Naruto: The First Step- Chapter 27

By: MidatoUchiha

Summary: Uzumaki Naruto was hated by the villagers of Konohagakure no Sato because of what was sealed inside him. He dreamed to become Hokage and finally earn the respect of all the villagers. With friends by his side, life had never gotten way easier, for Naruto, of course.

Naruto screamed into the forest, "NO!" He ran deeper and deeper into the woods. He didn't know where he was nor where he was going, he just knew that he had to get away from the house as far as he can. He had been running at full speed for quite a while now and he was starting to become fatigued. Even Kakashi's rigorous training was nothing compared to what he was doing.

But he kept running because the visions haunted him. What did it mean? Was that going to be his future? Was he going to be a monster eventually? He never wanted those to happen, he swears. He was going to die before that happened.

Unfortunately, the Kyuubi wasn't helping matters. 'Yes, you will become a monster. You already are one, remember? I'm inside you, after all, and I can possess you anytime.'

Naruto shook his head furiously and ran straight towards a tree, hitting the bark with his fist which was glowing with his chakra. The tree gave a sickening crunch, Naruto's arm embedded deeply into the trunk. He removed his arm and found a gaping hole on the trunk where his fist delved into. He was panting with anger- anger at himself and the Kyuubi. "I will never let you possess me, you demon, even if it's the last thing I do!" he screamed himself hoarse.

Suddenly feeling drained- which he probably was with all the sprinting- he collapsed to his knees and hunched over, his hands clutching the grass on the ground. His right hand, he noticed, which punched the tree was bleeding. The skin was torn and raw, his blood gushing freely from it. He didn't worry, though. It was going to heal anyway. It was one thing the Kyuubi was useful for.

'How dare you think I am a slave of yours? I am more powerful than you, boy! Mark my words, I will make you beg for mercy one day!' Kyuubi snarled inside him.

Naruto chuckled humorlessly. "Whatever you say. However, I promise that I will tame you. I promise on my own life that, one day, you will learn to heed my every command and become nothing more than a pet to me," he retaliated maliciously.

The Kyuubi inside him roared him anger as he closed off their connection. Sighing, he collapsed on his back and closed his eyes. He tried to regain his breathing. As he was beginning to settle down, he heard a crunch beside him. His head turned towards the noise and found Jiraiya standing beside him, his arms crossed. He had an indiscernible look on his face as he regarded Naruto. His eyes shifted to the boy's right hand which was bleeding, his blood creating a small pool around it. The grass had turned red with his blood.

Jiraiya sighed. "I need to talk to you."

Sighing as well, Naruto sat up. "You don't need to say anything. I know I'm a demon, okay?"

Jiraiya bent down and put his hand on the boy's shoulder. "No, that wasn't what I was going to say."

Naruto regarded him with a confused expression. "What is it, then? Why are you here anyway? How did you find me?"

Jiraiya ignored his questions and sat beside him. He entwined his fingers together and took a deep breath. "Naruto, do you know why the Kyuubi is inside you? Have you ever wondered how he was sealed in your body?"

Naruto's eyes widened in surprise. Out of all the things Jiraiya could talk about, he chose this. But Naruto thought about his question and he knew he hadn't wondered about it- which was surprising in the least. He was a curious boy. He shrugged. "No, I guess. Besides, I just found out. I never really stopped to think about him."

Jiraiya nodded, accepting his answer. "I know it's a lot to take it... and I'm afraid what I am going to reveal to you will only add to your worries.

"What I'm about to tell you is about the secret that the Sandaime intends to hide. Now, I know the old man only wants your best interests at heart, but he hasn't been completely honest to you. Granted, he would have told you had you asked but it was his responsibility to let you know.

"Now, you will understand why the Sandaime passed on the law to never talk about what happened fourteen years ago. You do know what happened during that time, right?"

Naruto nodded. "It was the day the Kyuubi attacked the village."

Jiraiya smiled sadly at that. "A lot of people died that day- including the Yondaime and his wife.

"You are probably wondering, why did the Kyuubi attack Konoha- out of all the villages out there? Why Konoha? Well, it was because of the Yondaime's wife- Uzumaki Kushina.

"Born into the famed Uzumaki clan of Uzushiogakure, Kushina lived most of her youth being caught up in war, making her seek for a daily peace. At a young age she was sent to Konoha and enrolled in the Academy. Wanting to make a strong first impression, she proclaimed to her class that she would be the first female Hokage. The other kids laughed at her statement, and began calling her Tomato because of her then-round face and fiery red hair. This prompted her to lash out and pummel the kids who teased her. This, in addition to her red hair flying wildly around her as she did so, earned her the nickname of Red Hot-Blooded Habanero.

"Kushina was eventually told why she had to leave her home of Uzushio and go to Konoha; because of her special chakra, she was to be the next Jinchuriki of the Nine-Tailed Demon was terrified by the idea, but she was comforted by the Nine-Tails' then-current jinchūriki, Uzumaki Mito. Before the transfer was performed, Mito advised Kushina that love was the only way to tame the Kyuubi and overcome its hate.

"When she was around twelve years old, Kushina — now a Genin— was kidnapped by Kumogakure who wanted to make use of her special chakra in order to gain control of the they escorted her to Kumo, she secretly plucked and left behind strands of her red hair to mark her trail in the hopes that someone would find her. Namikaze Minato, one of her former classmates that Kushina believed to be a wimp, was the only one to pick up on this. After rescuing her, he informed her that he had always admired her red hair. Since Minato proved himself to be anything but, accepted her, and liked the one thing she hated about herself, Kushina fell in love with him, now considering her red hair as the red thread of fate that had brought them together. Ultimately, Minato's reciprocated feelings helped her with overcoming the Kyuubi.

Jiraiya paused and smiled at Naruto. "At some point, Kushina married Minato. She was later present to witness her husband's reign as Fourth Hokage, being very excited for him when first learning of it. During her ten-month Jinchuriki-influenced pregnancy, she was secretly kept guarded by Minato's top student, Kakashi, under Minato's through the pregnancy, the expecting parents decided to name their unborn child..." Jiraiya trailed off, his eyes glistening with tears. "N... Naruto after the main character of my first book."

Naruto gasped, his eyes welling up in tears as well. "M-My..."

Jiraiya sighed shakily. "Yes. You are the Yondaime's son... and my godson." Naruto sobbed and threw himself on Jiraiya, his arms wrapping around the man's neck and wept. Jiraiya sobbed as well as he engulfed the boy in a big hug. They stayed that way for a while, no words were needed.

Finally, Naruto pulled away and wiped the tears from his eyes. He grinned cheekily. "No wonder I admired him so much. He was my father."

Jiraiya laughed through his tears. "Yeah. Your father was amazing."

Naruto frowned then. "But... there's more to that story, right?"

Jiraiya sobered up and sighed. "Yes."

As they walked towards Tazuna's home, Naruto learned a lot about himself that he never knew before- like how he came from two powerful clans: Uzumaki and Namikaze. His heart was filled with warmth as he thought about his parents. He smiled. 'I'm a Namikaze... I'm the Yondaime's son,' he thought.

Jiraiya noticed his smile and smiled in return. "What's got you in such a good mood?" he asked.

Naruto laughed. "Why wouldn't I be in a good mood when I'm the Yondaime's son? I'm the son of someone I admire."

Jiraiya laughed in return. "I hope your head doesn't inflate. But, yes... you are Minato's son."

Naruto then frowned in thought. Jiraiya saw this. "What is it?"

"But... why me?" Naruto asked, looking into Jiraiya's eyes with a pained expression.

"Why what?"

"Why did he put the Kyuubi in me? His own son? Do you know how much pain I went through because of it? How I was treated as an outcast growing up? And what's worse, the demon sealed inside me is the reason why I don't have a family!" Naruto cried, tears streaming down his cheeks.

Jiraiya bent down and grabbed both his shoulders to look at him straight in the eyes. "Naruto... listen to me. Your father loved you, okay? It pained him to seal the demon inside his own son. He knew the consequences of his actions. He had no choice. He couldn't just find a random baby to seal the demon in because no one can handle the Kyuubi. Only Uzumaki's can do it. And besides, you're his son- you're the son of Namikaze Minato and Uzumaki Kushina. If you're anything like your parents, you can handle the burden. But that doesn't make it any easier for him to put a big burden on his son who was still a baby. You have to understand that, Naruto."

Naruto nodded, wiping away his tears. "Arigato."

Jiraiya smiled at him. "And besides... I'm here now. I'll stand as a surrogate father for you. Granted, I can't replace your parents but I will be here to support you always."

Naruto laughed. "You sure you're up for the job?"

Jiraiya mock glared at him and slapped the back of his head. "Hey, I'm not that old yet, okay?!"

They both laughed.

Sakura was pacing a hole on the floor as they lay await for Naruto's return.

"Where could he be? Why did he just take off like that without even saying something to us? Oh... that baka. If I see him, I'm going to rip his head off!" Sakura raved at Sasuke who was sitting on the couch in front of her.

Sasuke rolled his eyes. "He'll be fine. I'm sure he's just out exercising or training with Jiraiya-sama."

Sakura glared at him, infuriated at his indifference. "Where's Kakashi-sensei, anyway?"

Sasuke merely shrugged. Sakura sighed in exasperation and continued to pace.

"Will you stop doing that? It gets on my nerves. I'm telling you, he's fine!" Sasuke groaned.

Sakura rounded on him again. "Well, I'm sorry for trying to look out for Naruto! If anything, you're his best friend and you don't even look like you care about him!"

Sasuke glared at her. "Right. I'm his best friend. So don't tell me that I don't care... I do! And I'm telling you, he's fine. As his best friend, I should know that!"

Sakura huffed in annoyance and turned away from him. Fortunately, they were saved from the growing tension by Kakashi who entered the room. Sakura rounded on him.

"Did you find him, sensei?" Sakura asked.

Kakashi shook his head and held up a small piece of paper. "No, but Jiraiya-sama did. They're on their way here now."

Sakura sighed in acceptance and managed to calm down. Sasuke rolled his eyes at her and stood up. "I'm getting restless. I'll just be outside."

Sakura blocked his path. "You're not even going to wait for your best friend?" she asked in surprise.

Sasuke scoffed. "I told you, he's fine. So stop nagging. You're not his mother."

Sakura gaped indignantly at him as he brushed past her. Just as she was about turn around and hit him, Naruto and Jiraiya walked in from the backdoor. They all stood in silence for a while... until Sakura looked down at Naruto's right hand and gasped. Naruto looked down on his hand and tried to hide it behind him while grinning sheepishly at her. "I'm fine, Sakura-chan. Really!" he tried assured to her.

Sakura shook her head and gestured to him to come closer to her. When he did, she sat them both on the couch. She merely held out her hand while she gave him a look that brooked no arguments. He sighed in defeat and gingerly brought out his hand to rest on her outstretched one. She examined the hand carefully. It was caked with blood flowing from his knuckles to the floor. His skin was thinned out and bruised on the surrounding area, his bones protruding from it. His fingers were also swelling. Sakura winced at the depth of his wound. She shook his head disapprovingly at him and brought her other hand to hover above his by a few inches. Her hand glowed green with her healing technique.

All this happened in silence as the other occupants in the room experienced the exchange. Jiraiya and Kakashi smiled at the scene, reminding them both of Minato and Kushina, Naruto's parents. Sasuke, on the other hand, merely raised his eyebrow.

Without looking up from her task, she asked, "Can anyone of you get me some bandages, please?"

Noticing the underlying message in her tone, the men glanced towards each other and nodded. Sasuke said, "I'm on it." And with that, he was the first to exit the room, followed by Kakashi then Jiraiya.

Silence ensued for a few moments until Sakura, still without looking up from his hand, said, "What happened?"

Naruto sighed and ran his other hand through his hair, saying, "It's... complicated. I don't know how to explain it to you."

"You don't know how or you won't?"

"Sakura-chan..."

She looked up at him with teary eyes though she glared at him. "I think I deserve an explanation, Naruto."

Naruto sighed. "I... I can't..."

Sakura turned her attention to his hand again. Naruto glanced at her uneasily, her silence unnerving him. He hated it when she's like this- she's barely holding her temper in. He especially hated it when he was the reason she was like this. He desperately wanted to tell her about his predicament but he couldn't have her carry the burden of knowing that she was the friend of a demon. He was afraid...

"Do you think I'm stupid?" she asked, snapping him out of his thoughts.

Her question caught him off guard. "What?! Of course not, Sakura-chan! You're the smartest girl I know!"

"Then tell me what's wrong because I know something's wrong!" she asked, looking up to glare at him again, though this time, her tears had fallen. She hated crying... but he was being so stubborn she can't stand it!

Naruto looked at her with wide eyes. Her angry tears streamed freely down her flushed cheeks. She was panting heavily as well. Well, he's in for it now.

"Do you have any idea how I felt when I woke up and couldn't find you anywhere? Do you have any idea how afraid I was when I found out none of the people here knew where you were, where you've gone, or what might've happened to you?!" Sakura started to rant.

"I wait here, sick with worry while I pace a hole on the floor and almost kill Sasuke because he seems so sure you're fine and I shouldn't have to worry so much... but how could I not?! You left without a trace! Then you come back here, acting as if you've only had a walk in the woods and nothing is wrong! I always worry about you and with you acting like that makes me feel like you don't care that I care-"

She was cut off by a pair of lips on hers and hands cupping her both her cheeks. It took her a second to register that Naruto had kissed her. She closed her eyes and gripped the front of his black shirt to pull him closer and keep him their whilst she deepens the kiss. She kisses him deeply though with anger as if to remind him that she was still furious with him. He doesn't mind, though. All he thought was, 'Wow, I'm finally kissing Sakura-chan!'

He wrapped his arms around her waist to pull her closer to him and Sakura let herself be pulled, straddling him on the couch. She gripped his shirt tighter, almost ripping it off. Their kiss deepened still, if it was even possible. They kissed each other longingly and desperately, as if trying to convey all their feelings in one kiss. Understandable, when they'd experienced a few years of repressed feelings. Their bodies were pressed up against one another, creating a delicious friction.

They kissed like that for a while until a cough broke them apart. When they looked at the intruder, they saw Sasuke standing on the doorway with crossed arms and a smirk on his face. On his right hand was a white bundle of bandages.

Sakura glared at him for a moment before slowly and hesitantly extricating herself from Naruto's embrace. Sasuke looked over them. Their lips were swollen and a bit bruised, their clothes were dishevelled, and Naruto's hair was sticking up more than usual.

He tossed the bandages to Naruto who deftly caught them mid-air with his left hand.

"You might want to clean up a bit. We'll be waiting for you two outside so we can start training. And no more funny business!" he said as he walked out.

Fortunately for him, he had already walked out the backdoor when Sakura's sandal hit it instead of his head.

When both had went out to meet their waiting team, they were holding hands, clearly signifying a change in their relationship.

Jiraiya and Kakashi had knowing smiles on their faces, both thinking the same thing, 'It's like Minato and Kushina again.'

Sasuke merely raised an eyebrow at them. But when they approached the trio, Sasuke rolled his eyes, saying, "It's about time, you two."

Sakura had a smug smile on her face while Naruto blushed and rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. He was pretty much new to this kind of thing, growing up the way he did. He was going to have to talk with Jiraiya about this.

Jiraiya clapped his hands jovially. "Well, then... if you mind letting go of each other's hands, we need to get on with the training."

This time, Sakura blushed along with Naruto then both reluctantly stepped away from each other, letting go of their hands. Naruto walked over to Jiraiya.

"Now, are their any questions before we begin?" Kakashi asked.

"Ano... sensei?" Sasuke spoke up.

"What is it, Sasuke?"

"Is it necessary for Naruto to train apart from us?"

Jiraiya and Kakashi tensed. 'Damn, that kid's good,' Jiraiya thought.

Sighing, Jiraiya spoke up. "Okay... you know I'm here to aid Kakashi in training you, but... the that's only half of the truth. The Sandaime sent me here for another task."

Naruto's curiosity was peaked. "What? There's more you're not telling me?"

Sasuke and Sakura turned to him, puzzled expressions on their faces. "When did you get the time to talk?" Sakura asked, her words laced with blatant curiosity and accusation.

"Uh... early this morning."

Sakura's eyes narrowed and she looked at the people around her before her eyes rested on Jiraiya's tense form. "What's going on? What aren't you telling us? You know, I haven't voiced it out loud but I knew something was off about you. You came out of nowhere, traipsing into our lives and claim you want to train us but I can see you're more interested in Naruto. Not that I'm jealous of the attention he receives or anything but I can't help but become suspicious of your intentions and your apparent interest in my boyfriend,"- at this, Naruto blushed- "So forgive me for being too overprotective or overbearing of Naruto because I want answers. Right here, right now."

At this, Sasuke nodded in agreement, his arms crossed.

Jiraya replied, trying to placate the irate kunoichi, "It wasn't my right to tell you... not until I told Naruto first. And you're right. He's the reason I'm here but I bear no ill will, you have to understand that. Now, unless Naruto gives me permission to divulge everything I know about his past, I'm afraid I'm going to have to keep my lips sealed."

Sakura turned to give Naruto a piercing look. The blond sighed in defeat. "Well, what do you want to know?"

"How about everything?" Sasuke asked, crossing his arms.

Naruto turned to Jiraiya and nodded. Jiraiya sighed in defeat. "Alright. First, do you both know why Naruto is considered an outcast to the village?"

"It was because the Kyuubi is sealed inside him," Sasuke replied.

Sakura's eyes widened. "How did you know?"

"He told me before we entered the Academy. How about you? You look like you know as well. How did you find out?"

Sakura blushed. "Well... I followed him after training on our first day with Kakashi-sensei and found two villagers beating him up, saying he was the Kyuubi and all that. I took him to my mother where he spent the night at my house."

Sasuke smirked as he looked at Naruto and Sakura blushing.

"Right... but you didn't know straight away about him, didn't you?" Jiraiya asked.

Both Genins shook their heads.

Kakashi joined in the conversation. "The Sandaime passed down a law not to discuss the Kyuubi no Yoko but that didn't change the fact that they know he is sealed inside Naruto which caused the villagers to despise him."

Sakura huffed, annoyed. "That might be so but why hate Naruto himself? It wasn't his fault the Kyuubi is sealed inside him. He's as much a victim as any of us."

Sasuke shook his head. "Their beloved Yondaime died to seal the Kyuubi inside Naruto so they chose to blame him when he hasn't done anything wrong and was still a baby when that happened. They needed someone to blame. Hypocrites. He should've been treated as a hero for containing a demon capable of destroying the whole world, protecting all of us."

"Yes, but... I don't understand. Why Naruto? Why would the Yondaime seal the Kyuubi inside Naruto and not in another baby or even a shinobi? What made the Yondaime choose Naruto out of all people?"

"Because who better to entrust the Kyuubi to than his own son?" Naruto said, avoiding eye contact with them.

Sasuke and Sakura gaped at him. Naruto merely nodded. "Yes, I'm the Yondaime's son."

"B-But... why his own son? That doesn't make any sense!" Sakura stammered, confused.

"Just like Naruto said, it was better to seal it in his own son because it was a hard but easy decision. Put yourself in his shoes. If you were the leader of a village and you had to make that kind of decision, would you choose to seal it in another kid? Your job is to protect your village. No matter how much it hurts you to know that you seal a demon in your own child and deprive him of a normal life, he couldn't do that to another kid. But what makes it better is the knowledge that you wouldn't trust this burden to anyone else than your own offspring, one you could trust just by being his parents' son," Kakashi explained.

Jiraiya went on to repeat what he said to Naruto in the woods earlier. "... and that's why the Sandaime sent me here to help Naruto control the Kyuubi."

Said demon scoffed in Naruto's head. "I'd like to see you try."

Naruto rebutted smugly, "Big talk coming from someone who was passed down from vessel after vessel in a clan. If my mother's clan can do it, I can as well. After all, I have the genes to do it."

The Kyuubi growled profanities at him causing Naruto to smirk.

"What are you smiling, Naruto?" Sakura asked him, puzzled.

Jiraiya gave him a knowing look and he merely shrugged. "Kyuubi's not happy with what's about to happen."

"That's the understatement of the century... I'm pissed."

Sakura and Sasuke gaped openly at him. "You can communicate with the Kyuubi?!" Sasuke asked.

Naruto nodded. "I accidentally accessed him in my mind when I got injured days ago. Now, we can communicate in my mind."

"What is he like?" Sakura asked, genuinely curious.

Naruto laughed. "He's a real pan in the ass. He makes threats a lot but unless he manages to find a way to escape from his cage, he's all bark, no bite."

The Kyuubi snarled at him. "Someday, boy..."

Sakura raised an eyebrow. "Cage?"

"The seal resembles a huge cage in a sewer. Why it looks like that, I have no idea."

Jiraiya nodded. "Now, let's get on with training, shall we?"

Sasuke cut him off. "Ano... Jiraiya-sama? How do you hope to help Naruto train the Kyuubi?"

"Why so curious, Sasuke?"

"Because I want to help him."

Sakura nodded. "I want to as well... after all, he's my boyfriend now."

Jiraiya smiled at them. "Naruto is so lucky to have you as his friends. As expected from the fathers' children, though."

Naruto turned his head in confusion. "What?"

Kakashi chuckled. "Fun fact... your fathers also were best of friends."

"What?!" the three exclaimed.

Jiraiya nodded. "Namikaze Minato, Uchiha Fugaku, and Haruno Kizashi. They were so close, they were practically attached to the hip since they were still in the academy. But Kizashi, Sakura's father, wasn't able to pass the Chuunin exams so he became a merchant instead and met Mebuki, Sakura's mother. When they got married, your mothers became close friends as well. In fact, Mebuki and Kushina, Naruto's mother, wanted Sakura and Naruto together when they found out they were pregnant with you. Misato, Sasuke's mother, just wanted Sasuke and Naruto as best friends."

Kakashi nodded solemnly. "Sasuke's and Sakura's parents were devastated when Minato and Kushina died. The Uchiha's were supposed to take you in, Naruto, but they had problems of their own within the clan. The Haruno's would also have gladly taken you in but the Hokage advised them not to so that the villagers won't turn on them for taking you in. The Sandaime wanted you under his wing as well but he feared that it would start a civil war."

Jiraiya looked at Naruto with an apologetic expression. "I wanted to take you but I was outside of Konoha most of the time. I've been doing important stuff. I'm sorry I wasn't there for you, Naruto."

"It's alright. You're here now. That's what matters."

"Arigato, Naruto. You really are your mother's son."

"Minato-sensei will be proud," Kakashi cut in.

Sakura rounded on him. "You were the student of the Yondaime?!"

"Yes, along with a girl named Rin and Uchiha Obito. He was the one who gave me my Sharingan."

Sasuke's eyes widened. "Why would he do that?"

Kakashi sighed. "When we were on a dangerous mission... my first as a Jounin but I got hurt and my left eye was slashed, hence my scar. Because of that, Obito managed to activate his Sharingan, already with two tomoes. He died but before that, he gave me the Sharingan from his left eye."

"What about your other teammate?" Sakura asked.

"She died as well," Kakashi said quietly, clearly not wanting to talk more about the subject.

Jiraiya clapped his hands a little to enthusiastically, much to Kakashi's relief. "Alright! I think that's enough talk for now. Let's go train, shall we?"