AN: And so the rewrite begins. I will be working on this as I wrap up Akuma no Senshi. As to the estimated update time for this story, I am unsure as I am preparing for graduate school.
Things to note about this story:
Naruto will be a grey character overall, though some darkness will come out.
There will be a pairing, but it will stay secret for now.
Character death applies
Suggestive themes and/or vulgar language
No civilian or clan council, only the elders, Danzo, and the Hokage
Smarter and/or more mature Naruto
Heavily AU
If the above does not fit in the criteria in which you read, than I kindly ask that you refrain from starting this story. Also, if any other authors' ideas ends up in here, it is purely coincidental and I will give credit where it is due if asked. Lastly, I would like to give a huge thank you to Coolkid93 for helping me figure out how to tie both the Naruto and World of Warcraft universes together among a lot of other things. Thanks, and I hope you enjoy!
Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto and World of Warcraft, all rights go to their respective owners and I am not doing this for monetary purposes.
ITALICS – thinking
BOLD – demon/Frostmourne speak
Arc One: One Artifact, Many Changes
Chapter One
In a land unknown to all but its inhabitants, a great evil plagued the world known as Azeroth. For years, two factions known simply as the Alliance and the Horde fought a common enemy known as the Lich King. Once known to the Alliance as Arthas Menethil, the Lich King was a ruthless enemy who summoned his personal army called the Scourge; an undead horde of ghouls, zombies, banshees, among other vile creatures.
Throughout the years, the two factions fought the Lich King and sometimes each other, however, they eventually found enough common ground to end the King's reign. Even though an evil character to all, Arthas was laid to rest with honor. To ensure what he did wouldn't come to pass in the future, however, Frostmourne was shattered and his armor collected. Everything was taking minus the helmet as a new Lich King had to take the throne at Icecrown Citadel in order to control the mighty Scourge. Bolvar Fordragon was his name, one that proudly took the burden for he had nothing left to live for.
Azeroth entered a time of peace and all was happy, though the problem remained on what to do with the armor and shattered pieces of Frostmourne. A secretive group called the Ley Walkers quickly rose to power and claimed that they would be the ones to take these cursed objects far away from here. For the leaders of Azeroth, that was the last they heard of the Ley Walkers; their rise to power gone in a blink of an eye. However, for one world, these Ley Walkers were soon found by one person in particular.
Hagamoro Otsutsuki.
An alliance soon formed, and the Lich King's broken blade and armor was scattered about in the hopes that it would never be found. Ever since then, stories and documents were passed down from generation to generation, documents which held a strange language that appeared impossible to decrypt. However, not all secrets stay buried forever.
A six year old boy with blonde spikey hair, dressed in blue shorts, a white short-sleeved shirt with a red spiral on the backside, and blue open-toed sandals, was currently bored. As the boy sat on his bed and looked out the window in the apartment that the Sandaime Hokage gave him, he couldn't help but think at his life so far. He always got these strange glares and the villagers seemed to steer clear of him. He was never physically abused, but mentally was a different story.
This boy, was Naruto Uzumaki; jinchuriki to the Kyuubi no Kitsune.
Naruto did not understand this yet, so he always questioned the Hokage about why the villagers were like the way they were. Hiruzen simply told him that he would know the truth in time, and that he was deeply sorry about keeping this secret. Being only six years old, Naruto was very curious so he went to the library to try and see if he could find anything out. Sadly, nothing resulted, but he did read about some of the cool shinobi that Konoha has had over the years. The Yondaime being one of them, one he looked up to as a model. Ironic really, when the idol he so looked up to was his father. It was yet another secret the Sandaime kept from the boy.
With a sigh, Naruto got off his bed, then walked to the kitchen to grab an apple, a bottle of water, and his frog wallet. As he headed towards the door, the six year old decided to explore the vast wilderness that surrounded Konoha. Was he worried? No, as the ANBU seemed to catch him within the hour. In fact, Naruto saw it as a game of sorts which he enjoyed immensely. Little did he know, however, was that today's adventure would change his life forever as well as the future of the Elemental Nations.
As Naruto headed to the gates, Hiruzen watched him in his crystal ball with a smile. One that was quickly erased, however, when he saw Izumo and Kotetsu sleeping on the job which made Naruto's escape way to easy. Quickly cutting the connection, the Sandaime signaled the hidden ANBU in the room.
"ANBU, Naruto has decided to go exploring again. If you would find and bring him back unharmed, please." He paused to take a puff on his pipe. "Also, bring Izumo and Kotetsu to my office. I would like to have a…special chat with them."
Some of the ANBU flinched at the cold tone their Hokage used at the end. They all knew that a special chat meant that someone was going to be ripped a new one.
"Hai, Hokage-sama. It will be done." The captain of the squad responded in the usual ANBU tone.
The team then vanished via shunshin, but before they could begin their search, the gate guards had to be dealt with first. It wasn't but a minute later when an ANBU returned with the immortal Chuunin; both were sweating like pigs, and nervous as hell. The look Hiruzen gave them was pure evil.
"Hey, Hokage-sama." Izumo chuckled nervously. "Nice weather we're having."
Screams of pain soon filled the Hokage's office.
With Naruto
"Wow, this forest is amazing!" Naruto pondered aloud. "Now, which why did I go before?"
After doing Ini-Mini-Miny-Mo, his finger soon pointed towards the North West.
"Ah, so that's the way I went."
After trekking the way his finger pointed, the minutes quickly turned into hours, which started to scare Naruto as he couldn't find his way back like before. That, and the ANBU that usually caught him by now were nowhere to be seen. With a sigh, Naruto decided to take a break under a nearby tree. As he sat down, however, Naruto saw what looked like to be a blue ethereal glow fifty yards to his right as well as what looked to be the skeletal remains of a human hand. Although freaked out about the bones, his curious six year old mind took over; he quickly became intrigued. Upon walking towards the glow, a voice suddenly spoke in his head; a voice that was deep and raspy.
"Frostmourne hungers, come child."
Naruto stopped in his tracks, and quickly looked around. His eyes were wide with fear, but as much as he wanted to leave this place, something kept him walking towards the glow. As Naruto came closer, the air started to turn colder to the point where his breath could be seen.
"That's it child, come to me!" The eerie voice whispered again.
Naruto seemed to be in a trance. His eyes were glazed over as he ignored the ever increasing cold, and the voice in the back of his head to run away from this place. By now, the glowing object was now within arms' reach. Bending down, Naruto started to dig the object out with his hands. His fingernails broke which made his hands bleed, yet he never flinched at the pain as the trance was still in place. Five minutes of digging later, Naruto found the source and gazed upon its grim beauty.
The sword was 47 inches long with the widest part, the handle area, being 12 inches long; a tad bit big for Naruto's three foot five frame. The blade had glowing runes on it with its handle having a weird skull with what looked like horns on it; the eyeholes of which glowed blue like the sword.
"Go on child, take what is rightfully yours, and gain the power you truly want."
Just as Naruto was to grasp the handle of the blade, the ANBU showed up and yelled to their target who seemed not to hear them.
"Naruto, step away from whatever that is." No response came from Naruto, one which worried the man greatly. "Naruto? Are you even listening…Naruto?"
Still no response and, before they could even act, Naruto grasped the sword's handle which made the area flash a bright blue. The flash was so bright, that the ANBU had to cover their eyes. When it receded and they could finally see again, they found Naruto encased in a thick block of ice.
The captain did not have to give out any orders upon seeing what happened to the child they grew to love.
Amid their best efforts to free Naruto from his icy tomb, they could not come close as the ice would defend itself by sending spikes in their direction. They had no choice, they would have to wait until whatever was happening was done.
Naruto's Mindscape
Naruto found himself in a frozen landscape where the wind was whipping and the snow was blowing; he hugged himself to keep warm. Just as he was about to explore the area, a new voice appeared behind him. One that was part human and part demonic sounding. With hesitation, Naruto turned and came face to face with the scariest person he has seen in his entire life.
There, in front of Naruto, was an almost seven foot tall man who wore strange armor with skulls on it. The helmet which he wore only showed part of his creepy smile and blue glowing eyes. The cape he wore fluttered in the harsh winds of the barren tundra.
Without hesitation, Naruto tried to run but he slipped on the frozen ground beneath him. As Naruto looked up, he saw the figure walking towards him which made him get in the fetal position.
Naruto never felt so scared for his life.
"Take my hand my soon to be successor, you need not fear me." The figure said.
It took some time, but Naruto finally answered. His voice was small and weak sounding compared to the figure in front of him.
"Successor, what do you mean?"
"You have placed your hand upon my sword Frostmourne and thus became its new master in many millenniums." The figure presented his right hand. "Come child, let me show you what your future entails and the home in which you will soon reside."
At first, Naruto didn't want to trust this man, but deep inside he felt like he was connected in a strange way. With a shaky breath, Naruto grasped the Lich King's outstretched hand which made the area flash white. When it cleared, the Uzumaki found himself standing on the top of a tall citadel; a throne behind him.
"This is Icecrown Citadel, home to the Lich King, a place where you will soon lead armies to lay waste to civilizations." The figure spoke before Naruto had a chance. "This throne behind you is where you will lead from, but one already takes your rightful place." Naruto looked at the throne to see a man frozen inside a block of ice, an eerie looking helmet on his head. "Defeat him and this land will be yours."
"Mister, I'm only six years old, I haven't started the academy yet." Naruto said, though confusion was evident in his voice.
The Lich King laughed, the sound of which made Naruto shiver in fear, before he set his wispy blue eyes on the young child.
"You are young, but Frostmourne will guide you." The man began to explain. "Soon, the armies of Scourge will rise once again to kill anything in their sight."
Naruto shivered from the cold, "But I don't want to kill, I want to become Hokage!"
The Lich King shook his head while a sick smirk appeared on his face.
"Such a naive child you are; secrets have been hidden from you, secrets that should have been yours from the start."
"What do you mean?"
The Lich King grinned again and placed his armored hand on Naruto's head which transferred some of his power into the boy. In an instant, Naruto was covered in a blue aura, an aura that was cold and very painful.
"Your path starts now, young child." The Lich King said as he watched the boy writhe in pain with morbid curiosity. "You might be able to resist the temptations for now, but in time the hunger will consume you. We will be meeting again, I assure you. I look forward to seeing your ascent to power…Naruto Uzumaki. A great king you will become."
With that, the area Naruto was in seemed to shatter, and vanish before his very eyes; the throbs of pain still ran through his body. Amid this, however, was something else. It was dark, but had an almost comforting feeling. This anomaly only lasted for a brief moment which made Naruto curious, but for one such beast, it wondered just how his kind would fare for he knew what his container had picked up.
Back in the Forest
The ANBU were suddenly on alert as the icy tomb started to crack and shake. Almost two hours had passed since they arrived, a time which made them wondered what was happening to Naruto inside the icy tomb. The sound of glass shattering shifted their attention to the tomb where they watched an unconscious Naruto fall to the forest floor below; his right hand tightly grasped upon Frostmourne.
What took the ANBU by surprise was that they boy's signature spikey hair was now almost flat, and middle back length. It was still blonde, but they could tell it had gotten a shade lighter. Another thing was his height; he was now four feet tall. The last thing that caught their interest was the sword. For one, it was glowing an ethereal blue, and two, it seemed to give off an unholy aura. Nobody, not even the captain, dared to touch the weapon as they feared what it might due to them. That, and it seemed like the blade chose Naruto. But for what reason?
"Captain, what do we do about the sword, I know nobody wants to touch it?" An ANBU asked curiously.
"We do nothing, but be careful when transporting Naruto to the Hokage Office." The captain ordered as he looked at Frostmourne. "I don't want to know what will happen if that sword touches someone other than Uzumaki-san."
"Heh, yah, for all we know it could suck out our souls or something." One ANBU joked.
As the entire ANBU squad laughed, they didn't know how close to the truth they actually were.
Hokage Office
Hiruzen was a nervous wreck ever since Naruto has left the village. Six hours had passed already, a time far longer than those before. As he sat at his desk, he contemplated on whether keeping Naruto's heritage and Kyuubi a secret from him was a good idea. As he pondered further, Hiruzen looked at Minato's picture on the wall only for it to fall off and crash onto the wooden floor below; the glass in the frame shattered as a result.
"I hate omens." The Sandaime muttered to himself then got up to put the picture back in place.
Just as he got up, however, the ANBU team suddenly returned and placed Naruto on the couch. Like the ANBU, he quickly noticed Naruto's changes as well as the sword and didn't like the aura it gave off.
It reeked of death.
"I want a report, and leave nothing out." The Sandaime quickly seated himself again and began in a stern tone.
It took ten minutes, but once the report was given, Hiruzen couldn't help but nervously puff on his pipe once the ANBU were dismissed. Somehow, the fact that ice appeared when Naruto touched this sword sparked a memory deep within him. It was a story that his sensei, Hashirama Senju, had told to him many times before. An Era of Old, where violence was daily life, and powerful beings reigned; some rumored to be stronger than the Sage of Six Paths. This is what made Hiruzen so nervous.
"If Naruto did in fact find what I think he did, then Kami help us all." He muttered out loud as he looked towards the nearby bookshelf, behind which held secret documents.
As he was about to enter this library, a groan from Naruto made the Sandaime hold his breath as he waited to see if his surrogate grandson's mentality changed.
"Ji-Ji? Why do you look nervous?" Naruto asked, a yawn escaping him shortly afterward.
The Sandaime let out a sigh of relief, then walked up to Naruto and hugged him. Of course, he was careful not to touch the sword, a sword which Naruto soon looked at.
"Frostmourne…your name will be Frostmourne." Naruto said as a voice whispered in his head.
Hiruzen quickly recalled the documents of the Era of Old as past translations supposedly said something about frost. It was something that brought his fear back in full force; research had to be done as soon as possible.
"Ji-Ji?" Naruto's worried voice snapped the elder Sarutobi out of his thoughts.
"I'm fine, Naruto." Sarutobi let out a smile which seemed to ease the boy's worry. "That's a nice sword you got there." The boy nodded. "And I guess you want to learn how to use it, huh?" Another nod which made the Kage chuckle softly. "Well then, since you will be starting the academy soon I guess I will assign a person as your personal sensei."
Naruto's eyes widened,"Yes! Thank you Ji-Ji, thank you!"
"And if your sensei tells me you are progressing nicely, I will tell you about who your parents are and why the villagers glare at you." Hiruzen added some icing to the cake. "Does that sound good?"
Suddenly, and without warning, Naruto stood from the couch and glared at the Hokage. A blue aura seemed to whisp from the boy's eyes. Hiruzen knew that this wasn't Naruto, but something else, something more sinister. But as quickly as it came, it vanished which left Naruto in a confused state.
"Ji-Ji, what happened?"
"You don't remember?" The Sandaime asked in which Naruto shook his head with a frown.
"Hmm…it seems something is influencing the boy. Could it be this Frostmourne?"
Thoughts aside, he looked down at Naruto and patted him on the head. "Let's get some ramen before we find you a sheath for that sword of yours, OK?"
Naruto's confused state quickly left, and he literally dragged the Hokage out of his office. As this was happening, Hiruzen looked at the Yondaime's picture again and swore that he saw a frown appear on Minato's face. If he stayed any longer, the Sandaime would have noticed the corners of the photo had started to ice over.
Following Day – Naruto's Apartment
Naruto tossed and turned in bed as nightmares plagued his sleep. Nightmares which involved grotesque creatures in a barren tundra, the same one he was in with the Lich King; creatures that he raised from the dead, creatures that he used to lay waste to anything in his path. There was even something called the Horde and the Alliance, each with their own races. But before his nightmares could continue, however, Naruto suddenly woke up and quickly headed to the bathroom. As he looked in the mirror, he couldn't help but gasp at what he saw.
His skin was now a lighter color, almost pale like that of a corpse, and his eyes started to take on a green hue. Thinking it was an illusion, Naruto turned on the faucet, and splashed water on his face. He looked again, and the same image appeared.
"What is going on with me?" Naruto said as his knees buckled and tears started to brim.
The voice he heard in the forest whispered to him again. "Only the beginning, it is. The hunger will intensify…" The voice Naruto heard in the forest whispered once again. "…YOU WILL SUBMIT!"
"Froustmourne?" Naruto questioned aloud, but got no response back.
With a shrug of the shoulders, Naruto went back to his bedroom to get a change of clothes before he got in the shower. As he did, he looked at Frostmourne curiously which leaned against the footboard of the bed. Although it was in its sheath, he could feel it pulsing, wanting to be held, wanting to be fed?
"Feed? On what?" Naruto mumbled, but decided to put those thoughts aside for now.
As he showered, Hiruzen was in his personal library trying to find the oldest books or scrolls he had. Any that he found was quickly pulled, and put in a pile to read. Was the Hokage paranoid? Quite possible, but he did not achieve the monikers God of Shinobi and Professor for nothing. He would get to the bottom of what was happening with his surrogate grandson, and somehow he knew that there wasn't much time.
Naruto was now eating breakfast, and no it wasn't ramen. He actually was enjoying scrambled eggs, toast, and a glass of orange juice. If there is one thing about the Hokage that Naruto was thankful for, it was the lessons on how to cook. Just as he was finishing up, a knock was heard at the door. With a smile, Naruto got up and headed that way to let the person in, but he picked up Frostmourne on the way. It was a subconscious thing, really; Naruto seemed to feel incomplete without it.
Once the door was opened, Naruto found himself looking at a beautiful, purple haired woman.
"Hello Naruto, I am Yugao Uzuki, and I will be your personal kenjutsu sensei." She introduced with a soft, yet stern tone.
Naruto squinted his eyes as the voice sounded familiar, but once he saw the purple hair everything clicked.
"Cat-san!" He shouted which made the ANBU agent slightly nervous.
"Naruto…not too loud, my codename is supposed to be secret."
Said person scratched the back of his head in embarrassment. "Sorry, Uzuki-sensei."
Yugao smiled and ruffled Naruto's hair, then looked at the sword which sent shivers down her spine.
"Nice sword, gaki. Ready to learn how to use it properly?"
Naruto nodded, "Its name is Frostmourne."
Yugao was surprised, "You named your sword already?"
"It spoke to me in the Hokage's office." Naruto responded with a shrug. "Cool name, huh!"
The ANBU blinked in shock, "A sentient…very rare, but the design of the sword is quite odd. It's almost like those from the stories I've heard about the Era of Old."
Naruto's voice broke her thoughts, "You can come in if you want."
As Naruto went back into the dining room to put his plate in the sink, Yugao walked inside and instantly started to shiver. It was damn cold in here, but how could that be when it was reaching almost 90 degrees outside?
"Why is it so cold in here, Naruto?" Yugao questioned as Naruto got ready for the day.
"Cold?" Naruto replied. "I feel warm, Uzuki-san. Are you alright?"
"Yah…just peachy." She mumbled, then put a hand on Naruto once he came back into the main room.
With a shunshin, both arrived at their designated training ground; it was a private one the Hokage set up for them. Although disoriented from the shunshin technique, Naruto quickly got over it.
The lesson had begun.
"Now, before we can begin to spar, we must find out which style suits you best, as well as learning the basics. Basics meaning lots of exercise, how to properly hold a sword, and how to get in a proper attack or defending stance. Those last three will be based on which style suits you best." Yugao looked at Naruto with a smile. "Questions?"
"How do we find my style, the library?" Naruto asked which made the ANBU shake her head with a smirk.
"A good answer, but partly right." Uzuki replied. "I will start you off with some basic katas which every kenjutsu user should know. From there, I will determine the right style for you."
Naruto smiled, then brought up another question. "What about jutsu, and those awesome shinobi tricks?"
"That too, Naruto. I will be your sensei until you graduate from the Academy so we have plenty of time."
As Naruto started to do a happy dance, Yugao giggled internally. It was going to be an interesting six years.
"Alright Naruto, that's enough dancing…even though it is very amusing." Her tone turned serious. "I warn you now Naruto, that my training will be very intense and I expect almost absolute perfection when it comes to kenjutsu. You will go home beat up and tired every day, and you might grow to hate me, but just remember that what I am doing will benefit you in the long run."
Naruto nodded, and determination filled his eyes. Seeing that he was ready, Yugao had Naruto start off with 50 push-ups, 50 sit-ups, crunches, and many other exercises. Once those were done, she had Naruto run laps around the training ground until she said stop. After this, Naruto was working on the basics of kenjutsu. By the end of the day, Naruto would go home tired, but for Yugao she would have a hard time figuring out what style would best suit her student.
Hokage's Personal Library
While shadow clones did the paperwork for the day, Hiruzen was reading about the Era of Old from the many scrolls and books Hashirama and Tobirama collected during their lifetime. Although most of it wasn't deciphered yet, there was enough to show that there was two factions that fought each other. As to why they did and if they had any major enemies was still a major question. Hiruzen knew that it would take a while to decipher what he had, but that was what the Cryptanalysis Team, consisting of Mitoku, Shiho, and Yurika was for. Quickly placing the documents in a folder, he signaled his ANBU and handed it to him.
"Boar, please take this to the Cryptanalysis Team and tell them that this is priority one."
"Anything else, Hokage-sama?"
"Yes." Hiruzen said as he looked the ANBU in the eyes. "Get me the elders and Danzo, we have much to discuss."
Boar bowed, "At once, Hokage-sama."
Once the ANBU left, Hiruzen left his personal library with a sigh. As he sat at his desk and contemplated what to do about Naruto, and how his future will be changed as a result of it, a sudden knock was heard at the door.
"Father, may I come in?" Asuma said from the other side of the Hokage Office.
"You may enter, Asuma."
"Hey pops, not to intrude, but you've been sitting at the desk for hours." The Sarutobi said as he entered the office. "What's got you so paranoid?"
"Naruto's new sword…Frostmourne." The elder Hokage rubbed his throbbing temples. "I know I heard that name from somewhere, but I cannot remember for the life of me."
"Well, you are getting up there in age." Asuma jested.
Hiruzen cracked a smile, "Hardy, har, har, son."
"Maybe a drink at the bar will help that old memory of yours, what do you say?"
The Hokage got up and patted his son on the back, "I think that would do my mind some good, but I can't stay for long as I have a meeting with the elders soon."
Asuma gave his father a curious glance as they left the office, but he never questioned on what the meeting was for.
Back With Naruto
It was now break time for Naruto at the training ground as Yugao went to gather materials from a jack-of-all trade store. Although he was supposed to rest, Naruto was curious about his chakra and remembered reading a book in the library about meditation and how it helped calm and regulate the chakra in one's system. As he got into the meditation stance and closed his eyes, his hand subconsciously rested on Frostmourne.
As he meditated, the Lich King grinned from the boy's mindscape; it was time to start awakening his powers. Frostmourne suddenly started to glow, and the ghostly aura that surrounded it soon covered Naruto as well. There was no pain involved, in fact, it was a slow process, one that would take about a year. But by the end of it, the chakra in Naruto's system would cease to exist; only runic power would remain.
The ground grew cold underneath Naruto as did the atmosphere. It was so cold, in fact, that it started to snow; an oddity in Konoha. Deeper and deeper did Naruto fall into his mediation, so deep in fact that he did not feel the intense cold that surrounded him. At one point in the process, a bird tried to land on Naruto's shoulder but ended up finding itself dead; the corpse falling on Frostmourne. In a small pulse, the soul was snatched up, and the hunger was satiated for now. This was when Naruto's eyes suddenly snapped open.
As he took deep breaths, he noticed the frozen ground beneath his feet, and the snow that accumulated on his person. Confused wouldn't even begin to describe how Naruto felt.
"What is going on with me?" He glanced at Frostmourne. "No, that couldn't be right…was the Lich King a dream or real?"
Inside Naruto's mindscape, the Lich King smirked evilly as he was the one suppressing the boys' memories of meeting him, and of the episodes of where his power would leak out. In a way, the Lich King saw this as a device to control Naruto from the inside out, a way of ensuring that his legacy lived on, and that the Era of Old would rise once again.