A/N: This story was inspired by and written to the awesome work of DC Talk titled "In the Light". If you haven't heard it before, I suggest you go and do so.

Disclaimer: Naruto belongs to Masashi Kishimoto, "In the Light" belongs to DC Talk, and salvation belongs to anyone who wants it.

Gaara of the desert and Naruto Uzumaki of the village hidden in the leaves. Two young boys of similar age, two boys who share a terrible fate, to carry a 'demon' within their bodies, as containers. And, surprising as it may seem, two boys who both eat a food called Ramen whenever they get together.

Gaara looked up from his quiet contemplation of the empty bowl before him to look at his companion. The blonde haired boy who had saved him from himself, and changed a blood thirsty monster into the most caring shinobi the sand village had seen in several generations. One question had been burning in Gaara's mind for several days now.

"Naruto, you once told me that I was what you would have become, without the assistance of someone special to you. Could I hear the story of how you were spared such a fate?" The surprising question caught Naruto off guard, and it took him several moments to formulate his response.

"Huh? What do you want to know something like that for all of a sudden?" Receiving no response apart from a shrug, the energetic blonde settled down to sorting out how to phrase the tale.

After recounting the events of a certain important evening, Naruto leaned back and waited for his friend's response.

"Hmm. So it was this Iruka who saved you from your demon. With his kindness"

"Uh, you know I think it was actually the old man." Naruto unconsciously placed his hands behind his head while Gaara raised his eyebrow, perplexed.

"Explain."

"Well, sure it was Iruka sensei who helped me through finding out about the fox, and that means that he's probably most responsible for my conscious decision to not be the monster Mizuki accused me of being. But old man Hokage was the first one to show me kindness of any kind. Even now, my earliest pleasant memories are of him. So I'd say that he gave me an example to follow, and established the base that I needed to make use of what Iruka sensei taught me. Without the old man, I would have been just like you, with no idea about love or kindness, and would probably have fallen prey to the fox's anger and hatred." Naruto grimaced as he realised what he had just said. "Gaara, I'm sorry. I didn't mean...."

"It is alright Naruto. So, it was the old Hokage."
"Yeah, guess so. Why did you want to know, anyway?" The slight upturning of Gaara's mouth was as brilliant as Naruto's biggest smile.

"Because. You showed me a path out of the darkness and into the light. I wanted to know who showed you that path, so I might thank them, for saving both of us."

"Oh. I see." Naruto didn't really, but it wasn't important. And the strange conversation was quickly left behind and forgotten after Gaara's visit to the monument to the dead later that day.

A/n: Hope you enjoyed. I've always been a fan of the Third Hokage, he rocks! Stay safe all.