The True Shinobi

Chapter 1

Naruto Uzumaki, well known within Konoha as the village pariah. Even at four years old, he was hated severely for things out of his control.

The blonde boy sat on his sleeping mat in the orphanage, tears falling from his eyes as he muttered to himself. He had learned to be as quiet as possible, he got punished when he wasn't.

"Why? What do they want from me?" He barely whispered, trying to figure out why he was singled out and picked on.

It was then that the door to his small room was flung open, revealing the matron of the orphanage. She was an older lady, her skin long marred by decades of frustration. Her hair was an ugly grey, reaching down to her bony hips.

"Get up you little shit." She spoke with disgust. When Naruto only looked up at her, she grew angry. "I said get up!" She nearly shouted.

Naruto flinched, but got up slowly. He grabbed the only thing he had, a small wooden amulet on a leather cord, and put it around his neck. He instinctively coiled his four arms around his torso, as his white shirt was thin and did little to keep him warm.

The matron grabbed the small boy by his long and matted hair, dragging him to the entry hall of the orphanage, Naruto being as quiet as he could so she wouldn't leave any more bruises on his delicate skin.

The old woman was stronger than she let on. When they got to the main entrance, she pulled the door open and threw Naruto to the snowy curb. The child turned in time to see the door slam, the sound echoing in his head like a reverberating thunder.

Naruto stood slowly, his temperature already dropping. He was stunned. He had nowhere to go, no plan to follow, and nobody to save him.

The blonde tried to think about where to go as he walked, hoping not to run into anyone. The only place he could try to go was the Hokage's Tower in the center of the village. Unfortunately, the orphanage was near the outskirts, in Konoha's Red Light District.

Being barefoot was the least of his worries. Naruto was the only person in the village with four arms, and as such would likely be tormented if people saw him. He tried to stay out of sight, but even so, he came across a group of five people stumbling out of a bar that took notice of him.

"Hey look, it's that brat!" One of the men slurred, pointing with the beer bottle in his hand. "Ten ryo says I can nail him with this bottle." He whispered to the man next to him, who laughed and gestured to give it a go.

Naruto turned his head to the group as the man threw the bottle, and it shattered against his face, leaving a nasty cut across the bridge of his nose.

"Ah! What was that for?!" Naruto shouted angrily, gaining looks of fury from the group.

"What was it for? You should know that already Demon! You took my daughter from me!" Came the reply of the thrower, who was in Naruto's face in an instant. He latched onto the boy's shoulders and threw him on the ground in a nearby alleyway as the group followed, all thirsty for blood.

"I didn't do anything! I swear!" Naruto responded, not knowing what else to say.

This only made the man more irate. He drew back his fist and delivered a fast punch to Naruto's gut, doubling him over. As the boy fought for breath, another man joined in, kicking the child in the back of the knee. Naruto fell to the ground.

The other three men joined in after that, raining punches and kicks from all angles. By the time they were done, Naruto's blood stained the snow around him. He looked up just in time to get a boot to the face, knocking him out cold.

He came to a moment later, seeing the backs of the men as they laughed. He grit his teeth and tried to get up, but he was too weak. He started crawling towards the nearest thing he could see, a wooden crate, and leaned himself against it.

Through his wheezing and coughing, Naruto brought his knees to his chest and locked his arms around his shins, eventually falling asleep.

Next Morning

Naruto woke to a strange beeping sound accompanied by hushed voices. He could only catch a few words.

"... found him early this morning..." One voice said.

"How could... child!" Another said. The next voice was perfectly clear though.

"He's awake, Lord Hokage." The man sounded calm, but Naruto could hear a slight undertone of relief.

'Is he happy I'm awake?' Naruto thought, wondering just who would care enough about him to be relieved that he was okay.

The boy slowly opened his eyes, finding himself in a bed. Beyond the bed were three people, one in grey armor and a mask, the next in fancy robes, and the third in blue scrubs and a lab coat.

The robed man, who looked quite old, walked over to the bedside and sat beside it.

"Naruto, how do you feel?" The old man asked softly.

Naruto didn't answer, only looking out the window to his right. He crossed his arms over his chest.

"Why do you care?" The boy rasped, his voice gone from the damage to his throat.

"I care because I'm the Hokage. It's my job to care." The man responded. He knew it would be difficult to talk to the child, but he had to be gentle and let him open up naturally.

"What's your name, Lord Hokage?" Naruto asked, copying the other man in his use of honorifics.

"My name is Hiruzen Sarutobi. It is nice to finally meet you, Naruto. My ANBU here has told me about you." Hiruzen said, gesturing to the masked man at the foot of the bed.

"I've never seen him before." Naruto replied, gaining a chuckle from the Hokage.

"I reckon you wouldn't have. He's very sneaky, probably the sneakiest ninja in Konoha."

"With silver hair? It doesn't seem like he would be very sneaky."

"Looks can be very deceiving, Naruto." The ANBU said softly.

"Would you like to be a ninja, Naruto? I think you could be very strong if you wanted to be." Hiruzen asked, hoping the child said yes.

Naruto thought for a moment. If he was a ninja, he could protect himself from being picked on and beat up.

"I think... I want to be a ninja, but what does that mean?" Naruto asked the old man, gaining a soft chortle.

"Being a ninja means protecting those who can't protect themselves. It means working together with other ninja to help people in need and doing what you believe is right, even if nobody else is watching." The Hokage said, a smile on his face.

"Then I'll be the best ninja ever."

Small Author's Note

Well, that's the first chapter done. One small thing that may come up in the future, I know in the Manga Minato only sealed half of Kurama into Naruto, but I see no reason why he couldn't seal the whole beast into Naruto in this universe. Minato was even better with seals in my universe so he used a better seal in exchange for his and Kushina's souls. This way I don't have to deal with Naruto getting the other half from Minato later because it doesn't make sense to me.

Anyway, see ya!