AN: Wow, I should be updating my real stories, but instead I am writing a story of Naruto being self-cestuous because…idk, intrusive thoughts? Anyways, I do not condone any of the 'cests'. Just because I write something doesn't mean I support it, ya know? Dattebayo and all that?
I'm not a freak, m'kay?
Anyways, the big divergence is that Naruto kinda gives up on friendship when he finds out about the Kyubi. Now, onto the story!
Naruto Uzumaki stared at his wall in silence, the quietness of his room biting at him viciously. He hated the silence—it was what he was always met with when he went out, the denizens of Konoha ignoring him with scorn in their eyes.
He hated the quiet so, so much. It was why he always went out of his way to ruin the silence, to force his presence to triumph over the audible emptiness that filled any room he was in. Today, though, he wasn't in the mood for that.
He simply lacked the energy to do it.
The Nine-Tailed Fox was sealed inside of him. That's why they hated him. His hero, the Fourth Hokage, had placed the beast that destroyed Konoha into his gut. No wonder no one liked him. No wonder everyone hated him.
A choked noise left his mouth, the noise not too dissimilar to a sob. He swore he'd become Hokage. He swore that he'd earn the recognition of the village!
…but how was he supposed to get it now? Everyone hated him for something he didn't do—no, they didn't hate him. They hated the fox. He couldn't convince people to stop hating him because they didn't hate him.
They hated the Kyubi. And how could he ever, ever, ever convince people to not hate the Kyubi inside of him? Naruto hated the fox for killing his parents, so there was no hope there.
There was no hope to get anyone to ever like him. Sakura-chan hated him. Kiba always made fun of him. Choji and Shikamaru ignored him. Ino was a jerk. Hinata refused to even look at him…and Sasuke…
Naruto didn't know how to feel about Sasuke. It'd be easy to say he didn't like the bastard, but that wasn't true. Naruto was jealous and he knew it. He knew he was jealous of Sasuke. They both were orphans. They both had no one to see when they got home. They both were lonely. So, so lonely.
Yet Sasuke made himself lonely. People liked Sasuke. He isolated himself. Naruto never even had a choice.
So, yeah, he was jealous of the bastard. He was jealous of his talent, the attention he was given, and the fact that everyone loved him. And yet…he also admired Sasuke. Sasuke was the only person who could understand him.
"Gah!" Naruto shouted, leaning back on his bed in frustration. He hated feelings. He hated that he was so confused.
He hated the fox. He hated his parents for dying. He hated Hokage-Jiji for never telling him about them or the fox. He hated the village for being mean to him. He hated his peers for ignoring him, for belittling him.
And he hated himself for being so weak, so useless, so dumb.
But he also loved the village, even if it made him miserable. He loved his parents, even if he never knew them. He loved Hokage-Jiji, even if the old man lied to him. He cared for his peers, even if they'd never care if he died.
Most of all, Naruto loved the villagers. They despised the fox inside him and took it out on him. But he also saw how nice they were to everyone but him. They were kind, even if not to him. They were happy, even if not with him. They made sure no one was lonely or sad, even if they were willing to overlook him.
Konoha is his home and he loves it…but he was, is, and always will be so lonely. So, so lonely.
So alone.
Naruto clicked his tongue in annoyance, eyes carefully watching over the village as he sat on the Fourth Hokage's head. Konoha was, as always, beautiful. The orange sky cast beautifully onto the Village Hidden in the Leaves; it was one of the main reasons he loved the color so much.
Regardless of the beauty of the village, though, he was in a foul mood…and why was he in a foul mood? Konohamaru.
The Old Man's grandson hadn't done anything to him, no. Naruto wasn't mad at Konohamaru. He met the kid today and it made him happy.
That's why he was annoyed. Naruto was annoyed that he was happy. Why couldn't people his age look up to him like Konohamaru had? Konohamaru was super cool and was nicer to him than anyone in Naruto's class.
Why couldn't anyone his age treat him like that? Why couldn't they like him? Why couldn't he have—have friends…?
Konohamaru was able to like him, but his peers weren't able to. Konohamaru was nice to him, but his peers were mean. Konohamaru respected him, but his peers treated him like dirt.
"Why?" Naruto whispered, voice quieter than anyone thought it could be. "Why can't I have friends?"
No one his age knew about the Kyubi in his belly, so why did they hate him? Naruto hadn't always acted loud and obnoxious—oh, and he knew he was—but he only became like that because they ignored him. They were mean to him before he even had a chance to befriend them.
Not one person his age liked him, and they didn't have the excuse of hating the fox inside him. No, they just hated him, Naruto Uzumaki.
He didn't like thinking about it—being reminded of the fact that he had no friends. It was why he always asked Sakura-chan out. As little kids, she played with him for one day. One single day. Everyone else ignored him, but she played ninja with him.
After that one day, she ignored him. Ignored him like the others. But he remembered and missed it. So he asked her out.
Naruto didn't really have a crush on the pink-haired girl. He just wanted a friend. He had no friends.
He's so lonely. It bites at him. It's a cold feeling in his gut, the emptiness gnawing at him constantly until tears leaked from his eyes in the confines of his room.
Konoha was the village known for friendship. It was the village known for camaraderie and teamwork. So why couldn't he be a comrade?
Why was he just a nuisance?
That jerk, Ebisu, had treated him like everyone else did. Konohamaru ignored it, though. Konohamaru was still nice to him. And when Naruto beat Ebisu with a bunch of Shadow Clones using the Orioke Jutsu, Konohamaru respected him.
Shadows Clones seemed to solve all of his problems. It let him beat Mizuki and save Iruka-Sensei. It let him beat Ebisu and gain Konohamaru's respect.
If only Shadow Clones could solve his lonelin—it was almost like a lightbulb went off in his head. Shadow Clones could solve his loneliness, couldn't it?
A small grin passed over his lips. "I can have clones be my friends, ya know?" He murmured to himself, but then nausea rumbled at his gut.
If he did that, it'd be like giving up. It'd be like quitting, like he stopped believing he could make friends his age. And Naruto Uzumaki never gave up!
Because it was all he had.
Naruto leaned his head forward onto his desk, waiting for Iruka-Sensei to show up so that they could get their Jonin-Sensei. He wasn't tired, just bored. Iruka was taking his sweet time getting here.
And, yeah, Naruto couldn't exactly talk as he rarely showed up to the Academy on time, but he was excited! He was getting his team today—maybe even Sakura-chan would be on his team!
"What are you doing here, Naruto?" A voice called from his side. Naruto looked up and to the side, seeing Shikamaru. "This isn't for dropouts. You can't be here unless you graduated."
Naruto huffed and pointed a thumb at his forehead. "Oh yeah? Oh yeah, see this? Why don't you try and open your eyes, Shikamaru, because that's a regulation headband."
Shikamaru just sighed and shook his head, giving Naruto an exhausted look. "Troblesome blond," the Nara muttered, walking away and going to his seat.
Naruto laid his head back down onto the desk, his desire to try and talk to any of his classmates drained already. Even Shikamaru, one of the people who was generally nicer to him, doubted him.
He was feeling off today; no, he'd been feeling off ever since Mizuku told him about the fox. He knew why everyone hated him now, and he now knew that his classmates didn't hate him for the same reasons as the village.
They just didn't like him.
That had been like a punch in the gut when he realized it. For all his life, he knew that no one liked him for some reason that he didn't know. He had known it wasn't his fault, that it wasn't in his control.
But that wasn't true for his peers. They just did not like him. They hated him, not the fox, but him.
Suddenly, even his wish to have Sakura-chan on his team felt less enticing. He wanted to be her friend like they'd been as kids for that one day, but he was never going to make her his friend. She didn't like him.
They all didn't.
He put on a bright grin anyway, sitting up. It didn't hurt to try.
'Trying never works,' Naruto thought, sitting crosslegged in front of the Memorial Stone. He made a fool of himself. Sakura-chan and Sasuke had given him food, but they didn't like doing it.
He had said he wanted to be on the Memorial Stone, but that made Kakashi point out that only people who died for the village were put on it. Naruto doubted his name would be placed on it if he died for the village.
No one liked him enough for that.
Sakura-chan had rejected him again, but he no longer wanted to ask her out, anyways. She didn't like him. He had always known that, but the desire to push through her distaste was gone.
Sasuke didn't like him, either, but Sasuke hated everyone. Sasuke said he wanted to kill a certain man, and Naruto wouldn't be too surprised if he was the one Sasuke wanted to kill.
Shaking his head, his eye scanned over the Memorial Stone. He read the names, taking in the identities of the people who gave their all to Konoha.
Obito Uchiha, Rin Nohara, Ikkaku Umino, Kohari Umino…and the names went on and on and on. Tobirama Senju, Kagami Uchiha, Minato Namikaze, Kushina Uzumaki, Mujini—wait.
Kushina Uzumaki?
He stared at the name, a million questions passing through his mind. Kushina Uzumaki. Who was Kushina Uzumaki? Who was she? Why was her name next to the Fourth Hokage's? Was she important?
Who was she?
Was he related to her? Was she family? An ancestor, maybe? His mom? Or was he from a clan? Was he like Sasuke or Hinata, coming from a big family? Well, Sasuke didn't have a big family, but the point was still there.
Who was she?
Would Jiji tell him who she was? No, he wouldn't. No one would. If he was from a clan, the Old Man never would have told him. The Old Man kept everything from him—the name of his parents, the knowledge that he was a Jinchuriki, and probably more.
Naruto frowned, looking down at his knees before standing up. He had no one. His team didn't like him—Kakashi tied him to a post!—and the Old Man couldn't even tell Naruto about who he was.
The village hated the fox in his belly. His peers hated him for being him.
He turned away from the Memorial Stone, kicking a rock in frustration. Not one friend. No family. No loved ones. Old man Teuchi was nice to him and so was Ayame, but they weren't really friends. Iruka-Sensei was nice to him, but he wasn't family.
No one to play with. No one to talk to. No one to cry to and sob in their arms. He saw other people with their moms and dads—people they could cry to. They had friends to joke with and mess with. Friends to have fun with.
Naruto? He had himself, himself, and more of himself.
He clenched his teeth, walking away with his head held low. Shadow Clones, they could be his friends. It'd be like giving up, though, and he'd get annoyed at himself. He didn't like himself.
But he could act, right? He did it for his pranks. He was good at it. He had to act all his life; he had to act like he was alright, like he wasn't sad, like he didn't want to bawl his eyes out when he was rejected by everyone over and over and over again.
A clone wouldn't reject him. They'd be his friend.
Naruto sat on his floor, mind running over who he wanted as his friend. He wanted someone to care for him, to be nice to him. Someone to have fun with and who would be there when he wanted to cry.
Guys didn't cry in front of other guys, though. He knew that from observing other people. His friend would need to be a girl, then.
Naruko?
No, that's too similar to his name. He needed something else…his mind was pulled back to the names on the Memorial Stone. Naruto half-contemplated the name Kushina before swiftly rejecting it.
Whoever Kushina was, she was family, not a friend. He would remember her in some other way.
What about Rin, then? It was a nice name, short and sweet. Maybe his parents would have named him Rin instead of Naruto if he were a girl 'cause it was a nice name.
And this Rin must've been a hero as she died for the Leaf. Yeah, Rin was a nice name. A good name. But what about a last name?
Namikaze. Rin Namikaze. The name came with ease. Minato Namikaze was his hero. Minato Namikaze had put his faith into him, Naruto Uzumaki, to keep the village safe. Well, Naruto was taking rent!
He couldn't keep being lonely, so the Fourth Hokage could share his last name. Heh.
Crossing his fingers, Naruto's face lit up with a smile. He felt happier than he had ever felt. A friend, he was going to have a friend. "Shadow Clone Jutsu!"
Poof! A plume of smoke flashed through the room. Another bout of smoke followed soon after, a girl his age appearing in front of him.
She had blond hair like him, the shade the exact same. It was spikey, sort of like the pictures of the white haired guy from those three super-ninja. It wasn't that spikey, though, and was straighter than Naruto's own hair.
It trailed down to her midback. She was a bit taller than him which made him a little huffy, but Naruto ignored it. Her jawline was pointed where his was squared. Her eyes were a darker shade of blue.
She had no whiskers and a slightly different nose. Her face was smoother than his own, a much rounder feel to her face. She looked around twelve or thirteen, the same as him.
"So—"
"So—"
They both spoke at the same time before laughing. Naruto scratched his neck awkwardly. "So, Rin-chan, wanna be friends!"
His clone—no, Rin smiled. Her smile was different from his own. It was soft and gentle where his own smile was always bright and energetic. Her demeanor was so different from his, which was a credit to his acting skills.
Naruto bet Sasuke couldn't act as well as he did.
"I'd love to be your friend, Naruto," Rin said, her words soft and calm. "What do you want to do first?"
He felt weird, almost as if a hydrogen balloon had been placed in his chest and then lit on fire. Warmness, that was what he was feeling.
What do you want to do? No one had ever asked him those words before. Iruka-sensei had showed up at Ichiraku Ramn—he didn't ask where he wanted to eat. No kid had ever asked him if he wanted to play or if he wanted to play a certain game.
He…he knew it was all fake, but he didn't care. It felt real. It felt oh so real to him.
Flashing Rin a smile, Naruto brightly grinned. "Football! Wanna kick a ball around? I bet I still have an old one I st—barrowed from a store!"
Rin reached down to him, grasping his hand and yanking him up. "I look forward to it, Naruto," she said with a small laugh. "Please don't beat me too badly."
"Don't get too mad when I kick your butt, ya know!" Naruto cheered brightly, rushing to go look for his ball. It didn't matter if the sun was already setting. It didn't matter if he wouldn't be able to see the ball as he kicked it.
He had a friend now, even if they were him.
Naruto blocked a strike from Sasuke with his right forearm, sliding back slightly from the force in Sasuke's punch. As a kick flew out from Sasuke, Naruto's left hand flew up to meet his right, the fingers crossing as clones popped into existence.
Twisting around Sasuke's foot, Naruto moved to the side as the Uchiha's arms were grabbed by the two clones which had spawned into existence behind Sasuke. Pushing his advantage, Naruto slammed his palm into Sasuke's chest, Naruto's clones sweeping his legs as the strike landed.
Sasuke toppled to the ground, the back of his head violently hitting the ground as he groaned deeply. He blinked wearily, fog being cast out of his eyes while he stared up at Naruto with a degree of confusion.
Naruto grinned viciously, teeth shining while his canines poked out the edges of his lips. "Suck it, Sasuke! It isn't fun to be slammed to the ground, ya know!"
Naruto lauded his victory over Sasuke, the memories of the countless times Sasuke sent him careening to the ground flashing through his mind. Bastard had to taste his own medicine, ha!
Sasuke glared and let out a small hiss of pain. The Last Uchiha shook his head and stood, turning swiftly on his foot and marching away.
Naruto was half-tempted to yell at him as he walked away, but Naruto held back. Kakashi-Sensei only let them do real training if they could operate as a team.
Looking back, Naruto met Kakashi's eye, the masked man having been watching the spar between Naruto and Sasuke while half-reading his smut.
Kakashi walked up to Naruto, folding Icha-Icha closed as he slipped the book into his pocket. His eye folded up into a smile, his hand reaching out.
Kakashi ruffled Naruto's head, earning a squawk from the blond boy. "Good job today, Naruto," Kakashi warmly said. "You've gotten a lot better."
Naruto huffed, pushing away Kakashi's hand while his cheeks warmed. He wasn't used to such affection from…anyone. Kakashi-Sensei was a lazy jerk who always showed up late, but the man was also nice to him.
The blond just didn't know how to feel about Kakashi. "Of course I got better! I'm gonna be Hokage, Kakashi-Sensei, so I can't fall behind that stupid bastard, ya know!"
The aforementioned stupid bastard couldn't beat Naruto nearly as often in spars. Kakashi was confused as to what spurred such growth in the boy, but he wouldn't question it as long as Naruto kept showing such positive growth.
Unknown to Kakashi, it was because Naruto had positive support for the first time in his life.
"So, Kakashi-Sensei, you wanna teach me some super cool jutsu!" Naruto cheered, imagining all the things he could learn. Maybe Sensei could teach him how to summon lightning or spit fireballs like Sasuke did!
"Maa, Naruto," Kakashi droned out, already pulling his folded book out of his pocket. "How about another time? It is getting quite late."
At Naruto's massive pout, Kakashi laughed and ruffled Naruto's hair again. "Tell you what, Naruto—I'll get us a C-Rank tomorrow. You've really impressed me; all of you have. You work well together."
Kakashi's eye curved down slightly after he said that. The team didn't work well because they cared about each other—well, besides Sakura to Sasuke. They worked well together because they were willing to suck it up and behave for the sake of the mission.
To Kakashi, Naruto's behavior almost reminded him of how he was as a kid. Sasuke didn't dislike Sakura—much as he didn't like her harassment, the Uchiha boy held a soft spot for her. Similarly, Sasuke respects Naruto now.
Sakura, well, she obviously liked Sasuke. And ever since Naruto had stopped asking her out—along with several missions—Sakura became much more friendly towards the blond. She held a fondness for him, something that had genuinely surprised Kakashi.
While Sakura held a crush on Sasuke, she really did seem to treat Naruto like a little brother. And yet…Naruto didn't see it. Kakashi knew that if Naruto put even a little bit of effort into it, Sakura would be a friend for life. If Naruto tried to be just a little bit friendly towards Sasuke, they'd have a brother-like bond.
But Naruto wouldn't try.
"Kakashi-Sensei?" Naruto questioned aloud, Kakashi's hand still on the blond's hair.
"Oh, sorry, Naruto," Kakashi distantly said, his thoughts still weighing on him. "You can go home now. I'm proud of you," he pitched his voice up in amusement to tease his sensei's son, "ya know!"
Naruto whined in outrage, hands forming into fists as he tried to punch Kakashi's sides. "I'll beat your butt one of these days, you stupid Cyclops!"
"But not today," Kakashi amusedly replied, casually dodging his student's blows. And he did mean it. One day, Naruto would be greater than him. Greater than Minato-Sensei.
He just wished Naruto would open up to his teammates; Kakashi knew all too well how miserable loneliness was. Hopefully Naruto wouldn't come to regret his self-isolation. Kakashi still felt intense guilt for how he treated Obito, after all.
Sarutobi watched through his crystal ball as Naruto played with some civilian girl in his apartment. Or, well, he hoped they were a civilian girl. If they weren't, it meant Naruto had fallen so deep into his loneliness that he had made a clone to be his friend.
But he refused to believe that. It'd mean that he failed Minato and Kushina far more than he already had.
So, even though the girl had all the features from Minato and Kushina that Naruto didn't have—besides the girl being a blonde still—Sarutobi would choose to ignore it. He would choose to avoid reading their lips to see what her name is or what they were talking about.
Naruto had found a friend: it was just a complete coincidence that she had Kushina's jawline and eyes. It was a complete coincidence that her mannerisms reminded him so, so much of Minato.
Naruto had found a friend. The village hadn't completely failed the boy. Sarutobi hadn't completely failed the boy.
Or so he prayed.
"Wake up, Naruto," Rin gently said, shaking her…friend? Boss? Soul?…awake. Her existence was weird. She knew her existence wasn't natural.
She had all of Naruto's memories, yet they felt inherently separate from her own. And, yes, she had memories. Naruto also had her memories—Shadow Clones transferred memory, after all. They were meant to be the same person, her being a clone of him.
She wasn't.
Rin wasn't acting anymore. She didn't pretend to be calm and collected in comparison to Naruto's endless energy. She didn't love strongly as he did. She didn't crave ramen or attention or 'super strong jutsu' as he did.
They were different, and it baffled her. The Shadow Clone Jutsu wasn't meant to function like this. She knew it wasn't meant to. Naruto likely hadn't realized—he would when she popped—but it wasn't natural for her to have a distinct personality from him.
She despised Konoha. She hated the villagers. She yearned for Sarutobi's death and a painful demise to all of Naruto's peers. Rin possessed none of the love Naruto held towards those he hated.
Naruto loved as strongly as he hated. For her, though, it was just hate. Hate, hate, hate. There was only a singular being in the world she cared for, and that was Naruto Uzumaki. They shared a soul, after all. He made her. He loved her.
How could she not love him back? The purpose of her existence was to love him, to make him happy. To fill in the hole that was oh so merciless carved out by the vileness and vitriol of the village and its people.
So, despise the village she may, she would never do anything to it. Naruto loved it too much for her to even conceptualize damaging it.
Naruto groaned, rolling in his bed. The noise pulled her out of her thoughts and pushed a fond smile onto her lips. "Sleepy?" Rin teasingly said, flicking on a light. Naruto groaned even harder. "Don't you want to make it on time for your C-Rank mission?"
That did it. Naruto nearly bolted out of bed at the speed of sound, head shooting up so fast that a breeze could be felt from the displacement of air. Naruto met her gaze with wide eyes. "Am I late? Kakashi-Sensei said he'll even be on time, so he will kill me if I'm late, ya know!"
"You aren't late," Rin said to calm him, legs carrying her over to the kitchen. "I made you food. Rice, fried vegetables, and eggs!"
They hadn't known how to cook—Naruto didn't like doing it much, either. She did, though. Her clones were vastly more willing to learn from books than Naruto's clones are, so she has been the one studying theory, cooking, and other such topics for him.
They shared memories, after all. What she knew, he knew and vice versa.
It worked out well, though, because she didn't much care for ninjutsu or taijutsu. She'd get popped in a fight anyways, so her clones were fairly obstinate when it came to training those things. Naruto, however, took to those topics like a fish to water.
"Are you gonna eat some?" Naruto echoed something he asked several times now. "Cause I feel bad when I'm the only one eating…"
A slight frown crossed over her lip; Rin was glad she wasn't facing him. She always felt guilty that she made him feel bad over this…but it just wasn't economic for her to eat. If Naruto wanted them to go out to eat for fun, that was one thing. It was a whole different thing for her to waste food for casual eating.
She didn't need food. Oh, she craved it sometimes—she loved takoyaki, for example—but Naruto couldn't afford to feed two bellies. If she ever got too hungry, she could pop and then come back.
"You already know why—" Rin began to say as she turned around, but Naruto was quick to cut her off.
"I don't care, ya know!" Naruto said as he crossed his arms. "You said you wanna stay in the village to study stuff, so I won't see you for a while. I wanna eat with my friend…please?"
"…fine," she muttered, conceding. Naruto's face lit up like the red light district did at night, though, so it was worth it.
They soon dug into the food, a happy smile on both of their faces. It was a good day.
"Wake up," a voice said as a hand shook his shoulder. "Wake up, you'll catch a cold if you sleep out here."
Naruto blinked into the world of the living, sitting up groggily. There was a pretty girl kneeled next to him, shaking him awake. "Eh? Who are you?"
The girl hesitated for a moment. "I'm Haku," she said, eyes looking over him. "And is that headband just for show, or are you…?"
"Nope!" Naruto chirped brightly, thumb pointing towards the headband Iruka gave him. "I'm Naruto Uzumaki, shinobi of the Village Hidden in the Leaves!"
He knew that Rin would kill him for saying so much, but he wanted to brag a little.
"Oh? A shinobi?" Haku said softly, her voice sounding like she was interested. "And what is a shinboi doing in the Land of Waves? Surely you know of Gato."
Naruto harrumphred, crossing his arms. "That nasty pig? I'm here to help the people of Wave gain freedom from Gato! No one deserves to be living like…this," Naruto said, waving his arms about to gesture to the island in general.
The Land of Waves was in horrible condition. They had very little…and Naruto was used to being poor. But poor by Konoha's standards was rich by Nami's standards. He knew what it was like to starve…and no one deserves that.
"I see…" Haku quietly murmured, pondering over his words. "Is that why you were sleeping out here? It isn't safe to sleep in the cold, you could get sick."
"Bah, you sound like Rin!" Naruto said, waving his hand casually. "She always worries about me getting hurt, but I'm tough! And I needed to sleep out here 'cause I was exhausted from my training, ya know!"
Haku tilted her head. "Your training? But you already seem very strong—what are you training for? Why do you train?"
"Why—why do I train?" Naruto repeated, mulling over her question. Why did he train? "Well, it's because I'm going to become Hokage. I'm going to be the strongest ninja ever, super duper strong!"
"And why do you want to be Hokage?" Haku curiously asked, eyes almost piercing in their intensity. "Why do you wish to become strong? Is it for the sake of strength alone?"
"…well…" Naruto hesitantly began, tongue licking his drying lips. "Well…I guess it's because—becauase…" He hesitated again, not sure of what would be a satisfactory answer. "I want no one to be able to ignore me again?"
"So you want to become powerful for the sake of others?" Haku asked, but it was more like she was concluding something.
"Ye—es?"
"I see…" Haku said, a look of approval in her eyes. "Tell me, Naruto Uzumaki, do you have anyone precious to you?"
"Precious?"
He tried to pull images out of his mind, but it was hard to think of people precious to him. Kakashi, maybe. Ayame and Teuchi, definitely. Possibly the Old Man and, if he got to know him better, Konohamaru.
But he could think of one person who was precious to him: Rin, she was precious. The most precious person to him.
It was ironic, then, that she was him.
"Yeah, yeah…I guess I do have someone precious to me," he said with finality, conviction heavy in his eyes. Rin was precious. She was all he had.
"I think," Haku began, the way she spoke sounding like she was about to reveal some deep wisdom. "That we gain true strength from those precious to us. Real meaning in life comes from those around us who we find to be precious; that could be one precious person or a dozen, but even so, they are who we find our true value from."
Naruto glanced at the grass under him and thought over it for a moment. Value from others? Everyone always looked down on him, so wouldn't that mean he was trash?
But…no. They weren't precious to him. Rin was, and she thought the world of him. "Wow, you're really smart, Sis!" Naruto said with more energy in his voice than before, body perking up a smidge. "And I agree with you; the people I care about make my life better, ya know?"
Haku smiled. "I do know. Well, it was nice to meet you, Naruto, but I need to pick herbs for my friend. He is very ill."
"Then I can help you," Naruto quickly said, moving himself to stand.
Haku accepted and they spent the next thirty or so minutes picking herbs. Naruto had fun—Haku was nice. Most people weren't.
As Haku left, though, he was left with mind-blowing information.
"By the way…I'm not a girl."
He choked on his spit when she said that.
Haku choked on spit as Naruto's wind-chakra covered fist punctured through his chest. Naruto stared into the boy's eyes as life left him, and Naruto was holding back sniffles. Guys don't cry in front of guys.
"I'm sorry," Naruto hauntedly said, staring from a million miles away into Haku's unmasked face. "But—but I need to live for my precious people. I'm sorry…" He mumbled softly. "I'm sorry…"
The one person around Naruto's age who was nice to him…and he had to kill them for the sake of the mission. Sasuke died to Haku, and Naruto felt weird. He didn't like Sasuke…but he did. And he didn't. And now Sasuke is dead. But it was okay, at least there was Rin.
No one else would ever be his friend.
It was only a little later that he found out Sasuke lived…but Naruto had long since given up on bonds.
"Lord Third," Kakashi said, kneeling before the Third Hokage. "Thank you for letting me speak to you."
Sarutobi already had his pipe out, the tobacco lit and gently floating from the end of the pipe. "Stand, Kakashi. You have not been required to kneel ever since you left ANBU."
"Instincts, Lord Third," Kakashi said, brushing off the Sandaime's words. He stood, though, and took a seat before the Third Hokage. "And I do not deserve to stand before you, Sandaime-sama."
Sarutobi laughed, a boisterous noise leaving his throat. "If we wish to talk about who is more of a failure, Kakashi, we'd be here all day. I assure you—I have failed Naruto far, far more than you ever could have."
Kakashi looked down, the usually unshakable man very much shakable at the moment. "Have you seen Naruto's friend, Sarutobi-sama?"
The Sandaime contemplated lying, but ultimately chose against it. "The blonde girl, yes? She is constantly over at his apartment."
Kakashi stilled, his hands clenching against the sides of the chair he sat on. "You knew? You knew that Naruto has—has given up on his peers. That Sensei's son has been coping with our failures by developing a split personality and calling it a clone!"
"Do not yell at me, Kakashi," Sarutobi quietly said, voice steady and sharp. "And presume nothing. Do you have any proof that the girl is a clone? Any evidence? Or have you simply jumped to conclusions?
Kakashi was in no mood for this. He had thought that Naruto would be better off if he waited to meet the boy. But he was wrong. Failure. He was a damned failure! He failed Obito, failed Rin, and now he failed Sensei to a far greater degree than he already had!
"Have you seen her face, Lord Third?" Kakashi nearly hissed, rage vibrating in his throat. "Because I have. I even used Obito's eye—a mix of Kushina and Minato's faces, just like Naruto. And her name? Rin. Rin. Rin Namikaze. Do you know of anyone named Namikaze in the village, Sarutobi-sama? If Naruto had been a girl, if his parents had lived, that would have been his name!"
"A nickname," Hiruzen waved it off, chest tight: and it was not due to his tobacco. "Just a nickname. And Rin is not a rare name. Many kids say their last names are Namikaze to respect Minato. You are seeing monsters where there is air, Kakashi."
Kakashi just inhaled sharply and let out a pained exhale. He needed to control himself. Closing his singular eye, he allowed himself to put aside his and the Hokage's failings. He opened his eye. "Naruro has become strong, Lord Third."
"Has he?" Hiruzen said, far too grateful for the change in topic. "I have watched some of his training, but not all of it. Do you believe he'll be ready for the Chunin Exams?"
"Ready?" Kakashi scoffed, almost as if the word were inadequate. "We and the Academy failed him, Sarutobi-sama. He has far outstripped both Sasuke and Sakura, and his growth is only exponentiating."
Hiruzen mused over what Kakashi said. Was Naruto a prodigy like his father before him? Or was it simply the result of his training with Shadow Clones? He avoided watching Naruto like the plague whenever that Rin girl was with him, so he couldn't be sure.
"And how has he reacted to his first kill?" Hiruzen curiously asked. Naruto had been distant ever since he became a Genin, so the blond child had not confided in him.
Kakashi grimaced. "He has been…" Kakashi sighed, shaking his head. "His exuberance is there, but it is blunted. Naruto clearly has only been confiding in—well, regardless, he refuses to speak about his emotions to me, let alone Sasuke or Sakura."
Hiruzen grimaced. That wasn't good. One friend isn't enough, especially when that one friend is…
He sighed. This conversation—just as every conversation about Naruto—was going to be as painful as ever.
"Heya, Rin-chan!" Naruto cheerfully chirped, plopping himself next to her while she read a book. "Whachya reading?"
Rin glanced over at him and smiled, tilting her head to place it on his shoulder. "Fuinjutsu. I figured that it'll be a good way to help sustain my body given my…condition."
Naruto's smile faltered slightly as she mentioned that. He didn't like thinking about the fact that she technically was a clone. She certainly didn't feel like one or act like one. "Well, that's good! Is it any interesting? The chakra theory books you read were super duper helpful, especially the ones on elemental manipulation."
What was left unsaid was that those books are the only reason he was able to kill Haku. Wind was cool, so he learned it first. Fire was coming up next.
"So your chakra control is getting better?" Rin asked, already knowing the answer. They often did know the answers to what they were asking, but it was better to pretend they didn't.
It made conversations much more fun.
"Mhm!" Naruto bobbed his head in confirmation. "Lots better—oh, I was wondering if you ever thought about learning medical ninjutsu. You'd be super good at it 'cause you're super smart!"
Rin snorted softly, lips curved upwards. "I'm as smart as you are; you just don't like using that brain of yours, Naruto."
"Well, I have you for that, don't I?" Naruto rhetorically asked, teeth shining white.
"I guess that's true…" Rin said with a smile. "And I have thought about it, yes. I'll probably find the time to start learning it while you are in the exams. For the moment, though, fuinjutsu is so interesting."
Naruto shot her a skeptical look. "I'll take your word on it, then."
"Oh? You decided to use your brain today?" Rin teased, head turning so that she could meet his eyes.
Naruto gave a small squawk of protest. "I'll have you know that I use my brain all the time, even if I don't like it."
Rin giggled, rolling her eyes. "Just go train, Naruto. You've been growing since we fixed your diet, but if you want big muscles, you have to get out there and train."
"Yes ma'am!" Naruto cheered, giving a tiny salute and vanishing in a Body Flicker.
Rin fondly smiled before giving her head a small shake, getting back to work.
Shikamaru, Choji, and Ino watched as Naruto beat the ever living crap out of Kiba in the stadium below.
"Should—should someone stop him…?" Choji asked hesitantly, watching as Naruto ruthlessly beat up Kiba. "I mean—"
"Tch. Troublesome," Shikamaru murmured, head leaning back as he lost interest in the fight. "Seems Naruto only got worse after joining Team Seven. I wonder what spurred that on? Well, it doesn't matter."
"Forehead said that Naruto stopped asking her out," Ino piped up. "But he was weird even at the start of the exams. Have you ever seen Naruto not make himself the center of attention? Even Sasuke-kun talked to people, but Naruto just ignored everyone before the first test."
"Oh? I wasn't aware you were so interested in Naruto, Ino," a voice said from behind the blonde girl.
"Shut up, Asuma-Sensei!" She shouted, head snapping back to glare at Asuma. "I do not like that dumb blond!"
No one saw Naruto glance at her as she said that.
"It takes one to know one…" Shikamaru muttered under his breath, but through what must have been providence, Ino heard him.
"Want to repeat that, you lazy bastard?!" Ino glared daggers at him, and Shikamaru quickly backed down.
"Troublesome blonds," he sighed out, wishing that there was no roof so he could watch the clouds.
Jiraiya the Toad Sage, Super Pervet extraordinaire, watched his student's son from a distance. Naruto was supposed to have been training with Ebisu until Jiraiya could meet him, but that plan failed horribly.
According to Kakashi, Naruto took one look at Ebisu, scoffed, and then walked away. Ebisu was supposed to have Naruto train near the hot springs so Jiraiya could take him from Ebisu, but that plan failed horribly.
It wasn't very hard to find Naruto—Jiraiya was a master tracker, after all—so now he was just observing Minato's boy while waiting to make his appearance. The blond boy was eating lunch with a blonde girl—a girl who could be mistaken for a sister.
The issue was that Naruto did not have a sister, yet this girl looked like Kushina with blonde hair. So, unless Naruto had somehow gone through mitosis and then changed his gend—oh. Oh fuck.
No no no no no! Please, please don't let that be true. Jiraiya knew he failed Minato, but not that badly. Please don't let it be that bad, Sage above.
Well, there was one way to test it.
Jiraiya appeared next to the pair, hand smacking down on the girl's shoulder…only for his hand to keep going down. Oh no.
Jiraiya would be the first to admit he was into some pretty weird things, but this…? What could this even be called, self-cest? Incest?
"What'd you hit Rin-chan for!" Naruto yelled out, immediately jumping up from his seat to glare daggers at the Mighty Toad Sage.
Jiraiya just grabbed his shoulder and Body Flickered them away. Sensei could handle this. Sensei was good at this stuff. Sensei would deal with it.
Sensei did not deal with it.
Naruto tried to attack the old pervert who tried to touch Rin-chan before she popped, but he found himself before Jiji. Every hit he tried to land on the white haired jerk was blocked.
"Jiji, this guy's a pervert and a weirdo!" Naruto shouted, hoping the Old Man would help him.
Hiruzen took in the scene before him…and promptly took a hit of his pipe. "Jiraiya…definetly is that, yes, Naruto."
Naruto's head flickered back and forth between Jiraiya and the Old Man. "Wha—but—he! But he touched a little girl inappropriately! He grabbed her without consent!"
The Hokage's eyes widened while a hand lightly smacked Naruto in the back of his neck. "Don't phrase it like that, you brat!" Jiraiya shouted. "And I was testing to see if Naruto really was dating his own clone," Jiraiya met the Old Man's eyes. "What the ever living fuck is going on!"
"I'm not dating my clone!" Naruto protested swiftly, arms crossing in defiance. "And Rin-chan is my friend!"
"A friend who just so happens to be you! That isn't a friend, that is transcendent masturbation!" Jiraiya snapped, lightly smacking Naruto in the back of the head again.
"And what is it to you, huh?" Naruto huffed, eyes narrowed angrily. "Who even are you! I was having a good day before you ruined it, you Pervy Sage!"
Jiraiya scowled. "Don't call me that, brat. And I'm the guy holding the key to your little furry buddy, so I have a vested interest in your well being!"
If anything, Naruto's mood managed to get worse after Jiraya said that. Jiraiya moved to quickly correct himself, but the Hokage finally decided it was time for him to intervene. "Be silent, the both of you!" Hiruzen snapped, eyes closing in exhaustion. "Naruto, what is this about you dating a Shadow Clone?"
"I'm not," he growled out, whiskers darkening ever so slightly. "And Rin-chan is my friend. So what if she's a clone? She's nicer to me than anyone in the village ever was!" His fingers formed a hand seal, and he quickly vanished in a Body Flicker.
Both Jiraiya and Hiruzen flinched, guilt pooling in the pair of old men rapidly.
"Jiraiya?"
"…yes, Sensei?" He quietly said, guilt tight in his throat.
"Train him and don't mention the girl."
Jiraiya remained quiet. It was fucked up, whatever was going on with Naruto…but…"Fine, Sensei."
Konohagakure was a flurry of excited emotions as the Chunin Exam Finals began. The whole village was watching as the first match began: Naruto Uzumaki, the scum of the village, was to fight Neji Hyuga, the prodigy of the Hyuga Clan.
"Are you excited to see who wins, Rin-chan?" Naruto amusedly asked as he and Rin sat atop the stadium. Rin had made a seal that would trap light into it as it went towards them and then unseal it behind them.
Basically, it was invisibility. They could see because the seal duplicated the light, allowing the light to go in, but not out.
"I still think this is a dumb idea," she exasperatedly said, head leaned against his shoulder. "What's the point in having a clone fight him?"
"I'm putting all my faith in that seal you made!" Naruto swiftly answered, shooting her a cheeky grin. "How'd you even think of making a seal that seals away kinetic energy?"
Rin had made a masterful seal. The kind of seal that allowed Shadow Clones to take a hit. It worked by sealing kinetic energy that hit the clone, making it so the clone never got hit in the first place.
It could probably be overloaded by enough kinetic energy, but Neji wasn't strong enough for that.
"Well, after your perverted Sensei popped me…I didn't want that to happen ever again," Rin admitted, a frown hovering on her face. She didn't like Jiraiya…but he also gave them reading material on fuinjutsu, so they were even. "Anyways, the fight is starting. Let's see which contestant is better, right?"
Rin nudged him in the side playfully, and he just laughed.
Predictably, Neji had his ass kicked. Apparently, it is very hard to fight dozens of unpoppable clones who can spam Rasengan, fireballs, and wind blasts. Who'd have thought?
"He's dead," Naruto somberly said, eyes tight as he stared at the ground. "He's dead," he repeated once more, still not able to grasp it. Jiji died. The snake had killed him.
"But he died for a good cause," Rin comforted, hand rubbing his shoulder. She didn't like Hiruzen, but Naruto did. She'd comfort him. "Remeber his life, not his death."
Naruto sniffled, still not looking up. "But he didn't deserve to die," Naruto mumbled, tears falling from his eyes. "Not—not to Orochimaru. He should have died in his sleep, happy."
"Do you think he wasn't happy when he saved the village?" Rin curiously asked, turning Naruto so she could wrap an arm around him. "He died as he wanted to. He died like a hero."
Another sniffle left his nose. "I know…" He softly whispered, face pressing into Rin's shoulder as sobs left his mouth. "I know…"
"You'll just have to become Hokage for him," Rin said, hating that Naruto wanted to lead a village of cruel men and women. But he wanted to, so she'd follow his dream.
"Yeah…" He agreed, arms tightly holding onto her like she too would vanish. If she didn't have the seal, she probably would vanish from the pressure.
Rin rubbed her fingers through Naruto's hair. He was taller than her now, a few inches or so above her. "I love you," she decided, knowing how wrong it was to say. Unnatural. But weren't they unnatural?
"I love you too…" Naruto choked out, face still pressed against her shoulder.
"Let me leave!" Sasuke shouted, staring at Naruto from Madara's head.
Naruto met his gaze, eyes looking into the Sharingan without flinching. "Why?" Naruto just questioned, completely shocking Sasuke. "Why do you wanna leave?"
Sasuke gaped, not expecting that. "I—what?" He shook his head, collecting himself. "I want to—no, I need to leave the village. I'm not getting strong enough! With Orochimaru and this mark…" Sasuke trailed off, a smirk drawing across his lips. "I'll be able to kill him."
Naruto bit his lower lip, unsure what to do. He didn't care enough about this to keep Sasuke in the village—yes, Sasuke was the only person his age who Naruto felt any semblance of care towards, but they weren't friends.
"Will you return after you kill Itachi?" Naruto decided to say, seeing no point in keeping Sasuke trapped. "Will you help kill Orochimaru?"
Sasuke narrowed his eyes, lips tightening. "Yes. I still need to revive the Uchiha Clan, remember?"
"Alright, then," Naruto said with finality. "I guess we have our answer. But you gotta make it look like I fought you, ya know? I can heal pretty well, so…"
"Chidori."
Jiraiya sat in a tree, watching his apprentice from a distance. The brat was a prodigy, but he was more messed up than Kakashi or Itachi combined. Naruto gobbled up knowledge from him ever since they began the training trip, and it was terrifying.
The blond was good at everything—and everything he wasn't good at, his female clone filled the blanks. It was freaky and creeped him the hell out. Naruto hid it well, but he knew Minato's son was dating himself.
Jiraiya would apologize when he died. Minato would never forgive him, but he'd still try to say sorry. It wasn't like Jiraiya could separate the brat from the brat-ette. Naruto liked his split personality more than he liked Jiraiya.
He would just isolate Naruto from him, and he couldn't do that. If even Naruto left him…
It wasn't something he wanted to dwell on. So, Jiraiya let his blond student date his blonde clone behind his back. It was better than the alternative.
Regardless, Jiraiya trained them as hard as he could. As much as he wished to peep at hot springs, his mind would grow numb with guilt as he remembered how much he failed Minato. So, he would always turn back and teach Naruto more.
And more Naruto and…Rin…learned. Rin liked seals, so he taught her seals. Naruto was good with ninjutsu, so he taught the boy how to master all five elements. Summoning? Naruto worked well with a team. Taijutsu? The blond was built like a brick wall and hit as hard as Gai.
He still wasn't sure how Sasuke managed to beat Naruto at the Valley of the End, but he wouldn't ask Naruto about it. The boy was still upset about his loss.
But back to training Naruto and Girl-ruto, there was a lot that he couldn't teach Rin. Turns out, that wasn't a problem—Tsunade was teaching Rin medical ninjutsu, a clone of the girl staying back in the village.
Apparently, she had made a seal that allowed for memories and chakra to almost constantly be sent back and forth between a clone. Again, Naruto was a prodigy. A scary one. A scary prodigy who had a splintered mind that made him divide his talents between his personalities.
It didn't help that Naruto was obsessed with Rin. Naruto had pressed him about the Edo Tensei and the Shiki Fujin far too many times for Jiraiya to not realize what Naruto's goals were. There was the simple goal of being Hokage…but Naruto's second goal was much worse.
Naruto may not have revealed it to him, but he knew that the brat was thinking about splitting his soul to make Rin into a real girl. Why else would he be so curious about those two jutsu?
"I'm so, so sorry, Minato…" He murmured to himself, still watching Naruto cuddle up with his clone.
Naruto merrily skipped as Rin jogged behind him, the pair having been inseparable since Jiji died. Naruto looked back at Rin, shooting her a bright smile. "We're going back to Konoha soon. Think I can get Granny to show me the Scroll of Seals?"
"She wouldn't let me see it," Rin answered. "Why would she let you?"
"Because I'm not you?" Naruto pointed out. "I'm cooler, so of course Granny will let me see the Scroll!"
That way, he could get a peak at the Shiki Fujin and Edo Tensei. Rin—and so, Naruto—had long since exhausted Jiraiya's knowledge of sealing. Actually, Naruto had long since exhausted Jiraiya of all of his knowledge. Seals, ninjutsu, taijutsu, summoning, Sage Mode…he learned a lot from the Toad Sage.
He needed to be strong to beat the Akatsuki. He needed to be knowledgeable to free Rin-chan from being trapped in his soul.
"But anyways, why are you so excited, Naruto?" Rin curiously asked, a teasing smirk falling onto her lips. "You usually aren't this bright unless we have—"
He threw a ball of congealed chakra at her, cheeks flushing red. "You're such a pervert, ya know?" Naruto reflectively said, shaking his head. "But it's because Jiraiya-Sensei told me before he went for a mission that it is time for me to master the Kyubi's chakra today!"
"Oh?" Rin looked deeply interested. "A fight, then? Do you think you'll be able to beat it?"
Naruto gave her a flat look. "C'mon, Rin-chan—I bet I'm stronger than Dad, now! Jiraiya-Sensei won't tell me if I am or am not, but I keep kicking his bet, ya know? So I gotta be stronger than Dad."
It had been a shock to find out that his dad was Minato Namikaze and his mom was Kushina Uzumaki. If he were much younger, he'd probably be mad at the world for it…but there wasn't a point. His parents loved him, so he wouldn't get mad too mad at them for dying or putting the fox in him.
He was going to be cooler than Dad and stronger than Mom, that was his goal. But no one could be cooler than Minato Namikaze, so that was a pipe dream. Rin-chan said he was cool, though, but she also said he was a dummy…it sorta counted, though.
"Hirashin, Sage Mode, mastery of the five elements, several sub elements mastered through usage of combination jutsu with clones, the Strength of a Hundred Seal, and a dozen other things I've missed," Rin listed out, counting on her fingers as she caught up to him. "Nope, you're still too weak," she flatly said.
Naruto huffed. "Jerk."
"Yet you love me," she reminded him, pecking his lips.
Naruto kissed her back. "And somehow, you love me."
They stood there silently for a moment, enjoying each other's presence. Both were sixteen, but they felt decades older. It was probably due to spamming clones.
"How couldn't I?" She mumbled into his lips. They were bound by their soul, after all.
Minato dropped to his knees, looking up to his son with tears in his eyes. "Naruto—"
"Eh? Dad, why're you crying?" Naruto tilted his head in confusion. "And you, Mom, why're you sad? I mean, my early life kinda sucked, but I got through it! And now I have Rin-chan to keep me company!"
Kushina remained mute, just looking at Naruto in utter horror. Naruto had just told them his life story, and she wanted to puke. The Old Man was supposed to raise Naruto as a hero, and yet…
"Naruto…" Minato began again, hands flat on the ground as a defeated look appeared on his face. "Naruto, Rin was what we wanted to name you if you were a girl."
Naruto waved his hand casually. "So what? Many people share names."
"No, Naruto, you don't get it!" Kushina broke her silence, voice wobbly. "The way you described her—her features would make her look like Minato and my daughter. Her eyes are the same shade as mine. Her jaw is mine. Her hair is like Minato's."
"I—don't get what you're saying?" Naruto said confusedly. "So she has some features like you, Mom. Don't people usually end up dating someone like their parent who is the opposite gender or something, ya know?"
Minato swallowed saliva, picking himself up. "Naruto. You—you're basically dating your sister. If Kushina and I had a daughter, she'd have been named Rin Namikaze. She'd likely look exactly like your Rin. But—but she's also your clone, right? So—"
A scowl fell on Naruto's face. "I'm not dating my sister!" Naruto hissed, eyes burning in anger. "So she looks like a mix of you and Mom while having the name you'd have given my sister. So what!" Naruto huffed and looked away, arms crossed. "And it isn't like you were around to give me a sister. You died!"
Minato sucked in air like he was punched, nearly folding in on himself with guilt. "I—I'm sorry—"
"No!" Kushina cut off Minato. "Minato, don't apologize. You beat that masked bastard when you had already spent nearly a day wasting your chakra holding up my seal! You beat the Kyubi when you had embers of chakra left!" She leveled her stare onto Naruto. "Naruto…I love you so, so much…but you aren't being fair. You can blame Minato for sealing the fox into you, but for dying? No."
Naruto sighed, flopping to the ground as he sat. "…I'm sorry. You're right, Mom. But—just…just don't mention Rin-chan, okay? It isn't like that. It's not…"
"Alright," Kushina surrendered, not willing to ruin her son's only time with her because of petty things like disliking selfcest with a clone that looks like a potential sister. "We won't talk about it, okay?"
Minato took a sharp breath and exchanged a glance with Kushina that said a million words. Minato then sat in front of Naruto, a small, forced smile making its way onto his face. "So, Naruto, you want to become Hoka…"
As the conversation ended, though, only one thing sat in Naruto's mind. The Shiki Fujin was able to split the Kyubi's soul in half.
Naruto sat in front of a red headed, withered man and a blue haired, pierced woman. "Heya, Nagato," Naruto cheerfully said, glaring at the two Akatsuki members who destroyed his village. "How was killing Jiraiya-Sensei?"
Nagato remained silent, staring at the blond who defeated him. Soundly defeated him. Soundly defeated god. "…it was one of the hardest things I've ever done," Nagato admitted, knowing when he has lost.
"Was it?" Naruto rhetorically asked, almost shaking in anger. "And how about destroying the Hidden Leaf? Was that also hard?"
Konan shot Nagato a warning look, but Nagato knew there was no point in placating Naruto. "Easy. It was a catharsis, Naruto Uzumaki."
Naruto inhaled and exhaled softly. "And why is that, Nagato?"
"Because the Leaf destroyed my home. They killed my friends. They made my home a warzone and ripped away my best friend from me," Nagato roughly said, blood boiling as he remembered Yahiko's death.
"So now you do the same to my village?" Naruto curiously said. "How are you any better? Did every person in this village destroy Ame? Did Kakashi-Sensei? What did he do to Ame?"
"Nothing," Nagato easily admitted. "He did nothing. It was revenge. And now, you too will kill me in revenge. Because when one begins to hate, when one feels pain, they spread it like a malignant disease! It is only once the world can share in pain, share in hate, that there can be peace."
Naruto frowned. "I don't follow. How did you get any of this from Jiraiya-Sensei's teachings?"
"Because, Naruto, you have felt pain from me. And so you will spread that pain onto those who care for me. We are just cogs in the Cycle of Hatred," Nagato shook his head, the very motion agonizing. "But when everyone feels pain, when everyone has so much hate that they are unified against one target, they can no longer feel hate towards one another. It will be peace on Earth."
Naruto drummed his fingers against his side. "Then I won't kill you."
"What?!" Nagato nearly shouted, bafflement on his face. "I killed your Sensei. I killed your friends. I killed those you loved. I destroyed your village. Yet you claim to not hate me?"
"Oh, no, no…" Naruto laughed, shaking his head. "I hate you so, so much. I'm shaking because I hate you. But Jiraiya-Sensei knew better than to give into hate. He taught me that." Naruto then tilted his head, a piercing gaze striking into Nagato's eyes. "Do you think anyone in this village likes me, Nagato? Do you think there is one person in the village who would give their life for me? No. There is only one person alive now who likes me, and that number wasn't much larger before."
"And yet…you love Konoha…" Nagato murmured, a look of shock forming on his gaunt face. "You love those who hate you? You are a fool."
"A fool who proved you wrong, then!" Naruto growled, whiskers darkening. "I love Konohagakure! I love the villagers who hate me and scorn my name! I love the shinobi who would sell me out in a heart beat! I love this place, the nation that placed a monster inside of me at ten minutes of age! Where is your Cycle of Hatred, huh?! You are wrong!"
Nagato sat silently, taking in Naruto's words. A fool who proved him wrong? But…"No, you are wrong, Naruto."
"…what?"
Nagato continued. "Of the dozens of shinobi that I interrogated and tortured to find your location, not one of them sold you out. They didn't even say you were away on a mission, even if it were the truth or a falsehood. They made no lies and told no truths."
"What," Naruto echoed again, taking a step back. "What?" He took another step back. They didn't sell him out? They—they died for him? They didn't even lie to save their own lives, just for him?
"They hated you…" Nagato quietly said. "And yet, they overcame that hate. You overcame that hate. It was because of you, wasn't it? Tell me, Naruto, what is your solution to the Cycle of Hatred?"
Naruto was still shaken by the revelation that dozens of people died for him. They willingly died for him. For him. "I…don't know," he admitted with ease. "I don't know. But hurting everyone, how is that real peace? It is quiet, sure, but peaceful? No. No. It isn't. It is painful, it isn't peaceful. It is only…" Naruto trailed off, overcome by a thought.
'It is only when we work together to understand that we can overcome hate.' It was a hodgepodged idea that came from all the people who influenced his life. Jiji, Jiraiya, Dad, Mom, Rin, and more.
"Understanding. That's what beats hate," Naruto concluded, hands held into fists. "Understanding, patience, and cooperation. I'm not sure how it will happen, but we need to work together to overcome hatred. We need to love our enemies. We need to be strong, but we also need to be willing to forgive."
"I don't understand," Nagato softly said, eyes half-lidded from exhaustion. "But I believe you. I think I understand you, my fellow pupil of Jiraiya the Toad Sage. And so…I can put my faith in you."
"Nagato?" Konan quickly said, looking at him in worry.
Nagato just smiled. "I…will correct the mistake that I have made today. I leave the will of the Akatsuki…to Naruto Uzumaki."
And, like that, Nagato went through a pair of hand signs and raised the dead.
"What are you going to do with his eyes?" Naruto curiously asked, watching Konan wrap up Yahiko and Nagato's bodies in paper.
Konan watched the corpses of her only friends with a somber look. "The Rinnegan are a national treasure of Ame. They will be brought home to rest."
Naruto had to hold back a cringe…because he had other plans. They could manipulate souls. They could raise the dead. They had dominion over the body, soul, and life. "Won't Madara come to take them?"
"Then I will be ready," Konan said with confidence. "I have been preparing for well over a decade now for this fight. If Madara goes for Nagato's eyes, he will die."
"And what if he decides to poison you in your sleep and then places you under a genjutsu so you reveal the location of the eyes?"
Konan went silent, a contemplative expression on her face. "What are you proposing, then?"
How does he exactly say this…? "Well…so…see…I have a girlfriend and…"
"Is she dead?" Konan bluntly said.
"Not…exactly?" Naruto said weakly. "It is more like her soul is…err…also my soul?"
"…you are dating yourself?"
Naruto looked down, cheeks reddening. "Technically?"
Konan exhaled deeply. "And you want Nagato's eyes so that you can split your soul? That is a…horrible idea, Naruto."
"But there is no better place to keep the eyes?" Naruto said weakly. He'd steal them if he had to, but he'd prefer cooperation.
"That…is true," Konan agreed, shutting her eyes. "This is a truly horrible idea…but Nagato left his will to you…"
It didn't take much longer to convince her.
Naruto placed a mask on his face as he sat in a dark room, Rin across from him. "Are you ready for this, Rin?"
"I still think this is a bad idea, Naruto," Rin said in defeat, her hands ready to run through hand seals. "But…you'll just go over my head if I don't help. Fine, I'm ready."
Naruto smiled. "Thank you, Rin-chan. You're the best, ya know?"
She tisked. "Sap."
"Mhm." He nodded. "Anyways, let's do this."
With that, Rin swiftly ran through hand seals. Snake, Boar, Ram, Rabbit, Dog, Rat, Bird, Horse, and then Snake. With that, she clapped her hands and the God of Death appeared.
Naruto felt a cold feeling in his chest as the Shinigami's hands reached into his chest and severed a portion of his soul off. Rin puffed into smoke, worrying him immediately.
The Shingami continued its job and placed the splintered soul into the body they had created from Minato, Kushina, and Hashirama's DNA. They needed his parent's DNA for it as his soul would likely reject a too foreign body. They also needed Hashirama's DNA to work as a stabilizing agent.
Eating Orochimaru's soul with the Rinnegan and stealing all of this knowledge made this a lot easier.
Once the Shinigami finished placing his splintered soul into the host body, it looked back at Naruto, ready to finish the contract…but the contract wasn't going to be finished. The Shinigami Mask sat heavy on Naruto's face as he swiped his hand across his stomach, letting the contents of his gut leak.
The Shinigami left, the job done. Medical ninjutsu and his natural regeneration swiftly patched him up. Now for the rest of this.
Naruto ran through hand signs now, using the Rinnegan to touch his and Rin's souls. He fed his chakra into both of them, the hole in his soul fading away as it healed. In Rins's body, though? It was like new life had been made.
A fiery, warm soul was born in her, the feel of it similar yet different to his own soul. Their souls felt like…siblings. Shaking his head, glowing green chakra ran across his fingers as he lined up her chakra points properly and got her heart pumping.
A gasp left Rin's mouth. "Naruto?" She groggily said. "I feel weird. What happened? Did it—did it work?"
He just grinned like a fox, his body nearly vibrating in excitement. Naruto pressed his lips against her and kissed her. "Of course it worked! I, Naruto Uzumaki, and you, Rin Uzumaki, designed the jutsu! You better believe that it worked!"
Rin laughed and laughed and laughed like a loon. "You—you dunce. And Rin Uzumaki?"
"I was waiting, ya know?" He cheekily said, a laugh leaving his mouth.
He was so happy. What was that about dating himself, Jiraiya-Sensei, Dad, Mom, Konan, Jiji, Kakashi-Sensei, and…a lot of other people? She was alive. She had her own soul.
All it took was a lot of work, elbow grease, the complete destruction of the Akatsuki, a super smart pair of blonds, and world peace to get it done.
"I love you, ya know?" Naruto playfully said, eyes nearly glowing.
Rin snorted, forehead pressed against his. "I know. I love you too, you insufferable blond."
"It takes one to know one." He replied, pecking her lips again.
"And who can know you better than two people who used to be one?"
None. No one could.
An: So, I hope you liked it. I contemplated writing a whole story on this, but eh. I already have too many stories that I refuse to update. So, here is a oneshot.
To elaborate on some things, Rin isn't actually smarter than Naruto—she just likes books. He doesn't. Both are very smart; Naruto is canonically smart. He figured out Juubito's weakness faster than all but maybe Tobirama. He is a smart guy, he was just held back by his upbringing. As he utilizes all of his smarts here along with early Shadow Clone training being done, he was ridiculously OP at the end.
Also, Rin absorbed Yami Naruto. That's why she hates so much: she IS Yami Naruto. Or some of her is. She was part of Naruto's soul and was genuinely distinct from him after she became her own person. Also, she would genetically be his sibling once she got a body.
It is meant to be fucked up. She has the name Rin and the last name Namikaze because, subconsciously, Naruto was pulling from his parents sealed in his gut. She looks like the kid of Minato and Kushina because the appearance was subconsciously based on his own genes and also the genes of Minato and Kushina as clones in him. Basically, I wanted it to be fucked. Very fucked.
Naruto, in the end, managed to go from selfcest to twincest, basically. Naruto's mental state was really bad. Really, really bad. He didn't believe he was capable of being loved so he decided to love himself and things evolved from there.
Anyways, don't think I condone the stuff in this. It is literature meant to show a screwed up Naruto.