Chapter 9: A golden bird

A/N: Sorry for the very late update! I actually finished this chapter a long time ago, but when I was going to save it after I made a small change (changing 'a' to 'e'), my computer decided that it had no more electricity and shut down. When I managed to reopen it five minutes later, I lost this document and so, the result of two days of no sleeping went flying out of the window. And I spent so much effort in finishing it! (Not sleeping when you have to help at your dad's restaurant everyday from 9AM to 8PM is really hard, and I had regular headache. My head is still pounding now.) So I had to rewrite it all over again. Just great. I was SO frustrated! And so that was how I discovered the funny fact that I actually have less time to write during summer. Okay, let's stop talking about the story of my life and let's read! Enjoy!

Warning: this chapter contains major spoiling!


''If humans are white and demons are black, then ninjas are definitely grey. But humans are not white, for all the crimes within their own society and the darkness in their hearts. The only true untainted being are- and will hopefully remain as it is- children. No child can be corrupted since they are too small, young and innocent to be touched by the darkness, and this also applies in the demon world after it was 'created'. But as those children grow, year after year, their mind will mature and they will begin to see the darker side of the world, where criminals and even darker beings lead their existence, and that will be their first but not last contact with it. A shadow will soon begin to grow in their heart; first fear and then sadness. Because of this, a pure soul is rare, only seen once in a few hundred years. But those children who possess it often don't survive long enough to be noticed, their light too bright for the darkness to ignore. And so they were devoured, one after another, until one didn't appear for a thousand years.

During that time, obscurity had already claimed the third and the second realms of life because of the lack of pure beings, and had turned their eternal inhabitants into demons and selfish mortals, leaving the residents of the first and original realm to fear for the safety of this universe. After numerous fruitless meetings, they finally decided to choose the next pure female mortal and give her the power her ancestors lost. She was to be born in 24 years in the royal family as a princess: Otsutsuki Kaguya.

She was to remain pure until she give birth to a child who also will be pure; the first child of prophecy. The princess was given the fruit of the Shinju, and she merged with the holy tree after committing the taboo of consuming the fruit, becoming the progenitor of Seimei no Kigen, as the residents of the first realm call it. Kaguya had two sons who were the first humans to be naturally born with Seimei no Kigen in their body in recorded history. Only one of them survived the darkness, in their case war: he was the said child of prophecy, Otsutsuki Hagoromo. He will be later known as the Sage of Six Paths, and he was considered as equal to the residents of the first realm by the humans and the demons due to his unearthly powers. Later in his life, by sealing his mother along with the Juubi she created in order to retake his power that she believed was rightfully hers, he erased the darkness from the Earth and was rewarded with a fitting gift after his death; he became the first human inhabitant of the first realm, and so a new God came into existence. But as time passed, the darkness grew again in his descendants as they fought, longing for more of that power in their body they called chakra. Those who gained special chakra this way then created their own clans as they were the only ones who managed to survive the endless battles, and the dominant clans were direct descendants of the Rikudou Sennin: the Uchiha, the Senju and the Uzumaki. These clans formed an alliance and managed to stop the wars by winning every battle, forcing the minor clans into submission. After 400 years of peace, conflict rose anew between the Uchiha and the Senju, ending the treaty their ancestors created and freeing the minors clans under their rule. Some remained loyal, like the Inuzuka or the Aburame, while others took this opportunity and declared war upon the three great clans, like the Kaguya clan. That was the beginning of the warring era which eventually let to the first shinobi war, and at its end the foundation of the five main ninja villages. Every clans that survived were nursing their wounds, and they all recovered after 3-4 generations, but one didn't: it was the Uzumaki clan of Whirlpool country. Caught between the conflicts of those they called brothers and sisters, they suffered the most damage and payed a heavy price: their most powerful warrior in a thousand years, Uzumaki Usui, their clan head, and his summoning scroll that was said to be a gift from Kami herself and passed down by the Sage of six Paths. Rumors said that it was hidden, simply waiting for the next summoner who would be deemed fitting, but after many searches, the clan finally abandoned the idea of recovering it. And so ended another grim chapter of the history of this world.''

''But their glory didn't end there, for their clan to be the closest related to the Sage by blood and the only one who ever gave birth to pure beings after his death... beings that were later called 'Fumetsu', or Immortal. Beings that were said to be parents of all children chosen by the Gods. Don't forget that part, my child. And I still have plans for the Uzumaki clan, since I can't allow my own blood to be shed more than necessary.''

''Mother!''

''Greetings, Mother. But for you to show up yourself... is it already time?''

''Patience, my child. It is still too soon. The remaining bearers of the golden Heart still have not activated their power. They didn't pull the trigger, as you would say. I only came to warn you that the third Heart is quite unstable right now, so I need you to watch over him until he heals completely. He needs to be healthy when he will become a vessel to your last brother.''

''Understood. But can I send 'them' out already? They have waited for far too long already for their liking... and they just can't stop annoying me.''

''Ah yes, the accommodators. Do as you wish, my child. It is your decision to take after all. But don't do anything too soon, or you may disrupt the balance again. I suggest waiting at least a few weeks. Be patient, since you have always been the 'problem child' in the family. And Hikage, don't let your brother get out of your sight, understand?''

''Yes mother.''

''Mother, do you still need to treat me like a baby? I am the oldest sibling and yet...''

''Raise, you may be older than your sisters in age, but they are more mature than you will even be in a few centuries. So do not protest.''

''... Yes Mother.''

''Mother, my children are calling. The newest clan is already causing trouble. It seems my charges are getting impatient as well as 'them'. May I leave?''

''Please do. Hikage, Raise, you can go with Tendo. I do not have a reason to delay you further if your sister cannot be present to this meeting.''

Two nods later, three swirls of fire, each a different color, rose from the earth and disappeared in the clouds, leaving the woman called Mother alone.

''Soon, my child. The time is arriving...'' the divine creature said softly while rubbing her slightly showing belly, then looked at the sky and smiled sweetly, showing her perfect white dentition, her eyes shifting from cerulean to a dark gold, and vanished after throwing an amused gaze toward a specific spot in the forest behind her, her gracefully flowing kimono leaving an afterimage of a snow-white bird. No trace of her passing was left when a group of bloodied and battled masked shinobi emerged in the now empty clearing a second later. But the birds were singing in unison and the flowers seemed to be more beautiful than ever, forest green leaves dancing in the air around one certain unconscious Anbu, and for a moment, behind his mask, golden eyes shone instead of sky blue before closing again, and in the depths of those eyes, a tiny heart began to beat.

'Mother...'


In the meantime, at the hospital, a red haired girl was standing nervously in front of a room, pacing in the corridor from time to time, always coming back standing in front of the same wooden door. She didn't seem to notice the exasperated nurse beside her.

''Ano, Naruto-san? Naruto-san!''

''Ha-hai!''

The nurse only sighed. ''Naruto-san, you don't have to be so tense. We are just doing a checkup for Kushina-san. We are not going to operate her or anything.'' To tell the truth, the nurse had no idea why the kunoichi in front of her would be this worried about someone she just met half an hour before, but what can she say? She was also worrying about the red head even if she only met her a few times. Kushina's personality was very charming, and the nurse can't do anything other than think of the girl as a friend. Charm was also something the taller red head didn't lack of, it seemed, as she had discovered earlier. Maybe they are related? It is highly possible considering the uncanny resemblance between those two. Perhaps sisters or cousins?

''If you want, I can show you where you can wait for us to finish. I don't think standing in front of this door for hours will be very comfortable.''

''... okay, if you insist...'' Naruto started hesitantly. The nurse smiled, and she began walking toward the stairs. Naruto followed, and she soon found herself again on the first floor. They passed by a few shinobi in fresh bandages and a doctor, who all smiled at her warmly and those who can waved a hand as well. 'Just like back home', the girl thought bitterly. They walked pass the front door, where the guards were standing, and she noted two faces that she didn't recognize from earlier. 'The Nara and his comrade must be reporting to the Hokage by now', Naruto smirked in amusement. The Hokage is in for a hell of a meeting, and she couldn't help but feel a little bit sorry for him. She soon brushed the feeling aside. When they arrived in a small room with a dozen rows of chairs, the nurse stopped walking and turned toward her.

''Here we are,'' she said.

''Thank you, nurse-san.'' Naruto bowed slightly to the other woman, who simply waved it off while shaking her head, and this action seemed vaguely familiar to Naruto.

''Call me Misaki, Naruto-san. You can't call me 'nurse-san' forever, can you? I have a feeling that we are going to see each other soon, and I don't want you calling me Haruno-san either, there are too much of us running around in the hospital.''

'Haruno? So that's where I've seen it before...' Naruto realized; Sakura had done the same motion the first time they've met. He didn't doubt it was genetic, since her own habit of rubbing the back of her neck when she was embarrassed also came from her parents. She knew since she had met both of them in her mind a few years ago, when the war barely started and no one had died yet. But a question was still left. Noticing the red head looking at herself with a curious gaze, Misaki blinked and soon realized what was the unspoken question.

''I see you're wondering why I don't have bright pink hair like my fellow clanswomen?''

''Ho-how did you-'' Naruto stuttered. Does this woman read people's mind? She's not even a Yamanaka!... Or is she?

''Simple, everyone ask me that.'' Naruto flinched a little bit. It surely would have been annoying if you were asked the same question again and again. Misaki simply cracked a grin, so similar the the one Naruto once carried in her youth.

''Have you ever seen a kunoichi with hair more noticeable than pink? I would rather have it red or even blond, at least you can hide yourself in the desert in wind country! Even purple is better, at least it looks like dried blood! Pink is also considered the most girly color and it's an insult of the highest caliber to a kunoichi like myself! It is a horrible color in my opinion, we'll be spotted right away and that's the last thing we would want on a mission short of dying!'' she ranted, then continued in a more subdued voice after a passing doctor shot her a warning glance, making her blush. ''So when on duty, I and the other female ninjas in my clan use to cover it with a hood or dye it since a genjutsu would be too easy to be seen through by a sensor type, and we have plenty of those during the war. I usually use the hood because dye can be washed off by water and there is plenty of shinobis with a water affinity around, but the there was a storm during my mission, and I just found by luck a shop where they sell anti-water dye, so I used it. I simply didn't have time to get it off. And of course the Haruno men don't need pink as a hair color since birth. It's so unfair!''

'Ah... it's one of Saku-chan's moodswings...and that's why Saku-chan always wear a hood during the war... I guess it makes sense, but then wouldn't we see more ninjas with hoods running around? Well, this will be a matter to reflect on later.'

''Misaki-san, I think that pink would suit you rather well...'' That was totally true; the Haruno woman was beautiful with her big emerald eyes and her shoulder-length hair, the brown making the forest green of her eyes stand out-Naruto was sure pink would do just as good, maybe better- and even if she is considered short for a 25 years old woman- she's around 1m55 wearing dark-brown combat boots with heels- it only makes her look younger as she was not as 'developed' as other women her age.

Misaki smiled and a light pink colored her cheeks. ''Why thank you, you're the second person to say that to me.''

''Second? And who is the first?''

Suddenly, Misaki's mood had considerably darkened and she looked sad. Realizing her mistake, Naruto promptly apologized, only to be cut off by a weak attempt at smiling by her new friend.

''It's okay, it just takes time to... you know... forget.''

''I understand, and I'm sorry...''

''I told you, it's okay. Now I have to leave, I still have plenty of patients to visit and I'm already late...'' she looked at her wrist watch, ''by 45 minutes!'', and ran off quickly without saying goodbye. But Naruto knew better than to believe her, and she silently activated sage mode to track the Haruno. True to her instincts, the woman ran out of the hospital by the back door and ran toward a training ground the Uzumaki was quite fond of, training ground 7, instead of heading toward her bureau. She passed it and stopped not even a minute later, right in front of a rock standing a little bit higher than her waist. If looked closer, one would be able to distinguish names engraved in the stone, covering half of it in small kanjis. Naruto sighed and turned off sage mode after giving a mental tap the the woman's shoulder. She didn't want to spy in what was not hers to see. It was not as if she needed to, as she already knew pretty much what the kunoichi was about to do; she herself had done it plenty of times already in the 'past'.

Naruto didn't notice that Misaki had put a hand on her left shoulder, rubbing a spot as if someone had given a small tap to that place with a little bit too much power.


One day earlier, in the forest surrounding Konoha

''Did you bring what we need?''

''Yes sir. I made sure I was not followed. I already took care of our spy.''

''Good, Tsuchikage-sama did not want any witness. We are beginning the invasion in a week, gather our men.''

''Yes sir!''

On the black haired man's forehead was a Iwa hitai-ate.


So, what do you think? Oh, and the whole accommodator and Heart thing will be explained later... in a few chapters... I think... and please REVIEW!