Disclaimer: I own nothing but the plot and my OCs.

Special Thanks to those who reviewed. Also in the last chapter I placed a couple of comments that I would like to repeat. I have asked what preferences people have for Naruto's age and for a pairing for Natsumi. So far I have had the suggestion for Naruto to be seven which actually works for some of the pairing suggestions from another reviewer. I am still curious about what others think so do not think that your input would not be appreciated. I am also debating about putting a poll up but that is only if I get at least three more pairing suggestions.

The options that have been suggested so far or that I thought would be interesting are:

Shisui-with this pairing Naruto would have to be between 4 and 7

Shino- Team 8 has a lot going for it with three members having (the possibility) of relationships in the future

Itachi- This could be before or after that Uchiha Massacre

Haku- Obviously he would have to live past the Wave arc which is not a certainty at the point

Kankuro- Not sure how this one would work but they are in a similar age group with younger siblings that are Jinchūriki

I will not be accepting Sasuke, Naruto, or anyone who is at least nine years older or younger than her as pairings for Natsumi.

At the apartment of the other Uzumaki

Iruka was quite honestly ashamed and horrified by the sight in front of him. After the meeting with the Hokage Iruka had retreated to his apartment to read his mission scroll. It has detailed that he would be re-teaching Naruto most of the basics as well as reporting how far the damage to his education had gone. It had given him the address of his new student and he was currently standing outside of said student's door. The sight that brought out these emotions was what was written on the door as well as the crude pictures. How the villagers could be so cruel to a child was beyond him. No child should be exposed to this until they were much older even if they were the holder of the Kyuubi.

He couldn't quite work up the will power to knock on the door after seeing the vandalism. It had brought to light some very unflattering things about himself and his own feeling toward the vessel. The dark thought he sometimes had entertained during his low moments were written right in front of him and he honestly was not feeling very proud of himself. He had always thought he was a nice guy, but this was proving that maybe that wasn't a correct assumption.

Iruka didn't notice the figure drop behind him until it tapped his shoulder. "You gonna knock or something because you're kinda in the way, Ponytail." Iruka jumped and whirled around to face Anko Mitarashi. She was standing there with a small girl hanging limp under her arm. Iruka smiled sheepishly and scooted to the side. Anko strode forward and banged on the door. "Gaki, Natsu-chan managed to win you a trip to the Ichiraku's with a five bowl limit so you better get out here before I change my mind."

Immediately the sounds of banging were heard from the apartment and the door swung open to reveal a disheveled little blonde boy. "Anko-nee, you're really taking me to ramen," he exclaimed happily hugging her leg. Iruka was surprised. He didn't know Mitarashi-san was close to the boy.

She ruffled his hair and scooped him up under her other arm with the kid giggling all the while. "Yeah brat, but recall I said five bowl limit. I just got paid and I don't need you wiping it out like last time. I swear you and Natsu-chan gave me a heart attack last time. I never knew someone could eat so much of something other than dango," she said shaking her head. She turned to Iruka. "Hey Ponytail want to join us? Keep in mind you would have to buy your own I'm only paying for the brats."

Iruka quickly nodded and followed along beside her as she chatted to the blonde boy. He took the time to observe the boy that he was going to be teaching. He was really cheerful if a bit hyper, but it wasn't too bad. He would probably have trouble sitting still for a long time though.

It took Iruka a while but he realized he was being watched as they walked. The red-headed girl was staring at him as though she was judging him. He raised an eyebrow at her almost glare and she glanced to the boy and back to him. The look practically screamed 'Hurt him and you will suffer.' He actually felt that she would carry out that unspoken threat too. He then remember the threat Mitarashi-san had given about the mysterious Natsumi. The little girl must be her which was confirmed by her nickname of Natsu-chan.

"Hey Anko-nee whose the dude with the ponytail and the scar," the boy asked. "That is Iruka Umino and he is going to be teaching you." He blinked then turned a huge smile on Iruka. "Cool. Are you gonna ignore my questions like the teachers in class? They always ignore me when I raise my hand and then they keep giving me tests on stuff we haven't covered and then they throw me out of the classroom for bein' a nuisance and I have no idea what that means but I don't think I am one cause they do it when I'm quiet and when I want to ask a question and when the other pick on me. They do it a lot," the child rambled on.

Eventually they made it to the ramen stand. The two kids immediately scrambled onto the stools and ordered their ramen. The man behind the stand laughed and asked if they were having a good day to which both the kids began recounting their antic of the day.

POV Change

Natsumi watched the man eat his ramen. So far he seemed okay, but far too many people tried to get close to them that way in order to hurt them. Well not really her just Naruto. The first year she had stayed with Naruto had proven this far too well. She still remembered the horror of coming home to see Naruto lying in a pool of his own blood in front of the door to their apartment still curled into a ball to try and protect himself. She had been livid and she had rushed Naruto to the Old Man because the hospital had refused to treat him. The Old Man had been mad too. She wasn't sure what he did but she hadn't seen the woman ever again. The only other person she trusted besides the Old Man was Anko-nee.

He had seen her unspoken warning and accepted it though. Hopefully he would take it seriously. If he didn't there was going to be a problem, one she would fix long before he hurt her little brother.

Her ramen was delicious as always and she quickly went through her five bowls albeit a bit slower than her brother. Speaking of her brother he was questioning Umino about what all they would be learning and begging him to teach him some awesome jutsu. Umino looked amused and seemed to be softening to her brother. She still remembered the first time Anko had come to check on her.

FLASHBACK NO JUTSU

Natsumi had been living with Naruto for a week and was really enjoying teaching him stuff. He obviously hadn't had company before because he was always was checking on her as though she was going to disappear the second he looked away. She didn't mind it was kind of nice someone enjoyed her company. Naruto was sitting in her lap asleep leaning on her shoulder. He had just spent an hour talking non-stop about all the pranks he had pulled in the village.

He woke up when the knocking started though he looked scared and hid under the bed. Natsumi went to open the door even if it was to yell at the moron who scared her brother. Too her pleasant surprise it was Purple Haired Ninja Lady. A smile immediately came to her face.

"Hello again Purple Haired Ninja Lady. It is nice to see you. What are you doing here?" Purple Haired Ninja Lady began laughing. "My name is Anko brat. Use it. I'm here to check on you and the gaki by order of the Hokage. He wants to make sure everyone is okay and happy with the arrangement." Natsumi stared at Anko and shrugged. "I like you so don't make me hurt you by making Naruto upset or well more upset than he is." Needless to say after Naruto and Anko had an intense staring contest and then a very creative insult fight they decided they liked each other though Naruto was weary. Eventually Anko proved trustworthy after she saved Naruto from a drunk.

END FLASHBACK

Natsumi, Naruto, and Anko had formed their own weird little family and Natsumi loved it with every bone in her tiny eleven year old body. If anyone hurt her precious people there would be no place in the Elemental Nations they could escape her wrath.

"Natsu-chan what are you thinking about that you have that evil aura hanging over your head?" Anko asked causing Natsumi to look at her. Natsumi smiled and answered in a completely innocent voice that was at odds with what she was saying. "I'm thinking about what happens to the people that mess with my family. No one that hurts my family will ever get away with it." Iruka actually felt a shiver of fear go down his spine when Anko and Natsumi got identical looks on their face and laughed under their breaths.

POV CHANGE

He was debating running when something touched his arm. He looked down to see the boy smiling at him. "They do that all the time. Just don't do anything mean to me or either of them and you'll be safe. They are really overprotective," he said nodding sagely at his own words. He turned to look at the two chuckling women and saw them discussing who would get first dibs if someone were to hurt Naruto.

"Are you sure they seem to be discussing murder over there?" The child smiled again. The vessel smiled an awful lot. "They do that when they meet new people that are going to be around us a lot. It usually scares away the weaker willed ones." Iruka looked at the boy curiously. "Weaker willed ones?"

The boy flinched and nodded again. "The ones that think they can get close and that no one will care if they hurt me. Anko-nee and Natsumi-nee are the only ones besides the Old Man and the ramen people that care about me and not a lot of people know that until they meet them. I really don't know why people want to hurt me I don't do anything to them."

The sad look on the boy's, no Naruto's, face broke Iruka's heart.

TBC…

This chapter is mostly Iruka meeting the kids and Anko and finally seeing Naruto as a person not the vessel of the Kyuubi. It is kinda fluffy though. I'm thinking about having a time skip soon, but not anytime in the next two chapters.

I am also not certain if I am going to change the Uchiha Massacre, Naruto's final genin test, the team pairings or the Wave Mission. I could really use feedback on these issues. Again thank-you to those that reviewed.

This story is being written without a solid plan and originally started as a boredom project during my off time. As such this story will be heavily influenced by those that review.