"Bye!" Naruto waved to his friends as they grew further from the village gates; their mission began today. "See ya soon!" He shouted. He saw Sakura wave back and give him a thumbs up before the squad of four fully disappeared from sight.

Naruto smiled and turned to head back to the village. It was just past seven at this point so he had some time before training started, maybe he could get some more sleep.

Almost an hour later, Naruto arrived at the training field and, upon spotting Nina, greeted her as he usually did.

Their training started like any other day until something popped into his mind.

"Hey sensei, do you know what kind of stuff they teach at the academy?" He asked while practicing maintaining a steady chakra flow. "I mean I was talking with my friends a few days ago and they were talking about some war that happened in the past, before Konoha was formed. I kinda wanted to know what they were talking about since I haven't really learned any sort of history." He said thoughtfully.

Nina seemed surprised at his curiosity.

"I do have some idea of what the instructors at the academy teach, it may be a little out of date however and they may very well have changed it. History isn't very difficult to learn; it's simply war followed by peace, then again by war. Are you sure you wish to hear about it?" Nina asked questioningly.

Naruto nodded eagerly.

"Well, your friends were likely talking about the time of the Warring States. A period filled with battle after battle and terrible bloodshed. It went on for many years before it finally died down. Remember the story I told you once? The formation of Konoha was the first step in ending the wars. The Warring States period was not a good time to be alive, the clans were fiercely territorial and any outsider found on their land was immediately killed. Actually, one didn't even need to be trespassing to be killed, many were ambushed on their own land by enemy clans. Children were trained as soldiers and sent to the front lines, women feared for their husbands and fathers and brothers and children. Alliances were weak and often filled with mistrust. Raids on smaller, weaker clans were everyday occurrences. It really was a terrible period." She sighed. "When Konoha was formed, it was the first of its kind. After that, similar mass alliances formed, all following what Hashirama and Madara had built here. Battles became rarer and things were peaceful for a while. That was how the Hidden Villages arose." She finished with a nod.

"What happened next?" Naruto asked excitedly.

Nina frowned ever so slightly.

"Of course, times of peace never last and this one was no exception. The First Great Shinobi War started not long after Hashirama and Madara had fought in the Valley of the End, when the second Hokage, Senju Tobirama, Hashirama's brother, was in power. He led the leaf shinobi during the battles between the great nations. However, he was unable to make it out of one particular battle." She closed her eyes and her voice was grim. "It was an ambush and he sacrificed himself for his team. A terrible death but noble nonetheless. He was able to appoint the next Hokage before he died, however."

Naruto nodded, fascination in his eyes.

"Old man Sarutobi?" He reasoned, receiving a nod.

"Hiruzen was young at the time, barely an adult and quite naive, many people doubted his competence and leadership ability. Despite this, he proved time and time again that he was a very capable leader. He rebuilt Konoha, reestablished trade, and restored balance in the village.

"Around twenty years after the war ended, yet another one was sparked, this time over territorial issues: the Second Great Shinobi War. Konoha was at fault for starting this one. This was the war were the Legendary Sanin got their name after a particularly harsh battle. The peace was again shattered and the villages suffered. In the end, things worked out in favor of Konoha and the battles diminished quickly. For a while everything seemed rather calm and peaceful, but what came next was the worst of them all." Nina closed her eyes. "The power of the Five Great Shinobi Nations was declining and it did not go unnoticed by the smaller nations. Seeing their chance to gain land and resources, conflicts arose along the borders of the Great villages, the sparks from these small battles soon fired up another war. The great nations, being considerably weaker than usual at the time, were running low on shinobi. Children barely out of the academy were thrown to the front lines in a desperate attempt to add to their numbers, thousands of people died every day and the land was devastated." She sighed and opened her eyes, a mournful look etched into her face. "Tell me, how old are you now, Naruto?"

He turned his head, disturbed by what he had just been told.

"Oh, I'm 14."

"Ah, then that would have been a little over two decades ago." Her eyes were far away as a shallow breath escaped her lips. "Your friends' sensei, Hatake, he fought in the war as well. Some say one of the missions he led was key in helping Konoha win the war. I don't know the details of that mission, but his teammates did not survive. But regardless of what happened back then, the mission was a success and certainly aided in Konoha's victory." She finished.

"Wait, so has anything happened since then? I mean like another war or something?" Naruto asked, intrigued.

Nina shook her head.

"No wars involving Konoha and only one other significant attack since the end of the Third Shinobi War. I believe that is all the academy teaches about the great wars. Did you hear what you expected?" She asked.

Naruto thought for a second.

"I don't know if I actually expected you would know so much about Konoha's history, you were a traveler up until a while ago, right?" He blinked curiously. "But I'm glad you did!" The boy added quickly.

"I suppose you could say my knowledge comes from a long while of observation. Your clan was very involved with the village during all the great wars, I'm surprised you hadn't heard about them before." She stated.

Naruto scratched his neck sheepishly.

"Heh, well I guess no one really wanted to tell me." He laughed, his eyes suddenly widened as a thought popped into his head. "Hey, sensei, what about your clan?" He asked. Come to think of it, she's never mentioned anything about her family and has never even told him what her surname was. Maybe it was a clan from a different village?

She hesitated noticeably before speaking.

"My clan... used to be very powerful. We were an old line, we existed long before most of the ones today. Of course, time created conflict within our own families and we split into two groups: the main branch and the side branch. I'm not entirely sure what happened after that, the split was the last thing that I heard of from them, I had left for a good number of years by then. All I know is that, in the shinobi world at least, we have branched into at least five separate clans and our name has been lost." She said, eyes showing the slightest hint of sadness, something that Naruto had never thought he would see.

His eyes were glued to the ground as he thought about her story.

"Um, is your clan in a different place? I mean you said your clan doesn't exist in the shinobi nations anymore, but are they somewhere else?" He asked cautiously, feeling a little sad for her.

Nina nodded slowly.

"They now reside in a different land, far away from here." She stated. "Though I'm sure they're doing quite well over there."

Naruto paused before asking another question.

"Do you ever visit them?" He gazed up at the darkening sky, thinking of what that foreign land might look like.

"I haven't and I don't plan to." She stated simply.

Naruto was surprised by this, surely she must miss her clan right? If it were him and he knew where his clan was he would go visit without a second thought.

"Won't your family and friends miss you?" He asked quietly. He could have sworn he saw her smile for a split second.

"I've never known my father or mother, I was raised by an old priestess who passed long ago. As for friends, they have passed as well."

He tilted his head in confusion.

"Your friends could still be alive," He assured her, trying to put on a cheerful smile. "They probably just couldn't contact you from where they live!" He nodded to himself. "Yea, I'm sure they're fine." He turned to glance at her and his smile faded, Nina didn't seem to even consider what he offered to be true.

A short sigh escaped her lips, her face looking as if she had long forsaken the thought that she would ever see her loved ones again.

"Hm, I suppose you could be right." Her eyes were distant. "I think they're alright where they are."

Two more days passed and Naruto was waiting for his friends to get back. He tapped on the table impatiently, they were supposed to be back that morning but there was still no sign of them. He stared at the clock that hung to his left, ticking softly. 8:58 PM. Maybe he should walk around for a bit.

Naruto grinned as the festival-laden streets came into view, the decorations that lined the roads were almost as bright as the moods of the people walking past them, all filled with anticipation for the upcoming celebration. Chatter and laughter filled the air as he weaved through the busy streets, peeking at all the decorated stores. The sea of colors was almost overwhelming, just about every shade imaginable could be seen on the street, everything was so cheerful that it put Naruto in a better mood almost instantly.

After an hour or so of wandering, Naruto returned home and lay in bed, tired and trying to fall asleep.

'They probably ran into some delay, I hope they're back soon.' He thought with a sigh. 'They better not miss the festival...'

It was the morning on the first day of the spring festival and excitement was thick in the air, people were rushing around, trying to get their last minute decorating and shopping done. Team 7 had returned early that morning with a large group of merchants behind them. Having safely completed their mission, they were now free to do whatever they wanted. For Sasuke that was heading straight to the hospital to visit his brother and for Sakura it was rushing out with her parents to get her kimono fitted before the festivities started that night.

It was just getting dark when Naruto met up with a group of six friends, they all headed out together, listening to the loud music and making sure that they didn't lose themselves in the crowd.

"Guys! Over here!" One of the boys, Shuu, shouted. He stood near a large crowd that was gathered around a brightly lit stage.

A man stood at the center, around him were water dragons and fire eagles and all types of dazzling creatures. They twirled and danced gracefully, sometimes even flying into the crowd, earning more cheers from the audience. Though the people watching were mostly civilians, the tricks impressed Naruto too.

"I wonder what kind of jutsu that is..." He thought aloud.

"Guys, I'm hungry, let's go get something to eat!" Sakura suggested.

Everyone nodded and, after some debate, decided to head towards one of the stands selling grilled fish.

After grabbing what they wanted from the vendor, they continued to walk around, looking at the different performances and activities, all the while keeping an eye out for good food stands.

The first explosion was a little too quiet for everyone to hear.

The second was what caused the whole village to stop and turn. Everyone was frozen in place until an anbu wearing a tiger mask passed over them.

"This is an order from the Hokage! Get inside the nearest building and do not leave until you are instructed to do so! All jonin must report to the Hokage Tower immediately!" He shouted then dashed away to spread the message.

That was when the panic began.

People pushed and shoved to get inside any building they could reach, families struggled to keep together through the confusion, stores and nearby buildings quickly opened their doors to receive the wave of civilians desperate to shelter themselves from whatever had caused those explosions. The shinobi who had been enjoying the festival were now dashing towards the Hokage Tower, joining the dozens who already stood outside the building.

"Everyone remain calm!" Tsunade commanded. "There has been a breach in our walls! Two Akatsuki members are in our village and we must capture them immediately!"

Worried glances spread through the crowd as the shinobi heard her words.

"Everyone, spread out to search for them, anyone who finds anything will report directly to me, do not attempt to capture them alone! Be careful!" She commanded.

Ignoring their hesitation, everyone nodded firmly and dispersed.

A sharp cracking noise sounded as a man's neck was snapped, he stood still for a split second before collapsing to the ground. The person that stood behind him was tall and bony, he wore torn white rags and a mask covered his face. Turning his head, he saw a woman who was trying to get a group of children into a building, he darted towards her with jerky movements and shattered the glass door, the screams of the children and adults did not seem to faze him. He scanned the faces of the people, or rather, the children, inside and, after a short moment of staring at the group huddled in the corner, turned and jumped out of the building. The confusion and shock that hung over those inside quickly turned to relief, they let out heavy breaths and were even able to crack a few thankful smiles.

A second later, another explosion sent a jolt through the earth.

"Guys! Where are you?!" Naruto shouted, frantically trying to push his way through the panicking crowd. In the chaos, he had lost sight of his friends, the people around him were rushing to find some other shelter now that the closer buildings were filled, many were hoping they could make it to their homes while others were trying to find the friends and families that they too had lost sight of.

A loud crack came from above. A second later, a large piece of concrete came crashing down.

Naruto ducked into a store that still had its doors open and joined the dozens of people hiding inside.

"Get in!" The owner yelled while beckoning a few more people inside.

A short man stood on a small white bird as it flew just above the village, he wore a black cloak around his shoulders with red clouds scattered across its surface. He leapt off the bird, landing next to a large, hunched figure wearing the same cloak.

"Brat. Didn't I tell you to wait until I checked for the kid? Can you not understand simple directions?" The hunched man spoke in a deep, annoyed voice.

"Hey, didn't you already check that section, un?"

The glare he received was clearly a no.

"Besides, the bombs I'm using are tiny, un! They couldn't kill a jinchūriki." He waved casually.

"If you want to keep your head the kid better stay alive." He stated.

The taller man chuckled and jumped back onto the bird.

"Got it!" He called before disappearing behind a building.

"Lady Tsunade." An anbu appeared, his tone grim.

"What is it?" The woman asked with an apprehensive frown.

"There have been reports of strange human-like beings in the village, they are killing anyone who tries to stop them. Their movements are strange and they seem to be looking for something." He reported.

Tsunade's frown deepened and her hands clenched.

"Get the others." She demanded and quickly dismissed him with a wave. The anbu bowed disappeared.

Five minutes later, the door to her office swung open and six people entered the room.

"What is it Tsunade-sama?" One of the council members asked as everyone stood in front of her desk.

"You all heard the report, yes?"

They nodded.

"It occurred to me that they could be puppets, perhaps controlled by Sasori of Suna."

The men and women frowned as they considered the explanation.

"I think Hokage-sama could be right. We don't know which of the Akatsuki are in the village but Sasori could very well be one of them." One of the old women nodded.

"Then what are they looking for?" A younger man asked.

Everyone thought for a moment until Danzo spoke up.

"The nine tails."

Everyone turned to look at him.

"They want the jinchūriki."