To all my readers, I know this is a quick update, but I'm sorry to say this won't be the norm. I recently got a review that I felt needed addressing, but couldn't do so without posting something. Since I'm not one of those authors that posts notes without a chapter, I went ahead and made another one.

It's really short, but considering it's only been a few days since the last one...

Anyway, to those that didn't send the review, just skip over the next part, if you'd like. It's long, but there was a lot to address. You'll see the bold disclaimer where the review response ends, okay?

Anyway...

To Guest:

I'm glad you enjoyed the chapter and thought it was well written, but it's funny that you think my author's notes are a personal rant, since your "review" is even more so. On that note, please, do everyone a favor next time and log in so I don't have to reply in the author's notes. If you're going to write something along the lines you did, at least have courtesy for everyone else by giving me a way to respond instead of hiding behind anonymity. Now, to address your concerns:

First of all, you do realize that I wasn't including anything she did as a small child when I said she needed to redeem herself, don't you? Yeah, being a little girl does excuse her for some of her behavior at that age, but not all of it, and especially not once she was old enough to start making her own decisions. I know plenty of people who were perfectly capable of thinking for themselves at that age, and who weren't afraid to question something that they didn't feel was right. That includes bullying and the like. Not everyone follows group mentality or peer pressure, even as a child.

So, while child Sakura did what most kids would do and followed her parents' example, shouldn't she have also felt bad since she knew what it was like to be treated poorly? It is shown throughout the anime that Sakura is extremely intelligent, so if any of the children should have thought "hey, this isn't right," it would be her or Shikamaru, even if it was just at an intellectual level. Don't try to reason that they don't know what they're doing or that they wouldn't know it's wrong at that age- kids are a lot smarter than people give them credit for. They do know. Maybe not at the level that an adult would, but they do. Also, while you can't treat children like adults, they do respond better when they're not babied. If you're honest with them, and communicate with them in a way they understand, they will respond. In that way, it does help to treat them as more of an adult.

Secondly, there's obviously going to be psychological issues in being trained to kill from a young age, you really don't need to point that out to me as I am perfectly aware. However, I would also like to point out how Naruto's generation grew up in a time of peace. There are going to be issues, yes, but not nearly as many as there were in Kakashi's generation or before. I imagine that the worst they had to do was kill a rabbit or small game while in the academy in order to slowly get them used to the idea, and that's essentially just hunting. Are you going to call a hunter mentally unstable? Basically, at that point in time, they understood the concept of killing someone, but they had time to mature a bit before having to actually apply any of the lessons they learned. Like all kids, they probably considered it something far off and distant at the time for it to really start affecting them as badly as you're implying.

Plus, if you're going to get on my case about not blaming Sakura for following her parents in treating Naruto badly, shouldn't the same also apply here? She's been conditioned to the idea of killing since she was a child too, so by using that same logic, why should she really think there was anything wrong with it? And if she didn't think she was doing anything wrong, why would her brain break at such a young age and cause her to be an unstable before even becoming a genin? Inner Sakura was more of a result of her hiding her true rambunctious and dominant personality in an attempt to make herself appealing to Sasuke- or rather what she thought was appealing to him -than anything else. That really doesn't seem like the actions of an unstable, broken child to me. I'm not saying that it's right or that there aren't going to be issues, but it will take a heck of a lot longer for killing to affect her compared to someone that didn't grow up with that sort of background.

Third, concerning the "I love you" comment she said to Naruto. I know she was trying to protect him, and she does get some points for it, but she should also be familiar with his personality. He does not like it when people mess with others emotions and he values his friends and precious people above anything. She used his feelings for her to try to get him to give up on the bond of friendship he felt with Sasuke- being on a team with him for so long, she really could have come up with something better. Like the truth, maybe? He likes it when people are honest with him, and he would definitely have taken the time to listen to her if she seemed desperate about something, even if he was in a rush. Adding to that, I still stand by the fact that you shouldn't tell someone you love them romantically when you really don't. You could see how much that hurt him- probably just as much as Sasuke hurt him when he left. In a way, it was like a mini betrayal of his feelings. So yes, I know she tried and why she did it, but if everyone else could accept why he was going after Sasuke, why couldn't she- as his teammate and the person his age he was closest to after the wayward Uchiha?

Now, we get to Hinata.

Again, using your earlier defense for not blaming Sakura for acting like a child, the same could be said for Hinata. Sakura was just as shy before she met Ino, and did you see her approaching anyone before that? No. So how could you expect Hinata, who not only didn't have the support that Sakura gained, but also faced a constant criticism of her overall person at home on a daily basis, to approach Naruto? She was afraid, plain and simple. She was afraid to speak out because no one ever seemed to listen to her, and she was afraid that the person she admired for never giving up and getting up after everyone put him down would reject her because she couldn't do that herself. It wasn't the best reason, but like you said, you can't blame a little girl for acting like a little girl, and little girls don't tend to confront the things they're afraid of. Little girls also tend to follow the guys they like around. Sakura did the same thing too; Sasuke was just more aware of his surroundings and got away more often than not.

Using my own argument, Hinata didn't do too badly. She didn't reach out to Naruto, but she realized that it was wrong and didn't join in on the taunts or harsh treatment. Yes, it was like she was ignoring him and that hurt him too, but it's still a little better than the rest. I know I wouldn't feel as much resentment toward someone that ignored me compared to someone that actively ridiculed, insulted, or hit me. She is earnest in her later attempts to befriend him, and while her crush grew to something more over the years, she didn't tell him so until she was absolutely sure of her feelings. She was perfectly content to be his friend for a long time, and I think that says a lot as to the type of person Hinata is, even if she didn't get very much character development before the time skip. Maybe what I'm saying doesn't match up with your own beliefs, but that's why it's called an opinion.

Just as a side note, for someone that claims I'm being unfair to Sakura and Hinata, looking at your own review, you sure do seem to have a harsh opinion of the latter. You don't even try to point out anything good about her, so what does that say about you?

Finally, to address the last parts of your lovely rant. I asked about those pairings for those characters in particular because I wasn't sure what direction I should go in for them, and thought it would be a nice thing for the readers to have some input in that decision. Like I said in that very chapter, I want to know what to work toward. Maybe planning ahead isn't something you do, but I like to have a basic idea on how I want a character to end up before I actually get there. Romance isn't going to be a big part of this, but I'd be lying if I said there wasn't any at all. People fall in love- it's a natural part of life -so I knew I was going to have relationships develop. Read my author's notes before saying something like that, would you?

Last, but definitely not least, my best friend is a lesbian, asshole.

If you're going to accuse someone of being homophobic, try actually thinking about it next time. I only mentioned that I don't write yaoi or yuri because a lot of the Naruto fanbase is into that stuff. I'd rather mention it right at the beginning of all the stories I write just so that I can avoid all the reviews and PMs asking me if it's going to have one of those pairings. A lot of people actually don't specify that their story has those kinds of pairings in the list, either because they honestly forget or because they just don't want to. So, just in case someone, like you, proves to be an idiot, I like to have all my bases covered.

To finish off, I'd like to remind you again to make sure to log in next time you feel like doing something like this. If you're going to flame someone, at least have the decency to own up to it. I don't mind criticisms, but I do not tolerate stupid ones. Send one, and be prepared to meet some resistance and some counterarguments of my own- if I feel it deserves a response, anyway. Also, please respect other people's opinions instead of calling them a dumbfuck for no well thought out reason, and accusing them of something you really don't have any evidence for in a review. It really goes a long way in getting other people to respect you back and take you seriously.

Just some things to keep in mind for the future.

...

To everyone else:

I apologize for that if you did read it. I prefer to keep all review replies or PMs private, but I wanted to set the record straight, and seeing as I couldn't privately respond to an anonymous reviewer...

Anyway, here's the next chapter. Please read on and enjoy.

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.

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Chapter 3

Iruka knew it was going to be one of those days. How?

"Y-You want me to what?"

"I'd like you to take in Naruto-kun."

That's how.

Iruka took a moment to wonder just how it was that he got into these situations before sighing and rubbing the bridge of his nose. He should have known something was up when AnBu came knocking on his window this morning...

"With all due respect, Hokage-sama, why me?"

He was just a Chunnin, and one of the younger ones at that. He knew enough to teach children, sure, but to raise one? That wasn't even taking into account who he was being asked to look after!

Almost as if sensing these thoughts, the Hokage sighed. "Because you're the one who found him."

His attention snapped back to the older man at that. Silence fell between him as the older man took the time to light his pipe and look outside.

"What was your impression of Naruto-kun yesterday, Umino-kun?" he began after a minute had passed.

He blinked at the sudden change in topic. "My...impression?"

"Yes. What kind of child do you think Naruto-kun is?"

"I-...I don't know what to think of him, Hokage-sama. I honestly haven't known him that long."

"Then tell me what stood out to you."

Wary blue eyes sprung to the forefront of his mind, immediately followed by those same eyes shining brightly in happiness. He remembered ragged, dirty clothes and a voracious appetite. Most of all, he thought of a small, but honest smile that tugged at something deep inside.

"What stood out to me...? I suppose I would have to say...his smile."

Whatever he was expecting with his response, it wasn't for the Hokage to close his eyes and heave another sigh that couldn't be described as anything other than sorrowful.

"Hokage-sama?"

"Did you know...that yesterday is the first time I've seen him smile in over a year?"

"W-What? But, surely-"

"No, Umino-kun. Naruto-kun, due to the burden he carries, is a very lonely child. He has had very little to smile about. I have done my best to ease the pain in his heart, but in that regard, I have failed him. As much as I would like to spend every day with him, I cannot, and slowly, I saw that smile- the same one that stood out to you so clearly -fade away."

Iruka couldn't help but feel his heart clench as memories of the last few years came to mind. Memories of his own loneliness...

"So, you want me to help him because I was the one that put that smile there."

"You are the first one, other than myself, to approach him with anything other than hate or disdain, and you introduced him to others that did the same. You may not have realized it, but by doing so, you gave Naruto-kun a precious gift. He is not going to forget, and I fear that if you were to disappear from his life right now, it will hurt him deeply...Perhaps enough that he would never recover- not completely."

That small smile faded into nothing in his mind, making him sigh. He still didn't know what he was getting into, but he'd made his choice.

"What do I need to do?"

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Naruto sighed and snuggled deeper into the blankets, a small frown on his face. It wasn't that anything had changed- they were just as comfortable as they'd been the night before -but that was probably what made getting up so hard.

Once he got up, he would have to leave.

He would have to go back to the orphanage, or maybe even back to the place where Umino-san had found him, and he knew that nice beds like this one weren't waiting for him there. More than that, though, he would miss the warm feelings he'd gotten when spending the day with people that didn't give him those looks. For the first time, he had other people besides Jiji pay attention to him...and he didn't want that to go away...He bit his lip as tears came to his eyes and his throat closed painfully.

He didn't want to leave.

He was jolted from his thoughts when someone knocked on the door, a spike of terror accompanying it when he realized it could only be one person.

"Uzumaki-kun? Are you still sleeping?"

He didn't answer. Maybe if Umino-san thought he was still asleep...For a moment, he thought it worked...but then the door opened.

"It's already noon, Uzumaki-kun. Don't you want to eat something?"

He choked back a sob when his stomach growled. Why did he have to be hungry? Now, there was no way he could pretend.

"Uzumaki-kun...?"

He didn't notice Umino-san get close until something landed on his head. "Hey, are you alright?"

He jerked. A hand was on his head, like he'd seen some fathers do to their kids...but...why would Umino-san do that to him?

Umino-san sighed, but before he could even wonder why, he felt himself be picked up. He panicked. Not yet! He wanted to stay just a little longer! He would even promise to never bother anyone again! Just as long as-

He froze.

"I was going to wait until after lunch to tell you this, but I think it's better if I do it now..."

...What...was this...?

"You-...You don't have to worry about going back to the orphanage."

It was so warm...

"You're going to be staying here with me from now on."

It hurt...but it was different from the other times...

"I'm new at this, so I'm going to mess up, but I promise I'll take care of you as best I can...So don't be sad anymore...okay?"

This time, he couldn't hold back his sobs. All he could do copy what Umino-san was doing and wrap his arms around the other.

He was so...happy.

"Okay."

And that was how he came to live with his Iruka-niisan.

OoOoOoOoOoOoOo ~Chapter End

There's chapter three. Again, I'm really sorry it's so short, but that's the best place I had to cut off. The next chapter will be a bit of a time skip to where Naruto is already established in Iruka's house, but still before the academy. Things will still be a bit awkward between them, but you'll start to see some more familiarity as well. I don't expect to get that chapter out as quickly as I did this one, however. It will take a bit more time, but it will be much longer.

So, yea, I hope you enjoyed it despite the length. Take care and until next time!