Chapter 6: Too Late for Tears

He ran as fast as he could; he knew the message he carried was important and he knew it was something that had to be delivered as soon as possible. When it had gotten too troublesome to maneuver around the people on the streets, he took to the rooftops and jumped from building to building as fast as he could. When he arrived at the main building, he dashed up the stairs, ignoring the familiar faces that said hello to him. When he reached his destination, he took a minute to steady himself for what might happen next. He knocked on the door, and when he heard the person on the other side bid him permission to enter, he did.

"Hokage-sama, I have an urgent message for you."

"Shikamaru? What is it?"

"I'm here to deliver an urgent message from Ame." Without another word, the lazy Nara handed over the scroll, obviously relieved to be free of such a troublesome responsibility. Tsunade opened and read the scroll, not bothering to dismiss the chunin in front of her, as she knew that if it was from Ame, it would be important. Her eyes widened when she read the contents, and as if the scroll was on fire, she dropped it onto the table and backed away from it. Tsuande couldn't believe what she just read; if what was written there was true then she had no choice. She looked back at the Nara boy who was now staring at her with curiosity evident in his eyes.

"Shikamaru, call the other members of the Konoha 11. Tell them to meet me in this office, immediately."

Shikamaru raised an eyebrow at the urgency and panic in her voice, but quickly dismissed it as he had orders to follow. He dashed out of the office and began his search for the others, mumbling something about always being dumped with troublesome responsibilities as he did so.

Ino was nonchalantly flipping through the pages of a magazine, patiently awaiting customers. It had been a long and rather slow day for the Yamanaka flower shop and honestly, she didn't expect business to pick up anytime soon. Needless to say, she was quite surprised when she heard the ringing of bells; signaling the entrance of a potential customer.

"Welcome to the Yamanaka- Oh, it's just you. What's up, Shika? Buying flowers for a girl?" The last sentence managed to get the Nara boy to raise an eyebrow in response.

"Yeah right; like I'll ever do anything that troublesome. I have a message from the Hokage."

"Really now? What is it about?"

"She told me to gather all the members of the Konoha 11, and meet her in her office, immediately. I actually need your help, since it'd be too troublesome to look for all of them by myself."

Ino huffed indignantly at his words.

"You always come to me when you're too lazy to do something. Why can't you just ask Chōji for help?"

"I have. I ran into him on the way here and he said he was going to go look for Team 8. I need you to go look for Team Gai."

Ino just sighed heavily, and closed the magazine she had been reading, and said.

"Fine, I'll just close up the shop. I'll see you there."

And with that, Shikamaru promptly turned on his heels and left the flower store. He took a second to look at the clouds high up above, and thought to himself.

"You know, I wish I was just like you; floating around, with no troubles; no responsibilities. I just hope that whatever Hokage-sama has in store for us, it won't be too troublesome."

The Nara boy let out a sigh, before lazily walking back to the Hokage Tower; inwardly smirking because he had just gotten his two teammates to do all the work for him. His walking, of course, soon turned into a full-on sprint when he heard the familiar shrill voice of his teammate screaming his name. He really wasn't expecting her to catch on so soon.

"… Do you still blame yourself…?"

"How could I not? You said so yourself; he was my best friend. He was like a brother to me; he saved me from myself, and how do I repay him? I tried to sever our bond. I…"

It's been a little over a year since the incident, but the memory of what had happened was still vividly imprinted on the mind of the raven-haired boy who was standing in front of a statue on The Great Naruto Bridge.

"… I ran my hand through his chest. I killed him; me, his brother."

"Sasuke-kun…"

The pink haired kunoichi had to fight back tears that threatened to fall as she listened to her teammate's words. Ever since their blonde ex-teammate brought Sasuke back to the Leaf, they had begun to grow closer and closer to each other in an attempt to ease the pain of losing their favorite dobe. When they were told that they had a mission in Wave, they decided that it would be best to stop by the memorial stone of their old friend; they thought they were ready for it, ready for the pain that would come from being reminded that you've lost someone; that no, you can't see them anymore and no, you can't tell them all of the things you've always wanted to tell them when they were still with you. Evidently, they were wrong. Sakura felt a surge of pain and guilt when she remembered how she had treated the boy; how she had used him for her own personal gain.

"Naruto… If only I had known… if only I had known what saving Sasuke-kun would actually cost… If I had known that it would take your life to bring him back…"

There were so many things she wished she could tell him; so many apologies that she owed the boy for all those times that she had hit him and blatantly rejected his affections without even thinking how much it hurt wished there was at least one time that she had embraced him, instead of walking right past him and towards her Sasuke-kun. The idea that she had been so heartless towards the boy that loved her with all his heart left a bitter taste in her mouth, and, after a while of reminiscing, pushed her over the edge. Tears ran down her face as she stared at the monument of the boy, standing on a slab of rock with his arms crossed, and sporting his trademark foxy grin. When the pain became too much to bear, her knees buckled under her. Fortunately, she felt a strong arm grab her by the shoulders and support her; it was her sensei. Kakashi somberly looked at both his students and immediately sensed the amount pain they were in. His gaze shifted to the ground as he figured that while it probably wasn't the appropriate time for it, he had to relay the Hokage's message.

"Sakura, Sasuke, I was contacted recently by the Hokage herself. She wants the two of you, along with the rest of the Konoha 11, to meet her in her office as soon as possible. Since we're done with our mission here, I suggest you two pack your things; we leave immediately."

Sakura only gave her sensei a slow nod, signaling that she understood while Sasuke on the other hand remained motionless, with his back turned on them and still staring at his former teammate's memorial stone. The copy-nin frowned underneath his mask as he saw how much his students, no, his entire team including himself, was suffering. He watched as his pink-haired student slowly held the boy's hand and squeezed softly. When she failed to elicit a response, Kakashi turned on his heels and walked away, knowing full well that there was little to nothing he could do to alleviate the situation. After all, he was suffering too; he had lost his best friend before, and just when he saw him in Naruto, he lost the boy as well.

When Kakashi had left, Sakura once again squeezed the Uchiha's hands. Tears once again welled in her eyes when the boy squeezed back. A few moments passed, before the Uchiha decided to break the silence.

"… You go on ahead with sense, Sakura. I'll catch up. I think… I want to be alone for a while."

Sakura allowed a sad yet understanding smile to pass her features before she reluctantly released the boy's hands, and walked away, but not before shooting one last glance at the boy. When the Uchiha was sure that he was alone, he took out a scroll from his pocket and funneled chakra onto the seal written inside. When the puff of smoke had cleared, the Uchiha held a small bouquet of Lilies in his right hand. As he was about to place it on the boy's memorial plaque, something came over him; he could feel something slowly washing over him.

Guilt; pain, loneliness, regret, they all came down on him like a ton of bricks as he fell to his knees.

"What the… What the hell is wrong with me?"

His hands immediately went to his face and wiped away the tears that were falling. He couldn't believe it; he couldn't believe that he was actually crying. He was an Uchiha, right? They were supposed to be the symbol for ultimate power; it's what they took pride in. The Uchiha were strong! They were the best! They're never supposed to show any weakness…

… So what was he doing on his knees, with a pathetic and pitiful look on his face? What was he doing crying his eyes out? Maybe it was because he had been holding it in for far too long. Or maybe it was because the guilt was too much. It didn't really matter; either way, he couldn't change what had already happened and there was absolutely nothing else he could do to fix things. He was too late; twelve months too late. He wiped away the tears when he heard the soft thud of footsteps coming from behind him. When he felt a hand rest gently on his shoulder, he knew exactly who it was.

"… Have you ever had a brother, Kakashi-sensei…?"

Tears started to form around the corner of the Copy Ninja's eye. After a few seconds of reflecting, he allowed a small frown to pass underneath his mask.

"… Yeah… I… I have."

"Is he gone, too…?"

Kakashi tried his best to remain calm, not just because he didn't want to break the cool, composed teacher façade, but also because he knew he had to be strong; not just for himself, but also for his students, who were suffering just as much if not more. It took everything he had to not break down, but it still wasn't enough to keep a single stray tear from falling down his face.

"… Yeah."

Without another word, the raven-haired Uchiha placed the Lilies on the memorial plaque and stood up, head hanging.

"Kakashi-sensei… If this is what it feels like to lose a brother… then screw Itachi; he can do whatever the hell he wants…"

Kakashi closed his eyes, and said a short prayer to his deceased blonde student.

"You did it, Naruto… You got rid of Sasuke's hate. You may not have gotten the respect and acknowledgement of the Village, but you got the respect and acknowledgement of your friends and your team. That's all that matters, right?"

With that, Kakashi and Sasuke walked away, but not before bowing slightly to the memorial statue.

"Kakashi-sensei… what was your brother like?"

The Copy Ninja smiled underneath his mask as he remembered his goggles-wearing ex-teammate; his one and only brother.

"I'll tell you and Sakura all about him on the way home."

That evening, all the members of the Konoha 11 along with their jounin sensei gathered inside the Hokage's office; well, all but three people. Tsuande sighed heavily and rubbed her temples.

"Figures. Kakashi's late again."

The genins who didn't know Kakashi merely raised an eyebrow at the statement, while the rest of the jounin could only sigh as well. Tsunade was about to start the meeting without them and just inform them when they arrived, but she was cut off by a loud thud coming from behind her; it was none other than Team 7.

"We're… We're here…" The Copy Ninja said in between breaths. Of the three, Kakashi was the only one who was breathing heavily; the other two were practically panting on the floor. When Kakashi managed to catch his breath, he stood up straight and spoke.

"Team 7 reporting the success of the mission. The supplies were successfully delivered to the Wave. We did however enc-"

"Yeah, yeah, you can tell me what happened later. Right now, I have something to tell you all."

Having noticed the seriousness of the Hokage's tone, Kakashi gave a quick nod and dragged his two students to where the others were standing and turned to face the Hokage. The other sensei merely stared at Kakashi and his team in disbelief, before Asuma spoke.

"Did you just… run all the way here… from Wave?"

"Yeah."

"In just 3 hours…?"

"Yeah."

There was a lingering silence in the room, that is, before, someone decided to speak up.

"Yosh! The Flames of Youth burn ever so fervently within you Kakashi! You are truly a worthy rival! I hereby accept your challenge! I will run to Kumogakure and back to Konoha in under three hours! If I cannot do that, I shall travel to the Land of the Snow completely naked while carrying a boulder on my back!"

Almost all of the people in the room shuddered when Gai brought up the image of him naked in the snow, carrying a boulder on his shoulders. Kakashi, on the other hand, just yawned and turned to his old friend.

"Hmm? Did ya say something Gai?"

"Curse you and your hip ways!"

"Enough!"

Tsunade slammed her fist on her desk, effectively catching the attention of all those present in the room.

"I'll get right down to the point. I received an urgent message from Amegakure. It said that at early morning today, they felt a massive surge of chakra near their borders. In response to the event, they sent several squads of their ninja to investigate. An hour later, they received a message saying that the teams had engaged in combat with a man in a black coat with red clouds painted on it. Not much was said about the man, except that he had the 'blood red eyes of a demon.'"

Sasuke's eyes narrowed upon hearing the description; he knew who it was, he just wasn't going to react to it. After all, he had let go of that vendetta; he tried to follow the path that it would lead to, and look where that got him. After a few moments of silence, they all assumed that that was all Tsunade wanted to tell them. Kurenai then proceeded to ask the question that was bugging her.

"With all due respect, Hokage-sama, what does that have to do with us?"

Tsunade sighed; she was silent because she couldn't think of a way to tell them the news without getting their hopes up. After all, losing someone once was painful enough; but to be given the hope that that person might still be alive, and then find out that it was just a lie would just be inhumane. She eyed the Konoha 11 one by one, trying to gauge their dispositions and to predict their reactions to the news. Ever since the Uchiha boy was retrieved, Sakura's been behaving less and less like a fan girl. The blonde boy's death hit her hard; she started to take her training seriously, fully convinced that if she were to spend the rest of her days with the love of her life, she'd have to be stronger so she'd never have to lose anyone ever again, especially not the Uchiha. Sasuke, on the other hand, has been avoiding or rather ignoring it entirely. He was still as smug and cocky as he used to be; as if he had never left the Village in the first place. Honestly, Tsunade had half a mind to kill him, if it weren't for that one time she caught him in the training field staring at their old picture of Team 7. That night, she realized that Naruto's death affected him the most. He lost a teammate, his best friend, and his brother. What still irked her though was how that damned Uchiha pride of his kept him from admitting it to anyone; how he'd still act like he didn't blame himself for what happened and that no one else should. She figured it was all a ruse of his, but it didn't make it any less irritating.

Shikamaru would probably comment on how troublesome it would be to have to chase down a lead that could turn out to be false; it definitely wasn't the first time Konoha's been deceived by Ame. He'd probably say that it would be a drag to do so in that weather too; they would be going to a country where the rain almost never stops pouring for Kami's sake. Chōji on the other hand would jump at the slightest chance to retrieve his long lost friend; she was sure of it. Ino would probably tag along just to make sure that her two teammates would be safe; she saw what Sakura went through, and it was quite clear that Ino didn't want to go through that as well.

With regard to Team Gai, she was sure that they'd be onboard with it. Kurenai's team, on the other hand, was rather difficult to read. According to Kurenai's reports, the Inuzuka and the Hyuuga seemed to have formed some sort of relationship with one another, and apparently, this was the reason why their teamwork seemed to have increased the last few months. She didn't know how they would handle it; she knew that the Inuzuka missed his old friend, but at the same time openly resented the boy for putting Hinata through all that pain. And speaking of the Hinata, there was no telling how she would handle the news. Tsunade just hoped she wouldn't pass out; at least not in her office. She knew that Shino would approach the matter logically; it was just how the Aburame handled things. After a few moments of sighing, she decided to just say it as bluntly as she could.

"There was another message that was sent to Amegakure, a few minutes before they encountered the mystery man. According to Amegakure, it was covered in blood when they received it. It said only one thing: Kyuubi no Youko."

The four Jounin sensei noticeably stiffened when they heard what Tsunade just said; something that didn't go unnoticed by their students. After a short while, the silence was broken by a clearly confused Kiba.

"I don't get it Hokage-sama. Didn't the Yondaime Hokage kill the Kyuubi?"

"… No. Listen, what I'm about to tell you is an S-ranked secret. You must swear to never tell anyone else about this; this meeting never happened, am I making myself clear?"

The entire Konoha 11 froze up, nervousness and anxiety evident in their posture, but nodded to signal that they understood.

"Good. The Yondaime Hokage was a great man; a powerful ninja too, but even he couldn't kill a bijuu. Tailed beasts are entities of pure chakra and raw power; they're technically un-killable. Even if one was defeated, they would just reappear after a short while somewhere else and continue to wreak havoc. In order to actually keep a bijuu's power in check, they have to be sealed into something; more often than not, into a Jinchuuriki."

Sasuke grunted while Sakura looked down to the ground; they already knew what she was going to say about the Jinchuuriki. Kiba, though, raised his hand and asked.

"What's a Jichuuriki?"

Sasuke grunted once again.

"I've been back for a year, yet your ignorance still amazes me mutt."

"What did you say asshole?!"

Kiba took a swipe at the smug Uchiha's face, only to miss and lose his balance. When he got on his feet, he, along with Akamaru, started growling at the boy. Surprisingly though, he immediately calmed down when the Hinata put her hands on his shoulders and looked apologetically at Sasuke.

"Ano, I'm sorry for how Kiba-kun is behaving, but please don't be so mean to him, because I really don't approve of it." She spoke with the slightest bit of vehement ire in her voice, even going so far as subtly activating her Byakugan to emphasize the threat hidden behind her words. The trademark smug Uchiha smirk donned on Sasuke's face as he looked the girl straight in the eye and activated his own Doujutsu.

"Hmph. So you finally grew a backbone eh?"

"Both of you back down, right now." The tone of Tsunade's voice was indicated that she was a hair away from sending someone flying out of the window. Deciding to be the 'bigger man', Sasuke backed away and stood beside his teammate once again. When Hinata and Kiba did the same, Tsunade continued.

"As some of you may know, a Jinchuuriki is a human host of a tailed beast; the containers that we seal the Bijuu into. That being said, Yondaime never killed the Kyuubi no Youko; he just sealed it into someone, and that person is his only son, Uzumaki Naruto."

The entire Konoha 11 was floored; Uzumaki Naruto, the dead last dobe, was the son of Namikaze Minato, the greatest ninja of Konoha? It was difficult to even imagine it yet at the same time, it was so obvious; the resemblance was uncanny and now that they think about it, the Yondaime was, according to what they learned from the academy, not the kind of man who would ask someone to do something he wouldn't do himself. It was only logical to think that he'd sacrifice his own son. Before they could even think of anything else, Tsunade coughed loudly and got their attention.

"But that isn't all. You see, when a Jinchuuriki dies while the Bijuu is still sealed, it takes a while for the bijuu to recover and return. It takes years. According to Amegakure though, the massive spike of chakra near their borders belonged to the Kyuubi no Youko. Before you say anything, no, I don't think this means the Kyuubi's been revived because if it was then a large fox would've been spotted and it wouldn't have hesitated to destroy Ame. I think there was someone controlling the power."

Tsunade's words managed to elicit shocked looks from everyone in the room, including the Uchiha. They all knew what she was implying, and by the looks of it, they all understood why this meeting was so urgent.

"Good, you understand. Just remember, there's only a slight chance-"

"I'll go."

All eyes immediately turned to the source of the hasty reply; Nara Shikamaru. Even his teammates and his sensei were surprised by the sudden willingness to take on responsibility. When he noticed the attention he was getting, he frowned a bit, sighed, and said.

"There's nothing wrong with me wanting to go. I lead that mission to retrieve Sasuke. What happened to Naruto… it's my responsibility. There were so many things I could have done, but I let him go. He died because of a bad move on my part, so if there's even a slight chance of finding him, then I'll go."

His teammates and sensei couldn't help but smile at the boy's initiative and it didn't take long for the others to as well. Asuma placed his hand on the boy's shoulder, and spoke.

"Team 10 will take part in the search; although, I have a mission outside the Village, so only Ino, Shikamaru, and Chōji will go."

The three students turned to look at him like he had gone insane.

"Don't worry; it'll be good practice for you." The bearded ninja said as he lit another cigarette. Before anyone else could get a word in, Sasuke grabbed Sakura and Kakashi by the wrist and dragged them with him as he stepped forward.

"Team 7 will also take part of the search. I'll bring that dobe back; if it means I get to kick his ass again." The Uchiha smirked smugly at the prospect of kicking the blonde's ass once again. Inwardly, though, he was smiling at the idea of seeing his old friend again. After a few seconds of thought though, he realized that if the dobe was alive… then that meant he won the fight at the Valley of the End. His eyes widened at the sudden realization, causing his grip to tighten and elicit a raised eyebrow from his sensei and a girly squeak from the pink haired blushing kunoichi beside him.

"Yosh! Then it is decided; the mighty Team Gai shall also partake in this youthful task of finding Naruto-san! If we cannot find him, I will run 10,000 laps around Konoha, and if I cannot do that, I will march with Gai-sensei to the land of snow and also take off my clothes an-"

"That's enough, Lee. Hokage-sama, please excuse my teammate. As team leader of Team Gai, I, Hyuuga Neji, concur with the decision of my enthusiastic teammate. You have my eyes."

Tsunade smiled at the willingness of her shinobi; she knew that Naruto meant a lot to them, even to the Uchiha, so it was no surprise for them to want to look for him even if there was only a small chance of finding him. She waited a few seconds for another voice to speak up, but when she heard none, her eyes turned to Kurenai and her team.

"… Team 8…?"

At this point, Kurenai scratched the back of her head and smiled sheepishly at the Hokage. She allowed a nervous chuckle to escape her throat before she spoke up.

"Ah, I actually have a… mission… yeah, a mission! W-With A-Asuma… Y-Yeah… So, it's not really my decision here, it's up to my team to decide whether or not they want to go."

Tsunade's face dropped to her desk as it became quite clear to her what the two would be doing on their "mission". She didn't press on the matter though; Asuma and Kurenai were two very capable ninja and she was confident that they would put the mission before… whatever it is that they planned on doing together or to each other. She raised her gaze back to the Team of the pensive Inuzuka, nervous Hyuuga, and indifferent Aburame. Hinata thought about her words for a few moments, before finally deciding to speak up.

"I-I don't think it would be a good idea…"

"We'll do it." All eyes were now on Shino, who still looked as devoid of emotion as ever.

"Our team will be crucial in tracking down Uzumaki-san. Isn't that right Kiba-san? Hinata-san?"

Kiba looked at his teammate nervously before turning to his love interest. He looked into her lavender eyes for a few seconds before taking her hand and nodding in reassurance. After a while, Hinata smiled as well, and turned to address her other teammate.

"Yes, Shino! We'll help find Naru-… Uzumaki-san. Isn't that right Kiba-kun, Akamaru?"

"Yes!"

Akamaru barked in approval and jumped onto Hinata, causing the Hyuuga to muffle an 'eep'. Kiba smiled at her cuteness and planted a soft kiss on her right cheek, effectively making the Hyuuga blush furiously. Sakura, on the other hand, couldn't stand the display of affection; she had nothing against public display of affection, in fact, she hoped one day to be able to do such things with her Sasuke-kun. She couldn't stand it because it was Hinata; the girl who had been so madly in love with her ex-teammate. She watched how she would stalk the boy; how she would stutter when he talked to her, freeze up when he noticed her, and even pass out when he touched her. She was head over heels in love with him for so long yet, her she was, after only a year of losing him, getting all fluffy with one of the boy's best friends. When things had escalated from pecking to embracing, she couldn't take it anymore.

"Really? You're doing this now?"

Sasuke picked up on his teammate's annoyance and decided to follow her lead; besides, the sooner he was out of that office, the sooner he could pack his things and train for his upcoming battle with his old friend.

"Oi, Kakashi-sensei, let's get out of here. I can't stand watching these two. Besides, I can feel my IQ plummeting just by being in the same room with the mutt."

Kiba growled at Sasuke, obviously fed up with the Uchiha's arrogance, but was soon calmed when Hinata squeezed his hands gently and glared at Team 7. Seeing the tension that was forming between the four, Kakashi looked over at Kurenai who was exchanging flirtatious and knowing glances with Asuma, and sighed. He stepped forward and addressed their Hokage, who at this point was chugging down her second bottle of sake.

"Hokage-sama, since our Team has already accepted the task, may we take our leave? I think my Team requires rest and time to pack, since I'm guessing that this will be a long trip."

Tsunade raised an eyebrow at the man; she knew Kakashi to be perceptive, but she didn't expect him to get ahead of her. She grunted; not really wanting to deal with the whining that was soon to come.

"Damn, I was planning on telling you all right before you set out. This might turn out to be a long-term mission; by that, I mean if you don't find anything while you're out there, then you can come home immediately. But, if you do pick up on any leads, you will have to follow them. Now, I have faith that you will all stick to the mission, no matter how hard it gets. If Naruto…" she took a moment to quell the feelings that threatened to resurge as it was neither the time nor place for them to do so. "… If Naruto is alive, then I would have imagine he'd do whatever it takes to get away since he has done so for about a year now and honestly, with the way this Village treated him, I wouldn't be surprised. Do you all understand?"

All the teams nodded in unison.

"All right, you may all take your leave."

Without another word, all of the Teams left, leaving only Tsunade and Shizune in the office. Tsunade took another large gulp of sake, before turning to her apprentice.

"… Do you think he's out there?"

Shizune smiled sadly at her mentor; Naruto was like a little brother to her. Losing him once was hard enough, but now; now that they were given the hope that he might still be alive, she didn't know if she, or anyone else for that matter, can take it if that hope was shattered. She didn't know if any of them could take losing him again, especially no her mentor.

"… I hope so."

"… I just know the council is going to be on my ass for this." Tsunade sighed heavily before she continued. "Send a message to the entire council; this isn't something I can keep from them anyway."

Shizune nodded and left the room. When the message had been sent, she returned only to see Tsunade on her 4th bottle. She momentarily considered confiscating them, but then, decided to join her instead. Needless to say, they drank the night away.

"… You realize what this means, don't you?"

"Yes, I do. I have no idea how it happened, but they failed to report back today. I have a feeling that something has happened to them, and if the message we intercepted from Amegakure is true, then this might not be a coincidence."

The shadow-shrouded man scowled pensively upon hearing his associate's words, before allowing a smirk to pass his features.

"Such a shame, The Priests of Dala or whatever was our best source of information on The Akatsuki. Their experiments on this new method of blocking off a body's supply of chakra would have proven rather effective in battle too. So much wasted potential… Well, that's one less thing to fund. Wouldn't you think so, 'H'?"

"… Of course; oh and, by the way, our esteemed Hokage has called a meeting of the entire Council tomorrow. I assume it'll be about… that…?"

"You'd be correct to assume so. Now would be the perfect time to turn convince everyone that that thing has the potential to become the greatest weapon in the entire shinobi world."

"Yes… well, I shall take my leave then."

With that, 'H' promptly turned on his heels and exited the dark room. When he had closed the door, he sighed to himself.

"Kami have mercy on me… Naruto, I hope you forgive me for what I've done. Should you come back and destroy this Village, I wouldn't be surprised."

Naruto awoke in the room of what seemed like a cabin. The daylight was shining in through the windows, illuminating every inch of the room and allowing the boy to see the extent of his injuries. There were numerous pink gashes on the boy's body; even with the Kyuubi's healing factor, it would still take time for large stab wounds to heal. When he saw his injuries, his mind drifted off to the events that conspired on that night; the night when he lost her; the night when they said their first goodbye. He would've shed a few tears, but something stopped him before he could even start.

"If you keep thinking about that, then you'll never be strong; don't blame yourself, because you know she doesn't blame you Kit. If you don't move on, you'll never be happy."

A frown crossed the boy's features.

"… How can I not blame myself? I couldn't protect her… not with my own strength. I relied too much on your power and when I couldn't access it I was weak and pathetic. It's my fault; I was too weak."

"Then get stronger; that's why you left right?"

"You should know that it's not that easy, Kura-kun. So far, all we've been training to do is how to meld our chakras efficiently. It's not like you can teach me Taijutsu or Ninjutsu, and it's not like I can find anyone skilled enough to teach me either."

Kyuubi let out a small chuckle at the boy's cluelessness, before addressing the young boy.

"Somehow, I don't think that'll be a problem. Right hand, Kit."

Naruto's eyes followed his partner's directions, only to widen at the sight; on his right ring finger, was a ring with the kanji for "scarlet" on it. He racked his mind for the reason why the ring seemed so familiar, and when Naruto found it, his heart almost stopped.

"Shit… Shit!"

Naruto immediately got out of his bed and sprinted down the stairs. He almost tripped on his own feet when he was nearing the last step, but luckily his head found the railing and he managed to catch himself. When he noticed that the house was indeed empty, he ran to the exit and practically broke down the door, only to find a wide clearing and a cloaked man sitting on a tree stump in the middle of it.

"Oh, Naruto. I was going to check if you were still alive, but then I found this tree stump."

Fear was evident in the boy's eyes, but what the cloaked man failed to recognize was the rage building up and bubbling within the blonde Jinchuuriki. The wind started whipping around Naruto as he started gritting his teeth and clenched his fists. Slowly but surely, a smile flashed across the boy's face. Right in front of him was Itachi Uchiha; the most feared Sharingan user probably since Uchiha Madara himself. This was the man that murdered his entire clan. This was the man, whose very name struck fear into the hearts of thousands, including Naruto. Most importantly though, this was the man who was basically responsible to everything that his old friends went through; the man that tortured his own little brother and, by extension, pushed him to run away from Konoha in search of power. This man was responsible for all the pain Sasuke went through and some of the hardships that Naruto experienced; and there was no better time to get back at him. Without any word of warning, Naruto charged at Itachi who, being a little surprised at the boy's thoughtlessness reacted completely on instincts. He waited for the boy to get close enough, and then, he activated his Sharingan. Naruto suddenly felt his entire body go limp and soon enough, his consciousness shut down. The blonde boy fell forward, and as he was about to fall straight into Itachi's arms, Itachi sidestepped, all the while never taking his eyes off the boy. When he heard the soft thud of the boy's landing, he let out a long whistle.

"… Whoops. I think I overdid it."

Naruto awoke in the room of what seemed like a cabin. The daylight was shining in through the windows, illuminating every inch of the room and allowing the boy to see the extent of his injuries. As he got out of bed, he felt a strange sense of déjà vu, but paid no mind to it. He silently climbed down the stairs, analyzing each and every part of the seemingly familiar house, and as he put his right hand on the railing, his eyes widened at what he saw. He immediately rushed out of the house and ran into Itachi, who was now sitting beside an open fire.

"Oh, you're awake. Good."

Everything came rushing back to Naruto.

"Y-You! What time is it?!"

"… According to the sky… it's night time. Why?"

"Good, that means I wasn't asleep for very long. Now, what the hell are you doing here?!"

Naruto didn't wait for an answer. He thought about charging at Itachi, but thinking back to their previous encounter, he knew that wouldn't work. Instead, he formed a cross with his fingers and focused his chakra.

"Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"

Ten clones appeared and surrounded Itachi. When they all attacked, the real Naruto jumped as high as he could and when he reached the apex of his ascent, created another clone to charge a Rasengan into his palm. The blonde boy watched as Itachi easily disposed of his clones; when the first one came at him, Itachi merely sidestepped the punch and chopped the clone on the back of the neck. When three others lunged at his back, he dispelled them with a quick but powerful spinning whip kick. As if acting on a premonition, Itachi raised his right hand and caught a clone's fist half a second later. Using the clone's own momentum against it, Itachi pivoted his left leg, dispelled the four other incoming clones with the clone he had caught, and threw said clone upwards a fraction of a second before Naruto yelled.

"Rasenga- What the fuck?!"

The ball of pure chakra made contact with the airborne Kage Bunshin, and the real Naruto fell flat on his face. When he got up, he mustered up the meanest glare he could, and directed it towards Itachi, who was covering his mouth in an attempt to stifle his laughter. When Itachi managed to compose himself, he smiled at the blonde boy who had tried to attack him, and said.

"That was good, Naruto-kun, but not great. By the way, it's Friday today."

Naruto raised an eyebrow at the Uchiha's expression of familiarity.

"Naruto-kun…? What the hell makes him think he can talk to me like that? And what's with the 'It's Friday today' crap?"

Naruto would have continued his internal musings, but something stopped him rather abruptly. It was Friday today… he looked at the cloaked man once more, raised an eyebrow at him, and said.

"… Friday? You mean to tell me… Are you telling me… it's not Tuesday today…?"

"No, it's Friday. You have to learn how to listen Naruto-kun."

"If it's Friday today… Then are you telling me I was asleep for three whole days?!"

"Yes."

"Three days?!"

"Yes."

"I wasn't asleep, I was in a coma you… you… you butt!"

"… Butt…? Naruto, your choice of words is rather… uncouth."

"Shut up!"

The blonde boy engaged Itachi in an all out Taijutsu match. Naruto jumped and tried to land a flying roundhouse kick on Itachi's jaw, but the latter merely parried the blow and grabbed the back of Naruto's neck. Enraged by how easily Itachi managed to escape the attack, Naruto threw his left elbow upwards in an attempt to clip his opponent on the temple; an attempt that soon backfired when Itachi grabbed the elbow, twisted it into an armlock, pivoted his left foot to drag the boy to the side, tripped the boy's leg, and stopped Naruto's descent just as his face was a few inches away from the fire. Naruto could feel the heat of the flame stinging his face; it didn't help that his sweat was dropping on the fire, causing it to flare up even more. The enraged Jinchuuriki grit his teeth.

"I could use your help here Kurama."

"Hmmm… no."

"What? I thought we were partners?!"

"We are. But you said so yourself; you rely too much on my power. Consider this a test of your mettle without it. Currently, I feel no malicious intent from the Uchiha. You should be safe."

"What the hell do you mean 'no malicious intent'?"

Kyuubi sighed in annoyance at the boy's density; at times, he even thought that the bars of his cage were more intellectually capable than his host, and that vexed him to no end. It was something they would have to work on as well.

"It means he's not going to kill you, shit-for-brains. That or he's just really good at hiding it."

The entire interaction with his partner did nothing but piss Naruto off even more; what Kyuubi couldn't understand was that they were dealing with the Akatsuki; the very organization that was after him. Now was not the time to be 'testing his mettle'. What Naruto wanted wasn't a good sparring partner; he wanted to kill Itachi Uchiha, right then and there. He wanted to gut the lying bastard, rip his head off, and leave it at the front door of Akatsuki so that they would know better than to fuck with Uzumaki Naruto. Sadly, without help from the Kyuubi, it was clear that what Naruto wanted was nothing more than a pipedream. Naruto searched his seemingly empty mind for a way to win, or at least get away from his opponent, and when he couldn't think of anything, he decided to just lash out at the man. He struggled to get loose of Itachi's grip, but to no avail. Realizing that he wouldn't budge, Naruto decided to take out his aggression through verbal means.

"What the fuck is wrong with you? Let me go! I'm going to rip those eyes of yours right out of their socket, you sick, genocidal ass!"

Itachi's eyes narrowed the slightest bit at the boy's words. When Itachi said nothing in response, he knew he sit something close to home.

"You sick fuck! No wonder Sasuke wants to kill you. You have no idea how much pain you've caused him! You're the worst brother anyone could ever have!"

The last sentence did it; Itachi's grip loosened for a couple of seconds, only to tighten up once again, eliciting a yelp of pain from the boy. Itachi turned the boy around and looked him in the eye; his face no longer had a single trace of softness to it as it had reverted to its old stern expression. Without saying a word, Itachi threw a sickening knee to the boy's solar plexus and threw Naruto a few feet away. When Naruto got back up, his breathing was ragged, his knees were quivering, and he had a terrified look on his face. He felt fear violently shake through his entire body when he saw Itachi slowly walking to where he stood with the same, cold, piercing look in his eyes. His mind was screaming at him to run; to turn around and run, never looking back for fear of being caught in those torturing eyes, but his body was frozen in place. He didn't know if it was because he was already in some sort of genjutsu or simply because after all this time, he was still afraid of Itachi. In a last-ditch effort, he threw a right hook aimed at Itachi's jaw, but it was all in vain. Itachi saw the feeble punch coming from a mile away and caught it with his right hand. He looked the terrified blonde straight in the eye, grabbed the boy's right wrist and gave it a firm shake.

"Strong; always be strong. "

Itachi gave the boy's wrist another firm shake, and slapped his knuckles with an open palm.

"Be strong, yet swift. Never squander your energy on wide or unsure attacks. Be precise and lethal."

Naruto looked Itachi dead in the eyes and, as if reacting automatically, he threw a left uppercut, which was still caught by Itachi. Naruto's eyes widened in shock as he noticed how his punch felt faster; his hands felt lighter, and it didn't take as much effort. He wanted to mutter something in amazement, but before he could do so, Itachi pulled on both his wrists, making it so that Naruto's arms were now crossed in front of him.

"Good. Focus."

Itachi suddenly pushed the boy away with surprising strength, and gestured for the boy to come at him. Naruto obliged, and threw a spinning back kick, once again surprising himself with the amount of power that was behind it. Unfortunately for the young blonde, Itachi sidestepped out of the kick's way and pushed the kicking leg upwards. Naruto was thrown off balance, but managed to steady himself enough to be able to throw yet another straight right, but this time, it was aimed at Itachi's gut. Naruto smiled when he felt his knuckles come into contact with something, but the smile immediately turned upside-down when he realized that Itachi had dodged the blow but used his coat to catch the attack. Itachi grabbed the boy's right wrist, brought it to Naruto's eye level, gave it yet another firm shake, and spoke.

"Don't just fight with this. If you let your impulses lead you, you'll die. If you attack with nothing more but brute strength in your advantage, you'll die. Brawn may make you stronger, but brains will let you live longer. So fight with this." Itachi tapped his index and middle finger on Naruto's temple, gesturing to the boy's mind. When Naruto nodded, Itachi once again pushed him away. This time though, there was no moment of reprieve as it was Itachi who charged in. Naruto ducked under the incoming right hook, grabbed the elbow and pushed it upward with his left hand, dispelling any force that was put behind the punch. Upon seeing the opening, Naruto launched his right hand upwards and caught Itachi by the neck. The Uchiha allowed a ghost of a smirk to pass his features, before once again speaking.

"Now you see how easy it is to fight against an opponent who isn't thinking."

Without even finishing the lecture that Naruto was expecting, Itachi raised his left hand and turned his body to the right. When Naruto's choke grip was loosened by the sudden turn, Itachi brought his elbow down on Naruto's forearm, breaking the choke grip entirely. Itachi then grabbed Naruto's right wrist with his right hand, slid his left hand to the side of Naruto's face, and moved his right foot back, catching the boy in a standing wristlock.

"But one step is never enough. Always; always, stay ten steps ahead of your opponent. Don't just charge in like you have diarrhea and your opponents are blocking the path to the bathroom."

Itachi then released the wristlock and pushed Naruto away, never taking his eyes off the boy all the while. He narrowed his eyes when the boy got into stance and started focusing; as if the boy was analyzing him. After a few minutes of silence, Naruto disappeared only to reappear in Itachi's right flank. The blonde boy threw a roundhouse kick aimed at the back of Itachi's head, but unfortunately for him, Itachi ducked under it and countered with an attempt to sweep Naruto's leg. Surprisingly, Naruto saw it coming; he had imagined the fight during their moment of silence and it was actually panning out the way he expected it to. He jumped upwards, placed his left hand on Itachi's back, and vaulted over him with ease. When he landed on his feet, Naruto raised his left hand to shield the right side of his face, as if he was expecting something to hit the area. A fraction of a second later, Itachi threw a left chop at the boy's neck, only to have his blow caught. Naruto saw the faint look of surprise flash across Itachi's face for a split-second, and noticed that his opponent's left side was vulnerable. Without any hesitation, Naruto rammed his right shoulder into Itachi's ribs, forcing the man to stagger a few paces backwards. A slight smirk appeared on Itachi's face as he raised his eyebrows at the boy's quick pace of learning.

"Again."

Itachi started his assault with a roundhouse kick that Naruto aptly weaved under the attack, launching a barrage of his own. Itachi managed to block each kick and parry each punch with the utmost ease, and when the boy started to show signs of fatigue, he took advantage of it by ducking under the last punch and retaliating with a chop aimed at the boy's gut. The attack landed flush as the blonde Jinchuuriki got the wind knocked out of him, causing him to stagger backwards and wince at the pain. Itachi saw the opening and continued his assault, attacking with a clear intent to cripple or kill. Naruto barely managed to defend himself as the impact of the attacks he blocked started to numb his arms. When he realized that his arms wouldn't be able to hold out any more, he switched from blocking to parrying, which didn't do much good since he could barely keep up with Itachi's speed. The blows were grazing Naruto, causing him to retreat and further encourage Itachi's advance. Finally, an elbow landed cleanly on Naruto's temple, causing him to stumble forward and almost lose his footing. Itachi at once thought that the boy would not be able to get up after the last hit; he had been putting about 20% percent of his strength behind each blow and he knew that even with the Kyuubi's regeneration, Naruto would still feel the brunt of the damage. He let his guard down for a fraction of a second, but that's when he saw it; he wasn't sure what it was, but there was something on the boy's face that bothered him. It looked almost like… a smile.

Naruto used every ounce of leg power he had left and jumped to deliver a fatal roundhouse kick aimed at Itachi's smug little face. He had hoped that it would end there, but there was also a part of him that knew it wouldn't; a part that told him exactly what to anticipate. Even with the might of the Sharingan, Itaachi barely saw the kick coming and managed to block it with both hands. Much to his surprise though, a clone soon appeared beside him, grabbed Naruto's right arm, swung the boy 360 degrees and slingshot the incoming kick at an astounding speed. Naruto's foot made contact with the Uchiha's face before causing it to break apart into a dozen of crows. Tired and battered, Naruto heard the faint sound of clapping from behind him. When he turned to look, he saw a smiling Itachi sitting on the tree stump by the open fire. Itachi suddenly stood up.

"Again!"

And so they fought again and again. After a dozen rounds or so, Naruto was lying beside the open fire, breathing raggedly with bruises all over his body, and smiling. Itachi was standing beside the fatigued form of the boy, breathing somewhat heavily himself; he knew his Taijutsu was one of the best, but the sheer amount of the boy's stamina amazed him to no end. What surprised him even more was how quickly the boy picked up on what he was trying to teach; after only a few rounds, Naruto already managed to land three consecutive hits on Itachi; solid hits too, not just grazes. Itachi smiled down at the boy, sat beside him, and spoke.

"… Thank you, Naruto-kun. Thank you for saving my brother. I know you didn't do it for me, but thasnk you nonetheless"

Naruto's body froze; it seems his entire day was full of surprises. Despite his body's protests, he sat up, and looked the man in the eye with a weak glare.

"Why would you care? Everyone knows what you did to your own clan and to Sasuke-teme. Why would you care if I saved him from becoming the snake's boy-toy?"

Itachi couldn't help but laugh at the boy's attitude towards his little brother; it was clear that the two shared a bond. It was the same bond that Itachi used to have with Sasuke, and the same bond that he wished to rebuild someday; the bond of brotherhood. Naruto, on the other hand, merely raised an eyebrow at the cloaked man's strange behavior; he never imagined the menacing Itachi Uchiha to be capable, well, happiness. When Itachi had finished laughing, he turned to address the boy's question.

"Everything always has more than one side to it, Naruto-kun. It's not just black and white; there are multiple shades of grey. I know what you know, and I also know that there's another side to it. I could explain, but I'm afraid it'd take too long."

Naruto frowned at the man's secrecy. He turned his gaze to the fire and, after a few minutes of silence, spoke.

"I've got time."

Itachi raised an eyebrow in curiosity.

"I've got time. I've got nothing but time. Besides, I'll need to keep myself preoccupied since I'm your prisoner now."

"…Prisoner…?"

"… You are going to take me to Akatsuki, aren't you?"

"What gave you that idea?"

Naruto was absolutely baffled. Itachi Uchiha was the Akatsuki member tasked with the capturing of the Kyuubi no Youko. Yet, here he was, right in front of Naruto, and he was practically saying he had no interest in carrying out his task.

"What the hell are you talking about? You're an Akatsuki member! You're supposed to loyally fulfill your task!"

Now it was Itachi who was staring at the boy in confusion. After a few moments of awkward silence, he smiled at the boy and ruffled his hair.

"It's not that simple Naruto-kun."

"…Why?"

Naruto was standing now; he couldn't help but feel as if Itachi was toying with him. When he saw the slight frown that donned over Itachi's countenance for a few seconds before the man smiled at him once again, he calmed himself down and decided to hear him out.

"Naruto, you said you had time, didn't you? Sit down; I'm going to tell you a story, but only if you promise me one thing; don't hate the Leaf."

The blonde boy nodded, and Itachi proceeded to recount his entire story to the boy, including the goals of Akatsuki. It was his first time talking about it with anybody, so it came as no surprise when he would stop at certain points and don a look of disconnection. When he had finished, Naruto's mouth was agape. He opened his mouth to speak, remembering to choose his words wisely.

"… I'm sorry about what I said earlier… I-I… I didn't know…"

Itachi snapped out of his disconnected trance and threw a smile at the boy.

"It's okay Naruto-kun. I don't blame you for feeling that way, considering how much you cared about my brother."

"What? I do not care about that teme!"

"You say that now, but didn't the two of you lock lips before?"

"Eeeew! Shut up you gross furball!"

Naruto could barely hear his own thoughts behind the demon's hysterical laughter. When Kyuubi decided that it was once again nap time, Naruto turned back to Itachi.

"… You really love Konoha, don't you?"

"Hai."

"To think you did all that for Konoha…"

"Your'e wrong."

Naruto tilted his head to the side in confusion.

"I didn't do it for a Hidden Village. I'm not that benevolent." He let out a slight chuckle before continuing. "I did it for my little brother. I did what I had to in order to protect the only family I have left. But still, I can't say there wasn't a part of me that didn't want to save Konoha; to be a hero of Konoha. Isn't that what you wanted as well, once upon a time?"

"Hero? The people of Konoha see you as the complete opposite; you joined the Akatsuki and you even infiltrated Konoha once. I hate to break it to you, but they don't see you as a hero over there. And yes, it was what I wanted…" Naruto fiddled with his necklace before continuing. "…A long time ago; when I didn't know about the things that were so much more important than a Village that treats it's heroes like trash."

Itachi frowned at the boy's response; somehow, it felt like the Naruto he was speaking to right now wasn't the same boy as before. It seemed as if something was eating away at him, slowly chipping away at his soul. He seemed a bit darker than before.

"… Do you resent them? Do you not love your Village anymore?"

"… I don't know. That's not it, I think… don't get me wrong. I love the Hidden Leaf, or at least the idea of it. I just…I don't know if it's worth fighting for anymore."

"… Then fight for something else."

Naruto eyed the man with curiosity. He thought Itachi was being sarcastic, but the look on his face indicated that he was absolutely serious. After a few seconds, Itachi grabbed something that was inside the hollow stump he had been sitting in and tossed it to the boy; it was a simple pair of black shinobi pants, a fishnet shirt, a black long coat with white fur around the collar, and a Kitsune mask. Naruto's eyes widened in joy; he had always wanted a Kitsune mask, but when he had tried to buy one from a shop in Konoha, the man literally kicked him out and threw small pots at his head. He was about to try them on, when he suddenly realized that something had to be up.

"… What is this for?"

"Remember what I told you about the true purpose of Akatsuki's hunt for the Tailed Beasts?"

"Yeah, and don't worry, I already have a plan for that."

Itachi chuckled to himself and smirked at the boy; he could not wait to hear what the little blockhead had in mind.

"Do tell."

"I'm going to gather all the Jinchuuriki and we're going to fight against you guys."

Naruto's confident tone caused Itachi to giggle uncontrollably into his hand. When he stopped, he looked at the boy and smiled.

"You've got the right idea, but you're looking at it the wrong way. Listen, I'm on your side Naruto. You've convinced me with how you managed to turn my little brother away from Orochimaru. You have true strength and a special skill; you always manage to steer people away from the darkness. Maybe it's your resolve, or maybe it's just your stubbornness, but you have the ability to get people to see things your way. So for now, I want you to do two things for me."

Naruto's jaw practically hit the ground. Itachi Uchiha; his once sworn enemy, was now acknowledging him? It all seemed too good to be true. Despite his confusion, he managed to snap himself out of the little daze he was in and nod; signaling that he was willing to do what Itachi asked if it was for the common good.

"…Okay. First, I want you make a name for yourself; I already have an idea how, but we'll get to that later. Second, I want you to find a way to get yourself into the Bingo Books, specifically, as an S-classed criminal. Tell me though; do you by any chance already have a summoning contract?"

"Yeah, I summon Toads."

"Actually Kit… about that… yeah, you can't summon jack shit. Not anymore, anyway…"

Naruto's eyes widened in complete and utter shock.

"What the hell did you do…?"

"Well, I cut off your contract with the Toads since those slimy freaks wouldn't have hesitated to lead the pervert straight to you."

Although Naruto wanted to be upset, he found himself agreeing with the Kyuubi's logic. He couldn't afford to be found, especially not now; not when he was about to undertake a mission that would, unbeknownst to him, change the course of the entire shinobi world. Whilst scratching the back of his head, he shot Itachi a sheepish smile, and spoke.

"Eh, scratch that. I don't have one anymore."

"Well, that's good."

"How is that good?"

Itachi smiled at the boy.

"You'll see."

"Wait, if you're going to be that secretive, at least tell me one thing; why do I have to do those two things?"

Itachi stood up slowly, and began to walk away, waving his hands to gesture for the boy to follow. When he heard the familiar heavy footsteps trailing behind him, he smiled to no one in particular, and addressed the boy's question.

"Because you're going to be joining the Akatsuki."

Naruto froze in place; obviously clueless of what the raven haired man in front of him was planning. When Itachi noticed Naruto suddenly stop, he turned around, looked at the boy with a raised eyebrow, and wore the traditional Uchiha smirk.

"Why would I want to join the Akatsuki?"

"… Because sometimes, bad guys make the best good guys."

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.

And here it is. Just want to take this opportunity to thank everyone who has been reading this; you all don't know how much it means to me... It means nothing. I'm kidding. It means a LOT.

Anyway, time to reply to all those kindhearted reviewers who took the time to post their thoughts.

hridiago - There's actually a reason why he didn't do anything. One, he's Itachi. He does whatever the hell he wants. I don't want to go into the details of the second reason since it will definitely spoil the story, but let's just say it wasn't his place to interfere. Trust me, it'll be explained later on. I hope that answers your question. It probably doesn't, huh?

Marutectz552 - Thank you, good sir, for your kind words. I try my best to be as detailed as possible when I'm describing fight scenes; especially when they're bloody. For some reason, it just doesn't feel right unless the scene makes you feel like you're right there, witnessing it with your own eyes while at the same time trying to keep your breakfast/lunch/dinner down. With regard to your comment on Konoha's reaction, they will definitely pull something. But will they be the only one...? Who knows~ Apparently you do, you little psychic you. Their reactions will be shown... a bit later on. I think you'll like it, or at least I hope you guys do.

Ping-Pong - Wow. Just... wow. Thank you. I've only been on FF for a short while, and it's an honor for you to recognize my work as a 'rare gem'. You sir, honor me. I hope you like where I'm planning to go with the story.

Dragonskyt - Thank you for taking the time to post your opinion. I really appreciate it. I also hope you continue to read this story, since it's for people like you that I write in the first place.

Cobra0000 - I have quite the surprise for you! Naruto's character really is taking on a life of it's own now. I originally wanted to paint a picture of a Naruto that isn't all sunshine and rainbows; a Naruto that understands pain and suffering but doesn't brood and go on a depressed killing rampage. He'll be a bit more... human, in my story. Spiteful, vindictive, and ruthless when he has to be, but at the same time, he remains the caring, compassionate, idealistic, and sometimes naive, blonde that we all love. Anyway, I hope you'll like what i'll do with it.

Well, now that that's over with, I want to say thank you. Yes, YOU. And if I may say so myself, you look extremely dashing/beautiful whilst reading my story. You should do it more often, you sexy beast.

-IIVII17