From the shadows Inu kept a watchful eye on the pariah of Konoha. When he wasn't out on missions he volunteered himself to be the guardian of the kid. The blonde kid wasn't the most well behaved child, for example right now he was being chased by a shopkeeper for stealing a necklace, but Inu didn't intervene, not yet at least. Naruto wasn't the most liked among villagers, so stealing was sometimes his only way to survive. Naruto often proclaimed he wanted to be a shinobi in the future, and stealing was something ninja did, so Inu justified his tolerance of Naruto stealing by saying it was practice for the kid.
What was strange was that Naruto usually only stole food and clothing, or other necessities, but never any jewelery.
"You damn demon!" The chubby man chased after Naruto but this wasn't the kid's first chase.
"You cant catch me fatty!" Naruto taunted, then he suddenly turned a corner into an alley, momentarily out of Inu's sight.
Naruto slowed down in the dim alley. Trash littered the ground and cracks were spread across the ground and walls. Not a strange sight to Naruto who could only ever afford to live in decrepit neighborhoods. The boy's head swerved scanning the alley and bolted to a trash can that he pushed out of the way to reveal a small hole in the wall. It was only large enough to fit Naruto, who was a bit smaller than average.
"I think this is the right place," Naruto muttered before squeezing through the hole.
Outside the alley Inu searched for Naruto just as the shopkeeper did, but didn't spot him. This wasn't the first instance of this happening, in fact Inu had a procedure. Summon his dog Pakkun and Naruto would be found in minutes.
Once through the hole in the wall Naruto found himself in a storage room. Shelves lined the walls that held large wooden boxes filled with various things. Naruto gripped the necklace in his pocket. The only light in the room beamed in from a doorway.
"Hey I think the kid is back already guys, I heard something in the storage room."
"Damn, he was quick, let's get this done with."
The voices came from the past the doorway, and soon footsteps could be heard. Naurto just waited and decided to actually look at the necklace he had stolen. 3 men had told him to steal a necklace from that shop, and he decided to steal the most valuable looking one in hopes that he would be rewarded more generously, but when he got there the only thing he thought was worth anything was this beaded necklace with a cats paw in the center which didn't seem very expensive.
"Heh heh, so you got it done kid," A skinny man with sharp features and gaunt eyes entered the bleak room.
Naruto laughed and gave him a wide smile, "Yeah! That old shopkeeper didn't have a chance against me!"
2 other men entered the room, one was short, fat and bald, and the other was another skinny man with slanted eyes and a crooked nose. The fat one spoke, "Well let's see what you got us."
Opening his grasp Naruto presented the necklace with the paw in the center of his palm, "This was the best thing I could find."
"Wow, how ironic," The first man let out a dry chuckle with his words, "A cat's paw."
"Huh?" Naruto's stomach dropped, "Hey guys, can I get my reward and leave?"
The second skinny man let out a high pitched laugh but the fat one spoke, "I guess Cats don't bring good luck."
Naruto tried to turn around but was grabbed on the shoulder by the fat man, "You aren't leaving here."
"Let go you fucking creep!"
The guy with the crooked nose grabbed Naruto around the shoulders and held him still, "Hurry slit his throat to make it quick!" The man had a breathy voice that molested Naruto's ears.
"Get the fuck off me!" Naruto thrashed as the first man aimed slash at his neck, but Naruto kicked his capturers legs which gave in.
Naruto felt no pain in the moment, only the warmth of his own blood as it poured down his cheeks.
"You missed! Hurry kill the damn fox!"
Naruto couldn't see anything, but he twisted his way out of his holders arms. Blindly dashing, Naruto slipped and the last thing he heard was a high pitch chirping before his head hit the corner of a shelve.
"Oh god Kakashi, we need to get him to the hospital."
Kakashi acknowlegded Pakkun and swept the bodies of the men away with his foot before gently picking Naruto up.
"You can go now Pakkun," The dog gave a worrisome look to Kakashi before dispelling. In a whirlwind of leaves Kakashi was gone too.
He had failed to save someone again.
"Young Naruto is in the hospital."
"What!" Jaraiya had recognized the serious expression on his sensei's face when he entered his office and hadn't been expecting great news, but not this, "What happened!"
"A group of villagers attacked him, we have Kakashi to thank otherwise he would be dead." Jiraiya's face was pure anger. The civilians had not respected his student's wish at all, Naruto was supposed to be hailed.
"Why! Naruto is a hero, they should be hailing him!"
"Since you've been gone, you weren't able to see what villagers reaction to the Kyuubi's attack," Hiruzen had been looking at Jiraiya with a worried stern face, but his gaze hardened before speaking more, "Naruto is far from being perceived as a hero. In fact, many despise him, he's their "Demon"."
His student clenched his jaw. A wave of guilt washed over his conscience.
"And what of the attackers," His voice was cold.
"Dead," The Hokage took a puff from his pipe, "Kakashi killed all 3 of them on the spot," He took another puff, "None of them will have any respects payed to them."
"Good."
"Minato wouldn't want it to be this way."
Jiraiya shook his head, "No shit he wouldn't."
"I mean that he wouldn't want Naruto to have never met his godfather."
The guilt was pushing it's way to the front of Jiraya's mind, "I have to do my job, to keep Naruto safe inside the village."
Hiruzen sighed, "At least visit the boy in the hospital, he has been in a coma for almost a week now."
Jiraiya stood up to leave, but the words of his sensei lingered in his thoughts.
"Minato would have wanted you to."
Hiruzen exhaled another cloud of smoke.
The Hokage had a meeting that he was looking forward too. The old shinobi absently flipped through random files, but his mind was stuck on the recent events. The meeting was called by Danzo, one of his advisors, and the Hokage had a suspicion that Naruto would be the topic of discussion. After a few minutes Danzo entered the room.
Straight to the point was how Danzo often dealt his words, "The jinchuriki is blind. We must seek a more suitable container."
"And how might we do that," The Hokage responded, "Removing the Kyuubi would kill the boy."
"If that is the price it can not be helped," Hiruzen of all people knew that Danzo was not above killing children, "It is you who failed to handle our greatest weapon, had Inu not been there the boy would have been dead anyways."
"I will not allow Naruto to be killed."
"If he becomes a shinobi he will die on a mission as a genin, and if he doesn't then he is useless to Konoha," Danzo paused for a moment as the Hokage puffed on his pipe, "Though I do have an alternative course of action."
"You should have started with that."
Danzo internally celebrated.
Kakashi walked the street of Konoha with no intentions. He was wandering. Around him people were as joyous as ever, in fact some more than before. Naruto's absence was not unnoticed by many.
"I'm glad that brat is gone!"
"Yeah, I can't believe those guys really followed through with their plan!"
"We should probably thank them sometime!"
"You're right, I haven't seen any of them around lately though."
Kakashi caught himself glaring at the ground as he heard the conversation. He was disgusted that they could feel happy over the death of a child, and the ignorance of the civilians. The average non-ninja thought that Naruto wasn't a jinchuriki, and that the kid was the actual biijuu reincarnate.
2 medical genin ran past Kakashi carrying a stretcher with an injured person strapped down to it. Many genin who wanted to be medics would start off as paramedics that would transport the injured to hospitals quickly. The 2 genin entered the Konoha Hospital, the one that Naruto was at.
One slow step, and then another and Kakashi was entering the hospital too. He knew which room Naruto was in because he had brought him there, and in a minute Kakashi was at Naruto's door.
The jonin hesitated. He stood at the door peaking through the small window. Naruto laid in the sterile white room under thin sheets on top of an uncomfortable cot, yet he stayed resting unconscious breathing slowly. The boy had IVs hooked up to him by his arms to keep him hydrated and as healthy as they could. It was explained to Kakashi that Chakra had a major role in the healing of a person, and when Naruto hit his head his 2nd gate had been affected so his recovery would be stunted. It was nothing permanent, but it would take longer than normal for Naruto to be out of bed.
Hesitantly Kakashi twisted the door handle, and gently pushed the door open. Taking a step into the open doorway was all he dared to move.
"I'm sorry sensei."
"Huh?" Naruto stirred as he let out his rasp, "Where am I? Did someone say something?"
Kakashi didn't respond for more than a moment, "I'll tell the nurse you are awake."
That was Kakashi's farewell, he turned around and left the hospital.
"Woah, I feel like I've been sleeping forever!" Naruto touched his face, "Why are all these bandages on my face?"
Naruto stopped scrambling on his bed. He was starting to remember what happened, how he came through the hole in the wall, then the men. Anxiety welled up in his head as he remembered how he was slashed across the face, then finally the chirping. Even as a child Naruto knew what this meant for him. He had never met a blind shinobi, in fact Naruto had never even heard of a blind shinobi.
His hand balled up into fists and his jaw clenched, "I'm still going to be a ninja." He muttered his words with shallow hope.
"Oh you're awake Uzumaki-san," The nurse finally showed up, "Here, I'll hand you some water."
Naruto accepted the glass and downed it all.
"You know we didn't expect you to get up this quick," She seemed to be writing something on a note pad, "That was quite the hit to the hea-"
"Will I be allowed to enter the academy?"
Her writing stopped, "Uzumaki-san," She gathered her words carefully, "I-"
"Hema-san," It was a man who spoke, "I will handle young Naruto from here."
"Oh," She gathered her notepad and gave a quick bow before leaving.
"Hello Naruto, we have not met before," His tone was formal, "I will continue what Hema-san was explaining. Unfortunately the academy will not accept you, you are not from a clan so they will not make an exception either."
Naruto's knuckles were turning white.
"That does not mean you will never be a Ninja though. I am offering you to join me and I will train you."
"I accept."
"My training is not endurable to most people, you must understand."
"I don't care, I am going to become a ninja no matter what."
It was promise to himself.
"Hm, well then I will take you to your new living quarters and you're first day will be tomorrow," The man picked up an item from the bedside table, "A cat's paw. You are quite lucky to be under my supervision now."
"Who are you anyways?"
"My name is Danzo Shimura."