Alright! Here's chapter 2. Not much to announce here, so now I go to answering the one question that was asked.
Naruto is and isn't the only person who uses that power. I may not have made it perfectly clear, but every ninja taps into the spirits to use jutsu. However, Naruto is the only one who can and will wield all of the elemental incarnations. As I believe from playing the mana games, there are many spirits, but only one of each element is strong enough to form its own incarnation. I'll try to clarify if this still doesn't make any sense.
Now to a question that probably won't be asked, but should still be addressed. Yes, each spirit is associated with its own jutsu type. So, we have Jinn for wind, Undine for water, and so forth. Lighting jutsu was a little tricky though, since none of the elementals directly influence it. I attributed that to Aura. Aura seems to be the spirit of metal, and metal conducts electricity. It's roundabout, I know, but it's the only way I saw to do it without making a new elemental. For some jutsu, like ice, I'm going to let that be a combination, but for wood, that's Dryad's territory.
That First Day
...Naruto gave a dark chuckle. "You know, the whole village hated me until that day. What Hiashi saw with those eyes of his changed everything for me. Oh sure, everybody still hated me, but the council was dead set on crafting me into a weapon for the village. One without a will of his own, who would kill himself should his master order it. The ninja clans on the council were against the idea though, all of them seemed to be privy to my lineage, even if none of them showed it.. I guess I should start where I left of though, shouldn't I?"
Back in the Hokage tower, the man with the sharpest eyes in the village, Hyuuga Hiashi, activated his Byakugan, an ability of the eyes, passed down in his family, to see near 360 degrees, and to see a person's chakra network. Having the fox demon sealed within Naruto's body, his network was already more complex than was normal, but this latest addition had changed things yet again. Naruto's gauntlet had spread its own chakra network into the boys' body. What really shocked him, was that this network was pulling the Kyuubi's chakra into the gauntlet, purifying it, then returning it to the demon.
Sarutobi knew that he would have to speak with Hiashi in private about this matter, so he didn't ask. Hiashi returned his eyes to their normal state, schooling his face back into his usual impassive expression. "The boy seems perfectly fine Hokage-sama. It would seem that this is nothing to worry about for now." The aged Hokage nodded, dismissing the boy once more.
Once Naruto had left the room, it was resealed, and Hiashi gave his report about his findings, as well as his thoughts concerning the strange occurrence. "Hokage-sama, I trust you have heard the legend of the Mana Tree, and the holy Sword of Mana, correct?" The old man nodded, allowing Hiashi to continue. "It is said that the stump this building sits atop was once the Great Tree. I didn't believe any of it until what I saw today. The only way I can think of for the Kyuubi to be purified like this, is to be in direct contact with the Sword. If a demon like the Kyuubi, who was thought to be only a legend, can actually exist, can we not say the same can be true with this legend?"
"You may be correct Hiashi-san. After hearing the boy's account of things, especially of that dream of his, I can't help but believe the whole thing. However, this will have to be announced to the council, much as I hate to do it to the boy. Who knows, this may just change everybody's opinion of him."
"Ahh, good old jii-san, ever hopeful that the wishes of my father would one day be fulfilled. A couple weeks passed, when one day, I was taken to the council chambers by a group of ANBU. I stood next to Jii-san, confused. What four year old wouldn't be confused at something like that?"
"I'm telling you no Danzo!" The third Hokage was in a rage. His long time opponent was once again trying to undermine his authority, all for the sake of gaining power for himself. "The boy will never be used by you or anyone! Hasn't he suffered enough?" He took a deep breath, trying to calm himself. "Naruto will be admitted to the Academy next year, just like every other willing child. He will grow up to be his own person, not some puppet for you to play with." With that, the old man scooped Naruto up onto his shoulders and stormed out of the chambers, with the ninja portion of the council, Danzo excepting, following close behind.
It wasn't more than a month later when Naruto awoke to the sound of his run down apartment crackling in flames all around him. He awoke in a panic, quickly gathering what little important objects he had, and rushed out through the window by breaking through. In his current state, he didn't notice how the flames bent away from him, as if they wanted nothing to do with his suffering. Behind him, he could see a mob of villagers cheering for the certain death of the demon child. He ran as fast as he could, passing through the gates of Konoha before the gate guards could say a word. He didn't stop until he was deep in the surrounding forest.
The boy looked around in wonder at the clearing he had found. The stood a single large tree in the center of the clearing. For some reason, a memory of a house built into a large tree, much like this one, entered his mind. He smiled. This could be his place of refuge. He marked the clearing in his mental map before making his way back into Konoha, headed towards the Hokage tower. Somehow, he managed to avoid being seen by anybody. Even better, he got into the Hokage's office right under the noses of his guards. Right now, he trusted very few people.
"Oi Jii-san!" Naruto announced his presence to the old man in his usual fashion, though more quiet than usual. Sarutobi had the good grace to look surprised at his arrival. 'Since when did Naruto get so good at sneaking around?' "Naruto! What are you doing here this late at night? Shouldn't you be in bed?" The look on the boys' face told him just about everything, but he still had to ask. "What happened Naruto? You can talk to me." Tears started to run down Naruto's cheeks as he looked into the face of the one he considered his grandfather. "Jii-san... They burned my apartment down.. They started the fire while I was asleep. They were calling me the demon brat. They wanted me to die! Why? What did I ever do to them!?" As he spoke, the blonde's tone changed from anguished to enraged, and rightfully so.
Just then, Naruto heard a disembodied voice. "I believe I can shed some light as to why.. Come to me kit." Sarutobi leapt from his chair in shock. One minute the boy was up and yelling, the next, he had fallen over, seemingly asleep. Naruto, however, had entered into a strange place. He stood ankle deep in what appeared to be a sewer. Lost, the boy wandered, seeing several doors along the way. Many of these doors were locked though, and the few he could open showed him memories of some of the happier times in his life. "We are in your mind kit.." The voice came is if it knew his thoughts. "Come to me. Follow my voice." He heard it clearer this time, and followed the passageways until he arrived in front of a large cage. The bars were held together in the middle by a single, flimsy looking paper seal. This wasn't what surprised him though. Behind the bars was a large, beautiful looking fox. Its fur was a bright golden color and its eyes were a deep blue, much like his own. Waving gently behind the large fox were nine tails. The beast sat on its haunches, looking down on him with an almost regal serenity.
"Who.. who are you?" The boy stared up in wonder at the beautiful creature. Kyuubi, the fox demon, was the only creature he knew of that would look anything like this, but surely a demon wouldn't look so divine. Once again, as if sensing his thoughts, the creature spoke up. "Yes young one, I am indeed the Kyuubi no kitsune. However, my powers and my very soul have been cleansed by what now resides upon your arm. I can honestly say that I'm grateful for that. The life of a demon is detestable.."
"K..kyuubi? But everybody was told that the Fourth killed you! You're supposed to be dead, aren't you?" The fox chuckled to itself. "No young one, that was a lie made to protect you from yourself, and from those your age. The truth was not hidden from the older generation, however, and you have suffered greatly for my past transgressions. I am the very reason that you have suffered all this time." It was an odd sight as the majestic fox bowed low to the ground, its tails hanging low and its ears drooping. "Naruto-kun, you may choose what to do with me. As I am now, should you release the seal, my soul will die and you will be free of your burden. If you allow me to live, I will do my best to ease your mental suffering. I will be here as a vast library, all my knowledge open to you along with what power I can give you that will not put strain on your body. I leave the choice to you." Kyuubi closed its eyes, awaiting its final judgement.
Naruto was reeling. So many questions were answered all at once. His decision was a simple one though. The kindhearted four year old stepped through the cage, placing his hand on the fox's nose. "Kyuubi, you seem sorry for everything that's happened, and if I expect to fulfill my dreams with my current situation as it is, I don't think I will get very far. Please, help me. I could use a friend and ally."
The fox opened its eyes wide in surprise. It honestly expected the boy to be angry and tear the seal immediately. "Are you sure Naruto? You may never find peace in your life if you make this decision.." Naruto merely smiled, stroking its soft golden coat. "Yeah, I'm sure. You aren't evil Kyuubi, even if you used to be." Kyuubi smiled as best as a fox could. "Thank you Naruto-kun, but from now on, will you please call me Yuuko? Kyuubi is a title I wish to leave behind."
Naruto looked at her, head tilted. Yuuko could almost see the gears working overtime. "Wait.. you're a girl?" She sighed, knowing she'd have much o teach the boy in the years to come. "Yes, I am. For now though, I think I should let you back out. It would seem Sarutobi-san is worried about you." The next thing he knew, Naruto was staring up into the face of the Hokage. "Oh, sorry Jii-san.. I guess I'm just tired from everything that's happened today."
The blonde stood back up, brushing off his ratty clothing. "Jii-san, what I really wanted to talk to you about, before I distracted myself, is that I've found a nice place to live in the forest bordering Konoha. I needed to ask for your permission to build a place for myself, away from all of this." He waved his hand to the window that overlooked the city. "Don't worry, I'm not gonna run off, and I still want to be a ninja, I just need a peaceful place to live. One where those who don't like me can't find me."
"I understand Naruto-kun. I just wish there was more I could do for you." The old man looked down at his desk, frustrated that the council had taken so much power during the aftermath of Minato's death. Most likely due to Danzo's leadership. Naruto smiled at him, shaking his head. "Wouldn't want to give you any more trouble than I have to Jii-san. There is something you can do though. In my dreams, or is it memories? I'm not sure any more... Anyway, long story short, I've been feeling the urge to learn how to run a forge as well as learn to tend a garden. If you could find somebody in the near future that would be willing to teach me, that's all I need. I'll see you in a year Jii-san. It'll take a long time to build my house the way I want it." With that, the boy slid the window open and ran into the night, leaving a sighing old man. "Naruto.. I wish you didn't have to mature this quickly. You should have been able to be an innocent child until you were through with the academy...."
I was just about right when I said it would take a year. I wanted a house like the one I remembered, and building into a tree without killing it is a slow, painstaking job, not to mention that I was very young. I did it though. All through that year I lived in the forest, hunting and foraging for my food. Many times I thought I was going crazy when I would catch a glimpse of strange beings that seemed to vanish before I got even the smallest detail. Yuuko taught me a great many things that year as well, from the true history of the world as she had lived it, to how it felt to be with a mother. She had become my family, and together we faced the memories that had been sealed away from me. I held no grudge against those who had sealed them away. In fact, I'm grateful that they did. Without Yuuko to help me, I would have been overcome by my emotions.
Near the end of the year, she explained the meaning of the strange gauntlet that I would often ask about. What I held was a weakened Sword of Mana, tired from centuries of giving life to the world around it. Jinn made himself known to me very soon after that, feeling that I was finally ready to learn of his existence. That was an interesting day to say the least. It happened when I was taking a break from tunneling into the tree..
Naruto was gnawing at a strip of boar jerky, idly wondering about the second mystery of the gauntlet. The strange turquoise stone and the hollows that looked as if they would hold similar stones had always intrigued him. As he looked down at the small stone, he noticed it flash briefly before a strong gust of wind blew by, making him close his eyes to avoid catching dirt in them. Once the gust died down, he opened his eyes again to see a strange sleepy looking figure floating gently in front of his eyes.
"Wha? No.. Who are you?" Naruto didn't quite know why, but he knew that this figure was vastly intelligent, as if it had seen all the ages of the world.
"Sylph.. The Rider of the Winds... Just call me Sylph though.." He cracked his eyes slightly as he spoke, his voice taking on a kind, airy, and sleepy tone.
The blonde blinked as he tried to remember where he knew that name from, Yuuko giggling to herself in the back of his mind. Suddenly, it hit him. The legend of the Mana Goddess that Yuuko had told him spoke of the elemental spirits. Sylph was the avatar of the Wind Moon, as well as the strongest of the wind spirits. He realized this, and dropped to his knees, bowing low to the mighty spirit. "Forgive me Sylph-sama, I didn't meant to be rude."
Sylph merely released an airy chuckle. "Stand up Naruto, I have no need for such respect. Besides, you're more like a partner to me, not to mention that as long as you live, I'm a part of you."
This confused Naruto more than he already was. He stood back up though. "Wait, Yuuko just said that the sword attached itself to my arm until its strength returned. Sure, it purified her soul, and it's been feeding off our excess chakra to regain its energies, but we didn't sense you at all.."
"I was holding my power away from you until I felt that you were ready to know of my existence. I had sealed myself into that gem, but would not allow my presence to be known until now. Naruto, you didn't find the sword by chance. You have a destiny far greater than you can imagine. The world has strayed from the Goddess once more, and she has been consumed by her dark side. If this continues on, the world will descend into madness and destroy itself once again. The Goddess called you to the sword, believing that your pure heart can bring the world back to her, and the spirits have agreed to help you in your task. The others will show themselves when they feel you are ready, but be warned, there are some of us who will test you, and the trials will not be easy."
The young boy absorbed this information like a sponge, his smile growing wider the more he understood. "So then everything I dreamed was true?" Sylph nodded, closing his eyes again. "You are ready to know your destiny today Naruto, but are far from ready to learn to wield the powers of Yuuko or I. Don't hurry to grow up, for that hardens the heart. Take your time and enjoy life as much as possible." With a nod from Naruto, and another gust of wind, Sylph vanished once more into his gem.
From then on, I could speak with Sylph much like I spoke with Yuuko. Once he allowed me to sense him, he made his own place in my mindscape. That is another aspect of myself that had undergone changes. Yuuko had modified the seal so that she could wander my mind freely, so we had changed my mindscape to a wide green plane. From that day, Sylph became the wind of my mindscape.
So it was that I returned to Konoha, my right arm covered by bandages, and wearing crudely fashioned leather clothing. How the people of the village wondered at my appearance! They had gone for so long without seeing the demon brat that they had assumed I was dead. As I wandered through the city, looking about for any changes, ANBU appeared around me. I was far too used to this kind of treatment, so I merely followed them to the place I knew they would take me. Jii-san's office.
"Naruto! I was almost thinking you weren't going to come back at all. I take it you did what you said you were going to do in the forest?" Sarutobi was happy to see the blonde after his absence. He had missed that small ray of sunshine that was Naruto.
"Hey Jii-san! Yeah, I just finished building last month. I'll let you see it one of these days. It may be a little small, but it's all I need. That's not the reason you had me hauled in her though, is it?" Naruto grinned at the Hokage, crossing his arms in front of his chest.
"Hmm, no, it wasn't. Remember when I told you that you'd be starting at the academy this year?" A nod from the boy told him that it wasn't forgotten. "Well, tomorrow is the first day of class, so I expect you to be there bright and early. Also, I took the liberty of ordering this from Suna. I hope it fits well enough." He handed the bundle of cloth over to the blonde who inspected it carefully.
"Wow, you got the right size somehow. You been keeping tabs on me with that crystal ball of yours?" Naruto joked before heading into the Hokage's bathroom to change into his first cloths in years. The shirt was simple and loose with a light, flexible metal breastplate that came down to his waist and attached to two wide metal plates that covered his hips, but left full range of movement. The pants were wide and flowing, pleated in several places from hip to hem. Oh his feet were close toed shoes that were slightly longer than his feet and curved upwards slightly. He had one glove for his left arm that ended in a tight metal band below his shoulder, and had a long flowing red scarf which he used to partially hide his face from view. He had decided to leave the bandages around his gauntlet, and when he left the bathroom, he bowed to Sarutobi.
"Thanks Jii-san, really. I don't think I've ever had more comfortable cloths than these." Sarutobi nodded, pride in his eyes. "I paid the tailors in Suna a little extra for continued repair and adjustment. When you need them bigger, just let me know." Naruto nodded. "Will do Jii-san. How about the other thing we talked about though?" His answer was a scroll tossed to him. Upon opening it, he saw two addresses. "The Yamanaka family will teach you the basics of gardening. It's not really something that can be taught. The head of the Kireru weapons shop has agreed to take you on as an apprentice. You'll work with both after classes on alternating days." Naruto smiled brightly at this, he had been itching to work in a forge for a while. "Hai Jii-san. Is that all then? I want to take a look at the Academy, maybe meet the teachers before I actually attend classes tomorrow."
Sarutobi nodded his assent, and Naruto left his office through the window before dropping to the ground. He had already figured out how to use chakra to augment his jumping and to cushion his landings. Once on the streets, he wandered through the town once more, making sure to note the locations of the Yamanaka shop and the Kireru forge. He found the academy, and walked in, looking around to find where the teachers lounge was. Once he found it, he entered cautiously. He was still far too used to adults glaring at him, if not chasing him down with the intent to kill. That wasn't what he encountered here though. All eyes turned to him showed one of three things. Respect, confusion, or concern. All except for one silver haired teacher's assistant whose eyes held an atypical amount of burning hatred.
"Hello everybody, my name is Uzumaki Naruto. I'm just here to let you all know that, starting tomorrow, I'll be attending classes. Know this, I know exactly who and what I am, and I will take any discrimination problems directly to the Hokage. Treat me like everybody else, and we'll get along just fine. Thank you for your time." With a wave and a bright smile, he left the room. "Well... That was different.." One pineapple haired teacher commented before returning to his prep work.
Naruto made his way through town slowly, a gentle smile on his face. Even if most people on the street were throwing distrustful glares at him, he was having a good day. That is, until a mob of angry villagers began to form behind him. He chuckled darkly to himself. A year in the forests of Konoha and the spirit of the once demon inside of him had made him wily as a fox himself. Quick as a summer breeze, he vanished into a crowd of people nearby before slipping into an alleyway. From there, he jumped onto the roof of the nearby building, traveling from building to building in such a way that he avoided the eyes of the mob entirely. Once close enough to the gate, he slipped through quietly, returning to his forest haven.
A soft chuckle sounded through his mind once he was safe inside his home, and he delved into his mindscape, finding himself in the center of the plane. "How did I do Yuuko?"
She was kneeling in the grass, having taken on her human form, a tall, fair skinned woman with long blonde hair that ended at her waist. She was wearing a sky blue kimono that made her cerulean eyes shine brighter. "Well, I would say that your escape was just about perfect, but you should have taken more care to avoid being seen in the first place."
"I'll take that into consideration. I don't want to be invisible though. Tomorrow's going to be a big day huh? I hope I got the message across to the teachers. Not that I need school for the knowledge when I have you two hmm?" Yuuko and Sylph chuckled along with him. "However, I don't need my classmates thinking ill of me because of the teachers." After a short chat with the voices in his head as he affectionately called them, he returned to the outside world, opting to get an early night in.
The next day, he went with Yuuko's advise and made his way to the academy undetected. He even managed to slip into his classroom unseen, ten minutes before anybody else arrived. He took a seat, watching as his classmates began to filter in. The only two he recognized vaguely were a deep blue haired girl with pale lavender eyes, which he immediately recognized as a Hyuuga. The next was a platinum blonde with blue eyes. Her hair was pulled back in a high ponytail, but she left part of her long bangs unbound to cover her right eye. He placed her as a Yamanaka, the resemblance to Inoichi was too close. Once all the students were in their seats, their teacher made his way to the front of the room to call attendance.
Class passed by quickly, their teacher merely explaining what their school life would be like before dismissing them to recess. Naruto went out with the others, but instead of playing, he leafed through the course book that he had been given. Well, until his classmates decided he should play with them. It was a group of boys, a young, feral looking boy with triangle shaped red marks under his eyes at the lead, with a chubby kid whose cheeks bore red spiral marks, and a lazy looking boy with a pineapple hairdo.
"Cmon kid! Let's go play! None of us have seen you around before, and you seem pretty cool, well, not when you just sit and read..." The feral boy seemed hard pressed to say what he really meant, but Naruto understood anyway. "Yeah, I'll play with you guys. I don't know any games though. I've kinda been living on my own." The other boys eyes went wide at that. "Y'mean that you don't have parents telling ya what to do all the time?" The blonde looked at him as if examining a new breed of insect. "Is it good to not have parents?" The boys had the good graces to look embarrassed. "N.. No, I didn't mean it like that.." Naruto chuckled, waving his hand. "It's alright, just try to avoid saying things like that in the future please." That was how he met and befriended Kiba, Choji, and Shikamaru.
After school that day, Naruto waved off offers from his new friends to join them for dinner. Instead, he took a winding path through town, leading to the gates so that nobody would follow and find his sanctuary.
Ino had gone home immediately after school, excited to talk to her parents about her first day at school. As she and her parents ate sat down to dinner, Inoichi asked her how her day had gone.
"It was great! Our teacher is nice, and the boys in my class are really cute! Especially this blonde kid. He's got these tattoos that look like whisker marks, and his cloths were so cool! I think his name is Naruto or something." Inoichi grinned to himself. 'So the kid's still around and doing well. That's good to hear.' He decided to overlook the fact that she called the boy cute. Little girls change their minds all the time, right?
Hinata had a similar experience. For once, her father seemed interested in her life, and she was overjoyed to be able to talk to him like family instead of the clan head. "Well, our class seems to be diverse. Many of the head clans have children of theirs attending this year. There was a boy that I couldn't quite place though." She blushed slightly when she thought about him. "Spiky blonde hair and strange whisker marks, like a tattoo or a birthmark. He was very thin, almost like he'd been eating only enough to keep him going.
"Uzumaki Naruto?" Hinata nodded, answering her father's question. "Hmm, so he's doing well for himself now. Hinata, I want you to be kind to that boy. He has already led a more difficult life than most adults. He deserves to have people he can trust." The girl nodded again, and then there was silence. Hiashi still wasn't too sure how to act around his daughter.
Naruto, sitting down to his own spartan meal, was caught up in a fit of sneezing. "Huh, somebody must be talking about me.. Probably another mob or something." With a shrug, he dug into the stew he had set cooking before he had left for school that morning.
Well, there you go, chapter two. Quite a bit longer than the last one, at least to me. I have problems breaking the 5000 word count it seems. Those wondering exactly what the outfit looks like... well, I haven't been able to convince my friend to try drawing it yet, so look up the male character of Legend of Mana. His outfit is a heavily modified version of that. Things to look forward to in the next chapter? Training, learning, friendships formed, a certain teacher put in his place. Expect very little fluff until several chapters down the line. If I actually do any, it'll be one sided or between a non Naruto pair. Thank you for reading my chapter, and let me know what you think so far. Reviews make me very happy, and those with constructive criticism and or suggestions for plot make me rather ecstatic. So go ahead, press that shiny button and leave me a sentence or two. I am flame retardant though. As in, you flame me, I ignore your retardation.
