(IF YOU WANT TO SEE THE HAREM BEFORE YOU READ GO TO THE BOTTOM! THERE IS A VOTING LIST TO VOTE FOR WHO YOU WANT IN THE HAREM! READ THE RULES AND EVERYTHING TO MAKE SURE YOU DON'T MISS ANYTHING IMPORTANT!)

Chapter 1: The Boy with a Heart Too Big for His Own Good

In the backyard of the Uzumaki-Namikaze estate two female individuals could be seen trading blows. Both of them had breathtaking Crimson Red hair that flowed in the wind current generated from the rapid movements from both of the individuals throwing punch after punch.

The taller and seemingly older individual was the epiphany of a Goddess, her long crimson hair reached down to her waist and had two shoulder length strands that shaped her face perfectly, she easily had DD cup breasts and wide hips that gave her the perfect figure, yet she was toned and fit, slim waist clearly from constant training and long legs that matched her perfectly. She was wearing simple anbu style pants and the well-known green Jonin vest with a blue long sleeve shirt underneath, this was Kushina Uzumaki.

The second figure couldn't be called a Goddess or sexy more… Cute. She was barely half the size of Kushina, and could easily be called a miniature version of Kushina. She had the long Red hair and violet eyes like Kushina but didn't have any curves as she looked no older than 6 or 7. She was wearing a simple pale-yellow shirt with a red Uzumaki swirl on the front, and simple red shorts, this was Mito Uzumaki-Namikaze the daughter of Kushina Uzumaki.

"Come on Mito! Is that the best you can do?!" The Uzumaki matriarch, Kushina Uzumaki chided along her daughter Mito Uzumaki-Namikaze as they were in the middle of a spar.

"Argh!" Mito Uzumaki roared from where she stood battered and bruised yet she rushed towards her mother hoping to get at least one solid punch in before the spar ended.

A little way away watching the fight unfold from under a tree was another child. It was a boy with medium length spiky blonde hair and dark ocean blue eyes. He wore a simple solid red shirt and blue shorts. At first glance you may think he was just a happy little boy watching his sibling and mother sparing, but that was only half true, if you looked closely enough you would see his smile was full of bitterness and jealousy, yet, he was still happy. This was Naruto Uzumaki-Namikaze son of Minato Namikaze the Fourth Hokage and Kushina Uzumaki the "Red Death", Twin brother of Mito Uzumaki-Namikaze.

Now you may be wondering. Why would you see a bitter smile on Naruto's face? Well it's pretty well-known common knowledge amongst their family, friends, and those that were observant enough that Kushina always paid more attention to Mito and only ever trained her in the ways of the shinobi. Did Naruto know why? No. Did he care? No. He loved his "Kaa-chan" and as long as she loved him even a little bit that was all that he needed. Did she ignore Naruto? No. She simply paid more attention to Mito for reasons Naruto never understood and only trained Mito for the same unknown reason.

Was Naruto weak because he was always told "Mito needs the training more Naru." Or "Naru you know I told you once you were 7 I would start your training. So please just be patient so I can train Mito."? No to be perfectly honest he could easily be stronger then Mito, he always watched Kushina and Mito training and waited until night and constantly tried to reciprocate everything they did, and when he was caught in a stump he would always go to his grandfather, Hiruzen Sarutobi, the Third Hokage, Hiruzen was a busy man that's why Naruto only ever asked him for help when he was really caught in a stump. Hiruzen even offered to give Naruto his own Jonin Tutor for the time being until Kushina finally started to train him, but surprisingly Naruto declined and simply said "It's okay gramps! I'm fine waiting until Kaa-chan finishes training Mito! I wouldn't want anyone other than Kaa-chan teaching me!" Hiruzen simply smiled trying to not show his sadness at what Naruto said. He was one of the people who knew that Kushina always paid more attention to Mito and never made any attempt to train Naruto. He knew that Kushina loved Naruto dearly but… he couldn't help but fear what that slight "Favoritism" if you could call it that, would turn into at the slightest of mistakes from Kushina's part.

Did Naruto resent Mito because she was pretty much taking all of his mother's attention?

After all nobody would blame him if he did, any normal child would hate and resent somebody who took something they love away.

But no, he didn't resent or hate Mito for any reason he simply smiled and let it go.

Did Naruto Resent Kushina because she would pay more attention to and visibly "Look" like she loved Mito more?

No, he loved her too much to ever resent her.

After all… He was simply a little Boy with a heart Too big for his own good.

(Red Light District-Night: Naruto Age 6)

Running down the dimly lit alleys was a child with spiky blonde hair and beautiful Ocean blue eyes. Huffing and puffing his way through the narrow maze-like corridors running as fast as his little feet and legs could take him, not daring to look behind him was one Naruto Uzumaki-Namikaze.

"Get back here you little bastard!" A voice yelled from behind Naruto.

Naruto once again didn't dare look behind himself, he didn't want to risk losing any speed he might have.

"Come on Demon! The more you run the worse it will get!" Another voice roared through the night sky.

Corner after corner.

He kept running as fast as he possibly could.

Alley after alley.

The adrenaline was barely helping anymore since his muscles were just about at their limits.

And then it happened. What he always hated finding.

His biggest fear at the moment.

A dead end.

Naruto skidded to a stop frantically looking for some sort of exit or way out.

"Ha! Can't run anymore can you?" The voices were right behind him by now.

Finally, Naruto turned around horror clearly evident in his face.

At least 2 dozen Villagers and a few Shinobi that ranged from Chunin to Jonin were there wielding things from kunai to planks of wood.

"W-What do you want?!" Naruto tried not to sound scared but failed miserably.

"What do we want?! Ha! Do you here this Thing? He doesn't even know what he is!" A civilian yelled sarcastically as the others around him joined him in laughter.

"…" Naruto simply stared in utter fear.

"We are here to finish what Lord Fourth started!"

"Why are you doing this to me then?!" Naruto whimpered.

"Because you are a demon!"

Naruto didn't know what that meant he simply stared in confusion and fear until they approached him.

"P-Please!" Naruto yelled in a dire attempt to escape.

But they didn't listen.

The few that were Ninjas simply grabbed him and pinned him to the wall while the civilians hit him with the bats or stabbed him with the kunai they obtained by the ninja.

"Kill the Bastard Son of Lord Fourth!" They chanted as he was beaten.

Stab after Stab.

Hit after Hit.

Naruto never let himself pass out.

Why?

Because his "Kaa-chan" would worry if he was out too late, and he wouldn't want that, now would he?

So, after the constant hour of torture the civilians and Ninja's all left having gotten bored as Naruto didn't even scream anymore. So as fast as he could Naruto limped through town and entering the Clan district until he arrived at the Uzumaki-Namikaze compound.

As he entered the compound he could feel his sister sleeping already and Kushina waiting in the living room probably watching TV while she waited for him. He asked Hiruzen about his "Ability" before and Hiruzen simply said he was lucky to have that skill and he called him a "Sensor". Naruto didn't really know what to think about that so he simply didn't care for it, it just helped at times like this.

As soon as Naruto entered his house he heard his mother call out quite intimidatingly.

"Naruto Uzumaki! Where have you been?! It's 2 hours past your curfew!" Kushina stomped her way through the house to go see Naruto.

"I was out with friends…" Naruto weakly responded as Kushina rounded the corner to spot him in the hallway coming from the front door. Kushina was wearing a simple white nightgown that wasn't exactly see through but you could see through it enough to send any normal man into a hormonal frenzy.

"Naruto! What happened?!" Kushina ran as fast as she could towards Naruto as she saw the many cuts and bruises scattered all over his body.

"I was out with friends… And fell out of a tree…" Naruto lied.

"What? Be more careful! How many times do I have to tell you to stop doing such dangerous things!" Kushina scolded her son as she led him to the bathroom so she could wash him in the bath and tend to his wounds.

Yes, these things happened quite often.

Naruto doesn't even have that many friends his own age to play with, but what his mother doesn't know wouldn't hurt her.

Did Naruto lie?

Obviously.

Why?

Because he doesn't want to trouble his mother more then he already does.

After all he's just a Boy with a Heart Too big for his own Good.

(October 10th: Naruto's 7th birthday)

Usually Naruto had mixed emotions about today. It was his birthday why wouldn't he be happy? He didn't know why but the villagers and the Shinobi who usually hunted him down would always get worse on his birthday. He even heard one of them call it a "Fox Hunt" in honor of the day.

The reason he was hunted? Because today was the day Minato Namikaze the Fourth Hokage sacrificed himself for his village in order to "Defeat" the Demon known as the Nine Tailed Fox. The villagers and Shinobi that held grudges against the beast for taking away their loved ones and destroying their homes and leaving most homeless and beggars.

What does this have to do with Naruto?

Because the villagers and those of the Shinobi that were… Utterly Retarded, that's the nicest way one could describe them, they thought that Naruto was the Demon incarnate. Why? Naruto didn't even have to Foxes power. But they didn't try to learn nor care to learn.

Minato Namikaze on the night of Naruto's and Mito's birth was forced to seal the Nine-Tailed fox away after it was released from Kushina. But he didn't just seal it into one of his children no, He sealed it into both of them. But was he smart and seal it evenly between both of his children? Sadly, No. He sealed the soul of the fox into Naruto and all of the fox's power into Mito. His thought was that without the fox's power the fox could do nothing to tempt or torment his host and would render it useless, hell, he even told the shinobi and few villagers who saw the scene to treat BOTH of his children as heroes, but when they heard Naruto had the literal soul of the Demon inside of him the villagers and few shinobi were too blinded by hate and revenge and took out their hatred on Naruto. Don't get me wrong Mito had some haters too, but not even close to the same level as Naruto. And with her Mother Kushina Uzumaki always with her those enemies just backed away.

So once again Naruto was treated as the Demon and the Bastard Son of the Fourth Hokage.

While Kushina and Mito were the Fourth Hokage's beloved family that everyone loved unconditionally because of Minato's sacrifice.

But did Kushina know of this?

No.

Did Naruto care if she knew?

No.

In fact, he didn't want her to know. He didn't want to bother her.

After all… The Boy had a Heart Too Big for his own Good.

But what he doesn't realize… The bigger they are the harder they fall…

And his heart was Really Big…

(Hokage's Office)

"Hey Gramps!" Naruto entered the Hokage's office with the brightest smile that Hiruzen has ever seen on his face.

"Naruto my boy! What brings you hear today?" The Third Hokage chirped back innocently even though he knew very well what today was.

"It's my birthday! I'm turning seven today!" Naruto exclaimed as he threw his hands up to make a statement.

"Oh! How could I forget!?" Hiruzen said sarcastically.

"Uh Hu!" Naruto confirmed.

"So? What's so different about today instead of your other birthdays? If I remember correctly you were never a big fan of your last few birthdays." Hiruzen inquired as he hinted towards the way the Villagers went on the so called "Fox Hunt".

Yes, Hiruzen knew of these occurrences, he was the all-knowing Hokage after all. Now you may be wondering "Why didn't he tell Kushina?" but the answer is quite simple actually. Naruto actually asked him the first time to not tell his mother, after all… He didn't want to burden his mother anymore then he already has. He simply loved her too much.

This actually brought the Old Hokage to tears more than once. He was the one who would cradle Naruto as he was soaked in his own blood and had fragments of glass and Kunai still imbedded inside of himself. And not once did Naruto ever falter in his decision. It was something the Hokage saw and that was the only reason he respected the boy's decision. As much as it hurt him to watch it all… he nevertheless went with the boys wishes.

Hiruzen has even told Naruto in those times as a toddler that this world didn't deserve him. His family didn't deserve him. Hell, he even said he himself, The Hokage! Didn't deserve him. Naruto was the most loving soul he had ever seen in both adults and children. Naruto's heart was simply Too big for his own Good. The Hokage saw this all too clearly.

"Well todays special because…" Naruto started to get extremely hyper and started mumbling to himself which made the Hokage smile.

"Because?" Hiruzen questioned.

"Because now Kaa-chan can start training me! I'm finally seven! She promised me once I turned seven she would teach me in the Ninja arts and everything! And I can finally learn how to use her cool Chain thingies too!" Naruto cheered as he jumped around the room mimicking the cool ninja moves he saw as he watched some Jonin Sensei's teach their Genin Squads.

At that simple statement Hiruzen almost broke down. He visibly flinched as he heard those words.

"I-I see… Well I'm sorry but today I won't be able to hang out with you or give you a present for your birthday…" Hiruzen said truthfully as he did have too much paperwork and it couldn't wait until tomorrow.

"Oh… Well that's okay Gramps! I don't need a present!" Naruto cheered truthfully, he was never big on presents as long as he had people he loved around he was perfectly okay just hanging out with them.

"Oh? I see… Well how about this! Tomorrow I'll take the day off and I'll finally teach you some cool new Jutsu! It will be a Naruto Only training regimen!" Hiruzen couldn't simply not give his pretty much adopted grandson a present.

"Really?! Thank you, Gramps!" Naruto basically flew over the Hokage's desk and embraced the Old Hokage in a bone crushing Hug.

"Anything for you my boy… Lord knows you deserve it…" Hiruzen whispered just quiet enough for Naruto to not hear.

Hiruzen simply smiled and patted Naruto's back for a good minute before he finally lifted Naruto up and placed him back onto the ground.

"Alright now run along to your mother. I know how she is when you're late so make sure you get home soon. I'll pick you up tomorrow and then we can go learn the new Jutsu I promised. Does that sound alright to you?" Hiruzen asked.

"Yeah! I'll be waiting!" Naruto cheerfully declared.

"Alright good boy." Hiruzen then ruffled Naruto's hair and shooed him away.

"Bye Gramps! You better have some really cool Jutsu for tomorrow! I'm a quick learner!" Naruto waved goodbye from the doorway with his bright smile that could brighten even the darkest of days.

"Oh, I will! Now hurry before your mother starts to get worried!" Hiruzen waved back.

And so, Naruto left and slammed the door shut.

"Anbu! Leave!" Hiruzen yelled but anyone could hear his voice crack from the sudden influx of emotion he had to hide from Naruto.

"But Lord Hoka-!" One of the Anbu operatives tried to say.

"Out!" Hiruzen yelled even louder this time he steeled his voice.

As soon as he was left in the room seemingly alone he broke down.

Tears streamed down his face as he placed his head into his hands and stared down at his desk in despair.

Finally, after a minute of silent crying he punched his desk as hard as he could without chakra, sending splinters of wood around the room in the process, but he didn't care. He just spun his chair around and leaned back staring at the vast sky outside of his window.

"Hiruzen… Why are you crying?" A voice spoke from behind Hiruzen in front of his desk.

"Panther…" Hiruzen didn't even flinch from the sudden voice.

"Why are you in despair? Shouldn't you be happy for the boy? And don't try to change topics and say you aren't sad for him. I could see it in your eyes as you spoke to him." The now called Panther spoke in a gruff voice.

Panther was wearing the full Anbu uniform including the mask that was completely white with Black markings for a panther, and on his left shoulder was a band that read Captain so one would assume this man was an anbu captain. All you could see from his natural features was black hair with some silver in it and his silver eyes that peered through the mask.

"Didn't I order everyone to leave?" Hiruzen steeled his eyes that were still red from crying.

"Hiruzen…" Panther spoke in a lower tone.

"… Ugh!" Hiruzen hit the desk with both fists again as tears began to stream again.

"W-What happened?" Even the Panther Anbu was clearly taken aback by the Hokage's appearance. The Anbu operative spoke as if he has known Hiruzen for quite some time.

"I fear we are going to lose one of the brightest and most pure beings alive today…" Hiruzen leaned back again and sighed.

"That boy?" Panther inquired.

"Yes…"

"Why? He looked so happy right now…"

"That's the problem… he looks happy 'right now' that will soon change." The old Kage explained.

"Can you explain?" Panther questioned clearly intrigued and slightly worried.

"Ah… Very well… It all started when…"

(With Naruto)

Naruto was smiling as brightly as he possibly could. Why would he not? He just turned seven! He would soon be able to train with his "Kaa-chan"!

He was basically skipping home from the Hokage tower. His mind didn't even register the glares and curses being thrown at him. Finally, after only around 10 minutes he finally reached the Uzumaki-Namikaze Compound.

"Kaa-chan! I'm home!" Naruto yelled from the front door as he hurriedly threw off his shoes and ran through the house.

"…" No answer.

Naruto ran through the house until finally he reached the back door where he saw his mother and sister training in what looked like a new Jutsu in the backyard.

He looked bitterly and jealous at them for the smallest of a fraction of a second until he shook it off and sprinted towards Kushina.

"Kaa-chan!" Naruto hurled himself towards Kushina hugging her waist catching her completely off guard as she was watching Mito trying to learn the new water Jutsu from a scroll on the ground in front of her.

"Sochi! How's my Little Naru?" Kushina squealed as she hugged Naruto back and lifted him up and spun him around still hugging him as hard as she could.

These were the times Naruto loved the most. This feeling right here was what he lived for… The warmth from his mother's embrace like this… he loved every second of it.

"I'm good Kaa-chan!" Naruto answered back.

"Good! Now where were you this morning? I came to say happy birthday after Mito and you weren't any were to be seen!" Kushina finally sat down with Naruto on her lap.

"I went to play with some friends! Then I went to Aunt Mikoto and then I said hi to Gramps!" Naruto exclaimed snuggling closer into his mother. For some reason there was a little voice in his head that told him to enjoy this as much as he could. And enjoy it he did.

"I see… Did you get anything good for your birthday?" Kushina asked.

"Yep! Gramps is gonna teach me a new special ninjutsu technic tomorrow! And Aunty gave my gift to Itachi so I have to wait for him to give it to me!" Naruto explained.

"That's great Sochi!" Kushina exclaimed.

"Yep!"

"But none of them are even gonna be able to compare to my present!" Kushina declared as she fist pumped the air.

"Really?! What is it!" Naruto asked happily.

"That my little Naru… Will have to wait! Now let's go get some Ramen!" Kushina then picked Naruto up and called over Mito.

And so, the day went on as good as Naruto could have ever expected. They got Ramen, went to see a movie, even went and played at the park just the three of them

But finally, it was dark and they were all home eating cake.

"So… Who's ready presents?!" Kushina exclaimed out of nowhere causing both of the children to look up from their bowl with sparkles in their eyes.

"Me!" The twins both yelled at the same time causing Kushina to giggle slightly at their enthusiasm.

"Alright! Then wait here and I'll bring them out!" Kushina then got up from her seat in the living-room where they were all situated and walked to her bedroom.

The twins both waited patiently yet excitedly for their mother to return. And out came their mother with… One box? It was wrapped neatly with orange wrapping paper.

"Here you go Naru!" Kushina gently laid the box that was as tall as Naruto yet as thin as a few inches.

"Thanks, Kaa-chan!" Naruto quickly thanked his mother as he tore open the present.

Inside the wrapping was a simple wooden box, once he opened the box he marveled at what he saw.

"A sword…" Naruto was in awe.

The hilt was simple Red with a Golden Guard while the sheath was Red with Golden markings, like It was of a Golden Dragon wrapping around the sheath.

"What about me Mom?" Mito asked with big eyes.

"You my dear…" Kushina stopped for dramatic affect.

Naruto and Mito both listened intently.

"Are going on a training trip with me!" Kushina exclaimed happily.

"Yay!" Mito jumped and pumped her fist in the air just like how Kushina does.

"Awesome! Kaa-chan when are we leaving?" This time Naruto added.

"Oh Naruto… Sorry but It's just going to be me and Mito on this trip." Kushina was quick to explain.

"W-What?" Naruto asked in confusion and shock.

"Yeah I have to teach more stuff to Mito before I can start on your training. So, on the trip I have to be really devoted to Mito and Mito alone to make sure she is prepared and ready." Kushina continued to explain.

"B-But… You said once I was seven… That you would train me? You promised?" Naruto asked dreadfully.

"I know but… Don't worry! Once I'm back you will be big enough to wield that sword and I can teach you everything I know! You and Mito will be the best swordsman and swordswoman in all of the Elemental Nations!" Kushina was quick to answer as she noticed Naruto lose all the light in his eyes.

"Oh…" Naruto said sadly…

The one thing that was promised to him. The one thing that kept him going and made him not care about being ignored and neglected with training. The promise. Was it ever wise for him to believe in it? Obviously not. The promise was broken. And once again he was the only one hurt and Kushina and Mito got everything good out of the deal.

"How long is your training trip going to be?" Naruto asked quietly.

"Umm… A few years? I honestly don't know… At the least 3 years I would say… But even that is a big If…" Kushina answered with a finger to her chin in thought.

"…" Naruto didn't answer to that just fell deeper into despair.

"Alright Mito! Go pack your bags we are leaving tomorrow morning immediately!" Kushina exclaimed cheerfully.

"All I ever wanted was you to teach me… I don't want a stupid sword… I wanted you to train me… Show me the same attention… The same love… But no… I was foolish to ever expect anything else… I'm simply the Bastard Son… The Demon… The unwanted…" Naruto spoke barely audible.

Kushina and Mito just looked over at him confusedly as he clutched the blade in his hand and looked into his reflection on the blade.

"Naruto? Are you okay?" Kushina asked worriedly.

He didn't want the stupid blade. He didn't want anything but for her to keep her promise…

"…" He simply stared down at his new sword.

And as slowly as he could he closed the blade and put it back into its box and sealed it back up. This in itself shocked Kushina, she pretty much expected to have to scold Naruto for playing with his new sword inside the house.

"Naruto?" Kushina was completely thrown out of the loop, she didn't know what happened.

Naruto stood up with his hair shadowing both of his eyes.

"I'm fine Kaa-chan. Don't worry about it." Both Kushina and Mito sat their wide eyed at the scene before them.

Naruto stood there with the widest smile across his face.

But that isn't what shocked them.

Tears, so many tears were streaming down his face as he smiled at them.

It was… uncomfortable to say the least.

No child should be able to give such a…

Broken expression.

And so, with the never-ending amount of tears streaming from his eyes down his face sometimes going into his mouth so he tasted the salty liquid, he turned around and walked towards the stairs so he could go to his room.

"Naruto!" Kushina called out so he would come back after she got over the initial shock.

"Mom… I'm tired… I played with my friends a lot this morning so… I just want to be alone and sleep…" Naruto didn't even give her time to answer before he slowly walked up the stairs.

"O-Okay…" Kushina for once was completely clueless as to what just happened or what she should do.

Naruto walked into his room upstairs and closed the door softly.

There was a brief moment of silence.

And then he broke down.

"Ahhhhh!" Naruto roared in agony as he threw the wooden box at the wall shattering it on impact. The sword falling out onto the floor.

He didn't care how loud he was in his room. After all, when you lived with seal masters growing up you tend to get benefits in your room. The main one being a soundproofed room so nothing could be heard from the inside out.

"Ahhhh!" Naruto literally swiped everything off of his desk unto the wall breaking a clay mug that was previously there.

His room was a nice room before-hand, blue walls a nice full-sized bed, a desk where he kept a few scrolls and school books. A dresser with a mirror and pictures all around his room of different Kanji for sealing and simple messages like "The Will of Fire" or "Look Underneath the Underneath." Simple Ninja sayings and whatnot.

Naruto had too much adrenaline pumping through his veins at the moment and he knew it. If he didn't get out of the house he would destroy his room and his mother would most likely try and see what's going on.

So, he opened his window. Leaving everything where it was sprawled across the floor not caring for the broken picture frames and cups.

And he jumped. He left to blow off steam and gather his thoughts.

He could only take so much.

All that pent-up stress and anger, disappointment, agony, depression, jealousy, fury, childish tendencies, pain, everything he ever held back because of his love for his family. Everything he did because of a promise! A promise to be taught and given the same experiences as his sister. Broken. The promise couldn't have been called a promise anymore. Did she ever plan to go through with the promise? Naruto couldn't think straight he was mad, not just mad he was in pure agony and rage. He wanted to cry his eyes out, he wanted to Vomit his guts out, and he wanted to destroy all at the same time. Now you may be thinking, why would such a promise break Naruto so much? Because to him that promise was everything he lived for the past years. He didn't care if he was ignored as long as the promise was fulfilled. He didn't care if he was beaten by the villagers and he kept it from his own family as long as the promise was fulfilled he didn't care. He would do anything as long as that promise was fulfilled. The promise was more than just being trained by his mother, no, this was much more than that.

And so, Naruto sprinted across the rooftops into the forest and sprinted until he couldn't sprint anymore. He stopped as he was in the middle of the forest. He huffed and puffed but he didn't stop. He punched the nearby tree subconsciously drawing chakra and adding his chakra into every punch slowly chipping away at the tree. And then once both of his fists were bleeding profusely…

He roared.

He screamed in pure anger and rage.

He wailed all of his agony away.

He yelled until he couldn't anymore… And then he passed out right then and there.

Kushina and Mito didn't know what they did.

But they broke probably the purest and happiest being in the world.

After all, the Boy with a Heart too big for his own good would surely have his entire world cave in eventually.

(The Next Day)

"Neh! Kaa-chan! Are you sure it's okay to leave Naruto without saying goodbye?" Mito asked as her and Kushina arrived at the front gate.

"We can't help it Mito! We are on a tight schedule and I couldn't find Naruto anywhere! At least we saw him last night! Now come on!" Kushina ushered Mito towards the gate.

"Okay… If you say so Mom…"

"We wouldn't be having this problem if you didn't sleep in too long!" Kushina exclaimed as she continued to lightly jog towards the gate.

"Oh, please mom! You slept in as long as me!" Mito spoke as she glared lightly at her mother who whistled innocently in return.

"Still… I half expected The Old man to be here… Eh! He's old it's not like he would be able to get up this early either way!" Kushina spoke about Hiruzen like he was her own father and was a bit disappointed he wasn't there to send them off.

But little did she know Hiruzen was infuriated at her ever since there talk the day before Naruto and Mito's birthday.

(Flashback)

"Are you stupid Kushina?" Hiruzen took out his pipe that's how serious this was.

"W-What?! What are you talking about this is full proof!" Kushina exclaimed.

"No this is utterly retarded even with your standards." Hiruzen refuted.

"What?! Why!" Kushina demanded answers.

"Your telling me you want to leave your only son who may I add is only SIX YEARS OLD. Here in Konoha while you and your daughter adventure through the nations training and doing Clan type activities…"

"Yep!"

"That right there is your problem! Why in the whole wide damned world do you think leaving your son here is a good idea?!" Hiruzen roared.

"He'll be fine! He has you! And multiple family friends! Like Mikoto… Kurenai… Yugao… Hana … Kakashi… And more!" Kushina explained.

"You people don't deserve Naruto…" Hiruzen spoke out truthfully and clearly offending Kushina.

"Excuse me? What are you trying to say? He's my son not yours not anyone else's. I think I deserve him more than anyone else." Kushina spoke out threateningly.

"I meant what I said. You don't deserve him. Nobody in Konoha deserves him. Nobody in the whole wide cursed world deserves that boy! He doesn't deserve what he gets." Hiruzen cleared up.

"Well thanks!" Kushina seemed to beam at her father figure as she took that as a compliment.

"That was far from a compliment to you Kushina. If anything, the only person that complimented was Naruto." Hiruzen explained.

"Still! Naruto will be just fine! He has been just fine this long! What will a few more years do?" Kushina asked.

"What about your promise?" Hiruzen asked back.

"What promise?"

"Oh, you are starting to seriously disappoint me Kushina… You promised him to train him after he turned 7!" Hiruzen roared.

"What? That promise? He'll be fine! He understands everything! Anything I do he agrees with and doesn't argue with! He almost makes no trouble or anything! I'm sure he will be just fine waiting a few more years! And plus, Mito will be done training so she can help me!" Kushina exclaimed.

"Good God… How long are you planning on being out of the village for then?" Hiruzen asked calmly.

"Ehhh… A few years? If we're super lucky maybe 3-4 years. But who knows! We will go wherever the wind takes us! And also where I set up specific training appointments… But None the different!" Kushina fist pumped the air not caring at all what she said.

"You…"

"You?" Kushina was clearly confused.

"Get out." Hiruzen ordered.

"What? You didn't even answer!"

"Just get out! Do what you want! Don't blame me for what happens afterward. Now Leave!" Hiruzen roared with clear disappointment and anger in his voice.

"Geez… Did he wake up on the wrong side of the bed or what?" Kushina asked herself as she walked the Hokage Tower halls.

"Still! I got the Okay! Mito prepare for the best training trip ever!" Kushina cheered as she quickly ran home to prepare.

(Flashback End)

"Alright! We're burning daylight here!" Kushina yelled as she started off towards the exit.

"Wait up Mom!" Mito yelled as she went to catch up with Kushina.

As Kushina thought about what Hiruzen said it started to affect her more and more. She started to doubt her decision to leave Naruto behind. She had this feeling of dread in her gut but she waved it off as fast as it appeared.

"Ehh… It will be fine!" Kushina spoke to herself.

"What will Mom?" Mito asked.

"Hm? Nothing!" Kushina cheered as she continued out.

And so, they left…

Not realizing the monster, they created.

The demon they let out.

The most loving creature alive they broke.

Tortured.

And burned into nothing but ashes.

(Hokage Tower)

Boom

"Hey! Get back here you brat!"

Crash

"You can't go in there!"

Those were the noises Sarutobi Hiruzen heard as he sat in his office in utter silence staring out towards his village. He already knew what was happening, after all, he watched what sparked what was about to happen.

Last night Sarutobi Hiruzen watched through his crystal ball everything that happened with Naruto and his "Family"

He saw this coming from the very beginning of Mito's training and Naruto's "Neglect", since in the very end what Kushina did to Naruto was neglect there was no other title for it. Sure, she loved him there was no question about that even Sarutobi saw that, but her stupidity and "Fear" clouded her thoughts and mind and in the end caused Naruto to break. Hiruzen clutched his fists in anger, no, not just anger, Rage, pure and utter rage was all that he felt at the moment towards Kushina. She was a daughter in everything but blood to him don't get him wrong but… He couldn't believe what was happening… And Naruto was going to be the biggest factor in it all.

But Hiruzen steeled himself and prepared himself as he heard the footsteps and stomps get closer to his office.

Slam

All the preparations and thoughts Hiruzen gathered completely shattered as he saw the scene in front of his very eyes unveil.

Naruto was standing in the doorway.

Crying.

He had the most agonizing expression Hiruzen had ever seen on his face.

It made his heart break just watching.

And so Hiruzen did the only thing he could think of doing.

He brought Naruto into a bone crushing hug letting the boy cry into his Hokage Robes.

Hiruzen scaled the room like he was about to kill an enemy on the battlefield that's how fast he moved. He looked up as he hugged Naruto and motioned for the workers and several Ninja to leave him and Naruto alone for the time being.

"Why!" Naruto wailed.

"…" Hiruzen simply stayed quiet.

"Why don't they love me! Why do they get everything good when I get nothing but pain!" Naruto's yells were muffled by the Old Hokage's robes.

"I can't answer that Naruto… I don't know…" Hiruzen was at a loss for words.

"They left me! They didn't even say goodbye! They don't care about me!" Naruto wailed even harder.

"…" Hiruzen couldn't think of an answer for that remark, in a way he agreed with Naruto.

"It hurts! It hurts so bad!" Naruto exclaimed.

"I know Naruto… I know…" Hiruzen rubbed Naruto's back.

"She promised! She promised me! And she broke the promise like it didn't even mean anything!" Naruto cried.

"I know…"

"What do I do?!" Naruto questioned.

"Just let it out… Let out all of your pain…" Hiruzen advised.

And so, Naruto cried.

He wailed.

He agonized.

Finally, after 10 minutes of non-stop crying Naruto let up and backed away from Hiruzen.

"Are you okay for now?" Hiruzen asked.

"I think so…" Naruto answered meekly with a sniffle at the end.

"Then let's go to my house… I did promise to teach you some cool new Jutsu didn't I?" Hiruzen tried to cheer up Naruto.

"Grandpa? I don't think I want to train today…" Naruto informed sadly.

"I see… Then… How about we…" Hiruzen looked around the room then looked outside and saw that is started to snow.

"How about we what?" Naruto asked curiously.

"How about we go and drink some Hot Chocolate!" Hiruzen cheered.

"Can we have marshmallows?" Naruto asked quietly.

"We can have as many as you want!" Hiruzen told the boy expecting him to jump for joy.

"Thank you, Grandpa…" Naruto didn't cheer he simply smiled up at his Grandfather figure. That reaction in itself broke Hiruzen's heart once again. The smile wasn't the same Naruto smile that could brighten up even the darkest of places no… It was just another smile tainted by the unjust world they lived in.

"Alright then let's go back to your house and pack your things. Kushina said that you would be staying with me while she is away." Hiruzen explained and all of a sudden Naruto's expression dropped once again.

"We can't…" Naruto informed.

"Oh? And why is that?" Hiruzen asked.

"Because I'm locked out… She placed the seals before she left and I was away… I think she didn't add me into the seal's security system." Naruto explained and once again Hiruzen was filled with disappointment and anger.

"That's fine! We can go and buy you some things tomorrow!" Hiruzen cheered trying to lighten the mood once again.

Naruto looked in silence for a few moments seemingly in thought.

"Can I change?" Naruto asked out of nowhere.

"Excuse me?" Hiruzen asked clearly confused.

"Can I become somebody new?" Naruto clarified.

"Why would you want to do that?" Hiruzen carefully questioned knowing he was walking on thin ice.

"I want to become somebody else… Everything I do ends up with me being in pain. I don't like it. I want to become somebody else so I can live happily. I don't like sacrificing myself so everyone else is happy and I'm not." Naruto further explained.

"That my boy… Is a hard question… But I will say this to you… You can never become somebody else… You will always be you even if you put a mask to hide your true self. All we can do as human beings is change and adapt but our very natural selves will always be there and weigh down on our "Changed" selves. So, I would say this to you. Don't become somebody else, no, adapt and become stronger so you don't have to sacrifice yourself for something you don't want." Hiruzen answered sagely.

"Okay… Thank you… I'll do that…" Naruto informed him.

"Good… Now let's go get some Hot Chocolate and play some games!" Hiruzen said as he picked Naruto up and placed him over his shoulders and started to make his way towards the Sarutobi Estate.

(Later that Night)

That evening was… depressing to say the least. Hiruzen did all he could to help Naruto but nothing helped. He never cried again after the office visit but whenever Naruto smiled it just wasn't the same. Hiruzen tried everything from playing games to watching movies with Naruto but nothing would work.

But right now, Naruto and Hiruzen were both sat on the back porch staring out at the moon that was illuminating the backyard and reflecting off the small pond nearby. It was in utter silence as they both sat there.

"Grandpa…" Naruto broke the silence.

"Hmm?" Hiruzen hummed in response.

"I don't think I can forgive them…" Naruto started.

"I see…" Hiruzen wasn't exactly surprised by the statement but it still caught him off guard.

"Is that all? You don't care?" Naruto questioned confusedly.

"That's not true at all… It's your decision not mine. I will abide by what you wish… You deserve it after all." Hiruzen informed.

"I see… Then what do you think I should do?" Naruto asked carefully.

"Hmmm… That's a hard question my boy… There is no wrong answer to that question…" Hiruzen informed.

"Then what would you prefer I do?" Naruto further questioned.

"Do you want my honest answer?" Hiruzen asked.

"Please." Naruto answered seriously.

"Well then… The half of me that loves Kushina like my own daughter and is the Hokage says to always forgive but… The half of me that isn't clouded by my Hokage views and relationships thinks that you should give them a test. So, if I had to trust one of my sides I would say trust the latter… Give them a test." Hiruzen responded calmly.

"A test?" Naruto was clearly confused and curious.

"Not a regular test just… Give them a time limit and if they don't fix what they did by then… Well then do what you were going to do. Leave them behind if you must. But this way if they don't try and fix what they did or even SEE what they did and they stay oblivious to everything then you will not feel bad about your answer." Hiruzen responded wisely.

"… I think I'll do that Grandpa." Naruto seemed clearly happier with that idea.

"Then do it, it's as simple as that. Give them a time limit and if they don't fix it by then… Then forget about them. Start new." As much as It hurt Hiruzen to say something that would ultimately crush Kushina if she failed… He knew it had to be done… What ever happened now is on Kushina.

"Thank you… I'm gonna do that… I already know how long they have too." Naruto responded as he steeled his eyes and looked towards the moon.

"Good… Now keep that in your mind until the time comes… Now get to bed I am going to train you into the ground tomorrow!" Hiruzen informed the boy as he stood up from his seat.

"Alright… Night Gramps." Naruto got up after that and walked towards his designated room.

"Good night Naruto…" Hiruzen looked at Naruto's retreating form one last time with one last thought.

'I hope you don't mess this chance up Kushina… But I'll have faith in you for now… Hopefully…' Hiruzen thought faithfully… Sadly faith isn't enough for this problem… And not all things end happily…

(A Few Weeks Later)

Hiruzen Sarutobi wasn't in the best of moods at the moment. The attacks with the mob claiming they were "Cleansing this world of a Demon" got more and more frequent and more torturous. He officially instated the Anbu operative known as "Weasel" or better known as Itachi Uchiha on Naruto to protect him and keep him out of trouble, but sadly even Itachi had other Anbu commitments at the same time and there would always be a mission he would be forced to take as he was one of the only Anbu operatives capable in taking it.

In those times of absence Hiruzen would place somebody else on Naruto and on most occasions the Anbu Operative "Panther" would volunteer himself for the job, that in itself shocked many. Why? Because Panther was rarely seen doing anything BUT the bare minimum for a mission, don't get me wrong he never did a bad job, he simply only did what was necessary never slacked off or got distracted he simply did his job and did it well, he never really left the Anbu Headquarters unless he was on a mission either. So, when he volunteered for this the Anbu around at the moment all gawked at him, Hiruzen was shocked too when he heard the request but nevertheless smiled and allowed it.

But why was Hiruzen mad at this very moment? Because of none other than Kushina Uzumaki. She didn't necessarily do anything "Bad" Simply she was being… Immature? Hiruzen himself couldn't think of the word. He sent a few letters already to tell her about how Naruto was, as she made sure she would get them every now and then. But the Old Hokage never went into detail in these messages. Why? It's quite simple actually… Naruto asked him not to. Why? The answer made Hiruzen once again nod his head in acceptance as Naruto was clearly too mature for his age. "If she doesn't fix her mistakes and waits until it's too late after something 'Major' happens then I don't want her too. She clearly doesn't care if she won't help before it gets too late." That was the simple reply that Hiruzen couldn't help but nod his head in agreeance to.

The messages Hiruzen wrote were basically saying "Kushina I strongly suggest you come home, Naruto isn't in the best of states right now and I think you should help before it gets too late." But Kushina didn't even waver in her replies all she said would be something like "Oh come on you old goat! You should know he's just getting a little 'Mommy Sick' and he will be better soon! Don't send me messages unless there is absolutely an emergency! I don't want to have to tell you I'm going to stay on this trip until we finish every time!" Hiruzen was starting to doubt the little faith he placed in Kushina once he kept seeing those messages.

He didn't even tell her how Naruto threw himself headfirst into training and was excelling at a scary speed that he only saw in a few individuals, those individuals being Kakashi Hatake, Itachi Uchiha, and last but not least Naruto's very own father, Minato Namikaze. Why wouldn't Hiruzen tell Kushina? Because knowing her she would say something along the lines of "What?! You can't do that! Nobody's allowed to train Naruto until I get back! I'm going to be the one to train him! I am the ONLY one who CAN train him!" Kushina didn't show it but she did want to train Naruto… It was just in her own… Utterly Retarded way of logic. And Hiruzen literally yelled "To Hell with That!" As he thought about that answer, she messed up enough and Naruto was now his own person he could do what he wanted to, and who was he to stop a young prodigy?

But Hiruzen couldn't help but cringe as he remembered the one incident that actually opened his eyes completely to how utterly "Fucked" the situation was.

(Flashback)

It was about a week or two after Kushina and Mito left to train and Naruto wasn't sitting by idly and lamenting. No. He was diving face first into his training. He already knew the advanced academy forms of Taijutsu from his time before with Hiruzen when Kushina refused to train him so now Hiruzen thought he could start to learn Chakra Control exercises and hopefully polish his already known skills before he learned anything too advanced.

But now we see Hiruzen making his way back to his house after a long, no scratch that, VERY long day in the Hokage's office. When he left at the early hour of 7:00 AM Naruto was already up and training his heart out.

Hiruzen couldn't think of anything but going home and resting his old bones and hopefully finding something good on TV or read one of his… Not so kid friendly books.

But all of those thoughts immediately vanished from his mind as he entered the Sarutobi Compound and saw Naruto in the same exact spot as when he left still training his heart out. Normally that wouldn't shock The Old Hokage but as he saw the scene he immediately saw something he shouldn't see. Blood.

Punch.

Kick.

Duck.

Flip.

Repeat.

Flip.

Dodge.

Kick.

Jump.

Kunai.

Repeat.

Like a robot Naruto repeated time after time completely entranced in his training, he was completely zoning out the outside world. So, in that moment of not understanding what was happening outside of his own training Naruto didn't notice his hands and knuckles completely torn open almost gushing blood. No, not almost gushing they were gushing blood. There were blood splotches around Naruto that could only be created if Naruto didn't stop training and kept training even though he was bleeding, it wasn't a lot of blood in the sense they were in the shinobi world but that much blood for a 7-year-old? Exactly. Hiruzen would later realize this was because the Fox inside of Naruto helped Naruto regenerate the lost blood and in the end, didn't make him collapse from blood loss.

"Naruto!" Hiruzen yelled as he rushed to Naruto's side.

"…" Nothing came from Naruto as he repeated his attack on wooden training dummy that now had blood and gashes all of it.

"Naruto! Stop!" Hiruzen got closer.

"…" Naruto narrowed his eyes and leaped as high as his small 7-Year-old body would take him and he twisted and sent a crushing kick to the dummy's head.

"Enough!" Hiruzen roared as he grabbed Naruto's wrist and held it there.

But the one thing Hiruzen failed to see beforehand, he now saw, and he was shocked to say the least. Naruto was crying. His eyes were blood shot and puffy. And seemingly Naruto's mind numbed all of his pain so he wouldn't feel anything.

"What happened Naruto?!" Hiruzen softened as he saw Naruto's tears but nevertheless needed to get to the bottom of whatever happened.

"It Hurt's Grandpa…" Naruto explained as clutched his chest.

"What hurts Naruto?!" Now Hiruzen was getting even more worried thinking something gravely bad happened to Naruto.

"My chest… My heart… It hurts…" Naruto further explained as he looked up at his Grandfather figure.

"Then why are you training? You should have come to me immediately." Hiruzen chastised slightly.

"Because…"

"Because?"

"Because it hurts if I don't train! If I train the pain goes away! If I'm alone and don't train I think! I think of them! I think of Kaa-chan! I think of everything and it hurts! But when I train… I feel better!" Naruto exclaimed.

"Oh Naruto…" Hiruzen brought Naruto into a hug.

"Grandpa am I in trouble? Are you going to make me quit training?" Naruto asked frightfully.

"No Naruto…"

"Then what?"

"Train… Train your heart out if you must."

Naruto looked up at the Old Hokage with his Soul Piercing Ocean blue eyes and did his best to smile at him.

"Thank you, Grandpa…"

"No problem… But if I see you training to the point it will stunt your growth or permanently injure you I won't even hesitate for a second to stop you. Okay?" Hiruzen told him.

"Okay."

"Good now let's go inside and clean up… I'll teach you something cool tomorrow." Hiruzen ruffled the boy's hair as he started making his way inside.

'God… It's worse than I thought…' Hiruzen thought to himself as he realized what Naruto was doing. Whether he was doing this subconsciously or consciously he was literally killing off his family. Hiruzen realized what Naruto was doing is only shown when a Shinobi loses a loved one or a close comrade on the battle field. They would normally drown themselves in missions and training and always needed to have somebody else there so they wouldn't completely lose themselves in their thoughts. The most notable case would be Kakashi Hatake after the loss of his final Team member and his Sensei Minato Namikaze, after that he almost immediately entered the Anbu and went on mission after mission not even caring for the pay he got for it. All he needed was to keep his mind off of everything else. And that was what Naruto was doing right now. It truly scared Hiruzen. Naruto was changing and maturing and forcing out all other thoughts. And he was doing this at the age of 7 and at a rapid pace.

'I fear it's too late for you Kushina… After all… You are literally going to be dead to him if you don't fix things soon…' Hiruzen thought as he entered his house with Naruto in tow.

From then on Naruto would continue to train and train and Hiruzen rarely ever left him alone. He always either had a Shadow clone at his office or with Naruto. But this train of thought from Naruto helped him in the long run as he once again excelled in his training.

(End of Flashback)

The Third Hokage was now sitting in his office awaiting the meeting he was scheduled to have with none other than one of his Anbu Captains. That specific Anbu Captain was probably the most elusive Anbu member in the entire Anbu combined.

"Lord Hokage." An Anbu with a Panther mask appeared out of the shadows.

"Oh? I'm guessing this is quite serious if you have to address me formally." Hiruzen sipped on his tea as he looked at the Anbu Agent.

"Well… It's a formal request… Or an idea one could say." Panther explained.

"Then explain." Hiruzen replied.

"It's about a new way of training Anbu…-!" Panther started but was quickly interrupted.

"Declined. You know as well as me that our Anbu regiment is already borderline, we went over this with Danzo and his Root Anbu, if we screw up our 'Working' Anbu program who knows how else we are going to completely screw up somebody's mind. Already we have to have to station a Yamanaka on every agent to make sure they don't go insane." Hiruzen didn't hesitate in the slightest with his response.

"Ugh! Let me explain better. That Was a poor choice in words! Not a different training program just… A different mindset? As of right now whether you admit it or not you are training and want your Anbu to be Elite killing machines that don't pay any mind to their emotions while on missions. Now maybe you don't do it to the same extent as Danzo but nevertheless it's the same idea." Panther explained getting a nod of agreement from The Third Hokage.

"Continue." Hiruzen was getting curious now.

"Okay so you want to train your Anbu to think 'Village first' and family and all of that is after the village, correct?"

"That is the idea."

"What if instead of that mindset we let them have a 'Family First' or 'Loved Ones First' Mindset and we don't really try to necessarily try and change their mindset?" Panther voiced his idea.

"… And why do you think that's a good idea?" Hiruzen clearly wasn't impressed.

"Well think about it this way. If your family loves the village or your loved ones love the village wouldn't you want to do everything in your power to protect what they love? And from my personal experiences the Ninja's who have more emotions in MOST not all circumstances they tend to grow stronger and faster at a rapid pace. Whether they do it to protect themselves or their family, some even grow strong and strive in battle because they don't want to die BECAUSE they have family and loved ones to return to." Panther explained.

"And if their families don't like Konoha? Or hold a grudge against us?" The Hokage voiced his concerns.

"Oh please! You know as well as me that we don't instate any Shinobi into the Anbu if they have a vendetta against Konoha or they had a past experience against Konoha."

"I know but… I fear somebody like that could mess up the entire Anbu and their Anbu ways…" Hiruzen spoke truthfully.

"Okay think about this… You want your Anbu to show more emotion outside of work and to make sure they aren't exactly "Emotionless Machines" like Danzo's Root, right?" Panther enquired.

"Yes… Outside of work that is."

"Then if we introduce somebody like that he could help with that! It will be a refresher to them around the Anbu Headquarters when they aren't on a mission."

"In theory that would work but… On missions that person would only get in the way."

"Not really…"

"Explain."

"You know how the greatest Ninja's out there have two personalities? One for when they are in combat and one when they are with friends and family?" Panther asked.

"Yes…"

"I'm going to help form a ninja like that. One able to kill of his emotions in a heartbeat, but at the same time he keeps his emotions and knows what to fight for. And he knows what to fight specifically for like his family or Friends not something as broad as 'The Village'. Because whether you like it or not everyone has somebody in this village that either they don't like or they are disliked by them." Panther explained.

"Like I said, in theory this is a great idea but… A ninja who can do that isn't easy to come by…"

"Okay before you finish that let me add this. Hashirama Senju and Madara Uchiha are probably some of the strongest Shinobi the world will ever see, agreed?"

"Agreed." Hiruzen responded.

"And guess what?"

"What?"

"Their fuel to get that strong was their love for their family and everyone they loved." Panther explained.

"No Hashir-!" Hiruzen was quickly cut off again.

"Don't be a hypocrite Hiruzen. You love the entire village like your family, right?"

"Yes…"

"Hashirama was even more so."

"Shouldn't we keep with the 'Village First' Mindset then?" Hiruzen asked this but even he was starting to see Panther's point.

"No, you cannot force your love and ideals for the village and its inhabitants onto others. They have to learn to love it themselves. Now I'm not saying if we go through with this plan they will love the village like Hashirama or you, but they will at least put their loved ones first and have their own fuel to protect the village. And if this goes well we will probably even increase the success rate of mission and lower the casualty rate. Think about it brotherhood will be stronger with this." Panther informed.

"You aren't going to stop pushing this idea, are you?" Hiruzen sighed and put his face down to his hands on his desk.

"Is it a bad idea?" Panther asked seriously.

"No… just…" Hiruzen was clearly having doubts.

"One kid." Panther stated out of nowhere.

"Excuse me?"

"All I need is one kid to be my apprentice. Hell! I'll even take an orphan to make you happier." Panther informed.

"Fine. You get one kid but make sure to check with me before you start anything."

"Obviously." Panther spoke clearly relieved and happier.

"Now get back to work I have plenty of paperwork that needs signing." Hiruzen shooed the Anbu Agent away as he continued his work.

Hiruzen couldn't exactly deny the request when Panther said he would personally take on an apprentice. After all Panther never spoke with let alone trained anyone if he truly didn't need to. So that alone showed how serious he was.

Hiruzen simply sighed and leaned back on his chair.

"I have a feeling I'm not going to like who he picks…" Hiruzen spoke to himself quietly.

(A Few Weeks Later)

Torture.

Torture was what was happening to Naruto the past 2 Months.

From his mental health to his physical health everything was being tortured.

At first it was all mental from all of his pain and agony finally erupting after all those years of keeping it locked away.

But the seal broke and it all flooded out like a tidal wave.

Then it was the "Fox Hunts".

Beating after beating it never relented.

Hiruzen saw this and placed Itachi Uchiha as Naruto's bodyguard from the shadow but that only made it worse. The longer it took to have a "Fox Hunt" the worse the beatings would get. At first Naruto could run away or beat the villagers himself thanks to his training but that soon ended, they got more Jonins to join and help them capture the "Bastard Son of the Fourth Hokage".

Don't get me wrong, Naruto never once let the pain get to him. But don't get this wrong either, he didn't accept the pain no, He embraced it. Now that may seem like a little much for a seven-year-old but in reality, Naruto was already mentally older than that. And as long as Hiruzen trained him and still cared for him he wouldn't mind the pain.

That doesn't mean he won't try and get out of the torture sessions though.

Like right now, Naruto is running as fast as he can, leaping over bounds literally and figuratively to get away from the mob behind him.

"No, no, no, no, no." Naruto kept speaking to himself as he rounded another corner.

Today was one of those days that Naruto dreaded the most. He was due another beating or torture whatever you wanted to call it and he was 2 weeks and a half due one, so that meant he was in for a bad one today.

"Come on, come on, come on! Faster, faster, faster!" Naruto kept telling himself so fast it was starting to sound like a chant.

Naruto never did get how the Hokage could arrest so many people yet they kept coming and they only got worse and worse never running out of time, people, nor energy.

"Don't mess up! Don't mess up!" Naruto yelled to himself as he burst forward using all of his energy trying to gain that extra bit of speed for what he was about to do.

In front of him was a dead end. Yet this time he wasn't as scared like he used to be. Why? Because he was a ninja now, he could climb walls.

He leaped onto the wall.

One step.

Good.

Another step.

Better.

Two more steps.

Closer to escape.

"Yes!" Naruto cheered to himself as he was about to be home free.

He was a few steps away, no, one leap away.

But things were never that easy for Naruto.

Naruto broke out into a full-blown smile.

And with one action his entire world crashed down before him.

Somebody grabbed the back of his jacket.

And with one powerful Yank he was sent sailing down to the grown below.

As soon as Naruto hit the ground all the air from his lungs was knocked out of him.

He gasped for air as soon as he possibly could but as he looked up the sky in front of him wasn't there, in its place was the mob. They grabbed him as soon as he got air into his lungs and held him down on his knees.

"You really thought you would get away that easy? We're different then you, we don't come un prepared we learn from our mistakes. You're not getting away from us ever again, and lucky for you we're going to be getting revenge for the others you got fucking arrested." A villager snarled.

Naruto couldn't do anything but stare in horror bracing for whatever they had in store for him.

It started normally, fists beat against him leaving him black eyed, and the villagers cursing him spitting on him and blaming him for things he didn't have any control over. But then something new was about to happen. Something much worse than normal.

"Oh? It looks like the little bastard actually got used to our beatings?" The seemed to be leader spoke out.

"Yeah!"

"Your right!"

"Make it worse!"

"Kill him!"

Every remark was getting worse and worse.

And then it happened. Naruto didn't have to be told what they were going to do, to know what was about to befall him.

"Oh? This is so convenient! I think God himself has officially told us what to do!" The Leader yelled as he looked straight at a metal can that had a bomb fire inside of it that was probably used by some homeless man considering it was late January at the time.

The man walked toward the fire and pulled something out.

A metal Rod that was Red hot at the end from the extreme temperatures in the fire.

"No!" Naruto screamed louder than he ever has.

"Why don't we label the Demon? So, all can know what he is! A fucking Demon! A Bastard Son! The Devil himself!" The man yelled causing cheers to erupt from the crowed.

"No! Please! Stop it please!" Naruto continued to cry louder and louder.

"Now why should we? You're the one who took our families and loved ones… It's only fair you live a life of pain!" The man snarled sadistically.

"I didn't! Please!" Naruto yelled hoping for a savior to hear him.

"Strip him boys!" The man commanded the ones holding him.

And so, they tore off his shirt revealing his pale chest.

"Now let's put this… Right here!" The man exclaimed as he narrowed in right onto Naruto's chest right under the collar bones.

"AHHHH!" Naruto screamed in pain and agony.

The man used the blazing medal rod like a pencil dragging the molten hot end on Naruto's skin slowly melting the skin and muscle underneath.

"There! It's a masterpiece!" The man looked at his work in glee.

On Naruto's chest was "DEVIL" written in big and bold letters.

Naruto was going into shock from the pain the last thing he heard was "Who's next? I think we need everyone to know he's the 'Bastard Son of the Fourth' too!"

(Naruto's Mindscape)

It was pitch black, nothing but blackness for as far as the eye could see. This wasn't the first time Naruto's been here, but every time it's the same. It's quiet and peaceful. Nothing to bother him. It was just a place to get away.

"Naruto." A voice spoke from deep inside of the darkness shocking Naruto quite a bit.

"Fox." Naruto spoke realizing what was happening.

Yes, Naruto learned of what he had inside of him. After his mother and sister abandoned him he had more time to think about things. He finally got a hunch about it where he then asked Hiruzen and Hiruzen himself clarified it. It all made sense when he truly thought about it actually, it was a shame he didn't learn earlier.

"You're not surprised?" The voice asked in a mildly surprised tone as 2 massive eyes with Red Irises and slit pupils asked.

"Not really." Naruto responded quite calmly.

"I see." A set of pearly white razor-sharp teeth shined through the darkness.

"How are you talking to me? I thought you couldn't do anything with me because your power is sealed inside of somebody else. I only have your worthless soul." Naruto asked not caring if he offended a being that could probably destroy his entire village by sneezing.

"Watch your mouth!"

"I will when you answer my question."

"Tsk! Do you honestly think it would be that easy to simply seal my soul apart from my power? I am a force of nature. A demon. I can get my power back as simply as I want, I am a force of nature therefore I get my power from nature. So by you simply walking around I gained my power back from the nature around you." The Fox explained.

"I see… Then why not escape my seal?" Naruto asked curiously.

"It isn't a simple seal. If the Shinigami seals me into something I'm stuck in there until my sealer releases me." The Fox told the boy.

"Alright, enough of explaining. What do you want?" Naruto clearly wasn't in the mood to talk to the Fox.

"Excuse me? You should be happy I'm even talking to you… After all I have the answer you're in need of…"

"The answer? I don't need an answer…" Naruto answered.

"Oh? You don't want to end the beatings? End the suffering that those fools in your village cause you?" The Fox taunted.

"I'm listening." Now Naruto was getting curious.

"I can give you the power to fight back." The Fox told the boy expecting him to jump for joy.

The fox waited in glee as it expected Naruto to be ecstatic because of the offer.

"No, I don't want it." Naruto replied flatly.

"Wh-What?! Why!" The Fox was clearly flabbergasted and then roared.

"Why would you willingly give me what I want? Obviously, you're going to get something out of this and I don't feel like giving you something like that is a good idea." Naruto explained quite intelligently.

"You're smarter than I expected… But nevertheless! You mustn't worry about such things." The Fox explained.

"Explain." Naruto commanded.

"Oh? Now I get your attention… Very well! Demons don't like being in anyone's debt. And as of right now I owe you." The Fox informed the 7-year-old.

"How? I never did anything to you for you to be in my debt." Naruto asked cluelessly.

"It doesn't matter… I am the reason you are being tortured, am I correct?" The Fox explained.

"Yeah… So then how can you help me?" Naruto relented and asked.

"I can give you power… But…"

"But?"

"You will have to sacrifice something." The Fox informed.

"What? You just said I basically deserve it… And that I wouldn't need to do anything…"

"I know but… I'm giving you the power for free, but you have to sacrifice something so I can actually give you the power… And with whatever body part you sacrifice will be turned into a Demon's part. Like for example if you gave me an arm it would be turned into a Demon's arm… However, if you sacrificed your heart… You would lose your Humanity at the same time, but! You would be turned into a demon." The Fox explained.

Naruto thought for a second deciding if it was worth it, but he remembered something Hiruzen told him when he wanted to change, "You can never become somebody else… You will always be you even if you put a mask to hide your true self. All we can do as human beings is change and adapt but our very natural selves will always be there and weigh down on our 'Changed' selves. So, I would say this to you. Don't become somebody else, no, adapt and become stronger so you don't have to sacrifice yourself for something you don't want." And Naruto ended up taking that differently then what was originally intended, was it bad? No…

"Deal."

"That's what I wanted to hear. So what part will it be?"

"My heart." Naruto told the fox without flinching.

"… What?"

"I said I'll give you my heart." Naruto repeated.

"A-Are you sure? That fast? You can't go back after I do the process."

"I'm sure." Naruto clarified.

"You can't take it back… But okay. You will probably be out for a few hours during the process. Luckily you are still a child and you still have to adapt and grow so you will be fine turning into a Demon."

"Okay… Wait. Before I do this can I ask some questions? I'm not backing out I just want to clarify some things before I leave. I don't exactly know how long it will be until I talk to you again after all." Naruto said.

"Fire away."

"What will I gain from being a Hanyou or Half demon? Other than the obvious traits like strength and speed and those basic things."

"Half Demon?" The Fox asked slightly entertained.

"Aren't I going to be a half demon? I mean I'm a Human I wasn't born Demon…"

"Honey please… As soon as you offered me your heart you were officially going to become a full demon. If you only sacrificed a limb or something like that then I would say you would be a half demon, but a heart? I think not. The heart controls everything from your brain down to your Chakra Coils, every fiber of muscle is somehow connected to your heart. So, by default if your Heart is a demon's… I know your smart enough to know the answer."

"If my heart's a demon's heart… I have a complete Demon's body…" Naruto answered in realization.

"Bingo. Now to what traits you may gain? That's not a simple question. Every Demon is turned into a specific 'Class' of demon depending on what Sins they are chosen by." The Fox explained.

"Sins?"

"The Seven Deadly Sins. Lust, Greed, Sloth, Wrath, Envy, Pride, and Gluttony. Every demon is placed into a 'Class' of demons depending on what Sin you are. Usually every demon is chosen by 2 Sins and 3 is rare, four is almost unheard of. So, after you are a full Demon I will check to see what Sins you are and once I do that I will clarify what characteristics or traits you gained from your sins. But other than that, you will get naturally stronger and faster and more resilient. But don't get me wrong, you will have to train like any other Human because you won't just magically gain the power you will get a boost that's for sure but you still have to go through the regular growth cycles and training and discipline to truly become powerful. After all that's how the strongest demons are made too." The Fox explained.

"I see… Would you really give up your own power simply because you owe me something? I find that hard to believe…" Naruto asked again.

"Ha! You really think I would give you my power if I wouldn't get it back? Here's a little advice boy. Never and I mean Never give somebody something that you cannot get back. Whether it's love or power don't give people something you cannot get back."

"Then… How am I getting it?" Naruto asked confusedly.

"Okay let me explain it simply… Imagine a tree, that tree is my power."

"Okay…"

"I cut off a sapling and plant it somewhere else, that is your power."

"Okay…"

"I will grow back my sapling and the new sapling will prosper and grow maybe even growing bigger than the original tree. So basically, I'm planting a seed without worrying about my own power, I will get it back in a few days." The Fox finished explaining.

"I see…"

"Is that all then?" The Fox asked.

"Yeah. Just make sure to see what Sins I was chosen by. Next time we meet I want to know everything I get from them and what 'Class' I am." Naruto exclaimed.

"Very well, now sleep."

And Naruto fell straight asleep onto the black floor.

A willow wisp of Red mist flew towards Naruto and entered his Mouth, Nose, and Eye sockets causing him to flail around on the floor for a few moments before he finally calmed down.

"Now let's see what Sins have chosen you…" The Fox muttered as It brought one of its paws out of the darkness and poked Naruto's forehead with its claw.

"No fucking way…" The Fox was Clearly Speechless.

"Ha… Haha… Hahahahahahahaha!" The Fox laughed so loud it could shake buildings from miles away if there were any.

(Back in the Real World)

The villagers were seconds away from carving a second name into Naruto's skin when he arrived. A lone Anbu stood at the tops of the building staring down with utter disgust and hatred as he witnessed the scene he arrived to.

"Mark the Bastard!"

The Anbu agent heard from down below.

Finally, he had enough and saw the "DEVIL" marking on Naruto's chest and noticed they were about to write something else.

So, he walked to the edge.

And fell.

As he fell a sword appeared out of a storage seal on his arm.

He threw dozens of Kunai and Shuriken killing multiple villagers instantly.

And then he landed and immediately brought his sword down and around to finish everyone off.

It was over before it even started.

A massacre.

A bloodbath.

And the last thing the civilians and Shinobi saw before they were brutally killed?

A Panther.

(Hospital)

Naruto woke up feeling not so good. His body felt like it was on fire his muscles were all extremely worn out and tired.

"Ugh…" Naruto groaned as he sat up and noticed the bandages all over him.

Bandages all over his chest and covering where he was "Marked", and bandages all over his limbs.

"I wouldn't move if I were you." A voice spoke out alerting Naruto of his presence.

"Who are you?" Naruto quickly asked.

"Me? You don't exactly deserve to know my name yet… Just call me Panther like everyone else does." The unknown individual said as he walked out from the darkness.

It was the Anbu Agent. He wore the Anbu attire with a Captain band on his Left shoulder, his mask was on, it was a white mask with black markings obviously symbolizing a panther, and he had multiple Fuinjutsu tattoos on his arms probably for sealing weapons.

"Alright… Mr. Panther… What do you want?" Naruto asked cautiously.

"Well I saved you from some villagers so…"

"I should thank you then." Naruto bowed slightly from his hospital bed.

"That's not why I stayed here though…" The man spoke calmly.

"Then why?"

"How would you like to become stronger?" The man asked seriously.

"What do you mean?"

"Do you want to become stronger? It's a simple question. I will make you my apprentice for the time being if you wish to become stronger." The man explained.

Naruto didn't answer immediately he had to think. The Kyuubi's words kept ringing out to him "You will have to train like any other Human because you won't just magically gain the power, you will get a boost that's for sure but you still have to go through the regular growth cycles and training and discipline to truly become powerful." This was becoming too good to be true was the thought going through Naruto's head at the moment. Normally he would be skeptical from a stranger offering something like this but he knew the Anbu worked directly with the Hokage and there was NO way and I mean NO way the Hokage would let anything bad happen to him.

"Deal." Naruto replied with a malicious grin on his face.

"Good. Prepare for the hardest training course you have ever faced." The Panther masked Anbu raised an eyebrow at the grin but waved it off and simply looked at the boy in curiosity.

Now how would he explain to the Hokage that the child he picked that was supposed to be an orphan was actually his Grandson?

'Ehhh… It'll be fine.' The man thought to himself.

Chapter 1: The Boy with a Heart Too Big for His Own Good

Finished

Well dang! It took me SOOOO LONG to write this first chapter! Why? BECAUSE I WROTE THE ENTIRE THING AND THEN MY COMPUTER CRASHED! I LOST IT COMPLETELY BECAUSE MY DUMBASS DIDN'T SAVE IT! Ugh! I'm done with it now! It's good enough!

"What kind of story do I want this to be?" Well that is an easy yet hard one. Reading a lot of fanfictions I notice that stories are either all Action no lemons OR action and not so good Lemons or there is the other half that is All Lemons and no Action OR Lemons and not so good Action and Story. Now don't get me wrong! There are some that are like a needle in a haystack because they are absolutely amazing mixture of both! I'm going to try and have a good mixture of both! (Even know I'm not big on writing lemons…) but yeah that's the plan! And also, I read so many stories that have AMAZING ideas but the writing portion of the story is written with bad grammar because usually the writers first language isn't English… Which isn't bad just… You know what I mean? Hopefully… I don't want to sound like a jerk… But yeah, this Story is like a Hotpot! I'm adding literally every good idea I think of and all the really good idea's I may have seen from other stories or I love from other things! I hope that makes sense…

Basically, I'm mashing together all my ideas and making it so they aren't exactly cliché? Hopefully they aren't…

And before anyone asks! No! Kushina and Mito aren't going to be let off easy! Naruto isn't going to forgive them easily and let them back into his life easily! I hate when i read stories like that! They have really REALLY want to reconcile before hand.

Also by the time a post this I will already have 3-5 Chapters done as I want to be able to focus on my other stories while I post this and all that. Depending on the feedback and the reviews it will see how fast I update and all that

Now just in case you didn't catch on in the Chapter! The Promise was much more than simply training to Naruto! Like I said the Promise symbolized getting the same treatment as his sister and the same love and protection from Kushina. So, when Kushina completely waved it off as nothing… Naruto broke. Naruto completely burned into nothing but ashes.

Now as for the whole Demon thing? I like the idea and all that! As to the "Classes" and all that I made that up on the spot and I liked the idea… SO yeah! If you got questions about it just ask!

Now to explain Naruto's personality a little bit (At the Moment) Naruto has a very… Dependable nature? His mother Kushina was basically his life line and everything he cared for. Yes, he cared for Hiruzen and Mito but nothing on the level as Kushina. You could for sure say he was a "Mommy's boy" and he honestly didn't care *Cough* Look at where that got him *Cough Cough* XD You get it! Hopefully… Naruto will change from that dependability nature though so don't get too attached to it. Everything else I don't really want to spoil so I won't say too much on it but I said a lot of it in the chapter when "Panther" Told Hiruzen what type of Ninja he wanted to help form.

BY THE WAY! I'm switching the age for when people graduate from the Ninja Academy to 14-15 It would be better for the story and I think it's honestly better in general if they are 14-15 before they are shipped to their deaths :P No Naruto isn't going to be in the academy but just so you all know 14-15 is the normal graduation age.

Now I know I made Kyuubi OC! I mean come on! I am pretty much making IT since I haven't decided if it's a male or female demon. And do any of yall really think the Canon Kyuubi would want to join Naruto's harem… ;{

Now "Who is Panther?" you may ask. The truth is I honestly just thought of a random Anbu mask for this character (Who I will not name yet) and placed it there :P And before everyone goes "Oh My gosh! Can you not be retarded and self-insert yourself as a badass Anbu? It's so Immature! I know you did! It's just a pathetic Self insert!" Yeah stfu trust me I hate Self inserts a lot. Unless you make a new story for your OC or Self insert I don't like them just saying. If you go and let's say… Highschool DxD! If you go and take that ENTIRE canon Story and simply change the main character into yourself and then you post the story I swear to Bjebus you shouldn't be on this website… Now I know that may be rude but I mean come on! I know everyone here is technically taking the ideas from the original creators for the Anime/Manga but we at least change things and whatnot.

Also don't get offended if I call my readers a name or something XD I recently read something and one of the reviewers got TRIGGERED and I rarely use triggered cause I don't like the word but the person went off because the writer called his readers like… "Bastards" or "Perverts" I don't remember the actual name but the reviewer got mad at something he honestly shouldn't have :P And when I talk to my friends and stuff I call them not nice names all the time XD So please don't get offended if I say something like that :P Anyways that all for that…

Also! By the time they graduate from the academy I'm moving the age up to like 14-15-year-old for that. Not 12-year olds like in Canon.

WHAT DO YOU GUYS THINK OF THE TITLE AND SUMMARY?! I need to know because i want to have it set in stone by chapter 4ish! So please tell me what everyone thinks!

ANYWAYS! ENOUGH OF MY RANT.

ONTO THE MOST IMPORTANT PART OF MY AUTHOR NOTES.

(HAREM VOTING PLEASE READ)

Alright the Harem Voting!

No Sakura… I honestly can't have her in a Harem… Preferably no Hinata! Why? Because she's too used. Like I understand why she is so overused but I would honestly not want to use her. BUT! If like A LOT and I mean A LOT of you guys want her I will put her in…

Here are the Rules! You can pick 7 People from the list (Or if it's not on the List you can write it down and I'll tally those marks too) and that's basically it XD Here is the list! Btw A few of those people are going to be in the Harem either way because yaknow I love em and y'all can't stop me from adding them into my own story. :P

(DISCLAIMER SINCE MOST OF Y'ALL DON'T READ MY OTHER RAMBLING! YOU CAN ONLY VOTE FOR 5-7 PEOPLE FOR THE HAREM USE THE LIST BELOW.)

LEAVE YOUR VOTES IN THE REVIEWS! I DON'T AND I REPEAT DO NOT DO POLL'S! LEAVE YOUR VOTES IN THE REVIEWS

Kushina Uzumaki - I already have how I will add her and everything so don't ask how because I got it under control

Mikoto Uchiha - This one is also really easy like Kushina.

Fem Kyuubi – I haven't gotten a name for her yet but I made sure to not specify the Nine Tails Gender just in case you guys want to see a Female Nine tails.

Tsunade Senju - If you want her vote her! Age and all that doesn't matter *Cough* Naruto's a Demon *Cough*

Kurenai Yuhi - I think most people like this Red Eyed Vixen

Anko Mitarashi

Mei Terumi – *Cough* Seductress Mizukage *Cough*

Samui - *Cough* Big breasted Blondie *Cough*

Yugito Nii

Yugao Uzuki

Mito Uzumaki-Namikaze? - To be honest I'm not really planning on her to be that big of a character… But if enough of y'all want her to be in the Harem I will abide by it.

Tsume Inuzaka – She needs an Alpha…

Hana Inuzaka – Same for her…

Hitomi Hyuuga – Hinata's mother… Hiashi's wife? I think Hiashi is Hinata's father… You guys will probably tell me XD But don't worry about her being his wife XD It's not that hard to fix. :P

Shizuka Nadeshiko – I like this village :P

Ino Yamanaka

Mabui – She needs a break from dealing with the Raikage… (No she isn't in a relationship with A the Raikage… That's just weird to me…)

Karin Uzumaki

Tayuya

Guren

Mito Senju Uzumaki (THE ORIGINAL MITO UZUMAKI) – I think it would be cool for her to be in the Harem

Kaguya Otsutsuki – Liked her not gonna lie.

Pakura – I know there isn't much about her but that just makes it more fun to write her :P I can make her slightly OC if I had to.

Tsunami – First real MILF of the series…

Ameyuri Ringo

Hayuki or Habuki Hyuuga (Neji's Mom) – I haven't figured out a name for her yet but if y'all want her I'll give her to Naruto!

Konan – The Akatsuki Gal.

Any other Female from the Naruto Series you may want to see in the Harem that I forgot to add into the list.

I will tally all the marks up and post them next chapter. Every chapter you all can vote again! You can either vote the same people or vote different people! It's up to you! I will only be doing Harem voting for a few chapter so get Voting! Leave your Votes in the Reviews! (I don't do poll's)

Now I know that's not all of them but those are the ones I remember! So yeah! Vote for who you want preferably from that list! But like I said I may have forgot somebody from out of that list so make sure to vote at least 5 people from the list and if you must you can vote two people from outside the list.

I DON'T KNOW THE FINAL NUMBER FOR THE HAREM SO PLEASE DON'T ASK

*Cough* Lemons will be in here so if that helps you pick… GO for it XD *Cough*

Anyways that's all! Please Review what you think of the Chapter! Please Leave any questions in the Reviews or PM Me! I love reading and responding to all of them! They motivate me!

Toodles!