Then Iruka-sensei came rushing in.
"NARUTO!" said the teaching ninja.
Naruto glanced up from the scroll. "Heh heh. You found me. I've only learned one technique so far."
"Eh?" asked Iruka. This isn't just one of his spur-of-the-moment pranks? "What were you doing here? Why do you look beat up?"
"Well, duh," said Naruto. "Mizuki told me that if I can manage one of the jutsu on this scroll - I can still graduate. So I'm studying!"
At which point Mizuki moved faster than Naruto had anticipated.
Iruka-sensei threw Naruto to the side, and was hit by several kunai immediately. It was just luck that a number of the kunai somehow missed.
"Nice job finding the moron," said Mizuki as he revealed his position.
"I see, so that's what's going on," said Iruka as a couple of the kunai apparently worked themselves loose on their own.
"What? What's going on here?" asked Naruto, inwardly cursing himself for missing as many of the kunai as he had.
"Naruto!" yelled Iruka-sensei. "Whatever happens, don't give him the scroll."
"Eh?" asked Naruto.
"That's a dangerous scroll that has forbidden jutsu written in it," said Iruka. "Mizuki used you to get his hands on it."
"Naruto!" said Mizuki, sneering openly at Naruto. "There's no point in you having it. I'll tell you the truth."
"N-no! Don't!" said Iruka.
Naruto felt the panic from Iruka, and couldn't help but wonder what it was.
"12 years ago, you know about the Demon Fox being sealed, right?" said Mizuki, his hatred glittering bright but with no sign of lying in his surface thoughts.
Naruto felt bits of panic from several of those others watching, but Mizuki still hadn't revealed anything major.
"Since that day, a special rule was created for this village," continued Mizuki, "but this rule was never meant to be told to you."
"What?" Naruto dropped the scan around him, focussing on Mizuki. He was, as far as Naruto could tell, not lying. "What is this rule?"
"The rule is that nobody is allowed to talk about the fact that YOU are that Ninetailed Demon Fox," said Mizuki.
"Eh?" asked Naruto.
"It means that YOU are the Ninetailed Demon Fox that killed Iruka's parents and destroyed the village," said Mizuki.
"STOP IT!" yelled Iruka.
"You were sealed up by the Hokage you admire and you have been lied to by everyone," said Mizuki. "Didn't you find it odd that everyone hates you? Iruka is the same, he also hates you!"
He's never known a parent's love, came a thought-voice from Iruka, and is hated by all the villagers.
"Nobody will ever love you," said Mizuki, whipping a large shuriken forward.
So to get attention, he's caused a lot of trouble, continued Iruka-sensei's thought. He wants people to acknowledge his existence in any way possible.
Naruto staggered, wondering if Mizuki was right about the Demon Fox. Or, no. Not a Fox. He could feel Mizuki's desire to twist the kunai in. To hurt others and thereby prove himself superior.
Naruto stopped the shuriken with a telekinetically molded gust of air. He could feel Iruka's regret and shame. He could feel the Hokage's disagreement with some part of Mizuki's statements. He could feel the quiet support of Hinata and of her father's confusion. Though this last was hard to scan because he hadn't met that father more than just the once.
"What? How did you?" asked Mizuki.
"Demon Fox? Yeah, sh'right," said Naruto, feeling cocky. "I don't feel exactly 'foxy' but if you don't tell me why you're doing this, I'll show you how much of a demon I can be!"
"Go ahead, use that scroll to take your revenge on the village," said Mizuki, trying to get control of the situation again.
"The Demon Fox would," said Iruka. "Naruto would not. I've already acknowledged him as one of my excellent students. He may not be the hardest worker, he's clumsy and no one accepts him. That means he already knows what it is to feel pain inside your heart. He isn't the Demon Fox. He is a member of the Hidden Leaf Village."
"Well, then, hurry up and DIE!" said Mizuki, launching an attack - this time directly at Iruka rather than at Naruto.
Naruto saw the opening, took the shot, slamming into Mizuki.
"You shouldn't have done that," said Mizuki as he picked himself up.
"You shouldn't try to hurt Iruka-sensei," said Naruto, tightening one fist until the knuckles popped. "If you do, I'll kill you."
"I'll kill someone like you in one shot!" said Mizuki.
"I'll give you back this pain a thousand times over," said Naruto, searching within him. Finding the power, channelling it.
"Try it, trash!" responded Mizuki.
"Kage Bushin No Jutsu!" cast Naruto, forming a thousand clones which surrounded the clearing.
"WHAT?!" asked Mizuki, looking around. "How?"
"Not gonna kill me with one shot?" asked Naruto. "Ya know. I'm always getting fire when I try lots of stuff. So why don't I try something here."
"What?" asked Mizuki. "You don't scare me, Demon Fox!"
"BURN KNUCKLE!" said a thousand Naruto's, flames forming around their fists as they charged in and started beating on Mizuki.
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(Posted Sun, 10 May 2009 21:27)
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