Summary: Tsunade just took her place as Hokage, Sasuke and Kakashi have been healed, and Konoha is finally back to normal after it was attacked by Orochimaru and the sound village following the Chuunin exam. Now let's see what happens when a mysterious girl known only by the name "Ghost" arrives back in Konoha. Possible spoilers. Will catch up with the manga later. PG-13 for some later fight scenes.

AN: Well, what can I say? This is my first attempt at a fan fiction here on Read and Review and I hope you like it! I'll try and add new chapters when I can! Please note the "try" as I have many, many hard courses this semester. But I will try even harder, the more reviews I get!

Chapter One: Ghost who?

"He's late!", Naruto burst out in anger. At times like these it was obvious why the blond-haired boy was called "Konoha's Number One Loudest Ninja." The boy's hair stuck out at odd angles and the orange that he wore made the ice-blue of his eyes stand out even more, though they were already striking.

It was a bright, shining day, though you could barely tell under the shade of the thick forest, save for a few glowing streaks that slid through the gaps in the foliage. The members of team 7 were assembled in the woods outside of Konoha village, awaiting their beloved sensei, who just happens to always be late...

Sakura whined a little as she agreed. "He's always late." (Inner Sakura: "I'll show him!" -motions punches-) The pink-haired, green-eyed girl looked very feminine and fragile, though her demeanor and personality rarely matched her appearance. She wore a strangely cut red shirt that zipped to one side with contrasting green shorts underneath.

Their teammate was a boy who wore all black, save for the bandages and pads on his legs and arms. He had matching raven hair that stuck out in the back, in an almost feathery fashion. His eyes kept with the trend of his clothes and hair and were very dark which stood out against his pale skin. The dark boy, Sasuke, failed to react to his teacher's irresponsibility. He leaned against one of the trees that lined the small clearing they were in. His face showed some irritation, no doubt aimed toward the blond boy, although it seemed that it went deeper than just this one occasion.

"I should kick his ass! I'll just try out my new technique an-" Naruto began to make a violent motion toward the nearest tree, though he was cut off…

"Shut up, idiot. Like you could beat a Jounin." Sasuke's dark eyes sent a harsh look in Naruto's direction.

Naruto's own ice-cold eyes accepted what he perceived to be a challenge from Sasuke. He rushed right into Sasuke's face, yelling wildly, screwing up his face. "Grrr... I bet I could beat your ass, Sasuke!"

"Heh heh. Wait, guys. Don't..." Sakura timidly stepped forward in an attempt to stop the inevitable clash.

Sasuke didn't move. He just looked down on this "inferior" being, just daring him to try something. "Yeah right, dead last. You may have learned a new skill, but you're still the same old loser to me. It wouldn't be fair to beat up on a weakling like you." Sasuke turned to walk away, hands in his pockets...

Naruto didn't run after him, but rather spoke threateningly to his turned back, marked with the white and red fan of the Uchiha clan. "Grrrrrrrr... Sasuke. Don't underestimate me."

He stopped and barely turned his head to say, "You're not worth my time, loser."

"Wait... Guys!" Sakura made one last attempt to stop her teammates, but too late.

Naruto sprinted after Sasuke, fist raised, feet beating the ground rapidly with a -pada pada pada- sound. As a counter, Sasuke turned and raised a kick in the path of Naruto's head, hands still in his pockets. In the blink of an eye, a girl stood in between the two, blocking Naruto's punch and Sasuke's kick with either hand. The two boys hopped back from the newcomer in surprise.

For a whole second, they all stood, just taking in the girl's appearance. She appeared to be older than them, probably by around two or three years, though you had to judge by her height and body, because her face was covered with a blank white mask with only two slanting slits for sight. She was over a head taller than any of the three, thin and well toned. Her clothing, all in gray tones and black, was similar to an altered kimono, sleeveless with slits on either side of the bottom, though there were tight black shorts on underneath, much like Sakura's own outfit. The new girl's costume was far better cut though and there was no zipper, but rather ribbons tied off in long, flowing bows. Around her waist was the forehead protector which marked her as one of the Konoha ninjas. Her leather boots went to her knees with buckles placed at short intervals to hold them tight to her legs. The gloves were similar, leather with buckles, traveling to her elbow. Long fingers were displayed, as the gloves ended at about her knuckles and metal plates resided on the backs of her hands. Various other accessories adorned the girl where her skin still showed, her skin being very pale, although flushed scars stood out everywhere, though most were hidden by her clothing and accessories. By her forehead protector along her waist, one noticed a long, thin sword hanging listlessly. Lastly, one of the girl's most enviable features was her hair. Her long, raven hair, which was tied back in a thick braid that went on and on to about her mid-thigh, though some shorter wisps framed the blank mask.

Her voice was mature and deep, though still feminine, and now it sounded harshly. "Idiots! Have you forgotten what Kakashi-sensei first taught you? How can you-"

"That's enough, Ghost-san."

All eyes turned to Kakashi, their gray-haired teacher who arrived, standing above them all on a high branch, unnoticed until this moment. It was only a moment's turning and yet, as the three Genin turned back, the strange girl was gone.

Sakura looked around, her pale green eyes searching. "Where did..."

Naruto immediately spazzed in response to the insult he had received from the masked girl. "Sensei! Who was that girl?"

Kakashi jumped down from the height effortlessly. With his hidden smile, Kakashi obviously played dumb to avoid Naruto's questions. "What girl?"

-jaw drop-

Naruto pointed an accusatory finger to his teacher. "But you just... You called her 'Ghost-san'!"

Kakashi responds with a puzzled look, though you could barely tell, what with the fact that only one eye showed out of all the features of his face. "Gho? When did I? You must have been hearing things, Naruto."

-shock-

Kakashi waved for the three to follow him as he strode off into the woods, "Now, for today's mission. Follow me."

Naruto stood dumbfounded as the other two obediently followed their master, although they were obviously irritated almost as much as Naruto. Naruto broke from his frozen stance after a moment, "Kakashi-sensei!"

Team seven, along with their master, slowly disappeared into the shady space between the trees and, even more slowly, Naruto's shouts disappeared.

A distance away, the girl deemed "Ghost" stood on a high branch, leaning on the trunk of the tree and watching the four of them walk off.

"You have a very interesting team, Kakashi-sensei..."