Disclaimer: Masashi Kishimoto has an addiction to the color orange.
While being initially relieved and happy when he left the hokage's offices, Kakashi couldn't help but feel his mood ease up a little when he saw Ibiki tell one of the Fire Shadow's assistance that he had come when summoned. The man would be one of the more merciful interrogator's in Naruto's 'special' circumstances, but mercy wasn't what the scarred shinobi was known for. Even after years of serving with Ibiki, a chill still ran through the Hatake's experienced spine. If it weren't for his trust in Lord Sarutobi's character judgement, Kakashi would have probably interfered with the matter.
Outside the Hokage's office, Naruto could hear the sounds of Konohagure buzzing with life. No matter how many times he had been in the room, things rarely changed. Still, this particular audience was more desperate than any he had partaken in.
"Naruto, when a hokage gives you an order or an inquiry, you are expected to answer almost immediately. A lack of cooperation could even be considered criminal in the eyes of our people. The council intends to convene within the next few hours, and the last thing I wish to do is hand you over defenseless."
The Sandaime's voice reached Naruto's ears with a sting, forcing him to make reluctant eye contact with the man who had taken care of him since infancy. "I know, old man. I just don't know where to begin…"
"Then start from the beginning." The old man ordered gently, his face soft. He recognized inner turmoil when he saw it. It wouldn't be the first time he had dealt with a delicate situation in that room, and it wouldn't be the last.
"The beginning," the Uzumaki echoed, trying to form words while a truth hit him, "is the same as the ending, and I don't know when that was."
The hokage waited for an explanation, but soon realized that he would have to prompt it. "As it is, you haven't given me anything to go on, Naruto, except for a well-concealed code and a riddle. There are no such food products as you listed, and prices are not written as dates. If you hadn't placed the information within legitimate receipts, Kakashi would be the one questioning you right now."
Naruto recoiled in shame. "So, you've seen the whole list?"
"I assume so." Sarutobi answered, bemused, "and I feel I must ask why you wrote abbreviated name of a missing ninja that you had supposedly not met at the time of this document's creation. Or, perhaps I should inquire about a date that seems to signify my death?"
"You think I was PLANNING those things?" the Uzumaki shouted and rose from his chair, alarming Iruka in the hallway with the desperation of his voice. The teacher had to exercise every bit of self-restraint he had not to eavesdrop.
"Calm down, Naruto." Sarutobi barked, sounding more authoritative than he had meant to be. Still, the command had an effect, and the addressed slowly returned to his seat. "I said no such thing, and the entire point of this meeting is to hear your side of the story before your next interrogation. All I want is the truth, because Ibiki will enjoy prying it from you if I do not."
"You would let him torture me?" Naruto stammered, terror now filling his face.
"If you give me no choice…" the old man replied, folding his hands in guilt, "but believe me when I say that is the last resort."
"What do you want me to tell you, then?!" the jinchuuriiki countered, feeling cornered.
"The truth." The Sandaime stated, eyeing the boy in front of him with as much reassurance as he could provide. It must have reached the genin, because his breathing slowed, and the child became quiet.
"Would you believe it, Grandpa?" he asked, his voice regaining a small measure of confidence.
"I will try." The hokage promised, allowing a relieved sigh to escape him. He hadn't wanted to threaten Naruto, but if he couldn't convince the kid to talk, he wouldn't have had a choice.
With a surge of determination, Naruto leaned forward. "Okay, then. Get ready, because the truth is crazy."
The Hokage took a deep breath and prepared for the genin's explanation, and wasn't disappointed. However, he wasn't entirely ready for the weight of the child's statement.
"I've already lived today, and I know what it feels like to die." He said with conviction, his face serious.
"…Elaborate." The hokage ordered, visibly stunned.
"I know that the Chuunin Exams begin in four days." Naruto continued, "-and I know that there will be a challenge in the Forest of Death. I've met a true village traitor. The village was attacked."
The yondaime's son watched the village's leader startle, his nerves of steel bleeding away with his facial pigmentation.
"I've seen another bijuu mutate into a monster, and I've brought him back from the state. I've defeated the bitter Neji, trained with your perverted student, and have been thrown off a cliff to draw power from the beast inside me. Still, the rank of chuunin was denied to me."
After allowing these words to sink in, Naruto resumed his tirade with a little more emotion. "I was present for your funeral. We all were."
"Naruto," Sarutobi breathed, his eyes widened and his disbelief suspended. While the story being told to him was disjointed, the pieces fit together in an insane pattern. The boy's explanation was impossible… it probably wasn't even in chronological order. Even so, it was probably the only one that would have made sense.
"I'm not done." The blonde said," I'm not even close."
"I found Tsunade and returned her to Konoha. I wore her necklace, and I was still wearing it when I fought Sasuke Uchiha, my best friend, when he tried to escape in pursuit of power for his revenge."
If it was possible, the hokage would have blanched further. A painful secret floated to the surface of his mind. His mouth was as dry as sandpaper when he asked his next question."You won, then?"
"No, Grandpa. I lost. I lost, and I nearly died. He could have killed me for that damned Mangekyou Sharingan, but he didn't, and I spent the next three years training. While my friends advanced in rank, I remained a genin."
"But you became strong." Sarutobi consoled, the shock setting him on autopilot.
"It was never enough, Grandpa. I couldn't save anyone. I couldn't even bring Sasuke back when I saw him again-and even when possessed, I couldn't avenge you… and your nephew died defending me."
"Asuma?" the old man asked sharply, pained by the thought.
"He'd never see his child born… Shikamaru avenged him, but that doesn't undo a death."
Sarutobi remembered to asked about this child of Asuma's later, but as it was, there were more pressing matters that needed to be attended to.
"And then what happened, Naruto? How did you come back to this day? Did you die, as you mentioned earlier?"
Naruto lapsed into a thoughtful silence before grimacing. "I… don't remember. I don't even remember the last day I lived in that body."
"To what day did you return, then?" the Hokage substituted, acquiring as much information as he could.
"The day Kakashi tested us as students… I returned to early morning."
"Then when, exactly, did you 'die'?"
"After leaving the village with Tazuna, we were attacked by two chuunin from the Mist Village."
"How are you sure you died? From the report I gathered, you barely sustained as much as a scratch."
"I wasn't so lucky on the first two tries. The first time, I received a poison claw to the back, and the second time, knives cut my neck open. I felt the pain, the blood, and perception leave me."
"Then how did you go about the day again?" Sarutobi questioned.
"I am not entirely sure how, but I'd awaken from the last time I slept…"came Naruto's befuddled reply.
"Do you remember any of what happened in between those two events?" the hokage asked.
Naruto shook his head.
Sarutobi rubbed his temples, allowing the entire conversation to commit itself to memory. The new complications it had added to his life could not be stressed enough. There was no way he could create an alibi for the child with this information, and he dreaded turning him over to Ibiki with this much secrecy floating around. However trustworthy Ibiki may have been, the council would hear of what seemed to be the demon container's insanity.
"Why didn't you tell me this earlier, Naruto?" the old man groaned quietly. "If I had known, then maybe we could have done something, anything, to prevent a situation like this."
"What do you mean, old man?" Naruto asked, his shoulders sinking.
"You have to leave, Naruto. You have to leave this village. If any of the ANBU hear of this from Ibiki, who will have to learn the truth, the council will finally have the leverage it wants with your 'mental instability'."
"But I'm not… I'm not crazy." Naruto protested, though more to himself than anyone else.
"You're not a bloodthirsty monster, either, but the council likes to believe otherwise." The hokage was on his feet now, jotting things down on a few slips of paper.
"They can't kill me, old man, and I know they can't exile me, right?" The Uzumaki asked desperately.
"No, Naruto, they can't kill or exile you. On the other hand, they can take away your ability to move and have you imprisoned until they need your power to defend them. Listen to me," the old man pressed, almost pleading with the defiant face Naruto was making.
"They can have you stored away, like a ballista and a captive." Sarutobi stressed, looking out the window instead of at his guest. "-but if you leave, I will have someone send for you when this 'attack' you've predicted comes. I doubt the council could say much against its savior."
"What will happen to you if I leave, Grandpa? They'll know you did it, and they'll know you're keeping a secret from them, right?"
The Sandaime was surprised by the depth of the genin's perception, but he already knew the consequences of his own actions, and the kid had a point.
"It'll be worse if I don't see Ibiki, too. People will think I'm just a traitor instead of crazy, and they'll probably think you're in on it. You'll lose power and control, and the village would become weak, right?"
"Naruto… what are you saying?" Sarutobi demanded, pausing in his steps.
"I'm not going anywhere, and I'm keeping my secret." The blonde said, smiling resolutely.
"How do you intend to do that? Relive this morning and say nothing?! The outcome would be the same." Sarutobi announced, tensing.
"Ibiki's going to enter my brain, right? Search my mind?" Naruto speculated. "I'll just let him see my future stuff as dreams. It shouldn't be hard. Sometimes I can almost convince myself they are."
"That is a risk, Naruto. It's too much of a risk to take for the sake of one old man. You've never been good at subterfuge." The hokage looked at his young subordinate with a mixture of emotions.
"Really? The risk is nothing compared to how I'm going to save you." Naruto said with pride, forcing his leader to accept his desire to stay. "That, and I can always try again."
There was a break in conversation after Naruto's statement. The Hokage spent every second of it mulling over Naruto's stubborn decision, and finally gave in."If you're sure, Naruto… I'll send for Ibiki immediately. After that, we shall have to go to the council chambers. There's not going to be a chance to change your mind."
"I'm ready for this, Grandpa." Naruto assured. Sarutobi nodded and exited the room.
Naruto Uzumaki didn't know what to feel right then. While he was liberated from the burden of keeping his secret to himself, it didn't simplify matters in the least. In the back of his mind, Naruto made a mental reminder to hide his porn and grocery stash better in the future.
Author's note: New computer, new word processor, and another serious chapter completed. That dang envelope originated in an earlier chapter, but now we will never have to worry about it again. Also, there was no squirrel in this chapter. I don't need a squirrel to write. I just like them.