Disclaimer: Once again, I do not own the characters of Naruto. Enough of this, you know what you came for. Let us continue this ongoing story…
Kyubi UnleashedBy DigiScanner-Shonen
Chapter 10: Bonds"Look at the size of that thing!"
"Sssh! Keep quiet!"
"Sorry, commander."
Three of Tsunade's bodyguards, who had escorted her to the Kage Council, were sent to check on the progress of the monster that originated from the Cloud Country. It had only appeared a few days ago, but it was already at the gate of the Leaf Country.
"I don't believe it! I didn't think there'd be another one of those things!" the other shinobi said.
"There are a bunch of those things out there. Kyubi was one, this is just another," the commander said.
"How many are out there?"
"Last I checked there were hundreds…"
"Hundreds!?"
"Ssssh!! Moron!" the second bodyguard told the first.
"Jeez…hundreds…if they ever decided to come together, we're screwed…"
"That's why some of them have been tamed," the commander told his subordinates.
"Tamed?" the second shinobi asked.
"Some of the monsters have been tamed to serve the ninja throughout the world. Such as Gama-Bunta, Jiraiya-sama's summoning partner, or Kyubi, in the case of our blonde-headed moron of a ninja, Uzumaki. The monsters can be helpful against opponents of powerful caliber or against other monsters. Only powerful shinobi like Jiraiya-sama and Hokage-sama can maintain control over them, however."
"Wow…"
"Isn't that what Hokage-sama told the Kage Council?" the first shinobi asked.
"Yes," the commander told them, "That's why we're out here at the border, checking on the monster's progress. We need to determine how close it is to Konohagakure and how much time Hokage-sama needs to unleash Kyubi."
"Judging from where it is, sir," the second ninja said, looking out from the tree where they were perched, "I think it'll take about a day."
"I suggest we head back to record the progress, sir," the first suggested.
"No, not yet. We also need to see what it can do."
"Are you sure?"
"We'll see what happens when it reaches the borderline…"
The monstrosity had just come up to a giant wall with watchtowers every sixty feet, the borderline of the Leaf Country. Around it were many ninjas, who had spotted the monster and were preparing for combat. One of them, possibly the captain of the station, shouted out some orders and about twenty shinobi guards rushed out toward the monster. They weren't fifteen yards away when the monster seemed to draw in its breath and then let out a loud noise directed at the ninja. All twenty were sent reeling back into the border's wall. Hard.
"It can do that?" the first shinobi bodyguard asked.
"I don't think that's all," the commander said as he held up his hand to keep the ninja quiet.
The captain of the station called out something else and about sixty shinobi took out weapons from wherever they had hidden them on their bodies and fired them at the monster, just one hundred yards from the borderline. The weapons hit, but it didn't even begin to faze the monster. It crouched down and then leapt toward the ninja with great speed. Before anyone could blink, it was just several feet from the border and shinobi everywhere were either being beaten from the monster, running from their posts or seized in a state of fear.
Several of the ninja who had not been hurt by the monster yet had taken to the top of the watchtowers and aimed several cannons mounted just on the roof towards the beast. They fired their ammunition at it, but it avoided all the shots before baring its teeth and crunching on the towers, one by one.
"Oh Lord…" the commander gasped.
The monster finished snacking on the towers and began to demolish the entire wall with its claws. A few minutes later and there was a gigantic hole in the border to the Leaf Country. All shinobi were dead, evacuated or sending out an emergency call to Konohagakure.
"Should we go now?" the first shinobi asked in a terrified tone.
"I actually agree, sir. We should go now before…" the second started, but never got to finish. The monster's ears had perked and it faced the direction of the hidden shinobi.
It had spotted them.
"Oh…shit…"
"P-permission t-to run, s-sir?" the first shinobi asked.
"Permission granted! RUN!!"
The three of them darted off like thieves in the night, fleeing for their very lives. The monster was tracking their every move, enjoying the hunt for prey. Keeping their eyes focused on the path to take, the shinobi bodyguards could still hear the sound of the monster coming ever closer to them. The farther they ran, the closer the monster got. Until suddenly, the sound stopped altogether.
Nervous, the shinobi quickly looked back to see if it was still there. Their hearts pounding, they looked upon empty space, ruined by the tracks of the monster. Trees toppled, earth turned up, and just a hint of large tracks made by the beast. The three of them looked uncertainly at each other, then seemed to breathe a small sigh of relief. They turned to face forward and continue their journey…
And the last thing they saw was a giant rim of teeth chomp down on them.
Hold on, Sakura-chan…
"Can't you move any faster?!"
"We're trying, Naruto."
"Well, put the lead out!! We have no time for dilly-dallying!!"
Uzumaki Naruto, Haruno Sakura, Hyuuga Hinata, Aburame Shino, Temari and Gaara were leaping through Konohagakure, searching for the recently selected Hokage. Naruto carried a bleeding Sakura on his back while Temari managed to keep Gaara a little on her back. They were retreating from the showdown that had taken place between Naruto, Gaara and the sole survivor of the terrible Uchiha clan massacre, Uchiha Sasuke. The battle had ended as a power-mad Sasuke impaled Sakura as she tried to calm Naruto who had let the fox spirit inside take over him. Sakura was bleeding to death and the only one who could possibly save her was Tsunade, the new Hokage.
Naruto couldn't understand what Sasuke meant by someone lying to him. He had concluded that Sasuke was probably breaking down after seeing his comrade most certainly killed by his own hand. But, he wasn't going to forgive Sasuke that easily for doing what he did. How could he kill someone who cared about him a great deal?
If she dies, Sasuke, I will make your life a living hell. I swear it, Naruto thought as they continued to search the village. He'd worry about Sasuke later; right now Sakura was the important thing. She meant everything to him and to lose her would be losing a big part of himself. Please hold on, Sakura-chan. I'll find Tsunade for you. You'll be okay, I promise. Just stay with me for now. If only I knew where she'd be right now! She's a medical ninja, stuff like this is her…that's it!!
"Shino!!" Naruto called back.
"Yeah?" the boy from clan Aburame asked.
"You told me that Kiba was hospitalised when Sasuke attacked him yesterday, right!?"
"Yeah…"
"Tsunade could be at the hospital! She's a special medical ninja! She's bound to be there!"
"No, she wouldn't!"
"What!?" Naruto demanded.
"She left for a conference a few days ago! Something about a monster from the Cloud Country…"
So that's why the stupid fox was so uptight lately! It must've sensed the monster! Naruto thought. "Did she say when she'd be back?"
"Well, I think she'd be back today."
"H-how do you know this, Shino-kun?" Hinata asked.
"My dad's kind of a link in running the village. Plus we're the bug-using clan, remember? It's not our fault if an insect overhears a conversation and happens to buzz to one of us and tell us the conversation…"
"Is your father a politician or an eavesdropper?!" Temari asked.
"Both. Hold on a sec…" Shino said as he darted his head to the side and saw an insect buzz past.
"Forget it, Shino! We have to find old hag Tsunade! Now!!" Naruto called back.
"Give me five seconds with this one…"
"We have no time, Aburame!!"
"N-Naruto-kun…" Hinata began.
"What, Hinata!?" Naruto yelled as he turned to the Hyuuga heir, not knowing he had scared her with his angry face, "I've no time for this shit!!"
"S-Shino-kun can t-talk to bugs…"
"What's so important about that?" Temari asked.
"The b-bugs see a lot of th-things. Maybe it's s-seen Ho-Hokage-sama…"
A beam of hope shone into Naruto's clouded mind. Maybe it did see Tsunade and it'd be that much easier to find her. Or it didn't and they'd be wasting time. Naruto would take anything he could get if it meant helping his Sakura-chan.
"Well, well?! Did it see Tsunade or not!?" Naruto asked impatiently.
"Yeah! She's at the Konoha Archives!"
"Let's move!!" Naruto screamed as the group about faced and headed in the direction of the archives. Just a little further, just a little longer. Please hear me, Sakura-chan. Don't you dare leave me yet! Keep holding on! Just keep holding on to me and what we have together! Stay with me just a while longer.
I promise you'll be all right.
"What did it look like again, Takeshi?"
"It was a small red scroll, Tsunade."
"There are a bunch of small red scrolls here! Don't you have more details?"
"No…"
The newest Hokage and one of her bodyguards/friends had been given access to the Konoha Archives' restricted section. They were searching for several scrolls, which would help them unleash and control the monster inside the boy Uzumaki Naruto, the nine-tailed fox monster known as Kyubi. Two of them they had found: the scroll to unseal the seal that imprisoned the monster and the other with a list of the ninja world's monsters. The scroll they were searching for now was something that could help them control Kyubi and make it fight for them against the coming monster.
With the third scroll, they were having no such luck as to even locating it.
"What technique is inside the scroll?" the Hokage asked.
"I remember it to be a kind of bondage technique. I've only seen it be done once, but even then its difficult."
"How does it work?"
"I can't quite remember that part, but I'll know it when I see it."
"Just let me know if you find it!" Tsunade said as she handed him a giant pile of small red scrolls and took a couple for herself, "Start reading!"
Takeshi and Tsunade began scrolling through the scrolls, looking for the technique Takeshi knew that could help them control Kyubi. There were tons of forbidden techniques that any shinobi from neighbouring countries would love to get their hands on, but none of them seemed to be the ones they needed.
"Chakra raiding…kamikaze attacks…mind invasion…" Takeshi read off of his scrolls.
"Transformations…spirit switches…armouring…" Tsunade read of off her scrolls.
"Wow, so many forbidden jutsus…Wait a second!"
"You found it?"
"Maybe…YES!! This is it!!"
"Let me take a look at that scroll, Takeshi," the Hokage said as her subordinate passed the scroll containing the technique. After looking over it, her eyes widened a bit, "This is…this was the jutsu?"
"Yes, Hokage-sama."
"When did you see it happen?"
"Out on a mission after Orochimaru's attack on the village. Our team was ambushed en route to the Earth Country and our leader used this attack on one of the enemies. After using it, he executed a number of other jutsus to cease the opponent's actions. We took him as a prisoner along on our mission until its unsuccessful end when both he and our commander were executed by one of the village leaders."
"Did he know how dangerous this technique is?" the Hokage inquired.
"I'm sure he did."
"This could work, but the consequences for Naruto could be dangerous…"
"It's this or we trust Kyubi to do our bidding willingly."
Tsunade knew the chances of that were slim to none.
"All right. I'll use this jutsu when I unleash Kyubi. It'll take me a while to memorise though…"
"TSUNADE!!!!" a voice suddenly cried out.
"What was that?!" Takeshi asked as he withdrew a kunai knife, prepared to defend his superior.
"Hey! You can't go in there!!" Tsunade heard several voices say as a few figures rushed forward from where they were standing towards the archive entrance.
"Get out of my way!!" the voice replied, "NOW!!"
"We can't let you through, Uzumaki. It's the rules."
"Screw the rules! I need to see Tsunade! It's life or death!! Now get out of the way!!"
"We can't let you in here, Uzumaki."
"Temari!!"
There was a large gust of wind from the front entrance as the figures guarding the archives were sent flying back and six Genin, four of Konohagakure and two of Sunagakure, flew through the library of scrolls calling for Tsunade. The Hokage and her bodyguard managed to stick their heads out of the restricted section and one of the Genin saw them and he called over the others.
"Tsunade!!" Naruto cried as he landed from a tall bookcase.
Naruto!! Tsunade thought, Perfect timing, kid! I thought we'd have to scourge the village for you.
"That's Hokage to you, Uzumaki," Tsunade said as she looked around at the junior shinobi, most promptly noticing Gaara and Temari, "What are those two doing here?"
"Never mind that! You've got to help Sakura-chan!!" Naruto said as he lifted Haruno Sakura off his back, showing her to the Hokage, "She's bleeding bad! You've got to save her!!"
Tsunade bent down and examined Sakura. Her expression went from concern to fear.
"She's lost a lot of blood. My medical jutsus won't be enough. We have to get her into the hospital."
"Then let's move!!" Naruto said as he took Sakura back onto his back and the ninjas moved to leave, "I can't let her die! I won't!!"
"Takeshi! Gather the scrolls and meet me in Konoha Hospital at eleven o'clock," the Hokage instructed.
"Yes, Hokage-sama," he replied.
"Let's go!!"
With that, the six Genin and the Hokage were off with great speed to the hospital to save the life of Uzumaki Naruto's girlfriend.
"I hate it…the waiting…"
Naruto and the others were sitting outside, waiting as Tsunade checked on Sakura. Gaara had regained consciousness; so Shusaku no longer tried to break out, Hinata fiddled with her fingers, Temari stared at the door, Shino had gone to get a drink of water and Naruto sat on the edge, tapping his feet impatiently, praying that Sakura would be okay.
"We all hate it, Naruto," Temari said.
"S-Sakura-chan w-will be all right. Y-you'll s-see…" Hinata tried to comfort Naruto, but she didn't have a lot of hope in her voice.
"I just wish Tsunade would get out of there and tell me if she's alright," Naruto growled, "What's taking her so long? I can't bear being out here waiting for her verdict."
"She'll be fine, Naruto," Temari told him, "She'll be fine."
"Yeah, in your opinion, maybe…I just wish they'd hurry this up…"
"Naruto…" Gaara began.
"Hmm?"
"She's precious to you, isn't she?"
"…yeah…"
"Tell me…how did she become this way to you?"
Naruto paused and closed his eyes. Leaning his head back against the wall, he seemed to be remembering something.
"It was when we were seven, just starting Ninja Academy. I didn't have anybody to care for me back then, so I became class clown, trying to win people's attention. We were practising a new jutsu that Iruka-sensei had demonstrated in the classroom," Naruto told them, "Naturally, I blew at it, just trying to get a laugh. Then, I tried it for real. It blew up in my face. I tried again and again to get it right, but it wouldn't work. They kept laughing at me, but I didn't want them to. I ran out of the room and sat in the hallway, crying my heart out and hoping no one could hear me."
"Naruto-kun…" Hinata sympathised. As she said this, Shino returned from his drink and said down with the others.
"It was a few minutes later that she came. She sat down beside and asked me what was wrong. I told her I was a screw-up and could never get anything right," Naruto's voice began to crack, "I told her it only got worse because I didn't have anyone, no parents or friends to help me along. That all I was doing was for attention because I was so lonely. People all throughout Konohagakure hated me and I didn't know why, even the kids. I thought maybe I could win the other kids over by being the clown and maybe they'd tell the adults and I'd finally get some respect or attention…"
"Then, she told me that she'd be my friend. She said I didn't have to be a clown to gain her attention, respect or friendship. She was wearing a flower in her hair that day. It was a special cherry blossom that grew only that time of year. She gave it to me as a token of friendship. Then, she went back inside and told me to come back in when I felt like it. I was so happy…I finally had a friend…"
Naruto began to cry a little as he told them his story. Hinata started to reach out to touch his shoulder, but then thought she'd best leave him be.
"As we grew up together, I felt something stir in my heart. It got stronger over the many days and months. It was love, I'm sure of it. I realised that I loved Sakura. Since we've become Team 7, I've always wanted her to feel about me the same way I feel about her. And just a couple days ago we've gotten together. Having her with me is almost better than being Hokage…"
Naruto cried openly now, with his sobs and sorrows loud enough for all to hear. "She's being taken away from me because I didn't listen to her about Sasuke. I don't want her to leave! She's everything to me! I can't let her go! I won't!!"
"…you told me once…" Gaara whispered.
"Naruto said what?" Temari asked.
"You told me that those important to you acknowledged your existence and saved you from the hell of being alone. Since you don't have any parents…and Sakura was your first friend…I can understand you, Uzumaki Naruto. I feel the same way about Temari and Kankuro."
"Y-you do!?"
"Since that day…"
Before Gaara could finish, Tsunade came through the doors and the young shinobi gathered around her. Naruto almost totally forgot about crying for Sakura as the Hokage emerged from the examination room.
"Well?!! Is she…gonna be okay?!" Naruto grabbed Tsunade and looked directly in her eyes, hoping for some sign of Sakura's well being. He searched and searched Tsunade's eyes…
…and found none.
"She's lost a lot of blood…" Tsunade started.
"No…" Naruto cried.
"I've done all I can do. The wound's too deep for my medical jutsu…"
"This isn't happening…"
"I'm so sorry, Naruto…" Tsunade tried to put her hand on Naruto's shoulder, but he slapped it away with his own and looked down at the ground. His tears fell upon the ground, staining the floor. The group tried to fight back their own tears, but found they couldn't and let their tears join Naruto's.
"…she's leaving me…"
"Hokage-sama!!" a voice called from across the hall. A figure dashed up to the small group, now disheartened from losing a friend, "Tsunade!!"
"Takeshi…what is it?"
"I've received word from the…what happened? What's wrong?"
"My girlfriend is…" Naruto sobbed, "She's not going to make it…"
"…I'm so sorry," Takeshi began, but suddenly remembered, "Hold on! There might be a way to save her!"
"WHAT!?"
"Tsunade, remember the scrolls we found?"
"Yes, what about them?" the Hokage questioned.
"Remember that forbidden technique we found?"
"Yes…"
"We can use it to revive the girl!"
"You can?" Tsunade asked, but suddenly caught on to what Takeshi was saying, "…oh. I see!"
"What? What? Can you save Sakura-chan?" Naruto inquired.
"I think we might be able to, Naruto. Give me the scroll, Takeshi. I need to look it over again," Tsunade took the scroll from her bodyguard and reread the jutsu, "Yes, yes. I see where you're going with this. But we'll need someone who's a fast healer. With my regeneration jutsu, I should be able to…"
"Give me that!!" Naruto grabbed the scroll from Tsunade and read it over, "…yeah, yeah…that seal and that one…jutsu name…okay!!"
Naruto threw down the scroll and ran into the examination room.
"Naruto-kun!!" Hinata called out, "What are you doing!?"
"Get back here, Naruto!!" Tsunade yelled as the shinobi dashed into the examination room and saw Naruto standing over Sakura on an operating table, performing hand seals, "Naruto, wait!! You don't know what'll happen if you use it!!"
"Bondage!!" Naruto shouted as he placed his right hand on Sakura's chest, they both glew white and a flow of chakra was exchanged between the two. The exchange was quickly over and Naruto began to choke. Reaching with his left hand for his chest to try and stop it, he coughed up blood and collapsed on the floor.
"Naruto-kun!!" Hinata screamed in horror.
"Naruto!!" Tsunade screamed as she went to check on him. She checked his pulse, felt the coldness of his face and opened his jacket and lifted his shirt to see if his heart was still beating. She was shocked at what she saw in his chest area. In the same place with the same wound Haruno Sakura had, Uzumaki Naruto now shared with her, "He has the same wound as Sakura! He's bleeding to death!!"
"No!! Naruto-kun!!"
"Why would the idiot do something like that?" Shino asked.
"Didn't he read the fine print of the jutsu?" Temari asked.
Gaara simply looked at both Naruto and Sakura's bodies.
"N-now N-Naruto-kun's g-going t-to…" Hinata sobbed.
"Wait…" Gaara held up his hand to halt everyone. He came closer to Naruto's body, bent down and examined the area, "He's healing…"
"Wh-wh-what…!?"
"Uzumaki's doing what?!" Shino asked in disbelief.
"He's healing…" Tsunade repeated as she watched Naruto's wound slowly become healed up. Remembering the effects of the jutsu, Tsunade got up and went over to Sakura's body, still resting on the table. She noticed something about Sakura's wound, "She's healing too…"
"H-how is this…?" Temari questioned.
Kyubi! Tsunade thought as she looked back at Naruto on the floor, I should've known! Jiraiya once told me that whenever Naruto would become injured, Kyubi's powers would allow Naruto to heal quickly. He's doing that now! He must've known something like this was happening and when he read the technique…you idiot! You knew this would happen, didn't you?
Naruto's wound was completely healed and in a moment, he stirred from the floor and opened his eyes.
"Did it…did it work?" Naruto asked. He didn't wait for an answer as he picked himself up off the ground and went over to Sakura, "Sakura-chan…?"
Sakura slowly opened her eyes, looking around at everyone who was in disbelief in her return from the dead.
"N-Naruto-kun…"
"H-hey…" Naruto whimpered. He was so happy to see her alive in well. His gamble paid off. He took a hold of Sakura and pulled her into a hug, letting some tears of happiness escape, "I thought you were…"
"I thought so too…until you helped me back…" Sakura returned the hug with equal emotion. The other shinobi in the room all looked on with happiness in their faces and awe at the reunion of Naruto and Sakura.
I'm so happy for you, Naruto. I truly am, Tsunade thought as she looked on, I only wish that I'd known a technique like this existed sooner. Maybe then, on that day, Dan would've…
"Tsunade-sama!"
"Yes, Takeshi?" Tsunade asked as she was stirred from her thoughts.
"I came to give you word on the progression of the monster. It's broken through the country border."
"What!?"
"From the notice I received, it'll be here by tomorrow morning."
"And the shinobi who were at the border defending our country? The bodyguards I dispatched?"
"…wiped out…"
"Dammit. This is not good…" Tsunade clenched her fist.
"If there is a time to act, Tsunade, it should be now."
"Right," Tsunade looked over at Naruto and Sakura hugging and it almost tore her heart knowing what she had to do, "Naruto!"
"What?" Naruto turned to face the Hokage, reluctantly breaking off the hug.
"…I need you to come with me right now."
"Now? But what about Sakura-chan?"
"She'll be fine without you for a few minutes. Now come on."
"Fine…" Naruto growled and followed Tsunade and Takeshi outside the room. Once the doors to the examination room were closed, he asked, "What is it? What's wrong?"
"Naruto…something's about to happen to the village."
"What? What's going to happen?"
"A monster has just been detected terrorising the shinobi world, coming from the Cloud Country. We don't know how it got here, or who let it in, but it's destroying homes, murdering people and causing unrest in our world."
"Monster…?" Naruto asked as he moved his hand to rest on his torso where the seal of Kyubi would usually appear when Kyubi's power would slip through, "Oh, yeah. I almost forgot about it…"
"You know about this?" Takeshi asked.
"It's been a few days now and…its just a feeling I've had. Something deep inside," Naruto said as he wanted to tell them about Kyubi, but remembered the hatred everyone had for it.
"The monster will reach Konohagakure tomorrow morning. We may not survive the encounter…" Tsunade continued.
"Why are you telling me this?"
"Uzumaki Naruto…we need your help."
"You need…my help?"
"Yes."
Naruto couldn't believe it. The Hokage was asking him for his help. Not a Jounin, or a Chuunin or another Genin, him. He was needed. They needed his help. This was something Naruto thought he'd never hear.
All right!! Naruto cheered inside his mind, The Hokage needs my help, not anyone else's, MINE!! This is perfect! This is my big chance to finally get everyone to give me some respect! Sakura-chan will flip when she hears this!
"So…uh…what do you need me to help with?" Naruto tried to ask nonchalantly, but was failing with the big grin on his face.
"We need you to ask something of someone," Takeshi answered.
"That's it!? Come on! Give me something better! Like, I don't know, my own cell to command? Or send me on surveillance to see this monster? Or maybe…"
"Naruto, we need you to talk to Kyubi," Tsunade interrupted.
"Wh-what?" Naruto's eyes went wide.
"Kyubi's the only one who can stop the monster approaching. We need you to negotiate with it so we can unleash it from you and let it combat the monster."
"That's it…? That's all you want me for? To serve as the link to the only thing that can save Konoha Village? That's bull! I thought this would be my one chance to finally earn the respect of everyone in the village by doing some great heroic act, but to just serve as messenger?! That's complete and total bull!!"
"Naruto…We really need Kyubi's help for this. But in a way, we also need your help badly. Please, Naruto…" Tsunade stared straight into Naruto's eyes, pleading for his help.
"…"
"I'll make it worth your while…"
"How so?"
"You'll just have to find out after this is all over."
"I'll see what I can do…" Naruto said as he motioned for Tsunade and Takeshi to give him some room. Closing his eyes, Naruto ventured deep into his inner self, searching for the one that shared his body…
"Hey stupid fox! You here?" Naruto asked as he approached a large gate with a seal in front of it from the inside of his mind. Two large red eyes and a giant rim of large teeth appeared from behind the large gate. Beyond that, the rest of Kyubi couldn't be seen.
"What do you want?" the beast growled.
"Old hag Tsunade needs our help to save the village."
"SAVE?! WHY SHOULD I SAVE THOSE WHO IMPRISONED ME?!" Kyubi's voice boomed.
"There's another monster heading this way and she says the only one who can stop it is you. I know you've been sensing it for days now."
"That I have…he's come back out…"
"He!?"
"Yes…but as far as I'm concerned, you Leafs deserve it for imprisoning me in you, kid."
"But he'll destroy everything! The other shinobi, the village, Sakura-chan…"
"Not my problem. Why don't you just ask the Forth Hokage to seal it up in some other kid's body?"
"…because he's dead."
"Of course! At least when I was sealed up in you, I took his life in the process. I bet all the Leafs are crying their little hearts out!"
"We've gotten over it."
"So why did your 'old hag Tsunade' send you here?"
"She needs me to ask you for your help to fight the monster."
"She obviously must know my response. Isn't giving you power so you can fight enough? What else do they want!?"
"We want you to fight the monster yourself! Tsunade will undo the seal and you'll be let back into the world."
"…what?"
"You heard me! She'll take off the seal and you'll be unleashed from my body so you can fight the monster!"
"She really expects me to just fight it and she'll let me back into the world? Don't you know what I'm thinking about as soon as I get back outside? I'll destroy all of you! In fact, I'll team up with the monster and kill every single one of you!!"
"If you try and harm anyone in this village, especially Sakura-chan, I will not forgive you."
"Why should I care, idiot? I can kill you in one stroke as soon as I get back outside!"
"I told this to Gaara, and I'll tell this to you. The people in this village have saved me from the hell of being alone. Ever since I found out about you, everyone's hated me worse than ever. But I've slowly been building relationships with others. Iruka-sensei…Hinata…Gaara…Sakura-chan…Everyone in the village…They're all important to me! They're helping me out of the pitch black hell that was my loneliness!" Naruto screamed at Kyubi.
"…"
"I will protect those precious to me from things like you that seek to harm them! If you lay one claw on any of them, I will never forgive you. If you harm any of them, I will stop you…even if it means I'll die in the process. I swear on it, I will stop you…"
"I'm too powerful for you. You couldn't make a dent in me even if you tried."
"I said 'I will stop you'. I don't take back my words. That's my ninja way…"
"...hmph…The two of you…you and the Forth Hokage…you're too alike…"
"…!"
"All right, kid…I'll help you out…"
"Thanks…I'll go tell Tsunade," Naruto said as he turned to leave.
The kid shares a lot of the qualities of the Forth Hokage, Kyubi thought, If the Hokage could see him now…Okay, fine. I'll help him out with this monster. After all, he and I have a score to settle. But after that's over, the kid and all his friends are going down! I'll teach them to seal one of the most powerful monsters in the shinobi world into the body of a mere child!!
"Kyubi accepts," Naruto told the Hokage and Takeshi as he opened his eyes, "I'm surprised he'd help us out after what the Forth did to him."
"You're not the only one, kid," Takeshi said.
"Okay, so we've got Kyubi's help. We have less than twenty-four hours to unleash Kyubi. Takeshi, go set everything up for the unleashing," the Hokage told him.
"Immediately, Tsunade-sama," Takeshi left the group.
"I guess I better go tell Sakura-chan about what's going on," Naruto said as he turned to go back to see his girlfriend.
Tsunade put her hand on Naruto's shoulder to stop him. "No, Naruto. If we can stop this monster before it enters Konohagakure, we can avoid mass panic and have the entire village turn against us."
"…right."
"Don't tell Sakura or the others anything. Consider this an order from the Hokage. Disobeying it means…"
"Yeah, yeah. I've heard about what can happen if you disobey a direct order."
"Other than that, go on. Your girlfriend needs you," Tsunade said as she removed her hand and Naruto went back inside to see Sakura and the others.
Things are going without a hitch, the Hokage thought, I'm surprised things are working out for this. But there are two things bothering me. Kyubi agreed to help us after Naruto asked him. The nine-tails wouldn't just help us like that; he holds a grudge against Konohagakure and its people. We have the scrolls necessary to control him, but it still makes me uneasy.
The second is that Kyubi's lived inside Naruto for too long. Naruto's become dependant on him. Kyubi is an actual part of Naruto. Separating the two could lead to death for Naruto. As long as I have the Bondage jutsu, Naruto should be fine, but I doubt that it'll work between two different species.
If I unleash Kyubi, will he keep his word? And if I do unleash him, will Naruto survive?
The more Tsunade thought about what was going to happen, the more thoughts and doubts were raised.
Inside the examination room, Naruto was helping Sakura up from the table as the others backed away from them.
"Hinata, we have to go check on Kiba and Akamaru," Shino said to his teammate.
"Oh, right!" Hinata remembered as she and Shino headed for the door, "B-Bye Naruto-kun, S-Sakura-chan."
"Later, Hinata," Naruto waved as the two Genin left the room, "Sakura-chan, do you feel all right?"
"Of course! I've never felt better! But something's bothering me…about Sasuke-kun…"
"Oh yeah. Sasuke…" Naruto growled, remembering who almost killed Sakura, "I swear when I see him, I'm gonna…"
"Naruto-kun? What did Hokage-sama say to you?"
"…" Naruto looked away from Sakura.
"What did she say?"
"Just some stuff about the village," Gaara immediately replied.
"G-Gaara? You heard what Tsunade said to me?" Naruto asked.
"Every last word."
"…"
"Sakura, why don't we leave the boys alone?" Temari suggested as she took Sakura away from the boys, "I bet your folks are worried sick about you. I mean, you snuck away from your home just to see the fight."
"Oh, yeah. They must be searching high and low for me," Sakura said as they left.
With Temari and Sakura gone, Gaara and Naruto could now talk openly.
"You heard everything," Naruto said.
"Yes," Gaara repeated.
"You know what's going to happen tomorrow morning."
"I've known about it since I left Sunagakure."
"How?"
"When you go from place to place, you hear things."
"You know why I have to keep it secret from the others, right?"
"Of course. I won't tell anyone, but I know that the monsters within us wouldn't just agree to help us like that. I think Kyubi's up to something."
"I told him not to bother because I would stop him if he hurt anyone in the village."
"Just be careful on what you're doing, Naruto. True that Kyubi is one of the most powerful monsters in the ninja world, but it's also been known as one of the most ruthless. I'll be there at the unsealing to make sure that he doesn't get out of hand."
"How can you do that?"
"I definitely need to catch up on my sleep…"
Naruto caught on to what Gaara was saying, but then thought about it. "But if you do that, we'll have three monsters to deal with! The entire ninja world could be destroyed if Kyubi, Shusaku and that other monster ever decided to band together!"
"Then you better pray that Kyubi does what is asked of it, Uzumaki," Gaara told Naruto as he headed for the door.
"Gaara…can you do me a favour?"
"What?"
"Can you come with me to see Sasuke? I have a score to settle with him for impaling Sakura-chan."
"…but why?"
"He said something weird at the end of the battle. Something about someone lying to him…"
"Of course," Gaara agreed as they left the room and exited the hospital to look for Sasuke. Naruto had to talk to Sasuke about what he did to Sakura. He had a score to settle within the next twenty-four hours.
Because after those hours were up, the largest battle that Konohagakure would ever see would begin…
TO BE CONTINUED…
Sorry it's late, guys! I meant to update last month, but I got side-tracked with school and such. However, I'll be back to monthly updating next month. Plus, it's been almost a year since "Kyubi Unleashed" started. For the anniversary, could two chapters be released for February? Only time, and reviews, will tell…