The outfits above are JUST for reference, and the eye can be whatever colour you want, blue just showed up the best. I know it's cringe, but I have no artistic talents

                                                      2nd POV

The three of you arrived in class. Iruka looked down and opened his mouth to lecture you both but decided against it and sighed. "Take your seats, you two. {Name}, sit next to Naruto, Sakura, move next to Ino." A pink-haired girl glanced at a brooding boy to her left and let out a heavy sigh before moving seats, "Haha! Now you don't get to sit next to him at all." A blond girl, presumably Ino poked fun at Sakura. Naruto leads you to his seat though as you were about to sit next to the emo boy, Naruto pulled your hand, yanking you away from him, "{Name}-Chan, wait! I don't want you sitting next to Teme." You raised an eyebrow at Naruto but agreed and sat down on the outside seat, Naruto between you and the emo boy.

"Tomorrow is Genin exams, so make sure to study." He gave a pointed look at Naruto. Glancing at him, he giggled, embarrassed. "And since you were late, Naruto, everyone will have to redo the transformation Jutsu." With a collective groan and some classmates cursing Naruto, everyone lined up. "Haruno Sakura, here I go." She made the "ram" hand sign and transformed himself into Iruka. Iruka looked the transformation up and down, marking all the mistakes, and nodded, "Good." She released it and looked at the emo, blushing, "I did it! Did you see that Sasuke-Kun?" He ignored her completely.

"Next, Uchiha Sasuke." He walked up to Iruka and formed "ram," transforming into Iruka as well. Writing down his score, he nodded. Sasuke let the Jutsu release and walked off silently. Naruto nudged you, "Watch this {Name}-Kun," he said with a sly grin, "Next, Uzumaki Naruto." As Naruto stepped up, he was yelled at by his classmates. You glared at the ones that cursed him, "You got this." you encouraged quietly. 

Naruto formed the "ram" and charged up his chakra. With a poof of smoke, there stood Naruto, gender-bent and nude. You blushed and looked away, laughing at Naruto's transformation. Iruka yelped in surprise, blood running out of his nose and down his face. Naruto released the Jutsu and laughed, pointing at Iruka, "You fell for it Iruka-sensei! That's my sexy Jutsu!" With a growl, Iruka yelled at him. "Cut it with your stupid tricks Naruto, last warning!"

His voice echoed in the classroom. Standing in front of Naruto, you pointed at Iruka, "You said he had to transform, you never said into what. He did what you asked. And it worked, didn't it? You got caught off guard. I say It's an effective Jutsu." Your throat was starting to burn. It's been a while since you've talked this much in one day. Iruka opened his mouth to argue but closed it again and turned away irritatedly, writing down Naruto's score. You turned towards him and high-fived the slightly blushing boy.

School seemed to go by rather quickly, or maybe it was because you fell asleep, but the next thing you knew, it was over. Students stood up, collecting their notebooks and such before leaving. As Iruka was distracted, you and Naruto tried to sneak out but quickly failed. Iruka turned towards you two and grabbed the back of your shirts, dragging you both to the Hokage mountain with rags and water buckets, forcing you to clean the beautifully chaotic mess.

"Iruka-sensei, it was my idea to prank the faces, I forced Naruto to help me, Uzumaki-Kun doesn't deserve punishment for it. I can clean this myself," you tried to get Naruto out of this, surely he could be spending time doing anything else. Your call-out surprised both males, neither expected you to take the blame. Naruto opened his mouth to disagree but stopped when you put a finger to your lips. He closed his mouth, hesitantly nodding. "{Name}, it's nice that you're trying to protect Naruto, but you just got here. Why would you dishonour the great stone faces?" You shrugged, "It looked better with colour, being new here doesn't mean I can't not like the Hokages." "I don't believe you." You shrugged again, mouthing a 'sorry' to Naruto.

You and Naruto scaled down the mountain, ropes tied around your waists, scrubbing the paint off separate faces. Iruka stood above you, supervising the cleaning. Naruto was quiet for the first few minutes before he started complaining, "This sucks. You suck, everyone sucks." His words are directed to Iruka, though they made you snicker, "Your insults suck." You remarked, "Oh yeah? Then you insult him," with a shrug, you turned to Iruka.

"Is your short temper compensation for your short di-" "Neither of you are going home until every drop of paint is gone!" He yelled, cutting you off. You raised an eyebrow, smirking as his yelling only emphasized your insult. Naruto snickered at your attempt before turning back to Iruka, his previous grin dropping.  "I don't care about going home. It's not like anyone waiting for me," he said, looking back to the paint he was scrubbing. Your heart called out to Naruto. You were in the same boat as him, "I don't even have a home. Hokage-sama didn't tell me where to find my guardian by myself, or even who he was wait— that old bastard didn't give me any information at all." You mumbled the last part to yourself, your mood now sour.

"...Naruto?" Iruka called out. Naruto looked up with a glare/pout. "What do you want now, sensei?" Iruka crouched down on the head he was on, "Well... How about we get some ramen after this? Ichiraku's. I'll pay." Naruto's eyes lit with determination as he started scrubbing harder, "now that's some serious motivation!" You laughed at him before quickening your pace, not wanting Naruto to miss out on his ramen.

...

The sun was setting as you both finished. Iruka helped pull us up and started walking down the mountain. Naruto followed with a pep in his step, cheering about Ramen. You watched them with a small smile and turned away, going the other way down the mountain. Naruto looked genuinely happy with Iruka and you were relieved Naruto had someone to care for him. Going back to the Hokage tower, you climbed up the excessive stairs and entered his office, not even caring to knock.

It was the end of the day and you were tired and annoyed, though instead of going home, you had to get to meet your guardian, who, by the way, the Hokage didn't tell you anything about Only that he'd pick you up, which, you weren't there for. He looked up from his stack of papers and smiled, "Ah, {Name}, what can I do for you?" You gave him a very pointed look, "Well, knowing who my guardian is would be a start." He chuckled and called an ANBU, telling him to fetch someone named "Kakashi." As you two waited, you started a conversation with your spirit companion.

'Moya, do you remember what my mother looks like? I was too young to remember.' It was a thought sticking in your mind the whole day, "Well, her hair was long yet curly, reaching to the bottom of her back. It was a beautiful {hair colour}, like yours. Her eyes were bright and happy, they lit up whenever she was near you, and her eyelashes were long, matching the colour of her hair, it made her magenta eyes stand out on her face. She had dark freckles that covered her cheeks and nose." You smiled at the thought, trying to create an image of her in your mind. The small, haunting knowledge that you got your father's {Eye colour} eyes lingering in your mind. As much as you didn't like it, you were related to him.

You were pulled from your thoughts by the door opening. Turning around, you saw the masked Ninja from earlier. Standing up, you glanced at the Hokage, who nodded and turned back to face him. "I'm {Name}." You said with a bow, voice cracking due to the strain of using it. He gave a half wave, "Hatake Kakashi," you guys just stood there awkwardly before he started walking away. Not knowing what to do, you quietly followed after him.

On the walk, he pulled out a book, "Icha-Icha Paradise." These books were quite good. The plot and R-rated scenes in it were explained and worded beautifully, and the mood and setting in the book were so detailed. The author made writing an art. They were great books, and you couldn't wait for the next one to release. Kakashi caught you staring and motioned the book, "Fan of Icha?" You nodded and looked away. "The author's talented." Kakashi nodded in agreement, returning to his book.

After a few more turns, he stopped in front of a small home and put his book away. Twisting open the door, he let you in before following behind. You took off your shoes, stepped out of Kakashi's way, and looked around. It was one story with the kitchen and living room connecting. There was a hall with two doors down it and an open closet door. "The first door in the hall is the bathroom. You hungry?" he asked, stopping by the kitchen. You shook your head, "No thanks. Can I have a blanket, please?" He pulled a blanket out of the closet and threw it to you.

"I'm making dinner, there will be extra if you get hungry," he said, disappearing into the kitchen. You sprawled the blanket over the couch and took your hat off, placed it on the coffee table along with your poncho and laid down, wrapping yourself in a protective cocoon. You closed your eyes, Moya helped you to sleep.

Kakashi came in to tell you the food was done but kept quiet as he saw your sleeping form. He flinched away from you in surprise as his eyes landed on your ears. The fur on them was {fur colour}. Though he had to admit they looked adorable. All the Chunins and up were alerted that you were a host to a wolf spirit. The Hokage let them know it was harmless unless put under extreme circumstances.

He walked away from the couch and back into the kitchen. The silence of the house was both soothing and taunting to him.

...

You woke up around 4 in the morning, an unusually early time to get up. The sky was dressed in dark shades of navy blue, dull stars lingering here and there. The village was quiet, not yet awake. Sitting up, you yawned and unravelled yourself from the blanket, stumbling your way off the couch and to the bathroom. Your tail slumped down, the matching {fur colour} fur tickling your legs when they rubbed against them. You looked in the mirror and down at your clothes, "I really need new clothes." You told yourself, eyeing the old outfit with disdain. Finishing in the bathroom, you looked at Kakashi's door, debating whether to knock or not, but decided against it. Finding a piece of paper and a pen, you left a note on the front door, put on your things and left.

You walked around the streets, attempting to map them out and failing. You were just blindly walking around at this point. A sudden shout caused you to jump and look at where it came from. A small group of people stood outside a crummy-looking apartment on the top level. The group didn't even try to be quiet as they broke in. Your heart worried for whoever was inside, so, with a sigh, you listened to it and quickly scaled the building, using parkour to get up quicker.

Pushing through the group, you stepped on the broken door and looked around, picking up a familiar chakra. It pulsed its way into your senses. It was Naruto. This was Naruto's apartment. The house was even worse inside, the kitchen had no walls, sharing rooms with his bedroom, and there were only two other doors, one was a closet, and the other was a bathroom. You could tell it was the bathroom as the door was kicked off its hinges. There was a villager inside with his hands on the closet, prepared to open it when his attention fell to you, "this house is dangerous, you need to—" he was cut off by the closet being thrown open. An orange blob jumped into your arms and your arms automatically wrapped protectively around him as you both fell to the ground with an 'oof.'

Looking down, you saw Naruto. His eyes closed in fear as his whole body shook with horror. Your arms tightened around him as you stood up, struggling a bit as you did considering your tiny frame compared to the bigger boy. He held on to you like a koala, legs wrapped around your waist and arms around your neck. "Don't touch him! The demon is dangerous! Give him to me and you'll be safe." You pulled a Kunai from your weapon pouch and threw it, narrowly missing their head. You snarled at him, "I missed." His eyes widened, looking at the Kunai that was embedded in the wall a few cut hairs trapped between the blade and the wall.

You pulled out another, not intending to miss this one and nodded to the door, "Come back here to hurt Naruto, and you won't live long enough to see him become Hokage." The male hurried to the door like a rat rushing out of the street. The villagers at the door witnessed it before you glared at them. They scattered. The civilians knew they couldn't go against a Ninja, no matter their age. Their village had a long record of strong children. You looked down at Naruto and hugged him. "Are you okay?" You asked softly, not wanting to scare him more than he was already. He lifted his head from your shoulder and looked around, letting himself down. He nodded, still shaking. Only now did you realize you were smaller than him, though to be fair you were smaller than most people your age.

"Get your things, Uzumaki-Kun. You're moving in with me. If Kakashi-san has an issue with it, then I'll get an apartment of my own." He was your friend, and you couldn't let a friend stay here. His apartment was ransacked and the front door was off the door frame, laying uselessly on the floor. Naruto grabbed his few items and followed you, only to stop as you did, head downcasted, "I don't remember where he lives." Naruto playfully shoved you with a small laugh, "you'd get lost just walking down a straight street," he prodded, "oh hush, at least I don't blind anyone who looks at me," he gasped with fake offence. You two were walking down the empty apartment complex, stopping on a flight of stairs as Sarutobi walked up them, "Ah, Naruto, I heard what happened, I'm glad to see you're okay."

He was generous enough to walk the two of you back to Kakashi's, he and Naruto talked about what happened, You cut in and gave a vivid description of each villager's face. If they had a chance to be punished, you were all for giving the Hokage their information. "{Name}... You cannot hurt the villagers. Ninjas are there to protect them. If you hurt them, you will no longer be a ninja." You looked at him, a small glare, "I'm not a leaf ninja yet, only a sand ninja-" You bit your tongue to shut up, not wanting to start an argument but had a lot to say about that, no one said anything else the rest of the way.

Kakashi was still sleeping by the time you two got home, so you had to be quiet. Naruto set his clothes on the couch, grabbed a pair, starting to change. You turned away, "Change in the bathroom." "Too late, I'm already dressed. Where do I put my dirty clothes?" You turned back around and shrugged, pointing to the bathroom, "Probably in there."

The rest of the morning went by peacefully. Naruto took you on a small tour, showing you Ichiraku's, a clothing store as well as a food market and the training grounds. You both went shopping for some clothes. Naruto got a few different styles of clothing while you got {outfit choice}.  By the time you two got back to Kakashi's, it was 6 am. With the graduation test today, you were stressed about being early. You changed into your new outfit and threw your dirty clothes with Naruto's and put on your regular gear.

You chose not to wear your hat, letting it rest on your back. Your ears flicked as the air hit them, Naruto stared at them, curious, though he'd listened in when you explained it. "Alright Uzumaki-Kun, let's go. Do you know what the exam is?" His face scrunched as he tried to remember what the last exam was, and connected it to what this one could be, "you look like you're in pain," you commented, looking away from him. He let out a defeated sigh, slumping forward, "I don't know what it would be. Though whatever it is, can you help me, please?!" 

"How?" You asked, watching the villagers carefully as they exited their house. Stepping closer to Naruto, you gently grabbed his hand, holding it protectively. "Help me cheat? I've failed the test twice!" He offered, raising his voice dramatically, you grinned, rolling your eyes, "You want me to cheat for you?" He nodded quickly, with a sigh, you ruffled his hair only to be smacked away, "Sure, I'll help you, but you better not snitch if you get caught." he pretended to zip his mouth. "Hmm? What's this about cheating?" A voice asked from behind, you and Naruto flinched and he jumped backward, his hand falling from yours. You stood in front of him, skillfully pulling out a kunai and raised in a panic. Looking at the new voice, you saw familiar gravity-defying, silver hair. "What are you doing here, Kakashi-san?" You asked, slightly breathless from the scare. Naruto looked pale, probably because Kakashi overheard us.

"Well, as your guardian, I need to walk you to and from school." you gave him an expressionless look, he didn't even bother hiding that he was watching you, making sure you weren't a threat to the village. With a shrug, you pocketed your kunai and the small group started moving again, hoping Kakashi wouldn't ask about the previous conversation, but just to your luck, he brought it up again. "Now who here is trying to cheat on the graduation exam?" You hung your head in mock guilt, "I was. I have a small chance of passing due to starting late and I didn't want to leave Naruto." You held a tone of fake regret in your tone, Naruto glanced at you, confused, you winked at him, out of view from Kakashi.

"Hm. Well, that may be so, but you shouldn't cheat to pass. If you were to cheat as a ninja, you'd die in the real world." You looked up and shrugged, "death is bound to happen." It was a way of saying you didn't care if you died. As a child, you experience the world too soon, and back then, you hoped there was more. As you grew up and found out there wasn't, your will to live just... Left. "If someone cheats but isn't caught, no one can prove they were cheating." A groan from Naruto caught your attention, then you noticed the school and groaned with him. Anxiety spiking. You were too busy complaining with Naruto to notice the expression of slight anger and worry from Kakashi.

"It's just a test, don't worry so much, and don't expect me to help you." Moya, as much as he loved you, wanted you to learn for yourself. 'Awe come on. I'm new Moya. Information outside a village can only go so far.' You heard him fake a snore and sighed, "We're here now, bye-bye Kakashi-san." Without warning, you grabbed Naruto's hand, rushing to the school. "What the heck was that for, {Name}-chan?" You didn't respond and pulled him into class. There were a few minutes left before class started, and you anxiously bounced your leg. whispering back and forth with Naruto about a plan.

Iruka tapped a few papers on his desk and stood up, calling everyone's attention, "When you hear your name, make your way to the testing room. The final test will be on the clone Jutsu." Naruto started freaking out in the corner of your eye, "That's my worst one! I'm so gonna fail this," turning to him, you put a hand on his shoulder, "It'll be okay, Uzumaki-Kun. We have a plan."

"Uzumaki Naruto." You gave him a wink as he left the room. Putting on your straw hat, you waited until Naruto was done with his other tests, only helping him when he reached the final test, a simple clone. Forming the "Tiger" hand sign, you activated your Neragan Eye, feeling it burn as your eyes turned crimson, a tomoe circling your pupil before stopping. "Sharingan." You whispered almost silently to yourself, activating the stolen kekkei genkai. It wasn't hard to see Naruto's chakra, especially when he focused. There was so much of it. You waited until the right moment.

Naruto concentrated his chakra before shouting out his move, "Clone Jutsu!" Releasing his chakra, compacted air swirled around him creating smoke, the genjutsu took the place of the ghastly clone Naruto had created and when the smoke cleared, three identical clones were in place at Naruto's side, only one being real... And kinda pathetic. Naruto raised his fist to Iruka, a large grin on his face. "Good job Naruto! Come take a headband." Naruto proudly grabbed one, looking at the metal in his hands with a smile before placing it in his pocket and returning to the waiting room. His clones followed before disappearing in a poof. You released the genjutsu as it did so and deactivated your Dojutsu. Eyes fading back to their normal {Eye colour}.

He gave you a thumbs up with a grin, you grinned back. As your name was called, you entered the written portion and grabbed a sheet of paper, it was a test covering most ninja knowledge but also history and science, things you would've learned had you attended a full year of school. With a deep breath, you started, answering to the best of your abilities. 

You turned in the test and started on the next portion. There were a total of three, written, physical, and clone. The physical wasn't an issue for you, and neither was the clone, so when you stood in front of the two proctors with three clones at your side, Iruka let you grab a headband with a grimace. "What's wrong?" He held out a paper, it was your passing grade. You read it and felt your face fall. Sure, you passed...

But by 1%. Had you not done well in the physical portion, you would've failed completely. "Oh... Thank you Iruka-sensei." With a bow, you folded the paper and put it in your pocket, hesitating to take the Hitai-ate. You left the room and gave Naruto a thumbs up, sitting next to him with your head down. "What's wrong {Name}-Kun? Did you not pass?" He asked. You pulled the headband from your pocket and showed him. "I passed. I'm just tired." You passed, so why did it feel like you failed? Why did you feel awful? Does Naruto feel the same way because he cheated?

Students came and left, each one with a shiny new headband to show. When the last student finished, Iruka came back into the room, organizing a stack of papers. He looked away from the podium with a smile, "Congratulations! You all passed and are closer to becoming true ninjas!" He congratulated. He continued to talk for a while telling the true world of ninjas and kunoichi, the different levels, and stuff like that until the bell rang. Everyone quickly shuffled outside, Naruto wasn't as dense as he pretended, he could sense something wrong with you, but he didn't know what it was.

As all the students lined up outside, waiting for their parents, you and Naruto hung out by the swing. You waited for Kakashi to pick you up when a proctor approached, he had white hair and a dark aura. You made eye contact and had a chill crawl down your spine, his eyes were dark, but not like Naruto's, this man was evil. Standing up, you grabbed Naruto's hand, "I don't like your vibes, man. I'm gonna need you to back up." his grin turned into a frown rather quickly, confused. Naruto looked between you and the white-haired male, confused as well. "Listen here wolfie, I need to talk to Naruto. I know he cheated." you angled your head down, glaring at him from under your hat. Turning to Naruto, you saw his confused face. you put a hand on his shoulder, "be careful with him, Naruto." you warned as he took Naruto and walked away.

You sat on the swing, pushing your legs off the ground and swaying softly, ignoring the civilians' comments about Naruto, though they did anger you. He was just a kid, why did they treat him so badly? You were just a kid, too... It wasn't too long before Naruto came back, he was staring at the ground deep in thought. He looked up and faked a smile, making your mood drop even more. Jumping off the swing, you walked up to the saddened boy. "So what'd he want?" Naruto put a hand on the back of his head, giving you a fake giggle, he looked at the crowd and then back to you, "I can't tell you, it's top secret." 

You hummed in response, turning away from Naruto to survey the treeline, walking back to the swing to hide your suspicion. Naruto made it sound like he couldn't say because he worried about someone overhearing, and you could guess who— since the crowd of people weren't in hearing range of actual whispers. "You can't tell me what sensei told you? I don't see what you mean," Naruto's soft, sky-blue eyes lit up, he knew you understood. He wanted to tell you all about what his teacher said, but Naruto feared he was listening in, he let his hand fall to his side, "Don't worry, {Name}-Kun, let's just get home, but where's Kakashi? He's late." you shrugged, getting the message he'd tell you at Kakashi's. "Let him take his time, he probably needs it, he is a Jonin."

Naruto furrowed his eyes and nodded, so you two waited...

              And waited...

                                        and waited.

It was already dark and Naruto was starting to get antsy, everyone was gone and the school was mostly quiet. Looking around, he pulled you off the swing to a crouch, face close to yours, "Mizuki-sensei wants me to steal the forbidden scroll of sealing from the Hokage's office, if I don't, he'll tell Iruka-sensei I cheated. and get me kicked from the academy, permanently." He admitted, your eyes widened, this was serious. You sent out your chakra, searching for anyone else's in your radius to your surprise, you found Kakashi's. "Uzumaki-Kun, that's a serious offence. That scroll is forbidden for a reason. What are you going to do?" Naruto scratched his head, "I don't know! I don't know what to do." He was in a battle with himself and it irritated him.

You put a hand on his shoulder and gave him a comforting smile, "If you decide to steal it, I'll inform Kakashi-san that you're being forced to," Naruto nodded, he was okay with that. Standing up, you gave Naruto a thumbs up, "Just stay safe." Naruto didn't have a choice, he'd have to steal it. He vowed to himself to never cheat again. You walked away anxiously, looking back to see Naruto sneak off to the Hokage tower. You stopped at the school gate and leaned on it, waiting for Kakashi who creepily watched from a tree. 

It took him a few minutes longer before he decided to come out, he jumped away from the tree, acting like he was just walking up and rubbed his neck in mock regret, "Sorry I was late, I got lost on the path of life. Where's Naruto?" You lifted your hat and smiled, "Don't worry about it, Kakashi-san, the path of life can be confusing, it's easy to get lost and Uzumaki-san is currently being forced by... Mi- Mu... Mozuki-sensei to steal the forbidden scroll of Sealing." You told him, trying to remember the name Naruto said. Kakashi flinched at the information and turned to the Hokage tower, his posture now tense. His hand twitched. You covered a laugh with a cough, his hands were tied. He had to watch you, but now he knew Naruto was about to steal a highly classified scroll.

"Go ahead Kakashi-san, I'll be at your house. Please return with Naruto safely. This isn't his fault." Kakashi looked at you, hesitating for a minute before deciding to trust you and turned away, rushing to the Kage tower. You blinked and he was gone. With a hum, you started making your way to his home with Moya giving you directions. He had a much better memory. Putting your hands in your pocket, you felt your graded paper and sighed.

Walking inside the house, you brushed off the feeling of the unfamiliar place, and sat on the couch, taking off your poncho and hat and throwing them to the side, and took both the paper and headband, setting them in front of you. You got a 22% for the written exam and a 70%  for the physical, in total, a 90%. You were so disappointed with yourself. Failing the written? Really? If the physical didn't exist, you wouldn't be holding a {Favourite colour} Hitai-ate. There were 200 points you could earn in total. You got 100 points out of 200. You barely passed. With a short growl, you sit with your legs hanging off the couch, arms resting on them as your head hung, getting lost in thought. 

"You are new here, {Name}. You had just joined the academy, it is not your fault you failed. I'm sure that if you had a proper education, you would've done much better." Moya comforted, you let out a sigh and laid down, "You're right, but seeing such low grades makes me feel like I didn't earn the Hitai-ate. I can't dare to call myself a ninja of the Leaf if all I have is strength." He sighed with empathy, "Strength is not all you have. You're smart, {Name}. You've done and learned so much throughout your journey, don't forget it." Your eyes shut, Moya forcing you into a dreamless sleep. With today's events, you wouldn't have slept otherwise, and he knew that.

With Naruto. 3rd POV
~~~~~~~~~~~

He was sitting on the ground, dirty and breathing heavily, but genuinely happy. He got curious about what was in the scroll and opened it, which lead him to master a new Jutsu. A perfect one he could push most of his chakra into without worrying about the lack of control he had. The Shadow clone Jutsu. Naruto flinched when Kakashi landed in front of him, Iruka right behind him, "it didn't take you long for you to find me. I mastered a new Jutsu! Maybe with it, I can truly pass." Kakashi remained indifferent, he knew Naruto cheated. Iruka grew confused, "What do you mean, Naruto? You already passed." He gave him a regretful grin, "I cheated. I just wanted to pass so badly, I'm sorry Iruka-sensei."

Before anyone could say anything back, a hurdle of Kunai came from the forest, Iruka pushed Naruto away while Kakashi took out a few of his own Kunai and deflected them. Naruto watched with worry. Mizuki squatted on the branch, smirking down at the three. Iruka and Kakashi glanced at each other. He informed Iruka that Mizuki might be the enemy. "Naruto, give me the scroll, now," Mizuki demanded, Naruto shook his head, he knew Mizuki was not the right person to have the scroll.

"Don't give it to him, Naruto." Kakashi said, eerily calm, "Mizuki's using you to get the scroll," Iruka was angry, who the anger originated from, the young boy didn't know. "I know this. Mizuki-sensei blackmailed me to get it then told me to come here. That's why I told you, sensei, so he can't blackmail me." Iruka's anger grew. He cared for Naruto, and it angered him to know that one of his teachers blackmailed him to betray the village.

"I think it's time you learned why everyone in the village hates you, Naruto." Mizuki suddenly spoke, glaring at Naruto. "No! Don't you dare, Mizuki," Iruka growled out, "that is classified information, exploiting it is treason, punishable with death." Kakashi warned and Mizuki laughed again, obviously believing his plan wouldn't fail. "12 years ago, the village was attacked by the demon nine tails fox, killing hundreds. Now that demon is sealed inside you!"

Naruto's mouth fell open, eyes widened with horror. It made sense, all of it. Why he had no friends, why the villagers glared and called him a demon, why he was hated, why he was Hunted. He'd killed people. "The same nine-tailed demon that killed Iruka's parents and the fourth Hokage is sealed inside you. You are a demon, Uzumaki Naruto!" Iruka threw a Kunai at him, "STOP IT!" He screamed. Naruto felt his world shatter, no longer could he hear Iruka's or Mizuki's words. He was a monster. He killed people's families and friends. The scroll tightened in his hands as he fell down.

Naruto felt his eyes start to water, suddenly, he heard Iruka scream, "NARUTO, GET DOWN!" Naruto felt his body forced to the ground with someone on top of him. Looking up, he saw Iruka, behind him was Kakashi, using a Kunai to block a large demon wind shuriken from piercing Iruka. "You were gonna take the hit for me... Why?" He asked, not knowing how to comprehend the situation.

"We're the same, Naruto. After the incident happened, no one seemed to care for me, they didn't give me any support when I needed it. I wasn't a good student in school and I became the class clown, just for the attention. I did stupid things, and I paid for it. It's hard, isn't it, Naruto?" Iruka was crying, tears dropping down Naruto's cheek. "I know you cheated. But I could see how hard you were trying to graduate, so when I saw the clones, fake or not, I let you pass. I know how lonely it feels, how much it hurts. I couldn't let myself fail you again. I'm sorry for not being a better teacher. For not being there when you needed help."

Iruka finished, he seemed truly regretful. Naruto was close to crying himself, he didn't know what to believe, but Iruka sounded so genuine. "Don't make me laugh! Iruka's hated you since you killed his parents. He's just saying that to get the scroll back! Rember how he used to treat you?!" Naruto turned and pushed himself out from under Iruka, running deeper into the forest, "Naruto, no!" Iruka called after him. Kakashi looked at Mizuki and Naruto before chasing Naruto. He knew Iruka would be fine, he was strong.

Naruto didn't have a clear mind, right now, his mind was anything but clear, he was so angry and frustrated. He skids to a stop as Kakashi appeared in front of him. "Naruto, you can't trust Mizuki's words. Yes, we kept it from you, but only for your own good." Naruto gritted his teeth, "for my own good? Everyone hated me and I never knew why! All the looks I got, the abuse I went through! They tried to kill me and I had no idea why! What about {Name}, are they fake too, have they been assigned to kill me? To fake being my friend so I don't turn against the village?!" Naruto didn't think that at first but he was confused and hurt and didn't know what to trust anymore.

Kakashi got down on a knee and put a hand on Naruto's shoulder, "We couldn't tell you in fear of this leaving the village, if people found out, they'd come for you, and you aren't strong enough to fight them. Naruto, Iruka doesn't blame you for the death of his parents, not anymore, and I don't blame you for the death of the 4th. It was the demon fox, and you are not that demon. I don't know if {Name} knows, they've just arrived in the village, and you can't let them know either. They might be after you for the demon fox, but you should decide yourself if they're good or not." Kakashi wasn't good at comforting, so he hoped his words helped Naruto.

Naruto took the scroll off his back, keeping his eyes on the ground and holding it out to Kakashi. Kakashi took the scroll and set it on the side, "Naruto, I don't just want the scroll. I want you to know you can't trust what Mizuki says." Naruto nodded and sat against the tree, Kakashi ruffled his hair, giving him a closed-eye smile before picking up the scroll and disappearing.

Suddenly, Iruka and a clone of Naruto fell from the tree, he scooted as close to the tree as he could, listening in. The transformation of Iruka released, revealing Mizuki, and the transformation of himself revealed Iruka. "Foolish. Why are you protecting that monster, he killed everyone you loved." Iruka smirked at him, "I'm not going to let an idiot like you get that scroll. I don't care what you say."

"As if you could stop me. Naruto is the same as me, y'know." Iruka's grin dropped as he glared, "How so?" Mizuki grinned confidently, "Naruto wants the scroll for his own power and to take vengeance. That's how beasts are. He'll pour his rage into the scroll and destroy everything." Mizuki was so confident in his words. "You're right..." Iruka agreed Naruto clenched his teeth and Mizuki's cocky smirk widened. 'It's true. Iruka-sensei never believed in me, he thinks I'm some... Beast, a freak. He never really cared for me at all!.. And it's true. I'm just a monster.'

"If you're talking about beasts because that's how they are, but that's not who Naruto is. He's nothing like that. Naruto's an exceptional student. He works hard, and he's clumsy and rushes into things at the same time. No one ever accepted him, so he understands the meaning of human suffering. You're wrong, he is not the demon fox. He's Uzumaki Naruto of the Hidden Leaf Village!" Naruto silently sobbed, his feelings were overwhelming. No one ever praised or even said they cared about him. They treated him like an outsider. To hear someone he cared about speak of him as if he truly belonged was too much for his emotions.

Mizuki glared at him, taking out his Demon Wind Shurikin and charging at Iruka. Naruto took that personally and jumped from behind the tree, face now dry with a raging glare. He headbutted Mizuki out of Iruka's path. The shuriken in his hand was thrown away from Mizuki and disappeared into the forest. "I'll kill you," he growled out angrily.

"Such big words for a kid, you can't even pass the graduation without cheating. I could kill you with a single move." Naruto put his hands together, crossing his pointer and middle fingers. "Try it, I'll strike you back a thousand-fold. Shadow clone Jutsu!" Iruka's eyes widened, suddenly, as if he blinked, hundreds of thousands of Naruto's filled his vision. The trees and ground were filled with actual shadow clones, an elite move. Naruto mastered a S-rank jutsu.

Without warning, they jumped Mizuki, pummeling him to the ground. A few seconds is all it took for Naruto and his clones to beat Mizuki unconscious, when his clones dispersed, Naruto grabbed a kunai from the ground and rushed the downed man, ready to shove it into Mizuki's neck. Kakashi came back, appearing above Mizuki and holding Naruto's wrist, nearly inches from him actually killing Mizuki. The tip of the kunai had dug into the few layers of skin, causing him to bleed. "Don't let your first kill be fueled by such hate and thirst for revenge, Naruto. You'll lose yourself if you do." Naruto blinked, looking up at Kakashi and dropping the kunai. Kakashi let go of him and he took a few steps back.

He looked down at the unconscious man and picked him up. Glancing at Naruto and Iruka. The two were smiling at each other. "Naruto. You've officially graduated." Iruka congratulated, slipping off Naruto's goggles and tying the leaf headband around his head. Kakashi smiled and pulled a folded paper from his pocket, unfolding it and handing it to Naruto. He looked down at it, curiously, eyes widening. 

"I know that it's too soon, but I'm giving it to you so you can think about it. Naruto, would you like to be adopted?" Kakashi feels like he failed his sensei by letting his son live like this, he wouldn't let the bad treatment continue. Of course, now that he had to watch two kids, he needed a bigger house. Naruto, for the third time that night, started crying. He needed time to think about it, but having a family would be nice.

"Iruka, please walk Naruto to my home. I have to take care of Mizuki." Kakashi said, giving Iruka a closed eye smile and a peace sign. "Of course, Kakashi-sempai." Standing up, he brushed off the dirt on his clothes. Kakashi nodded in thanks and teleported away. Naruto handed the one he got from the academy to Iruka, he liked his teacher's better. Pulling out of his pocket, he looked at the shiny metal, a finger running over the corner as he thought about what Kakashi said. {Name} could possibly be an enemy, here to hurt him, or you could perhaps be a friend. With a sigh, he gave it to Iruka, looking up at him with a false smile, but true determination. 

Iruka smiled back at him and grabbed it, tying it around his forehead. Walking forward, he put Naruto's goggles into his pocket. The sun started peaking over the mountain, surprising Naruto, he'd gotten no sleep. "Iruka-sensei. What do you think about {Name}-Chan?" Iruka let out a hum, thinking about them. He cared for his students, but he knew nothing about this new one, it was a surprise they even passed. All the questions they got right were information about other villages, they got very few about the Leaf Village's history. "I'm not sure, they're pretty new here and the other students don't go near them, the only one that approaches them is you. It's rather strange to see someone with inhuman features and I think that scares the others away." Iruka truly wasn't sure what to think of them, though he did notice the only friend they had was Naruto, they didn't trust it, though. Iruka was protective of Naruto and with the sudden appearance of them, he didn't trust it.

Iruka stopped in front of Kakashi's house, "they might be lonely. So try and get to know them more. Now get some sleep Naruto. You're taking pictures today at noon." Iruka informed, waving at Naruto and walking off. Naruto opened the door and noticed them sleeping on the couch, though the paper under their headband caught his attention. Quietly sneaking to it, they reached over to {Name} to grab it. His wrist was caught a few inches from the paper, stopping him from taking it. The next thing he knew, he was on his back, laying against the table with an arm at his throat, a leg pinning his arm to the table and a groggily {Name} over him. They glared, blinking a few times to clear their vision before gasping and pushing themselves off Naruto. 

"Naruto? I'm so sorry, are you okay? You scared me." They grab Naruto's hand and pulled him up, worry evident on their face and their tail tucked between their legs. Naruto chuckled, rubbing his head, "Sorry, I didn't mean to wake you, and I'm fine. I was just looking at this," he lifted the paper and showed {Name}. Their face fell as they sighed, "Oh. That's my test score. I'd prefer if you didn't look at it." They said but didn't make any moves to take it from Naruto, letting him choose if he wanted to or not. He didn't know any fire styles, but if he did, he'd burn it, he didn't like the way the test score affected {Name}. Instead, he put it back down and nodded. 

"I won't look. Now come help me get ready, we have to take pictures today! Our first day as Ninja, Dattebayo!" {Name} chuckled with a nod, willing to help Naruto get ready. Both of them grabbed some clean clothes and left for the bathroom, where Naruto magically pulled out some paint and different-sized paintbrushes. {Name} left the bathroom to let him change, Naruto doing the same when he was done before they started on his makeup. Naruto worked on his left hand while {Name} worked on his face. The red and white face paint swirled together, complimenting each other as they made Naruto's face resemble a Kabuki mask.

The position they were in would seem awkward if either of them were paying attention to it. Naruto sat on the bathroom sink with his back facing the mirror, {Name} stood between his legs as they slightly wrapped around their waist and Naruto's arms were wrapped around their head so he could see his hands. Kakashi walked inside, not seeing them on the couch, he looked around for the two and noticed their shadows draped on the hallway floor, though he worried for the two as they were dead silent, it's unlike Naruto to be quiet. 

The two were simply focused on getting the paint just right. Kakashi walked deeper into his house, before making it to the bathroom, stepping in the doorway. He almost choked on his spit seeing them, the small noise of Kakashi almost dying made both of them jump. Naruto quickly turned his head to the door, and {Name} panicked. Both of them jumped and with Naruto's sudden movement, {Name} almost smudge the make-up. To protect it they pushed Naruto backward with their elbows. He slid into the sink, knocking over the paint in an attempt to catch himself. {Name} bent sideways at an awkward angle, barely catching the glass containers from shattering on the floor. The white paint spilled at the jostle, a few drops landing on the wooden floor. 

Naruto watched it happen, and both of them let out a sigh of relief when the paint was caught. {Name}'s panicked expression morphed into a glare as their head snapped to Kakashi, still bent awkwardly. Kakashi raised a hand, "Gomen. I didn't mean to scare you, I was just caught off guard." He gave them a closed-eye smile. Naruto took the paint from their hand and set it back on the counter. Resuming their original position, {Name} grabbed Naruto's chin and pulled his face away from Kakashi, analyzing the kabuki makeup. Finding nothing wrong, they let out a hum, "It's alright  Kakashi-san." They let go of Naruto's chin, telling him to purse his lips. "You know, during pictures, they need to identify your face. The picture won't count if they can't see it." He informed, {Name} moved their hands away from Naruto as he groaned, they nodded, knowing that, it was the same in all villages, but it made Naruto happy, so they agreed.

"Why couldn't you have told me that before we put it on?!" He asked, pointing an accusing finger at Kakashi. {Name} wetted a rag and gave it to Naruto, letting him choose if he wanted it off. He reluctantly agreed, whining the whole time about wasting an hour or two. {Name} left the bathroom as Naruto scrubbed the paint and put their accessories on. "I hope you're finished Uzumaki-Kun because it's time." Naruto sprinted out of the bathroom, all the paint gone but his face was irritated due to his angry scrubbing. "I'm ready, Dattebayo!" {Name} snickered, smiling at Naruto and grabbing his hand, pulling him out the door. Kakashi opened his book and followed the two, this time, not just following to watch {Name}.

As {Name} walked out with Naruto, they turned to Kakashi, "By the way, you have blood on your clothes." They informed, watching as Kakashi looked down at his clothing with a groan and turned around, heading to his room.

8146 words.