The Shinobi Way

Summary: Naruto is far too innocent and trusting in the Canon Universe, especially when one considers the childhood he supposedly had. I've made that childhood slightly (or significantly, you decide) worse. Childish masks are one thing, but the saying "Once bitten, twice shy" applies to everyone. Naruto learns quickly, works as hard as he can to survive, and as such…changes the way his life, and the lives of all those he meets, ends up completely different.

Warnings: Naruto will be quite strong in my story, but he will work for it. Along with this I am going to change the face of the Hidden Villages, along with the personalities of many of the more prominent members of the Shinobi Society. Not removing them, but adding to them. Because of this, battle scenes will be more realistic as well as more deadly, people will die, and there may or may not be lemons involved. At the very least, sexual interactions will be implied. So, in general; Death, blood, gore, disturbing descriptions of various things (like torture), and anything else my twisted and depraved mind can come up with. Finally, I deviate from Canon in many places, and may follow it far too closely in other cases. Enjoy.

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any other resources from anime or manga that I may draw upon. This is a onetime disclaimer, as it is only slightly obvious that I don't own any of this. After all, it isn't like this is a Fanfiction or anything, is it?

Very, Very VERY IMPORTANT Authors Note here people! If you don't read this you won't get what's going on.

Okay, first and foremost, I apologize for the eternity that has passed since I posted anything. I am sorry. I am even sorrier to inform you that it will be a while before I post too many new chapters. I am afraid that I lost my spark for a long while, and it showed, at least from my point of view, in several of the last chapters of The Shinobi Way. Especially in the very last chapter, that one was utter shite.

Now I believe that you all need a reason, and for that I quote to you a wonderful review by Rpeter, in which he said "It's a brilliant chapter, and I'd love to give a brilliant review, but words fail me. This chapter is splendid, a masterpiece, it's not fanfiction, it's the real deal. Damn it man, you could write original stories with this type of quality! I am so thankful that you choose to write a Naruto fanfic, this piece is simply amazing. There are no words to describe how I love this chapter!"

Now this reviewer has been reading my story from the very beginning, and has always been a big fan. Even if he hasn't provided the criticisms that have helped me grow as a writer (Looking at you Chronomitsurugi, Thornsword, etc...), his reviews have always been not only a bright spot in my writing, but have always been helpful. He is a supporter and someone who can bring my eyes back to ground level when I'm planning things a little above what I should at that point. Ex: His review asking if Hanzo and Naruto were the same person. I had thought it was obvious, for which I apologize. So thank you for that RPeter.

Unfortunately, his praise brought a fair few problems to the front. How the hell could I compare to that chapter? It was something that got praise from every corner, even from those who hated my story. The only criticism it got was from somebody who believed that Kyuubi wouldn't shiver in fear from the Juubi, none on the actual chapter. I couldn't top that at the time, and I'm not entirely certain I can now, even if I'm going to do my best to do so.

And my lack of confidence showed almost immediately, within two chapters to be sure. So I considered a rewrite, even more so whenever several people mentioned that it seemed like several different people had written my story. Seriously? I knew I sucked to begin with, no need to rub it in. It's not like I was planning for my story to ever grow beyond a few thousand words.

Now I'm rewriting it, and it's taken me a long time to get my spark back, as I put it earlier. Hell, I cranked out what you will read beneath this in just a few hours...little concerned over how it will be received. With the rewrite though, there will be a lot of changes, and I hope you all will call me out on it if I begin to fall back to my old ways of skimping important details out of laziness.

Noticeable changes; A lot more detail. That's really about it. I'll be changing a few things here and there, but it will really be a lot more attention to detail, filling in the blurs that I never bothered with. Naruto himself will experience a great deal more focus. Honestly, I explained everyone but him didn't I? Orochimaru got more time in the spotlight than my protagonist did! Hopefully my Naruto won't seem quite as distant once I've expanded his childhood, training, and the key events that turned Naruto into a spymaster, badass, and true shinobi.

Unfortunately I won't be posting much for a while until I've reached the point where I was originally, and that means one chapter for every chapter I've got out, including the one where this will be. Do not despair though, for I have included roughly ten thousand words of the soon to be Chapter one of my rewrite for your viewing pleasure, and I want to know what you think. If you do take the time to review, all that I ask is that you be honest. If you think it sucked, explain why. If it's great, explain why. It helps more than anyone who doesn't write will ever know.

Oh, and by the way? Jahvy D. Prince? You actually wasted a review to bitch about me using moves from one piece, and then having the gall to do so without a disclaimer? Read the disclaimer that I put at the very top of this. Sarcasm's for you bud.

Am I forgetting anything...checking reviews...oh yes. Naruto's earth nature. Suck it up, he's keeping it. Earth is a badass nature that gets way to many negative reviews, and I'm going to prove it. Already have, actually, but there will be no doubt by the time I'm done.

So, apologies for the delay, continued delay, and the teaser here. I know I hate it when authors post "new chapters" that turn out to be naught but notes, so I did try to make up for with some eye candy. And before you ask, no, the chapter's not finished. I just got tired of stalling, and I'm almost out of computer time before work.

~Break~

"It's here." Was the terrified voice of a young man as he appeared inside a circular room, his eyes already seeking out the grim visage of his leader.

"About time. We've only been sensing it for the past three hours!" Was the light-hearted response from a blonde-haired man, but his eyes belayed the seriousness of the situation. Those blue eyes softened considerably as they gazed upon a much smaller version of himself, ignoring the several other people in the room with him.

"Orders, Hokage-sama?" A stressed but calm tone asked as a man with spiky brown hair idly played with his cane, his hard brown eyes gazing at his leader. The blonde in the white trench coat ignored him for the moment, instead rubbing the child he was holding in his arms.

"What do you think, Naruto-kun? Think you can handle it?" He asked the baby, the soft giggle causing an equally soft smile to form on his face, even as a tear traced its way down his cheek.

"Danzo." The man's voice became steel as the man who'd spoken before moved forward.

"Take the Root forces we have available and delay it. Use everything you can to keep it from getting to close to Konoha. The sheer force of its chakra has already killed some of the weaker members of the village. If it breaks through our lines all is lost. Sarutobi, you take the main forces, same orders. I need fifteen minutes." The two nodded, both the man with the cane and another armored form vanishing from the room.

"What of me, Minato?" Was the sad voice of the final figure in the room other than the man with the child, a tall white-haired man. The blonde ignored him for another moment, simply holding the baby in his arms.

"You're needed here Sensei. If the Death God fails to seal away the beast like I fear than you will be the only one left who will be able to get the civilians to safety." The older man frowned at the negative statement before speaking up.

"It will work brat! Sure, the Kyuubi's powerful, but to be able to defy a god? Quit over thinking it you idiot." That got a laugh from Minato.

"Perhaps I am over thinking things again Jiraiya-Sensei." The white-haired man with red lines trailing down his cheeks nodded.

"Just like when you tried to propose to Kushina. The Shinigami will seal away the Kyuubi into Naruto; Sarutobi-Sensei, Kakashi, and I will raise him to be a good man and a mighty Shinobi, without being a weapon of the village like they tried to do with Kushina." A flash of killing intent came from the Kage at the mention of the word weapon, memories flaring up in his mind as continued to stare at his son, absorbing everything about the boy that he could in his limited time left. A deep, heavy sigh left him.

"I can't believe she's gone Jiraiya." The man heaved a sigh, just like the one that had left his student.

"You'll see her soon Minato." A small comfort to the man, but a comfort nonetheless. Minato finally put the child down onto a table, a small puff of smoke disappearing into the air even as his hand skated across his son's body, black lines and swirls of ink trailing behind the brush he held.

"I still can't believe that fucker was able to wrench the Biju out of Kushina's seal, especially after how much we tightened it. The only reason we've had the day to prepare was because it managed to break free of his control temporarily." Jiraiya frowned in thought.

"The Kyuubi…strongest of the nine Biju, and widely regarded as the smartest, yet it only shows up whenever some idiot tries to gain control over it. How the hell are they managing it? The only one who ever could was Madara, and even then it was easy for the Shodai to negate that control." Minato kept on working, painting highly detailed kanji onto his son.

"That was only because of the Sharingan though, and there is no way that the Kyuubi would be caught the same way twice. It's the reason foxes are revered for being cunning after all." The white-haired man continued on, merely thinking out loud now. Minato shook his head.

"It doesn't matter now. The Kyuubi will no longer be able to be controlled after today, the seal will prevent it." The older man sighed, accepting the answer. The time passed quickly, and Jiraiya watched as his student…no, his son, left out the window, heading to his death.

'And so I watch another close to me die…'

~3¾ year time skip~

*SNAP!* A scream of pain followed the brutal sound of breaking bones, dark female laughter ringing out.

"Do you like it demon?" Another snap, another scream, more laughter, male this time.

"Little bitch! You deserve everything we're doing to you, don't you?" No response, a gleaming blade flashed, impaling a small and damaged form. No scream, even as a foot came up and slammed onto the hilt of the blade, driving it deeper into the body.

"Scum. Can't even scream right." Was the mutter from one of the many onlookers as they gazed upon the bloody and battered form of a three-year-old child, disgruntled smiles upon some of the faces.

"What do you expect? Demons can never do anything right." Snarled out a woman as she watched the pair of shinobi work the boy over, grimly grinning at the renewed screams as bloody bone poked out of an arm.

The peoples…fun was interrupted when another woman entered, disappointed groans ringing through the room, the two tormentors finally dropping the child, kicking him one final time.

"Has it really been an hour already, Mrs. Williams?" A low and cultured voice asked, though the woman ignored him for a moment, striding towards the broken boy and kicking him in one of his many injuries.

"It has. And as much as I would love to see this demon continue to get what it deserves…the council can only distract the good Hokage for so long." She said, smiling sinisterly down at the boy. So long as she kept on getting paid she didn't give a damn about what happened to the boy.

'…have to…leave…'

"Now you all had better leave. If he gets wind of a large group of people anywhere near the orphanage again than what happened last year will happen again." Several people started muttering, the boy only picking up a single word, "silver," and other disjointed fragments. Even if he had heard more, he wouldn't have been able to understand it.

The people shuffled out, many a final kick striking his bleeding frame, even more spitting upon the many-times broken boy. The woman who'd interrupted them stayed behind, staring at the unnatural child.

"I really don't get you demon." She mused, simply thinking aloud at this point.

"One would think you would at least try to fit in. After all, if you had than it would have ensured that the Hokage would take more of an interest in you. Don't get me wrong…" She kicked him into a wall.

"I'm…very…happy…you…didn't!" She continued, stomping viciously the barely developed parts that made the boy a boy.

"But no, you have yet to even say your first word! The only thing we've ever heard from you are the screams of pain you let out, and of course those fake tears you used let out in an attempt to get us to stop. Fake, because everyone knows demons can't cry." A high pitched chuckle. She truly believed he was a demon, and nothing could convince her otherwise. She walked over to the side of the room, ignoring the broken boy for a moment as she grabbed a bit of the alcohol there. Most of it had already been consumed, but there was more than enough left for her to get drunk, and she was already taking several long draws on the bottle she'd grabbed.

"You don't speak, you no longer fake crying…why? Is it because you know it will do no good you useless little fucker?" She laughed triumphantly.

"Let me tell you something, demon." She spat the word out, so much loathing present in it that it could kill.

"We're going to make you pay for every poor soul you killed. The good people of Konoha are going to torture you until just before your sixth birthday. Do you know why we're picking that date?" The boy didn't answer, even as he pulled himself up, his right hand pressing onto the still visible bone of his left arm, icy cerulean eyes gazing straight into her soul. *Snap!* The bottle shattered on the floor as she gazed in horror at what the boy had done. He'd forcibly broken his own bone, again, just so that he could fit it back into his arm.

"Monster!" She screamed, throwing one of the other bottles at his head, re-breaking the child's nose. The boy's head snapped back, but it soon returned to its former position, glaring balefully at the now shuddering woman.

"I'll tell you why!" She continued on the earlier vein, a note of panic in her voice.

"You're too unnatural to live! Look at you! You just snapped your arm back into place without even wincing! That shell you're inhabiting isn't even four yet! So we're going to kill you, and it's going to be an annual celebration every year from that day. You will burn in the pits of whatever hell may exist for all that you've done, and we shall celebrate you're passing." Her voice got louder and louder as she kept talking, hysteria ruling over her now.

"And I'm going to be the one to gouge out those eyes…those freaky little eyes of yours; they're going to be the first thing to go!" With a wicked laugh she left, yet there was more panic in it than triumph this time. The boy's eyes finally dropped to his battered body, intense pain wracking his form. He almost couldn't feel it anymore.

He knew he wasn't like other kids his age. They weren't hurt like he was; none of them had easily fifty people pushing in line to take turns torturing them. Yet despite all he'd been through…

Pain flared up in his body, every part of him felt like he was on fire again. His teeth bit clear through his lip in an attempt to keep from screaming, the canines dripping fresh blood. A minute or so passed, the new holes in his lips healing up; the last injury to do so.

Blue eyes gazed emotionlessly at his arm, the same one that had had the bone protruding three inches out of it just a few minutes ago. Some lingering pain was all that remained of the horrific injury. This was another reason why he was different. No matter how badly he got hurt, more pain would follow as the injuries healed, though he had found that he needed to have the bones in the general area of where they'd been removed from for it to work. Otherwise it felt like the time his arm had been pulped.

He didn't know his name either. Oh, he knew what a name was, which was better than what the good people of Konoha had intended for him, but the only words he could refer to himself by were some of the more depraved terms a society could create. Demon was one of the lesser evils he was called. Correction...it was the nicest thing he'd ever been called.

Of course there were other things that put him as unique. He analyzed everything around him, which was part of the reason people were so uneasy around him. How often did you see a three and a half year old child with emotionless eyes? Or one that stared unflinchingly into a screaming mob? Those were the real reasons he was seen as a demon nowadays, even though it was because of those very beings that denounced him that he had become so cold. Ironic, wasn't it? A vicious cycle; began by the villagers and perpetuated unknowingly by the child who reacted the only way he knew how, by falling inwards and trying to find a way to escape what was being done to him. And the villagers, disgusted and frightened by the "demon's" behavior, amped up the assaults.

The boy still remembered the day he began to walk. It was actually one of the defining moments in his head, as it was the day that the beatings moved from two or three bigots in the entire village to a small portion of the total population. Despite the small percentage of people, there were still many people participating in the beatings, and now there were shinobi. So things had gotten a great deal worse for the boy.

The bloodied blond stood slowly, stumbling from weakness and lingering pain, making his way over to the discarded drinks. His eyes searched for something, anything that could help him.

'There…' A half-eaten sandwich, he devoured it quickly. These were the only times he managed to eat enough, so no matter the condition he was in, he had to force it down. A few more bits and pieces of whatever the others were eating followed the sandwich, the blond barely tasting any of it.

The door opened again, two of the orphanages helpers dragging him to the pitch-black room he'd occupied for the better part of his life. His eyes hardened even further as he was thrown against another wall. He was going to get out of here…soon.

~One month break~

Blood splattered the floor, the steady plops of leaking fluid echoing in the otherwise silent room. A gleam of metal in the light, a desperate movement, a wet squelch as the blade hit home.

'Have to move…' A clang as a weapon hit a wall, bouncing off even as a child tried to dodge a second one, failing as it pierced his arm.

"Come on demon! A' least give us a bi' o' sport for ya kick the bucket!" Cerulean eyes watched crimson beads slowly dribble down an arm, more of the liquid oozing out from a knife. Those icy eyes turned towards the man who'd spoken, freaking the slightly drunken man out at the sight of the blue abyss.

"Quit fuckin' lookin' at me, demon." A dull thunk as a sharp blade sunk into wood, three more rapidly following it as the boy desperately avoided them.

Schlick… A needle pierced through the child's arm, a much smaller injury than any of the earlier ones. He hadn't even seen it coming. He looked in shock at his numbed arm, getting a laugh from the woman who'd thrown it.

"You like that? A little poison I've develop...you fucker!" She finished, snarling as the boy's arm came up, the same one that the needle had pierced. A dozen more needles flew at him, most going straight through his torso. A touch of numbness followed them, but it ended even faster than it had the first time.

"My senbon should have paralyzed you!" The woman growled, her pride wounded by the fact that a poison she'd worked months to create was so useless. The boy's head tilted slightly.

'I can't see those needles…they're deadly.' They could hit his neck…he'd learned the hard way to not let anything strike there. More needles hit him, desperation raging within him. He couldn't dodge them if he couldn't see them.

A fist slammed into his stomach, the boy having barely seen a blur before he felt the pain, slamming into the wall from the strength of the strike. The rough, unhinged laughter of a drunken man rang out, pulling his fist back from where it had struck the child.

"Ya've gotten…good at dancin'…but canna' dodge…wha ya can' see." The man mumbled, swaying on unsteady feet, heedless of the boy rising to his feet, shaking hands wrenching a kunai from his chest as blood splattered on the floor.

His eyes glazed over as he stared at the bloodstained blade, his small hands tightening over the slippery hilt. Those cold blue eyes turned towards the drunken man, even as dozens of senbon flew towards him from the furious woman.

Desperation raged through him as the senbon came into view for a brief moment, the woman watching in shock as the child ducked, the needles sticking uselessly into the wall. A small gleam of gold pierced into her as the child raised his head, a dangerous pressure freezing her in place as red filtered through the gold. Something happened to her, something that hadn't happened since she'd been an academy student.

She lost her nerve.

"H…hey…Mark…I think we should leave." The drunken man wobbled again, turning to face her with a glare.

"You gotta be fuckin' kiddin' me Lisa. We got this demon right where we wan' em. Let's fuckin' finish the job." The woman tore her eyes from the child, looking at the man. The look of raw fear on her face sobered him up quickly…almost as quickly as the pain did.

Uncomprehending eyes gazed down at the kunai sticking from stomach, golden eyes glaring at him from the face of the child he'd been tormenting. Blood bubbled up in his mouth, dribbling down his chin as the poison that had laced the blade worked its way through him. A scream rang out, for the first time in years not coming from the child, but instead from one of his tormentors. The child wrenched the blade free, blood spraying over him.

'How did it all go so wrong?' She thought as that demon walked towards her, rivulets of her lover's blood trailing down his pale face, blond hair dyed crimson. She couldn't move from her fear as those terrible golden eyes glared into her soul, the power of the red tingeing those eyes sending a warm liquid down her leg.

His hand tightened on the kunai, the blade coming up as high as he could manage to stab into her heart. More blood soaked the boy as he pulled the blade out, another woman's scream jolting him as the matron opened the door.

"YOU DEMON! SHINOBI! THE DEMON'S FR…" She looked down at the blade protruding from her belly, her last sight that of the child's shaded face, a gleam of gold glaring out at her from beneath his hair.

The child looked at the three dead bodies and ran, fleeing from the room, finally escaping his prison. He didn't know what was out there, but it had to be better than this.

Oh how wrong he was.

~Three Years Break~

'Such a wonderful evening.' Thought an aged man as he puffed happily on old cedar pipe, the taste of cherry tobacco fresh on his tongue.

"That's the last of your paperwork, Hokage-sama!" 'Mmm, even better news.' He thought. Being the head of a Shinobi Village induced tons of paperwork, though fortunately the only parts of it that he saw were the items that required his personal attention; otherwise he'd never get it all done.

"Margaret, I think that I will be taking a walk this evening. After all, it's a lovely day, and I so rarely get to enjoy sunsets anymore." The pretty brunette he'd employed as his secretary nodded, beaming at him with a beautiful smile. Such a nice girl; he kept her around because she was a symbol for everything he'd fought for all these years. Young, happy, intelligent, and above all…innocent. She had no idea the monstrous things her Hokage had done to protect her existence, and if Sarutobi had his way, she never would. Nor would any of the other villagers know. It was better that way.

The Fire Shadow paid no heed to his Anbu bodyguards, other than a short moment to identify them. 'Hmm, Kakashi and Hiro. Kakashi is barely recognizable without his signature silver hair…' The man thought, chuckling mentally.

It really was a wonderful evening; the sun was just beginning to go down, a magnificent purple tinge stretching across the orange horizon. Just the kind of evening he and his wife would snuggle up together on, watching the sun go down.

A heavy sigh wracked his frame at that thought. He was so lonely nowadays, ever since his wife had died during the Kyuubi invasion.

The mere thought of that tragedy was enough to make him sigh again. The worst thing to ever happen in Konoha's history; more lives had been in a four hour period than in two shinobi wars combined. Even his own successor, the Fourth Hokage, had fallen in order to defeat the beast. But the death of his wife had always weighed heavily upon his mind, and likely always would, especially with his eldest son dead in the same attack and the other one estranged.

Thinking about the Kyuubi attack always brought up memories of poor little Naruto as well. That always unsettled even his toughened stomach.

The grey-haired man shook his head, ignoring the slightly concerned look from his guards. It would not do to think of such things on an eve like this, not when there was so much beauty to be had. After all, Konoha was truly beautiful during the evening, the parents and children heading indoors and leaving the land peaceful and quiet.

Of course his evening off just wasn't to be, because it wasn't long before his sharp ears picked up a dragging sound, the steady drip drip of a falling liquid playing havoc with his senses. In almost perfect unison the Third Hokage and his ANBU shadows moved, vanishing from view and appearing in front of an nearby alley, the two ninja baring steel as they stood protectively in front of their leader, only for all three of them to freeze in shock, a horror-filled gasp escaping one of the ANBU.

"Naruto?!" Was the incredulous whisper from one of the ANBU guards, only years of training preventing him from running to the battered boy's side. It made Sarutobi sigh. The Civilians had evidently broken their end of the bargain, at least the only part of it that the Saindame had honestly expected them to uphold. The boy was not supposed to leave the orphanage!

The boy's head turned, icy blue eyes boring holes straight into the souls of the shinobi as a streak of crimson slowly trailed down his cheek. Brown and rusty red hair was cut short, a very rough job that was obviously self-done, various liquids and grime coating the once blonde hair. The child's skin was laced with bleeding cuts, his body marred by the proof of the village's abuse. Gashes ran from his shoulders down to his calves, blood slowly oozing from the already healing wounds.

"Move." The Kage's voice was like tempered steel as both the elite shinobi were at the child's side in an instant, Hiro standing guard as Kakashi's hands glowed green, the man quickly knocking the boy out to spare him further pain.

"His wounds are healing steadily…likely due to the Kyuubi. Just about the only thing the beast is good for." The ANBU muttered the last bit to himself

"Focus Anbu." The sharp bark of his leader's voice reprimanded him, though Kakashi was beyond caring at this point. It was because of the man's negligence that Naruto was in this shape.

"How long Kakashi?"

"These injuries are no more than an hour old. I couldn't say just how long he's been out on the streets sir." It was all the man could do to avoid placing venom in his voice, nearly spitting out the word "sir." 'So much for the calm and collected Kakashi!' He thought idly, doing what he could to speed up Naruto's healing.

"Take him to the office. I will deal with this problem when he awakes. It is likely that I will be forced to place him in an apartment." The other Anbu bowed slightly before taking the child, vanishing with a swirl of leaves. Kakashi remained behind, his angry eyes upon his leader.

"I can take him in. Minato-Sensei would not want his legacy disrespected so. On top of that the boy is just that! A boy, no matter what he has experienced, and as such needs some form of guidance." Hiruzen's eyes hardened.

"I told you before, Kakashi! You cannot take him in, it would cause chaos in the village. Along with that you are far too busy! Being an Anbu is a full-time responsibility. Have you even slept for the past few days?" Kakashi shook his head, both a denial of the man's statement, yet still forced to acknowledge his point.

"Do you really think that Naruto would accept the constant presence of a parent though? There's no telling just how long he's been out on the street. I would simply be there if he needed me, which is the entire point isn't it?" He argued, passion filling his words as his eye burned into the aged Kage. It had no effect upon the man.

"No. It is too much of a risk! Our village teeters on the edge of a knife at all times Kakashi! Sacrifices must be made to keep us together! What is worth more Kakashi? The thousands in the village who are kept alive and thriving because of the civilian merchants who hate the Kyuubi, or the container of the very beast that killed so many?" Kakashi couldn't say anything. He knew which was more important; it didn't mean he liked it.

Sarutobi sighed in irritation as he saw the mutiny in Kakashi's eyes. Almost any other ninja in the entire village and he would be able to take actions to ensure the man would obey. Unfortunately, Kakashi was good…too good. He was the darling of the village, always had been. He was everything a Konoha ninja strived to be, yet still managed to have obvious habits in public that made him seem more human. In other words, those very civilians that stopped him from training Naruto to defend the village also stopped him from disciplining Kakashi to severly. The delicate balance had to be maintained, and the civilians sacrificed as much as he did. Still, he had shown Kakashi a part of the stick; it was time to offer a carrot, with a kunai in the shadows.

A long suffering sigh drew Kakashi's attention back to his leader.

"Alright Kakashi; I'll make you a deal." The young man's head rose, caution in his eyes.

"You drop this idea for now…let me finish." He stopped Kakashi from interrupting with a raised hand.

"You allow me to give Naruto an apartment. You do not interfere with his life, you do not introduce yourself to him, and above all you do not interact with him. In return you shall be his Jonin-Sensei when the time comes, allowed to teach him whatever you wish." It was a good deal; one far better than anything he would get if he continued to push the issue, and Kakashi knew it. Still, he wasn't quite satisfied.

"And if he is attacked while I am near?" Hiruzen almost sighed again, but the laws of the village were quite clear on this point.

"Do your duty as a Konoha Shinobi." Kakashi bowed before shun-shinning away, satisfied that at least he would be able to be a part of Naruto's life, yet already making plans to ensure that Naruto would be safe from now on. It was partially his fault that Naruto had been beaten so badly; He'd been taking on far too many missions of late, and had no time for anything, least of all spending hours watching him. It wasn't like the time two years after the attack, when he could annihilate everyone who even came near Naruto with the intent to harm him.

Hiruzen vanished as well, heading to take care of a few things. He had a lot to do, and only until Naruto awoke to do them.

~Break~

Muttered voices woke him up, the several low tones hushing immediately as his breathing changed, a warm hand firm upon his chest, stopping him from rising. Panic filled him, cerulean eyes opening into a surprisingly calming stare of a brown-haired man.

"Calm down Naruto. You're safe." He felt some of the energy flowing into him from the man, power that told the truth of his intentions. The man meant him no harm; a new experience for him. His head tilted lightly to the side, curiosity present in his eyes. Whether it was about the man beside him or the man's missing eye, even he wasn't entirely sure. From his limited experience, the only one ever in danger was himself.

He slowly let Naruto up; being careful to avoid irritating the boy's nearly healed injuries. His eye lingered worriedly on a particularly nasty scar on his neck.

"Can you speak?" He asked slowly, worrying over the child. Naruto nodded, eyes flashing around the room. The man was quite impressed when he noticed that Naruto's eyes lingered on the four Anbu hidden in the room, his muscles tensing up in preparation to run.

"No one in this room is going to hurt you, Naruto." The boy's icy eyes turned back to him, confusion still present in them.

"What…is Naruto?" His voice was rough, not even a trace of a typical child's voice in it. The rawness of his voice grated on the Anbu's ears, each and every human in the room wincing at the sound, even as what he had said registered with them. Horror filled the man, shock showing in his eye even despite his attempts to suppress it.

"Naruto is your name! Don't you know what a name is? It's something you call yourself, and how others refer to you! Like I'm Ka…Inu, and the woman in the corner is Tora." Naruto's head tilted again, his mouth opening as his rough voice came out again.

"Know…what name is. Naruto…not mine…mine demon…mine Kyuubi." Kakashi stared in complete horror at the child, not sure which was worse out of the hundred terrible things he'd found out so far. His rage began to grow, but it faltered before it even began to show as he recalled how skittish Naruto was. Even now the boy was looking warily at the ninja hidden in the shadows, still tense.

"No…your name is Naruto." Cerulean orbs turned back to Kakashi at the sound of his quiet, sad voice. Somehow the child understood what Kakashi was trying to say, but before he could respond the door opened.

Kakashi blinked in surprise as one moment Naruto was there and the next he was gone, moving far faster than he had expected the boy to be capable of.

'Did he just use Chakra?' It was the only possible explanation behind a child being able to move that quickly. Any further thoughts that he had were cut off by the bark of his leaders voice.

"INU! Where is Naruto?" Hiruzen practically yelled, not able to sense the boy at all, nor could he see him. Kakashi looked at his leader, confusion filling him, until he realized that he couldn't sense Naruto. The child had vanished. He didn't even get a chance to speak before the calm tone of one of the other Anbu answered the Kage.

"The child is underneath the desk, Hokage-Sama. He moved surprisingly fast upon hearing you enter." Both Kakashi and Hiruzen whirled, flashing behind the desk to see the boy pressing into the wood, fear and confusion upon his face.

"Easy Naruto. He's not going to hurt you either." Kakashi said, attempting to calm him. Naruto did calm down...pressing his back against the desk as he drew a chipped and battered kunai. Kakashi held out a single hand, flat and palm out, vertical to the ground.

"Calm down...we're here to help." The boy didn't move as Sarutobi came closer, walking around and crouching down in front of him.

"He's filthy..." The elderly man observed idly, the simple statement drawing a hiss from Naruto.

"How much can you understand Naruto?" Kakashi asked, growing even more worried as the boy growled at the leader. His voice drew the boy's attention back to him, anger and fear swelling up inside him.

"Not...not filthy...not scum..." He snarled, backing up even further into the desk as his fist tightened on the knife, his knuckles tuning white. It was all Kakashi could do not to snarl; even the Third, as many horrible things as he had seen, was stricken. Rage filled the older man, all directed towards the civilians.

"Rat." A shadow appeared before the Kage almost instantly.

"Summon the Civilian Council; I have a few things I need to discuss with them. Inu; Clean Naruto up. I didn't mean that he was scum, I meant that he had a great deal of dirt on him. He's a natural blonde for Kami's sake and he's got almost black hair with rusty highlights." The Anbu nodded as Sarutobi walked out, fury evident in every movement. Kakashi sighed.

"Come on out Naruto...you'll be fine...no one here is going to hurt you." He tried, attempting to reassure the boy, to get him out from beneath the desk.

"Why...here..." It took less than a second for Kakashi to realize what the boy was asking.

"We found you last night. You were hurt, badly, and you passed out from your injuries. We heal...we fixed you up, and we kept you here until you woke up. We're here to help Naruto." Suspicion warred with acceptance in Naruto's eyes as he stared at Kakashi. Something was hidden inside those blue eyes...something that Kakashi couldn't recognize.

'He's...telling the truth...somewhat...' Naruto knew he hadn't passed out; he hadn't passed out from a beating in years. Still...he could tell that this...Inu, at least, meant him no harm. The others he wasn't so sure about. The boy didn't lower his guard, but he did relax somewhat, enough to reassure Kakashi a little at least.

The man made small talk for a few hours, long enough for him to get a slightly better reading on the boy. Not much, unfortunately. Despite his every effort, the boy barely talked, and even when he did it was only a few words in his rough voice. It had only taken hearing the boy speak a few times for Kakashi to get him a cup of water; something the boy didn't trust until the man had sipped from it himself. It was an awkward few hours, and some of the worst of Kakashi's life. The sight of the boy he should be caring for, so damaged that he still couldn't trust an adult...

The door opening again finally ended the silence. The Anbu was pleased to see that Naruto didn't bolt for cover this time, instead turning to the side as he glared icily at the door, watching as the Third Hokage entered slowly, a great deal calmer than when he had left.

"How is young Naruto doing Kakashi?" He asked, his voice full of warmth. It enraged Kakashi; knowing that this scum was faking warmth to a destroyed child, even while planning how to get his plan back on track. But it wasn't like he could do anything; Sarutobi was the Hokage, and the man was still a great deal stronger than he was. If only...

"Still far to wary to trust strangers, Hokage-sama." He reported, taking a breath to calm himself. There was no point in dwelling on "ifs."

"How much can he understand." That made the Anbu pause for a moment.

"I'm still not sure sir. He understands more than you would think...but how much? It's impossible to know, as there's no real way to tell." Sarutobi nodded slowly, several different thoughts running through his head.

'This is one hell of a problem. On the one hand Naruto needs to stay uneducated, untrained, and as helpless as possible for the next few years. But that ship sailed when he was found by Kakashi. The man's too valuable to Konoha to risk spiting so early in his career. The man's already an Anbu captain...borderline S-Rank. We can't afford another S-Rank missing ninja.' They really couldn't. The village was still dealing with the repercussions of Orochimaru, and that man had never shown any interest in the Anbu. Kakashi would be able to hide from all of Konoha's forces for more than long enough to reach a village like Iwa.

'Still...even throwing Kakashi out of the picture...the only chance to keep him weak has long been destroyed, especially considering the Kyuubi. The beast won't let any mind-altering techniques or seals. So I have no choice. I can no longer keep him completely suppressed, but training him to his full potential would be stupid. With how he's reacting to us, the best in the village...there's far too great a chance that he will flee from the village at the earliest opportunity, or worse, he releases the beast as soon as he finds out about it. Even I haven't mastered the seal yet...Danzo might have, but there is no way that sly old fox will even consider sacrificing himself unless there is no other choice. Feh, so much for easily getting rid of the bastard.'

"Inu. Get him cleaned up, see how much you can learn from him about what he's been through. See if you can teach him how to speak properly while you're at it." He finished before walking away, pondering how best to get him able to serve the village. After all, his original was shot to hell.

The door closed as the Anbu beside Naruto sighed, placing a hand on the skittish child's shoulder, even as the boy shied away.

"Come along Naruto. You smell terrible." The boy frowned at him, not understanding the term, causing the man to sigh. He pulled the boy along, giving him to a few nurses who bathed him, even if the boy stayed stiff and afraid the entire time.

It was roughly an hour before the boy was returned, the watchful Anbu having never been more than a few feet away from him, worried that the child may be hurt if he left. He looked completely different from before, now that he'd been given some decent clothes and the years of dirt, grime, and blood had been washed away.

Kakashi couldn't help but sigh as he looked at the child, now clean and clothed. He looked so much like his former sensei that it hurt.

He was young...would have been a cute kid if it wasn't for those icy blue eyes, glaring out at the world from beneath sun-kissed blond hair, three vicious scars on each of his cheeks, marring the tanned skin. He found it curious; those six scars were the only ones currently on his body. One would think that after all he had been through there would be a lot more. He supposed that the Kyuubi truly was a blessing to the poor child.

"Does it feel good to be clean, Naruto-kun?" He asked, not really expecting an answer. He didn't get one, just a touch of confusion from the child as someone said yet another thing he didn't understand, eyes hardening back into chips of ice the second after, causing Kakashi to sigh again. He seemed to be doing that a lot recently.

"Come on..." He said, placing a hand on the boys shoulder, resisting the urge to heave another sigh as he felt the boy tense up even further.

"Let's see if we can teach you how to speak."

"Managed to find out anything Inu?" The warm tone of the Hokage caused the boy to freeze again, what little progress Kakashi had made erased instantly.

"Naruto doesn't talk unless he absolutely has to, and I haven't found anything that will incite a response other than him withdrawing into himself, expecting to be beaten. He notices every escape in a room, yet doesn't fight when someone touches him, simply freezing. I can't tell what he's thinking; whatever he's been through, it's taught him how to hide everything. Considering the state we found him in...it's pointless. He simply listens o everything that is said around him, absorbing it. If it wasn't for my training I wouldn't even know the boy feels confusion whenever something happens that he doesn't understand. It's terrifying."

And it really was to Kakashi. Even when he became a jonin at such a young age he hadn't been so withdrawn...but he'd also had someone to help him recover from the killing. To Sarutobi it was more of an irritance.

"Very well. I shall assign a chunin to teach him how to read and write." It was better to keep Kakashi away from the boy as much as possible once he managed to separate them. The man would do more than enough damage to his plans once he became the boy's teacher.

"Hopefully during the process the child will learn to speak. Naruto, look at me." The blonde-haired child turned, staring coldly at the Hokage. The old man couldn't help but shiver; those eyes didn't belong on a child.

"Do you know what an apartment is?" The boy nodded cautiously, recognizing the term. They were places to avoid; places where people gathered, where they stayed. If he was around them, he'd get hurt.

"I've arranged for you to stay in one." The boy's head tilted, fear flaring up deep within before it was ruthlessly suppressed. So the old man wanted to kill him? It was nothing new. He'd simply have to escape the apartments again, like he had when more of these masked people had dragged him into one, leaving him there for the villagers. Those things were at least easy to escape from, not like the places called "Hospital" or "Library."

"It's on the other side of town, in the red light district. I've stocked it with food and clothing for you." Poison was the old man's method? That was odd. All of these masked people fell all over themselves to obey him, yet he chose poison?

The old man kneeled down, his weary bones creaking in protest, his warm and caring brown eyes meeting Naruto's icy orbs.

"I promise Naruto. No one will ever hurt you again." He said, looking for all the world like a caring grandfather, upset because his beloved grandchild had gotten hurt while playing.

'No one will hurt me?' Naruto thought bitterly. 'He's right, in a way. I can barely feel pain anymore.' Naruto didn't believe a word coming from this man's mouth. He'd fallen for this trick once before; it would never happen again. He didn't say anything, and his disbelief didn't show on his face; nothing but icy calm.

The Third Hokage resisted the urge to frown, but shrugged internally. His plan to keep the boy suppressed had failed miserably; perhaps he should turn the boy into a weapon for the village. Not a strong one, at least not right away. If he wanted that he'd give the boy to Danzo, and have his emotions stripped away. No, the third didn't want that. But an eventual protector, a mighty guardian of the village? That sounded good to Sarutobi. That part would begin with Kakashi, doing exactly what the Third knew he would, regardless of whatever orders he gave the man. Training Naruto into a mighty force.

"Inu, head ahead of us, make sure no villagers cross our path. We don't want our little friend here getting scared again, do we?" A dismissal, but not one that Kakashi realized. The man saw it as a perfectly valid reason to seperate from Naruto. The boy didn't need anymore trauma, today or any other day. The man vanished, leaving Naruto alone with the Hokage, the elderly man straightening up.

"Come along, Naruto-kun. Let's go to your new apartment. Perhaps I can show you a few parts of the village along the way." Step one was simple. It was obvious that Naruto would never be able to care for the people of the village. That was already a lost cause as far as Sarutobi was concerned. Anyone would hate the people of a location with how much the boy had gone through. The place itself though? The beautiful scenery, the history of the village, the homeliness of the village's appearance? If Naruto could come to love that, then it would be as if he loved the people...perhaps even better. Farms could be replanted, homes rebuilt...but the village itself? If it was ever destroyed, the landscape would never be the same. Naruto might not fight to protect the villagers, but the village itself, and that would keep the people safe. So long as his people were safe, Sarutobi would happily make compromises like this.

The boy followed him, well aware of the eyes watching him from the shadows. It was the only reason he didn't flee from the old man at the earliest opportunity. And so he followed the man, his eyes always looking for threats, finding none in the empty streets. It wasn't long before the Hokage stopped, causing Naruto to do the same.

"Take a look around Naruto." The boy stared coldly at the Hokage, making the man sigh. He knew it was far to early to begin starting his plan- the boy was much to suspicious. And yet he'd found that he wanted to share the wonders Konoha held with him. His Anbu held no appreciation for an old man's musings.

"Just look, Naruto-kun." He asked quietly, radiating defeat. Despite himself, Naruto found himself looking around, seeing the village as the stars lit up the sky.

"Thank you, Naruto-kun." Sarutobi said, letting the boy absorb the sights for a few moments.

"Isn't it beautiful? It pleases this old man's eyes to see the sights of this village, day after day. The simple wonders of the world as the sun rises and falls, watching it from our greatest landmark, the faces of the Hokage's." He said quietly, Naruto turning back to him. Hiruzen knew that the boy likely had no idea what he was saying, but that didn't matter. Naruto would eventually grow to learn what those words meant, and this simple moment, caused by an old man stopping to enjoy the scenery and point it out to the boy, would hopefully take root. Naturally, it would take a great deal more to accomplish his goal...but this was the start.

The man nearly smiled as he noticed the boy take one final, slower look around when they began to walk again. It seemed like it would work, so long as he properly reinforced it from time to time. He took the boy to the red light district, wondering how the child's surroundings would effect him as he grew up.

The red light district was the area for things that were "illegal", but greatly swelled the village's coffers regardless. Besides, simple things like that weren't illegal for his shinobi, so long as it wasn't taken too far. If he had his way he would have placed Naruto in the middle of the shinobi district; the place was perfect to place people you wanted to keep tabs on. Unfortunately, the boy was a Jinchurriki. The same reason he wanted the boy watched by most of the shinobi in the village was the same reason that he couldn't allow it to happen. The boy would die, and quickly too, and that could potentially destroy the village if the Kyuubi was unleashed because of it. Minato had assured him that the Kyuubi would die with Naruto...but there was no way in hell that Sarutobi was going to risk it.

It took nearly an hour for the pair to arrive at Naruto's new home, the redlight district being several miles from the Tower. Konoha was a large city; one of the larger ones in Fire Country in fact. Civilians felt safe here, and Sarutobi had spent his entire life ensuring that they stayed safe.

"This is your new apartment Naruto-kun." The child couldn't help but frown as he looked at the place, even if on the inside he was nothing but confused.

The Apartment was abandoned, even if it was in moderately decent shape. The concrete it was built from was a drab gray, flakes of ancient paint of some unknown color her and there upon the walls.

"I'm sorry it's in such terrible condition, but after the...after the owner died a few years back no one wanted to keep the building in good condition."

It was partially true. The owner had died during the Kyuubi attack...but the reason no one had taken it over was because it wasn't really an apartment building. It had originally been a brothel, one quite favored by one of his students. The entire first floor was one big "lobby", the second was a great deal of private rooms. The third floor, where Naruto would be staying, had been residential. The whores who so often had serviced his shinobi stayed there. Fourth floor had been the relaxation floor for the whores, and the fifth had been where the owner nearly always was, being serviced by the very whores he employed.

He really didn't want to have to place Naruto in such a place. The building had never been cleaned after all, and it was guaranteed that the workers had left many things behind when they had been evicted after the attack. Unfortunately, he didn't have a choice. If Naruto was to remain safe, Hiruzen couldn't just place him anywhere. Every Apartment complex in Konoha had a bare minimum of four or five people who would want to kill the boy, and Sarutobi just couldn't spare the Anbu to protect the boy right now. His Anbu were being run ragged even with just their normal duties, and if they had to spend long hours watching a child it was entirely possible that the exhausted soldiers would fall asleep, even with all of their training.

Naruto followed the old man, still with a wary eye on the Anbu, into the building, looking around at the large, empty space. The child couldn't help but frown...he'd seen a place like this before. It was that place where those people had been all over each other, sloshing around that foul tasting liquid and moving against each other as much as they could. It had been odd; almost everyone in there had been screaming, but it hadn't been in pain. Oh well, this place was abandoned, so he supposed it didn't really matter.

"Come along Naruto-kun, you'll be on the third floor." The Hokage walked him up their, to the only serviceable room on the floor. The rest of the rooms would have required new furniture, or in some cases new walls, floors...or in one disgusting case, both. Naruto followed behind the man wordlessly, keeping an eye on his surroundings. He was worried that it wouldn't be as abandoned as it seemed.

"This will be your room, Naruto-kun. It's simple, but it will be home." Sarutobi still couldn't believe he'd been forced to concede Naruto's home for something that was more important the village at the moment. It was a give and take relationship with the council, and in exchange for emergency supplies to be given to one of their shinobi allies, given as in the village not having to pay the civilian's for it, even if the shinobi would get their benefits from it, Naruto was to be stuck in an abandoned building. There was a benefit to the civilians despising the poor child after all.

Naruto looked at it, a frown spreading across his face. An old, worn door, now an ugly brown, the original color unable to be seen, set in the worn cement of the building. The man ushered him forward, the boy reluctantly placing his hand on the door, pushing it open to reveal his new "home."

It was a piece of shit.

The drab gray walls pressed in around him, the old carpet covering the cement was a stained, dull red. It was a basic three room place, a small kitchen with a stove, refrigerator, a sink, and a couple of cabinets and drawers, connected to the living room, which held all of one futon, all in the same room, not separated at all. Naruto didn't know what most of those were; the only times he'd seen them had been when he'd been beaten. He knew what the big white box did, it kept things cold. He never understood why though.

"It's simple, but it will serve you well Naruto-kun." Sarutobi said, his voice low and calm, despite his own disgust at the aparment. He could feel his Anbu's dislike for the place as well. At least Kakashi had only glared at him for ten minutes when the man had seen it.

Naruto continued to look around, checking the small bathroom. It was in better shape than the what he'd already seen, as everything there looked to be in working order, at least from what he understood of it. It wasn't like he'd ever been allowed to use them; the only reason he even knew what they did and what they were for was because of how many people had shoved his head into each of them...often flushing the previously used toilet around his head for their own amusement. That hadn't happened since he'd left the orphanage, fortunately, but he still had bad memories of those occasions.

The boy shut the door to the bathroom, ignoring the aged wooden floor that had creaked under his foot when he had stepped in, stepping back onto the worn carpet. He walked towards the final doorway, looking into the equally used and abused bedroom. If the bathroom was better than the first room, this one was definitely worse. What little bit of the carpet remained was in bits and pieces, an ancient bed with a blackened frame, a stained and lumpy mattress lying upon it. The small wooden wardrobe was stained and cracked, the doors hanging loosely off of it, a few tattered outfits visible through the gaps.

He turned back to the old man, wondering just what was going on. There were no other people, and the place looked a lot worse than he'd ever seen when there actually were people staying in them.

"You'll be staying here Naruto." The boy's blank look caused the old man to sigh, having temporarily forgotten that the boy didn't understand everything he would say.

"You'll be safe here." That got through to the boy if his skeptical eyes were anything to go by.

"Look Naruto." He waved the boy towards him, pointing his attention towards the door, and the several shiny, very new bolts attached to it.

"Nobody will be able to get in through this." Naruto's eyes immediately moved to the only window in the building, right across from the kitchen, causing Sarutobi to follow the boy's gaze.

"The window can lock too, Naruto. You'll be perfectly safe while you stay here." The man smiled reassuringly at the eternally wary child, his warm brown eyes doing their absolute best to put the child at ease. It did the man no good, the boy had no desire to trust the man, and even less to grow close to him. Sarutobi's smile didn't dim, knowing that it would take patience to get the child to trust him.

"There's food in those cabinets Naruto, along with a few other necessities. More than enough for you to survive. You'll also get a monthly stipend, the same that all orphans get. It will be quite enough for you to live on. A tutor will be here in a week or two to teach you how to read, write, and speak clearly. I'll visit every now and then to check on how you are doing, to make sure that everything is going alright for you." The boy gave no response, no signal that he had heard or understood what the man had said.

"Have a nice day Naruto-kun!" The man said, somewhat cheerily. Even he wasn't entirely unaffected by those icy cerulean eyes, staring out from where they were set in his tan, scarred face.

The boy made no sound as the man let himself out, the Anbu staying behind, just outside the door, waiting. What they were waiting for, Naruto didn't know. He just knew that it wouldn't be good for him if it was what he thought it was.

It didn't really matter anyways. He would soon leave, heading back to the only safe place he had ever known. He only stayed there on very rare occasions, and even then it was only when he was absolutely certain he wasn't being followed. He needed to get away from this place, needed to get away from the people watching the door and the window before they joined their masked comrades in attempting to kill him. He knew it wouldn't be long before they attempted it.

He puzzled over the events of the day as he sank down onto the thin carpet, back to a pair of walls in a corner as he stared emotionlessly at the door and window. No one would be entering without him knowing.

The beating earlier was nothing more than a standard event. If he didn't know better he would say that he had gotten careless...but he hadn't. He was no match for the ones haled as "shinobi", and he knew it far too well.

It had started off simple enough. He'd stolen an orange for his morning meal. He'd had many a near-death experience attempting to steal apples, the people who sold them watched them far closer than they did the much more visible oranges. As such, even with the much brighter tones of the orange, it was much, much safer to steal. Unfortunately, that morning had announced the return of the hunters. He'd gone a whole week without being hunted, being so cautious that the civilians had not been able to locate them.

So, as they always did, they turned to the shinobi, and as good as he had gotten, he couldn't hide from those shinobi who were hailed as "Jonin." And so he'd ran, ran for his life and his limbs, and had failed.

He didn't remember much, just the so-called "Hokage" and two masked men before he blacked out.

A hand came up, rubbing the back of his neck. He was well aware that he'd been knocked out; it hadn't been the first time, and it wouldn't be the last. And then that man with the animal mask, short and spiky brown hair. He recognized the animal, how couldn't he? He'd spent many a cold night snuggled up with one of their kind on the street, ones that were almost as starved as he was.

That man had somehow managed to reassure him, a very warm energy surging through him whenever the man had touched him. It was warm, calming, and from Naruto's perspective, deadly. He'd never been relaxed in his entire life, didn't even know what the word had meant until whatever the hell that energy was had run through him. It wanted Naruto to trust it, wanted Naruto to trust it's owner.

Naruto took one look at it and said no.

He'd calmed down alright, calmed down to think. If that man had touched him for much longer he would have started panicking. It felt far to much like the time they had drugged him and several people had...

He shook his head, the pain of that was still to near. Even with his unnatural healing, and he knew it wasn't normal, it had taken him a week and a half to be able to run again. And that had caused many problems. One thing was fortunate about it; the drug never worked on him again, nor did anything of lesser strength.

That week had taught him many valuable lessons, things that had helped him ever since. He could find a way out of any room; for example, in this room. The structure of the bathroom wall was very weak. Weak enough that he could bust through the once solid concrete between this room and the next while running at roughly half his top speed. He'd likely break his fist or his shoulder, depending on how he went at it, but the fact remained that he could do it, and more importantly keep moving after it.

He'd noticed that as well. As time went on, and the beatings grew worse, he began to feel less and less. A bone breaking clean in half in any part of his body only got a small spike of something that didn't quite register as pain anymore. Oh he knew that his arm had been broken, hell, he could still feel when he stubbed his toe for crying out lout! But the more pain that occurred, the more it was dampened. The last severe torture session that he'd taken part in it had taken them skinning his arm, whipping him with a nail studded whip, all the while underneath a shower of some kind of acidic juice before he started screaming.

Then the first meeting with the so called Kage. What was the old man's game? He seemed kind, weak and kind. He didn't like it. It seemed false, almost like the man had a far different way of speaking and acting than what he had portrayed. It had just seemed so false.

And then this place. It was a death trap if he'd ever seen one. Several stories up to ensure that he wouldn't be able to jump out of a window, trashed inside and outside, and he could almost guarantee that the bed was so full of insects that he'd die in a single night of attempting to sleep on it, not that he'd be able to. It would just be lying there as he was eaten alive. No thank you, he knew how that felt, and he had no desire to experience it again.

The boy shook his head, touching one of his now blonde locks in amazement. Was this what his hair really looked like? It was...new. He wasn't sure whether or not he liked it yet.

His eyes roamed his skin, the barely tanned skin. It had been a very dark brown just a few hours ago. He felt unburdened, almost as though he had been carrying extra weight that had now vanished. Not much, but it was a noticeable difference. His stomach began to growl, the boy ignoring it. He'd gone hungry far to many times to count, there was no way he'd be bothered by it now. He'd slip out tomorrow, after they'd let their guard down a little. It would be even easier to hide amongst the masses now that he looked a little more like everyone else. It had taken a lot of practice to be able to blend into the groups when he was so different from the rest.

He leaned back into his corner, a single eye close as the other icy orb glared out into the dark apartment, going to sleep. He could do no more for the day with all of the Anbu watching him.

~Break~

Time passed quickly enough, the suspicious boy never truly warming up to the old Hokage and the tutor's he sent to teach him to read and write. In fact, much to Sarutobi's dismay, he remained eternally cold, even as he quickly learned all that the man was willing to teach him. Even now Sarutobi wasn't quite sure how much the boy knew or what he was capable of. The only thing that he was sure of was that the boy still hated the villagers.

Well, perhaps hate was far too strong a word. Naruto was essentially a block of ice. Every time the old man looked into those eternally frozen cerulean orbs, glaring out from their spot within a tanned face, he shuddered in unease. No emotion, it was almost like Danzo had taken the boy and removed each and every emotion from him.