Three Wishes

Kakashi never had it easy in his life. His father's death was the first tragedy, but it wasn't the worst yet. That came a while later. He was on a mission with his team to lead the first time. But their mission was a complete failure. First, he lost his best friend, who sacrificed himself for him, and his friend, who had feelings for him.

This was very overwhelming for him and very difficult for him to deal with. But the bad things only piled up, and not even his friends could lift his spirits.

One day, his village was attacked by a fox-wraith that normally plagued their land but had been controlled for several decades. It was rare that anger engulfed the fox.

All the ninjas from the village came to the defence of the village and defeated the fox. Though it can't be killed that easily. When the fox dies, he is always reborn. A spirit can be born an animal or a human. The moment the spirit died, killing Minato, Kakashi's master, in a last futile attempt. The next moment, Naruto was born.

Naruto should have been born a classical human, but with the death of the fox and the strange force of fate, he was born a spirit. Unfortunately, a mother can never survive a birth like this, because spirits need a lot of energy at that moment that a mother can't expend.

Kakashi was supposed to guard Minato and his wife that day since they were very important people and vulnerable at that moment. At first, he wanted to tackle the spirit himself, but in the end, he stayed with his master. But he couldn't save him, but he managed to save his son from enemies who seized the opportunity to weaken their nation further.

Kakashi and the boy rushed to Minato, who was still alive, though slowly dying.

„I'm glad you're all right,” the blond man smiled at them, blood dripping from the corners of his mouth.

„Master!” and wanted to support him, but couldn't.

„It's all right... Kakashi, please promise me something,” he said, his strength slowly failing him.

„Anything.”

„Take care of Naruto. He has no one left.... and you need someone to keep you company...”

„I promise,” he replied, tears welling in his eyes. He was a ninja, he shouldn't cry, but after so much death...

Since then, Kakashi has cared for little Naruto. His life as a ninja was no longer like that. He could no longer go on long or dangerous missions when he had a little boy at home. He had a lot of experience and was one of the most unrecognized ninjas. That helped him become a teacher. He was in charge of his team.

His experience made him a very strict, hard teacher, and almost no one stuck with him. He wasn't an adult himself yet, but he was so responsible and had all the necessary qualities to take care of the boy. At home, he also had several pictures of his old team, his master with Kushina and a picture of his father.

Naruto was a good boy, though he loved all sorts of games, mischief and pranks, which made him very often attract less than desirable attention. This seemed to be the work of the spirit lurking within him. In addition, they had to move to the edge of the village where the hidden house was located. There they were safe for emergencies.

With Naruto, as with the other spirits, his supernatural side began to manifest itself gradually. When he got angry, for example, his eyes would turn red, his fox tail would appear, and so would his ears. The angrier he got, the more tails he got. Everyone knew the local fox spirit had nine tails and the ninth tail was the finale. In that state, the spirit was almost unstoppable. Fortunately, that never happened.

It was exactly six years of a kind of quiet life, and it was Naruto's birthday today. Kakashi wanted to celebrate with him at his favourite place. In a stall where, according to the boy, they sold the best ramen in the world. First, as they did every year, they visited his parents' grave, with Kakashi telling him stories of what they were like along the way. He didn't want the boy to think he hadn't family.

After the meal, they met Kakashi's friend, who was very helpful in raising Naruto. It was Iruka. Iruka was waiting for them at the main gate. They planned to walk to a nearby pond where they could bathe.

Naruto didn't wait once when they reached the spot and immediately ran towards the water. As he ran, he threw off his T-shirt and shoes and jumped into the water. Neither man tried to stop him. At least they had time to spread the blanket and prepare a little picnic. When the boy comes out of the water, he's sure to be hungry.

They were at the water's edge until the sun began its slow descent over the horizon. They packed their belongings again and were ready to return to Konoha. Naruto was so tired of the water that Kakashi carried him. He had intended to carry him on his back, but the boy persuaded him to carry him on his shoulders. This way he had a super view in front of him.

They were halfway to the village when the cold wind hit. Unusual for the season. The two ninjas were instantly alert. The cold wind wasn't the only suspicious thing. For they sensed a very strange presence.

Whoever was watching them wasn't human. He was too fast for that. Too quiet. But they had no idea what kind of creature it might be. But they immediately dismissed the possibility of a spirit. The only spirit in the whole country was Naruto, and it wasn't him.

Immediately, the ninjas picked up their pace and ran home. Nevertheless, the strange presence was always at their heels. So the men decided to try to lose them in the forest. With one leap they reached the treetops. They jumped from branch to branch and kept changing direction, but even so, they felt as if they were being watched.

They jumped to the ground when they saw a shadow in front of them. The shadow disappeared again in an instant. Kakashi took a step forward and a kunai landed at his foot. That was a warning.

Kakashi put the boy down and held him behind him. Iruka stood with his back to him to cover the rear. Directly in front of them, a shadow materialized into a real figure. A figure in a black-and-red coat with an orange face mask. The mask only had a hole in the right eye, and it seemed to spiral into that eye.

„Who are you and what do you want from us!” Kakashi asked. He felt no other presence around them, so there were them and the masked man. By all accounts, they should be in favour right now. So why did he have the chilling feeling that it was exactly the opposite?

„The spirit will come with me,” he said, his voice sternly deep.

„Over my dead body,” Kakashi replied, readying his weapon.

„With pleasure,” and there was scorn and derision in his voice. He was certainly very sure of himself. After this, without drawing a weapon.

Kakashi waited for an opportune moment and charged like a cobra. He wanted to tackle his opponent as quickly and efficiently as possible. But his kunai, when he should have hit the target, went through it. The masked man was unmoved and simply walked through him to the spirit. Now Iruka stood before him.

„Naruto, listen carefully. When I give you the signal, you run. Do you understand?” he asked the boy. Naruto stared at him with his large eyes and nodded in agreement. He'd like to help them, but he'd probably just get in the way.

„Naruto, now!” he cried and launched into an attack. The boy obeyed at once, disappearing into the bushes in an instant. The masked man would have liked to have followed the boy, but the ninjas prevented him. Iruka was no match for him. Nevertheless, he at least bought enough time for Kakashi to analyse him quickly. Now he had a better chance to fight him.

His attacks were in sync with Iruka, and they slowly began to win over the stranger. He saw it too, so he had to change his strategy. During one attack, he knocked out the younger man, and now it was Kakashi's turn.

He drew his weapon, and when he dodged and attacked, he had the perfect opportunity to cut Kakashi in the back. This threw the white-haired ninja off balance. Now the stranger could finish him. He was about to land one of the final blows when someone jumped on his back and bit him on the shoulder.

It was Naruto. He was around all the time, and he couldn't let anything bad happen to Kakashi. He was family to him after all.

„Naruto?” shouted the ninja, shocked, and scrambled to his feet. He lunged at the stranger, took the boy, and tried to run. That was the most rational thing to do. He had earned a few seconds' leads, which he intended to make good use of.

He summoned his ninja dogs and gave them their assignments. Pakkun was sent to the village to inform the Hokage and get reinforcements. He sent other dogs to Iruka for help. Then he fled again as the stranger before him materialized again from the shadows.

Kakashi jumped aside, at first unaware of what to do. A weapon in one hand, a boy in the other. If he was alone, he was sure he could beat him, but he couldn't risk Naruto's health. After that, there was a little battle between them in which the stranger was clearly on top. He was about to finish the fight and stun them when someone overtook him and did it for him. It was his backup, but he didn't need it.

The blow to the head was so strong that Kakashi and Naruto immediately fell to the ground and everything blackened before their eyes.

„Took you long enough,” another stranger told the one in the orange mask. This one also wore a long black cloak and a wide straw hat. Overall, his physique was fairly grotesque, for it was rather short and as if he were dragging a body part behind him.

„I had it under control,” he replied irritably.

„It didn't look like that. But as long as we have a spirit, I don’t care," and went over to the ninja. He pulled the kunai from under his cloak and was about to cut his throat when the orange mask stopped him.

„He’s mine. I'm taking him with me,” and he slung Kakashi over his shoulder as if he were an ordinary sack of potatoes.

„Whatever,” and with that, the two strangers disappeared with Kakashi and Naruto.

Meanwhile, Iruka awoke and immediately went to their aid. He tracked them by tracks, but he didn't see his friends or enemies anywhere. Not even the ninja dog that accompanied him could find the trail of his master. This was a bad omen. He should inform the village.