Naruto Uzumaki had become a very accomplished shinobi. He saved the Leaf from Pain's assault when he was only sixteen, he helped save the entire shinobi world from the wrath of Madara Uchiha and Kaguya Otsusuki becoming the Hero of the Fourth Great Ninja War. And just a few years later he saved the world yet again from Toneri Otsusuki. Now at age 27 Naruto has married Hinata Hyuuga, the most amazing girl in the village and she has granted him the gift of children. His son Boruto and daughter Himawari. With his ascension to Hokage inevitable, it is safe to say that Naruto has finally had everything he wanted.
But something has been…eating at him for a while. As if there was something left he had to do. Some job unfinished or some purpose unfulfilled. He didn't know what it was, but it bothered him.
He was currently in his bed, which at the moment was a bit crowded. Boruto and Himawari had decided to sneak into the bed along with their parents. Naruto had woken up to the pleasant feeling of Boruto's toes in his face.
Soon the family awoke to Shikamaru knocking on the door.
Hinata deciding not to sleep in, gathered her kids and started breakfast after changing them out of their pajamas. Naruto walked over to the door opening it up and welcoming his friend into his home.
"Hey Shikamaru! What are you doing here? Its like six in the morning.
"Sorry about this Naruto, but there has been an incident at the Umihito Compound. All Jonin are to head over there immediately." Shikamaru said with urgency. He was sweating and was looked disoriented. Clearly he ran to Naruto's home.
"Whoa, what!? What happened to the Umihito!?" Naruto asked.
"No time. I'll explain on the way." Shikamaru said.
Naruto threw on his clothes which consisted of his black and orange jumpsuit with a standard Leaf Village Flak Jacket over it all. He and Shikamaru left his home and sprinted for the Umihito Compound.
XXXXXX
The Umihito Clan was a new addition to the Leaf Village. They immigrated from the outskirts of the Land of Water right after the war. They were a great addition to the leaf, effectively replacing the Uchiha after all these years since they were annihilated. They all had beautiful ocean blue hair, and green eyes which further strengthens their namesake. They specialized in Water style jutsu, which oddly enough was a stark contrast to most ninja that resided in the Land of Fire, but it made no difference to Kakashi. Adding the clan not only increased the villages power but also added new income into the village and increased diversity.
But the Umihito were met with some opposition. Many villagers didn't want the Umihito to join the Leaf as they "couldn't be trusted". It was the reaction people had to anybody who was foreign and different, but it didn't make it right.
Naruto was completely horrified when he and Shikamaru arrived on the scene. There were body bags being carried, blood was everywhere and some buildings were demolished as a result of would looked like a battle. Two angry mobs of people were separated by some Anbu and Jonin. They were screaming and shouting at each other.
"'They attacked us first! Those damn Umihito need to go back to where they came from!" One hateful villager said.
"Attacked you first!? On our own property!? You guys came hear picking a fight with us." A member of the Umihito shouted back.
It was clear to Naruto that the Umihito had fallen victim to a hate crime. There were men and women on the Umihito side crying and wailing, obviously from the lost of their relatives whom Naruto guessed occupied the body bags being hauled away by the ANBU.
"We have done nothing but try to be friends with you guys! We may be from another land but now we ARE Leaf ninja like you!" Another Umihito elder shouted.
"You are NOT Leaf Ninja! You are freeloading foreigners! Go back to the Land of Water!" A villager countered. The shouting match continued on as more of the ANBU and Jonin tried to keep the crowds apart.
Tired of all the pushing and shoving, both groups began weaving hand signs. As soon as he saw this Naruto stepped in the way.
"That is enough! You all should be ashamed of yourselves!" he called out to the villagers.
"Why are you taking their side Naruto- sama!? You are one of us." A nameless villager shouted.
Naruto thought about the Irony of the villager's statement. True, he was one of them. But the village didn't always see it that way. They treated him just as they are treating the Umihito now. Like outsiders, less than human. Like monsters.
"You know better than that! Everyone stand down!" Kakashi called out to all present, he just now arriving along with the Umihito Clan Head, Saiga Umihito and what looked like to be his daughter Mizuiga.
"Everyone go back to your homes! Me and the Hokage will handle this!" Saiga called out to his clansmen. They all reluctantly did so as they all left the scene. The other villagers did the same.
"Lord Hokage. This is getting out of hand. This is the third time in the last few years my people have suffered at the hands of these racist." Saiga stated, visibly upset.
"I agree Saiga. We are doing everything we can to educate the village about your people and make them realize that you are all now apart of the Leaf." Kakashi said, trying to calm the man down.
Saiga was a tall man with the trademark blue hair and green eyes associated with the Umihito. He was around his mid forties and had long dark purple robes on.
"Obviously you're not trying hard enough!" Saiga yelled. His daughter getting in between the two men.
"Father please calm down. Lord Hokage wouldn't accept us into the village if he didn't want the village to love us like their own." Mizuiga said, calming the older man. She then turned to Kakashi.
"Thank you for relieving the crowd Lord Hokage. We can take it from here."
"Why, of course Lady Mizuiga. You have raised a fine young lady Saiga. You should be proud." Kakashi said bowing to the two Umihito.
"And thank you as well Uzumaki- san. It is a pleasure to finally meet the Hero of the War.' Saiga said to Naruto.
"No problem sir. Just doing my job." Naruto replied nervously. He would never get used to that.
He looked down at Mizuiga. She kinda reminded him of Hinata at that age. Taking on the burdens of the entire clan. A bit timid but never the less a good person. Naruto felt bad for the kid.
XXXX
He Kakashi and Shikamaru parted ways with Saiga and Mizuiga as they headed back to the Hokage Residence. It was now clear to Naruto that though the war was over, it was a long way away from peace in the world. There was still violence, inequality, crime and poverty within the village. Those were not physical threats like Madara or Kaguya. Naruto knew was no simple reason to fix all those things. Hell, a politician had better luck than a ninja at addressing those issues.
"I didn't realize it was this bad." Naruto said taking a seat across from Kakashi. They both stopped by the Hokage Office for a briefing.
"Indeed. Relations between the villagers and the Umihito have been strained. Ever since their arrival here almost a decade ago, they have had trouble settling in with the villagers." Kakashi said taking off his Hokage hat.
"I wish I could find a way to make them get along." Naruto said, slumping in his seat. The fight was far from over it seems as Naruto contemplated on things.
"I'm sure you can find a solution. You've always been able to draw people in and change even the darkest of hearts." Complemented Kakashi. "Don't be so hard on your self Naruto. You have become a very admirable shinobi and I'm glad to have called you my student."
Student….at that moment Naruto had a realization. All the previous Hokage, his sensei included had one thing in common. They were all teachers.
The First and Second taught the Third. The Third taught Jiraiya, Orochimari, and Tsunade who would go on to be the Fifth. Jiraiya taught Minato, who taught Kakashi who taught Naruto himself. It was the chain of knowledge that kept the Leaf Village going for all of its history.
Naruto knew what he had to do. He had to become a teacher to. A Jonin Sensei.
And he already had his first student in mind.
"Kakashi – sensei. The Umihito heiress. Mizuiga. Has she graduated from the academy yet?"
"She will be graduating tomorrow actually. Why?"
"I want to request her to be on my genin team." Naruto asked.
"What?" Kakashi said, more as a statement than a question. He was surprised. He didn't expect Naruto to want to be a Sensei. "Um… are you kidding or something?"
"What the hell sensei! I'm dead serious!"
"Sorry. Its just- a little surprising."
"What. You think I can't handle it? I am twenty-seven years old with two children. I'm more than qualified." Naruto defended.
It was true. Kakashi couldn't deny the accolades. He knew any genin would be lucky to have Naruto for a teacher. He was the most powerful ninja in the world at the moment, and now knew a wide variety of jutsu to pass on to the next generation.
"Okay. I'll put in a request. But I have two more students in mind for you to teach." The sixth Hokage said, as he reached into a nearby filing cabinet. He pulled out two documents and passed them to Naruto. He scanned over the papers.
They were both stats and details on academy students whom were graduating tomorrow alongside Mizuiga. And judging by their scores they were dead lasts, just like Naruto used to be.
The first one read Kazuma Hyuuga. This shocked Naruto as the Hyuuga tended to be at the top of their retrospective classes. Though there were expectations like his wife Hinata. Though she wasn't lacking in skill, it was her crippling self-doubt that hampered her.
Kazuma had long light brown hair that stopped just pass his lower back. He had on long sleeved tan robes and matching pants with shinobi wrappings around his left hand. He had the occasional Byakugan that was standard among the Hyuuga. Naruto began to become angry as he saw the boy's forehead wrappings, indicating he was a member of the Branch House of the Clan. He and Hanabi were making steps to abolish the Caged Bird Seal and bring equality to the Hyuuga but it was going slower than Naruto would like.
His taijustu was average, which was strange for a Hyuuga who all specialized in the art. His ninjustu was passable and his genjutsu skills were extremely low. But that was fine by Naruto. He too was horrible when he was a genin. But he found what he was good at and made it his own. And it helped him develop as a shinobi. He knew Kazuma would too.
Next up was a boy named Akira Nanato. He was THE dead last of his class. His hair was snow white and spiky. He had on a simple red shirt with a sheath tied around his back for his katana. He had on white arm and shin guards and his shorts were dark gray. All his scores were pathetically low. All except for Kenjustu. Surprisingly he even outclassed some chuunin in the art. Cleary the boy practiced outside of class as the academy doesn't teach Kenjustu as a regular class.
He was an orphan, his parents dying in the war. Naruto was almost brought to tears as Akira lived at the same orphanage he did as a kid. He knew first hand it was a rough place to live.
Kakashi also gave Naruto Mizuiga's file. The girl was subpar at best. Her only passable skill being Ninjustu. As a new addition to the Leaf she was being bullied at school. Naruto could relate to that as well. He found a sort of kinship with his students.
He was a dead last also, but he knew no one was inherently stupid or untalented from his own experiences. Usually something was blocking a student from realizing their true potential. He for example was horrible when he first started training. But that was because he didn't have his parents around to teach him. Most shinobi have parents and clans that help with their development. He did not have a family to help him train. Plus, with him being a dead last he could better empathize with his students. Despite his boasting and cocky attitude back in the day, Naruto was depressed back then. Of course he was! He was horrible at being a shinobi, and at a vulnerable age. He wanted to be someone his students could relate to.
They may be dead last now. But he would make them the best shinobi in this village with the proper guidance.
The three fresh genin knew of tragedy at such a young age. Naruto's resolve was now increased a hundred fold to mold these shinobi into great people. Not only for the village but for them.
"Okay! Don't worry Sensei! I'll turn these genin into the greatest ninja in the village! Hell, they'll be jonin by the time they are sixteen!" Naruto boasted, as he ran out the building.
Kakashi could only chuckle at sight. His little goofball had finally grown up.
XXXXXX
It was now noon. The ninja academy was full of newly minted genin. Most were talking amongst themselves. Others stayed to themselves or were asleep much to their teacher's annoyance. Iruka was in his final year of teaching before he retired to the field if one could call it that. Though he taught many students, some of them were similar to others. Every year he saw different faces, but the same type of people. For example, there was one Akira Nanato. He was much like Naruto. He boasted big but had no talent to back it up. Then there was Kirato Asagi the star pupil of the academy. He was much like Sasuke, quiet, kept to himself, got annoyed easily and a raging harem of fangirls falling over each other to try and talk to the removed boy. He had stark white hair that he fashioned into a pony tail. A dark green shirt and matching pants.
Akira watched the sight unfold with covert envy. Kirato was once again stealing all the girl's hearts and breaking them.
"God, I hate that guy. He thinks hes so cool." Akira grimaced. He was sitting near the middle of the class next to his friend Kazuma Hyuuga.
"Don't be so doom and gloom man! There will be tons of better girls out there when we are older plus it's not like he can date them all." Kazuma exclaimed being the happy ray of sunshine that he was. Kazuma was the person who always saw the glass half full rather than half empty. He and Akira found friendship with in their being outcast among their peers.
"Just look at him. He thinks he's better than all of his." Akira complained.
"Well he kinda is." Kazuma said, annoying Akira. "He at the top of the class. Teacher even says he may become chunin by the end of this year."
"Screw that! I'm going to become chunin before that asshole!" Akira hollered, gaining the attention of his fellow students.
"Quiet down Akira! Now students it's time to announce what squad you will be on. Remember these will be your teammates for the rest of your time as shinobi." Iruka called out. Trying to quiet Akira. Last time the boy made a crazy boast, he started fights with three of the other students. Besides he was being a disruption to the class.
He started to call out the teams. Some individuals were fine with what they got. Some of the girls were disappointed that they couldn't be on the same team with Kirato. Akira was joyous that he didn't have to be on a squad with him. Kazuma could care less. The two boys noticed that they had yet to have their named called, as did another girl in their class.
It was Mizuiga Umihito. The Heiress of the Umihito Clan. A lot of students steered clear of her because of the misconceived notions of her clan and the other half made fun off her as she was foreigner in a new place. She sat in the front gazing out the nearby window. Kazuma felt bad for the girl. He knew what it was like to be judged for his heritage. A lot of people assume he is stuck up and rude like some of the other Hyuuga, and they usually start making fun of him too as he was not the glamorous shinobi they expected him to be. They have since dubbed him the "Hyuuga Failure."
"Now for you three. Your sensei will arrive shortly. Please stay put until then." Iruka said as he left the classroom.
XXXX
About an hour passed, and Akira grew irritated as his patience left the building.
"COME ON! What could be taking him so long!?" Akira shouted, destroying the quiet atmosphere within the walls of the academy.
"Dude, calm down. This is a Jonin we are talking about. He could be busy." Kazuma tried to reason. He too was irriated at the long wait but he had no choice but to deal with it.
"All the other students have met their sensei by now. Why are we the last ones!?"
Kazuma just rolled his eyes and smirked. He was used to his polar opposite acting up whenever there was a long wait, so he decided to just let him vent.
He glanced over at Mizuiga. She was off in her own little world gazing out the window. Kazuma hated seeing someone isolated, so he made an attempt to create small talk.
"Um..Hey Mizuiga." Kazuma started.
"Hello, Hyuuga-san." The girl said ever dignified.
"Oh no need for the formalities. Just call me Kazuma. We are now teammates after all." The boy said with a friendly grin.
The girl simply nodded.
She wasn't giving him much to work with. But he would find a way to continue the conversation.
Her attire was different from her usual formal getup. Now she wore a shinobi jacket that she left opened, revealing her mesh underlay. The jacket and her pants were dark purple, much like her clan's color motif.
"So. You're from the Umihito? I heard they were great water style practitioners. Can you perform them as well? I can't do nature transformation to save my life." Kazuma asked. It was a great tactic for conversation. Asking a question, while revealing something about himself at the same time. Genius.
"Yeah. I can do water style. It's kind of required to learn in our clan." The girl revealed, now more invested in the conversation. As time went on she and the Hyuuga boy began chatting more. Even Akira joined in. They talked about the bullies in class, different jutsu, what new movies came out and generally about life.
Naruto, who purposely stayed hidden outside the classroom, listened to the younger ninjas' conversation with warmth in his heart. They were bonding. Although it may have seemed insignificant, this conversation would be the beginning of a strong bond the three would share for the rest of their lives.
Naruto decided he kept them waiting long enough. He opened the door to the classroom, revealing himself to the three.
"What's up guys. I'm Naruto Uzumaki and I'll be your new Jonin Sensei."