A young boy races down an empty street, taking sharp turns to try and lose the mob racing behind him.
'Why do they do this?' he cries inside his mind.
The little boy ends up in a dead end. He turns to hear the yelling getting louder all the while praying that they turn a different way.
He searches around him looking for a way of escape but a lone man casts his shadow down the alleyway.
"Demon, at last you fall before me! Today, you will die by my hands and pay for the deaths of my wife and uncle!" the man cries hysterically. He brandishes a cleaver and with a maniacal grin starts forward.
The boy begins to shake and backs away from the man. "Leave me alone," he cries, "I didn't do anything!"
"Lies!" the man yells back and charges straight for the boy, quickly closing the gap.
The boy's eyes widen as he watches that knife descend. He comes to a conclusion, "I don't want to die!"
(Shadow In The Leaves)
Hiruzen Sarutobi, the Sandaime Hokage, the Professor, the God of Shinobi stood viewing his beloved village. He had just received word that his surrogate grandson had just been attacked again and had displayed a new ability completely decimating his would be aggressor.
Hiruzen sighed before taking a long drag on his pipe. It was going to be a shit storm from the council over this. They would try and peg murder and then demand execution…on a six year old boy.
'I failed you Minato…' he thought solemnly.
At that moment an ANBU in a Falcon mask shunshin'd into his office.
Hiruzen half-turned. "Has he awoken?"
The ANBU, not fully in control of his emotions, merely nodded.
"Let's go then." Hiruzen commanded, and a split second later the office was completely empty.
(Shadow In The Leaves)
The young boy's eyes slowly opened before shutting tightly at the bright lights.
"Am I dead?" he mumbled. He wasn't. He could his heartbeat in his ears, there was a prickling sensation on his foot…yep, still alive.
The creaking of the door and the boy felt a presence in the room with him. It was calming, older and had an overtone of monkeys.
"Hokage-jiji…" the boy weakly called out.
Hiruzen felt tears come into his eyes. How Naruto keeps his innocence despite all the bull he puts up with, he'll never know.
Then he felt it. Hiruzen searched Naruto's aura, still the same, full of ramen and happiness…and lots of repressed emotions. Then he searched his chakra. It felt a tiny bit off. There was an occasional burst of darkness.
Instantly, the Kyuubi jumped to the forefront of his mind, but its chakra felt malevolent and evil. It practically killed you before you even fought.
"How are you feeling Naruto?" Hiruzen asked the blonde laying on the bed.
"I think I did something bad…" Naruto confessed.
Hiruzen raised an eyebrow. "Oh? Can you tell me what happened?"
Naruto nodded. "That guy tried to cut me with a knife and I felt…this…power flow from within me. It was like…nothing I've ever felt before. I felt so free…"
Hiruzen nodded. "When you're better, I would like to see just what this power is Naruto. Do you think you can do it again?"
Naruto nodded.
"Good get some sleep."
When Naruto drifted off Hiruzen left.
(Shadow In The Leaves)
The next day saw Hiruzen staring in amazement and slight fear at Naruto's power. The young boy was cloaked in a dark chakra cloak, the boy's eyes glowing red. Naruto then demonstrated an ability to meld into shadows and even travel through them.
Naruto sat on the ground, beaming with pride. "See Jiji, that's what I did."
Hiruzen could only shake his head. "You're going to be very strong Naruto."
A year later…
We find Hiruzen in the midst of a council meeting.
"We must kill him! He is gaining strength that will kill us all!" A civilian councilman yelled.
"The demon must die!" A hysterical woman joined in.
"Better yet, let's give him to Danzo to be turned into a weapon." A fat civilian councilman threw his two cents in.
Hiruzen had enough. Slamming his hand on the desk, and unleashing a good dose of killing intent served to quiet the room. 'All without saying anything…' he inwardly smirked.
"Let remind you if you've forgotten," Hiruzen started in a soft voice laced with KI, "Naruto acted in self-defense. My law is still in effect so if I hear you call him a demon again, I will personally kill you."
Then the din started again, with everyone yelling about Hiruzen being corrupted and how Danzo should get the boy.
"Minato forgive me…I've failed you and your son again haven't I?" Hiruzen said thinking he wasn't going to be heard.
Komura and Homura stiffened at what they just heard. "What did you just say?" they asked.
The room quickly quieted.
Hiruzen stood. "You should all be ashamed. What you are doing to this boy in the name the Yondaime is despicable."
"What do you mean? We are finishing what he wanted us to do!" A pink haired councilwoman screeched.
"He left it to US to kill the de-UGH!" the man coughed up blood, then died seconds later from a kunai embedded into his throat.
There was a collective gasp and all eyes turned to the Sandaime with his arm still outstretched.
Hiruzen lowered his arm. "He left it to you to show this boy he is a hero for imprisoning that beast. He left it…to ALL OF YOU IMBECILES TO HONOR HIS SON!"
There was a dead silence, the pieces slowly clicking together in everyone's minds.
Hiruzen sighed. "Naruto Uzumaki-Namikaze is the son of Kushina Uzumaki, and Minato Namikaze, the Yondaime."
The council erupted, but Hiruzen quieted them down with a good bit of KI.
"We must have him here and loyal! The last Namikaze…" a councilman called out.
"We must enact a CRA on him at once!" the pink-haired councilwoman added her voice.
"I think we still should hand him over to Danzo!" the same councilman called.
"HAVE YOU ALL FORGOTTEN HE IS SEVEN?" Hiruzen yelled. "Besides, what makes you think he will do anything for this village after all the shit you've put him through?"
The council quieted down after this.
"Hokage-sama, we at least have to see what he will do after the Academy." The Nara clan head called from his lazy position on his desk.
They agreed, meanwhile plotting ways to get Naruto to come to them for their own selfish ends.
Five years later…
It was graduation day for one Naruto Uzumaki-Namikaze. After he found out who his parents were he began to be called 'Namikaze-sama' by some of the villagers. He even had his own fan club that steadily grew because he wasn't a pompous, brooding ass.
Naruto's skills with his bloodline grew. He couldn't find anything pertaining to it so he simply called it, 'Jinsei no Kage' (Shadows of Life). Naruto discovered a way to harden it so it formed armor around him and he found he could go three times as fast as his normal speed.
Naruto hadn't been slacking in his normal training either. His speed was mid-chunin level, and chakra control was low chunin, his bloodline saw to that.
Naruto had picked up a few techniques besides the Academy taught jutsus. Those were Katon: Gokakyu no Jutsu (Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique), Suiton: Mizu no Muchi (Water Release: Whip of Water), Suiton: Mizurappa (Water Release: Violent Water Wave), Suiton: Teppoudama (Water Release: Bullet), Fuuton: Kaze Senbon (Wind Release: Wind Needle), and Raiton: Jibashi (Lightning Release: Electromagnetic Murder). He was currently working on adding a couple Doton techniques and a couple more Fuuton techniques.
His Taijutsu was around high chunin-low jonin. He created his own style with his bloodline consisting of attacking from the shadows, or tricking people.
He has yet to come across a Genjutsu technique that interested him. He is also known to mess around with Kenjutsu.
Over the years it has been Sasuke and Naruto butting heads for the number one spot and Naruto finally won by scoring marginally higher in the Taijutsu and Ninjutsu portions of the Exams.
So now, Rookie of the Year Naruto prepared for his day. He dressed in baggy black pants taped at the ankles with gray tape, a black muscle shirt, metal gauntlets with the Uzumaki symbol engraved on them, and a black-clothed hitae-ate around his forehead.
As Naruto left his apartment he grabbed his katana, opting to carry it for now.
Walking down the street, he caught many people looking at him, whether it was awe, respect, fear or…lust.
Naruto arrived in his classroom to see one Shikamaru Nara sleeping.
"Wake up you lazy bastard." Naruto called to his friend, taking his seat in the back.
"Damn you Naruto…I was getting to the good part…" Shikamaru drawled with his head still down.
"And what would that be?" Naruto asked.
"I was just about to go to sleep in my dream." He replied.
Naruto laughed. "Only you would be so lazy…"
Before further could be said, the rest of the class began filing in.
"That's right Ino-pig! Sasuke is all mine!"
"I already told you Forehead, I don't like Sasuke!"
"Then who do you like? Oh! Lemme guess, Naruto?"
"Shut up Sakura!"
At that moment a blushing blonde and a laughing banshee-I mean-pink-haired girl walked into the classroom. A brooding black-haired boy walked in unobserved.
Iruka walked and everyone quickly took their seats, Sakura next to Sasuke and Ino by Naruto. Naruto winked at her and she blushed.
"Alright; Good morning everyone! Today marks the day that you all become genin and embark on your ninja careers." Taking a pause to discreetly school his emotions, he began announcing team placements.
(CANON TEAMS)
Naruto was EXTREMELY bored after waiting for three hours. He took a shuriken from a hidden seal on his gauntlet and began to spin it with his chakra.
"What the hell are you doing dobe?" Sakura screeched. She had picked up Sasuke's nickname for Naruto.
Naruto ignored her and made the shuriken spin faster adding wind and lightning chakra so it made a lot of noise.
"You're so annoying Naruto can you please stop that!" Sakura screeched even louder, adding to Sasuke's discomfort as she was sitting right next to him.
The sound of the door opening caught all three's attention.
Their jonin-sensei, Kakashi Hatake, had finally arrived. The silver-haired, crooked hitae-ate, masked man eye smiled. "Team 7?"
Receiving three glares, he simply said, "Meet me on the roof."
"What's the matter dobe? I thought you were going to throw that shuriken at him." Sasuke sneered.
"I was, but found a better target." Naruto said getting up and sinking into the shadows.
"What do you mean by that?" Sasuke called after him. He proceeded to get up only to notice that one of his arm warmers was stapled to Sakura's chair so his hand rested on an unconscious Sakura's thigh. Sasuke watched a trail of blood slowly leak on to the floor.
'Damn dobe…' Sasuke thought.
(Shadow In The Leaves)
Team 7 stood on the roof after a couple minutes. Sasuke managed to get himself free even though the shuriken kept shocking him.
"Okay, here's what's going to happen. Tell me your name, likes, dislikes, hobbies, and dreams for the future." Kakashi says.
"Why don't you go first Sensei?" Sakura suggests.
"My name is Kakashi. I have a lot of likes and dislikes, a few hobbies and I haven't really thought about the future. Pinkie?"
Sakura pouted. "My name is Sakura Haruno. I like…" Her eyes glanced at Sasuke. "I dislike Naruto!" Said boy shrugged. "My hobby is…and my dream is…" She released a fangirly scream.
'Fangirl…great…' Kakashi thought. "You next Duck boy."
Sasuke 'hmph'ed. "My name is Sasuke Uchiha. I like training, the Civilian Council and power anyway I can get it. I dislike fangirls, weakness and not getting what I want. My hobbies are planning the destruction of a certain someone and my dream is to kill said person and restore my clan with a strong kunoichi."
'Avenger…even better…' Kakashi thought with an inward sigh. "Blondie, you're up."
"My name is Naruto Uzumaki-Namikaze. I like training, my 'furry pal', ramen, going hunting, quality time with Jiji, the rain, an ANBU whose name was 'Inu' and my first sensei who was named 'Falcon'. I dislike rapists, people blinded by emotions, fangirls and the Council. My hobbies are training, meditating, hunting in the 'Forest of Death' and pissing off the Hyuuga Clan. My dream is to be a SSS-rank in the bingo books."
The other three went bug-eyed. "Why would you want that?" Kakashi asked.
Naruto smirked. "It seems like fun."
Kakashi shook his head. "Okay. Meet me at seven tomorrow at Training Ground Seven. Don't eat anything or you will barf."
With that said, the jonin shunshin'd away in a swirl of leaves.
Naruto disappeared also leaving Sakura to be turned down from a date with Sasuke privately.
As Naruto reappeared in front of his home an ANBU in a Bear mask appeared next to him.
"Naruto Uzumaki…the Council commands your presence at once." He said.
Naruto sighed, gave his consent allowing the ANBU to grab his shoulder and shunshin to the Council Room.
(Shadow In the Leaves)
Naruto, with an emotionless face stared at the bane of his existence.
'First they try to kill or banish me now they grovel and try to persuade me…the balls on these people…' Naruto thought.
"Naruto Uzumaki-Namikaze. You are now a registered genin so we would like to enact the CRA on you." Koharu stated.
Before she could get any further, the sound of laughter from Naruto interrupted her.
"Why do you laugh? That is disrespectful to your elders!" the pink-haired woman screeched.
"Now I see where Sakura gets it from." Naruto mumbled under his breath. "I'm not disrespecting her; I just think it is funny how you try to enact something on me that I don't even want."
"No no boy. You see, we are not telling you, we are ordering you." A civilian councilman clarified.
"I don't give two shits what you order! You are not my superiors." Naruto said to the civilian side, throwing an icy glare to each member.
"But it is necessary to build the Namikaze and Uzumaki clans back up! You must be put under a CRA!" the banshee screeched again.
Naruto sent a sympathetic look to the Inuzuka clan head. "I'm sorry about that volume. Your ears must hurt more than mine."
"Damn right." She huffed.
"BOY! YOU WILL BE UNDER THE CRA!" Homura shouted, trying to be intimidating.
Naruto turned his back on the civilian side and addressed the Shinobi side.
"Nara-sama, glad to see you in good health." Naruto politely said to Shikaku who merely gave a 'thumbs-up' in response with his head still down.
"Hyuuga-sama, how goes the clean-up?" Naruto asked innocently.
Hiashi ground his teeth.
"Naruto, is your final decision to defy the wishes of the Council?" Koharu asks. Naruto turns around, pondering the question.
"Actually, you can tell me why it's so important for me to have this CRA?" he asks, looking around the room.
His question is met by dead silence.
"Exactly what I thought," Naruto says into the silence, "You all see me as some kind of power up that can improve your power standing in this stupid Council. I won't be taking this CRA as I don't see the need for it."
Naruto bowed to the Shinobi side then sank into the shadows.
A couple moments later, the Sandaime walked in. "All of you have some explaining to do…Where are the deeds to the Namikaze Compound, the Uzumaki developmental lands and all the funds from Minato and Kushina's personal bank account?"
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