I don't own Naruto.
Bold is supernatural speech.
Italics are flashbacks, thoughts and whatnot.
-Chapter One: What happened on October Tenth-
-October Tenth, Five years later-
Sound had attacked Konoha again under the lead of Uchiha Sasuke and his elite group "Hawk". Uzumaki Naruto, next in line for Hokage stood among the crowd brandishing his spear with literally frightening skill, felling enemy ninja left, right, up, down, and at various other angles. He faded in and out of the vision of ninja on both sides, disappearing just long enough for everyone to wonder where he'd strike next. Sasuke stepped into the clearing, he smirked, blood running off his dark blue armor
"So Dobe, it seems that you've got some skill. Unfortunately it was you I choose to kill." Sasuke drew his sword, challenging Naruto. Naruto stood from his battle stance, tossing the spear up and then jamming it's blade into the ground. The ninja drew his dagger from behind him, a beautifully crafted katana, the steel was colored gold, the handle was red, these were the colors of the nine tails demon fox. The Uzumaki stood, ready for any attack, Sasuke vanished, coming down on Naruto who simply snatched the blade out of the air, breaking it in half between his fingers.
"Don't toy with me Sasuke. I've had enough of your mocking me, I could have killed you at anytime, but now I'm fed up, so take your death like a true ninja." Naruto threw his former teammate back with a blast of pure chakra, and then dashed forward, cutting the tendons of Sasuke's legs, while Sasuke tried to stand, Naruto went to where his spear was, plucked it from the ground, turned and threw it, spearing the last Uchiha's head to the ground. He then pulled the spear out. "All you had to do was come home, and all of it could be avoided." Naruto turned to the crowd of scared ninja. "Any who don't wish to share a similar fate will turn and run." The Uzumaki said quietly as he wiped the blood from his spear on a nearby man's cloak. All enemy ninja turned tail and ran. Naruto looked at his remaining forces, all cheering, Haruno Sakura came from the numbers and ran to him, the years had been very kind to this beautiful Kunoichi. Naruto embraced her and held her, feeling the blood on her clothes.
"You've done it, you've defeated him. No more worries." Sakura said.
"I know, but remember that I can't go back with what I've done, the council will never agree." Sakura looked up at him.
"Tsunade did away with the council, she's the sole leader now, no council to say you can't come back! So come home Naruto, we've missed you."
-Present time-
Naruto awoke on someone's shoulders, he was being carried.
"Where am I?" He asked.
"We're outside of the gates of Konoha, Sasuke escaped." Kakashi said, holding Sasuke's hitai-ate in his left hand.
"I failed her. I promised Sakura, and instead I end up a bloody mess."
"Well, you can tell her yourself. Here she is." Kakashi set the blond down, he was struggling to stand. Sakura came to him, taking him by the shoulders, her eyes full of tears, she asked him.
"Where is Sasuke?" Naruto turned his face away.
"He thought he'd killed me, and left, I failed Sa-" He was cut off by the hand that collided with his face, leaving a resounding sound.
"I can't believe you! You promised!"
"He ran me through with Chidori! You think I could move after that?!" He simply limped past her, trying to make his way, but then she turned and stopped him.
"I hate you Naruto! Never speak to me again!"
"Fine. But you'll regret that one day." With that he passed out and hit the ground with a thud. Kakashi picked him up and rushed him to the hospital. Tsunade immediately set to work on him, fixing him up the best she could.
-Two Weeks Later-
-Naruto's P.O.V.-
I woke up, I could feel my muscles stiff and weak from the lack of use, but his felt much worse. Shizune came in, surprised to see me sitting up. In truth it took me about fifteen tries to get all the way up.
"He did quite a number on you. We managed to fix you up, but you'll need serious therapy to get back to your usual strength." She informed me of my injuries.
"How long until I can do missions?" I remembered what I'd said to Sakura, and I meant to keep that promise, I wasn't planning on doing any missions, I had different plans.
"A month maybe, Are you willing to accept visitors? There are a number of people who've been by to see you, it's early morning so they'll be by again likely."
"I'll let anyone come in, except Sakura, don't let her in."
"She's visited the most."
"Don't. Let. Her. In." I didn't want to even see her, that Sasuke fan girl had crossed the last line. I was never going to put up with her crap forever, even I have limits.
"Alright. I'll make sure that she doesn't get in. Do you need anything?"
"Ramen. Miso flavor please." Miso was my favorite. After a few minutes she came back with my food. "Thank you." And I began eating.
"So if you want, we can start your physical therapy in about an hour. I know how you want to be Hokage, so getting back to training is important for you." Shizune was really a kind girl, always worked behind the scenes though, unbecoming of her, she could do a lot better.
"Yeah, I'll start as soon as I finish."
-Normal P.O.V.-
-One month later-
Naruto walked out of the hospital, near full strength, and new clothes. His old jacket had been destroyed by Sasuke and his Chidori, as well as a barrage of fire jutsu. He was currently dressed in a simple dogi style clothing, gray in color. He quickly returned to his house to get something that was more his style. He then realized what the date was, and he had to do it tonight, October Tenth.
-The Next day-
When the citizens of Konoha woke up, they often looked up to the Hokage mountain, sort of an unspoken ritual. This time however, they saw a message when they looked. Tsunade, now the active Hokage looked up, and saw it.
"Don't try to stop me, I'm already too far away by now."-Naruto
"Get me Kakashi and Sakura." She turned and went to her desk. When the two ninja arrived, she began with the questions.
"When he was in the hospital, he would say that his precious people had given him up. It seems someone said something to him that made him think they all hated him." Kakashi pondered the whole thing. "Let's check his house, maybe he left some clues."
"Sakura. Do you know anything about it?"
"I don't, Shizune said that Naruto told her not to let me see him. I haven't seen him since he returned from the mission a month ago." Sakura feared that she had been the one to make him leave, she had after all said that she hated him.
"Why would he do that? Didn't he have a crush on you?" Tsunade asked.
"Because when he didn't bring back Sasuke after promising me he would… I got angry with him… And said… That I hated him." Sakura could see it all connecting now, he left because if he was on a team with her, whom he had a crush on, who also told him she hated him, it would make it difficult to not talk to her.
"You did it?! You're the one who made him think everyone hated him?!" Tsunade yelled, her anger rising. "How could you be so selfish Sakura? Thinking some traitor is more important than your teammate?!"
"Sakura, I have to say that I'm ashamed of you. Remember what I said about those who abandon their teammates are lower than trash? Well in my eyes, you're even lower than their kind." Kakashi turned. "I'm going to go see if I can find any kind of clues at his house. I'll come back when I get something." Kakashi left with a wave over his shoulder. This left Tsunade with a Gennin and a whole load of anger towards said Gennin.
"What to do with you? I mean you did chase off the only reason I came back here, I could technically have you imprisoned for causing one of our own to become a missing ninja." Sakura felt her eyes begin to brim with tears.
"If you could train me. I could then go and search for him, I could get him to come back." Sakura said, had she realized what her words would do she never would have said them. Tsunade stood, hands clasped behind her back, and began slowly circling the younger Kunoichi. She examined her so closely it would make a microbiologist seem like one who stares into space.
"And why should I train you? Why not someone else? What makes you think that you are even worth my training?" Tsunade's tone was sharp and cold. Sakura flinched slightly.
"I…I can't answer that. Truth be told I was always a hindrance to my team, and I have no special abilities."
"Then you're starting with a clean slate." Tsunade said.
"What?"
"Medical ninja are the most difficult to train because they often have other training to interfere with their medic training, but you don't, so essentially you're the perfect student right now."
"Thank you Shishou." Sakura bowed low.
-Location Unknown-
Naruto had run straight through the night, he hadn't stopped to even eat, he just ran with all his supplies. Finally he couldn't run anymore, and fell on his back after dropping his pack.
"Well, now all that's left is to find a teacher." Naruto sighed. His plan was to leave the message along with a scroll in his house since someone would look for something there, leave the village, and find a strong teacher who could make him stronger than he'd ever get in Konoha.
"I know of a man, the only human other than that Yondaime to ever best me in combat. A Samurai by the name of Tenchi Mitsurugi. Look for him in the northern Iwa country. We're only a day from the border, rest and move quickly since that damn woman will probably send someone after you." The Kyuubi said from inside Naruto's mind.
"Right, Tenchi Mitsurugi, northern Iwa. Why are you helping me fox?" Naruto had recently discovered he could speak to the Kyuubi, but only reserved the action for when he needed his chakra until now.
"Because If you die, I die. And I want to live long enough to see you actually become strong, I'll not have a weak vessel."
"Well, then to Iwa it is." Naruto opened his pack and began cooking some ramen, he'd taken the only food he had in the house.
-Two days later-
Naruto had finally reached the town the samurai was rumored to live in. After asking around for nearly an hour, he finally got some decent directions, and was sent off to a section of woods on the eastern side of the house. Naruto went into them, being told that the house was about a mile in. He carefully trekked through the forest, his shinobi training telling him to beware of any booby traps. Finally he sensed the presence of someone strong, and saw a man training in a clearing in front of the large house he saw. The spear in his hands cut and stabbed imaginary enemies with fluidity that the ninja had never seen before, suddenly the same spear was hurtling towards him, he dodged, and was surprised to see the spear was embedded nearly a meter deep into the tree.
"Who's there?" The man asked, drawing the katana on his side and walking toward Naruto, who pulled the spear from the tree and walked out into the clearing.
"My name is Uzumaki Naruto. Are you Tenchi Mitsurugi?" Naruto held the spear at his side.
"Why does a ninja from Konoha seek me out?"
"I no longer call Konoha my home, I've come to ask you to train me."
"How did you find me?" Mitsurugi stood just out of the spear's range, katana still drawn.
"The Kyuubi no Yoko. He is sealed inside me and told me that You were the only living being to ever best him in combat."
"Those ninja are sealing demons in their children?"
"I'm the only one, thirteen years ago when I was born the Yondaime Hokage sealed Kyuubi into me in order to save the village."
"I see, then you must bear a heavy burden." Mitsurugi sheathed his sword and stepped closer, putting out his hand to take his spear. "I'll train you then. But you must make a vow that you will now renounce the title of ninja and in two years when you complete your Genpuku ceremony you will take the title of Samurai."
"I'll do it." Naruto took off his headband and stowed it in his pack.
"Good. Now you must understand that every ounce of training you do will be towards the effort to better yourself in combat, no stealth, no trickery, just pure combative skills." Mitsurugi turned towards his house and motioned for Naruto to follow. "I'll show you the room you will stay in." Mitsurugi showed him to his room, and told him to sleep, because he was to start training the next day.
-Chapter One: End-
Author's Notes: Chapter one of my new story, If you have any questions PM me, if not, then please Review.