Naruto Fan Fiction ❯ Tails of a Fox, Claws of a Tiger ❯ Sacrifice of a Hero ( Chapter 3 )

[ Y - Young Adult: Not suitable for readers under 16 ]

Disclaimer: First Chapter of the story, I ain't rewriting it.

Now then with out any further ado…

Ch. 3: Sacrifice of a Hero

Zenith held his head in his hands. He was beyond exhausted at this point. The little fact the young Hyuuga revealed about the SAR team being captured by the Kumo Nin who were to meet Hinata and Naruto's kidnappers was not happy news for the group. At the moment, Kakashi had gone ahead to scout the area. Zenith had chosen to stay behind and keep watch, which was perhaps best since the ANBU captain most likely had little to no experience dealing with cubs. Zenith was not an expert either, but he was smart enough to let Shar'rei and Tela deal with them since having them around seemed to bring out the pairs maternal instincts.

Right now, Zenith watched with a smile as Tela attempted to keep her rambunctious charge for following Kakashi. “But I can help!” yelled Naruto as he attempted to dodge around Tela for the fifth time only to end up confronted by the tigress again.

“A ninja knows when to fight and when to not fight. Right now is not the time to fight but to plan and gather Intel. Only then can you hope to succeed. And right now Naruto-kun, the best for you to do that is to stay here and help Zenith-sama protect Hinata-chan,” she said coldly as she stared unwaveringly at the blond.

“But Zen is like super powerful, he can…”

“He is still human and is under the same human limitations as anyone. Yes he is blessed with great power, but great power means nothing unless you know how to wield it. Right now cub, the best use of your power is to stay and help Zenith-sama,” said Tela sternly.

Naruto looked like he was about to mouth back, but strangely enough, thought better of it. Apparently having a guardian who can easily tear you to shreds causes one to grow some common sense. The young cub muttered darkly under his breath about smart ass tigresses and a few other words not heard in polite conversation before he plopped his butt on the ground pouting.

Zenith could only smirk at the exchange. But his amusement soon diminished as he looked up towards the sky. The sun would set soon and then the moon would rise, the first full moon of the month, Lunanara's night. And for the first time in ages he was actually glad about it instead of harping and complaining about how annoying this time of the month was. He then looked over at the young Hyuuga heir who sat silently near her cousin with Shar'rei coiled around her protectively.

“Why did he do it,” Hinata muttered softly as tears steadily leaked out of her eyes.

“You are of the main house, it is his duty to protect you as it is your duty to one day lead your clan,” said Shar'rei sagely.

“But I can't lead them. How can I lead a clan that would inflict something like the Caged Bird Seal on its own members just because of who they were born to? Besides they will not follow me, I have heard father speak with the elders many times saying that I am unfit and not strong enough to lead,” said young cub sadly.

“You are strong enough Hinata. You are just young and still growing. Right now is the time of your parents, but when you eventually come into your own, then it will be YOUR time and no one can take that from you but yourself. Take comfort in that fact if nothing else cub,” said Shar'rei comfortingly as she snuggled closer to Hinata.

Hinata shook her head dejectedly. “I'm not strong enough. Otou-san said that by the time he was my age, he had already mastered the basics and had begun learning the sixty-four palm technique. I haven't even gotten to the point where I can call the Byakugan with out using hand signs.”

Shar'rei sighed to herself. Humans could be so cruel to each other, even their young. If the Hyuuga's had been one of the families in the tiger clans, then Lady Raiga would have killed them herself and adopted the young to raise as her own. But that wasn't the case and right now she needed to give the cub some hope. Shar'rei looked over at Tela and her young charge and remembered how Hinata would look at Naruto when no one was looking and would blush redder then a tomato. That was how the idea began to form. It was a risk, but most things worthwhile usually were.

“Hinata-chan, look over at Naruto and tell me what you see?” asked Shar'rei softly. The cub looked at the tigress wide eyed and shook her head and blushed. “Why not? do you fear him like the adults? Do you believe the things they call him behind his back?” she asked.

“N-n-no, I-I-I admire Naruto-kun,” answered Hinata blushing an even deeper shade of red.

“Admire, why? He is only a shabby orphan. What could he possibly do to earn the respect of the great heir of the Hyuuga clan?” she asked with mocking indignation.

“He's not a shabby orphan. He's strong, kind, and has a dream of being the Hokage someday and having everyone recognize him as a person,” Hinata retorted sharply.

“And you admire him for that? And not because he is the subject of the only law in Konoha that if broken is punishable by death?” responded the tigress slyly.

“Nani?” said Hinata looking confused.

“Yes, the reason behind the law is the reason the villagers hate him and why he was captured along with you in this Kumo kidnapping attempt,” said Shar'rei sagely.

“The villagers don't hate Naruto…”

“But they talk about him behind his back do they not? They tell their children stay away from him. They call him demon and they treat him like a pariah. Have you never asked why that was?” asked Shar'rei. Hinata could only shake her head, why hadn't she asked for the reason Naruto was treated the way he was?

“Unfortunately, it is not my place to give you the answers, but when you find them out for yourself, you will find that the burden you bear is not as heavy as it seems and that is a comforting thought,” said Shar'rei with what equated to a tiger like grin as she snuggled closer next to her charge, whose mind now raced with questions.

Zenith smiled from his position; trust Shar'rei to put the cub on the right path with out violating the rules and setting it up so that she figures it out for herself. Though if she wanted, the tigress could have told Hinata the truth, then defended herself by stating,“The laws of men hold no more sway over me then the laws of nature hold sway over you.” But on the other side of the coin, when confronted about why she didn't come right out and tell her, the tigress would say, “The lesson unknowingly learned can be far more fruitful then the knowledge overly prepared.”

0o0o0o0o

It was well past dusk when Kakashi returned from his scouting expedition. He found the group sitting around a small fire eating some of the game the two tigresses had caught and had been skillfully prepared by the young Hyuuga.

“It ain't Ramen but it comes a close second,” said Naruto in between bites. The compliment caused another blushing spell for the young Hyuuga.

“About time you got back Kakashi, we almost didn't save you any if the bottomless pit there had gotten his way,” said Zenith with a laugh nodding over to Naruto as he passed him a skewer of roasted rabbit.

The ANBU captain nodded in thanks, accepting the welcomed meal. He stuck the long end of the skewer in the ground to let the meat cool while he pulled off his porcelain mask. The two cubs were interested in seeing the face of the man had been traveling with them for more then a day. They gasped in shock as they saw that the silver haired Jonin had only one eye, his hitai-ite obscuring his left eye, but left a small amount of the lower portion of his scar in sight.

“Well the situation is not good” said Kakashi as he answered Zenith unasked question.

Zenith looked up from his food, “How many?”

“Three Jonin and four Chuunin by my count, almost all of them in my bingo book from my observations,” answered the Copy Nin.

“Kuso! And how many hostages?”

Kakashi gave the Watch-Were a very serious look. “Both Hyuuga Hizashi and Lord Hiashi were captured along with another ANBU, two Jonin, and a Genjutsu specialist Chuunin named Yuuhi Kurenai,” he said.

"That's not good. Any injuries?" asked Zenith now seriously ticked.

"There didn't seem to be. They all look like they were put under the same jutsu that was the elder Hyuuga child we found. It seems the effect we saw only happens when the technique is used on children younger than eight. Anyway I think our best chance will…”

“We make our move tomorrow,” Zenith said, sternly cutting the ANBU off.

“Excuse me?” responded Kakashi. “I don't know whether or not you understand that four Konoha Ninja plus the head of one of the village's most powerful clans along with his brother are being held by enemy forces and YOU are just going to sit there and wait till morning!”

“No, I will not be sitting here,” Zenith said. He let out a heavy sigh before standing, grabbing his pack, and starting to walk towards a clearing. “Follow if you wish; but no matter what happens, DO NOT interfere,” he said. He paused briefly before continuing on ward.

The group was in stunned silence, then without saying anything, Naruto rushed off to follow with Tela trailing a step behind. Hinata quickly followed Naruto. Kakashi looked at Shar'rei who shared a brief look before following the others.

0o0o0o0o

It was a few minutes before the group had joined up with him in the clearing and he had had more then enough time to set up what he needed to do. The candles had been set at the four compass points and lit. He set the circle barrier and now all that was left was to wait for moon rise.

“I know I'm going to regret asking this, but what in Kami's name are you doing?” asked Kakashi as he entered the clearing.

“When it was discovered that the decedents of the original Jinchuuriki could transform like their predecessors, it was assumed the same blessed charms would be able to hold back the bestial presence within a Watch-Were. That assumption was wrong. It turned out that the charms' power was supplemented by the excess chakra of the Jinchuuriki themselves. Since they were essentially two beings in one, they could power the charm easily. For their children it wasn't the case. Their chakra, while augmented by their parents' unique heritage, didn't possess the capacity of their parents. In the end, a new method was developed to fuel the charms. The power of the gods themselves,” said Zenith sadly.

At that moment the pieces began to fall in place as Kakashi realized what was going on. “You're refueling aren't you?” he asked plainly.

“The term is praying, but essentially yes. Every month depending on the type of Watch-Were, we pray and beseech our respective god on the night when they are most powerful to endow us with the power to hold back the darkness that resides within each one of us. For me, as a follower of Lunanara, the night of her greatest power is the first night of the full moon and during that time of worship, all who wish to do a Watch-Were harm will be rendered unconscious until sunrise,” Zenith answered. “So you understand, the Kumo Nin are not going anywhere right now.”

The ANBU nodded in understanding. They had time to mount a well planned rescue. For Naruto however, it was Zenith's attitude that was bugging him. “Zen is something the matter?” he asked.

“Nothing, nothing is wrong cub. But remember this, everything has a price, and this is just mine,” said the Watch-Were as he knelt down in the space he'd prepared. Clasping his hands in the form of the tiger seal, Zenith closed his eyes and began to softly chant in a strange complex language. At that moment the atmosphere seemed to still, the sounds of nature died away as the world around them became utterly silent and lastly, a strange presence seemed to permeate the area.

`What is this strange power? It almost feels like the night when the Kyuubi attacked but without the malevolence. It's unearthly to be certain, but oddly comforting' thought the Jonin and was about to speak but was silenced by the tigresses.

“Unless you don't value your voice shinobi, stay silent,” demanded Shar'rei forcefully.

“The Goddess walks among us and does not take kindly to interruptions,” warned Tela.

Kakashi looked at the pair incredulously and was about to repute their statement when he felt it again. The presence but this time he recognized it, he hadn't felt it in years but could recognize it even after decades. “Kaa-san?”

0o0o0o0o

“It's been a while Mistress since you've contacted me directly?” thought Zenith once he felt the familiar presence of the he goddess.

“It has been a while since you warranted guidance my son,” said Lunanara in the voice of Zenith's mother. “I see you wish to once again attempt to train an apprentice?”

“The mistake I made with Hachiro will not be repeated. The boy is starved for attention and seeks recognition of his existence. He has much potential, he only lacks someone to bring it out,” said Zenith respectfully.

“And once again you believe that only you can do that. I warned you last time of the dangers of training Hachiro and you disregarded me then,” stated Lunanara.

“That was a different situation. The boy already has the power within him. Eventually he will have to learn how to control it or it will consume him. You've seen what can happen if a Jinchuuriki is not properly trained in the use of his powers. I will not let what is happening in Suna repeat itself. If you will not let me train him, then I will at least protect him from those fools in Konoha that run ROOT. I will not see that boy become a monster,” Zenith said sternly.

Lunanara sighed heavily. The situation regarding Uzumaki Naruto was clouded even to the Gods eyes. Even Vampris, the eldest and wisest of the three Moon Gods, could not part the fog that surrounded the boy's destiny. But the facts were the facts, the boy would need training and she would rather have Zenith train him now before he undertook his shinobi responsibilities than leave it to chance. “Very well then my son, you may train him, with my blessings. Now receive my light so that you may continue to illuminate the darkness in the world,” said Lunanara.

0o0o0o0o

Kakashi didn't know what happened, Zenith had been kneeling in prayer for what seemed only five minutes when his pendent flared with green light just as the full moon rose over the treetops bathing the clearing with its glow. The gem cackled with energy before Zenith let out a roar of pain as the gem's energy began to coarse through his body. “Zenith-san!” yelled Kakashi as he attempted to reach him only to be stopped by Tela.

“Remember what he said, `Watch if you must but don't not interfere, no matter what',” reminded the tigress.

“How can we just stand by and not interfere huh?!” yelled Naruto as he struggled against Shar'rei who was holding him back by his shirt tail.

“Because we have too,” Hinata said. Both Naruto and Kakashi looked at her incredulously. “Kaa-san once told me the story of the Watch-Weres. How they protected people, but they paid a price for it. For every good thing they do, an evil must be done to maintain the balance. So rather then having the evil inflicted on others, the Watch-Weres chose to have it inflicted on them,” said the young Hyuuga.

Kakashi's eyes widened in shock. `They put themselves through this pain every month just so that they can help others?' he thought to himself.

“Why would someone do that?” asked Naruto.

“Because cub, Zenith-sama is a good person with many precious people. And when you have precious people, you will do anything to protect them,” said Tela as Zenith's screams finally died leaving the Watch-Were unconscious.

A/n3: Love it, hate it? I don't care just hit the little blue button to review.