Confused, surprised and utterly mystified, not in a million years had he seen this coming. From his birth, all he ever received was criticism, disgust and suffering. He didn't even know why the hatred he had received from the start was for.

And being an orphan, just watching, listening and taking it all in was all that he could do. In front of the others he was tough, strong though a complete dofus, yet one of the strongest and stunning males of the village.

Unbeknownst to him, the flashy colors he wore to grab attention were completely unnecessary since the energy and joy, which radiated 24/7 from his body was enough of a reason for people to notice him.

Though he still was a nobody and that's when he started giving the impression of a clown, an idiot or a laughing stock.

Now, after 4 years of training with the Sanin Jiraya, it had been the first time in years since Naruto had seen his village and comrades, it wasn't as if he was hated by all, but it also weren't the scenario where, if not loved, he wasn't liked by all.

Now Naruto stood 6ft tall, his hair now grown rivaled those of the hokage, the blue oceany orbs were like a charm, eye contact would often lead to being lost in them, his physique now rivaling that of his sensie and the signature of his being, the whisker marks as lively as ever. Upon that, he now wore a jump suite (again orange) with specially crafted ninja sandals which was a work of fine art and his Leaf village's hitai-ate which held his hair back.

In short, he was stunning, with Sasuke out of the village, he was a worthy stack to grab and fight over, yet to grab attention he wore his mask, the mask of being a loud-mouthed complete knuckle head of a ninja.

He was known to be the most unpredictable personality ever to exist, which meant his enemies now never underestimated him and his comrades always relied on him. Though what was behind the mask, was even more of a mystery then kakashi's real face. Heck! Nobody even understood wheather he's wearing a mask or not.

10th of October, it was the day when kyubi invaded the village, it was the day many people sacrificed their lives for the village, it was the day the Yondaime hokage sealed the kyubi, it was the day when Naruto was born.

This day was highly unusual, not because it was a day of mourning, not because that day people remembered their martyrs, not because it was Naruto's birthday, but because this day, Naruto used to vanish into thin air, disappear like a ghost, go invisible like a demon.

His comrades often wondered where would he flee off to, he wasn't at his home, he wasn't at ichiraku's, he wasn't with the Godaime, he even wasn't at mount myuboku. That always had been a reason why his friends couldn't wish him a happy birthday, he was no where to be found.

Though this year the Konoha Eleven had been ready, through sakura's determination, Shikamaru's strategy, Hinata's will, Ino's arrangements and the teamwork of the rest of the team, they were prepared. The night of 9th was usually when Naruto would go inactive, and that's when they had him marked.

It was in the middle of the forest, in the open fields where he's last location had been marked. It was absurd, how can one vanish in an open field, though with the technique Kurenai had taught Hinata, they dispelled the Hokage level Genjutsu which was spread throughout the area, he literally was unpredictable. What stood before them was a sight worthy to die for, it was a huge tree, with fruits never discovered before, birds never seen before, colors never imagined before, though the thing which was astonishing was the tree house, built with the utmost perfection. It had no door, which led the team straight into the house.

The inside was something to only be described with one term, Mother Nature. The window carved at the end of the room, with roots giving it a complex design, the table, the floor, the furniture the store, everything was perfectly carved out of wood, with a figure standing in the middle of the room, which didn't seem to move, as if it was an object not a living being.

He wore a black jacket, underneath which was a white shirt, with black trousers, the locket of the Nedaime added to the fine clothing, the face was covered underneath a hoodie which hid nothing more than a shock for the others. When the figure showed his face, the blonde locks fell open, the person ridiculously reflected that of Naruto's, though the whiskers, confirming the identity were not as lively as before.

Never in a million years had Naruto thought of this day, the day when his biggest secret would lay open, the day his mask shall drop in front of his comrades, the day he'll have to answer the questions he never knew how to answer.

He's face emotionless, his body as stiff as a rock, though he was looking at all of them, reading their reactions, watching them stare at him in awe and he knew that no joke of his could get him through the mess he had got into.