Enter: Naruto Uzumaki!

~ ҉ ~

All of the villagers knew exactly when Naruto got into mischief. Normally, it wasn't even the hysterical screaming of "Naruto! Get your ass back here!" that gave it away. Sometimes it was as obvious as multi-coloured smoke bombs going off, or even to the extremes of painting the village in fantastical colours. They all just knew it was Naruto, somehow.

However, this time 'round, Naruto's mischief shocked and outraged the village. How he managed to do something like this, and WHY was beyond them.

He had defiled the Hokage monument.

He was now currently running down one of the village streets, a can of yellow paint in hand. He was being chased by two Ninja, who were screaming at him.

"Naruto! Why'd you do such a thing!"

"You're really 'gonna get it this time!"

And of course, Naruto couldn't hear one word of this. He just ran laughing. He had to throw his head back every few seconds just to check if they were still chasing him!

In a single bound, Naruto leapt up to the roofs of various buildings, the two shinobi right behind him. He was laughing, truly delighted that he had caused such a ruckus. Paint spilt constantly as Naruto jumped, sloshing civilian homes and even landing on a stray dog in the street.

'You know your problem? You can't do the things I do!' Naruto spun around, running backwards as he signed to the shinobi following him. "Only I can do this. I'm better than all of you!"

~ ҉ ~

"There's a problem!"

"Hokage-sama!"

The Hokage was in his office, dressed rather casually. He was smoking a pipe, painting black ink onto a white canvas.

"What is it now?" He grumbled, finishing a stroke and turning his head to the two people who now ungracefully entered his office. Each of them was out of breath, one even splattered with paint. "Did Naruto do something again?"

One of the people was a civilian – the one covered in paint. "Yes. He climbed onto the Hokage monument…

The other – a shinobi – "And he vandalized them!"

The Hokage heaved a sigh, glancing at his painting and then back to the men. Smoke from his pipe wafted around him. 'Naruto…'

~ ҉ ~

The chase was still ongoing; the two shinobi trailed after Naruto quite diligently. Naruto leapt to the ground and past a fence. The two shinobi ran straight past.

"WAIT!"

And of course, neither shinobi had noticed Naruto skilfully hidden on the fence. He had pulled a disguise from seemingly nowhere, and was blended into the fence like a chameleon would a painted background.

He dropped the disguise, stepped out from the fence and watched the shinobi run around aimlessly – having discovered that Naruto was no longer ahead of them.

He lifted a hand to his blond head, laughing.

A heavy hand landed on his shoulder, gripping tight. Shouting wouldn't grab Naruto's attention, now would it?

Naruto stiffened and jumped away from the contact, viewing a shinobi he knew all too well. Naruto had managed to fall flat on his ass, facing the person who had managed to grab his focus. He looked up from the ground, an annoyed expression on his face.

'How did you get here, Iruka-sensei?' He questioned, hands moving fluidly.

"The real question here, is what are you doing here when you should be in class now?" Iruka scolded, pointing his finger and scowling down at the young blond. Iruka was dressed in standard Konoha shinobi garb, his brown hair pulled into his typical pony-tail.

And, of course, he then proceeded to drag Naruto kicking and screaming back to the academy.

~ ҉ ~

This was Naruto's most hated place. If it wasn't bad enough that he actually had to go to the damn place every day, it was the kids in it that bothered him most. All these kids either came from amazing families, or there was absolutely nothing wrong with them. None of the kids here had any disabilities like Naruto, and this tormented him.

The kids were particularly cruel, teasing him by speaking too quickly, or tying his hands up so he would be forced to speak through his mouth – and this would lead them to more teasing. His voice itself was normal but his pronunciation was very sloppy. He somehow knew how to pronounce the words, but it still felt alien when he couldn't hear himself say it.

But the teasing was bearable at most. He expected that other kids in other academies must get bullied like him, right?

And unfortunately, Iruka-sensei was lining Naruto up for more teasing. He had made Naruto sit at the front of the class, the students snickering behind their mouths.

"You failed the last graduation test, and the one before that. This is no time to be goofing off, baka." Iruka scolded. While Naruto knew that Iruka was trying to teach him to focus more, it still hurt to say it aloud for the class to hear.

Naruto's arms were currently tied up by a length of rope – he couldn't actually reply, even if he wanted to. Instead, he turned his head away.

This irked Iruka to no end. His eyes narrowed, and his face was a little red. He turned to the class.

"That's it! We're going to have a test on 'Henge'! Even those who have passed will have to take it!"

"Whaaat!?" The class screeched. Almost ninety percent of the class complained, at least eight percent were booing, and the other two percent just shrugged. And all of them, were glaring at Naruto.

Of course, since Naruto couldn't see Iruka speak, he had no idea what he was supposed to be doing. Either way, he was untied and forced to stand in line with the rest of the class.

After seeing a few students before him disappear and re-appear as the teacher, Naruto understood the task – even if he didn't like it.

"Sakura Haruno?" Iruka called. A girl with bright pink hair, a red hairband ribbon and a red dress stood before their teacher. Her hands made the sign, her posture tense.

"Here I go… Henge!" Poof, and she looked just like their teacher.

Iruka nodded in approval, writing something on a slip of paper he had on a clipboard. "Ok!"

Sakura changed back with a cloud of smoke, face blushed slightly from the praise. "I did it! Did you see that, Sasuke?" She asked, turning back to the line-up.

"Next, Sasuke Uchiha." Sakura was made to sit back in her seat, face puffed out at being sent away from the next student in line.

He wore plain pants and a dark blue shirt emblazed with his clan's symbol on the back – a red and white fan. His facial expression was stoic, his hair styled to resemble a cockatoos ass – as Naruto often reminded him.

Sasuke just walked up, preformed the Henge, and then walked off to his seat.

Iruka was a little startled at the abruptness, but he nodded and called up the next person.

"Next, Naruto Uzumaki!" Naruto scowled, hands on hips, at his teacher. The two people standing near him grumbled, giving Naruto a scathing look.

"What a pain."

"It's all your fault."

The words fell on deaf ears – mind the pun – and Naruto walked forward to his teacher.

"Henge!" Naruto called, wisps of chakra swirling around him. His clothes whipped about from the force, his hair standing on edge. A poof of smoke –

And Iruka fell to the floor, blood gushing from his nose.

Standing in clouds of smoke, now stood a beautiful, curvy blond woman; her hair in two long pony-tails and completely naked.

The only resemblance she held to the child who transformed into her, was the hair colour, eye colour and the three whisker scars on each cheek.

Screaming in laughter, the henge dissolved, leaving Naruto.

In the midst of his laughter, Naruto couldn't help but voice his opinion aloud, as opposed to his usual sign. "How was that? I call it the 'Sexy Jutsu!'"

Iruka sat up, infuriated. "Baka! Don't go making stupid Jutsu!"

Naruto felt strange. Normally this wouldn't bother him. But… he actually created that Jutsu. All on his own. Even if it was perverted and weird… he still made it. Doesn't that credit for something? No one else in the class could make their own Jutsu, but he could! He was not an idiot!

Iruka's words hurt more than he would let on. He was probably just over reacting, but he wished people would stop treating him like an idiot.

~ ҉ ~

That afternoon, Naruto was forced to clean up his mess at the Hokage monument. He scrubbed at the paint, and swore when the paint only smeared and made a bigger mess. Iruka was supervising, a disappointed look on his face. Iruka just couldn't believe that Naruto had done such a thing.

"I won't let you go home unless you clean all that up!" Iruka warned when Naruto looked up at him. Naruto lowered his head, dropping the paint covered rag into a nearby bucket of water. His face barely had emotion when he responded.

"I don't care… it's not like there's anyone waiting for me."

Iruka cringed, a hopeless feeling of regret filling him. That wasn't probably the wisest thing he could have said. The look on Naruto's face hurt most of all. Blank, uncaring…

Iruka was also shocked that Naruto had chosen to speak aloud. He usually didn't do that unless he was really happy – like in class earlier – or when he was entirely frustrated, such as when he was retaliating against a classmates taunts. And when in fear; which Iruka was unfortunate to witness.

Naruto just kept on scrubbing the faces.

Iruka grabbed a small rock from atop the monument, and skilfully dropped it onto Naruto's head. His student looked up at him, half rubbing his head from where the rock hit him. He had a scathing look on his face, but knew Iruka only did it to get his attention. It didn't really hurt, anyway.

'What?' he signed, dropping the rag in the bucket.

"What I mean is… If you clean up all that mess, I'll buy you ramen tonight." Iruka said, face bent to Naruto so he could read, but an innocent expression was plastered on his face. One finger was bent over his nose to scratch lightly at the scar there, but when he was Naruto's expression, his hand fell away and he smiled.

Naruto looked over-joyed.

"R-really? Yes! I'll be finished in no time!" he signed and spoke, absolutely happy that Iruka would treat him. Sometimes it was the little things like that, that would make Naruto immensely happy. With a new sense of determination, Naruto kept scrubbing the faces. When he was almost finished, Iruka jumped down and helped him scrub at the remaining paint.

~ ҉ ~

The stars were large and bright by the time the two entered Ichiraku's. They were the only two customers, yet noise from outside entered easily into the stall. The two sat listening to songs sung by drunken shinobi that were dancing in the street.

At this stage, Naruto had only begun his first bowl of ramen. Iruka sat on his left, while his goggles lay on the empty counter to his right. Naruto had a look akin to a smug fox as he inhaled his first mouthful of ramen. His attention was drawn when Iruka waved in front of his face, his face curious yet disappointed. The look haunted Naruto – he didn't want to disappoint Iruka – but he tried to look as though it didn't affect him in the least.

"Why did you vandalize those faces? You know who the Hokages were, don't you?"

''Course I do!' Naruto signed, noodles still hanging from his mouth. Using his lips and teeth, he was able to pull the rest of the noodles in, while he spoke with his hands. When that was done, he lifted the bowl to drink the broth in the bottom of the bowl. 'I know they earned the title of Hokage, because they were the best shinobi of their time, right?'

Naruto looked thoughtful, his head tilting backwards as he thought.

'Especially the Fourth Hokage; he was a hero. He saved us from the Kyuubi.' Naruto paused; there was something about that name… he was pulled from this thoughts as Iruka placed a hand on his shoulder. Naruto looked over.

"Then why did you do that?"

'Because I will become Hokage. I'll be the greatest Hokage of all time!' Naruto looked determined, eyes sparkling with mirth. 'So that everyone will finally learn to accept me! I won't let this…' he motioned to his ears; eyes looking a tad angry, 'get in my way.'

Iruka was a little stunned at the proclamation, although he had to give Naruto some credit. Despite everything he's been through, he was willing to do what he could to become someone that people could look up to. And he wouldn't give in to a disability that everyone mocks him for. Although, Iruka would be lying if he said that it didn't worry him endlessly.

"Sensei, I have a favour to ask." Naruto asked, pulling Iruka from his thoughts; the voice he rarely heard derailing the train.

"Oh yeah sure, you want another bowl?"

"Mm… no. Can I borrow your headband?" Naruto asked, hands coming up to beg. Iruka smiled.

"What, this?" His hand came up to grip at the metal plate, shifting it against his forehead. "Nah, these are only worn by those who graduate from the academy. You will… tomorrow."

'You're so mean!" Naruto pouted, face looking sullenly into his bowl, hands forming his words.

"Haha, so that's why you took off your goggles!"

'I want another bowl!'

~ ҉ ~

"It's now time for the graduation test!" Iruka announced the following day, standing in front of his students at the academy. Almost everyone looked tense, excited and worried all at the same time. A few kids even had their heads buried between their hands. "When your name is called, you can head into the next room, where the test will take place. The test will be on… the 'Bunshin no Jutsu'."

Everyone flinched when a loud crack echoed through the room; heads turned to see Naruto's face deeply planted within his desk. A small moan could be heard from the hole now there. Of all the Jutsu they had learnt that year, the Bunshin Justu was absolutely Naruto's worst.

It was at least half an hour before Naruto was finally called. He entered a room, where Iruka was sitting, along with Mizuki-sensei. Several Leaf Village headbands were on the desk; Naruto eyed them hungrily.

Naruto took in a deep breath, moving to stand in the correct stance. His feet placed evenly with his shoulders, hands in the correct sign. At once, he could feel his chakra reacting, tremendous amounts of chakra swirling around his body. Dust flew up from the floor boards, and his clothes and hair were ruffled from the force. "I can do this!" Naruto thought, feeling his chakra respond and with a snap, he felt his chakra mould into a clone.

There was a puff of smoke as the clone came to life, and all heads turned to where the clone stood – err… where it was supposed to stand. With a confused look from all of them, they dropped their heads simultaneously to the floor. There lay Naruto's clone, completely washed out and deathly looking.

A hand flew up to cover Naruto's mouth, his face looking petrified and horrified at the same time – which was actually a remarkably funny thing to see.

Iruka held a similar expression on his face, albeit he carried more dissapointment than anything.

"Disqualified!"

And there, all of Naruto's hopes of passing and becoming a shinobi crashed and died. He really had no chance. He took a step back, eyes brimming with tears.

Once he said the words, Iruka truly felt regretful. He hadn't really expected that kind of reaction, but then again, he knew how much Naruto really wanted this.

Mizuki looked over to him, brushing a few white strands of hair from his face.

"Iruka, his physical coordination and stamina are excellent. And as horrible as it looks, it's still something. Couldn't he pass with that?"

Naruto brightened instantly, his face looking hopeful.

"Mizuki… the other students created at least three clones… Naruto only made one." Iruka said, motioning to the student and his… clone. Should it really be called that? "And it's useless. I can't give him a passing mark."

Naruto's face instantly blanked once he read his teacher, eyes narrowing. He cocked his head, which cracked a vertebra in his neck, and he left the room – his clone poofing out of existence.

~ ҉ ~

Naruto had never felt this miserable. All the students in his class stood with their families, headbands secured across their heads. He couldn't hear the joyful laughter, the happy praise or the tearful congratulations. He could only see the visible happiness on every person's face.

He sat alone, underneath the shade of a large tree. He was sitting sideways on a swing, who creaked every time he moved. There was a nagging feeling in his chest, that there should have been someone here; to tell him it was okay, he could try again next time. But there was nothing; there was no one.

Of course, everyone at the graduation knew where Naruto was; how he felt. But they just wanted to be happy with their own families – there was no room for an outsider in their happiness. He caught the eye of two girls, who were glaring at him from across the academy grounds. He could make out a few words that they spoke to each other.

"…That boy…. only one… failed…"

"…Imagine….. if he… ninja…"

"…Isn't… actually…"

"…Hey!… not….supposed…..talk…"

Naruto fiddled with his goggles, placing them securely on his forehead. They were previously sitting in the dirt beneath him – he had removed them earlier for a headband… but, well…

Naruto caught sight of the edge of a shoe, and looked up to see Mizuki smiling down at him. Neither said anything; they just watched each other.

~ ҉ ~

From across the grounds, stood Iruka and the Hokage. The Hokage was there to congratulate all those who passed and were to enter the shinobi world.

"Iruka. We have to talk later."

In what seemed like the blink of an eye, the swing that Naruto was sitting in became empty, swinging from the force of being left quickly. It creaked and shuddered as it came to a stop.

"Yes, sir."

~ ҉ ~

The sun was beginning to set, calling for an end to the day; a remarkably stupid day, at that. Naruto sat next to Mizuki atop a roof ledge, watching as the sun made its decent.

'Iruka isn't trying to be mean to you.' Mizuki signed to Naruto. Neither spoke as a way for privacy, but also that Naruto didn't have to crane his neck to read Mizuki. He could just look across and see the signs that his teacher made.

'Then why only me?' Naruto signed, his face falling and posture slouching. He was truly unhappy.

'Iruka wants you to be strong, from the bottom of his heart. He just worries about you sometimes. He wasn't sure if you'd really be able to handle it in the real world, what with you being deaf.' Mizuki signed, face betraying a small smirk; which Naruto did not catch.

'But I really wanted to graduate… it was my dream – and he knew that…' Naruto hiccupped, his emotions slipping from his control. He was devastated; his teacher, someone he looked up to, not believing in him? He couldn't stand it.

Mizuki laughed, hands creating complete nonsense, and Naruto looked up from his pity-party.

'I guess I have no choice. I'll let you in on a big secret…'

~ ҉ ~

The moon glowed against the abstract darkness of the night. Iruka watched the moon interact with the night sky from his room, his mind wandering to the conversation he had had with the Hokage after the graduation ceremony.

"Iruka?"

"Yes, Hokage-sama?"

"I know how you feel. But… Naruto also grew up without knowing the love of his parents… like you. Instead, he grew up with the knowledge that there was something with him, which he treated like family. It was not family – it was a beast with only darkness in its heart. We had to remove it, for his own good. We had no idea just what it had been teaching him; if it was going to use him for its own evil purposes -"

"IRUKA!"

Iruka jumped off his bed, immediately withdrawn from his memory. He ran to his door, where someone was currently pounding, and opened it to reveal Mizuki.

"What? What's wrong?" he asked, panicked at the expression on Mizuki's face.

"We need to go to the Hokage, immediately!" Mizuki panted; his whole body screaming urgency. "Naruto…. Naruto stole the Scroll of Sealing!"

Iruka wanted to fall over, but he refused to allow himself to do so. What…why…. How could Naruto do this? Why would he do this?

~ ҉ ~

"Lord Hokage! We can't forgive him!"

"The scroll is dangerous! The First Hokage was the one who sealed it!"

"Who knows what will happen if it's taken out of the village?!"

The Hokage sighed, smoke pouring out from his pipe as he looked at the shinobi assembled before him. "Bring Naruto here at once!"

With a single gesture, each shinobi sprung off with a "Yes sir!"

The Hokage looked down, eyes worried. "Naruto… I hope you're okay."

~ ҉ ~

Iruka jumped from roof to roof, sweat beading on his face and his breath coming in pants. He looked everywhere! Where the hell was he?

~ ҉ ~

Mizuki ran down a street, face determined and frozen in a devious smirk. "I will tell everyone in the village about this and eliminate Naruto… Then the Scroll of Sealing will be mine!"

~ ҉ ~

Deep within the surrounding forest, Naruto sat in the dirt and soil as he looked at a really big scroll. He grabbed the scroll from where Mizuki told him, and escaped to the forest for some private training. The scroll was large and apparently important, because it 'had everything he would need to graduate'.

He was feeling incredibly enthusiastic about the whole thing, until he realised what the first jutsu was going to be.

"Kage Bunshin no Jutsu"

Why does everything hate him? WHY does he have to do THIS Jutsu? He just started, and the beginning Jutsu is the type he isn't good at?

Regardless of this, he spent as long as he could practicing and trying to master this first Jutsu. He was entirely exhausted once he finished; he sat on the ground panting, hunched over. Naruto looked up, when he saw a faint shadow pass into his line of vision.

Iruka stood hunched over, hands on his thighs and his face sweaty and comically annoyed.

"Hey you, Naruto!"

Naruto laughed sheepishly, reaching a hand behind his head and scratching at an itch. He stood when Iruka did, who was now brandishing a very confused expression on his face.

'You found me…' He signed, smiling. 'And I've only learned one Jutsu.'

Iruka paused; just couldn't believe it. He'd been practicing Jutsu this whole time?

"Hey! Listen! I'm going to show you this amazing Jutsu!" Naruto was just so damn happy… "And you'll let me graduate! Isn't it true that I can graduate if I can do one of the Jutsu in this scroll?" He was speaking aloud… wait, what?

"Hold up, who told you that?"

Naruto didn't seem fazed, he just happily threw his arms out, eager to show Iruka just how much he could do. Iruka would be impressed and he could graduate, right?

"Mizuki-sensei. He told me about the scroll, about this place…"

If Naruto could hear, he would have heard the immediate threat behind Iruka. But thankfully, Iruka's hearing was up to par, and he spun around to see a dozen kunai coming right for them. He pushed Naruto in the chest, pushing him aside. The kunai made impact with the shinobi's body, sending him flying back. His body smacked into a cabin behind him, the kunai pierced through clothes and some imbedded into his own flesh.

"I'm impressed you found this place, Iruka."

Iruka looked up, seeing Mizuki standing atop a tall tree. "I see now… how it is.

Naruto had looked up after he had been shoved, also spying Mizuki in the tree. He was thoroughly confused as to why Mizuki attacked Iruka, but a sense of betrayal coursed hotly through his veins.

"Naruto, give me that scroll."

Mizuki was too high up to get a proper idea of what he said, but Naruto caught the jist of it.

"What's…. going on here?" Naruto stuttered, his voice quite coarse from so much use (his little happy-rant before was more than what he usually spoke, seeing as he mostly signed).

Iruka pulled the kunai from his body, crying out when he pulled on a particularly deep kunai. His breathing was laboured, and blood seeped from the wounds; even a trickle crept from his mouth.

"Naruto!" He ground out, making sure he had the blonds attention, "Never give him that scroll! It's dangerous; it contains forbidden jutsu. That's why it was sealed. Mizuki was using you so that he could get it himself."

Naruto scrambled to his feet, his face outraged.

"Naruto... Iruka is only afraid of you holding that scroll!"

Naruto's face pulled a 180; going from outraged to shocked. Why would Iruka…

"What are you saying, Mizuki!? Naruto, he's just trying to trick you!"

Mizuki laughed, slapping a hand on the tree beside him. His face was feral. "You know what? To know you can trust me," he sneered the word, "I'll tell you the truth."

"Mizuki! Don't you dare!"

Mizuki didn't seem fazed about Iruka's outburst, he was solely focused on the child.

"After an incident about 12 years ago, there was a rule made. It's a rule that everyone knows… except you."

"Why… why would everyone know except me?" Naruto stuttered. He wanted to sign and not speak, but his hands were shaking terribly by his sides – he wouldn't be able to form the words, even if he wanted to.

"Mizuki! Stop!" Iruka shouted; eyes scrunched shut at the strength of his words. Why would Mizuki do this?"

Mizuki's face twisted, become dark with shadows covering his face. "The rule forbids anyone in the village from revealing that you are actually the Kyuubi!"

Naruto's face turned white, eyes going so wide Iruka was afraid they'd pop out of their sockets. His mouth was frozen open, sweat droplets sliding down his skin. He knew exactly what this beast was – they had learnt about it in school, and he even caught a few whispers about it in the village.

"YOU are the demon, who killed Iruka's parents and destroyed our village!"

"MIZUKI! STOP!" Iruka screamed, veins pulsing and body shaking with outrage. How DARE Mizuki do this? It was never Naruto's fault!

Naruto was just frozen on the spot, reeling from the information and taking more of what evil words spilt from his teacher's mouth.

"Everyone had been lying to you ever since. Didn't you find it strange? Why everyone hated you so much? Did you really just believe that your stupid disability was what made people hate you? It helped, but it wasn't the original cause. Just something to laugh at you with," Mizuki sneered.

"No! No! No! No! NO!" Naruto cried out, face scrunched up, tears pouring down his scarred cheeks. His body was crouched over and tense, arms up against his ears as though they caused him great pain. Fluxes of chakra billowed around him, tense and fluid, cracking with uncontrolled power. He was absolutely terrified. He hadn't physically heard words, but they caused him just as much pain. His body was tearing apart from his heart; the words ricocheting against the confines.

"Nobody accepts you. That's why Iruka hates you so much!"

Naruto wasn't listening, as his eyes were still closed and hands over his unhearing ears. Yet Iruka felt the pain of the statement in his own heart. He bent over, reliving the memory of the Hokage speaking to him.

"Everyone avoids him like the plague after what happened. He wants acknowledgement over everything else; along with his desire to hear, he misbehaves for a sense of acknowledgement. If he can't receive attention through love and affection, he seeks it in the form of ridicule. It causes him great pain, but… he believes even just people showing him attention is worth it. He's a tough kid, to be able to handle all that punishment and pain."

Iruka jumped from the train of thought almost instantly as Mizuki spoke. He wielded a very large shuriken, which spun dangerously around his hand.

"Die, Naruto!"

And the child hadn't heard the threat at all. He had no way of knowing that the shurkien now spun towards him, getting closer every second. It was things like this that caused Iruka to fear for Naruto – that his disability would be the death of him.

It's what caused Iruka to jump forward, pushing Naruto firmly to the ground, pinning him, as the Shuriken got ever closer. Naruto looked up from the impact, face openly surprised and tear covered, as he saw Iruka crouching over him. The sight of blood slipping from his teachers mouth shocked him, but not so much as the pained look on his teachers face.

Iruka gasped, little splatters of blood landing on Naruto's face. The large shuriken was buried rather deeply; it had sliced open muscle and fat, cutting some veins in half. The pain was excruciating.

"Wh…why?" Naruto managed, still trying to overcome the shock. Iruka's face was hooded by shadows, and Naruto had no idea why Iruka did what he had.

"Because you and I are the same. After my parents died, nobody paid me attention, or was there when I needed the support. I was so alone, so very alone. I would end up going out of my way to stuff up and misbehave, like you, for any form of attention. I wasn't a good student in school. I acted like a fool… because I wanted people to notice me. Getting high grades and doing well in school gave me no acknowledgement, but doing stupid things? All the attention I wanted. It was so hard…!"

Tears poured down Iruka's face. His words were slow, pained and horribly sad. Naruto read them carefully, feeling his heart beat frantically at the acknowledgement that there was someone out there like him. "You felt so lonely…right? And you suffered inside, right? I'm sorry, Naruto… If I had've been more responsible, maybe you wouldn't have suffered so much. I failed you, Naruto… I'm so sorry."

"Don't make me laugh!" Mizuki cried, his body wrecked with laughter. Iruka has always hated you, ever since you kill his parents! He's just saying all that to get the Scroll of Sealing back!" Mizuki taunted, his face alight with glee at the pain he read off their faces.

Naruto hadn't heard a word of what Mizuki had said. Instead, he watched slowly as the tears traced their way across his teachers face; the way they fell from his eyes, down his cheeks and down to his chin before they fell to the ground. His tears were the same as his. Naruto turned his head from Iruka, scrambling out from underneath.

Iruka balanced himself, painfully, onto one arm, reaching for the child that was now running away. "Naruto! STOP! WAIT!" Iruka cried out, watching his student disappear between the trees.

~ ҉ ~

Mizuki dropped from the tree, body relaxed and unworried. He had not fear or worry that Iruka would do anything. His body was frozen to the ground, pinned under its own tense fear of the blade poking out from his back.

"He is not the type of kid who easily changes his mind, you know. He will take revenge against our village using that scroll." Mizuki said, almost bored. He felt nothing when it came to the village, which didn't really faze him. As long as he got the scroll, he cared for nothing else.

"Did you see his eyes? The same as a demon's, Ha!"

Iruka reached back, pulling the giant shuriken from his back. He fell to the floor, sitting up gingerly against the pain. Using what strength he could muster, he spun, throwing the large shuriken back to its previous wielder. Mizuki simply sidestepped the shuriken, not caring as it whizzed off into the trees. He had several others tied to his back, what is one lost shuriken to matter?

"Naruto isn't like that at all!"

"All I want is to kill Naruto and get the scroll." Mizuki claimed, watching his colleague fall to one knee. "I'll come for you, later." With a pointed look, Mizuki jumped away with incredible speed.

"I-I won't let you…!"

Iruka followed.

~ ҉ ~

Back in the village, dressed in his formal Hokage uniform, the Third Hokage watched the event unfold through a crystal ball. Later he would wonder why he ever used it, seeing as this was pretty much the only time he actually used the damned thing, but that's beside the point. He was astounded to see Mizuki act in such a fashion, his eyes narrowing at what he spoke and what he did. The Hokage felt a twinge of guilt at hiding such a big deal from Naruto's life, but he did what he did to protect him. Even before he truly understood the situation.

His heart felt heavy as he watched Naruto jump from tree branch to tree branch. He could see the pain written on his face, and the tears streaming down scarred cheeks. He knew that Naruto felt worse now than he ever had. The thought of Naruto unleashing the hidden power due to his emotional state passed through his mind; the Hokage glanced at the scroll secured on the youngster's back. If anything would help him achieve that, then the scroll there would help. But he threw the thought away; he had more faith in Naruto than that.

~ ҉ ~

Naruto had no idea what to do. His heart was beating a thousand miles a minute, and his breathing was laboured. There was a pressure in his head that he couldn't bear, and he was emotionally exhausted. Panic consumed him; causing his body to freeze up in a painful lock.

It was times like this that made the world truly scary; when he was in danger and he couldn't hear the threat anywhere! It was a million times worse than when you'd hear a random creak in the night; not knowing if there was actually something out there, and no way of knowing was frightening.

Naruto didn't know if Mizuki was behind him, one hundred metres away, or if he had gone back to the village. He didn't know if Iruka was alright, if he was dead, or if he was on the verge of dying.

Tears built up, his sinuses clogged and his throat jammed; oh god, what if he was the reason Iruka would die?

In all his panic, he almost missed the small voice that trailed through his mind. It felt familiar, but felt so, incredibly wrong. This was not his conciscoud talking to him; and if what Mizuki said was right, he wanted nothing to do with it.

"Calm down. You're useless if you sit here all panicked."

"GET OUT OF MY HEAD!" Naruto let go of the scroll and pulled his hands into his hair; tugging wildly. The scroll hit the branch of the tree he was hiding in, rolling precariously close to the edge.

"Why should I? This mind is just as much mine, as it is yours."

"GET OUT! You're evil, and I want nothing to do with you! It was you who made my life crap, it's all your fault! ALL OF IT!"

"Calm down, Kit. I used to speak with you all the time until that stupid old man re-sealed me. Practically made me mute!" Apparently, the voice was no worried about what Naruto had screamed at it.

"GET – wait… what?" Naruto immediately stopped screaming aloud, instead switching to his mind.

"The Third Hokage placed another seal on me when you were young. Apparently me helping you to read lips and teaching you sign language is a bad thing."

"You… taught me?"

"Damn right I did. Now, I haven't got much time; I need to teach you something." The voice responded. The familiarity was increasing; the dark rumble almost soothing Naruto completely. With it, he now felt totally at ease; completely safe. "What do you know about bats?"

"Uh… they fly."

"…Yes. Bats are also blind; to see, they use sonar to identify their surroundings. They do this by making loud noises, such as screeching, to send out sound waves. They listen for the echoes, and use this to gauge their surroundings."

While Naruto didn't fully understand what exactly the voice was saying, he understood that they used a different method of seeing to make up for the fact that they were blind.

"How does that help me? I'm not blind."

"Although you can see, we can use this method so you can see around you for incoming threats. If you hear what is happening, then you can use a different method to 'listen' to your surroundings."

"I'm deaf. How am I supposed to listen?" Naruto stated, voice deadpan. The voice sighed.

"That's what we are going to use your chakra for."

"My…chakra?"

"Yes. By sending out impulses of your chakra, you can try to find just how far away things are. Extend you chakra, and wait until it 'hits something'. Count in your head if you need to, to find out how far away it is."

Naruto listened to further instructions from the voice. In his mind he pictured a black world; in the middle was a blue and white body, which he supposed was himself. He imagined that his chakra flowed in a large circle around himself, which he repeated physically. He counted, and almost at once the chakra hit multiple organisms, and in his mind large circular mounds of blue and white appeared around him. Some with large limbs poking out, others with many splotches around the edges – trees! He gasped in surprise, losing all his concentration. His 'sonar' had picked up the forest around him, giving him a bird's eye view of his surroundings.

"Well done. In the past, and even now, you've never had good control over your chakra-"

"Hey!"

"-but this isn't a Justu, so it doesn't actually require much control. You don't even need hand signs. All you need to do is concentrate enough to know when your chakra hits something. So even you can accomplish this." The voice paused, groaning, "Eugh… I feel my power draining. Listen, kit, try to find your teacher. I have a feeling he's not doing too well."

"Iruka…" Naruto focused his chakra again, feeling the voice slip away. He extended his search, trying to find something that represented another person. Almost fifty metres away, he saw what he assumed was two people. He grabbed the scroll, and ran towards the figures. He was safe for now – but soon he would be in the midst of danger.

~ ҉ ~

Naruto got there in time. Neither Mizuki or Iruka noticed his presence. He hid behind a large tree, almost five metres away from where they were positioned. Iruka was leant heavily against a tree, injured back on bark and a random tree log beside him – why, he wasn't really sure. Mizuki was standing over him, posture completely predatory. Naruto leaned his head across the width of the tree just enough not to be noticed, but to also allow him to read their lips.

Mizuki was laughing chaotically, while Iruka watched silently. Mizuki pointed a long finger towards Iruka, eyes narrowing and chin lifting ever so slightly in superiority.

"Tell me. Why do you want to protect him so much, if he's the reason your family died?"

"I'm not going to let an idiot like you get your hands on this scroll."

"You're the idiot! Naruto is just like me!" Mizuki laughed, hand resting on his belly.

"…The same?"

"Anyone can do whatever they want once they have the scroll. There is no way that monster… That Kyuubi, won't take advantage of the power sealed in that scroll."

"You're right…"

Naruto stiffened, his head lifting slightly in astonishment. Iruka really believed he was a monster? All this time, every moment they spent together, was all a lie? He knew it was all too good to be true!

"…if he was the Kyuubi. But Naruto is different. He's an exceptional student, who tries his best despite his disability. If half the students there were deaf as well, Naruto would probably be doing better than even them. He works hard; but he's single minded and clumsy all at the same time. Even though no one accepts him, he still understands the meaning of human suffering – which is a rare quality in any person. He is no demon fox spirit – he is Naruto Uzumaki of the Village Hidden in the Leaves!"

Even before Iruka had finished speaking, Naruto had burst into tears. Every word that Iruka had spoken sunk into his heart, planting small amounts of hope, love and acceptance one piece at a time. He gripped the scroll tight against him, looking for an anchor. He tucked his head against the scroll for a moment, breathing in deeply. And then he turned his head back around the tree to look towards the two shinobi.

Just in time to see one of Mizuki launching towards Iruka, spinning shuriken in hand.

With what felt entirely inhuman speed, Naruto jumped forward, using his momentum to knock into Mizuki. Mizuki let go of the shuriken in his fall; the shuriken launching into the trees, shaving tree branch after tree branch off their host.

Both came skidding to a halt, Naruto positioned defensively before Iruka, while Mizuki lay face down in the dirt some hundred metres away.

Mizuki shakily got to his hands and feet, turning his head to face Naruto. His face was grazed from the dirt, and one eye was squeezed shut.

"Heh, you surprised me there."

Naruto narrowed his eyes, hand on scroll and looking entirely menacing. "If you ever lay a hand on Iruka-sensei, you bastard, I'll kill you."

"Such tough talk for such a small kid. I could take care of you with a single blow!"

Naruto smirked, face haunting, as he raised his hands in front of his own face, striking a Jutsu symbol. "Why don't you just try then? I'll strike you back a thousand fold."

Mizuki laughed, teeth grinding against each other as his demeanour changed to a snarl. "Let's see you try! Show me what you got, demon fox!"

Iruka watched, heart thumping erratically, as Naruto shouted "Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!" and in a horrific explosion of smoke, a thousand different Naruto stood encircling the white haired ninja. They stood on the ground in different fighting stances, while others were sitting in the tree's, watching like hawks.

"Naruto…! You've…. Those aren't just images, they're actual clones! That's an advanced ninjutsu, that even some Jounin can't do!" Iruka felt a swell of pride in his chest. He'd never been so proud of Naruto. While it was forbidden, it was still advanced; and Naruto had accomplished it. He couldn't even dream of doing this Jutsu. And only practicing it in a matter of hours? Absolute genius.

Mizuki mumbled to himself, shock and cowardess apparent on his features. He spun in circles, hands opening and closing, rising and falling against his body. He had no idea how to handle this situation. Shit, which was the real one?

Each Naruto had begun his own chain of trash talk, some giving him sign language, others speaking aloud. Each of them were an exact replica of Naruto, down to the stains and blood on his body, and each taunting and looking more menacing then the last.

"What's the matter?" "C'mon!" "Thought you said you could take me with a single blow?" "What are you, chicken?"

All of them spoke in sync, words flowing as one – words laced with a power that Iruka nor Mizuki could have ever imagined – "In that case… I'll come to you!"

With a wild scream, Mizuki was swallowed beneath a sea of orange-clad ninja; the scream eventually died out some half an hour later.

~ ҉ ~

With a large explosion of smoke, the clones disappeared. Mizuki's body lay in heap, patched of blood underneath his face and other areas of his body. The real Naruto was left, standing above Mizuki's head, eyes narrowed and harsh. But when he looked up to face Iruka, his face instantly brightened.

Iruka held his breath – was this really his Naruto? This powerful, happy, scatterbrained ninja?

'Well… I kinda got carried away. Hey, Iruka-sensei, are you okay?' Naruto clambered over to his teacher, eyes worried and hands a flurry of sign language. Iruka supposed that he hadn't the energy to converse aloud, or that he was simply tired of speaking.

"Yeah…" He let out his held breath, giving Naruto a relieved smile. One eye was shut, a small dribble of blood dry against the corner of his mouth. "Ne, Naruto, I want to give you something."

~ ҉ ~

Konoha's shinobi were gathered just outside the Hokage's building. They fretted consistently about where Naruto could have been, if anyone had seen him, and just how he had gotten the scroll in the first place.

The Hokage waltzed out of his building, his smoking pipe held casually in his hand. His face was bored, completely unworried. He bunched his lips together, raising an eyebrow at the ninja – "So… what are you all doing out here?"

"Hokage-sama, we can't find Naruto!" "We have come to report… absolutely nothing…"

"Mmm… Yes, I am aware of the situation. Just go home. Naruto will be back soon."

~ ҉ ~

'Iruka… can I open my eyes yet?'

In response, he got a confirmation in the form of a pat on the shoulder. Naruto blinked his eyes open once or twice, standing before his teacher. Hm. Something looked different.

He studied his teacher quizzically, wondering what was different.

"Congratulations, Naruto… on your graduation."

Naruto was absolutely speechless – it was then that he noticed that Iruka was not actually wearing his headband, and with a quick look downwards, Iruka was holding his ugly green goggles.

He looked back up, catching what Iruka had just said – "In celebration, we'll have ramen tonight!"

Naruto quickly rushed his hands to his head, feeling the cool metal on his fingertips. He had his own headband – certifying that he was now a true ninja.

His face crumpled, overcome with emotion, and he launched himself at his teacher. Iruka laughed, catching Naruto as they fell against the tree Iruka had been leaning against before. They hugged, Naruto crying happy nonsense into Iruka's shoulder, and Iruka speaking words of encouragement and praise, even though Naruto couldn't hear him.

"Naruto… I was going to lecture you about how difficult your journey would be now that you're a ninja… but I can do that later once we get to the ramen store. I'm so proud of you…"

~ ҉ ~