Author's note: Welcome all to the newest chapter of "Poison is for Those Who Can't Forgive." Last chapter took a while to write and this one took about as long, if not longer. This latest edition is actually getting toward the general plot, well it hints at it at least. I'm going to drag it out a bit. Naruto doesn't even meet Sasuke for almost a year from when the story started and a lot happens before their first encounter, so please bear with me. Now have fun enriching your life with chapter three!

Poison is for Those Who Can't Forgive + + + Poison is for Those Who Can't Forgive

"And we kissed each other one more time, and sing this lie that's half way mine" - Flyleaf

CHAPTER THREE

Sorrow

Last Time on "Poison is for Those Who Can't Forgive"

"What the fuck are you doing here Tsunade?" I said vehemently.

"Oh nothing. I just heard that you learned about Sarutobi's impending death." She said blatantly.

"You don't have to be so straight forward about it!" I responded. Her attitude really pissed me off, even more than Neji's did.

"Well, after he dies, you and Raeyl are under mine and Jiriaya's custody." She said with a sadistic smirk.

"Oh hell no!"

Poison is for Those Who Can't Forgive + + + Poison is for Those Who Can't Forgive

"Now Naruto, it's not that awful to live with us. You'll have more freedom than you do now, and you'll even get to help me with my duties as Hokage. How does that sound?" Tsunade tried to sound like a decent human being, but it did not work.

"Tsunade, if you wanted to be our guardian you had 15 years to make that decision! Oh, and this thought just occurred to you now that Sarutobi-sensei is at death's door! What's more, you wait until I learn that fact for myself!" I yelled at full volume. Today was just one shock after the next and I was too tired to deal with any of it. All I wanted to do was go to sleep and sort it all out in the morning while I took my shower.

"Now Naruto, Sarutobi didn't want you guys to get adopted until after he was gone. He wanted to watch you grow up and to teach you everything he knew." She said in an even tone. "Did you know that Jiriaya and I used to live here with Sarutobi?"

"No," I said, though it sounded more like a question.

"We did. At that time there was another boy, Orochimaru, but you don't want to know about that bastard," she said. She finally realized Neji's presence in the room. "Oh, hi Neji." She half waved. "Anyway, Sarutobi was Hokage at the time,"

"What!? That old geezer was Hokage?" I said in disbelief. I just thought he lived at the Hokage Manor for all these years and took care of orphans for all of his life, not that he once was Hokage himself at one point. This day was just getting longer and longer by the minute.

"Yes he was." she said, she seemed wary from all of my interruptions but I didn't care. I never once cared when I frustrated her or made her mad, I never liked her much anyway and I loved to make her feel the same way she made me feel, pissed.

"Now Naruto, you must understand this was before the war. Sarutobi was the best martial artist in all of Fire Country, but he got ill with a rare disease and decided to train three of the Manors orphans so that one day one of us would become Hokage. For years we all trained, but than the war came, I was in my mid-twenties at the time, so were Jiriaya and Orochimaru, and we immediately defended our beloved village. However, the doctors told Sarutobi he could not help because he was too important and too that much strain would kill him even before the enemy could get a chance to. The fact that he couldn't even help save his own village is why he couldn't be Hokage anymore. I believe that he thought that if he quit he would be allowed to fight, but that wasn't the case." she said, her voice sorrowful.

"Why are you telling me all of this?" I said as I laid my head on my pillows. I was tired and my throat hurt from all the yelling I had just done. The quicker Tsunade and Neji were out of my room, the quicker I could sleep.

"No real reason." she turned around and began to leave the room, this is when I noticed she had left my door wide open. That bitch! "I just thought you'd like to know a little about Sarutobi-sensei, since he died twenty minutes ago." a single tear ran down her face as she turned to leave my room, quietly shutting the door behind her.

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Grief and sorrow are synonymous with death. You cannot think of the death of a loved one without thinking about all the sad people who also loved this person, all crying. When the person who died was the only type of parental unit you were used to it is all the more difficult to deal with the emotions that are bombarding your heart so much.

That's how I was for the first few days after Sarutobi-sensei's death. The Manor itself seemed to be engulfed in a storm of sorrow after Sarutobi-sensei died. Raeyl, on the other hand, cleaned and cooked and did all the shopping, it was as if she was doing her everyday routine, but anyone who knows her would realize that wasn't the case.

Her routine was to complain abut her chores and to break almost half the things in the Manor while yelling at Sarutobi-sensei and me. She was cleaning out of grief, that fact made me even sadder than I was before.

Tsunade and Jiriaya, along with the entire Hyuuga Clan, helped Raeyl and me with the funeral arraignments. Neither Raeyl nor I knew anything about Sarutobi-sensei's family, nevertheless who else would need to be informed. Thankfully, everyone else seemed to know. The funeral was set four days after his death.

Many people from outside of Konohagakure, and even from outside of Fire Country came to the funeral. Most of them didn't say a word, but three individuals did, and I will never forget our encounter with them that day.

"I'm sorry for your loss," said a man with gravity defying silver hair. He had a mask covering his lower face and he was wearing sunglasses to cover his eyes, but if you looked at his left eye, you could still identify a vertical scar that started above his eye and ended below it.

Raeyl and I just politely bowed, but the man touched my chin and forced me to look at his sunglasses covered eyes.

"You do look like your father," he said with a smirk, though it was hard to tell because his mouth was covered. "Well, I'll see you two at school." He removed his hand from my face and walked away.

After he moved, I noticed a man behind him, he reminded me of a dolphin for some reason.

"Goodbye Naruto. See you in Kumo!" he waved as he followed the other man. Raeyl and I just exchanged confused looks. Do I know them? Do they know me?

Near the end of the funeral, everyone had left, Sarutobi-sensei's family came and they glared at us when they walked by.

"They probably believed it's our fault he's dead," I said as we watched them get into their car ad leave down the road.

The rain had been pouring down during the entire funeral service and near the end, it was the worst. Raeyl and I stood before the grave and we saw a shadow creep across the white marble headstone.

"I see . . . the old man chose to teach two rather than three." A snake like voice said from behind us. We both slowly turned to face the mysterious man. all I could say about this man was that he looked like a snake, his eyes slit and oval the same way a snakes are.

"I guess he was too ill to take on another," he started at my eyes for a long moment. "Well, what are you're name my dear children?"

"Raeyl Okami, sir," Raeyl said as she bowed. I could tell by the subtle tone in her voice that she was suspicious of this man. I didn't say anything I just stared at his eyes, they were intriguing. A long moment of silence passed between us.

"Blondie. What's your name?" he said to me

"Oh, I'm Naruto Uzumaki."

"Well it's nice to meet you Uzumaki-kun, Okami-chan. My name is Orochimaru-sama." He said, that smile on his face got larger.

"Sama?" I asked, I meant to say it in head but it came out of mouth.

"Is that a problem for you Uzumaki-kun?" his voice sounded irritated and his eyes glared at me.

"Naruto isn't the brightest boy in Fire Country. I apologize for any rude comments he may say in your presence." Raeyl interjected before I had a chance to say something stupid. I gave her a grateful look with the side of my eyes.

"You're one interesting girl Okami-chan - exactly how I remember you to be," he said, extending his hand to caress her face. She cringed but didn't pull away. I was shocked she didn't break the creeps arm; she'd normally do that in heartbeat. I was completely confused by her calmness; it was as if she knew him . . .

"And you seem to be the same Orochimaru-dono," Raeyl tilted her head into a slight bow.

What?! She did know this weird ass snake person. What the hell?!

"I have come to collect you Okami-chan. We leave as soon as you have gotten your belongings." he said as he moved his hand to her shoulder.

"No, no, no, no, no. . . you are not taking Raeyl. She is under the Hokage's guardianship. You cannot take her away." I said in a rush, I was desperate.

He cannot just up and fucking take Raeyl away! I'll kill him before he gets a chance!

"I am her legal guardian; I have been since her parents died fifteen years ago in the war. I can easily produce the legal documentation if you don't believe me." He said in a smug tone.

"Than why the fuck has she been living in an orphanage for the past eight years?" I asked vehemently, I was pissed.

"Naruto, I did live here but I wasn't an orphan like you. Orochimaru-dono just left me here to keep Sarutobi-sensei company until he died." Raeyl said her eyes off in a different direction.

"Why didn't you tell me?!" I yelled, trying to force her to look at me. She just pulled away.

"I don't have to tell you everything, Naruto." she looked at Orochimaru, "I have all my things ready, I will go get them and be out in two minutes." with that Raeyl left.

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That was the last time I saw Raeyl for a long while. For months after that day, I refused to do anything. I even missed going to The University the first semester I had a chance.

I couldn't go to Kumogakure without Raeyl, she was the reason I even took the entrance exam. My best friend was gone so I didn't want to do anything that would remind me of her, well except for training. I spent all my time and energy training. I ended up breaking my arm trying to break a tree. . . the way Raeyl was able to.

Hanabi and Hinata visited me. . . they were the ones who found me cringing in pain in the middle of the forest. Nothing crucial came of their visits; I barely even remember them being there to begin with. The only thing I remember was when Neji returned from Kumogakure to visit me.

"You're an idiot you know that?" he said as he walked into the room in his school uniform. He looked prim and proper; I could have gagged, if I remember correctly, I almost did.

I didn't even register his presence; I didn't register anyone's presence. . . My only family was gone and I was alone. That's how it was meant to be, so that's how it will stay. . . at least that's what I thought at the time.

"It's almost you're sixteenth birthday," he said as he took a seat in the chair closest to me. "Next month today to be exact. . . the new semester starts on your birthday . There is still a spot open for you . . ."

I just continued to look out the widow. I only had a view of a blank wall, but I still constantly stared at it, it was better than nothing. We sat in silence for a long while. The nurse had brought my dinner and taken it away again before the silence was broken.

"You know, Raeyl is in Kumo. Has been all semester." Neji said, staring at the window along with me.

"Don't mention her name," it had been months since I had spoken, the last time was that night Raeyl left. My voice seemed alien to me.

"Why didn't you tell me?" "I don't have to tell you everything, Naruto."

"She's engaged . . . to an Uchiha . . ." he said with bitterness in his voice. "It seems they have been engaged since birth."

"Good for them," sarcasm engulfed my voice, I was bitter at her happiness.

"It's not good at all." he got up from the chair he had been sitting in for hours and grabbed the collar of my shirt. "Either her fiancé is beating her or her guardian is." He could tell the shock and anger in my eyes, his were the same way.

"What?!" I said in disbelief. The Raeyl Okami I knew would never let a man lay his hand on her and leave any kind of a mark. Moreover, if one would try she'd break them into pieces.

"I've seen the marks, Naruto. I've also seen how she is treated by them. It's disgusting, but worst of all she's taking it. It's like she's used to it. It's like her sprit was broke long before now -" he trailed off, softening his grip on my 0 collar, "There's nothing I can do for her. The only one who can help her is you Naruto."

I looked out the window, at the brick wall. I was so confused.

Poison is for Those Who Can't Forgive + + + Poison is for Those Who Can't Forgive

Author's note: Well it ended up shorter than I though it would be that's for sure. Oh, and I also had to change some things in previous chapters because of a few conflicting details. Wow, I'm even shocked at myself for how this chapter turned out, but I guess that's just how the story was meant to be. They say stories write themselves, this one is proof of that. Now I hope you come back for the next chapter of "Poison is for Those Who Can't Forgive."