A/N: Hello there, and welcome to my first fanfiction! I've had this idea in my head for a while now, and I like it enough that I'm going to try and make a complete story out of it. For now, I only have a vague idea of what is going to happen next, so it can really go anywhere at the moment. n.n;
Sorry for making this chapter so short, but it's only the prologue. I'm somone who firmly believes in quality over quantity, but whenever I'm reading stories with 1k to 2k word chapters, no matter how good the writing is, I'm left feeling unsatisfied. I'm pretty sure some people agree with me ( I hope ). So, as to not be a hypocrite, (and the fact that I enjoy rambling on in stories n.n ) my chapters will probably be on the longer end. But this means unless I'm extremely inspired, they won't be coming all too quickly. Don't like it? Too bad. :D
Summary: AU. In the wake of the Uchiha Massacre, Naruto is abducted and taken out of the village by a mysterious figure promising him power. However everything has a price, and the blond is unwillingly thrust into the middle of an ancient war between gods. Will he stray from his dream of becoming Hokage, or will he manage to resist the darkness?
Warnings: Language, violence, blood, gore (in later chapters ) very slight spoilers. ( I do include some characters that don't appear until later in the manga, but you can pretend they are OC's ) Not Beta'ed. Sorry for any mistakes.
Disclaimer: Heck, everyone else writes them, why shouldn't I? I don't own Naruto, but once I do, the first thing I'll do is change Sasuke's hairdue, because it is frickin' impossible to draw...
Sorry for the long A/N. Onto the story!
Embracing the Darkness
XxXxXxXx
"You called, Hokage-sama?"
Said man, the Third Hokage of Konoha Sarutobi, gazed levelly at the three crouching ninja before him, all garbed in black. They were ANBU, but no ordinary ones. They were three of the few held in high regards by everyone, the elite of the elite. The best Konoha had to offer.
Hatake Kakashi was the first, with the mask of a wolf, only twenty years old. After the death of his teammate, and subsequently, the possession of the bloodline limit Sharingan, the man had rapidly increased in stature and rank, becoming the one known as Copy Ninja Kakashi.
The second was Maito Gai, the powerful, albeit eccentric, ANBU of Konoha. Age 21 with a turtle mask, he was not as well known as his "eternal rival" Kakashi, but his skills were not to be taken lightly. The self-proclaimed 'Beautiful Green Beast of Konoha' was unmatched with his flawless Taijutsu and unfathomable speed.
The final was Inuzuka Tsume and her wolf-like dog Kuromaru. The pair, as head of the Inuzuka Clan, was famous for their ability to track and hunt any target, as well as their ability to work together so well, it was rumored that they could read each others minds. And that was exactly what Sarutobi required for this mission, superior tracking skills and perfect teamwork.
The old man motioned for the ANBU to stand, and even though he was shorter than them, he appeared to tower regally above the three. His hands were folded around his back and visage was stoic, just as any leader's would be in a similar situation, but if one knew where to look they would see the slightly troubled, grim look on his face. The three ninja did indeed know how to read the Hokage's expression, which made the atmosphere all the more tense as the silence lingered on.
Finally, Sarutobi spoke, "I have summoned you three here on an urgent, S-class mission, of utmost importance."
The old Hokage sighed and relaxed his shoulders slightly, only allowing his weakness to show since he was in the presence of his most trusted. His voice, however, was still unwavering and strong as he spoke. "In the confusion of the aftermath of the Uchiha Genocide that occurred last night, there has been a breach in security." Such a thing could have been predicted, seeing how shaken up Konoha was by the fact that one of their very own, Uchiha Itachi, had killed his entire clan save for his little brother. "At 0300 hours this morning, the vessel of the Nine-tail demon Kyuubi, Uzumaki Naruto, was abducted by an unknown assailant, and smuggled out of the village."
At mention of the Uzumaki, all of the ninja tensed; not so much out of spite or fear of the boy, but because of the fact that a S-ranked mission requiring the best of the best, having to deal with the vessel of the strongest demon known could only mean trouble.
"It is your job to track down and return the boy to Konoha." Sarutobi resisted adding the word 'unharmed' to the end of that sentence out of habit. He knew the three professionals before him would not let any of their personal feelings affect the mission. "If it is possible to apprehend the perpetrator, do so, but the boy's safety is your first priority.
"Uzumaki Naruto was reported being carried off by a figure near the east gate; more specifically at the breach in the gate where Uchiha Itachi escaped only hours before." The old man Hokage could almost see the cogs in each of the ANBU's brain turning as they digested the information. "From this information, it is possible that the abductor is either in league with Uchiha Itachi, or is Uchiha Itachi himself. The abduction is timely enough that one would have to have known about the Massacre, either before or right after it happened.
Go and pack for a few days travel, and meet at the breach in the east gate as fast as possible to begin your mission; any questions?"
Tsume was the one to speak. "Tracking will be easier if we have the scent of the dem—…boy. I request permission to take an article of Uzumaki Naruto's clothing with us, Hokage-sama."
The old man merely nodded, eyeing the others. "Very well, if there is nothing else, you are dismissed."
In an instant the three ANBU disappeared without even a cloud of smoke signaling their leave, and despite the grim atmosphere lingering around him, Sarutobi couldn't help but chuckle as he heard Maito Gai's furious proclamations coming from somewhere in Konoha, of how he was going to find Naruto and bring him back faster than his eternal rival.
The old Hokage kept reminding himself that if anyone would find and recover Uzumaki Naruto, it was those three, but he couldn't ward off the feeling of dread that was creeping into his stomach. Something was going to go terribly, terribly wrong.
XxXxXxXx
The first thing he noticed when consciousness began to grasp him was that it was cold. He could feel something chilled and wet on his head, and frigid wind lapped at his bare skin mercilessly, which was covered in goose-bumps. The tiny boy groaned and shifted, trying to shield himself from the air. That's when his mind, still clouded by sleep, registered that something was wrong with the situation…Very wrong.
Naruto wasn't in his bed like he was supposed to be, and if the rock digging into his back was any indication, he wasn't even in his apartment.
Crystalline cerulean eyes snapped open, and the tiny blond immediately sat upright, only to groan in pain and clutch his head afterwards. The cold thing on his head, which turned out to be an ice pack, fell into his lap. The blond yelped as the frigid ice met his thighs, and he tossed the bag to the side, grumbling for a moment before he realized there were more important matters at hand.
No longer distracted, he gazed at his surroundings. Naruto was sitting in a clearing, giant trees towering all around him. The sky was dark, but the first traces of the sun could be seen inching its way over the horizon, painting the canvas around it interesting shades of green and pink. The grass under him was wet with morning dew, some of it already sparkling in the light. To his left there was a tiny smoldering campfire, lapping at the air and providing a menial amount of heat. Unconsciously, the blond scooted towards it.
He jumped when he heard an amused grunt, breaking the almost deafening silence. As his eyes trailed past the campfire, he realized he wasn't alone.
The man sitting on a log across from him could only be described as beautiful. His skin was of the lightest and fairest ivory, which looked as soft as a kitten's fur. Contrasting to this was sleek, shoulder length raven hair, and unfathomably deep ebony eyes, which seemed to have a sort of hypnotic effect, as if they were pulling him in. The man had a slender build and high cheekbones, giving him a fair and fragile look, almost like that of an elf, which Naruto had read about in stories.
The two locked eyes and just gazed blankly at one another, their faces and eyes portraying none of their thoughts.
This trance was broken however, when Naruto's blue orbs widened and he stood up, pointing an accusing finger at the stranger. The dull throbbing of his head was completely forgotten as he yelled, "Ah! You're the guy that hit me on the head and kidnapped me! No way am I letting you take me, bastard!"
With that, Naruto spun around and dashed as fast as he could out of the clearing and into the forest. His one-track mind was set on escaping the evil man, so it didn't even register when the person didn't get up to chase him, and instead chuckle as he disappeared in the foliage.
The boy charged through the forest as fast as his tiny legs would carry him, paying no heed to the occasional twig that swiped across his form, cutting his skin or tearing his clothes. The morning sun, which was still partially hidden behind the horizon, provided enough light for him to see any large obstacles in his path.
Naruto would relate his feelings to those a person would have in a horror movie, blindly running away from some grotesque monster. His heart beat in his chest rapidly and all he could think about was getting to Konoha and straight to the Hokage.
That's why, when he saw himself approaching a clearing, he beamed, the fact that he couldn't have run miles to Konoha in a mere minute not even registering in his tiny mind. The smile fell right off of his face when he took in the very familiar campsite and the very familiar evil-elf-man sitting on a log, watching him with an amused twinkle in his eyes.
He let out a scream and spun around, dashing away again, forcing himself to go faster than he ever had. He smiled a little sheepishly despite himself, since he had run right in a circle back to the camp. The man didn't get him though, and for that he was grateful.
Naruto saw himself approaching another clearing, and he thought that he would definitely have to be to Konoha by now. He had only been running for a bazillion years after all.
When he saw that accursed campsite, and that even more amused evil-elf-man, he wanted to throw a tantrum and run for his life at the same time. Seeing as how he couldn't decide what to do, the boy just stood there dumbly, looking like a deer caught in the headlights.
"It's useless" The man spoke, making Naruto jump and glare at him.
"Yeah, well what do you know?.!" He snapped, the idea of running away again completely disappearing as he felt his anger bubble.
The evil-elf-man chuckled and replied, "I know that I've placed an extremely strong Genjutsu around this area, making it impossible for anyone to enter or exit. Running is futile."
Naruto furrowed his brows. "Genjutsu? You mean the illusions ninja use?"
"Yes." The man then motioned next to himself. "Come, there is much to be done, and little time to do it."
The blond narrowed his eyes and observed the man, trying to decide if he was worth trusting or not. He didn't see any malice or hatred in his eyes like with most of the villagers… but then again Sarutobi-ojii told him to never trust strangers… The boy mentally halted; since when had he ever listened to the old Hokage anyway? Most of the time the guy just spouted out some lecture about behaving properly or eating healthy foods. Besides if the elf-man tried anything, Naruto would just kick his ass. He mentally grinned and nodded to himself, his mind made up.
Tentatively, Naruto walked over and took a seat on the log next to the not-so-evil evil-elf-guy. Once he realized that the man wasn't going to attack him immediately, he folded his arms in a pout.
"I want some answers, elf-man-san!" The nickname earned him a raised brow, but nothing more. "Who are you and why did you kidnap me?" His tone was more demanding than questioning.
"I am Uchiha Madara." As the man known as Madara said this, Naruto felt a strange squirmy feeling in his stomach that made him feel restless and on edge. The blond tensed, but if Madara had noticed, he didn't show it. Instead his eyes wandered to the horizon calculating the time by the position of the sun, and then widening slightly. "I lost track of time…We've spent too much time dawdling, I'm afraid there's no time for an explanation; my apologies."
The raven stood up, "But basically, I brought you here to give you power."
"Power…? Wha—" Naruto's sentence was cut off as he felt something pull his arms and legs together, securing them to the sides of his body so he couldn't move. He looked down in shock, and it took a while for him to notice, but there were translucent wires wrapped around him trailing back to Madara's hand, where they were being pulled lightly to immobilize him. "Hey Bastard! What's the big idea!.?"
The Uchiha merely shook his head and dragged the struggling boy to the edge of the clearing. He pulled out a kunai from some hidden spot on his body and Naruto's eyes widened. He cursed for getting too relaxed around the man, despite the fact that he wouldn't have been able to do much to stop Madara even if he had been on edge.
Wide blue orbs watched warily as the man brought up his kunai, and the blond's tiny body tensed. This was it, he was going to die. The once again evil evil-elf-man was going to kill him right here and now. Naruto began squirming and struggling, fighting against the surprisingly strong wire immobilizing him. He opened his mouth, but he wasn't even sure if he should beg for mercy or yell for help. Any sort of protest or plea died in his throat though, as Madara sliced the kunai along the tip of each of his own fingers.
Then starting from where Naruto lay and spreading out in a circle around him, Madara began to write tiny intricate blood-seals on the ground, over logs and on trees. Naruto almost had a heart attack when he began walking up a vertical tree writing seals along the trunk, as if he were just taking a stroll in the park. Several times the man had to reopen the wounds in his fingers, and when Naruto was positive Madara would pass out from blood-loss any minute, he popped some sort of pill into his mouth and kept on working.
The whole process was strangely fascinating to Naruto, each tiny seal being unique and intricate, but only taking a few seconds to be made by the man. Time was irrelevant as Naruto watched, and only when his limbs began falling asleep did he realize that he had been lying in the same position for so long.
Even so, he didn't want to interrupt the strange ritual Madara was performing with his complaints. The man had moved from writing seals to forming them with his hands. He closed his eyes and whispered under his breath. Naruto couldn't hear what he was saying, but it didn't sound anything like Japanese.
Just as the hushed chanting was becoming hypnotic, it stopped. Naruto looked up questionably, and his eyes widened considerably as the halo of seals around him lit up, first appearing red and angry like fire, and then darkening into a purple-black shade. The black from the seals extended outward and covered everything until it was like Naruto and Madara were two figures standing ( or laying in Naruto's case ) in literal nothingness.
Then there was silence.
"Sooo…what now?" Naruto asked, noticing nothing else of interest happening and losing focus quickly.
"Just wait…" Madara spoke, looking a little haggard after the ritual he just performed.
True to the man's words, a few minutes later, it seemed as if the nothingness all around them ripped apart, forming a large hole with nothing but white on the other side. Naruto squinted, and was able to make out the form of a human silhouette appearing. Then as abruptly as it had appeared, the white hole disappeared now leaving three figures.
While the new figure had the basic form of a human, it was anything but. Naruto could infer so right away.
The figure had deep purple skin—a shade Naruto had never seen on any creature before—and long, spiky white hair that trailed down its back and shoulders. There were two crimson devil-like horns sticking out from the mane, and the figure had eerie black eyes and equally black teeth, making Naruto wonder the last time it had brushed. The outfit it wore was simple, only consisting of a white robe, long enough to cover its arms and feet.
"Why have you called me, Madara?" The creature's voice was deep and confusingly enough to little Naruto, seemed to be everywhere and nowhere at once. It was cold and calculating, yet wise. It made a shiver run down the blond's spine.
Madara immediately crouched down onto one knee in a bow. "My lord… I am old… tired… I have summoned you because I no longer wish, nor can I bear, to be bound to this earth longer than I already have. I have found and adequate heir to carry on your will, and ask to be relieved of my duties as your servant."
The figure's head turned towards Naruto's prone form, their eyes met, and the blond felt his blood run cold at it examined him. This thing… whatever it was… was extremely powerful, more so than anything he had ever felt before. The boy's stomach was tingling again, but he dismissed it as nothing more than nerves.
"Madara…" The figure, much to Naruto's relief, turned back to the Uchiha. "You no longer wish to remain in this world due to the guilt you carry; am I correct?" Madara bowed his head and nodded. "You are aware, that if you leave now, you will be sent to hell?" Once again the Uchiha nodded, whispering something back to the creature.
The two then continued to talk too quietly for Naruto to hear, he could only pick out a few words that they were saying. 'Uchiha', 'army', 'death', and 'thunder' were what he could make out. He also could have sworn he heard the word 'Itachi' at one point and Naruto toyed with the speculation that the figure was the God of Weasels. (1)
Finally, some sort of decision seemed to be reached between the two, because Madara stood up and the figure strode over towards Naruto, appearing as if it was floating more than anything.
"Uzumaki Naruto…" The thing bellowed and Naruto immediately stiffened, not trusting his voice to answer. "…From this day forward you shall be my servant, my tool in an ancient war against the God of Thunder."
A 'huh?' was on the tip of the blond's tong but he immediately held it when the creature pulled out a rather nasty looking dagger. The boy whimpered slightly, wondering if now he was going to die.
The figure brought the dagger up above its head and in one smooth motion threw it downwards. Naruto's eyes grew impossibly wide and his heart thumped wildly against his ribcage. He opened his mouth in a soundless scream as the knife plunged straight into his stomach.
His mind was immediately fogged by pain, and his eyes welled up with tears. It hurt. It hurt more than anything else he had felt in his entire life. The initial pain in his stomach spread out over his entire body. It was like something was tearing him apart piece by piece from the inside out, and all he could do was writhe in agony, unable to even voice his pain.
Naruto didn't realize when the dagger was pulled out of his stomach, or when the wound was surrounded in a purple light and healed. He only began to regain his senses when the burning sensation throughout his entire body ebbed away into a dull throb.
"Uzumaki Naruto, from this day forth you are the Warrior of Death, servant of the Shinigami. Wield your powers in any way you choose, but never forget where your loyalties lie." With those rather dramatic parting words, the white rift opened up again and the figure Naruto now knew was the Shinigami disappeared into it, leaving him and Madara once again.
"I wish you luck, young one, and I am sorry for placing such a terrible burden on you." The Uchiha spoke, and before Naruto could utter any sort of sound, the man fell forward and collapsed to the ground, smiling, dead.
The black nothingness around him began to melt away, with it Madara's body, and soon Naruto found himself sitting alone in the clearing. He sat up and gazed around. The wire around him was gone, there were no blood seals, and even the campfire was nonexistent. Just as the blond was beginning to wonder if everything with Madara and the Shinigami had been a dream, he felt a sudden wave of nausea hit him full force.
The boy groaned and fell back to the ground, the world spinning around him. His stomach was tingling again and he glanced down at it wearily to discover a large bloody hole in his clothes. The tiny boy would have portrayed his shock, but his head lolled back and he found it increasingly difficult to keep his eyelids open. Slowly he closed them, his consciousness fading with his vision.
XxXxXxXx
"..i! Oi!" Naruto moaned in protest when a voice pulled him back into the realm of consciousness.
Slowly he cracked open an eye, only to wince and squeeze it shut again due to the sudden onslaught of light. He could feel someone's presence hanging over him, probably the one who was calling him. Naruto lifted a hand to his face, ignoring the protesting limb, and covered his eyes, inching them open and getting used to the sun.
His vision was unfocused at first and all he could see was a moving black and grey blob leaning over him, and three more over to the side.
"Hey, can you hear me?" The closest blob asked. It began to take on the vague form of a person, and eventually Naruto realized that it was actually an ANBU from Konoha. The blond could have cried out in relief but his stomach still felt funny, so he settled for a smile and a tiny nod. "He's conscious" The ANBU spoke to the others.
"What happened? Are you hurt anywhere?" Another one of the ANBU asked, eyeing the bloody hole in the boy's shirt and commencing in slicing it off with a kunai before Naruto could answer.
"No…" Naruto said and he heard three collective gasps as the ANBU observed the lack of any sort of wound on the boy's abdomen.
"Demon…" He could have sworn he heard one of them, a female, whisper; he winced.
"Can you tell me what happened, Naruto?" The ANBU leaning over him asked. Wolf-chan was what Naruto decided to call him, since that was what his mask depicted.
The blond's thoughts immediately rushed to the previous hours' events. Being kidnapped, Madara, the Shinigami…He opened his mouth to explain everything in full detail in a way only he could, but much to his shock, no words came out. Naruto's eyes widened and he tried to say anything about his adventure at all, but again, there was only silence.
The boy's eyes grew impossibly wider. Why couldn't he talk? What did that evil Shinigami do to him? He couldn't go the rest of his life without his voice!
Becoming desperate, the boy opened his mouth widely and tried to utter a scream. Much to his relief and pleasure, an ear shattering yell was heard throughout the forest, causing several flocks of birds perched in the canopy of the forest to take flight in a flurry of squawks and fluttering.
"What the fuck was that for!.?" The female ANBU yelled, her hands clamped firmly over her ears. At the sudden outburst, each of the ninja had stumbled back like their life depended on it…or at least their hearing anyway.
Naruto blinked and looked owlishly over at the lady. He then realized at that point that there was a large canine next to her, looking as if it was ready to have a heart attack and then pass out. Sarutobi-ojii did say something about a dog's sense of hearing being more sensitive than a human's once…
The blond merely shrugged, "I dunno"
"You poor child!" Another one of the ANBU leapt up and charged over, constricting Naruto into a giant bear hug, much to his shock. "Such a scream of agony and pain! Your experience must have been so traumatic that you did not know how to vent your feelings! Don't let your young flames of youth burn out, young one! I, the Beautiful Green Beast of Konoha, am here to protect you and rekindle your youthful spirit! Come, we shall run off in the sunset together with fiery passion!"
Naruto squirmed and gasped for air against the man's chest, swearing he heard something in his spine crack. It was only when Wolf-chan sauntered over and coaxed the 'Beautiful Green Beast of Konoha' to let go of him that he managed to take in a big gulp of air. The blond swore that he would never underestimate being able to breathe ever again.
"Now…" Wolf-chan spoke, seemingly the only sane one amongst the group. Oh how very little Naruto actually knew… "Mind telling us what happened in an understandable language? If you're going to scream again, please give us innocent bystanders a warning…"
Naruto grinned sheepishly and rubbed the back of his head. He then opened his mouth to recount the events of that morning, but again, no words came out, no matter how hard he tried. He ended up settling for giving an intelligent "Uh…"
The boy clamped his mouth shut and furrowed his brows, crossing his arms against his chest. The ANBU watched semi-amusedly at his 'thinking posture'.
So he could talk and scream and shout still, but he couldn't say anything about Madara, being kidnapped, or the Shinigami. Well then, this was a problem… He wanted to talk about his super cool adventure!
After several more long minutes of trying, and failing, to communicate what happened to him through speech, writing, and obscene gestures, the boy finally hung his head in defeat. He couldn't write anything relating to the topic either, and the ANBU didn't understand any of what he was motioning.
"I don't remember" He lied.
"Don't mess around with us!" The female yelled and the dog at her side snarled. "If you don't remember then what was with all that stuff you were doing a moment ago! This isn't some sort of game!"
Naruto whimpered and looked up at the woman, repeating what he said. "I don't remember"
"Why you little—!" She was cut off as Wolf-chan put a hand on her shoulder.
"We should take him back to Konoha and see if the Hokage has any luck. Our main priority is to retrieve him. We don't know if the kidnapper is still in the area, so we shouldn't stall any longer and keep him in harm's way."
Even though all three of the ANBU were wearing masks, Naruto heard the woman grit her teeth. She mumbled a few curses under her breath and relented, nodding to Wolf-chan.
The 'Beautiful Green Beast of Konoha' crouched to the ground and motioned for the boy to climb up onto his back in a piggy back ride. The boy did so and the team of Konoha ninja leapt into the trees without another word. After the initial shock of moving so fast through the forest wore off, Naruto giggled and laughed the rest of the way back to Konoha.
XxXxXxXx
(1) For those of you who don't know, 'Itachi' is 'weasel' in Japanese.
A/N: So, how'd I do? Does it sound interesting? I hope it does, I'm looking forward to continuing this, but I kinda' want people to read it, thus the reason I have posted it. n.n;
Oh, and how many of you thought Madara was Itachi at first? n.n Right now, the guy's nothing more than a name, and we know that he had cursed chakra. The possibilites are endless, I couldn't resist using him.
By the way, I'm in a dilemma as far as pairings go. This story is set up to have alot to do with the Uchiha clan, and such, the other person I'll really be developing is Sasuke. The only really plausible pairing for Naruto in this would be Sasuke, but I'm still unsure if I should do that. I'm not going to throw in some other character, like Hinata, just because I like her with Naruto. I'm more of the type of person who makes the plot and then decides the pairings later, morphing them to fit the story, instead of morping the plot to fit the pairings (If that makes sense n.n; ). So, it's either SasuNaru or none (for now at least.) Could I have some input on this?
Next Chapter: Naruto and his genin team go on a C-rank mission, where trouble arises...
Reviewers are loved and worshipped, and remember, your flames only feed my burning youthful passion!
:Is seen running off into the sunset: