Chapter 1

Naruto wasn't quite sure how it happened. One moment, he'd decided to take a small stroll out of boredom, the next he'd been flung back five years into the what seemed to be the past.

He was strong, and had grown plenty over the years. Yet he was still Naruto, and his curiosity got the best of him at times. Today was no exception.

Naruto had paused for a moment before a glittering stone caught his eye. For the most part, it was hidden by shrubs and other plant life. Naruto pushed past the greenery and crouched down in front of the rock. Words were engraved deep into the surface of it, but were covered in moss. The blonde teen swiped away some of it before the rock glowed and his hand stuck down to it.

In a panic, he placed his other hand on the rock to push himself off of it. Only after his other hand stuck too had he realized his mistake.

The light projecting from the light had only continued to grow more and more before it engulfed all of his vision, and then there was darkness.

Naruto woke up groggily and blinked. His head hurt like hell, and his eyes also stung.

He sat up and noted that he was on a bed. Not a comfortable one, but still a bed. So where was he? This definitely wasn't the hospital. Or any of his friend's homes.

The room was relatively bright. It had a yellowish-beige paint coating in the walls, with a few spots chipping and peeling. The floor was made up of orange floor boards, a dining table was to his right and a kitchen in front of him.

Everything seemed so... familiar.

Then it clicked.

But it didn't make sense.

His old apartment and everything else in Konoha had been destroyed by Pein's attack some time ago. Naruto shouldn't be here, it was impossible.

Naruto peeled the covers off of his significantly smaller body and stared at his limbs with wide eyes.

His head felt light and Naruto felt his stomach flip. Immediately, he rushed into the bathroom and emptied his body of whatever was in it. The blonde boy scooted back onto the wall and shut his eyes.

He sat there for however long before he flushed the toilet and stood up, taking a few steps toward the sink to observe his form. Naruto extended his right arm in front of him and curled his hand into a fist before relaxing his hand again. His body seemed to be moving normally.

Naruto walked out of the bathroom and once more observed the room, but for now he walked into the kitchen to pour himself some much-needed water, and maybe make himself some tea.

Before he was able to do that, a gentle knock rang throughout the room and Naruto internally groaned.

He slowly walked over to his front door and let his hand rest on the handle. He just had to act normal until he could figure what the actual heck was happening.

Naruto turned the door handle and pulled open the door, only to be greeted by the sight of a familiar silver-haired jounin.

Kakashi.

Kakashi was great in the fact that he was so observant and quick to piece things together. But he wasn't acting like anything was wrong. He looked like he didn't have a care in the world, though then again, that was what he usually looked like.

Naruto looked up at the man swallowed dryly. His own appearance had changed drastically, though Kakashi seemed to lool normal, albeit a little less stressed.

"Naruto." The jounin looked down at Naruto with his eyes closed in a familiar smile.

Looked down. That's right. He was short again.

"Oh, uh, Kakashi-sensei! H-hi?" Naruto scratched the back of his head and shifted nervously.

Kakashi raised a curious brow at Naruto. "Is something wrong?"

"Of course not! Why're you asking?" Naruto was quick to respond.

"You didn't show up for training today. You're usually pretty eager and show up on time... so I figured there must've been a problem to hold you up, and I guess I was right. You look terrible."

"W-what do you mean?"

"Just rest for today, okay?"

"O-okay."

Kakashi raised his hand in a lazy wave and disappeared in a swirl of leaves. Naruto shut the door as fast as he could and scrambled toward a calendar on the wall.

Training. That didn't sound right. When was the last time he did that with Kakashi of all people? A year or two ago?

The date on the flimsy paper was marked with a red X.

July 3, 2002.

Naruto stared at the paper. Something was extremely wrong. Very, very wrong.

He stepped back from the calendar and ran a hand through his hair. Naruto walked over to his bed and laid back down again. There was one person who could possibly help Naruto.

Or demon.

Naruto closed his eyes and relaxed his body. Only a few moments later, he felt his feet and ankles deep in a yellow-green liquid. The air was musty and darkness surrounded him. He hadn't seen this place in a long time. The last time he visited his mindscape, it was peaceful, covered in beautiful mountain ranges, flowers sprouting from the ground and a false moonlight spilled everywhere.

The blonde teen walked until large metal bars came into view. A big seal was placed in the middle of it.

Oh.

Of course Kurama had been sealed again. Let's say Naruto was back in time—which he most definitely was not, cause that was impossible—the seal on the Kyuubi would be back. Naruto hadn't unsealed the fox for another few years.

Naruto paused for a moment. No one else had seemed to go back in time with him. The way Kakashi acted proved his thought. But Kurama was inside him, so he had had to go back with him.

"Brat."

Naruto looked up at a pair of huge, red eyes looking down at him.

"Explain."

"Explain what!? I didn't even do anything! Where even are we?"

Kurama rolled his eyes. "Konoha."

"...You think I haven't realized that yet?"

The fox only huffed in response, agitated. "Fine. Konoha, five years ago."

Naruto blinked. "But... but that's impossible!"

"Apparently not, brat. I believe this is the real deal."

"You're joking."

Kurama narrowed his eyes. "Do I seem like the type to joke?"

"No... okay, well, look. Can you help me get out of whatever place this is? Or time? Please?"

"I suspect that rock you touched had something to do with it. Go find it."

"The rock? Oh—oh! But it was outside of the village! I can't go out now!"

"Then figure something out, kit."

Naruto frowned at Kurama's words. "You're not gonna help me?"

"Even if I was interested in helping, there's not much I can do with this stupid seal in my way," Kurama growled, shifting his position so he was laying down with his tails wrapped around him. "Now leave, brat, I feel like sleeping."

Naruto sighed but obliged. His surroundings shifted back to his old apartment. Great, he'd have to find that stupid boulder. Considering his skills it shouldn't be too hard, but people would be watching. He had, after all, travelled back in time. Naruto had bravely protected Konoha numerous times. But in this place, that hadn't happened yet. People were still suspicious of him. Naruto furrowed his brows at that, but stood to finally get himself that glass of water.

His mind raced. What if he couldn't go back? What if that stupid rock wasn't there? Naruto hadn't noticed it before, but then again, he hadn't ever been to that spot before. What if he was stuck here?

Naruto brushed away that thought as he made his way into the kitchen. He took careful steps, not wanting to trip from the sudden change in his limbs, and also because his stomach hurt with every step.

That thought led him to his clothes. Naruto cringed at the bright orange of his jumpsuit. Too noticeable. Someone would obviously see him sneaking out of the village if he wore this stupid outfit. Naruto would have to get new clothes soon. Judging by the position of the sun, the shops would be closing soon and he needed something new to wear by tonight.

Naruto pursed his lips as he grabbed a cup from a cabinet. Yeah, he definitely had a lot to do.

Yay, the first chapter is done! I decided to write my own Naruto time-travel fic because I'm literally obsessed with them. They're a bit generic, but eh.

I also want to explain something about the date in this story. Obviously, Naruto is like, a complete different universe. They fight with swords, kunai, daggers, a little medieval. Yet they also have TVs, fridges, laptops, etc. So I was confused about what to put for the date.

So I just decided to set this story five years before Naruto Shippuden aired, which was in 2007. Naruto was around 16-17 near the end of that, and this story is meant to take place five years before all of that, so it makes sense. It takes place in July as well, because Naruto travels back in time just a little before the Wave mission occurs. Konoha apparently hadn't gotten rain for some time and was dry, so idk. I'm probably over thinking it, but I felt like explaining cuz it bothered me.

Also, Naruto's original timeline is a couple months after the fourth war ended.

Anyways, chapters after this will be much longer! This first chapter was meant to introduce you into everything, which is why it's only roughly 1.6k words. I'm aiming for the other chapters to be 3k-5k. We'll see. Updates will also probably be a bit sporadic... but they'll probably come near the end of the week, usually on Fridays or weekends.

Okay, this was a long author's note, oops, but I think that's all I have to say. Toodles for now!