Flashback:
"WHY CAN'T I GRADUATE EARLY!?"
Naruto yelled at his father but the man remained cool as he sat at the table leisurely eating breakfast.
"You're not ready"
Naruto bristled,
"OH COURSE I'M READY! I'VE BEEN TRAINING WITH PERVY SAGE FOR 5 YEARS! I HAVE MORE EXPERIENCE IN MY PINKY THAN HALF OF THESE WANNABE'S!"
Kushina sighed not daring to interfere.
"The fact that you think that way just proves you're not ready"
Minato retorted, Naruto grit his teeth,
Why was it always like this?
"You...you keep thinking i'm something that needs to be protected...I CAN PROTECT MY OWN DAMN SELF!"
"Naruto"
The room went still because that was a voice of finality,
"Until i see fit, you are not ready."
Naruto sat on the swing as the students let out.
It wasn't fair.
He was now twelve and still he hadn't graduated. Not that he hadn't tried. He had taken the test and always just managed to pass but then,
"Ah! Sorry but it seems you're graduation exam has been rejected, you'll have to stay another year."
The bastard… He didn't get why he had to be the one… His dad knew he was capable, the man had often taught him himself so he didn't get it… what was he lacking that he wasn't ready…
"Naruto"
Naruto looked up to see the white haired chunin standing above him. The man's name was Mizuki and he was a teacher. They weren't close but that didn't make them strangers.
"What's wrong?"
Naruto really didn't feel like telling him his problems but he was in no mood to be picky about who he vented too,
"I can't graduate….again"
Mizuki looked shocked,
"But isn't Sasuke graduating this year?"
Naruto growled,
"Yeah…"
Mizuki seemed to sigh as he put his hands on his hips,
"You know your father was a very wise hokage"
Naruto scoffed,
"Wise my booty, if he was really so wise the man would let me graduate."
Mizuki smiled,
"Why don't we go talk for a bit"
"To your father you are probably a very important treasure."
Naruto pouted as they sat on a ledge overlooking the village,
"But because of his previous job he has many enemies, isn't that why you were away so often?"
Naruto turned his head,
"I get it! i get it! but all i'm saying is he sent me to go get stronger and now that i am he won't let me prove it!"
Mizuki chuckled at the pouting boy,
"Naruto… what is your dream?"
Naruto looked at him in wonder,
"Dream?"
"Yea what do you want to be when you grow up?"
Naruto's mouth hung open in thought before it closed and he looked down,
"I….."
The silence was deafening.
"That's okay"
Mizuki patted him on the back,
"You don't have to worry about that now…. You still have time"
Naruto remained silent,
"How about this i know the perfect way to get your father to acknowledge you."
"I finally FOOOOOUNDDDD YOUUUuuuuu…."
The words seemed to die on Iruka's lips as he looked at the boy sitting casually on the ground looking up at the sky a large scroll on the floor besides him. Iruka didn't know what to say because for once he was stunned. The boy he had come to know as a troublemaker who pulled pranks and wrote on the monument was very different then the one who sat here.
The one who's blue eyes look so sad and back looked so lonely.
They turned to him and instantly the look changed and he got up slowly with a gentle smile,
"Hey Iruka what's your dream?"
That was not what he expected and so speechlessly he remained quiet,
"Everyone thinks i want to be hokage because my dad was…."
Iruka watched as the boy walked away heading back to the village,
"Naruto wait!"
"My mom also declared she would be hokage too ya know?"
Further they went and Iruka finally noticed the marks on the trees signs of an intense scuffle.
"But for me…"
"You really think you're all that huh?"
Iruka jumped and pushed Naruto to the side as Kunai flew at him pinning him slightly to a shed they came across,
"Mizuki!?"
Iruka gasped, Mizuki his fellow teacher and the one who had warned him that Naruto had stolen the scroll to begin with…
"And here i thought you ran away…"
Naruto growled, Mizuki gave a crazed smile,
"Ran away?! Just cause you have a bit of speed and can dodge a bit? HA! Don't make me laugh…"
Iruka pulled out a Kunai painfully,
"Naruto….Run. Mizuki is… he just wants the…."
"I know..."
Iruka watched the serious expression on the small boys face as he palmed a kunai,
"I know how to differentiate….a liar."
Mizuki smiled,
"So you knew i was tricking you the whole time? And you still followed through? What, did you think you could stop me? You!? A monster?!"
Iruka jolted,
"Monster?"
Naruto whispered confused,
"NO! DON'T!"
"12 years ago…"
Mizuki started,
"You know about the demon fox being sealed? Well since that day a special rule was created for this village…"
Naruto frowned,
"A.. rule?"
"SHUTUP!"
"Of course this rule was never to be told to you"
"What is it?! Stop playing?!"
Naruto yelled, But Mizuki just laughed,
"The rule that nobody is allowed to talk about the fact that you are the nine tailed demon fox!"
"STOP IT!"
Iruka yelled in desperation,
"Because of you many people died! Haven't you ever wondered why so many people look at you with hate!? Even your father can't trust you!"
"you….BASTARD!"
Iruka lunged at Mizuki but Mizuki had always been stronger,
"You too right Iruka!? YOU'RE SCARED OF THE BEAST TOO! YOU SAW IT! THAT THING IS NOTHING BUT A-"
Iruka finally got a solid right hook in,
"Naruto is not a monster… Sure that demon fox is.. .But Naruto is...MY PRECIOUS STUDENT!"
Mizuki grab a windmill shuriken off his back,
"Suit yourself then.."
Iruka collapse the blood loss and pain making him dizzy,
So this was it?
…!
Naruto lunged himself tackling Mizuki and sending him quite a distance,
"NARUTO!"
"Hey do me a favor"
Naruto said taking the large scroll off his back,
"Don't touch my teacher… or i'll kill you"
Mizuki grunted as he stood up.
"Someone like you….I'LL KILL YOU IN ONE SHOT!"
Naruto rose his hands in a sign,
"Trash like you? I'd like to see you try, cause i'm gonna beat your face in"
Veins showed on mizuki's neck,
"THEN DO IT! DEMON FOX!"
And Iruka sat there and watched,
"Multi-shadow clone jutsu"
As Hundreds of Naruto's appeared solid and real, covering the area and cracking their fingers,
"Guess i'll start then…"
"I already knew, ya know"
Naruto sat next to Iruka leaning against the tree knowing backup would be arriving soon,
"About the fox…"
Iruka looked down in shame,
"My godfather told me. Said i shouldn't run away from what's inside me…"
Iruka actually didn't hate Naruto. He hadn't lost anyone when the fox attacked but he knew people who had. He remembered the fear he felt that day and the thought that he could have lost his parents had scared him. But even still he didn't hate Naruto. Naruto who always smiled and played jokes. Who loved to start an argument but always lost….
"Naruto what's your dream?"
Blue eyes blinked at him before a smile touched his lips,
"Ya know, everyone thinks i want to be hokage, but i think it's too early to decide that. I've seen dad work and i'm not sure if that's what i want…"
Iruka didn't miss the way his eyes began to sparkle,
"But at the very least i want to protect this village and the people that live in it."
Iruka was in awe,
"Even if the village…"
Hates you…
Hurts you…
Fears you…
Iruka couldn't voice it though but Naruto seemed to understand,
"That's fine, ya know. i understand why dad won't let me graduate."
Iruka was now confused,
"He doesn't want me to suffer."
Ah….
"He want's me to enjoy this happiness for as long as i can. He wants me to smile freely…
Again Naruto looked up at the sky with those sad eyes Iruka had seen earlier,
"And i guess that's where we're the same. Cause i don't want him to suffer either… I want to protect his place of happiness too."
Naruto who he met at eight was always a bright boy. Even if the villagers looked at him with fear and disgust he was surrounded by people who still cared and respected him from his father's time. But Naruto wasn't his father, He was different with eyes so expressive and bright, that looked almost through you to your heart seeing how hurt you were and wanting to give you a place of warmth… Naruto was warm.
"Naruto come here"
Iruka made him close his eyes and though he was curious he didn't ask and did as he was told waiting in silence wondering what was going on,
"Come on teacher, now?"
A chuckle was heard in the dark,
"Ok, You can open your eyes"
And Naruto did to see his infamous goggles in the hands of his teacher and an unfamiliar weight on his forehead,
"Congratulations on graduating!"
Naruto felt the emotions come up,
"But..dad he…"
"I think he'll understand"
Naruto could now feel the tears in his eyes and launched himself at a very in pain chunin.
"I promise! I'LL PROTECT THIS PLACE!"
MWAHHHAHAHAHAHA! so I purposely changed Naruto's dream but I changed a lot as I kept running with the story I was actually pleased how easy it was to manipulate the characters and yet keep them mildly in character.