Well, at least I got this chapter out a little quicker than the last one. It may be short but the information inside will effect the plot quite a bit.
The Fox and the Fire Shadow had just returned from their vacation in the south of Fire Country. Sarutobi and Naruto, now in his human child form, briefly talked with the guard at the village gate, hardly anyone knew the Hokage was gone, a precautionary measure to prevent attack in the leaders absence, and then started the trek down the street to the Hokage tower. Sarutobi wanted to make sure that everything was fine during his stay away from Konoha.
Naruto had a great time on the trip. Not only did he get to see the ocean, but he was able to walk around in his full form without fear. Also, he really enjoyed his stay at the small village where he and the Hokage spent a lot of their vacation time. He had never actually played with any other children before, as in his home village he was seen as a monster, so the various games he and the children of the small coastal village played were a new and wonderful experience. Even though he was forced to mature at a young age and had received additional help along that path by gaining the Kyuubi's brain, it wasn't hard for Naruto to put aside his more adult thinking to indulge in the pleasure of childish fun.
No one risked being obvious with their glares at Naruto when the Hokage was present, but the atmosphere was definitely more hostile than the boy had experienced in the last few days. Naruto did not really pay it any mind, but subconsciously, he was aware. The duo arrived at the administrative tower and proceeded to Sarutobi's office. As expected, there was quite a bit of paperwork present on the old man's desk. While the Hokage had left the village in the hands of a few capable jounin, including his own son, Asuma, they could not deal with his paperwork as it required his authorization only.
Naruto was rather bored of watching the old man whimper, so he told him that he would see him at home and set off toward the modest estate that they now shared. As he walked the distance to his home, the glares and hatred from the villagers were difficult to ignore, as without the presence of the Hokage, the villagers didn't bother to hide their malice. He had gotten used to the lack of such hatred during his vacation. It was especially bad after his stay in the small village near the sea. Having never stayed in any place other than Konoha, Naruto began to subconsciously believe that such horrible treatment was just a fact of life. Naruto knew, even before his drastic increase in intelligence, that the behavior of the villagers was wrong, but he had never known anything else. Experiencing the civil behavior and kindness from the coastal village brought Konoha's shortcomings to the forefront.
By the time the boy arrived at his home, he was incredibly angry. How dare these people treat him like this! He had done absolutely nothing wrong to them. In fact, he had done something great for them. Because the Kyuubi was sealed inside of him, these inconsiderate people were still breathing.
Naruto understood that people had lost loved ones during the Ninetail's rampage, but he had lost just as much. Sarutobi had told him he was orphaned by the attack, so didn't he have just as much, if not more, justification to be upset? Then, he had to live with his parent's murderer trapped inside of his soul. And these people hated him? Hell, most of the population of Konoha was not that affected by the attack. The beast never made it to the walls of the village and only the shinobi faced it.
Everything was even worse considering he had no say in the matter. These people had used him against his will to save themselves and they had the nerve to hate him! If he had to relate his situation to something, he would say he was like the little boy with his finger in the dam. He held back the waters from destroying the town, but while he was standing there, the same people he was saving were throwing rocks at him. Not only was this ungrateful, it didn't make it any easier to plug the hole. It was as if the village wanted to be destroyed.
The more he thought about it, the more it made him sick. Not only did he hate these people, they disgusted him. He would not stand for this any longer!
Sarutobi was finally getting home after checking up on everything going on in the village. He had done some paperwork but there was just too much to get done in one night. As he entered his home, he heard some noises coming from Naruto's room. Curious, he walked to the boy's door to be greeted to the sight of Naruto mumbling angrily as he packed his things.
The Hokage cleared his throat in order to get the boy's attention. Fiery red eyes met his own as Naruto was not keeping his illusion activated at the moment. The old leader cocked his head to side and raised an eyebrow in a silent question.
"I'm leavin' this ungrateful town, old man," the boy said as he went back to his packing.
The Hokage guessed that this might be the case when he noticed the packed bags, but it still left a sinking feeling in his gut.
"Oh? Where will you go, Naruto?" Sarutobi asked calmly when, in reality, he was anything but.
"I don't really know," Naruto admitted, "Maybe I'll go back to that village by the sea. Anywhere is probably better than here."
Sarutobi always expected, at least in the back of his mind, that Naruto would get fed up with his treatment here in Konoha. He realized he took for granted that the boy would just grin and bear it. Thinking about it now, he figured that this change was brought upon by seeing the outside world and the way things could be. If Naruto had been some lonely child that knew nothing but ill treatment, more ill treatment wouldn't really affect him. Living with the Hokage had already shown the boy a loving environment and the vacation further cemented the fact that he deserved, or at least that he could receive, normal treatment.
"But what about becoming a ninja, Naruto? You shouldn't just give up because of a few ignorant people." Sarutobi thought that maybe the boy could be bribed with becoming an "awesome ninja". Perhaps if Naruto had never been blown up and stayed the naïve little boy who always saw the shinobi getting respect from everyone, he would have strived for that as well. But he had been acknowledged. And he wasn't stupid anymore.
"A few people? Try the whole damn village, old man!" Naruto snorted bitterly. "Besides, who ever said I wanted to be a ninja? One, I can't use the techniques and two, being a ninja isn't something to be proud of. I don't want to be some assassin who's hired out to the highest bidder. I may be a monster now, but at least I still have honor."
Naruto had read extensively about shinobi. They did not defend the righteous and duel honorably with other shinobi. They were not samurai. However, they did evolve from the samurai. In fact, before the advent of chakra and jutsu, a ninja was just a samurai who abandoned the code of honor, fighting unfairly and striking without warning. Living with the Sandaime, Naruto had glimpsed a few mission reports. These were not always ninja breaking up bandit camps to protect the innocent or escorting some princess. Konoha could not survive financially if they only accepted missions that would make them heroes. No, these reports detailed the assassination of local lords and business rivals or the murder of brothers in order to solely collect on an inheritance. Ninja whored themselves to scum and killed indiscriminately.
Uzumaki Naruto wanted no part of that.
Sarutobi was slightly put off as Naruto had basically said that he was not honorable. However, he knew what the boy meant. Nowadays, being a ninja was something to be celebrated, but in the past ruled by honor bound samurai, ninja were the lowest of the low. He sighed. He should have started pushing Naruto toward being a shinobi when he was younger. If he had built up the village in the mind of the young child, perhaps he would have sought their acknowledgement and strived to protect them. He was planning on getting Naruto hooked on being a ninja, specifically a ninja for Konoha, but it appeared as if he had missed his chance.
"Naruto," the Hokage sighed, "you have so much potential to be a great warrior. You may be a giant fox now but you need training to control your power. Also, I resent the honor comment."
"Old man, it's nothin' personal. I read some of your mission reports. I don't want to do that kind of thing," said Naruto. "I don't have a problem with being a warrior; I just don't want to be a ninja."
"Okay, fine," said the Hokage, "you do not have to be a ninja, but stay here in the village."
"Everyone hates me here! Why can't I just live in some peaceful village?" Naruto was getting frustrated.
The Hokage thought about telling him about his father and how he would want Naruto to stay in Konoha but he realized that would probably unleash a furious fox boy on the unsuspecting populous and maybe even Sarutobi himself. He couldn't allow Naruto to leave the village. He was worried for the boy's safety, as absurd as that sounds, but also the welfare of the Leaf village. There was a possibility the boy could be manipulated into attacking his former home.
"Naruto, you need to be reasonable. It is understandable for you to be upset with your treatment here, but you must rise above it instead of running away," stated the Hokage. "I also can't allow you to leave for safety purposes."
"You can't allow me to leave?" Naruto sounded incredulous. "Old man, you can't stop me!" The boy started to expand slightly at this, foreshadowing what would happen if force was used.
"Boy," the Hokage growled, "I may not be able to beat you, but I can seal you just as the Yondaime sealed the Kyuubi." Sarutobi regretted those words as he finished saying them. Naruto looked taken aback.
"Old man, you would sacrifice your soul to seal me away?" Naruto's voice was shaky. "You would do that to me?" Naruto took a step away from the man he considered his grandfather.
The Sandaime felt horrible as he saw the look in the child's eyes. He was hurt and felt that he had been betrayed by the man he trusted above all others. "Naruto," the Hokage said softly as he tentatively reached for the boy, "I'm sorry that I said that. I love you as if you were my own grandson, maybe even my son. Please, I just don't want you to go."
Naruto stared into the aged eyes of the Hokage, looking for some ulterior motive. Although Sarutobi also wanted him there for the sake of the village, he genuinely did want him to stay because he loved him. He always considered the Hokage as family, but to hear him say that warmed his heart. He gingerly walked forward and embraced the old man in a hug.
"Grampa…" He said into the man's robe. After a moment he released him and backed away. "Fine. I'll stay, but only for you. Also, there are two conditions. I won't pledge any loyalty to this village and I won't become a ninja.
"That is acceptable, Naruto," the Hokage conceded. "Now, put your things back and we will go get something to eat."
Naruto smiled and nodded. He wasn't that happy about staying in Konoha, but he would stay for his surrogate grandfather. Even if he was going to stay, he was finished taking crap from the villagers.
No more mister nice fox demon.
How 'bout them apples? Naruto will not be a ninja. I mean, why would an invincible 500 foot fox demon sneak around? He just has to step on his enemies.
You should review because I know where you live. In fact, look out the window by your computer. Too late, I've already hidden!