(From this point on, the plot will take a huge step away from the original plot. I am no longer going back and forth from Jarod's story and my own to see what I should and shouldn't change. Also, for anyone wondering,

H A K U   |   D O E S   |   N O T   |   E X I S T.

Understand? Good.

I thought about Anko X Naruto, but I think that it just doesn't really fit into this context. So, for now, I'm going to do a Genfic, since the way it will turn might be a bit too crazy for romance. The end of the world is coming, but who is the one behind it? A new enemy, neither Madara or Obito emerges. And he's almost here.

P.M. me for any questions you might have, but I will give out nothing that spoils the plot. Enjoy!)

He's coming. He's almost here. 

--------------------

The air around the brunette was suffocatingly hot. He was twitching and wavering and thinking hard. Suffering, he knew. But, did he really? What if this was all a lie? What if-

He shook his head. Since the Kyuubi was asleep, he needed to bring himself from his dark thoughts on his own. By why was he even having dark thoughts? Because Inari brought it up? Or he was just stupid?

He choked back a sob when his mind looked to the latter. Spinning on his heel, he gazed out the back of the forest. His eyes came into focus. He knew what he was now.

A demon. A monster. A terrible friend.

A perverted and no-good brother. A backup son. A useless ninja.

A freak. A cutter. A depressed maniac.

His pupils constricted and bled into red. His hands twitched. His slouched posture straightened with a few cracks of his back. He understood now. Oh, he understood alright.

Sliding his sword out of its holster, he glanced at the blade uninterestedly. Throwing it to the leafy ground and watching as it dug itself into the soil, he barely noticed the dried blood that was on it. But he did, and remembering the man he had beheaded two days before, he smirked.

Untying his hitai-ate, he hung it on the edge of the sword before disappearing. Maybe, Inari was right. Maybe he didn't know suffering or was just a masochist with selfish desires. Loves to be miserable eh? He scoffed at his own thoughts, and spinning on his heal, he walked away.

Slowly, he got smaller and smaller.

And smaller.

And smaller.

Until he disappeared among the leaves.

--

Satsuki glanced at the clock, eyebrows furrowed in worry. Naruto had been out for hours and hadn't returned yet. She was getting worried.

Menma seemed slightly distressed too, and Satsuki was sure that Naruko was scared too (she couldn't tell though since Naruko had gone to check up on Kakashi's well-being). Sai seemed indifferent to be honest and Kakashi was passed out again. They had eaten at six in the afternoon, and now it was almost one in the morning.

"S-Ssstayy... untillll... morning. Do n-noot s-ear-seaaarch (stay until morning. do not search)," Kakashi had slurred out to them. But, time was ticking, and with every second that passed, the team was getting more worried.

Satsuki broke the silence with a snap of fingers. It brought the others out of their deathly-like state. Naruko was just walking back down the corridor. Everyone looked at her warily (even Sai).

"We should all get some rest. I'm sure he'll arrive in the morning?" (Oh how wrong she was)

Menma narrowed his eyes but still helped Satsuki herd the other two to their rooms up the stairs.

--

Naruto wandered the forest, mind wandering with him. It was like there had been a mist over his head that he hadn't noticed before. But it was gone now, and his mind felt much clearer than before.

He had unconsciously gone into his mindscape once or twice, only to find the Kyuubi sound asleep in his cave with a note beside him. The note read:

"Will be asleep for a while ranging from three months to eighteen. Will be back soon! 

-The Great Kyuubi no Kitsune, Self-Proclaimed-Otsutsuki Kurama"

Naruto was grinning when he read that note. No Kyuubi to bother him. or ś̵͎̈́͐͝ͅt̴͔̙̙͝ ̵̢̡̳͑̂o̵̮̣̟͔͐́͝p̵̧̩̓͛̔͝ him. His plan was going well!

Flashback - One Week after the Tails Dispute

Naruto examined his sword carefully, eyes sharp and narrowed. Whenever he carried this sword around him, he could feel a hint of chakra emitting from it. A hint of chakra. Like, something you would find on a tracking scroll.

He decided to test it out. He then proceeded to overload the sword with Kyuubi chakra. It gave an ear-piercing screech, shaking and ringing and vibrating out of his hands and to the ground until the chakra was let out and it stopped. Naruto pressed his lips into a thin line. There was an eleventh seal hidden somewhere on his sword. A tracking seal.

Flashback end.

Naruto smiled happily at the memory, almost skipping through the forest. Now, all he needed to do, was escape for a few years so that he could train without boundaries. But, the Kyuubi was a problem.

He hummed. Maybe he could make a seal to stop the Kyuubi from connecting with him? That might be a problem. Oh well, he could deal with it later. He had other problems to deal with.

--

The morning sun was starting to rise from behind the trees. Naruto was tired, and now all he was doing was stumbling on the grass.

His eyes were blurred and being spotted with black. He hadn't slept at all in the past week and was now suffering the consequences of it.

So, when he stumbled upon a little cottage in the woods, he shunshinned inside and collapsed onto a soft fur carpet.

--

Zabuza was almost done bandaging his wounds when there was a crash at the door and a loud snore. Picking up his sword, he crept into the living area only to find the brunette he had been crushed by the day before. He blinked in confusion.

The tug to just kill the child while vulnerable was greatly outweighed by the tug to let him sleep. So, with a snap of fingers, his sword was gone and Naruto was on his bed.

He sighed tiredly. His father had always taught him to follow his intuition, and so he does. But why this brat?

He returned to the bathroom, deciding to let his mind wander as he finished up bandaging his wounds, The gauze was already being dyed a red colour, but he wasn't going to change it until later on.

When he was finished, he let his eyes droop, closing softly. He sighed a tired sigh, before standing and shunshinning himself to the couch. He fell onto the soft leather, consumed by a deep slumber.

--

Naruto's eyes fluttered open. Blue light filtered through the window. He was on a soft bed, and for the first time in a long time, he felt enough passion to want to get up.

He kicked his feet over the edge of the frame, mind wandering. For a shabby looking cottage, it sure looked nice inside. At least, in this room. There was a nice dark frame to the bed, blue pillows and covers, and black sheets. The rest of the room (wardrobe, chair, bookshelf, etc) were all made from the same wood as the bed frame.

Naruto hummed and stood up. His eyes darted to the door once or twice, be his feet were rooted to the ground.

With a soft creak, the door opened. Naruto jumped into his taijutsu stance, only to see the missing-nin he had pummeled the day before in the door frame. The man was staring at him uninterestedly, hands stuffed in his pockets. His arms were covered in bandages, but otherwise, he seemed completely fine.

Naruto dropped his stance. "Why am I here? Wait... You're the one that owns this hut?"

Zabuza nodded. "So, now that you're awake, get out."

Naruto blinked. Then blinked again. "Could I please stay here for a while? I really, really don't want to go back there."

And it was then that Zabuza noticed the lack of hitai-ate on the boy's forehead, letting his long bangs fall into his face reaching just beneath his nose.

Zabuza hummed. His mind was literally screaming yes, his intuition ringing loudly in his ears and making his head hurt as if someone flicked him between the eyes. But, the one percent of his mind that pushed no, got him hard.

"No," he said bluntly, his eyes feeling like they were twisting and turning and squeezing. "You have to go. Now."

Naruto looked absolutely horrified. "Please! I really can't go out! They might find me!"

Zabuza ground his teeth together, his headache starting to get the better of him. "No."

"Please!"

"No."

"P-PLEASE!"

"No!"

"PLEASE, I BEG OF YOU!"

"NO!"

"P L E A S E !"

"FINE!"

Zabuza snapped loudly, making Naruto shut up instantly. "While you're here though, make use of yourself! Go make me breakfast."

Naruto scrambled behind Zabuza, over to the kitchen. Zabuza's intuition was telling him this kid was going to stay here for a while.

--

Satsuki, Menma, and Sai were running around the forest, screaming Naruto's name. They had all ran in different directions; Satsuki north, Menma east, and Sai west. But, no matter how far they searched, they couldn't find any trace of him.

Naruko was at home like always, using medical ninjutsu to heal Kakashi's concussion. Now, he was able to walk around with the help of somebody else, and speak in full sentences without slurring or stuttering. Naruko said that he should be able to run around and use chakra the next day if she keeps this pace up.

Satsuki focused on the way her sandals hit the grass instead of the pounding of her heart. She focused on the beautiful brown and green of the trees instead of her blurring and black-spotted vision. She thought up about memories of him and her together, trying to find some reason why.

Flashback - Right after Naruto stormed out

Satsuki flinched violently when the door slammed shut. Inari had started puffing up, seemingly proud that he provoked the genin.

Then, she proceeded to tell the family about all what's happened to Naruto. The pain, the suffering, the shrill darkness. Then, Tazuna spoke up.

"It's a wonder he's not depressed or suicidal. I'm sure I would be."

And Satsuki froze up. Her mind clicked the pieces together, all the hints of depression and suicidal thoughts. And, she hurled.

She slowed and stopped. Why hadn't he told her? Why hadn't she known? She was the worst sister in the world, she concluded. Only the most terrible would egg her brother on with all of those jokes and all that mockery.

--

Naruto and Zabuza were eating breakfast. It was deadly silent, making both sweat bullets and take quick glances at each other. And only when their gazes' met, they started getting embarrassed.

"S-Sorry, um... Zabu-Zabu-nii-" and only then did Naruto realize what he was saying. Zabu-nii? Was he fucking retarded? He ducked his head low, trying to hide the growing blush on his face.

Zabuza started speaking before his mind let him think.

"You know, you'd be really great with a sword."

--

AHA! I cut it off there. I'm sooooo happy that exams are over! Ahh, I can rest! -.-

But. other than that and going back to the regular updates, that's it! The wave arc isn't done yet, but the next arc will be the Training arc! Surprised?

But, that's giving too much away. So, peace!