Run Away

By: Naruto's Mask

NM-chan: EEEEE!!!!! I MADE A LONG CHAPPY!!!! First time in my life. I hope it is satisfactory. Ooo, you're going to hate me for the ending. Not so much what the ending is, just where I decided to end it. I know you're going to hate.

All right, just to let you know, there are going to be flashbacks until the timeskip. I was told it brings tears, so be warned. I think it could have gone better, but you get what you get. I did promise a long chapter and a long chapter is what I'm going to give you(although it isn't as long as I would have liked)! Enjoy!

Sakura sighed as she sat in the middle of her bed. It was the middle of the night and she was still awake, and not the least bit tired. Too many things have happened in the last 48 hours and she was having too much trouble absorbing it all it. When Tsunade said that they wouldn't be able to look at Naruto in the same light, she wasn't kidding. But instead of hating Naruto, like Iruka said most of the villagers did, she began hating herself.

"What…what do you mean?" Ino said in surprise when Tsunade finished telling them about they seal. She was the only one brave enough to speak. Even Sasuke was staring at the elderly woman with wide eyes. The only people in the room who weren't so shocked were Iruka and the sand siblings.

"Exactly what I told you. Naruto is the vessel of the Kyuubi. Now, before you start thinking like your parents, Naruto is not the Kyuubi himself. That's just the excuse the villagers cooked up to make them feel better about beating up a small child." Tsunade said the last part sourly, and Sakura gasped.

"Wait, are you telling me that they actually abused him because of it?" She asked her. Iruka sighed sadly next to her and looked at the younger ninjas in front of him.

"They did more than that, Sakura. Ever since he was born, Naruto has been the receiver of all the hatred the villagers felt for the Kyuubi. He was ignored, and shunned by them. And that was nice compared to what some of them did. If they weren't ignoring him, they insulted him. Called him a demon and a monster. The bolder ones would gang up on him and beat him. He would call for help, but people passing by would ignore him, congratulate his attackers for their bravery, or even helped abuse him. The worse thing is that he never even knew why until Mizuki told him the day he graduated." They stared at him in shock, and they became angry. Even Shikamaru was shaking in anger at the information they just received.

"We all knew what was happening, but Naruto would never tell us directly, so there was nothing we could do about it. Many of us were lucky to witness and put a stop to some of the abuse, but the problem was that Naruto would never turn anyone in, so the abuse would continue. Even so, he once said to me that he preferred it, rather than be completely ignored. That's why he started pranking. He wore a mask of idiocy and happiness so that he could not only receive some attention, but so that we wouldn't know of his grief and we wouldn't worry. That boy was always more concerned with the welfare of others rather than his own." Tsunade smiled fondly, but shook herself out of her small trance and looked at the group sternly.

They were all quiet, too stunned to say anything. So that was the secret of their blond friend? The boy that had greatly affected their lives in one way or another had this burden on his shoulders, and none of them ever knew about it? Not his teammates, not even Hinata, who had always watched him, really knew about his life. All those smiles, and the laughter, were any of those real when they came out of him?

"I refuse to stay in a place where I can't even go to sleep at night without the fear of killing me." Sakura murmured, and everyone turned to her. "That was what he said to me before he left…I didn't understand it at the time, but…" She trailed off as tears welled in her eyes. Ino put her arm around her friend comfortingly and the pink haired girl started to cry.

"How could I have been so stupid? Every day, he would come up to me and say hi or good morning and I almost never returned the favor. He saved me so many times, and the only thing I've ever done was insult him or hit him! I can't believe that I…I was so cruel. I never listened to him. I was never even remotely nice to him. If I paid just a little more attention, maybe I would have noticed, and maybe I could have helped, but…I didn't." She said sobbing into Ino's shoulder.

"None of us did." Tenten admitted.

"So…" Tsunade said, breaking the solemn silence. "What do you want to do?" They all looked at her, trying to find the right words to say, before Shino spoke up.

"We want to find him." He stated simply.

"We want to apologize for never paying him any attention." Ino muttered.

"And for never thanking him for everything he's done for us." Neji said.

"I want to kick those villager's sorry asses for even thinking about laying a hand on our friend!" Kiba snarled. Tsunade smiled and Iruka did as well. He was glad that he was wrong about what he thought.

"I'll have some of our nins start gathering information on where he is." Gaara muttered, reminding everyone of their presence. Tsunade nodded and pulled up some paper from her desk.

"You will all be assigned to try to find and retrieve that boy. I'm trying to keep the council at bay, but if we don't find him soon, he will be labeled as a missing nin. So we need to avoid wild goose chases. Be careful, however. He's been sending our people in circles with those damnable Kage Bunshnis of his." She told them.

"Well, then, that will be a problem." Shikamaru said.

"Yes, but I'm sure we can get him back. You're dismissed for now, but expect to be coming back after the council finishes yelling at me for taking to long to label him a missing nin." She sighed.

"Hai, Hokage-sama!"

Sakura sniffed and pulled her knees to her chest. She asked to stay, knowing that, in her current state, she would be completely useless when trying to find Naruto. She kept on thinking back to the times she spent with Naruto, and the amount of times she could remember being kind to him…well, she could count them off on one hand. She never thought of it before, her mind usually being too occupied by Sasuke one way or another, but she really was so cruel to him. And whenever he did something for her, she either didn't acknowledge it, or threw it back in her face.

She was a lot kinder to him now compared to their academy days, but thinking about those days made her even more depressed. Especially when they first became teammates.

"Sasuke-kun, where are you?" Sakura called when the class was dismissed for lunch. They were already separated into groups and, after lunch, they were supposed to meet their Jounin senseis.

"Why did he go running off so fast? Since we're in the same group and all I thought we could have lunch together and get to know each other." She muttered sadly. Behind her, Naruto came walking up, waving happily when he saw her.

"Hey, Sakura-chan! Since we're in the same group, I thought maybe we could have lunch together and get to know each other." He said with his usual smile. Sakura glared at him in annoyance.

"Why would I eat lunch with you? How could that thought even cross your mind?" She demanded angrily that he could even think that she would be seen in public with the class idiot.

"But, we're in the same group, so, you know, I just thought…" But she cut him off with a snobbish glare.

"Naruto, you're annoying." She snapped before going off and looking for Sasuke.

NM-chan: DIRECT QUOTE! OH YEAH!!! Well, I added the suffixes, but, other than that, directly from the dub!

I'm so ashamed of myself. He just wanted to do the same thing with me that I wanted to do with Sasuke. No wonder Sasuke was so mad at me, especially after I called Naruto selfish because he grew up with no parents. Now that I think about it, if I grew up under those conditions, even without the abuse from the villagers, I could never have survived. More tears streamed down the pink haired kounochi's face the more she thought about her relationship with Naruto.

That's it! If…no, WHEN we find Naruto, I'm going to be the nicest person in the world, you'll see! I will never insult him or hurt him for as long as I live! I swear it! She thought determined to keep that promise. But first, she had to find Naruto, and that's exactly what she was going to do. Tomorrow. The moment I wake up, I'm going to Tsunade-sama and telling her that I'm going to help. We'll get you back, Naruto! You've helped us, so we're going to help you!

With those thoughts still in her mind, Sakura laid on her bed and pulled the covers over herself, trying to fall asleep. Even as she did, tears still seeped from her eyes as she fell into fitful dreams.

NM-chan: Kay, this is going to be a timeskip, and I usually stop the chap here and put the timeskip into the next chapter. But I promised a long chap, and that's what you're going to get. So, if it seems a little corny, then, too bad. It must be corny for you to get the long chappy. Bazanee!

Three years later:

"Paperwork, paperwork, I HATE PAPERWORK!!!!" A loud voice cried in the middle of a dark village. Many citizens looked up to a large tower, where the cry had come from, but most disregarded it or started giggling to themselves at their usually calm leader's frustration. Inside of the tower, many people started adjusting frames and papers that had gone askew because of that outburst, but, all in all, it seemed as if everyone was used to this kind of thing. And they were.

"Ano…I don't think this is a good time." A nin said outside of the man's office. The secretary was picking up papers (more paperwork) that had fallen off her desk, but she seemed highly amused.

"With what you have to tell him, it will be adding salt to a wound. Of course, he has a lot more paperwork coming to him, so I think you should get it over with." She advised, motioning to the three stacks on her desk that she had yet to deliver. The nin nodded and sighed, putting his hand on the knob of the door and opening it. He could feel the sweatdrop he got from what he saw, or…what he couldn't see.

And what he couldn't see was their beloved leader, for he was currently hidden behind at least six large stacks of paperwork surrounding his desk. But, before the man decided to slip away, his presence was found and two stacks were separated from each other.

"Did you need something, Izu-san (note, I will not describe OCs that will never be mentioned again)?" He asked. Izu gulped slightly and scratched the back of his head nervously.

"Yeah…I was here to give you the location of the Chunin exams. I wanted to wait until you were in a better position, but…"

"My secretary has another mountain for me, doesn't she?" There was a nod, and the middle aged man sighed in annoyance. "I swear, I would have never agreed to become Yamikage if it meant sitting on my butt signing my name a hundred times."

"Yes, well, here is the location, teams, regulations, and rules for the exams, Tatsuya-sama." He said putting a slip of paper on the table. The dark haired male glared in annoyance at the new slip of paper, but he read it over anyways. His eyes widened and he looked at Izu, who seemed to have expected such a reaction.

"Tatsuya-sama…"

"No."

"But sir-"

"Izu-san, you have to understand I can not go to a place that will endanger the welfare of one of this village's most trusted nins. Have you forgotten that he is the only reason our genins are as powerful as they are?" Tatsuya asked him.

"Sir, please. It is true that our forces are strong, but it is because of this that we must go. The chunin exams are the little guarantee that the other villages don't feel threatened by us and join together to destroy us. Our ninjas are powerful, there's no doubt in anyone's mind, but we're still new. We shouldn't make too many enemies too soon. You know he would tell you the same thing." Izu told him.

Tatsuya sighed and propped his elbows on his desk and rested his forehead in his hands. "Three years…he volunteered for three years to teach a trio of genins, and only this year was he able to pass his team." He muttered and sighed.

"Sir, we could bring Kyo-san along with us. You know it would ease things. His team wants to participate, you know as well as I do that we can't deny them that." The elder man nodded and sighed.

"I just hope he won't be too upset over it…"

Back in Konoha, people were bustling about. Some were running back and forth frantically, whereas others were calmly strolling about. Either way, they were all busy preparing for something.

"So, chunin exams are coming up again?" A tired voice said on the top of a grassy hill. Shikamaru stretched his arms and looked contentedly at the clouds.

"Seems like it. Tch, I can't believe we're hosting it again, so troublesome…" He muttered and there was a giggle next to him. Shikamaru's gaze turned to the eighteen-year-old blond girl next to him.

"Tsunade tried to prevent it, with everything we're trying to do, but the council is determined to make sure we host. From what I've heard, they want to get her mind off of finding Naruto. The longer he's gone, the sooner killing him on sight is a must. They want to make sure we're all too busy to actually find him." She said.

"Everyone knows that, Ino-pig." They both turned to see a pink haired konouchi walking up to them.

"Hey there, Billboard Brow." Sakura rolled her eyes and smiled at the pair. Out of everyone, it seemed that Naruto's original teammates were more determined than anyone to find him. Sasuke, mostly because he felt as if he was indebted to Naruto. Either way, nothing was going to get in their way when it came to finding the blond.

For the past three years, the three teams have been burdened with the knowledge of Naruto's secret. It wasn't so really knowing it that was a burden. Hell, they were glad they knew so that they would be more considerate of Naruto. What was a burden was holding back their anger towards the village. Some, like Kiba, didn't hold back at all. He had taken up Naruto's role as village prankster, although the pranks were a bit more dangerous than what Naruto was known for.

Even though they were all being forced to put effort into the exams in some way, they still weren't discouraged from trying to find their blond friend. Even if this exam seemed to be a little bit more important to the village that usual. They honestly couldn't care less about anything that was important to the village.

"Did you hear? This is the first time we're hosting a chunin exam with that new village participating. Everyone's eager to please since this village has such a strong fighting force and everyone wants them to create a firm alliance with Konoha. With the way these people treat their protectors, I wouldn't be surprised if the request is thrown back in our faces." Ino muttered. It was kind of surprising how almost all their opinions towards their village had suddenly turned sour after they were told how Naruto was treated. There was even ill will towards some of their parents. Sakura's father threatened to kick her out of the house should she succeed in finding him. That just resulted in her moving into an apartment near Ino's flower shop.

Discovering Naruto's secret was actually something most of them needed. Because this was their home, and the place most of them grew up securely and safely, they never really thought that a large group of villagers could commit such a wrong. Sure, the occasional psycho would show up, but that happened less there than in any other village. This was mostly due to the fact that they had such good Hokages. However, knowing that more then nine-tenths of the villagers treated Naruto as a demon instead of as the hero his father wanted him to be seen as. Because they were able to see one great wrong, they were able to realize a great deal more that most would disregard because they felt it was necessary.

"How long has this village been around? I don't remember hearing anything about it during the academy." Sakura said, thinking about it.

"You wouldn't have." Shikamaru suddenly spoke up. "It was created only five years ago, by a man named Tatsuya and his companions. No one really paid any mind to it the first two years since everyone was so sure that they were too weak to become an actual hidden village. The people who helped create the village brought children who were going to become the village's first registered nins. After the first batch was less than satisfactory, people began disregarding them and wouldn't acknowledge them as a hidden village. It was only a few years ago that they changed their training tactics, and now genins taking the exams are dangerous. Especially since they seem to have a special grudge against Konoha."

"What's the name?"

"Yamigakure. The Village Hidden in the Darkness. It's supposed to be completely covered in darkness 24/7 and it's nearly impossible to find if they don't want you to find it. Oh, speaking of which, I need to get going. I was forced to help out at the inn where all our guests will be staying." Ino sighed.

"I'll help." Sakura decided as her friend stood up. Shikamaru barely made a noise of acknowledgement that they were going and Sakura rolled her eyes at how lazy the boy was.

As they walked, they noticed that it was more crowded than usual. It wasn't so surprising since the Chunin exams were starting the next day. Among the various hitai-ate, Sakura noticed a strange, new symbol. A black, crescent moon.

"Those must be from Yamigakure." Ino whispered noticing Sakura staring at a trio of twelve-year-olds who were standing outside of Ichiraiku's. The pink haired girl nodded and followed her to Konoha's largest inn, where most of the foreigners were heading.

"Ino-chan! Ino-chan, over here!" A 15-year-old girl cried, jumping in over the large crowd.

"Come on, Billboard Brow, we got guests to entertain." Ino smirked and went behind the counter, her friend following behind her. It was all a rushed blur to her, giving out keys to reserved rooms and pointing them which way each room was, sometimes sending them the wrong way.

"Hello there, ma'am." A kind voice said. Sakura took notice of this, since most of the voices she heard were loud and rough. She looked up and saw a strange man that she had mistook for a woman for a second. Green eyes sparkled merrily as his red hair hung over his shoulders. The symbol for Yamigakure was sewn on his red shirt and his hitai-ate was tied around his forehead, even though he seemed too…kind to be a ninja. Of course, looks could be very deceiving.

"Good afternoon, do you have a reservation?" she asked. He nodded happily.

"Hai. Three rooms under 'Atsusa'." He said. That was easily found, since the name started with an 'A'. She nodded and went to fetch the keys. As the keys dropped into the smiling man's hand, there was a loud shriek heard from outside.

"MONSTER!!!" Sakura's head shot up and she looked over to Ino, who had the same shocked expression. They both nodded and ran out, but froze at the sight in front of them.

There was a blond male, sitting in the middle of the road. Blood seeped from a small cut on his cheek, spilling over three, whisker-like scars. Blue eyes stared unemotionally towards an obviously distressed woman.

"WHERE'S THE ANBU?! THAT DAMN DEMON IS BACK!!!!" The woman shrieked.

"Stop it!" A voice called. Everyone turned and Sakura was surprised to see the same man that she had just spoke with inside of the inn. The man ran up to the blond on the ground, who seemed to snap out of whatever trance he was in.

"Kyo, did you get he rooms?" He asked as if nothing happened at all. He stood, dusting himself off as he turned towards the red head, now known as Kyo. Sakura was stunned. That face was so familiar, but it was different. She was so used to seeing that face stretched out into a wide grin and those eyes swimming with mischievousness and happiness.

"Naruto…" She heard Ino murmur behind her.

"Of course I did, but never mind that, you're hurt!" Kyo said with a concerned expression, but Naruto waved it off.

"It's nothing, and we expected that, remember? Besides, it's healed already." He said with a soft smile on his face.

"You have a lot of nerve coming back here you traitorous, damn, FREAK!" A man growled, walking threateningly towards the blond, but Kyo stepped in front of him. "Move out of the way! That monster isn't worth protecting!"

"Well, then it's a good thing I'm not protecting a monster." He said defiantly.

"Why you lousy, son of a-"

"Is there something wrong here?" All eyes turned, once again, and they saw a regal-looking man walk in the middle of the path.

"Tatsuya-sama!" Both Naruto and Kyo stood upright and turned towards the man, bowing respectfully.

The Yamikage. So that's him…Ino thought looking at the stern, but gentle looking man. He walked up to Naruto and put a hand on his cheek, wiping some blood onto his fingertips. He then looked at the people in front of him, most either staring at him in shock, or glaring at Naruto.

"Would you be so kind as to explain to me why you attacked one of my nins? That could be interpreted as a declaration of war against my village considering he is the leader of a genin team and there is supposed to be a highly strict law against attacking a genin instructor starting today." He said, calmly, but the anger could be heard in his voice.

"You're nin? Sir, with all due respect, I don't know what that beast has told you, but he is a missing nin from Konoha. The demon hasn't even passed the chunin exams, so there is no way he could be qualified to be an instructor." The man who Kyo had stood up to said, sneering at the blond boy. Disturbingly enough to the elders who have tormented Naruto before, the blond made no effort to even acknowledge that he had been called those things.

"Actually, he had already been pardoned for his crimes by the daimyo himself (I don't know where I heard it, but I heard each country had a daimyo. If it isn't true, I'm sorry). Although his only crimes were leaving and knocking out his teammate. Definitely not something to merit such treatment. Also, the genin instructors are not assigned by their rank as nin, but their ability to teach their teams about the life outside the village." He said. There was a noticeable tick in his eye as he obviously tried to restrain himself from lashing out at the man's insults towards Naruto.

"Tatsuya-sama." Naruto suddenly said. "Sir, the reason we are here is for our genins. Please, do not trouble yourself with trivial matters such as this. You have enough paperwork as it is." He said the last part with a small grin. Tatsuya paled and coughed.

"Yes, well, you need to meet up with your genin team. They have nearly completed the laps you assigned them. Kyo-san, I need to speak with you for a moment, please." Tatsuya said. Kyo nodded and followed him. Sighing, Naruto turned around, and flinched slightly at the sight of the Konoha villagers glaring coldly at him. Then his eyes finally laid on two, familiar girls.

"Hello there Sakura-chan, Ino-chan." He said with a kind smile.

"Naruto…it's…great to see you." Sakura said, not knowing what exactly she could say to him. After all, he'd been gone so long, and they've been fighting to get him back for the same amount of time. Also, she didn't know how to react to this new Naruto she was seeing.

That must be what he really looks like without his mask. The Naruto I always saw was always so confident and filled with pride. This Naruto…the real Naruto…he looks a lot calmer, and a lot more vulnerable. Yet, the feeling I'm getting from him isn't vulnerability, he has such an air of strength and self-confidence. Is this really him? She thought looking at the male in front of her.

"Naru-chan!" Naruto turned to see Kyo running towards him. "I almost forgot two things." He said with a smile.

"What is it?" The blond asked.

"This." He said putting three keys in his hand. "And this…" After saying that, he bent down and placed a chaste kiss on Naruto's lips.

NM-chan: Hope you enjoy! Yes, Naruto is going to be paired with Kyo. Possibly for the rest of the story unless it leads to the second possible pairing. I really like Kyo, so I don't want to break his heart, but I may if I must. Or I could just do a threesome and they're both happy. I dunno. Read and review, people. I did test this as a chapter and noticed it wasn't as long as I had hoped it was. Damn. Oh well, you got your long chapter, shonen ai, and some fluff! Oh, and HAPPY CHRISTMAS!!!!!!!