Sempiternal

Act Zero:

?

Chapter Zero:

Prologue

AN: Well hey there. I'm not going to give you any details for why I was absent for so long, instead I'm going to simply lay out what this story is semi about.

This story is being written after reading a story by Piro-san named 'Pretty!' (I recommend you check it out). This story, while drawing inspiration from there and another story, will be only like 'Pretty!' in the sense of that Naruto will be super feminine. I'm talking 'mistake you for a girl (an uber adorable/beautiful girl)' feminine.

Enough of that, to the story!

KEY

"Hey." - Normal Speech

'Hi.' - Normal Thought

"Yao." - Deity or Similarly Powered Being Speech

'Yosh!' - Deity or Similarly Powered Being Speech

CHAPTER START

Our story takes place in a world of turmoil and strife. Where everyday beings are forced to make decisions that would haunt them for the rest of their lives. This world, or what was known of it, was called Anglosia and was home to four races of humanoid races, with more being speculated to exist. The first and most prominent is, obviously, the human race. The second was the Hebi- or the Snake- people. The third were the Inu- or the Dog- people. Fourth were the bloodsuckers- or vampire- race. Each race had its own way of thinking the land of Anglosia should be run and thought that the land would be better off without the other three races.

The Humans were, by far, the most harassed and attacked by all three of the races. It was rather simple; the humans didn't have magic, or in the case of the Hebi, technology. What they did have, however, was ingenuity along with resourcefulness from being the underdogs for so long.

The Hebi stood atop a pillar of technological advancements. What they lacked in magic(That isn't to say they couldn't use it), they made up for in spades with their machines of war. How they came to this technological position wasn't clear to the other races, but they were all working fast to bring themselves up to par.

The Inu could, quite possibly, be the closest to the humans if only for the fact that they had to utilize cunning to stay a competitor in the wars that were waged. But where the Vampires had magic and the ability to turn humans to thralls and where the Hebi had the technology to move mountains, the Inu royalty had the loyalty of their people, almost unanimously. This cohesion afforded the Inu race to press the boundaries of their comfort zone much more effectively, without worries from the general populace. They also had the ability to summon their fallen from the afterlife, to aid them on the battlefield in the form of a wolf.

And finally, the vampires. The vampires could, almost, be considered the top dogs in the wars. They had the magic, the numbers, and the sheer tactics that weighed all the odds into their favor. But, one of the most severe weaknesses of the vampire race was that they required the life-essence of another race, normally human.

Our story starts near a village on the outskirts of human territory. The village itself was nameless, having been established by a band of farmers when their previous home had been looted and overrun by the Hebi forces. This band of farmers had petitioned the area's head of government, a landholder by the name Lord Hayana Ito, for the land to be granted to them to lease. Ito, being a rather good-natured lord, had granted them the land after being told of their happenings. The villagers, having been granted this right, began construction of their town within the month of the leasing. Despite the fact that their village was currently on the edge of an unexplored mass of forest, the villagers felt they had nothing to fear as they were far away from the front lines of the war. Of course, they would aid in the war effort, sending those that were willing to fight off to fight and those that weren't to the fields to grow grain, barley, and flax. Things that were needed to support a campaign against Human Kind's enemies.

In this village, on a dark and rainy night started a chain of events that would shake the very foundations of everything that the factions of this world knew and held belief in: from their deities to their very families for some.

XXXXXX

During that night

Deep Forest

"Inari preserve me..." muttered a woman that seemed to be in her early to mid twenties. She had long and maroon hair. The hair almost reached to her rump and the coloring was similar to that of blood. Her face was almost that to where you'd think she was beauty made form. However between her supple lips and attractive features, that was the primary thought on most male and some female minds when they saw her.

Her beauty and hair weren't the most striking features about her though. It was her eyes; they were slitted! Almost like that of a fox. This sentiment could easily be re-enforced by the pair of fox ears that rest atop her head and the six, flowing tails that followed behind her as she ran through the forest that was to the west of the nameless village. The final striking feature was the fact that she was pregnant; very, very pregnant. From what could be estimated, she was either eight or nine months along. Either way, she'd end up giving birth sooner rather then later. Something that weighed on the mother-to-be's mind as she ran from whence she came.

Soon enough she had reached the exit of the forest. Almost as soon as she had left the forest, she breathed a sigh of relief. She knew her assailants wouldn't pursue her this far. It was now that she had to find shelter for her and her unborn child. She could tell it was about to start raining. She began to wander, traveling in the general direction of 'away from the forest'. She traveled like this for about fifteen minutes, when it started to sprinkle.

"Damn it Kushina.. We need to find a place to-.. Oh." The now dubbed Kushina was still muttering to herself, but in doing so she had realized she could smell a foreign scent. One that normal, human noses couldn't pick up- but Kushina was far from human. It was the scent of other beings. Not her kind, but a different kind -.. 'Humans! Yes, that's it!' She thought to herself with another sigh of relief. She'd find shelter there, utilizing a illusion she knew. It would mask the tails, ears, anything that was not human about her. This included her scent, just in case anything that was animal and had protective instincts was there.

With her mind set up, she ran through the steps to activate the illusion as she began to run towards the village. She also formulated a plan as to how she was going to get into the village and have a room to sleep in. Once she had reached the outskirts of the small hamlet, she smeared some mud on her face and utilized further illusions to make her face bruised where the mud wasn't. She wanted to make it seem as if she had been taken by bandits or something of the sort, beaten and possibly sexually assaulted. Whilst she wouldn't outright say that she was raped, out of respect for those that had been, she would let the villagers make assumptions.. That is, if they were willing to help her.

As it turns out, when she pounded on the first door she came across, a middle aged man halfway opened the door, peering out to Kushina.

"Wha-" The man started before Kushina cut him off, bursting out into fake tears-.. Tears that were so perfected that it was impossible for a non-specialized person to realize they were fake.

"P-please! Hel-help me! Please! They killed him.. They killed my husband!" Kushina continued to fake sob as the man quickly said 'wait here' and went to wake up his wife.

After but a minute, the middle aged man returned with a woman that seemed to be just a few years older then the man. Once she witnessed Kushina, her eyes softened. Kushina, sensing the woman's presence, looked up with tear filled eyes.

"Please-.. Please, help me.." Kushina hiccuped, "They killed my.. they took him from me. They tried to.. they tried to take me away.. but.. I wouldn't let them.."

The woman nodded to her husband before the door was unlatched and pulled all the way open.

"Come on in, sweetie.. We'll clean you up and tend to your injuries."

Kushina acted as if she was cautious when crossing the threshold of the door. She acted it out perfectly, as if she was terrified still. After entering the house, she was guided to a living area, where she was set down on a small seat. The woman left and then returned with a bucket of lukewarm water and a rag. She wet the rag and then moved close to Kushina.

"I'm just going to clean you up, alright sweetie?"

Kushina nodded her head slowly, her eyes darting around the room, still in her act. The woman gently brushed the mud from Kushina's face using the rag. After Kushina's face was cleaned, the woman almost gasped after she realized just how beautiful Kushina was. She knew what those 'bandits' would of done to her had they caught her. And it made her happy that she had made it here, especially with the fact she was pregnant.

Shaking herself from her musings, the woman sighed gently.

"My name is Hitari Kazaki.. May I get your name?"

Kushina, 'stirring' from her stupor, slowly and quietly said her name.

"Kushina Uzumaki..."

XXXXXX

One month later...

Unnamed Village

It was one month in Kushina's stay in the house of Mo and Hitari Kazaki. During that month, Kushina slowly but surely opened up to the duo. She had, after a little subtle prying, discerned that the pair had wed because of not only their love for each other, but for the other's ideals. As it turns out, the Kazaki's, whilst not holding love for the races that weren't human, did not hold contempt for them. The only one they were disgusted by was the Hebi and simply because they pillaged the countryside, murdering all they came across.

It was armed with this knowledge that Kushina came clean to them. Told them that she was a kitsune, a race that had yet to of been encountered. She told them that they hailed from a land to the west, in the forest.

It was in this land of the kitsunes that her elder brother was to take the throne. She supported him whole-heartedly and had been there when he was being walked through the process of the coronation.

It was on the night before the coronation that a coup happened. One that ended with her elder siblings dead and her 'mate' taking the side of the coup instigators, the supporters of Kushina's uncle for taking the throne. Their reasoning behind this being that the current possibilities for taking the throne of the Kitsune people were too young and inexperienced. It was when her elder brother, Kurama, said 'go to hell' to one of the proposers of a regency that the coup began to be plotted.

This coup led to Kushina fleeing from the capital of the Kitsune people and to where she was at present day.

She didn't really know why she trusted them, but she did. And her trust was well placed, because instead of acting out in spite, they simply smiled at her and said that they understood her reasoning.

XXXXXXX

"..-ush Kushina, push!"

"OOOH GOD I'M TRYING!" Kushina's voice cried out.

As all pregnancies go, there comes a time when the mother-to-be has to become a mother entirely. That time had finally come for Kushina. And as such, she was giving birth to her children. Plural. She was having twins.

"OH SWEET INARI IT HURRRRTS!"

"You're almost there, Kushina, push just a little harder!"

"AHHHH!" And with that, the first of the twins had escaped their mother's body. But there was still one more to go. And go they went. With one final heaving cry of exertion, the second, younger twin was scooped up from Kushina's lower region. They were tended to, cleaned up before they were shown to Kushina.

"Here they are, Kushina.. A boy and a girl. What do you want to name them?"

"N-Naruto and.. Mito.." came Kushina's haggard, tired reply. Despite her obvious exhaustion, Kushina reached out to take them into her arms. She smiled down at the twins as they were soothed by her presence.

XXXXXX

Five years later,

Age of Twins: 5 Years...

Unnamed Village

As it turns out, the twins very much similar. At least, in mentality. They were both rather reserved and quite lady-like, despite the fact Naruto was male. The lady-like part most likely came from the point that Kushina had been instilling into Naruto's head.

'Use whatever means necessary to ensure the survival of you and yours.'

It was with a mentality of that and 'family comes first' that Naruto grew up with. Now, some may wonder why young Naruto might need to 'use whatever means necessary' and what it meant to him. What it meant to him, and by extension his mother, was that he was girly. No, girly isn't the right word. He was adorably beautiful. With his blond hair that reached to his lower back, pouty lips, long eyelashes, and deep, cerulean eyes that could quite possibly make the oceans jealous, Naruto was most definitely going to be a very feminine boy throughout his life. And if Kushina hadn't know he was a boy from the moment he was born, she would of sworn he was the most beautiful little girl that she'd ever seen. That, of course, isn't to say Mito was anything to scoff at on the adorable scale.

And on that note, Mito, while she was being instilled with the same ideology by their mother, struggled with confidence. She felt that she wasn't'pretty enough' which was quite the strange perspective coming from a five year old. But it all made sense whenever you heard a villager talking about the pair whenever they ventured from their home or returned to it after a long day training with their mother. They would say things that they thought the twins couldn't hear. Things like 'Naruto would make such a lovely girl.' Very rarely was Mito mentioned in their conversations. Which, to some, could be considered strange. Very much so, considering that Mito looked very much like her mother, with long, luscious red hair. Her facial makeup could almost be considered to be a carbon copy of Kushina. And Kushina was a gorgeous woman, so it stood to reason that Mito would grow to be just as beautiful.

But despite Mito's lack of admiration by the villagers of their humble hamlet, she never blamed her elder brother. Instead, she admired him. To her, he was everything that she needed to feel safe. Despite Naruto's innate kind and demure demeanor, whenever it came to Mito he grew very protective. More then Kushina could be at times.

Kushina had to, despite her royal upbringing, begin to do menial labor. This was both to produce food for her children and to aid in keeping their identities secret. Despite her willingness to till the land, she found herself far more suited to weaving the wool and flax the farmers grew into usable products, such as linen and yarn.

All in all, the life for the Uzumakis was decent. At least, for now..

XXXXXX

Three years later;
Age of Twins: 8 Years...

Unnamed Village

Naruto was tossing and turning as he slept during one night. It was not simply not resting good; he was having a nightmare- one that was very, very real to him at that...

XXXXXX

It was raining, almost as if the heavens were weeping. Weeping, but over what..? That was the thought on Naruto's mind as he walked towards.. what seemed to be nothing. And that was the best way to describe the young kitsune's surroundings. It was completely blank, devoid of anything but the rain as it fell from above Naruto. After walking for a while, he began to see the void flash, but he continued to walk. As he walked, the scenery gradually shifted. Shifted from what was simply nothing with rain to a battleground. It was still raining, but as Naruto passed by a small rain puddle, he gazed into it, looking at his reflection. What he saw wasn't him. He saw a woman that resembled him... From the long blond hair to the facial features. But what he saw that made him think it wasn't him was the reflection's eyes and these.. ears atop her head. They were a shade of orange that was suspiciously close to yellow and didn't clash terribly with the woman's hair. Now, for her eyes, they were heterochromic, with the left being amethyst and the right being a deep, almost blood red. They were both slitted and filled with pain. The pain of loss. Loss, but what was lost? What?

That question would haunt Naruto for the rest of the dream.

Naruto moved away from the puddle continuing on his walk, the image of the woman permeating his mind. It was all he could think of as he walked towards, once again, an unknown destination. As he neared what seemed to be the end of the battlefield, he suddenly felt himself go through ice-cold water. He closed his eyes instinctively and when he opened them, he saw himself in a city A city where there were people with the ears and the slitted eyes like the woman in the reflection. What he also noticed was that there was a crowd gathering around something and that his body was moving there on its own accord.

Soon enough, he reached the crowd. After reaching the crowd, he began to shove his way through the crowd, the people giving off minor disapproval's before he reached the front of the crowd. What he saw drilled him to the core.

It was his mother and sister in shackles, being escorted to what seemed to be an execution stand. His sister seemed to be around twelve to fourteen. They both seemed beaten and abused and they were in tattered clothing. They also seemed malnourished. And what drilled him even harder was the fact that he wasn't there with them. This sent his mind reeling. Had he died before them?

The crowd began to cheer as the duo were set up on the block. A person that seemed to look somewhat similar to his mother began to speak loudly.

"Quiet, quiet! Now, as you all know, the traitor known as Kushina Uzumaki, wanted in relation to the murder of her elder brother, the once heir to the throne of Kyuubi no Kitsune has been tried and sentenced to death, along with all of her offspring, barring one. The one that brought the traitor to law. A shining bastion of hope for his fallen uncle and aunt. And the one to execute the traitor and his bastard sister!"

The crowd began to roar in approval as that woman he saw as his reflection came from the gatehouse once more. Only this time, she carried a sword upon her hip. She approached the stand.

His question of 'was he dead' was finally answered when that woman from the reflection began to raise her sword. He heard a small whisper from his sister, one that made it all click into place.

"Onii-sama..."

Then, the blade swung down onto Mito's neck.

As soon as the blade had cleaved Naruto's sister's head from her shoulders, the entire scene changed to what seemed to be a flat area, similar to a plain. And then, another woman appeared. This woman, however, was not an older Naruto. Instead, she was a woman with snow white hair, pale eyes and what seemed to be horns atop her head. She examined Naruto for what seemed to be eternity before she nodded.

"You will do..." She didn't move her lips but Naruto heard her clear as if she had spoken. She then waved her hand at him..

XXXXXXX

Naruto awoke in a cold sweat. It was morning time and he could smell what seemed to be breakfast being cooked. He shook his head, trying to clear what he was going to call a bad dream from it. He spent a few minutes of resting there, trying to gather his thoughts after that dream.

'Just.. just what was that..? It felt so real..' Naruto thought to himself with a pouty frown upon his lips. '..I'm not going to mention this to Kaa-chan and Mito..'

It was with those thoughts along with others weighing on his psyche that he climbed from his bed and began to walk towards the door. That is, until a similarly sized hand gripped Naruto's wrist from his bed. Naruto turned his gaze towards the bed, a perking of his eyebrow occurring before he let loose with a small sigh.

Gripping onto Naruto's wrist was a still waking up Mito, her amethyst eyes gazing at Naruto and her lips pouted up. "Onii-chan.." She spoke in her normal, very soft and dulcet toned voice. Naruto gave Mito a soft smile, knowing exactly what she wanted. He came back to the bed, crawled into it and laid aside his younger sister.

This time, however, Mito nestled herself against her feminine brother, laying her head upon his chest. Naruto simply took his hand and began to run it through Mito's hair idly.

He truly didn't know what summoned that dream and if it was a sign of events to come. The eight year old let out a small sigh of frustration as he began to think on the dream again, which didn't go unnoticed by his sister.

"Onii-chan... Are you okay..?" She questioned in that very soft, almost like a whisper, tone. Naruto looked down to Mito, his gaze having been at the ceiling. He gave a half smile to her, before he shrugged his shoulders.

"I guess... I just had a bad dream."

Mito nodded her head against Naruto's chest.

"Onii-chan, daisuki.."

"Daisuki, imōto."

Unbeknownst to the duo, their mother was looking in on them with a soft smile upon her face.