Sasuke looked in the mirror. He studied his Mangekyo Sharingan in the mirror. He was standing in a small hospital bathroom. After staring some more he finally walking out of the room and into the long corridor. He passed several doors before entering room 107.
Naruto was in the bed, he was unconscious. The Shinitoris huddled around him, Ino sat in the back holding the wooden sword she was given by him the day he said he'd train her. She held on so tight the wood was slowly indenting.
Kakashi was the only one who wasn't there. He had said he was going to inform the Hokage about the event last night, but he didn't come back.
Sasuke made his way over to Ino and sat down next to her. He placed an arm on around her shoulder. "Come Ino. Do you really think he would get up and abandon us like this? It'll take more than that to kill that dunce." Sasuke said hiding the worry in his voice.
Naruto was in critical condition from the Kunai, they had severed an artery and punctured his lungs. If not for Shinoko and Tomoko he would have bled out in the compound.
Ino started to cry but remained silent, everyone in the room remained silent. Breaking the silence the door opened. In walked Kakashi and the Hokage. Two Anbu could be seen on the other side of the door as it closed.
"I see…" The third said. "You must be the Shinitoris?" He added changing his train of thought.
Shini stepped up from the bed and got closer. Nearly whispering now they continued introductions. "My sister Shinoko, and the old man is Tomoko."
"I thank you for raising my grandson the way you did. He speaks highly of you three and has told me a number of loving stories." The third responded. "I'm going to leave two Anbu with all of you at all times. I'm also going to talk to the Hospital and tell them to release Naruto, he may not be awake but we can send the best doctors to your compound. It's safer there." He added before bowing to Shini.
Once the Hokage left the room Kakashi was grabbed by the collar and pulled into Shini. "What does he mean to release him to be more safe and sound?" His voice no longer a whisper causing everyone in the room to look at him. He looked back at them with red cheeks before clearing his throat.
"The Hokage is right. This about how many people enter this building a day and if they attack again how much more would die in this hospital." Kakashi assured him as the grip was released.
Ino stood and filled Shini's place beside Naruto, where she leaned over and hugged his waist. "I'm sorry…" She repeated a few times before standing and leaving the room.
Sasuke walked up to Shinoko, he whispered something in her ear then left the room with Kakashi not far behind.
Line Break:
Sitting cross-legged in front of Kurama, Naruto's eyes opened. He was sitting a few inches off the ground, which was bronze colored with water covering it. The gate that acted as the seal was open like normal though it was chipped on one hinge, which Naruto noticed as he looked at it.
"Kurama, It's been a long while since I've been in here. Has that gate always been like that?" He asked looking the Kyuubi in the eyes.
"That boy is from when you lost control at Konoha 7," Kurama said with a grumpy tone.
He brought one his tails up close to Naruto and lifted the boy to the hinge. "You losing control weakens the seal. We both know that if I'm released… We don't want a repeat... So stop it you, runt!" Kurama yelled.
Naruto snapped up, his breathing was heavy and the heart monitor next to him was beeping like crazy. He wiped sweat from his forehead before ripping the iv and other instruments from his body.
He stood and walked out of the room. He looked crazy and dumbfounded as he stumbled through the Compound. He finally made it to the center building. He saw the Shinitoris looking frightened at him and two masked men standing in front of him with their arms out.
"Ah! You're awake!" Shinoko shouted hugging him, she lifted him into the air. The Abu nodded to Tomoko in the distance and vanished through the window.
"Mom, I'm fine. Where is everyone else?" He said to her.
"Shini went to the market to people watch. He wants to see if he can see anyone with the same symbol as the girl from the other night. Ino hasn't left her home since you came home two days ago." Shinoko answered him.
"I'll go visit her to let her know that everyone's alright," Naruto said. "Now that I'm awake...What's for lunch?" He smiled to Shinoko.
She laughed and walked to the kitchen. "I'll make your favorite."
"Awesome!" He said sitting at the bar. He watched her cook with excitement. Tomoko and them all ate and laughed.
Line Break:
At the Yamanaka house-
Naruto stood nervously, it was the first time he had been to her house since he came back to the village. While he stood staring at the door two girls came walking up to him.
"Hey creep, you going to stare all day?" Sakura said to him. He wore wasn't wearing his mask anymore so now for the first time they saw his face. Sakura was slightly red when she realized it was Naruto, Hinata was behind her with some flowers.
"I came here to see Ino." He told them.
"So did we, you really shook her up this time. She hasn't said anything or left the house for days now." Sakura responded walking up to the door. She waved to him. "Come on."
Naruto looked over Hinata as she walked past him. "Stop!" He shouted at her scaring Hinata. She dropped the flowers and they both stared at him.
"I'm sorry… You have a Byakugan right?" He said to her. Hinata nodded slowly with confusion. "I need you to scan my chakra points, we can do it later. I just need you to do it." He said with a worried tone. Hinata agreed hesitantly before they all entered the home.
Ino's parents greeted them all as they entered. Naruto, however, was given extra greetings and Ino's parents thanked him for being her sensei saying she has grown so much since he started teaching her. Naruto was red with embarrassment but kept his cool, thanking the family.
The trio made their way upstairs and stood outside her room door. Knocking on it Sakura called out to her. Nothing. Hinata tried talking to her but still nothing.
Naruto stepped forward and grabbed the doorknob. He twisted it breaking the lock and walked into the room. Ino was lying face down on her pillow, she looked up in a surprised fashion. When she saw Naruto she rolled off her bed and grabbed him in a hug.
"Everythings fine Ino, my lungs have already recovered." He said while she still hung on tight. He turned around to the other girls with a struggled face.
"What do I do?" He whispered to Sakura. Sakura laughed at him, she turned around and took Hinata with her out of the room. She closed the door.
"Why me…" Naruto thought to himself before grabbing her shoulders. "Ino what's wrong?" he asked her with a serious face.
"When you went down Sasuke gained a new version of his Sharingan… How am I supposed to fight him now? I'll lose you then you two will continue to leave me in the dust." She started to cry softly.
"Why is everyone crying all the damn time?" Kurama roared inside of Naruto, luckily he was the only one who could hear it.
"What do you mean to leave you behind?" Naruto said to her.
"Sasuke has the Sharingan and is so strong, I could barely beat him before, but now he has the new Sharingan. And you… You're so strong, you've mastered the Kyuubi. You've mastered western sword styles, mastered all Earth and Wind chakra. Hell, you even have a nature spirit that follows you around like award. How am I ever supposed to handle that?" Ino said pressing her face back into his chest.
"I'll let you in on a secret Ino that I want you to keep between us." He said which Ino nodded to. "When I was a kid I knew nothing. Couldn't even produce a single shadow clone like we did at the academy. When I learned that my father was the fourth Hokage and my mother was the Uzumaki Jinchuuriki of Kurama I was terrified I'd let them down."
"For months I struggled with my expectations, I forced Shini to teach me at extreme speeds and Shinoko had no choice but to train me to help me against Shini. It took so long for me to realize that it's not others expectations that matter. I set out into the woods one day all alone, and when I came back I had figured it out."
"It's all about what you want. I lessened my training and focused more on finding out what I wanted in life. I'm no master of the sword, or wind and earth. I'm only master to what I feel is all I need in life from them. I haven't mastered Kurama. The seal if fading as we speak, the gate inside my chakra is open allowing him complete control of my chakra. Me and he have a bond that allows me to control him sometimes but I'm never in control."
Naruto's words pained her to hear. She let go of him and looked him in the eyes. "What if I want isn't to be the strongest or to be Hokage? What if it is simply being reliable to my friends. I feel so useless to you guys on missions." Ino spoke in a way that showed Naruto her true emotions.
His eyes saddened. "Ino, I had no idea it was that bad. I… I don't know what to do. I'm no teacher, I don't have a solution for everything." Naruto said causing the room to fall silent.
"I know, Ask your parents if you can stay at the Uzumaki compound for a few nights a week, I'll have the Shinitoris train you like they did me. I still am your main teacher, I'll tell Sasuke he'll have to wait."
Ino's face at the words erupted with emotion, she jumped onto Naruto, hugging his neck. "Thank you!" She screamed giving him a quick peck on the cheek before jumping back down. She apologized for the sudden burst of movement and together the walked towards the door. When Naruto opened it Sakura was sitting against where it was with her ear to the door.
"I… Uh… I wasn't doing anything, just dropped something that's all." Naruto and Ino laughed as did Hinata although she was still shy.
Line Break:
The next day Naruto woke up like normal. He walked from the clan head's room into the bathroom where he did his morning routine. When he entered the main room where Shinoko was cooking breakfast he noticed Sasuke and Ino were sitting on the center couch.
"What a surprise. Good morning." He said taking a seat at the bar. Shinoko was making his favorite, pancakes.
"Oh I must have forgotten to tell you, but while you were unconscious Sasuke moved in. He said you offered it to him and since we're being targeted I welcomed it."
"Really? That's awesome." Naruto smiled his way. Shinoko placed a large stack in front of Naruto and a smaller stack on the ground for Shadow. Sasuke sat next to Naruto at the bar and Shinoko placed down his pancakes.
"You hungry Ino?" She called out to her. Ino nodded and sat on the other side of Naruto. Together they all ate. Naruto although having twice as much as anybody else was the first to finish.
"Did Kakashi say anything about us training or are we still free to do our own thing? I have something I need to take care of if not." Naruto asked Sasuke.
"He said to be on heightened alert, but other than that we're not meeting for a while." He answered.
"Shinoko remember what I told you last night," Naruto said to her, his eyes leading hers to Ino. Naruto threw on his coat and Shadow jumped to his side before he and the spirit vanished.
Line Break:
Somewhere in the thick forest surrounding Konoha.
All tall shinto gate stood in front of a long stairwell that leads to the reasonably sized temple. Naruto was walking up the stairs when he got to the door it had a large black seal. He read the seal for a moment then bit the tip of his thumb causing it to bleed. He pushed his hand against the stone doors and pressed hard as the seal unlocked the temple.
He pushed the doors open and walked into the temple. He looked around in awe at the beautiful masks that hung from the walls. He walked through the halls marveling at them. Eventually, he found what he was looking for.
He reached up and pulled from the wall the mask labeled: Transition. Behind it where the wall was, a small hole held a scroll. He grabbed the scroll and read it. It acted as instructions to the mask.
Naruto sat on his knees in the center of the temple and placed the scroll flat in front of himself. He put the mask on and wiped some blood on it. The area around him slowed until it seemed time itself had stopped.
"Minato Namikaze. I call to your spirit." He said aloud. The temple shook violently for a few seconds before a black cloud rose in front of him. Stepping from the cloud was Minato.
"Naruto stood and watched as the man walked from the mist. "What is your name spirit?" Naruto demanded.
Hesitantly it spoke. "Minato Namikaze." The black mist vanished as his finished materializing.
Naruto relaxed sat back down. "Naruto?" Minato's voice now prominent
from the spirit though still echoed. The spirit leaned forward and went to hug the boy. His body phased through the boy.
Minato quivered slightly at the fact they couldn't touch. "What do you need?" He said hesitantly.
"The seal on the Kyuubi is becoming unstable…" Naruto said. Minato's eyes shook at the sound of his voice. "I need you to teach me the seal, so I can strengthen it," Naruto added.
"S-Sure, here." Minato started to teach him the way he developed the seal. He explained the way you channel your chakra and the way you form the barrier.
"Thank you, dad," Naruto said as they finished the short session. Minato smiled at the blond.
"Anytime Naruto." He said with a smile and a closed eye. Naruto slowly removed his mask and watched as Minato slowly faded from existence. Time seemed to pick up where it left off.
Naruto sighed hard and fell on his back. He stared at the ceiling holding his hand straight up. "I can do this!" He said before the snapping back up.
Sitting on his knees again he pulled up his shirt. He channeled chakra into his fingernails and stabbed them into the large black seal that appeared. His fingers twitched in a certain way before he twisted them like a vault. He could feel the chakra from Kurama fade until he couldn't feel it anymore.
He coughed slightly from the pain of losing so much chakra but still smiled. He stood and threw his arms up. "Yes! I did it!" He screamed.
He closed the building and walked down the stairs. Shadow rubbed himself against the teen once Naruto reached the bottom of the long staircase. Naruto stroked his elegant fur a few times before rubbing his foxy chin.
Naruto stopped before he and Shadow started towards the compound. He closed his eyes and struggled to muster a connection with Kurama. "Kurama, you there buddy?" He spoke in his mind.
Silence. Naruto continued to call to the beast. He felt defeated after several minutes of trying. Until finally he and Shadow jumped into the trees towards the compound.
Line Break:
Shinoko stepped in close and smashed her palm in Ino's chest sending her jumping back. Ino regained her breath and charged again. Shinoko gracefully dodged three punches and caught Ino's kick.
"Naruto's training has really built you muscles, but if you can't out maneuver me than your strength is useless," Shinoko told her. Ino stared her down and dropped to the ground. She spun and kicked out, knocking Shinoko off her feet.
Sasuke watched from the walkway as the two went at it. He used his Sharingan to study the moves. In his mind, if he wasn't sparring he would use his Sharingan to follow along and train himself.
Ino was finally bested and dropped to the ground, Shinoko stood over her with a fist on her throat. Shinoko stepped over a bit and her hand grabbed Ino's. Helping her up they made their way to Sasuke.
"I have to say, you have more talent than Naruto. You should have seen the way he sparred back in the day." She laughed.
"I heard that!" Naruto said dropping from the roof in front of them. He looked over Ino then looked over Shinoko. "Shinoko can I talk to in private?" He added walking behind the building. Shinoko looked at Ino and shrugged her shoulders, but followed.
"What is it?" She said curiously to the teen, as she came around the corner.
"I went to the temple in eastern forest, the mask sanctuary." He said with a slight pain.
"The seal on the Kyuubi has been breaking ever since the Zabuza fight. I went there and talked to my father, were he gave the means of fixing the seal."
Shinoko looked on with strong curiosity. "Well isn't it a good thing you don't have to worry about releasing him?" She said to further the conversation.
"I can't feel his chakra… I can't speak to him." He said with watered eyes.
"I don't understand?" Shinoko said as Naruto hugged her.
"I've lost my best friend…" He winced in her chest.
"What about Shadow? What about Sasuke and Ino?" What about us?" She asked gently.
"It's not the same… He was the only thing that connected me to my father and my mother. He was the stamp on my body that drove me to accomplish things." Naruto had short tear streaks on his cheeks.
"What if you simply have to break the seal like you did before?" Shinoko tried to console the child.
"That's right, he first spoke to me when I was about to die. Maybe that's how I break the seal?" Naruto said stepping back from her. He looked at his hands with strange eyes as he spoke.
Shinoko looked at him with concern. "That's not what I meant. You shouldn't put yourself in danger to bring him back. Killing yourself won't bring him back." She said grabbing his hands.
Naruto pulled himself free and vanished alone in a streak of black.
"Gad damn it!" Shinoko yelled.
Ino and Sasuke walked in from the corner, they were listening to the whole conversation.
"Not this again, He had a similar trip when he was nine. He lost connection when he used his chakra cloak. He'll be back but we should still look for him." Shinoko said placing a hand on her face.
"Should we tell the others?" Ino asked.
"No, we three should suffice. I know where to look." She said walking into the building.
"Get ready for survival, we might need to camp out for the night."
Line Break:
Three ninjas stood on a thick branch looking over the mountain. "He usually comes there to think. Let's hope he's still there." Shinoko said to the group. Ino and Sasuke were standing behind her.
Shinoko was wearing a red cloth suit with black armor on her forearm to her wrist. Her waist was wrapped in thick black fabric and her hair was held back by a black headband with the Uzumaki seal.
They blasted off the tree and jumped through the forest at extreme speed. Ino watched as Sasuke struggled to keep up. "Sasuke are you alright?" Ino asked him ducking under a branch.
"I-I'm fine." He said out of breath. They continued until finally, Shinoko dropped from the trees. After a second the teens fell with a bundle of leaves around them on the ground.
Shinoko was looking down in a small cavern. "This is where Naruto first used the Kyuubi and where he found Shadow." She said before sliding down the incline into the cavern. Ino looked at Sasuke with a curious look, which he shrugged and slid down after her. Ino followed them into the dark depths.
The sunlight shined down through the cracks giving the rock a slightly luminous look.
"Naruto!" Shinoko yelled as they walked. They traveled the majority of the cave until the sun stopped shining through the cracks.
"Here the ground seems pretty flat here, let's camp out here," Shinoko suggested placing her sleeping bag she carried on her back down. Ino agreed and let her unroll against a large rock.
Sasuke pulled from his satchel on his waist some tender and stacked it up. He formed a small fireball Jutsu and slowly blew causing a line of fire to ignite the wood. Surprisingly there was wood all around. Rainwater must have pushed it down there.
Shinoko looked uneasy into the fire as everyone ate the small rations they had in their bags. Knowing that everyone was being hunted made her scared, she thought back to fight. If it wasn't for Sasuke's Sharingan she would have lost her Naruto.
Clenching her fist she dismissed the thought, she stood and walked to the entrance of the cave. She took a minute or two but finally reached the edge where the moon shone in an angelic atmosphere. She stared at the moon, she remembered all the times she and Naruto trained.
She thought of all the times they spent lying together as she read him a bedtime story. She remembered all the times he spent with her in the kitchen. She remembered the first time he called her his mother. She hated it at first since she was so loyal to Kushina, but she also felt that he was like a son to her.
He treated her with kindness and respected her like a mother. And she took care of him since he was a kid. Her mind stopped in its tracks as she remembered the days after he left the training grounds. The dull mornings, the quiet nights. She teared up at the thought of her boy being taken from her. She closed her eyes and clenched her fist at her waist.
When she came into the light of the fire she was confronted by a man with black hair. He was standing in the fire, two black figures stood next him, each with an injection in their hands. They went to inject it into Ino and Sasuke's neck but shuriken shattered the vials.
"Don't worry my darling. It was merely a tranquilizer." His voice was high pitched with a sinister laugh following behind it.
"I do say, my dear, you look terrified. I assure you I'm only here for the boy. We've been following you three and it looks as though you don't know where he is either." The man said stepping towards Shinoko.
The mention of taking Naruto triggered her and she instinctively pounced. The two figures positioned themselves between the two. Shinoko punched one and kicked the other sending them crashing into the rock.
"You will not hurt my son!" She roared slamming a fist into the man's face. Time froze for a moment as Shinoko looked at the man. His hand caught her fist and he didn't budge, his hair didn't even sway.
She coughed as he kneed her in the stomach. The sound of the figures crashing woke Sasuke and Ino. They charged from behind but Ino was flipped over him and Sasuke poked in the eyes. He threw Ino into Shinoko and kicked Sasuke over to them.
R-Run!" Shinoko coughed out before engaging him again. This time, they went back in forth, strikes matching each other. They expertly fought as Sasuke and Ino ran to the exit.
They ran up the incline and looked back into the cave. Ino was nervous and her sword shook in her hands. Sasuke still somewhat blinded held on eye shut. After a few loud thumps, Shinoko's body was thrown from the darkness, she smacked into a tree and fell to the ground. He back against the wood she coughed up blood.
Ino dropped to a knee by her side. "Shinoko!" She shouted. Sasuke watched as the man slowly walked from the shadows. His psychotic laughter was loud in the air. Sasuke panicked and formed a lightning cutter and charged.
"No, Sasuke," Shinoko whispered holding an arm out. Sasuke reached the man and pulsed his chakra expanding the blade. The man smiled as he grabbed Sasuke's hand with the electricity still zapping.
"Funny tricks won't hurt me. Don't you know who I am?" He said with the flick of the wrist. The motion broke Sasuke's arm and send him flying into a large tree. His scream echoed through the trees.
Shinoko stood with the help of Ino. "I won't let you take Naruto!" She roared through the forest. Her muscles doubled in size before condensing. "Just have to outmaneuver him." She thought to herself blasting forwards. She went for a punch and as the man went to block it she slid kicking his shins.
They both stood back up, a few feet from each other. "That was cheap, but you don't have much of a choice I suppose." The man said with a wipe of his brow. Shinoko opened the sixth gate of View. With her opening the gate she gained all the benefits and problems of the previous five.
The ground crushed under her feet as she launched forward. She punched so fast the wind couldn't keep up. She landed several body shots before grabbing the man's neck. She lifted him up and smashed his face into a nearby rock shattering it completely.
She jumped back to Ino and her gate closed causing her to fall to the ground. They all watched as the man laid there. After a few moments of suspense he slowly stood, he rotated his neck cracking it back in place.
His expression had changed for the first time during the entire encounter. He was furious, he flattened his hand and bolted forwards. Shinoko screamed and pushed Ino as he closed in. Shinoko was pierced through the heart, he lifted her up and pinned her against a tree.
"I hope the boy screams, I hope he cries. I want him to feel this loss for his entire life." The man smiled as he drew back his arm. He went to slash at her throat but his limp was removed as it passed by.
He jumped back letting Shinoko fall. She fell onto Shadow's bushy tail. Ino and Sasuke stood flabbergasted as Naruto stood in front of Shinoko. He had his sword drawn and held it down by his leg.
His face was also looking at the ground. Tears ran down his face. "Shinoko…." He whispered softly before he blasted forwards. The immense speeds were even greater than Shinoko's gate release.
The man's eyes widened as Naruto appeared in front of him. He smashed the man's shoulder with his fist and spun slicing off his other arm. Naruto stopped about a foot or so behind the man as he fell.
Now seeing his eyes for the first time, Naruto's eyes were red with a diamond shape. His fangs showed themselves as he turned around the face the man. The man's body exploded into a cloud of smoke.
Naruto swiped his hand and the force cleared the smoke in an instant. Standing in the center of where the smoke used to be was the man. His body had fully been restored. Naruto's eyes twitched as he roared out.
His sword formed a black hue around the already red edge. He dashed forward and stabbed the blade into the man's chest.
"Yes! Feed me more boy." The man spoke. Naruto growled and grabbed the man by the shoulder and stabbed his again. The wound from the first stab had steam come from it as it closed shut. The man laughed and punched Naruto.
Naruto rolled on the ground into the cavern. After a moment the rock erupted, large orange tails pressed themselves above ground. Naruto jumped into the air in his chakra cloak. In his hand was a red Rasengan. The man held out a hand taking the brunt of the attack.
The ball swirled and the man's arm blasted apart, the ball stopped on his shoulder and ricocheted. Ino barely dodged the ball as it was flung into the woods. Immense force and light came rushing from the trees as it exploded.
"Naruto you idiot he is feeding off the Kyuubi's chakra!" Sasuke yelled forming the rib cage of his Susanoo. The large arm smacked the man away from Naruto. Sasuke collapsed to one knee and held his eye as it bled.
Shinoko was starting to regain consciousness. She leaned up on Shadow, the spirit was licking her wound. Its saliva was slowly numbing the skin and closing the very edge of the wound.
She looked over at Sasuke and Ino and smiled knowing they were okay. She continued to look around and stopped when she saw Naruto clashing with the man in Taijutsu. Naruto knocked back and in his moment of recovery, she saw the man charge him like he did her. She closed her eyes and flashed.
Naruto opened his eyes, his cloak shattered and he saw Shinoko standing in front of him. She faced him and looked him in the eyes. Her spine was severed from the man's hand. "Sh...Sh...Shinoko…"Naruto mumbled as she fell against his chest. She hugged onto him and started to cry.
"I'm s..sorry," Shinoko whispered. "I-I love you, stay strong…" She gasped before she slid off his shirt and fell to the ground.