Disclaimer: I do not, nor have I ever, owned anything related to Masashi Kishimoto's Naruto series.
Legend:
"A Human is talking."
'A Human is thinking.'
"A Demon or Summon is talking."
'A Demon or Summon is thinking.'
"A jutsu is being performed."
Chapter One:
-Hi no Kuni*: Shumatsu no Tani*-
It was soon after Naruto finished the dressing of her wounds that she turned her attention to make sure that Uchiha Sasuke's bindings were still secured. Finding that they were, she lifted him off of the dusty ground and placed him, like a sack of potatoes, over her shoulder. The blonde then began her journey back to her home; Konohagakure no Sato*.
The main reason that Sasuke was bound was to prevent the prisoner to escape her custody before she got him back to the village. If he could escape her, Sasuke would, once again, try to reach Orochimaru's base within Oto no Kuni* on his quest for power. It was this reason that she was assigned, along with a group of Chunin and Genin, to retrieve the "Last loyal Uchiha" and bring the defector back to the village.
As a precaution against any escape attempt, Naruto had placed a Chakra-Suppressing Seal* tag on the boy's forehead. This tag would prevent Sasuke from accessing his chakra until Naruto disabled it or someone removed and/or destroyed it. From his current position on her shoulder, restrained in a way to prevent any Ninjutsu, Sasuke would be unable to even try to remove the tag.
It was at that moment when Naruto felt her mental connection with her demon, the Kyubi no Yoko*, open and felt his presence. The demon's warm, maroon-colored chakra began to flow through her veins, healing all of her wounds at an extraordinary speed.
After two minutes, the warm chakra dissipated and Naruto gave an involuntary shudder at the loss. She experimentally moved her left arm, previously having been broken in at least three places, and found that it was perfectly fine. The Kyubi had healed her well.
'Thank you Kyubi-sensei.' The blonde-haired girl thought appreciatively.
"It was the least of all that I could have done for you." The Kyubi responded.
XXXXXXXXXX
-Hi no Kuni: Shumatsu no Tani-
"Hehehe… Things are taken an interesting turn, haven't they?" A tall man with short, green-colored hair asked as he emerged from the ground.
The man who had just spoken was easily recognized as Zetsu of the Akatsuki by his inhuman appearance. Two Venus fly-trap-like extensions sprouted from his waist and enveloped his upper body and head, giving him a plant-like appearance. As these extensions opened, it was revealed that he had bright yellow eyes with no pupils.
His body was divided into two, symmetrical halves that possessed their own unique coloring. Zetsu's left side was as white as a bone while his right side was as black as a starless night. He was outfitted in a loose Akatsuki cloak, a pair of black pants, and black sandals.
"Indeed… Did we manage to record everything…" Zetsu asked, "Of course we did… Come, it is time for us to report back."
XXXXXXXXXX
-Hi no Kuni: Some Unknown Forest-
As Naruto was jumping from tree-branch to tree-branch, she absentmindedly noticed that her link was the Kyubi was opened again. She was more concentrated towards keeping her footing at the moment.
"Naruto… we need to talk." The Kyubi no Yoko said with a small sigh.
'What do we need to "talk" about right now Kyubi-sensei?' Naruto questioned, 'I'm a little busy at the moment.'
"I need to talk to you about something I should have told you years ago… You may want to find a place to rest as it will be very difficult for you to understand." The Kyubi responded.
Naruto frowned at the Kyubi's answer before she jumped off of the tree-branch and landed at the base of a moss-covered tree.
'So what exactly do we have to talk about?' The blue-eyed girl thought.
"The fact that I am dying." The Kyubi answered.
Naruto's eyes widened in shock as her body began to shake.
'H-how c-can-n y-you be d-dyin-ng?' The blonde-haired Jinchuriki asked.
"I'm dying because of the Shiki Fujin* that the Fourth Hokage used to seal me into you. As I was being sealed, the Fourth spilt my chakra into two parts; Yin and Yang. He sealed my Yin chakra within himself and sealed my Yang chakra within you through the Hakke no Fuin Shiki *," The Kyubi explained to his host, "Each day that seal drains my Yang chakra before it converts it into chakra that you can use. When the last of my Yang chakra has been absorbed, I will die and join my Yin chakra within Death's stomach. After my death though, all of the Fourth and his wife's seals will collapse and forcibly turn you into a demon. You will become the next Kyubi no Yoko, Monarch of the Demon-Fox Clan."
After the Kyubi finished speaking, he allowed her a couple of minutes to deal with her shock. A couple of minutes passed before he felt her shock dissipate and waited for her to speak.
'Kyu-' The blonde-haired shinobi began.
"Naruto," The Kyubi interrupted softly, "My name isn't 'Kyubi no Yoko'. 'Kyubi no Yoko' is actually a title I received after my other efforts with eight other demons in the past… My real name is Kouji… King of the Demon-Fox Clan."
'Kouji-sensei?' Naruto asked.
"What is it Naruto?" Kouji responded.
'Is there any way that I could stop this process from happening? I don't want you to die…! And I don't… I don't want to be alone again.' Naruto said.
As soon as she had finished her thought, the blonde-haired girl heard Kouji's familiar, bark-like laughter that put a small smile onto her face. It slowly eased the new ache his words had caused her heart.
Kouji's reason for laughing at his host was simple; he was laughing at Naruto. At most time the girl would be a fierce and independent shinobi with amazing Sealing skills but sometimes she would become insecure, shy, and feel defenseless. He stopped laughing soon enough.
"You can't stop this process Naruto," Kouji said, "You won't be alone anymore either. Have you forgotten your friend Gaara so soon?"
A small, barely noticeable blush tinted Naruto's cheeks at the mention of Gaara's name. She felt Kouji's amusement and mentally glared at him, again feeling his amusement, before she sighed.
'Yes, I remember Gaara.' The blue-eyed Jinchuriki thought.
"So you also remember that Gaara has the Ichibi no Tanuki sealed within him right? When the Ichibi dies, Gaara, like you, will be turned into a demon and become King of the Demon-Raccoon Clan. Besides, there are eight other people with Biju* sealed within them... Considering the circumstances, I don't believe that you'll ever be alone again Naruto…" The Kyubi trailed off, "I do have one more thing I need to ask you to do."
'What?' Naruto questioned.
"After you drop off that brat back to the village, I will need you to travel towards Mt. Sobou-Hana within Yawa no Kuni. Before we were sealed, we planned to meet there if we were ever going to die." Kouji said in a whisper.
'Of course Kouji-sensei. You know I would do anything to help you.' Naruto promised.
"Thank you."
It was then Naruto saw a mental picture of Mt. Sobou-Hana and the details on how to find a secret valley hidden within it. A minute after she had memorized the information, Kouji closed their mental connection. He shifted within his massive cage and then went to sleep in an effort to conserve his chakra.
When Naruto felt Kouji close their link, she absentmindedly dropped Sasuke onto the ground as her bottled emotions began to escape her control. She fell to her knees as tears began running down her face.
Clear, salty tears cascaded down the blonde-haired girl's face as she released all of her emotions into a single scream of pure, unadulterated anguish. Animals for miles around Naruto's location fled from the terrible sound that didn't seem to ever stop. It wouldn't stop for a long time.
XXXXXXXXXX
-Hi no Kuni: The outskirts of Konohagakure no Sato-
After an intense, three-hour run, Naruto had finally cleared the foliage of the forest and caught a glimpse of the wall surrounding Konohagakure. Her face brightened at the sight of Konohagakure; at the sight of her home.
The dark-green gates towered above the tree-line and only seemed to grow with every step that a person took towards it. That gate promised Naruto the warmth of a refreshing shower, a hot meal, and a chance to gather her supplies before she left to fulfill Kouji's last wish.
Naruto herself couldn't run anymore as her chakra reserves were depleted and her prisoner seemed to grow heavier with every step towards the village he defected from.
"I… I made it back." The blue-eyed Jinchuriki whispered.
It was at that very moment that Naruto saw that her friends were waiting for her just outside of the village's gate. Her smile widened at the sight before she saw their nervous body postures and faces. The smile vanished from her face.
The first person that she saw in detail was her teammate, Haruno Sakura, and she noticed that the girl's eyes were filled with worry. Naruto knew that none of that concern was for her but for the traitor she had carried; even after all of this time, Sakura was still a fan girl.
Naruto could have thrown up her lunch at the sight of Sakura; Kami did that make her sick! The worst part of this situation was that Sasuke's injuries were minor compared to the wounds that Kouji had healed.
The next person that Naruto saw was Senju Tsunade, the Fifth Hokage of Konohagakure. The blonde-haired woman was being held by her former teammate, Jiraya, as she sobbed onto his shoulder.
As Tsunade continued to cry, Jiraya started rubbing circles on her back as his lips whispered soft words into her ears. Even though the white-haired man appeared to be unaffected by what was happening, it was obvious to tell that he had cried recently; his eyes were ringed with the redness that only comes from crying.
After Jiraya, Naruto saw her friend Hyuga Hinata, the heiress of the Hyuga Clan. The blue-haired girl was being held by her teammate, Inuzuka Kiba, as her tears wet his jacket.
When Kiba saw Naruto looking at him, he tensed for a brief second before a tear escaped from his eyes.
Aburame Shino stood stoically behind Hyuga Neji's wheelchair, his white hands slightly bending the metal under his group. Tears streamed from beneath his sunglasses and disappeared only when Shino's coat blocked them from sight.
Neji looked paler than he usually did with the majority of his body wrapped in clean, white-colored medical tape. When the boy's pale eyes met with Naruto's, she caught a flash of despair before he turned his eyes away. He didn't look at her again.
Nara Shikamaru stood behind Akimichi Choji's wheelchair. His usual sharp, analytical black-colored eyes had become duller and filled with the utter hopelessness of whatever was going on.
Choji himself was unusually thin for an Akimichi and had medical tape wrapped around most of his upper body. His warm, brown-colored eyes had become swollen from crying.
Tou Tenten was being held by her uninjured teammate, Rock Lee, as she cried on his shoulder.
Rock Lee, following Jiraya's example, was rubbing circles onto Tenten's back. After a moment, he leaned closer to her ears and began whispering.
Hakate Kakashi, Naruto's Jonin Instructor, was standing beside his fellow Jonin without his usual book, Icha Icha Paradise, on his person. His mask was damp from the tears that continued to fall from his eye.
Sarutobi Asuma, son of the Third Hokage, stood beside Kakashi without a cigarette in his mouth. Besides his frown, there was nothing to indicate anything his emotions to those around him.
Yuhi Kurenai was standing besides Asuma, her unique red-colored eyes dulled by sadness.
Kankuro stood beside his brother, Gaara, and his sister, Temari. His head was lowered, his cat-like hood shadowing all of his face from view. Smudges of purple paint lay on the ground near his feet.
Temari had slumped shoulders with an aura of despair around herself. Tears fell from her swollen, green-colored eyes.
When Naruto's eyes met Gaara's eyes, she knew that he had been told what was going on. The Ichibi had told him what was happening to it as Kouji had told her. He also knew why everyone was acting the way they were right now.
"What is going on here?" The blonde-haired girl asked.
At her voice Sakura's face darkened and her green eyes began to burn with hatred. She began to charge towards Naruto without a second thought.
"What have you done to poor Sasuke?" The pink-haired girl yelled.
Before anyone could answer Sakura's question, Kakashi appeared before her with a frown visible underneath his mask. He made quick work of disabling the pink-haired Genin before he threw her equipment towards Kurenai. The black-haired woman caught it without a sound.
'I believe your words are mixed Skank-ura! I barely even hurt him before I managed to subdue him. "Poor Sasuke" my ass…' Naruto thought.
Sasuke fell from her shoulder as the blue-eyed Jinchuriki took an involuntary step backwards, her eyes misting with the promise of tears. She didn't know what was going on and it was beginning to scare her.
"W-what's going on?" Naruto whispered.
"Keep moving Demon!" Sakura shouted as Naruto's eyes widened in horror, "Konoha's Council* has finally saved us from scum like you!"
It was at that moment that Naruto understood just exactly what was going on. Konoha's Council had finally siphoned enough power with their new "laws" to override the Hokage. She had been banished by the people that had hated her since Kouji had been sealed within her.
Naruto took another step away from her friends. Another step away from the home she had known since birth. The blonde-haired hair couldn't stand knowing why all of her precious people were in pain.
She ripped off her headband from her head before she stared into its reflective surface. After a minute of absolute silence, she threw her headband as far away from her as she possibly could. She watched the headband bounce a couple of time in the dirt before it settled 10-feet away from her so-called "Welcoming Party".
As soon as that was done, Naruto turned away from Konohagakure no Sato and began to walk away.
"Good bye, Konohagakure no Sato." The blue-eyed girl whispered.
It was mere seconds before she heard something small but metallic hit the ground before she heard footsteps coming her direction. The person stopped one foot behind her.
"They don't have much time left." Gaara said.
"I know that Gaara," Naruto said as she turned to him, "Do you want to come with me?"
"We are going towards the same location." The red-haired Jinchuriki responded.
Without another word, the two Jinchuriki had jumped into the trees and soon vanished within them.
Two minutes had passed before a shower of cold, unforgiving rain began as lightning flashed and thunder boomed. The very sky seemed to be weeping for the enormous loss just dealt to Konohagakure no Sato and Sunagakure no Sato.*
XXXXXXXXXX
-Konohagakure no Sato: West Gate-
As the cold, unforgiving rain hit her body like thousands of senbon needles, Tsunade released a scream of pure, unadulterated anguish. Naruto, the girl that brought her back to the village, hadn't been informed of her banishment. From a political sense, Naruto was now considered a nukenin* as she had "defected" from the village before being told of her expulsion.
A slight weight vanished from her shoulders as she realized that Naruto wasn't going to be alone. The two Jinchuriki were strong enough alone and she somehow knew that they would do anything to protect one another. She hoped that they both would survive.
The Fifth Hokage also hoped that when, not if, she met Naruto again, that the girl wouldn't hate her. She didn't know if she could take it.
A/N: Author's Note:
Name: Naruto Uzumaki.
Rank: Chunin.
Classification: The Kyubi Jinchuriki.
Current Occupation(s): Seal Mistress.
Birthdate: October 10.
Age: 13.
Height: Four foot, six inches.
Weight: 135 pounds.
Gender: Female.
Blood Type: B
Chakra Nature(s): Wind.
Known Jutsu:
Body Flicker Technique
Body Replacemnt Technique
Combination Transformation
Clone Jutsu
Rasengan
Rope Escape Technique
Shadow Clone Technique
Shadow Shuriken Technique
Transformation Technique
Uzumaki Formation
Uzumaki Naruto Combo
Uzumaki Naruto Two Thousand Combo
Weapons(s):
Name: Gaara Sabaku.
Rank: Chunin.
Classification: The Ichibi Jinchuriki.
Current Occupation(s):
Current Occupation(s): Guardian of Kumogakure no Sato. Composer of music.
Birthdate: January 19.
Age: 13.
Height: Four feet, eight inches.
Weight: 165 pounds.
Gender: Male.
Blood Type: AB negative.
Chakra Nature(s): Wind.
Known Jutsu:
Armour of Sand
Feigning Sleep Technique
Sand Binding Coffin
Sand Binding Prison
Sand Clone Technique
Shield of Sand
Ultimately Hard Absolute Attack: Spear of Shukaku
Ultimately Hard Absolute Defence: Shield of Shukaku
Wind Release: Infinite Sand Cloud Great Breakthrough
Weapon(s):
Gourd (1).
Important Information:
1. Hi no Kuni (Land of Fire) is one of the largest and most powerful nations in the Ninja world. Its ninja village is Konohgakure no Sato.
2. Shumatsu no Tani (Valley of the End) is the border between the Oto no Kuni and Hi no Kuni. Was created by the battle between the First Hokage, Senju Harashima, and Uchiha Madara.
3. Konohagakure no Sato (Village Hidden in the Leaves) is he Hidden Village of Hi no Kuni. As one of the five great villages, it has a Kage as its leader known as the Hokage.
4. Oto no Kuni (Land of Sound) is a neighbor country to Hi no Kuni. It is a relatively new country in the political scene, though it has existed for some time under the name of the Ta no Kuni (Land of Rice Fields). Orochimaru conquered the country and convinced its daimyo to let him establish his own ninja village.
5. The Chakra-Suppressing Seal is a special seal tag developed by Jiraya. It can easily be used to suppress anyone's chakra until it is destroyed, deactivated, or removed.
6. Kyubi no Yoko (Nine-tailed Demon-fox) is one of the Biju. It has lived so long it has come be known as an age-old natural disaster.
7. Shiki Fūjin (Dead Demon Consuming Seal) invokes the powers of the death god. Once called upon, the death god hovers behind the user and wraps its left arm with prayer beads, which causes a cursed seal to appear on it. The soul of the summoner is also seen along with the death god, restrained by its hair but still attached to the user. The death god then inserts its arm into the user's soul. At this stage only the user can see the death god. To perform the seal the user need only grasp the target. The death god's arm extends from their chest and grabs the soul of the target, immobilizing them and allowing them to see the death god as well. The death god then performs the sealing.
8. Hakke no Fūin Shiki (Eight Trigrams Sealing Style) consists of two Four Symbols Seals, was used by Minato Namikaze to help Naruto Uzumaki access the chakra of the Nine-Tailed Demon Fox sealed within him. To perform the technique, the user must first summon a ceremonial throne, and place the target on it.
9. Biju (Tailed Beasts) are nine demons with incredible levels of chakra.
10. Nukenin (Missing Ninja) are ninja who have defected from their villages. Are usually hunted down by Hunter Nin.