Hey guys. Thanks for all the love towards this story. Well, the more reviews the better, so leave any comments you want. This story has been going pretty good, and it has over twelve thousand views in just about a month or two. Also, I like the idea of having Hinata as his girlfriend, but it is just so overdone. I don't think it will go too well if I try to incorporate her in and not take anyones ideas. The NaruHina road is pretty much used up. Sorry, I like the pairing, but it is just used way too much. Leave a review on who you think he should be with, that is if he is with anyone at all.
Naruto was jumping from one tree branch to another, racing to keep up with the rest of his squad. Something Kurama said to him during his morning training just kept playing through his mind and he couldn't get it out of his head.
Flashback: Eight in the morning the same day.
"Naruto, I think you need to get a mate. Someone who can help you bear the load you have to carry on your shoulders. Last time you almost broke, let someone else help you do this. You know that I'm right on this."
"I don't know Kurama. Nobody would want to love me. You know how everyone treats me, and if they find out that I hold you before I save the village, there is absolutely no way I will find a girl that will be willing to love me. I know for a fact that I don't need anyone to help bear the load. I am the one who will fix this world, and I will die before I let anyone I care about get hurt. You know that I will gladly die if the cause is worth it, or to save one of my precious people." Naruto said, his fist clenched so tight that blood started dripping from his palms. He would walk to hell and back to keep the future from playing out the same.
"I know Naruto, I know that you would do anything in your power to find peace in this world full of hate." Kurama said, hoping that the boy would let someone help him take the load, so that Naruto wouldn't be consumed by pressure.
"You know, I added one person to my list of precious people right before the war started. I never thought we could get along as well as we did. We hated each other for years. I can't believe that he would want to stick with me the entire way. Thank you Kurama, thanks for staying with me. I know that without you I would have never made it past my first C-ranked mission in Wave."
Kurama was stunned. The boy was saying that the being that caused him so much trouble in the first place turned out to be one his precious people he was willing to die for in order to protect them. The more time Kurama spent inside the boy, the more he understood how important he was to saving the world.
"Thanks Naruto. Well I sense Kakashi coming so I will talk with you later."
Flashback end:
On one hand, Naruto wanted someone to love and spend time with, and have fun with, and maybe even raise a family. But, there was also the fact that he was probably going to die when he faced Madara. Everytime he thought about getting into a relationship, he saw the person in question being tortured and used against him by his opponent.
This is what made him so hesitant on finding a partner to spend his life with. Granted, he did think about getting married and having at least five kids. But, if things go the way he plans, then there might not be any chance of him having what he wants. While he thought about all of this, Kakashi asked him a question about regarding whether or not he felt better. Naruto completely missed the question, and he got a shock when he was tapped on the shoulder. When Naruto looked up, he saw the mask of Dog looking at him.
"Naruto, I asked if you are feeling better than you did last night? Did you not hear me the first time? Are you feeling alright?"
"Yeah, I'm feeling fine now. And I was just thinking about some stuff, nothing for you to worry about. Anyways, how long until we get to our destination?"
"Actually, were are just outside the destination now. Ah, this is the road leading into town."
The place looked like a nice little town, with people walking around to different market stalls each with unique kinds of produce and fruit. Little kids were running around. playing tag and hide and go seek. Their parents were talking just a few feet away, and keeping a watchful eye on the little ones. Overall, the place seemed like a nice town, and a great place to raise a family.
"What is so bad about this place? It looks like a great place to live."
"Well, this isn't the place where we need to look around. Our destination is actually a little outside the town, and It is a large group of bandits, and there might be a few low ranking rogue ninja. This is a low ranking scouting mission after all."
Naruto understood that the mission was supposed to be low ranking, but this was just a little bit weird. He didn't question it though, since Hiruzen knew what he was doing. Naruto tried to block out the thoughts about love and being with someone, but it was just too hard for him. Images kept flashing across his mind, some were good and were of a family, and some were bad. Naruto knew that if he decided to to get involved with someone, then they had to know the whole truth.
The time came for the group to go do some scouting. They saw a standard bandit camp, and they decided to just wipe it out, that way they could go home quicker. The trip home was uneventful, and they used the trip to get Naruto used to all of the hand signs and codes the group used to communicate. Naruto went home after they reported to the Hokage, and he went to bed after he got a shower.
Things were the same for a few months. Naruto would train in the mornings, and go on missions with his team around once every two weeks or so. Naruto used his spare time to either relax, or send a whole bunch of clones to the library to learn as much as he could. Four months after his first mission with his squad, Naruto was called into the Hokage's office to speak with Hiruzen.
"Naruto, I was just letting you know that we have decided to speed along the academy entry date by a few months. It was at this pace during the three wars we have been in. Based on what I saw, we need this advance in training time very badly if we want to have a shot at winning this thing without taking too many losses. So, you start the academy in one week. Use this time to prepare yourself, as well as learn to keep your exterior calm and collected no matter who you see."
"I will try Hiruzen, but I might not be able to promise anything. You saw everything that happened, I can't just forget everything when I want. This is my baggage, and I have to live with it. Is it the same class as last time? And will Iruka still be teaching me?"
"Yes. You will be in the same classroom as last time, and Iruka will still teach. Everyone who was in your class last time will be in there this go around. I personally made sure of it, so there is no need to worry about it. Well, good luck with this Naruto. Also, I want you to remember that you are still allowed to take a mission every so often, but it has to be close in proximity to the village. That is everything, have fun going back to the academy."
Naruto walked out of the office, not sure what to think. He was happy that he was getting to see his friends earlier that he had expected, but then again there was a couple people he didn't want to see just quite yet. Sasuke was the main one, since he killed so many of Naruto's friends. Hinata was another one, since she confessed her love to him when he fought Pain. Personally, Naruto never really like Hinata in that sense, so he was thinking about setting her up with Kiba this time.
Things were so hard when he had to make a choice. He thought that even if he picks one, then the other would come back and cause him a lot of grief and pain. He wants to spend his life with someone he loves, but he knows that if he does, then his loved one will be constantly in danger. Looking at it now, Naruto completely understood why his father chose to keep the fact the he was his son a secret. The risk was too high, and the only way to keep him safe was to lie about who he really was.
One week later.
Naruto was sitting at his table eating some breakfast before he had to leave. Today was the day he started the academy. Mentally he was ready, however emotionally was a different story. He just couldn't forget about the things that had already happened, and those actions would affect his thoughts now, even though he was supposed to be a child.
Naruto knew that thinking like this was dangerous, since he wouldn't be alert and focused on the topic at hand, but it just wouldn't go away. He left his compound early so that no villagers would see him on his way. Naruto tried to calm down, but the thought of seeing all of his friends again made him sweat and sort of hyperventilate a little. His palms started to sweat, his stomach tied itself into knots, and he was getting really nervous.
He didn't know what to say. He didn't know how to act. Any wrong move might make him look suspicious. He knew he had to act like he had never seen any of them before, but that would be like moving a mountain with one finger. It seemed like it was impossible, having to keep his memories locked away.
These people fought by his side. They were his friends, and he watched all of them die. They died for him, and he let them down. No matter what he did he would never be able to forget the fact that when it counted, he came up short. He never had anyone when he was younger, so when he made friends, he cared very deeply for each of them. Seeing them die, it was like he was being ripped apart from the inside out.
When Naruto focused on his surroundings, he found that he was already at the front of the academy, just outside of the grassy area the kids would play on. He took a deep breath, and slowly walked towards the door. His body was begging him to just turn around and leave, but he knew he couldn't do that. He had to go inside and hopefully not break down.
He tried to turn his emotions off completely, but it didn't help at all. He was still sweating and shaking. What if they didn't like him? What if they call him a freak or a monster? Will he just be able to brush it off because he knows who they become, or will it affect his mental image of his friends? There were just so many different outcomes, it was almost impossible to be sure which one would happen.
Naruto decided to not worry too much about it. His door came into sight, and it was only five steps away. His heartbeat jumped very fast and he was worried. Four steps, and he was sweating even more now. Three steps, he felt like he was going to throw up. Two steps, he tried to calm down. One step, surprisingly everything is gone and he feels perfectly fine, due to the fact that he has complete faith in his future friends.
He was at the door now. He could hear voices talking, and he recognized the sound of his old sensei Iruka. He smiled a bit knowing he would be teaching him again. He inched his hand towards the handle, and slowly slid the door open. The light hit him in the face, making him flinch, though not too much, and his eyes quickly adjusted to the very bright classroom. He saw the scarred face of Iruka.
"Ahh, you must be Naruto. Well, since you showed up early, go ahead and pick a seat." Iruka said, while he wrote his name down on the role sheet.
Naruto saw there was really only one seat available in the first two rows, and since he wanted to learn all he could this time around, he chose the open seat. It was the seat next to the stairs. In his row right to the right of him was Shikamaru Nara. On the other side of Shikamaru was Ino Yamanaka. Naruto said hi and sat down and waited for class to begin. It only took five minutes before Kiba showed up, along with Akamaru. The two sat down and Iruka started the lesson.
"This is your very first day of the Shinobi Academy, and my name is Iruka. I will be teaching you for the next four years until you graduate and become genin. Learn as much as you can here so you can be the best ninja you can."
Naruto mumbled under his breath, "I know, that's what I'm trying to do here. That's the reason I have this chance to fix things."
Naruto thought that he said that soft enough so that no one heard it. Although, he forgot there were two people sitting right next to him. Ino and Shikamaru heard him perfectly, and it both made no sense to either one of them. When lunch rolled around, the two decided they should talk to him about it. When they confronted Naruto, he started swearing in his mind.
"What do you two want to talk about?"
"Naruto, Ino and I both heard you say that you have a chance to fix things. What the hell does that mean? Nothing is broken, so why would it need to be fixed?"
"That is something that I can't tell you about until we graduate from the academy. All I can tell you is that try to get as strong as you can in these next four years. I promise that I will tell you everything the day we graduate."
The two thought that it was a good enough deal, so they decided to not question him too much about the subject. When the two walked away, Naruto gave a large sigh of relief, since he didn't want to tell anyone from his age group about the future just yet.
'That was too damn close. I'm glad Shika was willing to take the deal.'
Naruto went back to class hoping that things went more smoothly than they had before.
I made this chapter longer than the others by a little bit, since I did make the last one a bit shorter than normal. Well I hope you guys liked this chapter, and please leave a review. Peace out.