AN: This is my first fanfiction so apologies in advance if it isn't of high quality. My chapters seem rather short and I need to work on how to get them longer. I have several chapters written (about 16k words) for this story so if you like it, please let me know and I will continue to upload more chapters.
Naruto hated every breath he took, every heartbeat he felt, every day he lived - everything that prolonged his miserable life. Everyone in Konoha despised his existence since he was the vessel of the Nine-Tailed Fox, the very demon that destroyed the village and slaughtered their loved ones. It's not like it was his choice to have the demon sealed inside of him.
The comments and disapproval from his fellow peers weren't the main cause of his depression. It was because Naruto held the very reason for everyone's pain and grief. He was reminded of that every time someone avoided his gaze or moved out of the blond's immediate vicinity. No one in the village wanted to be grouped with the boy who decimated a once peaceful village.
A single question ran through his mind whenever he encountered these acts of seclusion: "Why was I forced to carry such a burden?" Naruto always shrugged this question off without giving it much thought, believing the world would be better off without him.
The Kyuubi took a sadistic pleasure in incessantly reminding Naruto of how hated and worthless he was, pushing him closer and closer to taking his own life. This would then release the Kyuubi, leaving him to finish what he started seventeen years ago. The blond was unable to seek any form of refuge from the Kyuubi's actions since his malice-filled voice would erupt within his mind without warning, hurling a barrage of crude remarks that would leave the boy in shambles.
With the Kyuubi being sealed inside of Naruto, he could control the rate in which wounds healed - an advantageous ability for both parties. Naruto could proceed with his self-harming without suspicion and the Kyuubi wouldn't have to worry about anyone coming to the conclusion that it was him sending Naruto over the fox would chuckle to himself as the wounds closed, "Why must you be so careful? No one cares enough to look at you." Naruto ignored the comment made by the Kitsune, even though he knew the demon was right. Regardless, Naruto felt the need to remove any sign of his suicidal tendencies just for his own peace of mind.
Naruto quietly watched the cuts on his thighs disappear as they always did. He stood from his bed, setting the kunai down on his nightstand, and walked to his laundry room to place the bloodied bed sheet into the washing machine. The boy despised this inherently natural ability. Despite all attempts to inflict any type of harm unto himself, the distraction would melt away with haste and leave him with nothing to cope with the pain of persistent abandonment and social rejection.
After turning on the washing machine and making sure everything was in order, he made his way to the bathroom and stood there. He stared into his own eyes before fixing his gaze on the three symmetrical marks affixed on each cheek. He raised a hand to them and lightly traced the marks with a finger quite a few times, hoping that if he did it enough times, it would disappear along with his problems.
During the time he was in Academy, he was oblivious to the demon he held inside of him - a demon everyone knew he possessed. By word of mouth, almost all of Konoha was aware of the demon that slumbered within the young boy. The Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, ordered the the villagers to refrain from making the boy aware of what he held inside of him. The Third knew that it would not remain a secret forever. He knew that the Kyuubi was bound to make his voice known to the young boy at one point or another.
Whilst Naruto was still a child, he knew the Third gave several ANBU the task of protecting him with their lives. If any assassination attempts on Naruto were successful, the Kyuubi would be released. The Third decided it was well worth the sacrifice of an ANBU to save the life of thousands and even the village itself. It was after a few of the ANBU had fallen that the demon had made his voice known to his container. The fox sneered at the boy, blaming him for the deaths of the village's elite. Hundreds of assassination attempts were made for Naruto's life but the ANBU, through their own sacrifice, successfully prevented any harm from reaching him. The Third kept Naruto under the watchful eye of the elite squad until he felt that Naruto could handle himself, making sure to check up on him every once in awhile.
It wasn't until Naruto had reached the age of twelve that he was comfortably left alone by Sarutobi. Around this age, Naruto was placed into Team Kakashi with a raven-haired male named Sasuke Uchiha and a loud-mouthed pinkette named Sakura Haruno. Naruto was receiving proper training from his sensei, Kakashi, who would always keep a watchful eye on the young blond in case the demon within him ever tried to escape.
***Shift in POV***
Kiba groaned as he made his way to the training grounds, occasionally walking past some of the early risers of the village who were setting up shop or sweeping the stoney paths that carved their way through Konoha. He wasn't much for training before eight in the morning since he would much rather get out of bed at ten or eleven. Nonetheless, it wasn't much use complaining since he already agreed to train with his teammates, Hinata Hyuuga and Shino Aburame. Akamaru, a large nin-dog that has accompanied the Inuzuka since he was just a pup, was trotting beside his owner as they walked through Konoha. He let out a few barks as he conversed with Kiba, to which the brunet would respond.
The Inuzuka Clan was one of the more well-known clans in Konoha, primarily for their extremely heightened sense of smell and their innate ability to communicate with and understand canines. The Inuzukas could hear the emotion and personality behind every bark like normal people could with human unique medium of communication made it important when sharing information in front of enemy lines.
It didn't take long at all for the Inuzuka and his companion to reach the training grounds, seeing that both Shino and Hinata were waiting for him. The Inuzuka rushed towards them, yelling at an attempt to get their attention. "Hey, guys! I'm here!"
Shino, the boy who always wore a pair of dark sunglasses, turned with a look of slight irritation on his face before answering rather plainly, "There's no need to yell Kiba, it's early in the morning. Either way, shall we get started?"
Kiba nodded with a smirk on his face, pumped about the training that was about to take place. Hinata stayed relatively silent, lending a soft noise of confirmation when Shino proposed the question.
All three team members were positioned in a triangular formation, facing towards one another. The air was quiet as the Chuunin studied each other, waiting for someone to make the first move. Kiba realized that all this waiting would get him nowhere. Both Hinata and Shino were too smart to make the first move and let their strategy come to light. Eager to initiate the spar, Kiba dashed backwards into the trees and took higher ground. The other two followed suit and took coverage in the trees that surrounded the training grounds.
None of the ninja were at a disadvantage for scouting their other teammates as they all possessed their own unique skills in tracking. Kiba and Akamaru possessed heightened olfactory abilities to smell out their friends' unique scents. Hinata had the infamous Byakugan which had been the staple of the Hyuuga clan since it was founded, allowing her to see through other objects and pick up on chakra sources. Shino, on the other hand, had no kind of heightened senses. Instead, he was the host of hundreds, if not thousands, of insects that could track others based on the pheromones released by the female kikaichu. Shino would have the females pursue specific targets under the premise that normal ninja would assume that they were simply harmless bugs. When their pheromones were released, swarms of insects would come to feast on the target's chakra.
Kiba and Akamaru took their position in the treetops, sniffing the air and focusing on the closest scent to them, the shy Hyuuga. They dashed through the branches as silently as they could, knowing that Hinata was very aware of her surroundings. Her awareness challenged those of the younger Inuzukas, an almost impossible task completed through years of training. As Hinata's scent got stronger and stronger, they slowed their advance so both the Inuzuka and his companion could catch their breaths, taking all the necessary precautions before approaching her.
Hinata kept to herself behind a tree, her Byakugan activated as she scanned the area for any signs of her teammates' chakra. She kept her ears open, listening for any suspicious sounds besides the calm rustling of leaves or swaying of branches, continuing her brilliant visual scan of her surroundings. She made sure to keep turning herself, getting a complete view of her surrounding area. Due to her increasing mastery of the Byakugan, she was able to spot both Shino and Kiba with relative ease and started planning a form of attack, knowing that Kiba was attempting to sneak up on her.
Kiba stood still, staring at the Hyuuga who had her back to them. He thought about his current situation for a moment but came to his own silent conclusion, nodding to himself. He knew he wouldn't get a better opportunity to launch an attack on his teammate so he reached into his tool pouch and grabbed a few kunai.
Kiba quickly threw the kunai with precision, causing his face to turn pale in the following seconds. The kunai he just threw actually found their target, lodging themselves within Hinata's back, leaving Kiba paralyzed. He couldn't believe what just happened. There was no way he could've taken down his partner so easily. He jumped from his hiding spot within the trees to the side of the fallen Hyuuga. "H-Hinata! Are you okay!?"
It was a few moments later that the body Kiba was knelt beside turned into a puff of smoke, only to be replaced with a piece of log with three kunais embedded within it. Kiba's heart stopped as he realized what just happened. He had just been fooled into jumping out from his previous position, but it was far too late to do anything about it. Hinata jumped down from the branch she was hiding on and landed a solid kick to the side of his face, sending him flying away from her position.
Everyone knew Hinata as the girl that had the softest voice and would become nervous about anything. In battle, however, her personality flipped on its head. She was confident and precise, not letting her emotions get the best of her, allowing her to think methodically and plan things out to a T.
She took her signature Gentle Fist stance in front of the Inuzuka, her pale eyes strained with the power of the Byakugan.
I hope you enjoyed the chapter, if you can call it that, and be sure to rate and review. It will let me know what I need to improve which would be greatly appreciated. Thanks for reading! ^_^