Odd One Out || Naruto

Chapter 1

Naruto was in any way and in every way, an overthinker.

His silence as he sat on the swing only further proved that point. His hair tickled his whiskered cheeks along with the wind blowing by. Catching a leaf within his palm, he let out a little frustrated groan as he thought back to Mizuki-sensei's words.

Steal a scroll, learn a jutsu and past the test! That seemed simple enough, as hard as it is. Naruto was fully confident he couldn't even learn anything even if he did manage to steal it. After all, he couldn't even do a simple clone jutsu. He could nail a transformation almost perfectly, but it wouldn't last long. Maybe he has too little chakra to do anything, or he has too much chakra that he can't control it properly. Though, he was certain the last one definitely wasn't the answer.

He isn't worthy of being a shinobi, really. He had no skills, no smarts, no one liked him. Even the teachers at the academy won't help him with practice. Iruka sensei seemed nice, but all he really does is yell at Naruto and drag him back to class. There's no way Iruka thought of him as anything else other than a troublemaker.

Mizuki, on the other hand....

It was evident to the boy that the man had always disliked Naruto, with how clearly he'd show it. But maybe he's finally beginning to realise Naruto's efforts in his studies- Hours of staying up for written tests, jotting down every thing he hears in class, trying to make clones, dragging out transformation jutsus, and really any kind of practice you could think. He tried really, really hard... and Mizuki sensei was the first to realise that.

Mizuki might just be using him, he'd considered that fact already. But if it meant the littlest chance that someone would acknowledge him....

Iruka stepped out of the academy, his head turning left and right but there wasn't a single sign of the blonde boy he was in search of. A concerned frown was on his face. As much as he felt bad for the boy, he couldn't just let him pass with such sloppy clones. Becoming genin meant going out to the real world, and letting Naruto wander out without actual abilities as a shinobi would only harm the boy more.

"Here I was hoping I could treat him to some ramen to cheer him up...I guess I'll go look for him now," Iruka rubbed his head with a sigh before leaving the main compound of the academy. He hoped he hadn't crushed Naruto's will to become a shinobi completely. Iruka swore he'd pay more attention to Naruto this time round and take his time to help him. That is, if the boy allows it...

Before he could head to Naruto's apartment, however, a shinobi suddenly appeared before him, startling him a bit as he quickly got into a defensive position. He relaxed his posture when he realised it was a shinobi of his own village, before giving a smile to greet him. "Sorry about that. What do you need-"

"No time to discuss, Umino. Naruto Uzumaki has stolen the forbidden scroll, we gotta look for him."

The shinobi disappeared immediately after that, leaving a flabbergasted Iruka standing at the entrance of the academy.

Naruto what now?

He was fully confident now. For the first time in his life, he was absolutely sure, and he was never going to doubt it. Naruto's hands shook as he stared at Mizuki sensei, wide eyed. Of course, god, how stupid was he? Why would Mizuki treat him differently compared to other villagers? Of course Mizuki sensei was using him. He's so dumb.

"Come on now, what are you waiting for? Hand it over," Mizuki urged the blonde boy who flinched, backing away slowly. This is probably it for him, Naruto thought. The end of his shinobi career. No one would want someone who stole the forbidden scroll as a shinobi of their village. No one would want someone who assisted a criminal in turning against the village. No one would ever trust him.