Never Again: A Naruto Fanfiction

Chapter 30: Fight

"Hehehehehehe," A shrill laughter came from the middle of the Forest of Death. "Hahahahahahahahahaha!" The laughter continued, the laughter of a mad man. 

Naruto looked into a small puddle with a wide grin etched across his face as laughter poured out of his mouth, seeing the purple glow of his new Rinnegan in his left eye socket in the reflection of the puddle. "HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!" He screamed laughing as he grabbed his chest and stood up, throwing his head into the air. 

"HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!" The power he felt pulsing from the Rinnegan he stole from Nagato was intoxicating. He felt like he could do whatever he wanted. He finally had the power to change the future. 

"I guess you ignored Inoichi's advice, Naruto." A figure said as they stepped into the light, revealing Jiraiya with a look of disappointment spread across his face clearly. "Tsunade-hime told me what you said in the meeting with the council, are you going to be a hungry monster like Orochimaru?" 

Naruto's laughter ceased as he turned to Jiraiya slowly, his singular blue eyes wide and shining with insanity. "I'm so close," He whispered, his voice high pitched. He took a single step towards. "Somebody has to save the future, somebody had to! And when I first got transported here I knew I had to do it! No, I was the only one that could!" The smile on his face only got bigger. 

"You need to calm down and take a look in the mirror as to what you're becoming!" Jiraiya shouted. 

"This world is going to be turned to nothingness! I know what I'm doing is wrong, but there's no other way! The world has to be saved! A purpose given to me," A giggle escaped his throat. "Only I could do it. WHO ELSE COULD HAVE DONE IT?! AND COME THIS FAR?! WOULD THEY HAVE KEPT GOING?!" 

"You don't have to do it alone!" Jiraiya shouted back in reply. "Quit thinking that this is only your burden to bear! This is our world too!" Naruto shook his head and bent down to his knees, clutching his head with his hands, his knuckles white. 

"No, my world was destroyed. The only person who can save this world," The Rinnegan in his eye socket pulsed as all of the trees around Naruto and Jiraiya were suddenly destroyed by a push. "Is me!" He said so darkly that Jiraiya had to fight a shiver that threatened to crawl up his spine at his apprentice's tone. 

"There's a war coming," Naruto whispered as he peered up at the blue sky above them, not a single cloud in sight. "Madara Uchiha will be revived. If we can't beat him then I'll fail again." 

"So it's all about you huh?" Jiraiya said with his arms crossed. "You don't care about this world, not really, you only care that you'll fail again." 

"Of course I am!" Naruto shouted angrily and he pointed at Jiraiya. "Do you think I want to see your corpse on that battlefield? Do you think I want to watch Sakura die again? Neji? Lee? If I fail then they die and we're not so sure I'll get the reset this time are we? No! I'm not going to risk letting those I care about die again! I'm going to save this world not for myself, but for them!" 

". . ." Jiraiya remained silent. How could he respond to that? He saw how passionate Naruto was about this. He had been wrong with his initial assessment. . . for now. "I'm worried about you, Naruto." 

Naruto dusted off of his pants swung his cloak back on before turning around and walking away. "Don't," He replied as he stalked off. "I don't need it." He disappeared in a yellow flash after that. 

One Month Later

Naruto heard a knock on his apartment door and swung his legs off of his couch and opened the door only to see six different Anbu with their swords out as they stood behind Tsunade who had a grim look on her face.