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An eight year old Naruto and his mother, Cecilia, sat at their dining table eating Naruto's favourite meal; ramen. It was a special occasion that night, for it was the night before Naruto started the Ninja Academy.

"Naruto, dear, tonight I would like to teach you some proper etiquette, as it might be useful throughout your ninja career," Cecilia stated, as Naruto tilted his head in confusion.

"What do you mean Momma?" Naruto asked. Cecilia chuckled

"Well, if you have to escort someone, you want to address them properly. To put it into context," Cecilia thought for a moment, "You were hired to be a prince's bodyguard and escort him to his palace. If you were to address him improperly, your relationship would be very rocky, and the mission could be at risk of failure." Naruto nodded, seemingly interested in how these manners would help him.

"Another scenario would be if you are on an infiltration mission. If you had to blend in with rich people, you can't go around acting as if you were raised on a farm. You'd be caught immediately and the mission would no doubt fail," Cecilia added. Naruto nodded again, and looked excitedly at his mother.

"Can you teach me some tonight Momma?" Naruto excitedly asked, excitedly shifting in his seat. His mother chuckled and nodded.

"Since we are already at the table, I will teach you some proper eating manners," she stated. Naruto nodded, attentively looking at her.

"First of all, your elbows should not be on the table, it's considered disrespectful. If you are to lean against the table, your forearm should be pressed against the edge of the table. Second, never speak with your mouth full of anything, and always chew with your mouth closed. Third, always sit with your back straight and your head held forward. Fourth, if you are in the presence of someone of higher power, it is polite to only speak unless spoken to. Now, you try the first three, as I'm not someone of higher power," Cecelia instructed. Little Naruto quickly clamped his mouth shut as he chewed his ramen and adjusted his arms to only touch the edge of the table, a focused expression present on his face. That was how the afternoon before academy was spent for the Samai household. And every night after that. Everyday, Naruto would learn a little more about mannerism and etiquette after school. Sometimes, his mother would throw in things such as body language, amongst other things. His classmates never noticed, but at lunch he would practice yesterday's lesson.

~~

October 5th, the date of academy student graduation. Eleven-year-old Naruto had woken up early that morning, walking downstairs to the dining room. He sat at the table eating cereal with his mother, a far away look in his eyes. Internally he was nervously going over the etiquette his mother had taught him. It was a habit that strangely calmed him down.

"You ready for your big day, dear?" Cecilia asked, sitting down in front of him. Naruto mutely nodded, the far away look still present on his face.

"Nervous?" Another nod.

"Well, even if you don't pass, you can try again. And I'll help you if it comes to it. No matter what, I also promise I will be waiting for you after." A grateful smile spread across Naruto's face, and he looked up at his mother.

"Thank you Mom!" Cecilia smiled back and nodded.

"Now hurry up, dear. We can't afford to be late. Also, as it is a special occasion, I will be walking with you to school." Naruto smile grew and he quickly ate and ran upstairs to get changed. Today, he did not dress in his orange jumpsuit. Even if he didn't pass, he was going to take it more seriously. Instead, he wore anbu pants, a plain black t-shirt, and a blue jacket. Naruto also grabbed his spares. He quickly ran downstairs, grabbed his lunch, and ran to the door to put on his sandals, in one quick motion. His mother chuckled, and held out her hand. It may have been eight years, but Naruto still loved that warm feeling when he held his mother's hand.

Together, they left their house and walked towards the academy, happily chatting the morning away. Soon enough, they had reached the front of the academy, and Naruto looked to her mother, ready to say goodbye.

"May I walk you to class, dear?" Cecelia asked, looking at her adoptive son. Delighted, Naruto's smile only grew - if that was even possible - and directed her to his classroom. He stopped at the door to his class, and his smile disappeared as he remembered something. Taking a deep breath, he turned to Cecelia.

"Um, I - I've never really told anyone I have a mom, and have always - always used Uzumaki as my last name," he explained, looking at his feet in embaressment.

"And why is that?"

Naruto shifted under his mother's gaze, and sighed.

"I didn't want to hurt you, Mom. Nor your reputation." Cecelia smiled, gently lifting his head to look at her.

"I appreciate you being so considerate. Since your classmates don't know about me, why don't we introduce me with - what is it you say? A bang?" Naruto stared at her for a moment, before his smile returned.

"Yeah. A bang, 'ttebayo!"

"Since you, my dear son, are the best prankster around, why don't you start it?"

"I sure will!" With that said, Naruto instructed her to hide out of sight from the doorway, which she did. Cecilia smiled fondly as he opened the door, and announced:

"The Number One Ninja is here! And with a special guest!" Naruto looked to the doorway as the class groaned. They expected another one of his pranks, but some were actually curious as to whom he had brought - or just extremely bored. Cecelia took this as her cue, and entered through the door. Reaching into his back pocket, Naruto brought out his spares - confetti bombs. He quickly pulled them and colourful paper rained upon his mother. Cecilia ruffled his hair and smiled. This turned heads.

"Good morning class. I've heard great things about you from my son." This caught even more attention. Cecilia Samai had just walked into their classroom. What? She announced she was a mother. Okay? Her son was Naruto. Impossible! It not only made the students question if she knew Naruto, but also raised the question of: Did Naruto even know who his mother was?

"Have a great day Naruto. Remember, manners, focus, calm, and relax. Okay?"

"Yes ma'am." The world was going to end. Naruto had just used a proper word to address someone.

"Love you, and have a great day Mom!"

"Love you too sweetie!" Cecilia called as she left through the door. Naruto still smiled as he sat down. Here's the catch though; he was quiet. He hadn't said a single word about declaring his love to Sakura, not a single word challenging Sasuke, not bickering with Kiba, not even bragging about who he had as a mother. It just seemed . . . wrong. Not that everybody didn't enjoy the noise level going down a bit, but it felt out of place.

"Hey, what's wrong with you? You haven't said a word after your," Kiba coughed, "Mom? left."

"I'm going to take this day seriously." Kiba looked at him, and realized that, sure enough, he did seem to take today more seriously. He went as far as to change his outfit.

"Wow. Who the hell am I even speaking to?" Kiba joked, yet it was a completely relevant question. Naruto did seem like a completely different person; it was ... weird. But, it was a change most could get used to.

"You're talking to me - Naruto Uzumaki-Samai," Naruto replied. 

"Alright class, settle down," Iruka said, walking into the classroom. The children rushed into their seats.

"Roll Call," Iruka started off.