Better to Reign in Hell than Serve in Heaven

Better to Reign in Hell then Serve in Heaven

Chapter 11

Take the Blue Pill

“Naruto. Are you ok boy?”

“Kyuubi?”

Naruto was surrounded by darkness. He could no longer feel his body as numbness circulated his whole system. His eyes refused to open and he could not hear any of the familiar comforts of life about him. He only felt the red chakra surrounding him and pushing energy into him.

“You scared me for a bit, boy.”

“Why did you leave me?”

“I had no choice, boy. That man would have destroyed the both of us to get at me.”

“I was so alone.”

“Boy?”

“How could you leave?”

“Snap out of it boy.”

“So alone…”

“Naruto!”

Kyuubi found something he had never encountered before. It was a wall far more enclosing then the usual bars of his cage. He had always been able to look out at freedom while being incased inside. He had thought that the torture of being able to see and smell freedom was a worse punishment but now he knew true claustrophobia as he was left in the same darkness that his human prison was spiraling into.

~*~

“Fuck! He is disappearing again. Get Tsunade. He won’t last long under these conditions.”

“Don’t bother. I’m already here, Shizune.”

The legendary female Sanin swept into the room with the Toad Hermit just a step behind her. Kakashi had come to him with the news of his apprentice before Naruto entered the hospital. Having his pupil on the brink of death was enough for the proud man to break down and confront his old teammate. It had only taken a few words with the long haired blonde to take his case. Though he knew he would be up before a firing squad once she was done. Some secrets were not worth the loss of the child.

He watched as his old teammate discarded her formal robes as the acting successor to the Sandaime. He had pulled her from a council meeting which she was more then pleased to leave forcing the old men to yammer on without her. While the Sandaime had full authority on every decision, the council was set up as an advisory role as well as a barrier to keep the more mundane trivialities away in hopes of creating less work all around.

“Damn it he is not responding. There is nothing to hold him with.”

There was a silent plea as she looked up at Jiraiya. Already he was outing his student by even being in the room. Were he to take a greater part in this procedure they would no longer have the protection that Naruto required in order to merge with the community. Jiraiya had taken him away from his childhood where he should have learned to love his home. Konoha was a series of bad memories to the young ninja. It had been his wish to give back a little of what was lost by submerging him into the academy to be with peers his own age.

“Jiraiya, I don’t know him well enough to center him.”

“How about a neglectful father? Will that work?”

Heads turned to find a quiet Iruka at the door. His normal healthy tan pale as he looked upon his son. Not waiting for an answer Shizune pulled him forward into the room and practically forced him next to the bed. It took only a moment’s work for Tsunade to force the Academy teacher into his son’s inert form.

“Naruto?”

“Father?”

Light blinded Iruka for a second as the darkness vanished into a scene of the bright sun on a grassy plain. He saw the form of his son once more a child lost among the tall grass. There eyes met and in the moment Iruka witnessed as his son grew before his eyes turning into the self confident bight boy that he had seen just two days ago. He had grown so much without him. How could he not notice before?

As Iruka pondered his new enlightenment he suddenly found himself face to face with a bright smile and a pair of clear blue eyes that laughed along with the rest of his body. While still smaller in size then his father, his presence was just the right size and he hugged his father pressing his face into the other’s chest. He felt his arms automatically move around his child and he pulled him tighter towards himself.

“I thought you abandoned me, Father”

Neither spoke as they held each other close. Naruto did not need words. He only hungered for the love he was receiving from his father. He had thought he had lost it. He should have known better. It was not like him to give up on hope. He had yet to prove himself by becoming the Hokage. Now was not the time for self pity. He had no yet obtained his dreams.

Iruka was brought out of his trance and was quickly caught into the strong embrace of Jiraiya. It had taken on a few seconds but it had drained the scarred teacher of his energy. He was removed from the room by a couple of nurses who were told to see to his care and to let him regain himself before being allowed back into the room against his feeble protests on how his son needed him.

“It’s done. Now all we can do is to wait for the blood transfusion to finish and to stitch a few of the deeper injuries.”

She moved away from the body though in Jiraiya’s eyes his apprentice did not seem at all different since when he first arrived. He was confident enough in Tsunade’s abilities not to question her though. Not to mention questioning her was considered a health hazard.

“Come Jiraiya we have much to talk about.”

They did not go far. Tsunade knew the location of every single bar in Konoha and it had been no surprise that an enterprising old man had set up shop across from the hospital gaining firm patronage from the female Sanin. With a couple of bottles of sake under their belt and currently working on a third Tsunade took a look at her old teammate. He was starting to look old.

The silver white hair and the slight laughing lines that no longer disappeared showed his age. She feared that she herself would have the same problems were it not for the jutsu she used to keep her appearance young. Other’s called her vain, but her appearance also kept the memories. She doubted either of her teammates realized that she looked the exact same way she did when her Dan had died. Her connection with her old love for the longest time was the only thing that got her up in the morning.

“So who is he?”

“You should remember him. He was that overly loud kid that claimed he could perform a forbidden jutsu and countered me into making me his teacher if he did it.”

“Are you telling me that brat actually can use shadow clones?”

“Yes, quite a lot of them when he sets his mind to it.”

“I would find this whole situation hilarious if I was not just bringing him back from a state of death. He died today you know. Had you not pulled me from that meeting, there would have been irreversible brain damage to deal with as well. Why did you not tell me you had a new student?”

“We were not exactly on speaking terms. Not to mention after my last student… I just could not risk entanglement.”

“For the last time, Minato’s death was not my fault. Do you really think I would push anyone to use that vile jutsu?”

“You were the last one he talked to.”

“Jiraiya, Minato came to me because he needed comfort. Kushina’s death really rattled him. He wanted death. He told me he failed at being the Hokage because he cared more about his dead wife then all the villagers combined.”

“So you told him to save the village over himself?”

“No, I told him to put his faith in their son.”

“That idiot.”

“Jiraiya?”

“You want to know who that boy is? He is Minato’s legacy for what little good it has done him.”

“Kushina’s child died in childbirth with his mother.”

“That is what Minato told you. Hell that is what he told all of us.”

“Are you telling me that is the Yondaime’s son?”

“Yes, apparently he wanted to hide him from us.”

“We never looked for it, we just trusted Yondaime to do what was right after all that was the same time he promised that he knew how to get rid of the fox. We were fools not to ask him to tell us what he was planning.”

“I can’t tell you what he thought but I can tell you what he did. He took his son up with him that day he confronted the fox and gave his life to seal that demon into his own son.”

“Why would he do that? It was his own son.”

“I think he thought that his legacy would go on in his son who would have more power then anyone could ever dream of.”

“That idiot.”

“Oh, he got his wish. Naruto has the potential to be the Hokage.”

“Already trying to kick me out of an office I have yet to gain?”

“He is young. He has the skills for jutsu and a morality that I am positive did not come from me. But he also needs to learn so much more. That is why I do not what it known that Naruto is my pupil. He is not yet ready for that burden.”

“This incident is going to get a lot of attention. You can’t just ignore the fact that a Genin was attack in his own dorm. The academy must be secure at all costs.”

“Oh don’t worry; I want to find out what happened in that room as much as anyone else right now. We’ll just have to take things as they go.”

~*~

“I know your awake kid.”

Eyes opened to look up at the single eye of his sensei. Naruto smiled up before opening his mouth and croaking. Closing his eyes in embarrassment He tried to compose himself but it was clear his throat was not ready for anything at the moment. He had been up for a while but since he did not like all the nurses poking at him he feigned sleep in hopes they would leave him be.

“Don’t worry about talking. I just had to see that you were alright. You worried your master. Turned out he got Tsunade to come down just for you. Your master is currently explaining everything to her. All you need to know now is that you are safe. There are ANBU on their way now to insure that this won’t happen to you again. Ask them to get me if you need anything.”

Naruto nodded as he watched Kakashi leave by the window. He had obviously not gone through the front door to get to him. There were always wheels within wheels. It was good to know that he was going to be kept safe until he could get his body working again. Even more he knew that he could depend on Kakashi as the connection between him and his master was more evident. Even more curious was the addition of Tsunade. He knew Jiraiya enough to know things must have been pretty bad if he went to her for help.

‘You scared us all.’

‘Kyuubi, you not mad at me for blocking you?’

‘Are you kidding, you almost killed the two of us with your self pity. I’m past angry... but it is good to see your doing better.’

‘If I did not know better I would say you were worried about me.’

‘Foolishness, I’ll die when you die. It is in my own interest to keep you alive’

‘If you say so Kyuubi.’

‘Sleep brat. Unlike you, I’m doing all the work’

~*~

“It’s amazing; I’ve never seen anyone recover as fast as he has.”

“Just as well, I still need to repay a debt to him.”

“Still not over that little love tap, Sasuke?”

Sasuke grunted in return as they entered the room were their new teammate was… surrounded by random items. Most people gave flowers to a person to make them feels better. Naruto’s friends seemed to know him a lot better then to bring the boy flowers. Packages of ramen, new sets of orange and black clothes, books with titles such Icha Icha Paradise, knickknacks such as oddly shaped rocks and a doll made out of plants. The most fascinating of the items was a set of high quality kunai.

“Looks like you have had a lot of visitors”

“Everyone has been so nice. They said I’ll be released in two days once they are sure that scratch on my side will not reopen.”

Sai pulled over a basket of fruit that was sitting in the pile of all the other junk and helped himself to a bit of nourishment. They had finished training early today. Not that Kakashi was going easy on them; in fact he never had a better work out with a Genin teacher. Neither ninja were much for visiting injured comrades but Kakashi had made some rather interesting remarks about how they could learn much from the blonde. They were curious to say the least.

“You’re the talk of the whole academy. Everyone wants to know why anyone would attack a worthless idiot like yourself.”

“Can’t you say something nice just once?”

“My books inform me that you reserve nice comments for women and dating. But since you have not dick… I like your shoes.”

“I’m not wearing shoes.”

“…Nice dress you are wearing?”

“It’s a hospital gown.”

“And it’s a very nice one too.”

“You suck at this.”

“I’m more into fucking then sucking.”

Sasuke cleared his throat. Both Sai and Naruto went silent as they turned their heads toward him. Their exchange was already forgotten. Sasuke now that he had gotten their attention did not know what to do with it. All he wanted was them to shut up. It was worse then having Sakura in their team, at least she ignored Sai’s comments, Naruto seemed to encourage him.

“What is all this junk?”

“It’s not junk, my friends gave...”

“Naruto, you are requested to come before the interrogation squad.”

Three pairs of eyes looked at the door where the imposing figure of a black clad man stood. Both Sai and Sasuke knew immediately who the scarred man before him was. He was the boogieman meant to scare bad children. Ibiki was a man of little humor and had petitioned the council to allow him to get to Naruto the moment he was able to speak without causing more injury to himself.

He already had an argument with Tsunade who made him promise not to inflict more damage to the child. This meant he was responsible to insure that the boy would leave their custody in the exact same shape that he entered. With that kind of duty over them, Ibiki felt it necessary to pick up their charge himself.