Naruto 1. Chapter 1

**Legend of the Beast**

I don't own naruto or any of its money making goodness so don't sue me.

(anime spoilers - don't like it, don't read it)  
I have had this idea to write a fan fiction of Naruto since most stories I read are naruto related. This story takes place after the timeskip and Naruto returns home to find himself in the middle of 2 wars. His first priority is to protect himself and others from the Akatsuki, but with his secret in the open, can they trust him? And when it comes down to it, which side does naruto's heart truely ly? It should be pretty good, I hope anyway.

Prologue - Old Friends and New Mission

It was hot, real hot. To say it was muggy was an understatement, but that was the whether during the summers. It was so hot you could almost see the humidity rise through the air. It was obvious that training would have to be cut short to avoid a heat stroke. Well, I think I would have said this three years ago, but not now. Living outside of grass country while training with Ero-Sennin has pushed my body to its limit. The weather conditions here change so often I can hardly keep track of the seasons. It has been a little under three years since I last saw Konoha and I long to return.

"I wonder how the rest have been over these last few years. I wonder how strong they are." Naruto ponders as a massive gust of anticipation makes his heart beat fast. Laying here in the center of the jungle surrounded by scattered weapons and torn scrolls reminds him of the first time he trained with Jiraiya and his constant scolding for only summoning a tadpole, not that he was helping much… He was too busy looking at girls a little older then I am now. "What a pervert.." He utters aloud to himself as he lies back on the scorched dirt laughing to him self.

"Naruto-kun"

"Ero-Sennin…. Glad to see you finally made it." Naruto says with a big smile, his face exhausted and burnt from the relentless rays of the sun. His complexion had turned to a dark tan and his hair grew to his shoulders. The more Jiraiya stared at the boy, the more he confused himself with his old apprentice.

"You would think after 3 years, you wouldn't still call me that."

Naruto only smiles as he watches his teacher slump his shoulders in defeat.

"Its time Naruto, I have heard rumors of mysterious shinobi fitting the descriptions of the Akatsuki, popping up all over fire country, not to mention, the kazekage of the mist has been missing for over 2 weeks now. Stories spoke of him rivaling the power of Sabaku no Gaara."

"Gaara…." Naruto utters to himself as he remembers seeing him in the hospital after his mission to bring back Sasuke. Lying in bed, I could hear the sound of sand softly moving across the tile floor beside me. As I peek my eye open through my bandage, I see what looked like a gourd move through the doorway out of sight. "He was there….why I wonder."

"You listening Naruto?"

"Yes Ero-Sennin, I heard you." Naruto snaps back as Jiraiya scowls at the boy who looked so much older then the boy he met in Konoha.

They gathered the weapons sprawled across the field and packed their bags in preparations for Konoha.

"Listen Naruto, I pushed you hard because it was necessary, you realize this right?" Jiraiya asked as he looked to the sky trying not to make things feel uncomfortable.

After a quick glance to his teacher. "Ah"

"Okay then, you also understand….. That jutsu is not to be used unless absolutely necessary." He is instantly cut off as Naruto quickly snaps back.

"Yes, I know. I just hope I never have to use it."

The Sennin looks over his pupil for a moment as he takes a bite of his thumb. "Kuchiyose no jutsu."

A massive cloud of smoke blasted across the tree's as a frog about half the size as Gamabunta appeared with a light coat of armor and two legs that were larger then any frog he had seen before. The two were perched on top of his head as its eyes rolled to meet their gaze.

"Jiraiya… you've aged, he he he." The frog uttered in a high, almost eerie voice.

"Galanta, you always say that, besides, it's only been about five years."

"So, is this the Uzamaki kid I have been hearing so much about lately?"

"You hear that Ero-Sennin, he heard of me."

"Yes I have, I heard that you are an untalented moron who always calls on us frogs to save you."

Naruto's eyes narrowed in a shot of anger. "Who said that?"

"Gamachi is who I heard it from, he he. You don't look like much."

Naruto's anger rose even higher as he eyes turned a solid white. "Stupid Gamachi, like he is ever any help!"

"He he, so what have I been summoned here for?"

"Its urgent we get to Konoha as fast as possible, could you get us there?"

"Sure, he he." And like a flash, the frog lunged across the forest like dog after a bone. This frog was obviously the fastest creature Naruto had ever seen. It took all their energy to keep from falling off.

"Waahhooo, we'll be there in no time eh, Ero-Sennin?"

"He he, he calls you ero-sennin too eh, Jiraiya?" The frog asks as it continues laughing to itself.

"I guess it can't be helped." Jiraiya answers with a soft sigh.

Within a few hours, the frog comes to a screeching halt as the walls of Konoha could be seen just over the forest line.

"Thank you Galanta."

"Don't mention it old man" the frog says as he watches them jump from his nose to a nearby tree.

"He looks just like him…" the frog whispers to himself as a puff of smoke surrounds where he was once standing leaving an open area of broken limbs and squashed trees.

They made their way up the gates as a couple chunnins appeared in front of them.

"Hello travelers, welcome to Konoha." One said with a smile as he looked over the two. The other focused on the boy before finally asking.

"Have we met?" After brushing the long hair from his eyes, the surprised Chunnin declared.

"Naruto…your back." As Naruto smiled back.

"What about me?" the Sennin asked in a sad whinny tone.

"Who are you?" The chunnin asks curious to know where Naruto's been.

"Well, I'm glad you asked…….. I am the beautiful frog hermit…turns in circles and bows his head…known by all as the top ladies man..tilts his head back and keeps his eyes closed.. The great jira….." He trails off as Naruto and the chunnins have already walked away from the gloating Sennin leaving him in tears.

"Wow, I'm home" naruto says as he sprints up the buildings to the tallest building where he stood on highest point and yells. "IT'S GOOD TO BE HOME!" As the chunnins leave to go back to their posts.

"So many options, what first…" Naruto ponders as his stomach growls like the kyuubi.

"Ramen it is!" He says with a large smile across his face. Hoping down from the building he lands next to his teacher who was walking towards the Hokage tower.

"Ero-Sennin……" Naruto says in a sincere voice while the Sennin only glances from the corner of his eye baring a suspicious look.

"ERO-SENNIN!"

"STOP CALLING ME ERO-SENNIN!"

"How about you treat me to Ramen for once?" Naruto asks peaking up at him out of the corner of his eye awaiting his answer. The Sennin ponders the question as he places his hand to his chin when Naruto see's a grey haired jounin leaning against a nearby building.

"Long time no see stranger, I was wondering if you would ever come back."

"Kakashi-sensei!"

"Did Jiraiya come back with you?" The Jounin asks as he scours the street ways. Naruto turns around as he realizes the perverted sennin bolted and stiffed him out of yet another bowl or ramen. "I'll get you back Ero-Sennin!" He says under his breath.

"So how was training? I hope you improved a lot if you plan to compete with the rest of the rookie nine." Kakashi says expecting to hear the same boast that usually comes from Naruto when his strength is challenged.

"I'm looking forward to the challenge."

"It's too bad your still a genin though, even Konohamaru's team is fixing to take the chunnin exam in about six months." Kakashi says as he watch's Naruto's jaw drop. "Genin, but I was training with Ero-Sennin!"

"You still have to take the test like everyone else." Kakashi says with a broad smile that was hidden from the boy.

"This is bull, you mean I have to take the test with the brat pack?" Naruto bickers to himself as Kakashi tries to hold back his laughter.

"Naruto…Is that you?" A soft yet familiar voice calls from behind as he turns to face her.

"It is you; it's so good to see you again." The pink haired woman says as she latches on to his neck choking the life from him.

"Sakura-chan…it hurts…le let go…" Naruto muffles under the smiling woman's arms. She loosens her grip.

"Let me get a look at you… Your hair is so long…"

"Yeah, I need a haircut alright, he he." Naruto responds trying not to blush too much in front of his old crush.

"Nice vest Sakura, you made chunnin I see." Naruto happily says as he looks over her custom green vest. She had low cut shorts to accentuate her legs and boots that stretched to her calves. Her hair was a little longer then he remembered though she was now wearing gloves.

"Actually, I just got promoted to Jounin a few weeks ago." She responds as Naruto's jaw just drops. Kakashi still holding back his laughter as Naruto looks like he just got slugged by his pink haired teammate.

"Um… What about the other rookie nine?" Naruto asks as if he didn't really want to know.

"Hmm, let's see here; Ino, Chouji, Kiba, and Hinata are all chunnins, while Lee, Ten Ten, Shino, Shikamaru, Neji, and I have become Jounins."

"Jounins huh…. I see." Naruto replies as his eyes loose a bit of the spark and intensity as they just had. "I am happy for you all, just wait till you see me in action." He boasts as he laughs to himself again.

Their conversation is suddenly cut short as they notice a pack of birds circling above.

"It seems the hakage would like to see you." Kakashi says in his common soft voice while Naruto just grins.

"Tsunade-baba!" naruto yells as he pushes the doorway open to see an almost shocked look on the hokage's face.

"I am the Hokage, address me properly you little brat." Tsunade says with veins on the verge of bursting from her head. "With that hair, it sure is like seeing a ghost." She thinks to herself.

"Why are you staring at me like that?" He asks as the numerous doubletakes begins to eat at him.

"I'm not staring."

"Yes you were!"

"I was not, now shut up and listen. Jiraiya has reported that Akatsuki is on the move and rumors indicate they plan to attack suna-village soon. The kazekage was here to discuss a new trade agreement with us and we fear he will be ambushed on his journey back. Naruto… I am giving your old team of Kakashi, Sakura, Temari who also came along for the journey, and you the mission of escorting the Kazekage back to sand village."

"A mission, YESSS." Naruto says as fire flames from his eyes.

"I believe you have already met, shall I present to you, the Kazekage….Sabaku no Gaara."

"WHAT! Kazekage……Gaara…. When did this happen?" Naruto yells as Gaara appears from a swirl of sand in the back corner.

Naruto and Gaara stare at each other for a moment as the sandy blond ninja gives a nod of respect to his former foe. Gaara looked back as if he wanted to smile but the sand would not allow it. His red hair had grown a bit and his gourd of sand was nearly twice the size it was when they were genins. His height was significantly taller as he was nearly Kakashi's size now and looking flat out dangerous.

"We are leaving as soon as you can pack your things, I want to be there if they attack the village." Gaara says in his emotionless, monotone voice."

"Ah." The others respond as Naruto stares at the redhead not quite understanding this new attitude of his.

"It was you Naruto, who taught me what it truly means to be strong, to be more then just a monster nobody wants. For that, I thank you." Gaara thinks to himself as he looks over the energetic blond.

As they pass through the doors of the hokage tower, Naruto suddenly stops abruptly as he realizes he can't move a muscle. "What the…"

"Naruto…." A voice calls from behind him. "You don't plan on taking off again without saying anything…are you?" The man asks as a smile creeps across the blond's face.

"Shikamaru……" Naruto says as the binding jutsu is released.

"As a shinobi, you should really be more aware of your surroundings." The pony tailed jounin says as he smiles at his friend.

"Nah, I have Gaara here, what would have to worry about." He responds as Gaara shows once again, he has no sense of humor.

"Where are you all headed?"

"Sand village, did you want to come?" Naruto asks as if it's a nature walk.

"Sand village, that's too far for me, besides, I have a new mission for tomorrow so I need to stick around." He responds while still looking at how much the blond moron he once knew had changed. Even Sakura seemed to be taken back as she continued to sneak looks at her old teammate.

"Well, we are in a hurry so we will have to catch up another time, see ya shikamaru." Naruto replies as the group parts from the pony tailed chunnin.

"Not much has changed, that's for sure." Naruto says as he walks down the street with his arms behind his head like usual.

"Hold it Naruto-kun!" A voice calls out as he scours the area for the mysterious, yet familiar voice. Suddenly a kunai flies from behind a tree while Naruto quickly knocks it away with his own drawn weapon when the voice appears ten meters behind him. "Over here."

The group quickly glace to the source of the voice, when he yells. "Henge!" A naked woman appears with smoke clouds floating around the private areas.

"Take that, sexy ninjutsu." Kakashi's eyes bulge as blood spewed from his nose. Gaara gave a look of confusion with a hint of blush. Like a bolt of lightning, Sakura's eyes flared as she waited for naruto's response.

"That's not a good technique to use Konohamaru-chan." Naruto says with a straight face as Sakura's eyes softened. "He really has changed." As a soft sigh comes from within.

"Now this is the technique to use!" Naruto yells with a big smile as his two index fingers press together.

"NARUTO YOU MORON!" Sakura yells as she slugs him across the top of the head squashing him into the pavement.

"Sa…sa…Sakura-chan….that hurt." He says as trys to pick his beaten body off the ground.

"Huh, and I thought you changed.' She says lifting her nose in the air.

"Enough… We must leave now, Suna-village is unprotected. They could be attacked at any moment." A soft voice says as the speaker walks by dressed in a heavy black robe as if he's floating on air.

"Alright, lets go!" Naruto yells as they reach the gates to Konoha."

This is my prologue, I no some changes were made as many more will. The story will be my own, but I wanted the manga readers to not feel betrayed when reading. Please tell my your opinions good or bad. Thanks. 


	2. Chapter 2

Reviewer response – Thanks first of all for reading and telling me what you thought. I will try my best to respond if you have any questions.

Fic Slayr – The chunnin test was just a joke that Kakashi thought would be funny to play on Naruto, no chunnin test will be taken (no plans anyway).

RuByMoOn17 – Thanks…ah, guess 

DragonTheif / wolvesmOon – I am glad you two like it.

Chapter 1 – Trouble in pairs.

"Hokage-sama…." Iruka yells as he rushes inside the hokage office with a bright smile.

"If it's about Naruto, I already sent him on a mission." The hokage responds not bothering to lift her eyes off her papers.

"Mission, but he just got back. It's been so long; I guess I was a bit worried about him." He says as he peers out the window.

"I'm sure he wanted to see you before he left, but the Kazekage was in a hurry."

"I see, well I guess it can't be helped." The man says as he rubs the back of his head. "When he returns..."

"I will be sure to tell him you asked about him." Tsunade says saving him the trouble of asking.

"Thank you." Iruka says as he vanishes in a cloud of smoke.

The Hokage distractions did not end there as Jiraiya appeared shortly after.

"What do you want?" Tsunade asks paying little attention.

"Is it true that you sent him to the village of the sand?"

"Yes it is. Is there a problem?"

"You know damn well there is, the Akatsuki have openly spoke of their interest with him and this mission is like throwing him to the wolves." Jiraiya says peering into his old teammates eyes.

"He trained with you right? Besides, I also sent Kakashi and my apprentice to back him up. Don't worry, he will be fine." Tsunade says hoping to drop the discussion.

"I don't like this; I should have gone with them." The sannin says as he also looks across the town from the massive tower's window.

"They also have the Kazekage with them, I fear anyone who dares to attack them." Tsunade says hoping to lift the sannin's mood a bit.

"So do I." He replies as he disappears from the office.

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Jumping from branch to branch, Naruto couldn't help but to stare at his former opponent leaping in front of him. Staring at his new appearance with the word Kage echoing through his head, he can't help but to be a bit envious of him. Watching his sister jump along the trees beside him, it seems he may have some special people in his life after all.

"Naruto…." Sakura says with a little hesitation in her voice as Naruto just peaks back at her.

"Nothing…" She quickly follows as her face fills with a sadness he hasn't seen since Sasuke left.

Looking at her, he can't help but be a bit sad along with her. After all, he left shortly after Sasuke abandoned them leaving her all alone. Tsunade must have thought she was stronger if she let her come along as well. It makes no difference; he would never let anything happen to Sakura.

"So Sakura-chan, to be a jounin, you must be pretty strong eh?"

Sakura looked up at his smile and couldn't help but feel more assured. After all, this is what she trained under Tsunade for all these years, and soon, Naruto and her could find Sasuke together.

"Hold It!" Kakashi utters as he catch's a glimpse of something suspicious.

Everyone stands on edge as they scour the forest covered terrain. After a few minutes of silence, Gaara's eye twitches and sand fires from his gourd and surrounds his body as three kunai defect off to the ground. In a flash, Naruto jumps into the air to scour the area for the assassin.

"Naruto, wait!" Sakura yells as she watches a large bird like creature swoop down and snag the blond in mid air.

"NARUTO!"

As his eyes narrow, Gaara's sand fires into the sky as a small sheet forms under his feet lifting the black-eyed kage into the air.

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"It seems I got me a good catch, yeah?" A woman's voice says with laugh while watching Naruto struggle from within the bird's mouth.

"Let go of me!" The blond says as he pushes at the bird's beak. "Its mouth feels like stone!"

Trying to fight the wind and loosen the hold from the birdlike creature, Naruto catch's a glimpse of the black robe that the woman was wearing and the memory of three years ago replayed in his head. The pain of watching Sasuke get brutally beaten by his brother set a fire in his chest as he stared the ninja in the eye.

"LET ME GO!" He growls as a ball of charka begins to form in his palm. "RESENGAN!" He yells pushing the blue ball of charka through the face of the creature on to watch it break apart like a stone wall. Bouncing off a few limbs, Naruto catch's himself on a tree log imbedding his claws within the massive trunk.

The birdlike creature crashes nearby, crumbling into pieces on the ground. Jumping from tree to tree, he jumps to a nearby tree in plain view of the wreckage only to find the bird in pieces.

Scouring the area around him, he tries to make a fix on the mystery shinobi but did not hear a sound.

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"Do you see them anywhere?" Kakashi yells as Temari and the kazekage view the area from high within the sky. Spotting the wreckage, sand is sent down to lift the other two Konoha ninja up as it takes them soaring through the air much faster then if they were to run. Gaara seemed to show a softer side of himself through his actions even though you could never tell from his stoic and calm demeanor.

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Through the ruffling of leaves, Naruto looks up to see a small bird fly right by him. It almost seemed as if it wasn't moving natural. Naruto gazed upon it when it suddenly exploded, knocking the boy off the tree and slamming him into ground.

"It seems that this boy is a fool, yeah." Deidara says as he casually rests on a nearby branch. A blast that could possibly knock a normal man unconscious was easily absorbed with the power of the Kyuubi as Naruto regained his composure and climbed to his feet.

"Oh… Looks like we have a stubborn one, yeah."

"We?" Naruto asks as stares down the mystery shinobi.

"Don't worry…… He has already went after your friends." Deidara says as Sakura's face crosses Naruto's mind. He knows Gaara is with her, but he would die before he let someone lay a finger on his teammate, his friend. In a flash, Naruto disappeared from the ninja's view as he backtracked, hoping to find the group before the other Akutsuki does. "They have to be warned!"

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As they arrive at the wreckage, the dust from the dirt in the air was still floating around the area but no one was around.

"Impossible!" Kakashi says as he reveals the sharingan and scours the area for any trace of his student's movements.

As the others arrive, they quickly leap to the trees while Gaara quickly rises into the air to watch the area. In the corner of his eye, he catch's a glimpse of a small pack of birds heading in his direction. After viewing the large bird that attacked Naruto, he had a bad feeling as he watched the oncoming birds get closer and closer until sand fired from his gourd and struck each one. Multiple explosions occurred as gaara's eyes slightly narrowed.

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"What the…" Naruto trails off as he watches Gaara in the sky fighting with a pack of exploding birds. Turning in his tracks, he sprints through the forest like the flash of a light.

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Preparing for an aerial jutsu, Kakashi begins a series of hand seals only to have to dodge weapon attack from an unknown source. Before he could react, a series of bird bombs explode across the area as all of them leap from tree to tree to avoid the blasts. Unharmed, they watched as the smoke cleared revealing a ninja slumped over frontward. He was much larger then the other but with a strange form. His cloak was unmistakable.

"Akatsuki!"

"Ahh, it seems we have a fan." The strange shinobi says smiling a bit.

"What did you do with Naruto?" Kakashi asks while Temari and Sakura share a look of concern.

"Who?" He asks gazing into their eyes as if they know something he doesn't, perhaps something he shouldn't know.

"What do you really hope to accomplish with the fourth's legacy?" He asks trying to find the answers to Akatsuki's true motives.

"The fourth….ahh, Itachi's youma… So its here also…" Sasori thinks to himself as his tail tears through his black robe. "Looks as if I will do him a favor this time."

Kakashi gazed through his sharingan at this mystery ninja and watched as it's tail swung back and forth in the air. Made of solid steel, it looked as if it could level a large boulder with one swing. His eyes, so unnatural though his face stayed hidden behind a cloak like veil.

"He's…not human…wait, he is wearing an armor of sort." Kakashi says staring towards the mysterious shinobi.

Attempting to ignore the battle above between the Kazekage and the other ninja, Kakashi observes the device that seemed to be built around the man. With a few hand seals, the two Konoha ninjas became surrounded by a whirlwind of leaves then resulting in an explosion of wind. After surveying the area, the two Konoha ninja's had vanished leaving a suspecting Sasori smiling in the open.

"I hope you don't think it will be that easy…" He chimes as he looks through the trees.

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As the woman laughed; a calm, focused Gaara stared down his opponent. As Deidara watched the young man trying to find a weakness in his sand, he notices small particles of sand floating around the air around him. Noticing it all around the air, he looks up to find a giant cloud of sand forming above him as it softly sprinkled the thin grains across his body and summoned bird. A menacing smile followed as sand gripped his ankles before he could will his bird to move. Gaara followed up by stretching his arm out in front of him in a familiar stance while sand engulfed the black cloaked ninja's legs.

"This isn't good, no." The woman says he removes a large amount of putty from his hand which appeared to have a gaping hole in his palm.

"You're too late." Gaara yells as he forces sand around the ninja's body until he was completely submerged with sand. "Desert Graveyard." Gaara yells as his hand clenches into a fist. As he watches the sand dissipate, his eyes narrow in anger. The clay he removed from his hand had completely surrounded him thus protecting him from the sand blast.

"How do you like my perfect defense, yeah? The shinobi says with a sadistic, yet cynical smile.

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"Where are they?" Naruto asks himself as he sprints through the forest line. "SAKURA!"

Jumping from tree to tree, Naruto quickly comes to a halt on the side of a tree as catches a group of birds flying through the trees just ahead.

"Naruto…. Help me." A voice cries from beyond the forest line.

"Sakura." Naruto utters as an orange blur crosses the forest terrain in a flash. Coming up on a cloud of smoke and burnt trees, a shock so intense it nearly broke Kyuubi's seal. Covered in black ash, smoke still rose from Kakashi's body while Sakura had three knives imbedded in her back while she lied motionless against a tree.

"No….NOOO!" Naruto yells as red charka erupts from his body like he opened a gate. Blood began pouring from the trees as Gaara's body slams to the ground. His eyes bulged as panic filled the air around him. "But how….why…." He utters as anger dries the tears before they have a chance to fall. He can barely hear his name being called in the distance, but he can't quite make it out. His mind began scrambling as he spots a ninja staring at him from above the tree line. A dark haired boy with a blue collared shirt that blew in the wind. His eyes, red with blood as they pierced through him like a knife in the chest.

"S…Sasuke?" He utters as the shinobi laughs out loud with a wide smile.

"SASUKE!" Naruto yells as the sky around him instantly changes to a brighter blue. Suddenly, he spots Gaara's sister to his right and Sakura to his left with their hands pressed together in a ginjitsu pose.

"Naruto… Are you alright?" She asks peering into his fox eyes as they quickly turned back to a bright blue. A confused face soon follows as Sakura appeared almost frightened by his demon eyes. "Sakura…is that..really you?" He asks with a look of joy which didn't last long as explosions ricocheted above between the ninja and the kazekage.

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"So you're stronger then I thought. Looks like I better end this quickly, yeah." The woman says looking into Gaara's narrowed eyes. Removing a massive amount of clay, the shinobi's eyes bulge open as she notices sky darken. Walls of sand filled the air around her as sand rose like an avalanche. Gaara's hands rose and the sand danced like he was conducting a symphony. Quickly soaring through the air, the woman frantically ran from the plethora of pebbles that fired like waves in hurricane.

"This sand moves at a much slower rate then the sand protecting him, there must be a difference in control." The Akatsuki woman thinks to herself as she gathered the remaining clay needed for her attack.

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"It will be troublesome to fight four shinobi at one time, perhaps one youma container will be enough for today." The tailed ninja in a black robe says watching the three konoha ninja as they help the blond out of his ginjitsu. "Those eyes… He must be the nine-tailed boy Itachi spoke of. His charka level was off the charts, it would be too risky to fight them head on right now, perhaps a distraction is in order while Deidara finishes with the one-tail." He thinks to himself as he vanishes in a cloud of smoke and sand.

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As his clay is molded, he soars quickly towards his target. Gaara see's his approach and a hand of sand forms from beneath his bird and grabs a hold of the claylike creature. Stunned for a moment, Deidara smiles while uttering. "You're too late, yeah."

As if it were in slow motion, a large clay sculpture falls from his perched creature and decend's upon team seven and the sand jounin. Gaara's sand engulfs the bird as he crushes the creature as well as the Akatsuki's leg to bits within his tight fist. Fear struck his face as he watched the clay object fall closer and closer to the ground. With the new sand he created, a wave of his hand was all it took as in covered the sky separating the ninja below from the descending object. With an explosion that filled the sky, he watched in fear, waiting for the smoke to clear to ensure that the sand held up against the blast. A deep sigh followed as Temari blasted the smoke away with a wave of her fan. As fast as he breathed in his relief, an object caught his eye in surprise as an explosion near his face knocked him off his pedestal of sand. The sand from his gourd quickly followed as it safely caught him but the damage was done. His armor of sand had been blown off leaving him in a daze. The rest of the sand fell to the ground as if it were raining rocks. The woman jumped through the air catching the fallen Gaara in midair while landing upon another branch nearby.

"No you don't!" Temari yells as a mighty swing of her fan sends a blade like gust of wind wiping through the forest line laying waste to every tree in its path. The woman shinobi jumps to clear the wind but the speed was too much as she gets snagged and blasted to the ground leaving Gaara's unconscious body tumbling out of her grasp.

"That weapon certainly is troublesome, yeah." She utters while lifting herself up, trying not to put too much pressure on her wounded right leg. With a few hand seals, another bird like creature forms from his hand and he takes flight soaring low to the ground towards the kazekage's body. Just before she could grasp his body, a yellow and orange flash jumps in front of him lifting the red head up and jumping to a safe place upon a tree branch. Laying the kazekage down, the blonde gazed at the shinobi with dangerous red eyes. Deidara couldn't help but feel a little scared as the boy's charka was visible all around him. A layer of blue was surrounded by a thick layer or red so unnatural and higher then her own it almost made him tremble. As he felt the others approaching also, she scowled and quickly took flight sending back a few small clay bird bombs to prevent the others from pursuing her.

"You won't get away from me!" Naruto growls as Kakashi yells. "Stop Naruto, let them go, there could be more of them, if that's the case, we should help Gaara first."

"They were after me and Gaara was harmed because of it." He says staring at the wounded red head. Temari gave a look of confusion, not quite understanding what the blonde was trying to say.

"That may not be true Naruto." Kakashi says breaking the silence and confusion. Gaara is like you, they may be after the Shukaku as well as the Kyuubi." He says eyeing the shock on Temari's face. Naruto quickly glanced at Sakura who refused to look her blonde haired teammate in the eye. As if the wind was knocked from his lungs, the look upon Sakura's face spoke loudly in his mind that she already knew his secret, she already knew the story of the Kyuubi. He now realized that she was afraid of him when she looked upon his face while dispelling the ginjitsu. "She thinks I'm a monster." He says to himself holding back his tears.

Lifting the body of Gaara onto his shoulder, he quickly jumps across the tree's leading the rest towards sand village hoping to push the image of his teammate from his mind.

"Sakura… I'm sorry I never told you." He thinks to himself as small tears fall off his cheeks. "This will be the last time!"


	3. Chapter 3

You know the drill, I own nothing nor do I get anything. Its just a story, and a different telling of it at that.

GoruNova - Mizukage, right, I appologize on my lack of research, I was going off of my overall knowledge of the manga/anime rather then looking up all the details which is not only cheating the story but the reader.

Thanks to those who have been reading my story, I truely appologize for my delay in updating, but work has been freaking insane lately. I would like to think I will update more frequently, but I can't guarantee it. Anyway, here is a new chapter and I hope you like it.

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Chapter 3 - Seperated

"Naruto Stop!" Temari yells from behind as she struggles to keep up with the stamina enhance blond.

"But we are only about six hours from the sand, we can make it." Naruto grumbles from beyond the group as a limp Gaara hangs in his arms.

"I agree with Temari, we will camp here tonight and start early in the morning. This way, Sakura can treat Gaara's wounds." Kakashi says as they all drop to the forest floor beneath the tree limbs.

"He's fine, it will take more then a small explosion to stop him, trust me." Naruto says as his voice carries a hint of worry and guilt.

"It's best to be safe, besides, there isn't much more the sand village can do to treat him then I." Sakura replies as she walks towards Naruto to take a closer look at the Sand Shinobi's injuries. As she takes the unconscious form of Gaara from her teammate's hands, a soft smile covers her face putting Naruto's nervous tension at ease. She could always put Naruto in a good mood without even speaking. She was the only person he felt he could trust now that Sasuke was gone. With a slight shake of his head, he was brought out of his daze when a green aura pored from the pink woman's hand. The broken sand and burnt cheek began to seal itself shut in an attempt to heal. Her new healing powers were certainly amazing; she had certainly been pushing herself hard the last few years.

"There, I did all I could to heal his injuries, he just needs some rest and he will be as good as new."

"Excellent job Sakura-chan!" Naruto blares, as Sakura's cheeks become a bright red.

"Okay all, lets get some sleep, I will take first watch, Naruto, I will wake you in five hours for second watch." Kakashi says as the blond nods in acceptance.

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Rumblings from behind steel bars echo throughout the dank, underground prison as numerous men lay chained insider their cells. A few guards roam through the halls with forehead protectors of a music note engraved in the center. The sounds of tortured prisoners stabbed through his eardrums like a knife twisting in his chest. "How could I have been so stupid?" The man utters to himself as he watches a sound jounin inject a purple liquid into the arm of a chained up prisoner. Smoke rose from the injection area and the prisoners skin began to darken until its color almost completely black. The Prisoner screamed as the dark haired ninja standing guard looks away in shame. "How is this helping me to become stronger?" He wondered as his master's words crept into his mind.

"_You must squash your feelings; remorse and regret serve no purpose and will only make you weak. Listen to me and you will gain the strength to defeat your brother."_

"Damnit… I have become strong, but do I have the power to kill Itachi?"

"Sasuke! Damn you, pay attention. what's with you today." The jounin snaps bringing Sasuke out of his musings. The dark haired boy glared back with intensity as he watched the prisoner spasm from the strange drug that seemed to slowly mutate his body. Wanting nothing more then to activate his sharingan and cut off the sound ninja's head, he swallowed his pride, as he has done numerous times since he arrived in the sound village. The cursed seal burning a hole in his neck as is begged to be released, begged to eat away at his empty soul. He wanted to give in, but each time he closed his eyes, the imprint of itachi's face fueled his anger. He was an avenger; he had given up far too much to turn back now.

"Continue." He utters as the sound ninja began again, wiping sweat from his brow knowing that he shouldn't push his luck again or it could be him inside the cell.

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"Damn brat, just who the hell was that kid?" Deidara says while spitting the excess blood from his mouth. "That sand brat was bad enough without the rest of their little group to add to the problem. Where the hell was Sasori?" He grumbled once more to himself as he flew off into the distance.

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"Sleep, yeah right, after tonight I don't see that happening." Naruto says grabbing onto the cushion of his bag. He just laid there, staring off into the night, wondering if they were really after Gaara also. There has always been a lot of history between the two and yet, they really don't know much of anything else about one another. Growing up hated by everyone is something very few can withstand let alone comprehend.

"I don't blame them anymore, I wonder what I would have thought if I were in the same position." He says as a noise causes him to suddenly shift his gaze upwards towards his pink haired teammate who was now standing over him with a gentle expression. A look that only close friends could share. He seemed to know what was on her mind before she ever spoke… Kyuubi.

"Naruto-kun…"

"It's ok Sakura-chan, I know what you're thinking. I'm sorry I kept it from you all this time but…" The blond trails off as tears fell from Sakura's eyes. Seeing her like this was painful for Naruto, he vowed to never make Sakura cry again yet here she is, crying for him. Though he felt guilty, he couldn't help to feel grateful at the same time seeing as she felt so much for him. Before he could comfort Sakura with a smile, the pink haired woman wraps her arms around him while tears fall down the back of his neck.

"I'm sorry Naruto… I have treated you bad all those years because I never knew, Until Gondaime Sensei told me what happened; I never once noticed the villagers' looks, their comments, and their hatred. We all just followed along, not sure as to why… (Sakura wipes her tears from her face as she continues) But we became teammates, we became friends, and Naruto…"

"Yes?" He asks as he is too holding his tears in anticipation of Sakura's next words.

"I can't lose you too, not after Sasuke…" She cuts off to sob in her hands once more as Naruto embraces her.

"I'm not going anywhere, I am going to be the next Hokage, remember?" He replies with a wide smile that is a trademark to Naruto alone. "It's a promise." He follows as Sakura's tears stop. "Right." She follows as she gets up from her place and wonders back to her sleeping bag.

"What a relief." He says as he lies his head upon his pillow once more, ready to sleep the night away only to be awaken once more by another.

"Naruto… Your turn on guard duty." Kakashi says in a low tone, just loud enough for Naruto only to hear.

"What! Already…. This is crap; I didn't even sleep a wink." The blond responds as he jumps to the tree branch above still mumbling and complaining leaving Kakashi smiling underneath his mask. "He hasn't changed a bit."

The morning came quickly and the group awoke from their sleep, eager to finish their journey to the village of the sand, Naruto picked up Gaara and hoisted him over his shoulder and launched himself into the trees as the others followed shortly after. It wasn't long before the forest line thinned out and sand began to fill the open valleys. The wind picked up as a storm was brewing just ahead. Ignoring the harsh conditions, Naruto trudged on until his companions were too far out of range to see or hear. Determined, he ignored the obvious choice to stop and decided to plunge himself along with Gaara into the furious wind. After realizing his teammates were nowhere in sight, he surveyed his area and pushed on ahead in the same location.

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"What happened, where did Naruto go?" Sakura asked as she tried peering into the muggy storm of sand swirling around her face. Temari had been used to these conditions, but even she had trouble navigating in a storm like this.

"Do you think you can get us to your village Temari? Once we get there, we can send sand shinobi who know the area to help navigate us to their location." The grey haired jounin asks as Temari gives a reluctant nod.

"Gaara, be safe." She says as she begins leading the other two through the whistling sand.

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"I can't see anything out here! If I don't choose the right way here, I could miss the village altogether… think Naruto think…" As he scours the whirlwind of sand around him, trying not to get swallowed by the grains at his feet, an uneasy feeling crept into his mind… A dangerous feeling. Covering Gaaras' head in a cloth, he lays his unconscious form on the sand and shifts his gaze around the area. Boy would Neji come in handy about now." Just as he begins to relax, a large metal object soars through the sand and rams into his torso knocking him through the blistering winds. Spitting blood across the sand, the blond picked himself up and surveyed the area once more. To his surprise, a large number of kunai launched themselves towards him while giving him just enough time to evade but was surprised by the impact of the same object that struck him before as it buried him into the sand. Lying in the sand attempting to pull his battered body up, a chilling voice followed from behind the curtain of swirling sand.

"So you're still awake, perhaps the nine tails truly is the strongest…" as the man begins to laugh behind his wall of sand.


	4. Chapter 4

I wish I had more reviews but what can ya do. I have a lot of improvements and a few terms to correct in the previous chapters that were rough but it shouldn't be too hard to follow. I am starting off with a lot of action quickly because it leads to the drama that lies ahead. I hope you read and review, thanks

p.s. I don't own naruto or its many characters so do not sue me :)

Chapter 4 – Lose Control

As the sand washed though his dirty blond hair, the sound of laughing cut though his chest like a knife. Who the hell was this man and how can he see through this downpour of sand, was Naruto's thoughts as he narrowed his eyes in frustration and removed a kunai from his bag.

"You don't actually think you can do anything to me in this storm… Do you? The voice calls out as a trembling laugh soon follows.

Naruto remained silent as he tries to find the source of those words. In the blink of an eye, he saw a large metal object rise and lunge towards his body; through a quick reaction, Naruto jumped through the air flying over the object hoping to find the attacker when the object stopped and followed him into the air. He latched onto the metal device as it slammed him into the ground next to him. He appeared to be unconscious as the attacker approached his limp body. Looking over his form, the black cloaked ninja reached down to pick him up only to find a surprise waiting for him. The unconscious Naruto vanished in a puff of smoke as he hears a slight scream from behind.

"RESSENGEN!"

"What?" He barely utters as the blue ball of charka makes contact on his unusual form blasting pieces of metal and cloth in all directions throughout the pouring sand. A silence followed the scream as the mysterious black cloaked ninja seemed to disappear into the storms fury.

"What the hell was he?" Naruto asked as he quickly runs across the sand to find Gaara who was almost completely submerged within the sand. Pulling him out of the sand, he quickly checked his pulse as he seemed to be alright.

"Fool, I hope you didn't think that was all." The same voice echoes through the sand and through the blond's eardrums making his heart stop in its place as laughing soon followed.

"What do you say we play a game, I happen to have a great one made perfectly for you. It's called…

Twist until you hear a pop."

"Bastard! Who are you?" Naruto says as he readies his kunai in defense.

"Oh how rude of me, my name is…

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"Sasori? As in Sasori of the Red Sands?" Temari asks as Kakashi nods.

"What is he doing here, I thought he was dead."

"His every characteristic matched the description that Jiraiya gave me before we set out. There is not mistaking it. I just hope Naruto can hold it together until we arrive.

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"That jacket I saw… You're Akatsuki aren't you?" Naruto utters in a growl like tone, completely absent of his previous high pitched tone.

"So it's not just dumb fox after all." The concealed man says with a hint of sarcasm.

Before Naruto could react, the red fire within him blasted around him like a sword in a hot flame. His skin turned beat red as charka twisted in all directions. His eyes flooded in red as his charka began to take the shape of fox.

"KAGE BUNSHIN NUJITSU." He calls out as over a hundred clones now surrounded the area, all with a killer intent.

There was a silence as the Ninja took in the power that now surrounded him. His location was immediately discovered as the clones made their was closer and closer. Feeling that even he may be out powered as far as strength goes, he removes a small scroll attached to his back. With a flick of his blood stained finger, he marked across the scroll and began a few hand signs. With a sudden cry, a legion of men, or puppets it seemed, filled the region and seemed to match body for body with the hundred blonds surrounding him.

"HIGI, HYAKKI NO SOUEN" He cries moving himself into a battle stance. The numerous Narutos looked on in awe as the mere force emanating from them was staggering.

"They have a charka signature… But how?"

"I created these while they were still alive, to make a much stronger, much more impressive puppet." The man replies with a slight laugh. Naruto's eyes narrowed as the fox's attributes were easily displayed in his facial expression.

"Bastard!"

"Come with me now, and I can make your death painless, otherwise things could get messy." The soft eerie sound of his voice angered the blond. He seemed so reserved, as if he felt no fear at all. And his charka, it's… different somehow."

With a wave of his hands, the puppets began cutting though the many clones and moving to next. The clones were also giving their fair share of hits as one hundred soldiers were tough to control with precise accuracy. As the last of the clones was struck down, Naruto stood confidently in the open as the remaining eight puppet soldiers surrounded the blond who snarled in return.

"Is that all? That's too bad, I though you would be at least a little fun. You're not even worth being an addition to my collection." The man says as he comes out of the blowing sand and into view.

"A…a boy, not much older then myself." He thought as confusion crept into his expression. The boy simply smiled as he enjoyed others expressions when upon seeing his youthful appearance. The blood that filled the blonds eyes quickly faded to a bright blue as the confusion of what he just saw overcame his senses.

"To think, I got lucky and picked myself up two Jinchuuriki's without so much as breaking a sweat." The boy says with a slight laugh. His voice was monotone which reminded the blond of another Akatsuki member he met three years before.

The puppets slowly moved closer to their target as the puppet master looked on several feet behind. In a flash, caught some sand moving in the corner of his eye when a small smile crept onto his face.

"Thank you." He whispers his hands come together in a cross shaped manner. "Kage Bunshin nujitsu." Four clones quickly appeared as they all stood back with their backs to the puppets. Due to the sand, he couldn't quite make out what they were up too but felt compelled to find out. He did hear this was the strongest of the Jinchuuriki and was determined to see why. As he crept closer to the group, he could see traces of charka swirling from within their circle.

"Red Chakra… "

Before he could take another step, the clones turned and repeated the same technique in turn creating four clones each. Eight clones immediately attacked the puppets while the other eight clones sprinted towards the puppet master. Sasori kept perfectly still as the clones approached him with a sprint. Knowing the clones were simply a diversion, his gazed followed through them as a hint of red and blue charka could be seen behind the others. Narrowing his gave, he pulled forth another scroll and with a few hand motions called forth his greatest masterpiece.

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"So Temari, what's the big deal about this Sasori character?" Sakura asks as Kakashi and Temari share a look of shock and worry.

"Sasori was the grandson of our village elder Chiyo who's family's founded the art of controlling puppets. All I really know is, he was accused of killing the second Kazekage and even his own parents. He had a fight with Chiyo and she has refused to speak of it since. We should get to the village as soon as possible and ask her ourselves."

Sakura's mouth hung open as she soaking in all the information. "The Akatsuki are this strong." She utters under her breathe as her hands began to tremble a bit.

"We have no time to waste; we have to trust that Naruto can make it to Suna village and hurry there ourselves." Kakashi responds as they begin moving at a faster pace.

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As a blast of smoke erupts from the scroll, the clones are quickly destroyed by a unique puppet that wrapped around his body like a shell. One clone remained as Naruto ran just behind it. The puppet quickly fired a round of Kunai from under its robe quickly striking the clone into smoke just before it made contact. All Sasori could see there after was a glowing ball of orange and blue charka that launched through the departing smoke making contact with the clone's outstretched arm just before he could jump to safety. Red discs blazing in his eyes, the kyuubi's charka flared through his own as the raw power of his resengen blasted the right arm of the puppet clean off but missed its mark on Sasori.

In a quick reaction, the puppet began to move a metallic like sand through the air in the shape of sharp knives. In an instant, they surrounded the blond and rained down on him in the blink of an eye.

A scream could be heard as they lodged themselves within his skin. Three punctured his abdomen, one through his shoulder and a couple through his arms. Lifting his bleeding body from the sand, he watches as the iron sand forms into the same objects.

"Now I will immobilize you so you can't run away."

The sand objects rained down once again but to Naruto and Sasori's surprise, they didn't meet their intended targets. Naruto opened his eyes to see himself completely surrounded by a thick cluster of sand, covered in a red paint.

"Gaara… About time you woke up"

Turning around abruptly, Sasori finds himself engulfed in sand and unable to move. In a wave of his hand, the red head fired the sand engulfed ninja through the air like a rocket launcher until he was far beyond sight. Completely exhausted and still in pain, Gaara falls into a deep sleep across the sand once more.


	5. Chapter 5

I had the idea for this but I messed it all up big time, not to mention rushed it without doing the proper research. On top of it all, poor poor grammer. So I am discontinuing this one. I am taking some ideas and putting them in another story if your interested.

Sorry for those unfortunate to read this 


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