Once More by ItsHardToFindAPenName

Chapter 1: Back to the Past

Everything was dark.

He had failed.

Things were not supposed to become like this. All his training, his friendship with Kurama and all other Tailed Beasts, all the efforts of himself and the whole Shinobi Alliance... They were supposed to win, they were meant to go on, to defeat the mad Uchiha duo and to stop the Juubi from destroying the world!

But yet, despite all those things, they still lost.

Madara Uchiha had won. All of their efforts were wasted. All his friends, all who cared for him were murdered by the wicked power of that revived bastard. And Madara was only short of one more thing to complete the Juubi again and become what he had deceived the poor Obito for a very long time in order to achieve – a god.

Yes, Kurama was still inside Naruto. But not for long. Soon, his newest friend would be ripped off from his body and become a part of that monster Shinju again.

Everything of the few last hours flashed through his mind.

He remembered Kakashi's Sharingan being ripped off his left eye socket as he fell and died under Madara's Susanoo sword. He remembered the souls of the four revived Hokage being pulled away by the shadow clones with Rinnegan. He remembered Hinata and Sakura being impaled by an incredibly sharp root when trying to pull him out of the roots that were restraining him and sucking away his chakra. He remembered Sasuke's Susanoo being shattered and the man himself being vaporized when trying to prevent a combined Tailed Beast Bomb from the Sharingan-controlled Tailed Beasts from hitting a completely exhausted Naruto sprawling on the ground.

Everyone... they sacrificed their lives to protect him, to allow him the chance to destroy Madara once and for all... And he failed them.

He closed his eyes. Maybe if he had just given up from the beginning... this wouldn't have happened...

"So you decided to just give up like that? It's not like you, Naruto."

He opened his eyes again. He was in the white room from before, and Kurama and all other Tailed Beasts were standing before him, looking down at him. Normally, he would have asked how they were able to meet again, but right now, it was not important anymore. Nothing was important anymore.

"Why shouldn't I give up? Everyone is gone, Madara has captured all of you. We lost." Naruto sighed heavily, all his energy seemed to be drained.

He was flicked in the forehead by a tentacle of Gyuki.

"Idiot. We haven't lost yet. Everyone out there is still fighting. Everyone sacrificed their lives because they believe that you shall be able to defeat Madara, not for you to sulk and give up like this. If you, Naruto, of all people, lose hope, there is nothing we can do anymore."

"But what can I do now? All my friends are gone, the Shinobi Alliance is, or is being destroyed. I don't know what I'm fighting for anymore". With those last words, Naruto collapsed on his knees, and for the first time in many years, he cried. All of his anger, sorrow, regret, despair and pain, everything he held in his heart seemed to have exploded and added to the stream of tears.

"You know," Surprisingly, it was Shukaku who raised the voice. It was different from the way Naruto had known the beast for; it was... sane. "I don't quite understand much about you humans, but to me, if you hate someone, even if I cannot defeat him, I would try my best to make sure that whatever he was planning won't be able to work. I don't like you quite much, but I admired you for daring to stand up against me during that battle in the past. If I hadn't, I would have made Gaara destroy your little village when he finally became Kazekage."