Our Roles – Prolouge (Part 1)
After almost two months of consideration, I've decided on how I really want this story to go. I have a lot of work to do right now though, so only this first chapter of the prologue will be available. The next chapter will most likely come out in February. Hope you enjoy the rewrite.
Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. Only this fanfic.
Transitions and flashbacks are in italics.
Tailed beast speech is in bold.
'Thoughts are in single quotations.'
Forests of Konohagakure, Midday (Or whenever haven't read or watched this show in ages)
"Woah…"
Naruto prided himself on many things. Particularly his spontaneity. His ability to come up with the craziest plans on the fly, and actually pull them off won him a moniker he treasured. Unpredictable knucklehead ninja is what they called him. And he wouldn't have it any other way. He wouldn't deny that being referred to as such made him feel unique and special. However, it wasn't every day that your idol would refer to you by your nickname.
"Can you… repeat what you just said?"
Naruto was in awe. Initially he hadn't recognized the man in front of him. In fact, he had been worried that his appearance made the situation he was in much worse. Naruto, Shikamaru, Sakura and Pakkun, Kakashi's summon, had decided that they would not leave one of their own behind and decided to face the Sound ninja platoon that was on their tails. Of course if they took on the platoon, Sasuke and Gaara would only get further away. But Naruto being Naruto decided that he would orchestrate a plan. Shikamaru however, would have none of it and pledged to help out the blond as he would "only mess things up for them further". Sakura and Pakkun stayed as well, their logic being that they would not be able to help Sasuke with just their own strength. All in all, the whole team stayed.
Shikamaru acted as the bait, luring the enemy out and then binding them with shadow paralysis, while Naruto barraged them with Shadow Clones, because what else would he do. Initially this had worked, as the sound ninja were defenseless against Shadow Clones while being restricted in the Shadow Paralysis. However, Sakura ended up becoming a liability when a Sound ninja snuck up on her. Taking her hostage, the initial one sided beat down became a standoff of sorts, with each side having at least one prisoner.
At least that was the case, until he arrived. The man appeared in a flash, quite literally. Both sides thought they'd been caught with their pants down, until a Sound shinobi caught in Shikamaru's paralysis technique suddenly yelled in shock.
The Yellow Flash, he screamed. The absolute shock on his face, coupled with the surprise evident on Sakura's, immediately intrigued Naruto. Who was this guy? He noticed that he wore a Leaf headband, and then he picked up on the fact that his cloak, a white one, had the kanji for "Fourth Hokage" scrawled down his back. That was when he realized who was in front of him. And interestingly when he decided to take action as well. A Fuma shuriken suddenly spun towards Sakura and the Sound shinobi holding her prisoner. The Fourth attempted to intercept it with his kunai and almost did. When the shuriken was just a foot away from its target, Sakura, it suddenly transformed into Naruto. Showing a great degree of fluidity, he snatched the Fourth's kunai out of mid-air, grabbed Sakura by her waist, and swung said kunai at the enemy, lethally wounding them. All in one motion.
And that lead back to the present situation. There were a ton of questions he wanted to ask this guy. After all, he was the reason a certain demon fox was inside of him.
"I said, you've grown to be quite the unpredictable ninja Naruto."
"Y-You're the Fourth Hokage!"
The yellow haired Hokage grinned.
"That I am Naruto."
"But how can that be?"
It was Shikamaru who had raised the question. He was still restraining his enemy in the Shadow Paralysis Technique, however he no longer seemed to want to hold it.
"Yeah… aren't you supposed to be dead?"
Sakura chimed in now. She donned a light blush as Naruto had held her by her waist.
"I am. I technically still am."
This left Sakura and Naruto greatly confused, however a certain Nara began to think.
'The Fourth Hokage is supposed to be dead. That's just a fact. But to say he is still dead would imply…'
"A jutsu that can bring the dead to life? No but that can't be possible…"
"...Shikaku's kid huh?"
A look of surprise appeared on Shikamaru's features. He quickly schooled them.
"Anyone could get their hands on that information. If you're trying to convince us you'll have to try harder than that."
"Alright. How about this."
He suddenly tossed his kunai (how it left Naruto's hand greatly confused him) at the Sound ninja still trapped in Shikamaru's technique. Then, as the kunai was just an inch away from hitting its target the blond Hokage simply appeared. He struck the Sound shinobi with enough strength to fly him into a tree. The unnamed nin slumped to the ground, signifying his unconsciousness.
"How'd he do that?!"
Shikamaru provided him with the answer.
"Hiraishin no Jutsu."
"What now?!"
"The Fourth Hokage's signature technique you idiot!"
Sakura apparently recovered from the shock of the situation, knocking Naruto over the head.
"Ow! Sakura, how was I supposed to know that?"
Shikamaru ignored Naruto's plight, speaking again.
"Even if we wanted to, we couldn't beat you."
He sighed.
"I guess we'll have to just go with it. So then Lord Fourth, why'd you come and save us of all people? I'm sure there are plenty that could use your help."
The Fourth smirked at this. He was impressed by his analytical skills.
"Well, I have two reasons."
"Shoot."
"Firstly, I do not have much time left here. So I came by to give something to Naruto."
This caused Shikamaru to raise an eyebrow.
'Give something to Naruto? Why him?'
"Wait me? Why me?"
"That, isn't something I can tell you right now."
Naruto pouted at this but otherwise was still curious. Sakura merely watched from just behind her blond teammate as the previously deceased Hokage approached him. The Fourth got down on one knee, staring Naruto in the eyes. The younger blond noticed that the sclera in the man's eyes were pitch black and that his face had cracks in it.
"Why do you look like that?"
"Hm?"
"Your face… and your eyes… they don't look right."
"It's an effect of the jutsu that brought me back to life."
Naruto accepted this with an easy nod. He couldn't remember the last time he'd felt so… at peace. The Fourth then took the opportunity to place his left hand on Naruto's seal. He placed his other hand on Naruto's shoulders.
"No matter what happens next, I want you to keep trying your utmost to follow the path you chose for yourself, ok?"
Again, Naruto simply nodded. He didn't fully understand why he wasn't more excited. Perhaps, it was simply an effect of being near the Fourth personally. The Third Hokage never made him feel so calm.
"Alright then, Eight Sign Seal: Extend!"
A burst of orange chakra rushed from the older blond to the younger blond. Naruto continued to stand afterwards, dazed. As he attempted to get his bearings, he felt the hand on his shoulder leave. And with it the warm feeling he felt.
"W-Wait where are you going?!"
"There is one more thing I have to do before this technique releases. I'm sorry Naruto, this is the most I can do for you right now."
The boy looked like he was about to break down. Which almost never happened. Sakura noticed.
"I know he's your idol and all, but we have to go help Sasuke, Naruto!"
"Sakura's right. We need to get moving."
"But-"
"Remember my words Naruto. Just keep forging ahead, like you've always."
Naruto's eyes widened.
"I am sure, your parents would be proud to see the shinobi you have become."
And with that, the Yellow Flash of The Leaf vanished before their eyes.
The trio of ninja stood, somewhat stunned. All that could be heard was the rustling of the stray leaves as they danced in the gentle breeze. Surprisingly it was Naruto who broke them from their stupor.
"C'mon guys, let's get a move on."
Naruto turned around and quickly paced passed his two comrades who were still staring at the place where the blond Hokage had left them. Shikamaru however, grabbed his shoulder.
"Naruto, are you going to be okay?"
Shikamaru wasn't an idiot. He could see it, possibly just as much as Naruto could. Naruto never had parents and the closest thing to one he had was the Third Hokage. However, in that moment where the Fourth had left, it had clicked for him. That nagging feeling that he'd overlooked something.
'He never told us the second reason.'
"…"
It was so obvious to him now. Their features simply matched too well, and the way that Naruto didn't question a word the man said, like he was listening to the wise words of a parent. But most of all, the look in the eyes of the Fourth. He'd seen the same look on his own father's face once, after he had passed the second round of the Chunin Exams. It was pride.
"Yeah… I'll be okay."
Pakkun chose that moment to appear, letting the others know that Sasuke and Gaara were not far from their current location. Sakura and Naruto both took it as an indicator to get moving, with Shikamaru leading from behind. Shikamaru couldn't help but ponder.
'I guess he didn't have to tell us his second reason after all. He made it obvious through his actions.'
Some time later…
Sasuke was having a hard time fighting Gaara. The transformation he'd undergone made him fast and powerful. Not only had Sasuke undergone the Curse Mark transformation already, he was almost completely exhausted of his chakra. Without jutsu he could only prolong the battle, if it could be called that anymore. It was a one-sided beatdown.
Once again, his Sharingan saved his life as he barely dodged a barrage of sand from the red haired beast. He backflipped off the branch he'd been on, and grabbing it with his hands and employing his momentum, he swung himself skywards. Away from Gaara. That only served to piss off the sand user.
"Is that all you've got Uchiha?! You are weak!"
That comment irked the mentioned Uchiha, and going against his rationality, he raced through some hand signs while in midair.
"Fire Style: Phoenix Flower Jutsu (Katon: Housenka no Jutsu)!"
A large number of mini fireballs rushed from his lips and bombed the area directly below him. He would have loved to watch the results but his head began to spin.
'Shit! My chakra!'
Indeed, he'd overextended and was running on the fumes of his chakra. He began to descend. Normally this wouldn't be a problem as he could channel some chakra to his legs to lighten his fall. However, he had no chakra left.
'If I'm lucky, I might get away with just some broken legs.'
He knew he was just kidding himself. If the fall didn't kill him, Gaara would. He watched with a sense of detachment as the ground rushed to meet him. He closed his eyes.
'Can't believe I'm going to die from a fall…'
Suddenly, he felt a pair of arms grab his torso. His eyes shot open and he found himself being supported by his blond haired teammate on a tree branch.
"Hey Bastard…"
He rose an eyebrow. Not at the name he'd been called but the tone Naruto used. He sounded different.
"What the hell is going on with Gaara?"
He shrugged.
"I couldn't say. He became like that before he even left the arena."
Just then the red haired shinobi appeared behind them. However just as he was about to attack, he froze up. A shadow was attached to his own.
"What the-"
Naruto and Sasuke both jumped away from Gaara, now over the initial surprise. The blond quickly generated four Shadow Clones. These clones attempted to launch Gaara upwards for Naruto's Uzumaki Barrage, but the sand user broke out of the Shadow Paralysis Jutsu. He swung his claw, dissipating the clones.
The two boys landed on another branch, followed by Sakura and Shikamaru.
"Well that was a bust."
Shikamaru hadn't expected his Paralysis Jutsu to be broken so easily. It complicated the entire operation. In fact it made the majority of their tactics useless.
"Sasuke, are you okay?"
Sakura was, for lack of a better word, freaked out. Gaara was releasing killing intent that could be felt even from their current position. His face was deformed and worst of all, his maniacal grin struck terror in her heart. She'd much rather leave. However she wouldn't do any such thing. Not as long as Sasuke was still there.
"Dammit what are we gonna do?!"
Naruto was also freaked out. However it wasn't because of the killing intent or the maniacal grin. The Nine Tails was worse. It was because Gaara was way stronger and faster than he was. From the moment the redhead broke the Shadow Paralysis, Naruto had realized there wouldn't be any way to slow him down that would actually work. In short, they couldn't win.
"Alright, change of plans. We're getting out of here."
"What?!"
Both Sasuke and Naruto whipped their heads in Shikamaru's direction.
"We can't beat him. Sasuke you're out of chakra so you'd just be dead weight out there. And Naruto-"
"And what?"
Shikamaru blinked.
"So I don't have Sasuke's speed or his reflexes or his jutsu. I got my own skills Shika!"
"That's not the point you idiot! You'd be on your own!"
Naruto chuckled.
"On my own? When am I ever on my own?"
He crossed his fingers over each other and created over one hundred clones. They all surrounded Gaara, taunting him and drawing his attention away from the squad.
"Get out of here guys, I'll hold him off."
Sakura quickly made to protest, but surprisingly Sasuke stopped her.
"…Don't take too long Idiot."
"Whatever Bastard."
The two, despite facing away from each other, held knowing smirks.
Shikamaru led the retreat followed by Sakura and Sasuke. Sakura decied to make her concerns known then.
"Will he be okay?"
"Knowing the Idiot, he'll make it."
Despite this thought, on the inside Sasuke was internally berating himself for not being able to assist in the battle. His rational side had won out in the end and had seen it reasonable to leave Naruto on his own.
'At least, I hope he can hold him off in time for backup…'
With Naruto and Gaara…
No matter how Naruto positioned his Shadow Clones, he just couldn't land a hit on Gaara. He would keep dodging or outright destroying the clones before they could attack. Once again Naruto watched as his Shadow Clones were obliterated by a swing of Gaara's sand claw. Just one. Honestly what could he do? It was only a matter of time until-
What the hell are you doing kit!
Naruto blinked. The voice was familiar but where had he-
You seriously don't recognize my voice? If it wasn't for that promise I made I'd already be gone…
'W-Wait you're the Nine Tails?!'
Who else? By the way kit, dodge now.
Naruto's attention was immediately returned to reality as a barrage of sand pellets sped towards him. A Shadow Clone helpfully flung him out of the way, taking the attack for him.
"I FINALLY FOUND THE REAL YOU, UZUMAKI!"
'Darn it! I-I can't beat this guy! His attacks, they're way too-"
Hey!
'And that's another thing! Why the hell are you talking to me?'
Just shut up and listen idiot!
'…'
Good. If you want to beat him with your current strength there is a way. You're just too much of an idiot to realize or remember it!
'There is?'
The fox inside him chuckled, which actually served more to creep him out than comfort him.
You don't realize the full potential of your Shadow Clone Jutsu do you? Nevermind just follow my instructions.
The blond ninja was hesitant, given the nature of his prisoner, but another large scale attack from Gaara that nearly took his arm completely changed his mind.
'Alright, tell me what to do!'
Gaara watched again as his blue eyed opponent was just barely destroyed. He cackled, the sensation of bloodlust that he felt only increasing with every passing moment. The boy would die, it was only a matter of time.
And then that one would die! And then the pink one! They will not survive! None of them!
The voice inside his head raised a loud cacophony of indescribable noise, it grated against his nerves. Mother always got excited when he was about to kill someone, but wasn't this a little too loud? He noticed something odd after blocking out the noise. The blond Leaf ninja had all but disappeared. He looked about until he saw a barrage of shuriken spin towards him. Casually raising an arm of sand, the shuriken stabbed into the sand. Suddenly, another barrage came out of seemingly nowhere. And another. And another. Eventually, he was being peppered by hundreds of shuriken. And what was worse, his target was seemingly invisible. If he had his sand defense it wouldn't be a problem, but with his current transformation it went out the window.
"Come out you coward!"
This time a barrage of kunai entered the fray. Once again he rose his arm to defend against the kunai, which was substantially harder now that there were shuriken constantly being flung towards him. He heard the kunai stab softly into the sand. That was when he also heard a different sound.
TSSSSS…
'Explosive tag (Kibaku Fuda)!'
The explosion rocked his entire body, almost completely wrecking his sand arm. He was flung away only to be barraged by a much larger salvo of kunai. All with explosive tags. He extended his usable sand arm, latching onto a tree and barely swinging out of the way. Even then he was still caught by the blast.
"Argh!"
He sprawled across the forest floor in a heap. Rolling to his feet, he roared.
"Is that all you can do Uzumaki?! Hide and throw projectiles!"
"Hey."
Gaara's attention was drawn behind him. He whipped his head around, watching the elusive blond ninja stare him deep in his eyes.
"I'm a ninja of the Village Hidden in the Leaves. So of course I've got the advantage."
Gaara silently prepared another barrage of sand pellets when he was interrupted by another barrage of shuriken. He jumped backwards to avoid them. That was when Naruto chuckled.
"To answer your first question though… I'm about to show you!"
Naruto disappeared in a cloud of smoke.
'Shadow Clone (Kage Bunshin)! What is he-'
Then a massive amount of shuriken, kunai and even Fuma shuriken fell upon him. Gaara could barely avoid them, utilizing quick movements to avoid the worst of the onslaught. That plan however became compromised when an explosion knocked him off his feet. At this point, shuriken had already buried into many sections of his body. He was injured, far more than he'd ever been. Four Fuma Shuriken sped towards him. Unable to block them with his now injured sand arms, he swung his tail to knock them away. When they were about to make contact, they all released smoke, revealing Four Shadow Clones. All the clones avoided the tail like a plague, three of them ducking under it while one shifted over it, while in midair. The clone which jumped over smacked Gaara with a surprisingly solid uppercut, elevating the red haired boy. While the redhead was still dazed, the three other Shadow Clones all linked arms, spinning rapidly. The clone in the middle of the link released the other clones one by one towards Gaara, before catching the clone that landed the uppercut and spinning him skyward as well. Each clone landed another uppercut on Gaara, sending him further skyward. Completely disoriented at this point, Naruto enacted the final phase of his assault.
A large number of the ninja tools on the forest floor suddenly transformed into Shadow Clones. Each one had on their person a pair of explosive tagged kunai. Chucking them upwards, the total amount of kunai well over two hundred, they all met their target. Gaara had managed to reorient himself in time to defend against the kunai but it was too late anyways. All at once, the tags went off. The explosion was massive, deafening even to Sasuke, Shikamaru and Sakura who'd already made good distance towards the village. The trio whipped their heads around, watching the massive plume of smoke in the distance.
Gaara had been sent skywards, the sand on his body almost completely nonexistent and his body flailing helplessly. The explosion had been so powerful it blew the shuriken stabbed into his body away. It was then that he heard a voice.
"Here it comes Gaara!"
The mentioned red head's eyes shot open. Above him, three Naruto's shot towards his person. Twisting their bodies they all extended a leg each, with each foot over another.
"Uzumaki Axe Drop!"
The power of three axe kicks in one. The feet met Gaara's torso, and with incredible power, knocked him out of the sky, towards the ground. The forest floor cratered as the redhead met it and Naruto landed safely outside it. He blanched at his technique.
'That was… awesome!'
Meh. It could have been better.
'Even still, we beat him!'
We?
'Yeah we! If it wasn't for your plan there was no way I could've beat Gaara!'
…
The fox went silent, which unnerved Naruto immensely. He decided to approach the crater in the meanwhile, to see if the redhead was still conscious.
"You…"
The blond stopped dead in his tracks. He further blanched, this time out of fear.
"No way…"
"…Uzumaki. It would appear… that I haven't taken you seriously enough."
"How… are you still moving!"
Naruto get back now!
'What?!'
Nonetheless he obeyed. It was a good thing he did because just then a massive explosion of sand threw him off his feet. He tumbled across the ground, stopping at the base of a tree trunk.
"What's going on?!"
He's undergoing a Tailed Beast Transformation (Bijuka)!
"Huh? A tailed beast?"
Idiot. Did you really think I was the only one that existed? That you were the only one that existed?
"So you're saying… that Gaara…"
Yes, he is a host of a tailed beast as well. Specifically the One Tailed Raccoon (Ichibi no Tanuki).
"Wait. You said a transformation-"
"NARUTO UZUMAKI!"
'Oh boy…'
He glanced upwards and stared in shock. A massive beast, made of sand, with a giant tail behind its body, stood in front of him. On the top of its head, a lone redhead stared with a manic grin plastered across his face.
"THIS IS WHERE YOU DIE!"
"Okay what am I supposed to do now!?"
Just hold on!
"PLAYING POSSUM JUTSU (Tanuki Neiri no Jutsu)!"
Suddenly, Gaara's body went limp. Then a loud cackle echoed across the forest.
"FINALLY I'M FREE!"
"This isn't getting better is it?"
No. That fool just granted the One Tails (Ichibi) complete control over his body!
The giant beast swung its claw downwards at Naruto. He attempted to dodge, but was knocked away by the sheer shockwave of the swing. It had so much force that it cleared out all of Naruto's remaining Shadow Clones, as well as send the original crashing through three trees. When he smacked into the fourth tree, he slid down to the ground.
"Ack!"
When he tried to shift, he found that his legs wouldn't respond. His head was spinning and if he was correct…
There's a branch sticking out of your gut, and you've got a concussion kit.
'I-I can't feel my legs!'
Well no shit. Your back's broken.
'Huh?! You're serious!?'
Completely. You can't handle him anymore.
'I can't die here! Not yet, not like this!'
Just shut up for a second! There is a way to fight him, but you're going to have trust me.
'If it helps me to stop Gaara, I'll do anything!'
The thing about this solution is once you go through with it, everything will change as you know it.
'None of that matters to me! I'll do it. Even if it means I might die!'
Alright kit, you asked for it! Follow my instructions to the T!
Back in Konoha, the Kage Box…
Hiruzen wasn't having a good day. His old student had attacked his village, teaming up with the Hidden Sand Village to enhance his attack force. What was worse was that he'd used a forbidden technique, the Impure World Reincarnation Technique (Edo Tensei Jutsu), to revive the first three Hokage. However, fortune had been on his side as Fourth had been able to break free of his binding. He disappeared shortly afterwards once Hiruzen had told him that he could handle himself. He eventually managed to seal away the First and Second Hokage but was unable to defeat Orochimaru with his current strength. Which was what had led to his current situation. He used a forbidden technique as well, the Reaper Death Seal (Shiki Fujin) to attempt to seal away Orochimaru's soul. However, the Snake Sannin had used his sword to impale the Hokage, draining him of the required strength to seal his student away. It was only a matter of time until he'd be unable to use the seal at all.
'It would seem that I have to resort to just removing his jutsu. It will at least stop him from-'
Suddenly, a certain blond Hokage appeared above his head. He had a Rasengan primed to go. Orochimaru's eyes widened.
"NOOOO!"
The spiraling ball of chakra met the Snake Sannin's face, violently pushing him away from Hiruzen and granting the necessary traction to yank Orochimaru's soul out of his body. However, before he had time to completely seal the soul away, the Fourth began to speed through hand signs.
"Reaper Death Seal (Shiki Fujin)!"
Orochimaru's soul was suddenly yanked not towards the Third but the Fourth. Hiruzen's eyes widened.
"There's no need for you to sacrifice yourself like that Lord Third."
"Minato…"
"It was… interesting to see what my son became. Take care of him for me."
Hiruzen nodded. He owed the man much. Minato's body began to break down, becoming dust. When it completely disintegrated, the barrier around him vanished. As did Orochimaru's body.
"They were quick…"
ANBU agents quickly came to the elderly Hokage's aid. Propping him up, they guided him to the edge of the roof. He viewed the chaos, wincing as he realized that even though Orochimaru was defeated, the battle was still going on. His vision began to blur, the poison from Orochimaru's blade and his fatigue kicking in. He almost passed out, if it hadn't been for a rather loud roar.
He flinched, looking up and seeing some distance from the village a giant raccoon tearing up the landscape.
"The chaos keeps piling up."
"Lord Hokage, what are our orders?"
"Firstly, we need to-"
Suddenly, he felt a massive release of chakra. This time his head shot upwards, immediately in the same direction of the raccoon. A large plume of white smoke clouded the forest, completely blotting out the One Tails. Then, the smoke cleared in a flurry of tails. Nine giant tails to be specific.
"It can't be!"
"No, not again…"
Even his ANBU were in shock. Hiruzen spoke, confirming their suspicions.
"It is the Nine Tailed Fox (Kyubi no Kitsune)."
The giant demon fox roared, so loudly that the entire village, invaders and all, had to stop and stare at the colossal creature. It completely dwarfed the One Tails, thanks to its tails. The two beasts stared each other down.
"It would seem that an event like no other is going to happen. Two tailed beasts are going to fight each other."
It was a shame that Hiruzen would lose consciousness then. He would miss a battle of proportions greater than any he'd ever seen.
End of Chapter
I have no time. Many edits were made. This thing is probably chock full of errors. Even still, the next chapter is going to be very exciting. Hopefully. I think it's exciting. Leave a review if you want, or don't. It's up to you really. Anyways I'm out.