(AN: Ahh, the longest chapter yet. In the contest so far, DemonPrince666 is in the lead. Hope ya'll enjoy this chapter - if ya do, let me know! -grin-
Kage
of the Graves:
Two must Fall so One may Rise
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Jirayia, Hokage-sama. I have… urgent matters to discuss with you about Naruto."
Gaara's voice cut through the din that was a human stampede - an interesting occurrence indeed when one took into consideration that the diminutive Kage hardly ever spoke above a whisper. But he stood before them, small signs of anxiety etched across his face. Tsunade, who hadn't been filled in yet on the situation - ghost, fox, and spiritual link being the situation in question - merely looked at her fellow Kage with some mild surprise, a dash of trepidation, and something much larger than a pinch of weary exhaustion. "Yes, Gaara -" Tsunade would later regret the slip of tongue, but Gaara had already forgiven the lack of title or honorific. " - what is it?"
"These are… not matters that can be easily discussed in public. Perhaps we could retire to the tower, or some other place nearer by that is safe from prying eyes and ears?"
"What are you talking about? Can't this wait, I mean-"
"Tsunade…" Jirayia's gentle voice cut into her protestations. One long arm draped itself comfortingly across her shoulders to help guide her away from the flow of human traffic. "I think this is too important to wait, and I'm pretty sure it'll be good news, at least in part."
Tsunade looked at her old teammate with some disbelief - shock becoming evident on her features. When she next spoke, the shock was also made evident in the slight shrill to her voice as she began to utter her negation. "Good news? Jirayia, Naruto is dead! How cou-mmph!" Jirayia's hand had suddenly clapped over her mouth, cutting off whatever else she might have said. The old hermit knew that the redhead was right to urge privacy. After all, he only knew just enough about what was going on to confuse him - as well as give him hope - so he wanted to get all the cards on the table as quickly as possible. "Shhhh… please, Tsu-chan…" His gravelly voice reached her in a whisper, soothing her nerves by it's solidity as much as by the use of his old pet name for her. Although she didn't want to, she melted a little inside. The last time she had heard him call her that was when they were both younger than the boy addressing them now - when young fools are at their happiest and giggles came as often as pampered moans within the secluded groves around the Konoha training fields. Slowly - reluctantly - she nodded her assent and allowed herself to be led away.
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Due to the fact that the Shinobi graveyard was so large, there were several small cabins set up to house a sleepy guard or undertaker when at need. Such places were furnished enough to be comfortable, but certainly not lavish - a fridge, a comfy futon mattress as well as a bundle bed(1) hanging from the wall in a corner, a table, small bathroom and kitchenette. All the necessary essentials to give the illusion of home for the men and women who often held down shifts lasting a week or more in the graveyard. Cabin #9 was currently empty, although - from the scattered bottles, snubbed cigars, and dog-eared cards atop the table - it seemed hadn't been to long since it had been occupied.
It was to this cabin - or, more specifically the table - that the three retired to for the moment. At first, the subject on everyone's mind was not the matter they conversed over. Idle chit chat of the awkward sort - the kind heard when no one knows where to begin telling tales or truths - abounded for a moment as Jirayia moved over to the fridge to retrieve a round of drinks. Once all were settled back down properly, Tsunade sighed softly around a mouthful of unpleasantly chilled Sake. "Alright, I believe we're settled down, and have avoided the issue long enough. I may be old, and admittedly feeling a bit irrational right now - though I hardly think either of you can blame me for this at the moment - but I am, however, not stupid. There is something here that is intensely hard to approach for the Kazekage here, something which you, Jirayia, know about but aren't sure of enough to make mention. Either that, or you are - for once - holding your tongue as you should and letting the person who should be speaking do so. Am I correct so far?" There was a vague, if uneasy and mildly forced sparkle of amusement in her eyes as she watched Jirayia shift uncomfortably under her observations - while Gaara's eyes spread open a bit in surprise.
"Err, yes. You are, indeed, correct Hokage-sama. There is indeed something that must be said which is hard to tell - but you are incorrect in thinking it is I who should tell you." The diminutive redhead hastily lifted a hand to forestall any argument for the time being as Tsunade turned her head to Jirayia, opening her mouth to speak while Jirayia made bewildered hand gestures to avoid the responsibility of doing so. "You were, however, correct in your thinking that Jirayia was also not the one to bring this subject to the table." Now, after his little speech, there was even more confusion evident as Gaara slowly closed his eyes. A moment later, they opened again - but it was not Gaara they were looking at anymore. The Kazekage's whole demeanor and expression changed. The normally stoic redhead suddenly grinned emphatically and tilted back into his chair lazily while slipping a hand up behind the back of his head to scratch the scalp beneath a few tufts of spiky red hair. "Baa-chan, Ero-sennin! How's shakes?"
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The times in Tsunade's life where she was completely taken aback were few and far between. She had always been possessed of a strong-willed core of self assertion and inherent situational knowledge. So, in short, she did not like to find herself completely confused and filled with a wildly erratic hope - mixed with a powerful rage that caused a layer of killing intent so powerful it could be felt clear across the graveyard to the people who were still slowly trailing behind - Ino especially suffered the effects. The old Hokage slowly leaned forward, the muscles in her jaw clenching painfully as her teeth virtually vibrated under the strain. "Gaara, if this is some sort of joke…" The words were ground out as if put through a rock crusher, and Jirayia, beside the redhead, quaked inwardly. He had never known Gaara to have a death wish - well, then again, he'd only known him well enough to make such assumptions for the past six years or so - but it seemed he was being proved wrong. However, rather than wilt beneath the righteous wrath of Tsunade, Gaara merely waved his hand dismissively with that self-same infectious grin on his face.
"Hey, hey now. Settle down, Tsunade-baa-chan! It's me! Don't knock Gaara's head off until you let me explain." The expression of unbridled mirth suddenly reverted to it's usual studied neutrality and the voice was once again the placid tone of Gaara's own. "Or after, if you please." The absurdity of the situation - the cruelty of the joke Tsunade assumed was being played upon her, combined with the seeming sincerity with which the two 'personalities' spoke - caused the aging woman to laugh. She laughed long and hard for a moment before her mirth was reduced to newfound anguish. Without hesitance, the expression upon Gaara's face changed to a wide eyed one of surprise and regret. The redhead suddenly stood and moved to her side, wrapping his arms around her in a loving embrace. "Shhh… Tsunade, I didn't mean to hurt you - I mean that! But please, believe me when I tell you this is no joke!" The sudden assault, combined with the fact that Naruto had no way of controlling the sands that protected Gaara - nearly crippled the Kazekage. Luckily for the cabin itself, Naruto and his host body slammed first into the fridge. While the door dented, the cabin remained secure.
"Ugh. Damn, I forgot how much that hurts…" Then suddenly - and most surprisingly - the redhead laughed and jumped to his feet to perform a little jig of excitement. "Pain! Hot damn that feels good in a weird day! Wow! You'll never know what you'll miss until you're dead, eh?" While Naruto was absorbed in his own amusement, Tsunade and Jirayia both were just staring in utter amazement. Reluctantly - and joyfully in the same moment - Tsunade had to accept the fact that this must be Naruto: who else could possibly be so refreshingly stupid? Without any orders from the mind, the body of the Hokage was across the room in the blink of an eye to grip the happy boy in a bear hug that was slick with tears. "Naruto! It is you! How is this… how could you be…" Reluctantly, the Hokage released much of the pressure she was exerting on the boy - now holding him loosely at an arms-length distance with an expression that was a mixture of amusement and confusion. "What's going on..?"
"Mmm…" Naruto-Gaara groaned slightly, reaching a hand up to massage his now aching ribs before he smiled once more, looking into the face of his older sister figure. "Well, I was trying to explain a minute ago until you hit me." Tsunade had half a moment to produce a sheepish smile before Naruto-Gaara continued. "Ah, don't worry about it, Baa-chan! Look, okay, you know I'm dead right?" Two mechanical nods followed his open ended question. "Okay. First off, when I died I was kind of surprised to find that there was no light at the end of the tunnel, no beautiful women serving beef and pork ramen. Instead, there I was, just kind of floating around. So, I just kind of followed people around for a few hours… and then that teme, Sasuke, found me and proved that he was still such an asshole - Hey! Shut up Sasuke, it's true! - even in death and he kept talking and talking…" Naruto-Gaara trailed off after noticing the confused looks on the faces of the Sannin duo.
"Oh.. Right. You guys don't really know about all that… Well… uhm… Sasuke's standing in the corner glaring at me for calling him an asshole. He's a ghost too, sort of. See, he was fully dead but the local shinigami-elect got orders from the head Shinigami to release him to be a representative since Sasuke was someone I knew and trusted in life and…" More confused looks met him as he continued to try and explain. "Y'know what? Skip it. For now, I'll just stick to the important things. I wasn't supposed to die, although in doing so I gained a lot of knowledge over certain events that are yet to come. So maybe it wasn't such a bad thing after all. But, uhm, anyway." Naruto hastened to continue his thoughts upon seeing the murderous look on Tsunade's face after he had voiced his thoughts on the fact that it might not have been such a bad thing that he had died. "Sasuke informed me that I must return to my body. Now, if I had decided to do so within the first few hours after my death, it would been a simple matter of laying down in my body and willing it to work again - but I didn't know I could do that!"
Naruto-Gaara found himself vaguely disturbed that no matter how he tried to avoid being stupid, he kept receiving hostile looks and murderous glares from his Baa-chan. Again, he decided to try and keep it simple. "Alright, the point is, It's become a much more complicated matter. Now, I need a mortal sealing expert - that's you Jirayia - to perform a certain rite to draw my spirit back in my body. Now, normally, in doing so, I would have a long period of time where my soul would have to repair my body, but with the Kyuubi's spirit still entwined with mine - Partially merged actually - " There were sudden looks of shock and amazement upon the faces of Jirayia and Tsunade. Both had heard the omnipotent-seeming voice escape the Kazekage's body - a voice they heard nearly two decades before this day. "Oy, Baka fox! Who's telling this story, you or me? Insolent brat! I have just as much a right to speak as yourself! Besides, if today is one of the last few days I will have a chance to hear my own voice, then why shouldn't I get the chance?"
Amazement would be an understatement when used to describe how the two mortal elders were feeling as they witnessed an argument between Naruto and the Kyuubi - an argument that was amusingly similar to petulant children bickering over who's side of a tall-tale held the more truth. "Alright! Fine, you get to tell'm how to do this thing, alright? But let me at least finish my story, okay? Fine, but hurry it up brat - the clock's ticking after all. Yeah, yeah. I know." Naruto-Gaara frowned and folded his arms across his chest - only reinforcing the impression the Sannin' had gotten a moment before. "Alright, where was I?" Naruto looked to the two other occupants of the room questioningly. "Uh, something about a long time to repair your body not being necessary because of the Kyuubi no Kitsune?" Jirayia's voice - Tsunade had retired unwillingly back into her seat after her body betrayed her into a heavy slump. She was, rather unable to speak at the moment - her shock was too great.
"Oh yeah! Thanks Ero-sennin!" Naruto-Gaara gave a big grin at the old man's growl. "Anyway, as I was saying - before I was so rudely interrupted - I'll only need a day or three once my soul is returned to my body because of the Fox's healing abilities. So, once the rite is performed, and my twin-soul is back within my body, the process'll begin and everything'll be made as right as rain where I'm concerned." The happy expression on everyone's faces became quickly destroyed along with the jovial mood that pervaded the cabin as Naruto's expression became grim. "However. That's not going to be the end of things, and once the spirit binding rite is completed, Jirayia will be put to work performing another longer and more complicated ritual. While you, Baa-chan will be charged in preparing the city of Konoha for war."
Confusion - an emotion that it seemed the elder duo would be feeling in excess on this particular day - abounded once again at Naruto's words. Tsunade, who's Shinobi training had kicked in at the grim expression and tone, was no longer seemingly comatose. She leaned forward with an intense expression upon her face. War, after all was serious business. "What do you mean? Is another village preparing an assault upon Konoha?" This was no longer the voice of a doting sister - rather, it was the tempered steel of the Hokage. Naruto-Gaara only shook his head with a sad expression upon his face. "No, Hokage-sama. This is something far more dangerous than a singular village, or even a combined assault by several. A foreign invasion force, going by the name of 'The Dark Legion', has already reached the shores of the continent. I don't know where they hail from, but they are a very powerful enemy. The Fox has more knowledge on them then I do, so I'll let him fill you in on the detail work where that's concerned. But for now, let me finish my part, and then you'll be talking directly to him."
Naruto-Gaara seemed to pause momentarily as he collected his thoughts. "Alright. Here's what needs to be done. First off, since Gaara knows already, Suna will be alerted the moment I leave his body so I can return to my own. But he needs to concentrate most immediately on his own people and city. You, Tsunade, need to compose several messages to alert however many other countries and Hidden Villages we can rally to our sides. This is something that concerns all of us - and we must play the part of the diplomat and forgive old hardships. The Dark Legion is coming and no one will be spared. Konoha - due to it's size and undisputed position as the strongest of five great Hidden Villages - along with all of Fire Country will be the first major target. However, all of the territory in between us and the shore will be in trouble. Luckily, from what I understand, there are no villages of any real size near their landing point. The few that are - I must regretfully say - will most likely be destroyed, and their people slaughtered or subjugated." It was a shock, to say the least, to hear Naruto - who's heart must have been at least as large as Fire Country to encompass all the people he had cared about - so callously write off what could be a great number of innocent people. Judging by the pained expression upon his face though, Tsunade knew him to be in anguish over it.
"When these messages are composed, I want you to send them through envoys of the Daimyo - as they'll be exempt from hostility - to each of the other countries. I mean all of them, I wish to include even the treacherous sound if they will come to our aid." Naruto-Gaara quickly continued so that the other two wouldn't have a chance to interject. "They possess many powerful Shinobi, and despite my personal feelings and yours', Orochimaru would be a powerful ally to the cause. Once the threat of the Dark Legion is no longer present, I fully expect preparations to begin to at last destroy that particular blight upon Konoha's history - along with the village he commands. For now though, we must consider any and every single person with military training a potential ally - even our enemies. Now, I will let the fox take control to say his part in just a moment… but first -" Naruto-Gaara stood and performed a quick seal for the Henge. When he resembled himself, he gave the two a big grin and rushed to hug Tsunade. After he had hugged her and placed a peck on her cheek - receiving both in return - he moved onto Jirayia. A more appropriately masculine, one-armed hug-and-pat-on-the-back was performed before he returned to his seat. "Now, once the fox is done telling you guys what needs to be done, we'll need Jirayia to perform the rite immediately, so I won't get another chance to talk to you guys. I just… I wanted to say goodbye in my own words. I won't be just me when I come back…"
Naruto's voice cracked at the last part, but he didn't allow himself the chance to get so choked up that he wasted more time. Before either Tsunade or Jirayia had a chance to delay him, Naruto relinquished control of Gaara's body to the Kyuubi. When the Henge of Naruto's eyes opened again, they were a burning crimson. The smile that precluded the fox's voice was a typically sadistic one as he made the body stretch for a moment, enjoying the sensation of movement upon a physical plane - outside of combat anyway - for the first time in almost twenty years. "Ahh, that's much better. Now… here is what must be done."
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The Kyuubi, unlike Naruto, did not ramble. Nor did he indulge his desire to further the fear and discomfort that the others obviously felt in dealing with the demon - though he did enjoy it immensely. He quickly outlined the ancient seals, explaining that they were of a divine nature and could never be repeated for personal reasons - no matter how great the desire or intent. He continued by explaining that there were… certain, terrifying penalties for their usage outside of permissible circumstances. As the Kyuubi spoke, he had moved them all outside of the cabin and erected a barrier around the area, helping Jirayia to draw out the symbols involved in the rite even as he explained them.
By the time they had finished, the area within the barrier was covered with intricate kanji of a type that none of the human presences had ever seen before. Even the Kyuubi had been previously ignorant over a sizable portion of the kanji in use - not that he would mention this, of course. However, he could not allow the rite to be performed just yet. Very quickly he explained and diagrammed out the second set of seals necessary for what Naruto and himself would perform. There were a few seals that, again, he was previously unaware of(2) - but then, this process as well was being transcribed from a race of power even beyond what he could have ever hoped to achieve.
By the time everyone present was absolutely sure of their parts and what needed to be done - minus Tsunade who had already retreated to the Hokage tower to perform the first actions of her part - it was already getting onto morning, and the Fox was growing impatient with his urgency. The process had taken much longer than he had hoped, and it terrified him to think that he may have exceeded the amount of time they'd had to work with. He had been reluctant to do this at the start, but he had long since become aware of a gradual weakening going on within his body. It had confused him at first, but he had since realized that he was dying - slowly but surely, he was dying. This realization had brought on another - that he was not dying in the normal sense. Rather, the part of him that remained free from the gradual merging of Naruto was fading away. Because his soul was - in essence - split in twain, the part that was not firmly attached to his host was losing cohesion. Thus, it behooved the fox to cooperate fully and quickly.
As soon as Jirayia had finished with the preliminary work for the second set of sealing, he nodded to the Kyuubi, and in doing so, to Naruto as well as the Kazekage. The two souls who were to take part in this rite, quickly bade goodbye to Gaara and released their control of his body so that he was thus enabled to set to work preparing his village. Once Gaara signaled to Jirayia that all was as it should be, the aging Sannin turned about to the central symbol of power and poured a sizable amount of chakra into it - effectively invoking the massive seal.
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Gaara, who was now traveling upon a platform of sand to make enable him to make all haste, suddenly felt a terrible lurching sensation in his stomach. His cry of pain was heard by his sister some small distance away. Temari, who had been searching since early morning for her reclusive brother in the last place she had seen him - the cemetery - quickly came to his side. "Gaara!" As soon as she came across his crumpled form, she gathered him up in her arms and was midway through readying her fan for transportation use when Gaara seemed to collect himself. He shook his head at Temari as she attempted to force him to sit still. "No time!" was the urgent croak she received. Feminine fury was on the verge of erupting inside of her at his dismissal of her concerns when the platform of sand returned - lifting both her and her brother into the air once more. "We must return to Suna to prepare our village for what is to come!"
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The lurch Gaara had felt was, in fact, nothing compared to what the Kyuubi and Naruto experienced. The blonde spirit had only just assumed his position within the designated circle that was meant for him when it was invoked - ripping him forcibly from the after life and speeding him towards his waiting body. The Kyuubi as well suffered great physical anguish as he was ripped form his temporary host and slammed inside the barely animate corpse of Naruto's body. Unconscious, his chakra responded to the urgent panic signals of a body that was in the process of decomposition - beginning immediately to work upon healing the colossal damage it perceived to be done to it's host.
In the space of several hours, organs that had begun to liquefy as the clotted blood had stopped flowing - feeding the vital functions that kept the viscera in working condition - began to solidify as clots were broken apart and new blood began to flow. A process similar to dialysis(3) began to take place throughout the corpse, as the bad blood was forced from the body. The pores along Naruto's epidermis began to tear open as chunks of hardened liquid were crammed through at as great a pace as possible. By the time noon arrived in the graveyard, the process of decomposition had been halted and was gradually beginning to reverse. Kyuubi's healing chakra was still working overtime, and it sapped the great demon to the point where he remained unconscious, although a great pain wracked his body - and in his unconscious panic he continued to pour greater and greater amounts of chakra into the drain. He did not know what afflicted him so terribly, but in his coma like state, the instinct was to use his energy to hopefully overload this vampiric assault.
When night was full on however, the being that was the Kyuubi no Kitsune, was awoken by a great and powerful sensation. Naruto, who was trapped inside a body that refused to move with his will, could only recoil in horror at a sensation that seemed more like the coming of death than the swift circulation of poison in his system had been. Both Demon and Human spirit released twin cries of agony and horror before being silenced forever. However, despite the fact that neither being was present in the body anymore, the healing process of the body did not halt. Instead, it began anew at an even faster pace.
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Roughly five and a half feet above the corpse in question, a young woman stirred from her exhausted half sleep. Something had woken her, some presence that was eerily familiar, yet incredibly foreign to her. It was… she was unsure, but it both comforted and terrified her. Confused, the former Yamanaka sat up and rubbed the smudge of dirt that had collected upon her cheek - glancing around in confusion all the while. Then she felt it again, a surge of chakra that electrified her body - making the remnants of her once lustrous lochs of hair stand on end. She did not leave her love's grave, but she did retrieve a kunai from the pouch at her hip. With steadying breaths, she steeled herself for what she assumed to be an enemy coming to make another attempt at desecrating Naruto's grave. Gradually though, the surge faded from her awareness, and - when roughly an hour had gone by with no further evidence at hand - Ino reluctantly gave into her exhaustion once again to fall asleep.
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On the eve of the third day since Naruto's funeral, within the darkness that so dominated the Centura coffin, a set of softly glowing eyes flutter open - radiating confusion. The creature in possession of said eyes was vastly confused. It's whole body tingled, and it was vaguely aware of itching sensations towards the sides of his head and - uncomfortably enough - his rear. To make these things all the more unpleasant was the fact that he could not move his body enough to scratch said itches. It frustrated him to no end, as did the images that seemed to pulse through his mind at a fevered pace - strange things, these images were. He was vaguely aware of scenes - like little plays - where people around seemed to be speaking. It was almost a dream really, and he would have ignored them as he was now awake, but with every one of these 'dreams, he was becoming increasingly aware of who and what he was.
Dawning comprehension began to make itself known in the creatures mind as the hours continued with him still unable to move inside the darkened prison he found himself trapped inside. He was not terribly uncomfortable however, for the terrible itching had ceased, and the tingles were no more as well. Oddly, there was something familiar about being confined in the darkness that - while it did not comfort him in the least - allowed him to retain a clam and rational state of mind. The images had confused him at first, but he was now able to understand several things. He was not, or at least, had not always been, as he was now. He was, in fact, something and someone new entirely. While this had bothered him at first, he had grown to accept the fact and was now in the process of sorting out the ramifications of this information. He had once been called Naruto, but that was not all. He was, in the same moment, aware that he had also once gone by the name Kyuubi. However, the really confusing part of all of this was the fact that it was not himself who had actually answered to these names.
When the images had finally stopped, he began to decide on a course of action that did not include peaceably lying on his back in the confines of a softly cushioned box. His final memories included the fact that he was not supposed to be in here, and that he was in fact buried. 'Well,' the creature thought to himself. 'I suppose I should dig my way out now, hmm?' But there were several things that had to be taken into consideration before he could perform his decided upon plan of action. One, it bothered him that he was unsure of what to call himself. Two, he still couldn't move. Because, as his awareness suggested, he was neither the Kyuubi no Kitsune anymore, nor was he the man named Uzumaki Naruto, he could only conclude that he had to name himself. However, his imagination was not all that great at the moment, and his urgency to get such matters out of the way was only compounded by the uncomfortable knowledge that he desperately had to pee.
"So what am I to call myself, hmm? I suppose a combination of my former names would work well enough." It did not occur to him at any point that people might have trouble referring to him by a new name. After all, as far as he was concerned, he had never had one in the first place - only the two beings that had been combined to make him were possessed of monikers. "Well then. I suppose I shall be known henceforth as Kyruto Kitsumaki." With a definite nod of the head - as Narubi Uzumitsune sounded more feminine then he would prefer - he began to try and figure a way out of his current predicament.
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Ino, who had settled into a slightly more peaceful sleep than previously - something about the stranger she had spoken to some few hours before had put her at ease - had only about a seconds warning before the ground simply exploded beneath her. The second would have been enough for her a few days before, but her body was really beginning to lose strength and her actions only proved this to her. She was, therefore a half second too slow in jumping out of range - the unleashed earth catching up to her in midair and sending her tumbling to the ground to be partially buried beneath a layer of loose sod. Just as quickly as she could - which was considerably quicker than her previous reaction time, considering she was now very much awake - she shook herself loose and rose to her feet in a defensive stance. Her speed was rewarded by a sight that took bewildered her. From the crater that was formerly the burial sight of Uzumaki Naruto, a strange man…thing leapt out of the ground and landed in a crouch. The very same man-thing stood up slowly - the remnants of a ceremonial kimono falling away from his huge frame.
Ino could only stare, awestruck at the muscular back that was presented to her. Her eyes drank in the details of the man-thing as she tried to understand what was going on. He was tall, very much so in fact, topping out at just over six feet(4) and broad of frame. However, these things weren't what made the creature so strange. From his rear extended two dirty tails of a - what she assumed to be - fiery red color in fur, and two long and tufted, vulpine ears. Once her mind got a grasp on those details she had about a half second to try and piece this information together before a strange sound reached her ears - that of a stream of water splashing upon the ground. Confusion set itself into her mind in even greater force until the creature slowly leaned his head back and let out a pleasured moan. Having been around her two male teammates for a long enough period of time, she had no trouble recognizing the happy posture and sound of a man enjoying the first piss of the day after a night of rest. The tired disgust that she always experienced at witnessing such testosterone driven displays only compounded at the finishing grunts and scratches that followed.
With a shock, the Kunoichi remembered forcefully that this may very well be an enemy. So she called out a fierce warning to him as she approached slowly - twin kunai ready to be put to use if she found it necessary. "Stay where you are! I am a Kunoichi of the Leaf and you trespass on our territory. Identify yourself and your intent-" The standard hailing procedure against possible hostiles completed, she added her own words in a threatening, malice filled growl. "- and explain to me why I shouldn't kill you where you stand for destroying the grave of a hero." She stopped outside of immediate attack range, wary of the unknown as any Shinobi worth their salt should be. But despite the assumed calm that came to her in any combat situation, her body quivered with rage at what this creature had done… and his response did nothing to settle any bit of her ire. "Oh, a Kunoichi of the Leaf, eh? Hang on a moment then, let me just tuck myself in, then." With a laugh, the monster did just that and turned about to face her.
When her eyes at last rested upon her face, her body nearly went limp on her as her mind reeled in shock. She knew that face! Granted, the whisker marks were much more prominent now, and the eyes were tainted by swirls of crimson, but this was still the face of her dead love! She didn't know what to do, but she knew that she couldn't attack. Her mind was sending vague warnings - made indistinct by the fact that she was near swooning in the face of overpowering emotions - to her to pick up the kunai that had clattered to the ground, to put up her guard, to do… something! But she couldn't. And, as the creature who bore the face of Naruto slowly approached her, she could do nothing but allow her eyes to roll up into the back of her head and her body to collapse upon the ground in a dead feint.
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"Ahhhh, shit." Kyruto groaned and planted a hand to his forehead. "The maiden has feinted, ignoramus. You bear the semblance of her professed love, and you approach her as if there should be nothing wrong! Folly, truly thy name is Kyruto." He sighed softly to himself and crossed the remaining distance between them to lift the crumpled Ino into his arms bridal style and make his way to one of the many cabins he knew to be nearby. "Damn woman, I knew you were skinny, but it seriously can not be healthy to be this light!" Quick, loping steps carried him toward the nearest building where he had to juggle the unconscious woman as he turned the doorknob hard enough to snap the latch inside - making the simple lock useless - and push his way inside. He quickly located the bed and settled the form of Ino down on top of the soft mattress before turning towards the fridge - intent on fulfilling what had become his new priority now that his bladder had been emptied.
He was on his fifth or sixth trip - he hadn't really bothered to keep count - to the fridge when he caught the sounds of a person stirring from sleep from the bed. Quickly, hoping to catch her off guard to keep her from refusing, he snagged up a bottle of water and a small bento before hurrying to her side. By the time Ino opened her eyes, he was sitting beside her on the bed, smiling down upon her as she looked up at him in confusion. "N.. Naruto..?" He shook his head and handed her the bottle of water, while also placing the bento on her stomach. "Hush now, no questions. Just drink, and then eat. You must be dehydrated after standing guard over my grave for so many days."
Mechanically, Ino did just that. Surely, this had to be some bizarre dream, so why not enjoy the brief respite from thirst, hunger, and loneliness, yes? She watched, not comprehending everything in her daze, as her love stood from the bed and moved back to the fridge to retrieve several more bottles of water as well as some Sake. The Sake bottle was placed on the small heater to be warmed after its tenure in the fridge. Once Naruto had placed the Sake on the heater, he brought the bottles to her, and she quickly took one to drink. She was, Ino discovered, incredibly thirsty, so the bottles were a welcome inclusion in the dream. However, she was quickly becoming annoyed with her dream-Naruto, because every time she tried to talk to him, he simply shushed her and told her to eat or drink respectively. Finally, when she had polished off all six bottles of water, and eaten as much of the bento as her shrunken stomach could handle - wisely, in her opinion, Naruto had not insisted that she finish it -he did not shush her when she began to speak to him. "Naruto…" But, instead of hushing her, he simply shook his head. "Kyruto." Ino's brilliant blue eyes blinked in confusion as she wondered at the name while Naruto stood from the bed and retrieved the - now properly warmed - Sake form the heater.
"What?" She had to ask, obviously, Kyruto wasn't her name, and she was perfectly aware that it wasn't his. So why exactly had he said it? "That's my name. Kyruto Kitsumaki, to be exact. It is the name I have chosen for myself now that I am no longer Uzumaki Naruto or Kyuubi no Kitsune." This only caused more confusion on her part - confusion, and a spark of some unnamed dread. That dread, and indeed, the confusion were both blown away as Naruto - or Kyruto as he seemed to want to call himself now - turned to her with a dazzling smile on his dirty face. "How do you like it, Ino-chan?" Ino was instantly won over by him - though later she would scold herself halfheartedly for melting so easily - and she leapt out of the bed to pounce upon Kyruto, wrapping her arms around his neck and kissing him as if it were the last time she'd ever be able to do so. 'Of course,' Ino thought sadly, 'That may very well be. When I wake up, he'll still be dead and I'll just be kissing his tombstone.'
When, eventually, Ino's lungs began to beg for air, she reluctantly broke away from him with a soft smile adorning her features. The look on his face was priceless - eyes closed and a sense of wonderment evident on his features. "Mmm, Nar-err.. Kyruto… I like it very much." Her love only laughed softly as she felt his arms settle around her lower back to better support her. "I'm so glad you feel that way, Ms. Yamanaka, or should I say Ms. Uzumaki?" Her eyes flew wide with shock as she glanced wonderingly at him. How could he have known? She was suddenly overcome by a powerful shyness - a brilliant blush colored her cheeks as she demurely buried her face in the crook of his neck. She could feel his mirth through the vibrations in his chest as he barely suppressed his laughter.
After a time, she was set back down on the bed where she reluctantly released him from her embrace, allowing him to pull away. He stood before her, his body language suggesting he was trying to figure something out. "What is it, Kyruto?" Privately, she marveled at the ease in which she was adapting to the name. She chalked this up to the surreal quality of the dream - after all, she hadn't felt the need to make an issue over his tails, his ears, or any of the other myriad little changes over his body had she? But her beloved had opened his mouth to speak again and she eagerly tuned in. "Well, I'm trying to think of a polite way to say this, Ino-chan… but it's not happening. Look, to be perfectly blunt. You stink, and I know I sure as hell do as well. Besides, we've both been in the same clothes since I was buried and that has got to change. I -" His voice was cut off suddenly, and Ino watched in horror as Kyruto slowly toppled forward upon her - three glistening senbon sticking out of the side of his neck. Ino's dream had officially turned into a nightmare. Frantically, she turned her head - eyes wide with fearful disbelief - to face her beloved's attacker.
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Dun dun DUNN! Heh, don't you just hate cliff hangers?-snicker-
Notes:
1. Bundle Bed : A hammock with a sleeping bag and pillow sewn in.
2. Symbols the Kyuubi was unaware of : The seals necessary to halt all chakra flow but that which is necessary for life - activated by a complex chakra pulse that must be aimed at a specific area upon Naruto's body (Not specified as of yet) - inducing a lethargic state.
3. Dialysis : A medical procedure that flushes blood from the body, replacing it with a fresh supply.
4. Naruto's height : While someone over 6 feet tall isn't uncommon in America, the average height in Japan is much less. Ino herself is only just around 5 feet y age 15. She's 19 in this story, and her height has reached to 5'3" - putting her in the lower range of tall by feminine standards.
(AN: Well now, things are picking up a bit, ja? On the one hand, we no longer have ghosts fluttering around... or so it seems anyway. On the other, we have a creature that is neither Naruto nor Kyuubi, but the bastard child of both. What's gonna happen,hmm? We have war on the horizen, love in the air, and a mysterious assault on our new hero. And what the hell is up with the way he talks? One minute, he sounds somewhat sophisticated, the next he's as uncultured as Kiba. The answers to these questions in more in the next installment of Kage of the Graves. Keep tuned in for the next update , Same Fox time (Doubtful), same Fox channel.)
Dirtwater.
