Konohagakure, Hokage's office.

"Alright, Naruto. You may enter." Responded Hiruzen Sarutobi, upon hearing a knock on his door. Said door opened and a small, spiky blonde haired child entered. Hiruzen smiled warmly as Naruto approached his desk, and Naruto reciprocated. The old man was one of the few in the village who treated him well.

"Hey,Hokage-jiji" smiled Naruto. He was wondering why he was called into the office, seeing as he usually just barged in there without much warning.

"I have some very important news to share with you Naruto. I hope you forgive me for not telling you sooner, but this an S-class secret and rightfully so." As he spoke, he activated the privacy seals in the room, having already sent out his Anbu.

Upon hearing this, Naruto went wide eyed. "Wha-" "It regards your parents." Hiruzen suddenly said. The 6 year olds shining blue eyes went as wide as saucers, with some tears threatening to spill out. Being an orphan, Naruto desperately wanted to know who they were.

Hiruzen took a puff of his pipe, being there was no easy way to say this. He decided to hand Naruto a picture. With trembling hands, Naruto took the picture. Looking at it, he saw a beautiful red-headed woman with a kind smile. Next to her was a man with piercing blue eyes and hair as spiky and blonde as his. In utter disbelief, he looked up, and eyes scanning the room, until his eyes came onto the row of Hokage portraits. Beside the Sandiame, was that very same man.

"..." the boy was absolutely speechless. Even he knew of the legendary exploits of the Yondaime Hokage. Then came a range of thoughts. He was happy he finally knew his parents , and that they loved him. Behind that, sadness at the thought they wouldn't meet. He finally felt anger bubbling up. Why did this have to happen. Shouldn't kids have their parents there to support and guide them? He was broken out of his thoughts by the Hokage. "Your parents were very powerful people, Naruto. I did not tell you earlier because your father especially had many enemies, ones who would not hesitate to take your life for revenge. You understand why this must remain a closely guarded secret."

Finding his voice and instead of yellling and shouting his anger, something told him not to. He knew the Hokage was not at fault and he would find an outlet later. "I understand Jiji. Thank you for telling me. Can you tell me about them?! What was my mothers name? Where were they from? Does anyone else know?" came the rapid fire questions of a child who discovered something he yearned for, even at a young age.

Hiruzen chuckled. "Her name was Kushina Uzumaki. She came from Uzushiogakure. Your father was an orphan as well. A few people, but they aren't very important right now, what is impo-"

"Yo!" said a new voice. Naruto and the Sandaime looked over and saw a large, white haired man with a horned forehead protector sitting in the windowsill.

"Jiraiya …" sighed the Hokage, "I was in the middle of something here."

"Sorry, but I was eager to meet my Godson formally." grinned the Toad Sage.

"God son?" said Naruto. "Who are you?"

"Glad you asked! I am the epitome of manliness and of the shinobi arts! Women fall at my feet while men tremble at the mere mention of my name! I am Jiraiya!" shouted the man as he struck a dramatic pose.

Naruto just looked at the Hokage, who had an amused expression on his face. "This is my former student, and was your father's sensei as well." This got Naruto's attention "You taught my dad?"

"Definitely did, brat. I was close with your father and mother, and I eventually ended up becoming your godfather shortly before you were born. However, you are now my apprentice as well." He grinned.

Naruto was too young to know the reputation of the Sannin, but the fact that this man taught his father made him eager to the thought of him being put through the same paces. Training is where he would unleash what he felt.

"Alright!" shouted the enthusiastic boy, causing both men to chuckle.

"Okay, meet me at training ground 13 ! i just have some things to discuss with the old man here." With that, Naruto ran out.

"Now that he knows who he is, i'll be coming by the village every few months to check in on him. My spy network needs me to keep it running. On that note, however, I became aware of some interesting news. There are rumors of a mercenary group called Akatsuki, comprised of S-rank missing nin. They seem to be interested in the tailed beasts, meaning they're coming after Naruto. That is why I sent a Toad to you, asking for him to be put under my wing while I am here. He's finally old enough to do so. I plan on telling Naruto in a few years of his condition, but for now just training. If he's anything like his father, he's a prodigy."

"Very well." said the Hokage. With that, Jiraiya disappeared in a swirl of leaves.

Hiruzen leaned back in his chair. He had seen the look in Naruto's eyes when he told him. He fully expected an outburst. However, the child had not done so. He was able to keep himself in check at 6. That was a frightening thought. "Naruto..." he said to no one in particular. "You will grow very powerful indeed.

Training Ground 13

"I'm going to be trained as a ninja!" mentally cheered Naruto as he arrived at the grounds. He had been so excited that he didn't even notice the pointed glares of the villagers as he usually did. He wondered what kind of cool jutsu he would be learning when the man, Jiraiya, appeared in a swirl of leaves.

"Alright Naruto, come here." Naruto ran over and stood at attention. "You're going to be coming here when I call you through this sealing bracelet, as I have to leave the village pretty regularly. Worry not, however, as you are going to have plenty to work on even while I'm gone. Also, I hope you like reading, as you're going to be visiting the library quite often" grinned the man.

"...Reading?! No thanks." said Naruto. Then he had a thought. "Jiraiya, can I ask you a favor? Can you please tell me about his parents? I know the old man told me who they are..but I want to know WHO they were. Please.

Jiraiya chuckled. "Sorry brat, but training your mind is as important as your body. And I definitely will tell you about them...But! You have to earn it. Work and train hard and I will tell you. Anyway, let's get started." and so began the standard explanation about Chakra and how to mold and control it.

XXX

The months went by, with Jiraiya discovering the boy had very large reserves of chakra, learning surprisingly good control over it. He quickly picked up on everything that was shown to him, including the body flicker technique. His mind progressed rapidly as well, becoming well versed in Shinobi and jutsu theory. His taijutsu was developing well, having taught him the style Minato used, which concentrated on speed and strong, debilitating strikes. Minato used the Hiraishin when fighting, but before he mastered that, he used a fighting style that complimented his natural speed, which Naruto inherited. His shuriken jutsu was advanced for his age as well, being able to match most Uchiha's in the art. He was even beginning to pick up Fuinjutsu, which seemed to naturally come to him. He was an Uzumaki after all. After almost 2 years of..well at times, brutal training, he was ready to start the Academy in a few days.

XXX

Naruto's apartment.

"Well Naruto, you have progressed very well. Keep on this path and I know you'll be able to surpass Minato. There is one thing I have to tell you, though."

"What is it, Ero-Sennin?" said Naruto, having taken to calling him this when he found out his sensei was just a big pervert a few months ago.

Brushing the nickname to the side, Jiraiya started " Have you ever felt a special chakra? And are you aware of the Kyuubi attack on the village 8 years ago?"

"I've never felt anything other than my regular, blue chakra. Why? And Yes, Dad killed it right before I was born right?"

"Actually,no. You can't kill a tailed beast. Minato defeated the Kyuubi...by sealing it inside of you. Naruto went wide eyed. "A masked man attacked the village with the beast the day you were born, and your father sealed it inside of you, knowing that one day you could control its power. The masked man is still out there, and he is very dangerous. Your father believed there are more threats behind him though, and the Kyuubi is your tool for helping to defeat him and keep the village safe.

Naruto pondered this. He knew how strong his father was, and if this man was as much of a threat as his father believed, it made sense to him. He spoke up "Damn..." he weakly laughed. Then his eyes hardened. Soft ocean blue turning into gleaming and pointed ice. He walked over to the training post and hit it so hard the wood cracked. He then appeared to be deep in thought. "Well, that explains why the villagers hate me." Naruto pointedly said. "I keep them safe from this thing and they treat me like trash."

"Naruto" started Jiraiya, in an attempt to placate the boy.

"I understand Dad's reasoning, as much as I hate it. I may be a kid, but I know this world is not fair. Not in the slightest. We are Shinobi first and foremost. As for the villagers, i'll make them recognize me when I become Hokage anyway. I'll show them who I really am. Not a monster or a freak."

The Toad Sage smirked. Naruto was really a very shrewd person, despite his age."Well said, kid. I thought you'd freak out but you take after Minato more than I thought. "Now come on, there's a jutsu I want to show you before you start the academy."

"What is it?"

"Shadow Clones." smiled the man.

XXX

That's the 1st chapter of my very 1st attempt at a fic. Not sure what else to say, thanks for reading.