Chapter 1
A seven year old Naruto Uzmaki was walking through the park in Konoha when he heard a cry from what sounded like a little girl. Looking at a nearby thicket of bushes he walks over and peers through the leaves.
Looking in his face is marred with an angry frown. In a small clearing behind the bushes is a group of three boys bullying a little girl with dark blue hair that falls to her shoulders. She was crouched with tears falling from her puffy dark purple eyes. She was kicked to the ground and one of the boys planted their foot on her head.
Naruto had enough and ran up behind the boy with his foot on the girl's head and punched him in the face. "Leave her alone!" Naruto shouted as he ran to help the girl. The boy stumbled to the ground, landing on his butt as the other two moved to flank Naruto.
The boy who got punched in the face got up and glared at the smaller blond boy, he was most likely the leader of the group. "Isamu, Akio grab him!" He ordered as the two flanking Naruto moved and grabbed both his arms and pulled them behind his back.
Naruto struggled but failed to escape the hold as the head honcho walked up to him and punched him in the gut as hard as he could. Naruto's eyes went wide as the air was knocked out of his body. His legs gave out but he was held up by the two minions. Naruto got punched and smacked until the boy was bored of wailing on the defenseless blond.
Naruto was dropped unceremoniously to the ground, his lip and nose bleeding and his right eye black from a well placed punch. Naruto landed with his face in the dirt, the group of three boys walked off laughing at the little blue eyed 'brat'.
"Are you okay?" Naruto raised his head and saw the girl he had attempted to save kneeling next to his downed form.
Naruto managed to wheeze out a response, still sore from his recent beating, "I'm fine, it'll heal after a good nights rest." His face grew a worried expression as he gazed into the still slightly red and puffy eyes of the girl. "I should be asking you that."
The girl smiled at Naruto as she reached her hand out to help him up, "They were just saying mean things," She pouted with her lips sticking out, "They're just a lot of losers."
Naruto laughed, but winced as a bruise on his chest got irritated from his movements. "That's right!" He raised his fist in the air " Believe it!" He shouted with a smile showing off his pearly white teeth. "Do you want to be my friend?" He asked the girl hopefully.
"I'll be your friend" She covered her mouth with her hands as she giggled at Naruto's exclamation of 'believe it'. "My name's Akari."
Naruto's chest puffed out "I am Naruto Uzumkai, the future hokage of the Konoha." He grabbed Akari's hand and dragged her over to a swing set not far away, not being able to contain the excitement of making his first friend.
XXX
It had been a week since Naruto and Akira had become friends, the duo had been together most of that week, playing together in the park. The only time the two would separate would be when they went home. Naruto would go to his run down apartment and Akira would return to the orphanage.
Naruto and Akira were sitting at Ichiraku's ramen stall, Naruto sat with Akira to his left and Hiruzen Sarutobi, the third hokage, to his right.
"So Naruto-kun, who is your friend?" The elderly hokage asked the much younger blond.
"This," He wrapped his arm around the girl's shoulder, "is Akari, my best friend."
Akari blushed slightly as Naruto pulled her against him, doing a good job of hiding it. "Naruto saved me from some bullies a few days ago." She told the hokage, confidently with a large smile.
Hiruzen ruffled Naruto's hair, the boy giving him a beaming smile. "You did well my boy." The three sat and conversed, Hiruzen acting more as an observer than a participant in the conversation. "Naruto-kun, soon you will be starting the academy. Are you excited?"
Naruto nodded his head energetically, a few noodles hanging from his mouth. "I'm ready, soon I will be the hokage, believe it." The blond pushed his fifth bowl of ramen to the side, having just finished it.
"Akari-chan, are you interested in going to the ninja academy?" The elderly man inquired. "I'm sure Naruto-kun would like the company."
The small girl shook her head, her short hair waving side to side. "I'm not going to attend the academy, hokage-sama." She bowed her head curtly.
Naruto having just shoved another bunch of noodles into his mouth pouted, some broth dripping down his chin. Akari grabbed a napkin and whipped the broth from her blue eyed companion's face. "We can't take you anywhere, you need to work on your manners." She attempted to scold Naruto but couldn't keep a straight face as he crossed his arms and puffed his cheeks out.
XXX
—Four Years Later—
Naruto walked to the front of the classroom, going through a few hand signs. "Clone jutsu!" In a puff of smoke and deceped and pale looking Naruto appeared, laying on the wooden floor.
"I'm sorry Naruto, I can't let you pass." Iruka shook his
"No, if he can't perform the jutsu correctly then he can't pass the test." Iruka reaffirmed, "and that's final."
Naruto lowered his head and walked out of the room, ignoring the sniggers and laughing coming from his classmates.
Outside the academy there were many families happily congratulating their children on passing the exam, laughing and smiling. On a nearby tree a nearly silent creaking of the swings chains could be heard. Naruto sat, looking directly down at the grass, clenching his fists as tightly as he could around the metal chains.
"Naruto," Mizuki stood behind the recently failed academy student, arms crossed over his chest and a stern expression across his face, "There is another way for you to pass."
XXX
—Midnight—
Naruto snuck his way into the hokage's office and managed to get his hands on the rather large secret scroll. He was lugging it along with him through the forests on the outskirts of the village.
"I think this is the place." He murmured to himself as he let the scroll fall to the ground. "I just have to wait for Mizuki-sensei to come for the exchange."
Naruto sat down cross legged, unfurling the scroll and looking through it to see if 5ere was any cool jutsu he could learn. His eyes landed on the 'Shadow Clone Jutsu'. His eyes wandered to the hand sign sequence, seeing it was only a single sign he decided to try it.
He rose to his full, rather unimpressive, height and made the seal. "Shadow Clone Jutsu!" His eyes widened when he saw he managed to do the jutsu successfully, a couple dozen clones stood in the same pose as the original, their fists raised and a wide smile on all their faces.
"Damn it, what's taking so long" Naruto had looked through the scroll for a while but all the other jutsu seemed to make no sense to the blond. He sat plucking at the grass as he waited. Unfortunately the wait wouldn't be much longer.
Mizuki landed on a branch, wearing the regular chunin attire with the addition of two massive shireken on his back. The blue haired man leaped from the tree and landed in front of Naruto, letting the shorter boy be able to see what was to be exchanged. On the chunin sensei's shoulder was a bound and gaged Akari, struggling to escape from her captor.
"Akari!" Naruto jumped to a standing position, pulling out a kunai readying himself to protect her. "Mizuki-sensei put her down!"
"What's with all the yelling brat." Mizuki let the girl fall from her spot on his shoulder so she was standing on shaky legs in front of him. "This is the test, you agreed to it." The venom in Mizuki's voice on full display, hatred dozing off his tongue.
Naruto was looking into Akari's big and teary eyes, a bruise was on her left cheek and a small amount of blood leaked from her nose. Naruto's eyes hardened as he grabbed the scroll from the ground, ready to hand it over.
"Good job demon, toss the scroll over." A kunai was brought to Akari's throat, her breathing getting heavier and faster, "or else I kill her."
A low rumbling growl emanated from Naruto's throat as he threw the scroll to Mizuki, easily being caught by him. "Let her go." Naruto's voice was low and demanding, rage evident in his burning blue orbs.
"What if I don't… Haven't you wondered why you are so hated?" Mizuki chuckled a little, "It's the same reason why I will kill you and this demon lover." Naruto didn't reply, too angry to be able to think of any words.
"It's because you are the kyuubi, the demon fox!" Mizuki roared at the boy, spit flying from his mouth. "Now this little demon lover is going to die because of you." The kunai on Akari' throat was lifted and then plunged into her chest. She wheezed as a lung was punctured, tears rolling down her face as she clenched her eyes closed.
Naruto felt like his whole world was falling apart, his only friend dying because of him. The only thought going through his mind was killing the bastard who stabbed Akari. An intense burning sensation came from his gut, followed by the feeling of power to wash over him.
XXX
"mmmn so he uses the foxes chakra." A man hidden in the nearby shadows watched the interaction very closely. His orange mask with a swirling pattern around his right eye. A sharingan blazing through the hole. "This could be useful."
XXX
Naruto had dropped to stand on all fours, a transparent cloak of burning red chakra in the form of a one tailed fox surrounding him. His canine teeth extended out into fangs, whisker marks becoming more jagged and thicker and his nails transformed into claws. The boy released a guttural roar that emanated through the forest and into the village.
A shiver ran up Mizuki's spine as Naruto transformed, those bloody red eyes with the slits staring him down causing him to shake uncontrollably. He let Akari drop to the ground as he reached behind himself to grasp one of the shireken. Aiming with a shaky arm he threw it, only for it to be smacked out of the way by a charging Naruto.
Running on all fours, Naruto appeared in front of Mizuki in a blink of an eye. A slash with his claws over the chunin's chest caused blood to gush out and spray across Naruto's face. Mizuki bit back a scream as some demonic chakra leaked into the wound, sending burning pain through his body.
Naruto didn't let up as he rammed his shoulder into the taller man's gut, knocking the wind out of him. Mizuki stumbled back as Naruto charged into him, falling onto his back with Naruto on top of him. Naruto brought his fist down as hard as he could, a sickening snapping noise coming Mizuki's nose.
Mizuki grunted as his nose was broken, blood pouring from his nostrils as he tried to get the kyuubified Naruto off him. He reached into his kunai pouch and pulled out one of the sharp metal objects, and jabbed it into Naruto's side. A guttural noise came from Naruto as the metal object dug into his flesh. He pulled the knife out, steam rising from the wound as it sealed completely. Using the blade Naruto began to slice at his former instructor's face and chest, surface wounds just deep enough to bleed.
Mizuki was whimpering as the slashes began to get deeper into his flesh, one slicing across his left eye and destroying it. Naruto cackled demonically as he caused pain to the chunin under him, blood coating his face and hands.
Naruto got bored of slashing the man and decided to stab the kunai into his shoulder. Bringing the knife to the man's shoulder he plunged it inside, pushing through deep enough for the tips of his chakra coated fingers to enter the puncture and begin to pour chakra into Mizuki.
Mizuki began to scream wildly as his body was racked with unimaginable pain. Getting sick of the pathetic man's screaming, Naruto lowered his head and dug his fang like teeth into his throat. Gurgling noises came from Mizuki, the last thing he would see was the demonic slitted eyes staring into his soul with nothing but pure hate.
Naruto felt the red chakra surrounding him begin to recede, leaving him feeling tired. He stood off the dead man's corpse, kicking his head hard enough to snap his neck. Walking away from Mizuki he knelt down next to Akari who by some miracle was not dead yet. Her face was pale and her breathing shallow. "I'm sorry" Naruto whispered as he hugged the girl close to him, her body colder than it should be. "It's my fault yo-"
Akari cut him off as she kissed his cheek, caressing his head. "It's not our fault." She closed her eyes and her head went limp in his hands. Naruto began to sob into her shirt, her blood still leaking from the stab wound.
Naruto looked up as a man appeared only a foot away from him. "I see your little friend here is hurt. I might be able to help." His voice was gruf and deep, the sole sharingan eye looking into Naruto's blood shot ones.
"Who are you?" Naruto asked, drawing out a kunai preparing to protect himself.
"Who am I indeed… that is not important now." The man approached, putting two fingers to the side of Akari's neck, "She is not dead, but in about a minute she will be. Do you want me to save her?"
"Yes!" Naruto shouted, "Save her… please." He grew quieter as he spoke.
"Very well." The masked man made a hand sign and a man with pure white skin and green hair rose from the ground, and already knowing what to do he melted into a blob of goo and wrapped around Akari's body.
Naruto stumbled back, confused by what was going on,"What is that?"
"That was a white zestu, he will heal your friend." The mystery man stood and looked down at Naruto who still knelt by Akari. "It will take a long time to heal her, her wounds were severe."
Naruto lowered his head and punched the ground, "I Should have been able to protect her."
The sharingan behind the mask spun as the man's deep voice entered Naruto's ears,"How about we make a deal… I will train you" The man paused, mulling over his next words,"and you will work for me and only me."
Naruto kept his head down, thinking about whether he should agree. His mind wandered to the years of mistreatment from this village, he was expected to protect the same village who wanted him dead, and the same village that nearly took Akari from him. "I agree, master." Naruto's head rose as he looked into the single eye hole of the orange mask.
"Very well then, we will talk soon." The man began to disappear in a swirling vortex coming from his sharingan. "I will watch the girl" he said before vanishing completely along side the Akari's zestu covered body.
Just after The man was gone what could only be described as an army of leaf ninja landed in the clearing, leading the army was Hiruzen Sarutobi. Naruto's back was to the congregation of ninjas, he turned around slowly, a small smile on his blood covered face, his eyes staring down every shinobi in the crowd.