AN: Hello readers

This story was a challenge posted by the author mellra, who wanted the following:

" When L dies in the series (I actually preferred the movie version to the anime), he finds himself in a white void with a being who calls himself the Shinigami King (Naruto version Shinigami). He offers L a second chance at life for his efforts against Kira, to which he agrees. L's soul is sent into the still developing life inside one Kushina Uzumaki. That's right, L is reincarnated as Naruto!

He'll also be a genius like Shikamaru, but won't show it off publicly too often. He will, however, resume his detective work by examining crimes that occur in the Leaf Village and mail his findings to the Hokage anonymously under the name L. As an added bonus, Light has tagged along to the Elemental Nations in the form of Sasuke Uchiha, though unlike Naruto, Sasuke doesn't remember his past life right away as punishment for abusing Shinigami powers. So one thing L/Naruto will try to do is make sure Light/Sasuke doesn't fall into darkness again. Prefer canon pairings but I'm up to discussion. Also, no Death Notes in the actual story just the characters reincarnated. "

Those were his words, and I quickly answered, as I loved the idea!

This first chapter was his original challenge chapter, but the next chapter and those afterwards are mine.

The second chapter is being written currently and should be uploaded in a few hours, after I get it Beta'd ( something I don't usually do )

Disclaimer: I don't Own Death Note or Naruto, they belong to their creators, I am merely making something new.

Detective of the Elemental Nations

L Lawliet, otherwise known as the world's greatest detective L, was dead.

He had died taking down Light Yagami, who was the serial killer known as Kira. The two had been locked in a test of minds for months with both fighting for their ideas of justice. L used the vast resources provided to him by the world's governments while Light used the power of the mystical Death Note, the notebook of the Shinigami that could kill anyone in the world as long as the user knows the victim's name and face. It was a fierce game of cat and mouse where many lives were lost but, in the end, Light was ultimately defeated and justice prevailed but at a price. In order for L to properly trap the man he had come to consider a friend, L had to sacrifice his own life by writing his name in a Death Note in order to give himself enough time to avoid Light, no, Kira's traps. Light himself died at the hands of the Shinigami who gave him the Death Note, effectively being killed by Kira. Then, nearly a month later, L's time ran out as well which brings us to the current situation.

L found himself standing in what could only be described as a white void, with gentle looking clouds floating in place. With his white long sleeved shirt and faded jeans, L might have blended into the landscape were it not for his coal black hair and eyes.

"So…this is the afterlife huh? It's…dull," L noted in his usual monotone voice.

"Keh heh heh, blunt as always L. Or would you prefer Ryuzaki?" a scratchy yet powerful voice cackled behind him.

Turning around, L saw a being floating a few feet way from himself. The creature, for it was obviously not human, had purplish colored skin, long white hair with red horns poking through the top, and blacked out teeth, sclera, and nails. It's yellow eyes seemed to stare with predatory amusement.

Keeping his face neutral, L inquired, "Am I to assume you are another Shinigami?"

The figure cackled once more and said, "Ah, straight to the point, hmm. I like that. And to answer your question L, yes I'm a Shinigami but one of higher standing than the two you have become acquainted with. Their king, you might say."

L arched an eyebrow over his shadowed eye, which was as close to a shocked expression as he usually got. "Shinigami have kings then? Well then, I should consider it an honor that you've come to meet me in person. But I'm curious, what would the Shinigami King want with me?" he asked.

The Shinigami King explained, "I'm glad you asked! You see, I was watching that little spat you had with that upstart who found that troublemaker Ryuk's Death Note and I have to say, you impressed me. Not only were you able to outwit that upstart, but your instincts have been spot on the entire time you chased after him and not once were you tempted to use the power of the Death Note other than for selfless reasons. Not many can boast to that, and the fact that Light brat was able to outwit a Shinigami into killing itself shows that both of you are above most mortals when it comes to actually thinking. You were able to entertain me so much…that I've decided to give you an offer."

"What kind of offer?" Lawliet asked, intrigued.

The Death god grinned, "Have you ever heard of reincarnation, Ryuzaki? I have come with the offer of being given a second chance at life. Do you accept?"

L blinked before his naturally suspicious nature surfaced. "Am I to assume there will be some sort of catch to this? It would be foolish to assume there won't be some rules and regulations to this."

The King nodded. "Smart boy. Yes, there will be some things that you need to be made aware of before I send you off. For starters, the world you are being sent to won't be the same as the one you died in."

"Pardon?" L questioned.

The Shinigami King's grin seemed to stretch wider if it was possible. "You see Lawliet, I'm in charge of watching over the balance of life and death in multiple worlds. A man as smart as you surly has heard of the multiverse theory? Well it is true to an extent, and I'm the one who oversees them all. In order to make sure there aren't any…complications…I make sure that anyone who is deserving of reincarnation is sent to a different world where they would be most helpful. I won't bore you with all the details, but I will tell you a bit of the world I'm going to send you to should you accept. The world is based off of your world's feudal era Japan, but there are several unique distances. One of which is that the world is almost always engaged in bloody warfare, causing much injustice and violence to occur. I'm sure a man such as yourself can see why I'd wish to place you there. Who knows, maybe you can help change that world in ways you could only dream of in your old one!"

L thought that over before he remembered something he'd heard about for reincarnation. "Wouldn't I forget my memories though? I doubt I'd be of much help if I lose what makes me myself and am just raised alongside others who find such behavior normal?"

"Do you truly have so little faith in yourself, L?" the King teased before waving a hand dismissively. "While I'm sure you'd do fine even if you had to start from scratch, you were able to amuse me enough by overcoming the Death Note that I was planning on sending you to your new life with your memories intact anyway. Though don't be surprised if your previous knowledge won't be able to help you much in your new life! Now, do you accept?"

L thought it over. While the idea of bringing justice to a new world and maybe having the chance to have a better life were tempting, there was the chance that he would be unable to make a difference in this world and that he wouldn't be as well prepared as he was when he was the World's Greatest Detective in his own world. After weighing the pros and cons for a minute, however, L was able to make his decision. Turning to the Shinigami King, L simply said, "I accept."

The Death god cackled, "Excellent! You'll be reborn nearly immediately. Good luck, L Lawliet, or should I say Naruto Uzumaki!"

With that, the clouds suddenly seemed to thicken and cocoon L until he vanished from view, the void empty once more save for the floating Shinigami King. "Well, this certainly will be entertaining! I can hardly wait to see what changes that man will have on his original life? I'm certain it will be interesting. Now, to go see that other one…"

Six Years Later, Konoha Ninja Academy

Iruka Umino smiled in expectation. It was another year of up and coming young minds that were coming to learn the ninja arts from him in order to better themselves and to protect their home. The students looked promising as there were several clan heirs attending this year from the Hyuuga, Uchiha, Aburame, the Ino-Shika-Cho trio, and the Inuzuka. If their clans were anything to go by, the future of the village was looking bright! Though there was one student who gave him pause at teaching this year: Naruto Uzumaki, the container for the Kyuubi. Six years ago, the beast had attacked the village and many people, including Iruka's parents, had died. It took the Fourth Hokage sacrificing his own life to defeat the beast by sealing it within a newborn baby. At first, Iruka was ready to hate the child like most of the village for containing the monster that killed his parents but, after talking with the Third Hokage, the chunin instructor decided to give the boy a chance. Said boy was just shuffling into class just as the final bell rang and Iruka couldn't help but stare a bit.

Naruto Uzumaki had blonde hair that was spikey and untamed, looking like he'd just got out of bed which contrasted the dark circles under his eyes indicating he's a chronic insomniac. He had blue eyes that were bright in color but seemed dull as if they belonged to someone who had seen too much of the world. He also had whisker shaped birthmarks that stuck out on his somewhat pale skin, showing he didn't get a lot of sun. Naruto walked with a hunched appearance like someone carrying the weight of the world on their shoulders, which wasn't far from the truth in his case. His hands were shoved into the pockets of his faded jeans that, combined with his somewhat ratty looking white long sleeved shirt made him look like he got his clothes from a bargain bin. In the boy's mouth there was a lollipop that he idly sucked on as he quietly shuffled to his seat beside the Uchiha child, Sasuke. Instead of sitting normally, Naruto hopped up onto his seat and sat in a crouched position with the tips of his sandals peaking over the edge of his chair.

Some of the kids seemed to already be whispering amongst each other on the new kid and his somewhat strange behavior and looks. They had sometimes seen the kid around the village but he usually seemed to keep his distance from others. Combine that with most of their parents saying to stay away from him and the children were mostly ready to write him off as creepy with a few exceptions. One of whom was Hinata Hyuuga, who had a run in with the blonde boy about a year ago when he had saved her from some bullies during winter. He didn't really say a word during the whole thing but he selflessly came to her defense and had actually managed to beat the bullies using a strange taijutsu style (1). She had shyly thanked the aloof looking boy to which he gave her a small smile (that for some reason made her heart flutter) and left. The other three who were analyzing the boy were Sasuke Uchiha, Shikamaru Nara, and Shino Aburame. All three had noticed while the boy's eyes seemed detached and uninterested, he was actually observing the entire class like a professional shogi player, studying each of his classmates in the time it takes to blink. The class went on with no difficulty, but there was one oddity: besides Choji (who was always snacking in typical Akamichi fashion), Naruto always seemed to have something sweet to eat. Despite the fact that he only had the two pockets, Iruka saw Naruto snacking on no less than 20 types of candy and fruit through the entire class. And whenever he wasn't eating something, Naruto seemed satisfied with biting on one of his thumbnails while watching the board with the same deadpan expression.

Later (Naruto's POV):

Well class in a ninja village was surprisingly mundane. You'd think in a world plagued by constant war they'd be more focused on teaching their future soldiers combat skills then on math and writing. Of course, there is always more than one way to defeat an opponent as history has shown again and again. Most of the students seem ignorant of the lives they plan on leading, thinking this as some sort of children's game instead of learning deadly arts of warfare. They'll learn soon enough though. Either that or they'll be dead before they get to regret their mistakes. The teacher, Iruka, seems competent enough if somewhat more leaning towards the academic portion than practical methods of teaching. That assistant teach Mizuki though…he's up to something. There is an 84 percent chance that he'll do something to endanger either himself or the village in the next few years. Must be sure to keep an eye on him.

Some of the classmates seem a bit less desensitized about what they're getting into than others, most likely scenario is these children have one or more relatives in the current ninja force that warned them of the life they plan to lead. One in particular, Sasuke Uchiha, he's an interesting one. In a lot of ways he reminds me of Light; smart, collected, popular among his peers, and an overachiever. Must keep tabs on him in the future, least he follow the path of Kira as well…

You ask me the Uchiha are nothing but trouble. You're better off just slitting his throat when he's sleeping Naruto. (2)

Oh, you're awake Kurama? I take it today was as informative for you as it was for me?

(Deadpans) For someone who says they don't get jokes, you sure do have a sense of humor. You should just show those pathetic humans how smart you are and be done with that joke of a school so you can get into more productive things.

My research into the masked man who orchestrated the attack is going as smoothly as possible given the circumstances, there are just too many unknown variables to consider for now and going on missions won't speed it up unfortunately. Besides that, while I may be smarter than most of the children currently, there are still many things I need to learn. I would rather not have to rely on your chakra in real world scenarios, especially when I don't have the key for the seal. For now, we'll both have to make due.

Ugh…your logic sickens me. You're just lucky that you can keep me entertained brat, otherwise I might have to rethink our deal.

Noted. Speaking of entertainment, I'm going to have to look over those case files on that murder in the Southeast district. I should be able to solve it before midnight if the killer is as reckless as I believe, and he'll be caught before he strikes again tomorrow night.

You know, I'm still surprised you're able to get ahold of such sensitive information. While you humans sicken me, I do respect that most of you are able to well guard your secrets.

I've found that with the proper motivation, even the most well-kept secret can be unburied. Now, I need to concentrate so go back to sleep.

Hmph! I'm going, but not because you ordered me to brat.

Of course.

Next Day, Hokage's Office:

Hiruzen Sarutobi, the Third Hokage, walked to the front door with a cup of coffee in his hand. Sure enough, when he checked outside there was a sealed envelope taped to the door that had a stylized 'L' printed on the front. Taking the envelope off and inspecting the contents, Hiruzen nodded as it contained all the evidence needed to find the killer that had been plaguing the Southeast district of Konoha. All the evidence was organized in a way that showed the killer was a retired jonin who apparently never got over the Third War and had finally given into his violent urgings, targeting traders from Earth Country for their association with Iwa. Hiruzen subtly ordered several of his Anbu to go and arrest the man before any more damage could be done and went back to his office.

Once there, he started going over the paperwork and thought back to the mysterious 'L'. Nearly two years ago, Hiruzen had started getting these envelopes only signed 'L' every morning. At first he thought it was some kind of prank, but he later discovered that whoever it was that was sending the envelopes was solving cases that had even Ibiki scratching his head at their complexity. Despite his best efforts, the Third couldn't discover the letter's source as the person covered his tracks well. Even though a part of him was still suspicious, the aged leader had come to accept the fact that whoever was sending these was working in Konoha's best interest, and that was good enough for him for now. It certainly took a lot of stress off himself and the other shinobi. With that in mind, Sarutobi went back to his paperwork while silently thanking Konoha's mysterious detective.

1. In the anime and manga, L was shown to use capoeira, which he uses as his taijutsu style in this story.

2. I think Naruto/L would be able to deduce that the Kyuubi wasn't to blame for the attack fairly quickly and would be able to have a somewhat friendly relationship with him. At least to the working relationship level. ( these are mellra's notes )

I hope you enjoyed the prologue chapter, and my chapter is coming up next, It will have a time skip to the genin exam and have Naruto/ L foiling Mizuki's plans.

Once again I hope you liked this chapter, and please leave a review and let me know what you think, and stick around for more as the next chapter should be up soon.