Hidden Pain

5 years old

The small blond boy clutched his head and whimpered in pain.

[Shhhh. It’s okay Kit, they can’t hurt you.] 

The boy whimpered again. 

"It hurts. Why can’t they leave me alone? It hurts so much inside." Tears slowly overflowed his big blue eyes and rolled down his pale, scarred cheeks. Voices echoed in his head, yelling at him and cursing him. 

{Die you demon scum!} 

{You don't deserve to be here!}

{Everything is your fault!}

{You’re the reason my husband is dead!}

{Monster!} 

The voices ran round and round, never letting up. He felt as if he was going to explode with the amount of pain and anguish inside him. He had to let it out. He had to get rid of it-

 "I can't take it anymore!" the boy pulled at his hair in desperation before picking up a kunai. 

[Kit put the knife down. Don't do this, they are not worth it!] 

The boy ignored the demon fox and slowly bared his forearm. He took a deep breath and set the knife against the pale skin. It burned as he cut, again and again and again, getting lost in the pain.

 [Kit that’s enough! Stop!] 

The boy jerked and opened his eyes. When had he closed them? He looked down and gasped at the amount of blood flowing across his skin. 

"I’m sorry! I didn’t mean to!"

 [It's okay, I’m already healing you]. 

The boy flung the knife away from him and collapsed against the side of the rock that was his current hiding place. 

'At least the blood will be easy to hide.' 

After a few minutes, the pain stopped and his strength returned. But the voices did not. He sighed in relief and relaxed. 

'Finally'

10 years old

"Naruto keep up!"

 "I’m coming, Sakura!" The blond boy ran to catch up with his new team. Naruto was hoping that he might actually make some friends now that he was on a team. Maybe they could talk and hang out. Maybe they would help him... 

'No better not get my hopes up.'

 Maybe his sensei would help him... 

'No that’s an even worse idea. What if Kakashi tells the Hokage what is happening? Or tries to stop the villagers from being mean to me? Then they will hate me even more... No, I can’t do that.'

 [You should tell them, Kit. How long can you hold up with just me helping you? You’ve been...self-medicating more often...] 

Naruto flinched at the reminder that the voices were invading more and more often. Only the cutting made them abate. But even that was starting to lose its effects. No matter where he went, the villagers hissed insults and threats at him. He was afraid to walk around alone because some of them were getting more and more confident. Just the other day he had been bombarded with stones while he was walking home from training. If the others on his team were with him, surely the villagers would leave him alone…

 "Hey maybe after training we could hang out today?" He asked his two teammates hopefully. Sakura declined quickly, claiming that her parents wanted her home right after training.

 "Why would I want to spend time with a Dobe like you?" Sasuke sneered at him. Naruto flinched internally. There went his hopes. These people were not going to be his friends and they were not going to help him. When would he learn that no one liked him? That no matter what he did or said no one wanted him around? The blond pretended to brush off the insult like it was nothing and continued through the day being his normal loud and rambunctious self. He did not notice the careful eye of Kakashi or the questioning gaze of Sasuke. Both had noticed how fake the blonde’s smile looked. How loud he was being as if to cover up something else. But neither said anything. Kakashi wasn’t sure how to reach out to his blond-haired student and Sasuke was too wrapped up in his own head to really care about Naruto’s problems.

15 years old

The pain was overwhelming. The blond wanted to laugh as he looked at the narrow strip of stars that he could see above him. He was lying at the bottom of a ravine, it was steadily approaching freezing in temperature, and he couldn't move seeing as Kurama was still working at healing all of his broken limbs. 

[Almost done Kit] 

"Take your time. I’m not going anywhere." The blond croaked.

[Don't talk Kit. Just save your strength and I will have you out of here in no time.] Kurama sounded worried. 

"Don’t worry Fox-san. I know you will take care of me. Where would I be without you?"

[You would not be in the bottom of a ravine with a compound fracture to one femur, two breaks to the other, three breaks to your left arm, and one break plus one crushed hand to your right arm. Uncountable contusions and cuts, damaged organs, and...] Kurama trailed off, not willing to remind the blond of what he had lived through to get to the bottom of this ravine.

 "It’s okay, you can say it. It happened and it’s not going away any time soon. I was raped." 

Kurama flinched in his head. His kit had been through so much in his young life. He growled in anger and frustration. 

[You should have killed them. Why didn’t you kill them?] 

"What would that have helped? More death and more people to hate me." Naruto shuddered at the thought and then groaned as the motion made his injuries flare up again. 

"Kurama, I don't want you to heal my back."

[What do you mean? If I don't the whip marks could become infected and they will definitely scar.] 

"I know. I’ll take care of them but I want the scars. I want to remember."

[Kit I don’t think that’s a good idea. Wouldn’t you rather forget?] 

"No, I need to remember to not trust anyone. No matter what they say or do. A pretty face and kind words got me into this mess. If I hadn’t let my guard down then this wouldn’t have happened." 

[You can’t do this alone anymore Naruto. Those villagers could have killed you. They almost did. My healing powers aren’t instantaneous and they can’t fix everything. You should tell Tsunade or Kakashi about this! Either one could-] 

"No."

[But Kit-] 

"No. And don’t touch my back." The Kyuubi grumbled but did as his kit asked him. If only he could send a message. If only he could tell someone what was being done to Naruto. His kit was tough but he wouldn’t hold out forever. Especially if the villagers... again...

Eventually, Naruto was healed enough to climb out of the ravine. His clothes were torn to shreds and the air was cold enough to see every breath. 

'It’s going to be a long walk home.' 

He was exhausted and shivering with shock and cold after everything he had been through but he managed to stumble home. His back was killing him. He finally shoved open the door of his tiny apartment only to come to an abrupt stop.

'Not again...' 

Everything was destroyed. The villagers had obviously come here once they were done with him. Everything that he owned had been torn up and left in piles around the room. Every piece of furniture was destroyed, every piece of clothing torn, every scroll and paper shredded. 

[Oh Kit...I’m so sorry] 

"It’s not your fault and it’s not like this is the first time this has happened. At least they didn’t start a fire this time. And they waited until I wasn’t here." Naruto hunted around until he found a roll of bandages that was mostly intact. He concentrated on wrapping them around his back as best he could before he cleared a spot on the floor and gave in to the exhaustion.

Three days later

Kakashi was worried. Naruto never missed training. He never got sick and he was never hurt long enough to prevent him from training. Sometimes he would show up so exhausted that he would fall asleep on the bridge while the team waited for Kakashi to turn up. Those times the Copy ninja would send the kid home amidst much protest. The poor boy had somehow managed to exhaust most of his chakra and he refused to pull from the demon fox. He had so much of his own chakra without the fox that it was hard to imagine what he was doing that drained him so much. Regardless, Naruto would still show up. This time, however, he had missed three days of training in a row. Without a word to any of his teammates or Kakashi. What was going on? At the end of the day, he dismissed Sasuke and Sakura before deciding to go visit his wayward student and get some answers. 

[Kit! Kit you need to get up! Someone is here! Get up, get up! I can’t defend you without taking over your body. If you don’t want that then you need to get up and assess the situation. I think it's Kakashi at the door but...]

Naruto groaned. 

"Five more minutes please." 

[Get up!] 

"Fine! No need to be pushy Fox-san. I’m getting up." The boy slowly sat up and winced as his back pulled. Something wet ran down his spine as the cuts split open with the movement. He reached for a shirt that had miraculously managed to stay mostly intact and pulled it over his head. The torn and dirty pants from the night before would have to do. He winced again as more blood seeped from the wounds on his back.

'Ouch. What time is it?' He glanced around for some sort of clue. It looked like the sun was either rising or setting outside his window. 

"Kurama, how long was I out? The last thing I remember is coming home from the..." 

[A couple of days. You were exhausted from all of the chakra use and your body needed to heal. Plus I had to keep fighting infections off from the wounds in your back.] 

"Sorry. I’ll change the bandages and clean it up after I see what Kakashi wants." 

"What happened to your back?" Naruto let out a yelp and leaped off the floor into a defensive stance. 

"Sorry, no one answered the door and I was worried so I came in through a window. What happened to this place? What happened to you?" Kakashi was standing next to him looking around. 

'Crap I didn’t clean any of the writing off the walls. Fucking villagers with their hate messages. Quick distract him... umm...'

 "Oh, you know… I was redecorating the place. I didn’t really like any of the furniture so I decided it was time to get rid of it. I just got a small wound on my back. I decided to let it heal naturally instead of making Kur- uh the Kyuubi heal it. Why don’t we go for a walk or something Sensei?" Naruto grabbed Kakashi's arm and dragged him out of the apartment. Kakashi watched him carefully. It was obvious that the boy was in a lot of pain and someone else had trashed his apartment. The messages on the walls were terrible and made the copy ninja’s blood boil. Who would be so cruel to say those things to a kid? Each message told the kid to kill himself and called him horrible names. They blamed him for deaths that he had nothing to do with. What was going on? Kakashi watched as Naruto pretended to be cheerful and loud. The kid had a huge fake smile on his face and he was gesturing wildly as he told Kakashi some lie about how he hurt his back. Kakashi could see the flinch in the clear blue eyes with every movement. Obviously, it was not a small wound. 

"Why didn't you come to training these last three days?" Kakashi interrupted him. 

"Three- three days? Um... Oh you know, I was busy remodeling and I must have lost track of time..." Naruto replied vaguely. 

'Three days! Kurama we need to have a talk... How could you let me sleep for three days? Of course, Kakashi is suspicious! I’ve never missed training like this before!' 

[You needed the rest. You were in no shape to train.] 

'Stupid fox' 

"You know how I get sometimes Sensei, time just got away from me." He flashed a huge grin and laughed a little. 

"Want to go for some ramen?" 

"Sorry Naruto but I can’t today. I just wanted to check in on you and make sure you were all right. I’ll see you tomorrow at training okay?" Kakashi replied.

 "Oh yeah, sure. Thanks for stopping by!" Another fake grin and a wave. Kakashi disappeared in a cloud of smoke. Unbeknownst to the blond, he reappeared next to Sasuke and Sakura who were hiding around the corner from Naruto. The two had followed Kakashi because they were worried too. They jumped a little but then peered around the corner to watch the blond. Naruto’s shoulders were slumped and his head was hanging. He let out a huge sigh that turned into a groan of pain. He slowly and carefully slunk his way back to his apartment, clearly trying not to gain any attention and also obviously in a lot of pain. The two students turned to their teacher and started talking at the same time.

"Sensei what was wrong-" 

"Did he tell you-"

"How did he get-" 

"What’s going on-" 

Kakashi held up his hands to stop the stream of words. 

"He wouldn’t tell me anything. He gave me the usual bullshit and lies. Something is obviously wrong though. I wish he would just trust us." 

There was silence for a moment before Sakura spoke up. 

"Maybe we should take turns keeping an eye on him for a while. From a distance. I doubt he would let us in close. That way we can help if anything else happens."

 Sasuke and Kakashi quickly agreed. They were all attached to the blond. Even if he lied all the time he had the biggest heart and the strongest determination. He had quickly become the center of the team even if he didn’t seem to notice. They took turns following him for two weeks but nothing else seemed to happen. Naruto healed and went back to normal. Eventually, they stopped watching.

Nineteen years old

Naruto dodged Sasuke’s kunai throw and slipped under the raven’s guard to punch him. They went back and forth around the clearing and even up in the trees. They fought for hours. This was a common practice for them. They had quickly become the two strongest ninjas in Konoha and they were only challenged in battle by each other. They fought with the intent to kill, each exercising his own figurative demons. Sasuke had decided that he didn't want revenge on Itachi. There was something fishy about the whole thing with his older brother and he was determined to find out. He fought with ferocity, trying to become strong enough to help his brother. If he could defeat Naruto in battle then he knew he could defeat anyone. Naruto was the strongest person he knew. However, he was frustrated because these battles always ended in a tie.

Sakura was going to kill them one day because they were coming to her more and more often covered in blood and injuries that they had given each other. Of course they only both showed up because Naruto would drag Sasuke to the hospital to be healed by their favorite surgeon. Naruto always refused treatment, stating that Kyuubi would heal him. Sasuke dragged his attention back to the fight in time to see Naruto space out for a few seconds. The blond froze and his eyes unfocused, pupils blown wide. Sasuke tried to pull his punch but his body was already committed to the motion and he made direct contact with the blond's jaw. Ouch, that was going to hurt. Naruto slammed into the tree behind him and slid to the ground. 

"You idiot! Pay attention Dobe! I could have killed you!" Sasuke rushed to Naruto’s side to assess the damage. The blond looked at him dazed for a second before he seemed to snap back into focus. He jumped up. 

"Fucking asshole. Aren’t you happy? You finally won!" Naruto turned around and disappeared into the forest, leaving a stunned Sasuke to stare at the shadows for a moment before rushing after the blond. 

‘What’s going on?’

He had expected Naruto to reply with his usual stupid grin and smartass comeback about how he was indestructible and that he was going to beat Sasuke's ass in revenge. Sasuke didn’t know where this angry Naruto had come from but Sasuke didn’t like him. He quietly tracked the dobe for several miles until he caught up with him in a clearing bisected with a stream. He was about to stride out and demand answers but the scene in front of him froze him with shock.

Naruto fought Sasuke with everything he had. Every kick to the thigh and block with a forearm brought a small grunt of pain. Sasuke didn't notice because Naruto always made noises like that when they fought. He didn’t know that the blond had been cutting since he was five. He didn't know that the blond wore black pants and a god-awful black and orange jacket everywhere because the dark color of the sleeves and pant legs hid the blood stains. Naruto was cutting more and more often. He had stopped letting Kurama heal the cuts too. The first few times he built a block around the wounds with his chakra that the fox didn't want to break because it would hurt the kit. And his kit had been hurt enough. He begged Naruto to let him at least have access after Naruto got deathly ill from an infection caused by the open wounds. Naruto now let him stop the bleeding and keep them free from infections but he was not allowed to heal them. The pain helped Naruto, the pain and the frequent fights with Sasuke. They occupied his mind to the point that the images and voices couldn’t invade. He didn't have to see images of the villagers surrounding him. Images of women laughing and screaming at their men to beat him, to kill him. He didn't see the chakra-absorbing chains that they locked him in. A choke collar and cuffs for his hands and feet. They dragged him to the ground and beat him, broke him, before... 

[Kit, pay attention!] Kurama’s voice knocked him out of the memories in time for Sasuke to knock him clear across the clearing. That hurt. 

‘Ouch.’

He shook his head and looked up to see Sasuke hovering worriedly. He jumped up and yelled something at him before running off. Naruto ran for miles trying to outrun the memories that were suddenly much too close for comfort. Every time they invaded the only way to lock them away again... He slowed to a stop in a clearing that had a pretty little stream running through it. This was the perfect place. He pulled out his special kunai. It was sharp enough to cut but just dull enough to make him feel each tear to his skin. 

[Please Kit, not again. The last ones haven’t healed yet.] 

"I’m sorry Fox-san but I have to. Just... don't look okay? I can’t stand for you to hurt for me. It’s not your fault. I just need them to stop. I need the memories, the voices to leave." He stripped out of his horrendous jacket and pants, stripping down to his boxers. He examined the scars and still-fresh cuts with a clinical eye. There were a lot of them. The oldest ones were haphazard but after that, a clear pattern was established. He used a crisscross design to get the maximum amount of pain. He gently built a wall around Kurama, a familiar practice now. The fox hated that Naruto hurt himself, hated that he couldn’t help Naruto. Naruto gently blocked Kurama into a corner of his mind where the fox couldn’t see or feel what Naruto was doing. The wall was just strong enough to blind the fox but it was also weak enough for the fox to tear through with no problem if he felt Naruto getting dangerously weak from blood loss. It would not be the first time. Naruto started with his left arm, reopening the newer wounds and making them deeper before adding more and more cuts. The cuts continued up his arm all the way to his shoulder. Then he switched hands and did the same to his right arm. Switching hands again he worked over his thighs before sinking to the ground. The Kunai fell from his hand and he flung his head back to look at the sky. His strength slowly drained out of him and dripped to the ground. He was so done with this life. Maybe... He quietly built up the wall around Kurama so as to not make the fox suspicious. He then lay out on his back so he could watch the sky. Blood continued to stream from his wounds and he was starting to become comfortably...numb. Oh, the cuts still burned like wildfire but he needed that pain. No, it was his mind that was numb. It was finally quiet. He continued to build the wall around Kurama, preventing the fox from getting out and healing him. He knew this wouldn’t kill the wily old demon. The fox would be freed from his jail. They were far enough from the village that he could probably get away before the council could find anyone to seal him into a new body. That would make Naruto happy. Kurama was his best friend and family. He wanted the old demon to be free to do as he pleased. He contemplated how great it would be for the fox to be free as he built the wall and his vision started to fade. He sighed briefly before succumbing to the encroaching darkness. The sky had been so blue today. It was beautiful.

Sasuke waited and waited. He waited for the blonde’s wounds to stop bleeding. For Naruto to start healing. What the hell was going on? He could barely comprehend what he had just seen. Naruto had scars all over him. With Kyuubi's healing powers, his skin should have been perfect. Instead, his back was crisscrossed with old and new whip marks and his arms and thighs were covered with old and new knife marks. Self-inflicted knife marks. Some of those marks were years old. Maybe over a decade old. 

‘What?’

His brain couldn’t keep up. And he kept waiting for the blond to jump up and go home but he was still lying on the ground. In fact, he was barely moving. Sasuke watched him closely for a moment. Was his breathing slowing down? Why was he still bleeding? Sasuke watched those blue eyes slide closed. They didn’t open again. Later Sasuke would admit that he panicked. Running to Naruto, heaving him into his arms, and running all the way back to Konoha at top speed was not the brightest plan he had ever had. Neither was carrying the blond practically through the center of town to reach the hospital. He burst through the doors and started yelling desperately for Sakura. 

"I swear to god Sasuke, this better not be because of you and Naruto's crazy fighting again. You two should learn to fix your own damn-" Sakura broke off as she got a good look at the scene in front of her. Sasuke’s eyes were wild with fear and he was covered with blood. Blood was seeping from an unconscious and mostly naked Naruto who was covered in deep cuts. Sakura snapped into business mode and took over the situation. She ordered for nurses and supplies as she guided Sasuke into a room where she had him put Naruto on a bed. 

"Is any of this blood yours?" She demanded. 

"N-no. He didn’t get this way fighting. It’s all his. Sakura he-" She interrupted him. 

"Not now Sasuke. If you’re fine then I need you to leave the room. We’re going to need space if we want to save him. He’s lost too much blood." Sasuke was shuffled out of the room by the incoming nurses. He waited out in the hallway for Sakura to come out and give him some good news. He waited and waited and waited... Eventually, Kakashi showed up and demanded to know what was happening. Apparently, he had just come back from a mission and heard that "the damn demon child was finally finished" from an ecstatic villager. Sasuke slowly told Kakashi everything,

"And when I caught up with him he was acting really strange so I hid in the trees to watch him. He undressed and took out a kunai and- and- and he didn't heal and- and he wouldn’t open his eyes and- why didn’t he heal?" Sasuke was slowly becoming hysterical; something the Kakashi had never seen the young ninja do. Not even after his family was massacred.

"Sasuke! Take a deep breath. I’m sure Naruto will be fine." Suddenly Sakura’s voice came on over the intercom system

"Attention. I have a patient that has coded in room 141. I need a cardiac team in here ASAP!" 

Sasuke stopped breathing for a second. Suddenly Kakashi's arms were wrapped around him as he fought to get back into that room. That was his best friend in there! He had to see him, had to help. Kakashi’s voice finally registered in his mind 

"Sasuke! Stop fighting me! You can't go in there, you will only be in the way! Sasuke! Snap out of it!" 

"We have to help him! He's dying! He has to know that we care! He can’t leave! What would we do if he left?" Sasuke suddenly collapsed into his sensei’s grasp. Kakashi dragged him back to the chairs and dumped him into one. He then crouched in front of the distraught Uchiha. 

"Sasuke he will be fine. I have faith in Sakura’s abilities. She will not let him slip away. We need to find out what happened to him. Why was he acting this way? Can you remember anything that might tell us why?"  

Sasuke took a deep breath and tried to calm himself. There had been something... Naruto’s back. There was no way that those marks were self-made. 

"Yeah, he had whip marks on his back. Old and new. Why would he have whip marks? Wouldn't they heal? And who is whipping him? Oh, and he was muttering something about voices and memories…" Sasuke trailed off trying to think. He looked up in surprise when he realized Kakashi had disappeared. He sighed and leaned back in his chair. His sensei would take care of whoever had hurt Naruto. Sasuke was going to wait right there until he was allowed in to see Naruto again. Alive and well. He refused to believe any other outcome was possible.

Sakura barely held on to her composure. They had finally gotten Naruto’s heart beating again and three bags of blood later had him looking much better in color and blood pressure. In the beginning, she had tried to use her medical ninjutsu but there was something blocking her from entering the blonde’s body. Her only theory was that the demon fox’s chakra was incompatible with or blocking her own. It took over an hour to stitch all of his wounds closed. There were so many of them. She wanted to weep when she realized that there were old scars under the new cuts. Where had they come from? Why would Naruto do this? She held his hand tightly as she checked his vitals again. He looked so small in the hospital bed. His skin was pale, his hair was limp, and he had a mask on his face to help him breathe. It was wrong. The blond was always in motion, always talking loudly with his blue eyes sparkling at her. This pale and still version looked like an imposter. The monitors around the bed constantly displayed his heart rate, blood pressure, chakra levels, and brain activity. Everything was still in the danger zone. The pink-haired ninja settled in for a long night. She would not let Naruto slip away, no matter what!

Kakashi's blood was raging. He should have known! He had known to an extent. He should have done something! Anything! He had waited patiently for years for his blond student to come to him with his problems but Naruto never did. Kakashi didn't understand why. All of his students were precious to him and he would do anything in his power to protect and help them. But the blond didn't seem to trust him. Or anyone else. Naruto used fake smiles and a loud and obnoxious personality to keep everyone at bay. His team had quickly figured it out and had hoped that he would drop the act with time. And he had...kinda. But he still didn't give them his real self. And they let him. Unsure of how to get close to the boy, unsure of how to get him to talk to any of them. Not for lack of trying, but they couldn't force him. 

'I'm going to force him. This has gone on long enough. I should have made him talk years ago. But first, I’m going to interrogate those damn villagers that were oh so happy that our resident Jinchuuriki was injured.’

Kakashi ran across the rooftops until he spotted the pair that he had talked to earlier. He dropped down behind them and listened for a moment, rage growing in his mind as he realized who they were talking about.

"We might finally be rid of that horrendous beast! Praise be!" 

"Yes, the monster is unlikely to live through that. But, maybe he will. I mean we’ve certainly done worse to him when we had him cornered in the past. And I woulda liked another go at that tight ass." Crude laughter spilled from the pair as the other agreed with him. 

"Yep, he is fun to play with. I love how he struggles with the chains. Once they’re on it's not like he can do anything. And choking him while he screams with pain is so much fun. When he’s back on his feet we should get everyone together to have another go at him." They laughed again, not aware of how close to death they were. Kakashi's revenge was halted however when he was grabbed from behind and abruptly dragged away from the villagers. 

"God dammit I’m going to kill-"

"Shush. Calm down Kakashi, I want to kill them as badly as you do but I think we need to take a different route here." Kakashi stopped struggling as he heard the voice of his lover Iruka. Iruka continued 

"I thought Naruto would get better once he was in a team. I didn’t realize that things had gotten so bad...I should have checked, should have been there for him. We need to go to Tsunade. I have a feeling that this is more than just two villagers. It would take a hell of a lot more than those two imbeciles to catch Naruto." Iruka reasoned carefully with his partner. Iruka knew Kakashi. Kakashi would look calm and collected right up until he committed mass murder and killed every civilian in the village who could have hurt their precious student. Iruka's heart hurt. Naruto had been his favorite student when the boy had been in the academy. He had done his best to protect the tiny blond boy from the bullying and cruelty of the other children. They still got together on a regular basis to eat ramen and talk. The boy had never once hinted that something like this was going on. His world stopped again as he considered the fact that Naruto had been raped, more than once, and the boy had sat next to him and told him stories about his missions and training like nothing was wrong. It was obvious that something was wrong. Iruka had seen Kakashi rushing through town and had followed his lover out of concern only to hear the same conversation that the copy ninja had. 

"Kakashi, is Naruto okay? Did something happen?" Kakashi looked away from him. No. Not possible. Naruto was indestructible. He was so strong. Nothing could hurt him! 

'The villagers had managed to catch and rape him more than once...' 

Kakashi slowly told Iruka everything that Sasuke had told him. Kakashi chose not to tell Iruka about Naruto's coding in the hospital.

"Kakashi, we need to go to Tsunade. Naruto needs help and we obviously have not been able to help him. And killing villagers is not really going to help him either." 

"Come on Iruka! How can I let them live knowing what they did to him? Naruto is so full of good. He has so much strength! And those bastards put him in chains? Held him down so he couldn’t fight? Raped him? Our little boy? I have to kill them! I’m going to kill all of them!" 

"Kakashi! Snap out of it! If you kill them without a trial then you will be imprisoned for the rest of your life. And you can't help Naruto if you are behind bars. I love him too but this is not the way to help him." The tension finally drained out of Kakashi and Iruka let him go. They turned as one and climbed a wall to run across the rooftops to the Hokage building. Five minutes later they were standing in front of Tsunade.

Tsunade was having a bad day. There was endless paperwork to fill out, Uchiha Itachi to catch, and the council was riding her ass about Naruto. They apparently wanted to start sending the boy out on harder missions. Alone. He was only nineteen! And in the middle of her hour-long dinner break, Kakashi and Iruka came barging into her office. She heaved a sigh before waving a hand, indicating that they could talk. Iruka nodded to Kakashi, signaling the copy ninja to explain the situation to her. At first, the Hokage didn't believe what she was hearing. Then she desperately hoped that they were mistaken. Surely there was some kind of mistake? Naruto was too strong for a few villagers to take advantage of. Unless it wasn’t a few villagers. And Tsunade knew the boy, he would cut off his right arm before harming anyone in Konoha. Shit. There were several minutes of silence as Tsunade absorbed the horror that Kakashi explained to her. All three adults were pale with the implications of what was said. Sasuke had mentioned that some of those scars looked really old. Naruto was only nineteen. How long has this been going on? All three of them were silently imagining Naruto as a child, trying to see proof. He had been a small kid. Loud and obnoxious and always making trouble. Sure he got into fights, but what boy didn't? So when did the abuse start? Tsunade was starting to get a sinking suspicion but she wouldn’t know for sure until she could talk to Naruto directly. Tsunade broke the silence in the room by calling in an Anbu ninja. 

"I want a team to guard Uzumaki Naruto while he is in the hospital. Tell them that they are not to trust anyone with him alone except for myself, Iruka, and his team. Not even other doctors or nurses." The porcelain mask nodded before the man disappeared as silently as he had appeared. 

"Can we trust them?" Kakashi demanded. Tsunade let a small smile cross her lips, along with a chuckle. 

"Believe it or not, the Anbu ninjas love Naruto as much as we do. He is constantly sneaking into their headquarters and stealing their stuff. It’s become a tradition for the new Anbu to try to catch the boy and get the stuff back. Not a one has managed it in four years. He of course returns anything sensitive to them, but he has been known to rob them blind of their explosive tags, sealing papers, and chakra scrolls. He uses them in his pranks. They all love the kid because of his spirit and determination. They try to look out for him as much as possible. Just last week one of the new ninjas saved him from a mob downtown... Shit." They all looked at each other in horror. Last week? If that Anbu hadn’t saved him what would have happened? 

"Kakashi, go to the hospital with Iruka and wait for Naruto to wake up. I'm going to have a couple of the intelligence Anbu ask around the village and see if they can figure out what’s been going on. Maybe he’s been talking to one of his other friends? And maybe the villagers will talk with someone who looks like them..."

Naruto was in hell. The images played over and over and he couldn’t escape them. He was running. There were screams and shouts and wild laughter behind him. There were so many people carrying so many weapons. Dread filled his veins as he ran faster. Maybe if he got to the forest... He concentrated hard and just as he crossed into the tree line he created a hundred Kage Bunshin. He sent his copies out in a hundred random directions as he took to the trees to continue running. The villagers were used to the chase by now. They knew his methods. They split up to chase down each clone. They treed them one by one before they destroyed them. As the fear and sensation of pain and death of each clone returned to him he started getting desperate. Where could he go? Where could he hide? He ran wildly for the river and the Valley of the End. Maybe... But he never made it. The villagers finally figured out that he was the real Naruto and they chased after him with abandon. He ran out of trees. He couldn't go for the river now. If they caught him on the ground... His tree was surrounded by so many figures. Young and old. No children. They jeered at him and yelled insults and threats. Each person had a weapon of some sort and one... one held chains and a whip. He shuddered in fear. He knew what those were used for. 

"Please, just leave me alone!" He yelled in desperation. He knew it would do no good. The villagers were enraged and began to throw things at him. He was fine with dodging them until a brick caught the back of his head. He wavered on the branch before toppling to the ground. He was surrounded, fighting for his life. He refused to use any ninjutsu or anything that could really hurt someone. He had no problem with breaking fingers, limbs, or ribs though. But there were too many. There were always too many. He fought and fought and he was beaten back into the center of the circle until someone managed to drop the loop of chain that acted as a collar over his head. It was jerked tight, too tight for him to breathe and his hands flew to the links around his throat desperate to remove the death loop. In his distraction, the villagers managed to get the cuffs on his wrists and ankles. His strength drained out of him. These chains were special. They absorbed chakra from the victim. He was barely able to build a wall around Kurama before he felt the heavy draw on his reserves. The chain around his neck loosened fractionally and he gasped in a desperate breath. Each chain was grabbed by a large man who then proceeded to yank his chain until it was pulled taut. The five villagers stood in such a way as to immobilize Naruto facedown with his arms and legs spread eagle. The panic returned as he was rendered defenseless and his breathing was restricted. He gasped and choked as the rest of the villagers took their cue to do as much damage as possible to him. He was swept away by the agony, his mind unable to process the pain. He jerked back to reality when the remains of his clothes were jerked from his body. 

"No... Please no... stop..." He pleaded between pants. Several of the villagers laughed at him as one stepped forward with the whip. His body jerked over and over as the metal-tipped leather bit into his skin. The whip-wielder spit on him before yelling encouragements at the man kneeling between his legs. The man opened his own pants before jerking Naruto’s broken limbs into a better position. He almost blacked out from that pain alone. And then... The pain filled him on a whole new level, each jerk and drag, each trust and pull, pure torture. His screams filled the air along with the laughter as one man after another took a go at him. His body was covered and filled with their fluids. He was so dirty, so disgusting, why couldn't he die? Why couldn't he just disappear? When they were finished with him, they used chains to drag him into a hole. They removed the metal links and dumped him into the dark and dank space. It was deep and filled with a liquid that smelled like piss. They didn't cover him up because what would be the fun in that? He lay there and looked at the stars that he could see. Kurama scratched at the other side of the wall so he slowly disassembled it. However, the fox didn't come to him. Where was he? Kurama never left him alone. Out of everyone, Kurama was the one constant, the one person he could rely on. He started to panic again, looking for the fox in his mind. He couldn't find him... Couldn't find him... Couldn't find him... and the dream started again. A different day, a different crowd, a different chase, all with the same result. And again. And again. And again. Naruto was in hell.

Sasuke, Sakura, and Kakashi were looking at hell. They gathered around the bed as Naruto went through another cycle. It started out with heavy breathing as if the blond was running. That quickly changed to whimpers and moans of pain before outright screams of agony and anguish. The machines around him registered how his heart pounded and his brain waves fluctuated with terror. Sakura had tried everything but she couldn’t bring Naruto out of this coma. He had been this way for five days. Everyone was starting to get desperate. They had to tie him down to prevent him from reopening his wounds with his desperate writhing but that seemed to make the dreams worse. The Anbu and Tsunade were looking for answers anywhere they could find them, but so far they had been unsuccessful. Everyone in the village that was not a ninja clammed up tight the minute Naruto was mentioned. Gaara had arrived on the second day of Naruto’s hospital visit. The redhead hadn't said a word so far. He just sat in the corner and watched Naruto with wide distressed eyes. Sasuke was sure that the other Jinchuuriki was the only person that Naruto really talked to. The two had instantly connected once Naruto had saved Gaara from self-destructing. Today, he finally moved. The other three occupants of the room turned to face him as he strode to the bed. His voice cracked slightly as he spoke for the first time in four days.

 "He sealed the Kyuubi away. That’s the problem. We talked two years ago and he told me that Kurama had free range in Naruto’s mind. Naruto dissolved that part of the seal years ago; however, he can still build walls to limit the fox to certain areas when he wants to. I believe that’s how he got the scars and how he got into this state. He must have built a wall to prevent Kyuubi from saving him. If we can get him to release the wall, then Kurama can probably help him heal and bring him out of this nightmare." 

"Kurama?" Sasuke asked in confusion. Gaara looked at him for a minute. 

"Didn't Naruto ever tell you? Kurama is the demon fox’s name. You know, those two are actually really close. Kurama has been helping him for years-" Gaara stopped abruptly at the surprise and shock he saw on the faces in front of him. 

"He never told you?" Three heads shook side to side. Kakashi suddenly made a noise of surprise.

"That’s why he never talked to me! He was talking to that damn fox! Naruto you idiot! That fox can't protect you!" All four of them looked at Naruto again as they realized that Naruto trusted the demon fox more than he had trusted a single human being. 

"Oh god." Sakura sobbed as she covered her mouth. 

"How much pain has he been through? How much do we not know?" She broke down crying as Sasuke wrapped his arms around her. There was fury in both his and Kakashi’s eyes. Someone was going to pay for this. Hopefully with their life. Naruto progressed to screaming making everyone in the room flinch. Sasuke turned to Gaara.

 "How do we free Kyuu- uh Kurama?" 

"I’m not actually sure. Maybe try talking to him? Naruto I mean. When he is calmer." Sasuke and Sakura nodded with determination. They would pull Naruto out of this hell.

…Naruto lay at the bottom of a dried-out creek bed. The villagers had made sure to roll him through the sand and pebbles so he was caked with both. Kurama, where was Kurama. He couldn’t think past the pain. There was an annoying sound...like someone talking... He hesitated and tried to listen in. It almost sounded like...

Sasuke and Sakura were on either side of Naruto’s bed. They leaned in close and whispered in his ears. They didn't want their voices to sound anything like what was happening in the vision that he was trapped in. Sasuke went the direct route. 

"Naruto. Naruto-kun. Dobe, listen to me. I need you to take down that wall. You need to let Kurama out so that stupid fox can help you. Come on Dobe. You can do it. Take down the wall and come back to us." Sasuke repeated that over and over while the blond whimpered in pain. Sakura on the other side tried something similar but with a twist. 

"Naruto-kun. Come back to us Naruto. We can't live without you. We need you. I know it’s scary but you need to let Kurama help you. Please Naruto, please take down that wall. We are waiting right here for you. Open those beautiful baby blues and come home to us." They talked to him until he started to scream again. As soon as the screaming stopped they started again. Cajoling, ordering, bribing, begging. Whatever they thought he would respond to. This continued for several hours until finally the screams stopped.

…Naruto lay in another hole, this one full of things that he did not want to think about. The stench was horrendous and he could barely breathe. Although... that could be because of his broken ribs and a punctured lung. Just maybe. The whispering was back. It was comforting. The voices called for him to come home, something he had never experienced before. He knew no one would notice if he didn't make it back after a mission. No one would blink twice if the villagers killed him. In fact, they would probably throw a party. But he loved the whispers. They made him feel happy, another thing he was not used to. He was slightly confused though... the voices kept talking about a wall. And Kurama. Where was Kurama? Behind a wall? What wall?

…Naruto's body thumped into a pit with stakes in it. His abused body was impaled by several of the stakes that then broke off in him and let his body hit the rocks at the bottom. He groaned but tried to concentrate. A wall. Something important about a wall. He built walls sometimes. He had a lot of impenetrable ones that he used against people. He couldn't trust people. He also sometimes built walls around Kurama to keep the fox safe. He did right after he was caught by the villagers so the fox wouldn't see his shame. And to protect the fox from the chakra drain of the chains. Usually, he would burst through the wall on his own once he sensed that the villagers had left. Sometimes Naruto was too weak to take them down so he always built them thin. The fox couldn’t heal him otherwise- 

…Naruto let out a short scream as he slammed to a stop on a small ledge. He almost wished he had fallen all the way to the bottom of the cliff. As it was, his organs felt like they had burst open. Several probably had. Coughs shook his body as his lungs filled with blood. He listened to the laughter and singing as the villagers left. He was so tired. Where was Kurama? He coughed again as the whispers reminded him. Behind a wall. He must have built it too thick. Otherwise, his fox-san would already be helping him. He was so tired. 'Can't sleep. Have to let Kurama out. He doesn't like to be confined.' Naruto carefully felt around in his mind, looking for the obstruction. In a shadowy corner, he found it. It was the thickest wall he had ever built. Why would he do that? Kurama hated to be kept behind the walls. He only allowed it to help Naruto stay sane. He couldn’t break through a wall like this without damaging Naruto's mind. Kurama loved him. Why would Naruto do something like build this wall? It didn't make sense-

…The villagers didn't bother to move him this time. They had caught him in the Valley of the End. He was laying half in the river, the water pulling at his body in a way that made him shudder in agony. He reached out the one hand that worked and slowly dragged himself further out of the water. He panted desperately as the voices reminded him what he had to do. Kurama was trapped in his mind. Naruto had to let him out. He reached for the wall again, carefully feeling along it. There were no seams but he could feel the weave. He slowly started to dismantle the obstruction. Several layers later and he could feel the demon fox's anger. Several more layers and he could feel how Kurama was pacing and growling continuously. 'Shit, I really pissed him off this time.' Finally, the wall was thin enough that he could hear the fox on the other side. Kurama sensed his presence at last and charged at the wall, breaking through the now-thin barrier. Naruto lost his concentration as the pain from the breach added to the symphony already taking over his body. He flinched before-

Sasuke and Sakura continued to plead with the comatose blond in between them. Kakashi and Gaara stood at the end of the bed, watching desperately for any change in Naruto’s condition. Gaara finally turned away. 

"I'm sorry but I must return to Suna. I have responsibilities to take care of. Please let me know when his condition changes." And Gaara left. Team seven remained. They refused to give up on their precious blond. It seemed like years later when there was finally a change. The moans of pain stopped. In the silence that followed, Kakashi, Sakura, and Sasuke watched as Naruto slipped into an actual deep sleep. Sakura hurried to remove the restraints before reaching for the bandages on the blonde’s arms. They watched in wonder as the wounds slowly closed. She called in a nurse to help her remove the bandages and the stitches. Within ten minutes Naruto was completely healed with no new scars. Kakashi was overwhelmed by what he could see. It was obvious that the cuts on Naruto's arms and legs were very much on purpose. The careful placement made him feel sick to his stomach. When Sakura and the nurse turned Naruto over to check his back, the copy ninja rushed to the trash and threw up everything but his stomach lining. The brutality, the vicious intent that was evident in each stroke of the whip that was recorded on Naruto’s back... God Kakashi could not even imagine the pain the blond had been through. He bent over the trash can again when he realized that those were only the injuries that he could still see. Who knows what else was done to the blond before...before... his stomach heaved again. When he finally regained control he returned to the bed to stand next to Sasuke. Sasuke was shaking with barely contained rage and exhaustion. They were all tired but still desperate to see if the blond would wake up. 

Iruka would probably show up at any minute. Kakashi's lover still had to go to the academy every day to teach but he rushed to the hospital at the end of every day. Sakura fiddled with several of the machines and Naruto’s bed covers. They had been able to dress him in a shirt and sweatpants once the wounds were healed. The blond was still sleeping but his brain waves were getting stronger and he had moved several times in the last hour. He should wake up at any minute. Iruka strode in followed by Tsunade. The Hokage had been informed of the blonde's change and she wanted to be present when he woke up. Sakura and Sasuke stood on either side of the blond, each holding a hand subconsciously. Kakashi stood at the end of the bed while Iruka was wrapped around him from behind. Tsunade stood to one side. They all practically held their breath because they could feel the surge of strong chakra that was Naruto's signature.

[Come on Kit. Time to wake up. Seems like everyone is here waiting for you.] 

'Come on. Five more minutes? I'm so tired...' 

[I know Kit but they are so worried about you. Just open your eyes and say hi. After that you can sleep some more.] 

'Fine, fine. I can do that. Just let me find some willpower because I seem to have lost all my strength somewhere... ah, there are some!' Naruto pried his eyelids apart as he listened to the fox chuckle. He felt himself grin, a true grin, deep inside. He loved to play with the fox. He squinted against the bright light, flinching at the pain in his retinas. He blinked several times to clear his eyesight and looked around. The first thing he saw was a white ceiling with those damn lights, grey walls... He heard beeps and whirls of machines. 

'Hospital'

[Yes] 

'Fuck, what happened?' 

[You lost it Kit, and I almost lost you. If you ever do that again...] 

Naruto closed his eyes again as memories flooded him. Fighting with Sasuke, running away, hurting himself, and then the dreams.

 "-uto. Naruto look at me. How do you feel Sunshine?" His eyes opened again and he finally looked at the people standing around his bed. Sakura, Sasuke, Kakashi, Iruka, even Tsunade. 

'Why are they here?'

[They are here for you, Kit. They were worried. And they are the only reason you are still alive. Stupid reckless-] 

'I'm sorry! I won't do it again I promise! I was just weak for a moment.'

Naruto looked back at Sakura, his brain finally remembering that she had asked a question. 

"I-I feel fine." He tried to clear his throat finally noticing how much it hurt. 

"Uh, can I have some water?"

Sasuke turned to the bedside table next to him and poured him a cup from a pitcher there. He held out the cup to Naruto who hesitated for a moment before taking it. He winced as the motion tugged at the IV that he had just noticed in that arm. He quickly changed hands before heaving his body up far enough to drink without choking. That movement alone seemed to exhaust him. He collapsed back into the bed and looked at the crowd around him tiredly. 

"Why are you here?" He asked before he could stop himself. He really didn't understand. Kakashi should be on a mission, or resting up for the next one. Iruka had, no doubt, a long day at the Academy and should be resting with Kakashi. Sakura surely had other patients, and Sasuke should also be on a mission, training, or resting. Tsunade was Hokage. Her presence made the least sense as she was the busiest. Five shocked faces looked at him for a moment before everyone started talking at once.

“Of course, we came-“

“How could you-“

“Where else would we-“

“Dobe, you worried us-“

He flinched away from the loud sound, letting his eyes slam shut on reflex. It sounded too close to the villagers yelling at him and with the dreams so close... His body curled in on itself. Silence filled the room again. He refused to open his eyes. Sakura finally spoke up.

"You must still be tired. We will leave you tonight and come back in the morning to see you. Come on everyone. Out. Out. Goodnight Naruto!" The hellish lights were turned off and the door closed. He sighed in relief before relaxing and falling back into a deep, healing sleep.

Sasuke jerked out of Sakura’s grasp and rounded on her, looking ready to fight.

"Oh don't give me that look. Did you see him? He was exhausted and I think he was still feeling the pain from those dreams. He needs rest, not for us to interrogate him."

 "Sakura, I have to find out what’s wrong. What he did... and right in front of me. What if I hadn’t been there? What if I had let him stomp off on his own?" Everyone shuddered at that thought. The blond would have bled out there by the stream... Sasuke continued. 

"I have to know. I have to fix it. I can't lose someone else that I love. And Naruto... We have failed him so badly, Sakura. How did we not see?" He trailed off hopelessly. Sakura reached out and folded his stiff body into her arms. 

"I know. I can't stop thinking the same thing. What did we miss? How could we not have known? I knew he was faking all the smiles and loudness but I never thought..." Sasuke slowly reached around her and pulled her closer. Her body shook and silent tears soaked into his shirt. Suddenly he felt exhausted.

 "Tomorrow. We will get answers from him tomorrow. Even if I have to sit on him god dammit. He is not going to lie to me this time!" Sasuke declared. Kakashi nodded in silent agreement and they shared a look. They would pull the truth out of the stubborn blond. Everyone left to return to their respective abodes. Each had a hard time falling asleep. Several had nightmares. And one was up within four hours to return to the blonde’s side. Sasuke lurked in the corner of the room trading between watching Naruto sleep and the sun slowly creeping up in the sky. 

"Why are you here?" His head whipped towards the bed at the croaked question. He hurried over and poured a cup of water holding it out to his sleepy companion. Naruto watched him for a moment before accepting the cup. 

"Why do you do that? You did that yesterday too. It’s not like I’ve done anything to it." Sasuke looked curiously at the dobe, trying to read his expressions. With a jolt, he realized that he had never seen Naruto with anything other than that mile-wide grin on. He was either talking incessantly or had the determined look he got when they trained. Sasuke had no idea what Naruto's true facial expressions were or what they meant because he had only ever seen the mask. 'Nice try Dobe. I have a steep learning curve. You can't hide from me forever.' Naruto shrugged and turned away as he gulped down the water. He went to reach for the pitcher and was painfully reminded of his IV. Sasuke immediately reached for the pitcher and poured him another cup. Naruto sipped this one slower as he looked at Sasuke over the rim of his cup.

[Tell him. Tell him everything Kit. He is almost as strong as you. He could help you!]

'If he is only almost as strong then how could he help? Besides, I don't want him to know everything. I am ashamed enough as it is. If everyone knew...' He shuddered 'What little respect they have for me now would be gone.' 

[You don't know that! And the only reason you are in this situation is because you refuse to fight. At least if Sasuke knew he could help put off the crowd. You know that everyone in the village either fears or worships him. Let him help you Kit!] 

'No'

"Are you done with your internal argument? Tell the Kyuubi- Kurama thank you." Naruto looked up in surprise. 

"Thank you for what?" 

"He saved your life Dobe. More than once. For that alone I owe him." Naruto stared at him in shock. Kurama chuckled. 

[You are welcome, Uchiha. Now it’s your turn to protect the ungrateful, reckless, stupid-] 

'I get it! I'm sorry! And how am I ungrateful?'

"He says you’re welcome."

"Looks like he said more than that." Naruto's gaze finally focused fully on the raven-haired boy in front of him. Sasuke twitched. Those blue eyes... They were so intense. As if they were trying to read his mind or look at his soul. 

"Stop looking at me like that Dobe. It’s not that hard to figure out. Your eyes get all unfocused and you look like you’re constipated-" 

"Hey!"

"I’m kidding! But I can tell."

"Really? You never could before...Hmmm," Naruto relaxed back into the bed. His energy reserves were still low. Apparently almost dying took a lot out of a person. 

"What do you mean I couldn't tell before? How often do you talk with the fox?"

"I talk to him almost constantly. He helps with my training and we are always discussing or fighting about something. How long was I out?" 

"Six days. Doesn’t your head get crowded with the two of you in there?" 

"Six days! I have to get back to training! And I’ve missed so many missions! And my apartment! Shit, I’ve probably been kicked out. Damn it!" Naruto continued to fume and curse before he looked carefully at the IV. 

'Shouldn't be too hard to take out.'

[Bad idea. Even if it doesn’t hurt you Sakura will when she gets a hold of you.]

'But work! And my apartment! I can't stay in this bed!' 

[Don’t even-]

"Don’t even think about it Dobe." A pale hand was suddenly covering the IV while its partner planted on his chest. 

"You are not going anywhere. Tsunade took care of all of your missions. And I’m sure you haven’t been kicked out of your apartment. Your landlord was informed that you were in the hospital so just lie down and relax." The fox chuckled for a second time as he realized that Sasuke had been thinking almost the same thing as him. Naruto frowned at them both before relaxing back. He couldn't do anything with Sasuke touching him anyways.

 'Wait till his guard is down.' 

"Fine." Sasuke took a step back and released him but continued to watch him closely, obviously expecting Naruto to make another move to remove his IV and leave the bed. 

'Time to distract him.' 

"And I’ve totally been kicked out of my apartment. My landlord has been waiting for years to get rid of me. He could legally do it once I turned eighteen because I could technically buy a house at that point or live with someone else. He's been looking for any excuse at all and my rent was due Wednesday. He's probably gotten rid of all my stuff too." Naruto slowly scooted up into a sitting position and looked down at his lap sadly. Out of the corner of his eye, he watched Sasuke relax and frown at him in concern. 

"This guy sounds like an asshole. How could you pay your rent while you were in the hospital?" Sasuke demanded. He actually sounded...outraged. Like he cared... odd... Naruto shrugged it off internally.

 'Yeah right. Not likely.' 

"He is an asshole. If I could rent anywhere else I would have." Sasuke suddenly looked intently at Naruto’s face, trying to see the blonde’s expression behind his shaggy hair. 

"What do you mean you can't rent anywhere else?" 

"Ummm... Well you know...it’s no big deal." 

"Tell me what you meant." 

"It’s no big deal. Don’t worry about it!" 

"Naruto!" 

"Fine! I can't rent anywhere else because the third Hokage made my landlord rent to me because everyone refused. They didn't want to rent to a demon. Happy now?" Naruto finally spits out. Sasuke took a step back, shock on his face. 

"Naruto...I’m sorry. I didn't know..." Naruto looked away as shame colored his face. He wanted to disappear. 

'He probably thinks I'm horrible. I can't even get anyone to rent to me.' 

"Naruto-" A knock on the door interrupted whatever Sasuke was going to say. Naruto looked up and at the door. Instead of calling for the person to enter, Sasuke rounded the bed and walked towards the door. The instant his back was turned, Naruto had the IV out of his arm and was disconnecting all the various machines from him. A second later he was out of the bed and hauling the window open. Sasuke turned in time to see Naruto open the window and jump out. 

"Fuck! Naruto come back!" His cries fell on deaf ears. Naruto was already halfway to the edge of Konoha. Sasuke was about to follow him out of the window when the door opened. He turned to face the potential threat. Sakura and Kakashi stood in the doorway. 

"What happened?" 

"Where did he go?" 

They demanded at the same time. Sasuke just shook his head and jumped out the window. The few moments that he had hesitated had allowed Naruto to get a head start on him. Sasuke couldn’t see the dobe anywhere. A whisper of sound announced the fact that Sakura and Kakashi had followed him out the window. 

"He left. We need to find him fast. He's still weak. I think I know where he's going." 

Sasuke filled them in on what he had learned as they ran. 

"So where did he live before the Hokage helped him? Don’t kids usually leave the orphanage at age six or seven? That’s usually when they start at the academy…" Sakura wondered out loud. It hurt her heart to think of a little version of Naruto out on the street. How did he get food? No wonder he had been such a small kid. The way he ate ramen whenever they went out to lunch was starting to make sense... Sasuke and Kakashi seemed to have the same thought as curses filled the air following her questions. 

"Tsunade said the Anbu looked after him, made sure he was all right but how long was he on his own before then?" Kakashi added his thoughts to the mix. Sasuke let loose some more creative curses. 

"I always thought his fighting style was odd. It was more brutal than what they taught in the academy. I bet he learned it on the streets. And do you remember how long it took for him to learn to read and write? He always said that he forgot to do his homework but what if he didn't have a safe place to do it in?" Silence filled the air again as they continued to race after their teammate. Each was caught in his or her own thoughts. Thoughts about the little idiosyncrasies in Naruto's loud personality. Things that they thought were the result of him not being too bright. They each came to the realization that his personality had been carefully built to make them think that. It was a defense mechanism that had let him hide all of his weaknesses. He had quietly worked to turn each and every weakness into a strength. Naruto had quietly excelled in school as he got older. His grades are on par with Sasuke’s. The only reason he got held back was because he had too much chakra to pass the final test. The Kage Bunshin fixed that problem. And once in training, he had learned to hone his chakra until he had the finest control of it. Each member of team seven cursed themselves for not seeing what was right in front of them. Then they got angry. They got angry with themselves but also with Naruto. Didn't he trust them? 

Naruto ran. He ran as if the hounds of hell were on his heels. He ran as though the villagers with their weapons and chains were after him. He was consumed by instinct and so ran to the same place he always ran to. The Valley of the End. He didn't stop running until he reached the edge of the cliff where he dropped to his knees. His stomach lurched and he learned over the edge to throw up the water in his stomach. There wasn't anything else but his stomach continued to heave. 

[Calm down Kit it’s okay. It’s okay. You’re safe. Shhh...] Kurama tried to calm him and used his energy to settle Naruto's stomach. 

'Thanks, Rama' 

[No problem, Kit]

Naruto just knelt there and breathed. And he wept. He had to leave. Everything was falling apart. He had no place to stay and Sasuke was starting to ask questions. It was better to leave before they kicked him out. Made it seem like his choice. He looked down at the river so far below. It wouldn't take much... 

[No! You promised Naruto! Never again! I will take control of your body if you even think about it!] 

"You’re right. I’m sorry. I’m sorry, I won’t do it. I promise. Where are we going to go, Kurama?"

He let his body ease away from the edge and tilted his head back to look at the sky. It was covered in clouds today like the sky wanted to cry with him. 

"Go where? Are you leaving? You can't leave, we need you here! Tell him Sasuke!" 

"Naruto you can't leave!"

Naruto whipped around in surprise as the voices pierced the quiet. 

'Fuck'

[Language] 

'I think this situation warrants cursing' 

He was surrounded. Sakura and Sasuke came at him from the sides while Kakashi blocked his front. They stood several feet away from him, close enough to talk but far enough away to make it hard to hit them all with one jutsu. He reached for a kunai but paused as he realized that he had no weapons. 

'Stupid, stupid, I am sooooo stupid!'

 He went cold with fear right before his brain offered him the meaning of the words they had just spoken. He cocked his head in confusion. Sakura... wanted him to stay? And Sasuke too? But he annoyed them all the time and got into fights with them and made stupid decisions on missions with them... the list really goes on. Kakashi saw his confusion and added his voice to the mix. 

"Don’t leave Naruto. You are needed in Konoha. I know it’s been really bad for a long time. Worse than anyone knew, but we need you. Just tell us what is going on so we can help you." 

Silence. 

"Please Naruto! Please trust us!"

"We want to help you! Come on Dobe. Tell us what’s wrong!" Naruto looked at them in shock. 

"You want to help me? Why? I’m nothing but a nuisance. A pain in the ass. A monster. A demon. Dirty, disgusting,-" He cut himself off, realizing that he had said too much when he saw the horror on their faces. 

"No! That is not true! You are our precious teammate!" Sakura cried out. She rushed to his side and threw her arms around him, hugging him tight. 

"But you said-" 

"Naruto! You can’t believe that we really meant... No! Yes, you can be annoying but you are an integral part of this team! We would be nothing without you." Sasuke was quick to refute him. He crept closer to the blond but didn't touch him. Sasuke glanced at Kakashi who nodded back. They were going to get answers. It was now clear why the blond did not trust them. It was also obvious that he was stunned and moved beyond words by what Sasuke and Sakura had told him. The pink-haired ninja had wrapped herself firmly around the Dobe and was subtly pulling him away from the cliff edge. Sasuke slipped between him and the drop-off. Kakashi moves a few feet to his left to make it harder for Naruto to get by him. The blond seemed to be in shock as Sakura clung to him and cried into his shoulder.

 "How could you think like that? Is that what drove you to... Is that what’s been wrong?" 

"I- but- what do you-" Naruto spluttered, trying to connect his frozen brain with his bewildered mouth. He stopped abruptly.

[You need to tell them, Kit. Tell them everything.] He shook in fear at that thought. Everything but then- Kakashi suddenly crouched in front of him. 

"It’s okay Naruto. Just talk to me." Naruto looked up and was caught by Kakashi’s Sharingan eye. 

"What do you want to know?" He hedged, trying to think past the whirling red that suddenly filled his vision and brain.

Sasuke watched as Naruto's arms slowly wrapped around Sakura until he was clinging to her as hard as she was clinging to him. Good. He did feel some bond with them. He obviously took comfort in her embrace. Kakashi was crouched in front of the pair, subtly hypnotizing Naruto with his eye. The Dobe should have known better than to look at it with all the times that Sasuke got him with the same trick in training but Sasuke wasn’t going to protest anything that would get them answers. He was... attached to Naruto. More so than to his own brother. You might even say that he loved the blond. He could not imagine Konoha without Naruto in it. Then again...he might just destroy Konoha depending on the blonde’s answers. He was starting to get a really bad feeling about what was going on. Kakashi leaned in a little. 

"Naruto, why do you cut yourself?" Kakashi wanted to build him up to admitting to the other thing. Sakura and Sasuke didn't know that Naruto had been raped yet. Kakashi wanted Naruto to be the one to tell them but they could get there slowish. 

"Cutting stops the voices and the emotions that I can’t control." Bare minimum. 

"Okay, where are those voices and emotions from?" Silence. Kakashi repeated the question slowly while looking intently into Naruto's eyes. 

"They come from the memories."

 Sasuke leaned in a little. Naruto had whispered the answer as if he was admitting to doing something horrible. Kakashi took a deep breath before pressing forwards. 

"What memories, Naruto?"

 Another hesitation before the blond replied in an even softer and smaller voice.

 "The memories of the villagers." 

Sasuke suddenly had a horrible feeling about this. No. No way. Naruto was too strong for any civilian to get a hold of. Right? Suddenly he was not so sure of himself. 

"What did the villagers do to you, Naruto?" Kakashi asked slowly. Sasuke looked at his sensei hard. If he didn't know any better he would almost say that Kakashi already knew the answer to his question. 

"Th- They chase me into the woods." 

"What happens when they catch you?" The blond swallowed audibly and tears started to stream down his face. Sakura rocked him gently trying to comfort him silently. 

"When they catch me they- they- they chain me down and beat me." 

"What else?" 

"No. No. No. No. No!" 

"Tell me Naruto. What else?" 

Tears streamed down his face faster and he rocked faster.

"After- After they- take turns with me." This was said so quietly that Sasuke had to strain to hear it. The blond promptly fell into hysterics and sobbed against Sakura’s shoulder. Sakura looked towards Sasuke, her face as frozen as his felt. 

'They take turns with me.' 

The statement echoed in both their minds over and over. They looked at Kakashi, hoping it didn’t mean what they thought it did. He couldn’t possibly mean... One look at Kakashi’s face confirmed their suspicion. The copy ninja was crying. Sasuke fell to his knees before reaching out a hand to Naruto. He hesitated before letting it rest on the boy's back. Naruto was still crying, his body shaking with the force of his sobs. 

"Oh god. No. Naruto..." Sasuke whispered. The blond cried harder. Kakashi spoke up again. 

"This is important. How many times, Naruto? How many times have they gotten ahold of you?" 

The blond shook his head over and over. Sasuke suddenly needed to know. 

"How many times, Naruto!" He demanded. The blond jerked and held his breath for a moment before the answer burst out of him. 

"I don't know! It happens at least once a month as long as I’m in the village!" Sasuke reeled back. 

'Once...every month... No wonder he has been taking longer and longer missions…' Kakashi looked sick. 

"When was the first time?" His sensei whispered the question, clearly afraid of the answer. The blond let out a little laugh. It sent shivers down Sasuke’s back. 

"The first time? The first time was a present for my fifteenth birthday from the entire village. It was a huge celebration. They had lots of fun as they chased me through the forest, pulled me out of a tree, held me down, beat me within an inch of my life, and let ten different men have a go at my virgin ass." The words were like poison in the air. The sheer horror was unfathomable. Fifteen. Kakashi’s eyes slammed closed. Sasuke stared into space in complete shock. Sakura had frozen in place. Naruto braced himself for their disgust, their hate. No one should be around him. He was dirty... Suddenly two more pairs of arms joined Sakura. Kakashi and Sasuke wrapped themselves around the blond as if trying to hide him from the world. Once he got over the shock he was sent right back into it when he heard what each was saying. All three of them were saying a variation of the same thing to him over and over. 

"I'm so sorry. I should have been there. I should have protected you. I should have noticed something was wrong. I'm sorry. Please don't leave. I promise to make it up to you. I promise to protect you and help you get better." They said it over and over as they surrounded Naruto with their warmth. The blond broke down crying again as the meaning behind the words and embraces finally sank in.

Three days later

Naruto was finally out of the hospital. After his wild run to the cliff and the subsequent confession, Sakura forced him to return to the hospital to finish resting up. Now that he was out, Tsunade had demanded to be filled in on the situation. She wanted to hear about it from Naruto directly. When he showed up he was surprised to find the rest of his team there. Sasuke quickly put that to rest. 

"Like we would let you do this alone, Dobe. I know it was hard enough the first time." 

Naruto felt a strange sense of relief that he wasn’t going to do this alone. When they entered the Hokage's office he was stunned when Sakura slipped her hand into his, squeezing gently as if to give him her strength. He was even more surprised when Sasuke did the same to his other hand. And Kakashi stood behind him with a hand on Naruto's shoulder. They surrounded him with their strength and support, giving him the courage to tell Tsunade everything with only a few stutters. Her hand was covering her mouth and tears streamed down her face by the time he finished. He hadn't been as...graphic...with his explanation to her but she seemed to be as deeply affected as his team had been. In fact, Sakura was in tears again and Sasuke was squeezing his hand to death. Kakashi's hand had a fine tremble. Naruto was overwhelmed by the fact that they cared. They all cared. He thought briefly back to Iruka’s visit the day after he was readmitted to the hospital. Iruka had stridden into the room and wrapped Naruto in his arms. 

"Kakashi told me everything. I am so sorry, Naruto. Know that I am here for you. Anything you need, no matter what time of the day or night it is. Just let me know and I will be here for you."

 Naruto focused back on the situation in front of him as Tsunade pulled herself together enough to talk. 

"I will be taking immediate action. Every villager over the age of ten will be called in for questioning. We will find every person who had a hand in this. Mark my words- they will never touch you ever again Naruto. You will have the safety that you should have had all along in your own home." 

Naruto felt Sasuke jerk a little and he looked at him questioningly. 

"Hokage-sama, Naruto has been kicked out of his apartment. I went there the other day to talk to his landlord. The man refused to reconsider but he did let me into the apartment to collect Naruto's things. I couldn't. The whole place had been trashed. Everything was torn to shreds." Sasuke looked at Naruto, trying to gauge his reaction to this news. Naruto didn't even blink. Sudden rage filled Sasuke. 

'No.' 

He suddenly planted himself in front of the blond so he could see Naruto's eyes. 

"This isn't the first time," he stated. The blond shrugged. 

"How many times, Naruto?" The blond tried to look away but Sasuke grabbed his chin and forced him to look at Sasuke’s suddenly red eyes. He shrugged again. 

"Often. I lost count long ago. It’s okay, I wasn’t attached to anything in there anyways. Thanks for going for me, Teme." Sasuke let go of his chin as those words hit him. 

'Often.' 

Would the horror never end? Naruto didn't even have the security of a home. His apartment was invaded and everything was destroyed so often that he had lost count. Kakashi’s grip on his shoulder was suddenly painful before the man turned him around to look at him directly. 

"I remember now. That first time. I went to check on you and your apartment was trashed. And you were injured. You were fifteen then..." He trailed off and his eyes widened. 

"No." He whispered. Naruto winced at the reminder. That had been after the first time... His reaction was all Kakashi and the others needed to know the truth. They had been worried but if only they had pushed. If only they had questioned instead of letting it go. Naruto was enveloped in a brief but hard hug by Kakashi before he was released and spun back around. Tsunade looked like she was going to be sick. Naruto hurried to console her. 

"It’s okay really! I didn’t really like that apartment anyways! It was kinda small. And I lived on the streets long enough to be able to survive just fine now. Don't worry about me!" he suddenly realized how silent it was. Everyone seemed to have stopped breathing... Sakura was suddenly in front of him and grabbed his jaw to make him look down at her. 

"How long? What age? When did you leave the orphanage?" Her questions were slightly jumbled but he understood the gist. He rubbed the back of his head as he tried to think back. 

"Ummm... I think I was kicked out at like three or four... I didn’t get the apartment until I was eight and that’s only cause the third Hokage made the landlord rent to me. And he only did that because-" he stopped abruptly.

 "Because why?" Sakura prompted. 

Naruto shook his head. 

"Why Naruto?" Tsunade demanded. The boy sighed.

"Because I kept breaking into here to sleep on the roof. It was the only place where the bullies couldn’t get to me. I was small for my age so they had no problem taking any food or money I got or beating me up just for kicks." Naruto closed his eyes as if he was suddenly exhausted. 

"Can I go Hokage-sama? I need to find someplace to sleep tonight." 

"You’re coming to my place." Naruto looked up in surprise at the Uchiha's statement. 

"What? I have plenty of room. Plus it’s safe. No one can get on the property without me knowing about it." 

Tsunade stepped in when she saw that Naruto was about to decline. 

"Sounds good to me. Naruto, I want you to lay low in the Uchiha compound for a few days until we get this mess with the villagers straightened out." 

Naruto hesitated for a moment. 

"Maybe I should just leave. You can't possibly punish all of the civilian adults in the village. If you just got those chains away from them then I would be fine. I would have no problem getting away from them." One part of his statement stood out to Sakura. 

"The chains? What’s so special about the chains?"

Naruto hesitated for a brief moment.

"The chains absorb chakra. They make me so weak that I can barely move. I have to build a wall around Kurama to keep him safe from the heavy draw. Those chains are the main reason why I can't ever get away from the villagers. If they can distract me enough to get the collar or a cuff on me then they have me caught." 

Tsunade suddenly smiled a shark’s smile. 

'Gotcha bastards.' 

"Those chains are illegal. Whoever is in possession of them can be put on trial and jailed or executed. I think the latter is more likely in this case." 

Naruto paled. 

"No. No one can be hurt or killed on my behalf. You can tell them to stop and you can take the chains but that is it. Do anything more and I leave." 

Tsunade hesitated, looking at Naruto in a new light. 

'Now I understand.' 

"Naruto- you do know that you are not responsible for any of the things that the villagers have tried to pin on you right? The nine-tail fox acted on its own, you were a newborn-" 

"I know." He replied so quietly that it was hard to believe him. 

Tsunade thought for a moment. 

"Naruto- do you want to leave? Maybe it would be better... You could go somewhere where these people can't get to you. If you only let me chastise them and take the chains then there will be no guarantee that they won't go after you again..." 

Naruto was conflicted. 

'Leave Konoha? But team seven is here, and Iruka, and Tsunade. I just got them...I don't want to lose them so soon... But can I stay here? What if-' He shuddered as the possibilities ran through his mind, past memories, none of them good. 

[I think we should leave, Kit. Go somewhere where no one can get to you. Somewhere safe.] 

Sasuke saw the emotions raging across Naruto's face as an idea occurred to him. 

"We could leave with you! Sakura and I, we could go with you to someplace safe." 

Sakura hurried to agree. 

"Yeah! Somewhere where only Kakashi-sensei can find us. We could help you, Naruto."

Naruto immediately protested.

"But what about your missions? And your training? If you left with me you wouldn’t be able to practice with the others or go on missions." 

Kakashi was warming up to this idea so he stepped in. 

"What if we set up a safe house hidden outside Konoha but still close? You three could still go on missions, Sakura and Sasuke could train and work in the village and Naruto would be safe." 

Tsunade jumped on that idea. 

"Perfect! I will have a group of Anbu start building a house immediately. We will hide it deep in the woods above the Hokage statues and have it surrounded by the strongest wards and seals. Alright, with that settled, Sasuke take Naruto home to rest. You are in charge of guarding him until tomorrow. Sakura, you need to return to the hospital, you have patients that you need to see. Kakashi go tell Iruka what has been decided before that annoyingly stubborn man bursts in here demanding answers from me. You are dismissed." 

Naruto was slightly stunned at the turn that the meeting had taken. He at best had hoped that the chains would be taken so he would be given a fighting chance. At worst, he expected to be thrown out of the village to fend for himself elsewhere. This- this was more than he had ever hoped or dreamed for. He felt a stupid grin come across his face. A real one. It disappeared when he saw Sasuke and Sakura staring at him in shock. 

"No! Bring it back! That was amazing Naruto, I’ve never seen you look so happy before!" Sakura rushed to assure him. Sasuke silently grabbed his arm and pulled him out of Tsudane’s office.

One Month Later

Naruto grinned and hummed to himself as he finished setting the table for dinner. Sasuke and Sakura would be back at any minute with news from the village. Right on cue Sakura walked through the door with a happy squeal and threw herself into Naruto's waiting arms. This had become a habit of hers whenever she left him for more than an hour. He liked it. She was warm and soft and smelled good and she never hurt him. Well, sometimes she hit him when he and Sasuke started going at it, but she never meant it. Sasuke came in after her and gave Naruto a small smile. That coupled with a quick clap of his hand on Naruto's shoulder was the equivalent of a hug from the uptight Uchiha. Sasuke continued past the pair to examine dinner. Sakura finally released Naruto and started gushing about everything they had learned in the village. 

"Naruto, you would not believe what Ino told me! She said..." Naruto listened as Sakura told him all that they had heard in the village as he helped Sasuke serve dinner. The three of them sat around their small table and ate and talked late into the night. They finally split up to head to their respective beds. Sometime in the early morning, Sakura jerked awake. She immediately got up and left her room. She went to the kitchen and warmed a small glass of milk before silently entering Naruto's bedroom. She didn't even blink at the scene she found one that was far too common in the two weeks that they had stayed in the cabin. Naruto thrashed in his bed, making small whimpers and groans. Sasuke sat on one side and gently tried to shake the blond awake. Sakura hurried to the other side of the bed and set down the glass. She waited until Naruto quieted for a moment before leaning over to whisper in his ear. Sasuke copied her actions on the other side of the distraught boy. Together they told him that he was safe, that he was in his new home, and that he was far away from those that had hurt him. They pleaded with him to wake up, to come back to them. They promised to protect him. Finally, hazy blue eyes opened and looked around wildly before settling on them. Naruto sighed with relief and relaxed as the pain and fear of the nightmare leached away. 

"Sorry to wake you up, guys. Was I screaming again?" He asked with a faint blush of shame on his face. 

"No screams. And don't worry about it, Silly. I'm glad we can be here for you. No one should have to wake up from a nightmare alone." Sakura assured him as she slid up on the bed beside him. She settled on top of the covers and handed her blond companion his glass of milk before she cuddled into his side. Sasuke watched from the other side until Naruto finished his drink. The Uchiha took the glass and left to wash it in the kitchen. He returned to see Sakura cradling Naruto's head on her shoulder as silent tears streamed down his face. It worried the quiet raven how delayed some of Naruto's responses were. The other boy was so used to hiding that it still took him a while to reveal his true emotions to his two companions. Sasuke slid onto the bed on the blond's open side. He rested against the headboard with his side barely touching the blond. Sasuke was always worried that his presence would do more harm than good. Naruto regularly assured him that Sasuke looked nothing like his attackers but sometimes after a nightmare, the blond would flinch just slightly away from the raven. Tonight Naruto desperately clings to Sakura with one arm while the other reaches out to Sasuke in a silent plea. It’s one that the raven can't say no to and so he moves towards the blond and lets himself be pulled into a needy hug. 

"Can- can you stay? Both of you?" Naruto asked shyly. The answer was always the same. 

"Of course."

Epilogue

Naruto slowly got better. He stopped cutting, the nightmares became few and far between, and he settled into life with Sakura and Sasuke in their secluded cabin. The three of them regularly went on missions together and separately. Naruto slowly took on more and more dangerous missions as his control over Kurama's chakra increased. All three of them gained strength and skill as the years passed. And they gained a closeness that the team had never had before. Sakura and Sasuke's relationship developed into a romantic (well as romantic as the uptight Uchiha could get) one. They kept it quiet around Naruto because they didn't want him to feel isolated but he was no fool. At first, he was afraid that they were going to leave him. When he started to become quiet and withdrawn, Sasuke and Sakura immediately demanded answers. Upon hearing the blond's fear they made one thing very clear to him. 

"We will never leave you. Sakura and I might have become close but we are not complete on our own. We are waiting for you, Naruto. We know that we might wait forever, that you might never want that kind of relationship. Know that we will always be here, with you. We will spend however long it takes helping you heal your hidden pain."