Well, here's Chapter 1 of the story of Destinies! I do so hope you all enjoy!
Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. All rights go toMasashi Kishimoto.
All one could see was a sea of barren land, untouched by rain, and ungraced by life for a long millenia stretching as far as the eye could survey. Impossibly, from that barren land sprouted a sapling that grew into a majestic tree that reached the heavens. Its roots as thick as a hill, stretching as far as a mountain a range and its branches as sturdy as stone, a small fruit bearing upon the highest of the branches. Soon after, life started to bloom onto the barren wasteland.
There, three birds came to rest. One was of majestic white and blue plumage with hints of green which made it's home on the highest branches of the tree, setting itself a nest in which to rest. The second bird came to rest upon the lowest of the branches, this one was black, gray and white in its coloration; it's home closer to the ground so as to strike and grab its prey that would lie on the ground all the quicker. The third bird made it's home in the middle branches of the tree, it's home hidden amongst he foliage. The bird was colored red, black and gold in its plumage. Over time, the birds would come to slowly absorb the inherent enerygy that was produced by the great tree.
Years passed and eventually, man made its way into the land; settling themselves upon it, but never daring to approach the great tree which they would eventually come to call and worship as the Shinju Tree. It was thought to be a pillar to heavens and that any that came close to the tree would shrivel and die like a sapling would in the greatest desert. Eventually, violence and war made its presence felt on Earth and man was quick to answer it's call. The dirtied and shed blood of man seeped into the ground and deep into the Earth, which greatly upset the balance of which everything was made. Of course, man paid no heed to the foreboding warnings that greater beings had given and continued on in their slaughter.
Soon, a young woman dared herself to venture to the tree, seeking peace and sought to end the bloodshed that mankind had dawned on itself. Her eyes and heart set on the Forbidden Fruit that rested amongst the top most branches of the Shinju Tree, one that was said to bear great power and yet was forbidden by mortals to touch and consume. She quickly offered a prayer to the gods to give her their blessings and started her venture to the top of the tree, her prayer unknowingly being heard.
Apart from the Shinju Tree, mankind also came to respect and fear three more godlike beings that came into existence. These beings were called the Sora no Kamigami (1); one of which was Eisei (2), the bird of life and ceation who sat atop the Shinju Tree, a creature who would later become associated with Luck and Victory; Eisei was worshipped greatly by mankind. It was said that if one received a feather from it, that person would gain eternal life. It's symbol was water, meaning purity and was associated with springtime.
The next was Zetsumei (3) the Harbinger of Death and Destruction. Zetsumei was said to bring famine, disease and death wherever it went, making sure that all who fell in its wake died soon after. It was said that if one had the misfortune of seeing the Bird of Death, said person was to die in twenty-four hours. Zetsumei's symbol was steel meaning cold and unforgiving and it was associated with winter time. It was also related with Loss, Misery and Suffering. Zetsumei lived amongst the lower branches and quickly took the life of any who dared near the tree.
The last was Fukkatsu (4) who was the Bird of Rebirth, Order and Chaos. Fukkatsu was said to bring either harmonious order or dastardly chaos to wherever it appeared, and was seen as a messanger or warning of fortunes or hardships that were to surely come. Out of the three, Fukkatsu was seen the most. It was associated with Mid-summer and its symbol was fire meaning either something that could burn or something that could harm you as well.
Eisei heard the woman's wish and granted it. With a great screech, it left its perch and appeared next to the surprised woman and carried her to the top most of the tree with great speed and set her down upon the branch which was bellow the tree limb that held the Shinju's Forbidden Fruit. The woman, Kaguya, seemingly understood, reached up, and took the fruit from the tree's branch.
The Bird of Life watched as Kaguya consumed the fruit and then nothingness had occured.
Uzumaki Naruto jolted suddenly from his sleep on his bed with a start and gasped, clutching at his chest as he tried to regain his breathing.
'You have to be kidding me! Again?!' he thought with great irritation. 'Why do I keep getting these stupid dreams?!'
Though at the back of his mind, he somewhat knew these were different. Dreams were subconscious thoughts and images projected by one's brain, these felt too real. Memories almost, of a person who he never was and had never met.
Naruto looked at his alarm clock and to his surprise; read 6:30 am. He took a look outside his window and saw that indeed, the sun had yet to rise above the Hokage Mountain and its rays were just barely peeking out behind said fixture. He tiredly got up, yawning and stretching before erupting into a great big grin. He dashed into the bathroom, washing himself and putting on his beloved orange jumpsuit, before eating his breakfast that consisted of two cups of instant ramen and a glass of orange juice. He was about to take the milk that he had in the refrigerator but his keen sense of smell recoiled when he opened the milk carton to pour its contents into a glass. He glanced at the expiration date and sighed in relief before throwing the carton into the trash bin. He then wisely settled for a glass of orange juice instead.
'Today's graduation day!' he thought with much anticipation as he stepped out of his apartment, locking the door behind him and making his way to the Academy. He was finally gonna show the entire village who Uzumaki Naruto was, get a date with Sakura-chan, and beat the teme Sasuke!
'I'll show 'em!" he grinned at the thought. 'I'm gonna be Hokage, dattebayo! And nothing's getting in my way!'
He was rather early at the Academy, only two other were in the classroom before he was. He internally growled as he saw Uchiha Sasuke, his rival, sitting in his usual seat near the window; brooding away without a care in the world.
'Heh,' he internally reminisced. 'I'll show him who's the best!'
With a great desire to be as far away from the last Uchiha as possible, Naruto chose to sit at the back of the class. Within minutes, with his head down on the desk, he promptly dozed off into dream land.
...
Naruto was suddenly woken in his seat as he heard the door suddenly slam open with a loud bang. Quickly regaining his bearings, he saw the blonde Yamanaka Ino and his crush, the pink haired Haruno Sakura arguing at the door, their foreheads clashing with one another, their eyes ablaze with fury.
"I got here first Ino-butta! I get to sit next to Sasuke-kun!" the pink haired kunoichi yelled.
"In your dreams Dekorin!(5)" the platinum blonde refuted. "As you can see, your foot is fifteen milimeters-short from mine!"
From where Nara Shikamaru sat, he raised his head, took one glance out of curiosity, and set his head down again.
'I don't see it...' he winced at the loud shrieking contest that seemed to have no apparent winner. 'Mendokusai...' Shikamaru tilted his head slightly and saw the Uchiha seemingly grunt. At least they appeared to share the same sentiment...
Naruto grinned. "Hey Sakura-chan!" he exclaimed cheerfully. "You can have the seat next to mine!"
Sakura froze and looked at him with a murderous glare. "Shut it, Naruto-baka!" she screeched. "This has nothing to do with you!"
Naruto glumly sunk back down into his seat.
Thankfully before the screeching match could continue, a small cough interrupted; both kunoichi blinked and turned their heads. Standing behind them was their sensei Umino Iruka with a twitching eye, and his assistant, Mizuki, who was currently wincing and rubbing his ears. Both Ino and Sakura yelped before jumping back, and bowing their heads in fear.
"Gomen'nasai sensei!" they yelled.
Iruka sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. "What am I gonna do with you..." he irritatingly asked.
'Why not gag them?' was the consecutive thought that ran amok across many of the minds of the students in the classroom, and, surprisingly, even the assistant Mizuki's. The thought even lingered in Iruka's mind before being shoved away.
"Ino, Sakura, take a look at the seat beside Sasuke," Iruka managed to breath out. "It's occupied..."
To their credit, they actually did look and saw that someone had indeed occupied the only seat next to their precious Sasuke. The poor civillian student seemed to shrink in his seat as the heated glares poured off of Ino and Sakura aimed right at him.
Many males in the class prayed to any deity that would listen for their fellow male's safety, and possibly, masculinity...
Muttering their apologizes, Ino and Sakura sulked off and took the seats in the middle of the room, but not before shooting one dark glare each at the student who had taken what they believed to be their rightful seat. Iruka gave one last sigh before he entered the room.
"Alright everyone," he said, calling out to every student. "You've all worked hard to get here and now is your chance to prove why you are deserving of these hitai-ate, and of the title of Konoha shinobi,"
Naruto screwed his eyes as he gazed at the written exam that was laid out in-front of him. He was focusing all his mental effort to remember everything that he had read and learned from Iruka. He poured over the answers, making sure that all his efforts had not been for naught and making sure that every answer was perfect and spot-on.
Theoretical work had never been his forte. He was a learner by practical application, and had trouble glossing over and remembering over half of what he read in a textbook or a scroll over 30-minutes ago. However, give him a task which focused on actually doing something and a few tries, he would get it down eventually; and at a rapid pace as well.
By the time the blond had finished, he looked at the timer on the teacher's desk and saw that he had a mere five minutes left for the exam.
'Just barely too!' he thought in relief. He glanced over at Sakura and saw that she had already long-since finished her test, not that it was any surprise; she was arguably the smartest of their year. He switched gazes and saw, much to his pride and ire, that Sasuke had already started brooding, and apparently had been for a while, if the untouched pen on his desk was any indication.
He clenched his fist tightly. 'I'll show you teme...!'
The timer suddenly rang, signaling the end of the written portion of the exam earning many groans and yelps of anguish and panic from many students. Unfortunately, Iruka was not willing to give extensions as 'Rules were rules,' and had them all pass the exam which Mizuki collected.
Naruto sighed out-loud in relief, confident in his answers as they were all told to move outside for the practical part of the exam. Quickly joining the others, Naruto rushed over hoping to discuss answers with Sakura.
They all arrived at the kunai target practice area and Naruto took care to notice a crate full of real kunai and shuriken, unlike the practice ones that they were trained with, next to Iruka; said scar-nosed teacher turning to them and spoke.
"Alright, here's how this is going to work," Iruka explained, a clipboard at the ready in his hand. "Each of you will get ten shuriken and ten kunai each from this crate and aim for the bullseye on the target. For every hit on the outermost ring, you get a mark of seventy-five, the second outermost merits an eigthy percent. The third ring earns you a mark of eighty-six and the last ring earns you an even ninety-six. Naturally, landing a bullseye will earn you a hundred and and missing the target entirely will get you a score of sixty-five and your final score will be averaged for your final score on the practical exam."
All the students nodded in understanding.
"Okay, we'll do this in alphabetical order," Iruka said, his voice washing over all the soon-to-be shinobi. "First up is Akihira Kazuto!"
Naruto watched intently as every student took their turn in throwing their own kunai and shuriken onto the target, with Iruka writing down the appropriate mark for their performance, Mizuki assisting by giving his own pointers and hints for improvement along with his own assessment. The benefit to watching others make their own mistakes was that you knew what to improve in your own technique in-order to gain the upper hand, and not repeat the same mistake. It was a slightly underhanded tactic but playing dirty was part of the way of the shinobi after all; and Naruto had plenty of time to watch and change tactics as he was to be the second last in class to be called, right after Uchiha Sasuke and before Yamanaka Ino.
He watched as several of the civillian-born students get their turn and either their weapon landing in the outer most, or third outer most ring, with one or two getting lucky and hitting near the bullseye. The clan born, however, were a different story. Most accomplished the task with expertise ease, others better than most. Naruto knew that the level of training that civillians and the clan born was different, it was still an unprecedentedly huge gap.
Aburame Shino managed to hit eight out of ten, most managing to land on the innermost rings, earning a nod of approval from Iruka. Next of the clan heirs was Akimichi Choji who scored an even seven out of ten on his turn. Following Choji was Hyuuga Hinata who, despite her awkwardness and shy tendencies, surprised everyone by getting a nine out of ten; though, it was of course naturally to be expected from a clan heir. Next was Inuzuka Kiba who scored a good eight of ten. Nara Shikamaru got a barely passing mark of seven out of ten, stating that it was "too troublesome," to try and get the perfect mark. Following the lazy clan heir was Uchiha Sasuke who got a consistent ten out of ten, much to the delight of his fangirls, to which he responded with the Uchiha trademark "Hn,". Although she wasn't clan bor, Naruto also took notice of Haruno Sakura who got a score of eight out of ten.
"Uzumaki Naruto!"
Naruto was shaken out of his musings and stepped forward for his part of the exam. He grabbed ten shuriken and kunai from the crate, setting the weapons out in-front of him. He took five kunai in each hand, and let them fly towards their target.
Thunk!
Naruto looked and was relieved to see that he most likely got an eight out of ten for the shuriken; he saw Iruka nod with approval and write down his score, motioning for him to continue on with the shuriken. Naruto did so with great enthusiasm and did the same with the shuriken as he did with the kunai.
Thunk!
The blond grinned as the four-point stars made their mark; a good nine out of ten, the scores of Uchiha Sasuke forgotten in his delight. Iruka smiled before taking down his score and motioning for him to step back for another to get their turn, something he glowingly did so.
Yamanaka Ino went last and she got the same score as Sakura, much to said girl's ire and to Ino's eternal delight and yet as she said "misfortune," as she had not shown Sasuke who the better kunoichi between them was.
Iruka, after finishing with the score, clapped his hands. "Alright, since we're done here; we're moving back to the classroom for the Jutsu portion of the exam. Everyone will go into the room next to it and perform three of the necessary Academy Jutsu to pass and you will earn your hitai-ate."
Naruto felt a chill go down his spine. It was the final test and he was not gonna fail it!
The blond Jinchuuriki watched from his seat as every student left the classroom for the one next to it, and return with big grins on their faces and with a new shiny hitai-ate somewhere on their person, with some being unfortunate enough to return with their hopes dashed and come out empty handed.
Naruto then heard his name get called and hurried into the next room for his turn in the exam. As he entered, he saw Iruka and Mizuki behind a desk, and a chair in the middle of the room right in front of them. Iruka turned to him.
"Alright Naruto," he said, overlooking from his clipboard. "Here's how this works. We'll ask you to perform the three necessary Jutsu in-front of us and, for bonus merit, you can show your own justu."
Naruto nodded.
"Alright, let's begin." Iruka said, looking at him clearly. "First: Henge no Jutsu,"
Naruto nodded, focusing his chakra, and performed the three needed handseals for the technique. In a cloud of smoke, in Naruto's place was the perfect replica of the Sandaime Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen. Iruka, if he didn't know this was a test, would have stood up and saluted the Sandaime and nodded in his approval of the Henge and saw that it was very detailed, including the liver spots on the Hokage's elderly face.
"Okay, Naruto dispel the Henge then perform the Kawarimi with the chair in-front of us."
The Sandaime-look alike nodded and in a poof of smoke, Naruto had returned and with a quick set of handseals, the chair stood in his place. Naruto had a huge grin on his face from where he now stood in-front of the teachers. Iruka wrote down the score.
"Last, Bunshin no Jutsu."
Naruto inwardly gulped but did as ordered. The Bunshin was always his worst technique, and he detested that he couldn't get such a simple jutsu right no matter how much he tried. They always came out looking dead; he prayed to Kami that it would all work out.
He formed the handseals. "Bunshin no Jutsu!"
Three puffs of smoke and there appeared three sickly- almost dead- clones, which in all honesty didn't surprise Naruto, but made him quite upset. Iruka frowned and wrote down the score.
"I'm sorry Naruto, the Bunshin is necessary for graduation. You fail," the teacher said, much to Naruto's great displeasure and dismay.
"Come on Iruka," said Mizuki, patting his friend on the shoulder. "He managed to perform the technique anyway, why not let it go?"
Iruka shook his head. "I'm sorry but rules are rules; you can go now Naruto."
The blond slowly nodded, fighting back the tears that threatened to escape him. Crying never solved anything; he wasn't about to start it right now, even if he did fail the exam and being a shinobi was part of his dream. He left the room empty handed and only, carrying broken dreams along with him.
"No one would let you become Hokage!"
The blond Jinchuuriki sat on the swing underneath the shade of the tree that sat on the grounds of the Academy, sadly watching as parents arrived to fetch their children and the children showing off their new hitai-ate.
It's not fair!
He looked on as some of the parents looked at him and noticed the lack of a hitai-ate, earning a nod of satisfaction.
I have to be Hokage...
"Hey Naruto," a voice called to him.
Naruto shook himself out of his self-wallowing and looked for the source of the voice and saw that Mizuki stood next to him.
"You okay?"
Naruto nodded. "I'm fine," he bit out.
"Don't be too harsh on Iruka," the white haired shinobi said. "He would have given you the chance if the orders didn't come from the Hokage himself."
"I know but..." Naruto strained out. "How can I be Hokage if I can't even perform a simple Jutsu?"
The shinobi smiled at him. "Hey Naruto, what if I told you that there is a Secret Exam that is handed out to failing students that allows them to become Genin?"
Naruto's eyes widened and he quickly turned to his teacher. "Really?"
The white-haired assistant nodded. "You're quite lucky I know about this, and I told you instead of anyone else. You have more potential than they do anyway; believe me, I know. (6)"
The blond Jinchuuriki gained a hardened look in his eyes. "What do I have to do?"
Hook. Line. and Sinker.
The blond grinned as he unraveled the Forbidden Scroll that he managed to grab from the Hokage's office.
'Heh, I can't believe Jiji fell for that Jutsu!' Naruto internally laughed, the picture of a Hokage flying back with a giant nosebleed from seeing his Orioke no Jutsu etched into his mind. 'The closet pervert!'
"Alright, time to pass that make-up exam..."
"All you have to do is steal a giant scroll filled with Jutsu from the Hokage''s Vault without being noticed, bring it to training ground five and learn one jutsu from the scroll in an hour and you pass!"
Timeskip: One Hour
'Heh!' Naruto grinned with satisfaction. 'I did it! I learned the Kage Bunshin! Nothing's going to stop me from becoming Hokage now!'
"Naruto...?"
The Jinchuuriki turned and grinned upon seeing his teacher and pseudo brother walk-up to him.
"What are you doing here?"
The blond grinned at his sensei. "I did as Mizuki-sensei said. It's so that I can pass the make-up exam!"
'Mizuki?!'
A faint whirling made it's way into Iruka's ears. Shuriken!
"Naruto, duck!"
The blonde quickly did so as not a second later three shuriken embedded themselves onto the tree bark where Naruto previously stood, startling the orange-clad Jinchuuriki.
"Way to ruin the moment Iruka," a voice chided. Mizuki appeared from the cover of the foliage, the darkness of the night seemed to make him more sinister.
"I was hoping to just end this quickly without having to kill anyone else, but of course, you go and ruin my fun like always!" Mizuki chided once more.
"Mizuki, what have you done?!"
"Huh? Iruka-sensei? Mizuki-sensei? What's going on?" the blond asked in evident surprise from where he was on the ground.
Iruka quickly turned to Naruto and yelled "Naruto get out of here! Mizuki's a traitor! Don't let him take the Forbidden Scroll!"
"Now now Iruka, I'm not the only one who has betrayed the trust given to them," Mizuki teased, a menacing tone present in his voice. "I mean, you do know what lies inside the boy do you not?"
Iruka's eyes widened to the size of dinner plates. "Mizuki, you can't! It's forbidden!"
The traitor merely laughed. "Good thing I'm no longer bound by Konoha's law, ne?" The snowy-haired shinobi then turned his attention to Naruto.
"Naruto, do you know why the people hate you?"
The blonde shook. "No, why?"
"Do you remember what happened the night of the first of October?"
"Yeah, the Yondaime sacrificed his life to kill the Kyuubi no Yoko to save the village," the blonde answered with confusion. "But what does have to do with anything?"
Iruka snarled. "Mizuki, shut up or I'll make you!"
"You can't stop me Iruka, that thing deserves to al least know it's true origins," Mizuki countered. "Naruto, it was all a lie. A law was placed by the Sandaime to keep you in the dark of the events that occurred that night. You see, the Yondaime didn't kill the Kyuubi; he sealed it into human form so that it would be considerably weakened and be easy to finish off!"
The blonde was rattling in fear. "W-What...? So I'm..."
The traitor laughed darkly. "Yes Naruto! You are the Kyuubi no Yoko!"
"Naruto, run... I'll hold off Mizuki so that you can deliver the Forbidden Scroll to the Hokage," Iruka coughed up a bit of blood as Naruto looked at the Fuma Shuriken that had embedded itself into his teacher's back; thrown by the white-haired traitor Mizuki in their fight.
"Iruka-sensei..."
Mizuki scoffed. "Really Iruka? You're still protecting that thing? You know you hate it as much as I do! It took away your parents for Kami's sake!."
Iruka fought back the urge to collapse. "Yes, I hate the Kyuubi no Yoko..."
Naruto looked at Iruka with betrayal seen in his eyes, and a great magnitude of fear.
The teacher smiled and looked at Naruto warmly. "But he's not the Kyuubi. He's Uzumaki Naruto, my student, the future Hokage of Konoha!" he proclaimed with pride and joy, despite his overwhelming pain. "And my Otouto..."
"You are a bigger fool than I anticipated Iruka; but a stubborn fool who refuses to stand aside and die nonetheless." Mizuki spat, grapping the another Fuma Shuriken on his back.
"NOW DIE!" He threw the giant shuriken, the blades spinning menacingly as it flew through the air, aimed right at the scar-nosed teacher.
KLANG!
To Mizuki's utter enragement and confusement, the Fuma Shuriken suddenly halted in mid-air, a mere few feet away from Iruka, and seemed to be forcing itself against a barrier that it could not pierce, sparks of metal flying of the collision before the shuriken lost its momentum and collapsed onto the ground.
"You hurt Iruka-sensei... my nii-san..."
Both shinobi looked towards the blond Jinchuuriki who looked at Mizuki with a menacing look present in his eyes.
"You'll pay!"
He formed a cross-shaped handseal.
"Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"
Everything was suddenly covered as a huge cloud of smoke erupted before them. When it dissipated, there were, to their awe and surprise, multiple Narutos lining the tree line and surrounding Iruka in a protective barrier.
"Get 'im!" one of the clones yelled and in a simultaneous motion, they all charged.
In a comical fashion, Mizuki let out a high-pitched squeal and was suddenly buried in an orange dogpile of Naruto's who were all punching and kicking away at the white-haired traitor with obvious glee.
Naruto looked at Iruka with a solemn look in his eyes. "I'm sorry Iruka-sensei, I understand what I did wrong and if you scold and turn me in for it."
Iruka chuckled. "Naruto, close your eyes."
With much confusement, Naruto did so. Within seconds, he felt a soft fabric being tied to his forehead.
"Open your eyes,"
When he did, Naruto was shocked to see that Iruka no longer wore his hitai-ate and looked to his own forehead and saw that the missing hitai-ate now rested upon his own.
"Iruka-nii-san..."
Iruka smiled warmly, even when a trickle of blood fell from his lips. "Uzumaki Naruto, it is with great pride and honor that I pronounce you as a fully fledged Konoha shinobi!"
The blond looked ready to tackle him into a hug. "Iruka-sensei!"
"Not now Naruto! I'm injured and I don't want it getting any worse!"
"Whoops, my bad Iruka-sensei." the blonde apologized.
Iruka gave a sigh. "Let's bring the Forbidden Scroll back to the Hokage Tower, okay Naruto? After I get some medication..."
The blond Jinchuuriki grinned. "Sure thing Iruka-sensei! I'll carry the scroll so that you can rest!"
"...Thanks Naruto,"
They failed to notice a small black flower come into full bloom on the forest floor.
(Iwagakure no Sato, same time period)
"Heh," the Tsuchikage grinned at the scroll that was laid out in-front of him. "So the Raikage failed to get the Byakugan and wants to get even with Konoha by making an alliance with me?"
The BOLT Anbu that was kneeling down responded, "Hai Tsuchikage-sama,"
"Those tree huggers have always needed to be knocked down a peg or two!" Onoki laughed. "Where do I sign?"
AN: Well, that's Chapter 1 done, man am I tired. I probably won't update for a while again but I'm not sure yet as of now. Please review as it is greatly appreciated!
1. Sora no Kamigami - meaning Gods of the Sky
2. Eisei - means "Eternal Life", fitting for a creature of creation.
3. Zetsumei - means "End of Life",
4. Fukkatsu - means "To live again"
5. Dekorin - Billboard Brow, or Giant Forehead
6. Mizuki is referring to Naruto's naivety and closeness to the Hokage and does not mean Naruto's potential as a shinobi
