Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or any of the characters

A/N: Hello there! If you were hoping for a yaoi, you should be sorely disapointed because this is just a friendship story. But keep in mind, if anyone was a homo in this story, it would definitely be Sasuke and not Naruto. :P

Part 1

Flashback: Lady Tsunade strained at her chakra, digging into the farthest reaches of her bones and fibers of her muscles in a struggle to keep her precious village alive. She had already used her backup supply kept sealed in her forehead, and she knew she couldn't hold up for long against the Six Paths of Pain. Naruto was their last reserve, and if he didn't arrive soon, hope was lost for the village. She put her faith in him, sure that he would protect what she held so dear…

As Tsunade held these optimistic thoughts in her mind, Pain appeared behind her, holding her in a death grip.

"Where is the nine tails?"

She choked, "I'll never tell you, and neither will anyone else in the village! We'd never sell him out like that!"

He tightened his hold on her, and if he added any more pressure, he could easily break her spine.

"I'll ask you again. Where is nine tails?"

She only replied with a faint chuckle, as if to say that she accepted death as long as it protected those dear to her. Pain, of course, understood this, but wished to prod a little more to see if he could squeeze any information out of her before she died.

"It is only the Jinchuriki I want. If you give him to me, I will spare the rest of the village."

"Do you take me for a fool? I am the Fifth Hokage, and I'd do anything to protect Konoha and her people! You think Naruto is just a monster, but he is more than that; he is a citizen of this village. You'd use him as a weapon of mass destruction, and I simply won't allow it."

"Have it your way. But before I kill you, know thy pain."

Naruto collapsed onto the ground. His chakra was wasted, but although he was jaded, training wasn't over for the day. He almost had his jutsu mastered, and only had to push a little more before he could enter full sage mode. He turned his head to the sky. It was getting dark, and the clouds were now a beautiful mix of orangish purple. Everything was peaceful atop Mount Myo Boku. He sighed, getting up to wash the sweat off his brow in a nearby stream.

He cupped his hands to splash water on his face when he saw something odd in the stream. Upon further inspection, he found the oddity to be a toad, no bigger than the palm of his hand, floating in the water. He poked it. It didn't stir. He gently lifted it up from the water, prodding it. It didn't wake. 'Oh no,' he thought.

"Watcha doin there Naruto boy?"

"Look, I think this toad is dead." Naruto would have been more sensitive, but he couldn't see what there was to cry about over a dead frog.

Pa toad sighed, "Let me see." Naruto laid the animal on the ground and was surprised to see Pa toad nudging and prodding it like he had done not ten seconds ago.

"Hmmmm…" He tried opening the mouth, having a little trouble since it was post-rigor. "I wonder why we didn't feel em earlier since we were in sage mode and all. Aha!" The jaw snapped open, and a scroll rolled out of the dead toad's mouth.

"Whoa! So someone suffocated him with that scroll! So this is like, toad homicide!" Naruto received no reply. "What, what's wrong?"

Pa toad visibly paled. "We need to get down to Konoha now."

Half an Hour Later

"I… I don't understand. How could it be gone? I was here this morning! I woke up, ate my ramen, watched Shikamaru finish his crossword, waved hello to Sakura, saw Hinata in Ino's flower shop," he stopped, swallowing all that had built up in his throat in a loud gulp. "They were all here. They can't be gone. Not like that. If I'd only been here… It's my fault, all my fault," Naruto's head sank into his hands. His breathing quickened as he began sobbing, mourning the loss of his home that was now a gaping hole in the Land of Fire.

"Now now, Naruto boy. Don't take it so hard. It's not your-"

"DON"T SAY THAT!" he leapt up from where he was sitting in a quick rage. "Of course it's my fault! He was here, looking for me! You told me yourself. When I find him… I'M GOING TO KILL THAT BASTARD!!!" Naruto ripped at his hair. His breathing became hoarse and his lips curled in a gruesome snarl.

"Naruto boy! You need to control yourself!" But there was no stopping it. Pa toad looked on in horror as his student began rapidly retrogressing into the primordial nine tailed biju, Kyuubi No Kitsune.

Naruto's pure hatred devoured him from the inside out, transforming him into a fearsome beast. Fangs protruded from his mouth as tails erupted from his body, pain very apparent in his now blood red eyes. He began curling up as if drawing in all his power, and then let it out in a giant burst that took the form of the Kyuubi. Naruto was gone. The biju yowled at the sky before bolting to the forest, destroying all remaining life in his path.

One Month Later

"So what you're saying is that the Kyuubi has taken over Naruto's body, and you want me to go catch it."

"Precisely; it shouldn't be a problem with your Sharingan. I mean, you've done it before, haven't you?" Madara fiddled with his Tobi mask.

"Hn."

"Does that 'hn' mean a yes?"

"Of course," Sasuke pulled his bangs out of his face nonchalantly, unaffected by the task at hand.

Karin rose from her comfortable position on the couch. "Does that mean we'll be coming with you?"

"No," He returned, almost coldly. "I know this guy. I can handle him on my own."

"If you say so," Karin wasn't quite convinced, but he was the boss, and if he said he wanted to rough it out alone…

"Fine by me," Suigetsu looked as if he couldn't care less about what happened to Sasuke. This made Karin try to smack him on the back of the head, that is, before Jugo intercepted her fist.

"Violence is never the answer."

"Oh, come on! Even for a numbskull like this!"

"Hey, I'm right here, and I can hear every word you're saying."

"Ah, shut up, Suigetsu. No one asked you!"

"Pffft," Sasuke smiled to himself, "you guys are morons." Seeing them tangled up in such an obtuse manner fighting over him almost brought back a distant memory, one that he was actually happy in. But before he could indulge himself in such pleasantries, he composed himself, for now was not the time.

"I'll be back in a couple of weeks. Don't kill each other before I get back."

Sasuke had been travelling for three days straight, stopping at towns to see if he could find news of the rampant jinchuriki. Kyuubi couldn't be that hard to find. Who wouldn't notice a giant fox demon walking the streets? And just thinking of Naruto, the most conspicuous ninja…

He munched on an apple, doing his best to ignore his past. He had left it behind long ago after he decided to pursue his brother, and after his revenge was over… What did he have after his revenge? It had been his life's goal, and now… He shook these thoughts from his head and got up. Obviously, having time to sit alone and think to himself beget too much regret. Wait, why did he say regret? He sighed. He should really find the Kyuubi before he had more time to think. But where to look?

Sasuke felt a disturbance in the air. He leaned his head against a tree, trying to hear any vibrations that might give him a clue as to the whereabouts of the source. This chakra he felt could only be described as evil. He shivered, not so much because he was frightened as much as the stale feeling in the air. All of the animals had found quick shelter in their dens, not wanting to meet up with this strange creature with the evil aura. Soon enough, the leaves of the tree started to quiver in fear, and the ground trembled with the feeling of doom.

Sasuke shot up from the spot and ducked into the trees, waiting for what was sure to come. There was a cessation of all movement that seemed to last for hours, making him sweat. He started becoming impatient, but like a good ninja he waited for the enemy to be the first one to reveal itself. He activated his Sharingan, looking for any sign of advancement. But none came. Pretty soon, the chakra started to fade into the distance, and life returned to the forest.

Sasuke came out of his hiding spot and ran in pursuit of the strange force. He knew it had to be the Kitsune; there wasn't another chakra signature on earth quite like it. And after being out for days looking for the darned thing, there was no way he would let it get away from him. Pretty soon, he was once again hot on its trail. He sped up his pace, sure that he would catch him. Forget waiting in the shadows; he had seen this guy before, and he wasn't much of a threat. It had been inside of Naruto, Sasuke's first encounter with it being when the dobe had tried to take him back to the village. Naruto…. What would happen to him once the Akatsuke got their hands on the biju? He had seen the process before, where the demon is extracted and the host body is left for dead.

But he didn't care. After all, Naruto was gone, and only the Kyuubi was left. This thought didn't comfort Sasuke. He had told his friend that he only allowed him to survive on a whim, but he didn't really want him dead. Hell, he was finding himself hoping that the little twerp was still in there somewhere. 'Hello, Mr. Fox Demon. Do you mind me taking a lookie inside? I think my friend's in there.' He scoffed at himself for being so ridiculous.

He mused to himself a little longer before being shocked back into the matter at hand by a sudden burst of power coming from ahead of him. In fact, it seemed to be coming toward him, but he didn't stop, now more determined than ever to bring the beast under control.

Soon enough he saw it. It was a bright red and orange flash of fur that raged at him, concentrating all of its fury at Sasuke. Why it did this he didn't know, but he leapt out of the way right before it caught him with its terrible jaws.

"Foolish mortal! Are you really trying to catch a being such as me? I'll squash you like a bug you little snot!"

Sasuke landed on the head of the beast, tugging on its ears to aggravate it further.

"Yarr! UCHIHA! I don't care what kind of eyes you have! I'll put an end to this mockery!"

"Hn." The idiotic rage of the Kyuubi reminded him of someone he was close to. This revelation made up his mind for him. He just had to know.

Sasuke flew before the eyes of the primordial beast, mesmerizing it with the Sharingan. Kyuubi couldn't compare to the prowess of the Uchiha, and soon enough, he was subservient.

"Good boy," Sasuke patted the demon on the nose. "Now, let's see if you got anything inside."

The raven haired teen found himself walking in a damp corridor with a foul odor of rotting flesh. Without controlling his movements, he twisted and turned through dark hallways, unknowingly arriving at the desired spot. At least, he figured it was, for he was no longer being guided by that mysterious hand.

Sasuke peered around the room, soon finding himself fixated on a dark corner. He advanced towards the darkness, feeling his way to what felt like cold, iron bars. Once his eyes adjusted to the lack of light he began to perceive the shape of a frail figure staring absently at the floor.

"Naruto?" The boy didn't look up. Instead, he turned his head dejectedly to face the wall.

"NARUTO!" It aggravated the Uchiha that he still received no reply. He found a sharp stone on the floor and chucked it at the blonde.

"Ouch! What the hell did you do that for?" He stood up, rubbing the back of his head, and turned to face his attacker. "Sasuke?"

"Hn."

The boy looked hopeful for a second, but hope soon turned to anger."What brings you here at this happy hour?"

"I came to find you, so come on."

"What do you care if I'm in here? You said it yourself; you couldn't care less if I were dead or alive. I'm merely surviving on a whim."

"Well… Whatever, just come on."

"I see no reason to."

"Baka! So what, you just want to stay in here and rot?"

"It's what I deserve!"

"What?"

"Yeah, you must've heard what happened. It's all my fault, so just go away jerk-off."

"Now you're just being obdurate. Just tell me what happened."

"It's gone. It's all gone, and it's my fault, all my fault," Naruto's anger faded and he returned to his disconsolate manner, slumping to the floor in silent sobs. Sasuke reached out his hand to comfort him, but the room darkened, and Naruto was slipping away from him.

"No! Wait!" But it was too late. Naruto's depression caused the scene to fade away, and Sasuke was back out where he started. Kyuubi roared, and then fled deeper into the unknown, leaving Sasuke gasping for breath beside a tree. He had used too much of his chakra, and though he wanted to pursue the beast and find Naruto again, the best thing to do for now was to wait and rest.

A/N: Hope you enjoyed it! If you did, please click the spiffeh button below this message to pop a review! If you didn't, you're totally welcome to flame me. :P Constructive criticism would be helpful! :D