This idea kinda just hit me. I wanted to somehow show how Naruto went from a boy with a tortured childhood to a determined and joyful man. No one goes through shit like that unscathed. I figured his leaving Konoha would work nicely.
It was always said that Naruto was brimming with confidence in everything he did. He would be the next Hokage, he'd say, and so nothing was beyond him. He threw himself fully into everything he did, whether it was downing countless bowls of ramen, fighting with Sasuke, wooing Sakura, or training. Naruto seemed to be a living representation of relentlessly positive enthusiasm.
The sad part: much of that was Naruto's mask. To those who knew him well, Naruto was a well of awkward insecurity, his mask of bright confidence a shield meant to conceal his own inadequacy. It's difficult to blame him; Naruto did not have a happy childhood. The fact that the Fourth Hokage had saved the village by sealing the most powerful demon alive into him was supposed to make Naruto a hero to the village; the brave martyr who fought daily to keep the beast sealed, and would one day take it with him to the grave.
Suffice to say, it didn't work out that way. To most who knew the secret, Naruto was no hero. He was a constant reminder of the Kyuubi and all the destruction it had wrought, all the lives it had taken, and all the futures it had butchered. To those people, Naruto was the Kyuubi, and he was to be mocked, ostracized, and hated because it was only fair, and it made perfect sense to despise that which you don't understand, because if you didn't take the time to get to know the demon brat it was easy to treat him like dirt, right?
Naruto knew all of this. He knew he had a seal on his stomach, and that the seal contained a 300-foot long mass of living, breathing chakra with nine tails and a superiority complex. He knew why most citizens of Konoha hadn't ever had any respect for him. He also knew his personal limitations.
Having piss-poor chakra-control could be a real pain, but he had enough chakra to spare that it didn't often become a problem. He had a natural talent for bare-handed fighting, but since no one seemed to want to spend any time teaching him decent taijutsu, all he could do was brawl like a madman and hope for the best. His greatest asset: his inhuman endurance and chakra capacity was, for all he knew, completely the doing of the damn demonsealed up in his guts. Naruto was short and not very well muscled. He had a big, goofy grin that people said was childish.
That was only the half of it. Aside from those things, Naruto had also been dealt a shit hand in life as a shinobi. His first real teacher was lazy. The man was a real badass when it came to fighting, sure, but he'd only actually taught Naruto one actual technique: tree walking. The girl he liked was constantly belittling him, then abandoning him for an arrogant prick who didn't return her feelings one bit. Even worse, said love-ruining arrogant prick was the closest thing Naruto had to a brother and a best friend. Now he was gone, having abandoned Konoha to study under the sadistic freak that'd killed the closest thing Naruto had had to a grandfather.
He didn't get it. What had he done to deserve this? Goddamnit, why? Bottom line: he felt as if his life had gone south, way south.
These were Naruto's thoughts as he sat in the hospital, filled with equal amounts of wrath and shame, and not sure what to do or where to go from where he was.
That's when Jiraiya the Toad Sage, better known to his blond apprentice as Ero-sennin, showed up at the hospital window and explained that he and Naruto were going on a two-and-a-half year training mission outside of the village.
The blonde genin was both surprised and overjoyed. This was what he wanted, what he needed: the chance to get stronger. Naruto's shame and anger turned to drive, the fire in his gut to a raging inferno, and his tears to harsh determination.
As Jiraiya hopped back out of the window, he heard Naruto call him.
The voice was close to a sob, but strong. "Ero-sen…sensei?"
What? He called me sensei? He's never done that before. Jiraiya stuck his head back in the window."What is it, kid?"
"I'm a shinobi. A warrior, right?"
The Toad sage nodded, wondering where Naruto was going with this.
Naruto gave him a hard look, his eyes burning with such determination that Rock Lee would've been jealous.
"I'm gonna be serious now. I'll find Sasuke and bring him home if I have to drag him. I'll shatter the Akatsuki and send Orochimaru back to his village in a bodybag. And I will be Hokage." Naruto's voice dropped in volume and he gritted his teeth. "I will never lose again!"
Jiraiya smiled. The brat finally understood. That was the kind of attitude the sage had been trying to get out of his student. Shinobi had to be hard and determined. If you got beat down, you didn't cry like a baby over it. You moved on, or you fought like hell to fix things.
"Remember," he said, "Tsunade said you'd be out of here in a week. We'll be leaving soon after that."
Naruto nodded.
Jiraiya gave his apprentice another smile. "Later, kid. I might drop by with some ramen tomorrow."
*dattebayo*
Oddly enough, Jiraiya did, in fact, treat Naruto to Ichiraku ramen the next day, and the day after that. However, he'd said that was the limit, and he had some work to do before they left.
Naruto had left the hospital five days after that. He'd spent a day packing up almost everything he owned, which wasn't much. Some instant ramen, spare ninja tools, his frog wallet, gama-chan, and a couple extra sets of clothes.
Naruto had done a lot of thinking during his stay in the hospital.
Having decided to take his life as a shinobi seriously, Naruto also decided to be more appreciative of his precious people. He'd always treasured them, and he'd fight to the death for them if need be. They were all he had. Still, he decided that he would try to be more mature, and make sure he gave people good reason to respect him. His life had sucked for a good long while, but he had his friends now.
The next day he said his goodbyes, and was surprised by the reactions he got. Sakura had given him a tight—if a bit awkward—hug, and then told him to be kind to himself and to work hard.
Kakashi had, surprisingly, invited his student inside his house and given him a jutsu scroll and a firm handshake. The final thing the jonin had done, however, had shocked Naruto.
Flashback
Naruto tucked the scroll he'd just been given into one of the innumerable pockets on his orange pants. He appreciated the gift, he really did, but he was curious as to why and how Kakashi had put it together for him.
"Thanks, sensei, but when did you find the time to make this? And why would you give it to me now?"
The jonin gave his student a serious look. "I'm aware of my shortcomings, Naruto. I was not the best teacher I could have been." Kakashi shrugged. "I can at least give you something before you leave to make up for that."
Kakashi approached Naruto and grasped his student's shoulder. "I'm sorry, Naruto. I know I'm a much better assassin than an instructor, but maybe I can teach you more when you get back?"
Kakashi punctuated his hopeful offer with one of his trademark eye-smiles; his visible eye becoming a happy arch.
Naruto returned the smile with his signature grin. He rubbed the back of his head, glad that his lazy sensei did, in fact, care about him.
"I'd like that, sensei."
Kakashi had shown Naruto out and wished him good luck.
Flashback end
He'd gone searching for Team 10 next. The Ino-Shika-Cho trio had insisted that Naruto join them for barbeque, and he hadn't the heart to refuse when a still-bandaged Choji had offered him the last piece, along with a big smile. Asuma had shook his hand and wished him well, which surprised Naruto a bit since he had never said a single sentence to the bearded jonin.
Naruto had found Team 8 practicing at their usual spot in the woods. Kiba had given his rival a high-five and told him that he'd better shape up, because they were definitely fighting again when he came home—a proposition to which Naruto had immediately agreed.
Shino had given him a polite nod and wished him well.
Hinata had…well she had stuttered out a "Do your best, N-Naruto-kun," before launching herself at him, burying her head in his chest and sniffling. Naruto was alarmed by how upset she was, but it was nothing compared to his surprise when he hugged her back and she fainted dead away. Kiba had simply taken his teammate and laid her against a tree, chuckling, before apologizing and saying goodbye another time.
Naruto ran into Team Gai rather unexpectedly. Lee had tearfully given him the "nice-guy pose" and swore that they would have a "splendid contest of the competing flames of youth!" when Naruto returned.
Tenten had called him "one heck of ninja" for beating Neji, and given him a polite farewell.
When Naruto got to Neji, the Hyuuga had stared for a second, before offering Naruto his hand. As they shook, Neji had told him to become much stronger so they could fight seriously again. The legendary white eyes that held the Byakugan twinkled, and Neji offered his blond rival a small, yet genuine smile. Although Naruto didn't exactly relish a second fight with Neji, he laughed and gave his fellow genin a few none-too-gentle thumps on the back, which resulted in the rookie sputtering and trying to Jyuuken the blonde.
Naruto visited Ichiraku Ramen next. Ayame had nearly broken his ribcage with a hug, and Teuchi had given him a firm handshake and promises of a new menu when he returned, complete with a meal on the house. Naruto had almost shed a tear at leaving them behind, but swallowed it down and gave Teuchi and his daughter the patented "nice-guy pose" and promised to be "totally kickass" when he got back.
Naruto found Konohamaru and his pals in the street. He promised to be back, and was sad he wouldn't see them for a while. After all, the group of cadets worshipped him, and who doesn't love worship? Despite that, Naruto vacated the immediate area when Konohamaru said "Boss, let's fight! I'll show you my Sexy Jutsu!" Naruto did not want it getting out that he'd taught Konohamaru that technique.
Lastly, Naruto went off to the Hokage Tower. Shizune had given him a tight hug, which he returned. She'd wiped a tear away and told him to come back strong and handsome, eliciting a vibrant blush from the genin. Tsunade Senju, the Fifth Hokage, and one of the Sannin, got up from her desk and unashamedly pulled Naruto into a hug so tight the genin could swear that his ribs did actually crack. The fact that he was suffocating within the beautiful woman's rather generous cleavage did not help matters.
What's with women and trying to kill me hugs today?
Despite his discomfort, Naruto hugged the woman back. He felt a few tears touch his eyes. When he first met her, he immediately decided that Tsunade was a selfish old bitch. Then she was a surprisingly nice old bitch. Now, after spending weeks verbally sparring with Tsunade and just spending time with her as Hokage and shinobi, Naruto felt very comforted by her presence. She was like a grouchy aunt to him. A grouchy aunt who you messed with all the time, and then ran from to avoid retaliation. A grouchy aunt that you still loved with all your heart.
When she released him, Naruto looked into the Hokage's face, which bore both a few tears and a very gentle smile. The genin wiped his own eyes, knowing that if he started crying for real, he might not be able to stop. He was only leaving for two and a half years, he told himself. He'd be back. This was not goodbye.
He gave Tsunade one final squeeze, giving the Hokage's tight hugs a run for their money. She returned it with the same soft, gentle smile.
Naruto broke it off after a moment, then gave her his signature grin, rubbing the back of his head.
"Sorry I broke down a bit there…just wanted to see you guys before I went."
Tsunade wiped her eyes. "I'm glad you did, brat." She chuckled. "Now go on and quit keeping the perv waiting. You stand there any longer and I might try to keep you here."
Those words brought fresh emotion from Naruto. He'd been dealt a shit hand in life, yeah.
He used to be treated horribly, but he'd tried to change people's opinions a bit, and somewhat succeeded, what with his constant brightness, and beating Neji, and defending the village from Gaara during the Sand/Sound invasion.
His sensei was lazy, but he had a new one now, and Kakashi had apologized for his failings, and made an effort to rectify them.
He had his shortcomings as a ninja, but he was about to spend almost three years with one of the best shinobi in the world fixing them.
Sasuke was gone, but he could and would bring him back, and beat the crap out of the snake that stole him.
And finally, he had his precious people. He had his genin friends and the Konohamaru squad. He had the Konoha 12 senseis and Ero-sennin. He had Teuchi and Ayame-neechan. He had Tsunade and Shizune-neechan.
Naruto found himself needing to wipe his eyes again. He was not sad. He was happy. He had his precious people.
He held up a hand in farewell. "See ya later neechan. Later, oba-san." Naruto quickly dashed out the door.
Tsunade actually blushed at the new nickname. Auntie, huh? It's definitely better than "grandma."
Thirty minutes later, Naruto met Jiraiya at the gates with tightly-backed backpack and a smile.
The Toad Sage gave his apprentice an appraising look. "Ready, kid?"
Naruto nodded an affirmative.
Jiraiya returned the nod and took a deep breath. "All right then, Naruto, let's—"
"—Let's go kick ass! Dattebayo!" The blond shot off like a rocket out of the gate with a joyful cry. There was an audible *thunk* as Jiraiya's jaw made its acquaintance with the dirt.
The Sannin picked his jaw up and ran off after his hyperactive student. "Damn it, Naruto! YOU DON'T EVEN KNOW WHERE YOU'RE GOING!"
Oh, yeah, life in Konoha was going to be dull as hell for the next two and a half years.
Just some funny idea I felt like writing down. Let me know in a review what you thought and whether I ought to continue this as a story or just a couple training Oneshots.
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