The Contract

Chapter 1- Decision

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'' You got ta motility faster kid ! '' Jiraiya barked as he sidestepped Naruto 's fist and delivered a barbarous slap to the boy 's skull. `` And do n't just throw yourself into your plan of attack, promise your opposer 's move and ALWAYS be prepared to react accordingly ! Have n't you learned anything over the past two years ? ``

Nothing I could n't cause learned back home.

Naruto shook his head, physically trying to dislodge the snarky thought as he tried to consider up a way to defeat his mentor. He took too foresighted though, and Jiraiya capitalized brutally with a fist almost shearing through his abdomen in retaliation.

'' Never drop your sentry duty ! ``

The blond gritted his teeth, biting back the pain in the ass as he grabbed on to the offending fist with one hand and slammed duplicate retaliatory gust to his wise man 's snarky mug.

It dissolved into mud beneath him.

His eyes widened by a hair's-breadth and he immediately replaced himself with a Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree branch.

A second later, the branch was skewered by a thousand muddy needles.

'Fuck it !'Naruto swore as he imediately began to mouse through the underbrush .'I need to get my head in the game !'

No offence, man, but is there really a point ? I mean, you 're here getting beat up by one man. A Sannin, granted, but just ONE man. Sasuke 's getting his ass in appurtenance with the imagination of an total Village. A minor one, admittedly, but they 've got their own Sannin and a superstar to boot. Not to note ol'Four-Eyed Kabuto with his insane skills and, if the phone IV and the freaky bone guy are any reading, a entirely squad of jonin level shinobi. The Perv 's education you like you 're going up against a single enemy while the guy who will be going up against a exclusive opposition 's getting prepped for an all out war.

'You're…'Naruto snapped out of his almost trance-like land with a violent jerk. Realizing how close he had come to agreeing withthe voice in his head, the blond clamped down on all thoughts and focused on taking his mentor down with a vengeance…

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'' seed on boy ! '' Jiraiya whined, chasing after a briskly walking Naruto on his knees. `` I need the immediate payment ! ``

'' To go after some slattern, no doubt. '' Naruto scoffed as he marched away.

Jiraiya 's grammatical construction, though, had gone from pleading to disturbingly perverse. `` Oh~ kid you had to suffer seen her ! That was n't just some street girl, she was an right-down sister ! Tits as big as my head and an ass you could bounce a coin off ! And her wooden leg ! ``

THIS is what I 'm training with ? The perverted changeling of the Sannin ? So, Sasuke 's getting trained by the genius of the Sannin, a head contender for the Big Hat alongside the Yellow Flash and the guy that ended the Old Man 's stellar biography and we 're getting trained by the Perverted Sannin. Wonderful. No, fuck sarcasm ! Even Sakura had a better deal. At least her Sannin wo n't bug her for hard currency so she could go check out strippers and red cent. I mean for the love of- Orochimaru 's a fucking ace ! He 's on a similar spirit level to the fucking quartern Hokage ! He 's a verified sword master copy. He knows more than ninjitsu techniques than most shinobi ever get to even witness ! Sasuke, the angst ridden gay emo gets THAT guy and you 're stuck with the guy who 's biggest claim to fame is that he trained the quartern ? Is there anyway you could have come up with an even sorry deal ? !

'' Shut the fuck up and result me alone ! '' Naruto roared angrily.

Jiraiya, who had been caught mid-rant when his apprentice snapped, simply thought he might have pushed the limit and decided to maneuver into the brothel on his own. The madam of the house knew him well and, unlike his busty teammate, he had a report for maintaining minimal, if any, debts.

Had he bothered to dig deeper, he might birth figured that something was off with his apprentice…

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'' So, Naruto, what 's the first thing you wan na do when we get back to Konoha ? '' Jiraiya asked. Himself and his learner were relaxing in a meadow a few miles away from the Land of Bears, taking the day off to unlax and unbend. `` Me, I 'm gon na hit up Tsunade first ; see if she 's finally come around to my manly charms. ``

'' The only when thing manly about you is your hair, Pervy Sage. '' Naruto shot back with a grinning. `` And even that 's longer than most charwoman wear their hair. ``

'' Oi ! Do n't diss these locks you little holy terror ! ``

'' I 'll affront 'em when I want to old man ! '' The blond shot back playfully.

For the next few import, nil came up until Jiraiya spoke again. `` I 'm still waiting for your answer kiddo. ``

To be honest, Naruto was n't quite for sure of what he wanted ; over the preceding few calendar week, dubiousness and fears had set into his heart and, no affair how hard he tried to disregard them, they had burrowed in deep. He did, however, know what to say to his wise man. `` kickoff things first, I wan na see Sakura-chan again ! She must take in grown quite rafts with Baa-chan training her ! I bet she 'll be really awed by how I 've grown too ! might even get her to go out with me. ``

Where he lay, a few paces away, Jiraiya winced. `` Might not wan na get your hopes on that kiddo. ``

See ? Even your mentor does n't trust you stand a chance with the pink haired board.

'' I mean, she 's always had her hopes strung up on the Uchiha right ? '' Jiraiya continued, not noticing the conflicted look on his protege 's expression. `` I know a numeral of people might trust that that 's all a fry'aspiration but… flavour man, admit it from person in similar shoes… You really should get your heart off that train. Even the unit 'save the Uchiha'train… I think you should be prepared for the kid not wanting to add up back ; Orochimaru 's a skilled operator and if I know that bastard anywhere close to what I think I know, then he 'll have done his absolute C. H. Best to turn the Uchiha against you. ``

Naruto had n't heard a give-and-take of Jiraiya 's, his mind clouded by sour thoughts, until Jiraiya had talked about Orochimaru corrupting Sasuke beyond redemption.

It was the final thrust ; the emotions he had bottled up, from his lonely academy twelvemonth right up to that consequence, broke forth like a dam…

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When Naruto opened his eye, he expected to find himself on a cot in one of Jiraiya 's many trap, wrapped up in bandages and feeling the burning of his chakra ringlet as they healed. His gumption of timing was all messed up but the utmost few moments before slipping into unconsciousness were still new in his mind…

The rage… the pain…

He remembered everything…

rightfield up to the moment his control had slipped and the red haze of his biju 's chakra blurred everything out of sight…

guilt trip was n't a strong decent condition for what he felt as he returned to consciousness.

All that rage turned into a bubbling pit of rage when he fully noticed his surroundings.

Red walls, huge organ pipe, a never ending rate of flow of water…

He was within his own intellect, at the bridge between himself and the seal.

'' Kyubi. '' His representative was care steel as he pushed to his understructure and began storming down the cathedral-like hallway. Things were beginning to make sense now ; he had never been one to be bothered by dark thoughts, his childhood having taught him that the only way to stay even slightly sane was to push aside all dark sentiment, so the barrage of discouraging and disquieting questions he had been plagued by over the past couple of weeks just had to have been caused by the Nine-Tailed Fox. It would also explain why he had so readily been consumed by its king ; his military action had never truly been his own.

'' Blaming me for everything again ? ``

The thundering gravy of the Kyubi snapped him out of his rage-filled fugue as he realized that he had arrived at the gates.

The shock barely lasted two endorsement before being drowned out by rage.

'' Blaming you ? ! What, I should be thanking you ? ! You have been pouring your hate-filled trumpery into my head, filling my every waking thought with your bullshit and then taking advantage of me to try to get dislodge ! ``

'' good story how you came to that conclusion. ``

Naruto stood back and crossed his blazonry over his chest. `` There 's a dissimilar determination ? ``

The Fox resting on its haunches, cracked open a crimson palpebra. `` Are you concern ? Or was that just kvetch sarcasm ? ``

'' Oh no, let 's get wind your face of the story. '' Naruto shot back. `` I mean, I would n't want to judge you wrongly or anything. ``

'' Well then… beginning off, you said I 'd been filling your head with my 'hate-filled trumpery', extolment on rightly using the tripe by the way, you 're getting just a bit less stupid. ``

'' Is there a point to all this ? ``

'' Do n't disturb, that 's rude. Anyway, I 'd like to ask : which of those 'mental rape'of mine was actually filled with hate ? ``

The blonde immediately opened his backtalk to burn down off a snarky response…

And found himself gaping instead as he simply could n't think of a ace instance.

The Kyubi flashed its teeth at him in a macabre grin. `` Nothing ? Well, let 's movement on shall we ? Point two : why exactly do you think I 've been the one doing the head-filling ? ``

This time, Naruto was ready and he immediately spouted a number of cause related to him not having such fears ordinarily.

'' You done ? '' The Kyubi asked after his impassioned reception. Upon receiving the blonde 's nod, the biju proceeded to laugh its ass off, even thrashing about in hilarity-induced spasm for good criterion. `` Oh tinker's damn kid ! You are screaming ! You really think I could simply walk through your mind and suss out your deepest, darkest fright to fake you ? Abruptly, the biju 's feature article became fierce. `` newsbreak you nitwit : this SEAL prohibits even a single whisker on my rear end from slipping out ! I sure as hell ca n't go zipping through your cranium. And do n't even get me started on that stupid idea that I 'd drop my meter watching you do human things ; I could n't wish less about your puny being either way ! ``

'' Says the animate being that 's recorded as a bulk of hate ! ``

'' By whose track record ? Humans ? The same people that see you as my spawn ? The same species that hate you indiscriminately even though they created the means to create more jinchuriki in the first situation ? '' The biju 's scathing reply was like a hammering strike to his already weakened belief, a fact that the biju saw and mercilessly pounced upon. `` I did n't send those sentiment to you, boy, they were born of your own thoughts. '' This time, the biju 's voice was low and almost soothing. `` And I think you know why such thought cloud your head. ``

Naruto turned away from the cage and took a step forward… before going still.

He did know ; for the longest time he had suspected as often but he had consciously shoved it down and piled on scores of treasonably optimism to immerse it.

He was n't strong enough.

Whether he liked it or not, he just was n't strong enough on his own to attain his destination. He had been cheated in the honorary society, yes, but he had been out for Sir Thomas More than four years, a great dowery of which had been spent with Jiraiya, and he could see no significant changes.

He wanted to be the Hokage, he wanted to realise the respectfulness of the people… he wanted to carry out his promise to Sakura and bring Sasuke back.

And he just. Was n't. Strong. Enough.

bottom him, the biju watched as he struggled to pass water a determination with a satisfied smirk. True to its word, it had not sent the thoughts to the youth shinobi. That did n't mean it was totally innocent either ; a gradual diversion of its chakra into the boy 's yin chakra had been all that was required for his repressed persuasion to resurface and weaken that firmness of purpose he was so proud of. Now, as the biju watched, reading into every refinement of his body language, it knew it had succeeded.

The time to reap the benefits was near ; the final pace was…

'' So why are you telling me now ? ``

The biju 's smirk turned savage. The boy wanted to have sex ; the pastime was there.

'' In my clock time here, I have come to read what power means to you humans, '' it lied, `` and as such I am leave to sign a declaration with you. ``

The homo scowled. `` A few time of day ago, I 'd sustain ranted about you wanting my mortal or seeking an escape but now… Details. I want details. ``

The biju chuckled, the sound booming out in waves that rattled his teeth. Nevertheless, Naruto stood, glaring at the biju ; awaiting answers.

'' Perhaps your time with the old man was n't a complete waste ; you certainly seem Thomas More intelligent. '' Abruptly, the sense of humor disappeared from the biju 's endorsement and the beast rose up, resting on its hind legs. `` You humans see us as walking peck of chakra, an opinion that never ceases to mystify me. After all, if we walked around wreaking havoc everywhere then your history should have been significantly altered by our actions.

'' In my time walking among your variety, I learned a neat mint ; fighting styles, meditation technique and mannequin of chakra manipulation that have long since been lost to the ravages of time. It is these I offer you ; the major power to command the really ingredient, to become an unstoppable military unit on the battlefield… Everything I know, I freely give.

'' However, I understand how raring your kind are, no uncertainty as a resolution of your short lifespan, and so I offer you something more : balance. ``

'' I do n't empathise. ``

'' I did not expect you to. You see, at its root, chakra is of two phase : Yin chakra and Yang chakra. You possess an overabundance of the latter yet very little, comparatively speaking, of the former. It is this unbalance that has limited your progress in the illusory arts. I can fix this. ``

If nothing else had caught his attention, the biju knew that this certainly would.

Once again, it was n't wrong.

'' How ? ``

'' I will, with your permit, transport a mo fraction of my chakra through you. Without going into specifics, it will forcibly rise start the existence of Yin chakra within your spiral and, over a geological period of about five days, your chakra circulatory organization will gradually attain an counterbalance land, generating an equal sum of money of Yin chakra as it does Yang chakra. ``

Naruto 's face went slack as he considered the sheer implication of that singular benefit. `` My chakra reserves… they'll… ''

'' Double ? '' The biju prompted. `` At the very least. ``

The offer seemed too good to be on-key ; learning ancient flair of combat, gaining the ability to use genjutsu, an increased chakra capacitance ? Naruto wanted to take it. Practically every brain cadre he had screamed at him to ump on the offer.

Then, his middle narrowed. `` At what cost ? ``

An go that was so savoury had to suffer a cost.

The biju glared at him, seemingly sizing him up yet again, before public speaking. `` An offer as this should bear a great routine of demand, boy, but I will only ask of two things from you ; the first and the outstanding is trust. '' The biju leaned forward until its hooter was a bare inches away, separated by the bars that held it locked away. `` I will not tellyou what the second monetary value is until you have signed my contract. ``

Naruto was torn.

On one hand, he would very likely be selling his soulfulness over to a demon because, regardless of what the biju would possess him conceive, indoctrinated beliefs did n't die out over a mere chat.

On the other, much heavier, hand, he would be granted the kind of king that he had always desired ; the kind of baron that would help oneself him achieve his goals.

'I 'm going to be the Hokage someday, Iruka-sensei ! Believe it !'

'I 'll get Sasuke back for you, Sakura-chan ! That 's a hope of a lifetime !'

'I never go back on my words ! That 's my ninja way ! Believe it !'

A wise man once said :'A man is washed-up by the actor's line of his own mouth .'

'' What do I do ? ``

That man was right.

'' pace into the cage, boy, and go for out your arm to your English. ``

This was it.

It was one thing to agree to a affair but, when confronted with the enormity of their determination, many wavered and most gage down.

They were not Uzumaki Naruto.

With a confident stride that betrayed none of his apprehension, the shinobi stepped out of his kingdom and into the demon 's lair.

The biju reared upward, sucking in a deep breather, its eyes never leaving his.

Do n't prompt, it seemed to say, just before it lurched forward, the muffled orange glow in the back of its pharynx the solely warning Naruto had before being engulfed in flame .