A/N I MAKE NO PROMISES

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or anything of the sort.

This is a rewrite of the original Tender Sea (now labeled as ABANDONED). There's quite a few changes besides the fact I've decided to not focus so much on the past, i.e. no more random dream/flashbacks (or if they appear not many).

I've been tossing around different pairing ideas, who lives and dies, who's good and bad, BUT the main things is still that this is a time travel fic, and there will be Kakashi x Naruto moments.

Also, just a heads up, the timeline in this story is a bit different from the canon one (but it's fanfiction so I think I'm allowed my inaccuracies). (I will be ignoring everything that has to do with Kaguya and believe in the fact that Obito died in the third war)

This chapter is mainly in Kurama's view, enjoy!

~Chapter 1 – FOR IT WAS NOT HUMAN…

There was a time he could remember being a child, like all living things even if he wasn't quite 'living'. He had been born…created, same difference, and he had grown. Nothing changed in the first few centuries of his life, things below him rustled in their creation and his 'siblings' drifted apart. It may have been his fault, but at the same time he prided himself in being the most powerful, the most superior. Simply the greatest. He only needed himself.

That was when humans learned to stand from their crawl, their emotions buzzing around him like an annoying bug. They stood ignorantly, stepped forward misguidedly, and began running to someplace they would never comprehend.

'Never' he repeated. Roaring, yowling, staring hatefully at the man, a single human, that meant to capture him. They would not be tamed, they would not be killed, but somewhere along the way it had been learned that they could simply be sealed away. The self-proclaimed strongest now caged inside a frail but unbreakable cell. He couldn't kill his 'host' and yet dreaded the idea of letting her die. Their lives were linked. He knew he would return though, whereas she would not, the question though was how long it would take. How long would he cease to exist for? A day, a year, a millennium? No one knew for sure. It was beyond frightening though he refused to admit it. So he remained ruefully, hatefully, in his cell.

How long was it he slept for? He wasn't quite sure anymore, but the young girl he had been sealed within had grown old with age, a telling of her mortality. He wasn't granted freedom though, instead moving into another vessel. A similar appearance, a similar personality, a similar fate for him. It was as if nothing had changed.

And then something happened. He attributed it to the foolishness of humanity. He was yanked out from his cell and brought back out into the world. How he had missed it, the sights, the smell, the sounds. And then he remembered how it had been taken from him, and with that came true rage. The fury that he had nurtured for all those years, for having his freedom taken away by measly humans. Yet again he roared and yowled, tearing down buildings, crushing anyone insight. Only later when it was all over would he feel the empty resentment of having been used. Only later when he had been torn apart, weakened, and once again sealed away.

The third time was different. He was weaker in all senses with a jailer that couldn't even feed itself. Less than a child, it was a babe that would cry and wail whilst it wasted away. Occasionally he would look at the world, thankful that he was allowed even this, and see the dreary roof of a dark room. There was no carer in sight and the child was not being fed. It would die. Knowingly, he allowed his chakra to seep out. A constant flow that maintained the body, stop the degradation, and kept the small heart beating.

Sometime later, not long enough for the child to have grown a single bit, they were moved. The next caretaker was a woman with dark hair and pale eyes. She was soft-spoken, gentle, and thankfully did her job. She reared the child comfortably, and he knew that her actions came from experience, though that did not mean he trusted her. Inside his first host he had slept endlessly, the second instance very similar, but here he stayed wide awake. Vigilant because he believed his life depended on it.

So when the woman's belly grew round with her own child, and she disappeared to never return, he was ready. When his idiotic host stepped out alone for the first time he was there watching. And when she naively ingested poison, he had been prepared. He would not allow her to die before he was free.

She did though, come close enough to death to see him. Her consciousness manifested within the seal, placing the child before the great demon. He took extreme satisfaction in watching her flinch in fear as he snapped his maw. Perhaps, he thought, if he killed her here he would be able to take over the mortal body. And with that he lunged.

His host woke screaming about a nightmare that she would not forget anytime soon. One where she had been trapped in a dark room with a vicious red monster.

The next time she almost died was when someone had the gall to throw his host off a cliff and into a coursing river. There was little he could actually do about the water that had collected in her lungs, at least in terms of not causing her pain, thankfully there was a someone nearby willing to resuscitate her. Apparently he was not the only one that wanted her to live… But he was definitely the only one that could protect his weak host.

She was trained as a shinobi, he hadn't expected otherwise, and supposedly became stronger. He doubted she could do much though, to other capable adult humans, or to beast like himself. He would've preferred to have been proven wrong instead of right, but since when did things go the way he wanted. It was beyond frustrating watching her get beaten down by those so far below himself. So he had told her then and there, in a voice she could definitely hear.

"…so weak, you really are pathetic." He couldn't see her but felt her shock amongst the mass of dirty emotions in the atmosphere. "Get up already," He ordered. Only her left leg had been broken, and it was already healing, she should be able to do something as simple as stand, "Or do you really wish to die that badly?"

"Stay down, brat," A foot settled on top of them, pinning her face down onto the ground, its weight excruciating to her broken body, "We'll deal with you later." He barely looked her, never noticing the violent red aura that leaked off her body, or the once blue eyes turn red.

"Good, get angry." He goaded as a guttural growl escaped her throat. "Kill them, maim them, make them regret touching you..."

This was how it should've been. His host should be nothing less, should not have been harmed, and if anything, should've been worshipped. She was after all, the jailer of the great Kyuubi no Yoko. So if this was the case, why did it matter if she had a bit of blood on her hands? She simply did not understand that no matter how much she washed her hands, they would no longer be clean.

"I don't need you." Had she really just said that? Apparently over the years she had become a fearless sort of idiot. How regretful.

"You would be dead without me." He growled back. She had long realized that he could not physically harm her whilst behind bars, now standing confidently before him.

"Maybe," She tugged on her bright colour hair as she spoke, surely a tell of her nervousness, "But the next time I'm going to die, you should just let me. I don't need you."

"And what do you think happens to me if you die?" He swayed his tails lazily wondering what had brought this about. Had she realized she had tapped into his power in the last battle? Surely she knew she was outclassed without it, against that masked boy who was now dead but not by her hands…

"You die too?" She replied unsure.

"Yes, and dying is not pleasant," He scoffed and turned away from her, "Everything I do is for my own benefit. You would do well not to delude yourself." Why was she still here? As far as he knew she hadn't been harmed very much.

"You know, you aren't too bad," He flicked his ears, only half interested in the nonsense she was sprouting, "Just really grumpy…though I guess anyone would be if they were stuck in a cage." Her words though harmless, could only make his fur bristle in creeping rage.

"You," He hissed, "Do not pretend to know me, to understand the frustration of being imprisoned. If it were not for you humans I would still be free! You dare to seal a being as great as me, to use me when you wish, as if I were nothing more than a dull blade."

"I don't know you, but I how it feels to be lonely," She cut in loudly, brashly, "We humans are different. I had no control over your sealing other than being there so don't point your anger at me. We're stuck with each other. I won't use you, I don't want to use you, and in return do not hate me." Hate? Oh they both knew a lot about that particular emotion. Her village, the one she loved so dearly, reeked of it. All of it directed at him, at her.

"I am a monster fox," He continued without any humour, "As an embodiment of hate, hate is all I can do."

"That's not true at all," She blinked her blue eyes disapprovingly at him, "I mean yeah you're a fox, and maybe a little bit monstrous, and kinda angry all the time. But you're also yourself. When you were free I doubt you were this angry. You said dying wasn't pleasant, so you must know what 'pleasant' feels like." Her reasoning was logical in a stupid way that seemed entirely too human.

Teammates he mused. His host had thought of him as a teammate, or so she had told him. She was naïve like that and he likened himself to the mercenary nin she brought back from the mission in the Land of Waves. Someone dangerous that should not be trusted. On the same note, he liked this Zabuza. He was strong, by human standards, and had lost everything, leaving his newfound devotion towards his host the only thing left. And he knew this as a certainty, his handy ability of sensing emotions would have alerted him if it wasn't true. So he decided, since his host was so confident in their own ability, so sure that he wasn't needed, that he deserved some sleep…

He was forced awake not long after by an encounter with one of his 'brothers'. Needless to say, other that healing some superficial wounds, he hadn't done a thing. His idiot brother's host being dealt with by a few pretty words. Was his host was just a smooth talker? No she was too idiotic for that.

Oh, it did seem that someone was immune to her words. Her other teammate, the human boy with those wretched eyes of his, left her as if she meant nothing. How dare he, the demon bemoaned, how dare he betray her trust. And what did his host do? She smiled like the fool she was, chasing after someone who even he could tell, did not want to be caught.

"Soon even one as great as I, will be infected by your foolishness." Somehow the sage currently travelling with her thought it would be a good idea for his host to learn to 'harness his power'. Had he expected a colossus internal battle? Really he just couldn't see the reason in lending over his power for something so petty.

"I haven't even said anything yet." She whined, apparently growing older only in body.

"I live inside you, and am fully aware of the situation. Unlike other's I refuse to remain ignorant." He huffed and laid his head on his arms, prepared to at least hear her out.

"So you'll let me borrow your power?" There he had heard her out like another intelligent being.

"No."

"Oh, come on!"

"Was it not you who declared not to need my power?" So childish, he mused as he watched her roll around unsatisfied.

"That was years ago! I can't believe you remembered that."

"When you rarely talk to others, it is easy to remember a few meagre words." He hadn't found anything particularly off with his sentence, but her eyes changed.

"Pervy sage said I can get here just by meditating. I'll make sure to visit more often if you're getting lonely, Kyuubi."

"I am not lonely." Was the stubborn reply, and somehow he felt like he'd be seeing a lot more of her anyway. "And my name is not Kyuubi."

"…So what is it?" She asked, with that infernal smile of hers.

"Kurama. A name befitting of one such as I." It was more than any of his other hosts had known.

"Nice to meet you, Kurama. I'm Uzumaki Naruto." Said host replied with.

"I know." He replied dryly. As if there was anyone who she had met that didn't know her name. "Though I would have thought you take your sire's name."

"Well I don't know who my dad is," She frowned which in turn made the room feel a little less bright, "And I'm proud to be an Uzumaki."

"You do not know?"

"You do?" She had a hopeful look on her face now, and he wondered if it was in his place to tell.

"Of course," Or rather what was preventing him, "Who do you think sealed me away? You were not a random sacrifice."

His host was a lot of things, but a liar was not one of them. She said she would visit regularly, and even after his refusal, she did. When she told someone she'd rescue Shukaku's host, she had done so with only a few stab wounds to show. Of course he had healed them over time. And when she had made her promise to her other teammate a handful of years ago to bring back the Uchiha, she did just that. Except it hadn't come easily or without a battle, and perhaps the body she had brought back was just that. A lifeless body.

He didn't know how to feel about her new eyes either. They were still blue, she checked mirrors frequently, but before his passing the Uchiha had done something. Something that required a snake's knowledge. Something that was otherwise forbidden. Something that the fox felt, tainted her blood. And what did she gain? Those cursed and accursed eyes. He knew how he felt. He hated them.

She cried plenty for him, and even when those tears dried, his cell felt flooded and dreary. He disliked getting his fur wet. It always made him irritable…more irritable than he already was. When it lightened up he could tell that someone out there had comforted her, but he doubted that the water would ever leave.

The Uchiha's death though, was only a sign of things to come, as those around her died one by one. Such was the reality of war, and the consequence for those foolish enough to wage it. The mercenary she had spared all those years ago may have out lived death once, but only once. A friend would die, and another would follow in an attempt of vengeance. And like that he began to feel himself drowning. Her brother in all but blood killed himself and the fox's own brother, killed himself in order to buy time. In reality he had just extended the bloody war.

Had his host found even a smidgen of happiness? Yes. He remembered a single point in time, during the war that is, when his jail had been as pleasant as a spring meadow. It wasn't when she finally became Hokage, like she had continuously said she would. It wasn't when she received a small human trinket, that was apparently need proof of one's love. It was when he told her about the second heartbeat he now felt. And that joy had lasted for as long as it had beat. Truth be told, it hadn't been long at all. Not enough for her body to change, and not nearly long enough for her to ever see what would've been her child. And after? It had just gotten far worse.

"Kashi, did you see?" Naru had knelt beside him, his head propped on her lap. His face was serene and mostly unharmed whereas the rest of his body…well that was a different matter. "I avenged you and everyone else, so that you could rest peacefully…" His host was broken, unable to weep at the loss of another loved one. He was sure her mind hadn't quite understood that his closed eyes wouldn't open again.

And him? He had acquired most of his freedom back, a gracious act on her part. It didn't feel as good as he imagined though, his red eyes sweeping across the wasteland. Idly he licked his teeth, tasting the bloodied remains of his nemesis. The battle had been anything but anticlimactic, the destroyed land a testament to that fact, and yet it was an illusion that had ended the disillusioned man.

The fox turned his head to watch the girl, woman now, run her hand through matted, once-silver hair. They were the only two left. The age of ninjas was over, the chakra that usually lingered in the atmosphere practically gone. He could feel it now, the strain on his newly acquired body. When he died, which would be as soon as his host gave up, there would be no returning. And when would that happen? He'd be amazed if she held on for more than a day. In an extreme sense, maybe the corpse of her lover could keep her going until he rotted…

What a pathetic end for a being such as he...such as them. Was it fitting for the two strongest in the current world to waste away? His eyes swept over the sea of red slowly soaking further into the earth, and the carpet of fresh bodies, allies and enemies dying beside one another. No, he decided. This was not how they would end. He would not allow it.

"Kurama," Her voice was weak, hoarse with emotion, and unsteady, "Where are you going?" She looked awfully vulnerable, but currently there was nothing around them that could hurt her.

"I would like to give you something," He padded forward, digging his paws into the hard ground, "Give me time, kit." She didn't ask for how much, and before he was out of sight he knew her gaze had already returned to the lifeless body in her arms.

Seals, he thought to himself, he hated them almost as much as he hated the Sharingan. So he told himself as he dragged his rusty tail through the blood, that he was not drawing a seal, but rather performing a ritual. He worked his way inward, drawing a large intricate pattern with his host in the centre. This was one of the things the sage had left him. Out of all the things he had gifted them, and out of all his siblings, this was what he had been given. It had remained in the back of his mind, unneeded and unwanted until now, and it would have remained as such if he hadn't changed…been changed by her. Hagoromo probably left it with him knowing that it would never be used, his old self would have considered it a bother that was more trouble than it was worth. But alas, he didn't think anything of the consequences right now. He didn't want this world anymore, to exist in or to die in. This unpleasant and barren land wasn't fit for ones such as them, so he had made the simply decision to throw it away. It was unwanted, and without any of her comrades left, she would certainly agree with him.

"Kit," He finished in the centre of his creations, overlapping lines weaving and crossing only to end where he stood. His host hadn't noticed at all, unsettling in her stillness. "We are leaving."

"Sorry Kurama," Her eyes closed for a long moment, before she turned to truly look at him, "I don't think I can bring myself to move."

"That is fine," He replied, eyeing her shaking hands, "You do not have to. Just so long as you understand we are leaving."

"Ha," She let out a soft laugh, so different from the raucous sounds she made as a child, "You'll find it gets boring quickly dragging dead weight around."

"Our destination not the kind of place you get to by walking." The demon explained vaguely. "Do you trust me? Are you prepared to give up everything?" He asked as if she had anything left.

"Yeah, to both of those…" Was her last friend asking her to commit double suicide? At this point Naruto didn't think she would decline that offer. "What do you need me to do?" She asked in a deceptively light tone, "Just say the word, Kurama."

A/N Thanks for reading.

Afterwords are mainly for chapter summaries and any random jutsu I've put in. Considering that this is one of the only brief bits of the past I'll mention the important non-canon things (that you may not pick up cause I'm horrible but hopefully not cryptic, or didn't include) are;
- At 6 months Naru almost dies to the negligence of her 'carer', Hiruzen then employs Hyuga Hitomi to look after the child (who disappears after Hanabi is born).
- Kakashi is then hired to guard her up until she is 7 (enters the academy). After another attempt on her life he resigns and Itachi takes his place (Note CPR was a thing when she was thrown off the cliff)
- Age 9 Naru graduates from the Academy (first attempt). She is not given a team or a teacher and on her first mission (an obvious attempt to kill her) is ambushed by bandits. She is badly injured and kills for the first time.
- She is put under Kakashi's guidance (to overcome the first kill shock) and trains for the next year without any missions until the rookie 9 (now 8) graduate.
- In the land of the waves she meets Haku. They fight and after he is fatally wounded she takes his place blocking Kakashi's Raikiri. Zabuza lives and follows her to Konoha.
- Chuunin exams and aftermath is as per canon. Her journey with Jiraiya though, is only a year long.
- Age 16, Naruto and Sasuke (now hosting Orochimaru) battle at the Valley of the End. Sasuke transfers his bloodline to Naru before she kills him.
- Naruto and Kakashi become romantically involved. A year after she begins training as the Hokage candidate.
- Age 18, the final battle begins, between the revived Madara and the elemental nations. World domination and the creation of the Ten Tails are both possible objectives. Gaara 'willingly' dies, killing Shuubi and forcing the demon into a cycle of rebirth to prolong the end. Naru then kills Madara, and via Kurama, returns to the past.