So, longer than a week. :/ But, truth be told I had a lot of trouble with this chapter. I have an explanation at the end, but for those who don't care much. TL;DR- I ran into some canon issues with Zabuza and his knowledge of jinchuuriki and worried myself into a slump over how I was going to do this chapter.
In other words, I'm a dork who focuses too much on little details. lol
Disclaimer: Nah
There was nothing quiet as potent as the Kyuubi's untainted wrath.
It awakened a primal fear within him that made his muscles seize and the breath leave his lungs.
Kakashi collapsed to his knees as soon as the red chakra infuse the area. He forced his head to turn to the source of the malevolent chakra and felt a sinking feeling in his gut when he caught sight of the smaller Uzumaki with eyes as red as the chakra curling maliciously around him into a cyclone of fiery chakra.
The resulting explosion from the sudden release of the Kyuubi's chakra had burned and snapped the wires surrounding the three. Out of the corner of his eye saw Zabuza gasp and collapse on the ground as the wires suspending him snapped as well.
"Shit." He heard Zabuza mutter. "That little brat is a jinchuuriki?"
Kakashi didn't respond, of course the missing-nin would realize immediately what that chakra meant. The man had lead a coup against his own Kage who, if their information was true, was also one of the village's two jinchuuriki. He should know better than any other known missing-nin what a Jinchuuriki felt like when they went ballistic.
Kakashi swallowed and pushed himself to his feet, his limbs shaking from the effort.
The cyclone of chakra surrounding Natsuki was raged fiercely now and he could barely make out the boy standing in the center, untouched…and laughing. It was almost ironic that the boy would collapse under the weight of killing intent, but somehow manage to stand tall in the middle of that corrosive chakra.
Then again, he thought grimly. This might not be Natsuki anymore.
He winced at the thought.
His hand slowly went to the inner pouch of his vest, where two scrolls were stored and carefully protected. He had been given them after he became the twin's sensei, but hadn't thought he'd have to use one so soon. From what he remembered, Kushina never lost control like this.
Then again, a rebellious part of his mind thought. She had been trained as a jinchuuriki and took the beast much later in life than Naruto and Natsuki. Sensei just thrust the two into this life and the Hokage never trained them for their roles.
He shook his head free of such thoughts, wondering vaguely if the Kyuubi's chakra had an effect on enhancing negative emotions. He shook the stray thought from his mind and focused on the issue in front of him. He should have been more prepared for this. Natsuki had been acting off all week. He knew that the boy was struggling, undoubtedly with the beast considering how much he was shying away from him after revealing his Sharingan, but he took the boy for his word and allowed him to fight.
He winced as another hot wave of wrathful chakra curled around him nearly sending him to his knees again. He heard Zabuza curse again. He glanced at his other students trying to assess whether he needed to address them or Natsuki first. They were worryingly close to Natsuki, with Sasuke on the ground and Naruto crouch over him, his eyes wide and fearful.
Kakashi's heart nearly stop when he saw the blond dove towards his brother.
A blur flashed by and suddenly both Naruto and Sasuke were between Zabuza and himself with Zabuza's apprentice standing in front of them, still bleeding but with a determined look on his face. Kakashi sighed in relief.
"Wait! What!? Natsuki!" Naruto shouted.
"Stay back." The boy murmured. "The boy is lost…"
All eyes turned to Natsuki when his laughter died out abruptly. The cyclone was gone, though the air was still oppressive. The chakra now hovered around the boy, flickering like flames. Natsuki lifted his head and Kakashi caught his breath for an entirely different reason.
From what he had heard a rampaging jinchuuriki was animalistic and violent. But…
There was an almost serene look on his face. His lips were curled up in a faint smile. It would have been relieving if Natsuki's eyes weren't as red as the chakra that still flickered around him. Kakashi had noticed the odd way his eyes would change to a more reddish purple when he was upset or angry, but this…was entirely different. His eyes seemed to almost give off a glow and his pupils were completed slitted; like a fox.
He swallowed, his mind flashing back to the towering figure that blocked out the moonlight and took out squads of shinobi with a mere swipe of his paw.
His hand tightened around the seal.
There was a flash that Kakashi only managed to follow with his Sharingan eye and suddenly Zabuza's apprentice and Natsuki were clashing. Ice incases senbon needle against newly sharpened claws. The ice from the senbon needle extended and incased Natsuki's hand. Kakashi watched as Zabuza's glanced around, eye's lingering on Zabuza's still kneeling figure.
Natsuki growled lowly and ripped his hand away, ice shards flying in all directions.
"Please, retreat Zabuza-sama." The boy said grimly as his eyes hardened as he blocked another attack, just barely managing to not get himself gutted by those sharp claws. Flames now flickered around Natsuki's hands, preventing them from being trapped. With one last glance towards his master, the boy broke away and dove off of the side of the bridge, Natsuki following half a step behind.
"Natsuki!" Naruto cried, still clutching Sasuke but looking as though he wanted to dive off of the bridge as well.
At the same time, Zabuza growled. "Stupid brat! What the fuck do you think you're doing?! That little shit will kill you!"
Kakashi sighed wondering when everything had gone to hell. It was when he accepted this idiotic mission, he decided immediately. He should have just stayed in Konoha and trained them himself rather than going on a C-rank so soon after they became genin. He released the scroll and approached his other two students.
"Naruto. What happened to Sasuke?" He knelt next to them as he asked, reaching for the boy's neck to check for a pulse.
"Oh, um. We were fighting the other dude…chick? And Sasuke was doing really well, I think his eyes were like yours, the Sharingan or whatever, anyway, Natsuki went down and Sasuke blocked him from a volley of those senbon needles. Natsuki freaked out after that…I think…I think Natsuki though he was dead…Sensei…is he…?" Naruto's hands trembled and Kakashi very pointedly didn't look up at the boy's face. He didn't want to see the fear in those blue eyes.
"No. He's still breathing Naruto." He murmured lightly slapping at the Uchiha's face to see if he would get a reaction. The boy's nose wrinkled and his eyes fluttered behind their lids. "It looks like Zabuza's apprentice wasn't aiming to kill. He'll be fine, just keep an eye on him until he wakes up."
"What about you?"
Kakashi sighed and turned to where he could see the flaring of red chakra over the river. "I have to go knock some sense back into your brother."
Naruto nodded slowly then glanced at the now standing missing-nin, who was staring at the fight on the river with a conflicted expression. "What about him?"
Kakashi looked at the man for a moment before pitching his voice so the other could hear him. "Well, his apprentice is sacrificing himself to let his master run, so I would assume the master in question should be leaving soon…unless the Demon of the Mist actually does have a heart under all that gruff."
"Shut your Kami-damned mouth Hatake before I skewer you for such slander." The man replied almost automatically. "That brat is just a tool. I told him that from the start. You can bet your ass I'm leaving. I didn't sign-up for a Jinchuuriki battle. I ain't being paid enough for that shit."
He didn't move.
"Good thing I'm not a betting man," Kakashi muttered under his breath as he rolled his eyes.
He turned back to Naruto. "I doubt he'll cause any more trouble right now. Just keep an eye on Sasuke and…" He glanced up towards the man cowering man near the end of the bridge hiding by some equipment. "…protect our client."
He narrowed his eyes as a group slowly came into view behind their client.
This was unfortunate timing.
Naruto tugged at his sleeve. "Sensei, my clone we left at the house just popped. Some guys tried to kidnap Tsunami-san! Our clones stopped them though."
"I see," Kakashi replied distractedly as the group came fully into view.
A group of ruffians led by the notorious Gatō. Tazuna leaped from his spot immediately and ran over to Kakashi.
"Tsk, tsk. Zabuza-san, you said you could handle this." The man looked pointedly around the bridge. "This doesn't look like handling it to me. Why haven't you just killed the bridge builder yet? It was a very simple task."
Zabuza growled lowly as he turned to his boss. "Things are a bit more complicated now. Fuck off."
"Now that just won't do," Gatō replied in a condescending tone that made Kakashi's eye twitch on principle. "Oh well, men kill everyone. The one who kills Zabuza gets a bonus."
Kakashi eyed the groups as they pulled out their swords excitedly. They were just a bunch of thugs with swords. A few may have had some shinobi training, but he was sure any genin could have handled any one of them easily. As a group, however….
He glanced towards the river again where the fiery chakra was still flashing. He looked back at Naruto who was glaring indignantly at the group with a kunai in hand and Sasuke who was only just starting to wake up.
"Go Hatake." The gruff voice startled Kakashi and he glanced over at the missing-nin in surprise. The man was tying off some cloth around his injuries before he picked up his sword and swung it slowly. He grinned widely at the group, making them hesitate at the sight of his sharp teeth and giant sword. "Go knock some sense into your brat, I'll handle my shitty employer. Your other brats won't come to any harm and neither will the bridge builder."
Kakashi nodded slowly. He turned to Naruto and slipped him some exploding tags. "Throw these at anyone who gets too close."
"Yes, sensei." The boy replied seriously. "Go make sure Natsuki's ok. I'll handle things here."
Kakashi smirked and ruffled the boy's hair. For a brief moment, he looked exactly like his father. He stood and make his way towards the edge of the bridge as the Gatō's group began to charge.
"Hatake." Zabuza knocked back the first wave easily with a wave of his sword. "Make sure my brat comes back in one piece. I need to do some sense knocking myself."
"I will do my best," Kakashi replied before jumping off of the bridge.
He allowed himself to freefall for a bit, before twisting his body around and used his chakra to allow him to hold onto the side of one of the bridge's pillars. For a moment everything was tranquil as the sound of fighting was drowned out by the lapping of the waves against the pillar. Kakashi took a deep breath and forced a large amount of chakra through his feet to launch himself towards the flashing red chakra drifting further and further downriver.
He was elated.
Ever since gaining this human body he had never had this much chakra running through his veins. In his fear of discovery and breaking his newly frail body, he had never allowed himself to use more than a faint trickle of his power. Now, however, his chakra hummed, practically begging to be used.
In that moment, with his chakra singing in his veins and dancing at his feet, he couldn't think of a single reason not to give in and use it to his heart's content.
Kurama grinned as he dove after his opponent without a care for how high the bridge was. He closed his eyes and enjoyed the air rushing pass him as he fell. He landed on top of the water with a bang sending waves arching above his head in every direction and forcing Haku to leap higher onto the bridge's pillar to avoid getting a face full of water. Apparently, the boy had decided to take the safer route and run down the side of the bridge instead of simply free falling, like Kurama.
Haku hands flashing through signs as fast as lightening. Kurama saw it coming, however, and he leaped into the air as ice formed under his feet forming into those annoying mirrors from before. He landed lightly on top of the dome before being forced to move again as the mirrors turned to spikes in an instant.
He laughed and twirled out of the way of icy senbon thrown his way.
His chakra crackled happily around him and melting any that got too close.
He landed on the choppy waves a few feet away. Haku landed on the tip of one of his spikes a senbon in each hand.
"You've been holding back." Kurama grinned as more chakra rushed through his veins at the thought of a challenge. The amount of chakra running through him was making him a little giddy.
"So have you." The boy replied evenly. "I'll admit, I did not expect you to be a Jinchuuriki. It seems you are full of surprises."
"Hm," Kurama smirked. "Yes, I suppose I am."
The boy stared at him for a moment. "You are also saner than I thought you'd be right now."
Kurama's smirk widened. "Yes, I suppose I am."
(A bijuus power could wreck a human's mind thoroughly, but he wasn't just any human. His chakra welcomed and protected him. Knowing he was in charge. Not the other way around. He was still a bijuu even if this body wasn't.)
He leaped at him, claws extended and chakra curling around him like a cloak of pure energy. The boy leaped away, throwing senbon behind him as he fled further from the bridge. Kurama growled in faint annoyance before flipping around and using the side of the ice spikes to launching himself after the boy.
It was clever, even if it was a bit annoying. The boy knew he couldn't take him head on, so he used his speed to try and put some distance between them throwing attacks to distract and slow him down.
As he flew through the air he shaped his charka effortlessly and sent flames forward. Haku blocked with a hastily formed ice wall as Kurama landed. Kurama grinned and leaped at the boy claws first before twisting his attack into a kick as the boy brought his hands up to block his face from his claws. Haku quickly absorbed the blow to his stomach with a wince before striking, senbon in hand as he aimed for Kurama's neck.
He grinned and dodge to the side hand darting out to claw at him, but was blocked by more ice. He broke through it by flaring his chakra and his claws griped boys shoulder before he could dodge or formed more ice walls.
Several more waves of ice spikes and senbon were thrown at him as the boy tore himself from Kurama's grasp tearing four jagged wounds into his shoulder as he went. Kurama simply stood there and allow him to break away. The chakra hovering around him to destroyed the attacks thrown his way. A few metal senbon were mixed in with the ice ones, but they melted just as easily under the heat of his flames.
He cackled to himself before pulling more chakra to use.
His vision wavered suddenly and he frowned. He looked down at his hands, only to find them trembling.
(He heard the faint sound of glass cracking within his own mind and a rush of terror flooded him. If he took too much than this body would…)
"Natsuki!" He jerked at his sensei's panicked call.
Haku used his distraction to lob more senbon at him catching him off guard before diving forward with a quick series of jabs and kicks. Kurama growled in annoyance as the boy managed to get a glancing blow at his head.
"Get away!" He snapped flaring his chakra.
The boy flew way immediately as Kurama fed more of his chakra into the area around him creating a dense haze of red that was undoubtedly oppressive to everyone else given the way Haku finally collapsed onto his knees barely managing to keep himself from sinking into the river.
His hand was still trembling and he felt his skin itch with the beginnings of a burn.
He sighed.
It seemed like this was his limit.
He reined in his chakra bringing it back to his normal trickle shoving the rest back into the seal. The skin on his stomach burned briefly and he fell to his knees at the sudden lack of power making him shiver. He felt a hand on his shoulder and he glanced up at his sensei's worried face.
"Natsuki?"
"Sensei," He murmured quietly. "Sorry, I..."
He wasn't sure how exactly he was going to play this one. From his sensei's perspective, it probably looked like he had lost control. He glanced away towards Haku, who was still kneeling clutching at his injuries and watching him intently before looking back at his sensei.
"I…is Sasuke ok?" He finally tried.
Kakashi nodded as he gave him a searching look.
"So, you're back to normal then?"
Kurama and Kakashi turned to the other boy. Kurama blinked in surprise.
"What-" He started, but was interrupted.
"You lost control of your bijuu when you saw your teammate collapse." Haku stood slowly and gestured around at the wake of their battle. The water was still very choppy and there were clumps of ice just starting to melt. "You were unhinged so I lured you away from your teammates and Zabuza-sama in hopes of preventing you from killing them. I suppose that last hit and perhaps seeing your sensei managed to knock you out of it."
Kurama stared at the boy in surprise. "I…"
Kakashi sighed.
"Well, that makes my job a lot easier." He ruffled Kurama's hair. "You had me worried, kid."
"I'm sorry, sensei." Kurama looked at the water below him, staring pensively at his reflection for a moment. "What happened to Naruto and Sasuke?"
"Gatō arrived with a group of thugs to finish the mission, but Zabuza engaged them. They're probably wiped out by now. Those guys wouldn't be much trouble to him, even injured." Kakashi looked over at Haku. "Gatō betray you two by setting his men on your master. I propose a temporary truce."
Haku nodded. "I knew he was untrustworthy, but he did pay well. Even so, I won't miss him."
"Then lets head back and sort-out the injury's and damage."
"For what it's worth, we didn't kill the workers. Just knocked them unconscious."
"I see."
Hours later, Kurama sighed and leaned against the wall watching as the party rage wildly in the room. Tazuna had broken out his alcohol collection and the other villagers brought their own in order to celebrate their sudden freedom from Gatō and his men. He felt a faint smile tug at his lips as the Inari hopped up on the table to tell the story of how Naruto (or his clone more accurately) saved him from Gatō's men when they came to kidnapped his mother. Naruto was in the middle of the crowd receiving hardy slaps on the back as he blushed at the huge amount attention focused on him.
Once they had gotten back to the bridge, Zabuza had taken care of his former's bosses men and was leaning against the railing trying to stem the blood flow from his wounds, while the large group of villagers, apparently led by Inari, surrounded Gatō with menacing grins on their faces. Kurama was surprised that they didn't kill him right there, but apparently, they had reached a consensus to execute him in a more suitable way. Kurama wasn't sure what they considered suitable, but it wasn't really his business at this point and he didn't particularly care.
He rolled his shoulders wincing slightly as his muscles twinged painfully. Ever since shoving his chakra back into his seal he had felt a bone deed ache throughout his body. He may have pushed himself a bit too far, judging by the pain and burns on his hands and feet, where he had concentrated most of his chakra during his fight with Haku. He stared at his bandaged hands for a moment. Even if he used a bit too much, he was certain that he could push his limits with practice. He'd just have to get his body used to more power slowly. He might never be able to use his full power in this human body, but…
He wasn't sure how Kakashi or the Hokage would take his sudden focus on his raw chakra. He knew they were both nervous about him using the "Kyuubi's" chakra. He knew that they must have kept a close eye on him. But…
He clinched his hands into fists, ignoring the pain.
(The feeling of his power coursing untamed through his body was intoxicating.)
He was so tired of being so weak.
A quick movement by the door caught his eye, startling him out of his thoughts. He caught the tail end of Zabuza and Haku leaving, unnoticed by the rest of the partiers. Kurama was after them in a split second. He never got the chance to talk to Haku after the battle. They had all been shuffled over to Tazuna's house to be bandaged and then the party had started abruptly once what had happened dawned on the villagers. As the party raged on the two had made themselves scare despite getting the blessing of the village for defeating Gatō's thugs.
He hurried after them, through the dark woods not bothering to conceal his footsteps in hopes of getting them to notice and stop. While he didn't necessarily want to talk to Zabuza about the situation, he still wanted some answers.
"Zabuza-sama."
"Yeah, yeah. Do what you want brat."
The two stopped in an empty clearing and turn to face him. Kurama hesitated slightly, before stepping into the moonlit clearing himself.
"I was hoping we'd get to talk before we left, but Zabuza insisted on moving on." Haku smiled at him blandly. The man in question just grunted and leaned against a tree.
They were silent for a moment as Kurama tried to figure out how to word his question. "Why…why did you lie for me? You knew I was in control of myself during the fight not…the Kyuubi."
Haku tilted his head to the side as he considered the question.
Zabuza muttered a quiet, "Shit, you're the nine-tails container? That's even worse."
"You were holding back." Haku finally spoke quietly. "There were several times in our fight when you could have killed me, but you didn't."
"I still injured you," Kurama replied.
"True, but injuries heal. Death does not."
"Ah…well, thank you I suppose."
They were silent once again. A small breeze made the grass sway and shadows dance.
"May I ask, why you looked so panicked back then? Surely it would ease your sensei's mind that you weren't in fact taken over by the beast?"
Kurama narrowed his eyes. "You could ask, but you won't get an answer."
He was having enough trouble hiding from everyone in the village, he didn't' need any rumors outside of it.
Haku nodded with a smile. "I see. Well, if that's all, I suppose this is where we part."
The boy turned to leave, but Zabuza remained his eyes on Kurama. "Word of advice, kid, leave while you can."
"What?" Kurama responded his eyes widened slightly.
"Think of it as my thank you for not offing Haku when you had the chance." Zabuza pushed himself off of the tree and into the moonlight. He had his make-shift mask down, so rays made his sharp teeth glint when he spoke. "It's no secret that jinchuuriki are treated like shit by their villages. Shinobi are weapons fear by civilians, but jinchuuriki? Their on another level. Most see 'em as the demon's themselves and treat them as such. Best to get out of there as quick as possible. Living as a missing-nin is rough, but better than being treated like a demon in your own damn home."
There was a surprising amount of understanding in his eyes.
Then again he was The Demon of the Mist. He supposed this human would know understand better than most how people treated those they thought of as monsters. Kurama smiled faintly, despite the man's well-earned nickname he was surprisingly soft under his gruff exterior.
"Thank you for the advice, Zabuza-san." Kurama replied his smile still in place. "You're right, there is a lot of animosity, especially since the Kyuubi attack the village so recently. But, I have some people I can't just leave behind."
"They worth it?"
Kurama thought of his brother, who was technically the actual jinchuuriki out of the two of them. He thought of the Hokage, Kakashi, Iruka, the friends they had made at the academy, and even Sasuke who had saved him twice now. His smile widened.
"Yes, yes they are."
Zabuza shrugged. "Alright, suite yourself kid. Don't come crying to me when everything goes to shit, though. Got enough trouble dealing with this brat."
He gestured to Haku, who simply raised his eyebrow in return. Kurama stifled a laugh and bow slightly.
"Thank you for protecting my teammates from Gatō's men and thank you, again, Haku for lying for me."
Haku bowed in return while Zabuza just waved his hand. "Whatever, just know that we won't be holding back if we meet on opposite sides again, so you better not either. Ya hear? And let that sensei of yours know that I want a good, uninterrupted fight with him next time we meet."
"Yes." He felt a thrum of excitement run through him when Haku leveled a determined stare on him, promising silently that he would be training to match his strength.
They were gone in the next second. Leaving him alone in the small meadow. He noticed for the first time that it was the same one where he had met Haku. He shook his head and started to walk back to the house. Hopefully, he hadn't been missed.
He found his teammates sitting outside the house. Naruto jumped up and waved excitedly. Sasuke stood much slower with a scowl on his face.
"Natsu! Where were you? Tsunami-san said that the party was getting too much for kids and sent Inari off to bed. She was going to send us to bed too, but we couldn't find you!"
Kurama smiled at his brother's exuberance. "Zabuza and Haku left."
"So you tailed them. Natsu that's dangerous!" Naruto frowned.
"Just for a little while, they didn't seem to mind. Just ignored me, before telling me to shoo. Zabuza told me to tell Kakashi-sensei that he looked forward to an actual fight between them." Kurama glanced around, even though he could sense Kakashi's chakra still in the house. "Where is Kakashi-sensei?"
"One of those drunkards got a hold of him for some sort of game," Sasuke replied sullenly.
Kurama looked at him for a moment, noting the amount of bandages and the way the boy's shoulders slumped. Naruto raised his eyebrows and gestured minutely at him with an expectant look on his face.
Kurama sighed.
He supposed he did owe the Uchiha for all of the times the boy had saved him during this mission.
He was still a Uchiha. He still had those horrid eyes that Kurama would forever hate…but he was also Sasuke. His teammate. The boy who threw himself in the line of fire for him not once, but twice during a single mission, despite Kurama treating him like shit.
He stepped up to the boy so he was standing in front of him.
"I…I wanted to thank you for saving me and…" He glanced away for a second before looking back at him, this time looking the boy in the eye. "I wanted to apologize for the way I've been treating you since becoming teammates."
He saw the way his eyes widened in shock and caught a glimpse of joy flicker through his eyes before being squashed by hesitation and faint suspicion. The boy looked away first. Kurama watched his hands clench and unclench as his side as he tried to find his words.
"Why."
It wasn't a question, more of a demand with a hint of suppressed anger. Kurama sighed. Of course it wouldn't be so easy. He rubbed his forehead trying to figure out how he would spin this one. He supposed it was probably best to stick with as much truth as possible. He was already entangled in a web of lies, there was no need to add to much more. He glanced at his brother. He just hoped the Uchiha was receptive to their status.
"It has to do with the Kyuubi." He stated, wincing at the uncertain look on his brother's face once he realized what Kurama was going to reveal to their teammate.
Sasuke was looking at him again. Kurama just sighed again and sat down on the ground abruptly, gesturing for the other two to do the same. Sasuke hesitated for a moment before sitting on the front steps of the house, while Naruto sat beside him. The party was still raging on inside the house, with music, shouts, and stomping of feet muffled by the walls separating them. Outside, the night was very still, almost completely silent aside from the occasional movement of an animal.
"Do you know what Jinchuuriki are?" Kurama asked after a moment.
The boy shook his head.
"Their containers for the nine bijuu. It literally translates to the 'power of human sacrifice'." He leaned back on his hands and looked at the sky for a moment. "Both Naruto and I are the jinchuuriki for the Kyuubi no Kitsune. His power was split in half by the Fourth Hokage and sealed inside of us."
Sasuke opened his mouth to speak, but Kurama shushed him with a wave of his hand without look away from the sky above him.
"Let me finish." He said calmly, hoping his voice didn't shake when he felt the sudden addition to their little group. "Naruto's a normal jinchuuriki, or at least as normal as it gets, but I'm a little different. For some reason, I was born without any chakra at all. The Hokage said that I had chakra coils, but simply no chakra. I wouldn't have died within hours, but the Fourth Hokage decided to do something daring. While sealing half of the Kyuubi inside of me, he allowed a small trickle of the Kyuubi's to settle into my chakra coils to work as a substitute for my own lack of chakra. Don't ask me how he did it. I don't think even the Hokage knows, it was apparently some really advanced seal work done by him off of the top of his head when he noticed my condition. In any case, the…demon was sealed and I got to live another day."
He paused for a moment, trying to collect his thoughts.
"But, even with most of the Kyuubi's chakra sealed I'm still a lot more connected to…it than, say Naruto since I use its chakra like it's my own." He hesitated again. "The truth is, even the thought of the sharingan makes me shiver, even before we learned about it in the academy. I didn't really understand it and I still don't, but something inside of me always screamed not to look a Uchiha in the eye. It was one thing in the academy when we barely knew each other, but I didn't mention or even try to change it when we became teammates…and I'm sorry."
He tore his eyes away from the stars and looked Sasuke in the eye again. It was getting easier with each time, but he wasn't sure it would ever be natural. Sasuke stared back at him.
"So, you're telling me that this whole time I was worried over you not meeting my eyes…it was all because of a feeling?"
Well. That certainly wasn't what he was expecting from him.
"That amount of incredulous isn't necessary." He folded his arms over his chest defensively.
"It definitely is!" Sasuke scowled back at him. "A feeling! Really?! This whole time I worried about it, trying to wrap my mind around a possible reason and it was a damn feeling from some shitty demon sealed inside you…."
"The Kyuubi…" Kurama started.
"I don't care about the damn demon!" Sasuke replied heatedly. "You have a demon in you. So what? What I care about is the fact that you wouldn't meet my eyes for years over a damn feeling!"
"I…" He really didn't have a response for that. He couldn't justify his response because the boy didn't know half the story. He sighed instead. "I truly am sorry. It was stupid of me. I should have talked to someone about it or better yet just ignored it completely."
Sasuke huffed, calming down slightly. "Fine. I accept your apology, idiot."
Naruto burst out laughing and tugged them both into a tight hug.
"Awesome! Now that we've cleared the air we can get onto being the best team ever!" Sasuke attempted to break the boys hold, while Kurama just rolled his eyes and relaxed. "I'll become Hokage! Sasuke will kill the jerk who killed his clan and Natsuki will…"
Blue eyes turned to him as he trailed off. "Wait…what was your goal again, Natsu?"
(Freedom.)
Kurama looked between Naruto and the still struggling Sasuke and smirked. "Well someone has to keep you two from getting killed…"
"That's rich coming from you!" Sasuke snapped with a scowl as he stopped struggling to glare at him.
Their eyes met briefly and suddenly the three of them were laughing helplessly still entangled in Naruto's arms.
Kakashi watched his team chatting brightly as they walked down the path back home. A little over two weeks after leaving for the C-Rank and the team was closer than ever before. Even if the mission wasn't what he had been expecting when he chose it, he was content with the results. There were a few close calls everything seemed to work out in the end. No serious injuries or major traumatic experiences and his students were more determined than ever to get stronger as a team as well as individual shinobi.
They were close to Konoha now and everyone was in high spirits. He chuckled as Naruto took a swipe at Sasuke, only to get a whack on the back of the head from his brother. Sasuke smirked and said something, most likely taunting the blond. He received a smack as well. He watched as Naruto and Sasuke made a silent agreement with a single glance before they both pounced on Natsuki. Or at least they tried too, Natsuki darted forward quickly making them run into each other and leaped into the trees with a laugh. The other two took off after him growling out playful banter.
Kakashi chuckled to himself as he leaped into the trees to follow them.
His eyes settled on the orange haired Jinchuuriki's back and his laughter faded away slowly.
So, the Wave arc is now officially over! Let the Chunin Exams begin! But first, an explanation.
Naruto has the same issues that every other super long anime (and even books series) has, which is what I like to call retconning holes. The creators start out with a fairly small idea, but as they delve deeper into their world and plot, it blossoms into a more dramatic/epic story line that their original idea doesn't necessarily support very well, or at least not without a few holes left behind. You see, when I went into this arc I went and researched Zabuza and Haku to get a better feel for their characters and to decide how I wanted to portray them. It didn't occur to me when I was making my notes, but as I took a quick look at their bios again I realized there was a major issue with having them duke it out with Kurama. Namely, they are from a village with not one, but two Jinchuuriki and have led an outright rebellion against one of them. A rebellion they lost because his assassination attempt on that Jinchuuriki failed. They know what it's like to fight a jinchuuriki, they know how dangerous it is to go into that type of battle unprepared. So why the hell would they not immediately recognize what was going on and get out of dodge as quick as humanly possible? I was watching the episodes for reference and Haku was just like "What the fuck you doing, mate?" when Naruto went nine-tails on him and Zabuza just continued his battle with Kakashi, neither reacting as they should give their past. This is what I meant by retconning holes. Characters are given a past or more is learned about them later in the story that doesn't exactly match up with how they acted in the beginning. It also applies to plot points as well. Don't get me wrong, I do love Naruto, but in writing this fic I've noticed a lot of these holes as I try to plan for future events. It took me a little bit to work out how exactly I was going to working around this while still giving you guys a decent fight. I know some of you will be a bit disappointed, but I think this route worked out better for the plot and the characters themselves. Kurama will get some awesome battles later (I'm telling you guys, I have big plans for the Chunin exam) and both Zabuza and Haku are alive for later use in this story, so honestly, I'm counting this as a win all around. Let me know what you guys think. Sorry for the giant AN, but I wanted to try and explain my reasoning for both the longer than expected wait and the way this chapter went.
Anway, thank you guys for the reviews! I'm sorry I left you hanging like that, but I've already started on the next chapter, and have several scenes for the next arc already written, so hopefully, that'll go faster and I can get it done this summer.