SiP: I would like to thank my two friends who helped me with this fanfic: MJ Ride and EtherealGrace. Without them I wouldn't think that this fanfic would come out great, as it is (I think?). Anyway, enjoy the chapter! (~.~)
ACK! I almost forgot about the disclaimer! Anyway, I do not own Naruto and the original characters of Naruto. If I did I would take Kisame's sword and wave it around maniacally. Sound good? Oh and one more thing, the OCs that appear in this fanfic are all mine and my friends mentioned in the above. So no touchy unless you make a good deal with me in which I don't think my head will work in any cause. So don't even try.
Chapter 1: Prologues always come three years earlier.
LAND HIDDEN BY WATERFALLS - THIRD PERSON POV
"No Rye, it's like this," The young woman lectured Rye as she displayed how to extract water out of the ground. Her green eyes evaluated her son as his sixth attempt failed. She sighed and demonstrated once again and walked him through the whole thing, pointing out his mistakes.
"Mom," Rye asked the tan woman.
"What is it Rye dear?" She sighed.
"Is dad watching over us?" His eyes, a mixed blue green color, looked at her in curiosity. She smiled and hugged her son.
"Of course he is dear, and remember he'll be proud when you graduate from the Academy," she whispered in his ear.
"Lyriell! What's up?" Lyriell turned to see her sister, Linda, walking towards them. "How's my little nephew doing?"
"Aunt Linda!" Rye squirmed out of his mother's grasp and ran towards his favorite aunt.
Lyriell looked at her son. He looked so much like him. Well, not really. Most of Rye's features actually came from her; his hair was the same red highlighted dark chestnut, his skin a lighter version of her own dark tan, telling that both of his parents had different skin tones. It was his eyes, the color and the spark in them. The Rye had two colors in his eyes; a green, like hers, and a sky blue… just like his. The result was a deep sea green color, different from his eyes, but the spark of ambition was purely his.
She looked up and sighed. "I hope you're proud dear..."
"Lyriell? Don't tell me that you're still stuck on that one guy!" Lyreill jerked as she noticed her sister was crouching near by her side.
"So what? Can't I let my mind wander without you bothering me?" She looked tiredly at Linda.
"There's more to the world than your deceased lover!" Linda scowled, then brightened at the next statement. "Besides, there's a hottie in this village!" Lyriell regarded her sister with a skeptical look. Linda ignored it and went on.
"And he likes you, too!" Lyriell, being Lyriell, shrugged and lay down again.
"Well, why don't you go after him?" She knew who her sister was talking about, but she was not interested in a guy like him. She heard Linda sigh.
"I tried. I confessed to him only to be rejected. But he did say that he was interested someone!" The light returned to her eyes. "And guess what else he said!"
"Hmmm… I don't care," Lyriell stated bluntly, while stroking the hair of her son who was now asleep.
Linda huffed with frustration and got up.
"You're just too dense, Lyriell!" she muttered as she stalked away. Lyriell sighed and continued to stroke her son's hair. "Who knows... I might end up falling for him."
Her thoughts were carried by the wind.
LAND HIDDEN BY THE SAND, SUNA - THIRD PERSON POV
A girl was sitting on a rock, her dark red hair whipping around her. Her crystal blue eyes looked at the headband in her hands with pride. "I graduated from the Academy. In two days I'll be a Genin!"
Her chest puffed out in her pride as she looked across the sandy ocean to nowhere in particular. "Just wait, I'll bring you back home! We will be together again!"
"Hey, midget!" Her ears perked at 'midget', a vein popping out on her head. She whipped around to see the offender and scowled in recognition. She knew this bully, he was always picking on the smaller kids in class. Her scowl deepened. This guy was a pest in every way she could think of. "He's got some major guts to call me a midget!"
Standing up slowly and menacingly, she punched her hand into her palm and gave him a cold glare. "Well then tough guy, how about we cut you down to size?"
0o0
She cracked her knuckles as she stood over the now badly beaten punk. She crouched down, causing the boy to flinch in fear of getting attacked again. But instead she seethed into his ear, "My name is Fumika. You better remember it. And if you dare call me midget again, you'll be going to hell."
She got up and walked briskly back to Suna, leaving the boy cringing from Fumika's name.
LAND HIDDEN BY LEAVES, KONOHA - THIRD PERSON POV
"Young Master! Young Master Koinu!" An Inuzuka clan member searched the whole premises of lady Ai's home. He was looking for a young boy, but couldn't seem to find him. Little did he know that Koinu was in a tree playing with his golden-brown, black-striped puppy.
"They're looking for me again, Kou," he giggled quietly as he petted the pup's back. His smile widened as he heard another call ring out. "I wonder how long it will take for them to find me this time."
He leaned back onto the tree and closed his eyes, Kou following his Master's movement. Soon they both fell asleep, hearing nothing but the soothing sound of rustling leaves.
-On the other side of Konoha-
A small boy was watching a blonde paint the four Hokage faces. He smiled at his artistic ability.
"Man, I'd like to do that!" he remarked to himself, his red hair blowing into his eyes. "He's got actual guts!"
"Hey you! What do you think you're doing?" The boy turned to see Jonin ranked ninjas making their way towards the blonde. His smile faded but the light in his auburn eyes remained. "He's gonna have a tough time." He made his way back to his Aunt's house. "He must like being chased by ninjas. But I gotta admit he does have guts to do that."
"Ryuuzaki? Is that you? Where have you been all this time?" his Aunt called as she popped her head out from the kitchen, looking worried.
"I've been looking at amusing things these past few days, Aunt Clara," he replied, his smile returning to his face. "What's for dinner? I'm starved!"
LAND HIDDEN BY THE MIST - THIRD PERSON POV
A girl was practicing an earth jutsu, but failed. The atmosphere around her darkened as she scowled.
"What's wrong, Tessie?" a boy asked as he approached the gloomy girl.
"Nick?" Tess faced the boy, taking the cup of juice he offered her. "I just can't get it right! It's so frustrating!"
"It's alright Tessie, I'm sure you'll get it. In fact, I think you've already improved since yesterday!" Nick said cheerily, trying to brighten the mood. He swore he could see the flowers wither in the depressed aura.
"Really? But I'm still not as good as you, Nick," Tess replied sadly.
"It's alright Tessie, I'll help you out!" Nick enthused in an attempt to comfort his friend. Luckily she brightened up a bit. "Okay, we'll start with the basics."
The two friends started practicing as the wind picked up, billowing through the trees in the forest.
LAND HIDDEN BY RAIN - FIRST PERSON POV
"Finally!" I heaved a sigh of relief as I finished the last block of the pasture. "And just in time for the rainy season, too!"
I moved from the pasture to a small, grassy hill nearby, putting my rake down and laying beside it. As I stared into the sky a refreshing wind blew across my sweating body. "Its going to be clear for a few days before the rainy season hits this part of the village." I scanned the clouds as usual before heading back home. Just a few kilometers from home, my cousins materialized.
I groaned as I prepared myself for another triad of rants from them, massaging my temple. It began as soon as I was in earshot, from the eldest of course.
"Hey look you guys the leftover came home again!" he sneered, the others following his cue.
"Oooh! But Derek you're as mean as ever!" Derek howled with laughter, and the other two did the same. My youngest cousin eyed me evilly before putting a statement in himself.
"You're parents hated you the moment they saw you!" He pointed an accusing finger at me, but I changed the position with my rake. I sighed and smiled at them. Believe it or not I already gotten used to their teasing and such.
"Come here you three, I want to tell you a secret." All three laughed, ignorant of my sarcasm. Derek took the lead once again.
"The blue glowing eyed freak wants to tell us something?"
"Man you don't even fit together! Dark blue, light blue and tan! What kind of mis-matching is this? I'll tell you, the worst one yet!" The middle screamed out laughing.
"Nice one, Flam!" Derek high fived Flam.
"What kind of kid is born with a tattoo that glows? A delinquent!" The youngest cousin of mine fed the fire of the others, who were laughing so hard that I could see their veins popping out of their necks. They began to turn purple. It was my turn to laugh. This always stopped the others. I stopped after a few minutes.
"You finished?" I asked monotonically, placing my chin on the butt end of my rake. "You three as are shameless as ever."
"What did you say punk - !" Before Derek could take the lead again, I stabbed him in the stomach with my rake's butt. Flam followed Derek in attacking me, but I stopped him by kicking his stomach which was already sore from laughing. Lastly my youngest cousin also attacked me. I moved quickly and swung the rake about to trip him before grabbing him by the throat. He trembled as he gripped my hand. I regarded him with a cold glare as a dark aura surrounded us.
"Now Tin, it's not going to help to call me a born delinquent, especially if you three don't want this to happen again.." I released my grip and Tin fell to his knees. The aura that had surrounded me earlier disappeared, and I left whistling. Little did I know that I was being evaluated.
Third Person POV
"Did you see? He's fit to be a ninja rather than a farmer. I don't want to have his abilities go to waste. His mother would want the same." An old man was trying to convince the ANBU who was sent by the Kawakage.
"I will inform the Kawakage about this, but don't you think he's going to miss the farm that you raised him in?" The ANBU asked, watching the whistling farmer.
"Maybe, he might even hate me for this," the old man replied sadly.
"What's his name?" The ANBU asked, hiding deeper in the gorse bush. The whistling boy stopped and looked at the exact spot where the ANBU hid, his eyes narrowing in suspicion.
"Dak," the old man replied.
"Thank you for the valuable information, Mr. Zubai. I will proceed to tell the Kawakage." With that the ANBU was off.
Mr. Zubai smiled. "I hope you make friends with him, my dear nephew." And he made his way home.
LAND HIDDEN BY GRASS - THIRD PERSON POV
A white ribbon bobbed up and down, attached to light pink hair which was attached to a girl who was latched onto a boy. Tears trickled down her cheeks, dampening his shirt.
"What's wrong, Ren?" the redhead asked the pinkette.
"The wolves, t-they ate Flounder!" Ren sobbed, retelling the story before she looked up at him. "What do I do?" The redhead smiled softly at her.
"It's alright Ren, the mother sheep gave birth to a new lamb. Why don't we go and take a look at it?"
At this Ren brightened up, and they both made their way to the barn. All the while she made names that would fit for the new little lamb that awaited her.
When they reached the barn, Ren ran to the little lamb's side. The lamb was a male. Ren sat there petting it, and whispered the little lamb's name, so only the boy and the mother sheep could hear. "I'll name you Strife!" It whinnied in agreement and nuzzled her cheek as the barn sheltered them from the howling wind outside.
LAND HIDDEN BY ROCKS - FIRST PERSON POV
"I'm home!" I slammed the door open and walked inside. My aunt Rissa came from the kitchen and her eyes widened when she saw me.
"Ash! Where did you get so many scars from?" She fetched a wet towel before running over to me and cleaning my face.
"Umm…" I grappled for a reason, knowing that I couldn't tell her the truth. "I stole a cat's fish!" I said proudly and began to tell her the edited version my adventures.
"Hey furball!" I called as I jumped behind the cat. It jumped in surprise, giving me the opportunity to grab it's meal right out from under it's nose. "Got your fish, cat!" I taunted as I held it up high.
Noticing that the fish was no longer in front of him, he bristled and ran towards me, claws unsheathed. I started to run, but the cat beat me to it. It latched on to my back only to be thrown off.
"Come chase me furball!" I laughed maniacally as the cat once again found it's way onto me back, scratching it's way to my face in an attempt to reclaim it's meal. I yanked him off by the scruff of his neck.
"You want this? Then go get it!" And with that I threw the fish in a random direction, causing the cat to run off after it. I smirked, closing my red eyes against the blood as the wind blew my silver hair in my face.
I hissed. "That stings!" I yelled in protest as my aunt put the alcohol disinfectant on my scratches.
"Can't you be more careful Ash?" She sighed. "These scratches seem permanent. I wonder how the cat managed to make them so deep."
I shrugged and began to walk out before she could question it.
"Dunno." As I walked to my room I heard my aunt address my mother.
"He isn't like you at all, Lulu."
"What does that mean?" But I didn't care enough to ask about it.
LAND HIDDEN BY SOUND - FIRST PERSON POV
"Aunt Sophie!" I called to my beloved Aunt from my window. She looked up from her gardening and smiled at me.
"What is it pumpkin?" she asked.
"Remember that necklace that you said that you'd buy for me?" I asked, my eyes glittering.
Aunt Sophie stood still for a minute, trying to remember. She always seemed to do this when thinking. Then her eyes brightened. "Looks like she remembered."
"That reminds me! I have something to show you. Meet me inside the living room." She dusted her hands and took off her gloves before making her way inside the house.
I ran downstairs, excited to see what she had for me. When I reached the bottom of the stairs, my Aunt was standing there with a small box in her hands and medium-sized box near her feet. The latter seemed to be moving.
"Happy birthday, my dear Emerald." She smiled as she handed the small box. I opened it up eagerly, and inside was the necklace I've been eyeing these past few days. It was a diamond necklace, a real diamond necklace!
It had beads of diamonds and emeralds, and when it came down to the middle there was a diamond with a heart inside of it with the best diamonds that could outline and fill it. I was speechless.
"T-thank you, Aunt Sophie. It's beautiful!" I hugged her in gratitude. That was when I saw something else inside the small box. I reached inside and took it out. I gasped, it was like a small choker studded with the same diamond with the heart in front of it. "Aunt Sophie what is this?"
Aunt Sophie smiled and bent down to pick up the medium box at her feet. If I listened more closely it sounded like it was mewling. My heartbeat quickened as I opened the lid. I peeked in and saw emerald green eyes staring back at me.
"Awww, it's really cute! I love her!" I took off the lid and the whole cat came into view. She had a white tail tip and was black as midnight.
"I'm glad you like her," she said with a smile.
"I'm going to call her Glimmer!" I clasped the small choker around the cat's neck and removed her from the box. Glimmer purred. "Thanks Aunt Sophie!"
"Here I'll put your necklace on too." With that she clipped my necklace on, I thanked her once more and left to play with my new cat.
LAND HIDDEN BY CLOUDS - THIRD PERSON POV
The boy smirked calmly, casually letting his cards dangle from his fingertips. Three players withdrew. One player was left, sweating under the pressure of the platinum blonde's stare. His brown eyes studied his cards lazily before moving to study his pressurized opponent, his pale skin glowing in the dim light.
First Person POV
The last remaining player was sweating like crazy. I studied him, my cards, then his face again. "His eyes reveal everything… 4… Ace… King… eight… and nine."
I looked at my cards, a full house staring back at me. Ace, King, Queen, Jack, ten. I put my cards face down on the table and smiled sweetly.
"Don't you think you should withdraw now?" His eyes narrowed, and he scowled. "He still can scowl at a time like this? I have to credit him for his pride." After all, he did bet 10 bucks for this game. It all started when I walked into the casino.
I opened the door and walked in casually, looking around at all the gamblers. When I got to the middle of the casino everyone stared at me, a single question hanging in the air, "What is a ten year old kid doing in a casino?"
That was when a fat, smirking man approached me. He looked like a pig when he wore that smug smile. "What's a kid like you doing here?" I looked up at him, nearly choking when his smell reached me. He reeked of alcohol! But, never the less, I managed to at least smile.
"I'm here to pay off a debt." The pig boomed with laughter, echoed by the other patrons. It felt like centuries for the laughter to cease. Then the pig spoke again.
"Well kid if you want to pay off your debt, why don't you play against the top best players here?" An idea popped into my head, and I smiled at them.
"Sure thing Mister, pick out the top four. I'll explain the rules later."
0o0
I sat at a poker table, all four guys gathered around me. The pig was across from me, his tan skin looking exceedingly greasy. His head was completely empty save for the scars that glinted dimly in the light.
On my right was a scrawny man. He was a light tan, and he was so old that even his wrinkles had wrinkles! His white hair was stringy and he reeked of expired marmalade.
On my left was a white fat dude, his features indescribable.
Lastly there was a boy who looked to be about fifteen, his face scarred in the cruelest ways a ninja could imagine. He sat in between the pig and the fat white dude.
"I see you've chosen brains over brawn, hm?" I smiled cheerily at the pig.
"Oho! We have a smart one here, right boys?" the pig bellowed, the others laughing accordingly. I cleared my throat and started explaining the rules.
"We play this game for as long as it takes, so there's no time limit. Here's how the money is played; I start with placing 10 bucks on my board and if I lose the winner gets my ten bucks, think of it as a small pay day that life has given you. But if I win I get ten bucks from each of you plus the additional amount that is counted by how many hours we play, times my multiplier." I smiled at the dumbstruck faces, "In other words let's make this a quick game… if you don't want to lose money."
The clock kept ticking, and the hours piled up. "How many was it? 250 hours?… no it was less than that. 150 sounds reasonable."
The pig in front of me was sweating even more now. The other three went for a washroom break. I sighed. "Might as well force him to give up, he's not only protecting tens but hours as well. And I want to get out of this stinking place- Oh God, what is that? I swear I'm gonna suffocate if I don't get out of here!"
"Mister, it's better if you stop this now, your money is wasting." I leaned back and yawned, cards in hand. His scowl deepened before he spoke.
"How much do you multiply the hours by?" I studied him before I gave my answer.
"50." The pig seemed shocked at the amount, and hesitated on his next question.
"And how many hours has it been now?"
"150 hours to be exact, from the start till now." I replied, yawning again. "Man, this is so tiring."
I did the math in my head. "50x150=7500 plus 40 would be 7540 multiplied by 4 is 30160… that's more than enough, Uncle has a debt of 60 which leaves 30100 for my allowance."
The pig digested all that he heard and sighed. "I fold."
I smiled as the others came back, and as sweet as I could muster, "Pay up! 7540 from each of you!"
I held out my hand and watched as 7540 bucks came from all four people. As I walked casually back to the door, the pig stopped me.
"Wait! Kid, what's your name?" I smiled at him.
"I don't give my name away so easily, but you can call me Phantom."
I left the casino, inhaling the breeze which was quite refreshing after all the musty air I had inhaled. I sighed. Better go pay off those debts.
0o0
"Uncle? Are you home?" I look around the living room where he was usually passed out, but this time the stench of alcohol came from the kitchen. "Ugh, he passed out again tonight. He's in the kitchen this time though."
I headed into the kitchen to find my uncle sprawled on the floor, a half empty bottle still in his grasp.
I took the bottle and placed it in his wine cabinet, then cleaned him up and brought him to the couch. He stirred and woke up groggily.
"Ish dat ou Ray? 'id ou pay de debt?" he asked in a slur.
"Yes Uncle, no interest included; everything is payed off." I heaved a sigh as I lost all the extra weight from my shoulders. I pulled the blanket over him and, after cleaning the kitchen, snuck off to bed. All I could think about was the unfinished homework that was sure to get me punished.
IN THE AKATSUKI LAIR - THIRD PERSON POV
"Hey Itachi!" Kisame yelled from his room.
"What is it?" Itachi yelled back, a rarity.
"Where is Emina?" Kisame ran out of his room and bumped into Itachi. "Owww! Oh! It's just you Itachi! Did you see Emina anywhere?"
"No, haven't seen her around. Wasn't she with you?" Itachi got up and brushed off his robe.
"She was, but I took my eyes off her for a second, and when I turned back she was gone!" Kisame panicked and went to check the other rooms. Itachi sighed and headed to the kitchen, making his way to the fridge. He suddenly heard a glomp type sound as he stepped in something warm.
"Hmm?" He looked down and reeled at the stench. "Kisame!" In a minute Kisame came flying through the door, eyes wide.
"Did you find her? Where is she?" Itachi pointed at his feet, and Kisame came to take a better look. He tried not to gag.
"I think it's a message that Emina left for us." They both looked down and saw what it said.
"Aym gowan otsid."
In a flash Kisame was out the door crying comical tears. "Emina! Come to daddy!"
Itachi sighed. "Guess I have to clean this up…"
LAND HIDDEN BY LEAVES, KONOHA - THIRD PERSON POV
Naruto made his way to Sarutobi's office but stopped as a breeze swept past him. He looked towards the sky. "'That's weird… I swear that that breeze carried feelings, but whose?"
He shook his head from the thought and carried on with his task.
Little did the little blonde know that his siblings' thoughts and emotions were carried to him through the wind.
SiP: Man that was soooo loooong! I swear my thumbs are as numb as frostbite, their probably disintegrating right now!
Naruto: That's a bit weird don't you think?
SiP: *whips head around* What's weird?
Naruto: O.o"
Rye: He thinks that your thumbs disintegrating is weird.
SiP: Oh…
Red head: How come I don't have a name?
Ren: I don't think it's great for someone to be left out, almost everyone had their name mentioned once.
SiP: Because he is going to appear later in the story! *kicks red head out into space*
Itachi: She's gone insane. =.="
Kisame: It must be because of the many places she had to type. Right Emina?
Emina: *nods*
SiP: *whips head around to face Kisame* Oh look who's here. *gleam ~laser eyes activated~*
Kisame: O.O LET'S ESCAPE EMINA! OUR DEAR LIVES DEPEND ON IT! *runs away carrying Emina*
Emina: *nods*
SiP: HEY! YOU CAN'T ESCAPE WITH MY CHARACTER! COME BACK! *chases after Kisame shooting laser eyes*
Fumika: o.o" Are laser eyes even possible?
Ray: *stares after them*
Ash: ...
Dak: Well I guess I better end this before it gets worse -
Kisame: AAAAHHHH! MOVE OUT OF THE WAY!
SiP: YOU WON'T GET AWAY! *fires AK-47 shotgun*
Dak: O.O Well bye.
SiP: REVIEW OR ELSE! *returns to chasing Kisame*