Iruka stared in horror at his 'friend'.
'Mizuki! Why would you... Oh no...'
'Yes, Iruka,' Mizuki answered with a laugh. 'I killed two birds with one stone. Eliminating the fox brat and defecting from the village.'
'Why would you betray your comrades like that?' Iruka shouted. Mizuki shrugged.
'It's an easy way to gain more power. Now, enough talk. Time for you two to die.'
Iruka fell into a fighting stance.
Naruto couldn't believe it.
I've been duped? There wasn't a real test? Naruto gasped as Mizuki hopped off the tree he was in and stalked towards a fallen Iruka. I have to do something, something!
Naruto had the odd feeling of being hurtled through time and space before being stabbed in the chest.
Iruka tried to bring himself to get up, but his damaged limbs protested. Mizuki had sent a strange jutsu his way, and Iruka found himself rendered defenseless.
Naruto had replaced the two of them using Kawarimi and was now about to battle head on with Mizuki, a kunai sticking out of his chest. The white-haired shinobi fell back into the trees before shouting the words Iruka never wanted to hear told to his student.
'Do you know why the villagers hate you?'
Why the villagers hate me? Naruto internally questioned. On the outside, he only looked up expectantly.
'Twelve years ago, the Kyūbi no Yōko attacked this village for no apparent reason. Hundreds - thousands, even - died that night. But, the monster was vanquished. Do you know how?'
'It was sealed inside of me, wasn't it?'
Mizuki's eyes widened. 'How do you-'
'It's pretty freaking obvious. On my birthday, the village was saved and the Kyuubi disappeared. The villagers hate me. Combine those two and you come to the logical conclusion that something happened between me and the Kyuubi. Whenever I mold chakra, a seal appears on my tummy. So, of course, the Kyuubi was sealed inside of me. It explains everything.' Naruto finished with an air of triumph and a clap of his hands.
'Iruka hates you as well-'
'Of course he did!' Naruto snapped. 'The Kyuubi inside of me killed his parents. But Iruka knows that's not me.' He turned to Iruka and his teacher nodded. A fierce look came over the blonde's face as he steeled his resolve.
Mizuki paled.
'I'm Uzumaki Naruto. You hurt my sensei. Prepare to die.'
When Naruto was finished with him, Mizuki wouldn't be getting up any time soon. Brushing himself off, Naruto ran over to Iruka, feeling for a pulse and giving a sigh of relief.
'Naru... Naruto-kun...'
'Yeah, sensei?'
'Close your eyes...' Iruka said. Naruto nodded and did as he was told. A little rustling, and warm cloth was against his forehead. 'You can... Open your eyes...'
'Wh-wha-'
'You made... Bunshin...'
Naruto brought his hand up to touch the metal plate and felt the Konohagakure symbol carved into it. He teared up slightly before pulling Iruka into a bone-crushing hug. He sobbed into his teacher's shoulder, blubbering his thanks through his tears. Iruka merely laughed lightly and rubbed his back.
Naruto didn't notice Mizuki vanishing.
There was a knock at Sarutobi's door.
'Come in.' An ANBU member materialized in front the the Third's desk. 'You may remove your mask.'
A man with a scar running across his left eyelid was revealed. One of his eyes was a deep, soulless black. The one in the socket with the mark running down its outerior, however, was a bloody red with three tomoe standing dormant with a circle connecting them and a black dot in the middle. He had a navy-blue cloth mask drawn up over his mouth and nose, and his silver hair seemed to defy gravity: standing upright and hanging slightly to the his left.
'Ah, Kakashi. Have you decided?'
'Yes, Hokage-sama.'
'And?'
'I will...' Kakashi paused, repeating and finishing his sentence with more conviction. 'I will take Naruto as my student.'
