Behind the curtain

A Naruto Fanfiction

Disclaimer: Everything is other people's property.

A/N:
repeat on Welcome, to my latest fanfiction repeat off This story is set right at the beginning of the pre-timeskip timeline and will be 99,9 canon till that point. I'm no sure yet, in wich way I will follow the original story from that point on, IF I do it… However, I may change small facts to ease my burden a little (like the change of the training time from two-and a half year to three years) and make things more interesting. So, if you stumble across one of those things don't blame for not knowing the story. I do know it and everything is done on purpose, same for grammatical and spelling errors ;)

Rating: M
Well…not much to say, it's a formula. Tayuya swearing M-rating. That's it.
Furthermore there will be a list of things that human beings sadly tend to do to other human beings (and it's not the hugging and caressing I am talking about), described in a more or less detailed way.

Behind the Curtain

- Prologue -

El Mañana

The brown-feathered bird of prey was slowly soaring into the cloudy November sky. Though, already late in the year, it was unnaturally warm and all inhabitants of the northern part of the forest were busy gathering whatever nuts, roots, leaves and last flowers they could get in those last days of fall. Among them had been one, particularly lush looking, hare that the bird had instantly chosen to be its next meal. When the long eared victim to-be had noticed the shadow, it had instantly stopped mumbling at whatever it had found and started running instead.
With the routine of an experienced hunter, the bird had cut off the smaller animal's way to the edge of the forest, leaving only one possible way, in the direction of the huge sandstone cliffs that towered out of the forest. A long way with absolutely no cover.
Feeling the sun in his back the predator knew that its time had ultimately come.
Donning the huge wings to its side it switched into a steep dive and aimed at its prey. The hare stood frozen there, frozen in terror, it would be an easy one to take.
Game over.
There was nothing to see but a little flicker of something that had caught and reflected sunlight on its path. Whatever it was, it ruined the hunter's plans for his supper completely. The object had struck its chosen prey through the head and impaled it to the stone behind.
If an animal could curse, that bird would have done it in the most colorfull way. Since it, unfortunately wasn't, it simply let out a high pitched scream of anger and indignation and flew away, searching for something else to fill its stomach.
The blonde boy that approached the dead hare from the undergrowth didn't even notice that he had ruined a day's efforts to do, what was currently the only thing that haunted his mind. To get food. Whistling a song he had heard somewhere in the water country the young man pulled the kunai out of his future meals head, cleaned it in the surrounding grass and placed it in a pocket at his right upper tight. Afterwards he grabbed the dead animal at the ears and started making his way back to the camp that his teacher would have hopefully finished setting up by now.

If this perverted, lazy old geezer is sleeping again he's gonna regret it. For sure. It's his damn fault that the villagers in the last town chased us off like fleabags, before we could get rations.

He was still shivering when he remembered all the nasty and additionally, extremely sharp looking objects that the enraged mob hat fired after the duo. Especially that scythe. Luckily he had his unconscious mentor to shield him, even though the said one wasn't all happy about his unwilling transformation into a pincushion Well, after all Naruto hatched no regrets about having done so. Afterwards, the old goat had seriously tried to convince him that he had mistaken the women's for the men's entrance, and that that was the only reason for him appearing on the wrong side of the wooden wall, that separated pond, and genders alike. Minus his clothes of course.
As enjoyable his journey had been, the blonde was happy to return to the Hidden Leaf at last.
There were lots of people he wanted to see and lots of pork-miso ramen bowls he wanted to clean out to the last drop.
Besides that he was happy to be relieved from his teacher, even if only for a short while. It wasn't that he didn't like or respecte him. In fact, he was one of the most important people in his life. Where Umino Iruka was more an older brother, Jiraya was mainly the father he never had, even when he hardly showed his soft and caring sides and tried his best to cloak his qualitites as a teacher with countless embarrassing and childish actions.
He seriously loved the withe haired frog-master but travelling with him was simply too…troublesome.
It was their last day before reaching the village. They could have easily made it there long before dusk but they both had silently agreed to take their time and enjoy each others company for the, probably, last time.
He knew it. Jiraya knew it.
The times of peace were over. Akatsuki had started moving and both, master and student knew their goals.

They won't get you.

He vowed, more to himself than to the demon, imprisoned in his body. He remembered a story an old man hat told on a market in the north.Leaf Ninjas weren't encouraged to travel around the Stone Country, to say it in the political way. In truth they were in reasonable danger when doing so. The one's that had proven this fact as true were a group of Rock Ninja that had chased him through the streets of a middle sized village. He still mentally cursed himself for not having removed his hitai-ate that day. Luckily, the market square had been crowded and one henge later, he had found shelter in the anonymity of a small mass that had gathered around a bearded, old man who was telling stories.
Naruto had stayed there, even after the Shinobi had lost his track and even returned the next day to hear the ending.
It was a story about intrigues, love, prophecies and the cruelty of fate. About the rise and fall of kingdoms over night, brutal deeds and the eternal struggle of good and evil.
One sentence had particularly been memorized in his mind.

Winter is coming.

And indeed, it suited his situation perfectly. The summer, that had been especially warm and enjoyable this year, had already lasted way to long and an old maxim said "The warmer the summer, the harsher the winter. And if that was true it was going to be a very harsh winter.

Winter is coming.

It echoed again through his mind but was quickly suppressed when he sensed a series of chakra bursts from the direction of the camp. It was a code that his teacher had taught him.
The message was short and clear.

Strangers. Four. Unidentified. Be aware.

Cursing, he dug his feet into the ground and gathered chakra while accelerating. His designated supper hadn't even hit the ground before he vanished in the trees. Nonetheless he meant to hear a bird's victorious scream right above the treetops.

Kuso.

Behind the Curtain

- Prologue -

-END-

A/N:
So much for the Prologue, I know its short but that's what it is supposed to be, a bare introduction.
Since you have already wasted a certain amount of your lifespan to read this story, I would be most gratefull if you would take yourself another minute to review.
Tell me why (if) you liked the story. Tell me why you probably didn't like it, what you would like to see improved and so on.
Serious criticism is desired.