"Disclaimer: This is a work of fiction based on the Naruto universe created by Masashi Kishimoto. I do not own Naruto, nor am I affiliated with its creators or publishers. This is purely a fan-made work created for entertainment purposes only, and I do not intend to infringe on any copyrights or trademarks associated with the Naruto franchise. All characters, names, and places in this story are fictitious, and any resemblance to real people or events is purely coincidental."

Unexpected events

The tragic events that led to Naruto's unexpectedly early ascension to the throne, were the deaths of the former rulers- the Emperor, Minato Namikaze and Empress, Kushina Uzumaki. An attack occurred on the Kingdom of Konohagakure- the day that Naruto was born. The former rulers tried to fight off the demon fox, who had caused the attacks, killing everything and everyone who stood in his way. The couple were victorious in defeating the fox, but at a great cost; death and suffering of their people. Ultimately, the rulers succumbed to their own deaths due to the injuries they had sustained in the battle and their first- and final act, as parents, became to seal the demon fox inside Naruto.

The council made the decision to temporarily entrust Jiraya with the responsibility of ruling until Naruto would come of age. The law required for the emperor to be at least 18 years of age- to ensure they possessed enough maturity for the role at hand. Had Jiraya been Naruto's blood relative, he would have automatically become the next emperor. However, Jiraya was not related to the family by blood, but he had been Minato's mentor and most trusted friend. Most importantly, Jiraya was one of the strongest shinobi of the kingdom, making him a valuable and experienced asset to the council.

Naruto hailed from a line of esteemed emperor's who were both loved and respected. While some argued that the emperors were only feared and not truly respected, others contended that they were indeed both.

The Empire was comprised of eight Kingdom's, each governed by a King approved by the emperor himself. The Samurai Kingdom was the only one inhabited and ruled by ordinary humans, while others, like Konoha, were inhabited and ruled by shinobis; who possessed godlike powers known as chakras.

Jiraya took on the responsibility of training Naruto in the practical and theoretical arts of war and chakra control once Naruto turned five years old. It was also ensured that Naruto received well-rounded education in literature, arts of war, music, mathematics, philosophy, science, history, and more. Naruto demonstrated, early on that he preferred the physical aspects of the education.

During his childhood- and teenage years, Naruto was known for being loud, wild and mischievous. The fact that he had a terrifying monster sealed inside him made him an unfavourable figure among the courts and the people, who viewed him as the root of evil and death, traumatized by the events that occurred the day of his birth. Jiraya, however, saw through Naruto's mischievousness and understood that he only acted out to gain attention and alleviate his loneliness.

As Naruto neared the end of his teenage years, he underwent a drastic transformation. At 19, he had become tremendously powerful and mature, which made him admired, respected and feared. He grew into an attractive young man with a muscular build, beautiful blond hair, striking cerulean eyes with distinctive three whisker marks on each side of his face cheeks.

Naruto learned that he was marked with the whiskers during the sealing ceremony on the day of his birth. The relationship between Naruto and the fox, which Naruto later came to learn had a real name, Kurama, had grown into an amicable one, despite their dark past. Throughout their lives, they shared laughter, pain and loss. Kurama, who was also known as the Kyubi- the nine tail, was one of nine rare monsters that existed in their world. Each monster had a varying number of tails, with the Kyubi being the strongest due to possessing the highest amount of chakra associated with its multiple tails.

The council finally agreed to approve of Naruto to become the emperor at the age of 20.

At the age of 23, Naruto had fought in more wars than he could count. The first major war, occurred barely a month after his inauguration. The reason? The King of the land of Water, Kirigakure tried to invade the land of Lighting, Kumogakure. Kumo pleaded with the protector- and emperor for aid- and Naruto of course obliged by having his army immediately join forces with the land of Lighting. The second major one erupted on the day of his 21st birthday, as a result of a failed attempt by the land of the Wind, Sunagakure, to assassinate the emperor himself. Naruto, and his forces were victorious in both battles.

After witnessing the devastating aftermath of war, including the tragedies, suffering, and losses, Naruto made a solemn vow to his kingdom and its people; He pledged to do everything in his power to promote diplomatic and peaceful solutions to conflicts before restoring to physical violence or wars ever again.

Little did he know that even war was beyond his control.