Okay so here's the rewrite of Chapter One. Hope it's better than what it was before and please tell me what you think of this new version.

Disclaimer: I do not own the Naruto franchise.

Chapter 1: Going Back.

Failure.

It was funny how many times a word or saying could go through someone's head in a span of a few minutes. Until now, Naruto hadn't put much thought into that, but now, as the burning buildings around him lit the dark night, he found himself thinking about just that.

The inability or lack of being successful in any given area. (1)

The very meaning of that vile word stung Naruto in the deepest pits of his being.

It wasn't meant to turn out like this. Things were supposed to be different. His efforts were not meant to be wasted! He was meant to go on and defeat the enemy and keep his promises!

'Damn it! This was NOT supposed to be how this ended! Not this way!'

But yet, despite all his efforts, it had.

He had failed to protect his friends.

He failed to beat the one who had caused everyone so much pain.

He failed to beat Madara.

Tears stung his eyes as the images of the last few hours flew past his mind's eye. He remembered Kakashi and Obito being swallowed by that Kamui technique. He remembered watching the lights fading from Tsunade's eyes as she lay in pieces beneath a giant tree and used her last breath to grant him the title he had long sought after in his life. He remembered being bound as he watched Lee and Hinata give their lives to save him from the reincarnated Nagato and his pains. He remembered freezing up and watching as the resurrected Jubi shot a spike at him, only for Neji to take the hit for him. Team nine and everyone else's deaths by means of Sasuke's Chidori and Sakura's betrayal of the Shinobi alliance.

All this and more ran through Naruto's head, but as the memories stopped, they left him to relive one last sacrifice. The sacrifice of his most precious person.

"NARUTO! LOOK OUT!"

Just as he went to dodge the blade of his renegade teammate, a body impacted Naruto's back and sent him flying several yards.

"What? T-"

Naruto's blood ran cold when he reacted too late and could only watch as the Uchiha duo impaled her with their swords.

He watched, unable to do anything other than that, as her body went ridged and blood spewed from her wound and she coughed up blood.

"Na-Naruto," she coughed through the blood, the light in her chocolate brown eyes was dimming as she looked at him.

"I...I… L-urg!" whatever she was going to say was cut off by the blades in her stomach being ruthlessly withdrawn by the Uchiha.

Sasuke watched the girl lifelessly fall with a stotic look as Madara's cackling laughter rang through the air. "So ends the last of the Jinchuriki's little friends." The lunatic cackled as he turned a sickening grin to the frozen Uzumaki.

"It's been fun, boy, but this is the end for you and the rest of the villages. So give up and let me take what is rightfully mine!"

The man's voice fell on deaf ears as Naruto continued to stare at the lifeless body of his best friend. Suddenly Naruto's brows creased and his vision went completely red.

"URRRRRRAAAAGGGGHHHHH!"

The next thing Naruto would know was coming too with a heavily bleeding hole in his shoulder and nothing but burning and destroyed buildings all around him.

Naruto grunted as he strained in an effort to turn his head, the sting of his bruised skin being drug across the rough soot covered ground from where he had fallen from the blood loss and exhaustion didn't register to him much if at all.

The tears in his eyes feel at last when he met the sight of her body a short distance away from him. He couldn't do it. All his efforts, all the sweat blood and tears he had put into preparation for this day had all been a waist.

"E-Everyone," he grunted as he used what little strength he had to drag himself over to her, "I-I am so s-sorry." He gasped out. "We t-trained so hard, we told each other we would make it out of this alive, all of us. But when the time came, we couldn't do it, I couldn't do it." He muttered as he approached.

"I couldn't keep my promises to you all, I couldn't save anyone. B-But, mostly, I couldn't save you." Naruto gasped out in pain as he finally reach her and grasped one of her hands.

"T-There's no way I'm going to the same place as you, not with how many p-people who've died because of me. I just hope I can catch a glimpse of you one more time on my way there."

The last of his strength leaving him, and blood pooling under him, Naruto's head fell to the ground with a soft thud, still grasping her hand as his vision finally faded into blackness.

But even as his life faded away from him, Naruto managed to speak his last words, in a barely audible whisper.

"It's over."

Only thing was, he wasn't expecting an answer.

"Not quite, kit."

Naruto's eyes shot open and he found himself in front of a familiar cage in a sewer with ankle deep water.

Before him two crimson eyes stared down at him from the depths of the cage housing the Kyuubi.

"What is it now, fox? If it's what I think it is than I would rather you skip it and let me die in piece." He asked with a sigh as he sat down in a slump.

There was a short pause from the fox before it answered. "I have not called you here for that, kit. In fact I want to thank you."

Naruto's head snapped up as he sprang to his feet and he glared into the eyes above him, "you want to thank me? Thank me for what, finally proving you right about not being able to defeat Madara? Or is this about granting you the freedom you want before I die? Well guess what, I DON'T CARE ABOUT ANY OF THAT SHIT! I DID MY BEST TO END THIS WAR, AND I STILL LOST IT ALL IN THE END! SO TELL ME KYUUBI, WHAT DO YOU WANT TO THANK ME FOR?!"

By now Naruto had worked himself up into a rage, but as the last of his piece escaped him he collapsed onto his knees and for the first time since he was a small child, he cried. He cried for all his friends, his loved ones and most of all her. All of his anger, sorrow, regret, everything he had suppressed since his childhood came to the surface and added to the endless stream of tears.

It took several moments for Naruto to calm himself, and when he did he only sat there, a quivering mess of emotions.

The Kyuubi stared down at the form of her jailer before her eyes closed and a soft sigh escaped her as she shook her head slightly. 'Kushina, if only I hadn't allowed that man to gain control over me that day; all of this wouldn't have happened.' She thought.

"Naruto," she muttered, drawing his attention.

When the teenager looked up at her, she fixed him with an intense gaze. "I called you here because of that. Not to rub your failure in your face like I may have in the past, because, believe it or not, that Kyuubi was not real." She explained.

When she saw the questioning look in his eyes she went on, "from what I can tell of your memories, your parents already explained the night of my attack, so you already know that Madara-teme forced me to attack Konoha by placing me in a Genjutsu. Yes?"

Kyuubi waited for Naruto's nod before she continued, "What you do not know was that his Genjutsu stayed with me after the sealing, it forced me to surrender myself to my rage and hatred. When you lost control of your emotions and my chakra and ultimately ended up killing him, that other Uchiha and that traitorous howler monkey. You freed me and allowed me to take my first free breath in over eighteen years. For that, I thank you."

By now, Naruto was staring at his tenant in a state of near shock. It was obvious to the Kyuubi that he was still processing the recent information.

Several moments later Naruto groaned and rubbed his head. "Okay, fine. Say I believe you, and that you're telling the truth. How does this help me now of all times? In case you forget, I'm lying in a pool of my own blood and near death."

Kyuubi huffed. "So I saw," she muttered, "but do you really expect me with my power to not know of a way to reverse the damage done not only to you, but the timeline as well?"

At this Naruto froze, had he heard the fox right? Was it really offering him what he thought it was?

Kyuubi smirked when she saw his expression, it was almost priceless, but she interrupted him when he opened his mouth to speak. "Before you ask, yes I really can turn back the time. It's a technique that every Biju knows, but we prefer not to use it as it causes trouble amongst our ranks when one of us does and the others find out. However, considering what has happened to this timeline, I am offering this to you. But it is your choice. However, if you do accept this than there are some things you will need to know."

"Such as?" Naruto managed to ask through the haze in his mind from learning all this.

Kyuubi looked at him with an intense gaze again, it was almost like she was sizing him up for something, but it passed when she spoke again.

"Such as a quarter of the seal will need to be removed and the resulting overload of my chakra through your system may have some side effects."

"Side effects?" Naruto muttered, as he finally stood but his head was bowed.

Kyuubi nodded, "it won't be anything major…probably. But I know for a fact you wouldn't grow a tail or sprout fox ears, if that's what you're asking, mostly just your eyesight and other senses receiving a major boost." She reassured.

"I see." Naruto muttered quietly. He was a little put off at the pause in the fox's voice though.

All was silent for a few moments as he thought everything over before his head shot up and his eyes blazed with a determined fire the likes of which Kyuubi had never scene.

"I accept!" he spoke clearly and confidently for the first time since entering the seal. He approached the seal and placed his hand on a corner of it.

Taken aback slightly Kyuubi stared at him for a moment before smirking.

"Very well, kit. Just to let you know though, this will hurt quite a bit. But before we do this, I've got to ask why?" she asked, genuine curiosity showed through her voice at the question.

Naruto bowed his head and his form started to shake. "B-Because," he started in a shaky voice. "I have failed my friends and everyone in the Hidden Leaf, and if I let this opportunity slip past me without taking it, I won't be able to face them in the afterlife. I've failed them once and I will not do so again, anything I can do to prevent them all from suffering this fate is worth it. If it's for them I will take any amount of pain necessary. Especially if I can save her!"

The Kyuubi stared at the blonde for a few moments as what he said sank in. She nodded once it had.

"Akane"

One of Naruto's eyebrows rose in confusion when she spoke, "huh?"

Kyuubi shook her head, "that's my name, kit. A Biju only gives their true name when they meet someone they truly respect. With your answer you've proven to me that you are respectable enough to not go back on your word. As such, I have given you my name."

Naruto looked a little stunned before he nodded with a small smile on his lips and he clutched the seal tighter.

"Well then. It nice to meat you Akane, I'm Naruto Uzumaki." He said before tightening his grip on the seal more and tearing a full corner from the tag.

Almost immediately afterwards Naruto's body was covered in a dark red mass of chakra and was raked with an unreal amount of pain, but he held in any screams of pain that tried to escape him.

Seeing this, the now named Akane set the jutsu into motion.

"Time Style: Reversal!" she muttered as the jutsu took hold and the world began to darken around them.

As his vision darkened for a second time that day, Naruto managed to get one last thought through his head before it went completely black.

'I won't fail you again…Tenten.'

(1) That's what it means to me at least.

Okay so this is the rewrite of my Back to the Beginning story, and despite my note on chapter twenty of the original, I started it over with as a version two story. Don't fret though, it'll still be the same story line, just written a hell of a lot better than before and have the same pairings.

I just want to make things a bit more believable is all as I feel I rushed things a bit too fast last time.

Please review.