Wildfire

Chapter 1: Crimson Eyes

"Speech."

"Emphasis."

He was outmatched.

Naruto Uzumaki was once again knocked down to the ground by the man in front of him, the traitor who was using him to steal the Scroll of Seals.

"Stand still, I don't want to have to cut through you, it'll tear the scroll." Mizuki sadistically smirked as he twirled the large shuriken in his hand, stalking toward the boy as if he was cornering his prey.

Naruto's sliced up body managed to turn and sprint with the scroll strapped to his back, hastily retreating through the woods behind him as his pursuer followed. Running out of breath, the academy failure bent down and hid behind the largest tree he saw, eyes pinned in the direction he came from only to see the outline of the madman surge closer. Naruto whispered the one technique he had managed to read off the scroll before he was attacked, performing the needed hand symbol as clones of himself appeared beside him, scattering to other hiding places. The noise and movements made by them were only meant to distract Mizuki for as long as possible.

The delirious smile on the chunin oozed cruelty and insanity. He spoke his mind freely as he knew he was all alone with the helpless runt of the class. "Do you know why the villagers hate you? Why Konoha hates you? The Nine-Tails that had killed so many villagers and shinobi all those years ago had to be trapped away somewhere by The Fourth, and he decided that you were worthless enough to be chosen."

He could hear the rapid breathing of the real Naruto, Mizuki then tightening his hold on his signature weapon as he focused on the sounds around him, the forest being too dark to see well in. "But I hate this village too, Naruto-kun, and I plan on leaving with that scroll to become strong enough to take this place down. Why don't you come with me? We can get rid of everyone who has ever hurt you for no good reason. Give me the scroll and I promise I won't even touch you." He leered in the direction from which the breathing grew even heavier, suddenly having to turn to throw a flurry of kunai at a moving figure on the other side, the weapons dropping to the ground as their target vanished into a puff of smoke.

"A clone? You really have improved, I'm impressed! Now, Naruto-kun, hand me the scroll and we can leave here." His glare grew deadly as he launched himself at the boy's hiding spot, turning in the air to slice the clones that desperately charged at him. Landing in front of the roots Naruto was cornered between, he leaned forward, the arm carrying his sharpened weapon flexed back in preparation to finish the boy off. His free hand came out as he smiled at the quivering child. "Hand me it, Naruto-kun." He stared down at the small, shaking outline of the village sacrifice as the boy held his face in his hands, tears streaming down his whiskered cheeks.

The smile died after seconds of idleness. Mizuki threw his throwing arm forward, wanting to end this pitiful existence in front of him and to leave the village with his prize. The spinning hunk of metal was sent flying, cutting through the short wisps of air as it collided with its target, spraying blood onto the surrounding wildlife.

She was terrified.

For the first time in her life, she had admitted to being fearful of something. The snake, the man who held her and others captive to test his inhumane experiments had turned his attention to her days ago, selecting her to be his next guinea pig. All those picked before her had turned into mindless puppets with body parts ripped out and replaced, markings scarring their abused bodies. She had been captured and sold to Orochimaru by slave traders years ago, forced to live in cages, given nothing but drags to cover herself and stale chunks of food unfit for human consumption.

Once she saw his pale finger point at her through the steel bars, it made her realize that her time would soon run out. She had no family, no friends, no goal in life but to survive. And because of that, she ran.

The day came for one of the overseers to drag her away, and with the sudden rush of adrenaline through her system and the animalistic craving to live on, she had overpowered him enough to give herself time to run out of the labyrinth of a lair.

It's been countless days of dragging her body through unfamiliar forests, musty creeks, and pitch-black woodlands, the thought of his henchmen possibly being right behind her driving her legs to push onward despite the sores and blisters. At the very least, she had no belongings to expend precious energy carrying, except for a wooden flute she obtained ages ago.

She stopped upon hearing sounds of combat within the woods she had entered a day or two earlier, crouching down and hiding within shrubbery to witness a blonde boy close to her age running away from a ninja who beckoned him to give up the scroll tied to his back. She silently watched on as he was driven further and further back, his orange jacket getting torn apart as he weaved his small frame to dodge the weapons sent towards him. She heard the taunting words coming out of the older man's mouth as he provoked the child, words telling of the demon fox sealed inside of the blonde. She had heard tales of the outside world from the other captives held with her, stories of the hidden villages, shinobi forces, and horrifying demons.

But as the boy tucked himself between tree grooves, all she could see was someone running to save his own life, the same thing she was doing. He was no vile creature.

The white-haired man cornered his target, and before she could do anything to react, her eyes widened as she stared at the giant shuriken that dug itself within the child's stomach. Quietly, tears ran down her dirt-covered cheeks as she saw herself in him, another neglected child, torn apart by those with power.

A small involuntary hitch escaped her throat, the man turning to face the bush she was in. He leered in her direction in an attempt to discern what she was. In the end, he didn't particularly care, his hand reaching for the weapon embedded in the boy's abdomen in order to use it on her.

He tugged at it a few times, angered by how it was lodged so well. He turned back to look down at Naruto grasping onto the shuriken, coughing up copious amounts of blood, his teary face staring at the pit in his stomach and the torn marks he had since birth.

"You're still alive?!" Mizuki hastily planted his foot on the boy's chest as he tried to force the weapon out of him, resorting to kicking the undead child as bruises and cuts formed, whatever air Naruto had left escaping him. The boy's head finally drooped down as the black metal was harshly yanked out.

Tayuya watched on as she pictured the snake's form over the man's. Both were eerily similar, being skinny, merciless, and absolutely sadistic. Her vision fogged over from terror and fatigue as the murderer approached her, the backdrop of foliage outlining his appearance, features blurred out to darkness. As he closed in, her voice came out as a faint final cry.

"You're the monster...

not him."

He sneered as he rushed at her, blade drawn, eyes gleaming as they focused on her exposed neck.

It knew the Uzumaki child heard those words from the newcomer.

And it knew its power would finally be used after thirteen long years.

From behind its cage, it could see specks of the dreaded seal burning away, enough for some of its demonic chakra to be leaked out. Naruto Uzumaki stood in front of the seal, looking up at the mountainous figure of the Kyuubi no Kitsune, fragile and shaky words coming out of his mouth. He simply asked if it was the Nine Tails, nothing more, receiving a nod in return.

"I-I'm... going to borrow your power for a bit." It came out almost like a faint breath, his speech much like those who had tried to negotiate with the demon centuries ago. But unlike the others, its captive spoke as such not because of fear of the fox.

He merely feared not making it in time to save the girl who didn't view him as a monster.

The embodiment of destruction gave him a questioning look, and without the need for words, the boy knew what the being inside of him was wondering. The child's face became firm for but a moment, establishing the fact that he knew what he was doing, and what will happen because of it. That was more than enough for the kitsune.

The boy suddenly writhed in pain as the fiery tendrils of chakra at his feet abruptly merged into him, infesting his reserves as they became flooded with the corrosive power of a beast. It was if magma was injected into and began to flow through his very veins.

The cry of agony he then roared out brought him back into vivid consciousness.

Tayuya had closed her eyes just as the man was about to make contact, gripping onto the outline of the wooden instrument in her pocket.

But she did not feel any pain, only raw heat as a choking sound came from right in front of her. As she slowly allowed herself to see once more, her vision widened as she saw the shuriken-wielding man viciously hacking up blood.

She leaned down to follow his dying eyes to see a fist coated in flames impaled straight through his chest. Seconds later, which had felt like an eternity to the stunned girl, the dead body finally slumped to the ground. Her eyes came back up to stare at the red slits and pronounced features of the boy whose body was now lighting up the forest in an orange glow, everything the newly-formed wildfire touched becoming ash.

He inched forward, causing her to step back from the inhuman spectacle before her. Before she could run again, an immense wall of fire formed itself around them, manifested by the boy's subconscious.

He did not lose himself just yet, his features becoming desperate as he reached out to her. "You said I'm not a monster, right? So, can you..."

His hand clasped on her own, the aura receding from areas of skin contact to avoid harming her.

"...not leave me?"

She may have explained her response to herself as common sense. After all, there was no way for her to just reject him and leave unscathed, right?

Deep down, however, she knew the real reason was that she could still see the innocence inside of him, and with them being so eerily similar to one another, she made the conscious decision to nod.

An out of place boyish grin formed on his lips, having made his first friend near his age. With astronomically increased senses, he could hear the oncoming squadrons of Konoha shinobi, with him deciding to take the girl away from them and the expanding forest fire. He unstrapped the scroll from his back and left it on the dewy floor, knowing that the ones soon to arrive would retrieve it before it would be consumed by the fire.

His eyes could see so clearly through the murky treetops now, as if he was born to prowl long after sunset. He swept her up having noticed her limping legs from her backing away earlier, leaping instinctively through the branches, taking the long way back home.

The yellow and white lights sprinkled throughout the village streets and complexes likely didn't mean much to the one holding her in his arms, as she guessed he sees them everyday anyways.

But to her, they represented freedom and choice, a brighter world awaiting her now as opposed to the foul compartments she was once kept in against her will.

The wind blew her long hair back, the strands moving away enough to let her take a good look at the younger boy, the cerulean blue eyes lit up by the moonlight earlier having vanished in place of a much more enchanting and passionate red, a vibrant crimson that rivaled the hue of her own locks. The outlines of his blonde hair and pale skin glowed and flickered like a breathing flame, attesting to what he had done earlier. Just as she became lost in her gaze, they landed in front of a door on the second story of an apartment building.

He walked up, taking out a key to unlock the wooden entrance, pushing it in to show her the small room of his. It was messy considering the standards most people had, with crumpled blankets, piles of wrinkled clothing, and empty containers of the cheapest chips available. The dim light he switched on that barely lit up the room took a while to stabilize, clueing in as to how little the boy could afford. Iruka had offered to fix his lighting for him before, but Naruto had always changed the topic of conversation immediately, not wanting to owe anything to his kind teacher.

He walked inside and gestured for her to enter, sheepishly closing his eyes and grinning as he presented the unorganized concoction of a living space. "You can stay here if you want. Take my bed, too." When he reopened his eyes, they were back to being ocean blue, his appearance returning to normal.

She looked around at the dusty chairs, torn pillows, and even the broken analog clock. They were to be disgusted by most guests, but to her, they brought a strange feeling of comfort.

And with him here, a wave of security washed over the banks of her aching tan limbs. Although unknown and foreign to her, whatever emotions she had while being with him were strangely welcomed. Reaching the white sheets atop the bed, she collapsed from exhaustion.

A small panic rose in Naruto's chest as he hastily tended to her care, summoning clones as the original tried to look for any visible injuries on her body. One was sent to fetch a glass of water, another to any stores still open for bandages, and the last to Ichiraku's stand for some seemingly much-needed nutrition.

She somehow ignored the throbbing pains as she turned to glance up at the boy, smiling at his care and attention without even knowing it. Thinking back to the scene in the woods, she tried her best to remember his name.

"Naruto..."

It came and left so quickly as she finally let herself drift off, the only other person in the room mentally ordering his shadow clones to return faster.

The group of robed, masked ninja circled around the burnt corpse, one of them crouching down and identifying it as Mizuki. A few reports had been made concerning suspicions surrounding the man, but none thought he would be a deserter to this extent.

The line of Konoha's most capable forces separated to make way for a short elder in a white robe, the movement of his hat indicating that he was staring down in disappointment at the traitor to the Hidden Leaf. He took up the Scroll of Seals from the ground and focused on the unnatural hole bored through the deceased's chest. A whiff of the battleground was enough for everyone there to relive the dreaded day over a decade ago, an intoxicating stench of charred wood lingering throughout the area. The Third needed to only look at the masks of his Anbu for them to know the command he was ordering.

No word was to be let out, lest there be a riot against the boy with the fox inside of him.

"Put out this fire before it gets out of hand. Make a report that states an unknown shinobi's training had led to this incident, and nothing more."

The others nodded before going to work, using various techniques and combinations to slowly push back the incredibly intense bursts of flames, as if they were cleaning up the remnants of the Kyuubi's vengeful rampage once again.

Hiruzen Sarutobi looked on, the releases from his pipe blending in with the colossal pillars of smoke reaching the gray clouds above. Minato Namikaze's son inherited not only his father's potential, but also something much more important.

Sarutobi knew the path Naruto had decided on will still lead him back to the same dream he always had, destined to hold the title as Konoha's leader and protector. The Will of Fire continues to burn brightly within the young child's soul.

Or in this case, wildfire.

Jutsu Introductions

Kage Bunshin no Jutsu/Shadow Clone Technique [B-rank]: The user creates clones of themselves that can interact with objects and perform techniques known to their creator. Normally, these clones and their user have evenly divided chakra, while there exists specialists who are able to change the distribution given practice. In consideration of the taxing nature of this technique, especially in regard to mass clone creation, it is forbidden for the common ninja to use the Tajuu/Multiple variant, in which hundreds or thousands are formed.

Kyuubi no Seiryoku/Nine-Tails's Might [S-rank]: Unique to Naruto Uzumaki, his torn seal and acceptance of the demon fox inside him has allowed the being's influence to leak out when asked for. Along with defined canine features and a body coated in flames, anything Naruto wishes for is done without need for explicit command. His power, speed, and stamina are greatly enhanced during this state, a protective layer wrapped around his form. The Nine-Tails is able to speak to him during times of combat as well, whether to act as a guide or as an annoyance. However, as a consequence, the host is more often driven by instinct and desire even while this technique is inactive.