Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

Chapter 7

Hatake Kakashi exited the Hokage tower after his mind numbing debriefing and squinted in the dawning sunlight of the new day. Adjusting the hitai-ate over his sensitive left eye before tucking an ANBU Dog mask into his backpack, he allowed himself a long stretch that cracked the vertebrae up and down his spine. It was early enough that, despite his exhaustion, the temptation of avoiding the overwhelming masses of people by visiting the market as it opened had him heading toward the shopping district. He would have to be quick though, for no hour was too early to promise complete safety from the self titled "Green Beast of Konoha" and his damnable competitions. Avoiding those awkward entanglements was one of the perks of the long absences which accompanied his role and an ANBU shinobi of the Leaf. The less peopling, the better.

Not that he hated the village itself, there were just, too many memories built into this place. Memories that always seemed to lead back to emotions that he would rather leave alone, forgotten and buried, along with all his loved ones. Glancing over his shoulder he scans the faces carved into the mountainside. Well, perhaps not all should be forgotten.

The Jonin turned and nimbly darted down the road, when a soft pop and the silent landing of four paws preceded the arrival of one of Kakashi's few familiars, animal or otherwise.

A bark echoed in the crisp morning air, "Yo!"

"Pakkun, report."

"You know Kakashi, I don't think you appreciate the level of difficulty involved in this little mission you continue to send me on," huffed the gruff voice of the pug as he fell into step beside the swiftly moving ninja headed towards the market district. "Spying on those three is definitely worth more than a few extra biscuits."

The Copy Nin hummed non-commitally but smiled under his mask. "What's the matter Pakkun? The young ones wearing you out in your dotage?"

The canine sniffed in indignation. "I never said I could not do it, only that your form of payment sucks. Two of them have the Byakugan for Kami's sake. And the Pup can always sense me when I get too close, even if I'm downwind."

Kakashi raised an eyebrow at this last bit of information, ignoring the Pug's grumblings about "sneaky prisoner foxes". It would seem this might be another gift the young boy had been blessed with, perhaps courtesy of his inner demon. And heaven knew, the kid had precious few blessings to his name.

"It will serve them well to learn such acute awareness of their surroundings this young, especially if they continue in their current pursuits. How goes the 'training sessions' of the aspiring little ninjas?" The pair took to the rooftops to continue their conversation, aware that in a hidden village, even walls had ears.

"Quite well actually, even with the antics of the knucklehead," Pakkun chuckled with the memory of Naruto arguing with Neji over whether or not his prank pouches should be allowed as legit ninja weapons in their spar. The "debate" (if one could call the inventive cussing and innovative insults as such) had ended with the Hyuga prodigy covered in muddy pink paint and the blond prankster dragging around a dead leg until he had accidentally flared his chakra in the midst of the brawl, thereby reestablished feeling in the limb. Pakkun had nearly revealed his hiding spot with his snorts of laughter when Hinata had arrived and proceeded to threaten both of the boys to act their age, or else she would toss their bentos in the river. Hinata's petite frame had loomed comically over the penitent boys as they both bowed low and apologized for their misbehavior.

"The Hyuga boy is strict with the younger two, but patient enough," he summarized neatly. "The girl has a ways to go to build up enough stamina to challenge the boys in a serious spar, but her focus is unshakable. The Pup has enough energy for all of them, and usually has to be knocked nearly senseless before he quits. The influence of the others is certainly helping him grow by leaps and bounds, though. He and the girl seem to be especially close." The ninken pretended not to hear the ridiculous giggle that came from the ANBU next to him.

Pakkun glanced over at Kakashi's happily creased right eye, the only part of his face left uncovered. Even an experienced comrade would have difficulty deciphering the guarded thoughts and emotions in that single exposed orb. He had known the man since he was a boy, and understood without needing to be told why this unofficial mission was so important to him.

While Kakashi was most certainly a hardened shinobi, trained to evict all emotions and complete all assigned missions with ruthlessness and skill, he would not tolerate abandoning a comrade. Never again. Pakkun and the rest of the pack of Kakashi's ninken summons all readily agreed that the borderline self destructive man was too young, too broken, too insecure, and too important, to leave the cutthroat life of an ANBU operative behind and spend his days puppy guarding his Sensei's son. But without fail, the Yondaime's former student always made sure to check on Naruto whenever he was home in between missions.

It was for all these reasons that Pakkun watched Kakashi carefully as he revealed his next piece of intelligence.

"Pup's been sleeping in the forest again. I found his little den. Kid likes to pretend he is an actual fox, I swear. The other two have been giving him extra food, and the old man at that Ramen stand is letting him have a free bowl now and again. He is still small, but doesn't seem malnourished. And he has a new red scarf that he never takes off."

The Copy Nin landed in a neat crouch on the edge of a rooftop above their destination, and forced back the warring feelings of guilt and anger that seemed to plague him in every aspect of his life. He glared down at the jumble of multicolored tarps shading the various market stalls of the ungrateful civilians.

It wasn't the first time that he'd discovered an orphanage had been neglecting the son of Minato-sensei and Kushina-senpai. It was a cruel irony, considering the fact that it was she who had been such a strong proponent of the need for these establishments after the end of the Third War, specifically in order to prevent the exact situation in which her own son found himself. The Uzumaki's own experiences as a refugee and orphan of war had inspired her to take up the yoke of the forgotten children of shinobi who had been killed in action. Kushina-senpai believed it to be the duty of the village to care for the children of those who had protected it with their lives. When Minato-sensei, also a child of parents who had sought refuge in Konoha as a result of the extermination of Uzushiogakure, had become the Fourth Hokage, he had supported many of Kushina-senpai's proposals and requests for funding from the council.

Both of the Whirlpool descended shinobi were a force to be reckoned both on and off the battlefield. The age old ties of the two premier clans of the Village Hidden in the Whirling Tides, the Uzumaki and the Namikaze, were excellently represented in the bond between Minato-sensei and Kushina-senpai. These days, few ninja bothered to learn the details of other hidden village's histories, but Kakashi was not most ninja, and they didn't call him a genius for nothing.

Before expanding his literary horizons to include the masterpieces of Jiraya-sama, Kakashi had pilfered the library of his father, and later on Minato-sensei as well when the man had taken the broken boy under his wing. His eager young mind had devoured the tale of The Fall of Uzushiogakure with the same passion which most of his peers would subscribe to manga comics.

It was one of the most fantastically tragic epochs of the shinobi world. The shocking betrayal of the Lands of Earth, Lightning, and Water, and the stubborn hubris of the Uzumaki who refused to believe they could be conquered, all leading to a brutal siege and battle. The ingeniously planned harrowing escape of the Namikaze clan, among others, as they fled their war torn country to seek the support of her allies. The desperate attempt of The Leaf to rescue the island clans of the hidden village, only to be thwarted by Kami herself in a cataclysmic storm, concocted by the judgment of gods. The apocalyptic monsoon had sunk an entire fleet of ships built by the Shodaime himself, leaving them only able to rescue those who had later washed up on the ocean's shores. It was a heartbreaking narrative of pride, greed, and survival.

That was some epic shit right there, and an emo inclined young Kakashi had been a bit obsessed. When he had realized that the new Jonin sensei and his red headed partner were descendants of those very same survivors, the closet romantic within Kakashi that he would deny ever existed, might have internally fan-girled. But because he was a serious shinobi who did not have time for such silly obsessions he had kept his feelings hidden, especially from those other ninja who were already judging his immaturity. Being the youngest person to ever make genin kinda put a target on your back, and when his father had gone and done the unthinkable, the boy had shut down all his emotions entirely.

It had taken two seemingly useless teammates to change everything. To set him back on the straight and narrow. And when they had been taken away as well, Sensei and his wife had shown the struggling teenager that strength can rise from ashes and push people to temper themselves in the fire that was meant to consume them. On the horrible day when he lost Minato-sensei and Kushina-senpai, he had stopped believing in happy endings, and again fallen down into a pit of despair.

Despite the Third Hokage's reluctance, the old man had been desperate for decent shinobi, and had acquiesced to the incessant demands of the young ANBU that he be assigned all the 'S' and 'Unranked' missions available. Kakashi unleashed his outrage at Kami, at Fate, at humanity, with an unholy fury that had even his own comrades walking a wide circle around him. His complete lack of self preservation combined with the talents of a genius shinobi gifted with one of the most powerful ocular dojutsu the world had to offer proved to be a deadly combination for his enemies, and his own mind. He embodied the empty shell his mentor had always feared he would become.

Until that day.

It was the tenth of October, and to his immense disgust, there were no missions available, leaving Kakashi to wander mindlessly over to the memorial stone, where he stood staring mutely at the rows of names, ignoring the festival that raged downtown. He had lost track of how long he had stood there, when suddenly his senses tugged him back to the present and he became aware of a small orange blur streaking through the trees. Kakashi had been startled to realize that it was a very small child, maybe three or four years old, who was apparently running for his life if the panting gasps and whimpers were any kind of indicator. Hot on his tail were a group of drunken villagers, screaming for the death of the "Demon Kyuubi Child". Horrified realization dawned on the ANBU as his eye flicked back to the yellow haired boy just as a branch snapped beneath his small bare foot, sending the son of his hero crashing head over heels towards the ground and awaiting mob.

Sometimes, your body just moves without thinking.

That night, Naruto had learned that somewhere out there, was a man in a Dog mask who would kill to protect him. Kakashi had stormed the Hokage tower followed by a barely conscious child clinging to the back of his largest ninken, and demanded that the boy be placed in a different orphanage. Naruto's disheveled state and poor nourishment was appalling. The Hokage had instantly made the necessary moves and fired the matron who had been feeding him the false reports on Naruto's welfare. Kakashi had spent the rest of the night sitting in the rain before the etched names of the memorial stone, begging Kushina-senpai's forgiveness for allowing his own grief to blind him, and failing to guard her son.

Kakashi shuddered to think of her rage if she could see how badly the system had failed her child. An image came to mind, of nine thick strands of bright red hair, waving like the flames of hell around a seething kunoichi as she cracked her knuckles menacingly, preparing to unleash righteous judgment on all who dared to lay a hand on her precious boy.

Bastards would've deserved it.

Over the years, keeping an eye on the Fourth's Legacy had become his own personal mission, one which his pack of ninken had ferociously adopted. Watching the way the boy tackled all his problems with an unfailing determination while continuing to wear that sunny grin had helped to redeem the broken Copy Ninja by restoring his faith in the human condition one small step at a time. A chance encounter with Jiraya-sama, who had also stopped by to check on Naruto during one of his rare visits to The Leaf, had not only allied the two shinobi as co-conspirators in the little knucklehead's unofficial protection squad, but had reintroduced Kakashi to his hidden love of literature. Because Icha Icha was totally not smut. It was literary art of the highest caliber. Dangerous missions still found the silver haired ANBU out of the village as much as he was within it these days, but his hands held a small orange book more often than a kunai.

It was a great way to deter people from trying to socialize with him. Because no matter how far he had come in chipping away at his hardened heart, there were still some ignorant civilians out there that he would rather pretend did not exist.

"Pakkun," the lazy drawl of his voice didn't fool the pug. "I have a message for you to deliver to the Hokage for me before you head home."

The ninken grinned in a display of sharp teeth, easily reading between the lines and approving. "No problem, but I better see some extra pork in my bowl the next time I visit. The Pup nearly barbecued me with the last trap he had rigged around his little den in the woods. Kid is getting kinda scary with his newer creations. You shinobi need to be more careful about where you leave your explosive tags lying around."

Sunlight flashed off pale gray hair as the ANBU bent to scratch behind the dog's ears. "You know," murmured almost to himself, "Minato-sensei was one of the most underestimated ninja of the Third War, until the world saw what he could do for themselves." His dark eye creased up into a happy expression. "Nice to know that the apple hasn't fallen far from the tree."

In the distance the loud echoes of a deep voice, boisterously shouting about the "youthful nascence of morning exercise" was picked up by Kakashi's sensitive ears. It seemed to be originating from the direction of a certain spandex wearing jonin's favorite exercise route for his daily laps around the village.

"Welp, time to get scarce. Ja ne!"

Pakkun chuckled as he leapt through the swirl of leaves left in the wake of Kakashi's shunshin. "Baka, forgot to get his groceries."


Hizashi slid the stack of Branch House reports onto his brother's desk before standing back to wait for the necessary signatures. As usual, Hiashi took his time before acknowledging his existence. The barely older twin had never been one to miss an opportunity to remind others of his position of authority.

To say that tensions were high between the two scions of the Hyuga Clan was like saying the Kyuubi was a bit grumpy. Hizashi had made it a point to stay away from the newly married man, intent on keeping himself and Hinata out of sight and out of mind. His daughter had informed him of her "discovery" of the oh-so-Honorable Wife's pregnancy, and anticipating his brother to be as close to experiencing a good mood as he was physically able, Hizashi had sought out this opportunity to surreptitiously slip his own agenda onto the table.

Hiashi flipped through the neatly organized papers, scrutinizing them for any tiny error that he could expose. As usual, there were none to be found in the meticulous rows of calculations and reports. He swiftly began to scribble his name across the few pages that required his written approval, pausing as he came to one halfway through the stack.

"What is this?"

"An enrollment form for the ninja academy. Nothing you haven't signed every year."

Hiashi shot his brother a look from under scowling brows at the dismissive tone, but pushed his point. "There is only one candidate. Usually we send at least three, do we not? We cannot have the Hyuga viewed as lacking in strength."

Hizashi bit his tongue to keep the retort that the self styled Master of the Hyuga himself was far behind his peer group in terms of procreation, and simply replied, "The influenza outbreak a few years back seems to have hit this generation harder than we thought."

"Hn."

The two stared at each other for a beat, trying to read the cracks in the other's mask for any tells of underhandedness. Hiashi, seemingly satisfied that he was not being deceived by the Branch subordinate, dipped his brush into the ink once more.

Hizashi held in his sigh of relief as the Clan Head dismissively signed the release and moved onto the next document. Concluding his review, Hiashi smartly stacked the papers on his desk before thrusting them back at his twin without bothering to make eye contact. Executing a curt bow Hizashi quickly departed, pleased that he would be able to reassure his daughter that she had been given permission to attend the academy, free and clear.

When Hinata had first come to him with her request, he had initially been worried for his gentle daughter's welfare. He was intimately familiar with the hard life that awaited a shinobi, it was demanding and filled with conflict. Hinata's existence had been one of such emotional turmoil in recent weeks that he worried about her being able to withstand the additional physical strain of the necessary brutal training. But yesterday, on Neji's request, he had followed his son into the small clearing outside the clan grounds to find Hinata and Naruto-kun, of all people, engaged in a lively spar that had both the children grinning and sweating as they traded blows.

His petite daughter was attacking with confidence and taking her hits with grace. The hyperactive blond was surprisingly quick and pressing his advantage, but she was fluid, dodging as often as she was struck. The thing that had the father's jaw dropping was her face. She was flushed with the healthy glow of exercise, her face frowning in concentration but breaking out into open delight whenever she managed to land a hit.

Then, the supposedly useless heiress did something that had the seasoned Shinobi letting out an unguarded gasp of shock. With a shout and a hand sign, her Byakugan flared to life halfway through the little match and suddenly the two children were meeting each other blow for blow.

Naruto-kun was dancing around her fast as lightning, and not pulling any punches on his female opponent. His hits landed solidly, if a bit sloppily, and his form was rather chaotic to say the least. Hinata was twisting away from the wild hail of blows while protecting her vulnerable points and strategically landing her palm strikes wherever she could find an opening. Her attacks lacked the power and speed of the boy's, but her precision was reaping its own rewards as she focused her bloodline on his tenketsu and finally hit her mark, leaving his right arm hanging limply by his side.

"Gah! You got me again Hime! Shit that hurts!"

"Language Naruto-kun," her soft voice scolded mildly, "Come here, let me fix it for you." As ferociously as the two had been attacking each other they instantly shifted gears and Hinata neatly poked him again, allowing his chakra to flow freely once more. Naruto grinned as he shook the feeling back into his hand, before reaching out to perform the sign of reconciliation.

Naruto held up his fingers and wiggled them experimentally. "Man Hime, once you go into Byakugan mode you're damn deadly."

Hinata blushed a bit and poked her fingertips together at his exuberant praise. "S-sorry Naruto-kun, but you are getting better at guarding your openings."

"No worries, it wouldn't be any fun if you went easy on me," The rambunctious boy cheekily bumped her shoulder with his own to prompt her back to the middle of the ring they had carved into the dirt "C'mon, best out of three!"

Hizashi had blinked once, then twice before looking at Neji, who was standing smugly by his side with his arms crossed, trying and failing miserably to keep his pride from lighting up his face. The surprised father reciprocated the feeling full force with a smart clap to the back of his son's shoulder, knocking him off balance with a chuckle.

"You've done well Neji. They're both a testament to their teacher."

Neji huffed at the rough show of praise but nodded his thanks. Trying to deflect attention away from the pleased blush on his own face he said, "I should get a salary for having to deal with Naruto. He's like a wild wind that never stops blowing or randomly changing direction, and just blasts whoever is in his path. Hinata-imouto never has to be told anything twice before she has grasped its concept, but her instincts could use some work. Her Byakugan though," Neji lowered his voice, and if Hizashi didn't know any better he'd say there was a note of awe in the boy's tone. "She sees remarkably clearly for one who has just awakened her bloodline. She was hitting Naruto's tenketsu within a week. Although it took some coaxing from him to convince her to go all out and put her full strength into it. Soon I plan on starting them on basic chakra control exercises."

The older Hyuga did not miss the change in honorifics that Neji used when addressing the other two children, and inwardly smiled with pleasure. Naruto had always preferred to be casually addressed, although he never corrected Hinata when she added the "-kun" onto his name. Hizashi knew Hinata had not told her "Niisan" about the recently discovered legitimacy of the affectionate honorific she had always used to address him, but was pleased to see Neji relaxing his rigid manners around the girl and returning the sisterly endearment. The vigilant boy had always regarded the dainty girl in the same way one would observe a pretty doll on display, a thing to be admired and protected. He had always staunchly insisted on addressing her by the appropriate use of "-sama" ever since he was a child. The softening of his stoic approach towards her ever since she had been cast aside by the Main House was a testament to his growing care for the strong girl.

The spar ended abruptly when the unpredictable Naruto had somehow whirled past Hinata's defenses and managed to knock her to the ground with an "oof". She waved off his apologies and assistance, popping back up quickly and challenging him to round three. Instantly the two were back at it with renewed vigor for the tie breaking match.

"Otou-san," Neji turned to face his father, a serious demeanor settling over him. "I wanted to ask you, there is something...unique, about Naruto's chakra network. I didn't notice it myself until Hinata-imotou pointed it out when she compared his to my own." Hizashi's eyebrow creased as he guessed where this turn in the conversation was going, but did not interrupt the boy's assessment.

"His flow is...fast and chaotic, and he just seems to have more of it. A lot more, actually. One time he reopened a tenketsu completely unintentionally by just flaring his chakra during an intense spar with myself. And all without even realizing what he had done. He's completely a creature of instinct. I've never fought anyone in the academy like him. And sometimes it seems he is the one with eyes in the back of his head. I don't believe he realizes how unique his chakra is, and I have no idea what to tell him."

Hizashi took all this in, immediately recognizing the signs of potential influence from the Kyuubi, combined with his Namikaze/Uzumaki heritage. He activated his Byakugan and studied Naruto as he once again bested the fatiguing girl with a swift swipe of his leg that she could not quite dodge. The growing child jabbered animatedly with Hinata as he tried to help her brush the dust off of her back, and a bit lower, before she squeaked and twisted away while turning red. The humorously oblivious boy showed no signs of any darkness within, his whole being was happy and bright. According to reports from both his children, even when he was frustrated Naruto never lashed out at his friends. In fact he was fiercely protective of them, like an animal guarding his pack. Lately he had insisted on taking over the role of accompanying Hinata into the village for her errands. It would seem that the faith of the Yondaime had not been misplaced by entrusting that his child could contain the intense hatred of the Nine Tailed Demon, despite being given numerous provocations to unleash its wrath upon his fellow man.

His peace of mind confirmed, Hizashi deactivated his bloodline. "It will bear watching as he grows and gains more control of his chakra," he acknowledged his son's observations but kept his tone light and conclusions vague when continuing. "But remember, Naruto-kun doesn't know anything about his origins. There could be an explanation in his family history that he is not aware of which could justify such unique traits. In the mean time, I see no harm in continuing to train with him. You all have improved far beyond my expectations."

At this point they both noticed the subject of their scrutiny suddenly freeze and start swiveling his head around as if looking for something. His blue eyes fixed on the two partially concealed Hyuga and he happily tapped Hinata on the shoulder and directed her attention their way.

Neji caught his father's eye with a look that said "see what I mean?" and they began walking towards the aspiring little ninjas. Feelings of pride and protectiveness filled Hizashi as he surveyed the promising children that were blossoming before his very eyes. A sudden thought dawned on the father, and a dark eyebrow raised as he observed the way his daughter was giggling at her friend.

"Neji, since when has he called her Hime?"