Umm...I'm a little unsure about this fic. I mean, I know the idea is a good one, and that I'm probably capable of writing around any errors that might be made, it's going to be hard to grasp the timetraveling issue. Like, if you go back in time, do you exist anymore to anyone else? Or, what would happen if you watched your own birth?

SIGH. I did it again. Had to go and wrap my mind around an idea until I couldn't let it go. Genius, Tai. Frickin' Einstein.

And there's one thing I feel like I must point out: I got the idea for this story from Reaper Nanashi, and her fic Door Number Two. You should all read that. It's pretty kick-ass.

Anywho.

Summary: Falling victim to a strange jutsu, Naruto wakes up in an older Konoha, still governed by the Yondaime. Yondy!Daddy: No yaoi

I hope, despite my negetivity, you enjoy!

Prologue

The rogue nin they fought were incredible--incredible enough to bring his team down in minutes. They had strange jutsu with indescribable effects; Sakura had fallen to her knees in tears, clutching her head as she sobbed hysterically--only seconds later, Sasuke's legs buckled, and he fell, unable to use his limbs. Kakashi was able to keep just out of striking range, avoiding anything they threw at him; the attacks were unpredictable, even with the Sharingan.

He was determining how to get his fragmented team out of there, when there was a shift from behind him. He quickly spun round, thinking he'd somehow been snuck up on, and saw Naruto pushing himself up off the ground. He was covered in blood--his own blood--but there was a grin of wild determination on his face; despite how dangerously he swayed when he finally got to his feet, he pulled out three shuriken and grinned, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth.

"Ready, Kakashi-sensei?"

Kakashi, despite knowing that Naruto shouldn't be moving around because of the severity of his wounds and the large amount of blood he lost--he was worse off than Sakura or Sasuke--he knew also that once the blonde set his mind to something, there was little that could be done to dissuade him. But, as his gaze returned to their opponents, he felt he had to try.

"Naruto--"

"I never back down from a fight!" he yelled unnecessarily at his teacher. "I never give up! Not even if I'm the only one standing! I'll fight till my last breath!"

Kakashi felt himself smile beneath his mask. That's my little knucklehead.

"Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!" Naruto snarled, making a cross with his index and middle finger on both hands, holding the nin-weapons he'd withdrawn in his teeth. Instantly, the rogue-nin were surrounded by a dozen or so Narutos, all pulling out kunai. "GO!" And then they were all running at the rogue nin, arms identical blurs as they hurled their weapons--and Naruto was running with them, a bloody kunai in his mouth, arms an X in front of him as he ran, each hand clenching his selected shuriken.

One of the rogue nin stepped forward, a deranged grin on his face. As Naruto and his bunshin ran at him, he preformed a series of complicated hand signs, and then shouted,

"Kokugen Ryokou no Jutsu!"

Kakashi's eyes widened--Kokugen ryokou?! Time travel?!--and he yelled, "Naruto! Get out of there, now! NARUTO!"

But Naruto either couldn't hear him, or couldn't move. He stopped running abruptly. His eyes were wide as he look at the white orb the enemy nin threw at him; he dazedly stared at it, before reaching out to gently graze it with his fingertips.

There was a small pulse through the air; a sound like a heartbeat.

Naruto and the orb vanished. Kakashi was left staring at a cackling ninja, who was obviously very pleased with himself--until his face met the brute force of Kakashi's fist. The jounin was through messing around: somehow, when one of their students is endangered, a sensei's vigor will be restored, and they'll kick ass until their student is safely back under their wing; such a thing was maximized for Naruto--he was a damn good kid and everyone loved him for it, so when crap happened it everyone more protectively angry than should be considered normal. He brought the rogue up to his eye level, and snarled, "Where is Naruto?"

The insane nin laughed loudly. "In another world! In another time!"

Kakashi ground his teeth behind his mask, eyes narrowing to enraged slits; the only thing stopping him from killing the bastard then and there was the information that only his living mind could produce. He'd tell the ANBU not to go easy on him--let him feel every minute of any pain he'd caused Kakashi's students to have endured.

---

He walked leisurely, hands in his pockets as he surveyed the surrounding scenery with appreciation. The blue sky, green grass, tall trees, dying kid bleeding all over the training fields...

His eyes widened and he rushed to the boy's side, hearing several ANBU race after him from wherever they'd been concealing themselves. He knelt, trying very hard to ignore the blood, and gently rolled the boy onto his back, then set to unzipping his once-orange jacket. Peeling back the boy's bloodstained shirt enough so he could see his ribs, he bit back a gasp. There was a gaping wound in his side, and several more across his chest--he could tell this by the bloody rips in the shirt. Turning to look over his shoulder, he saw that two of the ANBU had dispatched themselves to retrieve a Med nin.

Arashi wondered quietly to himself if it was already too late, but just as the thought crossed his mind, the boy began to cough. He rolled to his side, coughing roughly for several minutes until the Yondaime thought he'd choke out some organs; all the latter could do was brace his shoulders and help him to sit up, which relieved some of the pressure to his lungs.

"Are you okay?" the man asked quietly, not failing to notice the blood trickling from the boy's mouth.

Said boy turned unfocused eyes to him, and Arashi sucked in a sharp breath, seeing his face for the first time. Liquid blue eyes, clouded over with pain at the moment, bored into his with enough efficiency to make Arashi wonder if he was using some kind of jutsu. The unwavering gaze was unnerving, but the Yondaime didn't break it.

Finally the boy whispered in a wheezy voice, "You're the Fourth."

Arashi didn't know where this fit into the situation, but nodded. "Yes, I'm the Fourth."

The boy reached out a hand as though to touch him, but the ANBU tensed. Arashi watched the boy's hand falter--amazingly, the younger blonde could hear the ANBU ops tense around him, so he brought his arm away again. "You look just like they said you did," he muttered faintly.

Arashi felt something wrench at his heart when the boy started coughing again, and this time it looked a lot more painful. He clawed at his chest until Arashi gently moved his arms away; then he dug his fingers into the grass, clenching them tightly into fists.

He was drawn to the boy, though he couldn't pretend to know why. When several medical ninja arrived on the scene, the boy looked thoroughly frightened. He wrapped his arms protectively around his stomach, shaking his head resolutely.

"Kid," the Yondaime began, to be met with furious cerulean eyes.

"Don't call me that," the boy hissed angrily. "I don't care who you are. I have a name. Why can't people use my name?"

Arashi blinked, more surprised at the passionately angry words than the actual anger. "Okay...and what is your name?"

"...Naruto. Uzumaki Naruto."

The Fourth's eyes widened. Uzumaki? He frowned. That wasn't possible--he had no children, or any siblings who could've had children. But the look in the dazed blue eyes was sincere; and before Arashi could question him, he fell backwards in a dead faint.

"It's the bloodloss, sir," one of the medical nins told him. "We have to get him to a hospital right away, or he'll die."

"How long can he go untreated?"

"About ten minutes, sir."

"Okay--get him to the hospital; and take him to the more expensive wing, alright? This kid needs professional attention."

The ninja picked him up, holding him gently, favoring the side with the gash, and leapt away. Arashi watched him go; the ANBU behind him were telling him something, but he wasn't listening.

He did feel drawn to the boy; oddly enough, it felt as though they were part of each other, or shared the same blood, though he knew he'd never seen him before.

It was much food for thought, and apparently, Arashi bit off more than he could chew. "You two," he said to two of the remaining guards. "Since I have to have at least two of you with me at all times, as per some random law, I want you to follow me to the hospital and try to keep up."

The ANBU snickered behind their masks, but saluted dutifully.

---

He shooed the doctors out, after making sure the patient needed no more attention, then seated himself in the chair at the bed's side. He stared at the bed's occupant. The nurse told him that he hadn't made a sound during the entire treatment; not so much as a whimper. His cough had cleared surprisingly quickly, she'd said, and his wounds had already begun to close; he was so badly beaten, however, they'd splinted his arm and leg, so the broken bones would heal correctly.

"What a strong little fella you are," Arashi mused, watching the pained expression on the sleeping boy's face. "Bearing all that pain in silence. It makes me curious."

He noticed Naruto's hands, clenched into fists over his stomach. Arashi frowned--why was he so protective of the stomach?--and went to gently move away his fists. Then he paused, and shook his head. If anyone needed to know, Naruto would tell them. Jumping to rash conclusions wouldn't solve anything, but true words spread slower.

"...Who are you?"

I just had to write it!! Gomenasai! Please don't flame...and I hope you liked it!