Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. The Character or the Series.
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The Time Paradox
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Naruto stepped out of the temporal rift briskly. The was no time for dallying. The longer he existed on this time plane the more likely it was that his presence would be detected; and dealt with.
Turning the collar of his cloak against the wind he jogged up the last few flights of stairs. The metal clanging dully as he ascended. He came to a stop before a well worn door. An all too familiar number emblazoned on it in sloppy neon orange. The sight brought a small, sad smile to his lips. Even as a kid. . . Some things never change.
Raising a gloved fist he rapped smartly the on the beaten wood. Honed senses, of which were already abnormally powerful, straining for the smallest sound. He wasn't overly worried about the local ANBU stopping him. Not because he had memorized their schedule or anything, but because he could dispatch them easily. They weren't what he was searching for.
Then he heard it. The pitter-patter of small feet all too telling. Right on time the door peeled back a crack. A single, hopeful blue eye peaking out from behind. It widened in shock a moment later, and the door was flung open with all the strength and abandon of youth.
"Dad?!" The high pitched voice exclaimed. At once hopeful and hesitant. Naruto smiled down at the sunny blond. He pretended not to notice the undercurrent of desperation in there as well. Guilt prickled in the back of his mind when the little boys eyes brightened at what he saw as confirmation. Ignoring it as best he could he ran a gloved hand through the boys hair. "I've been looking for you for years." He played along, even though he knew it would rip him apart, was ripping him apart.
The kid smiled at him through tears he had just began to shed. It was utterly heartbreaking. Naruto's breath hitched as the guilt rose back up with a vengeance. He mentally shook himself. Why should he feel guilty? There was no reason to.
Except that he couldn't stop thinking about how different this child's choices might be from his own. The future wasn't set in stone. It wasn't too late, he could still turn his back, he could just walk away . . .
No! Naruto steeled his nerves. He couldn't talk himself out of this now. Too much had been lost. Too much was still at stake. Smoothly falling into a crouch, he brought himself up to eye level with the blond.
Still, he couldn't stop his own eyes from prickling as he brushed away the little boys tears. Unable to help himself, he pulled the kid into a tight, comforting hug. For who, he didn't know.
It was so quick, he didn't feel a thing. He hoped.
The specially made dagger came out of the little boy's back with little resistance. He eyed it for a moment before hurling it out into the darkness. Then he was no more.
No price was too high, not for the lives of his precious people.
Even if it was his.
