Look what's back from the vault! My second go at this story and if you look hard enough, you might notice not much has been changed from the first iteration. If it ain't broke, don't fix it right?
Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto so stop asking me!
Kumo's Kitsune
A Kage's Intervention
Angry shouts rose up from the empty streets of Konohagakure, as a small boy frantically ran through alleyways. His face was full of fear as he tore through the deserted streets, desperately looking for a way to escape his pursuers, a decent sized mob of villagers and assorted genin intent on dealing harm to the five year old. His little legs continued to carry him through the maze of buildings, deftly dodging and ducking behind buildings and corners which ultimately had no really effect on losing the enraged villagers. More and more seemed to pour into the mob; pitchforks, knives and other weapons at the ready should they capture the little blond. "Get him! Get the demon! Let's make it pay for what it did!" Similar cries rang out as the boy steadily began to slow down, allowing his lead, already small, to begin waning.
Turning a corner, he collided with something much bigger than he was which sent him back to the ground, blood trickling out from his nose. Looking up, his cerulean eyes widened in fear as he stared into the blank and unreadable visage of the white masked ninja of the village. The giant's coal eyes bore down on the child as if they were looking into his very soul. "Well well, well, looks like I get to rid the village of the demon." he said maliciously, a maniacal look appearing in his eyes as they changed from cold black to an even colder red, adorned with three comma marks around the pupil. A maniacal smile stretched out on his mask covered face as he slowly unsheathed the standard ANBU katana from his back, relishing in the fear that seemed to radiate off the small child's body. "I will finish what the Yondaime has started." Tears poured from the boy's eyes as he helplessly watched the ANBU above him level his instrument of death to his neck. "Such a pathetic showing for a demon, crying like a little baby. It doesn't matter, your death by my hands will be the cementing of the Uchiha clan forever." he boasted with a small chuckle. His eyes shifted, however, from the quivering boy to the mob that had caught up to the two, looks of unbridled contempt aimed directly at the boy.
"Let us take a few shots at the demon," the leader of the mob said, with a malicious smirk on his face. He brandished a large butcher's knife in his hands. Shouts of agreement rang out from behind him as the villagers slowly began to stalk up to the scared boy, weapons raised above their heads. "Take this, you demon!" the leader yelled, bringing down the knife. A large gash appeared across the boy's chest following the swipe. The young blond cried out in pain, fresh tears flowing down his face and mixing with the blood already on the ground. The leader laughed evilly as he watched the boy writhe in pain, viciously stomping on his chest, taunting, "Come on demon! Is this all you can do, lie around and take punishment? What kind of demon are you?"
"Why...why are you doing this? What have I done to deserve this?" the child asked softly, curling in a ball to avoid the blows from the mob that came as an answer. The soft plea fell on deaf ears as the villagers continued to beat on the small child, while laughter and more hateful words spat down at the quivering, blood drenched boy. His eyes clenched together tightly in pain as he could feel the weight of the blows breaking down his body. He opened them slightly as the blows stopped for a moment. Looking up, fear washed over his body as he felt the cold steel of the masked ninja's blade against his throat.
"And thus ends the tyranny of the Kyuubi no Kitsune." the ANBU said gravely, edging the blade into the supposed 'Kyuubi no Kitsune'. "NOW DIE!" As the sword was raised, the boy gave himself up to the prospect of death.
Am I...am I going to die? his eyes shut tightly as he waited for the cold grip of death to take him, but it never came. Instead of the sound of a head being lopped off, gasps and collapsing bodies were the only noises that filled the boy's ears. Weakly opening his eyes, he was greeted by the backs of two other ANBU, the villagers unconscious on the ground at their feet, the original ANBU was nowhere to be found. "Y-you...saved...me..., oneechan, oniisan." he said weakly, slowly slipping into unconsciousness.
One of the ANBU turned back to the sleeping boy, their long purple hair whipping about the masked face. "Naru-chan!" they cried out, kneeling down next to the boy. "Kakashi-senpai! Naru-chan's unconscious!" Getting the attention of the other ANBU, the purple haired one gently cradled the boy's unconscious form into her chest, as if to protect him. "Why would someone do this to a little boy?"
"Because they can't tell the difference between a katana and its sheathe. All they see is the 'demon'," the other ANBU answered, running a gloved hand through the mop of gravity defying silver hair on his head. Walking to the pair, his solitary eye focused on the small boy's slowly healing wounds. "Yugao, we need to get Naruto to the Hokage immediately."
"Right," the neko masked ninja said, cradling the young blond closer against her breast, silent tears rolling down behind her mask. "Please be alright, Naru-chan." With an unseen signal, the ANBU quickly took off to the tower, leaving the villagers there unconscious or unmoving out of fear. Not a few feet away laid the body of the Uchiha ANBU, his head completely severed from his body, his blood splattered on the walls that surrounded. His eyes were still open in shock, the blank mask still on his face. Uneven footsteps sounded from the shadows, the sound of a cane accompanying them.
"Pitiful, simply pitiful. I give you one simple mission to complete and you go and get yourself killed," a cold creepy sounding voice berated from the shadows. Slinking out from the darkness came a haggard looking man, his right eye covered in bandages as was his right arm. He planted his cane against the mask of the deceased Uchiha clansman, "You are of no use to ROOT anymore. Now begone." with that, he pushed easily through the mask with the cane, stabbing completely through the Uchiha's forehead, his blood and brain matter squelching under the wooden walking stick. "I take that back, you have one more use for me." Kneeling down, the broken old man removed the shattered mask, eyeing the still activated Sharingan eyes greedily. "I'll just add these to my collection." Drawing out a kunai, he ripped out both of the man's eyes and sealed them away in a scroll. "This is truly all you were worth, Shisui Uchiha. Goodbye."
~Unknown Place~
"Die demon!"
"Go back to hell where you belong!"
"Kill him! Finish what the Yondaime started!"
"Curse them. Those dirty villagers are the lowest of the low. Naruto, I'm so sorry, this is all my fault."
~Hokage's Office~
An exasperated sigh came from the wrinkled lips of the Sandaime Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi. His grey bearded chin was resting on his steepled fingers, his eyes locked on the imposing figure sitting across his desk. "So you mean to tell me that the man that attempted to kidnap the Hyuuga heir was not acting upon the wishes of Kumo itself but for his own selfish desires? And those desires were to make his own clan and destroy Kumo? Am I correct so far, Raikage-dono?"
The man addressed nodded in response to the questions. "And that's why we want to re-write an alliance with Konoha again. Our country's economy is starting to fail and we can't stay the way we are, and survive. Supporting Kiri in their time of rebuilding takes its toll on us. We've given them too many missions for their economy's bolstering, but it was all for the better." the Raikage explained, leaning back in his chair and stroking his blond goatee.
"Well then, I see no reason to not draw up another alliance," he said, pulling out a scroll from his desk. After writing for a while, he pulled out the hokage stamp and marked it as an official document. "And that's it. Our alliance is now official," he announced, standing in unison with the Raikage. "It's been a pleasure to work with you, Raikage-sama," he said, extending his hand to the muscular man. The motion was interrupted when two ANBU slammed through the doors, a bloodied bundle in Neko's arms.
"Hokage-sama!" the inu masked ANBU yelled out, startling the two Kage. "It's Naruto. He was attacked again. Another ANBU nearly killed him."
"Not again." Hiruzen growled out, letting off a small portion of killer intent. "Where are the people who did this to him?"
"I've already sent other ANBU to take them to Ibiki," Inu reported as Neko sat down on the couch, Naruto still sleeping in her arms. A slight hissing noise came from the boy's body as his wounds were healing themselves, albeit slowly.
The Raikage just stood there starring intently at the small boy, "Hokage-dono, this boy, he is a Jinchuriki, isn't he?" he asked, getting shocked looks from the others.
"How could you tell?" Neko asked, unconsciously pulling Naruto closer to her chest, as if to protect him.
"No one would attack an innocent child for no reason. I know that most Jinchuriki have had terrible lives, so it only makes sense that this child is in fact a blessing from Kami herself," he explained, walking over to the boy. He looked down on the boy with a critical eye.
"A blessing from Kami you say? I've never heard someone put a jinchuriki on such a high level of importance." Hiruzen remarked, surprised at the Raikage's choice of words.
"All the people in Kumo are deeply rooted in their belief in Kami, the fact that we have a clan with one of Kami's gift bloodline, Kami's Lightning. Also, we've learned that the bijuu are the protectors of a certain area, and Hachibi and Nibi happen to be the protectors of Kumo," the Raikage explained, gently ruffling the sleeping boy's hair. "The two jinchuriki are held in high honor among everyone in the village, seen as heroes and protectors of the village." Hiruzen went silent in thought, pondering the difference of jinchuriki treatment by the two villages.
They give them that amount of respect? I wonder if that life would be better for little Naruto. It's not like these prejudiced bigots will ever accept him for the hero that he is, the way the Yondaime wanted it to be. Minato, I'm sorry, but I think I'll have to have Naruto leave the village. "Raikage-dono, how would you feel about having another gift from Kami?" he asked, getting surprised looks from his two ANBU subordinates. "His life here is nothing if not terrible, as you can see. He's an orphan, his father having passed away in the attack of the Kyuubi and his mother in childbirth" he stated solemnly, his head bowed, shadows covering his eyes. Looking down at the child, the Raikage stood there in silence.
Yes, the opportunity of having a third jinchuriki in Kumo was a very appealing idea, but it didn't seem right to take Konoha's only protector away from them. But, that reason did seem insignificant in comparison to the boy's condition: an orphan for all his young life, and unknowingly given the burden of being the jinchuriki of a village that regarded him as a demon. The choice seemed very clear to E now. "Yes, I will take the young boy, but before I take him, I would like to know his name and take any belongings or inheritance he would have with him."
"Very well," Hiruzen sighed. Motioning to Inu, "Go to Naruto's apartment and gather up all of his clothes and whatever else he has with him there." Nodding, Kakashi quickly shushin'd out of the room. Turning to the wall, the aged Hokage walked over to the pictures of the previous Hokages. Focusing on the blond kage, he gently placed a wrinkled hand on the face of his predecessor, a unseen seal glowing under his palm. The photo slid away revealing a safe, already opening as the photo slid, revealing a couple of scrolls along with a small box, all labeled for the young Naruto. "These are all the things that Naruto's parents left for him. It doesn't seem like much but, he actually has much more that he can't bring with him to Kumo."
"Um, Hokage-sama? Why did you take those things out of the Yondaime's photo?" Neko asked, Naruto still sleeping in her arms.
"Well, it seems as if it was obvious. Naruto is his only son. His true name is Naruto Uzumaki-Namikaze." Hiruzen explained, handing the scrolls and the box to E, gently smirking on the inside at the masked shock from the female ANBU. His eyes turned back to Kakashi who had just come back into the room, a small scroll in his hands. "And that's all he has unfortunately. Just promise me something Raikage-dono, make sure he becomes the strong hero his father wanted him to be."
"I promise Hokage-dono. I will personally see to it that he will grow even stronger than his father," he said, pocketing the scrolls in his robe and walking over to the sleeping jinchuriki. "And you never know, he may even be my successor." With that he gently took Naruto out of Yugao's arms, and proceeded to leave the office. He was stopped just short of the exit by the voice of the Hokage.
"Hold on just a minute, Raikage-dono," he said, turning his attention to the female subordinate, "Neko, I have a new S-rank mission for you. Go with Raikage-dono and take care of Naruto in Kumo. And take off your mask, you won't need it there."
"Yes, Hokage-sama," the ANBU replied, slipping off her mask to reveal the beautiful face of Yugao Uzuki. "Just one moment Raikage-sama, I will meet you at the gates shortly," she said with a curt bow before she shushin'd out of the office to her home.
"Are you entirely sure that this is truly needed?" Inu asked looking at the spot where Yugao was left.
"Yes, it is, Inu. It would be best for Naruto if he has someone he feels comfortable with when he's there," Hiruzen said sadly, looking at the still sleeping child he saw as his grandson in the Raikage's tanned and muscular arm. A silent tear slid out of his eye as he watched the tan man take him out the room. I'm sorry Minato, Kushina, but I'm doing this for Naruto's own good. Sitting back at at his desk, he dismissed Inu with a wave of his hand. He looked over the many documents on his desk, dreading the ever growing stack of paperwork that had been set aside due to the impromptu meeting with the Raikage. Feeling another familiar presence enter the room, he didn't even have to look up to meet the masked figure standing at the head of his desk. "Are you fully prepared for your mission tomorrow?" he asked, his eyes never leaving the papers he was working on.
"Yes I am Hokage-sama, but are you sure that this needs to be done?"
"Yes, they have overstepped their boundaries with this plan of theirs. Wanting to perform a coup is treason and you are the best person for this job," he explained, looking up at the masked female. "I'm counting on you to fully complete this mission. The safety of Konoha rests in your hands, Meitachi."
"Yes Hokage-sama," the weasel masked ANBU said, bowing and disappearing in a swirl of leaves.
~Unknown Location~
The sound of dripping and sloshing water was all that greeted Naruto Uzumaki-Namikaze as darkness receded from his vision. Sitting up he became aware of the water in which he was lying, and his sewer-like surroundings. "Where am I? Last thing I remember was Kakashi-oniisan and Yugao-oneechan saving from that mob and that ANBU." he thought aloud, the memories of the beating still fresh in his mind. The words the villagers said however, hurt the young boy deeper than any wound had."Get him! Get the demon! Let's make it pay for what it did!" The words cemented themselves into his very mind as fresh tears streamed down his face. "Why do they do that? What have I done to deserve this?" he softly cried to himself. His sobs stopped for a moment when he heard that more sobs joined his.
"Why does this happen to him? He's just a child!" Sitting up in the water, Naruto strained his ears to find the sobbing voice. Slowly making his way down the damp and water-filled hall he followed the soft sobbing. He finally ended up in a large room with large bars slicing through the center of the room, a seal on the lock. Behind the bars was a shadowed figure slumping down, its shoulders shaking violently with its sobs. "The don't even deserve to be called humans. Not even demons would attack a child like that."
"Um hello? Who's there?" Naruto asked, causing the figure to jump, startled. The figure's head snapped forward to Naruto, its unseen eyes open wide. "I'm sorry, did I startle you?"
The figure couldn't help but smile at the young boy's quickness to be at fault. "No it's not your fault, I was just surprised to see someone else here." the figure stood up and made its way over to the bars of the separating it from Naruto. "To tell you the truth Naru-kun, I actually was expecting to see you some time in the future, but you seem to be really eager to meet me." the figure said, a slight giggle in its voice. It held a sweet tone about it, one that made Naruto feel at peace in the figure's presence.
"Um, how do you know who I am?" he shyly asked, slightly shuffling his feet in nervousness. Due to his frequent beatings, he learned not fully trust someone he had just met; them knowing his name was just another reason to be nervous around them.
The figure slightly sighed and looked back to the small boy, "I've known for you for all your life Naru-kun, and I've been with you for all time too." Giggles shook the figure's shoulders as Naruto's face hilariously twisted in thought as he tried to wrap his young five year old brain around this thought. "I'm sorry Naru-kun, but I should tell you who I am exactly. I am the guardian of Hi no Kuni, the Kyuubi no Kitsune, or well, I was until I was sealed inside you," it explained, stepping out from the shadows. The darkness revealed a beautiful teenage girl, her vibrant red hair rolling down her face ending in soft curls that matched her equally exotic eyes and ruby red lips. Her form was clad in a simple black kimono, red trimmings along the edges that hugged and accentuated her figure perfectly. The most peculiar thing about the girl was the red kitsune ears and tails that adorned her figure.
"W-wait, so the reason I've gotten all those beatings, when they called me a demon, they thought I was you? But how could they think I was cute like you Kyuubi-chan?" Naruto asked sweetly, causing a blush to appear upon the face of Kyuubi. It soon disappeared, however as tears began to well up in her ruby eyes.
"I'm glad you see it that way Naru-kun," she said, a slight sniffle with her soft melodic voice. "And to think, anyone else would be cursing the day that they had me sealed inside them. I mean, I was the one who is responsible for all the beatings you've endured, Naru-kun, all the hatred towards you, all of the glares and threats; they're all my fault. My fault that I even had to be sealed into you, my fault that your life is ruined forever!" the Kyuubi cried, tears of guilt rolling freely down her cheeks. All the emotion that had been bottled up since he was first mistreated at the orphanage was now poured out. Yes, the great Kyuubi no Kitsune, Queen of the Bijuu and Princess Guardian of Hi no Kuni, was crying excessively, and over her jailor, of all people.
"Please don't cry Kyuubi-chan, it's not your fault." Kyuubi's teary eyes looked down to see a mop of blond hair in front of her, Naruto's small arms wrapped around her waist. "I'm strong so I can bear the burden by myself!"
Kyuubi's lips cracked in a small smile as she kneeled down, wrapping the young boy in a hug, a few tears still escaping her eyes, "Thank you so much Naru-kun. I know I don't deserve your kindness but thank you anyway." Feeling the boy's arms leave her waist, her smile grew when he started petting her tails, getting an almost unnoticeable purr from the vixen.
"I do have one question though, Kyuubi-chan," he asked, his childlike curiosity coming froth in full bloom.
"Yes? What is it Naru-kun?"
"What's your name?" his blue eyes looked back up at her, their pure cerulean depths seemingly looking into her very soul.
"Benehime."
"Wow, that means red princess right? So does that mean you're a real princess?"
"Close Naru-kun, it means crimson princess and no, it doesn't make me a princess, although that's one of my titles. Now I'm pretty sure it's time for you to wake up." Benehime giggled, hugging the little boy with her tails as his image slowly disappeared.
"Bye Benehime-oneechan!" Naruto smiled, waving to vixen before fully leaving her sight.
Thank you so much Naru-kun for accepting me into your life so quickly. I promise to help you achieve all of your goals and make your parents proud of you.
~Forest~
A loud yawn rung out between two travelers as they both landed on dirt road from the trees, one of them setting down the bundle that was on her back on their feet. "Did you have a good sleep Naru-kun?" she asked smoothing out his white shirt. "You were asleep for along time." Indeed he had been, for when he fell unconscious after the attack it was well into the night, and now the sun was high in the sky.
"I was asleep? But I was talking with Benehime-oneechan," he said, his face taking his cute thinking pose, his whiskered cheeks slightly twitching.
"Benehime? I'm guessing that she's the Kyuubi no Kitsune right?" E asked, shaking the boy out his thoughts. Naruto couldn't form any words for a good while, he just looked up and up at the muscular giant infront of him.
"That's the Raikage, Naru-chan," Yugao said, answering his unsaid question, stifling the laugh that threatened to escape her lips at his quick expression change.
"So is he friends with Ojiji-san? Is he strong like him, too?" E couldn't help but smile at the child's eagerness to ask questions about his relation with Konoha's Kage. "Um, Yugao-oneechan? Where are we?"
The purple haired woman smiled as they began to walk down the dirt path, Naruto between them. "You and I are going to live in Kumo for a while. Kind of like a vacation." As soon as she finished speaking, a large structure rose up over the small hill on which they were. It resembled one of the ancient triangular structures of the Ancient East Naruto had seen in the few books he was able to take from the library, the only difference being long wires ran from a corner of the top of the building to wooden poles that pockmarked the streets, the cables running to other buildings as well. Naruto's cerulean eyes widened extremely at the sight, the building itself was much bigger than even the Hokage's mansion in Konoha.
"Welcome to Kumogakure, Naruto."