A Shattered Demon Child

Part 22

The real one's not among them.

That small message was reassurance for the young blond sitting alone in Mount Myoboku. He stared at the dark sky above the mountain, feeling grateful he could decode the last words his master wrote before he died. Tsunade seemed adamant that Naruto learning Sage Mode would be his best option if they wanted to defeat Pain. The blond was all for putting an end to Pain and the Akatsuki, but that didn't mean he was so sure he could complete the training faster than Jiraiya did. Despite what Fukasaku told him, Naruto didn't believe he could no matter how hard he tried. Sure, he made progress, but he wasn't optimistic he'd be able to pull it off entirely.

He stared at the dark sky above his head as he looked towards the two clones lying on the ground in front of him, both exhausted from training for so long and trying to keep their balance so they didn't fall onto the large spikes below their clone bodies. The blond wondered for a moment if they'd agree to keep going or if they wanted to beat the shit out of him again. Before he could even answer, one of the clones turned his head towards Naruto, still trying to catch his breath. He started shaking his head at him, as they locked eyes.

"Whatever you're thinking," the clone breathed between gasps. "Forget it."

Naruto sighed before he asked, "Why are you so suddenly opposed?"

The clone retorted, "Because we can't keep doing this! There's no fucking point! It doesn't accomplish anything! At least if we were actually training, we'd be doing something useful!"

The other clone looked over at his original form before he cut in, "Don't forget, we're still you, even if we are just clones. If part of us doesn't want to do it, that means there's some part of you that doesn't want to keep torturing yourself like this."

The original Naruto growled, "Let's be real for a damn minute, its not going to work! We're running out of time here, and we don't know when the hell Pain or the rest of the Akatsuki will attack! He'll destroy the village until he finds me! I don't want anyone else to fucking die for me!"

The clones sat up on the ground as they stared at him with depressed looks on their faces. Naruto looked down at the ground in frustration, willing himself not to keep digging into his clones when he was really mad at himself. Naruto balled his fists at his sides before slamming his back against the rock wall behind him. He slid down to the ground before resting his elbows against his knees. After muttering a string of curses, Naruto realized his clones had already turned to puffs of smoke. It wasn't long before Naruto thought he heard something move in his direction. He froze for a moment before he realized it was just the old toad Fukasaku. The toad stared at him, seeming puzzled.

"What're ya doin' out here so late, my boy?" Fukasaku asked.

Naruto sighed and said in a neutral tone, "Just couldn't sleep. That's all."

"Are ya sure? I heard a lot of venom in your tone just a moment ago," the old toad pressed, not phased by Naruto's lame excuse.

The blond shrugged before he replied, "I dunno, maybe."

Fukasaku scowled before he crossed his toad arms before he stated firmly, "Tsunade might buy that, but I do not. Considering how you just spoke to your clones, it's becoming clear to me what part of the problem is."

Naruto scowled before he asked, "Oh yeah? So what's the problem then?"

The old toad sighed before he explained, "Naruto boy, Sage Mode is difficult to learn, even with using your clones. You need to have patience, especially with yourself."

The blond narrowed his gaze before he stated darkly, "That's easier said than done, old man."

"I'm well aware," Fukasaku stated plainly. "That's why I'm trying to help ya out here."

"By doing what exactly? Just tell me."

The old toad replied, "You need to embrace life, not fight against it. Just from hearing what you said to your clones, its obvious you resent yourself just from how you spoke towards them. You speak to your clones so viciously because they are you, and you can't stand yourself."

The blond froze up as his mouth opened slightly. He wanted to deny it, to get mad and yell at the old toad for what he said, but he couldn't simply because the fact was, Fukasaku was right. Naruto hated looking at his clones, hated looking at himself, hated the idea of having to deal with himself anymore than he had to. His clones were identical to him, and that was enough to make him want them gone. The only true purpose he found for them was when he decided to get his ass kicked with limitations, and his clones would always know what he wanted and when to stop. He used his own hatred against himself just to feel something, even if it was pain.

Fukasaku broke the silence between him and the young blond after a few moments went by. "He wanted to bring you here to train, ya know? Before he died, Jiraiya talked with Tsunade about it. We were supposed to work out the details upon our return once the mission was completed. So, whether you believe it or not, Jiraiya believed you were ready. You've come this far, might as well finish the job."

Naruto let out a sigh of frustration as he replied, "Fine, you win, old man. What do I do now?"

The old toad smirked before he said, "Well, considering it's about to be sunrise from the looks of it, we'll continue after breakfast."

The blond followed behind the small toad as they made their way from the training ground. Naruto had nothing else to say; he followed behind the toad obediently without a sound. As much as he didn't want to admit it, he was getting too comfortable being dragged around like a child. He earned this treatment, he knew it, but even still, he just wanted to be like every other teen and not be under constant surveillance like a prisoner. Naruto flinched at the analogy, remembered he wasn't the real prisoner, that the Nine-Tails was the one sealed inside his body. Naruto began to wonder if the Nine-Tails was making him so miserable, or if he himself was the root of the problem.

Believe that if you want, brat, a familiar deep voice muttered in Naruto's head. You misery is their doing, not mine. I won't sit here and be blamed for something I didn't do.

The blond ignored the fox's voice, knowing if he responded it would be a bit weird considering he was the only one who could hear the Nine-Tails speak. Naruto shoved his hands in his pockets as he walked in silence. As disturbing as it should've been to hear voices in his head, Naruto decided it would be best to brush if off until he had time to talk to the fox and figure out why he'd been talking to him in the first place. He didn't want to piss the beast off, but suddenly talking to him was off-putting and made him almost start responding. If he started talking out loud with nobody speaking, it would draw attention to himself.

The fox had started talking to him shortly after he started his new training. Naruto held in his recklessness long enough to leave the village, but his first night, he was back to his unhealthy habits. He still didn't sleep, he still barely ate, and his carefully place injuries were overlapping due to the limited space. It was getting him by, just barely. He was back to being stubborn and acting mission ready all over again. What light that did reflect in his eyes was empty, but it seemed to fool everyone well enough.

Naruto wasn't sure when he'd be finished with training, or if Pain would attack the village to draw him out, but he had to be ready for all of it. Naruto wanted to die, but he refused to die at the hands of the man who killed his master. He would finish Pain once and for all once he was finally ready. The blond craved death, but not before he avenged his master.

Naruto barely got his technique together when Tsunade sent a toad to retrieve him. After leaving his clones in their places, he rushed to battle once again. From the time he appeared at the center of what should've been the village until he was pinned to the ground with Pain's black rods, it was a blur. Naruto could remember in words what happened, but he had no visual memory of what took place. What he did feel was the presence of death, and that was what clouded his memories of the fight until Hinata stepped in. The blond was already enraged and felt the Nine-Tails trying to take over, but he was fighting it. He felt only hate when he looked up at Pain's floating form.

The moment Pain attacked Hinata and slammed her into the ground one last time, Naruto's rage was unleashed at last. In the dark labyrinth inside his mind, Naruto only saw red. The Nine-Tails coaxed him closer as the hate inside of him started to seep through the cracks once again. As his body dragged towards the cage containing the fox, Naruto's taste for power was becoming uncontrollable. Just before he could rip the seal, a hand reached out and pulled him away from the red gates. Through the red, Naruto could see a pair of blue eyes and blond hair before himself. The man he saw before was back once again.

In his eyes, Naruto could see tears forming in his eyes. The teen blinked as his rage suddenly faded as his mind focused on the man before him. It was the Forth Hokage, again, just like before. His face was serious, but Naruto could see the sadness in his eyes.

"Naruto... It's nice to see you again."

The blond teen tilted his head before he asked, "How does the Forth Hokage know my name?"

The man smiled as weakly as they appeared in a white space. Naruto looked around quickly, confused and still in a bit of a daze. The blond man walked forwards as he put a hand on his shoulder.

"Because I named you, Naruto."

Naruto's eyes widened with shock. "Does that mean you're my..."

Minato nodded his head. "I'm your father, Naruto."

The blond teen stared at the taller man for a moment in disbelief. There was no way the Forth Hokage was his father, and he couldn't have sealed the Nine-Tails inside his own son. It all started making sense why Jiraiya and Kakashi were so invested in his training and keeping him alive; his father was Kakashi's sensei and before that Jiraiya's student. He had always wondered about the Forth Hokage and what happened the day the Nine-Tails attacked. The blond never realized he really was surrounded by family before then. That momentary bliss was ruined once it all hit Naruto.

He remembered quickly that his own father sealed a tailed-beast inside him as a baby, and he went straight to swinging at the older man.

"Naruto! What're you-"

Naruto yelled, "How could you seal the Nine-Tails in your own son? Do you know how much shit I've had to deal with? People wanted me to fucking die and refused to accept me! How could you leave me alone?"

Minato blinked with shock as he said, "Naruto... That can't be right. I told Lord Third to look after you..."

The blond growled, "That old man didn't care about me! He didn't give a fuck about me, nobody fucking did!"

The blond man shook his head before he muttered, "Naruto... I'm so sorry. Your mother and I... We wanted more for you in this life, but despite it all, I'm proud of you for the man you've become."

Naruto's eyes watered. "R-Really?"

Minato nodded. "I'll always be proud of you."

After a moment of silence, Minato wrapped his arms around his son. Naruto instantly began choking up as he gripped his arms around his father. The two hugged for a few moments before Minato let go of him, holding Naruto by his shoulders.

"I know it's a lot to ask," Minato began. "But I need you to keep going for as long as you can."

Naruto lowered his head. "I'll do my best, I-I promise."

Minato smiled as he nodded. "Thank you, Naruto. Before I go, there are some things I need to tell you."

When Naruto opened his tired blue eyes, he was lying in what seemed to be a large tent. He blinked in confusion as he slowly sat up. As he did, he noticed Kakashi sitting in the corner of the tent, somehow sleeping while sitting up. The blond moved the sheets around his legs to realize he was still in his jumpsuit, minus the fact his under shirt was cut in half and his jacket was still unzipped. The days he'd spent away had all melted together, and Naruto had no way to know what day it even was. It felt like the world had sped up only to abruptly stop once more.

Naruto could see his sensei was apparently set up inside the same tent as him, just on the opposite side of him. The blond didn't know whether to consider this a coincidence or simply a precaution, but either way, he had no intention of making it into an argument. He quietly replayed the events of the day before until the overwhelming sense of dread washed over him quickly. Nagato brought everyone back, and yet, the blond couldn't bring himself to move passed the idea of how many people had died before Nagato brought them back, one of them being Kakashi himself.

Naruto clamped a hand over his mouth as a wave of nausea hit him as the memories played back in his mind. His body began to shake as the memories started to play in his head on a loop. He couldn't bring himself to stop no matter how hard he tried. After a few minutes, he was lost in the images of destruction and the bodies he saw. Naruto couldn't forget if he wanted to, and he knew he'd never truly be able to push them away for the rest of his life, whatever was left of it anyway. His body curled into a ball as he put his head between his knees. He just wanted it to stop, but no degree of desire could push away what he felt.

"Naruto?" a distant voice asked with a bit of concern.

Naruto jolted upright, leading his wide eyes to land on a very concerned jonin. He hadn't even noticed Kakashi woke up nor did he notice the hand on his back. The blond felt his stomach drop as he realized how panicked his sensei looked. Naruto couldn't breathe; his throat had already decided to swell shut. There was only panic and dread with a lack of self preservation that tied them together. Naruto wanted to be anywhere else, he wanted to be anyone else. He wanted the panic to stop, but he knew it wouldn't subside so easily. He needed everything to stop.

Naruto resorted to burying his face against his knees as he avoided Kakashi's gaze. The jonin remained crouched beside him as he rubbed circles against Naruto's back. To Naruto's relief, his sensei wasn't trying to speak to him. The blond wasn't sure if he could deal with any more interaction without completely losing himself to his overwhelming emotions. He started feeling dazed as he realized he felt a dull sting in his arm. Naruto felt his body start to relax as he slumped back against something warm. His throat seemed to open up as he gasped for air. His lungs burned as he took in as much air as they would let him inhale.

"You need to slow your breathing down, Naruto," Kakashi stated quietly. "Take it easy."

Naruto shook his head against Kakashi's chest. "I-I'm sorry, sensei. I-I can't, I just-"

The tension remaining in his chest eased as Kakashi carefully helped him lay back. The blond felt too weak to move his muscles in protest, leaving him to look up at the concerned sensei. Kakashi looked remorsefully down at his student with a somber look in his visible eye. Naruto felt guilt begin to tug at his heart as he realized how worried Kakashi was. The last thing he wanted was for his sensei to worry more about him than he already did.

"Everyone's okay, Naruto," Kakashi reminded him in a low voice. "Everything is under control. You just need to focus on yourself right now, okay?"

Naruto's eyes widened as he remembered seeing Hinata before he blacked out after the fighting was over. He didn't know if he could believe she was still alive after what Pain had done to her. Tears brimmed in his eyes as he remembered the last words out of her mouth before she was slung into the air before his very eyes. She had to be alive, she just had to be.

"What about Hinata?" Naruto asked in a panic.

Kakashi's gaze softened as he replied, "She's worried about you, but otherwise, she's just fine. She stopped by a few times to check in on you."

Tears brimmed in his eyes as relief washed over him. Hinata was alive, and she was worried about him. He couldn't wait to see her and ask her how she was doing. Knowing there was one more person who would always be at his side helped ease Naruto's mind. She would be there, even if he didn't always notice it right away. She was shy, but she had always been kind to him in her own way. She risked her life for him, and even after he defeated Pain, she still wanted to make sure he was okay. It warmed his heart a bit to know she cared about him.

"I'll have to go see her when I wake up," the blond stated tiredly as his mind began to fade to black once again.