I do not own any of the Naruto characters. Their ownership resides solely with Masashi Kishimoto. Also, shout out to fox sage123, as this piece of work is based off of Naruto My Career.

Normal speech - "Kurama"

Flashback – kurama

Sound effects - kurama

Chapter 1

(2009)

Glancing up at the shot clock, 14.7 seconds left in the second quarter. He dribbles the ball with his left hand just beyond half court, waiting for his teammates to get into position to start the play. He euro steps the ball to his right hand while holding up his left and making a fist, signalling for a screen.

As he drives towards his right the defender stays on him. Kiba runs up to provide the screen. Getting rid of the defender he accelerates towards the hoop. Spotting Shikamaru standing in the leftside corner just beyond the 3-point line, Naruto performs a pump fake. Then tossing a bounce pass directly under the defender who jumped for the block into Shika's waiting hands.

Shika goes through the motions and releases the ball just as the buzzer goes off. The ball hits nothing but net and gives the team three more points.

Halftime score: Konoha high 44 – 68 West Philadelphia highschool.

As the teams walk off the court to the locker rooms, Naruto listens to the crowed in the packed sports hall chant for both teams. Glancing behind his team's bench, he looks at the friends and family that came out to support him for the final game of his high school career. All of them decked out in the Konoha colours: red and black.

Sakura, Ino and Tenten are waving the school flags and leading the rest of the supporters in cheer spirit. His godmother Tsunade, beating up his godfather Jiriaya, probably because he was caught leering at the cheerleaders again. His surrogate sisters, Shizune and Rin, are sitting next to each other, happily talking amongst themselves while their fiancés Obito and Kakashi, his surrogate brothers, both trying to discreetly read the smut book, Icha Icha Paradise, that made his godfather so rich.

Finally, he finds whom he has been searching for. His beautiful daughter, Himawari. Sitting on the lap of his Jiji, Hiruzen. A little girl of just two years old, with indigo coloured hair styled into princess curls. Big adorable violet eyes look back at him with love and admiration. Face lit up with so much excitement causing her whisker birthmarks, two on each cheek, to become even more pronounced. Wearing one of his training tops with the number nine on the front, looking more like a blanket on her small frame, and happily waving around her foam finger.

He waves to her while walking back down the tunnel to his team's locker room. Stepping inside, he can feel the tense atmosphere emanating from the rest of the team. Sasuke unties his shoes and rubs out the kinks in his feet. Kiba sits on the bench rest his head against his locker. Shika takes off the tape around his fingers and wraps them up with fresh ones. Choji just sits there munching on energy bars he normally keeps in his locker. The rest of the team spread out each going to rest in front of their own locker. No one says a word as they all get lost in their own thoughts.

Naruto walks to his locker and sits down with a wet towel on his head to cool down. His thoughts take him back to the day that changed his life. The day he truly fell in love with basketball.

(flashback begin)

"GO LAKERS!", shouted a little boy. The three whisker marks on each cheek making him resemble a little fox as he jumps up and down in his seat. Shouting and chanting to the beat and rhythm created by the crowed jam packed inside the Staples Center Arena.

"Naruto! For the last time, sit your ass down on your seat before I beat the discipline into you!", shouts a beautiful woman with violet eyes and red hair reaching all the way down to her lower back. Just by one quick glance anyone can see that this woman is an angel of beauty. Wearing flat sandals, a pair of tight jeans that hug her legs and ass in all the right places, and a long sleeve white top underneath a Lakers basketball top, Kushina Uzumaki Nmaikaze was definitely a woman that turned heads wherever she went.

"Now, now Kushi-chan. Naruto is just excited to be at his first live basketball game. I say we let him have his fun", placated the handsome young man sitting on her other side. Standing at 6.2ft with a very athletic build while waving a Lakers foam finger in the air, spiky blonde hair with two bangs framing a totally unblemished face, a pair of the brightest blue eyes and a cocky smirk on his face filled with self confidence, Minato Namikaze sends a smile and wink to his excitable five year old son.

"Kaa-san, Tou-san, its starting! Look! Look! Its MJ!", shouted the almost clone like child of Minato. If it wasn't for the whisker like birthmarks on his face, little Naruto Uzumaki Namikaze could have passed for his father in his younger days.

Minato noticed that as the game between the LA Lakers and Chicago Bulls went on, Naruto would make less and less noise. Eventually when the game ended Naruto, who was sitting quietly in his seat, turned towards his parents. The look in his eyes was so intense and focused that Kushina could not help but compare it to the gaze of the legendary nine tailed demon fox, Kurama. Naruto would always ask to be told bedtime stories about the legendary fox that was said to be greatest and most powerful creature in the folklore of the shinobi of old.

"Tou-san, kaa-san, one day I will stand down on that basketball court and everyone will know that I am the best", Naruto said in a deceptively calm voice. The sheer determination shining in those bright blue eyes of their five year old son, left them no other choice but to believe that their son would accomplish exactly what he just told them.

"I have no doubt that you will, Sochi."

"That is really what you want to accomplish then your mother and I will help you in anyway we can. We will be right there supporting you every step of the way."

(flashback end)

Support him they did. From that day onwards, you would be very hard pressed to find Naruto without a basketball nearby. He would go down to the local park and play basketball nearly everyday. He would join in on any pick me up games or challenge players to one on one games.

It was a combination of his competitive nature and the constant playing and losing against older, stronger, and faster opponents that Naruto got the drive and mind set to continually improve himself.

During those early years before middle school, Naruto would beg his parents to sign him up for all the basketball camps that would happen during the school holidays. It was there that people started to notice that he was ahead of his peers when it came to actually playing the game. Naruto would have a way with dribbling the ball that just could not be taught. It came from hours and hours of playing streetball with all the older boys in the local park. When the head coach saw just how good Naruto was at handling and passing the ball, he immediately made Naruto assume the point guard position.

It was at that time that Naruto truly showed the amount of raw potential he possessed. He had a way of just knowing where and when to pass the ball so that his teammates were in the best position to score the basket.

Growing up, he idolised all the great passers and point guards in the NBA. His favourite being Allen Iverson. Naruto wanted to be the type of player that his teammates could always depend upon. He began playing a style of basketball that was based around drawing the defenders towards himself and then passing the ball towards an open teammate.

That is not to say that Naruto couldn't score when he wanted to. In fact, it was the exact opposite. Due to playing so much streetball, there was rarely someone who could beat him in a one on one. The more basketball he played the better he got. He was quite a bit faster than others his age due to trying to keep up with all the older kids. His excellent dribbling and handling of the ball, fast reflexes and reaction times, combined with the excellent court awareness that just couldn't be taught, ensured that Naruto was well on his way to becoming one of the top up and coming basketball player in the country.

It was during one of those summer camps that he met a group of boys that would go on to become his lifelong friends.

Sasuke Uchiha, known for being the youngest son of Chief police officer Fugaku Uchiha. Sasuke always preferred playing the small forward position. Due to him having such good eyesight, he would watch his opponent intensely, waiting and searching for the best and quickest way to either shoot the ball, drive past an opponent, or steal the ball away. Sasuke was always a rival to Naruto due to them both having a competitiveness to be the best. Although hardly ever agreeing on anything off the court, on the court the pair of them would go on to become one of the most dangerous duo's in high school, as well as collage, basketball.

Kiba Inuzuka, son and heir to the very well known Inuzuka veterinary clinic. Kiba was their aggressive power forward. Always driving at the opponents. His wild, animalistic playing style ensured that he never stood still. Kiba was always running up and down the court, either to help out with defense or be the one to score a basket.

Choji Akimichi, son of world renowned Chef Akimichi, was the team's big center. His size and strength meant that he was very good at holding the ball and driving to the net with brute strength. He also was their best defensive player, always making it difficult for the opposition to score baskets from the paint.

Lastly, we have Shikamaru Nara, the team's lazy shooting guard. Shika is the son of leading traditional medicine specialist, Shikaku Nara. Even though both father and son of the Nara family were both extremely lazy, they were two of the smartest people Naruto has ever met. They always looked at things from a logical point of view and had great analysing skills. If either one of them ever put the time or effort into a task, you can be rest assured you would get nothing but the best results.

As a result of all the boys having Japanese heritage, they always stuck together. Choosing to be on the same team and always standing up for one another if there was ever a fight. Always sleeping over at each other's house on the weekend became a regular occurrence. Due to the boys being such a close-knit group, their families eventually started to meet up and have gatherings after each basketball game. Having been so close together for years that they began seeing each other as brothers, the boys decided that by the end of their second year of high school they would all get a tattoo to represent they undying friendship. As time went on, others would start to join the group, namely the girlfriends of the boys.

However, not all of his childhood was a happy memory…

(flashback begin)

"Baa-chan, I'm home!", shouted a 13 year old Naruto as he steps inside his godmother's home. Due to Minato and Kushina travelling away on business so much, Naruto would often spend days sleeping over at Tsunade's, so much so that he even had his own room.

"In the living room." Naruto drops his school bag next to the front door and takes his shoes off. Placing them next to his discarded bag he goes looking for everyone. He walks in on a near distraught Tsunade being comforted by Jiriaya.

"Baa-chan, what's wrong?"

"Naruto, come here. Sit down. We have something important to speak about", says Jiriaya. Naruto looks at them wearily. Tsunade wont look at him while Jiriaya looks like he might break down any second.

"Guys, what's going on? What happened?"

Naruto was starting to panic. He has never seen either of them like this before. He sits down next to Tsunade, taking her hand. He looked up at Jiriaya who got ready to speak.

"Naruto, on their way back from West Philadelphia", Jiriaya takes a shuddering breath, "your parents were involved in a drive by shooting. The culprit has been caught and arrested but neither Minato nor Kushina survived. I'm so sorry Naruto. I wish it di-"

(flashback end)

Try as he might, Naruto really couldn't remember all that much after the announcement of his parents' death was made. It was all just a blur of funeral arrangements and people walking up to him to give their condolences. He didn't even have the will to pick up a basketball anymore.

But through it all, his friends and family stuck by him. Never leaving him to wallow in self-pity for too long. Even though the next couple of months were some of the hardest he had ever have to go through, there was always one constant. That one person who was glued to his side every step of the way. Being a shoulder to cry on, a hand to hold has they buried his parents, an ear to listen to him complain about the unfairness of it all, and someone to help him pick up the ball that at one point gave him nothing but happiness.

Hinata Hyuga was the very rock that kept him grounded through it all. Without her, there would have been no way he would have passed the school semester. She made him realise that he was now playing basketball for more than just himself. He was playing for his parents as well. Hoping to make them proud.

And if that wasn't enough, she gave him Himawari. His beautiful baby girl, sitting out there supporting her dad. Yes, without Hinata he would have never gotten back to his happy, fun loving self.

"Alright team, listen up!" shouted Iruka, the team's coach and manager. "I know we are all under pressure. This is a big game, the National Championship. If that wasn't enough, we are playing against our old time rivals, West Philly. Honestly guys, we can and should be doing so much better. We are letting them dictate the game. We are letting them hold up the ball and slow play down. That's not how we play! Take the ball away from them and play the way we know how to play! Show them that when that final buzzer sounds off, Konoha will be standing at the top as the best in the nation!" The team listens to every word said by Iruka, gaining confidence as his speech goes on. "Captains! Lead us out."

Sasuke and Naruto stand up and walk to the front of the room. Looking at every single member, they see the fire in his eyes. The determination to take back the trophy they stole from us the previous year.

"Alright guys, I know things look bad. We're down by 24 points, not an easy score to make up. Yes, they won the first half but they aren't better than us! It's time we showed, not just them, but the rest of the country as well, that Konoha is the best high school in the nation! Like coach said, lets play our own game. As soon as they get the ball, we take it right back! Seniors! This is the last chance we will get to play together! To leave behind a legacy!" Each member nodding his head to what is being said by Naruto. As he lowers his head to calm himself down, the rest of the team could practically feel the air around him change. They all knew that their captain was now switching gears. As he lifts his head up they all get a good look at his intense gaze. The gaze, that gave him the nickname Kitsune. "You all know how my parents died. You all know the amount of anger I feel towards Philly. I refuse to lose to them!" The team could feel the raw emotion rolling off of Naruto. "We WILL win this game! We WILL win this championship! We WILL prove them all, here and now, that we ARE the best!"

The team, hyped up from the emotional speech made by their normally composed captain, starts cheering in excitement and determination. Naruto looks towards Sasuke and slaps his back.

"Leads us out Red Eyes." Sasuke just gives Naruto his famous Uchiha smirk and walks to the tunnel while chanting.

"1! 2! 3!"

"Konoha!"

"4! 5! 6!"

"Work hard!"

As the team gets closer to the end of the tunnel they can hear the noise from the crowd get louder and louder. While the rest of the team runs onto the court, ready for the third quarter, Naurto hangs back. Clasping his hands together he sends a quick prayer to all those who have passed on.

Once he's done, calmly walks out the tunnel with his head lowered. As he comes into view, the crowd of Konoha supporters start chanting his name.

"Kitsune! Kitsune! Kitsune!"

Stopping just before the court, Naruto lifts his head and lets his eyes roam the entire stadium. The crowd reaches fervour pitch. Cheering louder than ever before. One thought running through all their heads: our Ace is back!

As soon as he steps onto the court, all the players stop and stare at what they now know to be the most dangerous player. They can all see, just by his relaxed posture and the way he makes his way over to his team bench, that they are about to witness something amazing.

"Alright! Bring it in, bring it in!" shouts Iruka. "We are going to be using a tight defense. Wait for them to cross halfway and then press for the ball. Choji and Sasuke will be defending the inside lane. I want no easy layups.", Choji nods while finishing his last energy bar. Sasuke lets out the famous Uchiha grunt.

"Uh"

"Naruto, Kiba , and Shika. I want the three of you to roam around the three-point line. Force them into making mistakes." Shika nods his head with a seldom seen serious look upon his face, while Kiba starts bouncing on his feet with a excited smile.

"Don't worry Sensei. We'll bite down hard on their asses!" Kiba replies with his normal cocky attitude.

"Lastly", Iruka passes to ensure they are all paying attention to him, "I will leave the offensive to our Ace on the court. Follow his lead on what you need to do."

All eyes turn towards Naruto. They all could see the look of absolute concentration his face holds as he stares at the opposing team, while tightening the wristbands he always wears, a birthday, gift given to him by his daughter.

"We play all out. Run and gun. Score as quickly as possible and run back to set up the defence. If you get tired, signal Sensei to rotate you for a fresh teammate. Whatever you do, do not force any shots. If you are in a good position to score I'll make sure the ball ends up in your hands. For those sitting on the bench, even though you aren't on the court with the rest of us, be ready to go at any moment. We are depending on you for support when we need it."

Bzzzzzzzzz…

The buzzer sounds of while the starting members for each team take their positions on the court. The crowd roars in anticipation.

Philly starts with the inbound and passes it to their Ace player who is wearing number 4. He glances at Naruto as an arrogant smirk appears on his face.

"I saw your daughter in the stand." He says. "Such a shame that she will have to see her loser daddy lose today." The player laughs.

Naruto, not letting his anger get the best of him, takes a giant step away from the player and gets into a comfortable stance.

Suddenly, Phyilly's ace place feels an immense amount of pressure drop onto his shoulders. As he gazes into Naruto's eyes, he feels a shiver go down his spine. Instead of driving forward like he would have normally done, he passes the ball to an open teammate who goes up for a jump shot.

Suddenly, Sauske appears out of nowhere and smacks the ball down court. The crowd roars its approval of the block done by their favourite Uchiha.

Naruto grabs the ball and races down the court. As he passes the three-point line, a defender appears to slow him down. He fakes a drive and at the last second passes the ball through his legs to Shikamaru, who is right behind him.

As Naruto turns to head back to defence, he doesn't even watch the arc of the ball. Already knowing that Shika wouldn't miss. The reaction of the crowd is one of awe and admiration for the no look pass by Naruto.

The first basket set the pace for the rest of the quarter. The defence letting in only a handful of baskets while their offense controlled the game completely. Naruto would drive towards the basket, drawing defenders to him, then pass the ball to an open teammate. A lot of the time uses fancy flicks and no look passes.

The crowd, announcers, and scouts were in awe of the display being put on by Konoha's number 9, many believing him to be laying down his claim to be the best high school basketball player in the country.

As the quarter winds down, Naruto is dribbling the ball just beyond the three-point line. The opponent's number 4 reaches in to steal the ball. Naruto crosses the ball behind his back, fakes a drive towards the inside lane, and takes a huge step back behind the three-point line, causing his defender to trip over his own feet and fall down. Naurto shoots the ball and turns around as soon as he releases.

The crowd quietens down and everyone hears the ball catch nothing but net. Everyone is on their feet after that display of amazing ball skills.

Philly inbounds the ball and rushes down the court. The tight defence by Konoha forces their point PG to force a pass, which is then intercepted by Naruto.

He races down the court with no one able to catch him. He quickly comes to a stop behind the three-point like, jumps, and releases the ball. As he lands, he keeps his posture and watches the ball rebound off the backboard into the hoop.

The crowd cheers as he runs back to his defence. With the quarter almost over Philly rushes their shot and the ball is rebounded by Choji, who passes to Naruto. He glances at the scoreboard: 20 seconds left.

He passes the ball to Sasuke and slowly walks to half court as he watches Philly's defence. With ten seconds left he calls for the ball. As soon as the ball is in his hands, he holds it against his right hip and uses his left hand to make a placating motion. Surprising everyone stops and stare, unable to believe he had the balls to do that in the middle of the championship game. With two seconds left, he jumps and releases the ball from half court. Everyone but Naruto stares in astonishment as the ball goes in just as the buzzer sounds off, before breaking out in fervour pitched cheering. Even the Philly supporters are cheering in amazement at what the country's number 1 high school is doing.

Naruto waves his arms in the air, hyping up the crowd even more before running to his teammates for some celebrations.

End of third quarter: Konoha 73 – 78 West Philadelphia.

Naruto sits down on the bench as a damp towel is placed over his head. He tunes everyone and everything out as he tries to regain his breath after playing with such aggressiveness for a full quarter.

"Alright, gather around so we can go over the plan for the fourth quarter!" commands Iruka sensei. "Naruto and Choji will be sitting out the first half of the quarter since they played the full third. Sasuke will take over PG, Shino takes over SF, Shika and Kiba will keep their positions and Sai will fill in for Choji at centre."

Bzzzzzzz…

"Alright boys, get out there and try your best to close the gap until we get both Naruto and Choji in the game. Sasuke, lead us out." Says Iruka.

"1! 2! 3!"

"Konoha"

"4! 5! 6!"

"Work hard"

As the fourth quarter begins, Naruto glances up and looks behind him. Seeing his beautiful two year old daughter happily smiling and laughing always manages to put a smile on his face.

Himawari sees her father looking at her and waves enthusiastically to him. He smiles and blows kisses at her, missing the fact that Kakashi has caught the moment on camera.

At the halfway mark of the quarter, Iruka calls a timeout.

Konoha 79 – 83 West Philadeplia.

Naruto tightens his laces then stands up and he takes the towel off his head. With a final glance back at his daughter, he faces the court and prepares himself for what is to come. He walks up to Iruka for last minute instructions.

"We are down four points. We have one more time out left while they have none. With you and Choji on the court again, we have our best possible defensive team. When you get the ball, walk it up the court. Don't rush things. Make the basket and the focus on defence." Iruka tells him.

"Don't worry sensei. I don't ever plan on losing to Philly." Replies Naruto with utmost confidence.

Konoha starts with the inbound and Naruto slowly dribbles it up court while holding up his index on his left hand. Indicating that he wants to go one on one with their ace player.

"Easy boys. Relax and move around."

He sees Sasuke open and passes him the ball as he runs left while the rest of the team runs right. As the defender closes on Sasuke, he lobs the ball back to Naruto who jumps and catches it, now completely alone on the left side of the court with the opposition number 4.

The crowd rushes to its feet and roars in approval at finally seeing a proper one on one battle between both teams' best players.

The defender gets into his preferred guarding position while naruto take a quickly look at the shot clock. 18 seconds left.

Glancing at his opponent, Naruto drive fakes to the left and watches the defender twitch for the bait. Done sizing up his opponent, Naruto drives hard to the right, toward the free-throw line. As his opponent follows him Naruto performs a crossover between his legs so the ball ends up in his left hand. The defender, seeing this, reaches in to try and steal the ball ball Naruto quickly performs a behind the back spin move that takes him back to the free-throw line. Seeing he has a bit of space, Naruto jumps back and falls into a fade away. As he releases the ball, the defender jumps to block but cannot reach in time.

Swish

The crowd roars its approval at the display of skills put forth by Naruto. With little more than a minute left to play, Philly inbound and slowly walk the ball up court.

After waiting down the shot clock, Philly rushes a shot that bounces of the rim. Choji catches the rebound and passes the ball to Sasuke who races up the right of the court. As he gets to the 30ft mark, he suddenly lobs the ball towards the hoop.

Everyone gasps in surprise as Naruto comes flying out of no where, with his forehead almost touch the rim, to catch the ball with his right hand and slam it down to finish off a perfect alley oop play.

The crowd goes insane! Unbelieving of the fact that someone so small could climb so high into the air. As Philly inbound the ball, Shika immediately falls the PG to stop the clock at 5.3 seconds.

Konoha 83 – 83 West Philadelphia.

The PG for Philly makes both free-throws. Konoha inbounds the ball, rushes to half court, and quickly call their last time out, stopping the clock 0.9 seconds.

Konoha 83 – 85 West Philadelphia.

No one in the arena is sitting down as the championship game enters into its final play. As the buzzer goes off to signal the end of timeout, path teams take the court.

Naruto heads over to the right side of the court and tries to calm his breathing, waiting for the ref to hand the ball over to Sasuke who will be inbounding. As the ball lands in Sasuke's hand, all the players on the court start running around frantically. Kiba runs over to Naruto to perform a screen on his defender. As Naruto loses his man he rushes towards Sasuke. Sasuke fakes to Shika and sends the ball to Naruto. As the ball touches his hands, Naruto turns, jumps, and releases the ball…

Bzzzzzzzz…

Everyone in the Konoha Sports Arena watches the arc of the ball with baited breath as it reaches the hoop…

Swish

So leave your comments and ideas in the comment section. i would just like to point out that this is my first fanfic. I fell in love with anime by watching Naruto and i also got hooked on Kuroko no bask (definitely check it out if you haven't already). I plan on make this a long pic and I will try to update as quickly as possible but research needs to be done for a lot of ideas i will be using for this story.

Till next time