Some days passed as Naruto found himself living with Kakashi in his small apartment. Not that he minded the size of the abode, no. He found it plain, quaint and tidy. It was…

Home?

The ol- The Hokage stopped by earlier to check on him once more and Naruto wasn't sure how to feel about the man anymore. On one hand, Hiruzen had wanted to let Naruto live out a normal life, something the boy wanted now more than he did back then. On the other hand, if he were a person to hold onto such hate and grudges, it was well within his right to resent the leader for his decisions.

He couldn't lie to himself, knowing that he held a tiny ember that burned with retribution. But… no. He would keep the elder Hokage at arms distance. Naruto missed that old man that he shared fish with all of those years ago on the riverbank. The one he knew now, the one who was weak and frail seemed like a poor imitation in his mind compared to the former. Why didn't he just… do something better besides leaving him all alone. Naruto really didn't want to dwell on his memories anymore.

So instead, he took a long breath, trying to cast away such emotions.

For now he was comfortable with keeping the man at a distance until he was able to sort out his emotions about The Hokage, the government and the village as a whole.

Kakashi asked him if he still wanted to be a Shinobi, never pushing and only inquiring. The Uzumaki knew that if he wanted to follow his desire then he would have to work his way up through the military.

He hasn't mentioned anything about his desire, not wanting to tell his brot- roommate with his own burdens and thoughts just yet. He did, however, want to become a Shinobi.


Kakashi, along with Hiruzen, had given him a crash course for graduation so he could be assigned a team. Fortunately (or unfortunately) the pale man, Orochimaru, had made sure his studies were not dismissed, ensuring that the child would come out of his program with a sense of understanding.

"Ah~ can't have you learning too much my little pet, but your potential will not be squandered."

He shivered at the memory. The monster always spoke of garnering knowledge, hoarding it for himself. The man held such a lust for power, always mentioning how Konoha was doomed to fail because of their narrow minds while he continued sawing through a ribcage of a cadaver.

Naruto was ahead in all book studies, some more advanced than others which Orochimaru had deemed satisfactory.

The Hokage and Kakashi waited for Naruto to perform the academy three. The blonde had applied a successful transformation with the likeness of Kakashi and switched places with a nearby potted plant.

"Very good, Naruto. Now the clone technique, please," Hiruzen said with a small smile forming on his face, and Naruto could feel pride flowing from the man. It filled him with conflicting emotions.

With a nod, he began molding his chakra.

Tiger, Dog, and Snake. These were the seals used to create his clones. The ones that he used all the time back at the… place, the ones he used to fight Orochimaru with.

He heard a sharp inhale coming from his observers as four brown figures splintered off from Naruto's spine and took their places beside him. After he finished, he looked up to see a pale Hokage and a sweating Kakashi .

The emotions were first, and Naruto was floored by Hiruzen's confusion / regret / pride / melancholy.

Then came the story he had already heard a thousand times before from Orochimaru.


He wasn't sure why Kakashi-senpai had wanted him to come to his house. It had been some time since Yamato had seen his ex-captain, but he was glad nonetheless. There were not many people Yamato found himself being able to conversate with. His captain had always been one of those willing to just sit in complete silence and enjoy each other's company.

As he stepped closer to his senpai's residence, Yamato stopped just before the doorway, muscles twitching and a nervousness creeping into his core. What he felt just now wasn't a coincidence. That chakra… it feels similar to his own.

With hesitance, Yamato slowly reached to knock on the door. He heard small footsteps which were certainly not Kakashi's. When the mystery person opened the door, Yamato choked.

Blonde hair was first, it beckoned your attention as bright and catching colors would. His gaze lowered to see a curious face with whisker-like birthmarks, though his skin was patchy in some areas like new tissue growing over and scarring with one blue eye. He was shorter than most kids his age and looked to be sleep deprived.

"Uhh, hi," the child said and shuffled on his feet for a moment. "Kashi is in the bathroom and told me to expect, uh, well you."

Yamato nodded, unsure of what to say. The kid was polite and reserved, nervous even as he opened the door further to allow Yamato inside the Hatake residence. Yamato had only seconds to inspect his surroundings before his captain greeted him.

"Yo!" Kakashi said with a two finger salute and a smile which made Yamato lose some tension he was holding. "Seems you already met Naruto here," he motioned with his hand.

Yamato gave a small nod, eyes trailing back to the blonde who was in the spotlight. He was giving subtle glances back to Kakashi as if he wasn't sure of something. The boy tugged on Kakashi's sleeve who lowered himself so Naruto could whisper something in his ear. His senpai smiled and nodded.

Naruto approached him warily and closed his eyes. It was then that Yamato could feel something poking and prodding at his own chakra. It was… it's…

"You're like me," the kid said, eyes widening which cemented the fact that he wasn't crazy and he really did feel someone else with the same chakra nature.

He at Kakashi then back to Naruto again before he asked the question he was sure he knew the answer to, "How?"


Naruto just left Inoichi's office, as per his new weekly therapy sessions, that actually left him feeling a bit better about his conflicting emotions. The man was really kind, in Naruto's opinion. He never dug to area's that he would rather avoid for now and Naruto appreciated the ease Inoichi presented with his counseling.

They discussed dreams and desires, which he himself had to think about for sometime.

He wasn't sure what his end goal would be. A strong ninja? That could be done, but what then? Hokage? He had wanted that at one point in time when he wanted to be noticed.

Now he would rather stay unnoticed and in the shadows. His desire now is to make sure that no one ever has to experience what he had, lying awake without sedation, skin and nails peeled and the burning, cold sharp pain…

The world was twisted and held such malice that Naruto couldn't understand why anyone was content to continue their history, never changing.

Back before he had been taken, Naruto would have never had such thoughts and views occur, so focused on being noticed and accepted. He would be lying if he said he didn't want to be, but that had been happening right?

There was Kakashi and now Yamato-sensei. Inoichi seemed to care about him from what he could sense, maybe he was friends with his father also.

The latter is still disheartening and he holds a sour thought about his father damning him with this, using the quickest solution instead of the best. He knew for a fact that Mito and his mother used seals that did not require a sacrifice. Why didn't he use one of those designs? Where was the foresight for when a female jinchuriki gives birth or other complications?

He shook his head, any further and he would start getting a headache and mad again, preparing himself to greet two people he hadn't seen in some time now.

Naruto tried his best to put on a smile that he remembered using, "Hey Teuchi-jiji, Ayame-neesan."

He could see the older man's eyes glistening from behind the counter, the wide eyes and open mouth of Ayame.

"Naruto!?"


AN: Not sure how I feel about Japanese honorifics. What do you personally prefer, just curious?

All aboard the Mokuton train.