Stream of past

Puppets! So, so many puppets...

The next morning they woke up bright and early, with news from Pakkun about Gaara, so their little group + Chiyo-sama geared up to leave. The location Pakkun pointed towards was about 80 kilometers away, so they had to leave just as the sun began to rise. They settled into a diamond foundation, with Kakashi in the lead and Guy in the back, their students and Chiyo flanking them.

"Karin, tell us if Gaara happens to pass through your range." said Kakashi.

"I will." she answered.

"What are you talking about?" asked Naruto.

"Me and Tsunade-sama figured out a year ago that I'm a sensor. With my ability, Mind's Eye of the Kagura, I am able to sense people up to 6km away. But since Gaara is currently out of my range, I am unable to find him." said Karin.

"Hopefully you can give us the exact location as we get closer." said Sasuke.

"That's pretty amazing, Kari-chan." said Naruto.

"Thank you."

They continued on through the sands of Kaze no Kuni until reaching the Land of Rivers, where the Akatsuki hideout was located. As they neared it, Karin was able to give the exact location, but warned them that Gaara's chakra was extremely weak. They continued on, until meeting their first obstacle, Kisame. It forced them to split up, as Neji, Lee and Guy remained to fight him. Next was Itachi who forced Sasuke and Tenten to stay behind. And just like that, their group was left to 4. Naruto, Karin, Kakashi and Chiyo remained on the path to find Gaara. Continuing on, they found the hideout, but it was blocked by a giant boulder.

"Damn it, how are we supposed to get past it?" asked Naruto.

"Don't worry, Naruto, I got this." said Karin, as green chains with pointed tips sprouted from her back. The Uzumaki began rotating them in a manner that resembled a drill, before using them to pierce the rock and shatter the boulder.

Stepping inside they gasped at what they found. Two Akatsuki member remained in the cave and at their feet was Gaara.

"We're too late." said Chiyo.

"So this is the retrieval team, un? Which one of you is the Jinchūriki?" said Deidara.

Naruto clenched his fists as claws and fangs appeared and his eyes turned red, the Kyūbi chakra slowly leaked out. "Y-you...You bastards! I'll kill you all!"

"The first one to start screeching...It's him, isn't it?" said Sasori.

"Looks like it..." said the blonde akatsuki member.

Naruto ignored them and began calling out to Gaara. "Hey, Gaara! What do you think you're doing?! Sleeping at a time like this? Wake up! Get up and fight! Gaara! GAARA!"

"Naruto...He's not...His chakra is-" began Karin.

"Ah, a sensor...So you already pieced it together, un...That's right, this guy has been long dead." Deidara slapped Gaara's cheek in a show of disrespect.

Naruto roared. "Give him back...GIVE HIM BACK YOU BASTARDS!" He charged ahead, intent on annihilating the Akatsuki members, but had to stop as Kakashi jumped in front of him.

"Naruto you have to calm down. Attacking now would only lead to your death.

The Akatsuki members shared a look before Deidara chuckled. "It seems this one is intent on bringing the corpse back to his village, un. How about we give them a show?"