1 Not Alone

Kushina

Everything was on fire; the smoke had filled the air, no starts could be seen despite being a clear night with no clouds, even the moon was hidden behind the smoke, the village of the Hidden Leaf was on fire after the battle with Kyuubi, the Demon Fox with Nine Tails.

Outside the village, far from the smoke, a woman was leaning against a rock, the blood leaking from a massive gash across her stomach, the ground, and dirt had turned red from the blood.

Her eyes half-closed, to her right, was the dead body of Minato, who looked peaceful, the only thing keeping Kushina from dying was the crying of her baby, holding closely in her arms, it was a cold night, and Naruto didn't have anything to cover him, Kushina used a part of her clothes to cover him who kept on crying, a Seal on his tummy.

She felt everything going away, her legs weren't hurting anymore, but she kept herself alive; she wanted to make sure that someone would find her baby before she left; she prayed Hiruzen would come soon. Naruto...

Suddenly she felt the wind changing direction; she took everything she had to look up, her eyes widened seeing, the air close to her, changing, slowly the masked Uchiha appeared in front of her.

She clenched her teeth at the man who destroyed everything; No, she wanted to shout; he would not have her Naruto.

A dark chuckle escaped his lips; despite the pain on his stomach and right arm, he still smiled.

"So you're still alive, I'm impressed; after everything, you're still keeping yourself alive," The masked man spoke smugly as he slowly approached Kushina, who could hardly move.

"This is even better. The last thing you will see is me taking your son, knowing you couldn't do anything," He spoke, almost reaching Kushina.

Kushina suddenly grabbed a scroll from her pouch, slamming it on the ground; before the masked man could act, she activated the scroll with the last bit of chakra she had left, causing marks to spread around her and Naruto.

"NO" The masked Uchiha rushed, but they both disappeared before he could reach them; he immediately looked around, trying to see where they had gone but seeing and feeling nothing.

I will find them; He thought before he disappeared.

One minute later, Hiruzen arrived, finding the body of the fourth Hokage but not finding Kushina Uzumaki or their son.

Aang

He stood on top of Appa as he flew towards Kya's home; Katara told him that something had gone wrong, the old Avatar immediately had left everything he was doing and rushed towards his daughter's home.

As he flew closer, the wind and snow almost blocked the entire view; he could hardly see ten meters away, the wind echoing on his ears as if trying to speak.

The snowy ground below him, as Aang knew he was getting closer, suddenly a huge wind flew towards him and Appa, causing both of them to almost fall to the ground.

"Come on, Appa," he shouted before coughing; his old friend left out a sound, Aang could understand as 'Next time you fly, and I will be on top of you'.

Gaining the balance again, Aang prepared to keep flying towards where he was going when he heard a small sound, moving his reins, Appa changed direction towards the sound, Aang looked around closely at the ground below, hearing the slight sound getting louder.

Getting closer, he heard like a cry before his eyes widened at seeing someone down there, "Hurry, Appa," he shouted, immediately landing close.

Aang jumped from the bison, only now seeing it was a woman, but the woman was as pale as snow, but his eyes widened at the baby she was holding closely; he immediately created a windshield around him, stopping the snow and the cold wind, with his left hand creating a fire.

Looking closer, he saw the woman's hair were red like blood; he had never seen that kind of hair colour; Aang slowly put his arm around the crying baby, knowing he couldn't do anything for the woman, but if he hurried, he could potentially save an innocent baby.

As he tried to grab him, the woman's arm didn't budge, still holding the baby close.

Aang decided to use a bit more force; when the woman's eyes suddenly opened, his eyes widened, only now noticing the huge gash across her stomach; Aang couldn't fathom how she was still alive, despite not breathing or doing anything to indicate that she was alive.

Kushina saw a strange bald man, an arrow tattoo around his forehead; she didn't know who he was; she just prayed he wasn't going to harm her Naruto.

"Pl-plea-please, ta-take c-ca-care," she tried to speak, her eyes lowering, focusing on Naruto again; Aang had heard her plead.

"I will, my lady, I will take care of your child," he promised, hearing his words; only then, Aang was able to get the baby from her arms, feeling bad that he would need to leave her here, for now, he knew the baby himself wasn't in the best condition.

"Na-naa-Nar-Naruto..." her voice stopped as her body stopped struggling, slowly falling against the snow; Aang felt his eyes welling, taking a huge breath.

"Naruto," he whispered, figuring out must be the name of the baby; holding him close, he wasted no time to return to Appa.

Katara

Tragedy had hit Aang's family. It had been one day now, but her daughter kept crying and not stopping; she had closed her door shut, not wanting to see anyone right now, except Katara, who was standing close to her, not knowing herself what to do to ease her pain.

No parent should ever feel the pain of losing their children, Katara thought; she herself felt terrible; the only thing keeping her from crying was her daughter; she needed to be there for her.

Her daughter had been in labour for four hours. Everything had been going very well until everything changed; when the baby was born, Katara could only stare; the baby had been born dead.

Katara still didn't know what had gone so wrong, her arm around her daughter as she kept sobbing, not accepting any food or water; Katara had immediately sent a message to Bumi, Tenzin and Aang to come here as soon as possible.

Suddenly they both heard the door slam open, footsteps rushing in before she could tell whoever came inside where they were.

"Katara, Katara, I need your Help Now," her husband shouted, causing Katara to rush towards the main room, leaving her daughter's room; she was met with Aang, who was holding a baby in his arms.

She was about to ask what was going on and who was the baby. "Katara, Help him; he's Very Cold," he pleaded, walking closer. Katara grabbed the baby, touching his forehead; it was as cold as ice.

Wasting no time, she told Aang to keep the fire going; she covered the baby with sheets, but not too many; his body was cold, and suddenly going from very cold to very warm might just kill him.

Slowly and using her healing water, the colour returned on his little face, only now Katara noticed blonde hair much to her surprise, she had never seen blonde hair before.

"How is he?" Aang asked behind her, hoping he hadn't been too late.

"He's fine; he will live," Katara finally said, turning to face her husband, who breathed a huge sigh of relief.

Right now, as the tense air slowly disappeared, Katara opened her mouth to ask who the baby was; when they heard the baby start crying, turning around, she wondered if she could take him to a nearby woman to feed him when the door of her daughter's room opened.

Inside came walking Kya, whose eyes immediately focused on the bundle crying.

"Wh-who's he?" Kya asked, her voice almost a whisper from crying, her eyes red, bags under her eyes as she slowly approached the baby.

"Kya," Aang said, walking closer, from the almost death of Naruto, only now Aang remembered that something had gone wrong with his daughter's child.

He was about to ask what had happened when Katara gestured for him to leave the room. Soon they closed the door after arriving in their old room.

Sitting down on their bed, Aang waited for Katara to explain everything.

"H-he did not survive," Katara spoke, breaking the silence; Aang felt tears rolling down his cheek as he hung his face down in despair and anger.

"I-I should have been here," He spoke, sitting down on their bed, holding his face in his hands, feeling pain on his chest; Katara hugged him close.

"We can't do anything, Aang. All we can do is be there for her," Katara spoke; Aang said nothing but nodded his head, knowing she was right, slowly standing up. He suddenly coughed but ignored it.

Aang almost rushed to reach the main room, ready to confront his daughter, but opening the door, he saw Kya holding Naruto close and feeding him.

She looked at him with the same eyes that Katara looked at their children.

"He's very beautiful," Kya spoke softly, touching his cheek; much to their surprise, Naruto smiled at Kya, who returned the smile tenfold.

Katara knew what her daughter was thinking, losing her husband Koji first, and then losing her child next, and this child coming out of nowhere.

"What's his name?" Kya suddenly asked, looking up at her father with curiosity, herself not knowing where her father had found this beautiful child.

Aang glanced at Katara before they sat close to their daughter, who was playing with Naruto. Aang cleared his throat

Aang explained everything that happened after receiving the message from Katara, finding the woman on the snow and Naruto.

Kya looked at Naruto with even more love and sadness, feeling bad for the woman but at the same time feeling respect.

"Who could she have been?" Katara asked, not knowing of any woman with red hair from the water tribe; hell, she never had seen any woman anywhere with red hair.

"I don't know, but I promised that I would take care of Naruto, and that's what I will do," Aang spoke firmly, letting them know he wouldn't send Naruto to be raised by someone they barely knew or not know at all.

"I can raise him," Kya suddenly spoke; she looked at her parents with determination, showing she wouldn't change her mind.

Katara sighed, knowing this would come. "Kya, he wouldn't..." but stopped when Kya glared at her.

"I know That; I know he won't be Akiun, he can't replace him, but..." she stopped looking at Naruto, who was smiling at her.

"He will need a mother, and I can be that mother," she spoke, caressing his cheek causing Naruto to leave out a cute giggle.

Katara nodded in understanding and turned to look at Aang, who coughed but immediately turned his eyes at Kya again.

Aang wondered about it. Was this truly what his daughter needed?

"Very well, He's yours," Aang finally spoke; Kya smiled brightly at him before hugging Naruto close to her face.

Later

It hadn't taken long; Bumi and Tenzin arrived with his sky bison; Tenzin had grabbed Bumi on the way here, knowing it would take less time.

Arriving, they immediately asked how Kya and the baby, Aang had taken it upon himself to explain everything. Both Bumi and Tenzin wanted to talk to Kya, hoping to ease her pain, but only then did they notice the blonde baby sleeping quietly.

"Who's baby is he?" Tenzin asked, perplexed.

Aang explained who the baby was and where he had found him; before asking Bumi if he knew of any woman with redhair, Bumi shook his head, not knowing of anyone.

"If you can look upon any name that matches her description," Aang said, with Bumi immediately nodding his head.

Bumi immediately took upon himself to ease Kya's pain in any way possible and to look at Naruto.

It took two hours for the storm to stop and the sun to shine through the clear sky; walking outside, Aang noticed that it was morning; he had been awake the whole night. Hearing footsteps behind, he turned to see Katara.

"Where are you going?"

"I will search, hoping to find her body; she deserves a proper burial," Aang stated; he coughed again, gaining a look of concern from Katara, but he just shrugged it off; it was no big deal, soon leaving with Appa, thanks to his nose, they soon find out the place.

That day, Aang and Bumi buried her where the graveyard was, only a stone with no name.

A Wonderful woman and mother

Aang had written on it before returning back to his home.

Night

Everyone had fallen asleep; they were sleeping in their old home like the old times; Naruto was sleeping quietly in Kya's room in a crib that was made for Akiun.

Everyone was sleeping except Aang, who was awake; despite feeling happy for his daughter, he couldn't shake off the strange feeling he got from the baby, and unlike the others, Aang had seen the strange Whirlpool mark on his tummy.

He was slowly opening the door, making sure not to wake his daughter, who had finally fallen asleep after two days of not sleeping.

Walking towards Naruto, he slowly moved away the sheets covering him, but much to his surprise, there was no whirlpool mark in his stomach.

He slowly touched the area with his finger, suddenly he felt everything was warm, pressure everywhere around him, almost crushing him, but Aang didn't allow himself to fall on his knees or back away from whatever this was.

Everything darkened around him, except Naruto; Aang heard a growl on his ears; he had never heard this growl like this before.

A giant Red Eye suddenly opened right behind Naruto, the eye looking at Aang with hatred, reminding Aang of Ozai's eyes, but these red eyes had hatred in them like nothing ever before, making Ozai look like a toddler compared to a giant.

"What are you?" Aang asked, refusing to be afraid of whatever creature this was.

"Go Away, you and your strange Spirit," The voice spoke, feeling as if someone or something was inside the man.

Aang felt the pressure and the heat suddenly disappear; looking around, he saw he was returned to Kya's room, looking at Naruto again.

Just what was that thing?

Aang left in the middle of the night, reaching a suitable place; his eyes turned white, and so did his tattoos around his body.

In front of him stood Avatar Roku.

"What is that you need, Aang?" Roku asked, despite knowing what his pupil might want.

Aang gave a brief recap of everything that happened. "At first, I thought it was some spirit, but his power... was beyond Anything I have ever felt," Aang stated.

Roku kept quiet for a long minute before his eyes turned to look at Aang.

"I don't know, Aang, my advice is to watch him closely; from what you told me, this feels like a monster inside a cage, wanting to come out," Roku said; Aang swallowed a huge breath, already thinking the same, perhaps Naruto somehow had some kind of Spirit inside him.

"I will, but I'm afraid I can't do it for Long," Aang spoke before coughing again.

Roku frowned, knowing Aang was sick, the time was running out.

"Thank You for advice, Roku," Aang said before returning to the real world.

Three Months Later

Katara had checked on Senna, giving the happy news that she was two months pregnant. Both her and Tonraq had been happy to hear that.

With Tonraq stating that it would be a girl and her name would be Korra or Kanshi if a boy.

Years Later

The death of Avatar Aang was one of the most publicized events in the world, thanks to the help of recent technology such as radios and other communication. Nearly every home in the world tuned in to listen to his funeral in Republic City, hearing rare speeches from his children, wife, and friends. Everyone was in grief over the man who finally restored balance to the world for the first time in a hundred years.

"Korra, would you please stop pulling the fur out of the rug," Senna sighed, frowning at the giggling toddler that sat on top of one of their pelts in the middle of the cozy room. "I have to keep telling you: we keep our hands off the floor." But even as she poured some stew and made her way over to Korra, she knew that it was practically a lost cause. Sometimes children were just born a little...wild.

And true to her nature, Korra grinned, showing off her teeth and seemingly unaware that she was being chastised. Senna crouched down to sit next to her daughter and blew on a spoonful of the soup, before hovering it in front of Korra. Hopefully lunch would distract her for the time being. Korra blinked, before leaning forward and obediently taking it with a loud slurp. Then her lips scrunched and she made a face, pushing herself away from her mother. She wouldn't take the next spoonful, keeping her mouth shut and turning her head away with a pout.

Senna's shoulders dropped. "Please Korra, it's good for you." But the two-and-a-half year old wouldn't budge, obviously in disapproval of the squid mixed in with that particular seasoning. Senna frowned again, and attempted to take on a stern voice.

"Korra."

"NO!"

The little girl all but screeched out into the room and threw her arms forward in the air. She didn't make contact with her mother, but Senna was suddenly faced with a large splash of stew in her face. She cried out in surprise, swiftly standing up and wiping at her face and hair.

The next time she opened her eyes, her husband was standing in the doorway, looking concerned.

"Is everything all right? I heard you shouting." His eyes went back and forth between Senna and Korra, his brows furrowed. Then he settled on his wife, whose front was completely covered in stew. "...Senna?"

She gave him an unamused look. "Your daughter just water bended her lunch," she said flatly, and shook the sleeves of her coat, small brown droplets flinging into the air.

It was difficult for both of them to believe, but there was no other explanation. And instead of being shocked, Tonraq's face lit up brightly. "She did? You're kidding!" Immediately he ran forward to pick up his daughter and toss her in the air, the both of them laughing. "We have a natural born bender in our midst!"

Senna was much happier about it once she finally cleaned up.

Korra was only three years old and never had a water bending lesson. It was only natural that they were proud, proud parents.

A few months later, Korra stood in the same room, throwing a temper tantrum. Naruto wasn't coming to play with her, and to add salt to the injury. She had lost her favorite toy, a small boat made of tiger seal bone. She wanted to go outside and set it out by the sea with her father and watch it move as she water bended around it. It was her favorite game, but without the boat, she wouldn't be able to do anything. Therefore, the only logical solution was to throw her back down on the ground and scream.

Tonraq meanwhile, searched through her chest of clothes and toys, trying to find the small little boat. He turned back to look at Korra, a little bit unsure of how to calm his daughter down. Senna had always been much more capable of bringing Korra out of a tantrum.

He waved over to her. "Korra, come here. If we both search together, we can find your boat quicker. Does that sound good?"

Korra only cried out louder, throwing her arms around and sprawling on the floor. Tonraq sighed through his nose, and turned back around to continue searching; he'll let her burn out her energy and perhaps settle her down for a nap once he found it. "Please, Korra," he murmured to himself and pressed a hand to his temple when her screech increased in pitch. She was hardly ever a quiet child.

"UWAAAAUH"!

The scream was immediately followed by a quaking rumble and a splitting sound. It jolted Tonraq enough that he had to catch himself over the chest's lid, and he stood up on shaky legs before whipping his head around. "Korra!" He ran over to her, and then the sight finally registered in his eyes as they widened.

A large spire of rock jutted out from the ground, tearing their white pelt apart. The very tip, sharp and clearly dangerous looking, stood level to Tonraq's waist. His jaw dropped as his gaze fell to the toddler laying on her back below, her right foot pressed against the base of the stone.

He honestly had no idea what to make of it. His thoughts ran numb. His mouth opened and closed several times, before settling on her name. "K-Korra—"

But then she lifted up her other foot and slammed it to the ground, causing another spire to suddenly shoot up from seemingly nowhere, piercing the open air of the room. The quake was startling enough on its own to send Tonraq falling down on his backside. He grunted, and then looked horrifyingly at his daughter. Her face was much less worrisome than his—more amused than anything—and in awe of her brand new talent. She lifted up her right leg.

He still had no idea what was going on, but only one thing clicked in his mind.

"Korra, stop!"

And he reached out to swipe her up in his arms, taking her away from the ground and clutching her tight to his chest. Korra immediately protested, pushing her hands against his chest and squirming, but it only made Tonraq hold faster to her. Her bone boat was no longer at the front of his mind, instead replaced by the events that just transpired.

He didn't want to believe it.

It was only a week later when her parents bore witness to Korra fire bending the candle in her room.

Tonraq sat against the wall, holding his head in his hands. He heard the soft rustling noises as his wife pushed aside the brown pelts and entered the room. Her hands clasped in front of her, and her expression was weary.

"She's in bed," she whispered, stepping closer.

Tonraq gave a heavy sigh, shaking his head back and forth. "She can't be. She shouldn't be."

Senna's brows furrowed. "In bed?"

"You know what I mean," Tonraq said through clenched teeth. "What she is! She shouldn't be the—the Avatar." He stumbled over the last word, all but spitting it out. "She just...shouldn't be."

Senna came up in front of him and crouched down, gently placing a hand on his shoulder. "I know it's hard to believe, but...Tonraq, why didn't you tell me she earth bended before? This is all coming as a complete shock to me right now!" She frowned.

Tonraq hesitated. His eyes averted hers, staring off to the fire pit in the center of the room. "...I wanted to believe it was just an accident. Some freak earthquake."

"Except we don't have earthquakes here," Senna snapped.

"Better for it to have been so rather than being caused by her!" With that, Tonraq finally met his wife's eyes. They were pained. "Why Korra? Why our daughter?"

Senna's breathing grew wavered, and she sighed, shaking her head softly. "Because," she cupped his cheek, feeling the slightest hint of wetness, "that is how the cycle of the Avatar works. She was chosen to master the four elements and keep the world balanced."

She felt his jaw clench. "...You've heard the stories of the last Avatar. He had the world on his shoulders and nearly died countless times. And this damned world wants my daughter to do the same thing? Spirits, Senna, she is only three!"

"No one is asking for her to sacrifice her life to the world," Senna pressed, lightly stroking his cheek. "Avatar Aang brought us an era of peace, that of which we are still living in. Being the Avatar..." she drifted off, breathing deeply, "...it's not all about fighting and killing. She will be the icon of balance. Hope."

Tonraq looked sour, almost petulant. His hand rose to take her hand from his face and link her fingers between his own. "You don't want her to be the Avatar just as much as I don't," he whispered.

She swallowed, before dropping her gaze. "I...no," she quietly admitted. "I'm terrified, Tonraq. For her. For us." She lifted her eyes to meet his, sad and misty. "I'm angry that the world chose my only child. I want to protect her from everything that might hurt her, but this destiny is telling me that I can't. Isn't it only natural for a parent to feel this way...?" She squeezed his hand. "We will have to face the fact that we won't be able to keep her safe forever. The only thing we can do is support her."

"No," Tonraq said. "We can protect her."

Senna fell silent, looking at him expectantly.

He closed his eyes. "We'll hide her."

Senna gasped, before closing her own eyes and clutching his hand even tighter. "No, we can't, Tonraq. We can't do that. That would be deceiving the entire world."

"Damn the world," Tonraq snapped. "I don't owe anything to the world that expects Korra to do its bidding."

"Please, dear, I know it's upsetting. I'm upset, too," Senna said, her voice beginning to break. "But we just can't...it's not our choice." It was her turn to hide her face in her hands. Tonraq moved his arms and held her. After several minutes of silence, he finally complied, but still hesitantly.

"...Just for a while," he murmured. "Just...let her be ourdaughter for a while. We can announce it later. She can belong to the world later."

Senna returned his hold. "...All right." Then, she leaned back to look at her husband, her face bittersweet. "This is so hard."

"It is." Tonraq sighed and tucked her head underneath his chin. "I thought the most I would ever have to worry about Korra was making sure she married the right man." Discovering their only child was the Avatar was never exactly mentioned in parenting lectures from the villagers.

For the first time that evening, Senna gave a small smile. "But she'll be a great Avatar."

Tonraq huffed. "She'll be the best damn Avatar the world has ever seen, of course." With that, his face softened. "But she will always be my daughter, first."

It was only a year later when Tonraq came in through the entrance, snow falling from his hood and shoulders, when he announced that he ran into a messenger from the White Lotus in the heart of the village.

"And?" Senna asked, raising an eyebrow.

Tonraq quieted for a moment, before his face spread out into a smile. "I told him. He will be delivering the message to other members and they will come by in about a week. He was very doubtful of the claim, but...I think they won't have any trouble believing us once they're here."

Senna ran up to embrace him, holding tight before releasing him and returning his wide grin. Her eyes were sad, though. "...So that's it, then. The world will finally know...."

He wrapped his arms around her, pulling her back in. "...Yes, they will know." He tucked her head underneath his, in their usual comforting hold. "But we still have until she turns of age."

"She will always be our daughter, you know."

"...I know."

In a moment of breaking the tense air, Senna grinned. "I gave birth to the Avatar. Not many of the other mothers in the village can claim that!"

"And I am more proud of my daughter than any father could be," Tonraq added, admitting for the very first time that he held pride in Korra's fate. It only made Senna even more sentimental, and they held each other for several long minutes.

It was still hard for them to accept it. But at the very least, they could support Korra, wherever her destiny as the Avatar took her. They felt selfish as her parents and wanted to keep her from the world, but it was clearly impossible at that point. They could only raise her and love her.

After a long while, Senna looked around, noticing the completely cracked and uneven ground, the burn marks on their pelts, and the puddles of water strewn about. Her face fell, and then she sighed. "...We should probably clean the place up before they get here."

Three members of the White Lotus, led by a woman in Fire Nation garb, trekked through the snow of the South Pole.

They came upon the Southern Water Tribe and approached Chief Tonraq's hut, who was waiting for them.

"The White Lotus honours my family by coming," said Tonraq with a dip of his head in respect. "Thank you."

Everyone went inside the hut, seeing Tonraq's wife, Senna, sweeping.

"Welcome," she greeted.

"Thank you, I am Lady Sena," The Fire Nation woman introduced herself. "Our investigations of the claims in the Northern Tribe turned out to be false. But the letter you sent us claims your daughter is the one. Are you certain?"

"Korra, please come in here!" Senna called.

A chunk of dirt came smashing through the chamber not long after, nearly missing the three White Lotus members. They gaped in surprise before looking up to find a little girl clothed in traditional Water Tribe clothes with her hair in a ponytail and a somewhat chubby belly.

"I'm the Avatar, and you gotta deal with it! "Little Korra exclaimed before thrusting her hand to her left, forming a jet of fire, and then kicking the three White Lotus elders out of the path so they wouldn't be burnt.

Then a small kid roughly a year Korra's age sprang in and attacked her. After a minute of rolling about, the boy got her pinned.

"AAH, Naruto, get off!" Korra became enraged and yelled at the boy.

"Not till it cools down, ponytail!" Naruto, the youngster, refused.

"Naruto! Korra!" Tonraq yelled, compelling both kids to straighten up and pay attention. "You two, be on your best behavior; we have visitors, and Naruto, Kya will not be pleased to see you like this,"

"Tell that to her..." grumbled Naruto, prompting Korra to snarl before smirking and slapping him in the behind with a water whip. "OW! Korra! Get rid of it!"

Senna gave her a severe look before turning to Amai and saying, "Korra." "Please accept my heartfelt apologies."

"It's OK," Amai giggled, "I have two children of my own."

"Naruto is not our child; he enjoys playing with Korra," says the father.

"I'm going to be a warrior of the Water Tribe!" Naruto was ecstatic.

"Hey, they're not come to see you; they're here to see me!" Korra remarked.

Senna stated sharply, "Korra." "Be courteous."

Korra whispered, "Yes, Mom..."

Amai reassured her, "Well, your training is well under way."