Hello! This is my first chapter in a work that I hope to be proud of one day. I've compiled a bunch of different ideas from other fanfics that I have enjoyed. Without further ado I will let you dive into the story. Also I hope you're having a great day/night (and if you're like me then you're reading this at 3 AM) and I hope you enjoy the story. Oh and also, here is a key:

-ttebayo= ya know

Dattebayo= believe it

There will be references in this story, several, in fact. You will see references including, but not limited to OPM, Haikyu, MBMBAM, and The Adventure Zone. If you spot a reference, point it out! It'll be a fun game.

Try not to take this story too seriously. If there is a serious part, trust me, you will know.

Enjoy!

To acquire great power, one must experience tremendous pain.

The air stirs,
a boy rests on a cloth bag.
He turns to one side,
then the other,
over and over.
He can't get to sleep.

Something just isn't right!

Naruto slowly rose from his usual resting place in the shack that he'd been staying in. He had always been a kind and selfless boy, and he chose to live far away as to not upset any of the other villagers.

Even the most selfless of people get hungry. "So much for being generous," Naruto thought out loud, "Doesn't get you much ramen at 2 in the morning."

He set off into the woods to scavenge. The boy was only seven, but his skill in hunting and tracking was already more adept than a ninken. Well not literally of course.

He would spend most of the day trying to make snares through trial and error, usually ending up taking the easy route and fishing instead.

Tonight was different. During the day, the blonde had no luck at any of his fishing spots and still was unable to get a snare up. This had been the same for the past couple days.

The forest was beautiful tonight. Pale, faint streaks of moonlight breached the treetops. The slight breeze blew the leaves and foliage on the ground in circles around the boy. He found his log overlooking the shimmering blue pond. He yawned as he lie atop his special seat, "I suppose a break is in order."

The moon was almost full.

Naruto sighed in relief when he noticed that it wasn't quite there yet. The full moon was a bad omen for Naruto.

Leaves swirled around him, breaking him from his thought. Now the leaves weren't because of the wind. An anbu agent in a dog mask appeared before him and spoke, "Lord Danzo asked for you."

Naruto wasn't an expert tracker for no reason.

The brain of a young child has incredibly high plasticity, allowing for things like learning languages to be remarkably easy for young children. Naruto was no different than said young children, however his early years were used to learn ninja skills instead of Spanish. Beginning at the age of two, Naruto was trained in root by Danzō himself.

He was not trained on a whim. However, that is a tale for another day.

"Right now?" Naruto looked for a response, receiving one he didn't want. A nod. "Oh well. Can't be helped I suppose."

Despite the sharp pain in his belly, Naruto enjoyed the time he spent alone in the forest, and wished to continue to spend time there.

"I'll start making my way over. Thank you for notifying me, dog-san." Dog vanished in the wind, leaving only another swirl of leaves.

Naruto opted to take the scenic route and began walking to the root base. He was in no rush. In fact, he felt like he could maybe find some sort of snack on the way.

Root had changed since the great shinobi wars. Long gone were the days of the emotionless shinobi tools used to fulfill the mission at any means possible. Naruto had changed Danzō's way of thinking over the years. Root turned from a predatory organization known for forcing children away from their families at a young age, to the village's most prosperous and well kept orphanage.

Naruto set out on his journey only to be stopped in his tracks by a sudden sensation felt in his eyes.

This was a familiar feeling.

Soon after the twang of pain, Naruto heard a shuffling far off in the trees, along with some evil laughter. Naruto knew this took priority over Danzō's summons. What if the laughter was from some sort of thief? Or even worse...

If he was going to be the Hokage one day, he couldn't let himself be plagued with the 'what-ifs.'

Naruto followed the sound deep into the woods and stuck close behind.

The rustling in front of him stopped after a couple minutes. He only recognized one scent, which piqued his interest even more...

'One of the Hyūgas is being kidnapped!' He rationalized in his mind.

"Damn," Naruto heard from in front of him, "I knew it couldn't be that easy." The assailant taunted him, assuming it was some regular shinobi or anbu, and continued, "Might as well show yourself, just to get it over w-" he was cut off by a slight rustling in the bushes in front of him, stepping back and drawing a kunai, "Another for the slaughter, eh boys?" His two thugs gave a grunt.

"The Stone and the Leaf aren't necessarily on the best terms," a voice, seemingly coming from all around the forest whispered, "I would guess that you're not here to have tea... right?" Upon this question, a single fox pranced out of the bushes. The Iwa shinobi stepped back bracing in fear.

It was a well known legend across the entire nation that those who were on bad terms with the foxes of the leaf did not live very long. Inari, the god of foxes, lived in this land. "The foxes decide," was an adopted saying of the leaf.

Inari-sama wasn't necessarily a fan of kidnappers.

A boy in a fox mask leapt down behind them, slamming into the back of the middle one's head with the side of his fist, knocking them out.

Another of the men fell.

The sole remaining iwa shinobi watched as his ally was violently slammed into the dirt. He leapt back to a nearby tree and began to search for the fox boy. He was interrupted when he felt a fist collide with his neck and then nothing else after that.

Naruto shed his mask and landed in front of the still walking Hinata Hyūga.

"Are you hurt?" The boy asked.

Hinata immediately looked up. She stared into the boys red- wait -blue? She stared into the boy's blue eyes. She smiled at the sight. The eyes were calm and caring.

She felt like she was being hugged.

She started to fall and the boy rushed in to catch her. She looked up and saw the boy, illuminated by the moonlight, smiling down at her as he spoke, "I came to save you. Everything will be all right."

She stared for a moment, feeling herself slowly losing her grip on consciousness.

It was both fortunate and unfortunate that the event was interrupted: "HINATA! Oh thank every god above; We were so worried!" Lord Hiashi Hyūga explained, filled with relief.

"Ohayo! I'm Naruto Uzumaki, I saved Hinata here-ttebayo," Naruto let out a soft chuckle as he rubbed the back of his neck.

Hiashi practically ran over the boy, not noticing the man directly 5 feet in front of him, lying motionless, and the other two feet from the first.

Naruto opened his mouth as Hiashi interjected, ignoring the boys attempt to explain, "Hinata are you okay? What happened? Please tell me everything." Hiashi rambled.

Hinata twiddled her fingers and explained the whole situation, "and then after all of that, he- he stopped them," She blushed as she pointed to Naruto.

Hiashi looked over to Naruto, "You stopped them?" It seemed unbelievable, this child the same age as hinata had tracked down a group of at least jonnin rank and defeated them without even a scratch. It seemed unbelievable, up until he saw a fox mask clipped to his waist along with a fox snuggled up to the boy. After that, it made some sense.

But not a lot.

Hiashi was just left with several more questions, "What was your name, boy?"

"Naruto Uzumaki! I said it earlier. Dattebayo, you old coot!"

The branch family members flinched at the sudden insult. Hinata's eyes widened in fear. She had seen her father mad before. She just hoped Naruto would be okay. Hiashi leaned close and squinted at the boy.

Naruto squinted back, "What are you doing? Do you want a kiss or something?"

Audible gasps could be heard from the branch family.

Hiashi broke into laughter, "OH! It was so hard to keep a straight face," he clapped an arm on Naruto's shoulder, "Tell me, boy-"

"Hey quit calling me 'boy'-ttebayo! I already told you my name. Twice," he brushed the hand off his shoulder. Hiashi merely continued to smile.

"Very well," Hiashi stood up and brushed himself off, "Girl, tell me this," Naruto groaned. That wasn't what he meant, "Is what my daughter said true?

"Dattebayo! Well, at least the stuff about me saving her," Naruto beamed.

"Hm," Hiashi said as he rubbed his chin, "I suppose it would be only fair to walk you home," Naruto's face contorted into a sort of cringe, "Where do you live, child?"

Naruto growled, forgetting about his embarrassment, "I live in a shack over that way," he pointed, "Don't call me child either."

"Sorry, fella," Naruto growled again, "I don't think a shack will do. You will stay at our residence for the night."

Hinata's face lit up, before quickly falling blank and losing consciousness. A branch bodyguard caught her.

"Sorry, but I gotta talk to Danzō. He said he needed to see me."

"I'll notify him," Hiashi leaned in, "I would feel much safer if Inari-sama was watching over my daughter."

A smirk crossed Naruto's face, "What are you talking about. This is just a souvenir," he gestured to the mask, "I'm just your average root trainee," he threw his arms behind his head, "A normal shinobi." A fox let out a low growl, "I wouldn't go spreading rumors now, Hyūga-sama."

A larger growl followed his statement. Hiashi and his branch family body guards stood at attention.

"Oh uhhh," Naruto chuckled, "I think I'm just hungry."