AN; Yeah hit a MAJOR writers block with the rest of my stories but my roommate busted out the avatar dvds and I just couldn't help myself.
Summary; "Fire is the element of power," So was it any surprise that Naruto gets drafted into the Fire Nation's militia upon his unexpected arrival.
OVO
Don't let them break your stride
There is light on the other side
And you'll see all the raindrops falling behind
It's a revolution
Make it out tonight
It's a revolution – Diplo, Revolution.
XO
Yon Rha blew on his tea as he listened to his mother whine and gripe about a multitude of things he could not give a shit about, rolling his eyes subtly he focused on controlling his breathing lest he sets off one of the candles and earn even more of her undeserved ire.
"So let me get this straight, you want me to go to the store and get some… what?" He prodded, a smirk gracing his lips.
His mother turned around sharply and bared her non-existent teeth out at him, "You, lazy son of mine! Are to get me some yams to mash so your poor mother can eat something!" She barked out.
Humming to himself in thought, Yon Rha took a slow sip of his tea before lazily making his way out of the house to get some yams for his beloved mother. "I'll be back soon." He called over his shoulder.
"See to it that you are." She replied snidely, she wasn't even fazed when the candles burned harder only to be blown out by her son slamming the door shut.
OVO
Yon Rha took a deep breath in to calm himself as he slammed the door shut, how that woman gets on his nerves every damn day, he'll never know. He made his way to the business district, purposely slowing his stride to further irritate his mother when the air in front of him shimmered unnaturally before a cloud of smoke appeared and cleared to reveal a boy, probably no older than eight.
The kid was of average height for someone in his age range and he had shockingly bright yellow hair that the commander hasn't seen anywhere with dark blue eyes that could easily belong to someone of the Water Tribe, he wore a simple white shirt with strange orange pants tucked into some odd blue contraption that vaguely resembled sandals.
He went on the defensive immediately, crouching low with his hands extended out he waited for the child to come to, "Dammit I failed." The kid mumbled defeated.
Relaxing his stance a little he decided to humor the boy, "Failed what exactly?"
The boy's attention snapped to him abruptly and he was shocked to see the flames on the lamppost flare up with the boy's emotions, "W-who are you?" He stuttered and looked around, "I'm not in the forest anymore…" His breathing became more erratic at the sight of the unfamiliar buildings.
Yon Rha took a step near the boy, his surprise skyrocketing when the kid brought his arms up abruptly shooting out two fiery crescents which he promptly put out lest he burn down the whole residential district accidentally.
"Whoa," The boy looked at his hands bewildered for a moment before swaying in his spot, his breathing becoming increasingly labored, "I-I don't feel so good." And with that said, he collapsed.
The commander looked at the kid skeptically before picking him up and throwing him over his shoulder, his subconscious control over fire was nothing short of prodigious for a child his age and the Fire Nation's militia can never have too many benders.
He made a quick 180 to head back to his house, the yams could wait, right now he needed to assess if this boy was going to be any help to his Nation.
XO
The candles in the room flickered and burst with every breath the unconscious child took, both mother and son stared at the child in fascination. It was unreal at how attuned his chi was with the element, if he could affect and manipulate the flames without any formal training or consciousness right now, Yon Rha could only dream on how powerful an asset the child would be once he got some training in.
The child's face scrunched in what the mother son duo could assume was pain and the candles that were littered all over the room erupted in a geyser of flames, "W-what is going on?" Yon Rha's mother asked in a panic before hastily leaving the room, she never really was a fan of benders.
Yon Rha on the other hand stayed silent, a brow quirked at the boy as he waited patiently for him to rouse.
In Naruto's Mindscape
The Kyubi trashed in his cage as his chakra siphoned out of him and into the pipes that lined the brat's ceiling. It usually wasn't a problem seeing as the brat absorbed his chakra constantly at a slow rate but right now it was practically gushing into the kids system and what's more was that their chakras were merging and changing into something he was entirely unfamiliar with.
His ears perked at the sound of sloshing water followed by his jailor's appearance, he snarled, "What did you do now brat?"
Naruto jumped back at the booming voice and stared at the heavy gates held closed by a paper tag with the kanji for 'seal' on it. "I didn't do anything!" He screamed back defensively.
"Like hell you didn't! You're taking too much chakra than you can handle."
The blonde looked at the gates skeptically, "What are you talking about? And who are you anyways?"
The Kyubi flared his chakra and grimaced when it did nothing but flow into the pipes to be converted into something. "I am the Kyubi no Yoko, and you, you damn moronic fleshbag are my container."
Naruto merely looked up at the great beast, awe coloring his expression "Wow! No wonder the villagers don't talk to me, they must be scared I'd decimate them or something, but then-" He rambled on.
The fox looked at the kid and sighed, he might have been considered an evil bastard but even he knew not to spoil the innocence of a child too soon, so he'd let the kid go on thinking that the village was too damn reverent of him to interact with him. One thing did catch the fox's attention though, "What do you mean we're not in Konoha anymore?"
Naruto stopped his rambling for a second and stared at the fox blankly, "Oh! I was trying to do this summoning jutsu I saw Inu do and I was waiting for some kind of awesome animal to pop out but instead of that happening I felt like someone was pulling on me and now I'm here in… I don't know where I'm at." Both fox and boy sweat dropped at that. "But I feel really weird," Naruto brought his hand to his stomach, "I don't know what's happening."
Kyubi stared at his jailor, how idiotic can someone be? He sighed, nothing they can do about it now, "Our chakra is being converted into something entirely different."
"What? Why?"
The fox shrugged, "New world, new rules. Now leave." He needed time to analyze the situation and he couldn't do it with the brat gabbing on about who knows what. Still, while their chakra was converting into something else, that something didn't feel harmful in anyway rather it just gave off the feeling of unfamiliarity, this would take some getting used to.
Real World
Naruto shot up from his prone position, his wide blue eyes surveyed his area and lit up in recognition at the sight of the man he remembered seeing before he passed out. "Where am I?" He asked
Yon Rha studied the boy for a moment before answering, "In the Fire Nation, where do you think you are?"
He shrugged and scratched the back of his head, "I know I'm not in Konoha anymore…"
"Konoha?" The commander inquired.
The blonde nodded, "Konoha, it's in the land of fire… You don't know where Konoha is?"
The commander shook his head, "I'm afraid I don't young one but what I do know if you show great promise as a bender." No one ever said he was the type to dilly-dally.
Naruto was confused, "What's a bender?"
And this was the moment the commander's suspicions were confirmed, one simply did not live in their world without knowing what a bender was. This boy was not of their world; perhaps he was sent from the spirit world as a blessing to the fire nation, after all, what better sign of good tidings than a child blessed with endless potential.
"Tell me, what is your name young one?" Yon Rha made sure to soften his tone so as not to scare the child.
"Naruto! Uzumaki Naruto," Naruto chirped excitedly, "And I'm gonna be the greatest Hokage there is… But how am I gonna be Hokage when I'm not even in Konoha…" He mused.
"I don't know what a Hokage is but what I do know is that I can train you to be one of the greatest firebenders our land has ever produced." The commander hedged, if there was anything he knew about children it was that they were extremely impressionable, some flashy bending here and there and they're basically yours to command.
The Uzumaki did not look convinced, narrowing his eyes at the man he tilted his head to the side "What's a firebender?"
Yon Rha smiled, hook line and sinker, "This is but a taste of what a firebender can do," Holding out his hand, he willed flames to come forth and dance around his fingers, he watched the boy's expression change from disbelief to fascination, oh yes, he had him right where he wanted him.
"You can teach me how to do that?" Naruto asked, eyes still glue to the flames that danced around that man's hand.
"Of course," The commander nodded, "This is only a small demonstration of what you can do with firebending. So are you interested in learning, Naruto?"
"You bet I am! I'm going to be the best bender ever 'ttebayo!" Naruto exclaimed excitedly, completely missing the manipulative smile the commander threw his way.
"Oh yes you will." Yon Rha chuckled darkly, Naruto would make a fine addition to his troops, the Southern Raiders.
OVO
Two years has passed since the beginning of Naruto's brutal training under the Commander of the Southern Raiders. While the training was downright hard and torturous, Naruto wouldn't have had it any other way. It took his mind away from Konoha and missing the few precious people he had, the Ichirakus and the Sandaime. It took a year for Naruto to fully comprehend his situation and he's still coping with the fact that he would never get the chance to become Hokage and he'd never be able to taste the pure awesomeness that was Ichiraku's ramen.
It would have been easier if he had some companions or basically anyone to socialize with but Yon Rha essentially changed into a whole 'nother person once his training started. The commander was brutal in his methods to dehumanize and control him but he underestimated the strength of the blonde's will.
Naruto didn't blame him though, he understood the need to strip him of his will in order to build him up into what many would classify as the perfect soldier (he was raised in a ninja village after all) but if there was one thing Naruto learned from the old man Hokage, it was the will of fire. He would never back down and sure he'll honor his duties as one of the esteemed Southern Raiders (and the youngest at that) but they will never strip him of his morals and his beliefs. He was his own person.
In two years time Naruto's skill in firebending transcended that of a master's. With his chakra converting into chi and power being the basis of firebending it wasn't really a surprise to him at how good he was at bending, after all he had chakra, and now chi, in spades and couple that with his unreal stamina, he was a beast.
Naruto sat up when the ship lurched to a stop, show time. Yon Rha finally deemed him 'worthy' to go on a mission with him and he couldn't wait to show everyone what he was capable of. Being a kid in the militia was some tough work, it seemed like no one took him seriously until he beats their asses in Agni Kai but today was the day he'd prove everyone wrong. He was worthy of his place with the Southern Raiders and he didn't get there simply because his 'father' was Yon Rha.
He rolled off his bunk and stretched, shoving his boots and his visored helmet on he made his way to the deck where Yon Rha would most likely be.
XO
Yon Rha watched Naruto mosey on out to the deck, the kid was too confident, too arrogant but at least he could back it up. "Naruto."
Naruto's head dipped low in both acknowledgement and respect, "Commander." He dutifully greeted.
"What is our mission?" Yon Rha quizzed the young soldier.
He stood up straighter and went into the position of attention, hands fisted tightly at his sides whilst he looked at the commander head on, "To identify and detain the last waterbender, sir."
Yon Rha nodded in approval, no use telling the blonde that no prisoners will be taken. He'd find out soon enough. "And how do we go about this?"
"First platoon will distract the warriors while we infiltrate the tribe and detain and interrogate a villager." Naruto answered monotonously.
"Very good. Get ready we leave…" He waited for the unmistakable battle cry of the southern water tribe's warriors, "Now." Without warning, he jumped off the deck and sprinted around the battle, making sure to keep low and silent he sent the blonde a nod of approval when the young soldier wordlessly sprinted next to him.
The duo infiltrated the tribe easily, melting through the packed snow that constituted as the tribe's wall, they crept through the igloos until Yon Rha motioned for the blonde to follow his lead.
The commander entered the largest igloo he can find, a satisfied smirk settling on his lips at the sight of the lone woman. "Don't scream or it'll be over before you know it." Yon Rha rasped out.
The woman turned around slowly with no trace of fear on her expression, "What do you want?" She asked, her eyes shifted from the commander and the other soldier, a gasp escaping her lips as she noticed how young he was.
"I want you to tell me where the last waterbender-"
"Mom?" A little girl cut in fearfully.
Fear finally settled deep within the woman when she caught sight of her daughter, Yon Rha being the wise commander he was took advantage of the situation. He grabbed the child by the hood of her coat and threw her to Naruto who caught her in his shaking arms. "Tell me where the last waterbender is or she will get burned."
Naruto stifled a gasp, this girl did nothing yet Yon Rha didn't even hesitate threatening her.
"There are no more waterbenders." The worried mother answered frantically. Her eyes darted to her daughter's and then to her daughter's captor, silently pleading with him to let her go.
"And you are most certainly lying. My sources tell me that there IS one other waterbender, now tell me the truth this time if you don't want your child to get hurt."
She swallowed thickly and smiled at her daughter in what she hoped was a reassuring manner, "I-I'm the last waterbender, now please! Let her go!"
The commander smirked, "No, it's too bad… We're not taking prisoners today." He brought his fist back and launched a fireball at her only for it to collide with his apprentice's back.
Naruto couldn't take it anymore, if this was what it meant to be part of the Fire Nation then he wanted no part of it. When he saw the telltale sign of a fireball coming he threw the girl in his arms near the entrance and shielded the defenseless woman, hopefully the girl was smart enough to leave and call for reinforcements. "Enough." He bit out through the pain.
"Naruto! What are you doing?!" Yon Rha yelled at his apprentice.
The blonde turned towards the commander, reaching up to take his helmet off he threw it off to the side to stare at the man defiantly. "This is wrong, what's the point of k- hurting innocent people? Our nation has already won, why must we continue with this pointless war. All we're doing is hurting people."
"Because if we don't put them down now they'll rise against us in the future!" Yon Rha barked out at the boy, "Now get out of the way so I can do what we came here to do."
He shook his head, "No."
"What did you say boy?!" He snarled.
"I challenge you to Agni Kai, when you lose you'll leave and tell everyone that you've executed the last waterbender." Naruto said in a tone that left no room for argument, he shrugged off the burnt leather armor and looked back at the woman at her horrified gasp from the sight of his scarred back. "Don't worry." He assured.
"You arrogant boy! What makes you think that you can beat me? I made you." The commander yelled, two years of molding and training the boy to become the perfect soldier, wasted. He should've known the boy was still too soft. "You are dead to me, come let me at least give you an honorable death." He spat.
Naruto's features hardened, this would probably be one of the toughest fights in his life. He felt sadness stir in him at the thought of going against the man who practically set him on his feet but there was no way he could abide by this. He followed Yon Rha out of the village, stopping once they found a suitable place to duel they walked a few paces away from each other and kneeled once before turning around to face each other.
"You will die for your foolishness."
"I'd rather die for my foolishness than die as a soldier who fought for an unrighteous cause."
Naruto stomped on the ground hard and punched, sending a massive ball of white flames at the commander which was easily dodged. He ran towards the commander and jumped, spinning in the air he kicked out and sent a powerful blast of fire.
Yon Rha braced his hands in front of his face and parted them once the fire collided, he was forced to take a step back at the impact but steadied himself fast enough to counter with a stream of fire.
Facing the stream head on Naruto extended his arm and flicked his wrist as he descended, effectively shifting the fire's direction and gaining enough momentum for him to produce a fire whip. Bringing his hand down in a quick chopping motion his opponent side-stepped the fire whip and thrust his palm out to counter with another steady stream.
Naruto ducked low and did a sweeping kick that sent an arch of white flames to the commander who was forced to jump to avoid it. Naruto saw the opening and went for it, pushing up with his left foot Naruto spun in the air and made a slicing motion with his hands followed with a scissor kick that launched wide crescents of fire at the falling Yon Rha.
The commander managed to block one of the arcs but the intensity of the heat and the power behind the flames were too much for him, thankful that he still had his armor on he had no choice but to brace for the impact. It hurt a lot more than he thought it would and by the end of the onslaught he was laid out flat on his back with his ex-apprentice standing over him.
The two firebenders looked up when the woman from earilier arrived with her daughter, son and what presumably her husband in tow. Naruto saw the glint in the old man's eyes and he stomped on the ground forcefully extending a fist as a warning to Yon Rha, "You will not hurt her."
Yon Rha simply glared at his protégé.
"If you have any honor left in you after fighting for such a dishonorable cause I'd leave now. I won the duel, it's time to honor your part."
He wordlessly got up and sent a stream of fire to the sky, a signal to indicate the mission's success. "Pray that we never see each other again." He said as a parting shot.
Naruto exhaled harshly, "Yon Rha," He called out, halting the Commander in his tracks, "Thank you… for everything." He didn't respond, not that Naruto was expecting him to but with the departure of his master what will he do now? He didn't move for the longest time, he simply stood and watched Yon Rha walk away.
"Katara!" A boy called out, inadvertently catching the young blonde's attention.
The boy turned to face the family, his body tensed reflexively when he felt something collide against him. Looking down he was greeted with the sight of the young girl from earlier holding onto him, his brows rose in confusion at the act, shouldn't they be trying to run him off?
"Thank you for saving my mom." Katara mumbled into the taller boy's chest.
Naruto winced when the rough pad of her gloves pressed and rubbed against his burnt and scarred back, scratching the back of his head awkwardly with one hand, the other went up to pat the girl in the head, "Um no problem." He murmured.
The rest of the family came up to him with the two males looking at him suspiciously, not that he didn't blame them, he did just come here with full intent to capture one of their own. The woman he saved smiled down at him and he averted his gaze from hers bashfully.
She bowed to him, "I can't thank you enough for saving not only me but my daughter as well."
Naruto flushed at the gesture, "'S no biggie." He mumbled and went about trying to detach himself from the girl.
The woman giggled at the two, "Ah where's my manners, my name is Kya and this is my daughter Katara, my son Sokka and my husband Hakoda."
"Naruto." He supplied, no use getting too attached when he was leaving anyways.
As if she sensing his thoughts Kya laid a gentle hand on his shoulder, "Come, let us heal your burns."
"Might as well come boy, there's no reasoning with this woman when she has her mind set on something." Hakoda said fondly, earning him a glare from his wife.
Naruto pondered his options on one hand there was the possibility of freezing to death trying to swim out to somewhere versus getting healed and maybe sweet-talk a boat out of the tribe. "Okay."
Katara perked up at her mom's savior's (and her new hero) consent, taking his hand in her gloved one she practically dragged the slow moving blonde all the way to the village.
The blonde looked at Katara's family helplessly only to receive amused smirks back, he huffed, girls were so weird. Why did she feel the need to drag him somewhere when he already consented to getting treatment at her village? Tch how troublesome.
OVO
Happy (almost) thanksgiving y'all!