KG: ...I was bored. Or drunk. Either or.
Music of the Week: I Feel Like I'm Drowning by Two Feet.
Quote: "Sometimes, what you see is what you don't get."
"You see, Naruto! The Kyuubi no Yoko that killed Iruka's parents, ravaged the lands of The Elemental Nations for years, and slaughtered thousands of people in our village lies inside you and has taken you over! You are the Kyuubi no Yoko!" a white-haired man proclaimed with a sick, twisted grin on his face.
The man chuckled when he saw the look of despair and shock on a young, blond boy's face as the realization came down upon him.
"STOP IT, MIZUKI!"
The white-haired man named Mizuki laughed as he turned to his former teaching associate, Umino Iruka. Well, it was no surprise why. Mizuki had just broken one of the most important laws and secrets in all of Konoha's history. Well, not like it mattered to him. In a few hours, he'd be out of the village along with that scroll strapped to the blond's back.
Might as well sink it home now!
"Didn't you think it was weird how they hated you and treated you like dirt for no reason? All the secrets and conspiracies they've kept from you? How they fucking hated you for just trying to live your life? I bet even your favorite sensei hates your damn guts!" Mizuki exclaimed, laughing psychotically as Naruto vehemently denied everything.
Ah yes, there was that rising chakra, that feeling of rage, that power that was just waiting to be unleashed. That said, Mizuki wouldn't want that power to be released on him. He'd have to take care of it before it got out of control. Imagine, he, Mizuki, the one people mocked and looked down on, would be the slayer of the Kyuubi?
Mizuki grabbed his fuma shuriken. With expert skill, and years of training, he swung the hands around in his fingers. "Now, how about I do both you and the village a favor before I go? Now that you know the truth, I'm sure you don't want to live with the shame anymore! I'll help you on the ferry to the Shinigami! Don't miss your ride!" the white-haired man shouted as he threw the oversized weapon at the twelve-year-old boy.
"No! NO! Naruto, get down!" Iruka shouted at the top of his lungs, but he watched in shock and horror as Naruto must not have heard him.
The young academy instructor gasped as he tried to move so he could protect his student, but the kunai were wedged in too deep. Naruto… Naruto wasn't moving. Shocked by the information presented to him, upset by the revelation of the very reason for his despicable life, fed up with all his efforts bearing no results, the blond… closed his eyes.
Then, Umino Iruka could only watch in shock, horror, and sadness as the fuma shuriken hit its mark. The young boy's head split from his shoulders. His orange jumpsuit-clad body twitched before it fell to its knees. His whiskered face rolled across the field until it smacked against the trunk of a tree. The head stared at Iruka. It's wide, blue eyes accusing him, judging him, damning him for his weakness.
"Naruto! No! No! No! I… I failed. I failed you!" Iruka thought as he felt the bile rise on his mouth before he expelled it over the open grassy fields. Hot tears fell down his eyes. He… he was a damn teacher! What kind of teacher was he if he couldn't save one of his students?! W-What the fuck was wrong with him? What was he even doing?!
"Naruto, I… I knew what it was like. I knew what you were going through, but I never tried to help. I knew what it was like to be starved for attention, to do stupid stuff just so people would acknowledge you exist. I knew you weren't the hardest worker, but you knew that nothing came easy. Because of my own grief, I couldn't help you like I should have. I'm sorry, Naruto. I'm so sorry! I… I… I…" Iruka wailed as he smacked his head on the ground, blood dripping from his forehead.
Meanwhile, Mizuki cackled. He actually did it! He actually did what not even the Yondaime had done! He had killed the Kyuubi, Uzumaki Naruto! How many would sing praises of his deeds? What would Lord Orochimaru say to such a thing?
"Don't be sad, Iruka. You'll be joining him soon enough! When you're both resting in hell, you'll have plenty of time to repent for your sins of caring about such a pathetic demon child!" the traitor to Konoha said.
Iruka scowled. "MIZUKI!" the academy roared as the chakra inside him exploded. He charged for the murderer of his student. Naruto, you might never forgive him, but at least Iruka would make damn sure your death would not be for nothing!
Mizuki cackled as he clashed kunai with Iruka. The two shinobi fought in the depths of the Konoha forests, no one to watch them… or so they thought.
Far within the Divine Plane, a beautiful woman with wonderful lavender hair, and a lavender dress widened her eyes in sheer panic. She quickly began looking through some white-colored scrolls, her eyes moving quickly to try and salvage any part of this horrid situation that she could. Her fingers clenched her dress.
Just how did things come to this?!
"He died?! This wasn't the realm he was supposed to die in! Oh no, if mother finds out I let him die while under my domain, I'll be locked in the Endless Void for the next fifty eons! Why didn't he move?! He moved in every other we've placed him in. Oh no, I can't ask the Shinigami to resurrect him, he'll definitely tell mother about this!" the woman thought to herself as she placed a hand over her mouth.
The woman looked over the life of Uzumaki Naruto. Well, let it be clarified. She was looking over the life of one Uzumaki against the hundreds, thousands, millions of other Uzumaki Narutos across every realm that her mother, Kami, had created.
As with every universe that the woman's mother had created, there had been numerous versions of the young blond that appeared through the multiverse. Her mother seemed to enjoy the man so much because he always provided the perfect balance of good and evil. The boy was like a blank canvas easily able to become either or depending on what Kami needed him to be.
Some Narutos were so good that they got to be reincarnated until the end of time, forever aware of the legacy they left. Others were so evil their very deeds would shake even the divine plane. Yet, since he was born, the young man was the ultimate manifestation of infinite possibilities. In fact, he was one of Kami and Yami's most favorite.
Admittedly, he wasn't the only one. There had been many heroes and villains of numerous universes that had been given the same treatment. Yin and Yang, light and darkness, there always needed to be a balance between Kami and Yami. Though her mother and her aunt hated each other, they still worked to preserve this balance. This balance between all these universes was vastly important. If it was disrupted… it would all die away, including the divine plain.
And, that was why the woman was panicking. This Naruto wasn't supposed to die yet! He was supposed to become another Hokage and lead his world, through his death, into an era of almost eternal peace. How did he die? It shouldn't have been possible!
"I don't know what to do! Should I just force the rebirth of another Naruto? But there are so many of them, I can't remember who is who! Mother, this is why I told you not to make so many!" The woman said to herself before there came a knock on her door.
"Lady Tsukuyomi, your mother requires your presence. Lady Amaterasu and Lord Susanoo will be joining soon. I am told Lady Shinigami shall also be there," someone said behind the door.
"A meeting, Mother?! NOW?!" Tsukuyomi, the goddess of the moon, exclaimed as she bit the side of her finger.
"I shall not be attending. Tell mother, I'll go to the next one," she replied. She didn't have time for this. She needed to fix this mistake before it came back to bite her in her royal, divine ass!
"I'm sorry, Lady Tsukuyomi, but that's not possible. Your mother demands you now. She has not forgotten that you've been absent from most. She warned me to tell you that should you not attend, she shall… send you to the Edge of Eternity for two eons," the person behind the door said.
Tsukuyomi shivered. The Edge of Eternity? That was way worse than the Endless Void!
"Ummm, uhhhh, this one then! I'll rebirth this one and swap him out with the dead one. He was almost at the end of his life anyway. No one will question it. Ugh, what is this checklist? Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! No! Dammit, yes to the rest!" She thought before she waved the list of light away and got herself ready to meet with her mother, a sigh of relief that she fixed her mistake.
-x-
Though no one was around to see a harsh glow appeared over the decapitated blond's body. What could only be described as some divine, white-colored seal appeared beneath the body. Slowly, the corpse sank into the seal. Once it, and all traces of it were gone, the seal disappeared.
After that another seal appeared, this one was much larger, and blue in color. The seal glowed with a harsh light before a young boy came through. Just like the last, his hair was blonde and his cheeks were stained with whisker-like markings. The orange jumpsuit from the corpse quickly transferred to the unconscious boy on the ground. Then came a massive swirl of red chakra. That chakra surged in the air like a violent maelstrom before it swiftly settled into the unconscious boy's navel.
Soon, all was quiet before he opened his eyes. He quickly yawned and scratched his head. "Hmmm, so this is what the afterlife is like? I'd always assumed that once the chakra carrying the consciousness of the soul left my body then I'd most likely disperse until the planet's natural chakra veins carried me off to the next plane. Hmmm, this changes a few perceived theories. Perhaps chakra is indeed not connected to soul of the user, but rather it's a synthesis based on the physical and spiritual energies between the breathing and the earth itself. If I wasn't dead, I'd like to verify this. Fuck, Naruto, you're rambling again, dattebayo!" The blond said as he leaned up and stretched his body. He heard a few bones click.
Wait, bones?
"Huh? I have bones? I didn't think we kept our mortal bodies when we died as well. Still, should there be not someone to greet me? I assumed the Shinigami would collect me eventually. I'd spoken to the spirit before about the nature of the realm of the dead. Hmmm, perhaps souls of dispersed chakra roam around aimlessly until they are collected? It could give reason to all those stupid ghost stories that pop up every now and then. Still, if that was the case then there'd be no need for the Perfect Edo Tensei to be utilized. And, the chakra here, it feels so… primitive, dattebayo. I feel like I'm surrounded by chakra from the last thousand years. That shouldn't be possible," the young man said as he grew more and more concerned.
He stood up and then pressed his hand to one of the trees. "Even the chakra of the trees is different. I can't feel even one bit of pure chakra within it. That should be impossible! Am I… not dead?" Naruto said to himself before he held up a handsign.
"Junsuina Chakura: Kūkan Bunkatsu (Pure Chakra: Spatial Divide)," Naruto said. A bright, white light outlined his body before a solid mass of pure chakra with a humanoid shape expelled from his body.
The humanoid chakra shape opened its eyes. The former unconscious young man stared at himself. "Is that me? Well, clearly I'm not in the realm of the dead. There were no theories that dying somehow reverted your age back to that of a child! Also what are those clothes? I don't remember wearing those even when I was a child. Hmmm, how odd. I feel the pure chakra within me, but there is also something else in there. I see this primitive red chakra of a beast there as well. It lies dormant behind this seal on my stomach," he thought as he scratched his chin.
"Hmmm, the Shishō Fūin (Four Symbols Seal). Who the hell even uses this anymore? I read this was used near the very first history of the shinobi. It's so outdated and worthless that you can't even classify it as a D-rank fuinjutsu. Not even genin would use this, there's simply better options. Have I traveled to the past?" Naruto thought.
No, that shouldn't be possible. If he did travel to the past then the max he should've been able to go was when he was born. At least that was the theory of such a thing. If one person traveled back to the past then that created a distortion which had the potential to unravel the very fabric of the Elemental Nations. Well, either that or the person just got to stay in the past.
No, this couldn't be the past because the earth itself contained pure chakra. It had only been in his generation that he'd been the one to first discover and make use of it. His findings had changed the very structure of the Elemental Nations and rocketed it into a unified land of every nation and people with him at the very front of it. There was no pure chakra on this earth. In fact, dare he say from the millions of chakra signatures he felt, he was… the only pure chakra user in the world. How was that possible?!
He had only one answer, one theory. Maybe… this wasn't his earth. Maybe he was on another earth? The theory on more than one universe was only studied at the very end of his life. It would explain why he was a child when he should've been over eighty years old. He remembered his heart stopping as he was surrounded by all those who loved him. He said goodbye to his wives and his children to continue his work.
It would certainly explain why this planet felt so… primitive and underdeveloped. How had he arrived here? Could he go back? Hmmm, too many questions and not even answers.
Naruto scratched his chin and sat next to a tree. Hmmm, how vexing.
Suddenly, the blond stiffened when he heard the sounds of clanging kunai. In his thoughts he must have tuned out the noise. A frown, he made his way to the noise.
Meanwhile, Iruka groaned as he was kicked into a tree. He coughed as a trail of blood fell down the side of his lip. He glared at Mizuki while his former friend stood over him. "Never pegged you for a demon lover, Iruka. I guess everyone shows their true colors at their final moments. If it's any consolation, Iruka, you never had a chance anyway," Mizuki taunted.
Iruka clutched his side. It was bleeding profusely. He could already feel his consciousness fading. No, he couldn't die like this! If he did, he'd never be able to look Naruto in the eye for his shame. "M-Mizuki, I think between the both of us, you've shown exactly who the real demon is," Iruka spat out.
"You're breaking my heart, Iruka, but I think we've stalled this long enough. Say hello to Naruto for me!" Mizuki shouted as he lunged for his former associate. The chunin closed his eyes, remorse filling his body for his own weakness.
"Naruto, I'm sorry!" Iruka thought as he waited for death.
That said, his meeting with the Shinigami was delayed. He heard someone speak.
"You. Kneel."
"W-What the… auugh!"
Iruka opened his eyes. He gasped when he saw Mizuki's forehead planted on the dirt. His body was back to the deeper entrances of the forest. "W-What the fuck is going on? Iruka, you bastard, what did you do to me?!" Mizuki snarled, but Iruka couldn't reply. He was too hurt.
Truth be told, he had no idea. He was ready to die just a few moments ago. However, the chunin academy teacher wasn't ready for who he saw emerge from the dark forests.
"As I thought. Taking command of such primitive chakra is almost too easy. This type of chakra can't hold the resistance if pure chakra comes into contact with it. I'll have to change my plans then."
Iruka widened his eyes and so did Mizuki when they saw the young form of Uzumaki Naruto… with his head intact!
As a shinobi, even more so as a chunin, Iruka had seen many things in his life. He'd seen devastating jutsu, amazing worlds crafted by genjutsu, and fought powerful people, but never had he seen the utter miracle before him right now. Was Mizuki right? Was Naruto a demon? As far as the Umino male was concerned, the only way Naruto survived was if he was a god… or the devil.
"N-Naruto," Iruka shivered while Mizuki chuckled.
"Heh… hehe… hahaha, now do you see, Iruka? The brat got beheaded and he still came back! I don't know any human that can do that! Now it's showing its true colors!" the traitor cackled while Naruto stood in front of him.
The blond then raised his foot and slammed it on the white-haired man's head. "You talk too much, you know. I've got some questions and I bet you've got answers for me. Give me what I need and maybe I'll find an appropriate use for you," Naruto remarked, his tone confident and a smile on his face.
"No, Naruto! Get out of here! You can't beat Mizuki! Just take the scroll back to the village and alert Hokage-sama!" Iruka shouted. The blond raised an eyebrow at him, but the brunette man didn't care. Maybe it was all a genjutsu, he didn't know. But he was a teacher and he couldn't let Naruto die again. He wouldn't let his student die again!
"Listen to me, Naruto! You have to get…"
"Silence."
Naruto spoke when he glared at Iruka. Suddenly, the man closed his mouth and he murmured in frantic motions. No matter how hard he tried to open his mouth, it's like the very privilege had been taken from him. S-Something foreign seemed to invade his body and take away his ability for speech.
Naruto turned back to Mizuki. When he'd heard the two fighting, he had watched them for a time. Primitive gear, primitive weapons, primitive jutsu usage, all of it was just so painstakingly bad. If Naruto was in a new world then Kami how backwater was it? Compared to what he'd accomplished, it was like he was watching cavemen fight. The jutsu they threw around were filled with impure chakra, thousands of leagues below his own.
Naruto knew both these men. Iruka and Mizuki were men he'd worked with before. The latter was a guard to the Hokage and the former was an Anbu back during the times that the Elemental Nations were still divided. He worked with them because when he'd accessed the pure chakra of the veins in the earth, it was crucial for him to be protected. He'd fought in numerous battles with the two. But seeing these iterations of them fight, clearly they weren't the same as the ones he'd worked with.
Now, he didn't know where the two had their allegiances. They both had on Konoha headbands and he wouldn't take any chances on being deceived, not that they'd be that good at it.
The blond turned back to Mizuki. "You're going to answer all my questions. I recommend you do so, Mizuki-kun. I don't wanna hurt you," Naruto responded.
The former chunin of Konoha laughed. "You hurt me? I think death made you bolder and stupider than I thought! Why would I answer anything to an academy failure like you?! I'll never tell you anything even if I die!" Mizuki proclaimed.
"So in this world I'm a failure in the Academy. Well, that's one of my questions answered, albeit unknowingly," Naruto thought to himself.
The young blond sighed and raised his foot. He then slammed it down over Mizuki's head again. The chunin screamed as his face was buried into the ground, a large indent left there. "I'm willing to make that bet. First question, have you ever heard of the Unified Nation of Elements?" the blond asked.
"..."
Mizuki didn't speak. Naruto held up two fingers. "Have you ever heard of the Unified Nation of Elements?" he asked again.
"..."
Naruto snapped his fingers.
"AAaaaauauaugh!" Mizuki screamed in utter agony as he felt what he could only describe as hellish pain push through his body. It felt like thousands of blades punctured the innards of his body from the inside out. Worst of all, he could do nothing to stop it. He was kept pinned in his prostrating position, Naruto's foot firmly planted on his head.
Iruka watched in horror as Mizuki mercilessly screamed, but he didn't see any attack. He didn't see the utter agony that Mizuki was going through. He couldn't imagine the hell, the torture, the sheer depths of utter agony raging inside his former friend, but he could see it in the way Mizuki's eyes turned bloodshot. Whatever made him scream, it must have been worse than hell itself.
Suddenly, the pain subsided. "Did you feel that, Mizuki-kun? You might not know it, but there are things called chakra nerves that flow right through a living being's chakra network. These nerves are interconnected with the nerves of the body. It's why some people claim their chakra feels warm, or sometimes it feels cold. The nerves react to that feeling… and they are fifty times more sensitive than the regular body's nervous system. What I just did was use your own chakra to puncture both your chakra nerves and your body's nerves at the same time. You're actually stronger than I predicted. Anyone normal would have passed out from that," Naruto said with an upward smirk.
"Y-You damn demon! I knew you… were… a… monster!" Mizuki gargled upon his own spit as he glared murderously at the ground.
"Oh? And what exactly makes one a monster, Mizuki-kun? It can't be the death of others. That's a profession that's been happening since the first two mortals walked the earth. Perhaps, it's the raw power. Well, when shinobi can bend the elements it's hardly anything special. Is it killing for fun? Would you say that's worse or better than killing for money? So tell me, Mizuki-kun, what exactly is a monster to you?" Naruto asked.
"I'll kill you! I'll… I'll fucking… Aaaahhaaaugughgwhgghh!" Mizuki groaned as Naruto snapped his fingers again.
"Have you heard of the United Nations of Elements?" Naruto asked.
Still Mizuki did not answer.
"Aaaaaaaaaaaahaaaaaauuuugh!"
"Noooaoaoaoaoaaoahh!
"Guauaaaaaaaaa!"
Over and over for the next twenty minutes, Iruka was subjected to Mizuki's unholy screams as he watched his former student visibly torture the Konoha traitor. He constantly asked the same question over and over again. More and more blood started to see through Mizuki's pores and even from his eyes. The Umino male wondered just how much his former friend could take before his body… suddenly dropped.
Naruto saw this as well and raised an eyebrow. "Hmmm, he died. Interesting, if this is a new world then the bodies here are also more fragile than I thought. Well, we can't have that," the blond said as he placed a hand on Mizuki's back. He grunted as he pushed a wave of pure chakra through the white-haired man's body.
Slowly, Iruka's eyes widened as the scars, cuts, and bruises on Mizuki's body disappeared. The blood seeped back into his body as if it never left in the first place. Then, the chunin heard his former friend gasp. The look of terror in his eyes was evident.
"W-What the… aaaugh!" Mizuki screamed as Naruto slammed his head back into the ground.
"Congratulations on dying once, Mizuki-kun. I'll get my answers out of you and not even death will keep you from me unless I allow it. You just got jump started with a small dose of my pure chakra. Be glad, you're the first primitive man here that's gotten it. I'd be interested in studying its effects on you had I the time, but we're both pretty busy. Now then, have you heard of the United Nations of Elements?" Naruto asked.
Mizuki looked at the ground, scared. He thought he'd gotten away. He bit on his tongue and choked on his own blood to kill himself. The pain was too much. He couldn't take it. He had felt his life slipping away. He had won… until he felt life kick him right in the face, the breath moving through his body and the pain… right along with it. He had been brought back. He could feel his tongue strike his teeth. It had been repaired. He… he couldn't get away.
"Ahaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaugh!" the former chunin of Konoha screamed. Again, he felt a thousand chakra blades from his own chakra coils stabbing him through his chakra veins and the nerves in his body. All of them at the same time.
It wasn't long before Mizuki died again.
And again.
And again.
And again.
And again.
And again.
His blood splattered over the grass and Iruka could do nothing but watch powerless and traumatized by the acts before him.
"Have you heard of the United Nations of Elements?" Naruto asked as he prepared himself to snap his fingers again.
"…N-No, Naruto-sama. I haven't heard of the United Nations of Elements," Mizuki said, his voice a quiet tremble which made the blond pause.
"Hmmm, then this might actually be another Elemental Nations from where I was. I was also returned to my body as a child. Interesting," the blonde thought.
"Do you know what Pure Chakra is?" he asked.
"N-No, Naruto-sama," he answered.
"Where are we right now?" the blond asked.
"W-W-We're in Konohagakure no Sato, The Village Hidden in the Leaves," the white-haired man whimpered.
Naruto's eyes narrowed. "Hmmm, so even it's name is different from mine. This truly might be another Konoha separate from my own. Obviously, someone brought me here. I'll have to find out why. This will require extreme investigation," the young man thought before he took his foot off Mizuki's head.
"Thank you, Mizuki-kun. Now, one last thing and I'll let you go," Naruto said. He then channeled the pure chakra inside his body into his hand. Like a glowing, limb of white fire, it coated his entire arm. He pressed his hand on Mizuki's head.
Suddenly, the twelve-year-old was assaulted with many memories of Mizuki from his birth until now as well as his "relationship" regarding the young blond. It all seemed to span the time of about ten seconds before Naruto released his hold. "Hmmm, so that's things from Mizuki's perspective. I'll have to get to a library, research everything I know about this place. Also it doesn't seem I'm well-liked," the blue-eyed boy said.
Well, that one wasn't much of a surprise. Actually, let him correct that. It wasn't that he wasn't liked, but people feared him. After all, what do you do when one of the most powerful Earth Chakra Veins, the Kyuubi god, marks you as its avatar? You tend to be feared quite a lot.
Now, it seemed the opposite was the case. The Kyuubi was supposedly a great demon that attacked Konoha more than twelve years ago, decimating the village's lands and its people. It killed thousands of people before it was apparently sealed into Naruto, or this world's Naruto who was killed. That said, it seemed that the chakra of the Kyuubi had moved over to this body. Perhaps that was the reason, the blond could feel the elements of impure chakra coursing through his body against his pure chakra. Now it was obvious someone sent him here.
"But who? And why? I need to figure that out!" Naruto thought before he released Mizuki.
"Thank you for being very complacent, Mizuki-kun. As promised, I'll let you go now," Naruto said as he released his hold on the man and walked over to Iruka. There were some things he wanted to ask this chunin as well. While the other was a traitor, this one was a loyal Konoha shinobi. He could learn much from him.
Meanwhile, Mizuki gasped as he glared at Naruto with unfathomable hatred and disdain. The pain he'd suffered made him so angry he nearly lost his damn mind. This… this academy failure, this fucking demon, this nine-tailed fox brat actually caused him pain! He'd make him suffer! He'd make him fucking suffer for this!
The white-haired chunin stood up. He grabbed one of his spare fuma shuriken. He was through getting humiliated like this! He was not going to deal with this from a failure of the academy.
"I'll let you go too! STRAIGHT TO THE SHINIGAMI!" Mizuki hollered as he threw the enlarged shuriken for the blond's neck once again, hoping to Kami that he'd get to see that head severed from its shoulders again.
Naruto turned around and sighed. He then rolled his eyes as he knocked the kunai away like it was a mere annoyance. Mizuki and Iruka gawked at the sight before Naruto pointed a finger at the standing chunin.
"Ti'ye!" Naruto spoke.
Iruka was stunned into silence as Mizuki instantly burst into a large puddle of blood and limbs. He stared in fear of the Kyuubi host as Naruto's hand became aflamed with the same white chakra as before. The blond then touched the loyal chunin's head. He scanned all of Iruka's memories as well as what led up to this point.
"So… this Naruto was deceived by Mizuki to steal this Forbidden Scroll in exchange for learning a jutsu from it. It seemed he succeeded too. A shame he never got to use it. Hmm, shadow clones, incomplete ones at that. Still, they're supposed to be solid constructs against the regular bunshin. The fact that they aren't real makes them that subpar. Then again, I suppose for a world of incomplete and impure chakra, it's not a bad start. No wonder it's forbidden, the chakra veins aren't even strong enough to handle such a simple jutsu. To think, it's a jutsu that children use back where I come from."
Naruto removed his head and sighed as Iruka laid unconscious from the act that the blond had just done. "Hmmm, so Iruka's loyal to Konoha and it seems I've created a reasonable fear of myself in him from my actions. It'd be troublesome to have to deal with this world I know nothing about before I've gained a foothold in it. Plus, there are chakra signatures coming this way. Hmmm, I'd really appreciate doing this, but it's for a good reason I suppose. I'll just rewrite his memories. I learned the shadow clone jutsu and defeated Mizuki. He escaped, but I retrieved the scroll. Seems about right," the blond said to himself before he began working on that exact thing.
Once he was done, Iruka slowly opened his eyes and groaned. "Iruka-sensei, are you alright?" Naruto asked, his voice filled with perfectly feigned concern.
Iruka chuckled painfully. "Naruto, close your eyes for a moment," he said.
Playing up the act, the blond did so. "Okay, open them," Iruka said. He did so. It seemed the memory rewrite worked better than he could have imagined. He saw the other Naruto's goggles in the deceased boy's former sensei's hand. On his own forehead was a Konoha hitai-ate, forehead protector.
"Congratulations! You graduate!" Iruka said with a large smile on his face as the sun began to rise over the horizon.
Naruto's lips thinned. "Hmmm, should I really sell it? I don't really feel like it. Tsk, whatever, I won't have to keep up this farce for very long," the blond thought before he 'sobbed' and tackled Iruka against a tree, thanking the man over and over. The chunin chuckled while he grimaced in pain.
Once this whole act was done, Iruka grabbed the scroll. "Still, stealing the scroll! That was very stupid, Naruto! You can't just trust everything adults say! You're going to be a shinobi now! You'll have to wise up," he chastised while Naruto rolled his eyes and listened to this spiel while apologizing for his actions. This continued on for about five minutes before the blond's patience grew short.
"So will I be in trouble, Iruka-sensei?" Naruto asked.
"Well, not that we know the truth, I doubt it. Listen, I'll take the scroll back to Hokage-sama. I'll also explain everything. If he wants to see you, then I'll come get you. For now, go enjoy your day. However, be ready, we'll need to get your picture taken for your shinobi license and registration. Next week, be at the academy, there you will be assigned your team and jonin-sensei," Iruka said.
"I see. So it's team-based with one elite shinobi instead of one elite shinobi to one student. Hmmm, I suppose it's more efficient giving this village's smaller shinobi size dattebayo," the blue-eyed blond thought to himself.
"Are you sure, Iruka-sensei? You're hurt!" he exclaimed.
"Hahaha, I'm tougher than I look. Now go. I sense some people coming anyway," he said.
Seeing that to be the case, Naruto nodded and waved goodbye as he ran off. Once he was out of view, his eyes lost their warmth. Finally, he'd grown sick of that nonsense.
The young Uzumaki quickly entered the more populated parts of the village. It must have been really early because no one was out yet. He surveyed the buildings, the dirt roads, and the shinobi that seemed to be running around on the rooftops. "I see. They're even less advanced than I thought. A lot of wasted movements, and imbalanced chakra in all of them. I never even thought such a nation could function like this. They're also not that inconspicuous with their hidden facilities," he thought with narrowed eyes when he looked at the ground. Numerous chakra signatures laid beneath him, some larger than others.
Hoping to collect himself, Naruto decided to head to what he assumed was home first. He found it easily enough. A small apartment complex in some sector of the village. He snorted. He'd really hit rock bottom, especially when he opened his room and noticed just how much of a slob the other Naruto was.
"I've heard greatness is suffering, but I've never wanted to kill myself so badly. How much of a slob was he?" Naruto asked himself as he looked around the rooms of his new home. Expired milk, moldy bread, bags of trash in a corner, empty cups of ramen, dried clothes hung on wires, he pinched the bridge of his nose. Sure, he was no paragon of cleanliness either, but… this was unacceptable. He'd never complain about a maid's duties again.
"Well, whatever." he thought as he began cleaning up the room. He couldn't think with all this shit in here. He held up a handsign. "Junsuina Chakura: Bunshin no Jutsu (Pure Chakra: Clone Technique)," Naruto claimed and created three clones.
"Let's get to work," he said.
"Yes, Sir." they replied.
So Naruto and the clones cleaned up the apartment until it was up to his standards. He cleaned the sink, rinsed out the dishes, swept and mopped the floor, and folded the clothes. He also cleaned the sheets of his bed. When he opened the food containers he chuckled.
"Well, at least I had good taste. Nice ramen collection," Naruto thought before he closed the cabinets.
A few hours passed by, but finally the apartment looked presentable. It was actually a shame. Despite it being his home, kind of… he felt like he was intruding a little bit. From what Naruto saw between the lives of this Naruto, Iruka, and Mizuki, the young man's life wasn't a joy-filled one. He never got to fulfill his dream of being the Hokage. Quite the tragedy.
Either way, the blond sat on his bed and stared outside. Once he was sure he was alone, he held up his hand and made a handsign. "Kaimon," he spoke, and a small box appeared in front of him. It fell into his hands. He opened it and reached inside. Once he found what he was looking for, he pulled it out.
"Alright, Forbidden Scroll, let's see what you're actually made of," Naruto thought to himself.
Sorry Iruka. You and the rest of Konoha would have to settle for a perfect replica of the Forbidden Scroll. This information was much too vital to let you have and not research. It wasn't exactly hard to replicate. It seemed Iruka and Mizuki forgot about the scroll in their fight.
Well, whatever. That wasn't his problem.
As Naruto opened the scroll, his frown got deeper and deeper. Each technique he read, he shook his head. "Tch, basic, basic, incomplete, primitive, incorrect, worthless," Naruto grumbled as he looked through each technique. Honestly, how had these people not fucking killed themselves yet?
The young blond chuckled disbelievingly. Just what kind of people were these? Shadow Clones, Eight Trigrams Sealing, Shinigami summoning, all of this was freaking worthless shit. Where he came from, genin could perform all of this in their sleep! What the fuck kind of backwater world was he summoned to?
"They're so behind they think a kekkai genkai is based on family genetic structure. Oh fuck," Naruto thought as he rubbed his temples.
Okay, okay, he could work with this. First things first, information. Yes, that's what he needed. First stop, the library.
Naruto did just that. He quickly redressed himself and dashed towards the library. Thanks to the other Naruto's memories, he had a good layout of the village. Plus, there was no need to be on the streets. While he didn't care about the villagers either way, he'd rather not draw the attention of them if he didn't need to.
He entered the library and until night spent all his time in the library reading through every book he could find and map allowed to him. Those who frequented the library stared in utter shock as the blond piled mountains and mountains of books on top of one another. Even the librarian had to come over and question if he was reading all of them.
"That is what books are for, no?" the Kyuubi host replied before he was left alone.
By the time Naruto got back to his other self's apartment, he was exhausted. No, not from the reading. That was actually rather insightful. It was the stupidity of every single piece of information presented to him that was driving him insane.
"Okay, I'm just about to exclude all the wrong shit about jutsu and chakra theory in all of these books. I'll go fucking insane if I don't! Okay, let me just focus on the history. So Konoha was founded by Uchiha Madara and Senju Hashirama. They had a falling out and Madara presumably died from the fallout. Hashirama then died some time before or during the First Great Shinobi War. Then came Hashirama's brother, Tobirama. Following him was the Sandaime and then the Yondaime. If we're keeping with the principle of parallel worlds, then I assume that Naruto was the son of Minato Namikaze just as I was. I wonder why he wasn't told," Naruto thought to himself before he sighed.
"Then there's the fact that Mizuki was going to give the scroll to Orochimaru. The latter's a part of a group called the Sannin consisting of the Toad Sage, Jiraiya, Slug Queen, Tsunade, and Serpent's Tongue, Orochimaru. In this world, all three are legendary figures. Orochimaru's a defect from Konoha for insane experiments. Tsunade constructed the principles of medical ninjutsu, and Jiraiya's said to possess an extensive spy network in favor of the village. Hmmm, the highest chakra signatures I not aren't them. The highest seems to be the Sandaime in the Hokage Tower…"
Naruto leaned on his bed and stared at the ceiling. This world, why was it so far behind? Why was he called here? Maybe he was supposed to help advance it, but what good would that do him? He didn't know, and Uzumaki Naruto didn't like not knowing things.
Finally, the young genin sighed. "Whatever. I'll think on this later. Right now, I need to center myself and my pure chakra," Naruto said as he closed his eyes and crossed his legs.
Indeed. While powerful, pure chakra required constant meditation to maintain. To have it run out of control was not a good thing, especially not in a weak world like this.
The Kyuubi Jinchuuriki exhaled as he allowed the white, untainted chakra to circulate around him. He focused on pulling the chakra through every fiber of his being. Slowly, he lost himself in the embrace of the chakra veins he'd spent over eighty years studying and strengthening. So lost was he in his practice, the blond had no idea of the effect he was having outside his apartment.
Outside Naruto's apartment, people stared in utter awe as what they could only describe as a celestial body of stars pulled themselves together to form one entity. People gasped in utter shock as the figure moved through various motions. Chakra, like solid crystals rained down over the Village Hidden In The Leaves.
Everyone from genin to the Hokage himself stared in awe as the trees glowed with ethereal light. They seemed to be sucking in the crystals that showed down on every which way. Countless stars flew across the starry night sky. Some couldn't help falling to their knees as rays of light flew off into the distance. Where they landed, beautiful pillars appeared. Some people couldn't take the beauty of it and began confessing their love to those near to them. Some asked for another's hand in marriage as the most beautiful scene to be presented to Konoha happened over their village.
Of course, some erred on the side of caution in case of enemy attack, but none could deny the way that the celestial being moved. In fact, it seemed to defy all science and common sense. Each place where it struck light, the trees and forests exploded with vibrancy and color.
The spectacle continued for about ten minutes until the being slowly disappeared. None knew it at that moment, but stories of that being would spread far and wide throughout Konoha.
Meanwhile, Naruto opened his eyes and groaned. He had to admit. Having a young body certainly had its benefits. With his practice done, Naruto climbed into bed and fell asleep. He had to admit, the bed was rather cozy… if a bit smaller than what he was used to.
Two days passed by for Naruto. He was called to get his picture taken. Truthfully, he didn't remember much about it. He just gave a generic photo. In honor of the Naruto that died, he thought about doing something crazy, but he wasn't that insane yet. He just took his picture and presented it before the Sandaime Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen.
The Sandaime looked at the photo before he looked back at the blond. Honestly, it'd been a stressful few days dealing with the aftermath of the boy's latest stunt. Iruka had given him the entire rundown of the series of events while being looked over at the hospital. Unfortunately, it seemed Mizuki had escaped, but Naruto actually managed to learn a jutsu from the Forbidden Scroll. Hiruzen had spoken with Iruka many times and if the man felt the blond had passed then he'd honor that.
That said, Hiruzen had spent the past few days going over that celestial being from before with the Konoha Council. He already had a team of astronomers working on what it could possibly mean. He hadn't had the time to use his crystal ball on the young man. He actually wanted to talk with Naruto about what Mizuki told him, him being the host of the Kyuubi.
The Sandaime didn't say it often, but he did enjoy Naruto. The young boy was vibrant, always striving forward, and he had a good head on his shoulders, albeit with a knack for trouble. He and the rest of Konoha had fallen victim to his pranks many times. As such, it was a surprise that he hadn't gotten a prank in over two days. In fact, one of the shinobi told him the blond had made a name for himself as a bit of a reader in the local library. He'd read nearly five or six columns of books before the facility closed. The Hokage wondered if he could even do that.
Truth be told, Hiruzen was expecting something stupid for a photo, but Naruto was as normal as any other person. In fact, his gaze seemed sharper than normal. Gone was his usual boisterous smile. He was just sitting in the chair, staring at the camera, almost like he was looking right through it.
"Nice picture," Hiruzen said with a smile.
"Thanks," Naruto replied, staring at the old Hokage as he did so.
The Sandaime placed the paper down and nodded. "Well, I hope you like it. I'll be on your card which will be mailed to you before you find out your team in the academy. Are you prepared for that?" he asked.
"No matter how prepared people are, there is always something that'll test them. I read that in a book," Naruto replied.
Sarutobi smiled. "Yes, I've heard that you've been frequenting the library. Why the sudden interest in reading?" the Hokage asked.
"Figured I should start taking my career seriously is all," he answered.
Hiruzen nodded. He looked at the way Naruto acted. It seemed something changed in him. Maybe the news was more devastating than the aged Hokage thought. Maybe it was better if he didn't bring up the last two days for now. He'd just have to keep an eye on Naruto and make sure he kept himself out of trouble. The last thing he wanted was for the boy to start doubting himself. That said, he wished he knew what the young man was thinking with his wandering gaze.
Now, if the Sandaime did know what Naruto was thinking then he would have been utterly stunned. "One… two… five… six Anbu around the area. And this man, Hiruzen Sarutobi. He's much older than I thought. Where I come from, he died before I was born. Much more powerful too. Though I shouldn't be surprised, if this is what they've worked on then it's no wonder this one's weaker than the one in my world. Even in this one, not an ounce of pure chakra. I'm starting to wonder if these people only survived because Kami willed it," the young genin thought before he shook his head.
"Hmmm, well I'm glad you've decided to take the steps toward your future. However, you must never let what happened with Mizuki happen again. You're a part of the people that guard Konoha. To be tricked could place the entire village in danger," Hiruzen said.
Naruto inwardly smiled. That sounded rather laughable since the other Naruto had basically been tricked his whole life. Still, that wasn't worth getting angry over. "I'll keep that in mind. Is that all?" he asked.
Sarutobi nodded. "Yes, you're dismissed," he answered.
As Naruto got up, the door suddenly opened. "Jiji, the time has come for you to give me the title of Hokage! I'm gonna take you down here and now! HA!"
Naruto raised an eyebrow when he saw a boy, even younger than him, charge at the leader of the village with nothing but a shuriken. He ran as fast as he could before he tripped over his blue scarf and banged his head on the floor.
…someone please save Naruto.
"Ow!" the boy said before a jonin came through the door.
"Honorable Grandson, are you alright?" a man with glasses asked.
…yeah, now was the time for Naruto to split. He quickly moved out the room while the young boy wondered who the hell had tripped him up! It couldn't have been himself. He'd never be that clumsy.
Anyway, Naruto ignored the looks sent his way. Well, rather than ignored. He disregarded them entirely. His thoughts were too preoccupied with how his first meeting with the Sandaime Hokage had gone.
"Well, he's certainly powerful enough with that type of chakra I guess. Much older than I thought. Still not great." he thought to himself.
Well, now that the identification nonsense was out of the way, the blond could spend some time on some of his other plans for today.
…or not. He frowned when he felt someone watching him. He could sense the chakra in the air. If he had to guess, then he bet it was the Hokage whom he'd just left. Not a very discrete shinobi technique, but everything about this world was subpar so there wasn't much he could do about it. Sure, he could cancel out the jutsu, but why would he give himself added suspicion?
"Just hurry up and get bored of me. I've got things I need to test this week before this ridiculous team setup happens," Naruto thought to himself as he decided to walk around the village.
He supposed it'd be a good time to walk around the village and gather… whatever crummy tools he could. It was then that Naruto learned… just how bad this world's Naruto was at keeping funds. He was pretty damn bad.
When the blond arrived home, he had the most splitting headache of his life. Honestly, he'd rather go back to signing military documents than deal with what he just dealt with. He pulled out his wallet and snorted when not a single coin dropped out.
"Broke. Just great," he thought.
Well, it wasn't too bad. At least he wouldn't need to rely on shoddy materials. He could always make his own, but with everything being at least twenty to thirty levels below the efficient level of where he'd come from, he doubted it'd be the same. Oh well, ninjutsu, genjutsu, and taijutsu it was. Who knew, maybe they'd all learn something.
Once the host of the Kyuubi no longer felt the eyes of the Hokage on him. He quickly took off his orange jumpsuit and tossed it away. He grabbed a black, sleeveless shirt and kept on his orange pants.
He opened the window to his apartment. He then held up a handsign. "Junsuina Chakura: Hansha Me no Jutsu (Pure Chakra: Ocular Reflection Technique)," Naruto called out as a flair of white light came over him for a moment. It then faded.
"Good. Now then, let's go," he said to himself as he dashed out the window and back outside.
After some time, Naruto landed on a building just before he stared at the ruins of the Uchiha clan family. He snorted. "How funny. The greatest military power, the Uchiha clan in my world becomes a ghost town in this one. I'd like to meet Itachi one day. Always seemed to be too into books when I met him," the blond thought before he jumped down into the village.
He'd read about the Uchiha Massacre. He also heard of it from Iruka and Mizuki's memories. Apparently, the Uchiha clan was planning a coup based on the unfair treatment they thought they were getting. It didn't help that the Kyuubi had been controlled by a Sharingan which incriminated the clan even more. A shame this state happened to one of the noble clans that helped found this village.
It wasn't the same where he came from. Konoha had been founded by actually four clans - the Uzumaki, the Hyuuga, the Senju, and the Uchiha. The Senju and the Uchiha became one clan when two clan heirs married each other. He'd learned that history fairly early. However, to keep them from holding a monopoly on the village, it was decided that the Senju-Uchiha clan couldn't hold the office of Hokage.
Naruto never questioned it at the time.
He walked through the numerous homes that had been abandoned. He placed his hand on the ground. The blond pushed a few strings of pure chakra through the ground. "Interesting. Even after all this time there's still some remnants of residual chakra. If I latch my chakra onto these residual chakra signatures then I can…" he thought before he did just that. His chakra mixed with what was left on the ground.
Unfortunately, the chakra was too distorted to try and retrieve a memory, but at least he could point out the most concentrated areas that the chakra had been. So, he decided to do that. Clearly, the Uchiha played some part in why Naruto had been given the Kyuubi, and for a beast that powerful, it'd make sense that something in this world drove its instincts. Whether it was divine or damned, maybe that would lead him to why he was summoned here.
For the next six hours, Naruto moved through the abandoned Uchiha Compound following dead-end trails or simple civilian chakra routes that served no purpose. Hmm, not even the children were spared aside from Uchiha Sasuke, the talented boy that this Naruto seemed to have some type of begrudging rivalry with. They didn't seem to like each other for whatever reason. Well, that wasn't his problem.
As the sun began to set, Naruto grumbled. "Forget it. I'll just come back later. I've wasted enough time here. I've gone through hundreds of signatures and gleaned nothing of importance. The jutsu's also about to wear off. Won't be able to cast it again for some time, it's probably why none of the patrols have spotted me yet. I shouldn't push my luck," he thought.
With that, Naruto ran back home and just in time before the jutsu expired. Oh well, perhaps tomorrow would yield better results.
Meanwhile, far off into the Divine Plane, Tsukuyomi stared down at what she had done, her eyes wide and her mind in shambles. She blinked. She looked at the settings she put into place as well as the limits on what she's done to get this screw up as finished as possible. Unfortunately, there was one minor detail. There… were no limits. Oops.
The Goddess of the Moon blinked as she watched what Naruto did to Mizuki.
"…didn't see that coming."
KG: I think more bored than drunk lol.
KG: CREAM SODA!