To Guide A Lost Boy

by EmetMehmet

They say that those who look the happiest tend to hide the truth behind their smiles. In the midst of misery and suffering, who would guide a poor soul back to the straight path? A story of a boy who seeks what he so yearns for; Love. AU! Smart!Naruto Confident!Hinata Eventual Naruhina

4. Chapter 4 - The Mind Of Uzumaki Naruto

For a certain blonde-haired boy, early dawn was considered a sacred period of time compared to most.

As the hour struck a quarter after six, the alarm clock on a drawer by the side of the boy's bed would ring prompting the boy to immediately open his eyes- although rather reluctantly- and shut off the infernal thing. It was a peculiar habit for him to practice contrary to how he was in front of the public eye but such was the many secrets Uzumaki Naruto held from others.

Fresh from the grasps of slumber, Uzumaki Naruto then carried himself up from his bed and continued to walk lazily to the bathroom which was a door away from his bedroom. Due to the darkness of his room and daylight still hidden from the horizon above, the young boy had tripped on a pile of books spread messily across the bedroom floor and landed embarrassingly on his stomach. Groaning in mild pain, he stood up once more and proceeded to make his way towards his destination.

Switching on the lights of the bathroom, Naruto then turned on the tap and continued to perform his morning ablutions, gently rubbing his face and removing residues of dirt cheeks and forehead. Thankfully, the water flowing through his apartment's pipes was not frozen this time around but the exhilarating yet cold frost biting water was a norm for the boy as he could not afford to buy a water heater nor the electricity bills that came with it. However even if he was used to the state of the water during the seasons of ice and snow, in a way the first touch of the freezing liquid was almost always a shocking experience to the poor boy.

When it came to personal hygeine- disregarding the fact that Naruto was a rather messy individual in terms of living conditions; his very untidy room was an example-, the young blond was extremely particular with regards to it. In the summers if possible, he would often take three showers daily and spend a minimum of eight minutes in the bathroom cleaning himself. In the winter however he was unfortunately limited to only once a day which greatly brought discomfort to the boy.

Naruto took pride in his scent- the smell of purple lavenders with a hint of screw-pine leaves and mint-, hence due to his extensive knowledge of plant life and the natural oils they produce, he was able to make his own soap. The books he 'borrowed' from the civilian libraries on the matter have helped him a lot.

Especially since his livelihood was restricted by a unison embargo placed upon him by the general public.

Unlike his goofy personality which he displays fully for all the world to see, when in solitude Naruto would often take solace in the scholarly works of many fields of sciences related to both the shinobi and non-shinobi branches of thought. The inner machinations of his mind were peculiar; how could a boy maintain the gruesome burden of memorization and application compared to those among his peers and older so very easily? A child painted by the world as an idiotic menace was in fact a hidden genius.

Yet a question stayed unmoving in the minds of the solemn thinkers; how was it possible for him to be as intelligent as so?

The answer was rather simple actually; Naruto was just a special boy.

After brushing his teeth with a toothbrush whose bristles were bent and unkempt, he then exited the bathroom with a small torn face-towel on his neck. Naruto had a knack for recycling things. The face-towel was actually a small wool handkerchief he found lying on a street one day still in good condition.

Not to say that Naruto had a hoarding complex of of course; that however was mostly related to his rather large collection of reading material.

His meager apartment was filled with many books he had picked up and 'borrowed' all these years. There were books on the sofa, scrolls on the kitchen counter, manuscripts on the floor, even a home deco magazine by the sink! Yet even with all these books, the bookshelf on the left side of his bedroom remain as it is; unfilled.

Turning on the red lamp on his desk, Naruto then slid out a rolling chair from his desk and sat on it in a relaxing manner. On his work desk were a few books and scrolls, stationaries such as pencils and bamboo brushes as well as random sheets of paper with rough work written on it. He was still in his light blue stripped pyjamas complete with his signature walrus sleeping cap. Comfortable with his position, he then pushed the miscellaneous items on his desk to the side and placed his head gently on the desk, his arms acting as a pillow in between.

Closing his eyes, Naruto then attempted to enter a state of deep concentration, emptying his mind from the unnecessary and arranging his thoughts in the process.

His efforts proved fruitful as Naruto was slowly losing the feel of his surroundings, the silence of his apartment and the smell of old manuscripts the only things he could still detect. In deep meditation, he then proceeded to imagine the ideas and writings he had studied the night before. Drifting away into the numbing sensation, the boy then lifted the veil between consciousness and sleep and began to control the formations of images in his head allowing them to flow without any sort of restriction.

At last, with the final pieces of information now in place, Naruto was able to access his vault of knowledge; his mind palace.

And thus drifted he, the boy into an escape from that which was reality.

With peace he went; calmly and gently.

Dream dear child, dream, forget not your woes of which you see.

For surely, what you seek shall truly be.

Opening his eyes once more, Naruto was greeted to the sight of a dark room, the only light available was from a bricked fireplace at the opposite side of where he was standing. The walls were a dark velvet in colour further shading the atmosphere of the room as the flooring which was arranged in rectangular designs was made from wood specifically of the oak tree.

The room which resembled a cosy lounge followed a hunting hut theme easily found in the bordering mountain-passes between the Land of Earth and the Land of Auroras in the northern hemisphere. Naruto was rather fond of the interior designs of said room, one that he believed to be an oddity compared to the oriental styles often found in the Land of Fire. On the walls however were oil paintings; sceneries of various seasons, still-life objects and war scenarios of men wearing metal armour fighting with broad swords living in the far western part away from the Elemental Nations.

Many of those who reside in the east are very ignorant with regards to the cultures and mannerisms of those who inhabited the west. In books related to the matter, it was mentioned that they too possess the ability to perform 'Jutsus of the Shinobi Arts' however their method of execution differed entirely. Naruto was lucky enough to get his hands on such fascinating information - the boy accidentally stumbled upon it while he was raiding the Hokage's open library four months ago.

Ryukichi Endo, a renowned sociologist and retired shinobi who has taken residence in the Fire Capital had written about the case in his thesis submitted to the Royal Academy of Scholars, one of the most prestigious universities in the region entitled "Between the East and West: A Thorough Study Regarding the Historical Significance and Development of Civilizations, Chapter 4 - Variations in the Applications of Chakra" in which he stated:

"... particularly with the Thuringians, (an Allemanian tribe that lives in the Westfallen States also known as The Lands of the Northern Star in the most recent maps revised by the royal cartographer Nakamura Riku, circa.1323) it had been disclosed by Nara Shogo, the head emissary of the diplomatic mission to the Western Lands to strengthen ties between The Land of Fire and The Lands of the Northern Star circa.1322 that the children of said tribe were taught a special method to harness and use their Kraft (Chakra in the Common Allemanian tongue) which differs greatly to what is commonly used in the Elemental Nations.

The lack of hand signs is the most evident of dissimilarities in the handling of chakra between the two peoples. The twelve zodiac signs which are considered to be the basis of all known Jutsus are completely disregarded by the westerners in manipulating chakra. However, the matter which is most intriguing about their practices is that elemental manipulation is taught first as an introductory exercise to build up a strong tolerance for their powers. Surprisingly, it was added by the chief elder of said tribe Otto Altenbach that eight out of ten children were able to execute these exercises to an acceptable manner with ease. Thus, this proves Aburame Hiro's initial theory in his book 'A Reflection on Chakra Control' that it is entirely possible to develop a sense of independence from handsigns to perform Jutsu if and only if the subject was tutored from a young age to do so.

(AN: Thuringian - an ancient Germanic tribe that used to reside near the south of the Elbe River in Deutschland)

(AN: Allemanian - word play from the French word Allemagne, which means Germany)

The special method practiced by the Thuringians in order to mold their chakra is by using a chakra conductor with a narrow focal point acting as a medium for chakra to flow. This tool also known as a Kraftstab (Direct translation in the common tongue would be 'chakra staff/stick') comes in various sizes and is often made from special kinds of wood or metal that are good conductors of chakra. Those who possessed extreme chakra control need not use said tools to perform a certain Jutsu they have mastered; a mere intention was enough.

However the main similarity between the western people and their oriental counterparts stemmed from the need to name the Jutsu which is being performed. It is well known that one can easily avoid calling out the name of a technique when being used but it was unanimously agreed upon by both communities that stating the Jutsu with proper intention will give the best result.

As mentioned in Chapter 3 priorly, there exists several off-shoot tribes descending from Allemania that have settled permanently in the Elemental Nations forming their own functional societies or having assimilated to the present culture and language often through intermarriage between the local races.Traits such as light-coloured hair (blonde ranging from different shades), eyes of various colours (tones of blue, green or grey), sharp noses and a naturally tall figure signifies a typical Thuringian or any of the known far north-western Allemanian peoples (Rheinländer, Grüßiner, Östvolk Saarmänner etc.) and their decendants.

The population spread of the Allemanians in the Elemental Nations is mostly concentrated in the North-East regions most notably in the mountainous and forest regions of Fire Country, Snow Country as well as Lightning Country.The Kingdom of Aare, a sovereign nation in the Land of Snow is one of the few examples of existing countries that is ruled by Allemanians following a system of government that differs greatly to the Daimyo system used in three of the Great Elemental Nations (Fire, Water and Earth). However said information shall be mentioned further in Chapter 6 under Governments and..."

Shaking himself awake after blanking out moments ago, Naruto let out a soft chuckle at the peculiarity of the situation. Here he was in his mind and yet he was able to space out deeper in his subconscious. The scenario was just plain ridiculous.But what seemed impossible was in fact entirely possible within the endless fields of his imagination.

Concentrating on his surroundings once more, Naruto then walked closer to the fireplace his gaze set at it's glow at the end of the room. Unlike his usual attire that he would often put on in the real world, the young blonde was currently wearing a round collared royal blue tunic that was long sleeved. Wrapped around his waist was a white girdle that was tightened with a buckle, his trousers a light blue in colour. Dark leathered boots covered his feet while hugging his petite yet strong figure was an expensive silver cloak that displayed wealth and prominence. The final touch of it all was a crown of pure silver adorning his head, upon it priceless sapphires of deep ocean blue.

Such was the clothing of young master Naruto, the heir to the throne of his desires. For indeed, the young scion was the ruler of his palace of thoughts.

"Ah, I see you are already here," an old weary voice said coming from the direction of the fireplace."I apologize for my unexpected arrival sensei," Naruto said, giving a slight bow to his teacher. "Fret not young master, fret not," the old man replied back in a calming tone. "Come hither and sit as you please."

Naruto did as he was told and sat on an armchair opposite of the old man who was reading a thick tome while squinting his eyes. The man looked to be older than the Sandaime Hokage with a long white beard that reached his chest. His face was wrinkled and upon it were small brown patches and spots spread across his elderly visage. He was wearing a bulky robe dyed velvet red that covered his frail-looking body and wore house slippers of the same colour. The man had a head full of long white hair tied neatly into a ponytail that reached his upper back. However what was most intriguing about the man was essentially his eyes; a silver grey in colour they were. Held within them was an odd cloudy blur that protruded both eyes making him look blind; yet he was far from sightless.

"Have you already finished the chapters which I've instructed you to read last week?" the man asked in a seemingly uninterested manner, his eyes not lifting from his book.

"I have already completed and memorized the chapters tasked upon me sensei. However, I am far from mastering the new seals found in them," Naruto answered in a polite and educated tone, a hint of disappointment hidden beneath his words.

"That is but commonplace dear child. The more you practice and improve, the more clear the art of sealing shall be within your grasp. Like I've said a hundred times before even a master starts of as a mere novice no matter who," he said as he closed the book he was reading placing it on a small round table at his side."Now then, let us continue with your lessons," he added as he clapped his hands. A brush and a roll parchment of papyrus then came to be from thin air, dropping gently on a circular carpet in front of the blonde.

"Begin," he instructed prompting Naruto to reach out for his learning materials and start his lessons.Sitting on his knees, the young blonde then diligently initiated his self-imposed rituals when initiating the art of Fuinjutsu. First he would take the drawing brush with his right hand and hold the tip perpendicular to the ground bringing said brush close to his face while closing his eyes. Then he would speak out the proper intention in his heart whilst making a short prayer to Kami in order that his seals would work as intended. Lastly he would then blow a small gust of breath upon the brush with his eyes opened, the image of the seal now ready in his mind.

In the eyes of those who possess little knowledge, said ritual was merely a whimsical fallacy however Naruto knew better than to challenge the unseen. It was of utmost importance that one keeps a level-head at all times when attempting to dabble into the sealing arts. A miscalculation in precision due to negligence or unforeseen circumstances may lead to dire consequences for both the user and his surroundings.

Among the branches of shinobi arts that existed in the known fields of thought, Fuinjutsu is considered the hardest due to the complexity of the methods and techniques surrounding this mysterious yet enticing discipline.And thus Naruto began by drawing a triangle in the centre of the parchment with uttermost care, making sure that the sides were equal in length to the naked eye. He then layered the drawn centre with a square and an inverted triangle of the same type forming a shape similar to that of a traditional star symbol associated with the المختاري, a tribe that lives in the north western parts of the Land of Wind. After adding more geometric patterns onto the papyrus surface, a complex polygonal formation was derived bringing into being a set of complicated yet logical matrices unfathomable by the common laymen and their associates.

(AN: المختاري - pronounced Al-Mukhtari, meaning 'chosen' or 'chosen people', closely associated with the Jewish People particularly in West Africa)

Such was the beauty of Takigakure's Fuinjutsu, a noble art thriving in Waterfall Country for the past millenia.

Scholars on the subject have divided the art into eight main styles available in the Elemental Nations based on separate historical developments, general format of creation, difference in writing scripts and language as well as unique traits unparalleled in either of the eight types of sealing.

The oldest of the eight types of Fuinjutsu styles is attributed to The Land of Wind- a style known as الختم- which has endured the passing sands of time for approximately 2,500 years; 1,200 years before the coming of The Sage of Six Paths. This style has went through many revolutionary changes throughout its existence however the peak of its reformation occurred 487 years ago when the جماعة الكتّاب standardized the discipline into two separate languages - الصحرائي and البيرائي- thus catering for the two main peoples residing in Wind Country.

(AN: الختم - pronounced as Al-Khatm meaning Sealing in Arabic)

(AN: جماعة الكتاب - pronounced as Jama'atul Kuttab meaning Congregration of Writers in Arabic)

(AN: الصحرائي - pronounced As-Sahrai'ie meaning desert language)

(AN: البيرائي - pronounced Al-Birai'ie; a region in Wind Country in the north western parts where the Al-Mukhtari people thrive; written in their script as הבירית - pronounced Habirit)

The Fuinjutsu style of Taki no Kuni was first developed 500 years after the passing of the great Sage when the Grand Vizier of Waterfall Country made a calculated decision to seperate his country from the influence of مملكة القهارية القدس- an empire that stretched from the far west of the Elemental Nations to the western parts of the Land of Fire- leading to a six month war which was surprisingly won by Waterfall forces with heavy loses from the empire.

(AN: مملكة القهارية القدس - pronounced Mumlikatul Qahāriyatil Quds meaning The Holy Qahāri Empire; Qahāri is a dynasty that ruled The Land of Wind and it's surrounding occupied lands for 700 years until it's collapse one hundred years before the implementation of the shinobi village and Kage system)

Fighting the war on home front, the military force of Taki no Kuni were at their wits end; how could they defeat an empire thirty times greater in size than their own lands with an army numbering theirs one hundred to one in ratio?By creating their own sealing methods of course.The Fuinjutsu of the Land of Waterfalls is considered to be the most well-built in structure among the eight categorized types, defense-wise. The use of geometrical shapes as a base or centerpiece of the seal ensures a more solid framework when seals are being executed.

Thus based on the laws of stability which exists in the sealing arts, if polygons are drawn in a way such that the angles between each line are equal and their sides coherent, this creates a wide spectrum of possibilities for seals to be executed for the purpose of containing or fortifying instead of releasing for offense.With lushes green forests filled with rivers and waterfalls spread across the country as well as cities built in secluded valleys carved through mountain passes, the land itself was a natural fortress. Hence when seals were added to the mixture in order to strengthen the available defenses, the country was almost impenetrable.

To this day, no country even one of the Five Great Elemental Nations is able to capture the landlocked nation.

When Naruto read the history of Taki no Kuni's Fuinjutsu in the scroll he got from Jiji's library, he was beyond amazed at the potential of the art in his future ninja career as well as his daily life. Sure they had touched a bit on Fuinjutsu at the academy but those lessons were only limited to containment seals and explosive tags which Naruto thought was cool but not enough to drive his curiosity to discover more about it. The only aspect of Fuinjutsu which the academy instructors taught about that got the boy's full attention was the Yondaime Hokage's Teleportation seal. Especially since the Fourth Hokage is Naruto's second favourite Hokage - the first would be the Old Man of course.

As Naruto delved deeper into the art, the question he had posed earlier to Rina-sensei that one time during a Wednesday's history class on the Fourth's technique which resulted in him being labeled as an 'interrupting smart-ass' by said teacher was finally answered; if the Yondaime planted his legendary seal on all of his victims which led to their inevitable demise, how come none of the enemy villages researched a way to recreate the technique that brought fear to their hearts if they had the exact copy of the seal etched on the skins of their fallen brethren?

The answer itself was very fascinating indeed. In Fuinjutsu, there exists a failsafe system which allows sealers to ultimately protect their secrets from falling into the wrong hands. This system which is also known as the 'lock-and-key' mechanism, allows practitioners to seal their Fuinjutsu formulas through various methods in order to achieve the greatest possible effect intended to safeguard their techniques. However throughout history, many failsafes have been successfully 'cracked' by seal-breakers hence the guarantee for a seal to be completely safe from prying eyes and hands was itself a far-fetched idea.

However the Yondaime was not just some chummy ninja who happened to know Fuinjutsu; No, no. He was hyperbolically Fuinjutsu reincarnated as a human being. It was rumored that the man knew and was able to use all eight types of sealing styles -maybe even more than that- proficiently to the point that Grand Master Nakamura Hikaru, the best Fuinjutsu user in the Land of Fire who was trained by sealing specialists all around the world seconded only by Jiraiya of the Sannin, acknowledged him as his better.

Thus it can be concluded that no one short of a sealing master from the now extinct Uzumaki Clan can unlock even a layer of his Hiraishin no Jutsu.

Speaking of his clan...

"Roshi-sensei, I have already completed the seal," Naruto said, a hint of satisfaction present in his voice.

"A moment please," the old man replied, getting up from his armchair as he walked to the carpet where Naruto was sitting on. He then squinted his eyes observing every detail of Naruto's seal without fault as a serious look appeared on his face."I believe this to be acceptable," he said in his scruffy sounding voice. "Execute the seal," he instructed.

Without delay, Naruto then imagined the image of apple to appear in his mind palace which poofed into existence and landed safely on the sealing matrix. He then performed partly the Seal of Confrontation with his right hand and concentrated his chakra on the seal while aiming his willpower on its geometrical formations.

"Fuinjutsu: Hollow Entrapment Seal Activate!" shouted Naruto.

A hollow wall then appeared around the apple surrounding it on all four sides. The top and bottom part of the see-through structure was also covered by a visible glass-like square as the wall was shining a calming white colour.

To test out the sealing Naruto then imagined a few kunais and shuriken and threw them towards the walls at extreme speeds using his mind similar to that of Metal Release users. Instead of breaking the walls or puncturing holes in them, the projectiles did no damage and bounced off the walls without causing even a slight dent to its surface.

"Well done young master, well done! A fine job indeed on the Hollow Entrapment Seal," Master Roshi said, a small smile appearing on his elderly face.

Naruto gave a bright grin to his master at the prospect of his success at the seal. He was a quarter way through the Fuinjutsu scroll and here he was, already making very good progresses on the art. He estimated that by the upcoming year he would have already mastered the necessary seals that was applicable both in his career as well as off duty.

He could already imagine the amount of pranks he could pull off with the knowledge in his hands; it was chaotically beautiful.

"All those who wronged me, prepare yourselves! Sooner or later you guys are gonna get caught in a wild Maelstorm né Uzumaki and it ain't gonna be pretty," said the boy to himself mischievously, a determination like fire present in his chest.

Only for that fire to burn out as easily as it appeared to be.Slumping his shoulders droopingly, Naruto let out a tired sigh, his blue orbs staring blankly on the floor as his fingers played with the intricate weaved patterns on the round carpet. The pranks he did were obviously good training for him - the plotting and planning, the scouting and espionage of potential victims and places where the deed is done, the use of his vast creativity and intelligence in order to create a memorable masterpiece, the precision in which all actions prior and during the prank must be done at specific times, the capability to outrun and escape his pursuers as they chase him with the intent to capture (and maybe kill?) him; all of them are skills that should be honed by good shinobi.'

Sadly the populace understood not the actions he committed and instead took the liberty to scorn him even further marking him in their ignorant perspectives as nothing more than a foolish hooligan.

Little did they know in actuality, the personality of childishness, the one which the boy played and personified without fault was nothing more than a mask that he wore to distract himself from the subtle melodies of La Folia, the tempting sounds of madness.

(AN: La Folia - a musical form built on fixed chord progressions often used during the Renaissance and Baroque period. Also means 'light-headedness' or to the extreme insanity)

Oh how great of a burden it is, the little Uzumaki carrying such on his small shoulders!Dread continued to taunt the child as the feeling of anguish appeared in his heart spreading like venemous poison through his veins. A touch of frost touched the boy's skin as a freezing chill went up his back- even as the boy was sitting next to a roaring fireplace its warmth comforting, the heat was null to his senses.

His body felt numb.

Slowly, the child then lost the sensation of his limbs, the muscles on his face began to stiffen.Suddenly the intensity of the burning flames in the fireplace began to wan as its flicker turned dimmer and dimmer 'till the room was engulfed in darkness, the boy's vision limited to only the outlines of the furnitures' silhouettes. The old man named Roshi was no where to be seen; no trace of his presence remaining having just disappeared into thin air. The silence itself was unnerving, the still air drowning as a familiar feeling of anxiousness came upon the boy chocking him into despair.

The blonde was being watched.The hairs around the boy's neck stood up, a familiar yet frightening sensation was shaking him to the core. The room he was in now felt abandoned for years, dusty floors and suffocating stuffiness of the atmosphere was too much for even the boy to bear.Then he heard it.

"Naruto-kun~..."

A silent yet spine-chilling disembodied voice resonated in the air freezing the boy in his place, his wide eyes filled with panic and absolute fear. His instincts were screaming at him telling him to run but the boy could not move as his body was petrified like hardened stone.

Naruto knew the risks of entering his mind; he has done so for a many number of times. Yes it is true, the deeper in one goes the greater the knowledge one may yield however there existed a flaw in the technique which Naruto had difficulty controlling while he was in his mind palace.His emotions.Indeed there was no denying that Naruto was an expert at suppressing his true emotions while interacting with those around him, a skill he had mastered from a very young age in order to protect his spiritual strength and mental stability. It was a coping mechanism; when insulted, smile cheekily and pretend to be careless. Such an act was simple really - the personification of a naive and slightly idiotic boy whose dreams and hopes is to finally be recognized and respected by society as a whole. It was a ploy which was readily accepted by the populace who refused to look underneath the underneath- to its essence, his deception was beyond successful. In a more neutral view one may even see him as an idealist striving for a betterment for himself- the concept of an individual against the world comes to mind, who with pure faith and conviction could win the hearts of those around him.

Naruto may be faithful but he knew such altruistic concepts could not apply for a boy like him.

Creek... Creek...

The blonde was shaking uncontrollably after hearing heavy footsteps on the creaking floorboards as his eyes frantically searched for the source of the eerie sound. He needed to get hold of his emotions immediately but the tenseness of the situation was pressuring him to remain immobile. His thoughts were racing a mile a minute but he could not break out of this disturbing trance.

At this rate, he was about to understand the true meaning of fear.

There is a very big difference between concealing your emotions in the real world and controlling them in the mindscape; Is it not an impossible feat to hide one's true self from himself? In the real world one can easily hide their guises beneath false identities and makeshift names but that cannot be said for his inner being. No matter the circumstance, the root of all actions lies in but one thing; intention.Therefore, it is beyond the bounds of possibility to deceive oneself in the mindscape.

Clatter... Clatter...

The mindscape is truly a fascinating place indeed; it is determined to be a separate entity from the subconscious levels responsible for dreams when one is asleep. Naruto had discovered the wonders of his newly found ability when he delved deeper into his daydreams bound by lucidity after his past excursion in the Hokage's forbidden library a few months back. Equipped with the knowledge that he could not use Genjutsu properly- even as he improved on his chakra control, he could still not perform a Bunshin without it looking sickly- the boy then tried to seek a different approach in manifesting his inner desires.

As he studied the small book about the art written by a Yamanaka thoroughly -one of three literary materials he managed to bring back with him from that night, he had discovered a link between chakra flares emitted by a victim in order to dispel Genjutsu and the signals- both electrical and hormonal- controlled by the Central Nervous System which could help him with his problem. If he could establish a forceful mental link by flaring his chakra at his target, he would be able to perform Genjutsu without the means of a careful injection of foreign chakra within the target's chakra system.

The book was kind enough to give a small list of Yamanaka Hiden techniques that the clan uses for information gathering which was not available for public use. Out of the four techniques listed, the second technique fits the criteria for his hypothetical method. The Hiden Technique: Piercing Mind Jutsu enables the user to effectively force themselves into the mind of their victims and act from there. The potential for this jutsu did not stop from there however, one can also use this technique to plant ideas and information in the victim's head as well as take control of their thought processes.

And thus with this revelation at hand, the boy had struck gold.

Like most great things that occur in the life of a young Uzumaki Naruto, they all share the same particular trait; all of them happened to be purely coincidental. After several nights of studying the basis of the jutsu and its hand signs, Naruto had grasped the mechanics of the technique with ease. The only thing he needed to at the time was to perform it on someone - and he knew the perfect test subject.

Takashi was a civilian man in his 50s that lived a floor below Naruto. He was especially critical towards the boy and would often throw insults at him when he sees him and blame him for irrelevances that was not his fault. The annoying man had pressured the landlord to kick the blond out from his apartment block many times before but thankfully his Jiji had interfered and saved him from the streets.

As he was about to form the six hand signs for the jutsu on his unexpected neighbour who was sitting beneath a tree drunk in front of the apartment block on a warm Friday night Naruto had sneezed at the last moment and missed the Ne handsign thus activating an incomplete jutsu. This lead to the jutsu malfunctioning thus knocking the boy out from consciousness.

He remembered waking up lost in pitch black darkness as his eyes frantically searched for a visible source of light around him. To say that Naruto was scared was an understatement; the boy was terrified to the bone. He thought that the jutsu had killed him and he was caught in limbo- the world between realms.

In a panic state Naruto then hyperventilated, his anxiety at its highest as his thoughts were in disarray. He did not know what exactly went wrong except that he blacked out after incompleting the jutsu handsigns.

Tears began forming in his eyes as he brought himself in a fetal position like the scared child he was. Naruto had always been alone throughout his whole entire life even in death he was destined to be alone. He then attempted to recall the few good memories that he had in hopes that he could at least find some clarity before the Angels of the Graves visited him to pass on their judgement.

And then it happened.

As he recalled the last fond moments he had with the Old Man the darkness around him was suddenly replaced by a familiar looking setting that he knew like the back of his hand- The Hokage's Office. Walking around the room in shock, his eyes then gazed in awe at the sight of the office taking into account the smallest details of the room he had so often visited. Even the view outside the windows behind the Sandaime's working desk was breathtaking- the glowing summer sun in the horizon shining it's light upon Konohagakure as the Hokage's Mount glistened in eternal glory above the village.

The boy could not believe what he was seeing- how was this even happening? Collecting his thoughts, Naruto tried to deduce the situation he was in. Based on the circumstance at the time, it seemed that his surroundings were influenced by his thoughts if he intended it to change. He then tried imagining his favourite training ground and as soon as he concentrated on the memories of the area he was transported immediately to said place.

As he loitered around the training field, Naruto then imagined himself in his usual daily attire- complete with his signature orange jacket- and did what he often did when he was there; target practice. He then took out a kunai from his weapon's holster and inspected the sharp throwing knife with interest. The weight of the weapon was rather similar to the ones he had used at the academy and the design was very much the same. Curious with the result, Naruto then brought the sharp tip of the kunai on his left hand and pricked his thumb.

The stinging sensation was then felt by the boy as he immediately moved his hand away from the kunai, a drop of blood escaping the wound.

To further his studies on the matter, Naruto then walked towards a training dummy forming the Tora seal on his hands and concentrated his chakra to his mouth.

"Suiton: Water Bullet Jutsu!" shouted Naruto as a burst of water escaped his mouth forming a sharp projectile which penetrated the dummy.

A bright smile appeared on Naruto's face as the realization of the situation dawned upon him. With the variables he had collected in place after a thorough analysis, he concluded that the five hand signs which made up the formation of the technique was in fact the aspect of mind manipulation to which one could distort the reality within the consciousness of an individual similar to that of Genjutsu. However what made this jutsu special is that while its features are similar to that of orthodox Genjutsu, its fundamentals are not. This meant that Naruto can perform Genjutsu with the Mind Piercing Jutsu without resorting to his Yin Release as a medium- rather than being the main component, it is merely a catalyst. Thus as a substitute Yang Chakra is used.

And again due to the nature of his poor chakra control, he deduced that he possessed Yang Chakra in abundance.

Recalling Iruka-sensei's lessons on the two types of nature transformations that exists out of the elemental transformations, Naruto began to ponder further regarding the issue. While Yin involved the spiritual nature of chakra, Yang was its absolute opposite. In poetic terms Yin is said to be the female counterpart of the balance between the two carrying feminine qualities-often associated with the need to protect and the spirit. Yang however is associated with masculinity; the yearn for power and the body.

The differences between the two chakra types make up the generalization of the shinobi arts into what it is known today. It is often seen that when it comes to Medicinal Jutsu, Genjutsu or Defensive Ninjutsu, it is women who hold dominance in these branches of knowledge without fault. While that fact may be true, for men it is also often perceived that they excel better in Ninjutsu especially the offensive kinds compared to females due to the nature of the art being destructive rather than protective.

Henceforth for Naruto to find out that Genjutsu could be performed by using Yang based chakra is undeniably an amazing discovery. To create illusions, mere falseness from the essence of reality instead of the imaginary? This contradicted the written laws of Jutsu itself! It is but a paradoxical oxymoron one that would baffle the minds of the greatest of intellectuals for days to come.

Blue orbs searched in panic, a dark manifestation appeared flickering...

As time passed on, Naruto continued to experiment on his new jutsu which he named 'Mind Castle Jutsu' alone in his free time. He even used the jutsu while he was in class thus earning him scoldings from his teachers and the scorn of his fellow classmates. It was also a good cover up for his mask too, giving others the impression that he was the goofy idiotic boy that they thought he was. After his first three months at the academy, Naruto learned that it was best that he hid his actual skills from others as much as he could. Sure if one was talented enough one could graduate as a Genin without needing to attend the the mandatory three year course at the academy by taking the test early however that is a rare occasion indeed.

Naruto did not want to stand out if it meant compromising his safety.

For a young scholar like the young Uzumaki, his jutsu was a godsend- ten minutes in his mindscape was equivalent to a minute in the real world. It had the ability of the Sharingan giving the user a photographic memory. Yet unlike the infamous eyes of the Uchiha, in order to utilize the knowledge learned, one must enter the mindscape to recall back the memory gained as it is not available with the user in his consciousness. On the plus side however, every moment experienced by the body -unless removed forcefully from the user's memories- could be recollected thus making this technique more efficient than the Sharingan for memorization.

The advantages does not stop here however. When compared to lucid dreaming where a practitioner is free to imagine as he wishes, the Mind Castle Jutsu allows the user to replicate reality in the mind as a simulation which obeys the laws of actuality. In a sense, one may view this to be the ultimate testing ground in which the consequences of one's actions does not effect the person in the real world at the slightest.

Naruto has a full scale model of The Hidden Leaf Village in his mindscape which he visits so often. It's nice to walk through the streets of his home without the 'looks' and 'stares' of hateful eyes.

However it may seem, the boy was rather reluctant to create chakra constructs of others in his mindscape. Firstly, compared to places and written information, to create the manifestation of a person using the technique is extremely taxing on one's chakra due to the complexity of a human's chakra system. Secondly, their personalities and psychology cannot be replicated with the means of Yang Chakra- Yin Chakra is required in the process.

And last of them all, if the boy was able to create the perfect world for himself in his head, he may never want to leave.

Even if it was never real in the first place.

A dark entity crawled maliciously, stalking the innocent child like helpless prey.

However as stated previously, the jutsu itself possesses a few hindrances when in use. It could be categorizedas a Kinjutsu due to the extreme cost of chakra while maintaining it. Thus only those with Jonin-like reserves are able to use this jutsu freely without the backlash of chakra exhaustion and that is only limited to ten minutes of usage before full depletion.

This of course was not a problem for Naruto, he could use this technique for three hours daily before the backlash happens. It is very impressive indeed for one so young to have chakra reserves the size of a Kage's however this did not mean that there isn't a cause of distress for the boy.

"Please, please... Don't come any closer," begged the child as the entity approached, a soft but hysterical laughter could be heard.

Fears are generally often divided into two types; the rational and irrational. Rational fears are the kinds which are possible to happen- the fear of spiders and snakes comes to mind- because of the dangers these phobias pose to the wellbeing of a person. While these kinds of phobias may be encountered by a person in reality, irrational fears are often not. Regarding the probability of such unreasonable events to occur, one would fully admit that it is unlikely to its essence.

Thus a question may appear in the thoughts of the thinkers; what is the connection between the boy's technique and the facts mentioned above? Why must he be calm and collected when executing the jutsu? How can his emotions influence the technique?

T

The boy was breathing heavily the beat of his heart drummed his ears. Cold sweat trickled of his skin, his face pale white.

Simple enough.

The entity approached closer within the circle of the sitting lounge, its empty sockets gazing upon the boy while a twisted smile appeared on its hideous visage.

For the mind of Uzumaki Naruto is but a tempest. If thoughts of darkness ruled above him, his mind would obey its wishes letting fear and hopelessness taunt him to misery.

The entity was within the boy's sight. It was ghastly in appearance similar to that of a rotten corpse of a child.

And there are two things the young boy truly fears.

Its face was deformed, the human in it null. There was little to no skin on it, its clothing worn and torn. Strands of what used to be hair was on its scalp the stench of it putrid poisoning the snout.

Evil spirits and demonic entities.

It crawled malevolently towards the young blond getting closer and closer. Its hands and feet were mangled, fingernails and toenails contorted and twisted.

And losing himself in his insanity.

"STAY BACK! ENOUGH PLEASE I BEG YOU DON'T COME CLOSER. JUST GO AWAY GO AWAY GO AWAYYYYYYYY!!!!" the boy shouted at the demonic manifestation yet it kept crawling towards him.

And what happens the two are added together?

"Don't you wanna play Naruto-kun? You know you want to. We can make them all 'sleep' together. Don't you want to? I know you do. Come play with me. Play with me," said the entity in a distorted voice as the boy shouted his pleas.

A nightmare worse than any other.

"I-I-I don't ever want to p-play with y-you, just go away... please.." the boy answered with a cracking tears filled his eyes out of fear.

And all of a sudden silence surrounded the room, the only sound present was the gasping of air from the boy. The mood was macabre and heavy, a feeling of despair locked in the child's heart. There was an anticipation for something to happen yet time went on a standstill.

A wry chuckle escaped the crooked lips of the entity. It continued to crawl to the blonde until its hideous face was right in front of the boy's own face. It then moved its disfigured hands towards the boy's cheek stroking the whisker marks with its elongated finger nails.

Bringing its mouth closer to boy's right ear. The creature then whispered.

"How can I go away if I am you?"

The young Uzumaki then blacked out.

Naruto jolted up from his desk causing him to fall of his chair on the floor the chair following in suit. His eyes was searching around in panic and to his relief he recognized the layout of his own bedroom. Placing his right hand on his chest he could feel his heart beating in a frenzy as he felt cold sweat droplets forming on his forehead.

He continued to sit on the floor, his back halfway down while outstretching his legs. The aftermath of the encounter was etched in his mind as his body continued shaking in fear. He checked his pants and thankfully it was still dry. He did not want to wet himself like a toddler again.

The clock on his wall pointed at 6:34, meaning he had s approximately three hours in his mindscape. Naruto was exhausted. Normally, using the jutsu for fifteen minutes would not take such a toll on the boy but due to the circumstance beforehand he had already lost three-quarters of his chakra reserves. If he hadn't woke up in time he might have died of chakra depletion.

Naruto had experienced a similar case of chakra exhaustion two months ago. It happened while he was at the academy sleeping through Iruka-sensei's lesson during the last period. He was very lucky that Iruka-sensei checked on him at the time; he was immediately brought to the hospital and was admitted for three days.

This incident of course lead his beloved grandfather-like figure to worry as his first assumption of Naruto's admission to the hospital was because of attacks on him by the villagers again - like the boy wasn't used to it already. However after knowing about his over-consumption of chakra, the Old Man began questioning the boy about his over-consumption of chakra which the young blonde experienced. Naruto had skillfully avoided answering the questions in full giving only half-true statements saying that he was attempting a high level elemental jutsu. Surprisingly, the Old Man believed in him. However the boy wasn't let off the hook easily. The Old Man had berated him for his foolish- albeit prodigious- actions and made him promise to never experiment on jutsus if it endangered his health and life.

Let it be known that Uzumaki Naruto was a boy that kept his promises. This however did not mean that he was naive enough to word said promises without loopholes.

He did gave his word to the Old Man that he would not perform anymore dangerous jutsus but then to him the Mind Castle Jutsu was not a dangerous technique most of the time.

All he needed to do now was to control his emotions and not let that thing appear in his mindscape ever again.

Naruto remembered his first encounter with that entity; never had he felt fear as much as he had at that time. Due to the nature of the technique, the experience felt entirely real and more potent than an average Genjutsu. Every now and then he would have terrible nightmares of meeting the thing which resulted in him having sleepless nights.

But as a ninja to be, he tried his best to not let the aftermath of his fears effect his being negatively. Even if he was constantly attacked psychologically, he was still trying to be as strong spiritually as possible. After all, he had a goal to achieve.

Lifting himself up Naruto forced his numb legs to walk to the bathroom once more. He took a dry towel hanging on the wall by the bathroom door and proceeded to remove his clothes throwing them on the floor.

He needed a long shower, disregarding the fact that the water was frostbite cold.

Entering the bathroom, he then placed his towel on the sink. As he stood in front of the shower he then turned the faucet on letting the cold winter water flow down his naked body soaking his golden blond mane. Even as the boy was shaking to the bone at the freezing sensation on his bare skin, it was still calming.

Taking his homemade bar of soap which has thinned over the usage- he needed to make a new one soon- on the soap holder attached to the shower, Naruto then moved aside from the spraying water droplets and began scrubbing his body gently removing any impurities on his skin.

Naruto's skin was a natural pale in colour. As autumn and winter days approached closer he spent less time outside training due to short daylight hours. The tan he gained over the summer had slowly fade away revealing its actual tone. It wasn't an unhealthy ghostly pale but compared to the rest of his peers, Naruto had the one of fairest skins amongst them.

Ten minutes into the shower, Naruto then washed the suds off his abdomen and limbs. Turning the faucet off, Naruto shivered, taking the towel from the sink he then proceeded to dry off his body.

He looked into the mirror once more staring at his reflection deeply as he contemplated on his appearance. For his age, Naruto was a rather short boy. This was probably due to his diet and daily intake of food. Sure Naruto's number one favourite food was ramen but he had other interests too. It's just that he can't really afford it much.

However minus his height, he had a well-developed body and toned muscles to compliment it. As a routine, after performing his morning ablutions and 'desk sessions' he would then go to Training Ground 34 -an obsolete area not used anymore which Naruto conveniently found one day after pranking a few Chunins to hide- where he would do physical exercises and practice academy Taijutsu Katas for two hours before returning home for a shower.

The boy would often come late because of this thus earning him scoldings and punishments from the academy instructors. Well, he didn't give a damn anymore. He figured that since his education was already sabotaged at the academy, it was best to put matters in his own hands. Furthermore, it solidified his image as the 'dead last' of his class, making it easier for his mask to manifest itself in front of the crowd.

His face was another story altogether. It was rather round in shape with three whisker marks on both sides of his cheeks. He had high cheekbones visible from near as well as a small button-like nose. While his eyebrows were thin and fine, his eyes were a bright blue in colour like the sight of the heaven's above on an early morning's summer day.

All in all, Naruto's facial features were rather delicate for a boy, almost feminine even. From up close, if you stared long enough you could even consider his face as dainty. When he was six, the young boy had decided to let his hair grow long for once tying them in neat pigtails. The image of him at the time had intrigued him yet scared him as well.

If he got rid of his whiskers, he looked very much like a girl. A very pretty girl.

Naruko Uzumaki instead of Naruto Uzumaki.

It was interesting yet undeniably odd as well.

Exiting the bathroom with a towel on his waist, Naruto walked to his wardrobe taking out a fresh pair of clothes- a dark blue T-shirt with the Konoha symbol on it and a pair of black sweatpants- to wear for the day. After putting on his clothes, the boy then went straight to bed hoping to catch a nap before carrying out his plans today.

Naruto had climbed on his bed wrapping himself in its sheets while snuggling in them. Grabbing his alarm clock on the bedstand, he had set the alarm three hours from now to ring him awake. It was imperative of him to not sleep in today even if it was a holiday.

Today marked the defeat of the Kyuubi no Yoko by the Fourth Hokage. An annual festival will be held in honour of the Yondaime and Naruto wanted to attend it like any other person.

It was also the day that he is treated even worse by the villagers than normal. On this day, mobs would gather together carrying sharp objects to harm him making him the target of a wild chase around the village until the ANBU stepped in to stop them. Adults would openly encouraged their children to outright bully him, throwing rocks and eggs at him hurting him in the process. His entire being is then abhorred by the populace as they insult and curse him by calling him vulgar names as well as being labeled a 'demon'.

The boy had never attended the festival in his entire life. As a young toddler, he had attempted to try only to be stopped by an ANBU member warning him to stay clear of the event and stay in doors. Naturally, Naruto rebelled of course. This lead to many complications, the chasing would be one of them.

Yet even as he stayed put in his apartment, the danger of him getting attacked was still ever present. Last year, there was an arsoning attempt in the afternoon on his apartment while he was in there. Thankfully said incident had been thwarted by the ANBU once more leaving his home untouched by burning flames. The year before was even worse. Naruto had been hospitalized for five days after getting stabbed in the shoulder by a Chunin with a posioned kunai on his way to hide at Teuchi's Ramen Shop. The Hokage told him that the Chunin was executed for his crimes but that doesn't make him feel any more safer.

Ever since he could remember, Naruto had tried finding out the reason he was so hated by almost everyone in the village. What was the connection between him and the Nine-Tailed Fox? He had researched zealously through thick and thin from books to even asking the Hokage himself yet sadly his endeavors lead to nothing but dead ends. Speculation after speculation, theory after theory, the fact still stands however; in the end he would most probably never know the truth.

"Maybe the matron at the orphanage was right..." Naruto thought.

He sighed thinking about his fate. No matter, he had already made his decision. He was going today. For his own safety as well as his curiosity.

Closing his eyes once more, he allowed himself to be welcomed by sleep again.

And thus drifted the boy to slumber.

Ting went the alarm clock prompting Naruto to press its button silencing it from its infernal ruckus. It was already 10.08 a.m. the sun finally up in the horizon. Rising up from his bed, Naruto made his way to the kitchen and prepared breakfast. Breakfast was a quick affair; the boy had eaten cup ramen and two peanut butter sandwiches with a side of refrigerated milk.

Having already taken his shower earlier this morning, the boy went back to his room to change his clothes. He then put on a second-hand black jacket with orange stripes at the sleeves, dark blue jeans layering his sweat pants he was currently wearing, a pair of orange woolen gloves with a some holes on the both pairs and to top it all of a long lavender coloured scarf on his neck.

The scarf itself was a precious memento from his childhood days. It was one of the first gifts he had ever received from someone other than the Hokage even if it was out of pity and not for a special occasion. The scarf was a reminder that even if the whole world was against him, there would always be a few that would show him kindness and generosity.

And maybe they would even open their hearts and learn to love him too.

Looking at his reflection in the mirror next to his bed, Naruto was satisfied with his outfit of choice. He wasn't into fashion much but it was nice to wear something presentable for once. That orange jumpsuit was always a sore to the eyes.

He had no choice but to wear it daily of course; he had a 'mask' to maintain after all.

His choice of clothing aside, that wasn't the only reason he was standing in front of the mirror. Today, he had a plan to protect himself from the crowd at the same time attend the festival without interruptions.

"Henge no Jutsu!" said Naruto closing his eyes as he formed the Dog-Boar-Ram-Tiger hand seals in order.

Instead of a puff of smoke covering him as he performed the jutsu, his entire body had distorted in white light morphing itself into a different appearance entirely. Opening his eyes, a joyful smile appeared on his face at the prospect of his jutsu working smoothly. After two months of constant practice and research, he had finally created a solid transformation jutsu suitable for someone of his condition.

The original Henge no Jutsu was a low level transformation Genjutsu taught at the academy to students and was a necessary technique to perform in the Jutsu aspect of the graduation exam. With an abundance of Yang Chakra and little to no Ying Chakra a Genjutsu like that was impossible for Naruto to properly do. While the original technique consisted of only three hand signs, Naruto had added the Tiger Seal at the end changing the function of the Henge no Jutsu from a Genjutsu to a Ninjutsu thus making transformation a true transformation.

Although it was an entirely different jutsu altogether, Naruto kept its namesake just for the sake of it. The only drawback of this technique was high chakra consumption- a problem which Naruto did not have- meaning if a Jounin were to use this technique, they could only perform it once a day at the risk of chakra exhaustion.

Looking at his reflection once more, Naruto was very impressed with his current image; it was like staring at an entirely different person. The form he held currently was a head taller with broader shoulders and a more slender figure compared to his actual self. His face was oval in shape, his nose small yet sharp while his cheeks lacked his trademark whiskers. His skin was a healthy light brown, blemishes null from it while his hair was short and straight, pale brown in colour. Instead of blue eyes, his eyes were now a bright green in colour. His features were still prominently feminine yet giving him the image of a flower boy.

The only thing that did not change was the clothes he was currently wearing. He could have henged his clothes as well but he was already comfortable with them so he didn't bother.

(AN: Naruto looks like Kagura Karatachi, the Yondaime Mizukage's grandson minus the scar and magenta eyes)

Naruto had to admit, his current form was a delight to the eyes.

Yuzuru Suisha was a very handsome boy indeed.

Scouting the street in front of his apartment through his window, Yuzuru made sure that there was no one in sight to see him getting out from Naruto's apartment. Satisfied with the lack of people around the neighbourhood, he then exited Naruto's apartment through the kitchen window and jumped on the adjacent building. Yuzuru had already mastered the tree climbing and water walking exercises after practicing them in his mindscape. However he would only be traveling on the rooftops of the buildings until he reached the outskirts of the village centre where the village was held. Yuzuru after all was not a ninja of Konoha; he was merely a tourist from a port town in the south east of Fire Country training to be a herbalist.

As he was about to reach his destination, his gaze had landed on the crowds of people walking through the streets dressed in all types of colours; painting life to the snow linen landscape below. Most of them wore traditional garments- the women wearing winter kimonos while the men wore winter yukatas underneath their haoris with clan markings on them for those belonging to a clan- while others like Yuzuru wore more modern outfits such as winter coats and jeans. Feeling that he needed to fit in with the crowd, Yuzuru decided to henge his clothing to a more traditional one.

After finding an empty alleyway to exit from, Yuzuru jumped twenty feet in the air twirling his body with the poise of an acrobat. He then landed on the ground without a sound in a graceful manner as he scrutinized his surroundings once more, making sure it was truly void of people. Confident with his observations, Yuzuru performed the Henge no Jutsu again his clothes now transformed. He was now wearing a dark purple kimono, a white coloured western style cloak adorned his shoulders, wooden slippers with thick woolen socks on his feet.

As he exited the alley, he made his way to the crowd and walked amongst them blending in as naturally as he could. So far there was nothing out of the ordinary. He smiled at a few girls his age walking in a group. They blushed and giggled amongst themselves when they saw him smile at them. To add fire to his smile, the boy gave a wink to the group further enticing them causing one or two of them to squeal in delight.

Yuzuru chuckled at their antics but the sudden realization of his situation shut him up as red tint appeared on his cheeks. It was not only girls his age however, he also got curious looks from older and younger girls glancing at his direction as well. Yuzuru felt self-conscious. He had never received so much positive attention as he had now. He knew that his current form was handsome but he didn't expect it to get that much of a reaction.

Conflicting emotions were wrestling for dominance in his chest leaving him confused on how to feel about it all. He was finally happy that he was being treated kindly by others but sadly all of this was just a cruel lie. If only they knew the truth of the boy behind the mask.

A familiar feeling of numbness was approaching Yuzuru as he tried his best to fight it. Lately, his real persona was able to fight of the anxiety attacks much better than before after practicing a form of meditation which was used as an intermediate chakra control exercise. He still heard the voices and saw the flashes of memories but now he was able to suppress them to a point where they do not bring him to a state of paralysis. At least the boy could avoid himself from breaking in front of a crowd.

He had to remember now; currently he was Yuzuru Suisha, a civilian boy who hailed from outside village wanting to enjoy the festivities today without interruption.

He was definitely not a scrawny-looking blond child treated terribly by the general public who was despised for something he had no knowledge of.

From a distance, the loud shouts of hawkers and the chattering of the villagers could be heard as they filled the air with a joyous atmosphere which could be felt by the heart. This year, the festival was held in Heroes' Square, a memorial park honouring the Leaf Shinobi who had fallen in the the last Three Great Shinobi Wars. This park was located right at the heart of the village next to the Hokage Tower, the Shodaime Hokage's Imperial Garden and the Konoha Clock Tower.

In the centre of the park was a stone statue of the Yondaime Hokage carrying his famous tri-pronged kunai in his hands and mouth as he posed in a way that he was squatting down, his right hand on the ground while his left was stretching up. His Hokage cape was carved in a way that made it look like it was being blown by the wind adding more detail to the already life-like looking statue.

Yuzuru marveled at the sight of the statue, his green orbs taking in the legendary display. Even if he'd seen it seen it many times before, the statue still took his breath away. It was as if the man himself was encased in stone, his glory forever eternalized for all to see.

Of all the Hokages of Konohagakure, Yuzuru could relate to the Fourth the most. They both were clanless orphans hailing from poor backgrounds as well as geniuses within their own right having created jutsus unique to the individual to the point that it could not be copied. It was said that the Yondaime was a blonde and had blue eyes. Yuzuru's original form had similar features but while the Fourth had a very masculine and handsome face Naruto was more feminine and if Yuzuru wanted to raise his true self's ego, he had to admit... He was undeniably cute, especially with the whisker marks on bis cheeks.

All in all, what connected them together the most was their undying determination to achieve their dreams. While Minato Namikaze wanted to be Hokage, Yuzuru wanted no more than to well... have precious people who he loved that loved him back and protect them till his dying breath. Yuzuru was not emotionally stunted; he knew exactly how love felt like but never in his life had he experienced the pureness of the emotion except with Sandaime-sama, the old man who had taken care of him from cradle to who he was now.

That was one of the few reasons why Yuzuru was still standing firm no matter the obstacles, the reason why he had not given up on life no matter how miserable it was for him. Because he believed with a faithful heart that one day... one day he'll find what he so yearns for.

And send glad tidings to the believers,

For with difficulty there will come ease.

As the clock tower struck twelve noon ringing the large bells in the fifteen-storey building, the officiation of the festival began. Starting off with the beating of Taiko drums by a percussion ensemble from the Royal Institute of Arts and Theater, the Hokage went up an open stage in front of the statue and stood behind a podium in the centre of the stage. The people who gathered to watch the ceremony all became silent as they watch their leader in admiration as he was about to read his speech.

This prompted Yuzuru to be even more in awe with his grandfather-like figure. This was the first time he had ever seen the imposing authority that Jiji-san held such that his very presence was enough to silence a huge crowd and commend respect from them. He was lucky to know the old man personally. He was wise yet silly at times. He was strict in his scoldings yet caring when he comforts. Sometimes he would spoil him with books and trips to Ichiraku's if he was free on Wednesday and Sunday evenings. He was the only person to ever visit him in his small apartment every end of the month and appreciate his botany works and jutsu projects when he showed them to him. He knew the struggles he faced everyday at school, in public and at home and tried his very best to help him in subtle and sometimes open ways in order to back the villagers from eating on him like wolf to prey.

Truly, the Old Man was the only person who knew what lied behind the idiotic mask of Uzumaki Naruto and promised to keep it secret from anybody else until he was ready to reveal it.

"Citizens of Konoha! Lend me your ears and listen to my words. Today marks the 12th anniversary of the defeat of the Great Kyuubi no Yoko at the hands of our beloved Yondaime Hokage Minato Namikaze!" Hiruzen said loudly, his voice prideful with a hint of bittersweetness.

The declaration brought numerous reactions from the crowd. Most of them were ecstatic; cheering, clapping and jumping in joy at the news. A number of them wore neutral expressions, neither smiling nor frowning at the statement but were satisfied with the events that occurred. A few of them held sadness in their morbidity, eyes filled with tears while two or three were on the ground crying. These were the group of people that had lost their possessions and loved-ones on this fateful day as they merely attended the festival to find closure in their loss.

"For such an amazing feat performed by our late Fourth, it is only natural that we, the inhabitants of Konohagakure celebrate our victory against an immortal demon which has terrorized and destroyed countless of homes and lives marching the earth in cruel pride," Hiruzen paused for dramatic effect.

"Throughout the history of mankind, none has come close to subduing the Great Nine-Tailed Fox except for three great men, two of them were of our great Kages; Senju Hashirama, the Shodaime and of course Minato Namikaze, the Yondaime," he continued.

"When Senju Hashirama fought Uchiha Madara at the Valley of the End, it was said that Madara the Fallen had summoned the Great Beast in battle, riding on it like a horse in order to defeat our beloved Shodaime. However, by the grace of The Almighty, even with a great demon by his side Uchiha Madara was unsuccessful in his attempt and had lost the battle. Fate had declared Senju Hashirama to be the victor on that day and thus as a final act of mercy towards the traitorous Uchiha, our beloved Shodaime had taken the traitor's life with honour and gave him a warrior's burial."

"However, while Senju Hashirama was burying the corpse of his fellow progenitor in an unmarked grave, the beast had managed to escape the clutches of the Shodaime's Mokuton sealing technique disappearing back to its summoning realm or where ever the Great Beast was before it was summoned," Hiruzen said in a serious tone.

"However twelve years ago, due to circumstances which to this day remain unknown, the Kyuubi had returned to the realm of men once more destroying everything in its path. The Great Beast had cursed its presence on our village, marking it the first location for its reign of terror," he continued, his voice in sorrow.

"Yet oh fellow citizens of Konoha! Even though we were the victims of such a painful tragedy, today, we are the true winners of the battle. We have deterred a great catastrophe from spreading across the lands and preserved the lasting peace we have gained after the Third Shinobi War. We have protected our village allowing our children and those who come after to continue our legacy as a great shinobi village and live on the Will of Fire passed down by our predecessors to us."

"In the midst of celebration, let us not forget those whose lives were lost on this day. Let us not forget those who gave their last breaths for the sake of the their homes and those whom they love. Whether they be civillian or shinobi, in the our eyes, they will forever be called matyrs and may they be given goodness and glad tidings in the Eternal Realm," Hiruzen said with a firm yet gentle tone as he closed his eyes in reminiscence.

"Oh people of Konoha! Let us not forget the sacrifice of the Yondaime who dealt the final blow and rid the world of the Great Beast at the cost of his life. Let us live by his examples in both morals and achievements. As always on this podium I utter this very words, I acknowledge the Yondaime as my better for he has done a deed that has surpassed any thing that I have achieved in my life; he has martyred for the village and indeed their is no end better for a Hokage than in protection of his home."

"Lastly, let us not forget the unsung heroes, the ones who are effected by the tragedy 'till this day. While we sleep in ease and live our lives in peace, these heroes remain in pain even as time goes by. Some are still in the hospital, their hopes of recovery almost null. Some of them are in our ranks, scars both mental and physical ever present that will never truly disappear. Some of them walk amongst us now and truly indeed I believe this particular group to be the true unsung heroes. For what is worst than not knowing that you've done the most yet still suffer for it? It brings my heart pain to know that the ones who were burdened with this pain are the ones who are forgotten by us all," Hiruzen said in emphasis regarding a particular someone, his voice coated in sadness as he looked towards the horizon and closed his eyes once more.

"However it may be, I hope and pray that this holiday will remind us about the true meaning of sacrifice, that we will forever be indebted to the ones who have passed on to the afterlife and the ones who are still alive with us. Heed my words carefully oh people of Konoha and remember them well. With that, I officially open the Yondaime's Festival! May the Will of Fire live in us all," he said gaining the cheers of the crowd as he went off the stage.

Yuzuru stared in awe at the retreating figure of his Jiji-san as his thoughts returned to what he said earlier on. He had been invested in his opening speech from the beginning until the end and was moved by his words. He felt his love for the village and his admiration for the Yondaime increase in many levels.

His mind wandered to think about the unsung heroes that his grandfather-like figure mentioned. He pitied them with all his heart. He could only imagine the pain that these people went through. To be in a situation where the scars of the past haunt you every second torturing you mentally and spiritually... He understood them very well.

They say that time heals all wounds but truthfully yet sadly, wounds like those will forever stain until the very last breaths.

And what did Jiji-san meant by the unsung heroes who walked amongst them and that they suffer the most pain? Were they civillians or were they shinobi? He knew that the Old Man was rather dramatic and poetic in speech because he was secretly a writer- he inspired Naruto to go into writing too after he read one of his most famous romance books 'A Flower on the Garden Wall'- but to use vague expressions in speech especially with regards to a generally known tragedy? The fact that the names of the ninjas who survived the attack and followed orders had also been written on memorial walls was proof that these heroes were recognized. Who exactly were the true unsung heroes?

And why didn't they know that they were the ones who helped out the most?

Curious questions appeared in the mind of a young disguised blonde yet they remained unanswered. He truly felt pity for these unsung heroes. They also did their very best to protect the village too, but why weren't they celebrated too? The worst part was the fact that their sacrifices had been forgotten by everyone else. It clenched his heart to know that.

As the people left the park square going about their business, the disguised boy stayed back. Tears were falling from his eyes as he thought about the forgotten ones. He knew what it was like to be set aside and overlooked by everyone around him but he was a nobody so it didn't matter much...

Right?

But these people, they were literally heroes. They should be showered in praise for their deeds and loved by crowds too. The ones in the hospitals with no hope of recovery should be visited by the people and be given gifts instead of being left alone while the others enjoy the holiday which they fought their lives for. The ones who have suffered psychological and physical damage should have statues built in their glory while their heroics are taught in schools to ensure that the future generation never forget their sacrifices.

And to the ones who were amongst them, the ones who suffered the most, they should be given the greatest honour of it all.

To be in the hearts of the people, loved and cared for.

Yuzuru wept quietly, his tears falling for the sake of the ones left behind. His mind wandered off to a question that pierced his heart further; will he be treated the same way too if he was in their position too? Will it be that no matter how much he gave and sacrificed, would he still be hated, disregarded and ignored?

Was his life truly going to be like the Prince of Misfortune?

Wiping his tears gently, Yuzuru determined at heart had made his decision. He will be the one to honour the unsung heroes. He will be the one to appreciate them and try his very best to remind others about them.

It was the very least he could do from the goodness of his heart.

After making a solemn vow in front of the Yondaime Hokage's statue and uttering a short prayer for the ones who had fallen, Yuzuru made his way to the festivities just outside the square. There were all kinds of stalls set up by the side of the road coming in bright colours painting the snow covered ground like paint to an empty canvas. The atmosphere was very much like a summer night market albeit the sun in the horizon and cold temperatures freezing around.

Stalls that were serving hot cooked meals as well as traditional winter delicacies were at every corner as many of the festival-goers were queuing up to buy some food. There were also stalls selling fashionable winter clothing and other accessories which many of the female visitors flooded due to the beautiful designs and discounts given. Some stalls had games prepared similar to that of carnivals which attracted the attention of young children and couples who played them with hopes that they could win the many prizes displayed on the shelves in the stalls.

"... did you hear about the hunt failing today?"

This caught the attention of Yuzuru as he was making his way to one of the game stalls. He looked around and saw that the question came from two men wearing winter yukatas with Konoha handbands on their heads standing in the middle of the road. Pretending to enjoy the atmosphere around him by watching a few children playing a game of tag, he perked his ears in caution in order to listen to the conversation between the two shinobis.

"Kaeda told me that the group he followed scouted his apartment area and couldn't find him," said the man who was wearing a dark blue yukata and had an eye patch on his left eye.

"That little bastard," said his companion who was wearing a grey yukata and had a large ugly scar on his left cheek with complete disdain.

"Well, they wanted to break into his apartment but Yoko, the sensor guy in the group told Kaeda and the rest that there were three ANBU guarding the apartment so they didn't have a chance," the half-blind man said in a disappointed tone.

"But the funny thing was that Yoko couldn't detect anyone in the apartment so the guys thought the son of a bitch was outside. Naturally, they scouted else where but the bastard just disappeared."

"The hell does that mean? You can't hide from a sensor unless you used high level Genjutsu which I doubt the bloody idiot would know," the other man replied his friend angrily.

"I know right. Yoko was always a brilliant sensor but honestly even with the bastard's ability to not get caught while he's being chased this is still something very worrying. Maybe he manifested-"

"Enough with the stupid conclusions. The boy's an idiot, there is no way that he can manifest any of his powers. We made sure of that. Our friends at the academy said that there was no change in his progress except that he's getting worse than before," the scarred man said.

"Of course," there was a small pause between the conversation as the men looked at the direction of the playing children. A smile appeared on the lips of the half blind man as one of the children, a girl around the age of four approached him.

"Daddy, can we go to that stall over there," the young girl said as he pointed to one of the game stalls. "I want to play~" she added childishly as she looked as his father with puppy dog eyes.

"Alright Kirei-chan we'll go there okay," the man said to his daughter as he patted her head affectionately which earned him a cute giggle from the little girl.

"Goodbye, Kobayashi-san. I'll see you at work on Monday," said the half-blind man to his friend earning him a grunt as they parted ways.

Yuzuru's heart was beating frantically while he was eavesdropping the conversation. The disguised boy was experiencing mixed feelings as he recalled the information he had just learned. He was relieved that he had managed to avoid being hunted down and assassinated this year but at the same time was angry at the notion. A small smile appeared on his face at the thought of his jutsu being impervious to sensors. He concluded that if sensors could not detect him than most probably his transformation technique was effective against Doujutsu as well.

However a frown immediately replaced his smile as he thought about what the two men said. What did they mean by him having powers? Was it a Kekkai Genkai unique to the now extinct Uzumaki Clan? But why were they so fearful of him unlocking it? Wasn't Uzushiogakure allied with the Hidden Leaf?

Why hadn't he read much about his ancestors in the first place?

He berated himself for his lack of concern towards his family's history. He needed to ask Jiji-san about it. He was sure that he knew about it.

Shrugging the information about the assassination attempt on him like it was yesterday's news from his thoughts, Yuzuru continued his path towards the game stall he wanted to go to just now.

Yuzuru looked at the other stalls selling plushies of the Yondaime and miniature Kyuubi in chibi form and sweatdropped. The Yondaime he could understand but the Nine-Tailed Fox? Wasn't there a taboo about owning one? He sighed in defeat.

"Salesmen and their shameless natures. Turning everything to profit," he said to himself.

While he was about to head off once more his green eyes caught a familiar figure walking towards him that made his heart beat excitedly as his anxiety levels were rising up the charts. Yuzuru's legs wanted to turn around and run away but he hardened them to stay firm to the ground.

Yuzuru watched as the figure who was a girl with blueberry blue hair cut to a hime style walked towards him. She was wearing a light lavender colour yukata made out of premium silk with winter flower motives embroidered on them. Her skin was fair like milk, blemishes null from them. Her face was a gentle beauty yet it carried a sense of nobility notable amongst those of blueblood.

However what caught Yuzuru's attention the most was her lilac coloured eyes, a cloudy paleness present in them, elegant yet delicate in nature. It was like staring at the full moon with all its glory on a clear winter night, the stars above like fences protecting its purity from mere mortals below.

Even her name was sweet when it was uttered on his lips, giving him a warm fuzzy sensation like eating spring apples pickled in honey every time he said it.

Hinata Hyuga.

The girl who had given him his precious winter scarf years ago.