Naruto: The Death Flash

AN/ Hey yo, so here we are, the very first chapter of my new story Naruto: The Death Flash. This story features a Naruto, who is the grandson of Tobirama, and possesses the Dead Bone Pulse. As far as pairings go, one of them is a Fem-Shikamaru. And yes, I said one. All in all, there is going to be three, maybe four women with Naruto, however, they won't all be getting with him at once, and I've taken the time to plan things out and make sure that I build a realistic romance for each, and why they would all agree to be with him.

Now, with that said, the arcs for this story will be fairly original. I think there's only really one that will be cannon.

Well, that's all for now.

Now, on with the chapter!

Normal speech: "what"

Extremely loud group/single person shouting: "WHAT!"

Thoughts/Speech taken out of context: 'what'

Letter/Book/Written text: 'What'

Demon/Summon speech: "what"

Demon/Summon thoughts: 'what'

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, that honor belongs to Masashi Kishimoto.

Prologue:

— ₪ NTDF ₪ —

The sharp scent of antiseptic filled his nostrils, reminding him of where he was. Light from outside bounced off the white-painted walls of the room. In that moment—sitting by that hospital bed—he felt every one of his sixty-eight years. On the bed lay a boy with shaggy blond hair and fair skin with three triangular red whisker marks on each cheek. It was remarkable how much the boy looked like his father and grandfather, his successor and predecessor respectively.

Hiruzen was a short man, and the third leader of the Hidden Leaf Village, known as the Hokage. His face was lined with wrinkles and his hair and goatee were thinning and white. He wore the traditional red and white robes of the Hokage with the peculiar four-pointed hat perched atop his head.

When he'd heard that Naruto was in the hospital, Hiruzen's heart had momentarily seized in his chest. For one terrible moment he had wondered if one of the villagers had attacked him for being the jinchuriki of the Nine-Tails. That was quickly dispelled by the Anbu that informed him of it, though. Apparently Naruto had been found unconscious in one of the training grounds, with several bones sticking out of his arm. Bones that shouldn't have been there.

By the time he'd gotten there the doctors had been able to force the bones to retract back into Naruto's arm, and his tattered and sweaty training clothes had been removed in favor of a clean white medical gown.

Hiruzen let loose a world weary sigh and placed a hand over his eyes. Of all the things that I thought might happen to him, this wasn't one of them. To think the Dead Bone Pulse of the Kaguya would awaken in Naruto. What were the odds he'd awaken the bloodline of his grandmother's clan? She had been an immigrant to their village, and hadn't even possessed the skill herself. Hiruzen felt sorry for the boy, having this complication heaped onto him. He already had so many. Naruto's parents had died the very night he was born, fighting to stop the Nine-Tailed Fox that had attacked their village. They had managed it eventually, but only by sealing it within Naruto. That tragic night had left Naruto an orphan in a village that resented him for the beast he held.

As a close friend of the family he had taken it upon himself to look after Naruto. Ever since that night, he had done all he could to make sure he had as normal a life as possible. Hiruzen had even gone as far as to have hidden Naruto's heritage from even the boy, so his father's enemies wouldn't try to lash out at him. Minato Namikaze was a powerful shinobi, and they wouldn't have hesitated to harm a child even if all it did was harm the villages moral. That wasn't even considering the fact he was also the grandson of another Hokage.

Of course, all that was rendered moot now. It would be nearly impossible to keep people from him now. Quite frankly, the Dead Bone Pulse was far more appealing to many than simply being the descendant of two Hokage.

There were other things to consider. Like what would Naruto's reaction be when he woke up? He'd want answers, and Hiruzen doubted he'd put up with the usual deflection.

Perhaps this is fate telling me it's time to reveal the truth. It wasn't just a matter of Naruto questioning where his bloodline came from. There would also be the issue of training it so he didn't hurt himself or others, as well as extra protection when people did learn of the bloodline. So many things to consider. Hiruzen wasn't sure how long he sat there wrestling with his decision. However long it was, he was so deep in his thoughts that he didn't notice that Naruto had awoken until he heard a squeaky voice, laden with grogginess, speak up.

"Gramps? What's going on?" Naruto asked in confusion. Hiruzen's eye's snapped to him in an instant. The boy had pushed himself up and was looking around himself in confusion. "The last thing I remember was . . . MY ARM!" Panic filled Naruto's eyes, and he quickly looked at his arm, which by now was back to normal.

"What the-? Was it a dream?"

Hiruzen sighed deeply. This was going to be a long explanation. "No Naruto, it wasn't. You were found unconscious in one of the training grounds with bones sticking from your arm," He held up a hand to stop Naruto from interrupting. "Now it's nothing to be concerned about. It just means you're a rather special individual."

"Special?" Naruto's head tilted to the side in childish confusion.

"Yes, special." Hiruzen said with a nod. "You've awakened a rather rare kekkei genkai—bloodline limit—called the Dead Bone Pulse. With it you can control your entire skeletal structure. It's only seen in a rare few members of the Kaguya Clan from the Land of Water," He explained. By now they would've covered bloodlines in the Academy, so luckily he wouldn't have to explain THAT.

The explanation only seemed to confuse the boy more. "Kaguya Clan?" He said. His voice was filled with confusion. "But my last name's Uzumaki, I'm not a Kaguya." You could almost hear the gears turning in Naruto's head. "If it only a Kaguya can get it, that means my mom must have been one!" His eyes brightened with excitement. That sheer excitement at learning something about one of his parents—even if it was incorrect—tugged at Hiruzen's heartstrings. For the first time he was confronted with the knowledge that in hiding the knowledge of who exactly his parents were, he hadn't taken into consideration how it felt for Naruto not knowing who his parents were.

He licked his suddenly dry lips. This was the moment of truth. Continue his lies or reveal the truth. In the end there was only one choice. "I'm afraid that's not quite right. Naruto. Your mother was a member of the Uzumaki Clan, Kushina Uzumaki. It's your father who you get the Kaguya blood from. His mother was a Kaguya."

"Wh-what? But I thought you said you didn't know anything about my parents." Naruto said, hurt and betrayal in his eyes. He could see the beginning of tears.

It was understandable. He couldn't count the number of times Naruto had asked him about his parents. All he knew was that he lied every time. He tried not to show his own hurt when Naruto pulled away when he tried to reach out to him.

"I lied," He said simply. "I'm not going to sit here and give you excuses, but I will tell you the reason I felt it was necessary. It all started nearly fifty years ago, when my sensei—the former Second Hokage Tobirama Senju—met a woman from the Kaguya Clan who had defected from the Hidden Mist named Kimiko . . ."

Hiruzen began to tell Naruto the story of his family's history. A story he had kept secret for over thirty years. He himself had been twenty-two at the time, and in his fourth year as Hokage. His sensei had retired after he was severely injured in a mission where he had stayed back to take on the Hidden Clouds Kinkaku Forces. Tobirama was fifty, and Kimiko forty. Ten years later, Minato had been born. Tragically, Kimiko had died due to complications with the birth.

He could remember vividly how much his sensei had changed afterwards. By then Tobirama's health was failing him. With the pressure of raising a son he didn't know for certain he could take care of, and the fact that the Senju Clan had declined to three members at the time (four if you counted Minato), he had made an agonizing decision. To preserve the Senju Clan and his son's life; Tobirama had given Minato up and placed him in an orphanage. Not long after Tobirama died. To this day Hiruzen wasn't certain it wasn't a broken heart that had killed his sensei.

Only he and Mito had known Minato was Tobirama's son, and she took the secret to her grave. After Minato met Kushina, it had looked as if what remained of his sensei's family might have managed to build a happy life. Then history repeated itself.

". . . after that your mother and father gave their lives to seal the Nine-Tails inside of you. I hid your birth to protect you from your father's enemies. And that, is the story of your family Naruto."

Naruto didn't seem to know how to react. His face was uncharacteristically blank. At one point he thought he'd seen tears in the boy's eyes.

It was several moments before either of them spoke. "I . . . I don't know how I feel." Naruto said numbly.

Hiruzen nodded in understanding. He placed a gentle hand on Naruto's shoulder, and was glad when he didn't pull away this time.

"I understand. This is a lot to take in. I'll leave you in peace so you can process it. Just know I'll need to talk to you once you're discharged from the hospital. There are things that need to be discussed now that you've awakened the Dead Bone Pulse." Hiruzen told him.

With his piece said, Hiruzen stood and left the hospital room. Outside the little room the regular bustle and hustle of the hospital was going on as usual. Nurses and doctors milled back and forth with supplies and patients, creating a constant cacophony of noise. In spite of all his experience, he too found himself exhausted by the day's events. He was keenly aware of the mental exhaustion that made thinking about anything deeply feel as if his thoughts were drenched in molasses because of how slow they were.

There was still so much to do, too. He would have to consider how he wanted to approach the revelation of Naruto's bloodline. It would need to be trained, there was no question about that. Such an ability could be a danger to himself and others if Naruto didn't learn to control it. Then there was the matter of how he would increase the protection for Naruto. Either way you sliced it the situation was complex.

As he left the hospital that day Hiruzen was absolutely sure of only one thing; this day would stand out for years to come.

— ₪ NTDF ₪ —

AN/ So there's the prologue. It is obviously really short, but that couldn't really be helped. Hope you liked this appetizer for the new story, tell me what you think of it, and make sure to tune in next week where we'll meet Naruto's teammates and sensei. Will they be cannon, or something different? Only I know, mwahahaha! You'll have to keep reading to find out.

Next Time: Assignments, a New Team is Formed!

So, til Next Time,

RinneTaicho Signing Off!