"Lord Hokage!"
A Chūnin rushed into Hiruzen Sarutobi's private quarters, where the elderly Hokage was enjoying a rare moment of peace, practicing his calligraphy.
"What is it?"
Hiruzen looked up at the scroll before him, slightly frowning as he sensed the urgency.
"It's Naruto. That brat pulled another prank!"
"This time he… he painted graffiti on the Hokage Rock!"
"And he used paint!"
Hiruzen sighed heavily, letting his brush fall with the final stroke.
"Go get Iruka. Tell him to bring that boy down."
"Yes, sir!"
The ninja swiftly departed, leaving Hiruzen to look at his finished calligraphy. But no matter how he stared at it, it felt like something was missing.
---
"Naruto!"
Iruka was practically seething by the time he arrived at the Hokage Rock. The boy had been getting more troublesome with age, and now he'd gone too far.
He'd actually painted on the faces of the past Hokage! Using real paint, no less! Giving them makeup like they were in a comedy show!
"Ahaha… Iruka-sensei…"
Twelve-year-old Naruto gave a sheepish grin, trying to weasel his way out.
"You little rascal!"
"Do you even know what you've done?!"
"Get up there and start scrubbing right now! Don't stop until it's spotless!"
Seeing there was no way out, Naruto reluctantly obeyed. The weight of Iruka's built-up patience was not something he wanted to test.
Dangling from a rope, brush in hand, Naruto began the tedious task of scrubbing his "masterpiece" off the massive stone faces.
Iruka leaned against the railing nearby, arms crossed, watching Naruto clean. Seeing the boy diligently work, his irritation began to fade.
"Hurry it up. If you finish early, maybe you'll get to go home sooner."
Naruto's face scrunched. "Not like it matters. I'm just going home to an empty house. Doesn't make a difference."
Iruka's expression froze for a moment. Then he casually added, "I heard Sakura's coming back to the village tomorrow."
"Huh?!"
Naruto suddenly went rigid.
"If she finds out you were acting up like this… think she'd be mad?"
"Don't tell her! Please don't tell Sakura! I'll clean it all! I swear!"
Iruka chuckled inwardly as Naruto doubled his efforts, scrubbing with renewed vigor. The boy was all heart—even if he tried to hide it.
"Finish up, and I'll treat you to Ichiraku Ramen."
"For real?! You're the best, Iruka-sensei!"
But as Naruto cheered and scrubbed even harder, he accidentally knocked over the bucket hanging beside him. A cold waterfall of soapy paint water splashed directly onto Iruka.
"Naruto!"
"Ehehe… sorry?"
---
The Next Day – Ninja Academy
The sun shone brightly. Cicadas buzzed in the trees.
Naruto sat alone on the swing under the tree. His blonde hair glistened in the sunlight, but his heart felt heavy. From where he sat, he could see the Academy's main gate.
It was swarmed with smiling parents picking up their children.
Naruto stared ahead, his sky-blue eyes dull and filled with loss. The line between light and shadow that fell across his body seemed to physically divide him from the rest of the world.
"Is that him?"
"Yeah. Heard he was the only one who didn't pass…"
"Can't say I'm surprised…"
"Why does the Hokage still allow him to stay in the village…?"
The quiet murmurs of nearby adults reached Naruto's ears, like sharp thorns stabbing into his chest.
He lowered his gaze, gently swaying back and forth on the swing.
"Naruto."
A calm, familiar voice pulled him from his thoughts.
He looked up. It was Mizuki—one of the Academy instructors.
"Mizuki-sensei…"
The man wore a warm smile, and his gentle tone soothed Naruto's disheartened spirit.
"I'm sorry about what happened, Naruto."
That warmth… it felt like someone truly understood him.
But deep inside Mizuki's eyes, hidden under the kindness, there was a flicker of something cold. Something sharp.
He had been waiting for this moment for a long time.
---
That Night – The Forest
The night watched silently as a yellow blur darted through the forest like a flash of lightning.
Naruto was leaping from branch to branch, carrying a large scroll strapped to his back.
The Scroll of Seals.
Mizuki-sensei had told him that if he could master even one jutsu from the scroll, he'd be allowed to pass the exam and become a real ninja—just like Sakura.
Naruto had believed him.
But the first jutsu in the scroll turned out to be the one he was worst at: the Clone Jutsu.
Still, Naruto pushed himself to learn more, to keep reading—but before he could get very far, Iruka had somehow discovered his whereabouts and was already chasing him.
Now, Naruto had to find a place to hide and continue reading the scroll.
Whizz!
A sharp, piercing sound tore through the night air. Instinctively, Naruto ducked and rolled to the side.
A massive shuriken, nearly as big as Naruto himself, embedded deeply into the tree in front of him.
"Ah?!"
"You're really hard to catch, kid."
That voice—Naruto's eyes widened in shock.
Stepping out of the shadows under the moonlight came the man he'd trusted just hours before.
Mizuki's face was cold, twisted with cruelty and madness.
"M-Mizuki-sensei…?"
Naruto was frozen, his mind trying to make sense of what he was seeing.
Why would his teacher attack him?
That shuriken… if it had hit…
He would have died.
"Why…?"
"Mizuki-sensei, why…?"
"Ha? What the hell are you talking about, you damn fox?"
Mizuki sneered, his voice laced with venom. "Killing you here would be doing the whole village a favor!"
Fox? Me?
"Stop, Mizuki!"
Another voice rang out from behind—Iruka.
He arrived panting, having sprinted through the forest to catch up.
"Perfect timing, Iruka."
"Naruto, do you know why everyone in this village hates you?"
A twisted grin spread across Mizuki's face. He looked like he was enjoying this far too much.
"Shut up, Mizuki!"
"That's classified!"
Iruka rushed forward, shielding Naruto behind him.
"Classified?"
Mizuki burst out laughing.
"Don't kid yourself, Iruka. Everyone knows!"
"Naruto is the Nine-Tails!"
"That monster who killed your parents! That same beast that took down the Fourth Hokage!"
Iruka's face went pale.
"Enough! Mizuki, STOP!"
"You know it's true! Tell me, how could anyone treat him like a normal kid when he's the very demon who destroyed so many lives?!"
"And what about that precious little genius—Haruno Sakura?"
"You think she got close to Naruto by chance?"
"No, no. She was probably ordered to. Maybe she's just another pawn meant to manipulate him. Maybe they want his power."
"After all, who would willingly befriend a demon fox?"
Naruto's world crumbled.
Sakura… even Sakura had approached him with a hidden agenda?
His chest tightened. He couldn't breathe.
The mocking tone, the truths he never wanted to hear—it all felt too much.
He ran.
He didn't even register Iruka's voice calling after him.
He just ran, as fast and as far as he could.
Why?
Why me? Why is everyone against me?
Why would Sakura lie to me?
Am I really just hated by everyone?
Panic consumed him. He couldn't think, couldn't feel.
All he wanted was to disappear.
---
"Naruto."
A soft, icy voice echoed in the night.
Naruto looked up, breath hitching at the sight before him.
There, standing under the moonlight, was a girl.
Her cherry blossom-pink hair fluttered gently, tied in a high ponytail.
She wore the uniform of the ANBU—black, deadly, and suffocating. A tanuki-style mask rested on the side of her face, revealing her cold, beautiful features.
Emerald-green eyes stared at him, calm and unreadable like polished gemstones.
She stood tall, backlit by the moon, like some divine figure beyond reach.
Three other ANBU stood behind her, surrounding her like stars around the moon.
She was the center.
The commander of ANBU's Seventh Division—
Haruno Sakura.
Naruto's breath caught in his throat.
Everything Mizuki had said now warred against what he saw with his own eyes.
Was she an enemy?
Or…?
He didn't know anymore.
But one thing was clear:
The story was no longer just about pranks and mischief.
The curtain had finally risen on the main stage of fate.
---
(End of Chapter)