Hello! I, Mareliko, am a fairly new writer to the site, but not a stranger to it by any means. What I would like to ask of you kind readers is that any criticism you leave is constructive, not all-out, pointless flaming. This includes reviewing badly just because you hate Anime because it is Japanese and they are "stealing all our jobs" (yes, I have seen this before). So, if you have these problems, please don't complain to me about it.

Also, just as a heads up for this story, there will be NO PAIRINGS, just for the fact that it is based on trust between students and their teacher. I don't really like the fact that most Naruto teachers are portrayed as pedophiles. Also, this story takes place most of the time when the rookie nine are 9-10 years old, meaning they have not left the academy yet. It will tend to jump into the present time (when they are 13-14ish) at the end of every chapter.

Thank you and, without further ado, I give you……THE DISCLAMER!

I do not own (insert random Anime/Manga title here, such as Naruto), because that would mean that I have done off the rightful owner, and taken the story over, which I haven't…yet.

……

Golden spikes of blonde hair swayed as two mischievous blue eyes peered around the corner, into a large room. It was the very classroom that Uzumaki Naruto had been held back in for years, almost putting a damper on the young boy's mood. At least he was able to push hardships like that away quickly… anyways, in this almost-abandoned room sat one figure, bent over his desk to grade his students' papers. The man himself seemed as if he were about to fall asleep, sitting in the stuffy room that was overly heated and lit from the large windows. Well, the dull silence would have to be broken sometime…the blond threw himself into the room.

"Iruka-sensei!" A hyperactive mass collided with the drowsy figure.

"Oi, Naruto!" A grin; feigned annoyance. "You're crushing my papers." After several pointless attempts, Iruka stopped trying to get Naruto off his lap and allowed him to overlook the various quizzes and tests splayed across the desk. "So, what has you in such a great mood today?"

Naruto looked up at his teacher, a wide grin across his face. "Nothin'." He glanced back to the papers. "Hey! I actually almost passed this one! Are you losing your edge, sensei?"

Iruka's eyes narrowed, but his own smile was still present. "Of course not. But you haven't actually answered my question yet. I know you have something to tell me, or you wouldn't have run in the way you did. What is it?" The boy was rewarded with one of his teacher's rare lopsided grins, blaring a knowing look.

Naruto glanced around the room, eyes shifting in the search for any unwanted listeners. When the coast was apparently clear, a small hand raised itself to Iruka's ear, whispers soon after. "I'll tell you at Ichiraku's!"

"You little rat! You've practically trapped me! And I have papers to grade…"

"Well, I'll stay with you, if you want, sensei……"

Iruka looked down at Naruto, who was pleading for a reason to stay with the man he considered to be his father. The said man sighed. "Alright. We'll leave in an hour or so."

……

"Hey, hey! You want to hear now?" Naruto bounced in his seat next to Iruka, waiting for his pork-flavored noodle and broth feast to appear.

"Okay. I'll listen to you now. That is, if you're willing to tell me with out spending more of my last paycheck."

The blond blushed. "Aww…sensei! You make me sound like a criminal! Well, anyways, I was hanging out with Kiba, Shikamaru, and Chouji, right? Then, suddenly, I saw Sakura-chan! She was playing nearby with that scary girl, Ino, so I called out to her. She actually looked at me with out making a face! I think she might be starting to like me; she probably thinks I'm cute." The very thought sent the boy into fits of hopeful giggles.

Iruka stared at Naruto, a smile trying to force its way onto his face to block out the shock (not that the boy would notice anything). She always mocked him whenever he said hello? It had also been mentioned she made fun of him behind his back…How could Naruto stand it? Was he just unaware of the things that went on when his back was turned?

"Naruto…how long has Sakura made fun of you like that? Has she or her friends ever directly made fun of you?"

Naruto looked away from his teacher for a moment, looking slightly crestfallen. "Well, you see…I've always been made fun of. You've seen it happen. They all just…try to ignore me like I'm not there."

Iruka nodded at the boy, trying to show sympathy to his misunderstood student. He looked away to ponder on this heart-breaking occurrence when he suddenly locked eyes with the ramen server only a few inches from his face. The teacher gave a small yelp; in the period of time this hardship had been explained, their orders had come up. Both Iruka and Naruto left the conversation to later discussion in order to enjoy the treat provided by a very generous Chuunin's paycheck.

Several moments passed-after eating had commenced-before either of the two spoke again. It was Iruka who finally broke the silence.

"So what else has been happening to you? I really haven't seen much of what's going on, so please, tell me what else the other children do to you. I've got all evening to listen."

Naruto stared up at his teacher, just grateful for the chance to be heard. "Well, you see," he began timidly, very unlike himself, "it's not just the other kids. It's the villagers, mostly. I try, I really do, but they just don't want me near them. It's like I'm diseased…when I tried to help the old woman, who lives nearby me, with her groceries, she dropped them and ran away from me." The boy looked as if tears were welling up in his eyes. "That's not even the worst of it…"

A dejected whimper made its way out of Naruto's throat, making the man sitting next to him shift and move towards him, as if his presence would at least be some kind of comfort to the boy. Iruka had of course known the villagers didn't accept Naruto, but he didn't think it to be at this kind of level. The blond always seemed too hyperactive and carefree to even give the notation a second thought. "I'm sorry I didn't see this sooner, Naruto…it must be really hard for you."

The statement had some kind of effect on the boy, because only a couple seconds later, Naruto looked up at Iruka and smiled. "Thanks for treating me, sensei. I really like it when we can sit and eat out like this. It makes us like family, right?"

Iruka grinned right back at his student, amazed at Naruto's ability to recover so easily from what appeared to be an emotional blow. "Sure! From one orphan to another, these times of eating ramen and talking will show that we are family. Want another bowl?"

Now, Iruka couldn't be sure, but he assumed the tears in Naruto's eyes now were from the last statement. That kid sure loved Ramen…

"R-really? Another one?" Tears of absolute delight poured down Naruto's face. "Maybe Miso? No, I think I'll get Beef…" The boy continued to rant and rant about the flavors of his heart's desire, while Iruka's doubt that Naruto could seriously hold an emotional conversation grew and grew.

"Oi. Did you even hear what I first said?" Only a shining face, gazing off into what appeared to be heaven (a.k.a. the menu board) answered him. Iruka sighed, as he still would for many years to come. "You idiot…I'll take it you want beef…"

……

"Thanks for walking me home, sensei. It's getting darker earlier now, and I might get attacked by evil squirrels! No, seriously," Naruto tried to figure out at this point why his teacher seemed to roll his eyes so often (usually accompanied with a heavy sigh), "they were huge! They were in my house when I came home one night and they tried to eat all my ramen stashes; which reminds me: I'm all out! Will you take me shopping soon, Iruka-sensei? Well, if we do go shopping you can get some of those really yummy candies-"

This thread of unending conversation seemed to last for a while, until Naruto tired himself out (amazing…) and silence dominated this part of the trip. Naruto's tension seemed to rise at this point, implying to Iruka that the boy wanted to spend as much time with his as possible. He apparently guessed correctly because, soon after, Naruto began to talk again. This time, Naruto was asking about Iruka.

"Sensei? How old were you when you lost your parents?" The young blond slipped his hand into the older man's, looking up quizzically at him. When Iruka didn't answer right away, Naruto squeezed his hand, reassuringly. "Sensei?"

"Well, I was a lot older than you. Heck, I was even older than what you are now. I would have been 12 that year…" Iruka looked thoughtfully into the darkness lying ahead of the two. "It was a really hard time for me."

"How did you lose your parents? Was it to the Kyuubi?"

Iruka squeezed Naruto's hand lightly, the boy not understanding the gesture until many years later when he learned his worst secret. "Yes," Iruka responded quietly, "yes, I lost them both in Kyuubi's attack on Konoha. After they died, their home was left to me, and that's still where I live today. I've told you this before, I think."

"Oh. Well, did you know my parents? Did they fight the Kyuubi too?" Naruto was eager for information about anything in his past. They had gone through this routine before, but Naruto seemed to forget about the answers, hoping to get knowledge he wanted.

"No, Naruto. I'm sorry but I did not have the pleasure of meeting them." Iruka smiled apologetically and Naruto turned away disappointed. But, this time, Iruka had something else to say too. "However, I'm sure they must have been really good people if you were their son. If they were here, I'm sure they'd be very proud of your progress, not only as a shinobi, but also as a human being."

"Sensei…"

……

After what seemed to be about an hour-really only being a few minutes-Naruto and Iruka arrived at the blond's apartment complex. Naruto started climbing the main stair well when he suddenly stopped and turned to face Iruka.

"Hey, sensei? Do…do you want to come in for a bit? I could use some help organizing my training scrolls. I think I might have torn one, too…"

Iruka picked up on the boy's desperation for attention, and now that he had it, it wasn't getting away from him that easily. Iruka, though, was glad to comply with his student's wishes. If it would keep Naruto out of trouble for a week, then it was fine by him. Plus, if he went home, it would mean that he would have to grade more tests. Yuck.

"Okay. But you do know that I can only stay for an hour or so; just enough time to organize your scrolls and get you into bed. I have things to do too, you know." Iruka followed Naruto up the stairs, all the way to top floor where Naruto's apartment door way located. Naruto rushed up to his door and unlocked it, enthusiastic for the chance to spend some more time with his teacher. Once the wooden void had been opened, both entered the medium sized complex.

"Sensei! Sensei! See? All the scrolls are over there, on my table." Naruto gestured to the said furniture, piled heavy with multiple scrolls and some books. He grinned sheepishly, "I was training earlier, before I came to see you at the academy. I'm getting better all the time!"

Iruka once again grinned; this was the reason he had accepted Naruto when no one else really had. Sure, the boy had friends, but he had no adults in his life to be parents. For that matter, no one could even come close to what the boy needed attention-wise. Iruka was more than happy to be that person. After all, he was only making up for his own time of prejudice towards Naruto because of the Kyuubi. And, now that he had seen the boy's true personality, not warped by tales of possession, he found that he had been truly foolish.

"That's great Naruto. I'm sure that you will do great things in your time," Iruka responded, hoping to give the boy a little more encouragement for the future. As expected, a huge smile was his reward. "Of course, you won't get recognition for cleanliness in many, many years…"

"Sensei! That's not fair! It's just because I leave stuff where it is for later. The cockroaches seem to be nicer when I don't move their houses around."

Horrified silence came from Iruka who looked as if he were about to pass out. Or possibly scream. "You live…with cockroaches?"

"No, no! Sensei, I was just kidding. See? You think I'd let them in my house, but I kill them all before they can get anywhere!" The boy failed to mention the few he had missed, but his response seemed to at least calm down his teacher.

"Nice…well, let's get to your scroll work. We have an hour."

Naruto smiled contentedly, already heading towards the table pilled with chaos. "Thanks again, Iruka-sensei."

"Anytime, Naruto."

……

The short hour had passed, and Naruto had to say goodbye to his only source of what could count as his parental support. "I really wish you could stay, sensei."

"Don't worry. You'll see me at school tomorrow. By the way, you did do your homework, right?"

Naruto zoomed off to another room of the apartment, only to return just as fast. "Yup! See, see? I think I'm beginning to get this whole charka thing…"

"That's chakra, o diligent student of mine. Well, at least you are definitely improving in the concept of homework. I'll see you later, Naruto."

Before Iruka could actually leave, Naruto ran up to him and gave the best hug he could muster. Quietly, he bid his teacher farewell, still wishing for him to stay. "Bye, Iruka-sensei…"

Iruka looked back down at Naruto the way a father would: lovingly, proudly, and kindly. "Naruto, before I go, I just wanted to let you know something," With a questioning glance from his student, Iruka continued. "You've really shown how much you've grown in these past months; in all honesty to you, I don't think I could have been prouder with my own son. I actually think of you to be that to me: a brother, son, and close friend. Take care."

Naruto suddenly sniffled, trying to look away from Iruka. "T-thanks sensei, but I have to-to go to bed. I'll see you tomorrow, " therein which he closed the door behind Iruka, trying to make it so his teacher couldn't hear what he had caused. But Iruka wasn't a shinobi for nothing; as he walked down the hallway, his smile only grew larger as he heard the soft sobs coming from Naruto's door. However, Iruka knew these couldn't be tears of sadness, for he could hear between a rather large break, a small timid voice called out.

"Bye, dad…"

……

Present time

Naruto looked up at the skies, almost blue as his eyes. He slowly turned over in the grass to observe the figures next to him; a beautiful young woman with pink hair worn short-Haruno Sakura. He had finally gotten to be with her on a team and she had only made him care for her and respect her even more.

Past her were two others. Uchiha Sasuke, who would be forever his rival and, though he wouldn't admit it to anyone, his closest friend. The other was his Jounin teacher, Hatake Kakashi, who had trained each of his three students to the best of his abilities.

These three others were like Naruto's family now; the only other he wish could be there was the man he had, and still sees as a father. Sure, they've had their rough times, but most of them only made them stronger, together. Naruto would always look up to Iruka as one of the only people who had truly cared about him, just like these other people did now.

: Uzumaki Naruto received the Gift of Acceptance from Umino Iruka:

……

Ches! First chapter is done, with more soon to follow. And yes, just for the entire plot's sake, Sasuke is not really psychotic in anyone's perspective. Speaking of which, next chapter: Sasuke. I hope I'll have it up soon!