Note:
Please excuse some of the grammatical errors, English isn't my best subject.
I clearly don't own Naruto.
This is my first story; I'll see how it goes with people and then I'll move from there.
Chapter One:
From the Shadows
The sun begins to rise over a lifeless Konoha. Silence encompasses the land, as no one is ready to begin the day. Groggy ninja start their daily routines, unaware of the impending threat. For the past few months, the Village Hidden in the Leaves has enjoyed a calm, serene lifestyle. No war, no border conflicts, not even so much as an S-rank mission, just your standard, everyday run-of-the-mill missions. No one was expecting the trouble waiting right around the corner.
Slowly rising from a deep sleep, Nara Shikamaru stared at his alarm clock. It read 6:00 AM, displayed in bright red letters. "How troublesome," he yawned. Shikamaru had to fill in for Izumo and Kotetsu, who apparently needed time off from tediously watching the gate every day. After finishing getting ready, Shikamaru slowly trudged his way downstairs and out the door. As he reached the gate and sat down, he said aloud, "Here's hoping nothing will happen today, I really need some sleep, I am so overworked." He slumped down in the nearest chair and shut his eyes.
Walking down the main path to Konoha, a boy dressed in a blue cloak approached the main gate. He stood slightly over six feet tall, and was a bit on the large side. Not overweight, he was just husky and built that way. He wore khaki colored shorts, with pockets and pouches for various items. His face wasn't visible, hiding underneath the hood of the cloak. The most distinguishing figure, however, was not a part of him. Rather, a large sword strapped to his back, easily longer than his torso, which stuck out behind his shoulder and below his hip. Sheathed in black leather, the hilt was the only part visible, and it seemed to be made of some unidentifiable material, which was jet black, adorned only with a sapphire, slightly below the blade. A dark aura surrounded him; it seemed to emanate from what appeared to be a black tattoo on his neck, near the base of his skull. The tattoo was an intricate design, consisting of flowing lines that made the shape of a set of wings. Through the morning mist he appeared before the front gate of Konoha.
Standing there as still as possible, he called out, "You should release your jutsu, it's rather obnoxious."
"Sorry, I can't do that, something gives me a bad feeling about you," Shikamaru said as he stepped out from behind the bushes.
"Why do you say that, I'm merely a lone traveler looking for some breakfast. By the way, you wouldn't happen to know of any good coffee shops around here would you?"
"I highly doubt an individual with chakra levels as high as yours would be a mere traveler," stated Shikamaru, suspiciously eyeing the boy. He thought to himself, "I've never sensed this much chakra in my life, I could be in big trouble if this guy decides to fight back."
"Could you please let me go? I don't want to break this bind by force, I just want some food."
"State your business in Konoha."
"Huh, so this is Konoha, I wondered when I'd pass it by."
"Answer my question," Shikamaru said again, becoming slightly more agitated.
"Ugggh, you won't let me go, will you? Fine, I'll make you let me go, but don't say I didn't warn you."
"Shit, what's this guy gonna do?" Shikamaru thought.
As with most days, Naruto spent his time training in the outskirts of Konoha. Today was no exception, and Naruto had been training for a couple hours, until he decided it was time to get breakfast. Strolling through the streets of Konoha, he overheard a group of ANBU discussing something about a late report from the front gate. He thought nothing of it and continued looking for food. He decided on eating at Ichiraku's, as was customary. "Finally, I get something good to eat," he eagerly exclaimed.
The boy laid Shikamaru against a tree right next to his outpost. "Hopefully he will wake up in a few minutes, leaving me plenty of time to go in and find someplace that serves breakfast." The boy walked past the massive gate and into Konoha. Approximately five minutes later, Shikamaru awoke, clutching his head. "What the hell happened, I just remember looking into his eyes before I blacked out?" He staggered to his feet. Looking around, he noticed that the boy was gone. "Shit, where'd he go!?" Two ANBU stood before him, "What happened, Tsunade sent us to check on you since you didn't send your report?"
"We have to hurry!" he yelled, "There's an intruder in Konoha!" The two ANBU went back to report to Tsunade, while Shikamaru began frantically searching Konoha for the intruder. A few streets over, the boy was sitting in a coffee shop, quietly enjoying the peace the town had to offer. Sitting outside under the balcony from the building, the boy kept watch on the passing ANBU. After sipping the last of his coffee, the boy got up, stretched, and continued on his way. Meanwhile, Naruto had just finished his breakfast and was headed back to train. Walking down the street, he saw Shikamaru. "Hey Shikamaru, what's up?" He noticed that Hinata, Kiba, and Shino were with him as well. "What are you guys up to?"
"Naruto, perfect timing, we were all just about to go find the intruder," Kiba said.
"What are you talking about?" said Naruto with a confused look on his face.
"Earlier this morning Shikamaru came into contact with an extremely powerful ninja who knocked him out cold, and we believe he entered the village."
"Is he a threat?" asked Hinata.
"Right now all we know is what Shikamaru has described to us concerning his appearance," Shino impassively stated.
"What are we standing here for, then, we have to go find him!" exclaimed Naruto, waving a fist in the air.
The hooded figure sat atop the Hokage monument, lazily eyeing a hawk overhead. He sensed an incredible chakra nearing him, very similar to his own, very sinister. "Well, this is interesting," he thought as the chakra signature drew closer. He stood up and walked into the clearing, and turned around.
"Multi Shadow Clone Jutsu!!" Naruto screamed as he leapt in front of the cloaked individual. Shikamaru, Kiba, Shino, and Hinata were right behind him, and all five, including Naruto's numerous shadow clones, surrounded the blue clothed being. "Who are you?" asked Naruto. "You can't escape, you're surrounded," stated Shikamaru. Shino had his bugs at the ready and Hinata had her Byakugan activated, scanning her foe. "This is strange," Hinata said. "What do you mean, Hinata?" Kiba asked. "His chakra, he has two systems, it's like another separate entity, and an incredibly powerful one too."
"Who are you?" Naruto asked again, only becoming more impatient.
"No one you should concern yourself with." he slowly began to remove his hood. "I'm just a normal person, for the most part." His brown hair laid flat on top of his head, and his most notable facial feature was his eyes. They were a bright, shining blue, almost exactly like Naruto's, but hid behind them a tortured soul, a life filled with sorrow and agony. He smirked at them, "I don't remember doing anything wrong, so I fail to see why you are here."
"Answer my question!" yelled Naruto.
"Very well, let me introduce myself, my name is Lance, and I mean you no harm." He yawned, "I was about to fall asleep, why'd you come and disturb me?"
"For one, you knocked me out with a genjutsu," responded a pissed Shikamaru. "You also failed to explain why you are here."
"Well allow me to elaborate, that is if you're willing to get rid of these pesky clones, they're annoying as hell."
"Fine, Naruto."
"Alright." the clones disappeared, one by one in a cloud of smoke. "Shino, Kiba, go inform the Hokage of our visitor, ask her what we should do." "Okay, let's go Shino."
Lance crossed his arms and walked over to Naruto. "What are you looking at?" Naruto growled. "Hmmm, nothing, nothing at all."
"Well, are you going to tell us why you are here?" asked an annoyed Shikamaru.
"I suppose, I don't see any harm in it," he paused. "Basically, I was just passing by, until you made a big deal about me making you uneasy. You started bitching at me, I knocked you out with a genjutsu, and then you get all pissy about it. I was planning on staying a day or two at a nice hotel, but so much for that. However, there has been a change in my plans, as you see I have found something here that has piqued my interests." He looked over at Naruto, who in return gave him a confused look. Naruto had been quiet the whole time, there was something different about this guy, something familiar, the look in his eyes had left him stumped. He kept thinking about what it could be, he couldn't quite place his finger on it. "In fact, I would like to have a word with the spiky- haired blonde kid over there." "You mean Naruto?" He strolled over to Naruto.
"What's up?" asked Lance. "Let's go for a walk, shall we?" Before Naruto could say a word, Lance grabbed his arm, made a hand seal, and the two melted into the shadows. "What the…?" Shikamaru, along with Hinata, now stood alone on top of the monument, they both ran off to the Hokage's tower. He had never been so confused in his life. He needed to warn Tsunade and find Lance and Naruto, before something could happen. "What would that guy want with Naruto?"
"This seems to be safe enough," said Lance. He and Naruto rose from the shadows near a pristine river.
"Let go!" Naruto yelled. Lance released his grip on Naruto's arm.
"I'm gonna kick your ass!" Naruto screamed.
"Calm down, I just want to talk."
"Why should I trust you?"
"Well, I suppose it wouldn't be wise to trust someone you just met. However, I would like to know more about what's sealed inside you." Naruto stood there, dumbfounded. "How does he know about the Kyuubi?" Naruto thought.
"I bet you're thinking, 'How does he know I have something sealed within me?', right?" Naruto looked even more confused, so much so that he was speechless.
"Yeah, but how did you…" Lance cut him off. "I have my ways. Besides, you might say I know a thing or two about your situation."
"Is that reason enough for you to hear me out?" Naruto stood motionless, then cast distressed eyes upon the ground.
"Judging by your unique chakra signature, I'd guess that you're a Jinchuuriki, right, with one of the tailed beasts within you."
"How did you figure it out?"
"As I said, I have my ways, but don't worry about it, a normal person wouldn't be able to tell, unless of course they've seen it."
"Come here and sit down with me, I'd like to have a little talk." Naruto obliged, but was still weary of Lance. "What did he mean by 'a normal person'?" thought Naruto.
Tsunade, along with Kiba, Shino, Hinata, Shikamaru, and Kakashi, stood in her office. "So what you're telling me is that Naruto is off with some guy named Lance who made his way into the village just this morning?" "That's right," said Shikamaru. He looked down, ashamed of himself for letting this happen. "Can you tell me where they are now?" "No, they just stepped into the shadows and disappeared without a trace." "Without a trace you say," said Kakashi. "That is rather interesting." "Alright, Kiba, Shino, Hinata, and Shikamaru, I want the four of you to form a squad and look for Naruto. Be careful, I don't know what we could be dealing with here. Dismissed." They temporary squad hurried out of Tsunade's office. "As for you, Kakashi, I want you to look for Naruto as well, seeing how you have superior tracking skills. Head to the monument first, have Pakkun pick up Naruto's scent. Once you have it, go and find Naruto. Don't engage the enemy until Shikamaru's team arrives, I want him subdued as quickly as possible, understood?" "Yes." "Very well, you may go." Kakashi opened the door and walked out.
Naruto and Lance sat next to one another underneath a large tree. It was now almost night time; the last of the sun was setting. "So, do any of your friends know about your furry acquaintance?" asked Lance. The two had been talking for a couple of hours, mostly Naruto explaining his childhood and life in general as a vessel. Lance was someone Naruto felt comfortable with, someone he believed truly understood what he went through, someone who didn't judge him. Naruto looked at the ground, sorrow apparent in his eyes.
"I don't think anyone other than Sai or Sakura know, and they've kept quiet about it. I really wished they didn't know. In the midst of a battle once, I lost control and went up to the fourth-tailed state. I hurt Sakura, she has a scar on her arm; I still can't forgive myself for what I did to her." Naruto looked depressed. "Do you think I should tell them?"
"Well, I typically would say no, but then again I don't know your friends that well, so it's difficult for me to know. I don't know how they would react."
"Yeah…"
"But don't let it get you down; at least you've kept yourself under control since then." Lance smiled.
"You're right!" Naruto perked up again.
"Hmmm, this boy could be trouble if he decides to fight back, what do you think we should do, Shikamaru?" Kakashi had picked up Naruto's scent using Pakkun and now he, Shikamaru, Shino, Kiba, and Hinata were hiding in some nearby trees. "I don't know, Naruto seems to trust him, maybe we could just persuade him to come with us." "Let's try that first, but Hinata, Kiba, Shino; you three stay back in case we need you, this guy looks tough." "Understood," they replied in unison. Kakashi and Shikamaru leapt down and crept over slowly to where they were sitting.
"I'm getting hungry, how about you?" asked Lance.
"Yeah, I know a great place we can go!" Lance and Naruto stood up and began to walk off. Lance stopped in his tracks.
"Aww, god damnit, not this again." whined Lance.
"What is it?" asked Naruto. Shikamaru and Kakashi stepped into the clearing.
"Kakashi-sensei, Shikamaru, what are you doing here?"
"This guy could be trouble Naruto, Tsunade wants to see him." said Kakashi.
"Why, he's a nice guy."
"That may be true, but still, we need to take him to see the Hokage."
"Couldn't you have just asked?"
"….."
"I'll ask him now." Kakashi neared Lance.
"Boom," whispered Lance. Lance had created a shadow clone before Shikamaru could get him; it exploded as Kakashi approached.
"An exploding shadow clone!?" said Shikamaru. By this time, Hinata, Kiba, and Shino had appeared, prepped for battle. Kakashi popped out of the ground. Lance slowly rose from the shadow behind Naruto. He grabbed the hilt of his sword, ready to unsheathe it any moment.
"Naruto, get away from him he's dangerous!" yelled Hinata. Lance laughed.
"Tch. This should be fun, five against one."
"Are you stupid, you can't beat them all." Naruto told Lance.
"We'll have to see about that, besides, I wanna have some fun. If you don't wanna fight, then watch."
"Whatever." Naruto, usually one for fighting, sat under a tree. He had a feeling that Lance wasn't serious about fighting them. He instead opted to watch.
"Fuuton: Slicing Breeze" Lance grasped his right wrist and began to focus chakra. The wind picked up.
"Everyone, keep an eye out for him." stated Kakashi. Lance forced a blast of wind towards the group. They anticipated a large, deadly gust. But they only felt a slight breeze.
"What was that?" Kiba asked in a mocking tone. Lance turned red in the face. He couldn't hold it in any longer.
"Hahahahahahaha!" Lance burst out laughing. Naruto soon followed.
"I got you soooo good!" Lance said between bouts of laughter.
"What are you talking about!" Kiba yelled furiously. He didn't notice that Shikamaru, Kakashi, and Hinata were red in the face as well, but for another reason.
"Look at your clothes." Naruto kept laughing in the background, rolling on the ground. Kiba looked down, and stared at what he saw. Akamaru whined. He quickly ran to cover himself. Since he was out front, he got the worst of it. His clothes were in tatters, as was everyone else's, he was almost naked. Lance and Naruto slowed their laughter. Shino, who had stayed back, was unharmed. His bugs reformed the clone that was broken apart by the wind. "Ohh man, that never gets old." Lance wiped a tear from his eye. He and Naruto high-fived each other. They stood there, regaining their composure. Hinata passed out, and the group fled, Shino carrying Hinata. "Naruto be careful, we still don't know this guy, keep an eye on him," Kakashi whispered, before fleeing.
"I would've never guessed you were a prankster."
"I find it extremely entertaining to laugh at others misfortune." Lance said. "I sent them packing."
"Yeah, but you know, we really should go see grandma Tsunade," Naruto explained.
"Alright let's go, you lead the way."
As the duo entered Tsunade's office he yelled, "Hey grandma Tsunade!" Lance chuckled at Naruto's nickname for the Hokage. Tsunade looked up from her paperwork. "Stop calling me that!" She noticed a boy standing next to Naruto. "Let me guess, you're the one causing an uproar in my village," she directed at Lance. "I dunno." At this time, Kakashi, Shikamaru, Shino, Hinata, and Kiba walked in. "Hey you guys, no hard feelings, right?" They glared at Lance. "I'm pretty sure he's the one," Tsunade muttered under her breath. "Hey, hey grandma, this is Lance." Naruto excitedly said. Lance looked back over at Tsunade. He stared at Tsunade. Arching an eyebrow he asked Naruto, "Why do you call her grandma? She looks like she's in her thirties." "She's actually in her fifties," Naruto stated.
"No she's not, is she?" Lance looked confused. Naruto nodded. Lance turned around to the group behind them. He received glares from everyone other than Kakashi, who was standing there with his nose in his erotic novel; the Icha Icha series. He put his hand behind his head. "Okay then, I'll just uhhhh…" He turned back around. "So you're like a MILF or something?" Naruto stared at Lance, mouth agape, astonished faces replaced those previously held by death glares. Even Kakashi looked up from his book; a usually calm face was replaced with disbelief. Lance noticed this and said, "What's the problem?" However, he didn't notice an unusually calm Tsunade rise from her seat. She walked over towards Lance. "The calm before the storm," muttered Kakashi, who put his book down; waiting to see what would happen. Everyone knew Tsunade had an incredibly short fuse and Lance just lit it. Akamaru cowered in a corner. Shizune, who had just opened the door, took one look inside, and promptly shut it and walked back down the hall. Kiba snickered, "He's gonna get it, finally, payback." Lance turned to face Tsunade. She smiled the sweetest of smiles. He smiled back. "Hello," he said. Her face instantly disorted into one of the most sinister, angered faces he had ever seen. Hinata covered her eyes. Shino looked away. "Whoa, whoa ,whoa, can't we talk about this, Lance will apologize, right Lance?" Naruto nervously sputtered. "Apologize for what?" BAM!! Tsunade decked him with a chakra-infused fist. Lance flew back through the door, and smashed against the wall. He slid to the floor lying on his back, dazed. Tsunade stood over him. "Ouch." Kiba said. "Troublesome." The group nodded in unison. Lance shook his head and looked up. "Ahh, crazy bitch, that friggin hurt." He gingerly touched his face. Naruto stared again with disbelief. Even he had never talked to Tsunade like that before. "Either that guy's really ballsy, or really stupid." Kiba said. They peeked out the door, to a fuming Tsunade. "WHAT DID YOU JUST SAY!!" "I said, 'crazy - bitch,- that - friggin - hurt,'." THUD!! Tsunade had slammed her foot into his stomach, sending him crashing through the floor; he landed with a sickening crunch on the ground. Tsunade jumped down. Naruto and the group followed like a bunch of school kids eagerly awaiting a playground fight. They stood off to the side. Tsunade picked Lance up by the shirt and shook him furiously. "WHO THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU ARE, YOU SMUG LITTLE BASTARD!!" She wrapped his arm behind his back. He squirmed, trying to get away. "Ow, ow, ow, ow, ow, lemme go."
"Say 'uncle'."
"Never!" She twisted his arm harder, until it almost broke.
"Alright, I give, uncle." She let him drop. He took a deep breath and stood up.
"Now, why are you here?"
"Like I said earlier, I found something rather interesting, and I would like to stay awhile." Tsunade studied him closely.
"I'm not sure."
"Please grandma, let him stay," Naruto pleaded with a puppy dog face. She couldn't resist.
"Alright, fine, but if anything happens, I'll come after you Naruto, got it." He nodded his head vigorously.
"Yeah, alright!!" Shikamaru and the rest of the group went outside.
"Come on Lance, let's go!" Naruto said, excitedly jumping up and down. He was like a little kid who just got an awesome Christmas present.
"Wait outside Naruto, be there in a sec," said Lance as he looked around. He noticed a few bottles of sake lying on the ground. He also noticed Tsunade rubbing her temples.
"I take it you're a drinker?" he asked.
"What of it?" she replied.
"Nothing, its just I feel kinda bad for what happened, so I was gonna make it up to you." She eyed Lance, who began rummaging through his cloak.
"Ah hah, here it is." He pulled out a bottle of the finest sake money could buy. Tsunade's eyes widened.
"I don't really like the stuff, but I didn't want to throw it out since it was so expensive, so here, you've earned it." He handed it to Tsunade, and ran outside and joined up with Naruto and the group.
"Maybe he's not so bad after all," Tsunade thought as they walked off into the streets.
"There you are," Naruto said. Lance's stomach grumbled.
"Dude, I'm so hungry right now." Naruto grabbed his stomach.
"Now that you mention, I haven't eaten since this morning." he whined. Shikamaru, Hinata, Shino, Kiba, and Kakashi were thinking the same thing. The group began to disband, searching for food.
"Wait up," Lance said. "Let's go to this Ichiraku place Naruto told me about, my treat. Think of it as paying you back for enduring my mischief." Naruto's eyes lit up, like he was going to explode.
"Yeeeeeaaaaaaahhhhhh!"
"That's pretty generous of you," Shikamaru said calmly.
"Yeah, are you sure you can afford it?" Kiba asked. Hinata was silent, blushing at Naruto's childish antics. Shino decided to head home.
"No problem," he said. He pulled out a wad of cash, "I think this should cover any and all expenses." Kakashi noticed that there was quite a large sum of money in just that single bunch.
"Whoa, where'd you get that kind of dough?" Naruto asked.
"Nowhere."
"Nowhere my ass, that single stack of cash could buy everything on Ichiraku's menu a hundred times over!" said an astonished Kiba. Shikamaru, like Kakashi, wondered where he could get enough cash to be throwing it around like that.
"Well, whatever, let's go eat, I'm starving." complained Naruto.
"I umm, I have to head home, umm, it's getting late."
"Are you sure, uhh, what's your name again?" Lance grinned.
"Oh, umm, it's H-Hinata," she quietly responded.
"Well Hinata, are you sure?"
"Yes, I'll see you guys later." Hinata quickly hurried off down the street and turned towards the Hyuuga mansion.
"Looks like its just the five of us."
"Actually, I should probably head home too, I have work that needs to be done," stated Kakashi. He disappeared in a puff of smoke.
"Okay, down to just the four of us. Let's go."
Lance, Naruto, Kiba, and Shikamaru headed off to Ichiraku's together. The moon shone overhead, casting a soft glow over Konoha.