My Brother's a Jinchūriki! EXTRAS

Melancholy of the Snake Part One

Spring 2021 Narutopedia Discord Community Fanfiction Competition Submission

Prompt: Rewrite or edit/embellish the backstory of a canon, manga-featured villain in Naruto.

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<1 Year before the Founding of the Leaf>

Echoing through each stone chamber, tunnel, and cavern was the sound of weapons striking one another. Blades against blades, accompanied by the grunts of bitter fallen warriors and the unforgettable splattering of blood.

A young boy was quickly ushered into a deeper passage amidst a larger group of children by a dark-haired man in plain black robes.

"Inside. Get inside now!" The man hissed, shoving the boy hard into the room and then shutting the door behind them. Biting his finger, he drew a seal on the door, activating it with Chakra before taking a step back. Then, he turned to count the children there silently before nodding. "Good. I got all of you."

"What's happening?" A girl with short hair held onto the girl beside her as she trembled. "What's going on?"

The man furrowed his brows and looked between the children. They were all fearful, being too young for the Suppression ceremony. As a result, they were still capable of crying tears, which they did generously.

"They're our enemies."

The children's eyes widened at the word with most falling silent.

"The ones whose hair is as crimson as the blood used in the contracts they forged with demons."

"Are we going to die?" The dark-haired boy asked in a quivering voice and the man's gaze fell on him.

"Kōsuke..." The man frowned slightly as he paused. He opened his mouth to answer when pounding sounded from the other side of the door. His eyes widened and the children cried out. "Don't be afraid! The Seal I placed on the door-" Cracks formed in the door and the seal hissed as if being slowly burned away. "Damn them." He mumbled. "It's not enough..."

The Seal burned away entirely and the door was thrown open. The red-haired Shinobi stood in the doorway with their faces obscured with masks with Demon's faces and their uniforms adorned in swirls.

"Kill the marked ones. Liberate any infants." The tallest woman ordered and then turned to hurry to the next room, followed by the man. The last figure turned to look inside the room and the man shifted his stance and drew his sword. Its black blade did not reflect any light, instead, seeming to swallow it entirely.

"I will not let you touch them."

"We'll see."

He rushed at her to begin their dance and his confidence swelled as she remained in place. Then, as his blade was only a breath from her throat, his eyes widened at the golden chains that appeared from her torso and back and lashed out- not at him, but rather, around him. He shifted his weight to strike at the Chakra manifestations. He was only able to knock one from its path but each of the others struck their intended targets directly in the hearts.

"No!" He dropped his blade to catch one girl as she collapsed to the ground, gurgling as blood filled her mouth and poured out of the wound. "No!" He looked to the others as each fell the same way.

"It seems you failed as a guardian." The Kunoichi mocked but narrowed her eyes at the small, quaking figure in the corner. "Well, you saved that one. I'll correct that now."