I do not own any rights to Naruto (story or characters). Just the characters I make up along the way! I have full love and respect for Masashi Kishimoto!

While this isn't my first story it is under my pen name, Aubrei Seraph. I hope you enjoy it and feel free to ask me any questions or offer any suggestions!

Have fun!

UPDATE: It's been awhile. I've had a lot of stuff happen since I originally published this but my heart has never left this story. I am working on editing chapters 2-4 and I've got through chapter 8 written. Please let me know what you think! :)

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Its funny how you never think your life will turn out the way that it does. People always say that but don't really understand what that means until it happens. Growing up for me was normal, well as normal as living in a cave in the middle of the desert alone and completely isolated from basic human contact can be. To anybody looking into my life it was hell but it's the only life I've ever known. The last thing my father told me was a warning; humans breed conflict stay far away from them. I've lived long enough to see the wisdom in those words many times over. I may be jaded by my experiences now as an adult but I didn't regret following my Father's words. It's what's kept me safe all this time.

The only time I ever connected with humans, willingly, was when I ventured into the local village. I was thankful that my father had the mindset to leave me in a cave close to a clan of traders. I was able to survive in the harsh lands of the desert by selling the herbs and salves that I made from the plants I grew. My best customer was Sunagakure. I've watched the village grow over the years and even grown attached to it; however, the village is home to the many shinobi. When my father told me to keep away from humans I like to believe he was talking about them.

At first Shinobi were eager students learning to work with nature and the world around them. But like all humans given power their greed consumed them. I remember the first time chakra was used to fight; it wasn't war, it was genocide. Blood soaked the land scarring it's surface. Brothers became bitter enemies leaving families torn apart. All of this for more power. Whether it was power of the people or the land they fought until almost nothing was left. I felt the cries of mother nature as she watched her world crumble; it was agony.

During that bloody era I feared it would never end. And then hope came. After years of conflict the clans, that had been at each others throats for so long, came together in an offer of peace. Sharing their abilities they combined their power conquering the land and laying claim to it as their own. The senseless killing had ebbed but peace was still far away. The five villages that held the most power drew their borders forming the five great nations as they are known today: Earth, Wind, Water, Lightning, and Fire. Five lands and five rulers to go with their new kingdoms.

I remember the first Kazekage. He was smart and had an eye for business, something that I admired. He started trade with the other countries using the caravans that crossed the desert. Using the abilities of his people he created techniques that used the deserts itself and with this power he carved the village into the very mountains it now rested in. The second Kazekage was a different story. Where the Shodai Kazekage looked for his peoples prosperity the Nidaime only cared about power. He was the first to create the specialized Shinobi group called ANBU. His hands were stained with so much blood.

I didn't know much about the Sandaime but I heard he was powerful. When he disappeared it sent the village into a panic. Seeing the village without a leader the Lord of the land abandoned them and turned his business elsewhere leaving the once prosperous nation almost broke. With no leader and no financial backer they had to rely on the caravans established by the Shodai and their gold industry;however, even then life was no where near the same. When the Yondaime took over he was left with a wreck of a village and the impossible task of repairing their reputation. It was a burden that proved too big for him in the end.

With the Lord giving money to Konoha instead of his own people the Yondaime was desperate for his people to survive. I never met him in person but from what I heard he loved his people deeply. Despite his fondness for his village though he was a harsh man that rarely showed emotion. No one smiled when they talked about the Kazekage even if they respected him. Then again no one smiled much in the village anymore. I heard one day while I was handing over a shipment of medicine to a local vendor that his wife had died during childbirth.

The two women were gossiping, their voices low but not low enough for others not to hear. At first I just ignored them as I waited for the vendor to hand me my money, but the more they talked the more I became curious. They spoke of his wife as a martyr, having sacrificed her life for the village. After her death the Yondaime seemed to only become harsher and people began to worry about his decision making ability. Especially when it came to his decision to keep the child that killed her, alive. All kinds of foul names were thrown directed at the for mentioned child, but the one that caught my attention most was failure. Failure at what I did not know, but the mere thought of them cursing an innocent child for something beyond his control enraged me and brought up memories I was never wanted to relive.

Despite the goggles hiding my eyes from their view I still glared at them as I walked by; hoping that my look would somehow delve out punishment for their cruelty. It was a naive thought but made me feel better. Disappearing around the corner I made my way through the familiar streets muttering to myself about ignorant people. On more than one occasion a person bumped into me almost knocking me to the ground. It wasn't anything I wasn't use to, people tended to be oblivious to my presence and this was how I liked it. While people knocking into me was a bother having to interact with people bothered me more. I chose this outfit just for this purpose. It was plain and covered most of my body in light brown fabric almost the color of sand. The turban on my head was the same color and covered my hair. Only the bottom half of my face was visible and that was only in the city. Out in the desert I was completely covered from head to toe.

I shouldn't let what they said bother me but hearing them talk so casually about taking a life, a child's life at that, infuriated me. Were humans still so lost in their pursuit of power that they were willing to sacrifice a child's life so easily? It was while lost in my anger that I happened upon him. I almost didn't notice him as I passed by. He was there curled up in a corner sobbing softly into his arms. I had never seen hair that deep a shade of red before, almost the color of blood. There was a stuffed animal clutched tightly in his grasp; his small hands clenching the little raggedy thing almost desperately against his chest. The way he situated himself and had his hair not been that color I never would have noticed him.

I wasn't good with human interactions and my own emotions were far from stable, but I still stopped curious as to what was ailing such a small boy. It wasn't like me to embroil myself in the lives of humans but this small child pulled at my heart, begging me to stop his tears. Obviously I should have said something comforting, now that I look back, but I wasn't the most subtle person on the planet and my only thought at the time was to stop him from crying. "You know water in the desert is scarce. You shouldn't waste it so readily." His head came up so suddenly and the sand shot out so fast that I didn't have time to blink let alone react. It wrapped around my body tightly almost choking the air from my lungs. The power that was coming from the small child was shocking and I could feel just how deadly his sand was as it gripped me tightly. For a moment I thought I really might die. It was in the mad look in his eyes and the bloody smell of the sand against me.

The only sound was the soft wind blowing through the buildings and the sand moving around me. It became tighter and tighter cracking my joints as it constricted. "Are you here to kill me?" I could see the anger clearly reflected in his eyes but along with it was fear. "Why would I want to kill you?" Emotions passed across his face so quickly that I could barely follow them at the speed they came and went. For a moment I didn't think he would answer my question and I prepared myself to fight the sands hold. "Everyone hates me, I have no one but Yashamaru. Even my own father hates me. And all the villagers ever call me is a monster." Realization suddenly hit and his words and the conversation from the market earlier echoed in my mind. So this was the child they were condemning to death?

The dark circles around his eyes were prominent and he was rather small for his age; however, he looked well taken care of despite his size. The only thing on him that seemed old was the raggedy teddy bear still clutched in his hand. "You look human to me. I've met many monsters in my life and you don't look like any of them." There was hesitation in his eyes. Obviously he was surprised at my response but the fear kept him from releasing me. "Don't you fear me. With just a thought I could kill you." I smiled despite myself finding his words amusing even if he didn't know why. "Maybe so, but you won't."

"You don't know anything!" He yelled in response the sand tightening around me harder and I tasted the tang of blood on my tongue. "I won't kill you. I don't kill anyone anymore. I have enough blood on my hands." I said it so matter of factually that you could see him debating whether or not to believe me.

For a moment I was afraid I was going to have to hurt him if he didn't release me but in the next breath I could feel the sand loosening against me. When it finally fell away I landed on my feet taking slow breathes as my body healed the damage done. There was no need to tell him but at least three of my ribs were broken and my shoulder dislocated, one of the ribs puncturing an organ. "You've killed people too?" Said so softly that I barely heard him. He was desperate for acceptance for someone to understand him and that small hope in his eyes pushed me forward. "Too many to count. Some even against my will." Leaning against the wall across from him I let my bones pop as they reset themselves. I may not feel pain but I was exhausted just from healing the wounds; it was impressive that he caused that much damage.

He watched me the whole time and I could see the sand swirling just in front of him, ready to grab me once again should I try to cause him harm. Not eager to feel the power of it's grip again I spoke. "So tell me little one. Why do they call you a monster?" As I stood there waiting for his answer I noticed the knife lying on the ground at his feet. There was no blood on it and I knew that he didn't need it to protect him, that left only one option and just the thought of it brought back the rage that I felt earlier. "It's inside me." Touching his chest with those small fingers he gripped his shirt in agony. "A monster living inside me, talking to me all the time. It made me hurt those people, kill them." Confused at his words I was about to ask him what he meant but my eyes sharpened and I saw the answer. There wrapped around his own chakra was another one, darker and far more powerful than humanly possible. It was ingrained into his own system bleeding through it offering some of that power for him to use. I would have been impressed if the person hadn't done a half assed job at the seal. It was what gave him control over the sand, but it also allowed the creature within control over him.

A jinchuriki was what he was called; a human container for a creature with almost limitless power. I had read one of my father's journals once late at night when I couldn't sleep. He stated that Hagoromo created the beasts from the the Jubi, separating it into nine creatures. "What is this creature called that lives inside you?" I asked curious as to which one was sealed inside him. "Shukaku." The one tail, a tanuki I believe. Well the circles around his eyes made sense now as did the power that was radiating off him. I should have sensed it earlier but I let my damn anger override my senses. Cursing myself I let my focus go back to the scared boy in front of me. My mind made up I knelt down until I was kneeling at his height letting the sand know I meant him no harm.

I never bothered with humans; and yet, here I was making the decision to help this small child despite everything I knew. Rummaging through my pockets until I found the tiny pouch that I always kept on me I plucked one seed from inside holding it up to the setting sun. He looked at my hand curiously probably wondering what I was going to do with such a tiny seed. "Plants need sunlight to grow. Using the energy they consume they grow from these tiny seeds into beautiful flowers; however, it takes more than the suns warm embrace to nurture them." His tears had stopped leaving only the lines of their path down his cheeks. He was watching me with rapt attention entirely focused on the seed in between my fingers. "They also need the rain."

"But it doesn't rain in the desert, not often enough to grow anything." Chuckling at his reply I reached out and slowly took his hand in my own. It was so tiny compared to mine yet like all humans it would quickly grow until one day it was larger than my own.

Feeling the sand underneath my fingers moving as a living armor I felt it then a will in this sand, one which did not belong to the creature. It twitched under the pads of my fingers almost curious as to my intentions. I let my chakra bleed through my fingers sending out calm pulses of energy trying to tell it I meant him no harm. When it settled once again I continued. "You have to let the rain fall. Some people shy away from it. Some even hate the darkness it brings but like all things, without darkness there can be no light. So don't be afraid. Let the rain fall and with it all things will grow."

"I don't understand?" I knew he didn't but I had said all that I was going to hoping it would be enough.

Placing the seed in his hand I curled his small fingers around it letting my palm rest over his. I couldn't save this child from his fate, like so many before him. What I could do though was offer him this. "You will one day and when you do this tiny seed will become what it was mean to be; what it was truly born to be." He opened his hand to stare down at the seed trying hard to understand my words. The urge to protect him to take him away from this place was strong, but in the end I turned away. Days following our meeting I kept thinking about him. His sad jade eyes looking up at me with yearning. It hurt to leave him like that but what could I do for him? I had my own demons to worry about. I promised myself that I would stay away, that I wouldn't think of him anymore.

Time passed and I really tried but my mind always wondered back to that little boy, my tiny seed. It wasn't good to get attached to people, especially shinobi, and yet despite the warnings blaring in my head I still sought out information about him. Listening out for any mention of him I spent more time in the village after that. I heard the rumors about him, heard the peoples cruel words and harsh opinions. For years I was left angered by their scorn; having seen the child first hand I knew that he was not without hope. How humans could turn on one of their own so quickly never failed to baffle me.

The years passed quickly for me as they always do and one day I found myself passing near a food stand. Two woman, the same that I had heard those vicious words from so many years ago were chatting away once again. It was sheer shock that stopped me in my tracks and I almost dropped my delivery. No longer were their words full of scorn and damnation but of hope and praise. The word "monster" never came up in their entire conversation and instead they called him a savior. What had happened to my little seed to change the hearts of the people so? Fifteen years since I first crossed paths with him, fifteen years of listening to his struggles and now he was finally gaining the recognition he so desperately sought.

The warmth that spread through my chest was intense, startling in it's intensity. It was ego to think I had anything to do with it, and yet seeing the villagers smiling for the first time left me relieved. It was pure joy radiating off the people, and this village that I had come to care for finally resembled the one that the Shodai had wished for all those years ago.

When I felt wetness on my face, for a moment I thought it was raining but the water was just tears. Tears falling like rain at the happiness I was feeling. For the first time in years I felt hope. If this child could survive in this cruel world than maybe humans were finally ready for peace. More and more I heard the praises and admiration of the people towards him and when he became the Godaime I knew that this village would be ok.

I didn't realize the impact I made on him that day so long ago nor did I imagining the one that I would make in the near future. It took another chance meeting for the wheels of fate to start moving. My time in the shadows was over and though I didn't realize it he made an impact on me that day as well. That spark that he started would bring me that much closer to my fate; a fate that started here, in the village hidden in the sand.