Glad to see so many people like this idea, sorry it's took so long for me to update it. :)

I will tell you now that it isn't going to be all sad and serious all of the way through, but the first few chapters might be just to help set the story for later.

I will tell you know that Naruto will not be raised in the palace, but other than that you will just have to read and find out.

Enjoy :)

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Disclaimer- I own nothing :(

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Chapter 2- The Silent Reaper

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The first thing Naruto noticed when he regained consciousness was the feel of the soft mattress under him and the warm blanket covering him. It was also what told him that something was very wrong. He didn't have a mattress in his shack, or warm blankets, all he had was a pile of old cardboard and his only blanket had more holes then a coral. It was for this reason that, despite feeling the need to open his eyes and look around the room, he forced himself to keep them closed and breathe evenly, as if he was still asleep.

After all, he lived in the Fishman District, anything could have happened to him while he was unconscious. His head was still a little fuzzy, and no matter how hard he tried the blonde couldn't remember why he had fainted.

The next thing he noticed, which was almost enough for him to break his cover, was the intense pain he felt in his chest, which seemed to be spreading throughout his body. It took all of his willpower not to let out a gasp and keep his breathing even.

"It has been confirmed that Hody Jones managed to catch the one that tried to shoot you, Otohime-sama, it is a shame he was unable to be taken alive, but the mere fact it was a human will cause a lot of problems either way."

He didn't recognise the voice, but he was able to pinpoint it about two meters to his right. Whoever it belonged to was obviously male, he had never heard a women with that deep a voice in his life after all.

"I know Jimbei-kun, but please, I just can't think on such things right now."

This voice was definitely female, and unlike the male one before it he was familiar with it. After all, how many hours had he listened to it talking about the 'True Sun'.

XXX

Turning back to the unconscious boy lying next to her, Otohime took a damp cloth and gently dabbed at his forehead, cleaning off some of the sweat and trying to lower his fever.

"Is my husband still in the Shell Tower?"

"Yes my Lady, after hearing that you were safe, and that it was a human that had attempted to kill you, he locked himself inside until he is able to calm down. Neptune-sama is afraid that if he were to leave too soon he will be too tempted to declare war."

Letting out a sad sigh, the blonde queen locked her eyes on the unnamed boy she was caring for, before her mind flashed to the number of small scares they had seen all over his body when the doctor had been treating him. The sight of it had brought tears to her eyes, and she had quickly rushed her children out of the room when she noticed them staring. The thought of how and why he had them in the first place actually terrified her a little.

"Have you been able to find anything out about the boy, I know you have been asking around the Fishman District for a while?"

Letting a frown form on his huge mouth, Jimbei walked over to stand on the other side of the bed from his queen and stared at the boy, not being able to meet her eye as he told her what he had been able to find out.

"I might have, though until he wakes and I can ask him myself I am only about 90% sure…I think it would be best if we wait for Neptune-sama to return from the Shell Tower before-"

"Jimbei…what have you found?"

The hard look on her face, along with the piecing blue eyes and stern voice she had used to interrupt him brought the large Fishman pirate up short. It only took one glance into her eye before he let out a sigh, his shoulders slumping as he took the only other seat in the room.

"There are rumours of a blonde Tiger Shark boy that is able to move at incredible speeds, both in and out of the water, being involved with 'the Pit'..."

Getting a confused look at the unfamiliar name, Otohime tried to put as much of her focus on the boy as she could while still listening to her old friend, having a bad feeling about where this was going.

"The Pit?"

"…It is the name most of the gangs use for the fighting arenas."

Her eyes widening at his words while a look of horror spread across her face, Otohime looked straight at the large man across from her, her voice shaking.

"Jimbei, he can't be any older than five or six, you can't be telling me that this child was put in a fighting ring like some kind of gladiator! There can't be people that cruel!"

"…I am and there are, your highness. There is more, but if you don't want to hear it I will understand…"

"No, I want to hear it all, tell me."

After taking a moment to be sure she wouldn't change her mind, Jimbei continued.

"Not only is he a fighter, but from what I understand the boy is also the champion, having never lost a single match since his first appearance a year ago when he beat three other children in under a minute. They have put him against older children, had him fight several at the same time and from what I have learned even had him go against a few fully grown Fishmen, but no matter what they throw at him nothing has ever beaten him. The gang that sponsors him has been gaining more and more power ever since his first match as well, though I was unable to find out what they are called."

"…I see…were you able to discover his name?"

Getting a worried expression on his face when he heard just how flat her voice had become, Jimbei waited a moment before answering.

"If this is indeed the boy I have been hearing about, his name is…Naruto. Though in the Pit he is known by the name 'Silent Reaper', for reasons I didn't want to know…"

"Naruto…"

When he saw the small smile that came to Otohime's face, Jimbei was almost tempted not to continue, but he knew she needed to know everything.

"Otohime-sama, there is one more thing I was able to learn about the boy… from what I am able to understand, he is-"

Before he could finish his sentence, the Captain of the Sun pirates was interrupted when the blonde boy lying in front of him disappeared in a blur of motion, appearing on the other side of the room. He seemed to take about three seconds to survey the room, before once again becoming a blur and bursting through the only doors in or out. The sound of the guard's that had been stationed outside the door letting out a surprise shout soon followed the boy's exit.

Before he had even had time to understand what had happened, Otohime had already ran from the room, following the sound of startled screams as people either jumped out of the way or were pushed to the side as the blonde blur sped through the corridors. She followed the blur for about ten minutes, in which time Jimbei had caught up to her along with several of the castle guards, before coming to a stop at one of the gardens.

The garden was a huge area filled with an assortment of different plants of all kinds and colures, some of which would normally only be found on the surface world. In some ways it was almost like having a miniature jungle inside the palace. Unfortunately for Otohime and the others chasing after the boy, it only made it harder for them to follow him.

Turning to the guards, Jimbei quickly got their attention and began to give out orders.

"Two of you bolt the door from the outside and keep guard, there is only one way in or out of the garden so the least we can do it try and keep him contained. The rest of you spread out and search, but do not engage, he may be young but he is still dangerous and at the moment probably scared. I will stay with Otohime-sama and search with her. If you find the boy notify us immediately. Now move out!"

Without questioning his words, the guards quickly spread out, two moving to the door and locking them inside.

As they were walking Jimbei decided to finish what he was about to say before the boy had ran.

"Otohime-sama, I didn't get a chance to finish before but it is important that I tell you the last bit of information I was able to gather. If this is indeed the boy Naruto, then it is highly likely that he is a mute."

Carefully moving a branch out of her way as they moved through a denser part of the garden, Otohime frowned slightly as she continued to look in every direction for the small blonde boy.

"Mute?"

"Indeed, from what I have heard he has only ever spoke the word Naruto when he was first found by his sponsoring gang several years ago, and hasn't spoken since."

They didn't speak for several minutes after that, deciding to focus their attention on the search. It wasn't until about ten minutes later that they heard a scream cut shot ahead of them.

Quickly moving forward, they soon came to a small clearing with about seven of the guards that had followed them surrounding the small blonde boy in the centre with their spears lowered in a defensive position. Jimbei was also surprised to see three other guards lying on the ground unconscious, one of them with their spear missing.

"What the hell are you doing, I told you not to engage!"

One of the guards turned to look at the two of them approaching out of the corner of his eye, seeming reluctant to turn his back on the boy who they could now see was holding the missing spear in his hands, his body crouched low to the ground.

"I'm sorry Jimbei-sama, we had now choice! He came at us out of nowhere!"

Without warning the boy's body once again became a blur of motion, stopping in front of one of the guards. Before the man had time to react, the spear was pulled out of his hands and he was hit in the side of the head with enough force to knock him out cold. This was followed by a quick spin, before one of the spears was thrown at one of the guards on the other side of the clearing, piecing him in the right should and forcing him to drop his own from the pain as he fell to the ground. By this point the five remaining guards had pulled themselves together and started to charge the blonde tiger shark.

The first was quickly knocked out after being hit in the face by the butt of the spear in Naruto's hands, the fact that none of them were used to fighting a smaller opponent giving the five year old an advantage. As the second came forward Naruto stuck the point of his spear into the ground, before using it to jump into the air and spin around, adding more force to his kick when both feet slammed into the guards face. With another guard knocked out the blond continued the spin before landing in one fluid movement and pulling the spear out of the ground, once again getting into a low crouch.

With only three guards now left they were being a lot more cautious, keeping their spears out in front of them to prevent the boy from getting in close, having seen that he was both stronger and faster then he should be. It also didn't help their nerves that they were fighting a five year old whose blank facial expression hadn't changed at all even while he effortlessly took down seven highly trained guards.

Before they were able to coordinate an attack, the blonde once again stuck his stolen spear into the ground before using it to help him jump feet first toward the guard in front of him, only to be stopped mid-jump by a blue hand grabbing his ankle. Having seen enough, Jimbei had run forward and pulled the small five year old out of the air, holding him upside down at arm's length by his ankle so the boy couldn't reach him.

Unfortunately for the pirate captain, he had forgotten about the boy's over foot which, after realizing he wouldn't be able to reach the large man's body, Naruto used to kick Jimbei in the wrist with almost bone breaking force. Despite this mistake, Jimbei was still able to hold on with nothing more than a grimace of pain, though he did quickly grab the boys other foot to prevent it happening again. It seemed that even without the boost in strength having 'Seakings Rage' gave him he was still stronger then he should be.

"Now calm down little guy, we're not going to hurt you."

Naruto's repose was to swing his body forward and head-but Jimbei right between the legs.

Letting out a choked scream, his eyes popping out of his head and mouth opening wide, Jimbei yet go of his blonde captive as he fell to the ground clutching the space between his legs with a look of pure agony on his face. Everyone else in the clearing could only sweat drop at the fact one of the most powerful Fishmen alive was beaten by a five year old in such a way.

But before Naruto could do anything else, a pair of slim, delicate arms wrapped around his body and two soft mounds were pressed into his back.

"Please…stop."

Any thought of fighting instantly left him the moment the sound of her voice registered in his ears. Turning his head slightly, Naruto was greeted by the smiling face of Otohime, her head restring on his shoulder as she held him close.

She could feel as his body started to relax in her arms, his breathing slowing down, but it seemed even then he still wouldn't let down his guard completely. Otohime wasn't sure what saddened her more, the fact that a five year old was skilled enough to take down so many of the royal guards, or the fact that he seemed shocked by the simple fact she was giving him a hug.

After pulling himself together Jimbei slowly got back to his feet and, even though he was mad about the 'cheap shot', the large pirate couldn't help the small smile that crossed his lips at the sight of the Queen hugging the small boy from behind.

Moving over to stand next to them, Jimbei didn't miss the way the boy's shoulders tensed, or the narrowing of his sharp blue eyes.

After what had just happened, he decided to keep a little distance.

XXX

It wasn't as hard as they were expecting to get the boy back to the room they had been keeping him in, and luckily no one else was injured, because for the whole walk back Otohime made sure to never let go of his hand for a second. In fact, the small blonde tiger shark wouldn't even take his eyes off of the ground, as if he really was just a small boy, holding his mother's hand.

Jimbei was having a hard time linking him to the almost wild looking kid that had taken down 10 of the royal guard as if they were nothing. That's not to mention the fact that he was recovering from a gunshot wound to the chest, which if the now steadily growing red stain on the front and back of his shirt was anything to go by, had been reopened at some point during the fight.

If anything, the captain of the Sun pirates was impressed at the lack of pain being shown on the young boy's face, but that wasn't uncommon for anyone that lived in the Fishman district. To show pain was to show weakness, and to show weakness was the same as painting a bull's-eye on your own back. Especially in the Pit.

In his youth Jimbei had been a fighter, though he was twelve not five, and it had only been for about a year. But even that short amount of time had been enough for him to see what, in his mind, was perhaps the darkest part of the Fishman Districts criminal underbelly. And it had only gotten worse over the years since he was a fighter. Back then, the Pit had been nothing more than adults betting on fist fights between two kids, the worst injury you could get being broken bones.

But now it was something else altogether.

Gangs had started using them as a means to settle arguments and prove their strength to each other. They would train a few kid for fighters, most being little more than cannon fodder, and pick the best as future members. Most of the kids competing didn't even know that they were being tested, only fighting either out of hunger or being forced.

Despite his best efforts, Jimbei was unable to find the name of the gang that had been sponsoring Naruto, the fact that he was apparently their only fighter at this moment in time making it all the harder, not that he could blame them. After seeing the boy in action, it was clear that he was miles ahead of most others in the Fishman District.

He was still a little rough around the edges, and from what he had seen despite his apparent skill with a spar it was clearly not his first weapon of chooses, but he defiantly had more potential than anyone the large Fishman had ever seen.

And this was without taking his other 'condition' into consideration.

The 'Seakings Rage' was an ability all but forgotten in the Sea kingdom, but those that did know of it would always have a healthy fear in their hearts. The Seakings Rage had only appeared once before, the last time the ability Poseidon had been in fact. It gave the one 'gifted' with it the power of the strongest Seakings in the seven seas, along with an intense bloodlust and rage to go with it.

According to the only known documents still remaining that spoke of it, a Fishman with the power of the Seakings Rage could learn to control it, though it took a lot of training. However if they were ever to completely lose themselves to their rage, they would become an unstoppable, mindless killing machine. Apparently if that happened, the only way to stop them was the power of the Poseidon.

Leaning against the wall next to the door, Jimbei watched silently as Otohime carefully removed the boy's shirt before, revealing the bloody bandages wrapped around his chest. He watched as she stated to carefully undo the bandages, putting them in a bowl next to her, while his mind continued to wonder about the mystery of the small blonde.

The fact that he was able to and willing to take a bullet for the Queen was what confused him the most, seeing as most of the residents of the Fishman District hated the royal family with a passion, and from what he heard the boy had been nowhere in sight before appearing and taking the bullet. This, along with the speed he had already seen when he attacked the Celestial Dragon, lead Jimbei to the conclusion that the boy had not only been able to see the bullet but also moved faster then it.

For a Fishman to move that fast out of water, or anything for that matter, was almost unbelievable.

Waiting until Otohime was finished redressing the wound Jimbei stepped away from the wall, being careful to not get to close, before clearing his throat to get both of their attentions. At first the sight of those sharp blue eyes staring at him made Jimbei a little uncomfortable, not so much the sharpness as much as fact they were set in the emotionless face of a five year old.

"I've been asking around the Fishman District about you ever since the last time we saw you, Naruto. I must admit that you are a hard boy to find…"

If Jimbei was expecting some kind of reaction when he used the boy's name, he was disappointed. All he got was the same blank face a one, slow blink.

Frowning slightly, suddenly not so sure he had the right boy, the large Fishman crossed his arms over his chest, his eyes locking with Naruto's in a way that almost looked like and angry glare.

"That is you, isn't it? The 'Silent Reaper', Naruto the mute tiger shark, undefeated champion of The Pit?"

This time he did get a reaction, though small, in the form of a slight narrowing of the eyes. It was enough to tell him that he had the right guy, and silently impress him at the boy's self-control considering he was only five.

Nodding to himself, Jimbei let a small smile cross his lips, his expression softening.

"Well my boy, let me be the first to thank you for what you did, not everyone would take a bullet for the Queen."

Neither he nor Otohime missed the confused look that crossed the boy's face at his words, and it was then that it suddenly hit Jimbei.

"You didn't know that Otohime-sama is the Queen…"

Sending a look to the now visibly shocked Otohime sat next to the boy on the bed, her hand still resting on his arm. It took her a minute to collect herself before she was able to actually speak.

"But…then why would you…"

She wasn't able to finish the sentence, her shock at this revelation making it almost impossible for her to speak anymore.

Frowning, Naruto lowered his eyes so that he was looking at his old ragged pants, before he remembered something. Slowly reaching his hand into his left pocket, he pulled out a piece of folded up paper and, still not looking at them, placed it in the large Fishman that was standing in front of him asking all the questions.

Frowning slightly at the folded and crumples piece of paper, Jimbei carefully opened it, eyes widening at what he was seeing. It was one of Otohime's petition forms, with the name Naruto, scribble in barely legible writing on it.

Silently handing the form over to Otohime, who looked close to tears at the sight of it, the captain of the Sun Pirates locked his eyes back on the small blonde boy, who he noted was still staring at his knees instead of looking him in the eye.

"So that's why, he is a supporter of Otohime-sama's dream…"

Without realizing it, a large smile spread across Jimbei's large mouth, and let out a sigh when he came to this conclusion. The fact that the boy apparently had no problem with humans, and was a supporter of Otohime's dream, was a load off of his and everyone else's mind.

With a loud cry and watery eyes Otohime suddenly threw her arms around Naruto's small form, not even noticing the way he stiffened at the sudden contact, and started to sob in joy.

For next few minutes Jimbei watched the touching scene before him as the Queen cried into the shoulder of a motionless blonde tiger shark, the boy's face almost making he laugh.

"Mummy?"

Turning around, realising that the sound of Otohime's crying was louder then he first thought, and turned around to see Fukaboshi, Ryuboshi, Manboshi and Shirahoshi pocking their heads through the door. They had been sent away earlier after they started treating Naruto's wound, Otohime not wanting her kids to see it or the large array of small scars cover the blonde.

Pulling away from the still frozen tiger shark, Otohime gave watery smile towards her children and ran over to them, the four kids throwing the doors open the rest of the way and meeting her half way across the room. Jimbei was again forced to hold in his laughter at the sight of Shirahoshi, the youngest of the four, wrapped her arms around both her mother and brothers at the same time in a large hug.

However, his smile disappeared a moment later when he saw the letting in Fukaboshi's clenched hand.

XXX

Several hours later, Jimbei sat in the same room, Naruto on the bed in front of him.

The large Fishman had a thoughtful look on his face as he started at the boy, the events of the last few hours weighing heavily in his thoughts. Vander Decken IX…how the man had sent the girl a wedding proposal while she was safely in the palace he had no idea. But the fact was he had, which had led to the King, who had finally left the tower, and Queen moving the princesses room to the Hard-Shell Tower until they could find out how he did it.

But then there was the fact of what to do with Naruto.

When he had spoken to the King and Queen after they had moved their daughter, Otohime had instantly offered to let the boy stay with them in the palace, but Jimbei had advised against the idea.

While it was true that Shirahoshi was the only one that could stop him if he ever completely lost control, it was still a bad idea to have the two most powerful weapons known to Fishman kind in one place, if the World Government ever discovered their existence they would wage war to get the two.

This meant they needed to keep it as low profile as possible and, despite the fact the boy had just very publically saved the Queen from being shot, the royal family adopting an orphan would still draw attention to the boy.

Though she had not been happy about it, Otohime had reluctantly agreed.

Then it was suggested that he take the boy and have him join the Sun Pirates, but again the idea was scrapped almost instantly.

Not only was the boy too young, but Jimbei was a member of the 7 Warlords, meaning that he and his crew dealt with the Government on a regular basis. It would basically be like waving the boy right under their noses and daring them to take a closer look at him.

After that they had discussed several different options, the idea of sending him back to the Fishman District never even being considered, before they agree on an option.

The fact was that despite it being too risky to keep Naruto and Shirahoshi together, it was also too risky to have them too far apart, meaning that the boy would have to be kept in the kingdom. So they were going to send him to live and work at the Mermaid Café.

It was a popular tourist attraction that the royal family was known for visiting, so it wouldn't be wired if they checked in on him regularly, and the girls working there were all nice and would be a positive influence on the boy. Not only that, but the boy would make an excellent security guard.

Ever since the Café had opened there had been many kidnapping attempts, sadly several of them being successful, and the boy had already proven that he was more than a match for an adult Fishman in a fight.

He had already called Shyarly and told her a little about the boy, and she was very happy with the idea of having a guard even if he was only a kid.

But before all of that Jimbei needed to talk with the boy, even if he wasn't able to talk back.

"Do you know who I am, Naruto."

Considering the boy didn't even know the woman he had saved was the Queen, Jimbei was even more surprised when his answer was a small nod of the head.

"I see…I need to ask you if you know what happened to you the day you attacked that human?"

This time he got a shack of the head.

"Has it ever happened before?"

Another negative shake of the head.

"What about since?"

And another.

Letting out a sigh and leaning back into his chair, Jimbei couldn't help but feel relieved, it seemed Naruto was the same as Shirahoshi in the fact he was unaware of what he could do. With this knowledge in mind, he moved on to the next thing he was here to talk about, quickly changing the subject so the boy didn't try to ask him if he knew.

"Very well…the other reason I am here is to tell you that the King and Queen have decided to reward you for saving her life. They have brought you a home on Fishman Island and have arranged a job for you at a place called the Mermaid Café as a guard. After seeing what you could do against a group of ten trained royal guards, we agree that you are more than qualified for the task"

Seeing the confused expression on the blondes face, Jimbei schooled his own face into a serious expression, wanting the boy to understand just what they were asking him without making it obvious that they were doing it to keep him close.

"The Mermaid Café is a popular tourist attraction on the Island, owned and run by a mermaid by the name Madam Shyarly, and caters to both Fishman and Human alike. However, since opening a few years ago there have been several…incidents. As I am sure you know there are some humans on the surface, not all of them, but some that see us as little more than animals. They also have a tendency to enslave us. Since it has opened, there have been numerous kidnapping attempts, several of which have been successful. Not to say it is only humans, there have been problems with Fishman as well."

He didn't miss the way the boy stiffened slightly at the word slave, nor did it take him long to figure out why he might have been in the Fishman District in the first place, and if he was right it was all the more amazing that the boy supported Otohime's dream.

"What we are asking you to do is to protect the girls working at the Mermaid Café, from both Humans and Fishmen. They will look after you and once you meet the girls I am sure it wouldn't take you long to think of them as family."

Jimbei could almost see the gears turning in the boys head as he thought over the offer, but honestly he would be surprised if he refused. If the boy put so much effort into sneaking onto Fishman Island just for a few hours, he wasn't going to pass up on the opportunity to live there full time. He also threw in the comment about family on purpose, adding icing to the cake, so to speak.

XXX

Next chapter will be Naruto meeting and getting settled in at the Mermaid Café, hope you all like this one.

Now before anyone starts yelling at me about Naruto being strong enough to fight 10 royal guards, remember he is only five years old, so they would be reluctant to fight him anyway. Add in the experience from fighting in the Pit and there you go.

R&R :)