Disclaimer: Me no own shit
Chapter 1
Revised: 8/25/12
The Obsidian Temple
Sunlight filtered through the leaves, dappling the forest floor with golden splotches of light. The sky visible from between the leaves was a clear blue, unblemished by clouds. Bird calls echoed through the trees and the wind blew softly through the trees. For most citizens of Konoha it was a peaceful day like many others. But for one blue eyed, blonde haired orphan the day had quickly become a nightmare.
Naruto ran as fast as he could through the forest, trying desperately to stay ahead of the enraged mob chasing him. 'I gotta get away from these guys, I don't even wanna think about what'll happen if they catch me!', he ducked under a low hanging branch, 'It's the middle of the day! Why hasn't the Old Man sent anyone to stop this?!' He twisted to the right to go around a tree, tripped over a root and went flying through a clump of bushes. Before he could fully process what was happening he was tumbling down a bank.
He bounced hard off the ground once, twice, three times and crashed into tree. He picked himself off the ground with a groan and looked around. He had collided with a tree at the edge of a small clearing. The trees in this area had grown in closer together and they cast the clearing completely into shadow. A statue stood in the middle of the clearing, its base completely covered in creeping ivy.
The statue was enthralling and Naruto approached it, forgetting about his pursuers as he studied it. It was about 5 ½ feet tall, made of shiny, black stone and depicted a regal looking man clad in robes. What appeared to be a rosary hung around his neck, and he was holding a scepter in one hand and a scythe in the other. The statue gave off a strange feeling of power and the air around it was cooler, as if it had sucked out the warmth.
"WHERE DID THAT LITTLE DEMON GO?!"
The drunken roar snapped Naruto abruptly out of his reverie. He cast his eyes around desperately, looking for an escape route when he noticed something intriguing. The symbol hanging from the rosary (a triangle inside a circle) looked slightly more worn then the rest of the statue.
'No way, that stuff only happens in movies. Right?'
He stepped up to the statue, feeling surreal and ran his fingers over the cool black stone. He dug his fingertips into the grooves of the symbol and pulled down as hard as he could. Nothing happened, and he laid his hand flat against the symbol and pushed. Again, nothing happened and, feeling frustrated, he began to pull the symbol in different directions and to his surprise, when he pulled to the right, the symbol rotated with a slight whirring sound. The symbol locked in place with a solid thunk as the triangle became inverted. There was a brief moment of silence and then a near silent whoosh as a section of ground behind the statue opened up, revealing a set of obsidian stairs that led into a dark abyss.
"HE'S AROUND HERE SOMEWHERE I KNOW IT!"
The drunken roar was even closer than before and, panicked, Naruto quickly began to descend the stairs, feeling the temperature drop a little with every step. About ten steps down he reached a landing that was dimly illuminated by a faint ethereal white-blue light. His eyes were immediately drawn to the chain hanging from the wall, and without hesitation he pulled it, causing the section of ground to slide back into place, leaving the ethereal glow as the only illumination.
Naruto slumped, weak limbed, against the wall and slid slowly to the floor; giving in to the thoughts that had been plaguing him since the mob began chasing him. 'Why do they hate me so much? What did I do that was so wrong? Am I really a demon? Maybe I should give them what they want, maybe I should just die, no one would miss me.' Naruto reached into his pocket and pulled out a dull training kunai he had stolen from the academy and held it against his wrist. ' one good slash and I could be free, no more hateful glares, no more drunks trying to kill me in my sleep' He lifted the kunai and tilted it slightly, staring at the distorted blue eye reflected back at him, ' no one trying to hurt me. I'd be completely free from those bastards' he pressed the kunai against his wrist and increased the pressure until he felt it break the skin. He tensed his muscles, preparing to rip the blade across his wrist when a faint voice came drifting up the staircase to his left, making him pause as he strained his ears to hear what was being said. It sounded almost like….praying?
Curious, Naruto lifted the kunai from his wrist and stood, ignoring the blood trickling down his hand from his already healing wrist. He dropped the kunai to the floor and took off down the steep and winding staircase. The further down the stairs he went the colder it got and the white-blue glow became stronger, but to his bafflement the voice remained indistinct and muffled, and as he reached the foot of the staircase the cause of this strange phenomenon became apparent. A set of story high double doors, engraved with the same symbol as the statue outside, blocked his path.
Naruto stopped and stared at the doors, as a feeling of unease slithered its way into his stomach and urged him to retreat up the staircase and leave this strange place behind. But his curiosity and a voice in the back of his mind urged him to continue and after a brief internal war he took a step forward and pushed the doors open.
The chamber beyond the door had a ceiling so high that it disappeared into shadows and was roughly 150 yards wide. A statue, two stories tall, was directly across from the double doors and depicted the same regal looking man as the statue outside seated on a throne holding a scepter in one clenched fist and a weight scale resting on the open palm of the other hand. With a jolt Naruto realized that the statues eyes were emitting the strange ethereal light. A pale man with disheveled silver hair was standing in front of the throne, and as Naruto watched from the shadow of the doorway, he shouted gleefully "Jashin-sama! I offer you my blood and pain for your honor and glory!" and rammed a three foot long spike through his chest and promptly collapsed. Naruto stood in a deep state of shock that only intensified as he heard the man resume talking as if there wasn't a spike through his chest. "Jashin-sama please accept this offering as penance for breaking your sacred tenants, and for not—" ' how the hell is that possible! Wait, if I had that kind of power everyone would HAVE to acknowledge me, there's no way that they could overlook something like that"
"Hey how the HELL are you still alive?" Naruto interjected, giving voice to his thoughts.
The man's head whipped around and slightly crazed violet eyes locked onto Naruto. "Who the fuck are you? How the hell did you get in here?," the man stumbled to his feet and ripped the spike from his chest, "eh, don't answer, it doesn't fucking matter anyway, I'm gonna sacrifice your ass to Jashin-sama!" he laughed, an unbalanced and manic sound, and began to walk towards Naruto, licking his blood from the spike as he did so.
"Wait! Will you teach me how to do that?" Naruto said hurriedly
The man stopped in his tracks and cocked his head to the side, "you…wanna…convert?" he asked uncertainly. It had been awhile since Hidan had converted anyone, lately he had been forgetting to ask, no one ever said yes anyway.
"If I convert will you teach me that immortality thing?" Naruto asked, glad the silver haired man had stopped his manic advance.
The man appeared to ignore his question as he turned 180 degrees on the spot and yelled "Aijin, get your ass in here! NOW!" a moment of silence passed and a young woman, clad in layered white and red robes stepped out of a shadowed doorway. As soon as she was in sight the man resumed "We have a new convert, take care of him, while I finish my damn prayers"
"Hai, Hidan-san but we won't be able to do the official conversion today, we don't have the necessary amount of believers present" she replied in a neutral voice as she beckoned with one black nailed hand for Naruto to approach her. Naruto walked towards her warily. Normally he was fairly good at reading someone's eyes to see their intentions, but this woman's ebony colored bangs covered her eyes making her unreadable.
"Follow me, we will talk when we reach the athenaeum"
She turned and began to walk back down the hall she had emerged from, her feet making no noise on the black stone. Naruto followed apprehensively, doing his best to hold in all the questions rolling around in his head, but seriously what the hell was an athenaeum? That question was answered as they stepped through a door at the end of the hall and entered a large library. The library was huge, a twelve foot high ceiling, walls covered with bookshelves that stretched from floor to ceiling and were crammed with books and scrolls. Several large tables sat near the middle of the room and they were illuminated by stone lanterns that held balls of the ethereal blue light. As soon as the woman, Aijin Naruto thought she was called, took a seat at one of the tables he began to rapid fire all his pent up questions at her.
"Who is Jashin? What is this place? Who was that guy out there? And how in the hell is he still alive after that?...and what did he mean convert?" He added as an afterthought.
"Calm, Naruto-san I will answer your questions. Don't look so surprised that I know your name. I have had to travel into Konoha for provisions before, I have seen how you're treated, it is good that you found us." She smiled warmly and brushed ebony bangs out of her slate-grey eyes. "Now to answer your questions in order: Jashin-sama is the God of Domination, this place is the Obsidian Temple, the Jashinist temple of Fire Country, that guy was Hidan, the High-Priest of this temple, he is one of the most zealous and devout Jashinist I have ever met. He is alive because Jashin-sama has given him immortality, something he only grants to his most faithful. And by convert he meant become a follower of Lord Jashin."
"But what does that mean, like what would I have to do?" Naruto asked. He was perplexed, this woman had said that she had seen how the village had treated him but she was still being kind to him. Was it possible that there was someone who didn't think he was demon?
"Well you would have to undergo the conversion ceremony which I am forbidden to discuss with non-believers. But if you were to convert, it is essential that you realize that you will not be immediately immortal, there are many rituals to be undertaken before Jashin grants his Great Gift to you. But the basic tenants are relatively simple," her voice changed slightly in pitch here and Naruto could tell she was reciting something, "it is blaspheme to do any less than utterly obliterate your enemy for they are weak and Jashin demands tribute made from their blood, pain, and fear. Give your respect to your superiors, for they could destroy you without thought, until you have achieved the power necessary to send them into the Abyss, Never raise your hand against fellow believers, for they are your family in blood and faith. And pity the non-believer for their ignorance and arrogance have gained Jashin's displeasure and he will cast them into the fire's of damnation."
"So," she finished, dipping her hand into her pocket and pulling out an ebony rosary with the Jashinist symbol hanging from it and holding it out to Naruto, "Will you convert and escape the pain of being alone?"
The decision was a no brainer. For as long as he could remember he had been wishing for a person that would see him as him and not a 'demon' or 'monster'. And here was this woman who had been kind to him and was offering an escape from the loneliness that had been plaguing him since he could remember. Without hesitation he reached out for the necklace.
Aijin smiled as Naruto hung the rosary around his neck. "Now then, there are a few things that every convert needs to know, if you'll indulge me another lecture"
Naruto nodded and fixed her with a studious look as he fingered the rosary absent-mindedly.
"Now then, just some basic information; there is one temple or sanctuary in each country and each has its own security measures to prevent people from stumbling upon it. Each temple or sanctuary is made from a different stone or material, for example the Land of Earth is home to the Marble temple, and the Land of Swamps has the Willow Sanctuary. There are two permanent residents to each building; the High-Priest, who trains converts and is essentially in charge and the Keeper who watches the building and sees to its upkeep. I am the Keeper for this temple, and after your conversion you are to call me Mistress, to do any less would be considered a great insult. Now, each High-Priest is a member of the High Council, this council meets once a year. These meetings are overseen by the Elder, who is chosen by Jashin himself to be the figurehead of His religion. When Jashin calls the Elder into the Abyss, the council meets and elects a new leader to serve temporarily until Jashin picks another Elder. The current Elder is a man named Itami Eruda who, in addition to being the youngest Elder ever, is so devout he makes Hidan-san look like a heathen."
She paused for a bit to allow Naruto to absorb this information before continuing:
"Now this is important; even though we serve Lord Jashin the god of domination and destruction, we are not the blood-thirsty monsters some heathens claim we are; we do not kill children, we don't eat babies, we don't slaughter without reason. Our Lord's teachings are often misunderstood and as a result the ignorant hate and persecute us."
Naruto nodded, a sense of kinship welling up in his chest as he thought of the unfair persecution they had both undergone, before asking the question that had been picking at the back if his mind since Aijin had begun her lecture.
"But uh, what is the convergence ritual that you mentioned earlier, like you are gonna tell me right?"
Aijin smiled again and brushed a hand through her short ebony hair "Of course, how could I have forgotten? The convergence ritual is fairly simple: it requires 4 believers (which is why we couldn't do it today) to give a small amount of blood for you to ingest and you give a small amount of blood for them to ingest. This act is called the Bloodletting Ceremony and only happens during the most intimate of ceremonies. After the Bloodletting is finished the High Priest uses his blood to fill Jashin's Blood Seal, which is engraved upon the atrium's floor and you lay on an alter in the middle of it. The three believers will recite the Demise passage from the Scroll of Ceremony while the High Priest takes the Ritual blade and plunges it into your heart. Then the Rebirth passage is recited and you are reborn as a servant of Jashin."
Naruto jumped to his feet, panic flaring in his chest, and he began to back away "WHAT! You want to kill me? What the hell is wrong with you people? Nothing can bring back the dead! Iruka-sensei said so! No way, nu-uh I'm not doing this!"
"Naruto," Aijin spoke in a hard voice that caused Naruto to pause in his attempt to back out the door, "use your head, you have seen Lord Jashin keep Hidan-san alive after ramming a spike through his chest. Is it that far-fetched that He can revive the dead?" This gave Naruto a pause as he thought it through, it made a twisted sort of sense, and although he was still incredibly apprehensive about the whole ritual, he stopped his attempt to escape.
"We all went through this," Aijin said, her voice softening and returning to its neutral tone, "I was utterly terrified at the thought of my Convergence Ceremony, but I have the scars to show I survived and you'll survive as well," She smiled comfortingly and stood. "Now the gates to your village close in a half-an-hour so I'm afraid we have to cut this short."
Naruto nodded to show he understood and followed Aijin back through the temple, up the staircase and to the landing in a daze. He left with a simple good-bye and walked back to the village and his apartment, struggling to absorb all he had learned. It seemed surreal that earlier that day he had been running from a mob and wondering if he would every find a person who would accept him and now he was being offered a chance to have everything he had longed for. As he lay in his rundown bed that night and struggled to fall asleep he made his decision, he would take the risk; he would put his trust in Aijin's word, seeing as he had nothing to lose. After all if it didn't pan out he would be free from Konoha's hate; but if it did indeed work, he would finally have people who acknowledged him.
If Naruto had any lingering doubts about attempting the ritual, they were erased when he woke up the next morning and realized that someone had thrown a bottle filled with what smelled like gasoline through his window. The homemade explosive may have been a dud but the message was perfectly clear, and with a sigh Naruto grabbed a dirty shirt from underneath his bed and used it to soak up the noxious smelling fluid. He glanced at the duct-tape ridden alarm clock on the chipped plastic floor and uttered another sigh; he didn't have time for breakfast if he wanted to make it to the Academy on time. He pulled on a clean-ish grey colored shirt from the cardboard box he employed as a dresser and tucked his new rosary into it so that it rested as a comforting weight near his heart. He exited his apartment, not bothering to lock the flimsy door behind him as he set off towards the Academy.
The school day was entirely unremarkable and Naruto spent it in a bored daze that was only interrupted by brief bouts of anxiety over the ritual he was going to undertake. Over the course of the day, the anxiety gave way to nervous energy that made his skin tingle and his fingers twitch. When Iruka finally dismissed the class Naruto was gone in a flash, moving so fast that he appeared to be a yellow and grey blur racing through the village.
15 minutes later a winded Naruto stood in front of the Temple's double doors, gripping his rosary in a clenched fist and taking deep, calming breaths. He glanced back at the stairs, and thought briefly about going back to his apartment and forgetting all this. But the broken bottle of gasoline flashed into mind and, decision made, he pushed the doors open and stepped inside.
In the middle of the Temple's atrium stood four figures, dressed in deep grey robes with bronze trimming that dragged on the ground and ended at the knuckles of their hands. The deep hoods completely covered their faces in shadow, leaving the believers to be identified by height and by the fact the tallest one was smoking a cigarette.
"About damn time, new blood, get over here and let's get this done, I have afternoon prayers to do." Hidan's voice issued from the hood of the second tallest robed figure. He gestured for Naruto to step up to the alter that had been erected in the middle of Blood Seal. On top of the alter, sat a chalice made of ebony, adorned with a ruby inlay in the shape of Jashin's holy symbol, and a wickedly sharp-looking dagger with a serrated blade gleamed in the light of the 17 thick black candles sitting along the base of the statue.
As Naruto took his place, the tallest robed figure stepped forward, picked up the dagger and gestured silently for Naruto to hold his hand over the chalice. He then grabbed Naruto's wrist and twisted it so his hand was palm up. Naruto stood still, shaking slightly from fear and anticipation, as he remembered Aijin's description of the Bloodletting Ceremony. He winced at the sharp, burning pain of his palm being sliced apart, and watched in morbid fascination as the crimson liquid, black in the half-light, dripped into the chalice. The man released Naruto's wrist and held his own freshly cut and heavily bleeding hand over the chalice, and after several seconds he replaced the dagger onto the altar and stepped aside to allow the next figure to approach and give blood. When all present had given blood, the four robed figures began to pass around the chalice and take deep draughts from it while reciting in unison:
"Newly blooded brother,
In blood and faith you are now bound to us,
You are bound to our traditions,
You are bound to our temples,
You are bound to our tenants,
Drink of this cup, and take your place among Jashin's faithful."
Naruto gulped as the chalice was pressed into his hands and the metallic scent of blood invaded his nostrils. He stared into the contents of the chalice and gulped once, throat audibly clicking, thoughts racing 'if I do this there's no turning back, am I sure, absolutely sure, that I want to do this?' He glanced up at the robed figures standing in front of him and shortest one (Aijin, he assumed) nodded encouragingly. A strange warm feeling welled in his chest 'what is this warm feeling? Is this what it feels like to be wanted, to be accepted?' another of the robed figures nodded and Naruto thought that the person beneath the hood was smiling; the warm feeling in his chest intensified tenfold. He lifted the chalice to his lips and took a deep breath through his nose to calm himself, before draining what was left in the goblet. The warm, cloying copper tasting liquid slid thickly down his throat and he almost retched as his throat seemed to lock. He swallowed hard and the feeling passed. The chalice was then removed from his grip by the shortest of the robed figures and placed at the foot of the throne.
"Convert, lay upon the alter" Hidan said (obviously speaking ceremonial rites since he wasn't cursing like a drunken sailor), as he shed his robes and reverently lifted the Ceremonial blade from its position between the feet of the statue. The Ceremonial blade looked like a larger version of the Bloodletting dagger and Naruto's eyes were unwillingly drawn to it's jagged edges as Hidan took his position at the edge of the Blood Seal. He waited until Naruto had climbed onto and laid back on the numbingly cold altar before continuing.
"Jashin-sama, as High Priest of this temple I offer you my blood to gain your favor for this convert"
The 3 other Jashinists began to recite something, but it faded into background noise as Naruto watched Hidan slam the Ceremonial blade through his stomach, his blood beginning to trickle out of the wound. The channels engraved on the floor filled quickly with the priest's blood and Hidan pulled the blade slowly from his stomach and advanced towards the altar, un-mindful of the blood now pouring freely from his abdomen. Hidan stopped in front of him and raised the blade; Naruto fought against every instinct in his body and stayed put, eyes locked on the blade. There was a brief second where the entire world was frozen and mute, and then the blade descended, glinting dully in the low light. Naruto felt a crushing, all consuming pain in his chest and then…Nothing.
Naruto squinted his still closed eyes as he tried, futilely, to block out the orange light filtering through his eyelids 'wait orange…what the hell? And why is it so hot? Oh no, please don't let me be dead, please don't let this be hell' He sat up slowly, reluctantly opening his eyes and bracing himself to see what had become of him.
Awe overwhelmed him and he knew his jaw was hanging open, but couldn't bring himself to care. He was on top of a ziggurat made of a bronze colored metal that reached hundreds of feet upwards toward the deep orange sky. A throne sat in the middle of the plateau and the man sitting on it was the most intimidating person Naruto had ever seen. The man was clad in black armor, adorned with white markings resembling a skeleton, and was of average stature, with extremely pale skin, shoulder length black hair, and ethereal white-blue eyes. He wasn't very imposing psychically, but the aura he projected spoke of a power that could kill you as easily as swatting a gnat.
"Naruto Uzumaki," the man spoke in a soft, hollow voice that echoed in Naruto's head and caused him to shiver involuntarily. "Soon I will retake what was once mine. Become strong, for I have uses for you." There was a slight pause as the man observed Naruto predatorily upper lip lifting in a sneer that revealed razor sharp teeth, before continuing, "Do not disappoint me child, for my wrath far outweighs my amnesty"
Naruto opened his mouth to ask a question, what that question would be he had no idea, but before he could utter a sound a sharp pain ripped through his chest and he jolted upright, shivering in the suddenly cold air and straining his eyes to see in the ethereal light of the Temple.
Revisions made: added detail and just generally tried to make the chapters better
How'd the revision go? Reviews appreciated.
P.S. this is the original three chapters combined so the numbering for chapters is gonna be messed up, but don't freak all the chapters are still there.