Ink and Smoke

Chapter 1 -Demotion-

"You've got to be kidding."

Two cloaked figures stood in an office. One was sitting at a mahogany desk, while the other was standing with a scroll in his hands.

"Captain, perhaps a jonin or even a chunin could accept this type of mission," the standing figure stated, "Why do you want to waste an Anbu agent on something like this?"

Folding his hands together, the sitting figure shifted to reveal hints of a mask underneath the hood of his cloak. "Noh, you can see the two we're supposed to protect, right? Besides this was a request by the council. We can't ignore it like some other requests."

"I don't care if it was the damn council! Since when do a bunch of civilians have authority over the ninja forces of Konoha?" Noh slammed his fist on the desk to punctuate his vent.

"It wasn't the civilian council. The clan heads gathered and voted."

That brought Noh out of his rage a little. If the clan heads took the time to convene for it, it must've been more important than he thought. "Still, why me Tenzo? You're telling me that I have to be demoted to genin, just to protect a pair of brats."

Tenzo leaned back in his chair and regarded the boy in front of him. "With your age, you can easily pass as one of their own class and abilities. That, and I'd like to see you at least have a friendship or two before you grow up. Now take off your cloak and mask, you won't need them for this assignment."

Noh hesitated before unfastening the cloth around his shoulders. As it and the hood came off, it revealed a mess of short blond hair and a figure around Fifteen years old. As the boy reached up and removed his mask, steeled blue eyes and cheeks with whisker-like birthmarks came into view. Noh set both on the table before him and stood at attention. Tenzo looked at his face one last time before nodding. "Your status has now been changed from Anbu second class, to that of Genin. Your tattoo will be removed after you leave this room, and your previous status will be considered an S-Ranked secret until mission completion. Your new code name is…"

The blondes head shot up as he let out the final words in this office. "Naruto, Uzumaki Naruto."

The newly dubbed Naruto stared into the mirror across from him. It was strange to be out and about without his cloak and mask. How long ago was it when he first got that mask? Earning the featureless porcelain face was his greatest achievement. His shoulder was now bare of the tattoo that signaled him as one of the elite and the civilians of the village had no idea that a highly trained killer walked among them.

While there were ninja everywhere in the village, they all had some type of identification. Headbands, Masks, or even the simple tattoo on the shoulder all told of the dangers they posed. At the moment, he had none of those. He could walk as a civilian would, and talk like a civilian should, but could kill like only an assassin could. Now he knew why his sensei had chosen the wolf mask. The sheep around him had no idea of the predator in their midst, nor of the horrors that could appear any second. Naruto smiled a bit as he thought about what life would be like if he hadn't walked certain paths in life. Shaking himself out of his thoughts and lighting a cigarette, Naruto sat up from the bench he was sitting on and preceded down the road.

"Sensei, aren't we getting our new team member today?" Naruto heard as he entered the clearing.

"Why yes Ino, we are. In fact I think he just arrived." Naruto knew that voice!

Ino Yamanaka looked behind her as a new person entered the clearing. She immediately took note of his blonde hair and whiskered cheeks, but faltered when it came to his eyes. They looked as though they had no emotions behind them. He had dressed in a tight fitting sleeveless T-shirt and cargo pants, and it helped to show off his tattooed arms. She couldn't tell for certain, but some of the designs looked alive and moving, while some looked like storage seals.

She quickly turned away with a blush as she found her eyes roaming his chest and muscles. Whoever this kid was, he didn't mess around when it came to training.

Naruto quickly regarded the female before him. Blond hair, blue eyes with no iris, and what looked to be a malnourished body, he couldn't help but shudder at what was going through the girls mind. He assumed she was the Yamanaka heir. If her body was from that 'dieting' thing that the civilian girls did, he would have to correct that immediately. It's a wonder that she didn't die from nutrition problems.

Looking to the other person in the clearing, Naruto's expression brightened considerably. He recognized Kakashi immediately, after all, he was the one who helped train the young blonde in Anbu. Naruto had been saddened when Kakashi had been forced back to Jonin a year ago when his Anbu years were up.

After walking up to the two and giving the subtle hint that he was happy to see him again, he addressed his teacher, "Naruto Uzumaki, reporting for duty."

"Ah, Naruto. It's nice to meet you. Hokage-sama has already briefed you I assume?"

"Yes sir. I was to report to Team Seven's training ground and assume the position of the third genin."

Kakashi smiled under his mask. "Now now, Naruto. No reason to be so formal. This isn't a debrief. I just wanted to know why you were an hour late."

Now Naruto had the chance to smile. 'I've always wanted to say this.'

"Well Kakashi-sensei, I got lost on the road of life. You know how confusing it can be. I'm just glad that our paths have met at a crossroads." He heard the Yamanaka groan beside him. Something to the effect of 'not another one.' Poor girl really needed to see underneath the words. It was all a code Kakashi had come up with. What he had really said to his teacher was, "I got held up by the captain. Although I didn't want this assignment, it's good to see you again. What do I have to work with here? "

Kakashi nodded with a smile in his eye and said, "Don't let it happen again. We'll discuss this a bit later. Now, although Sasuke has left for the day, I'd be happy to take you two to dinner."

Putting on a grin, Naruto replied, "Sure I know a great place close to here! Come on Ino!" Grabbing her hand before she could start to protest, he started leading his new team-mate to the one sacred place in this world. Kakashi already figured out his students antics and left for the memorial stone. They wouldn't mind him being a bit late.

After dragging his female team mate to the shopping district's Ichiraku Ramen, Naruto sat at the bar looking at Ino expectantly. She let out a huff and sat down, only to see him break into a grin. "I'm not exactly hungry you know. Especially for something as fattening as ramen. If I eat this stuff, how am I going to retain my figure?"

After hearing this, Naruto donned a frightenly serious expression. "So what you're saying, is that you're committing suicide? 'Cause that's all dieting will do for you. If you don't eat right, you'll hurt your figure more than help."

"What the hell's that supposed to mean? Do you know how many calories are in ramen?" Ino stated as her partners expression darkened.

Letting out an exasperated sigh, Naruto turned and ordered two bowls of beef ramen before turning back. "Depending on what you add in, a properly made bowl maxes at four hundred calories. However, ramen is one of the healthiest so called 'junk foods' available. The meat adds protein, the vegetables their vitamins, and well made noodles provide healthy carbs. The broth contains sodium-rich water, which helps fight against dehydration. Why are you so adamant against a decent meal? It's not like a strong kounichi would do something as stupid as starve herself."

Ino turned a bit red at the last thinly veiled insult. She was about to retort when her stomach growled loudly. Turning scarlet, she was about to order something when a bowl was set in front of her. She was about to question the brunette waitress when she heard next to her, "Thanks Ayame-neechan!"

As she turned to the blonde, she saw a silent message pass through his eyes. 'Go ahead.'

Ino would deny it until her last breath, but for the first proper meal she's had in several years, ramen was damn good. She never noticed the blonde leaving after silently slipping the waitress enough money to cover several more bowls.

'Now that that's taken care of, where the hell is Kakashi?' Naruto turned down another alley before jumping to the rooftops. He quickly made his way to one of the scarecrows favorite spots. Kakashi stood there at the memorial stone, stiff as a board. Naruto looked on the opportunity and sent a single blunted shuriken at his old teacher, only to see the standing form turn into a puff of smoke. Hanging his head, Naruto sighed out, "Dammit, one day I'll hit him."

"Oh, is that what that was? I thought you were just trying to get my attention. Now what do you see so far with Ino?" Kakashi asked a he appeared behind Naruto, and dodging the strike sent for his neck.

Naruto retracted his arm and got into a basic fighting stance. This was normal for the two. In combat, concentration is everything. "Ino is malnourished and she doesn't know the first thing about proper nutrition. By the way she walks, she hasn't learned of walking with her chakra yet, and she has little sense of grounded balance. Chakra reserves are typical for her age and rank, and she could seriously use a confidence boost." After using some basic attacks against Kakashi, he stopped and asked, "Sir, may I speak freely?"

"Sure, you're not exactly an Agent anymore." Kakashi shrugged, conveniently blocking a chop to the neck, "and you still focus on the neck too much."

Taking his teachers advice and adjusting his attack, Naruto continued. " She'd be smoking hot if she learned to eat right. Can you imagine? Straight from page sixty-five."

Kakashi faltered slightly as his mind went toward the gutter with a perverted giggle. Right before a stray thought took form, a kick literally knocked it out of his head.

"And you shouldn't lose focus." Naruto grinned while rubbing his now sprained foot. No matter, it would heal within the hour, and to be honest, the pain was worth it for getting in a solid hit. "Besides, if I was an enemy, that could have killed you sempai."

Kakashi slowly picked himself off the ground, "Page sixty-five had a busty raven haired woman who was timid and wore a bright green sundress. Nothing like... Oh, that was a good trick." He chuckled as he sat down near the memorial stone. Naruto soon joined him and began learning more about his new team.

Kakashi had just finished the full briefing on the team. The last genin, Yowai, had died from trying to use a jutsu in a spar, and it horribly backfired. Naruto shook his head. Shredding of the lungs was not a quick way to go. The other two weren't affected too much, due to being told that he had quit due to the injury, rather than dieing.

"So, I have a fangirl, a angsty boy in puberty, and a habitually late sensei. Great, and I got demoted for this? See ya, tomorrow Kakashi." With that Naruto left to go home. He was not looking forward to the next couple of years.

Knock Knock Knock

The freshly genin blonde rolled over in bed and stabbed a kunai through his alarm clock in an effort to stop the annoying sound. After hearing it again, Naruto climbed out of bed and opened his pack of cigarettes. 'Huh, almost out. Now who the hell is at my door?' As he went to yell at whoever was at the door, he used a simple fire technique to light the end of his first smoke of the day. Putting on his best impression of anger, Naruto opened the door and let out a lungful of smoke, "What do you want at this godforsaken hour?"

It took him a second to realize it was the second blonde of Team Seven at his door. As she started coughing in the smoke, he immediately felt sorry and voiced it, "Sorry about that Ino, I'm not exactly a morning person. If you want to come in the door's open," he said before moving toward the kitchen.

Ino couldn't figure it out. She had arrived at her new teammates house to tell him about their day off, and all she got was a cloud of smoke blown in her face and a rough greeting. How rude can a person get? She heard the sound of a pan being put on the stove inside, and stomped in to yell at Naruto when she came upon a curious sight. The apartment seemed to be a lot bigger on the inside than she expected. "Naruto, what's your problem? Is that how you always treat your guests? And what's with this apartment?"

Peering around the corner, Naruto decided to humor the Yamanaka, "This is the only apartment on this floor and the upper floor. The other doors are fake for decorative reasons. Hell, one of them opens to a window. It was originally built for the owner of the complex. I got it when I bought the building during a foreclosure. And for the record you're the first person that I would consider a 'guest,' so, yes I do. Have you already had breakfast?"

Seeing her shake her head he gruffly chirped, "Great, I just made some. Kitchen is over here. Can't miss breakfast. It's the most important meal of the day!" Disappearing around the corner again, he hurriedly set the table for two and sat down. Ino joined him soon after while still swiveling her head around. After making sure she sat down, he took a bite of food and grimaced. "Dammit, I forgot salt again."

Naruto reached his hand out toward the salt shaker on a counter six feet away and sent a pulse of chakra to his tattoos. Slithering off of his skin, the ink in the tattoos formed a chain that shot out, wrapped around the shaker, and returned to his arm bringing the salt with it. Giving the container a few taps over his food, he stopped when he notice the look his guest was giving him. "What?"

Ino was stunned. One second the boy across from her was complaining about salt, the next his tattoos shot off his arm and grabbed it for him. "Oh, I get it," she heard, "you're still doing that dumb diet thing. Geez, you'll get malnourished at this rate. I'm sure it's worth it though, seeing as you're trying to starve yourself."

That broke it. "What the hell was that? I'm not dieting anymore!" She screamed as she pointed to his arm, "Tattoos aren't supposed to do that! How do you own an apartment complex? Why are you smoking in the morning? Isn't that supposed to be illegal? How can a guy like you be more of an ass than Sasuke? Aaaarrrggghhh!" She gripped her head in frustration.

Naruto looked at the blonde girl for a moment before finishing his food. "Man, that food was good. When you're done just put your plate in the sink. I'll wash them later. Now if you don't mind, I have to take my morning shower. Make yourself at home, if you want."

With that he got up and tossed his dish in the sink with a loud rattle. He couldn't resist the temptation to look back into the kitchen and called out, "You can join me if you want! But be warned, I don't have that much space." He mentally counted down the response. '3...2...1...'

"PERVERT!"

Author's spot:

I know, I know. I'm suppose to have AAaTF's new chapter done already. I'm currently waiting on my beta reader to get back with me on it, and then it's off to the press. This idea had been kicking around in my head for a while, and it's kinda taken a life of it's own. I'm running this as a trial story, and depending on responses I might continue it or I might take it down for a rework. If you're like me and only follow the story, I'll take that as a sign to continue, but this story will probably only be done in my spare time. Reviews are appreciated but not strictly necessary. Thank's to all my fans, both new and old. Copperdreamer, signing off.