Summary: Narusa, grieving and lost after a sudden appearance, unleashes a destructive wave of chakra, catching the attention of ancient, powerful beings. These messengers of goddesses reveal she's been thrown far into the past and offer her a new purpose as their avatar, promising power and longevity. Faced with the choice to succumb to her grief or embrace this unexpected destiny, Narusa makes a decision that will forever alter her path and the fate of this earlier era.

"Talking"

'Thinking'

Biju talk/think/Jutsu

Flashback

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

Warning: Gay Coupling, Timetravel, Alternate Universe


Narusa was lying in the grass where she'd just appeared. She was so shocked she couldn't move, everything felt numb and far away.

Then it all hit her at once, like a punch to the gut. She gasped for air, her chakra flared out without her thinking as a quick check, and then she screamed, a raw, hurting sound that let out all the pain that was crushing her.

It wasn't just a scream, it was a howl of fury, pain, agony, loneliness, feeling broken, too much life all hitting her heart, her mind, her chakra.

Narusa howled out her pain, not even noticing the tears running down her face or how her chakra was lashing out around her.

She didn't know how much time passed. Only when her chakra was almost completely gone did she finally quiet down to shaky, sobbing breaths. There was no echo of his voice in her head. There was no warm, white chakra wrapping around her back to comfort her.

Her hand pressed against her still flat stomach, his last words echoing in her mind.

"Protect our pup. Live, my love."

Narusa whined softly, her new motherly feelings making her shakily check on the tiny life inside her. She'd only known for a few hours. Then she lost... everything and everyone.

Relieved tears slipped down her soot-covered face. The tiny ball of life's chakra was still burning strong.

Comforted by just that, Narusa couldn't fight sleep any longer and drifted into unconsciousness.


"She feels like my pups," a deep voice rumbled, more of a growl than a hum.

"But she also smells like my kits," a curious female voice added, and Narusa felt them circling her as she lay there. She knew she should be scared. The raw power coming off these two was overwhelming. They felt like the Nature Energy her bijuu friends had, but so much stronger.

"She's a smart one," the male chuckled softly.

"Wake up, little one. You have a lot to tell us," the female voice almost purred, sounding eager.

Narusa opened her eyes and looked at where they were standing.

To her surprise, a wolf as black as night, but shimmering like a starry sky, was looking right at her. Its eyes were as red as rubies.

Then something else moved, and her gaze shifted to a pure white nine-tailed fox with beautiful red markings that looked painted on. Its eyes were just as red as the wolf's beside it.

Slowly, Narusa sat up, her legs folded beneath her, and she kept looking back and forth between the two huge creatures.

"What's your name, little star?" the fox asked.

"Uzumaki Namikaze Narusa," the blonde answered softly but respectfully.

"You have the blood of my pups in you. You have my blessed chakra inside you," the wolf said, its sharp red eyes narrowing on her.

"My mate is Hatake Kakashi," she whispered, even as her heart clenched with the pain of knowing he was gone.

A white tail gently flicked out and wiped away a tear that had escaped her eye.

"Why do you smell and feel like both wolf and fox?" the vixen asked curiously, leaning closer for another sniff. "More fox than wolf to me."

"I am... was the third jinchuuriki host to Otsutsuki Kurama, the Kyuubi no Kitsune."

The white fox perked up. "Kurama-chan?"

Narusa couldn't help the little snort that came out at the "-chan."

"Yes," the blonde said, clearing her throat.

"But I don't sense him inside you now," the vixen hummed, moving closer and starting to circle her again. "Why did a mere human have him inside their tiny body in the first place?"

So Narusa told them her story, numbly. From when she was born to how she ended up in front of them. Once she started, she couldn't stop.

The fox and the wolf just sat on their haunches and listened without saying a word.

"You belong to both of us then," the wolf murmured thoughtfully. "A wolf, but not quite a wolf. A fox, but not quite a fox."

"Well, this is a situation," the vixen yipped, her tails starting to wag excitedly. "Inari-sama will be happy with my news."

"Amaterasu-sama too," the wolf huffed in agreement.

Narusa wasn't as surprised as she probably should have been to hear them say the names of goddesses. Even though a part of her instinctively didn't like that they were messengers for goddesses.

"I answered your questions, even the ones you didn't ask. Now, can you please do the same for me? Where am I?"

"You're still on the mortal world," the wolf grunted.

Narusa felt the last bit of her patience snap after having to tell her story. "Oh, come on! Where in the Elemental Nations am I?"

"You're on an island off the coast of the Fire Nation, one that humans haven't settled on yet. But there's a clan not too far from here on a bigger island. And there's another big landmass about a day and a half away for humans, deeper in the ocean," the vixen answered with a twinkle in her eyes.

Narusa took a slow breath, swallowing hard. "Things... things feel different than the last time I was in the nations. Even this far out... I... I can't feel Konoha. I... I can feel life on the mainland, but without Kurama, without taking in nature energy, I can't tell what's going on." She took another deep breath and looked into their similar but different red eyes. "When am I?"

The vixen and wolf were quiet as they met the blonde young woman's gaze.

"You, little one, are very far back in time," the wolf rumbled, a hint of pity in his voice.

"You made such a big burst of chakra that it caught our attention," the vixen said gently. "Normally, we can't touch the mortal world ever since the False Goddess touched this realm. We can only watch from above for our Masters. But your chakra—"

"—cleansed this land of the God Tree's touch," the wolf finished. Narusa finally took a moment to look around. The entire island was ash. It was a small, flat island, and all life on it was gone.

"I... I don't understand," she whispered, looking around. "My chakra has never been like this."

"That's because you bonded with a Hatake. Their chakra is blessed. But their chakra can also be... deadly when they're grieving. That's why they'll kill any of their pack when they're close to going feral, to stop this kind of destruction... but on a much smaller scale. Your Uzumaki roots seem to have just made your Hatake bond stronger."

"Not to mention Kurama-chan's leftover chakra. You lashed out with the more... harmful side of his chakra, mixed with yours and the Hatake's. It resulted in this... disaster."

Narusa's face scrunched up, disappointed in herself. She had always loved and cherished nature. And here she was, harming even more of it after it had been so rare during the war.

"I'm sorry," she choked out. "It was just... so much. Everything just hurt."

The wolf and vixen just blinked.

"We don't care about that," the wolf barked plainly. "We're not human. We're only interested in you. And what you're going to do now."

The vixen's smile turned sharp and eager. "So, little star? What will you do now? You're way too early to fix your past."

"You're alone and weak without your friend," the wolf said, a grin spreading across his muzzle, knowing the vixen's games. Both of them stood up, looking like the dangerous hunters they were. "Weak and helpless. You don't know anything about this time. This era."

"Your unborn pup will die because you're not strong enough. Because you couldn't protect it. Your sadness will kill it. Your chakra is all about destroying things now," the vixen added.

"You won't be able to share your chakra without killing any friends you might make. You're back in a time when men don't respect women," the wolf growled.

"You'll be an outcast, treated like a disease," the vixen barked, letting out a mocking laugh. "Poor little human. Destined to die when her mate tried so hard to save her."

"Save her? Seems to me like he just gave her a slower death by making her feel guilty," the wolf grinned, showing his sharp teeth. Both of them kept circling Narusa.

Narusa's head was down, her hand on her belly, and her body was shaking.

"Look, she's trembling with fear," the wolf chuckled darkly. The vixen yipped with laughter, her tone mocking.

Narusa suddenly went completely still.

The predators circled her.

Weak.

Pathetic.

Failure.

"Huma—" the wolf stopped when the human suddenly grabbed his tail with a hand covered in golden chakra. He looked up and saw eyes that were now slits, burning with golden anger. With a strong pull, he yelped as he was yanked into the air and then slammed down onto the vixen. Both messengers barked and snapped as they untangled themselves to snarl at the human who dared to do that.

"I fought the Goddess you call a False Goddess for almost ten years straight. A Goddess who stopped your Masters from helping their people. Don't you ever look down on me again. I'm the one human you shouldn't underestimate," Narusa snarled, her voice low and dangerous.

The wolf and fox exchanged a quick glance.

"Amaterasu-sama and Inari-sama are pleased," the wolf stated, his tone now respectful.

"They've been searching for a worthy avatar for centuries. Ever since that Otsutsuki stole from Amaterasu-sama," the vixen hissed, the Sage's name laced with disdain.

"But you had to prove that even after such suffering, you possessed the strength to rise again," the wolf explained, dipping his head slightly. "I apologize for my harsh words."

The vixen shook her fur. "As do I, little star. It was an... instructive encounter."

Narusa grunted, the tension leaving her body. "Why did your Masters put me through that test? And what does being an Avatar for them even mean?"

"For starters, you'll live a lot longer," the vixen chirped happily. "You can't really deal with the Otsutsuki and their creations without some blessed energy in your chakra."

"Also, your whole human form will change. You can't stay an Uzumaki, Namikaze, or Hatake. Amaterasu's weave will unravel," the wolf explained. "That's another reason she knew you were here. If she hadn't stopped time after your little... explosion, it would have caused a paradox."

Narusa frowned. "Stopped time?"

"Yeah, but only in places the God Tree isn't touching anymore," the vixen yipped. "This island is frozen in time right now, and it's the only place Inari-sama and Amaterasu-sama can reach again."

"Ah," Narusa muttered slowly, starting to understand but still feeling overwhelmed. "So... will I be immortal?"

"In a way. But not truly immortal," the wolf huffed. "You'll still bleed, need food, sleep, and all those human things, but you'll be much harder to kill."

"When will I die?"

"When you choose to," the vixen purred. "Amaterasu-sama is going to give you knowledge to help you on your journey."

"And Inari-sama is going to give you a new body and—"

Panic shot through Narusa. "My baby—"

"Will stay with you, but will only have your blood," the wolf finished calmly. "There might be traces of her Hatake father, but she'll grow up to be like you. Your blood will be stronger than anyone else's in your new clan."

Narusa swallowed. "I'll... I'll live to see my friends again?"

"And many decades after that," the vixen barked. "Inari-sama and Amaterasu-sama can sense other Otsutsuki outside their influence. The False Moon Goddess isn't the only Otsutsuki to worry about."

Narusa looked down at her still flat belly. "I'll outlive them all?"

"But you'll have any pups you have to keep you company," the wolf murmured.

"So, little star, what do you choose?" the vixen asked eagerly, her tail wagging.

"Your Masters trust me to protect their people like this?" Narusa whispered, trying to take it all in.

The wolf and fox both became serious at her question. "They have no choice but to trust you in this," the wolf grumbled, sounding unhappy about it.

"Your trip through her weaving was a real shock to Amaterasu-sama!" the vixen chuckled. "Nothing ever surprises her, but you and your partner managed it!"

"Amaterasu-sama also knows that while you constantly mess up her weaving, even when her power was weak because of the false Goddess, you still always went against what she'd planned," the wolf added.

"Her muttering has been hilarious!" the vixen yipped gleefully. "Inari-sama loves watching her older sister try to keep up with your weaving."

"So, that's why she has no choice but to trust you to fix the dark patterns the Otsutsuki have created in her weaving," the wolf grunted, cutting off the vixen who was clearly enjoying his Master's annoyance too much.

Narusa stared at them, then looked down at her flat belly. Part of her wanted to refuse, to die right then and join her mate. But he wasn't born yet. He wasn't even in the pure lands... was he? Another part just wanted to run with her daughter and live a quiet, peaceful life until they both died.

Yet, the blonde knew her own soul, her own mind. Death and being alone would break her. Plus, she had a promise to keep, maybe not in the way her mate had hoped.

"Okay," Narusa whispered, making the two sets of ruby eyes snap to her. "I... I accept becoming the Avatar of Amaterasu-sama and Inari-sama."

"Good," the wolf and fox grinned together. Then, the sky opened up as a beam of light shot down from above. Warmth surrounded Narusa's body, eyes, and chakra. She knew nothing more after hearing one word spoken by both voices.

"Rest."