A/N: I would like to thank everyone that added this story to their favourites and follows.

"The athlete oath? I don't know a thing about it," Naruto declared. "You know what I know? I know that everyone in this arena had worked their asses to show everyone watching this event, just what they are made of. On the behalf of my fellow students, I wish to thank everyone for watching us and we hope that you will enjoy today's events."

Kakashi could only blink his eyes at the words that his student sprouted while the other jounins knitted their eyebrows together. Was this really Naruto? The girl would be boasting to everyone that she would defeat them with her eyes closed. The blond-haired girl was well known for this. What happened to her? What happened to the Naruto that I knew? he asked himself as the girl bowed before the crowd.

"When has the brat ever acted polite?" One of the jounin asked as the camera showed the jinchuuriki making her way to stand beside her classmates. "She used to sprout nonsense about her becoming the next Hokage while doing one of her annoying pranks."

The silver-haired man thinned his lips and stared wearily at the television. Why was she acting so sensible? During the Chunin Exams, the girl declared to her competition that she was going to defeat them. She might have been twelve at the time but Naruto still would have known better at the time. There had to be something that was causing the girl to act so different.

He rubbed the back of his neck and stared at his former student, who had a small smile playing, as she talked to a red-haired boy, who had a large smile on his face. When had he seen Naruto smile like that? He could not remember the last time that the girl had given people such a tiny smile. She was always giving those huge smiles to everyone.

"Now without any delay, let us get the first event started!" The woman declared, gesturing to the screen behind her. "These are the qualifiers."

Kakashi could only rub his chin as the screen revealed that the students were going to do an Obstacle Race. Obstacles? This would be a piece of cake for Naruto. Even if the girl was not a trained shinobi, she would have no trouble with defeating whatever obstacle that they throw her. Unlike Sakura, who must use chakra to enhance her strength, Naruto had a strength that could rival Tsunade.

"Does anyone want to make a bet that the she is going to run circles on them?" Genma called out, snapping Kakashi from his train of thought.

Everyone twisted their head away from the television to look at the relaxed Jounin. Everyone raised their eyebrows at the man, who was chewing on the senbon like he did not care about what was happening.

"What? The kid might not have been known for her brains but no one can deny that the kid is smart enough to figure her way out of trouble." Genma chuckled. "Do you know how many times I laughed when the chunin come to the Third Hokage, crying about how impossible it is to catch her."

"That is because Naruto was always tricking them," Asuma pointed out. "She might have been an Academy student at the time but my father was always impressed with the way she used her academy jutsu to her advantage. If the Academy teachers had focused on her then the kid would have been amazing in the field."

Kakashi flinched at the subtle dig. There was a lot of truth behind the man's words when it came to Naruto. He might not have trained the girl properly, but the girl could pick up things quickly. She mastered a B-class jutsu in a space of one day while most people would take months to master it. She might have struggled with the tree-walking exercise but the girl did better than he excepted, considering her large chakra reserves.

"This is going to be a race between all the classes," The television bellowed. "The obstacle course is a four-kilometer lap around the stadium itself."

They returned their attention back to the television, where the cameras were showing the faces of all the students. Each one of them looked excited for what it was to come, even the girls. Wasn't it strange? The civilian girls that weren't shinobi did not mind getting their hands dirty, while the girls in the Academy constantly complained about it.

He didn't know whether to laugh or to cry about their predictament.

"Our school preaches freedom in all things," The announcer giggled. "So as long as you don't go off the course then everything is fair game!"

The woman really shouldn't have said that because Naruto was going to fight dirty with them.

As her schoolmates headed to the starting line, Naruto realized that the aggressive aura emitted from the competition had faded after her speech. She frowned at the sight of the cold, furious eyes of her classmate. Why was he acting so different today? He usually kept to himself and when he did talk, the boy showed concern. What was it about today that was making him on edge? She asked herself when Todoroki stared at her.

She shook her head and stared at the crowd, who were gathered in front of the starting line. For a moment, Naruto recalled the second phase of the chunnin exam, when their team had been excited to enter the Forest of Death. If she was more honest, Sasuke and her had been excited for the whole thing. Sakura was terrified since Anko mentioned that people died in the forest.

Ding.

Naruto curled her lips into a tiny smirk at the sight of the jam caused by the students, pushing each other through the narrow gates. If you can't go through the easy way then jump your way out of here, she mused to herself as she jumped on her fellow competitors heads to get her way out of here.

She landed on the ground, twisted her head to look at her competition, only to be greeted by their frozen feet. This could only be Todoroki's work. He was the only person that she knew who had a quirk that allowed him to freeze so many people.

"I ain't letting you get ahead that easy half and half!" Bakugou yelled from behind her. The older boy charged through the mass of people, eyes blazing with anger as he tried to catch up with the older boy. This was followed by the yells of her classmates and fellow competitors, who were trying to get themselves of the mess that Todoroki put them in.

Naruto curled her lips into a smirk, channeled her chakra into her tights and sprinted after their bicolored classmate. She could hear the distant yells of Bakugou, who made some comment about how he wasn't letting either of them win. He might not allow Todoroki to get ahead, but the bastard was never going to be fast enough to catch up to her.

She was going to try and exceed the weight seal that Jiraiya had forced her to wear.

"Uzumaki is running so fast that my eyes can't even keep up with her!" Present Mic yelled as she left a trail dust behind Todoroki and the others. She threw her head back, laughing at the man's words. Of course, his eyes couldn't keep up with her. The only people that could see what she was doing would be the shinobi watching her.

She started to slow down when the ground started to rumble, revealing a large robot that now loomed over her. It looked like the same zero-point robots that attacked them during the entrance exam. Distantly, she could hear Present Mic explaining that this was the first barrier of the obstacle course.

Really?

Couldn't they think of something better than a bunch of robots? Naruto grumbled to herself, leaping from the ground and slamming her fist against the robot. She could distinctly hear the cheers of the crowd as the robot disintegrated into a million pieces.

"Who knew that such a tiny girl could pack such a powerful punch!" Present Mic yelled. "Class 1A: Uzumaki is truly a force to be reckon with!"

Her heart soared at the man's compliment but Naruto didn't allow herself to soak in the compliment. Time was in the essence. If she wanted to show these people that she was not a joke then she needed to finish the first preliminary as soon as possible.

Soon she spotted the next barrier, which seemed to be many stone platforms that was covered by ropes. Well it would be considered hard if one didn't have the leg power to jump across, but Naruto was a former kunoichi. This was something that she could do with her eyes closed.

"It seemed like while everyone is stuck battling the robots, Uzumaki had already reached the second barrier: The Fall!" Present Mic informed. "If Uzumaki found the first barrier was a piece of cake then this should be a bit more challenging for her. If you fall from the canyon then you are out so you gotta crawl if you wanna make it."

"You think I am gonna crawl? I am going to jump!" Naruto declared, hopping towards the first platform. While she leapt across the platforms, she could hear the distinct sound of explosions and the yells that could only belong to Bakugou. If Bakugou was near then did it mean he was second? Or was it someone else? She shook her head and continued to leap.

This was not the time to care about who was first.

She released a sigh when she landed on the final rock platform. The blond-haired girl twisted her head around and saluted at Todoroki, who stood across the canyon from her. He blinked before placing his right leg on the ropes.

"You gotta to do better Todoroki!" Naruto yelled as the boy slid through the icy ropes. "Because I'm gonna win the whole thing!"

With those words, she returned to sprinting towards the finish line. She hoped that the Canyon was the last barrier because these things weren't really challenging enough. How could she show what she got to Konoha and the rest of the world if they made things so boring? Any plain old genin could do this without any trouble.

Well a genin that bothered to train, Naruto corrected herself as she recalled that Sakura nor Ino had the same insane strength that she had. Hinata would not have a problem, since her taijutsu could hurt like a bitch. It was really a shame that her friend never gotten top Kunoichi because the girl was a better kunoichi then her teammate.

"Our leader had finally reached the final barrier!" Present Mic declared as the walls around her turned from being plain to being filled with wires. There was a sign ahead of her, decorated with a huge skull that said: Danger! Mines! The blond-haired girl could only feel a sense of dread at those words. She might not have been in the country for a long time but she had been there long enough to know what a mine was.

"Uzumaki has reached the Minefield!" Present Mic yelled as Naruto flickered her eyes towards the strange unevenness of the ground. "A quick look should be enough to reveal the mines' location! So you need to keep both eyes open and watch your step!"

Naruto thinned her lips before making the hand gestures necessary for her shadow clones. If she was going to go through the mines then she needed to be cautious, because there was no chance in hell that she was going to make it easy for her competition to figure out where the mines were.

She could hear the gasps from the audience as her shadow clone turned itself into a bird, shooting itself into the sky. Naruto was glad that Jiraiya confirmed her theory about the shadow clone, or else she might have to be like a turtle for the next part of the barrier.

It was bad enough that she slowed down for the second barrier.

"Wait, what is Uzumaki doing with her clone?" Present Mic asked as the clone smashed itself into the middle of the ground. This caused both a huge explosion to the ground as well as a thudding headache. She curled her lips into a tight smile as the bird's eye view of the minefield flashed before her eyes. The memory of the explosion might cause a throbbing pain in her head, but it would be worth it for the chance to win the first preliminary.

She took a deep breath, relaxed her shoulders before doing the final sprint to finish line. From what the clone observed, there were a lot of mines located further away from the finish line and declined as one went straight ahead. There were also several mines to the far left of the field and near right of the finish line.

Naruto pitied her competition for not having any chakra because the shadow clones were a lifesaver.

This was her final thought as she crossed the finish line.

"Despite having a slow start in the beginning of the obstacle race, the winner of the Obstacle Race is: Uzumaki Naruto!"

The blond-haired girl pumped her fist in the air as the crowds roared her name. The sound of their chants should have brought joy to her ears. It should have made her heart flutter but all she could feel was hollowness. Why could she pleased these people but not Konoha? What was wrong with her that they could never be happy with her?

Why couldn't she be happy?

(Konoha)

"Shikamaru, have you turned on the television? There is something that you need to see!"

Shikamaru could only groaned as Ino charged through his living room with Choji trailing behind her. Was it too much to ask for a day off? They just came back from the mission. This was not the time for him to watch some stupid tv show. This was the time for him to close his eyes and take a well-deserved nap. It was bad enough that he had been unsuccessful in finding Naruto.

He blinked his eyes when Ino flipped the channel to the Sport Festival. Was that…Naruto? He asked himself as the man announced the winner of the obstacle race. His former classmate stood there with her hand up in the air and a weary look in her face. What the hell was she doing in television? And wait, wasn't this supposed to be some show that was in a made-up country? Yet they searched every country for their former classmate and turned up with no clues.

"When did this happen?" He finally asked.

"Today," Choji informed him.

Ino nodded. "Choji and I were watching the Sport Festival in the BBQ place when we noticed a girl that looked exactly like Naruto. We didn't even think it was Naruto until the lady declared that Naruto was the student's representative for their first year."

Student's representative? Naruto? Are we talking about the same Naruto? Shikamaru asked himself as the camera flipped to the other students, who were crossing the rock platforms in many creative ways. The Naruto, he knew, would not be someone that the teachers would consider a good representative. She was also someone that hated the idea of anything to do with schoolwork.

How did this happen?

Why did the government make it seem like Japan isn't a real country? Shikamaru asked himself as he stared at the television screen. If he had known that there was a possibility that Japan was real then he would have informed the Hokage to broadened the search to Japan. He knew that Naruto would make it difficult for them to find her but he never knew that she would take it to this level.

This was not her normal behavior.

"Class A knows that there is no time to hesitate," A commenter said, snapping Shikamaru from his thoughts. The camera zoomed to the numerous students, including Naruto, who now sat on the fields. "They have been exposed to the outside world, up close and personal. They have had that fear planted in them and they have endured it. They have overcome their fear and each one of them have grown from that experience. They have forgotten how to hesitate."

Just as the man finished commenting, the camera zoomed to a green-haired boy, who climbed the ropes with a huge metal armor plate on his back.

Shikamaru took a seat on the couch and clasped his hands together. He never really enjoyed watching the Sport Festival since his mother would always rant to him about how these kids had more ambition than him. His father used to remind his mother that the Festival was just something that they made up to give ideas for how shinobi could use their jutsu.

Apparently, his father was wrong.

"It really shouldn't surprise me that Naruto is first," Ino commented as the camera zoomed towards a bicoloured hair boy, who was making his way towards the third obstacle. "She only seemed to do well when it came to anything that required her to sweat."

Shikamaru thinned his lips at the reminder and bit his tongue from correcting her. It was true that Naruto hadn't gotten the best grades when it came to anything academic but their classmate was smart. It took brains for her to plan the pranks that she did. If it wasn't for the fact that Naruto liked attention then the girl would find all ways to erase any traces of her prank.

Now that he thought about it, Naruto used to try in school. When they had been younger, it had been their classmate that had been eager to learn. She had been the one, who had no problems with raising her hands and trying to get their teacher's attention.

However, it stopped after the first month of the Academy.

He wondered what caused Naruto to change.

It really did not surprise Todoroki that his blond-haired classmate won the obstacle race. She was the girl that could defeat the monster, which ripped their teacher apart. She was also the girl that had the most versatile quirk, which seemed to have very little drawback. No matter what the girl did, he did not see her really have a setback from overusing her ability.

He wondered if the girl could even over use her ability.

Now that he thought about it, where was Uzumaki? She might have had twenty minutes to wait for their second and third place but it did not mean that she could go to the middle of nowhere. He thinned his lips and began walking towards the tunnel. For all he knew, the girl might be in the bathroom but they didn't know how long it would be until everyone came out.

"You did good, kiddo."

Todoroki slowed down and hid behind the column as footsteps started to come closer. He peeked out of the pillar, where Uzumaki and her Godfather stood. How did the man get in here? Only Heroes and teachers were allowed in here, so how did the man evade security? He grimaced when he saw the solemn look in his classmate's eyes.

"If I did good then why do I feel like crap? I mean I should be thrilled that I won the thing but I don't feel happy." His classmate admitted. "You know three years ago, I would have been dancing and gloating to everyone that I won the first preliminary. I would be basking in the people's cheers but all I can think about is the village and how much I struggled to make them happy with me! What the hell is wrong with me? I am not some girl that wallows in her sadness but I can't seem to shake these feelings off!"

Three years ago? Village? Todoroki asked himself as the white-haired man frowned at the petite girl. Why did she mention three years ago? And why wasn't his classmate thrilled? Why did she make it seem like her personality changed a lot? And what village? Didn't she always live in Tokyo? He presumed that since she knew Bakugou and Midoriya then she would have lived here, most of her life.

"Naruto…"

"Do you remember the Chunnin Exams, Ero-Sennin?" Uzumaki asked, clenching her hands into a fist. "I was going against Neji and everyone thought that I had no chance against the prodigy of the Hyuga clan. They didn't chant my name until I defeated him."

Chuunin Exams? Hyuga Clan? What the hell was Uzumaki talking about? And why did Uzumaki wanted a village to be happy with her? Shouto asked himself as the girl's Godfather tried to comfort her. He should leave because the scene in front of him seemed awfully intimate. It felt like something that should only be shared between the two of them, but seeing Uzumaki cry her heart out was too uncomfortable to walk away from.

When Uzumaki cried in the hospital, everyone tried to comfort her and tell her that they weren't scared of her. He had been uncomfortable with the whole thing since he hadn't dealt with a crying woman in years. The last person that cried in front of him had been his mother and he hadn't been able to help her. Instead, the resemblance of his father had made his mother unhinged.

He paid the price for it.

"You know you can't live your life if you keep thinking about the past," The man pointed out. "What the villagers did to you is not something you nor anyone in your position can ever forget. They should consider themselves lucky that you didn't went crazy like that Gaara boy did."

Naruto sighed. "There were times when I was very close to becoming the monster that they claimed me to be, and to be honest I could never blame Gaara for losing his mind the way he did. The Fourth Hokage gave me this responsibility because there was no other kid available that day…but Gaara…Gaara was forced to become a weapon because of his father. You know he told me that his father attempted to assassinate him? God, every time I think about it…I just want to hurl."

He really should leave but there was something compelling about the conversation. Maybe it was the fact that Uzumaki was allowing herself to release her feelings to someone or perhaps it was the fact that no one really knew anything about her. The more he listened to the story, the more questions were swirling through his head. What did she mean weapon? And why would someone wanted to murder their own kid?

"Did you know that Gaara became Kazekage?" The man informed his classmate, who blinked her eyes. A small smile broke out of his classmate's face, lighting her whole face up. A smile really did make a huge difference to her appearance, because Uzumaki looked nice when she had a blank expression. Yet when she smile, she looked like the sun.

"I am happy for him," His classmate declared. "He went from being the outcast to the one leading the whole village, but it makes me wonder how could he move on from their treatment? I wonder if I can look back in the past and not feel resentment for their treatment."

The man kept quiet at those words.

"I know it was not the old hag's idea to exile me and I did hear her fighting the council members about it," Uzumaki said, earning a frown from her Godfather. "But I spent seven fucking years trying to get their attention, trying to get their love and the moment I failed to bring back my teammate, they decided to cast me aside like I am some kind of toy. They didn't even acknowledge the fact that I nearly died to bring him back home. You know Sakura blamed me for not bringing him back? She told me that I was useless because I couldn't bring him back."

Todoroki could only watch as the girl balled her hands into a fist. Teammates? Council? Mission? Uzumaki was talking as if she was a solider of war but it was impossible. From her description, she would have been twelve years old when all this happened. What twelve-year-old would be in a mission? The world wasn't like before. Everyone forbade the use of child soldiers since everyone knew that those kids became messed up.

"You are not useless, Naruto." The man reminded her. "Just because you failed in a mission doesn't mean that you are useless. Everyone fails in their mission but it doesn't make a person useless."

"But she had a point," Uzumaki muttered. "Shikamaru picked me for the mission not only because I can throw a mean punch, but because I was only person that Sasuke considered as a friend. He thought that Sasuke would listen to me but I couldn't get him to listen. I can get a stranger to listen but not my teammate. How pathetic am I? You know what the bastard told me? He told me that our bond meant nothing to him, that our friendship was something that could easily be broken. If he thought like that then why did he missed my heart?"

"Naruto, please tell me that you don't have thoughts about…"

Todoroki walked away as the two of them continued their conversation. The conversation between his classmate and her godfather had made his stomach twisted and brought a sense of bile to his throat. He knew Uzumaki had a reason to keep to herself but no one could ever guess that her best friend nearly murdered her. He never presumed that it was her friend that could abuse her.

He never thought that someone would be so cruel to blame a person that nearly died for another person's decision.

It made him realize that there were kids, out there that had it worse than him.

A/N: Please review and tell me what you think about this chapter. What do you think about the conversation between Jiraiya and Naruto?