Disclaimer: I don't own Magic: The Gathering, Naruto, or anything else that may be referenced.
Thanks for the reviews you two! You know who you are.
"Memories and regrets. Memories to remind the ghost of their regrets. Regrets to fuel the memories. It chains them down and they act on them. That is what ghosts are Izzet. A pitiful being that didn't accomplish what it wanted to in life."
Lliand Lynkrig, Boros Guildmage
When he first came to; the first thoughts were from familiar strands of red hair. Following the tips of the bangs he could see his mother's violet eyes gazing at him. Yet for all the warmth and comfort from them before; now they looked at him in contempt. Her jaw was clenched tight as her hands hung at her sides in fists.
His second thought was of his discomfort. The surface of the stone scratched at his bare back like nails irritating his skin. Each attempt at movement brought fresh waves of displeasure throughout his body. He tried to move his arms but metal chains bound him tightly as they creaked under the strain. His arms, his legs, and his neck; all of them were chained to the rock. His hands, feet, and stomach were pierced by metal rods pinning him down. The interlocking metal held the pegs down making it impossible for him to move.
"Neither of us have any sort of luck, do we?" A mirthless chuckle arose from Kushina's lips. There was a joke funny enough to laugh at him that only she was aware of. He'd never seen his mother like this before. "You keep the world at bay, but I keep you at bay." She spat out at him.
She stopped laughing and her glare hardened and grew colder. Why did she seem so much smaller to him? "And you can be damn sure I won't let you out. Demon."
"Someone prepare a room for a Chikatsu Saisei! I need two squads ready! Move it people!" A voice barked out in the hospital. She was rushing through the halls beside a stretcher filled with a pile of bloody flesh. Her green overcoat and blonde hair rising in the air with her rise in pace. The orderlies dressed in white pushing their payload with increasing urgency through the corridors.
This was not how Tsunade planned her day to be. It was supposed to be a normal day at the hospital. Perhaps some research on how to make better healing methods or medicine. Maybe give some kunoichi some good news. 'No, you're not dying. You're pregnant.' Something simple like that.
She did not plan to see her old teammate's student burst into her office in the hospital. She did not plan to personally be involved in surgery today. She didn't plan on seeing her godson bleeding over her new carpet. She definitely didn't plan on letting him die.
She wasn't called the greatest medic for no reason.
He was a prisoner in his own body. Any amount of control he tried to exert over himself was useless. Any defiant shout he tried to howl came as nothing but silence.
It was that worms fault! Him and his accursed eyes! First chance he had he was going to squish his body until his eyes popped out like a toads!
"Kill him Kyuubi." That damn morsel dared to command him?
His voice echoed across the glade of trees in a way he despised. It wasn't a roar against the heavens at the unfairness of the world. It wasn't a shout of rebellion against humans.
It was the cry of the enslaved.
He never wanted to let loose a sound like that again.
Red eyes observed the boy quietly as he slept. Kushina was beside Naruto's bed while her fingers danced through his hair as she fought back a fresh wave of tears. It's been three hours since Naruto was first admitted into the hospital. Three hours of worry, three hours of fear, and three hours of tears. She tried to prevent her face from showing the agony she was feeling. Naruto deserved to wake up to a smiling face.
"Tsunade. When will he wake up?" She asked the woman who supervised the surgery.
"You've asked that question six times Kushina." Tsunade understood how Kushina was feeling. She's seen it a lot in the hospital by teammates, lovers, and family. That didn't mean her answer brought any sort of comfort to the mother of the boy. "I don't know."
"You healed him though didn't you?" The red head couldn't understand how Tsunade didn't know when he would wake up. The greatest medic in the world was known to be able to heal almost everything. So when the one person who should know didn't, it brought forth new worries to her.
"I healed his body. He had a skull fracture and blood leaked in, I could fix that. The multitude of lacerations across his skin I could heal. The breaks and fractures of his bones I could mend." She listed off all the injuries she could deal with. Each mention of each injury bringing forth a wince or cringe from the mother. She didn't know of any other way to put this, but it was better to get to the heart of the matter. "His body isn't the problem right now Kushina. It's his mind."
"What do you mean?" The look Kushina shot her almost made her not want to say it. As a friend she wanted to protect Kushina from the harsh and bitter truth. As a doctor it was her duty to let her know.
"Your son's in a coma. He could wake up in 5 hours or maybe even 5 years." Perhaps the reason why it came out as quiet as it did was because she didn't want to believe it either. Maybe that's the real reason Tsunade left the room after delivering the news. She didn't want to see Naruto in that state anymore and realize there was nothing else she could do.
"C'mon Kushina. We should go check on Mito." Minato tried to urge his wife away from the comatose boy. It hurt to see his son in that kind of state. It hurt even more when the thought that he inadvertently caused him to be this way.
"Naruto needs me Minato. He needs to see me when he wakes up." Kushina's stubborn refusal tore a bit more at his heart. Wanting to be with her child was natural. But there was another child that needed someone as well.
"Mito needs to see someone when she wakes up as well. Tsunade or one of the medics will call us if he wakes up. All we can do right now for him is wait." It was as weak an excuse to his wife as it was to his own ears.
He had to Sheppard his teary eyed wife out of his son's room. It hurt him to leave his son at the moment, but his daughter needed them there too. His daughter could wake up any moment, his son was in an unknown position right now. Being with his daughter is the better choice.
It's what he told himself as the door closed behind him.
When they made it his daughter's room Tsunade was already there checking over her paperwork.
"How is she?" Mito looked visibly better than Naruto. There were no bandages, no stitches, and no casts. Just a little girl sleeping peacefully on a bed.
"She's only mentally exhausted. She should be up any minute now." Tsunade gave them a weak smile.
At least she was able to give out some good news today.
Mito opened her eyes to see the hovering bodies and worried gazes of her parents. Why were they looking at her like that? Why did her mother look as if she were crying?
"Mito honey, how are you feeling?" Her father's voice was but a mere whisper. What happened to make his voice so quiet?
Her father was always strong. He was the strongest shinobi in the village and one of the most feared in the nations. He was a confident man who led thousands of shinobi.
So why did he sound so weak?
"I'm sore. My body hurts." She croaked out even though her muscles felt as if they were burning. Like someone tried to give her a bath in boiling water. The pain bubbled underneath her skin, sharp shocks erupting in minute pulses all over.
"What's the last thing you remember?" She turned to her godmother who was looking at her as well. Why was Baa-chan here? She allowed her eyes to roam around the room trying to make sense of everything.
"Mito? What is your last memory?" Her father asked her this time. Finding out where she was could come later she guessed. Instead she tried to focus on the question.
"I remember looking for the warmth. Then…" Her eyebrows creased in concentration. It was a hazy memory, something that was there like smoke but almost ungraspable. "Then I felt angry. After that I…" She tried to focus harder. But there was no way that the images coming to her head were real. "I…" Her memory had to be lying to her. That couldn't have been right. She would never attack her baby brother. The taste of his bleeding flesh in her mouth was a lie. His terrified screams in her ear had to be a lie. It had to be a lie!
"Naruto! Where's Naruto!" She had to make sure he was okay! Those memories could only be from a nightmare! They had to be!
"Naruto's in another room. He's been sleeping since the surgery." Just like that the fragile hope she had shattered.
"Take me to him! I have to see him!" She tried to force her way out of the bed. Tossing the sheets off of her even though her body screamed in agony. Her parents tried to force her back in the bed, but she wouldn't let them have their way. The more they tried to force her the harder she struggled against their gentle hands.
"Maybe you should let her see him? Maybe it will calm her down." A new voice cut in from the doorway with a wheelchair pushed in front of him. It was a suggestion; nothing more, nothing less.
"Sensei…" Minato was gazing questionably at the older man. It could possibly calm her down, or it could possibly make her hysteric. Was it really worth the risk right now?
The prophecy came to his mind like a thunderbolt.
Then an idea came to his mind from this opportunity. A part of himself was angry that he would even think of manipulating his family this way. The other part of him, the part that slaughtered thousands, thought it was the right choice to make.
Was the happiness of one person worth the lives of thousands? Is the livelihood of millions worth the sacrifice of one innocent?
Was it worth it when the sacrifice was his own son?
With a conflicted heart and mind he placed his daughter in the wheelchair.
She let out a horrified gasp when she recognized the mop of blonde hair on the bed. Naruto was laying down; sleeping peacefully. Too peacefully considering how damaged he was. There were stitches and bandages all over his body. The heart monitor's sharp staccato beeps pierced the silence and reminded her of each strike. Each scratch. Each injury.
"Naruto… Wake up… Please wake up…" She was pleading to her sleeping brother. Kushina looked down at her daughter in pity. She did the exact same thing but a mere few hours ago. Just like when she did it there was no response from the boy.
"Mito. Naruto's in a coma. He might not wake up for a while." Kushina didn't want to say 'if he wakes up.' She didn't want to think that to herself either.
"Mito." Minato started his plan. It tasted foul inside his mouth as the words left his lips. "Inside of you is a power. A power so incredible that it can change you."
He stared at his daughter's tear stricken face and almost faltered. But this was the right choice to make.
"Take a good look at your brother. This is what happens when you can't control it. This is what happens when it controls you. Your loved ones pay the price and end up becoming the victims." Mito returned her gaze to her brother.
This is what happens when she loses control? This is what happens when her powers run rampant?
Her small hands grasped the sheet covering her baby brother tightly. Each thought of her weakness reminding her of the terrified screams of her brother.
She would never let this power control her again!
The adults gazed at Mito as she resolved herself to get stronger. She had something she wanted to grow stronger for. She had a goal in life now. She had a reason to be strong.
Be strong enough to protect her brother from everything. Even from herself.
Minato was the only adult looking down at the ground. There was no turning back at this point. Everything was to safeguard the future. He would train her to be strong, stronger than anyone else. Because he had a goal for her in life.
If he had to choose sacrificing one person to save the lives of many. He knew what he would choose.
Because there never was a choice at that point.
He sacrificed his children for the village before. What was one last time for the world?
It was a vision out of hell.
Flames were spread all over the village as the burning buildings let loose giant pillars of smoke. Embers rose to the skies like butterflies taking flight from orange flowers. The screams of the fearful were matched by the wailings of the dying.
Through it all he smiled as he reveled in the chaos and anguish. He howled at the moon in pleasure and anticipation. He struck a structure forcing to spread its flaming payload to the next building. Let the world burn before him.
There were shinobi in front of him. Green jackets glowed with a red hue as their forehead protectors reflected red from the dancing flames.
These ants thought to stop him? These insignificant mortals?
With a swipe of his mighty hand they were tossed through the air like grains of sand.
Another mongrel tried to leap at him but his teeth met him in the air. The taste of copper filled his mouth as he tried to get more of the delectable taste. It was delicious. He tried to find the next delectable morsel to help alleviate the hunger he felt. So many to choose from too!
They all came towards him like moths to an open flame. He welcomed their arrival with violence unmeasured. For every blow one of them attempted on him three paid the price with their lives. So many of them tried to strike him too!
You humans never change
It was an endless buffet. They kept crawling out of whatever pit they were in like termites. They would swarm in a group and they would die as a mouthful.
You laugh when I'm bound yet flee when unchained
No matter where they ran to he would find them. They may be small, but the amount of fear they reeked of made them easy to hunt. No matter how fast they ran he would catch up and gorge on their flesh. Where could they hide where his fangs would not find them? Where could they run that his claws would not reach them?
Die before a power you never deserved to hold
He howled to the heavens. He could see glass from windows sparkle in the night as the splintered fragments fell to the ground. The sound of his voice causing them to shatter just as it made men and women fall to their knees. Their cry of pain brought endless mirth to him as they held their bleeding ears.
I am the bringer of destruction
A ball of energy formed in front of him as he continued howling to the moon. It started small like the hope they had of beating him. It grew to a size to show how insignificant they truly were. They should be humbled by his power. They should be in awe of the strength he lorded over them.
I am carnage given form
The colossal orb of his anger and rage shrunk as he bit into the globe of power. It tasted good, but it was not comparable to the succulent taste from earlier. He bellowed out a call to summon more of the creatures. A blast of energy escaped from his mouth as he swept it across the village.
I am Kyuubi
With a thunderous step the earth trembled like the ants below him. Both the ground and his prey shaking like a rabbit cornered in its hole. They would come out eventually. The more he destroyed the less places they could stay. Let their homes crumble beneath him. Let their walls of protection clash with his hands and crash to the ground.
And I am free once more
Just like cicadae's in the summer; their cries will soon vanish. They shall pay for trying to bind him to their will.
They all returned to the house shortly after visiting Naruto. Mito wanted to disappear in her room for a while but Kushina wouldn't have it. It wouldn't be wise for them to leave her alone without her coming to terms first.
Minato instead went to his study rather than comforting his daughter. He started a plan to save the world in the hospital today. Now it was time to tune it up as much as possible. Sheets upon sheets of paper were used to make an itinerary. Days will be spent on various branches of jutsu's, weeks of exercises will be planned and enforced. Routines will be made and maintained.
It would leave Mito no time to dwell on her past actions. She would be too busy with the training from hell. He would have to ask Gai for taijutsu practice, he was good with kids if he didn't terrify them away. Maybe that genjutsu mistress Kurenai, the power from the Kyuubi would make it difficult for Mito to use the chakra control necessary for the art. She should at least know how to defend herself against them. Kakashi or maybe Itachi for ninjutsu? Kakashi has copied many from his missions and travels, but so has Itachi. It would also ease some of the tension between the Uchiha's and the village if they saw their protégé with his daughter.
"Are you sure that was a wise decision Minato?" Jiraiya was confused at Minato's actions at the hospital. He more or less told Mito it was her fault her brother was in a coma. It was because of her weakness that her brother got hurt.
To him it seemed like a low blow. Hitting a little girl with the harshness of reality and using her brother as a mere message.
"You said it yourself Sensei. Mito may be fighting a God someday. We need to make her ready." Minato never once stopped scribbling notes on the many scattered papers. He never once looked at his old teacher as he continued to make plans after contingencies after precautions.
"There's a lot more riding on her shoulders than the survival of our village." Jiraiya freely admitted as he made his way to the blonde's side. Peering at some of the papers he could only shake his head in resignation. "The training to get her prepared will be hard." Going by the notes it looked as if Minato wanted to break his daughter instead of train her.
"She has Uzumaki blood in her Sensei. She can endure. She's seen what she could do if not properly taught. She now has the resolve and reason." Uzumaki's were known for their high vitality and stamina. His training took that into consideration along with the Kyuubi's given healing factor. She would endure the training and come out stronger because of it.
"What of your son? He will need to be trained as well." As he looked more and more at the notes, not once was Naruto mentioned in any of them. The only names that appeared frequently in each one were Mito, Kushina, and the odd jounin here and there.
Minato paused in his writing as his son's face flashed in his mind. Should he train Naruto alongside Mito? "No. He will go through the regular training at the academy."
"Minato! He's your son! You're just going to throw him to the wolves? You know how high the fatality rate for purely academy training genin is!" Just like in all things, those who are trained more succeed more. People from clans may be targeted due to bloodlines or blood feuds. They were at least trained to somewhat handle all that even before going to the academy. To thrust someone related to a Kage into the shinobi lifestyle without preparations was just asking for a premature death.
"We won't have time to prepare him!" Minato snapped at the older man. He didn't mean to, it was merely frayed nerves and the stress of the past couple of hours. "Kushina will have to focus on Mito because she can restrain her if she goes berserk. I have my duties as a Hokage; I'm pressed for time as it is. You have a spy network, Tsunade has the hospital, and Orochimaru has the lab. Who will have to time train him if he wakes up?" It was a weak justification for his decision. "The weaker Naruto is the stronger Mito will wish to be. The only thing stopping her is herself."
"The same could be said if he was strong. The stronger he is the stronger she must be. Just train them together Minato." Something didn't seem right to Jiraiya. His student was more logical than this. Why would he deny a boy training especially his own flesh and blood?
"No. If we train them together Mito will slow down to allow Naruto to catch up. That's how she's always been." Why was he being so adamant to leave Naruto untrained? He almost wanted to tear his grey hair out in frustration about how Minato wanted to have his son killed.
"Your arguments make no sense boy! Everything you've said so far the opposite can be stated as well! What's the real reason Minato? Why do you not want to train them side by side?" Jiraiya finally snapped. He forgot how roundabout Minato could be when he didn't want to say what was bothering him.
It wasn't until he got a good look at his student's eyes did it dawn on him.
"…" When Minato gazed up at his teacher Jiraiya's upcoming tirade of words grounded to a halt. The young Kage's face was that of a man torn with grief. The tears that were shed have already dried yet a fresh batch was just waiting to come. Eyes as red as the blood leaking from the blondes bottom lip as he held in his cries of grief.
He almost lost his little boy today. He stared as his beloved daughter mauled her baby brother. Too shocked in confusion to move right away, if he was almost a second slower the boy would have died.
"You're scared." Jiraiya answered his question that plagued his mind the entire conversation. "It makes sense. No father wishes to see their son in that kind of state. But that's not the whole reason is it? You're scared having Naruto around will make her depressed. You think she'll hold herself back subconsciously to prevent herself from hurting him again. You think the grief she'll feel will make her attack him by accident again." He couldn't help but pity the man. He wanted what's best for the world and at the same time the best for his family. Except what was best for the world was not what was best for his son.
"You're a great man Minato. Not many make the kind of decisions you have to." Jiraiya praised the boy as he let the bigger picture form inside of his head.
"Then why do I feel like I've already failed them?" Minato turned around and stared outside the window. He saw the monument where his face was gazing down at the village. The past three predecessors looking down at the village that they have built and maintained. Gazing at the village that they shed tears and blood for.
"Because you aren't a monster." The older man said as he joined man in observing the village. It may have been a trick of the light. It may have just been his mind playing tricks on him. Yet the eyes of the former Kage's looked like they were looking at them in approval.
For the first time in weeks Naruto opened his eyes. The continuously nightmares plaguing his mind has finally come to an end. It was all confusing for the boy. There were people he knew loved him glaring at him with hate. There were monsters that were terrifying in form but they made him feel loved.
He tried to rid the memories of the nightmares from his mind. Instead he focused on his unfamiliar surroundings. The orange glow from the walls sparked a memory, a memory he did not want to have.
Eyes wide in fear he tried to rush to the window. His feet collapsed on him due to the atrophied muscles. Each attempt sending sharp senses of pain all over his body. He was forced to claw his way across the room in a frenzied panic.
When he looked outside the window he didn't know what to think.
Usually when he looked at the village during the sunset he would see a wondrous and breathtaking sight. Staring down from the Hokage monument with his family brought a speechlessness due to the beauty of it all.
It stole his breath for a different reason this time.
The orange rays reflected from the sun made his mind play tricks on him. He saw the village burning and the sky matched it like water reflects the sky.
The noise from the villagers closing their shops for the day were distorted. Instead he heard the panicked wails of shinobi barking orders. Children running home for dinner were changed to people fleeing in fear.
What was the illusion?
What was the reality?
The screams registered a moment later. It reached his ears before he even realized it.
It was the sound of his own voice.
Authors note: Something feels off about the past couple of chapters. I'll probably change them later on as the story continues, but for now I'll just leave it. If you have any input on how to make it better it would help a lot.
On a side note I often find my times trying to write snippets for this story on my way to work. So usually I'll be listening to music before it makes me think of something. Here's a list of the songs I heard while writing, maybe you can try to figure out which scenes go with which songs.
Higurashi no Naku Koro Ni – Being
Umineko no Naku Koro Ni – Reanimate – Black Lilliana Arrange
Evanescence – Imaginary
Shinedown – Her name is Alice
Fairy Tail – Fairy Tail theme slow
As another note, I know I only have technically 1 prologue and 2 chapters out now, but updates are gonna be really slow for a while. Peak season at work has officially started today, so yeah.
