Fix.

Chapter 6

"In order to attain the impossible, one
must attempt the absurd."

Note to those that are just checking the new update: Chapters 2, 3 and 4 have had notable scenes rewritten. This includes the coronation speech, Naruto's conversation with Gaara, and (less importantly) the fight against Shukaku/Gaara during the ambush.

…the hand wasn't healing.

The blond spat obscenities beneath his breath as he trudged through the increasingly flimsy sand. The bijudama had been close enough when he threw the second kunai that his hand took a dose of chakra poisoning, which effectively burned away the outer layer of skin and left the hand a bright steaming red. It was something that probably would've healed already if he still had the kyuubi, but he was left to rely on natural regeneration for the moment.

If it wasn't his throwing hand, it wouldn't even be an issue. As it is, another millisecond of exposure might've made his next challenge untenable.

To be fair, it was probably already impossible. Two biju fought, within one of the biju's natural territory. He had to put a stop to the fighting, and that meant he had to seal one. He absolutely had to. They would destroy the sand village, and later the country, before he even had a chance to conquer it. That wouldn't do, and he was the only person around that had any chance of all at fixing the issue. Pressure, he supposed, that he would just have to live with.

The sand a mere few steps ahead exploded, stealing his vision and sending him careening back. Naruto barely held onto his footing. It was just a stray hit, what it was or who it came from he just didn't know. If he wasn't worried about the ichibi throwing another blast at him, he would've gone through the village and traveled across the rooftops. In retrospect, it would've been safer having sight and maybe he should've just done it anyway.

"He's coming for you, Kurama!" the ichibi yelled, its voice far but loud enough to easily carry the distance. "Are you just going to let him seal you again?"

The blond pushed forward at a greater pace.

"I made a deal." The voice of the kyuubi held the same volume as its counterpart, but the tone was deeper and less incensed.

Even half the distance to the two as he was, Naruto could hear the growling of the tanuki.

"The humans are the ones putting us against each other! Don't take me for an idiot, there's no way you can trust them!"

He bit his lip as he increased his pace further, barely keeping from slipping and falling across the sand dunes. If he had his way, he would be able to leave the fox alone. He wanted to believe the fox was noble enough to adhere to their deal, but that might be because he'd spent his life with it and it might have coloured his perspective. Naruto had always been a bit too hopeful and – he knew now – naïve. Biju were considered demons. He didn't know how much it would take to sway the fox against him, but if he were there right at this moment, he knew he could persuade it away.

He didn't have the skill to capture a biju if both of them wanted to kill him. Hell, he might very well fail against even one. As much as he learned in death with his father, there was only so much he could be taught, and the man only had so much time to help. Like many others that the Shinigami had laid claim to, he was cursed to an eternity of working for the god, and he'd apparently wasted as much time as he'd probably ever be allowed to.

That wasn't to say he was helpless, but advice and fuinjutsu would only carry him so far.

The next voice was easily identifiable as the kyuubi. "You are his target, not me."

"Look to the future, you idiot! Who's next? What's going to happen when I'm not the problem, huh?"

If the fox responded, Naruto didn't hear it.

"Are you just going to bow your head with your tails between your legs and let them seal you the next time they come for you? Again, and again, and again? They'll never leave you alone, it's not in their nature. Humans revel in corruption, and our power breeds it! Kurama, this might be our last chance! Don't squander that!"

Naruto crested the peak of the final dune between him and the biju, revealing their visages once more. The fox stood in front of him and to the side, between the ichibi and the village.

Kurama shook his great head with a grim expression. "Have you never had a vessel you respected? I feel the same things you do, Shukaku, but we are not able to do what we want to. Get used to it and grow up."

When it growled at the retort, the ichibi happened to notice his arrival.

Reflexively, Naruto appeared a meter to the left, barely avoiding being bisected by a large sand spike from below. The seal in his pocket burned against his thigh, and he quickly reapplied it. Without time and supplies, he was left with applying seals the same way a summoner did; by creating the one-use seals using temporary ink created purely from chakra. He was very lucky it was simple enough to do on his first try. Discretely, he dropped a kunai and leapt forward, down the expanse of sand and to the scarred arena below.

The area around the biju was made of rough, burned and compact sand; an effect of their weight and the corrosion of their chakra. Out of the immediate reach of either biju, he pumped chakra into his vocal cords and cupped his mouth.

"You can leave, kyuubi!"

While Naruto would like the help, it was in poor taste to ask for it. As long as the kyuubi wasn't involved and Naruto didn't have to worry about its interference, sealing the ichibi would be difficult, but fairly methodical. Teleport when he's in trouble and seal it inside the over-prepared seal when he inevitably makes contact. Simple in theory.

"And when you fail?"

Naruto grit his teeth but didn't rise to the provocation. "I don't want to fight you, kyuubi! If you don't hurt anyone from the leaf, or the sand, you'll be safe here! I promise!"

"I will not stick around, whether or not you die."

That was fine with him.

"Kurama!" the ichibi yelled indignantly, but the kyuubi had already leapt away at a speed befitting the size of its limbs. Even in the sand, the ichibi would not be able to keep up with it. The tanuki wore an expression of bitter betrayal, and Naruto himself wasn't sure whether or not to be worried that the kyuubi headed towards the Land of Fire.

He wasn't sure whether or not his army and the sand were still evacuating the village, but they must have seen the kyuubi leave. Hopefully they didn't take it as a sign to come help him out, because he was only able to protect himself.

"The third time's the charm," the ichibi muttered, shaking its head.

A moment passed in silence.

Then, the arena exploded into a storm, goaded by howling gales of humid wind.

In his surprise, Naruto accidentally took a mouthful and flashed back onto the peak, coughing and spluttering sand. He dropped another kunai and tightened his grip on the next he took out. The massive figure of the ichibi towered over the storms, but they were at least a dozen times taller than himself. It was a tactic that would've done absolutely nothing to the kyuubi but was absolutely unfair against him.

"You're arrogant if you believe a human child could ever best a biju."

Well, he supposed he wasn't very arrogant then. Still, there was always a way, however low the odds.

Before he had even a moment to contemplate the situation, he was diving under a volley of sand javelin. Barely avoiding a sand bullet that did hell to his back, he found himself in the shadow of the raccoon. It was way faster than he assumed it would be. He considered reaching forward and attempting to seal the ichibi, but he quickly realized he would be crushed beneath the weight of its arm within the second.

He flashed back to his initial perch.

"How am I- fuck!"

Naruto reeled back, a sharp column of sand jutting from his thigh, and flashed around the seal in his pocket, dislodging it. While he still had his wits about him, he quickly reapplied the seal.

"Fuck! Fuck! Fuck!"

The ichibi grinned devilishly, and he realized the biju must have known where the kunai was and prepared to attack him in advance. He grit his teeth and tried his best to ignore the rush of blood. The fight had only just started, but he was already wounded. Thankfully, the biju seemed set on enjoying its first hit and the time it spent bellowing laughter was time he had to think.

He had dropped one of his kunai beside the ichibi before he flashed out of the way. He glanced down to the arena. The storm had apparently died down, perhaps because the ichibi decided it didn't need it any longer, and it seemed as good a place as any to throw another one, so he did so. The area around the scarred and burnt sand seemed harsh enough that the ichibi might have trouble pulling a second ambush.

Still, the ichibi held a simple counter to his ability to flee and he shouldn't use it again unless he's willing to risk another wound.

"This will be the second time I kill you. That makes it your own fault," the ichibi sneered, "it's a shame I couldn't kill Kurama with you."

Naruto took a short moment to remove his haori and wrap it tightly around the wound in his thigh, conscious and wary of the sand beneath and around him. He would have to keep on the move, as much as he could.

He knew it was only the biju's supreme confidence that kept him alive in this moment.

"We don't have to fight, Ichibi."

The demon cocked its head. "Oh, but I want to." As to prove its point, it cracked open its maw. Naruto tensed as it took only seconds to create a third bijudama, noting in the corner of his eyes as sand swept over the kunai he threw into the scarred arena. He backed off, but he couldn't possibly move faster than the bijudama, and he doubted shunshin's viability with the ichibi's total control over the flooring. He'd only just learned the hiraishin and it was quickly becoming his only clutch. It hardly mattered that his escape route was cut off.

Whatever odds he had of dodging the blast were stripped to none when he lingered too long in one place and the sand beneath him curled around his feet. If only he was still able to use the kyuubi's chakra, it wouldn't be a problem to break out of.

If the beast was capable of speaking while using the ability, Naruto did not doubt he would be hearing taunting as the ichibi fired forward.

It was several times bigger than the last, probably because the ichibi wasn't under duress. Naruto took the inopportune moment to wonder how differently the fight would have gone if the kyuubi had chosen to help. It would probably be going the same, really.

The ichibi had made its mistake. In a gesture similar to one he did immediately upon his revival, Naruto threw a kunai forward and into the projectile. It was much closer and much harsher this time, and even as he threw it his already poisoned hand ached from the chakra exuded by the blast. He focused, his perception of time seemed to slow, and he chose his timing very carefully. If he used the jutsu a moment too early, the kunai would miss and he would die. If he used the jutsu a moment too late, the kunai would be annihilated by the attack and he would still die.

He counted himself lucky, then, when the bijudama exploded and he himself was none the worse for wear. The kunai he left beside the ichibi was annihilated with the blast, so despite the lingering clouds of corrosive chakra and with the slackening of his bindings, Naruto sped forward as fast as he could.

He collapsed beside the shivering form of the ichibi. He was out of breath, his leg hurt so much he didn't even know how he was still awake, and he was out of kunai. The ichibi was down, disoriented, its own body confused and convulsing under the effect of its own power. Naruto stole his chance, dredged up the remains of his chakra and placed both his hands against its hide.

"SEAL!"

The bed entirely unfamiliar, the next time he woke he first tried to raise his head.

"Uzumaki-san, please lay back."

Even semi-conscious as he was, his heart fluttered.

"Y-you don't mean hokage-sama, do you?"

He heard a short gasp, and his heart sunk. "Y-yes of course, Hokage-sama!"

Groaning, he landed his head and went back to sleep.

Their expensive robes rustling, the last of the sand's council left the room. Finally alone, Shikaku released a long, drawn out breath and leaned back against the desk beside him.

"It's so bothersome to have the upper-hand," he muttered. What he meant by that, of course, is that he had far too much to be doing.

The Sand village lost most of their military in their attack against Konoha, and what little remained was mostly crushed during their short all-or-nothing ambush the week before.

The original plan was to kill and exile what was left. A little barbaric, sure, and the civilians would obviously be angry with them, but the discontent would dwindle over time and it would give the Leaf unanimous control.

The situation was changed with the release and subsequent capture of the ichibi, and the hokage himself was now a beacon of hope to, of all things, the people he sought to subjugate. Unlike in Konoha with the fox, Suna had never been attacked by their biju. The ichibi had taken full control of its containers before, yes, but never been released. Its first sealing was a closed affair by a sand temple, without risk to the people. It was the first time they'd been exposed to the full and released power of the demon roaming their land. The chakra it emitted could personally be felt roaming the bodies of each and every individual around the vicinity of the village, and it naturally cultivated a great and immediate fear of the beast, dwarfing their old feelings regarding the biju immensely. It was interesting to note that the kyuubi did no such thing this time around, probably reigning in its chakra for whatever reason.

The last time Suna's jinchuuriki was affected by a complete possession, it took their fourth kazekage to save them. For a battle much more difficult without any chance of his help...

The Nara snickered.

The Godaime Hokage not only came back to life to save the Sand against the greatest power they'd ever felt, but he went fearlessly against two biju on his lonesome to do it. Their council was being subservient, their shinobi seemed unnaturally apologetic, and the civilians remained out of the way. There was no need to do anything with those that remained in the village, few as the shinobi were. It only helped that the moment the first biju was released, the Leaf dropped the pretences of war and offered a hand. If the situation were less dire, the sand may not have accepted it, but the crippled village had no choice but to co-operate if they were to survive.

Being the one with complete authority at the time, the Nara offered it just to raise his own army's odds of survival. He could have instead guaranteed their dominion over the sand, by either leaving them to rot – attempting to leave, that is - or at least executing the important captives that surrendered. It was fortuitous that he chose not to do so, for the revival of the fifth would have been impossible and the sand was now in their debt. If Naruto wasn't revived, who knows what might have happened?

A hard knock at the doors to the office distracted him from his thoughts, and he walked around the desk to sit comfortably in the kazekage's chair.

He leaned back and crossed his arms. "Come in."

The doors burst open to admit several men clad in thick red armor, sheaths fit for katana dangling from their waists. They moved to stand at the sides of the room and faced the centre. Between them stepped in a thin man clad in red silken robes decorated with gold trim. The man walked forward with poise and nodded in his direction.

"Shikaku."

Surprised but coherent, the Nara quickly stood and bowed. "Daimyo-sama."

The man tilted his head, giving Shikaku a well-pronounced look of interest. "Where is the hokage?"

"The godaime is still healing. In his absence, I'm the de-facto head of state. I have the authority to attend to negotiations, and if you want me to forward anything to the hokage when he wakes up, I can do that for you." He sat back down and leaned forward, resting his hands on the desk atop one another. "Please have a seat," he said, gesturing to a comfortable seat to the side of his desk. It had been brought in by one of the many councilmen that had invaded the office earlier that day and been left there.

One of the samurai grabbed the chair and centred it in front of the desk, the daimyo taking his place comfortably, before retaking his place in the side of the procession. Shikaku had always thought the use of samurai was endearing, but wasteful. Shinobi would do their job cheaper and more effectively, but he supposed the benefit of samurai lay in their loyalty. He was probably just bitter that they occasional took their jobs, really.

"You'll be pleased to know I've abdicated the Wind Daimyo."

He knew that already but nodded. "Have you already replaced the financial infrastructure?"

"Yes," the daimyo said, his voice flavoured with a pleased tone. "The land's previous daimyo was unlikeable, and there has generally been little trouble with the exchange. I haven't touched the tax rate, it's well-placed."

Shikaku appreciated the explanation, but really, he didn't need to know any more than that. The Leaf was the fire's military institution, had always received more than enough funding from their country, and had thankfully little to do with governing, providing for, and taxing other villages or cities. "Then you are here…?"

"…to discuss our change in affairs. I now have effectively twice the population and twice the capital within my domain. The Land of Wind has ceased to exist, but Sunagakure has not. I assume you, as our primary military, want the jurisdiction that you hold over Konoha to extend to this village as well?"

Shikaku nodded. "That would be necessary to provide assistance to both countries."

"It's one country now," the daimyo said off-hand, "and that's agreeable. This village is already a well-placed military institution. I will say, I never expected you to attack Suna, especially without consulting me first. I don't consider the letter asking me to be ready consultation."

The Nara froze. "Declaration of War is at the prerogative of the hokage."

"That it is," the man muttered, shaking his head with a slight smile. "I don't mind, I'm just surprised you did it. Hiruzen never would have… well, there's the difference I suppose."

Shikaku gestured to the windows behind him, showcasing Suna's infrastructure bustling with civilians below. "With another village, the funding…"

"Yes, let's talk about the funding."

Naruto groaned and wrapped an arm about his face to shield his eyes. "Fuck me, that's bright…"

The light dimmed, and he felt someone pull him up and adjust his seat into a significantly more comfortable upright position. Blinking blearily, the blond turned to the Anbu beside the bed and nodded his thanks.

He was then presented with a glass of water, which he eagerly stuffed down his dry throat.

He rubbed a hand over his stomach, which pulsed with an irritating chakra he hoped would eventually settle, and noticed he was in a hospital gown. Ignoring thoughts of who dressed him, he gave the room a look; his was the only bed, and the only window was shut tight with a member of his Anbu by either side. It was dark outside. The final member of his guard stood beside the thick wooden door, dead-bolted, that would otherwise provide entrance to the room. He could only imagine how boring standing guard around an unconscious person had to have been.

He tried to move, and yelped. The leg that the ichibi had given a hole belayed the notion that he would be leaving the bed just yet, and he muttered a few choice words under his breath.

The Anbu beside him shuffled, and he turned his head to see Squirrel presenting him a tray holding paper, scrolls, and ink.

"That is important, I guess." The blond frowned, "I can eat later."

The sun began its rise after an hour, and after another few hours of creating lasting copies of his ever-important seal, someone knocked on the door.

Naruto gave the cat that had reported his being awake a significant look, but the woman by the window shrugged.

Ignoring his now aching hand - which were both still injured - he handed Squirrel the tray, waved his hand to the Anbu by the door and cleared his throat, making himself comfortable. "Come in."

The door opened to admit a blonde teenager that seemed vaguely familiar.

"Hokage-sama," the girl bowed, fiddling with her hands. Behind her, Rabbit shut and locked the door. "I am Temari. I'm the fourth kazekage's daughter, and Gaara's brother."

Naruto paused at the mention of Gaara, but moved past it and released a hum. "Ahh! You were in the exams, right? You're also one of the ones that came out when we… well, nevermind. What is it?" He thought she was pretty the first time he saw her. After that, she was an enemy, and he supposed she must be an ally now.

The girl kept her head bowed. "I just wanted to apologize, and to thank you on behalf of Suna, for saving us from the ichibi."

Honestly, Naruto thought it a bit lacklustre if that was true.

"Just you?"

She froze. "My family is dead. I-I'm the only one left of the late kazekage's line."

He frowned, that sounded familiar, except he hadn't been so formal to who he considered at fault.

"I killed your brother."

"You released the ichibi, and you died for that," she said lowly, clenching her hands into fists and raising her head.

"I released the kyuubi too."

"I know you did that to help us, they told us about your seal." The girl smiled slightly, though it didn't reach her eyes, and her gaze stretched to the side. "You even came back from the dead to save us. Don't say you didn't, because you could have left us to die."

Naruto twitched. "You know I came here to conquer you, right?"

"We tried it first, that was a natural response."

She said it as a matter-of-fact. He supposed when he considered both perspectives, his earlier actions seemed justifiable and his later actions almost honourable. In his specific perspective, though, he was undeniably at fault.

He became amused when he realized she was probably the first one to truly argue with him since he became hokage. "Huh."

The girl twisted on her heels and made for the door. "If we're done…"

"Nah, not yet," Naruto said quickly, crossing his arms. Temari paused, but inevitably turned back to face him.

"Yes?"

"What are you apologizing for?"

She frowned. "W-well-"

Naruto released a pent-up breath, sorry for what he was going to say, but only in principle. "In my eyes, the Sand is responsible for the deaths of Hiruzen Sarutobi, the third hokage, and Jiraiya, the toad sage, legendary ninja and seal master. Are you apologizing for that, are you apologizing for killing a thousand of our people, or are you apologizing for failing to kill more, huh?"

"I-I-" she stuttered, turning her head quickly between the bed-ridden hokage and the guards gazing in her direction around the room. "Look, we regret it, okay? We wish we never attacked you, but it was your missing ninja that sparked all of this!"

As if realizing a mistake, the girl shut her mouth and covered her face in embarrassment.

Naruto frowned, but was aware of what she was insinuating. "It couldn't have been that hard to notice your kage wasn't your kage. Don't you train any sensor ninja? Didn't you ever talk to your father?" As he continued to speak, Naruto's words became growled and she bowed her head. "Did you and your thousands of shinobi collectively forget about our peace treaty? I understand that Orochimaru played dress up as your leader, but what happened next is your fault, not ours."

He sighed when she remained with her head down. "For what it's worth, I'm sorry about your siblings. Especially Gaara, since killing him was a huge mistake, but yeah. You can leave, shoo." Rabbit conveniently unlatched and opened the door for the girl, but she stopped before it.

"Please don't blame Suna," she said earnestly, "just two weeks ago, we… we've lost so many. Be kind to us, especially the civilians, please."

She lingered, but eventually left the room and Rabbit locked it back up, leaving Naruto to his thoughts and scribbles.

"Temari, huh?"

He'd probably be straight back to Konoha once he was healed up, but he'd remember the name and the sentiment. By this point, so much had happened that whatever hatred he had for the sand had dwindled down to next to nothing. He did just complain about them, but that was all he really had left to say about the matter. It was dealt with, and the sand was his now. Jiraiya would remain a sore spot, but that was something he'd sort out with the beast now lying in his gut.

Accepting the tray from Squirrel, he picked out another paper square and put the brush to the ink.

AN:

Things are finally slowing back down in the second half of this chapter, which is a pleasant change of pace. I hope the battle with the ichibi isn't too lacklustre, but any drawn-out confrontation would've killed Naruto no matter how you go about it. He's still twelve.

Drop a follow if you liked it, so you can get the alert whenever I update!

To [MerchantOfBlueDeath] - I really appreciated that review, and it's probably what pumped out this chapter so soon, so you better not dislike it.

While Naruto isn't asexual and he's inevitably going to find a partner, I'm not set on one. Forcing a pairing won't make for a successful pairing, and he hardly works with genin anymore, so he might end up naturally getting together with someone less common, but that's unlikely. I'll probably put in some more interactions with a few girls here and there, and if I happen to write something that convinces me he'd work with someone, I'll probably stick to that.

I'll admit to eliminating Naruto/Hinata as an option, because there is absolutely no reasonable explanation at all for them getting together in this story. They'd hardly have the chance to even walk by one another on the street. The only thing I could think of is Hiashi trying something, but that's not really in character with their limited interactions. At least Sakura was on his team, and Ino is both friends with Sakura and at least acquainted with Naruto.

There's still at least one more to introduce though, depending on how I stick to my vague plan.

If you don't like my portrayal of Temari this chapter, tough - but that's how I think she'd force herself to act in the situation where Suna is pretty much destroyed. Do note that this is obviously AU, and that I gave the sand more casualties during the invasion.

Sorry for the long AN!