Hey there folks I am finally posting this story which I have been wanting to do forever. It's gone through so many different incarnations as I played with the idea and it's finally time to unveil the prologue.
Now this story obviously is an AU. Naruto is different, having a very different upbringing and even a different skillet. He isn't getting shadowclones out the gate and his chakra control is much better as you will see.
There will be many changes and additional arcs however much of the major canon storyline remains even if it is slightly altered. I feel it's necessary to keep it for this fic because things will be different yes but some events will happen regardless.
Anyway before we get started I want to invite you to a couple of discord servers. The first is hosted by myself, Kiege, and Madlad aka TheChamp123. The second is hosted by AizenTheGoat and links for both can be found here→ /auc4PQjVtz and here→ /7x4YFstKcz
Now let's get to it.
Chapter One
The Legacy
The Ino-Shika-Cho trio had never felt more serious outside of combat than they were right now. Each of them were normally used to this situation but things had changed rapidly. It was odd really. They met with their old friends frequently but at the moment they were not having the usual meal of ramen and some light conversation to catch up.
"This is an uncomfortable conversation, you two." Choza said awkwardly.
"Choza's right. You are being more troublesome than I'm used to. Which is saying something." Shikaku said pointedly glancing toward the female half of the pair.
Kushina scowled slightly at the man's pointed remark. He was always picking at her, the lazy asshole that he was. She honestly had to wonder how they remained friends sometimes. She wasn't that little tom boy having more fun playing in the dirt with the boys anymore. After all she was already beginning to show and had pretty much become a housewife by now.
"I realize talking about this sort of thing is a pain you guys," Minato said with a mild pout getting all three men to sigh. "But it's important that if something happens-"
"Nothing is going to happen." Inoichi said resolutely.
"But if it does," Kushina took over. "We trust you three to actually make sure all our wishes are followed and that Konoha doesn't rip itself apart. You know how the clans are. Your families are the only real exceptions."
"I hate when you use logic." Shikaku mumbled while he picked at his food. He ignored the superior smirk on Kushina's face with practiced ease.
"So, what did you have in mind?" Inoichi asked. If he couldn't avoid the conversation about his friend's possible death then he could at least get it over with quickly.
Minato and Kushina glanced at one another before the woman tilted her head slightly. The blond Hokage turned back to face the trio with a more serious expression.
"First, you three have to do what you can to limit Danzo and his division's meddling. They are both important to Konaha's military as long as they remain loyal. They get too close to crossing that line more often than I like though. Eventually we won't be able to ignore the roots supporting our great tree from the shadows. When that happens you will need to prune the older branches." Minato's tone was stern and commanding. That of a Kage.
The three jonin each nodded along at their leader's words. They had varying knowledge of Root themselves. Inoichi being the most knowledgeable. He knew what sort of extremes they would go to to ensure the security of their beliefs. He had even watched as a small collection of his clansmen were made a part of the division.
"Next is the clans. They have become more prideful and divided over the last war than I recall ever before in our lifetime. Thankfully they are all still loyal but fights between Inuzuka, Aburame, Hyuga, Uchiha, and even some Kurama have been breaking out in increasing numbers. It doesn't help anything that so many civilian born are used almost like fodder by clan born officers." Kushina said. She had seen a young Hyuga Jonin try that with Kizashi Haruno and a couple of young Uchiha recently. Thankfully the trio had exceeded all their expectations and been fine. However, that Jonin was now a Chunin and on gate security rotation indefinitely. All it took was a word to Minato after all.
"You're right. Our clans aren't completely innocent of that behavior either though. We'll need to rein everyone in and try to lead by example or something." Shikaku said as he crossed his hands together and rested his chin atop them.
"That will have to do as a start. Next is something a bit more personal. That little ramen shop that we go to often…" Minato trailed off.
"Ichiraku?" Choza asked.
"Yeah, the man who runs it lost his wife in a bandit raid on a caravan she was part of. He's raising their daughter alone. I know it's asking a bit much, but do you think having her babysit your kids or just spend some time at your compounds to make sure she is safe while Teuchi runs the shop from time to time would be possible?" Minato asked.
The trio glanced at one another and snorted. Simply nodding to the couple. Acting as if a trusted babysitter for their very needy little ones was somehow asking a lot from them. Where did Minato get that idea?
"Sure, sure. No problem." Choza answered easily.
"What else besides twisting our arms to accept an adorable little babysitter?" Shikaku asked.
The group chuckled at that as Minato and Kushina realized they didn't need to sell the ideas so much. Their friends largely agreed with all the points they were making.
"Well I guess that brings us to the biggest part of our discussion," Minato said.
"Our son." Kushina added.
"Son? You know the gender already?" Inoichi asked.
"Well, not for sure but I have a feeling." Kushina replied.
"Naruto. He'll take Kushina's name so that the Uzumaki live on." Minato cut back in.
"Naruto, huh? Eh I guess it fits you two well. Maelstrom or whatever. Surprised you didn't just call him Arashi." Shikaku commented.
"Ah, well Sensei actually gave us the name." Minato said awkwardly.
"Lord Jiraiya?" Choza pondered before nodding. He liked the name no matter its source.
"Actually that's what we wanted to ask for the last thing." Kushina said as she gently smiled and rubbed at her belly.
"We need you all to make sure he is given to my sensei, his godfather and guardian." Minato said seriously, causing the men to blink and send partially worried looks to one another.
A silent conversation, doubting the judgment of the couple, was held by the three men until a faint snort could be heard coming from Kushina causing them all to look back at the grinning Minato and snickering Kushina.
"Aww, Kushina you gave it away too soon." Minato said, struggling to hold back his grin at his wife's laughter.
"I'm sorry it's just they looked so put out. I never thought we could get them to make those faces like that." Kushina finally broke and let out a giggle as the three men were still confused.
"What? So wait, Jiraiya isn't the godfather?" Inoichi asked.
"Ha! I love sensei like a father but he is nowhere responsible enough to take care of Naruto." Minato said while shaking his head.
"I don't see the humor…" Shikaku drawled.
"Tsk, you wouldn't. Yoshino would have laughed." Kushina said with a pout.
"Who then?" Choza asked, pushing the conversation back on topic.
"Well, you three are a package deal so I thought perhaps you would all be fine with being placed as his guardians should something happen to Kushina and I." Minato said.
"All of us? Well, who is the godmother?" Shikaku asked.
"Mikoto Uchiha, but the way things are with the growing superiority among some of the Uchiha clan's leadership I don't think it would be best for her to raise him. Plus she already has a son and another child on the way. Fugaku can't help much between running the police and the clan so she would be raising three children alone." Kushina explained.
"So, do you agree?" Minato asked.
Once more the men shared a silent conversation through looks alone. It was brief. Their answer was obvious.
"Of course." Inoichi said with a smile.
"Great!" Kushina chirped. "Now to decide which of you will be the official godfather."
"What a drag." Shikaku moaned.
"You really are taking all of this way too seriously. Nothing is going to happen to you two." Inoichi said with confidence.
Never had Inoichi been more upset to have been wrong. The disaster that had wrecked Konoha so recently and taken so many lives including his close friends, Minato and Kushina was never something that he could have predicted. Sure he knew of the seal as did most clan heads but the prospect of it breaking and everything going so wrong when things were looking so bright again, it just wasn't fair.
The Yamanaka clan head hurried into the office of the Hokage to find Lord Third once more seated at the desk of the Hokage with the room packed to the limit of important clan heads, department heads, and advisers. Some were not usually included in this number, like Tsume. Sadly her husband had been among the first to die during the Kyubi's attack so she had assumed control of her clan. He pities her as he knew she had two little ones of her own, one a few weeks away from his own Ino's age.
He joined Shikaku and Choza toward one side of the room beside Shibi Aburame. Shibi was also a newer addition to the clan heads since his parents were both killed when much of the Aburame compound was leveled by the Nine tails.
"Cutting it close, Inoichi." Choza said softly as the blond joined his friends.
"Some of the prisoners tried to use the chaos after the attack to stage a breakout in T&I. I've been tearing their minds apart all morning to find out how they managed to get the keys to their cells. I lost track of time." Inoichi explained.
"Did you find out how?" Shikaku asked a bit on edge at the prospect of a traitor in such an important department.
"It was lifted from a guard that was busy giving first aid to a civilian that stumbled into the main office. I already reprimanded him but considering the circumstances, I'm going to leave it at that." Inoichi said.
The other two slowly nodded. Such lax punishment would normally be almost considered treacherous in and of itself, but the Kyuubi attack had been cataclysmic and certain exceptions could be made.
"Let's get started with this meeting." The Third's voice spoke loudly over the murmuring conversations around the room bringing them all to silence.
"As of this moment I am reclaiming the burden of Hokage until a new successor can be found and prepared. For now we need to focus on reconstruction and clarifying for the world and our rival villages that Konoha remains strong. Each of you is here because you are either a clan head or commander to one of the various departments that keep Konohagakure operating. I want us all on the same page here so that's what is going to happen right now. We'll start with a basic rundown on where we stand as far as casualty reports and current manpower." Sarutobi stated before his two advisers Homura and Koharu stepped forward to explain the breakdown of casualties by area of Konoha and uncomfortably enough by their importance.
Soon enough it was Shikaku stepping forward to explain the state of Konoha's Shinobi forces while each of the departments including Inoichi's T&I and Choza's Provisions departments followed one by one.
"Our situation is grave but we remain strong. We remain united under the Will of Fire." Hiruzen said with a sad smile, getting a wave of determination from around the room.
"Lord Hokage, can you explain exactly what happened to Lord Fourth now?" One of the department heads asked.
Hiruzen grimaced. He had known this was coming but had hoped to avoid it during this mission, he was still trying to figure out exactly what to do with his successor's legacy and wanted more time to plan the best course of action.
"As you are all aware Minato gave his life to defeat Kyubi in battle. Myself and the ANBU as well as Minato's Guard Platoon were the first upon the scene. He was sadly already passed on when we arrived." Hiruzen said, hoping that would be enough to silence them for now. Knowing looks from the elders and Danzo filled him with annoyance though. No doubt they would grill him for more specific answers soon enough.
"What about his wife and son?" Inoichi found himself asking, getting surprised reactions from several of the clan heads and department heads that hadn't been close to Minato or Kushina.
"Wife? Lord Fourth had a family?" One minor record department head asked in shock. Wondering why he didn't have such knowledge as the head for records management.
Hiruzen nearly slapped his palm to his forehead. He should have pulled Minato and Kushina's friends aside before the meeting.
"Kushina Uzumaki sadly died helping Minato to defeat the Kyubi." Koharu intervened, trying to stem any more questions into the Hokage's family. Obviously Hiruzen was thinking something.
"Kushina? I knew she and Lord Fourth were close but married? And with a pup on the way? No wonder I haven't seen her for months." Tsume said in shock. She was friends with the Uzumaki woman but they were not exactly close.
"Yes, Minato married Kushina in secret both to protect any family he might build and because it was advantageous in negotiating with some other nations if he appeared to be single." Hiruzen quickly said before opening his mouth to continue only to be interrupted.
"Lord Third, what about Naruto? Minato and Kushina asked us to look after him if anything were to happen to them, Inoichi is even the boy's godfather." Choza pointed out further derailing the discussion as eyes turned to the big man.
"Choza-" Hiruzen began.
"I did not realize you three were so close to Minato, do you have proof of such things?" Danzo interjected.
"It's the truth, they named Mikotk as his Godmother as well, all four of our clans have sealed copies. I'm sure we can all produce them if you need to see the evidence." Fugaku suddenly spoke silencing much of the murmuring.
"How very fortunate that it would be your wife that is his Godmother, Lord Uchiha." Danzo commented getting many of the others to begin murmuring again.
"Pfft, oh please Kushina and Mikoto were thick as thieves when they became genin. In fact I have to bet Mikoto is probably the only woman in the village Kushina trusted with telling about her marriage and kid on the way." Tsume backed up the Uchiha clan head.
Danzo fell silent at that. Most knew Tsume for being a bit overly honest at times but that definitely leant weight to Fugaku and the Ino-Shika-Cho trio's words. He could not take the child under his wing with so many clans likely to oppose him. Perhaps he could make sure the boy was vulnerable to his viewpoint later down the road by keeping him out of their hands as well though.
"I do not doubt the word of our venerable clan heads." Danzo began getting suspicious glances from Hiruzen and his advisers. "However, would it not possibly become a bit of a conflict of interest if the Fourth's legacy was taken in by a noble clan? Perhaps even a bit too much power over such an important member of the next generation."
"Now wait just a minute! You would go against the final wishes of the child's parents? The wishes of the Fourth Hokage no less?" Choza asked, a bit of red bleeding into his face.
"I am only pointing out issues, Lord Choza. It's important that we do not give care of such a…well bred future Shinobi to just anyone." Danzo replied.
"Sadly I am forced to agree with Danzo. A Noble clan taking- Naruto was it? As their ward could lead to an abuse of power even if the intentions were originally good." Homura suggested.
"You can't mean to drop the boy into an orphanage." Hiashi Hyuga said a bit aghast though it was difficult to tell with his stoic features.
"Wait, I am the boy's Godfather, am I not? The Yamanaka are not considered a noble clan. We entered Konoha as the vassals of the Nara and were released of our vassalage only after ten years within the confines of the village. My clan is also small, more of an extended family than anything with only twenty two members if you count my baby girl back at home. Is that an environment that you believe would manipulate Naruto in the future?" Inoichi asked.
Danzo seemed to think so as he moved to speak but felt his jaw clamp shut as he realized he was under the control of Shikaku's shadow.
"You are also the head of the Torture and Interrogation. A pillar for the operation of Konoha with its own forces, many of whom are intertwined with your clan in some way or other." Koharu pointed out.
"She is right, my boy. That is a reasonably large base of power for-" Hiruzen began only for Inoichi to interrupt him.
"Then I resign. Ibiki is still a little young but he is more than capable of running the department and is actually a year older than I was when I was appointed to the position." Inoichi said confidently.
Hiruzen was silent for a moment as he locked eyes with the Yamanaka trying to gauge him. Slowly he nodded.
"Hiruzen, perhaps some form of inspection on young Naruto as he stays with the Yamankas is necessary." Homura said.
"We could appoint someone impartial to check up on him regularly." Danzo said having broken out of Shikaku's hold by now. His moment to pull support away from Inoichi was gone, the Third was supportive of the idea now.
"No need. I will check on my successor's boy monthly in person. Now if there is nothing more you're all dismissed. Dog!" Hiruzen called out to a hidden ANBU.
The point sized ANBU appeared beside his Hokage's desk kneeling and waiting for orders.
"Take Inoichi to retrieve Naruto please. It is time that he is taken home by his Godfather." Hiruzen said simply as everyone began to filter out of the office.
"At once Lord Hokage. Lord Yamanka, please follow me." Dog said roughly.
"Uh, just Inoichi is fine, Dog." The man responded as he trailed after the silver haired boy.
On his return home Inoichi was flanked by Choza and Shikaku till they got back to his home. The flower shop that his mother nad father had built was untouched by the Kyubi but the Yamanaka compound that covered the block around it had several buildings that would take time to rebuild.
His teammates sent him a brief wave goodbye as they continued on to their own homes while Inoichi took a breath to try and figure out the best way to break it to his wife that he was delivering a baby this time.
After snorting at the shoddy joke in his mind he pressed onward into the house to find his beautiful wife gently swaying in the kitchen with little Ino in her arms. The Shinobi paused just to take the sight in.
His wife was easy to sneak up on. Unlike Choza and Shikaku, Inoichi had married a civilian woman. Ryoka was a very distant relation to the Nara clan through a civilian noble family in Fire Country. She was the fifth daughter and ninth child of some nobleman with too many concubines near the coast and had been happy to leave her overbearing family for the much tighter knit Yamanaka clan.
She had been even happier to have a child with her husband though and start building her own family. Hopefully she would have as much joy in taking in Naruto as a ward of their clan as well.
He should have known better.
"Darling." He quietly said, causing Ryoka to turn and smile beautifully at him until her eyes locked onto the swaddled infant in his arms.
Ryoka blinked in confusion until the tiny tuft of blond hair peaked out of his blanket and she realized her husband was indeed holding a newborn baby that she most definitely did not bear him.
Inoichi's own smile quickly slid off of his face as the woman he loved became livid for no apparent reason.
"Uhm, sweetheart. This is Naruto he-" Inoichi began only to be cut off.
"I wasn't enough for you? You went out and had another woman just like my father did and didn't even have the courtesy of telling me till you bring your…your bastard into this house?!" She demanded.
"What? No, I'm his godfather!" Inoichi barked back, upsetting both children as they began to sputter and cry.
"Godfather? What?" She asked as she tried to console Ino and quickly calmed the little girl down while raising a thin eyebrow as Inoichi failed to do the same for Naruto.
"He's Minato and Kushina's son. I'm his godfather. They both…" He didn't need to explain further as they both clearly knew what had happened to them.
"I didn't even know she was pregnant. I hadn't seen her in ages and figured she was cooped up somewhere. How did you end up as Godfather? I figure they would pick someone like Lord Jiraiya." She said as she took Naruto from her husband's arms and began gently rocking him along with Ino, one in either arm.
Inoichi blinked a couple of times before snorting in laughter and falling to pieces as his wife's guess reminded him of the joke the late couple had played on him some time back. Soon his laughter turned to light sobs as it settled in that his friends were gone and the peaceful happy life he had expected for them and the village was never going to happen.
Ryoka comforted him as best as she could with two infants in her arms but knew he needed to mourn the loss of so many comrades and friends. He, like so many of the Shinobi had been bottling it up ever since that night and now for Inoichi at least the dam finally broke as he looked down at the sweet child his friends would never get a chance to raise.
As was typical, Danzo Shimura stalked out of his old rival's office without waiting for a dismissal. It was made abundantly clear that he was not to try anything with Naruto Uzumaki or he would be held accountable for everything he had done past, present, and future. Danzo knew a promise from Hiruzen when he heard it.
In exchange Danzo ensured that at least the boy would receive some extra tutoring to bring out more of his potential. It still felt like a waste but already knowledge of the Legacy of the Fourth surviving had spread and the morale boost had been desperately needed.
Danzo had no doubt that others, like Iwa and Kumo would try to take a crack at the boy soon enough, but Danzo's root would make sure they didn't get close enough to harm the child. Hiruzen had, in a rare feat of speechcraft, managed to convince Danzo that this was the best course of action.
The jinchuuriki would be raised knowing of his parents' sacrifice and loved by the village. His status as a jinchuuriki would be buries and he would be trained to defend Konoha with everything he had until he was old enough to begin learning to control the Kyubi's power, then he would be trained to defend Konoha with everything that the demon had as well.
In the meantime he would be the poster boy for their people, and with Hiruzen and Danzo agreeing that his protection was paramount, Naruto would be safe from outsiders looking to harm him.
That was the plan anyway, though Hiruzen had made it clear that if something suspicious happened he would come down on Danzo first just to be sure before looking outwards. Just an extra incentive to make sure Danzo's root behaved as well as did their job protecting Naruto perfectly.
There would eventually come a time though that Naruto would need support and advice. A boy with his lineage and potential would always be influential and so Danzo was sure he would eventually need the proper guiding hand.
All he had to do was remain patient. He had plenty of practice in doing exactly that.
Inoichi felt the comforting hand of his wife grip his own as they both settled into the couch in their sitting room. Today was the day. The day they tried to explain everything to their little ones about why Naruto looked a little differently to them and why it was that he had a different family name than they did.
Ino had asked about it a couple times since the past month or so but they had told her not to worry about it and the little one had simply poured and run off to play again. Naruto had been curious as well, judging by how he had tried to eavesdrop on the conversation but never actually asked Inoichi or Ryoka about it himself.
Now though, the children were just a little over a year away from starting the academy and it had been insisted upon by the Third Hokage, to begin at least Naruto's training this year so that he would be ahead of the game so to speak.
They needed to explain things to them now so that they understood a little better why things were different than they were for other children or even Ino. Although Inoichi planned for both Ino and Naruto to start training. He wouldn't split them up like that when they were so close with one another.
The two children happily dropped into their usual places in the room. They sat wedged up beside one another in one of the chairs not quite big enough to fill one up by themselves. Curious as to why they were being sat down in such a serious mood but well behaved enough not to try and argue it, both children simply stared at Inoichi with their bright blue eyes. Ino's a pure powdery blue that reminded him of a clear, calm, sky and Naruto's that always seemed to sparkle with a bit of mischief and energy.
"Daddy?" Ino asked, a bit hesitant, as her father stared at them.
Inoichi cleared his throat and smiled at them but suddenly realized he had no idea where to start. The children noticed and shared a glance before seeming to double the power of their innocent stare. He almost chuckled at the two of them trying to get him to talk by just staring at him.
"Inoichi, what's wrong?" Naruto asked. He had always been discouraged from calling Inoichi and Ryoka dad and mom or any variation of the term. Never harshly but while he didn't understand fully he had quietly come to understand that things were different for him from Ino.
The older blond man smiled at the child softly. He had insisted Naruto never call himself father or Ryoka mother because he knew he would one day explain who Naruto's parents were and he feared trying to take such a role as father from his friend. It felt wrong to try to step into those shoes, and while he was more than happy to raise Naruto, he never wanted to be considered his father.
Well at least not in that sense.
"There isn't really something wrong, Naruto. We just need to tell you something that we have been holding off on for a while. Now that you are going to begin training to be shinobi soon it's time to talk about it." Inoichi said.
Ryoka was supportive but a bit displeased. She had always taken issue with not allowing Naruto to call them father and mother, especially being as she had raised him from a newborn and reared him right alongside Ino. Hell she had breastfed the boy and changed his diapers. She didn't want to take the role of mother away from Kushina but Naruto was her son. She had conceded to Inoichi though. She always did. After all Naruto was his godson, not hers. Inoichi had been the one close to the boy's blood parents, not her. So she remained silent and supportive, even though she wanted to wait until he was at least entering the academy or perhaps even older if possible to explain the situation to him.
"Now Naruto I know it has always bothered you that you can't call me dad and Ryoka mom. It probably doesn't seem fair to you." Inoichi began, taking careful notice of how the two little children reacted.
Naruto averted his eyes and shifted uncomfortably. He was a good boy and was clearly embarrassed by his anger and hurt by that. Ino was openly angry though as she took Naruto's hand in her own and glared weakly at her father. She hadn't said much about it before but she had been uncomfortable when Naruto was gently reminded by Inoichi. The boy had never shown that much issue with it though but Ino could tell now that it hurt him quite a lot.
"It wasn't because we don't love you, Naruto. We love you like you were our own son but you aren't our son." Inoichi said, causing both children to blink in confusion and stare up at the clan head waiting for an explanation.
"Inoichi!" Ryoka hissed in a small fury as her husband bluntly dropped such information.
As the words registered with Naruto, the little boy felt tears begin to sting at his eyes. It felt like his parents were telling him he had to leave. He was confused and his chest hurt terribly. Soon tears ran out of his eyes and down his cheeks while he fought to force them back.
Ryoka broke her hold of Inoichi's hand and wrapped the upset boy into a tight hug which Ino quickly jumped into as well to hug him as well.
"I don't want to leave." Naruto cried, causing Inoichi to blink in shock and Ryoka to glare at her husband.
"Hush now, you aren't going anywhere." Ryoka said softly as she rubbed circles on his back and Ino awkwardly patted his arms in her sideways hug.
"I'm not telling you to leave Naruto. I'm trying to tell you about your original parents." Inoichi said exasperatedly.
Naruto slowly regained his composure. His crying shifted to more of a sniffling. Fear and sadness faded in exchange for pure confusion.
"What?" He asked.
"Naruto you have a different family name than us and even though you have blond hair and blue eyes like Ino and I do it's not the same is it." Inoichi said slowly to the child.
Naruto was quiet as he glanced toward Ino. She simply smiled at him in a reassuring manner, something he usually did for her when she was upset. It worked wonders as Naruto's own lips curved into a faint smile as well.
"Okay." He said simply as his attention returned to Inoichi. "Who are my mom and dad? Did they not want me so they gave me to you and Ryoka?"
"That's not it at all. They loved you more than anything in the world. Your father was Minato Namikaze, the Fourth Hokage and your mother was his wife Kushina Uzumaki. You are the last of the Uzumaki clan as far as we know so that is why you received her name instead of your father's." Inoichi explained.
"Wait, the Fourth that died fighting the nine tails?" Naruto asked in shock.
"Yes. Your mother and father both died to defeat the Kyuubi and to save you. They entrusted your safety and happiness to me so I have always promised to do my best to make sure you grow up to make them proud." The older blond said.
Narutow as quiet. It was a lot to take in. To be told the couple that had raised him were not his parents. It felt wrong to consider them just stand-ins but that was what they were. It was why Inoichi had treated him and Ino so differently. Ino was his daughter…Naruto was a memory of the dead Hokage and his wife.
"I-" Naruto began but stopped as he didn't know what to say. He was a child and such a reveal was too much for him.
"I-" He shook his head and tears built up again. Gently prying himself out of Ryoka and Ino's arms he headed up to his bedroom and locked himself inside.
Ino was hot on his heels only to find the door closing in her face. Naruto clearly wanted to be alone but Ino was a stubborn little girl and refused to leave his door until they talked. She wanted to support him or comfort him, or just talk to him even if she had to sit by the door all night.
Inoichi and Ryoka remained in the sitting room where Ryoka shot a small glare at her husband. Inoichi sighed loudly at that before locking eyes with his wife.
"What would you have me do? Lie to him until one day he comes home and asks why so many people are telling him we aren't his mother and father?" Inoichi asked defensively.
"No, but maybe less bluntly would have been nice. Not just 'oh yeah I don't let you call me daddy, not because you aren't my favorite but because I really am not your daddy just the schmuck loaded down with some extra kid I didn't have.'" Ryoka said heatedly while mocking him in a deeper voice.
"What do you want me to do? How else could I have eased him into it?" Inoichi demanded.
His wife grew silent and looked away. She was angry because Naruto was clearly hurting from what he had just learned and she couldn't really do anything about it.
"What about the seal? When will you tell him about the rest of his troubles?" She asked quietly.
Inoichi released yet another deep sigh. "As long as things run smoothly I won't reveal that to him till he is leaving the academy. He doesn't need to know about his status yet, and most of the world doesn't ever need to know at all."
Ryoka nodded slowly. She could at least agree to that. Standing, she left the room. She wanted to do some house work to distract herself as best as she could. Naruto needed some time to process his new revelation and wanted to be left alone. However both parents knew better than to try and force Ino away from his door at the moment. In an hour or two one of them would take her to the park so that they could give Naruto the privacy he needed.
Ino dried her eyes on the back of her hand as her father led her away from the door to Naruto's room. She wanted to be inside it and sitting or playing with Naruto right now. She hated it when he was upset about something and had always been more so when he kept himself away from her with his feelings.
Still she couldn't get in and her parents made it clear she wasn't about to disturb him right now. So off she went to the park. As if she was going to have a good time playing in the park without Naruto there to play with. It was like a birthday cake without ice cream. Kinda boring by itself and just not the same.
Ino was a good girl though. Both she and Naruto were well behaved children that minded their parents when instructed. Her parents. Naruto wasn't really part of her family even if he was family. He even had a clan, not that there were other members of that clan. It was all surreal to the little girl to think like that. Every memory she had was shared with him.
"Ino, I know you want to be with Naruto right now but we all need time to come to terms with things like that on our own. Alright?" Inoichi's voice cut in and the girl nodded her head slowly.
"Why don't you go play? You and he are at the age you should be looking for your own friends to play with instead of just being with each other all the time." Inoichi suggested.
Ino pouted but nodded to her father's words. She didn't really know kids her age beside Naruto, Shikamaru, and Choji and out of them the only one she really liked hanging around was Naruto. The other two were too lazy and their games were usually boring to her.
So rather than actually heed her father's words she decided instead to go look through the wildflowers growing along the stream running through the park. There were all kinds of different ones and this time of year they were fully bloomed.
The young blonde was soon cheerfully humming as she picked her way through the flowers and even tossed a couple of stones into the water, content just to be alone and put all the business regarding everything with Naruto out of her head.
Her mood was much happier than it had been back home, but her attention was drawn away from the flowers and the water by the sound of crying. Being an adventurous and curious child naturally Into went to investigate who was crying and why.
Easily enough she found the source of the noise. A small girl, around her own age with bright pink hair was curled up under a tree fighting back her tears with loud sniffles of her nose. She clearly didn't know Ino was there as she pressed her face into her hands and rubbed at her eyes.
Ino had been raised to be a sweet and helpful girl by her mother and father. The moment she saw the other girl was so upset she began approaching her, eventually startling her when she realized Into had come over to her.
"Woah, it's okay. I just wanted to make sure you were okay, cause you were crying real loud." Ino said with a friendly voice.
"Oh, um sorry. I didn't mean to bother you." The girl replied, somehow curling further in on herself.
"You didn't bother me. I was just worried. Why are you crying?" Ino pressed on.
"It was stupid." She said in return not apparently wanting to say anything more about it yet. So Ino decided to talk about something else.
"Did you come to the park alone?" She asked.
The rosette shook her head. "My mom brought me."
"My dad brought me. Usually I come with my…Naruto." Ino said awkwardly toward the end as she was reminded of the boy left at home.
"Your Naruto?" The girl asked.
"What? Oh no his name is just Naruto and he's not my…nevermind. My name is Ino, what's yours?" The blonde asked.
"It's Sakura." She replied.
"Huh, that fits you perfectly. You know, cause of the hair. It's pretty by the way." Ino complimented her.
"Oh thank you." Sakura replied shyly as one of her hands toyed with her hair.
"So, are you going to tell me what made you cry?" Ino asked.
Sakura grew silent at that. She timidly looked away from the other girl that had come to speak to her. She didn't really want to tell her that other girls were making fun of her forehead and calling her mean names. She worried Ino would then do the same thing.
"Sakura? I can't help if I don't know what's wrong. At least that's what my mom and dad always say when me or Naruto get hurt." Ino said.
"I didn't get hurt. Well they hurt my feelings." Sakura said quietly.
"Who did? How did they hurt your feelings anyway?" Ino asked.
"I don't know who they were. I asked if I could play with them but then they started picking on me and calling me things like ugly, they said my hair was weird and my forehead was big." Sakura answered.
Ino blinked for a second before snorting in amusement. When she heard that Sakura began to tear up again. Just like she had thought, Ino would do the same thing when she found out.
"That's dumb. You are really cute and your hair is pretty. I already said so." The blonde declared completely sure of herself. Sakura blinked in shock at that as Ino's words planted themselves into her head.
"Really?" Sakura asked finally lifting her face fully to look at Into.
"Mhmm. You are pretty, not as pretty as me but still really pretty. I bet they were just jealous of you. My dad says people do mean things when they are jealous." Ino rambled on getting Sakura to come more out of her shell.
"So you think I'm pretty and my forehead isn't big and ugly?" Sakura asked, a bit excited.
"Hmm. Let me see." Ino said as she undid a ribbon from her own hair. A red one that she didn't like all that much anyway.
The little blonde quickly readjusted Sakura's hair to expose her face more and tied the ribbon into a little bow.
"There. Your forehead is big but it fits the rest of you and it's not ugly at all." Ino reassured her.
Sakura beamed at the more confident girl. She was only really used to praise from her parents and it was usually just for chores around the house or something like that.
"You know, I'm alone at the park today. Do you want to play together?" Ino asked.
"YES! Uhm I mean yes, please." Sakura said more calmly than her original agreement.
Ino just giggled at the outburst. "Then come on, I want to show you the flowers by the stream."
Inoichi watched from nearby. Hiding from the two girls was easy enough and he just wanted to keep an eye on his daughter. He smiled at the scene and could tell his little girl was making friends. Good, he would send Naruto to spend more time with Shikamaru and Choji so that he could have some friends his age besides Ino as well.
Over the past year Naruto and his family had grown apart slightly. He couldn't quite get past the fact that they were not his family after all. Even if he loved all of them dearly he struggled with reconnecting with them.
Ryoka partially blamed Inoichi. The man had pushed so many stories and different mementos from Naruto's birth parents onto the boy it was like their ghosts were looking over them. Inoichi had taken it even further and not so lightly pushed the concept that Naruto was an Uzumaki and not a Yamanaka and he never would be.
He didn't do it to be cruel. He did it to try and instill a sense of identity in Naruto. The last of his clan. One that had plenty of old enemies still living across the continent.
That had been the second reason that Naruto had drifted a bit from his family. His training has begun and after some initial issues regarding chakra control Naruto was soon taking to it like a fish out of water.
Ino had also begun training but while she had the advantage of much better chakra control when they started out Naruto had proven to be quite literally bred to be a Shinobi. It hadn't driven a wedge between them, but any hope that they could train together had dwindled as the children were in different leagues when it came to the exercises they were capable of doing.
Their friend circles also had come to different greatly. Ino and Sakura spent nearly all of their free time together by the time they were starting at the academy and while Naruto had friends in Shikamaru and Choji and even to a lesser extent Kiba, he was just as often alone, frequently wandering off to the Hokage monument, the cemetery, or simply the park.
Inoichi made sure at least a member of the Yamanaka, Nara, or Akimochi clan were always watching over him but left him to wander as he seemed to be happiest when he was exploring Konoha or visiting his parents' graves.
The people of the village had soon taken notice of him and been too friendly for the boy's liking leading to him often avoiding the more crowded paths through the village unless he absolutely had to use them.
Ino had felt a bit awkward when Sakura had confronted her about THE Naruto living with her. For Ino he had always just been Naruto, which was plenty amazing and wonderful in her own opinion. To Sakura and most of Konoha he was the son of the Fourth Hokage and the boy who would rebuild the legendary Uzumaki clan in their village. Just being born seemed to have been an amazing achievement for him to have accomplished.
Between the villagers and kids his age acting that way around him, Naruto quickly lost any sort of happiness at being recognized. He liked attention but being noticed only because of his dead parents everyday all day was far from what he wanted to receive attention for.
Unfortunately as much as he had taken to avoiding the unwarranted attention, starting at the academy meant he would receive even more on a daily basis.
Iruka Umino was a new teacher. He had been promoted to chunin recently and when given an opportunity to apply for a field of expertise he had volunteered as a teacher. Mostly because his Jonin sensei has recommended it and said that Iruka was good with children after watching him do D-rank missions.
He, like most of Konoha, lauded the Fourth Hokage as a hero and practically the most popular Kage in history. At least in Konoha.
However now as he stood before the multitude of children that would make up the class he was to guide into becoming genin, he felt himself reaffirming his plans to teach each of his students equally as best as he could. He might be truly grateful for the parents of Naruto Uzumaki for avenging his own parents and sacrificing themselves for Konoha, but he didn't think that the boy should be given special treatment. That any of them should.
He just hoped that wouldn't be an issue with the clan heads that apparently took in the Legacy of the Fourth.
"Alright everybody take a seat please and we'll start introducing ourselves." Iruka called.
The children raced to their places. Naruto and Ino still sat beside one another, just like they did when in the living room at home. Sakura sat on Ino's other side and Shikamaru, Choji, and Kiba shared the row below them.
Iruka quickly introduced himself. Explained that he was excited to be their teacher and planned to make sure they all became amazing Shinobi. The children are that up, each of them excited by the prospect of becoming like the heroes they all imagined Konoha's ninja were.
One by one they introduced themselves. Most of the students were from minor families or altogether civilian ones. However oddly enough all the children in their class that belonged to clans came from the head families of those clans as well. Most were even the heirs.
The two that stood out the most were of course Naruto, being a well known name among the children, and Sasuke Uchiha. The Uchiha clan was the most well known and powerful clan in the village and Sasuke himself was the younger brother to Itachi Uchiha who was a well known prodigy.
All of their classmates expected amazing things from them. Just like everyone else in the village.
Soon the class got just what they wanted. Both Naruto and Sasuke excelled in class. They were naturals that had already received training on all the basics. In some things even more than the basics, though neither was allowed to advance to a more advanced class by the request of their guardians or by his mother in Sasuke's case. One emotionally disturbed prodigy was more than enough for her.
Surprisingly Ino was also very advanced for her class. Not quite to the level of Naruto and Sasuke but the blonde easily took the spot as top of the girls in their class, and the gap was a decent one with Hinata and Sakura being the only other standouts of the girls of their year.
By the end of their first week it has been pretty clearly established that Naruto and Sasuke not only were the best of the class but that they were incredibly competitive with one another too. They took every test and every lesson as a chance to prove their superiority to the other.
After all, no one else in class could keep up with them.
Ino had her own sort of rivalry going on, though it was far more friendly in nature.
Sakura had come to her best friend regarding the crush she had developed in their first week at the academy. Ino had seen how many fangirls Naruto had gotten and she herself had come to realize she had a large crush on her fellow blond.
She was very thankful to find that Sakura was not in fact crushing on the same boy as her. Instead she was interested in the Uchiha. Ino was fine with that and both girls had even talked about having a dual wedding when they were all grown up and their chosen boys had fallen for their charms.
That all aside, Ino had realized if she didn't work hard she would lose her top spot at the academy and that thought worried her deeply. If she seemed to be slipping behind Naruto might begin considering her too weak or something.
Her father didn't approve of her reasoning but was happy to give her additional training to keep an edge on the competition and in the same vein, against future enemies.
At the start of the second year things took a bad turn for Sasuke. The massacre of the Uchiha clan by Itachi, Sasuke's own elder brother, was felt by everyone in Konoha. None more so than Sasuke himself.
His classmates felt less of the massacre of the other Uchiha and more the dramatic change in Sasuke that came as a result of the event.
Where Sasuke may have been cocky and prideful, perhaps even arrogant in the past, he had been a bright and happy child brimming with energy. Afterward, due both to the loss and betrayal of his family and the torturous genjutus he was subjected to, Sasuke was rendered a completely different individual.
He no longer competed with Naruto for top marks, instead he broke himself and anything that got in his way to be the top student in everything. He didn't interact with the other students besides to belittle them and in sparring and weapons training his actions were just slightly too violent and angry to allow Iruka or the other instructors to feel comfortable.
Iruka even filed a handful of requests for a psychological evaluation on the boy but the sycophants that had connected themselves to Sasuke since the massacre made sure nothing ever came of it.
Ino had warned Sakura away from the dark haired and darker natured boy, but the pink haired girl had made it clear that it was even more imperative she make him acknowledge her. That way she could help him heal from the terrible things that had happened to his family.
Where Naruto had once considered Sasuke a friend, by the time of their graduation exam at the academy, he no longer wanted anything to do with the boy.
The exam itself was easy. Naruto and his friends and most of his classmates breezed through it, though Shikamaru appeared to only achieve the minimum and both Choji and Kiba struggled slightly on the written portions of the test.
They were all congratulated for their success before being told to return in one week for team placements. Naruto and Ino celebrated together after school. Giving each other gifts and spending time together which has become a rarity as they spent more time doing their own thing.
Ino had gotten Naruto a new set of clothes, with help from her parents. They got enough duplicates for it to double as his genin outfit. It was a blue shirt to wear over his mesh armor with a white jacket with red lines running down it's sides coupled with a pair of navy blue pants. Naruto added some additional holsters for his tools here and there but otherwise determined the gift to be perfect for his Shinobi mission wear.
Naruto had been far less generous when buying Ino's gift instead he had gotten her three kits to include with her mission gear as well as a fashionable charm bracelet. He knew how much she liked her jewelry. The packs he had gotten her would come in handy, one medical kit, a poisoner's kit, and a homemade trap making kit would be perfect for their line of work.
After they celebrated together and had a meal with Inoichi and Ryoka they went to celebrate with their friends as well. Naruto, Shikamaru, Choji, Kiba, and surprisingly Shino, all got together for another meal and a night of games while Ino and Sakura had their own smaller party at the Yamanaka flower shop.
They had invited Hinata but the girl's family wasn't about to let her attend. So Ino and Sakura made the most of it, simply chattering excitedly about whose team they would get and what their Jonin sensei might be like. They also watched a few movies, the best of which had been a romantic comedy where a girl dated a guy just to make the guy she really liked jealous.
After the first day of celebration though the students all went back to their training for when they would encounter their Jonin teachers and teammates.
Iruka smiled out at the collection of students before him. Time had gone by so quickly and he could still mentally picture the little six year old versions of his beloved students before him. They had grown up so much and not just physically. They were ready to take that step and enter the world of Shinobi now.
Naruto sat in his usual spot beside Ino and waited for his name to be called. He was excited about who his teacher would be and his teammates. He hoped that his teacher took him seriously and helped him to reach his goal and that his teammates were among his friends.
That being said, he had a sinking suspicion that Ino, Shikamaru, and Choji would be teamed up. The Ino-Shika-Cho trio was a potent combination and Naruto knew all three were tougher than they let on. Ino had agreed with him that it would likely be her team even if her dream team would have been with Naruto and Sakura.
Almost mirroring that sentiment Sakura hoped for Ino and Sasuke to be on her team, and luckily for her one of her hopes was brought to fruition.
"Team Seven will be composed of Sakura Haruno, Sasuke Uchiha, and Naruto Uzumaki." Iruka said.
Sakura looked at Sasuke out of the corner of her eye while holding back a happy squeal. Sasuke never even noticed though as his focus only briefly turned to Naruto before looking back out the window he had been staring out of.
Iruka continued announcing the teams, as expected Ino wound up with both Shikamaru and Choji as her teammates. She had known that was the likely combination she would get but still felt a little disappointed that neither Naruto or Sakura were partnered with her.
Soon enough the Joining sensei began to arrive. Ino's was a burly man that she knew was part of the Sarutobi clan. As she left she shot one last look back at Team Seven. Naruto smiled at her to probably reassure her while Sakura waved good ye before turning her not so subtle attentions back onto Sasuke. The Uchiha ignored both and Naruto made awkward conversation with Sakura as they somewhat knew each other through Ino.
"At least I'm not on a team with the Uchiha." She quietly murmured to Shikamaru and Choji. She didn't outright dislike Sasuke, but she preferred more sociable people and with all the intensity he had thrown toward Naruto in the past he had soured her opinion of him.
Her father's warnings about him being a deeply troubled boy hadn't helped either. Not that he or Ino blamed him for being so troubled after what had happened. Still, Ino preferred a decent distance from him.
She left with her team to get acquainted with their sensei and unknown to her at least be tested on whether she and her teammates actually should be genin.
Naruto didn't know Sakura especially well but ever since she had begun to hang out with Ino he'd felt funny around her. It took till a very awkward set of talks with Inoichi and Ryoka before he realized he had a sizable crush on the pink haired girl.
It had only gotten stronger as she had taken some training with Ino and become more confident. His only real dislike of her personality was the obvious attraction she had for Sasuke. The boy Naruto had once hoped to be friends with but could only really tolerate by now.
That aside, he was a bit pleased to be on teams with Sakura and Sasuke. Sakura was smart and he liked talking to and being around her and Sasuke was rookie of the year and the only one that scored higher than him in their grade.
Naruto was actually wondering why the three highest scoring students were teamed together. They were a little bit overpowered in his opinion but that was fine by him. He just hoped their joining sensei was up to the task.
"I really thought our teacher would be here by now. Do you think he was on a last minute mission or something?" Sakura asked Naruto. She had already stopped trying to try Sasuke into a conversation.
"Well, maybe. I don't know what other reason they would have for being late like this." Naruto hummed thoughtfully.
"Maybe it's some kind of test?" Sakura asked.
"Maybe. I guess it could be, I don't really know though. What would they be testing us for?" He asked.
"Patience maybe? Or maybe they are secretly observing us to see how we act in uncertain situations?" Sakura replied.
Naruto nodded slowly. "I guess, I just wo-"
The trio's eyes snapped to the door as it slid open revealing a lanky Join with messy silver hair and a mask covering nearly his entire face. All together with his posture and appearance he seemed less like a jonin and more like a scarecrow in a field.
"Hmm Team Seven?" The Jonin asked.
"Yes?" Sakura replied hoping that this was their teacher and they were finally going to leave the classroom.
"Ah, good then follow me to the rooftop." He said simply before disappearing into a clown of smoke.
"That's it?" She stammered out at the first introduction of their teacher.
"Come on Sakura, let's get up to the rooftop. You coming, Uchiha?" Naruto asked, his tone bland as he turned to Sasuke.
Sasuke ignored him and swept past Naruto and Sakura out the door and on up the stairway leading to the rooftop.
"I guess that's a yes." Naruto chuckled weakly, while playing off the rudeness of Sasuke.
Sakura frowned a little at the display but followed after Naruto as they headed for the new team rendezvous. Up on the roof they found their supposed Jonin sensei lounging against a railing while Sasuke sat brroding before him. The Jonin seemed uninterested in Sasuke as well as the two of them as his one uncovered eye focused on the bright orange book in his hand.
Following Sasuke's example though, both Naruto and Sakura settled onto the steps in front of their apparent team leader. They sat for quite some time too as the man casually flicked through his book without paying them any mind at all.
Eventually it grew too much for the children. None of them were especially patient kids, though they had made a commendable effort in trying to remain calm. Sasuke was surprisingly the first to snap though.
"Are you even supposed to be our Jonin Sensei?" The Uchiha but out harshly. Naruto and Sakura eyed the silver haired man intently waiting for the answer.
The Jonin snapped the book in his hand closed and slid it into his vest before slowly standing upright. Or at least as upright as he seemed to get. He stopped leaning on the rail and instead slouched heavily in front of them.
"I could be, but that will probably be up to you three. Anyway let's get introductions out of the way and carry on, shall we? Yellow, you start us off." He said, tilting his chin toward Naruto.
The blond blinked before sharing a look with his teammates.
"Maybe you should go first Sensei. Being as none of us know you at all but we know each other a bit." Naruto suggested.
Sakura nodded in agreement while Sasuke simply stared at the silver haired man in clear distaste.
"Fair enough. I am your proposed Jonin Sensei Kakashi Hatake. Let's see, things that I like or things that I hate…I don't feel like telling you that. My dreams for the future? Never really thought about it…and lastly hobbies…well I have lots of hobbies." The now named Kakashi explained.
The children sighed and grumbled. Their teacher had simply reworked the introduction used at the academy, but in such a way that they only learned his name.
"Whatever, I'm Naruto Uzumaki. I like my friends and the people who raised me. I like the village too, I guess. I don't really hate anything except maybe people sucking up to me cause of my blood." Naruto said with a slight pause, a look of understanding briefly passed of Sasuke's eyes before he looked away and returned to appearing to ignore the situation.
"My hobbies? I don't really have any besides maybe training or spending time with friends…well I guess I do help around the Yamanaka flower shop and greenhouses a lot. I kinda like doing that." Naruto explained.
Kakashi hummed thoughtfully for a second before motioning him to continue. "And your dreams?"
"I will surpass my father. I don't dream about it though, I just will." Naruto said confidently and seriously getting interested looks from the others even Kakashi.
'He looks like Minato and there are a bit of his traits but Naruto really stands out on his own. That will be interesting to watch.' Kakashi thought before turning his attention to Sakura and pointing a finger at her.
"Go ahead." He said simply.
Sakura hesitated for only a moment before light nudge from Naruto had her speaking clearly and confidently.
"I'm Sakura Haruno. My family is mostly civilians but my dad is a chunin at the logistics department. I don't like bullies or people who try to feel better by picking on others. I really like my friends and family and uhm…" She briefly glanced at Sasuke.
"My hobbies are trivia and learning about random things and reading. My dream for the future is to become strong enough for someone to notice me and to have a big family." She said again glancing at Sasuke briefly at the end of her introduction.
'She's definitely interested in Sasuke, but she has a pretty good head on her shoulders. As long as she focuses she will make a fine Kunoichi.' Kakashi silently judged.
"For last we have you." Kakashi said to Sasuke getting a quiet huff of breath before the boy actually began speaking.
"I'm Sasuke Uchiha. I don't have much I like and there's too much I dislike to list any of it. I don't have time for hobbies and I have no dream for the future, just an ambition because I will make it a reality. I will avenge myself and my clan." Sasuke said quickly and quietly.
Kakashi noticed how tense Naruto and Sakura had become as Sasuke had spoken. Any relaxed and playful mood they had created for these introductions was gone now as the depressing air that Sasuke created had taken over.
'And here I was worrying that my anti-social nature would be an issue. I knew that Itachi messed the kid up but this might beyond helping. I will need to talk to Lord Hokage about what to do with him…if they pass." Kakashi thought to himself.
"Excellent. Now we are all acquainted, we can talk business. If you didn't notice earlier I explicitly called myself your proposed Jonin Sensei. That is to say I am not your sensei yet. You have to pass a test first." Kakashi said in an over the top fashion with a smile hidden behind his mask. The only reason they knew he was smiling was the crinkling of skin around his exposed eye.
"Another test? But we already took our graduation exam." Sakura said a bit annoyed.
"Why even bother testing us the first time of you will test us again?" Naruto asked.
"Easy. Didn't you find it odd that out of our Shinobi corps we have only a small number of Jonin and even smaller than that are the elite Jonin who take genin teams but we still have so many chunin and genin?" Kakashi asked.
"I never thought about it…" Sakura mumbled.
"Yep, Sakura did your father have a genin team or a jonin sensei?" Kakashi asked her.
The pinkette blinked. "He never talked about them."
"That is because only some of the graduates are assigned to teams every year. Most fail this second test and are placed into the rank and file. They don't take missions outside the land of fire and really only act as security and maintenance when we aren't at war. Those that do pass the test will be taught by some of our village's best before taking more high profile missions and being fast tracked to one day be Jonin or perhaps even elite Jonin themselves." He explained getting understanding nods from two of the three kids and an impatient glare from the third.
"Your test will begin at five in the morning tomorrow. Meet me at training ground seven just like the number of our team and don't eat breakfast. I wouldn't want you to make a mess." Kakashi said before waving goodbye and disappearing in a cloud of smoke.
The children blinked for a moment before slowly standing. Sasuke stood and began to walk away first.
"Wait Sasuke, maybe you would like to get something to eat to celebrate getting out of the academy?" Sakura asked hopping to her feet.
"No, that would be annoying." Sasuke gruffly replied.
"Hey Uchiha, we could all do with eating a meal together and working on a plan for tomorrow." Naruto said as he stood up.
Sasuke turned to glare at Naruto. He completely ignored Sakura. "Worry about yourself, Uzumaki."
With that he left leaving a disappointed Sakura and exasperated Naruto alone.
"We really should talk about some plan Sakura. Plus I can walk you home after we eat." Naruto suggested.
Sakura almost turned him down but then realized she was pretty hungry. Kakashi had made them miss lunch and dinner was still a little ways off. Plus if she wanted to achieve her dreams she needed to get the one on one training an elite Jonin like Kakashi could give her.
"Sure. Lead the way." She told the blond.
"I know a perfect place we can plan at. Come on." Naruto said as he made his way to the stairs.
That is going to be a wrap for the prologue. Yes the real story will be starting with the bell test. We will get to see the different skillets and personalities on display here and soon the story will truly be under way
I hope you enjoyed this one has been in development hell aka my Google docs for way longer than it should have been but things kept coming up.
Anyway
Till Next Time.