Chapter Three: Origins

The night air was still. A cool, damp breeze rolled across Konoha—a typical summer evening. The night was vibrant; the stars were out in full glory, not overshadowed because of the new moon. It was quiet, but not silent. Some parts of the village were awake. Bars served their patrons well into the night, and the liquor was still, without a doubt, flowing like a river. Even the Hokage was among drunken crowd. Konoha was peaceful. Still, something was wrong. Kitsune could feel it.

The ANBU didn't lose his composure over his worry. A feeling isn't always true. Sensing between dream and reality is always difficult, especially when you don't know what to look for. Of course, there was the chance that the sensation crawling up Kitsune's spine was wrong, but that didn't bring him any relief. After a couple months of these patrols, the tan coat wearing man had begun to develop a sixth sense. A sense that helped him identify the unconscious malice found within humanity.

Kitsune sighed. He couldn't comprehend why people didn't try to understand each other. It only lead to more pain and conflict. Kitsune shuddered again; something was wrong—he felt it. More hatred and pain would spread tonight if he didn't stop it. So the shinobi did the only thing he could, he swallowed his fear and insecurity, making sure he checked every single detail with the utmost precision.

Jumping off his perch on the Hokage Tower, Kitsune began another round on his patrol. Silently, he made his way over to some of the training grounds. He gracefully hopped along branches; his motions nearly undetectable. Suddenly, Kitsune's sensitive hearing picked up the sound of clanging metal. To his best estimate, the noise seemed to come from clashing kunai—a battle. Changing his course, he leapt into the brush and enhanced his vision. What was once invisible became clear as if night had become day. With his chakra enhancing the cones and rods on his retinas, Kitsune observed the small scuffle.

It was nothing to be alarmed over. A young genin team was training in the dark with their jonin sensei. Kitsune watched as the genin stumbled around, their sensei trying to help his students develop their senses in the dark. Even though he could move on, the older ANBU continued to watch through the slits in his porcelain mask. The team consisted of two shinobi and one kunoichi. The two boys were sparing, and, from what Kitsune could tell, they had a rivalry. The girl was trying to hard concentrate on her current exercise, but she was easily distracted by her two teammates trading blows. Kitsune couldn't help but reminisce. It seemed like so long ago since his team had been united. He was definitely going to bring him back.

For now though, Kitsune had a duty to watch and protect the village. Finally moving on from his perch, he made his way back into the village. Everything seemed quite. Midnight had just passed and the moon began to set in the west. The weekend had officially begun and all was calm. The ANBU felt relieved. Maybe tonight wasn't going to be so bad. His worries earlier were just that, worries.

Kitsune noticed a water tower on a roof a couple blocks to his right. Deciding that it would be good position to observe the area, he gathered chakra in his legs and launched himself in the air. His tan coat flapped in the wind, letting some of the cool night air reach his skin. The breeze brought much needed relief to his flushed skin, but the feeling quickly disappeared as Kitsune remembered that he had to land on the aluminum container, making as little noise as possible.

Once again gathering chakra in his legs and feet, Kitsune made contact with the water tower, but as the rest of his body followed his feet, the well-trained shinobi crouched, taking away some of the momentum from his jump, minimizing the noise. Looking down the street, some villagers walked—well stumbled—out of what could only be a bar. He watched as the drunk men said their good-byes and began splitting up. Most went further from Kitsune's view while a single man began heading his way. The man seemed rather rowdy. He was yelling a little here and there. From what Kitsune could tell, it seemed the man had just lost his job. The economy had been suffering lately. Everyone seemed worried about the mysterious criminal organization, Akatsuki. Trade was suffering.

Kitsune continued to watch the man. The rest of Konoha was peaceful and it was probably a good idea to make sure this man got home okay. Taking a seat, Kitsune glanced up at the sky again. He didn't know why he was so edgy tonight. The other nights he went out on patrol weren't nearly as calm as tonight. He was beginning to wonder why the Hokage even wanted him out on these patrol shifts. He had caught a few robbers, but there were other ANBU that could've handled it. Whatever the reason, she was pretty firm in her decision.

"Kitsune."

"Hai Hokage-sama."

The Hokage looked at the kneeling ANBU. It was strange seeing the man she knew so well behave in such a fashion. Still, she was short on resources and she needed extra help. Until now, the shinobi before her had only had one mission in the ANBU, but that would have to change. Tensions were becoming higher among the Shinobi Godaikoku and Konohagakure couldn't afford to appear weak. Thus, Tsunade needed to draw more ANBU for higher ranked missions. Kitsune would have to carry some extra weight.

"I need you to take a few patrols. Your identity must remain a secret, therefore, I'm putting you on night shifts. Your assignments are in this folder."

Tsunade tossed the files over to the ANBU captain. Kitsune quickly scanned through the contents. Finding nothing he should vocally be concerned of, Kitsune nodded, "Hai Hokage-sama."

Looking down the street, the tan coated shinobi saw a teenage girl sneaking down the street. She was probably a civilian. Konohamaru, even as an academy student, had better stealth prowess than her. Deciding that stealth was getting her nowhere fast, the girl tried walking casually. Waving to the man as she passed, the man returned the action. He stumbled along a little further before he suddenly turned around. Kitsune raised an eyebrow behind his mask at the man. That was unexpected.

The man sneaked up on girl. Just as the girl walked in front of an alleyway, the man sprung on the girl. Using his hand to muffle the girls scream, he dragged the girl into the cover of the alley.

"Kuso," swore Kitsune as he hurried from his position. This was bad. He had handled petty thieves before, but nothing like this. Every second was precious, because one wasted second could mean a victim with physical and mental trauma.

The man easily overpowered the girl. She was young, most likely sixteen or seventeen. The man smiled maliciously; she was perfect, exactly what he need. After losing his job, he could extract a little pleasure from the girl. He let his hands roam slowly over the girl, exploring her most intimate places. Yes, it felt so good, but it wasn't enough; he needed more. The man began ripping and slashing at the girl's clothes. Her screams, pleading with him to stop only served to further arouse him.

Having successfully cornered the girl, the man began to undue his belt. The girl took the few seconds she had to back as far as she could into the alley. She tried to cover her exposed flesh as the man roamed his lust filled eyes over her body. Having successfully removed his pants, he crawled toward his future victim. The need for pleasure filled every fiber of his being, while fear caused the girl to begin convulsing. Suddenly, a kunai blocked his path, but he was too far along now to be stopped. He would have his pleasure. Ignoring the metal weapon, he continued on.

The tag attached to the end of the kunai fluttered down gently to the ground. Faster than the drunken man's mind could react, a man in a tan coat appeared. Being drunk, the man crawled directly into the ANBU. The man, startled, jumped up realizing just exactly what he ran into. He pulled his pants back up and sloppily re-did his built. The man chuckled nervously and tried to back away, but Kitsune had other plans.

"The kunai was your warning," the ANBU said, his voice deep and powerful.

The man gulped. Kitsune reacted. He punched the man in the stomach. The drunken man almost instantly buckled over in pain, but Kitsune wasn't done. Quickly spinning around the man, Kitsune elbowed the man in the back of the head, knocking the girl's attacker out instantly.

The girl made a small another small scream when Kitsune turned around. She was obviously afraid. Kitsune decided his appearance wasn't helping, but what was he supposed to do? It wasn't like he could just take off his uniform, but the girl obviously needed some sort of comfort. What was he going to do? He had never really been comforted before. It was foreign; now he had to help this girl. Kitsune swore to himself. He'd just have to wing it.

Walking slowly over to the girl, he crouched down as soon as he was within an arm's reach.

"Shush," he whispered softly. "I'm not going to hurt you."

Kitsune slowly began rubbing her arm. The girl cautiously began to respond to his touch. She stopped convulsing and her muscles began to relax. Her breaths became longer and more controlled, and the color began to return to her face.

"Don't worry you're safe."

"Who are you?" the girl asked tentatively, fear was clearly still present in her voice.

"Other ANBU will be here to assist you," Kitsune said backing away. He needed to go before he was discovered, because technically, he didn't exist.

"Wait," the girl pleaded, "don't go, please."

"You'll be fine, I promise. I won't let anyone hurt you."

With that the ANBU was gone. The girl could only stare with her hand outstretched trying to reach the man that saved her. She collapsed on the ground, her body had reached exhaustion, but even with her mind unconscious, one thought plagued the girl, who was that man?

"Neko report," the Hokage ordered.

"Hai Hokage-sama," the ANBU captain said. The man stood up, allowing himself enunciate more clearly. "The victim was Toki Daidouji. The attack happened approximately at midnight. The attacker, Haruhiko Minamoto, was found unconscious at the scene."

Neko showed a photo of the attacker to Tsunade. The Godaime scrutinized the photo for a little while, wondering what exactly caused this man to try to rape an innocent girl. Becoming sickened by her thoughts, the Hokage signaled Neko to continue.

"Our investigation into the attacker revealed that he was quite drunk. The man had also recently lost his job. He was a local trader, but his business failed. According to the testimonies of civilians who knew the attacker, he was becoming increasingly more unstable, and he already had a history of alcohol abuse."

Tsunade held back a sigh. That certainly explained some questions. Crime was increasingly becoming a larger issue, but this had been one of the more serious felonies. After the Kyubi attacked, crime spiked. In the coming years, it dropped. In fact, it was at an all time low. Now, just like the rest of the world, everything was falling apart. Tsunade had enough personal reflection; it was time to move on.

"Neko, what information do you have on the victim, Toki Daidouji?"

"According to her statement, she was unharmed in the attack. The victim was a little shaken, but remarkably truthful; she was unharmed," Neko informed. Tsunade was confused by this, but she decided it was best to let the ANBU captain finish explaining the situation.

"According to Daidouji-san she was saved by an ANBU. She was unable to get a good look at the mask, but she believed the mask to be in the shape of a kitsune. According to our records, there is no ANBU currently registered with that mask or codename, and after questioning all ANBU on active duty we were unable to find this rescuer. It seems unlikely that this unknown poses any real threat. Many criminals over the past couple months were apprehended by an unknown vigilanté. Until now, only small investigations have been looking into the identity of this figure, so far they have been conducted with little to no success. If Dadouji-san's statement is correct, we have a man impersonating an ANBU in a kitsune mask. I recommend that we do a full—"

"That will be unnecessary Neko," the Hokage interjected, surprising Neko. This was a serious matter. It definitely warranted an investigation.

"Hokage-sama, I must insist that we find the identity of this unknown character."

Tsunade revealed a piercing, angry stare at the ANBU captain. Neko felt himself become rigid under the weight of her gaze. He could feel the subtle killing intent that was oozing off of the Godaime. The masked man knew he struck the wrong cord with his Hokage.

"I understand your position Neko, but this matter is not of your concern." The Hokage's speech was caustic, yet restrained. It seemed she was barely holding back her anger at Neko's insubordination. The ANBU gulped nervously deciding that it was best to no longer push the subject, or ever mention it again for that matter.

"Hai Hokage-sama," the man said.

"You're dismissed."

Relieved to here those two words the ANBU shunshined away. Neko almost incurred the wrath of the Hokage. Still, the man was confused by what had happened. He was fixated on this mysterious imposter. The Hokage seemed to know something, but was clearly unwilling to share. Neko would definitely discuss this with the other ANBU. Maybe they could accidently stumble on to the identity of this character.

Tsunade let out an audible sigh. She knew for now that Kitsune was still relatively contained. She knew rumors would spread. An unknown ANBU doesn't go unnoticed. This was going to be a pain in the ass. Tsunade got up from her desk, she needed to contact the source of her trouble. Still, this trouble was worth it, especially with what the alternative would've been. Leaving her office, Tsunade called to her assistant, Shizune, who had been waiting patiently outside of the office with Ton Ton, allowing the Hokage have her meeting in private with Neko.

"I'm leaving for a moment," the Godaime announced, surprising the black haired woman. "Please ask my other appointments to wait until further notice."

"Hai Hokage-sama. May I inquire as to why?"

Tsunade didn't bother turning around to address the confused woman, "I have another private meeting. I am not to be disturbed."

"Hai Tsunade-sama," Shizune answered, confusion riddled within her tone. Tsunade would try to drink throughout the day. Most of the time, the Hokage's assistant would have to put a stop to Tsunade's inappropriate indulgences, but the aura around the blond sannin suggested a serious attitude. Honestly, Shizune was a little afraid. Seeing Tsunade so focused was a rare occurrence. The black haired assistant could only wonder what was going on as the Hokage disappeared from around the corner.

"Kitsune."

"Hai Hokage-sama."

"I just received Neko's report," the Hokage said, trailing off a little at the end. Tsunade bit the inside of her cheek, trying not to smile. It would be fun to mess with the poor man. Sure, the man was a highly capable shinobi. The man could possibly even defeat her, but it was at time like these where the sannin decided it would be best to prank the young man before her. Tsunade knew it would be a shame to let the ANBU grow too quickly.

Kitsune was falling into the carefully planned trap. Regardless of the ANBU's past record, stretching back into his pre-genin days, the young man was unable to detect the Hokage's ploy. He was beginning to perspire under his coat. To him, the Hokage had to be serious. She wouldn't joke with a matter so delicate, right?

"Sumimasen Hokage-sama, but there was no other—" he was cut off as the Hokage dismissed him with her hand. Kitsune was a little confused, but quickly understood that he being played with. Kitsune swallowed his rage. This called for revenge. Normally an ANBU could not retaliate against their Hokage, but Kitsune knew the perfect loop-hole.

"There's no need to apologize Kitsune. The situation was unavoidable," the Hokage admitted. "The girl wasn't hurt. That's all I care about, but in addition to the girl's safety she wasn't able to accurately identify you. Unfortunately, she noticed enough information for rumors to begin spreading. Many ANBU will now be looking specifically for you."

"Understood, Hokage-sama," Kitsune replied. He assumed that this would happen. Not that he meant to be put in this situation, but the ANBU was secretly hoping that he would get a little vacation time. Working the graveyard shift isn't easy, especially when you have other appointments the next morning.

"Therefore," the Hokage continued, "I believe it's best that you lie low for a while."

Dattebayo.

"That is all, you're dismissed."

Kitsune vanished in a swirl of leaves.

The sun was bright and warm. The air was moist, but filled with a light breeze that cooled the skin with it's benign touch. The day was young and the whimsical blond ninja was at loss on how to spend the day. Team Kakashi and Team Asuma were both off of active duty, having recently survived two members of the Akatsuki. Sakura was most likely volunteering at the hospital, meaning she wouldn't want to be disturbed. Kakashi was a hard man to find; Naruto could find him, but Kakashi was always reading his sensei's trashy novels and the white haired man was not a very open person to begin with because of his own personal demons. Shikamaru, Ino and Chōji still needed a little more time to grieve over their loss. Naruto had never really known Asuma, but from what Naruto had gathered from Asuma while studying Fūton Ninjutsu with his friends' sensei; he was a great man.

Team Kurenai and Team Gai were out on missions.

Naruto was essentially alone. The young blond decided that if he had to waste time, he'd waste it productively. The ninja made his way deep into Konoha's training grounds, away from watching eyes. He found a nice clearing. The area seemed older and less maintained. The grass was getting long in some areas, and it was dead in others. Some of the surrounding trees were scorched, destroyed by a nameless Katon or Raiton ninjutsu. The field's state didn't matter to Naruto, but it did reaffirm the training grounds seclusion.

Now Naruto only had to worry on what to practice. He had been able to master the Fūton: Rasengan and created the Fūton: Rasenshuriken. The Rasenshurikn had proven dangerous to use. Baa-chan had clarified that. Still, the jutsu was unbridled with potential. If kaze chakra was unable to used, what about mizu chakra? Water would not be as sharp as wind, but since both water and air are fluids, combining water with a Rasengan would provide a similar effect.

Naruto channeled his chakra into the palm of his right hand. Using the mark provided by Jiraiya, Naruto manipulated the chakra into a sphere. Then he called on his water nature. By utilizing quick bursts of water chakra, the blond formed the necessary swirling vortex. What had taken him a week of practice to form a Fūton: Rasengan, Naruto had formed a Suiton: Rasengan with a single try. It seemed too easy, but the principles were basically same. Now all he had to do was test the properties of the the new jutsu.

Launching his Rasengan filled hand at a tree, the whirlpool of chakra began ripping through the bark, but as Naruto forced the Rasengan deeper into the tree, the rapidly spinning sphere quickly became unstable. Unable to maintain the control, Naruto released the Suiton: Rasengan. The chakra exploded outward, away from his hand. The water nature chakra cut through the core of the tree.

Amazingly enough, the large tree that Naruto tested his new Rasengan on was still standing. Naruto quickly went to inspect the damage that the jutsu caused. There were ripples in the wood. The ripples were similar to the ones made by his wind nature chakra when applied to a Rasengan, but there was a distinct difference between the two types of nature chakra. While wind was thinner and much sharper, the water made rougher uneven marks. Naruto could see where he felt the attack become less stable. There were noticeable stray marks that hacked at the internal trunk of the tree. Finally, Naruto identified where he released the jutsu. The lines went from stray to completely out of control. Taking a look at the other side, it was much more prominent to tell where the chakra was released. A huge cone expanded from the discharge, filling the wood with deep gashes.

It really was amazing the tree even withstood the attack.

The jutsu obviously worked, but taking it a step further could possibly be as dangerous as the Rasenshuriken. Maybe there was another way to make a more powerful justu. Naruto needed to think. He sat cross-legged on the ground. Scrunching his face into his typical thinking facet, Naruto began trying to remember everything he learned about ninjutsu.

Seconds turned into minutes. Nothing he knew was helping him. Naruto yelled at the sky. This shouldn't be that hard. Deciding that having both his two nature chakra Rasengans in his hands would help with his thinking process, Naruto formed a Fūton: Rasengan and a Suiton: Rasengan.

The blond just stared at the two balls of chakra. One was made of water. The other was made of wind. Mizu and kaze, he thought. Suddenly, Naruto remembered a conversation that he had with Jiraiya.

"Naruto, chakra is broken up into five main elements: Hi, Kaze, Kaminari, Tsuchi and Mizu. In some cases, like the boy you described, Haku, the five elements can be combined in special ways to create new justu. Haku could create the Kōri chakra. His manipulation of the ice allowed him to use Hyōton ninjutsu. Generally, only those with the aid of a Kekkei Genkai can combine different natures. Although some say it's still possible even without a Kekkei Genkai."

Slowly, Naruto moved his hands together. Maybe he could combine the Rasengans to form the Kōri element. Naruto watched as his hands grew closer and closer. The two balls of chakra were now just about to touch.

Sakura was enjoying her day at the hospital. So far there hadn't been any major injuries that had to be dealt with. The pink haired girl smiled to the Nurse handling the front-desk. The woman just smiled at the kunoichi as she approached.

"Haruno-san are you done with your last patient?

"Hai Kotone-san. Is there anyone else that I need to treat."

The receptionist looked at the files on her counter. Looking through them, the nurse didn't see anything that required immediate attention. Thankfully, it was a rather slow day.

"I don't believe so. If you want, you could probably have the rest of the day to yourself Haruno-san."

"Alright, I'll see you later Kotone-san. You'll be able to find me if you need extra help."

"Good-bye Haruno-san, enjoy your day."

Sakura returned gesture. Now, young medic could just enjoy her day. Stepping out into the sun, she could feel heat radiating from above. Her eyes enjoyed contrast of the natural light to the hospital's bright fluorescents. Her ears could hear the wonderful sound of children playing in the street. Sakura was going to seize the day and relax. Everything was going right in Konoha—at least it was until a large boom rung throughout the village causing the ground to shake because of the shockwave.

Sakura sighed. Why couldn't she just have one day of rest?

Glossary:

Shinobi Godaikoku- Five Great Shinobi Nations

Kuso- Shit

Neko- Cat

Sumimasen- I'm sorry, Sumimasen is used instead of Gomen because Kitsune is speaking to a superior.

Dattebayo- There isn't an English equivalent. In the sense used here, Naruto is happy about receiving the vacation. It's similar to a person saying "yes" or "alright" to his or her self. As a child Dattebayo was Naruto's catchphrase.

Fūton- Wind Release

Fūton: Rasengan- Wind Release: Spiraling Sphere

Fūton: Rasenshuriken- Wind Release: Spiraling Shuriken

Kaze- Wind

Mizu- Water

Suiton: Rasengan- Water Release: Spiraling Sphere, technically the same as the Fūton: Rasengan, the Suiton: Rasengan is becomes less stable on impact. This is due to the fact that the water can not become as thin and sharp as wind. As the jutsu moves through an object the water becomes caught on what it is moving through. If Naruto releases the technique, the water quickly becomes unstable exploding outward away from the user because the front point is the attacking point, the most unstable area.

Hi- Fire

Kaminari- Lightning

Tsuchi- Earth

Kōri- Ice, formed by melding Kaze and Mizu chakra.

Hyōton- Ice Release

Kekkei Genkai- A technique limited to inheritance by blood, only those with the right genetics can have the ability. Examples: Sharingan, Byakugan and Hyōton

Author's Note: Please inform me of any mistakes. Beta's are welcome as well.

Updated: 1/7/11