Chapter 1: The Stone

Disclaimer: I do not own Shingeki no Kyojin or Naruto

Summary: Naruto had no idea where he was. "Go ahead and say it, Kurama. I know you're dying to."

Timeline: It takes place around the Five Kage Summit arc. I dropped Naruto in the middle of the Fourth Great Shinobi war so I didn't set this up after Naruto ended cause I never saw the end. But I also couldn't have him sulk around either and be stressed out and desperate to return home. Hence the change that Sasuke came back to the village after killing Itachi.

Naruto Uzumaki scowled at the sphere in annoyance. "Can't you send someone else? When did I turn into your errand boy?"

"Stop complaining," Tsunade said, not bothering to look up from her paperwork. "You were just saying you had nothing to do and you were bored. And now you have something to ease your boredom."

"What the hell? I'm a chūnin now," he whined. "This is below me."

"Keeping talking and I'll demote you. Then it'll be a task betting your rank."

"You can't do that! That's an abuse of power!"

"Naruto," Tsunade began, starting to lose patience. "That sphere is—"

"Why can't you make Sasuke do this?" Naruto went on whining. "He's on probation and these puny tasks are perfect for a gennin," he said smugly. He was happy his teammate had returned to the village, following Itachi's death. After learning the truth, he had adopted his big brother's views and vowed to continue his legacy. As punishment for desertion, the Hokage constantly assigned him D-rank missions after he had spent some time in jail and paid a fine. It could have been worse but he had taken out Orochimaru, Konoha's worst traitor, and it had earned him some grace.

Tsunade glared at him, growling. "Out. Now."

Knowing her next words weren't going to be words but a punch in the face, he gave in. "Man, this is what I get for dropping by to say hello, a chore," Naruto grumbled, walking away.

"And don't mess with it! Take it straight to Master Takashi!"

"Yeah, yeah."

Out of pettiness, Naruto strolled lazily, taking his sweet time. What's so special about this stupid stone anyway? He tossed it in the air and caught it, playing with it as he walked. Kinda reminds me of the Stone of Gelel. Only it was spherical in shape and had a bluish-purple hue with a golden mist forming strange symbols.

"Careful not to mess with it," Kurama warned. "If it's anything like that stone, it could be immensely powerful and you don't want to accidentally cause an explosion right in the middle of the village."

"It's just a pretty rock," Naruto said dismissively.

After training with the jinchūriki from Kumo, Killer Bee, he had learned to open the lines of communication with his "tenant." When the Kage Summit had been attacked, the nations had agreed the Akatsuki was all of their enemy and decided to put aside their grudges to fight against the common foe. Naruto had volunteered to go to the Hidden Cloud as a show of faith and trust.

He took a deep breath. The air smells clean. Around him were large rice fields and a massive blue sky with the warm sun shining up above. Naruto yawned. I'm starting to feel sleepy from this peaceful weather.

The small house was just up ahead on the hill. Naruto pulled out the sphere from his pocket and started playing with it again. Huh? He held it up to the sun. Inside of the beautiful gem, a distortion appeared. The jinchūriki checked his surroundings. He was past the fields, surrounded by earth, not a living thing in sight. I wonder...

"Wait a—" Kurama began but it was too late.

As soon as Naruto pumped his chakra into the stone, a massive golden and bluish-purple light engulfed him.

When the strange, elastic-like feeling stopped, Naruto opened his eyes to find himself standing among broken buildings. The entire place felt abandoned. Silence filled the air. It was a little creepy. Through the windows he could see people had left their belongings behind when they left. He wondered what could have made them do that.

Naruto had no idea where he was. "Go ahead and say it, Kurama. I know you're dying to."

"Very well, then: I TOLD YOU SO, YOU LITTLE SHIT!"

Naruto flinched, covering his ears. "You didn't have to be so loud."

"You can't even do the simplest things without screwing up, can you?!"

"Okay, now you're exaggerating."

"What the hell were you thinking?!"

"I just wanted to see if it really was like the Stone of Gelel and I could shoot out awesome blasts!" Naruto defended himself. Admittedly it sounded kind of lame now even to his own ears.

Kurama couldn't help but roll his eyes. His dumb host still hadn't fully grasped the gravity of the situation and understood the consequences of his actions.

Naruto observed his surroundings as he wandered around, hoping for a clue as to where he had ended up. I can barely sense any chakra. That freaked him out. His chakra sensory skills were severely lacking but even he wasn't that bad. Oh man... Where the hell was he? "Um, Kurama, I don't think we're in Konoha anymore."

"Forget the Hidden Leaf brat, I doubt we're in the Elemental Nations anymore." He doubted they were even in their own world. But Kurama would hold off on that until he had further proof.

The shaking of the ground made Naruto pause before he could demand what the fox was holding back. What was that? An earthquake? He jumped on the roof. His eyes widened when he saw a 15-meter giant in the distance. "What are those?!" Naruto yelled, a little freaked out at the weird human-like thing.

"You wanna scream louder, I don't think they heard you."

There were men and women dressed in similar attire, using strange machines to attack the monsters.

Naruto paled, watching a Titan eat one of the humans. There was only a woman left. He edged closer. "Be careful," Kurama said.

Seeing that the woman had flown away, far out of its reach, the 13-meter giant located the nearest human. And locked its cold eyes on Naruto.

"Uh-oh," Naruto said, backing up. He turned and ran, chancing a glance over his shoulder to see the creepy face staring at him. It was just tumbling after him, no words and no emotions in its deadened gaze.

Naruto climbed a tall tower and looked down, watching it claw uselessly, trying to reach him. Huh, they're really stupid. His eyes widened. "It's got no dick!"

"How very astute of you," the Kyūbi said sarcastically. "It can't get you. Observe the humans instead," he advised his host.

Naruto squinted his eyes and did just that. "Looks like their napes are the killing spot." Fascinated, he watched the uniformed humans kill the giants using metal contraptions attached to their waists and two swords. "I think they're civilians! But they're killing those monsters! Yeah!" He grinned, cheering as another one went down.

"There's very little chakra around, which means no shinobi. Compared to you, they might be considered civilians but I think they're soldiers in this world."

That sucked the cheer right out of the jinchūriki. "You really think we're in another world?" Naruto felt ready to throw up. He swallowed with great difficulty. "Grandma Tsunade is going to be so pissed."

"That stupid blond menace!" Tsunade paced around the office, looking furious. "I gave him one simple task to do, one! And he screws it up! I really should demote him for this!"

"Come, now, Lady Hokage," Kakashi said lightly, "it can't be that bad."

"According to Master Takashi, he disappeared into thin air in a flash of light. He was almost there! I never should have given him the stone." But there was no one else around she trusted enough to handle the artifact. Most of the chūnin were sick, having caught a bug that was going around. And the jōnin were in their meeting. She had been considering sending one of her ANBU escorts when Naruto had walked in.

"Do you really think he could be in trouble?" Shizune asked worriedly.

"Master Takashi is an expert on ancient artifacts. He's been around the world and studied their mythology extensively his entire life, and he believes Naruto may have ended up in another world."

"I'm sure he will be fine. He's got his furry buddy with him." Despite his easy-going exterior, Kakashi felt apprehensive. Naruto, why must trouble always find you?

"The only reason I'm this calm is because I know he's not alone and the Kyūbi is there to talk the brat out of doing anything too stupid." The Hokage took a deep breath and sat back down. "In any case, if the legends are true, we know there's a time limit on how long Naruto can stay wherever he is. The only thing we can do is wait for the sphere to recharge and bring him back."

"How long will that take?"

"I don't know, Shizune. It varies in the stories. It could be weeks or months or longer." Tsunade didn't want to consider the possibility it could even take years for the sphere to recharge. "Hopefully, the brat hasn't lost the stone."

"What do you mean you lost the stone?!"

"It means I don't know where it is!" Naruto searched his pockets frantically. Crap, crap, crap, crap! He squeezed his eyes shut and gripped his hair, trying his best to remember. "I don't think I had it when I ran! Maybe I dropped it when we got here!"

Jumping over the Titan still uselessly trying to reach him, he hastily went over the area. "Where is it?! I know it was this area!" He recognized two of the shops.

"Wait, what's that?"

Naruto landed on the ground. He ran toward the object Kurama had pointed out and snatched it up. Then he ducked inside a shoe repair shop to avoid being seen by the approaching giant and study the stone in peace. "The shape and size are the same and the symbols, too, I think. But the color...it's gray now." Even the funny squiggles which had been golden were now silver.

Kurama was silent.

"Well, any thoughts? Do you think it's...broken?" Naruto asked, frightened. If it was, he was going to curl up into a ball and cry, no matter how much Kurama made fun of him.

"In my experience, objects of power, such as this one and the Stone of Gelel, they either shatter after they're used or they recharge."

"It's not even cracked!" Naruto inspected it closely. "And I can feel its power. It's not as massive as it was when I first used it, but it's still there! Which means it's recharging! We can go home!" His eyes filled with tears in relief. And he vowed never to mess with such objects ever again.

"If that is the case, who knows how long it'll take to return to full power?"

Naruto's hopes of returning home faltered for a second. His gripped the stone tightly. "Doesn't matter. Long as it's possible, I'll wait and protect the stone with my life!"

"Just try not to lose it again. I highly doubt you'll be putting your life on the line."

"Because without chakra ninja don't exist here?"

"Yes. We're not from this world. And the humans haven't shown any particularly special or powerful skills that could pose a problem. You've only used a minuscule amount of your chakra, barely even noticeable, since we were brought here. Because it was such a microscopic amount it replenished while you were watching the humans. So you don't have to worry about depleting your reserves. You also have another source, me. There is nothing here that could pose a threat to us."

Naruto nodded. His thumb stroked the stone.

"Now it's only a waiting game."

He figured they'd know it was ready once the color changed from gray to the blue-violet it was before. Once the stone was back to full power, they could use it to go back to where they came from. The bad news was they had no idea how long that would take, but Naruto was optimistic.

"Look on the bright side, buddy. We get to explore a fun, new world! Nothing here can hurt us so we'll be okay!"

"Don't get too excited. This isn't our world. You can't go messing around with the order here."

The jinchūriki's excitement waned. "Could our meddling be harmful somehow?"

"I don't know. It could. Or it might not. But is that really something you want to risk?"

Naruto crossed his arms. "So you're saying I should avoid using chakra."

"No, you'll need it to survive. I'm only pointing out we don't know what kind of consequences—if there are any—that could befall if you introduced too much of your chakra into this world."

"Keep chakra usage to a minimum, just to be one the safe side, got it. Hm," he said, studying the stone. "How about we call it the Kamui Stone? The spirals I saw before we were transported kinda remind of Kakashi-sensei's jutsu. And the effect is similar, too."

"That's dumb," the fox snorted.

"Shut up. I like it!"

"It probably already has a name."

"Who cares?" Carefully, Naruto put away the precious stone. "Now what? Infiltrate their ranks? I'll have to pretend to be injured so they're not suspicious why I'm not using that cool machine thingy."

"Get close and study them first. But don't be seen!"

"Relax! I got this." He was a ninja. And a prankster.

"You're dressed in eyesore orange."

"You're one to talk. You're more orange than I am." Making sure the coast was clear of the creepy giants, Naruto dashed out. He snuck closer to the soldiers, sticking to the ground lest they see him on the rooftops. Once he was within hearing distance, he cautiously climbed a roof with a large chimney he could easily hide behind. He peeked around the edge.

A man was yelling at one of the giants who was eating a person.

"Whoa," Naruto muttered, eyes massive. "I think we may have a little problem." He didn't get a chance to debate risking saving the man when a group arrived to help.

"I didn't consider a language barrier." Kurama frowned at the foreign words. "That throws a wrench in our infiltration plan."

"How am I going to survive when I can't even understand them?" Naruto listened to the words in curiosity, awe, and fear. He waited nervously for his partner to say something, immensely glad they had become friends. Or I'd be screwed.

"Change of plans. Instead of infiltrating as a soldier, you're doing it as a kid."

"What? Why?" Naruto asked quietly.

"They're less likely to be hostile toward a child."

"Good point. Maintaining a low level jutsu like Transformation should be a piece of cake."

"There's still another issue to consider," Kurama said.

"What?"

"While you were busy gawking thinking how cool they were, I was noticed something. They'll know you're an outsider because you can't speak the same language as them, but the bigger mystery will be where you came from. Notice which direction the giant humanoids are coming from. Considering the state of the abandoned town and the fact the soldiers atop the Wall closer to us, I'm assuming that's where the humans are living."

"I see. Those things managed to get past that Wall in the distance, forcing people who were living here to abandon their homes and hide behind this Wall here." Naruto felt his heart go out to them.

"Careful." Kurama knew, and could understand, where his host's thoughts were going. It would be a walk in the park for the two of them to annihilate all the Giants and set the humans free. He doubted it would take them longer than a day. "Remember, by trying to help we could end up making the situation worse."

"I know." Naruto's shoulders slumped. "It's just..." His hands clenched into fists. "I have the power to make a difference here and I hate that I'm not allowed to do anything."

"It's not worth your hero complex," Kurama said harshly. He knew Naruto genuinely wanted to help out of the goodness of his heart, nothing else. Still, he felt it wiser to stay out. "They've survived without us, without chakra. They don't need us. We can't make them reliant on us now."

"Yeah." Naruto tried to squash the urge to run out there and create a hundred Shadow Clones and Rasengan all the enemies. How laughably easy it would be to free these people. "How young should I go, then?"

"It won't make any sense to them how anyone could survive out in such hostile territory. But the difference in language works in our favor in this. There will be no way of understanding their questions and you don't have to come with up a good lie. Look at them, the youngest soldiers look to be around your age."

"I don't want them thinking I'm a spy, so." Naruto crossed his arms, brows furrowed in concentration. "If it were me, I'd find anyone younger than a five-year-old too young. So between five and fifteen."

"They must train for a few years before becoming soldiers," Kurama pointed out. "They'll still regard someone a little younger than fifteen with suspicion and might treat you in a hostile manner. Knock off a few years."

Naruto nodded. "Right." Academy students back home graduated at twelve. "So how about between five and twelve, then? I think eight or nine sounds like a good choice, doesn't it?"

"Be sure to hide the whiskers. I've only seen blonds, brunettes, and redheads and no outstanding physical features thus far."

"I noticed that, too. What a weird place." Bringing his hands together, Naruto activated the jutsu. A poof of smoke later, a young, angelic looking boy appeared. He'd changed his usual outfit in favor of blue pants and a plain white shirt but kept the sandals. "Alright, who should I approach?" If he went into Kyūbi mode, the bright yellow cloak would be like a beacon. He might as well scream I'm over here! and run around waving his arms. "Not like Kyūbi mode will be of any help."

"They don't really have chakra for us to tap into and sense any powerful negative emotions," Kurama agreed. But he and Naruto could definitely sense something from these uniformed people. "Anyway, I'm a fairly good judge of character," the fox said, purposefully ignoring Naruto's snort. Now that he didn't have his bias against humanity getting in the way, that is. "You can learn a lot from observation. Look over there."

Two soldiers, a man and a woman, were kneeling over a dying man.

Naruto was too far to hear what they were saying but he didn't need to. The kindness and consideration in their actions spoke loud enough. He was saved the effort of thinking of a way to approach them when he felt vibrations coming from behind. Snapping his head around, he spotted a Giant making its away in his direction, staring at him. Naruto dashed toward it and jumped off the roof. Then he turned away from it and ran around the building to the soldiers.

They looked shocked at his sudden arrival for a second before the short man yelled something the jinchūriki couldn't understand. The redhead didn't waste any time snatching him up and taking him to her horse.

The shocked expressions had nothing on her jaw-dropping reaction when Naruto smiled brightly at her and said, "Arigatō, nee-san!"

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