Chapter One

The Beginning of the End

"Will you let this Uchiha brat end us?! Will this be the end of your story? I think not!"

Sage, why must he be so loud? Why could he not breathe?

Oh, right. He was knocked into the water with the last attack from the one he considered his brother. His brother… who is now trying to kill him.

"I will not be done in by an Uchiha! You are the weakest container I've ever had! Get up, you useless brat! I will not die!"

Fuck! His head hurts!

Grgh!

Breathe! Air! Shit, shit, shit, shit!

"Gasp!" The fourteen-year-old sucked in the air that he did not realize he was missing.

"Shit," he groaned as he pulled himself to stand on the surface of the water.

"That's it! Get up! Win for once in your life!"

Will you shut up?!

He looked up to see his brother staring down at him, unfazed from their last clash. Unremorseful. Disappointed.

You're right, Neji… he's really lost to the darkness.

He ran his hand over his face, cutting the large stream of water that was bothering him. It's a miracle he was not bleeding, or seriously injured, considering he's been holding back to only knock out his teammate.

"You're actually serious about killing me. Dammit," he could only scoff and smirk at his brother. A show of bravado, to not let his nerves get the better of him.

"I am serious. I intended to kill you."

"That's all you need for confirmation! Fight him seriously! End him!"

"So you no longer consider me your friend?" Naruto could not understand why this hurt him.

He had been ignored and denounced so many times before. His entire life through the Academy was spent alone. The friend he may have made would quickly ignore him a day or two later. But Sasuke was different. They were brothers, sharing a bond so deep through their shared loneliness!

"Was all of our time in Team Seven just meaningless to you?!"

The Uchiha took a deep breath. "No," he finally said, "it was not meaningless. To me, you have become my closest friend."

"Then… why?" Naruto was confused no matter how tense his body was.

"That is why." Sasuke did not look away from Naruto. "You being my closest friend, my precious rival, that is why it is worth killing you."

After a few moments of staring, Naruto finally seemed to sag in his spot. "I don't quite get it, I really don't," he finally settled back into a more prepared stance and glared up at his brother. "But you are serious about killing me, and I don't plan on dying before I become Hokage."

He will have to do everything he can now just to protect himself. He could no longer rely on the thought that Sasuke will come to his senses or fight against some imaginary control. No. This is who he really is now.

He caught the littlest movement of Sasuke leaping off of the rock before he sprung forward in a dash. He jumped up a bit of the cliff face before meeting Sasuke in the air. His punch was caught but he also stopped the raven from hitting him.

He growled as he tried overwhelming the other boy with sheer power, something he was able to do before, but those curse markings appeared on his face and neck again. By the time he could realize he was stumbling forward, he maneuvered his body to the side and lower to avoid the kunai aimed for his chest. Sasuke had sidestepped him at the height of his push, allowing the sudden lack of immovable object to propel him forward.

He connected to the rock surface with his hand covered in chakra before kneeing the raven's wrist. He twirled around, however, and sent a wide arc roundhouse crashing into his head. He smacked into the stone and he was momentarily dazed but that was enough to disrupt his chakra and he began crashing into the water below.

Thinking quickly, he collected chakra into his feet and crashed them into the rock wall. He instantly propelled backwards above the lake surface, gaining enough distance from his teammate.

Looking up from his position back in the middle of the lake, he could see the complete calm over Sasuke's face. He was not reacting as he threatened and attempted to take his life. Why? Why can he act so calmly!

We aren't really friends. We never were. It hurt for only a second , a moment of hurt at knowing everything was a lie. Then, it was overshadowed by rage. Pure hate fueled by a desire to beat the Uchiha to a pulp.

An orange cloak wafted over him as a deep, guttural growl rumbled from his chest and through his snarling teeth. His once-blue eyes now stared with a blood orange visage, but even then the Sharingan eyes of his former brother didn't even flinch.

"I said this before but I will reiterate," Sasuke began speaking as felt a shiver of excitement crawl up his spine. "Kakashi and Sakura are not here to stop us this time. This time… I will kill you."

The familiar chirping of birds reached his ears and he watched as the uncontrollable wide arcs of the lightning technique scorched the stone. The Chidori was not as frightening as it was before, even as he knew this technique would be directed at him. After seeing what it could do in the water tower, he knew it was a precision attack instead of anything that caused pure destruction.

Summoning a clone quickly, he extended his hand and waited as the clone helped mold and swirl his chakra into a sphere of pure chakra. This is his technique; the Rasengan! The technique of his sensei and his idol!

"Shall we see which one is truly the best technique?"

"You are still so weak, young one. Cast off the chains of this betrayer and become strong for those worth the time! Become stronger!"

Sasuke's taunt fell on deaf ears, and only the deep purple chakra of the technique could be seen below. Allowing himself to fall forward, he suddenly broke out into a sprint down the stone face.

Naruto began running as well, using his unoccupied hand to grip into the water like a four-legged animal. His other hand maintained the Rasengan but even then his fingers twitched occasionally as he neared the Uchiha.

"Naruto!"

"Sasuke!"

The clash of their technique burned away all shadows that could be produced by the mountain, or by the trees. The subtle and mild waves of the lake exploded out into large waves that reached the forest. The rock wall cracked from the whipping chakra that violently swirled around the duo.

Yet despite all of that, the two techniques could not overcome each other. The two were in a stalemate that could not end because they were being sucked into each other.

It was the subtlest of movements, however, that caught Sasuke's eyes. The Chidori, despite its raw piercing power, was being diverted to the side. That would leave his entire body open to the Rasengan and he knew that should that happen he would die.

"No! Die, Naruto!" Sasuke shouted with crazed eyes, a fearful frown on his face even as he glared at his former friend.

With a sudden flash of the light, the clearing was enveloped with an explosion.

---

"No! This can't be!" Kurama thrashed in his seal cage after witnessing the result of the impact. "You fucking brat! You diverted a killing blow at the last second!"

The mindscape rumbled as the stone tile ceiling of the sewer began crumbling. The water that once covered the ground is now draining off to somewhere away from his cage. As it is, the child's mind is crumbling apart after taking a direct hit to his chest.

"I told you to end this! Why couldn't you listen to me for once in your puny, miserable existence?!"

Kyuubi glared down at the only other existence in the room; the very reason for his anger, Naruto. The boy laid on the floor as the water rushed past him to wherever the leak was. He did not move but his eyes were open and they stared at the ceiling blankly.

In the middle of his chest, close to his heart, is a hand-sized hole. The winning prize of not doing the same to his former brother. Yippee.

"Answer me!"

The mindscape rumbled with the Biju's shout, sending more tiles crashing into the floor. What got him more upset was the cracking of the bars that kept him caged. If those fail, he won't be released but die due to the nature of the seal!

"Be… quiet…"

The small voice did not carry any weight above a whisper, but the fox could hear him clearly. There was no immediate emotion detected in the boy's voice but he knew he could sense - could taste the underlying emotions that seemed to evade his analysis at the moment.

"I… am sick… of the shouting."

Kyuubi growled at that and thrashed into the cracking bars. "I'm so fucking sorry that you feel that way! At least you know you want that above LIVING!"

"Enough- urk!" Naruto's shout ended in a gurgle and coughing fit that left blood splattering from inside his mouth and onto his body.

As his coughing came to a close, his wheezing was all that could be heard with the erratic breathing of the Biju and the crumbling mindscape. Neither spoke anymore, that was until one of the bars exploded from the building cracks and pressure.

"Fuck! No! I will not die!"

Red bubbling chakra began leaking from the cave as the Kyuubi made a last ditch effort to save his and the boy's life. His power, despite being mostly corrosive and degrading, could also heal his and his host's body.

The chakra bled more around the boy, but the mindscape was sucking in any chakra that neared the boy. Seeing this, the fox growled and began pushing as much as he could to fight whatever was stopping him. He didn't care if it would leave the Jinchuuriki in a crazed state, as long as they lived that was all that mattered.

The bars were overwhelmed with his power now, shaking and quivering from the overwhelming chakra in its weakened state. But still, the Biju's chakra could not enter the boy to heal him.

The blonde moved his head to the side to stare at the chakra, his dead eyes taking in the odd beauty of it. It was now when he felt his body growing cold, the last of the ceiling falling around him, but he did not care. He was tired. So tired.

Maybe a nap is best right now.

"For someone who hates fate you sure did follow yours! If I so much as smell you in the afterlife, I'm torturing you for as many eons as existence persists!"

And with that, the world drowned out into a dull, sharp ringing that reminded him of the tinnitus he got from an explosive prank.

…

"Welcome to Purgatory, Naruto Uzumaki!"

Naruto blinked his eyes as he heard the voice greet him cheerily. Sage, why do they sound so chipper?

He first looked at the plain wooden table that he stood at; well, that wasn't entirely true as he was simply floating in the void of the swirling mess he found himself in. On the other end of the table was a girl with gray skin and bright violet eyes, the whites of her eyes are a baby blue shade, while her long hair is a pure white. She has a white halo above her head with five spikes of varying size.

"Please sit so we can prepare you for your journey to the afterlife!" She was still bright and bubbly, oddly reminding himself of when he was going through the Academy.

From her question, a chair appeared across from her. It bewildered Naruto but he did not question it, more concerned on where he was and what the woman was. He was sure that, while he missed a few classes on religion, he was sure he would remember hearing about winged humans with halos.

"Great!" The girl ruffled through some extensive paperwork, and he could catch his name throughout the documents. "Now, the world you come from is a unique case among those created by God. Because you have yet to have your savior be born to die for all of your sin, you have to be judged through this old system."

"What are you talking about?" Naruto didn't mean to sound harsh, he really didn't, but just a second ago he was dying from the chidori of his brother.

"Ah, sorry, I should elaborate more!" Her smile is kind and despite still feeling anger from his death, he could not be angry at her.

"What's your name?"

The girl grinned more at his question. "My name is Emily. I am a Seraphim in charge of Purgatory for your world!"

Naruto did not question what purgatory was but had a feeling she would elaborate. "Nice to meet you, Emily."

"And you as well, Naruto. In what I was talking about, I am in charge of the passing of souls through where we are, called Purgatory, which acts as a middle ground before you go to Heaven or Hell. The system is used since your world has yet to have your own Son of God be born to die for your sin. Since you still have sin, we have to judge you more harshly on your life and your actions."

Naruto followed along for the most part, mostly because the Old Ways followed a being known as God. But nobody really follows that religion, with the exception of the old monasteries, and instead shinobi worship the Sage who is the progenitor of chakra.

"I have your entire history right here," Emily motioned to the papers in front of her. "Everything from your conception, to your birth, to your death. You are young so this stack is a lot smaller than most."

"Yeah, that comes with the profession. Especially when you trust the wrong person to be like a brother to you."

Naruto's sarcastic and dry comment made Emily frown sadly. "I know. I'm sorry, for what it's worth. But depending on how you have lived, you may be able to burn off the sun you have and will be able to live a blissful eternity in Heaven!"

"Right," Naruto sighed.

"Okay! So first, your birth. You were born in wedlock, as your parents got married when they found out your mother was pregnant. That's good! You were an orphan from the moment you were a few days old, and you grew up in an orphanage."

Naruto scowled at that as he didn't want to be reminded of his childhood. The time he spent in the orphanage is the worst five years of his life. The neglect and harassment he faced in that institution drove him to the Hokage to have a place of his own. He knew that asking to go to any of the other four orphanages would have changed nothing as the village made that known.

"It seems from the age of one to six you lived in the orphanage. During this time you tried to make friends with other children. However, after being spurned a few times, you took to stealing and lying."

Naruto clenched his teeth at the accusing tone that Emily took as she looked at the document sadly. What the hell right does she have to judge what he did in answer to being ostracized?

"For your youth we can overlook those deeds." Emily brightened up as she said that, sending a quick smile at the blonde. "After that, you ended up living alone. You lived modestly out of necessity, but you did grow an unhealthy obsession with a ramen stand."

"Because they were the only ones to sell to me at a reasonable price, and with the stipend given by the old man I didn't exactly have many options." Naruto crossed his arms now, already assuming now how this is going to go.

He knows a witch trial when he sees one.

"Hm, it seems Gluttony is underlined twice here." The frown that marred Wmily's features was a disappointing and sad one.

"Let's… continue. While living on your own, you grew to loathe your neighbors, your landlord, and other people in your village. To make yourself feel better… you would take vengeance by pranking or stealing. Against the children around your age you began to hate them and their parents."

Naruto's eye twitched when he saw that the girl had a frown marring her otherwise beautiful face. "What now?"

"E-eh," Emily glanced up before looking back to the paper. "E-envy and… covet are underlined as well."

"What does that mean?" Naruto asked with a slight tilt of his head.

"Let's just continue with the rest of your life… first." Emily angstly grabbed the next paper. "Enrolled into school, began learning about… this one is circled. Idolatry? Ah- er…"

Naruto barely caught the muttered word before the girl began reading to herself.

"I… I am sorry, Naruto." Emily looked at the blonde sadly. "It looks like you have not lived a very… good life. I regret telling you but… you won't be able to enter Heaven."

Naruto blinked at the girl, surprised by her hesitant judgment on his eternity. As if this was something she should be able to come to a decision on when she can't even say it without stuttering! He is supposed to accept it?

"I'm sorry, but was God there when I was suffering through the sharps pain of hunger?"

His sharp voice made the girl flinch and she looked ready to cry for him. It made him sick but you know what? Fuck this charade.

"You must trust that He has the best outcome planned for you in reward to your struggles!" She seemed to plead for his understanding, but it only made him more upset.

"Does your little paper tell you that while I grew up in the orphanage, I would sleep in the attic on the floor with an old blanket and a pillow that barely had any stuffing? Did it tell you the abuse I suffered from not just the other kids but from the caretakers themselves? Cuz that's a big fucking part of why I began stealing and lying."

She did not say anything but he did not care anymore. He was being damned already so he will make sure he is heard before his sentencing.

"Because of the hunger I faced for so many years of my life, I indeed indulged heavily on the ramen stand because they were the only ones who would serve me and not rip me off. So I grew to think that food is the best thing, and it comforted me from the shame I felt and the hate I faced. I would eat as much of it and I did not care if it made me sick!"

"I won't lie, I sure did envy the other kids. I envied that they had loving parents and a warm home to return to! I envied their happiness and their immaturity. I wanted, desired the same for myself so if that made me covetous then fuck it. I will not be judged on a partial truth of my life as if I was not the one who lived through it!"

His shout startled the girl and she looked at him with wide, fearful eyes. They eventually softened and looked down at the last page of the boy's document; circled and underlined is a single word, a sin.

WRATH

"Where was your God when I had to suffer the neglect and hatred of everyone around me? Where was He when I was being abused by my caretakers?" Naruto seethed as he asked his questions, his eyes flashing red. "Even when I was willing to do everything, including die, for my village they didn't so much as care if I was alright. Where was your God at any point of my life where I needed help? Where?!"

Emily just stared at him sadly, her hands fidgeting in her lap as she couldn't take staring into those red eyes. So much anger. Resentment. It hurt her to see this in a young man.

"You have so much hate and anger for the people around you, even those who have personally done nothing to you," Emily finally said after a few moments of silence.

Naruto did not say anything, but his fingers tightened around his biceps and his face twisted in disgust.

"Just make your decision. I will not beg for your Heaven."