A Link to the Past
A Naruto Story adopted from Sparanda
Continued by: Aikuchi Shikaku
Summary: Naruto goes through the worst two weeks of his life. His birthright as a Namikaze is denied. Uchiha Sasuke is named Hokage, and he's captured by the Akatsuki. But the Kyuubi won't have any of it. He has a way out. Time Travel with a twist. Story adopted from Sparanda.
Disclaimer: Naruto is not mine, nor will it ever be. I'm just playing in Masashi Kishimoto's sandbox. No copyright infringement is being done here, and no money is being made from this story.
Author's Notes: I'd like to keep this short, so I want to thank Sparanda for placing his trust on me to continue this story in his stead. Oh yeah, the first two chapters of this story will be edited from Sparanda's original chapters, and I will continue where the story left off on chapter three. Seeing that this story was mentored by pudgypudge, I have a lot to live up to.
Oh, and if you don't know who pudgypudge is, then what are you reading in the Naruto fandom?
Chapter 1: Leaving the present to an unknown past.
Naruto's breath hitched in his throat as he looked out over his beloved village. Houses were lying in ruins; buildings were reduced to nothing but rubble. The Hokage monument, a silent reminder of the past and present leaders of Konohagakure no Sato, had been erased in an instant, and not even the beginning works of the Rokudaime's features remained on the stone wall.
At the age of nineteen, Uzumaki-Namikaze Naruto had seen more destruction and death than most people, hell even more than what most ninja saw in their entire life. This young man's life had been filled with such sorrow and pain, that he couldn't help it if he wanted to take his own life a few times during his short existence. But he knew that committing suicide would be selfish of him, as ending his pain would only cause the others around him, more suffering.
Naruto's thoughts refocused on the village once more and his anger returned tenfold. 'Those bastards,' Naruto thought, 'they destroyed everything.' His hands clenched into fists and he felt his elongated nails (which resembled claws) pierce his skin. He paid no mind, however, since the wounds sealed themselves shut sooner than he could truly register the pain.
Through his fury, Naruto thought back to what had led up to this day. He thought of his true anger, and everything that had happened in the past two weeks.
Flashback
"You fucking what?!" Naruto practically screamed at the Council members. Everyone looked taken aback, but one man stood up defiantly.
"I said," Danzo said indignantly, "that we have denied your request to be placed under the birthright of the Namikaze clan." Naruto grimaced and bared his fangs at simply hearing the words again.
"Why the hell would you do that?" he asked. "Namikaze Minato was my father, dammit! I look just-fucking-like him!" Naruto's rage was getting ahead of his words.
Danzo simply stared at the jinchuuriki before him. "Do you have any proof besides your own word?" he asked flatly.
Naruto growled at the man, but said nothing. 'Of course there's no proof,' Naruto screamed through his mind, 'you fucking burned all of the documents, you evil bastard!' "No, there is no proof," he finally said calmly.
Danzo smiled at his victory. "Then this matter is settled," he said gleefully. Tsunade sighed. There was nothing she could do for the boy; it was just like he said, there was no proof. "You may leave, demon," Danzo added absently.
There was a silence before the man was thrown against the wall. A single clawed hand pinned the man against the stone wall as red, hate-filled eyes glared up at him. "You," Naruto began in a deep voice, "Will. Never. Call. Me. That. Again." Danzo gulped, frightened by the demonic killing intent radiating from the boy. He was dropped unceremoniously on his ass when Naruto let go.
Everyone watched the boy leave, and Tsunade sighed again before looking at the disheveled man still sitting against the wall. "The next matter of business, councilmen?" she asked boredly.
Danzo nodded as he stood up and returned to his seat. "Hai, the next matter of business is the appointment of your successor, Tsunade-sama," he said evenly. The Sannin's ears perked up a bit and she stared at the man as if he had grown an extra head.
"Why does there need to be a discussion?" she asked blankly. "Naruto will be the Rokudaime Hokage; I have chosen him as my successor years ago." Danzo simply frowned.
"We have thought about that, Tsunade-sama," he replied. The Hokage's eyes narrowed as she stared at him. "Many of the councilmen here, including myself have come to a decision, which was that Uzumaki Naruto, would not be a fitting successor to the mantle of Hokage." His words were even, emotionless, but Tsunade could detect the blatant joy in the old man's eyes.
"I see," she replied shortly. "Barring Naruto's fit of rage a moment ago, of which he has every right to, what else could possibly make him an unfit Hokage?" Tsunade stared at the councilman. "Clearly, he is one of the strongest shinobi in the village, if not the strongest. He is loyal to the village in its entirety. Tell me, councilman, what could prevent you from allowing Naruto the one thing he has ever desired?"
"Aside from the demon," Danzo replied loudly, "He is clearly not the strongest shinobi available to this village." He noticed the confused look of Tsunade's face and explained, "Multiple times, he has failed to defeat a certain shinobi of this village. A one Uchiha Sasuke."
Tsunade's anger burst forth at hearing the name and shouted at the top of her lungs, "YOU WOULD RATHER HAVE A FILTHY TRAITOR FOR HOKAGE INSTEAD OF ONE OF MY THE MOST LOYAL PEOPLE ON THIS EARTH?!" Tsunade was on the verge of tears, that she barely noticed the door to the chamber swiftly opening once again. She did notice however, as the room filled with deadly killing intent once more.
"What..." Tsunade turned around to find a boy who should not have heard what Danzo had just said.
"The Fuck..." Danzo paled as he watched the boy stalk forward slowly until he was standing on a platform where all could see him.
"Were you thinking?!" he screamed finally, as visible red chakra escaped from his body in waves, as a flood of overwhelming killing intent, filled the council's meeting room.
"WHY IN THE NINE LEVELS OF HELL WOULD YOU CHOOSE THAT ASSWIPE OVER ME?! OVER ANYONE IN THIS VILLAGE FOR THAT MATTER!? THERE ARE PEOPLE LIVING INSIDE KONOHA THAT DESERVE TO BE HOKAGE MORE THAN THAT TRAITOR!"
Several of the council's older members keeled over at that moment from heart attacks at the killing intent Naruto was giving off. The majority of the still standing members of the council hastily changed their vote to Naruto; all except for Danzo.
Even in his fear, the man remained resolute. "This is precisely why you are an unfit Hokage, DEMON!" he said loudly.
Danzo however, faltered in his next sentence, as he felt a fraction of the terror and fear that gripped the Yondaime as he was facing the Kyuubi, before he sealed it into the young man that stood nose to nose at him.
Naruto grinned in his foxed-out form, and it was a grin no one wanted to witness out in the battlefield.
"Very well, I accept the fact that I can never be chosen to be the Hokage…for now; and that I can't do anything about the Uchiha traitor's ascension as Hokage. But know this, Danzo, you have just given your last order. Not even your precious ROOT operatives can save you now. You have just broken the third's law, twice, in front of many witnesses. And the penalty results in death."
The only thing anyone in that room could see then was red. Hot, melting, oppressive red. Wet, sticky, warm red. Naruto appeared across the room, standing next to Danzo... or what was left of Danzo. The man's body was been cut off in several places, namely his arms, legs, and head. The Root Commander was reduced to mere puzzle pieces in the wake of Naruto's attack.
End Flashback
Naruto clenched his fists again and calmed his mind. After that display of cruelty, the Council had voted for Sasuke, even at the risk of death. It seemed that Naruto's temper had gotten the best of him once again. And it had cost him the one thing he had ever wanted.
The mantle of Hokage had truly been his dream. It was his long-term goal in life, a purpose, an ambition to be the best there is, to be recognized as the most powerful shinobi in fire country.
Looking out across the village again, Naruto felt a pang in his heart as he felt the familiar chakra signatures of his friends fade out over the span of a few hours, one signature at a time. They were all dead. He knew it; he had known for hours, but it still hurt every time he checked one signature, move on, and then disappear, as if they weren't there. And then there were signatures that he recognized, but they weren't the signatures of allies... even if one of them was the current Hokage.
Flashback
"So that's it, then?" Naruto asked. "That's all there is to it, Sasuke's really going to be the Hokage, and I get jack-shit?!" Naruto looked around at his friends. Uchiha Sasuke was due to return to the village that day as he had sent a messenger ahead of himself,f before he was due to arrive.
The entire Konoha Council (or what was left of them) had gathered behind the village gates to welcome their precious Uchiha back into the village. No one else had opted to join the welcoming party for the traitor, except for the die-hard supporters of the Uchiha clan, and its allies. As well as some of the Uchiha's more rabid fangirls, who wanted more than anything to father his children.
Naruto and his friends had all gathered in the Hokage's office. They were discussing the traitor's return. Naruto's former crush turned sister figure, Haruno Sakura, had proclaimed that even though she still felt something for the Uchiha, it still does not erase the fact that he defected from the village, forsook all his ties with his comrades and turned traitor for an ambition that he has still not achieved. She had also wished that he had stayed away from the village for their peace of mind.
Everyone agreed with her except for one person.
"So you'd rather he run around attacking other villages?" Naruto asked angrily. "I'd rather he just died." Sakura stared at him for a moment, and nodded, albeit hesitantly.
"You're right, Naruto," she agreed. "No one should ever be forced to suffer the misfortune of being near Uchiha Sasuke." Several of the young shinobi in attendance snickered, but regained their composure quickly; this was a serious meeting after all.
"So what should we do about him becoming the Hokage?" Shikamaru asked after a moment. All eyes turned in unison, to Naruto.
"There's nothing we can do about the coronation." Tsunade said quickly. "If any of us attack him, we'll be seen as traitors, and charged with treason by the Council."
"Then we fucking kill the Council, too!" Naruto yelled. Tsunade glared at him.
"Language, young man," she said sternly. "There are young women here." Several of the said kunoichi blushed at this, but ignored the comment. "Even so, we can't just kill the council Naruto. It's the equivalent of political suicide and rebellion."
"Why fucking not?" he asked. "And who cares about language?!" he added as Tsunade opened her mouth to reply.
"I suppose it doesn't matter," she mumbled. "But still, if we just up and kill the Council, we would lose the entire governing body of Konoha. Sarutobi-sensei, kami bless his soul, shouldn't have ceded so much control over to them when he reclaimed the seat of Hokage after Naruto's father died. In all honesty, the Council has more legal power than I do. Without them, the whole village would be thrown into chaos."
Naruto frowned. "Fine, whatever," he growled. "I'm outta here." The boy got up and left in a hurry, not wanting to be bothered any more. No one sought to follow him, but Sakura and Hinata both felt tugs on their hearts, as they watched him leave the tower.
Tsunade sighed. "I wish it were different, but my hands are tied." she said to the group. "Sasuke's inauguration is in two days." The room was thrown into an uproar. Sakura's voice was the loudest.
"Shishou!" she cried. "You're just going to step down and let him ascend to Hokage this quickly?"
"Again, I wish it were different," she replied calmly. Everyone quieted down. "But the Council has forced me to step down." The gathered shinobi gasped. "They have threatened a full military coup if I stayed in my position any longer. I wish it hadn't come to this," she said sadly.
Sakura walked around the desk and hugged her master. After a moment, the rest of the group crossed around the desk and joined them. Tsunade cried tears of anguish for the boy she thought of as a son. She also cried for the village and the turmoil that would follow Sasuke's inauguration.
The day of Sasuke's inauguration as Hokage arrived quickly, quicker than most would have wished. Naruto made a decision to not attend the ceremonies, requesting a patrol mission on the outskirts of the village so he would be as far away from the ceremony as possible. Many of his friends had elected for the same assignment.
And so it was a patrol group, which consisted of Naruto, Sakura, and Shikamaru that were doing a routince sweep of the area surrounding the walls Konohagakure that day, when they noticed several figures approaching the village. Their eyes all widened when they recognized 7 figures clad in black robes embroidered with red clouds, walking calmly toward the village.
"Alert Baa-chan!" Naruto screamed at Shikamaru, who was already jumping away from the wall. He turned back to the approaching figures and growled. 'They're coming for me,' Naruto thought. 'I'm the only one left... the last jinchuuriki.'
He turned to Sakura. "Sakura-neechan, get out of here!" he ordered her.
"And what about saving yourself Naruto? I'm not going to leave you, and take you take all of them on without even thinking about your safety!" she cried. Naruto glared at her.
"I'm leaving here, too," he replied. "Abandon the gate; it would get in our way, anyway." Sakura nodded. "Run to the ceremony and tell everyone there about the people approaching the village." The girl nodded again and left in a flash.
Naruto turned back to face the approaching figures. One pointed up at the top of the wall and grinned hungrily. Naruto's anger increased when he saw the sun reflect off of the razor-sharp white teeth of Hoshigake Kisame. He jumped back from the gate and raced towards the Hokage tower.
'Great, what a fucking perfect day for them to arrive!'
End Flashback
Naruto's thoughts ended just in time to feel Sasuke's chakra signature snuffed out. He sighed. He had felt Itachi's signature in that area as well. He then looked out across the village as he searched for any familiar chakra signature.
Meanwhile, from his position, he deduced that only four people from the Akatsuki remained. Deidara had sacrificed himself to destroy a great portion of the village in a humungous explosion. The entire sector was now nothing but charred remains and rubble of a previously thriving community.
Zetsu had been disposed of by some of Naruto's friends. Lee, Shikamaru, TenTen, Neji, and Hinata had faced off against the plant-man. With a clever combination of the Hyuuga cousin's Byakugan and Shikamaru's genius-level tactics, they were able to defeat the nukenin. The win had come at a terrible price, however. TenTen had been fatally wounded by the s-rank criminal,, and died almost immediately. Lee had also been brutally maimed. His left arm had been literally ripped off at the shoulder. He was currently in the hospital being treated by Sakura.
Konan had been a lucky break. She happened to come across Jiraiya. No one had heard from her since.
Naruto's ponderings about his sensei were interrupted just in time to avoid a surprise attack from Pein. The man's multiple bodies proved a great nuisance to fight against. Naruto quickly noticed that he was surrounded by all six Peins. 'Well shit...' "Good to see you, Pein," Naruto said is a chipper voice. "What brings you here?"
"Uzumaki Naruto-san," one of the Pein's bodies said flatly. "We've come for you. You must know that you are the only jinchuuriki left. And now that all of your friends have been disposed of, there are no nuisances to get in our way."
Naruto glared at the man. His world went black before he could act, however. A sharp pain in the back of his head told him he had been knocked out, but his mind could not register a counter movement.
"Good work, Itachi," Pein said in that same flat voice.
"Hai, Pein-sama," The last Uchiha replied.
"How was your brother?" Kisame asked his partner, and now one of the two last living Uchiha in the world, as he appeared on the building where they had been standing.
"He failed to live up to my expectations," Itachi replied sadly. "Instead of acquiring his own power, he left for Orochimaru. That man's lunacy must have corrupted Sasuke's mind after all that time."
Kisame laughed. "Well, we'd better get this wimp back to the cave and extract the Kyuubi," he said.
"Hai," Pein agreed. "We have lost three of our number here today. The extraction process will take some time. We need to hurry before the boy awakens."
Itachi nodded and shouldered the unconscious boy. They all left without a sound. Neither caring about the chaos and destruction they have sown on this day in Naruto's home village.
"Where are we, Kyu?" Naruto asked blankly.
The great beast sighed from behind the bars of his cage. "In your mindscape, Kit," the Kyuubi replied. "The only thing I can figure out is that your body knows that it's going to die soon and has simply given up... even though your mind hasn't."
Naruto nodded. "I'm sorry for everything that had happened, Kyuubi" he said as he looked around. Normally his mindscape was not a pleasant place to be, even after befriending the great Kyuubi. The place was dreary now, however. Naruto could smell the death in the place. Kyuubi was right; his body was shutting down.
"Maybe this is for the best." he suggested. "This way, those bastards can't get to you."
The Kyuubi growled in response. "So you're going to give up, after fighting all this time?" it asked angrily. "Where is the Naruto that always perseveres in the direst of circumstances? What happened to the Naruto who never backs down in an impossible fight? Where is that Naruto who always gets back up when others would have given up and ran away with their tails behind their legs?"
Naruto stared up at the beast, speechless. His features became determined and a steely gaze came to his eyes. "You're right, Kyu," he agreed. "What can we do?"
The beast sighed heavily, the gust of air, pushing Naruto back a few inches where he sat. "Sadly, since your body is shutting down," the Kyuubi began, "there is only one thing we can do…only one thing I can do."
Naruto looked confused. "What do you mean?" he asked.
The Kyuubi peered down at Naruto with a mischievous grin. "Tell me, Kit," he said happily, "have you ever wanted to travel back in time?"
Naruto had the presence of mind not to laugh at the question. "What are you getting at, Kyu?" he asked incredulously. The great beast just laughed, his nine tails swaying happily behind him.
"What I'm getting at," the bijuu began, "is that the only thing that can save us right now is a shit load of chakra and the ability to travel back in time."
"Well, then we're screwed," Naruto said plainly. "We have the chakra, but how the fuck can we travel back in time?"
The Kyuubi laughed again. "It's actually fairly easy for us bijuu. The distance you want to travel is relevant to the amount of chakra used. What I'm planning would require almost all of my chakra and almost all of yours as well."
Naruto raised an eyebrow at his prisoner-turned companion. "Time travel... yeah," Naruto said sarcastically. "Are you sure you didn't get messed up in the head when Itachi knocked me out?"
"I'm dead serious, boy. If it weren't for being trapped in this cell, I would've used this jutsu to go back in time and stop myself from listening to that asshole Madara." The monster growled, but Naruto looked confused again.
"Wait a minute, who is, or what is a Madara?" he asked. "No, wait, never mind. Tell me later. How are we going to do this time travel thing?"
"Well, like I said, it's fairly simple," the Kyuubi explained. "Just gather almost all of your chakra and think of the time you want to travel back to. It only uses one hand sign, but you won't recognize it." The beast made a foreign hand sign with his claws to show Naruto. "This is it. Then you just focus on that period of time and you'll be transported there."
"So I assume this is some-"
Naruto's body jerked awake at that moment as he was unceremoniously thrown to the floor of an unseemly cave. He kept his body still, feigning unconsciousness. Even though he kept his eyes closed, Naruto knew what the cave looked like. There should be a statue at the back wall with a set of 9 eyes, all but one open, and two hands held open in front of the face. He knew what this place was.
"We must hurry before the child wakes," Pein called to the group.
A chorus of "Hai, Pein-sama!" rang through the cave.
"It's now or never, boy!" the Kyuubi called to Naruto. "Do it now!"
Naruto gritted his teeth. He heard the shuffling of robes and the sound of several feet landing on rocks after a jump. They had jumped onto the hands... perfect.
Naruto jumped to his feet quickly, ignoring the gasps and screams of "Stop him!" He formed his hands into the strange hand seal and he was gone in an instant. Pein cursed as the others simply stared at the place the boy had been. The rock was charred and burnt as if it had been scorched by an intense fire.
"The boy is gone," Pein said angrily. "I recognize that jutsu. Our cause is lost. Uzumaki Naruto is no longer alive."
A/N: Well, I just finished editing the first chapter for this. Once again, I'd like to thank Sparanda for letting me adopt this story. Expect a lot of changes on the second chapter. Please leave a review if you can, so that I can know what works and what doesn't work in this kind of story.
Until then, this is Aikuchi Shikaku melting back into the shadows.