Back to the Beginning (Naruto Fanfic)

Chapter 32

"Man... I feel like I barely got any sleep." Naruto rubbed his head as he woke up.

Minato felt a little bad for Naruto. He knew that it had to be because Kurama was talking to him, but he didn't want Naruto to know that. "Well, you'll be able to rest more tonight. For now we need to eat and get ready to travel more today."

"You're damn right about that!" Naruto faced Minato directly while bumping his fist against his hand.

Minato didn't comment on the anger he heard in Naruto's voice. He knew that he would just have to keep a close eye on him while they were traveling. "Come on, let's pack up and get going."

The five of them continued running throughout the day, only stopping for a quick lunch break. Minato noticed there were a couple of times when Naruto's eyes would flash red for a split second. Now I understand why Kurama was worried.

When the team stopped for the night Naruto offered to take the watch for the night. He could still sense someone watching them, and he could tell it was the same person from the village. He set up the same sealing jutsu around the campsite, but was intrigued when he noticed that they made no move to attack. They are only observing us.

Naruto noticed that the night was eerily quiet. He knew that they were getting close to the hideout. They would most likely be there by tomorrow. I can't wait any longer.

"Naruto, don't rush into anything without thinking." Kurama spoke up to keep Naruto company.

Naruto rolled his eyes. "You don't think I know that?"

"Well, you do like to rush into things." Kurama's voice took on a sassy tone. "And I have known you your whole life."

"Hey! I haven't done that for a while ya know!"

"You rushed into the battle at Kannabi Bridge."

Naruto was caught off guard by what Kurama said. He had to think about it before realizing that he was right. "Alright... that doesn't count. I was trying to keep them from dying, ya know."

"And you nearly got yourself killed."

"Alright you stupid fox! I'll be careful, okay!"

Kurama grumbled as he conceded the argument. Oh yeah Kit... I'm sure you will be... He was thinking this to himself as he drifted off to sleep. He wouldn't admit it out loud to Naruto, but he was worried. He had a bad feeling about what they were getting themselves into.

Naruto was annoyed the next morning when everyone woke up. He knew that his dad was keeping an eye on him, he knew that Kurama was being over-protective, he knew that they were being followed and it was starting to annoy him. He didn't say much as they all started off once again. He was more than ready to get things over with.

It was mid-afternoon when they arrived at the spot that they had determined was where Madara's hideout was. They decided it was best to survey the area in order to figure out where the entrance was.

After a while of looking around, they finally found a small section of the mountain where the rock was just a little bit different. "There seems to be a strong seal placed here." Minato spoke as he surveyed the rock. "This won't be easy to break through."

"How can we help, Minato-sensei?" Kakashi walked up to Minato.

"I'm afraid just waiting is going to be the best thing you can do right now. I'll work on figuring out how to release the seal."

Naruto was pacing back and forth as Minato studied the seal. He didn't want to wait any longer. I can't believe we're so close, yet all I'm doing is standing around!