A/N

Good news, my lecture was canceled today, so I unexpectedly had some time to write. Well...I should have probably used that time for studying...but meh. *xD*

"You are improving," Tobirama commented offhandedly when Naruto's pendant turned into a dark yellow color. The young boy smiled brightly.

The last three weeks had been particularly gruesome. Tobirama had kept true to his word and Naruto had not been allowed to eat even a single noodle. It was torture, at least in his opinion. But in a rare bout of wisdom, Naruto had kept this complaint to himself. His sensei would not have appreciated it.

"I believe it is time for the next step of your training."

Naruto's head snapped up. "Really?!" he asked excitedly.

"Yes," the Nidaime answered calmly. "Follow me."

Naruto had not be told twice.

"Um, sensei?" Naruto curiously glanced at the trees surrounding him. "What are we doing here? And where are we?"

"The village outskirts, " Tobirama answered calmly. "My brother and I used to spend our time here when we were children. "

Naruto tried to picture his teacher as a child but failed horribly. He just could not equate this serious man with ever being young.

"And we are here so you can learn how to combat. "

Naruto immediately stopped his unsuccessful imaginative attempts at mentally drawing a young Nidaime in favor of focusing on the real elder version. „You are teaching me how to fight?" Naruto's eyes sparkled.

"I am," the Nidaime agreed. "Since I am physically not capable of sparring with you, we shall do it…differently."

"How?" Naruto asked curiously.

"I will come to that soon. Before that we need to discuss something else," the man leveled Naruto with a serious look. "Are you aware of the crystal ball in the Hokage's office?"

Naruto scrunched his face in thought. "That weird thing he keeps on a cushion?" Naruto had seen it quite often but never really thought about it. He had always assumed that his jiji kept it as some sort of strange decoration. The man had a weird taste like that - there was not even a spot of orange in his office, for kami's sake. How could that not be strange?

The Nidaime's lips twitched at that description. "This weird thing is keyed to the village barriers and allows him to view everything that happens within this village."

Naruto froze. Everything that happens in this village? Everything?

His eyes widened in horror. "He can…he can see me using the bathroom?!"

"Well," the Second replied dryly. "I do believe that he stops watching once it comes to that, but essentially…yes."

Tobirama watched his student as he worked through the implications of his words. He wondered if Naruto was going to figure out the problem he was hinting at on his own. Granted, he could have just told him outright, but it would not help Naruto to be spoon-fed his answers.

He wanted the child to grow and for that Naruto needed to learn to think on his own. Tobirama wanted him to reach his own conclusions. To form his own opinions, plans and solutions.

Because he was not just teaching another soldier to mindlessly obey orders.

Tobirama was forming a leader.

Naruto swallowed. Oh kami. That meant jiji could have seen everything he had done? All his pranks?

Was he watching right now? Was he watching while he was talking to…

His head snapped up. "So he could see us right now?"

Something like approval shimmered in his sensei's eyes. "Indeed." Naruto felt a surge of pride at being correct. It did not last long because he realized that it was practically impossible now to train in secret, unless…

His eyes widened as the realization hit him.

His sensei did bring him to this place for a reason.

Tobirama smirked and rose. "I see you understand. Good. Follow me. There is something I want to show you."

Naruto obediently followed the ghost as he floated deeper into the woods. There was the sound of running water ahead. They were close to the stream.

Tobirama stopped next to a rock formation. "Take out the pendant you made," he ordered.

Confused, Naruto took out the stone bead and looked at his sensei.

Who pointed at a flat stone. "Put it on there and channel your chakra into it."

Naruto crouched down and placed the pendant carefully on the middle of the stone. Narrowing his eyes, he gently coaxed the warmth in him to obey.

Thin lines started to appear, slowly crawling over the stone's surface. His pendant glowed and Naruto stared in awe as the trees in front of him vanished and a small path emerged.

"Take the pendant and go on."

Naruto obeyed eagerly. He loved exploring secret places!

The winding path took them higher and higher until they were finally standing on a wide ledge overlooking Konoha.

Naruto's eyes widened and he ran forward to look down. "That view is even better than from the Hokage mountain!"

The ghost stepped next to him and looked down at the village, eyes clouded with both pride and sadness. "Yes."

Naruto glanced at him. His sensei's posture reminded him of the time he had first met him. Lonely and distant.

"My brother and I called it the Mountain of Dreams," Tobirama began quietly, his voice carrying through the air with the weight of an important yet faded memory. "It was here that he first expressed his desire for peace. It was this place he came to when the darkness of the world overwhelmed him, and he needed to find the strength to go on. It was his sanctuary. The tree you see over there." Tobirama turned and pointed towards the tall, majestic oaken tree in the middle of the ledge. "Was the first tree he ever grew."

Naruto followed his gaze. "It looks so strong!"

Tobirama smiled softly. The harsh lines in his face eased and for a moment decades of hardship seemed to fall from him, making him look so much younger. "It carries the strength of my brother's dream. To bring an end to the circle of hatred and peace to the world. So that children don't have to fight anymore."

"Peace to the world…" Naruto muttered quietly, slowly stepping towards the tree. He stretched his hand out and hesitated, before laying it gently against the trunk. It was a fleeting and reverent touch, but it lasted long enough for Naruto to feel the happy approval of his solemn oath. "This circle… I swear I will break it - and I never go back on my word. Believe it."

Tobirama had hesitated about bringing Naruto here. This place had been his brother's sanctuary. His sanctuary. It meant the world to both of them and the idea of sharing it with someone had been unsettling.

He had never brought anyone here. Neither did his brother. They had kept this place as a secret between them and guarded it jealously. Because it was something that only belonged to them.

But this child was different. He was so similar to Hashirama that it both hurt and comforted him. They might not share looks, but at their hearts they were the same.

It was that similarity that drove him to teach Naruto in the first place and now that he watched the child solemnly swear himself to the same cause his brother had believed in, he felt like he had never made a better choice.

"I am going to teach you the shadow clone technique. It will allow you to form a solid clone, so you can spar with each other." Tobirama's eyes bore into the child's eyes. "It is a very dangerous and forbidden technique so you will not use it without my explicit permission. And you will only use it on the ledge. If I catch you using it on your own, I will be very displeased. Do you understand?"

Naruto swallowed and nodded. "Understood." The Nidaime was the last person he wanted to be angry at him. His sensei could be very scary, even without a solid body. But now that he was getting more and more tangible, Naruto really did not want to get on his bad side.

"Good," the man rose. "Now, pay attention."

Tobirama watched as his young charge sparred with his own clone. His movements were still rather sloppy, and his defense was glaringly open, but he was coming along quite nicely.

Granted, the shadow clone technique was not the best way to teach the child how to fight. Naruto was practically fighting against himself, so his opponent's mindset was exactly the same and if he hit to hard, his clone would dispel. But for now, it would do.

At least until he had gained enough presence to teach the child himself. He already felt stronger each day. It was strange. He never expected to be more than an unseen, powerless ghost. But now, the longer he spent with the child, the stronger he became. He could already feel the faint echo of a very familiar warmth flowing through him.

His chakra was coming back.

Tobirama allowed himself a faint smile. It seemed liked things were starting to look up.

Across the clearing Naruto burst his clone.

Weeks passed by and autumn came, fallen leaves painting the streets in red and gold. Naruto looked out of the window. People were busily mingling about, and the sound of laughter and drunken singing carried through the transparent wall.

It was that time again. The Kyuubi festival. One of Konoha's biggest festivals, always celebrated on the same day. His birthday. But it was never for him. Never with him.

Blue unseeing eyes were fixed on the blood red letters painted on the street in front of his house and Naruto felt a single tear trickling down his cheek as the cruel message burnt itself into his mind.

DIE DEMON

A cool hand came to rest on his head. It did not pass through. Naruto leaned into the touch and cried.

"Sensei?" Naruto asked quietly once he had calmed down. "Do you think I could graduate early?"

The Nidaime moved his hand to the child's shoulder and fixed him with a serious gaze. "What brought this on?"

Naruto lowered his head. "It…I..I want to get stronger," he answered softly. "I want to prove myself. I just can't…" His eyes flickered to the window.

'I just can't take it anymore.'

The words went unsaid, but Tobirama understood them just as well. His lips thinned and his grip on the child tightened. "Very well," he agreed calmly. "We will up your training. Be prepared."

Naruto could have cried in relief. "Thank you," he muttered sincerely and rested his head against the man's chest. Thank you for everything.

Tobirama smiled grimly. He was turning another child into a killer and the child was thanking him for it.

"Sorry Hashi," he whispered quietly over the sleeping child's head.

Hashirama smiled sadly in his mind.

"I am proud of you, Naruto," the Hokage told him later that day when he brought the boy a bowl of birthday ramen. "You are improving rather rapidly."

Naruto beamed at him. "I spent lots of time practicing, jiji. I even go to the library!"

"That you did," the Hokage agreed calmly - and had this not been a surprise on his own? Naruto not only willing picking up a book, but visiting a library? He had nearly dropped his pipe when he had seen that in the crystal ball.

It seemed like there was way more of his father in him, than he thought.

Tobirama snorted lightly. He was leaning against the windowsill, watching his two students interact with each other. There was an interesting dynamic between them. It seemed like his old student cared for the young child – at least to a certain degree. He wondered how much of this care stemmed from true affection and how much from guilt. There was no doubt that Hiruzen had failed the child - and if Tobirama was honest with himself, he was disappointed in his old student. He was the Hokage, the highest authority and yet he was unable to keep his own people in line and allowed Konoha to fall to this state. It was unacceptable.

There were a lot of choice words Tobirama had to say to him, but luckily enough for Hiruzen, he was not able to see him.

He could probably get Naruto to play translator for him, but that would mean telling their secret. Something he had no intention of doing.

That reminded him, he really needed to teach Naruto some sign language. He made a mental note to fit it into their future lessons.

"Jiji," his charge suddenly began. "I want to try for early graduation."

Surprise flitted over the Third's face. "Early graduation? But why Naruto? There is no need for you to graduate early. Why don't you enjoy your childhood a bit more?"

"Because I want to prove myself!" the young child answered firmly. "I want them to accept me and…and I don't want to wait anymore…"

The Hokage's eyes softened and he sighed. "If this is what you want, I will not stop you. You may try."

"Really?!"

"Yes," the Third smiled slightly. "I will take care of the paperwork. Now I believe we need some more ramen, right?"

"Yes!" Naruto agreed enthusiastically.

A/N

Thanks for your comments! I am glad you like it so far! :-)

Blu3b3rryT3a Nah, he really can't *xD* Fuinjutsu will definitely play a role in this fic. Can't ignore something with so much potential after all :-)