Disclaimer: All of the canon characters and material belong to Masashi Kishimoto and Shounen Jump. Original characters, main villians, the plot, and concepts not include in the Naruto series only belong to me. I write this story solely for entertainment purposes.

Dialogue and Scenes Legend:

"***" = Normal Dialogue
'***' = Inner Thoughts, Dreams and Nightmares, Past Events, and Memories
"***" = Shouting Dialogue and Word Emphasis
'***' = Jinchūriki Speech and Distorted Speech
= xxxxx = Paragraph Break For Normal Scenes
*~0~* = Paragraph Break For Dreams, Nightmares, Past Events, and Memories Scenes

:::::

[ACT 1 - ARC 1]
The Mysterious Girls Appear

CHAPTER 01

- Encounters -
Visitors From Another World

:::::

Within the darkness of the black abyss, the rapid footsteps of someone running had resonated loudly around the space. Ragged panting escaped the person's throat while dripping perspiration trickled from their face, leaving a scattered trail in its wake. As they continued to run, there was a particular figure that was coming into view and it was because of seeing that did the person picked up the pace of his already breakneck sprint. The more they ran, the more of the person's silhouette had came to reveal itself to them.

The person was revealed to be a young man no more than in his teens at the most. His black hair was styled with multiple spikes protruding on the back of his head, a short-sleeved, grey, high neck shirt with a symbol of a red and white hand fan was clad on his back, and nestled in between his purple rope belt and blue robe was a dark blue, sheathed long sword. This person was Sasuke Uchiha, the last remaining member of the nearly extinct Uchiha Clan. The noir-haired shinobi had committed many crimes and he had even joined the criminal organization, the "Akatsuki" after getting revenge on his brother, Itachi Uchiha.

Now that his brother was deceased, he had no reason to return back to the Land of Fire. After everything that has happened within Konoha for the sake of peace, Sasuke knew that deep down within his heart that he would never return to the person that he used to be nor would he ever be able to ally himself with the village that he used to call his home. The scheming, corruption, betrayal, and the coup d'etat of the Uchiha Clan had clearly changed that perspective for the young Uchiha. However, there was one person that was still hellbent on trying to save him from the corrupted path that he had blatantly chosen for himself.

As he heard the footsteps getting closer to him, the avenger had turned around and he noticed the familiar blond hair with the black forehead protector that accented his features. His light blue eyes were suffused with determination as he reached out his hand to reach him.

It was none other than Naruto Uzumaki.

Sasuke's eyes had showed no concern for his former friend as he continued to watch the expression on the blond's face. It was nothing short of moronic that Naruto would continue to go so far for him after he had made it very clear that he had no intentions of going back. But alas, Naruto kept trying to reach out to him, pull him back into the light before his darkness corrupted his mentality even further. Naruto was now within arm's reach for his closest friend and he once more stretched out his hand to him.

As soon as Naruto was close enough, Sasuke had vanished right before his eyes, leaving him alone within the horror chamber of darkness.

'...to...'

The blond had heard something, but it was so close to being inaudible that he was certain that he didn't hear anything at all. So he listened for it and the voice had called for him again.

'...ruto...'

Naruto had felt the voice oscillated and it traveled through his body like a soft tremor.

'Naruto...'

The voice was much more clearer now and the blond noticed that this person's voice was somewhat distorted and it was a mixture between a woman and something that wasn't remotely human. This voice certainly didn't belong to the tailed beast and his partner, Kurama and Naruto had steadied himself and became cautious of this voice. "Who are you?"

'You should forget about him, Naruto.'

Him? After quickly reminding himself about how Sasuke had disappeared in front of him, it all had came back to him in a flash. This voice or whoever it was trying to tell him to stay from Sasuke and not only that, it was telling him to negate the once in a lifetime promise that he had bequeathed on himself and Sakura a few years ago. The bond that Naruto and Sasuke had created together during their years was something that Naruto wasn't willing to sever. The blonde's hand clenched with silent anger as he listened to that voice, but not before yelling, "I don't know who you think you are, but you are crazy if you think I'm gonna give up on him now!"

'You're so much better off without him. Your dreams of a bright future, the happiness of everyone within the village, having everyone you cherish sharing that eternal bliss with you. That's the life that you deserved after everything that you have suffered through as a Jinchūriki and all the pain that he has caused you. Your life will be wonderful and grand if you would just cut him out of it.'

Naruto's eyes was now filled with uncertainty about his life. He wanted everything that would make his life even better than it already was. But there was something that kept pulling him away from that eternal light of happiness.

'He's nothing but a dirty traitor. A filthy traitor who deserves to die! Why would you, the Child of Prophecy, go to such lengths to save such a destructive shinobi? Especially when he's hurt you in ways unimaginable.'

"No! He's not a traitor - he's my best friend and I won't let you tell me,otherwise! If he's not around, then my dream of true happiness or being able to save him will have no meaning or purpose behind it!" Naruto was too stubborn and too prideful to trade in the hardships of real life for an illusion of contentment. If Sasuke wasn't there with him basking in that light of happiness, then he would simply not indulge himself in it. It was as simple as that and nothing was gonna change that resolve of his.

'You're such a stubborn fool.' The distorted voice was now dripping with feral resentment towards the blonde shinobi's answer. 'A colossal fool and you will pay the ultimate price for your actions in the near future. Keep believing in wanting to save your precious traitor, because it won't do you any good once the both of you are dead.'

The moment that foul statement was said, multiple fibrils of black chakra was coming towards Naruto at an unnatural speed. When had turned around, a pale white hand as well as the fibrils of black chakra had pierced through his flesh, everything becoming silent when the crimson liquid had instantly splattered.

*~0~*

Naruto's Apartment
Konohagakure, Land of Fire.
April 18, Year 17 SNTE. 10:52 A.M.

With a abrupt gasp for breath, Naruto had quickly sat up in his bed and clenched the front of his chest as felt the rapid beating of his heart. His heart was pumping with the pace of a startled bird in a cage and he groaned with displeasure from waking up in such a state. "It's that same dream again."

The blonde had been having these kind of nightmares for the past three months and it didn't look like that they were gonna let up anytime soon. At least once a week, the same nightmare would invade his sleep and it each time, the nightmare would manifest itself into something more and more horrifying. But this was the first time that the nightmare had included Sasuke in it and now he was worried that the nightmare could lead to something far more threatening in real life. "The nightmares are getting stronger and stronger each time I have them, but I have no idea what it's suppose to mean."

After the invasion of Pain, Naruto never really had the chance to go out with his teammates and continued the search for their comrade. The village needed everyone's help and even though Naruto was the hero who saved the village, he couldn't see himself without lending a hand. As his thoughts had spiraled, there was a loud knock at his door. Naruto had gazed at the door with a frown, putting on a white shirt to cover his perspired covered chest and slipped on his orange slippers as he trudged to the door.

Apparently, the blond wasn't moving fast enough and the pounding on the door was getting louder by the minute. "All right, all right! Give me a -" As quick as the wind itself, the wooden door had flew off of its hinges and it was heading towards Naruto. Luckily, the blond had quick enough reflexes to sidestepped the door as it collided with the nearby wall, snapping in two like a tree twig. "...second?"

Whatever was left of the door was now hanging over one of the chairs in dining room that was connected to the kitchen. The blond felt a drop of sweat forming on the back of his head and cringed from the damage made in his home. 'Not again...'

Looking at the doorway, Naruto was now face to face with a girl that he has known during their years as a team. Her short, pale pink hair had matched perfectly with her fair skin and her celadon green eyes was brimming with annoyance as she tapped her foot at the rattled blond. She was already dressed in her kunoichi attire as she walked inside of her teammate's apartment. "Naruto, didn't you hear me knocking?"

"And good morning to you, Sakura-chan." Naruto had looked back at the ruined door with pieces of the doorknob barely hanging on. "And you broke the door down before I even got a chance to get to it."

"Sorry about that, Naruto." Sakura apologized with a sheepish smile. "Maybe if you come to the door fast enough, this wouldn't happen so often."

'Maybe this wouldn't happen so often if you would stop breaking my door every time you come here.' That's what Naruto really wanted to say, but he knew that Sakura would beat the living daylights out of him if he carelessly slipped with his tongue. Letting out a languish yawn, he slipped a hand in his pocket. "Sakura-chan, what brings you to my place so early in the morning?"

"Oh, that's right. Shishō had wanted me to come and get you right away." The medic had explained, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. "It's very important."

Naruto had inwardly whined from hearing the news. "Can't it wait, Sakura-chan? I just woken up and I haven't even gotten myself together. Can I at least get some Ichiraku before we-"

Sakura had grabbed a hold of his ear before he could even finished. "No, it cannot wait, Naruto! We're needed at the office for something crucial and the only thing you can think about is your stomach?!"

"Sakura-chan, let go of my ear!" Naruto yelled, feeling the pain of the pinching sensation rising around his outer lobe. "What could possibly be so important that you would forsake me of my sacred food?!"

"We have new information pertaining Sasuke-kun's whereabouts." Sakura quickly answered with a tiny glint of amusement gracing her features.

Naruto's movements had ceased as he stood up and looked down at his teammates while placing his hands on her shoulders. The blond had looked in her eyes and the grin that he was famous for was now forming on his face. "Sasuke? Seriously?! Why didn't you say so earlier? Hold on and I'll get ready!" Wasting no time at all, the blond had hurried to the back of his apartment, but not before grabbing his clean shinobi attire that was laying on his small light blue sofa.

"Naruto, h-hold on a second!" When Sakura heard the bathroom door slamming shut, she had threw her hands up in the air in exasperation. Soon after, she smiled from his easy-going attitude and how easily he could switch it in a heartbeat. "Honesty..."

Seeing the railing outside his apartment, Sakura walked through the door frame that lead to it and leaned against it while she waited for Naruto to get himself together. She had wondered would they finally be able to get some more mission work in before going on the search for Sasuke. She only hoped that they'll be able to track him down and bring him home this time around without any problems.

= xxxxx =

Nikkō Forest Outskirts
Nikkō Inn Town
April 18, Year 17 SNTE. 11:37 A.M.

Within a multi-colored chasm, a teenaged girl is seemingly soaring through the space while using a three-pronged kunai as a focal point to her destination. Throughout this whole experience, she had focused her chakra into not only protecting herself from possible danger of this jutsu, but making sure that the written calligraphy on the kunai held in place until she had arrived. Her turquoise eyes displayed wariness as she traveled through this endless chasm, but she would not waver in her own resolve of going back to the past.

In front of her, a small light had shown itself and it signaled the girl that she wasn't too far away from completing her part for this mission. As the light gradually grew in size, she remembered the times where the shinobi world was once full of life and the lands were vast in beautiful greenery. That was one of the things that she was looking forward to seeing again once she made through this rough ordeal. Covering her eyes to keep herself from being blinded from the light, the girl passed through the portal and she was greeted with a surprised when she took in the surroundings of the world.

As she free-falled towards the surface, she saw different spots that had lakes, trees, forests, and there was even a place where some mountains were residing as well. The scenery was absolutely breathtaking in her eyes and she gave a warm smile from seeing such a sight once again. "This is what our world is supposed to look like. We'll definitely bring this beautiful sight back after being apart from it for so long."

As much as she was enjoying the surroundings from the past, she would have ready herself to land properly like a shinobi should - unless she simply wanted to fall face first into the ground and hurt herself in the process. Seeing a large tree closing in on her, the girl fixed her body in a way that she would land perfectly on her feet. With a strong grip and spin around the branch, she secured her footing on the treetops and took a minute to bask in the soft sounds that the animals were making nearby.

The girl was wearing a licorice black cloak with a gold design on the left side of her chest and it reached down to her ankles and the hood that was on her head had obscured most of her features except for the clear shade of lipgloss that was adorned on her full lips. Leaping down from the tree, she carefully landed near a small passage and she had saw a worn out sign that had some writing on it. Walking up to it, the girl leaned in to get a closer look at the writing. "What is this? A bulletin of some sorts?"

Upon closer inspection, she noticed that there was warning in red ink and she had read it:

"Attention to all of those who come to visit Nikkō Inn Town: Be warned that they are mercenary assassins lurking within the dark recesses of the woods. Shinobi and civilians alike, please tread carefully if you value your lives."

From the warning message, she shook her head in disappointment. "I see some things haven't changed at all. If assassins are attacking people, then why hasn't anyone sent shinobi to deal with this situation? Well, hopefully, I won't run into them and have to deal with it."

It was only for an instant, but the girl had sensed something as she turned around and flung a kunai towards her left and into the trees. Scanning the area, she tried to get a feel and see if anyone was out there, but a small squirrel had scurried from out the bushes, carrying an acorn in its mouth. She let out a tiny sigh of relief from getting on edge so easily, but she was glad that her sensory abilities hadn't failed her even in that small regard. 'Hopefully, I can reach town before anything else happens...'

Getting on the small passage that lead to the town, she made her way through the vast forest. The squirrel had ran away back into the trees and it ran past a pair of feet that had belonged to someone - a possible shinobi. Without her knowing however, that someone was indeed watching her from a distance and a smirk of murderous intent had formed on that person's face and they carefully pursued her.

= xxxxx =

Hokage Office
Konohagakure, Land of Fire
April 18, Year 17 SNTE. 12:31 P.M.

Within different places and establishments, many civilians and shinobi alike were bustling and moving about, helping out with the reconstruction of the village. Even though the Invasion of Pain had left many wounds and scars, the self sacrifice of Nagato and Naruto's heroism had granted the village a second chance to rebuild their home into something even more beautiful than it was before. Learning about the aftermath of the invasion, many carpenters and shinobi from smaller nations who specialized in reconstruction had offered their services to the Village Hidden in the Leaves in terms of wanting to rebuild it.

Inside of the Hokage's office, Tsunade was sitting at her desk as she used her stamper to quickly mark her seals of approval through a pile of important documents. Her brown eyes narrow with determination to get through the tedious task as fast she could before her student and Naruto had arrived. Scanning over the last document carefully, she placed the stamp of approval on it and sat it in the completed pile on the opposite side of her.

"Shizune!" Tsunade yelled as she pressed the stamper into a pad of red ink nearby. "Bring me the next stack!"

From the other side of the room, a woman with black shoulder-length black hair and eyes was already coming over with a large pile of documents. She was a bit surprised by how hard Tsunade had been working in the first place, especially since had recently awoken from her coma. Shizune was a bit concerned that Tsunade was in such a mood to do any paperwork at all, but she didn't dwell on it for too long since she was happy just to see her mentor up and about again.

A few moments later, the sound of a loud knock could be heard on the wooden door of the office. Since Tsunade had her nose to the grindstone with filling out the documents, Shizune answered for her. "Come in."

The door had roughly swung open and Naruto had hurried inside with Sakura following not too far behind him. "Bāchan, is it true?! You have new information on Sasuke's whereabouts?"

"Yes, Naruto." Tsunade answered without looking up from her paperwork. Stopping for a moment, she opened one of the drawers and picked up the scroll that had said information in it. "According to the intel from our Reconnaissance Team, Sasuke and his team are were last seen heading towards Nikkō Inn Town that's located in the Land of Swamps. There has also been rumors about the four of them defeating the last members of the Akastuki."

"Sasuke-kun...defeated the other members of the Akatsuki…?" Sakura questioned a bit surprised from the news. "But why…? That doesn't make any sense."

Naruto couldn't believe that Sasuke would even turn his back on the Akatsuki. Then again, if he was willing to try and sever his bonds with him, Sakura, and Kakashi, what was stopping him from cutting ties with Tobi if they had nothing to give him to drive him towards his ambition. The blonde was drawing blanks on why Sasuke would do such a thing, but the good news was Sasuke wasn't too far since the Land of Swamps was allied with the Land of Fire. If they could get an early departure, they would be able to finally bring Sasuke home where he belonged.

All they needed now was the permission from Tsunade to continue their search and Naruto was more than certain that she would knowing how much Sasuke meant to them. "Bāchan, is Kakashi-sensei or Yamato-taichō in the village right now?"

"I'm afraid not, Naruto. They haven't returned from the joint mission in Sunagakure yet, so you would have to wait for them to come back." Shizune had looked over at the mission records to see if they were available and their names were already marked as 'employed'.

"Can't you just send the three of us for the time being? That should be more than enough, right?" Naruto pressed further, hoping that Shizune would see their strong capabilities as a team and let them continue on their retrieval mission. And by three, he meant Sai would come along with them as well. He refused to let Sasuke slip from them again.

"But a four-man cell is standard protocol for all standard missions, Naruto. Not only that, it will take us at least three days at the most to get to Nikkō Inn Town." Sakura was trying to be practical and realistic about this situation. She wanted to help Naruto, but not under these critical circumstances. "I know you want to bring Sasuke-kun back, but we can't be afford to be careless. You may be the hero that saved the village, but you must understand that we have to retain some sense of order in the village before taking on standard missions again."

Naruto crossed his arms and looked at the medic nin with an incredulous look. "Sakura-chan, don't you want to bring him back? So we can all be a team again and keep the bond that we had?"

There was no doubt that Sakura wanted to help the blond bring Sasuke back, but the feelings that she once had for the Uchiha were slowly fading away. She was coming to terms that Sasuke was someone that she cannot hold dear within her heart anymore, but for Naruto's sake, she would do whatever she can for him. If Sasuke were to come back into the picture, then she was more than certain that her feelings and the strength she gained from not holding onto false hope would diminished and she didn't want that. Lifting a hand to a whiskered cheek, she gently patted it and smiled at him. "Of course I do. It's just that-"

Outside of the makeshift office, there were a few snorts and giggles and it wasn't long before it turned into a full blown laughing fit. Both Naruto and Sakura had went outside when they heard the laughter and sitting on a branch outside was a person hiding themselves within the trees. Judging by the voice, this person's voice had definitely belonged to a female.

"Oh, man." The girl had ceased her laughter for a moment, but a few stifled laughs managed to slip while she was trying to regain her composure. "And I thought only girls got that frantic when it came down to the person that they cherished. You must really care about this 'Sasuke' guy a lot."

From the little jab, Naruto was a bit irritated by this person's laughter and not to mention the thing she said about him and Sasuke didn't help his growing impatience. Patience never was his strong point to begin with. Naruto couldn't really see whoever it was, on account that they were sitting underneath the tree branches that concealed a majority of her figure. Not taking any chances, a kunai slipped from the right sleeve of his jacket as Naruto grasped it, ready for possibly anything. "Who are you?"

"Geez, relax." She chided in amusement, holding her hand up to stop them from doing anything too reckless. "It was just a joke. No need to take it seriously. Is this how all Konoha ninja treat their guests?"

"Shishō, who is that?" Sakura questioned as soon as Tsunade and Shizune had came outside to see what all the commotion was about.

"That's the other reason why I brought you here." Tsunade stated. "This girl had arrived here in the village last week and she's been wanting to meet with the both of you."

"Any particular reasons why?" Naruto asked, being very watchful of the girl's actions.

"Oh, heaven forbid if a fan wanted to meet two of the strongest shinobi in the village." She was now jabbing at their vigilance and alertness, which she couldn't necessarily blame them for. "Naruto Uzumaki, also known as the 'Hero of the Hidden Leaf' and Sakura Haruno, the talented kunoichi known as 'Tsunade Number Two' for her medical ninjutsu and battle prowess. Am I correct?"

From that accusation, both Naruto and Sakura had a small tinge of pink on their cheeks. It's not like they were embarrassed or anything; they never considered themselves anything god-like of the sort. The pair only saw themselves as shinobi and nothing more.

"Why don't you introduce yourself to them?" Shizune requested.

"Sure thing." The girl had stood up from the branch as she balanced herself on it, turning her full attention on Naruto. "Kimpatsu over there looks like he's gonna lose it if I don't talk soon."

Before Naruto could give a verbal combat of his own, the girl had leaped forward with a front flip and she landed on the ground as she had dusted off her clothes from any excess dirt that could have possibly got on them. When she fully stood up, she greeted the with a confident smirk and placed her hand on one of her hips. She was sporting a charcoal gray cloak with a gold design on the right side of her chest and it reached down to her ankles. Reaching up to the hood of the cloak, she pulled it down and finally revealed herself to them. "I'm Nariko. It's very nice to meet you, Naruto and Sakura."

Light blue and celadon green eyes widen in disbelief from the appearance of the stranger in front of them. After getting over the initial shock, Naruto was the one to react first and the scream that Naruto released could be heard throughout the entire village. "EHHHHHHHH?!"

***NEXT CHAPTER***

- Mystery -
Nariko and Miyuki

In an interesting turn of events, Naruto and Sakura shows the new girl Nariko around the village. While getting to know her, a piece of her past accidentally slips out. Meanwhile in Nikkō Inn Town, Miyuki tangles with a group of bandits and things get a little hairy for her until a shinobi wielding a large throat cleaver steps in to aid her.

::: = AUTHOR'S NOTES = :::

Terminology

Kimpatsu = "Blonde or Blond Hair"
Shishō = "Master or Teacher"