The Encroaching Frost

By: Andoryu-sama

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or any of its characters.

Special thanks to holyknight5 for all his support!

Chapter 4: His Forever Smile


His ears twitched as two knocks sounded on the door, followed by a brief pause and the sound of the door to his room being slid open slowly, the light patter of footfalls approaching the boy's mattress the only noise left in the silence of the early morn.

"Uzumaki-san…"

His ears twitched again as they recognized the voice immediately, followed by the sounds of shuffling cloth.

"Uzumaki-san…" Small, gentle hands touched his side and proceeded to rock him repeatedly in an attempt to rouse him. "Uzumaki-san, you must get up."

"Mmmm…Neechan?" His head lolled to the side, heavily laden eyes barely registering the image of the girl before him. "Wha-?"

"Please get up, the sun has risen already."

"Wha-?" He looked around, noting the still dark surroundings. "No it hasn't…it's still dark."

Azumi sighed. "Uzumaki-san, from our position in the cliffs we do not receive sunlight at any time during the day."

Naruto sat up and yawned noisily, smacking his lips before stopping suddenly when he heard something peculiar. "Wait, cliffs? You mean we're still at your house? I thought we left the village?"

"All will be explained later." The young medic ensured him as she rose to her feet. "Right now my father wishes to greet you and has requested that I summon you for breakfast. It is an informal setting so you may simply follow me in the robe you have on."

"Oh…ok." He blinked. "Wait…I'm wearing a robe?"

Azumi exited the room, sliding the door close to lean on its thin material as she thought about the happenings of the night before. Although she never expected them to escape without pursuit, she never expected to be caught so soon after their departure, and it was all because the blonde made so many attempts to escape, her father had ordered the patrol to be on alert even after he was discharged.

The fact of the matter, however, was that she committed no crimes that night. He was not of their village and could leave at any time he chose and she, in addition to being an inactive Shinobi, was old enough to leave the village of her own accord. Naruto was needed, and she was not sure whether it was because of what she knew or if it was because of something newly discovered.

The door shifted behind her and she moved off quickly, turning to face the boy who had obviously decided to forgo the robe in favor of his orange suit.

"You are quite taken with that suit I see…"

"Meh…" Naruto shrugged, checking the material out for a few seconds before putting on a big smile. "It just kinda grew on me."

"I see…well, let's get going."


"Welcome, Uzumaki-san."

Naruto instantly shot ramrod straight, having not noticed the presence of another person in the room until the person made himself know, but now that he did, Naruto wished he hadn't. He could tell, even though the person had his eyes closed he could tell it was the same frighteningly imposing person he met in the hospital and as the person opened his dull hues to take him into account, he could instantly feel the same bone chilling terror he felt before.

"Uzumaki-san…" Azumi whispered, touching his shoulders gently since he would not listen otherwise. "Calm yourself."

"I only did what needed to be done to return you to a manageable state." He stated unapologetically before extending a hand towards the open seats. "Now please, unclench your fists and join me for brunch; we have much to discuss."

"Discuss? Discuss?! We don't have anything to talk about so just let me go home already!"

"If you wish to remain standing that is fine with me. However…" He warned, signaling the appearance of several masked Shinobi who took up positions at each of the room's exits. "You shall not be leaving this room until our talk has ended."

"You just have to sit and listen. Then, we can go elsewhere for our meal." Azumi whispered to him, eliciting a begrudging nod of affirmative from the boy. "Also, Try to be patient, do not reveal anything about your reasons for being here, and do not allow yourself to be lured into his line of questioning."

Before Naruto could ask what she meant, the man had already begun to speak again and so he remained quiet, opting to merely sticking close to what he deemed to be his only safe contact in the entire village.

"Now that that matter has been settled, we shall carry on with discussions after you have eaten your fill." The head of the household stated as both Azumi and Naruto settled down at the rectangular table, far away from the reach of the white-haired man. However, as the morning winded down the head at the table noticed something that was probably not all too peculiar for their situation.

None of the two children were eating…

"You are not eating…" He started, wiping his lips demurely for a brief moment. "Is the selection not to your liking?"

Naruto folded his arms and pushed up his lips. "I'm not hungry."

"I see…" Ignoring the loud growl reaching his ear from across the table, he turned to study his offspring. "And I suppose you share his lack of appetite?" At her nod he continued. "Then I suppose we can skip this meal and begin talks immediately." He waved for the dishes to be removed, leaving only three steaming ceramic cups of tea as the discussion ensued. "Allow me to introduce myself, Uzumaki-san. My name is Shiraiyuki Yukio, the leader of this village. Of course now that you have recovered from your illness, it is only logical that we begun arrangements for your safe transportation back to your village of origin, is it not?"

Naruto perked up at his words…

Yukio sipped his tea nonchalantly. "It is unfortunate, however, that this is not possible at the moment."

…Only to fall flat on his face in disappointment. "What?! Why?!"

"You were found passed out in our wilderness suffering from various physical ailments, and sympathetic to your plight we saw it fit to allocate a multitude of resources to see to your speedy recovery. This, as a result, has caused you to accumulate a fair amount of debt towards us, your saviors. Although I am not asking a fortune of you, do you not feel it is not customary for me to receive something in return, as a proper show of good will towards both parties?" He reasoned.

"Well, I suppose that makes sense." Naruto wondered aloud before being reminded of past events. "Wait a minute…when I wanted to leave you guys wouldn't let me!"

"I am sure you were hardly coherent at the time, Uzumaki-san. Besides, does that not lead us back to the original question at hand? How could we possibly let you leave when we ourselves have not received compensation for our trouble?"

Naruto frowned. "But I'm poor…I don't have anything to give y-"

Yukio raised a hand to silence him. "It is fine, Uzumaki-san. You merely have to answer a few questions of mine and you will be released from our care without any trouble."

Looking to his left at Azumi for a little guidance in his decision and receiving a nod of the head in return, a sulking Naruto plopped back onto his cushion. "Che…fine…" He relented before adding a stipulation. "But only five questions!"

Azumi turned to face Naruto, somewhat amazed at the foresight and intellect shown. With that, they would be able to limit the number of inquiries about the boy as much as they could, reducing the chances of questions about his mission arising.

"Very well…" Yukio reached for his teacup. "Let us begin then. Uzumaki-san, how did you happen about wandering into our midst?"

"Huh?"

"I explained to you that you were found did I not? I simply wish to know what happened that would end up in your collapse in the middle of our vast tundra."

Glancing in Azumi's direction briefly he returned to his stubborn front. "I got separated from my friends and got lost trying to find my way back."

"And how long was that before you met with our wolves?"

"Ummm…about an hour?"

"I see…" The middle aged leader contemplated his words for a moment. "Uzumaki-san, this is the most crucial question. Why are you still alive?" Yukio watched as the boy's once tense features turned to confusion as he answered with what one would describe as the 'obvious'.

"You guys saved me…right?"

Yukio nodded. "Yes, my point being that we should not have been able to. Even with the use of chakra to aid in the movement of heat within the body, a child, who has not yet been acclimatized to this nation of snow, should not be able to survive within our harsh climate for more than a day. Yet, however, you have defied all logic and survived for three."

"So…"

"In addition, when you were retrieved and put under the care of our medical experts, your body had been heavily afflicted with cold related injuries to the point where even amputation had been contemplated as an alternative."

Naruto blanched, triple checking to make sure all his limbs were intact. "Amputation?!"

"Yes. However, before they could begin the procedure, the medics all witnessed something peculiar emanating from your abdomen in the process of returning some semblance of warmth to your body."

Everything shut down within the boy's mind the moment attention had been brought to his stomach, and he could only stare blankly as the man before him continued to describe what had been seen in a painstakingly vivid detail.

"A bright, red light acting in pulses, highlighting what was described to be an array of seals, which then triggered an, and I quote, "a phenomenal, unexplainable increase in cell regeneration". My final question, for the morning, is this; would you please enlighten me as to what it is that seal was designed for?"

Azumi frowned inwardly. He hadn't been interested in what she had known at all, succeeding in completely throwing them off balance. And he had done it in four, meaning he had been prepared before hand for such a tactic to be used and ensuring he had one question left in which he could safely use at a later date. They had been played, and from the looks of teen next to her it seemed as if it was a topic rather left untouched. She reached for him under the cover of the table, palming his thigh gently as she watched as he snapped to attention. She could see the fear in his eyes after he turned to face her, and she focused her gaze intently on his, hoping he would pick up the telepathic messages she was trying to send through to him.

"I had no idea you two had become so close in such a short period of time."

Azumi removed her hand immediately at the comment and shifted her gaze back towards the head of the table in a natural movement, a stark contrast to the bumbling, blushing blonde. "I only have you to thank for giving me the opportunity for it seemed we had more in common than I thought."

"Is that so…" Yukio said matter-of-factly before sipping on his tea once more. "As fascinating as that may be, however, I am still awaiting the answer to my question."

Coming out of his stupor Naruto answered none too fluidly. "I-I don't know anything about a seal…"

Raising an eyebrow Yukio placed his cup down gently. "Do you mean to tell me you wish to go back on your word? You ensured me that—"

"N-No!" Naruto denied wholeheartedly. "I really don't know anything about that seal! Really!!"

As if reading him for deceit, Yukio nodded and waved his hand, a line of helpers coming out at his call. "Very well, Uzumaki-san. Just let it be known that you shall not be leaving this village before the nature of your seal is revealed to me." He informed him as the helpers cleared the table. "You are free to do as you like within the confines of the village's boundaries, as long as do not go overboard in whatever action you may choose. When you are ready to confide in me Azumi knows of my location. It is a shame though that it is not night as that is when our village's beauty is at its peak, but you would have already had a chance to see that, would you not?"

Naruto stood abruptly in protest, partly in what Yukio said and because of the quickly disappearing food. "W-Wait, y-you can't do this!"

"Enjoy your stay, Uzumaki-san…" He said, stalking out the door, effectively ending their involvement with each other for now.

"And stop calling me that!" Naruto called after him before cursing loudly and sulking in defeat. "Damn! Now what am I supposed to do?"

"Naoto-san, could you please warm both out portions and bring them to my room? It would be most appreciated."

Naruto looked up at the white-haired girl who managed to secure them a meal and was now returning to him.

"Uzuma—"

"Aargh! Stop calling me that already!!" He screamed in frustration. "Look Neechan, if we're going to be friends you have to stop calling me that; call me Naruto!"

"I am sorry; I was not so presumptuous as to expect that our relationship had—"

"And stop it with that confusing talk!"

Azumi simply stared at the fuming boy, recalling an all too similar experience she had with the princess during their first encounter and she managed a small smile. "Very well…Naruto, I can only ask that you show me the same courtesy and refer to me by my given name, Azumi." At his cheerful nod she continued. "Returning to what I was going to say, however, let us return to my room for now where we shall continue our discussion while we have a breakfast of our own. It will also be a nice chance for us to be further acquainted with each other."


"Souta-kun, you…get back here!"

"Nya ha!"

Naruto sat on a small hill of snow, arms sagging lifelessly between his legs fingering a pile of snow as he stared inertly at the children playing below. The first thing he had been told the moment they had finished their meals was that she had been put under some sort of house arrest where she was supposed to meditate for the entire day, which meant of course that their plans to leave had to be put on hold.

After that the rest of the time just dragged on slowly and he could no longer concentrate on a word she was saying, leaving her with little choice but to give him a card and send him out for fresh air.

He brought a hand up slowly to rest over what was the root of all his problems, clutching at it gently as the fabric of his jacket conformed to his grip.

This…seal, it was never something he was comfortable admitting to have; most of his nights being spent wishing he had never been so unlucky. Ever since he had found out about it that faithful evening, he could have sworn he could hear it breathing; exhaling his name with every breath that called to him from behind the blackness of his eyes.

Then he met it inside his 'mind' and he would never know why the fox seemed to be smiling that day inside its cage as it reached out with its terrifying claw to end him.

And now, the fox was just confusing as it seemed to be trying to befriend him or something.

He sighed, not understanding why these people wanted him to consort with such a creature. Hell, even that pervert Jiraiya had said that he needed to learn how to control it at some point in time.

But was that something he wanted to do here? Was it something he even wanted to do at all? The fox was hated right? Wouldn't the villagers get mad if he started using the fox's powers?

"ARGH!" A cry of frustration tore through his lips as he returned the scrunched-up snow in his hand back to the ground with a vengeance. He sighed deeply, the adrenalin from his pent up anger faded away into nothingness as he drooped back into his original posture. "I just want to go home…" He murmured.

"What's wrong nii-chan?" One child questioned innocently as she stared down at his defeated self.

Naruto looked up, unaware that he was being surrounded by the kids who were previously playing.

"Yea, what's wrong? Are you angry?" Another one spoke up and he smiled sadly.

The blonde sighed. "No…"

"Hungry?"

"No…"

"Sleepy?"

"No…well, kinda…" He admitted. Azumi did interrupt him from his sleep after all.

"What's with your weird colored hair anyway nii-chan?"

At this point he was beginning to get a little irritated. "What's it to ya anyway?!"

"I knew he was angry!"

"Run away, it's a yeti!"

The children all screamed and giggled as they ran, looking back occasionally to see if they were being chased.

"Yeti? What the hell is a-"

Splat.

Naruto's eyebrow twitched as the snow made its way down his face of its own accord. No…he wouldn't be led on. He wouldn't fall for their stupid-

Splat, splat.

He slid his hand slowly down his face taking the small globules of snow with its path downwards, revealing a frosty glare that was directed at the bunch of tyrants who were currently jeering at him with raspberries and weird faces.

"Go back to your cave Yeti!"

"Yea! You and your pee-colored hair!"

"P-Pee colored?" He squeaked, pulling on his bang until it reached his level of sight. The rubber-made glove groaned as the material rubbed against each other, his right hand slowly closing into a trembling fist.

The last straw had just been pulled…

----

"Mi-Chan, aren't you going to be late for training?!"

"I know, I know! I'm going!"

Takahashi Michiru, a teenage girl of 5' 5" hopped into the doorway of her home, one hand braced against the wood while the other was busy fastening the last of the clasps on her boots. "Bye Mom!" She shouted before pulling the door close behind her, adjusting her shoulder length black hair into two identical ponytails that hung at the sides of her face. Her soft emerald eyes took on a determined appearance as she sprung off the steps onto the neighboring rooftop, stopping momentarily when something peculiar caught her eye.

She saw her brother and his little friends being chased around (somewhat playfully) by what appeared to be an army of blondes? They were each identical; parading around in the same winter outfit, all with the same loud voice. She couldn't even say with confidence that she would be able to tell which one was the real one if she had ever been given the opportunity to.

Though, it didn't look like he was too successful at what he was doing as the children were capitalizing on the fact that he kept getting stuck in the knee-high snow. It was funny though, if anything, to see them wailing on the foreigner.

"Grr…I give up! Just teach me how to stop getting stuck in the snow!"

Her brother stood triumphantly before the army grinning cheekily. "First, you have to call me the great Souta-Sama!"

"Never!"

"Hehehe…fine with me, Yeti." Souta grinned, looking over his shoulder to address the group behind him. "Bring out the YS, special formulae number seven!"

There was a collective shout of "Eh?!" from the gathered children.

"Number seven?!"

"Don't you think that's a bit too harsh?" Another said worriedly.

Souta shook his head in disagreement. "No! He needs to learn who the boss is around here!"

"Oh no…I need to put a stop to this." She thought as she watched the scene unfold, but the prospects of actually finding out where they hid the disgusting things was too tempting. "But eww…the special formulae series? That guy's got it bad…"

The young female Shinobi watched as one of the girls in the group disappeared in to her home for some time before walking out dragging with her a small cooler, the number "7" on its label.

"Kukukuku…" The leader of the young tyrants chuckled darkly as he received his package and he opened the container slowly before removing its contents, a heavy offending smell permeating into the air from its release. He raised the yellow-gold snowball high, marveling at its glory. "Magnificent!"

The blonde teen pinched his nose shut. "Ugh…that's awful! What the hell is it?!"

The boy smirked. "It's the combination of our essence into one beautiful, diabolical work of art. And I'm going to plant it on you if you don't submit to me!"

"Like hell I will!"

"Have it your way!" He yelled in return as he reared his arm back, priming the snowball for launch. Midway through his arcing motion however…

"SHOUTA, WHAT DID I TELL YOU ABOUT MAKING THOSE DISGUSTING THINGS WITH YOUR FRIENDS?!"

"Crap, It's Neesan!" The putrid ball of yellow slipped from the boy's hand, sailing right over the head of the blonde nearest to him…

And into the face of another one.

"OH GAWD! IT BURNS! IT BURNS!!!" It wailed as it thrashed about in the snow before disappearing in a puff of smoke. Then, as if in a chain reaction the others followed suit, disappearing in a myriad of screams and curses until there was only one blonde left writhing in agony on the fallen snow.

"RUN!" On Souta's command the children all scattered immediately, all of them retreating into homes of either themselves or of their friends leaving the girl who had initially brought out the offending ball struggling to return the container to the confines of her home.

"Ume!" Michiru called out to the young girl and she froze in her tracks. Tears began to accumulate at the corners of her eyes as she prepared herself for what she thought was most likely going to be a scolding.

"Ume…"

"P-Please don't scold Souta-kun. I-I…"

"You don't have to defend my slimeball of a younger brother Ume. I won't tell your parents about what happened but you should stop letting Souta force you into doing these things!"

"H-He didn't force me…"

Michiru sighed. Of course he didn't, the girl would follow him around hopelessly because of that stupid crush of hers. To make matters worse her brother probably knew and was using the girl to his heart's content. "I won't tell your parents Ume, this time…" She threatened her as she grasped hold of the handle to the cooler, relieving the girl of it (and what remained of its diabolical contents). "…but make sure you tell that Souta I've got a beating for him when we get home!"

The young girl looked worried for a moment but it seemed the presence of her own smile made the girl's worries disappear and she sped off happily to rejoin her friends. Good, her first problem was over. She turned to the boy that was surprisingly still writhing on the ground in agony. It couldn't have been that horrible, could it?

She honestly didn't want to know the answer to that.

"Are you okay?" She asked tentatively as she approached him, her weariness of strangers kicking in. His eyes flashed dangerously as he glanced upwards to glare at her.

"Didn't you see?! I got nailed right in the face with that thing!"

"Yes, but…" If she was uncertain before now she was just plain confused. She was pretty sure that the one before her was the one of the many that had been spared the initial blow. Hell, she couldn't even find any traces of the thing on him. She took out her handkerchief and wet it by a nearby tap that was fed water by the underground springs, handing it to him to clean his face of nonexistent bodily fluids if only to settle his mind for the moment.

He muttered a small 'thank you' and she watched as he proceeded to clean his face thoroughly albeit slowly, the obvious sign of deep thought present when she repeated her earlier question and no answer was heard. As she stared on at the downhearted boy, she forgot about her earlier engagement with her team and got lost in the color of his golden locks. Such a rarity it was; her never having seen such a bright shade of yellow on anyone's head before and as the dull, grey-white light coming down from the overcast sky reflected off it, it seemed to glow with an ethereal radiance. Seeing the sun was also a rarity here in this snowy village, and here she was staring down right at its equal.

It made her want to get burned by its touch.

At that thought her body began moving on its own and she was only centimeters from entangling her fingers within his locks, not even remembering when she removed her warm glove in the first place. He shifted however and she flinched, the shock at the sudden movement returning memories of her previous engagement with it.

"Ah!" She exclaimed, pulling out her pocket watch. "NOOOO! I'M SO LATE!" She turned to run when the blonde caught her eye again. "Umm…you can keep it. You know…just in case we never meet again. See ya!"

When she turned to run again, she would miss the cerulean eyes that would have met hers and the urgent call for her to wait.

----

"Damn…she's gone." He murmured as he stared into the distance. When he could no longer see the back of the girl he just met he turned his focus to the soft fabric he held in his hands. The whole morning outside the castle came back to him; the meeting with the children and the arduous snowball fight that followed, there was no doubt in his mind that he enjoyed it despite his previous sour mood. His shoulders shook slightly as a snicker escaped his dry lips, soon escalating into a loud, true laughter that came from the depths of his stomach and reverberated through his body.

His smile was finally back now and damnit he was going to make it hold this time.

"That's right; I'm Uzumaki Naruto, future Hokage and prankster extraordinaire!"

If they didn't want him to leave then he would just make himself comfortable. He would kick back and prop his feet up on their tables and track mud through their homes. That's right, he would make himself unwelcome and become the pest of all pests.

"By the time I'm through with this village they would be begging me to leave! Believe it!" He declared loudly, ignoring the strange looks from the passers-by. The problem was however, was where to start.

A loud rumble came from below and he smirked.

There was no better place to start than with lunch. He was going to eat his fill, then slap the bill on the on that white-haired bastard's tab.

Oh was he so going to enjoy this.

----

Azumi walked briskly through the town, her lengthy white hair licking like hot flames every which way as her eyes darted to and fro desperately trying to catch a glimpse of her blonde haired charge. After he had left that morning she had gotten up and changed to go off in search of him after some thought on the matter (her father's punishment be damned), leaving her to traverse blindly through the somewhat large village.

Even though she had told him to go outside and experience the village during its brief moments of sunlight, she had forgotten that he was but a foreigner on their soil and would only get lost traversing the many districts.

She paused in her stride.

Was she really worrying for his well-being? As only a human being would right? It was normal to express worry for someone when they were troubled, right?

Yes; she refused to believe anymore that a Shiraiyuki was born devoid of the emotions that defined a typical mortal soul. If that had been the case, then she would not have tried so hard for Koyuki's sake as well. She was just like anyone else with a beating heart…

But then, why was it taught that Shiraiyuki tended to be as cold as the ice they commanded?

Before she could delve any further into that thought there was a loud shout and someone ran by her in an obvious hurry, barely avoiding a collision with her. She rounded the corner though, curious as to what would illicit such a reaction from a person when her eyes fell upon the figure of the very person she was searching for. Suddenly a feeling of what she would identify as relief at finding him rushed through her veins as she made to make her presence known but…

"By the time I'm through with this village they would be begging me to leave! Believe it!"

She stopped in her tracks, his words echoing repeatedly in her mind as she moved out of plain sight once more.

There was no need for her to worry for his wellbeing after all…

----

"The gender signs on the public baths being mysteriously switched in the middle of the day, soaked toilet paper in public restrooms and in several highly established restaurants, reports of snow being dumped into civilians' homes through the chimneys…" Yukio trailed off as he ran through a list of filed disturbances occurring within the past hour.

"Yes, and more complaints are coming as we speak sir."

"Any ideas as to the cause of these…mysterious problems?"

"No sir, but the Shinobi are getting a little…antsy." She said, holding back a giggle. It was quite understandable as it had been some time since there had been a disturbance of any level.

"I see…"

"Sir, I'm sorry for interrupting but you have got to see this!" A man rushed past the open doors, his face twisting occasionally as if he was trying to hold back a smile. "There's something happening on the southern crag wall!"

Yukio sighed as he shuffled off his slippers, putting on some appropriate wear for going outdoors. Not that he minded of course seeing as he had nothing else better to do.

----

Naruto leaned back from his elevated suspension with his thumb and forearm extended, eyeing his work critically. He couldn't, for the life of him, figure out exactly what kind of expression he should put on his Yukio look-alike.

Originally, his finale had been to decorate their Kage monument just as he had done in Konoha, but his utter shock and surprise there was none! What was he supposed to do now?!

Then it struck him; why not create a monument on his own? Oh the brilliance of it all!

And it didn't hurt that he had been blessed with the artistic talent of a god either.

"Hey! Your side's looking good!" The blonde working on the right side of the face commented suddenly, pushing off from the wall to get a better view of the side furthest from him.

"Yours too!" The blonde hanging from the left side replied happily as he turned to the one in the middle. "Yo, how's the face coming?!"

"I just can't seem to get it right! If only I could see his ugly mug right now inspiration might strike!" Naruto cried out in exasperation. Since he had been on sort of a time schedule he had needed some additional help with the work to be done, and what better help than a shadow clone? The things were convenient; it didn't take much to make a couple of 'em, they all had his tastes, AND they held conversations!

Honestly, if he had known the technique all those years ago he wouldn't have been so lonely!

And it wasn't hard to find the extra ropes and pulleys either since any ole civilian mart sold them; he just had to smile sweetly, show them the piece of paper Azumi gave him earlier and request to put them on Yukio's tab. It was all too easy!

"Umm…there's a pretty large crowd down there…" One clone said worriedly glancing downwards. It seemed as if word of a new artiste in town spread rather rapidly and true to its word the people broke out in large numbers to see his debut.

"They'll spoil the surprise! Where's crowd control?!" Naruto barked.

Meanwhile…

"If you would please direct your attention over here…we have another special show to perform for you!" Another Kage Bunshin utilizing Henge to change its appearance stood tall atop a box (a transformed clone) holding a large funnel (another clone) while waving a harisen (yet another one) in the general direction of the so called 'act' where two other clones stood. When the people had finally managed to tear their eyes away from the face cliff to study him, he flashed a large grin.

"Now for the finale!"

"Henge!" The clones called out in unison as they became shrouded in smoke.

Whatever the onlookers expected to see was dashed immediately as out from the smoke two identical visages of the village's leader filled their sights. If that wasn't shocking, then the lewd acts they performed afterwards were simply that and much, much more. Parents covered their children's eyes with mouths agape, almost regretting the decision not to cover their own eyes while others simply laughed at the absurdity of it all.

On the cliff's face…

"Crowd control is crowd control is a success!"

"Excellent, now to complete the face before…"

"Yukio's here!" His lookout at the top of the cliff shouted and sure enough, parting the crowd like a vicious Fuuton Jutsu over open waters was the leader himself, decked out in his thick white robes with his ever present flat line lips of neutrality. He strode up calmly to the two fakes that were busy fondling themselves and had his ANBU subdue them before taking the cone from the nervous blonde and directing it upwards.

"Are you quite finished Naruto? If you are, then please come down."

"Ha! I'm not even close to finished jerk but thanks, seeing that face of yours really gave me the inspiration I needed!" Directing his helpers once more they began again aiming to put the finishing touches on the portrait set in ice.

Because he had nothing with which to conceal his project from the ever-watchful eyes of the public, they could see the expression unfolding and many were already trying to hold in smiles of their own, giggling at the envisioned finished product.

"FINALLY, IT'S FINISHED!" Came the excited shout from the cliff side drawing all eyes upward and Naruto smirked triumphantly. "Ha! I'm going to embarrass him in front of his whole village and then he'd have no choice but to let me go!" Yes, his plan was going to work. All he had to do was wait for it…

The people broke out into a roaring laughter that could be heard from a kilometer away, drawing all who weren't present at the scene like ants to a meal. There, situated on the village's southern most boundaries was the visage of their current leader sporting a look none had ever seen before…a huge toothy grin that spread from one ear to the next with the upturned 'U's for eyes to match. The boy had even gone so far as to include an arm, proclaiming a giant 'V' with its middle and index fingers.

The laughter grew as the initial shock passed and the simple absurdity of the image filled their thoughts, all forgetting that the very person who was being mocked at that moment was standing right amongst them. If they had been paying attention however, they would have seen the slight upward curvature of his lips before they reversed in direction split seconds later.

Having being proud of is accomplishment Naruto returned to ground level to be greeted by the deafening sounds of chatter and laughter as people moved to congratulate him with pats and words of a job well done. This had confused him. He had never once been appreciated for his 'deeds' before and this new experience was leaving him with an immense feeling of unease. He could not stop the sense of pride from creeping in however, it being the first time anyone had truly appreciated anything he did.

The people begun to part ahead of him and the figure of Yukio could be seen moving towards him slowly, the expression on his face anything but pleased.

"Let us return to the castle, Naruto." Yukio said in his naturally level tone.

And suddenly everything felt dull again when he gazed upon the dissatisfied frown of the man before him and felt the presence of the extra "muscle" behind him.

The crowd simmered down considerably looking on in silence as the boy was led away, some even outwardly expressing their concerns to one another about the boy's impending punishment.

"Take it easy on 'im, will ya Yukio-Sama?" A worried voice spoke up from within the mass of bodies and Yukio made a slight glance towards its source, appearing un-phased as he proceeded onwards. He had a part to play and an image to uphold after all.

----

The small procession stopped unexpectedly and the frowning leader turned to face him.

"You may leave now."

"Sir!" The two behind him saluted before taking off, leaving a totally confused Naruto.

"So…were you the one that caused all those other 'mishaps' Uzumaki-san?" Yukio asked conversationally as he begun walking again, forcing the lad to follow once more.

"Damn straight it was me!" Naruto boasted without delay and waited, fully expecting the fruits of his arduous labor to pay off.

"So did you have fun?"

The question caught him totally off guard, almost leaving him face down on the stone walkway as he faltered in his step. "Wha?"

"I asked if you had fun, Naruto." He repeated.

"Of course I did but what does that have to do with anything?!"

Yukio stopped and turned to face the boy fully, throwing him off balance yet again. "I must apologize wholeheartedly for my behavior at breakfast this morning, Uzumaki-san. As a Fuuinjutsu master myself I became enthralled with the idea of encountering and deciphering a seal I have never encountered before. The truth is, however, is that we retrieved your body from the Frozen Plains we left behind a calling card of sorts, which would undoubtedly lead your friends towards our location she they possess competent trackers. As a result, there will be those from your village coming to collect you in due time and so, there would be no point in me arranging an escort for you."

Naruto's mouth floored. Why the hell didn't he just say so from the beginning?! He spent his entire day running around for squat!

"It was why I asked if you enjoyed yourself today for I was afraid that there would be nothing for someone of your energy level to be taken with."

Naruto stared at the man openly, not bothering to hide his annoyance when he realized that he had failed in his plot to rile him up. He was about to blow up on the poor guy when he spoke up once more.

"I wish to thank you for your efforts today, however." Yukio said sincerely, turning to give the boy a warm smile, unnerving the boy even more. He elaborated to clear the confusion. "This village is not what it appears to be Naruto. Despite the easy going appearance of the villagers, we have been facing many troubles as we were forced to become totally self sufficient, and I am afraid that we may be are nearing the end of our prosperity. They say difficult times bring the people closer together but this village knows neither war nor internal struggles, and I feel that because of that, this village is prepared for neither." Yukio paused and shifted the focus of his attention upwards towards the cliff. "To watch the people of this village come together and share something, even at my expense, is something I have wanted to see for so long. For this, Uzumaki-san, you have my eternal gratitude."

Naruto watched as the aged leader bowed quite deeply before him, his empathy towards the man's plight totally forgotten as he reveled in the throes of having someone bow to him for the first time in his life. "Wait…so you're not mad?" Naruto asked a little sheepishly.

"Quite the opposite I'm afraid." Yukio rose when it was obvious that the boy was enjoying his subservience. "Hopefully today would be the topic of discussion amongst the villagers for some time to come. You may have to apologize to all those people you have troubled however and I may have to smooth out the surface of that cliff face; I'm afraid it does not suit me at all."

Relief…

It was strangely what he felt after hearing those words. Honestly, he didn't understand most of what was said but from the way Yukio bowed and thanked him, he got the feeling he did something good (despite the fact that he had set out with the total humiliation of the village's leader in mind).

But now he was torn. He knew he should be angry for what went down that morning, but for the life of him he could not fault the man. It had been his fault for being unable to answer the question. Then there was the fact that they had not been violent with him other than the times he had tried to escape the hospital, which was only to prevent him from hurting himself. They had been nothing but hospitable during his entire stay, accommodating him when there was no obvious cause for doing so. Even now they had offered him a room until they got things ready for him to leave.

He owed these people for saving his life, and even though he wasn't about to go and kiss their butts or anything of the sort, he wasn't going to hate them for helping him. He was going to stay safe, at least until Kakashi-sensei and the others came to get him.

"Still, as a show of good faith I would like to have you accompany me on a tour of the administration building. Will you join me?" Yukio asked and he shrugged. He had nothing better to do anyway.


"We're here…" The Chūnin drawled somewhat tiredly as he opened the door to deepest room in the castle depths. Normally, access to this particular room had been forbidden but since it was on orders from the village leader himself he had been allowed entry as the escort of the blonde beside him. Of course he had always been curious about what lied within the castle's dungeon, having heard of the tales its special occupant being the cause of the great ice encasement of the castle some ten years ago. Now that he was here though, he couldn't say he was all that surprised by the dank, dark appearance of a regular old dungeon.

"Hey, could you help me out here?!"

He couldn't say the same for his companion however as the idiot (what he had come to recognize the blonde as after all the shenanigans on the hospital levels), in his excitement, managed to chain himself to the wall with some old iron shackles. Looking around the room for some means to aid the panicking lad without destroying the property that was undoubtedly not his, he was quite relieved to find some spare keys hung on the wall next to the door's frame. It seemed like the keys to all the instruments were left seeing as the room was never used. He made his way over to the boy slowly in an attempt to make him suffer some more before unlocking his chains after fiddling around for the right set.

"Look," The Chūnin begun, trying to seem annoyed. "I was under strict orders to not touch anything so don't go around…"

"Hey, what do you think this one does?"

He turned reluctantly to find the blonde's neck lying in a small groove and situated above him, supported with what he hoped was a tightly fastened rope, was a large uneven blade.

Just his luck; the boy had stumbled upon a guillotine…

The door swung open suddenly, signifying the arrival of Yukio.

"Huh?"

The nin's eyes widened when the boy's sudden movement triggered the blade's decent, taking with it a few strands of blonde hair when it met the stand with a dull but loud 'Thunk'.

"I don't get paid enough…"

He walked quickly up to the middle-aged leader, presenting his lamp and the link of keys to the underground rooms before giving a short bow before making a dash for the exit. He cursed his lack of speed though when Yukio managed to grab hold of his shoulder before he could escape, informing him that his assistance may be needed.

Yukio took over, walking directly over to a metallic door in the far corner. He pressed one hand against it gently, frowning slightly when the coldness of the metal registered in him mind. "It's too cold…" Undoing the locks he could hear his daughter offering the boy his coat as he pushed open the iron doors with some difficulty. Almost instantly a blast of frigid air assaulted their senses as it rushed outwards, leaving them with a strong feeling of trepidation.

Yukio placed his hand against the wall and forced chakra through, watching as several tags lining the walls came to life to cast the room in a soft white glow. Every inch of the sparse room was glazed over in a thick sheet of ice, forming rather large shingles hanging down from the ceiling and huge stumps on the floor. White trails of vapor could be seen rolling off every surface to congregate on the floor before moving rather swiftly out the only opening as if they were convicts, ecstatic at finally being freed from their cell.

"Are the ice wards not working?" The Chūnin asked worriedly as his gaze ran fleetingly about the room, placing the lantern on the floor of the room. He moved over to where a ward was located on the wall, seeing the paper talisman surprisingly intact under the ice.

"The talismans were merely supposed to stop the ice from spreading beyond the walls; they are performing quite well." He said as he looked towards the far end of the room where the purpose of their visit laid. "Naruto," He started, gesturing towards the stand. "That is the reason for my bringing you here. Our village's symbol, what has come to be known overtime by others as the artifact but formally known as the Hyouden or Eternal Field of Snow, has watched over us for generations since after the time of our village's founding."

"Do you not want to take a closer look?"


A/N: Like I said…it would be finished sooner. Kinda filler-ish but I hope it doesn't disappoint too much. Chapter 5 might take a little while though…

Once again, I thank you for taking the time out to read and I look forward to your reviews.

Andoryu


-Omake-

"Naruto, we found something peculiar on your body." Yukio said, eyes narrowed as he stared down the boy sitting across from him.

"Something…peculiar…?" Naruto parroted in confusion.

"Yes…a mark of sorts."

"A-A m-mark?" He paused for a moment or two, as if trying to figure out what exactly they were talking about. Suddenly, realization struck him and his expression turned frantic as he stood with his hands clenched in the tablecloth. "M-Mark? Y-You don't mean t-that mark, do you?"

Yukio exchanged looks with Azumi before turning back to the panicking boy. As far as they knew there was only one mark they knew about. "Umm…yes…I suppose we do. Also, if you don't mind, we'd like to take a closer look at it."

"The last time, Ino-Chan saw it and told Sakura-Chan, then Sakura-Chan laughed and told Sasuke-teme…that evil bastard never let me live it down for an entire year!"

"Naruto…I'm sure it's not that-"

"Every time…every time I saw that bastard's smirk I felt like smacking it right off his smug face, but then he'd say it…"

"Naruto…"

"Then they made me their slave…oh the nightmares…"

"Naruto!"

"You have to promise me you won't tell anyone!" The boy pleaded despairingly, hands clasped and on his knees.

Yukio sighed; he didn't see what the big deal was about showing a seal or two. "It is fine Naruto…rest assured that what is revealed here will never leave this room.

"Really?"

"Yes."

"You promise you won't tell anyone?"

"Yes Naruto…now will you show us the mark?"

"Sure…" The blonde relented reluctantly and before anyone had a chance to object he unfastened the string that kept his pants on his waist.

It also happened to be the time when the head chef and other helpers would return from the kitchen to check up on them.

The pants came down.

"Wait…what are you…?"

The elastic of his underwear was pulled back.

"Oh my…"

"Is that a…birthmark?"

The room erupted into laughter.

Meanwhile…

"Achoo!" Sasuke let loose a vicious sneeze from his position against a tree before smirking as if he had found something funny.

Sakura perked up. "Something wrong Sasuke-kun?"

"Nn…" He grunted, turning away from his teammate to snicker silently.

"He he…Panda…"