Disclaimer: I do not profit from this story in any way. Unless otherwise noted, the characters and concepts used in this story belong to Masashi Kishimoto. The series of events portrayed in this story are the products of my own imagination. Any similarities to other stories and events, fictional or non- fictional, are completely coincidental.

Author's Notes:

This is a dark/smart Naruto fan fic.

Naruto will not be paired with anyone romantically.

Romance and couple pairings will not be the focus of this particular piece of fiction.

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Thinking/thoughts(human)- "I wonder."

Thinking/thoughts(demon/non-human)- "I wonder."

Speech(human)- "I wonder."

Speech(demon/non-human)- "I wonder."

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Constructive criticism is greatly appreciated.

Thank you for reading the above notes and I hope you will enjoy reading my story (:

Decay: Chapter(2)

Borderline

He couldn't help it. It didn't matter how hard he tried to focus his thoughts elsewhere. They kept drifting to the unconscious boy resting in a hospital bed. He gave up trying to accomplish any kind of paper work. He simply couldn't focus on anything other than Naruto. He left his office early and made his way to the village hospital. This was the routine for the past two days.

Naruto had been unconscious for two days.

He hoped the boy would be awake today. If the boy did not awaken soon, Sarutobi was sure he would fall deeper into despair. He cursed himself everyday since the boy was found unconscious in the playground's sandbox. He was watching Naruto through his crystal ball when he suddenly collapsed. In that moment, he was completely horrified. It looked as if the boy fell prey to a silent assassin. He immediately dispatched a team of his most trusted shinobi to retrieve Naruto. He was relieved to find out the boy was only unconscious.

He placed Naruto in the hospital in hopes of discovering what ailed the boy. As Hokage, he did his best to maintain the image of a composed leader, ready to calmly assess and over come any situation. The hospital staff forced him to shed his calm exterior. The hospital staff ignored the poor boy. Had he not returned the next morning, the boy would have gone undiagnosed. Even now he couldn't sincerely claim the boy was properly diagnosed.

After spewing threats in all directions, one of the doctors finally looked in the boy's direction and said his illness stemmed from exhaustion.

The doctor's assessment initially left him feeling completely livid. The man hadn't stepped into the boy's room once. His anger quickly morphed into insecurity and guilt. Now that he was looking at the boy, he couldn't truthfully refute the claim as false. Naruto was malnourished; a skeleton with skin desperately clinging to what little flesh was there.

He could have easily exhausted himself.

Naruto was treated so poorly. He was starved,homeless, and completely alone. That was going to change. He had setup something special for Naruto. He simply couldn't resist telling the boy any longer. Sarutobi gently nudged the boy awake.

He had a feverish desire to tell Naruto his life was about to change for the better.

He couldn't recall a single moment in his life when he was this content. He couldn't honestly say there were many times in his life when something wasn't wrong. There was always something wrong. He was at the wrong place, which usually resulted in a kick to his ribs from an angry store clerk. Or he was out at the wrong time;if he went out during the daytime he would be hit with rocks and rotten produce. It seemed even when he was alone in his room after night fall something was wrong. His door would be kicked in or his small bed would be torn apart. Naruto tried not to think of those cruel pranks. They only happened once a year during early October.

He didn't want to think of the past.

He was too warm and secure to think of his cold and bitter past. One of the Kyuubi's many tails was wrapped securely around him. He was undeniably comfortable. He didn't want the warmth and comfort to fade. He fought valiantly to remain unconscious. It was becoming difficult to do so; there was a voice calling out to him.

"Kit."

"...Hmm...Kyu?"

Naruto felt incredibly strange. He could tell he wasn't fully awake. He was still in this "sewer world."

"This sewer world is your mindscape."

His mindscape would have to be remodeled. He couldn't allow his friend, the noblest of all demon lords, to dwell in a dank sewer. It would take some intense meditation sessions and a few alterations to his mental processes but he could easily...

He could easily do...all of that.

Naruto was floored. How did he know he could do that? How did he know about mindscapes, meditation, and the general principles of applied psychology used by shinobi? The last time he checked he was three and the knowledge he held was limited to the bare essentials. He knew the words Kyuubi taught him, a few obscenities, and what was okay to eat out of dumpster.

Now, it seemed he knew a lot more.

"Listen closely Kit, we don't have much time."

Naruto curiously looked up at the fox. What did he mean they didn't have much time?

"I mean you will become fully conscious soon and we have much to discuss before then."

Naruto nodded in understanding.

"First, it is exceedingly important that you only speak to me through your thoughts. Even when you think you are alone you must do this."

Slowly, Naruto nodded. He didn't fully understand why he couldn't talk out loud when he was alone, but if the fox gave him a rule he knew it had a role in their survival.

"If the people of this village find out I am indeed helping you, they will do everything in their power to suppress me."

Naruto's face contorted in anger. He would never let that happen!

"Calm yourself Kit. If you obey me, that will not happen."

Breathing deeply, Naruto allowed himself to relax and focus on the Kyuubi's words.

"You have been unconscious for two days in the outside world."

Two days. He did feel well rested...but two whole days...

"The reason for your prolonged slumber is me. I have... improved your physical body and given you a few gifts. One of which is a portion of my knowledge."

Naruto instantly channeled all of his focus on his mind. He ran through all of his memories. All of them made so much more sense now that he knew what certain things were. He now knew Konoha was a shinobi village. He knew shinobi terminology; all of the various ranks and weapons. The fox gave him information about searching, scouting, stealing, and... cooking?

"I plan to teach you how to steal and hunt your own food. However , that kind of training will come much later. Until then, I've made it so your digestive system is capable of extracting the maximum amount of nutrients from whatever you eat."

Naruto was bouncing from foot to foot. He could eat anything! He would get energy from eating paper and plastic and everything else he could dig out of a dumpster!

"I didn't give you that ability so you could be a human garbage disposal!"

Naruto twiddled his thumbs in guilt. He hadn't meant to upset the fox.

" I gave you this ability so you could eat something, until I am ready to teach you to hunt properly."

Naruto gave a weak nod. Although upset by the verbal reprimandation,Naruto couldn't help but feel excited about his newly acquired skill.

" As I previously stated, I won't be teaching you to hunt for quite some time. We must focus on improving your stealth and mental capabilities first. I have given you an invaluable gift that will benefit you during your upcoming training, perfect memory."

Naruto's eyes were steadily widening. This ability sounded like it would put whatever else the Kyuubi had in store for him to shame.

" You need only see or hear something once to remember it. But make no mistake; this gift is strictly an enhancement of your ability to store and retrieve information. You will not gain instant understanding or the ability to execute whatever techniques you read about. It is up to you to understand and apply the knowledge you retain."

Naruto didn't fight the urge now. He leapt forward and buried his body into the fox's fur. He couldn't stop hugging the fox's huge foot in appreciation. His gifts were so incredibly amazing.

"Yes, yes. I get it. You are thankful. While I don't mind your... contact, I must remind you that time is of the essence."

Naruto grudgingly let go and returned his attention to the fox's words.

" It is time for you to awaken, Kit. I must warn you, upon retuning you may feel strange. Your body still needs time to adjust to the changes I've made."

Naruto couldn't help but feel distressed when the sewer world and Kyuubi began to fade out of existence.

"Remember all that I have said and be sure to keep this conversation our secret."

The fox wasn't joking when he said his body would need time to adjust.

His stomach felt extremely tight. The slightest movement of his abdomen made him cringe. This didn't feel strange. It felt painful. Naruto didn't dwell on that fact for long. The trade off was well worth the pain. Thinking of his new abilities, Naruto's mood improved. His good mood was not to last though.

He was there.

"Naruto, it is good to finally see you awake. I was beginning to think you wouldn't wake at all!" The man exclaimed happily.

Naruto didn't like this man. The Third Hokage. Hiruzen Sarutobi.

The Kyuubi despised him. Naruto initially gave him the benefit of the doubt. The man had promised him a loving family, food, and shelter. The man was a chronic liar. He simply dropped him in, what he now knew was, an orphanage.

Loving family his ass.

The caretakers at his orphanage were contemptuous assholes. They didn't love him. They hated him like all the rest. Any food they gave him was covered in mold or insect larva. The only shelter he gained was a cramped closet full of cleaning supplies. Finally fed up with his treatment, he left the overcrowded hovel called the orphanage. Kyuubi led him to an abandoned building that was bigger and safer than any orphanage this Hokage would throw him in.

With his newly acquired knowledge , he concluded this Hokage person was the ruler of the malicious villagers. Before the Kyuubi, Naruto believed the man might have been the only person on the planet that acknowledged his existence.

Things were different now.

Naruto understood things now.

This man was powerful; in combat and in politics. He could have helped or killed Naruto if he truly desired to do so. He did neither. Naruto couldn't discern what his true motives were, but he decided whatever they were, they didn't matter. This man was not to be trusted.

He wouldn't go out of his way to make an enemy out the man(yet), but he would proceed with caution. This man was a potential threat to him; to Kyuubi.

He was a threat to his existence.

"You suddenly collapsed while you were playing in the park. You've been asleep for two days"

Naruto looked at the man with hard eyes. Naruto's analytical mind was slowly giving him an image of what the man's words truly meant.

How had this man know he was actually playing in the park before "collapsing"?

Naruto was playing in the park early in the morning, around three-thirty in the morning. Kyuubi assured him he was not followed. If he suddenly collapsed no one would have found him until hours later. That meant no one would have know what he was doing before he was found. Naruto could have been dumped at the park or something else. Somehow this man knew he was at the park playing and saw him collapse.

This man had a way of observing his every move.

"You were right to warn me of speaking to you in public."

"Hmph. See Kit. All I say and do is for our protection."

The third was becoming anxious. Naruto had not responded to his presence like normal. Although the boy could barely speak, he would always express his joy and excitement through bizarre gestures and noises.

Naruto was giving him an empty gaze.

Perhaps the boy was just tired. Yes, that was reasonable. The boy was unconscious for two days and needed more time to fully recover.

" The doctors said you must have exhausted yourself. I certainly hope you are feeling better."

Naruto was going to respond when the fox chimed in.

"This man is suspicious of you. If you continue to act out of character you will further arouse his suspicion."

Naruto gave a low grunt in frustration. He would have to act like himself before he met the Kyuubi. It had been roughly seven months since then. He learned at an astounding pace under the Kyuubi's guidance. All of his speech and grammar skills would have to be shoved aside if he wanted to avoid separation from the Kyuubi. He couldn't down play his skills too much though. If this man was truly watching him, he would know about his conversations with Kyuubi. Conversations in which he could speak full sentences.

"I feel... not bad. Can I not...live...no...not stay here?"

Naruto cringed at the thought of how poorly he spoke before meeting Kyuubi.

Sarutobi felt a pang of shame erupt from within. He was reminded of the boy's education. He placed Naruto in classes but the teachers refused to teach him anything meaningful. The few that did teach Naruto did so because they wanted him to understand the verbal taunts and jeers that were thrown his way. They simply wanted the boy to feel and understand the pain words could bring.

He would get Naruto the help he so desperately needed. He promised himself he would.

"Yes, Naruto, you may...go. Before you do, I want to tell you that I've found you a tutor."

Naruto tuned his gaze to the old man. Tutor? He'd had one before. They were in the same category as his caretakers. Complete assholes. They wouldn't teach him anything worth knowing. This tutor was going to ruin his plans.

He wanted to return to his home and begin the stealth training the Kyuubi spoke of.

He couldn't refuse the offer though. He didn't need the man following his every move any more than he already was.

"O-Okay..."

"Excellent!"

The third walked him to the door. He wanted to get out of the hospital. He wanted to get away from this man.

"He teaches at the ninja academy and has agreed to oversee your basic studies. Language, mathematics, and some of the basic history of Konoha."

Naruto was slightly intrigued. He didn't know much of anything about the village. He only knew the villagers were assholes and that Konoha was a ninja village. He hadn't bothered to learn more than that. It wasn't essential to his survival at the time. Now that he was free from the hospital he was free to learn more about the world with Kyuubi as his guide.

Then he remembered the tutor.

He was expected to be with this tutor everyday. Skipping out on his lessons would arouse suspicion. This tutor would be an asshole, which meant he wouldn't be taught anything, and he couldn't explore and gather information with Kyuubi if he was stuck in a classroom all day.

"We will make good use of the situation Kit. I will train you in stealth each day. Then I will teach you a jutsu that will allow you to leave your lessons unnoticed."

"Rest well my boy. I will send someone to escort you to your lessons tomorrow. Perhaps if you study hard enough you can begin shinobi training early."

The old man put his pipe to his mouth and smiled.

"Perhaps one day you will become a proud ninja of Konoha."

Even though the Kyuubi told him not to act out of character, Naruto didn't return the smile.

A/N: It's not Iruka. The tutor will be a different academy teacher or an original character.

A special note about OCs, if they are introduced they will have an extremely small or short-lived role in the story. They will be necessary characters; like doctors, nurses, proctors, teachers, and the like. They won't have any kind of romantic role in the story. Their roles are strictly occupational(the doctor is a doctor, the bully is a bully, and etc.).