Sharing the Sky

Chapter 1. The past is just a story

Naruto woke.

It wasn't slow swim to consciousness, but rather a brutal jerk that snapped her into the waking world. As if sleeping had become a dangerous thing—and it had been dangerous for quite some time now, done only out of pure necessity—and within seconds, Naruto was up and moving, scrambling to her feet, pushing her meager remains of chakra outside of her, reaching as far as she can, feeling, sensing and—

—nothing.

For a second, maybe less, there was nothing. Then information rushed back all jumbled and wrong, a thousand things that made no sense. Surroundings seemed too bright and blurred, a cacophony of sounds deafening, scents too rich and potent for her nose. The only thing that felt normal was the sensation of touch: the weight of kunai in her hand, the rough texture of sealing paper under her fingertips, and faint tickling of chakra against her palm.

Naruto tripped and fell, something restraining her limbs and her balance shot to hell. There was a white-hot feeling somewhat akin to terror climbing up her chest, and she choked, too much oxygen in her lungs, everything so overwhelming, new, raw.

Forcing the panic down, Naruto stilled, heart still pounding, but breathing rate beginning to steady. Eyes wide, she looked around, drinking in the feedback of all her senses and doing her best to reevaluate one thing at a time.

The air was cool against her sweaty forehead and hot cheeks. The moisture on the ground leached through her clothing and chilled her skin. The ground was lumpy, woven with ancient tree roots, with grass and a sprinkle of blooming wildflowers swaying gently in the wind and showered by the shafts of light that burst through the gaps in the leaf canopy above.

No sign of another person, just Naruto and the woods. She knew these trees, could recognize them anywhere. It hit her then, the reason why all of it felt so wrong, so unnatural.

The great forest of the Fire Country was gone: burned to the ground and turned to ashes by the enemy, leaving only scorched devastated land. Just another way to drive the remaining forces of the Ninja Alliance into a corner, taking away any advantage and hiding places.

And now Naruto gazed upon the same colossal trees, ancient and unchanging—intact. Tasted rich, freshly turned earth and a crisp scent of dew. Listened to the harmonious ambient: myriads of birds, a murmur of bugs, wind rustling the boughs, distant below of wild animals. But most telling of all was what she couldn't smell: ashes, blood, death; what she couldn't hear: clashes of weapons, screams , roars of the mindless Bijuu—war.

Naruto didn't know where exactly she teleported. Couldn't even comprehend where she was. Or rather, where her father had sent her to.

The redhead glanced down at the kunai in her hand. The three-pronged kunai with a Hiraishin formula wrapped around its handle. The same kunai she got used to utilizing during the war. Nothing out of the ordinary, despite the sealing paper being a bit worn-out. And yet it looked… different somehow. Bigger. She hefted it up and down a few times. Definitely heavier.

Naruto's eyes widened. She dropped the kunai into her lap and stared at both her hands. She turned them over, stared, then turned again and again.

Small.

Naruto looked down at herself. Her clothes hung from her tiny, boney frame like oversized bags. Clothes that previously perfectly fitted her more mature, taller young adult figure.

It wasn't the kunai that was bigger, instead, she became much smaller. It seemed that she somehow shrunk down to her preteen-early teen's body. At that age, she was really short and skinny, bad habits of irregular eating taking its toll on her growing body. Other kids always made fun of her and teachers never took her seriously either. Kiba called her a runt of the litter once and the name stuck even after she finally hit her growth spurt.

Naruto growled, suddenly furious. Whatever was done to her, she wanted it reversed, dammit! There was no way that she could hold against the likes of Obito or Madara in this state!

Something cold and wet touched her knee.

In an instant, Naruto was up in the tree, Minato's kunai in a reverse grip, ready to defend. She spotted some sort of small creature taking off and disappearing in the grass.

The girl exhaled slowly, letting the bubbling panic fade together with the last drop of air from her lungs. Once she had her wits with her again, she glared at her pants. She almost lost it! Managed to grab it just in time before it could slip off her hips.

Wouldn't that be a hilarious sight. A ninja who lost her pants before the battle even started!

Naruto tugged the offensive clothing up and tightened the rope around her waist. At least now she wouldn't have to fight half-naked. Taking care of the immediate risk, she sat down on the branch cross-legged and put the kunai—the only weapon she had on her person—down in her lap, in a position where she could easily grab it again in case of an attack.

After getting more comfortable, Naruto closed her eyes.

She spread her senses around to check for the possible hostiles. It didn't go as far as she would have liked, with her chakra almost completely drained, but it would have to do.

There was no one around. Safe for now.

Naruto concentrated and let her inner self sink deeper and deeper and deeper—

She spluttered, caught off guard when suddenly she found herself under the torrent of rain. In an instant, she was completely drenched, downpour so strong that it felt more like the flow of a river rather than a rain shower.

After Kurama and her became friends and established a unique partnership, the sealscape changed into a serene and tranquil place. Reflecting a bright blue dome with fluffy white clouds, mirror-like water stretched endlessly all around the island with a huge red maple tree, so thick that even Kurama would have trouble to hug its trunk.

And now the same water under her feet was dark and murky while blackened clouds rolled violently through the icy grey sky.

Uneasiness struck her like a blow to the gut and coiled around her chest, tightening every passing second.

This had never happened before. Not to this degree anyway.

Naruto brushed wet hair out of her face and squinted, holding futile hands skyward to fend off the worst. Noticing the looming silhouette of torii gates in front, she ran towards it. Once she passed the first one, the rain let up a little. It turned into drizzle beyond the second, and ceased completely as the redhead stepped through the third gate and onto the island.

The maple tree stood unchanged, like a venerable titan with its limbs seemingly growing all the way up to the sky and covering the whole island, fanning out into a beautiful, if slightly haunting and rather intimidating display. Its roots crisscrossed, gnarled and uneven, sinking into the very depths of this spiritual plain. A massive rope wrapped around its trunk, decorated with tassels and paper streamers.

A quick glance around and Naruto wasn't sure if the sound of her heart hitting the ground or the roar of rain behind was louder.

Kurama would usually rest under the tree, warm red eyes offering comfort and support to his Jinchuuriki whenever she needed it. Always there. Always with her.

And now the Bijuu was nowhere to be seen.

The thoughts accelerated inside her head. She wanted them to slow so she could breathe, but they wouldn't. Naruto pressed the palms into her eye sockets, making bright spots appear against the black of her vision.

Kurama should be here. She could still feel the flutter of his ever-present company at the back of her mind. Distant, but not just an echo. A real one.

Naruto's head shot up at the realization. Kurama was somewhere here, so why couldn't she see—

There.

A red, fluffy ball curled in a curve of the roots, blending in with the red leaves covered ground. She didn't spot him at first, because Kurama was… small. Tiny. Instead of the mountain-sized fox, Naruto found herself staring at—no other word came to mind—a kit. Granted, a kit that was still bigger than her, but a kit nonetheless.

"Kurama?" Barely above the whisper, Naruto's call drowned in the rain's relentless hammering. "Can you hear me?"

The furball stirred. Tails moved, slid to the side, revealing a familiar muzzle with sleepy, half-lidded eyes focused on the girl. Slitted irises, blacker than the deepest void, surrounded by smoldering fire and shimmering with boundless power and ancient wisdom.

Once, it filled Naruto with dread and fear, but now it was her salvation. She let out a breath she held previously and it came out as relieved laughter.

Kurama scrunched up his nose into a sneer. "Not a word, brat," he growled. Deep and threatening, though some of it was lost due to his more juvenile voice. "If you laugh one more time, I—," he grunted when Naruto suddenly threw herself on him, burying her hands and face into his silky fur, reveling in the comforting thrum of the Bijuu's chakra.

"I was so worried," she mumbled and it came through low and hoarse. "So scared…"

"Che," the beast scoffed. "You humans and your pesky emotions." Despite the harshness of the words, he said it with equal fondness hidden within.

In the background, the rain was still coming down in great waves, still chugging along, but not as violent as before.

Finally getting a moment to catch her breath, Naruto wasn't in a hurry to leave the safety of her friend's tails, curling around her like a warm blanket. "What happened, Kurama? What kind of plan is this supposed to be?" she questioned. "And how is it possible that my age got reversed? You also became—Wait." The redhead suddenly jerked up to gawk at Kurama. "Is this your true form? Is this how you look when both your halves merg—" A tail smacked the girl upside her head. "Ow!"

"Did the jump turn you into a complete moron?"

Rubbing the back of her head, Naruto wanted to pout, justifiably upset. The idea seemed entirely feasible. It wasn't her fault that she had no clue what was going on. No one told her anything yet.

"The plan was to send you back. Before the end of the world, before the war, before the whole madness even started," Kurama spoke quietly. "Considering how much we lost in the river of time, I would say, the plan succeeded."

Naruto gave her friend a blank look, devoid of understanding. "Send me back?" Her eyebrows knitted together. "Send me back whe—" A sudden moment of clarity struck her. "Before the war—the river of time?! Wait, wait, wait…" She rubbed her forehead to ease the headache as her mind worked in overdrive to find an explanation for all of this mess.

The fox was content to let her puzzle it out on her own. Listening to the rain around the oasis steadying into a repetitive beat, he eased his head back on his front paws, eyes sliding shut.

A minute passed as the girl stayed silent. "Time is just as much a variable as space, bendable by seals," Naruto muttered under her breath. "In time. Dad sent me back in time." She blew all the air out of her lungs. "Right. Back in time."

The corner of Kurama's lips twitched up.

"Wait." The redhead looked at him again and the Bijuu met her confused gaze. "What do you mean 'how much we lost in the river of time'?"

"No one is supposed to go against the flow of time. We did exactly that and paid a price."

"Our age."

"Indeed. Years shaved off of our existence."

Naruto stared, her brow furrowing the longer she thought about this new tidbit of information. "How come I lost only a few years and you – several centuries?" she asked, despite already suspecting an answer.

"We all played a role in this plan," the fox said. His tone softened into soothing velvet, obviously knowing that the girl wouldn't like what he would say next. "Hatake and Uchiha were tasked with buying time for Minato to modify your Hiraishin seal. My part was to provide you chakra for the jump and shield you during it."

Naruto's blood boiled, all the while her insides chilled from within, rage and guilt swirling into an odd mix. As if reflecting the turmoil in her emotions, the surrounding rain intensified again, hammering down like war drums.

"Shield me?" Naruto ground out. She could practically hear everything Kurama wasn't saying. "Shield me, 'ttebane?! You stupid!" she shouted, but there was no real bite behind it. "Stupid!" she repeated, throwing a meek punch at the fox. "Stupid!" Another punch, but this time fingers stayed buried in fur, clutching at it desperately. She pressed her forehead at her friend's side and mumbled, "You're all idiots…"

She didn't know who made her angrier. Kakashi, Sasuke, and Dad, because they stayed behind and sent her here alone, without even asking for her opinion. Kurama, because the damn fox endured so much to keep her safe. Or herself, because she didn't feel worthy of their sacrifices. She failed them quite spectacularly!

As quickly as it came, the rage dissipated. Naruto deflated, the previous rush of emotions oozing out of her like air from a popped balloon. The pain was still there and cut just as deep, but it wasn't like she could change the past—

Naruto's mind sputtered to a halt and her body jolted up.

She could do it. Could change the past. She was in the past. And while there was no way to undo what already happened to her, it could become only a horror story for others. They wouldn't have to live through it. She could make sure of that.

Pushing everything else to the back of her mind with practiced ease, Naruto focused on this single thought. "So, uh," she cleared her throat, glad that Kurama simply ignored her freaking out, "where are—I mean, when are we?"

The Kyuubi hummed, taking a moment to ponder. "Modification was designed to help you see the Hiraishin marker of the past," he explained. "It means, we are somewhere between when Minato first used his trademark kunai and his death." He appeared tired, wary in a way Naruto had never seen before."The exact date you will have to find on your own."

"Okay," the girl murmured as her fingers tentatively reached out to stroke Kurama's ear. The action elicited a satisfied puff from the fox. "Will you be alright?"

"Yes."

An instant response. No hesitation, no doubt. It didn't elevate all Naruto's worries, but put her somewhat at ease.

Sensing her lingering hesitation, Kurama's tails tightened around her small frame. "I just need time to rest, Naruto," he assured her. "I'll be here if you need me."

With the last pat and a soft, "Alright," Naruto got up and faded away.

Kurama's eyes fluttered open to reveal slits of color that gazed at the ceaseless rain beyond the boundaries of his haven. After a moment, he curled into himself, all nine tails coming around to cover him fully. He hated this downpour, this dampness, and this gloomy atmosphere. It reminded him of the sewers he had been imprisoned previously.

Kurama hoped that the brat would stop grieving soon.

Golden eyes opened to the forest that was humming with life.

Large, verdant trees were the most luminous entities in her senses with shimmering coiling vines holding onto many of them, and medleys of flowers in all rainbow colors. A clamor of animal noises, most belonging to birds, echoed in the air and filled the woods with constant ambient.

The Sage mode turned the relatively empty forest into this crowded, flourishing space. Naruto breathed deep, reveling in the purity of natural energy. So clean, so intense, so refreshing.

It had been years from the last time she had a pleasure to bask in it without feeling nauseous and dirty from the inside out. It invigorated her, revitalized every cell in her body. No wonder she unconsciously slipped into the Sage mode while meditating. The process so ingrained into her being that it didn't matter that her body changed or that her chakra was still too low and taking its sweet time to replenish.

Unbidden, the memories rushed to the forefront of Naruto's mind. Gamakichi's death on a battlefield. The smell of blood and oil and destruction. Gamabunta's wrathful roar. His charge forward, taking half of the enemy forces before his inevitable fall next to his son…

Naruto slapped herself. Then took a deep breath, held it in, and released, stuffing the memories back from where it came from as she did.

The girl's head snapped to the side, red waves of hair whipping sharply and her muscles tensed, ready for action. Someone was approaching her position at full speed. A group. Four individuals, none of them familiar, chakra twirling and rolling with urgency.

It put Naruto on edge and she had to actively remind herself that this wasn't the Fourth World War, that this was a different time altogether. Chakra signatures that she didn't recognize not necessarily meant hostiles. The location was somewhere in Fire Country—a fact, not a guess—so it might even be ninjas from Konoha.

Naruto realized that she didn't know what to do. Join Konoha? Stay out of it? She had no plan and no time to think of one, might as well wing it as she went.

Quickly jumping to her feet, the redhead cut her pants legs halfway from the bottom and tied the loose ends together to keep it from possibly tripping her. Then, she descended from the tree and ran towards the muffled trickling sounds of a gentle river stream.

Soon the forest opened up into a clearing. She saw a brook stretching across it with beautiful shining waters, gurgling and foaming around rocks in various sizes and shapes.

There were still a few minutes left until the ninjas found her and Naruto used it to quench her thirst. She swiveled around to face whoever was coming, her Sage mode holding strong. Rather risk people knowing that she can do it than allowing enemies to capture her again. And she would need any advantage she could get if this was, indeed, enemies.

Four adult men emerged from the forest, scanning the clearing with narrowed eyes before settling their gazes on the little girl in the middle of the brook. Shiny headbands around their heads caught the sunlight, highlighting the cloud symbol.

Kumo ninjas.

"Red hair?" one of the men muttered as he eyed the girl up and down. He shot a glance at his companions.

An abrupt wave of malicious intent blindsided Naruto. Her heart skipped a beat. She was not in a shape to fight, so the only choice left was to run.

The redhead pivoted on her heel, already scraping up chakra for a single shunshin. Water exploded under her feet and after a moment, she landed into the nearest tree. Without wasting time, Naruto started running.

Despite her prayers, the Kumo ninjas followed.

The wind whipped at her face and trees after trees zipped past as Naruto managed to keep the current distance between her and her pursuers for a while. Until natural energy collected inside her dwindled away into nothing. She faltered, but steadied herself by the sheer willpower alone and kept going. The void in her persisted, a dry river where a thundering waterfall should have been—she was pushing forward virtually on fumes.

Naruto didn't need to glance back or check with her sensory abilities to know that the enemy was gaining on her.

Then, if that wasn't enough, another group of four entered the boundaries of her senses, approaching from the opposite direction and burning the distance between them at an incredible speed.

Naruto wanted to laugh at the hopelessness of the situation. The world really hated her, huh? Enemy behind. Enemy ahead. One kunai to count, no chakra, no Kurama.

A kunai whizzed past her and almost sent the redhead crashing down.

What to do, what to do, what to do…

A few shimmering chakra marks on her left caught Naruto's attention. Unattended, but still active explosion seals? She could use it.

The girl made an abrupt turn. Another kunai embedded into the tree trunk, missing her by a hair's breadth.

Naruto's head ached and her shoulders ached and her lungs ached and every fiber of her body ached quite excruciatingly. If she survived this… No, scratch that. When she survived this, she was going to bury herself under Kurama's tails and sleep for a week, the fox's complaints notwithstanding.

Naruto let out a strangled scream when a sharp pain shot through her thigh. Her feet twisted and balance was lost. She landed, hard solid ground meeting her chest with a shocking force. Dazed and painstakingly slow, the girl lifted her exhausted body, arms quivering under the strain. With a hiss at the persisting pain in her leg, she pressed through it.

The Kumo ninjas were already here. As was the second group.

The seals were right there. If she could just reach it, she could buy time to—to—

Naruto staggered as soon as she got to her feet, the world tilting dangerously to the side.

Something slithered along the ground. It was dark and shadowy, saturated with chakra that hit every alarm bell in her head.

She was about to be captured, chained up, sealed away, and dragged like a defanged beast in front of that man, those accursed Sharingan eyes filled with hunger and cold fury, pain and grief that festered for far too long and twisted into their own macabre parody, and she didn't want to look at them, to keep looking at them, drown in that ocean of anger and madness, she hated it… She hated it! SHE HATED IT!

In desperation, Naruto pulled at the only source she had left without thinking and it answered her call. The seal on her stomach heated up and then, from deep within, there was a bubbling river rising, chakra flooding her empty coils.

Not much, but enough.

Beasts were always the most dangerous when cornered.

Naruto snarled, blue eyes ablaze with baleful fire. Nine chakra chains erupted from her back.

Two of them slammed into the ground, each launching a pulse of chakra that collided and merged, resonating with each other and sweeping the area with double the strength and speed. The unnaturally stretched shadow dispersed, nearby explosion seals turned to dust. The ground itself shook and raptured, trees swaying and trunks creaking as their roots were forcefully shifted.

One chain nailed the closest Kumo ninja to the tree.

A ninja from the second group deflected the one coming at him.

A split second before her chain would have reached the shadow caster, the latter's teammate moved him out the harm's way so fast that all Naruto could see was a yellow flash.

…Yellow… flash?

"Please, wait!"

The familiar voice gave a jolt to her brains and Naruto's eyes widened. Chains froze mid-air. They didn't retreat however, each hovering threateningly in front of their intended targets.

Everything came to a standstill.

She recognized the man who spoke. How could she not? Minato Namikaze, Yellow Flash, the Yondaime, her father. Her father who was alive, truly and undeniably. His chakra was sharp and pristine, like a breeze capable of turning into a storm in a blink. No sign of that disgusting, slimy feeling of death that accompanied Edo Tensei reincarnations.

When she heard that she was in the past, before her father's death, some part of her realized what exactly it meant. But only now, seeing the man himself with her own eyes, Naruto was hit with the true implication of that fact.

Seeing an opening, one of the remaining three Kumo ninjas suddenly turned to flee. He managed two steps before his chest burst open when the chain speared him through.

Naruto didn't even spare the dead man a glance. Her chains were always a bit special. Induced with Kurama's chakra, they reacted to the perceived threat on their own, without additional input.

Minato shifted, subtly moving to shield his teammate who seemed to be incapacitated. Then, his eyes flickered to the other two Konoha ninjas, standing a bit farther away from his spot, communicating mute orders with a single glimpse.

"I'm sorry we scared you, we mean you no harm," the blond said, voice calm and even. His chakra was restless, ready to be used at any given moment, but not building any particular jutsu. A drop of sweat sliding down his temple was the only outward sign betraying his apprehension. "My friend here only wanted to make sure you'll be okay during the fight."

Naruto frowned, her focus instinctively switching to the said friend. Scars on his face, a spiky ponytail… Shikaku Nara. No wonder he was still gathering his bearings from Naruto's technique. It was, after all, designed to mainly counter shadow manipulators, created specifically to fight against Edo Shikaku and other Edo Naras.

Luckily, Naruto was running dry on chakra. If she wasn't, she could have done permanent damage to the man or killed him outright.

Feeling curious, she peeked at the other two Konoha ninjas. Middle-aged Uchiha male she had never seen before. No surprise there. The moment their eyes met, Naruto immediately looked away. The only Sharingan that didn't make her sick at this point belonged to Sasuke.

The second one… The redhead tilted her head, feeling conflicted. The face undoubtedly matched Hiashi Hyuuga's, but the chakra signature while somewhat familiar felt foreign to her.

Naruto's eyesight suddenly blurred. Blood drained from her face. She swayed, hands shooting up to grab at her head to somehow silence her heartbeats that suddenly pounded way loudly in her ears.

Chakra exhaustion finally caught up with her.

Chains dissolved into glowing golden particles and dispersed with the first gust of wind.

The Hiraishin seal warmed Naruto's palm. She flinched when a person abruptly appeared next to her, followed by multiple sharp dings in quick succession.

"You damn Konoha dogs! We—" the rest of the sentence got lost in a gurgling, throaty sound.

Naruto shook her head to get rid of the fuzziness and blackness creeping around the edges of her consciousness. Blinking, she looked up, blue meeting identical blue.

There was a pinch between her father's eyebrows. She must have looked equally miserable to how she felt, because, even if Naruto was a complete stranger to him, Minato's chakra swirled with soft tendrils of genuine concern. It also leaked into his tone when he said, "I'm not going to hurt you."

The girl's legs gave out and she plopped on her butt, the adrenaline zapped from her system as the exhaustion re-entered her body.

Safe. She was finally safe.