Stolen Hero
Don't own Naruto. Never have, and probably never will.
Uchiha Seigi had spent three weeks in hospital while the medic-nin laboured to heal the burns covering his body. He had been taken completely by surprise when the house exploded; had he not stepped back, he'd have undoubtedly been killed by it. That alone was bad enough - for Uchihas should never be at risk from something so mundane as an explosion; such deaths were for civilians and less ninja - but apparently some people weren't happy about the death of the brat that had died.
One of them being the Hokage. Who happened to have the complete obedience of the interrogation unit of Konoha.
Seigi looked up at the man leaning over him, his sneer slightly ruined by his quivering lips. "When Fugaku-sama hears about this-"
"He will be undoubtedly ashamed of an Uchiha being bested by a civilian explosion," came the dry answer. "After all, according to you, that was the reason why you didn't do your job and save Namikaze Naruto - you allowed a civilian to sneak into a house you were supposed to be guarding, and set off an explosion which killed an innocent baby."
Despite himself, Seigi felt a sneer pulled at his burned lips. Innocent? Hardly. The 'baby' had slaughtered hundreds, and it was only due to the Sandaime's foolish leniency that it had lived as long as it had. He would shed no tears for its death.
Sensing this, the interrogator pounced. "Unless, of course, you did notice something?"
Seigi glared at him. He wasn't stupid - he knew that such an admittance would sign his death warrant. Besides, he wasn't hiding anything.
It was a pity for him that the interrogators did not believe that - and nor did the rest of Konoha. It looked highly suspicious after all - that a member of the Uchiha clan (established to be the elite of the village now that the Senju had fallen) would fail to notice a civilian sneaking up on a house they were guarding (and the fact that they had been loudly calling for the death of the inhabitant only days earlier did not help matters at all.) Though Seigi was eventually cleared of the matter due to lack of evidence, as far as the rest of Konoha was concerned, Uzumaki Naruto was dead, and the Uchihas had had a hand in it, if not being the murderers themselves.
The death of the child was certainly a shock to the village. The Kyuubi had been defeated, they were starting to rebuild their village, and all of those who were definitely going to die of their injuries had done so already. This new death was unexpected, and more than that, not only was it a child who had been killed, it was the son of the Yondaime. Within a span of less than two weeks, what had been a brilliant Hokage and his powerful wife with the promise of a line of just as powerful children had gone to a woman lying comatose in the hospital.
The Yondaime's bloodline had been wiped out, a baby had been killed, and the people of Konoha were having to come to terms with the fact that it was because they had refused to believe that the child was not the Kyuubi (and if it was, then how could it have been killed in such a way?) They had spat on the Yondaime's wishes for his legacy...and now it was all gone. It was only now that they were beginning to realize the full scope of what they had lost - for not only was the Yondaime's bloodline, but also all of his scrolls (which he had sealed to only be opened by those of his blood) and the rest of his assets, which were now Kushina's (who probably would not want to stay in Konoha after all that had happened.)
Those who still could not let go of their hatred argued that, regardless of what the child was, the threat of the Kyuubi had at last been vanquished. However, shinobi who had fought jinchuuriki in the wars, not to mention the more fuinjutsu-savvy of them, pointed out that there was no guarantee that the Kyuubi was dead at all. The seal was barely a week old, and there had been reported cases of bijuu being released when their hosts died at such young ages. Not only that, but as no one knew how the Yondaime's seal worked, it was quite possible that the Kyuubi had merely vanished, as it had been wont to do from time to time before it attacked the village...and in that case, it could be back for revenge the moment it returned.
It was quite difficult to see the silver lining in a what was essentially harmless baby being killed after that.
Beyond all that, the Uchiha continued exactly as they had done. They saw no reason not to - the demon was dead, and the clan had been cleared of involvement in its death. Really, there was no need to worry. After all, had not many in the village spoken of their want for him, if not to die, then at least go away? Even if there was those who were angry about it, their mutterings would quickly dissipate. The man who had done the dead was dead after all, there was no target for them to focus on.
No target - except the Uchiha themselves.
The medic knelt before the desk of the Tsuchikage, head lowered respectfully. Despite that, it was clear from his shaking body that he was very excited about something, and as soon as the old man gave permission for him to rise, he immediately started talking.
"It's amazing, Tsuchikage-sama! His body...it heals any cuts and bruises within minutes, if not seconds, and in the three years since he's arrived, there's been no sign of any sickness, even in the winter - not so much as a sniffle. As he hasn't had any major wounds, there's no data regarding his ability to recover from something more serious, but as it stands, he's got an amazing healing factor. It's assumed that it's from the Kyuu-"
"No."
The medic looked at the Tsuchikage, confused, but didn't dare to contradict him. Only his advisors and strategists could (politely) tell the man that he was wrong and hope to leave the room with all limbs intact - if alive.
Onoki nodded to himself. "Never have either Han or Roshi displayed any healing ability, and yet, their bijuu are terrified of dying with them. If they had the ability to heal either of them then I think that they would have seized it, especially given Gobi's reaction to...that incident. And what's more, a bijuu's chakra is highly toxic. I doubt that it could be used to heal - it would damage the jinchuuriki's body as it was sent through it."
"B-but Tsuchikage-sama...what could it be, then?"
Onoki tapped his fingers against his desk. He had long since suspected something like this, from the day he had met Naruto while the child was awake, in fact. The boy had been one at the time, and just learning to walk, his wobbly steps often ending in tumbles to the floor, because there was no one who cared enough to catch him.
Onoki had sat in the corner of the room, watching the child, and feeling grudgingly impressed in spite of himself. No matter how hard he hit the ground, the kid would always clamber to his feet, clinging to the furniture for support, and try again - with not a single bruise to show for it. When he finally managed to make it to the other side of the room without crashing down once, the kage had given him the slightest nod of approval - and received a beaming, if tentative smile in return.
That had been the beginning of a somewhat odd friendship. Onoki certainly didn't coddle the boy - he was meant to be a ninja, not a sheltered weakling who needed approval for every action he took - but he did at least acknowledge that the boy was there outside shouting angrily at him for causing trouble (which he did, frequently - apparently, Naruto operated on the understanding that angry attention was better than none at all, and was already gaining a reputation as a bit of a prankster) and was as kind to him as a grumpy kage with many other duties could be.
In turn, Naruto seemed quite affectionate towards him, and had proudly stated that he wanted to be a ninja, "Just like you, old man!" After a round of gentle (for the Tsuchikage, anyway) raps on the child's rather thick skull, Naruto had managed a respectful 'Tsuchikage-sama," though Onoki could practically see him mouthing old man whenever the elderly kage's back was turned.
And yet, despite all that, Naruto had not a single cut or bruise to show for a childhood of rough play. It wasn't as if he had never injured himself - on the contrary, Onoki had witnessed him taking more knocks than he cared to remember - and yet, he was still unmarked. That smacked of something being wrong - or right, in this case - and so he had summoned in the medics, who of course wanted to take the easy option of pointing at the Kyuubi.
But the Tsuchikage had remembered something from the early stages of the third war. It was said that Namikaze had been attacked by a group of Suna-nins, desperate to find their missing Kazekage. Though the man had defeated them all, he had been cut with a sword coated in poison. While it was possible to survive poison, even one of Suna's deadly concoctions, Namikaze should have been bedridden for at least a week.
He had been up and fighting the next day, though people commented that it wasn't at his best.
Normally, Onoki would have dismissed it as yet another fanciful tale about the man to embellish his legend - but now, with the news about his son, he couldn't help but wonder if it was in fact some sort of minor kekkei genkai. It would make sense to not advertise it - while most villages welcomed kekkei genkai as another source for power, there were those who thought of them as abominations (Kiri, for instance) and even before the third war, people with kekkei genkai had been going missing (the work, it was later found out, of none other than Orochimaru).
But if Naruto did have a kekkei genkai...that was great news for Iwa. There were a grand total of three kekkei genkais in Iwagakure, and Onoki was the last holder of the Jinton. A new bloodline would be welcomed...but at the same time, it could very well lead to trouble. After all, the Sakame and the Houseki's main strengths came from the kekkei genkai they wielded, and if they felt that another clan could spring up and threaten their status...
Onoki scowled. Blast it. He had to think of Iwa before any ninja, and the two clans were more valuable to it than a single jinchuuriki. There was nothing for it but to bury this secret, just as he had Naruto's parentage and status as jinchuuriki...not that the last two had been particularly successful. Luckily, a few public executions and choice threats had the ninja keeping their mouths shut. The civilians wouldn't dare to talk either. Unlike Konoha, they were not allowed to just walk around with village secrets; the slightest mention of 'Namikaze' in conjunction with 'Naruto' would have heads rolling and they knew it.
"This is an S-rank secret; you may not speak of it to anyone. Am I clear?"
The medic-nin paled, bowing rapidly. "O-of course, Tsuchikage-sama."
Nodding in satisfaction, Onoki leaned back in his chair. "And what of the Kyuubi?"
The medic-nin fidgeted nervously. "I'm...afraid that the...training...will have to be post-poned."
Onoki raised an eyebrow, and the temperature in the room seemed to plummet to Yukigakure-levels. "Oh? And why would that be?"
Briefly, the medic-nin contemplated pretending that there was nothing wrong and letting the Tsuchikage just go ahead with what he wanted. But if the man found out, he'd be dead anyway - and besides, the plan was too dangerous for them to try out yet.
"To put it simply, the Kyuubi's chakra is just too strong. Right now, the child's coils are still malleable, and from what we can tell of the seal, it will be a few years before it is stable enough to be relied on. If the child is pushed into training to harness the chakra too soon, the seal could fail, and the Kyuubi be released."
Onoki leaned forward, his eyes fixed on the medic-nin, who tried to look as though he wasn't terrified for his life (and failed miserably). "Well then. How soon would you say Naruto can begin training without the danger of the Kyuubi being released?"
The medic-nin ran his mind back over his observations. "I believe that the earliest he should begin is around seven or eight. Possibly earlier if he begins shinobi training and has at least a basic grasp of how to handle his own chakra first."
"He's three years old now." The Tsuchikage's tone was flat, and it was difficult to say whether he was in agreement, or merely preparing to blast the medic-nin's head off.
"Y-yes, Tsuchikage-sama...but if he begins training immediately at, say, four or five, there's a high possibility that we'd only have the usefulness of the Kyuubi's chakra for a year at most before it overwhelmed him. However, if we wait a few more years and give him at least basic shinobi training, the seal will remain stable, and he would be able to utilize it a great deal more efficiently than the span he would have between the ages of four and five."
For a minute, the Tsuchikage silently contemplated this, while the medic-nin sweated nervously. Why oh why had he turned down that mission to Kusagakure that would have kept him away from Iwa and its powerful, casually-killing Kage for six months?
"...Very well. But understand that his development is now on your head. If things go wrong when we do start him on his training, then it'll be you held responsible. Do you understand?"
The medic-nin wanted to argue that it wasn't fair, that he had never dealt with the Kyuubi before and so could not know the full effects no matter what, that the handlers of the jinchuuriki should be responsible for any accidents, not him, and that by nature, things went wrong whenever a jinchuuriki was involved because they just weren't natural - but he liked his head where it was, and so he only bowed it in submission.
"I understand, Tsuchikage-sama."
Akatsuchi ran a hand through his hair, the sound of his breath hissing against the porcelain of his mask the only noise he heard as he stood outside the building the Tsuchikage had sent him to. An ugly block of dull grey bricks with scarcely any windows, it looked rather like a prison, or some kind of ANBU building, designed to intimidate any who would cross their kage.
But it wasn't. In fact, this building was the only orphanage in Iwa, a place dedicated to raising those who had lost their parents and giving them shelter, food, and education; all the things that they would need to grow up to be healthy, loyal citizens of Iwa.
At least, that was what was said on the official records. Having grown up in this place himself, Akatsuchi knew that the reality was very different.
Every village had civilians. They were needed just as badly as ninjas were to protect it, because even with time between missions, no ninja could ever fully devote themselves to civilian jobs. Things that ranged from doctors with no chakra to aid them but plenty of knowledge (because medic-nins were rare in Iwa, and care without chakra to back it up was better than no care at all) to managing the banks, from restaurants to technicians, from secretaries to traders - all those jobs and more had to be done to help Iwa function, and for that, they needed civilians.
However, the problem with civilians was that, compared to ninja, they were, well...weak, for the lack of a better word (and most Iwa ninjas never bothered to look for one in the first place). An average academy student could take down a full-grown civilian in less than two minutes without sustaining much damage to themselves, let alone a fully-qualified ninja. And thus, there was no way in hell that a civilian could have much power over the lives of the ninja that risked death constantly while the civilians stayed safe in Iwa.
For that reason, there were limitations on the lives of the civilians in Iwa. For starters, they were kept separate from the ninja population by use of housing districts, with civilians forbidden to live in certain areas or even enter them without a special pass. If a ninja wanted to marry a civilian, they had to file weeks worth of paperwork to just get permission for their spouse to live in the same house as them. They could not sit on the council. They could not perform even the most menial of jobs, like sorting paperwork or cleaning, for the ANBU divisions or for the kage's office. They signed away all rights to their children once they became genin. They were denied access to treatment by medical shinobi unless there were no shinobi who needed them for even the most minor of afflictions. They were, essentially, Iwa's second class.
Naturally, the occupation of civilian wasn't very popular in Iwa, and thus most people were desperate to be ninja, even with all the dangers the job brought with it. However, though the academy was always full to bursting and they never had a shortage of people to recruit from during wartime, civilians were still needed in Iwa. Thus, the standard for the academy was high, while it was incredibly difficult, bordering on levels of impossible to get children from civilian-only families into it outside special circumstances like war. Most didn't bother trying, just entering them into the civilian schools, and the orphanage was no exception.
However, Akatsuchi had managed to become a ninja by virtue of his parents who had begun training him just before their deaths, when he was seven years old. One of their friends (a shinobi, naturally) had recommended that he at least try out for the academy, and they had grudgingly let him in. What had followed was five years of non-stop studying and training, without any support from either the orphanage or from that friend, who saw his duty as being finished and never tried to contact him again. Knowing that he could be dropped from the academy at any time, he had worked relentlessly, and had left the orphanage on the same day he became a genin.
Now, ten years later, he stood in front of it again, uncomfortably aware of the heavy mask covering his face. It wasn't as if he wanted his face to be seen after all - ANBU were supposed to be the hidden elite of the village after all, and there wasn't anyone in the orphanage he was particularly interested in having a conversation with outside the job - but it was still a bother, with how hot it made his face feel. Why couldn't he just disguise himself with a genjutsu?
Akatsuchi shook himself. He was just trying to avoid going in, and he knew it. But the Tsuchikage had given him a job and, however distasteful he might find it, he would not fail. And so, steeling himself, he rapped sharply on the door.
It was opened almost immediately - presumably, the owners had been waiting impatiently for his visit all morning, counting down the seconds until he would come and take their problem right off their hands once and for all.
An old woman stood behind the doorway, framed by the faded wood. She was small, her head barely level with Akatsuchi's chest, and utterly ancient, her practically translucent skin hanging off her small frame in wrinkled folds, her white hair pulled back in an uninspiring bun, her claw-like hands grasping a knobbly cane. Despite that, Akatsuchi couldn't help but feel slightly intimidated by her - after all, he could still remember the time this woman had towered above him and seemed like the most frightening thing in the world.
"Chuuari-san. I'm here for the child."
Her beetle-black eyes glittered with recognition, and she bowed her head respectfully, even as her prune-like mouth split into a sneering grin. "Of course, ANBU-san. Right this way."
She gestured for him to come in, and Akatsuchi stepped forward, ducking his head under the low doorway as he went. The foyer he now stood in was long and dark, with only a few grimy lamps screwed to the walls to light the gloom. The floor was scuffed from hundreds of tiny shoes over the years, and the patterned wallpaper was faded to the point that only vague lines could be made out on its surface, just as he remembered it. Despite the orphanage doing the best they could with their funding, and the level of care being decent at least, it wasn't a cheerful place to grow up in.
The old woman had already moved off into the darkness, heedless if he was following her. Stifling his annoyance, Akatsuchi quickly caught up, his large strides giving him an advantage over her small, hurried steps.
Rounding a corner, Akatsuchi saw a long hallway, with each wall having a row of doors set in it. Some of them were open, and he could see children beyond them, looking clean and well-cared for, but undeniably nervous of the ninja walking among them. He turned his head away from them, but could still feel their shiny eyes fixed on his back, curiosity of the stranger warring with their knowledge that ninjas were dangerous and could kill them just like that if you looked at them wrong.
Which he couldn't really, even if he wanted to - civilians weren't so badly trodden down that a straight-out murder wasn't treated as a crime - but he supposed that it would do them good to learn to avoid ninja at a young age - after all, not everyone in Iwa felt the same as he did.
Apparently either not noticing or caring about the children watching them, Chuuari began rattling off a list of facts about the child, as if he was nothing more than some property she was keen to pass on to someone else.
"He's six years old, birthday on October 10th." That piece of information was followed by a roll of her eyes, as if she couldn't see why anyone would want to know it. "He can read and write at an average level for his age, but he can't cook, so someone will have to provide food for him. He's a troublemaker, naturally - spoiled the staff dinner meeting the other day by putting some spiders in the salad, and he even threw some dye in Aiko-san's shampoo. We'd put him into confinement, but seeing as he's mostly kept separate anyway, that doesn't-"
Akatsuchi halted, staring at her incredulously, though she couldn't see his expression. "Kept separate? Why?"
Chuuari sniffed, folding her spindly arms across her chest. "For safety, naturally. If the seal ever breaks, we can't have him going after the other children. Besides, it's not as if he's the type we'd want the children to play with."
Something cold and heavy unfurled itself in Akatsuchi's stomach. As scary as Chuuari had seemed when he was a child, she had been grumpy and overworked, not deliberately malicious - but he knew fully well that this isolation had little do with the safety of the other children, and far more to do with a punishment for the son of the Yondaime daring to be breathing in Iwa, to live in the place that his father had stolen so much from.
Akatsuchi had disliked the Yondaime as much as the next Iwa citizen, and he had known that the child, someone he had never particularly troubled himself over, would hardly be pampered in a place like this...but knowing about the hate and actually seeing it up close were two different situations. It wasn't as if he was feeling sorry for the kid...but still...
Apparently seeing the matter as over and done with, Chuuari nodded at the furthest door to the right. "He's in there. You'll have to keep an eye on him...nasty little..."
Whatever she wanted to say trailed off into inaudible grumbling as she fitted a key into the lock of the door, blowing a strand of white hair out of her eyes as she did so. Finally, it creaked open, and Akatsuchi peered into the room beyond.
It was quite small, not much bigger than the closet Akatsuchi kept his spare uniform in, and very stuffy, air-conditioning apparently not a priority for the orphanage. Lit by a single light-bulb dangling precariously from the ceiling, the walls were crayoned in spirals of varying colours, but whether they were deliberate or just random doodles, the ANBU didn't know. There was no furniture in the room apart from a small futon, upon which sat what was quite possibly the most disliked, if not outright hated child in the whole of Tsuchi no Kuni.
Kazama Naruto was a short child. That was Akatsuchi's first impression of him - not the spiky blonde hair, which was beginning to droop in the heat, not the wide blue eyes that were a mirror image of the pair that stared out of the academy textbooks (frequently scribbled over in red ink) or even the six whisker marks that marred his cheeks. He was small, the futon he was sitting on nearly swallowing him up, and that made him look oddly vulnerable as he sat with his head bowed, fingers tracing out a pattern on the sheets.
He didn't look like a ninja at all, much less a bijuu, and it was odd to think that this was the child of the man who had slaughtered hundreds. If he didn't know about the story, he wouldn't have guessed the kid to be Namikaze's child at all (well, until he looked up, letting the light shine on his spiky blonde hair).
Chuuari rapped her cane against the floor, and Naruto looked up, his face turning wary when he saw the masked figure standing behind the old woman. "What's going on?"
Chuuari smiled coldly. "You're being moved, Naruto. Tsuchikage-sama has ordered that you have an apartment of your own, now that you're entering the academy."
The kid nimbly hopped off the bed, his blue eyes narrowed. "Where am I going? And who are they?"
Ignoring the last question, Chuuari shrugged, her expression making it clear that she didn't care. "I don't know. I will give you a few minutes to collect your things, and then you will leave with ANBU-san." With that, she spun around, and disappeared through the door.
Akatsuchi swallowed as he looked at Naruto, who stared back at him suspiciously, hands planted on his hips. "I'm not going with you until you tell me who you are!"
Not wanting an argument this early into the mission, Akatsuchi gestured at the number engraved in his mask. "617."
"Huh?"
"That is what you may call me. 617."
Naruto stared at him, his suspicious expression giving way to bewilderment. "You're a number?"
Biting back his irritation, Akatsuchi shook his head. "No, that is my code-number, which you may refer to me while I am assigned to you. My orders are to escort you to your new home, and then take you to your first day at the academy tomorrow. After that, you will be expected to make your way on your own."
Yes. That was his mission. Simple, easy to carry out. He'd be back home in less than an hour-
"What's the academy?"
...Or not.
Naruto looked up at the building in front of him, resisting the urge to gulp. It wasn't as if he was scared - because he was going to be a ninja now, and the old man had said that ninjas were never scared - but in the orphanage, even if they'd made him stay in his room for a lot of the time and the meals weren't very tasty, at least they'd looked after him, though he knew that they didn't want to. But now, he was on his own for the first time in his life...and it was kinda scary.
Well, he wasn't completely on his own. The weird number guy was standing next to him, looking up at the beehive-like building that was apparently Naruto's new home. Naruto was carrying his own luggage - which didn't consist of much - but he wasn't feeling tired at all, because the number guy had grabbed his arm and, suddenly, they were in front of the building.
The number guy had said that it was called 'shunshin', and that he'd learn it if he passed through the academy, which was some kind of ninja school. Naruto was very excited about the idea of going - he'd been wanting to be a ninja for ages, just like the old man - but even so, he couldn't help but feel a bit scared of that as well - because he knew that, for some reason that he could never find out, people didn't like him.
At the orphanage, no one looked at him unless they had to. Even the other children were kept mostly away from him, and even when they weren't, they wouldn't play with him because the old lady had said that he was a bad person. Even when he tried to be good, she just ignored him, occasionally giving him nasty glares. But those nasty glares were better than nothing, because then at least someone was paying attention to him, so he'd started pranking so that he'd keep that attention.
But not any more. The old man had spoken to him, had said that now that he was going to start training as a ninja (though he'd never explained how, and Naruto was disappointed that he was going to have to spend years working at it, even though he knew that he was going to have to work hard to be a ninja in the first place) he couldn't mess around and play pranks any more. He'd also mentioned something about the strength of Iwa, and how Naruto would have to learn to help take the burden of that strength by any means necessary, but Naruto hadn't been able to keep on listening - the old man was great, and probably the closest thing he had to a friend...but he could talk an awful lot.
The number guy coughed, nodding at the door of the building. "We should go in. Your apartment is on the top floor."
Naruto craned his head, staring up at the top of the building in awe. "Really? The one with the balcony?"
The guy nodded, heading to the door. "Yes. Now, come on."
Naruto might not have any money of his own, but the Tsuchikage had set up a small fund for him, enough to pay the rent and buy enough food to stop him from going hungry. And while it was far from a fortune, it was enough to get him a decent apartment, one with a proper kitchen (the stove looked like it had been fiddled with, but then hastily put back together, as if the vandal had thought better of it), a central heating that didn't break down all the time and, best of all, a great view that let him see a good portion of Iwa, including the Tsuchikage's tower.
He was on the balcony now, gripping the iron railing tightly as he stared through them with wide eyes. Apart from a few trips outside the orphanage, he had never really seen the village that he lived in before...and it took his breath away.
Surrounded by rocky mountains that made up an effective natural defence, Iwa sat on dozens of small cliffs, the cone-like buildings seeming to have grown straight out of the stone that made their bases. The drop between each cliff was steep, but a large network of bridges connected each and every building to each other, including Naruto's apartment. With his eyes, he followed the bridges, noting how they changed in width and length as they went from building to building, until at last, they connected at the Tsuchikage's tower.
A tiny smile on his face, Naruto glanced up at the setting sun, which was casting a warm red glow over the buildings as it slowly drifted out of sight. The village looked strangely beautiful at this time...and it was his village. He was a part of it, the old man had said so - and he was going to prove himself. He would make people see him, if not with pranks, then as a great ninja, just like the old man (Naruto had never actually seen him fight, but he was Tsuchikage, and everyone knew that only the strong could be Tsuchikage).
He was suddenly aware of someone standing behind him, and turned around to see the ANBU guy, the number on his mask hidden by his hood. "Did you have dinner?"
Naruto shook his head, feeling sheepish. "I...don't know how to make it."
The guy sighed, which sounded odd, what with him wearing a mask. "I see. Well, you'll be provided with prepared meals until you can learn to cook on your own. I suppose we'll have to arrange for someone to teach you-"
"Can you cook?" Naruto asked curiously.
The guy stiffened. "What?"
Naruto nodded at the kitchen. "Well, you're a grown-up, right? So, shouldn't ya know how to cook?"
"Um..." The guy shuffled his feet guiltily. "That doesn't matter. I'm not a good teacher anyway...And besides, there's a ramen shop near here. I can fetch some for you, but you'll be on proper meals tomorrow."
Inwardly, Akatsuchi winced. His job had been to fetch the kid, leave him in the apartment, and show him to the academy the next day. That was it, job done. But he couldn't help feeling oddly guilty as he prepared to leave, seeing the empty cupboards and obvious lack of any care that the kid was just that - a kid. Akatsuchi knew full well that Naruto was the son of the Yondaime, that he was the jinchuuriki of the Kyuubi, that he'd be a weapon for Iwa...but for Kami-sama's sake, he didn't even know either of those particular facts, and he wasn't just going to transform into an efficient, emotionless machine overnight.
Before his ninja training could strangle that brief flash of conscience for the Yellow Flash's son, he shushined away, leaving Naruto to stare in confusion at the spot that he'd just vanished from. 'What's 'ramen', anyway?'
The blonde flopped down onto the carpet, his arms folded. Now that the guy was gone, he felt oddly...lonely. It wasn't as if he wasn't used to being on his own...but that didn't mean that he actually liked it. That was why he had tried so hard to get attention in the first place, wasn't it?
But I can't be like that now. The old man said that ninjas have to be strong. That we have to give up everything for Iwa...whatever that means. But...'
Before Naruto could think on it any further, the number guy appeared again in a swirl of dust. In his hands, he was carrying a large cartoon, from which a heavenly smell was drifting. The ANBU set it down on the table, dropping down a pair of chopsticks as well.
His attention diverted, Naruto bounced over to the table, staring at it with wide eyes. "That's all for me?"
Akatsuchi nodded uncomfortably. "It's only ramen, but it'll" - he paused, staring at the blonde in amazement, who was already halfway through the cartoon, a noodle hanging out of his mouth as he looked up inquisitively at the ANBU. "What?"
"Nothing..." Akatsuchi muttered, shaking his head.
'Such speed and a love for ramen...I guess he is his son after all.'
The next day dawned bright and sunny...and Naruto woke up in a terrible panic, when, for the briefest of moments, he didn't recognize his surroundings. He thrashed around wildly in the first proper bed he'd ever slept in, before the sunlight streaming in through his window and the absence of the claustrophobia-inducing walls of his old room caught up with the events of the day before.
Having finally calmed down, Naruto quickly scrambled out of bed, excitement, for now, overcoming his trepidation. Today was the day he was finally going to the ninja academy, and begin his journey to become a shinobi - and not just any shinobi, but one just as good, if not better, than the old man!
After quickly dressing himself in his normal clothes, which consisted of a black pair of shorts and a white t-shirt with the , he made his way into the kitchen, where to his surprise, the ANBU guy was already waiting.
"Are you ready to go?"
Naruto nodded eagerly, not noticing the strange hesitance in the ANBU'S voice. Of course he was!
The academy was situated near the Tsuchikage's tower, though it was less than half of the latter's size. A large pair of double doors were set in the walls directly under the carved symbol of Iwa, which cast a heavy shadow under the glare of the morning sun. It would have looked quite majestic and imposing, were it not for the large crowd of small children being shepherded in by annoyed and, in some cases, tearful parents.
"-come on, Rei-"
"I'll be waiting for you at three-"
"Leave your sister alone, Takashi-"
"Setsuna, if you don't-"
The noise and the crowd was somewhat overwhelming, and Naruto stared around in bewilderment. Akatsuchi, meanwhile, was on red-alert. Already, people were noticing Naruto, and even now he could see the sneers settling on their lips, the glares, the children being tugged away. The sooner Naruto was safely in the school, the better.
The ANBU's thoughts were interrupted as someone suddenly crashed into Naruto, who gave a yelp as he was knocked over. Akatsuchi's hand immediately darted towards his tanto, ready to attack if necessary...until he caught a good glimpse of the 'attacker.'
A small girl with wispy brown hair and large grey eyes was scrambling back onto her feet, apologizing profusely at Naruto. "I'm really sorry! I didn't see you, and I was trying to find Kaa-san, but I couldn't see her, and-"
"YUI!"
The girl jumped nearly a foot in the air as a young woman came skidding up behind their group. She was clearly the mother or older sister of the girl, and from the hiate-ate glinting around her neck, a shinobi as well - and yet, for some odd reason, she looked quite nervous as she came near them. Akatsuchi stifled a sigh. Son of the Yondaime or not, Naruto was a six year old child. And a kunoichi, young or not, was afraid of him?
The kunoichi in question looked down, her eyes meeting Naruto. Though they widened slightly, to Akatsuchi's bewilderment, she only shook her head. "Yui-chan, did you knock this boy over?"
"I'm sorry, Kaa-san," Yui piped out, still glancing nervously at Naruto. "I really didn't mean to-"
Naruto, already back on his feet, rubbed his head. "S'okay..."
Akatsuchi was now quite confused. So the woman wasn't afraid of Naruto...he followed her gaze, and realized with a start that it was him she was looking at nervously. But why...
Suddenly, another face flashed into his mind, one with grey eyes and a superior look on their face that didn't match up with the small girl who even now was shuffling her feet guiltily as Naruto assured her that he was fine (and probably enjoying the first time that anyone his age had even spoke to him outside of insults, never mind apologizing). Something else floated to the surface of his mind as well - a mission, about five and a half years ago to Suna that lasted eight months and had only two people - a genin and her female sensei - on it.
Ah. That explained it.
Poor kid.
He nodded at Naruto. "You should be going in now. They'll be registering you soon."
The kunoichi nodded, gently nudging her daughter. "The two of you should hurry up, you don't want to be late-"
She broke off, staring distractedly at the entrance, where the parents, now free of their offspring, were heading away from and towards them. And at the front of the pack was none other than Houseki Fusao, no doubt back from showing off his clan heir. The man's eyes fell upon the group before any of them could move away. His gaze slid from Akatsuchi and the kunoichi with no visible change in expression, but a vicious glare twisted his face when he saw the children. Even from the distance he was away from them, all four of them could hear what he spoke.
"Filth."
And thus began Kazama Naruto's first day at the academy.
Next chapter will include a few time-skips, and we should hopefully begin to get him out of the academy soon - as well as introducing a few more characters, especially from canon. Be warned, however - in this story, no one has plot-armour, whether canon or OC. And now, please review!