Author's Notes :

Well, here it is, finally here after putting a lot of work. I tried to be original, and I hope I succeeded. Only thing which angers me is that during the upload, my formatting was thrown somewhere into the Twisting Nether. Enjoy!

Also, I would like to thank InARealPickle for helping me out. You rock, Pickle!

Oh, this needs to be brought to your attention as it *might* appear so if you skim through : MOB CHASING 'DEMON' HAS NOT BEEN USED!!

Disclaimer: I do not own 'Naruto'. Never did, never will.

Summary:

Dreams... they are well known, sometimes desired and sometimes not, but, in essence, they are harmless. With one exception. For Uzumaki Naruto, dreams shall make the dark night bleed into a crimson, and cry a rain of blood.

Crimson Night

He had absolutely no idea how he had gotten here, and no idea what 'here' was. He was surrounded by an inky blackness, one which spread everywhere. There was no conception of a ground beneath his feet or a sky above his head; the whole place was one, engulfed in an impenetrable darkness. It was as if the starless night sky had leaked and taken over the land as its own…

He was scared to move, it felt as if taking a step would send him to the unknown depths of this darkness. He was unable to even see his own hands or feet; he was afraid. Sweat permeated his blond hair and drenched his clothes. He was barely able to keep his knees from shaking.

"… Demon…"

He turned his head sharply, trying to look at the source of the hoarse whisper. He was afraid to move, his feet pressed firmly against where he was sure the ground was, and his distress grew.

"Demon…"

The sound echoed across the darkness. He was more disturbed by the echo, and by the cluster of voices the sound was made of, than by the message. Sweat ran past his forehead, missing his eyes narrowly, and his knees trembled. Someone was here… and they knew he was here too… but where…

"… Die… Demon…"

"Die… Demon!"

"Die, DEMON!"

The voices cascaded into a crescendo, the coherence made the sound amplify and seem to come from everywhere as it reverberated. His eyes ran from side to side, so did his head. His very person was overcome by shudders, sweat hung on his chin, and his heart hammered his rib cage. He felt as if the shadows hiding in the shadows moved. In his peripheral vision, silhouettes of faceless figures could be made out, but they disappeared the moment his face turned to confront them. He was panicking, his rate of respiration increased rapidly along with his heartbeat.

"… Demon… Demon… Demon… DEMON!"

The voice, no, voices, seemed closer. He felt as if the darkness near him was getting darker… they were coming.

No… stay away!

"Die… demon!"

Shut up! Stay away!

The darkness descended upon him, much like a predator upon its prey. Voices buzzed in his ears, his vision spun in a vortex of black, one which seemed to suck his consciousness in. His mind was invaded by blackness unlike the one before, and he knew no more.

0o0

Naruto woke up with a start, gasping for breath. Every inch of his body seemed to be covered in cold sweat. He threw off the sweat drenched sheet and sat up abruptly, welcoming the cool breeze on his face. The open window made it evident that it was almost dawn; the sky was getting pale, he observed with squinted eyes. That was when the shadow cast into his room by the street light outside caught his attention, his heartbeat increased and he reached out for the light switch frantically.

The worn out tube flickered a few times before bathing the room in light, he breathed out in relief, one hand moping the sweat on his face. He really needed to clear his head, this room… he felt suffocated here, he needed some air…

His feet plopped down on the floor with a muffled sound, his bed felt quite big for him… even though he was as old as six! Still slightly groggy and bleary eyed, he almost tripped over his sandals when he was slipping them on. Blinking quite dumbly, he quickly made for the door, not even bothering to go into the washroom to at least splash his face.

There was no light there.

Opening the door only slightly, he peeked outside. The hall was dark… filled with shadows… His breath hitched, and he shut the door quickly. His head was throbbing; he could feel the painful pulses in his temples. He wanted to get out, but it was so dark…

On a subconscious level, his claustrophobia was battling the new found fear of the dark. That was when Naruto heard a slight, very slight, flickering outside. His eyes widened, his heart almost stopped for a second. Through the edges of the door, he thought he could see light seeping into his apartment… but how could that be? Taking a deep breath, and mustering all of his courage, he opened the door again and peeked out. The hall was lit! He could see the strangely shaped bulbs emitting white light through their dirt encrusted glass, with flies hovering around them frantically.

He did not ponder the reasoning behind this; to him it was a blessing.

The door shut with a distinct 'click', which seemed to echo in the silent hall. Naruto paused for a second, hoping he had not woken his landlord up. Sure that no one was making their way up the stairs while grumbling, he tiptoed down the flight of stairs, relieved that there were lights all the way down.

In his relief, he forgot that the lights had never been there before.

The sky was a faded dark blue dabbed with a pale pink tinge. At least it was not completely dark anymore, and the street lights made up for what was left out. At this hour, Konoha seemed very different to him.

With the dim natural light splashing over the village, he could only make out the silhouette of the big tower in the village, the place where the Hokage worked. Not that there were no other skyscrapers in Konoha, no, but not as tall. A chilling breeze made him cross his arms over his chest; he cursed himself for not picking up his jacket.

Enduring the chill, he walked on without a destination, and kept marveling how strange everything looked. Houses stood eerily silent, with their windows looking like big eyes, and the buildings loomed over, casting dark shadows of which he steered clear. He had always thought of Konoha to be round, like a ramen bowl, but it was rather more elliptical. Not that he knew, of course, he was happy thinking that his village's layout emulated the vessel of godly brilliance.

Dust gritted underneath his sandals as he walked, the muffled sound of grinding kept him company. He was not surprised to see that no one was around, everyone would be sleeping. Even the shinobi he occasionally saw leaping from rooftop to rooftop, appearing nothing more than black flecks. Though, he had to admit, it felt very strange without the cheerful hustle and bustle. Feeling strangely cold, Naruto held his arms more tightly against his chest; maybe he should turn back and go home…

That was when, all of a sudden, the street light over his head flickered and went black. His steps faltered, the feeling of being surrounded by darkness was coming back to him. He quickened his pace… at least some light was visible here…

As if reacting to his thoughts, the light in front of him also went out, and so did the one behind him. He looked up, hoping to see a pale sky, but was met with condensing darkness. He ran; the onset of tears evident by the stinging behind his eyes. His sandals clattered against the concrete streets, his legs pumping him forward faster than ever, and his heart pounding even more rapidly. Maybe he could get away, maybe he could get away…

"Woof! Woof! Woof!"

The frantic barking startled him, and made him trip over his feet. Spirals of dust went into his nose, his hands smarting because he had used them to break his fall. Barking meant a normal dog… maybe he just overreacting. No… he could not have imagined the pale sky, could he? And the lights?

He sensed movement behind him, movement in the cursed shadows. He frantically scrambled to his feet, scratching his knees in the process, and broke into a sprint again. He did not look back, he looked anywhere but. He knew someone was behind him, coming to get him, and he knew that he had to get away.

So he ran, even though his breath was coming in short gasps and his chest had started aching, even though he could feel painful tingling in his calves and his thighs were paining, even though his head was throbbing uncontrollably once again… he ran.

He ran without direction, without sense, and without thought. He only knew one thing – he had to get away – and so he kept going on. He felt he could see a red glow in front of him; a barely visible red tinted the darkness. It was hope, it was safety. He ran towards it, much like how a moth flocks towards incandescence.

The light grew both in intensity and influx as he seemed to near the source; everything was basked in an eerie crimson hue. But he was not paying any attention to his surroundings. His lungs were burning now, he was heaving heavily, and his pace seemed to be dropping. He needed to get away, quickly, and he would at least have some chance in the light…

He turned left; the light was blazing forth from there. Squinting so as to not blind himself, he dashed forward. His heart was beating heavily, breathing was painful, and his head was still pounding; all he wanted to do was catch his breath…

A looming wall sprung up in front of him, blocking his passage. He turned around to see that he was in an alley… a dead end, at that. He leaned against the wall, wanting nothing more than his breath to ease up. When he finally raised his head up, he realised that everything looked different in the crimson hue.

The walls, he noted, were worn out and cracked. They were chipped from places, and missing chunks here and there, looking as if they would crumble any second. The ground too, was chipped and withered. He walked forward, taking in the poor condition of everything. He looked ahead and saw that houses seemed different… That one was missing a roof! And another one was charred black! It seemed as if a hurricane of time had engulfed his village and left this withered one in its place…

Still panting slightly, he moved on, hoping that his feet would pull his weight until he was sure that he was safe. Suddenly his vision was obstructed by a shadow, one which looked very much like a person. It moved forward, towards him, taking slow, deliberate steps. His hopes shattered, somehow he knew this was it… the end… his knees gave away.

The shadow snickered at his horror, "Demon…" it called out in a sickeningly sweet voice. It was coming closer and closer, his heart was beating so hard it felt like it would break through his chest.

"Demon…"

He felt something well up inside him at this taunting, but he paid it no heed, what was the point anyway? It was soon going to end. He never noticed his fingers curl up, leaving their marks in the grime covered street. He never noticed the red tinting his vision darken, and a rage unknown to him made its way into his head.

"Demon…" the shadow called again, snickering even more darkly.

He never noticed his feet move, he never noticed himself standing up. It happened as if it was not even him doing it… but he noticed his surroundings become a blur, he noticed as he sped unnaturally towards the shadow, he noticed claws where his hands were supposed to be, and he noticed them shoot out at the shadow.

His eyes widened in horror as he felt the flesh part under the sharpness of his hands… no, claws… and he felt warm blood splash onto them. He heard the man scream, or maybe it was he who was screaming.

The omnipresent redness concentrated around the man and he… was dissolved in it. Naruto felt the ground underneath him once again, it was as if someone had been holding him up in the air a while ago, but his eyes only gazed at the dark red blood on the ground.

Blood which he had spilt.

He slumped down, staring at the now receding pool with horror struck eyes. It seemed the ground was absorbing it… the last traces of the man were now gone. Maybe he started screaming, or maybe he had never stopped screaming, because his throat started burning.

He only screamed some more.

0o0

"Hey, hey!"

Naruto's eyes sprang open when he heard the voice, through his bleary vision he could make out someone standing over him. As a reflex, he frantically crawled away from them, and ending falling down his bed.

"Hey, relax, kid," the person spoke in a playful voice, "I'm not going to hurt ya'!"

Naruto scrambled from the floor, clutching on his bed to pull himself up. He looked at the person again, who was quite tall, with black hair and brown eyes, and a small grin on his face. He was dressed completely in black. There was no anger in this person's eyes, like there was in all the others', as if he had made some big mistake. Naruto decided that he liked this guy.

"What happened, kid?" the man asked, "You were screaming, and thrashing in your sleep!"

Naruto blinked, and shook his head to clear his thoughts. Thrashing? Why would he be thrashing… then he remembered. The darkness, the total complete darkness, and those shadows which had called him a demon…

"Neh, I… had a bad dream," he said sheepishly, pushing his blond hair out of his eyes.

"That was some bad dream, kid!" the person said with a playful laugh, "I heard your screaming so I came in to see if everything was all right."

It dawned upon Naruto at that moment that this person was standing in his bedroom, quite nonchalantly, and has definitely snuck in. Snuck into his apartment which was on the third floor…

"How'd you get in?" Naruto asked, looking at the person in confusion and then at the window of the room.

"Well, I'm a shinobi," he said, "So I got in through the window, though that was a bit of a problem. Especially when the bit of wood you had stuck to hold it open fell!"

"Shinobi can jump so high?"

"Well," the person smiled, his facial muscles looked strained when he did so but Naruto paid no attention to that, "I walked on the wall…"

Naruto's jaw dropped, "Whoah! Shinobi are so cool… I wanna be one!"

The conversation had effectively distracted him from pondering on his dream.

"Hehehe, I'm sure you'll be great!" the person paused for a while and looked at him with concern, "But… what'd got you so distressed?"

Naruto's face faltered, he bit his lip and furrowed his eyebrows. The dream was becoming foggier by the minute.

"Well… I only remember darkness, and people were calling me 'demon'… and no one's ever done that b'fore…" he trailed off.

The shinobi's smile dropped, and he raised an eyebrow, "What d'ya' mean?"

"Yeah, the villagers… they're angry with me, look at me like I've done something wrong, yanno?" Naruto beseeched like an innocent child, "But they're not that bad… there's this Oji-san who let me play with his awesome dog… it's big, and black, and…"

The shinobi shook his head and laughed, "That's all good, kid! I hope you're all right now, but I really gotta go!"

Naruto pouted, "You'll come back, Shinobi-nii-san? You could teach me to walk on walls like you…"

There was a longing, a desperation in his voice. The shinobi smiled, and ruffled Naruto's hair, "Sure, kid, I'll see when I can come back!"

With that, he propelled himself from Naruto's window to the next building's rooftop.

Naruto stared at him until he became a small, black spot and grinned, "Shinobi are awesome!"

0o0o0o0o0

Meanwhile, the shinobi was far from happy. His Kuma mask was back on his face, he had taken it off to appease the kid. He figured the child had already been scared enough. The child who was in fact the jailor of the Kyuubi no Kitsune, the demon who had attacked Konoha six years ago…

Kuma's thoughts raced from mental instability to the Kyuubi's interference. The Hokage would have to be informed. He veered towards the Hokage Tower, stopping only once to see increased activity of the Uchiha Police at one house.

An elderly couple lived there, along with their dog. Sometime around four in the morning, their dog had barked frantically at something. The husband had gone to check what the disturbance was, and still had not come back… The wife was quite distressed.

As the Uchiha seemed to be handling things and his assistance was not required, he continued towards his destination. Though sudden disappearance was quite serious…

0o0

The flaming tinder was quickly brought to the shriveled up leaves before it wilted, a calculated blow ensured that they would burn, and the fumes so produced were inhaled with expertise.

Kuma waited patiently for Sarutobi Hiruzen, the Sandaime Hokage, to address him. He had given his report about Uzumaki Naruto about four hours ago; he doubted he would be called concerning that. But there was no other way for him to be singled out… he was not his squad's captain, after all.

The Hokage, an old man of over sixty, was not one to be dismissed off due to his age. He did not rise to his position for no reason, Kuma knew that very well. He watched as his leader picked up a scroll from his table, selecting the one he required with skilled accuracy. The mark of the Uchiha Military gleamed from the back of the unrolled scroll.

"Kuma-kun," the Sandaime exhaled a wisp of smoke, "The report you submitted about one Uzumaki Naruto, there is a mission regarding that for you."

He paused for a second, and the scroll – probably a report from the Uchiha police – snapped shut and was kept back. The sound of wood grinding against wood was the only indication of a drawer being opened; the Hokage's shoulders did not even twitch underneath his white robes.

"You will be watching over Naruto tonight, along with," he tossed Kuma a scroll, "him."

Kuma quickly grabbed the scroll and unrolled it. He was shocked to see the information inside.

Name: Sawada Shinji

Rank: ANBU

Code-name: Kame

Status: Suspended; being investigated

Reason:

Suspected to be working for one Shimura Danzou under the tag 'Ne', sabotaging several missions, and compromising classified information without authority.

Investigation Result: Suspicion confirmed

Penalty: Death

Kame was shocked that this man, who was in all honesty a traitor to the village, would be assigned a mission.

"Sir―"

The Sandaime cut him off, "You are to approach him at twenty-hundred hours. Tell him that he is no longer suspended, and that the investigation yielded no proof. At twenty-fifteen I want you positioned at Uzumaki Naruto's apartment. You, Kuma, will be surveying from the rooftop of the adjacent building, and listening to whatever the bug inside the apartment transmits. Kame is to stay inside the apartment and keep watch, completely hidden.

"His mask is sealed inside that scroll," he pointed at the scroll in Kuma's hands, "And here is my authorized proclamation that he is now able to rejoin the shinobi force. Also, I am providing you with the permission to use Shunshin no Jutsu to arrive here and inform me should anything happen. You are not to take any action yourself. Understood?"

"H-hai, Hokage-sama!" His no nonsense tone was enough to make Kuma nervous.

He grabbed a brush as he settled down in his chair, and Kanji flowed onto the blank scroll. He finished with a loud stamp, and began writing a second one.

Kuma could not quite grasp why they would be asked to keep watch over a child just because he was having nightmares… even if the child was the Jinchuriki of the Kyuubi. Could there be threat from the Kyuubi? He squashed down his suspicions; after all, he was there only to follow orders.

Having finished, the Hokage offered two authorized scrolls to Kuma, and said with a wry smile, "I know how to run my village, Kuma-kun, and I always place Konoha's safety first. Dismissed."

As Kuma left the office with the three scrolls secured safely in his thigh pouch, he knew the Hokage meant it. He had always placed the village's safety first. His own student, Orochimaru, had almost been killed by the enraged man when found betraying Konoha. The Sandaime had discovered his underground labs where he conducted inhumane experiments on the villagers; he lost an arm for it.

He would have lost his life had he not covered every inch of the lab with explosive seals and made the array so comlex that only Sandaime had enough skill to break the main seal. The Sandaime had chosen the village's safety over his righteous judgment of Orochimaru. It was rumored that had the main seal not been reverse-engineered, the explosion would have blown a good chunk of Konoha.

Kuma was happy to serve under such a man, it was well known that the Sandaime had once loved Orochimaru like a son, but he still regretted the fact he could not kill his wayward student. Such was his will and resolve to protect Konoha.

Kuma hoped to emulate it.

0o0o0o0o0

Naruto felt as if he had been here before… how could that be? A dark red light illuminated the room, but it still seemed very dark. He could not see any walls in the room; they were enshrouded by the darkness. Only two things were made visible by the crimson hue, the strange bed he was sitting on and a huge window which showed a bright red sky outside.

He slipped down the bed; the ground was made visible where his feet touched it. Not knowing what else to do, he walked towards the window. His feet made distinct slapping noises on the cold floor, and he kept on walking towards the light, mesmerized by it.

And kept on walking… he was not even getting close.

He did not understand… the window could not be that far. It seemed as if he was not moving at all. He quickened his pace, his feet slapping the ground a bit louder. But the window seemed to get farther, it was getting smaller. Even the illumination below his feet was shrinking. With a sinking feeling he realized that soon the light would disappear, leaving him with the unknowns of the darkness.

He broke into a full sprint. His bare feet smarted as they hit the ground with quite a force. Yes, the window was coming closer and closer… but why was it shrinking in size? He increased his pace, the window was the only visible thing here now, and he wanted to reach it. Panting, he pushed all he had into his sprint; it seemed reaching the window was the only thing that could save him in this darkness.

A shifting of wind somewhere in the vast darkness caught his attention… it seemed as if someone was sighing there. His thoughts were confirmed when he heard a dark snicker, one which echoed throughout the room. Then he heard the sound of boot meeting the hard floor, a distinct 'clap', and he got terrified. Someone was there… and he knew this could not be good for him…

Clap. Clap. Clap. Clap.

They were gaining on him! Breathing heavily from his mouth now, he tried to push himself forward with even more force. The room was filled with the cacophony of his feet slapping the floor and the ominous clapping.

Clap. Clap.

The sound was closer than ever… he had to get away! The snickering which followed the sound of the footsteps was worse.

Get away… get away… get away!

Suddenly, his speed increased. It felt as if inhibitors had been removed from his feet, he zoomed towards the window, toppled, and rolled to a painful stop. Almost simultaneously, the light was back, and he was once more basked in it. Rubbing his head, he got up, forgetting for one second that he was being pursued.

Clap. Snicker. Clap.

The window, he tried to find it, frantically turning his head to look at everything. It was behind him, bigger than ever, but only illuminating him, and not his pursuer. He tried to climb onto the windowsill, but was blocked by an invisible barrier. He tried to push himself into the window, tried to merge with the wall, pressing his back against it with as much force he could muster.

Nowhere to go… nowhere to hide… the end… it was the end…

A shaded figure emerged from the darkness, even the light did not make it visible. It was tall, very tall, and no features were visible except a strange mask. A white mask with red and black shapes making a pattern, which looked like that of an animal. Almost instantaneously, the shapes started moving, the 'face' changed; tilted red eyes and sharp black teeth now adorned the mask.

Teeth which moved and eyes which glinted maliciously.

Naruto was beyond afraid, if there is such a stage, and looked, mortified, as the monster approached him.

Clap. Clap. Clap. Clap.

He pushed against the wall with more force, but his action yielded no salvation. He was stuck, caught, and soon was going to be killed…

Suddenly, he was flung from the wall straight towards the shadow, his mind could not register how it happened – it had happened so fast! The omnipresent crimson bled into a darker shade, as a clawed hand – his hand – shot into the shadow's stomach. He could feel something warm and soft; he could feel warm fluid on his hand. He heard the shadow groan…

His hand shot deeper, his claws scratched something brittle and hard… something bony. By this point he was in a state of unbelievable shock; his body was moving on its own accord, killing this… thing, and all he could do was scream. Scream a scream which never left his throat, which never escaped the strange fangs protruding from his gums.

His hand clasped around a vertical bone made of smaller fragments, but his mind was more focused on the swirling red… substance… which was covering the shadow. His hand retreated, just as the red substance completely devoured the shadow and left no remains. He slowly realized that he was falling, right into a pool of blood, which ceased to be there the moment he hit the floor.

Lying on the cold hard floor, all he knew was horror, and all he could do was scream silently.

0o0

"… Naruto-kun…"

Naruto faintly heard a voice calling him. Feeling a warm weight on his forehead, he opened his eyes to meet black ones. He blinked – trying to clear his blurred vision – and saw the wrinkled face of an old man, wearing a strange conical hat, and big white robes. The man was looking at him with concern and had a hand over his forehead. He blinked again, before recognition hit him.

"Kage-ji-sama?" he croaked.

The Hokage smiled warmly at him, "Good to see you, Naruto-kun! I hear you are having trouble with sleeping?"

"Trouble…?" Naruto almost shot up, but the Hokage's hand held him in place, "Ji-sama, there was darkness… and a shadow… and red light… and… and…"

He could not quite remember, but he was sure it was not good, he was very sure.

"Don't worry, Naruto-kun," the Hokage said softly, "It was just a dream. You don't remember it, do you?"

"No…"

"Then it was a dream. You have a sharp brain, Naruto-kun, to forget something that really happens."

Naruto smiled brightly, the Hokage was nicely acquainted with him, since they met monthly.

"Now, tell me how you are these days."

"I'm good! Very good! Ji-sama, can shinobi really walk on walls? Tomorrow a shinobi came to see if everything was okay because I was screaming and…" he trailed off, embarrassed that he had let something silly slip out.

The Hokage only smiled, "You mean yesterday, don't you, Naruto-kun? And yes, shinobi can walk on walls."

"Awesome!" Naruto exclaimed, "I wanna be a shinobi! The best, no, the bestest!"

The Hokage ruffled his hair, "I'm sure you will be, Naruto-kun, I'm sure you will. I have to go now, take care, Naruto-kun!"

His hand finally left his forehead, and Naruto felt a strange tingling there. Ignoring it, he sat up in bed, "You will come back soon, Kage-ji-sama?"

The Hokage turned to look at him, a glint in his eye, "Yes, I will, Naruto-kun. And don't worry, I won't let any harm come to this village, or its people. So don't let those dreams bother you."

Naruto grinned happily at those words, and prepared to leap out of bed as the Hokage left his apartment.

0o0o0o0o0

Kuma stood still inside the Hokage's office, but his mind was fidgeting with questions. The 'surveillance' had gone smoothly until Naruto started screaming in complete and utter horror. Springing into action, he had commanded Kame to stay put and had used the Shunshin no Jutsu to inform the Hokage.

By the time they had reached Naruto's apartment, which was in about a span of three minutes, they found that Kame had disappeared. Gone, as if the air had engulfed him, and he had not been found yet. Kuma could not understand why the Hokage was unperturbed by this; he had merely gone, placed a hand on Naruto's forehead, and talked to him as if nothing had happened when the child woke up.

Indeed, Kuma was very confused by the events that had taken place, but even when he had tried to voice his concern, the Hokage had silenced him, saying that there was nothing to be worried about.

He mentally shook his head, and looked at the back of his leader who was stroking a messenger bird while gazing out of the window.

"You do not need to worry, Kuma-kun," he said, letting the bird fly, possibly to call some shinobi for a mission, "I am well aware about Kame's situation, more than you."

He turned to gaze at Kuma, before picking up a white envelope and offering it to him, "Your captain would come here soon, complaining that I've stolen his subordinate! Here is the mission pay, dismissed."

Even if he sounded cheerful, his voice had a hard undertone to it. Kuma knew not to push it.

He took the envelope, thanked the Hokage, and got out of the office as fast as he could.

0o0o0o0o0

Takashiro Daichi shifted uncomfortably under the Sandaime's steady gaze. He had been off the mission roster for a week for medical reasons, so naturally he was surprised when he was summoned through a messenger bird. He only wondered what the reason could be.

"Ah, Daichi-kun," the Hokage said, exhaling smoke, "I trust you are feeling well now?"

"Hai, Hokage-sama!"

"Good," said the Hokage, nodding his head appreciatively, "I was hoping you would get better, after the loss of Akira-chan on your mission, and also the mysterious disappearance of the A-class information scrolls, I had thought your mental trauma would overwhelm your physical one… But it seems that is not the case, and it's good that you're coping well!"

Daichi would have gasped, but knew better than to show any reaction in front of the leader. There was a strange glint in his eyes when he commented on the nature of the disappearance of the scrolls… almost as if the Hokage suspected him! He had hoped that his injuries would shirk off the possible suspicions, even if all the injuries were non-lethal and non-crippliing.

Akira… had gotten in the way, and she had to be disposed off. How else would he have held up his end of the bargain with Sasori-sama? How else would he have received the large amounts of money which was now resting in his house? Even if being a Jounin paid well, it was not enough, never enough. Especially when one did not come from a prestigious clan… one had to take other measures…

It was not the first time for him... that had been when he had survived despite the death of every other member of his squad, and Konoha had not suspected him. Not even when the package had disappeared into thin air. This time, the second time, it had been tricky. Akira would not have died if she had not been so nosy… but no, she had to get in the way... The pay had been very good, though.

Daichi stayed silent, ready to take action if the Hokage sprung up an accusation on him. The old man would never understand his needs…

"I have a mission for you, Daichi-kun, since now you are well," the Hokage said with a strange smile, "I want you to watch over one Uzumaki Naruto tonight. There have been some strange events considering the child, and so I have to take desperate measures…"

Uzumaki? The jinchuriki? What could be the trouble with him?

"… Tonight, if Uzumaki Naruto shows any disturbance in his sleep, you are to eliminate the target," the Hokage finished with hard eyes.

Kill… a child? No, he was the jinchuriki… This mission, this mission could possibly get Daichi into the good books with the Sandaime, this mission could be his safeguard. And the pay would be good, too.

"Hai, Hokage-sama," Daichi said.

"Now, by disturbance, I mean if he screams or flails in his sleep. That would be the signal for you to execute your mission. The target is used to an ANBU, Kame, in his apartment; you are to impersonate him. In this scroll you will find ANBU gear and a Kame mask, for this mission only. Understood?"

"Hai, Hokage-sama!"

Daichi grabbed the scroll the Sandaime had offered. ANBU gear seemed a bit unnecessary, but who was he to question?

"Dismissed," the Hokage commanded, his eyes shadowed by his hat.

Daichi bowed, and left the office, his mind still buzzing from the abrupt mission.

0o0

Daichi stood as still as he could, watching Uzumaki Naruto roll in his bed. This could not count as a disturbance, could it? The Hokage had said flailing, not rolling. He almost sighed in frustration, this mask made his face itch and for some reason it heated his face, unlike the standard ANBU masks.

He waited patiently, or perhaps impatiently, waiting for the boy to show some reaction so he could get over with this. The heat of the mask was unbearable. He was about to remove it when the boy suddenly started flailing and screaming.

This was his signal, time to eliminate the target. He took out a sharp kunai – inside his head he was chanting how this target was not a child – and he approached the bed.

"This is the end," he whispered, before swiftly bringing the kunai down.

Blood spurted out, and fell everywhere like a crimson rain.

0o0o0o0o0

The screen flickered with disturbances; this long distance transmission was not perfect yet.

"This is the end," The voice buzzed out of the speaker, relatively clear.

Inside the screen, a kunai was about to meet a neck, which was resting on a pillow of blond hair, when, suddenly, flickers covered the entire screen. Unnatural screaming blasted out of the speaker, and rose in a crescendo of pure horror. Just as the screen cleared, the innocent face of a six year old child, looking utterly demonic, seemed to glare at something outside it.

His left eye was open, supporting a crimson iris and a slit for a pupil. Red lines ran throughout the eyeball, giving it a completely blood red appearance. The left part of his face was lifted in a lopsided smile, and the upper lip was parted by yellow fangs shooting out of the gums.

The right half remained innocent, and asleep.

Lips moved sparingly, and a wheezing sound came out, "This is not… the end…"

A sharp crack was heard, accompanied by more unnatural screaming. The sound was cracking in the speaker and, once more, the screen was covered in flickers. The connection seemed to be slipping.

"This is… the beginning… of the end…"

The screams died down – maybe the throat was worn out – and suddenly, in an explosion of flickers, both the audio and the video signals ended.

The figure watching this with a stone face exhaled a wisp of smoke, and reached out to grab a worn out brush. Completely unfazed, he wrote down kanji on a blank scroll with swift and smooth movements.

Name: Uzumaki Naruto

Class: Civilian

Status: Jinchuriki of the Kyuubi no Kitsune; suspected to be controlled by Biju

Reason: Suspected to be involved in the deaths of one civilian, and two ANBU

He paused for a second, hard eyes softening has he retrieved his memories. Or rather, the memories of Naruto he had gathered on the day he had visited the child. With only a hand on the boy's forehead, he was able to see all that had happened in the boy's dreams, and deduce what they meant.

The Kyuubi was somehow able to create a dreamscape like Konoha, one from which people could be killed. Kame and the old man were proof. And now Daichi had provided the last piece to the puzzle, the Kyuubi's awareness extended outside its dreamscape.

The brush met ink once again and he continued, for another crimson night could not be allowed…

Result: Suspicion confirmed

Penalty: Death

He looked at the wet ink, which seemed to reflect some of the moonlight, and nodded. No, another crimson night could not be allowed.

Exhaling a wisp of smoke again, the figure spoke with a grim tone, "Like I said, Naruto-kun... I will never let anything threaten this village, or its people..."

Author's Notes :

And that's a wrap, people!

EDIT - 10th March 2010 : Re-wrote the ending, cleared up a few things. Should read smoother now.