Because of the neglect and oppression he faced, Naruto grew up to be an extremely mischievous and attention-craving trouble maker. But there was at least one person who saw that Naruto had a good side to him too, and that was Iruka-sensei, one of the instructors at the ninja school in Hidden Leaf. Becoming a skilled ninja was something that almost everyone in all of the many different ninja villages in the land wanted, including Naruto. However, it wasn't until he put his life on the line to help Iruka, was Naruto able to prove himself worthy of entering the ninja school. Naruto believes that becoming a great ninja may be the only way to get the people of the village to accept him and acknowledge the fact that he is a human being worthy of love and attention. Naruto makes it his goal to become Hidden Leaf Village's next Hokage(highest ranking ninja and leader of the village.)
However, the path to becoming a skilled ninja is not an easy one. After gaining entrance to the ninja school, Naruto is teamed up with Sasuke, an unfriendly but strong and noble boy from the powerful Uchiha clan, and Sakura, a serious but sometimes flustered girl with a major crush on Sasuke. Together with their calm and capable teacher Kakashi, Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura, join many other ninja students from all over the land, some good and some bad, some with wicked ulterior motives, others just wanting to prove themselves strong, in the long and difficult path of becoming a powerful ninja. The competition is fierce and many of the tests that the students have to face put their very lives in danger. But in spite of the pain, hardships, and losses that Naruto and the others face, their determination to become strong helps them learn more about themselves and each other, and prepares them for the many more difficult battles that lie ahead on the road to becoming the strongest ninja!
