Naruto was a popular kid. One of the most popular in school, in fact. Although he wasn't definitely the smartest kid in school, as his grades would indicate, he was popular. Jiraiya had sent him to Fireside High instead of Konoha High. There is less chance that someone would connect him to his father here. It was much smaller than Konoha, by a solid five hundred students.

Naruto had stopped to chat with several friends as he made his way to his locker in the center of the building. He had a typical style of a plain black t-shirt that was definitely a size too small, making it too tight. He liked it that way showed off all the muscles he had from his fighting hobbies. His jeans were usually dark or black with holes that Jiraiya hated, and his usual Converse.

Jiraiya said that his hair was unruly as a kid, so he went to a legit hairdresser lady every few weeks. She had given him something called an undercut when he entered high school. She gave him a high fade and left the length on top. She said the cut did something for his hair volume and showed off his facial structure. Whatever, he liked it, and a few other guys at the club had it, too. However, after the first time, he refused to let her cut the top, as he wanted to keep it long enough to pull back into a pony during his fights.

The final bell had rung, and everyone was gathering books for the weekend in their lockers. Naruto had stuffed the final book in his backpack when he heard his name. Looking up, he tried to find whoever had called him, but there were too many people in this tiny space.

"Naruto!"

He finally turned and found Sora running up to him.

Sora was an odd kid. He had been abused by his father as a kid and pulled into foster care, but he was later adopted when he was six or seven. But due to that, he had some major trust and anger issues. He was rude at times but was one of Naruto's closest friends. He also had an unusual style with shoulder-length, dull blueish-grey hair in an asymmetrical style, with odd t-shirts and shorts that may be too short.

"Hey," Naruto said as he slung his backpack onto one shoulder.

"Did you hear?" Sora asked, a little out of breath.

"Hear what?" Naruto asked, slamming his locker shut.

Both turned and started heading towards the exit.

"They're closing Fireside!" Sora said.

Naruto stopped and turned to his friend, "They're what?"

"Closing the school," Sora said, stopping as well, "At the end of the year. They are sending us to Suna or Konoha next year."

Naruto sighed. Things were going well for him, and now his father is getting out, and he is being sent to Konoha. Jiraiya would not let him drive two hours to Suna, nor would he waste two hours when he could be at the club or range.

Maybe Ji will let me homeschool…?

"Why are they closing the school?" Naruto asked as he started walking again.

"I guess they don't have enough students," Sora shrugged, "When they shut down the athletic department, a lot of parents pulled their kids out, and now there isn't enough, so the Daimyo cut the funding."

"Well, shit," Naruto said.

"Yeah, it sucks," Sora nodded in agreement, "Where do you think you'll go?"

"Konoha probably," Naruto sighed, "Like hell, Ji will drive two hours to Suna."

"Yeah, my parents are the same," Sora nodded, "But of Konoha, I'll probably go to Suna."

"This sucks!" Naruto said with a bit of anger in his voice.

"Naruto."

The blonde turned and noticed Mr. Sarutobi standing with Mr. Chiriku a few feet from the doors. Mr. Sarutobi waved him over.

"Yes?" Naruto asked as he walked up to him.

"I assume you have heard by now about the school closing," Mr. Chiriku asked.

"Yeah, Sora told me," Naruto nodded.

"Seeing as how you are from Konoha, I assume that is where your Godfather will send you," Mr. Sarutobi nodded.

"Probably," Naruto shrugged.

"Good, Asuma, I mean, Mr. Sarutobi will be transferring over there as well," Mr. Chiriku said, placing a hand on the taller man's shoulder.

"I'll keep an eye on you," Mr. Sarutobi laughed, "I'll keep you out of trouble."

Naruto laughed, "Thanks, Mr. Sarutobi."

"Most of the students are headed to Suna, but you and one or two others will be going to Konoha," Mr. Sarutobi nodded.

"Ah, Gaara," Mr. Chiriku called the redhead over.

Gaara walked over and nodded to his teachers.

"Hey," Naruto said.

"Naruto," Gaara replied, as stoic as ever.

"You'll be headed to Suna, I assume, Gaara since your father is Chief of Police over there?" Mr. Sarutobi asked.

Naruto tensed up when he heard the words' Chief of Police', but he tried to play it off as quickly as possible. Gaara never spoke about his family, even though they were friends and hung out most days during their free time at school. He had no idea Gaara's father was the Chief of Police for Suna.

Although Naruto never spoke of his family, and Sora didn't either. So, it was most likely a silent agreement between them and an unspoken rule to not speak about your family.

"Yes," Gaara nodded, "My siblings attend Suna High."

"You have siblings?" Naruto asked.

"Yes," Gaara looked over at his friend, "I have two older siblings. My sister graduated last year, and my brother is a junior."

"Huh, I never knew," Naruto shook his head.

"Do you have siblings?" Gaara asked.

Naruto shook his head, "Nope, only child."

Gaara nodded, not pushing the topic further, to which Naruto was grateful.

"Well, I need to hit the club, so I'll see you guys later," Naruto said, waving as he walked away.

Moments before reaching his car, Naruto got a text on his phone. A few months earlier, Jiraiya had given him a car for his sixteenth birthday, not because he asked for one or the old man was being nice, but only because, in Jiraiya's words, "he was tired of driving Naruto everywhere."

It was a cheap little silver sedan that was probably older than he was, even though Jiraiya could afford something nicer, seeing as how the old man drove a freaking Tesla. The A/C barely worked, the headlights were so dim, and the window on the passenger side definitely didn't work. At least it would start.

Throwing his bag in the passenger seat, he pulled out his phone. It was from the club owner.

Pipe burst. The club is flooded. No sessions today.

"Damn," Naruto swore as he responded to the message, "I needed it today too."

Maybe I'll go for a run later then.

Starting up his car, Naruto headed home.

Naruto stepped out of his car in the driveway; at the same time, a school bus from Konoha High had stopped in front of the neighbor's house. When he reached the door, Naruto looked up out of habit and noticed a kid his age stepping off the bus. Black hair, fancy brand name clothes, the latest phone.

Some rich kid.

Then said kid looked up at him with the deepest black eyes he had ever seen. Naruto blinked a couple of times, then the kid looked away, heading to his own house next door. Naruto shook his head and walked inside.

"I'm home," Naruto called as he walked in the front door of the large house. He took off his shoes, placing them on the little rack…bench… thing by the front door.

"In here!" Jiraiya called back as Naruto trotted up the stairs.

When the kid reached the landing, he noticed the white hair poking up the other side of the couch that was facing away from the stairs and towards the fireplace, which was…lit? Naruto walked over and placed a hand on the back of the couch. Jiraiya was sitting cross-legged in front of the couch on the floor, and he was surrounded by paper everywhere. The normal ottoman they used as a coffee table was pushed to the side up against the wall of glass, which was actually a door that led to the large porch that wrapped around the house.

"No club today?" Jiraiya asked, looking up at him.

"No," Naruto shook his head, "Pipe burst and flooded the place."

"Oh man, that sucks."

"Yeah, it does."

"I meant for Yamato, not you," Jiraiya replied with an unamused look on his face.

"Oh, right, yeah, definitely sucks for Yamato," Naruto replied, giving his godfather a cheeky grin.

Jiraiya rolled his eyes and then turned back to what he was doing.

"Anyways, what are you doing, Ji?" Naruto asked, looking at the files that were spread on the floor.

"Looking at your father's case files," Jiraiya asked without looking up.

Naruto looked at him with confusion, "Why?"

"For you," Jiraiya replied, finally putting down the paper he was reading.

"Me?"

Jiraiya patted the ground next to him after pushing some papers out of the way, "Sit."

Naruto did as he was told. He flung his backpack on the couch and sat down on the floor, using the couch as a rest. Jiraiya looked at him, then handed him a single piece of paper.

"You told me yesterday that you didn't know if you believed in your father's innocence or if you believed that he was guilty," Jiraiya stated.

"Right."

"Well, today I pulled all the case files for you," Jiraiya said, motioning towards the array of paper.

"Ji, can you get to the point?"

"I want you to go through the case files," Jiraiya said, meeting the blonde's gaze, "Then, once you have all the facts, develop your own opinion."

Naruto was silent. He didn't know what to say or how to respond. He looked down at the paper. It was a simplified case paper. The basic facts.

"I don't know, Ji," Naruto shook his head, "I don't know if I can handle it."

"I think you can," Jiraiya placed a hand on the boy's shoulder.

"I don't know…"

"Look, I took out all the… inappropriate stuff… crime scene photos and such. You don't need to see that stuff; it'll give you nightmares. This stuff is just the basic facts, the simple evidence that was used at the trial. Just words. Naruto, I wouldn't have you do it if I didn't think that you could handle it."

Naruto sighed, "Alright."

"Good," Jiraiya placed both hands on his knees, then started to stand, "I'm going to start on dinner."

"Wait, what?" Naruto turned to the man who was walking away, "You aren't going to stay?"

"Nope," Jiraiya shook his head, "Do it on your own, kid."

Naruto gave him an aggravated look but didn't protest. Taking a deep breath, Naruto turned back to the files.

Throughout the evening, Jiraiya had dropped off some food and drink here and there. He turned on the light when it was getting dark, and then he brought his computer up from the basement to work on his novel.

It was late when Naruto had finished reading through everything.

"Ji."

The older man looked up from his place on the couch.

"I think I know," Naruto started.

"Really?"

"Yeah."

"So, what's your opinion?"

Naruto thought for a moment before responding. He looked up at his godfather.

"I don't think he did it," Naruto said.

"Really?"

Naruto held up a piece of paper and looked it over again, "It just doesn't seem to add up."

"Why's that?" Jiraiya asked, setting his computer down next to him on the couch.

"Well, they said one of his motives was the life insurance, but that doesn't make sense," Naruto thought out loud, "He wasn't the beneficiary. I am."

"But he was your guardian until you were eighteen; he would have control of the money," Jiraiya countered.

"No," Naruto shook his head, "If I read the policy correctly, Mom's money would go into a trust fund for me, and it would stay there until I am eighteen. No one could access it until it was to pay for any of my medical bills, and even then, it would pay the medical provider directly. Dad's money was supposed to go to mom. Dad had a job and income to support me if she died, but since mom didn't work, his life insurance was supposed to support her and me."

"Correct," Jiraiya nodded.

"They also said that Dad left his office at 2:05 PM based on the police department's cameras, and he got home at 2:35 PM, only minutes before the police arrived. Where was he for 30 minutes?" Naruto asked, "It doesn't take that long to get to the police station."

"Minato said there was an accident on the highway that delayed him, and he had also stopped in the parking garage to call me before pulling out," Jiraiya said, "The cameras in the parking garage show this as well."

"Why did he call you?"

Naruto looked up at him and confirmed.

"He asked me to pick you up from school since Kushina wasn't feeling well," Jiraiya replied simply.

"Oh."

"The cameras show that Minato pulled out of the parking garage at 2:15 PM," Jiraiya explained, "Even though it only took less than 10 minutes from the station to their house, the highway had an accident, which they have the accident report, but since no one was with Minato or saw him get stuck in the traffic, there was no way his lawyer could use it as an alibi."

"Oh."

"If he wasn't truly stuck in traffic, then he would have arrived at the house with enough time to…" Jiraiya trailed off.

"Enough time to kill mom," Naruto finished.

Jiraiya nodded.

"I still don't think he did it," Naruto shook his head.

"No," Jiraiya agreed, "I don't think so either."

"Why was he convicted?" Naruto asked, "There is enough reasonable doubt here."

"I know," Jiraiya sighed, "I think they convicted him as a publicity stunt."

"What do you mean?" Naruto asked.

"At the time, there were issues to corrupt cops getting away with illegal activities," Jiraiya explained, "I think since the public believed that he was guilty, they thought that it would be seen as a cop getting away with murder. They wanted to show the public that he wasn't going to get away with it just because he was the Chief of Police."

"They used him as a martyr," Naruto replied with a shocked voice.

"I think so," Jiraiya nodded.

"Why didn't he file an appeal?" Naruto asked.

"How do you know so much about the legal system?" Jiraiya asked.

"I am literally taking a class at school for criminal law, Ji," Naruto replied, a little annoyed that Jiraiya didn't remember.

"Oh, right," Jiraiya nodded, "Anyways, he did file an appeal twice, but each one took like a year or two to do, and they were both denied due to lack of substantial issues. By the time the second one was denied, your father had run out of money to pay the lawyer, and so he was advised to just wait out his sentence."

Naruto nodded, and it grew quiet for a while. Jiraiya went back to writing, and Naruto was still reading over the case files.

"Ji?" Naruto asked.

"What's up?"

Naruto turned to him fully, "Why have I not spoken to him?"

"What do you mean?"

"Is Dad not allowed to have visitors or write letters? Phone calls?"

"No, he is allowed."

"Then why have I never visited him? Or have you received any letters or phone calls? Why have I never heard from him?"

Jiraiya sighed; he was afraid of this. He knew Naruto was going to ask about it. He hesitated before giving him an answer.

"He thought it was for the best," Jiraiya stated simply.

"He thought that never speaking to his son was for the best?" Naruto asked; there was an edge to his voice. Naruto was teetering on the edge of rage.

Jiraiya knew he needed to word the next sentence in the right way to keep Naruto sane.

"Do you know anything about your grandfather?" Jiraiya asked.

"My grandfather?" Naruto blinked at the sudden change in subject, "Um, no."

"Minato's father, Masato, was a very violent man. He ended up going to prison when your father was a young teenager. Minato never told me why or what he was convicted of, but I know that it was a violent felony. It was a life sentence. It made Minato's life very difficult in the early years. He almost didn't even get into the police academy because of it. He knows how hard it is to grow up with a father in prison," Jiraiya explained.

"Oh," Naruto replied.

"After he was convicted, he asked me to raise you, but he also asked that I find a way to make sure that your relation to him wasn't well known. He wanted to spare you from the difficulties he went through," Jiraiya continued, "Part of that included not speaking to you."

"Oh."

"You've said that a lot tonight," Jiraiya teased.

"Shut up," Naruto leaned over and whacked him with the spiral notebook he was using to keep notes of the case.

Jiraiya laughed.

"What if I want to, Ji?"

"Want to what?"

"What if I want to talk to my dad? Can I visit him? Or call him?" Naruto asked, turning the conversation back to a serious tone.

Jiraiya gave him a huge smile, "I was hoping you would say that."

Naruto was taken aback, "What?"

Jiraiya sat up off the back of the couch to lean forward with his elbows on his knees. He was still smiling at him.

"Don't be creepy, Ji," Naruto said and leaned back a bit.

Jiraiya grabbed the spiral notebook that he was wacked with earlier out of Naruto's hands and then hit said boy over the head with it, "I'm not creepy, you perverted teenager."

"Ow," Naruto rubbed the top of his head and snatched the notebook back, giving the older man an annoyed look.

"Anyways," Jiraiya shook his head, "I actually went to see Minato today while you were at school."

Naruto looked up from rubbing his head, "You talked to Dad today?"

"Yes, I did," Jiraiya nodded, "I went to see him about his parole, he needed something from me."

"What?"

Jiraiya nodded, "He need a suitable place to live, and they had to approve the address."

Naruto looked at him, confused, "What do you mean?"

"His release date is a little over a month from now, but he needed an address to submit with the parole paperwork before it goes to the commissioner for approval."

"Oh."

Jiraiya gave him a teasing look at the word he used.

"Shut up," Naruto mumbled.

"But he also wanted me to tell you that he wanted to talk to you first," Jiraiya stated.

"He wants to talk to me?" Naruto clarified.

"Yeah," Jiraiya nodded, "You don't have school on Monday; it's a teacher workday. I know you had planned on spending the day at the range, then at the club in the afternoon, but I thought that might have been a good time for us to go down there. We can't go on the weekends."

"Wait, I'd be going to the prison? He's not going to call?" Naruto asked.

"No, he wanted to talk to you in person," Jiraiya explained.

"Okay," Naruto nodded.

"So, you will go?" Jiraiya asked.

Naruto looked up and smiled at him, "Yeah, I'll go."