Naruto stumbled, nearly dropping the scroll in his panic. Finally, he found a hollow in one of the trees and wedged himself in, breathing ragged. 'Oh, kami... it makes sense... that's why they all hate me... I'm the D-Demon that killed the Yondaime... killed Iruka-sensei's parents... Jiji's wife... I'm a monster...' he thought desperately, clutching the side of his head as tears streamed down his cheeks, following the strange whisker marks on each side. The Forbidden Scroll lay by his side, almost forgotten.
Naruto stared at his shaking hands, unable to shake the visions of blood pain death despair- he shook his head fiercely, trying to ignore the voice in the back of his head, deeper than his own. 'That's right... you're the monster they always said you were... now it's time to show them what monsters do... time to make them pay for hurting you...' 'N-no, I d-don't want to hurt anyone... I don't want to hurt the people who are important to me. I won't!'
Sasuke followed the trail of broken branches, scanning the forest with red, two-tomoe eyes for any sign of the blond. "Naruto! Where the hell are you?" 'Damn, it makes too much sense, but... Naruto? Why would he pick Naruto? Wait... tenth of October... Yondaime-sama just took the first newborn he found. Damnit Naruto, don't you dare believe that asshole!'
Naruto's breath hitched as he heard the voice of his friend/employer. "Where are you? We need to bring back the scroll before things get worse! Iruka-sensei's fighting off those guys right now so we can get back to the tower! For fuck's sake, get out here and answer me!" growled Sasuke, who was most assuredly not worried, merely concerned about his retainer. Hearing a stifled sob, he moved to follow it, before a stocky wall of muscle intercepted him bodily, driving him to the forest floor. Mizuki's scarred accomplice, whatever his name was, slammed a fist into the ground as he landed heavily in front of the boy.
"You go no further, Uchiha. I owe you and the Kyuubi brat for what happened to my brother. Because of you two and some ANBU bastard, I have no one left." he rumbled deeply, eyes filled with hatred. Sasuke fell into a well-practiced stance, ready to move at a split-second's notice. The other man clenched his fists, standing like a boxer.
A fist tore through the air next to where Sasuke had been standing, lodging itself in a tree before the owner ripped it out, sending bark splintering everywhere. Sasuke gaped openly, very aware of how close a call that had been.
'If I hadn't had the Sharingan active, I'd be dead meat right now. How can someone that big move that fast?' he wondered, torn between horror and a bizarre respect for the man. Speaking of which...
"You seem surprised, Uchiha. My brother never awoke our family's kekkei genkai, the Swift Release," muttered the enemy as he readied himself for another rush. "This is the technique that can split a stone wall. Shinsoku Satto!" he declared, this time managing to clip Sasuke, sending him sprawling from a fraction of a second's contact. Sasuke rolled into a crouch, ready to spring away from the next pass just as soon as his opponent readied his chakra. This was one fight he'd have to view tactically...
SCENE BREAK
Iruka reeled backwards, clutching a jaw that was threatening to bruise up nicely. Mizuki chuckled, palming a kunai and lunging forwards. "Poor Iruka. All these years, sitting behind a desk, grading papers and handing out missions? You've gone soft on me. To think, I was actually worried about this fight for a minute. Just leave Kazuya to deal with the brats, and I'll-Oof!" he grunted as Iruka's knee shot upwards into the traitor's gut. The scarred Chuunin called up a swarm of clones as a distraction, striking randomly at Mizuki through the intangible copies.
"Let's get a few things straight. First, your friend won't kill the boys. Those two managed to fight a missing-nin off long enough for ANBU to arrive, when they were both nine. Second, the shinobi forces are combing the whole village right now. There's no way in hell you'll even get within arm's reach of the scroll. And finally," he grinned, bringing his hands together in a tiger seal. Mizuki blinked, before hearing a hissing coming from his back. Cursing, he barely managed to tear off his flak jacket before the attached seal detonated. However, he found himself flying backwards, courtesy of the second tag at his feet. The silver-haired shinobi winced as he climbed back to his feet, staring at his former co-worker.
Iruka allowed himself a distinctly Uchiha-esque smirk before finishing his statement. "You decided to pick a fight with the man who used to be known as Konoha's Prankster Prince." Despite his outward confidence, Iruka couldn't help feeling worried for his students. 'You two... Please, just hold out a little longer!'
SCENE BREAK
Sasuke's plan to fight tactically was going poorly. The biggest problem with planning out a fight in advance was time. Normally, the Sharingan covered for that problem, enhancing the wielder's perception and thinking speeds to levels beyond even those of most shinobi. However, as the dark-haired boy was learning, the ability to think quickly meant little when your opponent moved even faster. So far, the only weakness he'd observed was that the movement was only in a single direction. Unfortunately, that direction was usually the one he was in.
"Don't tell me the Uchiha clan head is this easy to defeat?" After being knocked around like a pinball, Sasuke's patience was reaching its limits. Having to deal with Naruto's apparent treason had brought him close to the breaking point already, and like any twelve year old, he occasionally said the wrong thing when aggravated.
"Your brother didn't find it too easy," he began, before realising his mistake when a hand clamped itself around his head and started squeezing. The scarred man-mountain growled savagely, ignoring Sasuke's muttered grunts of pain.
"You just made your last mistake, you little shit. First, I'm going to kill you, then the Jinchuuriki, then I'll make sure to finish the job your brother started." Sasuke was barely aware of what the man was saying, more concerned with clawing at the crushing grip on his skull. As his vision darkened, he felt something both familiar and horrifying. A scarlet blur knocked his attacker to the ground. Sasuke backed away as he stared, sharingan deactivated, at the form of Uzumaki Naruto, crouched on all fours, as a shroud of red chakra surrounded him. The thing that his friend had become stared hungrily at the man in front of him.
"You want to kill someone? Why don't you try ME!"
SCENE BREAK
The Sandaime flinched and refocused his crystal ball to scan the forest, while surreptitiously alerting the ANBU hidden in the room. If the seal were weakening, they needed Jiraiya back yesterday. While the Professor was no slouch with sealing, only Konoha's Toad Sage could fully understand the work of the Yondaime.
'Naruto, what is happening to you?'
SCENE BREAK
Mizuki flinched at the feel of the yokai spreading through the forest. Iruka managed to fare slightly better, only twitching slightly as he prepared his attack. "Suiton: Mizukachi!" barked the scarred chuunin as he expelled a mass of water, which formed a large cylinder to try and crush his opponent. Mizuki roared and charged forwards, splitting the water with his last fuma shuriken.
"Damnit Iruka! I was right! That little bastard's going to release his seal and kill us all! Why the hell won't you listen to reason?"
"And let me guess, reason is the name of your fist, right? You're wrong anyway. Naruto wouldn't release the seal. No way in hell. He might not be the best student in the world, but he loves Konoha." Iruka grunted, converting his last attack into a trio of water clones to pin his former friend. He closed the gap and punctuated his statement with all-out strikes.
"That's why! Uzumaki Naruto! Will! Become! HOKAGE!" With a final blow to his neck, Mizuki was down and unconscious. Iruka made sure to tie the bastard tight with ninja wire before allowing himself a chance to slump against a nearby building, abandoned from the looks of it. Cursing himself for wasting so much chakra, he forced himself to climb up to the branches, before rushing towards the distant sounds of the other fight.
SCENE BREAK
Sasuke sprinted up to the branches overhead as Naruto continued grappling with the enemy, actually climbing on the man as he clawed and bit like an animal. Sasuke was so engrossed in the fight that he found himself taken completely by surprise when a hand touched his shoulder. He whirled round, Sharingan spinning, kunai in hand, to see... a second Naruto? And a third? Wait, what?
"No time to explain, Sasuke. You have any ninja wire?" hissed the first one, taking the offered wire and passing one end to his companion. He held up a hand to silence the Uchiha before he could ask any more questions. "Trust me, teme. I've got a plan. For now, I'm Narutwo and he's Naruthree. Now, listen carefully, here's the plan..."
Naruto the First was only peripherally aware of his allies' planning, instead being intently focused on his prey. 'Good. Make him pay. Show him your power and then show this pathetic village why exactly they should fear you!' A twisted, feral grin threatened to split the boy's face as he slammed a smoke bomb directly into the man's face, before getting backhanded away, the bulk of his cloak being dispersed from the blow. Shaking his head to try to ignore the voice, he took to the trees, where his clones were waiting, being caught unawares by a hand clutching his collar and wrenching him up onto a branch.
"For Log's sakes, Naruto! Why'd you run off like that?" barked Sasuke, shoving the smaller boy against the tree trunk. Whatever reaction he'd expected, however, the blond flinching and withdrawing into himself was not one of them. Gritting his teeth, he attempted to pull Naruto to his feet, only to get pushed back as the Uzumaki scrambled away, stammering.
"D-don't! I-I don't want..." he babbled, clutching the trunk. "I don't wanna hurt you! I don't wanna hurt anybody! Get away before something happens!" he half-sobbed, half-yelled. Sasuke found himself clenching a fist. "Naruto," he began, making sure to keep his voice even, before catching the blond full in the face with a right cross.
"What the FUCK makes you say that? Hurt me? When we fight, you can't even touch me!" he roared. "I don't give a crap whether you've got the Kyuubi sealed inside you! You're still the same moron who pulls pranks instead of studying; the kid who worships ramen and orange! You're still the same idiot who took on a chuunin when he couldn't even throw a kunai straight. The same guy who saved my cousin and me from getting kidnapped or worse." Naruto's face had an unreadable expression on it, as Sasuke continued in a more subdued tone.
"Even if you were a demon, I wouldn't care. Neither would Rei, or Iruka, Hokage-sama, or anybody who matters. You're still Uzumaki Naruto, retainer of the Uchiha clan and..." Sasuke stared Naruto in the eye. "You're still my best friend. Now, let's show this guy what happens when you threaten the Uchiha." he smirked, noting that Naruto was once again standing straight, ignoring the wet trails on the blond's cheeks.
"Y-you'd best leave him to me. Wouldn't want the great Uchiha clan head to dirty his hands on such an unworthy opponent, eh?" whispered the blond as their enemy burst through the branches ahead. Naruto grinned as he formed a cross-shaped hand seal.
"Tajuu Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!" The world shimmered and turned orange, dozens of blue-eyed copies dog-piling their opponent. "Sasuke! Fireball now!" Sasuke complied, though he could see himself doing much more harm than good, what with the scarred man being safely encapsulated in a ball of clones. He felt vindicated as a mildly singed missing-nin burst out of the smoke. He glanced over to see Naruto smirk, arms folded.
"Now you both die, brats! Shinsoku Satto!" To anyone watching the fight, the man seemed to blur before collapsing in shock at Naruto's feet, one leg and one arm neatly severed. "H-how?" Sasuke had to ask. Naruto rubbed the back of his head and plucked at the air, a metal wire vibrating from the act.
"I figured, if you're going that fast, it'll be even harder to see stuff like wire, right? I mean," he trailed off, looking queasy at the blood spatter on the forest floor. "I kinda thought he'd just get wrapped up in it, not... this..."
"That's more thought than I expected from you, Naruto." came a voice. Naruto's eyes widened. "Iruka-sensei! You won!" Iruka stared at the two boys, a stern expression on his face. "I mean, after stealing the forbidden scroll, running off like that... Naruto, close your eyes." Naruto did so, face falling, before he felt a weight on his head. Opening his eyes, he saw a grinning Iruka, with no hitae-ate. Putting a hand to his forehead, Naruto could feel the cold, polished metal.
"No-one can deny after tonight that you deserve to be a shinobi. Congratulations, Naruto." The blond's composure collapsed, and he caught his teacher in a flying hug. Sasuke just shook his head and chuckled. Maybe the blond was an idiot, but the fact of the matter was, there was no-one Sasuke would rather work with. At least until Naruto smacked him across the back of the head, declaring that "Now we're even, asshole!"
SCENE BREAK
Itachi, disguised as an unassuming farm worker, sat calmly at the bar and ordered two sake, 'one for the road to Konoha'. At the signal, the man he'd been waiting to see sat down next to him, white hair hanging in a wild mane.
"Didn't think you'd actually show." muttered Jiraiya. The Uchiha may have been loyal to Konoha, but he was still creepy as hell.
"I need the information we talked about. The plan is being accelerated even more than we'd anticipated. Just give me the directions and we can go our separate ways, Jiraiya-sama." Not too great at small talk, either.
"The first one you're looking for is in Ishi no Kuni. It's just out of the way enough for what you have planned, too. For what it's worth, good luck. You'll need it." Jiraiya sipped his own drink as Itachi walked out, his own untouched. Pity. The sake was actually very good here.