Naruto carried himself along heavy feet, his mind whirling with the great excitement team 7 felt when they accomplished such a mission.

Scarecrow Kakashi decided that a retest on their miserable bell exam would suit them well. Especially since all three of them had finally reached the age of maturity. Except, they didn't defeat him any way a mature adult would have. A plain and dirty trick on Kakashi's behalf and it was all the blond's fault.

"Look, sensei. I already told you, I never finished that boring book." Naruto pleaded.

Kakashi only sighed, his head low and arm waving back and forth, book held in hand. "Hu..."

The great toad sannin huffed at the title given at his book. "Boring book my ass."

"Your ass is boring."

Jiraiya flinched and furrowed his eyebrows. "Why you little punk. And to think, I was actually going to pay for your celebration meal."

Naruto waved his hands in surrender. "H-hey, almighty toad, I was only joking, really!"

"Of course you were." A puff of smoke emphasized that Kakashi and Jiraiya had vanished.

"Now look what you did, Naruto." Sakura, standing to the blond's left, shook a fist at his face. "He might have actually payed for our meal."

"Who? That perverted old man?"

The pink head rephrased herself. "That's why I said 'might have'. Right, Sasuke-kun."

"Hn. Knowing him he's probably with sensei doing something inappropriate."

"Yeah, yeah." Sakura paced forward.

The blond wrapped his arm around the raven's shoulder and grinned wildly. "You're getting to know their minds alot, huh?"

"Whatever." Sasuke pushed his hand away and followed behind Sakura.

Naruto hurried along. "Etto...Sasuke...my birthday's coming up...and imma turn sixteen..."

"And? What about it?"

Damn, that hurt. "I was...uh...ya know...wondrin'-"

"Maybe."

"W-what?"

Sasuke sent him a sideways smirk and continued to walk.

The blond stopped in his tracks and smiled. "Will this be the first birthday...with my friends?" His heart thumped in his chest both from anxiety and pure content. "Guess so."

After three years of only being around a perverted old man and screaming women, Naruto was glad he was back in the leaf. He was glad that all his friends were the same...and Sasuke...had soon begun to share his emotions. He was glad about that for sure.

Naruto turned his attention back to his teammates, immediately finding that they had disappeared and a throng of villages crowded before him. The teens were no where to be found.

"Don't tell me I was ditched again."

"Naruto!" The feminine voice of Sakura sounded above all others. "Over here!"

Sakura and Sasuke stood at the edge of the alligned buildings, the two hidden beneath shadow. The raven tapping his foot in annoyance.

"Coming!" Naruto called. He pushed through the villagers with great effort before he finally managed to make it to his friends. "Gomen. I kinda got lost a second there. Hehe."

"Come on, dobe, weren't we going to get dinner?"

"Yeah, Naruto."

He nodded and crossed his arms. "Where to?"

Sakura quickly pointed a finger away from the village. "How about a place I know. It's not so far from here."

"Hm...alright. "

The three turned their direction for the area recently pointed to. The night was warm, perfect for a friendly outing.

"Just around here."

It was taking some time to find the so called place Sakura had mentioned. It almost seemed as if they had been walking for thirty minutes, though, in reality, it had only been ten minutes.

"When are we gonna be there?" Naruto complained.

"Soon." Sasuke told him.

Strange. Did Sasuke know where this place was as well?

The undergrowth became wild, more trees gathered and fought for room.

Naruto turned the corner of a tree and was left to complete shock. The rest of team 7 was gone. There wasn't even a lingering trace of their presence. "G-guys?"

Then, a hand shot across his mouth, covering his screams and yelps of fury and fear in a terrible mixture. He shot forward and both his arms were clutched in tight grips that bit down on his skin and bones. His feet in the same position.

What's going on?!

A voice sounded near his ear. "We'll make you regret ever coming back to the leaf, Kyuubi."

K-Kyuubi? After so many years they still see me as THAT?

A sharp kunai embedded itself within the blond's chest; blood instantly filling his mouth, though he was unable to cough it out. A cloaked man stood in front of him with a sadistic smile and the weapon in one hand while his other hand placed itself around Naruto's neck.

A voice to his left whispered. "We're not supposed to kill him, remember. "

Another voice. "They never said we couldn't have any fun."

Naruto's arms were swiftly pulled to his back and tied with a rough rope. His mouth covered with a thick gag. Blood spilled from the sides; the crimson liquid filling his mouth.

"Come on, Kyuubi. Scream, I want to hear you." The man placed a kick to his side, crushed a few ribs.

Another man came forward and punched Naruto in the nose, surely breaking it, while another kept the blond standing.

As bad as he wanted to Naruto refused to scream. It would only fill their hunger and have them asking for more. He had shut his eyes from their dark appearances and attempted to concentrate on anything far from the laughter and sounds of his own breaking bones. He let out a whimper, an enormous mistake, for the men laughed harder and pulled at his hair; demanding for him to look at them

"Look at us, you bastard. What? Are you defiled by the way we look? That we are not a demon like you?" The man ripped strands of the blond's hair at the word 'demon'.

It hurt so, so much...why won't they leave me alone? Or rather, Kyuubi alone. That's all they have and will ever think I am.

"Scream for us." A women's voice...

A broken ankle sent shivers through Naruto's spine and out his mouth. He screamed.

Laughter.

Then, a soft and distant voice sounded. "Naruto!"

"Dobe, where are you?!"

In his excitement Naruto's eyes shot open and he struggled for release while yelling with all his might what sounded like 'help'.

The men around him only watched his body writhe and scream with amusement in their eyes. When the voices started to recede Naruto kicked back in frustration while still calling out.

They didn't hear me, they didn't hear me! Come back, please!

"How sad. You actually thought they would come for you...pitiful."

T-they...they didn't hear me-turn around-go this way-get over here! Tears leaked from his eyes, racking his tired body with trembles and sobs.

"Aha! The great Kyuubi is crying!"

"Haha!"

I'm not the Kyuubi.

"Ehaha!"

I'm a human being!

He was dropped to the ground; bloodied and battered, no longer able to stand on his own. His heart wrenched back from pain, frustration, and false hope. His mind struggling to process what was presently occuring.

"What do we do with him."

A pause followed by a sigh. "We're not supposed to kill him. Why not leave him in the trap we saw earlier?"

"Quite fitting."

They roughly pulled the boy up and dragged him across the ground and to the area they had spoken of. A fox trap, cage large enough to fit a human lay before them.

Naruto was shoved in, door shutting behind him, the click of a lock and something else soon following.

"We can't kill him by hand but in a few weeks he'll be good as gone."

Chuckling. "Happy birthday, Kyuubi."

I have no idea why I wrote this, but please review.