De-raz: OK you guys, here is the second story you guys voted for on my poll, the NarutoxRosario X-Over. A little bit later than I expected it to take, but whatever. Just make sure to read and review, and watch out for the tenth installment of Ninja and Senshi Clash!
I also want to comment on the latest Naruto Manga Chapters, as I know that pretty soon Naruto's going to start doing his whole inspirational 'peace and friendship' crap speech on Pein, though it will be interesting to see how the person who's supposed to be Naruto's big enemy is going to respond. Anyways, back to the story.
Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or Rosario Vampire, if I did there'd be much more fan service (winks) hehehe.
"Hahaha, c'mon guys, do you really think you'll be able to catch me!?" a short, blonde headed boy yelled to his three pursuers as he made his way through the busy market district, while holding a pail of paint and a brush that looked used recently.
If the look on the giant mountain, decorated with four giant faces in the background of the city was any indication, it was easy to tell just what the paint had been used on.
The blonde headed boy continued to taunt the three people running after him, "I'm Uzumaki Naruto, the future Hokage! No way some idiots like you guys will catch me.
"You're gonna pay this time you brat! You won't get away with defacing the monument of our heroes!" one of said pursuers shouted at the kid, pissed because 1) the demon brat had defaced the Hokage monument, and 2) somehow it was able to avoid three jounins, including him, for three hours through the city streets. Not to mention the insults it'd been throwing their way the whole time. The stamina of that thing was amazing, heck even they were beginning to slow down.
The fatigue of the pursuers was what allowed Naruto to sneak around an alley corner and camouflage himself in the surroundings before they could even show up. It spoke greatly for his talents in stealth how even three jounin couldn't detect him from the rest of the dark alleyway.
"Damn, do you guys see it!?"
"No, the damn thing must have gotten away!"
"That demon spawn, it must have already gone ahead! We'll have to split up, you'll go down the direction of this alley, you keep going through the markets, I'll backtrack to see if the demon slipped by us somehow. We can't let this thing get away with openly mocking our heroes like this!"
It wasn't until the three were long gone that the blonde headed boy took a peek from beneath his camouflage cloth, big blue eyes scanning the alleyway before finally declaring it safe.
"Phew, got away from those bastards. Heh, I told them they didn't have a chance to catch a future Hokage!" Naruto declared to himself, loudly. It was mostly for self-assurance, however. He had heard their comments about him, and it had taken all of his willpower to not flinch at the gnawing fear inside him at that time. It hadn't been till then that the blond boy realized it had been haters that were chasing him.
True, the name was pretty unimaginative, especially considering it was him, the prankster king, but it's not like he knew just why the majority of the village hated him. But it was haters, as he so affectionately called them, which were the worst and most violent. If they had managed to catch him in the middle of the busy market streets, they couldn't do too much without setting off any ANBU. 'Much' meaning a small beat down, some bad cuts and bruises at the worst. If three haters had found the small twelve year old in an empty, dark, alleyway like this one however…he shuddered as dark memories of previous birthdays flashed through his mind, memories better left forgotten.
Deciding to forget about it as they were already gone, he began to make his way back out onto the city streets, brushing the dirt of his clothing, a very bright orange jumpsuit that was definitely baggy on him. A person would wonder why a ninja hopeful like Naruto would wear such bright colors. Then again, it only paints him as a better target to be killed on future missions, so why wouldn't the shopkeepers make sure he couldn't buy anything else? Not that he didn't like orange, but contrary to common opinion this shade was much too bright for him and he was getting sick of having to wear it every day.
Lost in his thoughts, Naruto failed to sense the hand coming at him until it had already grabbed the scruff of his jumpsuit, nearly making the blue eyed boy jump out of his skin in fear that one of the haters had managed to find him. It wasn't until he noticed a scar running across the bridge of the man's nose did he realize it was his academy teacher, Iruka.
"Oh, hello there…Iruka-sensei…hehehe, what seems to be the problem?"
The heated glare told Naruto all he needed to know. "I think the fact that you're skipping class, again, is a problem Naruto! Not to mention the fact you painted the Hokage Monument, just what were you thinking!? Be assured you're going to be cleaning that up after school!"
The blonde just sighed, trying to ignore Iruka's improvised lecture as the Academy teacher dragged him back to school, literally.
Naruto sulked in the rope binding Iruka put him in as he sat down in front of the class, trying to ignore the derisive laughter of his classmates.
I don't get why Iruka-sensei always does this kind of thing to me, it's like he enjoys my suffering the boy thought to himself. Then again, it's not like that'd make him any different than anyone else.
It was something even somebody like him, as admittedly he was a little dense, couldn't help but notice. Whether it was the shopkeepers, passerby civilians, haters, or even his own classmates and other kids his age, everybody was against him. Everybody got some kind of sick amusement on his struggles and suffering, and he couldn't help but hate them for it. He knew it was wrong, they were fellow Konohans (he silently congratulated himself on the cool word), and hating them would only prove their point he was a demon, but what human couldn't hold some of his hate after what he went through?
If he was perfectly honest with himself, there were only 4 people in the whole village he could honestly say he held no amount of animosity to: Hokage-jiji, Iruka-sensei, and the Ichiraku's Teuchi and Ayame. Even then, only the former two held any significant amount of trust. It wasn't that the Ichiraku's weren't trustworthy, but they were still civilians in a ninja-run village; he couldn't hope for them to watch his back as that would only put them in danger they can't get out of.
A loud shout of "NARUTO!" joggled the orange-wearing nin from his thoughts as he looked up to see one of his only precious people staring down at him. Naruto quickly placed on his emotional mask, a goofy, embarrassed grin plastered on his face as he rubbed the back of his head.
"Uh, sorry Iruka-sensei, I kind of zoned out a little."
"I can see that Naruto, considering I told you already to line up with the others for another practical on the Henge."
It was then Naruto noticed he was still sitting on the wood floor as his classmates were lined up, all of them either glaring, probably blaming him for this pop quiz, or laughing as the 'dobe' made a fool of himself again.
As the blonde quickly scrambled into line, he didn't miss Iruka saying "now make certain to keep practicing all three jutsus, class. Remember the Graduation Exam is tomorrow" making his eyes widen.
Fuck, I hope we don't have to do the Bunshin no Jutsu.
"Okay class, now for the Ninjutsu portion of the exam. We'll be testing you all in the Bunshin no Jutsu."
Kami, fuck my life Naruto thought to himself as his head slammed into his desk, attracting some stares from the kids around him. It just had to be his worst jutsu! No matter what he tried, no matter how much chakra he put into it, no matter how much he practiced it, he could never get the damn Bunshin no Jutsu! It didn't help that the results of the written exam had been posted at lunch, and that abysmal score along with a passable Taijutsu and Accuracy Exam score meant he had to get a good score here to have any chance at passing.
He knew he wasn't the smartest when it came to school and books and boring subjects, but he knew he was cunning and smart where it mattered. If only Iruka-sensei hadn't been the only teacher who ever cared to actually try teaching him!
The orange-clad gennin hopeful went over everything he knew about the Bunshin no Jutsu, trying to find some mistake he was making in creating the illusory clones, before hearing a shout of "Gotestu Daichi!"
Crap, already at G's! he thought as he began to sweat.
"Tch, nervous there dobe?" Naruto heard from a familiar, arrogant voice. His response was to look up, only to glare at the black haired, black eyed neighbor.
"What's it to you, teme?"
Too bad the pink haired girl sitting on the other side of said teme had heard his comment. "Hey, don't insult Sasuke-kun for asking a question you baka! Just because he's gonna pass and you're not!"
"B-but Sakura-chan, I'm definitely gonna make it this year!"
Sasuke intervened again. "Yea, I'm sure you said that the three years you failed dobe."
Another nearby gennin hopeful had heard their comments and cut in as well. "Yea, we all know that you can't do a bunshin to save your life, you baka!" The academy students still in the room began to laugh. Naruto just planted his head on crossed arms, if only to hide the glare he couldn't keep back.
"Haruno Sakura!" Said pink haired girl made her way down the stares as Naruto watched her go.
Contrary to everybody's opinion, he didn't have a crush on Sakura, at least not anymore. He had had one before the academy, he had at first been attracted to her bright pink hair and thought she was a pretty girl in general, large forehead or not. Hell, before she met Ino, it had been him that always led the playground bullies away from her. Those bastards always chose torturing the 'demon brat' over some bright-haired girl with a large forehead. He had only ever received one bit of thanks from her, after the first time, but by the time the Academy had come around, she seemed to totally forget about those good deeds and became no better than those bullies. There were some benefits to the whole experience at least. It demonstrated to him how useless affections like that were except to get him hurt, along with how easily people change.
He continued to sit there, stewing in his nervousness, trying to get his attention on something else as Iruka-sensei and Mizuki-sensei continued down the list of gennin-hopefuls. Finally…
"Uzumaki Naruto!"
Well, it looks like it's my turn finally our favorite blonde hero thought as he made his way down towards Iruka with his clipboard.
"Alright, Naruto" the scarred nose teacher began as they went inside the testing room, "now, despite your…less than desirable scores, a pass on this test and you are still able to become a gennin. So, all you need to do is make three bunshin."
Naruto gulped nervously before steeling himself, putting his handsigns together in the necessary seal as his chakra began to flow.
C'mon…c'mon, concentrate. Just need 3 stupid bunshin, concentrate.
When the blonde finally heard the puffs of smoke, he carefully opened his eyes, first looking at the two instructors. Seeing the shocked looks on their faces, Naruto barely worked up the courage to look at his clones.
The good news was that out of the two he had made, one of them was still standing, though it looked like it had lost most its coloring and the details were all off. The other one, on the other hand, was crumpled in a heap on the ground, totally white and dead looking, before both disappeared in a cloud of smoke.
"Naruto…" Iruka sighed sadly, he had been so sure Naruto would make it this time. "I'm sorry, but you fail."
"What! But, but Iruka-sensei…" As the blonde gennin hopeful tried to come up with some excuse, the silver haired teacher sitting with Iruka spoke up.
"You know, Iruka, Naruto did manage to make two clones this time, and while not the best one was standing. Maybe we could pass him this time" Mizuki said to the brown haired instructor, giving Naruto a flicker of hope. Until…
"No, Mizuki, all the other students who passed were able to make three functioning bunshin, while Naruto's two didn't even appear similar. Sending him out to the shinobi world before he's ready would only get him killed, and possibly his team. No…I'm sorry Naruto, but it's not the end of the world if you have to try again next year. I'm sure you'll be able to pass then" Said blonde was looking downward, fists clenched through Iruka's words, trying to keep the tears stinging the back of his eyes at bay. By the end of it, Naruto had already run out as fast as he could to try and avoid any and everybody.
I'm sorry Naruto Iruka sighed to himself internally, hoping beyond hope his message could reach the blonde somehow.
A couple of hours later, Uzumaki Naruto watches from a rooftop adjacent to the Academy, where he sees the crowd of proud parents congratulating excited, happy students who had just passed the Exam he filled. Usually bright blue eyes were dimmed, only to hide his pain, jealousy and hate like a shut window.
Look at them, so…happy and carefree. Surrounded by families and friends…they have all that help stepping out into the world without even knowing just how lucky they are the blonde thought to himself before remembering Iruka's final comment.
'It's not the end of the world if you have to try again next year.'
Hmph, Iruka-sensei may be kind, but he doesn't know anything about me Naruto thought of his situation. He knew it was Sarutobi-jiji who pushed for him to be allowed retake the Academy every time he failed, a privilege that would be allowed for anyone else easily. The academy student could tell there was nobody else who wants him to stay there, observing their attitudes. But Naruto knew that at some point, even the Hokage would have to acknowledge a hopeless case if he kept on failing like this. And at that point, what could he do? No civilian would allow him to take on an apprenticeship, except maybe Teuchi and Ayame, but that'd only put them in danger. At this rate he'll never be able to develop the skills necessary to survive either inside or outside Konoha without being like some mangy street rat, or plain murdered. It may not be the end of the world, but it'll be the end of my world.
"Hello Naruto."
Naruto looked away from the crowd of people to see a familiar grey haired sensei standing next to him, giving what looked to be a comforting smile. Tucking away his feelings behind a foxy grin, Naruto answered.
"Hey there, Mizuki-sensei! What are you doing here?"
"I just wanted to see how you were holding up, and maybe help explain why Iruka did what he did" Mizuki began, making Naruto's grin falter. "I know he might have seemed harsh back there, but he really does want you to succeed."
"I know that Mizuki-sensei, but I really want to be a gennin. I need to pass." The orange wearing Academy student pleaded towards the chunnin, who appeared to be pondering over something.
"Well, you know Naruto…there is another way to pass and be a gennin" Mizuki said hesitantly, but it was already out there.
"What, really Mizuki-sensei!? What is it!?"
Mizuki had to hide a smirk at the blonde's enthusiasm. "It's a secret test made by the Hokage for special circumstances, and I suppose I can let you try it." Naruto grinned at that, he knew for some reason he was one of those 'special' cases.
"C'mon, Mizuki-sensei, what's this test?"
"Alright, alright, just calm down a little" the chunnin told the young boy, who followed his advice. "Now, there's a special scroll hidden in a secret room within the Hokage's office, it's called the Forbidden Scroll. The test is to sneak into the Hokage Tower late tonight, locate and retrieve that Forbidden Scroll and deliver it to me at the Northeastern section of the forest. Not only that, but you must learn and perform at least one jutsu from that scroll when I arrive to pick it up at 1 O'clock. If you can do that, you'll be promoted to the gennin rank. Who knows, if you do really well Hokage-sama might just promote you straight to chunnin." As Mizuki's explanation went on, the small blonde became more and more excited, but after the chunnin's last comment, it took all his willpower not to hop around the rooftop.
The chunnin looked at Naruto's excitement and almost couldn't repress a grin. "Now remember Naruto, this is a secret test that only you, me, Iruka and Hokage-sama know about. That means that the guards will think you're really up to something and won't hold back, so make sure to not get caught."
"Don't worry sensei, I'll be sure to pass this! Just be ready to give me my headband tonight!" Naruto yelled happily, quickly jumping from rooftop to rooftop.
Man, I wonder why Mizuki is being so helpful today. I could've sworn he hated me too Naruto thought to himself as he made his way home, being sure to avoid the overly crowded streets below. The blonde just grinned foxily to himself as he thought Heh, my Uzumaki charm must be getting to him! If I can make Mizuki-sensei like me enough to help me become gennin, then actually being a ninja will be sure to have all those haters think twice about me! Hokage, here I come!
Too bad for the blonde that he couldn't see the look on Mizuki's face behind him. Such an act would have shown Naruto the devious smirk on the Chunnin's face that yelled out ill intentions.
Perfect, that demon brat is falling right into my hands.
Much later that night, if a person had actually been awake for it, they'd have been able to see a strange sight. That strange sight was groups of Chunnin and Jounin running rooftop to rooftop, sometimes splitting up into the alleyways, some of them even checking through the windows of certain houses, before joining back up together again. Several large groups did this, spreading around all directions, the Hokage Tower being the epicenter of the village wide search.
The Chunnin and Jounin participating had been going at this for a good twenty minutes already, it was getting fairly close to one o'clock in the morning, but never did the loyal shinobi relent in their vigilance. Those twenty minutes ago, they had all been gathered up by the Hokage and other shinobi working the nighttime guard shifts for the Hokage Tower, telling them it was an urgent matter of village security. At first, they hadn't known what it was, an uncovered invasion plot? A spy in the upper echelons of the village uncovered? A widely respected Jounin assassinated?
Of course, none of them had guessed it could have been a theft of the Forbidden Scroll. And by the demon brat no less! When the shinobi had heard the announcement, they had to struggle to hold in their righteous fury-inspired comments of how the Kyuubi should have been killed, and now it was going to get the power to kill them all. One reason was that getting information to track him, and subsequently the Forbidden Scroll, was more important than their comments, and the fact that the Hokage wouldn't have stood for such comments in his hearing range. They all had to wonder why the old man was so protective over that demon in human skin.
Either way though, now was their chance to finally get rid of him as it should have been done a long time ago. Stealing that scroll was tantamount to treason, and Hokage-sama would not be able to defend the brat from committing a crime of that magnitude. After all, who could blame them if the demon brat had gone postal on them when discovered, and they were forced to use deadly force to defend themselves?
While these groups of shinobi/kunoichi were on their manhunt, or foxhunt in their minds, two Chunnins were on their way straight to the forests. Iruka, probably one of the few people searching for Naruto without the intention of killing him, had spotted Mizuki branch off from the main groups, it had looked somewhat suspicious to the brown haired Academy teacher. As loathed as the man was to suspect his friend and coworker, Iruka realized that Mizuki didn't always hold the greatest intentions for the small blonde. Not only that, but something was telling him Naruto wasn't going to be around hiding in the city streets after this much time. The orange-clad academy student's stealth was one of the few skill sets Iruka felt Naruto held any aptitude for, what with all his daytime pranks. The academy teacher also knew that Naruto may have been an idiot, but he was a tactical genius, as much as that made sense.
A few minutes later, however, left Iruka stumbling through the forests of Konohagakure blindly, having lost sight of Mizuki nearly right after hitting the tree line. It was gut instinct, along with some novice skill at sensing chakra that gave the scarred nose man a faint trail to follow in his quest to find Naruto, or at the very least figure out what Mizuki was doing.
Where is Mizuki going? Naruto probably would be in the forest by now, but how does Mizuki know that, he's never chased after Naruto before. Man, having to go running through the forest in the middle of the night, Naruto sure knows how to keep my life difficult. Not to mention how he knew about the Secret Scroll anyways, only Chunnin-ranked ninja and above even know it exists…wait a second, maybe-
Iruka's thoughts were interrupted when he heard a bunch of popping sounds nearby, followed by a loud sigh.
"Yatta! I finally got it mastered!"
I know that voice! The brown haired Chunnin thought to himself, rushing towards the voice before jumping into a clearing, where he saw a familiar blonde headed boy, but the fact that he was wearing only his black t-shirt and all black shinobi-styled pants almost made him reconsider who it was. However, only one kid in all of Konoha had that blonde hair and shade of blue eyes, as well as the whiskered cheeks.
"Naruto!"
Hearing the voice of his teacher, Naruto looked up from the ground to see Iruka standing there, a mix of surprise and anger covering his visage. Iruka saw the Forbidden Scroll lying by his wayward student's feet.
"Naruto, what are you doing stealing the Forbidden Scroll! Do you realize the kind of trouble you're in!?"
"Pant, pant, hey there Iruka-sensei! Did Mizuki-sensei send-pant-you to test me instead? Pant, either way, I managed to get it-pant-sensei!" Naruto managed to get out, seeming to not hear what Iruka had said. It was obvious by the sweat on his face and his panting the young gennin hopeful was fatigued.
"What test, Naruto?" he asked confused.
Now it was Naruto's turn to be confused. "The secret test Mizuki-sensei told me about, of course! The one that says if I managed to sneak away with this scroll and learn a jutsu from it, then I'd graduate and I did it!" he ended happily, but Iruka was already too deep in thought to reply.
Mizuki, he told Naruto to do it?! Does that mean he's a traitor!? And he's somewhere in this forest, I have to find him fast before he catches us by surprise!
Before Iruka could, however, he already heard an object cutting through the air, and didn't even spare a moments hesitation to jump in to protect his student from the incoming projectile. The next thing Iruka knew was a sharp pain cutting through his chest. He must have looked awful if the look on Naruto's face was any indication.
"I-Iruka-s-sensei…why?" the young blonde's voice was brimmed with distress, of course what child wouldn't after seeing a person protect you by taking a fuuma shuriken in the back.
"Because Naruto…you're…my precious student" Iruka declared before coughing a couple of times and falling over. Damn, Mizuki throws better than I thought, my right lung is punctured!
"Iruka-sensei! Iruka-sensei, are you all right?" Naruto quickly scrambled towards the man, but couldn't say anything more before his path was impeded by a few more shuriken, shuriken that missed his hands by only a few centimeters. "Ah!"
"I got you right where I want you now, Demon Brat!" Naruto looked up at the new voice, to see Mizuki squatting on a tree branch.
"M-Mizuki-sensei? Why did you d-do this to Iruka-sensei!?" The blonde haired boy yelled up at him, still confused and distressed.
"Because-cough-he's a traitor Naruto-cough!" Iruka said between coughs. "He tricked you into stealing the Forbidden Scroll!"
"W-what?"
Mizuki just laughed at the young boy's stunned expression. "Iruka's right, after you failed I knew that I had the perfect scapegoat for the job! After all, even if you were caught it'd be the Demon's word against mine!"
Hearing Mizuki calling him a demon, Naruto immediately knew that Mizuki was one of those Haters, memories of them quickly rising to the surface.
"Demon! Just go die!"
"Nobody wants you around Demon Brat!"
"It's your fault their dead you murderer!"
"Nobody cares if you died!"
"We'll make sure that you suffer for all the people you killed! A simple death is too good for a demon like you!"
"Why does everybody call me that" Naruto whispered to himself, his anger beginning to bubble to the surface. "Why does everybody call me a demon!?" he repeated, yelling it at Mizuki who smirked deviously in response.
"Well, since you aren't going to be leaving this clearing alive, I suppose I could indulge you…"
Iruka widened his eyes, attempting in vain to stand up before falling down coughing. "No Mizuki-cough-don't it's against the-cough-law!"
"Law? What law?" Naruto asked confused, but his anger still hadn't faded.
Mizuki kept up his superior smirk. "Of course you wouldn't know the law, demon, since it's about you. After all, why do you think nobody's told you why you're so hated, why people always lied to you?"
"Ojii-san, am I really a demon?" Naruto asked, leaned up by a pillow on the hospital bed, too injured to move even a whole day after another incident.
Sarutobi quickly went to assuage his feelings. "No Naruto, of course you are not a demon!" Naruto looked up at him, blue eyes swirling with pain and desperation.
"Then…why do they all hate me? What did I do to them?"
Naruto saw the old man pause for a second. "I'm sorry Naruto, but I don't know why they hate you like this. What I do know, though, is that it won't go on forever. Things will get better."
All the young child could do was grin to mask his pain and disappointment. "Yea, that's why I'm gonna be a ninja, the best ever, just you watch Ojii-san!" He pumped his tiny fist for emphasis, and even with the sharp jolt of fresh pain, the false grin didn't fade a bit.
Naruto stepped back in shock. "N-n-no, Ojii-san wouldn't lie to me! You're lying!"
"And what reason do I have to lie, demon?"
"Mizuki, stop it right now-cough!" Iruka again tried to stand up, blood beginning to run down the Chunnin's mouth.
Mizuki just laughed. "See demon, even Iruka is trying to keep the secret from you, because he's afraid, they're all afraid."
"What is this secret?" Naruto asked again, ignoring Iruka's protests.
"The secret they're trying to keep from you is the fact that you are the Kyuubi no Kitsune! You're the demon that nearly destroyed the village twelve years ago!" Mizuki looked crazed now, and Naruto took another step back before falling on his but next to the large scroll, his brain working overtime trying to process the information he had just received.
"Naruto, run! You have to keep that scroll away from Mizuki!" Iruka called out. Naruto's conscious mind was still trying to run through the news, however, although his unconscious mind was already taking over his fight-or-flight response in response to Mizuki's rising killing intent. The only indication that the blonde even heard the man's instructions was the fact he grabbed the large scroll as he attempted to get away from the clearing.
"Do you really think I'm going to let you get away now, demon!" Mizuki yelled, tossing a few shuriken at a speed that would leave plenty Chunnin impressed, a speed Naruto would have had no chance to dodge even if he knew it was coming. Fortunately he didn't have to, as the same number of kunai appeared to knock them off course, giving the academy student the chance to escape into the forest.
"Iruka, why did you stop me!" Mizuki yelled, turning to the owner of the kunai, who had finally managed to stand adequately. "Whatever, I'll deal with you after I get rid of the demon!" the traitor Chunnin finished, jumping away after Naruto. It didn't take very long for Mizuki to find a black-clad boy running with a giant scroll in his hands, though, the kid was only an academy student while he was a Chunnin. He quickly Henged into Iruka, making sure to make it look injured.
"Naruto, quick, give me the scroll! Before Mizuki gets here!" 'Iruka' cried out and smirked when the boy stopped and began turning. Ha, I've got you now De-ugh!
Too bad for the fake Iruka, he hadn't anticipated a powerful headbutt to his gut, causing the pair to tumble towards the ground. The blow cancelled out the traitor's Henge as he glared insanely at the blonde in front of him.
"How did you know that I wasn't Iruka?"
"Because" Naruto began before a cloud of smoke enveloped him for a second. "I'm Iruka!"
"What are you doing, Iruka!" Mizuki yelled at the man who was now leaning-and coughing up a storm-against a tree, too spent from blood loss to do anymore. "Do you know what that demon'll do if he gets his hand on the techniques in that scroll?! With that power in his hands, the Kyuubi will kill all of us!"
Unbeknownst to the two Chunnins, they had a surprise eavesdropper, who clenched the scroll in his hands tighter, almost like it was his final lifeline to sanity.
Am I really the Kyuubi? Am I really just a damn demon? The boy thought to himself, clutching even more to the Forbidden Scroll.
"You damn demon, don't try to act innocent!"
"We all know you're just a damn monster! Just go die already!"
"Don't get near him, that boy's not really a human, just a demon in disguise."
"If you get too close, he'll kill you just like all those years ago!"
"Just die murderer!"
"Yea Mizuki…you're right" Iruka began, making Naruto's blue eyes widen even further, brimming with unshed tears. "As the Kyuubi, with that scroll Naruto would be able to do a lot of damage, even destroy the village." Although it looked like Iruka had more to say, another fit of coughing interrupted his words; the hand that covered his mouth was dripping with fresh blood.
Damn cough, I feel like that Hayate guy!
"Hehehe, so, looks like naive little Iruka is beginning to see the truth" Mizuki said, taking out the second fuuma shuriken from behind his back. He began to spin it rapidly-the whirring sound gave Iruka a foreboding feeling as he stopped his attempt to further conversation. The Academy teacher knew it wouldn't dissuade Mizuki from his goal. "But unfortunately Iruka, I can't afford to leave any witnesses behind, you understand, don't you? Look on the bright side, I'll be sure to finish off that damn demon for both of us. Now, die!!" The traitor Chunnin launched the giant shuriken from his hand, the shirring sound cut through the air as Iruka finally began to stop coughing.
Mizuki you fool, I can only hope that Naruto manages to get away. The young Chunnin closed his eyes, his final sight the oncoming fuuma shuriken, and the crazed look on the owner's face. If only I could tell Naruto…I'm sorry for failing him as a teacher.
THUNK
Was the last sound the Chunnin recognized, before his entire consciousness went dark.
Even Iruka-sensei…said I was the Kyuubi. When he treated me to ramen, took care of me better than anybody else, in the end all of that was a lie!
The adults hated me…
"Demon, Demon!"
"Stay away from that Monster!"
"You killed my family!"
"Murderer!"
And the children learned it too…
"Hahaha, you dobe!"
"You can't do anything right! Baka!"
"What a loser! He should just go away where he can't bother anybody!"
"Hey, maybe our parents will buy us something cool if we beat him up?"-"Yea, let's do it!"
"My mom tells me that he's a bad influence and causes trouble for everybody!"
"Like you could be better than Sasuke! You're just a baka, a loser!"
And now I know…that even the people I trusted the most lied straight to my face…
"I'm sorry Naruto, but I don't know why they hate you like this."
"As the Kyuubi, with that scroll Naruto would be able to cause a lot of damage."
Why, Why is this all happening to me! What did I do, what am I going to do?
"Fight Boy."
W-what was that? Naruto's eyes opened, scanning the area in front of him for any possibility it was Mizuki.
"Fight on Boy."
W-w-who's there?
"Are you just going to sit there, waiting to be put down like some dog?!" The voice was deep, darkened by a fierce anger coupled by a feral snarl that gave Naruto the feeling a predator was breathing down his neck. But it held power, a lot of it.
"Where is the boy that I've watched fight and fight against those who deemed themselves superior so arrogantly? This sniveling coward I see before me is not that same boy!"
W-what can I do, though? I don't have the power to beat Mizuki!
"Very well, I shall give you the power you need for now. End the existence of this foolish human who seeks to end ours, and then run away from this place! Staying here serves no purpose other than to get us killed."
O-o-our existence? Who are you?
"NOW IS NOT THE TIME FOR SUCH DUMB QUESTIONS YOU FOOL! NOW IS THE TIME FOR YOU TO GET OUT OF THIS HELLHOLE!" The sharpness of the voice's anger made the boy flinch, but he had dealt with much harsher words than this. Naruto had no time to retort, however, as the blonde could feel…something beginning to course through him, originating from his stomach. The only word he could use to describe it was…power. Power that burned through his veins like he was combusting from the inside out, but he had never felt better. In the euphoric feeling, the blonde didn't even notice when his fingernails sharpened and lengthened, or the slight ache in his jaws as his canines grew to generous proportions.
At some unnoticed signal, the blonde stepped out of the tree, again not noticing the ease he was able to carry the Forbidden Scroll-which was his height-in one hand easily, catching Mizuki's attention.
Mizuki's eyes looked like belonged to an asylum inmate, but more power-hungry. It was a good excuse for him not noticing the several changes that had occurred to the blonde. "Well would you look at that, the demon comes out to save me the trouble of hunting him down. So, have you realized the futility in running?"
Naruto ignored the man's rambling, staring at the gore that was his old sensei's body. A stream of blood was pouring out of the Chunnin's chest, where a large object had opened it like a freshly killed boar. The blood on the fuuma shuriken Mizuki was holding was enough to tell him what had happened. The blonde's only response to the grotesque sight was to flinch, he had seen himself in worse conditions after all. The flinch was for the fact that he knew Iruka was dead, and even though he had lied to him Iruka had still treated him kindly.
Now taking the time to look at Mizuki, Naruto could feel the power in him raging for the blood of the idiot who dared to fool him and try to kill him.
And Naruto saw no reason to not oblige the power coursing through his body.
Mizuki was just another Hater after all, just another ignorant human.
He saw no more reason to spare such people his wrath.
"Kage Bunshin no Jutsu."
Mizuki stepped back from the demon boy he had considered a weakling, a nuisance, as a veritable army of them appeared in front of him. He turned to run, maybe convince the search parties that Naruto had finally shown his true colors, but was stopped yet again by even more of the demon. The panicking Chunnin looked all around him, but no matter where he looked there were Narutos. What should have been blue eyes, however, were crimson red, black animalistic slits replaced human round pupils. The Chunnin felt like an army of Kyuubis were standing there, ready to tear him to shreds.
"W-w-what is this! What d-d-did you d-do you damn d-demon?!"
The real Naruto's eyes hardened even further, though Mizuki couldn't see it. "Demon, Demon, Demon, is that all you can come up with teme? Anyways, I see no reason to enlighten a dead man walking." All the clones pulled out their own kunai, tensing up like an animal coiled to pounce. "What I can provide you with, Mizuki-sensei" he added with a mocking tone in 'sensei', "is what you, and everybody else, have been asking for for such a long time…"
"A demon."
The clones, on an unseen signal, pounced as one wave.
Mizuki's screams littered the moonlit forest.
After nearly eight hours of non-stop running, Naruto was spent physically and mentally. The power that had powered him to kill Mizuki had long since dissipated, and left the blonde stuck running through the forests of Hi no Kuni by his own power. Now, however, the blue eyed runaway wanted nothing more than a good place to sleep. He hadn't heard the strange voice since the confrontation with Mizuki. Naruto wondered whether he had imagined the whole thing, but then where did that surge of power come from?
Whatever it was, I'll just…deal…with it…later…The blonde even had trouble thinking, he was so exhausted. Lucky for him, he managed to find some shelter in the form of some trees whose roots were growing above ground (Think Chunnin Exams, where Team 7 hides out). The second Naruto crawled underneath the impromptu shelter, he blacked out.
"Man, where the fucking hell am I now!" Naruto yelled out angrily. After all the shit he's been through the past day, of all the places he could've ended up at he ended up inside some sewer!
"Well, at least I don't feel like shit anymore" he muttered, looking over himself to see he was uninjured and the fatigue that had plagued him for an hours had disappeared. What was strange though was the fact his black shirt and pants were unmarked, as if he hadn't been in a shinobi battle and ran through the forest for hours. "Now, where might the exit be? I'd better hurry and find one before whoever brought me down here finds me."
"That would be me."
Naruto was startled by a very familiar voice that reverberated off the sewer walls. "Ah, you again!? Where the hell are you!? Where the fuck am I?"
"Just keep walking forward and you'll find me. And hurry up before you try my patience."
Naruto, following the voice's directions, began walking through the ankle deep sewer water, which didn't smell bad like it should have for some reason. The blonde boy kept walking, and walking, and walking, and just when he was about to cry out how this wasn't getting him anywhere and start cursing the disembodied voice for the wild goose chase, he saw a wall impeding his path, and after that a door.
What kind of sewer uses doors? he thought, grasping the door handle, twisting it, and opening the door.
On the opposite end of that door, Naruto walked into a large room, a very large room. He couldn't even find the ceiling it became too dark at a certain height. He shivered a little, not because it was cold, but because he could feel the power drifting, coalescing in the air. It was the same power he had felt fighting Mizuki-teme, and Naruto could sense that a much, much larger amount was gathered on the other side of the room. To be specific, behind the cage bars that lined the opposite end of the room. It looked like a normal jail cell, but there was no door, it was too dark beyond even five feet from the cage bars to see anything, and Naruto could see a small slip of paper high up on one of the bars, the kanji for 'seal' written on it.
Seal? And a jail cell that looks like it could fit the Hokage Monument? What the hell kind of place is this? "Yo, headless voice! I came like you asked, now you better be ready to answer some of my questions, or else!"
Naruto could hear the voice again, chuckling this time, and for sure it was on the other side of this cage. "Yes, well, before we go answering questions, I believe introductions are necessary." Naruto heard the pounding of something hitting the ground-something heavy; the sound reverberated through the enclosed space. Suddenly, from the darkness beyond the cage two large, crimson colored eyes appeared, slit pupils like an animals told Naruto that whatever this was, it wasn't human. But when the rest of the being revealed himself, Naruto was really taken for surprise.
Fur dyed crimson by the blood of innumerable victims.
A height comparable to the Hokage Mountain.
Rows of razor sharp teeth that could beat out any shark.
And most importantly, nine tails twisting and swirling around each other like they each had a mind of their own.
"Kyuubi no Kitsune" Naruto barely got out, his voice brimmed with both awe and fear. The words, however, made the nine tailed being snarl a little in response.
"Do not compare me to some weak kitsune, fool! I am the Kyuubi no YOUKO, the most powerful in the history of our kind!"
"B-b-but, aren't I…I thought I was…but you're there…" Naruto couldn't get the words out of his mouth, staring at his two hands as if they were the first hands he'd ever seen. "What the fuck is going on here!"
The Kyuubi growled loudly, garnering the young boy's attention. "Sit down and shut up and I'll be willing to tell you." The boy followed the fox's directions. "Good, now as I'm aware that foolish human told you that you and I were the same being, well that is wrong. I am sealed within you by that damnable Yondaime, you were just chosen as the prisoner, don't bother asking me why, I hardly ever know why humans do some of the things they do. The point is though, that I am the Kyuubi no Youko, while you are just Naruto Uzumaki, my jailor. This is your mindscape, a manifestation of your conscious and subconscious, this area specifically is a manifestation of the seal binding us together. Don't ask me why it's a sewer either; I'm not exactly experienced with being stuck in such a place. Understand?"
Naruto looked to be deep in thought during the Kyuubi's explanation before lifting his head up towards the giant youko's question. "So…I am me…and you're not really me…just a part of me."
"It's much more complicated than that…but you got the point" the Kyuubi sighed in exasperation, a strange action for a fox.
"Wait a minute, then why did Mizuki and everybody else think I'm you!" Naruto yelled out in realization. His face began turning angrier as he thought on. "Because they thought I was you, I was treated like scum-no worse than scum! I was beat up, ignored, lied to, nearly killed so many different times! My family probably abandoned me when they found out I had you sealed in me!"
The giant youko slammed a couple of its tails into the cage bars, the sound startling Naruto enough to stop his ranting.
"ENOUGH! Before you start going on your 'I hate you demon' rant, you should try to think, something humans seem to forget to do so often. Yes, I am sealed in you, but did I put myself in this cage? Did I tell those pathetic humans that you were me in human form? To treat you in the manner they did? No, your culprit lies in humanity itself. Their arrogance in the face of obviously more powerful beings such as myself, their ignorance and hatred of all things different from themselves, their willingness to so easily hurt even those of their own kind-those are the things to blame for your suffering."
Naruto could not find anything to refute what the Kyuubi had said, not a word. He remembered all the adults, all the kids, everybody and what they did to him, and through it all he couldn't help but grow angrier at humanity in general. To focus on the task at hand, the blonde pushed it to the back of his mind to deal with later. "So, what is a youko?"
The Kyuubi could see what his container was attempting to do, but let it go for now. "Youko are, as you could obviously tell, a fox-like species of youkai, one of the most potentially powerful species in fact" the Kyuubi stated, some pride filling his animalistic voice. "Youkai are basically all those beasts and such humans call 'monsters', werewolves, dragons, vampires, man-eating plants, zombies, etc. etc. But enough of the lessons, what we need to discuss now is how we are going to survive, and that means starting your training."
Naruto looked up excited at the topic of training. "Wait, does that mean you are going to be training me?"
The Kyuubi snorted at that, another strange action for a fox to make. "Of course, you and I are bound for life, when you die I die and I for one want to survive for as long as I can which means making sure you survive. Besides, you remind me of myself."
Naruto looked confused at that. "How are we alike? You are a giant fuzz ball and I'm a person."
"Ah, there it is. You're complete lack of respect for authority, your prankster attitude resembling a real youko, and more than that your stubbornness in the face of those who try to harm and kill you, along with a drive for power and the work ethic to accomplish it. I have seen very few humans in my millennia of life that have managed to garner my respect, and you're the youngest and weakest" "HEY!" "to garner that respect."
Naruto had to look away to hide a small blush of embarrassment from the youko in front of him, such praise was something he had never received before, whether it was from a demonic fox or not.
"Now, as to the contents of your training, there are some major things about yourself we are going to have to change if you're going to become powerful enough to survive."
"Like what?"
"Your humanity for starters."
"WHAT!"
There you guys go, the first chapter of my third (fourth) fanfic story, I hope you enjoyed it. If you didn't-I HATE YOU-naw I'm just kidding. But yea please leave your thoughts to help me make this and my other stories better.