Chapter 13 – Graduation & Revelations

It was now time for the group to take their final exams. Everyone was excited and ready to pass the test to become ninja. As they entered and awaited the test to begin, someone entered the classroom and all conversation stopped. They all looked at the person and was surprised who it was. Naruto looked at the class who was looking at him.

"What the hell are you looking at?" Naruto asked irate. Everyone looked for a little while before going back to their conversation. Naruto took his seat while Kiba was chuckling. He glared at him before sulking.

"Would you stop pouting Naruto? So, they got you new clothes and forced you to wear it. Just man up and deal with it." Shikamaru stated. Naruto looked at his new clothes. He now wore a sleeve blue shirt with orange trim with a funnel-like collar. It was accompanied with blue trousers that are orange from the knee down and just a little short of being full length pants. Attached to the pants, were some holders that Naruto could put scrolls in.

"I don't have an issue with the clothes. I just don't understand why each of your mothers took all my good clothes and burned them. Then, they dragged me around, forcing me to wear clothes and dragging me back to my apartment. Oh, did I mention that they burned all my clothes?" Naruto snarled.

"Well, you were being unreasonable. It also didn't help when you said to them, 'you and what army?'" Choji answered. Naruto just continued to pout as Iruka and Mizuki entered the class room. When Iruka saw Naruto, he gave the blond a smirk. Naruto growled because Iruka refused to help him from the crazy women. Iruka just began the test.

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Naruto stood in front of the two instructors and waited. He was really eager to show the two what he had for them. The written part of the test was a breeze for him due to the tutoring that Yoshino gave him. He would have to thank her for all her help. The physical exercises were also easy for him due to his training with the Inuzuka clan. He was a little sour that he was third behind Sasuke but it was made up by Kiba who was number one. Then there was a mission part of the exam that was new. It was a really hard mission that he had to write a report about. He thought that he did well.

Now it was time for the ninjutsu part. Naruto took a breath and relaxed. Iruka just looked at him and hoped that he would pass. He did notice how hard he worked and was very proud of him. He had done the first two jutsu with ease, so he curious as to how well he can do the Clone Jutsu.

"Okay Naruto, the next jutsu." Iruka said. Naruto nodded and does a few hand seals. Both instructors noticed that these were not the hand seals for the Clone Jutsu. Naruto finished his seals and called out his jutsu.

"Leaf Clone Jutsu!" Naruto called out. In a swirl of leaves, two perfect copies of Naruto appeared. Iruka was happy but curious about this jutsu.

"Naruto, could you explain this jutsu of yours?" Iruka asked.

"Well, why don't you find out? Just punch the clone and you will see the greatness of my original jutsu." Naruto said with a smile. Iruka stood and made his way to the clone. He threw a punch that connected with the clones. The clone exploded and Iruka had to cover his eyes. Leaves circled him and blinded him from view. That's when he felt the tip of a kunai to his back. The leaves settled and Iruka was very impressed.

"Naruto that was an incredible jutsu! You created it?" Iruka asked.

"Yep, two years of hard work and research finally paid off. I have another one if you want me to show you." Naruto said.

"No, no, no, you have shown enough Naruto." Iruka said. He grabbed a forehead protector but he stopped and turned back to Naruto. He then undid his forehead protector and knelt down. He surprises Naruto by tying it to his forehead. Naruto looked at his teacher who just smiled. "You've done really well. I'm proud of you Naruto." Naruto nodded and hugged Iruka. He then ran out of the room cheering and laughing about his passing the exam.

Unknown to the two of them, Mizuki was annoyed and disgusted with the scene. He also cursed the fact that Naruto passed his test. While he would admit that his jutsu was impressive, it messed with his plans. He now had to do this on his own.

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It was night time and the party at the Inuzukas was in full swing. Naruto and Kiba were having a fun time and Shino was just sitting quietly. Tsume watched with a smile as she was happy for the boys. She was very proud of them and how far that they have come since they met all those years ago. She was also very happy that the elders were very supportive of the friendship. They even allowed her to give Naruto a tattoo that symbolized that he was an ally of the Inuzuka. That meant that they could legally help Naruto if someone came after him. Tsume would protect the young blond from all that would do him harm. She would do anything for her son and surrogate son.

Tsume just watched with a smile as the three boys just continued to party.

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Around the same time, a figure slowly opened the window to the Hokage's private library. They slowly entered the room and closed the window behind him. He did not make a sound as he made his way to the scroll that held the most powerful jutsu. Once he took this scroll to his master, he would be given power like he always dreamed. As he was about to reach for the scroll, his body froze up. He tried to move but he just couldn't. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw markings on his arm. He was wondering what the hell this was. That's when the lights went on.

Since he couldn't move, he did not see who it was until they were right in front of him. When they saw who it was, they were scared at the glare of the Third Hokage. Hiruzen just looked at the man in front of him and grunted.

"I always knew that there was something wrong with you Mizuki. Your will was always so corrupted and I should have kept you away from the future of this village. I will not make the same mistake again." Hiruzen said.

"But how?" Mizuki asked.

"I've had a new security system put into the tower. It is very simple but very good at catching traitors. In fact, you know the person who put this in. You have tried to sabotage him secretly for years until he made friends with some clan heirs." Hiruzen said with a grin.

"That demon created this? How can you trust that thing with our safety?" Mizuki snarled.

"I trust Naruto because despite bigots like you, he still wishes to protect this village. He has more loyal and love for this village than has scorned him since the day of his birth. I trust Naruto because like his father and mother, his 'Will of Fire' burns brightly will each passing year. Your fire, however, has come to an end." Hiruzen said. Two ANBU arrive and appear on either side of Mizuki. "Tell Ibiki to do what he must, no restrictions. I know that this was not his doing alone. Also, let him know that Mizuki was one of those people who attempted to hold back a potential Hokage." There was a chuckle from the ANBU before they took Mizuki away. Hiruzen reset the security system before leaving the library.

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Naruto was in Hiruzen's office, sipping on some tea. His receptionist gave it to him because Naruto was suffering from a minor hangover. Apparently, Kiba had sunk into his mother's liquor cabinet and gotten some of her stash. Lucky, they were not too drunk as they were caught by the woman. Hiruzen found it quite funny.

After another sip, Naruto turned his attention to Hiruzen.

"So, you said that you wanted to let me know something?" Naruto asked.

"Yes, I have three things to tell you. The first thing I will get out of the way quickly. Your messaging system has been reviewed and implemented. The head of the department will be requesting your help something soon but it really impressed everyone at the meeting. I will be setting up an account for you so that you will be compensated for your hard work." Hiruzen said.

"Thanks for that old man. What are the other two things?" Naruto asked. He watched as Hiruzen got serious.

"The second thing I would like to tell you is something that is very serious Naruto. I wasn't really going to tell you until you were a little older. However, I believe that you deserve to know." Naruto was confused and sat up straight. "What I am about to tell you will shed some light on why you have been treated unfairly." Hiruzen explained.

"You… You know why I've been treated unfairly?"

"Yes, I do. It goes back to your birth, the day of the Nine-Tail's attack. What you and your generation are taught is that the Fourth Hokage defeated the Nine-Tail Fox. The truth is Naruto, is that the fox was not defeated but sealed." Naruto looked a little confused and wondered what could contain the strongest demon alive. That's when he remembered an incident while he was training. When he was doing chakra control exercises with Kiba and Hinata, Kiba noticed a tattoo on his stomach. He saw it and was amazed that it faded when he stopped channeling chakra. That's when it final hit him.

"The fox was sealed within me? That tattoo on my stomach is actually a seal?" Naruto asked with shock. Hiruzen nodded. Naruto was starting to panic a little. "But why me? What makes me so special? Did my parents give me up knowing that I was chosen?"

"That leads me to my third thing. The truth is that the Nine-tails has been entrusted to your clan since the reign of the First Hokage." Naruto's eyes went wide at that. "The first container was the wife of the First, Mito Uzumaki. When Mito was nearing the end of her life, your mother, Kushina Uzumaki, was chosen by the clan and Konoha to be the next container. She had a special chakra that was able to restrain the demon fox. You are the third container only because something happened during your birth that caused the release of the fox." Hiruzen explained.

"My birth? So, the village was right about me?" Naruto said sadly.

"No, they aren't. I know for a fact that someone caused the release. We took every precaution because we knew that when a female container goes through birth, their seal weakens. We had a top seal master with your mother the day of your birth. Someone was there to distract them from keeping the fox from escaping. For years, I have been investigating because that led to the death of my wife. Whoever was there did so with ease." Hiruzen explained. Naruto nodded at that.

"So because I had Uzumaki blood, the Fourth Hokage used me to seal the fox?" he asked.

"With the blessing of your mother and father. It wasn't that they did not love you Naruto. In fact, they died saving you from certain death during the sealing. They loved your very much and were very happy to have you. If they were still alive, they would shower you with the love that you deserve." Hiruzen said. Naruto sniffled before turning his head away. Hiruzen watched as Naruto rubbed his eyes. He turned back when he composed himself. They stayed in the room in silence until Naruto spoke.

"Thanks for telling me old man. I just need to process all this." He said.

"I understand. I will leave you to your thoughts." Hiruzen said, excusing Naruto. The blond nodded and left the office. Was he was sure that Naruto had gone, Hiruzen let out a sigh. It was the hardest thing that he had to do today. While he did not lie to the boy, he did not tell him everything. There were somethings he had to keep from him. However, he felt that with everything he just told the blond, he would end up hating the Fourth Hokage for what he did to him. That was not something he wanted.

He turned to look at the picture of the man and sighed sadly.

"I hope that he will not hate you Minato. I hope that he understands that you could not ask anyone to sacrifice their child if you couldn't do it. I hope that Naruto does not grow to hate you, his father.

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