IGN: Speedwagon

Server: 1392

UID: 300011764624128

Spooky story:

The curse of Majuu ruins

"It's been a long time since Team 7 went on a mission," Kakashi said, smiling behind his mask. "You guys have been busy with all the work in the village, it's for your own benefit to go outside for a few days."

The Sixth Hokage was right and they knew it. After the war, they hardly had any time for vacation or simply spending time together as old friends. Naruto studied for his exams, Sakura worked long shifts at the hospital and Sasuke, well... he was always eager to leave the village for a mission, only now he would have to share it with a team. The trio accepted their new assignment without complaints.

They met the next morning at the main gates. Naruto was appointed the team leader and surprisingly, he was well prepared. He planned the whole route to their destination and took this task very seriously, despite it being a light B-rank mission.

"Our trip is going to take about 8 hours if we run medium tempo. We will take some breaks on the road and set a camp after we get to the ruins. Kakashi said our mission is a simple recon and we shouldn't expect any enemies in the area, so we can take it easy," Naruto explained.

"You realize we could be there in less than an hour with our speed, right?" Sasuke couldn't resist teasing. He wasn't accustomed to such a lazy pace.

"Yes, but we will not. Because the secondary objective of this mission is... to get some rest and have a good time, you know!"

"Hn. If that's the case, then you're the first who should chill out, mister team leader," Sasuke replied and smirked at Naruto's surprised expression. Sakura started giggling and soon they were all laughing out loud. They left the village in good spirits.

___________________________

After arriving at the Majuu ruins, they divided the tasks to set the camp before sundown. Naruto went to gather some wood, which was easy, as they were still within the Land of Fire borders, surrounded by a thick forest. It was decided they would scout the area the next day, but Naruto couldn't help his curiosity when he noticed a solid stone floor under the branches he just picked up. He cleared the ground a little bit more. There were markings carved in swirling patterns all over the place. He studied them for a moment but quickly gave up on making any sense of it. Maybe Sakura would know this script, she likes history...

Suddenly, the letters glowed green. Naruto braced himself for an attack, but the light faded out as quickly as it started. He didn't sense anyone around him, so he chose to ignore what happened, until they come back here tomorrow. He took the firewood and went back to the camp.

The evening meal passed in peace. Having decided on the night watch shifts, Sakura and Sasuke went to sleep, while Naruto stayed on the lookout. He thought about the day's events, their pleasant journey and how peaceful the world has become. Until he stopped thinking.

"Aaaaaaaa!" Sakura screamed at the creature above, who threatened her with a kunai. In an instant, Sasuke intercepted the attack and held him still. "Wait... Naruto?! What are you doing, trying to kill me?!"

Naruto blinked a few times and looked at his surroundings. "What... What am I doing here?"

"Yes, that's exactly what I asked you!" Sakura shouted. "Were you sleepwalking or something? You were supposed to keep watch!"

"Naruto," Sasuke said calmly while he released his arms. "Go to sleep. I will take the shift for the rest of the night. No objections."

The team leader, still confused about the situation, silently nodded and did as he was told.

___________________________

On the following day, the three ninjas split up to scout the area in search of anything valuable for Konoha. As much as they didn't presume to find literal treasures, the Hokage hoped the ruins would hold some hidden mysteries, perhaps the old secrets of ninjutsu. Sakura immediately knew that she got a good one, when she found a stone floor with ancient markings. Unlike Naruto, she could read several languages and it wasn't too hard to decipher the inscription:

Be--ware the curse of Maju--u. What Ma--juu sees, Maj--uu takes. Good be--comes evil. GaGaGaGaGa. -- YOU -- ARE -- MINE --

"Well, that's not exactly what I expected," Sakura mused, "but I'd rather not continue alone here." She then sent a signal to the sky, as they earlier agreed to do.

Sasuke arrived first and Sakura quickly explained what she found. However, he brushed it off as some ancient joke or a superstition. In his years of being a ninja, there was no such thing as magical curses, only techniques that required chakra or physical power. To be certain, he scanned the ground with his Sharingan and it was clear of any disturbance in energy. But then, he looked up and saw a figure coming at them from a distance, buzzing with a powerful, evil chakra.

"Naruto! Here!" Sakura waved at the approaching ninja. "You're late! Huh... are you ok?"

"There is no Naruto anymore," growled a low voice from within his body. His eyes were no longer blue, or human. He jumped at them with a force of a wild beast.

Sasuke anticipated the attack and took initiative. They fought almost on par, but Naruto was different, his strikes more reckless. Sasuke had to be more careful, to not only win, but to not get killed this time.

It took a while, but Sakura recovered from the initial shock and was ready to assist them. It was obvious, they couldn't just beat Naruto senseless, they had to help him! She used the fact that he was distracted by Sasuke, ran to them and grabbed Naruto's hand. "It must be a genjutsu! Kai! Release!"

The technique didn't work. Naruto yanked his arm away from Sakura and swinged a full power punch back at her. But before it landed, Sasuke used his Rinnegan to switch places and teleport right in front of his eyes. He had to use Sharingan to neutralize the genjutsu, if only he could do it fast enough... And he never did, because in that instant, Naruto looked normal again and wobbled back on his feet.

"What... what did I do?"

"You attacked us."

"Why... why is this happening to me?"

"That's a good question," Sasuke said and considered the possibilities for a moment. "Have you seen anything weird since we arrived here?"

"Weird... no... m-maybe..." Naruto stammered as he walked forward. "It was somewhere around... here. It was here." He stopped and pointed at the stone markings. "Please, help me, if I lose control one more time... I feel that I might not come back," he sobbed.

Sasuke and Sakura nodded at each other knowingly. The mission had to halt. "We're taking you to the village immediately," Sasuke ordered. "There must be someone who can cure you."

___________________________

They stood before Kakashi to inform him of their findings at the ruins and Naruto's condition.

"We fear that we might lose him, sensei... I mean, Hokage-sama... please do something!" Sakura begged at the end of her report.

"You will do NOTHING! Hahahaha!" a sudden growl came from Naruto.

Everyone in Hokage's office assumed a fighting stance.

"You should really see your faces!" he still growled low, but in a somehow more familiar way. "Naruto was ignoring me lately, so I thought I would make a little joke on him. Who knew you all would be such a band of scaredy-cats! Hahaha!"

"KURAMA?!" Everyone exclaimed full of shock, including Naruto. "Oh my, I never expected my old pal to embarass me so much on a mission..."

"Wait. Wait, wait wait. But what about the curse?" Sakura asked.

"Huh? What curse?" Naruto asked back.

And they never knew if it was him or not...