Hey! It took me a while but I'm back, let's see if I can at least post every 2 months (let's hope!).
Chapter Text
Naruto had been standing in front of the mirror in his room for a few minutes by now, staring at the black coat he had dyed and the only dark blue pants he owned, trying to work up the courage. He had already checked whether the genjutsu he had learned was working, at least three times. He knew it was working all right, but he was still paralyzed on the spot. His nerves were on edge at the thought of going out today and meeting his colleagues. Why had he told them his real birthday? He should have said that it had already passed. He was well aware of his history of luck on that day, but spending time with them today...
"It's going to be okay, it's going to be okay…" he found himself repeating it almost like a mantra, to see if he could calm down. When he opened his eyes again, he looked at the clock. "I really should be going. They're probably already waiting."
After checking everything one last time, he left the house. And his assumption was correct. For when he arrived at the bridge where his team always met, the agreed location for the day, his two teammates, plus Asuma's team, were all there.
"I don't understand you! You might as well wait at home! Which is literally on top of the flower shop!" Haruno gestured energetically at the other girl.
"And miss all the hype from the start? Are you crazy?" the Yamanaka made a face that perfectly represented her last question.
"It's nice to see you, Naruto." the boys said relieved, since the girls had been in this half-discussion ever since they arrived.
"Sorry for being late. I'd forgotten that my current clock works fine and doesn't run any faster than it should." the boy explained, scratching his head a little awkwardly. Even though he knew he was lying about the reason.
"These things only happen to you, Naruto." Ino laughed, and Naruto laughed too, but with his eyes closed, his two teammates looked at each other. "If I'd known that, I'd have bought you a new clock as a present in advance."
"Present?" The blond looked briefly at his teammates before turning his attention to the other blond in the group. "Why?"
"Because it's your birthday, silly! Of course, you'll get presents!" the girl explained, waving a finger and smiling excitedly. She was probably the person in the group who liked to socialize the most.
"I know that!"he may never have actually celebrated, but that doesn't mean he didn't know anything! "But you don't have to give me presents." he just didn't know if the idea bothered him because he didn't like the possibility of owing something to others or because he had no idea how to react to it.
"But that's one of the best parts of a birthday!" Ino argued, of course, it wasn't the only good part but who didn't like presents? Naruto apparently. But why?
Meanwhile, the rest of the group watched them arguing, trying to decipher the enigma that their former classmate was increasingly proving to be. Those who hadn't been placed on the same team as the boy were less used to the fact that they didn't actually know Uzumaki, not really. His teammates, on the other hand, were becoming increasingly worried about him.
"Guys, guys, we'd better get going, right? We've got to find the rest of the guys and get the stuff!" Sakura decided to intervene, and anyway, it was something they had to do, they couldn't waste time if they wanted their colleague to have a full experience. And a bit of a rush on the day was part of it!
"That's right! Let's go!" the Yamanaka immediately refocused on the more important issue than any discussion about whether or not the boy would accept the gifts (of course he would! She had made it extremely clear!). The boys rolled their eyes and tried not to laugh, but the Uzumaki blinked for a while at the sudden change. But as no one protested, they all started heading in the direction of her family's flower shop.
The girls led the group at the front, followed, surprisingly, by Shikamaru and Choji, for although they tried to stay at the back, they lost the contest of wills to Naruto, who was accompanied by Sasuke. The Uchiha was the one the boy was most comfortable around, proof of the dark-haired boy's efforts to get close to the other.
"Nervous?"
"Why would I be?" the boy turned his head so quickly that the Uchiha almost stumbled from shock. The boy's eyes almost seemed to ask if he should be, and his steps wavered briefly, as if he was wondering something before he recovered, but with a certain caution in his stride.
"It's normal to be anxious when trying something new." the Uchiha made a point of explaining, as he had noticed that his colleague (at some point he would be able to refer to him as a friend!) didn't have the same standards as others their age. Which was a bit strange, since they were all from the same village and all.
"Normal, huh?" the Uzumaki then mumbled a noise that could have been a sigh or a laugh, Sasuke wasn't sure which it was because it had happened so quickly.
The rest of the journey was silent, listening to the girls talking animatedly in front of them and sometimes Choji laughing at something they had said. A few times Shikamaru looked back, the first time almost as if he had forgotten they were there, then a few more times shocked that they were both silent. At the front of the store, a few more colleagues were waiting.
"Hey, guys! Over here!" Tenten greeted them as soon as she saw them, waving an arm to attract their attention at first. "The rest should be here soon."
"Ok. Ugh, the store is full today. Do you mind waiting outside while Sakura and I go and get the things? It'll be quick!" the Yamanaka said after checking out her family's surprisingly crowded business.
"No, Ino. Just go." Shikamaru answered for the group, making a gesture to shoo her away.
"Hey, Naruto! We weren't in the same class, but congratulations!" Rock Lee was the first of the new group to turn to the birthday boy, the others soon joining him, Sasuke had to look twice to believe that the boy next to him tensed slightly the moment attention turned to him. Shikamaru noticed too and they both exchanged confused glances, didn't the boy like attention? Wasn't that why he was such a pest during his academy days?
"Thank you." He thanked everyone in the second half of the group after they had wished him the same as the ninja in green. The smile he gave had something about it that the two who noticed the other was looking a little strange couldn't identify or distinguish exactly from the ones he usually gave, but something about it bothered them.
From then on Lee took over the conversation, going on and on about a springtime in our youth and how birthdays only made it stronger, or something like that. Sasuke was beginning to think that the blond had lied when he talked about nerves earlier, because his behavior was strange. More than usual, and he and Sakura had already established that the Uzumaki was different since the day the teams were formed. Today in particular, the boy was extremely quiet.
"Ouch!" someone passing by bumped into the blond with such force that he turned his back to the group. "Oh, I'm sorry…" the lady simply stopped talking as she looked at the young boy, her eyes widening and her face starting to contort. "You!" she uttered the word as if it were a curse and gripped the thing she was carrying tighter with her hands, as if wondering how to proceed.
Without waiting to see what would happen or even saying anything, Naruto turned and ran off without looking back. Leaving the woman muttering curses before she left too and his colleagues unable to understand anything. Calling out to him didn't help.
"Where's Naruto?" Sakura asked, looking at her teammate as he returned with Ino, but before the boy could answer the obvious was just when the rest of them decided to arrive.
"What have we lost?" Kiba looked confusedly at the larger group, his Niken approaching with Neji, Hinata and Shino.
"We just lost the birthday boy." Sai answered and Hinata widened her eyes and covered her mouth with her hands.
"How did that happen?I thought you were going to look after him!" Ino gestured angrily at the boys of the first part of the group. The Uchiha and Nara exchanged a look, Shikamaru shrugged and it was left to Sasuke to answer.
"It was all too fast. He ran before anyone knew he was going to."
"Jeez, what now?" the Haruno said, a little discouraged and worried.
"We have a team of trackers here. How about asking for their help?" Shikamaru pointed and Akamaru barked excitedly and wagged his tail.
"Akamaru's up for the challenge! We'll find him with our noses!"
"We'll help." -Neji agreed to the request, it would be good training, something useful that day. After all, he had agreed to go because of his cousin, who had insisted when Tenten had commented that he had declined.
After storing the things from the party in a scroll given to them by Tenten, the group began to track down their fugitive colleague. Shino had released his insects to search the village, ensuring that his insects had the chakra of everyone who had studied with him already memorized. Meanwhile they were following the Inuzuka, with the Hyuugas looking around.
"His scent goes in that direction." Kiba said a little perplexed, stopping and pointing in the direction of the hospital.
"We don't see him in there." -The eldest Hyuuga said after arriving, out of politeness, with his cousin.
"This way. My bugs found him." Shino took the lead and guided them to an outbuilding behind the main building, one could assume it was an old warehouse or something, as it didn't seem to be used much these days.
"N-naruto-kun is in there." Hinata confirmed quietly, not used to interacting with that many people, especially at the same time.
"Naruto?" they called out, following the corridor almost to the end, turning towards an ajar door on the left. "Naruto?"
The boy himself was startled, clearly not having heard them coming or being called. His teammates looked at each other in puzzlement, for he was a sensor, even if the village overwhelmed him at times, he should have noticed them in that proximity.
"You all came looking for me?" he asked, unable to believe his eyes.
"Of course! We're not going to let you spend today alone!" Sakura answered seriously, with Sasuke following close behind, supporting and confirming.
"Why did you run?" the Uchiha asked, avoiding the word "ran" on purpose. But the minutes passed with the younger one refusing to answer.
"Is it like that day in the library?" Shikamaru suggested, those who hadn't been there that day not understanding. The Uzumaki clearly tensed up for a second.
"There are people who don't like me. I'd rather avoid them." he hesitated for a while before adding in a relatively low tone. "And I don't usually get lucky today."
"Comprehensible! These people are to be avoided." the girl with the buns agreed, in an attempt to lighten the awkward mood.
"I didn't expect you to be superstitious." the Inuzuka admitted.
"It's not like we talked to him much at the academy." Sasuke replied so that the one he wanted to call friend wouldn't have to. He already looked uncomfortable enough.
"What is this place?"
"It's the old annex, it was abandoned a few years ago."
"Wow, I didn't even know this place existed." Ino commented, looking around. "How do you know all this?"
"I know things in the village." Naruto shrugged as if it were nothing. But some noticed how evasive that answer was. "It kind of became my secret hiding place when I was little." he confessed, scratching his head a little awkwardly and laughing. And that relaxed the abnormal atmosphere that had previously existed.
"What is there to do here?" the group began to inspect the room with their eyes and spread out more.
"It looks like some kind of exercise room." Sai noticed.
"I know, why don't we each do the course once? Let's test our flames of youth!" Lee suggested, seeing a golden opportunity in front of him, and what better to bond and interact with colleagues than a friendly competition?
The course itself wasn't extremely complex, but it was unfamiliar and would activate along the way, triggered by mechanisms they hadn't yet managed to decipher. Just the fact that there was something like this in the building was a mystery, why would there be something like this in a hospital? There didn't seem to be any visible clue to this question, and the birthday boy just shrugged when asked.
The one who proposed the challenge was the first to go and test it. They had decided that the winner would be the one who completed the route in the shortest time. Which apparently meant that team Gai had the advantage with the most stamina and the best results so far. Teams Anko and Kurenai had already gone too and Team Asuma had declared that they were going last (Shikamaru hoped they would forget about him).
"Why don't you go now, Naruto?" Sakura suggested, after returning from her attempt, which had been her team's first because of the Yamanaka's provocation, who doubted that she had improved at all since the academy.
"Hm? Ah, okay." the blonde replied and stood up. As he positioned himself at the start of the course, he closed his eyes and took a deep breath, concentrating on the activity.
Uzumaki began the course as he opened his eyes, zigzagging between the first obstacles. He then jumped onto the first block along the path, of which there were about 20, of varying heights with just enough room for one foot. And that's when the boy went into a trance, his body moving on automatic, pure muscle memory. But that was his mistake, because those challenges were not designed with ninjas of their age in mind, as they had noticed. So it was no surprise when on the very last one he made a mistake, stepping in the hole that was just beyond and tripping over the fence that had to be jumped afterwards.
The mistake activated the mechanisms of the next stage in a different, more aggressive way. The boy only dodged a kunai coming towards him because he had instinctively rolled to recover from the fall. He picked up one of the kunai that had fallen to the ground in previous challenges and used it to defend himself against some of the weapons thrown at him when dodging would have been detrimental to his performance. After a few more obstacles, with weapons still flying from both sides of the path, the blond hit the mechanism that signaled that the course had been completed.
"And…" Ino stopped to check the chronometer, having taken it upon herself to measure everyone's time. "1.12 minutes. Naruto has passed Tenten and is in third place with a difference of 7 seconds."
"What? How could he still pass me?" Tenten approached to look at the chronometer in bafflement at the result.
"Are you okay? You looked a bit lost there, before you fell." Sasuke whispered to his colleague as soon as he got close enough, worried. The rosy-haired girl was too and looked anxiously awaiting an answer, leaning into the Uchiha's side. The two of them had been watching their teammate attentively, they had been doing this more recently.
"It was nothing, I just got distracted, it was silly really." Naruto laughed sheepishly, especially at the attention he was getting.
"Is that all?" the Haruno narrowed her eyes at him, trying her best to reproduce the expression her mother made when he doubted her and made her confess.
"Yes, it is." The blonde was taken aback and obviously knew even less how to deal with it. "I... Today is different. I didn't expect so many people to come too." he said softly.
"And that's bad?" the Uchiha looked worried.
"If it is, I'm sorry! I didn't mean to, I just…"
"Relax." the Uzumaki laughed lightly, not letting the other finish. "It's just different."
The classmates looked at each other and smiled when they saw the boy's laugh, which was lighter and softer than any they had seen before. They were so involved and focused that they didn't even notice that everyone had already gone and finished the course. The result hadn't changed much since their turn: first was Lee, followed by Neji in second place and Naruto in third.
"Guys... I know we've all graduated, but what did you think you'd be when you were a kid? Ninja doesn't count!" Tenten tossed the question into the air curiously as they rested, the mood relaxed. "I'll start: I wanted to be a blacksmith like my grandfather. That's why my specialty is weapons." she smiled nostalgically, after all, it was her way of carrying on the legacy of the only family member she could remember, even though he had died when she started the academy.
I wanted to be the best florist in the world! -Ino laughed as she remembered her determination and effort every time she came across a new flower.
-"Definitely taste and evaluate all the food there is. -Chouji said, getting hungry just thinking about it.
"Unemployed." Shikamaru declared in a tone so serious that everyone burst out laughing.
They went on and on, each telling a childhood dream and stories to put it into context, of course not everyone spoke both or wanted to take part. Some had even declared that it was time for them to go and said goodbye before leaving. With each dream told, Naruto became more shocked, in fact he had been since the initial question and story. What did it mean? Was it a choice they could have? Ever since he was little... He sighed and stood up.
"I'll be right back. I'm going to the bathroom." he said before leaving the room. He didn't really need to go, but he did need to get out of there for a while. His mind had been spiraling easily recently. He looked in the mirror. "It's all right. It makes no difference." he whispered to himself. He flushed just to cover up and washed his hands, taking the opportunity to splash some water on his face.
On his way back, basically in front of the door, he stopped, a bad but familiar sensation passing through his body. It made him turn sharply towards the entrance to the building. His colleagues looked at him in confusion. The realization of what it was was like a bucket of ice suddenly being thrown at him.'Anything but that, not today!'. In one quick decision he ran towards the entrance, ignoring the calls of the friends behind him, just shouting back at them not to come after him. And hoping,almost praying, that they would listen to him, at least this time. As he left, he had time to lock the door with a plank of wood after he left, before they even made any progress down the corridor.
"What do you want?" the boy asked the group in front of him. There were about five people, four men and a woman, all clearly upset. Naruto swallowed, part of him immediately regretting having gone outside.
"What do we want?" one of the men spat the words back. "The audacity...!"
"That you disappear from our village!" the woman exclaimed, looking ready to throw something at him, to force him to leave.
"I wasn't visible in the village. Not today." he replied, a mistake in his last words.
"As if anyone would want your cursed presence here!" a second man proclaimed and laughed as if the opposite were a hilarious joke.
"Today? Do you know why, at last?" something in the voice of the youngest member of the group, a man who didn't even look 30, caused the boy to shiver. The novelty of the situation made his reaction, his fake confusion, take a moment longer than it should have, but the man apparently noticed and smiled.
"LET'S REMIND HIM THAT HE SHOULD BE GONE!" the rest began talking in chorus and throwing things, bottles that some were carrying, stones and woods.
The Uzumaki fell into a rhythm, he dodged the first projectiles, and would dodge the worst, but the truth was that he knew that if nothing hit him things could get worse and escalate further. This continued until someone had the idea of shooting dirt into his eyes. It forced him to keep his eyes closed for a while, not long because he always recovered quickly. But long enough for someone to slam him against the door, causing him to hit his head on the corner of the wooden board that held it shut and hold him by the neck. To his surprise, when he opened his eyes he was met with red eyes and it was too late.
"Youwillunderstand, cursed child." was all he heard before his mind was filled with images of the Fox's attack, of destruction, despair and death. And he saw each scene from different points of view, sometimes as a spectator, sometimes as a victim, someone watching a loved one die or even the one doing the killing. His mind was lost in the midst of so much pain, chaos and hatred.
He had no idea how long he had been inside the genjutsu. His consciousness gradually returned after he unexpectedly came out of his vision, and the next thing he knew he was surrounded by some ANBUs, his attackers being arrested and taken away. He looked at everything around him, feelings swirling in his chest, without direction or knowing what to do. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw that they were removing the wood from the door, but his attention was locked on the Hokage, standing there and watching.
With a speed that no one had anticipated, the boy on the ground threw himself at the Kage. His feelings were boiling over. The old man always said that everything was going to be all right, but when was it going to happen? When would this moment finally arrive? Why did he have to wait? Why always him? Each question was a blow that the old man defended, not reacting much other than to look at him with pity.
There were tears in the corners of his eyes. He seemed determined not to let them escape, fighting them desperately. But his control was lost when one of the ANBUs injected him with a syringe, knocking him unconscious. When his eyes finally closed, tears flowed and dripped onto the floor, becoming visible as they turned to take him back into the building. As were the wounds that the boy didn't seem to have noticed.
The older ninjas hadn't expected to find some genins when they opened the door. They were clearly unsettled by having been present for part of what had happened, and confused by not being able to hear anything clearly. The Kage's presence was a surprise to the youths, they didn't understand why he was there. But he promised to speak to them after talking to Naruto.
They then watched as the youngest was taken to a room and placed on a bed, where his injuries were treated. The room looked like it had once belonged to a child, given the size of the bed and the books on a shelf, although there weren't many toys. It was a strange space, because at the same time it was very empty and had a window facing the corridor, through which they watched. After a short time, the boy woke up, with the Hokage sitting on a stool next to the bed.
"How are you feeling?" the older man asked, but the younger boy refused to answer or look up, even after sitting. The adult sighed. "They'll be punished."
"..." he raised his head, anger in his gaze. His hands clenched into fists, gripping the covers where he lay.
"You can't hold a grudge." This rattled the boy, who opened his mouth, but Sarutobi held up his hand. "They don't know what they're doing. Hurt people do stupid things when drunk. Good people forgive and don't harbor resentment, Naruto. And I know you're a good boy." he stroked the blond's head. The boy raised his arm and pulled the hand away.
"I want to rest for a while." he lay down again and turned onto his back.
"Better. Call me if you need anything." Hiruzen spoke and stood up, placing a fable book on the stool he had been sitting on, one the boy had read a lot as a child. One about a Kitsune cub who wanted friends and to be part of the world outside the forest. When in the corridor, he gestured for them to follow him. Ironically, or perhaps because of their number, they returned to the same room where they had spent the afternoon. "First of all, I'd like to congratulate you on your efforts today, even though it ended this way. I'm sure your attempt was appreciated. However, in your enthusiasm and focus you ended up forgetting one important piece of information."
"What, Hokage-sama?"
"Think, what happened on October 10th, apart from the birth of your friend?"
"You said it yourself…" the group paled.
"The attack of the nine tails... How could we forget that?" Shikamaru was the first to speak in shock. It shouldn't be something they should be able to forget.
"It's not a day associated with birth, so it's natural that the two pieces of information don't connect in their minds. You don't have to feel bad about that."
"But why is this a problem for the village?" Sakura asked. "Why is it a problem that Naruto was born on a bad day? It's not his fault!"
"You're right, it's not his fault." the older man agreed and sighed with regret. "People are complicated beings. When things happen without explanation, superstitions and rumors tend to arise in an attempt to justify them. Some of the villagers associated the day with a curse and, because he was the only one born on that day, Naruto became the bearer of a bad omen in their eyes."
"And only because of that did they attacked him?" Sasuke felt anger rising up inside him, his friend was innocent, he had nothing to do with the fox, he didn't deserve something like that on his birthday!
"Those people were drunk, not thinking clearly and acting on impulse. They were wrong but not fully aware. And they will be punished for attacking another villager in such a way and will be monitored."
"What if they do it again?" the Uchiha pressed
"If that happens, the punishment will be more severe, including some time behind bars." Hiruzen was pleased and happy to see the bond that was forming between the teammates. "Naruto knows how to avoid this kind of problem, so you don't have to worry so much. Today's accident only happened due to the alignment of several coincidences."
It wasn't the first time something like this had happened, was it? -Haruno exchanged glances with her present colleague, wondering if that was the blond's reason for not celebrating.
-"I'm not the one you should be asking. I just knew something was wrong because sometimes he hides in the tower, because no one would try anything there. Not that he goes there every year. But this year..." the Hokage sighed, he knew that many were unhappy with the Uzumaki's graduation.
Thud!
The sudden noise put them on alert. Surprisingly, or not, the Kage was the first to act and headed towards the boy's room, stopping at the beginning of the observation window, seeing that the book he had left was now lying on the floor.
-Naruto! -Sasuke was the one who ran to the door, which made the boy pause his exit through the window, crouching on the sill. He briefly looked back towards the Sarutobi, somehow meeting his eyes, before leaving for good.
Notes:
This was certainly one of the chapters I was most looking forward to writing and sharing with you! The pace of the story from this point on will start to become a bit frantic with events. Kind of like the next two arcs (they've been on my mind for years and we're finally getting to them!). After them we'll finally get to the Chunnin Exam, which will be super interesting too.
Thanks to everyone who still reads this story even though the posts are so disorganized.
I hope to see you again soon!
Feel free to let me know what you think and if there are any spelling mistakes or if something doesn't make sense.