1. APARTMENT

NARUTO UZUMAKI,

FIVE YEARS OLD,

STREETS OF KONOHAGAKURE...

Naruto wasn't quite sure when he figured it out that the people of the orphanage and the villagers of Konoha didn't like him for some reason he was unaware of. Maybe he always knew but he didn't wanted to accept this heartbreaking reality or believe in it.

So he always behaved like a good boy at the orphanage trying to change their opinions about him. But when the matron kicked him out of the orphanage, it perhaps served as one of the biggest reality checks he could ever receive. Now it became crystal clear to him that the people at the orphanage will never change their opinions about him or ever accept him as one of their own. He is a five year old child. How was he supposed to survive on his own at such a young age.

Because of this, Naruto had started living on the streets. It has been almost a week. He was living of the food he collects from the forest, eating wild berries, fruits, etc. He had seen some animals and birds eat those berries and fruits so he knew those are safe. But it isn't going to last forever and he is well aware of this fact. Hence why he is getting more and more anxious with each passing day.

KONOHAGAKURE,

HOKAGE OFFICE....

The Third Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi prided himself for being a very patient and level-head man. This was one of the reasons why Tobirama Senju chose him as the Third Hokage. But this is one of those times when his patience is tested. Naruto is missing from the orphanage. The matron had expelled him from the orphanage about a week ago. She didn't even bothered to inform him about her decesion. Nor the ANBU gaurds assigned to watch over Naruto. Hence why he is on the verge of losing his patience with each passing second.

"What do you mean you have no idea where he is?" Hiruzen allowed a twinge of annoyance to enter in his voice to show his displeasure.

"I have searched the nearby area around the orphanage but hasn't find anything about his whereabouts!" The ANBU Captain Dog responded. However despite his neutral tone, his body language indicated he is more than a little peeved.

"Clearly! Perhaps you didn't understand my question. No problem! I will elaborate it for you. I wish to know how this could have been allowed to happen to Naruto? Why I was not told of it sooner?" He clarified sharply.

"I- I don't know! Sir!" Dog admitted. "I've only recently noticed discrepancies in the reports I've been getting from the ANBU squad assigned to watch over Naruto. So I decided to check it out myself. When I went there, I discovered that the matron had expelled Naruto from the Orphanage for a variety of reasons ranging from bad behaviour, to concerns over the health of the other children. So, I did a detailed background check on the Two-man ANBU squad assigned to watch over Naruto and I found out that one of them had lost their lover and the other their best friend in the Nine-Tails' attack."

Hiruzen sighed and leaned back in the chair. He should have known this could've happened. Too many people had ill-will towards the boy for what he contains, some out of hatred does not want to see the difference between the storage scroll and the kunai. Others knew he was just a child but were reluctant to allow themselves or their children near him due to concerns at how well the seal would stand against the test of time. They have heard the stories of how the Jinchūrikis of other villages rampage when the seal keeping the Bijū under control fails.

He should have known that Minato's wish would go unfulfilled. Naruto is a constant reminder of the pain they went through on the day of the attack of the Nine-Tails. The residents of Konohagakure will never accept Naruto as their saviour as a hero. They will always see him as the embodiment of the Nine-Tailed Demon Fox.

There was no doubt that Minato was perhaps one of the smartest shinobi Konoha ever nurtured but when it came to human nature he had always been a tad bit naive just like him and trusted the villagers of Konohagakure too much. It was a mistake. It was a stupid decision. He should not have disclosed the information about Naruto's jinchuriki status to the shinobi population as per Minato's last wish, but he did because he had excessive trust in the goodness of the villagers. He cursed himself. He cursed the Shinobi who leaked the information about the Jinchūriki status of Naruto. Yes! Somebody from the Shinobi population had leaked the information regarding the Jinchūriki status of Naruto to the civilians of Konohagakure. And now the boy is paying the price for his and Minato's mistake and naivety, for trusting the villagers too much.

"Have you begun looking for him in other areas?" Hiruzen asked the ANBU captain.

"I have mobilised various squads. I have no doubt they will find Naruto but it will take some time since the matron had expelled Naruto from the orphanage almost a week ago." Dog responded.

Hiruzen sighed again. He turned the chair towards the window and looked at the carved face of his successor on the mountain. He felt regret naw at him as he thought about the man's dying wish and how the people of Konoha had stomped on it. They have turned the man's only son into the Village pariah. Now Naruto is missing. He should have kept on checking the boy personally from time to time. He shouldn't have trusted the orphanage to look after his well-being.

"I will personally look for him! Call the search teams back." Hiruzen then opened the drawer of his desk and took out a orb. With the help of the orb Hiruzen performed the Telescope Technique and started searching for Naruto.

After searching for a while, he found Naruto fishing on a river in the east zone of Konohagakure. He decided to personally bring Naruto back but before that he had some orders to pass to the ANBU Captain, "Sent the orphanage's matron and the ANBU squad that were supposed to keep watch over Naruto to Konoha T&I department, I want a full interrogation. Find out if it was completely out of their own free will that they allowed this to happen or someone else manipulated them."

Dog nodded and used the Body Flicker Jutsu to leave the Hokage's office. He had a task to complete.

KONOHA FOREST,

EAST RIVER...

It has been almost one week since the orphanage's matron had expelled Naruto from the orphanage. So far he is doing well on his own for a five-year-old child. He had learnt fishing after spying on an old man two days ago. The fishes, the old man had caught looked tasty thus he had decided to try his share of luck in it.

After rummaging through the garbages of some fishing gear shop for two hours, Naruto somehow managed to find some usable fishing hooks, wire, etc. But despite his best efforts, he couldn't find a good enough fishing rod in there, so instead he had decided use a straight wooden stick. He also succeed in making a somewhat workable fishing rod with his garbage haul from those fishing gear shops. He named it Naruto Uzumaki Super Fishing Rod. With his super fishing rod, he had already caught two fishes and is now confident that he will catch some more.

"Hehe! This is the best! With my Naruto uzumaki special fishing rod I won't have to worry about food anymore. I can always catch fishes and fry them to quench my hunger. Now all I need is a good place to sleep and it will be perfect." Naruto frowned. The playground isn't good enough to sleep especially when the wind blows too hard. There is also those stupid dogs. They always bark at him and chases him around for no reason.

"Ok! It looks like I have caught enough fishes for today." Naruto then lit a fire with the help of a lighter he stole from a drunk man yesterday. The drunk man had chased him around but he smartly played and made some dogs chase the drunk man back.

SOMETIME LATER...

He had just finished roasting the fishes and had taken the first bite. He was remancsing in it's taste when suddenly an old man started sniffing it.

The sudden appearance of the old man startled Naruto, "Who are you?".

"Just an old man passing through." The old man quickly answered Naruto.

"Ohh!" Naruto tilted his head in confusion and thought, "What does this weird old man wants from me? Why did he approached me?"

Meanwhile, Hiruzen turned his head to the left and made a sound, "Grrrrrrrr!".

Naruto could not control himself after hearing the sound of the old man's supposed grumbling stomach, he started laughing out loud, "Hahaha!".

Soon the weird old man also joined Naruto and started laughing, laughter could be heard all around the vicinity.

Now Naruto understood why the old man approached him. The old man is hungry and probably wants some food from him to sated his hunger.

"Here! Old man! Eat this!" Naruto offered the old man some roasted fish.

"Oh, thank you! This looks so good!" Hiruzen smiled. He is impressed. Naruto have survived on his own for almost a week and without any guidance at such a young age. Despite all of the hardships he is going through, he is still kind enough to offer him some fish. Naruto definitely is a good boy. Why can't the villagers accept him or atleast stop hating him. Can't they see?! He is just a child.

"Well, I caught it. So of course, it's gonna taste good!" Naruto exclaimed.

"Is that so?" Hiruzen took the first bite, "H-Hot!".

The two continued to chatter with each other over the fire about this and that for quite sometime. They also introduced each other. It made Naruto happy. Finally somebody who won't glare at him or outright ignore his existence. Yes! Everything is going perfectly! Now all he need is a good place to sleep and everything will truly become perfect. During the chat Hiruzen manipulated the conversation in such a way that Naruto unintentionally revealed how he is living on the streets because the matron expelled him from the orphanage for no reason.

Hiruzen didn't waste time and capitalised on it. He quickly offered Naruto an apartment.

"Are you serious?" exclaimed Naruto. He was stupified, he couldn't believe it.

"Yes!" replied Hiruzen.

"Did you just offered me an apartment? Old man?!" Naruto asked again in disbelief.

"Yes, my boy!" replied Hiruzen.

"Why are you doing this for me? I mean nobody was ever kind to me and we just met and you are suddenly offering me an apartment. What do you gain from it?" Naruto asked Hiruzen in suspicion. He couldn't help it. An apartment cost a lot. He had once heard orphanage staff talking about how their salaries is not enough to rent a luxurious apartment. He doesn't understood what luxurious meant but he did understood that apartment meant small houses. And if a salaried adult couldn't afford one then surely an apartment cost a lot.

Sarutobi disheartened a little at the accusations and statements of Naruto but it didn't wavered his resolve to make the blond's life a little better. "Naruto! Why did you offered me your fish? We just met, didn't we?" asked Hiruzen.

"Because you were hungry!" Naruto quickly replied.

"And I am offering you a home because you are homeless. It just as simple as that! Now do you understood?!"

"Ohh! I see!" Naruto said. He thought about the old man's logic. It did sound logical. It's not like he has anything to lose and the old man is kind. He is the first person who had talked to him for this long and without showing any hostility. Maybe he should accept the old man's offer, "Ok! I accept your offer! Old man!"

Hiruzen heaved a sigh of relief and smiled. It looks like his plan worked, "Then let's head back to the village! I will show you the appartment. You will really like it Naruto boy!"

Hiruzen took Naruto's hand and both of them headed back towards the Village. It was a foreign feeling to Naruto. He had seen some parents doing this with their children. He had also seen some big brothers doing this with their siblings in the orphanage. He always envied them. But now he also had an elder who would hold his hand and guide him. Naruto smiled. The old man really is a kind person.

STREETS OF

KONOHAGAKURE...

Naruto is heading towards his new apartment with the old man in tow. He is grinning. He is gleeful. Why? Because he is gonna get his own apartment. Yeah! His very own apartment where he can do anything. He can stay up late at night. He can sleep till late in the morning. There won't be a matron to punish him. He can live however he want to.

On any given day, whenever he walks through the streets of Konohagakure, as soon as villagers recognize him, they immediately starts to glare at him, mutter hateful words, or ignore him altogether. But today was different because no one dared to do any of the usual things to him. No one was glaring at him, nor anybody is muttering hateful words at him neither they are ignoring him. Why everything was different today? He didn't have a single clue except for the old man. It looks like everyone love, admire and respect the old man for some reason, if the warm greetings were any indications.

After witnessing the level of respect, love and acceptance the old man receive from the villagers; Naruto didn't have words to describe it, he is simply astonished. He decided then and there that he will do everything in his power to get the same kind of recognition, love, respect and admiration from the Villagers that this old man gets.

APARTMENT OF

NARUTO UZUMAKI...

"Hey, old man! Thank you for the apartment!"

"You're welcome!"

"Old man! Can I ask you question?"

"Yes, Naruto! You can ask anything to me!"

Naruto nodded and asked curiously, "Why does everyone love, respect and admire you so much?"

"It is because I am the ruler of this village. It's Hokage. And as a Hokage I have done a great service to the villagers and this village."

"Does this mean that whoever becomes the Hokage is respected, loved and admired just like you?" asked Naruto.

"Yes Naruto!" replied Hiruzen.

"Then I will also become the Hokage of this village, then the villagers will have no choice but to respect, love and admire me just like you." declared Naruto boldly.

Hearing Naruto's proclamation, Sarutobi smiled, "Oh! That's a big dream Naruto. But do you know what a Hokage is for their village? What does it really mean to be a Hokage?" Hiruzen questioned Naruto.

Naruto sheepishly scratched his chin and replied, "No, I don't know old man!"

"Hahaha! It is not something to be ashamed of Naruto. I'll explain it to you, so listen carefully. A Hokage is one who puts the needs of the village above his own. It is a title bestowed upon the leader/Kage of Konohagakure and is generally regarded as the strongest shinobi of their village." Hiruzen took a deep breath and continued his explanation, "A Hokage is someone who strongly believes in the Will Of Fire, a philosophy which states that all of the people of Konohagakure are a family. Thus why the Hokage must always considered each and every member of the village as their own family, giving each of them equal importance, be it civilians or shinobis, blah... blah... blah... blah... blah... To become a Hokage, you have to be the best shinobi in our village, then only you can be qualified as one of the candidate for the position of Hokage. Did you understood my explanation?" Hirujan asked in a serious tone.

(A/N: blah... blah... blah... means futher explanation)

(A/N: Hiruzen in the above sentence explained to Naruto everything related to all the Hokages, their History, life, death, legacy, contribution towards Hidden Leaf, etc for the next one hour. Naruto is most impressed with the Fourth Hokage's heroic last stand.)

"Yes old man!" replied Naruto and asked his next question, "What is a Shinobi?"

The Hokage sweatdropped and tried to justify himself that he had simply forgot to explain about it and that he hasn't gone senile in his old age.

He finally responded, " Ahmm! Yes! I was going to explain that, a Shinobi is someone who endures the hardships of the life and always comes out on top, be it on the battlefield or in their lives. A Shinobi fights for the village, protect it... blah... blah... blah... Do you still want to become a Shinobi?" asked Hiruzen.

"Yes, I still want to become a Shinobi! And I am ready to face all hardships with a very big smile." replied Naruto with fire in his eyes, "I will protect the village... blah... blah... blah..."

During this proclamation Minato's shadow overlapped Naruto and Hiruzen witnessed the very incarnation of 'Will of Fire' in Naruto with which once the God of Shinobi Hashirama Senju lived with.

"Very well Naruto! Next year, I will enroll you in the Konoha Shinobi Academy." Hiruzen said with a smile.

Naruto nodded and asked, "Hey old man! Can I call you jiji?"

(A/N: I don't care what others thinks but for me jiji=Gramps. It perfectly suits Hiruzen Sarutobi's relationship with Naruto.)

"Yes Naruto!" replied Hiruzen affectionately and then ruffled his hair.

"Hey jiji, you said the Hokage knows everything about the village, so does that mean you knew about them?!" asked Naruto hopefully.

"Them?" said Hiruzen in confusion.

"My parents!" Naruto clarified.

"I am sorry Naruto, I don't know about them but I do know that they were very brave shinobi who died trying to protect you and this village from the Nine-Tails. They were great people and loved you so much that they didn't hesitated one bit to sacrifice themselves to protect you from the Nine-Tails. They were so happy, when they found out that they were going to be your parents, that I can't describe their happiness in mere words. You were their world, joy, happiness and everything."

"They were wrong!" said a emotional Naruto with tears in his eyes.

"Naruto!!!?" asked a startled Hiruzen in concern and confusion due the latter's response.