Disclaimer: I don't own anything except the OC

A/N: I would like to thank everyone who added this story to their favorites and follows as well as everyone who reviewed the last chapter. I apologized for the delay but the reactions in this chapter was hard for me to write, alongside the delay on my computer being repaired. Like it has been stated, the story could be treated as crack and shouldn't be taken seriously.


Previously:

Izuku raised his hand. "I will do it."

Now:

Naruto handed the book over to Izuku before making her way back to her seat. Are they going to show another memory? She hoped not. Everyone from her grandmother to down to a stranger seemed to believe all of her non-existent problems were from her childhood. It was not like she had the worst childhood in the room.

I wonder how Eri-chan is doing. She stretched her hands and fixated her eyes on her parents before flickering her eyes at her cousin and his family. People always told her that Bakugou and her shared similar features and the explanation was that he was her family. What would it have been like for her to be raised alongside him?

He would probably make my life hell because I don't have a Quirk.

"This is going to be your new home, Naru-chan."

Naruto gazed wide-eyed at the sight of the empty apartment, drinking in the sight of the place that she could finally call her own. The walls were bare and there was very little furniture in the living room. There was some dust on the floor but she didn't mind. People would have been appalled by the conditions but to the six-year-old, she felt both joy and sadness.

"You couldn't give her a better apartment!" Kushina demanded, narrowing her eyes at the Third Hokage. The man gulped as Narumi raised her made-shift bat at him. Her father curled his lips into a frown while Mitsuki and Masaru narrowed their eyes at him. "You could have given her our old apartment!"

The Third Hokage coughed. "Well your apartment was and still needs a lot of maintenance."

"It will probably be ready by the time Naruto turns 18," Tsunade commented, shaking her head. Naruto blinked and raised her eyebrows at the Fifth Hokage. The woman rubbed the back of her neck and glanced at Jiraiya. "Your previously landlord can't wait for you to come back and considering everything, Jiraiya and me decided to let you go back there."

Jiraiya nodded. "You need your own space and if you are anything like your Mom—"

"I dare you to finish that sentence," her mother barked with flushed cheeks. Naruto blinked and darted her eyes to her red-faced father. Bile rose up to her throat as her aunt snickered at the comment. Too much information! I don't need to know that! Fugaku seemed to have agreed with her line of thoughts because he glared at Izuku.

"I wish I can give you a better apartment, Naru-chan but this was the only apartment that I can find in such short notice."

Naruto looked away from the couch and stared at the Hokage. The old man stared at her with sad eyes, looking almost grandfatherly to her. She didn't mind the conditions of the apartment. Naruto had slept in a box. This was nicer than the box, but it was not as nice as the old man's house.

"Well if you make that kind of comparison then yeah I can see how it seem nice," Kaminari commented, looking at her apartment with disgust. Naruto thinned her lips while Hinata inspected the apartment on the screen. Shikamaru and Choji exchanged glances while Kiba just gawked at her.

Sasuke eyed her apartment on the screen. "You have been living in the same apartment for seven years."

"I did an amazing job of redecorating it! I told you that you should let me decorate your apartment when the Old Man gave you your apartment," Naruto said with a sigh. Sakura and Ino blinked while Mikoto and Fugaku exchanged glances before shaking their head. Shikamaru and Choji only blinked wolfishly while Hinata chuckled.

Her childhood friend rolled his eyes. "I'm not going to an orange-painted room."

"Do you really believe I would have painted your apartment in my favourite colour?"

Sasuke stared at her. "You were pissed with me that day and Hyuga and I both know what you are capable of doing when you are upset. I wasn't going to risk my new apartment being turned into a house of horror."

"I wouldn't have painted orange," Naruto hummed. "I was going to paint it blue but since you are gone now, I think I will paint it pink."

Sasuke's eyes widened. "You wouldn't d—"

"I stole your underwear and sold it to one of your fangirls," Naruto chirped. Aizawa and Narumi exchanged glances before slacking their jaws at her. Tsunade pinched her nose while her mother and Mikoto snorted. "So yes, I would dare."

Aizawa took a deep breath. "Why did you steal his underwear?"

"I wanted the extra cash," Naruto answered, digging her finger inside of her ear. Bakugou inched further away from her while Izuku stared at her with wide eyes. Ashido and Hagakure exchanged glances and the pink-skinned girl curled her lips into a smile. "You will be surprised how hormonal 10-year-old girls are!"

A girl had to make a living after all.

She liked the old man's house. His son was kind, giving her piggyback rides and swinging her around and his wife was just as nice. The lady taught her how to braid her long hair and how to comb her hair. His grandson was funny, always smiling at her and tugging her hair.

They eased the ache in her heart.

She pushes the corner of her cheek. "Old man, why can't I stay with you? Or with your son's family?"

"If I allowed Hibiki to take you in then Danzo would have found a way to restrict your freedom," The Third Hokage explained. Naruto raised an eyebrow while her grandmother and mother snorted. Hinata rolled her eyes while everyone else flickered their eyes between them. "He isn't known for being kind. He is a very petty man and would have found excuses for why you should be isolated."

Kushina eyed him. "If I didn't know that those chains will restrain me, I would try to kill you."

"Can you actually kill a dead person?" Todororki asked, furrowing his eyebrows together.

Naruto frowned. "I don't think you can kill a dead person but maybe my mom can just do it in an endless cycle?"

The Hokage hesitated and tilted his hat downwards, not allowing her to see his eyes. The man could not avoid looking at her. She knelt down, tilted her head to the side and blinked at the sight of the pain in his brown eyes. Why is he hurting? Naruto tugged on his sleeves and the man blinked at the sight of her.

"If you are in pain then you deserve it," Mitsuki muttered, glaring at the Third Hokage. Masaru thinned his lips and shook his head while Narumi pinched her nose. Naruto pressed her lips into a frown while everyone else from Japan bobbed their heads in agreement. It was not that big of a deal if you asked her.

He had been so much better than some of the adults in her life.

She would lie and tell him that she was joking. She didn't mind the apartment. It was her home. There was never a single thing Naruto could call her own. The orphanage believed in the idea of sharing everything, except she was never allowed to play with the toys. Until the incident, the other children would tried to sneak in some toys with her.

"It kinda makes you think how lucky you are to have your parents," Hagakure commented. Several of their future classmates bobbed their heads in agreement while Sasuke eyed Sakura, who flinched, before looking at her. Naruto shrugged her shoulders and took a deep breath. It didn't matter to her what her teammate believed because she was fine.

Naruto cleared her throat. "If your parents are good to you and love you then yes, you're right but if your parents hurt you then I would consider myself lucky."

The Suna siblings exchanged glances and bobbed their heads in agreement.

"There are certain people that won't like it if you stay with me," The Hokage explains gently. "This will be your new home, Naru-chan. I know it isn't much but you are always welcome to visit me or my son and his family. Our doors are always open to you."

Naruto nodded and looked out at the window. Why don't they want me? She wanted to know if there was something wrong with her. She didn't make any problems. She played very well with Konohamaru. Was it because she was a bad girl? Naruto promised to be a good girl. Why must they care what people think? What about her and her feelings? She nibbled her lip.

"Naruto-chan," Hinata whispered as everyone turned to look at her. Her best-friend gazed at her with such sad eyes that it made her stomach roll around with guilt. What could she say? This was the thoughts of her childhood self. "Why didn't you tell me about this? You never told me that you and Konohamaru were close because of this."

Naruto exhaled. "I didn't think it was a big deal, Hinata-chan."

"You know what I don't understand?" Ino asked, eyeing the blonde. Naruto raised an eyebrow at her fellow blond, who gazed at the screen with scrutinizing eyes. "If you and the Third Hokage's grandson are so close, why do you always yell at him? And why do you always encourage his bad behaviour? You never treated him like he was someone precious."

"Konohamaru is kinda of a spoiled brat," Naruto answered, rolling her eyes. Ino blinked while everyone else turned around to focus their eyes on her. "And I encouraged him to do those pranks because he was nine. Nine-year-olds should have fun and not grow up so quickly and I don't treat him like he is some kind of royalty because Konohamaru needs to understand that he needs to earn it."

Sakura stared at her. "Does he think if he can get you to date him then he earn it?"

"Konohamaru has a childish crush that will go away when he is older," Naruto stated. "He only has a crush on me because of the fact that romantic stereotype: you're the first girl to ever hit me."

Todoroki blinked. "I thought it only happens in comics."

"I wish," Naruto grumbled. "Konohamaru hasn't stopped asking me for dates since that happened. It was cute but if he keeps it up then I will have to break his heart."

The old man didn't make her go back to the orphanage and Naruto thought that was a win for her.

"Thank you, Old Man." Naruto beamed and the man faltered at her words. His eyes radiated some coldness, the same kind of coldness that the villagers gave her, but Naruto acts like she didn't see it. He was kind to her, treated her so much better than the matron, and so she ignored it. She can pretend that maybe he loves her like she loves him.

"You noticed it," The Third Hokage stated, looking absolutely horrified. Naruto nodded and looked away as black eyes gleamed with regret. She might have been young but she had always been able to tell when someone didn't truly like her. Her grandmother clenched her jaws together while her parents narrowed their eyes at him. "Naruto, it was nothing—"

"I carried the beast that killed your beloved wife," Naruto said dully. Her grandmother clenched her jaws together as her own mother closed her eyes. Her father looked down at his hands while everyone else looked at her. "I told you that day that I understand if you hated me. You are only human too but at least you didn't make me go through the matron again."

"It was difficult but I knew you didn't ask for it," The Hokage informed her.

She wants to live in a world where someone actually loves her and it wasn't wrong for her to think that maybe the kind, old man can grow to love her.

So Naruto smiled widely and pretends she was not scared of the slight coldness in his eyes. No one with cold eyes would treat her so nicely, would let her live with them for a week, if they didn't care for her. It was the logic of a six-year-old. The desire to have at least one person cared for her was enough for her to ignore that something was never right with what he did.

"Naruto, I don't know what—"

"Just don't say anything," Naruto said flatly. Her parents exchanged glances as the Third Hokage looked at her with regretful eyes. She took a deep breath and gazed up at the ceiling. Her stupid heart ached because this stupid book brought out memories that she didn't ever want to remember. "What the hell can you say? Sorry? I should have made things right? All of that is too late."

Her grandmother gazed at her. "If your father had grown some balls then I would have taken care of you, and you wouldn't have to accept that you deserve less."

Minato only winced while her mother threw a look that screamed: told you so.

"I will give you money, Naru-chan and you can use that money to buy whatever you want," Hiruzen informed her. The coldness in his eyes fades slightly, replaced with warmth that made Naruto feel kind of funny. "I will come this Friday to visit you, Naru-chan."

Naruto smiled and doesn't dare ask him to come and visit her more. She looked around her new apartment, trying to think of all the ways she could make it feel like home. Those white walls could be painted orange and the balcony seems large enough for her to put some plants. I wanna have some tulips. She doesn't know why but she really wanted those flowers.

"Keisuke loved to garden," Minato explained. Naruto blinked and swirled her head at her father. The blond-haired man took a deep breath and looked at the screen with a tiny, sad smile. Her grandmother only thinned her lips. "Tulips were her favourite flowers and since she took care of you, I believe that tulips subconsciously reminds you of her."

Ino blinked and knitted her eyebrows before glancing at Naruto. "Do you really garden?"

"Yeah, why do you think I come to your store to buy those seeds?" She asked, raising a single eyebrow at her former classmate. Ino looked away and the whiskered teen clicked her tongue before letting out a sigh. "Do you really believe I would waste so much money to buy those seeds just to pull a prank?"

"Well you certainly didn't give off the impression that you liked doing anything feminine," Ino replied. Several of the people from Konoha bobbed their head alongside Kankuro and Temari. Todoroki regarded her with curious eyes and Naruto just looked away as the Yamanaka heiress continued on. "Why on Earth would I jump to conclusion that you do gardening?"

Aizawa just stared at her. "Because that would have been the most logical reason."

The Hokage watched her and tilted his hat downwards again.

She stared at him and thinks that it was okay if the old man didn't love her. Naruto did not love him either but he saved her from the cold streets. He gave her a place that could hide her from those hateful eyes, and for that Naruto was just grateful for him.

"Wait a second, you don't actually love the Hokage?" Sakura demanded. Everyone turned their head around and fixed their attention on the frowning pink-haired girl. Naruto paused and just tilted her head at her teammate. Does it matter? She didn't know. "You and Konohamaru were the most upset over the Hokage's death."

Naruto sighed. "The Hokage saved me from the streets and for that I'm always going to be grateful for him. We also spend time together and he was the one to encourage my dream when you and every other kid in the village made fun of it."

"Shikamaru and me didn't make fun of it!" Choji protested.

You definitely didn't have those thoughts but I know Shikamaru like the back of my hand. She hummed and stretched her body, hissing when her back cracked from the tension. That felt amazing. Black eyes gazed at her with suspicion and Naruto flashed a fake smile at Shikamaru before locking her gaze on the screen.

"I know you never even think of my dream being impossible," Naruto finally agreed. She fixed her gaze on Shikamaru and allowed the smile to fade. Thinning her lips, the blonde continued on. "But I definitely know that Shikamaru over there, thinks that because of my horrible grades and the fact that I was born a girl…meant that my dream is impossible."

Shikamaru frowned. "How did you jump to that conclusion?"

"You've always been logical even if you were too lazy to get on your ass and actually put an effort into our schoolwork," Naruto explained dryly. Ino and Sakura exchanged surprised glances while Hinata quirked her lips into a smile. "You probably presume that I'm not that smart because of my schoolwork, and since you are a sexist man…you probably won't be happy if I actually become Hokage."

Honestly he was quite easy for her to read.

She could learn how to love the old man and just pray that the old man could grow to love her.

"You can't force yourself to love someone," her grandmother informed her. Naruto blinked. Fugaku bobbed his head in agreement and kept his face focused on the changing scene while Mikoto winced. Ah, right…Mikoto-obaachan had no choice but to get married. She tilted her head when her grandmother locked eyes on the Hokage. "You're under no obligation to love that old man."

Naruto nodded. "I know but…he was better than some people in the village."

"Now Naru-chan, you shouldn't compare the Third Hokage to people who were horrible to you," Kushina stated. She clenched her jaw and threw a heated glare at the old man before looking back at her. "You should always compare him to people who treated you better. Now who treated you better…Mikoto-chan or the Third?"

"You know the answer was going to be Mikoto-obachan!"

Kushina grinned.

Naruto took a deep breath and stared at her slightly opened bedroom door. From the slight opening, she could make out the shape of Eri clinging to the pillows like it was her lifeline. It was a good thing Eri was asleep. The girl probably would not be happy to see that she was gone. The young girl followed her everywhere, did not want to sleep in the free bedroom that Naruto had.

The blue-eyed teen grimaced and rubbed her jaw. I guess she wants reassurance that I won't abandon her and that everything that happened was real. She bobbed her head. That had been the same reaction she made after the Third Hokage rescued her from the streets. She clung to his oldest son and his family like there was no tomorrow.

"She looks so adorable!" Uraraka cried. "I just wanna hug her and squeeze her!"

Naruto sighed. "I think you should do that when she is comfortable with people again."

Naruto didn't push her. It was strange to be living free from the person that abused you. You would always think it was like some kind of strange dream, always having that irrational fear that person would just come back to hurt you. Naruto wanted to stay by Eri's side.

"You know how you said that the matron never abused you?" Narumi asked. Naruto nodded and her grandmother eyed the screen with eyes filled with a growing irritation. "Well those lines inferred that she did abuse you because how would you know what Eri was going through if you never went through with it?"

The blue-eyed girl puffed her cheeks. "Maybe I have a Quirk that makes me able to empathize with people."

"No, that would be your observational skills," her father commented lightly. Naruto swirled her head at the Fourth Hokage, who eyed the screen with blank eyes and balled-up fist. Kushina grunted and clenched her jaw together. "It is becoming increasingly clear to me and everyone here that you've always been observant."

Kurenai frowned. "The only question is why did you never show it?"

"Why should I show it when you people should infer it?" Naruto retorted. Kurenai and Asuma blinked as the blonde regarded the jounins with blank eyes. She glanced at Sasuke, who grimaced, and then to Hinata. Her female best-friend sighed. "Do you honestly believe pulling those pranks meant I don't take the time to plan and observe? Pranks don't come out of nowhere."

Hinata nodded. "Kurenai-sensei, who do you think spilled Ino's crush on Sasuke? Naruto-chan knew about it from observation."

Sakura blinked and gawked at Naruto while Ino scowled.

She wanted to stay, but Naruto also had to go to school. If she could bring Eri with her then she would do it within a heartbeat, but the teachers would ask too many questions. They might take Eri away from her and put her in some orphanage.

"If you tell us that she is being abused by her family then the police would have put her in a family that will take good care of her," Aizawa informed her. Naruto blinked and thinned her lips while the black-haired man regarded her. "If we know that her family was apart of something dangerous then we would have heroes watching out for her."

The blonde eyed him. "How the hell am I supposed to know that? I've only my experience and you saw what happened to me. How can I just give her to someone and be certain that she won't get hurt?"

"You have to have faith," Izuku pointed out.

Orphanages were hell on earth.

Naruto took a deep breath and pressed her fingers together in a familiar hand-seal. An explosion took place and white smoke enveloped the whole living room. It was illegal for her to use her Chakra. The laws made it clear about the use of registered Quirks, but she would never get caught. It never happened before and it definitely would never happen now.

"You used your Quirk illegally?" Izuku demanded. Everyone from Japan swirled their heads at Naruto and the blonde shrugged her shoulders. Her father frowned and looked at her with concern eyes while her mother knitted her eyebrows together. "Why would you do that? And aren't you scared about people finding out?"

Bakugou snorted. "She has been doing it throughout middle school and no one noticed it because no one actually takes the time to noticed that she is being weird."

Wait a second, how the fuck does he know that? She eyed her half-cousin and then darted her eyes to Izuku. The older boy looked almost stumped at the fact that Bakugou was able to figure it out. If Naruto was being honest, she also had the desire to whip her head at him. Honestly, she thought she had been doing a good job.

"How the hell did you—"

"Your clones act nothing like you," Bakugou stated. "And seeing what you can do, it is easier to connect the dots. I've been trying to figure out how the fuck you can act so different in those specific days…and those clones gave me my answer."

She frowned. "And you didn't tell—"

"None of my fucking business," he retorted.

The smoke evaporated and fifteen copies of herself stood right in front of her. All of them looked exactly the same as her and in theory they acted just like her. But Naruto knew she occasionally had that one odd clone who acted differently from her. Sometimes she could spot them but right now, it was difficult for her to see if all of her clones would act just like her.

"You know if you did it in Japan, how do we know that you haven't done it in Konoha?" Sakura asked, furrowing her eyebrows together. Sasuke, Naruto and Hinata exchanged glances while Mikoto pressed her lips into a thin line. Narumi regarded Naruto carefully. "I mean you don't exactly follow the rules."

Naruto sighed. "I did it plenty of times."

"Did you know, Kakashi-sensei?" Sakura demanded, swirling her head at the silver-haired man. Do you honestly believe that if Kakashi-sensei knew then I could get away with it? She clicked her tongue as her parents swirled their heads at him. Their eyes narrowed, squinting at her former teacher like they hoped that he better not have known about it.

Her teacher shook his head. "It's the first time that I'm hearing it. Why would you do that?"

"Because I felt like it."

"What do you want us to do, Boss?" The clones asked in unison.

"You guys are going to henge yourselves into adults and get us other part-time jobs to pay for the expenses," Naruto declared. The clones nodded, followed her orders and charged out of the doors in their numerous disguises. She only relaxed when the door closed again and Naruto was alone in the house.

She flickered her eyes to Eri, tensing up when the girl shifted again and let out a small whimper. Any thought of making a clone and letting it take care of Eri was gone, disappeared in the wind. Naruto might be the last person to know how to raise kids but she knows what not to do. She could learn along the way and make a few mistakes.

All of the girls cooed at the sight before twisting their head at Naruto. The blonde kept her expression completely blank, unfaltering when Ino and Sakura looked at her with wide eyes. What? I'm a girl! I just don't like doing girly things. She clenched her jaw and cracked her knuckles. The two females gulped before looking away from her.

"W-Well you can't blame us for looking when you don't scream motherly! Or female!" Ino protested.

The blonde rolled her eyes. "I'll have you know that I can act like a girl when I want to! I just don't feel like being you!"

Shikamaru regarded the two blond-haired females and scooted away from them. Todoroki just gazed at Ino with unimpressed eyes while Kaminari, Kirishima and Mineta exchanged glances. Why the hell are they acting like they are in the middle of a warzone. She clicked her teeth and frowned when Todoroki cleared his throat.

"What does acting feminine have to do with being motherly?" Todoroki asked.

Narumi grunted. "I've no clue, kiddo but I do know that Minato's father was one hell of a sexist ass. It seems like a culture thing because I was definitely not feminine while I was growing up, and I have two kids."

"Kushina doesn't like feminine things either," Minato commented. Her mother bobbed her head and Mitsuki relaxed her shoulders. Masaru only chuckled and placed an arm around his wife's back. "But she was definitely motherly. You should have seen how happy she was when she was going to have Naruto over there."

Naruto won't mess this up.

"Shadow Clone Jutsu!"

A clone appeared and Naruto doesn't notice for one bit that the clone was smiling and excited, acting in a behaviour that was completely different from her. She could only focus on Eri-chan, worried that the sound would wake her up.

"You are going to go to school in my place. Make sure to copy all the notes and note down the due dates for any homework," Naruto said quietly. The clone grinned and nodded her head vigorously, before swinging her door open and charging through it.

Aizawa rubbed his forehead and took a deep breath before giving her an unimpressed look. What? I'm pretty sure that if he hadn't seen my plan then he would never figure it out. She clicked her tongue and cracked her knuckles while her parents offered her a frown. Her father rubbed his jaw and took a deep breath.

"You and me are going to have a talk about responsibility about your power," Aizawa said flatly. "And for your information, your little trick is definitely not going to work on me."

Naruto eyed him. "We're going to find out, aren't we?"

Naruto winced when the door slammed shut.

If I work sixteen part-time jobs then would it be enough for the expenses? Naruto sat down on the couch, pulled open the drawer in her coffee table and took out a small notepad and pencil. The cost of her rent was high but had been manageable with her part-time job. The instant ramen expenses would have to cut down. Eri-chan might not like it and Naruto didn't want to push her.

"You're really going to give up ramen for her?" Choji asked, frowning. Naruto bobbed her head and folded her arms against her chest before letting out another sigh. The brown-haired boy took a bite of his chips and gazed at her like he didn't know what to think of her. "You love your ramen! Why would you give it up?"

Naruto frowned. "Well she won't grow that much if I just give her ramen and she needs clothes…so I have to give up something."

"The world has definitely ended," Shikamaru said solemly.

She would need to buy Eri some toys because children liked toys. Eri might be upset if she didn't have any toys to play with, might even resent her if she ever makes friends and they tease her for not having any toys. The money in her bank account would be enough to get some toys. At worse, Naruto could always sneak into a casino and gamble.

"Were you ever bullied for not having toys?" Her mother asked softly. Her violet eyes shone with regret and worry, which only made the whiskered-teen looked down at her hands. What can I even tell her? She bit the inside of her cheek and looked away from the concern eyes of her mother. Heterochromatic eyes met her own and Naruto blinked at the level of understanding shining through his eyes.

She looked away from him and the blonde exhaled. "You can't change anything. Besides, kids are mean."

"I'm more interested to know where you learned to gamble!" Her father declared. Naruto blinked and frowned when those blue eyes flared up with irritation. She gulped and inched closer to Todoroki while Hinata eyed her in amusement. "If Kenji was still alive then I would blame him! He did have that terrible habit."

Her mother frowned. "C'mon Kenji-niisan would have enough sense to know not to teach our daughter how to gamble! Now if it was Ren-niisan then I would agree but Kenji-niisan isn't that irresponsible."

"I love you Kushina but Minato is right," Tsunade declared. Naruto blinked while her father let out a sigh. Mikoto looked faintly amused while Fugaku gazed at her mother with irritation. Why is he so irritated when they mentioned this Kenji guy? She scratched her head and rubbed the back of her neck before shaking her head.

The blue-eyed girl nodded and note down her options, before glancing again at Eri. But first we might need to get her some clothes. The clothes Eri had on her was not in good condition and made Naruto feel uneasy. So the first order of business after breakfast would be clothes.

Naruto blinked.

But how do you dress a little girl? Naruto undid her braid and rubbed her forehead. Did she make her wear a dress? But what if Eri didn't like it? Or did Eri like jeans? Naruto chewed on her bottom lip. What if Eri tells her that she hates the clothes Naruto buys for her? She was not exactly known for her fashion.

"You're actually…scared of what a little kid thinks of you?" Sakura asked in disbelief. Naruto scowled and looked away from the pink-haired girl while Hinata looked at her with amused eyes. This stupid book is really showing the sides of myself that I don't want people to see. She balled her hands into a fist.

"Well I don't want her to blame me," Naruto answered, rolling her eyes. She stretched her back and rested her head against the couch's pad. "And I don't want her to be bullied like I was because kids can't understand that not everyone has the same opportunity as them. Of course, you wouldn't understand that, would you Sakura?"

Sakura grinded her jaw. "Are you still being petty? Did you forget I was also being bullied too?"

"You only got bullied for having a large forehead," Naruto said flatly, letting out a little sigh. I really don't have the energy to deal with this bullshit again. She took a deep breath and rubbed the sides of her forehead. "I was getting bullied because all of you were upset that Sasuke paid attention to me. If you had your parents to comfort you then I had nothing, but I was actually not being petty."

Her parents glanced at each other before throwing dirty looks at Ino and Sakura. Both of them flinched. Bakugou stiffened, eyes swirling with absolute confusion. Midoriya just blinked and dropped his jaw slightly like he couldn't believe what he was hearing. Her grandmother did not look one bit surprised.

The pink-haired teen finally frowned. "Then what do you mean?"

"It means you've privilege," Hinata stated, clenching her jaw together. "Your idea of being bullied was a whole different hell that Naruto went through. If you had Ino, your parents and even the teachers defending you then Naruto had no one. If you had only Ami and a couple of girls bullying you then Naruto had the whole village being cruel to her."

Her mother clenched her jaw together and Naruto waved for Izuku to continue on.

No, she could do this.

Eri was her first priority.

Naruto took a deep breath and made her way to the kitchen. Blond eyebrows knitted together and the girl knelt down, swinging open the cupboards. She pulled out a pan. What did little kids like to eat? There were more variety in the kind of breakfast that kids here could eat. Eggs, Pancakes, French toast and so many other options.

"Wait a second Naruto, do you know how to cook?" Choji cried. His eyes gleamed with curiosity while Shikamaru and everyone else slacked their jaws at her. The blonde grunted and looked away, only to groan when her best friend looked at her with knowing eyes. "Can you really make all those foods?"

Hinata chuckled. "Naruto-chan is actually a really good cook."

"But she always makes too much food," Sasuke stated. All of the boys blinked and blinked before dropping their jaws at this piece of information. Sakura gawked at her while Ino narrowed her eyes at Naruto. Did he really have to tell them that? She covered her face and let out another groan. Her childhood friend sighed. "They are going to find out, Idiot."

Naruto scowled. "It doesn't mean I want them to know!"

"You said that you never had any interest in Sasuke-kun!" Ino snarled. Ashido, Hagakure and Tsuyu exchanged glances before shooting looks of pity to the whiskered-teen. Yaoyorozu frowned and scratched her head. "Why are you making him food if you didn't have any interest in him? Explain that to me."

"It's very simple," Naruto answered. She tapped her finger against her jaw and took in a deep breath before looking up at the ceiling. I can't believe that I have to spell out the obvious to them. The blonde exhaled. "Sasuke can't cook to save his life and if I leave him alone then he would only eat riceballs."

Sakura frowned. "Sasuke-kun, why do you accept Naruto's cooking but not ours?"

"Because I know Naruto is being sincere and she won't gloat about getting me to eat her cooking," he stated. Ino and Sakura flinched while Mikoto looked at her male friend with unimpressed eyes. Bakugou snorted, shaking his wild blond-hair while Todoroki frowned. "And she doesn't want anything from me when she does it."

Ashido winced. "Now that is one way of saying that he likes her more than them."

Children also liked it when the food was cute right? The customers, who had kids, liked it whenever one of the cooks made the breakfast looked creative. They took photos and everything. It couldn't be hard for her to do something creative like that.

"I-It really happened."

Naruto blinked and turned her whole body around. Blue eyes grew large at the sight of Eri standing there with her hands fiddling together. Fear shone through those eyes and she hated it. It might have been a night but she hadn't done anything to her. Her home was opened to her. There was no desire for her to kick her out, to make her think that she wasn't wanted.

"Naruto, you know my son and his family—"

"I know."

"Yup," Naruto smiled reassuringly. "Sleep well, kiddo?"

Eri didn't smile, just nodded shyly and looked at the pan in her eyes with confusion. I am guessing those people never cooked her a meal. She poked her cheek, stopped herself from saying anything that might seem thoughtless, and smiled brightly at her.

Kiba frowned and tilted his head to the side. His eyes locked onto her, brown eyes looking almost befuddled by the words coming out of Izuku's mouth. I have a really bad feeling about what he is going to say to me. Smoothing the wrinkles of her skirt, Naruto gestured for the brown-haired teen to voice out his thought.

"Why are you only being thoughtful to little kids?" He demanded. Her parents blinked and swirled their head at her while her grandmother looked faintly amused. Sakura and the other chunin bobbed their heads while Aizawa eyed her. "You are always harsh to us! You know people would like you more if you act like that."

Naruto stared at him. "She is a scared, little girl who has been through shit! You think I want to hurt her feelings? You guys can handle it and besides, it isn't like you are nice to me! You call me a bitch!"

"Oi, no one calls my cousin a—"

Izuku must have sensed that Bakugou was going to start a fight because the green-haired boy quickly continued the story.

Everything was going to be fine because Eri had her.

"What is your favourite animal, Eri-chan? Mine is frogs."

Eri hesitated and answered softly, "Cats."

So I guess I will need to figure out how to make the pancakes look like cats.

How hard could it be?

"It's pretty difficult," Bakugou informed her. Naruto groaned and slumped her shoulders, head touching her thigh as everyone else blinked and swirled their heads at him. Kiba and Shikamaru blinked, almost dropping their jaws at him. Her cousin only scowled. "Why the hell are you guys looking at me like that?"

Shikamaru cleared his throat. "Well I didn't think that you could cook."

"He's a better cook than me and his father," Mitsuki informed Shikamaru. Naruto blinked and gawked at Bakugou. The blond-haired boy flushed red and then scowled at them while her own father looked faintly amused. Her Aunt let out a chuckle and ruffled her cousin's hair before flashing them a smile. "I leave most of the cooking to him."

"Whenever I was too tired to cook, I would ask Minato to cook," Kushina admitted. Her father sighed and bobbed his head while almost every male from both Konoha and Suna slacked their jaws at Minato. Naruto only blinked while her grandmother smiled. "You know I was so lucky that he wasn't like every man in Konoha! He's really dependable!"

Her grandmother grunted. "I'm glad to know that your father didn't corrupt you."

"Uzumaki Naruto."

Aizawa paused and pressed his lips into a thin line at the lack of answer. He scanned the classroom, making sure that his student was actually absent and not daydreaming like Kaminari had been earlier. A small frown played on his lips when he caught sight of the empty chair right beside Todoroki. The boy kept flickering at the empty desk and then to him.

Why does he care about my absence? Naruto rubbed her knuckles and knitted her eyebrows together. She stole a glance at Aizawa before looking back at Jiraiya. Her godfather had been awfully quiet during the whole reading thing if you asked her. Jiraiya offered her a reassuring smile while Aizawa let out a sigh.

"Naruto-chan has never been a daydreamer," Hinata commented. Aizawa blinked while everyone turned around to face the Hyuga heiress. "Whenever she says that she is going to do something then you can be reassured that Naruto-chan will do it. She will work hard to achieve it and she pays attention to class…she just pretends not to."

Naruto frowned. "Hinata-chan, why are you telling them this?"

"Because Aizawa-san seems different from every other teacher that taught you," Hinata replied with a slight smile. Naruto grunted while everyone from Konoha flinched. We don't know if he is actually going to be different. Leaning back on the couch, she let out another sigh and eyed the chips on the table before them.

"I'm here!"

The door slid opened and Uzumaki glided in, her hand pumping up high in the air and a bright smile playing on her lips as the students blinked at the strange sight. The blond-haired girl flushed red, letting out a nervous laugh and rubbing the back of her neck like she was embarrassed by her behaviour.

"You know if we didn't just see that was a clone then I would have thought that was Naruto," Shino commented. Bakugou and Midoriya blinked before swirling their head at the male. He pushed his glasses up and regarded her. "Because that is normal Naruto's behaviour whenever she is late for class."

Kiba bobbed his head. "You have no idea how many times she was late in the Academy because she couldn't get up on time."

I was actually awake but I had no energy to get out of bed. She bit her tongue and looked away from the two boys. Surprise struck her when Todoroki regarded her with concern, curious eyes. Why the fuck do you care? She grunted and looked away from him. Even if he wanted to be her friend, he didn't have any reason to worry about her.

Aizawa eyed the girl. "Go to your seat, Uzumaki."

The girl nodded, flashed him a smile and skipped happily to her seat. Something wasn't right about this image. It should please him about how happy the girl was acting to them. There was a twinkle in her eyes and the smile playing on her lips seemed genuine. It should ease him, but it did not. He knew children like Uzumaki could not heal that fast.

Everyone grew quiet and twisted their heads around to gaze at Naruto. She clenched her hands, squeezing it till her hands screamed for her to stop. He doesn't know a thing about me! I'm normal. She bit the inner corner of her cheek and took several deep breaths. This was definitely not the time for her to get angry.

"Aizawa-san, what do you mean by children like Naruto?" Kurenai asked. Her red eyes darted to Naruto while all chunins and jounins kept their attention fixed on her. The Third Hokage tilted his hat downwards while Minato and Kushina closed their eyes. Narumi tightened her grip on the baseball.

Aizawa eyed her. "It is obviously clear that Naruto has been abused throughout her life and abuse has a long-time consequence. It is becoming increasingly clear that Uzumaki has some mental health issues that could have been prevented if you and every single adult tried to move on from your pain."

"Wait, Naruto isn't crazy!" Sakura protested.

Narumi stood up and picked up the bat, strolling towards the pink-haired teen. You know…I don't think Sakura deserve that because that is a general thought that Konoha has. She glanced at her father, only to blink at the sight of her father shivering with fear. Her mother looked faintly amused and at that moment…her grandmother whacked Sakura with the bat.

"That is for implying that anyone going through what my granddaughter is going through is for insane people," her grandmother said quietly. She glanced at Tsunade before fixing her gaze on the other adults in the room. "If you went through what Naruto has to go through, tell me can you walk into this room without a bottle of issues? No one can."

Choji frowned. "I know what Naruto went through is bad, Narumi-san but compared what Sasuke and Gaara went through, well it seems light. She hasn't broken down like Gaara did and she was social compared to Sasuke."

"Being ignored and neglected is still horrible," her grandmother informed Choji. She fixed her gaze on Naruto before sweeping her eyes to the Third Hokage and then landing her eyes on Kakashi. "You think that Naruto being able to socialize means that she has no problems? A person like my granddaughter…is a terrifying patient because there are no obvious signs."

Jiraiya frowned. "What do you mean?"

"It means Narumi is worried that Naruto will commit suicide," Aizawa answered bluntly. Kakashi paled while everyone else twisted their head around to fix their eyes on the blonde. She looked away from them and the male regarded them. "She looks like the perfect image of smiling depression because she looks normal but inside of her…she is depressed inside."

Naruto clenched her jaw. "I'm not crazy."

"Why do you people think that there is something wrong with having a problem with your mental state?" Her grandmother asked. All the shinobi flinched while blue eyes fixed on them. "Being depressed doesn't mean that you're crazy or insane. It means that the trauma and abuse you went through has affected your self-esteem and that you feel like you don't deserve to live. I'm certain that you have done things that would be called reckless and could have gotten you killed."

Sasuke grunted. "You've no idea."

Something was not right about this picture. It was almost like someone disguised themselves as his student and put themselves in her spot of the school. It should be impossible but his student could make clones of herself. Her Quirk allowed her to do something like this. Clones might be physical manifestations of a person but they could have their own personality.

"Actually they should have the same personality as the creator," Kakashi informed Aizawa. Naruto relaxed her shoulders as the grey-haired man inspected her. A frown played on the copycat shinobi's lips and the male folded his arms against his chest. "But considering Naruto, it might be the case that the clones are taking aspects of her personality."

Midoriya blinked. "So Naruto is actually a cheerful person?"

"She loves pranks," Mikoto informed them. Everyone turned their whole body to look at the black-haired woman. Her black eyes focused on Naruto before moving to her son and then landing her eyes on Kushina and Minato. "If my son is well-known for being stoic then Naruto is known for her sunny personality. She is actually a really sweet girl…she is just doesn't like showing it."

Naruto flushed red. "I'm not sweet, Mikoto-obaachan."

"I think my sons will tell you differently," Mikoto commented with a faint smile. Naruto blinked and tilted her head while Sasuke looked away from the blond-haired teen. Sakura and Ino only clenched their jaws at the woman. "You were always doing your best to cheer Sasuke up whenever Fugaku seems to focus on Itachi."

She folded her arms against her chest. "I just don't like seeing people sad."

Did his student decide to skip school? His eyebrows twitched at the thought and Aizawa locked his eyes on the clone. It was illegal for Uzumaki to make a clone outside of a school. What did she gain from this? Did she not care about the laws of this country? He took a deep breath.

"Well I didn't think I would get caught," Naruto explained. Everyone from Japan twisted their bodies around, eyes widening with disbelief, and the blonde rubbed the back of her neck. Cracks echoed throughout the room, and she cleared her throat. "I care about the basics…most of the time but well you saw my reason."

Bakugou eyed her. "What about those times?"

"Those times were for personal reasons," Naruto answered curtly. Hinata blinked and blinked before swirling her head at her. Pale, lavender eyes trembled and the blonde took a deep breath. Of course she realized my personal reasons. She took a deep breath and then blinked when Sasuke gazed at her with concern eyes.

She shot him a frosty glare before closing her eyes. He doesn't deserve to know. Bastard was the reason that she now had to add another date for her laziness. If he hadn't done what he did then she would only have to deal it for three days and the randomness of it. Now she had four days alongside the sudden attacks.

He couldn't confront the clone because Uzumaki might just decide to drop out of school. Aizawa would need to wait after school and confront the original Uzumaki at her apartment. The girl was going to ruin herself if she decided to misuse her Quirk for something like this.

"Why the hell do you care if I ruin myself or not?" Naruto asked. The future students of Yuuei blinked and looked at her with concern while Shikamaru and the others only frowned at Aizawa. You don't know me. She took several deep breaths and continued on. "I'm just a students! Teachers don't give a shit if I ruin myself or not."

Aizawa narrowed his eyes. "Then they aren't doing their jobs properly because it's their responsibility to make sure that you do well in life!"

"They aren't my parents," she argued. Shikamaru and the others bobbed their heads in agreement while Aizawa pinched his nose. Her future teacher looked at her like she was being ridiculous. She puffed her cheeks and folded her arms against her chest. "You're a teacher! You don't have to care about those kind of things."

"Kakashi might be neglectful and while Kurenai-san can't seem to look past your behaviour, I'm different," he informed her. Asuma relaxed his shoulders and Aizawa offered him a glare before looking back at her. "I don't know the teachers that you have when you were in school but let me reassure you that I put effort into my students and I care about their well-being when I choose to pass them."

It was only the third day of school too.

"Good job on the battle simulation training yesterday," Aizawa praised. "I saw the videos and the results. Bakugou, you are talented, so don't act like a child about the loss."

He didn't miss the way Bakugou stole a glance at Uzumaki. A scowl playing on his lips and annoyance flashing at the sight of her. There was also a slight glimmer of concern and suspicions in those red eyes. He also sees something isn't right about Uzumaki. The boy might have an attitude problem but the kid was observant to notice that something was not right about the girl.

"Kacchan has always been observant when it comes to Uzumaki," Midoriya explained. Naruto blinked while Bakugou glared at Izuku. The green-haired boy faltered and gulped but did not look away from those swirling furious red eyes. "He is always watching her like a hawk, which is probably why all those rumors started."

Naruto frowned. "What rumours?"

"That Kacchan has a crush on you," Izuku explained. Both Naruto and Bakugou turned green at those words and the green-haired boy offered them a little nervous smile. Sasuke frowned while Hinata pressed her lips into a thin line. "You were the only girl that he seemed to notice during our whole time in middle school."

The blonde blinked. "If that was true then why didn't his fangirls attack me?"

"Because they have manners," Mitsuki answered sweetly, throwing a heated glare at Sakura and Ino. Both girls flinched while Narumi bobbed her head. The blond-haired woman shook her head and looked at Naruto before darting her eyes to her son and then landing on Sasuke. "If you truly like someone then you have to respect their wishes. If they like someone else then you have to accept it or try to make them like you."

"No one likes a bully," Todoroki stated.

Aizawa shook his head.

"And Midoriya," he added. The boy jolted and looked down sharply when he called him out. "You settled it by breaking your arm again, huh? You can't keep saying you can't help it because you can't control your Quirk. That's getting old. As long as you fix that, your Quirk can be extremely useful."

Aizawa ignored the boy's vigorously nod and closed the attendance book. The announcement about the Class President would have to wait when the actual Naruto was here. It would be a terrible idea for him to spring it upon the girl when she was not here to hear the news and try to object his declaration.

"You aren't planning of making me Class President, are you?" Naruto asked, frowning. Aizawa bobbed his head and the whole room grew quiet until several chunnin finally looked at the man like he was insane. Several of the future Yuuei students frowned, eyes flashing with confusion and the blonde took a deep breath. "Why would you do that?"

"Yes, why?" Sakura asked, curling her lips into a frown. "Naruto isn't responsible at all! And you just saw that she broke the rules! So why would you make her the class president?"

Aizawa looked at her and then darted his eyes to the jounins, who bobbed their heads in agreement, before landing his eyes on Tsunade. The current Hokage looked at her future teacher with curious eyes, which only made Naruto tilt her head. What is the Old Hag thinking? She folded her arms against her chest.

"I believe Naruto can be responsible," Aizawa replied calmly. "And yes, she broke the rules but she has a bigger problem that you and your teachers are being ignorant about. If I want to make her class president then it's because I believe that it would have been the first step in getting her to fix her fear."

Hinata frowned. "What do you mean fear? Naruto-chan doesn't seem scared."

"You're quick to notice it," Her grandmother commented. Naruto blinked and the black-haired man bobbed his head while her parents and the Third Hokage frowned at him. Jiraiya knitted his eyebrows together. "But then again with what we have been seeing so far, it is evident that she would have develop that kind of phobia."

"I don't have a phobia!" Naruto retorted.

Her grandmother sighed. "Sure you don't have a phobia, just like how Katsuki is Prince Charming."

"Old Crone!"

He slid the door of his classroom opened and stepped through. Lessons would need to be organized and the confrontation with Uzumaki would need to be organized in a way that would make sure that the girl would not run away. If he recalled correctly from the work timetable that Uzumaki provided, today would be one of her two days off.

"Sensei!"

Aizawa stopped and clicked his heels together. He twisted his head around, eyebrows inching close to his hairline at the sight of Todoroki standing behind him. The son of the Second Hero shifted in his spot, mismatch eyes not revealing any emotions but there was a slight urgency in his student. Curiosity stirred inside Aizawa as he waited for the boy to start explaining why he chased him here.

"Why are you chasing after him?" Naruto asked. Todoroki hummed and tilted his head before rubbing his jaw at her. She knew from the previous chapter that his sister suggested it, but he couldn't work on it that quickly…could he? She frowned. "I mean you could have waited for another time to talk to him, couldn't you?"

"Well your problem isn't something that I could ignore," Todoroki explained. "If you don't get it check…then you could crack."

The blue-eyed teen bobbed her head and flickered her eyes to Gaara. The red-haired teen nodded and looked down at his own hands before looking back at her. I know I can become like Gaara but I won't allow myself to crack. She wanted the words to come out but if she said it then her friend's past would be spilled.

She didn't want more people to know what Gaara went through.

"Yes, Todoroki?"

Todoroki straightened his back, his mismatch eyes flickered around the empty corridor, and said. "I am concerned about Uzumaki."

Perceptive.

"Uzumaki…I think she is a child of abuse." Todoroki said quietly. "She doesn't trust anyone and she keeps pretending that everything is fine."

Aizawa closed his eyes and took a deep breath. Child of abuse. Those words made his stomach rolled with disgust like it always did whenever he hear those words. Only one child of abuse could recognise the signs on another child. Todoroki recognized the signs because of Endeavour. Rumours spread throughout the hero community of what the number two hero had done to his children and wife.

"Wait a second, Endeavor abused you?" Mina cried, twisting her head to look at Todoroki. The heterochromatic boy kept quiet while Naruto stared blankly at the younger boy. Is he trying to help me because no one helped him? That was strangely nice of him. She cleared her throat and looked away from him. "But he is a hero! Heroes shouldn't hurt their—"

"Ashido, I don't think it is wise for you to talk about it," Naruto commented. Her voice was soft and calm, unchanging as several heads turned to look at her. She regarded the screen before sliding her hands into her pocket. "And a hero is a job now, not something that a person can actually be. Besides…heroes always hurt their families."

Her father flinched. "Naruto-chan, I really didn't mean for you to go through this."

"You might apologize but that doesn't take back what happened to me," she replied calmly. Her mother closed her eyes and trembled as the Third Hokage tilted his hat downwards. "You are a hero to Konoha and you were my hero growing up because you proved that someone from a small, relatively unknown clan can climb up. But knowing that you are the reason for my hell…well I can't help but find the irony that you hurt me with your own actions."

"Naruto-chan, I was—"

"Izuku, just continue because we can go for hours if this continues on."

There was no concrete evidence and Aizawa did not hold enough power to protect Todoroki from his own father.

"I know," he informed him. The boy blinked and the black-haired man looked out at the window. The sight of the lush greens and the sun shining made it seem like a beautiful, nice day but not everyone had a nice day. For children like Uzumaki, a day like this could be just as bad as a storm.

Naruto closed her eyes and took a deep breath, turning her head away from the curious eyes of her former classmates. He isn't wrong. The day could be beautiful but the numbing pain inside of her could never allow her to enjoy it. Maybe one day, she could look at a normal sunny day and see the beauty that everyone talked about.

"Is that true?" Sakura asked quietly.

Hinata sighed. "It is true."

"How do you know that?" Ino asked, frowning. Shikamaru and the others exchanged glances while the platinum-haired girl regarded Hinata with a frown playing on her lips. "With how overprotective Naruto can be with you, I doubt that she is willing to show her weakness to you! She was always protecting you."

The Hyuga heiress leaned forward and picked up a biscuit. "Do you know the difference between my relationship with Naruto and your relationship with Sakura? If you ever demeaned Sakura at one point and hid all your insecurity because you want to maintain your hold over her, then Naruto opened herself up to me to show that I can be her equal. She sincerely treated me like a sister."

"Oi, don't jump to conclusion about my friendship with Sakura," Ino grumbled.

Naruto sighed. "Hinata-chan is stating an observation that is rather true. Even though you build Sakura up with calling her pretty and all that stuff, you would always tell her that she is still a bud and that you will always be better than her. The fact that you didn't tell her about your crush on Sasuke spoke volumes about what you thought of her."

"Would you have told Hinata about your crush if it had been Kiba?" Ino demanded.

The blonde picked up a biscuit and bit it before shrugging her shoulders. "If I ever had a crush on Kiba then I would have told her before telling her that we can try to get him to like one of us. If he chose me over her or viceversa then it isn't a big deal. I wouldn't let it ruin my friendship with her…like you did."

"You're the one that opened your big mouth!" Ino growled. "If you had just kept your—"

"You shouldn't have been so obvious," Naruto said flatly. All the other girls blinked and knitted their eyebrows together as the blue-eyed girl crossed her legs together. Hinata gazed at her with concern while Mikoto grimaced. "When you decided to pick on me for no reason then it's clear that you had a crush on Sasuke. I only said those words because you started it. If you had been indifferent to me like in the past, then I would keep quiet."

Ino slacked her jaw. "So you're blaming me."

"Yup."

"She needs help." Todoroki repeated himself.

I know.

"I have plans to help her about her trust issues, Todoroki," Aizawa informed him. "And I do plan to approach her but a topic like this needs to be handled delicately."

Naruto groaned. "I don't have trust issues."

"The book says differently," her mother informed her. "There is nothing for you to be ashamed about, Naruto-chan. I would rather you have trust issues then for you to have my infamous Uzumaki temper or my cousin's drinking problem. Actually, I would rather prefer if you behave a little bit like Asa-niisan or your father."

He needed to talk to the real Uzumaki, not the clone that she thought could fool him into thinking that she was fine. I wasn't born yesterday and I'm not letting her off the hook. He really wanted to know what gave her the impression that a clone would be enough to trick him into thinking that she was here.

Aizawa had no clue about the adults that Uzumaki had in her life, but he was different from them.

He would discipline her if he had too.

"You know Jiraiya, I'm pretty grateful that you brought Naruto-chan to Japan," Kushina commented. Jiraiya blinked while everyone from Konoha and Suna swirled their head at the red-haired woman. She curled her lips into a smile and folded her legs together. "Aizawa seems to be responsible and might be the only person here that can really help Naruto. Seeing her past like that…well I'm grateful that she hasn't went off the edge."

Naruto cleared her throat and looked down at her hands. "Mom, I'm fine and I have friends so you don't need to worry about that."

"Why wouldn't I worry? You're my daughter," her mother explained. Blue eyes widened and Kushina offered her a little wistful smile before looking at Minato. Her father gazed at Kakashi and the Third Hokage with disappointed eyes. "When I lost my whole clan during the war, I felt like my family has been taken away from me. Sure I had your father but you were proof that my family lives on. You were the reason that I was able to continue on throughout the hardship."

Naruto's throat clogged up and she looked away from her mother. The love in her mother's voice made her heart feel funny with something that she couldn't put her finger to it. Heterochromatic eyes regarded her for the longest time with no emotions, and Naruto waited for him to make fun over the fact that she was moved from such simple words.

"It's okay to be happy."

That was the only thing Todoroki told her before Izuku continued on with the story.

"Is this place free, Midoriya?"

Izuku blinked and nodded as Naruto took a seat right beside Uraraka. The brown-haired girl beamed as Iida nodded, gesturing for the girl to take the empty seat right beside Uraraka. It should make him happy that the girl, who always defended him from Kacchan, finally decided to sit with them. It did make him happy. But Naruto had never smiled at them like this.

"You really wanted me to sit with you?" Naruto asked, furrowing her eyebrows together. She rubbed the back of her neck and gazed at Izuku. The green-haired boy flushed a light shade of pink before bobbing his head. "Now that you've other friends, you still want me to be around you? You know I haven't done anything to make you want me to be your friend."

Izuku nodded and quirked his lips into a tiny smile. "Yes, but you have always been nice to me and well I always wanted to be friends with you."

"I feel like we had this conversation before," Shikamaru muttered. Choji bobbed his head alongside several others. Minato chuckled and looked at Izuku with eyes filled with relief. Ino, Sakura and Tsunade nodded their heads in agreement while Hinata let out a sigh. Todoroki only gazed at the green-haired boy with indifferent eyes.

This smile was bright as ever, but it felt different in a way.

"Why were you late, Uzumaki-san?" Iida asked.

The girl laughed. "I overslept…again."

Iida frowned and began to lecture the blond-haired girl about the importance of waking up early. Uraraka sighed, looking amused at the interaction of their new friend, but Izuku could only frown. Something is strange about Uzumaki. He stole a glance at Kacchan. His childhood friend sat on another table, lips curled into a scowl as Uzumaki continued to laugh off the lecture that his friend was giving her.

"You know I don't think Iida-kun and me realized it because we don't really know Uzumaki-chan," Uraraka commented. Naruto bobbed her head and relaxed her shoulders while the brown-haired girl snuck a glance at her. "But it's kinda sad that I didn't notice that you put a clone in your place instead of coming to school."

Izuku sighed. "At least you have the excuse of not knowing Uzumaki, I have no excuse for not knowing that she used a clone."

"I feel embarrassed that Bakugou of all people figured it out," Naruto muttered.

Maybe if Izuku was like the other kids in their Middle School, he would think Kacchan has a crush on Uzumaki but Izuku knew differently. It had been ages since he went over to Kacchan's house but Izuku still recalled the photo of Kacchan's uncle. He might have been a little boy, no older than six at the photo, but there was a resemblance of Naruto and the little boy. When he thinks about it, Naruto shares a little resemblance to Mitsuki Bakugou.

"Masaru is going to have his hands full with you," Mitsuki commented, bobbing her head. Naruto raised her eyebrow while Minato turned his whole body around to look at the brown-haired man with hopeful eyes. "You know I had so many admirers while I was growing up and since my brother married a very pretty woman…well I can guess the amount of confessions that you'll have."

Minato grabbed Masaru's hand. "Masaru-san, will you please act in my honor and get rid of any—"

"Minato! What did I tell you!" Her grandmother demanded. Minato gulped as Narumi and Kushina stood right in front of him. Naruto didn't need to see their faces to know that both females had scowls on their face. "Just like how you dated and married Kushina, Naruto deserves the same opportunity! This is life."

"If they truly love Naruto-chan then they won't be scared off," Minato argued. "Besides I never even get to hold her and watch her grow up! Now I have to accept some rascal taking my daughter away from me? I can't protect her if it turns out that he is an abusive scrum or if he cheats on her and—"

"I can protect myself!" Naruto growled.

Her hair was just straighter, her face was just more heart-shaped and her eyes were almond-shaped. Uzumaki was also just a little bit more quieter than the explosive woman.

"I'm not explosive," Mitsuki grumbled. Masaru coughed and inched away while Minato looked at the blond-haired woman with unimpressed eyes. The woman narrowed her eyes at Minato. "What's with that look, Minato? I'm definitely not explosive like my son! I have better control over my temper like my cute niece."

Minato laughed and tugged his collar. "Well you did beat up every person that tried to bully me."

"Means I'm protective over you," she retorted. "That doesn't make me violent!"

"So Uzumaki-san, can you please explain how you came up with that plan?" Iida asked, pushing his glasses up his nose. "None of us consider that if we were villains that we could simply trap them from the very beginning."

Naruto (was it really her?He asked himself) smiled widely and opened her mouth to answer his question, only to close it when Bakugou stalked towards them. Red eyes flared with fury and annoyance. Izuku gulped. It was going to be a matter of seconds before his childhood friend exploded on everyone.

"I find when Naruto-chan gets angry, it is better to reason with her," Hinata commented. Izuku paused and swirled his head at her while the whiskered teen thinned her lips into a thin line. "You should always try to distract her and if that doesn't work then just listen for a good 10 minutes before telling her anything. I think Bakugou-san is the same."

The blue-eyed teen scowled. "Bakugou and me are two different people."

"Your temper is the same as him," Hinata stated.

"Where is the real one?" Bakugou growled.

Iida frowned. "Real one? Bakugou, what are you talked about? This is Uzumaki-san!"

Uraraka nodded, looking put off by the blond-haired boy's behaviour, and his childhood friend swirled his head at him. Do you really believe this bullshit? Izuku kept quiet. It might have been years since the two of them had a silent conversation like this. He couldn't even remember the last time they talked like this. Their friendship deteriorated when their nursery declared his lack of Quirk to everyone.

"It didn't deteriorate because of that," Bakugou grumbled. Naruto blinked while Izuku swirled his head at him. "If it deteriorated because of your lack of Quirk then I would have stopped playing with you and I wouldn't have beaten up every asshole that bullied you. You are fucking terrifying when you think about it."

Izuku blinked. "You're scared of me?"

"I think he is scared for you," Naruto mused. Bakugou blinked and then reddened while Mitsuki giggled. Her father raised a single eyebrow while her grandmother regarded the three of them with curiosity. "He doesn't have any reason to be scared of you, but if you keep saving people without a regard for your life…then it is kinda scary for any friend."

Bakugou growled. "Don't act like you know me!"

"You protesting like that proves my point," Naruto yawned.

It ended on that day in the mountain when he offered him a hand.

"What happened?" Kankuro asked.

Bakugou growled. "Oi Deku, continue the story."

Izuku took a deep breath, offered everyone a nervous smile and gestured for Kacchan to follow him. His friend narrowed his eyes but he weakly shrugged his shoulder, glancing over at the confused blond-haired girl. His friend snorted. Wimp. He could hear the unspoken insult and shook slightly at the furious eyes directed at him.

He didn't look back to see if Kacchan followed him. The loud stomps coming from behind him was all the confirmation that was needed. Curious looks from their various classmates was thrown at them but Izuku ignored it. This kind of conversation couldn't happen in public. Kacchan was going to become furious and Naruto might just try to save him like she always did.

Izuku could handle Kacchan now.

"You're shaking," Naruto commented, gesturing to Izuku's screen self. "So I honestly doubt that you can actually handle Bakugou."

Izuku slumped his shoulders while everyone else bobbed their heads in agreement. It will take you time before you can actually handle Bakugou. She exhaled and rubbed the back of her neck. Muscles hissed with content and Naruto relaxed her shoulders. It felt so good for her muscles to relax. It was like a reward for dealing with all of this bullshit.

Well, he think he can.

"Kacchan, you can't confront her now."

Kacchan growled. "So you think that it also a load of bullshit! She sent a fucking clone to class, again!"

Again? Izuku blinked and blinked as his brain tried to process what Kacchan just informed him. He glanced through the windows of the cafeteria, green eyes focused on the smiling face of Naruto. Had their classmate done this before? He couldn't remember the last time when Naruto acted weirdly. Beside today, the girl had always acted the same around him and their other classmates.

"Have you never thought it was fucking weird whenever Whiskers acted friendly?" Bakugou demanded. Izuku laughed nervously while Naruto threw a frosty glare at her half-cousin. The blond-haired boy clicked his tongue. "Don't give me that look, Whiskers! It isn't my fault that your clone made it so damn obvious."

"I can be friendly," Naruto barked.

Hinata sighed. "Maybe back in Konoha but you haven't been friendly to either of them, have you?"

I hate it when Hinata-chan is right. She scowled and folded her arms against her chest. Hinata chuckled and shook her head before darting her eyes to Bakugou. The older teen grunted and threw a glare at her. Naruto clenched her hands into a fist and narrowed her eyes at her half-cousin, who only rolled his eyes at her.

"What do you mean again, Kacchan? When did she do this?"

Bakugou growled. "She spends more time with you and you can't fucking notice when Whiskers acts differently! She makes a clone on four dates: 29th of July, 15th of August, 11th of November and 10th of October. Those are the days when she acts a hell lot more friendly to everyone."

Everyone grew quiet at those words and Naruto clenched her jaw when Hinata gazed at her with worried eyes. He just had to spill those words to them. She dug her nails against the palm of her hand and took several deep breaths as her grandmother darted her eyes from her to the people around them.

"Do any of those dates have anything in common?" Her grandmother asked quietly. The people of Konoha and Suna exchanged glances before looking back at her. Hinata gazed at her with troubled eyes. The Third Hokage took deep breaths and tilted his hat downwards while her parents continued to gaze at her with concern eyes.

"Fugaku and me died on the 28th of July," Mikoto answered quietly. Bakugou blinked and swirled his head at the black-haired woman while Todoroki gazed at her with blank eyes. She took several deep breaths as her mother-figure continued on. "Kushina-chan and Minato-kun died on the 10th of October, which is also Naruto-chan's birthday."

The Third Hokage inhaled. "I died on the 15th of August."

"Sasuke nearly killed me on the 11th of November," Naruto admitted. She clenched her hands into a fist and pushed back the grief that threatened to wash over her. The book crashed into the ground and the whiskered teen locked her gaze on Midoriya. "Midoriya, pick up the book and continue reading. I'm not going to talk about those dates."

Narumi regarded her. "I'm going to have a talk to you about what you've been doing on those dates."

Izuku frowned and racked his head at those dates. Green eyes grew large as several memories from the last three years played in his mind. He's right. Naruto always acted differently on those dates. It was always a one-off thing so Izuku never put much thought about it. Was there something significant about those dates? If Naruto made clones on those dates then what was the significance of them?

He frowned.

"Have you told her that you know it is a clone?" Izuku asked slowly.

Bakugou scowled. "Nerd, did you forget that Whiskers hates my guts? You confront her about it."

"I don't hate your guts," Naruto informed him. Bakugou raised an eyebrow, not looking one bit convinced, and the blonde folded her arms against her chest. Fine if he wants me to elaborate then I'll do it. She took a deep breath and stretched her legs. "What I hate is the way you treat your only real friend."

"You would have treated him the same if you were in my shoes."

There is no point with me arguing with a stubborn idiot.

She grimaced.

Izuku smiled nervously. I can't confront her about it. Naruto might be nice to him and they might have had a couple of conversations, but his classmate had never opened up to him. Whenever he attempted to get to know her, his classmate would tell him that she had a job to do or that she was just too busy to hang out.

He really did doubt that Naruto would admit that she was using her clones. Kacchan knows this because Kaccahn was always keeping an eye on their female classmate. He just had a very funny way of showing his concerns to people.

"Yeah his way of showing concern is screaming at people apparently," Kirishima commented. Bakugou scowled while his parents and their grandmother bobbed their heads at him. He describe Bakugou very well even though we only read a couple of chapters. She chuckled and then blinked when Todoroki regarded her with thoughtful eyes.

She raised an eyebrow. "What are you looking at?"

"You," he answered.

The blonde pinched her nose. "I mean why are you staring at me?"

"Because you laughed," he replied. Naruto tilted her head and rubbed her jaw before raising a single eyebrow at him. He probably understood her question because her future classmate explained. "You look really different when you laugh."

Oh. She cleared her throat and looked away from the male, only to scowl when Sasuke looked at her with eyes filled with disbelief. What? There is nothing wrong with what I just did. The blonde clicked her tongue while Hinata only looked at her with pleased eyes, almost enjoying the conflict between them. It was rather strange.

Her best-friend wasn't like this.

"You really care about her, don't you Kacchan?"

"Screw you, Deku! She annoys the hell out of me."

Kacchan really had a funny way of showing that he was worried for a classmate.

"So are we all going to agree to take the opposite of what Kacchan says?" Kaminari asked them. Naruto bobbed her head while Bakugou narrowed his eyes at the blond-haired teen. Her grandmother chuckled and nodded while her father snorted at those words. "I mean he says that he doesn't care about Uzumaki but he is already the overprotective cousin."

Bakugou growled. "Don't call me that! And I'm not overprotective over her!"

"Then why do you watch her?" Ashido asked, quirking her lips into a sly smile.

Her half-cousin narrowed his eyes and threw a heated glare at Izuku. The green-haired boy gulped and bobbed his head, flipping through the next page like his life depended on it. Considering how embarrassed Bakugou is, his life really depends on it. She shook her head and let out another sigh before looking down at her own feet.

Shouto knew something was very weird about Uzumaki. She went to sit with Midoriya and his group of friends, smiling without a care in the world and just acting very friendly to people. It became even weirder when his classmate beamed at him as she took her seat right beside him. The girl didn't even put a fake smile when Aizawa-sensei assigned them as partners for a history project.

Something was not right about his classmate.

"You know something isn't right with Naruto when she is actually giving you a smile and not acting mean," Kirishima commented. Naruto scowled and crossed her arms against her chest. The boy looked at her before looking at the others. "And the fact that you seem happy to be around Todoroki actually speaks volumes about you."

Naruto eyed him. "What the hell does that mean?"

"It means you actually tolerate me," Todoroki replied. She puffed her cheeks while her mother and father exchanged glances. Her grandmother hummed and continued to stare at them. Why the hell is she smiling at me like that? She looked away from the elderly woman. "Kakashi says that your clones has parts of your personality."

The blonde grunted. "Don't believe Kakashi."

"I believe him because you don't seem to like being honest with yourself," he stated.

"So we are going to do the project in your house, Pretty Boy?"

He blinked when Uzumaki flashed him a smile and leaned close to him. Pretty Boy? Shouto frowned and regarded the smiling girl sitting beside him. This was definitely not his classmate. They might have only known each other for just two days, but his classmate made it clear that she thought he was an asshole.

"Sounds like Naruto actually likes looking at you," Hinata teased. Naruto felt her cheeks burned at the accusation and ducked her head as Ino and Sakura slacked their jaws at her. Why the hell did she has to say that out loud? Her best friend smiled even wider while Todoroki blinked at this piece of information. "She chose the nicest nickname for you."

"My clone did!" Naruto protested.

Hinata smiled even wider. "But you said it to Todoroki in one of the previous chapters and you seem flustered for someone claiming that their clone gifted the nickname for Todoroki."

"Is this payback for remembering that—"

"—It's payback for years and years of teasing."

"Well?" Uzumaki asked, tilting her head. Her blue eyes shone with curiosity. "Are we going to do the project at your place?"

Shouto pressed his lips into a thin line. "No."

The thought of his female classmate meeting his father made Shouto feel very uneasy. His father might take one look at his classmate and ask her about her Quirk. The man was terrible and Shouto didn't want his classmate to think even more badly of him. So his house was a definite no.

"Trust me when I say that your Dad can't be as bad as Hinata-chan's Dad," Naruto commented. Todoroki blinked and the blonde looked at him for the longest time before clearing her throat. I'm only telling them this because I'm defending myself, not for any other reason. She took a deep breath and leaned against the couch. "You aren't your father so I'll only think badly of him."

Todoroki frowned. "But he's my father."

"And you are you," Naruto retorted. The heterochromatic boy stared at her for the longest time, almost befuddled by the words coming out of her mouth, and the whiskered teen took a deep breath before looking away from him. "If I thought badly on someone for having an asshole for a father then Hinata-chan and me won't be friends."

"So you're saying that we are friends?"

"Don't jump to conclusions!"

Uzumaki nodded and tilted her head. "Bo…my apartment is off-limits. It is too cramp."

She was going to say boss, wasn't she? Shouto observed his classmate, nodding his head and frowning when the girl let out a small sigh of relief. Something was definitely not right about Uzumaki. He might not know her very well. They weren't friends. He didn't need friends but he observed his classmate for two days. The girl only showed fake smiles and this kind of behaviour was unusual.

"If you don't need friends then why are you insisting that we become friends?" Naruto asked, frowning. The heterochromatic boy regarded her for the longest time as everyone else fixed their gaze on them. Sasuke bobbed his head while Hinata shot a glare at the black-haired boy. "Tell me, why do you want us to become friends if you think that you don't need them?"

Todoroki hummed. "Because I want to prove you wrong."

You want to prove me wrong? The words repeated inside of her head and Naruto looked away from the younger boy. He couldn't prove her wrong but she was willing to see what the male would do. He couldn't prove her wrong but well it would be interesting for her to see what the boy was willing to do to prove her wrong.

This wasn't Uzumaki.

Uzumaki can make clones so she could have sent a clone here. Shouto observed the girl again. The Uzumaki, he knew, was the type of girl to give fake smiles and act like everything was okay. The blond-haired girl, right in front of him, had given him a very strange title and was not even giving him any fake smiles.

If this really wasn't Uzumaki then he could push her for answers.

"Normally I would advise you not to do that," Hinata informed Todoroki. The heterochromatic boy blinked and bobbed his head as the blue-haired girl took several deep breaths. She offered him a little smile before looking back at Naruto. "But considering how stubborn Naruto is trying to be, it is better for you to push answers out of her clone."

Naruto pouted. "I'm not being stubborn."

"Say that again when we're done with the book and I'll agree with you," Hinata answered. The blonde blinked and then bobbed her head before shifting her eyes to her friend. There was a competitive glint in her eyes and Naruto eyed the book. I hope that I don't say the words that I'm being stubborn or actually become friends with Todoroki. She knew she would have to say to Hinata that she was right.

"You are not really Uzumaki, are you?"

The smile on Uzumaki's face falters at his question. She darted her eyes around, looking almost nervous at the idea that someone might overhear their conversation.

"Of course, I am Uzumaki!"

Shouto stared. "You called me an asshole, yesterday."

"You know I called your father wimp until he saved me," her mother informed her. Naruto blinked while her grandmother snorted at those words. Mitsuki looked at Kushina and Minato with amusement before darting her eyes to Masaru, who just gawked at them. "But I always thought that your father was good-looking."

Naruto frowned. "Are you trying to say something?"

"I'm saying that if he proves you wrong then he might be your future husband," her mother chirped. Naruto slacked her jaw and flushed red while Todoroki reddened at that comment. Her father turned green and Hinata giggled at that comment. "I prefer Todoroki. At least I can be certain that I'll have at least a grandchild with red hair."

Naruto groaned. "Mom!"

"Kushina!"

The girl laughed nervously and looked around the room, blue eyes fixated on the clock. It would be just another twenty more minutes before the class was dismissed and it would be time for them to have lunch. The girl reached her hand high but Shouto grabbed hold of her hand.

He really didn't want the clone to run away.

"Where is she?" He asked again.

The clone sweated. "I am here."

"My clone should just shut up and accept defeat," Naruto muttered, pinching her nose. Hinata chuckled and bobbed her head while Bakugou rolled his eyes at them. Jiraiya shook his head and focused his attention on the screen while Kakashi only let out a little laugh. "That's the worst denial that I've ever seen."

Hinata shook her head. "Sasuke is the worst. Remember the amount of times he would deny being sick?"

"That is because he likes having a perfect attendance," she pointed out.

Like the fact that Uzumaki had been avoiding the sharp edges of the table for the last couple of hours.

"Look I am…"

He shook his head. "You are a clone. Where is the original Uzumaki?"

The clone yanked her hand away and stared at him with wide eyes. Shouto fixated his mismatch eyes on the bright blue eyes of his project partner. I know that I am right about this. The clues matched up when he thought about it carefully. Now all he needed to know what his classmate was doing instead of being in school.

"Well I'm taking care of a little kid," Naruto answered. Todoroki sighed and nodded while everyone else looked at her with unimpressed eyes. The blonde offered him a sugary, sweet smile and shoved her hands into her pocket. "Well you wanted to know and now you have your answer. It isn't like I make it a habit to skip class."

Todoroki nodded. "What do you do on those four dates?"

"If this book centres around a year in my life then you're going to find out," she stated. Todoroki looked at her with curious eyes and the blonde took a deep breath and pushed her lips back and forth. "But if the book doesn't show you then I'm still not going to answer you, Todoroki. It is my business."

He eyed her. "If we become friends—"

"We have to be really close friends if I tell you," she retorted.

Todoroki nodded. "Then I'll work hard until we become very close friends."

This guy is either a weirdo or he doesn't really have any common sense. Naruto took a deep breath and folded her arms against her chest as her mother looked at them with hearts in her eyes. What the hell was wrong with her mother? Why was she looking at them like they were some character in her favourite romantic novel? She grimaced.

"I can't tell you." The girl finally admitted.

Shouto nodded and asked. "Did her parents…"

"First thing you should know about Uzumaki Naruto is that her parents are dead."

Dead? Shouto blinked and regarded the clone, who dropped all smiles and stared out at the window with sadness. How old was his classmate when she lost her parents? He stopped himself from asking the question. Uzumaki was not going to be pleased if he pried about her life, even if her clone was the one to tell him everything.

"You are definitely right," Naruto grumbled. Todoroki stared at her for the longest time before quirking his lips into a tiny, almost triumphant smile and that only made the whiskered teen looked away from him. "That doesn't prove anything, Todoroki! This doesn't mean that you're right or anything like that."

"I know."

"Then why are you smiling?" She asked, puffing her cheeks. Heterochromatic eyes almost gleamed with amusement but that was impossible. It was just a couple of chapters ago when the male looked at her with such cold eyes. What the hell is happening? She clicked her tongue before leaning against the door.

The heterochromatic-haired boy regarded her. "Because I'm right."

He didn't want his classmate to think that he was an inconsiderate asshole.

"I am more likely to think that you are annoying then an inconsiderate asshole," Naruto grumbled. Hinata giggled while her mother looked at her with knowing eyes. Sasuke frowned and shook his head while Kakashi kept darting his eyes between them. "If you were an inconsiderate asshole then you wouldn't go this far."

Hinata eyed her. "Does that mean you're willing to be friends with Todoroki-san?"

"That doesn't mean anything," Naruto tugged her braid while her blue-haired friend continued to chuckle. Kiba and Shino exchanged glances while everyone else stared at the both of them with knitted eyebrows. "Hinata-chan, why are you laughing? I'm being serious here! Just because I'm not going to think he is an inconsiderate asshole, doesn't mean anything."

"Todoroki-san is going to prove you wrong," Hinata explained.

It was strange to be in a children shop and not be kicked out if you asked Naruto. After failing to make a cute, cat-face pancake for Eri and a quick shower, the blond-haired girl decided to take the six-year-old girl out for some shopping. Anything to do with those white dresses should be taken away and Naruto was going to burn it.

She was going to destroy anything that Eri had on her that brought her pain.

"I second that notion!" Ashido declared, raising her fist up in the air. Hinata bobbed her head alongside the other girls, who gazed at the screen with eyes filled with determination. The pink-skinned teen glared at the bandages wrapped around Eri's arms. "I can make acid so if you want me to melt off the proof then I'm your girl!"

Naruto nodded. "If I save Eri-chan again then I'm taking you up in your offer!"

Naruto knelt down and looked at the shy little girl. The people around them kept glancing at her, looking almost slightly put-off by the state of Eri, and she wanted to yell at them. If they had a problem then why don't they ask her? Why didn't they try to rescue this little girl earlier? They shouldn't judge them.

"They are probably jumping to conclusion about your relationship with Eri," Narumi commented. Naruto blinked and her grandmother eyed the trembling girl in the screen before looking back at her. "Eri is probably small and malnourished for her age, which meant that they probably jumped to the conclusion that you're her mother or something."

Naruto frowned. "I'm only 15!"

"There are girls out there that are giving birth at the age of 12," her grandmother said flatly. Naruto blanched while Ashido and the other girls trembled at the thought. Kushina grimaced and Mitsuki eyed Narumi, who closed her eyes. "There is so many types of abuse and thank goodness that you never experienced the sexual kind."

"If there is anything that you want, Eri-chan then you can bring it to me and I will pay for it." Naruto said softly, combing through the girl's hair. She offered her a smile and flickered her eyes to the large horn on her forehead. It was getting smaller with each passing hour. It was kind of a good thing because she was uncertain about what to do with clothes.

She really was at lost when it came to clothes. Dresses were clothes Naruto avoided wearing and hated to wear, while jeans were her best friend in this world. But she wasn't six. Naruto barely remembered what she wore when she was six.

"I think you would look pretty in a dress," Hagakure declared. Naruto blinked and the invisible girl bounced in her seat as several girls from Japan bobbed their heads at her. Their eyes lingered on her uniform while Kaminari and Mineta exchanged glances. "You have a great body! I wish I have your body! No matter how much I work out, I can't get that kind of tone!"

How the hell can you know when you are invisible?

"I would definitely visit you in your workplace," Kaminari declared. Sasuke bristled and Hinata giggled as Naruto slacked her jaw at the blond-haired teen. Minato stood up, only for Kushina to pull him back. Mitsuki giggled as Kaminari grinned at the whiskered-teen. "By the way, are you interested in anyone because I was wondering if we can have dinner later."

Naruto eyed him. "Come to the café and I'll think about it."

"Fuck no!" Bakugou snarled. "You aren't going on a date with that playboy wannabe!"

"If he's paying for my meal then why not?"

"Can you change by yourself? Or do you want me to help you?" Naruto asked softly. "I will just be outside the changing room. I won't leave you alone, I promise you."

The girl smiled shyly. "I can change by myself…do you promise not to leave me?"

"I will always keep my promise to you." Eri beamed and Naruto wrapped her hand around those small hands, making sure to keep her strength at a level that wasn't too strong. She tensed her shoulder and feels a little bit weary about leaving the little girl alone to change. It might be a bit much but Naruto didn't know what to do.

It was one thing to take care of yourself, but another thing to take care of another human being.

"You know I never associated you with being soft," Shikamaru commented. Naruto clicked her tongue and the black-haired chuunin rubbed his jaw while the other members of Team 10 gazed at her with befuddled eyes. "But you're being actually really nice to her instead of mean. I heard from Ino that you're mean to the children that your team babysits."

Naruto stared at him. "They're spoiled little shits that needs to learn how to be disciplined! Not my fault that I'm not like Sakura and just give into their demands!"

"They weren't spoiled!" Sakura protested. "They were just a little—"

"They insulted me whenever they didn't get their own way and believed that acting cute means that they can do whatever they want," Naruto stated. The pink-haired teen blinked while Kakashi regarded her with curious eyes. "I might not have parents growing up but fucking hell am I going to allow my children act that rude around a stranger."

Ino snorted. "You're rude all the time!"

"I'm rude because people are rude to me," Naruto explained slowly. "If I see that someone isn't rude to me then you can be certain that I'll treat them with the respect and politeness that they deserve."

She thinks that maybe she could do the job okay when Eri comes out with a shy little smile and looking so cute that Naruto wished she had one of those fancy phones that could take nice photos. She might mess things up with the pancakes. But Eri didn't seem to mind the fact that she messed things up.

Naruto could do this parenting thing.

She just needed to overwork when it came to the part-time jobs, have her clones attend her classes and everything was just going to be okay.

"You know when Midoriya says that out loud, it actually sound insane," Naruto mused. Hinata nodded while Aizawa gazed at her like she was the most insane person that he has ever met. Izuku bobbed his head and grimaced as the others looked at her with unimpressed eyes. "Just thinking about it is giving me stress."

Her grandmother relaxed her arms. "Then will you give Eri to an adult?"

"I'll just drop out of high—"

"No," Minato growled. Naruto blinked as her parents regarded her with serious eyes. Their lips were pressed into a thin line and her father looked from the screen before looking back at her. "I don't care if you're a shinobi now but if you got into Yuuei! Then I want you to continue with your education!"

"Why?" She demanded. "I have a job!"

Her father looked at her with serious eyes. "I know that you haven't had an easy time growing up in Konoha and it seems like you only had Hinata and Sasuke as friends, but this is your chance to make friends. If you have an opportunity to get more career paths then I want you to take it. I don't want you to grow up thinking that you only have to be a kunoichi."

"Then why didn't you tell the Third about my grandmother if you thought like that?" Naruto demanded. Narumi regarded Minato while Kushina pressed her lips into a thin line. The blond-haired teen took deep breaths. "If you wanted me to have my own choice then why have me raise in Konoha? Why not with your mother?"

"If you want to be a hero then you need someone to teach you how to use your chakra," her father said flatly. "If I decided to tell Mom about you then she would have taken you back before you could even learn how to use it!"

Her grandmother thinned her lips. "I could have stayed in that village, long enough for Naruto to learn."

"You would have died," her father stated. "Keisuke was gentle and fought hard against making Naruto a weapon. You might be able to punch but you can't survive in that part of the world. The council would have been furious if you decided to take Naruto away from them."

Sometimes I regret becoming a teacher.

Everyone blinked and twisted their head around to look at Aizawa. The black-haired man bobbed his head and looked at the screen with tired eyes. Then why the hell did you become a teacher? And why are you putting effort? She tilted her head to the side as Izuku and Bakugou looked at the man with wide eyes.

"If you don't like being a teacher then why are you a teacher?" Shino asked.

Aizawa grunted. "Because Nemuri recommended me without me knowing it and thought I would be good with kids! Personally, I think she wanted us to repeat the whole high school experience again."

Aizawa shoved his hand into his pocket and stared at the door belonging to Uzumaki's apartment. The school day was nearly over and that meant he had plenty of time to confirm whether or not, his student had truly skipped school.

He raised his hand, ready to knock the door and paused when he heard a sound coming from the door. Aizawa pressed his ear against the door, eyebrows hunched together when he heard the sound of a second voice.

"You know you look like a pervert," Naruto declared. Jiraiya coughed and laughed while everyone else turned their head to look at the stoic blond-haired girl. She rubbed her jaw and pointed her finger at the white-haired man. "He used to do the same thing whenever he was near the hot springs, which is where I met him."

Aizawa rolled his eyes. "I'm not interested in 15-year-old girls."

"Do you even have a girlfriend or are you the eternal bachelor like Kakashi-sensei?" Naruto asked. Aizawa raised an eyebrow and Ashido leaned her whole body forward, yellow eyes gleaming with curiosity. "Judging by the way you look, I don't think you have a girlfriend or else you wouldn't look that scruffy."

"For all you know my girlfriend likes my scruffy appearance," he stated.

Naruto hummed. "Really? Then that would prove Shikamaru's point wrong about guys like him and you."

Everyone else blinked and twisted their head around at the Nara heir. The black-haired teen scowled and looked at her with disbelief while Hagakure, Tsuyu and Yaoyorozu looked at the boy with curiosity. I probably shouldn't have said that. Then again, it hadn't been a private, deep conversation. He only told her because of the situation at the time.

"And what is that point?"

"That you guys aren't the type to have girls go after you."

"Eri-chan! What do you want for lunch?"

Aizawa frowned, pushed his ear away and knocked the door. What is this girl doing? He knew Uzumaki didn't live with anyone. Her Guardian was god know where. Her parents were dead and as far as he knew, his student was an only child. Who did his student have over today? Was she the reason that Uzumaki skipped class?

He really was dreading about what was going to happen.

The door opened and Aizawa folded his arms against his chest as his student blinked her eyes at the sight of him. He raised his eyebrow at the sight of the apron around her clothes. She opened and closed her mouth, before flashing him a bright, fake smile.

"You know you look exactly like your mother at that moment," Minato commented. Naruto blinked as Kushina smiled faintly at this piece of information. Her father sighed and offered her a little smile. Do I really look that much like her? She glanced at her aunt. The blond-haired woman bobbed her head. "The apron just seals it."

Shikamaru sighed. "I'm still trying to wrap my head seeing you like this."

"Well you're never going to see me like this," Naruto informed him. Shikamaru frowned and the blonde offered him a smile. "The only person that can see me like this in the future will be Eri-chan and whoever I date."

Choji frowned. "Does that mean you'll never date Shikamaru?"

"I'll date a foreigner over anyone from the village," Naruto declared. The whole room grew quiet as the Third Hokage and Kakashi stared at her with wide eyes. Only Hinata didn't look all that surprised by her words. Are you guys really that shock? She offered them a very thin smile and gazed at them with blank eyes. "You think I would date someone from Konoha?"

"Why wouldn't you date anyone from the village?" Ino demanded.

"Because I want to date someone that never ever disrespected me," she stated. Ino, Sakura and everyone else from Konoha looked at her with wide eyes. The blonde looked at them with cold eyes and clenched her jaw. "Did you guys forget how you treated every outsider that came to the village? And how you treated me compared to them?"

Shikamaru frowned. "Naruto, we were only kids."

"Doesn't matter to me," she stated. "So what if you were kids? I'm the one that was hurt by your actions and it is only fair that I don't want to be reminded of that pain whenever I go on dates. You know why I can accept a date from Kaminari? He never hurt me."

Kaminari blinked. "Wait, so are you really—"

"I'm giving you one shot," Naruto informed him with a shrug. "Besides if you're paying for the meal then I'll get to know you, but that doesn't mean it is going to lead to anything."

This was definitely the real Uzumaki.

"Aizawa-sensei, what brings you here? I think school…"

He pressed his lips into a thin line, black eyes flickering around the corridor to see if her landlord was eavesdropping in their conversation. No sight of black hair meant that the man was not interested to hear what was happening and reporting it to Uzumaki's godfather. The man must have a way to report things to the man.

Aizawa refused to believe that an adult could be so irresponsible and not check on a teenager like Uzumaki.

"Have you met Naruto and how stubborn she can be?" Jiraiya asked, shaking his head. Naruto scowled and the white-haired man took a deep breath before shaking his head. "I'm grateful that she is actually being this communicative with you guys because the reports I have been getting, makes me want to pull my hair out."

Aizawa eyed him. "Have you ever thought of putting her in a therapy?"

"Be my guest in trying to convince her that she needs help," Jiraiya stated. Naruto slacked her jaw and the white-haired man took a deep breath before looking back at her. "She is doing a lot better than three years ago but it would be nice if she opens up even more. The only thing really holding her back is her emotional state."

Naruto cleared her throat. "I'm right here."

"We know."

"Why did you send a clone to school, Uzumaki? Don't even try to lie yourself out of this, young lady."

His student smiled. "I didn't send a clo…"

"Uzumaki, do you take me for an idiot?"

No matter how I answer that question, I'm going to get into huge trouble. She ignored the knowing looks from Sakura and Ino, choosing instead to keep her mouth shut. Even if she wanted to answer the question then it would prove them right. The whiskered teen took a deep breath and folded her arms against her chest.

"No comment?" Sakura asked.

Naruto stared at her. "If I say anything then you will take it as an opportunity to pretend to be a goody-two shoes!"

"I'm not pretending," the pink-haired girl growled. Everyone else blinked and tilted their heads at them. Their eyes didn't waver between them and Sakura narrowed her eyes at her. "I've always been respectful to our teachers, unlike you! If anyone is pretending then it is you. You were never like this in Konoha! You were always—"

"Naruto was always like this," Sasuke stated. Sakura closed her mouth and the black-haired teen stared at the thinned-lip girl. "She has always been smart and she can be respectful if she wants to be. She also knows when to keep her mouth shut and knows not what to say to people. She also takes into account people's situations…unlike you."

Sakura blinked. "Sasuke-kun, you don't need to defend—"

"Naruto never forgot that I lost my family and will never ever make light of what people went through," Sasuke stated. Naruto blinked and stared at her childhood friend while Sakura dropped her jaw at him. "You knew full well that I was an orphan and decided to tell me that Naruto was lucky to never have parents. You never once considered of the hell she went through because you're self-centred."

Sakura opened her mouth. "Sasuke-kun, I know I was a bit cruel to her but—"

"How the hell can I ever look at you in that way when you hurt Naruto in every type of level that there was?" Sasuke asked. Sakura and Ino blinked as the black-haired teen pressed his lips into a very thin line. "If Naruto doesn't want to date anyone from Konoha because of disrespect to her, then I don't want to date anyone from Konoha because of how you mistreated her."

Sakura stared at him. "Sasuke-kun, aren't you being—"

"Naruto has been in my life longer then everyone in this room," Sasuke looked at Naruto and the blonde stared at him with furrowed eyebrows. The male flickered his eyes to Hinata, who thinned her lips, and then to his parents. "I may be with Orochimaru right now and I might die in the future but if things has been different then I would pick someone that respected my friendship with Naruto. She is always going to be a part of my life."

Where the fuck was that speech when we were 12?

She wasn't going to say that because she just wanted to bask in the shock of Sakura and Ino.

The blond-haired girl wisely kept her mouth shut and Aizawa stared at the teenage girl. What kind of life did his student live for her to do these things? He took a deep breath and thought of the things that he rehearsed on his way here. We can work through your issues, Uzumaki.I want to help you. Those were some of the words that was in his speech.

He forgot about his speech when he saw a little girl peaking through Uzumaki's legs, looking at him with so much fear.

There was only one question that Aizawa could think to ask at that moment.

"Uzumaki, explain to me why do you have a little girl with you?"

He had a feeling that his headache from this morning was just going to get bigger.

The whole room grew silent and Naruto fixed her gaze on Sakura, who seemed ready to break down, before glancing at her stoic childhood friend. She didn't want to get involved but she wanted to know what the hell was going through his mind. Didn't he like Sakura before the whole thing? She scratched her head and looked at Mikoto.

Her mother-figure relaxed her shoulders and looked relieved while Fugaku nodded his head. The former Uchiha Head looked almost proud as if he wanted Sasuke to say those words. What the hell am I missing? Wouldn't he be upset that Sasuke said those things? He never liked me. She knitted her eyebrows.

"That was the end of the chapter," Izuku finished quietly. "Who wants to read the next chapter?"

Aizawa sighed. "I will read the next chapter."


A/N: For anyone that cares or is even remotely interested in knowing if Sasuke would ever be paired up, I'm informing you from right now that if I ever do go that route then it is definitely not someone from Konoha. We also see Naruto accept a date from Kaminari and Naruto being stubborn about being friends with Todoroki. Now here are a couple of questions for you:

Q1: Can anyone figure out the reason that Naruto accepted Kaminari's offer?

Q2: How do you think the people of Konoha will react when they see the scene with the teacher?

Q3: Would you want to see the future versions of Naruto and Todoroki in the reading version? Or their future possible children in the reading version?

Please do tell me of your thoughts on this chapter.