Chapter 1- Prologue

"La seule raison d'être d'un être, c'est d'être,

c'est-à-dire de maintenir sa structure."

- HENRI LABORIT, Éloge de la fuite

Translation:

"A being's only reason for being is being,

that is to say, to maintain its structure."

This Chapter's Theme Song:

Bad Moon Rising - Creedence Clearwater Revival

Naruto Uzumaki, that had once been his name. Bright blue determined eyes, golden hair that seemed to radiate hope for any and all that would lay their eyes upon it, sun kissed skin that unmistakably gave away the many hours of training under the midday light. All of that was gone from the soul that had once unwaveringly stood steadfast in the face of countless challenges. The reason? To sum things up nicely; War.

The world had never seen a conflict like the fourth great shinobi war that had stretched on for nine long years. Such a war couldn't, or rather shouldn't have even been fathomable for the inhabitants of the five great shinobi nations and beyond. At the heart of the brutal goings on were two opposing factions: the Jinchuriki and those that sought their power to realise their madness. First was the Akatsuki, then came Obito and finally Madara and his white zetsu. Around every corner, a new challenge, a new enemy and a new stain on the souls of those who hadn't yet fallen.

During the first years of the war it had almost felt as though nothing had changed save, of course, the odd attack that served to renew the fear in people's hearts. However, with Madara at the reins of armies of white Zetsu, reanimated corpses and the occasional insane follower, it didn't take long for them to destroy any sense of normality that had remained within Shinobi and civilian life alike.

The first ninja villages to fall were minor ones, which meant that those who resided within any of the great five had still felt safe. Ame, Getsu, Hoshi, Tani, Taki, the minor villages fell one by one until almost none were left. There were refugees by the thousands and dead by the hundreds of thousands, yet still the allied shinobi forces could only stand by and watch, offering shelter when possible. After all who in their right mind would face off with a hoard of suicidal and bordering on immortal soldiers? As long as Madara didn't show himself or get himself spotted by spies or scouts, there was nothing to be done. But this was what Madara wanted, the more corpses, the more potential for his army.

Konoha was the first of the great five to fall to Madara's hordes. Death and ruin rained down upon the world, all the while, its inhabitants watched on, completely helpless to stop it. The first crack appeared in Naruto's pristine spirit the day Konoha fell. When at last all five great villages had fallen, the allied shinobi force's dwindled, as did the overall population of the world. As the years rolled onwards, it began to seem as though the meager number of shinobi that still hid and ran in the shadows were the last of humanity.

These few remaining survivors didn't have time to ponder on the irony that Madara Uchiha had originally wanted nothing more than a world at peace, perhaps he himself had begun to forget that fact.

The time came when the barely topping two thousand remaining shinobi found themselves cornered at what had once been known as the Valley of the end by Madara and his forces. They couldn't have had their final battle in a more fitting location. Although the Juubi had already been subdued by Naruto Uzumaki, also known as the Kamisenso, this did not make Madara's forces any less daunting. Hundreds of thousands of reanimated corpses and white Zetsu, all equipped with either chakra metal armor and weapons or grotesque mutations, their numbers most likely reaching the millions, surrounded the last of humanity.

But these few people that remained were not to be looked down upon, they had survived all nine years of the fourth great ninja war, not through luck but through skill and perseverance. Those who stood surrounded by such numerous foes were without a doubt, the best of the best, the elite of the elite. Among them stood Naruto Uzumaki. By this time he couldn't possibly be mistaken with his former self, the number of people he had lost, the number of people he had seen die, not even a fraction was reflected within his almost soulless eyes. Beside the haggard and damaged twenty-five year old blonde was an equally haggard and damaged Garaa. The red head had stood by his side during all nine years of the war. He had taken to protecting the blonde's back when Sasuke was no longer there to do so. Their bond which had already been one of great friendship had been forged by fire and worse into something almost intangible, a relationship that had become transcendent in nature. And it would have to be.

Madara had gotten his hands on many of the corpses of the allied shinobi force's soldiers. Some were close friends that had been tragically lost in battle, some were old war heroes, either way they would have to fight them.

And fight they did, for almost three days straight the final battle raged on, wave after wave of enemies hammering down on the small futile resistance, but there was a weakness even to such an indomitable army. That weakness was that without Madara Uchiha at its helm, half of it would disapear, the large number of reanimated corpses unable to sustain themselves without their master. Such a weakness had to be exploited and so it was.

Once Madara had fallen at the hands of the Kamisenso, the war was swiftly ended by what remained of the allied shinobi forces, only half of their original forces still standing. Garaa and Naruto had stood as heroes among what was left of humanity, the respect of the efforts of their fallen comrades adding onto their own.

And so the valley of the end, where their final battle ended, was where the allied shinobi forces parted ways. Inevitably Naruto and Garaa also parted ways, promising to each other that the next time they would meet it would be as revered equals, as kage. And so every remaining soldier returned to their homes, though the weight on their shoulders should have been lifted, the reality was much crueler.

Naruto, now the defacto leader of the Konoha remnants, guided the just under two hundred survivors back to their home, like a shepherd guiding his lost lambs home. The silent footfall of the small army trudged its way towards their home, mud, corpses and ruins brushing against their passing shadows.

When the haggard troops at last stood before their old home, a wave of nostalgia and gloom washed over them.

The once unassailable walls of their hometown greeted them with crumbling smiles. The once bright streets guided them with arrows of dried blood. The once tender homesteads welcomed them with ruined bows. And nothing could salute the returning men and women with more grace than the cracked and cratered faces of their deceased leaders.

However, nine years of war hardened the soul like nothing else could, it was with uneasy hands and untrained minds that the Shinobi went about rebuilding their homes from nothing. Although they were neither stonemasons, carpenters, architects nor scientists, they didn't need to be. Shinobi were the most adaptable creatures around, whether it was with jutsu, brute strength or keen minds they went about their restoration project with skilled ease.

Gradually as Konoha's rose from the ashes of its own corpse, with each section of rebuilt wall, with each corner of its streets cleared, with each roof of its houses propped back up, with each great stone face reshaped, the souls of the war veterans slowly began to heal, including that of Naruto Uzumaki.

"Pride comes before destruction and an arrogant spirit before a fall."

Naruto Uzumaki's longest lasting dream had finally come true. A singed and ripped cloak hung from his shoulder. The hasty, almost medical stitch marks etched the words 'Sixth Hokage' into its rough surface. The appointment ceremony had been informal and swift, in truth Naruto's title was mainly for show, in order to inspire the troops. That didn't mean it had no benefits, in fact any and all official documents that were found and could be of any use were handed to him.

Studying the many scrolls and books helped Naruto take his mind off of the events that had taken place. When the young man wasn't studying, he was either helping his people rebuild or conversing with the tailed beasts. Shukaku and Gyuki had left Naruto's seal in favor of returning with their original villages, however the link between them and the blond Jinchuriki was unbreakable and should he or they want to, returning to his seal would be a trifle.

However, the blond had never expected it to actually happen. Both Gyuki and Shukaku had returned to his seal in absolute silence, a sense of malaise had washed over the blonde as soon as he had felt it. For almost an entire day the blonde had ignored the calls from within his seal, begging for his presence. But soon enough he couldn't ignore them.

It was surrounded by what he saw as his nine remaining friends that Naruto Uzumaki's soul finally shattered into pieces. His mind had barely registered what Shukaku spoke in an uncharacteristic hushed tone, rather it didn't want to...

"The Fifth Kazekage... Is dead."

Garaa had known of his impending death long before it had crept its way over his body. A poison more sordid than Shukaku cared to speak of had been worming its way through his system even as he had given his parting promise to Naruto. Garaa had died once before, though the honorable elder Chiyo had pulled him away from the Shinigami's embrace... Perhaps it was fate then that her reanimated corpse should be the one to have sent him back to the death god's realm. With neither Tsunade nor Chiyo alive, the secrets to the elder's poisons were hidden behind her dead ingenuous techniques. None were capable enough to treat the dying kage who had been exposed to enough of his elder's poison to fell any one of the tailed beasts. The few Suna shinobi that still had some skills in the healing arts had been astonished that the red-haired man had survived for more than a single day let alone the handful of weeks that he had lasted, attesting to the young warrior's willpower, most likely having survived on that alone.

"Naruto... The next time we meet, I'm certain that we will both be Kages... It will be a great honour for me to stand next to you as an equal."

Naruto couldn't help but despair at the cruelty of his last surviving human friend, how could he in good conscience make such a promise with the blonde? He had known his death was imminent, yet had he not known how news of his death would destroy the blonde? Had he not realised that he had been the final beacon of light pushing away the darkness of all his dead friends, the image of their corpses burned into his mind? Had Garaa been trying to help? Had he hoped the blond would never find out? Any manner of crazed idea ran through his mind and soon enough he felt hate rise through his being, the same hate that had overridden his senses many times during the war.

Naruto's reckless hatred spared nothing and no one in his moment of madness. He hated the world for existing. He hated his parents for having given birth to him. He hated fate for having dragged him kicking and screaming down this path. He hated his friends for being weak enough to die... He hated himself for hating... His legs were no longer strong enough to hold his body up, his figure collapsing to its knees. Bile burned its way into the young blonde's throat without realising that the greatest hate he felt was for none other than himself.

There was a soft tug at the back of the blonde's mind, one that he was too feeble to resist. In a sickening and disorientating spin Naruto found himself within his mindscape. Once he would have been knee deep in water, stone walls and iron pipes surrounding himself, instead he found himself knee deep in mud, surrounded by a forest. However, this was not the kind of forest you would want to take a leisurely stroll through. The trees were tall, their rugged black bark twisting into screaming faces, their long black shadows hiding numerous small red eyes that gazed unblinkingly with unrestrained bloodlust. Some of the trunks were singed, others had sharp weapons protruding from their flesh. The deep green grass was stained with dried blood in places, burned in other and occasionally gave way to black craters, stone shrapnel surrounding them.

Naruto barely registered the slight clearing that surrounded him, neither did he acknowledge the presence of the Nine tailed beasts that loomed above his broken form. As the beasts looked down at their greatest friend, they couldn't spot an ounce of the young boy that had once resided within his body. At this point calling him a shadow of his former self wouldn't have even been applicable. Naruto Uzumaki was dead. What knelt before the great tailed beast was merely his corpse, muscles occasionally spasming.

And yet hope was not something that simply disappeared. The nine tailed beasts spoke, and although the conscience that was before them barely heard a word they could only hope that the shards of its soul would engrave their words upon their surfaces. The beasts spoke for what seemed like an eternity, their words full of warmth and hope. They spoke at length, whispering to the young man, telling him what he needed to do, why he needed to do it and how they would assist him in doing it along with everything in between these things.

All the corpse before them heard was their first words, "You are going to save the world!" and their tender last, "Farewell..."

The nine tailed beasts encircled the broken shell with the torn and tattered label of 'Naruto Uzumaki' hanging from it. Black markings riddled the beasts bodies, slowly but surely they began leaking into the ground beneath their feet, the black seals lighting up a bright white as they snaked their way towards the blonde. Within minutes a sealing array that seemed to cover everything within the forest was created, at its center was an unblemished, untouched Naruto Uzumaki. A wave of energy pulsed from the Nine tailed beasts and with each pulse of energy the sealing array responded. The last thing Naruto could remember was the fading figures of his nine final friends before he was engulfed by total and complete darkness. Naruto Uzumaki had been sent to the past.

Save the world? Naruto couldn't hold back a scoff at the idea. He was in the past? So what? What could he possibly do? He had seen the future. He had taken an active part in it... If he prevented the future he knew of from ever taking place, he was preventing himself from returning to the past in order to prevent the future... A paradox, an infinite hellish loop. That was something that he had to avoid at all costs, he wouldn't inflict an infinity of his lifetimes on anyone. He would never allow it.

But even if he wanted to try and change things, even if he had the courage to attempt such a ridiculous thing, what could he do? The tailed beasts had abandoned him, his seal was empty, he could no longer feel their reassuring warmth nor hear their dulcet voices, nor would he ever be able to again. Without them, without Kurama, what was he? Naruto Uzumaki without the tailed beasts wasn't the Kamisenso, wasn't the hero of the fourth ninja war.

Worse was that from what Naruto could feel of his chakra network, the lack of tailed beasts had caused a massive disruption to its ordinary functioning, if he were to try to use sage mode right now he would surely turn to stone. Adding to that his reserves felt tiny, so much so that he doubted if he could even create as many shadow clones as the first time he had used it against Mizuki. If he wanted to even attempt a rasenshuriken he would undoubtedly have to relearn it from scratch, with the risk of damaging his chakra network permanently without the nine tailed fox's chakra. Perhaps if he concentrated he might be able to perform an ordinary rasengan but the success of anything more than that would be based purely on luck. His only asset currently was his fuinjutsu and perhaps now that his body contained less chakra some of the drawing techniques that he had previously only just been able to perform or not even been able to at all would come much easier. However that came after he had stabilised his chakra.

Naruto would start training again, he had to. He wasn't intending on changing the future, but he would need his strength to prevent the paradox that was staring at him in the face. Even so, his once incredible strength that fought against a million foes was gone, because of that he couldn't help but feel worthless.

The ex-jinchuriki felt time pass through his fingers like grains of sand after his initial arrival. He wasn't sure whether it had been weeks or months since he had arrived in the past. However from what the young war veteran could garner, Naruto Uzumaki, the real Naruto Uzumaki of this timeline had just returned from a mission to the land of waves with his team... Zabuza and Haku were dead, just as they had been in his timeline, just as a horrible and twisted fate of their own doing had dictated.

He hadn't been especially keeping an eye on team seven since his arrival, but it was inevitable that he would hear about the blond brat, after all they were living in the same block of apartments. The time traveller living next to his younger self was done with a great deal of reluctance, in fact he had spent more than one night sleeping rough due to his lack of funds. However the apartment block where he had once resided as a child was the cheapest there was and the only one he could afford with the small amount of money he had 'acquired' from the same place he had gotten his residential visa with a fake name and birthplace.

The war veteran rarely left his flat, only ever doing so to buy necessities, however his pockets were shallow and it wouldn't be long before moths started nesting in his light battered and stitched frog wallet. Soon enough necessity and fate would drive Naruto out of the darkness of his flat, whether that would lead him into the light or even further into the darkness was yet to be decided.

Hello there! Thank you for reading the prologue of 'The Mask Of Turmoil' and I hope that you'll continue onwards to other chapters!

This is just a little note to mark the re-writing of the prologue and change of Title. When I first started, it was a little bit vague to me as to where I was going with this fanfiction, in fact I wasn't even sure if this was going to go any further than the first or second chapter, but here we are now, as of writing this I have posted eleven chapters with a twelfth one soon to be completed and a great deal of ideas for the future.

The original title for this fanfiction back in late 2019 was 'The opposite of Naruto', as my basis for Kamen's personality was almost the complete opposite of Naruto's. To this day I still title the files on my computer as 'Toon', however when I began posting the first couple of chapters I sort of wanted something that gave a bit more of a general idea for the plot so I went with 'A Return Ticket to Konoha'. And yet that title had bothered me almost as soon as the next day of having posted the first chapter. I always thought it didn't really fit with the story, and that's why I decided to change the title to 'The Mask Of Turmoil', a hat tip to P.B Shelly's 'The Mask Of Anarchy' and to Kamen.

And just as a side note Naruto's nickname during the fourth great ninja war: 'Kamisenso', is meant to mean God of War. I'm unsure whether it actually means that but I think I'll stick with it.

Either way I hope to see some of your reviews in chapters to come! If you liked this chapter and intend on moving through this story till time runs out, don't forget that you can always follow 'The Mask Of Turmoil' in order to not miss any upcoming chapters! Bye for now!