Prologue: I am back
It hurts. Being slammed a fuinjutsu in the stomach by a Sanin, Orochimaru nonetheless hurts. Of course he had known worst pain than that but it still hurt like hell, he could feel his chakra being disturbed and so much harder to control than it already was, life sucks. Of course he had to play hero and try to save his two abusing team mates even if he knew he was clearly outmatched, and dare I say he was completely and utterly destroyed by the man even if he was just toying with him. He could feel himself being thrown away in the forest even as his consciousness started to fade away, he could feel the wind rushing at his face as he plummeted towards the ground in what he was sure would be a painful landing. But he didn't care, he was already unconscious as he reached the ground and broke his arms and three ribs but he didn't care, he didn't feel the pain in this state.
Naruto, he was Naruto Uzumaki, son of no one and ninja of Konoha his homeland. He was loud, dumb, naive, everything you could find about him was bad even his determination since it always lead to something to dangerous for him to handle and he would have to use the Kyubi chakra that was in him. God was he pathetic without the Kyubi to lend him chakra and help him win his battle, without it he would already be dead since long before that. But what he didn't know was that all his flaws were due to an external source since the start, but that was about to change as numerous black markings appeared on his body and started to fall from it in what was knew as the breaking of a fuinjutsu on the body of someone.
Inside Naruto's mind:
Naruto found himself in what looked like a sewer, he didn't know why but the place installed a feeling of nostalgia in his heart as if he had already came here before but he was sure he didn't know the place. He saw pipes attache on the wall of the corridor he was in, there was three pipes and they glowed different colors, the first one was the smaller it was a light blue and pulsating calmly regularly, the second one was strange since it was at least three times bigger than the first one and glowing a strangely familiar deep red. The last one was the strangest as it was entirely black but he could feel it was truly powerful from just being near it, it was also oddly comforting to just be near it. He was startled when he heard a deep grumble from a door at the end of the corridor where a terrible power was emanating from, he was entranced by it and walked slowly in it's direction before he could even think of the dangers he could be in. After he opened the door, he entered in what he thought to be a giant hall with the floor flooded with water at about one feet of the floor. There was nothing in there apart some sort of cage where he could feel the red chakra was coming from. Normally in situation like this people with common sense will not approach a place like that but for Naruto it was different. The cage was emanating power in spades, but for him it was oddly familiar, comforting and dare he say... loving in a family sense. So without further notice he marched towards the front of the door without a sliver of doubt because whatever was in it he could tell that it would not harm him.
As he reached the opening of the cage, he could see what one would describe as the most terrifying sight they had ever seen, glowing slitted red eyes, but for Naruto they were emanating relief and happiness, as if the had recovered something that was greatly precious to them. It was then that he saw the rest of the body attached to the eyes: it was the body of a giant fox with deep orange fur and what looked like rabbit sized ears, it had also razor sharp tooth in its mouth, it was the Kyubi and weirdly enough it didn't frighten Naruto the slightest to be in the presence of the greatest Biju.
"Hello Naruto, so we see each other again like you promised." said the deep voice of the being in front of him.
"You're the Kyubi right?" at seeing the nod he continued "Why do I have the feeling that we know each other since long ago?" asked Naruto in a somewhat trance like voice.
"Because we met long ago, your 4thbirthday if I remember right. You were quite the ball of energy at that time." at that Kyubi chuckled with a mirthful look in his eyes.
At this Naruto had a big headache and a vision of what he thought was his past, in it there was a small Naruto where he was greeted by the presence of Kyubi in his dreams, there was another in which the great demon lord told him his real name: Kurama. When the pain lessened he looked at the great being with a sense of recognition in his eyes.
"Yo Kurama, been a long time hasn't it? What's happening to me?" asked Naruto in a somewhat deeper voice more fitted in an older teenager.
"The seals are breaking, you're returning to your original state before being restrained by those fools of the council because of their fear of you." at the end the fox growled in what was thought to be annoyance.
"What seals? Urg..." said Naruto before falling to his knees as another wave of memories assaulted him, this time it was memories of his time with his first true friends and he had to admit he missed them greatly now he remembered them.
"It's seals that were designed to seal off your chakra reserve, control and abilities, the second seal was designed to seal off your true appearance and physical abilities. The third and last seal was the one designed to seal off your memories and replace them with others while also sealing your mental capabilities making you a weak ninja with the mind of a 7 years old boy." explained Kyubi in a somewhat compassionate voice, not a good mix with his appearance.
"Kurama, I trust you what will happen now?" asked Naruto quickly as he could feel himself losing consciousness.
"You will black out to escape brain damage because of the shock that your brain will sustain at the recovery of your memories. Then your body will recover from the seals and regain its original appearance along with all your abilities and your kekkei genkai, along with that the block on your mind will be lifted, all in all the process will take approximately 6 hours." explained patiently the fox with giddiness at the prospect of recovering his long lost friend.
"But I'm on the forest floor in the Forest of Death, I can't protect my body."
"Don't worry I got that covered, I will produce an aura around you that will explain to all the animal in your presence that you're not to be messed with so you will not be attacked by either beast or human. Now sleep and I will see the real you in 6 hours." ordered the great being with a chuckle.
"Thank you, Kura...ma." finished Naruto with a smile before succumbing to his headache and falling into unconsciousness.
"At last, he finally is returning. I've got to thank Orochimaru for that even if he doesn't knows it yet he has freed the biggest threat upon his life with his fuinjutsu. Life just got back to being fun."stated Kurama with happiness at the prospect of having finally his host back to his true self, yes life was back to being good.
6 hours later, still in Naruto's mindscape:
He was feeling so much lighter, he hadn't felt this feeling since seven years back when he was just merely twelve years old. He knew this feeling, the feeling of being one's true self without any mask, any restraint just pure Kazama Naruto. Yes, his true name was Kazama Naruto, son of Kazama Arashi the head of the Arashi clan, a clan dedicated at serving the Namikaze clan since their debt at being saved by the at the first Shinobi War. He had a seat that awaited him in the shinobi council as he was now Lord Kazama since he is the last of the Kazama clan.
Naruto still had his eyes closed not wanting to end this feeling of peacefulness and freedom that he experienced before he finally looked back at his memory, he finally focused on one of the last before saying loudly.
"She will so kill me when I see her again."
"I couldn't agree more don't you." said the familiar voice of his brother in all but blood, Kurama.
"Shut up, you oversized fox with bunny ears." said Naruto playfully finally opening his eyes to look at his first and long time friend.
"They are not bunny ears you little bastard!" screamed Kurama in indignation but you could see that he was not truly angry if the smirk on his face was any indication.
It was all they had to say before they started to laugh loudly, the mirth evident in their eyes and true happiness oozing off them at being reunited again, they hadn't truly see each other in seven years so it was a great relief to be back together again. After five minute or so they finally settled down again after regaining their breath, it was Naruto who started the conversation.
"It's good to see you again bro."
"I know, it's good to finally having a true worthy hos again. So what are you going to do now that you're back?" asked a somewhat eager Kurama.
"First I've got to change and retrieve back the princess from our old dojo which is thankfully in this forest. Seriously, who could like orange at this point." stated Naruto.
"I've got to say that you're right, orange is awful." nodded approvingly the Biju.
"Secondly, I've got to save my 'teammates' asses and then go to the tower to complete the second task. Then I don't know, it depends on what we should do for the third task and if there is time between, but I know that when I have time I will go see my old friends and my Uncle and Aunt." stated a now late teenager Naruto.
At this Kyubi seemed to nod in agreement since he wasn't saying anything else before he looked him straight in the eyes saying.
"And what are you going to do about this place, I admit that a sewer is not exactly my definition of relaxing."
"Ah, sorry, sorry. I kind of forgot about that, let me get this down." said Naruto in a carefree voice that he knew damn annoyed Kurama.
At this everything around them started to change: first there was no more cage but a collar around Kurama's neck with a tag with on it the kanji for seal, second they were now in a beautiful forest with a clear river running through it and there was the blue sky filled with fluffy cloud. Last but not least there was also the mansion that Naruto had build for Kurama's comfort, it was made in a traditional Japanese style. After that Naruto talked again.
"Well now that its done, I have to go and complete this fucking exam and don't worry, you know I can ace through it."
"Yes I know, stay in contact." said Kyubi while watching as Naruto started fading before he was no longer there. "Now for quality time." Kurama said as he started trotting to the mansion where he knew he had a Icha Icha collection waiting for him after so much time.
Outside of Naruto's mind, the Forest of Death:
As Naruto opened his eyes, he could see that it was night time and he surely could retrieve his teammates the next morning so he decided to go to his previous favorite place before being sealed. As he stood up he could feel his old orange jumpsuit clinging to him very tightly and he knew why but it was sure damn annoying. Before when he was still sealed he was 4 feet 10 inches(1m47) but know without these restraints he was 6 feet(1m82) in height and his jumpsuit was too tight for him to wear now. He got rid of the jacket and black t-shirt leaving him bare-chested before he started running in what seemed to be a random direction but in reality he knew exactly where he was going. Before he was sealed, he and his best friend had a hidden place in the Forest of Death in order to train and meet away from the prying eye since it would have leveled some questions that they did not really want to answer some questions that might have been asked about their relationship. As he ran in the forest he started reminiscing how exactly they built a place like that here, at first it was really a crazy story.
Flashback: 9 years ago, Naruto's age:10:
Naruto and his friend were standing on the Hokage monument in Konoha after a long day of training in one of their secret training place since they didn't want their friendship to be revealed just now even if their closest friends already knew about it they just didn't want to be disturbed by the populace of Konoha. They were calmly sitting on the head of the first Hokage who in their opinion was the greatest Hokage of the four along with his brother Tobirama, the second Hokage. It was truly a relaxing sight, before them stood the village illuminated by the setting sun giving it a gentle orange halo that made it really beautiful. They liked to come here after every training session that they had. It was his friend that first started talking.
"You know, I'm tired to have to find a training ground where nobody will find us each time we train. I mean why don't we build our own training ground, it would certainly ease our time." the voice was clearly feminine and there was surely a hint of grace in it.
"Where did that come from?" asked Naruto with a curious look on his face as he turned to face her.
"From quite some time, I'm tired to have to hide my friendship with you but if we have to I want to at least be comfortable when we hide." he knew she was upset with their situation.
"I know and me too I want to display our friendship to everyone and stop hiding but it's for your own security, I don't want you to be hurt just because you're friend with the Kyubi brat." said Naruto with a sad look.
"You know I don't care that you hold the Kyubi, the others too don't." stated the girl with an angry look.
Naruto sighed and took her hand in his while trying to soothe her anger which calmed the girl but made her blush slightly at the gesture. It wasn't long before she was calm again and he started talking.
"Yes I know you all don't care but the villagers do, and I wouldn't put it past them to try and hurt you to get to me and I couldn't forgive myself if something happened to you or the others because of me." he said with a kind smile on his face that seemed to make all the girls around him sigh in admiration.
"Yes, I know but that doesn't mean I have to like it." stated his friend with a pout that made him laugh and her blush more.
"So, what was it with your idea of building a training ground and where?" asked the blond quite curious about her idea.
"Well, we could build one to suit our need and to be hidden from the populace for more privacy. This way we wouldn't have to change training ground each times. I thought of where it could be and I found a place but you won't be pleased." stated the girl with a nervous look.
"Where?" asked Naruto with a suspicious look as he had a feeling he wouldn't like what he would hear.
"In the Forest of Death, I found a clearing where we could build it and with your knowledge of seals we could ward it to be invisible and animal/human repellents apart from us and those keyed to the seals." she explained rapidly after seeing the look of barely contained anger on his face at the mention of her going into the forest without him.
"'sigh' So let me get this straight, you went into the forest without me, then you found a clearing and thought it good for our need and then you want me to use the seals of my family to ward the place so we can construct it. Am I getting it all?" he asked with a twitch in his eyes.
"Yes..." she said shyly knowing the earful she was about to get but was surprised when she only got a sigh of exasperation in return.
"Alright, take me to this place and we will see from there." he said and stood up.
"Wait, you're not mad at me for going into there without you?" she asked confused.
"Yes I'm angry, you could have been hurt and stay in there without help or worst die. Yes I'm disappointed in you, you should have me come with you every time you go in there since the animals knows not to mess with me as I have the Kyubi sealed in me. But I understand that I won't always be there to help you and it was a good experience for you but my biggest emotion right now is relief." stated Naruto getting another confused look from the girl still sited.
"Relief?"
"Yes relief, relief that you came back alive and not injured. I don't know what I would do without you in my life." he admitted while turning his back to her so she wouldn't see how red he was blushing.
She was really touched that he would think of her like that and before he knew what happened she had hugged him from behind with her head in his back. She started speaking before he could protest. (not that he would be she doesn't need to know that)
"Thank you for trusting me Naruto." she said he voice muffled due to her still having her head in his back and to not show her blushing face.
"No problem, let's go." he said and they finally got there to examine the place.
It had taken 6 months but they had finally managed to finish their secret place and they were damn proud of it. It was a magnificent dojo with beige walls lined with wood. Inside their was a sparing room with boken and real katana on the walls to use as weapons. Their was also two lockers, one for each gender and in was standard kendo practice attire. But their favorites was still the onsen that Naruto somehow built in the back on the dojo and she still didn't know how he did it. They were standing in front of their dojo with grins on their faces as they were quite proud of the results they got from their hard work. It was her who broke the silence.
"Come on Naruto let's go!" she shouted as she ran towards the entrance.
"Oi, Wait for me …." shouted back Naruto with a smile of amusement on his face.
Flashback end: (Aha, you thought I would have told you her name so quickly, don't worry it will be told in the 1st chapter.)
And here he was standing in front of the dojo who had not changed one inch since the last time he came here. It was still standing proud and he was quite please with himself if he admitted it. He got inside and directly made his way towards his locker without any hesitation since remembered the place quite well even after seven years. Once he got there he immediately got out of the rest of his old clothes before going directly towards the back door where he got in his onsen. The place was actually quite peaceful and beautiful since it was an outdoor onsen and there was a beautiful sight of the forest around it. He didn't go in the water first but he made his way towards where he knew the cleaning supplies where before he set to wash himself quite thoroughly since he didn't like being dirty but it comes with the job and he wouldn't have it any other way. As he finished cleaning himself he took a towel from the stack and a small piece of wood that could float on the water before he opened a secret stash that he had hidden under one of the stone on the ground. From it he took a bottle of rare Iwa sake with a small cup before setting it in the piece of wood and going in water where he sat himself at the border before deposing the wood in the water and uncorking the bottle before drinking a small cup of it and releasing a small sigh of pleasure and relaxation as he finally rested in the water. Don't ask him where he got the sake because of the relation between Iwa and Konoha were quite strained since the third Shinobi War, he would not tell a soul how he got it but he would never share it with anyone other than his friends.
He didn't know how many time it was since he got in but when he spotted the first rays of sun through the leaf he could tell that it was time for him to go and finish this task with his so called 'teammates'. He didn't even know why he did that for them, Ah yes, he had to keep their sorry asses alive if he wanted to complete the task. As his Uncle would say "Damn troublesome..." (AN: anyone can guess who is his Uncle? Come on it's easy with the clue.) So he got up and went back to the locker to clothe himself before heading out, he also had to retrieve his princess from the basement so he hurried himself as he knew she had sensed him come back.
Once he got in the locker he looked around and spotted his outfit that was fitted for him, he had ordered it a long time ago for his promotion as chunin, guess he would have to use it a little earlier. He started by putting on some black underpants, followed by that he put on Anbu styled black pants with a bit more pockets than the standard ones. After that he put a black short sleeved turtleneck muscle shirt and he added to that black combat boots. He put on a gray belt with the head of a silver fox as a buckle, he also put two red leather belts on his torso in a 'X' cross pattern. With that he strapped two utility pouch on his belt behind his back: they contained each 30 kunais, 35 shurikens, 15 explosive tags, 4 smoke bombs and 20m of ninja wire. In his pants pockets, he added numerous scrolls with different colors: blue, black, red, yellow, purple and finally green.
He looked himself on the mirror and he had to admit that he looked pretty damn professional compared to his sealed self and his orange obsession, what self-respecting ninja wear orange anyway? He was about to go away before he remembered that he still had his headband missing but he knew what to replace it with. He walked towards a drawer in the room and opened it to reveal many pairs of black fingerless gloves with metal plates on it and the leaf insignia on them. He smirked as he put them on and he felt that his ninja regalia was finally complete as he missed just one thing.
He walked out of the room and into the sparing room before he walked towards a stair case that leaded under the floor where he could see a door that was sealed with one of his family seal. As he was in front of the door he could see his family emblem on it where the seal was hidden in it; it was a dragon head with katana crossing behind it, the same insignia that he had in white on his left breast. He cut his thumb before smearing the blood on the seal and sending his chakra in it, the seal was particular in that it wasn't an standard blood seals as this one did not only react with his blood but also with his chakra signature since it wouldn't do if someone just got his blood and smeared it on the seal to access the room, no this was far more surer. As he heard the distinct click that signaled the opening of the door he could feel his heart beating fast with excitement at the prospect of recovering his princess after seven years, after all she was part of his soul so it was normal he missed it. He entered the room and he saw her, his beautiful princess: it was a gorgeous katana with a handle wrapped in black clothes with crimson diamond pattern on it that continued as the sheath it was in was midnight black with the same diamond pattern. It was truly a piece of art and you could feel the power leaking from it even if it was still sheathed, he could almost feel the happiness radiating from the word at his presence. He walked towards it and with a hand shaking in excitement he grabbed it and suddenly he was brought in what he called his 'soulscape' since it wasn't exactly his mindscape.
Naruto's soulscape:
As he entered his soulscape he could see the familiar place where he had met his trusted partner, his friend and most of all his Zampakuto. The place was a beautiful clearing filled with blood red roses and he was standing in the middle of a path that was leading towards a circular place where the ground was set in black and white tiles. On it there was a small table with a set of cups and tea, around it was two chairs. But the most beautiful thing about it was the beautiful woman singing with joy oozing out of her voice. She was standing at the height of 5 feet 7 inches(1m70) with long crimson hair set in a formal bun on the back of her head with some loose bangs framing her heart-shaped face. She had beautiful crimson eyes framed by long curly eyelashes, she had a small nose and ruby red lips that you could tell were naturals and not with lipstick. Her lithe body was framed by a breathtaking black kimono with red lilies pattern. She had an hourglass figure with what seemed to C-cup breasts and not so wide hips. Her beauty seemed to be from another world as it was too beautiful to be from this world, she was his Zampakuto.
Naruto stood there just taking in her beauty and listening to her beautiful voice that seemed to entrance him and make him peaceful. She finished her song five minutes later and when she looked at him she gave a gorgeous smile before running to him and launching herself in his arms while crying.
"Naruto-kun, I'm so glad that you're back. Never leave me alone again, I don't want you to leave me alone again." she said as she cried in his arms in joy to finally regain her partner and master. She was pleasantly surprised when he embraced her tightly to reassure her he wasn't leaving again.
"Don't worry princess, I won't leave you again. Shh, everything will be alright now." said Naruto as he whispered soothing words in her ear to calm her.
After five minutes she calmed herself and reluctantly separated herself from his warmth that she loved so much. She got to look at him after seven years of absence and she had to admit that he looked damn good in his outfit and he radiated an air of power and confidence. It was Naruto who broke the silence.
"I missed you, you have no idea." he stated.
"And what should I say, without you I can't do anything else but wait until someone find me but with your seal it would not happen. But now you're back and if I have anything to say, you're back for good." she said with an air of assurance around her as she puffed her cheeks making her look extremely cute instead of serious.
"Yes, I'm back for good. We will talk much later as I've a task to complete but know that you're not leaving my side now." he stated as he started to fade.
"Yes Naruto, I will always be by your side to help you." said the red head.
"We will see each other later Benihime" and then Naruto was gone from his soulscape.
Back in the basement under the dojo:
Naruto opened his eyes while smiling, he got his princess back. He took the katana from his resting place he strapped it to across his back with a red string of ropes to keep it steady. As Naruto was walking out of the dojo and in the forest he smiled knowing that his return would make the Hokage freak out but he didn't care. No, he will use everything he have to bring back the Kazama to glory and now he was free of the debt he had with the Namikaze since the Fourth utilized him to seal the Kyubi and by proximity rendering the debt fulfilled freeing the Kazama from the curse that the Namikaze were.
"I'm Back!" and with that said Naruto seemed to disappear in the wind as if he never was here to begin.
