Chapter 3: Don't Look At Me!
Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto
Warning: this chapter is for mature audiences only. This chapter will depict child abuse torture, and acts of a heinous nature. You have been warned.
(Hokage Tower)
It's been a day since Naruto was admitted to the hospital. Iruka is reporting to the Hokage about Naruto's condition.
"So there really isn't anything we can do about the mark on Naruto?" asked the third Hokage out of genuine concern for the boy.
"Nothing Hokage-Sama." Replied Iruka "We would have needed the skills of Lady Tsunade-Sama to get rid of the scar at the time, but sadly it's far too late to fix it." Iruka was still very upset about these events.
"That boy keeps facing challenge after challenge." Stated the third with sadness in his voice.
'Minato must be so disappointed' the seasoned Hokage thought to himself. He was brought out of these thoughts by a knock on the door.
"Iruka let them in please." Iruka simply nodded, and opened the door to reveal Kakashi, and Yamato in Jonin attire as opposed to their ANBU uniforms.
"Ah there you both are. Please give me some good news." Stated the Hokage with hope in his voice. He had sent these two out to find the culprit responsible for harming Naruto, and was eager to have some form of closure on this incident.
"Hokage-Sama, we regret to report that we have not captured the culprits." Started Kakashi before being interrupted.
"Culprits? As in more than one?" asked Iruka.
"Yes Umino-San I was getting to that" responded Kakashi. He waited a moment before continuing.
"We found the alleyway that the beating most likely occurred. What we found was large amounts of blood but beyond that no evidence other than a small piece of red ribbon." Yamato continued where Kakashi left off.
"What tipped us off to the existence of two culprits was just how empty the scene was. It was clean to the point where we could only prove Naruto was there, and that lead us to believe it was a pair of ANBU who accosted the young Uzumaki."
This revelation was shocking to the Hokage, but it did explain why there was so little know about what happened, but what really stuck with the old man was the red ribbon.
'Red ribbon? Where have I seen red ribbon?' thought the Hokage when it dawned upon him.
"Iruka do you remember if there were red ribbons tied to the kunai embedded in Naruto's back?" Questioned the Hokage.
"Yes Hokage-Sama I do remember red ribbons. Responded Iruka."Do you think Kakashi's red ribbon is linked to the Ribbon on the Kunai?" he asked.
"It's only a theory, but it's better than nothing." The third looked to Kakashi and commanded with authority.
"Yamato I want you to go ANBU headquarters and see if anyone likes red ribbon for any reason. If one of them only wipes his ass with ribbon I want to know. Kakashi You will go to Naruto and question him for anything he might know, and Iruka its best you return to your classes. You all have your orders you're dismissed.
"Hai, Hokage-Sama!" was replied in unison before the Ninja left in a swirl of leaves.
As the Hokage was about to start his paperwork he silently prayed that some results were on his way.
(Konoha Academy)
'I hope Naruto-Kun is okay' thought the shy Hyuga while she waited for class to begin. She sat towards the back as per usual, and did her best to disappear somewhat. Things were calm in class Sasuke came in.
Uchiha Sasuke was one of the last of his clan, a child prodigy, and the schools heartthrob. Hinata was the only one in her class who didn't want to hike up her skirt the moment he walked into the room, making her seem all the more strange to the giggling kunoichi swarming Sasuke.
"Sasuke-Kun!" was heard all throughout the room, but two were competing from the loudest spot. The two being one Yamanaka Ino, and Haruno Sakura. Ino, and Sakura at one point were best of friends but their friendship ended once Sasuke showed up. Sasuke came before friendship but sadly no one would come before Sasuke in the ladies minds.
'So it begins' thought the young Uchiha. 'I swear I could betray Konoha, and become an S class criminal, and still have fan girls.'Sasuke silently took his seek, and began to proactively ignore everyone.
As Iruka entered the room his students began to settle down. "Hello class sorry I am late I had some family emergency that took up most of my morning. How is everyone today?"
Sakura is the first to respond. "Fantastic, since Naruto isn't here." This sent a resounding "ooooooooh" through the class.
"E-excuse me Ms Haruno? You care to repeat?" questioned Iruka in disbelief.
"I said it's a fantastic day whenever Naruto is NOT around." Sakura calmly stated. "I only wonder what kept him out of class. Maybe we can all pitch in, and make sure he continues his out of class activities."
Iruka was shocked to hear such callous remarks from his student, but he was not ready for the bombs that were about to drop.
"Hey Sakura, Naruto is in the hospital. Maybe you should shut your mouth!" Hinata boldly suggested.
"Oh wow! The Hyuga speaks above a whisper." Was what Ino surprisingly retorted.
Slamming his fist on his desk Kiba suddenly shouted at Ino "How about you shut your whore mouth!"
Having picked his jaw off the floor, Iruka spoke. "ENOUGH! Haruno, Yamanaka, Inuzuka, and Hyuga sit down and be silent!" Hearing the serious tone in their sensei's voice they wisely shut up and sat down.
Taking a breath to calm himself Iruka spoke once more. "To confirm what Hinata said an incident occurred with Naruto. He sustained multiple injuries, and will be in the hospital for a couple of days."
Iruka knew at this moment he needed to get his class in a better state of mind "Okay we are going to do something a little different today. We are going to start class off with a small activity. I am going to point to each of you individually, and you will tell me about your favorite things that you like, or that relax you. Is that understood?"
"Yes sensei" the class uniformly said. Looking over the class Iruka thought to himself 'that's the loudest Hinata has ever spoken, and I already can see her returning to her own little bubble, and I honestly have no idea what that outburst from Sakura, Ino, Kiba was.
Iruka let out a soft sigh. "Choji you go first." Choji then stood up.
"Hai sensei. One thing that relaxes me would have to be enjoying a hot meal with friends, and family." Choji spoke with confidence.
"And why is that?" asked Iruka to the pleasantly plump Akimichi.
"Well Sensei I just feel so close to any friend or family member that would be willing to share a meal with me. Like we are together in a sense." Choji explained
"Hmmm all right so you feel a sense of comradery or teamwork when you eat with friends. Very good Choji."
As he sat down Choji felt a level of satisfaction within his answers, and had a warm smile on his face.
'Choji had a great answer, now who should go next?' Iruka thought before gazing upon Shikamaru.
"Ah Shikamaru you go next." Iruka had a slight smirk while forcing the laziest kid in class to answer his question.
"What a drag." Was the first thing out the young man's mouth "Well Sensei I guess I really like cloud watching. Cause doing anything else would be far too troublesome." Said the lazy genius.
"Is that all you have to say on cloud watching?" asked an amused Iruka.
"Yep" was all he got for a reply. Iruka simply rolled his eyes and scanned the room for the next student.
"How about you Sasuke what do you like?" Iruka was not prepared for the response.
"Sakura." Responded the child prodigy with certainty. As Sasuke slowly turned towards Sakura he continued.
"She is bold, majestic, calming, and beautiful."
"I love you too Sasuke-Kun!" exclaimed the overly excited Sakura, who managed to leap upon her desk in a single movement. Sakura teary eyed looked into Sasuke's eyes as he spoke once more with a cocky smirk on his face.
"But you, are annoying, abrasive, and obnoxious. Which clan do you come from again?"
Sasuke effectively shocked the entire room with his words.
"W-What, but I thought you liked me." The now silently sobbing Sakura responded.
"Oh no, I like the Song titled "Sakura Sakura" not you." Was all the Uchiha had to say to the saddened girl. Sasuke simply faced forward and resumed brooding, and Sakura sat down with her head hung low in shame.
'Kami that was low Sasuke' Ino thought as she glared daggers at Sasuke.
The class was stunned but no more so than Iruka who was speechless. Using the silence to collect himself he began to address the class.
"Well class I can honestly say I have never been more disappointed in each and every one of you than I am today. Starting with your treatment of hospitalized classmates all the way down to classmates in the same room as you. Each of you have shown a blatant disregard for the will of fire that we have tried to instill inside of you since your first year here. Since we seem to have a hard time remembering how to properly treat each other we will spend the rest of the class doing etiquette lessons."
Each student just silent sat in class and reflected on the events of the day.
(Konoha Hospital)
As Kakashi was approaching the nurse's stand he couldn't help but wonder which of his ANBU colleagues would do what they did to Naruto.
"Excuse me sir." One nurse saw Kakashi walking aimlessly, and tried to get his attention. Shocked out of his musings Kakashi turned to the nurse.
"Gomen miss. Could you point me to the room of Uzumaki Naruto?"
"Hai just follow me down this hallway" the nurse responded.
After a short walk the nurse stopped outside of a room, and turned to Kakashi.
"Before I let you in I need to warn you about Naruto. He has become very sensitive about the scar on his back. Do not ask to see it he will shut down, and ignore you for the entire time you are in the room." The nurse sternly advised.
"Alright so the scar has put a dent in Naruto's self-esteem?" asked the one eyed Jonin.
"Yes, but the word dent is a bit of an understatement. His self-esteem is borderline nonexistent . Please be gentle in your questioning."
"Hai, and thank you miss." As the nurse walked away Kakashi opened the door to Naruto's room.
It was a standard single patient room, and Kakashi easily spotted the young boy in bed reading what looked to be a textbook.
'Strange, it was my understanding that Naruto hated school.' Kakashi flashed his signature eye smile and greeted Naruto.
"Yo" was all the jonin managed to say before Naruto flew completely under his bed covers, causing Kakashi to sweat drop.
'Oh boy' Kakashi thought to himself before speaking once more.
"Gomen Naruto I did not mean to startle you. My name is Hatake Kakashi, and I am currently investigating the attack on you. I was wondering if you could tell me exactly what happened to you?"
Kakashi was greeted by an awkward silence before Naruto's voice was finally heard
"Hello Hatake-San, I would love to tell you what transpired on the evening of my beating under one condition."
'Naruto sounds surprisingly well mannered, and very well spoken for a habitual prankster' Kakashi silently mused
"That's fine Naruto, what is your condition?" questioned the one eyed Jonin.
"I am going to stay under these covers, and you will not ask me to come out." Naruto spoke with authority.
"I accept these terms. Now tell me what you remember from the incident." Kakashi responded.
Taking a deep breath Naruto began to tell the tale of his beating.
(Flashback :Warning following scene contains violent content)
"Who said we were taking you to the Hokage?" asked the feline mask wearing ninja.
"What do you me-?" the confused Naruto was interrupted from his question with a brutal backhand from Cat. Staggering back the powerful arms of Dragon grasped Naruto's off balance body, and flung him head first into the dead end alley wall. Sliding down the alley wall with a faint trail of blood following his body, the confused and dazed Naruto look up to the ANBU with a familiar feeling in his chest. Fear.
"Dragon I am disappointed that this little shit managed to get you so hot and bothered." Cat stated to his partner.
"Get bent Cat. I seem to remember you falling prey to the demons pranks not too long ago." Responded Dragon "Now what shall we do with IT Cat?"
Without responding Cat rushed Naruto, and lifted him by the neck. Whilst Naruto was held suspended, Cat seemed to be inspecting the child.
"Well dragon, sadly we cannot kill him lest we release the Kyubi No Youko." Answered Cat. Hearing this Naruto's eyes visibly widened at this revelation.
"You seem surprised demon. Was this truly the only time someone has revealed why everyone hates you?" Questioned Dragon.
Naruto for his part was far too stunned to even attempt a reply. Learning that he somehow housed the Kyubi rocked Naruto too his core. The ANBU ninja began to chuckle in amusement of Naruto's internal struggle.
"Well Demon it is all true. The Yondaime in all his power could not kill the beast, so he sacrificed his life to seal it into an unloved orphan child. That child being you." Dragon spat out in malevolence.
Cat took this moment to deliver a powerful right hook to Naruto's face, before dropping him to the ground. As he landed cat swiftly kicked Naruto in the stomach while he was down.
"Before we do this lets make sure you don't pass out." Flashing through some hand signs Cat called out his jutsu. "Kabin-Jutsu." (Hypersensitivity Jutsu)
For a moment Naruto felt nothing, but then in what can be described an unexpected overload Naruto's sense went haywire. Naruto's vision and hearing, which were already heighten do to the Kyubi, skyrocketed to the point where casual conversation was deafening.
"CAN YOU HEAR ME NOW?" Dragon asked in a very loud voice now amplified. Naruto's response was to scream in pain due to the loud noise simultaneously making it worse due to the sound of his own scream.
"Good, we cast a sensory jutsu on you that has heighten your five senses. Normally this could be used to hear from long distances or even see farther than our eyesight could normally. My friend Cat however increased these senses far beyond what is considered safe, and now you are feeling things beyond what your brain is able to block out." Dragon smugly explained.
Dragon then stepped up to Naruto, bent down, and began to gently caress his right leg. He started to massage the muscles and tendons as if he was with a lover. This confused Naruto greatly.
Suddenly Dragon pulled out a kunai knife, and began to repeatedly hammer the hilt into his leg, causing minor fractures that felt like debilitating breaks to Naruto. The young boy begged him to stop, but Dragon continued to pound relentlessly at Naruto's leg.
When the ANBU was convinced the boy's leg was shattered in multiple places, he stood up, and Cat soon replaced him.
"Raise your arm if you want this to stop." Cat said to Naruto. As Naruto began to raise his arm Cat held the limb, and snapped it over is knee causing Naruto's arm to fall limply to the ground.
(Present time)
"After that I cannot recall what transpired, other than immense pain, and stumbling into the Hokages office." Naruto said as his story came to an end.
"Well if that is all Naruto I will take my leave. Thank you for your time, and I wish you the speediest of recoveries." Said Kakashi as he stood up to report his findings to the Hokage.
"Kakashi-San?"
"Yes Naruto." Kakashi responded.
"Is it true? About me being the cage for…. well you know?" Naruto asked pain evident within his voice.
Letting out a sigh Kakashi responded to the young man. "Yes Naruto it is true."
Kakashi simply stood there as Naruto softly wept.
Authors Note: Well this chapter was not very Paragon (Mass Effect joke). On a serious not this chapter was very hard for me to write due to the subject matter. Well we introduced Sasuke and he is still pretty emo,and what was with that remark to Sakura? Totes Harsh am I right. Well eventually you will see why he likes that song just not too soon. Please review so I can stay motivated. Reviews are akin to Happiness in my book lol. Well I hope you have a wonderful -Ne and God Bless.