Dystopia Unleashed

By WhoIsThisDamnAuthor

Edited Ver. 3-4-2016

Again, the same shebang. Grammar, plot inconsistencies, blah, blah.

Also, I shall undertake the arduous task of putting in a disclaimer at the beginning of every chapter.

I have nothing else to say.

Shut up and read the goddamn story.

DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN DRAGON BALL Z OR NARUTO.

Chapter 2: Revival

Goku's consternation lasted for a second, before his reflexes took over. He dropped his centre of gravity by taking his weight on his thigh muscles, observing his opponent carefully. The yellow dude's charge had quite the swaying, tilting motion, similar to a leaf gently falling on a lazy autumn afternoon. Goku just waited patiently; counter-attacking was always his preferred strategy.

There! There was a sudden shift in the most recent step. His opponent was going to test him, it seemed. Goku observed his left knee bend, bearing the weight of his entire body, as he used centripetal force to swing his foot around to deliver the deadly roundhouse kick. Pretty standard attack pattern from there...

That roundhouse will be followed by a quick drop to his haunches, then a rising jaw punch. I would be unconscious before I even landed on the ground. He would then carry or drag me to whatever warlord he serves.

So not happening.

As his opponent's weight shifted onto his left leg, Goku raised his palm, aiming at the knee. A Ki shot to the fulcrum of the move would leave him wide open, and Goku would not miss that chance for the world. He poised himself. Timing was everything.

There. One, two... Wait a minute...

SHIT!

Goku gave himself a bitch slap inside his mind as he dropped to his knees to dodge the kick. Only martial arts from now on for a few years, idiot!

Still, better I remembered late than never, I guess.

Goku looked upwards at the leg passing through the space where his head should have been. He found another opening, and pounced on it immediately. Rising up, he caught his opponent's ankle with both hands, immobilizing him. Now, he was at Goku's mercy.

Apparently not.

The yellow-haired man was expecting this. He kicked off his lower bent knee, and rose up in a vertical circle. As soon as he reached the top of his circular trajectory, he steepled his fingers and bent his back. This would cause him to spin faster, and the fingers held in front of him would crash into a vertebra, decimating it. Quite the athletic move, that.

Who said you could do that? Goku savagely pulled forward with both arms, pulling his opponent forward in the same arc, in an attempt to play Whac-a-mole with a yellow-haired hammer.

Sadly, his opponent was prepared for that as well. Using his shoulders and triceps, he absorbed the force of impact, as if doing a push-up in fast forward. Then, using his leg muscles, he bent his knees, throwing Goku into the air. This left Goku in a rather dismal situation. The Saiyan was left with no leverage, no maneuverability, and most importantly, no Ki.

This won't end well, thought Goku, and smiled.

Just perfect.

After throwing the boy into the air, Minato rolled forward, and sprung out of the roll into a flat-out sprint. It was an evasive move he'd used countless times. This time, though, its purpose was not evasive, far from it. It was timing. Ignoring the pain in his ankle, he jumped right onto the trunk of a tree. Using the minuscule chakra he had regained over the last minute and a half, he pushed off the tree, backwards and up.

He flew in a graceful projectile arc, gathering his legs in, pulling them right to his chest using his arms. He was like a coiled spring, ready to release its energy in one explosive moment. He flew on, holding his attack in check until he reached the airspace above his still-rising enemy.

At that precise moment, Minato released. The kick was timed to perfection. It delivered all its momentum into the small of the boy's back. The rest of his body bent upward as it struggled to react to the attack in so short a time. Then came the inevitable fall and the loud crash, as his opponent created a body-shaped crater in the ground.

Minato spun in the air, and landed a few inches from the body of his fallen opponent. He couldn't help but admire the boy's speed, intuition and ferocity. Although fairly easy, the counter to that roundhouse kick wasn't taught until late in Chuunin exam prep. God only knew why the curriculum was so screwed up.

This boy looked barely old enough to become a Genin, and yet, Minato couldn't place an age to match him. The wisdom in his eyes and his skill were obvious contradictions to his child-like proportions. He is definitely older than he looks. Is that some rejuvenation technique? Some forbidden ninjutsu?

He massaged his sore ankles. The boy's grip had left red welts on his skin. There was definitely going to be some bad bruising. He gave himself a quick physical, and bent down to examine the boy. He felt the kid's limp body stiffen under his touch, and quickly drew his hand back. Is he planning some sort of counter? But no...He should be unconscious by now. He took a quick glance at the kid's face, just to check.

What the heck? The boy had a smile on his face. The crinkled eyebrows and firmly shut eyelids proved that he was in a lot of pain, but he was smiling. It wasn't the resigned smile of the defeated. It wasn't a psychotic grin, like the one he'd seen on an Iwagakure shinobi who had violently pulled off a Kamikaze move in the middle of a raging battle. Surprisingly, it was just a smile, ever so pure and innocent. Kami only knew that those were becoming rarer, what with the Second Shinobi War ravaging the peace of mind of the populace of the village, and the current preparations for the Third War and all.

The smile removed any doubts Minato had. This was no ordinary kid, neither was he an assassin. He hadn't been sent here to sow discord, or pass on intel. He was just some random innocent kid who had happened to be wandering at the exact spot Minato had chosen to train that day. It was a long stretch to expect that anyone in the village would even give this shitty story a second thought before chucking him out on grounds of mental instability.

That was by far the least likely scenario, but it wasn't called least likely just like that. If shit like this never happened, it would have been more appropriately named not likely. Just to be sure, Minato turned the boy around, and started a full body search. Never hurts to be too careful…

"Don't bother."

Minato's hands froze. Even after an attack of that level, he'd maintained consciousness? The boy was getting more and more impressive by the minute. "I have nothing on me, except the clothes I'm wearing," the boy continued. Something in the tone of the boy's voice made Minato want to believe him. He stopped checking and looked at the boy's face.

Again, nothing but freaking sincerity. A microsecond of dilemma later, Minato sighed.

"All right. I'll stop. What's your name?"

"Son Goku," he replied. "What's yours?"

Again, the Jonin hesitated. In times like this, carelessly giving away one's identity had serious consequences. Especially here, in a random forest away from home, friends and family. Minato still hadn't forgotten his mistake from just a few minutes ago. Jiraiya-sensei, seriously? Didn't he just leave on a damn mission two days ago?

"Well?" Goku repeated the question. Minato looked deeply into his eyes, searching for an answer to his question. He found it. Under the deep mask of resignation, wisdom and experience, Goku's curiosity still shone brightly. Looks like he just wants to know for the sake of it. Well, then…

"Namikaze Minato," Placing his trust in the boy, he mentally prepared himself for all kinds of betrayal scenarios, but his inner optimist kept spouting nonsense like 'It'll all end well, I'm sure,' that made him stop overthinking the scene and talk to the kid.

"How old are you?" Minato asked.

"Th-thirteen, I suppose," Goku seemed a little confused. He'd seen it happen with abandoned children. They rarely cared enough to count birthdays.

"Where did you learn Taijutsu?" Minato ventured further.

The look of confusion deepened. "What's Taijutsu?"

Minato was surprised. That fighting stance and that counter were textbook Taijutsu. He doesn't know his own fighting technique? He repeated the question out loud.

"I learned my martial arts from my master, the Turtle Hermit, Master Roshi…" the boy said.

The Jonin had never heard of this Roshi dude before. He knew, however, that asking Goku for details wasn't going to enlighten him any further. He was from some obscure part of the continent, and had learned advanced fighting moves from some random hermit. Not details that were even remotely important right now. Minato needed to find out this guy's background. Something which would help him decide whether he was a threat or not. He doesn't look like a threat at all, though...

Moving on, Minato queried, "Where are you from?"

The frown of confusion turned into one of discomfort. He looked away, and reluctantly answered, "I come from far away. I was... I was dropped here," It was like he didn't want to think about it. It appeared as if the very thought of his past made his soul cringe with pain.

He might just have suffered some extreme trauma to not want to think about it. He seemed completely open until now. Minato made up his mind. He was taking Goku to Konohagakure. Whatever consequences he'd have to face because of that action, he would face blindly.

All for that innocence, that wisdom. I feel this kid has an enormous potential for bringing about change. Perhaps he can use it to bring an early end to this war. It's not like I'm expecting too much, but what damage could it cause?

He held out his hand, willing the boy to accept the faith Minato had placed in him.

Son Goku took Minato's hand without a moment's hesitation. He pulled himself to his feet. The pain from that last attack was subsiding, but Goku was grateful for the short period when it was unbearable. The feeling of helplessness, the ecstasy of having a real sensation in a long, long time was quite the addictive thing.

Just a reminder that I now have a physical body again, after so, so long.

"Come with me. I'll take you to my village." Minato seemed to trust him.

"Okay, lead on!" Goku couldn't help the eagerness that had crept into his voice in the last few syllables. He was finally going somewhere, somewhere important. Having a sense of direction in his life after eons of aimless wandering flooded his brain with endorphins. This was translated into a sort of happy, tingling feeling, like he'd just taken the wrong glass of 'juice' during Gohan's birthday party.

As he led Goku through the forest, Minato asked him, "Since you're so good at fighting, you must have heard of chakra, right?"

Again, Goku was stymied. "What is chakra?"

His new friend stopped, surprised for what had to be the thousandth time in the day. "Here. It would be easier to just show you."

He held out his hand. He created a tiny Ki ball. "This is chakra."

Goku caught on immediately. "So, chakra is Ki energy?" So that's what it's called in this world…

"Is Ki energy what you call chakra back home?"

"Yeah."

"Can you use it?" Minato had rounded back on him, clearly interested.

I wish. A small wave of depression washed over the Saiyan. "I could use it before, until I used all of it, um...get-getting out of where-where I was." He felt sad that he couldn't explain himself better, but he wasn't ready to think about it yet, forget telling someone else.

It still is far too soon to be thinking about it.

Minato patted him on the shoulder, attempting what looked like a comforting gesture.

"Don't worry. It will regenerate. All chakra does. It'll just take a while."

During that short moment of contact, Minato checked the kid's tenketsu. They were firmly closed. Goku had never used chakra before. It made no sense at all. How is he talking about something with so much familiarity when he's surely never used it? And he says he used up all of his chakra? Doesn't he know that he will die if that happens? Another point that proves his story is crap...

"Mine won't for years…" Goku managed a weak smile. "It'll be a decade before I'm strong enough to do anything. I guess I'm stuck with martial arts for now…"

Minato stopped him. "You're decent. Really decent. I've seen your technique. You almost had me, there. How about this? I'll teach you Taijutsu till your chakra returns, then go on to the advanced moves related to its molding and usage." Though I'm pretty sure you've never used the stuff. It just might be that you may be referring to that strange froggy stuff Jiraiya-sensei keeps trying to teach me... Sage Mode or some Zen shit like that...

Goku was ecstatic. He was about to ask Minato to teach him. The fact that they were in sync showed great possibilities for the future. This was almost déjà vu. Finding a complete stranger, getting hurt by the stranger, and then joining her/him on a journey together. The fact that the stranger also happened to be the master he would later meet was just the icing on the cake.

This was exactly like his first childhood, repeated.

Except for one major difference. Hence the 'almost déjà vu'. This time, he assumed he was stronger than his master. He assumed that he had allowed the yellow-haired Jonin to beat him. Somehow, he didn't give the feeling of strength; he lacked a certain aura of power. But then, Master Roshi hadn't either.

I cannot make any assumptions right now, but I think I'm stronger already because I got to know you, Minato…

"Sure! I'll learn under you!" Goku said with genuine cheer in his voice. This was exciting.

His adventure had started for real.

Oh, what a damn story I have to tell.

If only I had the freaking time to put it down and publish it.

Crossovers for the win. I've read a lot of stuff on the site, but the crossover section blows standard fanfiction out the water with a fucking broadside.

Not an attempt at shameless self-advertising, honest.

Oh, but what do you guys care?

Please review, and move on to the next chapter.

Peace out.