Now, here we go, chapter fifty two, please read, enjoy and review.
Hinata, Brandon, Jiraiya, and Tsunade had made it back to the Uchiha hideout without any difficulties, they put Naruto and Sasuke in separate rooms. Even with the medical attention he received, Naruto still needed bandages, and Sasuke had some broken bones that needed to be healed. Hinata stayed with Naruto, while Jiraiya and Brandon kept watch on Sasuke. Tsunade came to both rooms, delivering medical attention, and when it wasn't needed, she just talked to whoever was in the room. Itachi stayed in his own room, awaiting Sasuke's awakening.
Naruto looked around, he was heel deep in water, and the Nine Tails's cage was in front of him, he was once again in his mind scape. The Nine Tails's huge eyes, appeared from behind the cage, and his booming voice followed, "It seems that you've accomplished your goal."
Naruto couldn't help but let a large, cocky smile cross his face, "I sure did, and I did it without your help."
"One day Boy, one day, you will need me, you will need me more than you have ever needed me, and when that time comes, I'll be there."
"Is that so? And why would you help me?"
"Because, deep inside, your a lot like me. And over these past few years, I've grown to like you, we must stick together, for I am the only one you can trust, and you are the only one I can trust."
"That's not true! I am nothing like you! I trust Hinata with all my being, I trust Brandon, through all of this, he's maintained a loyalty to me and Hinata. I can trust Pervy Sage, he left the village, just so he could come and find me, and so did Granny Tsunade!"
"While you may be able to trust the Girl, the others are not so reliable, watch your step, because what you don't know, can very well hurt you."
"And what the hell is that supposed to mean?"
"It means that they know something about you, that even you, yourself don't know. Their hiding something from you, Boy."
"And why, exactly, would they do that?"
"You'll see."
"I am getting sick and tired of this, ya dumb Fox!"
"Just shut your mouth! I'm trying to help you! But, if you want to be an insolent little brat, then fine! Have fun reliving something the Hidden Leaf Village put you through!"
"No, don't you fucking dare!"
"Too late!"
Naruto opened his mouth to speak, but no words came out, his head was spinning, his vision became blurry, and a severe throbbing began in his head. Soon, he couldn't help but drop to his knee's in pain, "AHHH! Get out of my head! I don't want this! I don't want to relive anything!"
Then, a piece of his childhood, flashed before his eyes, slowly.
It had been three weeks since those group of boys stole Naruto's mask, he stayed inside for almost two weeks, scared to come out. But when he did work up the courage, he began playing rather simple, but effective pranks on the kids. But today, he was going to keep to himself, after all, today was his Birthday. That's not something to be proud of, because every year, Naruto would receive another beating. If he showed his face anywhere, he was pummeled, why? Because it was his Birthday, and he was some kind of weird monster. Naruto didn't understand why people picked on him, or called him a monster, or why some of them were even scared of him.
All he did know, is that if he was quick, he could slip in and out of the bakery, with a cake, without anyone noticing. He of course, had no way to pay for it, but it served them right for always being so cruel to him. He had immediately stuck to the shadows of the back alleys, he wasn't exactly very good at hiding in plain shadows, but in alleys, he had a lot of practice, running from mobs, and fearing for your life can teach someone a lot of really good ways to hide, whether it be in plain sight or somewhere they wouldn't think to check, because your not supposed to be that clever. He was making some headway, sneaking past shops and unsuspecting people, and it didn't take him too long to get to the bakery.
When he was sure no one was looking, he snuck in through the back, and began looking around. There were a lot of really good looking cakes, but they just didn't say birthday to Naruto. So he began looking around a little harder, he had never done this before, hell, he had never even had cake before. That's why he was being so daring, he really wanted to see what Birthday cake tasted like. Soon enough, he found a cake that just said, 'Happy Birthday'.
Naruto looked around for a second, then found an icing gun, so he picked it up, and began writing his name on the cake. After a few seconds, he put it down, and looked at the cake, it read, "Happy Birthday, Naruto!"
But it still wasn't right, he hear that it's supposed to have candles on it, one for each year you've been alive. Naruto quickly began looking around, it didn't take him long to find some candles, he grabbed them and began putting them in his cake, ten of them to be exact, for today was his tenth Birthday. Naruto glared at the completed cake, and couldn't help but smirk, it looked good. He grabbed it, and quickly snuck out, he was only a block away before he heard the owner of the bakery shout, "This place is a mess! Someone has ransacked us!"
Naruto couldn't help but chuckle at the owner's outburst. Naruto was almost home, but he quickly hid behind a trashcan, when he noticed a group of ten boys standing near where his apartment complex was. He got as close as he possibly could, without getting caught, so he could hear what they were saying. "This is the place, this is where that loser lives. He's not inside, so he should be coming back soon, it is his Birthday after all."
"Wait, it's his Birthday?"
"Yeah, I know, freaky huh? He was born on the same day as the Nine Tails's attack on the Village."
"That is strange."
"Hey, what's with the chips? Dude, are you always eating, or what?"
"Just leave him alone, alright? Now what is it we're doing here again?"
"We're going to surprise that Naruto loser, he's always messing with people, being a jackass, so we're going to get back at him."
"Wait, your going to get back at him? Didn't you guys start messing with him first?"
"Yeah, so? He's a loser, a freak, a creep, he needs to be taught a lesson."
"This is messed up, and man is it a drag. Come on Choji, let's get out of here."
"Right behind ya."
"Fine, leave, you chickens! Bock, bock, bock!"
"Actually you guys are the chickens, ten on one? How is that fair? Your all scaredy cats, I'm out of here, this is stupid. Let's go Akamaru."
"Oh come on, not you too Kiba!"
"See ya!"
"Dang, now there's only seven of us."
"And? That's enough, we can totally do this."
"I know that! I just, thought it would be cooler if there were ten of us."
"Yeah, it would have been."
"See, you know what I'm saying. Well, is anyone else skipping out? No...good, we need to teach that Kid a lesson, and we'll do it, right here!"
Naruto sighed, he was gonna be waiting here for a bit, he just had to wait until they left. And within the hour, they did. so he quickly made his way inside, and into his own apartment. He set up his cake, and was about to begin eating it, but then he heard banging on his door. "Hey, dweeb, we know your in there! Come on out, if you don't come out here, we'll come in there!"
Naruto began to panic, he had forgotten to lock the door, but before he could get up, several kids, a little older than him, busted in, they saw him, and charged forward. "Get him!"
"No, leave me alone!"
The kids cornered him, and gave him, what they called, a 'Birthday Beating.' They left about twenty minutes after that, but not without slamming Naruto's face into his cake. They exited his apartment and slammed the door on the way out. Naruto pulled his head out of the cake, the cake on his face had blood on it, from his broken nose, he wiped most of it off, put his back against the wall, and let his tears begin falling, rapidly, his sobs lasting throughout the night.
Naruto was thrashing around in the queen sized bed, Hinata quickly came to his side, she tried her best to comfort him, but soon, the thrashing became something more. He started mumbling, but with a tone that dripped with sorrow, "Please stop. Leave me alone. It's my Birthday, why do you have to ruin it?"
Event though his eyes were closed, a tear still managed to escape his right eye, and roll down his face. Hinata, got in the bed, by his side, and hugged him tight, whispering sweet nothings into his ear, trying her very best to calm him down. He looked, and even sounded, very hurt, she couldn't stand it, she was on the verge of tears, just seeing him shed one. Soon though, he stopped thrashing about, and looked as though he began to sleep, which he indeed was. Hinata had taken him from his memory, and slipped him into sweet relief, he fell asleep, as she buried her face into his chest.
Within a field of flowers stood two Sasuke's, one at the age of four, he wore a plain blue shirt, with grey sweatpants, and no footwear, as well as a smile on his face. The other at the age of sixteen, within the second stage of the curse mark, he wore no shirt, black pants, no footwear and a purple rope around his waist. A third Sasuke appeared between the two, also sixteen, but he wore grey sweats, a black shirt, with the Uchiha symbol on the back, and he wore black sandals. The two Sasuke's that stood on either side of the Sasuke in the middle, spoke in unison, but in different voices, the small four year old, spoke with his voice, and the second stage curse mark one, spoke with a rage filled, blood lusted voice, "You have to decide, who you want to be, decide!"
The Sasuke in the middle, then replied, "Who are you?"
They both spoke in unison once more, "We are parts of you. But you can no longer hold onto both of us, you must let one go, and embrace the other."
The four year old, began speaking on his own, drawing the middle Sasuke's attention, "I am what ties you to all of your friends in the Hidden Leaf, I am the bond between you and Naruto, I am compassion."
The second stage curse mark Sasuke then spoke, drawing the middle Sasuke's attention, "I am what makes you want to kill your older Brother, I am what drives you for vengeance, I am hatred."
They both spoke in unison, one last time, "You must choose, either toss compassion aside, and live for hatred, or toss your hatred aside, and live for compassion."
Jiraiya and Brandon watched as Sasuke tossed and turned, apparently, sometime after he lost consciousness, he actually went to sleep. And Brandon and Jiraiya didn't intend on waking him up, they were just gonna let him go through the nightmare, or whatever was causing him distress, and wait till he woke up to interact with him. They had both noticed though, his curse mark was gone, so if what happened back at Orochimaru's hideout wasn't enough to convince someone Orochimaru was dead, then Sasuke's curse mark disappearing did it for sure.
Anko was making her way back to her apartment, when she felt a burning pain, right where her curse mark was, she quickly checked on it, and discovered, it was gone. She rushed to tell Kurenai, and when she found out, She gathered Sakura, Rock Lee, Neji, Kiba, Shino, Choji, Shikamaru, Ino, Ten Ten, Asuma, Kakashi, Iruka, and Guy, at the training ground that Team Seven first used. For Kurenai, and the people she gathered, were the only ones to know Naruto and Hinata were two of the masked shinobi. Kakashi was the one to speak for all of them, "So, what is it that you wanted Kurenai? And why did you gather all of us?"
Kurenai, for once in over two years, was happy, "Anko's curse mark is gone, which could only mean, Orochimaru is dead."
Everyone looked at Kurenai as if she was completely nuts, Sakura was the one to speak though, "Then, does that mean, that, Naruto did it? That he destroyed Orochimaru, a...and saved S...Sasuke?"
