Warning Signs
Written by: Hayling
Beta: Kelenas
Note: Thanks for the reviews!
Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, only the plot of the stories I write and possible original characters.
Chapter 11:
oOoOo
"You are bold to come here, Nekomata." Kyuubi chuckled in a low pitch that reverberated through the cavernous chamber in Naruto's mindscape.
The cat demon shrugged and rested her fists on her hips. "I have seen no other way."
Kyuubi smirked, as if amused. "And what, pray tell, are you here for?"
Naruto gulped, more than a little intimidated by being in the presence of not one, but two tailed beasts. On the occasions when he visited the fox, though never willingly, he had always been somewhat comforted by the knowledge that it couldn't do anything to him from inside its prison. But having another walking around…
"Do not pretend to lack knowledge. You know perfectly well why we are here."
"You are worried about the useless rabble calling itself Akatsuki." Kyuubi spat, humour gone and obviously unimpressed. "They are nothing."
"They are going to come for the Hosts." Nekomata motioned towards Naruto. "And they know the secret of our being here, do not doubt."
"So?" The Fox sneered. "This does not concern me."
The Nibi shook her head. "Have the years of imprisonment dulled your mind?" Kyuubi's burning red eyes narrowed, but she paid it no notice. "The Akatsuki will not stop until all of us lie dead or imprisoned at their hands."
"You speak as though I care about the fate of those hairless monkeys."
Naruto bristled at the insult and was about to shout something back when the Nibi continued on.
"The child needs your power if you both are to survive. He cannot fight them as he is now, nor can he when your rage flows into him."
A pulse began to thrum through Naruto's body, much like a slow and steady heartbeat, quickening and growing louder along with Kyuubi's increasingly heated responses.
Kyuubi growled. "You disrespectful fools!"
"Why are you being so…" The Nibi began to ask, only to be interrupted as the nine-tails flew into a rage.
"You come here, asking for my help?!" Kyuubi roared, slamming its massive frame against the gate as though it could break the barrier down and crush the ones invading his domain. "You miserable little maggots! You dare after I have been caged like a common animal?! You would have me become a docile battery to be used at his beck and call?!"
Naruto cringed and stumbled backwards while the Nibi remained rooted to the spot, merely narrowing her eyes at the outburst.
"Times have changed, Kyuubi-kun." She said quietly.
"It matters not!" Kyuubi rammed its massive head against the barrier a final time and trying to reach for its fellow demon with its claws. Gouges were left on the floor as it retreated, only to be repaired and leave wholesome stone as if nothing had happened. "When I escape this wretched prison, I will slaughter those who have wronged me, including you!" The fox-demon's eyes focused on Naruto. "Pray I never do, worm, for your weak village will be the first to fall."
Yugito's features contorted into a scowl, betraying the Nekomata's displeasure with the course this conversation had taken. "Your own desires in the human world were no longer attainable the moment you were sealed by the Fourth Hokage. And if the host dies, so will you." She reasoned, though her tone was soft and dangerous. "The only thing you can pray for is a long and prosperous life for the child so you may cling to your existence a little longer."
The pulse reached a fever pitch, drowning out all other noise until, with a howl, the Kyuubi let a wave of virulent crimson chakra burst from between the long iron spokes of the gate. The demonic energy throbbed and bubbled higher and higher, eventually towering over the forms of Yugito and Naruto, and threatening to wash over them and sweep them away.
In an instant, the Nekomata's own chakra exploded from Yugito's body in the shape of two massive tails that dripped black and blue flames. One of them shot towards Naruto, wrapping around his frame to serve as a protective barrier in the blink of an eye while the other tail encircled the Nibi in her own shield of ethereal fire.
Almost in slow-motion, the wave of crimson, malevolent chakra crested above them, only to rush down on top of him and the Nibi with unstoppable force. The boy yelled something unintelligible when he saw the two demonic energies collide with each other and felt an intense heat suffusing his very skin while his ears were filled with impossibly loud hiss, as if a thousand red-hot swords were being plunged as one in a single, icy-cold lake.
The tide of Kyuubi's chakra never wavered, and Naruto could feel rather than see the shield around him wavering before it burst completely against the endless flow. It was something he had experienced all too often, though it never been this intense. Naruto was immediately pushed away into the darkness, but he heard the Kyuubi's mocking laughter. It was aimed at the Nekomata who still stood fast and watched the boy helplessly as he disappeared from view.
"You have grown so weak, kitten…"
It was all Naruto heard before everything went black.
oOoOo
Naruto stiffened when he regained consciousness, his breath hitching and blinking rapidly as he tried to reacquaint himself with the comfortable air of his bedroom. He found himself slumped backwards on his futon, which had happened some time after entering his mindscape.
A groan came from his left and he turned his head to focus on the form of Nii Yugito who was grimacing visibly while she awoke as well. Instead of Naruto's somewhat calm return to the land of the living though, the Jounin shot to a sitting position and sucked in a shuddering breath through clenched teeth. She cradled her head and swore up a storm, which took Naruto by surprise since he had never known her to react so strongly to anything.
"Yu-Yugito-sensei?" He asked tentatively, reaching out to her with his hand.
She waved him off. "Just… shit… give me a minute." She winced and scrunched her eyes together tightly. "Fuck this part always hurts like hell."
Naruto waited patiently, but it still took another full minute until she had regained full control of her functions again and the blinding pain that had permeated her skull subsided to manageable levels.
"What did you do?" Naruto was more than slightly unnerved by the recent happenings. "Why… Why was your…" He gulped and pointed at her stomach. "…in my head?"
Yugito let out a deep exhale and let herself fall back on the futon with her eyes closed. "It's called spirit walking." She grimaced. "One of the gifts the Nibi grants me as her vessel."
"But-!"
"Yeah, normally she doesn't go herself, but I guess she was just really eager to meet with your demon." Yugito covered her face with an arm and groaned. "I'm going to have a headache for hours."
Naruto tried to look sympathetic but failed as he let his indignation show. "You could have warned me!"
The Jounin's reply came in a resigned tone. "It actually works better when my target doesn't know what's coming." She half-heartedly and blindly slapped Naruto on his elbow with her free arm. "Now do me a favour and be quiet, I'd like to sleep this off. We can talk later."
"But this is my room!" Naruto cried out.
"At the moment, I really don't care."
oOoOo
"So… you're saying you had two demons inside of you?" Temari asked, perplexed and more than a little disturbed.
"I think so…" Naruto scratched the back of his head and sighed. "It was weird, y'know?"
Temari snorted. "I'd certainly say so."
After exiting his bedroom, Naruto had bumped into Temari on the bottom floor while he was making his way outside. Noting the peculiar look on his face, the girl had tagged along and the two took a brief stroll through the streets of Sunagakure while he, somewhat reluctantly, filled her in on what had happened. They stopped near a small market that catered to late-night customers and Temari had ordered Naruto to take a seat on a low, brick wall outside while she had gone in to get a couple of cool drinks.
"And…" Naruto hesitated and sucked on the straw of his bottle of juice for a moment. "Just what was she thinking asking that stupid fur ball for help anyway?"
"Well, if it's inside of you, it might as well help you, right?" Temari shrugged. It seemed logical enough.
"It's not that simple." He scowled. "Kyuubi only helps when I'm about to die anyway. Stupid fox bastard."
Temari opened her mouth to speak then closed it and drank some of her juice. What could you say in a situation like this anyway? Who was she to tell him anything about the dealings with arguably the strongest demon in existence?
Naruto finished his drink and set the empty bottle on the wall beside him. "I don't want to use its power…"
Despite already knowing how he felt about the matter, Temari decided to press him a little on it. "Yugito's reasoning is sound, though." She shifted slightly to face him. "Why wouldn't you want to?"
It took several long moments before Naruto replied. "I… I don't know if I could control it." He confessed, staring at the rising moon in the night sky. "And I don't like how it makes me feel."
Temari cocked her head sideways. "It's that bad?"
Closing his eyes, Naruto sighed. "Whenever I get angry… I mean…really angry…" He turned to look at the girl. "I can't control it, you know? Everything disappears except rage and I don't stop, not for anything or, well… anyone."
Temari knew all too well what he was talking about. After all, she had been living with a psychotic murderer for a great deal of her life.
"To be honest, it scares me."
Surprised by the frank admission, Temari blinked rapidly. "Why?" She blurted, though after spending so much time with Naruto, she could guess the possible reasons.
"I…" Naruto wormed his lower lip between his teeth and fidgeted slightly. "I don't want to hurt the people I care about." He said earnestly.
Temari was silent as she contemplated his words. In the world they lived in, power was usually praised and coveted above all else, but Naruto was actually hesitant to use the strength that his status as jinchuuriki granted him. And just because he was scared of hurting those close to him?
Her features softened while she studied Naruto intently. 'He… He really is something else…'
"I think…" She finally began, scooting closer to the boy and reached for his hand before cradling it in her lap with both of her own. "…you're the most stubborn guy I've ever met." She chuckled and ran a thumb across the back of his hand lightly. "Except maybe Gaara, of course."
Naruto gulped, but made no movements to extract his limb from her gentle grip.
"I think you should try again though, with the Kyuubi. And uhm…" Temari whispered, blushing slightly but fixed Naruto with a resolute look. "With Gaara, I…" She averted her eyes and took a deep breath. "Maybe I'll be able to help you more than I could with him."
"T-Temari-chan…" Naruto stammered, lost for words.
Worried that she might just get a little too emotional, Temari hopped down from the wall and smiled. "Let's go home, Naruto-kun."
"O-okay…" The boy nodded dumbly and as they walked back through the streets of Sunagakure under a moonlit sky, he felt an odd warmth in his chest when he realized that Temari hadn't let go of his hand.
Naruto decided he didn't mind at all.
oOoOo
"I can't believe you didn't warn me." Yugito huffed.
She crossed her arms and stared into the inky darkness that surrounded her save for a wide illuminated circle. A throaty chuckle answered her from beyond its edge. This, if anything, only served to increase the Kumo-nin's annoyance.
"You can come out, you know. Those parlour tricks are hardly impressive."
"Hmmph. Spoilsport."
A paw dripping two-toned, ethereal fire stepped into the light, followed slowly by the entirety of the Nibi no Nekomata's massive form. She circled Yugito, staring at her vessel with terrible golden eyes as if sizing her up to be a potential meal.
Yugito sighed and reached towards the spectral feline like she'd done countless times before.
The Nibi stepped closer, her lips drawn back in a feral grin. With another chuckle, she ducked her head, allowing Yugito to wrap her arms around the demon's maw. Black and blue flames licked at the woman's skin, but didn't burn. They never had.
"I don't know why you're acting this happy. This is a real setback, you know." Yugito murmured, her head resting on the bridge of the Nekomata's nose.
"True." The Nibi agreed. "I did not expect Kyuubi to react as it did."
Yugito twitched as she drew back from the embrace. "This is really, really bad."
"Not so much as you would think, my little kitten." The Nibi assured her as she lowered herself to the ground.
"How does this not put us back at square one?"
"The child still has access to some of Kyuubi's power."
Yugito sat down with a scowl. "The power granted to Naruto is miniscule."
"Compared to you and I, perhaps." The Nibi stated, unperturbed by her host's complaints. "He will be able to draw on it regardless of Kyuubi's wishes, they are merging after all. Still, focus remains the key if he is going to succeed in doing so. The child must not allow himself to lose control again."
Leaning back against the large body of the two-tailed beast, Yugito yawned. "This is all becoming so complicated. Sometimes I wish that I hadn't met Jiraiya-sama at all."
"He saved your life."
Yugito closed her eyes and shifted slightly to make herself more comfortable but she didn't bother to reply to the demon's words.
"I know." The cat-demon continued on and playfully flicked a tail across Yugito's cheek. "We should arrange a test for Naruto-kun…"
Yugito swatted the appendage away and frowned, mulling over the possibility. "A test, huh?"
"Are you not curious?" A row of wicked sharp teeth gleamed as the Nibi smiled. "It will be interesting to see what he can truly do when he is not overly influenced by Kyuubi."
"I'll…" Yugito yawned again. "…see what I can do…"
"Good." The Nekomata purred and curled herself around Yugito, laying her two tails over the Jounin, blanketing the Kunoichi's smaller frame. "Sleep now, my little kitten… Tomorrow is a bright new day…"
oOoOo
The next day, Yugito and Naruto tried to speak once more to Kyuubi, only to find their attempts unsuccessful. They were met with a haze of crimson every time, blocking their entry into Naruto's mindscape. After the fifth time, and with Yugito nursing yet another blinding headache – though it was less severe without the Nibi's direct interference – they decided that it would be best to leave the Kyuubi alone for now and hope it would calm down. Eventually.
While this was somewhat anti-climactic, Naruto, for his part, was glad. One demon inside of him was bad enough and he had no desire to see a second one romping around in his mind. He didn't particularly trust the Nibi when Yugito claimed that the cat-demon promised she wouldn't do so again without asking. Besides, it wasn't like he didn't have anything to keep it occupied with in the first place.
The days slipped into ten long weeks. During that time, Yugito ran Naruto ragged, mainly with an unabated regimen of chakra-control exercises, meditation and taijutsu training, the latter of which Temari joined in. Though when Baki and Kankuro returned after two months, Naruto spent most of his time with the turbaned Jounin fine-tuning the ninjutsu he already knew.
Tag creation was still a bit difficult at times for Naruto, but at least he took to creating explosive variants with a relish. He kept a large stack of them handy at any given time, something which slightly disturbed Temari who had watched him use them in their more… realistic spars - some of which would, without a doubt, pass into Sunagakure legend.
Naruto was many things, and one of those was surely being a master at adaptation and improvisation. The large amount of newly added craters in their usual training spot could attest to that. Of course, explosive tags worked wonders on keeping particularly lippy clones in line as well.
Ninjutsu and seals aside, their physical strength, speed and stamina grew steadily. Naruto was never lacking in the stamina department, but Temari was pleased to note that she was able to last much longer in a fight than she would have had she kept training on her own. While her chakra reserves had never been something to sneeze at, it had been slightly disconcerting to compare it to someone who could create hundreds of shadow clones with little to no difficulty.
Still, when Temari and her brother, Kankuro, had engaged in a friendly match, she was pleased to note that she was able to trounce him quite solidly. It certainly helped that Temari had learned several new tricks from Naruto and knew Kankuro's techniques by heart.
The brown-haired teen had groused good-naturedly at his loss, but was happy to see his sister improving in such spectacular ways. Besides, he did manage to regain some of his pride in his fight with Naruto. The jinchuuriki had no experience at all with fighting someone who specialized in puppetry; something Kankuro had no qualms about exploiting. It was probably a good thing too that Naruto tried his best to not smash his puppets to bits, either. That earned him a couple more points in Kankuro's book, who still had nightmares about Gaara crushing his very first puppet to scrap with his infamous sand techniques.
Naruto still didn't meet with the redhead as often as he would have liked, but perhaps because of that, Naruto grew to treasure his get-togethers with Gaara even more. They provided precious insight in the psyche of the former insomniac. For one, he would occasionally make off the cuff remarks that threw Naruto for a loop. Like Gaara's casual comment on how he would tear Naruto limb from limb, literally, if he would ever hurt Temari intentionally. After the mandatory cringe and gulp, Naruto merely laughed, enveloping an arm around the Kazekage's shoulders and praised him for his dedication to his family.
Even with his busy schedule in Sunagakure though, Naruto grew a little restless. Maybe it was the constant training, or perhaps it was being cooped up in the village for a while now, but Naruto wanted to set out and do… something. It was good then, that the day the blonde was discussing this during his afternoon break with Temari, Yugito appeared next to them.
"Hey, lovebirds, you have a meeting with Kazekage-sama in an hour." She announced airily.
Naruto scowled at her jibe but had grown too accustomed to Yugito's sudden arrivals to even twitch.
"Really?" Temari asked after gulping down the last bite of her bean-paste treat. "Did Gaara say what he wanted with us?"
Yugito's grin was a tad too feral for Naruto's liking. "I think he mentioned something about a surprise for the two of you."
Naruto narrowed his eyes. He had grown rather wary of surprises. Before the two could inquire further though, Yugito was already long gone.
With a shrug, Temari made a grab for her battle-fan and stood up, wiping some crumbs off of her attire with her free hand. "Well, I'm going to take a quick shower." She pulled on her cut-off and slightly damp t-shirt slightly, making a face. "I think you should do the same."
Naruto made a non-committal noise but followed her back to the Kazekage residence.
Just twenty minutes later, Temari was considerably cleaner and dressed in a purple shift she favoured when not intent on doing any strenuous physical exercises for the day. She was just on her way to the kitchen to fetch a drink when, with a poof of smoke, Naruto appeared behind her.
"So what do you think the surprise is, Temari-chan?" Naruto asked, smiling mischievously, hair still damp from his own shower.
While Temari didn't flinch, she fought the urge to let out a long, suffering sigh. It had been hell since Naruto truly mastered the art of Shunshin. The boy had been so pleased with his grasp of the technique that he had started to use it whenever he had to take more than four steps to go anywhere. Much to Temari's dismay. However, after several incidents, which were better left unmentioned, Naruto finally got the idea that it wasn't a good idea to appear wherever he pleased without warning.
Temari shrugged as she entered the kitchen and made a beeline for the refrigerator. "I don't really know."
There was an unpleasant scraping noise when Naruto dragged back one of the chairs around the kitchen table and sat down. He thanked the girl when she handed him a bottle of fruit-flavoured water as she joined him at the table.
"I just hope it's something good this time around." Naruto unscrewed the cap and gulped down a full third of the bottle's contents.
Temari smiled and took a few sips herself. "I hardly think Yugito-san would be kidding around if it was anything bad, Naruto-kun."
"Well, you never know." Naruto propped his elbow on the table and rested his chin on the heel of his palm, drumming his fingers on his whiskered cheek.
The two made a little more small talk until Temari announced that they should get underway. In response, Naruto got up and grinned, making a single hand-seal before another small puff of smoke was left in his wake while he disappeared from view.
This time, Temari did let a sigh escape her lips.
oOoOo
After an uneventful walk to the Kazekage tower, the blonde teenagers found Yugito already waiting for them in the small waiting room outside Gaara's office.
The Jounin waved and motioned for them to sit on the bench opposite of hers. "You're a little early. Kazekage-sama is still in a meeting with someone, but it shouldn't take much longer."
Naruto nodded and leaned backwards against the wall, lacing his fingers behind his neck. Temari sat down next to him and crossed her legs primly, folding her hands across her knee.
"Do you know who Gaara's meeting with?" Naruto asked. If Temari was curious as well, she gave no visible indication.
"…You'll find out soon enough." Yugito hinted
Letting out a deep exhale through his nose, Naruto closed his eyes, too used to Yugito being somewhat secretive.
The three lapsed into silence while they waited, though as Yugito had said, it didn't take very long until the door leading into the office opened. Their heads swivelled as one and focused on the figure stepping out.
If anything, the man was rather plain. Being of average height, somewhat overweight and with receding, gray hair that was pulled into a simple and short ponytail, it was not someone that would garner much attention if you passed him down the street. Yet there was something about him that caught Naruto's attention, and it wasn't the broad striped tattoo that ran from cheek to cheek across the bridge of his nose either.
Only a trained eye would note the subtle stiffening of the older man's bulky frame when he noted Naruto's presence. Too bad there were three pairs of them in the waiting room.
"Yugito-san." He said simply, inclining his head towards the Kumo-nin - a gesture which she returned - and ambled out of the room without further words.
Yugito brought her gloved hands together with a sharp crack, startling Temari and Naruto after they had observed the stranger's departure. "Well, let's go see what Kazekage-sama wants with the two of you, hmm?"
Temari raised an inquiring eyebrow, but didn't say anything. Naruto on the other hand was frowning slightly when the three of them entered the office. He didn't know what it was, but there was something off about that tattooed person. It was either that, or he had been eating something that was well past its expiration date this morning. Naruto shook his head and put it out of his mind for now, he was deathly curious about what Gaara might want with Temari and him.
"Oi, oi, Gaara!" He called out to the other jinchuuriki seated behind a rather large desk when they all trooped inside and gave a jaunty wave. "What did you call us here for? We were kinda busy with training, you know."
Unsurprisingly, that earned the blonde a slap upside the head from Yugito. "Show some respect, Naruto!" She hissed, then bowed towards Gaara. "I'm sorry about my student's impudence, Kazekage-sama."
Temari cracked a smile. Gaara on the other hand, stared blandly at his new visitors.
"I am sorry for interrupting your schedule." The redhead apologized..
"That's okay, Gaara." Temari clasped her hands behind her back and blinked. "Do you need us for anything?"
"…yes." Gaara said slowly after witnessing Naruto sticking out his tongue at his teacher while he rubbed his scalp. "I am going to send you and Naruto on vacation."
Silence reigned for several long moments while Yugito grinned at the younger blondes.
"Uhhh… what?" Naruto finally asked, hopelessly confused.
Gaara blinked and shifted his gaze between the two periodically. "I am going to send you and Temari on vacation."
"Er…" Temari cut in before Naruto could inquire further. She glanced briefly at Yugito who still had a rather big grin threatening to splut her face in two. "Not that I'm really complaining, but… why?"
Instead of immediately responding, Gaara leaned back and reached for a drawer in his desk. He extracted a manila envelope and handed it to his sister. "The Leaf has requested that a guard detail be sent to meet a Genin team escorting a new diplomat to the hidden Sand."
Naruto looked nonplussed while Temari frowned. "Gaara, we aren't…" She began while she undid the string tying the envelope closed and took out its contents.
"Officially I can not send you out on missions." Gaara elaborated.
Yugito picked up when he finished the sentence. "You two need to take a little time off from training and build some mission experience if you're truly going to grow as ninjas." She smirked at Naruto. "Well, Naruto needs to in any case."
"Hey!" Naruto objected in a picture perfect example of indignation. "I did a bunch of important missions!"
"No, actually." Yugito shot back easily, cocking a fist on her hip. "You didn't." She continued when Naruto was about to say something else. Something he might have regretted. "I have studied your mission history, Naruto. In truth you're severely lacking in experience. I really wonder if that Copycat Kakashi was just lazy or a fool, because you are far below the average Genin when it comes to mission accomplishments."
Naruto wilted as Yugito succinctly chewed him out. "But…" He offered lamely, already knowing he had been defeated.
"Save it, focus instead on what you have to improve on in the future."
"Yes, Yugito-sensei…" Naruto murmured.
Temari cleared her throat, empathising with her betrothed's plight, yet intent on finding out the details of their upcoming mission. She briefly scanned what was written on the sheaves of paper in her hands. "You want us to wait in Hananoki, Gaara?"
Gaara snapped his jade eyes from a dejected Naruto to his sibling and nodded. "Yes."
"They are to arrive in four days then?"
"Yes." He repeated.
Temari handed the papers to Naruto who grabbed them and began to read silently. "River country is around a day's travel away, so that should leave us with around two days of free time if we leave tomorrow, Naruto-kun." She piped up, trying to cheer the boy up some.
He gave Temari a smile, appreciating her effort.
"I'd say the two of you should make the most of it." Yugito interjected, folding her arms over her chest and looking wistful. "I've heard there are some great sights in Hananoki."
Naruto raised an eyebrow, looking up from the mission details. "Aren't you coming, Yugito-sensei?"
"Nah." Yugito waved his question off. "I still have some things to take care of here, and this mission shouldn't be too difficult for you two to handle."
"Alright." Temari inclined her head in her brother's direction. "If that's all, then Naruto-kun and I had better gather up some supplies." She laid a hand on Naruto's shoulder and gave it a light squeeze.
"Yeah." Naruto affirmed and mock-saluted Gaara who smiled faintly at the gesture. He then turned to follow Temari out of the office.
"Oh Naruto…" Yugito called out. "Enjoy your vacation and… make me proud, okay?" She added warmly when the boy halted in mid-stride.
"Yes, Yugito-sensei!" He barked.
Yugito waited several seconds after the two left before speaking again. "Well, I guess I'd prepare a little, too."
"Like you said, there should be little trouble." Gaara said, his chair creaking slightly as he got to his feet to stare out of one of the windows.
"It should be a fairly simple escort." Yugito acquiesced. "But I would be remiss if I didn't keep an eye out on those two."
"Yes." Gaara stated simply.
"I'll take my leave as well then." Yugito bowed.
The Kazekage barely acknowledged her departure. Instead, he rubbed his chest, trying to discern why he felt faint twinges of worry creeping through him.
oOoOo
Chapter end.