Do You Know What Foxes Are Famous For?
Sasuke and Naruto stood alone in a small field. Naruto had once again found him, trying to bring him back to Konoha.
"Why?" Sasuke asked. "Why do you keep trying? I'm not going back."
Naruto just smiled. "Sasuke, do you know…" He said in a mysterious voice that Sasuke had never heard from him before. "Do you know what foxes are famous for?"
"…" Sasuke remained silent, curious.
"Deception, tricks, and…" Naruto continued in that mysterious voice that sounded slightly disappointed, like Sasuke should know this. "Loyalty."
Sasuke looked surprised, but Naruto went on, a small smile on his face.
"Foxes never break a promise, Sasuke." He said. "And I just happened to make a stupid promise regarding your return to the village." Sasuke could hear the hatred at the word village.
"So I'll keep trying, because if there's one thing I've learned…" Naruto stated, then lunged towards him, kunai in hand. Sasuke blocked quickly with his sword as Naruto continued. "It's to keep my honor with my father."
Sasuke's eyes widened. "You… I thought you didn't have a father." He said, the question in his eyes.
Naruto laughed. "Of course I have a father. How else did I come into the world, from a stork?" He laughed again, slightly depressed now. "A stork wouldn't have dropped me off at such a terrible village." Naruto jumped away from Sasuke, releasing him from the dead lock they've been in.
"Unfortunately, the father you're thinking of isn't quite the same as the father I'm talking about." Naruto said, and the question Sasuke wouldn't state aloud could be seen in his eyes.
"The father I'm talking about has been with me since birth, has taught me everything I know, and has made me what I am." Naruto continued, love shining in his eyes for the father he was talking about.
"He is why I continue to chase after you, even though I hate the village. He taught me that a his son would never break a promise." Naruto suddenly disappeared, blurring out of sight in the way only pure speed could make happen. Sasuke tensed, but he was too late as a hand hit his neck in the one spot that would make him loose consciousness.
"And I am most certainly the Kyuubi's son." Sasuke heard just before he sank down into the blackness.
XXXXXXXX
When Sasuke woke up, he saw only a blinding white. "Ah, Sasuke-kun, you're awake!" He heard an annoyingly shrill voice proclaim. He groaned as the voice continued, blathering nonsense into his ear, making his already throbbing headache pound. Another, soothing voice laden with grief interrupted the banshee.
"Sakura, I need to talk to Sasuke, could you wait out in the hall?" Sasuke silently thanked the person and opened his eyes to see his savior. A woman with pale blond hair in low pigtails and red-rimmed brown eyes full of pain met his sight.
"Hello Sasuke, I've heard a lot about you from Sakura and…" A small pause where even more pain entered those soft brown eyes. "Naruto." She forced out in a small, sad voice.
"Who are you?" Sasuke asked in a slightly curious voice.
"My name is Tsunade, the," Sadness entered her eyes as she talked. "Godaime Hokage."
"So the dobe completed his promise." Sasuke said, and looked as the word 'dobe' affected Tsunade more than he thought it would.
Her fists tightened as she said quickly, "He's not a dobe! He-he is… he was… a wonderful kid… full of life and joy… just like…. Just like Nawaki… and Dan… He had the same dream…" Sasuke looked on amazed as the woman cried.
"He was like a son! Like the son I could have had with Dan… Like the Nephew Nawaki could have had… he… he… " She almost couldn't continue as her voice broke. "He was my son… that this village killed…" Sasuke suddenly understood. The dobe… Naruto… was dead.
"How…" Sasuke asked in a almost meek voice, slightly afraid of bringing the woman's attention to him. "How did the dob- Naruto." He corrected himself, not one to show disrespect for the dead. "How did Naruto die?"
Tsunade looked at him, like she was shocked that he would ask. She slowly pulled out a note from the inside of her jacket, handing it to him with a trembling hand.
Sasuke read the note quickly, then dropping it in shock. Tsunade completely broke down, the words on the note running through her head.
Dear Tsunade,
I'm sorry that you have to see me like this. I'm sure I look horrible, with the genjutsu gone. I'm sure you'll have someone count the scars, but I already know the number. 182. Only six of them come from someone who doesn't hate me. Well, I'm not sure if Sasuke hates me. If he doesn't that makes seven, but I'm not counting that one as he tried to kill me.
I'm sure your wondering which scars are the ones I'm talking about. Well, you've always been able to see them, the only ones the genjutsu didn't cover. My little 'whisker marks', as they've been affectionately called. Less affectionately, 'the marks of a demon'. Well I guess the villager's were right, even I used to hate them. But that changed about three years ago, about a month after Sasuke had defected.
The Kyuubi contacted me through a dream. I was scared, but then… He apologized. He was sorry for the pain he caused me. I thought he was lying but… I felt his pain. I mean this literally; I could feel what he was feeling. Kind of odd, isn't it? The demon caring for a human. But I'm not a human. I'm his 'kit', as he calls me. When I die, I'll go with him to hell. We were irreversibly bound by this seal that my father put on me.
Yes, I know the Yondaime was my father. Kyuubi told me. It's all right, I don't hate him. He was completing a promise, one he took when he became the Hokage. He promised to protect the village until the end of his life. And a fox, as I told Sasuke, always completes his promises. Kyuubi taught me this. He taught me a lot. He's my daddy fox; I can't even imagine life without him now.
I'm sorry, Tsunade. I must be causing you some pain now. I'm sorry, but I need to die. I need to die before I turn sixteen. The seal would make me and Kyuubi merge, and kill Kyuubi. I can't let that happen to my dad. I just want you to know that, and know that I hope you can go where I can't when you die. If you end up in hell, just know that we'll meet you there, and we'll make sure that you're taken care of. Having a dad that's the king of hell comes with an upside, of course.
I'm sorry Tsunade, but I can't let my daddy fox die. I want you to know that I love you, and that you're like the mother that I never had. I wish you well, and I would like for you to do something for me. I want you to leave the village, and give up your title as Hokage. The Yondaime personally made a promise to protect the village, but you never did. You just said that you would. As long as you never say the words, 'I promise' It's not binding to us. So please leave this village, as a last request from me.
To Iruka and Jiraiya,
Thank you for your kindness and your tutelage. I'm sorry that you two also have to see me like this. I always saw you, Iruka, as an older brother, and you, Jiraiya, as a grandfather. Thank you both for the love you showed me. I promise if you end up in hell, we'll treat you well.
To Sasuke,
I'm sorry I had to drag you back to the village, but I made such a stupid promise to Sakura, and I'm not going to tarnish my honor, not even if it was a stupid promise. I let you remain free from the village for as long as possible, but I needed to complete the promise before I died. Now that I've brought you back, I've fulfilled my promise. I never said I'd keep you in the village, though, so feel free to leave if you want. Thank you for your friendship back then, even if you don't feel that way anymore.
To Sakura,
I don't consider you a friend, as you never treated me like one. I do hope you can ascend to heaven, but I assure you, I won't go out of my way to treat you nicely in hell.
To Kakashi,
I'm sorry that you have to see me like this; I know that the council made you play favorites with Sasuke. Thank you for teaching me as much as you could.
To the rest of the Rookie Nine and Team Gai,
Thank you for your friendship, and for not hating me. I hope that you will be able to ascend to heaven, and if you can't, hell won't be an eternity of torture, I can promise you this.
Love,
Naruto Uzumaki-Namikaze no Youko, Son of the Yondaime Hokage and the next King of Hell.
Well, what do you think? Please leave a review! Was the note too long? Was the grief not apparent enough? Please let me know! Flames will be use to warm up my feet. They're cold.
Now for the best part, According to Word~
Sasuke= Sauce
Naruto= Nariño, or Maputo
Konoha= Kenosha, Konia, Konica, Kenova, or Konawa (are these even English?)
Sasuke's= Sauk's
Kyuubi's= Cuba's
Tsunade= Sundae
Godaime= Godlike
Hokage= Hoagie
Dobe= dob
Nawaki= Unawake or Awake
Genjutsu= Genus
Yondaime= Indiamen
Iruka= Irk
Jiraiya= Jamaica
Gai= Gay or Gaia
Youko= Yolk
(For some reason, there are a hell of a lot of Japanese words in Word's library, but not one that I typed down did it recognize… like, no clue why either)
~nonowriting
