Hello and welcome to my first fanfiction!

I don't wanna talk too much but you should be aware of a couple of things before you start.

First and most important of all, English is not my first language. Thus there will be mistakes. I will try to do as few as possible but since I don't have any beta reader yet you will have to endure any mistakes I make in ignorance. (Especially commas. Never really learned how exactly to use them in English)

Second and relating to the first point, I have no idea whatsoever whether I use British or American English or any other kind. Frankly, I have been to so many English talking countries in which I picked up a colorful mix of words, I wouldn't know where to start categorizing my vocabulary. So please if you care about one kind of proper English close your eyes while reading this!:)

Third this story will take a completely unique path and will follow an alternative plot. For the inuyasha part that will be clear from the start because I will start in Sesshomaru's younger years (of which few is known). You should also be aware that experiences form who we are and as the Daiyokai hasn't lived those 200 years until the start of the original Inuyasha time line yet he isn't yet the same Sesshomaru we know. Of course I will not change his basic personality but there will probably be differences later on compared to the original character. The same can be said about Naruto. While I try to keep as close as possible to original sources there will be differences resulting from my original plot. And my plot will mainly take place in the Inuyasha world. If I can keep my readers interested long enough I do have plans to move on to the Naruto world, but for now I will focus on the Inuyasha world.

Last but not least, the disclaimer: I don't in any way own or try to make profit of Inuyasha or Naruto. But all the original characters, places and plot lines are mine!

Well, have fun;)

Ps: It goes without saying, but to be certain: this story contains major spoilers if you did not read and/or watch both series first (as I actually expect you did).

—

Sesshomaru, heir apparent to the lordship of the west, was nearing the climax of his second century and couldn't be any more happy. Sure, he wasn't the most popular young yokai on earth, but what did that really matter when his father promised to take him on his first hunt outside the Palace of the West? He was positively giddy with anticipation. Only his nobel upbringing prevented him from running around his room to shake off his excess of energy. He wanted to make his father proud. That had only ever been his aim in life.

Thus, when the doors to his rooms opened and revealed Hatsuo, his minder, his face fell. Anticipating this reaction the lesser inu yokai preemptively held up his hands. "It isn't what you think, little Lord."

Face cleared of emotions the young Daiyokai raised one perfectly formed brow. "Then this Sesshomaru's father isn't too preoccupied to spend time with his only child, again?", he asked flatly.

"Well… yes. But he has a very good reason", Hatsuo hurriedly replied. Sesshomaru, used to the frequent excuses of his progenitor, stayed silent. He didn't even ask, yet his minder explained further: "The Inu no Taisho has to attend a meeting with the dragon ambassador. He just showed up half an hour ago. But don't worry. We won't have to delay your first hunt. After all it is a very important rite of passage. I will simply accompany you in your fathers stead."

The young heir simply nodded, straightened his posture and calmly walked past the other yokai, an empty feeling in his stomach. He didn't even know why he still cared, why it still hurt. His father hadn't really spent time with him in over a hundred years. In fact, he couldn't even remember the last time the two of them had spoken privately, outside of the courtiers earshot. One would think he was used to it by now. He simply wasn't worth the time of the Great Dog General. His jaw clenched.

On his way to the palace gates he could hear the lesser yokai talking. They were always talking. And always about him. He could clearly hear their whispers. Once upon a time he thought them plainly disrespectful, but he had slowly learned that they simply didn't believed his hearing that good. He was exceptional when they thought him an unfeeling, unaware statue. Apparently, according to the court gossip, he was unapproachable, unnaturally apathetic and downright fearsome. He put them on edge. Whenever he met someone's gaze with his blazing eyes they hurriedly averted their own and unconsciously backed away from him. Once it had hurt him. He hadn't understood. Now he was used to it. He still didn't understand but he no longer cared.

He would show them all what he was capable of. He had three days until his one-hundred-and-fiftieth birthday. On that day he was supposed to pay tribute to his lord by offering him his hunting trophy. He would make everyone see that he was a strong Daiyokai worthy of their praise and a place amongst them.

Serenely wandering the surrounding woods, he ignored the presence of his minder, who was only there to watch and witness, not interfere under any circumstances. Never once was he heard. The heir to the West never had any problems to stay silent and prey was easily found. He deftly cached a pair of rabbits wit his poisonous claws but wasn't remotely satisfied. For his rite of passage he needed something more impressive, something awe inspiring. He had three whole days to accomplish it after all. More than enough time to hunt something really worth his rite.

See that it couldn't be any other way, on the third day he was on his way back to the palace carrying the carcass of a most impressive black bear, his chest swelling with pride. As elated as he was to bring home such a beautiful yet relatively dangerous trophy, he didn't smell his attacker until a sword imbedded itself into his back.

Crying as the full amount of pain accompanying such a grievous wound hit him, he instinctively turned around and stroke out with poisonous claws. Sheer dumb luck and his attackers surprise were his saving grace. He couldn't have aimed any better if he forced his vision to clear. The pain was to all encompassing like nothing he had ever felt before.

"Sesshomaru-sama!"

The annoying voice of his minder ripped him back into reality. In an epic show of will he gritted his teeth and focused. The assailant lay dead to his feet. A panther yokai, he absently noticed. He had killed him with a poisonous strike directly at the jugular. His attacker never had a chance. And it was pure dumb luck and instinct that had saved him. He looked into dead flat eyes. He had killed someone. He heaved up every last bit of meat he had eaten this hunt.

Finally he noticed the steadying hand on his shoulder and reared back. Indoctrinated pride made him straighten himself to reclaim a semblance of dignity. He used all his reclaimed resolve to coldly command: "Stay away. You are only to watch this Sesshomaru's first hunt rite, not interfere."

"But Young Lord, this was-"

Sesshomaru cut him off aggressively with a deep growl that intensified the pain in his lover back. Aware that pulling the sword out would only make him bleed out, he apathetically repositioned the bear and added the assailants remains to his burden. Suppressing a grunt, he slowly but surely made his was back to the palace.

He must have looked even more frightening than before, because everyone skittered hastily out of his was as soon as he reached his home. Hatsuo warily and worriedly followed him silently like a shadow as they made their way to the great audience hall, in which all relevant lords and ladies had already gathered to witness their lord's heir's first rite of passage. Solemn silence engulfed the hall as Sesshomaru let the two corpses slid onto the marbled floor. He raised his gaze and regarded heavily breathing the empty throne, a droplet of swat running along his temple.

After a few moments of silence Futoshi, his fathers second in command, stepped up next to the throne and declared in a low baritone voice: "His lordship is unable to attend."

Sesshomaru snarled, half in pain, half in frustrated anger. Then he collected himself. It didn't matter. This wasn't for his father. This was his rite of passage and damn anyone who would presume otherwise! Thus he barked loudly to the collected nobility to catch their attention and spread his arms wide. "This Sesshomaru, Heir to the West, presents himself! This pack is proud! This pack is strong! Today this Sesshomaru adds to this strength! Today this pack gains a new hunter!"

All around him his people overcame their shock and barked in agreement and celebration. Not long after he was the eye of a roaring storm of yokai. It felt good to be finally acknowledged for something he did, not who he was or who people assumed he was. This was his moment. And yet the empty throne seemed to mock him. His jaw clenched.

He briefly closed his eyes, took a deep breath and calmly strode outside, no longer wanting to stay in that empty feeling place. As soon as he reached the hallway Hatsuo pulled him into a side chamber in which one of the rare palace healer stood in the ready. Not even twitching as the sword was pulled out, he calmly concentrated to keep his breathing steady. Before long he could feel the warmth of healing yoki sooth his back.

"I couldn't completely heal the wound, Mylord. I advise you to keep the bandages on for at least three days to be sure it heals nicely." The young heir never showed any sign he had listened and simply left as soon as the healer took his hands off him. He was tired. But he couldn't - no he wouldn't - sleep until he knew, what was so important as to keep his father away from his own son's first rite of passage.

Always having been particularly light on his feet, Sesshomaru neared his fathers chambers unnoticed despite his sluggishness. Oddly enough, there weren't any kind of guards posted on his doors. He frowned and approached more cautiously. When he heard an undeniably female and unfamiliar voice, he halted and skittered into a niche that he usually used to catch a glimpse of his father when he, as usual, overlooked spending time with his son in favor of attending 'important matters'.

"You know, it hasn't even been a day since I last saw you, my dear." The unknown woman was fair skinned and had an abundance of wavy, black hair. She was wearing a costly, blue kimono with intricate bird patterns, clearly of the best quality imaginable, and pompous, sparkling jewelry made of gold and sapphires. Two other facts registered in his mind simultaneously. For one, the female was obviously human. Secondly, she laid in his fathers arms, their clothes in disarray.

The Great Dog General smiled the most radiant smile Sesshomaru had ever seen on his fathers face und kissed the woman lasciviously, while further opening her kimono and unveiling big and heavy breasts, the nipples evidently aroused. One look at them had the Inu no Taisho sucking them as if his life depended on it. The woman in his arms moaned with pleasure and arched her back to give him better access as he let his hands wander down and up her tights.

The young heir stared transfixed, in blatant shock, and couldn't move.

"Wait", the woman nearly cried out as she was apparently trying to keep her wits together. "I have to tell you something." His father visibly restraint himself with great effort and looked down into big, round eyes of hazelnut. "I-" Her voice faltered, her eyes hesitant. Toga affectionately kissed her temple and waited patiently. That seemed to give her the courage to continue: "I'm pregnant."

The Inu no Taisho blinked once, then twice. He sniffed carefully. Then a big smile stretched over his face, reaching from one ear to the other effortlessly. He laughed, picked her up and twirled her around, making her squeak. "That is wonderful!", he exclaimed joyously, "A child! Our child! We will love and spoil him rotten!"

She snorted and swatted his arm. "And what makes you thing it will be a boy?"

He simply grinned. "Dog intuition."

She rolled her eyes, but couldn't even reply as the father of her unborn child started devouring her lips, his claws carelessly ripping apart the last bit of the clinging, blue kimono and shedding his own.

Sesshomaru watched strangely detached as his father, stark naked, begun to fuck another woman than his mother, fucked the woman who apparently carried his bastard half brother. He didn't actively register the gasps and moans of their fornication. The sounds simply etched themselves into his mind, the image of his father fucking the woman he loved more than he ever cared for his wife, let alone his son, burning itself into his memory.

As they lay spent and in completion entangled with each other and reasserting their love for each other the young Daiyokai calmly turned around and left the royal wing unnoticed. No one questioned him leaving the palace after his first successful hunt. They, for the first time ever, payed genuine deference for him. He had the freedom and respect he always wanted. Yet they seemed insufficient to fill the hollow feeling in his chest.

He reached the clearing of his first 'hunt', his first kill. It still was covered in the stench of blood and vomit. Yet he felt nothing as he regarded the brown colored grass. Emotional exhaustion freed him of any feeling he could have felt.

He simply had nothing more to give. Ever.

A blinding white light suddenly appeared in the center of the massacre and forced him to shield his sensitive eyes.

—

Naruto Uzumaki couldn't be any happier. He had successfully returned from his first mission outside the village. That it was subsequently declared an A-ranked mission made his personal victory even sweeter. Not to mention the bridge named in his honor. Acknowledgement. His whole body shook from a sense of triumph. It was an emotion he had only ever felt after receiving his forehead protector and thus graduation from the academy. It was elation.

Full of excessive energy he jumped up from his bed and raced outside. He felt so happy he could burst. He simply had to share this with everyone in the village. He stopped by various shops and greeted the owners cheerfully, never really noticing them not responding likewise. Happily crackling he made his rounds all through Konohas streets, never registering any kind of negative stares.

Finally stopping to take a breath, he leaned on a wall to greedily inhale air. He savored the moment as best he could, his grin never leaving his face for even a second. Then he heard a familiar voice. But before he could lordly announce himself, he heard what they were talking about and it peaked his interest.

"I know, apparently the whole village knew, bar our generation and younger. I still can't believe they wouldn't tell us before."

Answering Sakuras lovely voice was Inos harder one. She sniffed derisively. "But really, I am hardly surprised. That dead last good for nothing freak always seemed off. At least now we know why. He is a monster."

Naruto froze as Sakura made a snarking sound. "I know. He always rubbed me the wrong way. I still can't believe they would let him stay in our team. My dear Sasuke and I protested loudly. We want that monster with us even less than the day they grouped us. But the Hokage said, we couldn't change teams once formed. I seriously don't know how I will even stand his presence next training session."

For the first time ever he heard Ino make a sympathetic noice towards her best friend and/or rival. "I genuinely feel for you two and Kakashi-sensei. It really must be hard not to let on, that you guys know he is the demon, that destroyed Konoha and took so many lives. Did you know the most shocking thing about that?" Her friend must have shaken her head in denial, because Ino explained in a slightly raised voice: "I overheard Asuma-sensei talking about that day when the story about the awakening of the demon made its rounds. Apparently he not only ran rampage through the whole village, he also killed his own parents that day."

Sakura and Naruto simultaneously took in a sharp breath. Then the former shrieked quietly and whispered vehemently: "What?! But that is horrible! What kind of monster kills his own parents on the day it is born?! Imagine living with that guilt! I guess I couldn't. I'd rather take my life than life with that knowledge. But then, does a demon even feel like you and I do? I mean-"

The shinobi in training never learnt what the love of his life meant. They moved out of earshot. He was too shocked to even contemplate moving. Frozen was what he was, completely and utterly frozen, simply leaning against the wall completely frozen, unwilling to process what he had heard. Even beginning to contemplate it shoved a stake through his heart. It became difficult to breath, to think, to live.

Suddenly he recalled that day by the bridge, his namesake bridge. How utterly empty that sentiment suddenly felt. It couldn't even begin to quell the all encompassing feeling of rage and power he lived through briefly. He had never felt anything like it before. Subconsciously afraid, he had shoved those thoughts aside and had focused entirely on the success of the mission, completely ignoring the memory of rampaging energy just underneath his fingertips.

It had felt so good.

It made him sick.

This was the power that protected him and took so many lives. The power that soothed him like a blanket and made his life in the village living hell. The power that had kissed him like a lover he had never known and killed his parents. It had felt so good und so utterly wrong. He longed for it with every fiber of his being, with his very soul. He vomited.

After emptying his stomach in a not abandoned street without anyone caring except to look at him in disgust, he could finally sympathize with the villagers and their hatred. He truly was a monster, a demon. Not worth even a shred of the love and recognition he had longed for his whole life. Nauseated he swayed and fell to his knees landing in his own vomit. He didn't care.

All his life he had been told, he was a monster. He ultimately had no choice but to believe it. He was a demon, an abomination that had killed not only a good part of the very village he wanted to protect but his own parents.

"Imagine living with that guilt! I guess I couldn't. I'd rather take my life than life with that knowledge."

Suddenly a peerless calmness engulfed him. He knew exactly what to do. Without hesitation a kunai found its way into his hand. He regarded it soberly. He know dozens of ways to accomplish this one simple task, but he supposed, he should follow a reliable, dead certain path. His mind emptied and his hand serenely found the way to his own neck, never once shaking.

Suddenly a blinding light engulfed him and forced his eyes shut. Then he knew no more.

—

Fate smiled sadly.

She had personally woven those two particular strings into the pattern of life and death. The moment She had finished weaving them, She had regretted it. It wasn't often, that Fate took pity on a soul. Ultimately Her patterns always found a sound completion. This was also the case here. Yet She couldn't deny that those exact two paths were painfuller than any soul should have to endure.

Thus She changed the pattern. She chose those two pitiable souls and entwined their strings.

That was as dangerous as it was beautiful, for She could never see the end of predestined paths that She had changed. Henceforth the lives and deaths of those two souls She no longer held.

She had set them free.