Hello people!!

READ ME, I'M IMPORTANT!!!!!: There are some things you absolutely need to know before you start reading. The first and most obvious thing is about Naruto's gender. In this story, he is a GIRL. But I'm not changing his name into Naruko or anything like that. Even if Naruto is in reality only a boys' name (and I don't know if it is or isn't), I'm keeping it. Otherwise writing this fic feels just too foreign, giving the star of the show a different name. Hope it doesn't bother you. Secondly: the idea of Naruto losing his arm and eye and Kyuubi giving him his was inspired by another fic where this happened. Unfortunately, I can't remember the name of that fic right now, I just remember it's really good... well, just know that it wasn't originally my idea. But note: everything except that is from my own head. Our fics are completely different, beginning with Naruto's gender, and everything else after that. Go find that fic and you'll see.

And about the name of the story... sigh ...I totally suck with giving names to fics. The name is lame, I know.

This is yet another classic rewrite of the canon, but admit it, you all love those. At least I do. And the rating is M for a reason, so if you are easily disturbed, I recommend you don't read. Oh, and I must warn you, OOC-ness ahead.

Well, I'm gonna stop rambling now... Enjoy the fic, and if you like it, then leave a review. Comments always inspire to update faster.

(NOTE: This chapter has been edited twice.)

I don't own Naruto, and blah, blah, blah...

For a Reason to Exist

Chapter One — Exist to Suffer

The first time Naruto noticed she was different, she had only been three years old. From the very beginning people had always treated her differently, but only after she had started to gain a greater understanding of the life surrounding her, did she understand that not everyone lived like her. And this meant that not everyone was insulted, hated and avoided like an awful disease at the age of three. Not every child received cold glares of blame and bitterness and not all kids were nurtured with rough, unwilling hands.

So there had to be something wrong with her.

Several times over the years she had tried asking why, but no one would tell her. They would merely ignore her questions, ask if there was anything else she needed, and then be off on their way as quickly as they could. And for some reason, Naruto's heart ached. She didn't understand it at first, but once she had realized that she was not like others, she also begun to understand that it was because of the lack of closeness and affection. She had seen mothers with their babies and animals with their offspring and seen how different their interaction together was from the way she was treated. For as long as Naruto could remember, there had always been a sense of loss inside her, and it only grew deeper as time went by. Why was she different and why was she rejected? What was wrong with her? Was she somehow… unsatisfactory?

And when she walked the streets of Konoha, people would always evade her as much as possible and throw despising glares at her. But why? Why did they all hate her? Naruto couldn't understand.

But whenever she looked into the eyes of a mother, deep inside her Naruto knew she had always known the reason. The knowledge had always been somewhere in there, just waiting for her to find it. It didn't matter which woman her eyes connected with; they always told her the same thing.

You are not normal. You are an abomination. You are a freak of nature.

And then the women would hiss at her threateningly and gather their children close, as if she was a danger to them. And Naruto would clench her fists and fight back tears. She spent so much time crying while she was alone, but instinctively didn't want to do it in front of others. No, instead she bit her lip and dug her nails into her palms, hard enough to draw blood—although the bleeding usually stopped only seconds later.

And when Naruto wanted to play, no one would play with her. She was too strange, and parents always warned their kids to not get involved with the blond girl who had whisker marks on her cheeks. They said she was vicious and dangerous, and although the children were confused and disbelieving at first, in time their curiosity and indifference turned into mockery and cruelness, encouraged by their parents. For little kids, it was wondrous that there was someone they could freely practice on this otherwise forbidden game of theirs, called "playground hierarchy". Indeed, for them Naruto was the lowest of low, the ugliest of ugly, and the stupidest of stupid. Not even the other orphans and loners accepted her.

Naruto was all alone.

And so, by the time she was five Naruto had accepted this, but it never ceased to hurt her. She was different, but why? How? She had always been an obedient and quiet child, and never intentionally did anything bad. Of course, accidents happened like was only natural, but for some reason the adults always treated her like she had done it on purpose, and punished her harshly. They slapped her, shook her by the hair, and sometimes even hit her with a belt. For a long time Naruto had thought this was a normal way of teaching children to behave and not make the same mistakes again, but once more her assumptions were proven wrong.

But because they treated her so harshly, they must have had a good reason for doing so, right? There must have been something so horribly wrong with her for them to hate her so fiercely. They punished her because she was not good. It was her own fault. But still, she couldn't change herself for as long as nobody told her what it was about her that needed to be changed.

Thus, one day, she decided to make a visit to the only soul within the whole village who acknowledged her and treated her kindly, this person being the Sandaime Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen. And so, as soon as the sun had risen high enough for it to be called a decent time for visiting, Naruto left the orphanage and navigated her way through the village to the Hokage Tower. Had she been a normal five-year-old girl, many of the people on the streets would have stopped to ask her what she was doing out there alone and so early, but as she wasn't, they merely ignored her, too tired to yet care about her presence. However, being a very independent girl, Naruto managed to her destination very well on her own. It wasn't her first time, after all.

---

Every time he saw the girl, the Hokage felt like wincing. Not because of who she was, but because of how she looked. She was disturbingly thin, like she was being starved, and always wore those same, old rags that were getting so worn out, that Naruto almost looked like she was living on the streets. The orange shorts and the black t-shirt were full of patched holes and tears, and the fabric had gotten so thin that he could almost count the girl's pointy ribs trough it. Additionally, she was running barefooted most of the time. But Sarutobi was careful to never let the blonde notice his discomfort. It was always a joy for him when she came to visit, and he didn't want to scare her off with his horrified gaze. The girl relied on him heavily, and if he let her down, there would be no one else for her to place her trust in within the village walls. Sarutobi desperately wished he had more free time in his hands to spend with Naruto. He didn't want her to grow up completely alone.

Sarutobi smiled warmly at the girl as he watched her sit down and look around herself, her big blue eyes wandering, searching for anything interesting within the room. He was almost too aware of her situation, but his hands were tied in the matter. Even as the Hokage, he had no way of forcing the citizens to accept her. He was not a tyrant, and couldn't force the minds of people. The best he could do was to always give Naruto protection and provide her with a place to stay and money to live off, once she came to an age that she was able to survive on her own. That wouldn't be for a few more years though, and consequently Sarutobi couldn't help but feel like a helpless fool.

He was not in a situation suited for raising a child because of the duties and responsibilities that came with the title of Hokage, and those who shared his kind opinion of Naruto were all busy shinobi. Sarutobi knew the girl would have to find her own way through life. He could do nothing but support her silently. Settling on her side against his village and the council was an impossible option, and he was already being pressured as it was. No, as the Hokage, he had to remain neutral, otherwise his emotions would interfere too much with his decision making. He had an entire village under his protection. Naruto was just one person. Even if it angered him, he had to think of the greater good.

But as always, he once again momentarily forgot about his problems as he saw Naruto's sunny smile.

"What brings you here today, Naruto-chan?" he asked her kindly and offered her some sweets, which the girl accepted with a happy squeal. The sweets were always in the drawer of his desk, and Naruto was the one they were meant for. Sarutobi could guess from her skinny figure that she didn't get sugary treats like that very often.

"I missed you, jiji!" Naruto grinned, and swallowed another sweet.

Sarutobi gave a jovial laugh and his eyes gazed straight into hers. Naruto's eyes were such an incredible blue color and so pure, that it was hard to believe that somewhere inside her lurked such a malicious demon. Her whisker marks were the only visible characteristics that indicated she was indeed a jinchuuriki.

"I am glad to hear that. It's a shame that I'm too busy to regularly visit you, Naruto-chan."

The blond sighed. "Yeah, it totally sucks," she replied offhandedly. Sarutobi was inwardly a bit surprised to hear such language from the girl's mouth. Had she been staying out too long again, listening to older people talk?

"What have you been up to lately?" he asked her, carefully disguising his concern. Naruto seemed to hesitate a little at his question, and it puzzled him. She was not the type of girl to be naughty, nor was she a timid personality, so why the nervousness? Had something happened?

"Naruto-chan?" he repeated.

The girl looked down, suddenly completely losing her interest in the sweets. Her expression grew uneasy and depressed. "Jiji…" she started reluctantly. "I know that people don't like me. And when I ask why, they won't tell me."

Sarutobi swallowed silently. He had been dreading the day Naruto would confront him about this. And even though he knew that the blonde deserved an honest answer, he simply wasn't ready to give her one. She had caught him unprepared and off guard. She was truly an exceptionally observant and brave child, and this more than proved it—only five years old, and she was already confronting him about it head on, all alone and by herself. But, as much as he regretted it later, today Sarutobi would lie to her and leave her questions without answers. At that time, his opinion was that she was too young to handle something so serious.

Sarutobi sighed heavily.

'Forgive me for my weakness, Yondaime. I… just don't think she's ready for the truth yet. Forgive me for everything.'

---

Naruto laid on her bed with her gaze affixed to the ceiling. It was late, but it was simply too noisy outside to get any sleep. It was October 10th, and the yearly celebration of the death of the Kyuubi was in full swing. The orphanage was empty, except for her. The adults had taken all the other children out to enjoy the festival—only Naruto had been left behind. One of the three women who took care of them had told her that she was not allowed to come, smirking in an oddly smug way while saying it, and then ordered her to go to sleep at the usual time. It was already far past the time darkness had fallen, but the others were still out. Naruto wondered what it was like to go to a festival. She had never been to a single one.

It also happened to be her sixth birthday.

She had not received any kind of gifts or congratulations from anybody, except for the Hokage, but that was how it had always been.

Nobody else cared, and Naruto's heart ached. She was lonely and sad and hungry for affection. At times, when no one would say a word to her for hours, she felt like she would go insane if something didn't distract her. She felt trapped inside her own head, ready to explode and wither. She couldn't sleep well, and it was hard for her to eat or fully concentrate on anything when everything just kept spinning on and on within her mind. She thought and wondered and speculated and considered, endlessly without a rest, but couldn't come up with an answer for the question that burned her insides.

What is wrong with me?

Sometimes it was too much for her, and during the past year she had adopted a tendency to sneak out and ditch her lessons to go cry and vent out her frustration somewhere.

Like all the other children of the orphanage, Naruto, too, was being taught how to read and write and count (and use common sense, which some of the kids seemed to completely lack), but unlike the others, she already performed them all fluently, albeit she still didn't understand where she had picked up the skills. She didn't complain though, unlike her teacher, who often accused her of cheating.

Naruto had also found, that even though it was an orphanage where she lived—meaning the place was filled with individuals who had suffered and endured pain during their lives—they still couldn't understand hurt like she did. Many of them were very immature and cruel as well, and—if Naruto was completely honest—just stupid. Or was it just that she herself was beyond the awareness and intelligence of what was considered normal for a six-year-old? Furthermore, Naruto was physically more capable than all the kids her age put together. Naruto could feel an obscure strength within herself, and she couldn't understand it at all. Of course she had realized that this might've had something to do with why everyone loathed her, but it still didn't explain anything or give her any answers.

When would someone tell her? How many more years would she have to spend not understanding herself at all? The future seemed dark for Naruto every time she thought ahead. She was afraid of what would happen to her and what she would grow up to be. She had no plans for the future, simply because she didn't have much hope. Was it possible that a person could be born just to suffer and wither away? Did she have any other choice? God, if there was one, did not favor her, and that in itself was a definitive fate. Was there really only one destiny for a person, or was it something that was molded by the people themselves? Or was life, in truth, meaningless?

Naruto was quite certain that not many six-year-olds thought about such things all day long. She was different. She wasn't normal. She was a freak of nature. That was what the eyes of a mother told her when she looked into them. Women didn't look at her with their usual maternal instincts. No, they looked at her like she was going to slaughter and devour their children the second they lowered their defenses. But why?

Presently, as her gaze lazily followed a moth that was desperately looking for a way out through the closed window, Naruto wasn't sure whether she wanted to be numb or to cry her eyes out. But only a second later she decided that neither option would do, as she remembered that the others might return at any time. It had been a very long time since she had cried in front of anyone, and Naruto didn't intend to start it again now, just because of some stupid festival everyone else had gone off to enjoy but she had been denied. Well, many of the children had lost their parents in the battle against the Kyuubi no Youko six years ago, so they did have a good reason to celebrate its downfall. Naruto herself didn't know anything about her parents, and no one would talk to her about this subject either—some, because they didn't know anything, and others, because they didn't want to.

The Hokage, who no doubt knew, wouldn't tell her anything useful either, and it frustrated Naruto endlessly. He was the only person within the whole village whom she could trust, and he too was keeping important secrets from her. It made her mad, but the anger was quickly subdued as Naruto reminded herself that Sarutobi was the one and only soul in the world who ever smiled at her and cared about her.

And like always, he had remembered Naruto's birthday. Every year she would receive a small gift from him, and today, too, Sarutobi had personally stopped by to see her, arousing deep feelings of jealousy amongst the rest of the inhabitants of the orphanage. He given her a small and simple but expensive-looking metal flute as a birthday present. It wasn't really a toy, like Naruto had hoped, but it was still cool and interesting. She had vowed to learn how to play it and then come and show the old man. Naruto owned very few things, and for that reason she treasured Sarutobi's gifts more than anything else in the world that she could touch.

A brown, worn-out teddy bear; a thin silver necklace; a carved, wooden miniature shinobi; a silky, dark-blue ribbon for her hair; a thick storybook; and now, a beautiful flute. They were her treasures, and Naruto knew better than to leave them lying around. People had tried to steal her things before, but nowadays Naruto would hide everything she wanted to keep safe. And not inside the orphanage either, but under the bushes in the backyard. She had dug a deep hole on the ground, burying the bear, the book, the miniature and the ribbon down there within a small box. The silver necklace she had decided to wear, and the flute she wasn't going to hide away. No, she would learn to play it, and then she would go and entertain the old man Hokage with her melodies.

The moth was still searching, quickly flapping its little wings in the growing moonlight, desperately searching for a way out. It amazed Naruto how such a simple creature could remind her so much of her own struggle. But she couldn't help it as she laid on her bed, watching. It was almost hypnotizing, observing the movements of its small body, dancing in the twilight. The sounds of the festival dimmed in her ears and Naruto felt sleep creeping on her. Yet, she couldn't get her eyes off the delicate being that reminded her so much of herself.

And it was a good thing she didn't, for at that very second, a kunai came flying through the window, shattering the glass loudly, speedily growing closer. At the last second though, her brains kicked in and Naruto half dodged and half deflected the kunai with her metal flute. She was completely awake now, and quickly moved off the bed, looking wildly around herself. Suddenly her eyes found the kunai, and her heart almost skipped a beat. The moth she had watched was now broken and lifeless, pinned against the bed's headboard by the sharp edge of the weapon. This was a very bad omen, Naruto deemed. And only then did the reality finally strike her. That kunai had… had been meant for her! Someone had tried to kill her!

Suddenly her pulse started racing and her breath hitched in her throat. Unconsciously her body started sweating and her normally so innocent-looking face twisted into an expression of horror. She had nearly just died! Never before in her life had Naruto experienced such fear. She was beginning to panic and the tears forced their way out until she was openly crying. She clutched the metal flute tightly against her chest, as if she was hanging onto a life-buoy. She could feel the presence of three people outside the window.

She was alone. She wasn't fast enough to run. She wasn't strong enough to fight. She would not be given any more mercy than the dead moth pierced by the kunai.

She was going to die.

And for some strange reason, Naruto felt her face twist into a hysterical smile filled with bitterness, as a thought popped into her head. It was just as she had suspected, after all. Some people were born just to suffer and wither in the hands of those who were superior. She was a weakling compared to those fully trained ninjas. She was only prey. For others to be happy, someone had to be miserable. Naruto only wondered, why her? What was so wrong with her that people deemed it better to kill her off?

Slowly all rational thoughts left her as the three ninjas entered through the window. And after that…

Pain, pain, pain, pain... Screams. Laughing. Blood. Lots of blood, too much blood. And they called her a demon, over and over again.

"Die demon!"

"Feel our pain, demon!"

"Understand this hatred, demon, and be gone from tainting our lives! Die!"

First, they caught her, laughing at her pitiful attempt to get away. Then, dragging Naruto back to her bed by her hair, they proceeded to cut her Achilles tendons, so she could not attempt running again. But despite the unimaginable pain, she still struggled, and somehow in the process her right shoulder was dislocated. One by one, they broke all her small fingers, trying their best to muffle her screams.

One of the three men picked up the metal flute from the floor, twiddling it around his fingers smugly.

"This is the object that just saved your life a moment ago, huh? You know, we would've settled for simply killing you off easily with that kunai, but now that we've seen you still retain some of your fighting spirit even in this form, we've decided that we want to first humiliate and break you thoroughly. You've taken something dear from us all. Now we're going to take something from you—your life."

The men chuckled.

"Oh, look, the demon is trying to say something," smirked the man closest to Naruto. "Well, let's hear it!"

The blonde's eyes were red from crying and her voice hoarse from screaming. Still, she managed to choke a few, barely audible words through the gags on her and through the pain. "W-what… please… I… don't understand… Why?" They looked at her, their eyes suddenly radiating rage. She couldn't understand their reaction.

"Coward! Can't even face your death honorably! I'll make sure you feel in your skin every lie you've ever told and every single bit of pain you've caused to Konoha, before you pass on!" the third man seethed.

Suddenly, the man holding her flute stepped forward. "Is this flute precious to you?" Naruto's eyes filled with fresh tears once again, and that was enough of an answer for the man. "So it is? I wonder where you stole it from… It's pretty nice. I think I'll keep it."

And then, to Naruto's absolute horror, they started to rip off her clothes, whilst hitting and beating and cutting her. And then… one of the men lowered his hand, sliding it along her thigh, opening her legs…!

'No! LET ME GO! NO!"

She struggled harder than ever, but the three ninjas overpowered her ridiculously easily. She shut her eyes tightly and cried, the mere emotional pain clutching her so hard that she was nearly ready to swallow the gag and kill herself suffocating. Screaming silently inside her head, she felt herself shaking so violently now that the man currently above her had a hard time not falling off. This unconscious reaction only served her several hard slaps on the face and more pain in her ankles, fingers, right shoulder, and most of all, between her legs. And Naruto felt herself bleeding unstoppably. Some of the smaller cuts and bruises had already mended due to her fast healing factor, but the bigger wounds were driving her mad with pain. Why hadn't she died yet? Why hadn't she at least passed out? For that was what she wanted, to die, die, die… never look at anyone in the eyes ever again.

But Naruto's tormentor had seemed to figure that part out, so he decided to stab her in the guts, just to get a reaction out of her. And he did get one. Naruto's eyes flew open as she felt the cold metal rip through her skin, the edge sinking deep within her midsection, just above the now surfaced seal on her stomach. The blood just seemed to pour out of her, and Naruto had no idea how much she had already lost. She didn't know how much blood a human body could hold, but not much more, right? Now she would die faster and this humiliation would be over sooner. Naruto closed her eyes once more, and almost felt relieved to feel her life fading. She wouldn't have to suffer much longer…

But then, as the man finally pulled out of her and rose up, Naruto felt a hand grip her jaw tightly. "I'm disappointed," the man hissed. "You kept your eyes closed the whole time. One who doesn't appreciate her sight, doesn't need it."

Naruto almost swallowed her gag as she heard this. They were going to do something to her eyes too…? Would it never, ever end?

And then, very suddenly, Naruto felt something powerful move within her body, systematically reaching out everywhere and filling her. It was faint at first, but gradually got stronger and stronger. First, she noticed how the bleeding slowly stopped, and next, she felt her wounds start to heal, albeit slowly. This went, because of the blood that covered her, unnoticed by the three men who were standing around her, triumphing over her nearing death. And finally, Naruto felt a peculiar sensation of numbness fall over her. She didn't even feel it, as the men carved her left eye out—and what was even odder, was that she saw very well from both her eye sockets. Something overwhelming was gathering inside of her, and then a certain type of blackness took her. It was as if she was right there, but at the same time wasn't. It was Naruto, but some other Naruto.

And now the three men had finally noticed things weren't going as they'd planned anymore, and backed away, their eyes wide in panic and horror. And then, as if it was the most natural thing in the world, Naruto stood up, somehow ignoring her broken Achilles tendons, and popped her right shoulder back to place. Slowly, she stretched her fingers, which had all been broken just a moment ago, and then turned her gaze to her tormentors.

The men were now starting to stumble backwards, afraid to death, and one of them seemed to be fumbling for a so far unused sword from his back.

"She's a monster! Kill the demon! Kill the Kyuubi! Kill her now before she recovers completely!" the other two urged him.

'The Kyuubi…?' Naruto thought briefly, before her mind went blank, as something red and powerful started settling around her.

Finally, the man holding a sword approached her. He was fast and not half bad at handling the blade, but unfortunately for him, he was a lot larger than Naruto and didn't have much room to strike with his weapon between the high bunk beds. And thus, aiming at her neck, his strike missed by several inches, and instead of her head, he ended up completely chopping off Naruto's left arm.

The blonde fell on her knees, screaming and clutching the bloody stump of her shoulder. It hurt more than anything she had ever experienced before, regardless of the calming redness that enveloped her. It felt surreal for a moment, and she panicked, trying to move her hand …but it just wasn't there. Naruto was beginning to sink to the floor, feeling faint because of the incredible blood loss. The man in front of her lifted his sword to finish her off, grinning insanely, cheered on by the other two. He brought his weapon down fast, ready remove Naruto's head, but at the last second the numbness returned to her. And then she felt as if something huge exploded inside of her.

She felt strong. She felt so strong that butchering those three pigs would certainly be no problem at all. An animalistic anger settled inside her, a terrible bloodlust, and as the redness enclosed more and more around her body, she crouched down like an animal, evaded the sword, and attacked.

The first of the three to die, she decided, would be that very man. The redness around Naruto, moving at her command, first tore through his shoulder and then grotesquely ripped off his head, creating a sea of blood under them. The other two tried to run, but it was of no use. Within a second, she was blocking the window, and the door was too far away for them to reach before she could kill them. They could only watch in horror as the oddly expressionless, small six-year-old sent the red, demonic chakra towards them, intending to rip off their heads just like their comrade's—

It was then that a small miracle in their benefit happened, as the arrival of two ANBU-units and the Hokage himself through the broken window was enough to distract the blonde momentarily, so that the two were able to reach the door before they were caught by the girl's red chakra.

One of the teams immediately moved, on the Hokage's quick order, to pursue the two ninjas, but the rest stayed put, cautiously observing the girl. The whole ninja population inside the village had felt the horrifying chakra explode all of a sudden, and without a further thought, the Hokage had left whatever he was doing in his dust, two ANBU-units tailing him.

Sarutobi could only stare at her pitiful state. There, standing naked, bloody and critically injured in the middle of the room, was Naruto. The red chakra, which he knew belonged to Kyuubi, had closed around her like a barrier, working as both offence and defense. Where her left hand should have been, was now only a bleeding stump, but for the spectators' great surprise, a red, see-through hand, completely made of chakra, was there as the substitute of the old one. Sarutobi searched for her true arm with his eyes and quickly located it on the floor. He also noticed one bloody, blue eyeball on the bed, and upon closer inspection, saw that it, too, belonged to Naruto. What had those men done to her? The ANBU around him were shifting nervously, thinking, and all ending up with the same conclusion of the night's events.

They didn't have any more time for their thoughts, however, as Naruto suddenly collapsed. Sarutobi was thankfully fast enough to catch her before her body reached the ground. Naruto was unconscious.

Barking orders like an angry dog, he ordered someone to quickly move Naruto's arm and eyeball to the hospital. Another one was to go contact their interrogation specialists and make sure the other two men were delivered swiftly into their hands so they could start the questioning. The rest were told to stay back and guard the scene of the bloodbath and the dead body. And then, within a second, Sarutobi was on his way to the hospital, holding the unconscious girl in his arms as gently as he could. She was so small and bloody… Sarutobi's heart ached. Those three men had broken her like a fragile porcelain doll.

---

As the ANBU were taking the two shaking men to the interrogation rooms, one of the captives dropped something.

"What's this?" asked a voice behind a bird mask, and his hand held up a small metal flute for the prisoners to see.

One of them narrowed his eyes furiously. "That murdering demon… it's hers," he spat. The ANBU narrowed his eyes behind the mask. He decided he would have to deliver the object to the Hokage later on.

---

Naruto was awoken by a loud growl that echoed from the walls of the sewer.

Wait… sewer? What? Where was she?

It was so dark and wet that she couldn't call it anything else but a sewer. Her head pounded as many things and thoughts ran through her head. But she didn't want to think. She wanted to disappear, die, anything but return to reality. Maybe she had gotten lucky and she was already dead and this was the afterlife? But if so, why was the pain still there?

Naruto didn't want to remember, but couldn't stop herself. And as she fell to her knees and burst out crying, she felt a sudden pain in her left eye and arm. The body parts that she had lost. And then, a sudden voice entered her hearing.

"Come to me, Naruto," it hissed to her, and she followed it like a sleepwalker. The way wasn't too long, and very soon she found herself standing in front of a huge gate, completely dumfounded. The sight in front of her was…

"Who are you? Where are we?"

"You were unaware of my presence?" the fox asked, and his huge red eyes widened slightly in surprise, observing every movement her small body made.

"Huh?" Naruto wasn't quite sure what the giant fox meant.

"My presence sealed within you. I am Kyuubi no Youko. We are in the depths of your mind right now as we speak."

What? How was that possible? This was ridiculous. Naruto was getting upset again. "Sealed? What do you mean sealed? You're supposed to be dead, and so am I!"

If it was true… then this was the reason they all hated her?

The fox seemed to narrow his eyes at her. The Kyuubi was not the most patient of demons, but he realized he had to hold off his annoyance for now. He needed her to think rationally—well, as rationally as someone her age, who had gone through what she just had, could. It would do no good upsetting her. Things would just get unnecessarily difficult.

"Neither of us is dead. I was sealed within you that night when I 'supposedly' died. Those three men who attacked you hate you because of me. They most likely see you as my incarnation."

They were both silent for a while, and then the fox decided that a little explaining wouldn't hurt. She was only six after all, even if she was an abnormally smart one. "You heal fast, you are strong, and you have matured far faster than any other kit. Those are all effects of holding me inside of you. I'm hasty to see you become something more than a pushover, so I leak my power little by little through the seal to give you an advantage against others. The whisker marks on your face are also my influence."

Naruto seemed to finally understand. So… this was the truth? She looked away and swallowed. "I see… What's happening to me right now?"

"Your body has almost reached the hospital. I have already healed all the life threatening wounds, excluding your arm, so we will not die."

"So… We are dependent on each other? If I die, you die, and so you must help me?"

The Kyuubi felt pleased that she had understood the situation. He hated stupid creatures. "Yes."

Suddenly, Naruto's eyes turned hateful and pained and her miserable posture grew surprisingly threatening. "Then why didn't you help me any earlier? Why did you let them… why did you let it get so far? Now I've lost an arm and an eye—how do you think I'll be able protect us half blind and one-handed?"

The girl had some spunk, the Kyuubi had to admit, but still, rude and arrogant creatures irritated the demon. And so did those who talked back to him.

"Shut up!" the demon barked, before being able to suppress his anger again. Then, he continued much more calmly. "It wasn't my decision, and I'll tell you the full details some other time. Right now you need to make a quick decision."

Naruto arched her eyebrow, a bitter smile on her face. "Oh?"

"You haven't yet lost either of the parts you spoke of. There is still a chance that they could be replanted with extremely advanced medical jutsu, although, as far as I know, the success level would be almost nonexistent. This is the first time I've been able to sense the world outside, and I have no information of the skills of your medics. Unfortunate."

Naruto growled. "And the point of telling me this is?"

The Kyuubi observed her for a moment before replying. "Do you understand that you are far from a normal six-year-old? You are superior to your peers in every sense of the word. But after crippling yourself like you have, even you will be weak, which is bad for us both. I can't repeat what I did tonight all the time. It was our luck that those men decided to go slow instead of just snapping your neck or something alike. That, for example, is something I wouldn't be able to do anything about. So, now I offer you something to replace what you have lost because of my presence in your body."

The blonde looked skeptical. "You can't replace what I have lost."

The fox demon gave a feral grin to his host. "We'll see about that."

It was Naruto's turn to sneer now. "Can you give me something I never had to begin with? Love, innocence, affection, a will to live? Can you give me any of those?"

The demon didn't hesitate to taunt her about her apparent weakness. "No. It is foolish to dream about something like that. What you're talking about is something you will never have." He gave a vicious snicker. "But even if you have no reason or desire to continue onwards right now, you shouldn't waste both of our lives and let those three men—and however many others like them there are—to win this."

The girl bit her lip and clenched her little fists.

"None of what happened was your fault, but the villagers blamed you regardless. The Hokage, the ninjas and the villagers, they all knew but didn't tell you. Do you know why?"

The blonde shook his head silently.

"Because they deemed you too weak to handle it," The Kyuubi explained, his piercing stare seeing right through her. "They thought the second you found out about me you'd do something reckless and stupid. Maybe they even considered the possibility that you would willingly devote yourself to me. That's why the seal stopped me from helping you. It was designed to allow me to only truly reach you when your life was in severe danger, meaning critical injuries. They were afraid you'd betray them."

"That's not true!" Naruto exclaimed hotly, her eyes watering. "Sarutobi-jiichan would never think that of me!"

The Kyuubi let out a long, mocking laughter. "You are so naïve, Naruto. Not only him, but your own parents too. The seal was designed by your parents together and carried out by your father, the Yondaime."

Now the shock was even more evident on her face. Of all people… The Fourth? And Sarutobi hadn't told her! "That can't be true!" she shouted angrily, almost pleadingly.

But the Kyuubi simply continued. "They sacrificed you, their own kit, and doomed you to your fate. Your father died sealing my entity into you, believing you would be treated as a hero for containing me. But I saw his discouraged eyes before he fell. He knew it would never happen; he was only trying to ease his own conscience by telling himself that stupid lie. But your mother was even worse. Right after Yondaime fell, she committed suicide, not even bothering to spare a thought to what would happen to you after you were left alone. They denied you your real clan name and heritance thanks to their own selfishness. They chose to leave you alone to grow up under the hateful glares of their beloved villagers."

"They didn't abandon me… They left me in the care of Sarutobi-jiichan…"

The demon grinned, baring his canines. "And what has he done for you exactly? Fed you, clothed you and kept you warm and happy?"

The Kyuubi knew he was strongly manipulating the girl, but he truly needed her to accept his offer if they were ever going to survive. And if she did, there was no turning back for her, and he would be able to move a bit more freely inside of her. Besides, it would be interesting to see how tonight would affect the girl's psyche. Rape, assault and a betrayal all in one night… A lonely, hated six-year-old with no one to comfort her… The years ahead seemed quite interesting. The best strategy to manipulate her would've definitely been posing as her friend, but the demon had no patience for that. This trauma and the mental scars she would have worked well enough for the Kyuubi's advantage.

"You are seriously underweight, your clothes tonight were old and worn-out and you have never been happy. He didn't even pay enough attention to your protection to prevent such low class ninjas from almost killing you. Although he was most likely being pressured by the majority of the people, he still had a choice and he ended up siding with the village against you."

"He…" Naruto's voice was starting to crack. This was too much. It was too cruel. Not Sarutobi… not the only person she had ever trusted… the only one she cared for… who was supposed to care for her…

"What about all those smiles and the birthday gifts he gave me? They meant something! I know he cares about me!"

The fox eyed her coldly from behind his bars. "Gifts are often given not to make another person happy, but to soothe your own bad conscience. And even if he did care about you, it doesn't matter anymore, does it? You can't trust him any longer, now that you know what he has been hiding from you all those years. Face it Naruto, you are alone. You will always be because of me, and we can't get rid of each other. That's why, instead, we should learn to interact and work well together. It would benefit us both greatly."

"I hate you! I want nothing to do with you!"

The Kyuubi cackled cruelly, delighted by her passionate nature. "Just like I hate and want nothing to do with you, brat, but unfortunately for us both, we are stuck. For now at least. So for the time being, it would be safer for us to work together. It's possible now that the seal has been forced to allow my chakra trough. If you meet me in the halfway, I will be able to crack the surface of this seal enough so that we can communicate not only when you're almost dead, but whenever we want to."

Naruto scowled angrily, deep in thought. "How do I know you're not lying to me about everything like everyone else? You said you had never before been able to see outside, so how did you know about what happened to my parents?"

"The seal was vulnerable for the first few days," he explained. "I attempted to escape several times, but my tries were unsuccessful. I heard a lot of interesting things at that time though." The demon smirked, pleased by the challenge Naruto offered. The girl was definitely not slow or stupid. He would have to take that into his calculations when he manipulated her in the future. For he had decided, if and until a way to break the seal completely appeared, he was going to live his life through her. He would make her vicious. He would make her a ruthless killing machine. He would shape her personality and strength to his own liking and take away any chance of happiness that she might have had.

Naruto tried in vain to stop her tears, but it was fruitless. She was shaking all over. "What if I don't want to live? I don't have a reason to… What if I just want forget everything and die?"

The Kyuubi didn't even wince at the threat. He knew had her now. "Just because your life doesn't currently have a purpose that satisfies you, it doesn't mean you can't find something interesting to do while you live. Naruto, you are already a very special kit. Would you like me to make you even more special?"

The mentally broken blonde brought her blue eyes down and sniffed. For a moment she was very still, and everything was silent. And then, very slowly, almost hesitantly, she nodded. The demon fox grinned, and his booming laughter filled her ears as the red chakra enclosed around her. She wasn't afraid. If he had tricked her, she would probably die. If not, she would live. It was all the same for her. She didn't care. Nothing mattered anymore.

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Notes:

1. Naruto calls Sarutobi jiji and jiichan because he was the only person in the whole village who cared about her, and he also happens to be old and male.

2. About Naruto's seal in this story... it was designed so that Kyuubi would not be able to reach Naruto or the outside world at all unless Naruto's life was in extreme danger. Naruto's agreement to Kyuubi's deal, however, changes that completely. Yondaime was not aware of this possibility when he sealed the fox into her. He also didn't know Kyuubi could leak his power trough the seal little by little, and so affect Naruto's growth. This is simply because he could not predict every possibility of events, because he was sealing something as powerful and unpredictable as Kyuubi.

In the next chapter: Naruto wakes up in the hospital and decisions are made…