Title: A Daimyo's Love
Summary: As a favor to the Third Hokage and in order to please his wife, the Fire Daimyo takes Naruto in as a baby, hoping to raise him to become a great Hokage. Strong!Naruto.
Disclaimer: Don't own Naruto.

Prologue: The Very Beginning

bachiari

Sarutobi was worried. He glanced over at the baby sleeping in the make-shift cradle near his desk, and watched absently as the kid made soft baby sounds as he shifted in the fluffy blankets. He really looked a lot like his father; the hair was the same brilliant yellow, and when his eyes were open, the color was the same brilliant blue. The only thing that really set them apart was the whisker marks on the boy's cheeks.

However, the demon that resided in Naruto made him a prime target for abuse. Even without letting others know the boy's true origin, Naruto was in for a rough time. Sarutobi would've taken Naruto in for himself, but the Council wouldn't stand for it. Already, there were huge arguments of whether to execute or exile the boy, for almost everyone feared the demon inside of him. Some clan heads were silent about the issue, not wanting to get caught up in the fight, but silence and neutrality wouldn't save the boy.

Fortunately, Sarutobi had come up with a grand compromise. He had gotten a letter from the daimyo a while back, in which he complained rather eloquently about the lack of children his wife was giving him. He needed an heir soon, before he croaked, or else his advisors would be majorly angry. Though many did not know it, Sarutobi and the fire daimyo got along pretty well, especially since the daimyo admired his student Jiraiya so much. Sarutobi suspected it was because of the perverted books Jiraiya had written, but Sarutobi liked them too, so it wasn't as if he could complain.

Smiling, Sarutobi placed his hands in a familiar seal and made a shadow clone of himself. Leaving the shadow clone in the Hokage's seat, he leaned over and picked up the small baby. He also took a moment to gather some scrolls, placing a blood seal on them in order to make it more secure. While his Anbu and the council wouldn't like him leaving the village without any warning, he was the strongest ninja for a reason. Handing the small baby in his heads to Tenzou, his head captain Anbu who almost always watched over the Hokage, the two of them set off into the night.

When they arrived at the Daimyo's palace, the daimyo welcomed him with open arms. Sarutobi could tell that the man was extremely shocked at their arrival, and even more shocked that they had the gall to enter his bedroom without notice, but the daimyo didn't question it until they were all behind closed doors. Sarutobi knew it was rude, but he didn't want to risk anyone learning that Naruto was really from Konoha, lest they put two and two together and figure out that Naruto was actually the Nine Tail's vessel. Fortunately, no one in Konoha had seen the boy, so Naruto should be safe as long as he kept a low profile.

"Sarutobi, my old friend," started the daimyo, his mouth pulled into a confused frown. "What brings you to my humble abode?"

"Kazuki," started the Hokage, before the daimyo ushered him to a nice chair for him to rest. While the daimyo's palace wasn't too far, for it had only taken Tenzou and the Hokage a few hours running at a fast speed to reach there, it still slightly winded the old man. He wasn't as young as he used to be after all. Not to mention he had spent all his energy arguing with the council before they had set out. "Forgive me for coming on such short notice."

Kazuki raised his eyebrows, no doubt wondering what the Hokage was talking about. Forget short notice, there hadn't even been a notice. Kazuki didn't mention anything though, just nodding, and before leaving to rouse his wife from her side of the bed. She woke quietly, complaining under her breath that she needed her beauty sleep, before realizing that someone else was in the room. Her husband handed her the robe she had laid on one of the chairs, and she slipped it on before coming to stand next to her husband in front of the Hokage.

"Hello, Sarutobi-san," she spoke in her lilting tone and with a graceful smile on her face.

"Hello, Shimiji-san," smiled the Hokage. "I read your letter, Kazuki, and I heard about your problem relating to children. I have a newborn with me right now; however, his parents have died in a conflict and cannot raise him anymore. Due to special circumstances, no one in the village wants to take him in, and I fear for his safety if he remains in Konoha. I did not know where else to turn, and then I remembered the letter you had sent me. He is a bright child, and will do wonderfully in the palace."

Kazuki looked puzzled, and seemed to be mulling it over. However, Shimiji gave a happy squeal, clapping her hands together in excitement. "Kazuki, just think! A child of our own! But where is he? You said you brought him with you, right?"

Sarutobi smiled at the young wife of the daimyo; he rather liked her. "My assistant has him. Would you like to see him?"

"Yes, please."

Sarutobi didn't even bother to gesture to his Anbu, knowing that Tenzou would have been listening to the conversation anyway. Soon, the man entered through the window, being proficient enough to open the window and close it after him without the two civilians noticing. He handed the clothed baby to the wife, and she took him from him, not even mentioning how strange it was for Tenzou to be able to get in from the window. Apparently, Kazuki had already told her about the wonders of ninja and what they could do.

She cooed happily at the baby, lifting the cover of the hood to reveal baby blue eyes. Naruto stared up at her, his tiny lips pursed into a little confused pout, before suddenly lifting his arms up at her. He made a series of baby sounds, and Shimiji made another happy squeal. "Kazuki!" she excitedly yelped like a child. "I think he likes me." She smiled down at little Naruto with kindness in her eyes. Sarutobi couldn't help but think he had made the right choice in that very moment. Seeing Shimiji react in the way only a mother could, only made his heart soar with hope. Naruto would be given a family here, something that could have never happened in Konoha.

Kazuki left his wife cooing at Naruto to walk closer to Sarutobi, drawing him aside to talk to him in low tones. "Special circumstances? Sarutobi, just who were his parents?"

Sarutobi considered lying to the man for a split second, before coming to the decision that lying would do no good to his future parents. It was better for Kazuki to reject Naruto for who he is now, than to find out later and throw him out then. "His name is Naruto Namikaze. His parents were the Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze, and Kushina Uzumaki."

Kazuki mulled it over for a bit, before speaking up again, "But if he was the child of the Fourth Hokage, would not everyone want to adopt him? It is certainly prestigious."

"Kazuki, I have been your friend for many years now," started Sarutobi reluctantly. He did not want this to fail, because Sarutobi truly did not want to see Naruto resigned to a horrible fate in the village. "Trust me when I say this, this child is not a monster. A demon has been sealed inside of him, and he holds it back from destroying the world."

"A demon?" asked Kazuki, and Sarutobi took in his alarmed eyes and the way he glanced hurriedly back at his wife and knew the man was concerned.

"The Hokage himself gave up his life to seal it away. The seal is perfect, and will not break. The demon itself though, will bring Naruto to greatness." He knew he was pushing it on a little thick, but he really needed this to work.

Kazuki looked reluctant, but he continued the conversation, "So the villagers see him as the demon itself?"

Sarutobi sighed a long withering sigh, "Yes."

"That is foolish," finished Kazuki, and a small smile flittered over the man's face. "He is not the demon, himself; one only has to look at the baby to know that."

"Thank you, old friend," said Sarutobi, and he, himself, could not stop a smile from spreading across his face. "You have saved me a great deal of heartache."

Kazuki laughed, his eyes twinkling. "It helps that he is the son of the fourth Hokage, however. Wouldn't it be grand, if little Naruto himself, could become Hokage? It would only forge our ties even tighter, Sarutobi. Much better than trying to force my sister," here he scowled in memory, "to marry your Fourth Hokage. I am glad that she had run away, rather than being forced in a marriage she did not want."

Sarutobi nodded in agreement, remembering the chaos that had come with Kazuki's father's decree. Fearing rebellion from Konoha, the past daimyo had ordered Minato to take on his daughter as a wife. Fortunately, the girl had ran away with the man she had truly loved, saving Minato from giving up his life to marry a woman he did not love. It was through that hardship that Kazuki and he had become such good friends.

"I cannot take him as my heir, Sarutobi, but considering his lineage, he would not do fine in a pompous and stuffy position such as mine," murmured the man, though his eyes still held mirth. He was using the words Sarutobi had used himself to describe the position the man in front of him held. Rather than take it as an insult though, Kazuki enjoyed the description, agreeing that the position wasn't all it had been made out to be. "But, with your help and mine, we can make him into a grand Hokage."

Sarutobi nodded, a pleased smile on his face. "I only ask for you to allow him to visit Konoha to pass the genin test when he is twelve. He cannot be Hokage if he does not rise through the ranks after all."

"Of course, but in return, I am expecting the best tutors you can spare," said the daimyo seriously, though there was a hint of smile playing at his lips. "I am already thinking of asking my Twelve Guardians to mentor him, but it would be nice to have some scrolls for him to learn from. There are not many ninjas here, after all, old friend."

Sarutobi tilted his head, before reaching into his robe to pull out two tightly sealed scrolls. "The green one contains a skill called the Kage Bunshin. It would greatly aid his training. Do not give it to him until he tells you he cannot master the bunshin. I can already tell he is going to have great reserves, being the son of the Hokage himself, and also because he is Minato's son, he would most likely have great trouble with the technique. The second scroll contains a technique created by Minato himself, though he should only be given the scroll when he has proved himself a great ninja. Tenzou," he paused to gesture back toward his attendant who was now teaching Shimiji how to prepare baby milk, "will come tell you when. Both are only activated by his blood."

Kazuki made a funny face, "By his blood? Barbaric," he teased, but he took the scrolls with extreme care, setting them aside on his dresser. "Now come, I want to get a closer look at my new son."

And with that, Naruto's fate had been drastically changed.

Chapter 1: Fitting In

bachiari

It didn't take long for questions to pop up. Kazuki and Shimiji tried to integrate their newborn son as best as they could into their palace life, but no matter what they did, they could never keep the servants from gossiping. Thankfully, Shimiji had the foresight to use make-up to cover Naruto's whisker marks before anyone but their most loyal servants saw the marks, but even making his skin look flawless did not make the child look any more like the Daimyo.

Of course, Kazuki had announced to the palace that they had adopted Naruto (with the boy's bright blonde hair, there wasn't much they could do to lie that one off) but the main question still remained: where had the couple gotten the boy?

Fortunately, the position of the daimyo was revered for a reason. One didn't piss off the daimyo if one wanted to live. And as life progressed, there were still questions, but servants learned to keep their mouths shut, and foreign diplomats treated Naruto like he should be treated: a respected individual of the daimyo's family. It helped that with Naruto's sunkissed hair and baby blue eyes, the boy looked simply adorable. At least that's what Shimiji said, and what Shimiji said, most of the women dutifully repeated. Though Shimiji adamantly declared that her baby was the cutest out of them all, and that of course the women would love him.

Their new baby was very energetic. He would demand milk at the oddest times of the night, and he would drink large quantities of it. At first, Kazuki worried over it and had contacted Sarutobi about it, but had settled down about it once he realized that the boy would need lots of food to keep up his chakra reserves. He thought that the boy would grow fat, with all those extra unneeded calories, but apparently, the boy was energetic enough to keep skinny. When he had learned to crawl at six months, he went everywhere and the servants went frantic looking for him half the time. Luckily, the boy seemed to possess an extraordinary amount of luck and always turned up, unscathed, even among the multiple pieces of weaponry around the palace.

When Naruto turned three, Kazuki hired a private tutor for him. The man taught Naruto how to read and write, and once Naruto got that down, he was moved along to politics and government. If Naruto was going to become Hokage, he should have all the knowledge needed to succeed well. If it took strapping Naruto down to the chair to force him to read it, then so be it. The boy had far too much energy and more often than not, Kazuki would find him running around outside instead of studying diligently inside. Luckily, the bodyguards would help his tutor bring him back in, so not much time was lost in his studies.

As time progressed, and Naruto became a much more antsy child, his father reluctantly contacted Sarutobi once more, asking for a training schedule so that his son would at least be productive in his need to be outside. It took a while in coming, but eventually, Kazuki got the schedule and much other needed materials usually reserved for kids in the academy. He resolved to give them to Naruto when he got a bit older.

Eventually, when Naruto was five, he was given a training list compiled by Konoha's taijutsu master Gai. Naruto had never met the man, but because he wanted to be a better ninja, and because his father had advised him to follow the scroll, he followed the ninja's training schedule as closely as he could. Every morning, along with two bodyguards, Naruto would run a few laps around the palace's grounds. At first, he couldn't even complete one because well, the palace was pretty large. But eventually, he was able to work up to about five. After that, he was required to do some weight training, which his bodyguards, who were usually samurai, were eager to help him out with. With their help, he was able to grow strong muscles, even though he was so young. And on his sixth birthday, he got chakra-enhanced weights. Even though he was only allowed to put around five pounds on his feet, it was enough to make him start all over again, for he was having trouble with completing the first lap. At times like this, he just wanted to give up and lay there on the floor and never move again.

Unfortunately, Gai arrived at the very moment he had his face in the dirt, bemoaning his screaming muscles. When Naruto heard the footsteps though, he quickly changed his position, rolling over so that he could easily push himself into a standing position. However, when he tried to push himself up, he fell because of the weights he had on his feet. He landed on his bottom harshly, knocking the wind out of him. Naruto's face became hot, embarrassed that he had messed up so badly in front of the new sensei.

However, he needn't have worried. Immediately, the man jumped forward and helped him up with practiced ease, all the while smiling the biggest smile ever known to mankind. Now, Naruto understood why his parents had told him he would know who Gai was the minute he saw him. Who else decided to wear green spandex and keep their hair in a bowl cut? But to five-year-old Naruto, Gai's appearance only made him smile, and not laugh.

Once Naruto was standing, Gai announced proudly, "It is I, the Green Beast of Konoha, who is going to make your youthfulness shine! Do not worry, for I can teach you many things, little one. Now tell me, how far are you along in taijutsu, little Naruto?"

Naruto blinked as the words washed over his brain, and he silently thanked the sensei who had taught him how to read and write since he was three; it was a wonder that Naruto could even understand half of the words Gai had said so quickly. "Uhm, I don't know anything in taijutsu, actually." He trailed off, still embarrassed, before quickly adding, "Gai-sensei."

Gai paused and suddenly he crouched down so he was looking face to face with a young Naruto. "Would you say you are a hard worker, Naruto?"

"Well, I do train every day. I follow your schedule!" he blurted out, and then gave a tentative smile at the serious looking man in front of him, his little teeth biting his lip in worry.

Gai suddenly grinned, and the smile almost blinded Naruto, "Then we will have no problems! Let us start," he proclaimed happily, and then started to teach Naruto the first forms of a taijutsu kata.

When Naruto was six, his mother came down with a cold. Or at least, that's what his six-year-old-mind thought it was. Every morning, after having a quick, small breakfast with his father and mother, his mother would rush to their grand bathroom. Naruto was young, but even he knew that his mother was throwing up in their restroom. Kazuki would tell Naruto to go off to his training (his even more rigorous training with heavier weights and more laps) and then head off to check up on his wife.

This continued for a month or so, before Kazuki sat Naruto down after breakfast.

"Son," he started seriously, "I need to tell you something."

Naruto blinked at the serious tone, before catching on. "Father, I know I'm adopted."

"I – wait, that wasn't what I was going to say." His father uncharacteristically stumbled over his words before Naruto's words sunk in. "Who told you?" he asked, his eyes wide in shock.

Naruto sighed, "I have blonde hair. Mother and you both have black. Unless you bleach my hair every day without me knowing, I'm pretty sure I'm adopted."

His father paused, his mouth wide open, before he shut it with a smile. "See, I knew you knew. Your mother thought you were still oblivious." He reached out and ruffled his son's hair.

Naruto laughed at that, a small smile on his face. "Well, Mother still thinks I'm still a little kid, so it shouldn't be that surprising."

"True," agreed the daimyo, before becoming serious again. "Your mother's pregnant."

"Pregnant?"

"It means she's going to have a kid, Naruto."

Naruto blinked, his mouth pursed into an 'o' shape. "Oh," he said quietly.

"Naruto," started the man softly, before leaning over and placing his son's small hands into his own large ones. "Just because we are not blood-related does not mean we do not love you. I don't say it very often, but you must know I love you. And just because you are going to be having a sibling soon does not automatically make you second-best in our eyes just because we adopted you. We love you, Naruto."

Naruto trembled a bit before letting a small smile shine through, "Daddy," he reverted back to his childish nickname for his father, "I want to ask something."

"Go ahead," Kazuki answered as gently as he could.

"I'm not going to be the next daimyo, am I?"

Naruto was really intelligent, mused the daimyo. He supposed it was his own fault for hiring a private tutor for the boy when he was only three. "No, you are not," he answered truthfully. "But not because we do not love you."

"But because I'm adopted, right?"

"Yes, but also because you are destined to become something great." He brushed a stray hair out of his son's face, trying to keep eye contact with his son's expressive blue eyes. Really, the villagers back at Konoha were idiots for thinking such a mature and intelligent child was a demon.

Naruto scoffed, even though tears were threatening to fall from his eyes, "You're lying, Daddy. Daimyo's the greatest thing to be. You're a daimyo, daddy! But now you say I'm not going to take after you, and you still say I'm going to be something great."

At the end of the mini-tirade, a few tears dropped from the boy's eyes, landing onto Kazuki's hands which still covered his own. Naruto had tried to jerk his hand away, but Kazuki kept his firm grip, forcing his softly crying son to look back at him.

"Naruto, have you seen my job?"

Naruto paused in his crying as he noticed his father's serious tone. Confused, he slowly nodded his head.

"Do you really think daimyo's are great? Do you think the people think I am great? Most of them fear me, Naruto. Now, you may think it is respect, but it is not. I have done nothing to deserve the position of daimyo; my father handed it down to me when he got too old to continue ruling. The position gives me a way to ensure your mother and your happiness, but it involves a lot of groveling and stress as well. I would name you my successor in an instant, but the advisors won't stand for it."

"But the people love you," pointed out Naruto, his lip still quivering but his tears stopped because of his amazement at his father's words.

"Yes, but only because I've worked hard to maintain this land, Naruto."

Naruto quivered, and they both sat still in silence as little Naruto processed his father's words. After a while, he spoke up again, "Then why did you do it? Why did you become daimyo, Daddy?"

Kazuki let a smile grace his face, "Because it was expected of me. I was the only male offspring, and I couldn't let my father down. If I could've run off, I probably would have. I have to make a lot of hard decisions, decisions that sometimes make me sick to my stomach."

Naruto finally gave a little laugh, "Daddy, you're not making it sound any less cool. I still want to be daimyo."

Kazuki laughed with his son, "Hold on, I'm going about this wrong. Okay, I wasn't planning on telling you this anytime soon, but I guess now is a good as a time as ever. Naruto, your real father was a ninja."

"Ninja? Really? That's so cool!" blurted out Naruto before he even noticed what he was saying. He flushed a second later, "Not that being the daimyo isn't cool."

Kazuki simply smiled, "He was not any ninja though. He was the Hokage. The Fourth Hokage."

Naruto paused, and Kazuki could practically see the gears turning in his son's head as he tried to remember what he knew about the Fourth Hokage. "He died protecting the village," Naruto finally said in a flat and expressionless voice. "Why did he sacrifice himself when he had me?"

"Naruto, that is why he sacrificed himself. He had to protect you, and his Village. If he had to give himself up for the land he loved, then he would. That is what a true leader is. Not a Daimyo, but a Hokage. And that is what you are destined for, Naruto."

"I," started Naruto, before tears flooded his blue eyes. "I don't know what to say," he finished lamely.

"Naruto, the people loved him. And he loved them, too. Do you know Konoha has their Hokage's faces carved into a mountain? Wouldn't you like to have your face carved into a mountain?"

The question brought a smile to Naruto's face, even with the tears still running down. "Maybe."

"That's my boy," said Kazuki, and he ruffled the boy's head. "Now come, let's go tell your mother you know about the baby."

A few months after that fateful conversation with his father, Naruto decided he wanted to learn how to mold chakra. When he told his father, Kazuki had simply ruffled his hair, a habit the old man had taken to ever since that conversation, and told him he would meet Asuma in the afternoon.

Asuma was one of the twelve guardians, a group of ninja that guarded his father almost religiously, and he was a super laidback guy. Naruto was a little put out that he was getting someone like that, but when he finally met the guy, Naruto found himself actually liking him.

And when he learned that the man was the Hokage's son, he couldn't help himself from asking a few questions.

"Asuma-sensei," he started when they had reached a lapse in their training. Naruto had been trying all morning to mold his chakra, and while he accomplished it in the first three tries, Asuma had suggested practicing it a bit more so that the action would become almost instinctual. Now the two were simply lying on their backs, staring up at the sky with relaxed expressions. "Do you ever feel as if you have to become Hokage?"

Asuma spluttered, and almost dropped the cigarette in his mouth. He wasn't allowed to light it, under Shimiji's orders, but he claimed that the feel of it in his mouth calmed him. "Why would I want that?" he asked in genuine curiosity.

"Because your father was Hokage?" asked Naruto meekly.

"Just because my old man was the Hokage doesn't mean that I want to be one. Me, I prefer a less stressful life."

"But don't you feel as if you're disappointing him? Like you're not going to be as great as he was? Don't you feel pressured to make him proud?"

"Naruto," started Asuma, and he suddenly reached out and grabbed Naruto, rubbing his head hard with one hand. "You silly brat. I'm not a parent, but I know parents are proud of their kids no matter what. Are you telling me that you want to be daimyo just because your father is?"

"I…can't be daimyo anyway," answered Naruto with a resigned tone.

"Look, Naruto, do you truly want to become daimyo? Do you care about riches and esteem?"

Naruto scrunched his eyebrows together, "No, not really."

"Or are you just chasing the dream because you want to make your father proud? Now, it may sound selfish, but sometimes you have to think about yourself."

"I…"

Asuma suddenly straightened up, "Okay, let's start training. Enough with all this philosophical stuff; you're going to turn me into my father or something. Watch closely, I'll teach you a jutsu named Henge. It allows you to change your appearance." He suddenly placed his hands into a handseal, doing it slowly enough so Naruto could see the seal, before smoke suddenly billowed out. When it cleared, another Naruto was standing there, a similar grin on his face. After a moment, Asuma dispelled the transformation.

Naruto's jaw dropped, "You looked exactly like me, Asuma-sensei! Let me try…" he placed his hands into the same handseal, before closing his eyes to concentrate. He focused on the chakra at his disposal, using the same technique he had used earlier to mold it. He ignored the fact that Asuma hadn't really explained how to use it for Henge, instead guessing that he would have to use about a handful of his chakra.

As he concentrated, chakra became visible around him, startling Asuma into actually dropping his cigarette. Before the man could tell the boy to stop, Naruto shouted out, "Henge!" and transformed. In front of him, stood a picture-perfect replica of the Daimyo.

Asuma gaped at it, even as the "Daimyo" jumped up and down in joy.

"Asuma, Asuma, I did it!"

It took a while for Asuma to react, "How much chakra did you put into that technique?"

It was a little weird to see the Daimyo scratch his head sheepishly, "Uh, I don't know. I can't really control it…it just bursts out."

"I wonder…" murmured Asuma as he stared at the man. "Naruto, give me your hand."

Naruto did, and Asuma marveled how it felt real to the touch. "Oh, oops."

"What's wrong?" asked Naruto.

"Forgot to tell you that the transformation technique's actually an illusion," laughed Asuma. "But this is good. I think it's actually better this way."

"I don't really follow you, Asuma-sensei."

"Well, the real technique is like a layer on top of a layer. In fact, I'm a little surprised that you could actually make this henge real."

"Of course! That's because I'm awesome," grinned Naruto.

Asuma rolled his eyes, "Of course you are. Well, the real technique was actually a test of your chakra control...anyway, your Henge is perfect like this. Keep it this way. Okay, well to dispel the Henge, you place your hands into this handseal, and simply act as if you're drawing the chakra you used back into your body."

Naruto closed his eyes again, and soon a 'poof' was heard as Naruto dispelled the technique. "That was so cool, sensei! Teach me something else!"

Asuma sighed; Naruto was lucky that he was the daimyo's son or else Asuma wouldn't be taking this as seriously as he was. "But I just taught you one," he couldn't help but to point out a little petulantly.

"But you said it yourself! My henge's perfect already."

Asuma sighed once more, before moving to teach Naruto the handseals for Kawarimi, the substitution technique.

When he signed up to become one of the Twelve Guardians, he certainly didn't think it would require this much working. It was really going to be a long six years.

Six months later found little Naruto looking down at a chubby little face. The baby was adorable. There were no other words to describe it.

Naruto let out a little happy laugh as he gave the boy his finger, and watched as the little hand closed around it. He laughed again at the sensation, a smile spreading across his little face.

Shimiji turned to look at her son, "Naruto…"

Naruto glanced up, "Oops. Did I wake you up, Mother?"

"No one's here," smiled Shimiji, albeit tiredly, "You can call me Mommy."

"Er, well, okay, Mommy. Sorry for waking you."

"It's no problem, Naruto."

They spent a few minutes in silence, before both of them tried to speak at the same time. Flushed, Naruto let his mother speak first.

"Ever the gentleman," laughed his mother. "Naruto, I'm sorry you can't become daimyo."

Naruto's face became serious, "He's going to be the daimyo, right?"

Shimiji nodded sadly, "Naruto…"

Naruto suddenly brightened up, "Mommy, I don't want to become daimyo."

"You don't?"

"I realized it now. I want to protect people using my own strength. Ever since Daddy had that conversation with me, I realized that I wanted to become daimyo just because Daddy was one. I didn't really want to become one. I," he paused, before looking back down at the baby's face, "think I want to become Hokage.

"And not just because Daddy suggested it either or because my birth father was Hokage. But because I want to protect people. I've always wanted to. And I never knew it until I saw my baby brother's face. I guess I should thank you, shouldn't I? Thank you…" he trailed off, before suddenly scrunching his face in the most adorable expression. "What's his name, Mommy?"

"Shouji."

"Thank you, Shouji."

And that was the day that Naruto decided that instead of chasing after a dream that he had only wanted because he wanted to be like his father, he would chase after a dream that he truly wanted and belonged to him.

A/N: Sorry for the shortness of the chapter. I just wanted to throw this idea out there, and see how it's received. xD.

Quick question: where does everyone get the translations to the jutsus they make up?

Thanks for reading! Please remember to review and fav :)