Blood Soaked Bandages

by issac shikimori

Minato Namikaze the Yondaime of the village was so scared to risk his family that he actually decided to use another child for the sealing of the Kyuubi instead. However because of some circumstances that failed and the sealing went on with his son as planned. Now Naruto and the boy who was to take his place Rock Lee are bonded by fate as they take the ninja world by storm.

1. Chapter 1

Hey everyone!

Issac Shikimori is here with a new story to share about one of my favorite naruto characters. I believe Rock Lee needs a bit more loving in the show which is why I have dedicated this story to help show how awesome of a person he really is. This story will be about naruto and his friends of course but it is also about Rock Lee playing a larger role. If you don't like it well I apologize however this is how I choose to write my story ^^'. Also please feel free to comment and share how you feel about it! Note I do not own Naruto because if I did then Lee definitely would have been given a better character in the show. That and Naruto and Hinata would be together already. Without further ado…. I present you "Blood Soaked Bandages!"

Chapter 1: A desperate hokage

"Yondaime-sama the kyuubi no kitsune is well on his way to the village. The ETA for his arrival at the front gates of the village is ten minutes sir… what course of action do you wish for us to take?" Asked a worn Jounin who had just returned from the front lines. Standing before the kneeling man was none other than Minato Namikaze the Yondaime and current kage of Konohagakure no sato also known as the village hidden in the leaves. The blond haired man sighed heavily holding his side from his previous encounter with a masked man who had attempted to take his son from him and his wife. At this moment Minato knew that there would be no other option than to seal off the kyuubi in order to protect the village as well as prepare it for a future attack from that masked man. To his surprise when he spoke to his wife about this idea she slapped him for even considering taking an infant from the orphanage to take their new born son's place. Minato looked down in shame at his thought as he remembered exactly how the situation took place….

Flashback no jutsu!

Minato ran into the room where Kushina was laying with a smile on his face as he was carrying a small boy from the orphanage in his arms. The young boy was still asleep since it was so late at night and even the desperate father known as the Yellow Flash of Konoha knew what he was doing was wrong. However the thought of using his son in this process was too much for him to handle.

"Kushina look! I brought a vessel for me to seal the Kyuubi in. Look he doesn't even have any parents that we know of an-"However Minato was cut off by his wife who immediately pulled her hand back with fury in her eyes. He held his cheek not accustomed to this strange pain as he glanced up into the eyes of his wife.

"YOU ARE THE HOKAGE OF THIS VILLAGE AND YOU ARE ABOUT TO CONDEMN ANOTHER CHILD WHEN YOU CAN'T EVEN RISK YOUR OWN SON!... You think I like this? Well I don't but the Kyuubi is not stopping… that masked man did something to him and now we have no other choice Minato. If we have to do this for the village then we will make the sacrifice and keep it in our own family, not risk another boy because we are scared for our son. I love Naruto and I love you but we need to do what is best…."

As the two remained there the roof busted open as the Kyuubi struck the entire building destroying the main foundation of it. There stood Minato standing as a shield over his wife and son as the small orphaned child remain sleeping through all of this. The words of his wife pierced his heart and mind as his thoughts kept racing on how he was to protect not only the village but his family. However he knew that as the Hokage his mission was to protect these people first and that everything paled in comparison to his village. Minato clenched his fists as a tear slid down his cheek and started to do the necessary hand signs for his jutsu the Shiki fujin. Kushina smiled sadly at him as she silently cooed to her baby boy who was crying this entire time. She looked back over to her husband and saw something that scared her about the man she grew to love. She saw the desperation in his eyes as he turned his attention to the orphan boy who was starting to waken.

"W-w-where am I?... WHAT IS THAT!" He shouted pointing at the Kyuubi. The sheer sight of the beast was enough to scare the small boy enough to the point where he passed out from fear. Minato said a tearful apology as he turned his attention to the orphan boy and started to apply the seal. Kushina immediately jumped upward and grabbed her husband and forced him to stop the sealing process. The death god started to form behind the both of them and was not happy.

"You who summoned me… why do you stop the sealing process… you have offered your life already no?" The death god asked with an amused expression on his face. Before Minato or Kushina could respond the Kyuubi stabbed one of its tails through Kushina's chest. This caused the previous container of the kyuubi to cough out a large amount of blood as she looked over at her husband reaching out to him.

"Minato… please…. Do what is right…. Don't let your fear rule you… I will always love you and naru-…na-…n-"She choked out before her eyes rolled back and her body became cold and lifeless. The death god was quite pleased and decided to take his late wife's soul into himself in exchange for Minato's life. Minato seeing this screamed at the top of his lungs and grabbed his son and the orphan boy and used his hiraishin technique to teleport to his office….

Now Minato knew that he could no longer wait. He had conducted an act against his village out of fear of losing his family. Now his beautiful wife Kushina was gone and his infant son in his arms he told the Jounin to retreat from the front lines and leave the rest to him. He looked over at the small boy in the corner and realized the error in his ways… because of the unsuccessful transfer the boy's chakra coils were damaged beyond repair and would never be able to use ninjutsu or genjutsu. "Hopefully the boy will simply live as a civilian… I did this to him and I hope to pay him back one day.. more so Naruto I wish you will one day." Minato whispered to himself as he shushined to the front lines. The Kyuubi continued to crush buildings and throw shinobi around like rag dolls while Minato only stood there looking down about what he was about to do. He then laid his son on the ground and smiled a bit as he wiggled his finger to play with the baby a bit before glaring up at the huge chakra beast that seemed to notice his presence. As the Kyuubi charged at the Yondaime he quickly went through the necessary hand signs and shouted out "SHIKI FUJIN!" as the death god once again returned to the world of the living. Minato then proceeded to seal the beast into his son as the kyuubi roared out in pain. As the sealing was almost done Minato made sure to seal a bit of his chakra as well as his wife's into his son so if the situation rose they would appear before him in his mind scape in order to aid him with the issues the Kyuubi most likely would be giving him. Finally the sealing was finished as Minato fell to his knees besides his crying child smiling he whispered into Naruto's ear.

"You will do great things… greater things then I ever could… greater things then your mother could. Please be more brave then your cowardly father and never risk another person to save yourself… You are the hope for the future Naruto… never forget that your mother and I love you…" He muttered before the Yellow Flash felt his soul leaving his body. There lying next to him the crying infant Naruto Uzumaki was his lineage and the last remaining member of the Namikaze and Uzumaki clan.

Back in the Hokage office Hiruzen Sarutobi the previous Kage of the village sighed deeply as he placed the Hokage cap once again on his head. Not only did he miss his successor dearly he also held a great disappointment that he outlived such a talented young man. As he was about to sit down at the desk he noticed a parchment on the chair as he blinked a bit and picked it up before opening the seal that would only respond to his blood. As he read the note his eyes widened as he caught first glance at the great Minato Namikaze's first recorded mistake.

"Hiruzen

If you're reading this then more likely than not I am dead from sealing off the Kyuubi. As we talked about with Kushina I have chosen to seal of the Kyuubi in my son Naruto however I must confess to something as it weighs heavily on my heart. I have failed the village in that I let my emotions and love for my family cloud my judgment. I almost sealed the Kyuubi into a small orphan boy with no recorded family out of fear for sentencing my son to a life of being the Kyuubi's jailor. I had one of my men return the boy named Lee to the orphanage however because of my actions he will never be able to mold chakra correctly due to the demonic chakra entering his body and the sudden stopping of the sealing. I have sentenced this boy to suffer for the rest of his life out of my own selfish ambition and for that I must apologize. More so I want to apologize about the fact that I am once again forcing you to take on the mantle of Hokage since I know you wish to just retire. Please Hiruzen if you can watch over my son as he lives his life. Being a container for the Kyuubi will surely make his life hard if it is ever released. This is why I wish to keep it between you and me. Also if I may request that you look out for this Lee boy as well and ensure that he lives a moderately comfortable life in the village. There should be enough money left in my account to cover the cost of taking care of Naruto and Lee. I do not want Naruto to receive his inheritance till he reaches either chuunin or the age of eighteen so this leaves you to make decisions on how the money is used. I know this is a lot to ask of you my friend however I hope that my cowardice and momentary hesitation has not dampened how you feel about me or my son.

Guide them well Hiruzen-sama…. The village needs you

Minato Namikaze The Yellow Flash"

Hiruzen was at a loss for words after reading the letter and looked up into the window to look at the village. As this happened one of his ANBU arrived with baby naruto in hand as he kneeled offering the child up to him. Sarutobi only sighed as he took a puff from his pipe taking the small boy and smiling at him as he slept. He knew that life would be hard for this boy as well as for the orphan boy that Minato had spoken of. Though Sarutobi was disappointed he could not blame Minato for his actions as he ultimately could understand the man's logic as he handed the child to his secretary. He would worry about what to do about the boy soon but for now he had to attend to the council that was called in regards to what to do now that the kyuubi has been dealt with.

Entering the council room all the Clan heads as well as the Hokage's advisors were all seated waiting for the entrance of the fourth. When they saw Hiruzen enter the room they knew something was wrong. Hiruzen shuffled over to the hokage seat tired from all of the events that had occurred that night and sat down amongst the other council members calling the meeting to order.

"Sarutobi-sama if I may ask where is Namikaze-sama? Why are you sitting in the Hokage seat?" Danzo asked raising an eyebrow at his old teammate. Though he did not like the fourth for taking away his precious title of Hokage he preffered him over Hiruzen as he was more likely to get away with his ROOT missions with the younger and less experienced Hokage in office. The rest of the delegation all nodded to symbolize that they were all thinking the same as Hiruzen cleared his throat.

"Minato Namikaze and his wife Kushina Uzumaki Namikaze were both killed in the process of defeating the Kyuubi tonight." Sarutobi stated with an air of confidence. This caused all the clan heads to look down in sadness for the fall of their current leader. Danzo however saw this as an opportunity to rise to power as he quickly stood to gain everyone's attention. "The village needs a leader in this time of crisis to aid in the rebuilding of this great village and to lead us to protecting ourselves in the case that this happens again. Since the Yondaime has tragically passed on and the village is currently without a leader I nominate myself to become Hokage." Before the others could speak the other two advisors to the Hokage immediately raised their hands to show they supported Danzo. Hiruzen only cleared his throat again as he looked out at the council.

"Sorry Danzo that will not be happening as the Yondaime already stated before in the last meeting that if anything were to happen to him I would once again take the title of Hokage. Now If you are finished with your moving speech about how you wish to seize control of the village I would like to bring up the second order of business for the evening." Hiruzen stated glaring daggers at the other elderly man. He immediately sat down closing his mouth knowing not to oppose the current Hokage silently cursing himself for not remembering the last meeting. Once the floor was clear of deliberation the Hokage called in his secretary who brought in the sleeping Naruto as he stood and showed him to the rest of the council.

"This child was selected by the Yondaime to become the vessel that would contain the Kyuubi. His name is Naruto Uzumaki and the next order of business would be under what protective care program will we be placing him?" Hiruzen stated however almost immediately shouts and curses were flying around the room as the civilian council yelled for the death of the demon spawn as they called him. This angered Hiruzen past his boiling point as he released a massive amount of killing intent before yelling "YOU ALL WILL REMAIN SILENT IN MY COUNCIL!" With this most of the civilian council passed out from the sheer weight of Hiruzen's ki while the other shinobi in the room obviously showed how uncomfortable they were with the added pressure in the room. Hiruzen was fuming from this and could not believe that the sensible people of his council though passionate at times would even consider excuting a newborn child.

"Since we cannot seem to control ourselves today then I will take it upon myself to take this boy in and raise him. Are there any objections to this?" Sarutobi stated with venom in his voice as Danzo immediately raised his hand. "Hokage-dono as the leader of this village and a military figure you showing favoritism to any individual places the entire village in an unfair stance so if you take that child in then you will be neglecting the other orphans that need a home. For that reason I must decline your right to take the child!" Danzo stated with an evil smirk. The civilian council wanting to make the boy suffer eagerly agreed as well as the Hokage's advisors. On the Shinobi end the clan heads were divided. The Nara, Akimichi, Yamanaka, and Aburame clans were opposed to not letting the boy stay with the Hokage but the Uchiha, Inuzuka, Haruno, and Hyuuga all supported Danzo and his wishes leading a landslide victory in the case of Danzo. Angered but containing his rage Hiruzen took a mighty puff of his pipe as he called another idea to order." Well then if I cannot take the boy then no one here will. I declare that Uzumaki Naruto will be incapable of adoption under law of the Hokage himself. Also in regards to his heritage I must call an oath of secrecy. If anyone one over the age of eighteen even considers telling a child in the village about Naruto's secret they will be publicly executed on sight. Do I make myself clear?" With that the clan heads all nodded their agreement while Danzo growled silently to himself since he could not take the boy legally and train him the way he wished. The civilian council was livid at the thought that their leader was not going to execute the boy but the idea that he will never be adopted and would be forced to live on his own was enough for them to deal with. They would have their revenge on him later.

Without any further delegation Hiruzen closed the meeting and handed the new born to his secretary ordering her to take the young boy to the orphanage. He hoped that he had scared everyone enough to follow his rulings however he knew in the back of his mind this wouldn't be the last time that he would have to deal with issues in regards to Naruto. Silently Sarutobi looked up to the sky and whispered to himself "It is done Minato… rest in peace my friend."

5 years later

Hiruzen after finishing his paper work decided to take off seeing the village celebrating the annual festival to honor their fallen comrades who died in the Kyuubi attack. There was a large fair like feeling in the village with many street vendors and games for children to play as well as a reenactment of how the mighty fourth used his powerful jutsu to 'defeat' the evil demon fox. The kids all seemed to enjoy this play while the parents were mostly annoyed. Sure it was great to see their hero portrayed well in the eyes of their children but the parents also knew that the demon fox was not dead and was still currently living in their own village.

A young boy with huge bushy eyebrows was running around the orphanage a little too excited that he was going to the festival along with his friends. Since he was one of the older boys he would have to watch over all of them however he was always confused how one of the boys simply did not wish to go to the festival. In his mind there was just simply no reason for someone not to want to go celebrate one of the most memorable days in their village's history and to commemorate the fallen warriors as well as the hero that single handedly saved the village from the evil demon fox. So while the other boys were getting ready the young bushy browed boy ran over to the small blonde child curled up in the corner.

"Hey there you seem to be upset about something I know what will cheer you up! How about you come with me and the other kids to the festival and I will surely win you a prize!" The energetic boy stated holding his hand out to the younger boy in the corner. The blond haired child looked up in fear and was hesitant and first before quietly saying "The grown-ups wont let me go to the festival…. They all yell at me and throw things at me…. Earlier today one of them did this to me…" He stated as he lifted his sleeve as he revealed a large gash that seemed to have healed a bit. However the energetic boy would not stand for this as he ripped a section of cloth from his shirt and tied it around the younger boy's arm before smiling back at him.

"There that is much better! Do not worry about those mean grown-ups who hurt you! I will protect you from them and then we can report them to the orphanage mothers! That will show them and then you and I can be great friends!" The boy shouted as he did what appeared to be an improvised good guy pose. This pose consisted of a thumbs up sign as well as a flash of his shiny white teeth that seemed to blind the nearby children. Clearly this boy practiced excellent dental hygiene however that was not the point. He bent down and helped the small blond boy up smiling at him as he patted him on the back.

"Oh I almost forgot to introduce myself! Silly me you must forgive me my friend! My name is Lee and it is very nice to meet you!" He stated holding his hand out. The blond child was still very hesitant around the other boy but took his hand and shook it. "My name is Naruto… Naruto Uzumaki it is very nice to meet you Lee…" With that Lee pumped his fist in the air and gave off a mighty yell which seemed to disturb the other boys who were getting ready for the festival as well as make the girls on the other side of the orphanage giggle. Lee was very popular here at the orphanage as his hilarious antics always seemed to make people smile. Initially the mothers who worked there at the orphanage were very worried for him because of his poor health when he was a boy but strangely he recovered and became a very strong child. A little hyperactive but strong nonetheless and they couldn't be more great full to kami for that.

The owner of the Orphanage walked up and shot a glare at Naruto making him flinch as Lee was doing his happy dance to busy in his own moment to notice the treatment Naruto was receiving. "Lee take the other boy's to the festival… Naruto here has to stay and finish the chores." The owner stated as Lee immediately stopped and looked at her. "B-b-but Naruto-kun and I were going to go to the festival together! Besides I finished all the chores earlier what else is there to do?" He shouted obviously upset about this. The owner smiled at Lee hiding her malice towards the Kyuubi container as she crouched to his level. "Well why don't you go ahead and head to the festival and I will send Naruto right after he and I talk for a little bit. He will catch up to you don't worry Lee." The owner said softly as Lee smiled and gave her a smile as he turned to Naruto. "Alright Naruto-kun the owner promises I will see you soon so please hurry with whatever needs to be done so I can show you how amazing I am at the carnival games!" He shouted before giving Naruto a miniature salute. With that Naruto silently nodded to him and stayed behind while Lee and the other boys ran off to take part in the celebration. As Naruto stood in the doorway watching them leave he could feel the tears building up in his eyes as he heard the sound of a whip cracking behind him. "Come here you little brat!... time for your birthday lashes."

At the festival Hiruzen was walking around contently as several of the civilians and shinobi alike were bowing to show their respect for the seasoned leader of Konoha. He nodded to show that he respected them and allowed them to continue their festivities. In the back of his mind however he was wondering about a particular young blond in which he hadn't seen running the streets. As he was walking around thinking this he accidentally bumped into a certain energetic bushy browed child as he chuckled to himself and bent down to help the child up.

"Oh HOKAGE-SAMA! Please accept my deepest apologies for bumping into you! I will take whatever punishment you deem fitting for such an insubordinate swine such as myself!" The youth shouted as he quickly bowed his forehead touching the ground. Hiruzen could only laugh as he helped signaled for the boy to stand. Obviously this boy was reading to many books about Samurai and such that he didn't understand the concept of grace.

"That is quite alright there… Lee isn't it? Well this is an excellent surprise. I have been keeping tabs on you since you were an infant. How is your health?" Hiruzen smiled as he ruffled the boy's hair. Lee only smiled and gave the most convincing good guy pose that a six year old could muster as he shouted loudly. "I am strong as an ox sir and ready for the shinobi academy!"

This surprised Hiruzen thoroughly as he did not expect the boy to wish to become a shinobi. Especially with his inability to mold chakra however that was not up to him to decide and if the boy wished to try then who was he to stop him. He smiled at the boy to show he agreed with his decision and looked around at all the other children playing around in the streets before his mind once again wondered to a specific child.

"Lee do you by chance know of a blond haired boy at the orphanage? How is he holding up?" The hokage questioned as Lee blinked not knowing why the Hokage was asking for his new friend. "Oh Naruto-kun? He is fine but strangely he could not come to the festival today. Also he had a big cut on his arm and it didn't seem that the mothers at the orphanage were assisting him. So I bandaged it up myself. " Lee stated looking down that his friend couldn't come with them. This recent news disturbed Hiruzen as he looked around. "And where is Naruto now?" He asked worry in his voice.

"Naruto-kun should be at the orphanage with the mothers and the owner. I am not entirely sure what is going on sir but the owner did seem really happy about having Naruto-kun there by himself." With that Lee saw the old man immediately dash away from him and head in the direction of the orphanage. Confused as to why the Hokage was doing this he decided to follow him back to see Naruto-kun. When Hiruzen arrived at the Orphanage he kicked the door in to see the atrocities being commited to young Naruto. There in the corner was five year old naruto cowering in the corner now covered in several cuts and bruises. His shirt torn from the lashes that he had sustained from the sadistic owner of the Orphanage as there were purple welts forming on his back where the skin ripped open from the whipping. Little Naruto was crying for help as the owner turned to see the Hokage standing there obviously angered. Justice was swift as Hiruzen quickly executed the man before walking over to Naruto picking him up. The crying boy struggled screaming things such as "Please no more! I can't take any more beatings!" he cried out. Hiruzen deeply sorry for all the things that the child had to deal with decided to finally take action.

As he walked out of the orphanage Lee finally reached his home to see the Hokage carrying the sleeping form of his friend covered in many bruises and injuries. "WHAT HAPPENE D TO NARUTO-KUN!" Lee shouted as he pulled on the Hokage's robes. Hiruzen only looked down and smiled softly before saying "He was hurt by some bad people but its okay… I will take care of him from now on. Is that okay Lee?" He said softly however the young boy looked down clenching his fists in anger. "Hokage-sama I will train hard and become a ninja so that I can protect my precious people like Naruto-kun here. Please I want to join the academy! I know I cannot mold chakra and do ninjutsu or genjutsu but I will become a ninja anyway! I will train in taijutsu and become more skilled than any other ninja has before in the art then I will be strong enough to take care of Naruto-kun!" Lee stated his eyes burning with determination to protect his friend. Hiruzen could only smile that a boy had become this close to Naruto in his absence and he could not let this boy's dream die. So with the Hokage's permission he would allow the boy to join the academy. Naruto on the other hand would not be put back in the orphanage but will be given an apartment where he will be safe. Hiruzen decided to place ANBU officers in the vicinity of the new apartment he would give Naruto so that the boy would be able to sleep soundly at night and he would out of his own pocket secretly cover Naruto's expenses.

With this in mind he nodded to the young Lee patting him on the head while his ANBU members were quickly removing the body of the fallen owner of the Orphanage in secret. He then dismissed Lee as he carried Naruto back to his office to get the paper work done for Naruto's new home as well as Lee's entrance to the academy. The following day Naruto was happily scarfing down his fifteenth bowl of ramen as Hiruzen was showing him around his new apartment. He obviously was very pleased with it as he was finally happy to be able to stay by himself where people wouldn't hurt him. Before the Hokage prepared to leave naruto called out to him "Umm Jiji? Would it be okay if Lee-niisan came over to play?" This amused Hiruzen to no end as he only nodded and rubbed Naruto's head. With that he left the boy to explore the apartment by himself as he would return back to his office to combat the mountains of paperwork that were surely to be waiting for him.

~At the other end of the village~

"Books? Check… Sandals? Check… Hair in a pony tail? Check! Good guy pose? CHECK! YOSH I AM READY FOR THE ACADEMY!" Lee shouted loudly which annoyed Iruka to no bounds as the boy had once again interrupted his class. The other students found him funny including a young girl with buns in her hair, however there was one that didn't find his antics amusing at all. That would be Hyuuga Neji the proclaimed prodigy of the Hyuuga clan. For some reason the hyperactive boy Lee seemed to annoy the hell out of Neji and he would soon shut him up permanently.

Well that wraps up the first chapter hopefully you all enjoyed the story so far as I enjoyed writing it. I am hoping that you all will read it and review. This story will ultimately follow the same storyline as Naruto however there will be minor changes and will change every now and then between Naruto and Lee. So please review and let me know what you all think! :D