Chapter 3

Introduction Arc III

"Why do you continue to fight?" Kaguya questioned slowly, her eyes trained on her descendant. Naruto took in deep gulps of air. He refused to fall to his knees. He would not give his ancestor and spiritual grandmother the satisfaction. Blood spilled from his body, every single gash deep enough to kill. Every single wound was capable of killing a normal person. But Naruto was not normal. Of course not. The last remnants of Kurama's chakra worked overtime healing him, keeping him tethered to life. Naruto closed his eyes before opening them again after taking a deep breath. Pushing his half-red half-blonde hair to the side, he picked himself up to his full height. The destroyed countryside beside them stood testament to the clash between Naruto and Kaguya.

"Because if I don't, who will grandmother?" Naruto asked back in a solemn voice.

Kaguya's eyes softened, remembering the days when she swaddled Hagoromo and Hamura. Even sealed up in the moon she had celebrated the birth of her grandchildren. Though she grew to detest the perversion of chakra and its proliferation under the eyes of Hagoromo and Hamura, she had been saddened by the cycle of violence that her mortal descendants had fallen into. "Of all of Ashura's reincarnations, perhaps you are the closest to him. I can see why my son gave you that seal. Not Sonoda Ogai, not Okino Tadao, not Shizuka Ban, not Rena Oda, not Genpaki Yamamoto, not Kayu Arata, and not Hashirama Senju. You are the only reincarnation to be closest to the original."

Naruto clutched his heart, as it thrummed and hummed in agreement. The part of him that was Ashura agreed with Kaguya. Subconsciously, Naruto had always known that there was another presence in his chakra, a presence that wasn't even Kurama, the Nine-Tailed Fox Spirit, but another thing entirely. It was always there. Tugging at his chakra when he fought, helping him flow and structure his words when he spoke, and humming in his heart when he loved. But now that he knew who it was, the part of him that was Ashura was becoming more and more active. Deep within Ashura, Naruto felt the love and despair that felt towards Kaguya. Every single time he clashed with Kaguya, exchanging blows that destroyed rivers, oceans, and even continents, leaving the Earth ravaged, Ashura let out sobs of despair and restlessness. "He agrees with you. But he also cries, unable to address you directly you know? He remembers staring up at the moon, asking for your advice, wondering if his father made a mistake, and hoping that you would have been a good grandmother."

Kaguya's eyes show a suspicious wetness, looking down at him. Kaguya did not see Naruto's blonde hair which was slowly turning red. She did not see his azure blue eyes. She saw his obsidian eyes and his spiky brown hair. She did not see his round face but instead saw his refined jawline. Letting one tear fall to the ground, she answered the silent question. "I would have. I would have raised you to be the prince of Chakra. I would have done the same with Indra."

"Yet you killed him. You killed Sasuke. Why?" Naruto's soft voice grew steely and his hands clenched so tightly that it nearly drew blood.

"Do you not understand?" Kaguya despaired, her white hair fluttering in the wind like small threads in an intricate weaving process. "They still remember my betrayal. They will come to Earth. They will seek to finish what I stopped."

"You speak in riddles grandmother."

"When Momoshiki, Kinshiki, and Ishiki return, this world will fall," Kaguya warned her spiritual grandson.

Her grandson shrugged and looked his spiritual grandmother in the eye. His blue eyes pierced her very soul making her feel inexplicably small despite towering over Naruto. "I once made a promise to protect everyone. I shall defeat you. And if these rogue Otsutsuki come to Earth, then I shall defeat them as well."

"You are a fool."

A ghost of a smile overcame Naruto's face as he remembered another person telling him the same statement once before.

"Then I shall remain a fool my entire life."

Naruto gasped as he was ejected from his dreams. He pushed himself up and leaned against the wall behind him trying to get rid of the unwelcome memories and feelings that threatened to overtake him. He paused, taking in the green wallpaper of the Senju Clan Compound's guest room. The musty smell of the wooden floor that had most probably been conjured by the First Hokage pervaded his nose and creaked underneath his shifting weight. Taking deep breaths, Naruto calmed himself down. His spiky red hair felt heavy on his head as Naruto continued to take in the surrounding smell. Feeling a growing hum inside his chest he sighed as he relaxed against the wall and frame of the bed.

'You're suspiciously active today Ashura.' Naruto quipped mentally sending a warm burst of chakra to his chest and his gut, towards the empty seal where Kurama once resided. His chest hummed with an agreeable edge before humming back in questioning. Naruto sighed, understanding the question without really needing to communicate with his past incarnation. 'Slowly. I overshot. I wanted to go back to that mission to Kanabi Bridge, but landed a year before it happened. Still, it gives me an advantage.'

Ashura hummed with a proverbial shrug before settling down inside of him. Scratched his hair before standing up, seeing no point in sleeping further. He slipped into his shirt and pants and put the sandal on his leg. Exiting his room, he looked at the winding corridor before turning towards the interior garden. The cold breeze that swept through Konoha in the winter mornings passed through the Senju compound, filling Naruto with a strange familiarity.

As he entered the garden, he turned heavenwards to see the clouds that heralded the coming of snow gather above. Smiling softly, he tried to imagine the famous Senju garden in front of coated with snow. With flora from all over the Elemental Nations, the garden was beautiful in ways that defied description. Some flora, Naruto was sure came from the far-off Western and Eastern continents. A few of the flowers and shrubs he recognized from the fiasco with the Stone of Gelel. Naruto let a nostalgic smile overcome his face. 'Man I was young back then….'

"It's a beautiful garden isn't it?"

Kushina's voice broke Naruto out of his thoughts. Naruto turned his head towards his mother and forcibly prevented himself from flinching. It felt wrong, to try to deceive her by masquerading as her cousin in the past. Menma Uzumaki, the son of Nakamura Uzumaki who was himself the brother of Kazama Uzumaki had perished in the Fall of Uzushio. He hadn't survived. In a way, Naruto was defiling the memory of his cousin-uncle. Praying to the Shinigami for forgiveness, Naruto addressed the question. "It is. I wonder how it will look like coated in snow and icicles."

"It looks even better than the garden of Lord Ashina back in Uzushio," Kushina answered with a soft voice as she stepped forward to stand beside him. No longer wearing a flak jacket like the last night, she was wearing a normal household dress that was green in color. Her hair balanced itself on the single hairclip on her head. "I hope you remember the garden?"

Another sense of guilt invaded Naruto. He had been to Uzushio. Just not in his childhood. 'How do I tell her that the infamous Garden of Lord Ashina Uzumaki is nothing but dust and stone 22 years from now without actually telling her?'

"I remember a bit." Naruto nodded, hiding the pale flush that tried to overtake him with guilt. "Kushina, I just wanted…I just wanted to thank you for letting me stay here."

Suddenly, Naruto felt a slight sting on his head. Rubbing the spot where Kushina had bopped him lightly he turned a questioning gaze to the female Uzumaki. Kushina glared at him, her violet eyes blazing in indignant fury. "Never do that."

"What?" Naruto shook his head, perplexed.

"Never thank me for doing what any family would do," Kushina growled at him with righteous fury as some of her hair started to part and defy gravity, vaguely resembling nine different strands. "It is the least I can do for my cousin. I don't remember Uncle Nakamura or even Aunt Isami well, but I know they would have done the same for me if the situation had been reversed. There is nothing greater in this world than kin. Remember?"

There is nothing greater in this world than kin.

Naruto remembered. The other clans had flashy mottos. Burn Through was the famous Uchiha motto, and See All was the Hyuuga one. The Uzumaki had long ago chosen a rather lengthy phrase to be their motto. One that was straight to the point. Perhaps even greater than other clans barring pack clans like the Inuzuka and Hatake, the Uzumaki clan had defended their kin fiercely. The phrase was plastered all over Uzushio, readable even in the ruined state of the long-destroyed village.

Kushina's passionate and fast voice made Naruto remember a time when he was still warring with Kurama. The words Thank you for letting me become a mother were seared in his head. As panic mixed in with guilt warred in his gut, his chest hummed. Calming chakra spread through him courtesy of Ashura who smiled at him softly from within. More than anyone else, Ashura understood Naruto best. After all, Ashura had been with Naruto throughout his life. Ashura had also lost his mother right after his birth. If Ashura had been given the chance, he would have also gone back to save her. Even if Ashura had to deceive his own mother to save her, Ashura would have done so. Ashura understood Naruto on a level that no one, perhaps barring Kurama could. Thankful at the intervention of his past incarnation against a panic attack, Naruto turned to Kushina and felt his lips turn upwards. "Nonetheless. I can never say it enough Kushina. Thank you."

Kushina's bright smile nearly blinded Naruto before she took his hand and pulled him towards the kitchen. "Come on, it's time to eat breakfast and meet Tsunade."

Naruto mentally steeled himself to meet someone he knew but wouldn't recognize him. The Senju dining hall was large, made to accommodate the Senju Clan at its peak, when it numbered nearly 1000 members. The Senju insignia was graphed on the roof gleaming proudly. The long table that was centered around the middle of the hall was crafted with the most gorgeous designs, depicting the great feats of the Senju Clan. A few Senju wandered into the hall, looking at Naruto and Kushina in surprise. A few of the warier ones tracked his movements, but most of the others shrugged and smiled at him. Naruto returned the smile with a grin of his own, feeling his confidence return. He was among family after all.

At the northern end of the long table stood the giant throne that was reserved for the clan head. Crafted with the best designs and with two intertwining dragons rising in the air and furnished with the best silk and clothes that Naruto recognized to be very expensive Land of Wind material, the extravagant throne made it clear it was meant only for the leaders of the Senju. Though faint, Naruto's nose twitched, recognizing the extremely slight smell of Sake pervading from the clan head throne. Naruto's lips twitched as it threatened to break out into a smile. 'Granny Tsunade did not change in decades at all heh.'

Speak of the devil and so the devil shall appear. Just as Naruto and Kushina sat down near the clan head throne after having taken a plate from the breakfast buffet to the side of the hall, a woman wearing a plain white standard-issue Konoha shirt and pants stumbled into the room groaning with her hands grabbing her head. Naruto heard Kushina muttering words that would have made a sailor blush as a sweat drop formed on the back of his head. Tsunade stumbled onto the clan head throne and sat down with a thump. A wary clan member gathered a plate and handed the breakfast to Tsunade who barely mumbled a thanks and began to eat. Feeling someone observing her, she raised her head, looking at Naruto with piercing hazel brown eyes. A blank look overcame her features as she tilted her head, making her blonde pigtails fall to the side.

"Who're you?" Tsunade groaned out. Yeah, Naruto was feeling the sweat drop at the back of his head. Tsunade in her hungover stupor never failed to entertain, even when she was in her thirties, it seemed.

"Ah, I'm-" Naruto began placing his fork on the plate. But before he could complete his sentence he was interrupted by his mother-turned-cousin.

"Didn't the Old Man tell you last night?" Kushina growled out, her irritation at Tsunade's stupor clear for all to see as her violet eyes flashed.

"Too drunk last night to remember," Tsunade mumbled at Kushina before turning to Naruto again, raising a blonde eyebrow, motioning him to continue. "So tomato?"

Kushina bristled at the word but Naruto grinned. This was banter that he was familiar with. "I was a wandering Uzumaki who survived the fall of Uzushio. I'm also Kushina's first cousin. I was granted refuge yesterday afternoon by Lord Hokage. I think he made you one of the shinobi whose job it is to monitor me during my probationary period, Granny."

The hall, which was filled with laughter, gossip, and comments quietened immediately. Naruto swore he could hear a pin drop in the silence that enveloped the entire hall. Everyone craned their head towards him, their eyes glinting in fear. Kushina's lower jaw was nearing the table in surprise and at the sheer audacity. Killer intent flooded the room as the blonde granddaughter of the First Hokage leaned forward towards Naruto and gritted out, "What was that, brat?"

Everyone's body was absolutely still. Even the reckless and hyperactive Kushina remained still, her eyes wide and flickering between Naruto and Tsunade. The killing intent of one of the most powerful shinobi that Konoha had ever produced filled the air and threatened to suffocate them all. In contrast, Naruto grinned, the killing intent not even fazing him. He leaned forward to level his eyes with Tsunade and answered her. "What was that? What do you mean by that? The better question should what are you wearing on your face granny?! Only in your mid-thirties and already applying a genjutsu illusion to make yourself look like you just entered your early twenties? Are you that insecure granny? I'm sure someone will like you for who you are granny."

Pin drop silence. The Senju clan members had evidently started to pray to the heavens that their clan leader did not commit assault on the newcomer. The paperwork would be too long and the costs of the damages and the fine too high. As it was the clan coffers were suffering via Tsunade's insane gambling addiction. Tsunade's nostrils flared but before she could do anything else that would have definitely punted Naruto halfway to the Land of Lightning in one punch, a giggle was heard. The giggle turned into a chuckle before Kushina exploded into full-out laughter. Tsunade turned her irritated half-lidded eyes towards Kushina as she grunted in disapproval at Kushina's laughter.

"Oh, Kami." Kushina snorted in laughter. "I wish Dan was here to hear that."

"In your dreams tomato," Tsunade growled out as she turned to Naruto, allowing her killing intent to dissipate. "So you're the brat that sensei wanted me to monitor huh? Hmph. Not impressed."

'By the Great Slug and my grandfather, the sheer audacity of this brat!' Tsunade growled mentally as Naruto started to shake and join Kushina in quiet laughter, gesturing wildly with his hands in an admittedly humorous way that allowed the laughter to spread to the rest of the clansmen as well.

Naruto leveled a mischievous wink at her. "Ah, who're you kidding granny? You're very impressed. I could make a career out of standup comedy and pranking the way that I am."

"You overestimate yourself," Tsunade grumbled out as she took a sip of water from the glass in front of her. "And I would watch your tone with me. I am now your clan head."

Naruto blew a raspberry at him, making the quiet laughter of the clansmen escalate. From the corner of her eye, Tsunade saw the old and wizened Touka Senju, her great aunt giggling like a schoolyard girl. "Nah, granny. Kushina here is my clan head. Uncle Kazama was next in line after Grandpa Arashi. You can't boss me around!"

"Hell yeah. I can!" Kushina raised her hand and Naruto high-fived it. The two Uzumakis grew identical mischievous smirks that sent shudders down every one of the Senju's back.

Despite her anger, Tsunade felt a calming sensation as she observed the two Uzumakis giggle and smirk together. 'So, a new Uzumaki eh? That will be good for Kushina. She had all but given up on finding her scattered clan members.'

As the group continued to eat their breakfast, Tsunade spent the time observing the new Uzumaki. Privately, Tsunade was startled at the sheer resemblance between Kushina and Naruto. Besides Naruto's blue eyes and spiky hair formation that reminded Tsunade of Jiraiya's apprentice, he looked like a picture-perfect brother of Kushina. Their personalities were almost the exact same, finding odd things hilarious and their twinkling eyes seemed to hold the same propensity for practical jokes. Tsunade's eyes raked over Naruto, trying to remember Kazama Uzumaki, whom she had met a few times before the Fall of Uzushio. Her third cousin twice removed and Kushina's father also had the same posture as that of Naruto and their body frame was also remarkably similar. Grunting and sighing mentally, Tsunade hoped that grouping the two Uzumakis together would not lead to a tyranny of practical jokes in the village.

As breakfast ended and everyone slowly filed out, a purplish body flicker appeared on the gates of the Senju clan compound. Naori Uchiha had arrived. Tsunade rubbed her forehead with a light groan before standing up and making her way to the purple-haired Uchiha. "Who're you?"

"Naori Uchiha, Lady Tsunade," Naori answered quickly, her obsidian eyes catching Naruto who was gossiping with Kushina. "I am one of the three assigned to look after Naruto Uzumaki before his examination."

"Ah, so you're the Uchiha brat saddled with that infuriating tomato brat," Tsunade mumbled tiredly, still not entirely out of her hangover. "Well then come in."

Naori thanked Tsunade and entered the Senju Clan compound. Naruto perked up, noticing her and he walked towards her, Kushina following his steps. "Ms. Naori! Hope you rested well enough from your mission!"

"Yes, I'm fine thank you." Naori nodded touching the eyepatch which covered her left eye gingerly. It itched so badly but the doctors had warned her last evening that the implanted eye would itch and shouldn't be touched. Naori didn't know what would go medically wrong if she just scratched the itch a bit, but she had to follow the doctor's orders if she wanted to regain eyesight in her left eye. "How are you, Mr. Uzumaki? Did you get a good night's sleep in the Senju clan compound?"

Naruto nodded happily. He gestured towards Kushina and dragged her forward who smiled uncertainly at Naori. "Hey, hey, hey! You should meet Kushina. She's my first cousin."

'First cousin?' Naori raised an eyebrow as she returned Kushina's smile with a polite smile of her own. 'Well, I can see the resemblance.'

Naori inclined her head to show her respect to the nominal Clan Head of the Uzumaki Clan and then turned to Naruto who was blabbering on about how he had saved Naori to Kushina. Feeling a tick mark form on her forehead Naori took in deep breaths and then addressed Naruto. "Mr. Uzumaki. Lord Hokage entrusted me to tell you that your examination will take place today evening."

"Who's the schmuck that tomato brat is going to fight?" Tsunade asked, leaning against the gate with a bottle of Sake in her hand.

'Where did that bottle come from?' thought Kushina, Naruto, and Naori as all three of them blinked owlishly. Tsunade had been standing next to them just a few seconds prior.

Blinking a few times, Naori coughed and started to wring her hands, glancing at Kushina before answering the question. "Ah. Lord Hokage has assigned the examination fight to Minato Namikaze."

"Minato?!" Kushina cried out before a smirk enveloped her face. She tugged at Naruto's right shoulder and grinned at him. "My boyfriend's going to smack you into the dirt you know?"

"This Minato guy is your boyfriend?" Naruto mock growled. The effect was ruined by the constant smile on Naruto's face.

"Do you seriously not know who Minato Namikaze is?" Naori asked surprised. Her wide eye turned towards Naruto with her head tilting cutely to the side, letting her violet hair fall nearly to the ground. Naruto simply returned an empty look at her that made her growl in indignation. "How can you not know who Minato Namikaze is? He's the Yellow Flash! The one who is terrorizing Iwa and Suna on the western front of the war."

Naruto rubbed the back of his head and chuckled lightly with an embarrassed tone. "Ah I thought the Yellow Flash was called so because…well erm…"

Naori, Kushina, and Tsunade all blushed as they caught the meaning of Naruto's tone. Tsunade guffawed loudly trying to hide her undignified snort as she took another sip from her bottle. Kushina remained blushing whilst Naori's face heated up, partially from anger and partially from embarrassment at the double entendre. The Uzumaki who had accompanied Naori back from the Land of Grass never failed to get a rise out of her.

"You, you –" Naori was unable to form the words with which she wanted to berate Naruto because of the sheer audacity the redhead showed towards one of the greatest prodigies that the village had ever made. Calming, she turned her nose upwards at Naruto. "I hope he crushes you to the ground like the troublesome gnat you are."

"Don't worry brat." Tsunade let out after she stopped chuckling. "Even if you lose – and you will against Minato – you just need to give a good show so that sensei knows what rank to label you as."

"Yeah." Kushina nodded in agreement, fidgeting as she tucked her dress in. "Losing a fight against Minato will be nothing to be ashamed of."

"What makes you three think I will lose," Naruto grumbled as a cloud of depression formed over him as he rocked back and forth with a comical downcast gaze. Tsunade's eyes twitched as she remembered someone else who did the same thing.

'The brat acts just like grandfather!'

Kushina put her hands on her waist and chuckled. "Well, he's fast. He's strong. And he's extremely flexi-"

"La-la-la-la. Didn't need to hear that." Naruto shouted as he closed his ears with his hands sending a dirty look at Kushina. "I don't need to hear what you get up to with your boyfriend."

Naori couldn't but help stare at the Uzumaki duo. Her hands fell to the wayside looking at them limp. 'This is the Red Hot Habanero? The red-headed demon who terrorizes Kumo shinobi on the northern front?'

Coughing into her first, Naori tried to regain the attention of the people in front of her. "Nonetheless. Mr. Uzumaki. We must discuss your fighting abilities if you wish to gain an appropriate rank."

Naruto waved her off dismissively as he cracked the knuckles of his hand, partly out of anticipation. "Don't worry Ms. Naori. I got this fight in the bag."

Three pairs of eyes focused on Naruto speculatively. Tsunade narrowed her eyes a fraction as she expanded her chakra and tried to grasp at Naruto's. Nothing but a hollow empty feeling permeated back at her. Raising a blonde eyebrow, Tsunade tried to grasp at Naruto's chakra again. She received the same result. Whilst Kushina chuckled, thinking it was bravado and Naori narrowed her eye in irritation, believing it to be bravado as well, Tsunade hummed thoughtfully. 'He's suppressing his chakra really well. Even civilians have a small chakra presence. He shows nothing. Like he's dead or something. And he's doing it subconsciously. Hmm. Maybe he's not all talk.'

"Mr. Uzumaki. Please be serious." Naori pleaded with Naruto, gesturing wildly with her arms, pointing towards the vague direction of the training grounds. She had been the one to bring Naruto to the village and his showing would reflect back at her. If she got a black mark on her portfolio she would be stuck with meaningless C and D rank missions for the foreseeable future. And that wasn't something she was enthused about. "Can you at least promise me that you will show a good fight? I don't want a black mark on my record."

Naruto's deep blue eyes grew soft as he regarded Naori. His lips grew upward in a confident manner as his jawline straightened out and his chest puffed out. With his right thumb, Naruto pointed at himself and his eyes flashed. For a second Naori thought she saw something in those deep azure eyes of Naruto but it was gone as fast as it came. "Forgive me Ms. Naori. I forgot about the consequences on your own career. But don't worry. I'll take care of it. You can count on me!"

"Thank you," Naori muttered as she looked at Naruto's confident grin, feeling thankful that at least he was taking the matter a little seriously. "I know that you subdued that Kusa platoon rather easily, but still they were taken by surprise. I'm astonished that you're taking a fight, especially against someone like Minato Namikaze so lightly."

In that small clearing in front of the Senju compound gates, the wind fluttered gently. Fallen leaves blew into the air and passed by. As Naruto's grin grew to lengths that Naori thought was impossible, Naruto scoffed indignantly before answering her question. "See, it's all about a mentality. Whose stronger, whose weaker? Basic divisions like those don't matter to me. That's cause at the end of the fight, there's only me. In the end, throughout the heavens and earth, I alone am the honored one."

"Isn't that a little conceited thing to say?" Kushina murmured, a questioning glint in her violet eyes. Naori narrowed her eyes at Naruto again, feeling the familiar irritation bubbling up. However, Tsunade just stood there, her face turning brighter and her lips twitching upwards as she understood the meaning of the words spoken by Naruto.

"Didn't peg you one for religion brat." Tsunade quipped without heat in her words. Her eyes meaningfully stared at Naruto, who simply shrugged, apparently having understood that Tsunade understood his words. "Didn't think you were one for Buddhism."

"Ah, the words of the Honored One are always relevant." Naruto retorted before he placed his hands on his waist. "Don't worry Kushina. Don't worry Ms. Naori. I am sure granny here already figured out what I meant."

Kushina and Naori turned their heads to Tsunade.

Tsunade shrugged. "It's almost time for his examination anyway. I'm sure you'll see it in an hour or two."

Deep within the seal created by Mito Uzumaki, where the Nine-Tailed Fox Spirit resided, a lone red eye opened as it observed the strange man his container was speaking to. Eyes filled with curiosity, Kurama vowed to keep an eye on the brat who possessed the chakra of himself, his siblings, and Ashura. 'There's something about him…."

Author's Notes: Thank you all for the reviews. Would love for some more and some speculation for the future! And to the question about this Naruto having more than one pairing, no. I really don't do multiple pairings for the same character. Not my style, plus just rubs off wrong to me. Hope you all like the little sprinkled background worldbuilding going on as well! I guess you could say this chapter was a filler chapter, but it's important for me to set the foundations of the bonds I want the characters to have by the end of the story.