Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto in any form or fashion.

Naruto Ronin: The Rogue Ninja

Chapter 17: Defining Peace

"...So you're Naruto Uzumaki, huh?"

His back was to the wall near the small cave entrance, his deep-blue eyes constantly watching the downpour of rain. His arms were crossed as he heard the voice, but he made no move to respond to the sound of his name whatsoever.

He didn't how he should feel, or how he should react. You'd think he'd be overjoyed, but he couldn't pull that off for anything. Maybe they should hug, reassure themselves that the pain would be gone and that they will wake anew with a better future. He doesn't like reunions like that, and it's not even a reunion; he's never even seen the guy before, despite being around his age.

But after searching this world for so long, he has finally found one...a proof that there are remnants to his clan out there, and that he isn't alone in this world. But why can't he find some kind of joy to express? What is it about this kid that makes him unable to be appreciative of the fact that he has finally found another Uzumaki?

He didn't know. Instead, Naruto finally decided to turn to him and, with a simple shrug, responded with, "More or less. You must be Nagato. You have the trademarked red hair that our clan has."

The boy stared at him and retorted plainly, almost accusingly, "I see you don't."

Naruto shrugged again and explained, "My mother did. I take after my father."

He nodded, and said nothing else for a while. He simply stared out into the rain as well. Naruto shifted on the wall, turning back to him before asking, "You're parents...they must have told you all about the Clan..."

He didn't turn to him, but he continued to stare blankly out at the rain. A sad gaze washed over his eyes as he looked to the grown before softly murmuring, "I can barely remember where my family was situated, but all I remember is destruction...and flames... I remember lakes and waves as far as the eye could see...

"But that's as far back as it goes... After that destruction, my parents ran with me even as they were dying. This Raining Village...was as far as they could go."

Naruto frowned lightly before correcting him with, "The Land of Waves." Nagato looked at him oddly as he repeated, "The place with the lakes and waves... That's the Land of Waves. It's where Sarutobi situated many of the Uzumaki after the clan was destroyed by the Uchiha... I can't believe I've never once seen you there."

Things were starting to become more odd by the second, but at the same time gears cranked in his head. Things were suddenly becoming clearer as more information was revealed to him. With the Uzumaki Clan as limited as it was, all children had begun training when they were young. They were told that they would be the weapons of peace, fighting against he Uchiha Regime and saving the Land of Fire so they could all return home. If Nagato stayed there, then he should have seen him at least once.

Was he kept a secret because of those eyes? It's the same as his status as a Jinchuriki; not many know about it because there is no such thing in this world. It's a power that only could belong the Ancient Sage, and no Shinobi managed to recreate it...

None, but the Uzumaki... The Weapons of Salvation thing seemed to make sense...

Nagato finally turned to look at him directly and began slowly and hesitantly, "That Uchiha girl traveling with you..."

Ah, so this is what's causing that feeling. He still doesn't think him an Uzumaki because of Sasuke, and he probably wonders why he hasn't killed her. Naruto sighed before interrupting his statement with, "The Uchiha are all dead. Their Regime has long ended, so there isn't any reason to thrive on that hatred anymore."

Nagato's eyes darkened as he growled, "Even after what they've done? My parents did nothing but curse them until their very end, and for a good reason-"

"But they aren't to blame."

The other boy's eyes widened incredulously in disbelief, and Naruto could see the protest dancing around them. He held up his hand and continued, "The Uchiha did destroy our clan, and caused them to separate across the world... They've already received their judgement... But the ones responsible for destroying our Sanctuary was not the Uchiha; we were completely out of their sight.

"The one you should really want to kill...is the man responsible for killing your best friend."

"So you're awake."

Dark eyes gazed blankly at the rocky ceiling overhead, and they blinked as they suddenly came to focus. In a snap-like motion, the owner of those eyes came to life and pulled themselves up from the soft cushions under them. A delicate hand, however, prevented them from moving any further.

"You're lucky that Hanzo's little pet decided to use paralysis toxin instead of killing us all... Don't make any sudden movements and ruin yourself."

Sasuke, her eyes and body shaking frantically, looked to her right as Konan pulled away. It was then that she realized the area surrounding her; a dimly-lit cavern filled to the brink with wooden boxes and medical mats, all of which possessed a body on it. The thick smell of blood and other unnamed medical materials quickly filled her nostrils, causing her to have a coughing fit at the sudden scenery.

However, without missing a beat, Konan continued, "Unfortunately, the Akatsuki's base isn't as prim and proper as you're probably used to, but at least we aren't trying to kill you."

Even while coughing, Sasuke still managed to produce a glare at the "prim and proper" comment, but soon managed to contain herself. She gave a second glance at everything around her, realizing that she wasn't the only who required assistance. There were a lot more others in the area in worse shape than she...

Some of them, she noticed weren't even moving... Just bodies wrapped in cloth.

She turned back to Konan, glaring in confusion as she inquired, "What...happened while I was knocked out...? I remember..."

That flash of orange and yellow. Obviously Naruto had made it to her, so where was he and why wasn't he here? The downcast expression that suddenly appeared on Konan's face almost caused her to regret asking. She twisted her neck and stared longingly behind her, and Sasuke followed her gaze one bed over. Her eyes widened in horror, hands covering her mouth in a silent gasp.

His orange hair was peacefully splayed around his head like a halo, and she almost thought him sleeping. But that was until she glanced further down from Yahiko's face. She could see his body underneath the cloth, and then there was a sudden drop beneath the area of his abdomen. The blood leaking from underneath the cloth painted the whole bloody picture.

Konan turned back to her, still not glancing up at her. But finally, she opened her mouth and spoke.

The blank gaze in her eyes signaled that she was already gone. Naruto let out a snappy curse and gently pushed the unconscious girl behind him and raised his arm up to his face.

High above him, Danzo's lone eye widened considerably at the sudden appearance of the brat that ruined his plans in the Land of Fire. Hanzo stared down at the newcomer with intrigue and murmured, "Is that...the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki...?"

Naruto snapped his fingers, creating a sudden burst of Chakra at that location. In an instant, that Chakra began twisting and formed itself into the shape of a kodachi – a smaller than usual Katana – and swung towards the flying debris, calling out at the top of his lungs, "Nogitsune!"

When he swung, the blade completely disappeared... But the aftermath of the effects were felt. The rampant winds soaring towards the three Akatsuki members were vastly blown away by the superior burst of energy, sending those rocks created by Nagato at all of the mercenaries standing above. The rain of the village was mixed with the showering blood, carving out a macabre scenery. There was nothing that any of them could have done about it.

Danzo, while dodging the attacks, cursed under his breath, "Damnit... Now I've got to deal with him, too... Hanzo, we're falling back!"

The masked man planted atop the salamander looked down at the man in surprise. Surely this boy wasn't as deadly as to actually frighten the man? Then, maybe he was simply too much to handle alongside the boy with the Rinnegan. It is quite difficult to handle those with more power with care; it's a lot easier to kill them than to not.

So in response, he shrugged and muttered, "Fine. Ibuse, take the girl. We're leaving."

Konan continued to struggle as the salamander continued to pull her closer and closer to its mouth. As she did so, she heard a scream of, "No! Konan!"

She looked behind her as Yahiko leaped from the building, far out of the reaches of Naruto who tried to pull him back in panic. Konan yelled for him to stop, as Danzo had leaped from one from of the pieces of flying debris with a glowing kunai; one that they recognized as a wind-styled blade. Without even paying any attention to the incoming man, the boy roared, "Don't you dare! You put her down!"

The rest of things became a blur; a elongated arm stretched much farther than anything Konan's ever seen and gripped Yahiko's shoulder... Danzo neared closer and closer to the shouting man... the blonde man that suddenly appeared out of thin air was hovering next to Yahiko, attempting to push him aside. She reached her arm out as Yahiko gripped her own, and a sudden lash of red Chakra whipped the air by her.

She was falling from so very high in the arms of the man in orange, and Yahiko was in hers... At least the half of him that she managed to hold on to. And then there was the bandaged man falling away from them, his right arm hanging loosely by a small thread of skin. Red sparks danced across the orange-wearer's fingertips, and the man holding her glared at the enemy across from them.

"...Damn you... Naruto Uzumaki...!

The scarred man stared vehemently at the three of them, but the sight of blue light from above him caused him to stop. He snapped around in shock as a white-haired man fell from above him, an over-sized orb of swirling energy charging in the palm of his hand.

But by that point, Konan had long passed out. The sudden shock of what had happened to her friend was almost too much for her at that point.

"The man responsible for destroying the Uzumaki's Residence in the Land of Waves...was Danzo Shimura, the man who killed your best friend..."

Nagato stared at the other man, his single eye not hidden behind his hair wider than its ever been. Naruto shrugged before placing his hands back into his pocket and looking out at the rain. He continued, "I understand. Nobody likes the Uchiha... I'm sure glad they're gone... But it's time for this world to move on... Thinking about things that happened a long time ago...won't change this world for the better."

He was almost thrown off-guard by the sudden reply of, "Then what will...?"

Naruto glanced at him out of the corner of his eye with a brow raised, and Nagato elaborated, "What will change this world for the better? How do you fix something like this?"

That was an interesting question. For one, he never thought about changing the world. And for the better? There wasn't an answer to that. His father was never able to answer it, and died before he could find out. Jiraiya never managed to find it either, and he had always hoped he could. But Naruto? Once he was introduced to it, he never once thought about changing it.

That was why he responded with, "There isn't a such thing as changing it. Pain is something that will always exist in this world; the only thing we can do is take it in stride and learn to move on with it."

A dark gaze fell over Naruto eyes when Nagato snidely commented with, "And that's the talk of a weakling."

He turned his attention fully to him, not saying a word in response to his comment. Nagato scoffed and walked past him, allowing himself to embrace the rain of eternity. Nagato turned to him and began, "Do you know...what Yahiko dreamed of...?"

Naruto said nothing. Nagato's ringed eyes stared up into the gray skies and he stated, "He wanted to become a God... He wanted to defeat Hanzo, and rule in his stead. The bloodshed that this village was known for, he wanted to end it... Take all of that pain that you said would forever exist in this world upon his shoulders and change it... He wanted to use that power to cement peace across the world...

"For you to say that no one can ever change it...especially if you are like me... That's weakness."

Naruto frowned softly before retorting, "And what do you mean by that...? If I'm like you..."

The red-haired Uzumaki fired back, "Don't act like an idiot. I can see your Chakra with these eyes. I can see that Nine-Tailed Fox... And you know all about the Rinnegan... You should know what our purpose is..."

He didn't say anything in response. He can't say that he hadn't been thinking about it for a while. He had partially understood and had known ever since he saw the list of Madara and those eyes of the Rinnegan in the book... Ever since Madara had called him a "Weapon of Salvation", he knew what Nagato was as well.

"We are tools, Naruto. We are weapons... The only wielder of the power of a Demon, and a wielder of the Eyes of God... Surely the thought must have crossed your mind at some point?"

It did. The desperation of his clan to go so far... The thought has been haunting him for quite some while now. Naruto brushed away his statement and replied, "...So that's how it is, huh? You think we can change the world with these powers...?"

Nagato frowned darkly and repeated, "Think...? No, I know we can... These are the grand treasures of the Sage, you idiot! I've had an inkling for some time, but I never believed I could... But then I saw the power you possessed...and I watched Yahiko die before my eyes...

"It was then that I knew...it was never Yahiko's destiny to reached the heavens...it was mine. With these eyes, I can change the world for the better... I can make Yahiko's dream a reality! You should know, if you really are an Uzumaki, that we alone have the power to fix this wretched world of pain! You, the only Jinchuriki, and me with my eyes possess both aspects of the Ancient Sage! If he could do it, then so could we!"

Deep inside, Naruto laughed mirthlessly even as he kept his expression blank. Damn that Madara Uchiha for being right...

"You might want to get a move on and save Sasuke and Nagato... There's no telling what happens to those who've lost everything..."

Those who lose seek a desire to make others lose, no matter how they twist it. Pain begets more pain, and hatred begets more hatred. He had thought about for a long time, but it was just now that the realization of it was starting to form in his head. He thought of himself as he looked down at Nagato, and it was no longer a red-haired boy staring at him.

It was a young blonde boy with spiked hair and blue eyes deeper than the ocean (at least, that's what his mother always said). Whisker marks were splayed on his cheeks, and his body was covered in a tattered robe. Next to him, a young boy with almost feminine features was holding on to his shoulder but the boy paid no mind to it. Another boy with orange-hair sat on the grass next to him, his face buried in his knees. He didn't pay any attention to the red-haired little girl standing behind him.

The little boy was staring up at him, his eyes alight with hatred and rage. Those blue were almost flickering red. Tears poured down his face, and he knew as much he often denied it and blamed it on the rain that it was far from the truth. His body trembled, and he opened his mouth to finally speak.

"I'm going to kill them all...! Every...last...one...will perish by my hand!"

Danzo and his lackeys. The Uchiha. That was the night he turned his back on happiness and walked down a path into darkness. And once Jugo died, that darkness became the abyss. A cesspool of anger and rage, and the need to kill all things. The need to ignore all things rational and only think of the end. He spent his entire life living in that...up until one day.

"I want to find out for myself how bad it really is, and if there is something I can do about it. I want to help it if it really is that bad."

That blonde child was replaced by a dark-haired girl. Much older than the child he was when he was introduced to the world, but far more naive. Back when she was still a spoiled brat; still keeping herself proper and neat before she began rebelling from her roots. The red Sharingan stared back at him defiantly, and then she opened her mouth and spoke as well.

"It's not just me, though... Because I've seen the effects of the Uchiha on this land, and I want to fix it all...

"That includes you. All the hate and built up animosity within you... I'll bear it all and help you. If you keep your promise to me, then I promise you that I'll help you."

He still believes she's an idiot for trying to understand him. But her innocence and naivety latched on to him in a way. When she was around, the hatred seemed to melt away. He was often disgusted by the Uchiha when he stayed with them, but not when he saw her. A part of him couldn't look at her the same way he did the others.

Because she was an odd one. She had lost everything in a single night... But yet, she doesn't hate. Nothing disgusts her. He has shown her some things that traumatized when he was younger, but she yet she did not turn away from it. She still dips her feet into that abyss, and yet she comes out Scott-free. She can still smile and claim that she wants to help the world even when its beyond her.

Nagato now reminds him a lot of himself when he was younger and filled with hatred. But his dreams make him think of Sasuke. He finds it odd that he has more faith in her to change the world than Nagato. He shook his head back and forward as he turned on his heels away from the other Uzumaki and claimed over his shoulder, "Those eyes have given you a complex you don't deserve, Nagato. You'll never change the world like that... I hate it just as much as you do. I lost just as much as you have... I don't think it can be saved, but I don't think you even come close."

The rejection hit Nagato and made him freeze. Naruto knew that he wanted approval; Nagato, just like he, wanted to see someone who would understand him. Someone who shared his pain, and would want to help him in his ideals. But he couldn't. And if his clan thought the same way as Nagato...

Then they were idiots, too.

A soft whisper echoed lightly above the sound of the rain, chiding softly, "That Uchiha girl has changed you, hasn't she? You'd turn your back on another Uzumaki? Do you really believe that she can reach out to everyone naively and change them with words? That with smiles and handshakes that she will simply be able to wash away the stains of her clan?"

The other stopped walking away for a brief moment, his hands pushed deep into his pocket. He turned back to look at him over his shoulder and chuckled humorlessly, adding, "Nope. I don't think she will either."

Nagato stared at him blankly as he continued, "But I think claiming yourself a God is asking for trouble. The Uchiha's sat on the high-horse until it bucked them off, so what makes you any different from them...or Danzo, for that matter? I think there's a way...but I think Sasuke seems to have a better idea than you."

Naruto then continued walking away, but the next he spoke caused a sudden chill to run up Nagato's spine. That was because he turned to look at him one more time, his head tilted as he stared down at him and spoke darkly, "I'm going to invade Hanzo's tower and kill him and Danzo tonight. You and the Akatsuki can come with me, if you want. Take control of the Raining Village. I don't care..."

The lightning flashed above, causing his blue eyes to glow as shadows danced around his face. He threatened without missing a beat, "But if you still think yourself a God after, then I'll kill you myself. Uzumaki or not."

Nagato spoke nothing in return as the man in orange turned away and stalked off. He looked to the skies once more and scoffed before following him inside. Unbeknownst to them both, the dark-cloaked figure sat above the entrance to the cave, kicking his feet out childish as he stared off into the distance.

The Sharingan in the eye opening curved dangerously, almost as if he was smiling sinisterly behind that mask.

"Aha! I see you're awake, sweet cheeks!"

The annoyed tick of Sasuke's brow brought a smile to Naruto's face as he slipped his way into the medical area. The glower she gave him made his grin stretch even wider as he plopped down onto the box directly next to her mat without a single care, and she turned to stare at him with both of her hands on her hip.

Naruto raised his hands as if he was completely innocent and laughed, "Don't be such a diva, Sasuke! I was coming as fast as I could-!"

She quickly interrupted him with a shout of, "Don't play that bullshit with me! You used the Hiraishin to get there when you could have the whole time! And when the fuck did you ever get a chance to mark me!? You've never touched me!"

Naruto blinked as he stared at her, and then a sudden smile came to his face that almost made her regret asking him. He opened his mouth and inquired, "Do you really want to know...?"

She had the brief feeling that she'd really regret it, but she asked anyways.

"You're lucky that Sasuke wanted to come here first when we arrived... She was worried about you."

The girl in question turned around with a furious growl, sharply calling out his name in fury. Despite that, the red-hot blush on her face was not due to the steam, but the embarrassment at the truth. She refused to turn and lock eyes with Sakura, and the girl couldn't help but smile as she tried to hide her worry.

It didn't look like she changed that much, but she sees for herself the difference between the Sasuke standing before her and the Sasuke from back then. She sees that her stance is much more confident and that the fear she would've had was long dissipated. She was...almost cooler.

Almost. That was until Naruto crept towards her and smacked her on the ass, calling out, "Good hustle, Princess! I'll leave you two to make-out!" before disappearing from their sight. The Uchiha rubbed her behind with a furious gaze as she cursed him and his "perverted ways", and Sakura released a sweatdrop as she saw their interaction.

Konan stood by with an expression of disbelief, especially when the girl in question nearly pulled down her own pants and looked behind her, screaming, "You get that mark off of my ass, now!"

Naruto laughed loudly and retorted mockingly, "Can't do that! That mark will stay on you forever! Plus, it's not like anyone could see it, so you're basically mooning Paper Girl over there for no reason...!"

Off to the side after having recently entered, Nagato watched the two interact as if nothing was wrong with the scene. As if it was perfectly normal for an Uzumaki and an Uchiha to act is if there wasn't a history of violence between their clans. Because he, for some reason, believed that this Uchiha girl was a key to peace.

"Nagato!"

He turned as Konan stood and rushed over to him, and he watched her blankly as she crashed into him and tightly wrapped her arms around him. Neither of the two said any words, and he watched her silently cry with blank gaze. He briefly spotted the orange-hair of his deceased friend peeking out from the covers and his eyes narrowed sadly.

For him, he'd complete their goals. He would kill Hanzo in his stead and stand on the highest tower. He would rebuild this world for the better... He wasn't like any of the Uchiha... That clan that led to the end of his own was nothing but a destructive force that the world didn't need.

He'd heal the pain of the world. With these eyes, he'd fix it all. He was a weapon of salvation; he was entrusted to fulfill the last wishes of the Uzumaki...

His eyes moved to the blonde man ruffling the Uchiha's head affectionately as she buried her face into her hands. They narrowed darkly. He should have understood as a fellow Uzumaki. His mother and father should have told him what he needed to do...

He would either have to be reeducated in what his role is, or be removed from the new world.