Rebirth Second Chances

Chapter 2

AN: Hello all and welcome back. I know its been a long time coming and I have other fics to update but I thought to do this one because it was mostly done and I wanted to show I hadn't forgot about the newer fics either. That said here's the second chapter.

Start Now:

"So who's next?" Questioned Obito after a few moments of silence.

Before anyone could speak however there was another blinding flash of light which cleared to show several people. Many of those from the future gasped upon seeing them while others only narrowed their eyes. Before anyone could speak a powerful chakra presence made itself known being followed quickly by an even fiercer killing intent. As the sensation came over them several people blanched and many of the weaker individuals began to fall prey to the intents effects before an even more powerful presence emerged along with a killing intent to match the other perfectly.

"ENOUGH" roared the Sandaime his own power bursting forth and enough to crush both of the other two.

"And who are you to think you can order me around?" Questioned one of the new comers causing several people to frown.

The person was a young man who showed all the traits of an Uchiha from his dark hair to his pitch black eyes. He stood at 5'5" and wore a white high collar short sleeved shirt with black pants.

"Careful brat that's the Sandaime you're talking to. And if you speak that way to my sensei again you and I will have an issue." Stated Tsunade.

"She's right he looks exactly as I remember him and we'd know if this were an illusion." Stated a new voice drawing attention to itself causing many eyes to widen.

"Ano Sandaime-sama what exactly is going on, and how did I get here." Questioned a woman with the distinctive eyes of the Hyuga clan.

What followed was a brief discussion concerning their current circumstances as well as reintroductions until finally it came to the new arrivals.

"I'm Hyuga Hitomi." Stated the Hyuga Woman.

"Uchiha Itachi." Stated one of the others causing those of the present to tense and shocking his parents.

"Hn, Uchiha Sasuke."

"Hatake Kakashi." Stated the copy ninja his eye locked on the forms of the trio standing before him, which included his younger self and teammates.

"So who would like to go next?" questioned Tsunade.

"I will Tsunade-sama." Said Rin moving over to collect the book.

"Chapter 2." Started Rin causing several people to either lean forward in anticipation or back in order to relax.

It was a cloudy, snowy day in the Hidden Leaf Village. Despite the early hour and weather however people were already up and going about their business either heading out or heading home as a shinobi village like Konoha could never be fully asleep. Deeper within the forest area surrounding the village outside of a large house the sitting form of a child could be found. The child in question was young not even ten years old and had bright blond hair though red strands could be seen littered within and three linear markings on each cheek resembling whiskers. He wore a pair of black pants and a long sleeved white shirt with a large version of the small flame that was Konoha's symbol upon its front. Those who knew the child would be surprised at the sight of the ball of energy being so still and quiet. However this was not the child they knew not completely; no the person currently in deep meditation was at one point the Gama Sennin, Konoha's most powerful jounin Uzumaki Naruto.

"Wait did that say Jounin?" questioned Sakura in shock.

"I gave him a field promotion when he headed for the frontlines." Said Tsunade surprising many people due to the rarity of field promotions.

At the moment he was using his mediation in order to aid him in sorting out his memories. Having mastered the shadow clone technique at the young age of twelve he was an old hand at sorting out memories. Though only seven years old now and lacking his gargantuan chakra reserves he was an Uzumaki and thus still had enough for twenty clones. Of course he was different than he was before due to a combination of factors one of which was his general treatment. Unlike before when people had outright hated him without even meeting him now most people generally liked him or were at least neutral. The reason for this was that his mother hadn't allowed the Sandaime to hide his heritage. People still knew he was a jinchuriki yet now he was also the son of their beloved Yondaime. Thankfully that wasn't what won people over, it was the fact that he was generally a happy and kind child and that he had a rather large and powerful family at his back.

That of course was yet another difference. Whereas before he'd grown up alone this time his mother had survived and with that one change the thought to be extinct Uzumaki clan had arrived in droves arriving from all over the continent and even from across the seas where a vast number had fled during the sacking of Uzushio, they'd started arriving when he was four and more were still arriving. The addition of the Uzumaki clan though small at the moment numbering fifty had still added a measure of power to the village that had been missing ever since the Kyubi attack in his original timeline.

'When is everyone else going to wake up?' thought the blond for what had to have been the thousandth time this year alone.

He himself had been awake for three years now, though not of his doing. In truth his awakening had been forced the result of another divergence. In this instance it had been the result of what was called the Kumo incident where under the guise of a peace treaty signing the ambassador for Kumo had attempted to abduct the four year old boy.

"THEY WHAT!" exclaimed Kushina causing several people who knew her to back away slowly as the woman's rage had become as legendary as Tsunade's strength, only a few people noticed the reactions this caused from Neji and Hinata

Of course this was a huge difference as in the original timeline he hadn't been the target. Instead it had been Hinata, only her father had intervened and killed her would be abductor. Consequently allowing the Raikage to demand the Hyuga Head's own head and more importantly his eyes in exchange for peace. This led to the Hyuga elders going around him and allowing the man's brother Hizashi to sacrifice himself triggering the activation of the cage bird seal and thus the destruction of his eyes.

This had consequently caused the rift between the two houses to become a chasm and instilled within Neji an intense hatred of the main house to the point that the fourteen year old Neji had attempted to kill Hinata during the chuunin exam preliminary round.

At these words several people frowned none more so than the Hyuga in attendance. All of them knew that the internal policies of the Hyuga needed work but they hadn't thought it was this bad.

This time however that hadn't happened, instead the son of the Yondaime Hokage had been the target of the Raikage's greed. While the man managed to infiltrate their home and drug the boy to insure he stayed asleep that had been his undoing. His body had responded by trying to burn through the drug tugging on the fox's chakra in the process and thus waking him up. Kurama being who he was had responded to the threat the only way he knew how, force. From what he had managed to learn later the chakra, malice and killing intent that had been released had been felt throughout the entirety of Hi no Kuni, more importantly it had woken him up and he'd been pissed.

By the time the Sandaime, his mother, the rest of the council and a literal battalion of ANBU arrived on the scene the man had been bloodied, battered and broken yet still alive and wishing he wasn't. He however hadn't been fine, having been forcibly awakened years ahead of schedule had forced him into a coma, well that and the overuse of a chakra network that had been over stressed. When he awoke two weeks later both Jiraiya and Tsunade had been there. Apparently what no one else could do in getting the legendary medic to come back his mother could and quite easily. They had explained that the fox had awakened them almost as soon as they had been close to him. Learning that bastard Kabuto had Edo Tensei'd Jiraiya had been enough to send both blondes into a rage."

Such was the scene that was happening now as could been seen in the murderous expressions on the faces of the two. It took several minutes to calm the two as they had both clearly inherited the Uzumaki clan's famed temper and that would easily set it off.

After they had spent time talking with Naruto giving his report on his actions during the war the two Sannin had assured the blond they'd be staying in the village for a while. Kakashi who'd been living with him and his mom had been away on a mission however he had been restored immediately upon his return. Once the fox had been secure in his protection he'd gone back to sleep. His mother however had been on a warpath not only had someone tried and nearly succeeded in kidnapping her son but his ANBU guards had been conspicuously absent. By the time he was released from the hospital the Uzumaki clan had started arriving in droves.

"At least the night hadn't been completely bad." Mused the blond as he stood to his feet casually holding his right arm out palm open only for a burst of golden energy to shoot out of it and solidify into a spear-tipped length of chain." Here Rin was forced to stop as Kushina squealed loudly and pounced on her son hugging him with all she had.

"I can't believe it you did it!" exclaimed the woman a bright grin on her face while Naruto himself had been rendered speechless.

"What's going on?" questioned Kiba though his question went unanswered as Kushina was smiling brightly at least before Rin gasped bringing the rooms attention back to her, seeing this she decided to continue reading.

The Kungo Kousa (Adamantine Attacking Chains) had manifested themselves that night and while not as powerful as his mother's Kungo Fusa (Adamantine Sealing Chains) were still not to be trifled with. Of course he'd been shocked when he'd first discovered the ability having never manifested it originally. Tsunade had also been surprised and had personally run his medical exam and had yet again been surprised. Some things she had expected such as the fact he was completely healthy having grown up under the care of his mother and Kakashi he was not suffering from malnutrition as he had the first time through. What had surprised her had been in his bloodwork; specifically the Uzumaki bloodline was active. The very bloodline that had allowed Uzumaki Mito to live until well into the reign of the Sandaime Hokage and allowed his mother to survive the extraction of a bijuu.

Having had his own bijuu extracted during the war he knew firsthand how incredible that was in itself. He himself had nearly died that time but Sakura had literally pumped his heart herself and had blown air into his lungs. If not for that he doubted he'd have ever made it to this point.

Sakura blushed as several people turned to look at her at this point and seeing the thankful look from her teammate's parents made her feel good inside though she was horrified that such a thing had happened to Naruto of all people. Though she hadn't really put much thought to it her teammate had become the one person she thought was unbeatable especially since Naruto didn't lose when it actually mattered.

Still the fact was he hadn't had the ability the first time around. He'd had the Uzumaki vitality obviously but the chains were a new one. His mom had been ecstatic from this news as apparently in the history of the Uzumaki only four males had awakened it before him.

At this news several people could see why Kushina had reacted the way she had. They'd heard of selective bloodlines but they'd never heard of one with such a rare selection among males.

Still to this day both he and the old lady wondered what had caused it to awaken this time around as both could think of numerous other occasions where it could have done so but hadn't. Jiraiya had said it could just be the fact he'd been breastfed this time around. Tsunade had of course punched the man out of the room and clear across the village for the comment but then she'd got this thoughtful look on her face and he decided he didn't really care how anymore.

He blinked as he came out of his thoughts finding himself coming upon the sight of the memorial stone. His eyes almost immediately found the name of his father Namikaze Minato, just under that of Senju Tobirama, the title of Yondaime Hokage etched into the stone beside his name.

"Hey pop, it's been a while. I know I said that I'd be patient and wait but it's been three years already. Kakashi says things are going just like last time and people are starting to blame the Uchiha clan as a whole for the attack. The Uchiha themselves have withdrawn into the compound, even Mikoto-Oba-san doesn't come around as often anymore. Itachi and Shisui have become distant as well. I need to do something; I can't let all of those people die for one man's hatred and another's greed."

The Uchiha Massacre had never sat right with him. When he'd first heard about it, even before he'd first met Sasuke it had felt like someone had stabbed him in the gut. Learning the truth behind the massacre however had only upset him more. The loss of life was needless, he could understand getting rid of some but every man woman and child, many of whom had been civilians there had been no reason for it. As if that wasn't bad enough for Danzo to sweep in and disrespect their corpses as he had well Sasuke could always be forgiven for killing the man for that crime.

"What crime, what the hell did he do?" questioned Fugaku.

"In the aftermath of the Massacre while everyone's attention was elsewhere, Danzo managed to steal a collection of Sharingan eyes. One he kept in his right eye socket while he had eleven embedded into an artificial arm." Stated Sasuke causing everyone's eyes to widen with the exception of Naruto who had merely looked down, his hair shadowing his face. Fugaku meanwhile was livid his eyes bleeding into a fully matured Sharingan with the tomoe's spinning furiously.

For the past three years he had done his best to come up with some kind of strategy to change that one event. Unfortunately in this case he was not a Nara and it was a Nara brain that he needed to come up with a way to effectively save an entire clan from death. He'd thought of multiple ways he could interfere but had eventually discarded all of them for one reason or another. For one he was once again a seven year old brat, and while he was better trained and far more knowledgeable than before the fact remains he was still a seven year old brat.

"I wish I could say that was the only thing on my mind lately but it's not. The dreams started back up last night but I guess you probably already figured that out though considering how early it is. You know when old man sage first told me I was the reincarnation of his son I didn't believe it; no it's not I didn't but that I didn't want to. All my life I struggled just to be Naruto and not the demon brat. The dreams though they've shown me so much. I can say now I know more about Hashirama than anyone ever has or ever will. I know how he fought, how he thought, I know his techniques. More than that I know he he felt, how he cried for every life lost due to the clan wars. I know how Konoha was born a dream of two boys and my heart aches for how far we have fallen from that path.

I know of Asura and the struggles he faced and just like Hashirama I know everything there is to know about him; I even know what it was that caused the feud between the Senju and Uchiha that led to the clan wars. I've seen ninshu at its purist before it was warped into ninjutsu and it saddens me that like chakra something created to help the world and bring us together has been corrupted into little more than a weapon."

Despite this feeling however he often wondered if it had been inevitable that chakra would become such a thing. Seeing the lives of his two most powerful predecessors along with a few more over the years had him come to the conclusion that an everlasting peace was simply impossible. Conflict and violence were sadly too great a part of human nature for any sort of peace to last forever. The Otsutsuki family had only insured peace for three generations before the peace was broken once more and even that peace was the longest than any that had come before or after that time.

His thoughts on the matter however were brought to a halt as a presence registered to his senses. Looking up he was greeted to the sight of his godfather Jiraiya. Unlike the first time through the man had made it a point to be around as much as possible. That isn't to say he was always around as the man's duties still kept him busy but he would at least come to check up on the blond every chance he got which was more than could be said for the first time around.

"Wait a minute, are you telling me that you didn't check up on him once during his childhood!?" demanded Kushina turning angered eyes on the toad sage who inwardly shivered at the hostility aimed in his direction.

"I couldn't personally, sensei kept me far too busy for that. However I had the toads checking up on him periodically." Stated Jiraiya

"So if he wasn't with you who the hell was raising him?!" demanded the woman.

"Sensei decided against my judgement mind you that it would be in everyone's best interest if he was placed in the orphanage. Kakashi was deemed unfit due to his age and connection to Minato and he vetoed my idea to let Tsunade raise him." explained Jiraiya.

"What about Hitomi, or Mikoto or Tsume!" exclaimed the woman throwing out the names of her three closest friends.

"Somewhere along the lines and I'm not sure how; it was decided that none of the clans could take him in as it would upset the balance of power. Aside from that the Uchiha were under a lot of heat due to the Kyubi attack and the belief that one of their members caused it and the Hyuga have the cage bird seal." Stated Jiraiya.

"Is there anything else you'd like to let us know." Stated Minato his eyes lacking the usual warmth they were known for.

"Sensei also allowed the council to know that the fox was sealed inside Naruto and the council decided to inform the villagers. Eventually the knowledge was declared an S-rank secret but the damage had already been done." Stated Jiraiya causing Kushina to gasp in horror.

"He sacrificed my son." Stated Minato an oppressive feeling overcoming the room.

"He made a mistake." Stated Jiraiya frowning.

"It was no mistake sensei. He knew exactly what would happen once that information was spread. You only have to remember Sakumo to realize what could go wrong and the only thing he did was sacrifice a mission. No this was a strategic move he used Naruto as a deterrent to the other villages with the knowledge that the Kyuubi had been sealed, it bought time for the village but it insured Naruto would grow up alone. My guess is he told no one that Naruto was our son and even forbid that knowledge from leaking out from those who knew. That said those who knew were instead forced to keep their distance for one reason or another, ensuring once again that Naruto grew up alone." Stated Minato a glare locked onto his predecessor who was frowning.

"While your suspicions are true it was not the Sandaime that is at fault." Stated Itachi in his usual monotone catching the rooms attention.

"In truth the night of the attack Sandaime-sama was not the only one to witness your sacrifice. Danzo was also there with a small squad of his own. However instead of initiating a confrontation one of his agents placed the Sandaime under a Sharingan induced genjutsu. The jutsu resulted in the Sandaime making the best decisions for Konoha always when Naruto was involved. He had hoped that by keeping Naruto alone and isolated he would come to resent the villagers and be easily manipulated. That was just one of the things I learned about him prior to my leaving Konoha." Said Itachi causing several to frown and after a few moments Rin went back to reading just to get away from the negative subject.

"I figured I'd find you here." Stated the Sannin eyeing the form of his last apprentice.

"I just needed some time to clear my head." Said Naruto

"Don't tell me you're worried about the academy." Stated Jiraiya causing the blond to snort.

"I can handle that just fine. It's just something that Obito said that's been bugging me." Stated Naruto causing the Sannin to turn serious in an instant.

Obito it was a name that brought nothing but bitterness out of the Sannin. He'd seen the kid more than a few times while he was growing up but if he'd known how he would turn out he'd have killed him back then himself and made sure the job was done. At this point the Sannin didn't care what was said the fact was that Obito had cost Minato his life, along with many others he'd never get anything but a swift brutal death from the Sannin.

"You know he was there when Rin died." Stated Naruto causing Jiraiya to frown.

This however caused Rin's voice to hitch while the rest of Team Minato went wide eyed in shock. Several noticed that the older version of Kakashi had stiffened noticeably which caused several people to narrow their eyes.

"Before that point everything he'd been hearing he'd taken with a grain of salt. Sure Madara had healed him and kept him from dying but he was still loyal to Konoha. However on that day Madara discovered that Rin and Kakashi were being pursued by a squad of Kiri nin and Obito managed to persuade him to let him go help. Obito arrived just in time to learn that Kiri had sealed the Sanbi inside of her with a faulty seal and the group chasing them was just for show it stunned him just long enough for Rin to convince Kakashi to kill her."

"No, no, no, no, no, no there is no way that's true!" exclaimed Obito shaking his head rapidly in denial.

Rin herself was no better now sitting stock still the book having slipped out of her hands in her shock and a lone tear slid down her face. Kushina seeing this moved from her seat and pulled the young kunoichi into a hug whispering into the unresponsive girls ear. The young Kakashi however had also gone rigid his eyes locked onto the form of his older self who had slumped over as depression settled over him. Minato however had clenched his fist his eyes becoming glacial and his body vibrating due to the intensity of his rage. Kushina seeing all of this reached down and picked up the book scanning it for a few moments before picking off where Rin left off.

"I remember that time. Minato was a wreck and Kakashi well that's what broke him." said Jiraiya after a few moments.

"But don't you think it's odd. Not only was she the student of a seal-master but she lived in a village that three of the best in the world called home. All they had to do was get one of you three to secure the seal and she'd have been fine, yet Rin pressured Kakashi into using the Chidori on her." Stated the blond getting the Sannin to narrow his eyes in thought.

Likewise in the real world several sets of eyes had narrowed as people thought over the situation from what they now knew and determined it was indeed an oddity.

"What are you getting at?" questioned Jiraiya causing Naruto to sigh as he looked down upon the name on the memorial stone.

"I don't think that was Rin at all, in fact I'm positive it wasn't, I'm equally positive she's still alive."

"WHAT!" Came the exclamation from several people at once causing Kushina to giggle slightly and continue when people looked at her.

"What?" questioned Jiraiya in surprise.

"You weren't around anymore so let me fill you in. During the war the enemy unleashed a horde of White Zetsu. They were plant like creatures that had the ability to transform perfectly into anyone they chose. The enemy used them to strike out at the allied forces from within and wreaked havoc with our troops because they copied everything perfectly including scent and chakra signatures. I believe Madara sacrificed one having it mascaraed as Rin just long enough to get Obito there and witness Kakashi strike a killing blow."

"I see, you think Madara used her death in order to break Obito. Having witnessed Kakashi killing their teammate it would have seemed at least to Obito that he was betrayed first." Said Jiraiya frowning thoughtfully.

"There's no record of an autopsy being performed on Rin, in fact from what I learned she was declared KIA and her body was unable to be recovered." Said Naruto causing Jiraiya to grimace.

He knew exactly where the body was Minato having shown him the girls burial site. However during the midst of the war the council had taken charge and released the cover story not wanting word of what happened to the girl to leak out. Minato and Kakashi had both been sworn to secrecy but had been encouraged to take their rage out on the enemy.

"Plus don't you think it odd that the same thing could happen to the same person twice?" questioned Naruto catching the Sannin's attention.

"Initially what started all this was the team being ambushed and Rin taken captive right. I know it was war time but I don't think the exact same thing could happen twice to the same person." Said Naruto once again causing Jiraiya to frown in thought.

"You're saying they were set up." Said Jiraiya after a few moments.

"I'm saying they were sold out. There were four people on that mission yet I can find no mention of the other members in the records."

"Son of a bitch; I knew it! I told sensei he should have killed him, had been telling him for years but did he listen, of course not!" exclaimed Jiraiya punching a wall causing it to crater with his anger, at least before the wall repaired itself.

"Would you like to share with the rest of us?" questioned Tsunade raising an eyebrow at the outburst.

"He doesn't need to, it tells us." Said Kushina catching the rooms attention.

Danzo. Now that he thought about it with everything that he knew about the man and his deeds he realized that the situation had Danzo's fingerprints all over it. He was the only one who would go to such lengths inside the village. He didn't even need to think long on why, he knew what was coming up and he knew about that arm the man had managed to get and the eye that had been placed in his skull. Rin was the only one outside of Tsunade he could think of capable of transplanting Sharingan eyes out of a physically unstable Uchiha safely. For just that alone Danzo would leap at the opportunity to lay claim on the girl.

"Don't tell anyone else of what you've come up with. I'll look into it." Said the toad sage before he marched off his face a mask of determination.

"Okay how'd you know about Danzo's Sharingan arm?" questioned Tsunade

"I most likely told him." stated Naruto catching the rooms attention.

"But how'd you know, we only just found out." Said Sakura.

"Because not that long ago, Itachi's Edo Tensei told me." Stated the blond shocking everyone. Meanwhile fully recovered Rin accepted the book back from Kushina in order to continue

While Jiraiya and Naruto were having this deep conversation elsewhere another young child could be seen overlooking a lake which had been frozen over from his position upon a small pier. This child had black hair with a hint of blue in it, which was spiked up in the back while his bangs hung above his black eyes. Due to the current weather he wore a simple long-sleeved black shirt with a raised collar and the Uchiha crest on the back, and black pants. For several moments he was still before he took in a deep breath and his hands flew through long since memorized seals before leaping into the air and taking a deep intake of air causing his chest to stick out.

"Katon: Gokakyu no Jutsu (Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique)"

As the words echoed through his mind he exhaled spewing forth a massive ball of fire several times bigger than he himself was which slammed into the frozen over lake with force. He eyed the ball of flames dispassionately at least before his vision clouded over due to the steam released by the newly thawed lake. Dipping his hand inside the water he found that it was now warm enough to swim in, though he would do no such thing.

"Impressive Sasuke, as expected of my son." Came a voice catching the child's attention.

Sasuke didn't even turn to face the man as he came to stand beside him. At one point he had yearned for the man's attention however ever since his awakening a year ago he had realized how unimportant such a thing was. In fact now that he could know the man without the rose tinted vision of a child he was disappointed with this fool of a man.

At these words the boy's parents went wide eyed in shock while the teen in question had no change in emotion or posture having placed himself in what Naruto called his brooding position some time ago.

As someone who had initially grown up living by what his father believed seeing him now left him with a bitter taste in his mouth. This man who had boasted about the superiority of the Uchiha over everyone else was in his eyes a weakling. Yes the man had a fully mature Sharingan however Sasuke had realized without that he'd just be some run of the mill shinobi, perhaps not even a jounin. Sasuke himself had been stronger at fifteen without his Sharingan than this man was now with it, let's not even get into what he could do with his Mangekyo. What made it worse was the fact that the man thought that his children had inherited their power from him, yet their mother was clearly the more powerful and talented of the two.

At these words said father slumped in his seat while the mother blushed prettily and Itachi simply nodded confirming the words.

Of course his irritation with the man wasn't just due to that. It also came from the fact that he had realized what point of time he was in, and how much he had left to stop the idiocy of his clan. He had tried several subtle things in order to manipulate the situation all of which had been met in failure. Of course he realized now that he wasn't really good at subtle, as obsessed as he'd been about vengeance in his first life he'd focused more on gaining more powerful techniques and not the more subtle things that he could have learned. Hindsight of course was always a bitch when one realized their mistakes or limitations and realized it was their own damned fault.

"The academy enrollment begins in an hour are you prepared?" questioned Fugaku.

"Ah."

Fugaku nodded at the Uchiha answer for yes. While Sasuke inwardly sighed, now that he had some clue of his talent and ability the man had decided that he was worthy enough for his attention. He'd tried to get him enrolled a few years ago only to be denied as the Sandaime had decided due to the peacetime that they didn't need such young shinobi for the time being and was content to let the kids enjoy their childhoods. He'd even stopped the early graduations something that his father occasionally gripped about these days. Sasuke himself didn't really look forward to the academy that much these days as far as he was concerned all its approach meant to him was that he was coming closer to being an orphan again and that pissed him off since the vast majority of his clan including his mother he actually liked.

It was for this reason he'd focused so much of his time training. While he knew he was nowhere near his previous S-class ability he would settle for just being strong enough to protect his mother and some others. Knowing now that his brother hadn't meant for the entire clan to be wiped out the first time through and that the masked bastard had done it himself had been enough of a motivation to push himself. Turning away from the lake the boy decided to make his way towards the academy stuffing his hands in his pants pockets on the way.

"So his basic brooding emo pose." Stated Kiba causing the other members of the twelve to chuckle.

It hadn't taken Naruto long to make it to the academy. Having spent as much time in the building as he had both in the learning center and the Hokage's office he knew all of the routes to getting there throughout the entirety of the village. As his feet carried him he had allowed his mind to wander over various subjects, through the time he'd been walking. His most predominant thought was if he'd be placed in the same class as his friends, as he hadn't been the first time. Sure they had all been first years, but there had been so many students the first time through that there had been a bunch of separate classes, everyone in his original class had washed out.

"Had there really been that many students?" questioned Sakura in shock.

"Yea there were four classes, everyone from your class had some kind of prominent lineage or had been related to shinobi in some way. Everyone in my class well we were your complete opposite." Said Naruto

"What's that supposed to mean?" questioned Ino.

"It tells us." Said Rin causing Naruto's eyes to widen in shock.

Of course that was to be expected. The graduating class was usually class one, the advanced class who had better teachers and learned advanced material to supplement what they already knew from their own upbringing. Class two was where the notable civilian students were and of that lot less than half usually graduated. Classes three and four were the statistics they were the ones with no notable lineage or hint of promise and the ones most likely to wash out. Class four which had been his initial class was the worst receiving just the minimal amount of attention and knowledge from the teacher as they were all expected to wash out.

Most people from this class wound up right back where they started with the girls becoming working girls in the various brothels and clubs that dotted Konoha's red light district. Most of the boys usually became either con-men, stick-up kids, thieves, or pushers. If you were lucky enough you could be taken in by one of the families that controlled the place which offered some measure of protection. He himself had been everything under the sun having been kicked out of the orphanage at four when he'd been forced to learn the tricks of the trade. Of course he had also never envisioned becoming a shinobi by the time he was seven he had been particularly well known in the underworld and had been one of the biggest names around.

At these words Naruto's usual expression could be nowhere found on his face. Instead his expression was neutral enough to even impress the Hyuga in attendance.

While he hadn't been part of any of the families he had not made enemies with them either. In truth many of the heads had been impressed by the boy due both to the speed that he had risen in status and his methods of getting things done. That said they had also been quite pleased with his sense of independence and he'd heard later on that he'd have even been given his own family had he not left the game behind. So what was it that had changed his course and made him change his own ways, in this case it would be a completely random circumstance. He'd decided rather spur of the moment to take a day off, he'd gone off to check with one of his friends when what happens, they get fucking arrested.

"You got arrested!" exclaimed Kushina in shock.

"Yeah, not one of my better memories." Said Naruto rubbing the back of his head in his patented embarrassed habit.

His friend Kuma, they'd called him mostly due to his size and strength had simply slipped up. He'd been in possession of three pounds of opium and six stacks of twenty, thousand yen notes. He'd been in the midst of a delivery when Naruto had flagged him down and before they knew it the Uchiha MP's had surrounded them. Because Kuma had only been a transporter and had taken the full heat without a fight they'd let him off easy but he still had to do a five to seven stretch. Naruto had been let go free and clear but had been stopped by the lead officer at the time Uchiha Shisui, who had convinced him to apply for the academy.

Initially he'd decided to ignore the advice, he didn't want to be a shinobi and he had his own business ventures to look into. Shisui however had been persistent checking up on him every other week for three months until eventually he had worn him down and he'd agreed. He of course was never one to do something half assed and decided that he would put his full effort into things leaving everything in the hands of his second he'd walked away from the life. In hindsight walking away when he did was the best thing he could have done what he did before was nowhere near as much fun as he'd had as a shinobi.

"Gaki just what in the hell were you doing?" questioned Tsunade frowning.

"At that point I had a lot going on. One of them was working under the guy in charge of all the gambling in Konoha, collections, payouts all of the books." Said Naruto with a smirk causing several people to go wide eyed.

"Really?" questioned the Godaime with a raised eyebrow.

"Aren't you glad that your debt collectors just disappeared even though they know where you are." Said the blond.

"You bought out her debts?!" exclaimed Jiraiya in shock.

"Yup cost me three million and I had to promise not to play in any gambling den in Hi no Kuni for five years." Stated Naruto with a shrug.

His thoughts on the matter however were brought to a halt as he came across a scene that gave him pause. A trio of boys could be seen standing over the smaller form of a young girl.

"Who are you and what are you doing here?" questioned one of the boys.

"Your eyes are kind of creepy, you must be some kind of night monster." Said another causing Naruto to frown as the girl started trembling softly.

"Alright what do you jerks think you're doing?" questioned Naruto as he made his presence known to the group.

His approach was made quickly as he put himself in front of the girl who had huddled over on herself and shaking badly.

"Picking on girls, you bastards need to learn some manners." Stated the young blond.

"Mind your own business punk." Stated another taking what he thought was a threatening step forward.

"And if I don't."

In the next moment he had his answer as one of the three he was guessing the leader rushed him with a wild overhand punch. Knocking the attack aside easily he retaliated quickly slamming his own fist into the boys nose and watching with an odd sense of satisfaction as he dropped to the ground like a puppet with its strings cut. Upon seeing this the other two looked at him wide eyed before turning tail and running as fast as the snow covered ground would let them.

"That was oddly therapeutic." Said the blond turning back towards the ground only to be met by the smiling face of Hyuga Hinata.

"Well looks like you won this time Naruto-kun." Said the girl before being pulled into a tight hug by the blond.

Twenty minutes later and the duo could still be found in the same spot, sitting with their backs to a tree. Hinata had spent the time telling him all about her new life and the changes that had come about. First and foremost with her uncle still alive things between her and Neji were much better and Neji had slipped into his protector role years earlier than he had before. Another change was that her mother had also survived childbirth this time around.

At these words the Hyuga Head's eyes had widened and the mother in question had gasped audibly only to quickly be comforted by Kushina, Tsume and Mikoto who had almost immediately leapt to her side.

Of course Naruto had already known this bit, he was much closer to the Hyuga now than in his first life and he knew that his mother and Hinata's were very close. Still he said nothing as he had never heard Hinata talk so much before, especially about her home life. Still learning the particulars about this particular case had stunned him, not so much the woman surviving her second time giving birth but the reason behind her health problems. Apparently her mother had been slipped some kind of poison that had slowly weakened her, only this time instead of succumbing to it Tsunade had been around and insured that the woman survived.

The result of this was a much closer relationship between the head family of the Hyuga. With the survival of both his brother and his wife Hiashi hadn't shut out his emotions and cared for more than just the clan's image. The result of having two parents who apparently cared could be seen in changes to both of their daughters. Hinata was much more outgoing than before and with the smile she wore now, well it was no surprise that Naruto thought that she was the prettiest of his friends.

At these words Hinata began blushing hotly her face turning a very dark shade of red at her crushes thoughts to her appearance. Thankfully before the girl could overheat and her body force another cool down by way of a fainting spell Kurenai had reminded the girl of her presence.

Before long however the two had to put their catching up on hold as they noticed people beginning to arrive and head inside. As he looked upon the board for the directions for which class he would be joining Naruto found yet another divergence. As he looked upon the names of people he knew he found many of them were in different classes than they had been in the first run through. Surprisingly enough his entire first class had been mixed in with classes one and two. All of the clan heirs were off course in class one and he was slightly surprised to find his own name was listed there as well.

Of course he had no way of knowing that this was in fact a direct result of the fox freezing in mid rampage. Many people who otherwise would have perished had been spared death's embrace on that night. While some had passed on over the years to follow anyway many were still among the living. This meant that the shinobi weren't as badly effected as the first time and unlike in his original life the civilian council had not been able to lay claim to the academy. Now instead of people that would have otherwise been pushed through due to family relations those with the most potential for the life were placed in those spots.

"I see you noticed it too." Came a new yet very familiar voice.

Turning towards it Naruto was greeted to the sight of Aburame Shino walking up to stand on the other side of Hinata, making Naruto absently realize that Shino was always on her left when he saw them together. He also noticed absently that almost immediately as settled did a single bug settle itself in the hood of Hinata's jacket, going unnoticed only due to the fact that Hinata had pulled him into a one armed hug.

"It's good to see you again Shino." Said the blond returning his sights to the board.

"You as well, come the others are waiting."

"So how long have you been awake?" questioned the blond as he made his way through the halls with his friends.

"Apparently we all awoke this morning, though the times varied." Stated the Aburame heir.

"So the fox set it so we would all awaken when the academy started? Stated Sakura in a questioning tone

"It makes sense. Around that time all of us were offered a bit more leeway from our clans." Stated Shikamaru frowning.

"Still man another five years in the academy, after you've already graduated and been a chuunin." Said Kiba with a grimace.

"Well at least it's extra time to train right. With the time we have we could all be much stronger than we were the first time through." Said Tenten.

As he entered the room almost immediately he felt himself relaxing, a weight he hadn't even known he was carrying suddenly easing up off of his shoulders. Slowly blue eyes travelled the room finding five other sets of eyes each one a familiar set all gathered together in one section. However it was as his eyes settled on a sixth set that a familiar grin covered his features. While he knew he and the owner of those jet black eyes would have to settle up and soon for the moment he pushed it to the side. For now he was content with the knowledge that though some were missing, his family the one he'd built when he'd had no one else was finally back together again.

Soon enough he found himself seated surrounded on all sides with Shikamaru, Ino and Choji sitting just in front of him Kiba, Hinata and Shino behind him, Sakura on his left, and Sasuke sitting to Sakura's left. It did not escape his attention that the seating arrangement was made by teams, which didn't really surprise him considering how close the other two teams were. It was only as the instructor walked in that Naruto's eyebrow twitched.

"Hello my name is Umino Iruka, I will be your instructor for the next few years."

The words had passed through one ear and out of the other. These bastards had gotten Iruka from the very start, while he'd been forced to go through two utter bastards before he'd landed in the man's class the first time through. Was he jealous, yes he was and he's a big enough man to admit it. Still as always he would look on the bright side, in this case he'd get more time with his original older brother figure than he had the first time through.

"So I take it you and this Iruka are close?" questioned Minato quietly so that only his son and Kushina could hear him.

"Yeah, he's the first person to ever acknowledge me as me. To the old man even if he didn't see the fox or saw past it I would always be your son first, I always had that shadow even when I didn't know who my parents were with him. With Iruka-sensei I'm just Naruto, plus he's the only really descent guy I spent time with Kakashi, Jiraiya and the old man are all perverts." Said Naruto getting an understanding nod from Minato who well remembered the difficulties of talking to his sensei. The conversation had Kushina however biting at her lower lip to keep the outburst she felt coming inside, she could tirade over the injustice that was her son's life a little later.

While the classes were just beginning elsewhere Uzumaki Kushina could be found seated within her home worrying at her lower lip. Of course in her mind the place wasn't quite home, her home the one built for her by Minato had been destroyed seven years ago. She had gotten it rebuilt but had left three years ago after that debacle with Kumo for a place a bit more secure. Tsunade had offered her the Senju estate and they had since been living there but it wasn't the same. She and Minato had both built what they had pretty much from nothing, Minato because he came from a civilian background and she because everything she'd bought from Uzu she'd outgrown with the sole exception of the picture of her parents; which had been destroyed when Minato got the harebrained idea to Hiraishin the fox to their house.

Don't get her wrong she loved the Senju estate and was very thankful for Tsunade offering its use especially with her clan constantly trickling in. That said she still longed for her house that Minato had built for her with his own hands. Every time she had stepped into that house she had felt Minato's love for her, which is why she hadn't sold it when she left. The Senju estate for all its extravagance simply did not possess Minato's touch. Still that particular topic wasn't why she was currently sitting in contemplation, no in this instance the reason for that was her son. She had always had a close bond with Naruto even at his current age when most boys would begin to pull away Naruto didn't. He was still affectionate with her always ready for a hug or come in and lay his head on her lap. Jiraiya had called him a momma's boy once and Naruto had looked at him real serious and simply said 'so' before laying his head back in her lap.

That said by this point she figured she'd gotten reading her son's moods down quite well. She knew something was bothering him, had been bothering him for a while now. She sighed wondering if perhaps she shouldn't have taken Sarutobi up on his offer of running the barrier squad. Still it was a good job and they needed the money as they weren't getting that steady pay Minato had brought in when he was Hokage and as she had taken time away from the active roster to raise her son they were running low. Regardless the point is unlike most of her friends she couldn't afford to be some stay at home mom, thankfully her skill with Fuinjutsu allowed her to take this job with its ANBU level base pay, captain level bonus due to her position and the bonus for the jobs importance to the village.

Still with the job she didn't have as much time to hang around with Naruto anymore. With her absence and the sudden withdrawal of Mikoto, Itachi and Shisui back into the Uchiha district it left him pretty much on his own. Sure he had a few cousins he could hang around with but most of them were older and off on missions near constantly and there weren't actually any boys his age in the village at this point. Her thoughts however were interrupted by a small plume of smoke off to her left which quickly cleared to show a small slug sitting there which quickly slid a scroll forward from out of its mouth. Reaching down without hesitation the red headed woman grabbed hold of the scroll thanking the slug before it took its leave, after a few minutes of reading a large smile sprung upon the woman's face as she leapt from her seat.

"Well someone's, wonder what the letter said." Said Jiraiya.

"It doesn't say just moves on to the next scene." Said Rin.

Despite what anyone may say it hadn't taken long for those that had and would one day be known as the Rookie Nine to fall into their academy roles. Of course try as they might things had already changed and with that change their group had taken to being near each other at pretty much all times. Of course the girls had their own classes and members of those classes had been swapped around leaving the three kunoichi to their own small group. Sasuke like always was a loner while Naruto, Kiba, Shikamaru and Choji had always hung together even back then and the inclusion of Shino took barely any adjustment. Still throughout the day Shikamaru had noticed subtle differences in his friends two of his friends, Hinata displayed much more confidence though still soft spoken and kind none of her previous nervous tendencies were showing. The biggest change was of course Naruto himself, he was calm and attentive in his classes his writing was beautifully done and didn't come close to what it had once been as well.

Of course knowing a little bit about his friends past he could already see just what a huge difference having a support structure around him was. He had also noticed that he wasn't getting any of the hostile glares that had been thrown his way as a youth. People weren't treating him as they had after he'd dealt with Pein but they were treating him much better than they had in their first childhood.

"I'm surprised you're actually paying attention to this stuff." Stated the Nara heir as they relaxed during the lunch period.

"It's all new to me. I didn't get this the first time through, so I'm taking it all in now while I can." Said the blond

"Don't do to well, you'll mess up the teams."

"Nah, I'm just going to fail the final exam again."

"You failed your finals?!" exclaimed Kushina in shock.

"Yeah, my graduation was…special." Said Naruto.

"Naruto had too much chakra and not enough control the academy failed to realize this." Said Sakura with a frown.

"He was failed on purpose." Stated Sasuke shocking everyone with his words.

"Now that I think about it the teachers were always looking for some excuse to kick him out with the exception of Iruka-sensei." Said Ino frowning.

"Fools with as much potential as he has they nearly completely wasted it." Stated Jiraiya.

Rin seeing that her sensei and Kushina were getting madder with each sentence decided it would be best to start reading again.

"You know you never did explain how you graduated last time." Said Shikamaru frowning.

"I snuck into the Hokage's office and stole a scroll from his library."

At this answer the Nara heir couldn't quite hold his surprise. The Hokage's office was one of if not the most well-guarded place in the village, the fact that the original twelve year old Naruto could infiltrate it well enough to get in and out of the Hokage's library left him reeling. Following that feeling was one of irritation as the tactician inside him realized just what kind of stealth operative Naruto could be and that his potential in that area had not only not been realized but had been blatantly ignored by the higher ups. Naruto however had his own thoughts towards that point as well he had initially thought he would pass the exam himself but had thought that if things lined up well enough he could purposely fail and like before oust Mizuki as the traitor he was and get another look at the Scroll of Seals.

"You stole the Scroll of Seals." Stated Minato with a frown.

"Yup and learned the Kage Bunshin in less than an hour." Said Jiraiya surprising all of the adults with the exception of Tsunade.

"You're kidding." Said Sarutobi his eyes narrowed in thought.

"Nope. According to the report he stole the scroll, escaped into the forest and learned that technique in less than an hour." Said Tsunade

"Unbelievable." Muttered Hiashi while Rin decided to continue on while they were all silent.

Throughout the rest of the day things continued on in that vein with everyone trying to readjust themselves back into Academy life. Of course knowing that they could all pass the graduation exam at that point if they decided to take them the group decided as a whole to instead focus on training for the next five years. The goal was to get back to their true strength by the time they left the Academy and if possible surpass those points. Naruto's newfound intelligence continued to pleasantly surprise his friends throughout the day. Finally after a day full of beginner lessons it was over and classes released for the day. As he exited the main doors Naruto was surprised and a bit saddened to see a large red haired man standing before the entrance instead of his mother.

Standing at 6'2 the man before him was a wall of muscle who wore the garb of a jounin of the hidden leaf. His long red hair hung down to his mid back with bangs hanging from the top of his head to cover his forehead along with trails from each side of his face that hung down to his mid chest.

"Kami-sama" breathed out Sakura upon spotting the man.

"Now that's a man." Said Ino with Sakura nodding mutely alongside her.

"Okay who is that?" questioned Kiba trying desperately to ignore the two girls.

"My uncle, Uzumaki Kurou."

"WHAT!" exclaimed Kushina sitting up with a jolt when the screen lit up to show a picture of the man.

"Oh mama likes." Said Ino her eyes wide.

"Hey no ogling my brother!" exclaimed Kushina knocking Ino out of her fantasies along with every other female.

"Ok looks like it's almost done so please try and hold all comments until the end." Said Rin getting nods all around.

Uzumaki Kurou, the eldest child and only son of Uzumaki Genryusai, which made him the older brother of Uzumaki Kushina. The man had appeared one day when he was about five and by the time he'd left the Hokage's office had secured the ranking of jounin. Despite this however he didn't go on missions that often instead opting to take on the role of his nephews primary trainer. Since day one the man had been drilling him mercilessly when it came to training time and Naruto had found within him a kindred spirit when it came to the subject. Still as he approached the blond's eyes narrowed noticing people hanging around watching him. As his eyes darted around he found himself slowing down as he unconsciously prepared for a fight.

"Ah, nephew there you are. Hurry up your mother and the Akimichi are throwing a feed."

The words had immediate effect in not only did he relax but his mouth began to water. One thing that hadn't changed with him was how much he liked to eat, of course now that he wasn't being shunned by the villagers he found he liked a lot more foods than before.

"Naruto have I mentioned how much I love mother lately?" questioned Choji quietly.

If it was just about anyone else their head would have already flown from their body. Naruto was very protective of his mother however because it was Choji the only person who's love of food rivaled his own he'd let it slide. Still he could tell the words had affected more than just the two of them as everyone in the area appeared to be affected by them. The people of Konoha had learned that if there was anything outside of their fuinjutsu and kenjutsu that the Uzumaki were passionate about it was their food. They loved to cook, the Akimichi loved to cook mostly because they all loved their food.

"Food coma here I come." Said Kiba already picturing the feast ahead.

"Oi Sasuke your mothers already there come get your plate." Called Kurou spotting the hesitation in the Uchiha which was soon wiped out.

For Sasuke despite the distance he and Naruto were putting between each other there existed very little that could keep him from his godmother's food. The fact was he enjoyed the spicy and Kushina brought the spicy. Of course another reason he kept his distance was because somehow he knew this was the same Naruto he initially grew up with that had somehow been flung back in time with him. They had unfinished business and by mutual agreement had chosen to avoid each other until they were ready to settle up. Still he reasoned that in this instance their problems could be set aside for the sake of food, a quick glance between them showed Naruto felt the same way.

Nearly four hours later found Naruto leaning back in his chair his stomach full and with a toothpick in his mouth. All around him from what he could see his friends, family, civilians, and shinobi and loads of members from other clans could be seen in similar states of contentment. The turnout had surprised him because it had appeared as if the entire village had turned up. Of course many had picked up plates and left but plenty had stayed to enjoy the festive atmosphere. Naruto had been surprised to find Tsunade had been in attendance when he arrived but he was glad to see her there regardless. He could see the vast majority of his friends were currently passed out with the exception of Choji who had like him also just finished eating. Suddenly he frowned as a strange scent hit his senses which caused him to narrow his eyes.

"What the hell is that?" muttered the blond catching Choji's attention.

"About time gaki. I've been sensing it for a while, extend your senses."

Surprised to be hearing from the fox the blond frowned but did as told extending his senses outwards only to be rocked backwards as the negative emotions slammed into him. Steadying himself quickly he closed his eyes and quickly traced them back to their origins only for his eyes to snap open wide in horror. In the next instant he'd leapt to his feet moving quickly over to Jiraiya and whispering urgently into his ear. His words had immediate effect as the man immediately sobered and leapt away. A single look to Tsunade had the same effect which immediately had her place the bottle of sake down.

The next morning all classes were canceled and the news was already making its rounds. Somehow within that small window the Uchiha Clan had been massacred reduced from a clan of over two hundred to a clan of less than fifty the vast majority of which were civilians. Of the shinobi to survive the numbers were in the single digits while majority of those spared were children. As it was all those who were spared including Uchiha Mikoto and her son Sasuke were all present at the Uzumaki clan cookout during the duration of the massacre. Of course there were some Uchiha who would enter the village over the next few days returning from missions adding to their numbers by ten. The only one missing would be Uchiha Itachi who it was reported had fled the village after committing the massacre, the fourteen year old ANBU captain would be placed within the bingo book as an S-class nuke-nin. Though the action was horrible certain individuals in the village knew that it could have been much worse with only a single survivor avoided not by careful planning, or an ambush during the massacre but by Uzumaki Kushina's desire to throw a cookout for her son.

"That's it chapters done." Spoke Rin after a few moments.

"So who wants the next chapter?" questioned Tsunade looking around the room.

AN: That's it chapters done. Next chapter will have a few curveballs thrown in I think, thanks for reading and please review. Till next time LATER.