Disclaimer: The rights to Naruto belongs to Masashi Kishimoto. This fanfic is written as a non-profit story meant for entertainment purposes. Fair Use Act, you sons o' guns!
What the H.E.C.H., Naruto?!
By AlxkendBlader
Summary: Naruto, born to Minato Namikaze and Kushina Uzumaki, had the Nine-Tailed Fox sealed inside of him by Hiruzen Sarutobi, who died performing this act to save Konoha. However, after the sealing, an unusual phenomenon occurred, in which a dimensional rip takes the baby Naruto away from his parents. The dimensional rip, caused by a scientific experiment in dimensional transportation, brings Naruto into a futuristic world, where he is put into a top secret super-soldier program, becoming what is known as a H.E.C.H. After several successful years of service, Naruto (Callsign "Fox-9") learns from his commanding officer of where he originally came from, and is assigned to the world that he had been accidentally summoned from as a baby. When he ends up meeting his birth parents, what might he do?
Chapter 1: Beginnings
It was on the night of October 10th, that history would be changed forever for Konohagakure no Sato, the Village Hidden in the Leaves. A giant, Nine-Tailed Fox demon appeared out of nowhere, and attacked the village. Its swaying tails could crumble mountains to pieces, create tsunamis, and flatten anything in their path. Many ninjas died fighting off the massive beast, until their leader, the Forth Hokage Minato Namikaze, came forward. He fought the fox in mortal combat, but he knew that the only way to defeat was to seal it away at the cost of his own soul. Before he could make this sacrifice, the former Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, performed the sealing in his place. Surrendering his own soul to the Death God, Sarutobi sealed the Nine-Tailed Fox within a newborn child, Naruto Uzumaki, who is the son of Minato Namikaze and his wife, Kushina Uzumaki, who was the previous container, or jinchuuriki, of the demon.
Now, how had the demon come to be released from Kushina, you ask? A mysterious masked assailant claiming to be the legendary ninja, Madara Uchiha, found them and forcefully released the Nine-Tailed Fox from Kushina and placed it under his control, sending it to attack the village. Not helping things, was that when a female demon container gives birth, the seal weakens. Minato fended off Madara to save Naruto, but was unable to stop the masked Uchiha from releasing the fox.
We now see Kushina holding her child, smiling in relief for his safety, though greatly saddened for Sarutobi's sacrifice to stop the Nine-Tailed Fox. She is soon joined by her husband, who says to her, "Now that our son has become a jinchuuriki, things are definitely going to change. It will be difficult, especially with how people are with jinchuurikis in general, but nothing will drag us down."
However, as soon as Minato had finished talking, a strange ripple appeared in mid-air. Before they could react, it began to suck in everything like a powerful vacuum, including their baby!
"NOOOOO! MINATO! HELP! IT'S TAKING OUR BABY!" Kushina shrieked, as she struggled to keep her precious son from getting into the strange hole, even as Minato grabbed onto his wife to help her pull. Eventually, Kushina lost her grip on the bundle, as the rift sucked in Naruto before disappearing in a small flash of light. Kushina lets out a loud scream of maternal agony that could practically be heard throughout the village, before fainting. She was caught bridal style by her husband before she could hit the ground, as a squad of Konoha's elite ANBU Black Ops appear, alongside one of the Sannin, Jiraiya the Toad Sage, who is best known for being a lecherous pervert, a porn writer, and a sealing expert.
Jiraiya asks with a concerned tone, "Minato, what the heck had just happened?! We heard Kushina screaming, and where's little Naruto?"
"Sensei, this strange ripple appeared and started sucking everything in," explained Minato sadly, "We tried to keep the kid out of it, but he got sucked in. Kami, I hope that where ever our son ends up, that he'll live healthy, and hopefully, find a way back to us. Poor Kushina's never going to live this down."
"Neither will the Toads," agreed the white-haired Toad Sage, "They want me to train him to be the Child of Prophecy. Hopefully, where ever the gaki's going, he'd better come back as a hardened warrior!"
[Meanwhile, in another place in another time...]
It is the year 2035 A.D., an era of technological advancement. Somewhere in the United States of America, in a top-secret military laboratory kitted out with scientific equipment unlike anything seen before, an experiment is being carried out by a crack team of scientists, researchers, and engineers; a dimensional trans-portal device, the result of several years of research and development. It is on this day in the lab, that the activation test for the device is to be carried out, under the protective watch of the 507th Squad of cybernetically-enhanced H.E.C.H. super-soldiers lead by Staff Sergeant Jack Lockton, just in case something dangerous comes through from the other side. The portal had just been activated, as the H.E.C.H.s gripped their weapons in case of any hostiles coming into the lab, but something did indeed come through from the other end, a small bundle wrapped in cloth.
One of the scientists picked up the small bundle that had come from the other end of the portal, and called out, "Guys, it's a baby!"
The H.E.C.H.s were about to go towards the baby, when Lockton ordered, "Stand down, soldiers. I'll take a look at this baby personally," before coming down to where the scientist is.
He hands the child to Lockton, who gave an assessing look at the little one. As he held the baby, who gave him a toothless smile, Lockton noticed that he has brilliant blonde hair as if touched by the sun, along with whisker-like marks on his cheeks and eyes as blue as the ocean deep. However, the H.E.C.H. commander had also noticed something else, as well; a strange symbol resembling a swirl, surrounded by a series of indecipherable markings of indeterminate origin.
Lockton hands the baby to a scientist, as he says to him, "Get a doctor to have that baby examined; I want to see if he's good enough for the H.E.C.H. program."
"With all due respect, Staff Sergeant Lockton," started the scientist, "But this baby came out of a dimensional portal in a top-secret scientific experiment."
"True," responds Lockton, "But I think it would be interesting to see fresh new blood like his in H.E.C.H."
The scientist nodded, before handing the baby to a medical doctor, Dr. Michelle Wadeston. A few hours later, Dr. Wadeston came to Lockton to give her report about the examination.
"Staff Sergeant Lockton," she started as she adjusted her glasses, "During the examination, we found that the child who came from the other side of the portal has some kind of advanced healing factor. This could possibly come from the markings on his navel. We theorize that they were carved there to provide this ability, but we figure that there could be more to it than that."
Lockton nodded, before motioning for her to continue, which she did as she explained, "The child didn't come with any form of identification attached to him. Asides from that, his healing factor is fascinating. I had also made an inquiry to Lt. Gen Jefferson, for him to be put into the H.E.C.H. program. For now, we'll have someone look after the little guy until we see whether or not Jefferson would give his approval."
A few days after the events of the portal experiment, Lt. Gen Royce Jefferson, a high-ranking H.E.C.H. commander, gave the approval for the child to be put into the H.E.C.H. program. As predicted by Dr. Wadeston, the baby's healing factor allowed him to survive the surgery, after which they gave him a name; Devlin S. Zachary.
For the first several years of Devlin's life, he had a rather normal childhood under the care of Sean Able, a 1st generation H.E.C.H. soldier who served as a combat instructor and a former Navy SEAL. Able was strict but fair, and made sure that Devlin behaved well, respected his elders, and ate healthy, as well as being physically active. As a matter of fact, Devlin enjoyed his workout sessions and was particularly skilled at ken-dama, a traditional Japanese skill toy. He was also home-schooled by Able, not just in subjects commonly taught in public educational facilities, but also in anything military, especially since Devlin is likely to be put into the secret H.E.C.H. combat academy, whose location is known only to the highest-ranking H.E.C.H. commanders.
At age 16, he was enrolled into the academy, where he applied everything he learned from Able into his studies and training with great efficiency. Because of his looks, he proved pretty popular with the female students, with several having tried to court him in their free time, only to fail. If there's one of several things that he did not tolerate, it's fan-girls that only like him for his looks, another being outright jerks. Speaking of jerks, he had a fierce rivalry with another student, Ulrich Blackraven, who is known for his arrogant attitude, due to being born in a rich family known for a long, prestigious military history.
At the age of 21, he graduated the academy at the top of his class. Shortly afterward, he entered service and was placed into the squad of SSgt. Jack Lockton, who he had long admired for his great leadership skills and charisma, also for wielding the fabled TPW-X3A1 "Triple Play", a weapon given only to those who distinguished themselves in service in their own special way. Once in service, Devlin, under the callsign of "Fox-9", underwent many perilous military operations with the squad, ranging from eliminating terrorists to providing humanitarian aid, or even capturing critical enemy resources. He became famed among the H.E.C.H.s for his fox-like cunning on the battlefield and proficiency with the XM-65A2 Assault Rifle. Devlin is also known for pulling all sorts of showy trick shots with the FK Brno 7.5 handgun, even during missions. He is also known for being a good samaritan from time to time, especially off-duty, whether giving his rations to a starving child, or stopping rapists in their tracks, along with being extremely handy with computers, especially obsolete ones that use command line interfaces.
There was one incident, however, where Devlin had come to know of a terrifying power within himself, but at a heavy cost...
It was during an operation to destroy an enemy weapons plant, that the squad was assailed by a fireteam of an enemy super-soldier program, known as BES2P (Biotech Enhanced Super Soldier Project). Lockton sacrificed himself, taking enemy fire meant for Devlin, who flew into a horrifying rage, surrounded by a fierce red aura that created a severely oppressive atmosphere around him.
Disregarding his ranged weapons, Devlin went up against the BES2Ps and brutalized them with his hand-to-hand combat skills, practically tearing them to pieces. The BES2P squad leader, bloodied and beaten ruthlessly, was left begging for mercy, but Devlin would not have it. He picked up the now-deceased Lockton's TPW-X3A1, and used it to burn the BES2P to death before destroying his remains with a 35mm point-detonating missile. Devlin's squadmates were so shocked and concerned at their beloved compatriot's wild brutality that they had to tranquilize him. Though the mission to destroy the enemy factory was successful, details of the "Red Aura Incident" were made classified by the top brass. A few days of intensive emotional rehabilitation afterwards, Devlin experienced something that would forever turn his world upside down;
(Author Style: Flashback no Jutsu)
Devlin finds himself in front of a gigantic cage in a dark and ominous corridor. The cage is kept shut with what appears to be a paper tag with the word "Seal" written in Japanese. Nothing but pure darkness could be seen beyond the bars.
He asks himself, "What is this dreadful place? And why am I here? Who knows who or what lies behind these bars?"
It is then that hears a deep, ominous and gluttural voice speak out to him from the darkness of the cage, "Come closer, ningen, for I have much to explain...And by the way, this is your mind, so it can be said that you are, as you would put it, inside your own noggin."
Confused for only a moment or two, Devlin came closer to the cage, until he was but a few short feet from it. Within the darkness, a pair of eyes with red pupils and canine slits gleaming with malice, and a sinister, toothy grin, formed within the darkness beyond the bars.
Unafraid, Devlin says with a stern tone, "Alright, you. Identify yourself!"
"Welcome, Devlin S. Zachary," started the entity with a knowing kind of tone, "I...am Kurama, the Nine-Tailed Fox," as his form becomes fully revealed, a massive, monstrous fox with nine swaying tails and deep, orange-red fur.
"So, why are you in my mind, fox?" asks Devlin as he crossed his arms, not phased one bit by the awe-striking appearance of the entity, who explained, "It's simple; I was sealed inside of you when you were a baby, right before you were taken from your birth parents. So you see, I am the one behind your healing factor, and when you felt negative emotions for your squad leader's death by those BES2P soldiers, you ended up summoning my power in a rage. Now, I suppose your late leader had told you of how you were brought to this world?"
Devlin nodded, before replying, "As a matter of fact, yes. It was after a training session one night, that Staff Sergeant Lockton had a private discussion with me. He told me of where I came from, that I was brought in by some kind of contraption that created a dimensional portal. He had also told me that if anything had ever happened to him, that I should go to Lt. Gen Jefferson about my origins. I never would have expected to find out that I have a powerful entity out of Japanese mythology sealed inside of me, and that you're behind my healing ability and that fierce red energy that overtook my being."
Kurama nodded, as he then said, "Here's something else, too, kit. Devlin S. Zachary may have been your given name when you came to this world, but it is not your true name."
"If what I am named now isn't my real name, so to speak," started Devlin stoically as he crossed his arms, "Then what is? Tell me more."
The gargantuan fox spirit replied with an even toothier grin, "Your real name, is Naruto Uzumaki-Namikaze, son of Minato Namikaze and Kushina Uzumaki. Originally, your father was going to be the one to seal me into you, but his predecessor, Hiruzen Sarutobi, performed the act in his stead. This sealing technique entailed selling the user's soul to the Death God, and Sarutobi surrendered his soul to put me in you."
Interested, Devlin, now knowing of his true name, nodded in understanding before inquiring, "Is there anything that you could tell me about the world that which I originally came from, and especially of my birth parents?"
From Naruto had learned, he came from a world inhabited by ninja warriors that could manipulate the elements, create all-too-real illusions, and use powerful martial arts, using a bodily source of energy known as chakra, created from combining physical and spiritual energy. He was born in a military dictatorship known as Konohagakure no Sato (Village Hidden in the Leaves, or Hidden Leaf), which is headed by the Hokage (Fire Shadow), who is the most powerful ninja in the village and the leader of its military forces. The Hidden Leaf is situated in the Land of Fire, which is ruled by the Fire Daimyo.
Minato Namikaze is the Forth Hokage, and is feared on the battlefield as the "Yellow Flash", due to a signature technique known as the Hiraishin, which allowed him to teleport to multiple areas in rapid succession. He used this jutsu against a multitude of ninjas from an enemy village, during the Third Ninja War. He is also an expert in the sealing arts, or fuinjutsu, having been taught by Jiraiya the Toad Sage, who is one of the Legendary Sannin, three ninjas who had faced an infamous man named Hanzo the Salamander, and survived. Jiraiya himself is also known for writing a series of porn novels and is a lecherous pervert, but is a master of fuinjutsu. At the part of Jiraiya being a pervert, Naruto thought to himself that he would enjoy humiliating him at every chance, as he absolutely despises anybody that has no respect for women or their privacy.
Minato's wife, Kushina Uzumaki is feared as the "Red Death", due to her lethal proficiency in kenjutsu. In other words, extremely handy with a sword. She is also great at fuinjutsu, as well. This hot-tempered, red-haired beauty was originally born in Uzushiogakure, home of the Uzumaki ninja clan, which was renowned for their longevity and mastery of fuinjutsu. Uzushiogakure was destroyed long ago from a collaboration of enemy ninja villages that had feared it, and the survivors of the massacre were scattered. Kushina, along with her grandmother, Mito Uzumaki, who was also the wife of the First Hokage, moved into the Hidden Leaf Village. Kushina was also the previous container of Kurama after Mito.
As far as Kurama knew, both Minato and Kushina were anticipating of starting a family with Naruto. However, Kurama was forcefully released from Kushina by a mysterious masked assailant who sought to destroy the village. Originally, it was going to be Minato to perform the sealing, but the former Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi A.K.A. the Professor, had performed the deed in his stead. The rest, as they say, was history. Along with that, he had also learned that Jiraiya is his godfather, and that another Sannin, a highly-renowned medic with superhuman strength named Tsunade Senju, who is the granddaughter and grandniece of the first two Hokages, was also his godmother. Naruto smirked at the aspect of having two powerful and highly-renowned ninjas for godparents.
Oh, yeah. It was right there and then, that Naruto knew that things would become more interesting for him in the long run...
(Author Style: Flashback no Jutsu, Kai!)
Since then, Naruto (while as Devlin) carried on in his duties as a H.E.C.H., while covertly learning chakra control within his mind from Kurama, as better chakra control leads to better results in performing jutsus. As time went on, he began to distinguish himself more and more in his missions and was also noted for a personal vendetta against the BES2P for SSgt. Lockton's death. At one point, he was given ownership of Lockton's Triple Play. At first, Devlin wasn't so sure about being given such a powerful weapon, but was assured that his former commanding officer would want him to have it. It took some doing, but he had finally gotten an audience with Lt. Gen Jefferson, who he discussed his origins with in a highly private setting, where nobody unauthorized could listen in or spy on the two.
"Well, that is something, Staff Sergeant Zachary," started Jefferson, "Regarding the circumstances behind this meeting, I am certain that you are probably ready to return home to these "Elemental Countries", and to reunite with your birth family. However, I cannot let you go unless you resign from active service or are honorably discharged. But, I can send you to your birthplace under the pretense of a long-term solo mission, and only Able, the top brass, and the 507th squadron would know what it really is..."
Devlin smiled, "I'm liking what you're implying, sir. But, with all due respect, who will be my replacement while I am gone?"
"Oh, I have someone in mind, Staff Sergeant, but don't worry none," started Jefferson with a knowing kind of smile, "It's not going to be that damned fool Ulrich Blackraven. He's always too arrogant!"
Both laughed heartily for a brief moment, remembering all of the times that Blackraven boasted only to mess up on something through sheer dumb luck. Things then got serious again, as they discussed on the implications of the mission.
Afterwards, he began preparations to use the dimensional transport device to return to the Elemental Countries, his place of birth. After a few more months in service, the day for Naruto Uzumaki-Namikaze to finally return home has finally come.
In a familiar military laboratory, the dimensional transport device is being prepped up to open a portal to the Elemental Countries, as Devlin stood there, fondly reminiscing of the life he lived in his soon-to-be-former home dimension, as he wore a high-capacity backpack stock with weapons, general equipment, rations, his favorite belongings (most especially a Dynabook tablet). It is then that one of his squad-mates, PFC Mack Long, came up to him and asked him, "So, this is it, huh Staff Sergeant?"
He nodded, before saying, "Private First Class Long, I'm sure that I would be so sorely missed by the boys, but I won't forget having served with you all in my career as a H.E.C.H. I am giving you and the others one last order as your squad leader before I leave this world; to take care of yourselves."
Mack and Devlin saluted each other for the final time, as the portal is then activated. With his stuff ready, Devlin waved good-bye towards Mack, as he walked into the portal, resulting in a very bright flash of light. When the light faded, Staff Sergeant Devlin S. Zachary, now Naruto Uzumaki-Namikaze, has left this world.
Chapter End
Terminology Vol. 1
1. H.E.C.H. - Acronym for "Hyper Enhanced Cyber-Humanoid". A H.E.C.H. is a super-soldier created to be the perfect warrior for any combat situation in even the harshest environments, using a powerful array of combat weapons that cannot be wielded by regular soldiers, as well as special body armors known as BattleSuits. H.E.C.H.s are created when a human is given high-tech cybernetic enhancements through an advanced surgical procedure, either at birth or from an adult volunteer. However, not anybody could just volunteer to be made into a H.E.C.H. He or she has to be military personnel with combat experience. To ensure that they perform to the best of their abilities, H.E.C.H. soldiers undergo a rigorous training regimens, by means of deadly obstacle courses, simulated combat scenarios by advanced computerized hardware, and the like. They are also taught how to work together as a team, creating effective combat strategies in battle, anything generally taught in the sternest military academies. Speaking of military academies, H.E.C.H. recruits train from adolescence at a top secret combat school, whose location is known to the highest in the chain of command. The H.E.C.H. program was first started in 2025 A.D., when a number of volunteers from different branches of the U.S. military were given high-tech cybernetic implants via surgery. These implants gave these 1st generation H.E.C.H.s enhanced strength, intelligence, durability and agility. The program was a success, and as technology advanced more, so did the H.E.C.H.s, with better cyber-implants that allow for improved performance on the battlefields of the world.
2. TPW-X3A1 "Triple Play" - The latest in a series of experimental handheld multi-launcher weapons developed as part of a secret program to provide only the most prominent H.E.C.H.s as much firepower as one soldier could handle. The X3A1 features three barrels, each with a different weapon module in it. The barrel on top of the other two barrels signifies the weapon in use. The user can switch between barrels by rotating them. One barrel always has an assault rifle on it, and the other two barrels would have any two weapons of the user's choice, so that no two X3A1's are exactly alike. Staff Sergeant Jack Lockton has his X3A1 with an assault rifle in one barrel, and a flamethrower and a missile-launching railgun in the other two. Each X3A1 also has special, self-repairing/self-maintaining components, as well as something special that makes it so that the weapon never runs out of ammo.
3. BattleSuit - A BattleSuit is a high-tech armor used by both H.E.C.H. and BES2P super-soldiers. Each BattleSuit consists of a skintight body suit made of military-grade fabrics, complimented by the armor plating, which is made of top-secret materials and is streamlined to allow for more effective movement. They also feature a special, computerized headset that features a HUD (heads-up display) visor, a communications earpiece, and other features useful for generally all situations. BattleSuits also have a special finish that can be computer-changed depending on the mission, whether in the desert or during a nighttime operation. When a BattleSuit is not in use, it converts into computer data, which stores into a special watch. When the need arises for the BattleSuit, a H.E.C.H. or BES2P could press a button on the watch, which causes the computer data to convert into energy transitioning into physical matter, forming the BattleSuit on his/her being. At the time of the 1st generation H.E.C.H.s, they still relied on old-fashioned bulletproof vests and such. When the need for a dedicated suit of armor was addressed, the minds behind the H.E.C.H. program went to the drawing board, and after three years of research and development, the BattleSuit technology was finally developed. Of course, due to foreign spies stealing the data, the BES2P super-soldiers began to wear BattleSuits, too, thus the U.S. made training films for fighting BattleSuit-wearing troopers.
4. XM-65A2 Assault Rifle - Standard issue bullpup rifle for the H.E.C.H. program using the 6.5mm Grendel cartridge, inspired by the FN P90 submachine gun. Has low recoil and particularly good accuracy. Designed for easy maintenance and ease of use in any situation. The receiver can be changed so that the weapon can use different calibers, especially the classic 5.56mm NATO rounds. Similar to the P90, the magazine, which holds 30 rounds per clip, mounts on top of the weapon and the ejection port for spent bullet casings is on the bottom. It also features a cluster rail system for equipping all sorts of peripherals, especially grenade launchers and tactical lights, along with a fire selection switch for semi-automatic fire, three-round burst at a rate of 1000 rounds per minute, or full-automatic at a rate of 700 rounds per minute*. (*=applies to standard 6.5mm receiver)
5. FK Brno 7.5 FK (real-life weapon) - A semi-automatic handgun that fires a proprietary 7.5mm round accurately from distances of up to 100 meters, developed by the Czech-based FK Brno firm in 2015 A.D. Using a patented recoil system, the gun has the muzzle velocity of a full-sized .44 Magnum, but with half the recoil of a .45 ACP. Although these guns can be used by non-H.E.C.H.s, it proved to be popular enough with H.E.C.H.s that it became the standard sidearm weapon of the program.
6. BES2P - Abbreviation for "Biotech Enhanced Super-Soldier Project". A super-soldier program developed by an enemy nation in response to United States' H.E.C.H. They are similar in capabilities to H.E.C.H. soldiers, so for the most part, they are evenly matched. Although both H.E.C.H.s and BES2Ps are soldiers enhanced through advanced cybernetic technology, they have a certain animosity towards each other for political reasons. Like H.E.C.H.s, the BES2Ps also wear BattleSuits in combat situations.