Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. Only Kishimoto-sensei has that honor. I'll just keep dreaming and maybe one day it'll come true.

A/N: I went with a slightly different writing style in this chapter to see if it worked better than the last chapter as it was brought to my attention that the last chapter raised more questions than it answered and brought things in to light in a way that wasn't intended. I inadvertently made the last chapter rather confusing in some areas that I didn't mean to. I apologize. Hopefully this chapter is better. It's quite a bit shorter than the last one, but I think it covers everything that I have planned for this point in the story.

One last thing, I would like some input on weather or not the Uchiha massacre should happen. I would appreciate some feedback on this, weather it be in the form of a poll or just some pm's. I'll only be posting this chapter this week, I think... So as always, please enjoy.

Chapter 7: The Academy Days: Year Two

It was the start of a new year. Naruto and Hinata were going about their same routine they had developed over the last year. Breakfast with the family, followed by light sparring in the courtyard, then the walk to the academy where they met up with their first friend Sasuke. They would go about their day making sure to do their best in class. After class they would all head to training ground one, the smallest of them all. As the smallest, it wasn't used that often. They would train there for a few hours before heading home to continue their ongoing lessons with Hiashi.

During the summer, the time normally spent in class would be split up. One day they would train the whole day with Sasuke, the next they would concentrate on lessons with Hiashi. Sunday would be their day of rest and fun. It was intense training for them going all out all the time with them being so young and all.

But that was during the summer. Class starts today and it's time for them to return to the academy. It was an exciting day, since they would be learning more about the world of Shinobi this year. The first year was spent learning and practicing the basics. It got very boring after a while. This year would be spent learning about Shinobi history, formation strategy, village history and affairs, clan histories, and key figures that the genin hopefuls may have to interact with throughout their careers.

While the clan students already knew the clan histories and key figures, most of them had little knowledge of the rest. Though, Naruto did have one clan history he was very interested to learn about. Today he'd find out when that unit of study was to begin when the curriculum for the year was given to the students. He was interested in the history of his own clan, the Uzumaki Clan. He was the last known survivor of the clan and wanted to learn much more about his heritage.

This was what was on his mind as he and Hinata walked to their usual meeting spot to walk to the academy with Sasuke. Seeing he was deep in thought, Hinata in turn started thinking more about the coming year, though with a bit less excitement than Naruto. Sure, learning some of this would be both beneficial and somewhat fun, but the only things she didn't already know were the clan histories outside of the Hyuuga and formation strategy. As heir to the Hyuuga clan, she was already well versed in customs and village affairs.

"Naruto-kun?" Hinata finally broke the silence that had developed during their walk.

"Hmm? Did you say something Hinata-chan?" Naruto was broken out of his deep thought by Hinata. He realized he was probably worrying her with his silence.

"Naruto-kun, is something wrong?"

"No, nothing like that Hinata-chan. I was just thinking about the coming year. I have so many questions that may be answered this year. I just hope I don't have to wait too long."

"I hope you don't have to wait too long either. I'm so happy that you will finally get to learn about your clan." Hinata was genuinely happy for her best friend. Though they were step siblings and knew as much, they never acted like they were anything but the best of friends. It was a strange relationship to say the least.

Naruto changed topics to something else he was excited for. They had finally gotten someone to oversee their training after school, in a most unlikely way. "Hinata-chan, do you think we will learn any new jutsu or techniques that aren't covered in the academy? Sasuke says our new teacher is going to start with us today when he isn't out on missions."

"Oh yeah, Sasuke-san never told you who he got to teach us did he?" Hinata giggled at Naruto's annoyance. Sasuke had told them two weeks ago that he had finally convinced a great Shinobi to help the three of them, but refused to tell Naruto who is was just to annoy his best friend. Hinata knew of course, but she would wait to see Naruto's priceless reaction.

"You know he didn't. That teme won't tell me anything..." Naruto pondered this for a moment. "It really ticks me off that he won't tell me!"

Hinata giggled again at Naruto's antics. "I'll give you a hint." Naruto looked at her with curiosity clear in his eyes. "He just recently joined the Anbu Black Ops."

This confused Naruto even more, as he didn't know much about the Anbu other than some of them watch over the two of them from time to time when they aren't at home in the Hyuuga compound. "That tells me a whole lot. Dammit... now I can't wait even more!"

Hinata couldn't help but giggle at him yet again as they made it to their usual meeting spot. "Good Morning Sasuke-san."

"Morning Hinata, Naruto." Sasuke was wearing his usual outfit with that ridiculous high collar. "Ready?"

"Hai, lets go. You're killing me with all this mystery... The sooner we get to class, the sooner we time will pass so we can get to training after. I doubt Iruka-sensei will have us doing much on the first day anyways..." Naruto's annoyance was clear in his voice.

At the Academy

The trio got to class and was seated in their usual spots just as class started. Iruka walked into the classroom with his usual clipboard and started roll call. Once everyone was confirmed present, Iruka cave his plan for the year. It seems there would be just a bit more than what they had thought.

"Hokage-sama has added one more thing to the second year classes this year," Iruka explained. "As a result of the increasingly competitive nature of the Shinobi world, Hokage-sama has decided that we will be adding a once a week period in which students may choose to get with specialized instructors to work on any individual talents you may want to specialize in such as Taijutsu, Genjutsu, Ninjutsu and even Kenjutsu. More specialists are being recruited to teach as time progresses so there is no telling what kind of options you may have in the future. These special classes will start in one month." Iruka then went on to explain the rest of the years curriculum. It seems the unit Naruto was waiting for the most would be in their third month of class.

Just as Naruto predicted, other than that and a review of what everyone had learned last year, nothing really happened in class. They mostly just discussed any tips that the students who practiced over the summer had found about the academy jutsu.

After Class

Naruto lets out a large yawn as he walks out of the academy building. "Well that was boring. Other than that announcement in the beginning of class this was probably the most boring day of class yet."

"Hn." Sasuke just grunted in agreement.

"Well, Iruka-sensei just wanted to make sure that all of us remembered what we learned last year." Hinata was always defending everyone. Just one of her kind habits she had picked up.

"Still," Naruto began. "It wouldn't kill him to throw something exciting in once in a while..." Naruto grumbled about stupid teachers with their stupid, boring classes as they walked to training ground one. Being the smallest, it was hardly ever used. That made it perfect for the young trio. As the three got close enough to see the training ground in the distance it brought back some good memories of when they had first started using it, as well as when they had started learning jutsu.

Flashback: Six months before their first year

The trio had come to their usual training ground that was open to the public. It was one of only three to not be restricted to Shinobi use only. Training ground one was too small to be practical so no one ever used it. Training ground two was a barren field with a large target dummy in the center. This field was primarily used by certain shop keepers to ensure their goods were up to standards. Everything from kunai to explosive tags were tested here. Training ground three was a forested area with three wooden posts set up in the center next to a small pond. It was too small for anyone but genin to use so it rarely saw any action as most jonin sensei preffered to use slightly larger ones. However training ground three wasn't abandoned like one was, so the trio stuck with the first one unless they needed a bigger area and the third one was available.

On this day, the trio were all trying to learn jutsu before they even started the academy. Sasuke was still trying to get the hang of the Fireball Jutsu his clan were so famous for. Hinata was practicing the kata for the gentle fist. Naruto was trying to learn a jutsu from a scroll he had picked up during one of their trips to the clan library. He had found it behind some dusty books that looked like they hadn't been read in years. Since it was a section on the history of the village pertaining to the non-clan Shinobi it probably hadn't been touched in a very long time. Why the scroll was there, Naruto had no clue. But it was, and it had built up a large amount of dust itself, so it had likely been forgotten long ago.

When he had opened it, it contained a weak D-Rank water style jutsu. It was so simple that you didn't even need a water affinity to learn it properly. Kinda like the weak D-Rank fire jutsu that most Leaf Shinobi learned at some point in their careers that his friend liked to practice so much. Like most D-Rank jutsu, they weren't all that dangerous when first learned. It was only after long hours of practice and perfecting the techniques that they became forces not to trifle with.

He was practicing again, going through the hand signs he had memorized from the scroll long ago. The most he had managed to do was spew forth about a gallon and a half of water before his concentration broke and the jutsu failed. 'I have to get this,' Naruto thought to himself. It's supposed to be an easy jutsu, so he figured he'd have it done in a week or two, but he was wrong. It had taken him nearly two months to get this far. At this rate, Sasuke would complete his fireball before Naruto could get the hang of his Violent Water Wave to a usable level.

"Dammit!" Naruto shouted in frustration, breaking the concentration of his two friends who had been practicing their own jutsu and techniques.

"Naruto-kun, what is it?" Hinata asked.

"He probably still can't get his jutsu," Sasuke said. "Face it Naruto, the scroll is probably no good. It probably has missing information or something. That is probably why it was forgotten in the first place."

Naruto scowled. "No, I won't give up. I HAVE to get this."

"Why?" Sasuke asked. He couldn't figure out why Naruto was so fixated on this one jutsu. It wasn't like water style was a specialty of Konoha.

"Because one day I wan't to be able to master all five natures, just like Hokage-jiji. That means I have to get this one if I'm going to learn anything harder one day. I'll surpass the old man one day. I'll surpass all the previous Hokage, just you watch!" Naruto flashed his fox like smile. "I'll be the greatest Hokage this village has ever seen to protect everyone." Naruto's voice had fallen to a more tolerable level at this point. "That way, none of my friends ever have to be hurt."

Flashback End

Now in the training ground, Naruto looked around. Not seeing anyone, he turned to Sasuke and asked what was going on. "Sasuke, there's no one here. Are you sure this teacher you keep saying you found is going to help us?"

"Hn. I'm sure. He'll be here. He promised..."

Naruto scowled that his friends still wouldn't tell him who it was, causing Hinata to giggle again. She just couldn't help it.

Just then, a swirl of leaves appeared in the center of the open field in the training ground. In the swirl of the leaves appeared a Shinobi who wore the standard attire for an Anbu, minus the mask. He had raven black hair and onyx eyes, with deep lines on either side of his nose. His hair was back in a pony tail and he had a kunai in his left hand.

"Itachi-nii? You're the one Sasuke got to help us with our training?" Naruto ran up to Itachi and nearly tackled the Anbu in his excitement. Itachi had become somewhat of an older brother figure to both Naruto and Hinata over the years that the Uchiha had been visiting the two.

"Naruto-kun, you really should stop doing that," Itachi said half-heartedly. He honestly didn't mind Naruto doing that, as it reminded him of the way Sasuke was when he was younger.

"Nii-san," Sasuke said. "You're here!"

"Of course Sasuke, I told you I would help when I could."

"Yeah, I know... but you tell me that a lot, and you don't always get the chance to with all the missions you take."

Itachi waved Sasuke over and when he had run up to Itachi he stopped dead in his tracks as Itachi poked him on the forehead with two fingers saying, "Sorry Sasuke, I can't help often. My missions are just too important for me to turn down. As an Anbu I have too many high profile missions to take care of."

Sasuke flinched back as the two fingers flicked his forehead like Itachi often did in the past. He hadn't done that in a little while now and Sasuke had hoped that Itachi had dropped the habit. Guess not. Hinata then greeted Itachi next and the trio then began their training with him. He was helping them with their shuriken and kunai throwing techniques today, something he had been promising to help Sasuke with for a long time.

The training went on for a few hours. When they were done for the day and went their own ways, The two Uchiha went to their clan compound at the edge of the village while the two Hyuuga made their way to their own home.

One Month Later

The specialized classes start today. The students had all thought about what they were going to specialize in. For some of them it was obvious. Shino was going to focus on Ninjutsu, specifically his clan jutsu. Choji was going to focus on Taijutsu, being from the Akimichi clan. Hinata was going into Taijutsu specialization as well, for obvious reasons. She also figured it would help her in the continued development of her own Gentle Fist technique, though she also would spend a little bit of her time with the Ninjutsu instructor as well, using her massive chakra reserve. Kiba was going into Taijutsu as well, focusing more on the Inuzuka clan techniques. Shikamaru was going into the Ninjutsu specialization along with Sasuke and Ino. Sakura was going into Genjutsu, having the greatest chakra control.

Naruto, however, couldn't decide what he wanted to specialize in as he felt he could be good in many of the subjects. Having his great and massive amount of chakra he could excel in Ninjutsu. Being trained by the Hyuuga, he could excel in Taijutsu as well. He even figured that he could probably do well in Kenjutsu as well if he had a mind to.

But no, none of these areas truly called to him. He still had some time to choose, and he wanted to see what other subjects the academy would find instructors for. Hopefully one of them would really catch his interest.

The classes would last for the next three years until graduation. He had plenty of time. Though that didn't help to settle his unease.

Two Months Later

It's now been three months since the second year started and Naruto's awaited day had finally arrived. Today was the day they would learn of the history of the Uzumaki clan. Sure, Naruto could have tried to look up the info before now, but he would not have even known where to begin, let alone if the information would be accurate. This way, at least he knows it will have a certain level of accuracy to it.

Iruka began his lecture. "Next, class, we have the Uzumaki Clan that has been brought to near extinction. There are rumors of survivors being scattered across the world, but none of these can be confirmed. The only confirmed survivor is right here in this room. Naruto, this is what's known about the history of your clan.

The Uzumaki clan is a cousin clan of the Senju, along with the Hyuuga and the Uchiha. It, along with the other three, are said to be the four clans to originate from the Sage of the Six Paths himself. This has neither been confirmed nor denied, however the four clan's relation to one another has been validated.

Now, the Uzumaki clan is known throughout the world for three things. First, they are known as a clan of longevity. On average, an Uzumaki will live to be around 120 years old if they are not killed in the line of duty. There are reports of some Uzumaki who have lived to be nearly 150. Our very own Shodaime Hokage married one Mito Uzumaki who was confirmed to have lived to be 143 years old before her death nearly 20 years ago.

Second, the Uzumaki are known for their massive chakra reserves. An adult jonin Uzumaki have chakra reserves rivaling that of the Bijuu themselves. Mito Uzumaki had nearly double that of what Naruto or Hinata here have at this moment. There have been other Uzumaki, but none had quite as much as Mito.

Third, the Uzumaki were renowned seal masters. In fact, nearly half the seals in existence and in use around the Elemental Nations were created by the Uzumaki. Even our very own Yondaime learned Fuinjutsu from an Uzumaki. Her name was Kushina Uzumaki and she was one of the best seal masters this village has ever seen."

Iruka looks at Naruto, knowing that this next part was his to decide weather or not to reveal. Naruto saw this and with only the briefest of pauses gave Iruka a nod of confirmation that he may reveal Naruto's secret. It's not like it mattered to Naruto at this point anymore weather it was kept secret or not. Now that they were learning of the Uzumaki, the truth would come out eventually anyways.

"Eventually," continued Iruka. "Our Yondaime Hokage, Minato Namikaze married Kushina Uzumaki. This made Yondaime-sama the second Hokage to take an Uzumaki as a wife. They later anounced to the village that Kushina was pregnant. It has been thought to most of the world that they died along with their unborn child. However, there are some who know the truth. Their child was in fact born before Yondaime-sama and Kushina-sama were killed during the Kyuubi attack. This child is both heir to the Uzumaki Clan and heir to the Namikaze Clan as the last living member of both clans. At least as far as we know."

Iruka paused for effect as the students looked at the only Uzumaki they know. Iruka then continued. "Naruto, when you turn 16 or make chuunin rank, whichever comes first, you will inherit the estates and wealth of both clans, as well as be named the head of both the Uzumaki and Namikaze Clans."

Naruto just nodded, knowing this much already. Iruka took this as a sign to continue before the class could start to make an uproar at learning this.

"Now, the reason behind the near extinction of the Uzumaki is actually a sad tale. The Uzumaki eventually became to be feared by the other four Great Nations. An alliance was formed between Kiri, Kumo and Iwa and a force of nearly 40,000 Shinobi attempted to assault the island of Uzu no Kuni, or the Land of Whirlpools. The whirlpools around the island destroyed nearly 10,000 of the combined forces before they forced their way onto the island. By this point, Uzushio, or the Village Hidden in the Whirlpools, had enough time to activate a massive sealing array that spanned the entire island.

Not much is known after this point. We know that only 450 Shinobi of the combined forces survived the assault. It's been reported that Uzushio was razed to the ground and these few survivors were so disturbed and distraught by what they had witnessed of the defence that they lost the will to continue as a Shinobi. Over the years, these survivors have disapeared into the lives of civilians. Not much else is known about the assault or the survivors.

The only reason that the Uzumaki survive today is because the Uzukage, leader of Uzushio, sent his only daughter to Konoha as a sign of continued good faith between the villages. Naruto, your grandfather on your mother's side was the Uzukage. His brother, your great uncle, was the Feudal Lord of Uzu no Kuni. Thus, you are also heir to Uzu no Kuni, alongside your clans. Besides the Hyuuga being near royalty, you are the only true royalty in Konoha." Naruto was shocked at this revelation. Iruka continued, "However, don't let that go to your head. Uzu no Kuni has been abandoned for many years. After the fall of Uzushio, the royal line of the Feudal Lord was wiped out as well. For all intents and purposes, there is no Uzushio or Uzu no Kuni anymore. Hi no Kuni, or the Land of Fire, has taken over the island as part of our nation as per the treaty of alliance that was set down before the founding of Konoha. Anything beyond that, I'm afraid I don't know the answers to." Iruka added this last part because he could see that Naruto had many questions. "The only three who could give you answers at this point are Sandaime-sama, Jiraya-sama of the Sannin, and the Feudal Lord of Hi no Kuni."

The whole class was left speechless by this point. Everyone had been excited to learn about the supposed Uzumaki Clan that their classmate was apparently from, but this was well beyond what anyone had been expecting. Iruka then dismissed class for the day, knowing they would get nothing else done that day since this bombshell had been dropped on them all. As all the students filed out of the room muttering about what they had learned, Naruto, Hinata and Sasuke had stayed in their seats going over what they had learned over and over again.

Finally, after what seemed like hours of sitting in silence, Hinata spoke up. "Naruto-kun, are you okay?"

". . ."

Sasuke tried next. "Naruto, say something."

". . ."

"Naruto-kun," Hinata tried again. "Naruto-kun please, you're worrying me."

Finally Naruto came to. "I'm sorry Hinata-chan, Sasuke, this was more than what I was expecting. I knew I would get answers, but I didn't think I'd have more questions after the class than I did before..." Naruto trailed off, not finishing the sentence as they all knew how it ended. He had more questions about his clan's history than when he had first walked through the door.

Hinata hugged Naruto gently. "Naruto-kun, we'll figure it out. Have faith."

"Thank you, Hinata-chan. I know we will. It's just... wow... my mom was a princess? And I'm apparently heir to Uzu no Kuni? It's just too unreal..."

"Well Naruto," Sasuke said. "Looks like there's more to you than any of us had at first thought. I'll ask my dad if he knows anything. As Uchiha Clan Head and Chief of the Konoha Police Force, he must know something."

"No, it's okay Sasuke. I think I'd rather look into this myself."

"Hn." Sasuke nodded. He could accept that. If he had found out something like this about himself, he would want to figure it out by himself as well. At least at first. "Okay, for now I'll leave it alone. But if you don't find answers, I'll ask. You're not the only one curious about your past."

Hinata nodded. "Hai, Naruto-kun. I think it would benefit all three of us to know of your personal history and lineage. It could help on missions in the future after we graduate."

Naruto just nodded, still dumbfounded by today's revelations. "Well.. This is going to cause an uproar in the village..." Naruto was suddenly looking forward to the isolation of the Hyuuga Compound. He did not feel like putting up with the public right now. Before he left the classroom, he Henge'd into an unassuming form with no resemblance to himself to walk to the compound inconspicuously. Hinata did the same. Sasuke left as he was and headed in the opposite direction towards his own clan's compound.

A/N:So what did you think? Let me know in the reviews. And don't forget, I would like your opinion of if you want the massacre to happen or not. I have plans for the story that can go in either direction, so in the long run it won't change TOO much. Though some will obviously change. Hope you enjoyed. Ja Ne.