Underneath the underneath

Somewhere in the budding hidden village of Sound, Land of Rice Paddies (later known as Land of Sound), late afternoon

Life was always harsh and difficult for everyone who lived in the secret laboratories that made up the Village of Sound. Not that it was much of a village, yet, because most of the bases were still in the process of being built.

However, lately things had been worse for everyone involved.

"Make fun of me? Kukuku..."

Orochimaru's smile was amiable and horrifying, as he stabbed his latest experiment.

His various underlings/slaves/experiments (it was a sliding scale) kept silent and out of his way. You learned that sort of thing quickly, if you had any self-preservation instincts at all.

An establishment of questionable virtue, Land of Fire, early evening

Jiraiya blinked, scratched at his head and blinked again. He had heard the rumours, of course, because it was his job to know these things. But this particular gossip just didn't seem to make sense.

The person in question couldn't have been the real Orochimaru, that was clear. Despite everything, Jiraiya liked to think he knew his old comrade a little better than most people and the bastard's sense of drama had always run more to the side of gross and cruel rather than… well, rather than this.

As it was, he had already had his fair share of sake, and promptly realised this news meant that somewhere was the real Orochimaru who had been told he had been seen robbing banks wearing a false moustache, and keeled over with laughter.

He would have insisted it was all very manly. The ladies who kept him company would have told him he had giggled.

A gambling parlour, Land of Fire, afternoon

Tsunade blinked at Shizune, then frowned at her cup of sake. Her gaze could have been used for dissection.

"Shizune, how much have I drunk today?"

"Tsunade-sama?"

"I could have sworn you just told me Orochimaru has been spotted vandalising toilets in the town next over."

Ichiraku ramen, Konoha, lunchtime (yet again)

Hyuuga Hiashi glared at his bowl of ramen. It was greasy and salty and overall had very little to offer in terms of nutrition. So, why did he keep eating it?

He couldn't even blame Asura. No one had seen hide nor hair of the man in the last couple of weeks, and Hiashi still found himself eating lunch at Ichiraku every week, on a surgically precise schedule.

He sighed and wrapped noodles around his chopsticks.

"Yo, Hiashi-san! Long time no see!"

Hiashi looked up, and saw Asura's beaming face.

"Hello," he said, and gestured at the empty seat next to him. "I would tell you that I was surprised to hear what you did, but it was exactly the sort of thing I might have expected from you."

Asura grinned and rubbed at the back of his head, as he collapsed on the seat. "Ahahaha, well, yeah. That was all totally what I intended to do all along. If he's busy chasing me, he doesn't have time to bother everyone else, right?"

Hiashi's eyes narrowed. "Indeed. But I must confess I am bothered by this tendency to forfeit your own welfare and act as the scapegoat. One of these days you will end up in trouble you can't just run away from. If you get in too deep, there is only so much I will be able to do for you."

And there it was, that flash of vulnerability on Asura's face. It was gone in the blink of an eye, hidden by a smile, but Hiashi knew what to look for.

Asura was lonely. That was why he kept showing up for lunch, even though he was the public enemy number one.

Hiashi wasn't so sure about his own motives, anymore. By all rights, he should have tried to arrest the man a long time ago – if not for the constant petty menace, then for the information he seemed to have. But always, always he managed to argue to himself that the soft approach had worked wonders, that there was no need to antagonise Asura and that the Hokage had yet to insist.

"Remember, Asura," Hiashi said, "that it is not a good idea to try to do everything alone. Nothing good will come of that."

Asura's eyes widened, and Hiashi knew the words had hit a chord somewhere. "I… yeah. Thanks, Hiashi-san."

Hiashi gave him the same smile he had given his infant daughter. Something about Asura made him feel almost paternal.

And then Asura froze, eyes widening in a way that suggested someone had caught him with a hand in cookie jar.

"Gotta go! See you, Hiashi-san!"

He was gone in a flash of yellow, just as Hatake Kakashi burst in through the little flaps that almost passed for a curtain. A bucketful of pink paper hearts exploded from a seal set on the roof. Hiashi watched with mild amusement as they pelted against Kakashi's shoulders with the strength of a hail storm. Kakashi cursed.

"Damn! Stupid slick bastard."

Hiashi raised an eyebrow. Kakashi picked a paper heart from his hair and slumped down on the seat Asura had vacated.

"I apologise for my language, Hiashi-sama. If you don't mind me asking, you, well, you know him, right?"

Hiashi gave a regal nod, and sipped the leftover broth. He was far too well-mannered to waste food, even if it was greasy and salty and gross and delicious.

"Better than most people, yes."

"Why does he… do this? Why me, out of everyone?"

Kakashi waved the little paper heart, unsure how to express his problem politely.

"If you are referring to the sappy poems and flowers, then I do have an inkling. I believe Asura is, above all, a man who likes to use grand, showy elements as a disguise."

Kakashi blinked. "What do you mean?"

"Most shinobi tend to go for the unnoticed and low-key approach, they strive to be dismissed as nothing. A rare few do the opposite; they exaggerate and posture so much that an observer cannot see the truth. I believe Asura is fundamentally a person who finds it difficult to be anything less than himself, so subtlety is not an option for him."

"So, what you're saying is –"

"It is just another type of mask. But it is also not necessarily all false. Although I would say it is highly unlikely he harbours any true attraction to you, there is a chance you and he have some sort of a connection you are unaware of."

An alley, the seedy side of Konoha, midnight (almost one year after Naruto's temporal displacement)

The half-moon hung in the sky, yellow and drunk. Naruto sat on top of a garbage tin in a filthy alleyway, hiding from the mob of pursuers. If there was one thing that never changed, it was the lack of a sense of humour around here. Sheesh. Throw one pie on the face of one ANBU and you're suddenly the public enemy number one.

Although it had been more like fifteen pies launched from one of his storage seals in the ANBU break room, as Kurama was all too happy to remind him. But the point stood. They were pies.

Of course, one particular person had again managed to find him. Naruto kind of wanted to know how, but he suspected the answer would have been bad for his ego.

"Hiya, Itachi," said Naruto. Itachi inclined his head, tiny and serious and apparently already better at tracking than the entirety of ANBU. Naruto might have chalked it up for a coincidence, but he had run out of fingers trying to count how many times Itachi had stalked him down.

"Good evening," Itachi said, sounding a little like he was greeting the Hokage, or at least clan elders.

Naruto hoped he wasn't thinking of clan elders. They tended to be withered sour old people who smelled of cabbage and argued about everything. No one liked those guys.

"I don't smell like cabbage, do I?" he asked anxiously. Itachi blinked, very slowly.

"…No, you do not."

"Ah, that's a relief!" Naruto said and beamed. He still didn't quite know what to think of Itachi, or how to act around him, so he went for his default option: exaggerated cheerfulness. "How's it been lately? Still good?"

Itachi nodded. "Yes. I find that my clansmen are still growing closer to the village. Thank you."

Naruto rubbed at the back of his head. It was always an effort to keep a conversation going around Itachi.

"Well, I just want to help everyone. I don't believe in that Curse of Hatred horse manure anyway. People are people. We all gotta try to change the world little by little. You can't just think you can do it all at once on your own or you end up trying to curse the moon and then a huge tree tries to kill everyone."

Itachi stared, apparently not knowing what to say to that. Naruto cringed inwardly. Something about Itachi's childish, already-weary features made him a little nervous, which inevitably lead to weird stuff coming out of his mouth without asking for permission.

And Itachi was so smart, too, definitely somewhere up there with people like Shikamaru. One of these days he'd slip something and Itachi would figure him out.

He and Kurama had talked about whether or not to keep the secret, during those first days of confusion when he couldn't even get out of bed without tripping and falling somewhere along the line. Naruto had wanted to try, to maybe see if the old man would believe him, but Kurama had argued that the situation could get out of hand even in the best case. Worst case (for them, at least) would have involved a Yamanaka, and Kurama had outright promised to devour anyone trying to get into Naruto's mind. Kurama had had enough of people attempting to control him. Naruto supposed he understood.

But that still left him here, alone if not for a giant fox, and facing a genius child with deep, sad eyes.

…Here, in the seediest, most disreputable area of Konoha.

"Hey, what are you doing here anyway? You're a kid!"

Itachi stiffened. He looked a little defensive. "I am a registered ninja. I am allowed."

"Yeah, and you're nine. Or something like that, I don't know, I can't remember. But you shouldn't be in this place! Come on, I'm taking you home."

There was a brief pause, before Itachi reached over and grabbed Naruto's hand.

He was smiling.

Huh. What's with the happy face? I'm just taking care of him.

Soon enough Naruto had to worry about getting spotted by ANBU, and the absent thought slipped away like soap suds rinsed down the drain.

Uchiha district, a little after midnight

Uchiha Fugaku had been run off his feet for months on end, and his workload hadn't seemed to lighten in the slightest even after That Bastard had cut down on his misbehaviour. He couldn't remember the last time he'd slept properly, and had lately subsisted on nothing but strong coffee and the occasional packed lunch.

He was all but due a heart attack, and the sight of his oldest son holding the hand of the bane of his existence really should have been the straw to break the camel's back.

Apparently the universe had no sense of proper dramatic timing.

On the side of Naka river, near the Uchiha district, early evening

Sasuke frowned, as he stared into the depths of the water. He should be getting home, really, it was almost dinnertime. But it wasn't as though anyone would notice if he was late.

He couldn't quite remember the last time he had been noticed. Things with police work had calmed down, like his mother had promised, but both of his parents had somehow failed to equate this fact with the thought that they now had time to pay attention to their youngest son.

He folded further into himself and gripped his knees so hard his knuckles went white. Only Itachi still saw him, really saw, and talked to him and even trained with him on occasion. He'd been getting better with shuriken, even managed to get a bull's eye the other day. Itachi had noticed, and told him he was proud.

Sasuke couldn't help but think that if his busy busy brother had time, his parents should –

"Heya!"

The voice was bright and obnoxious. Sasuke turned to get rid of the idiot trying to bother him and did a prompt double-take.

It was a vision in orange. A bright, eye-watering vision that imprinted itself on the surface of his eyeballs. He sent a brief prayer in thanks to whatever kami had seen to it that he hadn't activated his Sharingan as young as Itachi.

The blond kid seemed unconcerned about Sasuke's distress, if grin was anything to go by. He was wearing a rather tattered orange robe and dragged a monk's staff on the ground.

Sasuke turned back to the water and didn't answer. The intruder ignored Sasuke's attempt at giving him the cold shoulder, stepped on the wooden planks and plopped down next to him.

"I'm Naruto. Wanna change the world with me?"

Sasuke blinked. Despite his vow to ignore the pest, he turned back to Naruto.

"What?"

"Like I said. Come change the world with me."

"…Why me?" Sasuke asked, suspicion creeping into his voice. He couldn't think of any reason why some stranger would approach him, even if it was a kid.

Naruto took a deep breath. Sasuke inwardly cursed himself.

"A long, long time ago lived the Sage of Six Paths. He had two sons…"

Sasuke had expected something nonsensical and irritating. What he got was a story of his own clan that he'd never known before. He had known the Uchiha had used to fight the Senju, but he'd never been told of how the rivalry had begun.

It was… Well, it was upsetting. He'd been taught to be proud of his clan, proud of their history and abilities and…

"That… that's so petty. Why'd we all fight for centuries because of something like that?"

Naruto shrugged. "Tell me about it. Especially because both brothers were wrong anyway."

Sasuke frowned. "How come? Wasn't it Senju Hashirama who made the feud end by cooperating with the Uchiha? Wouldn't that mean the younger brother was right?"

Clan pride smarted, but he couldn't quite help himself.

"The younger one believed in love and cooperation, but he still failed to work with his own brother. I can't think of a bigger failure," Naruto said firmly. "And the Sage failed too. He should have believed in both of them. Hashirama only managed to make this village because he did reach Madara. Even if it all went to hell later."

He stood up, and offered Sasuke his hand. The solemn expression looked rather unsettling on his five-year old features.

"No one can bring peace to the world alone. And I never want to make the same mistake everyone else did. We shouldn't fight."

Sasuke was sure, then, that this was a person who would do what he promised even if he was five, even if he had to work his whole life to get there, even if he died in the process.

Sasuke looked at the offered hand and hesitated. Did he want to commit?

But.

While he wasn't sure what Naruto's deal was, this was the first time someone had picked him over everyone else. Over his brother.

He reached over and took Naruto's hand.

Konoha memorial stone, midmorning

Kakashi stood, staring at the names. It was moments like this when he thought the stone encompassed the world. There was nothing beyond the little clearing, and he was the only person who existed.

Well, he and the dead.

Everyone had died, while he lived on. Sensei's son was still there, but little Naruto had been an infant at the time, and then years had passed and he'd never managed to make an effort.

Yet another thing he regretted, the latest in a long list. He sometimes wondered if he was cursed to make mistake after another, fail when it really mattered and he really should not have failed, only to succeed effortlessly at trivial things.

And, as it was, how could he possibly have a connection to Asura? His only guess was that the man might have been related to Kushina, but Kakashi hadn't been that close to her. And her village had long been lost to the tides of war.

The niggling questions and doubt felt like his brain was being worn away by the edges.

"It'd be a good idea to stop doing that."

Kakashi jerked, trance broken, and took a step back, heart beating that ancient drum of fight-or-flight and embarrassment flushing his ears. He hadn't even sensed Asura's presence.

The man in question was sitting on top of the stone, and his face was twisted in a sneer. His presence slowly grew more oppressive, and Kakashi realised with a jolt of alarm that he must now be speaking with 'Kurama'.

"I mean it. You should stop coming to visit Obito."

Kakashi bristled. Asura was annoying, but it was Kurama who made him wary. "It's my own business! You didn't know him, you don't know what he did."

"Yes, I do," Kurama said. His voice was thin and sharp like ninja wire. "I know more about him than you do. And I'm telling you to stop coming here."

"If you're going to do the whole 'that's not what he would have wanted'–speech –"

"I don't care what Obito would have wanted," Kurama said, looking like the very idea offended him. "I'm just telling you to stop worshiping his memory."

Before Kakashi could edge in another word, Kurama stabbed himself with a stick and poofed into wisps of smoke.

A hidden spot alongside the Naka river, midmorning (again)

"You came!" Naruto said, elated. Sasuke cringed, and looked like he was already regretting his decision. Then, he coughed and stood tall.

"I gave you my word," Sasuke said, with all the grandeur a five-year old could manage. "And besides, it's not like they'll –"

He caught himself, and his face closed off like curtains. Naruto pretended not to notice. In many ways, both of them were still abandoned boys. There were things you understood with just a look.

And there was always one reliable way to work out frustrations.

"We should train," he said cheerfully. "We have to get strong if we want to achieve anything."

Sasuke nodded, looking thoughtful. "Yeah. Adults won't listen if we are weak."

And then, for the first time in both of Naruto's lives, he lunged at Sasuke without lingering regret or unhealthy rivalry.

Half an hour later, the two lay panting on the riverside.

Sasuke had to admit that Naruto was good. Not a lot of strength or finesse yet, but stamina and good instincts. He was a good match.

And something about him was both irritating and soothing, because he couldn't help feeling that Naruto, somehow, understood. When Sasuke wanted to hide something, Naruto never pointed it out.

Sasuke hesitated.

"Hey, Naruto?" he said quietly, and his voice shook just a little. "Do you think my parents love me?"

He hadn't really wanted to ask that. It was far too personal for his comfort. But here, in the hidden spot, he didn't have to be anything but Sasuke. And Naruto wouldn't tattle.

For all Naruto was clearly a little out there – what kind of five year old decided to devote their life to world peace? – he also reminded Sasuke a little of Itachi, who always seemed so wise when he spoke. And talking to Naruto didn't involve that whole mess of love and envy and frustration at being so far away in terms of, well, everything. And talking to his parents was even worse.

It was safe to ask this question from Naruto, who was a new acquaintance, who looked at him and didn't find him wanting.

Naruto looked a little panicked, his mouth hung open in surprise. Sasuke's lip twitched, the traitor.

"Yes," Naruto said, and Sasuke could hear the way he forced himself to speak. For my sake, he thought, and his heart warmed a little.

"I'm sure they love you. It's a ninja world, and…" Naruto said, and his eyes glazed over as though he was listening so some inner voice Sasuke couldn't hear. "It's like, it's like an ocean. You see the surface, but there's all kinds of stuff you don't know under the waves. And sometimes light jumps off the surface and blinds you, so you can't see under. And sometimes it's stormy and – okay, you got the point."

Naruto flailed, and scratched at the back of his head sheepishly.

"But anyway, since people hide stuff for the ninja business, they also learn to hide stuff at home. So your mom and dad probably just don't realise you can't see it yet. You gotta learn to see underneath the underneath."

His face twitched at the words, as though saying them was a sacrifice of a sort. Sasuke didn't pay attention.

"The truth… is hidden underneath the underneath, huh."

And so, time passed.

The academy, first day of school, early morning (two years after Naruto's temporal displacement)

Iruka had fully expected his class to be a handful. From what he had gathered, there were five clan heirs. And two kids who would have been heirs, if not for older siblings.

The security prospects were already a nightmare, but there were also some unique issues when young people were placed in that kind of position, and he didn't look forward to the kids dealing with their problems in his class.

And then there was the brat who was the host, and Iruka felt bad for him and hated him and hated himself for hating him. Mostly he didn't want to deal with the kid at all. But he wasn't the type to shirk his duties, which was probably why he so often ended up with said duties.

The entrance ceremony had gone off without a hitch, kids had been herded in the class and in their seats, and Iruka was ready. He had perfected his smile – kind but firm – and rustled the forms he would get the kids to fill after they inevitably lost interest in his welcoming speech.

Before he could begin, Naruto climbed on top of his desk.

Iruka froze, as the rest of the class watched with incredulous fascination. There were horrified whispers, some of them admiring Naruto's gall. A little boy who Iruka tentatively identified as an Uchiha planted his palm against his forehead.

Naruto didn't pay attention. He threw his hands wide, and beamed. "Hello, everyone! This here is Iruka-sensei, who is the best teacher in the world. But I'm Uzumaki Naruto, and I will – no, all of us will one day change the world. I want you to join me! Let's bring peace to the world together!"

Iruka did not give in to his desire to hit his head against the desk, but it was a close call.

The Uchiha-looking boy groaned, and stood up. "I'm... with this idiot," he said with a manner that suggested he had just revealed an embarrassing secret.

There was a brief silence before Hyuuga Hinata, a quiet girl with blazing embers in her cloud-white eyes, stood up and threw her hand in the air.

"I will join you," she declared.

It only went downhill from there.

Hokage's office, lunchtime

The third Hokage had expected to hear from Iruka. He was, after all, always interested in how the future generations of Konoha were coming along. And this was the year Naruto would enter.

He had not expected to see Iruka before the lunch hour was over. The teacher looked like someone who had had his world turned around a few times, and shaken, too, for a good measure.

"Iruka," the Hokage said calmly, puffing his pipe and putting down the reports of Orochimaru allegedly facing a paternity lawsuit in the Daimyo's court. "How is your new class?"

"Uzumaki Naruto recruited half of the class into a campaign allegely aiming for world peace. I took him aside to explain some things about proper behaviour in class, and ended up talking about my parents and crying. He also hit me over head with his staff."

For the first time in years, Hiruzen found himself speechless.

The home of Sasuke's family, after dinner

Itachi watched his brother do his homework. He didn't seem to need any help, Itachi was merely curious.

He had expected Sasuke to be excited about his first day in school, to prattle about what he had done, and possibly complain about girls. Instead, Sasuke carried the air of frustrated determination.

"You might as well ask," Sasuke said petulantly. He tried to glare at his brother, but it came out pouty. Itachi tried not to smile.

He sat down next to Sasuke, and poked his forehead. "What happened?"

"Naruto went and recruited half the class before lunch. He's such an idiot! I mean, I gotta admit he's good at what he does, but we're not ready! And he dragged all the idiots in class into it. If the girls are not going to annoy me to death, Kiba will."

Itachi blinked. He had known Sasuke had made friends with the blond kid, and had been glad. Now, he rather wished he'd paid attention to what the two actually did all those times they went off somewhere together.

"Ready for what?"

"World peace. And revolution of the ninja system. Whichever happens first," Sasuke said, with the kind of voice that suggested he knew how ridiculous most people would find the idea but was still ready to defend it.

"I… see. That is a very grand goal. How did that come about?"

"He said he picked me because he doesn't want to repeat the mistakes of the past. See, long time ago there was this Sage and his sons were the ancestors of the Uchiha and Senju and had a stupid fight, and we're going to fix it."

Itachi was both celebrated as a genius, and isolated for it. But he had also been traumatised by war, and so he had studied history to understand. Hours and hours of faded old scrolls, trying to get to the truth through bias and propaganda.

And Sasuke had just casually dropped a fact he'd taken months to discover. There was little to be found about the sage in the best of times, and information about his sons was also curiously scarce. As if someone had taken the trouble to erase it all. But there were limits to paranoia, so he had tried to shake the feeling.

"The ancestors… Sasuke, tell me what Naruto told you. Everything."

Sasuke blinked, and a slow smile grew on his face. He instantly forgave Naruto for being an idiot.

Because, well, never had he ever known anything before Itachi.

When he finished the tale, Itachi was quiet. Sasuke fidgeted. Had he told it wrong? Naruto had made so much sense, but then, his friend was the kind of person who could convince you to sell your firstborn.

It wasn't like he had a silver tongue, not really. It had more to do with being real, and even at this age Sasuke understood as much. Naruto meant every word he said.

Then, Itachi leaned forward and ruffled Sasuke's hair. "That was very interesting. Thank you for telling me, little brother."

Sasuke beamed. Itachi smiled, and wondered.

Uzumaki Naruto… who are you?

Author's notes:

I feel bad for keeping everyone waiting for so long, when the chapters of this story are ultimately written in two or three days of effort. It's weird. I can't come up with anything for weeks and then everything is written at once. Probably explains a lot about the story as a whole, really.

As usual, I'm not exactly happy with how this turned out, but I want to finish this story sometime this decade. I can't just sit on one chapter for half a year to make sure it appeases my sensibilities.

I can't see Naruto not trying to include Sasuke, what with all that went down in canon. I also have every intention to avoid the plot tumour that happened to Sasuke, but some of the same issues will have to be there. The Uchiha situation is so hairy I can't just brush it under the table like I did with the Hyuuga. (In the end, I always thought that the will to change the caste system was already there. Hiashi did end up teaching Neji main branch techniques, that sort of thing.)

There will be no pairings in this story. I haven't much cared for shipping in a long time, and I especially don't care how the epilogue presented everyone married with kids (and obviously unhappy with their lives as far as I can tell). There were so many more important things to show us, and all of them ignored for the sake of babies.