Chapter 03

Hinata was overwhelmed. Why was she being led away so suddenly? Why was she being taken away from the person who saved her? The moment she felt her feet start to move; endless questions began plaguing her thoughts. She didn't know where to start.

However, instead of fighting against the current, the Hyuuga allowed herself to get led away by her guardian, at the same time looking back toward the brave soul that had stood up to her villains. When she did, she saw Naruto looking back at her in bewilderment, before a saddened expression overcame his face and his gaze turned southwards. He didn't wave her off or anything at first, choosing to keep his hands in his pockets and to kick at a clump of dirt at his feet.

A moment later however, upon realizing that being sad wouldn't do him any good, he looked back up towards the retreating pair and smiled. The small gesture soon transformed into his characteristic grin and he waved back with vigor.

It was almost like he was saying he was okay.

Hinata, still being dragged through the small wooded area, returned his smile and blushed before looking away to hide her embarrassment. When she looked back to exchange his kind wave of parting with another, she saw much to her surprise that he was no longer there. Only the unconscious bullies remained.

Her hero had vanished, like a ghost on the wind…

OOO

Six months later…

Sitting alone in a hot spring up in the hills of his village overlooking a better part of the suburbs, one which he had found all on his own while out wrecking destruction wherever he could, the jinchuriki Naruto was busy scrubbing himself down from a long day of troublemaking, training, and getting into a lot of fights.

Apparently that scrap of three from a few weeks ago hadn't been the only 'tough' kids on the block.

The order of the jungle was that wherever you saw one delinquent there were always thousands more hiding somewhere in the same neighborhood. That meant that there was always trouble around every block and, being Naruto, the boy didn't give a squat about territories, family groups or whatever.

Like he always said to himself every morning whenever he got up and out of bed; he WAS the trouble, he WAS the danger, and he couldn't care less about any of that divided society crap. Always on the lookout for 'opportunities' and getting himself involved in some way, the blonde had managed to grab the attention of some local hoods by painting his signature on what they claimed to be 'their' wall. Just like how dominoes fell, he was quickly set upon by the entire gang in seconds.

The resulting clash to follow was the same as every other day. Naruto beat the shit out of every single one of them while taking some bruises for himself as a reward for his efforts, before walking away with a wide grin on his face. The boys had been like… several years his senior; teenagers. Being a ninja in training and still nine years old of course, that little scruff was just another workout for him.

After rubbing the bruise on his cheek from taking a hard punch from a blind spot, Naruto folded his arms and glared impatiently across the small steaming pond nestled in the forest covered hillside. As pleasant as this was, he was still a little sore.

"Those dumbasses. They didn't know who they were messing with," the jinchuriki thought, sticking his tongue out. "I'm going to be awesome one day. They'll see!" An upset frown replaced his foul look when he said his next words quietly, "They'll all see…"

Looking around at his sanctuary, he couldn't ignore the fact that he was alone. The only other signs of life he could make out in this area were the sounds of frogs and crickets, and he couldn't even see them. Nothing else. The whole atmosphere made him submerge himself further into the water and blow bubbles in a bored manner.

He so wished he had somebody to talk to who wouldn't turn their back on him for the rest of their lives.

As if answering his plight, a rustling in the bushes drew his attention toward the woods. A moment later after locking onto the source of the disturbance, a family of nihonzaru monkeys suddenly came out of the brush, surprising the blonde.

Naruto watched intently as they gathered around his spring, taking their time to test the safety of the area and hopping in once assured that there was no danger present. An adolescent monkey crawled circles around the pond a few times before perching itself on a stone next to the startled blonde.

At first baffled by the little critters, upon seeing the family hop in to bathe the jinchuriki was able to relax once more and spent the next couple of minutes counting their numbers. Quickly figuring they were here to keep him company, a smile came to his face and he turned to the young monkey sitting close by with great enthusiasm. "H-Hello," Naruto exclaimed, tilting his head at the adolescent on the rock. "You're not afraid of me… are you?"

The monkey responded in its native tongue before splashing at the blonde playfully. The jinchuriki giggled before flicking water back at it, earning a squeak before it dived into the water.

"Hey… no fair!" Naruto exclaimed, getting splashed by the squirt's dive. The youngster surfaced nearby, earning a laugh from the child. "D-Do you want to play?" The monkey looking at him from the water waded around and back into the shallows, splashing water at Naruto who returned fire. "Alright! You're on!" Seizing the opportunity the jinchuriki then began trading shots with the little ball of fur while its family relaxed nearby.

The afternoon drew on as Naruto and the family of monkeys bathed. After an hour or so passed it was eventually time for the lot of them to get out and, not wanting to part from the monkeys he was able to befriend in his time in the spring, Naruto pulled on his clothes and decided to clamber after them back into the woods. He played tag with the young ones high up in the trees and ran around in the field.

Having longed for the company of others for so long, it wasn't a surprise for a child his age to respond to even those much different from him. At least these friendly animals of the mountains and woods didn't recoil at his presence. They didn't snarl, glare or throw rocks at him, they didn't run or hide… they were honestly really nice.

It made Naruto genuinely laugh out in joy, for the first time in a long while…

Present…

A year later…

Naruto woke bolt upright from his bed, blinking away his sleep as he stared towards the wall at the foot of his bed. Appearing both baffled and drowsy from the exhausted rings around his eyes, he looked around his room momentarily to reacquaint himself with his surroundings… and to possibly get a handle on reality.

Okay, he wasn't at the park, he wasn't in the trees behind his school, he wasn't in his living room, and he certainly wasn't up in the valleys next to the Hokage Monument. Soon determining that he was actually in his room and in his bed, he concluded that the events he had been watching through his eyes moments before were merely memories of a bygone time; turbulent, upsetting and filled with brief glimmers of happiness.

They were what shaped his life up to today.

Groaning, Naruto rubbed the back of his head and picked up his bedside clock. He groaned when he saw the time. "Two-thirty? Still too early!" he thought to his dismay before setting it back down and giving a yawn. "Damn dreams…"

With that curse made to his own biological clock and his adventurous mind, he then laid down flat and pulled the covers back over him.

Hopefully his next dreams wouldn't be so stirring.