Chapter 2-Doubts

A few years have passed since Naruto brought Sasuke back, but something has changed dramatically in Team 7. Sasuke realized going rogue was not the best way to get revenge against his brother, and Sakura started her training under Lady Tsunade, but the biggest change was Naruto. He started to smile less and less with each passing day; he became more quiet, and his resentment towards the people started to grow.

"What's wrong, Naruto?" Kakashi asked Naruto one day when they were on a mission.

"H-huh! Oh, it's nothing, Kakashi-sensei. I was just thinking about something else. Ha-Ha." Naruto replied without actually telling Kakashi anything, but Kakashi was still worried due to the change in his attitude and personality.

"If you say so," Kakashi replied, looking at Naruto.

After remaining silent for a few moments, Naruto opened his mouth to ask something but closed it again, 'No, No! I shouldn't think about it right now.' Naruto thought, shaking his head, and decided to focus on the mission.

'What happened to you, Naruto? Kakashi thought as he watched the sad face of his student from the corner of his eyes.

After the mission, Naruto was on his way back to his home when a ball came his way, and he caught it.

"Here you go." Naruto said to the children, Give the ball back, and started heading towards his home, but...

"Throw that ball away; I will buy you a new one." One of the parents of the children said Another one chimed in, saying, "The demon fox touched the ball; it will bring disaster on you if you keep it."

Naruto heard it and ran to the top of the Forth Hokage statue, covering the tears in his eyes, his resentment growing more and more.

"What did I do to deserve this?" he whispered quietly. He wanted to ask Kakashi this question earlier but couldn't.

"What's the point of everything I have done until now? Is there even any meaning in me being here?" Naruto thought to himself that something inside him was on the verge of collapsing.

He looked down at the village from above the statue. He said children were playing with their parents, and everything seemed peaceful, but as soon as those same people saw him, they started badmouthing him and cursing his very existence.

"Does anybody even care about me?" Naruto keeps questioning his doubts over and over before laying back again and looking at the stars in the sky.

"Why can't I also live in peace and happiness?" Naruto said it again, but this time...

"Because the world is cruel and selfish and people only care about themselves," a mysterious figure appears behind Naruto.