Naruto: The Ninth Tail Chapter 11

Differences

Naruto was at his apartment, just reading his scrolls. There wasn't much to do on a dreary, cloudy day. He looked out of his window, and noticed some God's Beams out in the horizon. He smiled at such beauty and grace. He got up, and dressed up for a walk. As he reached for the doorknob, a light tingling at the base of his skull made him froze. Something had changed in Konoha. There was something new that was here. It was part alien, yet part familiar.

He turned to look out the window again, and only one God's Beam remained, shining down on the first training ground that Naruto and his team had gone to. He turned back, and opened the door, locking it as he left.

He set out, jumping from rooftop to rooftop. As he neared the training site, the feeling of familiarity strengthened. He sped up, as he realized who it really was. He reached the site with the three logs. He saw Sakura and a raven-haired boy he recognized. It had been so long since all three of them were at this exact place.

"You came back."

"Hn." Sasuke just looked away, as haughty as ever. However, his three dotted Sharingan was active. It seemed as if he was strong enough to keep it on without using too much of his Chakra.

Naruto thought he should have felt really happy that Uchiha Sasuke had returned to Konoha, but his mind wouldn't let him feel that. His mind was going through everything Sasuke had said.

I am an Avenger. I must gain power. Even if I have to eat the Devil's fruit, I will do it to kill that man.

Naruto plastered on a weak smile, but there was no real happiness in it. "Well, welcome back."

He turned around, and headed back to his apartment. Sakura was so surprised, that she just watched as he walked down a street, his back towards them. Sasuke was also surprised, but he shook it off, and started heading back to his estate. Sakura was left there, still trying to figure out why Naruto had such a small reaction to Sasuke's return.

They used to be as close as brothers.

Kakashi, Jiraiya and a blond, large breasted woman were in a round room. The woman was sitting down, while the two men were standing up.

"Tsunade, we need to be careful where we send Naruto next." Jiraiya spoke. "These Sabishii are really dangerous! Who knows how many Jinchuriki they have already! The Akatsuki have three we know of, and we definitely know that the Sabishii have two. There are two others, not including Naruto, that are out there somewhere in this world! Naruto is now a target of two groups!"

Kakashi spoke after Jiraiya. "Hokage-sama, Konoha has become a very big target for others. First it's Orochimaru, then it's the Akatsuki, and now it's these Sabishii! If we're not careful, our country may not be able to hold the title of one of the five greatest countries!"

Tsunade had her head in her hands, rubbing her temples. "I know all these facts already! The problem is, how do we protect Naruto and Konoha at the same time with our limited resources?"

Everyone was silent as they milled over that problem. Suddenly, the door to the room burst open, revealing a brown-haired woman with a little pig in her hands. "Tsunade-sama!" She looked around. "Oh, sorry. Did I disrupt your meeting?"

"No, don't worry about that, Shizune." Tsunade waved a hand, to emphasize the casualness. "Anyway, what's the problem?"

"Well," She glanced at Kakashi for a second, and then her eyes flitted back to the fifth Hokage. "Reports say that Uchiha Sasuke has returned to Konoha."

Kakashi's eye widened, his mind racing. "Where was he spotted last?"

"At the Uchiha estate."

Kakashi rushed out of the room, eager to see his teammate he had lost.

Tsunade's eyes darkened. "Jiraiya."

"Yeah." Jiraiya met Tsunade's eyes, their thoughts connecting.

Shizune looked from one face to another, but she didn't know what was going on. "What? What is it?"

Tsunade sighed. "There is only one reason that Sasuke would have left the Country of Sound."

Jiraiya finished the thought. "That reason would be because his reason to live was in danger."

Shizune started to understand. "And that reason is…"

The two Sannin spoke together. "To kill his brother, Uchiha Itachi."

Sasuke was in his room, resting on his tatami mat. He looked at the ceiling, thinking of what had happened back at the Country of Sound. His master was really a monster, like others he knew. Damn it. How am I supposed to fight a monster like that? There's no way that I can beat something like that. Even Naruto could beat Gaara. They were both at the same level, while I was reduced to nothing on the sidelines. I could just watch. He rolled over to his side, and slept.

Kakashi was outside, just looking at the estate, and listening to what Sasuke was doing. As he heard soft snoring, he left, thinking he would see him tomorrow.

Naruto was in his bed, looking out the window at the cloudless night. His mind drifted over to Sasuke all the time, how he had deserted them, then came back. Naruto knew exactly why Sasuke had returned.

He looked at the ceiling, thinking of all the fun times he had with Sasuke. Now, he was such a different person, it was as if the old Sasuke never existed. The lure of power would always be somewhere, taking Sasuke there. Until he finished his mission, he wouldn't stop or be disturbed by others.

Naruto closed his eyes, wondering what would happen the next day.

End of Chapter 11