Thanks for the reviews and comments. Here I'll explain some of my decisions about the story and address some concerns regarding lore technicalities and Naruto's overall strength.

At the very core of my reasoning, I didn't want to make Naruto severely overpowered like he is at the end of the manga. Unless that's the theme you're purposefully going to go with, in my mind it makes for poor story progression. I think part of a compelling tale is the change that occurs when facing obstacles within the context of one's human limits. Miura's Berserk for instance highlights the struggle of man in a fantastical world of gods, demons, and seemingly insurmountable challenges. Naruto in this story ranks among the strongest of humans, but to make him effectively a god would render any would be challenge in the future a farce. That's just not a road I'm interesting in treading down.

As far as lore consistency goes, I may try to go back and flesh things out more accurately, but for now I'll just call it dramatic licensing and ask for your suspension of disbelief. Movies are also not canon. ThanksAThanks again people :)