Title: Where the Heart is
Author: Kwizzic
Rating: T
Genre: Friendship
Status: WIP
Fandom: Naruto
Pairings: None
Summary: After spending his childhood traversing the globe with Jiraiya, twelve-year-old Naruto Uzumaki has returned to the Hidden Leaf for the first time. (Genfic, slow burn AU)
Link: https://www.fanfiction.net/s/8886666/1/Where-the-Heart-Is

I'm having a bit of a hard time describing this story. Part of the reason is that I binge read it from about 1 to 3 am a couple nights ago, but it's also quite unlike anything else I've ever read.

It's primarily a character-driven story... the characters are, hmm, more "real" than their canon counterparts, in a good way. Interactions between characters are beautiful to read, and they behave intelligently given the circumstances, but in a very natural way. The story also sets moods like nothing else - the first chapter in particular, but it pops up constantly. I don't know how the author does it, but it's a gift.

When I first finished reading this story it felt like one of the best things I'd ever read, but I'll blame that on the late hour (it happens occasionally). Still, I feel very comfortable giving this a 5/5.

 

So... I made it till chapter 12 and I can safely say this fic is probably better than 99% of the stuff floating around in the fandom. But for all the good it achieves it is still nothing more than a case of old wine in a new bottle.
After the first few chapters we're back to retreading canon territory with the 'Wave-arc'. The character interactions while being fun most of the times get gimmicky a little too often.

Spoiler

eg. The scene where Kakashi chases Jiraiya when he finds that Naruto is alive after believing him to be dead.

There are other examples where it seems the author is trying a little too hard to be funny and witty. The fic really isn't promising anything new. It is an entertaining 3/5. But barely more.

 

Reading the AN in the first chapter it says he let the readers decide Naruto's skillset. That honestly has the be the most retarded thing I've seen in quite a while.

 

Yeah, I agree that the whole voting thing is a red flag. Though, I checked the author's profile and the choices ended up being sealing jutsu, wind jutsu, and sage jutsu, so at least it isn't too far out there in terms of what Naruto does in canon. That being said, the author noted that Naruto wouldn't use any shadow clones or summoning jutsu, which is definitely one of the negatives of this kind of poll. Oh well.

 

I also agree that the poll felt like a red flag to me. I also wish that this fanfic stopped treading the stations of the canon so much. I'd love to see more original content in the later chapters of the fic, however.

 

This doesn't belong in Almost Recommended - it belongs in the Library.

It's solid 4/5 - the writing is extremely good, the characters have real voices, and the plot isn't too bad.