I've always wanted to make a crossover fanfiction and this one has been on my list for a long time now. So here's my first go at writing something like this.
A couple of things first. I am fully aware of how certain events go in the Naruto manga but for this story things are going to be quite different from how things would have gone. Divergence all around!
Second, consider this a sort of fix-it/AU story, because I know many of us wish for many of the characters to have better fates. Save them.
Just to be safe, I'm rating the story as T because I'm not quite sure how violent things will get.
As an added warning, the characters may be a bit OOC.
Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or Pokémon, they belong to their respective owners.
Chapter 1: The Discovery
Rain showered down on to the forest canopy. Skies clouded in dark grey and a heavy, musty scent heralding the coming autumn downpours.
Whereas most would be indoors, warm and dry from the miserable weather, one did not have that luxury. A small body dashed through the maze of bark, desperately attempting to find shelter.
This was Naruto Uzumaki. Blond, short hair drooping from being wet, clothes soggy and uncomfortable, and usually sun-kissed skin pale from the cold. The small child, no older than four, was stuck outside and hopelessly lost. While familiar with the woodland surrounding his village, it was still unexplored by him in many areas.
Shivering, teeth clacking, he continued to run, only pausing momentarily under the branches to catch his breath.
The grown-ups at that building locked him out again. He went out to explore for a while, unsupervised but that was the norm, for him at least. Naruto wanted to get away from the other kids. Especially the older ones.
The names. The insults. Each one stung, delivered with such cold eyes. The grown-ups were no better.
And when he came back he found that the door had been shut tight. Sometimes he'd try to get in through the open windows but this time they were locked too. When the first drops fell, he knocked on the door over and over. But no one answered. He called to the other side as it began to shower.
"Hey, let me in!"
"It's raining!"
Frantic knocks joined the pleading.
"Let me in! I'm cold!"
"Please!"
"Please… Let me in..."
It all went ignored. Cold and upset, he ran. To anywhere but there.
Through the rain, past the trees ahead, Naruto spotted a house not too far away. Relieved to have some shelter, he weaved through the trees and dove for the open, worm-eaten doorway.
A shuddering exhale filled the air.
The boy looked around. It was dark, only more so further in, the place was almost as rotted inside as it was out. Cobwebs covered the corners and support beams. Hardly decorated, the only indication of it being lived in were the old dusty table off to the side and filthy crockery that sat atop the table and on the floor.
It wasn't the best but it was better than nothing. If he was lucky there might be some old sheets somewhere he could wrap himself in. A whoosh of frigid wind blew in through the entry with the missing door, spraying flecks of rain inside.
He shuffled deeper into the abandoned place, hands rubbing up and down his arms to try and fester heat, to no avail. The floorboards protested at being walked on, each one groaning with strain. On one step, there was a crack and the plank gave way. Yelping, he wobbled off-balance before catching himself on his hands, taking back his leg and glancing down at the newly made gap.
Naruto would have carried on had something not caught his eye. Even in the low light, something seemed to stand out in the dark. Something reflective.
As children usually are when intrigued by new things, he wanted to know about it. Getting on his knees, a small hand reached in and gripped the object, pulling at it revealed that whatever it was it was big and seemed to be made of some kind of plastic or metal.
Determined, he tore away both halves of the broken plank and carefully placed them down. While moving his limbs knocked against the rest of the floor, the surrounding pieces lifting and wobbling with ease.
A secret compartment.
Two more whole bits of wood came up and joined the small pile.
The case was a cylinder of vibrant red with a thin, black band indented around each end, two black rings etched on to the front, a smaller one surrounded by the larger.
Curiously, he reached for the object with both hands and pulled. It took some effort as he found out it was a lot heavier than he anticipated, heaving the red, shiny thing out.
"What is this thing?" He asked himself, puzzled. Something had to be inside of it, but what? Fuelled by wonder and curiosity he tried prying the thing open, it taking a few tries before pushing the button on the front.
Click!
The lid covering the main body of the container flipped open to reveal a large scroll. Piqued even more, he took the edge of the paper and pulled, unravelling a portion. Scanning its contents, he saw an odd symbol; a black circle with a smaller one in the centre, a line running horizontally through from one edge to the other. Veering to the left, writing filled the page.
The boy began reading, the other children at the orphanage get to learn how to read and write, but he didn't. At least when Jii-san wasn't around. He'd be visited by the old man in the funny hat once, twice, maybe three times a month.
Naruto liked Jii-san. Unlike everyone else, he always treated him nicely. Never once calling him things like 'monster' or 'demon'. One time he told the old man what the people at the orphanage called him and he got very mad. Then afterward, the adults stopped with names. It did not stop the mean looks he was sent. It didn't stop the kids from hissing at him behind his back.
'To whomever finds this scroll, I entrust to you the knowledge it contains. In all my years of travelling, the most fascinating discovery that I made were these strange creatures called "Pokémon".'
Naruto owlishly blinked and parroted this strange word curiously before going back to reading.
'These 'Pokémon' are wondrous, mystical creatures that come in all sorts of shapes and sizes, some resemble animals, others plants and even inanimate objects. Despite their apparent lack of chakra they are capable of incredible feats and harnessing the power of the elements themselves. Humans are even able to capture and use these creatures for battle much like summons, sometimes these battles are for sport so they can practice their techniques, but sometimes they are simply kept as pets.
'Of all the information that I have gathered on these creatures, the most distinct thing about Pokémon are the bonds they forge with their human companions or 'Trainers', forming strong friendships and undying loyalty that can last for life.'
If what he was reading was true then these creatures could be a person's friends forever. "Friends..." A smile stretched across his face at the idea, becoming more eager to see one of these things.
'Before you attempt to summon one of these monsters, you must remember this crucial bit of information. Pokémon are very intelligent, they can think for themselves, understand humans and have emotions, just like us. Treat them with respect and affection and they'll do so to you in return. Never disrespect or abuse them, or else you shall suffer dire consequences.
'And please... Don't let these lives fall into the wrong hands, for I fear the world will be at stake if a dangerous shinobi got a hold of them.
- Yours faithfully, Shisha'
Processing everything, Naruto immediately came to a conclusion.
"This must be a ninja scroll!" Once or twice he's seen some shinobi walking around with scrolls bigger than he strapped to their backs. Always curious as to what techniques could be inside but never knowing what. Now he had one all to himself, and perhaps he could end being an awesome ninja with it.
Many children wanted to be ninjas in this village, and he was no different.
Before he could go any further, a glow from the corner of his eye ripped his attention away. Gazing down with wide, confused eyes.
The symbol on the scroll shone, brighter and brighter until exploding into a cloud of smoke, a strange popping noise accompanying it. With a shocked yell, Naruto jumped back, tripping over his feet and falling on his bottom.
"Are you the one who has called me here?" A low yet gentle male voice asked. The young blond looked around the dusty room, he heard someone speak but where did it come from?
"Who's there?" He called out nervously.
"I'm in front of you, little one." A voice answered. It came from the smoke that was now thinning out. A large golden beast sat facing him, narrow snout, and a large tuft of hair atop its head, ruby eyes holding his gaze. Though cautious, he could not help but stare. It was a very pretty animal.
"You talk?"
"Indeed I do." The child could hear it speak but its mouth never moved. So how was it– Naruto's blue eyes caught something. Its tail, there was more than one. Knowing only how to count to ten, he started counting the long ropes of fur.
"One, two, three, four, five, six, uhh… seven, eight, nine." He felt cold inside. Nine?! The monster that attacked his village was said to have nine tails. This had to be the one!
"Agh! Demon!" Naruto yelled, crawling backwards until his back hit the rotted wall. The beast's red eyes widened before turning into a frown, narrow snout creasing with distaste.
"Hmph! How rude! I am most certainly not a demon, young man!" He huffed, affronted by the insult.
"B-But you have nine tails!" The toddler stammered.
"Well, I am clearly a Ninetales." Came a matter-of-factly yet confused response.
"You attacked my village!"
"I did not. I don't even know where I am, and I would never hurt a human, especially not a child." Insisted the fox tilting its head, never moving from his spot on the floor.
"Y... Y-You don't know where you are?"
"No." Unsure of how to respond, he asked another question.
"…And you won't hurt me?" Voice small, nervous and wary.
"Of course not," the other's voice calm, soothing, "Whom, may I ask, are you?"
"I'm Uzumaki Naruto. S-Sorry for calling you a demon." The blond apologised, feeling a bit calmer from the talking animal's promise of not hurting him. Crawling away from the wall and sat on his knees before the large animal. "So… you're not the Kyuubi?"
"No, although I suppose I do look like this creature you talk about. I believe you call it a 'kitsune'?" He said, looking up in recollection. The golden fox scanned the old, worn interior, nose twitching. For a while there was a pregnant pause before, "Where is Shisha?"
That was the name in the message.
"You mean the guy from the scroll? I don't know." Pointing at the item with a finger.
The Ninetales finally took notice of the scroll he was sitting on, padding off of it to take a better look. Red eyes glazed over as he scanned the kanji and hiragana, ears slowly pinning back. A soft mix between a grumble and a whine rasped out of the animal. Naruto got the feeling that something was wrong with Ninetales.
"Are you okay?" He questioned. It took a moment before,
"Yes, little one. I'm fine." Ninetales answered with a strange tone the boy could not identify, never once looking up. "Well, seeing as you found this scroll, it now belongs to you." He announced.
"Does that mean we're friends?" Naruto queried hesitantly. Despite what the scroll said, he was still unsure. Lifting his head, the fox blinked at the small boy before replying softly, eyes crinkling with a gleam,
"If that is what you wish."
Elation swelled within the blond, a wide grin breaking out on his marked cheeks. He had a friend! He felt like running around in joy, in fact, he was bouncing from where he sat. Then a thought popped into his head.
"Hey, what's your name?" Asked Naruto.
"… Shisha called me Hikaru."
"Nice to meet… a… a-Achoo!" He sneezed, the shivers came back as the wind once again filled the house. Red eyes darted to the door,
"Have you been out in the rain? Shouldn't you be at home?" After inquiring, the smile on his little face faded.
"I… I don't have one." Naruto admitted quietly.
"Where are your parents?"
"I don't have any." He answered, curling into a ball from both the cold and the longing squirming in his chest. The rain was still going strong, it seemed to only increase as the rushing sound grew. A form wrapped around his small self. Snapping his head up, he found the Ninetales had decided to lay down beside him, many tails draping themselves over him. A little startled, he quickly disregarded it in favour of slumping at the heat exuding from the animal's silky fur.
"Isn't there anyone else to take care of you?" No more shivers.
"He doesn't take care of me but there's Jii-san. He comes by the orphanage to check on me sometimes." No response. Hikaru quietly hummed as he took in the information, casting a glance to the open doorway to the forest.
"Why don't you stay here? At least until the rain stops." Suggested the vulpine Pokémon. Colour returned to his face in a light flush. Staring into his ruby eyes for a moment, Naruto nodded as the exhaustion finally caught up with him, the warmth seeping in making him drowsy.
Yeah, that sounded good. Maybe he'd go tell Jii-san about Hikaru. A glimmer of excitement sprouted within, he couldn't wait to tell him about his new friend and the scroll that brought him here.
Sapphires hid under heavy eyelids as the rain now lulled him to sleep.
Fire types can double as walking, living heaters.
So what did you all think? Hope this was a decent chapter for all of you, I want to make this more fun and light-hearted. I've decided to have this story dedicated to early childhood misadventures.
I was unsure whether to have Naruto refer to Sarutobi as 'Jii-san', 'Gramps' or 'Old man'. Still unsure, honestly. Which one do you think would be best?
Seeing what the date today is... Happy birthday, Naruto!