The Gift of Song

Chapter One

By Boejangles

Beta: Trowa no Miko, chronicxxinsanity

-/-

Summary: FemNaru| Something odd happens after the sealing and there is no trace of the Kyuubi anywhere. Instead the girl meant to be the beast's container begins to show signs of a miraculous gift. However, this gift comes at a deadly price and also seems to catch everyone's eye. Naru doesn't seem to care about the gift; in fact, she'd prefer to be a princess and just dance and sing like the girls from her movies.

-/-

The white haired male stared down in awe at the squirming baby in front of him. "Sarutobi-sama, the Kyuubi is gone. I mean completely gone. There are no traces left of it in the seal."

The wizened Hokage furrowed his eyebrows together as he too looked down at the babe. "What does it mean"?

"I'm not sure sir, but the seal isn't right either." He pointed out how instead of the ink looking like the image on the paper laying next to the baby, it looked like a glowing sun. "I don't think the Kyuubi is free, I think the demon is truly gone."

The older man let out a relieved breath before sitting down in his seat. "Thank you Jiraiya, so the girl can live a normal life," he let out hopefully as he glanced down at the smiling baby on his desk.

"I'm not sure how normal her life can be starting as an orphan, but I suppose better than if she had been a container," the white haired male huffed out.

Playing with the newborn's hand, the older man smiled sadly. "I suppose you are right. I have no idea where this miracle came from, but I am thankful."

-/-

"Naru!" the older woman chided the three year old that was running down the hall with a handful of cookies. "You drop those this instant or you will be on nursery duty"! The threat did not seem to deter the toddler, who simply giggled like she was playing a great game.

Blonde hair bounced behind the barefoot girl that took a sharp turn down a hallway. The small girl made it into the playroom and plopped down in front of the television. Blue eyes transfixed upon Hercules while a small hand popped a cookie into her mouth.

"Gotcha!" the same woman from earlier said as she grabbed the small girl's shoulders and swooped the pile of cookies from the girl. "Now how many times have I told you that the cookies are for after dinner?" the woman asked and tapped her shoe impatiently.

"But they don't taste as good as when they are fresh," the small blonde attempted to argue.

"That is no excuse young lady, tonight you have to help in the nursery." The woman shook her head and turned to leave the room.

Grinning, the blonde pulled out two cookies she had hidden under her dress and popped one happily in her mouth. She did not like helping in the nursery. It usually included her needing to be very, very quiet and moving really, really slowly as to not disrupt any of the babies. Casting that to the back of her mind, she stood up and danced as Meg, the heroine of the movie, began to sing.

-/-

Naru huffed as she was pushed to the side so that one of the nannies could make their way to the fussing babies. She wasn't quite sure what she was supposed to do to help, so she just stood out of the way.

The woman rocked the feverish baby in her arms before passing the child to the seated blonde toddler. "Help calm him, sing or something."

Blue eyes squinted for a second before finding the perfect song. Smiling, she pulled the child close to her chest. "Stay awake, don't rest your head. Don't lie down upon your bed. While the moon drifts in the skies, stay awake don't close your eyes."

The woman turned to look at the small girl who was actually singing quite beautifully as the child in her arms began to calm slightly.

"Though the world is fast asleep, though your pillow's soft and deep; you're not sleepy as you seem. Stay awake, don't nod and dream. Stay awake, don't nod and dream," Naru finished as she slid a finger across the sleeping baby's cheek.

Standing astonished, the woman moved to take the sleeping child and found the infant's fever was gone and was sleeping quite peacefully. She thought she must be imagining things. Where her thoughts were taking her was completely insane.

Setting the baby down in its crib, she approached the small girl. "Naru darling, how would you like to sing that lullaby for some of the sick children in the infirmary"?

Blue eyes looked up into brown with a puzzled gaze. "I no longer have to help in the nursery"?

"No dear, not if you go down and sing for the other children."

The three year old nodded happily. While babies were cute and all she was always afraid when they cried. She always thought she would break one or something.

The older woman led the girl down to the infirmary. Holding onto the girls shoulders, she offered a reassuring squeeze before prompting the girl to sing. The small blonde sang the exact same lullaby she had sung before and looked to the older woman for approval when she was finished.

Looking around in disappointment, she realized that none of the children looked better. She offered a smile to the child. "You did wonderful, let's get you to bed." Turning to lead the child out of the room, she caught her reflection in the mirror. A startled cry left her lips as both of her hands came to her face. She simply couldn't believe what she was looking at. The wrinkles had vanished from her face and a very younger version of herself was staring back at her. Shooting her attention to the child, she stared in amazement.

"Madam, did I do something wrong?" Naru asked, worried since the woman was looking at her with such a strange expression.

"No darling, you have done nothing wrong," the woman confirmed as she wrapped her arms around the young girl. "I was simply startled is all. I am going to tuck you in and maybe we can come sing again tomorrow." The blonde yawned and nodded in agreement, wanting to slip to sleep.

After putting the three year old to bed, the caretaker quickly ran to meet the other woman who helped run the orphanage. When the other woman spotted her she let out a squeak.

"Meizu! What has happened to you?" the other woman was up on her feet and investigating her best friend closely.

"Amaya, it was incredible. Our little trouble maker was singing and holding a baby who was on the verge of having scarlet fever and then the baby's fever was gone like that. Then I had Naru sing again and this happened to me!" the woman exclaimed as she moved quickly around the room and threw her arms around.

Amaya was moving towards the door instantly. "We must inform the Hokage of this at once. He will want to look into it."

"No!" Meizu cried out. "We can't do that. Not yet. You know as well as I what it is like out there. Once they know of whatever miracle this is, Naru will lose her life to their world. We must wait."

The other woman looked appalled. "Do you understand what you are talking about? This is borderline treason you speak of. If what you are saying is true, think of how much the girl should be doing."

"I know," the now younger looking girl attempted to placate while resting a hand on the other's arm. "But, at least let the girl have a childhood before that." Amaya seemed to think the words over before finally bowing her head in defeat and falling back in the chair. She wanted to see the girl in action though, see that it was actually true and not just a bizarre coincidence.

The next day, Naru was led back to the infirmary by both of her caretakers after breakfast and watching the Hunchback of Notre Dame.

Meizu leaned down next to the girl before whispering, "When someone is sick or hurt, a gentle touch and a song can make them feel better."

The Uzumaki nodded happily before bouncing over to a boy who had twisted his ankle playing ball. She understood the concept. A lot of times in her movies people began to feel better after a song was sung, so it only made sense.

The caretakers watched in amazement as all five of the previously fussy children were able to return to playing after the small child danced around the room, singing and playing with the other children's hair and such. Sharing a look between them, both women knew eventually it would have to come out, but for now the girl would simply be a child.

-/-

Amaya paced around the room. "Meizu, we have to"! The caretakers were currently discussing their most peculiar charge, a six year old named Naru. They knew for a fact now that the girl simply had to touch someone while singing to heal them. It was this fact that brought the women to their discussion. Their beloved Hokage had fallen victim to a strange illness that had the hospitals baffled and they were unsure where to find Lady Tsunade.

Meizu looked across the room at her friend and nodded her consent. "You are right, I'll take her. You stay here and watch the children."

Sitting in front of the glowing box called a television with one hand in a box of animal crackers and the other on a cup of juice, a beautiful girl with sunny blonde hair that flowed to her mid-back was watching Anastasia, while saying all of the lines along with the movie. The girl had become nearly obsessed with the orphanage's movie collection to a point where her reality revolved mostly around concepts from them.

"Naru," the older woman called from the doorway, "we are going to go on a little trip to see one of my friends. He has become really sick and I want to visit him and thought you could come with me."

The girl bounced up with a smile. "Do you think if I sing to him he will feel better"?

Picking up the small girl, the woman smiled. "I believe he would like it a lot if you would sing for him."

-/-

Ushering the small girl into the room, Meizu waved off the shinobi that moved to stop her and mouthed 'just watch'.

Unsure at first, the small blonde moved towards the male laying in the bed in the center of the room. She crawled onto the bed before looking down at the old man. She supposed he could have been her great, great grandfather and almost giggled. Looking over at her caretaker who smiled at her, she turned back to the man she simply knew as a friend of some sort.

Her small hand moved to grip the older man's hand before closing her eyes. "Heart don't fail me now. Courage don't desert me. Don't turn back now that we're here. People always say, 'life is full of choices.' No one ever mentions fear; or how the world can seem so vast, on a journey to the past."

The ninja in the room watched curiously, wondering why this woman brought in a small child that was only singing. However, on closer inspection they noticed that their Hokage wasn't shaking anymore.

"Somewhere down this road, I know someone's waiting. Years of dreams just can't be wrong. Arms will open wide; I'll be safe and wanted. Finally home where I belong. Well starting now I'm learning fast, on this journey to the past." Sarutobi was no longer sweating and the color had returned to his face. "Home, love, family- there was once a time I must have had them too. Home, love, family- I will never be complete until I find you. One step at a time. One hope then another. Who knows where this road may go. Back to who I was, on to find my future. Things my heart still needs to know. Yes, let this be a sign, let this road me mine, let it lead me to my past and bring me home at last."

There was silence in the room as everyone except a small blonde girl stared at a healthy brown haired male where a sick gray haired man had laid. The man's eyes began to open as he stirred in his sleep.

Slightly frightened, Naru jumped off the bed and ran to hide behind her caretakers legs. While she was the queen of the orphanage, she tended to slowly warm up to new people.

The Hokage opened his eyes completely before moving to sit up. He looked around for Tsunade, his beloved student. However, he did not find the woman in the room. He wondered if the woman had healed him and then taken off again. He definitely felt much better than he had in a long time. In fact, his body felt as good as new.

"Sir," one of his ANBU asked with a shaky voice, "how are you feeling?"

Sarutobi turned with a smile, which looked a little odd on the younger man's face. "Healed completely. Where is my lovely student, is she at the bar or has she taken off"?

"Sir, she was never here."

The brunette looked around at his men in wonder as he received nods before one finally pointed to the two women standing next to the doorway. "Did you do this?" the question was directed at Meizu, who shook her head before nudging the blonde girl to step out.

Stepping out from behind her caregiver, Naru put on the biggest smile she owned. "Hello sir, I sang you a song to make you feel better. I am glad that you are well."

The Hokage stared in wonder at the small child. It was unheard of for such a small child to know any healing jutsu, let alone have the reserves to perform them. Perhaps it was some bloodline new to Konoha. "You must have a lot of chakra little one."

The blonde pouted her face cutely. "What is chakra"?

Meizu decided to step in before the conversation could go any further. "Your majesty, do you believe it is possible for us to speak in private"? Since Sarutobi's curiosity was piqued, he consented and had his ninja leave the room. The woman began to explain the story that revolved around the strange six-year-old, before apologizing for keeping the girl a secret.

The older male had to find a mirror and get over a great deal of shock before he believed the woman's words completely. It was a strange phenomenon. It was possible that it was a bloodline trait, but through the conversation he had learned who the girl was and knew both of her parents. He wondered if perhaps it was some after affect of the Kyuubi vanishing. However it came about, it definitely wasn't a gift to overlook. He could already see what this could do in the battle field. It seemed that when the child healed it took absolutely no chakra or energy besides that which it took to sing, which was next to nothing.

Looking over at the small child, who was humming to herself and ignoring the grown-ups who were talking about her, he noted that she was at the age for entry into the academy. He couldn't simply ignore this incredible gift. Lifting himself up, he walked over to the girl and sat next to her on his couch.

"You have quite a special gift, little one," Sarutobi spoke softly as he looked at the girl. She returned the look with a large smile before turning to look at her guardian. Naru had been told several times that she was special by her caretakers, but always thought that it was the same kind of special that made everyone different.

"I don't think I understand," the girl said quietly.

The older man smiled at the girl before attempting to clear things up. "What I mean is that I believe you would make a wonderful ninja. In fact, you are just the right age to enter the academy with other children. How would you like to be a ninja"? If he was expecting any type of reaction, it definitely wasn't the one he got.

The girl seemed to huff as she crossed her arms tightly over her chest and nearly stuck her nose into the air as if the idea of being a ninja was such a lowly thing. "I would not like to be a ninja. I am going to be a princess." The statement came across so matter of fact that it took well-trained self control for the adults in the room to keep from laughing.

With a twinkle in her eye, Meizu slid up and crouched next to the girl. "Naru, darling, what about Mulan? Isn't she a warrior, like a ninja"?

The blonde scrunched up her nose and shook her head. "Mulan isn't a princess and she makes herself look like a boy!" the declaration came out with so much emotion, that the older male couldn't help a single chuckle from making its way up his throat.

Pausing, the older woman thought for a second while tapping her chin. A smile lit up her eyes as she tried again. "Well, what about Esmeralda? I know you like her. She is a gypsy and that is kind of like a ninja."

The six year old seemed to roll this around in her mind. She did in fact like Esmeralda very much. Finally, she gave a single nod. "I suppose I can be a gypsy until I become a princess."

Neither of the adults decided to correct her about really being a ninja, not wanting the girl to change her mind. Meizu took in a deep breath; she had known this day would come, but had hoped it wouldn't come so soon. However, she also knew that if the girl was going to become a ninja, she would have to start now.

"I am glad you have come to this decision," Sarutobi spoke with a smile. "Classes started last week, but I am sure you will have no problems starting a little late." The statement was completely true; the first couple of days were spent simply getting a feel for the level of the class. In reality, the first couple of years of the academy were spent focusing on regular curriculum taught in all schools with a very small focus on ninja training.

Smiling, Naru moved off of the couch to stand next to her guardian. She was glad that she had managed to make both of the adults happy. Even though she liked to have things her way, she really liked when she could make others happy.

As Meizu took her charge's hand she silently wondered if she should warn the older male about the girl's peculiarities, but, with a grin, decided she should leave it as a surprise.

-/-

The next day brought Naru walking up the steps to the academy, before quickly finding her classroom. A few heads turned to find the source of jingling near the door. They found it to be a blonde girl wearing a peculiar dress. The dress started white around the chest and the sleeves, and then switched to teal and gold stripes along the waist before flowing the rest of the way down to her ankles in a soft purple cover. A darker purple fabric with what looked like small gold disks was tied around her waist, and was the cause of the jingling. The outfit was completed by a pink fabric that was tied in the blonde hair as a headband. The girl's guardian spent the past two nights sewing the dress together in hope that it would encourage the girl on first day learning to be a "gypsy" if she looked like Esmeralda.

The few children that had taken notice of the girl weren't quite sure what to make of her. They had never seen her before and she didn't really look like much. In fact, she looked small and scrawny and like she wasn't cut out to be a ninja at all.

Looking up from his lesson plan for the day, the instructor looked up and cocked his head at the unusual girl. He had been warned that another student would be joining his class, but he wasn't expecting anything so eccentric. The girl definitely needed a lot of work if she intended to be a ninja. He had never met a student that actually attached items to themselves to make their presence known.

The girl seemed to look around before making her way directly up to the desk of the male looking at her with a raised eyebrow. "Hello sir, I am to join your class today. Where would you like me to sit"?

Idly wondering if he should tell the girl to remove the object making the ever slightest jingle each time she took a step, he decided that at this level he would let the girl have her fun. Taking a look around, he noted a seat open next to a Nara that was already sleeping. He pointed to the open seat before opening his mouth, "Please go sit over there."

Naru nodded before bounded up the class room steps with the sound of little bells in her wake. Upon taking her seat, she smiled at the two males to the left of her; one was munching on a bag of chips and the other's head was against the desk attempting to sleep. The one who was eating raised his hand in greeting.

"Tch. This is troublesome. You make a lot of noise blondie," came a tired drawl from the boy with his face pressed against the wooden surface of the desk.

Said 'blondie' pouted her lips cutely before leaning back in her chair. "I like it," and that was all she said on the matter. Turning her attention to the front of the classroom she ignored the repeated "troublesome" from the boy beside her.

The teacher began droning on about words and sounds and how to recognize letters on paper more efficiently. Everyone was expected to be able to read a little bit by this point and the male was focusing on refining the skill. Eventually the droning turned to math, the evil little thing, and the concepts behind it. Finally, after what seemed like forever, the class was broken up into male and female groups and shipped off for the shinobi training.

The girls were lead to a field and sat down before having the importance of flower arranging explained to them. Naru was excited; she liked flowers. She thought they were beautiful and loved the way that they smelt. She didn't quite understand what the woman meant about it being a valuable skill, but she was happy none the less. After the woman stopped talking, they were dismissed to try their hand at flower arranging.

The blonde ran off and danced around as she began picking flowers and humming to herself. She was disrupted from her song by crying on the other side of a bush to her left. Making her way around to the other side, she watched as a platinum-haired blonde crouched down and talked to a pink haired girl about her forehead before pulling the girl's hair back with a red ribbon.

Taking a few more steps forward, she made her presence known by leaning down in the pink haired girl's face. The still sniffling girl moved back with the invasion into her space. "Nope," the sunny haired blonde said bluntly before seeming to evaluate the girl further. "Yup, definitely not as bad as Quasimodo and nowhere near as bad as Ursala." Naru scrunched her face up and placed her finger on her nose before looking over at the other girl and smiled. "You both are so pretty, you could be the Bimbettes!" she exclaimed with a huge grin. She knew in her mind that the girls would be known as this, at least until a better title came along.

The platinum blonde had a puzzled look on her face; she had no idea what the girl was talking about, but understood that she was called beautiful and smiled. "Hi, my name is Ino. I haven't caught your name."

Looking from one blonde to the other, the previously crying girl wiped away the last of her tears. She was feeling a lot better now that two people had reassured her that she wasn't as ugly as the previous girls had teased. Her face turned a pretty shade of pink at being called pretty and she smiled. "Thank you, my name is Sakura. What is your name"?

"Naru!" the girl proclaimed proudly. "I'm a gypsy." The statement puzzled the other girls. The girls had heard of gypsies before, but had been told they were killers and thieves that hardly existed anymore. Sharing a look between themselves, they decided that the more delicate looking girl didn't know what a gypsy was.

"Well it is nice to meet you Naru," Ino said while helping the pink haired girl stand up. "Let's go get us some flowers."

The girls were allowed to run around and collect flowers for a while longer before being called back and having their flowers examined. After that the girls were dismissed to go home.

-/-

The following morning had Naru running along the path to the academy jingling all the way. Finally making her way inside, she plopped down next to the same two boys she sat next to the day before. Looking over at the munching male she raised an eyebrow and pointed to the snoozing boy. "Does he always sleep"?

The slightly chubby boy nodded. "He likes to take things easy and not really stress about stuff."

A grin lit up the blonde's face. "Oh I get it, Hakuna Matata," she said matter a factly before relaxing back in her chair. Looking out of the corner of her eye, she smiled. She believed she had found her Timon and Pumbaa. She wanted to test how it felt on her tongue. "So, Pumbaa, why does Timon think things are troublesome"?

Choji choked slightly on his chip before everything the girl had said registered in his mind and a heartfelt laugh flowed from his mouth that caused him to clutch his sides. Shikamaru 'tched' from where he had been pretending to sleep, before a smile slowly formed on his face. He had to admit the girl was interesting.

"Well 'Timon' thinks things are troublesome, because most things are troublesome," the boy said without raising his head from his desk.

Looking from the still laughing boy to the one that just spoke, she answered with a simple, "That's silly," before everyone's attention was turned to the front for lecture.

-/-

The first year of the academy went by without a hitch. Naru was growing to like being a gypsy greatly. She had even made a few friends in the form of the Bimbettes, Timon, and Pumbaa. The latter two took a while to warm up to her, but soon enough were indeed good friends. On days that homework wasn't assigned, the three would have a picnic before watching the clouds and arguing over what shape the white wisps were in.

The seven year old strutted into the park carrying a larger basket than usual for the picnic. They would always switch off who would bring the food, and today was her turn. The boy's were in for a treat as well seeing as it was the last day of break before the academy started again. Today the sunny blonde wasn't wearing one of her normal gypsy dresses, but instead was wearing a plain blue dress with a white apron over it. A small green top hat was tipped to one side of her head and held in place by green string that wrapped behind her ears and under her hair.

Opening the basket she began setting up little cucumber sandwiches, three tea cups, a tea pot, and a large cake in the center. As the boys approached, they evaluated the layout. Naru was eying them with a foxish grin. Sitting down in their proper places, Shikamaru decided to be the one to ask what they both were thinking, "Whose birthday is it?"

"Oh silly Timon," the girl waved him off. "It's no one's birthday." Setting her hands on her hips she took a breath and smiled. "It's a very merry unbirthday to me, to me. A very merry unbirthday to you, yes you. So come congratulate us with another cup of tea. A very merry unbirthday to you!" The girl sang out before picking up her tea cup, prompting the boys to do the same and taking a sip before jumping up and dancing around to the tune only she heard. She leaned down between the boys before speaking seriously. "Now statistics prove you've one birthday. Imagine just one birthday every year. Ahhhh, but there are three hundred and sixty four unbirthdays. Precisely why we are gathered here to cheer."

She took a step back and dramatically put her hand on her chest before changing her voice. "Why then today is my unbirthday too! In that case, a very merry unbirthday to me, to you. A very marry unbirthday for me, for you. Now blow the candles out my dear and make you wish come true. A very merry unbirthday to you"! Naru finished singing and plopped down into her seat with a huge grin on her face.

Both of the boys had grown accustomed to the girl's antics. She was always a theatrical one and was on a constant lookout for a reason to sing or dance. Shikamaru raised his tea cup to the blonde with a small smile. "Well a merry unbirthday to you, blondie." Choji laughed with his friend before holding his tea cup up to the blonde as well. "Yup, merry unbirthday"!

Naru grinned before clapping her hands together. "Now cake!" she exclaimed, much to Choji's joy, and cut out pieces for them all to eat.

-/-

The next day placed all of the children piling into their assigned classrooms according to their level of training. A sunny haired blonde ran in before tackling a pink haired girl with one arm and a platinum blonde with her other arm. "Bimbettes!" was screamed as the small bundle pulled the two girls into a tight hug.

Giggling, the girls returned the excited hug. "Hey there gypsy," the pink haired girl said affectionately. It had been Ino's idea to give the blonde a nickname since she had bestowed one onto both of them, so they decided to use the title the girl used to introduce herself when they first met.

Giggling herself, Naru released the two girls and made her way over to her desk next to her boys. When class began, everyone was happy to find that the class was now being split fifty-fifty between normal academics and shinobi based training. The first half of ninja practice was together as a whole and the second half was segregated into male and female.

Today's training started with learning Taijutsu stances and repeating punches over and over. Girls were released to learn the basics of tea ceremonies and the males went on to strength training.

-/-

The class schedule remained like this for a few weeks before the teacher decided that it had come time for some sparring matches to test how much the children had learned. The first few fights were unremarkable with the children showing standard improvement in their Taijutsu. That was until a small blonde and a male with a brunette mop of hair was called into the ring.

The small girl bowed before stepping back into her stance. The male scratched the back of his head before looking to the proctor with a 'do I have to' glance; he really didn't want to fight a girl. He had just started to bond with his fighting partner, so he set his dog down and told him to go sit on the side of the arena.

"Kiba, Naru, I want to see a clean fight, and go," the teacher spoke before stepping out of the ring.

Naru seemed to scrunch her nose up in a thoughtful way looking from the boy to the dog and back to the boy. The boy looked kinda like a dog himself. She grinned to herself. "Come on, Tramp, let's show them what we got."

Mistaking her friendly nickname for an insult, Kiba lashed out and landed a blow to the girl's small chest.

With an 'oof', Naru landed on her butt. Dusting herself off, she stood back up and took her stance again. With a smile gracing her lips, she attempted to send her fist into the boy's chest, but missed when the brunette side stepped.

Spinning around, the male kicked out his foot and made solid contact with the girl's right arm that rose up to block. There was a sickening crack that filled the air. Kiba stumbled and rushed to the blonde's side worried that he had broken her arm. He didn't think he had hit that hard.

However, the girl only took a step back and didn't show any signs of pain. She continued her stance and used the same arm that was just hit to punch the boy in the face. He had been so concerned about the girl's well being that he took the hit to the face. Upon impact however, an unstable fracture of the girl's right radius became an open fracture as the bone slid through the skin.

Naru blinked several times at the bone sticking out of her arm and knew for a fact that it shouldn't be doing that. Yet for some reason all she did was look to her teacher and tilt her head as if asking what to do.

Kiba stared from the ground, appalled at the sight of blood running down the girls arm and feeling awfully guilty for doing that to her. The teacher rushed forward and grabbed the Naru's arm holding it in manual stabilization. He had never seen someone punch their bone out of their arm. Dismissing the rest of the kids, he rushed the blonde to the emergency department of their hospital.

With well-placed traction and a mending jutsu, Naru was able to leave the hospital with her arm wrapped tight in an ace bandage and held to her chest with a sling. Instead of going back to the orphanage, the girl was surprised to be called to see the old man she had met a year or so ago. She had learned after their encounter that the man ran the entire city.

"Hello Mufasa," the small child said affectionately as she walked into the Hokage's office. The older male smiled back at the child. It had taken him completely by surprise the first time the child referred to him as such, but after talking to her two caretakers he learned that girl's reality had mixed with that of the movies she watched, and she viewed him as the brave protector over all of the people.

"Hello, little one, I heard that you had an accident today while sparring; how is your arm? Does it hurt?" his voice was soft and gentle as he questioned the girl.

Shaking her head in the negative, the blonde jumped into the chair before Sarutobi. "Didn't hurt one bit."

Nodding his head gravely, the Hokage steepled his hands in front of his face. He had feared that. When the injury was reported to him, like all serious injuries sustained in the academy were, he had taken the liberty to question both of the blue eyed girl's guardians about her injury habits. He was unsettled to learn that Naru had never complained of any pain ever, even when she sliced her hand while helping cook. The two women had chalked it up to a high pain tolerance, but after this, he feared it may be something more serious.

"Little one, if you don't mind, I would like to have my doctors run a few tests to make sure you are really alright." The blonde nodded her head. If her Mufasa thought that something was for the best she would do it- she trusted him.

After hours of being poked and prodded the girl was allowed to go home, and the Hokage was given a stack of papers to sort through. Once finished reading the medical report, he wanted to cry. The girl was almost incapable of being a ninja; that was unless he wanted to use her for a suicide mission. It appeared the girl had a muted version of a rare disease called Riley Day Syndrome. It caused the one infected to not feel pain or changes in temperature along with a shopping list of other affects. He knew that most of the affects the girl did not possess, he was unsure whether or not the girl had temperature regulating capabilities, since Konoha always had mild weather. The disease would also explain why the girl was so much smaller and fragile looking than the rest of girls her age. The only known treatment for the symptoms the girl displayed was protecting the victim from injury.

Resting back in his chair, he sighed. The only way the girl could be a ninja was to be untouchable. After one hit the girl would have to back out since she wouldn't know if she was gravely injured or not. That was a prospect: make her untouchable. It was almost impossible, but it was an interesting thought. He decided that until he contemplated the matter more, he wouldn't remove the girl from her classes. Instead he simply decided to tell the teachers that when any spars occurred, she was only allowed to fight until she received a single hit; after the first hit she was to be taken out of the match and examined.

-/-

The next day, the Hokage explained to the spunky little blond about her condition and the precautions he was setting up to keep her safe. She had been confused at first, but eventually conceded to follow his protocols. That same day, a nervous Kiba apologized for hurting the girl and sought forgiveness. When 'Tramp' was forgiven, he almost had a fit until the girl explained it to him and he laughed it off.

The next couple of months passed on with relative ease as classes carried on. The peace was disrupted with a massacre. An entire clan, save one small boy, was completely wiped out. One of the most powerful clans in Konoha reduced to ashes in one night. An ANBU and heir of the clan, Itachi Uchiha, went rouge and slaughtered his entire family before taking his own life. In the mess of guts and blood one boy, Sasuke Uchiha, was dubbed the sole survivor.

The boy was found covered in blood with his throat slashed, but with a faint pulse. The hospital worked around the clock to stabilize Sasuke. The night was filled with medical jutsu and blood transfusions. However, when the sun broke through the darkness of night, the doctors believed that he would make it. It was another five hours before the last Uchiha left the operating room. It took another three days before he left intensive care.

On the fifth day, Sasuke finally woke up. The Uchiha was a complete mess and refused to speak with anybody. His brother had killed his entire family- had tried to kill him. The boy didn't even have a chance for answers since the older male left the world without any indication as to why he went on a killing spree. The raven haired male was alone, completely alone and didn't even know why. He wasn't sure if any answer would have satisfied his despair, but the fact he would never know caused something inside him to scream.

Laying in bed and staring up at the ceiling, he wondered why he had made it and no one else had. He wasn't the strongest of his clan and after seeing who his attacker was, he definitely wasn't the one with the strongest will to live. He had felt so betrayed and hurt that he had almost accepted death. But he didn't die. Instead he was forced to live while everyone else was gone. A voice in his head screamed that he should have died along with them.

Fingering the bandage around his neck, he broke down and began to sob. He had no purpose in life; nothing to keep living for. His body went numb as he sank back into the mattress. Maybe it was a mistake and he would drift off to sleep and never wake up again. With this in mind, he closed his eyes and drifted off to a nightmare-filled sleep.

The boy was disappointed when he woke up the next morning… and the morning after that. He accepted that he wasn't going to die when a week had gone by and the doctors kept commenting on his improving health. One more week went by before the doctors were prepared to release Sasuke, and were simply waiting on the Hokage who wanted to come down personally to discharge him.

Walking into the small Uchiha's room, Sarutobi smiled at the boy who looked so broken. He sat down in the chair next to the bed and evaluated Sasuke. He had feared that the boy would be like this, but had hoped otherwise. "Hello Sasuke."

The smaller male turned and looked at his village leader with blank eyes. He had spent a lot of time thinking these past couple of weeks and was left feeling more and more empty with nothing to live for. "Sir Hokage," his voice was a little rough from having rarely used it and his nearly healed neck injury.

With a twinkle entering his eye, the Hokage had an awfully cunning idea. He could kill two birds with one stone, and feel damn proud of it. Hiding his smile, he sat up straight and the air about him became utterly serious. "Uchiha Sasuke, I have an S-ranked mission of high priority that I feel you are best suited for. Are you willing to take it"?

Curiosity entered charcoal eyes as the boy straightened in the bed and gave the older male his rapt attention. "What is the mission Lord Hokage"?

Sarutobi had to force the twitching of a smile to smooth into a neutral expression. It seemed the boy indeed still had a fire inside of him, it just needed some direction. He thought his next words over in his head, wanting them to sound as important as possible to catch the boy's attention. "Your mission, if you choose to accept it, would be protecting one Uzumaki Naru, even at the expense of your own life. She is extraordinarily important to the future of Konoha with her special gift. However, she is also delicate and has a dangerous disease that could easily kill her if she were injured. Your mission would be a difficult one, and even I do not know how long you would be needed to perform said mission. It could also become quite dangerous, so if you do not want to accept I would understand. But, if you chose to accept, you would be a secret hero to this village." He hid the sly smirk that crossed his face as he watched the growing determination in the small boy.

Emotion slowly returned to Sasuke's eyes until they were burning with pride and determination. Yes, perhaps this was why his life was spared. The Shinigami refused to claim his soul because he was destined to serve his village. The boy's hands snapped to his side and he gave a sideways bow to the older male. "I accept the mission, Lord Hokage, and I will protect Uzumaki Naru even at the cost of my life."

Finally allowing himself to smile, Sarutobi patted the boy's back. "I am glad. As a parameter of the mission, I am moving you to the same orphanage as Naru so that you may be closer to her and keep an eye on her." He knew that if he didn't word it this way the boy would refuse to live in an orphanage, and demand that he be allowed to live on his own. Although he was a child, he was still an Uchiha, and they were known for being stubbornly prideful.

Nodding, the boy thought it over. He didn't really want to live in an orphanage, but it was almost like going undercover to protect his charge. "I understand sir." He felt warmth inside of himself that he hadn't felt in weeks. He had a reason to live once more; he had a purpose, a mission: protect Uzumaki Naru.

The rest of the day was spent collecting the boy's things and moving him into the small home style orphanage. With the directions to his room, he decided to settle down for the night. He was given a week to prepare for the mission before it begun officially. For tonight, he was happy to have a bed that was ten times softer than the ones offered in the hospital, and drifted off to peaceful sleep for the first time in a long time.

-/-

The next morning brought a raven haired male walking into the classroom to receive a variety of looks from shock to pity. He was unprepared for two girls to latch onto his arms and lead him to his desk as if he was made of porcelain and might break any second. While it was moving to be cared for on some level, it was also incredibly annoying. They were both talking so rapidly that he could barely make out their questions of his health and whether or not he was going to make it. He thought it was a foolish question, since obviously he was sitting there quite healthy and not looking like he was going to keel over in the next few seconds.

"Bimbettes!" a voice called and the two girls that were fussing over him paused in their movements before leaving him completely. He looked over and saw the girl he was to protect waving the girls over. She seemed to say something very important before patting both of the girls' heads. With heads hung low, both girls returned to their seats. He wondered what had transpired between the three, but decided he was grateful for whatever it was.

He had decided earlier that morning that he would observe the blonde for a couple of days before deciding how to best protect the girl. So, he discretely kept an eye on the girl and watched how she behaved.

Over the course of four days, Sasuke had learned that his charge had four close friends: Shikamaru, Choji, and the two girls that had basically attacked him. There were a few other people that she occasionally interacted with, such as the dogish boy, Kiba. He also learned that the girl tended to break out in song and dance at the drop of a hat. The girl also fancied wearing strange dresses, and he had yet to see the girl wear shoes. He also noted that the girl was pulled out of a fight after one hit during any spar and taken to see the school medic immediately.

On the fifth day of data gathering, the Uchiha decided to inform the girl of his purpose. He reasoned that it would make protecting Naru a lot easier if she knew what his intentions were.

When the children were let out for lunch, the raven haired male approached the seven year old female. "Hello Naru, I have something I would like to talk to you about."

The blonde looked up with a smile. "Hello Sasuke," she greeted having not figured out who the male was yet in comparison to her movies. "What is it you would like to talk about"? When the standing male looked to the two males surrounding the girl, she offered a small laugh. "Oh, they are fine. Anything you need to say to me can be said in front of them."

The boy had to keep from crossing his arms over his chest and tapping his foot in a slight tantrum. "Fine," he bit out, not pleased at having an audience. "The Hokage has assigned me to protect you. So, in accordance with my mission, I shall be close by to ensure your safety."

Blue eyes seemed confused as to why Mufasa thought that she needed protection, but shrugged her shoulders. She trusted the older male with her life and he seemed to think her having a guard was important. Thinking this over for a minute, she smiled as she looked over the male before her. "I get it, so you are my Clopin"! Excitement seemed to fill her voice. Yet for some reason, when she said it, the name didn't feel quite right.

Sasuke looked puzzled and his face contorted to show his confusion. "I'm your what"?

"My Clopin. He is the one that protects Esmeralda, the gypsy, and I am a gypsy and you are here to protect me; therefore, you are my Clopin," she explained in a simple and matter of fact voice.

Dark eyes blinked for a few seconds. "You are telling me that you are a gypsy"?

The blonde nodded with a smile. "Yup, the Hokage made me a gypsy until I take my rightful place as princess."

"Princess of what?" the male asked, not quite understanding what the girl was talking about.

A tan hand moved to rosy pink lips as she seemed to think before it fell away and the girl answered, "I don't know, but I'm sure it is going to be great."

The Uchiha almost rolled his eyes at the logic, but decided it wouldn't be in his best interest to upset his charge. "Well alright princess, I am going to be watching over you from now on." He didn't mean to, but the statement seemed to come out laced with sarcasm.

Naru simply smiled and nodded her head. "Okie dokie Clopin, I hope I am not too much of a handful."

-/-

A few weeks had passed by and Sasuke slowly slipped into his position as personal bodyguard at almost all times. When the classes were broken down to male and female, he had to trust that she wasn't going to kill herself in that short period of time.

Naru giggled slightly as the girls were forced to review everything they had learned about being a proper kunoichi. It seemed like the classes were training them how to be a female: as if they didn't know how. She stood up, not fearing being caught since her and the Bimbettes were in the back of the crowd.

Taking up a pose, she looked both of her friends over before clearing her throat. "You must walk feminine, talk feminine, smile and be guile feminine; utilize your femininity- that's what every girl should know if she wants to catch a boy. Dance feminine, glance feminine, act shy and sigh feminine; compliment his masculinity- that's what every girl should know if she wants to catch a boy."

Dancing around the seated giggling girls, the blonde continued to sing, "Let him do the talking: men adore good listeners. Laugh, but not loudly- haha, if he should chose to tell a joke. Be radiant, but delicate; memorize the rules of etiquette; be demure, sweet and pure- hide the real you"! At this point she was wagging her finger at the girls as if lecturing them. "You must look feminine, dress feminine, your at your best feminine; emphasize your femininity, that's what every girl should know…femininity, femininity, that's the way to catch a boy." Grabbing the hands of her two friends, she pulled them up and danced around until the teacher scolded them and told them to pay attention. Naru giggled before leaning in and whispering, "I guess we weren't dancing feminine."

Sakura and Ino quieted their giggles and thought over the words of the song. Had they been trained to change themselves for boys? Both of them seemed to think it over before looking at each other. They had begun to act a little silly over the Uchiha that had recently entered their circle. They smiled as they understood what their friend was trying to say- they needed to get back to being themselves first and foremost, and worry about what others thought later. Naru was pulled into a hug by both of her female friends; she was glad they got more than a laugh out of her song.

-/-

Things seemed to run smoother after Sakura and Ino focused more on their friendship than the raven haired male that had joined the group. In fact, the girls had returned to having lunch themselves instead of joining the boys' and Naru's picnics.

The day's training had the kids refining their tree climbing and running along the branches. The raven haired boy selected a tree next to his charge and began to climb up the wooden surface. He watched as the blonde jumped at the tree and grabbed hold of a branch before pulling herself up. She had made it a decent way up before he felt his heart sink. The girl's foot hit the branch before the bark chipped off and the girl was falling backwards out of the tree.

He climbed out of the tree as fast as he could, but couldn't beat the girl's gravity-driven descent. Crouching next to the girl, he looked her over for any obvious injuries, knowing that she wouldn't complain of anything.

"Clopin," her voice was almost accusatory. The only time she called him by the nick name was when he was fussing over her or being overprotective. "I'm fine; it was just a little bump."

Giving her a look that said 'yeah sure', he clucked his tongue. "Sorry princess, but you wouldn't know if you were fine or not."

As if to prove a point, the girl climbed to her feet only to topple back to the ground; only this time she was caught by the Uchiha. Brushing the back of her head, she giggled slightly. "Okay, I guess I'm not fine."

Sasuke was not at all pleased by this development; he would have rather her be fine and him worrying for nothing. He hated when he failed to protect her like he was supposed to. Walking down to the school medic, he decided he had to do something to help protect her better.

It was that very train of thought that brought the young boy before the Hokage. With a sharp bow, the boy approached the older male.

"Ah, Sasuke, what is it that I can do for you?" Sarutobi asked while propping his elbows on his desk. He hadn't seen the boy since assigning the mission.

Standing up very straight, as if it would help give cause to his case, the boy began to speak, "Lord Hokage, I am beginning to have difficulties with my mission. I have come to the realization that Naru is injured more easily than any of the others in our class. Seeing that she is injured a lot, I feel that I must be allowed to take medic classes so that I may care for Naru and prevent her from causing more injury to her body by moving around with injuries."

Scratching his chin, Sarutobi thought about it. The Uchiha had laid out a very organized argument. "Alright Sasuke, you will be allowed to join the basic level medic classes at the hospital. However, your chakra training will need to be outstanding before they even let you enter the first actual class. If you are willing to put in the work, I will sign the papers."

The boy had the same look of determination in his eyes that had been there before. "I am willing to put in any amount of work that is needed, and more, if it means I can complete my mission more efficiently."

The two shook hands before the Hokage slid back in his chair and grinned as he watched the boy leave. Who'd have thought that the Uchiha would become so protective of their little blonde miracle?

-/-

Standing across from a smiling blonde, Sasuke crossed his arms over his chest. "Have you paid attention to anything that I have said"?

"Yeah, yeah. Something about dodge, don't block, and it would greatly benefit me not to be hit. You say all this like I just stand there wanting to take a blow to the face or something," the female's voice came out with a little bit of a snap to it.

An aggravated hand met Sasuke's face before slowly moving down as if to embody the male's frustration. "So you paid attention for like two seconds," his voice was flat, but the look on his face spoke volumes. "Fine, we will skip the lecture and jump to the practice. We are going to spar and every time I tap you, you must perform ten sit ups." The raven haired male, after watching Naru take several punishing hits during practice, decided he need to work on her dodging skills.

Taking a stance, Naru was a little displeased to be spending her free time doing something so boring. When a hand lashed out towards her face, she instantly brought up her arm to protect her face. Her action was rewarded with a tap to her forearm and the demand that she begin her ten sit-ups.

"Now I know you weren't listening to me. We are practicing dodging. You are forbidden from blocking. You must dodge and that is all." Sasuke had re-crossed his arms over his chest as the girl muttered something under her breath about him being a meany head.

Once the blonde had completed the ten sit ups, she moved to stand back up and took her stance once again. This time she was able to dodge two attacks before she was poked and forced to complete ten more sit ups.

They continued like this for almost an hour before Naru flopped on the ground and refused to get back up.

"Uzumaki, stand up. We really need to work on this." His request was met by crossed arms and closed eyes. "I am going to count to ten and either you are going to stand up or I am going to sit on you."

Peeking open a single blue eye, the girl glared. "How, do you propose, is sitting on me a form of protection"?

Shrugging his shoulders, Sasuke held up one finger, waited a second and then held up another finger.

"Wait, wait, I have an idea," the blonde exclaimed sitting up. "Dance with me and then I'll continue training."

Raising an eyebrow, Sasuke shook his head. "I'm not negotiating and I don't dance." A third finger was raised into the air.

"Oh come on. You think you can run me ragged and I don't get anything in return. It is just one dance." Naru pouted her face cutely and looked as if she was about to throw a tantrum.

Dark eyes seemed to think the idea over. He didn't dance and that was that, but perhaps… A smirk made its way onto his face as he looked at the girl. "So, you want to dance? I suppose I can work with that."

The blonde jumped up happily and grabbed the boy's hands. "Really, really"!

With a nod, he removed his hands from the girl's and fell back into a stance. This was met with a cry from the girl about that's not how you dance. "You wanted to dance. If I am recalling right, when you dance, one person moves forward the other moves back; when one moves to the side the other shifts to mirror the movement. So, act as if you were dancing and not fighting."

The girl seemed confused at first, but then shifted her eyes from the male's chest to his feet. As he lifted his foot to step forward and throw a punch she slid backwards. When he took a step to the side to move around the girl, she slid around and spun out creating a distance between them. When he rushed her to close the distance, she spun around him and ended up behind him.

"This is fun," Naru called out before she was tapped in the back.

Sasuke was smiling at the girl when she turned around to look at him. "You need to watch opening your back to your opponent." His words of advice were rewarded with a scrunched up nose and a tongue in his face. Rolling his eyes, he tapped the girl in the forehead. "That's twenty sit ups."

Naru let out a cry of indignation before dropping herself to the ground, keeping Sasuke from poking her again.

A/N: Hello! This story idea hit me like a freight train and I just couldn't stop writing. Let us get the who's and what's out of the way.

Songs in order of appearance:

-"Stay Awake" ~ Marry Poppins

-"Journey to the Past" ~ Anastasia

-"A Very Merry Unbirthday" ~ Alice in Wonderland

-"Femininity" ~ Summer Magic

Character names used:

-Bimbettes ~ The three blonde triplets from Beauty and the Beast. (No Naru is not using it as an insult, she was simply using the nickname to refer to the girl's beauty.)

-Timon & Pumbaa ~ The Lion King

-Mufasa ~ The Lion King

-Tramp ~ Lady and the Tramp

-Clopin ~ The head jester and king of gypsies in The Hunchback of Notre Dame

Alright, so I stopped here, because I am unsure if I want to time skip or write a bit more with them as kids. I can't decided if I want to write it present tense or in a flashback/memory later. What would you guys prefer?

Please tell me what you think and all that jazz. Your support will help decided if I allow myself the guilty pleasure of writing this or return to my other stories. Thanks and Tata!

Boe