"Monster"
by the Carpet Shampoo
Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto; I'm not making any money off this fanfic.
All events in this story are fictional. Any resemblance to any event real or made up is purely coincidental.
Author's Commentary: I need a break from "The Courting of Uzumaki Naruto". Once I finish up this in about 4 or 5 chapters, I'll be able to right The Courting again and it will be much better than before, I promise. No, I haven't forgotten about it. Naruto x Gaara here by the way.
Prologue: Battle of Angels…
I planned on killing Uzumaki that night. I had told him once that I would be back to kill him; it was a promise unfulfilled.
His pride in himself, that almost arrogance he holds for his own power made him come alone that night.
Dark nights draw me in some strange way. Most people, I have been told, are afraid of being alone in the dark, but perhaps because I know I am protected, I never have been. Its amazing feeling, one of complete peace with one's self and nature, shadows hiding everything, making you feel alone and insignificant under a blanket of stars, the only person left alive in the universal spiral of death and life.
Yes, it was one of those nights. The stars glittered brightly, annoyingly brightly if you ask me, and the moon hung low, glowing a soft almost orange glow.
I wanted to kill Uzumaki, his life force, his chi was so strong, it absolutely radiated off him like an aura of an angel. If I am the Angel of Death, the surely, Naruto, my rival, is the Angel of Life. Life and Death cannot coincide, eventually, Death always takes what Life has given.
And so I shall take Uzumaki. His pride and his life shall be forever stained on my hands, just like so many others.
Or at least, that was how I planned it would be. Plans do tend to go astray. I met Uzumaki that night, and he was alone, just as I had known he would be. Reading your opponents, that is the key to being great in the world of the shinobi.
I remember clearly, his face set in the moonlight. Naruto's face was not meant to be viewed by the light of the moon; rather it should be viewed in the full view of the overhead sun, I believe, a sun that glows brightly behind him. The moon brings out the half of him that no one, only I, will understand. In the moonlight, Naruto appears in the form of himself only I will appreciate.
His face seems to lose its color, glistening like pale marble statues of the gods of hatred. His eyes seem to glow from within, as if reflecting like, catlike. His fists stood clenched and I could almost see the little fingernails of his, chewed and bitten they were biting into the soft inner flesh of his hands.
"Gaara…what are you doing here?" his voice came out as a low growl, I was surprised to see it had changed since I had last encountered him. Little Naruto was growing up and becoming a man.
"We're alike, you and I," It was a sudden observation and I felt the need to share it with Uzumaki. He looked surprised and I watched his guard drop instantly. I could kill him now before he could even blink at me in that surprised way. I chose not to.
"You and I," I continued, "Look at us Naruto. Here we are in the dead of night, both of us feared and hated by the people we have always known and respected.. Mothers will always scoot their children away from us, girls will always shuffle away when we approach. Boys and men will refuse to meet our eyes, for fear of glimpsing into our souls, the souls of monsters. You must understand Naruto, no one will ever understand me but you. And so, no one will ever understand you, except for me."
"What…what do you mean?" Naruto's eyes, still the weird reflected blue widened with confusion as he stared at me. I was a predator of the night, and I moved in on my prey.
I caught Naruto's lips with my own, surprising even myself for a moment. His lips felt soft; I had never kissed a person before and I didn't realize lips could be that soft. I pulled away, leaving him with only a brief kiss, but those seconds of eternity would forever be burned into his memory.
"Remember Naruto…I'm the only one who will ever understand you and will be able to love you. Both of you…"
And so that is how I left Uzumaki Naruto for two years.
Author's Commentary: Yeah, it's a little strange, a little short, but this is just the intro. Real plot can be expected next chapter.