Chapter 1: Recollection
Naruto laid back in his bed and sighed.
His last two and a half months had been hectic. He glanced around his small one bed, one bathroom apartment and sighed again. He really needed to get a nicer place to live in.
Naruto sat up in his bed and scratched his sun-kissed blond hair, remembering all of it.
It had started one morning when he had been woken up by his sensei, Kakashi, whom had a grim look on his face, he had told him to follow him to the Hokage mansion. When he reached the Hokage's office he was told that his other sensei, Jiraiya, had been killed by a man named Pein. Who was the leader of the Akatsuki.
Heartbroken Naruto went into a depression but had to come out of it,(after a lecture from his friend Shikamaru). The next thing he knew he was sent to a place to learn a technique called 'SageJutsu'. Which taught you how to manipulate nature energy to your will.
The down side to this technique was is that you acquired toad like attributes. His for example were toad eyes and eyeliner. But the benefits far outweighed the downfalls. Enhanced speed, and strength. A wider hit range and near perfect chakra control.
When he returned to the village he found it in ruins. Just a huge empty plane and at the edge of it was the remains of the Village Hidden in the Leaves. Konohagakure no sato.
Naruto quickly found Lady Hokage fighting Pein...all of him. Being that he had six bodies.
Naruto quickly engaged Pein in powerful combat. He fought and took down most of his bodies until there was one left. Then that Pein (the strongest of the six) made a cheap attack and grabbed 'Pa' a great sage of M.T. Myoboku, and attempted to kill him, right from Naruto's shoulder. When Naruto tried to save Pa, Pein then grabbed him with that weird gravity power of his and forced him on the ground, and impaled his hands with rods and then did the same to his legs and torso while avoiding any major vital areas. To say the least, he was in agony.
All hope had seemed lost to him. He was stuck on the ground and Pein was about to finish him. Then the impossible happened...Hinata rushed in out of nowhere and started to fight against Pein. While at the same time trying to break the chakra rods embedded in his limbs.
Pein offered to let her live, but she outright said no. Then she said something so impossible that it made even Naruto think ' DA FUK' she admitted he deepest feelings for him. She said, "I'll protect you in the same way you've done for me, because...I love you" then Pein lifted her into the air and slammed her into the dirt and pierced her with one of his chakra rods.
What he saw next sent him into the most billowing rage he had ever experienced...he saw her blood.
He seemed to detonate with the Kyuubi's demonic chakra as he went farther into the the fox's influence, than he had ever before, and went into six tails form gained a exoskeleton (fox form of course)
and pretty much beat the crap out of Pain. At the end of the fight he met with the real Pain, he called himself Nagato. Naruto convince him to see things his way and as a last redeeming ack Nagato used 'Rinne Rebirth no jutsu' and brought all the people he had killed back from the dead.
The act itself though killed him.
Soon after things had calmed a bit the Kazekage had arrived at the village because even in the Land of Wind he could feel the power of Pein. He immediately went to see if Naruto was in good health. After he went to the village meeting. Much the the ire of the civilian council, he kept Danzo from office and had appointed Might Gai the temporary Hokage...oh the horror. Gaara could be very persuasive when he wanted to be. And when I say persuasive I mean scary as hell.
He had been told Gaara was currently in a meeting with said temp Hokage and would be there for a while. So Naruto got up and went to do his new favorite pass time, mope.
Gaara sighed outside of the the Hokage office as he had just come from a meeting with Gai...NEVER AGAIN! Gaara turned and walked from the building and made his way to the one place he needed to be. Well one of two any way.
Naruto sat in the crater at the center of the village trying to mope away thinking he should have been faster then he could have saved the village from this horrendous attack. When he heard a rustling he would recognise any where.
He turned and saw Gaara floating on his cloud of sand with a rather large orb of sand floating next to him.
"You know Naruto you playing the role of the emo doesn't fit you in the slightest. It's Sasuke's shteak. Not yours." A deep gravely voice said, a touch of humor in it.
"Yo Garra how are you?" Naruto asked waving at his friend. Gaara landed in front of his friend and said,
"I'm better now that I'm out of that meeting with Gai. Does he ever run out of energy...or shut up about the flames of youth?" He asked incredulously. Naruto laughed, having experienced Gai's endless amount of energy.
"So what's with the ball of sand Gaara? You get me a present, or something? Or is this some kind of training of yours?" Naruto asked finally noticing the sand ball.
Gaara looked panicked having forgotten all about it and quickly released it, and out fell Hinata Hyuuga, gasping for breath.
"Forgive me Hinata-san I had disassociated myself and forgotten you." Gaara said moving to help he stand.
""I-it's o-okay Kazekage-s-sama." Hinata said, avoiding Naruto's eyes.
Naruto had a furious blush on his face, having not expected Hinata being here. When she had confessed her love for him he went nuts, but he never responded to her confession. And whenever he saw her he either avoided her entirely or it was very awkward between them. Seeing her here now had him completely frozen in terms of what to say. Him, the savior of Konoha, the strongest ninja in the village, was terrified of this woman. This very pretty woma-'Wait what am I thinking?' He thought.
"From what I've heard you two have something serious to discuss, and I feel that no-."
"Yo Naruto!" Kakashi's voice sounded, cutting off Gaara. Naruto looked over to his jounin sensei and smiled, thankful for the distraction.
"Hey Kakashi-Sensei, what's up!" Naruto said waving at him. Kakashi approached and said with an eye smile
"Naruto, I've got good news, but we've got to go the council chambers for me to give it." He said barely containing his happyness.
"I'm afraid you won't be able to make. So sorry." A deep voice said behind them.
Gaara's POV-
Gaara saw Naruto's eyes had widened at the voice that was behind him. He briefly saw Kakashi jump away lifting his headband, Hinata activating her Byakugan and Naruto grabbing a kunai as he turned around, to face the aggressing voice.
He was halfway turned before he felt a painful pulling sensation. No pain wasn't the proper word, no what he felt was agony. He hurt everywhere. His every vein and blood vessel, burned like nothing he had ever felt before. It hurt more so than when he was having the Shukaku extracted from him, AND THAT PAIN KILLED HIM!
He faintly heard another familiar voice yell,"WHAT?" before all he Knew was darkness.
He woke with a quick and sudden start. He was in a small room in a bed. The room was small, had hardwood floors, white walls, and light brown almost white ceiling. It was daytime, early morning. He stepped out of the bed and found he was still in his clothing and his gourd was leaning next to him on the wall.
He strapped it in and was about to exit the room to see where he was, when he heard footsteps. Coming towards his room from what he could tell, and they were close, and getting no farther.
He acted quickly, moving to the side of the door, so when it was opened he wouldn't be immediately seen, as they were probably expecting him to still be in the bed, he made his sand line the floor of the room with his sand he watched as the door opened, to reveal a short man with a bald head and an orange Gi on, holding a tray of water.
As soon as his foot entered the room, the whole floor seemed to move as the sand raced towards the man, scaring the holy hell out of him!
Before he could speak, react,or fumble the water, he was encased in sand staring horrified, into Gaara's murderous eyes.