Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.
------------------------------------------------
Side story – Kyuubi
------------------------------------------------
'So… you will protect me forever?'
'I will. Of course I will.'
Che, yeah. Of course, my hateful little vessel.
So easy to control. So easy to manipulate. What a trusting fool he is… a fool to the heart! To think that I, the mightiest of Youkai will help a mere pitiful creature like him… The most vicious, powerful, destructive creature in this pathetic mortal realm!
… And yet…!
He still trusts. He knows that I am a demon… and yet he trusts.
What an interesting creature.
------------------------------------------------
Kyuubi no Youkai thought deeply as his vessel slept peacefully on his bed. Kyuubi knew that his vessel will never sense his thoughts, for he knew that they boy was still too young to sense his emotions and contemplations. He was still weak minded and trusting, yet his potential was over flowing.
Kyuubi definitely knew that this was the end for him. The trapped youkai knew that there was no way to break the god damned mental cell from inside. The cursed father of the vessel was the one who had put him into this annoying situation… He even managed to tweak the seal into fastening the process of absorption!
Everything was falling a part.
There was actually a way that could reverse the seal inside the Scroll of Sealing, he knew. But who would be willing to do it? There weren't many people who even knew of the jutsu, forget about being able to perform it. Even if they did apply it onto the seal, it was still extremely risky.
Kyuubi had thought about teaching the stupid jutsu to his vessel, but he knew it was futile. Knowing the thickness of his skull (literally), it would take at least a decent decade to teach the buffoon.
The absorption would be done by then, and Kyuubi would cease to exist.
Kyuubi still thought viciously, clawing around inside his prison, fighting over the sudden angriness that came from the fact that he would actually die. Sure, he had died before, but was always reincarnated…
… But this time, he was being absorbed into the vessel forever.
Although in a different sense, he wasn't really dieing at all. He just wouldn't be in control of his power and might anymore. This could actually be the freedom he craved from the emptiness that threatened to swallow his mind… so why was he trying to fight it?
'I… do not know.'
But one thing was for sure. If he was going to fade away from this damned mortal realm to wherever demons went when they died… World, be damned, for he would leave a mark. A horrendous legacy of terror.
'The boy is still young, with bursting potential and capacity.'
Kyuubi knew that his vessel would listen to him as long as he appeal to his vessel's weaknesses and did not do anything to betray the vessel's trust … Naruto was still a thin, blinding white paper, still shining with innocence. Though soon, the favored colors would be dark, thick black, with crimson red contained inside, in favor of Kyuubi's delight.
'He is suitable to be my successor.'
The boy will continue his legacy, instead of the boy's pathetic, heroic father.
He would make sure of it.
------------------------------------------------
Yo people! Sorry I didn't update! I'm pretty sure not many missed my fic, but here I am, back from the grave.
Anyhow, I had so many things to do, with my house moving and all. On top of that, a trip to France for 2 weeks! Well, things are pretty much settled now, so I think I'll be able to write more frequently.
Oh yeah, I'm going to put little segments of what happened between the time he left and the encounter with Team 7, so be prepared!
In the one above, Kyuubi has ulterior motives planned for the world… Oh, and in case if you were wondering, the setting of the side story is the night before he burned his house and left the village.
I have also created Haku's last name in sheer boredom: Asamoya - Morning mist.
MUST READ people… I will say this: I have made Haku into a girl ON PURPOSE. Stop telling me that Haku is a boy. He looks like a girl, and sounds like a girl. So, I will write him as a girl. Don't like it? Don't read it.
Also, Haku would be sort of OOC in this fic… cause I presume that living with Naruto for 7 or 8 years would do that to you. Though, the series never gave us time or clue to what Haku's personality would have been without the intervention of Zabuza…
Responses:
SilentOmega: Man… You like, certainly mastered the art of Jumping to Conclusions! If I remember correctly, I never said that Naruto and Haku will be romantically involved. It's certainly a possibility, but nothings written in stones yet! If you think about it, Haku and Naruto have suffered quite a lot of rejections and pains at early age. It's kinda natural that they would trust one another so quickly.
The Red TrenchCoat and all the other people who told me that Haku is a boy: Read the MUST READ thingy above please.
And now, feature presentation.
------------------------------------------------
Alone in the World
------------------------------------------------
Encounter
------------------------------------------------
Uchiha Sasuke, the last, living prodigy of the feared Uchiha clan, sat on the railing of the bridge, waiting for his damn sensei to arrive.
Team 7 had been called this morning to their usual rendezvous spot to receive their next mission. As always, they were very punctual, even though they knew their teacher wouldn't be so. Sasuke sighed as he noticed the gaze filled with obsession directed to him, like so many times before in his short lifetime.
"sigh… Sasuke-kuuuun…" …That damn annoying Sakura…
When she was selected into Team 7, Sasuke would have given almost anything to make her stay 20-feet radius away from him, thus preventing the massive groping and all that. She was obviously overjoyed that she was in his Team, instead of the 'Ino-pig', or so as she states. Personally, Sasuke didn't care who was on his team… as long as they weren't wasting his time.
Sakura didn't seem to realize that she was just another empty-air-headed girl to him.
"…twiddle twiddle…"
Then, there's the other temporary member of the team… Hyuga Hinata. Her first impression was…well, timid to put it mildly. From what Sasuke could see, she was one of the most pathetic girls he had seen so far, despite the fact that the name 'Hyuga' meant she was one of the most powerful clan in Konoha. He couldn't see how they were so powerful and fearsome, even if they wielded the Byakugan... She had absolutely no confidence in herself, and she was intimidated very easily.
'Why is she here again? Oh yeah.'
…The reason that she was a temporary member of the team 7 was that the original member, Momogure Haite, had to take a trip… literally. How ridiculous could it get? That clumsy fool tripped on a rock for god sake! The unfortunate, UNBELIVABLE result was his face painfully plummeting to the ground, while twisting his arm in such a grotesque way that it broke in 4 different areas.
"Hmph… Serves him right… a month of physical therapy…'
The only exceeding humiliation was Hinata's teammates Apparently, while they were doing a D rank mission where they had to help move the furniture of an old lady, the dog boy also tripped over the foot of that… Shino… was it? Anyhow, the dog boy and his load of heavy furniture had met Shino and his heavy load of stuff, causing quite a ruckus, with close-to fatal injuries that may take several weeks to heal (From what he remembered, it was several broken ribs, arms, and a small fracture on their forehead). Sasuke was sure of it that it was the Inuzuka who had caused the whole thing in the first place, even though according to Hinata, the dog-boy had claimed fiercely that it was all Shino's fault that all that had happened. Why? 'Cause Shino was second-best in the Academy, only outperformed by Sasuke, and Sasuke knew that the silent boy wasn't clumsy like somebody he knew.
'sigh …but at least that moron was better of a teammate than her…'
Momogure Haite. A ridiculously clumsy fool who wouldn't last a day in a kitchen. The fact that he was from the Momogure clan, which specialized in the fields of Doton jutsus made him sort of interesting, but he was still considered as a 'dobe' in Sasuke's Encyclopedia of Drop-Dead Fools.
He's an odd fellow, he is. For one thing, he wore a thick mining goggle that revealed his mischievous eyes only when it was exposed to direct sunlight. His 'hat' resembled something close to safety helmet, only it wasn't. Light coat he wore it everywhere with him covered his upper body, while exposing his shirt that proudly presented his clan symbol 'III'. Sasuke had to admit though. Haite wasn't really that bad when it came down to fighting. Of course, Sasuke still found himself superior, but Haite was still a force to be reckoned with. He had proven that point well when Team 7 was tested by their silver-haired sensei to see if they were worthy to gain the title of the genin.
The whole key point was to combine team work and bring down the jounin as one, but they had been obviously blinded by the fact that there were only 2 bells, instead of 3 for each. Thus, greed for the title of genin had lead to individuality, and ultimately, defeat. Sasuke had acted first, using his Katon jutsus, but the jounin had easily dodged and waved off his traps. After the attack had commenced, the jounin immediately used "Doton: Shinjuu Zanshu no Jutsu!", and dragged him underground and thus giving him no time to recuperate.
That was when Haite made his move.
Sharp "Doton: Dochuu Eigyo no Jutsu!" rang in the air, as Haite suddenly popped out of the crouched jounin, who was in the middle of taunting the Uchiha boy. The kunai that came down aiming for the jounin's spinal cord had met its target, but only for a moment. A trimmed log had replaced the jounin's place and took the hit, acting as an element of surprise to Haite. He flinched, and that was all the time the jounin needed until he was behind him, with a tiger seal. Everyone thought he was going to use a Katon jutsu, which were quite dangerous and painful from that point blank range, even if it was the lowest level of Katon jutsu. Haite had done his best to form the necessary seals in a millisecond (for burning alive by his sensei wasn't in his agenda for the day) and used Dochuu Eigyo just in time to dodge the feared attack, but it wasn't what everyone expected it to be.
It was just a really powerful asspoke, instead of the feared Katon jutsus of the Uchiha clan.
The jounin sweatdropped sadly as he noticed that he had missed the target. Although Haite was underground, the jounin knew what to do. He carefully observed his surroundings carefully, looking for some odd looking shadow sticking out of the picture. Unfortunately, he had not noticed any suspicious looking thing except for the hole the Uchiha's head has been occupying before.
…Huh? Wait a minute.
Just as the thought struck the jounin, both pre-genins jumped from the ground at their pre-sensei. Even though they would have landed on the jounin if they had been given another half a sec, they were knocked down from mid air with 2 palm striking their chest. As the genins expected the inevitable failure, the jounin's one visible eye was curved into a smile, as he happily announced that they had passed the test.
After he explained that the point of this whole exercise was teamwork, Haite suddenly noticed that the 3rd female member of the team was missing, and exclaimed. The jounin blinked at the statement; he had not even seen the girl during the exercise!
Luckily, they did not have to search far to find her. She had apparently fainted due to her lack of nutrition and at the sight of her beloved Sasuke's head sticking out the ground, as if he were some gourmet meal served on a silver platter. Sasuke slightly blushed, while shaking his head like he was disappointed with her to cover up his sudden blush, while the jounin had shook his head for her lack of ability. Although, the jounin's visible eye slightly widened just before blinking several times. Haite had just gaped at her, with his jaw dropped like a sac of potatoes. All while blushing like hell.
Sudden "KYAAAA!" erupted from the girl as she hastily pulled down her red dress to cover herself, while punching a dazed Haite square on the jaw. It was very fortunate that he had collected his fallen jaw on time; it would not have been pretty being punched there while it was still hanging.
Still, Haite's body was not as fortunate as he soared through the sky of Konoha like a rare comet, and painfully crashed on the roof of a nameless house.
Sasuke still wondered how Sakura had managed to notice their gaze while being unconscious (and all that ridiculous strength in her punch, for that matter. She never seemed to be the muscular type).
Afterwards, they have been doing nothing but missions that were rank Ds and occasional Cs for last couple of months after they had been sorted into genin teams. They have varied from babysitting to searching a useless cat in the middle of nowhere, and it certainly wasn't worth his time. To add to that, Hinata's team had been combined with Kakashi's team for some reason…
'Temporarily,' Sasuke reminded himself. 'I didn't think the team arrangements would be changed just because the majority of their teammate was injured… Hm… It could it be that Kakashi did something… I wonder why? And why the hell am I wondering about this anyway? Waste of my time…' Yes, it was a waste of time.
He had other things to do, like becoming powerful enough to kill him.
There hasn't been a day since the incident when he would not be plagued by the nightmares of the murder, frightened by lifeless eyes of his parents, and by him. Sasuke had always planned his downfall since the day he left him here all alone. He still remembered the last words from the devil before he departed…
- Foolish brother… if you want to kill me… then hate, spite… and survive pathetically… run and run… and cling desperately to life… -
Sasuke felt his emotions rising just by that memory, so he suppressed the rage and hatred he had contained for 6 long years with pure will like he always have.
'Damn… This mission better be worth it like he said… …where is that god damn Kakashi - sensei is anyways!'
Exasperated, Sasuke turned off his 'automatic mental tuner', only to be greeted by Sakura's heart-filled gaze on him again. Suppressing the urge to gag, he decided that when that Kakashi arrives, he would let the hell loose for making him endure this torture incomparable to anything of this mortal world.
It was also justified by the fact that Kakashi had been 5 hours late, just like any other day. Sasuke had enough of it. This… 'Test of Patience', as Kakashi put it, was too much for him. Wasting 5 hours a day, listening to that moronic girl babble in front of him wasn't exactly what he would call a wise use of time. Those 5 hours were a big chunk of his day too.
'God damn it…'
As Sasuke unconsciously prepared the seals for Katon: Goukakyuu no Jutsu, Kakashi appeared with a puff of smoke above the gate of the bridge.
"Yo. Sorry I'm late. You see, I saw this lady tripping over a rock, so I had to get her to the hospital. That's why I was -"
Sasuke yelled sharply, "KATON: GOUKAKYUU NO JUTSU!" as he breathed out a gigantic fireball, clearly aimed for the storytelling jounin. Kakashi sensed it, and he countered easily with "Suiton: Suijin Heki!" which covered Kakashi completely with a barrier of water, and cancelled Goukakyuu no jutsu while canceling itself. Thick steam of water indicated that the attack had not been successful, so Sasuke went into defensive stance, and peered through the mist.
"Now, now Sasuke-kun… Don't be like that. I was only late by 5 hours. Is there really a need for violence?" Voice filled with mirth floated out of the steam with a little chuckle. Kakashi stood before them inside the circle of burnt ground, with visible drops of water.
Sakura jumped to Sasuke's defense at the given chance. "Kakashi-sensei! You're a LIAR! I don't think there's even a SINGLE LADY in Konoha that would TRIP OVER A ROCK! Seriously, it's a NINJA VILLAGE!"
Cutting into her irritating ranting, Kakashi amusedly stated, "But Haite tripped over a rock. Doesn't that count?"
Sakura blushed at her flawed explanation, but only for a second. Indeed, Sakura was a master at verbal offence, and defense... or more like barrage of words that could make some people crawl under a rock purely out of annoyance. "He doesn't count! He's not a lady! Besides, even if you did do what you have said you've done, it doesn't take 5 HOURS. Sasuke-kun has the RIGHT to get pissed! How would you feel if you were waiting 5 hours a day doing nothing?"
Even though Sakura was saying those things, she was actually pretty grateful for 5 hours that they had to wait for Kakashi everyday. She could ogle at her Sasuke-kun for 5 hours straight ALONE! Well, not exactly alone, 'cause Hinata was here too, but she didn't count because she was so quiet.
'…I think he was reading that perverted book of his!' Inner Sakura furiously punched the air inside Sakura's mindscape, enraged at the thought of anything concerning perverts.
Kakashi shrugged it off in a way only he can that could be translated to some people 'I-don't-care-cause-your-insignificant' and droned on. "Hokage – sama has requested our presence. I'll meet you guys at the tower."
puff!
Sasuke gritted his teeth so hard, that his jaw muscles bulged out. Although he was irritated beyond the point of 'calm exterior', he had no choice but to follow his sensei. Even though Kakashi appeared to be an asshole (and he is, most of the time), he was actually one of the most powerful ninjas in Konoha, and not to mention quite well known too. What he was famous for, he didn't know… yet.
------------------------------------------------
In the midst of the forest outside of the Wave Country's water border, two very fast figures could be seen moving throughout the forest at an amazing velocity. One of them possessed bright sunny golden hair, and the other having graceful jet black hair. They wore cloaks... or at least, what use to be cloaks. It might have started as dark black, but it was already close to light gray from rough treatment. Oddly, the cloaks had red stains here and there, conspicuously resembling blood. No hitai-tes were visible, indicating that they weren't from any of the 5 Great Shinobi Villages.
"Ne, Haku… Are you sure that we're going the right way? We've been running for almost… 3 days!" Blond boy yelled at the girl, while trees passed him by as a blur. Haku closed the distance between them, and spoke.
"I'm sure. This is the direction that merchant pointed to anyhow. You do remember the plan though, right?" The boy just scratched the back of his head awkwardly, his whiskered cheeks slightly tinting red. "Uhhh….." Dragging out the 'u' sound, he glanced at her uneasily. Haku returned the glance with a knowing look, while mentally sighing at the boy's I-think-I-forgot-again-just-like-any-other-day gestures.
"O… Of course I remember." The boy bit out, though Haku wasn't convinced. "Suuure you do."
"No, seriously, I do! First, we're gonna retrieve our scroll, and then hit the road! …" Blond boy hurriedly clasped his mouth as he realized that he had just announced their grand plan to the whole world.
Haku just shook her head, sighing at his behavior. "Naruto, I'm still getting over the fact that you could actually remember the plan… but you didn't have to yell it out loud. Even though I'm guessing that we're in the Wave Country's neighboring forest, who knows what lurks out here? Remember that even trees have ears…"
Naruto just snorted.
"Yeah, like they would be interested in some stupid plan…" Though he would have preferred to complain a little longer, Haku's glare had quickly shut him up.
Naruto decided that this would be a good time to change subjects. "Haku… isn't this guy supposedly a jounin…?" Indeed, Naruto's comment forgotten, Haku diverged into thought.
"…Yeah… I heard something like that. He's supposed to be a missing nin too. Why do you ask?"
With his primary object – getting Haku to forget about his comment – completed, Naruto was quick to reply.
"Nothing, nothing at all."
------------------------------------------------
Team 7 was now gathered at the front of the gigantic gate of Konoha. Tazuna was also there, all packed up and ready to move, with an opened bottle of sake in his hands. Sasuke had not moved from his spot since he got here, but you could see the blazing fury for the silver haired sensei underneath his cold exterior. Unfortunately, they were still waiting for their jounin to get his ass in gear…
'I can't believe him… He's still late?' Bursting with anger, Inner Sakura shook her fist in rage, thrashing around wildly. Though the Outer Sakura gave no indication of what was going on inside, the irregular tic on her right eye gave off her irritation nonetheless.
"A… Anou… is Kakashi sensei a… always this… l, late?" Hinata's timid voice shook Sakura off her thoughts involving very pointy objects and a tied-up Kakashi sensei. Sakura turned her gaze to the pale girl.
'…Why's she so nervous? '
Sakura decided to smile, in hopes of enlightening the girl's emotions. "Yeah, he is. That's just him… Watch, he's going to come up with another crazy story about his wondrous adventures in his 'Road of Life'."
Sakura felt glad when the girl actually giggled a little bit.
"Bah… being protected by bunch of giggling kids… How super useless…" Tazuna grumbled as he took another sip of his sake.
Sakura threw him murderous glares filled with promising pain, but noticed that Hinata seemed to take the comment by heart, as she appeared to have lost her usual below-average confidence. Deciding to take action, Sakura spoke.
"Tazuna-san… I'm not trying to be impolite or anything, but… PLEASE DON'T DRINK SAKE! You're getting drunk."
Tazuna snorted.
"Peh… How super annoying…" Even though he said this, he stored away his sake bottle nonetheless.
With a usual ninja puff, Kakashi and Kurenai made appearance as Sakura was about to drop her politeness again. Unfortunately, Kakashi could not have picked a better time to receive scolding for his usual tardiness.
Kakashi coolly gazed back as he noted the seemingly burning hellfire in Sakura's eyes. "Yo… Sorry I'm late… You see, I had go get Yuuhi-san to come with us! After all, one of her pupil is here and…"
"Sensei…"
"Kakashi… Just drop the subject. We should get going now…" Yuuhi Kurenai stepped in, with a resigned expression dominating her features. Her expression seemed to say, 'Don't bother.'
Even so, Sakura could not help but to grit her teeth with viciousness rivaling Inuzuka clan members.
------------------------------------------------
Team 7 continued through the roads uneventfully. Not even a single bandit had shown up… Scratch that, not even a single threat… like a squirrel. Kakashi blushed under his mask while reading Icha Icha Paradise, blissfully unaware, or at least pretending to be, of Kurenai's dark look. She was feared among the perverts in Konoha as a "One Tough Cookie", with a knee that promised men that walking straight would be a problem for a long, long time.
Of course, Kakashi knew this fact very well. How could he not? He was one of the only few who ever had peeked on her (and Anko, apparently) body when she was taking a shower, and is among the even fewer who lived to tell the tale from the monstrous – Doom's Day Knee –.
Kakashi did fear that he might not be so lucky next time. Though, he couldn't help but to think with glee, 'Even so… it was worth it.'
What he did not notice among few other things, was Hinata's growing blush. Kurenai-sensei had told her to activate her Byakugan just in case to scan the area, and when she did, her all-seeing gaze was drawn to the little orange book in the silver haired jounin's hands.
Hinata made lots of presumptions about this book before, but she had certainly never have expect this.
'A… Ah… aiiii!' Feeling the uncontrollable tsunami of blush threatening to consume her face, she immediately cancelled Byakugan.
Unfortunately, she had not maintained her Byakugan long enough to notice the out-of-place puddle of water on the middle of the road with strange chakra kanji written all over it.
------------------------------------------------
"I wonder what Hinata is doing…" Kiba said slowly in the white, silent room of the hospital, hearing his voice echo a bit before falling into another silence.
Kiba was certainly not happy with his current situation. He just HAD to trip on Shino's stupid foot, didn't he… Now, he was wrapped up in bandages, along with some cast as a result. How stupid could it get?
'Not to mention painful too.'
Akamaru barked in response to what he was thinking. Sometimes, Kiba wondered if Akamaru could read his mind.
"Shut up Akamaru… You weren't the one smashed by a crapload of shit!"
"BARK!"
"…."
Having no smart comeback for his companion, Kiba also wondered if Akamaru was smarter than him too.
------------------------------------------------
As Team 7 passed about seven feet or so from the suspicious looking puddle of water, two cloaked figures launched themselves out of the puddle. Both were connected with sharp, long chains, and some mean looking claws on their hand.
All members turned sharply to see what had taken place, but Kakashi was already in pieces, falling on the ground.
"K…Kakashi sensei!" Sakura screamed with horror creeping up her voice, but thankfully remembered to move into defensive position in front of a startled Tazuna-san. Hinata had activated her Byakugan, but seemed too scared to move. Kurenai's presence had vanished too.
Sasuke immediately jumped, and then pinned down the offensive chains with shuriken and nailing it immobile with a kunai right on the tree. Landing on their dumbstruck arms, Sasuke hurled his legs to kick their masked faces. Caught off guard, the two ninjas disconnected their link simultaneously while unintentionally letting Sasuke jump back to safety.
'Che, their teamwork is on a different level than ours… If we don't get our acts straight, we're done for!'
With that thought in mind, Sasuke swiftly charged at one of the perpetrators, delivering a painful blow to the stomach while feigning a kick to the side. Masked nin quickly recovered from the blow, but was not fast enough to dodge Sasuke's "Katon: Goukakyuu no Jutsu!" and could not help but being burnt to the ground as a dark soot.
While the offending nin was being crisped, it's counterpart rushed forward aiming for Tazuna – san, but was met by a formidable defense – Hinata's all seeing Byakugan and her devastating Jyuken.
"You will not pass me." Showing a side of firm determination that no one knew she possessed, Hinata took the stance of the ancient Gentile Fist, her veins thickening and pumping. 'I just need to remember what Kurenai – sensei has taught me... Stay calm, and don't show your weakness… Oh, why does this have to be so hard?'
"…Byakugan… Damn it…" The offender said no more, for he charged forward again. His claws ready, he swept underneath Hinata, aiming for her neck.
Obviously, he clearly has never dealt with an advanced bloodline like Byakugan before.
While Hinata was not the best Jyuken user, she was certainly not the worst either. Even a Hyuga child could defeat an adult if their ability of insight is mature enough. Hinata saw through his attack, and she already has countered it – she waited until he neared underneath her, then she 'slapped' his left shoulder where his claw was attached to, causing massive internal muscle damage.
The masked nin recoiled in pain and surprise, staggering back to a safe distance… only to be met by Sasuke's descending foot.
'Wow… is that the shy girl I talked few minutes ago? It's like she turned into a whole new person…' Sakura thought in surprise, looking at the pale girl anew, with something close to admiration. 'So powerful… she didn't even seem like she tried, but he faltered….'
Needless to say, their sensei reappeared with a puff, with a sheepish expression on their face… as far as Team 7 could tell, anyhow.
"Hehe… Um, great job…?" Kurenai started uneasily. "Aa. Great teamwork." Unlike Kurenai, Kakashi backed her up casually with the usual uncaring attitude.
Sakura wanted to say something like "Where the hell were you?", and some other interesting choice of words, but her Outer Sakura omitted them forcefully and only allowed "Where were you sensei!" Inner Sakura was definitely unhappy.
Kurenai seemed unsettled. "Uuuum… We jounins decided that you guys would be strong enough to handle this kind of situation by yourselves… We were ready to jump in anytime, of course."
Sakura wasn't convinced, and seemed like she wanted to argue, but Kakashi cut her off before hand.
"Errm, Anyhow…" Suddenly taking a serious tone, Kakashi looked evilly at the knocked out attacker with his one visible eye cricking into a happy curve. Looking inconspicuous and casual, he took out something that could only be described as 'extra extreme torture equipment' from inside his green jounin vest.
Hinata blinked.
Sakura dropped her jaws, speechless.
Sasuke turned his head, mumbling something about idiot senseis.
Kurenai's eyes widened a great deal as she stared at the abomination. "What the …? You actually CARRY that thing around?"
Smoothly ignoring their subtle (or not so subtle) outbursts, Kakashi ushered the 'audience' to a relatively safe distance, and then tippy-toed on to the enemy ninja. Also ignoring the look of fear spreading across his enemy's visible features, Kakashi's voice now sounded more amused than threatening. "Now… you will tell me who sent you. If not, then…."
grin
Sakura could not help but to wince and shudder as the unfortunate shinobi kept screaming for his mother.
------------------------------------------------
"It's been a while… hasn't it, Haku?" Naruto softly muttered as they stood in front of the worn-down gates of the Wave Country. He still remembered when this town was lively, and had life in it. To see it ruined like this… it had disturbed the blond boy.
The Wave Country was where it all began… It was where his true self emerged… It was where he met Haku… and it was where life had taught him a valuable lesson: World is a harsh reality.
But still… the sparks of life were gone from the people of the streets, and did not shine upon little children either… Naruto briefly wondered if he was like that when he was of that age. He had run from emotions; sadness, loneliness and anger... and eventually learned to contain them up tightly inside his heart.
It was quite rough years both Naruto and Haku had to endure; surviving solely upon berries, sometimes meats… meeting nature's challenges every year and overcoming them…
Despite all their obstacles, they had prevailed and now had become of age where they could quite easily take care of themselves. Both knew that they owed Kyuubi of his wisdom, as he taught them through Naruto to survive in the unforgiving wilds. Though, Naruto soon had found out that they weren't the only ones having troubles.
It was really weird to see the demon contained within trying to suppress its own rage and suffer – in order to help its vessel. Later, Naruto had understood that by doing so, the demon could gain freedom of his prison; Naruto.
One thing he learned about the demon inside his head was that he wanted to be free. He bared incredible mental scars and wounds beyond any human's comprehension, and wanted to be rid of it all.
Kyuubi had explained this to him before: that whenever the demon kitsune is somehow killed or dies of age (which happened very rarely), they are reborn – or rather, reincarnated. Complete immortality… but there was a catch too: all their memories and pain are transferred freshly as if it happened seconds ago. For this particular demon, immortality caused other problems.
For example, humans usually never feel the emptiness, the pointlessness of living… simply because they have the death on their side. A mixed blessing, really. Living everyday, fully knowing that you could die any day…
Kyuubi had no such thing.
Just when you thought you lived enough, you are forced to live again – a tired soul. Too much pain, memories, forced into one mind. When you live for a very long time, you start to question yourself, 'What am I living for? My purpose?' What was Kyuubi to exactly accomplish anyway? Destruction? Kyuubi had accepted destruction as his destiny, but then why did he felt so pointless? There was almost no recovery from his art of destruction… Only ruins of once existed life. So, if there was no creator, then why the destroyer? 'What did destruction accomplish?'
A being without a sense of purpose…
Kyuubi was tired, living in hatred and anger which he does not know the source of, the unknown pain originating from equally unknown origin.
'Kyuubi… I have been wondering, don't you hate me for being a prison to you?'
'…I suppose, kitling... I do not deny that I have harbored extreme hatred during early days… but the pain of loneliness… the sheer feeling of emptiness… is no match for joy of companionship.'
'Huh? What do you mean?'
'You are the first one to have a 'conversation' with me in couple of millennia.'
Basically, Kyuubi was forever bound to this world, living in pain and emptiness that was impossible to satisfy... Though, the absorption process had somewhat provided him with hopes.
Kyuubi had told him that this was his first time being sealed into something in his continued lifetimes. This was usually seen as a hindrance, but in this case, seen as a possible escape route.
Kyuubi could give up his physical and spiritual form to his vessel, then that will thus quench his long thirst for freedom of mind.
Honestly, the power of the mightiest youkai mixing with a human – originated kitling was unheard of, and absurd, but it was quite possible, all thanks to the Eight Divination Seal. The link they shared – the chakra – was enough for them to communicate, and meet face-to-face in the depths of Naruto's mindscape. Also thanks to that, Kyuubi captured inside was being held as a chakra form – and was quickly being absorbed into Naruto.
'This enormous power is the gift I give you, and the burden you will carry.'
'My rage, my loneliness, my emptiness, my hatred… All of my emotions… '
'Do not forgive them, kitling.'
"Hey, Naruto…? Naruto... Helloooo? Anyone in there?" Haku waved her hand before his eyes, and then knocked him on the forehead several times, bringing him out of his memory.
"…Huh? Wha? Oh. It's just you." Haku pouted at that.
"What do you mean it's just me?" Mocking extreme emotional pain, she continued. "…and here I am, worried sick about you…"
"Oh. Um… Sorry? I was just… thinking." Haku's eyes widened and brought her hands to her mouth, in mock surprise.
"You were actually thinking? Now that's a first." Just to make sure, she checked the sky for any hints of invasion of flying pigs.
Naruto shrugged in response, and casually resumed walking, with Haku following closely.
The pair now walked along the empty and trashed apartments in the dark area of the Wave Country, where it seemed to have no other residents other than families of rodents.
"Hm… This place looks deserted, but I guess it will do… Man, I'm starved! Can I go hunt some rabbits?" SMACK!
Oops, wrong thing to say. That had definitely earned him a smack on the head. Naruto had forgotten about the small little detail that Haku was bunny obsessed. She did allow her self to eat them when it was a matter of life and death, but no more. Every time he mentioned his craving for the little beings, she never failed to present him with a loud 'smack!' followed by incredible waves of pain.
"Oww… that really hurts, you know. Don't you know I'm fragile? C'mon… There must be hundreds of bunnies this time around… It wouldn't really hurt to have one lousyrabbit… Would it?" Haku gazed back at him coolly, with a message that stated 'Yes, it would hurt you a lot if you did.'
Naruto gulped audibly, and then his fox grin returned with a vengeance while his eyes sparkled mischievously. 'Let's see how she handles this…'
"Hmph, then here's a question for you: What would you do, if you had to choose the bunny or myself as a meal in an absolutely dire situation where no food was available…?" Heheheh. This one was a 'damned if you do, damned if you don't' question.
'I'm so brilliant.'
But to his disappointment, Haku did not hesitate to give him an answer. "Of course I would eat you first… I can't bring myself to eat a bunny. Even my birth zodiac matches! Sorry Naruto, but if we ever get in such a situation, then I guess you have to offer yourself as a sacrifice." She suddenly stopped for a moment, and then a wicked grin sprouted momentarily. "Oh, we won't mind. Bunny and I would love to feast on you." Her statement was soon accompanied by a seductive wink.
'D, Damn… she gets me every single time…' Naruto's jaw hit the ground with a hard 'thud', as his eyes bulged out with a little trickle of blood trailing from his nose. "Wh… wha…?" Haku busted into a full fledged laughter, as she futilely tried to hold in the massive waves of laughter.
'I hate it when she does that… Why me...' Whenever Naruto tried something funny, or try to challenge Haku into a battle of wits, it usually ended with her laughing at his expense. Inside Naruto's mind, that was another win for Haku among countless others, while he had not had the chance to celebrate his own victory. Who knows? Maybe someday he would triumph her.
'Of course I will.'
Back to the matter at hand; although Naruto did not like being teased like that, he was a tolerate person. Yup, he was a tolerate person indeed.
Aw, screw patience. Snap.
Naruto snarled lowly as he glared at his female companion, whose laughter had now stifled into muffled giggles under the frightful glare of doom. She then flashed one of her smiles again. Even after receiving the unearthly smile, Naruto tried to maintain his glare at her, but he ended up joining the enlightening smile with a sigh sooner than he wished.
"Man, that really wasn't fair, Haku. You know my weak spots!" Haku smirked confidently, her eyes sparkling.
"Silly Naruto. Don't cha know that you can't catch the rabbit?"
------------------------------------------------
Zabuza sat on his gigantic sofa in an arrogant position, with his giant Kubikiri Houchou lazily slung over his left shoulder. In front of him, a small man with 2 samurai bodyguard stood.
"Zabuza, I thought you were the mighty Devil of the Hidden Mist... What's taking you so long to kill a useless old man!" The said man snorted at the short, greedy man's impatience.
"Che, don't worry. I'll get the job done. You better have the payment ready." Zabuza carelessly observed him from the corner of his eyes.
"You're not the one who's making decisions here. I am the boss, and you do as I tell you to do you bastard! Don't you even-" The small man was stopped as the giant cleaver was threateningly positioned on his forehead. Trickles of sweat appeared on Gatou's forehead as he observed the oppressive weapon with obvious fear.
"You shouldn't ever mock me, Gatou. I could slice that pitiful head of your along with your useless bodyguards before you could say 'money'. Or maybe I should just slaughter you and all your pathetic goons, huh? Though that is an intriguing idea, I will spare you… but remember; absolutely no one… orders me around, unless they want their heads separated" Zabuza slowly removed his weapon from the intended target, while Gatou let out a sigh of relief.
Still sweating preposterously, the fat man stumbled toward the exit while cursing at Zabuza for threatening him, and his bodyguards followed him out shortly after.
"What a fool…" Mumbling to himself, Zabuza shook his head in disgust. Zabuza could care less about that business man.
'It seemed the Demon Brothers have failed in their mission…and they got what they deserved. One who cannot complete the task given; only death welcomes them with open arms…' He thought as he recalled what had happened to the two men he sent.
'Burnt, beaten, torn, and… Ugh, I don't even want to think about that.' Zabuza cringed as he recalled what had happened to one of the brothers; practically half dead from… who knows what. 'Ughh… that sends shivers down MY neck… freaks… Feh, they're probably chuunins anyway. Sick bastards… all the villagers are probably pathetic insects too…
'Oh…? Heheh… Wipe out the village? That would be fun… maybe it's worthy my time.'
With a dark, ominous grin, Momochi Zabuza decided that he would take the matters into his own hands.
------------------------------------------------
"Ne, Haku… Where are you going?" Naruto asked from his meditation state, while squeezing an eye open. Haku was half way out the door when he had asked.
"Hm… Let me think… maybe… I'm going to shop to buy some food so you won't starve to death?" Came the reply filled with barely concealed sarcasm. Naruto had chuckled at that.
"Eh, I'll go with you. Meditation is always boring anyhow." Naruto said as he got up from the floor, massaging his thigh to remove a cramp.
"Suit yourself."
------------------------------------------------
Things have been quiet ever since Team 7 reached the household of Tazuna-san, and Kakashi-sensei took advantage of the time they visited there by teaching them chakra control. Three genins trained hard, even when it started to rain out side. Despite the harsh coldness, their jounin instructors told them to climb the high trees – without using hands. By utilizing the chakra, the three of them had to gather them on their feet and use them like a suction cups.
Surprisingly, Sakura had a talent for this.
The rest weren't as fortunate, for both Sasuke and Hinata had to experience some unpleasant pain on their posterior for quite a few times. Although, Hinata completed the training much earlier than Sasuke did, which he wasn't quite pleased with. Both of those 'pathetic' girls had beaten him in something.
Hinata hastily explained while stammering, that she was a Hyuga and that these things were naturally required to be a Hyuga.
Sasuke had gritted his teeth at that, and kept going at the tree with a vengeance, not giving any sign that he had accepted the Hyuga girl's explanation.
Alas, within four agonizing days, Sasuke had mastered the chakra manipulation.
Meanwhile, with nothing to do (for both their senseis were being lazy again), both girls had followed Tazuna – san to the streets of the Wave Country. Sakura was surveying the streets with sadness, for which she could see the poorness and the unhappiness practically consuming the atmosphere. Hinata was basically doing the same, but something else had caught her attention.
Flash of a golden blond hair.
'I wonder… Who could that be?' Hinata wondered as she stared at the owner of the sunny hair. The person struck a chord of… something in her, strange as it sounds. It almost felt… familiar. As if they were acquainted, though she was pretty sure she had never seen even a glimpse of golden in Konoha… excluding Ino – san's. Her hair was close to being light yellow, anyway. Not at all like rich, sunny golden.
'But… I'm sure I've seen him somewhere before… but where?'
As she was lost in her thoughts about who this mystery person was, the mentioned person was approaching her direction.
------------------------------------------------
"Well look at what we have here, Haku… Leaf nins" Naruto's facial expression turned to one of extreme disgust and fury.
"Cowards."
Haku also noticed the two female with Konoha's symbol on their forehead protector walking by the shops, apparently looking for some groceries like she was. That did not really concern Haku though. What she was really worried about was Naruto's reaction to his former villagers. 'Lately his emotions have gotten even more unstable… I just hope he doesn't kill them on sight.'
It was quite possible with him, after all.
"Now, don't make a scene Naruto… Remember what you learned about think-before-act? Now is the time to put it to test."
Though, Haku soon found out she had wasted her breath as usual… for the boy in question had already start to move towards them. 'Sigh… Sometimes, it's a real pain in the ass to get him out of his own grave…'
------------------------------------------------
"What a surprise… Leaf nins."
The group sharply turned their heads at the source of the voice containing outright dislike. There stood a blond haired boy about age of twelve, glaring at the group. He had strange marks on his cheeks, somewhat resembling a whisker. Hinata briefly wondered what they have done to upset the boy. With this in mind, she chose to stay silent, not wanting to upset the boy further. Besides, she couldn't find any courage to speak anyways.
However, Sakura was nowhere near the level of sensitivity as Hinata was.
"And who might you be?" Sakura got the feeling that she wasn't going to like this guy…
"Hmph, I have no need to introduce myself to pathetic Leaf girl like you. I -" Though he seemed to have more to say, he was cut off as a black haired girl around the same age suddenly arrived, and promptly shut him up. "Naruto, shut up. It wouldn't do us any good if you make a mess. Besides, don't be rude to a girl."
Naruto gave her a withering glare from the corner of his eyes, knowing it wouldn't even faze her, but still trying. 'Growl… just when I needed some stress-relief….'
She wasn't even unnerved.
The cute (both Inner and Outer Sakura grumpily agreed that the girl was quite a looker), black haired girl turned to them after just ignoring her companion's death glare. "I'm really sorry for my elbow jab! rude friend here. You'll apologize, smack! Right, Naruto?"
The mentioned person seemed to be still recuperating from the unmerciful beating, but managed to shake his head even when doubled over, clutching his stomach in a fatal position.
"D… Damn… it… I'll… never… BAM! … I, I mean… damn… N, no! THUD. … wait…" The blond fainted shortly after an abusive trip to conquer his stubbornness.
"Ah well, I guess that's one way to shut him up, I guess. Oh, let me introduce ourselves. I'm Haku Asamoya. The pile of who-knows-what sitting over there is my friend, Naruto." She stated, tilting her head forward slightly to greet.
"Oh, I'm Haruno Sakura. Nice to meet you." Sakura replied, pleasant as ever.
"I, I'm… Hyuga H, Hinata... Hi…" Hinata timidly replied, feeling sorry for the blond boy secretly. 'I wonder why he was so mad…'
"Hm, Nice to meet you guys too. U-um, I would love to chat, but it seems we're out of time. Naruto will be angry if he doesn't get dinner. Bye!" As suddenly as she came, she grabbed the remains of Naruto, and instantly vanished in a veil of mist.
Sakura and Hinata stood in silence, trying to process what had just happened.
"…They're gone? Just like that?" Outer Sakura had to bite her tongue in order to stop her Inner Sakura from saying, 'What the hell?' in fear of ruining her no-violence-girl image.
Of course, Hinata remained silent for a while, contemplating. Finally, she decided it was best to just leave at "I guess so."
Then they stood there for another 20 sec, before Sakura got tired of the silence.
"Alright, enough. Let's finish shopping… Sasuke – kun will go hungry!" And Sakura automatically went into Sasuke-kun gaa gaa mode, lost in her own little fantasy world. She was currently feeding a smiling-Sasuke on her lap in a world full of cherry blossoms. She had finished feeding him and she lowered her face close enough to his to -
Oops, that's a little private.
Indifferent (and painfully oblivious) to Sakura's terrible blushing state, Hinata just remained silent again, for she had no idea what to say once more. After all, she wasn't obsessed with Sasuke – kun like Sakura was… and something told her that things would get dangerous if she woke her up from her pleasant daydreaming.
------------------------------------------------
"Naruto, you baka! What were you thinking! No, you weren't thinking, were you! Just marching in the middle of a crowd and trying to start a fight!" Haku spat flames from her mouth as she marched back and forth in front of a grumpy Naruto. He was currently sitting on the floor, wishing the mighty heavens would grant him ear plugs.
"But I couldn't help it! Those idiot girls make me SICK!" Naruto retorted, but Haku did not even pause in her lecture.
"You could wait a little before you punch the crap out of them you know! I'm pretty sure they were genin level ninjas, so there MUST be a higher level ninja with them at least. The Leaf isn't stupid enough to send low level ninjas all the way out this far by themselves!" Haku's argument did have a point, but Naruto refused to back down.
"So what if there's a stupid ninja with them! I've fought their hunter nins before, remember? I'm not scared of them!" Haku sighed, exasperated. 'I swear, NOTHING gets through that head!'
"Kami… "
Naruto growled in frustration, and left the room.
------------------------------------------------
Naruto was seriously frustrated. Haku knew what he thought of those disgusting Leaf nins, and yet still derived him from his right to smite them! They deserved to be killed, and they deserved to be judged. Whether they knew why or how, it did not matter. They were all the same anyways.
So then, why was she holding him back…? Wait a min…
'… She couldn't possibly be still going on about that bloody 'I miss my home' crap, could she?' Naruto wondered as the thought struck him.
'So, Naruto… don't you ever miss your old home?
'No, I don't. Who'd miss them anyways?'
'Then WHY… do you snuggle me at night and keep saying, 'I'll protect you, Penguin - chan', huh?'
Naruto winced at the memory. She had gotten him good that day. He had no excuse, not even a weak retort at the accusation. He couldn't help it anyhow! Penguin – chan was his favorite buddy... Even his pajamas were designed after him!
So… it was true he did miss his home sometimes, but…
It was only sometimes.
------------------------------------------------
After Naruto left the room, Haku started cooking. She had bought groceries from the town, and was currently boiling broccolis. She chopped them up nice and neat, and slid them in the boiling pot. The gourmet meal planned for Naruto tonight was a vegetarian-class ramen, fresh from the stove.
'Eheheheh… A fair punishment. '
It was no secret that Naruto hated anything with plants in it… Especially broccolis. He had scrunched up his face in disgust to the point he had to massage them thoroughly to regain normal expression when he first saw them.
Haku softly giggled to herself as she remembered the times he went missing for 3 or 4 days, refusing to consume the green goods, but always eventually returning with a pained expression of extreme hunger.
'Eeew! What in the name of kami is that? It looks like miniature trees! I ain't gonna eat no trees!' Naruto exclaimed, pointing at the steaming bunch of broccolis with an exaggerated expression of outrage.
Haku smoothly ignored his outbursts, while picking a broccoli up and waving it in front of Naruto's face. 'Now now, Naruto. They are good for you… See, that's why you're still shorter than me! If you don't eat these, you'll never grow!'
Naruto blanched. 'Uggh, then I'll stay short! That green stuff looks disgusting, and smells like crap anyway! Why don't YOU eat them!'
'Fine, I will!' Haku took on a determined expression, and she took a bite. 'munch... crunch … see? They're tasty! Now give it a try!' Though Haku was barely keeping herself from hurling at the taste, she faked a smile nonetheless, and offered another one at Naruto.
'No, I'll never!' Reaching the tones of desperation, Naruto powered up and fled high into the trees, in order to save his precious taste buds.
'Naruto! Come back here!'
As she still held the ever pleasant smile over her memory, a cold, merciless smile had suddenly overwritten and settled upon her lips. He had gotten away from her veggies before, but this time...
'There'll be no escape…'
And her evil giggles echoed throughout the room…
------------------------------------------------
Zabuza stood on top of his forest fortress, while his army, though small and composed of bandits and missing nins, still screamed fiercely in battle rage. He looked down upon them, while his eyes weren't on them at all. Tonight was the night the Wave Country will fall in his hands, with all its pathetic inhabitants inside.
'I can almost taste my victory…' Zabuza grinned darkly; already pleased by all the blood that would be spilled that night, though none had been spilt yet.
"My army! Tonight… IS THE NIGHT OF SLAUGHTER!"
His army roared back with equal, if not greater joy.
Indeed, blood would be spilled that night.