They never knew. They were so blind to the truth. As Naruto perched on top of the smooth head of the hokage statues, he looked down upon his village. If any of his teammates were to see him now, they wouldn't recognize him. Gone was the wide, head splitting grin. Gone was the blaring orange jumpsuit. Gone was the mask erected for his protection.

The grey cloak that flapped around him was more than just protection from the wind, it was one of the few things left for him from his parents. He wasn't sure whether to hate his parents or love them. How could he decide if he had never met them? They had loved him, or so Obaachan always said, but they had also made his life a living hell. He didn't regret it though. He wouldn't go back in time and change anything. It was obvious to him that if he had not been raised how he had been raised, if he had never been neglected, he would be a completely different person and who was to say that the person now was not better than the person he could have been had he had parents to look out for him. He was just weary. His shoulders slumped forward as the exhaustion crashed down on him. It was so hard to keep his emotions reigned in and to construct a persona with limitless energy. He was so tired, but he knew he could never let the mask go. It was as much a part of him as the person behind it was. He leaned forward and concentrated on the training grounds in the distance. He saw two figures there, sparring. He couldn't tell who it was. He wanted to get a closer look but that would mean revealing his presence to anybody who happened to be looking his way. Strangely enough, it was easier to move around in his mask than if he were himself. He caught a glimpse of pink. He strained his eyesight further. It must be Sakura. He caught another glimpse of color. Was she fighting with Ino? Somehow he wasn't surprised.

There was slight movement behind him. Naruto knew who it was before he spoke. He was the only one who knew about the front he put on for the village. "Naruto?"

He glanced back briefly, caught a glimpse of red before he leaned back and stared at the underside of Tsunade's chin. "What's up Gaara?" he said, grinning so widely it hurt his cheeks.

Gaara's kohl lined eyes glared at him. "Don't do that," he growled.

Naruto sighed and rubbed his hands over his face, dispelling the trademark dobe grin. "I'm tired," he murmured underneath his hands. He let out a long sigh. "How about a mission, eh, Gaara? Make up some bullshit to Obaachan about needing me for a solo mission in the Sand. By the time I come back, I'll be good as new. What'd you say--"

"No," came the cold answer.

Naruto's eyes grew round in surprise and he sat up, letting his hands drop to his knees. "Why not?" he demanded, glaring accusingly at his friend. When Gaara started to speak, Naruto already knew the answer. "Nahah. Don't start that shit up again." He shot up to his feet, carefully keeping away from the edge so no one could see him. "I am not telling anybody! The only reason you know is because you are...well you. You can't force me to do this."

Gaara stood impassive, with his strong arms crossed against his chest. His eyes, however, were not the usual icy emotionless orbs. They were filled with anger and concern. Naruto wanted to scoff at him. Concern! Who should be concerned for who? "You know my views on this, Naruto." Naruto paced irritably back and forth, stopping every once in a while to glare. "Your mask is breaking, isn't it?" Naruto just shot him another glare. "You're tired. I can tell. The human mind isn't meant for that type of stress."

"And what do you want me to do?" Naruto hissed. "Just prance in there, call a meeting and tell them all they don't really know me and I've been lying to them for years? No, I don't think so." He looked over at Gaara to find that he was looking at him like that was exactly what he expected him to do. He let out a harsh laugh and stared down at the oblivious villagers meandering around in the streets below.

"Naruto, I talked to Tsunade-sama. She's worried about you." Gaara told him before muttering something while looking at the ground.

Naruto frowned. "What was that last part?"

Gaara glared at him. Then he straightened his shoulders like he was preparing for battle. "I'm worried...too," he said, losing energy by the second word. Naruto grinned, his smile smaller but no less radiant than his alter ego's.

"Awwww, Gaara loves me. What will Hinata say?" Gaara's face turned blood red as he glared at his friend. Naruto let out a short laugh before calming down again. "That was too much of a good opportunity to miss." When he looked back at Gaara, he was completely sober once more, his anger having left as fast as it had come. "I'm sorry, Gaara, for having worried you. Don't. I'll be fine."

"Naruto..." Gaara growled.

Naruto let out another sigh. "Fine. Just...give me some time alright. It's not going to be easy." Gaara nodded and left his best friend to his own thoughts.

And it wasn't easy, not by a long shot. It took a month for him to gather enough courage to confront Tsunade. He made the decision while eating ramen. Before he could change his mind, he had thrown down some money on the table and left, his ramen left half finished at the table. The cook had watched him leave with a worried stare. He raced up the stairs to the Hokage's office. At the door, he hesitated. He stared at the wood for a whole minute before pacing in front restlessly. Who would have known that Naruto could ever lose his nerve? He was out there for some two minutes before something crashed against the door from the other side. Tsunade's gigantic voice filtered through the door. "Whoever is out there, get in here or get out before I punch your brains out!"

Rubbing at his neck sheepishly, he entered and closed the door behind him. "What took you so long, gaki?" Tsunade asked. When she noted the absence of a smile, she got worried. "Naruto?" When he didn't respond she sighed. She took out a bottle of sake from her desk, as if in preparation and enabled the secrecy wards. "Sit down and speak." When he didn't move, she took a huge gulp of alcohol and warned, "That was an order, shinobi. Sit."

Naruto's face paled considerably, but he sat down. He looked at the sake bottle and then at Tsunade. "May I?" Tsunade frowned but nodded. He snatched the bottle and drank at least half of it. When he handed it back to the Hokage, he grimaced. "That tastes awful."

"Then why did you drink it?"

"I think I thought it would give me more confidence. Guess not." He let out another sigh and looked out the window. "I don't know where to start..." he murmured.

Tsunade handed him back the bottle and he took another swig. "How about at the beginning."

Naruto nodded. "When I was six...no that's too far ahead. When I was really young, I had to live out on the street. Ojii-san found out when I was..." His voice trailed off. Tsunade was leaning back in her chair with an uncharacteristic contemplative look on her face. It looked strange mixing in with the almost invisible signs of worry.

Naruto stood up abruptly, his chair almost toppling over before he caught it and shoved it to the side. "You know what!" Naruto suddenly fumed. "It doesn't matter what happened before, does it? What matters is what happens now, right?" He paced angrily across the floor, going from one side of the room to the other, his balled hands stuffed in his pockets and his gaze fixed on an invisible point in the middle of the room. As the Hokage watched her dearest ninja work himself up, she was sorely tempted to drown herself in her precious sake. Only her growing concern stopped her.

"Naruto..." At the sound of his name, Naruto whipped around to look over at Tsunade. Her expression was convulsing between irritation and worry. As suddenly as his anger had appeared, it disappeared. A deep throated laugh burst forth that permeated the room, a laugh that did not belong to her Naruto...unless...Her blue eyes widened as she stared at her pupil.

Naruto finally sat down again, tears running from his eyes from all the laughter. Then suddenly the laughter was gone and all that was left was the tears. He buried his head in his hands, his shoulders heaving as the slow trickle of tears turned into a flood. Tsunade could only look at the sobbing bundle in distress and more than a little shock. In the time that she had known Naruto, she had never seen him cry, not like this. Tsunade slowly stood up and, skirting around the boy as she would a wild animal, she went over to the door and locked it. The click as the door closed was oddly reassuring. The moment she put the key down on her desk, she let out a heavy sigh and approached the distraught shinobi. When she kneeled in front of him, he looked up briefly, his face red and sopping wet. It was enough for her to remember how it was to be someone other than the Hokage.

Still kneeling, she brought her surrogate son into her arms. And it was enough.

AN: Review!!