Naruto Fan Fiction ❯ Alone in the World ❯ Dreams ( Chapter 7 )

[ P - Pre-Teen ]

Disclaimer: I don’t own Naruto.

Chapter Seven-

It’s so cold and dark…I cant’ see where I’m going…I stumble only to regain my balance and stumble again. I look up, at least, I think it’s up, trying to get my bearings. There’s nothing there. Only darkness. I try to run, but I’m not sure if I’m really going anywhere. Soon, I can feel my surroundings slowly start to change. I can feel the grass crunch under my feet now. I slow to a stop, my breath comes in short gasps and I double over. My lungs feel like they are being squeezed. I can’t get enough air. What’s wrong with me? What’s happening? The darkness starts to fade a little and I can start to see the outlines of what seem to be trees. Somehow I’ve managed to run into a forest. I’m surprised I didn’t bump into a tree on my way in. My breathing becomes a little easier. I look around. Once again trying to get my bearings. But it’s still too dark to make out anything but the trees. I slowly walk over to a tree, putting my hands out to feel my way. I can feel the rough bark beneath my palms. I look up and I can see the branches up above. Maybe if I can get up to the top, I can figure out where I am.

But before I can even jump up, I hear a low, almost feral growl coming from behind me. I spin around, I can’t see anything. It’s too dark. I start to shiver and I can feel the sweat bead up on my forehead. What’s out there? I reach for a kunai knife, but I come up empty-handed. I’m not wearing any of my ninja gear…Suddenly, I feel a heavy weight on my chest and I’m falling onto my back. A wolf, I don’t know how I know, but it’s a wolf. It’s heavy paws pin my shoulders down to the ground and I can feel it’s hot breath breathing onto my face. It smells like rancid meat. I almost gag. I look up into it’s glowing yellow eyes. I struggle with all my might to get free, but it’s too heavy. It’s going to kill me, I realize with growing dread. I feel it’s teeth sink into my shoulder, but there’s no pain. Why?

I renew my struggle and this time manage to plant my feet squarely onto it’s chest. I push with all my might and send it flying into the darkness. I scramble to my feet and run. There’s no way I can win against a fight against a wolf in the middle of the forest in near pitch darkness. I run with all my might and again, I suddenly find myself on my back. What happened? I bumped into a tree. Again, No pain. The wolf growls behind me and I jump up, pressing my back against the tree. I can see the outline of the wolf. Okay, I’ve got to calm down. I can do this. I’m a ninja. I can feel the blood running down my arm, it’s useless. I can’t do it. I’m going to die. No! I can’t die. I won’t.

I charge at the wolf is and kick it. I hear it yelp as it crashes into something. A tree. I hear it get up, panting heavily. It charges at me. My heart pounds, as the adrenaline courses through my veins. My senses are on the edge so, I’m able to dodge it and swing my left arm, punching it with the back of my fist. It rolls across the ground and jumps up almost immediately. It emits a low growl and charges at me again, this time, crashing into my chest. It’s got me pinned again. This time I know that he will go for something more fatal than just my shoulder. I grope around the forest ground. There’s got to be something! There’s just got to be, but I find nothing but dead leaves and clumps of grass.
Finally I find something. It’s cold, sharp and pointed. A kunai knife? What’s a kunai knife doing in a place like this? Well, whatever. I grip the knife and drive it home into the wolf’s neck, just as it starts to sink its teeth sink into my neck. It goes limp and falls, crushing me under its weight. It’s dead. I shove it off and get up, backing away from the corpse of the wolf. I turn around and run…

I run through the city. It’s completely empty. I can’t find anybody. I desperately search for somebody, anybody. They couldn’t have all just disappeared. I have to find them. A movement catches my eye and I stop. My head turns toward the movement, but it’s gone. I turn my head this way and that, looking for it. Where did it go? I walked down the sidewalk. I saw the shadow of whoever it was that I had seen go around the corner. I break into a run and round the corner, but there’s nothing there. I see the fleeting shadow again, going around another corner. This guy is fast, I think to myself. I’m determined to catch him. He may know where everybody is. I round the corner and it’s a dead-end. An empty dead-end. I look around. I look up. Nothing. Where’d he go? I hear something behind me. A can or something and spin around. There he is. It’s hard to see his features, but it’s definitely a guy.

“Where is everybody?” I ask him, but he just stands there and stares at me. I can feel his gaze on my face, studying me. I take a few steps closer to him, “Hey, buddy?” Suddenly, I stop. I can see his features clearly now. His face is blank of any expression, but his eyes were full of despair and anguish. A sadness so deep and dark that it wouldn’t stopped anybody in their tracks upon seeing them. But that wasn’t what made my breath catch in my throat. That isn’t what made my skin break out into a cold sweat. His hair is too yellow to even be called blonde. His eyes are bright blue. And three whisker-like marks adorn each of his cheeks. I take a step back, my eyes widening, “What the hell?”
I’m laying in an empty field. There is nothing but grass and flowers all around me. The sun shines down brightly, bathing me and the field in its warm light. I haven’t felt this relaxed in ages. The sky is blue and full of fluffy white clouds. I close my eyes and yawn. Maybe I’ll take a nice long nap…

“Naruto!”

My eyes snap open and I sit up. “What?” I say, looking up at the women that had called out my name.

She stood over me with her arms folded across her chest, “It’s just like you, Naruto to be goofing off on such an important day…”

I feel a grin spread across my face, “I’m not goofing off, Sakura, I’m preparing.”

“Preparing, my ass! Preparing what? You’re late enough as it is.” She says, but with a smile on her face.

I jump up and stretch, “Alright, alright, I’m going,” I say, looking up at the sky.

Sakura giggles and glomps me. I let out an “Oof,” and I somehow manage to stay on my feet with her added weight. I laugh and wrap my arms around her.

She pulls away, smiling and entwines my hand with hers.

Then she’s dragging me through the field and entering the city. I take this time to look at her. She’s so beautiful.

I catch my reflection in a shop window. I really hadn’t changed over the years. My hair is still short, wild and blonde. My eyes are still blue with a mischievous glint in them. But my face isn’t as childish as it used to be.

Before I know it, we’re there. I gulp and stop. Sakura also stops and turns back, looking at me with concern in her eyes.

“Naruto, what’s wrong?”

I shake my head, “Nothing,” I say, then grin shakily, “I’m just really nervous…”

She smiles and squeezes my hand, “Yeah, I know, but you’ve been waiting you’re whole life for this moment.”

I squeeze her hand back, “Right,” I say, firmly nodding my head once. “Let’s go!” I will my knees to stop shaking as I walk into the building with Sakura behind me.

My hearts pounding and my stomach is doing back-flips. I take a deep breath and swallow.

I walk into the room and feel everyone’s eyes fall on me. I’ve never had so many people looking at me like this. The first person I focus on is Iruka-sensei. I catch his eyes with my own and he gives me an encouraging smile.

I don’t know why I’m so nervous. This is the moment I’ve been waiting for. My life-long dream is finally going to come true, but maybe that’s the reason I’m so scared. I look around and catch Sasuke’s eye. He’s got a dour expression on his face. I swear, the only thing that’s changed about him is his height…I resist the urge to stick my tongue at him. I see Sakura join him before I look away.

I continue walking and looking around at the faces in the crowd. There are so many people here. Some people I had never even seen before. I make it to the center of the room, where the Hokage and Kakashi-sensei are waiting for me. The Hokage looks at me out of the corner of his eyes, as if saying, “It’s about time you showed up.’

I grin at him and he just gently shakes his head and turns his attention towards the gathered people. I look towards Kakashi and he looks at me. I think he’s smiling at me, but I can’t be too sure.

The Hokage opens his mouth to speak, but before he can get a word out the ground begins to shake and rumble. An earthquake? Everyone’s knocked off balance, bumping and hanging onto each other. And just as soon as the earthquake started, it is over. Everyone looks at each other, mumbling amongst themselves. ‘This can’t be good,’ I think, looking over at the Hokage.

The ceiling starts to crumble and everyone starts to run, trying to get out the way of the falling debris. Dread gnaws at my insides and I wonder if this is what I was so nervous about. Did I, somehow, someway, know something like this was going to happen?
I sense it before I see it. I look up at the gaping hole in the ceiling and the next second its there.

Fool, did you think I’d let you go so easily?

I can feel every words invade every corner of my mind. Everything else seems to blur away and all I see is Kyuubi, the nine-tailed demon fox. I can’t seem to move my body. I’m caught in its gaze.

‘Did you think you could hide from me? Escape from me? Pathetic, foolish little human. I am you and you are me. We are forever twined together. You could never be without me and I will never be without you. Did you honestly think you could live a normal life? Did you really think they could ever accept you? Look at them. Look how they tremble in fear of you. Of me. Of us’

I blink.

I can smell their fear and revel in it. Puny humans. They try to attack, but they are nothing but insects to me. I snort. They are not even worth laughing at.

I blink again.

Everyone is running around either trying to get out or trying to get closer to Kyuubi to attack. My feet are still glued to the spot. I should go help. I should do something.
“Naruto! Help us! Don’t just stand there, you bone-head!”

Even without the bone-head comment, I would have known who it was. Sasuke. But those are just the words I needed to hear in order to get my body to respond to me. I run into the fray, but just then somebody gets the first blow. I fall to my knees, doubling over. Bile rises in my throat and I cough, but nothing comes out. I close my eyes tightly, trying to clear my head.

I open my eyes.

I swing my paw, swatting the ninja away like flies. There are so many. They’re starting to get irritating. I growl and swing my tails around. The ground shakes and they stumble and fall. I feel the bodies being crushed under my paws as I make my way deeper into this room. The little humans. They’re trying to get away. A growl emits from deep within my throat and I pounce. I snap up a human and I can taste its blood. Feel its bones being crushed between my jaws.

Something embeds itself into my eye and I close them tightly, with an angry growl
I clutch my left eye with my hand. It feels like it’s on fire. I’m on my feet now, running towards Kyuubi. I reach for a weapon but come up empty.

I’m unarmed.

I mentally beat myself upside the head. A ninja should always come prepared. I just hadn’t thought-especially not like this…

I fall to my knees. The pain is too much. ‘Why? Why am I feeling the pain that’s inflicted unto it?’ I wonder. It doesn’t make sense.

‘Have you forgotten? Or did you conveniently dismiss it from your memories?’

‘What do you mean?’

‘It’s like I said, We are one. The pain I feel is your pain as well. Just like the pain you felt as a child was the pain that I felt. Do you honestly want to become one of them? Why do you yearn to be accepted by these…humans…? Do you really think that they could truly accept you as who you are?’

Its word penetrate into every fiber of my being and I can’t help but feel doubtful. But no! I shake my head. This is what he wants.‘Yes! They have. They have accepted me.’ I shout in my mind. ‘What do you know!’

And then everything breaks.

Naruto’s eyes snapped open and he stared up into the dark, his dreams receding to the back of him mind. ‘Where am I?’ he thought as he sat up, looking around. “Oh, right. I’m on my couch…” He disentangled himself from his blankets and ended up on the floor. He groaned and lay on the floor for a few moments before he began to pick himself up from the floor. He stood in the dark, his eyes half closed. He looked around, “Eh…what time is it?

“It’s 7:00 o’clock.”

Naruto jumped, “Whoa! Where’d you come from, Iruka-sensei!”

Iruka stood in the doorway that led to the hall. “Your restroom.”

Naruto stood confused, “Oh,” was all he could think of to say.

Iruka strode over to Naruto and bopped Naruto across the head.

“Ow! What was that for!” Naruto yelled, rubbing his head.

“You left your door open! I told you to make sure to lock it before you went to sleep!
Anybody could have come in during the night!” Iruka yelled.

“It’s not like anyone would want to come in here anyway!” Naruto yelled, “and you can’t go smacking people around when they’ve barely woken up!”

“That’s not the point.”

Naruto grumbled, crossing his arms and turning his back on Iruka.

“Well, you better hurry or else you be later than you already are,” Iruka said with a sniff.
Naruto raised an eyebrow, “Wha-Aw, nuts!” He exclaimed, rushing off to get ready.

Iruka just shook his head, chuckling a bit.

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A/N: Hehe, so, I hoped you enjoyed this chapter. Review please. Ya know, tell me what you think, was it good, was it horrible, was it eh, what? If it seems that the first two dreams are completely random, you’re right. Hehe, j/k, the first two dreams and the first part of the last one have some symbolism going on in it. I actually had to do some dream research, which is one of the reasons why it took so long to update…