Note: I had someone comment on how Naruto over reacted. To start off, he's kind of unstable at the point because of the influence of the seal and the kyuubi in his head. Also, he's just been denied the one thing that was his dream. He focused his life around being a ninja. His life would have no purpose without that, to him. Also, he thinks that everyone he ever cared about hates him now, and love/friendship with his precious people was the thing that kept him from going nuts like Gaara did. A combination of all that would drive most people over the edge. I apologize if I did not convey this fully enough.
Anyway, onto the chapter.
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Naruto woke up and looked around. He was still in the cell and there was no sign of any blood. He looked at his wrists. There weren't even scars. He sighed. The Kyuubi had saved him. He had expected that, but...who had cleaned up the blood?" He checked himeself out. He was still in a lot of pain, but not as much as before. He didn't hear any voices in his head, he supposed he should be grateful for that. What now, though? He had no one to talk to, not that there was anyone he wanted to talk to, except maybe the Kyuubi who he couldn't contact anymore. He considered his options. If he was good, then he had the slight chance at being allowed to live. He barked a laugh "Yeah, right. The council hates my guts. They wanted me to kill myself. That's why they didn't take my kunai." He swung up into a sitting position on the bed and stood up, pacing around for a bit. He couldn't kill himself, so there were three options. The most likely would be that he would be executed, the second would be that he would be let to live under guard for the rest of his life, the third, and least likely, was escape from the cell and running away.
But where would he go? As he was thinking about this, he saw something coming in through the inch wide slits in the wall that served as windows. He frowned. It was a small snake. He took out a kunai, then reconsidered. He decided to watch to see what it was going to do. Then, all of a sudden the snake was gone in a puff of smoke and Orochimaru appeared.
Naruto growled then clutched his shoulder. A fresh wave of pain almost made him fall to his knees. He sat down on shaky legs on what served as a bed. "What do you want, you bastard? You come to finish me off?"
Orochimaru looked at the boy. He had found out from one of the guards what had happened, exactly. He said "On the contrary, Naruto-kun. I want you to join me."
Naruto said "Join you? You did this to me!" He looked up at the snake with fire in his eyes, that dimmed at another wave of pain. He whimpered.
Orochimaru said "I can get rid off the pain."
Naruto said, tiredly, "I'm not going to join you, Orochimaru."
Orochimaru said "Konoha has betrayed you. I know what that's like. Even if they let you live, you'll never be a ninja. Being a ninja is your dream. You are welcome in Oto. I, unlike the stupid councilors, appreciate a strong shinobi such as yourself in my ranks"
Naruto frowned "I am welcome nowhere and I don't like you."
Orochimaru said "Poor Naruto-kun, no one loves you..."
Naruto laughed bitterly "If you're going to say you love me, save it."
Orochimaru chuckled "No, you'd just be one of the ninjas serving in my army, however, I know one man who loved you."
Naruto looked up, curious despite himself "Who? Everyone in Konoha hates me, including the old man." His breath caught at the end. He had been closest to the Sandaime out of everyone.
Orochimaru smiled. He said "Your father."
Naruto looked at Orochimaru. "He's more responsible than you are for the trouble I'm in!"
Orochimaru said "He did it because there wasn't any other way to keep the Kyuubi from destroying Konoha. It was a pity. He was so happy when he found out he had a son."
Naruto struggled with himself, then asked "Why are you telling me this?"
Orochimaru said "I can bring him back to life."
Naruto looked at the man with widened eyes "What?"
"It's one of the reasons I got kicked out of Leaf. If you join me, I'll get rid of all those pesky dampening seals and you can be a ninja again. I'll even give you your father back."
Orochimaru saw the look on the blonde's face and decided it would be best to let it all stew in his head. He said "Consider my offer, boy." He changed back into a snake and left through the slit.
Naruto sat on the bed. His head whirling. He hated the oro-teme, but he was offering him life and...his father, but...he hated him, didn't he? Everyone seemed to love the yondaime. Was he really so great? Was Orochimaru telling the truth? Did he really love him? Could he really bring him back to life? He was so confused since his world had crashed down around his shoulders.
As he was musing, his door opened and a guard walked in. Naruto frowned, but didn't speak. He did cry out when the guard transformed into a man in a black coat with red clouds. He backed closer to the wall and said "You're not a guard, how did you get in?"
The man with long black hair and black eyes said "I used a genjutsu. Uzumaki Naruto,"
Naruto looked at this man. He reminded him a lot of Sasuke. He asked "Who are you?"
"Uchiha Itachi. We have heard of your...situation and my leader would like you to join our organization."
Naruto frowned. This guy was Sasuke's older brother, the one who killed his own clan, but that didn't mean he wasn't curious why he wanted him "What organization?"
"Akatsuki."
Naruto shook his head. He said "Jeez, I didn't know I was so popular. First Orochimaru sneaks in here, then here you come. I give you more points for your entrance, though. You walked in through the front door." He paused "What is Akatsuki, anyway?"
Itachi said "It is made up of the most powerful of missing nin."
"What do you do?"
"We are gathering the jinchuriki."
"Why?"
Itachi said "With their power, we would become unstopable."
Naruto said "Tell me why I should?"
Itachi said "I could get you out of here easily."
Naruto watched him. He didn't trust him. He said "You don't want me, you want Kyuubi."
"We want the jinchuriki of Kyuubi."
Naruto frowned. Human sacrifice. He supposed that's what he was. He said "Give me a reason why I should trust yout anymore than that snake Orochimaru."
Itachi frowned. He had been expecting the boy to jump at the chance to escape. He said "You seem rather calm for someone who's going to be executed."
Naruto said "Death doesn't bother me anymore. If it were up to me, I would be dead already."
Itachi's eyes widened slightly and he looked at the boy again. Had he attempted suicide? He saw no signs on him. Had he been that unstable?
Naruto said, noticing the older boy's expression, "I have to be calm, or I'll pass out from the pain." he said in a deadpan voice. Then he looked at Itachi "Do you have a seals master among you?"
"Yes."
"Could he take off chakra restriction seals, a curse seal and an evil suppression seal?"
Itachi thought 'He has all of that on him? With Kyuubi's chakra supressed in him, no wonder he was in pain and the curse seal...He said "Yes."
Naruto frowned. If he did get out of here, he very much wanted to get all of these seals off so he could go back to normal. If he went with Orochimaru, he was sure the man wouldn't remove the curse seal, however...if Orochimaru could do what he said he could...he frowned.
Itachi frowned "Your considering joining Orochimaru. If I'm correct, he's the reason for your current predicament. Why? What did he offer you?"
Naruto looked at the man in front of him, wondering whether he should tell him. Finally, he decided to tell him the truth. It didn't matter. He said "Orochimaru offers to remove two of the seals and to let me become a ninja of his village."
Itachi said "We offer the same and the removal of the curse seal. There is more."
Naruto said "He also offers to use a forbidden technique to resurrect my father."
Itachi frowned. He said "He speaks of the Edo tensei. Your father's soul was taken by the Shinigami. That jutsu cannot bring him back." In truth, Itachi didn't know whether it could or not.
Naruto frowned. This was just something else to leave him more unsure of what to do. He said "You don't know that." When Itachi didn't say anything, it confirmed his doubt. Naruto continued. "I don't trust the snake, but I don't trust you either. The snake offers me my father, what do you offer?" He looked at him with hard eyes.
Itachi looked at this boy. He acted more like an adult than a boy and though he seemed tough now, Itachi could tell that he was very confused underneath. It was understandable. His whole world was gone. He frowned. The leader had only asked him to extend the offer. He would go give the leader the answer. He said "Orochimaru is a backstabing snake. He betrayed Akatsuki. He will betray you. Akatsuki do not betray their own."
Naruto said "One did, missing nin are ninjas who have betrayed their land. If Akatsuki is an organization of missing nin, it is an organization of betrayers."
Itachi countered "So you're telling me that you're loyal to Konoha, after what they've done to you?"
Naruto frowned. Itachi continued "There are good reasons to become a missing nin as well as bad ones. It is not always the shinobi that betrays his land, sometimes the land betrays the shinobi. What is your answer?"
Naruto frowned again, his head still too muddled to think clearly, but he didn't want his only option to be the snake "I'll...think about it."
Itachi nodded and went back through the door "I'll be back."
Naruto sat back down on the bed, his head pounding. What should he do?
Outside of the cell...
The genin squads had gathered along with their jonin senseis into the Hokage's office.
Iruka and Kakashi were at the front. Iruka asked "What happened to him?"
Kakashi said "Hokage-sama. Why are the genin here"
Sandaime sighed "I know they have questions. I realize now that Naruto might have been better off if the secret had never been kept. It will now be told, if some of them haven't guessed already."
Sasuke asked "What secret?"
Kakashi looked at the sharingan user. He then looked at Iruka, who looked the most shaken up next to the Hokage.
Iruka asked "Hokage-sama. Naruto, he isn't himself, is he? Did it...?"
The Hokage sighed "The boy is broken, due to both influences, but more than that, the look on his face when he was in my office." The old man looked older than usual and pained. "He's kept control for so long, but he messed up, and now...I had no other choice, it was that or execution."
Sakura said "Wait, this is Naruto we're talking about? Sure he fought with that sand ninja and destroyed a couple of buildings, but that's not enough to kill someone for!"
Sarutobi sighed. "Kakashi, would you explain? The fourth was your sensei."
Kakashi sighed. He saw it hurt the old man too much to talk about it, but he didn't want to talk about it either. Thinking or talking about the fourth brought back bad memories. He asked "Can anyone tell me the story of the Kyuubi?"
The genin looked at their senseis who were keeping silent about it.
Shikamaru was the one who spoke up "The Kyuubi was defeated by the 4th Hokage."
"What happened to the Kyuubi?"
"It was killed."
Kakashi said "That is what you were told. Now you are going to be told the truth." It was clear there was unrest among the genins at the mention of this, but he was serious enough to keep them from talking amongst themselves. Kakashi paused, then said "The bijuu are too powerful to be killed. The nine tailed fox was sealed into a new born infant by the Yondaime." He paused again to let this information sink in.
The Aburame was the one to speak up first "It makes sense. My kikai bugs sensed inhuman energy coming from him."
Sakura asked "What are you talking about?"
Kakashi said "The Kyuubi was sealed into Naruto just after he was born. He is a jinchuriki."
What was left of team seven stood there in shock. So did most of the other genin.
Finally, Ino spoke up "Why...why didn't anyone tell us?"
Sarutobi said "I had hoped that if the young generation didn't know that Naruto would be treated like a normal child and make friends." He sighed. "Unfortunately, the older generation either told their children or poisioned their minds against him."
Shikamaru said "This is troublesome, but...a jinchuriki is a person that a bijuu is sealed in, not the bijuu. Naruto's never acted like that before."
Sarutobi looked pained again "I agree. Naruto is not the Kyuubi, but the council fears that his seal is weakening and that he may lose control. There is also the complication of the curse seal he bears because of Orochimaru, which is why I called you here, Anko."
Everyone stared as the woman appeared in the windowsill and came into the room. She said "Take a picture." She turned to the hokage. She said "I've met monsters. The kid's not one. He's like me."
Sarutobi said "I agree with you, Shikamaru. I do not believe that Naruto is the Kyuubi or that he has been influencing him, at least up until now. He was attacked constantly as a child and he never struck back."
Sasuke muttered "Attacked constantly?" He looked at Kakashi "What does he mean?"
Kakashi said, uncomfortably "Before Naruto became a ninja, he would get beaten up by civilians on a regular basis."
Sakura asked "Beaten up how badly? How often?"
Kakashi said "Close to the point of death, at least once a week, sometimes more often."
Sakura gasped, most of the genins showed horror. Sasuke was angry. He said "Why didn't anyone do something? If that had happened to me, I would have..." He trailed off. "I would have fought back."
Sarutobi said "If he would have fought back he would have been banished or worse."
"Can't you do something? You're Hokage!"
Sandaime shook his head "I may be Hokage, but I did all I could. I had to fight hard for Naruto's life."
Shikamaru asked "What do you mean?"
Sarutobi said "He was given a month, if the seals stay put, he gets stripped of his rank and is allowed to continue living as a civilian. If he shows signs of being unstable...he will be executed."
Sasuke frowned, but Lee beat him to the punch "I am not in Naruto's class, but even I have seen his youthful spirit. I have heard his dreams of being Hokage. I cannot imagine life not as a shinobi and I do not think he could either."
Sarutobi frowned, wondering whether he should tell them of the attempt. He decided not to, at least not with the genins around.
Shikamaru asked "Why are you telling us this, Hokage-sama? It's troublesome...there's nothing we can do." he frowned.
Sarutobi said "I need to know your opinions of Naruto, now that you know the truth."
"Why?"
The Sandaime said "I need to know if you would be willing to bring him back."
"Bring him back, where is he going?" Sakura asked.
Sandaime frowned "Nowhere, yet, but I feel something's going to happen. If he doesn't run off, there is a strong possibility that he will be kidnapped."
Kurenai looked down at her charges. She saw the tears running down Hinata's face. She said "At first, I distrusted Naruto, because he is a jinchuriki, but..." She looked down. "When I came to pick up Hinata from the academy, I saw him sometimes. He was always alone, I even saw him attacked once. He didn't fight back." She looked up "Every monster I've ever seen fought back when attacked. The Kyuubi did." She looked at her charges again.
Surprisingly Hinata spoke up. She choked on her words "Nobody e..ever did anything! I should have done s..something. I saw him alone..."
Sakura was close to tears too "So did I."
Kiba said "Naruto always smelled like fox, now I know why. I skipped class with the guy..." He paused. Akamaru barked "You're right, Akamaru."
"What did he say?"
Kiba said "Akamaru says that he had a lot of energy that scared him when he felt the fight, but that wasn't his normal energy. That he wasn't bad before. I'm with Akamaru."
Both Kiba and Hinata looked at Shino, who said "I expected something like this. My kikai bugs told me about Uzumaki's energy. However, I have not sensed killer intent from him before the fight, except on one occasion."
Kurenai was surprised "On what occasion would that be, Shino?"
Shino said "The killer intent that he displayed towards Hyuuga Neji during his match that immobilized him." They all looked at him in surprise.
Kurenai asked "Why didn't you tell anyone?"
Shino raised an eyebrow and said "I assumed that at least the jonins and chunnins noticed. I see I assumed incorrectly."
Sarutobi frowned. Had he been unstable that early in?
Hinata saw the frown and cried "He did it for me!" Everyone looked at her in surprise. She said "When I was fighting with Neji...he was watching. He knew I was losing, he wanted me to win."
Kurenai said gently "That doesn't make it alright for him to do that."
Hinata turned on her sensei. "He cared about me!" She sobbed. "Did you see the look on his face? Right before they took him away? Did you see it?"
Most of the other genin were shocked to see the quiet girl express herself so loudly. She continued with tears in her eyes "He looked at me, at all of us with the most painful look of being betrayed that I've ever seen." She cried. "He..he..he" She broke down. Kurenai put her hand on the girl's shoulder, but she refused the comfort. Hinata raised her head, her eyes red a few minutes later. She cried "He was always alone, then he made friends. Now he thinks everyone hates him!
Sarutobi frowned. He had seen the look on the blonde's face, but he hadn't realized it was because of that. He listened as the girl continued.
"He thinks everyone hates him and if he makes it through this...his dream has been destroyed. How could they do this to him?!" Hinata ran out of the room.
Kurenai cried "Hinata!"
Sarutobi said "Let her go calm down. She needs to be alone." He sighed. "I didn't want to tell the genin this, but Naruto...has already made an attempt on his own life. I had him healed."
Sakura gasped. "Hokage-sama...he...will he..."
Sarutobi shook his head "I doubt he will try it again. He most likely believes that the Kyuubi healed him like it normally does."
Sakura thought 'The Kyuubi heals him? That would make sense. That's how he healed so quickly during the mission to wave...'
Sarutobi sighed again. Poor, poor Naruto. I have failed you Arashi, I'm so sorry... He looked at the genin and said "A raise of hands of those who would be willing to go after Naruto."
Team seven raised their hands first, followed by Shino and Kiba, then by Ino, Shikamaru and Chouji. Lee raised his hand too. This leaved Tenten and Neji.
Tenten said "I don't really know Naruto, but no body that was treated that bad and didn't fight back's a monster. Nobody deserves to die for something out of their control. I'll go after him."
She looked at Neji, knowing that the last part of what she had said would affect Neji, if nothing else had.
Neji thought 'I thought my cage seal was a curse. I thought no one else could know what it's like to be born inferior, to be born with something you'd have to live with the rest of your life, that could cause you to die at a whim. How wrong I've been. He's been through that and more.' He raised his hand too.
Sarutobi looked at the jonin sensei.
Asuma asked "Hokage-sama, why are you asking this of the genin? If Uzumaki is taken, surely it would take more than genin to get him back."
Sarutobi said "If he is taken, the council will not allow jonin or chunnin to be sent after him. I will be lucky if they don't send an assasination team." He looked at the genin sadly "How I wish I would have let the secret out sooner. How much it might have changed..."
With Hinata...
Hinata was using her Byakugon, trying to find Naruto. She finally found him in a cell, under guard. It would be hard to get to him, but she had to. She had to let him know that not everyone hated him. She had to find a way in.
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As always, forgive any minor errors that I make in grammar or spelling, it's hard to catch them all myself. Let me know what you think of the chapter.