He woke up when he started feeling the intensity of the sun right through his eye lids. He smiled. It had been ages since he'd last slept so well. It probably had a lot to do with the amount of exercise he had done the day before. That stupid Prince. What a jerk. He had never met someone as rude and inconsiderate. Quickly, he stood up and started dressing up eagerly. He let go of a small, excited chuckle. He couldn't wait to show that pale-faced asshole what he was capable of.

The boy rushed down the stairs without even stopping to have something to eat. He would have a big bowl of ramen for lunch, he thought. That should do the trick. As he sped through the entrance door of the inn he heard the old man's angry voice behind him.

'Naruto, you lazy brat! Where do you think you're going? You were supposed to clean the floors today!

'Sorry Ero-Sennin, no can do! I have to be somewhere today, it's really important!'

Damn that Jiraiya. He treated him like a slave. The blond haired boy had to work for him all day while he spent the day peeking on the female lodgers or writing more of those perverted books of his. Those stories that he had heard about Jiraiya the Great Samurai were probably no more than folktales. The only fights Naruto had ever seen the old man get into were the ones he consistently had with Granny Tsunade, the owner of the other inn in the city. Those two really had a weird relationship…

As he ran through the crowded street, Naruto couldn't help thinking about the unexpected set of events that had taken place the previous day.

'Naruto, would you please take these suitcases upstairs while I show these charming ladies around?' The pervy sage was being his usual self that morning. The blond haired boy sighed, tired, and did as he was told. As always, he was being treated like a nobody. He picked up the suitcases and headed for the stairs. As he was leaving, however, he felt someone catching hold of one of his wrists. He turned around and was soon surrounded by a group of three girls, all of them stroking the young boy's silky blond hair and tanned, olive skin. At this, Naruto couldn't help but blush.

'Oh! Look at his cheeks, he's blushing!' said one of the girls.

'Kawaii!' the rest of them replied in unison.

'Girls, girls, please let me introduce you to Naruto. This boy's almost like my own son. He has no parents, you see, but his father left him to me before passing away and ever since then I've taken care of the boy just as if he were my own flesh and bone. Right Naruto-kun?' The old man asked, chuckling proudly.

Naruto shivered at the use of the honorific. That was definitely not something Jiraiya and him used.

'Wow, but look at those muscles he has!' the first girl exclaimed 'Are you training to become a soldier?'

At this, Naruto lowered his gaze. His expression changed. When he spoke, his voice sounded much more serious. 'Not yet' he declared, 'but I will surely become one someday! I will show everybody around here that I am capable of doing big things! That'll force them to respect me!' he exclaimed, passionately.

'Well, I'm afraid you've touched his soft spot right there young lady. You see, our Naruto has always wanted to do something great with his life. And ever since I told him that his father once worked for the Emperor as a soldier, becoming one has been his one and only dream. It's nonsense, of course but…' Jiraiya couldn't finish his sentence.

'OH SHUT UP WILL YOU? You don't know how far I am willing to go' Naruto interrupted.

'Determinism is just so attractive in a man…' The young lady stated. 'Listen, my name is Sayuri, and these are my friends Tomoko and Ayane. We've just arrived here from the country side, and we would like someone to show us around. Would you like to be that person, by any chance?'

There was a short pause. Jiraiya's face was now one of true disappointment. Naruto smiled. This was revenge for all those stupid chores the old man made him do.

'Of course, why not?' he accepted, cheekily.

'You don't mind, don't you, Jiraiya-sama?' Sayuri asked, sweetly. The perverted geezer couldn't say otherwise.

'Well, well, your Majesty, you know why I am here, I suppose', the masked man asked. The Prince observed him with contempt. He refused to trust anybody who wouldn't show his whole face.

'Ne, ne your Majesty, I didn't come here to joke around. Your father is paying me a lot of money to train you in the art of war, but you don't seem to want to collaborate with me'

The black haired boy shrugged. If the masked man thought he would get a reaction out of him, he was wrong. He was already used to silence. The masked man sighed, resigned.

'Well. First thing's first, right? My name is Hatake Kakashi. From now on, you can call me Sensei.'

'Do I need to introduce myself too?' The pale faced boy replied, sarcastically.

'Ha ha! Sharp. Very sharp indeed. Let's see what we can make out of that, shall we? Get ready. We're going out.'

'And that weird building to your left is the Temple of Goddess Inari-sama. Think she's supposed to be in charge of rice and fertility but I'm not sure. Anyhow, moving on…' It was a hot summer morning in Konoha. People gathered around the water fountains and the fruit stalls, searching for something refreshing. The streets were full of beggars. This wasn't new. It had been like this since Naruto was a kid and the boy had never really known any different. He led the group of girls into the town square. The imposing Imperial Castle could be seen from beyond.

The atmosphere was hectic. The sounds of babies crying and animals groaning were the soundtrack of the city center. Everything was the same as usual. Or was it?

The olive skinned boy stopped immediately as he caught sight of the imperial carriage advancing through the narrow street. His eyes widened. This was a weird sight. Emperors didn't just simply decide to have a stroll around their domains!

People frantically made space for the royal carriage. Stallholders got hold of their products hurriedly and mothers grabbed their children by their hand and cleared out a space for whichever member of the royal family happened to be inside the vehicle.

Naruto watched in amazement as two figures slowly descended from the carriage - first a tall man with long, pointed white hair and a masked face, then a smaller figure, with ebony black hair and translucent, delicate skin. Naruto could identify the smaller figure as the Imperial Prince. Ever since he had hit puberty, he had become ever so popular among the girls. Naruto's neighbour, Sakura, was one of the girls who were absolutely crazy for him. Nobody had actually since him in person up until now though. They had only been able to see him through paintings distributed by the Imperial family. Seeing him in person however was an entirely different thing.

The group of girls behind Naruto shrieked in admiration. The boy cringed in disgust. How could they possibly be in love with someone that was so different from them? Naruto couldn't understand.

Suddenly, the masked man spoke. His passive voice resonated through the now silent street. 'Well, this is it. These are the people you will need to protect once you become Emperor.' The Prince's expression didn't change in the slightest. Naruto shivered. He had the expression of someone that's lost all hope. His eyes were somber and cloudy, and his gaze was fixed on something invisible.

The masked man sighed. 'I feared this would happen. Well then. I can't think of anything else that would get you going, your Majesty. My job here is done. I will have to tell your father he will need to hire another trainer for his son.'

Enough was enough. The blond boy couldn't take this any longer. Without even thinking about it (this was something he seldom did) he jumped into the circle that had been provided for the Imperial Carriage.

'Hey you!'

The people gasped in surprise as the blond haired boy stretched his index finger to point at the Prince. The latter didn't even look at him in the eye. Instead, he smeared and turned around, starting to walk towards the carriage.

'Oh don't you dare walk away from me! Just because you're the Prince or whatever, doesn't mean you can afford to treat your people like this!' At this point, Naruto had completely lost his temper. Injustice was something that affected him very deeply, and the Prince was about to discover this.

'Chotto matte Naruto-kun'

'Forgive Naruto, your Majesty, he's just this foul-mouthed orphan…'

'Yes, he didn't mean what he was saying…'

The blond haired boy ignored the words of advice coming from the rest of the villagers.

'Just because you're the Prince doesn't mean you can go around dismissing everybody else! Ma taku… I'll show you not to ignore me! One day your sorry life will depend on me!'

There was a long, tense silence. The type of silence that proceeds an important moment. And suddenly, the Prince spoke for the first time in a very long while.

'Those surely are big words for a loser like you' The Prince's words were heavier than any metal. They stroke Naruto right in the heart. This wasn't going to end like this.

'Well I'm telling you your life will one day depend on me!' Naruto screamed. His expression was so determined the Prince couldn't help but to raise an eyebrow in surprise. This boy surely did believe in himself. The royal smiled.

'Hmm. So are you telling me that if we were to fight right now, you would win?' He asked the orphan.

'Of course I would, you teme!' The reply came in less than a second.

'There, there, Prince Sasuke, this is neither the place or the time for this…' Kakashi-sensei had butted in at just the right time. 'But..' the teacher added mysteriously 'If you want to prove this passionate young man wrong, I suggest we take him to the castle and you fight there'.

One could have cut the atmosphere in the carriage with a knife. Silence took hold of the air as soon as the vehicle started moving towards the castle. Naruto couldn't believe what had just happened. He was as nervous as he'd ever been. He kept twitching his fingers and his toes uncontrollably. He could feel the energy flowing through his body. He smiled.

Hatake Kakashi was sitting in between the two boys. He had a book within his hands. Naruto turned his head slowly to the right, wanting to read its title.

'Icha Icha Par…' he read, mentally.

He didn't manage to finish. He turned his head right back as soon as he caught sight of the Prince's eyes, staring right at him. Naruto wondered how this boy really was. There was just something about him which made Naruto feel… as though it hadn't always been this way for him.

Then again, this boy had led a completely different life. He had had everything he could have hoped for and more, while Naruto had had to make do with a bossy and perverted old geezer and a whole bunch of soldier stories about men who went to war and never came back and women who had been killed by their own babies. The blond boy clenched his fists. He was going to show that arrogant Prince what a poor village boy could do!

Soon enough the carriage stopped moving. 'Well boys', said the masked man as he closed his book with his right hand. 'This is when the fun starts'.