I know, I should've updated 'I Too, Will Protect You', but I have this huge urge to write this story x) the idea is tickling my mind, pushing me to write it lol~ xD
Well, I hope you like it :D
Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, and sadly, never will. x)
On with the story!
- Chapter One -
Fox
The rain pours down heavily all across Leaf Village.
In a glance, it almost looked like a huge bucket had decanted its water content into the sleeping city. The sky's color is dark; pitch black with silhouettes of lightning which sometimes cracked the gloomy clouds.
It is a very quiet and chilly night.
In one of the buildings, a man is sitting on his chair. His aura of authority filled the half-circle shaped room, tensing the air. He had his right eye bandaged, and an X scar tear the outer skin of his chin.
The lightning strikes suddenly, illuminating the room with an eerie light.
At the same time, a masked figure suddenly popped out of nowhere, small curtains of smokes covering the unknown presence. As the smoke thinned, the masked figure's whole form is revealed. A black robe cloaked him from head to toe, as if he was trying to make himself disappear in the night's shadows. He knelt down to the bandaged one in front of him, with a silent yet quick motion.
The masked man spoke in a very flat, almost macabre voice.
"He is ready, Lord Danzou."
The sitting man's uncovered eye seemed to twitch a bit. He nodded at the figure slowly and voiced his command.
"Send him in, Kujaku."
The masked figure nodded at that command, and formed seals with his hands. Finished, he slammed his palms onto the cold, hard floor. A small circle with incantations around it appeared from under his palms, eventually growing wider.
Then a thick smoke wrapped the air on a certain spot beside Kujaku. A shadow slowly appeared inside the smoke as it thinned. A man, covered in the same black robe and the same masked face stepped outside the remnants of the fumes. Unlike the similar figure beside him, the new guy doesn't kneel to the one-eyed man.
"Danzou."
A perfectly hid hint of hatred swayed in his cold, if not, emotionless voice.
The said one stood up in a swift motion, gripping a wooden cane in his hands.
"Address me with 'Lord', Fox."
Fox growled at Danzou's commanding words. "And don't address me with something that is not even my name, Lord Danzou."
Danzou stared at Kujaku—who is still kneeling down quietly—with his one eye. He, knowing his place as the ruler of the Leaf Village, spoke in a stern and deep toned, rigid voice.
"Give us some privacy, Kujaku."
And in a flash, the kneeling figure disappeared from the dim room in a smoke.
A small smirk formed on Danzou's lips. "It is just us now, Fox."
The Fox growled again. And this time, he released a sharp killing intent towards the ruler of Leaf Villlage. He clenched his fist behind the robe that cloaked him.
His voice trembles a little, anger exudes in his tone.
"Don't. Call me. That."
Suddenly the atmosphere turned silent. A taut, uncomfortable silence. All the sounds being heard are the rain's, the lightning strikes', and the sound of their own breathing.
The masked figure in front of Danzou before has disappeared. Danzou just stand calmly behind his desk. His emotions, his thoughts, are hidden very carefully under his bandage and eyelid, being undetectable in his eyes.
He didn't even flinch when suddenly, a flash of shadow motioned in front of him and a fist made its way to his face.
With one fast paced and sudden move, Danzou thrust his wooden cane to the Fox's mask right on the forehead, just before the fist—which is only an inch away from his nose—hit him. The mask slowly cracks from the forehead to the chin, splitting it into two. When the mask finally shatters, the Fox's face is revealed.
Soft whisker marks adorned his cheeks. Spiky, messy blonde hair showed up under the black robe's hood, a very unique golden-colored. Fangs showed up behind his lips when he gritted his teeth. Claws, instead of nails, protrude on the edge of his fingers.
And his eyes, deep scarlet with narrow pupils—like those of cats. Or foxes, in this case.
Agitated, Fox snarled and attempted to push his fist further—blood dripping from his hard clenching. But Danzou flowed more chakra to his cane, pushing Fox harshly and threw him back. However, Fox maintained his balance as he clawed the cold floor to prevent him crashing on the wall behind.
Danzou smirked, slowly putting his cane to its position before.
"You are too early, say, for ten years—before you can even hit me, brat."
Fox spat and wiped his lips. He stood up quietly and, strangely enough, his scarlet eyes turned into cerulean, sapphire like ones. His fangs and claws have also disappeared, and his whisker marks faded a little, though still visible.
"What do you want, Danzou? Calling me here." said Fox, gritting his teeth.
"I have a mission for you, Uzumaki Naruto." answered Danzou, emphasizing Fox's real name. The name felt weird on his tongue. However, he can't risk triggering the Fox's anger for the second time, can he?
Naruto frowned, but kept his cool. "Hmph... Spit it."
"Respect, kid." The said one grunted and glared at Danzou.
Danzou held the urge to glare back and continued instead.
"You will go to the Blue Moon Town, and visit the Crescent Moon Palace. There, you will employ as a personal knight—a personal bodyguard,"
Naruto's face seemed to show a little disbelief. Feigned, perhaps.
"...For the princess."
Naruto snorted, "Huh. And here I thought you're going to give me another dirty mission, old man."
Danzou narrowed his visible eye, "I am not finished yet."
Naruto stared at the ruler, seemingly aware of something behind the mission Danzou had just given him. The ruler's face turned into a stone cold one, a very perfect image of seriousness. And selfish emotionless.
"Kill her." he said. "Kill the princess."
Naruto seemed to flinch a bit. Although he maintained his unreadable flat face.
"And what if I don't want to?"
The lightning strikes again, its light irradiated both men in the room. For awhile, shadows are being pulled out by the eerie spark.
Danzou glowered at the blonde haired one in front of him. "You need to. It is a duty given to you. You, are an assassin, after all." Naruto's eyes twitched at the word 'assassin', "And we both knows fully well the consequences of disobeying an order. Furthermore, you are supposed to be pretty used at killing."
Naruto didn't counter anything the bandaged man had said—he pursed his lips, though perhaps, momentarily. Which is much to Danzou's content. Danzou grabbed a sealed scroll on the end of his desk and practically threw it to Naruto. The whiskered blonde catched the scroll, gripping it in a hand.
"Keep the scroll with you. It contains every information you need about this mission. So, do not ask further questions." Danzou said, pointing his chin towards the scroll in Naruto's palm.
Naruto glanced at the unopened scroll that is still sealed. He put it in a pocket behind his robe, hiding it from sight. Danzou gazed upon the cerulean eyes that Naruto posessed, and nodded his head in approval of his actions.
"You are dismissed now, Fox."
Naruto hissed at that last word before disappearing in a puff of smoke.
-
*****
-
A shadow jumped from rooftop to rooftop in a flash—and in a glance, it is a mixture of golden and black. The rain had stopped, though the darkness remains. It is past midnight, and the town now rests in silence, cold breeze blew softly.
Naruto stopped his pace at one of the buildings' roof. He sat, then growled silently.
'Fox.'
He hated that word, that being. He resented it. Even though there is a 'Fox' living in him.
Yes, Inside his body.
As emotionless as he is, he still felt rage at the presence of that—which seemed to be always there. That is the reason why he is an assassin on the first place. The reason why he is cold.
The reason why he can feel nothing.
Except for those negative emotions. Like hatred, and rage. Like those he felt towards Danzou, that bastard. If you ask why Naruto hated him, it is going to be a long list.
Danzou, is the reason why he has that thing inside him. It goes way back to that time, the time when the first tragedy befalls the Leaf Village.
:
An enormous creature with crimson eyes, amber fur—like those flames had—and nine tails came from inside the woods, enraged. Because of its nine tails, it is referred to as Kyuubi. Its roar pierced the eardrums of the people, releasing a massive amount of chakra. Its tails ran amok, crashing the buildings it came in contact with. Villagers tried to run away, saving themselves from the fury of the Fox.
But their escape attempts seemed to be futile. Only few had managed to avoid it.
It is when Hiruzen Sarutobi, the ruler before Danzou, came to face the giant being. He decided to seal the Fox, keeping it in prison forever in a peach tree at the nearby temple. These words, however, reached Danzou before it was executed.
Danzou was the leader of the Black Swan—a secret organization consists of strong, trained assassins. They are the ones executing hard and special missions. This organization was made to protect the city, to keep it safe. Thus, it earned the trusts and special privileges from the ruler of Leaf Village.
However, being Danzou, there are things done to benefit the organization itself, sometimes even ignoring the city. He played schemes, as astute and cunning as he is.
When those words reached him, he quickly asked—pleaded, even—for the ruler to seal the Fox inside a baby in the orphanage. A human.
Of course, Sarutobi overruled that idea and refused to do it. But Danzou pushed him, convincing him that by sealing it inside the baby, the Fox's chakra will help the little one, giving him power and an incredible healing ability.
Sarutobi, thinking that Danzou meant it for the good, finally agreed. He even mentioned that if anything should happen to him, as a trusted disciple Danzou will be his successor.
Little did he know, Danzou didn't want to seal the Kyuubi inside that baby to help him. It is for a more selfish goal.
To make a weapon.
A human weapon, so to say.
With the Kyuubi's chakra inside him, that baby will be very powerful and strong when he grew up and learned how to control that chakra. He had no parents, so Danzou ask Sarutobi to put that baby into his care. That way, he will be in full control and custody of the baby.
Sarutobi, who fought with every bits of power that he had, was on the verge of death when he finally managed to weaken the Kyuubi. He used the last remnants of his life to seal the Fox inside the baby's navel. He breathed his last breath when he finished the last seal on the baby.
Danzou smirked victoriously as he glanced at the crying, golden haired little being.
"You are going to thank me one day, kid."
:
Naruto clenched his fist, thinking on how Danzou had used him, ever since he was born.
All his life, he had always been trained on being an assassin. When he was still so little, probably at age six, he already saw blood. Many blood. He saw people got killed in front of him.
That thought gave him nausea.
He got his first kill on age nine. Not that he wanted to. He was scared, always scared. Ever since he saw people killing each other.
But he was forced to.
Since then, he had killed so many he started feeling numb. All because of that bastard, that jerk, that sly being. That Danzou!
Naruto punched his fist onto the roof below him, cracking it.
Even when he was still innocent and clueless to the world, he often get those glares from the people around him. Some would have that terrified look on their faces, some would shove dirt right on his face. He wanted to run away, from those hatred, those irritations, those... disgusts. All pointed towards him. Because they thought he is a monster. A threat.
Still, that is all because of that bastard, that jerk, that sly being. That Danzou.
Danzou trained him harshly, and coldly. Being his foster father, Danzou never showed any care for him, if any. He didn't even show any expression when he told Naruto all of the truth about him. About Kyuubi, and his schemes. He even smirked when he told the part of the story in which Sarutobi died.
Naruto spat in disgust.
Then, time passed and Naruto became one of the strongest in the Black Swan. Yet people still treated him the same. Well, not that they know about Black Swan, anyway.
But then again, being the strongest can't also cover the pain he felt inside his chest when he caught the glimpse of hatred in people's eyes as they glanced at him. No one would want to get near him, or talk to him. Kids and adults, they are all the same.
He is all alone. Always alone.
He had experienced hatred and pain too often, he became numb of it. He can't almost feel anything anymore when it comes to killing someone.
But that is what he is trained for, right? To not be able to feel any emotions at killing.
To be empty.
Naruto shook his head and dismissed those intrusive thoughts of the past. He reached behind his robe and took out the scroll Danzou gave to him.
"Kai." he said, releasing the seal on the scroll.
Naruto opened the scroll and scanned it, reading the informations inside.
-
Target: Crescent Moon Palace's Princess, Hyuuga Hinata.
'Hmph... Never heard of her.'
Goal: Gain the Crescent Moon Palace's and the Princess' trust, then assassinate the Princess.
'Huh...'
Reason: The Princess is a threat to the Leaf City. She possessed unknown powers, which are hinted on her unusual eyes.
'Unknown powers...? Probably someone like me. What a coincidence.'
Being the one grasping the highest position in the land, and the nearest one to Leaf City, one of the scouting Black Swan member found out that she had planned to seek more power by destroying our city and marked our territory. At this, it will be best to dispose of her. Any threats shall be exterminated.
'What a princess...'
-
Naruto blinked several times after reading the scroll. It also wrote the details about the Crescent Moon Palace and the Blue Moon Town, and also about the things he should be prepared of. But the only data that intrigue him is the one about the princess. He never thought that the princess will be someone as such.
However, since it is Danzou, perhaps he shouldn't trust those that the scroll said. He'll just find out himself.
Naruto stood up and began pacing again, moving towards the exit of Leaf City. He stopped in front of the gates.
"Well," he said, putting his mask on his face (A/N: he had a spare mask x) ), "time to go."
And the blonde disappeared in a flash.
Well, what do ya think? :D
I put Danzou as the ruler here, also as the villain. I just can't imagine Tsunade doing something like that x)
Black Swan is a bit different from ANBU or ROOT. It is different, though its mostly the same (the Black Swan is also under Danzou and has the same purpose). Probably the only difference is the members in Black Swan didn't have seals on their tongues like ROOT members. x)
Note that this story focuses on romance, and the deepening of the characters. There may be minor action, though, but it's not much I guess. x)
Let me know what you think about this! Also, ideas are welcomed. :)
--
Thank you! -animusic96-
--
*poof*