2 The First Step

Life in the leaf village slowly began to return to normal a month after the attack as the civilians and shinobi of the leaf worked together to fix the damage the Kyuubi had caused. Most of the building that had been destroyed was at the front half of the village leaving the back half mostly unscathed which thankfully included the hospital, the academy, the graveyard and most of the shinobi clan compounds.

The only clan compounds that had any damage was the Inuzuka and the Aburame though thankfully they were only minor and had been rebuild and put back to normal within a few weeks.

The civilian and shinobi worked away to help rebuild their homes while large groups of leaf shinobi went out to complete the day to day mission they were given in order to show that the leaf was still strong and they were not going anywhere.

At the Namikaze residence all was quiet before a baby's cry rang out through the house alerting those that were inside. The Uzumaki-Namikaze family could have had their own clan compound or lived in the Hokage mansion if they wanted but Minato and Kushina never wanted the big lavish life style. They were more than content with their six bedroom house which has cozy, warm and family feel to it. Plus with only five of them, there was just no need for a big clan compound.

Naruto raced from his room and into the nursery where he already found his mother holding and rocking his sister Mito back to sleep.

"Is Mito-chan okay Kaa-chan?" he asked walking in front of his mother as he saw Mito's wriggling form in his mother's arms.

Kushina looked towards her oldest son and smiled. "Yes she is okay Naru-chan. She is just being a little fussy. She seems to have a lot of energy like another little someone when he was this age." she said laughing a little at his big smile he was giving her.

Naruto turned towards the crib and as his little brother Eiji still sleeping peacefully. Both babies were very active he had noticed though they never seemed to wake up at the same time during the night.

He looked at his mother and saw her yawn a little. "Are you okay Kaa-chan? You look sleepy." he asked with a worried look on his face touching his mother's sleeve.

She nodded her head a little and noticed Mito was calming down and her eyes were beginning to drift off again. She delicately placed her back in the crib and saw she stayed quiet.

"Don't worry about me Naru-chan. I'm just feeling a little tired. Having two new babies will do that to someone. I will be fine, I promise." she said as Naruto nodded though the little frown on his face showed he was not all that convinced.

Kushina was about to move but saw Naruto holding a book in his hands.

"Naru-chan what do you have there?" she asked taking the book gently form his hands and crouching down in front of him. Looking at the book she saw it read Chakra for beginners. She looked at Naruto and saw him shuffling a little.

"Is my little Naru-chan wanting to become a ninja like his Tou-san and Kaa-chan?" she asked teasingly and saw him nod his head though he was looking down at floor in embarrassment. "What brought this on?"

"I...I want to get strong so I can protect you," he said quietly to himself though Kushina had heard him and was a little surprised by his answer.

"To protect me?" she said in a sweet voice.

"To protect you and Tou-san, Mito-chan and Eiji-chan too; I don't want you to get hurt again." he said sniffling a little, but felt his mother's arms wrapping around him.

Kushina had a smile on her face as she kissed the top of his head. "My brave little Naru-chan; how lucky am I to have you as my baby. My big strong boy." she said leaning back and cupping his face in her hands and kissing the end of his nose making him wrinkle it.

"Do you think you could help me?" he asked with a hopeful look on his face since he knew his mother was a powerful shinobi who was on par with his Baa-chan Tsunade.

Kushina bit her lip a little and shook her head a little making Naruto feel a little disappointed.

"I am sorry Naru-chan but I am too busy to help you at the moment. Plus I have some of the other moms coming over in a little while. I would love to help you but it will have to be another time.

"But hey," she said giving him a smile. "Why don't you ask you Tou-san? I'm sure he would like to help you." she said.

Naruto thought about it and nodded. "I guess I could." he said with a smile.

"I'm sorry again Naru-chan."

"It's okay Kaa-chan, your busy so another time." he said making his mother smile as she watched him leave the room.

She felt a little disappointed that she could not train him but she really was busy and just did not have the time.

She had some of the other new shinobi moms coming over so they could catch up and so she could have them all meet Eiji and Mito.

There was her oldest friend and childhood rival Mikoto Uchiha who was brining over her youngest son Sasuke. Then there was Tsume Inuzuka who was bringing her son Kiba. Then there was Yoshino Nara and Inora Yamanaka who were bringing over their babies Shikamaru and Ino.

Shaking her head knowing she could help him another time she continued with her work and preparing the living room for when the other mothers stopped by.

Naruto meanwhile went into his father office at the back of the house and knocked on the door.

"Come in," he heard from behind the door and opened the door and walked in.

Minato was hunched over his desk filling out some paperwork when Naruto walked in. Since the twins birth he spent some of his time in his office at home instead if the Hokage office just so that if Kushina needed any help with the twins, he could be there to lend a hand.

"Hey Naru-chan," he said seeing Naruto walk through the door. He scooped Naruto up and put him on his lap getting a small laugh from his son.

"Is your Kaa-chan okay?" he asked wanting to know how his wife was managing.

"She is okay. She is getting ready for some of the others mommies when they come over."

"Ahh, well then we best stay out of the way. You know what your Kaa-chan is like when her girly friends come over." he said as they both laughed.

Whenever Kushina and the other moms got together, Kushina and Mikoto always ended up arguing whether it was over something as trivial as who has the best cooking to who won the most matches from their past spars. Even where they were pregnant there was a sense of competition from the two that drove both husbands into the crazy house.

"So is there something you need Naru-chan?" Minato asked looking at his son. Naruto nodded and showed him the book.

Minato took and looked at the cover and smiled at the title.

"So you want to start training to become a shinobi? You have already impressed me and the others with those sensor abilities you seem to have." Minato and the others were still a little astonished that Naruto had it since there was no indication of it before which made them think that Naruto was either not aware of it or it only manifested during the attack.

Naruto nodded again. "I was wondering if you could teach me how to use chakra since I want to get strong."

"And why do you want to get strong Naru-chan?" He asked.

"So I can protect my family and the village." the little boy in his lap said. Hearing his words Minato smiled a big smile and ruffled Naruto's hair.

"That's a great reason for wanting to get strong Naru-chan. If you have a goal like that then you will definantly become a strong shinobi one day."

"You think so?" Naruto asked so innocently that if Kushina was there then she would have put him in a tight hug.

"I know so." Minato responded making Naruto smile.

"So do you think you could help me train?" Tou-san he asked hoping that his father would say yes. However is hopes were dashed when he saw him shake his head with an apologetic look on his face.

"I am sorry Naru-chan but I am too busy right now. I need to get this paper work done soon and then I have a meeting in half an hour. I don't have the time."

"Oh," Naruto said looking sad that his father could not help him either and now wondered who could help him.

"Maybe another time, huh? I can show you a few cool moves and I am sure your mother would like to show you a thing of two." he said encouragingly hoping it did not get him down.

"Okay Tou-chan." he Naruto said taking the book back from Minato. He got off his father's lap and went towards the door.

"Tou-chan is it okay to go down to the park?" He asked just as his father was about to get back to work.

Minato bit his lip. He did not mind Naruto going to the park but seeing as Naruto was only five, he did not want him going out on his own. He had made that mistake a few months ago and it ended with him getting a beating from his livid wife who was worried where her baby was all on his own. Of course he was then almost smothered to death by the hug his mother's gave him when he returned with Sarutobi bringing him back.

"Well I guess that would be okay but I want you back here by three o'clock," he said getting a nod from Naruto. "And you only go to the one that is a few minutes away, not the one in the center of the village." He got another nod.

"Plus you have to have an Anbu follow you." Naruto nodded again before Minato sighed. "Alright go on and have fun. But be careful."

"I will Tou-chan, I promise." he said before he walked out.

Minato sighed again before calling out Anbu.

When he did an Anbu male with a lion mask appeared beside him. "Follow my son and make sure he does not get into any trouble or gets hurt."

"Hai Hokage-sama." the Anbu said before he shunshined away and leaving Minato to get back to work.

With Naruto

Naruto arrived at the small park and saw it was completely empty with only the wind moving the swing seats. His mother mostly took him here when she could while his dad did on the occasions when he was not busy. The park was only small but it was nearby and was a peaceful little spot that he always enjoyed.

That was one thing Minato and Kushina had noticed about Naruto when he first started speaking. Naruto had always been quiet and only really spoke if it was worth saying or was important. But when he did he was very polite which many liked about him since most his age tended to blurt out whatever came to mind.

Walking over and sitting on the seat he began to swing slowly before he looked at the book in his hand.

He had bought this book from a shinobi book shop the other day when Kakashi was taking him round the village. Apparently Kakashi need to collect some kind of book that Naruto was not allowed to see which made him pout.

While that was happening Naruto was looking at the shinobi section. Though he could not read most of the titles very well he did pick up the Chakra for beginners book. He then asked Kakashi if he could get it for him.

Kakashi took one look at the book before shrugging and paying for it much to Naruto's delight.

Naruto opened the book and tried to read but the words were a little too long for him and he could not pronounce a few of the words correctly.

He sat their trying to read it for about ten minutes with squinted eyes before he got a little frustrated and put the book down on the ground beside him.

"How can I be a good ninja like Kaa-chan and Tou-san if I can't even read well?" He thought as he began to swing.

He looked up on the top of a roof where he felt a fairly strong energy reside. "Maybe that is the Anbu-san Tou-san sent to watch over me," he thought.

After another few minutes of silence he heard a voice called him from behind.

Looking behind him his expression brightened a little when he saw his Baa-Chan's apprentice Shizune walking towards him with her usual kind smile on her face and with Tsunade's pet pig Ton-Ton in her arms.

"Hi Shizune–san." he said politely as the seventeen year old medic nin took a seat next to him. He had met her a few times when Tsunade visited his family and she always found him adorable and cute. Plus she was always very kind to him.

"Hello Naru-chan. What did I tell you about calling me san?" she said tapping his nose. "You can either call me Shizune-chan or Shizune nee-chan."

Naruto nodded with a small smile on his face. "Okay nee-chan." he said making her smile.

Oink, Oink

Naruto giggled a little and petted Ton-Ton. "Hi Ton-Ton." he said as the pig nuzzled his leg.

"Now what are you doing here all by yourself. Is your Kaa-chan or Tou-san not here?"

"They were busy. Kaa-chan has the others clan mommies over for lunch and Tou-san is busy with paperwork. "

"What about Kakashi or Jiraiya?" she asked since she was aware Tsunade was at the hospital making sure the staff did not slack off. Naruto shook his head again.

"So you are here all by yourself?" Shizune asked not liking that Naruto was here on his own.

He shook his head once more. "No the Anbu-san is up on the roof though he feels a little bored." he said pointing to the roof of the nearby building which made Shizune look up.

"The Anbu is up there? How do you know?" she asked looking a little skeptical.

"I can feel him up there."

"Oh that's right," Shizune thought. "Lady Tsunade mentioned Naruto had some kind of sensor ability. Though I wonder how strong it is. For one so young to have sensor abilities was quite a feat in itself."

It showed her just how strong Naruto might be when he grew older. Plus sensors were always a boost since shinobi that could detect others were very well looked upon and respected by others.

"Then how come you could not feel me coming towards you?" she asked with Naruto struggling his little shoulders.

"I don't know. I was not really paying attention," he asked pouting a little making Shizune laugh into her sleeve.

"So do you think you could tell me what I am feeling at the moment?" she said wanting to test how good these sensor abilities were.

"Urm..." Naruto started as he stared at Shizune. Shizune though had to stop herself from cuddling him since he looked very adorable when he tried to focus.

They stayed silent for about a minute before Naruto answered.

"You feel happy and cheery but a little cheeky as well." he said. When he did Shizune clapped her hands showing she was impressed.

"That's very good Naru-chan. I see your Baa-chan's not over exaggerating when she said you had sensor ability. You could become a very strong ninja just like your parents with that ability."

"Really? You think I can. Tou-san I could be strong because I want to protect my family and the village." he squeaked out.

"Then your Tou-san is a very smart man." she said before she grabbed him and began tickling his stomach.

"No nee-chan stop HAHAHAHAHA it tickles." he cried out making Shizune laugh while Ton-Ton looked like she was trying to link him too by licking his ear.

Sitting up as she watched Ton-Ton lick Naruto which made him giggle loudly, she noticed the book to the side and went to pick it up. Chakra for Beginner's she read before smiling and looking at Naruto.

"Naru-chan did you come here to try and learn how to be a ninja?" She asked as Naruto sat up after Ton-Ton stopped licking him and saw him nod his head.

"I tried to but I could not read it. There were too many big words and I did not understand it very well." he said looking a little embarrassed though the seventeen year old lifted his head up gently with her index finger.

"Don't worry Naru-chan there is nothing to be embarrassed about. I think it is a good thing that you are trying to learn this, it shows that you understand that to be a ninja you have to start right at the bottom and work your way up."

"Really?" he asked with her nodding.

"If you like I can go over it with you and teach you how to access your chakra." she said making him get a hopeful look on his face.

"Really you would do that. Don't you have others things you need to do today?"

"I already finished my shift at the hospital and it is either help you or get bored sitting at home. And how could I ever not want to help little Naru-chan."

She picked Naruto up from his spot and put him in her lap as she leaned against the swing bars. The book was placed in front of them and together they began to read.

Chakra is the mixture between spiritual energy and the body's physical energy. It is essential to every jutsu technique that has and ever will be created. Once molded, it can be channeled through the chakra circulatory system, which is to chakra as the regular circulatory system is to blood, to any of the 361 chakra points in the body. Through various methods, the most common of which is hand seals.

Hand seals perform many ninjutsu, genjutsu, and other secret arts other than taijutsu. The exact amount of chakra necessary to perform a simple technique is manipulated through hand seals. This will vary between the simplest of jutsu's to the most dynamic and most powerful.

The hand seals are Bird, Boar, Dog, Dragon, Ox, Tiger, Serpent, Rat, Horse, Monkey, Hare and Ram.

The two sat there for about an hour as Shizune read about chakra to Naruto and explain certain parts that he did not quite understand. She also made sure he was aware of what made up chakra and how many chakra points there are in the body, even pointing to the places where certain ones were on her arms.

"Do you understand Naruto?" she asked him as he sat there on her lap and saw him nod as he looked at one of the pictures that represented physical and spiritual energies coming together to make chakra.

"Can we try to see if I can use my ch...chakra?" he asked since he looked a little eager to begin.

"Sure," Shizune said warmly as Naruto hopped of her lap and sat in front of her. "Get in a meditative pose like I am doing," she said as Naruto watched and tried himself though Shizune had to help him a little since his legs were still so little.

"You comfortable?" she asked and with Naruto nodding his head she began. "Okay Naruto-chan first I want to make this hand sign. This is the ram hand sign. Using any one of the hand signs will help to bring out your chakra and bring it to the surface. The ram had sign is the one most used when starting out to first draw their chakra."

"Like this?" he asked as did his best to mimic the hand sign Shizune was showing him. She observed and made a little tweak with two of his fingers before he had it right.

"Now to draw out your chakra you have to dig deep inside and try to draw it out. Search deep down and wait until you feel a warm sensation in your stomach. When you feel it, try to focus in on it and then pull it out to the surface. I will demonstrate."

Naruto watched as Shizune closed her eyes taking a few deep breaths before exhaling. After about ten seconds Naruto felt a strong burst of energy come from Shizune which caught him a little of guard.

He could feel how warm it was and though it was anywhere near as big as his Tou-sans or his Kaa-chan, but he felt it flowing smoothly form her. If he squinted a little he could just about make out a blue like aura appearing around her.

"Was that chakra?" he asked her when she stopped and opened her eyes. "The blue thing around you?"

"It was. If you manage surge out enough chakra then it can become visible around you and will be a light blue color.

"Now it is your turn," she asked as he nodded. "Though don't be sad if you don't manage to do it Naru-chan. It takes time to activate your chakra for the first time."

"Okay but I will try my best," he said eagerly as Shizune smiled at him and petted Ton-Ton who was beside her.

She watched as Naruto closed his eyes and took deeps breaths similar to what she did moments ago. The ram hand sign he made was shaking a little but she knew it was because Naruto was a little nervous since he obviously did want to let her down.

Up on the building the Anbu assigned to watch over Naruto also look in interest, wanting to see if his Hokage's son would be able to activate his chakra for the first time. Though he leaned forward to get a better view, he still remained hidden from view.

After a few minutes had passed, Naruto opened his eyes with sad look on his face. "I couldn't find it. I did not feel that warm feeling in my tummy."

"That's okay Naru-chan; I did say you might not be able to do it the first time around. It takes a few tries to first do it. You just have to keep trying and eventually it will happen."

"Okay I guess I can try again," he said as he got back in his meditative pose and made the ram hand sign again. He closed his eyes and took a few more deep breaths.

Shizune observe again with Ton-Ton staring at him too.

"I have to find a pull in my tummy," he thought as he searched around while keeping as calm as he could. After another minute he still could not feel it so he gritted his teeth a little.

"I need to unlock my chakra so I can protect Kaa-chan, Tou-san, Mito-chan and Eiji-chan. I won't stop until I find it," he thought.

Just when he finished his felt a pull in his stomach and felt a warm sensation appear there. Could this be my chakra he thought before doing as Shizune said and he did his focus on the warn sensation and to pull to it the surface.

When he did it felt like his whole body suddenly became warm and felt his fingers and his toes tingle.

Outside Shizune smiled a big smile when she saw a tiny blue aura appear around NARUTO. She was about to go forward and hug him well done for activating his chakra for the first time, but was a little caught off guard when she felt the size of his chakra.

"His chakra, it's already about the size of fresh gennin already. Is this because he is an Uzumaki? I know Kushina-sama had large chakra reservoirs when she was young but I don't even she had this much when she first activated it."

Though she also felt how untamed it felt. Once Naruto got use to activating his chakra, someone would most likely have to show him one of the basic chakra control exercises.

Up on the building the Anbu was all a little surprised though his mask hid that surprise. Though he was not all that surprised considering whom his parents were.

Shizune shook Naruto a little which made him lose focus and the chakra he was emitting stopped. He opened his eyes to see Shizune and Ton-Ton looking at him with joyful looks on their face which made him smile a big smile.

"I did it." he said jumping up. Though when he did he suddenly felt tired and his body go a little stiff and fall to the ground.

However Shizune was in front of him and caught him in a warm embrace. The Anbu on the build was about to move when he saw Naruto's fall, but saw Shizune had it well covered.

"Why do I feel sleepy?" He asked as he yawned in Shizune's arms.

"Silly Naru-chan, you pushed out a lot of chakra when you activated it which has now left you feeling tired. Don't' worry after some rest and some food in your tummy you will be fine." she said as Ton-Ton nuzzled into his leg.

"I think this is enough for the day. Let's get you home," she said as picked up the book under arms while carrying Naruto in her left.

They left the park as did the Anbu and quietly watched over them as they made their way back home.

Halfway there Naruto spoke up. "Hey, nee-chan?"

"Yes Naru-chan?" she asked looking down at him.

"What kind of a ninja are you?" he asked surprising her a little though she answered.

"Well I am a medic nin. I practice medical ninjutsu which is why I work mainly at the hospital.

"Medical ninjutsu? What's that?" He asked making Shizune giggle a little at how he said medical.

"Medical-ninjutsu is us a type of ninjutsu that is used to heal people when they get hurt."

"Like when people are sick and not feeling good?"

"Exactly, I am okay at fighting but I prefer healing people which is why I am Lady Tsunade's apprentice. She is the best medic nin in the whole world."

"Wow," he said quietly to himself. "Baa-chan is really strong."

"She is. She is one of the strongest in the village and is known all over the world as one of the strongest kunoichi there has ever been."

"So does that mean you are really powerful too?" he asked making her laugh again.

"I am nowhere near as powerful as your Baa-chan but I like to think that I am capable of looking after myself. I am a chunin level ninja so I know how to defend myself which is the main thing."

Naruto just nodded and felt his eyes begin to get heavy. They appeared in front of his home and walked inside. He could hear female voices coming from the living room and recognized one as Kushina's.

As Shizune walked towards the stairs she passed the living room where Kushina and the others moms were. She was sat beside Mikoto Uchiha and Inora Yamanaka while on another seat was Yoshino Nara and Tsume Inuzuka. All the mothers were holding little wrapped bundles in their arms while the twins were in a little crib just in front of Kushina.

The mothers all looked up to see Shizune in the door way holding Naruto in hers arms looking like he will fall asleep at any moment.

"Hello Shizune," Kushina said standing up as the others mom all said hello to the teenage girl. She looked at Naruto and saw him giving her a wave hello.

"Did you have fun today Naru-chan?" she asked and saw him tiredly nod.

"He has been great today. He unlocked his chakra for the first time." Shizune said surprising the women in the room before they all smiled and told him well done.

"Thank you," he said almost half mumbling and not really paying much attention making the moms coo at him. Kushina went up to him and kissed him softly on the forehead while he nuzzled into Shizune.

"My little Naru-chan, already beginning his path to becoming a shinobi; I know your Tou-san will be proud when he gets home."

"Little Naru-chan has gotten big since I last saw him," Mikoto said as she appeared next to Kushina and gave Naruto a small wave. "He is the same size as my little Itachi."

They saw Naruto yawn and Kushina asked if Shizune could put Naruto to bed for her which the Shizune quickly said yes to.

Walking up the stairs and entering his room she saw how neat and tidy it was and put him down onto his bed with blue covers with little shurikan on the front.

She placed his book on the small desk beside the bed and quietly left the room leaving the door unlocked a little.

"Thank you for helping him today Shizune," Kushina said while Shizune just waved it off.

"I was happy to help him. I love spending time with little Naru-chan."

"In that case, might I ask you a favor?" Kushina asked as Shizune nodded. "With the twins, I might not have much time for Naruto and the same can be said with Minato with him helping rebuild the village. I was wondering, would it be possible for you to help Naru-chan with his chakra?"

Shizune was a little taken by surprise by the request but she could see where Kushina was coming from in a way. With two newborn babies, her focus would without a doubt have to be on them which would have left little time for Naruto. Plus Minato with is responsibilities as Hokage and the state the village was currently in meant the same thing towards Naruto."

"Of course Kushina-sama, I would love to help Naru-chan."

"Thank you Shizune," Kushina said before the two said their goodbyes and she walked back into the living room to continue her conversation with the others mothers while Shizune left the house.