The Red Dawn has arrived, and Naruto is their target! Will the Naruto retrieval team be able to help in time? Will Naruto be able to hold the Akatsuki at bay while protecting his daughter? (She's 5 by the way) Read on to find out! Enjoy, and please no flames!
For those of you that were wondering, Naruto's trench coat is very similar to an armani black wool jacket. If you want any more details on how it looks, just go to the website "ioffer" and search "Armani Men's Black Wool Jacket" and it'll be the second one to come up in the search.
I do not own Naruto.
The Naruto retrieval team had been maintaining surveillance on their target for the past few hours. After finding the studio that he worked at, they had to bid their time to wait for him to leave, finding out that Princess Koyuki had assigned several local nin for security. They had shadowed the family to the local fair, taking up position up on a hill overlooking the whole scene. While they could blend in with the crowd and keep a close watch on them, Kakashi didn't want to risk it. He had done so many things wrong when he was Naruto's sensei. He neglected him, and failed to look after him. He would not mess this up.
He would bring him home, if it was the last thing he did. For now they would wait, and confront Naruto when the time was right, no sooner, no later. It was hard to resist the urge to run after the blonde after believing him to be dead all these years. He could see several other members of the team visibly having trouble remaining put while their long lost friend was in front of them. Most notably Sakura, Sasuke, and Hinata. He would not worry though, for like him, no one on the team wanted to do anything to mess up the mission.
Currently their favorite blonde was at a shooting gallery winning his daughter a stuffed toad. Of all the things Kakashi thought Naruto would be in the next decade after being assigned him, parent never came to mind. Let alone a single parent. He wondered how Hinata was taking it, since her love for the blonde had become somewhat of a legend and fairytale in the village. A heiress to a prominent clan falling in love with the village pariah, only to have her beloved die. It certainly fit the role of fairytale. He-
WAIT! What was that? Kakashi directed his gaze back at Naruto after catching something in his peripheral vision when he had let his mind wander. Nothing was out of the ordinary, just Naruto winning his daughter a stuffed toy-
Wait, the same one? Kakashi directed his gaze towards the daughter, who set aside the toad only for it to disappear once a villager passed by. It was then that Kakashi noticed it. The whole fair was in a loop! It was set to repeat at intervals where it would hardly be noticeable. Kakashi would have applauded the caster if not for what the presence of such a genjustsu implied. SHIT!
"Team, this is Kakashi. Code red. I repeat, code red. Someone's made their move on Naruto." Instantly the comm net was a buzz with panicked voices.
"WHAT!"
"WHERE!"
"BUT NARUTO'S STILL THERE!"
"Kurenai, focus on the daughter, notice anything?"
"I don't see why-oh, shit, we've been duped. Its a genjutsu." She replied angrily. How could she, the genjutsu mistress of Konoha, be duped? It was inexcusable, and could prove fatal for Naruto. Several murmurs of Kai later, and the squad had still been unable to remove the genjutsu.
"Got any ideas Kurenai?" Kakashi asked. He waited, each second seeming like an hour. Every moment counted in these situations. One second could mean the difference between life and death. Kakashi refused to let Naruto die so close to bringing him back home.
"It's well crafted, they probably have a partner nearby that is continuously layering its structure in order to ensure the genjutsu does not dispel, or they have set custom seals in a perimeter to induce a similar effect. While we could just charge in, we would be at the attacker's mercy." Kakashi cursed under his breath.
"Kiba! can you detect anyone in the surrounding vicinity?"
"I can try! but with so many people Akumaru and I are going to have a hard time finding the partner in all the background scents!" Kiba replied.
"Kakashi san! I think I found something!"
"What is it Hinata?"
"I found the seals, it looks like they've also put barrier tags as well! There's four in total in a roughly square shape. The closest one is half a mile northwest of us, about another mile up is the second one. Half a mile north east is the third, and the fourth is a mile south east."
"thanks Hinata. Kiba, Sasuke, Gai, and Iruka! I want those seals taken down now! We'll be in position to offer assistance if needed! Be careful, they might be rigged with traps or failsafes."
"Hai!"
Please Naruto, be safe. Hinata silently pleaded to herself.
Inside the barrier...
"So, I'm guessing an I. O. U's not gonna cut it is it?" Naruto deadpanned. The man wielding the sword chuckled.
"So, we got one with a sense of humor eh? Well, at least we're not the ones tasked with getting the lunatic one tail's, huh partner?" Naruto's eyes narrowed at the mention of his friend Gara.
"Wha-what did you guys do to uncle Gara?" Hikari asked fearfully. The man chuckled.
"Oh, don't worry your little head over it, your daddy will be joining him soon."'
"You bastard! Kage Bunshin No Jutsu!" A clone of Naruto poofed into existence. Naruto handed Hikari to the clone. "Take her to the Safe House." The clone nodded. Hikari grabbed desperately towards her father.
"DADDY! NO!" She sobbed. Naruto smiled at her.
"Don't worry! Daddy's gonna beat these guys, I'll be back before you know it." and with that the shadow clone ran off. The other man, who had yet to make a move dashed forward, kunai in hand, towards the clone, disrupting it with a kunai to the back of the head. With the momentum from the clone, Hikari was sent tumbling in the dirt. The man placed his foot on the girls back, forcing her down.
"Did you think we would let any witnesses live? Your exile has made you-"A Chakra armored fist slamming into his face sent him flying through several stands.
"YOU EVEN FUCKING TOUCH MY DAUGHTER, AND I'LL SEND YOU STRAIGHT TO HELL!" Naruto roared. The sword wielding man whistled.
"Woah, 12 stands. Packs quite the punch, huh Itachi?" Said man removed himself from the wreckage, his veiled kasa laying forgotten, revealing a fair skinned man with the telltale black eyes of an Uchiha. He rubbed his jaw which was already beginning to bruise.
That was close, had his fist done more than graze me my head would have been lobbed off. Itachi pondered. "Kisame, you're more suited for his type, you deal with him." Said man laughed and threw away his kasa, revealing him to have a shark like nature with blue skin and marks like gills on his face.
"Finally! I've been itching for a good fight!"
"Just make sure you don't cause to much collateral damage."
"No promises!"
"Hn. Very well." Kisame turned to his opponent to only see the little girl gone.
"Hey, where'd the brat go?" Naruto chuckled.
"Safe, that's all you need to know. Now surrender and die."
"Don't you mean surrender, OR die?"
"Nope."
"..."
"..."
"..."
"..."
"...I like you kid." Kisame chuckled.
"Can't say the same for you Shark ass face."
"THAT'S IT!"
A Huge explosion from within the barrier sent tremors throughout the valley, sending some of the team to stumble.
"SHIT! Guys, whats the status on those seals?" Kakashi asked into his communicator.
"ETA 30 seconds" Gai responded.
Shit. Come on, hang in there Naruto!
Naruto was sent back from the ferocious blow from Samehada. his feet making rivets in the dirt as he was blown back. His chakra armor arm had had a burn mark from the point of impact. Damn, the blow was like one of the old hag's punches! He could make out the form of the enraged Kisame running towards him, sword waved angrily in the air.
"WHAT WAS THAT BITCH?" Kisame roared. Must be sensitive about his skin color...OH SHIT! Naruto was forced to dodge as Kisame jumped in the air, sword raised over his head to bring down in a crushing axe like motion. The point of impact made a giant fissure. "DAMMIT! STAY STILL!" He roared, dashing after Naruto with a tremendous burst of speed. While this was going on, Itachi was pondering where the little girl Naruto was with had gone. The barrier's still active, and shown no signs of breaching. And I don't sense her presence in here, where did she... Itachi was cut short from his musings as he was forced to sidestep a chunk of falling debris coming his way.
"SHIT! SORRY ITACHI!" Itachi sighed at his partner's destructive tendencies. Currently their target had yet to strike back, infuriating Kisame even further. That would be changed soon though once Kisame would up the ante. Which should be in 5...4...3...2...1...
"Suiton: Bakusui Shōha!" Kisame issued a giant stream of water from his mouth, which erupted into a large tidal wave, with Kisame riding in the forefront, grinning eagerly at the thought of blood shed. Naruto jumped, though much to his surprise the waves followed him, allowing Kisame to slash his chest. Naruto was barely able to back step to avoid being cut in half, but the wound still stung like a bitch. Yet, accompanying the pain was an odd loss of chakra. With the barrier in place, the whole fair had flooded, now resembling a lake more than a valley.
"That thing drains chakra, doesn't it?" Naruto said in realization. Kisame chuckled.
"Yup. You're the first to realize that after the first hit. Usually most only piece it together before Samehada here rips them to shreds." Kisame replied, mirth in his eyes as he recalled those battles.
"Well, that's annoying." Naruto retorted, pulling out a tantō from inside his trench coat, its handle made of a dark oak, its blade straight and no longer than his forearm. He held it in his right hand in a reverse grip, and got into a defensive stance.
"Huh, you think that's gonna do you much good against Samehada?" Kisame chuckled. Naruto merely smirked. Kisame shrugged. "Oh well, its your funeral I guess." And with both figures dashed forward, eager to get in the first strike.
"Okay team, the seals have to be removed at the same time. On three! One! Two! THREE!" The seals came off easily, almost too easily in Kakashi's opinion. But sure enough, the barrier dispelled, unleashing a torrent of water that soon filled the valley, and would have drowned the team had they not responded so quickly. The genjutsu dispelled revealing Naruto engaged in a fierce kenjutsu match with a man wielding a giant bandaged sword. before they could intervene though, four figures came up to intercept them.
"Otōto, my you've grown. I'm sorry, but I cannot let you nor your allies interfere in this fight." the man said as he came up alongside the clones of Kisame.
"Itachi..."
Kisame was pissed. How the hell was this brat blocking all his hits like noting? Samehada should have snapped that little tantō in half! It was infuriating! The Jinchuiki didn't even use the weapon to strike, instead opting to use his left arm and chakra blades to counterattack, which, might he add, were very annoying. His opponent never settled into a stationary stance, and was constantly pivoting and flowing, making the chakra blades in his hair whirl around like serpents before slashing him at an unexpected angle. When he brought down Samehada in an overhead strike, just to be countered by the short sword did he get a close up view of it.
The tantō had no edge! While it seemed to be of normal design, it was blunted, and had strange inscriptions carved into it. Wait a second...
"YOU ASS! What the hell did you put on that sword?" Kisame yelled. Naruto chuckled.
"Finally pieced it together, huh? As you know, its a defensive weapon. NULL here matches any chakra, momentum, and force applied to it and sends it back, nullifying any kenjustsu based attacks. Right now its just a battle of skills."
Kisame smirked. "Boy, you've been the most interesting battle I've had yet. Shame I have to capture you." he replied, swinging low over Naruto's legs, only to have him flip over it, making on of his chakra blades nick him on the cheek.
"We''ll see about that!" Naruto snidely replied. Kisame frowned, those chakra blades were annoying, he couldn't predict their erratic movements, and would pose a problem later on. Sure, all they had done so far were little flesh wounds, but what if they were intentional to lull him in a sense of false security before giving him a fatal wound? Either way, it would be annoying and long to continue fighting this way. The barrier had already been breached, and although Itachi had went to go dispatch the intruders, it would be best if he finished this quickly. Dashing back he flashed through several hand signs.
"Suiton: Senshokukō!" A thousand sharks formed from the still water and rushed forward creating a wave of hungry teeth. They charge forward viciously. Naruto paled.
"Shit..." Breaking from his stupor he ran forward, chakra blades glowing from the wind chakra he was layering over them. Jumping and performing a front flip, he let lose the wind chakra, which converged to form a giant crescent rising high above the wave of teeth.
"Burēdo Mikadzuki!" The crescent tore through the wave like a hot knife through butter, stupefying Kisame. That is, until he realized the attack was heading straight for him.
"SHIT!" He barely brought up Samehada to absorb the attack, but wherever Samehada wasn't able to cover was flayed from the wind chakra. Kisame breathed heavily, even though Samehada had been able to absorb a good chunk of the chakra, the force of the blow felt like the combined force of a thousand of Gai's punches. His right shoulder and shin had been sliced open, had he not been layering chakra over his skin in defense, his right leg below the knee may very well have been cut clean off. Though his opponent didn't look better off either. The chakra needed for such an attack must have been monstrous.
"*huff* *huff* You give up? *huff*" Naruto wheezed.
"Hah! *huff* as *huff* if!" Kisame weakly retorted.
"Stubborn bastard..."
"Right back at ya..."
Kakashi and company had been fighting fervently against the Kisame clones. Though unlike normal clone types, these were much more sturdier and didn't dispel after a few hits. One even had its right arm singed from Sasuke's Fireball attacks and it was still going. They were already struggling and Itachi hadn't so much as lifted a finger against them. The team panicked after glimpsing the chaos from Naruto's battle.
Kakashi was almost beheaded as the clone Kisame swung at his head. "I would worry more about your battle than the Jinchuriki's. Don't worry, we won't kill him...yet." the clone sneered. Iruka and the others were having similar problems with their opponents.
"Dammit! what does it take for you bastards to die?" Sasuke yelled in frustration. Both him and Kakashi had driven a chidori into their respective opponents only to have them shrug it off. Another explosion where Naruto was signified the situation worsening.
"NARUTO-KUN! LET ME THROUGH!" Hinata yelled, sending a junken strike straight to the clone's...balls. The pain, too intense for words, forced the clone to dispel, making every man in the vicinity cup their family jewels in pain and fear. Even Itachi.
"That works too..." Sasuke idly commented. Though the battle stopped when they saw a figure flying towards them at high speeds.
"...aaaaaAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!" The real Kisame impacted with the water near Itachi, sending a huge splash of water flying everywhere. He slowly floated back to the surface on his back.
"I see you are having difficulties Kisame?" Itachi asked indifferently.
"*cough* *cough* No Shit Sherlock *cough*" Kisame snapped. Itachi nodded and picked up Kisame, while the clones dispelled.
"We shall depart for now. I hope you become stronger, Otōto, until next time." and with that said they shunshined after they left the water diminished till it too, disappeared.
"NARUTO-KUN!" Hinata and the others rushed to the bloodied form of Naruto, who was slowly limping away. He was a mess, His blonde hair splashe with blood, numerous cuts still in the process of healing, some showing the underlying bone. He tried to walk before stumbling to his knees, coughing out blood. The others rushed to the scene as Hinata gently helped him up.
Oh god...That was all that Kakashi thought at seeing Naruto's bloodied form. How could he let this happen? They were so close to getting Naruto back only to find him near death. Naruto fumbled through what remained of his trench coat before pulling out a key, placing it in the air and turning it, prompting a door to appear out of no where. He stumbled forward with Hinata's help, soon followed by the rest of the group. They walked into a luxurious home, hardwood floors complemented by the mocha colored walls. A small hallway lead into the living room which connected with the kitchen. Two couches of soft luxurious leather dominated the living room, accompanied by a large tv and dark wood coffee table. The kitchen itself had granite counter tops, with cherry wood cabinets. One side of the living room led to a set of stairs, suggesting a second floor, while the other lead to a hallway with three doors.
Naruto limped towards the latter leaving a small trail of blood, going to the middle door and opening it, showing a room that was painted in a contrasting white, with a bed and medical cabinet. It was clearly meant as a sickbay of sorts. Naruto went over to the medical cabinet, only to be lead away by Gai and Kakashi towards the bed. Only then did he seem to recognize them and tried to struggle, only to produce a coughing fit.
"Dammit Naruto! stay still!" Kakashi grunted, straining against the weakened boy's thrashing.
"No *cough* *cough* I...won't go *cough* back!" He struggled for a good minute before Kurenai came forward and put him in a genjutsu induced sleep.
"Ino! Hinata! I want you to help Sakura get Naruto stable, we can't travel with him in this condition, I'll-" Kakashi was interrupted mid order as Hikari opened the door in her pajamas.
"Daddy!" She said happily, only to stop when she saw strangers crowded around her dad, and worse, they were ninja. Even worse still when she saw her daddy covered in blood."No! I WON'T LET YOU TAKE DADDY FROM ME!" She yelled, punching the nearest ninja in the nuts, which happened to be Sasuke, who doubled over in pain. She then ran towards Kakashi and started biting and kicking his shins since she couldn't reach that vulnerable place since Kakashi was taller. Hinata went over to the poor frightened girl and enveloped her in a hug.
"Shh...Shh...It's okay, we're not here to hurt your daddy, he's our friend. We're trying to help him." She cooed softly to the crying girl.
'Bu-but, those bad men that hurt daddy, th-they wore your headband. They hu-hurt daddy a lot. Th-they killed mommy!"(AN:She's referencing to something that happened to Naruto five years ago, just to clear up the confusion) The little girl wailed. The team was shocked. Was this why Naruto never came back home? For some reason, the whole group felt sick, as if they were somehow responsible.
"Don't worry, we'd never do anything like that to your daddy. My name's Hinata, whats yours?" The little girl seemed to calm down a bit, but only a little.
"M-my names Hi-Hikari" She sniffed. Hinata smiled.
"That's a beautiful name."
"My d-daddy says its b-because I'm his little light in the sky." She replied. Everyone felt saddened at the unsaid meaning. That this girl was the only reason he had for living. For someone who never gave up, it was unsettling.
As Hinata gently rocked the little girl, everyone wondered.
How much have you suffered, Naruto?...
Sakura came out of the room to find everyone sitting in the living room, pensive in thought. Heads snapped up to her as she gently closed the door. The procedure had lasted six hours, and despite everyone's exhausted state, none of them would rest. Hinata and Ino had helped for the first two hours, but seeing as they had played a more direct role in the battle, any longer and they would have fainted from chakra exhaustion. Hikari, despite Hinata's efforts, would not go to sleep.
"What's his status Sakura?" Iruka asked, fear growing at her grave expression.
"I was able to stabilize him. But when I was running a diagnostic, I found something..." Sakura looked at Hikari, as if she should not hear what was going to be said.
"Daddy's going to die. It's okay, I already know." The little girl said sadly shocking everyone.
"H-how did you know?" Sakura asked, startled that the girl knew this.
"D-daddy said that after he escaped from the bad Leaf men with me, that he started feeling sick. He went to a lot of doctors, and they told him he's gonna die. Daddy told me, but said that I would live with Aunt Koyuki when that happens. B-but! It's gonna be okay, cause I'm gonna be a doctor! S-so d-daddy won't die!" She said bravely. Kakashi turned to Sakura.
"Sakura...is this...is this true?" Kakashi choked. Sakura merely nodded.
"When I was running a diagnostic to make sure I didn't miss anything, I noticed that his organs were in a constant state of decay. The Kyuubi's chakra is regenerating them as we speak, but the chakra's very nature is corrosive, and is doing more harm than good. I can't tell how much time he has left, but its not much." Sakura replied. Everyone was devastated. Hinata cried, not wanting to believe it.
Kami... do you enjoy tormenting me?
"You-you're lying Sakura. You're lying!" Hinata yelled, tears flooding her eyes.
"She's not lying Hinata-chan."Everyone turned to see the bandaged form of Naruto standing in the hallway.
"Naruto! You shouldn't be up! you should be in bed still!" Sakura gasped. Hikari jumped off the couch and hugged her dad's legs.
"DADDY! I'M SORRY! I'M SORRY! I-IF I HADN'T MADE YOU TAKE ME TO THE FAIR, NONE OF THIS WOULDN'T HAVE HAPPENED!" Hikari wailed. Naruto picked her up and rocked her gently.
"Shush, I'm fine. It was none of your fault, so don't you dare think it was, okay missey?" He mock glared before kissing her forehead. He turned to the group. "As you can see Ms. Haruno, I'm fine. Now if you will excuse me for a brief moment, its way pass this girls bed time."
"But I couldn't sleep without a song daddy." replied Hikari.
"What am I going to do with you?" Naruto chided before carrying her up to the second floor. The group followed slowly at a distance. Naruto took her down the hall to the third room, which revealed itself to be Hikari's bedroom. The Lavender colored walls were decorated from with posters, many of the, were Princess Gales posters. One though was a photo collage which showed Hikari at various ages, playing with Naruto at a beach, pulling Gaara's hair, and imitating Princess Koyuki. Naruto tucked Hikari into bed, giving her her plush red fox.
"So, what song do you want me to sing this time twerp?"
"The song you always sing me daddy!"
"That one? Again?"
"What? I like the way you sing it!"
"Okay okay." Naruto relented and picked up a music box, twirling the key several times before it played a soft melody.
(AN: The song is "Once Upon A December" from the animated movie from Fox Pictures "Anastasia")
"Dancing bears
Painted wings
Things I almost remember,
And a song someone sings
Once upon a December
Someone holds me safe and warm,
Horses prance through a silver storm,
Figures dancing gracefully,
Across my memory,
Someone holds me safe and warm,
Horses prance through a silver storm,
Figures dancing gracefully,
Across my memory,
Far away, long ago
Growing dim as an ember
Things my heart used to know,
Things it yearns to remember
And a song someone sings
Once upon a December..."
Hikari let sleep take her, and slowly closed her eyes. Naruto kissed both her eyes before turning off of the lights.
"Good night, my little light in the sky." The group made their way down to the living room quietly, not wanting to disturb the moment. Naruto slowly joined them and made his way to the kitchen and set the kettle to boil.
"Do you prefer tea or coffee?" he asked, not once turning to address them.
"coffee"
"coffee"
"tea please"
"Some Jasmine if you have it"
"I'm fine"
"S-some green tea p-please"
"just water"
"I'm good"
Naruto just nodded an affirmative. He set to cleaning the dishes, tying his hair into a low ponytail much like Jiraiya, though unlike the Sannin, Naruto's hair wasn't nearly as mangy, and made a somewhat spiky ponytail. The uncomfortable silence progressed onwards for several minutes before Kakashi spoke.
"Naruto, we came to bring you back home." Naruto visibly stiffened before resuming to clean a pot in the sink.
"I am home" he replied without emotion.
"Naruto, we're bringing you back to Konoha. Remember, your home?" Sasuke said. Naruto chuckled.
"How ironic, that now they sent you to bring ME back, isn't it Uchiha?" Naruto replied coldly.
"Look, Naruto, I'm sorry, I wasn't in the right state of mind-"
"Oh were you now?"
"Dammit Naruto, I'm trying to make amends!"
"Good for you." The silence resumed. The kettle whistled, and Naruto went over to make everyone's drinks.
"What happened to you Naruto?" Sakura asked.
*CRASH*
Everyone jumped as Naruto threw the kettle into the wall, splashing hot water everywhere and breaking it into a hundred pieces. "What. Happened?" He seethed, not once looking at them."I'll tell you what happened. I served Konoha just like a good little shinobi. I followed my orders. Did what I was told. Fought for my home! What does that get me! Thrown into a prison cell to rot! I thought it must have been some mistake, I mean, sure, I wasn't the model shinobi. Pulled the occasional prank and what not. Played the role of village scapegoat. Oh, how naive I was. That was, until they showed me that the very woman I looked up to like a mother, had written me off to die."
"What do you mean Naruto?" Kurenai asked.
"Hmph, figures the old hag would send you here with only half of the info." He chuckled without any humor. "Article 58B clause 65 sub paragraph E. I, Tsunade Senju, hereby authorize use of protocol 87 APLHA on Naruto Uzumaki to better aid the defense of the Land of Fire from threats within and without. Ring a bell, Kakashi?" Everyone turned to a paling Kakashi.
"Kakashi-san? What is Naruto-kun talking about?" Hinata asked.
"No...It...it can't be...It had to be a mistake..." Kakashi mumbled.
"Oh, it was no mistake Kakashi. The old hag had put her chakra signature on it. Well, since you seem to be so hesitant to talk about it, let me elaborate. You see, during the First Shinobi World War, Konoha was low on troops, and there weren't enough volunteers to fill the ranks. So the Hokage enacted protocol 87 APLHA. It entitled the country to seize able bodied citizens from ages six and up, and train them. The procedure involved making them resistant to physical and psychological torture. As well as desensitizing them to violence and stripping them of free will. All in order to make the model shinobi." Naruto said sarcastically. "Of course, after the war it was never practiced again since the methods were deemed inhumane, but that didn't stop Danzo or Tsunade, did it?"
"Danzo?"
"Oh, come off it Haruno, did you really think I'd let the bastard die so painlessly? After all he did, oh no, I made sure to keep him alive for a week, just barely. I was able to get Hikari out of there before the sick bastards could do anything to her, but there is no way in hell am I going back there." He paused to check the clock. "While I am grateful that you helped me, I will only allow you to stay the night. In the morning, I expect you gone. Good night." and with that, he left the group to brood over this revelation.
Sorry it ended on a sour note, but did you really expect Naruto to just go back happily after all the time he's avoided Konoha? I'm still working on my action scenes and I hope this one is at least passable. Reviews are encouraged, and please no flames!