Thanks for all the reviews, I'm going to respond to a good question that MingShun brought up. Would the guys merely be replacing their wives with the girls of this world? I can't tell you much without giving it away, but I'll say that there are multiple reasons that Kyuubi/Shikaku/Shiva chose this particular dimension. I really hope you guys find this acceptable, it will be one of the more emotional/tormenting parts of the story. Also thanks for the correction on Shukaku's name. Anyway enough talking, on with the story.

Disclaimer - I do NOT own Naruto.

-Chaper 1: Momochi Zabuza--

-Zaiaku-

The blue eyed young man was currently leaning on the railing of the ship bound for snow country, quietly he stared out over the waves.

'What are you thinking about my little one?' questioned Shiva

"Sakura," softly he drew in a shaky breath, 'That's not my hime is it Shiva-san?'

The ice queen only smiled, 'That is something that you have to find out on your own, my little one. I shall tell you this, there is a reason that I said that love overcomes all obsticles. Trust in it, because there is nothing more powerful.'

'Yes, but Sakura died, how can love overcome death?' he replied

'What is death, little one?' she retorted

leaning back against the railing he scrunched up his face, 'I suppose it's when you cease to exist.'

Shiva smiled soflty, 'But you've already seen her haven't you? So Sakura-hime does indeed, exist'

'So you're saying what? That she IS my Sakura?' he questioned, he only recieved a light laugh in response. 'Damnit, I can never get a straight answer can I?'

'No' she replied

-Naruto and Gaara-

Walking down the road to wave country Gaara finally broke the silence,"Do you have a plan yet?"

Naruto only shook his head, "No, I'm just going to take the straight forward approach and ask for it. Hopefully he doesnt want to fight."

"Can you beat him?"

"I don't know, I've already beaten Haku, and he is the stronger of the two with his bloodlimit. Howeve, Kyuubi's chakra flooded me, I lost utter control to the rage." replied the blonde. "I just don't want to have to kill him, he was never evil, just lost."

On the fourth day they reached Tazuna's home, after knocking a small boy answered, "Inari!" cried Naruto

quickly the little boy slammed the door and cried out, "Granpa!"

A female voice came through the house, "Inari! that is no way to greet someone!" she scolded. Opening the door revealed Tsunami, "Hi, I'm sorry Inari did that. Can I help you?"

Gaara intervened before Naruto could frighten someone else, "We are looking for the bridge builder Tazuna, we were told this was his home."

"Ah, you're looking for father. Please come in, I'll get him." she replied

Entering the house Naruto and Gaara sat down at the table across from a still skiddish Inari, "Hello, I'm sorry if I scared you. I..." Naruto didnt know what to say how was he supposed to explain that he already met the boy, then it hit him, "I read about you in the paper." sticking his hand over the table he smiled, "I'm Uzumaki Naruto, and this is Gaara."

As the little boy shook Naruto's hand an older man entered the room, "Greetings-" he stopped and squinted his eyes at Naruto. "I'm sorry have we met before?"

The blonde shook his head, "I don't think so, why?"

"You look very familiar, I remember your face from somewhere. I know it." lazily he waved it off, "Anyway it's of no concern, what buisness did two shinobi have with me?" before the boys could protest he interupted, "I may be old, but don't take me for a fool. Now again, what is it that you needed?"

"We know you hired Momochi Zabuza and Haku to kill Gatto. Where are wondering about their current location." replied Naruto.

Leaning back the old man closed his eyes, "You'll find Zabuza at the bar down the road, he's become our local drunk."

"And Haku?" questioned Gaara

"That's why he drinks, apparently they were ambushed a few days ago by some ninjas from their home country. The boy died protecting Zabuza, man hasn't been the same since. At first I thought he was a cold assassin, but now I know better."

Standing quickly both boys offered a small bow, and a thank you.

Once inside the bar they spotted Zabuza immediately, his bandages discarded, and his clothing bloodstained and tattered. Taking a seat next to him he immediatly eyed them both up, "Not from Mist country, but shinobi." he slurred. Then his eyes became misty, "Why? Why? Why?" he repeated over and over.

Naruto slapped the glass out of his hand, "because you treated him like a tool rather than someone you loved with all your heart, he died not knowing how much you cared for him. Now look at you, wallowing in your self pity, is this how you repay Haku's sacrifice?"

Recomposing himself from Naruto's outburst Zabuza glared, "You don't know, nothing"

"Where is your sword?" questioned Gaara straight to the point.

Once again the hard look replaced by a somber one, "Grave, don't need it, not shinobi." Looking up he had tears in his eyes, "gonna kill me? please?"

'He's one of the mist seven swordsman and he's looking for redemption, kit. He could be useful.' added the Kyuubi

"No" replied Naruto, "You're coming with us."

"What are you doing Naruto?" Questioned Gaara, "We don't need a mentally broken shinobi dragging us down."

Naruto sighed, "He's not broken, he's just depressed." picking up on Gaara's glare he continued, "He's also one of the seven swordsmen of the mist, he can help polish Zaiaku's and my swordsmanship. Besides, we're gonna need a jounin sensei for the chunnin exams."

"Fine, but we're taking him no where in his state. We shall get a room while he sobers up, explain what we have planned, if he agrees he comes. If he doesn't we take the sword and leave him" Gaara snapped out.

Naruto only nodded gripping the unconcious Zabuza, both boys dragged him to the nearest hotel.

The next morning Zabuza was awoken by ice cold water being dumped over his head, "W-what the hell?" he exclaimed sputtering.

"Hello Demon of the Mist, Momochi Zabuza." Said Naruto holding the offending bucket

Zabuza narrowed his eyes, "I know you from somewhere."

Naruto only shook his head, "No this is the first time we've met. That's not why we're here, we have a proposition for you."

"I don't do shinobi work anymore, I've given that up." he replied

"So Haku gave his life so you could mope and drag your feet?" questioned Naruto

Zabuza leaped up and towered over both teens, "HAKU WAS MY LIFE YOU FOOL!"

Gaara gripped his arm, "Haku was PART of your life," using his sand he drove him back down onto the bed and stabbed a kunai into the wall next to his head, continueing in his deadpan tone, "That part is dead, you now have a choice, repent your sins and do good in hopes of seeing Haku again when you leave this world. Or you can take your life right now, go straight to hell, and try to be the demon in death that you never were in life. You're choice."

Naruto stepped up beside Gaara, "We'd like your help, you're a great shinobi, but we don't require it. Repent how you wish, but taking you own life is a boys answer to a man's problem. We're going to get something to eat, think over what we've said, if you agree we'll discuss what is going to happen."

An hour later both boys walked back into the room seeing the kunai embedded in the wall still, Naruto grinned broadly, "So you're going to help?" turning his head revealed Zabuza leaning against the wall.

"Yes" replied the man. "So what's this plan of yours?" Another hour passed and Zabuza was sitting down with his mouth agape, "So let me get this straight, you THINK something is going to happen so your preparing for it?" he cocked an eyebrow, "This is the most hair brained thing I've ever heard in my life, how the hell do you know that the sound village will even attack?"

Both boys looked at each other, Gaara responded, "We know, will you help us?"

The large man shrugged, "Alright."

Naruto clapped his hands, "Excellent, now, shall we pick up Kubikiri Houcho?"

Zabuza cocked an eyebrow, "How do you know so much about me? I know nothing of you."

"Bingo book," replied the blonde simply

Zabuza accepted this answer, "To answer your question, no, I am not retrieving it. It can stay there and rust for all I care, it was a tool of death, that part of me died with Haku."

Deciding to test the waters Naruto pressed on, "May I use it? It was a tool for taking lives in your hands, maybe I can use it for saving some."

"Do what you like, I'm not carrying it for you though." replied the older man.

"Will you teach my friend and I swordsmanship?" questioned the blonde, once again testing the waters

Zabuza eyed Gaara, "You don't look like the sword type."

"I'm not, he's referring to our third teammate." replied Gaara

"I'm going to be your Jounin sensei, I suppose I have to teach you something." scratching his chin he continued, "We just have one glaring problem, to participate in the chunnin exams we need a village. The mist is out of the question. Sand and Sound are techinically the bad guys. Stone hates Konoha as much as cloud. That leaves us with Konoha, taking in three unknown shinobi is pushing it even for that soft hearted Sarutobi."

Naruto waved off the problem, "We'll deal with it one issue at a time, for now we have to meet up with Zaiaku in snow country."

-Zaiaku-

Slamming his kunai into the face of the glacier Zaiaku pulled himself up, "And why couldn't it be somewhere besides in the middle of a glacier?" he grunted

'If anyone could find it, then what would be the point of hiding it, little one?' replied Shiva.

Groaning he slammed his kunai in the ice and pulled himself up a little more, "What did you mean, that Sakura still existed?"

'I told you all that I'm going to little one, the rest is up to you,' she scolded, 'ask me no more of this.'

-Gaara, Naruto, and Zabuza-

"You didn't say it would be this cold!" cried Zabuza

"It's SNOW COUNTRY, wear a jacket or at least a shirt!" retorted Naruto

Zabuza glared, "If we would've taken a second to shop I would have!"

Naruto only shrugged, "we had to leave."

'This is going to be a long trip' thought Gaara.

'I agree one hundred percent,' added Shukaku

Gaara cut them off before they could pursue yet another fruitless arguement, "be quiet both of you, we'll stop at a store when we get to land, maybe you should just stay inside till we do Zabuza."

"Zabuza-sensei" retorted the jounin.

Gaara glared, "Zabuza" once Zabuza retreated below deck the redhead stepped up to Naruto, "This is going to be rough."

"Hmm, hopefully Zaiaku has found it with Shiva's help, without it Shiva has no real power to give. Once we start training it's going to be non-stop, we're going to have to push it with everything we have." replied the blonde

Gaara looked over the water, "Naruto even if we are able to draw 50 percent of their power, we still can't fight a war with only three people. We've already found that out the hard way."

"Well it's four of us now, with Zabuza. He's not a demon container, but he's still damn strong." replied Naruto, "We need to decide what kind of facade we're going to go into Konoha under. We can't just show up, people know you, and me. Hell some people know Zaiaku. We have to hide who we are till it hits the fan." he finished scrunching up his nose.

"Well, I'm the demon of the sand, you're the demon of konoha, Zabuza is the demon of the mist, and we can call Zaiaku the demon of the ice." Gaara picked up on Naruto's look of disbelief. "What?"

"Demon of the Ice? How lame!" he cried, "You'll be Shukaku, I'll be Kyuubi, and Zaiaku will be Shiva."

Gaara only snorted, "Oh sure, they'll never figure that out, Brilliant. You wanted to be Hokage?" immediately he knew he went to far, "Sorry, Naruto."

"S'ok, I have another chance remember?" he replied brightly, "Ne, Gaara. H-how's Temari-chan?"

"She's good Naruto, she seems dead though, it may be that I'm so used to the Temari that would chase you around for eating ramen before dinner," Gaara could only smile, "I think part of her knows she's incomplete."

Naruto shrugged, "I miss her so bad it hurts, it's like a knife digging into me, and knowing she's alive makes it amplified. It was like that when you saw Hinata wasn't it?" Gaara only nodded, "We both know how Zaiaku reacted to Sakura." the young man sighed and ran his hands through his hair, "Let's make sure we keep them safe, then we'll worry about the other things."

"Is it right Naruto?" questioned Gaara, "It's like we're replacing them with copies, sure essentially they are the same people, but if things don't go exactly like they did in our time will they still turn out the same? And if they do then are we just forgetting them from our world? I just don't know, Shiva said love overcomes all obsticles, but this one seems unbeatable."

Naruto smiled, "I've thought about it, Shiva, Kyuubi, and even Shukaku are smarter than we are, they know something we don't." placing a hand on his companions shoulder he beamed, "It'll all work out in the end, let's get some sleep."

-Zaiaku-

lifting his goggles out of his eyes he scanned the cave, 'it looks different Shiva'

'Hmm, it does indeed. Still I feel it's chakra up ahead.' She replied

Walking forward slowly Zaiaku ran his hands along the walls. Finally he saw a faint blue glow resonating from the back of the cave, "Found you," he whispered. Continueing his cautious treck through the cave he finally reached the source of the glow. Reaching out he grasped the handle of the Katana, "Good to see you again, Shimotsuki (Frost Moon)." Freeing the blade Zaiaku smiled as the cold washed over himself, 'Feel better, Shiva-san?'

'Hai, little one, I feel whole again.' she replied.

End Chapter 2

Please read and review.

Preview

Chapter 3: Kubikiri Houcho vs. Shimotsuki