It started with a book. Well no that wasn't quite right. It actually started with a girl. A typical girl filled with desire, jealousy, anger, and insecurities like any other girl. However this girl kept these feelings hidden from view because of her own shyness and fear of causing trouble for others.
However one should not lock away such feelings. Dark thoughts, on occasion, need to be shared and exposed to the light in order to better control and expunge them. To keep such things under the surface is to invite them to fester and grow. To try and overwhelm us. However the girl's kind heart brought with it the type of stubbornness that allowed her to persevere against her desires, even if she didn't realize it.
It wasn't like her life was terrible though. Indeed, opposed to how it once was, it was on the up. She was making great strides in creating her own version of gentle fist, her cousin was becoming more and more like the cousin she knew when she was young, she was close to her team, her teacher was like a second mother to her, and her crush was a good friend of hers. All in all, to her it was enough, because she believed in her heart that more good would follow with time.
However that didn't stop her from missing her blonde crush since he left the village for a training trip. Nor did it prevent her from wishing she was stronger and more confident so she could express herself to him. It also didn't halt her desires to make her fractured family completely whole once more by, almost, any means necessary.
Which is why we now find the girl, Hinata Hyuuga, at Konoha's main ninja library. A place filled with books and scrolls meant to help further the knowledge of the shinobi populace at large. There were various histories and techniques available to her as a gennin, which she dove into to find any and all ways to try and improve herself in her spare time. It was an almost desperate search from a desperate heart. And a desperate heart will accept desperate measures even when her head told her they weren't needed.
In the midst of her search she looked over a good portion of the library. Which is why she was most surprised when she felt drawn to a section she had looked over several times to find a book she never saw before. At least she didn't remember ever seeing it before. Which was most odd because she usually had a very good memory. Though there were certainly several reasons why she wouldn't have seen it before.
The book itself looked old. Very old. Easily one of the oldest in the library. And its cover… the bindings… the spine…. they looked.. odd. The material that made them looked off. And it was quite soft to the touch. But she pushed such thoughts away as she picked up the ancient text and opened it.
The words inside were written with an ink that looked almost like a dark red. The pictures depicted twisted scenes and dark imagery. It also written left to right instead of right to left. However the strangest thing was the language. It was unknown to her. Which was strange since everyone spoke and wrote in the same language. Even the other nations. So was it even older than she had first thought?
Now this girl had every right to be disgusted and disturbed by this book. The feel of it both in her hands and just in general felt wrong. Tainted. The pictures would make the average person blanche. And yet, all she felt was curiosity. She wanted to read it. To understand it. To figure out why it felt the way it did. But to do that she would have to understand the strange language. And oh how she wished she could.
All of the sudden she was struck by a great pain. A pain that drove her to her knees as her hands grabbed her head. The book fell to the ground with a thud that she ignored as she tried to think of anything through the pain that filled her being. It was like someone was trying to shove a red hot kunai through her skull. It was excrutiating. It spread throughout her, and seemed to puncture into her very soul. Then it retreated. It receded until it was just in her head. A dull ache that persisted a she opened her eyes and reached for the book.
She had only meant to pick up the fallen tome. However as she picked it up, she caught a glimpse at the words within. Words she could now read. She didn't know how it was possible, and that should have been her first warning. Her warning to take the book to the Hokage and have it burned. However Hinata did not heed this warning, or even see it for what it was as she began to read.
The girl was fascinated and bewildered. The book spoke of spirits and rituals. The ability to grant almost any wish for a price. Be that wish power, wealth, strong children, or even love. With the power of the spirits one could bend others to their wills and strike down their obstacles. With every word she read her interest grew, and her dark desires bubbled closer and closer to the surface.
The rituals themselves weren't too hard. Chanting, drums, a sacrificed animal… not hard at all. And the spirits sounded so interesting. So varied and unique. And the power the book promised. She could pray for insight. Receive guidance on how to remove the accursed seal from her family. Make Naruto see that she was the one for him, and remove all others from her way.
That was when it hit her. That was when she noticed the spiral of her thoughts. Make? One can not force love. The girl shook her head and closed the book. However she then put it back where she found it. Not speaking a word to anyone as she left. She resolved to never think about it again, even as soft words whispered sweet promises in the back of her mind.
In her heart, Hinata was like any other girl. She had many desires. And she was secretly very desperate to fulfill them. Layer that on top of the fact that dark spirits lingered inside the book that she had read…
It really is quite an achievement that she lasted a whole two weeks before the returned to the library and checked out the book.
The story continues with a boy. The holder of a great power. A pariah in his own home. He was returning from a training trip that had taken two and a half years to complete. To say that Naruto Uzumaki was happy to be home, would be an understatement.
To say his home had changed would be an even bigger one.
Take his teammate Sakura Haruno for example. The girl he had crushed on since childhood. Now two and a half years is a long time, and growth of both body and mind are to be expected. He after all had grown at least a foot in height and matured quite a bit. So he was not surprised to see that his old crush had matured in body quite well. She may not had filled out quite as much as other girls, but she was still beautiful in his eyes. Which he had told her, when he said she hadn't really changed any. It had made his heart soar when she smiled at him and thanked him for the compliment.
In truth nothing really seemed different about her, or atleast nothing too large, until after he had been challenged by his 'rival' Konohamaru with the sexy technique.
"Really Naruto? A new version?" the pinkett had said with a sigh with the fingertips of her right hand touching her forehead as she shook her head.
"Of course! It's my own original technique. So of course I'm going to try and improve it and make it better!"
"Then let's see it."
"Wait… you actually want to see it? You aren't going to hit me? Call me a pervert?" Now things struck him as weird. Warning bells weren't going off and red flags had yet to be raised, but he still found her behavior to be strange.
"Naruto, I hit you a LOT when we were younger. If that didn't help then, why would it help now? Besides I remember the original being able to take out our teacher if only for a moment. So if this version is stronger, well then it might just be something worth seeing."
The blonde really couldn't fight that logic. He also couldn't help but think about how much his teammate seemed to have matured. No longer did she appear to be the impulsive and violent girl of their youth. That wasn't all bad right? With a smile and the knowledge that everything was alright, he activated his new and improved sexy technique.
The results were quite telling. The legendary pervert Jiraiya was left reeling from the techniques power. Konohamaru and his friends went to their knees in submissions to Naruto's skill. Several men were reduced to bleeding messes on the floor. Women who were passing by were floored by inadequacy. And Sakura… Sakura gave him an approving nod.
That last one signaled him to cancel the technique. It also struck him as odd. He had expected Sakura to … well he wasn't sure what he expected. He just didn't expect her to be so accepting. However this was all good right? He had no reason to think it was bad surely.
Soon after that Naruto split ways with his master. Jiraiya went to inform Tsunade of their arrival, while Naruto stuck with Sakura who desired to show him around the village. Which in all honesty hadn't changed much even as the times had. He was glad to hear that His village and Suna had grown closer. He was even happy for his friend Gaara who had become Kazekage, the leader of Suna. He was rather irked that all his friends and classmates had become chuunin, or even jounin, while he remained a genin. Though that was overshadowed by the first dozen bowls he had had in over two years. That and seeing the smiling face of Ayame and her father and getting to talk to them again. It really did him good.
Little did he know that things would soon be very very bad for him.
This PARTICULAR story ends not long after.
Soon after that late lunch at Ichiraku's Sakura told Naruto she had something he needed to see before they met up with Tsunade. After being reassured that it wouldn't take too long, Naruto agreed. That lead to them heading to a very familiar training ground. The place was a fairly large clearing with three wooden posts on one side with a river behind them, and a large stone structure on the other. This was training field three. The place where Team seven was born.
Before the blonde could question his teammate about why they were there, he spotted her. He honestly didn't recognize the figure whose back was turned to them. However he certainly found their attire to be strange to say the least. On their head they wore a strange dark blue cloth that was wrapped in such a way that no hair escaped it. It was almost as if they had bundled up a towel and put it on top of their head as a hat.
However the strangeness of their headgear didn't hold a candle to the rest of the outfit. The top of said outfit seemed to consist solely of the tightly woven mesh armor that ninja's favored. Its weave was tight enough that you couldn't QUITE tell if the figure was wearing something under it. Yet at the same time it flowe of the blatantly feminine curves so well you could swear the lines of the mesh were drawn directly to the skin.
Luckily for the boy who claimed that he wasn't a pervert, the woman before him also wore a shawl like wrap on her shoulders and an ankle length skirt. Both were the same dark midnight blue color as the headwrap. Though the skirt also had some silver trimmings.
Now Naruto was very confused. He didn't remember anyone who would even THINK about wearing such an outfit. His mind went around his circles trying to figure out an identity, and reason for his teammate to take him here. Why the person would be waiting for them as if she had expected he would be here despite just arriving unannounced…
"I have brought him my mistress." The pink haired girl said with a bow.
NOW the alarm bells were ringing. His teammate's voice had lost all sense of personality. It was mechanical and emotionless.
"Ah, so you have. Good girl. Thank you." Said the figure before them. Naruto blinked. The voice was so familiar. But… it couldn't be. The last time he had heard a similar voice it had been soft and quiet with the occasional stutter. This voice was so much stronger. It rang with power and certainty that what it said WOULD be followed without a second thought. It couldn't be the same voice. It couldn't be…
And yet the figure turned and there was no mistaking the face. She had grown over the years as well, but there was no mistaking the face of Hinata Hyuuga.
The boy's mind reeled at the revelation. What had happened? What was going on? The figure that was Hinata smiled pleasantly at him. "Welcome back Naruto. I hope your return has been relaxing so far. Especially the ramen that Ayame made special for you."
Now Naruto was starting to feel a little freaked out as well as upset. What had Hinata done? What had she done to Sakura? had she done something to Ayame as well?
"Oh don't be upset Naruto. Ayame is fine. All i've done is… help her a bit. Did you like the ramen she made? She has been experimenting with various spices. Which Ino has provided by the way." The blue haired woman said with a soft smile. However the smile felt anything but friendly. It had a sort of predator like feel to it. "In fact some of those spices are meant to help relax the body. Even if they take a bit of time to kick in."
It was at this moment that The blonde boy started to feel a little woozy. His limbs suddenly felt heavy. It took all his willpower to not just let his body collapse. He had been drugged. Drugged by Ayame. The drugs supplied by Ino. Both were likely brainwashed like Sakura was. All by the girl she had considered a friend. A weird friend, but a friend all the same. Hinata had betrayed him. Just like Sasuke had.
He felt his anger rise. In response the fox started sending out its chakra through the seal. It was only a tiny amount at the moment. However that would be all he would need. Already the red chakra was enhancing his healing rate, allowing his body to burn through the drugs at a faster rate. However, it was not enough.
Out of the corner of his eye he saw Sakura move. Felt her press into his back with more speed than he expected. With his reflexes still dulled by the rapidly diminishing drugs he couldn't stop her from pulling something over his head and around his neck. As soon as he felt a heavy weight hit him in the chest, the fox's chakra just vanished. The feeling didn't just return, it intensified.
He found himself leaning back into the solid figure of Sakura who held him around the waist like one would a lover. He blinked several times in order to clear suddenly blurry vision and looked down at the thing that Sakura put on him. It appeared to be a pendant of some kind. It was white in color in a strange shape that kind of resembled a cross with even stranger symbols written upon the surface.
"What?" He got out weakly. It felt like all his energy was leaving him. Pulled straight from his body.
"Oh don't worry my dear sweet Naruto." The woman before him cooed. "Its just a little something I made to prevent the fox from interfering. I'll take it off after the ritual."
The weakness retreated slightly as adrenaline kicked in a little. "How? I haven't-" He started.
"My masters have told me much about you Naruto. They have revealed many secrets to me in exchange for my services and many a sacrifice in their name. The fox was actually one of the smaller details. Though it was mostly revealed so it could be used as a prize itself."
Now it made sense. Or at least he thought it did. He couldn't figure out everything, but one thing was clear.
"Why Hinata? Why would you side with Akatsuki?" He demanded. The giggle he received in response was like that of the purest bells… rung at a funeral. Pure beautiful notes that filled him with dread. Adding to that akura held him closer even as she she too gave a light giggle.
"Oh Naruto I do not work for those fools. They are mere imbeciles following a false guide who follows and even more false goddess. They would take away your life and leave you empty and forgotten." ANother giggle. "No my masters are far more… efficient at removing spirits while leaving the hosts alive… if a little… emptier. A fact I know first hand. After all you won't be the first piece I have stolen from that group of fools."
Naruto was now frightened ON TOP of being confused. Hinata was crazy. he was sure of it. She somehow lost all the sense he thought she had. What was worse in her madness she had gained the power to control others. But how? Strings? Messing with chakra points? Some bizarre forbidden jutsu?
He attempted to struggle against the iron grip of Sakura. However his body was too weak. It just wouldn't respond to him. He only stopped his vain struggle when he saw one of Hinata's hands reaching into a bag on her hip. he hadn't noticed it before. How could he not. It was larger than the usual pouch ninja's carried for storing tools, and seeming made from the same material as her clothes. From within its depths she withdrew something that made the blonde's blood run cold.
It was a small handmade doll. That looked almost exactly like him in miniature. It even had his current outfit. Something that NO ONE from Konoha should have known about. Not long enough to make it with attention to detail. His mind wa once again left in a whir of questions. Questions he never got to voice.
For while he had been distracted the woman clad in the colors of midnight had closed the gap between them. It was the sharp pain of something cutting into his skin that shocked him out of his stupor. He came back to reality in time to see the girl he thought he once knew take some of his blood from a fresh cut on his arm and wipe it upon the doll. She then plucked a single hair from his head.
The blonde boy could only watch in morbid fascination as Hinata sat down and began the weave the hair into the doll somehow. He was speechless. His mind had shut down. He could only watch.
"Don't worry my sweet sweet Naruto. Once I am done. you will be free from the influence of the Fox while keeping its power for your own. And we will be together forever. In the world I make, no one will hurt you. I will end this age of chaos and pain."
The sheer conviction and mad fanaticism that filled those words struck the doomed boy from his stupor. In desperation he attempted to plead for mercy. "Hinata. Don't do this. Please. I-"
"Hush now Naruto." The woman soothed as she started the last knot. "No need to worry. You'll find comfort and pleasure in the life I have planned for you. Just like those before, and those that will follow after."
"Wait! Sto-" The final knot was finished and the boy that would be Hokage felt something grab hold of him. Like an unseen hand was gripping his very soul. Then it all went black.
Thus ends the story of my father Naruto Uzumaki. Or at least the story of the boy he was. Before he became the man my mother made him. However while it was the end of HIS story, it was just another chapter in the long story that is my mother's. The Great Queen Hinata done much before that day, and would go on to do SO much more. That is until her own end.
She taught me VERY well, and was quite proud of me as I made my move against her.
However those are tales for a another time. Perhaps if you are good I'll tell you another of your choice.
Good night children.
