The universe as we know it is the end result of a myriad of events, choices, actions, and dumb luck. In the world of fiction, the universe is created by an author, the architect for the universe of Naruto is Masashi Kishimoto. I am not Masashi Kishimoto, just a man who respects his work and would like to present an alternate view. So let's see what would happen if some elements of Naruto's life were to change and witness the creation of Naruto: Chikagami.

Prologue: The Stage is Set; The Players Assembled

October 10, a date that would live in infamy, for this was the day that the Kyuubi no Kitsune, the feared Nine Tailed Fox Demon attacked the village of Konoha. No defense mounted was substantial enough to stop the beast, just slow it for a bit, but ultimately each defense fell. Many good lives were lost that day; mothers, brothers, fathers, sons all lost because of the equivalent of oversized rabid animal. It is on this day, amongst the carnage and destruction that our story begins.

The hospital of Konoha was busy with the constant influx of wounded from the Kyuubi's attack. The staff was stretched to the limit making it very easy for some individuals to fall through the cracks, especially those who had little chance to survive.

Inside one of the hospital rooms were a woman and a man. They both knew that the red haired woman was dying but the man refused to say it out loud.

"Do you remember the first time we met?" the woman asked. "I thought you were so cold and impersonal."

"And you melted through my heart," the man replied.

"And I found out what a beautiful soul you had."

"But not as beautiful as yours, koishii (beloved). You are the kindest, most beautiful woman I have ever seen."

"I love you," the woman sobbed out, "Only you, there's never been another in my heart, just you."

"Shhh," the man replied, gently brushing the hair off of her forehead, "Save you strength, the doctor will return soon and then you'll be healed…"

"No, I know I don't have much time, please take care of the boy, I don't trust Jiraiya…"

"I will, I promise."

"I wish we had more time together, there are so many things I wanted to do together…I love you so much…" The rest was silenced as the last bits of life left the woman's body. Kushina Namikaze was dead. The man was silent as a few tears fell down the side of his face and he leaned over to kiss his beloved's lips one last time. He quietly straightened up, wiped his eyes, and walked to the door. As he walked, he swore that he would kill the man he held responsible for the death of his beloved Kushina.

Unfortunately, he would never have his chance at revenge because that man had already died. He would learn later that the bastard had died a few minutes before Kushina when he used the Shiki Fujin (Dead Demon Consuming Seal) to seal the Kyuubi into Kushina's and the bastard's son. He would never get to kill Minato Namikaze for causing Kushina's death.

Hiruzen Sarutobi, the Third Hokage and currently interim Hokage, sighed as he looked down upon the sleeping infant in the Hokage's office. A few hours ago, a weary Hiruzen walked off the battlefield carefully carrying the infant in his arms before bringing him to the Hokage's office. That child was both Sarutobi's greatest success and failure in one; the child symbolized his success in forcing Minato Namikaze, Konoha's most infamous playboy, to settle down and produce an heir for the village, yet the child also symbolized his failure at stopping Minato from sacrificing himself for the village just hours earlier.

'It should have been me,' Sarutobi lamented. 'Minato should be alive now, to lead this village, and to make it stronger, but now his entire legacy now resides in his son, Naruto Namikaze… 'No,' Sarutobi corrected in his mind. 'If I call him Namikaze, then Iwa or any of the other nations may try to kill him. For now, until Naruto becomes a strong and loyal ninja of the leaf, he will have to live under a false name, but what?' Sarutobi's eyes fell on the folder he was going to soon seal away from public record, the truth about Naruto's heritage could not be known until Naruto would defend the village to his dying breath. Then suddenly it hit him, Kushina's mother was the last of the Uzumaki clan who some had whispered had a history that touched Konoha's a few times, among other nations. Nobody would think it odd if Sarutobi gave the name of a long dead clan that was not well known in the public eye to the orphan who held the Kyuubi.

"Let it be known, until such time as Konoha can depend upon him, that Naruto Namikaze is now Naruto Uzumaki," Sarutobi declared filling out a form to make the identity of Naruto Uzumaki his real one. "And may Kami have mercy on my soul." Sarutobi was roused from his musings by a knock on the office door. "Enter," the aged leader ordered, the office door opened, and in walked the leaders of three of the largest clans in Konoha: Hiashi Hyuga, Fugaku Uchiha leader of Konoha's Military Police Force, and Inoichi Yamanaka currently the head of the ANBU interrogation division.

"Report," the interim Hokage ordered.

"The wall was penetrated in Sector 10; repairs to it will begin as soon as the sun rises. There was some minor damage to one corner of the Uchiha district grounds and unfortunately approximately twelve blocks of the civilian residential district were destroyed," Fugaku reported.

"Efforts to recover survivors are already underway; so far we have recovered forty five survivors, most of them in critical condition and have recovered over four hundred corpses, with many more individuals unaccounted for," Hiashi continued.

"Such a tragic senseless waste of life," Sarutobi lamented. "Inoichi, what is the status of our shinobi force?"

"Unfortunately, most of our forces which encountered the Kyuubi have been killed; however, Jonin Yūhiwas reported as preventing most of our younger generation shinobi from confronting the beast," Inoichi explained.

"Good, there's no need for us to lose our future bearers of the Will of Fire," Sarutobi commented, "Anything else?"

"The survivors have been rushed to the hospital, and I have been told that one of the worst injured is your former teammate Danzo, who has sustained massive burns and injuries to the right side of his body. The doctors believe that his shinobi career is over."

"Is that the child?" Hiashi asked, noticing Naruto in his crib for the first time.

"Yes, he's one of the reasons I called you in here, Hiashi. I want you to use your Byakugan to make sure that the Kyuubi's chakra has been completely contained," Sarutobi explained.

"Very well," Hiashi replied, beginning to channel chakra to his eyes to activate his clan's kekkei genkai the Byakugan. Hiashi's vision shifted toward a mostly colorless view with the only true colors coming from the chakra within the pathways of those around him. "The child's chakra pathways appear to be functioning properly although I can see some flecks of red chakra coming from around the child's stomach, but those are being broken down by the child's own blue colored chakra. Am I correct in assuming that the seals will fade visibly unless the child in actively channeling chakra from the beast?"

"Yes," Sarutobi confirmed. "Although I was only aware of there being only one seal when I first saw the designs; he must have placed some extra security measures I was unaware of. No matter, is the child healthy?"

"Yes," Hiashi stated. "The second seal is almost completely invisible even to my sight; it seems to affect the circulatory system in some…" Hiashi fell silent as he narrowed his eyes as he focused at baby Naruto's face.

"Hiashi?" Sarutobi asked, silently praying to Kami the Hiashi hadn't noticed any sort of resemblance to Minato, "What's wrong?" Before Hiashi could reply, baby Naruto's little face scrunched up and he began wailing loudly.

"The child's chakra is rushing to his eyes, its as if he's trying to…" Hiashi fell silent as Naruto's eyes opened; the once deep blue eyes were gone and in their place were the exact same pale white eyes that Hiashi was looking at him with." Sarutobi's pipe clattered to the floor as he expressed the same thought as the other were silently thinking to themselves. "What the hell is that?"

(Author Note: At the time I conceived this story; little to nothing was known about Minato and Kushina. As such, my versions of the past are drastically different than canon, and I can live with that. Now, I have since then found out some facts about both and…call me conceded, but I prefer my versions of events. Don't like my version of the past? Tough. Maybe I'll incorporate some canon into the past here, but don't count on it, although I did keep Kurenai's father's moment from canon. Kishimoto has his view of Naruto and I have mine. Besides, if I followed his rules 100% this wouldn't be fan-fiction wouldn't it? Don't worry, everything will be explained in time. And now for the Omake.)

Omake:

Hiashi held baby Naruto in his hands underneath the child's armpits. "It doesn't look so intimidating to me." Hiashi turned to look at his two fellow clan heads and then back at the baby not noticing the child's diaper had fallen off. "So you're the jinchūriki…" Naruto's young bladder let loose with a mighty stream of urine on Hiashi's face. "…And you peed on me. You've made a powerful enemy today, young one."

Inoichi nudged Fugaku in the side, "For having the 'all seeing eye' he didn't see that coming did he?"