Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. If I did, chapter 678 never would have happened. *Cough* Spoiler! *Cough*

Chapter I: From the Ashes

Konohagakure had been reduced to rubble. That was the only way to describe it. All that was left? Bodies and rubble. All that was gone? Too much to bear thinking about. The war had been horrifying, until it had been taken to the village. Then it had been an inconceivable, unadulterated nightmare. No...nightmare couldn't even do it justice. Nightmares ended at the climax. Such intricate yet delicate fabrications of the psyche would collapse when the mind would take no more. Life did not work that way. Life went on, forcing the living to bear the brunt of their suffering far passed the breaking point, until one way or another, the living ceased to be so. That was the only salvation, really. To escape the endless nightmare, you must never dream again. And there's the quite literal decision of a lifetime. To suffer the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune, or to take arms against a sea of troubles, and by opposing, end them.

To die.

They wanted nothing more. It was their collective desire at this point. And yet, their wish would have to go unfulfilled for the time being. They still had promises to keep. Those promises had so little meaning now. There was nothing left for them. It was all gone. But how could they possibly let this one go? They had already broken so many. How could they possibly give up this one final act of retribution? The answer was simple. They could not. Even now that he had retreated, his apocalyptic laughter still rang in their ears. It was a constant reminder of their failures. He had been laughing, always laughing, right up until he'd taken off, leaving them alone in the ashes of Konoha. Because he had no reason not to laugh. They couldn't stop him. He'd won.

Shikamaru Nara. Rock Lee. Neji Hyuuga. Sabaku no Temari. Sabaku no Gaara. Naruto Uzumaki. These were the names of the sole survivors of the once great Shinobi Alliance. The last ninja alive in the elemental nations. Other than him of course.

Madara.

The name, even unspoken, was like venom in their ears as it repeated itself in their heads like a death chant. He had escaped. He had taken everything from them and gotten away. Naruto had wounded him, but he would heal, they knew. Just like Naruto's injuries would heal once his chakra was replenished. And then it would be back to square one.

As they stood in the rubble of what they knew used to be Ichiraku Ramen, Kurama spoke in Naruto's mindscape for the first time since the battle had ended.

"I'm almost done replenishing our chakra, Naruto. Your injuries should heal soon," he said.

Thanks, Naruto thought absently as his gaping wounds began to close.

"I can't find him. Can you sense his chakra?" Kurama asked. Naruto shook his head and stayed silent. After a few seconds, he looked up at the rest of his comrades.

"I'm going after him." At this statement, they all looked at him in surprise, but then collectively nodded. If Madara was still recovering, they would need to push their advantage as soon as possible.

"Have you located him?" Shikamaru asked.

Naruto shook his head again. "He's suppressing his chakra signature, but he won't be able to do that once his chakra starts to replenish. I think I can find him before he completely recovers." Shikamaru nodded.

"Alright, let's go then," Neji said. "We should start off in the direction that he fled. Once Naruto gets a lock on his chakra signal, we'll move in on him."

Naruto was silent at this as he looked at the ground. Gaara stared at him, keeping his expression neutral, although he knew what the blonde was thinking. "Don't even entertain the thought, Naruto," he said coldly. The rest of them looked at him in confusion, but Naruto's resolve only hardened.

"I'm going alone," he said quietly. Their reactions all varied. Shikamaru simply stared at him, his face revealing nothing. Gaara's face remained neutral, but all the sand in the vicinity betrayed his emotions as it swayed in his agitation. Temari looked outraged. Lee looked offended. Neji's eyes narrowed.

"Naruto-kun," Lee began, "I do not think that would be the correct course of-"

"The hell are you saying!?" Temari shouted, interrupting Lee. "You think that after everything that's happened we're going to let you go after that bastard alone!?"

"No, I don't," Naruto answered. Temari's face flashed from angry to confused, and then back to outraged as she understood what he was implying. The rest of them stiffened, coming to the same conclusion.

"So that's it then," Temari seethed. "You're just going to leave us behind and go after him." She gritted her teeth. "You know, I really thought better of you, but I can see that the feeling wasn't mutual! Do you think we're so useless that we'll just hold you back?"

"Temari, it's not that," Naruto said tiredly. "It's just that...now that Sasuke's gone…" he trailed off.

"You're the only one left who can fight Madara?" Shikamaru calmly finished.

"Yes!" Naruto shouted in frustration. They were all silent for a while before Neji finally spoke.

"You know, it's so ironic. It's almost funny in a way." Naruto looked at him questioningly. "I can't help but remember a time when I told you something of a similar nature," Neji continued. "That only a select few were chosen with the ability to follow through with their ideals, while the rest of us were destined to a life of mediocrity."

Naruto bristled. "That has nothing to do with this," he said, almost under his breath.

"Doesn't it?" Neji responded. "It seems to me that our roles are simply reversed now. That you're the genius who insists on fighting alone, while I'm just the failure who can't escape his fate." Neji's voice was bitter. "Oh, how the tables have turned." He paused. "Maybe I had it coming…"

"Neji..." Naruto said desperately, but was cut off as Neji continued.

"And I actually thought that I could escape my fate. That I could carry out my ideals if I just believed I could. Only for the very person who made me believe-"

"Enough!" Naruto shouted.

"-to tell me to fuck off in the end."

"I can't lose you all too," Naruto said in an agonized voice.

"We have lost just as much as you!" Neji was actually shouting now. "That man has taken everything from us, so don't act like you have some privilege that we don't! If you're really going to do this now, then you might as well just leave us in the dust right here and now Naruto, because Madara is coming for all of us, and we're not going anywhere!"

Naruto's teeth were clenched, and he wore a pained expression. After a receiving a similar reprimand from Kurama, he opened his eyes and looked at each of them. He could tell they were all in agreement. He felt his resolve crumble.

"No," he conceded quietly. "We'll all go together."

Immediately the mood shifted. Neji, Shikamaru, and Gaara all nodded.

"Damn right we are," Temari growled.

"That's what I like to hear," Lee said.

Despite all that had happened, Naruto let a small half smile manifest on his face. Yes, they were in this together, whether they won or lost.

"I've found him," he said. And so, wordlessly, they all made their way toward their deaths.

Naruto mentally groaned as he drifted back into consciousness. He tried to move but couldn't. He tried to speak but couldn't. He tried to open his eyes to only to be met with the same result. God, was he really so drained that he couldn't manage the faintest of movements? He felt so hopeless. As memories of what had occurred in the past hour rushed through his mind, he felt completely and utterly defeated.

He had known it would happen. He had expected it. But it was still so overwhelmingly agonizing. Why was he still alive? Had Madara left him alive just to mock him? So he could see the result of his failures one last time? They were all dead, and he was alone now. So alone. Deep down he knew it instinctively. He was now more alone than he had ever been, and that was saying something.

So he clung to his last comrade like a lifeline as he mourned for it all. Kurama...are you there?

"Yea kid, I'm here. I just can't believe what I'm seeing," the fox said. Naruto groaned again as his next attempt to open his eyes failed.

And what would that be exactly? Why are we even alive right now?

"Come into the seal Naruto. You need to see this for yourself," Kurama said. His voice seemed...awed? Not many things could make surprise Kurama, so Naruto obliged, diving into his mindscape to meet the fox. Kurama observed him. His body language said it all. His shoulders were sagged, and he looked down at the ground in defeat. "Naruto, look around. We can see what's going on outside the seal from in here, remember?"

Well yea, he remembered. That's how the two of them were able to switch back and forth into his body and still keep an eye on the battle. But what was so important that he had to see it? They had lost. Plain and simple. Even if he beat Madara now, there was nothing left for him.

Those thoughts were pushed to the back of his mind as he took a look at his surroundings. He could tell that he was lying down...on a bed, in a room that seemed awfully familiar. Well shit. It was his room. How had he gotten here? His mind supplied that the entire Konoha district where his apartment had been located had been destroyed with the rest of the village. Ok, something was wrong here. Was he dreaming?

"No, you're not dreaming," Kurama answered.

Well how do I know that you're not just saying that in my dream? Naruto thought.

"Stop being a smartass. I've replenished some of our chakra. Now go find out what the hell is going on."

Naruto pulled himself back into the corporeal world and opened his eyes. Feeling restored, he slowly got out of bed and walked over to the window. His breath caught in his breath and he froze at what he saw. Konoha. Untouched, just as it had been before the war. There it stood, in all its glory, defying all logic, reborn from the ashes. Without thinking, he opened the window and jumped out, landing smoothly and looking around frantically. There were people everywhere, going about their business as if they weren't dead. What the hell! They're not dead! What could have possibly happened? Rinne Tensei? No. The only Rinnegan user left was Madara, and he wouldn't do something like this. And even if he did, that wouldn't bring the village back to it's unruined state, and it wouldn't explain why everyone was going about their business as usual.

Kurama, are you sure we're not dreaming?

"Yes I'm sure! How stupid do you think I am!? I've even checked for all signs of a genjutsu. There are none, and no genjutsu could entrap us both! Now stop wasting time and find out what the fuck is happening here!" The fox was clearly agitated, if his roaring was any indication. Naruto couldn't say he blamed him. And he was right. Even the infinite Tsukuyomi couldn't subdue him with old man Hagoromo's chakra running through his system. What on earth was happening here? He continued to look around until he caught sight of something that made him freeze again. The hokage monument. It was back as well. But Tsunade's face wasn't on it. The faces ended with his father's.

Are you seeing this?

"Yea kid, I am. And I'm just as stumped as you." Naruto continued staring at the monument, desperately trying to puzzle out what this meant. For a while he stood in the middle of the sidewalk in a trance, until Kurama spoke up again.

"Naruto, I'm going to speculate a theory. An insane one, but the only one that makes sense."

I'm all ears. What the hell is going on?

"Do you believe in time travel?" Kurama asked.

No I don't. Is that what you think this is?

"I don't believe in it either, but I can't think of any other explanation, kid. We're in an undestroyed version of Konoha that is certainly not at war, and the 5th Hokage hasn't been chosen yet."

Naruto's eyes widened as the notion started to become a possibility in his mind. He looked down at his hands. They were small. As if he was a child. He frantically started looking himself over, and his suspicions were only confirmed. He was a kid! Thirteen at most. This impossible was slowly becoming more and more real. If he had somehow gone back in time, then…

He abruptly started running in the direction of the hokage tower, feeling something that he hadn't felt in a long time. Hope. It was an insane, unfounded hope, but there was only one way to confirm Kurama's theory. He reached the tower and a guard in front of the door caught sight of him. Naruto remembered him. He had been one of the guards who was more tolerant of him back in the day, but he had still been annoyed to no end by his daily mischief.

"Oh great, not again," the guard said. "Listen kid, I don't have time for this today. Shouldn't you be in-"

He cut off as Naruto jumped over his head, sailing up through the air and into the open window of the hokage tower, leaving the stunned chunin behind. As he landed inside of the building, he almost stumbled. This small body would take some getting used to. But those thoughts vanished as he looked at the face of the man who had been like a grandfather to him. The third hokage.

For a while the two just stared at each other. It was a comical sight. The two locked eyes in stunned silence, one trying to puzzle out what had just happened, and the other trying to suspend his disbelief. The old man spoke first.

"Naruto, care to explain how and why you just jumped into my office through the window?" he asked.

Naruto said nothing, continuing to stare at the old man for several more seconds. Finally he answered quietly. "No, can't say that I do," he whispered. The old man frowned.

"Well then, at the very least you should get to class. This is the day of the exam for heaven's sake. You're going to be late." Naruto nodded weakly, then turned around and jumped out the window. Hiruzen frowned again. Had he been practicing his chakra control? Usually it took an experienced genin to focus chakra to the legs like that. The Naruto he knew couldn't even attempt it. And yet he had just casually jumped in and out of his window as if it was the most natural thing he could have done. Where had that come from? Deciding to ask Iruka about it later, he returned to his paperwork.

Naruto ran hurriedly through the streets of Konoha towards the academy, bracing himself for what he was about to see. If the old man was alive, then everyone was. He was back to the day of the genin exam. Deciding he would think about the implications of this fact later, he burst through the doors of the academy classroom, panting slightly. This body was weak.

Iruka looked at him, startled, but then smiled. "Forget to set your alarm, Naruto? Well, you're just in time. Take a seat and we'll begin." Naruto was in a daze at seeing Iruka alive, despite having mentally prepared himself for it, but nodded. He made his way up the steps towards the back, looking around at the familiar faces. They were there. Sasuke, Sakura, Shikamaru, Choji, Ino, Kiba, Shino, and Hinata. They were all alive and well, completely ignorant of what had happened. Or rather, what hadn't. What never will, his mind supplied.

He took a seat in the back, next to Hinata, whose eyes widened slightly. Naruto-kun never sat next to her! Her heart sped up as he turned to her and offered her a small smile. And he never took note of her either!

"Ok then, now that we're all here," Iruka began. "Your graduation test will be...the clone jutsu."

As he called names one by one, Naruto was deep in thought. This was unbelievable. The implications of having gone back in time had finally caught up to him now that he had a moment to think. He could do everything over again. He could do it all right this time. He could prevent so many meaningless deaths. For the first time he wondered how much strength he had retained. He could talk freely with Kurama, which meant their link was unchanged. Weird. Why was that? He supposed that if his mind had somehow been transferred into his younger body, then it wasn't that strange that Kurama and the seal, which were linked to his consciousness, had also been brought back in the same state. Which meant even without sage mode, he was a kage level shinobi in the body of a soon to be fresh out of the academy genin. He could work with that.

He would have to do some training to get back into shape though. He couldn't imagine he could fight beyond jonin level in this current body without revealing too much. Going into sage mode or tailed beast mode around his peers wouldn't be prudent. Not that he would need to anytime soon. Getting back into shape would be the first thing to do.

Naruto's brain registered that his name had been called, and he walked to the front of the classroom, and, still lost in thought, produced 15 illusionary clones. Iruka looked at him in shock, and Mizuki frowned. Naruto simply stood there, idly waiting for the verdict.

"You...pass…" Iruka said, slightly awed, not just at the number but at the lack of hand seals. He quickly pulled himself together, and the shock on his face was replaced with a deep pride. Naruto had passed with flying colors! Had had hoped this would happen, but hadn't actually expected it. He felt pretty guilty about that now. Mizuki, on the other hand, was inwardly fuming. There went plan A. And plan B was all the more reckless. God, why did the stupid kid have to pass? Why couldn't he just fail like he was supposed to, like he always did? Unaware of his colleague's thoughts, Iruka called the next name as Naruto made his way back to his seat, still thinking about everything he'd need to plan out. God, planning. He wasn't very good at that. Maybe Kurama could help him with that part.

As he sat down, several other students looked at him in interest. This was new. Naruto passing and even performing beyond what was expected? Shino and Shikamaru were subtly glancing at him, trying to figure him out, while the rest of the class was not so covert. Hinata was looking at him with wide eyes, Chouji had something akin to respect on his face, Ino looked baffled, and even Sasuke had spared him a glance and a raised eyebrow before looking away.

"Showoff…" Sakura muttered.

"Hey Naruto!" Kiba said, a little too loudly. "What the hell was that man? You never get that one down. Have you been practicing?" His eyes narrowed. "Or, are you not really Naruto?"

Naruto looked at his long time rival in brashness and bickering for several seconds. One thing Naruto was very good at was adapting to unexpected situations very quickly. So after getting over the fact that he was talking to the child version of his dead friend, an amused smile slipped onto his lips. Kiba took that as confirmation. Naruto wouldn't smile at an accusation like that!

"So that's it huh!? You're some guy in a transformation pretending to be Naruto! Who are you and what have you done with him!" he shouted as he stood up. Naruto actually burst out laughing.

"Come on, is it really that hard to believe that I passed?" he asked with obvious mirth.

"Yes," Sakura mumbled.

"If I may interject," Shino interrupted. "It is not the fact that you passed that is shocking, Naruto, even if most of us weren't sure that you would. It is the apparent ease and grace with which you did so that has piqued our curiosity, seeing as you showed no such prowess prior to this occasion."

"He's right," Chouji said. "How did you master the clone jutsu so quickly? Last week you couldn't even make one." Naruto shrugged.

"Once I completely mastered shadow clones, regular ones just started to come easily," he said truthfully. Granted, it had taken him until his elemental training with Kakashi to completely master shadow clones, but he wasn't about to tell them something like that.

"Shadow clones?" Kiba repeated. "Isn't that a B-ranked ninjutsu? You expect me to believe that you can do that?" he asked mockingly.

Naruto flashed him a large smile. "I can't say I expect much of anything from you, dog breath," he said. He was really enjoying this. Talking to his friend again was nothing short of miraculous. Even if some of them didn't see him as a friend yet so much as a classmate. Several students giggled as Kiba grumbled indignantly.

"Are you all quite done?" Iruka asked in exasperation. "If you're going to talk during the exam, don't do it so conspicuously. And Kiba, enough with the ridiculous theories. If someone was impersonating one of our students, I'm quite confident that either Mizuki Sensei or myself would notice a simple transformation."

Naruto grinned widely. "Says the guy who got a nosebleed from my simple transformation just yesterday!" Iruka looked annoyed as Kiba laughed.

"Ok, maybe you are Naruto," he conceded.

Once the exam ended, Iruka told them all to meet here in a month to be sorted into teams and to meet their jounin instructors. They all filed out, Naruto reveling in the second chance he'd been given.

A/N: I know there are a lot of Naruto time travel stories out there, but I still wanted to give my own a shot, so here it is. Hope you like it so far.