Tip Of The Spear
Prologue
Two children are seen running down back streets and alley ways just ahead of a large drunken crowd. The male is getting worried as his female companion is nearing the end of her endurance. From the back are cries of murder, killing intent from shinobi fills the air.
In his panic the boy takes a wrong turn and now finds his back to a dead end. Looking around for an escape route he doesn't see the rock sail from the back of the crowd hitting him in the face, splitting his cheek and knocking him to the ground. The girl is now screaming for help that she knows will arrive too late, the masked ninja always arrive too late. "Why?" she asks, "Why are you doing this? Why do you hate us so much?"
"Why, you ask?" comes a yell from the crowd, "Why? Because he's the one that killed our loved ones, destroyed our homes. And you, you wretched girl, since you care for him that's enough reason to hate you too."
"I...I never hurt anyone," the boy calls back trying to stand as he puts himself in front of the girl to shield her from the worst. He knows that if he can get them to focus on her she can make her escape so he begins to shout back, to stand up for himself and his friend, "I never killed anyone, it's you that are always trying to kill us. It's you that beat us, wreck our home. Why can't you leave us alone?" he screams as he balls his hands into fists.
At that point a chunin in the crowd flings a kunai that catches the boy in the side, dropping him to the ground. The girl calls to him, tells him to get up but it's too late. The crowd is on them, the girl is kicked and punched while much worse is done to the boy. The girl is thinking how can they be so mean to a pair of kids no older than six. As she begins to stand one of the drunker men grab at her, pulling her pants and underwear down. She struggles to get away as the man looks at her in a fog of lust, "Lets see how much the demon will love you now girly after I'm done with you," he says laughing in a crazed manner.
Looking over to her companion she see's that he's been beaten until he's one mass of bruises and is beginning to bleed out because of all the cuts and stab wounds that the crowd has inflicted on him. As she sees this the girl realizes that this time there is no rescue, the ANBU and Hokage will be too late and she and her friend will be dead, "Goodbye Naruto, I really do love you," was her last thought before darkness clouded her mind.
Looking over at his friend Naruto is heartbroken, 'She's going to die because of me', is what he begins to think as he calls out to her, "Sakura, Sakura, I'm sorry that I got you hurt. Sakura, I love yo..." the last word is cut off by a hard kick to the face that breaks Naruto's jaw and knock's him out.
Just as the boy loses conscious a cloud of red chakra begins to leak from his small form. As it grows it begins to envelope the two downed children in a protective coat as a figure begins to form. The figure, a being of pure chakra takes on a human form as a male voice cuts through the air,
"Fools! Fools the lot of you! Trying to kill to children because you can't or won't see the truth of your last leaders words. It's because of you that I am free, it's because of you that I will now take your lives, not because I'm evil but because you dare hurt these two kits!" roared the voice of the Kyuubi no Kitsune, the Nine Tailed Fox.
Just as he was ready to strike a voice called to him to stop as he was surrounded by masked ninja of the villages ANBU forces. "What is the meaning of this? How did you get loose?" called the third Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi as he prepared to summon his partner Enma.
"So, the leading idiot of this village of idiots makes his presence known," the Fox growled out, "tell me again why it was such a good idea to tell everyone about the Kit, who he was for example?"
"It was the wish of the Fourth, he wished that young Naruto be seen as a hero for what was done to him", came the reply, "Others leaked out the lie that he was you incarnate. People we still have yet to identify.
"Ah yes, I can see how the village honors the wishes of it's dying leader and treats it's young hero, the one chosen to lead this wretched place" spat the Fox as he brushed his tails over the two children, "and I can see that they accept his friends the same way."
Walking up to the village leader the Fox placed his hands to the old mans head watching him reel as his mind took in the events of the last few hours. As he stepped back the man signaled his troops to take the shinobi involved into custody and to execute those remaining, the would be rapist was to be sent to Anko first before he was given a very slow and painful death in public. The man was in a state between shock and disgust as the images he had just seen were still seared in his mind, "I...I swear to you I didn't know that it was this bad. How can I make it up to them?" he asked looking down in shame.
The Fox narrowed his eyes at him while in deep thought before answering him, "I will take them from here to a place where they will train. If it was his fathers wish to be seen as the hero then he shall learn to be a hero. But not on this world, I shall take them to a place that will push them to their limits, where chakra and ninja don't exist. When they are at their best they will return, do you understand?" the Fox asked the man who could only nod his head.
"Good," he said as he smiled, "Very good, now then old man, I plan on telling them everything," seeing the look on his face he continued, "Yes, everything including his family, his titles, position in this world and the marriage contract. Seeing as her parents are the ones that put her to the street they need not be involved. When they return you will put them on a team, any questions?"
"Yes," came the reply from a ninja in a dogs mask, "Who will train them if they are not in this world as you say?"
"Inu-san," the Fox replied with a small amount of respect. He knew this one, his last container treated him like he was her own kit while he took his job of looking out for Naruto seriously, "I will teach them. I and my family will train the kit and in turn, he will train his vixen."
"I only ask this of you and the old man, find out who leaked his status and has constantly tried to hurt or kill him. I can only give you this, anytime something happened to the kit men in blank masks were about. Masks that were to be discarded years ago. That is Naruto's enemy, that is one of your leaders enemies. You would be wise to kill him and those that denied the kits heritage and clan status."
As the Fox finished speaking his chakra began to glow while taking shape of a swirling ball. As the ball grew in size and it's spinning picked up the two children began to lift from the ground. After raising another two feet the ball of chakra began to glow until it flashed out of sight with the sound of a thunder clap.
In the alley the Hokage and his ANBU stood dumbly staring at the last place they had seen the blonde and pink haired children. Inu at last breaking the silence, "When do you think they'll be back?"
"I don't know," the aged leader replied before continuing, "but I know this, it's time to clean the village and remove those the fox pointed the finger at."
"You believe it?" asked the man with the dog mask.
"Yes, what I saw when the Fox held my head makes me sick, take your best men and investigate the council. Arrest the Harunos for child abuse and abandonment and take them to Anko."
Pointing to the crowd the ANBU were holding the village leader spoke to his trusted agent, "There is one man in that group that is to be killed by me and me alone, he's the shop owner that constantly complains about Naruto and Sakura. He is to be held, I will personally execute him," the Hokage ordered.
"If you do that you may lose support of the council, he's done nothing wrong but complain about those kids," Inu told his leader.
"Ah, but that's where you're wrong Inu, he was trying to rape Sakura. I will not have the owner of a toy store alive in my village that would do that to a child, take him to Anko-chan," the old man said, "He was way too willing to commit that act, let's see who else he's harmed."
Turning to one of the other ANBU agents he began to issue orders, "Notify Jiraiya and Tsunade they are to return at once. Tell Tsunade if she refuses her funds will be stopped and she will be marked as a missing nin. The time for her wallowing in self pity is long over."
The next morning as Hiruzen Sarutobi sat in his office talking to the dog faced ANBU about last night's events a small red fox popped into existence. Jumping onto his desk the animal made several magician's sleight of hand movements before handing him a scroll.
"Hokage-sama, I am Makoto and the personal messenger of Lord Kurama," the animal explained in a voice unlike a child, "This scroll will explain my Lord's wishes for the children. They are in a time stasis so he can lay the foundations for their training. But they are in fine shape as our healers treated the girl as Lord Kurama healed his host. I am told that I am to wait for your compliance to my Lord's wishes and that I am to answer any questions regarding the kit and his vixen."
Sarutobi took the scroll and looked it over, "If I say no to handing over his clans library what will the nine tails do?" he asked.
"He will send foxes into the village repeatedly until the library is located and we will transfer it with out your knowing or permission. This is just a courtesy request, Lord Kurama has also sent envoys to the Toads to inform them of the status of the Fourth's son. They...are not happy," the little fox answered.
"I see, and the release of 20 million ryo from his inheritance to be converted into gold?"
"It is to be used as a nest egg, we daemons can travel travel from world to world and back and forth in time. Our Lord has ordered the Fox clan to assist. We will start things moving about 150 years before the time the children will arrive. Lord Naruto and Lady Sakura will be financially well off by then and their family history established," the fox explained, "If worse comes to worse they will stay where they are at and live long and happy lives."
Sarutobi looked at the scroll again thoughtfully, reading further down he saw childish scrawlings, messages from the two children that they were fine and happy and looked forward to their new life and prospect of training. Naruto's only compliant was that he's had no ramen and no relief was in sight. The old man smiled at that and made his decision.
"Makoto, I agree and will have the money requested in a week if that's okay with the nine tails. I only ask one thing, that I and the ones that love and care for them be updated on a regular basis."
"That...can be arranged Hokage-sama, I believe that the kits would be more motivated if they knew you were still interested and thinking of them. Until next week then," at that the fox popped out of the office in a small cloud of smoke.
"Can we trust the word of the nine tails sir?" the masked man asked.
" I think we can Kakashi, the nine tails trusts us to a high degree, if not he would not have allowed it's messenger to say his name. As you know, names have power and we now know the names of two, Kurama, the nine tails and Makoto, his messenger," taking a drag from his pipe the old man continued, "You will let leak that the children are in exile until called for. Make sure that everyone knows that the village has spent the last six years trying to kill Minato and Kushina's son as well the Fourth's chosen successor."
"Naruto, Minato chose him?" Kakashi asked stunned.
"His last words to me, I was to keep his status as the keeper of the fox a secret and train him to take over from me," they old man explained.
"You know, only one person would stoop so low as to hurt Naruto and try to grab your title for himself," Kakashi said.
"I know, Danzo is to be arrested once my students arrive as they can over power the fool. My former team mates however, are a problem. They'll be dealt with in due time."
TBC