So nearly 13 years later here I am again. This may be some kind of record for longest wait between updates. Here I am once again inspired to start writing again after feeling that I needed some sort of outlet for my stress and reading some incredible fanfics for the first time in 10 plus years.
A couple of things I want to mention quickly:
I am going to update this when I feel I can. Life is different now than when I enjoyed writing more. Trying to support a family and raise one will do that to you (I feel you Naruto). It took me a couple of months to write this out with my limited time and I cannot promise how quickly they will come out. I can tell you I at least have the next 5 chapters outlined though.
My thought process and writing style will have changed from when I was younger. I looked back at this story and the other things I wrote and honestly cringed at a lot of it. I am not a good writer, but I want to be better than I was. I have gone back and made edits to all three previous chapters of this story to make it flow in a way that I like better and clean up some things. Not that I expect anyone to remember the first three at this point after so long.
Anyway. Thank you all for the support that this story has received without even being updated. I can't really explain how it felt see this story with the amount of favorites and follows it had. It really made me think about how I felt reading some stories that I felt were amazing and never finished. Without further ado.
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The Demon Shinobi of Konoha
Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto
First Impressions
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Naruto could feel the stares he was getting as he paced back and forth in the large classroom where the sensei were waiting before collecting their teams.
"How old is he?"
"This can't possibly be the Demon."
"Why was he allowed to make the teams?"
"The Hokage called him Naruto."
He could hear the whispers all around him.
He had entered the room later than everyone else. Hoping that he could limit the time among his new peers as much as possible.
'Well later than everyone except for Kakashi' he thought.
He knew the moment he entered the room that he would be the focus of the conversation and that his presence would be met with both animosity and curiosity.
His experience among his fellow Konoha Shinobi had been limited to working with the clan heads and his time with the ANBU. His time with ANBU went well and he enjoyed interacting with people that he had not been training with his whole life, but it was still business with the ANBU that were not Kakashi. He had never interacted with anyone in this room besides Kurenai and that first interaction was last night.
'I doubt she would want anything to do with me right now'. Naruto thought as he glanced at the woman sitting at one of the desks. She wasn't shooting glares or gossiping about him, but she sure as hell looked like she did not want to give him the time of day.
Naruto didn't really have time for worrying about them right now anyway.
Naruto was feeling something he hadn't felt in a while.
Nervous
He was pacing back and forth while squeezing his hands together as he did. He had tried standing still earlier, but when he did that his foot just tapped constantly with all the pent-up energy that he was feeling.
'I am sure that they would all be laughing at me if they saw me like this.' Naruto scowled under his mask at the thought of his sensei's reacting to his current state. 'Tsume-sensei would think this is hilar-'
"Oi! Demon!"
"Hmm?"
Naruto was brought out of his thoughts by the booming voice of a Jounin that was currently marching up to him. He wore navy blue cargo pants with a tight black shirt under his standard issue vest. His forehead protector was wrapped around his bicep instead of right below his shortly cropped brown hair. He had almost 2 feet of height on Naruto as towered right in front of him.
"What do you think you're doing here Demon?" He growled.
"My name is Naruto" Crossing his arms across his chest as he answered. "And I am here to pick up my students like everyone else here."
"You're not let everyone else here demon-"
"Naruto" He interrupted, but the Jounin just kept going.
"-you are a cold-blooded killer that praises the beast that nearly destroyed us. These kids don't need to be learning from someone like you. I don't know what the Hokage was thinking."
"First off" Naruto announced lifting one arm and one finger up while keeping the other crossed. "You don't know anything about me or my motivations."
He was aware of the small crowd that started to gather around and listen to the confrontation. He had learned long ago from his teachers and his experience in the ANBU that diplomacy was sometimes the best option but backing down from a fool like this would only hurt his reputation in the future.
"I am not going to apologize to anyone for doing my job. My team worked together and performed our duties to the best of our ability." He moved his one finger to point up to his kitsune mask. "And this mask is supposed to be a symbol of us moving past the attack and not being held back by it."
"That's bulls-"
"Second!" Naruto raised his voice "The Hokage doesn't have to explain a thing to you!"
The man bristled at the last statement with his fists clinching and his eyebrow twitching at the manner he was be spoken to. Being talked down to by a ninja half his size bruising his ego.
"Listen here Demon"
"Na-Ru-To" Retorted with a condescending tone at each syllable. "Do you need me to spell it out for you?"
He reared back his fist to strike down on the masked boy.
"Knock it off Tsubasa."
His fist stopped before it even started its descent as he glanced over to the side.
Kurenai still sat at the desk she was at previously. Her red eyes stared intently at the Jounin whose hand was still in the air.
"The Hokage made his decision and Naruto-san gets his team." She replied with a cold tone.
"Tch" The Jounin Naruto now knew as Tsubasa scoffed as he turned to walk away. "Whatever they are about to start calling teams anyway."
If it wasn't for the mask on his face everyone would have seen the confused look on Naruto's face.
'Probably best to avoid her for a while.' He thought to himself before shaking his head. 'Nah'
He shot Kurenai a large thumb up with a pose. He was rewarded with her eyebrow twitching in anger before she rolled her eyes and looked away. Naruto chuckled to himself in amusement at the response.
"Team one your sensei is Onaga Tsubasa." Naruto heard over the small intercom in the classroom that was activated to let the Jounin's know when to approach the classroom. The large man shot a quick glare back at Naruto before exiting the classroom to pick up his students.
One by one teachers left to go pick up their new charges. Each one getting a few minutes to walk in and collect their team before the next announcement from Iruka. It didn't take long for him to become the last one left in the room.
"Okay Naruto you got this!" He psyched himself up. "You have led plenty of teams before! You are a great leader! You are gonna be the best damn sensei Konoha has ever had!"
"Team ten's sensei is…Naruto…"
'Let's do this!'
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For some reason Choji had felt excited when he heard the name of his new sensei. He didn't necessarily relate his new sensei's name directly to the delicious fishcake that he enjoyed when getting ramen, but it certainly wasn't the most intimidating name he had ever heard. It mattered more to him to get a sensei that would be nice and teach him how to be an effective shinobi.
"…like the ramen topping?" he heard Shikamaru mutter.
"I like him already." Choji commented happily with a smile to Shikamaru's comment.
That was when the door of the classroom slid open and Choji felt his stomach drop.
It was him.
The object of their discussion from before the teams started getting announced and snatched away the boy who stole from his new team was walking through the door. A dark black cloak covered up all his features except for one thing; a Kitsune mask.
His mask was pure white for the base color. A small canine like snout distended from the area that his mouth would be located with black paint to mark a nose and a dark red outlining where the lips would be. The two eye holes for the mask were surrounded by black paint shaped like eyes of a predator and outlined in red. Two sharp strokes of red on each cheek that started wide on the outside of the mask and became sharper before ending under his eyes. Two small fox like ears sat atop the mask with a red triangle being in the center of ear to add dimension.
He never took his eyes off him as he walked to the front of the classroom from the door. He heard muffled gasps from the students that were still waiting for a sensei to pick them up and he was pretty sure he heard a few thuds, but he couldn't pry his eyes away to check what the noise was. He could feel his heart beating rapidly in his chest.
"Team Ten! You're with me!"
There was perhaps a little bit of hope that the ANBU wasn't here to pick up a team and was instead delivering a message to Iruka, but that hope was dashed.
Choji felt glued to his seat, and he noticed that neither Shikamaru nor Hinata had moved as well. He glanced at Shikamaru with pleading eyes.
'What do we do?!'
"Oi!" The Anbu he now knew as Naruto shouted. "Let's go!"
Team ten looked between each other before slowly rising out of their chairs as one. The sound of their chairs scraping backwards seemed impossibly loud in the silent classroom as they all left their spots and started trudging down the stairs towards their new sensei. He could feel the eyes of team seven and some of the other remaining students who had not yet left.
"Guys seriously." He heard his new sensei whine. "It's not a funeral procession."
The tone of voice caught Choji off guard some and almost made him stumble down the stairs in surprise. A good thing he caught himself or he could have sent his whole team crashing down to the floor in an embarrassing tumble.
He had every right to be surprised though as the voice of his sensei was not something he would have associated with the Konoha urban legend before him. He didn't hear it before when Naruto first yelled his greeting or the command for them to come down, but the whiny voice from before sounded like someone around his age.
When he reached the bottom of the stairs, he made another discovery as he really looked at the shinobi before him. Iruka was standing only a few feet away, but the difference was clear.
'Iruka-sensei is almost a foot taller than him.' He glanced to his side at Shikamaru and noticed that he was only slightly shorter than their new sensei. 'Is he our age?'
"Great" Naruto spoke. "Meet me on the school rooftop as quick as you can."
With that he disappeared in a plume of smoke. Leaving behind a stunned classroom full of questions.
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"Could that have gone any worse!?"
The frustrated shout escaped him as he arrived on the rooftop of the school. He knew that he only had a few minutes to before his team arrived, but he had to get that out of his system before he could compose himself.
"Seriously someone passed out!?" he threw his arms up in frustration.
He knew the gossip around town surrounding him. The interaction with Tsubasa earlier was proof enough about the feelings that a majority of the village had with his persona, but he had at least hoped that a classroom full of clan heirs and wannabe shinobi would have some self-control or at the very least the ability to look at things for themselves make their own judgements.
The reaction of his new team had been worse than he expected though. He could see it based off their reactions that they were genuinely frightened to see him appear in front of them. Their depressed walk and sullen march when their names were announced only further convinced him of that. He was really starting to regret his little stunt during lunch time.
'Maybe I pushed that a little bit too far.'
Originally, he had not planned to go down and snatch "Michio" from in front of the young genin, but at the last second the mischievous idea popped into his head, and he just acted on it. Now he was starting to regret the stunt and wished that he had taken a more Shikaku like approach and stuck to the plan.
"Maybe I should have just done the bell test like dad…"
He pouted slightly at the thought. The bell test was a better option for teams that may have some antagonistic elements in them and force them to figure out the true meaning behind the test. It was not the best test for teams like his that would likely either figure out the truth behind the test rather quickly or give up bells to their teammates.
'Based on what I have seen; they would have probably debated for hours about who should get the bells and kept trying to pass it off to each other…though they would probably have figured out the real test before they even got the bells.'
Before he could finish his musing, he heard steps starting to come up the stairs that led up to the rooftop. In the blink of an eye Naruto was now leaning against the guardrail of the roof trying to look as relaxed as possible.
The three entered the roof top hesitantly at first as they glanced around. Once they spotted Naruto against the rail, they paused for only a moment before proceeding the rest of the way over to where he was standing. Naruto took a moment to observe them up close better than he had the previous days from a distance.
Shikamaru's hair was brown and pulled back into a tight spikey ponytail that looked a lot like his fathers, in fact he looked a lot like a better kept version of his father. 'No doubt due to his mom's influence'. He wore a grey jacked with green edges sleeves and the Nara family symbol on the back. His shirt was green and made up of a mesh wire armor that was both flexible and durable. He wore brown pants that stopped a little below his knees and a kunai pouch was wrapped around his right leg. His forehead protector was also tied around the sleeve of his left arm and Naruto could see his wore the same silver earrings that his father wore.
Choji was wearing a green short sleeved haori over a white shit with the kanji for food on it. He wore black shorts with a kunai holder wrapped around his right thigh. His hands up to his elbows and ankles up to his knee were wrapped in bandages to protect his skin from hard impacts. Possibly the most interesting parts of his outfit though were his hoop earrings, his forehead protector that had been styled to allow to tall tufts of his hair to poke out on each side and a long white scarf wrapped around his neck.
Hinata was wearing a cream-colored hooded jacket with the symbol of the Hyūga stitched on the upper sleeves. The jacket also had fur around the cuffs and the hem. Her pants were navy blue and ended just above her ankles. He noticed that she wore her forehead protector tied around her neck. She had a fairer complexion than the one he saw on her father, but she had indigo colored hair that Naruto attributed to her mother.
'I have only seen her picture in Hiashi-sensei's study.' Naruto thought sadly. He had no memories of ever meeting the girl's mother before she had passed away after the birth of her younger sister. The memory of his training session with Hiashi after his wife's death was not pleasant in the slightest.
Naruto shook his head quickly to rid himself of the memory and focus on the present as his students reached him. As he leaned back on the rail, he jumped up slightly to sit his rear on the railing behind him before gesturing to some planter boxes with numerous vegetables that sat on top of the rooftop location. The team took the hint quickly and sat down on the edges the boxes.
"Ok. Let's start with some introductions." Naruto spoke excitedly. "Why don't you guys tell me your likes, dislikes, hobbies, dreams and anything else you might like the team to know!"
The three pre-teens looked between one another to see who would start first. There was a nervous energy radiating off the three that he could easily read. Naruto was definitely regretting the actions he took at lunch time with the team in front of him.
"How about I start?" Naruto chuckled slightly as he tried to break the tension.
"My name is Naruto. I like ramen, training and gardening. I dislike the three minutes it takes to cook cup ramen and people that judge others before getting to know them." Naruto noticed the young genin flinch slightly at this comment. "I already said that my hobby is gardening."
"And my dream…" He leaned forward slightly as the three sat on the edges of their seats in anticipation. "is to become the greatest Hokage ever, believe it!"
All three students nearly fell out of their seats as their jaws dropped open and eyes went wide. Naruto chuckled nervously and scratched at the back of his head through his cloak. He also admonished himself slightly about his verbal tic coming out at the end of his declaration.
He had been working on keeping his use of dattebayo to a minimal level during his training. His training taught him that it wasn't always appropriate depending on this situation, but sometimes it would slip out when he was nervous or excited. Hiashi would usually shake his head in disapproval whenever he heard it, but also smile slightly about it.
"Why don't you go next." Naruto pointed to Shikamaru when he noticed the boy was the first to recover from the shock and take on a serious expression.
"Right." Shikamaru started. "My name is Nara Shikamaru. I like shogi and watching clouds. I dislike anything troublesome and people that pick on others. I don't have any real hobbies. My dream is to become a Chūnin that can support myself and live a life where nothing too good or bad happens, and then pass away peacefully."
'What kind of a dream is that'. He was suddenly grateful for the mask that covered his face or else they would see his pained expression and his eyebrow twitching. He turned his gaze to Choji next.
"My n-name is Akimichi Choji." The poor boy stuttered slightly under the gaze his new sensei. "I like chips, barbeque and Shikamaru. I dislike when I run out of chips…and when people insult me. My hobbies are trying different foods and hanging out with my friends. My dream is to head my clan and find a wife that loves to cook."
'Just like him.' Naruto smiled under his mask. He reminded Naruto a lot of his father Chōza. The large man had trained Naruto with methods to temper the strength of his body. Not just in his conditioning training, but Naruto also learned that he was the main instigator in modifying Naruto's diet and nutrition. The head of the Akimichi had a lot of knowledge with on how the body functioned and experience with the medicinal effects of their clans' pills.
His gaze drifted over to the last member of the team. She shrank down in her coat slightly at the attention now being focused on her by the team, but she looked to be trying to steel her courage.
"M-my name is Hyūga Hi-Hinata." She paused for a second looking frustrated. "I l-like s-sweets and my mother's garden. I-I dislike s-some things about my clan. M-my hobbies are c-cooking and pressing flowers. My dream is uniting my clan and to abolish certain practices."
Naruto's head cocked to the side a little as he stared at Hinata. The other two boys seemed to be strongly influenced their parents, but Hinata seemed to be the opposite. Hiashi had always been stoic and confident in his actions, but Hinata was timid and nervous when she spoke. Perhaps she took more after her mother?
The only thing that she had said without stuttering was that her dream was to unite her clan and, if he was guessing correctly, to get rid of the caged bird seal. Noble goals, but not something she would be able to accomplish with the demeanor she was showing right now. But maybe the reason she was acting like this was because she was afraid of him right now?
Naruto frowned at the thought that his actions earlier may have scared his new pupils worse than he realized. His reputation was working against him right now. It wasn't
"Well…it's nice to meet you all." Naruto was sure that his nervousness was rolling off him in waves. He could also tell that they were just as anxious about everything as he was. He would not be able to create an environment where trust could start to be built in an environment like this. 'Shibi-sensei would say that it is best to take a step back and determine the correct questions to answer the correct problem.'
"Listen..." Naruto sighed out.
His team stared at him in anticipation.
"I understand that this is not what you were expecting."
Choji was nodding his head quickly.
"I am sure you guys have a lot of questions."
Shikamaru nodded his head.
"And would like a chance to regroup your nerves."
Hinata nodded her head.
"So lets do this." Naruto clapped his hands and stood off the railing he had been sitting on. "Let's break here for today. I want you to take the rest of the day to gather your thoughts. Tomorrow we will meet at training ground ten at seven am ready to take a test. After that I will answer all the questions that I am able to."
A swirl of leaves and the cloaked figure was gone. Leaving behind three young teens now questioning what their future held.
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'I don't like this'
Shikamaru was a self-proclaimed lazy ass. He put the amount of effort into everything that he did to be completely average because that was his goal. Going beyond the standard not only meant that he would be working harder, but also bringing higher expectations on himself from others. Every subject during the academy was given just a passing grade, never exemplary, and that was how he wanted it.
He knew what people thought of him when it came to the attitude he went about life and the effort that he put into his tasks. The comments or annoyances that came from others did not bother him in the slightest because he knew that worrying about such things was more troublesome than not.
He also knew that one of the things that could make him not act like that was for a puzzle or mystery that he couldn't immediately solve to make it way in front of him. Most subjects bored him too much to pay attention too at the academy and most problems he could glance at and determine if finding the answer was worth the effort or not. So, when something that would come along that he couldn't figure out right away, but he knew was worth the effort, it would always take up a spot in his mind.
'"After that I will answer all the questions that I am able to."'
That sentence bothered him immensely after his sensei spoke it. His scowl was in full force after those words came out and his new teacher used the body flicker technique to travel away so quickly. He wasn't sure if his new teammates also picked up on the language.
By saying "able to" there was an implication that there were questions he was not allowed to answer. If he had said, he would answer all of the questions he can answer it could it have implied that the answer may just not have been known to him. Instead his new sensei had now added another layer of mystery onto his new situation. A situation that was starting to spiral to a place that he wasn't comfortable with.
'Troublesome'
First his prediction on his new team didn't come true when Hinata was assigned to the team instead of Ino. Not an entirely unwelcome change to what he expected to happen, but there was so much history behind his parents and their combination techniques that he expected it to continue. Their parents had become a legendary combination during the previous wars and had recorded the most successful mission completion percentage for a shinobi team for many years. It made sense to him for the Hokage and the academic instructors to want to replicate that success.
He was already accepting of the fact that things would be different that he expected after their little adventure during their lunch. Hinata seemed far easier to communicate and work with during this short chase than he imagined the blonde that he had known since earlier in his childhood would have been. If not for the sudden shock of his new sensei dropping in and snatching the young thief that they had chased, he believed that the experience would have been a positive bonding experience for the new team.
But that was the new problem that was now invading his mind. The announcement of the new sensei and his entrance into the classroom was a shock to the system for the young Nara and clearly his new teammates felt the same way. Once his shock went away and he was able to think clearly as they walked down the stairs to their new teacher he was able to make a number of observations that only added onto the mystery of the kitsune masked anbu that had been the subject of conversation right before the team announcements began.
Shikamaru was familiar with a number of Jōnin in Konoha. His father was the overall Jōnin Commander for the shinobi forces of Konoha after all. He couldn't help overhearing his father discussing arrangements and missions with his subordinates that would visit his father's home office on some nights. Shikamaru wasn't really trying to learn anything about these people, but he couldn't really help the information that his brain would retain. As a result, he at least knew the names of any Jōnin in their hidden village that were considered worth knowing.
And the name Naruto had never once been mentioned in the presence of Shikamaru.
So, at the front of their classroom had stood his new Jōnin sensei whose name he had never heard, with a height that was similar to his own and a voice that lacked the deepness and maturity of an older person. And then as Shikamaru walked down the stairs; his new sensei complained about their pace down the stairs with what almost sounded like he was whining? He did not match any of the descriptions that had been used to describe him. He didn't have much time to contemplate the situation before Naruto had used the body flicker technique to vanish out of the classroom with their instructions to get to the rooftop as quickly as they could.
The rooftop meeting did nothing to alleviate the questions that were running through his mind. They had rushed up to the top in fear of the possible consequences of being late but found that their teacher was relaxing against the rail seemingly not concerned by their pace. He had waited patiently for them to come over, sit down and he even began introductions when they hesitated.
'"is to become the greatest Hokage ever, believe it!"'
The introduction and declaration at the end had honestly shocked Shikamaru. There was no way he could have ever associated the Demon Shinobi with someone that enjoyed gardening and eating ramen. Then when he said that he disliked being judged it caused his team to flinch in guilt, but that guilt had started to wear off almost immediately for the dark-haired Nara boy. When his sole understanding of the Demon Shibobi's existence had been through dark rumors and one experience where their sensei literally snatched someone their age right off the street. It was hard not having a preconceived opinion on the man that sat in front of him.
But when the young Anbu mentioned his dream was when the Nara's jaw fully dropped in disbelief. It just didn't make sense. The Hokage position was not just a position of power that the strongest person would fill. The Hokage wasn't just a political position that would be filled by the person with the best connections and ideas to move Konoha forward into the future. Both of those things were very important to the decision-making process, but if anything, Hokage was also a ceremonial position. It was supposed to be someone who represented the will of fire and that of the people the best. There was just no way for someone to become a Kage without the support and respect of the people in the village that they served.
Shikamaru had never spoken with his new sensei before, but that didn't mean that he had never heard how others spoke about his sensei. Around the town he was always spoken of with disdain by both shinobi and civilian alike. Discussion of him wasn't a taboo subject that people would try to hide and prevent others from hearing; it was an ongoing topic in the social circles of Konoha. The demon shinobi would sometimes be brought up in conversations if he was spotted around town, but he was most talked about whenever the new bingo books were released every few months.
It was extremely rare for an Anbu to be put into the bingo books. Shinobi that became Anbu typically did not expect those to be their permanent positions. The masks that they wore would usually be passed down to the new recruits that would replace the veteran that had either moved onto a new position or more commonly had fallen in the line of duty. The anonymity and rotation of these positions were one factor that typically kept their members out of the bingo book.
Another factor was that the nature of Anbu missions were typically considered classified and considered stealth operations. They should not be getting famous from their missions because no one should know about them. Instead, the Demon Shinobi had become famous for being a special operations member that didn't take those kinds of missions. He had become famous because he took missions that required a more direct approach like the types that Jōnin took, but he still wore the mask.
It was a sore spot for the village. Most of the shinobi population did not like watching the kitsune masked Anbu take missions that were typically reserved for them. Civilians didn't like seeing someone rising in fame while also sporting a mask that they felt was insult. It was a stain on the reputation of the village.
'How could he hope to become Hokage in a village that scorns him.' Shikamaru frowned as he walked through the gate that marked the entrance to the Nara clan district. His family home was settled on the outskirts of the East in Konoha in a corner where the great walls of Konoha and the cliff face that their village was built into. Their territory was larger than most would have assumed for the modestly populated clan; this was because of the large, forested section of their district that served as the land occupied by the deer that his family was named after and cared for.
His clan was deeply connected to the nature, and it showed in as he walked down the center path of their district towards his home. Shikamaru glanced up at the canopy of leaves above his head as the trees that lined the main path provided a dense shade. The roots of these trees spread out and crossing the road at different intervals. To some it would be considered annoying, but to his family it was natural.
He glanced to his sides at the homes that stood amongst the trees. His family preferred their homes to be designed in a way that did not stand out at all from the forest that surrounded them. The trees of the forest served as the main building material for the homes that lined the pathway and the small areas that were painted were always done with deep greens or dark browns.
The natural feel of still being in nature was part of the reason the roadway was livelier than one might expect. Animals would use the pathway just as often as human travelers as they walked through the area. Konoha was the village hidden in the leaf, but there was no other residential district like this one.
Just down the path nearly at the front of his own home Shikamaru could see one of his family's oldest deer walking the way towards him. He smiled slightly as they both stood in front of one another and looked each other in the eyes. The animal's eyes held a depth and wisdom that made Shikamaru question if it could understand the turmoil that had been the young clan heirs' thoughts for the past half hour that he had walked home.
Then the deer bowed in front of him and Shikamaru returned the gesture before stepping to the side to allow the elder deer to pass by without obstruction. Once the deer was past him Shikamaru continued to the steps of his family home and entered quietly before taking off his shoes. He made his way through his homes living as silently as he could, to not alert his mother of his arrival yet, and made his way to the exterior verandah that wrapped around his family's courtyard.
They had a small koi pond in the center of the courtyard with a small flower bed that added some color to the more natural colors that surrounded them. The shogi doors that surrounded them were painted with the images of regal deer and Sakura trees that that were experiencing blossoming. Besides sleeping in his own room, this was by far his favorite place to be in his home.
Shikamaru couldn't help the small frown the came to his face as he looked over at the shogi door that was connected to his father's office. The verandah that surrounded the courtyard was connected to every main room in his house. There at the end his father's shogi door was slid open and Shikamaru could see his father Shikaku smirking at him through the door.
Realization washed over Shikamaru as he knew why his father was sending him that smirk. Of course he knew the whole time about the Jōnin assigned to team ten and had been expecting Shikamaru to come with questions. It was as if his father was playing shogi while already knowing the first two moves.
"Tch"
Shikamaru grunted in annoyance as he walked into the clan heads office and unceremoniously flopped himself down on the floor in a relaxed seated position. The whole time his dad had kept that knowing grin on his face that was currently annoying him to no end.
"I knew becoming a Genin makes you an adult, but I didn't expect you to suddenly look like you aged multiple years." Shikaku joked at his stressed-out son.
Shikamaru frowned but didn't go further for fear of goading his father on.
"So…" His father settled his elbow on his knee and rested his chin on in the palm of his hand. "How did it go?"
Shikamaru let out a long sigh and let his body roll down till he lied on his back. He told the story of his surprise at the team announcements, the thief that stole from them and led them on a chase through the village, their encounter with the kitsune masked Anbu, the stories in the classroom, and finally this new sensei and their introductions.
At first Shikaku had worn a grin on his face through the first half of his son's tale, but slowly it had turned into an almost deadpanned face. By the end of his tale the elder Nara had his palm covering his face in disbelief.
"I can't believe he screwed up this bad…" Shikaku whispered so quietly that Shikamaru barely heard it.
"Who is he?"
Shikaku's eyes focused on his son from between the fingers that were on his face. "He is your new sensei."
"That's not what I mean. I want to kno-"
"I know what you want to know." The Jōnin stopped him. "If I could answer all your questions I would, but for now you are going to have to be patient. Your sensei said that he has a test for you tomorrow and then it sounds like you can ask your questions after you pass."
"Will he even answer all of them?" Shikamaru countered.
"No." Shikaku quickly raised a hand to stop his son from arguing. "There are things he is not allowed to say and believe me when I say that if he could tell you that he would."
Shikamaru still didn't look happy, but some of the stress seemed to be ebbed off his face slightly. "You should be more worried about the test tomorrow however."
Shikamaru raised his eyebrow at his dad as he sat back up from his laying position. "What do you mean?
"Heh. Sounds like he didn't explain it, but tradition is that the Jōnin sensei gives a test that will determine if they believe that the Genin are worthy, or they can send them back to the academy for remedial training." Shikaku's smirk returned to his face as he watched the color drain from his son's face. "There's a sixty-six percent failure rate."
Shikamaru groaned but stood up and started to make his way out of the study and to somewhere more relaxing before dinner and dealing with his mother. He paused when he reached the threshold to the outside. "Do you trust him?"
"I trust him with my son's life."
OoOoOoOoO
The sound of falling chopsticks crashing into a bowl snapped Chōji's attention to that of his mother. He had simply been staring into his bowl of food when his mother asked him about his new team.
"W-what did you say?"
His mother's attitude caught Chōji off guard and made him even more nervous about the whole situation. "My sensei is Naruto…the demon shinobi."
His mother Fusae was a full-figured woman with short black hair and eyes, the latter of which had orange makeup around the outside edge for decoration. She wore a purple dress with gold trim on it. Chōji couldn't see it from where he was, but he knew that he she also wore the kanji for food on her back like the rest of his clan. The look of shock that she wore on his face was making Chōji feel worse and worse about the situation.
"Gossip was going around the market today that his name was Naruto…" His mother talked more to herself than anything. Then realization seemed to strike her as she rounded her full attention to his father. "You knew! Why didn't you tell me!"
"Now now Fusae-chan." His father pleaded with both hands raised in front of himself. He had changed out of his families traditional red armor when he went out of the house and instead was dressed in a dark red yukata that matched the same color as his long mane like hair. His father was a giant of a man even before using his family techniques, but his mother always had the ability to shrink him down in moments like this.
"Don't you, Fusae-chan, me! How could you not tell me that they were putting my baby on a team with him! And poor Shikamaru too." His mother had always been a kind and caring woman, but she was also fiercely protective of those that she cared about. Chōji could safely say that his direct family was in that category, but his best friend Shikamaru was also one of the ones his mother also acted this way about.
"Honey I am sure-"
"No! We are going to see the Hokage right after we finish dinner, and we are going to"
Slam!
Chōji and his mother jumped in shock as his father's large hand slapped the table in front of them.
"We will do no such thing." Chōza announced with a finality that Chōji was unfamiliar with hearing. His parents hardly ever argued about anything, but whenever they did his mother would always come out the victor. He knew that his mother was a fierce woman that hardly ever backed down, but even she was caught off guard by large Akimichi's reaction.
"Chōza…" she started, but felt the words die in her throat at the stern look her husband was giving. As quickly as the look was there it was gone again, and his pops more relaxed and happier demeanor had returned. Chōji released a breath that he didn't know he had been holding.
"The rumors that you have heard about him around the markets and shops are nothing to concern yourself about. Young Naruto will make a fine teacher." Chōza spoke as he began to pick up his chopsticks once again and continue his meal.
"Young?" his mother questioned.
"Yeah mom." Chōji answered for his father. "I don't know how old he is exactly, but he's about the same height at Shikamaru. He sounds like he can't be much older than we are."
"Actually, you are older than he is." His father answered then paused his eating as he furrowed his eyebrows in thought. "Maybe I shouldn't have told you that."
"S-seriously!?" His mother stammered out. "The demon shinobi is younger than our Chōji-kun?"
"Umm..yes." He could see his father was rubbing his chin in thought as if debating how to best approach the subject. He adopted a serious expression, but Chōji did not feel the same ferocity that was directed towards his mother earlier. "You need to keep this to yourself for now. Information regarding him is considered a strict secret and I could get in trouble for revealing too much."
Chōji eyes widened in fear at thought of his father getting into trouble. His father was always a such a kind and caring man; the thought of him being punished for information as small as learning Naruto's age was unthinkable. It gripped his heart with fear.
"Don't worry so much." His father chuckled, trying to relax his family. "I am sure everything will be coming out soon enough anyway."
"He did say that we could ask questions tomorrow after we took a test."
"Oh did he?" Chōza pondered with an amused smile. "Well, I am sure he will answer everything he can if you pass his test."
"That's true!" Fusae announced with a hopeful voice and clapped her hands together. "He may not even be that team after tomorrow."
This time Chōji dropped his chopsticks as they fell from his suddenly weak hands. His father was scowling at his suddenly hopeful looking mother. "W-what do you mean?!"
"Your mother just let out a nice little secret about the Genin exams." His fathers accusatory tone seemed to snap his mother out of whatever mood she was in. She looked at both parties a little guiltily. His father sighed out in frustration. "The Jōnin-sensei are responsible to perform another test with their team to determine if they are ready to handle their new roles. Those that failed either go back for some remedial training before trying again, or they move on to civilian life."
Chōji gulped at the prospect of going back for remedial training at the academy. He had never heard of this before and highly doubted that many people went through the remedial training. It would be especially embarrassing for a clan heir to be put through that sort of situation. Probably the kind of thing that a clan like the Hyūga would remove the heir status from someone for.
"And you dear." Chōza looked at his suddenly bashful wife. Clearly his mom was embarrassed by her earlier outburst. "You sounded a little too happy at the prospect of our son failing to be on Naruto's team. I don't like hearing that the gossip of the village has also influenced your opinion on our son's new sensei. I would hope that you would trust me to not let Chōji be put into a bad situation."
His mother blushed and looked down at the table. "I understand husband. I just…I worry for our son. I know most of the Jōnin in the village and have never spoken with him. You have also never mentioned him before! All I can go by are those horrible rumors."
"I understand your fears. Just please trust me on this." Chōza's tone had become softer after his wife's fearful confession. "He will prove to be a fine person once we get to know him."
"That's it!" Fusae proclaimed excitedly. The father and son pair just looked at each other questioningly, neither knowing what the female Akimichi was referring to. "We need to get to know him!"
"What?" "What?"
"Chōji-kun! Invite him to dinner!" She exclaimed. "I want to meet my son's sensei and get a read on him for myself."
"Uhhh…" Chōji was dumbfounded by the direction the conversation had gone. "He said he likes ramen?"
Chōza just groaned and mentioned something about the clan's coffers taking a hit.
OoOoOoOoO
Iruka glanced around him as the streetlamps started to flicker to life along the road that walked. The sun had started to set not long after Iruka had left the Hokage tower and started towards a familiar, but unexpected destination. He couldn't help but wonder what he was walking into.
-Flashback-
His knuckles were paused just inches from the large wooden doors. He was very accustomed to knocking on the oaken doors that separated the Hokage's office from hallway, but this time was different. He was nervous as he rapped his knuckles on the heavy door.
"Come in." The other side replied. Iruka swallowed thickly as he pushed open the door to where his leader sat.
Iruka had been teaching at the academy for six years now. He was a veteran of dealing with the trials and tribulations of pre-teen ninjas with short attention spans. He did his best to bring out the best in his students and be an encouraging force in their lives. He wanted to help guide all his students to the futures that would best fit them. Civilian or shinobi.
He put a lot of effort and his own pride when preparing his suggestions for the team placements. He wanted to craft teams that the wisest and strongest person in the village would agree with. In situations where the Hokage had questions about his placements he had always provided the feedback that was requested, and both shared their opinions freely about the teams with each other in friendly conversations.
He hadn't always gotten his way. There had been a couple of times now the Hokage had opted not to use the teams that he suggested. The professor of shinobi had more wisdom in on finger than most people in the village and Iruka knew to not take the changes as slights against his teaching. Sometimes the old Hokage just knew information that Iruka couldn't or had interesting ideas about how some families could work together.
This time was different, however. There had not been the usual back and forth discussion about who the students were as people. No discussion of strengths, weaknesses or how personalities clashed and thrived between the different people. No, this the Jōnin Naruto had come up with the team placements and did not include the Hokage or Iruka in the process.
Iruka couldn't help the negative feelings that were driving him through the door right now. He was upset about that he was not aware of what was going on and upset that his recommendations were ignored by someone with no experience. But mostly he was concerned for his students and that drove him here.
"Ah good evening Iruka."
The elderly man known as The Professor was staring down at his pipe as he packed it with tobacco. There was a clearly practiced ease with how he handled the material and packed it delicately. To Iruka it almost looked as if the Hokage was in a state of relaxed Zen as he finished and struck a match to light the pipe.
"I was expecting you."
Of course he was. Iruka may as well been an open book to the man in front of him. The Hokage had been in this position for so long, he must have seen so many faces with the same expressions and concerns as he had right now.
"I just want understand Hokage-sama." Iruka pleaded. "We have always discussed the team assignments in the past and now you give this responsibility to Naruto? Why?"
Hiruzen sighed out a long stream of smoke from his pipe. Iruka flinched slightly at the reaction. He had worked with the Hokage enough at mission assignments to know that he had possibly disappointed the man he respected so much.
"I am sorry if you feel I breached your trust."
Iruka was stood there shocked at the apology. He had not expected the Hokage disappointment to be directed towards himself. It just made Iruka regret bringing it up even more.
"I-it's not that Hokage-sama." Iruka stammered out. "I do trust you…I just worry for my students."
The wise leader in front of him smirked at the statement. "I know you do Iruka. That is why I trust what you do at the academy so much."
"T-thank you." Iruka felt his cheeks heat up in embarrassment from the statement. After basking in thought for a moment he started to frown as he remembered the last time he was in the Hokage's presence. "Though Naruto-san did point out that maybe I have some faults in how I handle my students.
"Ha. I think that Inoichi-san got the worse end of that." Hiruzen chuckled at the memory before adopting a more somber expression. "Please don't take Naruto-kun's comment the wrong way. He doesn't expect your students to be perfect shinobi. He just hoped that they would have a higher level of respect for their comrades."
"I understand..."
"The fact that we do not curb the emotions and personalities of our Genin is one of our strengths Iruka. We do not want to create emotionless shinobi that just follow orders, we want all of our citizens to inherit the will of fire."
Iruka smiled at the thought. Konoha had a below average pass rate for Genin amongst the other shinobi villages; mostly due to the additional tests performed by the Jōnin sensei. Some of the other villages passed more students than Konoha on average and boosted their forces in greater number. Some of them passed far less, but deadlier Genin.
'Like the Mist village.' Iruka thought about the disturbing graduation trials the Genin of that village went through.
Konoha was different than the other villages. Valuing quality of their graduates over the quantity that entered the Shinobi forces. It also benefitted the village as a whole that those who decided to move onto civilian life had a knowledge of self-defense and a pride in the village that they would now serve in a different way.
"I have been thinking about trying to develop some new lesson plans that focus on the importance of comradery and respect. And perhaps I need to keep a better eye out on that."
"That would be a good idea." The Hokage smiled and blew a smoke ring into the air above his head. Both men watched as it slowly expanded before disappearing from view. "There are reasons I cannot explain to you for my decision regarding Naruto. Just know that I trust him."
"It…it's just that you should have seen their faces Lord Third." Iruka couldn't help it. Not after seeing the terrified looks in the faces of the students that were in the classroom. "They looked terrified. It didn't help that the students were discussing all of the rumors about him before he walked in. I have never seen a reaction like that before."
The elderly Hokage frowned at the information from Iruka. It was obvious to the Chunin that the Hokage was not aware of how poorly the introduction went. Sometimes it felt like the Hokage had a crystal ball and knew everything that was going on inside the village. This was clearly not one of those times.
"I worry for them." Iruka admitted.
"I see your worry." The Hokage had a small smile on his face as he turned to look out the window. "I told you before that I was expecting you."
"Hai." Iruka responded.
"How would you like to meet him? You should be able to find him at Ichiraku's if you leave now."
-End Flashback-
Iruka was of course familiar with the ramen stand that the Hokage had directed him to. He could still remember the tears that he shed in the presence of the Hokage when the man brought him to Ichiraku's to eat and share in the pain that Iruka had been feeling. Iruka had been a terror in his youth and the man that he respected so much was able to see right through him help ease his pain. He had been a guest of the friendly establishment many times over the years since that time.
Iruka could see the establishment in front of him. It was a quaint little stand that a father and daughter pair ran in the market district. The fabric cloth that hung down to separate the eating establishment and outside world were not as long as some establishments that he had seen in the past, but it was long enough to go down to Iruka's shoulders and give a level privacy to those inside. Iruka could see from the outside that only one of the six stools that lined the front of the establishment were taken up by a single customer.
"Naruto-kun! Are you sure you want another bowl? You haven't eaten like this in years?"
Iruka recognized the voice of Ayame before he could enter through the barrier to the serving area of the restaurant. The daughter of the owner was a few years younger than Iruka, but she had always treated him more like an older sister than a customer. It never really bothered Iruka that the brown-haired girl treated him like that, instead he found it kind of comforting. As Iruka pushed his way into the stand he saw her father first at the center behind the counter.
Teuchi was the owner of the stand and the father of Ayame. The older man was generally in the back of the shop making the ramen that he was so passionate about, while his daughter served the customers and took the orders. He was a kind and jovial man that shared in the happiness of those in his shop. He was also deadly serious about his craft and the work that went into managing the store. His daughter was the only employee that had been able to keep up to the standards that Teuchi insisted on.
"Ayame-neechannnn" Iruka heard a whining voice from the stalls only current customer. "Ramen is the only thing that will make me feel better."
"Okay one mor- Oh! Iruka-kun welcome! Sorry I didn't see you walking up!" Ayame caught sight of Iruka only moments after he had entered the stall and listened to the small bit of conversation.
"Good evening Iruka-san." Teuchi warmly greeted.
"Good evening Ayame-chan Teuchi-san." Iruka replied. As he did so he looked over towards the stalls only other customer. Three bowls large empty bowls of ramen sat in front of him, and it looked like Teuchi was currently in the process of making another. More than Iruka was sure he had ever seen anyone eat.
The guest in question had started to turn around and face the newcomer. The thing that stood out first to Iruka were his eyes, a deep cerulean blue that seemed to pierce straight through him. His hair a golden blonde that seemed deeper in color than any Yamanka hair he could ever recall. He had a bandage on each cheek that were struggling to stay on as his bright smile stretched the adhesive portions of the bandage. His smile was so friendly and disarming that it shocked the Chunin.
He wore a black shirt with a large leaf symbol on the front of the shirt surrounded by flames. Grey cargo shorts that stretched past his knees and black ninja sandals completed the ensemble. Iruka couldn't help but wonder if he was meeting the correct person from the visuals in front of him, but he recognized what Ayame had called him before.
'Naruto…the Demon Shinobi.'
"Hi Iruka-san." Naruto stretched out his hand in greeting to shake the older nin's hand. "I was hoping you would come."
Iruka cocked his eyebrow at the statement and took the young shinobi's hand to shake it after a moment. "You knew I was coming?"
The young blonde chuckled for a second be scratching the back of his head and then spinning around to face the counter again. "I just had a feeling."
"Is that right." Iruka commented before sitting down in the stool next to Naruto.
"Yeah. You seem to really care about your students. I thought that you might investigate me, so I told the old man it should be okay if you came to find me." Naruto's face seemed to light up as he could see a bowl of ramen being brought their way.
"Old man?" Iruka questioned.
"He's talking about Sandaime-sama." Ayame had an admonishing tone in her voice as she set down the bowl in front of the blonde. Iruka couldn't help the choked the noise that came out of this throat as he guffawed at the nickname. Ayame shook her head and turned to look at Iruka. "What can we get you tonight Iruka-kun?"
"Uh. I'll have a shoyu beef please."
"Coming right up!" She announced before walking over to her father to relay the order. The blonde next to him was already digging into his new bowl of what looking like miso pork. Iruka smirked a little as he could see the fishcake with a swirl still floating in the bowl.
"So…Naruto-san." Iruka asked to gain the attention from the bowl of ramen. He glanced at Ayame and Teuchi as the next words came out of his mouth in a whisper. "Do they know? Who you are?"
"Hmm?" Naruto questioned as Iruka motioned his eyes towards the father and daughter working behind the counter. "Oh. Yes and no I guess?"
"They know that that I am a shinobi and that I am close with the old man, but they don't know who I am." Naruto had a sad little smile on his face. "But they are very observant, and word is already spreading about my name."
Iruka knew he was right. Word had started to spread last night after the team placement meetings and was only growing in fervor after this afternoon's incident in the classroom. It was pretty much guaranteed that by the next day nearly everyone in Konoha would know the name of the kitsune masked Anbu.
"So it's just…Naruto? No surname?" Iruka asked.
"Can't say." The young man in front of him was staring into his bowl of ramen and picking at it instead of eating it. "My life has been a lot of secrets Iruka-san. Hopefully that will change soon."
"So you didn't choose this?" Iruka frowned at the blonde youth. The boy shook his head softly.
"Sorry can't say."
The mood had rapidly become rather melancholy in the small stand. Iruka knew the Teuchi was cooking his food and that Ayame was restocking materials further down the counter, but he could sense that they were listening, and their mood was also down. Naruto was slowly bringing noodles to his mouth, but not really looking anywhere at the same time. This young kid.
"Naruto-san…how old are you?"
"Oh! I am twelve." A grin came to his face as he realized it was a question he could answer. "I probably would have been graduating from your class this year in normal circumstances."
"You're right." Iruka chuckled some but sobered when he thought about the one experience he had with the blonde in the classroom. "But it's kind of hard to imagine after the reputation you have already built up."
"Yeah. That great thing." Naruto's voice was sarcastic and bitter about the comment. Iruka knew that it wasn't directed towards him, but the frustration that was rolling off Naruto was incredibly apparent.
"Can I ask a question related to that?" Naruto shrugged his shoulders in response and mumbled that he would answer if he could. "Why that mask?"
It was a question that Iruka had been wondering about for years. Ever since the kitsune masked shinobi came into service and was starting to be noticed around the town it was a topic on everyone lips. Iruka could remember the harsh criticisms coming out from the populace towards the Hokage for even allowing such a thing.
Iruka couldn't help but agree with the feelings of the general population. His own parents died trying to protect the village and save him during the attack. He had reconciled his feelings and pain years ago, but when then that kitsune mask was added into the Anbu rotation it brought back all those memories. Even speaking about the beast had become a sort of taboo around the village except during the festival that celebrated the creatures defeat and the lives of those lost.
"You know that people see it as an insult to that event. Wearing that mask has been like a slap in the face to those-"
"I'm an orphan. My family died the night of the attack."
Iruka felt the words die on his lips. The small rant that he was just starting was sucked away from him as his whole body felt like it was doused in ice water. The confession was just above a whisper and Iruka sat in stunned silence. 'He's like me?'
"I know all about sacrifice from that event Iruka-san." The tone of voice was sad and full of regret. It sounded so much like his own voice when talking about the same night. "I wanted the mask to be a symbol of moving past the event. I didn't want us to be afraid of it anymore. Now it's power would serve Konoha instead of trying to destroy it."
"It was probably my worst idea." He spat out. "The old man tried to warn me that people wouldn't take it well, but I didn't listen. Overtime the feelings got worse and worse as my reputation grew. Obviously you saw that this afternoon."
Iruka nodded taking in all the information. It was all starting to become a little overwhelming to him. He was now sure that he knew more about the Demon Shinobi than ninety percent of the population of Konoha and still it felt like he was only just touching the surface of the pond. It had become clear that everyone's beliefs about Naruto's motivations were incorrect.
"I can understand both sides." Iruka confessed softly. There was a soft clink and Iruka glanced up to see that his bowl of ramen had been placed in front of him softly. Ayame gave him a small smile before retreating to allow the two shinobi to continue their quiet conversation.
"I lost my parents too in the attack and was filled with rage and loathing. When I first heard about you, I felt the same way." Naruto looked at him with curious eyes. Iruka noticed that they seemed to be a darker color than when he looked at them earlier. "That mask reminded me of the pain that I felt."
Naruto's look was remorseful at the information and Iruka could tell that he was trying to formulate his thoughts. After a few moments Naruto seemed to resolve what he wanted to say and a since of clarity entered his eyes. "I get it, ya know. I figured our pretty quickly that it wasn't going how I hoped. But I think we all deal with pain differently…and this has been my way of trying to honor my parents."
There was a determination in his eye that Iruka had never seen from any of students in the past. It wasn't the look of a young teen that had immature ideals of what their dreams and goals should be. He had a conviction in his eyes. Iruka could only nod in response, words lost to him, before he broke his chopsticks apart to begin eating his food.
Naruto was young, determined and a genius from what Iruka could tell. His aspirations were admirable, but geniuses like him usually had their own set of additional issues that caused a lot of strife in their personal lives. Sometimes their thought processes would take them down dark paths. 'Like Uchiha Itachi…'
And just like that he was worried again about his students.
"You seem really beyond your years Naruto-san. Last genius that I can compare you to is Itachi…" Iruka was expecting some sort of a scowl or a dirty a look at the comment. He was trying to get a reaction out of Naruto, trying to get him to show his character to him. The last thing he expected was for Naruto to bust out in laughter.
"Genius?!" He was trying to get air in his lungs. "Me!?"
Iruka wasn't sure if he should feel annoyed or not based on the reaction. Nevertheless, as the laughter continued Iruka was sure he was feeling a tick form on his forehead. After a minute he started to settle down and wipe tears from his eyes with a napkin Ayame offered to him.
"My sensei would get a kick out of that." Naruto's voice was full of mirth. "I'm not a genius Iruka-san."
"You're a twelve-year-old Jōnin with a spot in the bingo book." Iruka deadpanned.
"I got where I am through hard work and never giving up." Naruto was proudly speaking before letting out a soft sigh before continuing. "I am not like Itachi, Kakashi or even the Yondaime. Things don't come to me naturally like it did to them. I have failed…a lot. I have had to train harder than anyone else to reach this spot. I have…an advantage…but it's not my brain."
Iruka smiled a little at the boy's self-depreciation and the humility he seemed to be showing. Whether or not the young shinobi was putting on an act or speaking the truth he couldn't quite tell, but he was leaning towards the later.
"Can I ask you a question Iruka-san?" Iruka nodded, suddenly realizing that he had pretty much dominated asking questions during this visit. "Can we please drop the honorifics? Seriously I keep it up when I have to, but it makes me want to rip my hair out."
Iruka couldn't help himself but chuckle at the surprising blonde. "Sure…Naruto"
"Thanks Iruka." Without warning the blonde turned his whole body and crossed his legs on the small stool and looked at Iruka with anticipation. For some reason Iruka thought that he looked like a kid about to get gift. "Can you tell me more about my team? I am sure the reports and my observations don't do justice to your years with them."
For the first time in twenty-four hours Iruka felt his worries about his students start to ease…a little.
OoOoOoOoO
He took a quick glance around him to make sure he wasn't being followed and that there would not be any bystanders that happened to catch his presence. He had followers' multiple times over the past few years, but lately it had been strangely quiet on that front, but he expected it to pick back up soon with him being the local gossip. People would no doubt be trying to follow him again soon whenever they catch sight of his mask leaping across the rooftops.
Tonight, though he was just a young kid wandering around in an old residential district that sat close to the carved face of the Shodaime. The area sat roughly halfway between the Hyūga compound and Hokage Tower. The walls around the home he stalked shared some of the same architectural design as the Hyūga more traditional with stone bottoms that went up four feet before transitioning to a wood plastered wood painted a deep red that was clearly starting to fade from lack of maintenance.
Walking past the main gate he took note of the weathered chains and locks that showed that the entrance hadn't been used for many years. Sometimes he could see signs of someone's hands disturbing the layers of pollen and dust that had gathered on the lock. Usually just someone that was trying to show off to friends as they passed by or a kids dare.
Naruto glanced around him again just to be sure as he sauntered around the perimeter walls that wrapped around to compound. He stretched his senses to their limits and couldn't detect anyone around him. It was just a precaution, but he couldn't have anyone questioning why some unknown kid suddenly vanished from sight as in the overcast shadow from a moonlit tree.
Naruto turned around to look at the wall from the inner side of the compound as the trick door in the wall was quickly closing. Old fūinjutsu seals glowed softly as it projected a genjutsu of a solid wall on the exterior as the trick door simultaneously moved back into place and the outline of it faded away. Just like the door itself the seals too vanished once their job was complete. Smirking as he saw an Uzumaki swirl fade from existence at the center of the wall.
He breathed in deeply the fresh air as he walked across the backyard towards the dark two-story home that once belonged to his parents. The small compound had once belonged to Uzumaki Mito after the death of Senju Hashirama and had served as her residence and where she would host the visitors that she would occasionally get from Uzushiogakure before its destruction. The home was then gifted to his mother and now himself.
"I'm home." Naruto called out as he slid open the back door and took off his shoes. He knew there would be no return call to his statement. Still he would always make the same call out.
The back door led immediately into the wooden floor of the living room space. Jutsu scrolls, reports, tactical books and equipment laid strewn across the coffee table that sat in front of blue sofa and love seat that had been his parents. When his parents had taken over the home they did some remodeling and changed out the furniture to a more modern style compared to the traditional one that Mito had preferred. Naruto had imagined in the past how the home would have looked in the past with more traditional tatami mats and shogi doors than the current look. He was sure he wouldn't have minded the style, he was used to it from the clan compounds, but it probably wouldn't have held the same welcoming feeling that appealed to him and his mother apparently.
He walked through the living room and made his way towards the stairs that would lead up to the bedrooms. Halfway through the corridor he stopped at the heavy door that lead to his father's personal dojo and armory. The dust covered handle showed its lack of use and a he felt his heart beat start to pound harder in his chest as he stared at the entryway. Swallowing thickly, he shook his head and turned away from the private room and made his way back towards the stairs.
There were pictures along the wall of the stairwell that he looked at every time he walked up the stairs. Pictures of his parents growing up, their genin teams, becoming chūnin and eventually jōnin. His favorite picture on this wall was the one of his dad on top of the Hokage tower dressed in the traditional robes for inauguration.
At the top the landing of the stair he glanced right towards the master bedroom that had belonged to his parents and then proceeded left towards his own bedroom. One day he would break those barriers, but right now it just didn't feel right to him. He had lived in this house for the past six years when the Hokage felt that he was responsible enough to care for himself and skilled enough to avoid detection while accessing the home.
He had grown up living in a safe house near the Hokage mansion for the first half of his life. As an infant his care was in the hands of a wet nurse that had no idea who he was or that she was even at a safe house. She had believed that she was just caring for another orphan child that belonged to ninja lost during the attack. Two hand selected Anbu posed as friends of the deceased parents that were simply trying to honor their friends to keep up the illusion and asked for discretion from the woman in the meantime.
Once he had weaned off breastmilk and was switching over to regular milk was when they had determined that it had been long enough with the nurse and continuing the relationship would start to cause problems. It was no longer the same warm touch, but the bodyguards did their best to care for the boy as best they could after spending months watching the care from the nurse. He had regular visitors from Hiruzen, Hiashi and occasionally some of the other clan heads would stop into to check on the health and status of the child.
He had started to walk right after he turned one and from that day forward they had begun training him. He was quite literally one of those children that trained to be a ninja from the day that he could walk. From that point forward every day he spent time with a different clan head and learning everything they could get him to absorb.
It didn't take long for them to figure out that while he didn't pick up things immediately, he was an eager learner that seemed to possess endless stamina. At first they attributed this to youthful energy and his Uzumaki genetics, but they quickly figured out that the demon trapped inside his seal was enhancing his body and his chakra reserves. At age six they felt comfortable enough with his progress and his reserves that they taught him how to use the shadow clone technique.
From there his training accelerated dramatically. Lessons every day with multiple teachers, using shadow clones to study various subjects and training his chakra control to master his massive reserves. Naruto wasn't lying to Iruka earlier when he said that he worked harder than any of the geniuses that came before him. The combined knowledge and effort that his clones literally gave him years of experience on techniques that could not have been achieved otherwise. Today was a rare day where he didn't have any clones working on anything as he wanted to be totally dedicated to meeting his team.
Striping off his clothing as he walked into his bathroom and getting the shower he realized that just how emotionally drained from the day's events. Things didn't go as he had hoped, but he wouldn't give up just because of something like that. He also had to smile a little at the thought that he had opened up with Iruka and hopefully could form a sort of friendship with the older man. Relationships with people that were not his teachers was something that he was sorely lacking.
Feeling clean he turned off the shower and dried himself off as he walked into his bedroom. Drying his hair off as he walked towards his dresser; he stared at his favorite picture that rested on the top. His parents leaning into each other smiling, his mother hand resting on her swollen belly. He smiled at his "family" photo, a picture that without a doubt had him with his parents.
He collapsed on his bed and stared at the ceiling for a moment. Tomorrow would be different. Tomorrow would be better. He closed his eyes and drifted to sleep believing that when he opened them next it would be to the new dawn.
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Blue eyes opened to quickly and to a sight he wasn't expecting right now. Giant metal bars and behind those bars red eyes the stared down at him.
"Well this can't be good…."
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Hey so there was a whole lot of exposition. Sorry I felt like some things needed a little more explanation and I expect my change of style will be more apparent here than in previous chapters. Hopefully you guys like it and don't have too many complaints. Thank you for reading.