Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto

A/N: This is mostly a plot bunny I've had in mind in response to all the Naruto has a family, but he's still neglected.

Similar principle, but the biggest difference in this particular story is that Naruto is STILL the Kyuubi container. The ONLY Kyuubi container.

Not sure I'll continue this story, mostly just a plot bunny so it may just remain as another one of my plot bunnies. Regardless I hope you like it anyway.

Story: Return to Konoha.

The city of Kenzaku was a small port town in the edge of Earth Country. It wasn't a large, by any definition of the word, but one could consider it vital for it's position as a good place for ships to restock on supplies. While the dock normally bustled with activity, the village itself tended to be much more peaceful.

On a normal day at least. A man dressed in a black noticed that this was definitely NOT a normal day. He noticed there was something of a panic going on…and that everybody seemed to be on edge. He also noticed a lot of objects that definitely weren't broken before he left the village that morning. He frowned and walked into the inn he had been staying at. He saw the elderly innkeepers having a deep conversation with another man, "Who stole the life out of the village?"

The oldest man their looked at the newcomer with weary eyes, "Kenshin-kun?"

Takeru practically broke down and told him everything. There had been a raid on the village while Kenshin had been away. During the chaos, the brigands had rounded up a large group of children and taken them away. They demanded a ransom by the following day, else they would murder the kids. A ransom they couldn't possibly pay. A villager named Jin was told the location of the bandit's camps, and was told that HE, and only he, was to be the one to bring the ransom.

Kenshin sighed and ran his hand through his black hair. "Man, I go away for one day and come back to find things have gone to hell." He then turned towards Jin, "Let me do it. I'll bring them back."

The other three occupants of the room just looked dumbstruck at the man's proclamation. It was Jin who spoke though. "You go there, and they'll kill the children."

"We wait until tomorrow, when you CAN'T pay their ransom and they'll kill them anyway. And they'll probably be so pissed off that they'll come back and try again."

Jin frowned at the statement, but couldn't find a way to answer.

"I can do this, have a little faith."

Takeru frowned, "You'll miss your ship. It's leaving in half an hour."

Kenshin rolled his eyes. "I can always catch the next ship…though now that you mention it, I wouldn't mind free room and board till tomorrow."

The elderly innkeeper smiled, and nodded his head, mostly in gratitude. "Thank you."

Kenshin nodded once before turning back towards the diplomat, "Sorry pal, but you seem to be out of options. So what are you going to do?"

Jin sighed, and looked at the man with pleading eyes, "The camp is to the north, about three miles."

The ronin nodded and turned to leave, "Stay put, it'll be over soon enough." With that, he walked out of the door of the inn." The man known as Kenshin began walking out of the village. When he reached the outskirts of the town, Kenshin began running at top speeds. When he reached the forest, he began channeling his chakra. Five feet into the forest, the man known as Kenshin exploded in a burst of smoke. He was replaced with a much younger boy, who seemed to be just entering his teens. The boy in question still had Kenshin's black hair…but was over a foot shorter than the man before.

The boy in question wore a green hoodie with black pants. On each cheek were three whisker-like marks. Within the hood, and partially on his right shoulder, was a small orange fox. The creature turned to speak in the boy's ear. "This is a mistake Naruto. We should have taken off when we had the chance."

The boy, now identified as Naruto, smirked playfully at the fox's question, though he kept his blue eyes looking forward. "Come on Shippo, don't be like that. There are some kids in trouble. We'll go in, save them, get a free room and leave tomorrow instead. What's the worse that can happen?"

Shippo felt a chill go down his spine. "You do understand the concept of 'famous last words' right? You can't say stuff like that."

Naruto snorted, "Relax, don't be so superstitious."

Naruto and Shippo were a bit of an odd pair, but they've been the best of friends for over a year now. The story of how the duo first met is a rather long one that is best summarized for now. There is a hunting caravan led by a man named Gendo. Gendo made a living by catching exotic animals and then selling them to the wealthy or even shinobi who wished to train the aforementioned exotic animals. They were on their way to Konoha, when they happened upon what they mistook for an injured fox on the outskirts of Wave Country. Shippo's race was actually a Yoko…though not demonic in nature per say, the species' supernatural abilities and great intelligence earned them the name of Demon Fox. Anyway, Gendo found Shippo hurt, so he was an easy enough capture. Gendo figured that somebody in Konoha would enjoy having a pet fox, something that would strike fear in those with fresh memories of the Kyuubi no Yoko. He sold Shippo to the father of a girl that was to become a ninja. The girl, Asuka, was a bit of a sociopath though. She tied the fox to a stump and, with her friends, proceeded to throw blunt kunai at the creature. Naruto, two weeks before his departure from Konoha came across them and chased the girls away. He released Shippo from his bonds and left. Shippo, not knowing a thing about the area he was in decided to follow and observe Naruto, even if the boy didn't always know it. Three days before Naruto ran away, when the boy was at his lowest, Shippo appeared before him and revealed his ability to talk. Shippo also showed off his species' powerful illusionary abilities.

In Naruto, Shippo found someone who protected him when he was at his worst.

In Shippo, Naruto found someone who could help him escape those who hated or feared what was inside of him.

The rest, as they say, is history.

-x-

The duo came across the bandit camp quickly enough. While Naruto stayed on the outskirts, Shippo went into the camp to scout things out. He came back after half an hour.

"Alright, there are twenty-one of them. The children are in one of the tents, in the center of the camp, guarded by two armed me. I got a plan though." Shippo gestured for Naruto to follow him through the forest.

The duo went about a quarter around the camp before Shippo stopped. He turned away from the camp. "That direction over their, is the designated restroom for the camp."

"Ewww." Naruto nearly gagged.

Shippo rolled his eyes, "Try complaining when you got a better sense of smell. Anyway, I'll seed the area with traps to grab anyone that'll run through here. If we do it at this distance, it shouldn't matter if we make a little noise."

Naruto nodded, "Alright, what should I do?"

Shippo shook his head before he started moving a small stone with his snout, "Keep guard, warn me if anyone comes by before I finish."

Five minutes later found leaning against a tree while fingering a combat knife. The knife's blade was a blood red color, the nearly appeared to be made of a crystalline material. The handle was jet black. After another moment, Naruto turned towards his companion. He saw Shippo pulling on a long rope, that nearly looked too big for his mouth. "You need help?" the boy asked.

Shippo snorted as he finally got the rope in position, "I got it Naruto."

The blond rolled his eyes at the response, "I'm just saying…I got thumbs."

Shippo shook his head, "Kid, I've been setting up traps since before you could crawl, and I've done it without the use of thumbs."

The blond shrugged off the comment and just continued his look out duty. It was lucky he did. "Someone's coming."

"Not ready yet, shadow him till you see an opening, then take him out."

Naruto nodded and melted into the forest, just as Shippo taught him to. The man in question went all the way to the spot Shippo had mentioned earlier. Naruto waited until the man literally had his pants down before he attacked.

The Kyuubi container pulled out his knife and rushed the man. For just a moment, the knife was enveloped in a fiery red chakra. Naruto brought the blade across the man's neck. The bandit tried to scream, but could only choke out on his own blood. He was dead within moments. Naruto just sighed and dragged him, by his arms, into the trees.

One down, twenty to go. The boy then went back to the area where Shippo was, to find the yoko had finished his project. The following two hours was a symphony of death and gore.

The first man fell into a hole with spikes, made out of sharpen bamboo, at the bottom (Naruto would never know who the yoko managed to dig such a trap in such a short amount of time...especially with all the other stuff he managed to cook up). The second man had a heavy rock fall on his head. The third nearly got the same treatment, but was caught in the shoulder instead, Naruto finished the bandit with his knife before the man could scream. The fourth fell into the same hole as the first man. The fifth took a sharpened wood projectile to the head. Naruto got bored when the sixth came around and ended him with the ruby knife. The rest were slowly killed by Shippo's traps.

-x-

By the time there were ten bandits left in the camp, the leader, a man named Shinji became suspicious. He sent three men out to go look for the others, with express instructions to return within a minute.

When those three didn't come back, the man screamed, "Trap!"

The instant those two words left his lips, he saw two small figures launch themselves out of the woods. Two tiny figures. One was small enough to be a child…the other was even smaller.

The two men guarding the prisoners held their positions, they knew better than to move from there posts without orders. Three other men quickly went to engage the boy in question. The boy in question threw a shurikan at one of the charging men, catching him in the throat.

The Shinji's eyes narrowed, shinobi then. He turned towards the two guarding the hostages, "Grab one of the kiddies."

The leader turned back just in time to see the boy had taken out the last man, of the three who charged him, with a strange red glowing blade. Definitely a ninja then. The boy then charged straight at him. The last man he had with him, rushed the boy. Shinji knew how that would turn out. He turned back to the two guards them just standing there. He was about to call them both idiots and repeat his orders when he noticed the dazed looks on their faces. A ninja illusion then. Shinji grabbed a stick on the ground and lit it with the nearby camp fire. If he was going to lose, he sure as hell was going to make sure the ninja didn't win.

Just as the ruby knife pierced the skull of his last man, Shinji tossed his makeshift torch. The tent the children had been placed in had been soaked in oil, just in case something like this happened.

He watched the stick sail through the air, fire alight on one side. He grinned at the sight. He then saw a creature, the same creature that appeared with the boy jump up on the head of one of his men. It was a dog? No, a fox? A fucking fox?

The fox used the man's head like a spring board and launched itself up to intercept the stick.

-x-

Naruto grinned when he saw Shippo catch the stick with his mouth. For his part, Naruto finished his charged and stabbed the dumbfounded man in the stomach with his glowing red knife.

Like he had told Shippo, it was easy.

-x-

Kenshin returned to the village four hours later, a large group of children following behind him. That day, the villagers would remember it as the day a miracle happened in the face of unimaginable odds. Naruto would remember it as a day he helped out some little kids.

Shippo would remember it as Tuesday.

-x-

An hour later, for there were a lot of people who wanted to thank him, Kenshin once again found himself at the inn he had been staying at. The elderly keepers were so ecstatic to have their granddaughter back that they were ready to allow Kenshin to stay free of charge for the rest of the year. He smiled politely and just asked to be paid what they had agreed upon. He just wanted to rest for the remainder of the year and get on the ship.

Hearing the door open, the faux-brunette turned towards the door…and felt his heart drop.

Takeru smiled at the man, "Oh, you came back. I'm sorry that you wasted your time, but it seems that Kenshin-kun managed to get the job done."

The man at the door shrugged it off and walked into the inn, giving Kenshin a long appraising look. "It's no problem at all, I actually go to see you finishing up the fight."

The man/boy in question gulped.

"I thought about stepping in, but he seemed to be doing such a good job that I didn't feel the need. Excuse me kid, we haven't been introduced", the man then went into an elaborate pose. I am the Sage of Mount Myobokuzan, the Great Jiraiya." The man then gave Kenshin a cheeky grin. "And you are?"

Kenshin grinned nervously, "Name's Kenshin, and I just remembered that I got something to do."

Takeru's eyes widened, "But you just got back, and all that you've done. You should stay-"

"It's nothing that big, just a small errand. I'll be back in a flash", Kenshin lied.

"Do come back", Jiraiya continued with a smile, "I'd really like to take you out for a drink. After what I saw, I'd definitely like to talk with you some more."

Kenshin nodded nervously, and turned to leave. This time he ran the moment he left the inn. On the outside he regained his composure. On the inside, 'shit, shit, shit, shit, shit, shit', not so much. He reached the woods quickly enough and continued his running as if the hounds of hell were after him.

When Naruto dropped his disguise, Shippo got close to his ear again, "Who the hell are we running from?"

"Bad news", was all that Naruto said before he continued his sprint.

"NARUTO!"

The boy's heart skipped a beat.

"NARUTO, I SUGGEST YOU STOP RUNNING THIS INSTANT!"

And that's exactly what Naruto did, he turned around a large tree and fell against it. Shippo took this opportunity to hide them both in an invisibility illusion, something he couldn't do while Naruto was moving.

Jiraiya appeared right in front of Naruto and just stood there.

"He'll miss us", Shippo whispered, trying to reassure Naruto whose heart was beating a mile a minute. The illusions kept them from being heard as long as they kept their voices down. "Try to relax, we'll escape him after he leaves."

But Jiraiya didn't leave, he stayed exactly where he was and just kept looking around. He kept flashing through handseals that Naruto assumed were detection-type jutsu. None of which could break Shippo's illusions. Then Naruto saw Jiraiya begin something he knew WOULD work.

"Sage Mode…"

Jiraiya hands went into a handseal and he began channeling chakra.

"What's Sage Mode?"

Naruto nearly cursed out loud, "Something that WILL find us. Shippo, break the illusion around me and hide."

Shippo was stunned at the words, "Are you out of your mind?"

"Come find me in Konoha later", Shippo got him out once, could he get Naruto out again? The boy doubted it…but he could always hope. "Listen to me, Jiraiya is about to do something that will find both of us. If he finds you, he might KILL you, just because you're a fox!" If Jiraiya saw Naruto at the bandit camp, then there was a pretty good chance that he saw Shippo as well. Naruto just hoped Jiraiya would…SOMEHOW dismiss the sight.

"But what about you, I'm supposed to look out for you."

"You can do more for me outside." Naruto carefully wrapped his fingers around the knife. "You're the only one I can trust. You need to wait for an opening and get me out!"

Shippo mewed and hesitated.

"Shippo now!"

The yoko then growled. "I'll come get you. I swear!"

-x-

Jiraiya narrowly managed to avoid being slashed by the blond boy by taking a quick step backwards. He KNEW that Naruto was there…he didn't know how he knew or even how the boy had managed to hide so well, but he knew.

"I'M NOT GOING BACK", Naruto snarled, and went to stab at the older man, his knife lit up with that same strange red light that Jiraiya quickly identified. With dizzying speed, the toad sage dodged Naruto's second attack and then slapped the boy's arm, hard enough to disarm him.

The boy flinched and heard his knife impale itself on the ground below him. Unarmed, outclassed and out of options, Naruto became like a corner animal. He started punching, clawing and kicking at the toad sage as wildly as he could…hoping for a miracle. For his part, Jiraiya avoided or blocked each strike. For a long while, he made no offensive move and just allowed the boy to vent out all of his anger. Considering where Jiraiya was about to drag him back to, he felt the blond was entitled a little time to vent. This song and dance lasted a good ten minutes before Naruto's impressive stamina finally gave out and he fell to his knees. The moment his knees hit the muddy ground he began wondering why it had to come to this. After two years of freedom, he was about to be captured because he decided to halt his departure…to help some people that he didn't even fucking know. Why was he being punished for helping someone?

Before he could do or think anything else, Jiraiya tapped a few pressure points and sent the boy into a deep sleep.

-x- flashback (age 7) –x-

The Fourth turned to his son, and sent the boy a small frown, "Naruto-kun, go to your room."

Naruto's eyes turned towards his father, looking at him as if the man had just slapped him. "But…"

A raised hand stayed whatever argument the boy could have had. "You're being distracting. Go now." The voice was stern, and would not give.

The small blonde frown, stood up, and stomped off.

Minato frowned, as he did every time Naruto misbehaved.

"Daddy."

Minato looked down at his daughter's latest drawing, smiling in approval. "That's good dumpling. Redraw it once more for me."

The little girl pouted. "But I wanna play." Naruto was able to hear the girl's whine and bristled at it.

"Once more", Minato said sternly. Sighing, she grabbed another piece of paper and began doing as she had been told.

The rift between the twins was ironic indeed. Both their parents valued the importance of family over all, yet it was their actions that led to the rift being formed in the first place. One child jealous at all the attention the other received, the other jealous over the others freedom.

-x- end flashback –x-

Naruto's eyes slowly opened. He immediately realized with a start that his hands were tied behind his back. A few feet away, Naruto noticed Jiraiya looking his knife, HIS knife, over. He immediately began struggling.

"Don't bother, I got you marked with every containment seal I know of", Jiraiya said dispassionately. "So where'd you get the knife anyway? Judging from the fight, this thing let's you channel the Kyuubi's chakra, even though you don't know how to do so your self, am I right?"

Ignoring the question, Naruto just yelled "I'm NOT going back!"

"You don't actually have a choice in the manner", Jiraiya said in a matter-of-fact tone of voice.

"Bullshit! I'm NOT a ninja, you can just round me up like some missing-nin!" His eyes stung, and he had to consciously hold back the tears. He wouldn't cry in front of him. No fucking way. "Oh wait, lemme guess it's because I'm a fucking demon container!"

"Your mother is really gonna love your vocabulary", the old man muttered.

"So what, I don't get a choice in the matter because I have this thing in my stomach, a thing I didn't ask for!"

Jiraiya just looked down at the boy in front of him, "Well, that's part of it kid, I'm not going to lie to you, you being a demon container is a big part of why NOONE will EVER leave you alone."

Naruto clenched his eyes shut. "I didn't ask for this, any of it! I fucking hate all of you so much!"

"I can't blame you. However, there is one more reason that I'm not leaving you alone. Frankly…you're eleven. Just turned so a week ago, am I right?"

Under different circumstances, Naruto would probably blush at the fact that he did NOT know that. Being out in the wilderness, and rarely going into villages had a strange affect on ones perception of time. Hell, he didn't even realize he had turned ten until six months after the fact. Regardless, Naruto wasn't in the right state of mind to appreciate that little fact. Instead, he growled at the old man, "Bullshit! The village let's kids younger than me become ninja, Kakashi was a ninja when he was six, and ALL of them are considered ADULTS!"

Jiraiya chuckled at the boy's response. He didn't mean to, he hadn't wanted to do anything that would further upset Naruto, but he couldn't help himself. He could already see the boy bristling at the act. "Yes, you're right Naruto. We do let kid's younger than you join the shinobi corps…and all of them, not matter the age, are considered adults the moment they become genin, with all the benefits that comes with that. However, the problem with your argument is simple, they are all shinobi. Non-shinobi children, are still seen as children and are under the custody of their parents." Left unsaid was that a shinobi is bound to his/her village…so he wouldn't be able to take off anyway.

Naruto growled and turned away from him. Once again, he clenched his eyes shut. "So what, I'm just supposed to return to the village like a good little boy and let my sister be my jailor!"

Jiraiya's eyes widened at that. "You know about that!"

"Of course I fucking know about that, isn't it obvious!", the boy all but screamed."

Neither Minato or Kushina hadn't wanted Naruto to become a ninja. They were afraid of what would happen if he unlocked the Kyuubi's power and go berserk. Mito, the Kyuubi's first container, had so much control over fuuinjutsu she never had such a problem. Kushina had her special chakra type, which could easily restrain the Kyuubi. Both dealt with the Kyuubi's attempt to bang on it's bars. Both never had an issue restraining it.

Then came the third container. Minato looked down at both his children, and couldn't even begin to fathom which to choose. How does a father, any father make that kind of decision. Not well. In Minato's case, he, and he would NEVER admit this to anyone for fear of Kushina's wrath, chose Naruto because he was a boy…he hoped he would be stronger than his sister. Ironically, it would be Kairi that would inherit her mother's special chakra type, not Naruto. As they say, hindsight can be a bitch sometimes.

Jiraiya frowned, "To everyone but your father." Jiraiya looked down and began poking the campfire. "You know, I once thought your father was playing favorites between you two."

-x- Flashback (age 9) –x-

Jiraiya frowned at his student, "Have you actually punished him for complaining?"

Minato shook his head. "Well…not normally. He can be pretty vocal some times. We're trying to discourage that kind of behavior."

The Sennin snorted. "He's pretty vocal about your obvious favoritism. I wonder why?"

The Hokage looked like he had just been slapped before glaring at his old teacher, "I'm not playing favorites!"

Jiraiya shook his head, "That's not what it sounds like to me, and I guarantee that he feels the same. Damn it Minato, put yourself in the kid's place. Do you honestly think this sounds fair?"

Minato stare faltered before he looked down completely. "No, I don't. It's just…I don't want him to become a ninja. Kushina and I are considering giving him a tutor in a non-ninja field-"

"Wait, is that why you're making him read all of those books?" Jiraiya interrupted.

Minato nodded, "Yea, we figured we'll give him an early start."

"Why? He's told me a hundred times over that he wants to be a ninja. Heck, he wants it more than Kairi does."

"We think it'll be safer for him and for Konoha if he stays away from that type of life style."

Jiraiya narrowed his eye, "This is about The Seal isn't it? You're still afraid that it's defective."

Minato nodded, "That's part of it."

"Damn it Minato, we've been over the damn thing dozens of times. The Seal is flawless!"

"It's not just that though", Minato said with a frown. "Despite my attempts to persuade them otherwise, the villagers still seem to think that Naruto is a monster." He clenched his eyes shut. "I just think it'll be even worse if Naruto trains to become a ninja."

Jiraiya frowned, "You'll just end up making him a target, Minato."

The Fourth glared at his sensei, "He already IS a target. And as a Jinchuuriki, he's even more of a target than Kairi."

"But you'll train her how to defend herself, but not him?"

"As long as he's in the village, I can protect him." He gave his old teacher a smile, "I can reach him in a flash."

Jiraiya wasn't amused by the pun, "You plan on outliving him? Cause sooner or later, you won't be around to protect him. And, no offense, but I hear Uzumaki's have a slight advantage in the whole lifespan thing."

"Kairi will takeover that responsibility when I can't do it anymore."

Jiraiya's initial response was going to be how he was putting both of them, Naruto AND Kairi, into a situation that he doubted either would want to be in, especially Naruto. But then a thought occurred to him. Something that he didn't like. Jiraiya glared at the man in front of him. "She's not his protector…she's his Warden."

"What?"

Jiraiya glowered at his former student. "Her chakra-type and the Fuinjutsu you're teaching her. You're making sure she has the power to keep him in line, if necessary."

Minato shrugged, "If necessary. If he loses control of the Demon, she'll have various methods to subdue him quickly, but without hurting him."

Jiraiya just shook his head, "You're making a mistake! You're making all these important decisions about his life, and you don't even have the don't even have the dignity to tell him why! Mark my words, this IS a mistake and it's going to comeback to bite you in the ass if you follow through with it!"

The Hokage stayed firm, "I made my choice."

The older man sighed and just shook his head a second time. Jiraiya left Konoha that day; he had jobs to do, things to look into, and another volume of his book to write. However, like the words of a prophet, Jiraiya's prediction eventually did come true. Naruto found out the truth a month later, and ran away three days after that. It would another week before Jiraiya returned to the village, an "I fucking told you so!"- at the tip of his tongue. The words never left. Seeing the condition that Minato had been in kept him from voicing the words.

-x- end flashback –x-

"Why are you telling me this?"

Jiraiya shrugged, "I didn't want to lie to you Naruto. There are ways to handle things and Minato picked the wrong one. Under different circumstances, keeping secrets might have been an option, but we're way beyond that."

Naruto narrowed his eyes, "Please let me go."

Jiraiya shook his head, "I can't do that."

"Please", the boy begged. "You agreed that I was a prisoner before I ran away, what do you think is going to happen when you take me back!"

The older man sighed, "You're being hunted Naruto." Naruto's eyes widened at that, "People like you, Jinchuuriki, are being hunted by a group of dangerous criminals. They haven't made their move yet, but I know they're after you and I don't know why. What I do know is that if they get you, all nine of you, then the shit is gonna hit the fan. As cruel as this sounds, I gotta think of the needs of the many…and not just Konoha but everyone in the Elemental Nations over you."

Naruto shut his eyes, "Then kill me."

Jiraiya was taken back by that.

"I won't cooperate in any way, so you may as well extract the damn thing and let me die. Not like you need me anyway!" the boy spat.

The toad sage looked at the boy in shock. Was he serious? If he was, then it wouldn't take him long to realize that he didn't need help in achieving death. They would need to keep him from anything that he could cut himself with, or high attitudes where he could jump. He could stop eating, they might counter with a feeding tube. He could bite out his own tongue, they could counter with a gag…they'd also need to restrain him so he wouldn't remove the gag. He could refuse to urinate until his bladder burst, they could counter with a catheter. In the end, if Naruto REALLY wanted to end his life, they would be forced to fully restrain him, gag him, hook him up to various machinery. What was the point in living like that though?

They couldn't drug him…who knows what the medication would do to someone with a healing factor. Maybe they could have a member of the Yamanaka clan alter his mind but…would Minato and Kushina go that far? There'd surely be a huge scandal.

Jiraiya sighed again, "I'm getting to old for this shit. You want the damn thing extracted, bring it up with your parents. We'll be in Konoha by noon tomorrow."

"Already?" Naruto looked at the old man, wide-eyed. They hadn't even been in Fire Country when Jiraiya captured him!

"Reverse summoning…blah blah blah." Jiraiya said with boredom in his voice.

The two didn't talk for the rest of the night… Jiraiya was too emotionally drain to talk with the boy anymore. Naruto just felt impending dread reach his stomach.

-x- Flashback (Age 9) –x-

Back then, Naruto and Kairi were constantly at odds. Naruto was understandably jealous that his sister was being given ninja training, and even being taught Fuuinjutsu, both their parents specialty. Kairi was jealous that Naruto got to do whatever he 'wanted', while she was constantly forced to train and study just to meet her parents high expectations. It would have been one thing if Naruto were with her, being forced to learn all the thigns she was, but he wasn't.

Arguments between the two ended in one of two ways, Naruto would be punished for being in the wrong or both would be punished, Kairi for being in the wrong and Naruto for being too 'wound up' were the words their parents normally used. They had hoped they would teach Naruto, who thanks to a certain demon had the twice the energy levels of a normal child, to be more calm, like his sister was. They sadly went about it the wrong way.

One night Minato made a mistake that he would forever regret. He was lecturing Kairi on theories and the like and every got into the topic of a Jinchuuriki. That's when Kairi connected the dots and understood the truth about her brother, something that Minato thought she would be too young to understand. He looked her in the eye and made her swear that she would NEVER reveal what she had learned to ANYONE! She nodded. He kept her their for another ten minutes, explaining to her the consequences of breaking her promise. Most children, anyone under the age of about four or so (on the day that the Kyuubi attacked), didn't know that Naruto contained the Kyuubi. If she broke her promise, whatever rift their was between Naruto and the other children would surely widened, Naruto would of course be hurt that he hadn't been told about the Kyuubi, and Minato made it clear that she would be SEVERLY punished if she broke her promise. When Kairi left her father's office that night, she had been pale as a ghost.

Either way, shit hit the fan one week later though. That morning, Naruto and Kairi, out on the playground in front of dozens of other children, had gotten into a heated argument over some such nonsense. Within five minutes, they had begun name-calling. Within ten minutes they had resorted to curse words…AKA: 'the words that instantly got you grounded if mommy ever heard you saying them'.

Kairi taunted him over the fact that he wouldn't be a ninja.

Naruto began shedding tears. He searched his library for the worst word he could call her and came upon one…and called her a whore.

In all fairness, Naruto didn't even know what the word meant or he never would have uttered it. Kairi did though, as evident by the tears in her eyes. As did a number of children who either looked at him in shock or went 'Oh!' at the jab. Kairi, red faced, then did what one week ago she swore she'd never do. "At least I don't have a demon inside of me! That's why everyone hates you, you got the Kyuubi no Yoko inside of you!"

Naruto went wide-eyed. Kairi looked vindicated for just a moment. That moment ended when all the children around them screamed and runaway from the pair or, to be more specific, Naruto.

The next two days were filled with temper tantrums that would have gotten Naruto grounded for months if he had done it before. Kairi had wanted to apologize, she truly did, but she had been confined to her for breaking her promise…and that was only the beginning of her punishment. She had heard that Naruto couldn't even go outside without people pointing at him and children calling him a freak. Her father's words rang in her head over and over again. She swore that she would apologize that moment she was allowed out of her room, and find some way to make it up to Naruto.

One day later, Naruto ran away.

-x- End Flashback / The Next Day –x-

Jiraiya and Naruto, who had been unconscious for the majority of the journey, had arrived on the outskirts of Konoha just before noon, as Jiraiya had predicted.

The Toad Sage then woke Naruto up.

With wide-eyes, Naruto, who was still bound, looked up at the village he turned his back to so long ago. "We're here." Naruto said in a dazed tone of voice.

Jiraiya nodded, though he knew the boy's words were more of a comment and not an actual question he still responded with a, "We're here."

The village looked just like he had left it. It was a bit chilly, being autumn and all, but it wasn't unpleasant. He had actually been brought back here after nearly two years. A new feeling of dread surface in his stomach.

Jiriaya looked down at the boy, "You can decide how this will play out now, brat. I can't just carry you back while you're unconscious and I can't have you struggling while I try to drag you through the gates. Both would look bad. So your call, either come back in with me without a fuss or I'll throw you in a sac and carry you in that way." And to prove he was completely serious, Jiraiya produced a sac.

Naruto couldn't respond for a long time, still dazed at the idea of being back here. When he finally did answer, Naruto remembered that THIS was the man who had brought him back to become (best case scenario) a prisoner in his own village. In an act of defiance, Naruto spat on the ground and turned his head.

Without missing a beat, Naruto was in the sac a second later and hefted over Jiraiya's shoulder. He tried struggling, but found it hard to move. He felt himself moving…fast. Jiraiya must have been moving at his top speed by the feel of it.

Naruto could only wonder what would happen next. Would he be brought to his father? Before the council? Would they immediately throw him in prison? Would he actually be executed? He suddenly hoped Shippo wouldn't find his way back to Konoha.

When they finally came to a halt, he heard a knock…well he mostly felt the knock vibrating throught he bag. Was he already entering the Hokage's office? He heard muffled voices through the sac, but couldn't make out just WHO was speaking. Finally Jiraiya started moving again, this time at a much slower pace.

He was turned upside down and he fell in a heap on a rather hard wooden table. He quickly recognized it has the table in their living room. He and Jiraiya weren't alone. Six different women, all of whom he recognized, surrounded them on all sides…and, if their wide eyes were any indication, they quickly recognized him as well. The only one he cared about though was the only one that wasn't sitting down.

She stood a few feet behind Jiraiya, staring at him with disbelieving eyes. Their, in a mostly red and black outfit, stood his mother. Scarlet hair framing her face, violet eyes filled with unshed tears.

"Naruto…"

A/N: And that's the end. Let me know what you think.