Naruto 1. Chapter 1

**Author: Devil**

**Title: Azure Rays**

**Anime: Naruto**

**Characters: Naruto Uzumaki. Sakura Haruno**

**Take Note: This story belongs to me. Strictly no ripping or copying any parts of the content. Reviews are more than welcomed, constructive criticism is accepted and respected. **

**Note: This is slightly AU, you have been warned. And before you jump to conclusions, this is not a NaruSaku in any shape or form. **

**Chapter count: Undecided. **

**Disclaimer: Not my anime or characters, however the plot is entirely my creation.**

**Word count: 1,841 words.

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**Chapter 1: **

A rough-edged pebble made harsh contact with the side of his head but he bit his lips to prevent himself from emitting any sounds and closed his eyes to prevent the scalding tears to fall out. He continued to walk, wobble to be precise as the kids of the neighborhood sneered behind him and threw spiteful words at him. But he ignored them, he made it look like as if he did but deep down inside he cried in agony.

It hurt. A lot. It wasn't physical pain, he had gone through some many hardships that his body forgot what physical pain was. It was the emotional pain, the way his heart clenched in sorrow. They always look at him like as if he was monster, they even called him that. But he wasn't one. He was a misfortunate human being who was a vessel of a demon something that was entirely involuntary. It was not his fault that they decided to seal the demon inside him.

Yes, it was true, one of the deadliest demons was sealed within him, the story of how it was sealed within him was memorized by all the citizens of Konoha and whenever their children asked them to tell them a bedtime story, you would surprised to find out how many times a parent would have repeated this story of the demon to soothe its child to sleep. The law said that speaking about the demon was forbidden and the consequences would only be death.

But the Konoha couldn't risk it population since everyone talked about it. And soon the fact about the demon being sealed into this child was known by all, the young and the old, the poor and the rich.

So who was he suppose to blame? The demon? The person who sealed the demon inside him? The merciless villagers? Or...himself? Who was he suppose to blame for all the pains that he had been though since he was born?

He sighed, this was the same thought that he always had since he was young, every time something like that happen, his mind would start begging for answers, trying to free itself out of the agony that there was. He shook his head, as if clearing unwanted thoughts. He patted his body for his keys, inwardly hoping that he did not leave them _there. _But his attempts were futile. He had to find somewhere else to crash in for the night before he got his keys back from where ever he left them.

"Naruto?" a crispy voice called out. The aforementioned boy looked up to find his ever-smiling friend, Sakura Haruno. This was the person in this whole village and in his whole life, which he was able to call a friend. He could still remember his early academy days when every time, the teacher required the students to do work in groups, Sakura would always get stuck with him and he would still remember her scowling face whenever she was paired with him. But this only remained for a matter of days, until Sakura started to interact with him and learnt more about him. The more time she spend with the blonde, the more she learnt about him and over time she had finally became his friend

However the news of being friends with a demon, had crushed her social status and her friends and her popularity amongst the village begin to leave her but she did not allow such a set back to waver her and his friendship and if not, the friendship bond become stronger. This was only until her parents found out about her friendship with the blonde and became a major obstacle between him and her. They never allowed her to see the blonde, let alone speak to him. But she being her stubborn self would always find ways to look out for the boy, without being caught. And there she was standing, smiling at the forlorn boy.

"Sa-sakura-chan?!" he asked startled, worried to see his friend at such an ungodly hour.

"Naruto? Why are you out so late at night? I thought you left the academy two hours ago. I heard you where doing something; therefore you had to stay behind. I was just going to Ino-chan's house when I saw your house keys in the muddy ground. You must have dropped them." she said and walked to towards Naruto, keys jiggling in her hands, all the while balancing a heavy pouch in her hands.

"Did they do it again?" she asked quietly, a finger tracing over the newly formed scratch on his cheek. Naruto head simply bent down to give her an answer, his long blonde fringe covering his azure eyes. He wanted to cry but he couldn't show off his weakness. Sakura sighed and gave him a sisterly side hug and kissed his temple.

"You know, I would do anything for you if it wasn't for my parents. I try but fail. My parents sent me to deliver this rice balls to Ino-chan's house. Here. I will give you some, hopefully, they would not notice anything." Sakura said and started to untie the pouch.

"No, Sakura-chan, if they find out you will get in trouble. I don't want any of that happening to you, I feel like a burden whenever you do that." Naruto said and wrapped his soiled hands around Sakura's to prevent her from untying the pouch further.

"Naruto! But look at you! You are just skin and bones. You look like a seven year old not a proper thirteen year old. Continue this way, people might even believe that you are four," she said and brushed his hands off hers and began to untie once again and all Naruto could was look hopelessly at her, he could not help but feel like a burden. All the costs had Sakura gone through from him, from lying to her parents to sneaking out of the house to meet him and reprimanding when he did something wrong, looking out for him whenever he was picked and making sure that he survived. And all he could do in return was being more troublesome day by day.

By this time, Sakura had scooped out two rice balls and handed it to him, still with a smile on her face.

"There, eat it up. I would bring more tomorrow and make sure that you have enough sleep tonight, tomorrow they are teaching us a new jutsu and I don't want you failing again, alright?" She asked as he nodded. 'If only she knew...' he thought as Sakura started to walk away.

"Bye Naruto, have a nice sleep," She smiled once more before leaving for Ino's house. If only she knew that it is not him that fails, it's the senseis that fail him.

He found himself very privileged to join the academy as it was required of every citizen of Konoha to have basic education, rich or young. Many people protested and said that they would not allow their children to join the academy if the _monster _was going to join too. The Hokage had faced a lot of problems and difficulty, but eventually managed to convince that villagers that the boy would mean no harm to their beloved ones, with the teachers and himself making sure of it.

Of course this had boost the beating and ill-treatment that he received, however he used this opportunity to study in an academy, the correct way, by working always very hard and improving constantly. Even though, he appeared to misbehave during class by not paying attention and doing things the incorrectly, this gave excuses to teachers for kicking him out of the class and to reprimand him. But truly, he mastered every jutsu that was taught and whatever the theoretical parts of lessons that the teacher taught were instantly memorized by him. But he was just afraid to show his skills and talents as he was afraid that he would be beaten up by the children if he managed to surpass them and even if he did considerably well in his tests, the teachers would fail, not wanting to believe that the this monster could excel at something.

Only if Sakura knew about this, then she wouldn't ask to train harder or give him various advises so that he could pass. He was grateful for Sakura's couching; the bias teachers would always give out extra lessons for improvements and apply different methods when a student could not do well. But as for him, neither the teacher gave him extra lessons or try out different methods with him so that he could master a jutsu, they ignored him, they didn't care if he passed or fail. They didn't care if he becomes a ninja because he would still be a demon.

But through Sakura's help, he managed to learn things that the teacher didn't tell him and whenever he had problems learning something new, Sakura would clarify with him and make him better at it. She was good tutor and herself, she was able to pass with straight As at everything.

Sakura was his only. God had blessed him with her in form a friend, a best friend, a older sister and almost a mother-like figure.

He had no family. Once again, they blamed him. His parents died because of him, his brother got snatched away because of him. All the evil that happened 13 years ago was because of him. If it hadn't been the demon, his parents would not have died fighting it and since there was no one to take care of the two brothers. Someone from another country had snatched the older one and left demon alone. His family had been torn because of him.

Therefore, his only ambition right now was to find the sole member of his family; his brother.

He could still remember. 5 years after his parents were killed, he continued to live with his brother. However the village refused to regard him as his brother, they could never believe the youngest son of the fourth would be a demon however his brother kept him within his shelter, fed and clothed him and was very confident that Naruto was truly his brother, demon or not. The villagers were not happy about this as they thought the _demon _would be harmful to his brother just like it was to its parents and did not want to lose a superior ninja like his brother. His brother was a genius and one of the top ninjas in Konoha after Itachi Uchiha of course. Itachi and his brother were like rival-friends as they would always compete, studies or anything and both emerged as talented ninjas until one night, some ninjas from another country had snatched his brother away and same night the Uchiha Clan was massacred.

They blamed him once more for the mishaps and this is when his life began tougher and unbearable and he merely 5 that time.

His brother, his only family. Deidara.

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**A/N: Oh, dear, I have no clue where this popped up from and I have little clue on how to continue this, so please bear with me as it might take a while for me to continue. Thanks for reading. **

**Love, Devil.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Word count: 1901 words.**

**Note: The lines indicate scene change. **

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Chapter 2: 

Naruto blinked his sapphire eyes open, squinting against the sunlight that played onto his face, bringing him back to the world of living. He threw his raged covers off him and began to start a new day.

His house was a pretty delicate and simple structure. It was made of a few tree branches which were then cemented by dried mud. His 'house' barely had enough room from basic necessities that a house should have. It simply consisted of a bed, and when I say bed, I don't mean a king sized bed with a mattress so soft that you could sink inside it which is then covered by silk sheets and which smelt like roses. Actually, it was quite the opposite. His bed was just a bundle of sheets as a mattress and a sheet as his covers.

He slowly dragged himself of his oh so comfortable bed and moved to the kitchen area, which was also part of the house, however divided by a sheet of cloths hanging from the ceiling, almost like a ragged curtain. He looked around for the rice ball that Sakura had given him of which one he had eaten for his dinner yesterday and saved one for breakfast today.

Hoping that the neighborhood cat had not smelt the rice and ate it up while he was asleep, he started to look for the rice ball.

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The morning wasn't so bad, he had finally managed to find his food and some spare clothes for the day which was usually sewn by Sakura or by certain people who didn't detest him that much.

Carefully, he stepped out of the house, glancing nearby to see if any other children were around to beat him up again, finding the path clear; he dashed to the academy which was several kilometers away from his house.

As he ran by, the villagers gave him spiteful looks, scrunching their noses at him or simply growling or whispering hurtful words at him. He ignored them and ran faster until he would reach the academy.

He finally reached the academy, panting and slightly soiled because of being pushed and pulled around by the villagers on the way.

"Naruto!" a girly voice rang through his ears as he turned to see the rosette, who was skipping towards the blonde.

"Hello, Sakura-chan," Naruto greeted, a smile spreading over his face as he saw his friend.

"Good morning, Naruto, did you have good sleep?" Sakura asked, ruffling Naruto's blonde hair. The blonde eagerly nodded, getting used to the actions that the Sakura was doing to his hair.

"Naruto, I want you to be good in class today, alright? I don't want the Sensei to be upset at you," Sakura reminded and patted his hair.

"Whatever you say, Sakura-chan," Naruto said as both of them headed towards the classroom to begin their lessons.

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"Class, we are going to how to master Bunshin no Jutsu," The sensei informed them and asked the class to head out to the open areas which would be a better environment.

Cheers and moans had erupted from the class some were eager to learn while some were just too laid back and lazy.

Naruto groaned, allowing people to think that this trick would be difficult for him to master but really, it was a piece of cake for him. He had seen the other older boys training and just by observing them, he was able to grasp on the technique but unfortunately, he would have to act as if he couldn't even master the steps, _again_. He didn't want to be beaten up again by his classmates once more when they find out that the _demon _had mastered something that they couldn't as they always believed that demons were not capable of excelling and they even made sure that they did not excel.

He was again, forced to act and put on a mask and push his talents far aside and tried to act like a fool.

He looked over at Sakura, who was literally jumping in excitement, eager to learn the new technique. The girl was a mastermind, a born genius, who able to grasp and adapt to new things in a click of her fingers. Talents oozed out of her as she humbly tried to display her skills but it was not like anyone was going to praise and appreciate her talents since she was a friend of a _demon. _

Inwardly, he felt a guilty feeling spreading over him. He felt bad that Sakura's abilities were poured down the drain as no one seemed to recognize her and it was entirely his fault. But really, who would want to recognize a person who was a friend of a demon. The situation had come this far that even her parents would not care if she excelled or not. That girl was so talented that even Naruto thought that all this talent was going to waste as it was not been proficiently trained. Sometimes, he felt as if it was right for them to break their ties as friends but there will be this nagging selfish part at the back of his head which had developed due to loneliness, saying that if he let go of her, his world would sucked in darkness more than it already has. He sighed, he couldn't help being selfish but at the same time he couldn't help but feel guilty. His emotions were mixed into an unbearable knot, entangled with each other badly.

He faced the floor, his head hanging in guilt as he made his way out of the class, following his fellow students and teacher to an open space.

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"Alright class, now that we have a better environment to work in, let's start today's work. Firstly, I am going to do a demo of Bunshin no Jutsu and you guys are going to follow it and practice for today's lesson," The teacher explained, looking at the class as the students turned around and whispered excitedly to one another except Naruto of course, who stood there looking lost and weak.

"Alright class, observe," the teacher announced and made some hand signals rather slowly so that the young minds could capture the movements without much difficulty.

After completing the signals, he exclaimed, "Bunshin no Jutsu," and another clone of his appeared next to him.

Students grasped and whispered, amazed by the technique that their teacher had demonstrated. Naruto forced excitement to travel through his body even though he was left unfazed by the show and let out his foxy grin.

"Now, I want you all to try. So, everyone put yourselves into neat rows so that I can clearly observe and help you in case of difficulty" the teacher instructed as everyone fell into rows.

The students started to figure out the hand signals, some of them grasping it on the first try while the other were still left in a confused state. Naruto glanced at the either sides, pretending to fail how to work the hand signals.

"Naruto! Concentrate!" Sakura whispered to him while practicing the new moves, Naruto nodded, improving his signals a little but remained a failure at working the technique.

The day moved on, so did the students, progressing quite well with the new technique. During their lessons, Sakura had decided to take things into her hands by coaching the blonde since the teachers refused to pat attention to him. She taught and tutored the blonde, not wanting her friend to fall behind everyone else. Naruto had been observing the efforts that she had been making and decided to narrow down his act a little and managed to grasp on the hand signals but the clone did not turn out exactly like him. To say, the 'clone' looked a like a boneless ragged doll version of Naruto and all that Sakura could was sigh.

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The school was dismissed as parents of the students came to fetch them as Naruto made his way back home, alone. The pit of loneliness and sadness just grew inside him as he watched the kids talking animatedly to their parents about their day.

"Mother, today I learnt a new technique, it was called, Bunshin no Jutsu. It was so cool, I am going ask big brother to help me master that technique!" the boy exclaimed as his mother laughed at his hyper-self.

Naruto hung his head lower, tiny droplets of tears gathering in his eyes but their refused to be spilled. He started wondering, if his brother was here, what the situation would be like. He could clearly remember the days that he had spend with his fair-haired brother.

"_Naru-chan, why don't we go out and practice with shurikens, un?" Deidara asked the four year old boy, ruffling his hair a little. _

"_But, nii-chan, am I not too young to practice with shurikens?" the young boy asked, his cerulean eyes watching his brother while his hands were wrapped around a little brown teddy bear. _

"_A ninja's age doesn't matter for what a ninja does. A ninja should try to excel whenever possible, if you start earlier, you can learn more things as you grow and able to grasp and understand easily as well, un," Deidara explained as he took his little brother's hand into his hand and walked out of the doors, leading them to the place where Itachi and he always trained. _

The faint memory had always made him smile. He loved his brother; it was him who taught him how to become strong, how to always believe in yourself and never to give up. Deidara had started to train him since he was three to four, saying that it was for his own benefit. He never really pushed Naruto but he made sure that Naruto became some like their father, someone strong and respected. And it is all thanks to his brother to what he has become now. He had mastered Bunshin no Jutsu before anyone in the class had and he currently practicing Kage no Bunshin that he had seen the Jounins display. Whenever he felt lonely, he would remember the quality time that he and his brother spent together for example after training with his brother, his brother would give him a piggy back home, telling him all sorts of tales on the way back. His brother made him smile, his brother made him happy, his brother made him feel warm, his brother was his life.

There were so many similarities between him and his brother. Both had the brightest blonde hair and the deepest blue eyes and both of them had a habit of adding words after their sentences. His brother would always add "un" behind every sentence while he would add "-ttebayo". Both of them had a smile that would light up everyone's day. Both of them had never give up attitude and both of them were stubborn. Both of them loved pulling pranks and both of them loved to laugh. Both of them were two peas in a pod and Naruto just wanted it that way.

'Onii-chan, wherever you are, I am sorry,' Naruto thought, 'I didn't do well in class today but as you said a ninja should excel whenever possible, I am going to train at our training grounds today, the one you and Itachi used so that I can become stronger and find you. You just wait, onii-chan,'

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**Translations:  
Onii-chan – older brother**

**Kage no Bunshin – Shadow clones**

**Bunshin no Jutsu – Clone technique**

**Love, devil. **


	3. Chapter 3

**Word count: 1, 274 words.**

**Note: Sorry the chapter is not long enough! And please review!

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Chapter 3:

His breathe came out hitched, his pants were uneven and his heart beat uncontrollably. Sweat dripped mercilessly from his every inch of his body, soaking his clothes which then stuck to his skin. The training had drained his energy almost as if it he had pulled the plug of his energy tank and squeezed every remaining life out of him. Fatigue finally took over him as he fell onto the soil-filled ground with a thud on his stomach, not caring if his body ached and got scratched from the fall. However, despite his exhaustion, a smile made its way to his dirty face. He had done it. He had finally mastered Kage no Bunshin.

Lying on the ground, while his went up and down in a bid to take in more air, he could literally feel himself burring with pride. He was happy; he had finally taken a tiny step towards his goal. But soon, his smile faltered and disappeared. A frown had replaced the once brilliant smile. The frown then dissolved into trembling lips and finally sobs erupted from him. Tears fell rapidly, showing no sign of stopping.

He got onto his knees but the tears were endless. The scalding tears rolled down his soiled cheeks, mixing with the dirt that was layered on his face, bringing it down with the liquid, smearing his face. He didn't even bother to wipe them, he just allowed them to fall. And with the little energy that he had, he punched the ground beneath him, loosening the soil, allowing the dirt to fly everywhere.

"Its not working," he thought, "it's still not enough! How am I supposed to bring nii-san back like this? He became a chuunin at the mere age of 10 and here I am, an 11 year old boy who is still a genin, worse, an ordinary genin. Just how? Just am I going to find him?"

He allowed his body to fall back onto the soil, as he lay on his back. His spread his arms and legs, allowing the wind to toy with his dirty blonde locks. His tears did eventually stop as he drowned into his thoughts.

"The academy isn't helping me at all; they only teach simple techniques which are of no use to me. I need someone, someone, to teach me and coach me. Although I do have Sakura but she doesn't know any better than I do, even though she is a smart girl. I need someone, a chuunin, a jounin or heck, even an S-rank to bring me towards my goal. But who? No one likes me here and those who do, they just probably put up an act. I could probably train myself but my training is not enough. I need to learn more genjustus, ninjutsus and taijutsus. Just who would help me?' he contemplated.

"If everyone in this village hates me and would not willingly want to help me improve, then I guess, its no point in living here. They hate me and over the years, I have come to think that this feeling is probably mutual. They have never treated me well and I have barely survived 6 years in this village. If I continued living here, I don't know what would become of me. But then again, what can I do even if I leave this village. It is not like I have friends or family outside these walls and strangers would not help me. Surely that would not help me achieve my goal. But then, neither does the village help me. Maybe if I leave the village, I would at least escape these tortures and these injuries that they had inflicted on me. Oh, this is all so baffling."

Naruto stood up from his position and decided to make his way back home, stopping by the ramen stand, where the shop owner often gave him free dinners, usually out of pity. But after giving it a second thought, he thought, that he rather not head there since the stand was in the town which is a much more lively area which eventually meant that there would more villagers and more villagers would mean more hurtful gestures and loathing words.

However stomach began to protest, letting out an audible grumble as it started begging attention. He guessed, he would have to face them sooner or later, sooner being a better option here.

He tumbled towards the city, his limbs unable to function well after the torturous training that he had inflicted on himself. Light gashes, scratches and bruises made his state worse, being an extra obstacle as he made his way to the 'hell-hole' as he 'politely' named it.

It took him prolonged 30 minutes to reach the noodle bar when he could have easily made it in 15 minutes with his energetic self.

Meters away from satisfying is ever-complaining stomach, he felt something harsh come in contact with his lithe body. Even though his body was numb from the training, he still felt something touching him if not hurting him. He turned his head to see the origin of his misery, only to find the usual dose of hatred and disgust.

The kids, some his age or older, sneered at him as he turned to face them, appall and loath clearly printed on their faces. Their eyes flashed with anger as they twisted their faces to display their disgust. Each of them had an offensive, sharp object clutched in their hands and even a fool could predict what they were going to do with it.

Naruto's eye widened, even though it was 'normal' for him to face such situation everyday but never had he seen them carry such objects. Were they really going to kill him this time? Was this the last and final time for him grace this village?

Not wanting to face the wrath of these heartless people, Naruto turned on his heel and ran. He knew once he fled from their burning gaze, they would leave him alone. Sadly, what he did now know was how wrong he was.

Naruto ran, no matter how much his poor legs protested, he ran. Running away from hurt, misery and sorrow. But what he didn't know was that this hurt, misery and sorrow was chasing right after him. The horde of boys, gripping their kunais and shurikens ran after him, hoping to hunt him down and torture him to near death.

When Naruto heard footsteps following him, he didn't not even need to look back to confirm his death. He knew his death awaited him but he tried to prolong it as much as possible and the only way to do that was to run. Run away from death.

The chase continued for another unbearable 10 minutes, until Naruto's legs started to give up on him. He kept on reminding himself, he was the son of the 'Yellow Flash' of Konoha, the son of the fastest man in this village, the son of the most strongest ninjas ever, he would not die out now and surrender to death this easily. He would not allow himself to humiliate his father's name. He kept on reminding himself that and ran aimlessly, as long as he escaped the torture.

His trained hearing could tell that the boys were getting nearer, hearing their footsteps which had become louder. But even as panic rose in his body, his legs had started to give up on him. Another thing that could help him was that, the road was coming to an end. A dead end. A dead end for a road, a dead end to his life.

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**Love, Devil. **


	4. Chapter 4

**Word count: 978**

**Note: Sorry for the short chapter. Oh, and please review.**

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Chapter 4:

Naruto repeatedly looked left and right, in dire need to find an escape as the dead end had started to near. Unfortunately, the fair-haired boy had entered an alley like structure during the chase and thus had to come to realize the truth that he was surrounded by walls and the only exit is to turn back, which was like greeting death.

And just moments later, Naruto found himself slamming against the wall that signaled the end of the road; it was almost as if slamming against the bitter truth. Naruto trembled against the wall, groping around to hopefully, miraculously find a secret passage to escape. However it seemed that neither Lady Luck nor the fairy of miracles was by his side.

But before he could carry out further investigations of the moss-covered damp wall, the packs of boys had finally hunted him down and were now surrounding him and soon the torture will begin.

A boy stepped out of the semi-circle that they had formed around Naruto, probably the leader amongst the boys since he looked the biggest and toughest. He had a well placed smirked on his merciless looking, predator-like face as he raised the kunai that he was holding, slowly aiming it toward the trembling 'prey'.

The boy smirked a tight smirk and pulled his hand back, the action to prove that he was going to release the kunai which will soon jab in Naruto's body. After pulling back, the boy powered all his energy and threw the well-sharpened kunai with much force. Naruto clenched his eyes shut. He knew very well, that he could have easily attacked back and send the boy running home but he couldn't as he knew very well that he rather wished for death than to provoke the villagers.

A long time back, when he had found himself in a similar situation, he decided to freely attack his attackers and placing them in a very bad state. However, he had faced the music the next day when the older villagers decided to gang up on him, very much livid at the fact that the demon had dared to attack their kind. The beating was so bad; he could barely stand up for the next few days. So he waited for the unbearable pain to come... but somehow it didn't.

Surprised that he didn't feel anything even though the kunai was released, Naruto reopened his eyes in confusion, wondering if perhaps he would find himself coated in blood with a kunai digging into his body but he didn't...he only found a silver haired man, holding the weapon that was aimed at him in his hand.

The man had his back turned on him but Naruto could tell, he was in his late twenties and had remained his composure throughout the act since he was casually standing.

"Run away, you punks, run far, far away unless you would like the taste of your own medicine," the man spoke, his voice deep and gruff, with a hint of annoyance and laziness to it. The attackers seemed rather shocked as this was indicated by their wide eyes and their shivering bodies. They dropped their weapons and turned their tails and ran. Naruto was astonished to find out how much the power and superiority the man held that the attackers had run away by a simple command.

The silver haired man turned around to show Naruto his masked face, at which Naruto's eyes widened at. The feature that was visible to Naruto's naked eye was the left eye of the man. The way the man dressed and the way the man spoke, a light bulb lit up in Naruto's head.

"Y-you are H-hatake Kakashi...the copy ninja!" Naruto stammered his speech. He might be ignored and not tolerated; but it did not mean that he ignored people around him. If Naruto could not get into the conversations with the fellow villagers; that did not mean he did not catch the flying gossips or eavesdrop on others. It was his way to be connected to the world.

"That's right, _demon_" even though he spat the words out, Naruto could tell that the man beneath the mask was smirking.

Kakashi narrowed his sole visible eye at the blonde boy that stood in front of him and scrutinized him.

'Could he really be? His looks, his behavior, his date of birth all adds up to everything. All this time, rumors said that he could really be the Yondaime's son but now coming face to face with the demon. The truth hits hard. No one knew the Yondaime as well as me and that's why, I know that Deidara's words were of the truth. The demon is the heir of the fourth Hokage,' Kakashi contemplated.

"Go, _demon_, run! Run away from this village, they would only inflict you with pain and nothing more. Go, _demon_, run in the wild where you belong, sing with the birds and play in the trees. This village is not your host and would never be. Take my advice and run," Kakashi hurled the words at the cowardly boy but Naruto had sensed a little warmth in those words. Naruto had become so needy of love; he could even find warmth in such hollow words like Kakashi's.

"Go away?" the aforementioned _demon_ asked, looking up at the masked man.

"Yes, run away from this village, you future awaits you outside this village, go now, pack you bags and leave," the man advised and before Naruto could question the man further, the man vanished into thin air.

'Go away?' Naruto thought. His surprised face now held a smirk. He had gotten the answer to his questions that had lingered in his mind for many days. Yes, that is correct. He would leave this place and run.

And that was the night when Uzumaki Naruto left Konoha.

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**Love, Devil.**


	5. Chapter 5

**Word count: 876 words. **

**Note: Full information on the first chapter. Oh, and the line indicate time change.

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Chapter 5:

The fair-haired boy looked back at the gate which coated with thick green paint, with the leaf-like Konoha symbol clearly engraved on it.

The aforementioned boy narrowed his azure eyes at the tall gate that proudly stood in front of him, showing off an overall expression of the mighty village that it held within. One would have felt great sorrow leaving his hometown but to Naruto, his eyes held achievement, as he was glad he could find his way out of the torture chamber. Though, a part of his heart did cringe in grieve.

Memories of his past flashed in front of his eyes, moments he spent with Sakura, his sister like figure, the only person who could make him smile, the only person who would mother him, the only person who would wipe away his tears. He was going to leave her without her being informed of this sudden decision. He felt guilty but more then guilt, the pain of leaving his only friend was much more overpowering.

His memories grew fonder, as he thought about his brother who trained with him in the forests where birds sang and the trees laughed. He was going to leave the place that once held soil that contained his sweat and blood mixed with his brother's as they trained together to excel in being a ninja.

His thoughts then trailed off to the Hokage Mountains, where his father's face was craved in, looking over the village like the leader he was. He was going to leave the place which his father sacrificed his life for, leaving his two sons at the mercy of this village. This was the same place he was going to leave for which his father shed his blood.

Tears wanted to pool around his baby blue eyes but he refrained them from showing. That's when he realized that even Konoha was like hell on Earth, the cause of all his miseries, the cause of all his tortures, he could not leave his birthplace so easily forever.

Sadness overwhelmed him though his decision was final. He shook away all the thoughts that wanted to waver his decision.

He sent one last glimpse at the gate before turning away from the village forever. He patted his sword which hung in its case by his side and shifted his pouch which hung onto his shoulder. He had finally managed to dig out the sword which was left behind by his brother hat as his brother's ambition was to become a powerful swordsman thinking that he could then defeat the mighty Itachi. Too bad that both of them disappeared before Deidara could have a chance to prove his strength. But not for long, as Naruto decided that it was up to him to track down his brother. After all, since the day Deidara disappeared, many ninjas were sent off to find him, either they didn't return or even if they did, they came back empty-handed. They had tried doing this for almost a year but once the year was over, they had given up hope on finding the genius, labeling him as dead.

But Naruto being stubborn as a mule refused to believe that his brother was dead. His brother was indeed alive; he was, after all, connected to him by blood no matter what the people said.

Thus began his quest to find his brother who was now long-forgotten by the village.

Though, he had very much no clue on where his brother could be situated, just starting off from a path would be a good start.

* * *

The boy simply started on path that gradually led to a thick forest. Though sounding cliché enough, Konoha was after all surrounded by forest, being the hidden village of leaf. Aimlessly, he followed the narrow path of wore-out yellow grass contrasting with the lush green grass at the either side of it.

As the 11 year old walked towards the dense horde of the plants, he contemplated on ways to get stronger because it obviously meant that he would have to face all kinds of obstacles while finding his brother and this quest was not going to be a piece of cake. He might encounter S-ranked criminals, tough ninjas from other countries and thieves and robbers on the way and being alone, he had to defend himself solely thus there was a great need to get stronger physically.

Another thought than squeezed itself into his mind as he thought of how to help himself become better, he would certainly be needing someone's assistance. But who? Who would be kind enough to spend their time on a demon vessel?

But it seemed like the master who controlled the world from the skies would not be ignoring his pleas anymore.

As an unruly mess of white hair blobbed up and down as the giant man walked, taking heavy steps yet moving fast. Clad in khaki green clothes with a red vest hanging off his shoulders, his lengthy white hair swished against his lower back with a heavy scroll strapped to his back.

This man was going to be the step that Naruto had to climb in order to be a step closer to meeting his brother.

But they had yet to meet.

* * *

**Notes: I know that many of you wished for a longer chapter but I certainly could not introduce another character in this chapter or else it would be too rushed. Sorry! And please review! **

**Love, devil.**


	6. Chapter 6

**Word Count: 2, 028 words. **

**Notes: Enjoy! And leave constructive criticism. **

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Going Konoha would always be a thrilling and memorable trip for Jiraiya every time he visited that place. After all, it was his birthplace; it was the place where the third hokage taught him, it was the place where he taught the fourth hokage...it was the place where he found his true career path... to be a porn novelist.

At the beginning of his exciting career, Konoha used to be his main source of inspiration as of course, you could not deny, that most of the beautiful ladies did blossom from Konoha, taking his own female teammate for an example. What the people did not know, his first few books were indeed instigated by his female teammate. After gathering his guts and of course, his basic necessities, he left Konoha to travel the world and discover new kinds of beauties.

Indeed, he found out that if he hadn't traveled away from his homeland, he would have obliviously run of out encouragement needed to write his books. Every time, he visited one country, his books would take a different turn. The people would change, the settings would tweak and the atmosphere would modify. It was all brought on by the culture and tradition of the country he was in. Let's take wave country for example. The girls there usually have an astounding figure, the ones with lengthy arms and shapely legs. However, the atmosphere there is usually damp and soggy, thus creating a gloomy and sad atmosphere. Therefore, the stories that Jiraiya would write would become, angst with romance, usually a rather erotic combination.

It was a no wonder that his books were very popular because they would never bore the reader as the plot was different every time he wrote a book. Traveling had indeed made him richer and traveling, to him, didn't seem much of a hassle since he was renowned legendary Sannin. People welcomed him with open arms, despite his rather disturbing career of writing porn books. He was respected for his power and status, thus accommodation and food did not seem much of a problem when he traveled.

But this recent trip to Konoha seemed a little odd, although it had wakened every ounce of his body, he did not feel like moving his pen across the papers and start off with a new plot. Even though, he had done ample peeking at women and drooling at their sight, the inspiration had refused to come. So he had decided to set off from Konoha earlier than he expected, his shoulders slightly slumped. He felt as if he was missing something and every time he looked at the Hokage Mountains, his student's, the fourth hokage's face would flash into his head. The fourth Hokage was his favorite student after all and the title that his student held as a hokage, made him feel that his efforts in teaching him had finally paid off. The pity of having his student die for the village grew inside of him and despite of how guilty he felt thinking that he rather had his student survive than the village, he still was to believe firmly that what his student did was wrong. In one moment, his student had destroyed his whole family. He had killed himself, he had allowed his wife, a great warrior, to die while fighting along with him during the battle against Kyuubi no Kitsune, he had sealed the demon inside his second son and his first son was no where to be found. Despite how unfair it was to push all the blame to the hokage, Jiraiya always felt that his student should not have village first before his own family. He was father and husband before he was the village's hokage.

Thinking back to the olden days brought out fresh exciting memories. With the world now in peace with no wars going on, his ninja skills had began to rust; it had been a rather long time since he practiced his famous techniques. Maybe this was a reason of why he was lacking inspiration. Maybe it was about time, he got down to a better plot for his story. A plot filled with mind-numbing action and adventure however with romance still acting as the backbone of the whole story.

He began ticking off the possible plots he could come up with when he noticed a mob of golden hair traveling along the same path as him, only a few meters in front. He inwardly smirked; the person with such striking hair must be a fool! Without masking his chakra and walking without camouflage, that boy was definitely opening himself to assassination or rape, probably both.

Jiraiya decided to walk faster, trying to get closer to the walking fool. It was highly unlikely that the boy would be able to spot him even if he were directly behind him as Jiraiya had covered his chakra and as a Sannin, it was natural from him to walk like a shadow clone, his footsteps silent.

As predicted the boy continued to walk without feeling a presence behind him. Just to his amusement, Jiraiya continued to follow him.

However, Jiraiya only had the time to blink an eye when he noticed that they body that he was following had suddenly disappeared and was now directly behind him. A chilly breeze followed, sending shivers down his spine. A kunai was placed directly at a vital part of his neck.

The moment seemed to stop. No one moved. Jiraiya breathed heavily due to the sudden shock while the boy continued to hold the kunai near his neck.

"How did you...?" Jiraiya asked, cursing himself to be so inattentive and allowing the fool to have an advantage over him.

"You might think I am a fool. But look behind you..." the aforementioned fool pointed backwards as Jiraiya shakily turned his head behind, only to find that the boy had left two of his own shadow clones trailing behind, giving Naruto information about his surroundings.

"Before trying to use shadow clone-like techniques, make sure that your opponent is not a shadow clone master," Naruto stated, before allowing the his hand which held the kunai to retrieve back to his pouch.

The two clones behind them vanished with a poof, leaving the silence to consume Naruto and the Legendary Sannin.

"I am Uzumaki Naruto, if your information, Mister perverted hermit," Naruto stated as he repositioned himself in front of the well-built man.

"Uzumaki Naruto? You have indeed peeked my interest, young man," Jiraiya said, covering his shocked expression with a gleeful smile. _Uzumaki Naruto? The demon-child? Minato's second child? I would have never thought I would be able to meet him. _

_But his appearance further proves that he could indeed be the demon child. Could he really be...the vessel of Kyuubi, who is hated and loathed by the village? _

"Well, you may call me Jirai-" he stopped abruptly.

"Jiraiya. One of the three Sannin," Naruto completed, the sentence for the older man.

"How did you...?" Jiraiya asked for the second time that night.

"You are legendary. Only a fool would not be able to recognize you, you perverted hermit," Naruto said, offering a smile of wisdom.

"P-perverted w-what!? How dare you call me that, you little brat," Jiraiya sputtered, shocked to hear someone saying such a thing. Even though people did regard him as a perverted geezer, no one dared to voice those words in front of the powerful man.

"You. Perverted Hermit that is. Don't think I didn't see you the other day peeking at Konoha's women baths section. It was extremely appalling to see such an old man trying to woo a young woman," Naruto shook his head in slight disgust.

"Hey, I am definitely not old. I am as young as a youth and as strong as an ox." Jiraiya proudly stated, buffing his chest in pride.

"You are fit to be my grandfather, pervert," Naruto stated, starting to walk once again but this time, with a legendary Sannin beside him.

_The truth you speak. I am, of course, fit to be your grandfather. I did, after all, take your father in as a son. _

"Running away, kid?" Jiraiya asked, jokingly, although he would have already guessed the reason why the boy had chosen such a path.

"Not exactly. More like, finding my destination. The village does me no good," Naruto stated, shifting his dangling sword from its strap a little, all the while trying to a hide the truth.

_They finally did exceed their limits, didn't they? Those merciless villagers. I have no idea how you spent so many years in that hell hole. I would have thought that those villagers would have killed you by now._

"Seeking your destination, at such a tender age? You keep on amazing me as time is passing by, boy," Jiraiya stated as he was really curious of what the orphan was going to do now as he had already kicked himself out of his own village.

"Yes. I want to become like my brother. I want to be powerful. I want to be strong." Naruto explained, his voice slightly dripping with wonder.

_Yes. Your brother. Deidara Uzumaki, actually, Deidara Namikaze. Now pronounced dead. Yet I know, you still believe that he is alive. I know that he is, in fact, alive. I thought I almost saw him, the last month. If I am not wrong. Those blue eyes and those blonde locks. Only I can tell Minato's children from others. They have the same chakra flow as their father. I knew him so well. _

"You think that you can manage alone. Trying to become stronger does not come so easily, kid. I was trained under the third Hokage, it the one of the main reason why my team became a legendary team," Jiraiya explained, trying not to dowse himself in those fond, young memories of his childhood.

"I t-think that I c-can manage. I am, after all, Uzumaki Naruto!" The determined blonde exclaimed. The fake and lie in his voice so prominent, that Jiraiya did not have to lean closely to hear that.

"Who are you kidding, boy? You have not met the dangers of the dark forces. Their power so intense, that they wouldn't have to blink an eye to blow you off your feet; dead." Jiraiya explained, a shiver involuntarily running up his spine.

"But what can I do? I am, after all, an orphan. I have no one to turn to but myself. I have to depend on myself to become stronger." He replied, his shoulder slumped due to defeat.

_You really want your brother back, don't you? I can only imagine the pain that you have been put through, all this time._

"What if you had someone to assist in your training?" Jiraiya asked, causing the boy to raise a brow.

"How would I be able to get someone to help me?" Naruto asked, his interest was brought to a higher level.

"How about from a certain Sannin?" Jiraiya asked, smirking lightly.

"W-what?! You mean, you the perverted hermit, would want to train me? A pathetic orphan?" Naruto asked, astonishment shinning his azure eyes.

_Who says that you are a pathetic orphan? You are the son of the Fourth Hokage, a true hero. Not that anyone believed the fact that their Hero's child was a demon. I did because I knew my student. _

"Yes. Anyway, I need some time to polish my ninja skills. I have a feeling that a war is approaching. Konoha is preparing for it. I recently spoke with the Sandaime. He said so himself. They might need my help if a war does break up. I could train you and at the same time, prepare for the future war." Jiraiya explained, lying through his teeth. It was about time, he interacted with his student's family affairs.

"So, it's like, mutualism?" Naruto asked, thinking over what Jiraiya just explained.

"Yeah, like friends with benefits," Jiraiya said, with amusement lacing his voice.

"Disgusting. Someone really screwed with your brains," Naruto said and tried to make a green face at which Jiraiya gave a loud string of laughter.

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**TBC. Oh, erm, sorry for the late update, I had examinations going on!**

**Love, devil.**


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