I’m introducing WuXia influence into Naruto fanfiction. WuXia is a martial arts genre in Chinese literature. As far as I know, no one has ever attempted this before. But if I’m wrong, then just know that there should be more Naruto fanfics with WuXia influence. More on WuXia in Chapter 2: A/N.
“All talks”
‘All thoughts’
Summary: Who's lurking in the shadows? What were Itachi's gifts to Naruto the night before the Uchiha massacre? Introducing Chinese KungFu, WuXia Jin Yong to ffnet. Naruto: stronger but not godlike, cooler but goofy, smarter but still clueless. Naruto x female.
Disclaimer: Naruto and Narutoverse were created by Kishimoto. All original plot and characters are mine.
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Lingering in the dark shadows, a lone dejected figure jumped onto the roof of a building overlooking the streets of Konoha. In this windy night, he could make out the familiar smells of the unique blend of pine and cedar wood permeating from the nearby forest into the hidden village he helped to found. The strong wind blew his black cloak patterned with red clouds into hugging his unnaturally young body. This village held so many memories he wanted to forget. He whispered to no one, “We are all pawns in the game of life. Some sacrifices are necessary to achieve the greater good.” Through his one-holed orange mask, he observed the events played out below.
“Heh heh. You can't run from us! Just give up and let us give you the beating you deserve, demon brat,” snickered the running mob.
‘Faster! Gotta run faster! Why me? Am I a demon?’ wondered the eight year old boy.
“Don’t hurt me! I promise to be good!” pleaded the beaten boy running as fast as his little legs would carry him. Pain from the beating he had already received from their hunt coursed through his small body.
They ignored his pleadings and continued their chase and beatings.
“Hurry, he's turning out of the alley! We don't want the ANBU to catch us. Especially knowing how the Third is protective of him.”
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As Kyuubi looked through the windows that were Naruto's eyes, she became preoccupied by her own thoughts ...
‘How did it turn out this way? How can the village that the Yondaime saved view someone that was chosen to be my jailor as anything other than a hero? And they call me a demon?’
The official announcement to the world was that the Yondaime Hokage killed the Nine Tails demon fox, but that was only a publicity ploy to boost Konoha’s image of strength to the hidden villages in surrounding countries. As a demon, Kyuubi could not be killed. Instead, it was sealed or imprisoned in a newborn, one Uzumaki Naruto.
Upon the Fourth’s death, his retired predecessor the Sandaime Hokage resumed the helm of village leadership and made it an offense punishable by death if any were to reveal the truth about Kyuubi to the children. This law was legislated to the village Council, whose members consisted of the leaders of the twelve prominent clans and the Sandaime’s old teammates when the Nidaime was Hokage.
‘Hn! Puny humans and their primitive brains. Was Sarutobi actually naïve enough to believe that people in Konoha were beyond stupidity and bigotry?’
Sandaime had his heart in the right place, but his precautionary measure did not result in a normal childhood for Naruto.
‘The hell they put this boy through makes my worst nightmares look like homecoming parties.’ Of course this was an exaggeration, but self-control was never Kyuubi’s forte. She often let her emotions get the best of her and talk in hyperboles.
Instead of a normal childhood, the village pariah was shunned by his peers and villagers alike. Those old enough to know the truth and especially those who had lost loved ones the night Kyuubi attacked treated Naruto the worst. They had formed a secret club, meeting annually a week before the anniversary of that night to plan for their annual demon hunt fest. Alcohol-induced incidents like tonight showered in between those anniversary hunts.
Kyuubi had enough when she heard one crippled ninja pulled out a kunai and declared to his cohorts that his revenge was complete. She decided to interfere.
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Naruto was scared, but he put on a brave face and closed his eyes expecting to meet the Shinigami. As the memories of his short life flashed before the bijuu’s windows, Kyuubi felt no hatred from him. Only sadness and loneliness. The Nine Tails couldn’t help but be impressed by her charge’s inner strength of character. He reminded her so much of strength of character of the man who sealed her off, the Yondaime.
Even if she was not moved to save him, she would have for her own survival’s sake. Through all these years imprisoned by Yondaime’s seal, Kyuubi had many trials-and-errors to perfect a way to exert her influence over Naruto. She learned that when her jailor lost control of his emotions or was extremely weak physically, the seal would allow her a proportional degree of influence over his body. This seemed to be a way to allow Kyuubi to protect the boy’s life under extreme circumstances.
‘My dear pathetic vessel, hopefully one day you will meet me so I can change how inadequate you are reflecting of me.’
At this critical junction, however, she did not need to talk to the brat. She just wanted to save him and herself. She needed to pour out her vast chakra to heal the boy and take over his body temporarily so she could revenge his assailants. So far, she had not succeeded in either, but tonight would have to be different. Failure would not be acceptable.
Before Kyuubi had a chance to intervene, an ANBU with a weasel mask shunshinned in front of Naruto grabbed the incoming kunai and forced it back into the heart of the attacker. Upon seeing their ring leader killed, the rest of thugs ran away as fast as they could, overlooking their shoulders as they fled.
Normally Naruto’s personal guard would never let anyone who threatened the unsung hero escape. Tonight there was another priority since his safety was no longer a concern.
“Naruto-kun!”
The boy nervously opened his eyes and immediately calmed down upon seeing the familiar weasel mask.
“Weasel-san! Am I glad to see you!” shouted Naruto. As the boy moved in to hug his savior like he had always done, the thirteen year old masked ANBU stared at the cerulean blue eyes with his red tomoe pairs.
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In Naruto’s mindscape, the ANBU found himself without his mask trotting through the sewer-like hallway heading toward a dim red glow.
Suddenly a wave of killer intent floored him to his knees. Water slowly rising, threatened Weasel’s suffocation. He poured more chakra into his eyes.
“Mangekyou Sharingan!” he shouted.
The scenery began to change. Before him stood a tall cage with a containment seal tag. Behind those bars stood the most feared of all bijuu, Kyuubi no Kitsune.
“What do you want Uchiha? What did you do to my vessel? You better choose your words wisely. If I detect any tinge of falsehood, I’ll maim you,” threatened the Nine Tails.
Trying his best to hide his fears, he deliberately put on a face of indifference and retorted, “Don’t be alarmed. Name is Itachi. I mean you and your charge no harm.”
“So an Uchiha prodigy, huh? This young and able to use your Sharingan to this level. I wonder how powerful you’ll become,” mocked the Kitsune. Itachi was thirteen at this point. “What made you think that I won’t just kill you now and rid me of another Uchiha?”
“Because I am the ANBU that was personally assigned by the Sandaime to watch over your charge. I know you can see through Naruto-kun’s eyes and have seen me saving him many times. Inadvertently, I’m also responsible for your continued existence in this world,” answered Itachi with the same expressionless face.
Suddenly Itachi felt a spike in killer intent from Kyuubi. Prior to this, it was already unbearable to stand, and now he found it difficult to breath. Thinking quickly, he added, “My words meant no disrespect. I just want you to know I am on the same team as you and Naruto-kun. Please allow me to continue.”
“Again human, remember to choose your words wisely. Better make sure the words you choose are ones that won’t be taken as meaning something else, or there will be hell to pay.”
“I know you don’t trust me because of what Uchiha Madara did to you. As the Third’s most trusted ANBU, he charged me to be Naruto-kun’s personal guard. He also told me about Naruto-kun’s parents.”
“You’re lying,” referred the Kyuubi to his latter statement.
Itachi knew that Kyuubi had an inkling as to who Naruto’s father was, but she needed Itachi to confirm it. To establish trust, Itachi began, “The Sandaime took a precautionary measure to hide the identity of Naruto-kun’s parents from everyone who didn’t already know, including the Council and the boy himself. This request was from the boy’s father, the Yondaime, the one who sealed you in him.
“What you may not know is that Namikaze Minato had many enemies. One of the more motivated revenge-seekers was the nation of Iwa. In the last great ninja war, the Yondaime single-handedly wiped out an entire Iwa ninja invasion force and turned the war around to Konoha's favor. As a result of his victory over Iwa, he freed prisoners from a decimated whirlpool village and helped them obtain amnesty in Konoha. Uzumaki Kushina, one of the freed captives, ended up marrying her rescuer and became Naruto-kun's mother. Because of the war and possible threats to her life, their marriage was known only to their closest associates. For the same reason, Naruto-kun took his mother’s maiden name instead of using his father’s,” explained Itachi.
“I see. But you’ve left out the selfish reasons of evading another war and causing the boy to suffer unspeakable hell at the hands of the villagers that the Yondaime sacrificed to protect.”
“Believe what you will. But know this: Until he’s strong enough, Sarutobi will keep this secret from the boy to protect him from his father’s enemies.”
There was a pause as Itachi allowed that to sink in. Sensing no deceit from him, Kyuubi eased off on the killer intent. She could still see him hiding his nervousness, however, though it was not due to being in her presence.
“Don’t try my patience. Speak!” boomed forth Kyuubi’s voice.
The events that unfold next would rock the very foundations of the Shinobi world.
Itachi explained, “I am here to bid you and Naruto-kun goodbye. I just received a mission to erase the Uchiha clan from the face of Konoha tomorrow. In doing so, I’ll become a missing nin. No longer will I be able to look after Naruto-kun.”
“I have a better idea. Leave his mind and let me avenge against Madara and the Sharingan. I’ll take control of the boy’s body and wipe out the Uchihas for you. And you don’t have to be a missing nin.” As Kyuubi said this, she flared her chakra. After all, she did not need and was not waiting for Itachi’s response.
Itachi sent more chakra to his eyes and suppressed the bijuu. He reasoned with her, “Please. You know as well as I that if Naruto-kun was found any where near the clan compound, he would have been blamed for it even if you hadn’t taken over his body. Imaging what they would do to him if you actually possessed his body and massacred the Uchiha clan. Whatever you do, make sure he’s no where near the Uchiha compound tomorrow night.”
“…” A low grumble was heard from the deflated bijuu.
Seizing the opportunity to continue, the ANBU said, “As I was saying, I’m leaving and I have a parting gift for Naruto-kun. Even though I won’t be here to protect him any more, my gift will make him stronger and teach him how to protect himself.” Reaching into his ANBU cloak, he pulled out two ancient-looking manuscripts and continued, “I took these manuscripts from Uchiha’s clan library. I’m not quite sure what techniques they contain, but they were hidden behind heavily layered genjutsus. A note on top of them said that they were stolen recently from a Buddhist monastery high in the mountains far from here. Apparently no one had a chance to look through them since they were all too busy planning a coup.”
“A coup …?”
Ignoring the Kyuubi, Itachi continued, “I think one is a manuscript for sword art, and another is for cultivating one’s inner powers.” As he ended his explanation, he stretched forward the arm holding the two manuscripts. He walked forward and reached into the cage bars.
Using one of her tails, she wrapped it around the manuscripts.
Once he delivered his gift, Itachi stopped chakra flow to his eyes and returned to his person.
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In the real world, the conversation in Naruto’s mindscape was over quicker than a blink in the eye and without Naruto’s knowledge.
“I’m leaving on a trip tomorrow so you won’t see me for a while,” responded Itachi to Naruto’s greeting to him.
Unaware of the flashing Sharingan and the brief pause before Itachi answered his greeting, Naruto asked, “But who’s going to look after me if you’re gone?”
“Don’t worry Naruto-kun. Hokage will assign another person to watch over you. I’m going to take you home and rest up myself.” Knowing Kyuubi could hear him, he parted with these words, “Be strong and show the world what a true shinobi is.”
The trip to Naruto’s apartment was quick and uneventful. Once the beaten boy entered his flat unit, he fell onto his bed with his face buried into the pillow. Exhaustion quietly claimed him as Kyuubi healed his wounds.
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High in the mountains far away from Konoha sat a small Buddhist monastery above the clouds. Three junior abbots gathered outside the Meditation Sanctuary of their Grand Master Abbot.
“Brother Feng, what do we do about the two stolen manuscripts?” asked a pacing middle-aged man with a worried face. “Do you think the Grand Master Abbot will be mad at us?”
“Brother Liu, do not worry,” reassured a slightly older man named Feng. “The Grand Master Abbot has achieved the nirvana of Buddhism. He is not a man who would blame you for losing those two scrolls while you were outnumbered by an enemy ambush.”
“But those two manuscripts contain the world’s most powerful techniques ever created,” said a third Junior Abbot. “If they end up in the wrong hands, as I fear that those who stole them were of the power-craving types, then the world will undergo two hundred years of suffering.”
“Brother Zhu, the same prophecy also says that if the manuscripts are to end up in the hands of someone with a pure heart and a desire to right the wrongs, the world will prosper in two hundred years of peace,” offered Liu, worried but determined to keep things on the positive.
“Enough of this,” commanded Feng. “We’ll continue to wait for the Grand Master Abbot to finish his secluded meditation. He will tell us what we need to do. He did after all foresee this happening; otherwise, he wouldn’t have told us to take turns guarding them.”
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With a firm grip on his katana, the Uchiha prodigy stood facing his stalker. “Who are you and what do you want?” asked the calm and collected thirteen year old ANBU captain.
Slowly removing his orange mask, the man answered him in a perfect reflection of the patterned Uchiha monotone, “I mean you no harm. In fact, I have a proposition. My name is….”
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A/N: The man with the orange mask won’t make another appearance until chapter 5. The next few chapters are going to be about our beloved hero Naruto and the two WuXia manuscripts.
I know the mob scene chasing Naruto is overdone, but it serves its purpose as a vehicle to introduce Itachi and why he would leave something that would make Naruto stronger. There’s probably another way to do it, but this flows better with the rest of my story.
Let me know what you think about this chapter. Take a few seconds to submit a review before you move on to the next chapter. Reviews do wonders to spur me on! Thanks!
By the way, I reply to ALL reviews!
Next… Chapter 2: The Awakening!
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Story notes: Introducing Chinese KungFu WuXia JinYong. Naruto: stronger but not godlike. Naruto x female.