Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto and make no money from it...although I do own cute little Itachi, Naruto, Kakashi, and Sasuke figurines...I'm such a fangirl...
Full Summary
This is the second half of my tale of Naruto Uzumaki Hatake. The first story is entitled Broken. You do not really need to read it to follow along with this story. Here is a very brief summary: Kakashi finds an almost three year old, Naruto in the bushes and ends up bringing him home causing a butterfly effect…
Danzō is proven a traitor, the Uchiha massacre does not happen (Well, not entirely), Sai gets a real home, and Zabuza and Haku no longer die. Kakashi is married to Ayame. Jiraiya admits to being his godfather and Sai, Sasuke, and Naruto are best friends. Yeah, like I said: causing a butterfly effect…
Broken starts out with a lot of angst, but changed as Naruto and Kakashi changed. It has adventure, fluff, humor, and romance. It ended with Naruto, Sai and Sasuke leaving on a trip with Jiraiya when they are ten (No, they were not genin yet). The purpose of the trip was to go to the Summoning Islands to see what animal they might be compatible with. They do not have god-like abilities; in fact, Jiraiya did not believe they would be able to summon anything yet. They were going to see if they can get contracts so that they will be able to summon their creatures when they are older.
The first 10 or so chapters will be about their trip and thenWe Just Wanted to be Stronger will take place two years later. The boys will be twelve and thirteen. Please don't hesitate to shoot me a review letting me know if it's liked or not, what can be improved, or any questions you might have. I can take the good with the bad! And thus their story begins…
~~O~~
Kakashi Hatake was a broken man. Very few people realized the truth. He smiled when he was supposed to, he laughed at the right times like he should, he acted like a normal person. But, those who knew him best saw the spark missing from his soul. When he went to his lonesome home, the real mask came off. Naruto was once broken as well. He was damaged emotionally, physically, and spiritually, until he found a home with Kakashi. Together they healed each other. Together, they learned to live, to laugh, and to love. Although time cannot heal all wounds, together they learned how to become whole. Together, they are no longer broken… just bent.
Chapter One:
The Mystery of Waterfall
What do you see in the dark, When the demons come for you
~~Godsmack~~
Healed: to put something right, to recover spiritually or emotionally, to repair or rectify something that causes discord or animosity.
Inky blackness covered the village of Konoha like a mantle. In every street, houses lay dormant; their inhabitants safely slumbering. In one of those homes, a light flickered on. A shadow in the window could be seen slowly moving back and forth in a restless manner.
Across the hall, another room lit up. At the soft squeal of the protesting hinges, a door opened and a woman entered the small brightly colored orange room where the copy-nin paced. Kakashi stilled his aimless movements and gave his wife a self-depreciating look. "I couldn't sleep. I got lost in my thoughts."
Ayame smiled gently. "Stop worrying. You know he will be here soon."
"It's been two years."
"Yes, you've waited a long time. Give it one more month."
"You're right," he agreed with a small sigh. Glancing at the small bed which lay in the corner of the room, he said, "It's just been so quiet without him."
"I know."
"What was I thinking?"
"You were thinking that it was a wonderful, once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for him and that it was time for you to let go." She noticed the letter crumpled in his hand and added, "He'll be alright in time. You must believe that."
Kakashi didn't answer. He just gave a small shrug and looked out the window.
Although she knew that gesture meant that he didn't want to talk about it, she pressed on. "He's twelve; a genin, and adult by shinobi standards."
"He's twelve; a child by a father's standards. He is feeling such horrible guilt and sadness," he snapped harshly. "I'm sorry," he said quickly. "It's just…just…"
"Waterfall…" they said at the same time.
She strode over to him and took his hand. "Come back to bed. Hopefully, he should arrive soon. There is nothing we can do until then. When he comes home, we will be here for him. We will help him heal."
He allowed her to lead him out of the room. At the threshold, the copy-nin halted and took one last look at the battered and dinged walls and toys that lie scattered all around before snapping off the light. "We really should clean this room," he commented.
Ayame just smiled. She had been hinting at that for two years.
~~O~~
Across Konoha in another darkened district, another light was on. In the kitchen of her home, a mother sat alone holding the first letter her child had written in the last month. Just like the boy that wrote it, it gave nothing away. He didn't mention his feelings of failure or guilt, but Mikoto knew they were there all the same. She knew her son; both of them. Sensing the silent approach of her eldest son, she wiped the tears away and tried to stuff the letter in her pocket. Itachi's hand covered hers gently and withdrew the letter.
"This will not break him," he said, opening the letter and nodding towards it. "It had to happen sooner or later. It is fortunate that it occurred while they were under the guidance of the Sannin."
"I just wish I could be there for him right now. He is so young and Waterfall is so far away. I can't help but feel that this is tearing him apart."
Itachi sat down next to Mikoto, took her hand and caressed it. "You are with him mother. You gave him the Will of Fire and it burns brightly from within. While he may be young yet, he is a true Uchiha."
She gave her son a shrewd glance. "I know this is hurting you just as much as it is him, my son, and yet you comfort me. You have always been closer to him then I could ever hope to be. Thank you."
"Go back to sleep mother," said Itachi softly, "He will arrive soon. Sasuke would not wish to see you in this state."
"Yes, I know kitten," Mikoto agreed with a small smile, "He hates tears."
Itachi rolled his eyes and chided, "He especially hates it when you call us that."
~~O~~
In yet another section of Konoha, another light was blazing. A crumpled letter was fisted in a young woman's hand as she furiously paced in circles around the tall scarred nin. "I'm going to kill that bastard! How dare he expose my angel to this?"
"Anko, listen to yourself," began the man patiently, "The Sannin did nothing wrong. It was not his fault. He explained everything last month."
"Nothing wrong…?" she asked sarcastically.
"Nothing wrong…!" she shouted.
Anko growled, "He shouldn't have been anywhere near Waterfall. They should have come straight home after the islands."
Ibiki tried to placate her again, "Waterfall is a peaceful place. How could he have possibly known?" Anko's eye twitched dangerously which caused Ibiki to quickly back up. "Well, you know…it used to be," he said defensively.
"When I see that perverted old fart, I'm going to rip off his balls and feed them to my snakes then tear out his spleen and watch him suffer while I eat dango. You don't want to know what I'll do with the sticks."
"You know I love it when you talk that way, Anko."
Her eye twitched again as she saw the look on his face. "Don't even go there right now," she snarled. "All I have to say is that my little angel had better be okay or Jiraiya is a dead man."
"Yes," agreed Ibiki with a sadistic smile. He vividly remembered the way Sai was when he first adopted him. There was no way he wanted to see the boy in that state ever again. He rubbed his hands together and said gravely, "And I'll help."
~~O~~
Across the Land of Fire, the Legendary Sannin, Jiraiya, the Great Toad Sage, awoke with a start. His heart was drumming as though the hounds of hell were chasing him. He wiped the pouring sweat from his brow and shakily got to his feet. He paced around the room in confusion, trying to recall what had scared him so badly. With no recollections of any nightmares, he shrugged and decided to check on the boys before going back to sleep.
He had acquired adjoining rooms at the spa, (reported to have many beautiful women staying here) just in case he got lucky. He frowned sadly at his empty futon before quietly opening the door and peering inside.
The moonlight shimmering in through the window gave enough light to see the three futon's were occupied by the slumbering boys. Jiraiya heaved a great sigh of relief. While the futon's were still spaced very closely together, the boys were no longer huddled together, lying there like poor abandoned puppies, like they had in the past month. It was the first time since Waterfall. And their eyes have finally begun to show signs of life again too.
Jiraiya was very grateful for that. He went back to his futon and lay down again. "There was no way I can bring the boys home the way they are," he thought to himself with a shudder, "The way they have been since the incident at Waterfall…"
~~O~~
Naruto began to jerk in his sleep. His dreams still pursued him with a relentless intensity that petrified him. He couldn't get the betrayed, accusing faces to stop haunting him. They went with him everywhere, day and night.
The people of Waterfall…
Sai curled up in a tight ball. A small whimper escaped his lips as that same dream began to start anew. The same dream he had every night.
The battle at Waterfall…
A single tear streamed down from the corner of Sasuke's eye as his nightmare slowly devoured him again. No matter how many times Jiraiya told them all that they were not at fault; he saw the devastation again and again. He wasn't strong enough to protect them.
Waterfall…
~~O~~
Boo-ooom!
An incredibly powerful blast of heat roared past above them. The air was sizzling hot and impossible to breathe. It scorched their throat and lungs. Their clothes didn't offer any protection either. The heat licked at their skin, even through their jackets, shirts, and pants.
They didn't dare raise their heads until about twenty seconds later. The massive two story stone house they had been standing next to no longer existed. All that was left was one wall that had survived by some kind of miracle. There were flames still roaring and licking the stones. A broad spiral of black smoke was rising up into the sky. What kind of jutsu could do that and who did it?
"We should really get out of this area!" yelled Sai. His soot and mud covered face couldn't quite conceal the tension that hovered around him. "This is getting too dangerous for us to handle; a building might fall down on us."
"But what about Raya? We can't leave him!" shouted Naruto stridently over the deafening sounds of the surrounding battle, "And what about all the innocent civilians around here too? We can't just abandon them."
"Jiraiya is a Sannin; there is no way we will leave him. I want to join in his fight!" interrupted Sasuke while gesturing towards the ongoing battle.
"What about the civilians?" yelled Naruto again, "We should evacuate the village and assemble everyone at the mill."
Sasuke gritted his teeth at possibly missing the fight. "Fine, but we need to hurry," he grudgingly replied,
They each went in a different direction, urging the people to leave the area until it was safe. When they gathered as many people as they could, Sasuke said eagerly, "Let's take off the seals now and join in the fight."
"Should we not stay and protect the villagers?" asked Sai with concern.
"They'll be alright here. There isn't anybody around to harm them. They're all fighting Raya," replied Naruto quickly. "Come on, I want to try out my new jutsu."
"I can't help but think this might be a bad decision," said Sai quietly.
"Come on Aho, bad decisions make for really good stories," joked Naruto.
Sai ignored the funny feeling in the pit of his stomach and followed his brothers into battle, confidant in his abilities. He had to admit to himself that he was a little eager too. He was a shinobi after all.
They set out towards Sannin to aid in the battle. He had moved out of the village and was fighting at the top of a steep hill. There appeared to be only one left; a shinobi wearing a black robe with red clouds.
AN
First of all, I would like that thank my beta Hahaheeha...you rock dude!
Also, yes, this is a short chapter (it's more of a prologue), but then again my first one always is. I decided to rate this fic T for now but will probably change to M just to be on the safe side because of possible violance (hey, they are ninja!)... Yup, it's gonna be a little darker, although Naruto is too much of a positive force for it to stay that way! Just to let you all know so that you don't get confused, this story will alternate between the past and the present until the full story of what happened at Waterfall comes out. I guess you could say it's going to be a little bit of a mystery.
As always, reviews are much loved, cherished, and put to bed with a goodnight kiss!