Chapter Text
Prologue - Internal Dilemma
"Ehehehe, I got the scroll! Let's see what's inside!"
The blond haired boy examined the forbidden Jutsu scroll, learning the inner workings. He was ecstatic over discovering it was a cloning technique, one he had been struggling with for so long. Somehow, this made much more sense to him than what he was being taught in class.
He spent a few hours practicing before mastering it. "Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"
A fully working shadow clone! But, something was slightly off. For some reason the hair was red. Otherwise, he was fully functional.
"I will work on fixing that later, I should get back before that jerk tries to take the scroll from me."
*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
The boy unfortunately ran into the man that sent him out on this errand. He was hoping he would avoid this encounter, but he was also secretly hoping to beat him to a bloody pulp with his new technique.
He summoned a large group of shadow clones while he hid amongst the crowd. He was still an outlier since every single one of them had red hair, but where he actually was didn't matter as the clones pulverized the man.
Once the boy undid the Jutsu, he fell into pain. "Did I use too much chakra? Is this the downside of… this technique?" The boy passed out.
*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
"Naruko?"
Wha-what? Who?
The boy was in a strange room, in front of a giant cage. There was a seal on the cage, containing a massive figure that he couldn't make out. There was someone in front of the cage as well, but he couldn't make them out either, except for their long red hair.
"Naruko?"
Who is… that's not my name. I'm Naruto! Or… wait…
"Naruko! Why do you look so much like your father?"
My father? Why does that matter?
"Ah, you can't respond at the moment. Let me try to explain a bit. This lovely piece of work placed a curse when it got sealed away, looks like your appearance took the full brunt of it. It's, however, seeming to be fading."
A curse? Is that why my clones had red hair? Who is this person?
"I'll explain more later, but you should return to your true self soon, as your chakra restores itself."
My… true self? This is a dream, isn't it?
"Naruko, I promise you won't be suffering too much longer. If you are truly my daughter, everything will come naturally."
Daughter? Is this one of those weird genderswap dreams? Explains why that person was calling me by a more feminine version of my name.
"I'll see you again, my child."
Chapter 1 - The Girl Awakens
What a strange dream.
I awoke to see that I was in my apartment bedroom. Wasn't I just outside after kicking that jerk's ass? What happened afterwards?
I shook my head and rubbed my eyes. When my vision cleared, I saw a strand of red hair. What's with the red hair? Another side effect of the Shadow Clone technique?
I moved it out of my vision and stood up. What? I feel so much lighter. I jumped a bit and felt an odd weight on my chest. Looking down and I was still wearing my regular gear from before I passed out, but it was jutting out a small bit.
Man, I really hope the Jutsu didn't mess with my body. I will seriously kick someone's ass if it did.
I unzipped my jacket and underneath… was a slightly familiar sight from my… ahem… personal technique. Man, my chakra must be really messed up if I'm currently in my Sexy Jutsu.
"Release!"
Nothing happened.
"Release!"
Still nothing.
My chakra is really out of whack if I can't even undo a Jutsu. Oh well, at least I'm alone right now.
"Naruto? Are you awake?"
Shit, that sounds like Iruka-sensei. He's going to chew me out for this.
I zipped up my jacket and started to make my way to my bedroom door as I caught a glimpse of myself in the mirror. I looked around the same height, but I was definitely a girl. My hair was not as long as it usually was in the Sexy Jutsu, nor was it in pigtails. It was also definitely red.
Maybe if I had a cuter outfit, I wouldn't mind being stuck like this for a bit.
Somehow, that thought didn't feel foreign. It felt appropriate.
I walked out into the living room where Iruka-sensei was, my goggles sitting on the table.
"Hey, Iruka-sensei. What happened?"
"You tell me, young lady. When were you going to tell me you were a girl this whole time?"
Excuse you? "What are you talking about? Clearly my chakra is out of whack."
"You know, I actually looked up a bit on the Uzumaki clan. You should have astounding control of your chakra. Even then, a chakra glitch wouldn't force you into a transformation Jutsu."
He was looking directly into my eyes. He was dead serious.
"If I was a girl all this time, don't you think I would know that?!" Suddenly, I felt angry. Like, absolutely livid.
"Calm down Naruto. I didn't mean to accuse you." Iruka-sensei put his hands out, like he was terrified. Heard him mumble something about Uzumaki temper, I think?
I went to sit down. "Seriously, what happened after I passed out?"
"Well, I found you passed out shortly after we recovered Mizuki. Mind explaining that whole thing?"
"Well, he told me about a scroll that would help me graduate. I was so desperate that I initially believed him. When I found it and taught myself the technique, I realized that he was playing me."
Iruka went wide-eyed. "You taught yourself a forbidden Jutsu?! How?!"
"Well, I would explain how, but I no longer have the scroll. Guess you confiscated it."
Iruka nodded his head. I took a deep breath.
"Well, it weirdly made a lot of sense to me so it was fairly easy to learn. After practicing a lot, I mastered the technique and went to beat the jerk's ass, which I accomplished with the Jutsu. It was weird seeing a lot of me with red hair though. Guess I never actually fully mastered it if I couldn't get the hair color correct…"
"Show me."
"...what?"
"Show me the Jutsu."
I inhaled deeply again. "Okay, but if my body gets more messed up, it's on you."
I recreated the hand signs I practiced. "Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"
A shadow clone appeared next to me, but this time it was a perfect clone. Specifically of me at this very moment. No off-color hair, just a red-headed girl like I was.
"Great, my shadow clones are somehow affected by the same issue I'm having!"
Iruka-sensei stood up and examined the clone, alongside myself. After a short bit, he spoke up again. "You know, if we were in class this second, you would have just passed with flying colors. She's a perfect clone."
"Yeah, but she's not me , now is sh-" I stopped mid sentence. I examined her closely. There are things you can't do in a mirror, so having a look at your own body from another perspective, especially when you're unfamiliar with your body, is a new feeling.
"Maybe if I were to make the jacket shorter… Maybe a skirt?"
"Hey moron, you know how uncomfortable it is to be gazed on like this?"
Right, shadow clone. She shares my thoughts and feelings. She's not a simple clone.
"Well, what do you think then?"
"You know what I think. I'm going to be straightforward with you since you're denying it, Naruko."
Naruko again?
"Come on, you know that's not our name."
"Bullshit. Are you going to ignore everything in your dream? Or will I have to show you what an Uzumaki is capable of?"
Was my own clone threatening me ?
"Go ahead, Naruko . Go ahead and convince me my whole life was a lie. Make me feel even worse than I have felt as far back as I could remember."
She poked me right in the stomach. " This was the problem. Iruka-sensei, care to explain?"
We both turned to Iruka. He rubbed his eyes and began talking about what happened 13 years ago. About the nine-tailed fox. About the Fourth Hokage sealing it inside of me, sacrificing his life doing so.
"That's the reason why so much of the village hates you. They blame you for the actions of the fox. It's completely unfounded. You did nothing. You were a baby."
Well, that explains my past, but what does that have to-
"This lovely piece of work placed a curse when it got sealed away, looks like your appearance took the full brunt of it. It's, however, seeming to be fading."
What that red-haired person said in my dream. Did the nine-tails curse me?
"Looks like the pieces are lining up. We are Naruko Uzumaki ."
That… seems to be correct…
I looked at my clone again, as she eyed me angrily. I sighed.
"Okay, stop with the evil eye." She poofed.
I sat down and put my head in my hands. "This is… a lot to take in."
Iruka sat down next to me. "I'll take you out for some ramen, my treat."
"I'm not in the mood for ramen right now. Maybe later."
He pat my back a bit and stood up. "I will need to report this to the Hokage. Try not to do anything reckless, please."
"Yeah, see ya Iruka-sensei."
As he left, I could tell he lingered at the door a bit before closing it. I could tell he still cared.
*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
After a bit of existential crisis, I stood up and went back to my room. I looked at myself in the mirror.
"This is the true me? This… cute red-head?" I took a deep breath, and felt myself smile. "My new normal." I practically bounced in excitement. "Finally! Things are finally making sense!"
My mind suddenly remembered how many girls in my class were absolutely smitten by a certain jackass in my class. Would I possibly-
"OH GOD!"
I smacked my head a bit. "NO! BAD THOUGHTS!"
Wait. I was still disgusted? I can't exactly replace my perspective of being a boy just yet, but I might be able to get my transformation Jutsu back on track and…
I pictured the stuck-up jerk in my mind. "Transform!"
I opened my eyes, and Sasuke was staring directly at me in my mirror.
It worked surprisingly well. Did that curse generally mess up my chakra concentration as well?
I replicated his normal resting bitchface and… nothing. No feelings outside of that I was already tired of looking at him. I canceled the Jutsu.
"Ah, back to my new cute self. And I still don't see what Sakura and Ino see."
Everyone is going to be so shocked… will everyone treat me differently? I know Iruka-sensei treated me the same.
"Maybe I should try to talk to Hinata. If I know her, she wouldn't treat me any differently."
Though, knowing her, she would be too shy to talk to me unless she knows I'm me.
"Maybe first I should get used to going outside. No one would recognize me, but maybe I should change my clothes a bit." I unzipped my jacket and took it off, alongside removing my pants. "Wait, first thing's first." I walked over to the mirror and saw my new figure clad in the standard ninja undershirt and shorts. "Not bad, I honestly thought all the ramen would make my tummy a bit bigger, but I guess my metabolism is no joke."
I walked away back to my closet. Found my typical night shirt and sweatpants, alongside a few clothes I never really wore because I didn't care for them. "Well, sweats at this time wouldn't be too out of the norm." I put those on and grabbed a random shirt and put that on.
"Okay, time to head out!"
*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
It was nearly sunrise, and some other residents of Konoha were out and about. Morning errands, I assumed. As I wandered about, I came across Yamanaka Flowers, with Ino right outside tending to the bushes.
Okay, first test.
I walked up to Ino. "Good morning!"
Ino looked up. "Good morning to you, miss. Is everything okay?"
"Actually, everything is quite well. Kinda rediscovered myself a few hours ago, datte-"
I stopped myself. No, I can't give myself away yet. Drop the verbal tic.
Ino smiled. "Looks like you had a bit of a rough night, but I'm happy for you."
I nodded. As I was about to leave, she stood up and told me to wait right there. I agreed and waited a bit as she went back into the shop. A few seconds later, she came back with a red and pink flower.
"I would have grabbed more but this is a bit of a hard to breed flower here in Konoha and we were only willing to spare one."
She handed me the flower. "What kind of flower is this?"
"It's a Hibiscus. It only really grows in tropical regions. It represents new beginnings and change, and it also symbolizes hope and joy."
Corny, but- "Thank you, I really appreciate it." No joke, it made me really happy.
"You're very welcome. Hope to see you again soon, miss…"
Shit, she was asking my name. I need to think up a name fast.
"Uh…"
Namikaze.
That name flowed into my head. Well, I can't think of anything else right now.
"Namikaze Naruko."
"Nice to meet you, Miss Namikaze."
"Same to you, Miss Yamanaka."
"Please, just call me Ino."
"Will do, Ino!"
I put the Hibiscus into my hair, smiled, and walked off. If everyone was to treat me so kindly, I honestly might consider abandoning the Uzumaki Naruto name entirely.
But, that makes me feel… uneasy. I don't want to be forgotten and replaced. I had a dream to become Hokage, and I wouldn't want Uzumaki Naruto to never achieve his dream.
Would I go back if I could? Probably not. I could probably transform into my previous appearance if I wanted to, but that honestly would be a waste of chakra to hold onto that for so long. Plus it would render this flower meaningless if I tried to fight my true self.
"This is going to be difficult." Learning the new me while handling the past me… but I was still optimistic.
My mind kept going back to the flower and I got genuinely curious if I could possibly base an outfit on it, but I didn't have enough fashion sense to make one without just looking like a giant flower. Not really good for stealth or combat eith- oof.
I ran into something and fell onto the ground. As my vision cleared, I saw the flower on my lap. I picked it up and cleaned off any specks.
"Hey, tomato head, watch where you're going!"
Oh, it was a person. And they were angry. I felt my anger boil up. I looked up and saw a girl with long pink hair. Shit, it's Sakura. Calm down calm down calm-
"Did you hear me? Are you going to apologize?!"
Nope, can't stop myself. "Why didn't you move out of the way, dumbass?! It's like 6 in the morning! There's no one else out here!"
"I was distracted, myself!"
"Then why did you immediately yell at and insult me?! God, you never change."
"What do you mean? I don't even know you, idiot!"
Somehow, hearing that actually hurt. I stopped and looked down at my hibiscus, and took a deep breath.
"I had just gotten this flower as a gift, I was scared of it being ruined."
I heard Sakura inhale then stop. I looked back up and she was looking off to the side. She's still so very cute…
"I'm sorry, I was still kind of beating myself up from yesterday and I thought a walk would clear my head."
Yesterday? Was it because she was teasing me for failing the exam again?
She stood up and held out her hand. I am so not used to this, but like the flower, I do appreciate it. I grabbed onto it and she helped me up.
“Thank you. I-”
“Don’t worry about it, it’s more my fault than yours.”
She is really beating herself up over this, I need to fix this.
“I’m sure everything will be okay, you would be surprised how much can change over one night.”
“I just hope that dunce was able to get the clone technique down.”
Sakura, I’m right here.
“Well, have a good rest of your day.”
“You too.”
*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
I figured it was time to head back. I wasn't sure if I could do my retake yet, considering, but Iruka-sensei should be coming back soon. He might be worried if I am not there.
As I arrived back at the front of my apartment, I felt an odd glare. I would question why my senses felt heightened, but I was still more disturbed by someone seemingly watching me.
"Okay, whoever is eyeing me, show yourself."
No reply. I closed my eyes and… wait, what am I seeing right now? I can see everything around me! Is this one of those bloodline traits I've heard about?!
Naruko, focus. Someone is spying on you, use this to your advantage while you have it.
I observed my surroundings and noticed a chakra signature hidden in a nearby bush. Gotcha.
I turned to said bush and started walking to the unknown person. "Hey, what's the deal? Spying on a girl like some sort of creep?!"
I heard a yelp. The person stood up and… it was Hinata! She was blushing red like a cherry. Probably because I had called her a creep. Oh no, please don't run off.
"N-Naruto? Is that you?"
Wait, how did she know?
"Do I look like a blond boy to you?"
"N-No, but your chakra signature is i-identical, except… different?"
My chakra signature? Does she have a similar thing I just experienced?
"I know that doesn't really make sense, b-but-"
I shouldn't, but it's Hinata. She wouldn't spill a secret.
"Come inside, Hinata. I'll explain everything."
I grabbed her by the wrist and she felt like she was burning up. I couldn't tell if she was mad or embarrassed or… why would she be embarrassed?
We headed inside, I decided to quickly find a cup and fill it with water. I put the Hibiscus into it, smiled, and headed back into the living room with two bottled drinks. "Here, to help you cool down."
"Th-thank you."
Okay, here goes. I explained to her pretty much everything that happened last night, from the shadow clones, to waking up like this, to my… ahem… awakening, and finally my encounters with Ino and Sakura.
"And finally, I decided to come back home and then I found you. I'm sorry I called you a creep by the way."
Hinata looked like she was taking a bit to process it, but ultimately didn't look like she was bothered by my sudden change. I took a drink from my bottle.
"I would think that something like this wouldn't really cause your personality and habits to change though." Hinata said, curiously.
"That never really crossed my mind. It just came naturally. I guess I can fool myself into thinking I'm a different person. Hahaha!"
Hinata took a drink. "I think it's more like you're more… honest. Could your previous actions have been a cover?"
I do tend to act out, like drawing graffiti all over Hokage Rock, and trying to pull pranks. Honestly, if you had told me that I was pranking right now by pretending to be a girl, I probably would have believed you.
"I can tell that this isn't an act, Naruto-chan."
"Please Hinata, please call me Naruko. I feel somewhat… uncomfortable with that name now. I can't really explain why though."
"O-okay, N-Naruko-chan."
I can't explain this feeling either. I was happy, but not the same way as when Ino handed me the flower. I guess being a girl now came with a huge range of emotions I had never experienced.
"That smile is… really cute."
"Huh?"
"N-nothing!" Hinata turned her head, almost as red as my new hair. "Don't worry, Naruko-chan. I won't spill your secret."
"I appreciate it, but considering my retake, I might need to spill it myself later today."
"No need for the retake, Naruko."
I heard the front door shut. I looked around and saw Iruka-sensei standing there.
"Iruka-sensei!" I jumped up and hugged my teacher. I could hear Hinata giggling.
I pushed away from him. "Wait, what do you mean about no need? What happened?"
"Well, the Third had known about this already. A well-kept secret known only by certain high ranking ninja in Konoha. The reason wasn't elaborated on but you will likely be told in time."
Of course that old fart knew and was keeping secrets.
"But what about the retake? Is Naruko-chan no longer allowed to be a ninja?" Hinata asked.
"Oh, that's definitely not the case. Naruko, close your eyes."
Well, hopefully this vision thing doesn't pop up to spoil the secret. I did as told, and felt Iruka-sensei tie something around my forehead.
"You may open them."
As I did, I saw Iruka-sensei holding up a mirror. And in said mirror, I saw myself wearing… a headband with the symbol of Konoha.
"Naruko Uzumaki, you are now officially a Genin of Konoha. Congratulations!"
I heard Hinata clapping, but I was too busy tearing up from the sudden news. I immediately hugged Iruka-sensei in response.
"Thank you so much!"
"You surpassed the test last night and proven yourself worthy. I'm so proud of you."
*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
I was given enough time to chill and drank through a whole 3 bottles of water. I'm officially a ninja now!
"Now Naruko, since today was planned for a retest, there is no need to return to the academy until tomorrow. Would there be anything you would like to do today? My treat."
"Can I take up your offer from earlier regarding the ramen? Also, could we possibly do some clothes shopping?"
Hinata perked up. "Oh! I would love to take you shopping!"
Iruka-sensei smiled. "Saving my wallet a bit, eh Hinata?"
"I'm not really one for fashion, but if Naruko-chan wants a big debut, best be in a new outfit. Maybe we can repurpose the jacket you like so much?"
Taking the words right out of my head, but … "Maybe do the jacket later. Focus on the new outfit first."
"Well, time to get some ramen. Are you coming, Hinata?" I'm surprised that Iruka-sensei has not mentioned anything about the fact that she knew about my secret now. I should probe him for more information over a bowl of ramen.
"The money I currently have on hand is barely enough for one outfit, I wanna make sure Naruko-chan has a few extra clothes since it's unlikely her current clothes will fit her. So I will need to go back home to get a bit more."
"Fair enough. Once we're done with eating, I'll escort her to your home and you two can have your girl date."
"D-date?!" Hinata blushed red once again. How very cute.
"Okay, let's go, Naruko."
"Ichiraku, here comes the new Naruko Uzumaki Namikaze!"
*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
After we and Hinata separated, Iruka-sensei and I made our way to Ramen Ichiraku. As we entered the shop, we greeted Master Teuchi and his daughter Ayame. Though they didn't recognize me, they still treated me the same way they treat all their customers. I almost asked for the regular but I caught myself.
Once we got our ramen, I dug in. "Ichiraku really is the best!"
"We appreciate the review, little lady." Teuchi turned to Iruka-sensei. "So Iruka, where is Naruto? Is this girl another one of your students?"
Iruka-sensei looked over at me and I gave him a "don't tell them yet" look. Thankfully, he understood.
"This is one of my students, yes. She asked to come here after hearing Naruto's praise of the shop. As for Naruto himself, he's resting off a sickness. He had quite the night last night."
Not entirely wrong, and once again hearing "Naruto" made me feel off.
"Well, hope he feels better soon. We don't want to lose one of our favorite customers. We'll leave you two to it. If anyone else comes in, ring the bell to let us know."
Perfect, I can freely question Iruka-sensei.
After the two left, I took a bite and… "So, why did you not question why I told Hinata?"
"Because it's Hinata. If anyone in this village could keep a secret as big as this, it was her. Not to mention the Hyuugas and Uzumakis go way back."
"You bring up my family name again. What do you know about my clan anyways? I never was taught anything about them, much less my father's clan."
"I did a bit of research last night while you were passed out. I'm not quite qualified to teach you about the Uzumakis though, but there are a few things I discovered."
"Like what?"
"Like how the Uzumaki women are usually major hotheads but have more sense than most."
Explains my encounter with Sakura earlier.
"There's also how red hair is pretty much the default with very rare exceptions. Guess your blond hair came from your father's side."
Not gonna lie, while I kinda miss the blond, I actually really did the red. Maybe I could try to dye the tips blonde if possible.
"There was also something about a bloodline trait but I have little to no information outside of the name."
TELL ME MORE PLEASE! "What is it called, Iruka-sensei?"
"Kazegan."
That's pretty damn cool. If that's what I had experienced, I'm keeping that name.
"Anything else?"
"Unfortunately no. It seems records of the Uzumaki clan were mostly wiped clean. No idea how, but there was definitely an effort to remove any trace of your clan."
Damn, that's unfortunate… no, that's borderline insane! "What do you mean? What could have possibly happened that made someone want to hide anything regarding my family!"
"No idea. I'll be sure to look more into it." Iruka-sensei took a bite. "By the way, you called yourself Naruko Uzumaki Namikaze before we left. Where did you hear the name 'Namikaze'?"
Is it that big of a deal? "Well, when I came across Ino, I had to give her a name and 'Uzumaki' would have been a dead giveaway, so I used the first word that came to mind. Otherwise, I have never heard of it before."
"That's quite odd, considering the Namikazes are a dead clan. The last one known had died 14 years ago."
14 years? Was it around the time I was born?
"Who was the last Namikaze? And what killed them?"
Iruka-sensei became dead serious. The look he gave me made chills run down my spine.
"Minato Namikaze, the Fourth Hokage… and the man who sealed the demon fox inside of you as a baby."