AN: yo, if you are reading this, welcome!

this is a Naruto want of/in spite of a nail fanfic, set at the beginning of the Sasuke Retrieval arc hopefully I can do it justice with how I change the events, bringing you my vision the best way possible.

this fic is a challenge set by Ander Arias, known for his works with Project Dark Jade & his own Naruto fic, Son of The Sannin, please check them out, the latter was a big influence for me making this, along with other stories and the canon itself

I do not own Naruto...if I did, it would be way more darker.

(revised 7/4/18)

1:45 am, inside a quiet apartment within the heart of Konohagakure

There stood the lone Uchiha, drowning in deep thought, as he stared upon the one portrait he had: his first genin photo with his team. The scowl he exchanged with the Dobe, Naruto, Kakashi semi-restraining the both of them, giving his veiled grin and Sakura, being in the middle, smiling brightly just because she was with her crush and to spite the boy she initially hated in the academy. This photo, for all intents and purposes had become a chain of morality and the only thing that could've soften his hardened heart.

They were no longer just teammates, they were family to him.

Despite his prideful visage and the fact that he was indeed a genius, even Sasuke himself couldn't deny he felt a sense of belonging once more with Team 7. Or rather, perhaps, a feeling that he was returning to the Sasuke before everything tumbled down in his life. At one point, he could've seen himself no longer shackled by the single minded desire to justifiably avenge his clan; in fact, the goal would be the same, but fueled with the determination that a monster like his brother would never harm another.

But ever since his older brother's return that day, everything positive slowly dissipated from his spirit, and replaced with the same goal he would kill himself to accomplish. He tried it Itachi's way and try to take the life of best friend. Had it been any time before, it may have happened; however, in their trials, their battles and their comradery, he couldn't find it in himself to carry through with it.

No, that wasn't it, in fact. He had to give Naruto more credit than just his own mercy against him; Where Sasuke himself has shown the natural ability and aptitude to do excel in every aspect of being an exceptional shinobi, Naruto had easily became his equal, if not surpassing him at many stages.

From his quick thinking and ideas in Wave, saving him and Sakura in both the Chunin exams and against Gaara to the Land of Tea, where he defeated a Tokubetsu Jonin level ninja, saving his like again. All of this couldn't compare to the battle that they had, where it was clear that the gap of their ability against one another was closing and there was nothing he could do at that moment to change it. He had to hand it to him, the Dobe was stronger than before.

But for Sasuke this reignited the inferiority complex and his desire for revenge against his older brother. In fact, just looking at the portrait, replaying every mission they took and where he stood now amongst them bought about the avenger he proclaimed himself to be once more. If he was to move forward, he must erase the one who instilled this hostility within him; for his clan, for his sanity and though he will never say aloud, for his new family, by any means to do so.

Touching the side of his neck, he soothed what felt like a wound where he received the "gift" of power from Orochimaru, his second option; in order for the Ten no Juin to thrive and for him to use it to his advantage, Sasuke MUST seek after him.

Setting the portrait face down, symbolizing the decision made, he left out of the lonely apartment through his bedroom window. No turning back, he will defect for Otogakure; the Sound Four were awaiting his answer and they would accomplish their mission, by force if necessary.

For it to be a summer night, the air was surprisingly cooler; with a calming breeze, the sounds of crickets and nocturnal wildlife were heard faintly as the moonlight illuminated the hidden village. Upon looking within his surroundings, a small glimmer of doubt flared within his mind.

Is it worth it? What will they say? What if I don't succeed?

This place, for all of the negative he personally endured within his surroundings, was still home. With each step he took, two sets of memories invaded his mind; The good memories of Team 7, along with the etched nightmare of the Uchiha massacre.

The further he walked, the more the good times with his former team eroded. Instead, he was graced with the jarring triggers of his childhood and a seething bloodlust to make it stop. He really must leave. It was now or never to right the wrongs done against him, his family and his clan.

Passing a familiar bench, he sighed, the small memories of his team once more coming back; more specifically, a certain pinkette that vied for his affection despite the cold shoulder he gave. In another time or another world, it is certain he would've reciprocated these advances towards her. Fate would have it, this night, that there may be a chance

Stopping, the Uchiha boy sighed, his eyes glancing at the bench

"Your stealth is still sub-par, Sakura" He chided with a somewhat remorseful tone mixed with the cool persona he kept, his back still turned. "Had I been someone else, you'd be dead"

Slowly stepping out of the shadows of the bench, Haruno Sakura appeared, her face showing both fear and anger towards the boy she sought.

Anger in the fact she witnessed firsthand the ire Sasuke manifested against herself and Naruto in the hospital days before. The way he disregarded them both was unacceptable as a team member and friend. Fear because she knew something had changed within him, fear because she didn't know what to do with this newfound situation, fear because she knew he was gone forever if she failed.

Taking a deep breath, she took a page from Naruto's book, donning a visage of determination.

"Sasuke-kun, this path…it's nostalgic isn't it?" She replied softly, looking towards the Uchiha symbol upon his backpack, already putting two and two together on why her object of affection is leaving "this is the pathway all four of us took leaving out of the village….the missions we took...everything…remember, Sasuke-kun?"

"It's the middle of the night, Sakura, go home." He replied coldly with a dismissive sigh, beginning to walk again "forget that you saw me…"

Her body tensed a bit, at how he could have such a hold onto her emotions with such words. She hated it as much as she was infatuated with him. She must try to convince him still, it was the only way.

"You hate me, still, don't you?" this made the Uchiha slow down a bit, listening to the words she chose "you remember, the first conversation we had alone? When we were made a team? Is this why you never opened up to me?" she asked tersely, chewing on her bottom lip as the tension slowly rose with each moment

"I don't recall." He lied looking down, trying his best to save face while a new emotion manifested within their exchange: guilt. "However, if that is what you remember, I apologize. I owe you that much…now please, go…"

"Kakashi-sensei….he told me everything…" Sakura replied, her tone quivering from his words and how he continuously pushed her away, tears slowly forming from her eyes. "What your intent was in facing Naruto and why you went so far…"

Lifting his head, this made Sasuke turn around, now looking at her with his eyes locked onto her. The eye contact made her slightly flinch under his gaze. She silently recognized that though the demeanor was the same, his eyes showed something different: she was laying witness to his acknowledgement of her. "Sakura….please…."

'Sasuke-kun' She mentally whimpered, as the tears began to stream slowly in both remorse that more than likely there was nothing she could do to convince him to stay and elation that she now acknowledged her existence

"Why won't you let us help you?!" she finally said, her voice barely breaking, trying her best to maintain the façade of determination, but the weight of his gaze was slowly breaking her "you shouldn't be doing this alone. We're supposed to be a team aren't we? You don't have to-"

"It's not about you, Naruto or Kakashi! It's just something I must do. You don't understand how close I thought I was until he came back" Sasuke interrupted, his two tomoe Sharingan now flashing with emphasis on 'he'; boring a proverbial hole in Sakura's heart as she saw his feelings of helplessness, her face turned in worry. "Knowing this and how useless I was when he almost took Naruto, I realize that this place cannot help me like I thought it could..."

At the pressure of seeing the Sharingan and his words, her determination crumbled as she stood there, feeling like the same useless girl who was unworthy to be a kunoichi. Seeing this, Sasuke gave a low sigh, wishing he didn't have to go this far to protect her. "Sakura, I won't repeat myself any longer: this is not your fight, just go home…"

"There's nothing I can do to convince you to stay with me…" She said, making her declaration a bit more personal than before, now wiping her tears away as her face turned to a soft glare of worry "you don't have to do this alone, Sasuke-kun…take me with you! I promise, I won't get in the way…I promise I won't stop you…but you can't do this alone! Sasuke-kun...please…"

Internally, he knew she had a point, recalling his failed attempt against Itachi the first time; if he did this alone and unprepared as before, he more than likely will die. Even with Orochimaru's apprenticeship and mentoring, he knew his worth was his eyes.

Who's to say that damned serpent won't turn on him and halt his goal?

These thoughts came to his mind as he sauntered towards her, his Sharingan no longer active; the tension, whether they knew it or not was sliced in two with each step he took.

"You know, you are still annoying…" He said with a reassuring tone and slight smirk on his visage, slightly unnerving the girl with his words; she did, however, picked up on the change of tone. It was the first thing he said to her. But this wasn't a tone of ire or annoyance; it was instead a tone of concession to her as a person, him caring for her; something she has always wanted.

"But you may be right in me needing someone. You are aware of the gravity of the situation, however?" He asked, his tone a bit concerned and determined, while giving her a dark look "Sakura, Otogakure is nothing like we've encountered before; and we've already faced Orochimaru…I can only imagine what he has for me as his apprentice and not as an enemy. If you have second thoughts…the opportunity to forget we ever had this conversation is here."

Joy, elation, determination, regret. These emotions swirled within the pinkette when she heard what he said. It was a responsibility he was donning onto her. This was it, the time to show where she had improved and the chance to show she will not hinder his path.

"Sasuke-kun, I won't leave you alone to face this….you have to believe in me, that I will never let you down…" she said, now looking at him with the same determination she had before, taking the mission at hand seriously.

Nodding, the lone Uchiha gave a soft smile as he turned around beginning to walk again. "Don't fall behind then…."

She returned the smile as she gave a glance behind, looking towards the heart of the village, the Hokage monument. A feeling of remorse overwhelmed her as she shed a few more tears. She was smart enough to carry few equipment, ration and storage scrolls on her just in case in a small pouch on her waist, indicating that worse come to worse, she'd be ready to either go with him or track him down on her own. Her mind made up, she turned to follow the one person who, in her eyes, needed her the most.

'Mom…Dad….Kakashi-sensei…Naruto….i'm so sorry….'

Konohagakure, 7:45 am

Beating the 1st alarm from ringing, Uzumaki Naruto laid in his bed, staring at the ceiling as the sounds of the morning birds and insects were softly heard from outside. His mind was still processing why he was even up so early, by his standards; he was having a great dream about becoming the Rokudaime and being fed a huge bowl of Miso ramen by his object of affection, Sakura-chan. To be awakened out of such a paradise seemed as it Kami somewhere was torturing him for something he did not deserve.

"It was so real!" He whined out, softly beating up the pillow he laid on "aggggh why it had to be a dreaaaaam~~~~?"

If it wasn't a mission or training, it was highly unusual for the boy to be awake so early. Being it was his off day, he had no plans outside of a quick breakfast, returning back home to sleep. After another nap, he would then proceed to his own personal mission: trying his best to woo Sakura-chan to him instead of the Teme, Sasuke. For some reason, however, the atmosphere of the day seemed incredibly off; it seemed almost ominous and…empty.

No matter, he'd make the best of it the only way he could….Ramen!

Stirring about in bed, he yawned, now scratching his messy blond hair and wiping the cold from his eyes. He stumbled onto the floor with a light thud; giving a sigh to the rumble of his stomach, grumbling something about a big bowl of breakfast ramen, he dragged his way onto his washroom.

After a quick shower and dressing into his signature orange jumper and forehead protector, he headed out of his apartment his eyes squinting as rays of light beamed upon his azure eyes. At a brisk pace he began to walk to his favorite place to eat: Ichiraku's!

Ichiraku Teuchi could always count on a steady morning rush, as he was serving a few customers behind his stand. From citizen to shinobi, there was always those who were beginning their day with a hearty bowl of shoyu with tamagoyaki and juice or miso with rice balls and tea to tide them over for the day. Starting his broth and made from scratch noodles at 5am sharp, he and his daughter Ayame would open an hour later, in order to serve the regulars and newcomers with a smile. No regular could compare, however, to the hyperactive blond boy that would walk in and easily brighten their spirits. He was the son the old man wished he had.

"Oi, old man!" think of the devil and he shall appear, was the only thing Teuchi thought as his favorite customer walked in with a slight yawn, sitting at his favorite spot the end of the table counter.

With a big grin and hungry eyes, he looked over the breakfast menu, thinking about his choices. Teuchi will forever remember that first day he walked in; evening after a light drizzle, his eyes were the same, hungry but with a glint of anger and loneliness on his face, his body malnourished and clothing tattered from being pushed in the mud.

There was no way he could live another day, it was a damn miracle he even made it to sit down and even enjoy the dish. Still after that first bowl, he found a keeper.

If this kid ever became Hokage, he'd have one hell of a story to draw in customers, was all he could think about.

"Naruto! Good to see you! What will it be this morning?" Teuchi said, his voice chipper as ever looking over towards the boy with a pad in hand, huge grin on his face.

"Hmmm…." Naruto responded, he was deep in thought with what he wanted. Even as a regular, it was kind of hard to formulate the right combination of flavor and taste. It was almost a ritual and could take minutes if he wasn't. These thoughts were interrupted by a loud rumbling, however, his belly was going to decide then there "Eheheheh….I'm getting there!" he said sheepishly, partly embarrassed at how hungry he was.

"Mind if I help?" a new voice said behind the boy that damn near put him alert if he didn't know any better. The person sat beside him, which earned a large grin from both Teuchi and Naruto: Naruto because it was nostalgia to him and Teuchi because it was another regular.

"Oi, Iruka-sensei, don't sneak up on me like that!" Naruto said, his grin not leaving his face once. It had been a while since he seen the scarred man. Actually, Naruto could pinpoint when the last time they saw one another: right before the fallout of the Chunin Exams! With nostalgia aside, he raised a brow. "Wait, aren't you supposed to be at the academy? What are you doing here?"

Chuckling, he patted the boy's shoulder, shrugging. "You forget that sometimes we instructors can have off days from time to time." He then picked up a menu, already deciding on which bowl he would like rather quickly, compared to the unusual indecisiveness of Naruto.

"Well yeah, I knew that…it's just, oi, we don't see each other much anymore! I got to change that, y'know?" Naruto replied frantically with a chuckle, any bit of lethargy in his body gone. "All the missions I done with Kakashi-sensei, Sakura-chan and Sasuke…I want you to know too how I did…I'm still gonna be Hokage! And um…and um"

"Trust me, it's just a coincidence you and I met up here; not that it's a bad thing, I always enjoy a meal with one of my favorite students." Iruka interrupted, calming him down. With his words, it made the large grin of the boy's soften into a sincere smile. Even though he was well aware of Iruka's acknowledgement, he still sometimes get teary eyed at the fact. "But while we're here, how about catching up? I'll even pay for your bowls, my treat."

With a loud grumble by his stomach again, he didn't have to say much else, nodding with the suggestion. They both agreed on the first round to be miso with pork and egg, rice balls on the side and warm tea. Teuchi gave a nod as he took down their orders walking back to prepare their orders.

They then began to converse on what was new in life; Naruto told him about his mission with to find Tsunade, the encounter he had with Akatsuki and his mission in the land of tea. With each new piece of information, a wide array of emotion painted his face; from joy, fear anger and concern, he listened on intently to each word.

As more customers filled in for the start of the new rush, a new face, Ayame, took over orders while the old man began to fix the orders and hand out the sides and beverages

"Naruto! Iruka! So good to see you two again" she said with a bright smile and a tone of familiarity, serving them their rice balls and tea then leaned over sweetly to join in a bit of the conversation as best as she could. "So this must be a big catching up. I haven't seen you two together in a while"

Iruka chuckled softly, rubbing the scar on the bridge of his nose with his index as he reached for a rice ball and tea, beginning to softly dig in "Indeed it is…Naruto was just about to tell me about what happened a couple days ago at the hospital"

"Oi, Ayame-chan, hey…" once he regained his thoughts, Naruto's composure faltered a bit with a small frown as he also reached for his own rice ball and tea, taking a bite and sip. Even with all the good stories he exchanged, at the mention of the next one fresh in his mind, he felt at fault for it.

"Naruto?" Iruka asked, both him and Ayame taking notice in his shift of demeanor "is everything okay? Do you want to talk about it still?"

"Yea, Iruka-sensei….it's just…." He sighed, shaking his head as he began to take small bites. "I got into a fight with Sasuke, kinda like the ones we had in Academy, but this time it was different…it was almost as if we were going to really kill each other"

At this point, his hand that held his tea softly trembled at each word. In his mind, he was replaying each blow, each kick each attack that landed and each look, word & emotion exchanged.

"Iruka-sensei, for some reason, it felt like he was urging me to do it."

Both Ayame and Iruka flinched at the words, albeit for different reasons. For Ayame, it's the constant reminder that she was still a civilian and this was still a 13 year old; for Iruka, it was the possibility that the Kyuubi was influencing the blond to do such an act.

"I better go check on the other orders" Ayame suddenly said, leaving Iruka to ponder on what was said just now, snapping him out of his thoughts.

Noticing Naruto was still trembling, Iruka placed his hand on the boy's shoulder breaking him out of his trance "Naruto, it's okay….you're not that what influences you. And it's not your fault…I'm sure Sasuke knows that." He consoled, taking notice at the stares and murmur with visible disappointment. This boy was the container of the demon who plagued Konoha long ago, after all

"You are teammates, remember that; What happened there, just move forward…show that this is the water under the bridge. This is all things you must do towards your dream, right?"

Looking up at the man he considered his brother, now giving the same face and determined look he always had. "Right, y'know!"

As soon as the conversation was over, their orders were set down in front of by Teuchi himself. "Enjoy, boys, first bowls on the house…"

Looking at one another, both Iruka and Naruto gave hearty grins to each other, opening up their chopsticks

"Thank you for the food!" they said loudly.

For the rest of their time together Iruka and Naruto ate, exchanged anecdotes amongst themselves and the working Ichiraku's, laughed and just enjoyed one another's company. As the day shifted from early to mid-morning and 6 bowls (2 for Iruka, 4 for Naruto), 3 plates of rice balls and 8 refills of tea later, they were ready to leave. Saying their goodbyes to the Ichiraku's, they walked out of the restaurant, beginning to part their respective ways for the day.

Patting the boys shoulder, Iruka gave him a smile.

"Naruto, it was good seeing you again…" he said sincerely, ruffling his hair "I can't say enough how proud I am of your growth"

Naruto gave a giggle, his fox like grin showing proudly "thanks Iruka-sensei, I can't say that enough…and we're gonna do it again soon, right?"

Iruka flinched a bit, thinking about the bill, but then could only laugh "Yes, but next time it is your turn to pay, I forgot how you can eat, Naruto!"

With that, they both joined in a laugh together, signified that the day was going to be a good one. What they didn't realize that for one of them, hard times was ahead in the form of an ANBU in a bird mask. His presence wasn't noticed until he gave a jolt of killing intent to alert them of him being behind.

The laughing stopped as they turned to him, giving an aside glance to one another. What could an ANBU want on his off day? It was then the feeling Naruto had in the morning returned like the cool breeze around them. Emptiness.

Something was definitely wrong. Something life changing was coming.

"Uzumaki Naruto…..Hokage-sama seeks an audience with you…immediately…."

special thanks to FloweryNamesLover for beta-reading, please check her out also, she has some awesome fics such as Mortal Kombat: Desperation and plenty of Hakuoki one shots.

As you can see I put some focus into the interactions of the characters more than actions. i'll be sure to balance it out as soon as I get the ball rolling on the story. one character I feel is underrated in this aspect is Iruka himself, due to him consistently being there for Naruto as a brotherly/father figure, even in his sparse appearances. he's easy to write also, I can tell you that he'll have a big role.

I hope I also did Team 7, sans Kakashi, justice. it's not hard to write for them either.

till then, leave a review, did you like it? subscribe for more! hate it? flame me! do whatever...