Disclaimer: I do not own 'Naruto or 'Harry Potter' simple, wish I did, but yeah…anyway-onwards with the story! And please R&R, I need feedback!

Author's Notes: After Sasuke ran off…And…well, I think a few places in this chapter suck, 'cause I had no idea what to write, so bear with me. Sorry, read on!

"Talking"

'Thinking'

Chapter One: Farewells

It was a fine day outside, a few clouds to watch, not too hot, not too cold even with the slight breeze blowing. For a few people this was a perfect time to be out and about. For others it was the perfect time to take a nap.

Tsunade had her head down on her desk, again, completely ignoring that mountain of paper work threatening to fall on her. She hadn't gotten half way through it, even thought Shizune said that it was her duty as the Hokage to finish every single one. So, yes, the heavily blessed blond was fast asleep, yet again, despite the looming threat of an angry Shizune. Still, in Tsunade's mind, she deserved some time off, right? Not if you were to ask Shizune, who was going to have her head for this, if she caught her napping again. Thankfully, for Tsunade, she had learned how to wake up whenever footsteps were heard coming towards the door.

And she heard a pair of feet racing towards her door right then. Her head snapped up, and she wiped her face, just incase she had drooled in her sleep like last time. That had not been fun, when she had been found out.

One of the guards had raced to the tower, at top speed, from the way he was breathing.

"Hokage-sama! A stranger is coming this way! He says he needs to talk to you, about something; I tried to tell him you didn't want to see anyone. He says his name is…Durlddor? Durbleor?" the guard seemed to be having trouble with the man's name, judging from the fact that he was glaring at the floor like it had grievously offended him. Didn't matter, seeing as how Tsunade knew who the guard was talking about, and had met the man before, just once.

He was an odd one, who seemed to have great talent. Though with that talent came even bigger trouble. She groaned inwardly, if he was coming here then he needed something, probably shinobi for a mission of sorts, and she had a very good idea of what type of mission. A-rank at the least. Damn, and they had very few jounin or chunnin left. Oh dear, this was going to be interesting.

"It's Dumbledore, isn't it?" she asked, after the chunnin tried to pronounce the name a few more times.

"Hai! I think that's how he pronounced it. We tried to stop him, but we can't seem to get close to him to even hit him or anything, and that weird stick he has seems to be pushing us back." The man responded. Tsunade sighed, she had a very good idea why they couldn't get close, and what that 'weird stick' thing was. He had just confirmed that it was indeed Dumbledore, without meaning to. Well, she had better just let him in…

"It's fine, I know him. Let him in." she replied, and the guard bowed, and ran back down to let him in. Within moments the guard's footsteps had faded, and Tsunade had her head on the desk, once again. Only this time because she was frustrated. Which was happening a lot these days, and irritating a super-powerful shinobi like Tsunade was off everyone's list for the time being, even Naruto's. And right now she felt like tearing her hair out by its roots, why did he have to come now?! Why not next year, or better yet, never? A knock on the door, and the creak of the hinges had her snapping her head up again.

"Ah. Tsunade-san. I hope I did not come at a bad time." Dumbledore said as he walked into the room. Tsunade shook her head, acting as if she hadn't been ready to turn homicidal.

"No, not disturbing anything," she said with a smile, shoving the papers on her desk off it in one sweep of her arm, still smiling. Dumbledore smiled and pulled out the 'weird stick' thing that the guard had mentioned, gave it a wave, and summoned an armchair. He seated himself, with his hands folded neatly under his chin.

"I suppose you know why I am here, yes?" he asked as soon as he was seated and they were both comfortable. Tsunade sighed, and nodded.

"You need Konoha's resources for something." She said, referring to the shinobi.

"Yes, yes, I do, in fact, require Konoha's assistance on something. One of my students, you know the one-Harry Potter, has become the target of a rather dangerous criminal who just managed to escape…I would like for him to have some protection. Some who could blend in with the school setting." He said, and Tsunade shrugged.

"Your Ministry doing anything about this?" She asked, raising an eyebrow. Dumbledore sighed, before he answered.

"Yes…they are providing…guards of sorts. But they have already failed once, and I would rather not trust them." Tsunade sighed, and got up to rummage through folders.

"Any specific age range or what?" she asked, as she managed to pull out a pile of folders on the available ninja. Dumbledore nodded.

"Around the ages of thirteen." He responded, and more than half the folders went flying, courtesy of the Hokage.

"Well, I have a few of that age right here." She said, handing him the folders. Dumbledore leafed through the four folders, and nodded.

"Good, but they will have to learn magic and how to cast spells, to blend in," he said, as he placed the folders down. Tsunade nodded, before standing.

"Well. You stay here, while I go get them." She responded. This was a good way to get out of paperwork.

Shizune was going to be pissed.

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Neji was trying to beat Shikamaru in a game of chess, but was failing miserably. Not as badly as others had, but still he was losing all the same. They were at Shikamaru's favorite place, and finally Neji just flopped over, onto his back. Shikamaru had won…again. Well, at least this time he had lasted longer…and almost won, if you judged by how long it took for Shikamaru to think out his next move. Both perked up at the sound of running footsteps, as someone raced up the stairs.

Next they knew they had Kiba hiding behind Shikamaru. He looked like he had managed to get himself into more trouble than necessary.

"Tch. Kiba, what did you do?" Shikamaru asked, and Kiba shrugged.

"I don't know, Shika, but we have visitors. The Sand Siblings have arrived. And I think Gaara is mad at me…" at that point both Neji and Shikamaru were ready to bolt for the nearest building, and leave Kiba to fend for himself. Gaara?! He had managed to anger Gaara?!

Neji was on his feet, and peering over the railing, only to see a certain red-head climbing the stairs.

"Shikamaru? He's climbing the stairs…" he called, and turned to see Kiba had pulled Shikamaru to a sitting position, and was using him as a wall. He turned back to come face-to-face with the sea-green eyes of Gaara. His own eyes widened as he jumped back a few feet. That was unnatural the way he could just sneak up on people! Gaara glared, and Neji backed up more, from what he had heard about Gaara, this was one person you did not tick off.

"There you are." A familiar, and welcomed voice at the moment, said. Tsunade was right behind the group, and looked extremely happy about something.

"Now, I've got a mission for the four of you. It's a guard mission, year-long. The client is an old friend of mine. I'll explain the rest at my office. Now hurry up." She said, before forming the few seals to teleport herself back to the Tower.

"Troublesome…" Shikamaru mumbled, and Gaara glared at them.

"You are hiding him." He stated, and Kiba chose that moment to run for it.

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They arrived at her office, more or less in one piece, to see her and a stranger seated, with a few sake bottles around Tsunade's desk. And she didn't look as if she was anywhere near drunk. That worried a few of them.

"Well, you four took your time…anyway let's get down to the introductions. This is Dumbledore-san," the old man stood, and bowed to the four shinobi, as Tsunade went on to introduce them, "Dumbledore-san, this is Nara Shikamaru," Shikamaru bowed, muttering his usual phrase under his breath, "Inuzuka Kiba," Kiba bowed as well, and Akamaru barked, "Subaku no Gaara, a shinobi from Suna" Gaara responded with a simple stare, "last is Hyuuga Neji," and Neji bowed in return.

"Ah, pleased to meet the four of you." Dumbledore responded, and nodded. Well, these four would do fine.

"Dumbledore will explain the mission, and then you can decide if you wish to accept." Tsunade said, and went back to her desk. The four shinobi snapped into the normal mode they would when receiving a mission briefing; lined-up, and dead silent. Dumbledore glanced back to Tsunade, and she simply nodded. She knew how unnerved someone could get to see teenagers-young teenagers mind-acting like full-grown adults, could be.

"Ah, well. I am Dumbledore, Headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry," he was glad that none of them showed any inclination to call him crazy-aloud that is. So he went on, "I need a certain student to be protected. He has become the target of a very dangerous and powerful criminal. His name is Harry Potter. If you take the mission, you will have to blend in, and learn how to cast spells, and such. It is a year long mission." Dumbledore finished, and the four shinobi looked over to Tsunade to see if she had just been pulling a prank on them. When they found her serious-faced and arms crossed they decided that she wasn't joking. And neither was he. Well, it would be interesting.

"I accept." Four voices chorused, and Tsunade nodded. That was good.

"Now, go and pack. You leave today. Say your goodbyes, and whatever else. Be back in an hour." She said, and the shinobi took off, to go and get ready.

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Gaara had made up with his siblings after the little 'mishap' with Shukaku. They were the only family left, and Baki was included in it. He didn't know why they were in Konoha in the first place, but he had taken a mission with them now, so he left to tell his 'family' what was going on.

"Gaara! Please tell me you didn't injure the Inuzuka child." Temari called, as soon as she saw her little brother.

"Yeah, after all we may have to work-" Kankuro began, only to have Gaara cut him off.

"I'm gong on a year-long mission with him. And two of his friends." He said, in a completely flat voice. His siblings, and sensei stared at him for a moment before it clicked.

Year-long mission. With the person who made him angry.

They felt sorry for Kiba now. He was in for it, and Gaara was definitely not one to be taken too lightly-that usually resulted in a very bad 'accident' of some sorts.

"Well…um…good luck?" Kankuro offered, when no one said anything for a few minutes. Temari elbowed him.

"Yeah, we'll miss you, and have fun." And Gaara raised a non-existent eyebrow at her last comment, and she waved it off. Baki nodded, and left his response non-verbal. And with his 'family and friends' notified, he left for the Tower, and simply sat down at the base to wait for the others to show up. He simply closed his eyes and got as close to sleep as he could without actually sleeping.

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Kiba tore off to his house, and began pitching things into his bag as soon as he got to his room, and found his pack. His room was a disaster zone, and he liked it that way. It was not messy-he knew where everything was. Still…he wondered how that moldy something-or-other ended up under his bed…and when was the last time that had been washed? He simply flung that stuff to one corner of his room. He tore things apart, and finally managed to gather everything that would be needed, including pictures, and stuffed it all into the bag-the pictures on top. After he finished that he bounded downstairs to tell his parents and sister that he was leaving.

"Mom! Dad! Hana! I'm leaving on a year-long mission!" he yelled, and before he could go more than four steps his sister had him in a hug. This being the number one reason he tried to run for the door as soon as he had announced that he was leaving.

"Aww…be good, okay?" she said, as their parents came into view to see their son in the bear hug of his sister. She loved to do this to him, seeing as how he was never one for over-zealous hugging…she did it because she found it funny. He didn't.

"Ack! Hana! Put me down!" he snapped, and his sister tightened her grip before dropping him in response. His mother came over and patted him on the head, and ruffled his hair.

"Before you go, a few things for what you're going to miss." His mother said, and Kiba groaned-inwardly. He was going to miss Christmas, and he regretted taking the mission for the briefest of seconds. What was handed to him, was a new jacket, thick and black with matching fur lining-His parents' gift. Hana gave him a bag of treats for Akamaru. Then came the farewells.

"Don't do anything I wouldn't do." His father said, after giving him a pat on the shoulder. His mother turned to her husband with a wicked grin.

"Oh, I think he would be better off doing the opposite of what you do. Anyway, good luck." She responded, and his father rolled his eyes and nodded. Kiba smiled, picked Akamaru up, and ran out the door. He arrived just as Gaara was closing his eyes, the gourd near his side.

'Wonderful company…' he thought, sarcastically, as he sat down farthest away from the Subaku, and began to pet his puppy, wondering when the others would show up.

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Neji looked around his room-war zone-he corrected himself. It looked like Lee had used it as a training ground, against Tenten. He sighed, and began cleaning up his mess, as he looked for the things he needed. He was glad that his uncle hadn't come into his room, because he would have thrown a fit. After a few more minutes of cleaning and searching he found everything needed, and made his room more livable. Well, that's what he got for just throwing things around for those last-second missions. He was finally packed, and he threw in a few pictures of his teammates, and his remaining family. He was going to be posing as a student, so a few pictures would be a touch that was needed. Plus he had a feeling that he would miss them after being gone a year. After finishing packing he went to tell his uncle that he was leaving on a mission. As soon as he got to the meeting room, where he had been told his uncle was, he could hear him talking to someone. Hinata, from the sounds of it. So he was going to have to wait for them to finish. He seated himself nearby, and waited. The door opened, and Hinata came out, and almost tripped over his bag.

"Hinata-sama!" Neji exclaimed, as he scrambled up to catch his klutz of a cousin. He shook his head as she babbled something, and stood up.

"G-gomenisai! I-I didn't-" she said, as she pushed two of her fingers together, before Neji cut her off.

"Hinata-sama, please. It's fine, now I need to talk with Hiashi-sama-" he was cut off by Hinata's gasp, and he knew that she would have been able to piece it together. After all, she was a very intelligent young lady.

"Oh, you're leaving on a mission…but for how long?" she asked, and Neji sighed, and answered.

"A year-long mission. I leave today." He responded, and Hinata began to fidget.

"Stay here after you finish talking to him…okay? I-I have something I want to give you…"she said, and Neji nodded, and Hinata raced off. He shook his head, wondering what she wanted to give him so badly, before entering the meeting room. Hiashi looked up as Neji bowed low enough that his hair brushed the floor. Hiashi stood, and walked over to his nephew.

"Neji. Raise your head." At this Neji looked up, to see his uncle was standing near him. He straightened, much to the relief of his uncle.

"Hiashi-sama. I have a year-long mission. I start today." Neji said, without much preamble. Hiashi sighed, but nodded. He truly was his father's son, he never beat around the bush.

"Good luck. Don't do anything reckless." This had become a common saying whenever he left on a mission, after the 'incident' with Kidomaru. Neji bowed, then turned and left the room. He sat down and waited for Hinata to show up. He didn't have to wait long, as she scampered down the hall, and almost crashed into Neji.

"Ah! G-gomen! Nii-san, if you're going to be gone for an entire year, you'll miss Christmas. I-I got you something…" with that she thrust a small, ornate, box at him. He took it gingerly, and opened it when she began to fidget. It was a necklace. It had a thin silver chain, and a polished tear-shaped stone of black onyx. A spot of white caught his eye, and upon closer inspection he found it was the eye of a falcon, carved into the stone. He looked up again, and found that Hinata was pushing her two fingers together again.

"Thank you." He said, and he really meant it, as he placed the necklace back in its box, and the box into his bag. Hinata went a bit red, and stammered something.

"I-I thought you would like it…it's supposed to be good luck." She said, and Neji nodded.

"I got to go now…" he said, as he turned and left, now wondering what he could get her for Christmas.

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Shikamaru meandered his way home-somehow his chess set had ended up under his arm, and he dropped it on his bed as soon as he reached his room, and sighed. He kept his room clean, saying it was 'too troublesome' to have to look for what he needed, so he kept everything organized. He pulled out his bag and began to dump the stuff he would need into it. As soon as he was done he slung the bag over his shoulders, and went back downstairs, to tell his parents what was going on.

"Oy! Mom! Dad! I'm leaving on a mission!" he called as he walked down the stairs. His mother poked her head out from the kitchen.

"Shikamaru, you could say how long it is for." She reprimanded him, and her son sighed.

"It's for a year, and starts today." He responded, and his mother's expression changed immediately.

"Oh! Oh no…Shika, wait here!" and with that she tore off to the room she and her husband shared. Shikamaru had no idea what was going on, and simply stood there, waiting for his mother to show back up. Some shouting from upstairs told him that his mother had woken his father. As the noise got louder he figured that they were getting closer, and that also told him that she-and his father-should be appearing at the top of the stairs about-

"Now you listen to me! He's leaving for a year! You are going to help me give this to him, before he leaves!" his mother and father were at the top of the stairs and walking down them. His mother was carrying a box under her arm. His two parents stopped in front of him and gave him the box.

"Open it. I'm sure it'll help on the mission, and it was supposed to be a Christmas present…" his mother left off, and his father simply picked up her unfinished thought.

"But with you being gone for the holiday, we decided to give it to you now." He said. Shikamaru sighed, and opened the box, and unfolded what was in it. A new chess set, this being a bit more portable than the one he had left on his bed. He looked up to his parents.

"Cure for boredom for those long missions huh?" he asked. Both his parents nodded. He thanked them and stuffed the set into his pack. He set off towards the tower, and found that Neji, Kiba, and Gaara had already arrived.

"About time, you left me with such wonderful company." Kiba commented, and earned himself a glare form Neji, and a stare from Gaara. Kiba shrank away from the two, and hid behind Shikamaru. Neji sighed, and turned to the door.

"Enough. Let's get this over with." He grumbled, wondering how he was going to survive a year-long mission with Kiba. He opened the doors, and walked up to Tsunade's office, the others following.

They knew that neither tow had left the room, judging on the sake bottles scattered around the room. This was definitely not the way they had though they would find their Hokage, then again said Hokage was Tsunade.

"Hokage-sama. We're ready." Neji said, a bit loudly to get her, and Dumbledore's, attention. Said adults stood up, trying to not look like they had not noticed the younger generation in the room.

"Right. Everyone, ready to go?" Dumbledore asked as he got to his feet, and he received a few nods in response.

"Right then. Make sure you're all touching some part of this." He said as he held out a wrapper. The four shinobi exchanged glances, but all reached out to touch some part of the wrapper. After they had all managed to place a finger to the wrapper they felt something give a jerk from behind their navel.

When the landed some people had to stagger to their feet, people like Shikamaru and Kiba. And Kiba didn't think that it was too fair that Neji and Gaara were the only two who had managed to stay upright. It just wasn't fair, but then again Neji did look slightly sick, and Gaara looked unsteady. Still, upon looking around they found a large, dark forest-which they decided would be a fun place to explore-and a huge castle.

Dumbledore just smiled at them, as they got to their feet. After he was sure that they were steady he gestured to the large castle behind himself.

"Welcome to Hogwarts!"

This was going to be an interesting year.