Hello people- it's been a while hasn't it. I haven't stopped writing Naruto fics. in fact contrary to the wise, I've been busy branching out and attempting to rewrite and update some of my older stuff.

Anyways- I wanted to try another time travel fic with a Minato/fem naru pairing. (although to keep it from totally being an incest fic Minato's DNA was overwritten by the Kyubbi) It'll be a slow burn story, but hopefully I can pull it off.

I'm trying to get as much done as possible because my dad goes into have heart surgery this month after Thanksgiving. And once he has that done I won't be able to get on and work every hour of the day like i'm used too.

So here is the new fic, please let me know what you think because I'm feeling kind of adrift here. And want to be sure that the fic is okay as far as the story line goes and such.

Enjoy.

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How did this happen?

How did it come to this?

If someone had asked Naru Uzumaki those two questions back before the war had began- she might have asked, how did what happen? Or how did what come to this? But the sad truth of things now was that she was simply too far gone to care one way or the other.

For as long as she could remember, her world had been fractured.

The beginning of the cracks in her reality started with Sasuke's defection and attempted murder of her at the valley of ends. After that things began to gradually snow ball and the cracks grew wider and more noticeable.

The way she conducted herself around others changed. Friends, comrades, sensei's, civilians- they all became just words with no true feeling or depth behind them.

Perhaps that was why once the war started, she never questioned the blackouts, lapses in judgement, falling asleep in her tent and waking up covered in dried, rust colored blood.

But then why would she question any of it? She was the village idiot. The fool. Her job was to be the scapegoat and dumbass and make others look good.

Who cared if the demon had slowly, but surely lost any trace of her already withered and dying humanity and become a monster in every true sense of the word.

Everyday she would go out and do her job, fight, kill, save lives- how was she supposed to know that something was controlling her and forcing her to take the very lives that she saved?

She couldn't recall many of the events that had led her up to this point. She couldn't even recall what the world had been like before the war. Everything was simply gone. And perhaps it was for the best that she'd met this kind of end.

After all, hadn't she basically murdered everyone that had ever meant anything to her?

Coughing around the blood rushing up her throat from her chest, from where her heart had once been, she could vaguely see the gaunt faces of her former teammates, Sakura, Sai, and Kakashi. While off to the left she could sense the presence of several others.

Hinata, Neji, Lee, Shikamaru, Ino, Gaara...

She coughed again, this time her blood spattering Kakashi's masked face as she struggled to draw breath. The poor man, he looked absolutely horrified. She wanted to wipe that look off of his face, tell him that it was alright. He hadn't done anything wrong. But all that came out was a wet gurgling sound, indicating that her blood was filling her lungs.

She blinked her eyes and felt something wet slip down her cheeks and would have frowned if she hadn't been in such excruciating agony.

"Naru..." Kakashi said in a pained tone as he slowly and carefully pulled his hand out of her chest and then wrapped his arms around her and pulled her against his chest. "I-I'm so sorry I wasn't a better sensei to you. If I had been then maybe-" Maybe this never would have happened, hung unsaid between them.

She wanted to tell him it was okay, she didn't mind so much anymore. That she knew that she had been the one person on their team that had needed him the least. But she couldn't speak through all of the red, red, red, red, red that was coming out of her mouth and nose.

Choking her.

Suffocating her.

She felt some one taking her hand and let her eyes flicker away from Kakashi's face just long enough to see Gaara staring at her with sad aqua orbs as he held her hand. She was slowly beginning to lose consciousness now, her vision dimming a little more bit by bit as her lips quirked slightly.

This was really it wasn't it? She wondered as she felt the first actual stirrings of Kurama within the back of her mind. It was the first time he had awoken in a good long time and she had greatly missed his company even as he replied to her question.

This doesn't have to be it. The end... Tell me what you most wish for- within reason- and I will grant it to you.

I want to go back to the beginning... I want to change this outcome and save them.

She felt Kurama give her a fanged smile and then...she felt nothing at all anymore.