Chapter 2: The Prodigy

"It's about time you got here." Jiraiya said as he shut the door behind his guest. "I heard you had a penchant for being late but this is a little ridiculous no?" His guest shrugged.

"I got lost on the road of life, what can I say?"

"What kind of excuse is that?" The silver-haired Jonin sighed. "Now what were you really doing?" Kakashi looked down at the ground.

"I was at the memorial stone." Jiraiya's eyes widened, and then an expression of understanding appeared on Jiraiya's face.

"Say no more kid. I understand." Kakashi nodded. "Let me take you to the kid." Jiraiya led Kakashi upstairs and into one of the large rooms of the estate, where Naruto was meditating quietly.

"You got him to meditate?" At this, Naruto's eyes popped open, and he smiled.

"Hi Kakashi!" The blonde boy jumped up and ran over to Kakashi, engulfing him in a hug.

"Not anymore." Jiraiya stated with a sigh.

"Hey Naruto. How's it been?"

"Great! Uncle Jiraiya started training me to become a ninja!" Kakashi turned to Jiraiya.

"Really? Don't you think four is a little young?"

"How old were you when you were put in the Ninja Academy?" Kakashi scratched his head and chuckled.

"Point taken. Seems like so long ago… Anyway what have you been teaching him?" The Jonin asked.

"Nothing too intense. Basic Chakra manipulation, some Taijutsu, and some weapons training. I'm sure he'd appreciate it if you helped him out a little too." Naruto's eyes lit up.

"That would be awesome! Will you help me train Kakashi? Please!" Kakashi laughed and ruffled the boy's hair.

"Sure, I'll help train you Naruto." The boy shouted in excitement.

"Yes! C'mon let's go now!" Naruto bolted out of the room, and he could be heard charging down the stairs and out the back door.

"Wow, he sure has a lot of energy." Jiraiya scoffed.

"Tell me about it. Sometimes he even tires me out."

"Great. So this isn't going to be a walk in the park?" Jiraiya laughed and put a hand on his junior's shoulder.

"No, not by a long shot." Kakashi sighed. "It's okay, I'll only be gone for two weeks, tops." Footsteps could be heard on the stairs, and seconds later Naruto appeared in the room again.

"C'mon Kakashi! What are you waiting for! I'm not gonna become Hokage if you don't train me!" Kakashi held his hands up.

"Okay okay, we'll go train now." Kakashi looked gravely Jiraiya before being dragged out the door. Jiraiya let out a chuckle as he followed the two boys. He was glad Kakashi could do this on such short notice, not that he really had a choice in the matter. His mission would take him all the way up to Lightning Country, and he knew he couldn't leave Naruto alone for that long. Even with his state of the art traps, someone was bound to try something stupid.

Over the years, the villagers had developed mixed feeling about Naruto. Most of the civilians still hated him, mostly because of their ignorance of Minato's genius. They still thought the Nine-Tails could escape at any time, and that Naruto was a menace to society. On the other hand, a good portion of the ninja population saw Naruto as what he truly was: a hero. They knew Minato's seal couldn't be broken without extreme circumstances, and with Jiraiya to watch over the boy, it was highly unlikely it would ever come to that. Of course, there were still some ninja who vowed to avenge their fallen comrades by slaying the demon, but that faction's numbers lessened every year. It was an ongoing battle, but Naruto was slowly gaining the recognition he deserved.

The main reason that Jiraiya didn't want to leave the boy alone however, was because of Hidden Rock. Like they predicted, as soon as word reached the ninja village about the Fourth Hokage's heir, there was a unanimous demand for his blood. Assassins had been sent multiple times over the years, all of whom had been dealt with easily by Jiraiya. When Hidden Rock found out it was Jiraiya of the Sannin that was watching over the boy, they got smarter. Now, assassination attempts only happened when he left the village, and if it weren't for the ANBU stationed around the estate 24/7, the boy would be dead. How Hidden Rock knew when Jiraiya would leave the village, he didn't know, but it was an extremely dangerous breach in security that they had no way of fixing without any evidence. ANBU had been looking into it for years now, but apparently whoever was doing this was very good at cleaning up after themselves.

Jiraiya did one final check of his gear before slipping out of his house and making his way to the village gates. He just wanted to get this mission over with so he could stop worrying.

XxX

"So what kind of techniques do you know?" Naruto asked excitedly. Kakashi and Naruto were sitting on Jiraiya's back porch after a surprisingly tiring training session. While the boy wasn't anything Kakashi couldn't handle, he had insurmountable amounts of energy, and tiring him out was a feat of its own. So for the past half hour, while they had been resting, Naruto had been pelting the Jonin with questions about ninjas, ninja techniques, missions, and really anything else that came to his mind. His thirst for knowledge was impressive, and he took to things like a leaf in the wind.

"Well Naruto, I know many techniques, thanks to my Sharingan." Naruto cocked his head.

"Sharingan? What's that?" Kakashi pulled up his headband and Naruto's face took an expression of awe. "Woah…your eye looks so cool!" Kakashi chuckled.

"Yea, it is pretty damn cool. It's also very powerful. You see, with this eye, I can copy a technique I see someone use just by watching how their chakra flows through their bodies."

"You can see people's chakra?" Kakashi nodded.

"With the help of this eye I can. It also gives me an enhanced perception of reality."

"What does that mean?"

"Well, it basically means that I can see things better and quicker than a normal eye. It's easier for me to read through a person's attack, and it gives me insight on what I can do to counter that attack. It has saved my life more times than I can remember." Naruto smiled.

"That's amazing. Is that something I can do too?" Kakashi shook his head.

"Unfortunately no. Do you know what a Bloodline Limit is?" Naruto nodded.

"Yea, Uncle Jiraiya explained it to me. It's a special ability passed down through certain clans right?" Kakashi nodded, once again surprised at the boy's knowledge.

'He called him Uncle Jiraiya? Does that mean he knows about his parents?' Kakashi pushed the thought aside and continued to explain.

"Correct. The Sharingan is a Bloodline Limit passed down through the Uchiha Clan." Naruto's face lit up with understanding.

"Oh I've heard of them! They live in the Leaf Village right?" Kakashi nodded. "But I thought your last name was Hatake."

"It is. I'm not an Uchiha. This eye was given to me by my dead teammate, Obito Uchiha. The story behind it is…a little gruesome and I'd rather not go into it. All you need to know is that this eye is the only living memento I have of Obito, and he saves my life everyday just by letting me see the danger a normal eye couldn't see." Naruto nodded.

"That's so cool. Well except for your teammate." Kakashi looked up into the sky.

"It's okay. He's in a better place right now." A solemn silence came over the two, until Naruto broke it with another question.

"So if you can copy techniques, you must know a lot right?"

"Over a thousand, actually. They call me the Copycat Ninja because of it." Naruto's eyes almost bugged out of his head.

"Over a thousand! That's a lot!" Kakashi laughed.

"It sure is. But I'm always learning more. Whenever I go on missions there's always a new technique to learn, and I take full advantage of my Sharingan to learn one." Naruto jumped up from his seat.

"Let's train more!" He exclaimed suddenly. Kakashi's eyes widened.

"Really? You're not tired?" Naruto shook his head furiously.

"No way! I'm always ready to train." Kakashi chuckled nervously and stood up.

'This kid is going to be the death of me. Damn you Jiraiya.'

XxX

"Come in." Hiruzen called out after hearing a knock on his door. The door opened, and a blonde blur raced around his desk and tackled the old Hokage into a hug.

"Hi Gramps!" Kakashi walked in after with a hand on his head.

"Naruto, I told you to be calm when we went to see the Hokage. Not tackle him." Hiruzen laughed and waved his former ANBU captain off.

"It's no trouble Kakashi. And hello Naruto. What brings you here today?" The blonde ball of energy looked up at Hiruzen with a bright, beaming smile.

"Come to lunch with us Gramps!" Hiruzen looked up at Kakashi, who, from what you could see at least, seemed mortified that this little boy was calling the Hokage 'Gramps'.

"I'd love to Naruto. Kiyoko!" A petite, brunette woman scurried into the office.

"Yes Lord Hokage?"

"Please hold all of my appointments for about an hour. I'll be heading out to lunch now." His secretary bowed in respect.

"Of course Lord Hokage. Anything else?"

"No that will be all." Kiyoko scurried back out of the room, and the Hokage stood up.

"Did you have a destination in mind Naruto?" He asked, already knowing the answer.

"Ichiraku's!" Naruto shouted with a smile.

"Very well. Ichiraku's it is." The Hokage walked around his desk and left his office, followed by Naruto and Kakashi. They walked through the halls of the Hokage Mansion until they finally reached the exit. As they walked down the road, Naruto began to tell the Hokage of his training with Kakashi.

"Two Hours? Kakashi is that true?" The silver haired Jonin nodded.

"Yes sir. His stamina is truly amazing for a boy his age." The Hokage's eyes widened, and he smiled down at the boy.

"That's amazing Naruto! You're going to be a strong ninja one day." Naruto grinned.

"Yea! And I'm gonna take your hat!" Hiruzen seemed shocked by this, but then he let out a hearty chuckle.

"Well Naruto, that's a quite respectable goal. But the road to becoming Hokage is harsh. Do you think you have what it takes?" Naruto nodded.

"Of course! I won't give up until I become Hokage!" Hiruzen gazed into the boy's eyes and saw the fierce determination that burned there.

"I believe you Naruto. The Will of Fire burns strong in you. Don't ever lose sight of your dreams." Hiruzen smiled widely, and Naruto smiled back, both of them breaking into laughter. Kakashi just watched with interest, starting to understand the bond that the Hokage and Naruto shared. They were really like Grandfather and Grandson, one passing his knowledge and wisdom down to the next.

XxX

"Thank you for coming Kakashi." Kakashi nodded.

"Of course Lord Hokage." Hiruzen leaned back in his chair and took out his pipe.

"You don't smoke do you?" Kakashi's eyebrow rose.

"What, Asuma's never told you?" Hiruzen cocked his head slightly, and Kakashi's eyebrow widened. "Oh, you didn't know. Well you didn't hear it from me."

"Right." Hiruzen lit his pipe. "Anyway, the reason I asked you to be here was because I am curious about the depth of Naruto's skills. How strong is he?"

"Well, like I said before, his stamina is incredible. Easily Chuunin level. He has also mastered the tree climbing exercise, and he can even effectively use it in battle. His Taijutsu is a bastardized version of Jiraiya-Sama's Taijutsu, but it's wild and unpredictable. Although it's very effective. He actually landed a few hits. Granted, I wasn't going full strength, but it's still impressive." Hiruzen nodded.

"Well, it looks like we have another prodigy on our hands."

"Sir, if I may, might I suggest enrolling him in The Academy?" Kakashi asked carefully.

"The Academy? He's four!" The Hokage stated in defiance.

"Lord Hokage, I was five when I entered. We may have been at war, but Naruto is just as good, if not better, than I was at that age. He's a true genius. And that kind of potential shouldn't be wasted." The Hokage sighed deeply before leveling Kakashi with a contemplative stare.

"You were Minato's student, so it only makes sense that you would want to be involved with the boy. This isn't like you Kakashi." The silver haired Jonin smirked.

"Yea well, he brings it out in me."

"Yes he certainly does. He brings it out in everyone it seems… I'll speak to Jiraiya about it when I see him. I'm sure he'll be ecstatic." Hiruzen nodded and Kakashi walked out of the room with a bow. Hiruzen couldn't deny, if Kakashi's observations held true, that Naruto was 100% ready for The Academy, but he was just worried about the boy. He knew exactly what it was like to be a prodigy, and he hoped Naruto would be strong enough to make it through. Especially considering who his father was. Minato Namikaze was a pretty big damn name to live up to, considering he was the strongest shinobi of his generation. But maybe Naruto had the potential. He would just have to wait and see.

XxX

"The Academy? Are you serious?" Naruto asked, excitement dancing in his eyes.

"Yes I am! You'll be the youngest kid to ever be admitted into The Academy. I'm so proud." Jiraiya's smiled down at his godson. "And when you become a famous shinobi one day, it will be me, Jiraiya of the Sannin who can take credit for training you!" Naruto looked up at Jiraiya and frowned.

"Uncle Jiraiya, you're doing it again." Jiraiya blinked and sighed.

"Sorry kid. I guess I'm just excited to have a pupil again. You know I trained you father right?" Naruto rolled his eyes.

"Yea Uncle Jiraiya, you've told me like a million times." Jiraiya laughed.

"Alright I'll stop. But seriously you should be proud. You have the potential to be one of the strongest shinobi who ever lived, did you know that?" Naruto looked at Jiraiya in awe.

"What do you mean?" Jiraiya smiled and poked Naruto on the chest.

"You have a power inside you that can be matched by no other. If you never go back on your word, and never give up, then you will never fail." Naruto nodded firmly.

"I'll never give up. You know that." Jiraiya nodded.

"I know. Just remember, even in the darkest times, you must push on. No matter what happens."

"I told you, I'll never give up until I'm Hokage!" Jiraiya smiled.

"Good. Now, let's go get you enrolled in The Academy."

XxX

"It will take the three of us to defeat Jiraiya, but we can do it." A cloaked figure said. Four more cloaked figures stood in a circle in an empty warehouse in an unknown location.

"Jiraiya of the Sannin?" Another of the figures asked.

"Yes. He has already come dangerously close to discovering us once, we cannot afford for him to succeed in that." The first one responded.

"Do you really think we can take on one of the Legendary Sannin?"

"You do not need to worry about that. We will take care of that."

"Rest assured, the Sannin will die. You two are dismissed." The first figure stated firmly. Two of the figures, one of them being the one who questioned whether or not they could defeat Jiraiya, disappeared in swirls of wind. The three that remained started walking slowly the other way.

"Why are we doing this?" One of the cloaked figures, a girl, asked.

"Because it needs to be done." Another, a man, answered, his gritted teeth showing under his hood. "Some things in life aren't fair."

"But think about what you're doing!"

"It must be done!" The three figures stopped. One of them was breathing heavily. They stood in silence as the one figure caught his breath, and then they continued on their way in silence.

XxX

A/N: Okay there's chapter two. So, basically, Naruto is a prodigy. Woo. Now, he's not really going to be over powered, but he will be ahead of everyone else. He will easily be the strongest of his generation, but it will take years for him to grow truly strong. I've already got some long range plot lines in my head. For instance, that last little part. I guess you can figure out what's going to happen. But this scene will be important later in the story as well. So remember it. Anyway, I'll get started on the next one soon, probably tonight. Enjoy. Peace.