Character Thoughts

"Character Dialogue"

_ = A Change in Scene

Chapter 1 - Studying Reality

A sea of menacing, dark clouds hovered over the scarred terrain. Liberating light of the sun barricaded from the warring armies clashing against each other. Kunai and Katana smashed against one another as screams of fear and pain suffocated the brutalised landscape. Putrid tinges of blood filled the air as bodies lay thrown across the lifeless rock as far as the eye could see, the pile of bodies growing by the moment as many soon joined the dead.

Many brave men and women charged forward in defiance. Their attire varied in colour and design, from grass green and gritty red flat jackets to white chest plates only covering the left shoulder. However, they all held their headband in common, a symbol that united them and pushed their grudges and hatred aside. Shinobi. One who endures.

Their enemy, many in number, held a pale complexion as their features were reminiscent of a venus flytrap, with spiky white appendages extending from their arms and shoulders. Lifeless, piercing yellow eyes peering into the hearts of their adversaries, showing no emotion. No pain. No fear.

Upon a sudden quake in the ground, it glued the eyes of all present to a large rock formation behind the army of emotionless pale-white creatures. A living legend towered over. His ancient blood-red armour fluttered amidst the torrent of wind that pushed against him, exposing the death-like black under-armour he wore underneath. Crossing his arm in his chest, his statue-still gloved hands now lay glued to his biceps, his long red ponytail swaying in harmony with his armour.

Moments passed as the battlefield held its breath, heart rates soaring among the Shinobi, large lumps of saliva stuck in the throats of all. His eyes opened, revealing a pair of ringed purple eyes that sent daggers into the hearts of his enemies, resulting in trembling, quivering, and profuse sweating.

Visible blue energy emanated around the red-head, nature itself contorting as a titanic gust of wind shot across the area, causing the armies below to raise their arms to their head, squinting their eyes. Like a knife to their hearts, the man's glare intensified as he jumped from the towering rock pillar. Shooting toward the Shinobi in his way with his arms extended away from him, an infamous Kunai in each hand.

A labyrinth of trees surrounded the lust green forest floor for as far as the eye could see, the rustling of leaves within their branches a frequent occurrence. However, on this sunny day, besides the endless rustling from the native wildlife, clicking wood echoed throughout the air.

Bursting through a high branch above, a young red-headed boy shot down, throwing a small stone pebble at a circular piece of wood, hitting them with absolute precision before rolling and stopping in the middle of the forest clearing.

Beads of sweat rained from his face as his breathing was heavy and loud, swiping his arm across his face to elevate this discomfort. After removing his arm from his face, an accomplished, wide smirk etched itself onto his whisked cheeks as his ocean blue eyes trailed down to the pebble that he'd thrown, now indented into his wooden target. His overwhelming sense of pride, that he had made waves of improvement and that all this training meant something, soon overshadowed the initial shock at his strength

Looking toward the clear blue sky, squinting his eyes as he had done so, spotting that the sun had only risen slightly from the horizon before bringing his gaze back down to the target. With his now calmed breathing and fatigue a figment of his imagination, he breathed a heavy sigh as his shoulders dropped. His once free, vibrant expressions turned sour and shackled with traces of fear and apprehension laced in it all.

Aimlessly staring at the ground on which he stood, the serenity of the bed of grass invaded by his blue sandals made him slowly reflect on his brief life, who he was and his life so far. Tracing his eyes toward his slightly damaged, pitch-black shirt, focusing on the symbol adorning it, a red swirl, the same symbol on the flat jackets of ninjas across the Village.

Uzumaki, a clan that he was almost certain he belonged to, his red hair their most distinct feature that he shared. These thoughts brought questions that he had constantly tried to answer.

What became of my relatives?

Did they know I was here?

Did they abandon me?

The sounds of a snapping twig quickly stopped these questions, his head snapping around to see a pair of sparrows flying from the trees they had perched on. A small breath of relief escaped his mouth as he turned back around. His once down mood turned jovial with a plastered smile imprinted onto his face, his mind reaffirming his answers.

If they knew I was here, they'd be here. Uzumaki valued family more than anything, referring to the research he'd done at the library on the history of the Uzumaki. On this thought, his eyes sparked into confidence and determination as he marched off, staring at the giant monument in the distance.

At a brisk pace, the young boy navigated the maze-like forest to emerge a short distance away from a populated market, populated to the brim with vendors and customers, the air itself seemingly at peace and blissful. But as he entered the dirt road, glares slowly locked to him with hidden content and fear as the once peaceful atmosphere turned hostile and oppressive.

Soon, whispers permeated around the market, all of which were out of reach for the young Uzumaki, but it pained him. Briefly scanning his field of view, he sealed his eyes shut as a small tear ran down them as his hands clenched tightly by his side. Violently shaking his head, he sprinted down the road; the path cleared by everyone avoiding him. Quickly exiting the busy streets of Konoha, he slipped into the darker, less populated alleyways.

Glancing at the ominous path ahead and turning to his right, he looked up the building's length, focusing on the loose parts of the building that he could climb onto as he lept on them, bouncing around the wall before landing atop the roof. The view from the rooftops of the Village still left him speechless after years of gazing upon it.

Four heads were engraved permanently on a colossal cliff, towering over the Village and watching over the Village even now. His trance focuses on the two most recent additions, his idol and his surrogate grandfather, two men whom he had undying respect and admiration for but also a slight disdain. The Fourth, Namikaze Minato, held as a war hero for slaughtering a thousand people, and the Third, Sarutobi Hiruzen, likes to hide information regarding his parents and family from him.

Why did all those people have to die?

Why can't I know where or who my parents are?

Why does everyone not like me?

All repeating questions in his mind as he gazed upon the monument. Despite these concerns, he always looked at the heroics they'd done. The Third had been the longest-standing Hokage and had brought many improvements to the Village, keeping it stable and peaceful, whilst the Fourth defeated the Nine-Tailed Fox.

A small sigh escaped his lips as the event clouded his thoughts, 'The night I was born,' as his eyes dropped. However, like a switch, his expression sparked with life as a determined glint returned to his eyes. Turning around briefly to see his apartment, he turned back, running across the rooftops of the dense urban area and within a few moments, he'd arrived at the last roof before a massive gap in the trail.

His azure eyes traced the building in front of him and then to the wall beneath him, calculatingly scanning the pipes and windowsill of the homes below, before gently jumping down the building with admirable finesse. Upon landing upon the barren path, he quickly bolted into the enormous building as his eyes, after entering, shot to the front desk. An unadulterated smile spread across the boy's face as he approached the desk, passing the towering shelves of books on the way.

Upon reaching the desk, the young woman looked over her shoulder as a small smile graced the librarian's face as she slowly turned around to face the young boy in front of her. "What can I do for you today, Naruto-Kun?" She opened, her green eyes familiarly gazing upon the boy. His expression, however, dropped ever so slightly as his eyes dropped to the desk she sat on, a melancholy smile forming on his face.

Noticing the distress on the librarian's face, he spoke up, "Can I have a book on the Bijuu?" quietly speaking as he did, his hands now at his sides and clenched in fear of being rejected, turning his head to the floor. In these gestures, initially shocked at the request, his reaction disappointed her. Standing up from her desk revealing her grey samue. She walked around to crouch next to the boy, showing her black trousers and ninja sandals, placing a loving hand on his shoulder.

"You should know this by now, Naruto. There is nothing wrong with asking. I am limited in my knowledge of the Bijuu, so let's go find one." She kindly said as her eyes softened, ruffling his hair and standing up. Hearing the response, he released the grip in his hands, smiling softly but staying in place, as the woman walked towards the giant bookshelves. Noticing the boy's absence, she quickly stopped as she turned around, "Is there something wrong?" speaking with genuine concern as the boy's gaze shifted away from her.

"I don't want to." He spurted out, his body slumping a little. But the librarian raised an eyebrow in concern, taking a step toward the boy as Naruto took two steps back, away from the desk and toward the door "I don't want you to get hurt because of me," he muttered as his body turned toward the door.

Snapping his train of thought, the young boy turned his eyes left to see her desperately hugging him, his eyes widening extraordinarily and a small tear forming in his eye. "Why would you ever hurt me, Naruto?" she uttered in disbelief as her hand gently caressed the boy's red spiky hair. But as she'd said this, the boy's legs went limp and dropped to the floor, tears flowing through his eyes.

"Everyone hates me, Naomi-San." Naruto whimpered, his arms resting aimlessly by his sides as the woman continued to embrace him, with it only becoming tighter with those words. "People won't like you because they don't like me," he fearfully muttered, Naomi instantly scoffing at the suggestion.

Naomi removed her arms around the quivering boy and placed her hand sternly onto his shoulders, their eyes locked with the other. "If people wish to hate me because I'm helping an innocent young boy, then I don't want to know them," speaking clearly as her eyes turned tougher, her grip intensified. "You are not a burden in my life, Naruto. You're a blessing." Her grip was loose, and her caring gaze made the boy grapple onto the woman in an uncontrollable sea of tears.

"Thank you," he spoke amidst his crying, his grip so desperate that it briefly winded the librarian as she returned the gesture, softly stroking the boy's hair once again. "Thank you so much, dattebayo," he whimpered as a warm smile appeared on Naomi's face, contrasting her sorrowful gaze.

Moments passed as the two lay connected, Naruto's heartfelt emotional explosion calming to sniffling as he removed his embrace, standing before Naomi's crouched stature. With the boy still looking toward the ground, Naomi placed a soft hand on his shoulder, bringing the boy's attention to her. "Now, how about we find that book you were looking for?" she rhetorically stated, as the boy's eyes lit up in enthusiasm with a hum and a slow nod. Getting up and offering her hand to Naruto, to which he gladly accepted, they walked the winding bookshelves of the library, unfazed and numb to the piercing stares and glares from many within the library.

Their search within the seemingly endless aisle of books was long and arduous for any book referring to any of the nine Bijuu. Many times they had found slight glimpses of hope only to be disappointed by the lack of information, but their search ended in a dark recess of the library, tucked away and forgotten, lay a scroll titled, 'Bijuu'.

After finding the scroll, their hopes were cautiously optimistic, having spent the last three hours mind-numbingly scouring the shelves. However, as much as the young boy bounced at their hard-worked success, the questions that the scrolled spawned only retained his curiosity. "If a Bijuu as powerful as the Kyuubi couldn't permanently die, what's stopping it from coming back? Why hasn't it returned?" Naruto asked innocently, gazing upon the shaking hand of the woman in front of him.

Taking a deep breath, she returned her sight to the boy's eyes staring back at her. "If it hasn't returned, the only reasonable explanation is that it got sealed away," she carefully suggested as she tried to calm herself as a small drop of sweat rolled down her neck. The clamminess of her hands only intensified, the boy looking away with his tiny hand to his chin, his eyes aimlessly focusing on the books around him as his frown sharpened.

Returning his inquisitive attention to Naomi, he muttered, "What was it sealed into?" looking as stern as she could at the young boy before her, bending down to one knee and getting eye-level with him. The gesture briefly confused the red-head, but he understood it was of vital importance by the firm hand on his shoulder.

"We have used the Bijuu as weapons of war for as long as I can remember. The object such a being would've been sealed into would naturally be a closely guarded secret." She speculatively spoke as she stared uncomfortably into Naruto's confused eyes, proceeding to remove her hands from the boy's shoulders. She stood up and offered him a hand, which he took, though the thoughts plaguing his mind were clear in his lack of concentration.

Upon arriving at the front desk, Naomi turned back to the absent-minded Uzumaki. "Has that answered some of your questions, Naruto?" she hesitantly asked as the boy half-heartedly hummed in agreement, alleviating some sweat she felt on her neck but placing a small, sadden frown on her brow.

"Some of them, Naomi-san," Naruto uttered as he absently looked around to see the darkened glares from others within the library, causing him to frown. As Naruto looked around, Naomi sighed, her eyes tracking the boy's and noticing what he had seen. The boy's hand fidgeted as his toes, poking out of his sandals, jittered restlessly.

"Is there anything else I can help you with, Naruto?" she asked with concern, as her emerald eyes further enunciated her worry. The response of him shaking his head made her face drop, and with a pleasant "Thank you," he turned toward the exit and left. Before he could make a few more steps to the door, he stopped as he heard Naomi call his name desperately.

Turning around, he saw her worried eyes staring back at him, "I'm here for you, Naruto. Never forget that." The words brought a warm calm to the boy's heart as a tear fell down his cheek, brightly smiling as he did so.

"I will never forget it. That is a promise, dattebayo," Naruto confidently stated as he cartoonishly fist-pumped the air, a large, empowering smile behind it all. Chuckling as he did, Naomi jovially watched on as he turned around and walked out of the library. Once he had left, the cheerful expression dropped to a sorrowful, pained glare to the ground.

"Why couldn't anyone take you in, Naruto. Why were you denied that?" She muttered to herself as she returned to her desk, attempting to block out all the piercingly hateful glares she'd received from the public, especially from the Shinobi.

After exiting the library door, his face dropped as conflict set into his mind, She was hiding something as well, he thought dejectedly, his eyes trailing to the bright blue sky of a midsummer day. Everything appeared as it was. The clouds hid nothing, and the sky seemed as transparent as glass if all these things could be open.

Why couldn't anyone be transparent with me?

Why did everyone hold secrets from me?

What was so vital to withhold from me?

Why couldn't I be trusted?

Where dilemmas and thoughts clouded his mind, he always went to one place within the Village. A place that had always made him feel safe, free. Looking toward the Hokage Monument, his gaze lay on the head of the Fourth and with an enormous sigh, he darted from the library and navigated toward the honoured monument.

With the mountain being a sacred part of Konoha's history, it was under constant guard, but after learning some tricks, such as suppressing his chakra to bypass the guarding sentries to the monument, getting there was no problem. Upon arriving at the top of the mountain, he trailed across its length toward the head of the Fourth, passing the other Hokage as he did. Finally, standing atop the head of Minato Namikaze, he sat down as the air itself seemed to calm him, blowing gently past the boy.

"Where are you? Mom? Dad?" he uttered aimlessly, his pure blue gaze focused on the busied streets of Konoha beneath him. "Where did you go?" he continued, his eyes trailing toward a group of children climbing the stairs to the monument. "I hope I can find a relative of ours," he muttered hopefully, as his eyes stared at the bright blue sky above.

Returning his gaze to the Village, his eyes watered as his lips quivered. "I am so scared, Mom, Dad." He whimpers, pulling his knees into his chest, wrapping his arms around his knees, and resting his head into his self-made ball. "Everyone hates me," he muttered amidst his slowly forming tears. "No one is truly there for me," he whimpered as his tears trailed down his cheek, creating tear stains onto his black shorts.

His outcry lasted minutes and only broke because of the distant sound of sandals approaching him. Quickly wiping away his tears, his head tilted to his right as a group of four slowly approached him, varying in size, but all held an equal or greater height than himself. His heart skipped a beat, glancing at the rear of the group. The child's eyes showed the same hatred as some villagers he had encountered in the Village. Immediately noticing this, he quickly stood up and backed away from the cliff edge toward the forestry.

"Hey! Wait up!" The larger, taller child shouted at the front of the group, briskly jogging to close the gap, though Naruto, thinking better of the situation, rapidly ascended the tree he had reached and turned back to the group. They had arrived within a hundred yards of him, and their looks changed to indifference and boredom.

"Stop there. Don't come any closer to me!" Naruto screamed in reply from the tree as they complied with the shout. Stopping on the spot, staring in slight confusion regarding the boy's reaction to their approach. Muttering formed behind the leader. Suggestions that the boy was weird being the focus, as he then locked eyes with the boy.

Their leader's eyes projected concern and confusion, which had dropped the Uzumaki's shoulders a little, contrasted with his bright blue glare. "What do you want?" Naruto barked out, his voice feigning a calmed composure, whilst the same child with the piercingly hate-filled eyes snickered at his words which caused Naruto to frown in concern.

"We were going to play tag up here. I'm asking if you wanna join?" He spoke in a friendly tone, as his friends behind him seemed shocked at the request, catching Naruto off-guard, his eyes widening slightly. No one has ever let me play with them before, he muttered in confusion. However, the thought of being able to play a game with people brought unadulterated joy to his ocean blue eyes as he looked back at the leader with a bright smile.

"Of course, I'd want to join, don't get caught, right?" Naruto uttered with joyful confidence, while his friends seemed unfazed by the acceptance, much to his bewilderment. Jumping down from the tree, he continued looking at the leader until he turned his head and pointed to the child who seemed to hate him.

"Natsuki, you're it!" He screamed as everyone sprinted toward the treeline while Naruto was briefly stunned by it all, the moment feeling surreal. Though he had hesitated, Natsuki had turned his devious brown eyes to him, causing him to shiver in discomfort. It was this sight that sent him shooting off into the forest while he heard Natsuki chase after him.

Quickly jumping into a faraway bush, he waited for him to pass by, and when he did, Naruto turned back to the starting point, relegating himself to some long grass on the outskirts of the forest and close to the cliff edge.

Dangling his legs off the cliff edge, he stared at the barren rock beneath him for almost an hour. However, the sound of snapping twigs echoed nearby, penetrating his short-lived daydream. Turning his head, he saw a pair of the hands directly behind him, opened at his back.

"I'm it, right?" Naruto said slightly dejected as he tried to turn around to get up. Only when he did, he saw those same menacing brown eyes glaring back. With a snicker the boy shoved his hands into Naruto's chest, pushing him. As he did Naruto, lost his balance and almost fell as his blue eyes shot open with concern. "Wait! Don't do that!" He loudly pleaded as Natsuki pushed him again.

As that final push landed, the heels of his feet slipped off of the edge and his body began to plummet toward the deadly ground. All the while his face remained mortified, his eyes screaming in betrayal. Seeing his eyes trace his fall while being berated by the others who had just arrived, all the while the leader of the ground looked devastated.

With his body now in freefall, plummeting toward the group like a bullet, he closed his eyes tightly, tears freely falling from them as he fell. But at that moment, the momentum shooting the Uzumaki toward his demise suddenly disappeared. He lay still, on his back surrounded by water reaching his ears. While a constant sound of dripping water echoed in his head and a vicious growl permeated the air.

Thank you for reading and I hope that I've intrigued you enough for you to continue reading or to follow this journey. Any feedback regarding the chapter individually or the story as a whole would be much appreciated and I'll make sure I respond to each one ASAP.

In regards to updates, this story will be running concurrently with another titled 'The Red Fox,' that is based off the show Demon Slayer, and so updates will be done in conjunction with one another.

Thank you once again for reading and hope to see you in the next chapter and beyond.