I do not own Naruto – if I did, Kakashi would really be great – like a Sannin etc etc etc… and we'd see what's under his mask.


Revelation of the Wolf: The Glory of the Hatake Clan

Raido: Acceptance

What a child for a father to have! It's the bad luck of the Namashi clan to get you, isn't it, Raido?

Why the hell did you live?

You'll never amount to anything, Raido, if you keep up that way.

If only your brother was here…..

Forget it. I wouldn't trust you with my dog!

Fine. Leave. And don't ever think you can come back!


Raido sighed as he caught his breath behind a tree and looked up at the sunlight trying to reach down toward the forest floor through the large leafy boughs of the trees.


I never try to remember my childhood. Funny how things come back to you when you're in a panic…..


Raido had done better than he hoped. The bomb he had set off had aided him well. But the third shinobi had cost him chakra and strength.

Nursing his injured left arm, Raido scrabbled around and managed to locate his tiny first aid kit.

He could still see Genma packing it. On the kitchen table. His spry fingers deftly rolling up the bandages and the med tape. The pills and the sponges.

Never go without one, Genma had said. It can be a life or death thing.

Genma had learned early – perhaps too early – how to take care of himself.

Using his teeth and right hand, somehow Raido managed to tie the white strip of bandage around his bicep. There. Now to think.


What the hell do I do now?


Then he noticed it. The forest had begun to fade in and out.


Shit! A genjutsu?


"KAI!" he said, focusing while holding up a seal.

But nothing happened.

The forest steadied and a dark figure loomed at the edge of the clearing, drawing back his hood.

Raido froze.


What the fuck?

Father?

Was this a genjutsu?


"This is no genjutsu – at least, not as you know it," said a voice. "This is where you meet your nightmares – and either die or break it. Until then…. You are my captive."

"Where are you?" yelled Raido.

The only response was a maniacal laugh.


Why hasn't he killed me now? Unless…… That's it! It was probably a type of genjutsu which also immobilized the user. Like Inochi-san's 'Shintenshin no Jutsu'. I just have to break it somehow.


Raising his trembling kunai, Raido tried not to shake as his father strode up, glaring with his everlastingly scornful eyes.


I never try to remember my childhood. Well…. There was that one day.

"Hey! Watch it! You nearly stepped on my foot."

"Oh! I'm so sorry!"

"Whatever! Don't sweat it."

A pause.

"You're Raido – right?"

Raido nodded shyly, his glum face brightening ever so little.

"Genma. I'm Genma. Want to play kick ball?"

Half an hour later…..

"Geez! You ARE one clutzy kid. You know that? It's like you've got three feet or something!"

Raido curled up, arms around knees, his brown eyes glittering.

"…….. yeah………"

Genma blinked.

"I was only joking."

Raido tried to keep his lips from quivering.

"It's okay. My dad says I'm the family's walking curse."

"Your dad's talking bullshit."

The scarred kid's eyes widened in shock and laughter and then dimmed.

"No…. it's true."

"Everyone is clutzy, Raido when they're growing up. Your dad just seems to make a bigger deal out of it."

"No – it's true – really. My mom birthed me then miscarried my twin. My older brother died in a fall, trying to save me. I injured a cousin permanently playing in the kitchen and all I got was this scar….."
"Sounds like you get the shitty end of the bargain."

"I'm cursed."

"You are SO not cursed."

"AM TOO!"

"ARE NOT!"

"AM TOO!"

"ARE NOT!"

They glared at each other, then burst out laughing. Genma sobered first.

"Seriously, Raido. Bad things happen – all the time." He stared pensively up at the sky. "People – they often like to blame weaker ones for things they can't control….. Many look down on me – as if it is my fault that my parents died."

Raido drew back.


No parents?


Genma turned and gave a bitter grin.

"But I'm going to show them! A cast off like me can make it. I'm making my own path on my own strength – not relying on anybody!"

Raido blinked.

"See…. Raido….. If you think you're cursed, you're going to live your life cursed but if you truly want to be free – you've got to live life as if there was nothing to hold you back.
"Huh – you haven't met my father! He's the devil incarnate!"

"Ah."

They were silent.

Genma stared.

"Ever know what's good about forest fires?" he asked his silent companion.

"Eh? Forest fires?"

"Yeah, forest fires."

"Ummm…. There's a good side to them?"

"Yep. After a fire, underbrush gets cleared away, old trees are destroyed and new trees can grow. It's a chance for the forest to revive."

"Oh."

"It's a lesson to us shinobi, I think. Just like the old geezer, Hokage, talks about the Will of Fire and burning leaves and stuff."

Raido looked puzzled.

Genma clarified.

"What doesn't kill makes you grow stronger. If you see these things in your life as tests – ask yourself what you have learned and learn them. There's a reason, I'm sure."

Raido smiled.

"You sure philosophize a lot, Genma! You're so soft."

"SSSHHHHHH! Don't say a word! I mean it! If it gets out, I'll never live it down to Ibiki!"

"I promise," Raido said.

From that day forward they were friends…..

But Raido knew all too well what pressure did. Pressure within families for excellence was not rare. Most children with great families were pushed at an early age to excel. The most extreme case was that pathetic clan – Hatake. The young kid, Kakashi, was living alone now. His father had killed himself a short while back, leaving a seven year old Chuunin to live life on his own.

Stress didn't just hurt the parents but the children.


Looking up towards his father now – or rather, what he knew to be the figment of his imagination – for didn't he watch (from afar) the funeral of his father? He couldn't have climbed out of his grave, could he? Although, Raido knew that Orochimaru had various resurrection jutsus, he wouldn't spend the time on Raido and resurrect the old head of the Namashi clan, right?


No. It's genjutsu. But it looks like you're as weak as ever, Raido.


"Hmph. Well if it isn't Raido." The man's lips curled upwards. "Heard all about you. Botched your misson to protect the Hokage and got yourself injured, huh?"

Raido gritted his teeth.


It's fake. It's not real….


"Well… what would one expect anyway," the Namashi patriarch shrugged. "What else could one expect from a curse like you anyway? Even that pathetic brat Kakashi from that broken clan – born of a coward – has gotten somewhere. A name at least. And you never got up the guts to get with a girl – settled for your trampy friend, eh? What's his name again?"

Raido threw six shuriken at the man. He dodged them easily – suddenly up in Raido's face, drawing back a large fist plowing it into Raido's face.


It brought back old nightmares. Old dreams. Old memories.

"Get up, trash! Get the fuck up, Raido and move it!"

WHAM!

Some how Raido managed to raise himself painfully to his feet. His head was reeling, his body aching.

Training for the Namashi clan was all important. They didn't have very important secret family jutsus and so spent many hours training and managed to get a name for being good dependable backups. Taijutsu, strategies with simple ninjutsus and a couple of genjutsus thrown in between. Day after day, even when he did well and graduated, Raido was run through the training wringer. It didn't help that he was the oldest Namashi boy now. His two younger brothers were always looking up to him. And his two sisters too. They were always watching, criticizing, taking cue from Mother and Father.

Looking into his father's eyes, he knew that the man (how could this be a real father?) took some sort of delight in beating the stuffing out of his seventeen year old son.

Sadistic bastard.

All of his life, Raido had dreamed of being accepted. But today. Why was it today? He just knew it wasn't going to happen. The disappointment burned in his throat and bitterness welled up.

Genma? What is worse? To never have or to lose it all?

As if answering his thoughts, a drawling voice caused him to stagger again to his feet.

"Yo!"

Raido coughed up blood, clutching his stomach.

"Who are you?" asked Namashi-sama, condescendingly.

"Shuranui Genma is the name," the young Chuunin replied. "Came over to see if Raido wanted to train."

Raido could hear it. Genma was always careful with his emotions – but as teammates, they had grown to know each other well.

Genma was shocked and angry – his senbon was stuck tensely outward.

"Raido has no time to spend with dropouts, losers or useless castaways, so please, leave."

Genma turned to Raido, raising his eyebrow in inquiry.

"This your FRIEND, Raido?" asked his mother in shock. "SHIRANUI Genma?"

"Yeah….."

"I absolutely forbid you to be with him," his father said, backing up his wife. "His parents botched an important assignment. Good thing they got what they deserved – the way of Sakumo right? Total dishonour."

Raido clenched his fists.

"It's not dishonourable to make a mistake OR to have parents who have made mistakes!"

"You listen to me, boy!" Namashi-sama barked, backhanding his teen. "I'm going to have a talk with the kage and remove you from this team – this bad attitude and general slovenliness must be coming from that piece of trash."

Genma glared.

"That's bullshit," he said calmly, hands twitching for his senbon.


Raido punched him back hard.

"Shut up, you old geezer! Piece of shit! You did nothing for me! Nothing! You always looked down at people who had nothing – you saw nothing because you never understood what it meant to make your own path and find important people! Did you!"

His father skidded backwards.
"All you did was tally our clan and its jutsus against other clans and their jutsus. People don't need to rely on names or jutsus to be great. I am Raido! A shinobi of the Leaf. Who just happens to be part of the Namashi clan!"

Exchanging blows to the body – hand to hand, foot to foot, to hip, to thigh, to ribs, to face. A duck, a whirl, and then down and then up.

Around them the leaves whirled – skirled, crunching and blowing.


Raido watched mesmerized as several leaves blew across the small courtyard. It was revolutionary, really.

"See…. Raido….. If you think you're cursed, you're going to live your life cursed but if you truly want to be free – you've got to live life as if there was nothing to hold you back.

Raido frowned.

"I'm NOT leaving Genma's team."

"What doesn't kill makes you grow stronger. If you see these things in your life as tests – ask yourself what you have learned and learn them. There's a reason, I'm sure."

"What?" barked his father, sharply, not believing his ears.

Raido actually said no?

Genma smirked.

"I said," repeated Raido slowly. "I was placed in the team by the Hokage himself. We have worked well together and without Genma, I wouldn't be where I am now. Besides, since when do you have the right to order my life (or the Hokage's for that matter) around? Besides, if I'm a walking curse, I think it's only right that I too should walk with – what did you call them? – losers, dropouts and castaways. It's not like you ever wanted me anyway…"

"RAIDO!" yelled his father as Raido limped away. "GET BACK HERE THIS INSTANT!"

Raido gave him the third finger, walked into his bedroom and packed his small bag of belongings.

"So you're going to leave?" asked Genma, lounging into the room.

"What does it look like, shithead?"

Raido's grin was painful to see.

"Geez!"

"Well…. It's not like Father is going to let me live here after what I did."

"Finally…."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"I've been waiting for so long! All these years it took you to realize you were being abused!"

"Whatever."

Raido sighed, looking around at his big room – and as he left – at what had been his home for many years. There was no anger or exhilaration. Just a numbness.

"So you're leaving?" his father said with a sneer, glaring at his weeping wife and down at his spindly teen. "Good. It's not like I'd want you to stay anyways."

"It's not like I'd want to stay."

"Fine. Leave. And don't ever think you can come back!"

Raido shrugged.

"Sounds good to me."

He walked away.


Buunshins destroyed each other, his father tried to slit his throat but was thrown over head and then, landing on him, Raido tried to punch him unconscious.

He found himself pinned down, his father wildly trying to stab him – he dodged the knife to the head and threw off the monster who had called himself father.

Without thinking, he knew what he must do.

He disappeared and creating several buunshins, sent them off as distractions while he set up the twine traps.

The buunshins were destroyed – he charged in – head on.

"USELESS TRASH!" screamed his father.

He drove his father back, using the last of his strength. His father high-jumped back – into the chakra and twine trap, getting hopelessly caught up in it.

As he pulled out his talisman and kunai, he created several seals and threw the flaming kunai at the struggling illusion.

"Take this! A Namashi Raido specialty! Fire Bomb no jutsu!"


He had managed to walk with pride away – down the long walkway, past the huge family gate – to the road.

It stood there. Big and empty.

"Damn!" he sighed.

"What?"

"Where do I go now?"

Genma smiled.

"Thought you would never ask," the orally fixated Jounin said, linking arms with his teenage friend. "My place, of course."

"Eh?" Raido stared. "You don't mind?"

Genma shook his head, grinning.

"Hell no!" He paused. "But move your butt, Namashi – I want to get some ramen. I'm starved – plus – you need to get yourself fixed up."

Raido nodded wordlessly.

He walked down the road and never looked back.


He walked away, watching the genjutsu dissolve outward as its center – his blazing father disintegrated.

"What didn't kill made me stronger."

He stopped.

His enemy was sitting there, quivering – unable to move as Raido walked over with cold eyes and slit his throat.

"Thanks friend," he said. "But you know – closure can be the pits."

The ground shook. Raido turned with a frown.


Genma!