Disclaimer: Naruto is the sole-right of Masashi Kishimoto. Everything done here is simply for street cred.
Warning: This chapter merits its M-rating. Someone's got a potty mouth ;P
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Chapter Two
The Greatest Man That Ever Lived
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A young boy with spiky, blonde hair and blue eyes the color of sapphire, leaned lack-lustrely against his desk as the teacher in front of him droned on and on about some bullshit called calculus.
He had never been one for math but he did care enough to know that:
a) One plus one equaled two more pains in the ass and
b) Three was just enough to take a professional wrestler down for the count.
However, despite knowing this, he couldn't afford the luxury of letting his grades slip and that was the only reason; above all else, that he wasn't already drooling all over his stupid textbook.
"MR UZUMAKI, would you please wake up!"
Well, what do you know? He was indeed drooling over his textbook while dreaming that he was still awake.
"Sorry, Miss Takeshi", he uttered automatically, causing a few snickers to originate from his classmates. The blonde would have glared at them had he the energy to do so but he let it slide (this time); after all, the orphan had already been labelled the class clown just a month into his freshman year of high school.
His teacher softened at his apology and said sincerely, "Do not let it happen again, Naruto."
"Yes, ma'am. I won't."
Luckily, his fingers were crossed underneath the desk.
At fourteen, Uzumaki Naruto didn't have much of a life to boast about. He had grown up in an orphanage ever since he could remember and had begun taking odd jobs to raise some money of his own. At first, it was easy stuff like delivery boy and whatnot, but as his discontent became apparent, he had fled the orphanage in order to take more serious jobs. Some stuff he was proud of and others... well, not so sure.
He had served as a bouncer once; at a sleazy strip club somewhere in the downtown area of Konoha. Before that, he had worked as a thief, a car-jacker, a dealer (dope really sold well in these parts), a hitman (someone to threaten the local shopkeepers) and finally, as an arsonist. His experiences had paid well enough to keep him off the streets but it hadn't been enough to save him from getting into trouble, something that seemed to tail him all his life like a plague.
However, by a stroke of luck, he had never been in juve - and even luckier, he still had all twenty digits intact.
Nontheless, although Naruto had long since parted ways with that sort of lifestyle, it had impacted him heavily in three major ways.
The first, being that the contacts he made during that period were virtually priceless. The second; the revelation that normal society was no place for him, and the third; the moment he realised that he wanted to become a mercenary.
Yes people, Uzumaki Naruto could not fit into normal society but he would be damned if he chose not to make money some normal way.
And that was why he was in high school; patiently biding his time, till the mercer recruitment program began this fall.
BRRRRRIIIINNG!
The blonde heaved a sigh at the heaven-sent sound and began putting his books away. Procuring a black headband from his bag; the one he wasn't allowed to wear to class, he tied it around his forehead and slipped on his earphones. The I-pod was probably Kami's greatest gift to man (next to jutsu of course), and he was pretty sure the supermarket wherein he had nabbed the 32-Gb device from wouldn't exactly be missing the product.
So, listening to his favorite foreign band blare out the lyrics of their song, he walked out of class; uniform un-tucked and hands folded behind his head, glaring death at anyone who dared obstruct his path.
Crossing the threshhold of the halls, he noticed three bullies roughing some kid and recognized them as the louts from the football team - the same louts who kept claiming to be mercers...
He smirked, 'Yeah right, like mercers would have nothing better to do than pick on young freshmen in their free time.'
Pausing briefly at a water fountain, he dropped his bag to take a sip - ignoring the raised hair at the back of his neck - only to find himself smashed against a wall a second later, the three senior men from earlier leering at him.
Suffice it to say, all three easily dwarfed his short stature.
"Alright", he sighed, putting his prized I-pod away lest it get broken, "One of you dumb-asses better start explaining what gives or else..."
He glared at the brutes before him and as if on cue, the students around parted; excitement floating through the halls with the loom of an impending fight.
The biggest of the seniors, and most definitely the leader, sneered at Naruto before stabbing a meaty finger at him.
"You little punk! You're just a kid yet you talking tough already! Think you could put the moves on my girl just inside of your freshman year, huh? I'll tear you apart!"
The blonde cocked his head, a surprised expression making its way to his face. He didn't utter anything.
After a few wasted minutes had gone by, the leader pressed on, a vein now throbbing on his forehead, "WELL, don't you have anything to say?! Or have you peed yourself already? You foolish, limy mook."
Naruto then snapped his fingers as if he'd just recalled something, the proverbial light-bulb appearing over his skull, "Oh, you should have been more specific! I take it you're the douchebag claiming to be - what's her name again? - Kimi's boyfriend, right? Well, if it'd make you feel any better, I wasn't putting the moves on 'your girl' (he raised his fingers for quote), rather we were making out at the back of your car during football practice and, boy, could she blow a guy off..."
It was only due to his training that the blonde was quick enough to avoid the punch that would have surely shattered his face. Luckily for him, the plaster behind took the brunt of the force, caving in with a sudden cracking noise.
Spinning quickly to avoid being boxed in by the huge teens, he ducked under a second fist before retaliating with a knife-hand, taking one of the goons by surprise.
His victory was short-lived, however, as a third blow knocked him to the floor - but the blonde dulled its impact - rolling with the momentum before shifting into a rough, sweep kick.
That attack eventually proved to be quite the understatement, because rather than trip his attacker, he flung his limb out with such kinetic force that the resulting crack confirmed that he had indeed, snapped a knee.
Before he could recover, the leader had lunged at him again; forcing the blonde up against the wall, but the young boy did not despair. Rather, he rebounded expertly off its smooth surfave, sailing over his attacker's arm and coming to land in a patch of clear space. He swivelled clumsily on his toes to avoid a wild tackle from the one he had knife-chopped earlier, and almost caught himself on a lariat the former had thrown, were it not for the blur that intercepted him, cracking a fist across the brute's skull.
Naruto almost choked on his spit.
"Sa-Sasuke?"
Uchiha Sasuke was unmistakable in his immaculate grey uniform with a miniature clan symbol pinned to his chest.
Then again, there was also the black, duck-butt hair.
Seriously, Naruto didn't know many other who had hair like that.
Huffing in annoyance, his friend slipped the bag off his shoulders and muttered, "Dobe. You're slipping."
"Yeah right, hero to the rescue. I didn't ask for your help, teme."
"You didn't need to ask."
"Che. You're gonna make me look uncool", he groaned, looking around exasperatedly, "Now people would think I couldn't handle these guys all by myself."
They noted the lead goon rising to his feet aided by his last standing friend (the other was still holding his knee and writhing on the ground - Naruto wrinkled his nose, Damn, that was just pathetic).
"Like old times, eh, teme?"
"Hn."
"Who the hell are you?", red-haired brute demanded, glaring not at Sasuke but at the wall behind him. Obviously, the punch that collided with his skull had dazed him more than a little bit.
"I'm the one whose trek down the hall was interrupted by your little fiasco", Sasuke stoically replied, "Don't keep up the hallways just because you can't keep a leash on some girl, idiot."
Naruto grinned and pointed to his friend, "What he said."
"Bastards!"
And like that, the bullies attacked again.
With perfect synchrony, the two freshmen moved, the blonde throwing a straight punch which the Uchiha ducked under; only to employ a sweep kick from below. Naruto's fist smashed into the first brute's nose; drawing blood, and Sasuke's attack tripped him before he could even feel it, knocking him out cold on the polished floor.
With feline grace, the Uchiha then rose, catching the other with a surprise uppercut, before stepping aside, allowing his blonde friend to double-kick the fool straight into a fire extinguisher.
Both grimaced. That had to hurt.
"Booyah!", Naruto yelled, raising both arms comically, "TeamNaruSasu kicks ass again!"
The students around them roared in frenzy.
"Break it up! Break it up now, all of you!", the voice of a homeroom teacher came through, leading security to the source of the commotion. However, upon arriving at the scene, all that was left were three bloodied, unconscious senior students and a dented wall to tell the tale. (Later on, try as they might, they could never get the true story out of any student, even the geeky ones. Shounen High operated on a terribly strict 'no snitching' basis)
"Hah hah hah!", Naruto laughed as he and Sasuke cleared the school lawn, coming to a rest just outside its perimeter, "That was close!"
Even Sasuke allowed a small smile to grace his features as they both struggled to breathe, the adrenaline rush within them beginning to calm.
"Hn. Dobe", Sasuke smirked, strapping his bag firmly on his back, "Who's Kimi?"
Naruto stopped his laughter and tightened his headband, "Some purple-haired chick from lunch time. Seriously, dude, she was like, all over me. Who was I to resist?"
Sasuke's left eyebrow twitched, "Do I need to remind you every once and again that you are underage, Naruto?"
"And do you have to cock-block me everytime I try to get some, you prude? I'm beginning to think that you might actually be gay. Seriously."
"Idiot."
The duo had barely taken two steps when a car honked and pulled up beside them; stern, red eyes glaring from across the window.
"Naruto-kun. Sasuke. Get in now."
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Uchiha Itachi was many things.
He was nineteen, cool, smart, handsome, and an overall bad-ass when it came to all things combat.
He was the first child of Uchiha Fugaku and Mikoto; the head family of the noble clan of the Uchiha.
Apart from that, he was also a master of the sharingan; a technique he had learned at age eight, peculiar only to members of his clan.
He was the loving, elder brother to Uchiha Sasuke, and though it was a lesser known fact; he was also an ardent listener of Evanescence (he had all six of their albums) and possessed something of a sweet tooth if you may (eclairs were his poison).
Finally and most noticeably, he was the only member of his clan who had deviated from the way of the mercenary and had chosen instead to join the Konoha Police Force; a decision that, publicly, allowed him to help those in need but, secretly, made him the Oniwabanshu's only double agent.
He was also solely responsible for the fact that Naruto hadn't been in Juve by now and that was one thing, among others, that the blonde remained eternally grateful for.
So, he took Sasuke's lead and simply fell silent as Itachi; in his full Police uniform (including the hat), mildly chastised the both of them from his seat behind the steering wheel.
"I was watching everything, Naruto-kun, and though I commend you and Sasuke for sensibly downplaying your skills, I am extremely angry that, despite everything, you two haven't realized the need to heed any of my words."
He briefly paused to switch gears and Naruto was astonished when he wove between traffic, missing the stop sign by mere seconds.
He whistled inwardly. Now that was one of the better uses of the sharingan he'd ever seen. Need to heed? Talk about a need for speed?
"I know you both aim on becoming mercenaries but be it your choice or not, mercers do not reveal themselves unless need be. Judging by way you two are going at it however, people will begin to suspect your identities before you even enroll for the Company, and kami knows, I'm tired of casting one too many genjutsu on your school's principal..."
"But nii-san", Sasuke began, "They were attacking Naruto!"
"I haven't begun with you yet, Sasuke", Itachi said sternly,"You know very well what father thinks about you tarnishing your public image. . . especially for Naruto-kun."
The younger Uchiha wanted to say something rash like 'tell dad to stuff it up his face' but instead huffed and fell silent; choosing to seethe within himself. Naruto; who didn't want Sasuke taking any more blame for him than he already had, decided to speak up,
"It's my fault, Itachi. I shouldn't have goaded them like that."
"Of course it is, Naruto-kun."
"And I'm sorry! It's just that I really want to be a mercer and I'm frustrated that I still have to get stuck in wait, attending this fucking school!"
"Language, Naruto-kun."
The blonde didn't apologize for that.
Itachi sighed and applied the brakes at the next stop, turning in his seat to look at the boys behind him.
"I can understand Sasuke but why do you want to join the company, Naruto-kun? Why do you want to live that kind of life?"
The blonde boy looked at him dryly, "Right", he drawled, "My current life is just so full of roses now, ain't it? Oh, let's see. I can barely buy the sorta clothes I wanna wear. I can barely pay the rent of an apartment that is under water three-thirds of the year. Heck, I can't even pay my phone, cable or water bills! Sasuke's doing this 'cause it's a family thing! Something that should run in his veins. Why am I doing this? Oh, I don't know. Maybe, cause I gat no family!"
The inside of the car fell silent after his rant but Naruto - glaring, hyerventilating - did not even think of turning his eyes away from Itachi's unwavering gaze. That frigging gaze of his that always seemed to bore through one's soul. Soon however, Itachi was forced to turn away and resume his driving.
"I'm sorry, Naruto-kun, but that is not a good enough reason. Someday, you'll understand..."
"Yeah, yeah, Itachi-nii", Naruto snorted, waving it off, "Maybe someday, I'd say that I was doing this so that people might acknowledge my pitiable existence or you know what? Maybe, I wanted to become the greatest man that ever lived."
And as the car sped along, Kid Cudi's Marijuana playing on the foreign station, Sasuke wondered just how far from the truth that statement really was.
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(Somewhere else, 19:30)
An old man sat behind a desk; casually smoking a pipe, as he reviewed a large number of files haphazardly unfurled before him.
'I'm getting too old for this', he muttered; anime-style tears coursing down his face, even as he stamped another document and placed it atop a neat pile. There was a knock at his door and he stared at it apprehensively for a moment before saying 'come in'.
A tall man, easily six foot plus; brown haired, blue-eyed and bespectacled, walked into his office, glasses hanging askew on the corner of his nose.
"Ah, to what do I owe the pleasure, Gin?", he began.
However, the man quickly cut him off with frantic words, unwittingly increasing the pressure of the frail blood already rushing within the Third, "It's Kyuubi! She has begun manifesting!"
"What?!"
"Her mother has managed to calm her and we drove her to the nearest hospital but it was pretty bad. The whole house was almost burned to the ground!"
"But that's impossible! Minato couldn't have made a mistake! He said he..."
"I don't know, Sarutobi!", Gin snarled, "But I almost lost my little girl today. The chakra cloak was unmistakable!"
Hiruzen stood sharply, "We'll head to the hospital immediately, Gin. The Fourth had entrusted his seal to me in lieu of his death. I'll see what I can do."
Snapping his fingers, a figure materialized out of nowhere.
"Tell Ibiki where I've gone", was the simple, sharp command.
As the two men raced out of the building, intent on preventing a similar incident that had occured fourteen years ago, Hiruzen wondered again if he truly wasn't getting too old for this.
'Damn you Minato, for leaving too soon, and damn you too, Jiraiya. This job was supposed to be yours!'
They drove frantically towards the horizon, the exact same moment a crimson hue flared across the sky.
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Now, I know what some of you might be wondering, and if you are wondering what I think you are wondering, then it is well within your wondering rights to do so, especially considering the events of the last chapter.
If the sealing was done fourteen years ago then who is this 'Kyuubi' everyone's talking about? 'What' or 'whom' was sealed into Naruto?
Did the Fourth Hokage die for nothing?
What kind of story is this?
Is the author truly high on a weird mixture of vodka and mango juice? - and does this taste any better than the covalent alternative of said alcohol and ice-cream?
If you thought any of the above questions while reading this chapter, then it means it was a pretty good read, and now I'm sure you'd want to go on ahead and see what happens next.
Have fun, yo. Review if you like.