Naruto is a manga series by Masashi Kishimoto published by Shueisha in Japan's Shonen Jump and VIZ Media in the American Shonen Jump. The anime series is produced by Studio Pierrot and Aniplex for TV Tokyo and Animax with VIZ Media having gone through multiple networks over the years. I don't own the series, I make no money out of doing this. Please support the official release.

Hello and welcome to my premiere fanfiction The Slug Prince. I got the idea for this while reading another fanfiction and decided to put my own twist to it. So let me know what you think and hope you enjoy. :o)

Chapter One: One Day Special! Today's Ramen Comes with free Scrolls!

It had not been a good day for Naruto. As the blond Genin took his usual seat at Ichiraku's he decided to revise the statement and surmised that it had actually been more like a giant crap fest. He had made it through to the next stage of the Chuunin exams and had a month to train. His Sensei Kakashi had disappeared somewhere to train the damned Uchiha and Iruka had too many classes and too much paperwork to give him any time. He had thanked the Heavens when Ebisu-san had offered his services but he had disappeared after Pervy Sage had knocked him out. This brought Naruto's thoughts to the present and his newest betrayal. Jiraiya. One of the Legendary Sannin of Konoha, though all Naruto had seen was an absurdly strong perverted old man. With his Ninja Centrefold he had managed to get the Pervy sage to agree to train him. He had done something to his stomach that had fixed the ache he had been feeling since his fight with the Snake Guy in the Forest of Death and had taught him to walk on water but just when they were talking about Toad Summoning, Sakura had shown up and Jiraiya had ended his role as Naruto's Mentor and walked away whispering into the pinkette's ear about training her to become the first female Hokage!

"IT'S JUST NOT FAIR YA KNOW!" the blond Genin screamed, slamming his fists on the counter. "Calm down brat! You are disturbing my meal." Naruto turned to his neighbour, an old man with bandages across half his face, a tuft of hair sticking out at the top and an x-shaped scar on his chin. He looked as old as Grandpa Hokage. Naruto bowed his head in apology. "Sorry Grandpa, I'm just… it's just not fair ya know?" The old man shook his head while he ate some more ramen. "No I don't know but perhaps you want to talk about it? I'm Shimura Danzo, what is yours?" Naruto ordered some ramen for himself and had a mouthful before he said anything else. "I'm Uzumaki Naruto, Orange Genin of Konohagakure. And I'm probably going to stay that ya know? I thought when Iruka-sensei acknowledged me as a ninja of Konoha and my joining Team 7 meant I was finally going to be a ninja who protects Konoha and serve my village and have friends, comrades I could count on ya know? I thought I would get real training and become strong so I can achieve my dream of becoming the next Hokage, the best ninja of the whole village. I was going to the greatest Hokage, the greatest defender of the village, so everyone would finally respect me and see me as a ninja who love his village and not as a Demon. Instead I've been reminded how gullible I can be. Kakashi –sensei, who gave this big speech about teamwork, has run off with his precious Uchiha to train him. Uchiha is getting further and further ahead of me and just when I think I might have found someone else to train me Sakura-chan steals him because he's a pervert and she's not a boy!" Naruto finished his bowl and rested his head on the table. "How can I get strong enough to protect my village when no-one will give me a chance ya know?"

The leader of ROOT was at a loss. The man who lead Konoha's even-blacker-black-ops had decided to treat himself to his secret passion for Ichiraku Ramen and had come face-to-face with Konoha's Jinchukiri. He had been planning to take the power of the Kyuubi for himself, he'd laced his left arm with Sharingan eyes and injected himself with the First Hokage's blood for that very purpose, and yet he now found himself losing the desire to do such a thing. The Jinchu…. Naruto's words struck a chord in him. As a child he had always felt like he was always trying to catch up to Saru, the Sandaime Hokage. He loved Konoha too and he'd always wanted to be Hokage himself, to be the Great Protector of the village. Years before he had attempted to forge an alliance with Hanzo the Salamander to that end, but that plan had fallen apart. In fact he now felt ashamed of the planned coup, to his own surprise.

Danzo had long thought the same as many that Uzumaki Naruto was the Nine-Tailed Demon Fox in human form, a menace. Now he saw his own reflection, a little boy struggling for recognition and chasing the shadow of his teammate. He had known his father and grandfather had died to protect the village but though he knew Naruto's parents had given their lives to protect the village, the Orange Genin of Konoha did not. He knew nothing of his heritage. He agreed with Sarutobi that the name Namikaze would have drawn the Yondaime Hokage's attention but the Uzumaki name had an allure too. They had once had their own village and specialised in Fuinjutsu's. Seals. He had researched them a great deal when he had been developing his own seals and had a number of their scrolls with him on this day. "What you have told me today gives me pause for thought, young Uzumaki. I will admit that I already knew who you were before you introduced yourself and I have borne you an ill will for as long as you have lived. But what you have said today has given me a new perspective. You speak of your love for Konoha and your desire to be her number one protector. I share that dream, but I fear my team has passed. So I think I shall help you." He reached into his bag and made a mental note to have the ROOT files on Uzumaki Naruto moved from the enemies section and into the allies section. "The Uzumaki were a very prestigious family of ninja. They had close familial ties to the Senju family, who founded Konoha, and they themselves had their own village. These scrolls contain their history and their jutsus. They are your birthright. I'm afraid I can't afford the time to train you myself, but I am sure that you can overcome tis obstacle. In fact I shall put a small sum on you to win in your match so don't let me down." With that the old man that had just overturned the Orange Genin's life in a matter of minutes stood and walked away.

Naruto ran home clutching the Uzumaki scrolls tightly to his chest. He literally could not believe his own luck. A man he had never met before had given him a way of possibly winning. He locked the door and pulled his training schedule to start rearranging his training. He'd never done any work on Fuinjutsu, but he had high hopes considering they were part of his very bloodline. Some of the designs made him think of his own seal, an Uzumaki must have designed it or had a hand in its creation. He also realised the crest that decorated his coat and the flak jackets of every Chuunin and Jonin in Konoha was in fact the Uzumaki clan symbol! When Grandpa Scarry-Chin had said the Uzumakis and the Senjus were close he meant it.

In the Hokage's office Sarutobi Hiruzen was working his way through paperwork when there came a knock at the door. "Who could be calling at this hour?" the Sandaime Hokage mused as he went to the door. "Hello Saru, old friend, may I come in?" With a great deal of sputtering Hiruzen led his old friend and rival into the office they had both dreamed of working in as children. As he lit his pipe, Hiruzen turned to the seated Danzo and asked him why he had come. "I had an interesting conversation with Uzumaki Naruto." Hiruzen tensed at this. He knew his old friend had some extremist views and an interest in Naruto could prove hazardous. "I 've done some terrible things Saru," Hiruzen stifled a gasp of shock, "I've always believed that we ninja should hide in the shadows and I have been vicious in dealing with any perceived enemy of Konoha. But that boy … I saw him as a possible tool but when he started to tell me what he has experienced I felt my heart go out to him. I have felt some of what he had felt, though not as severely. He wants to be the Hokage, the No. 1 Defender of Konoha. After all he has had to endure, he still wants to protect Konoha. But he is ignored by his teachers and he feels he is falling further and further behind his peers. I can't help but sympathise." Hiruzen smiled. You're finally starting to see my side after all these years? It's about time Old Friend.

Meanwhile Naruto was pouring over the Uzumaki Fuinjutsu scrolls till he stopped at one that caught his eye. Yin Seal: The ninja stores chakra in a focus point and can use it in the event of chakra exhaustion or for certain derived jutsu. See- Creation Rebirth, invented by Senju Tsunade. Tsunade? Naruto took a moment to try and remember where he'd heard that name when it came to him. Tenten! Lee's teammate had given a three hour speech about her; the speech was supposed to make point about how kunoichi could be just as good as shinobi, if not better. It had instead convinced everyone that Tenten's interests lay in the fairer sex. Senju Tsunade was the granddaughter of the Shodai Hokage, trained by the Sandaime Hokage and the primary force for the inclusion of Iryo-nin into ninja teams. One of the Legendary Sannin, like Pervy Sage! Naruto made a note to visit Tenten to get some more information on Tsunade and set to work on crafting the Yin Seal. He thought back to one of his few conversations with Pervy Sage. Another Chakra, a different colour from his normal Chakra that he could use. If he could make this Fuinjutsu work he could channel the Red Chakra there and use it whenever instead of just when he's angry.

"I gave him the Uzumaki scrolls." Hiruzen dropped his pipe. "You had them then? I always wondered where they had gone. Grandma Mito always said you were popping over for Fuinjutsu lessons." Danzo sipped at his tea and gave his old friend and long-time rival a long stare. "If he's going to live as an Uzumaki and not a Namikaze then he may as well have access to all of his Uzumaki heritage." It had been Hiruzen's decision that the boy be given his mother's family name, believing his mother's name might attract less attention than his father's. "It was very kind of you to give him that but I have looked over the match-ups for the next part of the Chuunin Exams and I'm not sure Fuinjutsu will help him much against a Juken specialist." Danzo began to laugh, so much so he had to put his cup down. Hiruzen was in two minds about what he was seeing. On the one hand he had never seen Danzo laugh with so much glee in decades. On the other hand, Danzo clearly knew something about the Uzumaki clan that he didn't. And that bothered him. Hiruzen re-lit his pipe and continued to enjoy the company of an old friend.

Naruto found himself in a dark corridor. The floor was flooded and the place looked like nobody had set foot there in years. He heard a rumble and moved towards the sound. He came to room with a huge gate and a large seal was stuck to it. "Hello? Is anyone here? I'm looking for a fox? He's supposed to be really big and has nine tails?" The room shook with a roar and a large pair of red eyes appeared on the other side of the gate. "Who dares disturb me?" Naruto fell to the ground with a splash. Okay, perhaps taunting the demon that nearly destroyed Konoha was not the best plan but it's done and at least now he knew where he was. He cleared his throat and stepped up to the gate. "Hi there! I'm Uzumaki Naruto and I'm your Jinchukiri ya know! Listen, your Chakra leaks out a bit and it's been really hand at times but I would really like to be able to turn it on and off so I've set up a Yin Seal to store the Chakra for when I need it. Now since your living in me your more like a tenant so let's make that Red Chakra your rent and you just send it there ya know!" The fox hit the gate hard. "Insolent brat! Do you know who I am?" The fox snarled with contempt at his newest Jinchukiri. "No I don't, so what's your name?"

"I am….. what did you just say?"