Nothing Else Matters

An Uzumaki-centric story

Chapter 5

"Making Friends and Getting an Eyeful"

(Six years later, Uzushiogakure no Sato)

"Kaa-chan, why can't I go play in that park?"

For the first time in his life, Naruto wasn't in that cramped tunnel system in Uzu, he was exploring the world. Well, he was just accompanying his mother to bring back medical herbs but that counted for something. He shivered with excitement when he saw the bright colors of the stalls on each side of the busy street. People were so lively here, not like home, where the only sound you could hear was the sound of wild animals and the splashing of water on seashore. The buildings were also colored brightly, giving the city a very cheerful and upbeat look. The park he was currently pointing at was a children's park in the middle of the sprawling metropolis, it was huge, with a wide array of swings, slides and sand pits. There had to be a hundred children milling about

"You already know that Naru-chan, we're only here to get some supplies and then we're going back home. Your sister must be worried sick, we shouldn't stay here for too long"

Naruto was a very bright and cheerful boy, he a bit short for his age. He had bright red hair and very fair skin. He was wearing a green shirt with tree designs and a black pair of shorts

Naruto pouted, he wanted to make friends! He finally convinced his mother to take him to the mainland for her bi-annual resupply trip and he didn't even get to do anything. He loved his sister and cousin, but he wanted more friends, two weren't a lot, you could count that on one hand!

Kushina seeing the sad look on Naruto's face decided to reason with him. "Naruto, you'll understand when you're older. You can't make friends, the only friends you need are family, other people will only use you."

Naruto resisted the urge to roll his eyes, he had heard this speech like a thousand times already! Looking around the port city of Hansako-gai, he saw a lot of friendly people, he didn't understand why his mom didn't trust them. He'll show her though, he'll make a lot of friends in the park!

"But Kaa-chan, why can't I? They're my age, nobody would try to hurt me. I promise I won't stay long, you get the food and I'll stay in the park."

Kushina shook her head and sighed, her son had developed some rather foolish ideals growing up, he seemed to inherit the ideal of her near extinct clan, only harsh reality would give him the slap necessary to wake him to the realities of the world. She didn't want her son to suffer though, her clan held those ideals and they were slaughtered like dogs. She wouldn't allow that, even if she had to play dirty.

If only he could be like his sister. Naruto had more potential as a Shinobi because of his enormous chakra reserves and his prodigious talents in the ninja arts.

Patting him on the head and ruffling his hair, she decided to indulge him. "Ok, Naru-chan, just try to look like a normal kid and don't use any jutsu."

Excited couldn't describe his state of mind, his Kaa-chan finally allowed him to make new friends, he would make sure to make lots. That way he could convince his Kaa-chan to come to the mainland a lot more.

Kushina nudged her son towards the park, he didn't hesitate and ran towards it at speeds that shouldn't be possible for a child his age.

Kushina looked at his retreating form and sighed, she had to rearrange his views regarding the Shinobi world, unfortunately, any experience that would change his view would be incredibly dangerous. Thankfully, with the use of shadow clones, she could craft a scenario where he will be forced to despise the Shinobi world. She wouldn't allow her child to carry on like this, he would only end up like her clan did, with the rest of the world pissing on his corpse.

Running at speeds that should be impossible for his age, Naruto disappeared into the playground. Kushina slowly walked to a nearby alley and created four clones. Sending one to gather the medical supplies while the rest accompanied her.

(With Naruto)

"Look at this loser, what kind of weirdo has red hair?"

"Hah, his face is going red. What, are you getting embarrassed, tomato?"

"He does look like a tomato, nobody wants to play with a rotten tomato like you"

The kids continued to make fun of him while he stood there fuming, what was wrong with these people? He only asked if they wanted to play with him, why were they being so mean? He has to do something cool, or else they wouldn't be his friends he knew his Kaa-chan would be mad, but he had to do this, he had to make friends and prove Kimiko-chan wrong.

"I bet none of you guys can make trees grow out of the ground."

The self appointed leader of the crowd of twenty-something kids that gathered for the prospect of bullying a newcomer replied "As if you could do that, only Shinobi can do magic and you're just a little boy."

Naruto grinned and put his hands in the snake seal, focusing his chakra like his sensei taught him, a huge tree grew out of the ground.

The children had their jaws on the floor, this guy just made a tree pop out of nowhere.

Naruto was going to brag before a kunai wizzed past his face and sliced a thin trail on his cheek. His audience scurried away from the park in a hurried panic. Right after the kunai cut his face, Naruto fell on his butt from shock. Looking towards in the direction the kunai came from, he saw three people wearing masks with lightning bolts on them.

"Echo, he has Mokuton, Raikage-sama will want him."

"Hai, this patrol mission turned out to be worthwhile after all. Brat, we're taking you to Kumo stay quiet and follow instructions and we may not beat the shit out of you on the way there."

Naruto grit his teeth from his position on the floor, he was so screwed. He shouldn't have shown off his Mokuton for those kids. Now he was in big trouble and his mom wasn't anywhere close to him. He had to stall till his Kaa-chan could reach him. He didn't know any jutsu yet, but he could definitely use pure elemental manipulation to wreak some havoc. Mokuton was a powerhouse of a Kekkei Genkai, even when not guided by jutsu, the power of wood release was immense.

Returning his hands to the snake seal, he created massive trees under the ninja. Tree roots burst from the ground and they were quickly followed by giant tree trunks. The Shinobi seemed amused by his attack if the they were laughing was an indication. They were casually gliding by any attack he sent at them, it seemed like his control over wood release wasn't good enough to take care of these douches.

They seemed to get tired of dodging and started throwing kunai and shuriken at him. He quickly grew a couple of trees to block them, that also blocked his line of vision, making him incapable of seeing the enemy. A kunai slipped between two of the trees he put up for cover and dug in to his stomach. Screaming from the pain of being stabbed in the stomach, Naruto fell on his knees clutching the kunai that was buried handle deep in him. Standing up shakily, he began to wobble towards the exit of the park, hoping to run away before the bastards caught him.

The trees stopped attacking them the moment the kunai stabbed Naruto. Jumping over the trees that lay between them and their target, they approached him undisturbed while he staggered from side to side. They approached him at blinding speeds to knock him unconscious before he could react. Naruto pulled the kunai out of his stomach and swung it haphazardly at the direction of his enemies, almost nicking the one who charged him in the shoulder, forcing him to jump back.

Naruto ran out of energy, using Mokuton for that long along with sustaining the injury on his stomach drained the energy out of him. He fell on his knees and started panting loudly. One his enemies charged at him with his katana positioned to pierce his shoulder, a non-vital area which would knock him out from blood loss. Naruto closed his eyes in fear of what was to come. He should've listened to his mother, now he'll never get to see his family again. His sister will be so sad that he's gone.

He waited but the pain never came. Naruto opened his eyes when he felt thick liquid splashing on his face. His eyes widened when he saw the katana poking out of his mother's chest. A feeling of numbness spread across his body, this was all his fault. His mother was going to die because of him. He was as frozen as a statue even when his mother wrapped her arms around him and hey disappeared in a flash of red.

After the two Uzumaki disappeared from the puddle of blood they were lying in, their three 'enemies' vanished in a puff of smoke.

(Uzushiogakure no Sato, moments later)

Naruto and Kushina appeared in the middle of the clearing outside the tunnel entrance, Naruto was still wide eyed, as if in a trance, not realizing what was going on around him.

Kushina shook her son lightly. "Naru-chan, go get your auntie so she could heal me." She coughed up blood shortly after finishing her sentence for the dramatic effect.

Naruto snapped out of his trance, shook his head and ran inside the tunnel ignoring his own injuries to get his aunt Akahana so she could heal his mother. If only, he had listened to his mother, none of this would have happened.

Running swiftly through the halls of their home, he seemed to have tunnel vision, focusing solely on his destination, his aunt Akahana's lab where she will most likely be.

Naruto almost broke the door handle with how hard he pushed it downwards. Flinging the door open, he ran into the room and saw a startled Akahana who has looking at him with a hint of surprise.

"Naruto-kun? I though t you weren't coming back for a couple of days?"

"Oba-chan, you have to help. Kaa-chan is hurt, she got stabbed by some bad guys." he said in a very quick manner of speech.

Akahana only understood the word 'kaa-chan' and 'hurt' so that gave her a rough outline of what happened. Looking at Naruto, she found his shirt bloodied and he had several injuries on him, including a deep stab wound on his stomach. Quickly running around the lab, she grabbed two vials of her blood and shoved the contents of one of the glass containers down Naruto's throat.

Naruto was forced to quickly drink the liquid his aunt gave him, as he consumed more and more, steam came out of his wounds and they closed up and healed rapidly. He got his breath under control after he finished the contents of the vial. He was dragged outside by his aunt's surprisingly strong hands. After a minute or two of walking, they exited the tunnel system and saw a very pale Kushina lying in a pool of her own blood. Naruto's blood ran cold as he saw his beautiful mother in such a sorry state. He stopped moving as his aunt went and filled Kushina's mouth to the brim with her healing blood. After gulping down a few drops, she seemed to gain a bit of her color back. Kushina seemed to regain her strength as she slowly leaned her elbows and sat upright. Whispering something into Akahana's ear, Akahana nodded a couple of times before giving Naruto a disapproving look. "Naruto, go to your room and only come out to receive your meals."

Natuto, even in his current distraught state, seemed to understand that. Moving robotically, he turned around slowly walked to his room.

As soon as Naruto left their line of sight, Akahana gave Kushina a questioning look. " are you sure this is a good idea? Chances are this will traumatize the poor boy, he might not want to be a shinobi at all after this ordeal. He's still too young to experience such things."

Kushina, who stood, completely healthily, responded. "I'd rather he experience such things under my watchful eye than out there in this merciless world. This will hopefully force him to change his view of the world, he might still be a child, but people are shaped by their childhood. Uzu's destruction is what made me the woman I am today, this event will make him loyal to his family and nothing else."

Akahana sighed, Kushina was too harsh on her children, way too harsh. But the fate that awaited their clan would break most weak-hearted individuals. This event may strengthen Naruto's will and temper his resolve, but it will also rob him of his innocence. He was only six for gods sake.

Kushina sighed and started walking towards the their home. Before she entered the tunnel entrance, she turned around and addressed her cousin one. "Trust me, it's for his own good, he'll only get hurt if he keeps up this foolish attitude of his. Get Karin to clean up all the blood before it dries out and take the medical supplies to your lab."

Walking through the tunnels towards her room, Kushina felt extremely guilty. Not only had she subjected her baby to such a distressing situation, she also worsened the situation by casting a genjutsu that will force the mind to internalize the trauma of the situation, prohibiting Naruto from ever forgetting about as most children do about traumatizing situations that befell them. This will either make or break Naruto. She loved her child dearly, but the sage's power should never fall on the hands of another idealistic fool. If he either stays true to his current concept of love and friendship over might and family or he comes out of this a broken shell of a boy who's afraid of his own shadow then she will be forced to groom her daughter for that right. That wasn't the preferred outcome, her daughter might be talented, but her son was her first born, he deserved his own place in her plans.

But she still hurt her baby and that fact brought an unimaginable amount of heartache with it. She hurt her son with her own hands in order to teach him a lesson. She always thought that she would be a very fun parent who would allow his child to do anything they wanted. It seems she was wrong, her heart had been growing darker and darker ever since she took this path. She knew he consequences of it though.

Entering her room and closing the door behind her, she allowed some emotions to show as she started silently crying into her pillow.

(Naruto's room, four hours later)

Time didn't really matter underground, Naruto didn't know how long he had been laying on his and contemplating the events of the day.

He messed up really bad, his Kaa-chan was hurt because of him. It was entirely his fault. If only he didn't nag his mother to go play with those kids. They didn't even want to be his friends until he showed them his skills. Is that what his mother kept always talked about? That people will only befriend him to use him and then discard him? It sounded ludicrous to him just a day ago, he had thought that all people had some semblance of good in them. Perhaps his mother was right all along? He doubted her once and she got hurt.

He had adamantly refused to believe that people were inherently evil and that the only people he could trust were those who related to him by blood. Naruto was a good boy who wanted a lot of friends, didn't other kids want friends too? They seemed to be very friendly with each other. Why was it that they only made fun of him? Is it because of his hair? Or was it something more sinister, perhaps his mother was right and every person was only looking out for himself.

Currently, he was very confused, he had never doubted his ideals before, even when his sister and mother chastised him for them. The only thing he knew to be true was his love for his family. He loved his sister and mother more than anything, he would die for his auntie Honoka and his cousin Karin and her mother. He could figure out everything else later, he'd put his quest for friends on hold and put his family to the top of the priorities list.

His train of thought was interrupted by a knock on the door. "Who is it?" He really wasn't in the mood for a lecture from his mother.

"It's me, Naruto-nii." He slowly walked to his door and unlocked it, showing his sister in. His sister was the cutest person he had ever seen. She had cute puffy cheeks and bright red hair that reached her shoulders. She was wearing a black kimono top with red lining and a loose fitting red pants. She came two inches shy of Naruto's height.

Going inside Naruto's room, she Kimiko saw that it looked like a child's play pen. Toys scattered everywhere and very bright and childish wallpaper and bed sheets. She shook her head at her big brother's attitude. She had spoken to her mother about it, Naruto would never take Shinobi training seriously at this stage, hopefully what had happened hours earlier would get him to take life a bit more seriously. Her mother told her what happened, how Naruto showed of his Mokuton skills to some children hoping to gain their approval, only to get targeted by some Kumo-nin. She wished that Naruto would drop his stupid goal of establishing bonds outside of family. Weren't they enough? Her mother and her showered Naruto with love everyday yet he runs off to make friends with civilian trash. Hopefully this experience will make him realize that he doesn't need anyone else, her mother and her have plenty of love to give.

Walking straight to Naruto, she wrapped her arms around him and hugged him tightly. "Okaa-san told me what happened, Naruto-nii."

Naruto was glad. The physical contact went a long way to calm his nerves. "I didn't mean to. Kaa-chan got really hurt." He said in a low voice.

"Don't feel so bad, you got hurt too. Okaa-san is all fine now. Naruto-nii, why did you use Mokuton when when mother told you not to?"

Naruto looked at the ground, to be honest, he hated being scolded by his sister more than his mother, while his mother would bonk him across the head, his sister would just get disappointed with him, which stung a lot more. He loved his sister, and her opinion mattered to him a lot.

"I wanted to make friends with the kids in the park, they were making fun of me. I showed them my Mokuton and the thought it was cool. Everything was fine before they showed up."

"Naruto-nii, I'm your friend, Okaa-san is your friend, Karin, Honoka-obachan and Akahana-obachan are your friends. Why do you need more? Isn't your family enough. Those people are 're beneath us, we don't befriend them, we crush them."

Naruto shuffled his feet in nervousness. This is what he meant by hating his sisters lectures, she would guilt him so bad.

"Naruto, to be someone's friend you have to protect them. Okaa-san got hurt today because of your mistake." Naruto squeezed his eyes shut at the mention of his mother's injury. Flashes of his mother lying on a pool of blood entered his mind. It was all his fault.

"You couldn't protect Okaa-san today. You should get stronger to protect your family, only your family deserves your protection. Other people will only mock you and try to take advantage of you, just like what happened today." Naruto was getting the same speech again, except this time he was actually listening. Naruto nodded slowly.

"When will Okaa-san start teaching us jutsu? I can't protect her with elemental manipulation."

Kimiko broke the hug and kissed him on the cheek. "Okaa-san will start our training in a few weeks, she has business in the mainland. I'll go get you something to eat in the mean time." Kimiko exited the room and closed the door behind her.

Naruto sighed and dropped back onto his bed, he suddenly felt disgusted with himself. He was weak, his Kaa-chan was hurt because of him and he was too weak to do anything about it. Kimiko was right, he should try to protect his family before trying to make friends. He needed to get strong fast so he can show his mother that he won't be a burden anymore.

(Near the Uchiha compound, Konohagure no Sato, two days later.)

Kushina was looking at the Root ANBU squad that was fighting the young Uchiha. He was a prodigious member of the clan and was actually a war veteran, despite his young age. She managed to catch a glimpse of his awakening of Indra's ascended eye when his lover died in his hands in the battlefield. She would have his eyes. They were necessary for the ambition of her clan. Konohagakure hadn't changed much, Sakumo Hatake had been assigned as Yondaime after the third Shinobi war which ended with nobody as victor, just three beat up Shinobi villages with a high death count a long with a graveyard in the form of Kusagakure.

The brat seemed to be holding his own against the ANBU, as ridiculous as that sounds. She would swoop in when the fighting ends and claim her prize. The squad of twelve had been reduced to four when he came. Danzo Shimura. This would be a good opportunity to dispose of him, he was the only one in Konoha with a good head on his shoulders, certainly smarter than the monkey and his successor. Just as Danzo reached for Shisui's left eye, a chakra chain pierced them both in the chest, destroying Danzo's heart and further injuring Shisui. Dropping to the ground opposite Shisui and making her presence known, she saw the ANBU clutching their tongues as they seemed to have he familiar burn of a seal being removed while Shisui widened his eyes at the presence of the unknown and flinched from the pain of getting his chest stabbed through.

"This is quite the fun party, mind if I join?"

The ANBU separated, two securing Danzo's body and fleeing while the remaining two went in opposite directions, charging at both her and Shisui. Kushina quickly ended the nuisance with a quick swing of her chains and ran at the remaining two, hoping the Uchiha wasn't desperate enough to try anything stupid, like stabbing out his own eyes.

The Uchiha's movements were extremely sloppy, if the way he was stumbling every other step was any indication. It was a huge contrast to the beginning of the fight where he was seamlessly teleporting around with the body flicker. She decided to not take any risks and quickly ended both their lives. Kushina sighed, this was all for her clan, for her family, for Naruto and Kimiko, her babies. Kneeling down near the corpse, she extracted some medical supplies she got from Akahana and quickly went to work extracting the eyes, being extra careful not to damage them just as her medic cousin instructed.

Just as she popped both eyes in a liquid filled jar and closed it shut, she felt another person approaching the site of the battle, perhaps another Uchiha. She got all that she came for, the only thing that belonged to her in Konoha was the Yonbi, who was currently sealed in a genin. She had gotten all her clans heirlooms when she unleashed the Yonbi. They were all safely stored back home.

She used Hiraishin to return to Uzu. She still hadn't master the damn thing, she probably never would. It was very frustrating, it was incredibly useful and used tiny amounts of chakra compared to the size carried, but it was also very hard to use during battle. The reflexes needed to teleport around a battlefield quickly dispatching opponents were staggering. The only one who could use it in combat was the Yondaime Raikage, because his Raiton no Yoroi stimulated the nerves system, improving reflexes. She needed a jutsu like that or she would never perfect it, oh well even she couldn't get it, she't trust her children will one day master it.

A/N: Kind off a 'meh' chapter, but it's just an interlude-sh chapter. Better things will come.

How do you guys like the personalities of the characters? You haven't really seen much of Naruto, Kimiko and Karin, So tell me what you think about Kushina, Honoka and Akahana. Very little is given in canon about these characters and I want to know if you like the way I portrayed them.

This story won't be particularly long, definitely less than 100k words. This is my first work, so I'm not really experienced in fleshing out a chapter.

Hiraishin - Flying Thunder God

Raiton no Yoroi - Armor of Lighning