disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.
Chapter Two: Baby-steps on your way to greatness
Konohagakure no Sato was a large village that spanned several miles in diameter. Inside the village walls they had everything from regular housing to highly deadly forests with wild animals and plant life. The village was, like any other ninja village, dependant on their own shinobi to bring in the money that it needed to sustain itself. That means that these ninja, trained from childbirth to grow up to be skilled assassins, have to be at the top of their game throughout their entire lifespan. Some may mistake this way of life as being cruel and unsuited for children. The belief for most ninja however, was that it was their duty to live and die protecting their village. They had a duty to fulfill and by getting stronger they were fulfilling it.
These principles of duty and honor were something Kakashi was trying to instill in Naruto, but the boy cared only for recognition.
"Kakashi-san, to be Hokage is to have strength isn't it?" the 7-year old asked his caretaker.
They were taking their time walking to a training ground Kakashi wanted to use to show Naruto something new. They two of them liked discussing many issues with each other and between Kakashi's self-righteousness and Naruto's tendency to question his every word; there were a lot of issues to discuss. Yet for all their bickering, it was worth it just for Naruto to have someone to talk to when he felt things were getting complicated and Kakashi found out he didn't mind taking care of some kid after all. Naruto improved with leaps and bounds as it turned out. All he needed was just a little nudge in the right direction. Kakashi as well as the Hokage were immensely pleased with the boy. "Now if only," he mused "I could get him to give up that horrifying fascination with all things orange."
"Huh? Naked Women?" Naruto yelled out suddenly.
"What! Where?" Kakashi looked around frantically trying to get a glimpse of those divine perky breasts leading down to a narrow waist and wide...
Naruto snickered. There was nothing that drew Kakashi's attention faster than slipping in the words nude and women in a conversation. Kakashi sighed and picked up where Naruto left off.
"Yes but it isn't just strength. It's the strength you show to the outside as the representative of the village, as well as the power to protect it at any cost. It gives you responsibility beyond responsibility as the Hokage is the heart and the soul of the village. He must know everything and do whatever he can to protect the village and its people at all times and anytime."
That drew a long pause as Naruto took in the words.
"You exaggerate Kakashi-san."
The jounin chuckled. They came up to a fence around the perimeter of the training ground. It had a sign on it telling people that whatever it was they were looking for, it was definitely not here and even if it was, they were supposed to look for another one because the sign would be damned if it was going to let unauthorized people pass it. Of course a part of being ninja is the ability to shrug off warning signs either manifested by a medium of some kind or mental ones. Kakashi casually decided to ignore the sign and any other impression the barb-wired fence might have given him that he was in fact not welcome in any kind. Naruto followed suit and soon thereafter the both of them were stealthily making their way through the thick canopy of forest.
When they reached a clearing, Kakashi slowed down, crouched and motioned for Naruto to do the same. They crept closer until they could make out the voices ringing throughout the clearing. The first thing Naruto noticed was how much the two persons looked alike. Clearly they had some sort of blood-relation to each other. He'd say brothers or cousins because of the simple fact that one of them looked at about his age and the other significantly older, but not by that much. The smaller one that looked his age had a familiar crest on his back. He remembered what the crest stood for and also remembered what it lacked. It was just a four-point shuriken away from being Konoha's Military Police Corpse's logo. He knew because he'd spent an awful lot of time there a year ago when he first encountered the wondrous world of the elaborate prank. As his skills grew over time he learned well enough to cover all signs of his involvement resulting in him spending less time in the Konoha PD's holding cell for the juvenile delinquent. What threw him off that day however was the fact that there was actually a bunch of kids wearing that dreaded logo like it…belonged to some clan or something.
"Cop-lovers…" he muttered under his breath making Kakashi raise an eyebrow at him in wonder. In that fraction of a second that Kakashi diverted his attention, unknown to both of them, the older of the boys' ear twitched.
---
Uchiha Itachi liked things to go very simple. He liked it when a very complicated enemy fell into his very simple and straightforward traps. He liked it when he could say one thing and expect someone else to say exactly what he expected them to say. He was very keen on anticipating the next move. He was always aware of the next move made, and to make. What he absolutely despised were surprises. So how surprised was he when he sensed someone at the edge of the training field; his training field, all this time sitting there unnoticed, muttering to another person even betterconcealed than the previous one. He was fuming. They had the audacity to enter his field, and not even have the common decency of paying attention to his godlike skill. This was wrong. This was unexpected. This was damn near blasphemy. He slipped his hands into the pouch on his back and he took out 9 kunai, all the while not missing a beat on his explanation to his little brother on the basics of kunai and shuriken handling. His revised basics on kunai and shuriken handling.
"So you see Sasuke, if you measure wind resistance, gravity and kinetic force on the object you throw and apply the same principle on the object you throw to intercept the previous thrown one's path, all you need to do is balance the two out until you're satisfied with the initial and the follow-up throw's speed and trajectory."
Next to him his kid brother Sasuke nodded dolefully praying to every deity he knew for him not to end up as depressingly boring as his big brother.
"So to make a long story short; look closely ototo…"
Itachi jumped high in the air as he threw a kunai up at the end of his jump. Then he flipped backwards mid-air and lightning fast threw two kunai from his left hand and 4 from his right. Then he threw one kunai from his left to his right, making him hold a kunai in each hand, after which he completed his flip and let the two fly to collide with two other kunai. Before he landed he caught the one he threw in the air earlier and threw it in the bushes.
He heard a gasp from his little brother but stared intently at the bushes he threw the kunai in, ignoring the 8 targets that his kunai struck.
"These grounds are for Konoha MP Personnel and Uchiha only." He spoke in a clear voice still in his wary crouch. "I strongly advise you to leave."
A chuckle was heard from the bushes Itachi threw at. A tall ninja stepped out brushing a few stray leafs out of his hair. The ninja tossed Itachi back his kunai, earning him a fierce glare from the Uchiha.
"You should tell the other one to come out too."
Kakashi's eye crinkled happily as his partner-in-crime came out of the bushes cursing. There was a trail of blood going from his forehead that ran down the bridge of his nose. Itachi's aim was clearly impeccable.
"That arm of yours is lethal Itachi-san"
Itachi stood upright in a casual manner.
"What is your business here Hatake-san?"
"Oh, no business," Kakashi held up his hands in defense. "Just a little…mind-stimulation for my young charge over there." Naruto gave a lazy two-finger wave and proceeded to inspect all the targets carefully, ignoring Sasuke's growing frown.
"I was going to use this exercise as motivation for him to work on his skill with shuriken, as he didn't see the point in throwing them at your target when they can be easily dodged or parried."
Itachi's cool façade never wavered as he carefully agreed with Kakashi. Meanwhile he was sizing the jounin and the boy up. After much contemplating, he turned to Naruto, who quirked his eyebrow at him.
"Boy. You are with Hatake-san?" his voice was emotionless and Naruto had a hard time picking up any underlying messages like Kakashi taught him to.
"Hai."
"You are in training to be a shinobi correct?"
"Hai."
Itachi walked over to Naruto who became alarmed very quickly. He tensed when Itachi tossed him his kunai and Itachi pointed his finger at a target.
"Show me." Another emotionless inquiry. Naruto looked over to Kakashi, who could only shrug in response, so he figured the sensible thing to do was just comply.
He threw the kunai and it sailed through the air in a straight path for 10 meters until it landed on the target a few inches below Itachi's kunai. If Itachi was impressed, he didn't show it. Kakashi chuckled and motioned for Naruto to come to him. The grinning blonde happily let his hair get tussled by Kakashi, proud of his own achievement.
"Hatake-san." Kakashi let his lazy eye glance in Itachi's direction briefly before responding. "I hope you plan on respecting the rules next time. After all, where would we be as a society without rules, correct?"
Kakashi chuckled and waved it off. "Rules are important I agree…" He replied as he trailed off. Sasuke's frown was barely holding as he fought back a snicker. Naruto looked impassively at the Uchiha brothers not bothered by his companion's antics.
"He's confident about himself. Maybe the boy is stronger than Sasuke already. Would a friendly rivalry help him grow faster? Maybe he needs a challenge instead of a rolemodel." Itachi pondered to himself as he glanced between the two boys. Finally, seemingly after he made up his mind, he turned to Sasuke.
"It seems this boy is more skilled than you Sasuke. Maybe you haven't been training enough…" Sasuke was about to interject when Itachi continued. "Let's go, father is waiting."
Sasuke's face screwed up in shock. Itachi actually thought more of a complete stranger than he thought of his own little brother. This was wrong. The young Uchiha was seething. "I'll make him respect me! There's no way I'm gonna be outdone by a bastard like him!"
"Aniki! Watch this!" he shouted as he gripped two kunai he plucked from a few targets. Itachi lifted an eyebrow as an only sign of amusement.
With a dramatic shout, he let both kunai fly into opposite directions each landing on a target, but clearly missing the center. Sasuke smiled proudly at his older brother, only to see him turn his back on him and walk away as if nothing happened.
"Nice shot, but you missed the bullseye." Naruto casually remarked. Sasuke swung around with his nostrils flaring. How dare this no-talent little bastard comment on how an Uchiha throws his kunai, on Uchiha training grounds nonetheless.
"I want BOTH of you out of here within the next 30 minutes!" He screamed at both Jounin and student. Both of them grinned sheepishly as they scratched the back of their necks.
Sasuke then turned on his heel and stomped off after his brother.
"Wow…" Kakashi finally uttered after a long silence.
"Yeah…" Naruto wholeheartedly agreed.
"That kid needs professional help…" Kakashi concluded.
"I know, his aim was waaay off." Naruto said making Kakashi sweatdrop.
"Yeah um…so that's today's lesson."
"What? But you didn't teach me anything!"
"Yes I did." Kakashi dead-panned, already skimming through his book again.
"No you…oh wait a sec…I know what you're trying to tell me! Today's lesson was…obey the rules…showing off may make you some unwanted enemies and…"
Kakashi nodded sagely as Naruto trailed off, not really giving a damn what he was saying or even if what he said was remotely true.
"Yep," he thought to himself. "Teaching is so easy…"
---
In a world with an orange sky and green meadows, where ramen portions were served in bulk by smiling ramen-gods with mighty beards, a blond blue-eyed boy frolicked with a pack of docile foxes. Raindrops tasted like milk with honey, and perverts were punished periodically by doing manual labor, guarded by well endowed bikini wearing kunoichi. Indeed all was good and promising in Narutoverse where every jutsu taught was as easy as taking a breath. The previous mentioned blonde wore a large white hat that an old man was constantly picking up and offering back to him whenever he dropped it. On his face, an almost equally large and abnormal grin seemed permanently stuck there. He skipped all the way over to his favorite ramen stand where Ramen-sama happily accepted his voucher for the 'all the ramen you can eat in a lifetime' special. The bowl Ramen-sama dropped on the counter was big enough for the blond to eat, sleep and raise a family in. He resisted the urge to dive into it, thought 'what the hell', swatted the old man away from his precious bowl with his Hokage-hat, and dove in head-first. It was the best ramen he could ever have wished for. Ramen-sama was smiling gently at him and raised a colossal fist to knock him on his head.
"Odd…why does my head sound like wood?"
Ramen-sama scowled and knocked on the poor boy's head again.
"Is Ramen-sama displeased? Have I not honored him like I should?"
Just before the boy contemplated having his pervert-slave army build Ramen-sama a grand shrine, said deity opened his mouth and spoke in a voice that sounded suspiciously like Kakashi's, "Oi Naruto, wake up!"
Naruto gave Ramen-sama his most gentle and understanding smile, which he saved for the demented, the senile and Hokage oji-san.
"Did somebody forget to take his medicine today?"
He patted the giant on his arm.
"Don't worry big boy, we'll get you up to speed right after I finish this masterpiece of a meal and then-"
"Oi gaki, wake the hell up will you!"
A blurry-looking Kakashi looked down on Naruto with annoyance written all over his face.
"Dammit Naruto you were supposed to meet me an hour ago! Don't you have a clock?"
Naruto jumped up and mock-saluted Kakashi.
"My apologies sir! Tardiness is unforgivable!" Naruto dropped his arm and gave Kakashi a cruel smile. The jounin scratched the back of his neck sheepishly.
"Yeah, yeah point taken." Kakashi stroked his chin thoughtfully. "Next time you miss an appointment with me though you can forget about me teaching you a jutsu…"
One of the things that made Naruto tolerate Kakashi was the promise of the jutsu Kakashi would learn him. When he would, it would mean that Kakashi deemed their time together over and that meant that they would no longer be teacher and student…of sorts. Neither of them never openly admitted their student-teacher relationship because of both of them seeing it as bad for their reputations. But that didn't mean that they wouldn't work. Naruto worked hard every day to meet Kakashi's standards, and often rose above them, but he wanted to feel that he accomplished something. He wanted some form of closure in this chapter of his life. He wanted Kakashi to acknowledge him as a ninja before he'd go to the academy. But more than anything, he wanted to learn that jutsu. Just one jutsu, that's all he'd need. The thought of using ninja magic made him giddy with anticipation and frustrated at times. Kakashi knew that and effectively used it as blackmail, also a way of 'looking underneath the underneath' as he liked to say.
"So what's the rush? Normally when I'm an hour late, you don't show up for two hours after that."
"Yeah well I had to tell you that I'll be away on another mission for a long while and before you ask I can't tell you about it, it's classified."
Naruto groggily wiped the grime from his eyes and gave Kakashi a big yawn in response.
"So I'd like to teach you a trick before I go."
"A jutsu?" Naruto's eyes shined with new hope. Would today be the day of his unofficial graduation?
"Well…it's definitely as useful as a jutsu but I wouldn't exactly call it that. I'm going to teach you a little more about chakra. Have you studied on how to mold chakra yet?"
Naruto scoffed at that thinking back on how he tried to dig up the information to do that from various, non-compliant and hostile sources.
"Yeah I have, no thanks to you…" Naruto muttered.
He found out that when Kakashi said for him to 'study', it meant that he'd usually give Naruto a subject for him to find any and as much information about as he could. "An important part of being a real shinobi is gathering info to the best of your abilities," Kakashi'd tell him one day. "If you can't do something as easy as asking around for a little bit of info, then how are you going to gather it when you're on a real mission? Or worse, how do you expect to become a shinobi in the first place?"
Naruto muttered some more about the unfairness that was Kakashi and his general aloofness. Kakashi didn't seem to mind. He didn't seem to pay any attention either. Naruto squinted at Kakashi who had his back turned to the boy. His posture shook with perverted chuckling and Naruto considered the possibility of Kakashi doing something perverted.
That simply would not do.
"Oi!" He yelled as he whacked Kakashi over the head. "Chakra molding, remember?"
"Right…" Kakashi sheepishly rubbed the growing bump on the back of his head as he skillfully slipped his book back into his pouch.
"So as I was saying, jutsu take chakra to perform and chakra needs to be molded. What you need to know too is that certain jutsu take a certain amount of chakra. Anymore or less and the jutsu will backfire and probably blow up in your face. You need to learn how to control the amount of chakra you're molding and the amount you put into your jutsu."
"But how do I learn to do that without getting hurt? And what's that trick you were going to show me?"
Kakashi's eye crinkled happily.
"I would've explained it to you thoroughly but…I'm probably already late for the mission. If this was anything above B-rank I'd be in serious trouble right now…anyway I don't have the time to teach you, so I wrote the exercise and some pointers down for you. If you can master it before I return I'll treat you to ramen."
"YOSH!" Naruto yelled and jumped up and down the bed, catching the scroll Kakashi threw him.
"Uh…but when are you coming back?"
"Fufufu…" Kakashi's face was suddenly hidden by evil shadows, making Naruto shudder a bit. "If I told you…what would motivate you to work hard?"
Kakashi evil chuckling went on for a bit making Naruto sweatdrop.
"Kakashi-san…what's with the evil laugh…"
Kakashi merely chuckled some more before he poofed into nothingness. Naruto could only stare at the scroll he got.
"…so weird…"
---
Three hours later, the hyperactive ninja found himself leaning against a tree in a nice little training ground he found a while back. He gazed at the scroll titled "Kakashi-sensei's 'How 2 Be a Ninja' Guidelines: Basics of Chakra Control – Tree Walking", and found himself grinning under his mask. It was perfect. He had pranks lying on a dusty shelf that he could finally realize with this skill under his belt. The effects would be devastating. Nobody would ever know he was the culprit. His grin became wider and he was torn between giggling in glee and cackling like the evil genius he was.
After he calmed down a bit, he shifted his head upwards to glare at the bark. Last time he only made it 6 feet up. He knew exactly what he had to do, and found himself struggling with it. In theory it wasn't that hard to do. Mold chakra on the bottom of his feet, adjust to the right amount so it would stick and then keep it there. The molding part wasn't that difficult. Gathering it at his feet was a pain in the ass, and constantly figuring out how much he needed to adjust to his own weight was damn near impossible. If he was anything less than obsessed, he probably would've called it a day then and there, but instead he just got up and prepared to storm his nemesis for the umpteenth time.
He concentrated hard; molding the chakra he figured he was going to use, then he took a running start and jumped at the tree. He made it up about the same length he was and managed to take another step as a desperation move. He felt he couldn't keep himself steady if he continued, slashed the bark and pushed off from the tree to land in a neat crouch next to it.
"Six-and a half feet…damnit…"
---
It had been two months since he last saw the boy and he still drove him crazy. He could never forget that taunting look in the other boy's eyes when he tried to show him up and just couldn't. It wasn't even about is he missed the targets or not, the fact that the kid wasn't even the slightest impressed by him was more upsetting than he wanted it to be. In a way it reminded him of his older brother, and he couldn't handle that. Nobody his age should have the right to look down on him. He'd show that little bastard what he was made of. He'd take those damn kunai and shove 'em up his nostrils if he had to but damnit the kid would smell his own defeat if he ever got his hands on him again.
He came into the kitchen that morning with annoyance written all over his face. His mother was practically dancing from stove to sink and back. She skillfully whipped a couple of pancakes on his plate. He sat down next to his father and brother, the latter doing his best to ignore the former by obsessively focusing on evening out the amount of syrup he poured over his breakfast.
"I know that face," He heard his mother say in a sing-song voice. "Are you brooding Sasuke-chan?"
He blushed slightly but he kept a straight face. He didn't want his cheery mother to ruin a perfectly good brooding-streak. His father looked at him with an unreadable expression on his face.
"What is wrong Sasuke?"
At this everybody but Itachi looked at the elder Uchiha in confusion. It wasn't common he'd show interest in his youngest son, but when he did it must be important. He nodded to Sasuke signaling him to explain.
"Well…a few months ago I met a boy…"
Itachi would've snickered if he was anything less then extremely perceptive. He could almost taste his father's jaw clenching along with his fists. Those were not words you'd want to hear from your son.
"He made fun of my shuriken-throwing when he wasn't that great at it himself. I think…I hate him."
His visibly relieved father led out a tired sigh that his mother answered with a fierce glare.
"Oh…uhm… right. Hate is a strong word Sasuke. Maybe you felt he dishonored you? Maybe this…what's his name?"
To Sasuke's surprise Itachi answered for him, "Uzumaki Naruto."
Both of his parents froze badly at the mention of that name. Itachi quirked his eyebrow at them. Obviously there was something about that boy, judging from their reaction. They looked as if the Kyuubi would break out of all seven layers of hell and wreak havoc in Konoha. He heard his mother mumble, "Did…did he hurt you Sasuke-chan?"
Sasuke seemed insulted at the thought because he snarled a fierce no out of the corner of his mouth. When the boy noticed his father was trembling as much as his mother's voice was, he became worried. Really who was this Naruto kid that he could make them shake with fear at the mere mention of his name.
"Who else was with him?"
Again Itachi answered for Sasuke, "Hatake Kakashi."
"The copy-ninja…"
One could almost see the gears turning inside the head of the elder Uchiha.
"This boy interests you father?" Itachi asked politely.
"Hatake Kakashi is not just some shinobi. For him to show interest in anything besides himself is astounding enough, but when you consider that boy…"
"Is he important?" Sasuke asked
His father locked his eyes with Sasuke's. He fidgeted under the fierce gaze of his father's knowing eyes.
"That boy is trouble Sasuke. I want you to leave him alone."
"But father he-"
"I mean what I said Sasuke." His father cut him off, leaving Sasuke moping with a nasty scowl on his face.
Itachi gazed at both brother and father knowingly before taking a bite from his mother's pancakes. At this, the head of their household stood up and excused himself to perform his duties for the village. Sasuke was still prodding his breakfast with his fork when Itachi cleared out his own plate and said his goodbyes as well. He glanced back at Sasuke with a soft expression on his face.
"Don't do anything I wouldn't do ototo." He warned his younger brother before finally setting off as well.
If Sasuke heard it, he didn't acknowledge it. He spend the rest of his morning brooding before he made a decision.
---
It was midday and the sun leaned down on peaceful Konoha. Most would call it a perfect day to take some time off and spent it with family or friends. Others would argue that days like this is perfect training weather, even though they felt pretty much the same way about rain, snow, hail and any other weather condition they'd chalk up as perfect. For Naruto, it was simply hell. The weather didn't even matter anymore. Not only was this exercise draining as hell, he wasn't even close to mastering it. He looked at his hand thoughtfully and started flexing it.
"I'm getting stronger everyday. I can feel it, but is it really enough for me to say I can master this? I know I can do it, but for some reason I can't get there. What's wrong with my body?"
He contemplated with himself. Over the course of the morning, he realized that the way he has leaned to mold and control his chakra didn't come naturally or even remotely doable for him.
"What is it that I'm doing wrong? There's still a way for me to improve but I need to figure out how…"
As Naruto lay in the grass of the clearing, he didn't notice the person sneaking up on him. From behind a tree, Sasuke was watching him. He spent all morning looking for the blonde, but now that he found him…he didn't know what he wanted. What was it exactly that he was going to ask him? 'Hi you're the kid that everyone says is trouble why is that?' isn't exactly much of an introduction, so he decided to do it the polite way. After all, if you wanted to get to know somebody, you should give your name first. He bravely stepped into the clearing and noticed the infamous blonde lying on his back taking in deep breaths. The tree he was lying in front of was ridden with slash marks made from the kunai in his hand.
"ahem!"
Naruto looked up from his musing to find a dark-haired boy, doing his best to seem casual, stare at him. He blinked trying to remember that face.
"I am Uchiha Sasuke. I assume you must be Uzumaki Naruto."
"Ehh…right."
"…"
"…"
They looked at each other uncertain of what move should be made right now.
"So…" Sasuke drawled after a long pause. "…what exactly is it what you have been doing to that tree?"
"…I marked it."
"I can see that…"
"…"
"…"
"How do you know my name anyway?" A still perplexed Naruto managed to ask.
"My father told me your name."
"Oh…and who is he supposed to be, some kind of big-shot that knows everybody?"
"I suppose…he is the head of the Military Police Corps."
Naruto's eyes darkened at the mention of the chief of police.
"Fugaku…" he growled. Sasuke didn't know what was more surprising, the fact that Naruto knew his father, or the fact that the two seemed to have a history. A bad one judging from Naruto's reaction.
"Wait a minute…you're the kid from two months ago aren't you? What do you want with me or…should I ask what your father wants with me?"
"My father advised me to stay away from you…" Naruto's eyes flashed with grief before they became unreadable again. "…but you have insulted my honor. As an Uchiha I can't let that go unpunished."
That remark set something off in Naruto; even though he wasn't sure he fully understood it. He understood enough though, to tell that he felt insulted to be treated like a dog. He stood up and stomped over to Sasuke until they were about a nose length apart from each other. Sasuke immediately noticed that they were roughly the same height, give or take a centimeter, and that Naruto's body seemed a lot more toned than his. But it wasn't imposing enough to make the young Uchiha flinch even slightly as he stood his ground.
"Well as an Uzumaki, I'm not going to let you talk to me like I'm worth less than you. If you want a fight, I'll be happy to give one to you!"
Sasuke silently took a few steps back and mimicked a fighting stance he saw his brother use once during training. His knees bend and his feet pointed outward at a 45 degree angle. He leaned his body back enough to support most of his weight on his back leg. He put his fists in fort of his body and slightly below and in front of his chest.
Naruto snorted and fell back as well, nervously hopping from one leg to the other. The two of them glared at each other waiting for an unofficial signal to start their fight.
When a leaf twirled through the air and landed between them, Sasuke shot forward and tried to punch Naruto. Naruto with his fast reflexes blocked the punch, but fumbled with the follow up kick. As a result, Sasuke's foot his Naruto in the chest knocking him back a few paces. Sasuke smirked at him, but Naruto's mask made it hard for Sasuke to know if that kick had any effect whatsoever. Naruto stood up slowly and used bursts of chakra to storm at Sasuke even faster than he had at him. Naruto punched him in the gut with his right, punched him in the cheek with his left, grabbed his head and kneed Sasuke in the face. Sasuke immediately flew up and backwards from the force and landed on his back in the grass with a dull thud. The last the Uchiha saw of the boy was a pair of crystal-blue eyes looking down on him in pity. That's when his world faded to black.
---
After the fight, Naruto sat by Sasuke until the boy woke up. The masked blonde grimaced when he looked at the damage done to the Uchiha. Sasuke's cheek was swollen and he sported a black eye. Naruto felt his own cheek, subconsciously fingering the bruises he received from the times he got smacked around by the adults that hated him.
"I can't believe that worked…" he thought to himself. "Using chakra to sprint…it's probably something all shinobi use."
He smiled at the thought. Maybe he was on the right track after all. A glance in Sasuke's direction put a frown on his face. Before they fought, he never considered the possibility of befriending anyone, but now that they shared a short but intense brawl, he couldn't help but wonder if the boy would forgive him and maybe spar with him from time to time.
"Is that what it's like to have a friend?"
Sasuke stirred and groaned. When he came to, he saw those same blue eyes looking at him. He didn't need to know what his face looked like to read his expression; guilt.
"…you won didn't you?"
"Yeah you were knocked out for like two minutes."
"…kuso…" Sasuke cursed and sat up. He felt the bruises on his face, winced and cursed again.
"Hey don't feel bad about it. If I didn't use chakra to overpower you, I wouldn't have won because I was exhausted when you showed up."
"Is that supposed to make me feel better?" Sasuke muttered.
"Hey…no hard feelings, right?" Naruto said as he stood up and offered Sasuke his hand to help him up. Sasuke looked at it and accepted the offer.
"Sure…no hard feelings." He replied trying hard to suppress the malice in his voice.
"How did you use chakra anyway? I didn't know you were supposed to be able to use it until you are older."
"I don't think I have a lot of chakra, but Kakashi-san taught me about it. The rest…I just asked around about it until I knew enough."
Sasuke smiled weakly at him, and if he didn't have a mask to hide it, Naruto would've returned the gesture.
"You must be smart to teach yourself about something as difficult as chakra." He turned his head away trying to keep what was left of his crippled ego. "Can you…teach me?"
Narto tilted his head trying to look like he was thinking it over carefully. Meanwhile Sasuke was sweating bullets.
"Sure," Naruto chirped after a short while. "On one condition…"
"…what's the condition?"
"That you'll be my friend."
Now Sasuke wasn't the type to actually befriend others if he didn't feel that it didn't benefit him, so all in all he considered the option a fair trade. He'd pretend to be the boy's friend until he got out of him what he needed. No, young Sasuke wasn't entirely against manipulation. He shot Naruto a wry smile.
"Sure, I'll be your friend…Naruto."
Looking at Naruto's smiling eyes; Sasuke had a hard time suppressing his glee. He'd never see it coming.
---
It was almost like making a deal with the devil. He knew he shouldn't have jumped to conclusions about the boy the minute he made the deal. He assumed the boy would take their newfound friendship seriously enough not to read Sasuke's intentions. He was wrong. He assumed that he could learn how to use chakra and be done with the whole bit. Wrong again. He never even figured he'd be spending as much time with the blonde as he had now and enjoy it. That's where the trouble began.
As Naruto casually summed up a number of his most successful pranks, he became interested. Then, when Naruto happened to mention a prank that would need two people to work, he figured he might as well enjoy himself if he was going to hang around the prankster all day long. So when Naruto filled him in on the details of the plan he actually felt pretty enthusiastic about it. It just sounded…so right and on point…and it still didn't explain how he got stuck on a roof with a big bucket of orange paint waiting for the first cop to come out of the Military Police Corps building.
Naruto was conveniently nowhere to be found.
Sasuke cursed when he saw his third cousin twice removed Inabi munching on some pocky, unable to notice the impending doom hanging over his head. Now all he had to do was tip the bucket over and…run for it? It really didn't sound that good now that he's had a chance to think it over some. He thought carefully over the entire plan again, unaware of the fact that he let the bucket go.
"I wonder where the fox-brat went. Haven't seen him in a while. Knowing him he's probably planning some big pran-" Were Inabi's last thoughts before the bucket hit him in the back of his head. He fell unconscious after the bucket's lid popped off and spilled paint all over his pocky.
Sasuke sweatdropped.
"I thought he was supposed to be an elite Uchiha. Some ninja…couldn't even sense a bucket landing on his skull…"
He snickered and fled from the scene, unaware of his father tracking him running across the roof.
"…This thing has Uzumaki's signature all over it…" Fugaku thought to himself and grimaced.
---
Naruto's training was progressing with leaps and bounds. After a week, he could run, walk and virtually skip his way all up and down the tree. He was happily skipping his way over to Ichiraku Ramen to get his fill of the day. He ignored the people's stares as he practically dove into the ramen stand and sat at the counter.
"Ayame-chaaan!" he yelled, startling the poor girl almost dropping the bowl of ramen in her hands. She glared at the boy and huffed at him.
"Naruto! You scared me half to death!" she scolded.
"Ehh..sorry…" He rubbed his neck sheepishly.
Her expression softened as she looked at him. Since she saw him the first time with that facemask he changed a lot, although he was still loud at times. He looked dirty and his clothes were torn in some places, but the blonde obviously didn't care. His mask's fabric stretched into the shape of the wide grin beneath it. She smiled at him in response. Her father often told her he's a good kid, and her father has always been an excellent judge of character.
"So what'll it be today?"
He struck his 'thinking pose', crossing his arms and closing his eyes for concentration.
"I'll start off with a beef ramen and then I'll have some red bean soup."
She smiled as she jotted down the order and disappeared into the kitchen.
Naruto spun around on his barstool and put his hands behind his back. He frowned at the empty stand before him. Apparently, the citizens of Konoha didn't appreciate the fine texture and rich flavor of ramen, but he'd change that when he'll become Hokage. He chuckled evilly. Oh indeed, change that he would.
Before his chuckling could escalate into a full-blown mad cackle, his ramen was put on the bar. He immediately dove into it, only removing his mask for the split-seconds he needed to inhale his ramen by the pound. He stopped abruptly as someone sat down on the stool next to him.
"Fwa? Fwafuke?" He swallowed the mouthful of ramen.
"Whats up? Haven't seen you after the plan. Did it work out?"
Sasuke said nothing and only glared at him.
"What?"
"You said I wouldn't get caught."
"You wouldn't have if you followed my instructions."
"My dad caught me sprinting across the roof!"
"You were supposed to use a rope and tie it to the door so it could be triggered by the same idiot that walked through."
"I can't rig it like that!"
"Then you should've told me. Not my fault you're incompetent."
"Gah! You're a pain in the ass!"
"And you're ruining lunch what's your point?"
Sasuke was about ready to tear his raven locks off.
"Did you come here to start an argument or is there a point to wasting my time?"
Sasuke gave him a leveled glare that Naruto returned with indifference.
"From now on, we're not friends, we're not acquaintances, we're nothing!" he screeched. His face turned beet-red as Naruto took the time during his little rant, to fish out a book from his pouch that Kakashi gave him once, and started reading it.
"Hn? You say something?"
Sasuke tried, with all his might, to stop himself from strangling Naruto then and there. He counted to ten, realized it didn't work, counted backwards and sighed.
"From now on we're nothing but rivals to each other."
Naruto looked up from his book and his eyes crinkled happily.
"I could use a good rival, and I sure miss kicking your ass."
An arrogant smirk made its way slowly across Sasuke's face.
"Then you're just going to have to learn to live without it."
At that, the young Uchiha turned on his heel and marched out of the stand.
"Tch…he didn't even buy any ramen…"
Teuchi the ramen chef looked at the Uchiha's retreating figure with much disdain, muttering something about cop-lovers and window-shopping.
"Oji-san, more ramen please!" Naruto yelled after finishing his second bowl.
The old ramen chef chuckled goodheartedly as he dropped another bowl on the counter. At least he could count on the loyal customers.
---
In a dim-lit chamber, several people were gathered around a round table. The leaf symbol of Konoha was emblazoned in each chair that sat around it. There was a tension in the air as they breached a very sensitive subject. Some of these high-placed officials and representatives were exchanging weary glances at one another, but there was only one whose eyes burned with a fiery intensity, testament of his position in this meeting. He was the Third Hokage of Konohagakure no Sato.
"So the vessel is ready for the academy already?"
"Yes, his apprenticeship to Hatake Kakashi has paid off. He's probably at the genin level already. I must say, that was quite a risk Sandaime-sama."
"I believe it was worth it. He will grow strong whether he's held back or stimulated. Personally I believe the village would prosper more if we utilize someone with this potential."
"The only other person I've seen with this much growth is Hatake himself, and maybe Uchiha Itachi."
"My son is every bit the genius he's hailed for. He will bring great pride to the Leaf. Have you considered my proposal Sandaime-sama?"
"Yes and although I don't think a position in the ANBU would do someone his age any good, he's considerably more mature than others in his age group."
"Indeed the Uchiha may very well have a legend on their hands. I support Fugaku-san's propos-."
Suddenly someone brought a fist down on the table with enough power to crack the massive oakwood.
"I do not want that demon running around learning how to kill us more efficiently. He is a danger to everyone in this village."
"…"
"Sandaime-sama? What's your opinion?"
"Uzumaki Naruto is a danger to anyone foolish enough to doubt his loyalty or compassion. The boy has not shown any signs of being tainted by the demon sealed within him. If anything, it's a miracle he's still smiling with the treatment he's given."
"We can't control the villagers even though they know the truth. They're going to keep hating him until he's dead or proves them wrong, which is very unlikely."
"He's a thieving jester, but I would never resort to calling him a demon. True, the Kyuubi's power he holds is unfathomable, but it's not him. Furthermore, I want him to grow stronger. He may make a fine MP in future."
"Heh, we all know the reason you want him to grow is to make him a challenging rival for your youngest son, Fugaku. Typically Uchiha, so infatuated with strength…"
"Hiashi-san, this meeting is no place to settle clan disputes. Now about the boy. According to Hatake's report on him he already basically has what it takes to be a genin. All he really needs is a little more education. I say we enroll him so he can learn to be a proper Konoha shinobi"
"I second that, Homura-sama has displayed some amazing insight before."
"Same here. I want him on active duty as soon as possible. Besides, if he dies it'll be no loss for us. This is a good opportunity."
"I disapprove of this. He'll betray us in the end, I'm sure of it."
"We already know your stand on this Hiashi-san. Everybody for moving Uzumaki on to the academy raise your hands."
Several hands shot up to which the Sandaime chuckled.
"Naruto is a good boy. The fact that he's been able to carry the Kyuubi for seven years without being influenced speaks volumes of that."
"We'll let his accomplishments speak for him for now. But if there's even the slightest trace of the Kyuubi's influence, this council will take action Sarutobi-sama. Keep an eye on the vessel."
"This meeting is adjourned." Sandaime spoke in a sharp tone. He left before anyone got the chance to even get out of their seats.
"I hope I'm making the right decision here Arashi-kun, but I have faith in Naruto."
---
And so time moved on in Konohagakure no Sato. As Kakashi kept pushing Naruto whenever he had the time to spare, so did his would-be classmates push theirselves in preparation for the rest of their lives as active shinobi. When the entrance exams were being held at Elementary School, Naruto passed and got accepted into the Ninja Academy of the Fire Country at age 7 and, as promised by Kakashi, learned his first jutsu, the Shunshin no Jutsu.
Since that was Naruto's rite of passage and Kakashi would soon become a full-time Jounin sensei, the two of them thought that it would be fun if they did something together before Naruto got into the academy and Kakashi would get harder and longer missions and there wouldn't be any time left for them to spend with eachother. Unfortunately Naruto's opinion of 'fun' was skewed up to the point that Kakashi had to lecture him on how super-glue, porn magazines and sleeping chuunin guards were not a good combination.
Kakashi, at this point, had to admit to himself that he was a cool and laid-back kinda guy that knew how to take a load off and had a way with the ladies. Exactly how he came to this conclusion could only be attributed to the mysterious workings of the obsessive mind, but it was the way he thought about that. Naturally, a cool and laid-back guy like him could find something entertaining for them?
His genius got him no farther than a 'stroll around town', to which Naruto only agreed because he was promised good ramen.
"So the academy starts in a week…" Kakashi started with an air of nonchalance with his masked nose buried in pornography.
"Yeah…" Naruto replied with an equally apathetic tone that he sometimes adopted when he spoke to Kakashi.
"Do you have your school…stuff?" The Jounin inquired.
"Most of it…I guess…Hokage oji-san send me some money and a list to take care of that."
"Ah I see…" Kakashi trailed off not wanting to pry yet curious at the same time.
A moment of silence followed. Then Naruto asked, "Do you want to buy that stuff now by any chanc-"
"I mean, we just happen to be strolling down the shinobi centre of the country. It would be a waste if I didn't spend my precious time teaching a brat the difference between shuriken and kunai." Kakashi interrupted him. Naruto nearly face-vaulted, but he held his composure.
"Good idea maybe you can teach me the difference between perverts and criminals while you're at it…"
BONK
"ITAI! WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT FOR?"
The sight of the Jounin's 'happy eye' almost made Naruto pounce him in an all-out frenzy of rage. Damn him and his lazy eye!
"Smart mouthing your elders isn't polite Naruto-chan. Maybe I should rethink this while I still ca-"
"Okay okay jeez." Naruto apologized quickly before Kakashi could finish that sentence. Naruto rubbed the sore spot on his head with a slight smile on his face. For all the Jounin's shortcomings, he still took the time to attempt something not quite unlike raising Naruto and for that, he'd always be grateful, even if he was a damn pervert. Cool, he'd give him that, but lecherous to the bone.
"So what are we gonna do now?"
Kakashi glanced at his outfit with a critical look in his eye. The orange…sweet kami the orange…
"We're going to get you some new clothing. Probably something light and easy to wear and. Also, let's see if we can interest you in some colors more…ninja friendly." Kakashi said with barely disguised disgust in his voice.
"But I like orange…" Naruto muttered with his head hung low.
"Unfortunately…" Kakashi thought to himself.
"After that we'll see what equipment and tools we can set you up with ok?"
Naruto's face visibly lit up under his mask. He gave Kakashi a mock salute followed by an 'OSU!' and ran to the first tailor he spotted.
---
Three hours and a wallet-load later, Kakashi was eying Naruto's new wardrobe with interest. As Naruto was adamant about keeping some orange in his clothing, he bought Naruto an orange short-sleeved sweater with a hood. The edges were black and on his back he had a large black swirl with the kanji for fire under it. His cargo denim were light but sturdy and also, for the sake of blending in as a shinobi as Kakashi commented, of a black color. They were baggy and taped off at his ankles. Just to spite him, Kakashi also threw in a pair of black sandals, claiming all other colors were sold out.
"You look good," he commented after a moment of silence passed.
Naruto's eyes crinkled happily. He tugged at his new clothes for a while before assuming a casual pose that would've put any regular self-absorbed bishounen to shame.
"I still think my arms look a little scrawny…"
Kakashi crouched down to eye-level with Naruto and ruffled his hair a little.
"Don't worry about that. If you eat plenty and healthy you'll grow some impressive muscles like me someday."
"…but your arms look thin too." Naruto stated with a look of disbelief in his eyes. Kakashi sweat-dropped and then chuckled good-heartedly.
When he whipped out an orange book and started walking, Naruto snapped back in focus and followed him immediately.
"So what's next Kakashi-san?"
Kakashi flinched but managed not to miss a beat in his step.
"First, we know each other too long for you to still call me Kakashi-san." Naruto snickered. He only did it because he knew Kakashi didn't like being addressed so formally by his close friends.
"And second, you're getting some decent tools, and then a nice big dinner to celebrate your entrance into the academy."
"At Ichiraku?" Naruto asked with a hopeful glint in his eyes. Kakashi chuckled and ruffled his hair again without looking away from his book.
"Of course Naruto, no ramen is worth it more than Teuchi-san's."
That's all the Jinchuuriki needed to hear for him to practically bounce with joy. Kakashi chuckled some more and a light blush spread over his face. When Naruto noticed, his personality did a complete 180 as he turned sullen all of a sudden.
"Damn pervert…" he muttered.
----
And that, as they say, was that. After they ended the day with a ramen-eating-without-showing-what's-behind-your-mask contest, the two went about their own way after a dramatic and uncomfortable farewell.
Naruto and Kakashi more or less lost contact after that, only seeing each other occasionally, but for Naruto who never had someone in his life before meeting the Jounin, just looking back at how much Kakashi cared for him was enough to drive the loneliness away. After all, he did gain a teacher and a friend in Kakashi. As for Kakashi, well, looking after Naruto definitely made him feel more alive than he had after the Kyuubi's attack, or perhaps after the war period. His scars ran deeper though and as an elite shinobi he had ultimately chosen death as his mistress.
Naruto's days in the academy were spent learning, training and ostracizing himself from his classmates after trying and failing numerous times to befriend them. Even the occasional prank wasn't worth more than his obsession with the title Hokage, even if they did draw a few merry chuckles. His classmates found him hauntingly mysterious, as they too have been warned by their parents to avoid him like the plague. Pretty soon they started forgetting about him, as he appeared to be just another person in class. His masked visage lost in a crowd of brawly ninja wannabees and quiet and self-composed prospects. He had become what he thought would tear him apart; invisible to all, even though he couldn't bring himself to care much nowadays. In his final year, the rest of his class could hardly remember his name, a name that would seen be on everybody's lips as the graduation exams were nearing. That was when Uzumaki Naruto started taking his first steps to greatness.
A/N: Well that was chapter 2. I don't have any beta-readers so any mistakes you can find are either minor or can be chalked up to the fact that English is my second language.
Anyway I consulted friends, complete strangers and my idiot little brother and decided to throw away their advice and write this how I wanted it be. I realize most of you won't care, but I feel obliged to let it be known that I've been struggling with the story somewhat. The result should be satisfactory for most of us, and for those who don't like it...well there's always the option of writing your own. Just don't do drugs or plagiarism because both can have some nasty effects on your stories.
To answer a few questions, I do plan on having Naruto wear a mask for at least through his genin year(s?). He might turn out a little (read: very) OOC, but since I like canon-Naruto so much he will have his...moments. Also, as far as pairings go...when I started this story Naruto was five (a few hours old if you want to be a nitpicker...but who'd want that right?). As of the end of this chapter he's 12, the same as he was at the start of the manga. I don't intend on having the story focus on a love connection just yet because...well you can name any reason you want, I just won't.
Next chapter should be finished by July 18th. As usual, please Read & Review.