Hi there!

First of all (and thanks randomKitty for reminding me), Phoenix Rising completed its first birthday. Wow… a whole year as gone by.

Also, special thanks to kaname-luvr and Dragon77, my very first reviewers. Now… big thanks to all of those who are reading this story ever since! I love you all!

I hope you like this chapter.

PS: the Incident happened 15 years ago, so it wasn't Sasuke!

Red Lily

赤いユリ (Akai yuri)

"Uzumaki... Uzumaki!"

Sasuke blinked and looked at his left, where his teacher was staring at him with his eyes filled with anger.

"Did you hear anything of what I said, Uzumaki Sasuke?" the old professor asked. "Or were you more interested in taking a nap?"

Sasuke felt his cheeks flushed, but remained calm.

"I'm sorry, Takeru-sensei" the raven said.

Takeru was an old stern man who believed in discipline above all else. Those children had come straight from the kindergarten, where they only played and did what they wanted to. At age six, it was time to learn to work and realize that life was not all fun.

"Come here" the sensei ordered, pointing to the old blackboard. "You will show to your classmates how to write this sentence."

Sighing slowly, Sasuke got up from his desk and went obediently to the board. School was much harder than the nursery! They almost could never play, they had to do homework, tests and the teachers were not as friendly (why did Takeru-sensei liked to addressed everybody by their surname?).

With a frown, Takeru pointed to the chalk. Sasuke grabbed the small piece of white chalk and copied the sentence written on the board. When he finished, he saw that the sentence was perfect. The kanji were a bit clumsy, but Sasuke smiled when he saw that he had managed to copy the sentence without making any mistakes.

"The writing is very crooked" grumbled Takeru. "As a homework assignment, you will write this sentence ten times. Now go back to your place and pay attention. "

Sasuke wanted to stick his tongue out, but he kept a straight face and returned to his place. He didn't like school. Sure, it was good to read and write... to know how to count was also good, and Sasuke could do everything better than all his classmates. However, this wasn't what he wanted to learn. He wanted to learn Ninjutsu; he wanted to train with shuriken and kunai... or even a real sword. There were so many things he would rather learn.

He had asked his father to let him go to a Ninja School, or get a teacher or a shishou to train him. But Naruto had merely smiled and told him that his training would begin soon, Sasuke had to be patient first and learn the basics in school. Sasuke had been angry, but soon remembered what happened when he wanted to go with the ninja on the Land of Foam. Honestly, the raven wanted to be a ninja more than anything… but he wouldn't leave his Dad behind. The mere idea to leave Naruto, even to train, made him panic. Sasuke wouldn't go away ... he wanted his father to see him training and become a ninja. He wanted to see his face with pride the day that his dream became a reality.

A few minutes from the end of class, Takeru asked for silence.

"I have here the results of the tests you did last week" the teacher said, making most of the students tremble.

Unlike his classmates, Sasuke wasn't frightened by the results. The test was easy; he had everything right for sure. When he arrived home, after having taken the test, he told his Tou-chan that he was sure he'd get an Excellent. Naruto had smiled with pride and told him he was saving a space in the refrigerator to place the test.

Sasuke couldn't wait to show it to him. He wanted to hear his Daddy praise him... he wanted to hear him say that he expected nothing less of his child.

On the front row, Shinya and Junko got their tests. Junko smiled with relief, but Shinya was terrified, Sasuke could see his dark blond hair shaking. Noriaki, Chie and Kyoshiro received their test and sighed with relief as well. When Takeru-sensei came up to Sasuke and handed him the sheet, the raven received it with a slight smile... which died the moment he saw the grade in the left corner of the test.

Very Good... Eighty percent... he had only managed to get eighty percent on the test.

"This is wrong," the raven thought, looking at the test. "I'm sure I did okay! I should have got 100% ... I should have got an Excellent!"

His first reaction was to blame the teacher... Takeru didn't like him and had evaluated the test wrong, but when he looked at his answers, the raven didn't want to believe what he saw. With bitterness, Sasuke realized he had made mistakes in math and committed several errors in the sentences. It wasn't Takeru-sensei's fault... Sasuke was the one who was wrong...

Miserably, the raven put the test in his backpack.

"Gah... my Kaa-chan will kill me" lamented Shinya.

"Come on, Shinya" Chie said calmly. "It's not so bad..."

"Easy for you to say," the blond replied, with his shoulders down. "You had a Very Good... I had a Bad"

"It was a Bad +"

"Kaa-chan is gonna ground me... I won't be able to visit Akane Nee-chan in the candy store."

Junko snorted with irritation and contempt.

"You really are stupid" the girl whispered.

Shinya looked at Junko, but the girl pouted and turned away. Shrugging, Shinya noticed that Sasuke stood slightly away from the group, his dark eyes fixed on the floor and a worried expression on his face.

"What's wrong with you, Sasuke?" the blond boy asked.

Sasuke looked away.

"Nothing."

"You had the highest grade in class" Shinya grumbled, not hiding his envy and frustration. "You should be happy."

Sasuke looked at him with an annoyed expression. What did Shinya knew about him?

"I don't want to talk about it" Sasuke muttered. "And you don't know anything, so shut up."

Shinya pouted and grimaced. Sasuke replied sticking his tongue out.

The five children continued to walk until they reached a portion of a road that split in two, an old trail up and the road that they used to take to get to their homes. As Shinya wasn't in any hurry to deliver the test to his mom, he ran across the old trail.

"Shinya! What are you doing?" Kyoshiro said.

The boy smirked.

"I'm peeking at the Haunted Mansion" Shinya said.

Sasuke blinked, confused. But the other kids knew perfectly well that Shinya was talking about.

"Don't be dumb" muttered Junko. "Let's go home."

"Why? Are you afraid of the ghosts?" Shinya teased."You're all wusses. I'll see the mansion!"

Shinya ran up the trail.

"I'm not a wuss!" Noriaki grumbled, chasing Shinya.

"Me neither!" Kyoshiro said.

The children began to run on the trail. Although confused by what was happening, Sasuke followed them, jumping over rocks and pulling the weeds from his path. When he finally reached the other children, Sasuke's eyes widened.

It was a mansion, but it was almost as big as a castle. The roof was covered with blue tiles and the walls, although covered with ivy and weeds were still white. In the garden were planted several willows around a green and abandoned lake. The whole mansion was surrounded by an ugly rusty metal mesh to prevent people from entering.

"Wow!" Chie said. "It looks like a king's palace. It's so beautiful!"

"Is it true that it is haunted?" Noriaki asked.

"Of course it is! My grandma told me" Kyoshiro said with a straight face. "During the night, we can hear the ghosts of the Nakano family screaming."

"Who was the Nakano family?" Sasuke asked.

"Huh? You don't know? Everyone knows that story!" Shinya teased.

"I don't live here," said Sasuke, increasingly angry with Shinya. "That's why you all know the story and I don't."

"It's true, Shinya" Chie intervened. "Sasuke-kun just came to the village."

"Blah blah blah... Okay... I'll tell you, but if you get scared and start crying is not my fault" Shinya said, smiling with satisfaction when he saw Sasuke frowning with annoyance. "A long, long time ago, a wealthy family lived in this mansion: the Nakano. Mr. Nakano was the former mayor of the village and it was he who decided to build the mines here, so he was very rich with the diamonds and had many children... "

"After marrying Mrs. Himeko" Junko interrupted.

Shinya looked at Junko angrily.

"Okay... who cares? Mr. Nakano and his wife... Mrs. Himeko" Shinya added when Junko stared at him with a scowl. "They both died in an accident in the mines, so Hideo, the eldest son, became the new lord of the manor and the diamond mines. Everything was going well when, one night, a killer got on the mansion" Shinya pointed to the house. "And killed Hideo… and all his younger brothers and sisters."

"Stop!" Chie groaned.

"The killer got on the house and cut Hideo's head off" the blond boy continued, ignoring Chie. "Then he cut his sisters and brothers into pieces and threw his baby brother into the lake!"

"Stop! Stop telling this story! I don't want to hear it! Let's go home!" Chie whimpered, very frightened by the story.

"You're really a baby, Chie" grumbled Shinya. "I'm going in!"

"What?" Noriaki said. "Don't be silly, Shinya."

Shinya easily lifted a rusty piece of the network.

"They say they never cleaned the blood off the floor and the walls" Shinya said, excitedly. "I want to see if is still there!"

"Hmpf… that's stupid" Sasuke huffed, crossing his arms over his chest. Shinya was such a complete moron!

The blond was about to enter the garden of the mansion, when a large, tanned hand grabbed his wrist, making him scream. Caught by surprise all the children screamed, certain that it were the ghosts who wanted to take them to the Other World.

"This isn't a place for children" a stern voice said.

When the kids stopped crying they saw who had grabbed Shinya wasn't a ghost. It was a tall man with dark brown hair down to his shoulders and hazel eyes.

"Ka... Kaito-san ...?" Shinya stammered.

Seeing the coolest man in the village, the children sighed with relief.

"What are you doing here?" the young man asked. "The school is over... why aren't you home?"

"Shinya wanted to see the Haunted Mansion" Noriaki said. "We came after him."

"Well... he wanted to go into the Mansion" Chie said.

Kaito stared at Shinya with a frown.

"An abandoned mansion is not a safe place for you to play" scolded Kaito.

"I'm not scared!" Shinya said. "I'm not afraid of ghosts."

Kaito's eyes softened, but his voice remained serious.

"I believe you... But look for danger is not the same as being brave, it's foolish and risky."

Shinya blushed up to his hair. Sasuke couldn't help smiling.

"Nice" the raven haired boy thought. "That'll teach you not to talk big."

"Now, go home" said Kaito. "Your parents will be worried."

"Hai!" the children responded in unison.

"Ne! Ne! Kaito-san?" Shinya said. "Could you teach us to fight? You know... like in the spars between the loggers! You're so cool. When I grow up, I want to be as strong as you!"

Kaito chuckled.

"I'll think about your offer. Now go home... It's getting dark."

More excited than embarrassed, Shinya nodded and the children went back down the trail. Despite never admitting it, Sasuke was glad that Shinya had the nerve to ask Kaito to train them.

When all the kids said goodbye and headed to their respective homes, Sasuke remembered the test that was in his backpack.

Naruto had come home early despite having been very busy since early morning. Thanks to its clones, he had been able to do the equivalent of ten D-Rank missions and a C-Rank (there had been a pathetic attempt to steal a box of diamonds when the miners were taking it to the village and Naruto had been hired to protect them).

Although he missed the thrills and challenges of the missions he had with Team Kakashi, Naruto felt quite satisfied with his day's work. It had become comforting to go home, knowing that he wouldn't be alone because he had a family that was waiting and needed him.

Smiling, the blond ninja came home and took a long and relaxing shower. After was he dressed and clean, Naruto went to the kitchen thinking about what to make for dinner. He eventually learned to cook more than Ramen. Over the years, Naruto struggled to learn to do all kinds of meals. He even endeavored to eat fresh vegetables, despite still hating them... but he had to set a good example to Sasuke. That's what parents did and Naruto, more than anything, wanted to be a good father and raise Sasuke as it should be.

While making dinner, Naruto remembered the conversation he had with the miners who had hired him. He didn't forget the famous and mysterious Incident and wanted to know more about it. The miners told him all they knew, including some strange assumptions about the massacre of the Nakano family. Not only was it terrible that the murderer had killed a loved and respected teenager in the community, but also mercilessly killed his younger siblings... small children including an eight month baby. The killer was never caught or discovered, or even his motives. Nothing had been stolen in the Mansion and the young heir, Nakano Hideo, had no enemies. He had been a kind boy; honest and fair... his loss was much mourned. The villagers were still shocked because there had been no reason for the massacre. The current mayor and Mr. Nakano younger brother, Nakano Aoki, hated when people talked about the massacre. He didn't even want to think about the night he lost almost his entire family.

Naruto met all sorts of criminals throughout his life. There was always a reason to kill someone, even just for pleasure or greed. Probably the Nakano killer also had his reasons, no matter how obscure.

The blond shinobi couldn't help it and remembered the Uchiha massacre. Apparently, there had been no reason why Uchiha Itachi killed his own family and, for years, everyone had thought he was just a monstrous and cruel ninja who had killed the entire clan, including his parents, to prove his skills. The real reason was very different.

Naruto awoke from his thoughts when he heard the sound of the front door opening slowly.

"O kaeri nasai!" Naruto cried in the kitchen while he was busy washing the vegetables in the sink.

"Ah... Tadaima..." Sasuke answered. Naruto blinked, puzzled by the voice tone of the boy. Sasuke seemed worried.

"What took you so long?" Naruto asked, without leaving the kitchen. "Takeru-sensei forced you to stay late?"

"No..." Sasuke said, running to his bedroom and putting his backpack on the bed. "We... ah... we played a little..."

"Oh! Ok, then" replied the blond.

Sasuke took the damn test from his pack, frowning when he saw the grade written in red. The raven looked at the kitchen door and gulped hard. He didn't want to show the test to his dad... it was so embarrassing. Sasuke wanted him to be proud and praise him when he showed him his 100%, instead Sasuke only managed a stingy 80%...

The feeling of shame and failure almost ripped his heart apart. The boy felt stupid and the mere idea of Tou-chan looking at the test and be disappointed or even scold him was too terrifying. He had to get rid of the test. He could throw it away... rip it to shreds and throw it to the trash, but the trash was in the kitchen...

"I'll hide it" Sasuke decided, going into the living room. "I'll hide it behind the old books on the top shelf... when Tou-chan goes to sleep, I'll go back and throw it away."

Satisfied with his idea, Sasuke dragged a chair and climbed up. When he grabbed the shelf, the bookcase shook dangerously. Before Sasuke could react, the bookcase fell on him. The raven fell from the chair and covered his face with his hands to protect himself from the avalanche of books that fell upon him.

Alerted by the noise and the cries of pain, Naruto dropped everything and ran from the kitchen to the living room. With an impressive speed and strength, the blonde took the bookcase on top of the child and removed the books. Sasuke was lying on his back; he had a cut on his head made by a hardcover book and his elbows scraped when he fell from his chair.

"Are you alright, Sasuke?" Naruto asked, worried. "Where are you hurt? What hurts?"

Sasuke tried to suppress his tears, but couldn't. Everything hurt! His arms, head... even his bottom.

"It hurts... it really hurts..." the boy cried.

"Can you move your arms?" Naruto asked, ready to take him to the hospital. But Sasuke moved both arms with ease. "And your legs? Can you get up? Did you hit your head on the floor? "

After making sure that Sasuke hadn't broken any bones, Naruto could finally breathe of relief and took the child in his arms. Despite crying in pain, Sasuke remembered to hide the test in his shorts pocket and clung to his father.

Naruto sat Sasuke on the top of the toilet and cleaned his wounds with a wet cloth, while the boy moaned every time the blond touched his wounds.

"It will stop hurting" Naruto said softly. "These are just a few scratches; they'll heal in no time."

Sasuke continued to cry silently while Naruto put the ointment on every scratch and a small bandage on his forehead. It was in times like these that Naruto wanted his regenerative ability to be inheritable and not a side effect of being the Kyuubi's Jinchuriki.

"Is it better?" Naruto asked, looking at the child's red and swollen eyes.

Sasuke nodded slowly and wiped his tears with the back of his hand.

"I'm sorry I made the bookcase fall" the little raven said. "I'll pick everything up."

"Don't worry... we'll get the books later" Naruto said, putting the ointment and bandages in the medicine cabinet. "Now... could you explain to me why you were hiding a paper on the shelf?"

Sasuke's black eyes widened in surprise and, then, panic.

"I wasn't... how do you ...?" the boy stammered.

Naruto merely smirked like a sly fox.

"I saw you hide the paper in your shorts" said Naruto. "You wanted to hide it on the highest shelf, that's why it fell. Tell me... what do you want to hide from me?"

Sasuke felt his mouth dry and his lower lip trembled. With a trembling hand, the raven took the crumpled test from pocket and handed it to his father. Naruto smoothed the sheet and saw the test.

Sasuke's heart was beating strongly and painfully due to panic. A mental picture would not leave his head: Naruto would frown and stare at Sasuke with a tight-lipped grimace of disapproval and a cold and harsh stare.

"That's it?" he would say. "Is this the best you can do? You let me down, Sasuke."

That's what would happen. His father would think that Sasuke was stupid and lazy. All the pride Naruto had for him would fade away because Sasuke couldn't get anything right. He failed. That was the only thing he could think of... he had failed.

Naruto lifted his blue eyes of the test and noticed that Sasuke was looking at his hands, tight in his shorts, and trembling. His face was even paler than usual... and that look ... Naruto recognized it... it was fear... pure fear.

The fear of being a failure.

"Some things never change, teme" Naruto thought with a little smile.

Slowly, Naruto landed a hand on Sasuke's head. The raven stopped shaking and dared to lift his face and look at his father in the eye. Naruto was smiling and Sasuke could not believe it.

"You did your best, right?" Naruto said. "It was your first test in elementary school. Not bad! I'm impressed! "

Sasuke's still watery eyes widened.

"But I... I couldn't get it all right..." the raven said, carefully.

"Okay... it would be great if you got everything right, but this test is very good" Naruto said, still stroking the hair of his astonished son. "You were disappointed with yourself for not getting a 100%, right? Don't worry... if you study a little more, I'm sure you'll get thousands of them. "

"But I didn't get an Excellent" Sasuke continued, as if Naruto wasn't able to see the gravity of the situation. "I thought I knew everything... but I blew it."

Against his will, Sasuke felt the tears sliding down his face. He felt so sad, so disappointed... he wanted a 100% so much. He wanted to see his Daddy's face when he placed the test in the fridge... but Sasuke failed.

"Sasuke... you did your best" Naruto said softly. "It's okay... we learn when we get it wrong."

Sasuke suppressed a sob. He felt he had a stone at the bottom of his belly.

"I wish... I wish you were proud of me" Sasuke confessed. "I wanted... to make you proud."

Naruto grabbed his hand and took Sasuke to the kitchen. To the raven's surprise, Naruto stuck test in the refrigerator and knelt on the floor, staring at Sasuke's eyes.

"I want you to listen carefully, Sasuke. I'm proud of you and there is no test that makes me feel less proud, because I know you always do your best. Even if you had a Very Good... even if you had a Bad, I'm not going to stop being proud or love you less. I'm always proud of you. "

"Why?" the boy asked, confused.

"Because you exist."

Naruto let the last words sink in.

"I'll leave this test in the refrigerator" Naruto continued. "Every time you look at it, you'll think that you'll get better and better. It's very easy to win, but we learn much more when we lose because we must stand up and keep fighting. The most important thing is to never give up! A loser is not the person who loses; it's the person who gives up trying."

Sasuke heard all the words carefully, realizing its importance. Despite his young mind, Sasuke knew he was hearing something very important and would never be able to forget it. Oddly, the raven felt calmer... happier... as if a huge weight disappeared from his shoulders.

Almost shyly, Sasuke smiled back.

"Okay... no more tears" Naruto said, with his usual smirk.

Very slowly, Sasuke approached Naruto and circled his neck with his arms. Naruto only smiled and took the child in his arms, letting Sasuke lay his head on his shoulder, as he often did when he was younger.

Behind his blond-haired Daddy, Sasuke saw the sun through the kitchen curtains. The raven thought that Naruto was like the sun, warm and bright. There were times when Sasuke felt the world was all dark, cold and scary... like he felt just a few minutes before. He had felt the plunge into darkness and despair, without hope of being happy again. But his Tou-chan was there as a warm light to take him from the dark. He always had been.

The next day, Sasuke returned to school more excited. When he looked at test in the fridge, he didn't feel like a letdown, instead, he was determined to get better and did his best in class. Takeru-sensei continued to grumble and criticize all his mistakes, but the raven wasn't defeated. The idea of failure no longer frightened him as much as the previous day. All he had to do was try again and not give up.

During the lunch break, everyone noticed that Sasuke was much more cheerful. Shinya, who had been grounded for not having studied for the exam, was angry at the raven and decided to get even the only way he knew: annoying him.

"You were all scared to go into the Mansion yesterday" the blonde muttered. "I was the only one who was brave enough."

Sasuke continued to eat his lunch, trying to ignore the class clown.

"Hey! Look at me when I'm talking to you, know-it-all" grumbled Shinya.

"It's better to be a know-it-all than moron like you" Sasuke said, smiling before Shinya's red face.

"What? Say that again, asshole!"

"Hmpf" snorted the raven.

"Shinya! Leave Sasuke alone" Junko said. "You're jealous because he's got the best grade."

"Me? Jealous? Who is jealous of him?" Shinya growled, throwing away the rest of his lunch.

"Where are you going?" Noriaki said.

"I'm gonna steal the red lilies that the principal has in her office" Shinya said with bravado. "Today, I'm gonna give them to Akane Nee-chan."

"Are you stupid?" Junko squeaked. "You'll be caught and get into trouble."

"I'm not a scaredy-cat like you!" Shinya grumbled running into the school.

"Shinya!" Junko shouted. "I don't believe him..."

"He's really dumb" Kyoshiro said. "When the principal finds out who stole her flowers, he'll be grounded for life."

"He thinks that if he gives her those lilies, Akane Nee-chan is going to be his girlfriend" Chie said. "But she won't… she's a grownup. And grownups date other grownups."

"Hmpf" Sasuke snorted again. Shinya was an annoying show-off, he deserved to be caught. Maybe that would teach him to get smarter.

A few minutes later, they heard the sound of breaking glass and something heavy falling to the ground.

"What was that?" Noriaki asked.

The children got up and ran to the other side of the school. As they turned the corner, Junko screamed in horror.

Shinya was lying on the floor of the playground, his arms and legs spread wide as if he were a broken doll. A pool of blood was scattered around what was left of his head. His blond hair was now red with blood and pieces of his own brain. His dark blue eyes were empty and staring at Sasuke's face, without seeing.

Sasuke heard cries from all directions and worried voices, but it was as if his brain had shut down in shock. He didn't realize he was screaming with all his strength until someone grabbed him and took him, and other children, away.

Shinya's dead body still had a red lily in his hand.

Ok… I told you there was gore (not much I guess). So now Shinya is dead… I don't plan on making the killer identity a secret for much longer.

Also, as for the time travel story, I'll start writing it once Sasuke is about 7 or 8 years old on Phoenix Rising, because I need Sasuke to be a little older for what I have in mind and I don't want to spoil some events that will happen on PR on the side story.

I'm also writing info about this story on the Naruto Fanon Wiki. Thanks again to Ilnarutoanime for the help. If you're interested, check it out.

Also, I saw the new Thor movie and I felt so sorry for Loki that I checked what happened to him… Well, apparently Marvel had the same idea like me in this fanfic (kinda). And I loved it! Hope Loki doesn't become evil again.

Well, see you guys again!