CHAPTER FOUR
Naruto stared at the sudden intruder that barged into his hospital room with curiosity. What's wrong? He thought once he spotted the expression that was etched onto the blonde Hokage's face. Kurotsuchi spotted the expression as well and she herself eyed the Konohagakure Hokage with interest along with an expression that looked like it was made of stone. The Hokage has a face of mortification which meant that the woman didn't bring news or information.
"Wh-what's wrong?" stuttered Naruto, a bit surprised to see Tsunade's expression. Tsunade merely continued to look at the blond genin with a look of mortification and sadness. She didn't know if she should reveal the what Danzo, the elders, along with the civilian council was planning on doing. The vote hasn't started yet but Tsunade knew Danzo had most if not all of the civilian council in his pocket and it was only a matter of time before the banishment of Naruto Uzumaki was made official.
"I-" Tsunade started but stopped. The blonde Hokage usually wasn't taken by surprise often but today, of all days, she was. "Naruto..." the big breasted woman whispered in such a sad tone that piqued Kurotsuchi's interest.
Something is wrong, the girl thought with narrowed eyes. "Something is going to happen," Kurotschi stated with one hundred percent certainty. Naruto looked at the pink-eyed kunoichi in confusion, "I've heard rumblings throughout the village about something major happening; I don't know what, but it's happening."
Tsunade looked at the Iwa girl with sad eyes. She was right of course.
"Naruto...the council-" before Tsunade could finish her sentence, Naruto let out a growl that was heard by the two women in the room. The boy looked at his Hokage with narrowed eyes and clenched fists.
"What does the council want," the genin growled out with ferocity. Kurotsuchi wide eyes stared at Naruto with shock and interest, was the council of Konoha massively corrupt?
"They..." Tsunade started, "they're going to banish you," she managed to finish with a whisper. Naruto looked at the Hokage with cold eyes that were wide in shock. Banishment? He didn't do anything wrong.
"Why?" whispered Naruto.
"For unleashing the fox's power and using it to hurt the Uchiha."
"I..." Naruto tried to get out what he wanted to see but his voice left him in shock until it finally returned to him, "don't...don't they know that Sasuke used the curse mark? If I didn't use the fox's power, I would've died!" Naruto started with a whisper and ended it with a shout. Kurotsuchi flinched while Tsunade looked down at the floor tiles currently finding it more interesting than facing the anger of the blond genin.
"They do," replied Tsunade, "and they don't care."
"You're the Hokage, surely you can stop them," Kurotsuch said finally deciding to join in. Tsunade merely shook her head.
"I could but they could veto me if there's a majority vote in the council to overrule me."
Kurotsuchi looked at the Konoha Hokage in shock, 'Konoha's council has this kind of power!?' She thought in shock. Iwa's council wasn't nearly this powerful; sure they had power but to this extent? Onoki would kill them in a heartbeat for their insolence and arrogance.
"Ho-how!?" Kurotsuchi whispered in shock, "how did you let them have this kind of power?"
Tsunade snapped her head towards the pink-eyed kunoichi and scowled, "I didn't!" Tsunade shouted, "I would limit their power – gladly! Hiruzen Sarutobi was the one to let the council have this kind of power with his ignorance."
"Jiji did this?" the blond whispered. Tsunade nodded reluctantly, confirming the boy's fears.
"I'm sorry, Naruto," apologized Tsunade, "I don't know when the vote is going to take place but it'll happen soon and they're likely to succeed. I'm sorry," the woman apologized again. Naruto nodded numbly. The Hokage nodded in return and left the room. Kurotsuchi turned her head and stared at the blond with sadness.
"I'm sorry, Naruto," she stated. Her heart clenched for the boy. For his village to banish him merely for doing his job? It was despicable, "I'm so sorry," Kurotsuchi whispered painfully. Naruto looked down at his lap that was covered by medical blankets, his fists clenching and unclenching in anger and sadness. Finally, he wept. The Iwa kunoichi immediately responded by enveloping the blond boy in a tight hug.
Two Days Later
Kurotsuchi immediately noticed the change that happened within the genin. He grew colder and more distant. He would no longer talk with the enthusiasm that was once in his voice days ago – but Kurotsuchi noticed that Naruto acted warmer and more like his old self whenever he was alone with her but reverted back to this new cold Naruto whenever there were guests.
The pink-eyed Kunoichi sat on one of the hospital chairs next to the bed of the blond genin she had come to like in Konoha, something that she thought wouldn't happen to her. In her hands was a particular small black book – the bingo book. Kurotsuchi would often scour the book to keep up to date with the particularly strong or interesting shinobi in the Elemental Nations. After a few minutes of doing this, a puff of white smoke alerted both Kurotsuchi and Naruto of an intruder.
The Iwa-nin quickly stood up and was going to go into a battle stance by the presence of an ANBU mask and the female ANBU kneeling with her head staring directly at Naruto stopped her. The women broke her stare and stared at Kurotsuchi. The Iwa girl couldn't see the eyes of the ANBU member but she imagined her eyes were currently narrowed when the woman spotted her Iwagakure headband. The ANBU woman quickly turned back her attention towards the blond genin.
"Naruto Uzumaki, the council requests your presence – now," the ANBU woman said. Before either Naruto or Kurotsuchi could reply, the woman disappeared in another puff of smoke. Naruto looked down at his bandaged hands and sighed.
"So...this is it huh?" said Naruto in a sad tone. Kurotsuchi let out a sigh and nodded.
"Yes, It seems so," Kurotsuchi replied.
Naruto mimicked Kurotsuchi and let out a sigh of her own. The blond genin unwrapped himself from the hospital blanket and quickly got ready. He changed into his civilian clothing and blue shinobi sandals while the pink-eyed girl turned her back to the blond with a dust of pink on the girl's cheeks.
"You can turn around now, Kurotsuchi," Naruto said. Kurotsuchi let out a cough and did as Naruto said. The blond genin wore black parents with a green shirt along with blue sandals. Something that actually looked good compared to the orange kill-me-now jumpsuit the boy wore when she first spotted him in that forest clearing.
The pair quickly left the hospital whilst they ignored the hateful glares that several of the doctors and even patients gave them. Kurotsuchi could feel her heart clench in sympathy for the boy. How could a village treat one of their own like this; did the previous Hokage not do something to protect the boy? She shook her head, of course, he didn't if Naruto was still suffering from the abuse of the village.
As they neared the Hokage tower that housed the council room, Kurotsuchi turned and eyed the blond.
"Do you want me to accompany you inside?" she asked.
Naruto shrugged, "If you want. It won't change anything either way," Naruto replied sadly. Kurotsuchi nodded with the same sadness.
"Then I'll join you," she decided, "let's hope they don't make me murder them," Kurotsuchi joked with a chuckle as she tried to lighten the mood of sadness that hung around them. Naruto let out a hearty chuckle.
"Yeah, let's hope."
The pair finally arrived at the double doors of the Hokage tower, beside the doors were two chunin at either side. The pair of chunin gave Naruto a look before motioning with the heads that he was allowed to go in. As Naruto entered, Kurotsuchi could feel the glares the chunin pair gave the back of her head when they eyed her Iwa headband.
Naruto and Kurotsuchi made their way up the windy stairs as the entered the second floor of the Hokage Tower. A bit in front of them was the double wooden doors of the Konoha council that housed the Shinobi council and the Civilian council. The Hokage served as the head of the Shinobi council while the civilian council elected one of their own from amongst themselves to serve as the head of their side of the council. Two ANBU that stood at either side of the double doors nodded at them.
"You are expected Naruto Uzumaki," the one of the right side said as he opened the doors to let the pair in.
Naruto and Kurotsuchi slowly walked in. At the sound of their footsteps, every single pair of eyes turned to them and stared. Naruto fidgeted under the intense stares while Kurotsuchi kept her face as hard as stone, she suffered worse stares from her grandfather Onoki. The pair of ninjas stopped a few feet from the long wooden table that was placed in the middle of the room.
Naruto eyed some of the shinobis and kunoichis that sat in the room. Most were clan heads. He spotted the ANBU commander seated several places away from them. He eyed several of the council members and spotted hateful glares and sneers that were directed at him.
"Naruto Uzumaki," a voice resonated throughout the room. A voice that Naruto recognized well from an encounter he had as a small child. He turned his head and eyed a one-eyed man who was covered in bandages – Danzo Shimura. "We welcome you into our council chambers," the one-eyed man greeted with a small smile that was rarely seen on his face. Naruto immediately locked up his body in concern. A smile on Danzo's face was never a good thing.
"Wh-what do you need me for?"
"This concerns your battle with one Sasuke Uchiha," Homura said as he sat next to another elder.
"And the events that transpired during it," the sweetly sick voice of Koharu Utanane added. Several of the shinobi and kunoichi in the room shifted their bodies as the uncomfortable air in the room grew larger. Kurotsuchi and even Naruto felt it.
"You unleashed the demon fox's power," Danzo said in more of a statement than a question.
"I didn't want to but Sasuke used the Curse-"
"Irrelevant," Danzo cutoff with a thud of his cane, "you unleashed the power of the Kyubi upon the Uchiha heir and the last user of the Sharingan. What do you have to say for yourself genin Uzumaki?" asked Danzo in a low voice.
"I tried to reason with him!" Naruto shouted, "I tried and tried but he wouldn't listen!"
"He was being controlled by the curse seal," Koharu added. Kurotsuchi narrowed her eyes while Naruto mentally shook his head. That wasn't true, this was all Sasuke's choice but even if he voiced this, the elders wouldn't believe him.
"We have seen the medical files and the state that Sasuke Uchiha was brought in," informed Homura, "the amount of damage he suffered was not necessary and excessive use of force."
Naruto stood there wide-eyed at what Homura had said. Sasuke came into not that injured while Naruto came in as the most injured, very life threatening if it wasn't for the furball that was in his stomach along with the healing skill of Tsunade Senju.
"I can personally attest to the fact that the Uchiha suffered less-" Kurotsuchi tried to but in to support Naruto but was cut off by a thud of Danzo's cane.
"Shut your mouth Iwa-nin," Koharu interrupted while she sent a sneer and scowl at Kurotsuchi, "you are not a Konoha kunoichi, this does not concern you girl."
Kurotsuchi was about to step forward but was stopped by a gesture from Naruto. The pink-eyed girl closed her eyes and sighed.
"How do you explain your actions, boy?" Danzo gruff voice called out. Naruto stood there in silence as he stared at the floor. Danzo smiled as the boy stood there in silence. "It is for this reason that we have decided your punishment."
"Banishment," Homura finished. Naruto nodded in numbness. He accepted the decision, he couldn't do anything about it. The blond boy looked at the direction of Tsunade and spotted the blonde woman looking at him with tears streaming down her face.
"You will have twenty-four hours to gather your things and leave Konoha. Forty-eight hours to leave our borders. If you are caught within them, you will be executed. Do you understand, boy?" Danzo said.
"I do," replied Naruto as he stared at the floor.
"Your headband, demon," a woman's voice called out from the civilian side of the council. Naruto spotted a flash of pink hair and a sneer before he dug into his back and threw the headband at the table. A 'clink' filled the council room as the metal headband bounced once before finally settling down on the wooden table.
"ANBU!" Koharu called out. Three ANBU appeared from the shadows and kneeled before the council, "Escort this…boy to his place of residence. You will follow him for the next twenty-four hours to make sure he has left the village."
"It will be done," the three ANBU members said in unison. The three stood then turned towards Naruto and Kurotsuchi. One of them motioned toward the door. Naruto nodded and did as ordered. Naruto and Kurotsuchi along with the three ANBU swiftly left the Hokage tower and made their way towards one of the more run-down parts of the village.
A two-story building stood in front of them, graffiti art aligned some of the walls while smudges of dirt aligned them as well. Kurotsuchi eyed the building with wide-eyes. Is this where Naruto lived? Surely with the money, he's earned as a shinobi he would be able to afford at least a better place to live in. Her eyes stayed wide as she followed the blond boy up the stairs a door that Naruto opened quickly. He entered and left the door opened for his companion.
Kurotsuchi walked in. His apartment was cleaner than the outside of the building. The paint on the walls was breaking down into flakes while she spotted some patches of mold at the corners. She could tell that Naruto tried to keep the place clean despite the elements making their mark. Naruto went next to his bed and kneeled at a small spot. He reached towards the floor and opened a hidden compartment that housed what Kurotsuchi assumed was things that the blond felt was valuable to him.
"On my birthday, there are fox hunts," Naruto whispered, "they would come in and trash my place and take anything of value. Luckily, they never found this hidden compartment."
Her heart clenched further in sympathy for Naruto.
"F-Fox hunts?" Kurotsuchi stuttered.
"Yes," nodded Naruto, "the fox was sealed in me when I was born. October tenth. The villagers have a festival to celebrate while some of the more angry villagers and shinobi would try and hunt me down. Most of the time, before I was trained to be a shinobi, would catch me. They would beat me and torture me until the third Hokage would find me."
'They-they tortured you? Beat you?' Kurotsuchi thought as she stared at the back of Naruto's head, 'Naruto…how are you still you'
Naruto stood up with a black backpack. "Give me a few minutes. I need to get some scrolls and food," he said as he walked into another room. Kurotsuchi dumbly nodded and she stood by the door and waited. 'Naruto…where will you go? Do you have a place to stay, someplace where someone loves you? Probably not' she thought sadly, 'Maybe…maybe you accompany me back to Iwa? I-I never want to see you suffer again, Naruto.'
'I'll take you with me…if you want. Maybe Roshi and Han can teach you.'
Kurotsuchi was broken out of her thoughts by Naruto walking into the room with an even bigger bag than before. "Got everything?" asked Kurotsuchi with a small smile. Naruto hummed an answer and made his way towards her.
"Let's go. Better to leave sooner rather than later…no telling what the villagers will do once they know what happened."
"Yeah," Kurotsuchi whispered. The pink-eyed girl followed Naruto as he left the apartment for the very last time. They both made their way down the stairs as the three ANBU members were waiting for them.
"Come, Naruto Uzumaki. You will be escorted to the gates."
Naruto nodded. The ANBU members swiftly jumped up the building and started traveling towards the gates as Naruto and Kurotsuchi followed. Naruto eyed the village around him with sadness and anger. A village that didn't like him and didn't deserve his energetic self, loyal shinobi only to be banished for doing his duty. After a few minutes of traveling, the group jumped down and landed in front of the big imposing gates of Konoha that were a staple of the village's defense.
Naruto spotted Tsunade and Shizune along with a crowd of villagers that had already gathered, no doubt having heard the news from members of the civilian council. He spotted most of Konoha 11 along with his teammate, Sakura. The pinkette stared at the blond with a sneer as she clenched her fists at the mere sight of the blond.
Naruto walked towards the group as Tsunade made her way towards him.
"I'm sorry Naruto," Tsunade said sadly. Naruto merely waved her off.
"It's okay, baa-chan. I know you tried," he said as he used his term of endearment for the woman. Tsunade choked out a sob at it as she swiftly hugged the boy. Shizune stood next to Tsunade with her own look of sadness.
"I'm sorry as well, Naruto-kun," Shizune whispered and gave the blond a hug of her own. Kurotsuchi stood off to the side with a smile. At least Naruto had people that loved him. Shizune released the boy as she and Tsunade stepped away. Naruto let out a sigh and walked towards the gates, the murmurings of the village crowd growing louder and louder as he got closer.
"Demon!"
"Brat"
"Finally got rid of the demon!"
"The Yondaime smiles upon us today!"
"Hope you get eaten by wolves, demon!"
Naruto ignored the crowd. This wasn't anything he hadn't heard before. Naruto made it to the gates as the crowd behind him continued to shout insults. In front of him stood Konoha 11. Most of them had expressions of sadness etched onto their faces while some, particularly Sakura and Ino, had scowls, sneers, and looks of disgust aimed at the blond.
The group walked towards Naruto and offered their own apologies on behalf of their clan head parents for the decisions that they made. Naruto made small talk with them until he approached Hinata. The pale-eyed girl stood in front of his as she fidgeted with her fingers.
"Hinata," Naruto greeted.
"Naruto-kun," whispered Hinata sadly, "I-I'm sorry."
"What for?"
"I…my father," Hinata got out. Her father had informed her and the Hyuuga elders that he was voting to banish Naruto Uzumaki, something that more of the hardline Hyuuga's supported along with the Hyuuga elders, "he vo-voted to ba-banish you."
"I know," he said. Hiashi Hyuuga was never a fan of his, that much was known. "Hinata. Don't let up on your training," Naruto started, "you may not see it now. Heck, most of everyone doesn't see it – except me. You have a lot of potential. I saw it when you fought Neji."
"Naru-"
"When next we meet, I want you to be the strongest Kunoichi there is, got it?" Naruto said with a toothy grin as he outstretched his hand. Hinata looked at Naruto with wide eyes as they filled with tears. Naruto believed in her? Believed that she could be the strongest? Hinata nodded and grasped his hand in a handshake as several tears slid down her face.
Kurotsuchi eyed the exchange as happiness filled her eyes, 'another person that cares for you, Naruto'. Naruto dropped his head and nodded before he finally made his way forward and was met by the satisfied face of Sakura.
"I told you something would happen, demon," Sakura started, "this is what you deserve for what you did to Sasuke-kun."
Naruto merely looked at her with sadness – how could he have had a crush on this girl?
"It's only a matter of time until Sasuke-kun gets his revenge, and when he does, I'll be beside him as his wife, helping him. I can't wait to see you dead in the ground, demon," Sakura added as fire and adoration filled her eyes as she imagined her Sasuke-kun killing Naruto as she helped.
Naruto shook his head and walked past her, the forests that surrounded Konoha filled his field of vision. Kurotsuchi stood next to him as she adjusted the pack that was on her back with a look of anger at what Sakura had just said.
"Seriously, when will you let me kill her?" Kurotsuchi growled out.
Naruto chuckled and started walking forward. Konoha grew smaller and smaller the further away he got, this chapter of his life closed for good.
And that's chapter four! A longer chapter this time to make up for last chapter. Tell me what you think!
LordofTerror: 'my dude or dudette add more length and sustance to your story it'll make things a lot easier then having to say sorry for the short chapter and gives a reason for the longer updates.' Sorry…but I try. Sometimes I just can't squeeze more out of a chapter. Some writers can, but I can't. I'm of the mantra of, "If you're having extreme trouble with a chapter just post it and get it over with so you can move on." And that's what I do. People are going to complain about the shortness but I honestly don't care, I'll just apologize and move on.
Peter Kim: Naruto is indeed the last person Danzo wanted exiled buuut at this point, he can't control him. If he was able to get Naruto when he was younger then sure but now? Nope. Damn you Hiruzen!