A/N: Hi guys! Thank you all so, so much for all the support! Also thank you, Guest reviewer! It makes my day to see that you guys like it!

Less rant, hope you like this chapter!

See the end of the chapter for translations.

Disclaimer: don't own Naruto.

Warnings: Language.

Childhood Arc: One Step Closer

"Other people teach us who we are. Their attitudes to us are the mirror in which we learn to see ourselves, but the mirror is distorted. We are, perhaps, rather dimly aware of the immense power of our social environment."

- Alan Watts, The Book on the Taboo Against Knowing Who You Are

The child in front of me was too thin for his age, too small. He wore oversized clothes as if to try and hide that, but what sane adult would be fooled by that? What sane adult would a mere kid struggle so much?

Anger swallowed by whole being. How dare they? They had kids of their own! Why? Don't they talk about their love to babies, about the new generations! The whole park was drowned in silence; not even a fluttering of a leaf was heard. All the grown ups were rigid, their gaze glued to Naruto and me. But… but what has he done to them, why-

Oh. Inwardly I cringed, realization creeping up my veins. I have no right to judge them. They weren't taught the whole truth, the concept of being a jinchūriki. All they know is that the beast that rampaged the village is in this boy, the particle 'in' lost in many mutterings. They don't hate the lone orphan. No, they fear the monster that annihilated their loved ones.

They haven't seen the life of this boy like I have, followed him through all the pain and loss. And I have no obligations in keeping his life the cannon way.

Rolling on the balls of my feet, I let a question slide, "Say, Naruto-kun, what'd you prefer to play?" Excitement was emitting from him, but just as he opened his mouth to response a high-pitched shriek was heard from behind me, stopping him in his tracks.

I whirled around, just in time to see Masuyo rushing towards us, tears streaming down her cheeks. Midoriko was on her tail, tense but ready. But Masuyo's eyes… they were despaired and pure dread filling them.

"No, Isamu! Don't go near it!" She all but cried, grabbing my hand and pulling me away. But this had to be done, no matter the pain infused upon those I hold dead. I must do it for the sake of this lonely boy. I'm so sorry…

"Why shouldn't I go near him?" I ask, trying to pull on a mask of puzzlement.

Taken aback, she gathers herself for a few moments before trying to pull me once more, muttering excuses, "Because he-he is a bad child! He might bully you! He might wanna-wanna do something horrible! He-"

Those perjuries… Those unreasonable accusations being fed to me. Were I truly a mere child, I'd have believed them all. But I'm not, so I'll need to push further.

Lowering Masuyo with my stare, I contend, "But he's just a lonely toddler. He can't be all that, you now that better than I do. So can you explain if there is any reason as to why I should eschew away from him?"

That's when she went deathly still, her eyes almost bulging out of the sockets. She opened her mouth in order to retort, but no sound came out. She just stared at me, mouth agape without producing a single sound. Because I won, and she knew it.

It pained me to see the pained expression crossing her face, but it needed to be done. This boy… he was my hero, the one I worshiped. His will of life was so bright, so buoyant. I saw his path, the empty childhood, the hurt filled days. The one I watched loose everything, but never give up. I knew that approaching him might have been a dire move, but how could I not? He was just a lonely kid at that time, his only desire to find friends, for the villagers to acknowledge his existence.

I heard kids asking their parents the same question in the background just before the crowd around us started to dissipate, the soft murmurs of "let's go get some ice-cream" and "no need to trouble yourself with those thought" vanishing as they left. I didn't expect any of the kids to linger: they had no reason not to believe their guardians. So they left, leading to the three of us being the only ones to stay back.

My own parent figure hasn't moved, but she has neither said anything. I knew that Jōnin had more intelligence about the jinchūriki existence, but I was still a bit shocked. I remembered other Jōnin – and Tokubetsu Jōnin too – threating Naruto better, as any other brat. But why was she different? Or did memory serve me wrong?

"Wait…" I heard Naruto speak from behind, his face twisted in confusion as he was finally processing the situation. "You weally wanna play with me? You not pwankin' me, wight? She not gonna take you 'way, dattebayo?" He asked while crossing his arms, brows furrowed. The air became a few degrees colder around us. I must warm up to him, fast!

I pulled on a mask of turmoil as I replied. "Why… why would someone do that? You seemed like a lonely kid, so I decided to approach you. I can't see what's the big deal about the whole situation anyway. After all, you're just a kid."

I spared a glance in Masuyo's direction, but only Midoriko was there. I couldn't sense anyone in my radius, but it didn't mean no one was there. Argh, I'd fucking give anything to be a sensor now!

Rather than go onto a panic attack, I decided to do something fruitful, so I yanked Naruto's arm and darted off, right to the slides. Turning to face a startled kid, I grin slyly and yell, "The last to get to the slides is a loser!" With that I run faster, but slow enough for Naruto to keep up.

As I glanced at him, I could see realization hitting him hard just as an enormous, ear-to-ear smile crossed his face and he scampered, pure bliss in his expression.

He skimmed past me, not even moderating his speed as he got closer to the attraction. Oh shit… That baka!

"Naruto, slow down! You're gonna hit-"

With a loud "Yatta!" he hit the slide, tripping over it with enough force to be sent flying onto his backside.

"Ouch! Ouch! Ouch!" The idiotic blonde cried in pain while rubbing his bottom. Suddenly he whirls to face me, puffing his chest out in contentment. "'Ya saw that?! The Gweat Uzumaki Nawuto won, dattebayo!" Pointing a finger at me, he chanted, "You are a loser! I'm not a loser! Hooway!" He even started dancing in his spot! My, isn't he a brat, even though an affectionate one.

I smile briefly before my expression turns playfully dismal. "Oh no! It can't be, I've fallen! Dare not, I'll beat you this time, for I'm the best at climbing!"

With that I rushed upwards, peeking at Midoriko, only to be met with Masuyo's gaze, her serene and amiable gaze.

"Wait up, Isamu-chan!"

We spent the whole day playing and fooling around. As the evening came, we parted, but not without a promise to meet here again.

Weeks passed after my meeting with Naruto, or newly branded Naru-chan. It pissed him off to no end, which only encouraged me more. We met at the playground, and we visited the park nearby. We even ate ice cream twice.

I learned that he's living alone in his own apartment, with "Jiji" (or Sandaime-sama for mere mortals like me) stopping by from time to time. He can eat ramen non-stop for hours, as well as run without a break. The boy's stamina far exceeds mine. He's literally a bundle of energy. I can hardy keep up!

The prankster side is coming out too. At the moment he mostly shies away from the civilian glares, hiding behind anything – me included. But when we're alone he's so lively.

Surprisingly, Masu-chan warmed up to him pretty fast. In fact, she hasn't made a move against him after the first incident. Not that I'm complaining. I guess Hokage-sama was nearby that faithful day to explain the poor jinchūriki's situation to her.

The training has advanced quite a bit. Komugi finally found enough time to continue our lessons, starting with the new seal being a filtering one in order to proceed with the gas seals. The filtering seal was, by far, the hardest one I've seen. Turns out that the reason for fūinjutsu being so unpopular among shinobi is due to the seals being connected to each individual via their affinity, chakra control and charka pool. Each of these elements affects the seal matrix, making each seal unique in its own way. The only seals that aren't influenced by that rule are the explosion tags and basic storage seals. The system kind of reminds me of coding on different platforms, each one requiring a different style. We've yet to advance towards actually creating the seal, but today he told me that we'd check my affinity. He's bound to come at about… now.

*Ding-dong*

I race to the front door to meet my Ji-chan. He's in his Chūnin attire, not having advanced even one bit. He looks like an adult Harry Potter (what was his actor's name?). Heck, he even spots a scar on his forehead, even though a simple vertical line close to his temple instead of a lightning-bolt one.

He waves enthusiastically as he greeted me. "Hey, Isa-chan! What's up? How's Hatsuyuki?"

I grab his hand and guide us to the backyard. "Fine, fine! We don't have time for this! Did you get it? Please tell me you got it." I rant in excitement because finally!

He guffaws at me. "Aren't you inpatient? I might have got it, might have not… who knows?" He grins foxily. That motherfucker!

Inwardly, I can feel myself burst into flames. I glare at him at snap through gritted teeth. "You… you baka! Don't you dare delay this sacred moment! I'll show you!"

… Yeah, he burst into laughter right after my declaration. Go me.

After the gathered tears were wiped away, he answered, "Good lord, Isa-chan, you're way too easy to rile up today." After snickering with that wicked glint in his eyes, he continued on as he saw me go tomato red in anger, "Yeah, yeah, I got the affinity paper. All you gotta do is direct a bit of chakra into the paper and its reaction will determine your affinity. If it burns - you got fire; gets damp – water; crumbles – earth; wrinkles – lightning; splits in half – wind. The most common one in Konoha is fire, with earth and water close enough. Lightning is not very widespread, but there are a few clans specializing in lightning techniques. Wind users are rarely found in Konoha, with just a very few masters residing here. So, let me show you how it works first." With that he draws a square piece of paper from his hip holster.

"This," he point at the paper, "is very expensive. So you only have one chance at trying, ok?" After I nod, he places it between his index finger and thumb. "You should keep your finders this way and send a tiny amount of chakra into the paper just like this." Just as he said that his paper crumbled. "As you can see, my affinity is earth. Your turn!" He hands me the paper.

I place it just the way he did, send a flicker of chakra into it and – dear gods – it's damp! It bends to the side as I cry in delight. Water isn't the best affinity – that place is reserved to both wind and earth – but still. I was never set on being a frontline ninjutsu fighter, so water is just perfect for me – it means easier sealing arrays due to most of the fūinjutsu studies surveys being performed by water users (Uzumaki Clan and Nidaime-sama). It's the most useful one for missions in Kaze no Kuni, even if it requires rather big chakra pools in order to be used in full extent.

"Sugoi! Did you see? Water! It's useful and not way too uncommon, meaning that finding a sensei won't be too much of a hustle. Cool!"

Komugi snickers a bit. "Yeah, water is perfect for fūinjutsu. It does deplete chakra rather fast, but still useful. At least it won't be too hard to teach you the right array."

I beam at him. It's been six years, but I can already do many things in order to help this world. I might have only grown slightly, but the progress is there. And I won't be stopping at that.

The fūinjutsu classes have gotten on a whole new level. I was told that my level of fūinjutsu is that of a specialized Genin at worst, a newly minted Chūnin.

Masuyo has taken to teaching me in my affinity. She's an earth and fire user herself, but she can perform a few basic Suiton jutsu. And I wasn't taught any special technique yet. Just the basic "moisten anything with a touch". Which means trying to enforce my chakra into anything that can absorb water and make it damp. That's it.

The morning started off as usual, breakfast, walk the dogs, exercise, read. I even tried knitting a scarf, but that's a very bad idea with two huge dogs occupying the house. Needless to say, the scarf perished from existence.

The strange thing today was that Masuyo seemed rather thrilled since the morning. Why?

Our ninjutsu lesson was about to take place when she finally exploded. "Gah, I can't take it anymore! Pup, today is a fuckin' big day! You're gonna learn your first elemental technique!"

It lead to the two of us being thrilled to no end because finally! I'm going to all water bender on them! Hell yeah!

"So, brat, the technique I'm about to teach you is nothing to brag 'bout. It's a full-fledged C-ranked jutsu. It's gonna drain you, but it's very easy to utilize, hence why I chose it. It's called Suiton: Mizurappa. It looks like this" Her hands flashed through a series of hand seals and stopped at her mouth. After that water gushed out of her mouth like a fountain or waterfall of sorts. "Now, I want you to start gathering chakra in your abdomen and I want for you to make it slide, make it flow. It's water, so it needs to be harmonic. Great, now you move it towards your mouth. Here you stop and listen to me. Let it go, you did everything great." I glow at the compliment, but it was rather easy after everything I've done. "In order for the jutsu to work you'll use Tatsu, Tora and U hand seals. You inhale sharply and try to produce as much water out of the air as you can in a moment. Afterwards you bring your hand to your mouth and spit it- HOLY SHIT!"

I spit the gathered water out. Really, this is a C-ranked jutsu? It's way too easy. Even the Shunshin took me more effort!

Masuyo was standing in her spot, mouth agape and eye twitching. She was pointing her finger at me while muttering something incoherent. In a moment she got hold of herself as her face twisted in rage and bickered, "Brat! Don't you pull stunts like that again! It could've gone wrong!" Suddenly she stopped and flashed me a satisfied smile. "Yet, you managed to execute a jutsu from a first try. Huh," she shook her head, "I always knew that you're too smart for your own good. I guess Tsume's right." In a commanding tone, she ordered, "Kid, you're to attend the Academy. You'll be given a permission to start with an older group due to your clan background as well as a written test. You're going to begin your studies in a week, on October second. I'll provide you with everything necessary. Clear?" She barked the last order out.

"Y-yes, ma'am!" With a not of approval she launched a kunai at me. I deflected it with one of my own before launching it straight into her face. Sure enough, it never hit the target.

"Let's get some weapons training, shall we?"

"That's so cool, dattebayo! You're gonna be ninja and beat bad people, and even save pwincesses! Yatta! Say, Isamu-chan, can you teach me ninjutsu? Pwetty please?" Oh no! Puppy Eyes no Jutsu is being executed! I must abandon the mission!

I leveled the delighted kid with a stare, but his eyes are so full of hope. The passerby people send vicious looks towards the affectionate child. Maybe there is a jutsu I can teach him…

Sighing in defeat, I shrug. "Well, there is that one jutsu I could teach you." Are those stars in his eyes? "But I'd need for your full obedience. You'll follow my instructions and you will not train without me around, ok?"

"Yes, dattebayo! I'll be a step closer to the Hokage seat! What does it do? Am I gonna spit fire? Or-or fly? Or maybe shoot laser beams outta my eyes?!" He ranted in one breath. That kid…

"No, that's not going to be any of those. The jutsu will help you transform into anyone and anything. It's called Henge no Jutsu."

Or how the birth of that accursed jutsu started.

"Say, Naru-chan, you know I'm a boy, right?" I asked matter-of-factly.

Naruto's face goes tomato red as he starts stuttering excuses. "Wha-what?! How was I supposed to know? You look like a girl, dattebayo! Your hair's long and shiny, and your face is too pwetty for a boy! And-" I place a hand over his mouth before my dignity is all crushed down.

"I'm a boy, Naru-chan. Just like you. I look like one and I am one. Alright?" I growl as I emit a tiny bit of killing intent. He nods his head feverishly.

I'm doomed…

On the day before the scheduled start of my lessons we went to the Academy in order for me to pass the written exam and get a tour around the building. It's located closely to the Hokage Tower, which is of no wonder. Those are the future generations of deadly fighters, so they need protection while they're still in training. If any harm comes to them, than the whole village will be as good as dead due to no replenishment in years, giving a huge timeframe for other villages to attack, hence the position close to the strongest shinobi in the village, as well as some of his best subordinates.

The building itself consists of three floors, each one at least six meters high. It's decorated in warm tones, and the entrance has the kanji for 'shinobi' circled. The training grounds are enormous and take most of the outside space.

A petite woman is Chūnin attire is pacing in our directions, her ginger pigtails fluttering in the wind. She bows as she stops in front of us.

"Ohayō gozaimasu. My name's Umekana Yuina and today I'll be supervising your exam. You're Inuzuka Masuyo and Amachi Isamu, right?"

Both of us bow in return. Then Masuyo speaks, "Ohayō gozaimasu, Umekana-sensei. Pleasure to meet you. Yes, that's us here. So, what should we do?"

Tapping her finger against her chin, sensei answers, "Call me Yuina, please. We'll fill in the application form, have a short tour and finish with the exam. There are lessons at the moment, so I'll ask for your forgiveness."

Masuyo waves her hand in dismissal. "No hard feelings. Say, Yuina-sensei, how long is the school day? When do the studies start and how will we be informed of Isamu being accepted?"

"Hmm… for his age group, I'd say six hours. But I was informed of you willing to apply for an advanced group. They have lessons for eight hours, plus they have the training grounds in access at all times. The classes start at half past seven, but Isamu should be at the Academy at seven.

"As for the application, it'll be issued by a messenger hawk to you today, Inuzuka-san."

Nodding in satisfaction, we continue our way through the corridor. The ceiling is very high. There was a sealing array on the floor, walls and the ceiling. As we passed it, Yuina-sensei addressed me.

"Isamu-chan, we have just passed the identification seals. Seal are set on singling out any spies by detecting a henge or hostile intent. To the right we have the locker room while to the left is the guard station. We have stairs framing the Academy from both sides. The space between them is a smaller indoor training ground.

"You can train in taijutsu and genjutsu only. No weapons and ninjutsu indoor. So, tell me a bit about yourself. Any interests, dreams?" She asks with a tilt.

As we pass the training ground, I try to think about it. Dream? Interest? "I guess I like reading and learning new stuff, as well as creating thing yet unimaginable. As for my dream, I'd like to protect those precious to me, to help innocents remain that way. I guess" I shrug at the end, but I catch her gaze momently. I can see wonder and amusement in it, mixed in with shock.

"I see…" Yuina-sensei trails off before she points into the direction of the huge doors. "This is our main indoor training ground, as well as the podium. It also houses the entrance to the basement. Well, that's it for the first floor" She smiles at us and gestures towards the stairs.

The second floor is a lot calmer than the first one. I can hear voices coming from behind the closed doors.

"This is the second floor and almost every room here is a classroom. The only exceptions are the genjutsu principal office and the WC. I'd have shown you the classes, but they're all occupied at the moment. Fortunately, we have a free one on the third floor." With that we headed towards the third floor.

"Sensei," Masuyo called, "why didn't we go to the principal?"

"Inuzuka-san, there's no need for the principal to present during Isamu-chan's exam. Though I'm sure she'll do just fine, there are too many students attending the Academy to give one special attention. I hope you understand." She said with an apologetic bow.

Masuyo barked out a laugh while I pouted. "While I like how it sounds, my ward is a male, through and through. Even if he does seem rather ladylike." Just as I said, I'm doomed.

A light flush decorated sensei's cheeks as she started apologizing, "Oh my, I'm so sorry, Isamu-kun! I didn't know, and I couldn't guess right away, but you look so adorable, and I'm sorry!" She finished with a low bow. Wow, how does she handle kids with her character being this sweet?

I smile reassuringly at her. "It's alright, no need to apologize! I'm rather used to it."

She reclined after my statement. "Good, good. Now, let's get to the third floor and the exam!"

The third floor existed of a few classrooms, the teacher lounge and WC. We entered a rather small, empty class. It has a podium and three rows of seats.

"This is where your exam will take place. Please take a seat; we'll start in a few moments. Inuzuka-san, if you may, I'd lead you to the teacher lounge. You can drink coffee, tea and eat cookies there. I'll be back in a moment, Isamu-kun!" With that they left, and in ten minutes Yuina-sensei was back with a few sheets.

"This is the exam. It exists of kanji knowledge, math problems, history and basic shinobi questions. The exam lasts for one hour, no less. You need to fill in the blank spots, answer the questions or mark the right answer. Begin!"

The first sheet is all about kanji. I'm a bookworm, so it was rather easy, five minutes and done.

The second one was like the first grade back in my past life. Multiplication chart, sum and difference. Boooring. Done in a whim!

The third one was on Konoha history. The founder clans? Senju and Uchiha. The Hokage names? Senju Hashirama, Senju Tobirama, Sarutobi Hiruzen and Namikaze Minato. The previous war was fought against: Iwa, Kumo, Kiri. Allied countries during the previous war: None. Neutral: Suna.

The last sheet was on survival skills and chakra theory. Amount of chakra natures: five. List them in a pattern: fire, water, earth, lightning and wind. Five edible fish in Hi no Kuni: salmon, tuna, anchovy, mullet and mackerel.

"I'm done!" I yelled. Glancing at the clock, I could see that more twenty-five minutes were left.

Yuina-sensei looked a bit dumbfounded, but nodded nonetheless. "Did you check your answers?" I nod. "Okay. I'll take you to Inuzuka-san and you can leave."

Afterwards we go home, waiting for the reply.

That evening I was accepted into the Konoha Academy.

Baka – idiot

Tatsu – dragon

Tora – tiger

U – hare

Ohayō gozaimasu – good morning (formal)

A/N: This chapter was supposed to be the first one in the Academy Arc, but… didn't happen. Anyways, of course he forgot stuff like Daniel Redcliff's name over time. Even though he remembers Potter's scar. Just the way I did a few years ago, hehe. Please tell me what you think about the Isamu/Naruto interaction in this chapter.

Hope you liked it and please review!