Aftermath (A Sequel to A Flash to the Future)

Anko - Part 2

(Six years after the Nine Tail's Attack......)

"So this is your first solo mission, huh?" Anko commented as she took a swig of her beer.

"Hai." the blonde kid answered. "Although, it is one that requires a team." he commented. "I believe Commander-sama is testing me." he mused thoughtfully.

Anko took a look at the child that was sitting in front of her. It had been one year since she helped him get into the ANBU. After being under her tutelage for 3 months, she sent the commander a private request of initiation. At first the commander was skeptical about the ordeal. However, after meeting the blonde and testing him, he accepted the kid into his corps under an alias of course. After being sworn in, the only people that knew of his true identity was Anko, the ANBU Commander, his assistant, and Naruto, himself. The Commander had decided it was best to keep the Hokage out the loop for various reasons.

"You're growing on me." Anko mused, causing the 6, almost 7 year old to look at her.

He offered her a small smile. His life had changed drastically since he met her. Sure they had gotten off to a rocky start, but after being his sensei and now, very close friend, he could honestly say that life seemed to be a bit brighter. Sure he still had to deal with the physical and verbal abuse of the villagers, but it didn't effect him like it once did. Since he joined the ANBU, he finally felt like he had a purpose in life and that he felt needed. Since he met Anko, he finally felt like someone genuinely cared for him and he had someone precious to live for.

"Well I can't be a kid forever." Naruto said as he sheepishly scratched the back of his head.

"But you still are a kid." Anko said.

"I stopped being a kid when I was raped." he said sharply.

Anko went silent at this. Naruto hated it. He hated when adults around him felt the need to remind him of his age. As far as Naruto was concerned, he had never been a kid. He was always seen as a demon. The Kyuubi reincarnated. When they kicked him out of the orphanage, they didn't see him as a child in need. He was a demon brat. When they would beat him and hunt him like an animal, they didn't see a child. They saw a murder, a slayer of the innocent. When he walked the very streets of Konoha, they didn't see a child. They saw a destroyer, a ticking time bomb that would grow to consume them all. A danger to their very lives. A threat that needed to be removed.

When he was violated that night, they didn't see a child. They saw the cause of their pain and a reason to make him suffer. A repayment for their own grievance. So when any adult speaks on his age or calls him a kid, he questions them. What has he done to qualify that title? What kind of life has he lived to fit the very idea of what a kid embodies? He lost that innocence, an innocence that could never be regained or returned. So what made him different from any other adult.

The atmosphere was tense and the room was silent. Anko sighed as she saw him frown. She knew she had unintentionally hit a soft spot and silently cursed her big mouth. She turned and looked at the clock to see what time it was.

"You should probably get going." Anko commented, avoiding his gaze.

Naruto stared at her intensely for a moment before he nodded. Naruto stood up from the table and sheathed his dual katana at his back in an 'X' formation. He then turned to Anko who was taking another swig of her drink.

"You're going on a mission as well, ne?" Naruto inquired.

Anko nodded. "Yeah. I leave tomorrow." she answered.

Naruto nodded before walking up to her. He stood on his tippy toes and gave her a kiss on her forehead before he stepped away and pulled his face mask onto his face (like Kakashi's). Anko lightly blushed at this, but continued to avoid eye contact with the blonde.