Prologue

Too late

Two young shinobi, both Genin, stood at opposite sides of The Final Valley, where Uchiha Madara and Hashimura Senju, AKA the First Hokage, fought a great and destructive battle. Now, a descendant of Madara faced one of the fourth Hokage, in a battle to the death.

On one side, a blond boy, with the power of the Kyuubi sealed within him, seeping through to give him power, held a swirling orb of rotating chakra in his hand, tainted by the power of the Kyuubi. A red aura surrounded him, giving him the outline of a One-Tailed Fox Demon. His slitted red eyes reflected that of the Kyuubi within him, its power seeping through the seal.

On the other side, a dark-haired boy, his skin a dark gray color, a black cross mark on the bridge of his nose, held a blade of electric chakra in his hand. Two large, webbed hand-shaped wings stuck out from his shoulder blades, another effect of his current state. His eyes bore the three-pupil Sharingan, showing he was indeed an Uchiha.

Suddenly, both ninja leaped forth, their jutsu extended to one another.

"CHIDORI!" yelled the Uchiha, his teeth bared, his black and red eyes enraged.

"RASENGAN!" called the blond boy, his lips pulled back to reveal large fangs.

Their attacks collided. Managing to conjure a second Chidori, the Uchiha tunneled it straight through the boy chest, obliterating bone, lungs and heart in one fell blow, impaling him totally on the arm. Blood gushed violently from the wound, dripping onto the orange tracksuit he wore. He gasped, with his last breath only scratching the surface of the Uchiha boy's head protector with his claws. More blood shot up to his throat, filling his mouth and dribbling over his lips, down his chin...

The gravity of the attack had scarred the earth further, leaving their imprint on the valley. The sheer force of their confrontation had greatly upset the water, even causing it to rush against the current. When they hit the ground, both opponents were returned to their normal states. The fox boy's aura had faded away, his dead, empty eyes now a deep blue. The Uchiha's hair had shortened dramatically, his skin color returning to a pale on and his eyes regaining their normal state as well. The large hands were gone.

Horrified at what he had done, the victor, Uchiha Sasuke, gazed down at the dead body of his best friend. A beam of light, bursting through the clouds, shone on the two, closing up slowly until it disappeared in a tiny thread on the forehead of the dead child, Uzumaki Naruto. Sasuke's scarred headband untied itself, falling from his forehead onto the ground with a resounding clink, one that seemed so loud in this sudden silence.

"...Naruto..." Sasuke said, his arms hung at his sides, too appalled for tears. "I... I'm..." He was dead... by his own hand, he had killed his best friend. He had taken a life to achieve the Mangekyou Sharingan. "I'm..." Before he could say much more, a drop of water fell at his feet, soon followed by another, and another, until rain poured down on him. He looked up, silently wishing for it to wash away his sin... until both his arms unexpectedly throbbed in horrible pain, causing him to fall to his knees, blood spurting out of his mouth. He had overused the Cursed Seal of Heaven...

The blood had landed right next to Naruto's head. By now, the rain had soaked him, washing away some of the blood, dampening his hair, held up by a Leaf Village head protector. Sasuke, with his head hung over that of his friend, simply stared into those lifeless, saddened eyes.

A man with silver hair, accompanied by his canine companion, jumped from tree limb to tree limb, searching for the scent. The male wore Jonin clothing, as well as a mask and slanted Leaf village head protector, which covered his left eye. The dog had brown fur, and wore a blue top with a Leaf village head protector around his head. Their names were Hatake Kakashi and Pakkun.

Suddenly, it began to rain. Kakashi realized that Pakkun would lose the scent of their target, Uchiha Sasuke. He had deserted the village to find Orochimaru, and Shikamaru had gone on with four other Genin to go after him: including Naruto. Who knew what disaster could happen if he didn't get there in time.

"Rain..." spoke Kakashi, before looking to Pakkun. "Will you lose his scent?"

"Doesn't matter, we're close enough," Pakkun replied, jumping into the gorge with Kakashi. Both landed on a small patch of land in the river. By this time, the rain was pouring. His silver hair was damp, and fell back. With his only opened eye, he saw a horrid sight. Both Pakkun and himself were appalled when they laid their eyes on the boy who lay on the ground.

"Oh, no... We're too late."

The blond Genin lay in a pool of his own blood, and his blue eyes, wide-open and blank, staring at the sky above. His blond hair was damp from the rain, and was held up by a Leaf village head protector. His orange tracksuit was stained with his own blood, drenched by the rainwater. There was a hole on the right shoulder part of his tracksuit. The blood came from a wound to the left of his chest, a gaping hole where his heart used to be, now nothing but a bloody pit. Because of this wound, blood seemed to have come out of his mouth, dribbling down his chin. And Sasuke was nowhere to be seen.

Pakkun walked over to his side, sniffing the headband that lay at Naruto's side. It was of the Leaf village as well, but the steel had been scratched, signifying that its owner had become a traitor. He sniffed the headband before looking up at Kakashi. "It's Sasuke's... how did it come to this...?"

Kakashi knelt at Naruto's side, looking into his student's eyes. He closed his eye, letting a single tear fall from it. He then closed Naruto's eyes, picking him up in his arms. He looked down at him, sighing. "Naruto... forgive me... I didn't get here in time."