Author's note: Hiya people! This the first time I'm attempting a fic so please don't kill me if it turns out all wrong! For your information, this is like a prequel to Three For Three so if you read that you'll know what I'm writing here. The time frame is almost same, three or so months before the arrival of the Suiren sisters. It focuses on Kyubi and his lover so I hope I do this right. Ja, enjoy.

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. But I *thwack!* WE own the storyline.

"…" –talk

[…] thoughts and inner monologue

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Chapter 1: The Beginning

Naruto's POV

I jerked into a sitting up position, shivering from the memory of the nightmare. I was drenched in sweat but it felt eerily cold in my room. The nightmare was stuck on my mind like it was printed in my head. [There was this blond guy, with spiky hair…I don't remember his face. And there was a woman, she had dark brown hair…and … she was really pretty.] I remembered her laughing, then I saw that woman dead on the ground. Her lifeless body triggered some sort of emotion in me. Triggered in me but I was not the one feeling it. I shook off my inexplicable fear and went to wash up.

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"Ch'kuso! I lost!" I pouted. Sasuke smirked, triumphant. "Of course you did, dobe." "Don't call me dobe, you bastard." I mumbled. For some reason, I couldn't really concentrate. That dream was still bothering me. "Naruto, are you okay?" I snapped out of my reverie. Sakura-chan looked at me, slightly concerned. I smiled wide, "I'm fine, Sakura-chan!" "That's enough sparring for today." Kakashi-sensei disappeared with a poof. I stretched and suddenly heard my stomach growl. Time for ramen!

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At Ichiraku

When I arrived at Ichiraku, Shikamaru and his friends were already there. Chouji and Kiba sat at the counter, slurping their ramen. Shikamaru sat beside his best friend, with his girlfriend Ino flanking his other side. "Ossan, give me a miso ramen." I plunked into my seat beside Chouji. "Heroonarutokurn." "Hey guys." "You looked pissed." Shikamaru stated flatly. "I lost to Sasuke during training today." Shikamaru grunted. The waiter placed a steaming bowl of ramen in front of me. I dug in.

"Dozo, o kyaku-san." I turned to see Gaara and his siblings entering the shop. "Hey, Gaara!" The redhead looked up and I noticed the small smile tugging at his lips. He approached me, "Why," he started "am I never surprised to see you here?" "Because he's a real ramen freak." A guy with face paint said while adjusting his puppet. "That has got to be a 24/7 obsession." Gaara's elder sister pushed her strawberry blonde hair behind her ear and touched her huge fan. "Hi, Temari, Kankuro." I turned back to my ramen and resumed eating. I finished my ramen and after hanging out for a while, I went home. Once in the familiar surroundings, I showered and went to bed.

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[Huh? Where am I?] I looked around, trying to recall what happened. [This kinda looks familiar.] I moved towards the trees, still trying to figure out where I was. Suddenly, I caught sight of two people in front of me. I quickly hid behind a tree. [I-It's that woman with brown hair! And the blond!] I strained my ears to catch their conversation. Then, she turned. I got a glimpse of her dark eyes before my surroundings swirled and turned black. "Nani?! What's happening?" I yelled. I squinted, trying to see around me. I let out a gasp as the woman laid on the ground, unmoving. I felt a surge of emotions, yet none of them belonged to me. "She's dead." I whispered to myself. Just then, I heard a loud roar ripped through the silence. A roar filled with anger and grief and regret. A roar emitted by the blond man that was currently cradling the dead woman's body. He was turning around. . He looked up and then…

I jolted awake. [Damn! Why can't I remember his face?] The same dream as yesterday. The same feeling of dread and fear and frustration. [That was weird. Last dream lasted until I saw the dead body, but this one…] I slapped myself lightly and dragged myself to the bathroom. After a quick breakfast, I rushed to the training ground. I did this everyday if we didn't receive a mission. I was running so quickly I bumped into someone. "Gomen!" I apologized and went to help the elderly man up. He slapped my hand away and glared at me. He got up and walked away as fast as he could. A moment of pain flashed through me.

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"You're late, Naruto." Kakashi-sensei said flatly. I had taken a walk to cool off my hurt feelings and as a result I arrived later than Kakashi-sensei. "Sorry, I woke up late today." I lied and forced a smile onto my face. He simply shrugged. Sasuke eyed me suspiciously and Sakura-chan looked concerned. I ignored them and started training. I felt rather troubled by the old man today and didn't really pay them any attention. I even ignored Sasuke's dobe comment.

At the end of the day, I wearily said goodbye to them and left. They looked at me worriedly. I trudged my way back to my apartment. [The villagers… they seemed to look so much colder today.] I thought as I glanced at the villagers that passed me by. Upon arriving home, I heaved a sigh of relief. [I'm so tired, I'd better hit the sack.]

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[I'm here again.] I opened my eyes to find myself in the same place, in my dream. I made my way through the trees and again spied the couple in front of me. It felt so weird. I'm doing the exact same thing but I'm aware of that. Yet I can't seem to do anything else, it's like I was out of my body or something like that. I shuddered as the scene repeated before me. Her death, the feeling of dread and regret. I held my breath, anticipating the moment the man would turn around. I'm going to make sure I see and remember his face this time. And a good look I got. His face contorted with anger, and his eyes.

"Aaahh!" I screamed as I sat up, sweating like a waterfall. I sat in my bed, shivering, not out of cold but out of… fear. [Those eyes, they aren't human.] Only one thing remained in my memory after the dream, and it was the man's eyes. Those red eyes, they blazed with a fury that froze my blood. A gaze filled with such hate that I felt like I was being ripped apart. [What's going on? Why am I having the same dream lately?] I absent-mindedly rubbed my belly as I walked to the bathroom.

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I walked around the market, not buying anything. Although I hadn't had enough sleep last night, I didn't want to enter slumber land. The eyes still haunt me. Speaking of which, I felt people staring at me. I tried to ignore the looks of hate, fear and disgust they threw at me. [Why, why do they always look at me that way?] I was too deeply in thought to notice where I was going and knocked into a woman. Her belongings fell out of her arms. "Gomen! I wasn't watching where I was going!" I said as I helped picked up her things. The lack of response caused me look up. She was staring at me as though I had grown another head and was backing away. "No, get away." She was mumbling more incoherent things. I stepped nearer wondering what the problem was. Bad move. Suddenly she burst out shrieking "Get away from me kitsune!"

Kitsune. Kitsune. That word struck me like a ton of bricks. I suddenly became aware of all the jeering and hisses around me. Horrified, I took off. I didn't care where I went, I didn't stop to apologize when I bumped into people, I just want to get away from everything. I had somehow wandered into the forest and finally decided to slow down. I stopped under a large tree and sat in a nook between the huge, knotted roots. Fatigue took me over and I drifted off to sleep.

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[Where am I?] I was in the forest, and then I fell asleep and… I squinted, my eyes trying to accustom to the darkness. When it did, I found myself standing in front of a huge cage.

Where am I? This place, it's kind of familiar.

What are you doing here, brat?

Brat?

My eyes widen with realization as I whispered the name of what deprived of my parents. The one reason the villagers hate and fear me for.

Kyubi…

A/N: De, how was it? Pretty boring chapter, right? Don't worry, I'll try to do better. In fact, I think the next chapters are much more interesting. I had no ideas on how to introduce Kyubi into the scene! Please review. Flame me if you want, tell me if it sucks and where it went wrong. It's good advice and I appreciate it.