon, he's got the choice between a Joltik, Tympole, or Litwick. Yes, Kitsune is a pure Dark type, something he doesn't have since Shadow is gone, and his other Gen V Pokemon are redundant types compared to the rest of his team (Bolt, Typhoon, and Demon), but I'd rather have a little redundancy and have a Pokemon that will listen than one that doesn't. And it's not like the Uzumaki Clan has any issue with redundancy, being almost exclusively Water Trainers. Maybe it's just me, though, and others like Kitsune or I'm missing something obvious.

I'm wondering what Eve will look like when she evolves as well. Jolteon, Vaporeon, Flareon, and Espeon have the most striking difference, and Leafeon doesn't have much difference at all, but I'm thinking Leafeon would fit Eve pretty well. It would help Naruto on the Grass front, since his only other Grass type is Shitake, who is difficult to control at the best of times, and I think it would be the easiest evolution. If we go by Shadow, happiness evolution takes months to do, and by all accounts Evolution Stones are expensive, and the Ice Rock is way up north in yet another country. The Moss Rock is easily accessible and I think it would fit Eve fairly well. But that's for the future.

I'm inclined to agree with Arashi about Bolt. They're cutesy and fragile, and even high level Pikachu (I'm looking at you, Red) go down easy to Earthquake.

Ginsu is probably another Pokemon Kyuumaru's never seen before, despite saying he's seen all the Pokemon on the continent. During his travels, fossil reanimation tech wouldn't have been available, Demon Country would have still been sealed, and Aerodactyl isn't one of the fossil Pokemon found on Uzu. He's getting all sorts of surprises here lately.

I do feel a little sorry for Akane. The Blue Scarf gets her hopes up that she'll have someone to talk about Contests with, and then Naruto tells her that he doesn't, which clearly disappoints her. She probably doesn't have many people to talk with her interests about, given that her cousins and uncle are all Trainers, and Arashi is clearly not interested in them. The rest of the family is probably of a similar mindset.

Kenjiro's reaction to Naruto's team is pretty much what I expected. Eve, Vee, and Kitsune can be excused because they are still pretty new, and Bolt isn't all that impressive because Kenjiro has no doubt taken down hundreds of Electric types over his tenure as Uzu Gym Leader. And again, they're all of the cute/tame Pokemon variety. None of them look very intimidating, and none of them are fully evolved, but Naruto is still young, so Kenjiro can give him the benefit of the doubt, especially with his last two Pokemon. Ginsu and Demon, however, are both fully evolved, physically intimidating, and known to be powerful. Kenjiro knows how strong fossil Pokemon can be, and Kyuumaru proves the strength of Ninetails. However, it's clear why Kenjiro wants to see Typhoon. Evolving a Magikarp and training a Gyarados is a mark of pride for Uzumaki men, and seeing how strong Typhoon is would go a long way towards proving Naruto in Kenjiro's eyes. It would at least make him a lot more sure about giving Naruto an Omanyte.

Vee having Anticipation as an ability is interesting, but it makes sense, given his encounter with the Munna in the Safari Zone while he was still an egg. Of course, it makes me wonder if Ino could become a Dream World Ability inducer/breeder, since she has three Munna (though I recall her planning to give one to each of her parents, but I could be wrong). Depending on the ability, it could create some interesting effects for her Contest routines. Failing that, I imagine there's plenty of people who would pay good money to have a Pokemon with an unusual ability, like a Cyndaquil with Flash Fire.

I did like that Eve was the first one to jump in to protect Vee from the Machop. It was a nice touch, though I am a little curious as to how both Eve and Uzu-chan reacted faster than Senkou. He's higher level than any of them, and Jolteon has the 7th highest speed of any Pokemon, and the number 1, 3, and 4 spots are all occupied by Deoxys forms.

All in all, a good chapter. Keep up the good work, and I don't suppose you've given any more thought to that rumored "Ten Adventures Naruto Missed" fic? Gamebrain and I got in a discussion last night, and we want to see some Gaara action.

MrRigger

[Thozmp]

By "Ten Adventures Naruto Missed" do you mean that they're ten adventures Naruto had an oppertunity to go on but didn't take, or are they ten that Naruto couldn't be on altogether?

[Quill of Molliemon]

Yes, there is something wrong with the fact that Sasuke can eat tomatoes like apples but won't touch cinnamon rolls. That's just weird.

Apparently when my mother was a child, she would pick tomatoes from the garden, sprinkle them with a bit of salt, and eat them like apples (although she has no issues with cinnamon rolls) so since Sasuke is a supposed tomato freak, I'm sure that he does the same thing.

Of course, it makes me wonder if Ino could become a Dream World Ability inducer/breeder, since she has three Munna (though I recall her planning to give one to each of her parents, but I could be wrong).

Yes, Ino's plan is to give a munna to each parent and keep one for herself, and while her mother will appreciate it, Inoichi will cringe inside at receive a pink cutesy monster covered in flowers...

I did like that Eve was the first one to jump in to protect Vee from the Machop. It was a nice touch, though I am a little curious as to how both Eve and Uzu-chan reacted faster than Senkou. He's higher level than any of them, and Jolteon has the 7th highest speed of any Pokemon, and the number 1, 3, and 4 spots are all occupied by Deoxys forms.

Eve got there first because she started chasing after Vee when she noticed he'd run off ahead again, and she used quick attack. Uzu-chan got the next move in because she was an angry, protective mom. Senkou held off because electricity is harder to aim than water or direct physical contact and with Eve and Vee in very close proximity to the machop he might've accidentally grazed them.

All in all, a good chapter. Keep up the good work, and I don't suppose you've given any more thought to that rumored "Ten Adventures Naruto Missed" fic? Gamebrain and I got in a discussion last night, and we want to see some Gaara action.

I have a rough list of ideas...but without a huge burst of inspiration, I'm sticking to hacking away at Caught in the Whirlpool until I finish that before contemplating work on other things.

By "Ten Adventures Naruto Missed" do you mean that they're ten adventures Naruto had an oppertunity to go on but didn't take, or are they ten that Naruto couldn't be on altogether?

The idea is: ten things that have happened to people that Naruto knows, but he--the "main character"--wasn't around to witness/experience. Basically it's just an excuse to write about other Naruto characters without Naruto hanging around.