Chapter Text
Now to clarify, this is how you should read the text
"Talking"
'Thinking.'
"flash-back"
Episode (everything in bold is from the episode)
--
Silently, Sarutobi Hiruzen observes the people he has called into the specially prepared interrogation room. Comfortable chairs have been added to the otherwise sterile white room.
His own two students, Jiraiya and Tsunade stand a bit further away and as far away from each other as possible. That isn't a big surprise, especially taking into account the twitching Tsunade's face is doing, and Jiraiya's black eye. Namikaze Minato stands next to Jiraiya. He laughs silently at his sensei.
He sighs and looks towards the blond hidden in the shadows. If only Yamanaka Inoichi, the current head of the Intelligence Division, had confirmed the blond to be a spy... It would have been so much easier. But the clan leader has confirmed the younger blond's story and insisted on performing this jutsu. Nara Shikaku and Akimichi Chouza stand with their teammate.
Hiruzen clears his throat and immediately gains everyone's attention. "I'm sure you're all wondering why you're here. Have a seat and I'll explain."
Curious looks are exchanged as they comply. It’s strange to see them all look up to him like this, from their couches as if they are all seated in a small movie theater.
"A few hours ago, an unknown shinobi appears in my office with the help of a seal. He is unconscious and badly hurt. The seal disappears immediately afterward. Inoichi takes him into custody. What he sees in the boy's mind, is later confirmed by the boy himself. Inoichi strongly recommended performing a special clan jutsu of his which will allow multiple people to view the boy's memories at the same time." He pauses briefly, giving the shinobi present time to think about what he just is.
"Who is he?" asks Shikaku bluntly, frown marring his face. "It's clear he's not a spy or there would be more people from the Intelligence Division present to record the memories and there would have been no need for us to be here. Let alone for this setup."
Hiruzen nods, having expected the Nara clan head to catch on quickly. "Quite right. He is a Konoha shinobi and we find out he won't be born for a few years yet."
A stunned silence fills the room.
"Hokage-sama, are you suggesting time travel?" asks Minato cautiously.
"That is the only explanation." Hiruzen speaks softly. "From what both Inoichi and the teenager explained, he somehow ended up here by accident at the end of the Fourth Shinobi World War."
"Fourth?" Questions Minato softly, a horrified look on his face which is mirrored by the others in the room.
Hiruzen nods. He knows it is hard to grasp. Even for him, the last few hours have been mind-blowing as well. They are, after all, still fighting in a war… But if whatever information they learn from this can give his village, his people, an advantage in this war, or in the years to come…? He can’t risk not knowing.
"Inoichi assured me that taking the time to watch these memories now would be more than worth it. That is why I wanted you all here. We are few in this room, and maybe later on I'll ask others to join us but for now, this will have to do. Others will lead Konoha while we are busy here."
"I have a question: are we going to watch the kid's whole life? And where is he anyway?" asks Tsunade, irritated.
He understands her irritation though. She’d probably rather be working in the hospital. People are dying all the time – they are at war, damn it!
"Inoichi, if you would?" He gestures to the Yamanaka clan head, who is standing next to their time-traveling visitor, having (strangely? Maybe? Maybe not?) attached himself to the teenager.
"Of course, Hokage-sama." The man steps forward, before gesturing behind him. "Naruto-kun, if you'd please step forward."
A blond teenager steps out of the shadows. He wears standard shinobi clothes they have given him, as his own outfit has been completely ruined upon arrival. Bright blue eyes study the others in the room almost eagerly, emotions changing so fast it is impossible to name them. He has three thin scars on each cheek, reminding them of whiskers. His Konoha hitai-ate is proudly displayed on his forehead. On the back of his hands are standard chakra-suppressing seals, making sure he can’t use any jutsu. Better safe than sorry. Until he has seen those memories, Hiruzen will be cautious. He can have them taken off at any time.
“Naruto-kun?” Minato asks, sharing a look with his sensei.
"The jutsu I will perform lets me project a person’s memories on a flat surface, like a wall. It won't show his whole life but shows important memories of his life. This happens chronologically. The oldest memories first. I control the jutsu so it can be stopped and resumed at any time. Almost like a movie."
"Important memories? Meaning you don't choose them?" As always, Shikaku is the one who caught the implication.
Inoichi shakes his head. "No, only memories that Naruto-kun considers to be milestones in his life."
"Any more questions?" Asks the Hokage.
"Not at the moment." Jiraiya grins, rubbing his hands together eagerly. "Let's get this show started!"
Inoichi gestures Naruto to move toward him. The blond teenager sits down in the chair just in front of the Yamanaka. Inoichi waits until everyone looks comfortable, turns out the light and paints a simple seal on the back of Naruto's neck. The 4 matching seals have already been painted on the wall. The rectangular space between the seals will work as a space for the images of the memories to be projected on.
He quickly goes through the required hand seals and activates the jutsu.
Small legs become visible, clad in blue ninja sandals and orange pants. It is a child, blond with goggles on his head, in a black t-shirt, and with a can of paint in his hand. The kid, not older than 12 years old, is laughing brightly. Two shinobi are chasing him around the village, clearly annoyed.
"Is that you? What did you do, brat?" asks Jiraiya.
"Yes, that's me. And I'm sure you'll be shown what I did." Grins Naruto.
"Why did you do such a thing?" one of them yells in anger at the child. "You're really going to get it this time!"
They chase the child around the village, passing below the Hokage monument. Someone has painted doodles on the faces of the four Hokages in different colors. Every Hokage has a bloody nose, and some scars and feminine eyelashes got added as well.
Jiraiya laughs loudly, nearly falling out of his chair in mirth.
The Sandaime immediately hits him on his head, making his student fall to the ground.
"I don't care, dattebayo!" yells the blond child. "You know your problem? You can't do the things I do! Only I can do this! I'm better than all of you! Believe it!"
Random shinobi can be heard screaming as the scene shifts to show the Hokage in his office. "There's a problem sir!"
"Hokage-sama."
“These aren’t the kid’s memories?” Shikaku mutters softly as he frowns at the images shown on the wall.
Sarutobi Hiruzen regards the shinobi who entered his office with a tired look.
"What is it?" His hand stills in the middle of writing a kanji. "Did Naruto do something again?"
"From that reaction, I'm assuming this happened before?" asks Minato amuses.
Naruto only laughs brightly at his (future-) father. Amused, he wonders what the man will do when he realizes that is his face up on the Hokage mountain. Still, it feels so good to interact with him. He has been raised as an orphan after all.
Without being too bothered, THe Hokage continues writing. The two shinobi in his office look frantic.
"Yes, he climbed onto the Hokage Mountain and …"
"And he vandalized and sprayed graffiti all over them!" the second shinobi interrupts.
Almost bored, as if it is a daily occurrence, the Hokage calmly blows out the smoke from his pipe.
Outside, the chase is still on. Two shinobi are still running after the blond kid named Naruto.
"Wait!"
After they pass an alley with wooden panels, a piece of cloth, painted to look just like the paneling, is removed to show a grinning blond.
With his hand rubbing the back of his head, the kid laughs, clearly thinking he has lost them.
"Idiots." mutters Hiruzen. He makes a mental note to look into his shinobi’s training regimen outside of war times.
"Why would I?" Naruto answers the shinobis' earlier demand from the memory as if they are still there.
An angry chunin, with his brown hair in a ponytail and a horizontal scar across his nose, appears behind him. "HEY, NARUTO!"
Not expecting that, the blond jumps high in the air, screaming. Somehow he turns around in mid-air and falls on his behind.
"How did you suddenly get here, Iruka-sensei?"
The chunin points a finger at him and frowns. "The question is: what are you doing here when you should be in class?"
The next scene shifts to show the Ninja Academy, with Iruka lecturing a tied-up Naruto in the classroom.
"You managed to outrun chunin ninja from our village while in the Academy?" asks Shikaku, grinning. "Not bad."
"Thanks." Naruto smiles back at the man.
"Now listen Naruto, you failed the last graduation test and the one before that. This is no time to be goofing off, you fool!"
"You failed two times already?" asks a skeptical Tsunade.
"Shut up, baa-chan." Naruto mutters, not happy to have to relive this and be held accountable for it. He’s just bad at school stuff, alright.
"What did you call me?" A murderous glint appears in her eyes as she raises a fist.
"Tsunade-sama, please don't." Inoichi reprimands the Sannin.
Naruto looks gratefully at the older blond.
"He needs to be conscious for the jutsu to work."
"Hey!" Naruto protests loudly, having his hopes of having found an alley here, dashed ruthlessly.
Inoichi shoots him a grin.
Iruka's eye twitches. Angry, he turns towards the other students.
"We will have a retest on the Henge no jutsu (Transformation technique)! Even those who already passed will take it!"
Immediately all the students groan.
First is a girl in a red dress with green eyes and long pink hair.
"Haruno Sakura." She presents herself. "Here I go… Henge." And with a sudden cloud of smoke, she transforms into a copy of Iruka.
"Good." Their teacher praises her with a smile.
She cheers as she canceled the jutsu. "Did you see that, Sasuke-kun?"
“Great, a fangirl." mutters Tsunade, with a disgusted look on her face.
"Next, Uchiha Sasuke."
The boy behind her in the line stoically comes forth. He wears white shorts and a blue shirt with the Uchiha clan symbol on the back. He also manages a successful transformation.
Iruka nods.
"Next, Uzumaki Naruto."
"Uzumaki? I thought Kushina is the last…" Minato mutters, shooting a look at the teenager sitting not too far from him. Is she the boy's mother? But why would he carry her name then? Why not his father's name?
In the background, kids are complaining to the blond clad in an orange jumpsuit. "This is all your fault!"
"Troublesome..."
"Like I care." mutters the blond.
Blue chakra spins around Naruto as he performs the jutsu and, with the trademark cloud of smoke, the kid transforms into a foxy, blond, and a very naked teenage girl who blows a kiss at the poor teacher. Iruka's mouth drops open and he is momentarily stunned, until what he sees registers. Then he flies backward from the force of his nosebleed.
Jiraiya has the same reaction as Iruka, only with a perverted grin on his face.
"What the hell is that?!" screams Tsunade in a rage.
"It's brilliant!" Jiraiya yells out once he gets back up.
Minato sighs as Tsunade almost sends his teacher through a wall for that remark. He turns towards his Hokage.
The man tilts his head in such a way that he can still see the screen, however, people can't see his face… Minato sweat-drops and the others in the room chuckle but only Naruto laughs outright.
"How is it? I call it Oiroke no Jutsu (Sexy jutsu)!"
Laughing loudly, Naruto doesn't notice his teacher's quick recovery. The man uses what has been known for generations as the Big-head-Jutsu and screams at the blond. "You fool! Stop making up such idiotic techniques!"
"Quite right." mutters Tsunade.
The scene shifts toward the Hokage monument. Naruto is cursing while trying to scrub off the paint.
"I won't let you go home until you clean that all up!" Iruka yells toward the child. He has his arms crossed and observes his student from the top of one of the Hokages' heads.
"I don't care." Naruto yells back, just as angry. "There's nobody home anyway!"
”What about your parents?" asks Minato.
The blond looks at him. "I'm an orphan."
Minato frowns. What did that mean? Did Kushina die? Is she even his mother? He still doesn't have a clue about who the father is, though he can hope… He and Kushina are dating at the moment and are planning on moving in together… On the other hand, if Kushina did die, as awful as that theory might be, what happened to the Kyuubi?
Brooding, the child continues scrubbing. Iruka looks at him for a while longer before he tries again.
"Naruto …"
The blond looks up, an annoyed look on his face. "What is it this time?"
"What I meant is… if you clean up this whole mess, I'll buy you ramen tonight." Stars appear in the boy's eyes.
"Yes! I'll finish it in no time, dattebayo!" Naruto exclaims enthusiastically.
Minato chuckles. That could have been Kushina's reaction! She too loves ramen with a passion.
Later that night Naruto and Iruka are eating ramen at Ichiraku's.
"Naruto, why did you vandalize the monument?" asks Iruka curious. "Don't you know who the Hokage are?"
"Of course I do." Naruto says with his mouth full of ramen. He drinks his bowl empty before continuing.
"Basically, those that receive the Hokage name are the strongest ninja in the village, right? Among them is the Fourth Hokage, who saved the village from the nine-tailed demon fox. "
"Then why did you do that?"
"Because I'll become a Hokage myself, and then I'm going to surpass all the previous Hokage!" Naruto finishes that sentence by pointing his chopsticks at his teacher."
"Nice dream, kid." Minato smiles at Naruto, who grins back happily.
"A fool's dream." Tsunade scoffs.
"I don't want to hear that from you!" Naruto bursts out laughing.
Tsunade frowns. She isn't sure she liked this kid. What does he mean by that anyway?
"And then! And then, I'll make the village recognize my strength! By the way, sensei, I have a favor to ask… "
"What, you want seconds?"
"No… Can I borrow your leaf head protector?" Naruto begs him with an innocent smile.
"Oh, this?" Iruka points at his headband. "No, no, this is for after you graduate. This is a symbol that you've come of age. Maybe you'll get one tomorrow."
"Stingy." the blond pouts.
"Nice try." the Sandaime smiles.
Iruka laughs. "So that's why you removed your goggles."
"Seconds!" the kid screams in vengeance.
"Huh?!
Minato smiles, amused by the exchange. It does seem like Naruto is close to his teacher.
"Not to be a spoil-sport, but why are we seeing this? I mean, you can't tell me this is an important moment in your live." Shikaku mutters.
"It's not like I get to choose which memories you see. The really important parts will be shown later, I guess…" Naruto pouts a little.
The next day sees them back in the classroom.
"Now for the graduation exam, you will do the bunshin no jutsu. When you are called, come to the next room." Iruka says with a name list in his hands.
Naruto is anxiously waiting for his turn. 'Damn, why that one? That's my worst skill…'
When it is finally his turn, his bunshin looks as if it is dying…
"Fail!"
"No offense kid, but that's the third time you failed the academy's graduation exam. You sure know how to be stubborn, but are you sure you're the best person to have traveled back in time to help us change the future?" asks Shikaku skeptically.
"I didn't travel back in time on purpose. It is an accident!" Naruto cries indignantly. "But does that mean you officially believe me now?"
The Hokage nods. "I believed you since the beginning of these memories. Inoichi's jutsu, while not used a whole lot, does not allow fake memories to be shown with this kind of clarity. We would have noticed the difference by now."
Naruto smiles at that, feeling relieved.
Disappointed, Naruto falls down.
"Iruka-sensei…" speaks the white-haired chunin next to the teacher. "This is the third time, and he did technically create a clone… we can let him pass."
Naruto looks hopeful at that.
"No way, Mizuki-sensei. Everyone else makes three clones but Naruto only created one and it is a useless one. I can't let him pass." Iruka remains firm in his choice.
“Honestly, I can sort of see where he is coming from. Though the fact you can outrun chuunin should be taken into account as well. Did you do better on the other tests?” Minato reluctantly speaks up.
“What other tests?”
The adults in the room blink at the teenager.
“... the academy graduation test right now, is a written test, with a taijutsu test, a genjutsu, and a ninjutsu test that follows. Are you telling me they only tested your ninjutsu skills?”
“I mean… yeah?”
The adults share a troubled look. Hiruzen can’t help but wonder why that changed because it looks very inefficient to him. Hmmm…
Next, they see Naruto sitting on a swing just outside the Academy. In front of the building, graduated students are celebrating with their parents. Miserable and lonely, he watches them.
"Great job! That's my son!"
"Now you're a man!"
"I'm so proud of you! I'm going to make your favorite dinner."
And then, the whispers start as the adults look toward Naruto.
"Hey, that kid…"
"Yeah, that's the kid and he's the only one who failed."
"Well, that's good.”
"What?" Hizuren frowns. Konoha's citizens are glad an orphan boy doesn't become a shinobi? Why?
"We can't have him becoming a shinobi. Since, he is…"
"Hey, we can't talk about that!"
They all frown. What is going on?
Refusing to listen any more, Naruto quickly leaves.
In the village, Mizuki-sensei catches up with the blond. "Naruto…"
"Mizuki-sensei?"
"Iruka-sensei is a serious person." the chunin explains. "His parents are killed when he is young and he's had to do everything himself."
"But why does he pick on me?" pouts Naruto.
Mizuki smiles. "He probably sees himself in you. He's probably thinking he wants you to become strong in a real way. Try to understand Iruka's feelings, since you also have no parents."
Naruto looks down at his hands, a sad look in his eyes. "… but I wish I had graduated."
"Well then," grins Mizuki. "I'll tell you a secret…"
"What is he doing?" asks Jiraiya silently.
The scene changes again.
Naruto is shown sneaking around in the Hokage tower, in the dead of night.
"What are you doing here at this hour?" asks the third Hokage bluntly as he catches Naruto in the act.
The blond makes a noise of surprise and cries in reflex: "Sexy no jutsu!"
"Wha-?"
Overwhelmed by the pretty lady before him, the Hokage passes out in a puddle of blood.
Jiraiya once again falls off his chair laughing. "Sensei, y-you…"
This time it is Hiruzen who hits him on the head.
Naruto continues on and is seen searching through scrolls. He finds the right one and leaves without anyone noticing. He quickly goes to a hidden clearing in the forest and opens the scroll.
"Let's see… the first skill is… kage bunshin? (shadow clone) What the hell? Why does it start with one I'm bad at?"
"Are you going to try and learn a jutsu from that scroll? Kage bunshin is a dangerous technique." says Minato worried.
"The only scroll that has that jutsu in it is the forbidden scroll. Why would you take it?" asks Hiruzen.
"It's explained later on." mutters Naruto. He isn't looking forward to the next part. What would they think of him? He knows some of them know that his mother is the previous jinchuuriki, but still …
Later, Iruka finds Naruto in his clearing. The boy is panting hard and has the scroll on his back.
"I found you!" yells an irritated Iruka.
"Oh, I found the nose bleeder!" Naruto screams enthusiastically.
"Idiot, I found you!" screams Iruka in response. It is only then the chunin takes the time to study his student.
"You're such a comedy dude." grins Jiraiya.
"Oh, yeah, I am the best prankster!" Naruto beams at the man, only a small sliver of pain entering his heart as he interacts with his old teacher.
"Hehehe, you found me." grins a sheepish Naruto. "I've only learned one skill."
"You managed it? But that jutsu requires a huge amount of chakra?" Minato asks stunned.
"I always had big chakra reserves. It's because of that, and my almost non-existent chakra control, that I can't do an ordinary bunshin." Naruto shrugs.
"Naruto, you're all beaten up. What are you doing?"
"Never mind that! I'm going to try an incredible jutsu. If I do it, let me graduate!"
"Why would he graduate you for that?" asks Chouza with a frown, speaking up for the first time. He doesn't like where this is going.
Iruka blinks. 'So you are practicing here? Enough to damage your body…' The boy is covered in bruises but still, he makes the hand signs for his jutsu.
"Naruto?"
"Hn?" the kid looks up, eyes screwed up in concentration.
"Where did you get that scroll on your back?"
"Oh this? Mizuki-sensei told me about it. And about this place too." Worried, Iruka frowns.
"He says that if I show you this skill, I'll definitely graduate!"
"Mizuki?"
"It seems we have a traitor." Observes the Hokage grimly.
Hearing something, Iruka quickly pushes Naruto out of the way, taking the hit of different kunai being launched at the child himself.
"Nice job finding him." smiles Mizuki, who suddenly appears.
Pulling loose a kunai, Iruka glares at his friend. "I see, so that's what’s going on…"
"Naruto, give me the scroll." the white-haired man screams with a grin.
"What's going on here?" asks Naruto. He looks so confused you can almost see a question mark appear above his head.
"Come on, kid, it's not that hard to connect the facts." Reprimands Shikaku.
"Hey!"
"Naruto, don't give him the scroll even if you die!" orders Iruka. The man is bleeding from various wounds.
"That is a dangerous scroll that has forbidden ninjutsu sealed within it. Mizuki used you in order to get his hands on it!"
Shaking, Naruto stands up.
"Naruto, there is no point in you having it. I'll tell you the truth." the traitor taunts the child.
"The truth?" Naruto asks, more confused than ever.
"No, don't!" screams Iruka desperately.
"Twelve years ago… You know about the demon fox being sealed away, right?" Mizuki continues to taunt him. "Since that incident, a new rule was created for the village."
"Sealed away? The Kyuubi has been sealed again?" asks Minato.
Naruto nods sombrely. Minato sighs, finally understanding. He closes his eyes and mutters: "Jinchuuriki…"
Naruto eyes his father with wide eyes. He didn’t think he would have figured it out so soon, even with his mother having been the jinjuuriki before him.
The others in the room nod in understanding but don't give any other reaction. Naruto isn’t sure what to make of it.
"… A rule?" asks Naruto.
"But Naruto, this rule is never meant to be told to you." the traitor continues talking.
"Not to me? What is this rule? Why?" asks Naruto, frantic.
“That is strange. Why wouldn’t you of all people have been told?” Shikaku mutters softly.
Yet, Naruto hears him, and can’t help but agree. He has been wondering about that for years.
Mizuki chuckles.
"What kind of rule is it?" Naruto asks again with wide blue eyes.
"The rule is that nobody is allowed to talk about the fact that you are the demon fox." Mizuki sneers at him.
"He's not the fox, only its jailor."Minato says with a strong voice.
Naruto sighs relieved and smiles at the man. Minato, seeing the beautiful smile on the boy's face, smiles back.
"Huh? What do you mean?" screams Naruto again, his voice slightly breaking.
"STOP IT!" yells Iruka.
"It means that you are the Kyuubi that killed Iruka's parents and destroyed the village! You are sealed up by the Hokage you admire and…"
"Oh, shut it, you idiot." Minato really doesn't like the white-haired man.
"Stop it!" Iruka tries again.
"You have been lied to by everyone!" Mizuki continues as if Iruka isn't there. "Don't you find it odd how everyone hated you?"
"Why did they tell the whole village?! The identity of the Kyuubi Jinchuuriki has always been one of Konoha's most guarded secrets!" Minato yells in anger. "Which idiot decided to reveal it to the village after what sounds like a massive attack from the fox?!"
Naruto shrugs. "Apparently, the Yondaime Hokage wished for the village to view me as a hero."
"Really, who the hell is that naïve?!"
Naruto can't help but laugh with that. Oh, the irony…
Tears gather in Naruto's eyes.
"Iruka is the same! He actually hates you!"
"Naruto!" calls Iruka worried about the young boy's reaction. He closes his eyes and heard again what the third Hokage have said to him earlier that day.
"He's never known a parent's love and is hated by all the villagers because of that incident."
"Nobody will ever accept you." Mizuki yells as he surges forward.
"So to get attention… he causes a lot of trouble. He's seeking acknowledgment of his existence in any possible way."
"That scroll is used to seal you up." Mizuki has almost reached the blond.
"He acts tough but he is truly suffering."
Blood flies across the screen. Iruka is seen covering Naruto with his body as the great Wind shuriken Mizuki has thrown is sticking out of his back. Blood drips from the man's mouth onto Naruto's whiskered cheeks. Tears gather once more in the boy's eyes.
"Why?"
"M-my parents, after they died, there is nobody to compliment me or acknowledge me. I was so sad… I would always act like an idiot to get people's attention." Iruka tried to explain. “Since I wasn't able to get attention by doing well in school. I acted like an idiot to get people to notice me because it was better than nothing. So I kept acting like an idiot."
"They sure know how to monologue..." Shikaku mutters. "This is taking too long. Why would the traitor wait for Iruka to finish? Not that I'm complaining in this case, but does this sort of thing happen often?"
Naruto rubs his hand against his chin, thinking. "Usually it's only the bad guys." he grins. "But they get so arrogant that most of the time you know the details of their plans before they finish speaking, so I'm not complaining."
"It is so painful." Iruka is crying now "Yeah, Naruto, you must have been in a lot of pain too. I'm sorry, Naruto, if I have done a better job, you won't have have to feel like this."
Naruto hesitates for a second and then, clearly overwhelmed, the boy runs away.
The scene changes and Naruto is running through the trees now.
He runs as far away from his teachers as his feet can carry him. Iruka gains on him, having chased him through the trees.
"Naruto!" Iruka runs beside the boy. "Hurry! Pass me the scroll. Mizuki is after it!"
Mid-jump Naruto changes directions and tackles his teacher.
They watch the screen in tense silence.
The man flies back as Naruto lands and clutches the scroll in his arms.
"What?" Iruka gapes at the child. "Why? Naruto… How did you know I wasn't Iruka?" And with that Mizuki stops the transformation jutsu and Iruka disappears.
"Hehehe." laughs Naruto. A sudden cloud of smoke appears to reveal Iruka. "Because I'm Iruka."
"Nice." Cheers Jiraiya.
"I see." Sneers the white-haired man.
Unknown to both men, Naruto is hiding behind a tree a bit further away. Clutching the real scroll, he can hear their conversation.
"Hehehe, you'd transform into what killed your parents to protect him?"
"I won't hand that scroll over to an idiot like you!" Iruka yells back.
"You're the idiot." mocks Mizuki.
"Naruto and I are the same." The man almost whispers as he looks down.
"The same?"
Hearing this, Naruto frowns.
"If you use the skills in that scroll, you can do whatever you want. There's no way that demon fox won't try to use that power, unlike what you're assuming." Mizuki laughs.
"Yeah…" Iruka agrees with a soft smile.
Minato frowns again.
"Oh, can you just move on already?! Stop talking and do something!" If it wasn't so troublesome, Shikaku would have shouted.
Naruto flinches hearing this.
'Damn it, I knew it… see, even Iruka-sensei… Deep down … doesn't acknowledge me.'
Minato reaches for the kid and places his hand on his shoulder. The younger blond smiles thankfully at him. Jiraiya notices the two smiling blonds’ and tilts his head as he sees the similarities between them.
"The demon fox would do that…" Iruka interrupts Naruto's depressing thoughts, "but Naruto is different. He is …I acknowledge him as one of my excellent students. He may not be the hardest worker…"
Naruto hugs the scroll to himself and tries to hide his face in it.
"And he's clumsy so nobody accepts him. He already knows what it is to feel pain in your heart. He isn't the demon fox anymore…"
Again a brief flash of Naruto's hunched form is shown. "He is a member of the hidden leaf village."
The tears the boy has tried to contain since the beginning of the day, finally fall. "He's Uzumaki Naruto!"
They all smile at that.
Naruto is shaking, trying to calm down, to regain control of his emotions and not makes any noise.
Mizuki grimaces. "Ok, whatever…" he takes his second great wind shuriken from his back.
Weak from blood loss, Iruka can only watch from his seat against a tree.
"Iruka, I said I would take care of you later, but I changed my mind. Hurry up and die!" Mizuki throws the weapon.
Iruka smiles but doesn't move. He doesn't need to.
Unexpectedly, Naruto appears and head-buts the attacking shinobi.
"Finally something happened." mutters Shikaku bored.
"Would you shut up about that?!" cries the youngest blond in the room.
"Naruto?!"
"You shouldn’t have done that…" mutters Mizuki, slowly getting up.
"Don't touch Iruka-sensei. I'll kill you!” With the scroll resting on the ground but still in his hand, Naruto glares.
"You tell him kid!" yells Chouza enthusiastically.
"You idiot! Why did you come out? Run away!" Iruka yells.
"Shut up! Punks like you I finish in one shot!" Mizuku readies himself to attack again.
"Try it, trash! I'll return the pain a thousand times over!" The boy forms a hand seal. Mizuki only laughs mockingly.
"Then do it, demon fox!"
"Kage bunshin no jutsu!"
However, both chunin gasp in shock at what followed next.
Tha people watching the memories react the same way. None of them had expected this…
Hundreds of Naruto appear. The whole clearing is filled with them!
"Wow, nice work kid!" Jiraiya gives him a thumbs up.
Naruto grins, especially when he sees his father gaping.
"Wha-? What's going on?" Mizuki cries, wide-eyed.
"What's wrong?" mocks Naruto. "Come at me! Weren't you going to kill me in one shot?"
Stunned, Iruka only watches. 'Naruto, you…'
"Well then, I'll start things off!" And with that, all the clones start attacking the traitor.
Iruka smiles as only one Naruto remained next to Mizuki's beaten form.
"Serves him right." Minato beams at the screen.
"Hehe, I went a little too far…" Naruto rubs the back of his head sheepishly.
Iruka smiles. "Naruto, come over here. There's something I want to give you. Close your eyes."
Naruto does as told. Impatient as ever, he doesn't stay still for long. "Sensei, now?"
"Ok, you can open your eyes."
His eyes fly open and Iruka sits before him. He is smiling and holding Naruto's goggles in his hand. His headband is missing.
"Congratulations on graduating! Let's celebrate; I'll buy you a bowl of ramen. Overjoyed, Naruto tackles Iruka in a hug, laughing happily.
"Well, that is nice." smiles Shikaku as the images disappear. "Is that it?"
"It's the first of many to come." grins Inoichi.
“How many, exactly?” The Nara moans.
Minato puts his hand on Naruto's shoulder again. "Congratulations."
Blushing, Naruto feels himself smile so widely his face almost split in two.
TBC
