Crystal Dragon of the Sennin
Of three metamorphoses of the spirit I tell you: how the spirit becomes a camel; and the camel, a lion; and the lion, finally, a child.
A hellish creature of infinite heads roared defiantly to the sky, the earth trembling and quaking under the realm of this new divinity. Claiming his new title as a mortal god, the Snake Sannin metamorphosed his mortal flesh to one of eternal glory. No weakness, no pain, nothing less.
Miles out, a spirited young man stood on the edge of the cliff watching this malevolent ritual commence. Eyes of disbelief etched onto his handsome face; short brown hair blown back by the force of hurricane winds.
"I fear this day would come. The snake rears its head to the sky to cherish the one thing it always desired- the dragon. Yet it crawls on its belly as the lowest of all beasts."
The last words of a man pained by his crippling fear of death.
Somehow able to pull his eyes away from such a godly display, the young man knelt down to his blood brother. The reason he had sacrificed so much for everything he held dear… Resting his hand on top of his brother's head, Yoshi Ryu felt his heart give way to the burden after all these years.
Peering towards the hand he rejected for so long, so many years, the once hardened cerulean eyes of Menma Uzumaki softened. Stinging tears held at the rim of his eyelids, the last shred of his pride holding him together... "You haven't given up on me."
Smirking at his blood brother, Yoshi Ryu winked playfully. "Never." As he pulled his brother to his feet, the Sage of the Crystal Dragon studied the false dragon god, a deep frown calculating some plan. Any plan... "Though since you owe me for being an ass for so long," he slapped Menma's back assuredly. "You can fight the Snake Sage yourself."
Menma glared fiercely at Yoshi, only to find the Dragon Sage saunter off to relax on the ground, hands behind his head. "You're a dick..."
Yoshi smirked. "Likewise."
Growling in disbelief, the son of the Fourth Hokage turned back towards the Hydra Demon as the ground continued to shatter under this unearthly strength. The chakra he sensed was raw and primal, pure in its destructive power and display. The demonic screeches from the Hydra's eight heads drowned out any plans Menma might've had, wincing from the high frequency ringing his ears. He knew he had sold his soul to devil before he understood what his soul was worth; now he was paying his pound of flesh. He understood the lengths that Orochimaru went to achieve his immortality, and he had given him his last piece to achieve godhood.
From the corner of his eye, he saw his brother unsheathing the foot and a half long legendary Dragon Blade, the blade coated with raw chakra. Yoshi Ryu dealt with the Snake Sage time and time again, each fight landing both shinobi closer to death. The blade crackled with fiery lightning, partially levitating the pebbles and dirt by their feet. This would be the end.
Winner takes all.
The strongest of all shinobi.
The strongest mortal on Earth.
"This will be the last time we see each other," Yoshi spoke, his voice strong even over the shrieking wail. "We had wasted so much time apart. You've hated me for things out of our control. I've gone through hell for you." His jade eyes sparkled with unspoken emotions, feelings he had to bury in order to save his brother.
The wailing of the Snake Sage had finally begun to die down, as did the intense ground quakes. The Hydra heads had started to recall to their host, even from their far distance the young Shinobi could barely fathom what kind of pain a man like Orochimaru purposefully put himself through.
Those jade orbs settled on Menma. "I would do it all over again. Even if I couldn't change what happened between us, I would still sacrifice myself for my brother. Tell… them that…" He swallowed the lump that formed in his throat. "… this wasn't for them. Or you. Or for the Hidden Leaf… or for the world." Yoshi Ryu forced that damned smirk of his to Menma. "I just wanted a good death as the Sage of Six Paths."
Menma's eyes rolled to the back of his head, his enhanced senses barely registering the blunt hilt of the Dragon Blade striking the middle of his skull. Yoshi caught Menma's body before it even started leaning, holding him close. His eyes brimmed with unshed tears. He would do this all over again. For Menma. For Kushina… For Minato.
For himself.
He had everything.
Only to lose it.
Now he fixed everything. And he wouldn't see his masterpiece.
Resting his brother to the ground, Yoshi pulled a summoning scroll from his left leg pocket. Unraveling the parchment, the Dragon Sage cut his finger with his blade, wrote his name on the parchment and folded his hands together in his family's hand seals.
"Summoning Jutsu!" A cloud of smoke enveloped the scroll, only a tuft of a familiar sun blonde spiky hair stood out the most. Yoshi smiled gently at the nostalgic sight. "It's time Naruto."
The baby Kyuubi, well… maybe a 'little' bigger than a baby now, tussled his sun blonde hair, licking his paw absently then brushing his hair with the same paw. The Dragon Sage smiled endearingly at the little furball. He was the one that started his new lease on life, from the Hidden Leaf to every known corner of this world. The one consistency in either of their lives. Thick and thin, blood and all…
Said furball paused his small bathing ritual at the sound of his caretaker's voice. And the immense, dense dark chakra he felt just now. Big cerulean eyes widened in glee, his fiery orange fur bristling in delight and a squeak escaped his maw as he ran up Yoshi's body, up to his neck and rubbing his entire body against the Shinobi's face and neck before wrapping himself around the human's neck to rest.
Yoshi laughed briskly, petting the tuft of blonde hair chastely. Naruto purred in response, nuzzling deeper into his caretaker. "Kokenjin!" the Kyuubi pup exclaimed. His excitement died quickly, realizing that it was time. The final clash between the most powerful, living legends known throughout the world. He noticed Menma's unconscious body next to Yoshi, his uneasy feeling blooming into reality. It was too late. "I know I can't talk you out of this. Just..." a tiny cry whimpered from the pup's mouth, only for Yoshi's hand on his head silenced him.
"Don't you start crying for me now," Yoshi said, focusing to the leveled landscape of Orochimaru's now former lab was. "Just get out of here with him." He gestured towards his brother. Naruto looked towards the unconscious body then to his caretaker... his protector...
His...
"I mean it," Yoshi began again, his voice growing stern and angry. "Get out of here!"
Whimpering lightly at his brisque tone, Naruto obeyed and jumped off Yoshi. Rolling the unconscious body of the son of the Fourth Hokage, grasping his collar and dragging him to the summoning circle, the kitsune looked back up to-
The sickening sound of broken flesh and mending bone would've weakened the strongest of shinobi. He, however, lived for it. Even when he was barely old enough to walk, the call of battle singed his blood. It made him alive. The capacity to dominate, cause he had the tenacity, will and chance to do so. To show off his superiority, even at the off-chance of something or someone overpowering him. It brought a smile to his face.
Especially now.
This was beyond chance.
This was fate.
Destiny.
His choice.
The form, the being, previously known across the far lands of the Shinobi- Orochimaru.
He was no more.
Who stood in his place... in his way... was the Hydra.
The blood and slime that dripped down his body did not hide the godly apotheosis he transcribed. The world would be their battleground, their kingdom.
Stripping the remains of human flesh from his body, the Hydra stared at the Dragon.
The young Dragon eyed his prey. The raw chakra poured throughout the Hydra as a raging waterfall. He would make an excellent prize.
The Hydra lurched forward, prompting the Dragon to freeze. However the horrific sight of a serpentine breaking through the backside of the Hydra but remained attached. The pain, horrific scream that echoed the far reaches of the desecrated grounds died slowly, only until the pained hiss of the snake remained. The snake lowered its head below head level, knocking itself into the chin of the Hydra. A childish endeavor to help.
Broken skin gave way to carved porcelain scales. Teeth into fangs. Fingers into daggers.
The eyes... remained unchanged.
The snake bopped away from the Hydra, making its mark just above the head. An additional pair of eyes.
A crown of horns decorated the Hydra's head. Simple and tactful.
The Dragon simply rolled his neck, not too bothered nor caring of the entire endeavor. Simple showboating and prattle, bidding time till fate was prolonged no more.
"The One who is Many," the Hydra spoke, the soft hiss of Orochimaru barely present but his tone was grave and dark. The Snake had yet to truly shed his skin. "The Many who is One." He rolled his neck, the bones crackling and mending under his new found power. "Together at last."
Jade eyes of the Dragon stared unbemusingly, still tempered by his power and skill. "Now you know what I live with. Everyday."
The deep, low laughter agreed. He understood. Truly. Fully. How little he saw the world, himself, before. He had ascended into grandness. "You were hard to kill before." A sadistic fanged grin bloomed maliciously. "Your death at my hands, by my hands, will be more fulfilling than anything else I will accomplish."
Snorting, the Dragon agreed. "Your value will always be based on my worth alone."
The Hydra's nose twitch but his face remained composed. "Perhaps, but your value will be as a memory until death."
A deep presence within the Dragon swelled with bubbling power. "My little hatchling." the Dragon kept his eyes forward, his expression barely softening. "The storm has finally come. Your life, your death; the fight you sought to stake your life upon. To sacrifice-"
'Getting cold feet Genryu?' Yoshi teased, knowing that his dragon caretaker may have gotten soft after all this time. 'Here I thought you knew better.'
"I do know better," she berated haughtily. "Which is why I bring this up."
'A little late to bring this up during life or death,' the young man continued. 'But this is what we both sought out. This is what I want- my name, my power, and my life to be immortalized.' A grin, a smirk broke out from his lips, catching the purple lidded eyes of the Hydra. 'Death comes for us all. All a man can do is smile.'
"And all a god can do," he spoke to the Hydra. Jade eyes disappeared to hearty fiery glow of red, yellow and amber. Skin fermenting to hard scales, a crown of horns adorning his own head. The top part of his clothing singed into flames, floating to the far skies. "Is whatever he wants."
Author's Note-
So, heads up here, this is gonna be my first Naruto story and I'm kinda excited since this isn't going to be a retread of the Naruto story that plenty of you guys have seen on this site before (and with like 500k stories, that's saying something). Naturally you guys know that I deal with OC's, and this won't change that.
However, the main point I wanted to cross is that this story is a reboot of the entire series. Or perhaps more accurately, it's a rewrite of the series. I enjoyed the anime when it was on, and I kinda lost touch with it shortly after the War arc (not that it was bad per say, but life stuff and college was the main priority). And so, I never got to actually finish the anime, but I know of Kaguya and the reincarnations of Ashura and Indra and all that.
Honestly, I felt like Naruto the series lost its original message with the idea of Naruto and Sasuke being the reincarnations of gods (not saying that Naruto's life was easy but that it lost a LOT of impact because of it since it makes it seem like everyone else was just in his way by comparsion, ya know?), hence why I wanted to make this story.
A story that's more grounded in its overall theme and message, granted there'll be some over the top stuff lol, but it won't be 'THE BATTLE OF TWO ANCIENT BLOODLINES' and I'll try to give more characters their moments (Rock Lee, Kakashi, TenTen, Sakura etc.) so this little bit here is a combo of general rules and outlines of what to expect from this series (it won't be everything since some of these are potential spoilers for the early chapters and potential arcs):
Outline/Expectations-
1) Sharingan will only go as far as the Eternal Mangekyou Sharingan (EMS)
2) The Rinnegan will be an exclusive power by itself (no relation to the Sharingan)
3) Bakyugan will be more prominent than in canon
4) Hashirama and Madara will still be as powerful as their canon selves, which also means initial statements about the Third Hokage being just as strong if not a little stronger will be relevant
5) I'll incorporate as much of the Naruto movies as I can into the story but can't guarantee that all will appear as arcs but possibly as flashbacks
6) The OC will be a powerful shinobi across the board, but he'll walk the line of 'TALENT' and 'HARD WORK' that the OG series tried to convey. In short, the OC will earn his power, skill and abilities while still being a top ranked fighter in a way that feels natural to the verse and to the story
7) The peak powers of the verse will topped at *REDACTED* and *REDACTED*
8) The Sage of Six Paths will appear as well, whether in the flesh or as myth...
9) Kekkei Genkai... I haven't fully decided whether to keep this at it is in canon or to switch up the rules so that any Kekkei Genkai ability can be learned... I originally had the idea that the Kekkei Genkai could be used by both the Uchiha and Hyuuga as a way of maximining their attack potency while minimizing their chakra usage... let me know your thoughts.
10) Saving for later lol
So with that said, I hope you guys are excited for this story as I feel, lol.
