Naruto once again forced himself back to his feet after yet another powerful kick from Chōza had sent him to the ground. His tired and battered body was crying out for rest after hours of nonstop training but Inoichi, Chōza, and Shikaku forced him to constantly move to miss their unrelenting attacks.

The heat of the afternoon beat down on him nearly as hard as the three powerful clan heads before him now. However, the sun had only made him hot. The three men before him also made him bleed.

This had been his life for the past few weeks. Going to school and training until the sun had set behind the Konoha mountains. Ino as always stood off to one side watching as the intense training took place. She would of course always make sure he was alright after the training had ended. A fact Naruto was truly grateful for. However, today the three powerful men seemed to be pushing him harder than normal. Why that was he had no idea but he hoped it would make itself clear soon. Chōza Akimichi upon seeing the boy back on his feet once again unleashed yet another powerful jutsu. Naruto, however, was unable to move away in time and thus was hit with the attack full force. In seconds he was sent flying at a high rate of speed. Ino at once raced over to his side before frantically looking him all over. He was fine aside from the fact he was now unconscious. Turning to face the three she yelled out

"You're being too hard on Naruto-kun"! Ino said making the three men who all looked sheepish. But it was what happened next that drew everyone's attention back to the unconscious boy. A red mist started forming all around him and in seconds he was fine. His many small cuts and scrapes were all healed leaving not even a scar or blemish on him. It wasn't long after that Naruto opened his eyes. He felt weak like he had just performed an intensive jutsu and was feeling the after-effects. However, he was fairly sure he had done no such thing. Still aside from being a bit winded from the hard training he was fine.

"Naruto are you alright? You took a fairly sizeable hit just now". Chōza said helping the boy back to his feet. Naruto for his part only waved the sizeable man away. He had taken far worse than a low B-rank to the chest before. A fact that made the boy's eyes moisten somewhat. Inoichi understandably called it a day and the group soon left the training ground. Ino as always right by his side chatting away. The three clan heads eyed the pair happily.

"Ino seems to like him". Chōza said as he dug into a family size bag of barbecue potato chips. Shikaku said nothing but he agreed with his lifelong friend the two did seem to enjoy each others company, perhaps a future marriage proposal could be made for the two later on in life.

"You're not implying that we marry the two"? Inoichi said in a hushed tone.

"Would that be so bad? She clearly likes him. You saw how fast she moved. That was Chunin-level speed. She loves him that much is clear. However, I doubt even she herself knows the depths of her feelings for the boy". Chōza said as he sealed the now empty bag into a scroll. Inoichi seeming for the first time eyed Naruto. He reminded him so much of his father. The attack twelve years ago had taken many lives. But few were as impactful as the loss of the Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze. However, oddly no body was ever found after the attack. It was as if the two new parents just ceased to exist. Still, Naruto was better than most boys Ino could have feelings for he guessed. He was kind, loving, and surprisingly highly intelligent. A few more years of training and he was sure the boy could be on par with Shikaku. But for now, all talk of marriage proposals could wait as the clan gates were now coming into view.

-

Hours later Naruto was busy reading a tome. The Yamanaka clans library wasn't sizable but it still housed more than 2,000 books. More than enough to keep him busy reading for many years. He was just about done his current chapter when the door opened to reveal Ino Yamanaka's mother and baby sister Aki Yamanaka. He had met her once before but she was sleeping peacefully in her mother's arms and so the two hadn't met face to face. Now, however, she was outstretching her little baby arms his way. Naruto at once placed his book down upon the table and picked up Aki who upon landing in his arms gave a happy cry of excitement. For the rest of the day, Naruto played with little Aki, ate dinner with :his: family, played a few games with Ino, and finally went to bed.

-

Meanwhile, in the depths of his mind, the man with the blood-red hair sat down. It wouldn't be long before his time would end. He could already feel his power dropping day by day. He was now only at seven tails worth of power. In a few more weeks he would be gone entirely. But he didn't feel saddened by that fact. This boy...this human reminded him of another. He could sense the boy's untapped potential. Like a dam holding back a torrent of water. He knew his life wouldn't be an easy one and so he had gifted him with a new bloodline. One that would exist in his family. With that thought in mind, he soon returned to his work. Today was a very busy day and he had been pushed to work ever harder and ever faster. But he was sure that in time this human, this boy would be known far and wide. He had no doubts about that. No doubts at all.