Notes: Neatsaviours on Tumblr recently posted an image of what they thought a navi Netto would be like. Well, I just had to write a story to go with it. The actual story is about Saito and his navi, X, being transported to the world where Netto and Rockman are.

However, I had a bit of trouble figuring out some differences between the teams of Saito and X and Netto and Rockman and so I did a writing exercise where I rewrote one of the battles from the manga as if it was Saito and X and then had Saito meeting his version of Enzan in a similar manner to the manga (where Enzan decides to test Netto; although it's an unofficial match in the manga and official here). I hope you enjoy.

The adventure to a different world is being worked on now. However, I wanted to do something different. I will post it as one chapter when it's finished. However, that means you might not see an update to this for a month or so. I reckon if I'm not done in a month, I should update slowly and you'll get chapters instead.

What if: Saito was the Operator and Netto the navi?

X rocketed through the net.

"Hold up, Guts!" Gutsman called out as he followed. While Gutsman had to knock other navis out of the way to move through the network, X ducked and swerved and rolled through the crowd without hitting a single navi.

WWW was about to attack a train and X couldn't afford to let Saito down again. This speed training would allow him to get faster and better at dodging.

Meanwhile, Saito was watching video after video about netbattling strategies while weaving through the heavy crowd. He couldn't keep up with his navi's way of thought and the crazy plans that X would come up with but he could adapt. If he wasn't able to think up new strategies, then he would look at all the different strategies to make sure he could pick the right one at the right time. He automatically ducked out of the way of a figure who seemed to pop out of the crowd.

"Saito!" the figure said, causing Saito to pause and turn.

"Higure-san!"

Saito then had to wave off Higure's worries as the man told him about the attack.

"I'm sorry. I can't. This is a job for net-police, Higure-san, not a child like me."

Saito walked away before Higure could say anything more. He looked down at his empty PET. X hadn't returned all day. Saito knew that his navi was probably rushing to the train station to fight.

Would he need Saito's help? Saito looked up, in the direction of the station. Even if X didn't need his help, he could be there for his navi.

"There's no way we're just going to let this happen," he promised before running off in the direction of the station.

Stoneman looked like a giant group of bricks stacked together. His arms were falling towers, shattering the net around them. Rocks fell from the ceiling as the navi focused his abilities on destruction. He was a WWW navi, trying to bring the rail system that connected the country to a halt.

X was on the level of a bug for this guy. A rock came falling down, ready to crush him.

"What're you standing around for?" Gutsman demanded to know, jumping over him and shielding him from the hit.

"Gutsman!"

"He'll be fine! We're the toughest!" Dekao announced.

"The toughtest!" Gutsman echoed.

They kept dodging all the boulders as they fell. X focused as he slipped through. Rocks still pelted him from the rocks as they exploded.

"We can handle this until Saito gets here!" Dekao said.

X nodded, hoping that Saito would make it in time. He couldn't keep this up much longer.

He slipped and cursed that he was too concerned with his operator to focus. He was just supposed to hold on until Saito came. That was all.

He closed his eyes as the rock came towards him.

"X!" Gutsman called from beyond the rockwall. He couldn't get to him in time.

The rocks impacted, hitting the barrier.

The barrier?

"Saito?" X questioned, opening his eyes.

"What are you doing?" Saito said, appearing on the screen. "Don't give up! Start battle operations!"

X breathed a laugh and got to his feet. "Ready!"

"I can see a path, you move though!" Saito said to him. X nodded and looked towards the building-sized navi before them.

Kicking off, X rushed towards him. Saito helped him move through the rocks, he just had to relax his body and mind and let the PET take control of his movement.

A bolder went straight towards them.

I can do it! X thought, feeling Saito give him control as he kicked up the rock and jumped on top of it. His blades slid over the rock, giving him the speed needed to jump to the next one. And the next. He gained some height and sliced the navi with a sword Saito sent.

"We did it!" he cheered as Stoneman collapsed into pieces.

"We did it," Saito breathed in relief.

"You were so fast!" Dekao said. "Gutsman could barely keep up."

"Gutsman couldn't keep up, guts," Gutsman said to X so that Dekao couldn't hear.

Saito smiled. "Thanks! I'm glad it's over without incident though."

"I'll be glad when the WWW is gone. Gutsman and I better get training again so that we can take them down!"

Saito stared at the email. He couldn't believe that this had been sent to him. X confirmed that it was addressed to him and that the email it had come from was legit.

He was also vibrating from excitement.

"A netbattling licence, Saito!" he said. "We could fight on the net whenever we wanted with something like that."

"Is fighting all you care about?" Saito demanded to know. X recoiled.

"You okay?"

"No. Why me?"

"We did handle the WWW incident at school. Maybe they took notice?" X forced his tone calmer and kinder in an attempt to make Saito feel more at ease. "If you don't want it, I can always reply with that."

"No. If we can help, we should help. Besides, this mentions a test," Saito motioned to the email. "We might not pass, you know."

"Pft. We're the best team ever and we'll pass with flying colours!"

X had an intense expression on his face as Saito walked into the testing area. He did so cautiously as it looked like an abandoned arcade. There was dust and rubble everywhere. Paint was peeling off the machines and the wall. It was a mess.

"Is this really where we're supposed to be?"

"Saito Hikari?"

"Y-Yes!" Saito jumped at the voice coming from nowhere.

"Saito, up there!" X cried out, pointing towards the landing. Near the stairs up to the landing there stood a boy with white hair. The layer underneath was black for some reason, giving his hair a two-toned look which Saito hadn't seen before.

"I'm Enzan Ijuuin and I will be your examiner today."

"Examiner? You're our age!" X cried out.

Enzan ignored the navi as he glared at Saito. "You let your navi speak for you? This will be a quick exam then. You are not worthy."

"What?" Saito gasped.

"How dare you!" X growled angrily. "Plug me in, Saito! I'll destroy this guy!"

"Right! Prepare for battle!" Saito stared at Enzan, silently daring him to follow his lead and send his navi in.

X rolled slowly around the net on his roller-skates. The area was basic, with blocks of data all around them. He kept his eyes out of any movement.

"He~y!" he called out. "I thought we were having a fight!"

The smaller blocks of data before him were split down the middle as a gust of movement rushed past.

"This is hardly a fight," the red navi with a sword for an arm said. "I am Blues, Enzan's netnavi. This is a battle to deletion."

"To what?" Saito screeched.

X glared at the other navi. "You look like a Power Ranger," he commented. Blues vanished a second later. X kicked back, rolling out of the way of a sword thrust.

"I couldn't see him move!" Saito gasped in shock.

"Blues speed is record breaking. You're outmatched, Hikari."

X kicked out to the side, sliding across the ground and avoiding another sweep of Blues' blade.

"He's good," X commented, eyes wide.

"We don't receive licenses to fight each other," Saito said. He stared at Enzan. "Why are you doing this?"

"A strange question for the examinee to ask. I am testing your capabilities. And you are failing."

"That's it? Because you were asked to?"

Enzan's eyes narrowed. "I decided to test myself against you because we are similar in age and so people think you are one the same level as Blues and myself. I need to be sure that we are the most powerful. It's all that matters."

"All that matters is power?" X glared up at the operators. "I can't believe that."

"That's because you have a weak operator," Blues said.

"What is your navi to you?"

"X?" Saito questioned. "He's my friend. My best friend."

Enzan considered this for a moment. "Blues. Delete that navi."

"No!" Saito cried out. His heartrate skyrocketed as he watched Blues' blade head towards X.

They needed to move round. Or... "Area steal!"

X flicked out and over to another square, glaring at Blues.

"It'll take more than that to delete us," he said, Saito nodding in agreement.

The resulting fight occurred in quick bursts. X was fast but Blues was defensive, even bringing out a shield that stopped projectile attacks. As the battle went on, X and Saito got better and faster.

Then it happened. Blues' speed suddenly increased, causing him to disappear from vision for a moment.

A moment was all that he needed.

Saito and X cried out in unison as Blues cut against their neck. They reacted, Saito fumbling with a sword chip.

"A simple sword won't stop us. Blues."

Blues rushed them again. A plan occurred to the two. They could take the hit. X threw his arm up and Blues' sword dug into it. Blues was stuck until he could pull his blade out. It gave X enough time to cut him.

Blues vanished.

"An illusion?" X questioned in shock.

Saito growled and pulled X away from Blues. X bumped into someone behind him, sending himself and Blues off balance. "Retreat is a strategy too." X's health was lower than it had ever been before. "I'm not letting you fight like this." Glaring at Enzan, he added, "we don't have to fight you."

"No, Saito! This is a test, we can't walk out!"

"No test is worth losing you. This isn't the end; we can try again."

X looked up at him, purple eyes sparkling with determination. "I don't want to run. And I don't think you do either. We can win!"

Saito bit his lip. It was a gamble, but not if he fought well. X was fast. Saito hated to lose.

"Get in close and hit him hard," Saito said, readying a couple of chips.

"You can't possibly think you're fast enough," Enzan scoffed.

Saito focused on the battle, ignoring that comment.

X bolted towards Blues, and skid down and around him.

"Sword!" They cut but Blues jumped out of the way and came for them. "Guard, cannon!" Blues' attack was blocked and Saito breathed out as X fired a cannon off right at Blues' visor. "We hit him!"

Blues was pulled out, disappearing in a scattering of pixels.

"Eh?" Saito and X questioned in unison. Saito looked towards Enzan for an explanation. "Why did you pull him out?"

"'Retreat is a strategy too'," Enzan echoed Saito's words from earlier. "There's no purpose in fighting you as you are now."

X laughed to himself as Saito continued to rage.

"Ugh! That- that stupid skunk-head! How could do that? What a sore loser!" The fight with Blues was long over but, Saito still got angry every time he thought of it.

"It's okay, Saito. We can beat them next time."

"If there even is a next time," Saito huffed. "I'd never even heard of him before today."

"Saito, no."

"What?"

"Don't go home and research everything about this guy. We don't need his life story."

Saito didn't agree. He liked to know what he was dealing with, especially if he was going to be sending X into danger.

"Do you think we passed?" he asked, changing the subject to the test.

"He technically lost the battle," X pointed out with a grin. He believed they had won.

"But he never said that defeating him was the test. Only that he was judging us."

X shrugged. "I think you're thinking too hard about it." He looked up at his operator and then squinted. "What did you do to your neck?"

"Huh?"

"Your neck. There's a red mark on it."

Saito stopped and looked in a nearby window. It was difficult to see in the light but there did appear to be a red slice across the side of his neck. He touched it and hissed a little as it stung.

"Maybe I ran into something today? Or my uniform is too tight?"

"Maybe," X agreed reluctantly. He thought it was weird though. His own neck was sore in the same place. At least he knew his injury had come from Blues' blade.

Saito's results came in the next day. He was given a City Netbattler rank. He could represent Officials in an emergency and could complete requests submitted to the Official Centre. It wasn't a fail but it also wasn't the best result. X was frustrated and wanted to be an Official Netbattler now but, Saito was happy with their rank. They could work their way up.