history
Naruto was different from the very beginning.
He was little more than an infant just welcomed to the world when he was branded a 'jinchuuriki' - the vessel for the Nine-Tailed Fox who wrecked havoc upon the village of Konoha. His father, the Yondaime Hokage, gave up his life in order to seal the beast inside of his son as a last stitch effort to protect the village from it's deadly wrath, fully hoping for Konoha to accept him as a hero - but it wasn't meant to be. Instead of appreciating the child for the sacrifices he was made to endure before he could so much as open his eyes, they shunned him as a monster, as a threat to the village, as a freak - his childhood years were full of harsh remarks and rejection that only confused him and made him question his worth as a person. He wondered what he'd done so wrong to cause everyone to hate him, never knowing what lurked just beneath the surface of his consciousness.
As he grew older, he joined the Ninja Academy, becoming known as a prankster and class reject, always causing trouble and being made fun of for his seemingly mediocre skills in ninjutsu. His classmates looked down upon him, hearing the whispered remarks of his parents - "That boy is wrong," "Stay away from that kid," "He's a nuisance, a dangerous nuisance." His behavior was an outcry for respect and recognition he was deprived without reason, and the worse his antics, the more the village seemed to hate him. Finally, as he reached his twelveth year in age, he began to form a friendship with one of his sensei's - Iruka. The man had lost his parents to the kyuubi, but bore no ill will towards Naruto; he understood what he was, and felt for his predicament, understanding the pain of being alone. He tried to guide him towards becoming a ninja, scolding him for his silly mistakes and prodding him towards bettering both himself and his skills. If it weren't for him, Naruto would've likely been trapped in the vicious cycle of failure forever. Instead, he finally achieved the rank of Genin and ascended to the next level of training, where he met the next few people who would come to be his friends.
It was there he truly got to know Uchiha Sasuke and Haruno Sakura.
Sasuke was a rival; he was adored by all and wanted none of it while Naruto strived for attention and was rejected. It came to the Uchiha so easily while the blonde had to push and train and sweat for every little bit of progress. To make matters worse, Sakura - the girl Naruto had crushed on since they were little more than toddlers - was head over heels in love with Sasuke. Their relationship was rocky at best. Even so, a bond began to form as their missions and training brought them closer and taught them more about themselves and each other. Like it or not, as the months passed, they became close friends. They were some of the few people to ever acknowledge him, and for that, he would always be grateful.
Before long, Kakashi-sensei enrolled his trio of students into the Chuunin exams to achieve the next rank of ninja. During this time, they were pushed beyond their limitations - they came face to face with Orochimaru for the first time, and Naruto was hapless against the ridiculously powerful shinobi. Even unwitingly tapping into the kyuubi's chakra wasn't enough to subdue him - he was rendered unconscious, and Sasuke was marked with the cursed seal. After enduring the after effects, they made it through the first part of the exam and moved onto the next, never knowing the full implications of what had happened to their friend.
During the second half of the trials, the village was attacked by Orochimaru under the guise of the Kazekage - the equivalent of the Hokage from the Village of Sand. The Sandaime was killed by the snake sannin while Naruto was drawn out into the forests to pursue Sasuke and Gaara - a fellow jinchuuriki who bore inside of him the One-Tailed Shukaku. Still battling with his cursed seal and unable to battle on an even level with the half-transformed Gaara, Naruto was forced to take him on head to head, and after a battle the likes of which none of Team Seven had ever seen before, he returned victorious. The similarities he saw between himself and the red-haired boy were frightening; he wondered what would've become of him if he had never had people to stand by his side and recognize him for who he was. His empathy for Gaara and his strong will deeply affected him; neither of them would ever be the same.
The time after was tumultuous, and the brief period of peace and happiness he'd known abruptly came to an end. Sasuke was made to realize his lack of power in comparison to his brother; as Orochimaru planned, Sasuke abandoned Konoha in search of the snake in order to pursue the power necessary to achieve his revenge. Naruto, unable to believe what his friend was doing, chased after him, promising a crying Sakura that he'd bring Sasuke back. "The promise of a lifetime!" He always kept his promises, he told her. He had every intention of following through.
But it wasn't meant to be.
The two boys met in the Valley of the End; atop the statues of the first Hokage and Uchiha Madara they fought. For the first time, they saw what darkness lurked in each other's hearts - Naruto used the strength of the kyuubi to battle his foe, and Sasuke tapped into the power of the cursed seal to ascertain his second transformation. It was a battle that quite nearly cost both boys their lives - but instead of killing each other, neither was able to deal a fatal blow. Naruto scratched Sasuke's forehead protector - an extremely symbolic strike between them - and Sasuke held back his attack, knocking the blonde unconscious and leaving him to be discovered by Kakashi in the Valley as he made his trek to Otogakure where Orochimaru awaited him.
Naruto made his recovery, and shortly after departed with Jiraiya to learn how to harness the kyuubi's chakra and defend himself from those who wished to capture him due to the demon lurking inside of him. During these three years, he traveled the world at his sensei's side, strengthening himself and learning from his most capable teacher. When they made their return to Konoha three years later, Naruto was a stronger, more cunning ninja ready to take on the task of tracking down Sasuke and dragging him back, regardless the cost.
Once more reformed into Team Seven along Sakura (who had grown even cuter over the years), he had barely had time to get re-accustomed to being back home when he was given his first mission - and it was no pushover. Gaara had become the Kazekage of the Suna, and had been kidnapped by a member of Akatsuki - the same organization after Naruto himself for the kyuubi. The situation pulled strongly at his heartstrings, and he leaped into action, gladly accepting the task. The group made their way to the village to pursue Deidara, but by the time they had reached the Akatsuki hide-out, they were too late. The Shukaku had been removed, and Gaara was dead.
Enraged, Naruto made the foolhardy decision spurned by his emotions and chased recklessly after Deidara, playing right into the man's hand. Kakashi followed after him, knowing how bad the situation could be, especially considering Naruto's status as jinchuuriki himself. The two managed to chase down the clay bomber, and with the help of Team Gai, recovered Gaara's body. Deidara was thought to be dead, but in truth managed to escape with his life. Sasori - Deidara's partner - was killed by Sakura and Chiyo, an elderly puppetmaster of Suna and Sasori's grandmother.
The group rendezvoused together only to discover that Gaara was, in fact, truly dead. Chiyo gave her life for his in a forbidden technique of her own making; Gaara was resurrected, and returned safely to the village, eyes opened to the vast field of people who had been deeply affected by the peril he'd been in. Naruto shook his hand and said farewell.
Sakura had received information on Orochimaru's whereabouts from Sasori before his death, and their next mission involved following that lead. Paired up with two new team members - Yamato, their captain, and Sai, a ROOT member, they set out. However, things would not go as planned. Yamato used a transformation jutsu to shape-shift into Sasori's form to meet the 'spy' working under the snake sannin; it turned out that Kabuto, someone Naruto was well accustomed with, a known traitor to Konoha - was their correspondent. Things turned bad; next thing the group knew, they were being pitted against both Kabuto and Orochimaru together.
Naruto's weaknes was utterly exploited. Orochimaru kept pushing, egging the blonde on with taunts regarding Sasuke; inevitably, the boy couldn't contain himself, and lost control. The kyuubi's chakra escaped to the fourth level, forming four whipping tails, and caused a transformation that all too closely resembled a miniature version of the Ninte-Tails itself. The damage caused by the ensuing fight between the fox-form and the snake was terrible; unable to differentiate between friend and foe, Naruto quite nearly killed his own friends, his chakra searing Sakura's upper arm after he'd swiped at her. Yamato ended up using a jutsu to tame the beast and return Naruto to his senses. Orochimaru had been pushed to his limits, and chose to retreat with Sai in tow.
Team Seven followed after, and tracked them to their current hidden base. Knowing that Sasuke would be found within, they had to use extreme caution - they found Sai, first, tying him up for his betrayal before coming face to face with their former comrade.
It was not the reunion that Naruto had envisioned.
The Uchiha had grown strong, so visibly strong; it took him little time to gain the upper hand in a situation where he was pitted against four foes. However, before the fight could truly be underway, Orochimaru and Kabuto made a reappearance and whisked the boy away. Once again, Naruto had let his friend slip through his fingers. He couldn't save him. He couldn't bring him back, and he'd failed Sakura-chan.
The next few months were spent with bated breath; Naruto long awaited news of Sasuke's whereabouts to no avail. Finally, news arrived - Orochimaru had been killed and his compounds abandoned.
Uchiha Sasuke was listed among the deceased.
Desperately, Naruto begged Tsunade to let him look for his friend, positive that he was out there and alive somewhere, but the Hokage denied him his request. Akatsuki was still actively pursuing the jinchuuriki, and there were very few left to collect. The well being of the entire village - and the world - lay hinged on the promise that the Nine-Tails didn't fall into the wrong hands. Unable to disobey, Naruto was forced to relent for the time being, coiled tight and unable to let go of the hope that Sasuke wasn't truly dead. He set his sights on Akatsuki, knowing that if they were defeated, he would have free reign to pursue any traces of his former teammate.
The following years were filled with pain and loss. Several remaining members of the Akatsuki Organization saw their ends by the hands of Naruto and his comrades, but it was never enough. He knew that as he was, his power was nothing compared to that of the figurehead standing tall above the red-and-black coated bastards keeping him from his goal. One by one the other members fell until there was only one man left standing - Uchiha Madara. In the battle to end them all, bodies of his comrades were falling left and right. He'd never seen destruction on such a level before in his life. At a moment off his guard as he bent to pick up a fallen friend, he was hapless to the attack Madara had sent directly for him; he lifted his head just in time to watch Sakura-chan jump before him and take the full force of the blow, her body disintegrating before his eyes.
It was too much for him to bear. His rage melded with that of the kyuubi's in his fragile state; he drew on power that should not have been his to take in a final all-or-nothing attack which left a bloody mass where Uchiha Madara had been. However, the cost for such an attack was great; the kyuubi and Naruto had seemingly melded into one, the demon's consciousness vanishing into his own. There was no seal separating the two any longer. Not truly understanding the repercussions himself, he looked at his claws, prominent whisker marks, and permanent fangs as signs of what was to come. Always the optimist, all he could do was pray that this was a sign that the beast had subsided into him and would no longer be a menacing force to battle against.
The next few years were deceptively peaceful. With the threat of Akatsuki no longer looming over the horizon, Naruto was deemed permission to seek out his former teammate. He spent months which turned into years tracking down every small rumor, every minuscule sign of Sasuke to no avail. For every step he took forward, it seemed as though he were simultaneously taking seven back. Even so, he refused to believe that the Uchiha was truly gone. He'd given up far too much for it to simply end at this - and Sasuke was stronger than that. Naruto was sure of it. There was no way he would let himself be killed by the likes of Orochimaru, not when his brother was still out there and ticking.
He took the time to ascend the ninja ladder to reach the level of Jounin; shortly after his nineteenth birthday, Tsunade made the decision to step down from her place as Hokage and pass the title down to Naruto. Seeing his lifelong dream come to fruition was bittersweet; without Sasuke and Sakura at his side to enjoy the fruits of his labor only reminded him how much he had lost along the way. Regardless, it only made his resolve steadfast; he would protect the village and ensure that future generations of shinobi did not have to lose what he had along the paths of their lives. He would foster Konoha's growth as best he could. When Sasuke returned, he could return to the peaceful life they'd almost been able to touch all those years ago.
He'd never give up.