Mysterious Familiars

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto; sadly chances are that I never will...

Chapter Four: Revival

"What the hell did you just do?!" Otoha demanded as he launched himself at Jiraiya.

Jiraiya blocked Otoha's katana with a kunai. "Relax, it's just a temporary chakra suppression seal. He should awaken in about an hour or so." Jiraiya calmly explained. Otoha growled.

"I understand temporary and suppression, but what's chakra? And what kind of seal are we talking about? Explain yourself now!" Otoha said.

"You're kidding, right?" Jiraiya said. "You really don't know what chakra is?"

"No. Should we?" Otoha replied. Jiraiya looked around at the other Konoha nins and saw that they were all thinking the same thing. 'Is this guy for real?'

"Chakra is... well, it's a blend of physical and mental energies. For the most part, only ninja are trained in its use." Kakashi said. "Therefore, only ninja can use Jutsu."

"So, chakra is just a complex form of energy?" Otoha said.

"Yes."

"Okay, now explain the seal."

"Well, like i said, it's temporary. It nearly stops his chakra flow, so that he loses consciousness. This one is specially designed to stop the flow of chakra from his second source, which makes him unique in that most other people only have one source of chakra."

"Is it in his family to have two sources of... chakra?" Otoha asked.

"No."

"Hmmm... How many other people have two sources of chakra in the world?"

"Only up to eight."

Otoha nodded; he felt he was getting closer to solving this puzzle. "Do these eight other people live around Konoha?"

"No. They live in various other villages."

"Okay... "

"Not that I'm complaining, but why are you trying to figure out Naruto's mystery?"

"That pained look in his eyes... I've seen it before... in one of my friends, who died over a century ago..." The Konoha nins looked shocked, "Back when I was still human, and not a Karas."

"So is a Karas some kind of immortal, ageless warrior?" Kurenai asked. Otoha chuckled lightly.

"Immortal? Hell no. We can still be killed. It's just extremely difficult as we are all very skilled with the sword, and we have many ways to attack. But ageless, we're... something like that..." he said.

"What do you mean? That's physically impossible, isn't it?" Shikamaru said.

Otoha and Yurine looked at each other, then smirked. "We're not bound by the laws of the living." Otoha said. Seeing the shinobis' shocked faces he explained. "I'm a spirit. Yurine-chan was the spirit of my city ... until we were transported here, that is... wherever here is." He turned towards Jiraiya, who was trying to go to Naruto again. "Hold it right there! You still need to answer some more questions. Why did you put that seal on... er, what's the blonde's name again?"

"Naruto." Kakashi supplied.

"Thanks. Why did you put that seal on Naruto?"

Jiraiya sighed and looked down at Naruto with a sad smile. "Knowing him, he's the very definition of devastated right now. You saw him yourself. He was about to either kill himself or go on a rampage with that kunai. When he wakes, he'll probably try to kill himself in some way or another. Worst case scenario, he releases the seal holding the Kyuubi within him before dying. Either way, his death will be disastrous for Konoha, whether they like it or not, be it from old age or from battle, which is highly unlikely."

"Why will his death be disastrous for Konoha?"

"Whether he or they realize it or not, we'll lose our greatest warrior. He's the ultimate fighting machine, yet he still has emotion. He never tires, he heals at an insane rate, and he packs a huge punch. If... if it weren't for him, Konoha wouldn't exist anymore."

"Why not? Surely this Konoha person could fight off a common assassin?" Yurine said.

"Konoha is a strange name for a person." Otoha said under his breath, not wanting to offend these people.

Jiraiya merely gawked, Kakashi's visible eye widened and he looked up from his book, Kurenai and Asuma looked at each other, Gai started crying, and Shikamaru muttered, "Troublesome..."

"Y-y-you! You've never heard of Konohagakure no Sato!" Jiraiya said, aghast.

"Should we have?" Otoha asked.

"We're only the greatest of the Ninja Villages!"

"Could you take us there? We'd like to check on something." Yurine said.

"Of course you can come with us! We'll even get you an audience with the Hokage." Kakashi said with a half-hearted eye smile. Seeing Otoha and Yurine's confused looks, he explained. "The Hokage is our village's leader." Otoha and Yurine said, "Ah" and nodded their understanding. "Well, let's get these three out of here." Otoha beat the others to Naruto and picked him up and put him on his back as Yurine turned towards Hinata. She gasped and froze in shock. Otoha whirled around, katana out and ready to attack, with Naruto on his back.

"What's wrong, Yurine?!" Yurine shakily raised an arm and pointed, not trusting her voice. Every one looked and their jaws dropped. "D-d-d-didn't she just have a hole in her stomach two seconds ago?" Otoha managed. No one could answer. They had a good reason to be speechless, as well. There she was, lying in a pool of her own blood. There was a rather large hole in the stomach of her shirt and jacket, and blood drenched her clothes. But what had everyone shocked speechless... was that her stomach was not gone. Where there should have been a fist-sized hole in her stomach, there was smooth, pale skin. It looked, should you take away the fact that there was a hole in her shirt, and that she was drenched in blood, that she was just sleeping.

"Impossible..." Jiraiya murmured. "Is she a Jinchuuriki too? That would explain it."

"Huh? A... Jinchuuriki? What's that?" Otoha asked.

"Jinchuuriki: Power of Human Sacrifice; Containers of the Nine Great Bijuu." Kakashi answered.

"Umm, what's a Bijuu?"

"A Bijuu is a tailed demon. There are nine in all, the weakest, the Ichibi, having only one tail, and the strongest, the Kyuubi, having nine. The Kyuubi is the one that Naruto carries. Each Bijuu is twice as powerful as the one that came before it. So the Nibi, or Two-tailed Cat, is twice as strong as the Ichibi, the One-tailed Tanuki; the Sanbi, twice as powerful as the Nibi, and so on, and so forth, all the way up to the Kyuubi."

"So to make things simple, the Kyuubi is exponentially stronger than any of the other eight? So Naruto is the most powerful being in this world?" Yurine said.

"Err... why would you say that?" Asuma asked.

"From what we've been told, Naruto has almost limitless energy on his own, he has two sources of nearly limitless energy to draw upon, and from my analysis of his body, he's capable of tearing apart a ten-foot thick steel wall with his bare hands. He also has the power of the most powerful being in this world at his disposal, thus making him the most powerful being in this world." Yurine ticked off these facts as she spoke. The Konoha shinobi mulled this over and nodded.

"I guess you're right. He is the most powerful being in this world." Jiraiya said proudly. Otoha closed his eyes and stood stock still. "What's he doing?"

Yurine looked at Otoha. "He's observing Naruto-sama's memories. It's a technique that he developed in his free time, to use against the Mikura. Mikura are demons who have forsaken their world and become robotic monsters." Otoha's eyes snapped open, blazing with suppressed fury.

"Yurine." he said stiffly.

"What's wrong, Otoha-kun?"

"I wish to kill them." Everyone but Yurine paled at this. "All of them."

"Why?"

"This is him."

"The one whose reincarnation you have been searching for?"

"Yes. This is Reiji. And everyone in this room has wronged him horribly at some time or another in his lifetime here."

"Ummm, Otoha-san, please... rethink this. You don't know for sure if Naruto is your friend from a century ago. His spirit could still be with Kami or Shinigami, waiting for another chance." Kurenai pleaded, terrified. Otoha turned his glare on her, silencing her.

"Perhaps you didn't hear Yurine. Perhaps she didn't fully explain to you the intricacies of my technique. I can look through all of his memories- even the ones that he, himself doesn't have access to- just by concentrating on a certain part of his mind. He is my friend. And I don't take kindly to people distracting my friends, so that they can slash their throats!" Otoha turned towards Kakashi. "Or, people who shove balls of lightning through my friends' chests." He turned this time to Gai. "Nor do I take kindly to people threatening shopkeepers, in order to keep him from buying the things they need!" Otoha's eyes were starting to quite literally glow with anger at this point, as he turned towards Asuma. "People who test out new attacks on people for no reason other than the fact that they have a demon inside them are also on my hit list." Finally, Otoha turned to Shikamaru, who, like all the other living, conscious people in the room, was shaking in terror and having trouble drawing breath from the amount of killing intent being radiated by Otoha. "And so are people who paralyze my friends in order for others to attack them with impunity. You, however, have tried to redeem yourself, so for that, I will let you live. But you," Otoha said, not even glancing at Jiraiya, "your fate shall be determined by Yurine. You sicken me. You, his godfather in this life, were nowhere to be found. Where were you when he needed you most? Well? Where were you? ANSWER ME!" Otoha roared.

"I... I was..." Jiraiya struggled to speak.

"Don't lie to me, or I will cut you down where you stand." Otoha warned Jiraiya.

"I was... I was tracking a traitor to the village!" Jiraiya gasped out. Otoha glared at him.

"Instead of fulfilling your duty as his godfather? You are a coward!"

They were interrupted by a still unconscious Naruto muttering, "Hinata... please... come back... I need you... I love you..."

Kakashi couldn't help but chuckle. "He really does love her. He doesn't just love her, though, he's got it bad. It's no wonder he went insane when he thought she died. She must have been his last link to sanity." He mused. "With her out of the picture, he probably would've wound up like Gaara a long time ago." Jiraiya shuddered at the thought. "Ummm, let's- DAMMIT!" Kakashi cursed. Sasuke and Orochimaru were gone, and carved into the wall were the words, "The Snake Lives on, To Lead The Coming Storm!" Kakashi read this message out loud, then cursed again.

Naruto stirred, baring his fangs and murmuring, "Curse you... Hebi-teme... it's your fault she's gone..." Suddenly, the seal on his forehead burned away. Jiraiya was terrified.

"W-w-what?! B-but, how?! That was one of my best suppression seals that I designed specifically for him! It's supposed to last at least an hour!"

"Maybe you made a mistake?"

"Maybe... but it was still supposed to-" Naruto growled, interrupting him. "You! Let him go! Quickly!"

Otoha was confused. "Why?" Naruto woke and threw Otoha to the ground. He pounced, landing on a shocked Otoha and rearing his hand back to strike. Kurenai quickly put him in a Genjutsu, while the other jounin senseis moved to pry Naruto off of Otoha. It seemed, however, that Naruto had other plans. With a loud roar, he violently flared his chakra, in the process breaking the Genjutsu and blowing everyone away. He looked around, a pained look on his face. When his eyes landed on Hinata, his pained look turned to rage. He looked around again, this time with a murderous look in his eyes. When his sight landed on Kurenai, his eyes hardened and he began to stalk forward. The Jounin, Shikamaru, and Yurine squirmed uncomfortably as Otoha placed himself between Naruto and Yurine, and Jiraiya looked for another suppression seal.

"Uh, Kurenai?" Asuma asked nervously.

"Y-Y-Yes?"

"What happened in that Genjutsu of yours?"

"I was going to let him see Hinata and then pummel Sasuke and kill Orochimaru." Kurenai said, then realized her mistake and started sweating, as did every other living person in the room.

"You... do realize that that stunt you just pulled, he's taken that as an insult... right?" Suddenly Naruto was encased in sand. "Gaara!"

"What happened? Why is he acting as I used to?" The redhead said in his monotonous, robotic voice. He added some killing intent to his next question. "What have you done to Uzumaki Naruto?"

"It wasn't us! It was the Uchiha!"

"Then why is he attacking you?" Gaara deadpanned.

"The Uchiha killed Hinata, thereby severing his last link to sanity." Shikamaru said. "We were trying to calm him, but somebody," he shot a glare at Kurenai, "got the bright idea to put him in a Genjutsu where he saw Hinata. The rest is history." Naruto roared, another tail forming within the sand.

"WHERE ARE THEY!! I'LL KILL THOSE BASTARDS FOR KILLING HINATA!" As Naruto continued to struggle, the sand gradually constricted around him, tightening its hold until he couldn't even twitch a finger. "Let me go, Gaara!" Naruto demanded. "Let me go so I can kill those bastards!"

"Calm down, Uzumaki Naruto! I won't release you until you do!"

Naruto's mood took a complete 180. The Demon Fox's Cloak slowly faded away, leaving him drained, exhausted, and devastated. "But Sasuke killed her, Gaara!" A single tear ran down Naruto's cheek. "He killed Hinata..." Naruto whimpered, head bowed in submission. Gaara was shocked. "I could have saved her, but I was too weak..." A tendril of sand suddenly smacked Naruto across the face.

Naruto didn't respond, which surprised everyone.

"What happened to the Uzumaki Naruto who taught me to protect others? The one who taught me that a life lived for others is worth living? The Uzumaki Naruto who worked hard and never gave up?" Gaara shot off these questions one after another.

"He's... dead inside." Everyone gasped except Gaara, who merely nodded in understanding of Naruto's feelings.

"I understand. I felt the same way when I found that my uncle hated me." Gaara said. He released Naruto, allowing him to go to Hinata and pick her up, not noticing that her wound had healed.

"Let's get her back to Konoha; give her a proper burial."

"Naruto, wait!" Kurenai said. Naruto turned around, holding Hinata bridal style, and looked at Kurenai with dead, lifeless eyes.

"What now, Kurenai-san?" he said, his voice cold and lifeless as well. Kurenai flinched at the sound of his voice.

"Naruto, look at her stomach. You'll like what you see." she said.

Naruto did as Kurenai suggested and looked at Hinata's stomach. He was shocked to see smooth, pale skin instead of a gaping hole. He stared in shock for a few moments, then a smile broke out on his face.

"She... she's alive... I can hardly believe it..." he murmured. Naruto checked Hinata's pulse, and was pleased to find that it was strong. Faint, maybe, but strong, none the less. Naruto started to shed tears of joy.

"I can't believe this! She's alive, she's actually alive!" He looked down at her face, still smiling, and quietly said, "I can't wait until she awakens. We've got so much catching up to do." Hinata stirred the moment he said this, and slowly opened her eyes, which were unfocused and unseeing.

"It's... it's so dark... w-w-why can't I see anything? W-w-where am I? I-I-I'm so s-s-scared!" She spoke quietly, still hanging limply in Naruto's arms. Her face showed her panic as her unseeing eyes darted back and forth. Naruto moved to calm and comfort her.

"Hina-tenshi, calm down." If possible, Hinata became even more panicked.

"Wh-wh-who are y-you? W-w-where are we? A-and h-how do you kn-kn-know my n-n-name?"

"I'll answer your questions in order. I'm Naruto Uzumaki," Hinata's eyes widened slightly, "We're in the Sound Village, Otogakure," Hinata's eyes widened even more, "And I know your name because we went to the Academy together, and... I love you."

"Naruto-kun..." Hinata whispered. "We... we are still alive... right?"

"Yeah," Naruto whispered soothingly. "We both are." Tears started welling up in Hinata's eyes.

"N-N-Naruto-kun!" She said as tears started running down her face. I-I-I'm s-s-so s-sorry! I-I w-w-was u-useless! I-"

Naruto said, "Hush now, Hina-tenshi. We all know that's not true." Hinata looked confused.

"All?"

"All, as in, the Konoha 11, our Jounin senseis, and Jiraiya-sensei." Naruto replied. "Now hold still while I see if I can restore your sight." Hinata nodded weakly as Naruto gently laid her on the ground. Naruto then zoomed in on her eyes using his chakra and saw that the jolt of electricity had misaligned and fried her optical nerves. "Hina-tenshi, this might hurt some," he warned her. "Try not to move your head, okay?" Hinata merely nodded, signifying that she was ready. "Alright, here goes." Naruto started gently and gradually moving Hinata's nerve back into position.

'Tenshi-chan...' Naruto thought as he worked.

'I wish I could give you...'

Naruto continued to realign the nerve.

'The world...'

The nerve was halfway there.

'But all I can give you...'

Naruto kept concentrating.

'Is my heart...'

The nerve was nearly there.

'My love...'

Naruto reconnected the nerve, made sure it was securely in place, and made sure it wasn't twisted.

'And your sight back.'

Naruto shot a miniscule amount of the Kyuubi's chakra through Hinata's newly realigned optical nerve, healing it and reattaching it to her eye.


The Jounin were worried. None of them knew anything about sight-restorative medical jutsu, and they were sure that Naruto didn't, either.

Until now.

Naruto, living up to his reputation as the #1 unpredictable ninja of Konoha, suddenly comes out with a new medical jutsu capable of restoring a person's sight! Naruto, of all people! Naruto!

However, when Hinata smiled and gasped, "I can see again!" all doubts were erased.

"Naruto? When did you learn that technique?" Jiraiya asked, erasing any possibility that it was him that taught it to Naruto.

"I developed it on my own a few years ago," he replied, as he hugged Hinata. "Are you OK, Hinata?"

"It still hurts a little, but yes, I'm fine. Thank you, Naruto-kun." Hinata responded.

Naruto sighed. "That was just one eye, though, Hinata-chan. We've still got one more to go." Hinata smiled and nodded, letting Naruto lay her back down as Kiba burst back into the room.

"Hinata! What are you doing to her, you bastard?! Stop desecrating her!" Kiba hollered at Naruto.

"Kiba," Naruto said as Kurenai restrained him. "Shut up. I'm restoring her sight."

"How can you do that if she's... if she's..."

"She's not dead, if that's what you're trying to say, Kiba. Right Hinata-chan?" Naruto said.

"Mmhm." was Hinata's response, to Kiba's great surprise. Naruto finished repairing her eye a minute later and wiped the sweat from his brow.

"Done and done." he said as he picked her up. "Alright, now let's get back to Konoha." He looked around and saw the looks the Konoha 11 were shooting him.

"What?"


I'm very sorry I made you wait this long. I ran out of paper to prewrite, so i had to wait for my next paycheck, then I had to finish writing it out. Again, I'm very sorry. I'll post my next chap when I hit 45 reviews, so review, review, review! I can't improve without your input! Deaths Aprentis, Sayin', Peace!