Naruto Fan Fiction ❯ The Fox and Boar ❯ A Dream ( Chapter 5 )

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or make any money off of writing this story.

 

A/N: Happy holidays. Chapter 5 is here…Enjoy.

 

 

`---` = Enter/exit dream sequence

 

A Dream

 

Naruto woke up before dawn again. He had been doing that for a while now. It was a bit annoying that no matter what time he fell asleep, he was up early, even when he only got a few hours of sleep. At least he was better prepared nowadays, which wasn't the worst thing in the world….although he did prefer sleep.

 

He strolled over to his cabinet and pulled out a box of ramen, ignoring the scroll delivered to him the night before. From what he read, he didn't need to be at the Hokage's office for another two hours but it still piqued his interest as to what he was assigned. His last A-rank involved the Akatsuki as did the one before that so it was only natural to wonder what was going on this time. Naruto walked over to his window on the other side of his apartment with ramen in hand. He slurped down some noodles quietly while watching the sun rise in the distance.

 

After eating his meager breakfast, Naruto went to his favorite training field. Team Seven's old field where he had his first mission: retrieve the bells. Good times.

The boy looked across the field, taking in the landscape. `It's been a couple of months since I returned with Ero-sennin…I don't feel like I've improved much…Why? Why can't I do better? Why does it all keep happening to me?'

 

“You need to train more, kit. You're still inferior if you keep those emotions bottled up. Release them. Emotions are more powerful to you humans than anything.”

 

`Kyuubi!? Why are you talking now? You've been silent for a while now.'

 

“Kit, I've been thinking of your strength. So far, you have grown more and more powerful on your own, but now I think it is time for you to merge some of my chakra into your body…permanently. By doing this, you can break unimaginable limits. Are you interested?”

 

`Why are you offering this to me now? Why not three years ago when I nearly died!? Why not when I had two and a half years to train with a sannin? Why now?'

 

“If I gave you this ability then, you would have died. Even now I'm not certain you'll live…but there is some trouble brewing. I can feel an ominous power rising up from the Akatsuki. They will demolish you if you try to fight them as you are now. I can help. If you lose, my soul will be locked in another vessel. At least now I have some freedom. If they capture me, the Uchiha will use my power to obliterate the other villages, including Konohagakure. Is that what you want?”

 

`What does Sasuke have to do with this?'

 

“There is more than one Uchiha, kit.”

 

`Itachi…? Why is he involved?'

 

“You really are an idiot… There is only one other remaining Uchiha in this world. But that is not important now. What is important is what power he wields. He can- no will- kill anyone who steps in his way. You are a Jinchuuriki. You hold the most powerful of the bijuu inside you, me. He needs me to fulfill his plan. For now, you are safe…but in less than one year's time, he will seek you out with every ounce of strength he holds. You will die, kit. That is guranteed.”

 

`Why do you know all this?'

 

“I am a fox demon, Kyuubi no Kitsune. I have unfathomable power and strength but it is limited. My species is advanced compared to yours in many different ways, one of them being charting the stars to foretell the future. My elders told me of a boy who would be closely intertwined in my life. They said that he would be the bringer of destruction or eternal peace to his world. Naturally I discarded such nonsense but it seems as if what I was told is falling into place. The other beasts that you pathetic humans try to wield as weapons have been told similar legends. `A single human who will write the history of the Earth.' They said that I must help this child any way I could. If not, my own world will fall as well. Therefore, if I am forced to stay in here with you, my power will weaken to the point where a lowly human like yourself could kill me in an instant. That is why I must transfer some of my chakra unto you. We will both benefit from it… That is all you need to know at the moment. Just know that my kind has never been wrong when predicting the future.”

 

`Why should I trust you? The most you've ever done is giving me your chakra out of amusement or when I am inches from death!'

 

“Listen kit, I am far more powerful than you. If not for this seal, I would escape and show you who the superior being is. Now listen to me; Uchiha Sasuke is currently working with Orochimaru. That will change soon enough. He has the potential to surpass Madara himself; therefore he won't allow himself to be controlled by a weak person. You need to beat him before he does that. Only you can restore balance to this world. If you fail, my realm will open and I shall return to my dimension. When that happens, Akatsuki will win. Everyone you know and love will die. You will lose! There will be no second chance, no do-over. You will lose everything…and eventually, so will I. Now then, are you ready for this ability or not?”

 

`I will consider it…but not now. I can't think straight now. Arrgh…!'

 

Naruto broke the bond that the Kyuubi had just created. He needed to do something, anything. Where the hell did that come from!? Out of nowhere the demon just demands he take this `gift' or else everything would go to hell. Why did he have to deal with it? Why did he have some much stress? Why did he have to kill the person he considered family? Why did he have to save the world? Why?

 

---

 

Naruto walked cautiously towards the far side of town. He looked up at the Hokage monument in the distance. He scoured the buildings for a glimpse of red. He spotted it and broke into a run. The mission briefing was in less than an hour but he could find something to do in the meantime at the Hokage building. He no longer wanted to train. The mental stress the Kyuubi placed on him no longer than twenty minutes ago was distracting him enough. Hopefully he could place it out of mind for a while until after his mission was complete. Then he could work on finding a solution. `Damn fox…picking the most inopportune moment to tell me the fate of the world rests on my shoulders.'

 

The blond looked up at the entrance way, noticing a bluish blur moving down the spiral staircase. It stopped suddenly, picked something up, and then continued running until it reached the ground. Naruto looked on, trying to identify the person. It slowed down to a steady jog, the pile of papers and folders in her arms appeared to be heavy from what Naruto could tell. He recognized her as Shizune.

 

“Hey, Naruto-kun. How're you this morning,” She asked politely as she saw him approach her.

 

“Fine…I guess. What's up with all this,” he responded, motioning to the mountain of paper.

 

“Tsunade-sama's friend came into town yesterday and so she abandoned her paperwork to go drinking with him. Now I have to make up for lost time…” She trailed off with an annoyed look on her face.

 

“I see. Well, I have a mission briefing to go to, do you want me to take that with me to her office?”

 

“Really!? That would be a huge help, thank you, Naruto-kun.” She lifted the pile into his hands after saying that. He struggled a bit, being taken off by the surprising weight of it all.

 

Naruto regained his composure and asked, “Is this only one day's worth of work? It's a lot.”

 

“Being Hokage isn't only running around and completing impossible tough missions, it's more red-tape than anything. I doubt that Tsunade-sama knew what she getting into when she signed up…but I think she enjoys it nonetheless.” She smiled at the younger shinobi.

 

“Yeah…but that still doesn't mean anything. I'm going to become Hokage, no matter what type of crap I have to go through.

 

She just smiled in response. “Well, thank you again for delivering that for me, I have to go and get started on today's work now…” With that, she disappeared in a cloud of smoke and left a slightly disturbed boy behind.

 

`Damn this is a lot of work…'

 

---

 

Naruto walked into the large room, noting the Hokage slumped over her desk with a bit of drool hanging off her lip. `She'll kill me if I wake her up…'

 

He placed the papers gently on her desk and stepped back. He looked at the clock, `Twenty minutes to go. I wonder what I should do until then.' It was about this time that he noticed the comfy looking couch in the furthest corner of the room. He yawned then gazed down at the Hokage. `Might as well…'

 

He slumped down into the cushion and nodded his head back, looking up at the amber ceiling. It glowed faintly in the morning light. `So peaceful…' And then he fell asleep.

 

---

 

Naruto looked into the darkness that surrounded him. He saw nothing, but knew that there was something there. A figure rose up from what could be considered the ground, as it was too dark to tell what it really was. It was shrouded in a cloak, blacker than the atmosphere that surrounded them both. Naruto's hair stood on end for some reason. `This can't be good.' The being moved closer. Two eyes were revealed. Both dyed a deep crimson. The tomoe spun once then stopped, focusing on the blond.

 

“How are you doing, Naruto-kun?” The masked man asked in the silent blackness.

 

“What do you want?” Naruto asked, unconsciously becoming angry.

 

“What's with the mean attitude, Naruto-kun? I'm hurt.”

 

“Don't be coy with me, dammit! Where am I?”

 

“It's your mind, you tell me.”

 

“Arrgh!” Naruto lunged at the Uchiha, his rage growing by the second. “What are you doing here?” His fist made impact. At least he thought it did. Itachi moved and appeared behind him.

 

“Is that how you normally treat a guest, Naruto-kun?”

 

“What do you mean `guest', you bastard?”

 

This time Itachi was the one to strike first. He brought a kunai up to Naruto's face and nearly struck him in the eye had it not been for the blond ducking low. He jumped back, an orange blur. “Why do you run, Naruto-kun?”

 

Another figure rose up from the ground near Itachi. This one had long blond hair. His hands draped down, tongues licking at his palms. Beside him, a blue man appeared, his teeth shining brightly, despite there being no identifiable source of light. He hand clutched his sword lazily.

 

“What's going on here?”

 

There was no answer, only silence as yet another figure rose from the darkness. This one had two large sets of…teeth? They seemed to have grown past his face, further into the air. Only half of his face was viewable, the other cloaked in the nothingness. What was seen was paler than an empty night's moonlight. His face was indifferent and he only stood there as a woman dropped from the sky. Her hair was held up by a paper flower: a product of origami. It looked purple in the dim glow. She looked at the boy with an almost sadistic grin on her face. Near her, a man began walking forward and he too joined the growing line of people that stood before the Leaf nin. The newest man's nose was covered in symmetrical piercings, his eyes had small circles revolving outward from the near blank pupils. In the center of the line of people there was a blank spot. Then there was a low rumble and a man shot up from the ground with blinding speed. He landed in front of the rest of everyone, his head lowered. The last man's face was hidden by an orange spiral style veil, masking it entirely. There was only one hole in it, but it was blackened out. He raised his head and looked towards the young ninja before him. He opened the one visible eye, revealing…

 

“The Sharingan!? You're the other Uchiha he spoke of!? What the fuck are you guys doing here? What do you want with me?”

 

“We want him.” The orange faced man said abruptly. “We will get him from you, Uzumaki Naruto.”

 

`This chakra is intense, it almost rivals his. Shit, what do I do!? Kyuubi, help me, now!'

 

There was only silence. Naruto saw the enemy. They were here for a reason. He just needed to find out what that reason was. `Running is my only option now, I can maybe take one of them at a time…but that many will finish me off like it's nothing. He turned and charged his legs with as much chakra as possible. Naruto looked over his shoulder at the line of people. Not a single one of them had even made an attempt to stop him. `Why aren't they following me? He just said that he wanted the Kyuubi. Shouldn't they try to at least capture me or so-`

 

He stopped thinking. A large and deadly source of chakra had just appeared in front of him. It was nearly impossible to find out where it was or how far away, but he at least knew it was there. He skidded to a halt. Behind him, the group of missing nins still showed no emotion about him leaving and now there was this new person in front of him. Then there was another. And another. Then two more sprouted up, one on his left, the other his right. They had him fully surrounded, and not a single one had let their enemy see them. Naruto began to panic.

 

`This chakra feels exactly like one of those guys back there. But it's different somehow. Who are these people?'

 

High in the sky, a blood colored moon appeared. The once black ground gleamed with an eerie red in the light. It made Naruto's skin crawl, especially since he could now see each of the people who had surrounded him. Fear rose up, replacing the usual false happiness and confidence. This was serious.

 

All around him there was red. Each of the enemy's eyes glared at him with burgundy pupils as his own flesh seemed to reflect the demonic color. At once, they all vanished, only to show up right next to him in a circle. Resorting to the last bit of strength he could find, Naruto launched himself into the air and tried to let loose a hailstorm of kunai. Each reflected harmlessly away from the figures below. He fell back into the circle, hopelessly defeated amongst the strongest enemy he had ever met before.

 

`Kyuubi, please, help me!'

 

Still there was no answer. No help. Nothing. Only a lone Jinchuuriki to face some of the most dangerous people in the world, alone.

 

They each took a step closer, their chakras combining in the pale red sky. Then there was only pain. Immeasurable pain.

 

---

 

Naruto woke up, gasping for breath. He looked around the room and saw two men near the Hokage's desk. They were talking about something…probably about his mission. He saw that almost twenty minutes had passed while he was asleep, if you could call that sleep. Still he breathed heavily, trying to calm his body after that mental ordeal. `What the hell was all of that?'

 

“That was the enemy kit. Do you still want to take them on single handedly?”

 

“Naruto, care to join us?” Tsunade inquired from across the room. She looked mildly hung-over.

 

He stood up and walked over, trying to reclaim his bearings after that…nightmare. “Sorry…I guess I was pretty tired.” He laughed it off casually, hoping not to raise too much suspicion.

 

“Anyway, now that everyone is present, we can begin the mission assignment. Yesterday the leader of a small village about 250 km south of here reported several of their police force disappearing within the last two weeks. This is a troubling matter since intelligence suggests that there might be an Otogakure base stationed near there. As you all know, the Otogakure is headed up by the missing nin, Orochimaru. His activities seemed to have recently picked up and now we fear he may be scheming to destroy Konoha once and for all. That is why this team will go to Kakeru and eliminate all Oto-nin in the surrounding area.”

 

Naruto was slightly distractred by his dream but still maintained focus on the Hokage. At least now he had an excuse to release some stress.

 

Tsunade continued, “There is also evidence that a high ranking Oto-nin will be in charge of this base. According to the latest ANBU report, it could even be Kabuto, Orochimaru's right hand man. You all know what this means. Orochimaru isn't too far behind him if it is Kabuto located at this base. This may be an important factor in how this war will end up. If we allow too much freedom in that area, our problems will only increase.” She sat back in her chair, still wearing a small frown. Tsunade gazed wearily at the shinobi before her: a close combat expert, an ex-ANBU elite, and a master interrogator. “Right now, this is the only thing we can afford to send out on this mission. You are to head south, rendevous with Kakeru and then assault the Oto base. Be careful, and return alive. You're dismissed.”

 

She waited as all three of them turned and began to file out of her office. “Naruto, wait a moment please.”

 

He obliged and shifted his body in order to face her. “Yes?”

 

“You know more than anyone what it means if it is really Kabuto there. We haven't picked up much of Orochimaru's activity in the past few months. The only reason I'm sending you on this mission is because of what Sasuke means to you. Please stay safe. You're the only one of your squad that has actually fought with Orochimaru and Kabuto. It is possible that the Akatsuki might make a move while you're on this mission. If that happens, no matter the situation, retreat immediately. Do you understand?”

 

“Yes. Thank you, Tsunade-sama.” Naruto turned and exited the room quickly.

 

Behind him, Tsunade returned to her desk. She reached down and pulled out a small bottle of sake from a hidden drawer. Tsunade leaned her head back and drank deeply. A single tear crawled down her cheek. It always pained her to see someone so young have to go through this type of thing, especially someone as nice and kind as Naruto. He was no longer his playful self when something like this arose. There was no `Obaa-chan' from him now, and that may have been what saddened her the most. “I'm sorry, Naruto, I really am.”

 

 

 

A/N: Since it's been a long while since I last updated (again) here is a little treat. This is the longest chapter yet. And I have some good news: another chapter will be up soon…I think. Either way, I have a nice idea I want to use later on. I'll let you know this; it has to do with his new ability, although you won't be able to read about it for another few chapters. Sorry that this chapter was a little slow but it's necessary for what I have planned. I hope you enjoyed it and if so, review.