M-rated for detailed descriptions of severe and disturbing injuries.
A blond-haired boy was walking down the streets of Konoha. It was early afternoon so the streets were packed with civilians, while shinobi jumped from rooftop to rooftop, avoiding the crowded streets.
As he walked by some shopkeepers waved at the 9-year-old, an old woman even going as far as ruffling his hair as the boy walked by her stand.
"How are you today, Naruto?" The woman's tone was kind.
Naruto chuckled while fixing his ruffled hair, "I'm doing alright, baa-chan. You don't have to rub my hair off!"
The old lady smiled, "Of course, it would be bad if you went bald at the age of 9. Do you need anything for tonight's dinner? My daughter made some wonderful stew and she even gave me extra specifically for you"
Naruto blushed. Nariya-san was always really nice to him.
The stand owner noticed Naruto's blush, "Look after things for a moment. I'll go get you a bowl"
Naruto nodded and, after a minute or two, the old woman retuned with a sealed bowl and handed it to him.
"Thank you, baa-chan. Give my thanks to Nariya-san when you see her!" And with that, the boy took off, the blush on his face still being slightly visible.
He was the resident orphan of the neighbourhood, a sweet little boy that was dealt a bad hand with the death of his parents. He had lived in his small apartment for a little over a year now. Konoha's orphanage had been quickly filling up even long after the Kyuubi attack and many children had been given apartments at the age of 8 to free up space for younger kids.
The people around Naruto's apartment had taken it upon themselves to look after the young boy that took up residence in their neighbourhood.
Naruto closed the door behind him, placing the bowl of stew on a table and grabbing a spoon. The contents of the bowl were quickly consumed, a satisfied sigh coming from Naruto as he got up, walked to his bed and collapsed on it. There was an important event the next day and he had to make sure he was well-rested.
'Damn, Kaa-chan really makes the best stew' Were his last thoughts before sleep took him.
Naruto was waiting in line to have his chakra reserves measured. This would be the last chance to enter the academy after he failed the previous year due to not having big enough reserves. When he had read about the Uzumaki clan, monstrous chakra reserves stood out as one of their biggest assets, right next to their affinity for seal-making.
Imagine his surprise when he was told that, despite his apparent heritage, his chakra reserves were barely larger than that of a civilian.
He was yanked out of memory lane when his name was called. Walking into the examination room, Naruto gave his identification documents to the secretary, sitting behind a desk next to the entrance. Without much delay, a green-glowing hand was settled over his chest.
The medic-nin scribbled something down in a notebook before passing it to the secretary. She seemed to compare whatever was written with what Naruto assumed to be his past measurements. The look on her face told him everything there was to be said.
"I'm sorry, Uzumaki-san. Your chakra reserves are still not big enough to grant you admission into the academy" She looked down at her notes before continuing.
"In fact, your reserves have barely grown since you were tested last year. I'm afraid this may be the most chakra you'll ever have"
Naruto didn't seem surprised by his results. He just silently nodded and left, not offering any words to the clearly concerned pair.
No one noticed the blue of his eyes darkening to a deep purple, though they were puzzled by the slight weight that settled on their shoulders.
Naruto was sneaking towards the Forest of Death. He wore dark clothes, to improve his chances of going unnoticed by the guards, and had a backpack filled with essentials.
Kunai he had scavenged from various training grounds, rations, medical supplies, extra clothes.
He realized that what he was attempting could go really, really bad but, in his desperation, he didn't care. He had read about how the human body could exceed its limitations in a dangerous situation. There was no shortage of tales about shinobi that got an unexpected chakra boost that helped them survive, despite being on the verge of complete chakra exhaustion.
In his mind, there wasn't much to lose anyway. All he ever wanted was to be a shinobi, to be acknowledged as something more than a no-name orphan.
Sure, he had people that cared for him but he couldn't depend on them forever and, for kids like him, becoming a shinobi was the only way to get somewhere in life. Then he could repay his Baa-chan and Nariya-san for the kindness they showed him.
Coming up to the fence that separated the dangerous training ground from the rest of the village, he took out a pair of bolt-cutters and went to work, cutting through the fence link by link. When the opening was big enough, he squeezed through with barely a sound, unknowingly evading a patrol by just a few seconds.
Making his way through the dark and dense foliage, he looked back just once, making a promise to the people he had come to see as family.
'Don't worry, baa-chan, Nariya-san. When I return, I'll be strong enough to take care of you, just like you did for me'
It had been 3 days since she had last seen Naruto and her worry kept piling up. The sweet boy she had come to think of as a grandson, was nowhere to be found after that thrice-damned exam. Her daughter was even more worried.
Nariya had stopped by Naruto's house to check up on him. When she couldn't find him anywhere, she had gone straight to her mother, asking if anything bad had happened to her sochi. Those were her exact words too.
'I just hope you're safe Naruto-kun. My Nariya-chan can't bear to lose another child. Neither can I bear to lose another grandson. Please, Kami-sama, keep him safe'
Naruto sure didn't feel safe, tucked between a tree and a rather big bush, trying to stay silent as a giant tiger stood approximately 5 meters beyond his cover.
He was tired, he was thirsty, he was hungry and by god he was sick of this Kami-forsaken forest. He didn't feel any different either, chakra-wise that is. All in all, the whole trip seemed to have been nothing more than unnecessary danger and recklessness.
The tiger approached, no doubt being able to smell his sweat, despite Naruto's use of mud and leaves to mask most of it.
The tiger was barely 2 meters away and Naruto, in his panic, just darted out of his hiding spot. The tiger chased him at a leisurely pace, knowing that its pray could not get away. Why put any effort in the chase, when the hunted would sooner or later collapse from his own fatigue?
On the other hand, Naruto ran as fast as his legs could carry him, always feeling the tiger's looming presence right behind him, ready to bite into his neck and devour its next snack.
He kept going for 10 whole minutes but he just couldn't go any further, Naruto realized when he collapsed due to his own weight. His legs stopped responding as they went numb so Naruto crawled until his back hit a dried up tree. Looking behind him, he saw that, had the tree not been there to stop him, he would have fallen into the deep chasm behind it. He sat there, panting and feeling exhausted. The bushes ahead of him parted, as his hunter passed through.
Naruto tried to sit up again, only to collapse and fall dangerously close to the chasm's lip. Tiger and human eyes met for a second before the blonde, in an act of panic and desperation rolled off the edge, disappearing into the dark depths.
Another 2 days passed with no sign of Naruto. At this point, announcements had been made on TV about the missing child. A search party, comprised of people from Naruto's neighbourhood and organized by Nariya, had combed through the village and even some of the forest outside of it.
They were still waiting for permission to go into the training grounds but the civilian council had assured them that they would do everything they could to get said permission. In the meantime, flyers had been given out, asking for any information or some help with the searches.
Some shinobi guarding the Forest of Death found a section of the fence that had been cut but everyone hoped that there was no connection between this find and Naruto's disappearance.
Still, Nariya had sent a mission request directly to the Hokage, asking for a shinobi squad to look through the Forest of Death. She was notified a few hours later that a squad of chunin had been assigned to it.
Nariya hoped they weren't too late.
Naruto's eyes slowly opened. He pushed against the ground and tried to sit up, only for unbearable pain to flood his senses. It felt like someone had cut his chest open. His legs felt no better.
In fact, he couldn't feel his legs at all.
Looking down, he saw a pool of red and it took him a while to realize it was blood. His blood. That should have been a sign that he should stop examining the condition of his mangled body but curiosity got the better of him. Looking towards his legs, he felt bile rise up his throat.
The bones of his shins were jutting out of the flesh, obviously broken, creating a rather nasty image. His pants and skin had been torn, revealing the bloody muscle beneath, all the way up to his sides. Gently touching his chest, he felt the pain intensify, leading him to the conclusion that some of his ribs were broken.
His vision had cleared up quite a bit but something still felt off. Gently touching his face, he noticed that one of his eyes was actually missing, the socket filled with a mush of what was left of his left eye. Some fresh blood ran down his head as well.
Naruto didn't panic. The shock of what was happening left him unable to scream or cry. He simply lay there, pained gasps escaping his mouth.
'I-I screwed up, didn't I? I'm going to die here, unable to thank Nariya-san and Baa-chan for all the effort they put into looking after me. Unable to say sorry for throwing all of that away'
Silent tears slid down his bloody face from his remaining eye.
'I just wanted to be able to take care of them. To protect my-my family. Dear Kami-sama, I just threw away everything I had, while trying to protect it. Now, I won't see...Kaa-chan ever again. Baa-chan, Kaa-chan, I'm so sorry. I'm sorry for being such a worthless grandson, such a worthless son'
Naruto's hand reached forward and dragged his body towards his backpack. Reaching inside, he grabbed a kunai, bringing it up to his neck, only for his own thoughts to stop him cold in his tracks.
'Are you just going to give up?'
"Are you just going to give up so easily Naruto-kun?"
"But you heard the doctor, Baa-chan. I'm never going to be a shinobi, no matter what I do"
His Baa-chan smiled, ruffling his hair.
"But that doesn't mean you should give up"
Naruto tried to speak up but a finger on his lips stopped him.
"Naruto-kun, do you think we'll abandon you if you fail again? Is that why you're afraid to try?"
Naruto hesitantly nodded, looking ashamed. The old shopkeeper sighed.
"I want you to listen very closely to what I'm about to say, Naruto. The only way you can really fail is if you give up. If you are pushed down a thousand times, you must get up a thousand and one. Even if you feel worthless, even if you're on the verge of death, you must never give up, no matter how much you want to!"
At that moment a new voice was heard.
"She's right, Naruto-kun" Came Nariya's voice from behind him. He felt two arms hug him from behind, holding him close.
"You'll only be a failure if you give up. You'll only be worthless if you give up. Even if you fail again and again, me and Kaa-san will always love you. Just promise me, Naruto-kun, that you'll never give up, no matter what happens and, in return, I promise you that we will never give up on you"
Naruto turned around and hugged the woman he had come to think of as his mother.
'How could I forget so easily? I almost broke that promise. What would they think of me if they saw me like this?'
His resolve hardened as the memory of his promise burned itself on the forefront of his mind. Naruto's one eye narrowed as he threw the kunai aside and pushed against the ground once more.
With all his strength, he crawled, leaving a trail of blood behind him. The blonde grunted as he collapsed on his face after a dozen meters, his ribs smacking against the rocky bottom of the chasm. Pushing through the pain, fuelled by adrenaline and a burning desire to prove that his family was right about not giving up on him, he continued crawling.
'There's an exit out of this place and I will not stop until I find it or bleed to death'
And so he crawled, thinking of his family and his eventual reunion with them. So focused on making it out alive Naruto was, that he didn't notice when the rocky surface was replaced by cold metal, the sky above him replaced by the stone roof of a cave entrance.
His vision became more and more blurry due to blood-loss and his pace slowed, eventually grinding to a halt before a closed, metal door. Naruto lifted his head, reaching a hand out to continue but the last of his strength finally left him. His eyes closed and unconsciousness was painfully near.
In the meantime, millennia-old systems activated, detecting Naruto's blood through various sensors embedded in the floor he was bleeding out on. The floor lit up, medical sensors analysing the blonde's condition.
"WARNING. Subject codenamed SHINOBI detected at main entrance. 265 anomalies detected, including severe blood-loss and multiple bone fractures. CONDITION CRITICAL. Entrance stasis fields activated, dispatching medical drones. Nano-machine fluid tank #185 has been prepared for the subject's treatment"
The voice was flat-toned, clearly belonging to a machine, causing Naruto to wonder what he had stumbled upon before going unconscious.
The metal door in front of him slid open, revealing two humanoid shapes, the drones the machine had mentioned. Stepping into the dimply lit corridor, the drones appeared to be mechanized suits of armour, not unlike what you'd see alien soldiers wearing in a space-themed, sci-fi movie. However, unlike those movies, there were no alien, reptilian faces behind the polarized visors, only sensors.
The hands of the two drones lit up with a blue glow, the same glow enveloping Naruto's body soon after.
"Stasis and kinesis fields deployed successfully. Transferring patient to designated medical facility" Confirmed the two drones verbally to each other before Naruto's body slowly lifted off the ground and moved forward through the door, a drone leading the way, while the other followed behind the body.
The door closed and the machine's voice was broadcast again, though there was no one there to hear it.
"Blood trail to main entrance detected. Commencing trail erasing procedures. WARNING. The entrance is about to be sealed and the surrounding area flooded. Any personnel present in the surrounding area must evacuate immediately. Pending confirmation...No personnel present. SEALING..."
A realistic looking cover sealed the cave entrance, ensuring no underwater expeditions could uncover the hidden laboratory. After a few seconds, the machine's final message was broadcast.
"Opening floodgates 12 through 77. FLOODING...Detection chances re-evaluated. 0.0003% chances of laboratory discovery. Number within acceptable parameters. Detection deemed impossible. Going into hibernation"
With that final message, everyone's final chance to find Naruto was crushed under several tonnes of water.
It had been a week since Naruto's disappearance and Nariya wept, the mission report she had been given clutched in her right hand.
The chunin squad had found nothing, their only lead coming to an end at the top of a chasm. Upon their return, Naruto had been officially declared dead.
The thought of never seeing her sochi's smiling face crushed Nariya's spirit but she refused to lose all hope.
'There were no concrete evidence. There was no blood, no body. My sochi is alive, I can feel it'
Nariya stood up, throwing the mission report aside.
'Be safe, sochi, wherever you are. I'm waiting for the day you come back to us'
And that's the end of that. Let me try to predict some of the questions you have,
Is Naruto a jinchuriki?
Where is his chakra?
How did he survive a fall that would have killed pretty much anyone else? (No, it's not plot armour, so stop glaring at me through your screen, I can feel it)
Will he actually make it?
And what was up with that weird voice?
Did Naruto find one of Orochimaru's labs? (No, he didn't. It's something way more awesome)
All of that will be properly answered in the next chapter.
(Whenever I actually sit down to write it)
Drop a review if you feel I could do something better or if you have suggestions. I'd really appreciate knowing if I'm doing this right.
C ya later! (Well, I won't actually see you but whatever, you know what I mean)
PS: About Naruto's behaviour after his fall. I don't think it's unrealistic, despite his young age. I've worked as a doctor and I've seen all kinds of children. The bratty, the whiny, the annoying. But there are also the determined, the driven. I have seen orphans protect their siblings' lives with no regard to their own safety. 9 and 10-year-olds throwing their lives away so that their younger siblings could live. I have watched Naruto and most of Naruto Shippuden and to me it was obvious from the start that Naruto's character fits the character of the determined orphans I described.