A/N: If you are finding this story after the horrible attempt number one, congats! You have now entered DTorP 2.0! To new readers, welcome and enjoy!

Chapter One

A grieving Hokage must always put his village's happiness first before his own. It was his way, he felt pain even when there no need for him to. After all these years, didn't he deserve to be happy too? Well, he had been, at least for a little while. Love and the lover himself had been ripped from Naruto's hands in an instant, and now Sasuke was the only one he could talk normally with.

As it was, Naruto turned swiftly in battle catching an enemy shinobi on the side of the neck. He died instantly. Being the Hokage also meant he was merciless in battle while making commands to fellow shinobi. On each side of him fought ANBU, his own personal guard, and now he signaled them to search the remaining area of Konohagakure. This small part of the village by the Hokage Tower was the only thing left. Everything else had been destroyed. Though Naruto was never a downer nor did he usually give up, life had often come to have no meaning after Kakashi died.

Being the late shinobi he was, Naruto had given the copy-nin false information about a meeting to allow Kakashi to arrive on time for once. It had worked, but at a price. When Kakashi had actually arrived a few minutes earlier than scheduled time, he was also caught in an ambush meant for the Hokage and his fellow advisers. He died by taking a kunai to the chest and being mauled to death by the enemy summons. The noble Kakashi had died protecting Naruto, his lover, his Hokage. Along with Kakashi; Anko, the Nara Clan Head and his son Shikamaru had also perished during the attack. Naruto had not only lost a lover but also his strongest strategist that had the war plans on his shoulders.

The blonde only suffered minor injuries.

As for the enemy shinobi, they didn't even have a chance. Naruto didn't hesitate to rip them to shreds, he'd been covered in not only the shinobi's blood but Kakashi's as well.

"Teme." When all the other ANBU had left, one leader took their place to guard. Sasuke had made ANBU captain after a couple of years under a chakra suppression seal and two extra years being a regular Jounin. Sasuke had always been by his friends side since the day he was returned home. The raven haired man didn't answer the jibe, he would have normally jumped at the chance of normalcy. They were on business terms and in the middle of battle so little things like memorable actions would have to wait. Naruto bowed his head and then his head snapped up in one quick motion, "We can't go on like this for much longer. This has to stop."

Sasuke stayed silent, he knew this also. Konoha was dying and everything they did seemed to fail them in the end. They weren't giving up, but they needed to do something different from what they were currently. An eyebrow rose just slightly as if to ask, "What now dope?" , they needed a plan and Hokage be damned if he just sit here. Even if they just needed to survive to the next day, Naruto was going to be the one to survive. To rebuild Konoha after this war, Sasuke was going to make sure of it. Sasuke wasn't about to let Naruto, his Hokage, die if it was the last thing he ever accomplished in this life.

"You're not going to like this, but I fear it is the only way now though." Sasuke's eyes snapped up the meet Naruto's at the announcement, they narrowed in suspicion. "What are you going to do Naruto? You're planning something stupid, I can tell." The Hokage rolled his eyes but didn't protest. He was right of course, it was stupid and foolish and utterly risky, but that was exactly the reason he was going to do it.

"I'm not going to tell you yet."

Sasuke growled and looked away from his Hokage. "You are still a fool Naruto."

"Tch, funny enough coming from you."

Every once in a while when Naruto was tired and irritable did he mention Sasuke's defection from Konoha, it was careless of him. Sasuke regretted it deeply, but after time they both let it fall to the back of their minds. Most of the other had as well. He'd proved himself repeatedly though out the years.

"Tell me when Naruto. I just need to know that." For safety reasons, and the fact that Sasuke hated going into something unprepared.

Naruto sighed. "Tomorrow Sasuke, this plan will take place tomorrow morning. The importance of that mission relies on if we can make it till morning, things are getting worse each hour." No rest for his shinobi it seemed, no rest for anyone. At the moment, they were both crouched on the edge of a roof, a medium sized house, as to not draw so much attention. One by one, his ANBU reported back to him one way or another of whether survivors were among the ruins. Like the rest of Konoha, the one around them was collapsed and barely standing. The one they were on currently had kept sturdy during the war, save for broken windows and tiles missing from the roof.

"Tomorr- Dammit Naruto!"

"Sasuke. If I asked you to go somewhere with me, even if you might never make it back, would you?" Naruto's voice was barely above a whisper.

What was he getting at? Sasuke let his Sharingan look into blue azure eyes, there was no doubt, no hesitation in them. "Yes, of course I would Naruto." With that, he hoped that Naruto would stop worrying about something so trivial and with unheeded doubt. Naruto may not have told him about his plan but that didn't mean he didn't still trust him. Sasuke would trust whatever the blonde was planning, reckless and stupid he was no longer. He had thought they were over this a long time ago.

They had tried rebuilding Konoha once, it had only gotten knocked down again and so this time it had been rebuilt only to furnish what they need. Tents and make shift houses had become their homes, every one had learned to move at a moments notice less you wanted to be flattened. Naruto walked among them now, civilian and shinobi alike watched his coat float behind him. He gave water and food to those in desperate need of it. He considered himself one of them, their equal or leader when they needed him to be. They asked him the usual daily questions, but the subject never got too heavy. They knew the reality of their situation by now.

"Hokage-sama!" "Namikaze-sama!" "Hokage-sama!"

The civilians of Konohagakure called out to him, congratulated him, praised him.

He waved but only stopped to talk to a few, his real attention was on Sakura's medical tent this time. Sakura had taken over Tsunade's position of medical chief after she had perished a couple of years ago. He lifted the flap to see Sakura walked between the injured, calmly administrating medical treatment as needed. It was currently a calm time after so long, a much needed break from the war raging on. "How are they Sakura?"

She didn't look up from bandaging a shinobi's bicep and around the torso. "Fairly well considering. No life-threatening injuries today thankfully, though there are one or two that I fear won't last the night." Sakura tilted her head towards some patients on the right side, clearly the terminally ill. And so he sat with them, talked with them, and let them know that they were the reason the village and the will of fire still burned bright.

In the end, Sakura was sorry to be right and none of them made it through the night. Just a few more lost to the night.

The next morning had the remaining members of the Rookie Nine in a bottom room of the Hokage Tower and after several months of planning, and with several dead friends along the way, they had finally made it to this point. Sasuke stood at Naruto's shoulder as the rest gathered around them. Naruto took a deep breath and turned around, looking at each of them, memorizing as they looked now. In this war torn village, he vowed to never let his friends get this haunted again.

The Hokage closed his eyes and called to Kurama, 'Hey, you finally wake up Furball? Have a nice nap?' He got a loud rumble through his mind for the effort and a rush of comforting chakra to surround him. Kurama had slowly been gathering the necessary energy to pull off this great feat and so Naruto hadn't been able to feel his friends chakra for almost six months. It started out as a back up plan just in case Naruto needed the extra boost, but then this plan came to be and so total concentration became necessary. He turned to them. "Okay, listen up," he met their eyes as he spoke, "This isn't really goodbye but, uh, 'see you later'. We will fix this. We will save our Konoha, and lead the lives we should have had." His eyes closed. "I won't forget this, you, how you are right this moment... Thank you."

It started then, Kurama began gathering up his chakra. It bubbled to the surface of Naruto's skin, spreading across the room and further still though it was not same as it felt long ago. The chakra no longer inspired fear with its very presence, but now strong and powerful, a hope if you will. Both Naruto and Sasuke stood in the center, one hand grasped onto the other. They would not lose each other this time and then Kurama spoke, "It's time to go, I can't hold it any longer."

The two shinobi turned and looked to towards each other and together they spoke, "Jigyaku no Justsu." They were gone in a flash of yellow.