Academy

Failure!

For the Sake of Singularity

~ Forenote ~

Chapter Has been revised: March. 2016

Hinata watched from behind a tree, as Naruto walked out of the exam room. She had been waiting there to see if he had passed. But the look on his face as he walked out, told her the answer.

He had failed.

It meant that he wouldn't be on any team. And that meant this was probably the last time she would have the chance to tell him.

Except...

He just looked so down.

She thought maybe it would cheer him up to be liked, but... what if he didn't accept her feelings? What if he thought she was just pitying him?

Besides, the Hyuuga knew that Naruto liked Sakura. He was constantly asking her out. Though, Hinata knew Naruto would never give up and if she wanted him to like her, then she couldn't either. She just didn't know if it would end up as another failure.

Then, in what to a normal person would seem like the blink of an eye, Naruto was gone. However, for a ninja and more so for a Hyuuga, sight was different. Hinata was able to see that he was running, and so fast, it seemed her eyes had trouble seeing him run as well. It looked like he was headed to the training grounds.

She thought for a moment.

Even though he had failed, he was still going to train! He was always so strong like that. If he could fail and get back at it, then so could she! And even if she failed to tell him now, she could at least tell somebody her feelings for Naruto. She would wait until the next time she saw him, and then she would confess.

0o0o0

Izumo was just about to get off duty at the gate. His replacement was late, and he was dozing off a bit. Therefor, to stay awake, he leaned the chair back and balanced on it.

He wasn't sure if he had really seen it or started to doze again, but an orange flash of light seemed to whip by.

He was so shocked that he lost his balance and fell backwards, landing with a large thud.

0o0o0

Naruto ran through the forest, away from the teachers, away from his classmates, away from the looks and glares and the laughter that would come with them, out of the village. He couldn't stand to be there anymore. He wouldn't just sit there like the last two times and feel the gloating of the villagers as they laughed at him.

After going a considerable distance he stopped, he sat down on the ground and just cried. How could he fail it again? He just couldn't stand it. It was like fate itself thought he should fail. He tried soo hard. But he couldn't make any clones. Why? If he was just going to fail again, then why bother?

It hurt knowing that the others would get to go on and become Genin but he would have to take the class over. He'd be a year older than all the other students. Raising his fist he slammed it against the trunk of a nearby tree. The punch left a hole in the bark, and tore his knuckles open. He was angry, mostly at himself. What had he missed? He must not understand the jutsu, he just needed to make it work this time.

Forming the seal he tried to make a clone and each time it failed he punched the tree as his anger slowly turned to despair.

0o0o0

There were five of them in the office that night. Three were Jonin, ready to take on students, the Sandaime's own son among them. Another one, was the Hokage, whose crystal ball gave the images of various Genin to be. "Well, I'm afraid one of you will only be getting two students."

Kakashi, the masked Jonin, raised his hand, "I think I'd like to be the one. I could say I'm spending more time training the Uchiha, that way." The council had already gotten on his case about his lax attitude concerning the boy's training. The others simply shrugged as they had made their picks known. "Very well Kakashi-kun, you will take the Uchiha and Miss Haruno-"

"Lord Hokage, it's bad!" One of the Hokage's Chunin runners, burst into the office. "Somebody has stolen the Scroll of Forbidden Seals, the suspect is unknown, but our pursuing shinobi have reported that Naruto was seen in the area! Even now, nobody can find him."

"Gather the Jonin, this is more than just a prank, we must find Naruto at once!" The Hokage shouted. This was bad, he couldn't get Naruto out of this one. How had Naruto even found out about the scroll anyway?

0o0o0

As he leaped through the forest, Mizuki fumed. Naruto had been nowhere to be found, his plan had almost failed because that little brat had disappeared. When he found out that the Chunin on duty had thought he saw an orange blur leave the village, Mizuki was saved! Naruto left the village! He would have no alibi and Mizuki could blame it on him anyway. At least that was what he thought until the Inuzuka bitch caught him. It wouldn't matter though, he didn't need to go back now.

As the traitorous thief passed over a clearing he spotted something. "Well thank my luck," Mizuki spoke out. "Just who I was looking for."

Naruto turned towards his sensei's voice just in time for the giant shuriken to catch him in the back.

Mizuki grinned to himself as he dropped down to the body to retrieve his blade. But Naruto wasn't dead. He even started to get back up. So he quickly ran up and snapped the brat's neck.

The little brat may have survived that too if the shuriken wasn't enough, Mizuki realized. The little bastard must be drawing on the fox to stay alive. So picking up Naruto's hands, with a crunch as he crushed the bones in the brat's fingers, the man put a foot on the kid's back and popped the tiny shoulders. At that angle the shoulder sockets shattered. Then he pressed even more and snapped the boy's spine too. He yanked his giant shuriken out of the demons back and bent down to slit his throat as well.

That done, the Chunin stowed his tools of death and leapt back into the trees, knowing that for this action, he would be praised by most of the village, even after the crime of stealing the scroll.

0o0o0

Hana Inuzuka and the triplets were leading the search. She had been the first one to spot Naruto as he left the Hokage tower, but the brat was fast, she just couldn't keep up. So she summoned some help and began tracking him. Finally the scent was good. All three of her hounds began moving in for the kill. They found him. But he had already been taken down!

Her ninken whined, turning to the anbu the Inuzuka relaid their message. "This isn't the prey..."

"What?" One of the Anbu who had joined her pursuit asked. "But Inuzuka-san, We all saw him. It was Naruto carrying the scroll. And here he is."

"This isn't the prey" She repeated, more firmly this time. "His scent is different, and he's been here for hours.

"What should we do about it?" One of them asked.

"We better bring him to the hospital, he's badly injured." She replied.

"It would be a better decision to just leave him for dead, get rid of it."

The Anbu who had spoken gave a grunt and toppled forward.

"When he wakes, tell him he has an appointment with Ibiki-san." Behind the fallen Anbu, the man who had knocked him unconscious adjusted his shaded glasses, then stepped over the body and bent down to examine Naruto.

All of Naruto's fingers were broken, as well as his neck, shoulders and spinal cord. There was also a large wound on his back, obviously made by an Oma shuriken.

After a moment he picked the boy up and disappeared in a puff of smoke.

0o0o0

When Naruto woke up, he was back in his personal room at the hospital. It was in a wing all by itself, with security and no one for him to bother.

After a little more sleep he was woken up again, this time by the Hokage coming in. "Hey gramps! What happened to me this time?"

That he could ask such a question and so nonchalantly, the Sandaime's heart ached. "Naruto-chan, how are you feeling today?"

The boy looked at his hands in casts and tried to turn his neck, then huffed at the incapability. "How long before these are healed? I need to train! If I can't get that clone jutsu down I'll never pass!"

The aged shinobi swallowed his pity for the boy. "Naruto, about that, I think the academy has given all it's got to offer…"

'Wait!' thought the desperate child, 'Did he mean what it sounded like? Oh no! Why? He tried, why would they kick him out?'

"I think it would be best if we re-assigned you to an indivi—"

"No gramps! Give me another chance," The young boy pleaded. "I can make Genin this time, I'm sure of it! Don't drop me out of the program… please!"

Seeing Naruto so desperate, the elder couldn't bring himself to refuse. "Very well, however, I will be assigning a private tutor to help you study."

0o0o0

In the council chambers, the civilians were anticipating something they had wanted for 12 years, and the Jonin... well, they didn't quite believe these charges could be true. Several had already confirmed them to be false.

But the few council members who had actually seen the boy being chased and had been the ones that told the rest of them, were still adamant about it. When the alarms were called, IT had been the one they'd seen.

As they waited for the Hokage to arrive, a procession of Anbu and a very badly beaten Chunin entered. Or rather, the Chunin was dragged in.

When this happened, the civilians exploded in uproar. This was going to be the sentencing of the demon. Why was a Chunin brought in?

"Settle down." The Hokage had arrived. "We are here today to sentence Chunin Mizuki for the crime of treason."

"But it was the Uzumaki kid who stole the scroll!" Glaring at the one Jonin who hadn't figured it out already, Inuzuka Tsume growled.

"Do you honestly think a kid who can't even pass the Genin exam could steal such an important document?" The Inuzuka Matriarch continued "My daughter herself confirmed this man to be the criminal!"

Hearing this, all of the Jonin and most of the civilians voiced their agreement. The Chunin must have done an exceptional henge of the demon. While it would have been difficult to fool those he had, there was no way it could have stolen the scroll.

0o0o0

Naruto was let out of the hospital almost an hour after noon. The blond was broken, and not just in body. He had been hurt many times, but he didn't even know what happened this time. From the casts, he could guess. They hated him, that was why he failed. He knew that the clone jutsu wasn't required for all graduates. During the last year there was a boy who had graduated without any of the Academy Three. He thought could deal with it, he always had... This time though, even the Hokage, the Old Man! Who had been there for him always, had given up on him! He was ready to remove him from the academy!

As the bandaged boy walked home, he barely noticed anyone in the streets, until he saw the Uchiha. The genius was obviously heading out from the academy, maybe their lunch was late?

The Uchiha grinned and asked Naruto if the tradition of failures staying at home had changed. Behind Sasuke, Sakura had just turned a corner several blocks away. Naruto thought as his depression lifted slightly, 'this is my final chance to see what she thinks of me.'

0o0o0

Kiba, Shino, and Hinata were eating in a restaurant getting to know each other better. It mainly consisted of Kiba asking the other two irrelevant questions. Shino answered most questions silently, but then, Kiba had the habit of asking questions that required verbal answers.

So over this meal, he was speaking to two of his classmates more than he had spoken to the total of them for the entire past month. Kiba was rather energetic and finally he mentioned something very relevant in his bragging.

"My sister was the one who finally caught the thief!" He exclaimed. "That guy was sure he had escaped but my sister's nose was able to track his scent in minutes!"

The declaration sounded as if it was meant to boost his own ranking, even when his sister was the one who had actually done the deed. Although, Shino could understand his pride in his clan.

Then Kiba's voice dropped. "She said she passed a little boy in orange who had been hurt on her way. She of course sent someone to help him."

Kiba had obviously only been told because he knew the boy who had been hurt, there had been a few rumors that he had been the one to steal the scroll. Shino's parents discussed the idiocy of the civilian council at length over their morning meal earlier that day.

The reaction that statement received, was most likely the cause of the decrease in volume. As he had expected Hinata was upset. She appeared about to burst into tears. Of course, before she had the chance to ask, Kiba hurriedly continued.

"She wouldn't tell me who it was or why he was out there, but she did say she checked up on him after she had been debriefed this morning. He had every one of his fingers broken and his back had a big hole in it. Her guess is that the thief got him with an Oma shuriken in hopes that he would distract any pursuers and give them more time to escape. But he should be fine otherwise."

Kiba had probably been trying to make that sound less bad than it was. Shino also knew he was holding back on a few things that would probably worsen the situation, but it did little to comfort Hinata who had gone pale.

A ninja's fingers were his tool of the trade. Without functioning fingers, most Ninjutsu was impossible. Hinata had also come to the conclusion about who the orange boy was. They had all heard about the ninja who didn't give up.

Hinata had done some bragging on him during their introduction yesterday, and everyone in the class knew how he believed he would become the Hokage someday. He would have a hard time doing it with no fingers.

0o0o0

Their Jonin was quite easy going and had practically tried to become their best friend as well as their teacher. "I am Yuuhi Kurenai, a specialist with various types of genjutsu. I like to study human psychology, sing karaoke, and work in my garden. I dislike loud drunks and people who are gender prejudice. My most urgent goal is to see all three of you become Jonin."

She seemed to look at Hinata with reassurance during the last of that speech. Then Kiba spoke up. "I'm Inuzuka Kiba, and this is Akamaru"

The loud Genin took a dog out of the hood of his fur-lined coat and held him out. As if to acknowledge his introduction, Akamaru let out a series of short yips and barks.

"Both my mom and sister are ninjas and I hate when animals are treated like trash, just because they aren't human. My goal is to train with Akamaru and become one of the best in my clan"

Shino was sure that the mention of Kiba's family members was directly resulted from Kurenai-sensei's gender comment.

Hinata was the next to speak up. "My name is… Hyuuga Hinata." She was evidently shy. Shino wondered if that had anything to do with the large welt on the side of her face or the reason she smelled so strongly of soap.

"I like reading and, and, I don't like cruelty. And my, my goal is, is to make… to make my father p-proud. And! I…." At this point Shino had known she was about to say something she thought inappropriate.

But that probably didn't mean much. The Hyuuga's were a clan of people who believed themselves higher than everybody else.

"I... I... I am in love with Naruto Uzumaki!" She had had obvious difficulty saying that and Shino couldn't blame her. He was so surprised at just hearing it that he jerked his head to look at her in shock. Which to anyone not familiar with the Aburame clan would have merely appeared to be a slightly quick turn of the head.

A declaration like that would probably get her slapped by her father -or rather, it looked as if it had already- "He, he never gives up and neither will I!"

After that, Shino's own introduction sounded exceptionally plain. Their Jonin however could only grin like she had seen the funniest thing in her life. Shino did understand the irony but saw much less humor in it. The daughter of the head family of the most "refined" clan in the village falling in love with the village pariah. It was like something out of a romance fiction.

0o0o0

Knowing how Hinata felt about Naruto played a big part in what they said to her. Resulting in news like this to be extremely precarious. Both Shino and Kiba knew that Hinata would be crushed if Naruto were to be forced to give up his dreams and Shino was already devising a way to use this to motivate her.

"Hinata as your teammate, I feel I must ask your intentions if this person really is Naruto. I realize how much he means to you and don't believe he would appreciate you giving up, if he were to be forced to. Instead of losing your resolve you might be better redoubling it. So that if he fails you can make up for it, and succeed in his place.

Kiba looked at him as if he was relieved that someone else had spoken up. And Hinata's face seemed to regain some color. It was only fated luck that Naruto could have walked right past the window.

As he did, they paid for their food and got up to see him. Hinata was naturally quick to see him, but for the other two... It was more of a matter of finding out how he had survived a broken neck and spine.

For a short second, Shino almost believed that the information was wrong. But sure enough, there was Naruto, in a neck brace and his bandaged back was visible through the tear in his shirt. He was also sporting two whole hand casts. Casts that snapped as his fingers bunched in into fists. Naruto then, launched himself at Sasuke.

For someone as injured as him, it was surprising to see him take on the top of the class. This was likely even more so for the rookie himself, Sasuke didn't even get a chance.

Naruto hit the unsuspecting boy in the jaw with a right hook and then continued to twist around to an odd angle and punched his stomach with his other hand as he untwisted.

Then he twisted again and placed his hand on the ground and bent his right leg in half behind him as he brought his left foot up into the bottom off balanced Genin's jaw. Naruto probably could have killed him by bringing it down just a bit and hitting the jugular.

As it was, the audible click as Sasuke was lifted off the ground was a sure sign of broken teeth. Before Sasuke landed on his back, Naruto pushed up with his right arm, which he had currently been doing a handstand on, and flipped over to land on his feet.

Sasuke unconscious on the ground and victory achieved, Naruto created a genjutsu image of Sasuke, and walked away. No bragging that he had beaten the genius and no sign of guilt either. He just seemed determined.

Why the illusion, Shino could only guess. Hinata started to follow him and then stopped. Now her bravery during the introductions was going to pay off. "Go for it! And good luck," Urged Kiba. Hearing this seemed to be the boost her confidence needed and she took off. Maybe this time she would be able to tell him.

0o0o0

Hinata followed Naruto as he went down the street and up another. His pace was extraordinary even though it looked like he was just taking a stroll.

He saw Sakura and ran up to her. She immediately turned and asked, "Oh? Did you change your mind about eating lunch with me?"

"Yeah, I guess."

She put her arm in his and leaned in. Silently Naruto was happy, but there was a conflict in that she thought it was Sasuke-teme.

When Hinata saw him do that, she lost her confidence, but she would follow and see what happened.

"So Naruto was the only one not to pass the first test."

"Yeah, and it's a good thing too. If he did, he might have been on our team. I think I'd quit being a ninja if that happened. Being on a team with him would get us killed!"

Naruto's shock was concealed by the genjutsu, but Hinata was able to see through it. She knew that had to hurt.

"Besides he doesn't deserve to be a ninja. Killing him by myself would be easier than being forced to cover for his stupidity! And if he was on our team, I think I actually would have. There's nothing stealthy about bragging over things you haven't even done and hitting on your classmates."

Hinata swallowed, She would actually kill him instead of be on his team! With her byakugan active she could tell her love was ready to cry.

"Well, you seem to hit on Sasuke a lot." Oh no! He had slipped! Thankfully Sakura had assumed he had been talking in the third person.

"Yeah well, I like Sasuke, and he is more ninja than Naruto-baka will ever be."

Sakura turned to him and it seemed to be that she was going to kiss him, but he just kept walking and she had to follow.

"Why are you even defending him anyway? He's just a parentless annoying little-"

"Hmf, well I think I'd rather he were my teammate than you."

Sakura couldn't believe what he had just said. And he kept going, "He at least wants to make a difference. But you, all you seem to care about is flirting. I don't need my time wasted with your petty emotions. If you can't fix that, then it would be akin to suicide to be on your team. I wouldn't be surprised if you abandoned the team on the first dangerous mission. In fact, I'm even prepared for it. Wipe that stupid look off your face and get a clue! You are acting the same to me as Naruto acts towards you."

Hinata had no idea that Naruto could act that way. He was being deliberately mean, and making it sound exactly like Sasuke. If it weren't for her eyes, she would have thought it was the Uchiha. Naruto walked off and down an alley, leaving a crying Sakura behind.

Hinata spared a glance to see she had dropped to the ground and was bawling, before she headed off to follow Naruto. A small voice inside her said that it was good he had finally dumped her. Now maybe he'll notice me. But she instantly felt bad. He shouldn't have to be hurt or to hurt others like that.

Once to the next street Naruto released the genjutsu and began walking back to the academy. That's where he met Sasuke.

"You two deserve each other." He said, as he passed the roughed up boy without so much as a look. Sasuke was so surprised at the indifference he waited until Naruto was a few steps ahead before attacking. His feet sending the boy to the ground. The heart broken boy didn't even try to defend himself and he just got up and kept walking at that slow depressed pace, as Sasuke attacked again punching him in the gut and sending him back to the pavement.

"Why don't you fight back? Where's the strength you had before, huh?" The Uchiha demanded.

Finally after taking Naruto's collar in his hands and shaking the brat in the air, Sasuke saw the brace on his neck.

Dropping his assailant, the Uchiha noticed the bandaging on Naruto's abdomen under his torn shirt, a quick glance at the rest of him found the scars and remains of medical glue from the casts that had been on Naruto's hands.

Taking a step back Sasuke stared at him in shock. He had been this hurt when he attacked him a few minutes ago.

"What is going on."

At the question Naruto finally looked at him. "I just found out how stupid I was for thinking I had a chance. My dream to become the Hokage, to get someone to like me, it's just not gonna happen. No one is ever going to give me a chance. I don't even know why I should care now."

"What?" Sasuke didn't know how to respond. It was like somebody had broken him in the last five minutes.

"I'm done trying. I'm done failing. This stupid village can go fuck itself, and Sakura can too and you with her! No-one would care anyway if there's one less shinobi, or one less kid."

"Why are you saying that?" Sasuke had always been focused on beating his brother. He had a purpose. Even as horrible as it had been for him, at least he had that. Now he saw the real Naruto, his smile was faked, his laugh was faked. He had never even stood a chance. Yet he hadn't given up. The dobe had even beaten him just a few minutes ago. What had changed?

"What happened Naruto?"

Naruto just sighed and walked away. "You two are right for each other. You're both jerks, but hey, at least you have an excuse."

Hinata couldn't follow this Naruto. It was too horrible.

So instead, she let the two leave her behind and slipped away in silent despair.

0o0o0

The next day her team asked how it went. At first she was reluctant, but if not for them, she wouldn't have even had the courage to see what she had. She had no choice because she owed them for their help. The shy, heart-broken Hyuuga began by saying Naruto had met up with Sakura under his genjutsu.

At first they seemed angry. Well, Kiba was angry; Shino just asked what they did together. So she told them what had been said and they took Naruto's side immediately. Shino had even offered to send an entire colony of ants to Sakura's house to bite her in her sleep. In slightly... different words.

When she got to the part with Sasuke, they were surprised. They had seen Sasuke get up after his defeat. He had been livid and out for revenge. But the way Hinata said it, it sounded like he was worried about Naruto. As though the clanless orphan refusing to fight back had meant the end of the village somehow.

The rest of the day went by they met with their sensei and sparred, then did a few exercises and were dismissed. Being told that tomorrow they would receive their first mission.

Seeing Team Ten at The Barbeque they decided to join in. With a quick greeting they began to exchange their first days as Genin with each other. Inevitably that eventually led to Naruto. As well as the injuries he had received.

Shino had discreetly informed them to play it down. As if Ino hadn't already known about the Hyuuga's crush. And when the blond girl pressured, Hinata told them the story as well.

Ino refused to believe Naruto had beaten Sasuke.

However, Shikamaru interjected that if Sasuke saw the injuries, he probably never even tried to defend himself until it was too late, and the argument came to a halt.

After which, Hinata continued to say Naruto had run off to catch up to Sakura.

She told them what she had overheard Sakura saying to Naruto. However, Hinata hadn't mentioned that he was henged as Sasuke. As a result, Choji immediately crushed his fistful of food, pushing his plate back. He had obviously lost his appetite. Ino sneered and stated that she didn't think Sakura was that big of a bitch. She decided right then, that she would rip the girl a new one the next time she saw her. Even Shikamaru scowled. He then put his hands into his signature thinking pose. The same pose Ino said he used just before beating their sensei a shogi. None of them knew what he was planning though.

Instead of telling them what Naruto had said in reply, Hinata skipped it, as it just wouldn't sound right coming from Naruto. And went on to how Sasuke demanded a rematch from Naruto as he was walking home, completely crushed.

Then the Hyuuga told them about Sasuke seeing that Naruto was hurting inside and tried to find out what had happened. That left Ino to declare that Sasuke really was compassionate to worry about someone who had ambushed him just moments earlier.

0o0o0

It had been almost a week since Naruto was let out of the hospital and the Sandaime hadn't heard from the boy once. Not even a prank.

The aging Hokage had seen it several times. He was stuck on getting stronger before, spending over a week, without being heard from, to train. And so the Hokage had looked in on him every now and then, with his crystal ball. Each time though, he seemed to catch the boy sleeping. Probably wearing himself out over the nights when there were more unused training grounds.

But today, the Hokage decided to pay him a visit... with the pretense of scheduling his first lesson with his tutor.

Realizing that Naruto's outfit had been damaged, the Third had a new jacket made for him. It was the same orange as his old one but it was much tougher and had several hidden pockets.

Its design was much the same, a white color and an orange body, and the red spiral on its back. But it also had bright sky blue shoulders that went all the way around the back. So the spiral was half on orange and half on blue. With an orange stripe coming up to the collar, on the center of the chest. Given Naruto's flare for bright colors it would fit.

Today he planned to give it to Naruto.

Letting himself in, the elder saw the blond lying on his couch, and placed the folded jacket on Naruto's chest. Before gently shaking him awake.

After some greetings Naruto realized that he had a gift!… and just rolled over…

"Naruto? Are you feeling alright?"

It took some urging but he managed to get the boy talking. He hadn't left his apartment all week! The entire time since he got out of the hospital he'd been sleeping!

At first the Hokage thought to check for genjutsu, or possibly his injuries had worsened after he was checked out.

But in the end he was informed that Naruto just didn't want to deal with the world until it was time to go back to the academy.

He needed cheering up. If he had lost his will to achieve then he would very likely lose is will to think before he became a shinobi. Sarutobi needed a way to bring back the old Naruto, the one he could entrust to the future laid out for him, without worry of him becoming the mindless killer the darker parts of the village wanted him to be.

And this jacket, the Hokage inspired himself, was just the thing. He held it up and motioned towards the spiral. "Do you know what this is Naruto?"

When the boy only shook his head, the old man continued. "This is the symbol of the whirlpool village. It was a village that Konoha had been allies with for years, and even after it was destroyed by the war, we continued to wear it as a sign of our friendship with other nations."

And now the hook.

"But to you, the most important thing about it may be … it was the village your mother came from." Before, the Hokage had always refused to talk about Naruto's parents, but the boy was old enough now, that he could keep quiet about them. And with Iruka there to watch him, the boy wouldn't go around bragging or any such misbehavior.

"I have told you that they died fighting the Kyuubi. But did I ever tell you just how they fought?

"Your mother and father fought right there as the fourth destroyed the beast. In fact, it was thanks to their efforts that he had a chance to deliver the final strike at all. Both of them were the village's heroes that day. They both knew that they would die," -

"Then why didn't they leave me anything, I don't even have a picture or anything!" He was interrupted by Naruto. "I have no idea what they look like, and no clue who they really are."

"They did, Naruto." The Hokage replied sternly "They gave you their hopes and dreams. Your mother was going to become the first female Hokage and your father dreamed of becoming the greatest hero the village had seen."

Naruto had gone silent at that. And so the Hokage continued.

"The fourth Hokage was a position that had more good candidates than any kage before. But they have not lost hope. Every time you say you'll be Hokage is another time you act as they did. You are their legacy, and carry their name, and your mother's whole village, you need to prove it."

Naruto looked as though he'd withdrawn upon himself. Sarutobi could see tears welling up.

The Hokage spent the next half hour talking about them, telling Naruto several short stories from his parent's childhood. Their time in the academy and as Genin. He described her temper and fiery red hair, and his enjoyment of a good prank. He told the boy how they met and how they fell in love. He shared several of these landmarked events from Naruto's parents carefully without mentioning their names or who they would later become.

all too soon, enough time had passed that he couldn't stay any longer.

"Tomorrow you'll start in the academy again. After it lets out I'd like you to meet me in my office so I can introduce you to your tutor."

Naruto nodded, and the Hokage left him to cry.

~ Note ~

Uzumaki: A Lone Fox: Naruto will not be learning the shadow clone. at least not until post time skip if at all.

First classes: In my story the academy started up again a week after the real exam was over.

! Iruka's words !: Keep in mind that never Naruto heard the words of acknowledgment from Iruka in the forest like in canon, they aren't as close! and he has yet to be told of the fox or why people hate him!

Hinata's feelings: She told her team about her feelings for Naruto and so they gave her the courage to follow him, and out of debt for that she told them what happened. Ino on the other, had used peer pressure to get her to spill, giving that she had already told her teammate it was easier to let it out.

Naruto's mindset: Naruto just failed a third time! He was attacked for no reason he can understand, the 3rd (as far as Naruto had listened) was going to boot him from the shinobi program... He thinks his most precious person almost gave up on him! and now he hears that Sakura would rather actually kill him than be on his team.

Bashing: No, this is not a Sakura bashing story. She will change after Sasuke finds out what she said- (a rumor grown story of her hate for Naruto) OK maybe a little bashing.

Tutor poll: As for the tutor, I set up a poll to see who it should be. Before making my decision. The options are; Danzo, Shiho, Ebisu, and Shizune. The poll has ended and the vote's are in.

Naruto's Parents: Also the third telling Naruto about his parents, wasn't the first time he had spoken about them, he had mentioned that they were dead and that the boy shouldn't be so focused on the past. And now he thought Naruto was ready to handle some knowledge. He also felt that it was necessary to tell him something that would help to pull Naruto out of his despair.

Most items in all my Naruto fan-fictions will be based off of T8: Retroversion's timeline. Many of these details will be universal across them all.

Meaning any mission or OC, or other major details will be included, based on their background and trigger events.

{This will not include Kurenai's conspiracy or Hinata's abuse}

While T8: Retroversion will be my main Fic, Five others are on my list to work on at the moment: LATE Naruto: Life After the Ends; Uzumaki: A Lone Fox; The Thousand Ninja; Village Hidden in Plain Sight; and Wisdom of Chance. Descriptions on profile.