Hello readers to another chapter for this fic. I warn you there is more emotional baggage going on here, and I promise the action will come in soon. I have to just put in these expository chapters to show that change of personality in the naïve Naruto. It's cumbersome, I admit, but refuse to give up and just make Naruto OOC!

Special thanks to Element-Overlord for splitting the workload and doing part of the chapter.

Disclaimer: first chapter

Chapter 5: Regrets

In the Council room, the Shinobi and Civilian sides furiously battled over quite the stirring and controversial conflict. Tsunade dutifully listened to both sides of the argument, yet she knew the Civilian Council's insistence that the renegade Uchiha be exempt from any form of crime is beyond what the Hokage would allow. Sasuke Uchiha is a traitor, no more, no less!

"I've had enough of this farce! This topic is now under Shinobi jurisdiction as it should be since the start. I allowed this debate to start to see if you have any bit of sense, but it seems you are all lost causes." Tsunade's authoritative voice silenced the Civilians, "Sasuke Uchiha is a traitor, charged for treason, military desertion, attempted murder of a fellow Shinobi, and criminal aid from a fugitive! These charges stacked together could send the boy to his death!"

The Civilian council, alerted by the threat of the last Uchiha's possible death sentence, stood up with an uproar of refusals. They really did not like the sound of the Uchiha dying.

"SILENCE!" Boomed Tsunade, "This is now under Shinobi jurisdiction! YOU CANNOT PERSUADE ME TO DO ANYTHING PLEASANT REGARDING THE UCHIHA!"

Danzo, a heavily bandaged man, stood up, "Are you implying that the Uchiha should die, Tsunade?"

"That's Hokage to you, Danzo. And by all accounts, Sasuke, if captured should be executed when he returns."

"But what of the Uchiha bloodline?!" Danzo and the other Elders complained to the leader of the village. Bloodlines were coveted by the village; the Uchiha bloodline, the Sharingan, the ocular bloodline able to copy movements, raise perception, and copy jutsus, is the most coveted of all bloodlines.

It is the pride of Konoha, and it is now nearly extinct with both remaining members as traitors.

"The Uchiha clan is dead. Live with that fact." Hiashi Hyuuga, the clan head of the Hyuuga clan said to the Civilian council, "You spoiled a flight-risk Shinobi, an Uchiha at that, and look at your final product, you made another Madara…"

"Such insolence coming from you, Hiashi-san. Speaking that name here..." Koharu, one of the Elders commented harshly, "Your statements can be considered useless for your clan had a rivalry with the Uchihas."

"The Uchiha pup is gone, deserted his village for his quest of power. He will find no love in his home, with the clans. For his misdeeds, he must be punished for his heinous crimes! He is just a criminal now!" Tsume Inuzuka proclaimed. Her spiky hair and feral look amplified the ferocity in her words.

"I agree with Hiashi and Tsume." Shibi Aburame, a bespectacled man with a high-collar cloak spoke, "For the Uchiha's crimes, it is only logical that the boy must be punished. Whether through death or prison time, it is up to the Hokage."

"I speak for the Akimichis, the Naras, and the Yamanakas when I say that Sasuke Uchiha should be punished harshly." Shikaku Nara suggested, "However, we too choose for the Hokage to choose the boy's punishment when he is captured."

"You speak as if Sasuke's capture is set in stone, Shikaku." Homura, the last Elder in the Council stated cautiously, "What makes you so sure the boy will be apprehended in the future?"

Shikaku answered, "The next generation is motivated, Elder Homura."

"Motivated?"

"They are eager to put the Uchiha in his place. If you don't what I mean, then I'll clarify. The next generation want Sasuke Uchiha in bars." The Nara clan head, whose son looked much like him held a composed face, "Only you, Civilian council, want the Uchiha and not in the criminal type of way."

Seeing that the topic was lost, Danzo opted for yet another controversial topic that the Civilian council could win. His narrowed eye signaled a time for a counterargument, "Then lets talk about The Uzumaki, and the Kyuubi." Tsunade groaned; she didn't like where this was headed.

"The Uzumaki is also a Shinobi-"

"Do not play that card again, Tsunade! The boy used the Kyuubi's Chakra. He is a threat to the village now that he's tapped into that abomination's Chakra. He needs to be kept here and under my supervision!"

Tsunade slammed her palms on the podium, "Absolutely out of the question!" Her voice instilled fear into her people, "Naruto is not going to be part of your little cult. He's the most loyal Shinobi of this village, not some monster!" Danzo scoffed and shook his head slowly.

"It seems you've let your relationship with the boy hold bias to your decisions, Tsunade. What does that tell you about your Hokage, my fellow villagers?" The Civilian council sneered at Tsunade's moment of vulnerability, and acted on it by shouting for Naruto head. The blonde woman palmed her face.

"He needs to kept on a leash! Keeping him free will make him a flight-risk to the village." Homura argued uselessly, "As the village's jinchuuriki, he must be the village's attack dog!"

"And this is exactly why Tsunade left the responsibility of the boy's growth to me, Civilian council." Jiraiya entered the Council room nonchalantly while clapping mockingly as his sandals clacked on the floor, "Tsunade saw fit that Naruto Uzumaki be under MY care, and I'll see to it that he shall be a exceptional Shinobi."

"What?!"

"Yeah. Hime allowed me to get the kid some training. Kami knows he needs it more than anyone else. Well I've said my piece...buh-bye!" Jiraiya poofed into smoke to signal his exit.

Trees whizzed past by, various shades of dark green blurred, and the wind roared by the fleeing Jinchuriki. Naruto ran as fast as he could, trying to erase his worries just by running. It was all Naruto could do right now, and it seemed effective for just a moment.

After that rousing and unadulterated reality check from Saber, Naruto wanted nothing more than to remember the days where Shinobi were just looked at heroes, not empowered murderers. Running only helped the boy remember those days, and he wanted nothing more than to wipe that worry from his existence.

He would not kill Sasuke, no matter what!

Meanwhile with Saber, the King of Knights stared down at Caliburn, her sword. The regal legendary sword once placed in stone was now ironically placed into stone again. Her sword that started her legend rejected her Master, her Master of pure heart and willpower personified. She thought it possible for him to pull it from its rocky prison. Looking at the magnificent blade of gold and blue, Saber sighed deeply. "One day, Master. You'll be ready to pull Caliburn. But when you do, do not lose your humanity…do not lose what makes you unique. Do not become a king like I was," her Master has a long way to go before being able to pull her sword out of a rock. Before she disappeared into thin air, she grabbed Caliburn from the stone easily and delicately sheathed it in its scabbard. "Your legend, your story birthed from our legends will overshadow mines and others, Shadow of Heroes…"

Naruto ran hastily and haphazardly, not caring where his legs took him. His tears shed earlier now dried due to the warm air passing by him. He exited the forest that encompassed all the training grounds and headed for the bustling nightlife of his home village. When he ran, all spectators could see was an orange blur, and they knew who that blur was. One of these spectators was Ino, who brought several bags of groceries home. She saw the barely noticeable look of stress and trauma in Naruto's face. She suspected that Naruto had heard of his training trip outside the village and was rejecting the idea, but she hypothesized that just from suspicion alone. Seeing as she never saw that type of face on the giddy Shinobi, she ran after him, albeit carefully because of her fragile baggage.

The blonde boy ran past Ichiraku, ran past the Marketplace, ran past the plaza, and ran past the Hokage mansion to go to a place he could clear his mind: The Hokage Monuments. Ino followed shortly, panting slightly after the multi-kilometer jog from one side of the village to the other.

"Hey, what's wrong, Girl?" Ino perked up at the voice and turned around to see the long, spiky, white hair of Jiraiya the Sannin.

Ino bowed while saying, "Good evening, Jiraiya-sama. Do you know what happened to Naruto? I followed him after barely seeing his clearly upset face. He even looked like he was crying! Crying? Naruto of all people? Can you believe that, Jiraiya-sama?" Ino's show of disbelief in Naruto's actions alerted Jiraiya.

Interrogating Ino, the Sannin asked, "Where'd he go?"

Ino pointed to the monuments, "To the monuments, Jiraiya-sama." Immediately, Jiraiya ran after Naruto. Ino followed suit, determined to know what has gotten Naruto on edge. Conveniently, Kakashi, who was eating dinner just next to the conversing Shinobi, had heard all that. With great concern, Kakashi followed as well.

"Hey! Don't leave without paying!" Right after paying for that Shark Fin soup.

Inside Naruto's mindscape, Saber and the other Servants just sat in eerie and awkward silence. Hearing their Master's insistence to not kill the boy that acknowledged their Master's existence had either really hit the heart or not in Alter Ego's case. While the strange girl truly did feel sad for her Master's situation, she could not express that kind of emotion well. What she could express, one that some of the Servants harbored, was aggression.

"Was is necessary for you to do that, Saber?" Alter Ego asked harshly, "Was is necessary to give him your sword when he's only learning how to hold a sword for three days?! What were you thinking?" Saber sat in silence as she mentally reprimanding herself because of that truly foolish test that her Master wasn't ready to take.

Caster took action, "Now, now, Alter, we don't need that kind of negativity around here. Saber herself knows that she messed up." She mustered up her best optimistic smile as she tried to settle an igniting argument.

"Even so, she didn't need to tell the truth as bluntly as she did. I would expect that from Ruler or myself, but not from her!"

"While it is tragic, it is a necessary evil Master has to confront in order to mature," Ruler's accented words rang true to all Servants who saw need in giving their Master a reality check, "Though I wouldst have done it in moderation; it only means that Master will mature as fast as a caterpillar preparing itself to turn into a butterfly. Master will learn to confront the daunting task of killing his friend, but to do that, he needs to see the consequences of keeping his traitorous friend alive."

"I suggest you don't go that far, Ruler." Lancer stepped in, "You've already seen Master's distraught position, so why deepen it? You'll only make it worse," Lancer's persuasion didn't end there, "The seeds of doubt have been planted even if Master is rejecting it. The more you push that doubt, the more Master will reject it and continually force himself to not kill not just Sasuke but anyone at all!"

"Hmph…You really should see what the brat's life has been. You'd see why he cares deeply for that lost cause."

"What do you mean, Kyuubi-san?" Archer asked the question everyone had in mind.

"How about I show you?" With a wave of its hand, Kyuubi changed the scenery from the dark, depressing sewer that was Naruto's mindscape to inside the city walls of Konoha. It was from Naruto's eyes, and the scenes passing by almost looked like a movie documentary.

"Get out of here brat!" a man yelled before literally kicking Naruto from a clothing store, "You are not buying any clothes from this store except those orange jumpsuits! The sooner you die, kid, the better it is for everyone else. So do us a favor and do it!" No one would see or care that Naruto shed a tiny bit of tears before taking the clothes the owner gave him. That was the origins of their Master's jumpsuit and it was one of the tame happenings during his childhood.

It was mostly tame in other days too. Civilians pretended to not notice the boy at anytime, and they would constantly ignore him to go on with their normal lives as they silently hated the boy for what he held. Though the children were another story as they would continually point to Naruto and casually call him, "Monster! Demon!" and stay away from him and leave the Jinchuuriki on his lonesome.

The extreme events happened only during his birthday, the day Kyuubi was announced to have been defeated by the great Fouth Hokage, a man who astonishingly looked way too similar to Naruto in hairstyle and facial structure. During those days, Naruto would sprint off into the darkness as he evaded either drunken or mourning civilians to avoid their hate-filled glares and the occasional bottle throwing.

In the Academy, he stayed the outcast trying to be the fool to be noticed by others. The hate was still there in the adults at least. The children saw Naruto in a new light; however, it wasn't any better because rather than being called demon, he was called-

"LOSER!"

"Moron!"

"Orphaned IDIOT!

"Dead last!"

"Noodle brains!"

Those insults echoed throughout Naruto's years in the Academy as he would desperately try to graduate from the Academy, yet fail because of an illusory propagation technique. The young Master did not give up and saw one of the students, Sasuke, as a rival. Though it was a ridiculous thought because Naruto was the class clown and failure whereas Sasuke was top dog of the class.

"Dobe."

"Try hard."

"Target practice."

They were at odds at first. Naruto was irritated at how 'holier than thou' Sasuke was acting while the other was irritated by Naruto's obnoxiousness and immaturity as a Shinobi. They bickered like a cat and dog and had a plethora of miniscule feuds none cared about to mention. The Wave mission came and the Servants saw their Master being protected by Sasuke when Naruto was about to become a pincushion. Cue curb-stomp battle between Haku and Naruto himself with Naruto beating Haku. Chunin exams came and still people would doubt Naruto's skills. Only Sasuke thought of Naruto as someone capable of being on par with him or at least give a challenge to him.

"You'll never be as good as Sasuke!"

"Give up, dead last."

Sasuke's face showed up and looked at Naruto, "Naruto…I want to fight you the most." Naruto's inner mind lit up like a firecracker. His rival had recognized him as someone worthy of a fight. The renowned dead last at the Academy had improved to the point of being noticed by his rival. From that point on, he only tried to get better despite not having a proper teacher.

"The brat only wanted recognition as a human being, and the villagers rejected that idea. He resorted to being a clown, a jester, and it worked because it made him be seen as human, a degraded one, but a human one nonetheless. As you can see, Sasuke is the first one of the brat's age group to physically acknowledge the brat's humanity, individuality, and skill."

The Servants accepted the information into their heads. Saber looked more upset after hearing that; she had knowingly placed the true burden of a King unto Naruto and expected his pure heart and charisma to be enough to lift the blade from its prison. She looked beyond the walls of Naruto's mindscape, and looked at what was transpiring outside the walls.

The blonde Shinobi had stopped. His legs refused to carry him further than the spot he was on, the Hokage Monuments, and more specifically on the Fourth Hokage's head. Naruto sat on top of the Fourth Hokage's head, and looked to the view of the village with its bright lights illuminating the village in a faint, yellow glow.

"Do I really have no choice in the matter?" Naruto asked himself, "Am I so weak that I cant save him? He was just misguided…" Naruto clenched his teeth before yelling, "IS IT SO BAD TO TRY AND SAVE HIM?!" His voice echoed out, yet drowned out by the bustling sounds of the village. The boy slumped forward, trying to quell his anger and to suppress his tears, "Why? Why is it so bad to save him from his path to darkness?"

He would have muttered more saddening thoughts, but a familiar voice interrupted him with a, "Hey, Naruto!" The boy turned to the voice, Jiraiya's voice. "What are you doing here so late at night?" Jiraiya saw the answer in Naruto's slightly lifeless eyes. He also saw the sign of tears on his cheeks before his disciple turned around to face the village, "Hey now…what's wrong?"

"…"

"I'll treat you to some ramen if you tell me~"

"…"

"Oh…sounds very serious if you're refusing ramen."

"It sounds extremely serious Jiraiya-sama." Kakashi presented himself, "There is no way that the true Naruto would ever refuse ramen."

"Shut up, Pervy-Sage, Kakashi-sensei…" Naruto said weakly, "I want time alone." The white-haired men had a look of pondering before refusing with a childish-

"Hmm…No!" They said at the same time. Jiraiya started, "Now are you gonna tell us what's wrong, kid?" The boy didn't answer for a while, and just stared at the village.

Ino, who was just far enough to be away from Naruto's sight, saw and heard how strange the boy acted. This was not Naruto Uzumaki. This was not the Hyperactive Shinobi of Konoha. This was not him! She was slightly worried for Naruto's mental state. Whatever he had gone through in the recent hours must have traumatized him too much and it's taking its toll on his psyche.

"Saber…Saber told me that I should kill Sasuke…" Naruto said monotonously. Jiraiya and Kakshi were shocked. They didn't expect the woman to say that to Naruto. Ino was at a loss for words just as much as the elder Shinobi, "She told me I can't get to the next step without realizing I have to make sacrifices for the greater good, that I have to kill in order keep the peace, and that I can't handle the mantle of leadership because of my refusal to kill!" Naruto's voiced sounded feral, and the elder Shinobi could feel Naruto's anger and despair, "She told me I'd have to accept that Sasuke might be a lost cause, and that I might need to kill him if he doesn't change. And I can't do that for reasons you two should understand!"

Jiraiya sighed and so did Kakashi. They realized this would be the moment Naruto had to grow up and take their profession seriously. They did not like to talk about things like murder to a greenhorn like the boy in front of them. However, it was in the job description so Naruto had no excuse to say he didn't know he or any other Shinobi would kill.

"My goodness…Saber just handed the reigns to us, eh?" Jiraiya vainly joked, yet his disciple was not laughing. He stared at the serious eyes of an Uzumaki.

"I don't have time for jokes, Jiraiya-sensei. I have no idea what to do! To get to the next step, I must accept that I will have to make sacrifices for the greater good, but I don't think that killing Sasuke is the way to go about it!"

"…"

"He's just misguided! He has to be!" Naruto confidently claimed to his master, "I can get him back. Just train me some more, Jiraiya-sensei, and I'll do the best I can!"

"I'm sure you would, kid." Jiraiya answered lowly, "But…as it stands, to the rest of the governing body of Konoha and the other villages, Sasuke is a missing-nin with a large bounty for his head. Not as large as Kakashi or mines, but large enough for a genin." Naruto's eyes widened as the news dropped on him like a bomb.

His reaction exploded like a bomb too, "W-what?" Naruto asked in shock, "T-there's no way that's real!" Ino gasped silently

"You heard right, Naruto. Sasuke is considered as a criminal, a traitor to the Leaf." Kakashi's somber voice hit the boy through the heart. Naruto knew that tone was a tone of sadness, of regret…

Of loss…

"Naruto, you know that Orochimaru was my teammate, right?" Jiraiya asked his trembling disciple, "I wanted him to change his mind too, but in the end he didn't, and we fought. I hesitated when dealing the finishing blow, and he ran away. All my life since thn, I've regretted that action, and now Sarutobi-sensei is dead, and he is a criminal many are on the lookout for." Naruto took the information in like a sponge as he imagined his teacher's battle with his friend too. "There'll come a time when you realize that Sasuke won't come back, Naruto. I won't give you false hope that Sasuke is capable of changing, but in the event that he does, he must face consequences…dire or deadly consequences…"

"So…so you're saying that-"

"You have little to no chance, and most likely you must kill him, or else the worst Tsunade might order for his execution." Jiraiya interrupted.

"…But why…? Why does it have to be like this? Naruto Uzumaki does not break promises, Jiraiya-sensei! Naruto Uzumaki fulfills them, and not once did he stray from that. And so I can't back down from this one just yet!"

"In a profession like this, promises are nothing but things that get you KILLED!" Jiraiya yelled as he jabbed a finger on his student's shoulder, "You're telling me that if someone asks you to promise them that you'd come back alive from a war, that you'd come back safe and sound? Are you telling me that you're that foolish to believe that you are even skilled enough to survive a war that'll last kami knows how long?!" Naruto flinched at the volume his master was giving him. Naruto knew wars were battles where he would likely die, but he would give his friends hope when he promises, so why can't his master see that? "Kid, I've seen Shinobi with great talents die bearing that same promise to his or her loved ones and left those loves ones broken. You trying to fulfill a promise you can't keep will only hurt you inside as each passing day tortures you with the thought of Sasuke not ever coming back. Trust me when I say that that's what I thought about Orochimaru when this happened to me too! I wanted him to come back too! I thought the same things as you did, and did what you are going to do: fight him!"

Naruto tried making an outburst of refusal, yet those words crawled back into his throat; he had nothing, he had no statement that could refute a future he would most likely have. A Shinobi rarely dies old, and the good ones tend to die young; in a blaze of glory to add. Not many live past his or her forties. Traitors were also dealt with on a constant basis, so what did Sasuke have that made him different from other traitors? He's a friend? Naruto shook his head on that weak answer. Many traitors had friends they had to leave behind. He's a... Naruto drew a blank. What else was Sasuke to him other than the obvious?

He had no idea…

"Naruto," Kakashi chipped in, "I know what you're going through; however the difference between us is that I killed my teammate. I killed her to save millions. I killed my friend to do that, Naruto. She was a lovable, cheery girl. She's much like Sakura in regard –without the loud voice-" Kakashi chuckled weakly, "She was forced to be a Jinchuriki, Naruto; she was forced to become the vessel for the Sanbi and was planned to be released into the village. I guess another difference is that she asked for that death. She wanted to save Konoha by asking me to end hers."

"And as you said, that's different! She was prepared to die for the village, and she wasn't a traitor!"

"And Sasuke is!" Jiraiya yelled, "You can't stay ignorant, Naruto. Sasuke chose to leave the village for a reason!"

"Don't you think I know that?!" Naruto retorted, "Sasuke left because he needed power to get back at his brother. But that power is evil, corrupt, and it's twisted his mind! I won't kill him! I won't kill anyone!"

"But you have killed someone, Naruto." Kakashi said to the Naruto. The news shook both blondes in the area. Naruto's mind, already in a mad dash, looked for possible identities he might've killed. He was interrupted when Kakashi gave him the answer, "You killed Doto Kazehana. You killed Princess Koyuki Kazehana's Uncle when you shoved that Rasengan into his gut and made him fly into the wall of the heat generator."

"B-But!"

"Koyuki lied to you, Naruto. You killed Doto at the moment his body met the wall. She didn't tell you that so you wouldn't lose that smile of yours; she wanted you to stay pure. But now responsibility caught up with you, and you must accept that what we do is nothing more than kill!"

"We are more than that! We are heroes, we are saviors, we are-"

"Killers!"

Ino had enough drama and let her presence be known to the arguing duo. She stepped out of her hiding place and stepped in between master and student. Standing her ground, she spread her arms out wide with a palm facing the arguing master and student. "Stop it!" she yelled, "Jiraiya-sama, Kakashi-sensei…enough…enough grief…is this…is this how you're going to end Naruto's last night here?!"

"Huh?" Naruto's lack of reaction either meant his brain still processed the information, or he's emotionally exhausted from yelling and crying.

"Naruto…this is your last night here in Konoha. We'll be leaving tomorrow for your training trip…" Jiraiya explained sadly to his already fragile disciple. He squeezed his eyes shut to reel back from a possible emotional outburst from the boy, yet he did not feel or hear the boy yelling at him. The man waited a few seconds when he heard-

"Jitaiya-sama…he left." Ino told the man.

"Huh?"

Ino looked at the orange blur in the distance. He already cleared past the plaza. She could only speculate the pain her comrade could be in, but she should not interfere with his fragile heart tonight. Tomorrow, she and her friends will. She nodded mentally; she'll get her friends together to make the best farewell party to the leaving teen. It's only fair that she and the others give the boy a smile when he leaves.

She turned to the Sannin, "Let him clear his mind, Jiraiya-sama. From what I've heard, he should calm his head first and foremost before you place more depressing news to him." Jiraiya nodded slightly, and soon left the area.

"Can you brighten his night, Ino?" Kakashi asked the Yamanaka.

"No…" Ino answered sadly, "I'd like to help him, but as it stands, Naruto would shut me out because I know about his training trip. I'm an accomplice."

"I see…"

Naruto sat silently as he slumped forward with eyes scanning the floor with no idea what to look for. His mind scrambled to understand what in the world is happening tonight…He was told to accept that he might need to kill Sasuke; that he killed Koyuki's tyrannical Uncle, and that he would leave tomorrow… 'Where did it all go wrong?' Naruto asked himself. He tried thinking, yet his efforts only hurt his head. He cradled his head with his hands as he braced it so the pain would lessen. Eventually, the pain subsided, and he changed into his sleeping garments to sleep his worries away…

Once in deep sleep, Naruto's mindscape forcefully projected itself into his dreamless sleep. Shocked by the unannounced visit, he scrambled as he stood up. Saber stood in front of him with a serious look on her face.

"Master... I wish to speak to you about something…" Saber began in a serious tone, even more serious than when they discussed when Naruto failed to get Caliburn out of the stone.

"Okay… Go ahead, Saber-sensei."

"Just as both of your teachers said, I and the other servants had to sacrifice many comrades to accomplish our goals back then in our past lives."

"Saber..." Naruto could only say, wondering what hardships the blonde swordswomen had to go through.

"Let me speak, Master…" Saber insisted, making the young Master close his mouth in accordance to the Knight's wishes, "While I can't tell you everything about my life yet, I can tell you how I had lost everything close to me while following my ideal. Back then, I used to be...a Knight, a swordsman akin to that of your modern Samurai; loyal to the leader of a kingdom, and faced many threats to protect our people from invaders and traitors, regardless of what they thinked of us..."

Naruto made the connection with the Knights and Shinobi protecting their home. However, he immediately thought of Knight as more honorable warriors, saviors to the weak. What he didn't know was that Knights had to kill to protect their home as well.

Saber sighed, remembering how the people she protected and even her fellow Knights looked at her in fear, as if she was a tyrant just because of how she acted without emotions. "But then...I discovered that one of the most loyal Knight, and someone that the king had callen friend, had an affair with his wife, whom was chosen to be his Queen for the kingdom's sake..." Berserker then flinched, but it was unnoticed by Naruto, who was wrapped up in Saber's tale.

"Yet, eventually that Knight's affair with the queen was eventually revealed through the plans of traitors who hated the kingdom, causing them to stand opposed. But even so, the King did not see this inescapably unrighteous action as a betrayal, but instead understood the queen's sacrifice due to her compromise to him being more of an arranged marriage instead of true love. Yet the King still acted in the capacity of someone from his rank for the kingdom's sake, and thus his wife was to be executed..." Naruto could see Saber shaking before she continued, "But the Knight that was the Queen's lover could not stand by while she was killed, bringing about a tragedy where no one was right and no one was wrong..."

"So…did she die?"

"No," Saber answered, "She survived because of the traitorous Knight's action." Naruto gave a small sigh of relief, and let the Knight continue her story, "Then eventually the King's greatest weapon was stolen while he, I and many other loyal Knights repelled an assault along the country's borders; but when we returned, we discovered the kingdom was being torn asunder by civil unrest. Despite our valiant efforts to placate the dissent, the King and I were mortally wounded by the traitorous Knight, and leader of the traitors, the King's own son, Mordred, during the final battle of the kingdom before he was killed..." Now the blonde master could see some tears falling from her eyes, "While I lay near dead, the King's dying body was escorted to a holy isle by his remaining knight. Then he ordered to the grieving knight to dispose of his weapon by throwing it back to the lake where it was found… I heard how my King reflected on his personal failures, regretting his life as King before dying...wanting a new chance for redemption for his lost kingdom..."

"…" Naruto sat silently as he reconsidered his options once more. He could give Sasuke a chance. That King followed his duties to the end even though his most loyal Knight and his wife betrayed him, and he didn't falter in his choice to brand them as traitors. Besides, he's already killed; an action he still needed to fully comprehend, and he can't actually say he won't kill anyone anymore because he'd done the deed a while ago. On Sasuke's part, he disobeyed the laws of the village and deserted it on his own accord. If Naruto decides to be a leader, he must do the same things that King Saber mentioned to keep his village together and safe from harm. He rubbed his head as he yelled, "Argh! This is so infuriating!"

"What's so infuriating, Master?"

"How about a compromise?!" Naruto suggested, "Let me take that test! One more time! Your story gave me some insight and so did Pervy-Sage and Kakashi-sensei. I want to try that test again because I understand what Sasuke did was something unforgivable and punishable. He deserves at least punishment for his crimes. All I want is to have some chances."

"Chances?"

"Obviously, right now…I'm naïve, but your story along with Pervy-sage and Kakashi-sensei's opened my eyes a bit. I'm spouting nonsense about being Hokage when I don't even have what it takes to be a leader. A leader has to protect his or her subordinates. I want to try it again for the sake of trying again. Besides, if I can't get the sword out, how will I master you or the others?"

Saber looked long and hard at her Master. She processed her Master's words, and saw sincerity that he knows he is inexperienced in being a leader, and inexperienced in making sacrifices. She understood that her Master knew his weaknesses as a leader. Knowing mistakes, and learning from them improves a leader's capability to lead; a trait Saber failed to understand during her life. Maybe running away from his problems, and running into more helped her Master. She just hoped this enlightned Master could pull Caliburn from the stone.

"Alright, Master. Let's go."

Naruto and Saber returned to the area where Caliburn stayed for the test. Saber returned the sword into the stone, and waited for Naruto to once again pull the sword from the stone. The sword shone brightly as the moon hit the blade.

The blonde Master closed his eyes, 'Sasuke…you've your reasons, and I respect that. However, it didn't need to happen like that. You could have stayed, and improved yourself here. You took the easy way out, and left the village and ignored the laws that even I had followed unconsciously.' He moved his hand to the sword's grip, and closed his hand tightly, 'If I wish to become Hokage, I need to make sacrifices like many leaders do. I need to do what's right, but right now…I can't kill you yet. I want to get through to you some more. I need to give you a chance. It sounds stupid, but hey…either you die or I die. Or the hopeful alternative, you come back, and take your punishment like a man.' Naruto pulled his arm up slowly, and he felt the slight jolt of the sword moving out of the rock, 'I either get you back here, and make you take your punishment, or I die trying, or you die. I don't know which of the three would happen, but hopefully soon…I can do all three when we meet. As a friend, I want you safe. As a Shinobi, you will be killed or captured. As Naruto Uzumaki…I will do what I must to protect the village. Whether you choose to come home or not, I will make the necessary action, Sasuke. I promise you on that!'

He pulled the blade with all his might. It moved ever so slightly with each tug, as if it resisted the would-be wielder's touch. Saber looked at her Master with keen eyes. Her Master was thinking about something. She guessed it must be something about his resolve or decision. Whatever it was, it's working. Not a half minute later, Naruto pulled Caliburn out of the stone, but not without penalty.

Naruto pointed it out to Saber, "Is a sword supposed to be this heavy?" He asked the woman as she looked at her Master having difficulty lifting the blade. She hypothesized an answer.

"Caliburn has accepted your compromise," Saber replied to her confused Master, "The easier you accept that you may have to make sacrifices in life as both a leader and a follower, the easier it is to wield Caliburn. In a way, Caliburn is making you feel the burden a sword carries." Naruto nodded in understanding as he struggled lifting the blade up to look at it in its full and magnificent glory.

And so starts the legend of the Shadow of Heroes, the Eiyu no Kage…

A glimpse into the future…

There are many possibilities; paralled worlds in which an event plays out differently with a subtle touch while others drastically change as if dropping a penny started a civil war! Sure there could be a world out there that has that specific event happening right now, and we won't know about it. Parallels don't ever touch.

The Grail destroys that principle, bringing in heroes of old with varying differences in story or history like King Arthur actually being a girl in the world we'll be looking at soon.

A Shinobi with the principles of a knight and hero enters the fray as the last Servant to enter the Grail war. He's from the future, so practically nobody knows of his legend. Which suits his situation fine. It'd be a shame to hide his wonderful Kyuseki with some lame concealing magic to keep his identity secret.

Now let's go on to the actual glimpse of the future…

Shirou ran for his life. That blue-clad spearman is STILL chasing after him! Why? Why is he still chasing this average-looking teen all the way to his home? Better yet, why is he still alive?! Last thing he remembered, he got stabbed THROUGH THE HEART!

The red head saw the glint of red on the corner of his left eye. On reflex, he dodged, leading the spear to puncture a hole in the wall in front of him. Shirou decided that being in his house; hallways are not safe places to be in with a spearman hellbent in killing him.

Actually, no place is safe for him.

The blue spearman grabbed the collar of his uniform and chucked him outside of his home. Shirou landed with a thud, and he quickly stood up to run away from the assailant.

"You just won't die, won't you, cockroach?!" The spearman yelled, "No matter. I killed you before, and I'll kill you again." That was Shirou's signal to run even faster now. To have that feeling of death on his back really motivated him to run like never before. Ah the wonders of adrenaline...

The future Acher halted his retreat when the spearman cut him off, and slammed the shaft of his spear on the teen's side, and sent the boy sprawling on the shed's floorboards. The teen groaned in pain, and unconsciously activated his magic circuits. He needed to fight back now! He searched for anything he can use as a weapon.

Sure he might die, but he already did...technically.

Unknowingly, the spearman entered the shed and prepared to stab Shirou once more. "Ready to die again?" The spearman asked. He waited for only a second before rearing the spear back and trusts it towards Shirou.

The teen activated his circuits and suddenly, a blinding, orange light emerged behind him. He dismissed it as nothing but the afterlife ready to claim his soul. What he didn't expect was the sound of metal clashing against metal.

Clinkssssssshh! The screeching sound of metal grinding on metal certainly alerted both assassin and victim. A second later, the spearman couldn't react in time, and rocketed out of the shed's doorframe. The man rolled away before crouching and skidding on the ground to stop. He readied his spear for a fight. It irritated him, but he, his victim, is now a Master, and being a Master means that he has a Servant; a powerful one.

In the shed, Shirou looked at what he could only describe as an orange knight. He had white armor, pauldrons, gauntlets, and greaves, but his main color, the one Shirou could really point out, is that he wears a lot of orange. But who is this mysterious orange knight/savior?

He hoped to get an answer when the hooded knight turned around. There, Shirou saw a triangular visor covered the man's eyes, and the hood hid his spiky, blonde hair. The whisker marks on his face was the only defining point after those features. With a smooth and eloquent voice that doesn't match his rough exterior, he asked, "I got your call. Are you my Master?" Shirou nodded dumbly at the knight. He didn't know what to think about the tall and orange-clad warrior who saved him from an early death.

"Y-yes?" Shirou answered cautiously.

"Then the pact is solidified, and yadayadayada…" The blonde knight smiled, and said, "You looked like you were about to die, eh? You want him gone, Master?"

"Gone?" Shirou repeated. He had an idea, but he wanted to hear what he meant.

"You know...eliminate, make him NOT exist, …dead?" The knight explained himself, and Shirou looked with wide eyes at the blonde knight as he did not hesitate to ask if he wanted the spearman dead. Shirou whimpered slightly, and the knight simply took it as a yes, "Okay then! Lancer-san, here I come!" He jumped out of the shed with blade in hand.

'So he really is a knight...' Shirou thought in silent awe.

The spearman, Lancer, looked at the boy's savior. He was shocked to say the least. With that sword in hand, he suspected that the new Servant was a Saber. But that's not possible! He already fought Saber -quite the looker by the way- and she had very well have killed him already had the onlooker be there at the wrong time.

"Yo, Lancer-san! You think I can try doing what you do?" Lancer raised an eyebrow at that, but decided to ignore the rather eccentric knight. The blonde Servant sheathed his sword and created a very familiar spear into his hands. The red spear glinted under the moonlight's rays. Lancer did not react a tiny bit; however, on the inside, his mind scrambled around how the new Servant has HIS Gae Bolg.

At a nearby rooftop, Rin Toshaka and her Servant, Saber, looked in surprise at what the new Servant did. He created the lance Lancer held onto. Saber deduced that the Servant is not a Saber. There cannot be two Sabers; he didn't look like a Berserker, Archer, nor Rider. Caster maybe because he created that Lance out of magic, but definitely not the previous ones mentioned. So is he Caster? But he can be an Assassin, yet it defies his knight-like appearance.

They needed to find out soon, and the white-clad Saber would find the information they needed for her Master's future knowledge. She hoisted her blade hidden by wind and jumped from the rooftop to join the fray.

The orange spearman noticed Saber and shifted his body so he faced both opponents. He smirked, "A standoff, eh? I can deal with that. Bring it on, Saber-san, Lancer-san." His left hand released the shaft to grab the sword from its sheath at the right hip. Both known Servants narrowed their eyes at the act of dual-wielding spear and sword. They were thinking of possible identities, yet could not figure out who this orange-clad knight is supposed to be.

Giving up, Saber asked, "Who are you? What is your Servant class?"

The orange knight lowered his weapons, but not his guard; smart move on his part. He stabbed his sword in the ground in unceremonious manner, and said, "Now that'd be telling, Saber-san." His childish and mocking voice irked Lancer, but not the woman questioning him. He continued, "Tell you what...if you can force me to use the characteristic that makes me my Servant class, then you know my class." He picked up his sword, "So...shall we dance, King of Knights, and Culann's Savage Dog?" His foxy grin, plastered on his face, told the other warriors that he was confident that he got his opponents' titles right.

Saber and Lancer shivered at their identities revealed so immediately. This was no ordinary Servant -as all Servants in the Grail war should be- if he could discern the identities without so much as a need to look at his opponents' Noble Phantasms.

They repeated the question in their head, 'Who is this Servant?!'

"Now then, shall we go, Lancer? Saber?" Smirked the blonde in orange as both servants stood there for a second before going at the same time. The orange Servant did not falter from his position, and let his opponents come to him. He smirked at the charging duo, and remembered the times he sparred with these two people. Ah...the days where he'd get beaten up so badly...those were the days. Now, he can stand and fight these two equally in terms of skill between both sword and spear. He readied himself as Lancer thrusts his spear towards the Servant, and Saber swinging her invisible sword overhead. And then what Shirou and Rin could see where flashes and sounds of steel clashing as SOMEHOW the orange knight managed to block the attacks from TWO SERVANTS AT THE SAME TIME! Sword met sword as did spear meeting its copy.

'W-what is he?!' Rin thinked as she saw her Saber going for another slash, only for the orange servant to use his sword to block and throw her back as Lancer tried to do a sneak attack with his speed, but the orange hero managed to parry Gae Bolg with his copy of Gae Bolg AND deflect the strike in a matter of seconds! But unlike Rin, Shirou was watching the battle between heroes with awe and surprise, never expecting to see such confrontation happen in front of him!

'So...this is what a battle between warriors of the past is?' The red-head thought as he saw his...servant use his replicated lance as a pole to jump over a horizontal slash from the girl in white armor and then quickly use his sword to block a thrust attack from the blue man's lance before spinning around behind him and kick him to the ground!

'DAMN!' Lancer mentally shouted as he stood up from the ground and saw the orange servant avoid all the slashes that Saber keep attacking him with...and with that goddamn smirk on his face!

Meanwhile the orange hero was avoiding Saber's slashes and blocking those he couldn't while he saw some differences on the one before him from the one that taught him:

'This Saber has a white dress unlike the blue that Saber-nee wore...' He analyzed calmly. 'Also this one is more feminine...and is that Caliburn?!' Now the shocked blonde noticed that like the blue Saber who had Excalibur in a wind coat, this one had Caliburn in one as well! Problem is…Naruto recognizes the magic and automatically disabled it for him to see. He inspected the blade some more before Saber finally managed to cut off his visor with all her strength, sending him flying away a few feet from the impact before he recovered and grinned.

"How's...that?! Now want to use your abilities?!" Saber grinned...until she saw the orange servant smile.

"Not bad at all Saber-chan~! It seems you caught me off guard!" The knight laughed like it wasn't a problem at all, and he clapped at Saber's action like he would as if he was patting a baby on the head!

"Quiet! Stop talking and show me some more action!" Saber yelled indignantly towards the orange knight.

"Oww... that hurts, Saber-chan. do you not want me to thrust my long shaft into your body?" The blonde asked in a mix of sincerity and teasing, but the way he said it made it look more like sarcasm and pure mockery to the female knight! "Such language! Young girls like yourself shouldn't say that! How will you expect to find a husband with such dirty mouth?!" the respectable-looking knight's mischievous disposition degraded what the others thought about the Servant from initially looking at his dignified look.

It really didn't help that the double meaning of those words made Saber, Rin and Shirou blush while Lancer laughed his own ass off for a moment...

After that, the orange servant stabs the copy of Lancer's spear as well as his sword into the ground to snap his fingers. Thunder crackled as it snaked around the dark sky, and struck the ground slightly to the left of the orange knight. The lightning fizzled out to show a gargantuan-

"What the hell, man? A lion?" Lancer cried out. Indeed, as Lancer said, it was a colossal Lion wearing black and orange armour around its body! Upon looking at its back, one could see the large curved sheath all katanas have. Lancer cringed; this lion knows how to use a katana made for its size!

'A lion?! Is he Rider?!' Thinked Saber while holding herself from petting the beast in front of her, 'Even so how he was able to replicate Lancer's weapon?'

"Well then Kiritsugu, you know what to do!" Grinned the orange servant as the now named Kiritsugu the lion scanned its master's opponents before seeing Lancer, and remembering that the blue man had helped his master, the lion went to lick the Servant as thanks for what he did. It would lick the woman later as well since she looked the same as that more conservative-looking woman with the same face.

Lancer himself, who had a secret phobia of lions after almost being eaten by a female lion cub, saw things differently, and soon the blue servant was running from the happy, trampling lion while screaming like a little girl.

And that's it for this chapter. I don't know what to say about this one. I just hope you accept it for what it is, and hope you understand what Sasuke has in store if he does redeem himself.

No cliché beatings from this Naruto's past. And Doto died! And yes I made Caliburn somewhat easygoing on Naruto. Hey, if you hate it, I don't mind. I honestly kinda BSed that part really. I need to fix that a bit, but maybe I'll do it in the near future.

Also that omake will be ongoing. It will retell the 5th Grail war and how Naruto changes the story. It'll be up to Element-Overlord to choose which route the omake/5th Grail war story will take.

So review, follow, favorite, I don't care. Tell me your complaints, and I'll try to make some improvements to them by the time the next chapter comes.

This is Azure signing off.