The next day the sun came out finally. It shined brightly over the storm torn village in order to make amends for it's absence. Naruto was sitting up in the hospital bed… staring at the man in the chair nearby. The man was sleeping. He had been awake all night watching the blonde. Naruto knew he must be tired… he also knew that the windows weren't barred. Strength had returned to his small body. He wanted to leave… to escape… to disappear. Slowly and methodically Naruto removed the needles from his arm. Without so much as a rustling from the blankets and sheets, he stepped onto the floor.
He knew how to be as silent as the dead. He knew how to move and shift without alerting the ears of another person. Unfortunately, no matter how quiet he could be, Kabuto had always had a trap that would catch him. Naruto stepped towards the window… the unlocked, unbarred window. He was able to open it as soundlessly as he moved and slipped through it. The window was shut behind him with the same quiet ease. He looked around himself and saw a large village. This place… it looked like a village he'd seen before… a village he knew.
He saw people. A lot of people. There were ninja and civilians walking around and chatting with each other. Naruto was unsure of this place. He glanced down at himself… he had no shirt… only white pants. That was good enough. He jumped down from the window ledge and landed clumsily on the ground. He wasn't used to moving so much anymore. It would take a while to get his feet again. He walked timidly toward a less populated area. He needed to find a different way out. Some place where no one could see him.
He walked… wobbly and unsure. He reached an open area that was empty of any human presence. He needed a break. He was exhausted from his short walk. Not moving for three years had taken its toll on him. He looked to the side, spotting three stumps that were lined up. Then there was a large stone tablet. It had a symbol carved into it… a symbol he knew, he'd seen. He reached up his thin dark hand and traced the symbol. His finger recognized it… his village. He once had a piece of metal with this symbol on it. He constantly reminded himself that it was his home.
He would trace it blindly with his finger… memorizing it. Naruto said it was who he was loyal to. The place that Kabuto kept asking about. Kabuto always asked about this place. His teammates always refused to give the man anything. He also refused to give him anything. Five years… he traced this symbol. Five years… he remained loyal to the village… loyal to Konoha. Naruto looked at the stone. Names riddled it's surface… names of those that had died. He drifted both of his hands across the names. Reading them and absorbing them. Uchiha Obito… Yondaime Namikaze… Sandaime Sarutobi… Sarutobi Asuma… Nara Shikamaru… Haruno Sakura… ANBU Sai.
There was another name after ANBU Sai… but it had been removed. The blonde leaned his head forward, resting it on the cool stone. It felt good. He decided to rest against the stone… he felt his energy disappear. Naruto settled his back against the coolness. Grimacing at the sun, he tilted his head down and brought his knees up to his chest. He sat there for a long time. No one came near the monument of stone. He was alone for the first time in many years. Kabuto had always been around… or his comrade. His comrade was worse. He was more vicious than Kabuto when it came to making the cut.
"Naruto…?" A voice reached the blonde's ears. His head snapped up, he hadn't felt this person's arrival.
The man that stood before him was tall. He had black hair… black eyes… pale skin. He looked so familiar. He wore a headband with a symbol on it. Naruto knows the symbol is like the one on the stone. It's the symbol of Konoha. So, this man must be from the village. In fact, thinking back… that man at the hospital with the headband over his eye also had the symbol. Were they his allies? Was he really saved? The man took a step forward. Naruto was on his feet quickly, using the stone as a balancer. The man stopped and put his hands up apologetically.
"What's wrong?" The man asked confusedly.
Naruto stared long and hard at the man. He knew this man… but he couldn't place him. Slowly… cautiously… Naruto stepped down from the stone monument. The man stepped forward as well and put his hands down to his side. He saw that Naruto wasn't quite himself. He saw that Naruto was attempting to locate his identity within his mind. So, he tried to make himself as non-threatening as possible. However, he couldn't stop himself from trying to help spark something in the blonde.
"You should be in the hospital resting you clumsy idiot." He said softly.
Naruto's eyes widened just a millimeter… barely noticeable. That phrase… clumsy idiot… he knew that phrase. He'd heard it before. It always upset him when he was called that, didn't it? Naruto looked at the man more carefully. He felt something flicker in the back of his mind. Then it flickered again and became brighter, more prominent. A name shouted throughout his head in his voice. Naruto's voice. It started out in a younger tenor… then it grew… it matured. His voice… the name… Naruto shut his eyes and listened to his crying mind. Sasuke.
His eyes shot open. Memories started to flood back. He remembered locking his memories away and setting up a key for them. It was a simple key… one he was sure could never be used while he was captured. Sasuke… calling him a clumsy idiot. That was what it took to retrieve his memory. Naruto gasped and choked. He stumbled backwards and tripped into the stone monument. Sakura, Shikamaru… Sai! He'd watched them die. Naruto let out a strangled and raspy sob. His voice hadn't been used in so long it sounded like a ragged breath.
"Naruto?!" Sasuke stepped towards the young man. "What happened?!"
Naruto dropped down onto the step of the monument. Tears streamed freely down Naruto's cheeks. He remembered so much now… it tore him apart. His heart was racing and his breathing was uneven and panicked. He wanted to move, but his body wouldn't let him. He wanted to run… run away from his pain. Sasuke reached for the blonde when his hand was grabbed. The Uchiha glanced at who had stopped him to see the Nanadaime. He pulled back and Kakashi released him. Naruto spotted Kakashi and felt shame well up within him. It was so potent that he crawled away to the side of the stone and emptied what little he had in his stomach onto the dirt.
"Naruto!" Kakashi stepped forward, careful not to touch him. He didn't know what was wrong with the boy.
"D…dead…all dead…" Naruto let out a strangled and airy rasp.
Kakashi stopped… was that how he sounded? He could barely recognize any part of the sound that exited Naruto's throat. He would have to have Tsunade check on Naruto's vocal cords and throat. The Nanadaime kneeled down next to Naruto. It killed him not to be able to touch the blonde.
"Naruto… it's okay." Kakashi whispered. "You're safe, remember?"
Naruto hoisted himself up from the ground. He looked over at Kakashi… his teacher… the man he respected the most second only to Jiraiya. He wanted to touch Kakashi… be sure this was all real. Naruto brought his hand out to grasp Kakashi's traditional robe. Kakashi himself froze. Naruto touched the fabric and looked at the silver haired man. It was real… it wasn't a dream… so was he dead? Like Sakura? Like Shikamaru and Sai? Would he see them? The stone his back was still resting on told him no. He was still alive. His cursed life hadn't been extinguished.
"I think he remembers us…" Sasuke utters from behind Kakashi.
"Is that true, do you remember us, Naruto?" Kakashi asks, hope building and bursting from within him.
Naruto nodded. Kakashi smiled so widely that it could be seen through his mask. Naruto stared at Kakashi and Sasuke before his vision blurred. He was exhausted now. The return of his memories was rough on his mind. Naruto's eyelids grew heavy. He leaned his head back… drifting to sleep. Kakashi watched the blonde pass out and sighed. He picked up Naruto gently from the stone. Sasuke stood patiently as the Nanadaime stood with Naruto in his arms.
"Kakashi… are you okay?" Sasuke asked.
"I'm fine…"
"No, you're not…" Sasuke grumbled. "Naruto was pronounced dead four and a half years ago. Now he's back… but he's not the same. I know he's not okay… and I know you're not okay because of it."
"Then why'd you ask in the first place?" Kakashi frowned and walked back to the hospital. "Remember to keep this all to yourself."
"Right." Sasuke watched as his teacher left with the small blonde in his arms.
Kakashi carried the tiny, thin… dangerously light body. He had drifted to sleep for only a moment… just a few seconds. When he'd awoken, Naruto was gone. Panic had entered his blood instantly. He shot out from his seat and started searching for the blonde. For hours, he searched. It was only pure luck that he'd stumbled upon Sasuke and Naruto when he did. He was fortunate that he'd arrived after Naruto had let out his initial sob of grief. It would have torn Kakashi to shreds hearing such a sound. The Nanadaime jumped to the window that entered Naruto's room.
"Kakashi, what happened?!" Tsunade stood, waiting for his return.
"Naruto managed to get out when I nodded off." Kakashi laid the blonde on the bed. "It appears his memory's back."
"Really?" Shizune stepped forward.
"Guess you don't need me, then." Kakashi looked up at Yamanaka Inoichi.
"No, I still think Naruto should have his mind checked." Tsunade stated.
"I agree." Kakashi nodded.
"Alright…" Inoichi stepped forward and performed several hand seals.
The man placed a hand onto Naruto's forehead. When Inoichi closed his eyes he drifted into the young man's mind. There was chaos at first. Entering a person's mind always started off chaotically. Colors, displaced images, sounds, emotions all over the place. When he entered the main area of Naruto's mind it had considerable calmed down. Inoichi walked through the tunnels of water stained walls and rusted doors. This was an unusual mind. Everything looked so dilapidated… Inoichi had never seen anything like this before. He stepped toward another hall and turned down it. That was when he heard it… growling. Inoichi stepped into the bright foreboding room.
He was greeted by a large cage. Ominous chakra leaked from within it. Against the cage lay a blonde man. Inoichi recognized the man to be Naruto's mental self. He walked towards the body only to have menacing, red chakra billow out of the cage. Inoichi jumped back as the chakra takes the form of Kyuubi and remains in front of Naruto. He looked up at the evil fox demon that towered over him.
"What do you want?" The Kyuubi rumbled ominously.
"I'm checking on the boy's mental state." Inoichi said, shoving his hesitation to the side.
"That headband… you're a ninja from Konoha." Kyuubi growled. "Then the boy is safe now…"
"Yes. He was rescued." Inoichi nodded.
"Very well…" Kyuubi's chakra receded back into the cage. "Leave this room… the place you want is down the hall to the left… the black and rusted door with Konoha's symbol."
Inoichi nodded and turned away, heading back down the hall and turning left. As he reached the black and rusted door that Kyuubi spoke of, he felt nervous. Everyone mind he's ever been in has never been laid out quite like this. He wasn't sure what to expect. Most of the time, every mind he'd ventured into looked like their physical mind. He would just find the right nerve containing the information he needed. However, Naruto's mind was set up like a dark and dank building. Inoichi steeled himself and opened the door. What he saw when he stepped through was a surprise.
There was a young child that sat in the center of the room. It looked like Naruto… only feral. It had red eyes and the three whiskers were far more pronounced and… wore no clothing. He grinned a sly grin, eyes closing… he looked like a fox. Inoichi stepped forward and eyed the boy suspiciously. The boy tilted his head slightly and stood from his spot. Suddenly, a large screen began to drop down from the ceiling of the damp room. Inoichi watched it role down curiously. The boy walked over to him and looked up. He was small… looked so young… but those red eyes told Inoichi he wasn't.
"What is it you would like to see, Yamanaka-san?" The boy asked simply.
I meant to get this posted yesterday, but the Document Manager was down.... so, here it is for you today!
A little lighter… yes… a bit more optimism was thrown in.