A World Gone Mad

I don’t own Naruto nor do I make any money from it.



Warnings: Dark!Naruto, cursing, AR, violence, blood



AN: Sorry if I confused people. I added the prequel to this story. It is the first chapter in this story. I just copied and pasted and the insistence to read the prequel was meant for other sites I post on. Part 2 of 3



A World Gone Mad



Part Two



Any softness either man had for the other was lost upon entering the war room. All the men inside were battle hardened shinobi. Neither Sasuke, nor Naruto would stand for taking advice from men who had not experienced the taste of battle. To even think such things was a shame on themselves.



These shinobi were the most trusted in the entire Akatsuki. Naruto’s eyes scanned the room, pausing on each face in succession. The only member of the original Akatsuki was Kisame. Why the fighter stayed during this time of peace, Naruto wasn’t sure. The remainder of the shinobi were unknowns from varying villages. Some were too old to continue on the life of a shinobi and some were so skilled, the Akatsuki would be morons to leave untended. He trusted none of them with his life save Sasuke. Ruling the world gave people incentive to take your life and position. It was human nature.



Naruto grinned upon his eyes landing on Suigetsu. The normally pale skin was red, peeling, and in some places, horribly burned. The medics had probably discouraged him from attending the meeting but as the last surviving member of Sasuke‘s Team Taka, he probably felt some residual sense of loyalty. “Shouldn’t you be in the infirmary?”



“The alarm was sounded,” Suigetsu replied.



“Such loyalty.”



Suigetsu grinned, showing his shark like teeth. “You would know about that, wouldn’t you?”



“I’m more loyal to Sasuke than any other man in this room.” Naruto prowled towards the other man, leaning down to whisper in his ear. “Don’t even think of winning a place in Sasuke’s bed again. He’s mine. Break this rule, and what you felt before is only a taste of the suffering I will inflict on you before you die.”



“Naruto!”



Naruto turned to see Sasuke staring intensely. He grinned and patted Suigetsu on the shoulder. A small thread of glee worked through him at the flinch. He didn’t envy the man’s ‘sunburn’.



“You can play with Suigetsu after we handle the business at hand.” Sasuke turned to one of the advisors. “Intel?”



A slender man stepped forward. His graying hair and lineless face seemed in contradiction to each other. Then after all they had seen, Naruto was surprised he and Sasuke weren’t sporting a bit more gray. He seemed more nervous than natural, making Naruto watch him closely. The man looked nearly ready to piss himself.



“Konoha has been amassing an army. They have sent emissaries to each of the remaining hidden villages to invoke support. We don‘t know which villages have agreed.” Several advisors flinched at Sasuke’s hand slamming upon the table.



“Your messenger stated war was declared on the Akatsuki by all the villages. Was he mistaken?” Sasuke snarled at the man.



“Konoha has declared war. It is only a matter of time before the others follow if things aren‘t taken in hand quickly. He was only stating the inevitable. P-Perhaps he was a little quick to speak,” he whimpered under the piercing glare.



“A little quick?” Sasuke purred. “He announced before me and Naruto that the world had declared war on us. You consider that a little over-anxious?”



“Don’t get all excited, Sasuke. I’ll take care of the little shit but still…” Naruto glanced towards the intelligence advisor. “If Konoha has amassed enough to be able to call themselves a village, let alone declare war…they obviously have support from somewhere.”



Sasuke spun from facing Naruto back to the cowering man. His jaw clenched as he fought the violence. Naruto was used to Sasuke’s more controlled temperament in these meetings. The various facets of his lover never ceased to amaze and arouse him.



“Where the fuck were our spies? I know we have them in every village and even a few with the Konoha rebels. The reason I know is because I hand picked every one of them.” Sasuke roared, his eyes blazing the red of sharingan activation.



Naruto chuckled, he liked Sasuke like this. Wild and dangerous. Even Naruto’s alpha instincts cowered when Sasuke truly exerted his dominance. It was one reason he didn’t mind allowing Sasuke the title of Leader. Sasuke thought things through much as Shikamaru had during their time in Konoha. Naruto had a more impulsive nature. He was a good second but a dangerous leader.



“Sasuke-sama…we don’t know. It’s not uncommon for deep cover spies to have trouble contacting for weeks at a time. We think that the true strength of Leaf was hidden from low ranking shinobi and it is all but impossible to implant a spy at the higher levels. Those spots are reserved for long standing Konoha loyalists.” The man stumbled back at Sasuke’s punch. He screamed, blood running down his face from the broken nose.



“Are you telling me that my advisors didn’t feel it prudent to keep me informed of possibilities such as this? Do they think these eyes taken from my brother’s head make me omnipotent?” Sasuke was furious. The entire room felt it too some degree. Only Kisame and Naruto seemed unaffected by the tirade. Both knew it would blow over shortly and leave Sasuke once more the calm and collected block of ice he usually was.



“Sasuke-sama…”



“And what of Kakashi and Sakura? No one seems to know where they disappeared to. Even the report from our spies seemed unable to draw any conclusions.”



“I don’t…I mean…I think you should…”



“Don’t talk; you’ll only dig your grave faster. Naruto isn’t the only one around here with a temper. This is my world. This is my organization. You idiots seem to forget that and allow a dangerous village to revive itself from the ashes. How should I be reacting?” Sasuke turned to Naruto who was snickering off to the side. “What are you laughing at, idiot? Don’t think you are safe from my wrath either.”



“Wouldn’t dream of it.” Naruto snatched a map from someone’s hand and spread it across the large table arranged in the central part of the room. “Let’s save the name calling for later. Obviously shit needs to get done and I don’t like Sasuke having all the fun of beating up the idiots.”



Sasuke’s face shifted to an almost emotionless expression and he took his place beside Naruto. His shoulder brushed Naruto, an apology and promise. Naruto grinned to himself. Only he could read Sasuke fluently.



Sasuke shoved a kunai into the map over the former location of Konoha. “We haven’t had scout teams here for a while. It seemed a waste of resources. What are the chances they would set up shop in their own ruins?”



Kisame sniffed, crossing his arms over his chest and staring at the map with small beady white eyes. “It’s the one place we wouldn’t look. That place is nothing but ruins.”



Sasuke nodded, still scowling at the map. “I can’t believe they’ve amassed enough resources to actually approach the other villages.”



“There were a lot of supporters who weren’t members of Leaf.” A slender woman stepped towards the circle of men. She was the only woman allowed in his circle of advisors.



“The other villages are under control.” Sasuke commented while his eyes narrowed on her. “Do you know something we don’t, Taya?”



Taya smiled the sweet smile masking her true emotions. To Naruto, she often reminded him of Sai. Sai’s fake smiles had always rubbed him the wrong way and it wasn’t until the shell of illusion was broken did he see Sai’s true face. Taya was the same, but he found himself not wanting to see what lay beyond her facade. She was a barely contained evil, tempered to the point of unrecognizable. Naruto knew her, his darkness seethed in her presence. She was very much a dangerous person, perhaps the most dangerous after him and Sasuke. He didn’t like her. A growl rumbled from his throat as she approached Sasuke’s side. She was hiding something from them all. He could smell it.



“Maybe you aren’t looking at this from the right point of view. Take Suna for example. They held close ties to Konoha for several years before it was destroyed. Their kazekage was particularly helpful when aid was called for.” Taya tapped a slender finger over the map icon representing Suna.



“Gaara…he wouldn’t betray his ties to Akatsuki. His word was given.” Naruto growled in her direction.



“He was loyal to Konoha as well. Which would he choose if given the choice? His new alliance…or his old?”



Naruto snarled, his eyes fading from their natural blue to a deep red. “Konoha is dead. Any uprising under that name isn’t Konoha. They are just calling themselves that. You are trying to stir up trouble. Gaara knows what it’s like to be betrayed by his home.”



Taya smiled, her lips curling in almost triumph. “Yet he didn’t destroy it as you did.”



Naruto’s control broke. He charged the woman just as she’d planned. Her look of triumph wasn’t even masked as Sasuke took Naruto to the ground with a chakra enhanced punch to his solar plexus. The air rushed from his lungs and he crumpled to the ground with a thud. His lungs fought to adjust to being winded while he glared at his lover.



Sasuke’s face was hard. He crouched beside Naruto, shoving a hand into his shoulder. “You knew the rules, idiot. You knew that to attack another member of this advisory board gets you expelled from the room for the duration of this meeting.”



“Sasuke…”



“Get out. I’ll deal with you later.” Sasuke stood and turned to the map once more. “Suggestions?”



Two guards helped Naruto to his feet and escorted him from the room. Fury danced before his eyes. His tendency to act first and consider the consequences later had him in a bad position. While Sasuke wasn’t an idiot, it was possible he wouldn’t be able to see the best option without Naruto there to help him.



Naruto roared out his frustration, stalking from the doors blocking him from the meeting. He needed to burn off the energy before he destroyed the stronghold. He barely made it to the training grounds before he was razing the entire area. He’d fallen into that woman’s trap. She’d wanted Naruto gone. Now he was unable to make sure Sasuke wasn’t forced into taking an action that wasn’t the most beneficial to him.



“Fuck!” Naruto screamed, plowing his fist through a tree. The wood splintered in every direction. Small cuts formed on his cheeks and neck from flying pieces of wood.



He’d fallen for her taunting. He should have known better. He shouldn’t have let her get the best of him. His only consolation was the hope Sasuke saw through her mechanizing enough to not take every word from his serpentine lips as truth or the most beneficial. She’d tried her wiles on Sasuke upon arriving at their complex early in its creation. It had miffed her significantly when she learned Sasuke’s preference leaned more towards men. Not to say he wouldn’t fuck a woman. He’d fucked Karin once from what he’d told Naruto. He said being dominated was one of his kinks and women didn’t seem to have that power. Even if they played games and tied him up, the fact that he could over power them took a bit of the pleasure from it. Naruto guffawed, doubling over in laughter at the memory. The bitch didn’t have a dick so Sasuke wasn’t interested.



He snarled, hearing footsteps approaching from behind. Sasuke was the only one whom he would allow to approach him in such a way. The barely hidden limp made it a very distinctive sound. A bit of dark pride worked its way into him. He’d made Sasuke limp, the other having enjoyed every minute of it.



“Why are you such an idiot?”



“Why haven’t you gotten rid of that manipulative bitch?” Naruto retorted, turning on his heels to glare through the cover of his lashes.



“She’s earned her place there.” They both stood glaring until Sasuke moved in close. “Be honest, Naruto. It was because you didn’t like her standing so close to me. So close she could touch me. You think of me as yours.”



“You are mine,” Naruto snarled, fisting Sasuke’s hair brutally.



“Keep thinking that and I’ll have to ban you from the meetings permanently.” Sasuke pulled the hand from his hair. Leaning forward, he swiped his tongue over one of the nicks dotting Naruto’s face.



A purr rumbled through Naruto’s chest, the danger neutralized in favor of Sasuke’s tongue. He wouldn’t let the slight by the woman go forgotten, but at least he was no longer in danger of leveling the stronghold.



“Did you discuss what action we should take?” Naruto ran his hands up Sasuke’s sides, feeling the rough material and the soft skin beneath.



“We made a list of those who we know are loyal and those who are circumspect. For Leaf to be able to step from the shadows, they have to be getting support somewhere. I think Gaara has betrayed us.” Sasuke spoke calmly. If he hadn’t, Naruto was likely to have turned feral.



“What proof do you have?” Naruto pulled back to stare into Sasuke’s eyes.



“We don’t. Our spies have told us that Sand has become quite the trading center despite being in the middle of a fucking desert. It’s likely with the additional money brought in by trade, Sunagakure has betrayed us. None of the other villages have the resources to support a new rising of Konoha.”



Naruto flinched at Sasuke’s words. Though he and Gaara had not spoken since the destruction of Konoha, there had been an understanding between them. Sand would not rise against the Akatsuki if the Akatsuki didn’t rise against Sand. They had gone the easiest on Sand than any of the other villages. It was Naruto’s connection with the kazekage. That Gaara might be helping those who tried to kill him angered Naruto more than anything else.



“Send me.”



Sasuke blinked, pulling back. “What?”



“Let me go to Suna. Let me talk to Gaara.” Naruto stepped away from Sasuke, his face going hard.



Sasuke tilted his head, weighing the offer. “And if Gaara admits to it?”



“I kill him.”



Sasuke’s face remained neutral though Naruto could see the wheels turning. Such an offer wasn’t something Naruto took lightly. To even hint at killing Gaara, one of his oldest connections, was almost unthinkable but not something he was afraid to do if the need arose. They’d never been true friends. Not like Sasuke. Gaara was more of a kindred spirit, someone he could relate to. Gaara’s eyes had gone sad upon hearing of Naruto’s attempted murder. He’d offered Naruto a place in Suna but by then, Naruto was firmly planted at Sasuke’s side.



“One week. If you aren‘t back in one week, we declare war on Suna and raze it to the ground.” Sasuke didn’t believe Gaara had betrayed them. He was putting his faith in Naruto’s hands. It gave Naruto pause before his pushed aside the doubt.



Naruto grinned, cracking the bones in his knuckles. “Are you up for a goodbye fuck?”



“Don’t you mean fight?” Sasuke unsheathed his katana, a gleam in his eyes upon gazing at Naruto.



“That too.” Naruto rolled his shoulders and charged Sasuke.



oOo



Naruto growled low in his throat. Had he been merely visiting Suna for itself, he would have entered through the gates. He would have checked in with the guards and gone about his merry way as if not having a care in the world. The key word was ‘if’ this had been an average trip. Today was no such thing.



In the years since his youth, Naruto had learned a few things. Most of them revolved around how to get into places without even the most skilled shinobi knowing. Since then, he’d perfected it and now he crouched on a building near the kazekage’s residence. He wanted to believe Gaara hadn’t betrayed them. He wanted to know that at least one bond other than that with Sasuke had withstood the trials their life had wrought.



“Gaara…” he growled low in his throat. He could see the movements through the window. No one would dare attempt an attack on the kazekage. ANBU level shinobi surrounded the building. They weren’t perfect. They’d left this spot in their blind spot.



The moon shone down on the village, large and round in the above sky. It was a light and just like any light, the shadows were larger in it’s fully glory. Naruto knew how to use the night. Any shinobi worth his salt knew. He also knew when shinobi were growing lazy. The ANBU shift of guard would be any moment judging by the slight fidgeting. That would be his cue.



A masked guard landed before the previously fidgeting shinobi. While their attention was diverted during the change of the guard, Naruto ducked quickly into an open window of a room the kazekage had recently vacated. He crouched in the shadows, moving stealthy through the room and into the next which housed Gaara and his new wife.



With Gaara’s attention averted, Naruto chose that moment to slam the door. Pale eyes swung to stare at him. “What…?”



“I think you and I need to talk, Gaara.” Naruto’s eyes slid to Gaara’s young civilian wife. “Alone.”



“Leave.” Gaara nudged the woman in the direction of door.



Naruto grabbed her arm, lowering his voice to barely a rumble. “Speak one word of my presence to anyone and Gaara will be dead followed shortly by you.”



The woman paled, making the smattering of freckles pop out across her nose and cheeks. Naruto squeezed his hand to insure she understood he meant business before releasing her. Her lip trembled, her eyes moving to glance at Gaara and seeing his nod, she fled through the door.



“Naruto…”



Naruto grinned though he didn’t move from his place by the door. “Gaara.”



“You usually check in at the gate when you choose to visit us,” commented Gaara.



“I didn’t know you checked the gate roster.”



“Only when I’m notified of important or dangerous persons,” answered Gaara.



Naruto smiled, cupping his hands behind his head. “And which am I?”



“Both.”



To the naked eye, both men appeared relaxed. If one looked underneath, it was easy to realize the relaxed appearance was only an illusion. Both were prepared to strike if the need arose. Gaara tilted his head, awaiting Naruto’s reasons for having broken into his home in order to see him.



“We’ve discovered some troubling news. So troubling I actually had to come in person to confront you with it.” Naruto’s eyes locked with Gaara’s, waiting for any sign of understanding. Gaara’s face was unreadable.



“What news?”



“Konoha has declared war on the Akatsuki.” Naruto’s eyes narrowed at Gaara’s sigh.



Gaara‘s eyes closed for the briefest of moments. “Have they?”



“Yes. What do you know?” Naruto’s smile didn’t drop from his face though his eyes remained cold.



“Konoha isn’t what you think and they didn’t declare war on the Akatsuki.”



“You knew! You knew and you didn’t tell us? You helped them gain power.” Naruto was both angry and hurt by Gaara’s statement. He couldn’t call their relationship friendship, but he’d always found a kindred soul in Gaara.



“I did not!” Gaara snarled in return, a reminiscent face from his days possessed by the tanuki demon. “You know the rules, Naruto. Once a village is destroyed like Konoha--if they have no way to stand on their own feet--they must return to power without help from the hidden villages. To regain their standing, they must earn it by standing on their own. Otherwise, they would have no honor amongst the others and would go unrecognized. You know this and yet you come to me with accusations.”



Gaara scowled, making Naruto want to flinch under the stare. The other was right. They should have realized the other villages wouldn’t support a village. There were rules of honor superseding any of war or peace. Honor above all else. To be recognized, a village must show the others its strength. They must be self supportive and ably staffed to handle a call to war. They must do this alone or go forever unrecognized.



Naruto’s eyes grew wide. Out of all the advisors, someone must have known this fundamental rule of shinobi villages. It was a trick. Sasuke! “That bastard…”



Naruto turned in a flash dashing for the window, leaving an angry and confused kazekage behind. If ANBU followed him, he paid them no mind. If they impeded his return home, he would strike them down. Should they stay away, they would live to see another day. The only important thing in his mind was finding Sasuke.



“I’m a fool.” It would be a three day journey. If he was fast, he might make it in two. That would mean keeping his stops at a minimum. He should have seen it. He should have known but then Sasuke knew Naruto as well as he knew himself. He would know what would get Naruto out of the way. It wasn’t because he didn’t trust Naruto. He knew Sasuke trusted him with his life. There would be another reason. Shinobi were skilled at lies. Sasuke was going to kill Kakashi and Sakura.



Sasuke knew. He knew their history. He knew Naruto would falter in killing them. They, along with Sasuke, were Naruto’s greatest weaknesses. Destroying those bonds was beyond Naruto’s capabilities. Even now he couldn’t imagine not having Sasuke. If he was going to face Kakashi, it might not go so well. Both were able, but Kakashi was known for his resilience in battle.



Jumping over a rock buried in the sand, Naruto snarled in frustration. Traveling across the desert was slow and annoying. It required patience and stamina. Stamina--Naruto had. It was the patience he was short on. This was the worst part of the journey. It was both time consuming and frustrating. He moved at half the speed he would have had he been moving through the trees or on flat ground.



Each shift of sand beneath his feet felt like two steps back for every step he made forward. His jaw clenched until he felt the bone crack. Sasuke was stupid to allow himself to agree upon an attack without Naruto’s input. Taya had something to do with this. She’d wanted Naruto from the war room. Now he was paying the price for letting her anger him.



The night transformed to day and then night once more. Just as dawn was breaking over the horizon, Naruto reached the edge of the desert where trees began growing lushly. He paused only long enough to refill his canteen and quench his thirst. Had he been merely traveling home, he would have stopped here for the night. As that was not the case, he moved quickly to the trees.



The rhythmic motion of the trees soothed his tired body, giving him the strength to move onward. It was an all too familiar route, one he hadn’t walked in what seemed like a lifetime. The sounds of the forest swirled around him, bringing back the memories of his childhood.



Contrary to belief, his childhood hadn’t been horrific. True, he’d lived in practically squalor for most of it. The villagers mostly ignored him to the point he wondered if he even existed to anyone. Even in school, his teachers passed him on to the next level as if he was nothing but a fly they wanted out of his hair instead of truly teaching him as they should. It wasn’t until his final year did he learn anything of being a shinobi.



Learning was difficult. He tried but doing things by the book was hard. He had no desire to be a faceless shinobi in employ of Leaf. So he acted out. He forced the people to see him. He forced them to lower their eyes from their high places and look upon him as he was. He was Naruto Uzumaki and they would look at him.



His life had changed upon being placed on a team. Sasuke had forced him to look beyond what he was and forced him to better himself if for no other reason than in hope of besting Sasuke. Those days were some he wouldn’t trade for the world.



Naruto paused to catch his breath. Uncapping the water, he sipped sparingly--just enough to wet his tongue. His body screamed at him to rest the tired muscles when the scent of smoke reached his nose, making it twitch.



There was no mistaking that smell. It was the smell of exploding tags and fire jutsus. Looking around he realized just how close he was to the remains of his childhood home.



Jumping into the highest tree, he sought a visual of the former Leaf village. Smoke rose on the horizon but he was left uncertain of what it meant.



“Sasuke…” Naruto growled and moved quickly. The sound of battle erupted through the area. Akatsuki and shinobi bearing the headband of Leaf locked weapons. The sheer number of both was astonishing. How had Konoha gotten so many shinobi?



Konoha had numbers but their shinobi were young and horribly under trained. They were barely chunin level, if that. An army of chunin had no hope against an army of jounin or higher. What was going on?



A wildly flung shuriken flew past him and a part of his soul called to him, encouraging joining the fray. He thought only of Sasuke. After he located Sasuke, he would be more than happy to give into his more animalistic nature.



Throwing back his head, he screamed out. “Sasuke!”



In a quick flurry of hand symbols, three identical Narutos popped into existence beside him. “Find Sasuke,” he ordered, sending them scurrying away.



Leaving the clones to search parts of the ruins, Naruto bounded through the streets. A force from behind gave him pause before unleashing a kunai. The Leaf shinobi fell to the ground with a thud. Naruto never gave pause. The death of the man weighed as much on his conscience as a feather might on a person’s shoulder. It was nothing.



A familiar flash of pink gave him pause. Naruto rushed towards it only to find a very pregnant Sakura crouched with kunai in hand. At least twenty children huddled behind her, terror evident in their eyes. Naruto shook his head. An army wouldn’t keep their children close, let alone pregnant women--no matter how powerful they were.



“Na-Naruto?” Sakura stared at him with both shock and dismay.



Naruto shook his head, turning his back to her and leaving the group. Sasuke was more important than a handful of crying children.



“Don’t you turn your back on me!” Sakura screamed, charging him with her kunai, which he deflected easily. “You did this! You did this! We weren’t even going to try to attack. It’s your fault. You couldn’t leave us alone to rebuild our lives.”



Naruto stared at her beating her hands against his chest. Tears streaked down her face and he was reminded of the day she had extracted a promise which forever changed his life.



“Sakura-chan…”



“Don’t call me that! You’re a monster. You aren’t my Naruto anymore.” She screamed as loud as she could, the children joining her chorus.



“I was never your Naruto,” Naruto hissed, tugging away from her. “If you’re building an army, why the hell do you have the pregnant women and children so close?”



“Army? We are building a village. A home. We don’t care about the Akatsuki.” Sakura slumped to the ground, defeated. Her pink hair fell around her face, hiding the tears he could see dripping to the dried soil.



“Where’s Sasuke?”



Sakura shook here head, her arms wrapped tightly around her enlarged abdomen. “Kakashi engaged him…I don’t know where they went…”



Naruto growled, prowling away when a large burst of chakra drew his attention. “Sasuke!”



Jumping over the rubble of buildings, he made his way to the top of what remained of Hokage Mountain. Only a part of the First and a bit of Tsunade’s face remained. The others had long since been destroyed the night Naruto’s power exploded.



The top came into view and there was Sasuke and Kakashi battling it out. Sasuke was in his prime while Kakashi seemed to be flagging but still holding his own. From the corner of his eye, he saw Taya smirking at the battle. He also saw her pull a kunai from a pouch secured at her waist. Her hand reeled back but Naruto could see the trajectory. It wasn’t aimed at Kakashi.



In a flash of yellow and black, he gripped her hand just as she was to release the weapon. Her eyes grew wide at the tan skin before her. Obviously she wasn’t expecting him. He didn’t even think of if he’d been moments later, he would have arrived to see Sasuke’s body bleeding into the stone top.



“Naruto-sama?” Her mouth barely completed his name before his Rasengan cupped fist plowed through her chest. The sound of her scream stopped the battle between Kakashi and Sasuke. Both turned to star at him. Sasuke looked at him as if he’d gone mad.



“Don’t get me wrong. I’m all for fighting but I think there needs to be some talking so how about we call off the fighting for now and have a little chat.” Naruto dropped Taya’s body to the ground as if she was nothing but a toy.



“Naruto…”



“There’s talking to be done, Sasuke. Some people have lied to us and I think it’s time the truth is revealed before I lose control and just kill everyone.” Naruto sighed, his eyes leaving Sasuke to gaze at Kakashi. “You’re talking too.”



This was going to be a hell of a conversation if everything Naruto had put together in his mind was true. He only hoped Sasuke, Kakashi, and himself didn’t kill each other before it was over.



To be continued.