The Crystal Mask

Chapter One: Robbing the Cradle

The forest echoed, alive with the fearful chatter of squirrels and birds. Even days after the Kyuubi's rampage it would take years for the forest's inhabitants to return to normal. Now they jumped at the slightest noise, like a nervous thief stumbling through a dark house, and screeched at every intruder.

So little wonder they howled like a man possessed, demanding the wraith floating between the trees leave immediately.

He ignored them, however much they tempted him to throw a couple kunai here and there. In little time he made his way to the walls, laying on the ground, shattered like a common shop window attacked by vandals, they did little to slow the wraith. He had a job to do, something as trivial as rubble wouldn't stop him.

He didn't expect to run into any patrols, half of Konoha's ninja force had died to slow the Kyuubi. Half of those that survived went out on missions to give the illusion that Konoha still stood strong, and the other half laid in the infirmary or had urgent 'cleaning missions' to do. Nevertheless, he went slowly, sticking to the shadows just in case.

It took him almost an hour to make it to the Hokage Tower, the tallest building in the village.

Scanning the tower's windows, he saw his client had lived up to his promise. The wraith saw only token forces guarding it, no more than a single guard per floor save the uppermost. Knowing the slightest suspicious noise would alert the ANBU guards, he entered using the open window on the second floor, as silent as a shadow.

0o0o0o0o0o

An old man sat in the tower's center, white haired, wizened and wearing the traditional Hokage robes. He sighed, mind wandering in thousands of different directions.

Hiruzen had thought that his 'retirement' would last until he died, but the Kyuubi had happened. Looking down on the dozing boy, laying deep in the safety of his crib, he couldn't stop the single, traitorous thought worming its way through his skull.

'Because of you, Naruto will grow up without a mother or father.'

Never mind he couldn't have known Madara came back. Never mind that, in one of the last acts of his office, he went on a diplomatic trip to Suna. Hiruzen failed because he didn't have the foresight, the intelligence, to call off the trip and return to Konoha the moment that familiar feeling in his gut sprang to life.

Hiruzen rubbed his temples slowly. "Cat, Mole." said operatives, stationed near the door and windows respectively, stood straighter. "I'm returning to my compound for the night. Stay here until the next shift relieves you."

They nodded as Hiruzen exited the door.

At his leisurely pace it took him some time to make it to his compound. He set his hand on the front gate of the Sarutobi Compound, trying to force his mind to let go of everything. Then a sudden feeling, almost as if he leaped off a cliff, gnawed at his gut furiously.

Eyes widened in horror, hand clenching on the gate so hard it bent, Hiruzen's mind processed it in an instant, his body following nearly as fast. It took him nearly half an hour to make it to the compound, he flew back to the Hokage Tower in less than a minute.

He hurtled through the top floor's window, landing directly in his office and breaking one of his desk's legs. Hiruzen crashed through the door, taking a right down the hallway and a left deeper into the tower's center.

Kicking a heavy, seal-laden door down, Hiruzen froze.

Cat and Mole had disappeared, splotches of blood the only evidence of their presence. He didn't pay any attention to the mess though, his eyes staring, unfocused, on something else.

Naruto's crib lay empty.

0o0o0o0o0o

Several shadows stood waiting in the forest. The Kyuubi's power had been felt from as far away as Kiri, so even though they had traveled miles from Konoha, forest animals still screeched at them.

An average height man with brown hair, lacking both an eye and an arm, shifted uneasily. Those animals made this deal very dangerous. The more noise they made, the easier a ninja could get the drop on them. He doubted his hired help would turn on him though, he worried more about an inconvenient meeting with a Konoha patrol. His mercenary had a one-hundred thousand bill payment for this job alone, along with a promise of more lucrative jobs in the future. Even the most idiotic of mercenaries wouldn't turn on him with those figures dancing around in their head.

'Not to mention,' the man mused, 'this mercenary is anything but stupid.'

He turned to the ninja next to him, this one, just as the other five, wore a "confiscated" ANBU uniform. "Do you see him?" he asked over the din.

The operative shook his head, "No, Lord Danzo." he replied stoically, "Maybe he was captured?"

"Do you-" A bark of laughter cut off Danzo's reply.

"You're an idiot if you think a couple of ANBU rookies could capture me!" the voice laughed, making everyone whirl around, "Lucky you, I'm in a good mood, otherwise you'd be dead."

Silence.

Danzo examined the tall, dark skinned man. He wore a white hood and a black mask on his face, his eyes the only visible part, an unusual coloring of green irises and red sclera. He wore over his body a long, black cloak. A headband, adorned with a plate with the Taki symbol with a scratch through it, rested on his forehead.

"Well?" the man barked, "Where's my money?"

"Where's the boy?" Danzo retorted.

"Are you blind, brat? What do you think this bundle of blankets is?" he growled, raising it higher.

"Blankets?" a ROOT operative said stoically, earning a glare from both the mercenary and Danzo.

"I thought you trained your best to keep quiet unless spoken too." the merc grumbled.

"I did." Danzo retorted, "He's not one of my best. Kurai, pay him so we can get out of here."

One operative pulled out a large scroll, "There better be a bonus in there or you're not getting the boy." the mercenary told Danzo.

"What do you mean?" Danzo demanded, stepping forward aggressively, "You're already getting a large sum."

"This boy holds a being of ultimate destruction, and you don't think I'm going to ask for more?" the mercenary queried rhetorically, "To the right village he'd be worth five times as much."

The one armed man scoffed, "I'm afraid I have no idea what you're talking about. Where did you get that idea?"

"His guards weren't very tight-lipped when they thought they were alone." the mercenary said impatiently, "This boy... Naruto right? Holds the Kyuubi. I'm still willing to sell him to you, otherwise I wouldn't be here. Now I suggest you make another offer."

Danzo growled, readjusting his stance, "Four-hundred thousand paid to you over the next two years."

"That's two-hundred thousand less than what I wanted." the mercenary replied tightly.

"I'm still offering you pay for other jobs, I think that's more than fair."

"... Fine."

Danzo suppressed a sigh, even with the contingent hiding in the trees he doubted he'd survive a fight with him, "Now that that's settled, hand over the boy and Kurai will hand over the money."

"He gives me the money first." the merc growled stubbornly.

Danzo's eyes narrowed a fraction, but waved to Kurai to comply. The operative approached the merc quickly, making the switch in an instant, then retreated back to Danzo's side.

"Let me see him." Danzo ordered, "I want to get my first look at my new weapon." The operative complied, raising the blankets to expose the boy's face.

Danzo turned to look at the mercenary, "I like to know the names of those who work with me."

The man stood silent for a moment, before smiling under his mask, "You can call me, Kakuzu." Danzo nodded, turning back to look at the sleeping boy.

He saw only a pair of dull, glass eyes before a vortex of swirling flame engulfed him and his entourage, lighting a small section of the forest on fire.

Kakuzu made a few hand-seals and whispered something. A glob of water rose out of the nearby river, floated above the roaring inferno, then burst, dousing the burning trees and roasting bodies. Two large, shadowy bodies, both covered in blood, jumped down from the trees, sliding under Kakuzu's cloak and burrowing into his back.

Not waiting for anyone to show up, Kakuzu turned to the side and jumped to the treetops. Making quick headway and reaching his camp in minutes he left the canopy.

He chose an easily defended area; out in the middle of no-where, on top of a lofty hill, not a tree for miles save for the tall oak right next to his bedroll and a river nearby in case he needed to use any water jutsu. He'd easily kill anyone who decided to attack him, then he'd see if they had any money on their head.

Walking across the open field, jumping over the river, hiking up the hill, Kakuzu thrust his hand deep into the bedroll and pulled out a slumbering baby boy.

He had shocking blonde hair, three odd whisker marks on both his cheeks, and a small mouth furled in contentment. Kakuzu, having drugged the boy with a spiked formula, didn't worry about waking him up. Even so he handled him as he would a large sack of money, because the boy basically could end up as that.

'I'll leave in the morning,' Kakuzu reminded himself, 'heading for Iwa without stopping until I leave Fire Country. The Hokage will definitely want this back, so he'll no doubt send all the ninja he can spare after me. It'll be worth it, if I manage to pass him off as-'

The boy shifted in his hands, yawning and opening his deep, blue eyes. Eying Kakazu, he made a few gurgling noises, shaking his arms up and down excitedly.

'What the hell? You're supposed to be asleep!'

The boy scrunched his face up, as if concentrating deeply.

"Oh, I remember now." Kakuzu muttered, "Jinchuuriki have highly advanced metabolisms, so they process food, drink and even poisons faster. They can easily turn that to their advantage, with the right training they can make themselves almost immune to every poison out there... I just wonder where all that formula went."

"Fffhhttt."

Kakuzu gagged, "Oh God, I can't breathe!"

0o0o0o0o0o

Kioku snuggled against her husband, "Mmmm, I think we might have another one on the way from all that exercise, Honey."

"Great, another mouth to feed." he joked, reaching for the nightstand.

Kioku punched him in the chest, pouting, "You're just lucky th- what's that smell?" she asked shrilly, covering her nose with the sheets.

"Oh God! It's like a skunk got ran over by a cart of cow manure!" her husband yelled, his hands leaping up to cover his nose.

"Where's it com-" Kioku cut off, staring at the shadow looming over their bed.

"YOU!" it yelled, "Fix this now!"

Kioku screamed, her husband throwing a lamp at the intruder.

"Watch it!" it yelled, ducking "I have precious cargo!"

The lights flipped on, a small head poking in through the door, "Mommy, I heard lo-"

Kakuzu glared at the boy, "Leave, now."

The door shut.

"Please don't hurt my boy, just take what you want and leave." Kioku begged.

"I don't want anything of yours and I don't want to hurt your boy," Kakazu yelled raising his empty arms, "I just want you t- where the hell did he go!"

A small body climbed onto the bed, bouncing up and down on his behind, "Garblagala vhrum vhrug."

Kakuzu pointed at Naruto, "There, he smells horrible, fix him now! I've ran fifty miles, hit my head on a million tree branches, fought off at least twenty packs of wolves attracted by his stench, and kicked an old lady who got in my way! I don't care what you do, just make him stop smelling!"

Kioku stared at him, then to Naruto, to Kakuzu, then back again, "What?"

0o0o0o0o0o

"Sooooo..." the secretary, a young man with a scar over the left side of his face, flipped through some papers, "You're saying that not only does this baby," he pointed at Naruto, who sat on the desk bouncing up and down on his behind, "hold the Kyuubi, but is the Fourth Hokage's son?"

Kakuzu grunted, "Yes, do you need to clean the wax from your ears or something? I said it five times now."

"Uh, huh..." the secretary nodded slowly, "but if he was the Fourth Hokage's son, he would look like him or something, right?"

"He's got blue eyes and blonde hair, dammit! What else do you need to see the resemblance, him throwing knives all over the place and teleporting?"

"The brat has weird looking tattoo things on his cheeks." the secretary dead-panned.

"I already explained this," Kakuzu almost yelled, "it's because he holds the Demon Fox, Kyuubi."

The secretary scoffed, "Everyone knows the Fourth killed it. Now please leave before I call the ANBU."

"You're a fucking idiot!" Kakuzu screamed, "Every child is told the old tales about how the Nine Tailed Beasts are beyond the powers of mortal men to kill! The Fourth might have been strong, but he couldn't have killed something so powerful."

"In the old tales Demon Kitsune also took the form of buxom women who seduced men with great power, but my Lord hasn't had a wife since his last one died. Those stories are only really believed by kids so young the only green things they eat come out of their noses, and fools so old they haven't felt a stiffy since the First Shinobi War."

"Then if you won't believe me," Kakuzu spat, picking Naruto up and walking to a large door, "I'll just take it up Tsuchikage himself. "

Before he even touched it he found his way blocked by a couple squads of ANBU.

"Sir, I'm going to ask you once; leave and you won't be executed." the one in the lead threatened.

Kakuzu narrowed his eyes, "Make me."

It careened downhill from there.

0o0o0o0o0o

"This is all your fault!" Kakuzu ranted, swinging his arms and storming around his campsite. "Because of you, the Tsuchikage Tower got blown up, the old bat in charge died, and the entire village of Iwa is after my head!"

"And do you know why!" Kakuzu roared, hating the figure on the stump as much as any human could, "Because you couldn't look more like the Fourth Hokage."

Naruto bounced up and down on his behind, waving his arms around excitedly, "Glavagrum refluh vhrum!"

"Maybe if I had half a contingent of Leaf ANBU on my ass when I ran in they would have believed me then! But nooooo! They thought I was some old bat who kidnapped a baby... which I did, but still... dyed his hair a yellow so bright he reflects half the sun's rays, painted some whisker, tattoo things on his cheeks and tried to pass him off as the Fourth Hokage's son!" Kakuzu paused to breathe.

"All that work, and for nothing!" he roared, punching a tree and downing it in one hit, "I should have given you to that crippled brat, then I would have had something worth while!"

Kakuzu paused, shoulders heaving up and down, "FUCK!"

He took deep calming breathes, rubbing his temples to relieve his headache, "What am I supposed to do with you now, hmm?" Kakuzu walked over to the stump, picking the boy up and holding him at eye level.

"Maybe those wolves are still hungry? Perhaps some rich noble would like to buy you? Would you like that you walking shit machine?"

Kakuzu looked up, thumbing his chin and missing the look on Naruto's face, "Or maybe... maybe I could make him my underling? Raise him, train him, sell his services for a period of time and take most of the earnings? Hmm... I like that idea."

"From now on, you're my apprentice, brat. You better get used to it."

Thoughtful silence, Naruto's face relaxed.

"Fffhhttt."

"Oh God!"

AN: Just a little thought I've had for a while. Please tell me what you think.