Disclaimer: Do you really want to know what I'd do to Naruto if I owned him? Didn't think so. We'll just say that I don't and leave me to my dreams.

A/N: I made this one-shot purely to answer my own questions. So disagree with it all you want.

---

I woke up being scratched by the sharp leaves of a bush. Scrunching my face in irritation, I slowly moved my head up and examined my surroundings. The rising sun made me keep my eyes squinted, but I could make out the silhouettes of trees. How did I get here? I got up, and slowly memories of the night before began to come forth.

It was that old hag’s fault. I’d been staying in her house for what? Two, three months? Not that I was welcomed; ever since the day I had the misfortune to meet the senile old lady, she’s been out for my head. She didn’t even call me by my name; her greetings were along the lines of “you devil child!” Please, if either of us were possessed, it’d be her.

She sure got overly pissed. I mean, sure, there were a few holes in the wall, but it was an accident! But she had to go menopause on me and start chucking stuff at me until I left. And I left gladly. I’m definitely not going back to that senile old woman; her house reeked of cat urine!

Besides, today was my day! I would finally get to go to the academy, and be one of those cool shinobi I saw all over town! Not sure of the time, I raced into town, making sure not to be late.

---

I made it with time to spare. People were sitting around in the classroom, chattering. These were going to be my new friends! I ran towards an empty seat and sat down. Two guys around my age were chatting enthusiastically about something. “Hey!” I said, trying my best to seem friendly. My smile was met by glares. Turning back around, the boys ignored me. I turned to my other side, and saw that the person who was originally right next to me was slowly backing their seat farther and farther away from my own. It hurt a bit, but then I figured it out: I’d spent an entire night in the woods! I hadn’t looked in a mirror, and I was sure that I didn’t look my best. That would have to be it!

I kept quiet until class started. The teacher arrived, and began introducing himself and explaining what would be going on. I yawned; his speech was dull. I rested my head on the table, shielding my eyes from the bright lights above me.

---

The bell chimed, jolting me out of my peaceful dreams. The class ran out before I even lifted my head. I looked around, and noticed the teacher at his desk. Had he noticed my unconsciousness? I slowly got up and headed for the door, doing my best not to bring any attention to myself.

“Uzumaki Naruto-kun,” the teacher called out to me. Shit, I quietly cursed.

“Yes, erm—" I hadn’t even tried to remember what his name was.

“Iruka,” he answered.

“Oh, sorry Sensei!” I laughed awkwardly.

“If you’d have stayed awake, we wouldn’t need this introduction.” He then did something unexpected; he flashed me a smile, the first on I had gotten all day. In fact, it was the first one I had gotten in a while. “Do your best to find time to sleep at home, okay?” I nodded, grinning at the fact that I hadn’t made a new enemy, and again headed for the door. “Wait a minute, Naruto-kun.”

I turned my head, “Yes, Iruka-sensei?”

He held up a folded note: “A few jounin came earlier and told me to give this to you.” I grabbed it, said goodbye, and left.

As I walked out of the school, I opened up the letter. Konoha Child Services was written in bold letters across the top. “Not these jerkwads again,” I said to myself. The letter was asking for a meeting right after class. Guessing from the urgency, I suspected that they had heard about my confrontation with the crazy cat lady. Changing directions, I headed for their offices.

---

“Uzumaki Naruto-kun, please,” a man called out from the freezing cold waiting room. Why are they always cold? And why did they put me in there in the first place when I was sitting alone? I walked into the office and sat down in the empty seat. A man in a suit was sitting in front of a desk with papers and files sitting neatly on top of it. I hated that man; I’m dead sure that he got his kicks out of watching poor saps like me walk into his office.

“So, what am I here for now?” I asked coolly.

“You’ve started at the Shinobi Academy today, correct?” The man didn’t even look up from his paperwork.

“What’s it to you?” I gave for an answer.

“Usually, clients stay in our foster care until they graduate, but, under your circumstances,” he began ruffling through some more papers, and I assumed that he was talking about my record, “we have made special arrangements.” I sat more alert, in eager anticipation of their new “arrangements.” “We have decided that, since your caretakers do not seem to be of much help to you, you are old enough to be on your own. We will check up on you once a week, of course. And,” he whipped out a long slip of paper and placed it in front of me,” because you are still in school, we will supply fees.” I looked at the paper before me: it was a check. He took a pen off his desk, handed it to me, and pointed to a line on the bottom-right corner. “Sign here, please.”

I did as I was told. I peeked at the amount: though it wasn’t much, it was still more than I had ever had. The man then examined it and, once satisfied, pocketed it. “We’ll deposit this for you.”

“Now,” he began, “understand that this money is given because you are unable to work currently due to school. Once you leave, you’ll be on your own. So, we expect you to take your exams seriously. In fact, we’re requiring you to take exams a bit earlier. Not much, just a few months. But keep it in mind.”

I nodded, sure that I would pass with flying colors. And anyway, that was years away; why should I have worried about it then?

“But we’ll come to that road when the time comes. For now, I need to direct you to your new living arrangements.” He found a new paper, this one a map, and drew a line from where the office was to where my new apartment was. “Furniture has been donated to us, and your foster parent has given us your belongings. They are there waiting.” He then handed me a set of keys, and motioned for me to leave. He never once looked up to see my face.

I walked to my home, hardly able to follow the map due to the setting sun. My head was full of fantasies of what my apartment would be like. I could picture it: once I set it all up, I could invite all my friends (once I got some) and we could go wild!

---

I put my key into the door, jerking it a few times to get it to turn. I opened the door. Stepping inside, I nearly tripped on a box. There wasn’t much in the room, just a couple boxes and dust. I couldn’t even find a light.

Opening one of the boxes, I found a few of my possessions, mainly clothing. I hoped that I had been given blankets, for I had none of my own.

Once the box was empty, I sat down in the dark. I didn’t get it: here I was, living every child’s dream, and yet I just felt so…empty.

I laid my head down in the box I had just unpacked. I closed my eyes, picturing myself with friends in my bright new apartment. I turned to my side, and bunched my feet into my chest. And, for the second time that day, I fell asleep, hoping to wake up to a better day.