AN: Note – Alltariss – I have read so many fanfics that do the whole "Naruto is tortured/attacked by the villagers/civilians" cliché. It's something that the fandom has been saturated with, but the problem is that in a lot of cases it can't be taken seriously in a lot of fics. Some readers find the cliché to be tiresome and weak, and they have the right to believe so since some authors write the cliché in a haphazard manner that is done only for superficial shock.

The problem with the way those authors write the cliché is that they don't understand the level of realism that is required to make it interesting or entertaining. Some fics have Naruto running away from a mob that are all chasing him because they think he's a demon. Some have Naruto being attacked by ninjas, or animals, and even assassins. It probably looked better in the author's head than what appeared on paper.

The real issue is that those authors rarely make the trauma real or lasting. Naruto never really becomes someone who is affected by the attacks. Some fics even have him as a happy-go-lucky kid despite having gone through such events. It's ridiculous! Do these authors ever think about the plot-breaking questions that arise from writing such scenes?

Why would a village which is military-ruled under a single commander, which is also a semi-autonomous city-state with the right to self-governance allow what is essentially a human 'nuke' to suffer under the delusions of misinformed civilians that have no privilege, right, or authority to pass judgement on their 'weapon'? A lot of authors never answer this question at all.

Why would said 'weapon' even consider fighting for and risking its own life for those who would sooner burn him at the stake? Some authors answer this by making Naruto fight for the sake of only a few people. Which is fine except that those who clearly support Naruto rarely ever appear in danger. Normal human behaviour would make those that want to attack Naruto also attack those that support him. Yet that rarely -almost never- happens in most fics in a meaningful way.

Why would said 'weapon' not be trained or at least given equal opportunity to become a ninja without any discrimination, bias, or active/passive sabotage in order to become an effective war-deterrent? Some authors write about how the teachers in the academy blatantly do everything to prevent Naruto from graduating or being a competent ninja. Why would the higher ranked ninja or Hokage allow this? Any competent –REAL– ninja would utterly wreck canon Naruto. Naruto was worse than Obito in his Genin years, and that's embarrassing because at least Obito proved to be somewhat useful. If Naruto didn't have luck, or plot-armour then the series would have ended as soon as the Mizuki incident.

The problem is that when you bring a single aspect of the Naruto-Verse up to more realistic standards, then you have to bring everything to the same level. Otherwise the entire Verse collapses on itself due to plot-holes, inconsistences, and all-round nonsense. That is why I had to make sure that when I used the cliché it didn't break any rules that I had already established, or would reveal later on.

Chapter 15

The Price of Freedom

Kyōko had played her part and played it well. Her feigned distress was enough for the Military-Police to believe her to be innocent. November had just begun and the search for the two boys ongoing. They had found the small hole in the perimeter that she had made and just as she planned they assumed the boys had run away. When they left, she celebrated her clean getaway with a fresh bottle of sake. A month had passed and yet they still could not find a trace of either child. Kyōko revelled in it, as if it were a grand play and all the world's a stage, with these fools merely players. To wear so many masks and hiding her true self right beneath their noses.

She could remember her energy depleting until it all vanished and reformed within the bleak cell that contained her. It was soon afterwards that she fell into a deep slumber and all awareness of the outside world faded into oblivion. Now, her peaceful stagnation ceased. She awoke within a cell that was a vast improvement from her previous jailor's taste. When her senses awakened and reached out towards the tendrils of her current vessel's mind, she was bombarded with more emotions than she had anticipated.

When she delved even further to ascertain the cause of her prison's unrest, a single sequestered yet familiar emotion rose from within her heart, fury.

2246, November

The eyes are amazing. I haven't seen anything like them in my life. They act as if they're still alive and attached. When I place my hand near the container they turn towards it and I can see the iris and pupil focus. What strange ability do these eyes have? Why do they still act alive after being removed? There are so many questions I need answered before I can use these eyes.

Perhaps the beast's eyes are not the only autonomous behaving organ he has? What of his liver? His lungs? Or even his heart? Would his bones act the same way? Tonight I will proceed even further than before. It's no longer a quest to inflict pain, but to see what else I can find to profit from.

Tonight should prove enlightening.

End of Log.

"How many years has it been since I last stepped foot in this place?"

Lucifer walked through the rusted sands, his footsteps washed away by the swirling winds. The dunes cloaked the horizon line in a shade of deep red.

"An interesting vision of Hell you've created here," Cronus said.

Lucifer chuckled. "I created it after an interesting lifetime Alto had before the nations rose up and united. The original sands would strip away the flesh and bone, leaving only the iron sands born of blood."

"He's in danger you know?" Cronus turned towards him with a blank expression. "Interference is strictly forbidden."

Lucifer nodded and with a wave of his hand the sands around them arose. They coalesced to create rough statuesque forms of Naruto and Alto.

"The Versal-Nexus is safe. Timelines and destinies come and go, but the Verse always revolves around them. As long as the current timeline is not one that exists for the sake of balance then it stands to reason that the Nexus will always be safe from complete death."

Cronus grunted in agreement before tapping the statue of Naruto, causing it to fall apart.

"We can't just waltz in and save him, Lucy."

The fallen angel gently cupped the cheek of Alto's face on the statue.

"We won't," he said. "We'll use Naruto, or rather we'll use his mother."

The titan looked confused. "Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't she dead?"

"She is, but she isn't the only mother Naruto has. The Kyūbi comes under the Code, regardless of her own feelings towards her prison she'll obey my orders whether she wants to or not."

The statue collapsed and the devil watched as the red sands fell gently through his fingers.

Ishikawa and Jiraiya awoke the next morning to the sound of Kaede panicking and screaming for them to wake up. With a jolt they both stood up and after a few moments of disorientation the world slowly came back into focus.

"Damn it," Ishikawa cursed.

"What the hell is going on? Are we under attack?" Jiraiya asked.

"What?! No! It's even worse!" she exclaimed. "Both the Jinchūriki are missing!"

It required a total of three exact seconds for the message to sink in both groggy men. Without warning their Chakra's flared to such a degree that Kaede was pushed back and stumbled over the table and onto the floor.

"When the fuck did this happen!" Jiraiya shouted, his Chakra still blazing.

"They've been missing since October, the military police only just now informed the higher ups about the case."

Ishikawa didn't say a word, instead opting to arm himself and head straight to the Mizu District.

If I have to mobilise every single man, woman, and child to find them then so be it

Jiraiya formed a hand-seal and vanished with a whirl of leaves.

Kyōko entered the chamber and began her usual preparations for her surgical experiments. The table was set and the tools were all sorted into their proper places. She grinned in anticipation for what would be her most twisted experiment yet.

Alto was once again strapped down to the operating table. He shivered, unsure if it was the cold metal beneath him or fear of what was to come. His breaths came in short shaking puffs, heart thundering as his fists tightened. If he clenched them any tighter his nails would draw blood. His senses brought to the brink of hypersensitivity, his mental imaging of Kyōko had never been so clear before.

He could feel more than just the shape of her body, he could sense her presence as if it were tangible. It made him sick to his stomach. Her madness was palpable in every way. His senses translated her touch as cold lunacy, her scent as rancid insanity. Her emotions were akin to a well bonded chemical compound, a complex molecular structure of sorrow, guilt, rage, and ecstasy.

Naruto hung from the wall and as usual could do nothing but watch as Kyōko prepped herself for the next experiment. Alto would weep whenever he thought he was asleep, but Naruto knew that what she did had truly hurt him. Permanent mutilation was traumatic in the sense that time would never heal the wounds. The body would never feel whole and it would remind you again and again of what was taken without mercy.

For the first time, he felt more than just anger. For the first time, his mind was able to comprehend a level of rage that transcended any and all reason. Naruto's very first taste of fury. He could feel his heart thunder as if Raijin* was beating his string of drums. He could feel his blood coursing through his veins carrying a sensation of tremendous heat. Tears burned him as they rolled down his cheeks, as if it were caustic acid.

Unbeknownst to him, the seal that withheld the very demon that both of them were mistakenly thought to be began to show itself. The black ink tattoo of the Overseal slowly drew itself into the surface of his belly. It started from the navel and with a calmness unlike its bearer, started to show the famed spiral that Naruto's ancestors had proudly worn as their symbol. When the spiral reached its end the next part of the Overseal was revealed. Indecipherable arcane scripture wrote itself with eight points that spread covering the circumference of the central design.

Kyōko tensed as she sensed something amiss. She could feel the presence of something dangerous. An animalistic manifestation of will and emotion that she remembered very well. How could she not remember? The demon's aura alone was suffocating even when its attention was focused elsewhere. She stood frozen, unable to comprehend the current situation. She was merely in shock at the moment, but before she could collect herself she felt its power.

The seal pulsed and Naruto felt on fire, as if he'd doused himself in tar and set alight. The Chakra of the Bijū rushed through his still developing Keirakukei. The fragile yet flexible coils forced to accommodate an energy that was as wild as a tiger locked in a bamboo cage. The experience lasted for a few moments until his mind succumbed to the bliss of unconsciousness, only to be replaced with another. A mind with centuries worth of hatred and malevolence, a mind addled by unbridled fury.

Naruto hoisted himself up with the chains and planted his feet firmly on the wall. With inhuman strength he pushed off and pulled his bindings, ripping off chunks of concrete along with them. He looked at his hands, clenching and relaxing them. His eyes were no longer the sky blue they had been, but instead the primal crimson of a feral beast. His hair stood up on end, even more spiked than usual and took on a slight red tinge. His cheeks had three faint lines that could only be seen if one specifically looked for them, but now were far more pronounced in his new state.

Kyōko finally managed to collect herself and made a mad dash for the exit. Barely an inch away from the door she was forced to stop when Naruto appeared in her way. She could barely comprehend what was happening, especially since he had moved from one end of the chamber to the other in a split-second. She had too much momentum to stop in time and collided with the now free captive.

She made an undignified noise since Naruto didn't budge an inch, as if he were a statue of solid metal rooted to the ground. Bijū-controlled Naruto calmly reached out and grasped Kyōko's blouse. With a roar that was far too guttural and feral to come from a human throat, Naruto expelled a gelatinous fluid that she was very familiar with. The Corruption hit her full-force and she buckled like a house of cards that met a violent hurricane. Within seconds she was writhing on the floor, convulsing.

She writhed much like fish tend to when freshly pulled from the water. Twisting and turning, trying ever so desperately to find safety once more. She moaned, groaned, and wept as she felt her flesh die. Blood poured generously out of every orifice, its colour no longer red but as black as her sins. Naruto watched, his face holding an expression of deep satisfaction. A disturbing sight if anyone were to view such a scene. Whilst Kyōko's life was slowly dwindling away, Naruto leapt onto the operating table and ripped off the restraints with surprising ease. After he made sure nothing was holding his fellow captive down, he shattered the iron cuffs that were still attached to his wrists. As soon as he was free, the energy of the Bijū faded away leaving Naruto back in control of himself.

Alto's senses exploded with a sudden influx of information. The world around him that he could perceive was in near perfect clarity, but only within a small radius. Now the world was even clearer to him than before and the range expanded to cover the entire underground chamber. Every single detail was as if he were viewing them up close with perfect vision. Every particle in the air seemed so close yet so far, so big yet so small. It was both confusing and exhilarating.

He felt the restraints that bound him rip away and the sound of many metal pieces clinking as they fell. Naruto was free. He was free. Kyōko was barely alive and her body already breaking down into a black goo. Alto tried to raise himself, but his body being so deprived of nourishment and proper care could scarcely gather any strength. The act of breathing alone took great effort.

Alto turned over until he fell from the table in a heap. Naruto mimicked the same, unfortunately landing right on top of Alto.

"Sorry," Naruto croaked out weakly.

Alto shook as he made a sound much like he was weeping and laughing at the same time.

"She's dead. She's finally dead."

Alto's words made reality sink in much faster.

"We have to get out," Naruto said. "We need to escape."

They both crawled as best they could. Alto's arms and legs were far too weak to be of much help. He used his chin to pull and scrape himself up until he could manoeuvre his right shoulder and then pull his body forwards. Inch by inch. Naruto was in far better shape in comparison. With his regenerative healing, his body was weak only due to a lack in nutrition. With his small arms he dragged himself towards the iron door that sealed the room.

The handle of the door was a simple one, a U-shaped bar of iron welded to the frame. Naruto couldn't reach the handle in his condition, but luckily his fingers were small enough to fit through the gap beneath the door. Wiggling his fingers through, he grasped the door as best he could and pulled.

The door opened and a feeling of liberation flooded them. No longer would they be kept in that room, no longer would they have to suffer. The corridor led to two different directions. The left led to a door similar to the one they came through whilst the right was a flight of stairs leading to an open trapdoor.

"Where do we go?" Naruto asked.

Alto's vision returned to what it was before, but he clearly remembered the layout of the underground area.

"Stairs," he croaked out. "Take the stairs."

They moved and reached the bottom of the stairs, but stopped when they realised just how arduous a mission it would be to climb to the top. Alto pressed forward, undaunted by the seemingly herculean task.

"We're getting out of here," he said. "We're getting out no matter what."

Naruto made a positive sound of agreement and continued on to face the mountain of steps between them and freedom.

Ishikawa rarely if ever relied on the gifts his master had left him. He thought relying on it at all was a sign of failure, but desperate times called for equal measures. Scanning the entirety of the Mizu District he found no signature that matched either boy. At a loss as to where they could have vanished to, he began to question the mission parameters. He doubted they would have fled to any other district as the regular citizenry would have alerted the Military-Police to their presence instantly.

Then a stray thread of doubt wormed its way through him. What if they were taken? Kidnapping would make sense considering they're intrinsic value to the stability of the current balance of power between the Hidden Villages. Any village that acquires them would instantly become a superpower amongst the various countries. Such a violent shift of power would undoubtedly lead to another outbreak in conflict. All of which would inevitably spiral into a Ninja World War.

"Kami-sama, give me strength," he begged.

He leapt from the rooftops down to the street level, heading towards the House of Pleasures. The entire district was rife with groups of children who chose a life outside any of the local orphanages. For those living outside the Mizu District it wouldn't make any sense, but the kids that chose such a life knew better. Any orphanage would provide a basic civilian education which would suffice for those in the richer districts, but not for those that lived here.

Life in such a place was cutthroat. Shinobi weren't the only people who dipped themselves in shady business. Illegalities of all sorts were mostly done by civilians, only when blood needed to be spilt were ninja called into the scene. It was rare for a civilian to partake in bloodwork, usually because they would be competing with people trained to kill as a living. If they did do bloodwork the targets were always low-class civilians or targets that were easy to access. Little to no chance of encountering any protection.

Ishikawa landed on the balcony and opened the doors leading to the private chambers. He didn't bother masking his steps or presence. Within the chamber Katsumi was alone and reading a book. The light from the candles nearby gave her complexion a softer look.

"We have a problem," he spoke, breaking the quiet peace.

Katsumi gently closed the book and placed it aside.

"We do?" she questioned. "I'm not aware of any crisis that warrants my personal attention."

Ishikawa stepped into the light and surveyed the surroundings, swiftly checking if they were alone.

"The two Jinchūriki boys have gone missing," he informed her. "The case was reported to the Military-Police a month ago, but none of the higher-ups were notified until just now."

Katsumi flicked her hand and an elaborate fan spread out.

"I see," she said, gently fanning herself. "You're here because you can't locate them anywhere in the village. You want to know if they've been kidnapped."

"That's the short of it," He replied as he started to pace.

"The long I presume, is that if such a scenario has taken place it would change the balance of power."

"Yeah," he confirmed.

Katsumi shifted uncrossing then crossing her legs in another manner. The fabric of her kimono parting to reveal more of the smooth skin of her legs.

"Which would eventually lead to war. An outcome neither of us want."

She let a short sigh, closing her fan.

"Unfortunately, I haven't heard of any underground trades regarding children that age. Then again, I don't deal with the slave trade. The Master of Slaves would certainly know, but…"

Ishikawa breathed out in frustration. She was the only member of the Yakuza Nine that he could actually speak with. The rest would never entertain his presence, a ninja.

"If you find them let me know, last thing we need is for this to leak out to the other nations."

Katsumi nodded as she watched him vanish. She huffed in frustration and called for her servants.

Honestly, do I have to spell it out for him? Or perhaps you already know and just want to avoid the situation altogether? Your charade with my sister won't last forever.

Naruto and Alto reached the top of the stairs after what seemed to be hours. The trapdoor that sealed them from the outside was open. Naruto breathed in deeply the moment he reached the fresh air and sunlight. The air smelled, tasted, more pure than anything he had even known, and he cried tears of joy as the warm blanket of sunlight bathed him. Alto could feel the world around him to a greater extent than it was while locked inside, but there was something unknown that he couldn't identify. A quality of his senses that eluded any form of comprehension. What he did know was that with every breath he took he felt stronger.

They crawled towards the bushes in the backyard and rested there. They both didn't know if Kyōko was the only one that was hostile to them, for all they knew the entire orphanage staff was out to kill them.

Jiraiya scoured the entire village and found no sign of either boys. The situation was beginning to look quite dire. Deep down he still felt guilt for not being able to care for the kids as he should.

I named him. I fucking named him and I left him at the orphanage. What kind of godfather am I? I should have challenged the decision, taken him with me on my journey if I needed to. Hell, if he needed a mother figure I could have easily found Tsunade. She wouldn't dare refuse him.

He entered through the security checkpoint at the military police station and made his way to the main office where the head of police would be, Uchiha Fugaku.

I would have taken the other kid with me as well. Why not? It would've been nice for Naruto to have a brother alongside him. Leaving him in the village would be the worst thing considering his current status as an anomaly of nature. They would have studied him like a test subject and nothing else. And after the entire shit-storm from Orochimaru's experiments and defection…

He sighed deeply, his features sagged in recollection of past events.

It just wouldn't feel right to subject a child to that sort of life.

He entered Fugaku's office and found Ishikawa was already there, pouring over multiple documents spread over the Uchiha's desk.

"Ah, Jiraiya-sama, I see even you are involved in this situation we've found ourselves in."

The Kageken sniffed in displeasure. "We wouldn't be in this situation Uchiha-sama if your men had raised the issue to you earlier."

Fugaku opened his mouth to argue but was cut off.

"It's pointless to argue on such a point at this time," Ishikawa said. "Right now our first priority is to locate and ascertain the status of the two boys. After that Jiraiya and I can deliberate on what the appropriate course of action would be."

Jiraiya waved his hands in the air and made various intricate movements with his fingers as if carving something into the air. Both men could feel the usage of Chakra and watched as he worked. As soon as he was finished a pulse of energy washed over them and a seal of some design flickered in the air and remained there.

"So long as the seal is intact we can speak without eavesdroppers," the Sealist explained.

"When I heard about the case I thought it was the usual incidents of kids leaving and joining the street gangs in the Mizu District," Fugaku stated. "It was only after I got a look at their names that I realised that it was the Jinchūriki that were missing."

"A natural assumption considering the nature of the case," Ishikawa said, looking back at the files on the desk. "According to the documentation the case looks like every other one in regards to runaways."

"So what now?" Jiraiya asked, impatiently. "It can't be this hard to find two boys if they did indeed run away?"

Both men nodded in agreement, neither one could reason as to why there was so much difficulty.

"I asked the Mistress to look into the situation and report back to me if she finds them."

"That woman?" Fugaku scoffed. "I fail to understand how some whore can help us."

Were he a lesser man Ishikawa would have bristled at such a comment.

"Be that as it may, she is the leading force in the district. Any and all activity including street gangs eventually reaches her ears. It would be foolish to deny her usefulness, at least in this endeavour."

There was a minute of silence as each man was caught in their own string of thoughts. Differing agendas, but all seeking the same thing. Rare was the occasion when men found themselves in line with one another. Such was the status-quo of the tenuous ceasefire that would hopefully blossom into a lasting peace.

It was night when Alto awoke. He wasn't sure how he knew it was night, he just did. He felt much better than he had before, he could actually move his body. Something about freedom from the torture room had given him the strength to stand on his own two feet. His body still ached and bones still felt as if put to the grindstone. Yet, there was a grand sense of accomplishment.

Naruto awoke as he felt movement beside him. The sky was dark and filled with stars. He gently stood up and looked beyond the shrubbery behind Alto. There was a hole in the wooden fence that enclosed the open area. It was just wide enough to allow them to squeeze through one by one.

"We need to go," Alto whispered, poking his head through the hole.

"I'm scared."

He wobbled towards Naruto and drew him into an embrace.

"I'm scared too."

He held his brother in all but blood and wondered what their future would be. They'd only ever seen the Shiro and Ki (Yellow) Districts. The Mizu District was mostly unknown to them as the orphanage was on the outskirts of it. Yet, he knew that if they were to escape the orphanage they couldn't go to the other districts.

"We can't stay here," Alto said. "The grownups would find us and take us back."

Naruto sniffled, nodding in agreement. With that said and done they crawled through the hole and entered a whole new world.

The streets were populated with all sorts of people making their way to whatever form of pleasure they sought. The two boys were hardly noticed as they slipped into a nearby alley. Alto's entire face was haphazardly bandaged and brown from the dried blood and grime. His threadbare shirt and pants long since discoloured from blood, urine, and faeces. Naruto, who was physically in a much better condition due to his rapid healing, helped Alto along as he leaned on him to walk. Though his own clothes were in the same state as fellow escapee.

The alleyway was littered with trash and waste from the local shops. They both made their way forward following their own instinct and hoping they found shelter. The streets progressively got rougher and less maintained. They could see a man shout and get thrown out onto the street, barely able to stand due to binge drinking. They walked in the opposite direction when they saw a ninja wearing the emblem of the Military-Police approach. They continued down the street and Naruto could barely believe his eyes.

He had never seen so many people before, or seen such different shops and stalls. The smells of varying snacks were so enticing that his stomach growled in hunger. There were scents that were sweet, scents that were filling, which only encouraged his hunger. The smell of alcohol was a strange one to him. He couldn't quite place it as either a good or bad one, but it was quite a pungent smell. As they continued down the road the food stalls stopped and the only places that he could see were prominently made for drinking, gambling, and sex.

Alto could smell the booze and tobacco from a distance and twitched his nose in irritation as it rankled his nerves. As they came along further down he noticed a figure sitting on the railings of a balcony. The voice was female and it called out to all the men walking down the road, beckoning them to enter the establishment. Before he could ponder on what the building was for, he was pulled to the side roughly by Naruto.

"Police," he hushed.

Luckily there was an alleyway that they could slip through, and so they did. The ground was somewhat moist and filthy water collected in the small dips and holes. Their feet suffered from having to step and squelch in the muddied waste. Alto could hear strange voices as they walked. They sounded like when one ran too fast for too long and panted for breath. One was male and the other female, of that he was certain. Another pair of street goers or did the police somehow find them and were waiting to take them back to their captors? Alto couldn't be sure, but he trusted in Naruto to find a way out. As they got closer Alto could make out other sounds. A slapping noise that followed a somewhat steady rhythm. All of a sudden came an unfamiliar noise, a moan or what it a yelp? He couldn't quite make it out.

Then within his field of sensory perception he could finally perceive two figures in front of them. One was pinned against the wall of the building and the other repetitively thrusted itself against the other figure. As the two boys slowly walked onwards, Alto's clarity of the scene become more acutely focused on what was happening. The man was thrusting into the woman.

Were they not in such a hurry to find shelter, both boys would have silently observed the entire display with great curiosity. Neither child could fathom the reason why the adults would partake in such a public display. Both children promptly decided that it would be better to simply walk on by without so much a glance in the couple's direction. So lost in their passion, the couple barely noticed that they had been seen or that the pair of boys walked by.

Within the range of Alto's sense's was a small wooden shack. Empty and lacking any comforts that they missed, but it was safe place to stay hidden for now. Naruto released his grip on Alto forcing him to use the walls of the shack for support as he gently opened the door. Inside was the scent of rotting wood and creaking floorboards, not exactly the most comfortable of accommodations. Stepping inside, Naruto found that it was devoid of any features that would give one an inclination as to what the shack was originally used for. As it was now, one could only deduce that it was used for simple storage purposes.

Naruto guided Alto inside and gently rested him against the back wall, directly opposite the entrance. He sat down next to him and finally allowed himself to relax. The floor was moist and the cool night air made the interior feel like winter had come. They leaned on each other as they slowly got into the mood for sleep, but were interrupted by an unexpected arrival.

"What the hell are you doing here?"

AN: Note – Alltariss – Another chapter completed! Things do indeed look dire and spiralling down, but it won't all be dark and gloomy. Things will start to improve as time goes on.

Raijin - Raijin is a god of lightning, thunder and storms in the Shinto religion and in Japanese mythology. His name is derived from the Japanese words rai (thunder) and "god" or "kami" (shin). He is typically depicted as a demon-looking spirit beating drums to create thunder, usually with the symbol tomoe drawn on the drums.