Demon's Hold

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Title: Demon’s Hold

Summary: Everything was perfect. Misunderstanding and conflict had become nonexistent within the village hidden in the Leaves. But little did the villagers know that everything came with a price...

Warnings: OOC Yaoi

Pairings: KyuuNaru

Disclaimer: Naruto is not mine, if it is, then you’ll be seeing a lot of ItaNaru action in a whole new level. XP

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Chapter 2 – Discovery

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Monster!

Demon!

Spawn of the devil!

Murderer!

These names never stopped hunting me since the day I was born. They haunted me day and night, never ceasing, never lightening.

Even after my existence was no longer heeded by almost everyone in the village for over two months now, being that they were the one who called me as such in the first place, I was still cursed.

Deep in my mind I was certain that they would never see me as a human being. Deep inside I was sure that there was nothing I could do to change their opinion of me.

But then again, it could just be me. Because there were times that I agreed with them that I was the abomination they claimed me to be, a being that should never had existed for tainting it.

I saw myself as the demon they hated. I saw myself as the stain that marred Konoha’s flawlessness.

In the end I cursed myself by day and nightmares cursed me during the night.

It was late afternoon when I walked through the bustling streets of Konoha with no specific destination in mind.

Passing through here was always depressing. Here I was surrounded with people and yet I felt so alone.

I know that if I want to go somewhere I didn’t need to pass through here. I could just jump through the roof tops with ease but I couldn’t help it.

I was always hoping that someone, anyone would look at me, at least spare me a glance so that I would know that I exist.

So that I would know that I still exist.

I was so deep in my thoughts that I failed to notice a person standing in front of me.

I bumped into him, causing me to bounce back and land on my butt while he stood rooted to his spot.

With my eyes on the ground, I didn’t see that the man’s eyes were directed at me, that he actually ‘saw’ me.

I stood up and dusted my bottom, my eyes still rooted on the ground as I moved out of his way and continued to walk. I didn’t bother apologizing. It would only be a waste of breath since I don’t ‘exist’.

‘You didn’t even bother knowing who the person you bumped into is...’ a voice stated in my mind.

‘Why bother? They no longer acknowledge me, so why should I acknowledge them?’ I responded.

‘Good point.’ With that, he stopped talking to me.

As I walked further from the male I bumped into, I didn’t notice his unwavering gaze towards me, his obsidian eyes fixed on my figure as I slowly disappeared from his sight.

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The sun was beginning to set as the sky was filled with a reddish-orange hue.

I stood impassively near a lake, staring at its still waters. The early evening breeze enveloped my slim from, ruffling my clothes and hair in the process.

It was this time of the day that I liked the most. It was cooling at the same time soothing.

It was beginning to get dark but it was still bright enough to wander around without the aid of artificial lights.

I stayed there, not even moving an inch as I let my thoughts float. With my mind completely blank, my body relaxed and my mind rested.

I wasn’t sure how long I remained like that, but when I came to it was already dark with the moon providing little but enough light.

A soft sigh escaped me as I turned around to make my way towards my apartment. I know I could reach my abode quicker if I took the rooftops but decided to pass through the still-busy streets instead.

I was about to reach the main street when I noticed the distinct chakra signatures of my so-called ‘friends’.

It was weird because all of them seemed to be together.

I wanted to ignore them and proceed towards my apartment but my curiosity got the better of me.

Concealing my presence to invisibility, I made my way towards their location.

As I crept towards them, I noticed that I was heading to the abandoned Uchiha district which raised my curiosity even further.

Why would they go there?

Why would they meet there?

Did they had something planned?

If so then I wanted to find out what. But I was certain that if they sensed me, they would immediately scatter and postpone their ‘meeting’ to a different date and time.

With mastered stealth, I spotted all the members of rookie nine (save for me) and team Gai in a clearing within Uchiha territory and moved closer to see or hear what they were doing or talking about.

I secured myself in a shadowed spot on the roof just above them and listened into their conversation.

“Damn this really sucks! I don’t know if I can keep this up.” Kiba, the dog user complained while scratching his head in fury.

The two Hyuuga, Hinata and Neji, sat next to each other as they appeared to be depressed.

Now that I noticed it, all of them seemed to be depressed over something.

The question is ‘what’?

“I know but there is nothing we can do.” said Sakura, my pink –haired ‘teammate’.

“But this is ridiculous! How can we do that for the sake of good fortune?” the dog-boy retorted.

“But ever since we started doing that, all misfortune in Konoha stopped, right?” Shikamaru, the lazy Chuunin, stated.

“I know, but still!”

“Enough. I know that doing that is really difficult but there’s nothing we can do about it.” Neji intercepted.

“I know! I know all that but still! How can we do that!-? How can we sacrifice one friend for our own good and happiness!-?”

“Kiba-kun is right.” the Hyuuga heiress spoke. “I never wanted to do that but I was given no choice. How can we just casually sacrifice him for our own personal gains? It isn’t right.”

‘I wonder who they are talking about...’ I thought as I kept myself hidden.

“I know.” The Sharingan user agreed. “I just saw him this afternoon and seeing him looking lost and alone was really exhilarating. Heck he didn’t even bother to look at me when he bumped into me.”

“I really don’t see how ignoring Naruto-kun existence can help Konoha’s fortune.” Lee spoke in his unusually low voice. “All I see is his flames of strength and youth slowly dimming against the harsh winds of loneliness and the confines of his curse.”

My eyes widened from the revelation. They were actually talking about me? And what curse were they talking about?

“Having the Kyuubi inside him is not enough reason for him to live like that.” Shino, the bug user, worded out. “I have always observed him from a distance and saw how the villagers treated him. This kind of attitude we are showing towards him now is a whole lot worse.”

“What do you mean?” Ino asked.

“I’ll answer that.” The shadow user stated. “If you have noticed, Naruto has been hated by the villagers ever since he was a child. This hate was passed to us by our parents without us even knowing it. But for some strange reason, Naruto just accepted that.

“The villagers never bothered to hide their hate. They showed it with no hesitation. Instead of feeling depressed, Naruto continued to live on with no signs of faltering.”

“I know that but how can that be worse from ignoring him?”

Shikamaru sighed. “When the villagers wholeheartedly showed their hate towards Naruto, they are, in a way, acknowledging that he ‘existed’, that he was there alive. What they did to him was proof that they ‘see’ him.

“If you compare that to what we are doing now, ignoring him completely as if he was not there, as if he was invisible, how do you think he will feel?”

“...”

“He will feel completely alone.” Neji continued. “In fact, he might feel that he doesn’t even exist. That he was nothing more but a passing wind.”

Collective gasps erupted from the female Kunoichi, save for Hinata who kept her head down.

I was really surprised that they noticed, that they actually ‘cared’.

I silently made my way out of the Uchiha compound towards my apartment, with them still oblivious to my eavesdropping.

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I never would have thought that they thought that ignoring me would bring them good fortune. That if they stopped accepting my existence, misfortune would stop rolling to their way.

I snorted. I couldn’t believe it. How could they think of that?

They actually thought that good fortune would come to them that easily without doing something to actually earn it?

A snicker crept into my mind, causing me to shiver from the sudden chill it brought.

“-Stupid humans. They have no idea what is actually bringing them good fortune. Isn’t that right Naruto-kun?-” the voice purred.

I stopped, my eyes widening momentarily. I bit my lower lip as I waited for the voice to speak again, certain that he was not done.

“-The time is nearing, it would be best for you to go back to your den before I take my ‘payment’ Naruto-kun.-”

I nodded and resumed my pace, not noticing the dark figure following from behind.

‘I understand Kyuubi-sama.’

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Tsukishiro’s Corner:

So, uhh, what do you think?

R&R XD