A/N: First, this is a secondary prologue. Chapter 1 will start the canon era which should be next chapter or the one after. It'll depend on how far this chapter goes as I plan to do a time skip after getting things settled. Second, here are the ages and other information of some of the characters in this A.U of mine so you're not confused later!
Naruto is 7, like the other Rookie 9 though the youngest of them.
Itachi is 5 years older than Naruto in this rather than just 4, making him 12.
Kakashi is 16, so he is only 9 years older, rather than the 14 he originally is in canon.
As for Obito and Shisui, I'm making them 16 years old and 21 years old respectively.
So Obito is the same age as Kakashi and Rin. And they were on the same team as each other. Obito is a Jonin and apart of the Uchiha Konoha Police Force who helps deal with the villagers, especially when they mob, though it isn't common. Rin is a medic nin, and Kakashi became an ANBU member at 14 in this A.U. He became Captain when he was 15. However, the trio can sometimes be called together for missions since they had good team work. But while they are still close friends, they don't overlap as much as they would like.
As for Shisui, he's also an ANBU member known as Crow, but on a different team from Itachi.
I don't know how often Shisui, Obito, and Rin will be in this fic, though Shisui and Obito show up this chapter as it will also explain my A.U version of the Uchiha Massacre. Please note this is an A.U which means things aren't the same as in canon and people are different from canon. Please don't send hate or anything for it. And don't say things like- that's not how it's supposed to happen. Or- that's not how they are, why did you do this? This is my alternate world and what I say goes in it, though I will try to make it understandable.
Thank you for those that have liked this story, I wasn't expecting a story I wrote merely for my own enjoyment would be liked by others. And as thankful as I am, this is still really a story for myself. I hope that you can get some enjoyment from the story as I do.
Chapter 0
Naruto woke up to his four ANBU guards surrounding his bedside as well as Jiji. He blinked. "Aren't you supposed to be gone on a mission?" he asked the four in confusion as he sat up, the worst of his pain being the soreness. Only now did he realize that Kyuubi had been the one to heal his injuries in the past.
"Oh, that's a nice greeting after we waited for you to wake up." Dog grumbled, but Naruto could hear the older teens relief that he was awake. He could also hear the self-loathing in his voice, probably blaming himself for Naruto's current location in a hospital. Which meant the others were probably feeling the exact same way.
"None of you are at fault, you know." He stated, ignoring the flinch none of them could hide.
"If we had been quicker-" Weasel tried to say but got interrupted by Naruto waving his hand at the other boy's words.
"Please. You can't control the time lapse of a mission." Naruto rolled his eyes. "You already completed your mission fast enough to find me in that den in the forest." he supplied, now realizing that the voice he heard calling his name the night before- the one he thought was his imagination- had been Weasel's.
"It's still not okay that you were attacked and hunted Naruto-Kun." Jiji said, sounding angry that it had even happened.
"Which is why that bastard is being dealt with accordingly." Snake said, deep satisfaction in her voice at the thought of the ex-ANBU getting what he deserved for forsaking both his duty and charge. Naruto sweat dropped at Snake's blood thirsty reaction.
"Bear is the one taking care of him, so we can rest assured that he's in good hands." Dog said, vindictiveness in his voice.
'I like them, Kit. It's obvious that they care about you.' Kyuubi's voice sounded in his mind.
'So, I should tell them?' Naruto asked, just to be sure. After all, he adored and trusted the five people in this room more than anyone else in the village.
'Yes.' Kyuubi said, assured of the path. Naruto nodded to himself before looking at the Hokage.
"There's something I need to tell you guys, but it's best to do that somewhere more... secure than a hospital room." Naruto said with a seriousness they rarely saw. Hiruzen nodded and motioned for Dog to take hold of Naruto. A few minutes later and they were in the Hokage's office with privacy seals in place and just the six of them present.
"What do you need to tell us?" Sarutobi asked gently. Naruto took a deep breath and nodded to himself once more.
"First, I'd like to know the reason you never told me that my parents were the Namikaze and his wife." he began softly, getting a shocked look from everyone.
"Naruto, how did you-?" Sarutobi began, worried.
"Please Jiji." Cerulean eyes peered up at him full of earnest and vulnerability. "Please tell me why."
Sarutobi sighed. "Both of your parents had enemies, Naruto-Kun." he began. "And if word got out about how these two 'Monsters of Konoha' as they were called had a child, then every enemy would rush at the chance to end their legacy before you could even walk. And considering how weakened our forces were after that night, I didn't believe that we would be able to keep you safe from these same enemies." Sarutobi explained. "And I planned on telling you about them when I knew you would be strong enough to protect yourself form them."
"But then, why was it revealed that I was a jinchuuriki?" Naruto asked, getting a wide look from the Hokage before he closed his eyes in regret.
"Minato wanted you to be hailed as a hero, which you are one. Without you, this village wouldn't exist. I had higher expectations of the people of this village, believing they would honor that as well. It was only upon realizing how wrong I was that I proclaimed that no one could ever reveal your status to another. The punishment being Death, should they not comply. And after the first few people broke it, the rest continued doing so without specifically mentioning the Kyuubi no Kitsune." Sarutobi told him. Naruto nodded and silence filled the room for a long while.
"Last night was the worst it's ever been. I didn't almost die physically, but last night was enough to almost break me mentally. I had only been hunted a couple times before, but they never went into the Forest of Death before last night. That was the closest I've come to dying." He frowned at the way they all tensed. "I'm not telling you this to guilt you, so stop that." Naruto scolded them. "I'm telling you this, so you understand where I was mentally."
"And why is that important, Naruto-Kun?" Bear asked gently. He was only ever gentle with the boy before them all.
"Because last night, I entered the seal and met the Kyuubi no Kitsune." He told them with encouraging from said Bijuu. Eyes widened in alarm and shock.
"You what?" they asked.
"I met the Kyuubi, and he was the one who informed me about... everything. Including how he didn't attack the village of his own free will that night seven years ago." he informed them.
"What do you mean? And how do you know he didn't lie?" Snake asked curiously.
"There's a bond between jinchuuriki and Bijuu. I could tell it was all truth. Also, he has no reason to lie let's be honest. He's as stuck with me as I am with him." Naruto rolled cerulean eyes. And they could all tell he was being honest. "He had been ripped from my mother after she gave birth to me by Madara Uchiha and then forced, under his control to attack the village. Eventually, my father was able to free the Kyuubi from the control, and Kyuubi tried to flee from the village." Naruto took a deep breath as he finished the tale, explaining about how Minato believed the Kyuubi's power would be necessary to defeat Madara later, thus he sealed the Kyuubi in the infant Naruto. How Kyuubi in his panic tried to kill what the being they were going to force him to be imprisoned in, only for Minato and Kushina to take the blow to save him and finish the sealing. Things were quiet for an exceedingly long time as they all took in the full truth of that night 7 years before.
"And neither of you hate the other or blame the other?" Dog asked softly. Naruto shook his head.
"No, because it was Madara's fault it all happened. Had he never forced Kyuubi from my mother after child birth when her seal was weakened. Had he never controlled Kyuubi into attacking. While everyone had parts to play that night, Madara is the one to blame." Naruto said firmly. The Hokage nodded.
"As the one who holds the Lord of Bijuu, I will accept what you say on this matter Naruto-Kun." Sarutobi told the boy finally. The boy had suffered a great deal, and he would accept Naruto's decision on the matter. "I'm glad to know the truth of that night. Which means we now have a proper threat to prepare for." he sighed. "But, I believe you told us this for other reasons besides closure." he prompted.
Naruto nodded. "After meeting Kyuubi and learning the truth, I was able to realize the reasons my life was the way it was. The reasons for their hatred. But it also made me realize other things as well." Naruto said.
"What things?" Snake asked.
"This village will never see me as anything but Kyuubi. Maybe others will see me, like you guys and Iruka-Sensei do, but it's not likely. I also know that there is no way I'll ever be given the title of Hokage no matter how hard I work towards it."
"Naruto-" Sarutobi began, but Naruto shook his head.
"I can prove myself over and over again Jiji. But they will never allow the demon they ostracized to ever hold a position of such power over the people that scorned it." Naruto said. Sarutobi wanted to deny this, badly, but unless the councils were replaced by people who had Naruto's back, that wouldn't be possible. Not to mention, Naruto didn't have enough of those people anyways.
"What do you plan to do from here then?" The old man asked tiredly, accepting Naruto's decision... for now, at least. Naruto gave them a mischievous smile that had all of them perking in interest in one way or another.
"As I told Kyuubi, they're never going to see me as anything, but the demon sealed in me. They all ridicule me and curse me for something I had no say in. Me and Kyuubi will never be free from the shackles that bind us together. Someone will always hate us and what we represent." Naruto said, and they all saw a spark of defiance and determination in his bright eyes. "So, I've decided that instead of fighting the losing battle, I'll embrace what they hate me for." he told them.
"What?" they asked in concern.
"But while I'm going to embrace the demon the call me, I won't allow them the satisfaction of being right about me. I'll become the very demon they label me as, and they'll have no choice but to rely on me as a protector of them and their families. I'll be a demon they could never accept, one that's good. And they'll have no choice but to entrust their safety to the 'Demon Brat', a ninja that will protect them against their will. That is what I plan to do." he told them. Their eyes were wide as silence filled the room. A silence that was broken by the last thing they expected. Weasel laughed, and wide shocked eyes fell to the 12-year-old who never smiled before as far as any of them knew. He laughed a deep, surprising laugh for one so young.
"Kill them with kindness against their will." he eventually managed to choke out as he got his laughter back under control. "Serves those bastards right." he said, before being thankful that his mask the heavy blush that covered his face at the attention of every eye on him. Only to deepen when the blonde boy before them launched himself at the other boy in a tight hug, also giggling.
"I'm so glad you see it that way. Also, Kyuubi says that your his favorite after me." Naruto added with a mischievous sparkle. Finally, the others in the room broke into their own laughter, both at the youngest ANBU's embarrassment and Naruto's plans for the future. They had been praying for the day Naruto would decide to fight back against the unfair abuse he had been faced with, and there was only so much they could do to help. Now that Naruto had come to this decision, they figured it would be the best punishment for Konoha, in hopes that one day, they might even begrudgingly look up to the young boy. And getting Naruto into the Shinobi forces would keep him out of the civilian council's grasp. At the very least, most of the clan leaders of the clan council had been friends with Naruto's parents and knew who the boy was. It was due to the civilian councils hold over the boy that had forced them to stay away from the boy and attempted at getting their children to ridicule the boy as well. One of the reasons Naruto was in the Academy so early was because it limited the civilian council's say over the boy.
"I accept your decision Naruto; however, I have some questions and conditions." Hiruzen said with a small smile.
"Yes Jiji?" Naruto asked as everyone calmed themselves.
"First, this embracing you plan to do. What do you mean by that?"
"It's a technique that me and Kyuubi discussed. I already have some of his chakra spilling into me to get me immune to it so it doesn't cause me unnecessary damage. This technique will allow a larger amount to trickle in all at once. It'll cause some changes." Naruto explained.
"Changes?" Dog asked worriedly. Naruto nodded.
"These changes will mostly be physical, theoretically." Naruto gave a small grin.
"Theor-?" Sarutobi began.
"This is a technique that's available, but Kyuubi has only had three containers unlike his siblings. And neither of the previous two were close enough to Kyuubi to even suggest it. Let alone to have a compatibility as strong as I do, thanks to having Kyuubi since I was born, rather than having him introduced at a later age like with my mother and Mito. The technique is different for every Bijuu and Jinchuuriki that perform it, but it's rare for it to even happen. Maybe one or two others had done so, but their changes were barely noticeable due to it being the lower Bijuu with less chakra. Mostly, what will happen is a slight change in appearance. Increased physical strength and speed. Larger chakra reserves. And an easier grasp of using and handling Kyuubi's demon chakra with less backlash... Theoretically. There might be a few other things, Kyuubi says cannibalism is a slim possibility since he himself has a hankering for human flesh every now and then..." Naruto trailed off, before bursting with laughter at the green looks on their faces. "I'm kidding. Kyuubi only ate humans if he had no choice. According to him, humans are too fatty for his taste." Naruto gasped out, before getting a whack on the back of his head by Dog.
"I see. Very well." Sarutobi decided to bypass that bit. "I guess we should discuss the conditions I have." he said, getting everyone's attention. "First, I want to declare you the Uzumaki Heir. By doing so, we get you out of the Civilian Council's hands. That was the main reason I entered you into the academy as early as I did, despite knowing of the sabotage, we both agreed it was to just give you the basics. Being labeled as a clan heir means you don't have to attend the academy for another year at least, and also gives you perks."
"Perks?" Naruto asked curiously.
"Perks, such as access to your clan home, private tutoring that most clan heirs receive before going into the academy at the age of 8, and personal training. Even defending yourself without punishment should one try to attack you or harm you and your clan. After declaring you Uzumaki Heir, you won't be returning to the academy until your 8, like other clan heirs." He nodded, then looked up at the four ANBU before him with steely determination that had even Naruto straitening himself. " ANBU Team Inu, I have an S-class mission for you." he said, thankful that one perk of being Hokage allowed him to hand out information necessary missions without the interference of other councils. After all, the Shinobi of Konoha fell under his rule. He gathered a scroll from his desk, making some swift changes. It was sooner than he expected it to be, but that was fine. It worked in their favor. He tossed the properly revised scroll to Dog.
"Yes, Hokage-Sama." Dog said, the leader of the team, as he accepted the scroll.
"Your mission is as follows: You will be training the Heir of the Uzumaki clan. You will teach him what he needs to know as a clan heir and the next head of his clan. You will teach him his family history. You will train him in all academic subjects and the arts of the shinobi that you believe will best fit him, or that he knows he wants to learn. You will ensure he remains healthy and well taken care of. Your mission will end- and be replaced by another- once the span of 11 months, 3 weeks, and 5 days have passed. This means two days till the start of the school year that he will be returning to the academy side by side with his fellow clan heirs. Your goal is to ensure he will be strong enough to protect himself should another incident like this last one are to happen, which is likely considering what little we know about what this technique will do. You will inform no one about the details of this mission. You will take Naruto to the Uzumaki Compound which should open with your blood and chakra Naruto, and is located on the isolated outskirts of Konoha, while still being within its bounds... Barely." He looked at the four of his best shinobi.
"You will deliver monthly progress reports to me. In addition, you will be expected to have at least one of you with the Clan Heir at all times within the compound. And at least two of you with him at all times outside of it. Other than the heir, the rest of you will not be required to remain isolated from the village or your families unless you so choose to do so." he looked at Weasel at that. "Any questions?" He asked, turning back to the rest of them.
"When will you declare him the Uzumaki Heir?" Dog asked. Hiruzen smirked.
"When you've already gone. In addition, you have the perk of privacy from the council." He added.
"Can we reveal ourselves to Naruto-Kun?" Weasel asked, serious about the request and surprising the others that it was Weasel who had asked the question first.
"Yes." Sarutobi informed the 12-year-old who nodded. "Once you're safely within the compound. But try not to be revealed to others if you can help it." he added, and the rest nodded. All of them were relieved to finally show themselves to Naruto. Naruto himself was excited.
Dog nodded. "Very well. Team Inu accepts this mission, Hokage-Sama." Dog answered, knowing that all of them were wanting to do this. They had for a while, but with Naruto being considered a civilian, even in the academy until he was a genin, they had been forbidden.
"Very well. You leave tonight under darkness. Pack as you need in turns. I will not have Naruto alone again." Sarutobi told them. The ANBU nodded and Dog quickly picked up the small blonde- getting a startled yelp in return- before the group were gone in a whirl of leaves. Hiruzen Sarutobi nodded. He had failed Naruto and his family more than enough in the past seven years. It was time to stop. He knew Naruto would be one of the greatest Shinobi in all five nations. He wouldn't allow unjust abuse to stop that. Naruto would change the world and he knew it. And he would provide the necessary support. With a nod he retrieved a new scroll and began to set out a new letter for a certain spy in his roster. Jiraiya would be more than willing to find Madara and see him dealt with.
-Naruto the Kitsune Shinobi-
Itachi Uchiha watched with a small smile as several children between the ages of four and nine ran around his family's compound playing under the watchful eyes of their guardians. He was thankful that the children had started recovering so well after last year's tragedy. He shook his head as it tried to go down that road and he sped off, being joined being joined by his cousin Shisui. "You're thinking pretty deeply." Shisui commented and Itachi almost sighed.
"Hn." he replied, hoping it would work.
"That's not an answer." Shisui pointed out.
It was below Itachi to groan at his cousin's persistence. "I'm just thinking about how well we've recovered after that..." he said. Shisui nodded, his gaze softening.
"It's good to see the children not have to worry or be considered outcasts within the village...Unlike..."
Shisui trailed off. And Itachi tilted his head ever so slightly in curiosity. Did his cousin know Naruto? "I don't regret it nor would I change my choices." Shisui told his cousin. "So, you shouldn't focus too much on it. It's a part of our history now. An unfortunate part, but a part none the less." Shisui told the boy. Itachi nodded.
Last year, Shisui and his brother Obito had learned that their father, Kagame, along with half of their clan were planning a coup against the Hokage and Fugaku who was clan head and sided with Hiruzen. Shisui and Obito had risked their lives and honor among the clan to inform the Hokage and Clan Head of the betrayal. They had managed to save the children in time and the other half of the clan that followed Fugaku had risen up against the traitorous side of the clan. Many lives were lost, but they won in the end, and only a fourth of their original clan had survived the slaughter. The unexpected consequence of their clan's battle had been the return of their honor among the village. Which meant the children were no longer ostracized, unlike Naruto. Watching the children play with each other, while good, hurt him as well. All he could think was that Naruto deserved such a thing as well, to be a child who could play without worries. An actual hero to this village, and yet he was scorned for it. He hoped he could provide Naruto something like that during their next year together. Because he didn't think he would be leaving Naruto's side too much in that time.
"Look, whatever is on your mind, I'm sure you'll figure things out. You're smart and kind. Just have a bit more faith in that." Shisui told his younger cousin who nodded.
"Yeah." he agreed before the duo went different ways and Itachi took a deep breath before entering his home, mask back in place.
"Itachi is that you?" his mother called from the kitchen.
"It is." he replied, entering the room to find the rest of his family. Even Sasuke was at the table eating tomatoes on toast? Itachi chose not to say anything about the disgusting display. Kami, he hated tomatoes. He did flick his brother in the forehead as greeting. "How was your day otouto, tou-san, kaa-san?" he asked.
"Me and kaa-san were at the park and these two girls kept on trying to talk to me, but they ended up fighting with each other more than playing. It was weird." Sasuke said with a scrunched face. Itachi looked at his mother who mouthed 'Fan girls' with a small giggle. Itachi hid his wince at that. He remembered his own fan girls from the academy, and it was enough to make him pity Sasuke even if the boy didn't realize yet what that was. "But I was practicing my kunai throw and I hit 7 targets out of 10. That's more than last time and tou-san says that I'm making pretty good progress." Sasuke added with a grin. Their father ruffled the youngest boy's hair, getting a playful pout from him.
"It's good progress indeed. You'll be making every target before too long. Then we can move on to the chakra control exercises that you'll be getting in the academy next year. Might as well give you a head start." the man smiled. Itachi watched with his own hidden. Their father had originally placed Itachi over Sasuke and had often ignored him in favor of the prodigy he was which had led to a lot of tension. But after last year, Fugaku had realized that he was pushing his sons away from him and that if he wasn't careful, it would be him and his own younger brother all over again. Since then, he had made an effort to not neglect the youngest anymore, and as it turned out, Fugaku found himself thankful for it every day. He was glad to know his youngest.
"What about you Itachi?" their mother asked, drawing the 12-year-old back from his musings, as she placed a plate on the table for him. He glanced at the clock and realized that he had about 6 hours before he was supposed to take over for one of the others. They had all bullied him into taking the last shift before the move since he technically was the only one with family. He would have felt bad if Naruto hadn't smacked him around for it along with the others. Naruto told him to enjoy that time with his family. Especially since things weren't as stressful anymore. How the boy knew there had been stress with his family before without knowing him was still an unknown to them all. But Itachi felt that the boy had an idea about who they were, even if he wasn't positive.
"I..." He frowned. Quite frankly, it hadn't started off great with him returning from a mission only to find that his charge had been missing and had been hunted. He still felt fury at that. Finding Naruto curled up in a den, slowly healing from the injuries given to him by others. He relished in finding the corpses of the hunters that had gone into the forest after the innocent boy.
"Aniki, your eyes are red." Sasuke's voice called him back.
"Sorry otouto. I was just remembering how angry I was this morning."
"Why were you so angry?" Mikoto asked in concern.
Itachi sighed with frustration. "A child was harmed last night. I located him, but he had been unconscious and injured. He's doing better now and a report was made." Itachi explained. His parents knew he was one of Naruto's guardians and it didn't take them more than a moment to figure out what Itachi hadn't told them. They were furious but held it down so as to not frighten Sasuke. Sasuke who looked angry that another kid had been harmed.
"And this child is really okay?" Mikoto asked, her motherly instincts rearing. Her and Fugaku were Naruto's honorary aunt and uncle thanks to their closeness to Kushina and Minato. If that damn council hadn't interfered, they would have taken Naruto in and raised him with their own sons. But then, considering the incident last year, maybe it was for the best it hadn't happened. Kagame would not have stopped trying to control the poor boy, and it was that same thought process that allowed the council to keep Naruto out of the hands of any clan that had been close to the boy's parents that would take him in and love him properly.
"Yes." Itachi assured, a small smirk on his face as he remembered Naruto's new dream. Oh, he was going to enjoy helping Naruto along that path.
"You shouldn't smile or smirk aniki, your face looks weird. And scary." Sasuke told him, sounding a bit afraid. Itachi's face smoothed over as he sent a small glare at his brother in slight annoyance at the remark.
"Anything else you want to tell us?" Fugaku asked, knowing there was more. Itachi sighed as he took a bite.
"I've been given a new mission. It'll last a year." he informed the others in his family. Silence filled the air.
"What?" Sasuke asked, looking as startled as his parents.
"I'm unable to discuss the details." Itachi gave them a slightly apologetic look. "However, it's not like you won't see me. I'll stop by every few weeks or so. But for the most part, I won't really be in the compound. Though I will make it a point to visit when I can." He assured.
"Is it... Is it life threatening?" Mikoto asked carefully. Itachi grimaced.
"Not for me. But it does come with risks. Really, it'll be fine. I just wanted to let you know." he told them.
"Very well. I trust your judgment, Itachi." their father said before glancing at him. "When will you be leaving?"
"Six hours." He replied.
Fugaku nodded. "Then we'll just have to make the most of it. I'm sure Obito and Shisui would like to know as well." He spoke. Itachi nodded. Their cousins had basically become their honorary brothers. Shisui was older than Itachi by nine years, and Obito was four years older than Itachi, though he didn't act like it. Before any of them could offer to leave to go grab the two wayward Uchiha, the door opened and Shisui came in with a pouting Obito in tow. Fugaku chuckled. "Looks like you saved us the trouble of coming to find you." He mused.
"Aniki said that Itachi looked like he had something important to say. I'm guessing you're going on a mission?" Obito asked with a pout as he and Shisui joined their family at the table.
"Yes. Year long." Itachi replied, taking another bit of his food and ignoring Obito's choking on a bite he had just taken.
"You're just going to disappear for a year!" Obito asked fiercely. He was rather protective of their two younger cousins, as was Shisui. The oldest of them having his eyes narrowed in thought.
"Of course not. I'll visit ever few weeks or so. I'll even make it a point of hunting you down and beating you in a spar." Itachi assured the older boy blankly, knowing Naruto wouldn't want him to be gone from his family for an entire year. Obito nodded enthusiastically.
"Good! You better!" Obito said, not seeing the amused looks on everyone's faces as he slowly realized- "HEY! Who said you would beat me?" Obito asked with a furious blush. Itachi just smirked at the older Uchiha. After some grumbling Obito groaned. "So, when do you leave?"
"About six hours." Was the answer.
"Then we'll need to make the most of it!" Obito said with a grin that had Itachi unsure about the older boy's intentions. And of course, knowing the older boy, it had been some sort of prank war meant to get a drop on the prodigy of the clan. Itachi couldn't help but think Obito and Naruto would get along well. Though he also feared the two of them meeting. It would spell chaos for the world.
Six hours later, Weasel was relieving Snake to do her packing as he settled next to his charge who had just finished packing the last of his things in a storage scroll. "How are you feeling Naruto-Kun?" he asked.
"I'm a bit nervous to go to a place that once housed my family. But I'm excited too. I'm going to do my best to learn everything I can." Naruto told him. "How about you?"
Weasel knew he was referring to his leaving his family on a year long mission. But he also knew Naruto wouldn't allow him to stay gone for the entire year. So honestly... "I'm good, actually." Weasel assured the boy who nodded, able to hear the content tone in the older boy's voice.
"I'm glad." Naruto said with a soft smile up to his guard. Weasel returned the smile. He remembered the children from his family's compound playing and being children. He would make sure that Naruto could have fun and actually be a child over this next year. And as the rest of the squad appeared and they began to move out, he swore it to himself, knowing the others wanted to do the same. To provide Naruto with the closest to a family and home they could.
-Naruto the Kitsune Shinobi-
The next year had been a busy one. The first month was getting Naruto and themselves settled into the compound after they revealed their identities to the young boy who was thrilled. They had started with working on his chakra control, due to that being something he was going to need once the influx of chakra happened, once he went through with the technique. After a few weeks, they had taught the boy the Shadow Clone Jutsu in order to really make the most of the boy's training. Though they put a limit on the days he could use it and how many he would be able to make at a time. After all, using it enough caused a faster mature rate mentally, and they wanted Naruto to enjoy the years he had left as a child. It was also spent to just get them on a bit of a schedule.
They decided to start with academic subjects and the basics of what Naruto should have been learning at the academy. This included the history of the five nations, chakra theory, and basic taijutsu. With the help of Naruto's clones, he was quick to grasp each concept. After another month of learning the more advanced versions of each, they branched off with teaching Naruto each of their specialties. Infiltration. Taijutsu. Kenjutsu. Ninjutsu. Tracking. Poisons. Healing jutsu. They taught him to survive off the land. Kurama, as the Kyuubi's true name was learned, had helped train Naruto in what to expect after the transformation that would happen and demon chakra control. He also taught the boy Bijuu history and the story behind the Sage of Six Paths and the history between the Uchiha and Senju. The family feuds. The bloodlines he knew of through the knowledge of his previous hosts. He was even the one who helped introduce Naruto to Fuinjutsu and his own clan specialties that came from his mother's side of his family.
But Naruto wasn't just trained during that year. As all of them had sworn to themselves, they also made sure Naruto had something that could resemble a semi-normal childhood. They had games- though sometimes it was also training- they had game nights. They camped. They had picnics. They ate meals together. It was the closest Naruto had come to a normal childhood. And while it wasn't with other children- Itachi, Kakashi, and Anko were pretty close. Ibiki constantly lamented about being the only adult in the whole group. Though he was just as bad if they had a prank war, which happened at least once a month and lasted several days. Honestly, that year was the best of Naruto's life. And while they didn't say it out loud, the others felt the same.
Of course, they each had one person give or take that they needed to visit, though much like Itachi had figured, Naruto made him promise to visit his family every month for a couple days. As much as they were family, Itachi had an actual one that missed him. Honestly, his parents would probably like to get a visit from Naruto as well, considering how close to the boy's parents they had been. It was hoped that once Naruto re-entered the academy, that with the council unable to do anything anymore, that Naruto, even if he couldn't be adopted, would get to meet with the friends of his parents and learn more about them. It was something they all hoped for. Eventually, all good things come to an end, and their deadline for the end of the mission- which felt more like a vacation to them- was drawing closer.
By the end of the year, Naruto had superb chakra control that Kurama believed would be able to mostly handle the influx of chakra that he would be receiving. He had mastered every jutsu they had given him as well as every task. He might not be a master in each of the specialties that he was taught, but he was certainly getting close. Though his best subjects were ninjutsu, fuinjutsu, taijutsu, and medicines/poisons. Despite their best efforts though, Naruto was just very bad with genjutsu. At least he knew when one was placed on him and how to escape it. Apparently, that was an Uzumaki thing, not a Naruto thing. He had also mastered Demon Chakra and the perks that came with it, having become more symbiotic with it, rather than poisoned by it. Kurama also had the boy sign his contract. The Demon Fox contract. Basically, it meant he could summon Kurama in his fox form with each of his tails of power. The more tails, the more chakra it would take. At most, even with his soon to increase reserves, he would only be able to safely summon up to three tails. However, he could continue to increase his reserves as the years passed. Apparently, Uzumaki's had no limit to the size their reserves could grow, it just meant they had to work hard to increase them. Which meant a lot of using his chakra as the years passed.
All in all, Naruto was roughly low to mid chunin level by the time they were done, and they were confident in Naruto's abilities, come time to return to the Hokage. Or, more accurately, when the Hokage came to them after the time had been up. Kurama could speak with humans in any of his summoned forms- he was constantly summoned in his one tail form to increase Naruto's reserves- and informed the others that the Uzumaki compound had a ritual chamber under it that the technique could be used in. Not only would it hide the demonic chakra that would be leaked, but it was full of nature chakra which was necessary for a smoother transition. He also informed the others that Naruto would need to be alone in the chamber once it was time and that it could last from an hour up to five. So, when it was time, Naruto gave all of his important people one more hug and disappeared for the next four hours as the changes happened.
-Naruto the Kitsune Shinobi-
"You ready Naru?" Kakashi asked from Naruto's side as they looked down at the academy from a nearby roof. Around him was his entire protection squad. That had been the mission Jiji had given them when their first had been completed. They were officially Naruto's protection squad. It was similar to being his bodyguards if anything arose that he couldn't handle. It was understood that Naruto would probably still going to be sabotaged, especially given the changes that he now sported. But Naruto was accepting of that, since he wouldn't be making it easy. Everyone in that academy was going to know that his grades were being sabotaged by proving to be the best at everything, to the point even the slowest couldn't miss it. And he was looking forward to it. Especially since Jiji was making it a priority that two heads from both the Civilian and Clan councils would be arriving to check on the progress themselves. It wasn't going to be easy for the teachers- Iruka-Sensei obviously the exception by being a fair teacher anyways- to keep the sabotage going. Naruto was excited for the next four years.
"You know it." Naruto grinned as he nodded to his squad, Kurama in his knee-high single tailed form, by his side, also excited. He gave his squad a cheeky salute, then he and his fox were gone and heading into the academy. Of course, the squad were soon in Naruto's classroom high up in the rafters and out of sight to observe their kitsune's first day at the academy. After this, it would only be one or two of them. And they had some handy seals that Naruto-Kun made that recorded things. Wasn't that going to be lovely to use to sack the first teachers to be unworthy of teaching their little charge?
"Calm down class!" Iruka-Sensei called, two other teachers by his side that had no idea what was going to come. It was the second day of the school year and they had to introduce their last classmate. "We have another student joining us, since he was preoccupied yesterday and had been unable to arrive then." Iruka told them.
"Are they important?" One of the civilian's asked curiously. Iruka almost rolled his eyes.
"Yes, they're the heir and final official member of their clan." He said, smiling in a slightly terrifying way as he saw all the students straighten up. "Allow me to introduce your classmate. Naruto Uzumaki, Clan Heir to the Uzumaki Clan." he grinned at the paling of several people as the door opened and in came his favorite student. Naruto was still one of the shortest students in this class due to his malnutrition in his early years. But that didn't really take away from the slightly terrifying presence Naruto possessed. Long bright red hair, similar to Kurama's fur with clear strands of familiar blonde streaking through it was the largest change to Naruto's appearance. Bright cerulean eyes that many recognized as belonging to the once blonde child, were practically glowing, his pupils just slightly slit. His whisker marks were much darker and also very noticeable were the fangs he now sported with abnormally sharp nails. Then there was the fox that currently sat on his shoulders that blended in well with the boy's hair. Honestly if the fox hadn't chosen that moment to yawn and reveal teeth just as sharp as Naruto's. None would have even noticed it. All in all, Naruto looked like the demon he had been called all his life. He noticed the prayer signs that the two teachers next to Iruka made and grinned. Oh, this was going to be fun!
A/N: And there we have it. The chapter was a little rushed, but I liked it in the end. Changing Naruto's hair color was a decision I hadn't been sure of, but like I said, embrace the demon. And the demon's red, so... I hope those that read this chapter enjoyed and we'll get to the canon era and Chapter 1 in the next chapter. Remember, abuse and hate isn't accepted.