Birds of a Feather

Chapter I One and the Same

Well then, the reviews came out okay, although it could have been better, but I do not mind, as I haven't that much in the Naruto fandom. I hope that this chapter will be a pleaser as the last chapter was. Anyways, enough with my rambling let the chapter begin.

It had been eight years since the two demon foxes attacked. The village had recovered, and was once more a prospering village as it once was. Shops had reopened, people resumed their lives, and the shinobi force had been restored to its full strength again, with new shinobis joining their ranks every year. Many people were happy that the village was back in one piece again, and could get on with their lives. Despite the aura of peace, there were people who were denied such peace.

"GET OUT!" a man bellowed as he tossed a girl out of the gateway to a compound. "A pitiful excuse of a girl, let alone a human, does not belong in this family. You of all people should be able to perform our abilities appropriate for your age."

"Gomen nasai otou-sama," the girl wept. "Please don't leave me!"

"I never want to see you in my sight," the man hissed as he turned around, stopping for a moment. "I however shall spare you the pain of allowing Hanabi to ever see you in such light. I shall honour your mother's last wish. However should you two meet, pray I never see you." And with that and a wave of his hand, he walked away as the doors closed upon the poor girl.

"Yamate otou-sama!" the girl cried as she ran up towards the closing doors, only to slam her face into the cold hard wood. "Otou-sama, OTOU-SAMA!" The girl collapsed as she wept, crying her heart out as she desperately called out to the man she called father, only to be disdainfully cast aside and ignored. She cried with no end in sight, weakly calling out for the man whom she had called father for eight painful years.

For those eight years, she had grown up in a cold environment. The people of her clan hated her for some reason. Many of them gave her looks of hate and distrust, some even going as far as pushing her aside and giving her minimal respect. Only time they ever treated her like a person was within the presence of her father, and even then, it was highly strained as the family members tried to contain their hate and anger. The girl finally able to calm down slowly rose and began to walk away from the compound, giving the place she had called home one final sorrowful gaze.

In another part of town, a boy of equal age suddenly found himself outside of the orphanage he called home as a person said, "Get out kid, you don't belong here."

"What are you saying!" the boy protested as he tried to get back in only to be kicked aside.

"Look, you're old enough to take care of yourself," the person simply replied. "Besides, you're only wasting our resources. No one is going to adopt you. Heck everyone that comes in here is usually adopted within a couple weeks; a month at most. And besides," the person's face darkening as the person bitterly bit out, "you're bad for business." And with that the door was slammed upon the fact of the poor boy as he tried to get back in.

"FINE YOU KNOW WHAT? I DON'T NEED THIS STUPID PLACE! I'LL FIND MY OWN PLACE TO CALL HOME!" with a final huff of defiance, the boy stuck up his nose, crossed his arms, and walked off in a random direction. As he walked, he suddenly found himself under the dark and hateful glares of the villagers. He noticed them, but he decided to shrug them off. He knew that people hated him, but he didn't care so long as he had his dignity. So long as he could show that he wasn't affected by it, or at least appear to, people would probably leave him alone. That was the best he could do for now until he could find a way to defend himself.

Thinking back, he wondered why a lot of the adults gave him hateful glares. It had been happening as far back as he could remember. Everyday as he walked past people, the looks they gave him were of pure hatred. And for the life of him he could never understand. He never did anything bad to the people or tried to offend people and yet they insist on isolating him from the outside world. Seeing that his line of thought was going nowhere, the boy pushed his thoughts aside as he continued walking.

"Doshite," the girl whimpered as she aimlessly walked, hugging herself tightly. "Why did otou-sama leave me? I don't understand. Why do he and everyone hate me?"

"Hey, it's that brat," she suddenly heard a voice call out.

"Yeah, it's one of them," another called out. The girl suddenly found herself, being surrounded by angry villagers as some began to take up arms, slowly enclosing the girl. She frantically looking about she felt her heart sink at the amount of villagers surrounding her. Her heart began to race as her body viciously trembled from the earthquake in her heart. She was afraid. She was truly afraid. She could see the killer intent etched upon their faces. She knew for certain that she would die.

Tears started to stream down her face as she tried to find a means of escape. She wanted out. She didn't want to fight the villagers. She didn't want anything to do with these people. She felt like she was at home, only worse. Her family would only give her either looks of hate or sadness, and left it at that with the occasional shoving. However this was by far worse. She would see their anger, their hatred, their sorrow, the feeling of loss not only in their eyes, but from their bodies. Growing up she had developed her innate abilities of insight, to read body and eye language. She could tell they hated her with a passion, and wished for her to die.

Doing the only thing she could, she curled into a ball and screamed at the top of her lungs.

"What the…" the boy muttered. He felt something inside him. He wasn't sure, but he knew it was bad. He suddenly found himself being drawn towards somewhere. It felt near, yet he was unsure. Almost instinctively, the boy found himself, running towards the power that drew him. He didn't know why either, but he felt fear. Not his own, but of another's. Running as fast as he could, the boy sprinted halfway across the market as he drew nearer towards the source.

Noticing a crowd, he turned towards, only to find out that it was the source of the calling. Somehow whatever was inside the group was what drew him. Noticing that they were armed and ready to strike, something sparked within the boy. He was unsure, but he suddenly felt angry. He felt so angry at the people that dared attack the source of his calling. He also realised he was somehow worried about the source; worried that the source might be injured, that it might need him right now, that it might be dead.

Whatever the reason, the boy suddenly found himself bolting forward as he leapt up high, and kicked the back of a villager, before flipping back. As he landed he bounded forward, tripping a couple villagers with his momentum, before he jumped to his left to dodge an attack. With all the strength he could must, swept the foot of a villager, which in turn knocked down several more, giving him access to the center. Acting on instinct, he grabbed the power frightened girl as best he could, and got her out, dodging kicks, punches, kunai, shurikens and the like. As he cleared the crowd, he ran. He ran as far as he could, running left, right and center, as he tried desperately to save the girl.

He didn't know why, but he felt a strong need to protect the girl who was trailing behind him. He didn't know why, but he felt connected to the girl. Somehow she felt similar to him. His train of thought was cut off as a kunai whizzed by his face, barely crazing his cheek. Realising it wasn't a time for thinking, the boy kept running. They ducked through alleyways, main streets, ran behind stands, anything that the boy could think of in an attempt to outrun the growing mob, he did. Nearing one of the many forests that grew within the village, the boy felt his heart lift. The idea of hiding in the forests agreed with him whole heartedly, as he made a beeline for the forests.

As they entered the forest, he noticed that the mob drastically thinned out. He didn't bother to ponder on it long, as he didn't dare slow down until he was sure they were save. Weaving through the undergrowth, the boy felt somewhat at home in the environment. It almost felt like he belonged in the vast freedom of the forest over the restricting confines of the city. The boy stopped at a clearing smiling widely to see that he had found a quiet stream flowing through the middle.

He suddenly collapsed as he started to pant for breath. He was unsure as to how he was able to keep running for that long, but was glad that he could. He figured had he been any other child he would have been dead already. Remembering what he had done, he looked behind him to see the girl lying on her side, trying to catch her breath.

"Ne, daijoubu desuka?" the boy worriedly asked. The girl slightly nodded her head, otherwise remaining still.

"So what's your name?"

"Hyu-Hyuuga Hi-Hi-Hinata," the girl stuttered.

"Hinata, that's a pretty name," the boy commented. The girl couldn't help but blush as she slowly sat up on her knees, giving the boy a good look of herself. She wore simple training clothes, of a navy blue colour, with a red flame on the left chest.

"Arigatou," Hinata quietly replied. "What is your name?"

"Uzumaki Naruto," he replied with a foxy grin. Hinata couldn't help but giggle at his enthusiasm despite what had just happened. She suddenly noticed a few cuts along the white t-shirt and green shorts he wore, which exposed skin.

"Naruto-kun, you're hurt," she exclaimed.

"Huh?" Naruto looked about himself, but didn't see any bleeding. "What are you talking about?"

"But…but…I-I-I saw you b-b-bleed," Hinata stuttered, amazed how he seemed to be unscathed.

"I believe we can answer that," a voice suddenly boomed, causing both children to scream in fright. Hinata suddenly found herself hugging Naruto as he frantically looked about, trying to see where the voice came from.

"Please, do not be frightened children," another voice boomed, in a much softer and more melodic tone.

"Who…who…who are you?" Hinata whimpered, burying her head into Naruto's chest.

"For-for that matter…wh-where are you?" Naruto asked, trying to act brave, his act failing him.

"We are the Kyuubi and Sanbi no Kitsune," the deep voice replied. "I am the Kyuubi sealed within Naruto, while Sanbi, my mate is sealed within Hinata."

"What?" both children cried out.

"Why are you sealed within us?" Hinata asked, suddenly backing away from Naruto's paralyzed form.

"We were not sealed within you of our own accord child," Sanbi replied. "You two were the unfortunate children born upon the date of our attack, making you the only candidates to act as our vessels."

"You saying we were sacrifices of sorts?" Naruto gasped out.

"Not by your own choice, and no we did not choose this either," Kyuubi responded. "Our assault forced your Yondaime Hokage, in an act of desperation, seal us within you children. Quite frankly, he not only saved your village, but he saved us from ourselves."

"What's what supposed to mean?"

"You are not old enough to understand young one. Perhaps when you are older, we will explain our actions."

"Ano sa, ano sa, what happened back there anyway?"

"That kit was my response to my mate, or to be precise, the vessel of my mate being attacked. And because I cannot act alone, I merely fed you some of my emotions, your instincts doing the rest. You did what you thought was right. It's as simple as that kit."

"Mate?" both kids suddenly cried out.

"That is correct young ones, we are mates," Sanbi calmly replied, sensing Kyuubi's growing irritation.

"Demo…what does that make us?" Hinata nervously asked.

"Nothing more than friends, if you so desire," she replied. "We are mates by choice. You two however are not bound by our choice. When you are older, you may choose to mate, and it would be your bond, not ours. We would merely benefit."

"I'm confused!' Naruto yelled out, exasperated.

"No doubt kit, no doubt at all," Kyuubi muttered."You're only eight years old. When you're older, you'll begin to understand." Both kids sighed sadly as they absorbed all of the information. In the span of a day, probably in a couple hours, they had been kicked out of their homes, nearly assaulted by some of the villagers, almost bowled over by said villagers, and found out the reason behind the hatred of the villagers, and the fact that their tenants were also mates. The day proved to be too weird, even for their minds. Both children were mentally exhausted, wanted only to do things that children their age did; live the life of a child. But that had been stripped of them the day they were born.

Naruto sighed again as he looked at his fellow jailor. He had to admit that she looked cute. The way her pale skin seemed to glow in the sunlight accentuated her extremely pale lavender eyes. He also noted that they didn't have any pupils. Along with her short royal blue hair, in which the fringes framed her forehead with bangs framing the side of her face, she looked really nice. Wondering where that thought came from, he figured that it was what a lot of kids called, 'a crush,' yet never knowing what having a crush is like, he figured that this fell in under the category.

Meanwhile Hinata was giving Naruto's face a similar overview. She found herself liking the way his bright cerulean eyes, worked in tandem with his spiky blond hair creating this aura of joy around him. She could see the pain written in his eyes easily, but yet he tried to hide it and look at things in a better light. His cheeks had thin whisker marks, presuming that it was resulting from the Kyuubi being sealed within him. Just looking at his bright face brought warmth to her heart. She was grateful that the boy saved her life, and treated her like a normal person. However the warm feeling didn't stop there. She felt something more towards the blond boy who had started to look around and observe his surroundings. She wasn't sure what it was, but she liked it quite a lot.

"Ne Hinata-chan," Naruto called out, "let's take a look around this place. I'm sure that there are loads of places we can explore." Hinata shyly nodded as she got up and followed Naruto, somehow feeling somewhat shy in his presence. She could hear chuckling in the back of her mind, but she figured that the two demons were having their own conversation, and thought nothing of it. They spent a good portion of the morning exploring the area, finding various caves, animals, and a small pond when their stomachs began to growl.

"Eh he, he," Naruto chuckled sheepishly, scratching the back of his head, "I guess we've wandered so long, we forgot to eat."

"Naruto, Hinata, what are you two doing here?" a voice suddenly called out. Scared out of their wits both children yelled in fright as Hinata instinctively grabbed Naruto as he wrapped his arms protectively around her. Within the two of them, both fox bored identical grins. The two of them looked behind them, to see an old man walking up towards them. He was dressed in a red robe, with a white sash with a white jacket and wide brimmed hat with the kanji fire written on the front. Immediately recognising the man as Sandaime Hokage, the two of them visibly relaxed.

"Oi Hokage-oji-san," Naruto happily greeted as the man approached the children.

"Hokage-sama," Hinata respectfully greeted.

"So tell me, why are you two in the middle of the forest?" he asked curiously. Naruto immediately began launching into the details of what had transpired, starting from him being kicked out, to saving Hinata, to finding out about the demons locked within them.

"Wait…did you just say that you've spoken with the Sanbi and the Kyuubi?" he asked the two of them, incredulously.

"Yeah, what of it?" Naruto asked, not understanding the possible implications.

"Naruto, Hinata, please lift up your shirts," he calmly requested. Doing as they were asked to, both complied as Sandaime placed his hands on their abdomens, as he fed chakra. As he did so, he was soon graced with the appearance of Shishou Fuuin upon their stomachs. The seal was of a spiral image, with a series of various texts written above and below, each with four prongs aimed either towards their upper body or legs.

"You're seals are fine," he muttered as he ceased the flow. "I still do not understand how the two are able to communicate with you."

"Ano sa, ano sa, Kyuubi said something about responding to his mate in danger or something like that," Naruto offered.

"Hmm…" Sandaime muttered as he pondered. "Yes I can see how it's possible for this to have happened. Now that you are aware of your 'tenants,' I must also inform you there is a rule pertaining to your condition." Both children perked up, as they waited for Sandaime to continue. His face immediately hardened as he spoke of the rule.

"You must guard this knowledge with your life. You are not to let anyone your age know you are the containers. Is that clear?"

"Hai, Hokage-sama," Hinata replied.

"Hai, Oji-san," Naruto replied nonchalantly. Sandaime looked sternly, only to see the seriousness in the young boy's eyes. He let out a wry chuckle. Even in the fact of extreme seriousness, the boy still was able to see the small silver lining in this, even if it was only a little.

"Naruto, if you wish, I shall give you an apartment for you to live in," the Hokage suddenly offered. Naruto whole heartedly accepted, nodding his head vigorously.

"Hinata-san, I believe you should be running along home. Hiashi-san must be quite worried." He was surprised to see Hinata's expression shift suddenly. Somehow the idea of going home brought sadness to her face, worrying the Hokage.

"What's wrong Hinata-san?" he asked, kneeling before her, placing a hand gently on her shoulders. He noticed that she had started to cry as her shoulders started to tremble. Tears streamed down her eyes as she thought about what had happened this morning. Not being able to restrain herself, she burst out crying as she hugged the old man, pouring her heart out. Naruto could only look on sadly, feeling utterly useless unable to do anything to ease her pain somehow. He sighed sadly as he watched the Hokage whisper soothing words to her, along with her tenant who also trying to calm the poor girl down.

After some time finally able to calm down, she explained how her father had kicked her out of the complex, a little while before Naruto came to save her. Naruto's reaction was of anger as he started to insult Hiashi with various obscenities that his eight year old mind could come up with. As Naruto continued his ranting, Hinata couldn't help but smile at his antics, before bursting out laughing, especially with the amount of creativity he put in his insults. Even the old man couldn't help but chuckle at the little boy insulting one of the most powerful men in the village.

After calming down, the Hokage managed to recollect himself as he continued, "As I said, however in this case, if the both of you wish, I have an apartment in which the two of you can share." Both children nodded vigorously at the idea of having a home, rather than living out in the streets.

"Hinata-san, I do believe the reason as to why your father kicked you out," Sandaime suddenly said, surprising both children. "I know for a fact, that he loves you very much. However because of your 'burden,' I believe the elders overpowered your father, and forced him to have you forcibly removed from the clan." Hinata mood shifted again as she hung her head sadly.

"Otou-sama," Hinata whispered. Naruto suddenly felt a bit guilty insulting her father, but maintained a minor hate towards the man for kicking out his daughter just because a bunch of snobby, snotty nosed, elders told him to.

"Come," Sandaime beckoned with the wave of his hand as he got up, and proceeded to leave the forest. Both children eagerly followed him, wanting to settle into their new home as soon as possible. Walking into the village, both children for noticed that they had avoided a lot of the mainstream areas such as the market place, the Hokage tower and the Uchiha compound where many of the adults congregated. Both were thankful for the old man's path choice.

They soon arrived at the apartment building. It looked more like a motel, but the two of them didn't care. They just wanted a home where they could live in peace away from the dark hateful glares of the village. The building itself wasn't all that remarkable. It was a simple U-shaped building, with three floors. There were a set of spiral stairs that led up to the second and third floor. Sandaime picked up both children, and leapt to the third floor, where he then led them to a room 302. Pulling out a key he unlocked the door letting the two of them in as they explored what would become their new home.

The two felt their jaws drop as they explored their surroundings. It wasn't much, but to them it was heaven, especially for Hinata who had been living in a sheltered hell, never having to do anything, yet having everything done to her out of hate. To find a place she could call home was something she could only dream of until today. The apartment was simple, with a total of four rooms. To the left were two doors, one leading to the bathroom, the other to the bedroom. Another door on the right led to a room that seemed to serve more as a storage room than another, seeing the various shelves and hooks that were in the room. The main room had a wooden floor, with a refrigerator, a stove, with some counters and a sink on the far wall, and a couch against the wall with the door under the window. Taking a look inside their bedroom, they saw futons, and a dresser.

"You needn't worry about the villagers coming here," Sandaime explained as he watched the two taking in the sight of their small yet comfortable home. "This place is owned by a friend of Teuchi. I believe Naruto and him know each other through the Ichiraku Ramen. In any case, he along with the tenants bares no ill will against the two of you. They are some of the few villagers who see you two for what you really are, instead of what you carry." Sandaime was about to begin when a sudden knocking at the door drew their attention. Facing the door, they found themselves face to face, with a man wearing a white robe, with shoulder length black hair, and eyes like Hinata's.

"Otou-sama," Hinata whispered. Naruto started to look back and forth between the two, to suddenly see the resemblance in their eyes.

"Hiashi-san, what brings you here?" Sandaime asked curiously.

"I wish to speak with my daughter," he calmly replied. Sandaime turned to ask Hinata to see the young girl approaching the man.

"Otou-sama," Hinata whispered her greeting with a deep bow.

Hiashi kneeled down as he and tilted her chin up, warmly smiling as he said, "Hinata, you are not part of the clan anymore, there is no need."

"De-demo…"

"I came here to deliver a scroll containing all the teachings of Jyuuken, along with all the family jutsus. I have also packed some of your clothes. I can only hope that this is enough for you." Pulling out a couple scrolls from the inside of his robe, he unrolled them and summoned two scrolls the size of Hinata's body, along with a duffle bag filled with her things. Hinata looked up at her father tearfully as she leapt into his arms and cried openly, begging to her father that it was only a nightmare. Hiashi held her close, regretfully telling her that this was real life and that she would have to survive with Naruto. He also regretfully informed her that this would be the last time they would be together for a long time. Hinata unfortunately burst into hysterics wanting to be at her father's side. Hiashi had to explain that all Hyuuga clan members were to kill her on sight if she tried to approach the compound.

"Otou-sama," she sobbed into his soaked shoulder as she continued to cry, wanting to forever stay in his father's arms. Naruto and Sandaime could only look sadly at the scene before them, unable to do much to help Hinata. Soon after Hinata had fallen asleep in his arms, exhausted from the entire mental trauma she had gone through within the last few hours. Lifting her into his arms, Hiashi carried her into the bedroom where he tucked her in one of the futons, gently kissing her forehead one last time. Gently stroking her hair, he gave his daughter one last glance, before forcing himself to leave the room, closing the door behind him.

Seeing the two on the couch, Hiashi approached the two as he faced the boy. Standing before him, the two of them initiate a staring contest at one another, as pale white stared down blazing sapphire, trying to see who would be the first to back down.

The contest ended as Hiashi took a deep breath and spoke, "Naruto-san, I have a request to make of you." Naruto simply nodded his head as he waited for the Hyuuga head to speak his case.

"I request that you take care of Hinata with your life. Protect her as you would protect someone precious to you."

"Huh?"

"After her mother died two years ago, Hinata hasn't been the same. Her once bright smiles were rare, and her spirit diminished as her training became harder and harder. Hanabi, who is 5 years her junior, does not understand the implications, and therefore does not suffer. However Hinata has unfortunately been forever scarred by the clan. And understand this Naruto-san; this exile is by far kinder than the fate of the clan." Naruto merely nodded, not wanting to know what this fate would've been.

"I promise Hiashi-san," Naruto replied. "I'll keep her safe from them bastards."

"Also, make sure that whatever she learns from the scrolls never leave this apartment, is that understood?" Naruto nodded firmly. Hiashi let out a sigh of relief, thanked the boy and the Hokage, and took his leave. Soon after the Hokage also took his leave, leaving behind some money, and instructions to ask the staff members if he needed any help.

A few hours later, Hinata woke up to the aroma of something good. Getting up, she opened the door to see Naruto sitting in the middle of the room with a low table in front of him, eating a bowl of ramen from a large Styrofoam bowl.

Seeing his roommate was awake he greeted her with a cheery hello as he directed her towards the other bowl of ramen. Feeling her stomach gurgling, she immediately accepted the bowl, grabbed a pair of chopsticks, and dug in, albeit with more grace than Naruto, as he grabbed the noodles in large amounts and stuffing it into his face.

As they ate, Naruto couldn't help but observe Hinata. Despite his company, he could see the loneliness in her eyes. He could see the pain from being branded as many thing, never knowing why, the sadness from the fact that no one really saw her as a person and considered her as something inhuman, the sorrow being apart from her father, the look of regret of being unable to defend herself and so much more. He came to realise that the two of them were similar in so many ways. Both of them had been unfortunately selected to be carriers of the two demon foxes that had attacked the village, instantly being branded as monsters, beings that were meant to be shunned and if possible killed.

"Ne Hinata-chan," Naruto called out.

"H-hai Naruto-kun?" she stuttered out as she swallowed.

"Let's make a promise," he offered.

"A-a promise?"

"Yeah, yeah, a promise," he replied with a smile. "Let's promise that together that the two of us will show the village that we're not the demons that they say we are. Let's promise that we'll become some of the strongest people in this village, and have them acknowledge out strength. What do you say?" He then stuck out his hand across the table as he awaited her answer.

Hinata merely stared at his hand as she contemplated her answer. Out of the blue, he had just offered her a chance to prove herself. It was a chance in which she could show that the two of them were not monsters, but misunderstood human beings. It was also a chance to show the villagers and the Hyuuga elders that she was a capable heir despite what was inside her. Not only that, it would be a chance for her to make her father proud. Realising that she had nothing to lose, she wholeheartedly accepted his hand, the two of them shaking on it.

"And one other thing," he suddenly added. "I promise that I will become Hokage along with making the entire village acknowledge me!"

"And I also promise to become the next Hyuuga clan head."

'This should be interesting seeing how the kits grow up, wouldn't you say?"

'Indeed, however I believe that we should help train the young ones.'

'Are you saying teaching the kit and kitten our jutsus?'

'No, I'm referring to guiding them through their own training.'

'Now that I don't mind.'

Well that concludes chapter I. I'm sorry for the long delay, however it's summer, and when you've got too much time on your hands, you just don't want to do anything, and that's what happened to me pretty much.

Well anyways, please leave your questions, comments, queries and concerns in your reviews, and I hope I get some thorough ones. Oh and do me a favour, please actually be thorough. I want to know what you liked, what you didn't like and such. That way I know what I should add or remove from my stories.

Well anyways, that's all from me

Cheers