Sith'ari
Teaching
Naruto awoke in the same room he had slept in the night before. It was morning again.
'Was that even real?' he thought, remembering last night, the discoveries he had made, and the pledge he had given to…
"Yes, it was," a voice said. Naruto looked towards the door. There is where his master stood, but she was no longer like she had been in his mind.
"M-master, you are a gh – gho –" Naruto tried to say the word but failed.
His master rolled her eyes in annoyance, wishing she could have chosen an older boy for an apprentice, or at least a less emotional one. "Yes, I am a ghost, I know that," she said to him. "I doubt the mind of a five year old can understand how I have become like this, so leave it at that and stop being so scared."
Naruto nodded with a little hesitation.
"Good, now I have some question for you."
He nodded again.
"Where did you come from?"
"Konoha," he answered
"I was asking about the planet?"
He tilted his head. "What is a planet?"
"...Do you know what space is?"
"Space? It...um..." Naruto had heard before of what space was, but he had never really paid attention to it. XoXaan sighed. She wanted an apprentice, but she did not expect to have to teach him even the basic knowledge about the galaxy.
"Never mind, go eat your breakfast and then we can begin," she said. Naruto nodded and proceed to go eat his dried Tuk'ata. When he finished, he came back to his master. She continued to bombard him with questions after questions, mainly concerning the basic knowledge of the galaxy, such as 'what is Coruscant' in which Naruto wildly guessed was a type of bread. [1]
Before they even realized, it was already night time and she had a plan for her apprentice tonight after he went to sleep.
xxxxx
"What is this place, Master?" Naruto and XoXaan walked through the dark sewer that was Naruto's mindscape.
"You will see soon enough," she said to him. A few more steps and they arrived at the cage.
"So you are taking my jailor here with you this time," a voice called from behind the bars, as a fox slowly emerged.
"Naruto, meet your...prisoner, Kurama, the nine-tail fox" She said to Naruto whose eyes widened in shock.
"I believe you've heard of me," Kurama said to Naruto with a smirk.
"Y-you the demon everyone was talking about," Naruto said with fear.
"Ha! I maybe a demon in form, but they are demons in their hearts."
Naruto was about to say something, but then he remembered what happened last night and his face fell.
"See? I am not your enemy, I am your friend and your salvation. You need me if you hope to survive."
"What do you mean?" Naruto asked.
"Did you actually believe you were able to drag those dried creatures on your own? Or when you run from that giant, did you believe you have that kind of speed to outrun it? No, it was my doing, I enchanted your strength and agility back there. If it weren't for me, you'd be dead." Kurama smiled triumphantly.
Naruto said nothing as he stared at the fox and then at his master. "Why have you brought me here, Master?"
"Because it is necessary for you to understand and use the power that is within you. I do not understand what this power is." She gestured to Kurama. "Nor do I wish to study and use it. I am dead; it matters not to me, but to you, it does." She pointed at Naruto. "You could learn from it and exploit this power for your revenge and much more." She turned back to leave. "While I would love to chit-chat with you two, I would like to rest for a while. I will let you two sort things out on your own." She then disappeared, leaving her student with his prisoner.
"So what can I do for you, kid?" Kurama asked as he lay lazily down in his cage.
Naruto raised an eyebrow. "Why are you so-"
"Friendly?"
Naruto nodded hesitantly.
"Don't get the wrong idea, I still hate you like I hate most humans. But after the event last night, things… changed."
"How?"
"You changed, most human who had ever been my host were very vigilant; they all, what do you call again? Lightside? Yes, that is the word, they are all touched by the lightside. You on the other hand…"
"Am darkside?" Naruto asked.
"Yes. It made thing more interesting. Besides, without any ninja around, except for you, when I get out of this cage, no one will bother me; unless I bother them first of course."
"That still doesn't explain why you are so friendly toward me," Naruto said, crossing his arms.
"Don't you see? Without those ninjas on my back when I break free I will have true freedom. I just have to wait for the seal to weaken then escape. Currently though, I don't want that. I want to stay and watch where this path will take you and when you're about to die then I will break out; in the end I will win, I will have my freedom," the fox said with a grin. "But for now I will lend you my strength… within limits of course, because my long awaited freedom means nothing if I die along with you in here."
"I see…"
"So, is there anything else you want?"
"…"
There was a long silence.
"..."
"You can't think of anything, can you?"
Naruto nodded shamefully.
Kurama sighed. "Well…this is the first time you meet me after all, I will give you time to think," he said, and then the world was slowly consumed by white light.
xxxxx
Naruto awoke back in the real world where his master awaited him. Today, they could finally get on with their training.
Training year 1: B.B.Y. 59.
Notable event: The lost city of Wiyentaah is discovered on Polis Massa.
During the first year of his training, Naruto spent most of his time studying the galaxy rather than studying the art of the Sith. Coming from a pre-spaceflight world, he had no knowledge of, well, everything. XoXaan was forced to teach him; basic astronomy, basic physics, basic survival skills, basic technology, space travel, prominent locations that she presumed still existed, and other notable knowledge.
While he was studying, his master also told him of locations to gain food and water without much risk. For food, he could simply hunt the vermin that infested her temple, which was less dangerous than hunting Tuk'ata. For water, he had to travel a bit further from the tomb. West of her tomb was a small oasis where he could find a small water pond.
At the end of year, it seemed that Naruto was studying to become a galactic citizen rather than a Sith.
Training year 2: B.B.Y. 58.
Notable event: -Jango Fett is orphaned when his family of farmers is murdered by the Mandalorian Death Watch, and is picked up by former Journeyman Protector Jaster Mereel.
-The Battle of Concord Dawn begins.
-The Yinchorri gain representation in the Galactic Senate
During the second year, Naruto still had much to learn about the galaxy, which included the language: Galactic Basic Standard. That was also when he realized that he didn't speak the same language as his master did, so he asked how she could understand him. She only answered that he would know soon.
In the same year, his real Sith training had also begun. His master trained him in combat by making him practice using his Shikkar. For now, she only taught him about how to wield his weapon effectively rather than teaching him any real fighting style. He was doing well, but the same couldn't be said about his training with the Force. Naruto had a problem utilizing the Force; the best he could do was sense motions and, rarely, move an object an inch or two.
XoXaan also put him on several harsh trainings, such as hunting an adult Tuk'ata or climbing the steep cliffs of Korriban, all without Kurama' help. Most of the time, he ended up injured and was forced to drag himself back to the tomb; again without any help. She had also become much harsher: any mistakes committed during training sessions often resulted in Naruto being shocked by Force Lightning, but there was one time he had made a grave mistake and angered his master. His master used Force Cyrokinesis, a move which leached the heat from its victim, to teach him a lesson, which resulted in him almost being frozen.
With each mistake drawing him closer to death, Kurama decided to lend a hand or else he wouldn't live to see his freedom. He told the boy he could teach him some jutsu and other chakra techniques. Naruto accepted. Kurama began by teaching the boy how to walk on the wall, a practice which would help him control his chakra better. He could still barely do that, but Kurama believed he would get better as time passed.
Training year 3: B.B.Y. 57.
Notable event: Birth of Obi-Wan Kenobi on Stewjon.
The third year was uneventful on most parts. Naruto exceeded in his combat training and had moved on to the next level, by learning combat style and stance, such as Djem So which was one of the force user fighting technique. His study of the galaxy went smoothly as well. He could speak some Basic now, though barely understandable. Now, XoXaan finally began to teach him some Sith' lore and language. His Chakra' training was also coming along nicely: now, he was able to walk on the wall. He moved on to train his chakra' flow and focus point by meditating or gathering his chakra to one point of his body until it became invisible.
But what made the whole year uneventful was his Force training, the most vital of all train in XoXaan's eye. He was still terrible when using the Force. XoXaan knew the boy was sensitive to the Force, or else why would that Terentatek have hunted him down 3 years ago? Yet, he could not even lift an object for more than 5 seconds. Pushing him by punishment would only result in a drawback and leaving this issue untouched was not ideal. That was when she had an idea. The force was tied to the emotions and will of a person, so if she could force her apprentice into positions where his will and emotions were pushed to the extreme, maybe she could unlock his Force' potential.
One day, she finally executed her plan.
xxxxx
Another study session of Galactic Basic Standard for the 8 year old Naruto. After the end of his second year, the time his master spent teaching him about galaxy had become shorter and shorter. During his first year, his master spent most of her time teaching him about fascinating things in the galaxy: the stars, the sun, spaceships, aliens, and that sort of thing. It was like listening to storybooks, only…well, it was real.
"That will be all for today," his master suddenly said.
Naruto blinked in surprise. Normally, these lessons would take the whole day, but it was only early afternoon.
"Now you're wondering why I ended our lesson early than usual, correct?"
Naruto nodded.
"I think it's time you change your gear." She pointed at his old cloth, which was little better than rags.
"Close by, to the south of here, there's a place called the 'Sith Academy'. It was used to train Sith during the reign of the 'Sith Emperor', and now it's abandoned. There should be something left for you there to salvage. That will be your mission for the rest of the day," XoXaan said before disappearing.
Naruto took up his Shikkar and a few other supplies and, without delaying, departed to the Sith Academy.
xxxxx
It didn't take long for Naruto to reach the academy. He had seen the academy from afar on several occasions. It was a gigantic pyramid shaped building, and this was the first time he had ever set foot into the academy. The once great university of dark arts now lay in ruins and was but a shadow of its former self; but so did every place in this valley.
As he walked through the hallway of the academy, he could imagine what this place used to be like. A busy hallway full with students, teachers, scholars, acolytes, and warriors running around; hurrying to their businesses. It made him wish to see what this place used to be like.
Naruto checked the building, room by room, hallway by hallway, for anything of value, but despite all the efforts, he could not find anything. He might not know exactly when the academy had been abandoned, but it must have been a long time ago, because not a single valuable object could be found in this place beside the stone and metal that was used to build the place.
After hours of searching, he began to believe there would be no benefit to this mission. He could not gain entry to the higher floors, closer to the summit of the pyramid. The door was sealed by some strange symbols. From what his master had told him, it could possibly be Sith sorcery, something he was not ready to face or learn yet. He also could not gain an entry to the underground area of the academy either, because there was a giant boulder blocking him, which seemed to be reinforced with Sith alchemy and sorcery as well.
As he explored the available parts of the Academy, he stumbled upon something, a closed doors with the smallest bit of space open. Every floor he had explored before had its doors opened wide, but this one was not. Maybe there was something worth salvaging inside. The door control panel was already destroyed, which meant he could only open the door through brute force.
He took out his Shikkar, and stuck it between the door and the empty space, using the Shikkar as a lever.
After a few pushes, he stopped for a minute, exhausted. The door did not move at all. Maybe he needed to put more strength into it. He gave it a few more tries before the door began to move. With enough space, Naruto was able to use his hand to push the rest of the metal gate open.
The room was completely dark. Naruto took out a torch and lit it up. With the light, he could see what was inside the room. There were several lockers on the left and right sides of the room, and at the end of it, there was a computer console.
He walked into the room and began searching for anything worth salvaging. Fortunately, he finally found something. He found a set of black clothes, made for someone a little older than him, probably ten to twelve years old. Its design made it obvious that it was made to wear by the Sith apprentices at the academy. After packing the clothes, he turned his attention to the computer console.
He looked at it closer; this was the first time he saw a machine that his master had told him about. He observed the broken console: he had no idea how this actually worked but he knew the basics. From what his master had told him, you clicked on the buttons on the panel and…things would start popping up in front of him, but even Naruto could see that this console was broken.
He examined the console further, trying to determine whether the console was repairable or not. After observing it for several minutes, he believed he had found what was wrong: there was a part missing. He guessed it could be the battery.
He walked out of the room and began his journey back to his master' tomb.
xxxxx
"An intact console, you said?" XoXaan asked her apprentice.
"Yes, master. Though there's a part that's missing from it, and my guess is that it's the battery," Naruto explained to his master.
"Hmm, I see." XoXaan's plan hadn't gone as she had expected. Her apprentice did not encounter any dangers out in the desert of Korriban or at the Academy, but at least he discovered something. A console would prove useful to Naruto's study of the galaxy. While the information in the console may be outdated, it was still better than what she could offer, due to the fact that she had not made contact with anyone for thousands of years. Having her apprentice retrieve a power core would also benefit her plan.
"There a crashed battleship far to the north of this tomb, you may find something there."
Naruto looked at his master curiously. "Sorry, Master, but if this ship crashed long ago, shouldn't it be looted already?"
"Believe me, my apprentice; even the looters couldn't possibly have searched the whole battleship. Moreover, we are on a planet where there are hardly any advanced life forms," XoXaan said to her apprentice. "And you may want to travel now, the night is upon us meaning that the Tuk'ata will be less aware of your presence. This journey may take a few days to complete, go now and waste no time."
"Yes, Master." Naruto said with a small bow and went to pack some of his things. He left his new clothes at the tomb, deciding they still needed some repair before he could wear them properly.
xxxxx
It took Naruto two days to make his journey to the wreckage of the battleship. He followed his master's advice and traveled only at night, when the predators became less active, and now rose the dawn on the third day.
He was on a cliff a few kilometers away from the crashed ship, but from here, he could clearly see the wreckage of the battleship. It was triangular-shaped, with the middle of the head and mid ship split into two sides. It was incredibly enormous, approximately 800 meters long. This was his first time seeing a starship so he had no idea whether this was an average type of ship or larger than normal. It was also, surprisingly, intact, and perhaps it could be repaired. He could not let that thought distract him on his plan to acquire the battery. [2]
After another long walk, he arrived at the wreckage. He walked through a yard filled with different metals, ranging from small steel scarabs to large towers of alloy. His focus, though, was on the inside of the ship. He would start from the bridge because of what his master had to tell him, that the starship bridge was where the commanding center should be, and where there was a commanding center, there would be lots of computers.
What he didn't realize is that as soon as he stepped in the battleship, he had alerted two predators that lived within.
Let the hunt begin...
xxxxx
[1] I try to make a joke about how similar it is that when you pronounce 'Coruscant', it came close to sound like you said 'croissant'. Alas, Naruto came from eastern culture, which mean he had no knowledge of French word, so I can't just said "he guessed that 'Coruscant' was a type of croissant." Too bad, I really wanted to write that joke.
[2] The Harrower-class dreadnought; if you want me to post a picture of it in my profile, please tell me.
