It was like the loud gong of a bell going off in him. The words, spoken by the angel that deigned to grace a commoner like him with her presence, reverberated through him and resonated with something deep inside him. His soul, his very essence screamed out at him for attention.
He racked his mind thinking of anyone that would fit the mould of the person that she described.
While he had people he considered precious, he always had doubts about it. The Hokage, who he affectionately calls jiji, was someone he considered as such.
But he was the Hokage, he once said that the entire village was his family. Naruto never heard of him taking a special interest in any other orphans, so what made him special.
He got his answer when Mizuki-teme revealed that the Kyuubi-no-Yoko was sealed inside of him. It was like a punch to the gut to hear that. He remembered asking his jiji for years why the villagers treated him the way they do and he always said that they feared what they didn't understand and that he should be patient with them.
It never made much sense to him then but after Mizuki revealed his circumstances it all made sense to him. It made him angry that the Hokage had been lying to him all those years.
It hurt him to think of it so he buried it deep within himself and got on with his life. But now he couldn't help but question, if he didn't have the Kyuubi sealed within him would the Hokage even care about him.
Was it all done to make him loyal to the village? If he lied about that what else could he have lied about? The numerous times he asked about his parents immediately came to mind.
The same with Iruka-sensei. He treated Naruto with the same scorn and contempt as the rest of the village in the beginning and even though he came around in the end and became someone precious to Naruto, it's hard to forget first impressions and he could still see the sneering face of Iruka-sensei in his mind.
And while he love the Hokage and his teacher and would protect them with his life, he can't help but be unsure and untrusting of their motives. The less said about his team the better. Sakura-chan constantly abused him, physically and verbally.
Sasuke wasn't any better and treated Naruto like he was something to be scraped off the bottom of his shoe. Kakashi-sensei seemed detached and unapproachable and seemed more concerned with Sasuke and igniting the flames of rivalry between the two boys to, what seemed like Naruto, push the last Uchiha further.
He wasn't really sure what to think of the guy. The only people he can honestly say care about him and his well-being were the father-daughter duo that owned his favourite ramen stand that always fed him when he went hungry, Ichiraku Ramen, Teuchi-jiji and Ayame-neechan. While it was a sad state of affairs he was OK with it for now.
This past through his mind in a few seconds as he finally looked up at Haku.
Said girl had to hold back a gasp at the look in his eyes. She would know, she sees those eyes in the mirror every time she looks.
Naruto didn't know why but he trusted this girl in a way that he hasn't anyone else. He felt as though he could bare his soul to her and she would embrace it and help to mend it.
He decided to take a chance and told her about his life and the struggles he has been through. It was the first time that he has ever spoken to anyone about the demons that plague him. Haku for her part was shocked at the similarities between them.
She now understood why he seemed to call out to her. He was a kindred spirit. She could tell that it took a lot for him to open up to her, which is testament to how wounded he is that he trusted a complete stranger with his emotions instead of anyone in his village.
She decided to return the favour and tell him about her life, minus her role as Zabuza-sama's accomplice. He was shocked as well at how comparable their lives were.
From there on they spoke about more about themselves as they shared their hobbies, likes and dreams. Haku was happy to know that Naruto had quite the green thumb when it came to flowers and Naruto was ecstatic to learn that his new friend enjoyed ramen, though not to extent that he did.
The conversation flowed on smoothly from there onward and Naruto felt as if a weight was lifted off his chest, a weight that he didn't even know was there. As he too in her beautiful features and the happiness that radiated off her, he felt his heart drum in his chest and he decided then and there that there was no sight more beautiful than this.
As it was getting late they both had to return to their respective places. They made a promise though to meet up again tomorrow and maybe the following days. Naruto left the clearing with a spring in his step, feeling lighter than he ever has.
....
Naruto was jerked away by the sound of a feminine scream and a crash. He immediately took in his surroundings and realised that he was in the guest house in Tazuna's house.
It seemed like he slept in. He heard another scream and he recognised the voice as Tsunami. He kicked into action and made his way down the stairs.
The scene before him made his blood boil. Tsunami was on her knees, being held by her hair by one of Gato's thugs, an area of her face was red indicating that she had been hit, while the other advanced towards a trembling Inari. He was about to make his way to them when he heard Inari.
"Let go of my mom you jerks!" He shouted whilst brandishing a kitchen knife. Naruto broke out into a little smile at the boy finally finding his resolve to stand up for himself and his mother.
While the thugs laughed at him Naruto created two clones and quickly use the [ Kawarimi no Jutsu] to replace Tsunami and Inari with them and proceeded to beat the thugs into unconsciousness while the two looked on in awe.
After rounding them up with some ninja wire and asking his clones to take them out in the woods he turned to the residents of the house. He smiled at Inari.
"Good job protecting your mother Inari. I'm sure she's proud of you." He stated causing the boy to blush happily at the praise and his mother to beam happily at him.
Naruto inquired as to his team's whereabouts and could help feel a bit of dread when he was told that they made their way to the bridge.
As he took off toward the bridge he couldn't help reminisce about the last few days of his life. Having met up with Haku for the last four days to talk about everything and anything that they could think of, he could honestly say it was the happiest time of his life.
He didn't know what it was about the girl but she made him feel at peace. With the world and with himself. When he was with her all his problems seemed so insignificant in the face of her beautiful smile when he made her laugh or her adorable pout when he teased her.
The feeling of contentment and belonging was one he was unfamiliar with and he honestly couldn't comprehend the strange new feeling she ignited within him.
All he knew was that he wanted to protect her smile. He wanted to make her happy and he would go to any lengths to keep her safe.
He would talk to her about these strange feelings when he sees her next time and hopefully she can tell him what to do. She was a smart girl, she would know how to help him.
The sounds of fighting and metal clashing reached his ears as he looked up and noticed the conflict taking place on the bridge. He saw Kakashi-sensei engaging Zabuza trough the mist on the bridge, he also spotted Sakura-chan guarding Tazuna although he did notice her trembling.
The final he noticed and the strangest was a large dome-like structure that looked to be made of ice. It looked quite foreboding. By the process of elimination he realised that it was probably Sasuke who was fighting Zabuza's accomplice in there.
He figured that Kakashi-sensei could take care of himself and that Sasuke would need a hand. He rushed towards the dome just in time to see Sasuke fall to the ground, his body riddled with what looked like senbon.
He was still and unmoving. While Naruto didn't really like the guy he was still a fellow Konoha shinobi. He could feel his anger overcome him.
Haku noticed Naruto rush in just in time to see his teammate fall. She had conflicting feelings at this juncture.
While she wanted to fulfil the mission that Zabuza-sama assigned her, she didn't want to hurt Naruto-kun. She wasn't ashamed to say that she had quite the soft spot for the blonde enigma. In the few days they have known each other he had somehow wormed his way into her heart. She knew that she would never be able to harden her heart enough to do what needs to be done.
"Was he a friend of yours? He fought well. He just wasn't strong enough. This is the way of the shinobi world." Said Haku solemnly. She knew he was still alive as she didn't aim for any vital points but she needed to keep up the charade.
While this was going on, Naruto was thinking about the words Haku spoke to him in the forest when they first met.
"A person is able to become truly strong when they wish to protect someone they cherish."