Chapter 3: Loss, Grief and Comfort

"blah" Speech

'blah' Thought/sound fx

"blah" Demon

Warning: This chapter contains death. Read at Your Own Risk.

It'd been about two years since Naruto moved to the Leaf Village, made friends with Hinata and everything else that'd happened then. He'd been growing closer to Hinata since the attack on them and one day Ino came up to them during lunch and asked to sit with them. They were reluctant at first but let her sit with them anyways and they slowly became friends with her. She explained that she only went after Sasuke because Sakura was too and they were rivals. Now she didn't want to rival someone so violent and she'd never liked Sasuke much in the first place.

Speaking of Sakura, since she'd been grounded by her father for not apologizing, she'd shown a lot of hostility towards them for it even though it was her own fault. Other than that things were going swimmingly. Though Naruto noticed that people lately were giving him cold stares for reasons he didn't know. He'd asked his dad if he knew anything but he didn't know anything either but he said he'd look into it.

Also to Naruto's delight, his tenth birthday came around a while back and this time he had some friends to celebrate it with, sense he didn't have many around his age back on Morius. Ino'd given him free meal coupons to Ichiraku's, Choji, a boy he'd made friends with in an eating contest at Ichiraku's gave him a list of ingredients to put in any food to make it taste better, Hinata got him a small stuffed orange fox that Naruto just loved and after everyone left John gave him his first flying lesson as he promised as well as a simulator program to practice the tough stuff with. His eleventh wasn't much different except Hinata got him a frog shaped wallet.

Also Hinata's birthday had come around too in December. Ino'd gotten her some good shampoo and conditioner, and Naruto got her a CD player and a disk with her favorite Rock songs on it.

Aside from all that Naruto was progressing, averagely in his ninja training and since learning how to jump from rooftop to rooftop, set tripwires and traps, and various other things. Naruto had begun leaving his mark on the village through various pranks such as booby trapping the teacher's desks, switching out the ink in Sasuke's pen for vanishing ink before a test and even went as far as to fill the Hokage's office with fake paperwork making him nearly break down in tears. All in all if something wacky happened in the village, Naruto was the first suspect.

In the Academy it was near the end of the day and Iruka was lecturing the class about the execution of a Genjutsu. Naruto wasn't listening too much since he'd tried a basic Genjutsu a few days ago and it became clear he had next to no skills in that field so he just didn't pay attention much. The last bell finally rang signaling the end of the day and everyone began rushing out of the room. Naruto as usual hung back to wait for the crowd to thin out. He wasn't the only one though. Sasuke was still there probably doing the same as were Ino and Hinata, the latter of which came over to him.

"Hey Hinata!" Naruto said.

"Hi Naruto." Hinata said. In the year she'd been friends with him her stutter vanished so she could speak much more clearly.

"What's up?" Naruto asked.

"I was wondering if would want to get some ramen?" She asked.

"Sorry, Dad needs me to help rake leaves today. Maybe next time?" He said.

"Um sure." She said.

"See ya!" He called. She just waved back and when he was gone, sighed.

"You like him don't you?" Ino said behind her. Hinata spun around surprised when she spoke.

"Um… w-well." She started but couldn't finish it so she nodded. She had a hard time admitting it but it was true, she had a crush on her best friend.

Ino smiled. "Well, if you want him too really like you, you have to do more than ask him to get ramen, though going through his stomach is a good idea." Ino said.

"What should I d-do then?" Hinata asked her stutter returning a little.

"Well, the stuffed fox was a good move, and he liked the wallet too, hmm…" Ino sat and thought for a bit before she spoke again. "Okay, here's what you do. You have to get close to him in other ways besides ramen, offer to help with his homework some nights, be his sparring partner, et cetera, et cetera. Spend more time with him and maybe he'll feel the same way soon or he'll at least get hints." She said.

Hinata just nodded as she talked gaining more hope with each word. When she finished Hinata was full of hope that it would work. She dashed out of the classroom to get home throwing a "Thanks Ino!" over her shoulder. Ino smiled back and began her own trip home as well.

As Naruto was making his way home he was taking quick glances in the shops he passed by. He didn't actually have to help his dad rake leaves, Hinata's birthday was coming up again and he was looking for a present for her. He didn't like lying to her but he wanted to take time to pick out the right one. Last year he got her the CD's and the player so he was thinking maybe some more songs she might like, or possibly a yo-yo and a book full of tricks and how to do them, she always tries his yo-yo during lunch and was getting very good at it, but he wanted to get her something special not just anything.

'What would be the perfect gift for her? Man I wish I could find something like the stuffed fox she gave me, maybe a stuffed rabbit?' He thought.

"Mmmmm… I could go for a nice plump rabbit now." Said an all too familiar voice in his mind.

'Oh, hi Fuzzy, say do you have any ideas?' He said/thought to the Demon Fox in a surprisingly casual manner.

"HOW MANY TIMES HAVE I TOLD YOU NOT TO CALL ME THAT?" The Demon yelled.

"About 367 times." Naruto said judging from the marks in his notepad. "Do you have any ideas?' He repeated.

"What makes you think I would know anything about human celebrations?" The Fox countered.

'Well your ten thousand years old or something and probably know more about anything than everyone on this planet combined.' Naruto said.

"Well I'm flattered that you think so but I've mostly kept my distance from humans over the last thousand years or so. You'll have to find that 'special gift' for your girlfriend on your own." The Fox said snickering at the last words.

'She's not my girlfriend! She's a friend that's a girl like Ino!' He said defensively.

"Oh yeah? What do you think when you see her smile." Said the Fox.

'Well she looks kinda cute when she does- wait what am I thinking? She's my best friend!' He yelled mentally. He could hear the Fox laughing his ass off in the back of his mind. Naruto had, had enough and just shut the Fox out and headed home, not looking in anymore stores and ignoring the glares and whispered insults that some people gave him.

Later Naruto arrived at his house and hung up the dark orange and sky blue jacket he got last winter. The one he originally wanted had a much brighter shade of orange but his dad said he'd give everyone a seizure from here to Snow Country, but settled for the darker shade.

"Dad! You home?" He called.

"In here!" John called back from the den on his holo-computer. "How was School?"

"Fine, I beat Sasuke in target practice again today." Naruto said proudly.

From in the den John chuckled, "Fugaku's rolling over in his grave right now. What about on the way home?" He called.

"The usual insults, but I think I heard someone call me 'Demon Fox'." Right after he said that John stopped what he was doing when it clicked. The cold stares, whispered insults, and refusal of service at some stores…. The villagers knew about the Fox. John quickly got up and rushed out of the den with a coat half on.

"Where ya goin'?" Naruto asked.

"Uh. Out, I forgot to give the Hokage something. I'll be back later." John said.

"Okay I'll just make myself…" 'Slam!' "…Dinner."

"Well that was unusual." The Fox said and for once Naruto agreed with him. Nevertheless he began making himself dinner using one the recipe books Choji got him.

At the Hokage's office…

The Third was just beginning to finish up on the last of the days paperwork and was looking forward to going home and having some nice hot soup to relax him. Unfortunately that wasn't to be. John burst through the door seconds after he finished the last piece of paperwork, panting.

"John what has gotten into you?"

"They know!" He gasped.

"What?" The Hokage said.

"The people know about the Fox inside Naruto!" He said.

"What? How do you know?" The Third said.

"Naruto came home today and I asked him if he was still hearing insults around him, he said yes and mentioned that he thought he heard someone call him 'Demon Fox'!" John yelled.

"This is not good." The Hokage said.

"What should we do? If they know then another riot might start." John said.

"We can't do anything for now. We can only hope no one sparks a repeat of 11 years ago."

Later in the night…

Later in the night Naruto sleepily got up out of bed. He glanced at the clock and realized it was midnight.

"Eh? What woke me up?" He got his answer when he heard faint noise coming from outside. Naruto pushed over his window curtain and outside… was a mob. He backed away from the window and ran out his room to get John. "Dad, Dad!" He said frantically trying to shake him awake. "DAD!"

"Huh? Wha-?" John said sleepily. "Naruto it's..." He glanced at the clock. "midnight. What is it?"

"There's a mob outside!" Naruto said.

"Oh a mob…" John went back to sleep. Then the full force of what Naruto said hit him like a freight train. "A MOB?" He shot up out of bed and looked out the window. "Ohhh this is bad. This is very bad."

Someone outside noticed him and shouted. "There's the Demon's Father!" The whole mob turned in his direction and more yelling ensued. John backed away from the window and turned to Naruto.

"Okay, go get all your clothes and some other things!" Thunks were heard on the wall as the villagers threw various stones at the house. "Hurry!" Naruto ran off and John began barricading the door.

Outside one of the villagers had a bottle of sake; he stuck a piece of cloth in it, lit it and threw.

The bottle crashed threw the window breaking and spreading fire everywhere. "Ohhh this is very, very bad!" John yelled as the fire began to engulf the room.

Naruto came back out of his room with dragging a backpack behind him and his stuffed fox under one arm. "I've got all my stu- WHOA!" He yelled seeing the room engulfed in fire. "Dad!" He called trying to see through the smoke. "DAD!"

"Naruto!" John called from the kitchen. He performed a small water jutsu he knew and tried to put it out.

"Dad!" Naruto was about to start through the smoke to get to him.

"No! Don't come closer! Just find a way out I'll be fine!" John yelled.

"But-"

"Go!" Then suddenly there was a loud groaning noise and behind Naruto, one of the beams collapsed blocking the door.

"Dad the doors blocked!"

"Crap! Find a way to my room and go through there! Hurry!"

At the same time as this event, the Third was sitting in his office, smoking his pipe, just beginning to relax after working very late in the day work… or so he thought.

"Lord Hokage!" A ninja burst into the room causing the old man to jump.

"Ah! What is it?"

"There's a mob outside John Murdock's house!" The ninja yelled.

"What! Damn, I hoped this wouldn't happen again!" The aged Kage said as memories of eleven years ago flashed in front of him.

"There's something else…" The ninja was hesitant to say it but, "his house is on fire."

The Third Hokage dropped his pipe.

Happening around the same time, Hiashi was fast asleep, unaware of what was happening, till a teenage branch member knocked on his door hard.

"Lord Hiashi! Please wake up, there's a problem!"

Hiashi slowly woke up, wondering who it was that woke him and having some passing thoughts about killing him. He slid open the door to face the boy who'd woken him. "What is so important that I had to be woken at," Glances at the clock. "midnight?" He said slowly.

"A-a mob set fire to John Murdock's house!"

That woke him up. "WHAT!"

Again happening at the same time, Hinata was walking quietly through the house to get a midnight snack. She was just turning the corner that would take her past her father's room when, "WHAT!"

She jumped back around the corner, her heart beating fast.

"Are you absolutely sure about this?" She heard the voice of her father.

"Yes I saw it myself!" That voice she knew as a branch member boy she sparred with.

"This is very bad. This is just like eleven years ago but it's so much worse this time." Hiashi said with a foreboding tone. "Gather the clan's fire squad and some of our strongest guards! We're going to help." Hiashi said.

By now Hinata's mind was racing. Why would a mob attack Naruto's house? What happened eleven years ago? Why was this happening? Wanting some answers she stepped around the corner and made her presence known.

"Hinata?" Hiashi said surprised. "What are you doing up? You should be asleep!"

Hinata began stuttering. "Um, well you see I was… going to the ki- I want to go with you!" She suddenly blurted out surprising her father and the boy.

"What? Hinata this will be danger-" Hiashi was cut off.

"I know it will be dangerous but Naruto's my friend and I…. I just want to help him." She said beginning to break down.

Hiashi was in a bind. On one hand he wanted to take Hinata with him and not leave her here worrying about Naruto all night but the other, rational part of him said otherwise. He was stuck in a quagmire.

Naruto coughed and hacked as he felt his way to his father's room, and safety. The fire was spreading fast despite John's efforts to fight it. Naruto made it inside and shut the door tight before more smoke came in. Naruto sank against the wall, taking several deep breaths of air. Naruto stopped and sniffed the air catching a whiff of something in the air amid the smoke.

John fought desperately to control the flames from reaching his room and Naruto but the flames had evaporated most of the water around him, even the broken sink wasn't giving him much to work with. Still he pushed on knowing that the Hokage would be on his way with a fire squad and ANBU to help. He heard the door slam shut and breathed a sigh of relief knowing that Naruto at least wouldn't inhale any more smoke. John froze and sniffed the air catching a whiff of something amid the smoke.

Hiashi leapt from rooftop to rooftop at breakneck speed carrying Hinata on his back. In the end his sympathetic side had one out and she had come with him along with some of the Clans guards that didn't see Naruto as the Kyuubi Incarnate and the Clans Fire Squad. They had only covered a quarter of the distance there when they saw the black smoke billowing into the sky and the angry red flames soon after. Just another reason for them to double their pace to the Murdock house before things got even more out of hand than they were now, Kami help them if it were possible.

Suddenly the entire house went up in a blast and they were caught in midair by the following shockwave.

Hiashi righted himself quickly and stared in shock.

"No…" His own fear had come to pass.

Hiruzen Sarutobi moved as fast as he could over the rooftops dressed in full battle armor, something he hadn't worn in years and hoped to never again. On either side ANBU flanked him for both crowd control and fire control. He was now wishing he'd called the entire Leaf Fire Corps out to the area after he'd seen the size of the flame that had already engulfed John's house and the radiant heat was almost intolerable with them already three quarters of the way there.

He was more afraid now than he'd been in a long time. The old saying, 'Those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it.' And he was seeing the embodiment happen right before his eyes.

Just when the aged Hokage thought this was as bad as it would get he was proven wrong when the whole house went up in a blast and Sarutobi and the ANBU were thrown back far from the shockwave.

"No…"