Before
The forest kept calling him.
He could hear it. Lord Third always said he had an active imagination, but Naruto could hear it. The whispers.
They were different than the whispers in the village. Those ones made him hurt.
But the whispers from the trees sang of adventures. Of enemies to defeat and victims to rescue, of animals bigger even than the biggest dog that wandered the streets in the Inuzuka compound, the one that stood taller at the shoulder than Naruto himself did even on tiptoes. Of heroic acts that would make everyone in Konoha look at him with glistening eyes and mouths full of praise.
And the verge of the forest was right there.
It had been easy to slip away from school. Iruka-sensei had been distracted by Chouji yammering on about something, and then Kiba had thrown something at Ino and upset her. For once Naruto had felt like being quiet. So when Ebisu-sensei, the young new teacher, opened the door to ask something and then forgot to close it behind him, Naruto had slipped straight through.
It hadn't taken him long to slip past the guards and out of the gate, into the long grass.
Now he stood staring into the trees. The whispers had died, replaced by a gentle wind.
Houses loomed behind him, empty at this time on a day like this. It was a sunny afternoon. Yet the thickness of the canopy led to the forest floor being shrouded in darkness. Naruto couldn’t make anything out more than a few trees deep in the thicket in front of him.
He rubbed his legs together, feeling grass tickling his lower calves and goosebumps raising. Maybe he should have worn more than his shorts this morning.
Naruto stepped forward, one shaking foot after the other. He still couldn't hear the whispering. He could, back when he was inside the village, and that one time last week when Lord Third took him for a picnic on a hill outside. He was sure it was coming from somewhere out in the trees.
He took another step closer, feeling the shade from the trees nudging at his toes in his shoes.
Once more, he glanced back over his shoulder at the village. He thought he could smell someone cooking food: Those houses must not be as empty as he’d believed. Thought of his classmates and what they would be doing right now. If they would realize he had gone. If they were looking for him.
He craned his neck to look up, as he always did. At the Hokage monument, looming large and casting its shadow across the village. Time to be brave.
A whisper tickled at his ear and he leaned forward, straining to catch it.
Pain shot up his right ankle.
Out of nowhere a dog, as tall as him, was bounding around him. Naruto didn't know what kind of dog it was, just that it had slender legs and was brown.
“Ow!”, Naruto scolded it loudly, feeling tears sting his eyes.
The world wavered for a moment, and then the dog leaped forward, crashing into his side and blowing him backward. He almost fell.
The dog nipped at his heels, but Naruto just laughed and begins to chase it. The dog danced in a circle for a minute, as if unsure of where it’s going, and then rushed back towards the village entrance.
Whispers completely forgotten about, Naruto pursued the strange dog.
As they raced past the guards, any attempt at stealth long forgotten, the men started and began to yell.
“Is that a dog?”
“Is that Naruto?”
“What was he doing out there?”
“How could you let him get past you? He’s five years old!”
“But he’s a monster. Maybe he can teleport, I don’t know! And you were here too!”
“What if the dog is another monster he’s summoned?”
Naruto chased it through the streets, dashing around the legs of the various civilians who were going about their day. It led him into a familiar building and up some stairs, racing up them on all fours. He thought briefly how fun it would be to be a dog and run like that everywhere.
Finally, the dog stopped, panting, right at the top of the stairs.
"Caught you!", Naruto cried, latching his arms around its neck to give it a big hug, burying his face in the fur. It felt warm, heart beating hard, alive. It felt nice to hold something like that.
When he released it, he saw that they were at the door to his apartment.
Funny it would run there.
The animal squirmed in his grasp and he realized it must not want to be held anymore. Reluctantly, he withdrew his arms, and his heart dropped as he watched it bound away, back down the stairs.
Before hoisting himself to his feet, he checked his ankle, rolling it this way and that: It seemed no damage had been done, other than a small red mark. No blood.
Sighing, he went back inside his apartment and shut the door. Iruka-sensei would probably come looking for him soon. He’d try for the forest another time.
*
Unlike the other kids, Naruto didn’t have parents to warn him off of climbing the grassy knoll to get a view of the festival fireworks away from the eyes of the crowds, and he was grateful for that. He really was.
His fingernails dug into clammy mud and he hefted himself upwards. The very top of the cliff, the perfect spot to look out across the village and watch the sparks exploding like dandelion seeds across the sky, was just out of his reach.
Naruto looked down for somewhere to balance his feet and push himself up, and quickly realized that that was a mistake. He hadn’t noticed how steep the climb had become. The first part of the hill gently rolled upwards, only vaulting at a nearly perpendicular angle at the last moment, several feet below the summit.
Summoning a deep breath, he placed his right foot on the solid-looking triangular rock to his right. His arms were beginning to ache from reaching upwards so long, and he relaxed them minutely as his left foot worked to join his right.
Good. He was safe.
But where to next?
His large blue eyes darted about and eventually landed on a small outcrop of lighter rocks, about half a metre to the side of his left armpit. It would be a bit of a struggle to reach, but no more difficult than climbing a tree.
Naruto tensed his arms once more, scrunching his nose up at the pain, and hoisted himself up, kicking with his legs against the grassy tufts that littered the incline.
Only, as he kicked, he became aware that the ground had become much slicker and more slippery than it was further below; his sandals carved through it like butter, kicking up chunks of turf. There was nothing solid to latch onto.
His right foot skidded out from under him completely, and he was almost buffeted away from the side of the hill by a strong gust of wind. The first familiar whirr and blast of fireworks began to ring out.
Why had he decided to come out here, Naruto wondered as his arms strained and his breath huffed. He felt more embarrassed and annoyed than anything. He could have just stayed in his room and watched from the window like usual. Instead, he was hanging by his arms, red-faced, alone in the cold.
Naruto weighed up his choices. It wasn’t very likely he’d be able to make it up to the top now, and it would be a waste of energy to try.
He looked down again. The drop wasn’t too far. Not high enough to kill him, most likely, but high enough to hurt. He could just let himself drop and try to land safely before wandering back to the village and heading to the hospital.
The weather pushed him into the decision. Rain began to patter on his face, running in rivulets down his cheeks and plastering his hair to his scalp. Thunder clapped overhead and a thin thread of lightning caught the corner of his eyes from the distant spot it had struck.
His wet fingers were screaming in protest now. Time to let go.
Relaxing his grip, Naruto’s heart ricocheted across his whole chest and up into his throat. His fingers clawed at the wet grass. He didn’t want to let go. What if it hurt?
And then Naruto was dropping straight down through the air, his stomach joining his heart in his throat, the whole world turning black. He had merely a second to brace himself for the impact.
He expected to feel a dull thud, his feet and legs striking the hard dirt, to be flung sideways in a sprawling heap.
Except something clamped down about his ankle, and his whole body was flipped upside down. His head touched wet earth, just grazing it, his forehead tickled by grass.
Naruto fought to catch his breath, gasping for air as he squinted through the darkness.
An animal had a hold of him.
It wasn’t any kind of animal he had ever seen before. It stood upright on long black limbs, with a dark body and black eyes. The only thing that stood out from its dark silhouette was a pale ghostly face with blood-red lines streaked on either side.
It didn’t blink.
Naruto was only caught in the creature’s gaze for a moment before he was dropped down to the ground, and as he landed on his side with a huff of breath escaping from his bruised chest, he realized it wasn’t an animal, but a person in a mask, it had to be, animals didn’t stand like that or move like that-
Scrambling in the dirt as sleet continued to lash his small frame, Naruto kicked his feet in, digging down and flipping himself over, crawling as fast as possible away before sitting back and clutching his knees to his chest. He tilted his head up, afraid of what he would find.
Dark skies were the only things he saw, marbled shades of navy and gray where it was layered with clouds. Whatever it had been, it was gone.
Naruto hung his head. Had there been anything in the first place?
No, there must have been. Otherwise, he would have fallen straight down.
Perhaps he had and hit his head. He could have imagined the creature.
Naruto coughed a wheezing, rattling cough and pushed himself to his feet, wincing at the way his sore arms seemed to sink slightly into the mud.
There was a thicket of trees to pass between here and the village. When he had made his way out to this spot, Naruto had enjoyed being surrounded by forest, walking a hidden path through the foliage. A couple of years before, he had thought the forest called him. Nowadays it sang to him only at night, in his dreams.
Now, as he raced alone through the trees in the dark and the rain, visions of a monstrous pale-faced creature chasing him, he felt nothing but fear.
*
The village felt more comfortable then ever before in the dim evening light, lamps humming low and streets largely empty.
Naruto wondered if having just received his allowance had anything to do with the happiness soaking in his veins. Usually, he would go to the store, spend it on as much food- ramen, mostly, of course- as he could afford and pray it didn’t run out before Lord Third dropped by again.
Today, however, was a good day.
Naruto skidded to a halt in front of the ramen bar. His stomach was already growling.
He hoped there would be nobody else there. That way he could get the chance to speak to the nice old man or young woman that served him. They were… Well, the woman wasn’t always nice to him, but they didn’t whisper about him. Didn’t treat him like a creature that belonged outside the village, in the barbed fingers of the forest.
Pushing open the tent flaps, Naruto paused just before entering.
Somebody was already there, hunched over at the bar, slurping on their food.
Just his luck.
Naruto could have backed out then, only he happened to catch sight of the jacket, and the symbol on the back denoting that this person- man, Naruto thought it was a man- was a shinobi of Konoha. They must not have been there long, either: Raindrops were slowly sinking into the resilient fabric. Perhaps they had just returned from a mission.
He approached slowly, although he wasn’t sure why. Any shinobi of Konoha would surely have already heard him come in, heard the swish of the flap at the entrance as it swung shut behind him. And if they hadn’t heard him approach, they would certainly have heard him as he clambered onto a seat, just one down from the shinobi.
“What can I get you today, young man?”, the owner of the store asked, appearing from the back of the restaurant and fixing Naruto with a not-quite smile. Naruto wasn’t sure whether the not-quite part was because he hadn’t paid the last two times he was there, or whether it was for the stranger’s benefit.
“You know, the usual!”, Naruto replied, hoping it sounded cool. It definitely sounded like something a grown-up would say, anyway.
Out of the corner of his eye, he saw the man freeze, pausing mid-chew.
Naruto turned to look at him, half-afraid of what he would find now that the man had surely recognized him. Disgust? Loathing? Anger?
Instead, he was met with nothing. The man had no expression whatsoever.
Rather, he had an expression, but there was some kind of fabric pulled over half of his face, covering half of his facial features. His headband was pulled low over one eye, and the other was lifeless, staring blankly ahead.
After a moment the man seemed to recover, his hand moving faster than Naruto could keep track of and his mouth resuming chewing. He moved so impossibly fast that Naruto was unable to keep track of the food as it traveled to the still somehow covered mouth. Why didn’t this man just remove the mask? Or maybe he was so fast that he just didn’t need to? He had to be eating somehow right?
Naruto began to play a little game in his head while he waited for his order, watching the man closely to try to catch him with the mast pulled down. Perhaps there was a hidden flap? Or perhaps the man was using some kind of teleportation jutsu that just the top shinobi knew about?
Too late, Naruto realized the man had caught him staring and was looking back at him with one narrowed eye.
Uh oh. He’d been caught.
Naruto opened his mouth to ask the man about being a shinobi, when the owner came back in and set a bowl in front of Naruto.
It smelt tantalising. Naruto’s mouth began to water.
Forgetting all about the man beside him, he pulled his bowl towards him and concentrated on slurping them down, before it occurred to him that it was not dignified to do that in front of a jonin.
Setting the bowl back down, he turned his head slightly and saw with astonishment that the man had almost finished his plate.
“How did you do that?”, he blurted out, and then stopped, rubbing the back of his head nervously. “I mean, how do you eat with the mask on?”
“I take it off.” The man’s voice was a low monotone, frosty, yet the fact that he had replied at all bolstered Naruto’s courage.
“So why are you wearing it? Are you ugly?” He squinted. “Are you a spy?”
“If I was a spy, would you be able to do anything about it?”
Naruto considered. “I could scream for help.”
The man didn’t respond. He was staring straight ahead.
He probably wasn’t a spy, Naruto decided.
“Have you just come back from a mission?”, he continued his questioning. “Were there many bad guys? Were you scared?”
“You ask too many questions at once”, the man answered bluntly, and Naruto deflated.
“Oh. Sorry. I guess… I was just glad to have someone to talk to. And you seemed interesting.”
The man didn’t say anything, so Naruto carried on speaking. “Do you know Lord Third? I do. When I grow up, I’m going to be the Hokage, like him.” He remembered his food was cooling in front of him and dove back into the bowl, slurping ramen down in between words. “Then everyone will want to come and talk to me, about missions and stuff. Hey, maybe I’ll be giving you missions! And the-”
A stray noodle hit the back of Naruto’s throat and he found himself choking. Sauce dribbled down his chin and spattered onto the counter before him. For a moment, he couldn’t breathe. He saw Teuchi poking his head out from the back, giving him a concerned look, before his eyes blurred with tears.
Naruto cleared his throat and suddenly air was rushing back into his lungs. He swallowed, wiping at his face until he could see again. From the corner of his eye, he saw the man watching him with a strange expression. Naruto thought he had shifted forward slightly, perched on the edge of his seat, but when he blinked the man was leaning on the counter, back in his original position. Perhaps he had imagined it with his blurred vision.
“You choked because you were eating too fast”, the masked man chided, his tone still flat. “Slow down and enjoy the flavour.”
Naruto tried, but it was so hard. The noodles were too good! How could anybody be patient when they tasted like that?
Before he knew it the bowl was empty. He closed his eyes and rubbed his stomach, savouring the feeling of a full stomach.
A shuffling sound to his side brought him back to the present. The man had stood up and dropped a handful of coins onto the counter. He turned to go.
“Hey, mister”, Naruto said, “it was nice talking to you!”
The man’s single eye darted back towards him, over his shoulder, and it fixated on Naruto’s face for a moment. He didn’t say anything.
Naruto tried not to be disappointed as the man turned away again and took a few steps towards the door.
Only, he halted in his tracks when another man entered.
This one looked even weirder than the first, clad in a skin-tight green jumpsuit. He surely couldn’t be a shinobi of Konoha. But he did have the jonin jacket.
The newly entered patron stared about the small restaurant for a moment, and then the first man stepped towards him and spoke. Naruto strained to listen.
“I was waiting for you but I got hungry, so I already ate.”
“Ah. Sorry, I was-” The green-clad man’s voice was loud, booming out and seeming to echo back at him.
The other interrupted him. “It’s fine. Let’s go.”
But the second man kept staring over the first’s shoulder at Naruto, squinting as if he was trying to get a clear look at him. Naruto froze. Why was he staring like that?
The dark-haired man approached, ignoring the first one’s glares, and Naruto tensed: He was huge and his face was scary. Naruto cringed back against the counter, looking frantically about. Nobody else was there, not even Teuchi. What should he do?
But the man simply crouched by his side and said; “Hello. What’s your name?” His voice was deep, rumbling like thunder.
“Uzumaki Naruto.” Naruto hesitated, then burst out; “Are you a jonin too? Did you have a mission?”
“I did.” He chuckled.
“Wow. One day, I’m going to be a great job, like you, maybe even the Hokage!”
“That’s a good dream to have. I hope I’ll get to see it happen someday.”
With that, he stood and walked away. The man with the mask trailed after him, muttering something. He didn’t sound happy.
Naruto didn’t care: He had spoken with two jonin! And they both thought he could be the next Hokage! Well, the second one did. The first one was weird.
Over the next few weeks, he returned to Ichiraku at the same time, often not even buying anything as he had run out of money, just to see if the men came back.
They never did.
After a month he gave up, and after a year he had completely forgotten about the encounter and the strange masked man.