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Chapter 2

Kakashi gazed up at the sky as his students trained in the background thinking over the few pieces of information Tsunami and a few brave people around the village could tell him about the mystery known as Asura. 'It all fits but at the same time it doesn't.'

{Flashback}

'The first time I actually met with the poor thing was during my weekly visits to the market when I'd just take Inari for a walk to get out of the house for the afternoon.' The red-headed nine-year old was struggling to keep up with the work around him as the old blacksmith Isshin unloaded the heavier items from his cart that were for sale. "Mom isn't that the kid dad told me about?" Tsunami turned away from the fruits she was looking at to stare at the boy Inari was pointing out on the other side of the street. Looking closer she could tell it was the same young boy under all the dirt and grim that covered his body from living next to a forge. His skin was still strangely pale like fresh snow even though its been over a year since Isshin took him in but his dark blue eyes were what confirmed it for her. They were still lifeless but had a shine to them Tsunami couldn't place and the mother could only hope it wasn't anything bad after the hell the doctor said he went through.

"Yes sweetie that's the poor boy your father helped save." Her seven-year old son just blinked up at Tsunami wide-eyed before turning to wave at the red-head as she pulled him away to pay for the bag of fruits in her hand. She never noticed the way the red-head's eyes shone with a faint warmth for a brief second when Inari waved at him. 'After that day Inari always asked if he could come to the markets with me or Kaiza whenever we went just to catch a glimpse of the boy his brave father helped.'

"I'm Inari." His parents smiled watching their son talking with the shy red-headed boy who rarely talked to anyone besides his guardian.

"Isshin-jiji calls me Asura." The red-head replied carefully while adjusting the pieces of wood he was holding in his hands. "He said it's supposed to be the name of a powerful demon who represents wraith and pride."

"That's so cool my mom named my after the god of foxes." Inari replied with a small almost shy smile as they talked. "Do you want to be friends with me?" Neither child noticed the adults nearby watching them with hidden smiles.

'It was after that the two of them could be seen together around the village whenever they weren't at school or learning a trade from Kaiza and Isshin.' A fourteen year old Asura and a twelve-year-old Inari were sitting on top of Kaiza's roof watching the night sky as they talked about different things. Inari liked to let his imagination run wild and wouldn't let up on the idea of Asura being his friend which led to them being almost inseparable even if the slightly older boy barely did anything but listen. Watching from the window the parents listen as Inari tries his best to retail the story he heard the other day while fishing at the docks with his father. "And then the mighty samurai defeated the evil demon army saving the Daimyo's kingdom!" Inari waved his hands around excitedly trying his best to describe everything in detail while he listened on a small genuine smile set firmly in place. "Then she was so thankful the Daimyo gave him a big kiss on the cheek like this see!" Leaning over he placed a quick kiss on Asura cheek causing the red-head's smile to falter as his face started burning red. "Oh are you sick? Should I go find mom she knows how to check for a fever?"

{Flashback End}

He was only able to learn little things like where Asura worked and how adorable they were as children but nothing on whatever the other guy was besides unstoppable. It looked a lot like Orochimaru's handiwork but none of the people he asked would give him a straight answer or tell him anything depending on who was around them at the time. All Kakashi really knew was that this other side of Asura whatever it really was could make Zabuza retreat and had enough power to kill dozens of Gato's mercenaries when the corrupt shipping merchant was first trying to take over Nami no Kuni. How a massacre like that could have escaped the notice of Konoha he'd never know since dozens of ships and mercenaries getting torn to pieces by one child with anger problems should have grabbed every major villages attention. The only thing he could think of was that Krew was behind it somehow but the reason why eluded his grasp for the moment.

"When are we going to look into that freak and his civilian toy Hatake?" Sasuke demanded making him want to slap his forehead at being stuck with a brat as spoiled as him.

"Yea he just can't come in and steal all of Sasuke's glory!" Sakura agreed like the loyal fangirl she was while Sai watched the thee of them from the tree he was leaning against while they were taking a break.

"They're not apart of the mission so leave them alone." Seeing the pair seconds away from complaining his eye hardened into a glare that shut them up. "I'll write both of you up for insubordination the second you even go near the blacksmith's forge." Kakashi really didn't need either of them starting something with Asura before the letter he sent back to Konoha was seen by the Hokage.

"I'll have the civilian council overturn it the second we get back to Konoha so go ahead." Sasuke replied with a smug grin that had him itching to just smack the little brat but their was always the second option.

"Yea, yea you could." Sasuke's smug grin only grew. "But they can't do shit about the Shinobi side of the council or the Hokage who can kick you from the program for refusing to follow my orders." The brat's grin faded into a scowl as he stormed back to his tree to keep on training ignoring Sakura who was trying to cheer him up but that wasn't the worst of Kakashi's problems. Turning to face Sai who was still watching them with that fake smile in place he knew for a fact the Root operative sent a letter of his own back to the village but had no clue which one would get to Konoha first.

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At the same time on the other the island the pair of teenagers could be seen inside the blacksmith's old shop with Inari tending to Asura's injuries. It was a pattern the two of them fell into after they started doing a few odd jobs for Krew where Asura would take the bulk of the fighting by himself when mercenaries or the occasional group of Shinobi would try stopping them from recovering the artifacts they were looking for. Then Inari would care for him and fix Asura up again. It started off as his way to say thank you for everything the older male did to help his family out even after everything Tazuna did and said while drunk to make him leave only to evolve into something more with neither one of them realizing it at the time.

"You don't need to waste your medicine on me." Asura said stripping off his shirt to let Inari get a better look at the slash marks on his back. "Most of this will be gone in a few hours anyway thanks to the other guy." Inari just ignored him while dipping his fingers into an ointment his mom taught him to make before he started applying it to the worst ones his hands could reach.

"We both know by now that the other guy only takes care of the life threatening ones. Besides I might like playing doctor with you. Kami knows I get enough practice with the way the both of you fight." Inari replied while rubbing the ointment over Asura's injuries channeling chakra into the tips of his fingers causing them to glow a faint green making him smile knowing the little Iryo Ninjutsu he knew could be put to good use. While watching the injury stitch itself close under his fingers Inari only wished he could do more but both sides of the red-head were a little to over-protective when it came to the small handful of people they cared about. Which was just him and his mother for the most part after the old blacksmith passed on in his sleep.

"If it's not life threatening then that only proves my point about you wasting your medicine." Asura said while his ears were twitching to every little sound coming from outside the small shop he inherited.

"Yea, yea just shut up and let me finish playing doctor while you be the silent patient you are. It's the least I could do when most of the money we make goes to help my mom anyway." Inari replied with a glint in his eyes seeing the small smile on Asura's face as he worked to bandage the ones his basic medical skills couldn't heal all the way. "Besides it's not like you can help the fact everything out there wants to eat you almost as bad as I do." The roguish smile on his face had him internally cheering when he noticed the slight red tinting the red head's cheeks when Asura turned to glance back at him for a second before resting his gaze on the item they found a few days ago.

The old-looking orb they dug up during their run to the desert was a floating egg-shaped Precursor artifact made out of old metals that were hard to come by nowadays. With the orange-red sheen it had to it, uncommon to most of the gold-colored Precursor metal artifacts both of them knew it would fetch a good price depending on the mood Krew was in after his little talk later this afternoon. The last few weeks Gato started growing bolder with each move he made making more of a nuisance of himself then usual and now that shinobi from Konoha were getting involved Inari was just waiting for the order to kill the man to be sent their way so his father's killer could get what was coming to him finally.

Thinking about the Precursor artifact while Inari patched him up had Asura's mind drifting off to the few times he could remember with the old man.

{Flashback}

"Did you, did you go all the way to the mines just to find that for me?" Isshin ask letting the cane supporting him fall to the side seeing the child in front of him covered in dirt and bruises holding up a small piece of iron.

"Teach me how to become a blacksmith as good as you were." Asura declared a small fire visible behind those cold uncaring eyes as he held up the piece of iron. "I know I'm a freak who can't control when I black out and hurt mean people but I still want to learn if you'll teach me. I'll become the best blacksmith in the world if you think I can do it jiji?"

"You're not a freak Asura. You're my child and you can do anything you want to do with your life." The old man said pulling the eight year old into a hug ignoring Asura's eyes watering even as he flinched from the close contact.

{Flashback End}

"You took a demon like me in and taught me how to be a blacksmith when others thought I should have been sent away after the first time the other guy showed himself and I'll never be able to repay you for everything you did for me Isshin-jiji." Asura whispered staring at the Precursor artifact knowing even though it wasn't the one Isshin dreamed of finding he was still one step closer to his goal. "I'll find the artifact you were looking for jiji. I'll find it and make you proud of me when I do."

"What where you whispering Asura?" Inari ask after he finished bandaging the last of his injuries.

"Nothing important." Asura told him before planting a quick chaste kiss on Inari's lips. "Lets go meet up with Krew. They said he was coming to Nami no Kuni personally to address the problems Gato was stirring up so hopefully he'll take away the greedy little bastard's protection."

"Hopefully is right. I've been waiting for the day we get the green light to kill that man and Krew knows it to." Inari replied pocketing the Precursor artifact while Asura pulled on his shirt. "Lets go to work."

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A few minutes later after walking through the slums of Nami no Kuni the pair walked through the doors of the Hip Hog Heaven Saloon. The interior is decorated with posters of exotic dancers and dozens of trophies gathered by some of the missing-nin Krew employed over the years helped attract new customers and clients who heard about it making them a signature part of the bar. In the center of the main room was a wrestling ring where customers could place bets on the fights Krew held every month. The ring itself had a few other purposes too with a pole that came up through the center for the exotic dancers to use when they came in later tonight. In the back of the building was the main bar behind which various beverages were served and inventory were stored. Then along the walls were booths that can seat ideally four people each.

But neither of them paid the people around them any attention as they passed through the doors in the back of the bar to where they knew Krew would be waiting for them. "Did your fool of a boss actually think he could get away with attacking my ships?" Moving past the guards Krew kept around him at all times they came upon the sight of their boss talking down to two of Gato's mercenaries. Krew was an uncommonly large man with acute obesity and probably every kind of health problem that came with being over five hundred pounds. Despite that his legs were remarkably small and gaunt, revoking the possibility of walking or standing on his own without aid and therefore has to use a hoverchair-type device which supports his body and also shines some sort of light over his head. Neither of them knew how it worked only that Krew kept a Fuinjutsu master on the payroll who came around every few weeks to reapply the seals needed to keep the chair mobile. Their boss was bald and had pig-like facial features, with stubby ears and an obese vexed facial expression as well as many piercings and wore a light green tank shirt along with what he called a silk suit. Though honestly most of the people who saw him thought it was a tarp with holes cut into the sides but no one was stupid enough to say it out loud unless they felt like dying slowly.

"Fuck you fat ass! Me and Waraji would die before giving up a meal ticket like Gato." Zori snarled only to be struck in the back of the head by one of Krew's guards after the man waved his hand. Getting a closer look at the pair Asura could see the one with the mouth on him was a light-skinned man with bluish-white hair and black eyes. Lined markings are tattooed under his eyes. He was wearing a dark purple hat on this head, the top of which extends far beyond the top of his head, a blue jacket with multiple pockets and a blue handled katana used to be tied to his waist but now it was over in the nearby table along with any other weapons the pair might have had on them.

The other Waraji if he heard right is tall in stature wearing an eye-patch over his right eye and has brown hair which he parts in three, finishing in an elaborate topknot. He has an intricate tattoo that seemingly stretches across his entire left side and left right, inner thigh, as well as a stitched scar on the left side of his forehead, and the left side of his mouth. Waraji had on what seems to be a loose-fitting kimono, albeit not in the traditional manner as the top half of the outfit falls around his waist leaving his upper body exposed which was stupid to them since he was rumored to be one of Gato's lieutenants. He also wears bandages wrapped around his waist and simple sandals.

"You see now that right there was the dumbest thing you could have done boy." Krew said with a sneer on his face while taking a large gulp of the sake one of the servers brought him. "Now I'm going to have to take my time breaking you and that'll just make me even madder. So what do you suppose I should do with you." It wasn't a question at all and by the fearful look on Waraji's face he knew they weren't leaving here alive. "I could just chop off your limbs, rip out your intestines and have some of my men take turns riding you down the river like some kind of demonic meat toboggan from hell but that would mean I'd need to hire a Yuki to make me some ice first."

"You hear that Asura. I knew Krew would use my suggestion some day but I always hoped it would be used on Gato someday instead of his lieutenants." Inari crowed with a grin on his face walking forward to sling his arm over the bound Waraji's shoulder. "Just try getting that image out of your head of Krew here grabbing your entrails like the reins of a sleigh as he streaks through the freshly powdered snow a Yuki will make for him leaving behind a bloody trail of bile and gore while your eyes beg the unanswered question. Why?"

"Oh, Kami!" Waraji was shaking now as he stared into the uncaring eyes of Asura after hearing everything Inari just said. "I'll tell you everything you want to know just don't kill me."

"Shut up you idiot. Gato already has shinobi to kill this fat pig and his men so keep your damn mouth shut until he sends them to get us out of here!" Zori yelled trying to sound brave though everyone could see the damp spot spreading across his pants.

"If you mean Zabuza and his little weapon then they've already ran away from Asura here instead of fighting my boy." Krew cut in looking over to the horrified form of Waraji before floating back to the center of the room. "So I've got a little deal for the both of you. We're going to play who talks first and the winner gets a real special prize." 'A quick death.' Was the thought running through everyone's heads. "The loser however gets to die tortured to death thinking he was brave before I use Inari's suggestion just for the hell of it. Then just to make sure anyone stupid enough to cross me gets the message I'll have my men find your immediate family and kill them before making their way up your family tree." With a smug grin on his face he looked between the two. "Now who wants to talk to uncle Krew." Both men where shaking now with Zori trying and failing to keep up a brave front while Waraji was openly crying.

"All right the lot of you listen up!" The room quieted down ready to listen to the crime lord's orders except for Asura and Inari who looked like they could care less. "I've let Gato have his fun trying to terrorize the locals for a while but now that shinobi are getting involved its time I dealt with the problem once and for all." After saying that he snapped his fingers causing two of his guards to drag the bound forms of Zori and Waraji off for a 'chat' ignoring their screams for mercy. "So spread the word that after today its open season on any man foolish enough to sign on with Gato. I don't care how you get it done but I'll pay top dollar for the heads of every man stupid enough to cross me with the price doubled if they suffer." The men cheered as they left leaving only Krew behind with two of his guards and the pair of teens he used as runners.

"Now lets talk business boys." Krew said with a greedy look in his eyes when Asura tossed him the Precursor artifact they found earlier.

"The map your man gave us led to a small cache of artifacts just like that one." Asura informed him holding up an aged scroll in his left hand. "You get the rest after our payment."

Krew just laughed before waving one of the guards forward with a case in his hands. "That's why I like dealing with you two boys. You're smarter than most of the idiots I hire and only care about what you can get out of life." He was still laughing when Asura traded the scroll in his hand with the guard's case. "I'd adopt the two of you in a second if I didn't think you'd try gutting me in my sleep the minute I let my guard down."

"Now get out of here and bring me Gato's head."

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Hours later after scouting out the docks under Gato's control and his base of operations the pair could be found in Inari's room ignoring the shinobi that were downstairs eating dinner after wasting their time training all day. Inari dipped farther into his pillow closed his eyes to the sounds of Asura at the foot of his bed working on an old clock the baker in the village wanted him to fix. The sounds of tools taking apart the clock piece by piece was the only thing Inari paid attention to while everything else around him he blocked out in his detached state. "He'll be leaving his base to deal with your grandfather and the shinobi in three days when the bridge is scheduled to be finished so that leaves us with two options. Either I let the other guy out to play for a few hours or we wait for him to leave and get him on the bridge where there's no place for him to hide." Asura said out loud as he worked already knowing Inari wanted the man's head.

"You already know I want to kill Gato personally so we'll wait for him to show up at the bridge in three days." Inari replied cracking open his eyes to stare at the case leaning against his desk knowing the weapon inside of it would get its first taste of combat in a few days. "We don't need the other guy for this fight but other than that do what you want to Gato's men." He finished wiggling his right foot so his toes rubbed against Asura's back grinning when the red head arched forward slightly.

"I'll try not to end it to fast." Inari heard the red head say followed by the bed dipping when Asura leaned back using his body as a pillow.

"I'm not your pillow." Inari grumbled without any heat behind it feeling Asura adjust himself to get more comfortable.

"Your warm and besides I think I kill enough people for you so let me enjoy this." Opening his eyes slightly with a tired smile on his face Inari glanced down at Asura when he felt his hands wrapping around his waist before closing them again. Inari knew that in three days everything would change when he finally killed the man who executed his dad and ruined his mom's life. The only question was for the better or worse.

Author's Notes -

It's trickling in slowly but I've been getting a few people interested in my newest story here. Hopefully I'll get more after this chapter.

I've got a handful of people messaging me about it but like I said in the last chapter everybody was aged up. Inari aged up to 14 while everyone else is their ages after the time skip.

Krew's chair shouldn't be that hard to overlook with everything else I've read out there other people have had Naruto pull of with seals. Other than that I don't see that much more to give out for this chapter regarding notes so I hope you liked it.

Response - (Thanks for your reviews.)

HeartlessNobody13: That's one of the reasons why I like using side characters since they only get shown a few times leaving you a lot of room to work with.

Super Guest-Chan: I already replied to a few people who sent me PMs because of the pairing but the three people I have in mind are more friends with benefits then real pairings so yea I could have Inari being the dominating a couple of times.