Prologue: Kurama's Proposal

Blood pooled on the ground as smoked cleared from the massive Rasenshuriken, Naruto had just finished sending off. The blast caught the Uchiha by surprise more so considering it was thrown practically at point blank range. Naruto knew the only way he could defeat and kill his long time former friend and rival was to not give the Mangekyo Sharingan wielder a second to react and dodge his attack. So he went old school on the Uchiha using the Rasenshuriken like he did against Kakuzu. However the price he paid was extremely high, Naruto's entire right side got shredded in the blast. Gripping the bloody stump that had been his shoulder and arm, grimacing in pain that was so unimaginable he was hoping he would die faster.

After a few moments he looked over at the slump form leaning against the tree her own body ragged, thrashed, two stumps that had been her legs, three fist size holes, one in her abdomen, another through her right shoulder, and the last had obliterated her most intimate area. Naruto had no idea how she could still be breathing after those wounds much less conscious. He slumped to the ground slowly crawling over to her to rest his head in her bloody lap. Her eyes were dim he could see the life fading from them. "S-S-Sakura-chan?" he whispered his voice sounding hoarse and thick with emotions as well as pain he couldn't begin to describe.

"G…G…Good job…Naruto," she whispered through a fading smile. "I'm sorry Naruto, I…I…should have never had…you make…that childish…promise," tears of blood and water ran down her pale cheeks.

"Sakura-chan?" he tried to reach up and caress the tears away but his arm felt like lead.

"I…I…love…you," Sakura's head slumped forward it was only through Naruto's keen hearing he inherited from the Nine-tails that he could still hear her heartbeat, having slipped into a coma from the pain, he could hear each beat get fainter by the second.

Naruto began to feel his own heartbeat grow fainter, he saw Sakura's bloody face get blurry both from the blood loss and the tears he felt welling up. "I love you too, Sakura-chan I always have. We'll be together again shortly."

Before the whiskered-marked blonde could slip into a blissful coma himself and join his Sakura-chan in the afterlife he felt himself get pulled into his mindscape. "DAMN-IT! Kurama just let me die, please!"

xxx Mindscape xxx

Kurama sat quietly looking down at his container feeling both sympathy and annoyance, "Normally I'd say you've earned this fate, kit. But you've changed me over the last four years and so I'll let your outburst slide just this once," the large fox leaned forward. "I'm going to give you a last gift before you and your pink haired vixen die in this world."

"What do you mean this world?" Naruto asked looking up noting the space was getting darker by the moment.

"You remember what that fool Obito told you regardless of your death, I will be released though it will take one year for every year I've been imprisoned here to be fully restored to the outside world," the fox sighed looking at the young man. "But enough of that, we have precious little time. I can use the last lingering traces of my chakra in your system to open a rift between dimensions to send you, your vixen, and possibly your parent's souls through to be given a new life, you'll have all your memories and experiences from this world, but no chakra because the world I'm sending you too has no need for it."

Naruto blinked looking confused, "You can do that?"

"Yes, but it comes at a high price for me, I will be stuck in limbo far longer than a measly eighteen years," the fox stated at the boy dryly. "Still I feel you and your pink haired vixen deserve some happiness. You for what you've done for me, and her through association plus I believe you'd be miserable without her," Kurama let out a snicker.

Naruto pouted for a second before looking up at the large fox and gave a faint smile, "thank you Kurama."

The fox snorts, "Don't thank me yet, kit. You and your mate," he smirked again watching his container blush, "will be de-aged by three years and I'll be sending the two you to this world to help a boy and his friends save their world from a terrible impending threat," the fox touch his paw to his furry chin thinking. "You and your girlfriend will be given you're primary weapons," Kurama extended his paw and two metal cases 5 inches tall and 3½ inches wide, he handed one to Naruto who opened it the top card showed a green skinned man with purple robes trimmed in red, atk/2500 def/2100. He opened the second tin to reveal the top card as Inzektor Hornet atk/500 def/200.

"Dark Magician?" Naruto stated in confusion looking up at the fox.

"These cards will be your weapons, in the world I will be sending you battles will no longer be conducted by Shinobi instead they will conducted through something called duels," Kurama used his chakra to lift the cards from the deck and show the whisker-marked blonde, the various colored cards. "When you go to this new world I will download the knowledge on how to use these decks."

Naruto however notice several cards looked nothing like the others, fifteen were colored black and fifteen were colored white. "Those ones are really strange."

Kurama chuckled softly, "I'm giving you monsters that the world you are going to won't see for a couple millennia after the current timeline, feel it needs to be pushed forward some. You and your mate will have need of these cards in the future."

"That's cruel fox," Naruto smirked. "I knew there was a reason why I call you a friend."

The fox barked out a laugh, "Your mate's deck is bit more old school than yours having monsters that have around since the founding of the game. While yours is more tailored to your absurd unpredictability. You will need that in your new life, you'll become Naruto Uzumaki the world's most Hyperactive, unpredictable, knuckleheaded duelist," Kurama slowly got to its feet all nine tails extending to the walls of his cage each tail lighting up. "Goodbye kit, and thank you for everything, rest assured when I do return to the Elemental Nations I will protect the Hidden Leaf with all my power."

"I'll miss you fox, and thanks again," the entire mindscape turned into a bright white. On the outside Naruto's and Sakura's bodies began to glow before a pink and yellow balls of light separated appeared above the ravage corpses.

"Naruto what's happening?" the rosette colored light asked.

"We're going to a new place where the two of us can be together, meet new friends, and help them save their world it'll be fun, believe it!"

A faint groan could be heard then a soft giggle as the ball of light bounced lightly. "Fine, as long as I'm with you, I can live with whatever is to come."

"That's the spirit Sakura-chan," a second later a strange glowing purple vortex appeared above the two lights. "I guess that's our cue, all right!"

XXX cue ('How to save a Life' by the Fray) XXX

Few hours later Shikamaru, Ino, and the rest of the rookies appeared over the crest coming to the grim sight. "SAKURA!" Ino shoved pass Shikamaru running up to the two prone bodies one slumped over the other, faint smiles frozen forever on their faces.

The lazy genius quietly walked up behind his long time childhood friend and glanced down at the bloody mess trying hard to keep a stoic face. "T-They died together," Hinata stated faintly as the rest of the rookies and Team Gai gathered around their departed friends. Choji kept clutching and un-clutching his hands tears openly falling down his cheeks. Kiba gently scratching Akamaru behind quiet tears of his own falling down his face while his faithful four legged friend whimpered in sympathy with his longtime partner. Shino couldn't even look at the duo tears of great anguish falling behind his sunglasses. Ino had slumped into the fetal position in front of her departed best sobbing hard until Hinata had kneeled down next to the young blonde girl putting her hand on her shoulder. Ino turned to look up at the Hyuga heiress briefly before Hinata through her arms around her friend and the two started to cry in earnest. Rock Lee had none of the restraints of his companions his tears flowed from his eyes freely mumbling about even in death Naruto showed his youthful flames. Tenten was trying to calm him down even though her own tears were streaming down her cheeks. Neji stood with his eyes closed fighting his own tears, as the young man who saved him from himself now was gone.

"W-When you're able Tenten, can you go back to the command center and report that Sasuke Uchiha is dead," he stated thickly.

"What about Naruto and Sakura?" Tenten asked trying wipe away her tears.

"Don't worry Tenten the rest of us will take care of them," Neji said. "Please the war is over," his resolve broke. "At an extremely high cost."

XXX

The 4th Great Shinobi war ended on a very grim note as a state funeral was held for probably the greatest shinobi in the shinobi world had ever known. Naruto Uzumaki Namikaze was given the title of Sixth Hokage Posthumously and Sakura Haruno-Uzumaki was given the rank of Jonin Elite also posthumously as well as given a full marriage to Naruto as per her request should anything happen to her before, during, or after the final battle. The hidden leaf had no idea how big an impact Naruto had on the world until his funeral, which turned out to be the largest in recorded history, the Land of Snow, Ogre country, the Hidden Mist, the Hidden Sand, the Hidden Cloud, and even the Hidden leaf's longtime former enemy the Hidden Stone had come to pay respects for the fallen hero, the hidden Waterfall, the Land of Waves, even from across the sea all had come. After the massive funeral treaties were signed and not since the time of the Sage of the Six Paths had true world peace been declared. However for those that known Naruto and Sakura they mostly just grieved. Ino resigned as a ninja and devoted all her time between being a nurse at the hospital and her families flower shop, she eventually married Choji which surprised even him. Choji went onto a stellar career as a shinobi achieving rank of special Jonin and training three teams. Hinata stayed a shinobi but became an instructor devoting her time training the next generations, she never married. Shino joined the ANBU and had a great career, same for Kiba eventually marrying Karin Uzumaki, the two had a great marriage surprisingly and six children two were named after fallen family members. Neji quit being a shinobi after the war and led the civilian council replacing Danzo. Rock Lee and Tenten married two years after the war who had been encouraged to date from Naruto and applied for traveling status they were seldom seen in the Hidden Leaf village again. Shikamaru kept his promise to his sensei and Kurenai training they're child and his team, even married Temari and always called her his favorite troublesome woman. Kakashi was made Seventh Hokage after Tsunade retired a year after the war, she left the Hidden Leaf village soon after but would always return on the day of her little "grandson's" death to pay her respects. Shizune however stayed behind this time to marry Kakashi. Kurenai retired to raise her son, Might Gai stayed a ninja and would often stay out for long periods of time, Kakashi suspected he was with Lee most of the time. Gaara eventually married himself and named his first born son Naruto in honor of his one true friend.

XXX (End Song) XXX