Forsaken
Disclaimer: But I don't wanna…
AN: Thanks to all who review both here and over at The Fanfiction Forum (run by Hawk, go check it out). Now, stop reading my AN and read the story! CHOP CHOP!
Chapter Two: The Maelstroms Awakening
If there was one thing Naruto truly prided himself on, it was his ability to stun people.
While it was true his pranks were primarily meant to garner attention for himself (even if that attention was scoldings from Iruka-sensei and Yuugao-sempai, and stern looks from Hokage-jiji), they also served the secondary purpose of giving him a reason to laugh at people who normally laughed at him.
The six genin around him were all gaping at him stupidly would normally be very laugh worthy…but Sasuke and Sakura-chan needed him.
"I know you know him," he continued, "My teammate told me he had an Oto hitai-ate…is he your sensei?"
"Orochimaru-sama is our leader, the Otokage," the hunched over mummy spoke, "You said he did something to your friend…who is your friend, and what did he do?"
"I won't tell you his name, but that bastard put some sort of mark on his neck," the blond replied, "What did he do?"
"A juin," Kin muttered, "But why? Tayuya barely survived getting her's, and she's older than the rest of these brats."
Juin…a curse? the Uzumaki called Taro wondered, What would one of the Sannin want with the outcast's teammate…
"Well, at least now I know," Naruto replied, "I don't have a problem with you three…yet. If I come across that Orochimaru again however…well, I'm sure you can deliver a message to him." The Oto-nins nodded. "Tell him…he's awakened the depths of the maelstrom."
The three Uzumaki's gasped at his words. "What do you think you're doing, you fool?!" Taro shouted, "Orochimaru is one of the Sannin, the Three Shinobi of Legend! You just declared 'blood feud' against someone of the Yondaime's level!"
"I know who the bastard is, bakayarou!" Naruto shouted back, "Yuugao-neechan told me all about him…and don't ever compare him to the Yondaime! If you do I swear I'll shove my foot so far up your ass you'll gag on my sandle!"
Taro frowned. "Know your place, outcast!" he snarled, "You've done something that could have repercussions for the entire clan…"
"Last I checked, I'm not a member of the clan," Naruto replied, "I was cast out, so the clan has nothing to do with my decisions. Right now, that bastard has hurt someone I've come to call a friend…I have very few, and I protect those few with every thing I've got! When you can say the same, then I'll consider what the clan wants before I run my mouth!" He punctuated this by pulling his eyelid down and sticking his tongue out at the dark haired boy.
"Enough of this," Reika shouted, her hands flying through a seal sequence even as she leapt to stand on the flowing waters of the river. She ended with the Tori seal even as the waters began surging around her. "SUITON: SUIRYUUDAN NO JUTSU!" (Water Release: Water Dragon Blast) she cried out even as a large serpentine shape shot up out of the water, circling around her before launching towards the Oto-nins.
Naruto leapt away into the trees. I wish I could stay and watch this, but my team needs me now! he thought to himself, even as the shouts and cries of battle began to make themselves known. Still, I got a feeling this isn't going to turn out so well for my…cousins!
oOoOoOo
Zaku smirked as the water dragon rushed towards them, barely noticing that the orange-clad loudmouth had left. "Oh please," he said, "So outdated. ZANKUHA!" (Slicing Air Wave) His right arm snapped up and a rush of pressurized air mixed with chakra lanced forward, cleaving Reika's attack in two.
The purple haired girl gaped in amazement, and as such barely noticed the girl called Kin launching a volley of senbon needles at her.
The white clad Kenosuke was the one who saved her, pulling his katanna from its sheath and disrupting the attack with the sudden pressure change.
"Nice move," the bandage clad Dosu muttered, "You've got some speed with that sword…just what do you call that move."
"It is the most basic technique of Iajutsu," the taller boy replied, "Simple batoujutsu…I didn't even have to use my chakra for it."
"Just a plain old sword skill…oh, I hardly believe that," Dosu replied, "I know a good way to test it though." He shifted his cloak to reveal the silver gauntlet that adorned his right arm. "My 'Melody Arm' has many different abilities. It all depends on how I mold my chakra." He rushed toward the boy, who swung his blade around to block the punch.
Fist met the flat of blade as a high-pitched ring echoed throughout the clearing. Kenosuke grimaced as he felt his blade vibrate so hard he almost dropped it. "I…see," he groaned out, "Your…weapon…it uses soundwaves…to disrupt it's targets…stability."
"True," Dosu replied, "I can burst ear drums, shatter stone, break bones, and even liquefy my opponents internal organs."
"So why did you not do so here?"
"Because I had some suspicions about this blade of yours," the bandaged boy replied, "You use a chakra kohan no tsurugi." Kenosuke frowned, leaping away from the Oto-nin, sheathing his sword as he went. "I have to admit, I wasn't expecting a sword that rare to belong to a genin…or that you could use it so well. You must be very skilled to utilized the swords chakra storage abilities."
"Not surprising that he didn't reveal it," Kin shouted as she ducked a thrust kick sent her way by Reika, "The Uzumaki clan is obscenely wealthy, so of course he'd have a rare weapon like that if he had any real skill."
"We may be wealthy," Taro spoke up, his hands flying through a seal sequence, finishing with the Ryu symbol, "But we're also very skilled. FUUTON; FUURYU NO JUTSU!" (Wind Release: Wind Dragon Technique)
Zaku's eyes widened as the winds picked up, swirling around the dark haired boy and taking the shape of a dragon. "That's a new one on me," he muttered, "But its no match for my ZANKUKYUHA!" (Super Slicing Air-wave)
The two blasts of chakra enhanced air slammed into each other, ripping the ground to shreds. Long gouges appeared as dirt, rocks, and plants were hurled left and right, and each genin was forced to leap about to avoid being struck by debris.
Kin and Reika leapt away from each other, both breathing heavily and sporting cuts and scratches. Kin's face bore a look that suggested that she was insulted, why'll Reika's was more a look of frustration.
"You're boyfriend says you're a taijutsu genius," Kin mocked, "So where are those vaunted 'chakra kicks' and 'open skills' that I heard so much about when I lived in Tsuchi no Kuni? You are holding back, right?"
Reika frowned. "Those styles of taijutsu are reserved for the main branch of the family…I'm an Uzuki, not an Uzumaki."
"Hmmph, no wonder I feel insulted," Kin replied, "Honestly, I think that your 'outcast' cousin would've been more fun to fight." She turned to look at her teammates. "I think we've learned enough for Orochimaru-sama, don't you guys?"
"Yeah…we learned they're a bunch of wimps," Zaku replied.
"Heh, I think Orochimaru-sama was worried for nothing," Dosu replied. He pulled a smoke bomb from his pouch. "Make no mistake, Uzumaki Taro-san," he called over to the dark haired boy, "When next we meet…it will be far more unpleasant for you." With a quick toss, the smoke billowed out in front of the Uzumaki clan, and the three Oto-nin vanished from sight.
"COWARDS!" Reika shouted, "COME BACK AND FACE US!"
"Reika-san, that is enough," Kenosuke muttered, "They are gone."
Reika growled, while Taro smirked. "They seriously underestimated us though…which means Orochimaru will underestimate the clan as well," he replied, "So…the plan continues."
Reika cheered her cousin's statement, while Kenosuke cleaned his blade before re-sheathing it. I don't know about this… he thought to himself as the trio took to the trees once more. Something doesn't feel right…was it because of how the outcast acted?
Kenosuke didn't like this feeling of foreboding crawling up his spine. He liked even less that it was his inferior outcast cousin who was causing it.
oOoOoOo
There was much about the 44th training ground that Sarutobi Sudara didn't like. He wasn't happy that the giant tigers had never been successfully tamed so as to prevent the maulings of many chuunin hopefuls in past exams. He never cared for the Flying Leeches or the giant centipedes, especially that one year when a particularly promising kunoichi was found drained dry after having been abandoned by her teammates (said young men now spent their days breaking rocks in the prison quarry for their cowardice).
What he disliked most, however, was how Anko had made the tower in the center of the facility her home, despite having an assigned apartment in the village. It shamed him to think that she was more comfortable isolating herself from the villagers so that she couldn't hear their words of scorn.
Snake-whore.
Traitor's pet.
Orochimaru's disciple.
Sarutobi was well aware of the stories that circulated around the village following Orochimaru's defection and Anko's subsequent questioning by Ibiki and the ANBU. He knew that some ninja's now made up horror stories (or worse) about how Anko "served" his traitorous pupil. It was not unheard of for parents to frighten their children into obedience these days with the phrase, "If you don't behave, you could end up like that Mitarashi girl and get an evil sensei."
Given Orochimaru's reputation, it could be an effective tool to enforce obedience…but not when it denigrated Anko like that.
He stared at the dark haired young woman as she sat on the couch before him, a medic nin checking her over to make sure there were no lasting side effects from Orochimaru's activation of her juin. Behind her, Uzuki Yuugao and her fiance -Gekko Hayate, the third stage proctor- gave the young special jounin looks of concern. On another side of the room, Kotetsu and Izumo observed the monitors, watching the progress of several teams as they made their way through the forest or –in the cases of genin cell 8 and the Suna team– milled about the tower.
"So, he said that he would destroy the village if we stop this exam," the aged leader muttered, "Just what is my baka-denshi planning?"
"He said he gave the mark to a participant in the exam," Anko replied, "I'm certain he meant the Uchiha boy. He was always obsessed with that damn Sharingan of theirs."
"The Uzumaki clan never cared for the Uchiha's doujutsu," Yuugao muttered, "Most of the clan jutsus are so chakra intensive, even if the Uchiha did copy them, they could never perform them with out passing out from chakra exhaustion. If there was any doujutsu that the clan despised, it was the Byakugan and the jyuuken fighting style the Hyuuga clan created for it."
"A gentle art that does the same damage as the Eigi and Hyougi styles in the Uzumaki Ryu," Sarutobi acknowledged, "Yuugao-san, you told me once about the Hyuuga heiress…Hinata…stalking Naruto-kun, correct?"
Yuugao frowned. Despite being at odds with her clan, there were certain things that had been ingrained in her since childhood that she simply could not get past. One of them was an almost instinctual dislike of the Hyuuga clan. She didn't truly know Hinata, but the fact that the girl was Main house was enough to set the ANBU on edge.
The girl's obvious infatuation with her cousin didn't help matters.
"True, but that's neither here nor there, Hokage-sama," the purple haired girl replied, "I'm more worried about Naruto's team…the Uchiha is on it. Orochimaru probably knows about Naruto-kun's…burden. What if he came here for that?"
"Doubtful," Anko replied, "Orochimaru hates the Bijuu…he always told me that power like that should never belong to 'wild and uncontrollable beasts'. He'd sooner try to directly assassinate you, Hokage-sama, than mess with the Yondaime's seal. He'd never want to deal with the Kyubi…even with his strength, he'd barely want to deal with the Ichibi, and even less the Nibi."
"Given his fear of death and the Nibi's powers, its certainly understandable," Kotetsu spoke up, "Still, he is one of the Densetsu no Sannin…that means he's at least as dangerous as one of the Bijuu."
"Regardless, we can't cancel the exam," Sarutobi muttered, "Inform me the instant Naruto's team arrives, and have them all brought to me. If Sasuke is marked, we'll place a containment seal on him immediately until I can contact Jiraiya or Tsunade. The two of them should be able to counteract anything Orochimaru might have done."
Yuugao's eyes widened at the mention of the other two members of the Sannin. "Hokage-sama," she spoke up, "Does Tsunade-sama know about…"
"She's unaware of Naruto's connection to Arashi," the old man replied, "But I will tell her once she arrives. I've sent Yamato to retrieve her."
Hayate coughed, as he mentioned something, "And (cough cough) Jiraiya-sama?"
"He's where he always is," Sarutobi sighed.
"Pervert," Anko muttered, even as she grinned.
oOoOoOo
At one of the more…liberal…bathhouses in the village, a certain white haired old man sneezed. Unfortunately, this alerted the young lesbian couple -a short haired blond with a slim, athletic build, and a aqua tressed beauty who gave new meaning to the phrase va-va-voom (since she had great va-va's and a dynamite voom)- to his presence. The pair of kunoichi proceded to pummel him severly before utilizing a tag-team combo of Doton and Suiton jutsu to send him flying.
"Why can't we get any privacy, Haruka-chan?" the aqua tressed girl asked.
"Honestly, its like the whole world's against us, Michiru-chan," the blond replied.
oOoOoOo
Sasuke groaned as he came to. A pleasant smell assaulted his nostrils, and an even more pleasant coolness covered his aching head. He opened his eyes to see Sakura and Naruto hovering about him.
"Sakura…Naruto…" he groaned, "What…happened…to me?"
"We don't know much," Sakura replied, replacing the cold compress, "All we know is that guy, Orochimaru, put some kind of 'curse seal' on your neck. It really took you out."
"Yeah, you've been out for almost a full day," Naruto elaborated, "Sakura took care of you while I scouted the area and caught us some fish. We're about three klicks from the tower, and its still only the third day. We can still pass…if you're up to it?"
"I feel worse than after that mission in Nami, but I won't let this thing beat me," the Uchiha heir growled, "Besides, you still have to tell us about this 'clan' of yours."
Naruto frowned. "Yeah, about that," he muttered, "I had a little run in with them while you were out."
Sakura snapped her gaze towards the blond. "What happened?" she asked.
"They demonstrated how stupid they are," Naruto replied, "I'll tell you about it later. Right now we should eat, then get to the tower so they can look at that mark the Hebi-teme put on Sasuke."
Sakura's eyes twitched at Naruto's casual response. "Hebi…teme?" she asked. Sasuke smirked at his blond…friend.
"He's an enemy and a jerk who uses snakes, so 'Hebi-teme'," Naruto explained, "What about it?"
Sakura just shook her head. "Nothing," she replied, "Nothing at all."
Sasuke was tempted to laugh out loud –even if it was against his usual nature– as he sat up, wincing as a sharp, stabbing pain made itself known around his left shoulder. "Kami-sama," he breathed, his right hand grabbing the area and rubbing it, "Gah…what is this thing?" He noticed the concerned looks his teammates were giving him. "It's painful, but not debilitating…" He frowned as he thought of something. "If this is some kind of seal…I wonder what it might have done to my chakra…"
Sakura frowned. "Fuinjutsu isn't really taught much at the academy," she muttered, "Nobody really wants to put the effort into learning it – its one of the most difficult arts to learn. I don't know much other than the basic weapon and supply sealing techniques that they teach all genin."
Naruto frowned. Fuinjutsu…that was a bitter subject with him. While he didn't know much about his particular seal –jiji had been surprisingly tight-lipped about it– he did know that certain seals could be used to both augment certain things, or restrain and cancel out others. "There's only one way to know," he spoke up, surprising the other two, "Try and mold some chakra…if that mark did anything to you, we should know before we head to the tower."
"But…" Sakura started to protest.
"For all we know its some kind of explosive seal or something," Naruto cut her off, "If we wait to find out at the tower and it is, then Sasuke could indirectly take out not only us but the rest of the testers and even our sensei's!" Sakura's eyes widened as she caught on to what her teammate was saying. "It's a risk…but its one we have to take."
Sasuke snorted. "The Tenth Question?" he asked. Both Naruto and Sakura had to chuckle at the irony of the situation…he was right afterall. "Both of you…back away. If it looks like something's wrong, then I want you to get out of here. Head for the tower and get Kakashi-sensei, the proctors, anyone." He stood up, his hands coming together in the Tora seal. "I'll try activating my Sharingan. Its not nearly as draining to me as it is to Kakashi."
"How will we know if it worked?" Sakura asked.
"If I haven't…blown up…after ten seconds, come check my eyes," he replied, "Now, move!" The other two nodded, leaping away and to the other side of the clearing.
Sasuke took a few deep breaths, trying to cleanse his mind as he began focusing his energy into his hara. Slowly –far more so than was usual for him– he began to feel the build up of his chakra. He could already tell his control was out of whack, but it wasn't completely hampered. He began feeding his chakra to his eyes, closing the lids as the build up reached its peak. Almost there…almost…NOW! he thought.
"SHARINGAN!" he cried out, his eyes opening into the red wheals with two black tomoe around each pupil.
For a moment, all was as it normally was.
Then, hell broke loose…
oOoOoOo
Kabuto watched the group from above, his 'teammates' beside him as the purple-aura began surrounding the Uchiha heir.
"So, Sasuke-kun survived the application of the Ten no Juin," the silver haired medic nin noted, "And his chakra…I doubt even Orochimaru-sama was capable of such an output at that age."
"Like it matters," one of his masked compatriots replied, "He's just going to wind up a shell in the end anyway…he's little better than Sound Five."
"And yet I seem to recall Jiroubu-kun –the weakest of that group– beating you to a pulp the last time you met," Kabuto replied, "Do remember your place, Misumi-kun."
"I gotta agree with Kabuto," the second masked figure spoke, "I'm not even sure my Chakra Kyuuin no Jutsu (Chakra Absorption Technique) could drain that much…the kid's a monster!"
"I always thought you were wuss Yoroi," Misumi replied.
"QUIET!" Kabuto muttered, stopping the argument before it began, "It looks like Naruto-kun is up to something…"
oOoOoOo
Naruto walked forward, even as his instincts practically screamed at him to run. He gazed at the figure before him with obvious concern, and more than a little trepidation.
Sasuke's body was covered in black, flame-like markings. The tomoe of his Sharingan were spinning widely, and his breath was coming out in deep, gasping heaves. His chakra was strong, so strong that it was visible, wreathed around him like purple flames.
"S-sasuke…kun," came the weakend voice of Sakura, "What…"
"This…power…" the Uchiha muttered, "It…it feels…GOOD!" The last came out as a whisper, but the intensity of it made it seem almost like a cry of triumph.
"Sasuke…that's enough," Naruto muttered, his left hand clenching into a fist, "Somethings wrong…look at yourself!"
The Uchiha smirked. "Whats wrong…dobe?" he asked, "This mark…its made me stronger…are you jealous?" His words started out as a whisper, but ended in a vicious snarl.
The orange clad genin frowned. "Listen to yourself," he replied, "Think! Why are you acting like this?!" His hands clenched tighter, and he felt his body tensing up, as if preparing to strike the first blow…
"Sasuke-kun."
Both genin blinked as a form appeared behind the manic Uchiha, wrapping its arms around him. It took only a moment for the two to realize it was Sakura. "Please…stop," she whispered, "You're scaring us…"
Sasuke seemed to frown, and Naruto tensed his body again. Then, to his surprise, the red eyes darkened into the familiar black of his rival, and the marks began to recede back into the original seal.
oOoOoOo
"Well…that was anti-climatic," Misumi muttered.
"On the contrary, it was most enlightening," Kabuto replied, "Most who survive the seal application process go berserk the first time its activated…Sasuke-kun was able to control it, and even force it down. That proves a stronger will than Orochimaru-sama anticipated."
"Heh, having a pretty girl press her boobs into his back was probably what did it," Misume countered, "She ain't exactly well developed, but she does have some stuff upstairs…I wonder how she'd like my 'special' techniques…"
"We're not here for you to grope school-girls," Yoroi replied, "Besides, I thought that the blond from the rookie group was better."
Kabuto sighed as he listend to the two perverts discuss their lolicon fetish regarding the two kunoichi. It seams, Orochimaru-sama, that you might have underestimated your chosen vessel, he thought as the he and his team leapt away. Still…I'm more concerned with the Kyuubi jinchuuriki. Something about him is different. He suddenly smirked to himself. Perhaps I can save you some trouble with him…I'm sure Sasori-sama and Zetsu-sama would be most interested in learning about this boy.
He kept his laughter to himself as they approached the tower.
oOoOoOo
Sasuke blinked as his mind cleared, and he felt the pressure of Sakura on his back. "Sakura," he muttered, "I'm all right now."
Sakura continued to hold him, even as he turned to look at Naruto. The blond seemed to be…pained, by his crushes actions, but never the less, he smiled. "You started to worry me there, teme," he spoke up, "That mark is definitely bad news."
Sasuke could feel the lingering effects of the mark throughout his body…and in truth, it felt good. "Its…addictive," the Uchiha scion replied, "I can feel it…it's like my chakra was boosted more than…more than anyone else's I've ever felt."
Sakura frowned, then moved around to face Sasuke. "You shouldn't use it," she said, "Its evil…what ever that chakra was, it wasn't you, Sasuke-kun. You could lose yourself if you use it again."
"That won't happen," Naruto replied, "He won't use it again, and I know jiji or Kakashi-sensei can do something about it." His trademark cocksure grin appeared, and for once, it didn't seem to be fake. "Come on. Lets get to that tower, and pass this exam. If we hurry, we might even be able to get ramen!"
"Naruto, is ramen all you ever eat?" Sakura asked, frowning at her hyper-active teammate.
"No, I also like eggs," he replied, "Especially when their boiled and added to my ramen."
"I give up," the pink haired kunoichi replied.
Sasuke smirked, then turned to Naruto. "You still have the scrolls, right?" he asked. Naruto nodded, patting his hip pouch. "Okay, lets go. The sooner we get there, the sooner we can get our injuries checked out. I'd like to go into the next test fresh."
"You got that right," the blond replied. Sakura nodded, and the trio leapt into the trees, headed for the tower…and their next exam.
End Chapter Two.
Next: The Prelims begin, and a clan's internal strife takes center stage.
