The earth was shaking. All around hysterical villagers tried to run to the shelter, hoping to get away from the crumbing earth. There wouldn't be enough room in the shelters. The west side of the village was burning, leaving more than half of the shelters useless. The earth shook more violently and a lone old man fell to his knees. The villagers kept running, no one stopping to help the old man struggling to his feet. The building around him crumbled and fell. Not a soul seemed to care that the old man would face his death by the rocks falling toward him.

A gust of wind, stronger than anything natural, blew above the man's head. He looked up and saw the rocks lying on the ground, several feet from their original destination. He turned and saw a man, clearly a shinobi, running toward him. The man grasped his forearm and tugged him to his feet.

"The wall on the east side is still clear, shinobi are keeping it intact. Hurry." The man pushed him slightly in the right direction. The old man turned to thank the stranger for stopping when no one else did, especially since the fire was quickly approaching. It was his first chance to get a good look at his savior. Immediately the old man stiffened. He recognized the blonde hair and blue eyes of his savior. It was the Hokage. With the village crumbling around him, the Hokage had taken the time to help an old man to his feet. As the old man made his way toward the east wall, he knew the village would be okay. How could it not, with a Hokage like that?

oOoOo

Running toward the burning building, Naruto was sure Sakura would kill him if she knew what he was doing. She would hit him and call him a baka, saying that he was the Hokage and should act like it. He should be out by the east wall, helping his shinobi keep the wall from crumbing; it was their last defense. But he had to make sure no one was left. So he kept running west.

Most of the building had already fallen, any hope of life gone. As he went down the streets closer to the wall, Naruto strained his eyes, trying to pick up the slightest sound of a cry. He was half way down the third street when he heard it. It wasn't a scream, like he had expected, but quiet sobbing. He looked around, trying to find the source. At the end of the street was a building that was only partially collapsed. There was enough room for one person to be stuck in. Naruto sent a steady stream of water toward the remains. Once the fire was out, Naruto set to work moving the stones. He wasn't as good as Sakura when it came to strength, but he had been practicing for with putting his chakra into his muscles. With some effort the debris cleared away. The sobbing quieted some, and Naruto saw the source. A boy, maybe ten was curled up on the floor.

Leaning down, Naruto picked the boy up. The boy looked at him with light green eyes, red from crying. Hearing a crashing noise, Naruto looked up. Part of the east side had caught fire, meaning his time of searching was up. His village needed him now. Still carrying the boy, Naruto took off toward the east.

The boy was still crying, but it was no longer the open sobs Naruto had first heard. Looking around he saw Iruka running toward him. "Hokage-sama, the shinobi have been trying to save the village for five hours now, they are nearing their limit." How had a simple comet managed to nearly destroy their village? A few hours earlier a comet, about ten feet in size, crashed into the west wall. The comet had been on fire from its fall, and the crash had disturbed the mountain, causing both fire and earthquakes. Unlike an enemy shinobi, nature had no weaknesses. The earthquakes were subsiding, but the shinobi were exhausted from saving as much of the village as possible, leaving the fire to be the real problem. Naruto looked at the mountain that held the faces of the village Hokage's. An idea hit him.

"Iruka-sensei, please take this boy and go back to the wall." Naruto moved the boy into Iruka's arms.

"What are you thinking?" Iruka was apprehensive. He knew better than anyone else that Naruto's plans were usually a little…eccentric.

"I'm thinking the village needs a little rain." Naruto said with a smirk. Iruka nodded, still clearly worried, and hurried toward the wall with the boy in tow. Naruto needed to get to the Hokage Mountain quickly.

Kyuubi, now's where I need you.

So now you ask for my chakra, kit? Why not earlier?

I need to use my chakra wisely. Using yours leaves me feeling drained afterwards.

And now?

Now things are different. The village is half destroyed.

Everything wouldn't been easier if we hadn't been away from the village when the comet first hit.

Naruto has been on his way back from a meeting with Gaara in Suna, when word had reached him through one of his toads that the village was in trouble. He had still been several miles away from the village. At first he was going to use the Kyuubi's chakra to increase his speed, but had realized it would just leave him exhausted after a few hours, and he had no idea how long this would last.

It definitely would've been.

Naruto was already on top of the mountain. Looking out, he could see the village in ruins below him. The west side was completely destroyed, nothing but a mess of charred debris. The fire was now spreading throughout more of the east side, he had to act now.

Naruto had only been working on water element for a few weeks now, but with the Kyuubi's help, this would work. Using the Kyuubi's chakra, Naruto made the hand seals: bird, fish, dog, fish, bear, wolf, bird. Water slowly started to drip from the mountain. Naruto put more chakra into it, causing the water to flow more freely. The Hokage Mountain was turning into a water fall. Naruto realized that in order to keep the water flowing, he had to add more chakra. Naruto smiled when he saw the flames getting dowsed by water. He could sense where the people were, and made sure to keep the water from flowing in the direction.

The fire was nearly out when Naruto first felt his body trembling. He vision became lined with black spots. What's going on?

There's a between your chakra and mine, kit. You've used too much of mine, as well as your own. You need to release the ninjutsu, now or we will die from chakra exhaustion.

I can't release it now; the water will just flood the entire village. I need to move it out of the wall so it can spread and level itself out.

Using more of my chakra will kill you.

I need to save my village.

Kyuubi's growl was enough approval for Naruto. Reaching for more chakra, Naruto directed the water's flow to go outside the gate. Once there were no walls to restrict it, the water would spread out and soak into the soil. Before even half of the water was out, the trembling became worse. Naruto gritted his teeth. He had to get the water out. He reached for more chakra.

Naruto fell to his knees, his body shaking uncontrollably. With his fall, his concentration broke, and he lost control of the water. Panicking, Naruto looked at the village. Most of the water was outside the gate and the remaining water wasn't enough to damage the village. He had succeeded. The black spots returned, and soon everything was black. Naruto felt his body fall forward, landing on the hard rock. Then he felt nothing.

oOoOo

Naruto slowly opened his eyes. The darkness and the water on the ground immediately told him he was in his mindscape. Standing up, Naruto walked toward where he knew the Kyuubi was. Unlike usual, he couldn't fell the Kyuubi's chakra. He turned the corner and saw the cage that held the Kyuubi. The great beast was lying on the ground, his breathing unsteady.

"What's wrong, Kyuubi?" Naruto slowly approached the demon.

Kyuubi opened his eyes. "I am drained of my chakra. It will take me several days to recover my strength."

Kyuubi was weakened? "How can the Kyuubi no Kitsunebe drained of chakra?"

Kyuubi growled at him. "I warned you that there was a balance between your chakra and mine, you should've stopped when I warned you to. You should've learned water before fire. If you had then you wouldn't have been exhausted by such a simple technique."

"We can't change the past, so quit trying to make me feel bad about my choice of elements." Naruto walked over to Kyuubi and put his hand through the cage. He stroked the Kyuubi's fur. "I am sorry that I had to rely on you so much. I'll improve so I won't drain you again."

"Just wake up so I can start refueling with some of your chakra. It should speed up my recovery."

Naruto nodded and sat on the wet floor. He had discovered that meditation was the easiest way to return to his body. He felt a shift in his mind. He was in his body again. Bright light assaulted him as he opened his eyes. He was in a white room, and there was a beeping noise to his left. A quick look around confirmed that he was in a hospital. He grew irritated. He hated hospitals. He knew he passed out, but that shouldn't require a hospital visit. Tsunade should've just brought him home. He always woke up within a day anyway. A nurse that he didn't recognize walked in. She smiled when she saw he was awake.

"How are you feeling?" The nurse asked in a sweet voice.

"I'm great. There's no need for me to be in the hospital anymore." The nurse eyed him skeptically.

"You came here with severe chakra exhaustion, and it's only been a day, we can't just release you because you say you feel fine. Now let me take your vitals." The nurse set to work reading and recording what the machines said about his health. Of course he was fine. This nurse must be new, since she obviously didn't know that Naruto would only escape from the hospital if he wasn't released. A knock sounded on the door. Naruto and the nurse both looked. In the doorway stood a shinobi, his back was straight and his face firm, which confused Naruto. Who was this guy and why was he looking at the Hokage like that?

"Ito-san, what can I help you with?" Though the nurse asked, her face indicated she knew why he was here.

"Is he stable enough to question?" Ito's voice was just as firm as his looks. The nurse nodded. Glancing back at Naruto once, she left the room. Now he was really confused. Why was Ito, whom Naruto was shocked he didn't know, questioning him? What had happened in the past day for the Hokage to be put in such a situation?

Ito walked to the chair by the window and sat down. He stared at Naruto for a minute before he started his questioning. "How did you come to be passed out on top of the Hokage Mountain?"

Was that why he was being question? If so, why didn't Tsunade or Kakashi ask? Was it really even that important? "I used too much chakra while putting out the fire. It left me exhausted."

Ito kept staring. "And why were you on top of the Hokage Mountain?"

"It gave me the best vantage point to put out the flames." Why did it matter? He was the Hokage, he shouldn't have to sit here and be questioned.

"How did putting out a fire leave you so drained?"

Now Naruto was frustrated. It wasn't any of the guys business. He was about to tell Ito that when he recalled what he had been working on with Kakashi: patience. Taking a deep breath, Naruto answered. "I was using a new technique and I didn't understand it properly. It left me more drained than I should've been."

Ito looked content with his answer. Standing from his chair, he headed for the door. He was in the doorway when he suddenly turned around. "I did have one more question." Naruto waited as Ito studied his appearance once more. "What's your name?"

What?

A/N: I know fanfics about Naruto going into the past and meeting Minato have been overdone, but I was getting frustrated with most of the stories being discontinued. My solution? Write my own! I will be honest and say that I will be slow in updating, but I am determined to finish this story. I will be glad to answer questions about the plot, as long as I don't think it will spoil what I have planned for later. Please take a few seconds to review. Thank you.