Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. This is just me trying to word vomit ideas onto a page.
Thank you for clicking on this story. I'm a perfectionist, so this has actually been in the works for about a year and I'm sick of editing. I hope you enjoy!
Naruto: A Different Beginning
Chapter 1
Sarutobi Hiruzen stared out the window at the gloomy sky, his thoughts elsewhere. It had been a long day filled with long meetings and procrastinating the forms strewn out over his desk. Even after nearly three years, the shock and weight of the Yondaime's death still hung over him as the fog hung stubbornly with the approaching winter.
The attack of Kyuubi no Kitsune had shaken Konoha to its core. The village itself was mostly restored, rebuilt to its former glory with countless hours of hard labour and coordination. But for the lives lost - countless civilians, nearly half the shinobi ranks, including two thirds of the chuunin class, and the Yondaime himself - nothing could be done but remember them.
And the Yondaime's son, young Naruto, was left saddled with their legacy: the boy into whom the Kyuubi was sealed. That first year had passed as fast as can be, and little Naruto had grown, nurtured up first in the protective confines of Konoha Hospital, surrounded by nurses and under the watchful guard of ANBU.
Yet hospitals are not meant to live in, and the bubbly child had taken to toddling off down the corridors and getting into every possible kind of mischief. And so the decision had been made to remove the boy from the hospital creche and place him in the custody of several carers, including the Hokage himself, as well as the local daycare.
The daycare part was important. Sarutobi himself didn't have any grandchildren, and he knew it was important to surround Naruto with others his age.
Unfortunately, older Naruto became, the more he would become aware of just who was caring for him. Sadly, the Hokage officially adopting an orphan from the Kyuubi attack who looked like a miniature Yondaime was just too obvious, and for now he knew it was best for the safety of Naruto and the village to keep the whole thing secret.
He had been reluctant to place the boy in the orphanage straight away given how young he was, but as time marched on it seemed more and more like the only option.
Of course, there were a few informed parties who just didn't think this was good enough.
0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0
The first time Uchiha Mikoto laid eyes on Uzumaki Naruto, just weeks after he was born, she knew. With the knowledge of Kushina's pregnancy, there was barely any doubt in her mind that this was the Hokage's son. And as the boy grew, the Uchiha matriarch privately wondered if anyone else noticed, why they didn't notice, and why nothing was ever said. She herself had only been informally told by Fugaku following council meetings.
Everyone knew the Yondaime and his wife had perished in the attack of Kyuubi no Kitsune. Yet here was this little ray of sunshine, eyes vibrant as the sky. A mini Minato.
And the very hour she heard news of the boy being moved into the orphanage, she was at the Hokage's office with a very determined look on her face.
After bypassing the ANBU at the door, she stood before the Sandaime and felt all her courage drain out of her. Was it even her business to be interfering?
"How can I help you, Mikoto-san?" the Hokage asked.
"There's a little ray of sunshine at the daycare," she said cryptically. "And I'm concerned about him."
She watched him as he sighed and leaned back in his chair, flicking his wrist to dismiss the ANBU on watch. "I assume you mean…"
"Minato's son, yes… Hokage-sama."
The Hokage fixed her with a piercing gaze. "While I understand you are informed given your friendship with the late Kushina, I trust that your lips are sealed. The boy's heritage is an S-class secret – and only Naruto himself will have the privilege of telling who he pleases once he knows."
Mikoto nodded. "I understand, Hokage-sama. But few of us knew Kushina was pregnant… she stayed inside far too much for her own good, but very much for the good of her child."
"Indeed…" he shifted in his seat. "So you are concerned about him?"
She hesitated, "Yes. And with all due respect, Hokage-sama, I trust Naruto is in good hands. But I've been keeping an eye on him for a while now, and one of the carers at the daycare mentioned he was to be moved to the orphanage in the spring. Is this true?"
Sarutobi let out another sigh. "We have been considering many options, and that is one of them. It is our wish that Naruto grows up out of the spotlight, as a normal kid without any clan influence. He'll be eligible to enter the academy in two years anyway, if he chooses," he explained.
Mikoto steeled herself. "I understand all this, Hokage-sama. However, I believe it is highly important that he grows up with a proper and reliable caregiver. Leaving him in an orphanage will damage him – We've all seen what can happen to kids who end up there. With all due respect, do you want him to become psychologically disturbed?"
Sarutobi eyed her with a frown, slightly perturbed. "Now now, that's a bit of an overstatement, don't you think? You know that I will personally ensure Naruto's proper care. It was my last promise to his mother, after all."
"I… yes, I understand, sir. It's just not the place for him, you know?"
"Are you saying you want to take him in yourself?" Sarutobi asked, taking a guess at her motives.
"Well… I haven't even thought about that. I could, really," Mikoto wrung her hands, a gesture that looked odd on a jonin. "It's something they might've have wanted. It's the right thing to do," she said.
The Hokage remained unfazed. "While I'm touched that you would offer to take Naruto in, I'm sure you'll rethink your proposal when you realize what terrible danger it would place him in," he said. "What excuse could you give for taking him in that would not divulge his background to every clan member with a brain cell? The boy is indistinguishable from any other child orphaned in the attack, but place him in a sizeable clan, particularly one with features such as yours, and it won't take long for people to start connecting the dots." He eyed her carefully as the thought dawned on her.
Mikoto gave a tiny huff (as large a huff as you could give in the Hokage's presence) and crossed her arms. "Perhaps not the Uchiha, then... but perhaps a smaller clan? Anything could be better than an orphanage."
"I'm against placing him in the orphanage. It's a bad place for a kid like Naruto. But it's also the best and safest place at the current moment." The old man let out another long sigh as he lit up his pipe. Wisps of smoke puffed to the ceiling.
"What about the other clans?" asked Mikoto. She covered her nose subtly and tried to look thoughtful as the smoke lingered.
"The problem is the same," Sarutobi shook his head. He was silent for a moment as he stared out the window. The sun was descending over the horizon; another day was gone, and he seemed older than before - certainly far too old to be Hokage.
"I have already considered all these things. Rest assured that Naruto will not be alone, and I will do everything I can to ensure his comfort and safety, including placing him under ANBU guard." He paused. "There is, however, one more option which we've been considering," he said, and Mikoto perked up. "We find a civilian family - or shinobi parents - who would be willing to foster the boy."
It really was the only other option, and a difficult one at that. Civilian couples would hardly be equipped to raise a jinchuuriki (then again, who would be?), while shinobi would have their own responsibilities including mission work. But a small family of shinobi with one or two kids already… that might work.
"You know, I think I know just the woman," Mikoto said. "A small shinobi family would be ideal, and she's got it."
"You read my mind," Sarutobi smiled and nodded to her. "Go on."
0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0
Among the other kids orphaned in the attack, Naruto really did blend in quite well. Mikoto smiled to herself as she gazed through the glass into the playroom of Konoha's largest daycare centre and spied the boy in the corner, trying to stack some brightly-coloured plastic rings while another kid interfered with blocks.
She chuckled and stroked her own toddler's head as he lay sleepily in her arms. Her other child, eight years old, lingered at the window, absently fogging up the glass with his breath.
"Uchiha-sama. Can I help you?" one of the young carers asked.
"Oh… yes," Mikoto beamed and turned to head down the hall. "I'm just here to drop my son, Sasuke. He hasn't been here before."
The centre was decked out inside with all manner of colourful posters. Artwork hung proudly from the ceiling, more craft was stuck to the windows, and toys were absolutely everywhere. Mikoto stole a glance at her youngest son as they were led into the main playroom. His eyes had grown wide at the assault of colour and noise.
"Here you go, Sasuke," she said, setting the toddler down in one of the quieter corners next to a crate of ninja toys. "Itachi, watch him a moment, will you?"
While Mikoto filled out paperwork, eight-year-old Itachi knelt before his brother and pulled out a plastic shuriken. "Right, Sasuke. Ready to be a ninja? Look see, you hold it like this…"
"Oooo!" Sasuke cooed, digging the shuriken into the carpet and then placing it in his mouth.
"No, silly little brother. Like this…"
"No! Like dis," Sasuke insisted with a pout, grabbing the shuriken back in his fist.
Mikoto watched closely as her sons continued to play. Soon enough, she saw Naruto toddling over to them, grinning ear to ear.
"Hallo! I wanna play too," he announced, grabbing his own shuriken from the box and sitting down next to Sasuke, who looked up, startled.
"Hello there. What's your name?" asked Itachi.
The kid beamed. "Naruto! Na-ru-to!" he cried, apparently oblivious to the look of violation on Sasuke's face.
Itachi smiled and introduced himself and Sasuke. "Do you want to be a ninja, Naruto?"
"Yeah!" said Naruto, waving the shuriken in the air. "The bestest ninja in the world…" he paused to stare at Itachi's forehead protector.
"This means I'm a ninja," Itachi explained, tapping the leaf-emblazoned plate on his headband.
"Hey, I want one!" Naruto pouted, but his disappointment was quickly lost when he spotted another boy approaching. "Oi, Naoki!"
Mikoto finished the papers and turned her full attention back to the scene before her. The newest kid to arrive was slightly older, maybe four, with thick glasses and a messy glomp of black hair - not unlike an Uchiha.
"Are you playing ninja?" Naoki asked. "I wanna play!"
Naruto looked as if he could hardly contain himself. "He's a real ninja!" he blurted out with glee, pointing to Itachi. Naoki peered at the Uchiha.
"You're lying," he shook his head. "He's too young. Ninja are big, like my daddy."
"He said so!" Naruto argued back. Itachi's brow twitched and he looked about ready to escape as the two continued to talk at the tops of their voices. It was time to intervene.
"Come now, Itachi," said Mikoto. "You need to go meet your team. I'll stay here a bit with Sasuke." Itachi said good-bye and made his exit, and Mikoto was left with the small group. She'd stay a little while – besides, it helped to get a read on Kushina's kid.
He was about three years old, with sandy blonde hair and bright eyes sparkling with mischief; no doubt he'd be as loud and brash as his mother was. He bounced around the room with the attention span of a fly, moving from thing to thing within minutes. It was the sort of behavior parents and teachers stamped out of kids when they entered institutions. Mikoto wondered how well Naruto would fare once they moved him out of the Sarutobi household.
With what he contained, the boy needed a loving and supportive family and good nutrition, and there was just no way he could get that at the orphanage. She sighed, watching as the other kid, Naoki, pulled Sasuke to his feet and the three huddled in a circle holding the shuriken. She really hoped her old friend would be up to the job.
0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0
Haruno Mebuki was a semi-retired chuunin, married six years to the love of her life (a wild, pun-loving oaf called Kizashi) and the mother to a beautiful little girl. The past two years had been rocky, first with post-natal complications, a fussy baby, and then the frequent absence of her husband when he was out on missions. She herself received a small stipend from the Hokage for maternity leave, but it wasn't really enough to live on, so Kizashi couldn't afford much time off.
And the latest development in her life was a long-term mission offer from the Hokage to take in the son of one of the most powerful shinobi since the Shodaime, who was somehow holding back the nine-tailed fox from destroying the village yet again. Needless to say, there was a lot to discuss with her husband, and she was blabbering the moment they were home.
"There's not much to discuss here," Kizashi said calmly as he shut the front door and slipped off his shoes. He placed a reassuring hand on his wife's shoulder. "The boy needs a home, and we'd be the perfect one for him..." he hesitated, "although as you say, there are potential complications, but would it not be an honour?"
Mebuki stared incredulously at her husband. "Of course it would be an honour. But… Kyuubi?" she hissed in a low voice. "I'm just not sure I want Sakura developing such a close relationship with the boy. And there's no doubt he'll become a fearsome shinobi, and then she'll be dragged into it too."
Kizashi raised an eyebrow. "True. Isn't that what you want for our children?"
Mebuki let a pained expression show on her face. She bit her lip. "Yes, but it's hard… you know I don't ever want Sakura to know the same pain we have."
Kizashi sighed and smiled reassuringly at her. "This is a time of peace – the first in decades. We're in a golden age, my love," he said.
"True, but you never know what the future holds."
"Mama? Daddy?" a tiny voice called from the lounge. They were still standing at the door. Footsteps echoed down the hall and a little girl appeared wearing a sleepy grin, her short pink hair tousled in all directions. The sight of her distracted Mebuki and she lovingly swept the toddler into her arms.
"Sakura! Did you have a nap? Your hair's a bird's nest!"
"Little rascal," Kizashi chuckled and planted a kiss on her forehead. "We'll talk about this later," he nodded to Mebuki.
"All right then," she sighed as she stroked her daughter's hair. "But as I said, I'm really not sure about this."
Mebuki tossed and turned that night, kept awake with the anxiety of the decision before her. In retrospect, she knew she was overthinking it. Kizashi was an intelligent man, albeit an idiot at times, and he didn't seem the least bit perturbed by the task set before them.
How could he be so calm? The fact that she was the only one worried seemed to add to the worry even more. Could they really raise a child like Naruto?
Thank you so much for reading! Chapter 2 is on its way. :)
If you have the time, please let me know what you think in the reviews.
- Charlotte
