It had been a quick year since Naruto exited Konoha's gates with Jiraiya, both for the purpose of training as well as preventing Akatsuki from capturing the vessel. While not disappointed in his progress, the aspiring ninja had been upset to learn that he would not be gaining knowledge of a few million high-powered jutsu, but would instead be focusing on increasing control while utilizing larger portions of the Kyuubi's chakra. That is not to say that Naruto had not learned a variety of new techniques as the pair made their way to Cloud country; his remarkable affinity for ninjutsu would have been wasted otherwise. However, as of late, his constant whining and adequate progress in control had caused his sensei to gradually release more jutsu from his vast collection. One of his pupil's few off-days found them on the outskirts of a snow-covered village, to gather supplies and information.

"Eh, ero-sennin… why are we here again?"

Choosing to ignore his student's question, Jiraiya kept on with his pace, looking forward to the information he might procure in some of the local brothels. He'd been a bit saddened by his realization that his burden would not grow to share the same appreciation for the female body that he had, but kept his hopes high, just in case his hormones and teenage nature got the best of him. Even with this disappointment, the sannin had been grateful of the effects the extended trip had on Naruto. The boy had become a lot calmer, having let down his boisterous mask a few months into the journey; when asked about it, he'd simply stated that there was no need to pretend to be happy when he actually was. With this change came a more focused ninja, a previous impossibility that Jiraiya was more than happy to witness. Finally having reached the entrance of the village, his student's whining was interrupted.

"Naruto." The blonde's attention perked at the sound of his sensei's voice. "I am going to get our room and catch up… with my contacts. Do whatever you want, but don't wander too far." With a perverted giggle Jiraiya sprinted through the gates, leaving Naruto to roll his eyes and grumble about perverted old men.

Trudging through the snow, he tried to forget the numb pain that the cold weather and softly falling snow brought to his limbs. It was the days like this, where he was left alone to do as he wanted, that the memories of Konoha surfaced. Despite all the hatred, jeers, and abuse that he had suffered in his hometown, he did have a feeling of homesickness for the people that had acknowledged him and cared about him. 'I guess, it's good to be out here… away from it for awhile… but… I wonder how they are all doing…' His thoughts paused and feelings of shattered trust and betrayal rose up like bile. 'Sasuke.' He had abandoned the idea that the bastard would come back of his own will. And, while he had promised Sakura that he would bring him back… Naruto was beginning to feel it wasn't a promise he would be able to, or would even want to keep. He sighed to himself, 'this weather must be getting me down… fucking snow. Why does it have to be so cold!'

His thoughts were interrupted as he realized he'd reached his destination, a small meadow, surrounded by gnarled oaks, and covered in snow. 'Just like everything else in the damn country.' The oppressive silence in the air was broken, filled with the twisting and snapping of wood as Naruto slammed a Rasengan into the trunk of one of the largest trees. He'd long since mastered it with one hand, as it was the main technique used to work his control; by increasing the flow of chakra as well as the size of the orb, it would become exponentially more difficult to maintain the sphere, and usually resulted in minor cuts and scrapes as it exploded in his face. Today, however, he was just venting his emotions as he repeatedly crushed the woods, oblivious to the large amounts of snow that would rain down from above. 'Why does everything have to be so hard! Why does this shit always happen to me… what the fuck! Why couldn't I have had a normal life… why did I have to get stuck with some stupid demon… god DAMNIT!' Ramming his fist into one of the few trees left standing, Naruto stood, panting, as he finally felt his anger leave him. He had to be calm. One of the many things he had learned ever since leaving Konoha was that anger, rage, caused him to make foolish decisions and also weakened his control over the fox's power. Plopping down into the snow, he felt that now was a good time for him to work on his control. His breathing picked up as he began the taxing exercise that Jiraiya had suggested after first entering the snowy lands. A controlled flow of the Kyuubi's chakra began to vaporize a small area of snow closest to Naruto. While learning how to create temperature with the beast's power had been difficult, it had not been impossible, and it definitely had not prepared him for the next step. But now, as the steam rose up from the ground, the boy grunted as the water started to condense and slowly form a Mizu Bunshin. Not yet satisfied with his accomplishment, he carefully froze his clone before once again turning it into steam and letting it drift serenely into the air. The whole process took a good five minutes, and left the genin quite drained as he was not allowed to use seals to form the clone.

After a few hours, the sky began to darken as early night crept over the village. A sweaty and exhausted Naruto forced his way through thickening snow as he sought to find the inn that Jiraiya had booked them in. Cursing his ero-sennin for choosing what seemed to be the place farthest away from the entrance, he casually observed the now empty streets of the village. Most of the buildings were in disrepair, obviously made out of shoddy wood as demonstrated by the holes that were in some of the roofs. He hadn't noticed the extent of the poverty during the daytime. The snowfall and a sharp biting wind picked up, forcing him to leave his thoughts for the moment as the savage cold nipped him to the bone. Naruto shouted to himself with glee as he spotted the inn, which would be a welcome relief from the freezing weather. Unceremoniously crashing through the door, he earned a glare from the clerk. Picking himself up and giving him an embarrassed grin, he spoke quickly, "Uh, sorry. Did you see an old perverted guy who left a key for me?" Nodding, the attendant silently gave Naruto the key with the room number labeled on it. Quickly thanking the man, the boy sprinted up the stairs and unlocked the door, eager to get some much needed rest. What he saw shocked him to the core. The room looked like a holding cell, with a cement floor, a drain in the middle of it (with questionable substances creating a puddle around it), and a single mattress with straw poking out of various holes. Cracks ran along both the walls and floor, and the window had no trouble letting gusts of chilling wind fly right into the room. Naruto muttered, "Cheap-ass pervert!" before tossing his stuff on the floor. Boiling with frustration, he lay down on the mattress, keeping his heavy snow pants and jacket on – it's not like there was any heat in the dungeon anyways. Sighing to himself, Naruto forced his anger at the hermit to cease, and allowed the fatigue of the day to act as a catalyst for a deep slumber.

vvvvvvvvvvv

Naruto was not surprised to wake up alone. "God damn pervert… probably will wake up with a hangover, no money, and a few new diseases. At noon. Why does that lazy bastard never do anything while I sit here and work my ass off! He's supposed to be teaching me!" He angrily opened the door, only to have his eyes bug out at the sight of Jiraiya about to put his key into the lock, and carrying a bucket of ice-cold water. With snow floating in it.

Chuckling, the toad hermit flashed a mischievous grin, "Finally awake I see? Well then, I guess I won't get to wake you up after all! Get your things, we're leaving." At a loss for words, Naruto silently gathered his belongings and resealed them into a fresh scroll, one of the more useful tricks that he had learned thus far. Following his teacher down rickety steps, he wondered where they would be going next.

Deciding he had nothing to lose with asking, he caught up with his ero-sennin, almost bumping into him in the process, "Hey, ero-sennin… where are we going?" Jiraiya looked annoyed as he shouted at Naruto, "Baka! Maybe if you would pay attention when I, the great Toad Hermit and your wonderful teacher, am speaking you might actually know where we are going! To Wind Country! I've heard word that one of my more elusive contacts has been over there recently, and we need to find him. Now hurry up." With that, the old man nimbly sped down the road, leaving Naruto hard-pressed to keep up in his lightly weighted clothing, a requirement Jiraiya had placed on him, simply saying that his taijutsu sucked so he might as well be able to hit hard and move fast. Sadly, Naruto had to admit that his sensei was right; he had definitely gotten stronger and gained a lot of speed with the additional weight. Amazingly, he'd even managed to successfully pickup some proper fighting forms, having not even had the basics correct. Lost in thought, he realized too late that his sensei had stopped, and collapsed into the snow trying not to run into the pervert. Sheepishly looking up at his sensei, Naruto increased his alertness upon noticing the furrowed brows and serious look engraved into Jiraiya's face. 'Fuck.' Standing no more than fifty feet away were two individuals in black cloaks, with red clouds acting as decoration. The large sword that the taller one was carrying left no question as to whom they were. 'Akatsuki.'

Jiraiya calmly spoke to Naruto, despite the tension of the situation, "I need you to escape into the mountains behind us. I should be able to hold them off long enough for you to get away. I will find you on the east side of the tallest peak. Now move!"

Not wanting to abandon his companion, but realizing that he would be nothing more than a burden in the coming fight, Naruto quickly bit his thumb and performed Kuchiyose no Jutsu, instantly being mounted on top of a large warrior toad. He had learned over the few months he was with Jiraiya that following orders was dreadfully important, finally understanding that those who didn't risked losing more than they would gain. "Gama-san. Take me to those mountains, as fast as you can go." Noticing the respect and urgency in his master's voice, the toad quickly sped off into the distance, leaving large tracks that were quickly filled with fresh snow.

Jiraiya quickly prepared himself for a losing battle; he knew that he stood very little chance against two of the most dangerous nukenin, but he also knew that protecting Naruto was worth losing his life for. The snow that had been falling rapidly began to slow, adding to the ominous feeling of the battleground. As the wind picked up, Jiraiya, not wanting to wait, quickly performed a rapid succession of seals and put his hands onto the ground, watching as a giant swamp opened up under his opponents, who both jumped off the ground in an opposite direction from the other. Kisame unwrapped Samehada and quickly charged at the toad sannin with a cleaving strike, barely missing as the elder ninja performed a Katon-Shunshin, disappearing behind the mist-nin in a swirl of flames and thrusting a Rasengan into his back, which did nothing more than shoot drops of water across the snow as the Mizu Bunshin was destroyed. Quickly performing Hari Jizo, Jiraiya barely managed to avoid the kage shuriken that Itachi had sent his way, and unraveled his hair just in time to be sliced in half by Samehada with a barely audible 'poof.'

Realizing that he would not last long in such an unfair battle, Jiraiya quickly summoned three large toads to fight Kisame while he attempted to distract Itachi. Unfortunately for the hermit, his summons were no match for the mist-nin and were quickly dispatched. The frustration he felt at the waste of so much chakra allowed the Uchiha to draw blood with a lightning quick strike from a previously hidden katana. Cursing, the sannin performed a Doryu Taiga, creating a river of mud and slushy snow that temporarily swept Kisame away from the battle, until the swordsman simply absorbed the chakra behind the technique, coming to a halt without suffering any damage besides a muddied cloak. Wasting no time, Jiraiya sent a powerful punch to Itachi, and was a little surprised when it connected, only to let loose a spray of vulgar language as the clone exploded in his face. Tossed back with a thud into cold snow, he shook the cobwebs loose and tried to locate his opponents, barely able to see as the snowfall picked up and powerful winds hurled ice into his body. Flinching slightly at a pain in his shoulder, most likely he'd twisted it in his landing from the explosion, the sannin managed to sense a chakra signature only a few feet away and quickly performed a Karyu Endan to blast a fiery dragon from his mouth, only to curse his judgment and luck as his target, revealed to be Kisame, absorbed the entire beast with his sword. Jiraiya didn't need to wonder where Itachi had gotten to, as he was suddenly struck from behind by a powerful kick, sending him face first into the snow. Instinct alone saved him as a giant sword came crashing down right where he had been. Noticing his opponents had not even broken a sweat, the hermit decided that he had stalled long enough and needed to try and escape if he valued his life at all.

With Kisame's sword stuck in the ground next to him, Jiraiya quickly made several hand seals and watched with joy as one of his attacks finally hit home, several icicles having torn out of the snow and through the mist-nin's arm, spraying bright blood across the snow. With an angry growl, the swordsman kicked the sannin in the face, sending him sprawling across the snow. Seizing the opportunity, the hermit performed another Shunshin, leaving behind a shadow clone that was quickly absorbed by the hungry Samehada. Jiraiya looked up, about to sprint off so he could figure out how to meet Naruto, only to look up into glowing red eyes, wondering how he could have been so careless, as black flames engulfed him in unimaginable heat.

Itachi emotionlessly observed the still burning corpse, breathing heavily from the massive chakra output of his technique. While his orders had never included the death of the toad sannin, the situation had presented itself and the death of the Kyuubi's guardian would allow for a much easier capture. His companion wordlessly walked up to him, only to break the silence with a grimace, "We going to grab the demon now?"

Red eyes looked upon the shark with an empty stare, "No, we will wait. It will be much simpler to find Naruto-kun as he tries to find his way home, outside of this blizzard." With that, the duo disappeared into the woods with a burst of speed, leaving Jiraiya's body to burn.

vvvvvvvvvvv

Naruto hadn't slept the past two days. He couldn't, if he was going to stay alive. Hidden in the snow, barely keeping himself at a living temperature with Kyuubi's chakra, Jiraiya's pupil had waited faithfully in the frozen crags, constantly looking for the chakra signature that would herald the arrival of his sensei. But even the optimistic Naruto was beginning to fear the worst, tears threatening to burst down his face, only to be held back by his firm resolve and belief in his teacher's abilities. However, he had to get out of the snow and find someplace warm enough to sleep, and assume that if Jiraiya was alive, he would be capable of finding the genin entrusted into his care. Using a larger concentration of chakra, he vaporized the snow above him, relishing the feel of warm steam before the biting gales ripped it away. Crawling out of his self-made cave, Naruto stumbled through the snow in a direction he hoped would quickly lead him out of the freezing atmosphere; with his vision almost gone thanks to the amount of snow in the air, the boy could only hope that he was going in the proper direction. Realizing he had no idea where he was, and that his energy was rapidly fading, too much for his slow progress, he summoned one of the faster and smarter toads, Jiraiya had increased his familiarity with the species, and ordered it to carry him to a safe place to rest. The six-hour journey through the mountains passed uneventfully, Naruto barely managing to maintain the concentration to keep his summon from vanishing in a poof of smoke. Registering sun, grass, and temperatures above freezing, the genin severed the link keeping the toad around, and fell into a quick, dreamless, sleep.

He awoke almost exactly a day later to the sounds of an active forest: birds were chirping, and he could barely pick up the sound of some small animal scurrying in the bushes. Disturbed that Jiraiya had not yet shown up, Naruto summoned up as much resolve as he could – Gamabunta would know, thanks to the summoning contract, whether his sensei was alive. Taking a small chunk of the Kyuubi's chakra, and some of his own blood, he summoned the giant toad, crushing a large portion of the forest. He subconsciously noted that anybody, friend or foe, on the lookout for him would have noticed the large amount of chakra expelled for the summoning. But the information was more important. As the dusk cleared, Naruto was faced with a disgruntled toad glaring down at him, wondering why it had been summoned for no apparent purpose.

"Naruto… why have you summoned me?"

Preparing for the worst, Naruto grimaced and replied while looking at the ground, "I was… Jiraiya was supposed to meet me a few days ago, after a battle with two of the Akatsuki. He never showed up… and… I was wondering if you could tell me if he is alright, since you would know from the summoning contract."

The frog let out a large puff of smoke at the question posed before him. Sighing, he replied in a booming voice, "My subordinate… Jiraiya is gone. I was saddened by the news; as much as we did not get along at times, he was still one of the few who could summon me. If that is all, I will be departing. Whatever you choose to do, good luck. You will have the loyalty of the toads." And with that, Gamabunta departed in a large puff of smoke, leaving Naruto to fall onto the ground, his world shattered into a thousand pieces.

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First time ever writing a story. I already know I suck at dialogue – do I go into enough detail with the necessary descriptions?

Please no comments about plot changes etc, I don't care.

I would be very interested in anybody who has writing advice for me though – I am already aware it is not my forte.