Team 7: Evolution!

by Everyone Like Me

Separation, although not easy, was necessary. Now, years later, three ninja reunite, stronger, faster, smarter, and crazier than ever. Hold on for the ride of a lifetime. The drama and explosive hard-hitting action is only the tip of the iceberg. Stronger allies. Bigger fights. Darker secrets. Outrageous humor. Bring it on, world! The punks of Team 7 are ready.

1. Heroes' Come Back

Disclaimer: Naruto belongs to Masashi Kishimoto. I am in no way claiming his characters as my own, but I am playing around with them for my, and your, amusement. Please support the official release. Whatever the hell that means. Ishikari Mayu belongs to TFK-fan118, though. Any other character that you don't recognize probably belongs to me... or TFK-fan118. Got it? Good. Team 7: Evolution! START!

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"Sasuke! Hey, Sasuke!"

The young Uchiha halted, and then turned his dark eyes, facing towards where the call had come from. Jogging his way was one of the foreigners of the Leaf village. Judging from her extended arm, which was waving, and from the wide grin on her face, it was Yasmine and not Yasume. She wore a white trench coat over a white tank top, which was cut to show off her toned stomach. Honestly, he couldn't see why she was so proud of her 'four-pack.' Commonly, she wore black, low rise cargo pants. Though, sometimes, she would wear body-hugging black shorts. Sasuke allowed the dark-skinned foreigner to catch up with him before walking again. She fell into step with him. "Back already?" he asked. "I could have sworn you were sent out only yesterday." Yasmine's grin grew. Sasuke found himself smiling. Over the years, the two had gotten quite accustomed to the other's presence. They weren't as close as she and Hyuga Neji, but at least she tried to fill the space left behind by his two precious friends.

"Yes, well… By the time we caught up to the bandits, my teammate was fed up with the mission, and so Kin kinda went berserk on them. I think that might have been the quickest mission we've ever had." Yasmine tilted her head to the side. "Or maybe it was that one mission with the cat…? Tayu-chan almost killed the thing after Tora scratched her." Yasmine was a certified ninja now, having recently achieved the rank of chuunin, along with the rest of her team. Her Leaf headband was worn like a bandana on top of her long braided hair. She had graduated from the Academy mere months after entering. Her teachers had called her something akin to a sponge. She then had been placed on a team since that team had lost a member. She and her team had reached the rank of chuunin along with the rest of the young ninja. "Anyway, you want to get some lunch with me?" Yasmine asked.

"Sorry, I already ate." He shifted the papers from his left hand to his right. "I'm on my way to deliver this to Master Tsunade." Sasuke frowned and eyed her left sleeve suspiciously. "Besides, after what happened last time, I'm not going anywhere near you when you're eating." Yasmine noticed his gaze and chuckled nervously. She recalled the last luncheon that they had. Her partner had slithered out of her sleeve, to consume a part of Yasmine's meal, and had taken an instant liking to Sasuke.

"Hey, I can't help that CL fell helplessly in love with you at first sight," she replied with a shrug. CL stood for Crazy Legs. How she came up with that name for a snake, Sasuke didn't even want to know. "She usually stays inside the sleeve when men are around."

"I don't understand why she's always in your sleeve in the first place." Sasuke cut his eyes to the path in front of him. "She's a summon, so she should go away when she's not needed." Yasmine merely laughed.

"Even though she is a summon, she has always been there. Anko-sensei said that I had to get used to the presence of snakes quickly, so she's always here," she said. "I guess I got so used to her that she just doesn't go home anymore." The Uchiha produced a flat look as they continued walking towards the Hokage building. After a few minutes of silence, Yasmine finally spoke again. She sounded concerned. "Say, you're not acting differently at all today."

"You'd think you wouldn't be worried," Sasuke sarcastically muttered. He didn't give her a glance.

"No, I meant… Well, I thought you'd be in higher spirits today."

"Did I miss something?"

"You don't know…?"

"Obviously, Yasmine! Get to the point."

"It's weird. Naruto's in the village and you don't know a thing about it." Sasuke gave her an incredulous look, eyes widening and lips parting. The kunoichi crossed her arms as she continued at the same pace. Her eyebrows knitted together, seemingly confused. "I saw him at the front gate and he said he was headed to 'grandma,' or something like that. I wonder why Hokage-sama didn't tell you. After all, you're the one who-" Yasmine stopped talking, noticing that the Uchiha was no longer by her side. She blinked twice, and then looked ahead. Only a sudden dust cloud was left behind the quick shinobi. "Hm... I almost wish I could see the reunion." The kunoichi shrugged, and then walked in the opposite direction. "Too bad quelling my stomach is way more important!" She patted her stomach and cheered for food.

Looks like things are finally going to pick back up.

0~0

Without knocking, Uchiha Sasuke barged into the Hokage's office, appearing quite angry. "Old woman!" he shouted. "Why didn't you tell me-" Upon realizing who was in the room, his voice box cut off. His clenched hand on the doorknob went limp and slipped off. The shinobi stood there, in the middle of the doorway. His expression of annoyance had transformed into a look of bewilderment. There were a total of four people in the room, but Sasuke's gaze was focused on only one. That wild, blond, and spiky hairstyle, although noticeably longer, was instantly recognized. "Naruto…" Sasuke murmured, taking a hesitant step forward.

At the sound of his name, the shinobi turned to face the Uchiha. Was this really Naruto? Of course it was him. The whisker marks on his cheeks were a dead giveaway. Yet, he looked so different. As observed before, his hair had grown longer—top half spiked up, while the rest was combed down. His blue headband had changed to black around his forehead. He had lost the chubbiness in his cheeks, giving him a mature look. His sleeveless black jacket had a big white collar, similar to his previous jacket, with a zipper down the middle. Of course it wouldn't be Naruto without his signature orange color. The zipper was outlined by stripes of orange, and the hem of the jacket was striped orange as well. On his wrists were two of the silver bracelets he had received prior to his departure from the village. His pants, which cut off right above his black ninja sandals, were as dark as his jacket, revealing the other two silver bracelets.

They stared at one another for several seconds before Naruto broke out into his trademark grin. He walked forward, stopping in front of his friend and comrade. "Sasuke…!" he exclaimed loudly. He patted the Uchiha's right shoulder with his left hand. "Surprised to see me?! I bet you're surprised! You're surprised, aren't you?! I hope you're surprised! You should be surprised! Because this was a big surprise!" Apparently, that mature look was just for show. Sasuke raised his fist before striking Naruto's head. "Ow! What the hell, Sasuke?! That hurt! OW!" The blond shinobi clutched his pounding head, even dropping down to his knees.

"Oh… Sorry about that," Sasuke muttered. "I guess I have to control my strength since you're back."

"You guess?!"

Laughter from the adults in the room caused the two shinobi to stop their bickering and turn their focus to them. "I guess two and a half years didn't really change your relationship." Tsunade smirked. Grinning, Naruto stood up from the floor. He and Sasuke moved towards the desk, standing beside Jiraiya. "And, Sasuke, did I hear you say old woman to your sensei?" The Uchiha flinched. The smile on his teacher's face was sweet, but he knew from experience that there was a hot liquid fire boiling within her.

"No," he replied quickly. He cleared his throat. "Anyway, like you said, it's been two and a half years. Not that I'm not okay with it, but I thought the agreed time was a full three years."

"Well, things change," was Tsunade's simple answer. Sasuke's eyebrow twitched.

"She probably hit the booze and made a hasty decision again," he thought, frowning. Then another idea occurred to him. "So… that means Mayu's coming back, too, right?"

"Of course. She and her uncle are expected to arrive tomorrow morning."

"Tomorrow…?!" Naruto crossed his arms and poked out his lip. "What are me and Sasuke supposed to do until then?"

"How about waiting?" Tsunade suggested. She then waved them away. "Now shoo. Jiraiya and I have something important to discuss."

"Yeah, like who gets top position this time?" Naruto questioned, locking his hands behind his head. He appeared almost bored. Everyone else in the room froze and stared at the blond. Obviously they were surprised. Jiraiya, though, merely patted Naruto on his head, stuttering an admonishment. The younger ninja sighed. "I wish you guys would find something more interesting to-"

"JIRAIYA!" Tsunade growled in her former teammate's direction. The man nearly yelped, taking a step back. His former teammate appeared livid. Sasuke sighed heavily as he stared at the destroyed desk. Great—another one he would have to fix. "How dare you turn him into a little pervert?!" Sure, it was something to get angry about, but did she have to react violently? He should be used to her by now, having put up with her for more than two years. This woman loses her temper like she loses her money—and her mind when she's drunk off her ass. The Uchiha closed his eyes for a moment, ignoring the thrashing his teacher was giving Jiraiya and his squeals of absolute pain. This development did not bode well for him. Could two and a half years of training have turned Naruto into a twisted version of Jiraiya, himself? Sasuke opened his eyes, glancing at his teammate. The blond snickered, watching the commotion that he had caused. He nudged Sasuke with an elbow.

"Check it out, Sasuke," he said. "This is how old ninja get it on." If anything, the pummeling noises increased. "Who knew Pervy Sage and Granny were into S&M?"

"Hm…" Sasuke closed his eyes again as he cupped his right elbow with his left hand. His thumb pressed against his bottom lip. "Nope, this perverted humor Naruto has definitely doesn't bode well. I'm probably going to have to fix a lot of things at this rate." Those depressing thoughts caused the Uchiha to sigh again. "I really hope Mayu didn't pick up any weird traits from her uncle…"

"For the love of God, one of you brats help me!" Jiraiya reached a hand out from the twisted position Tsunade had his body in. Naruto wagged a finger at him.

"Ah, ah, ah, Pervy Sage! You didn't say the safe word!"

"Please, please don't let me be the only normal one!" Sasuke silently chanted.

Shizune merely watched the chaos, nervous smile tugging her lips.

0~0

"Ah, Sasuke, it's so good!" Naruto tried to speak with his mouth full. Said Uchiha chose not to reply. Instead, he rolled his eyes. His blond teammate quickly gulped the rest of the broth, and then slammed the bowl down. He breathed a satisfied breath as he licked his lips. "I haven't had Ichiraku ramen in so long!" He grinned, and then burped. "Oh man—it's like an orgasm in my mouth!" Sasuke rolled his eyes again. He doubted Naruto even knew what that really meant or felt like. With a personality like the one he had picked up from Jiraiya, no woman would want to be anywhere near him, let alone sleep with him.

"Great… A perverted virgin," he thought. The dark-haired shinobi set his glass of water down on the counter. After leaving the Hokage's office, this was the first place they had come to. Despite already eating, Sasuke had come along. And why wouldn't he? It had been over two years since he had last seen one of his teammates. Hell, even Hatake Kakashi had seemingly disappeared once it was announced to him that his team had split up. The copy ninja probably took it well. Sasuke hadn't been there when Kakashi had received the news, but he had a sneaking suspicion that the jounin was a bit happy about not taking care of three brats.

Sasuke released a sigh. Still, he couldn't wait until everyone was reunited again. The shinobi found himself smiling at the thought. There was no doubt that Mayu would probably demand a new team picture once they were all together again. "Hey, Sasuke!" Naruto got his attention. He had just finished ordering another bowl. He was on his eighteenth bowl. It appears that some things would never change no matter how much time passed by. The Uchiha made a noise of acknowledgement, letting his teammate know he was listening. "So what's been up with you this whole time? Getting trained by Granny must have been-" Naruto must have noticed his expression drop.

"I don't want to talk about that right now," Sasuke glowered down at the table. A nervous chuckle came from Naruto. "Besides, we shouldn't talk about our time apart until Mayu gets back."

"Come to think of it, she would be really upset if we left her out," he mused. "Fine, fine—I'll refrain from telling you about my awesome training with Pervy Sage." He was silent for a moment, and then he grinned. "What about everyone else—the other teams? Since you've been here this whole time, you should know right? Want to visit everyone?"

"That would pass the time," Sasuke murmured. "Okay, we will after you're finished eating. Let me warn you, though. Some are out on missions."

It was two hours later when Naruto finally decided he was full. Rolling his eyes, Sasuke walked beside his teammate. The blond was not exactly happy that he had spent so much money. However, the owner of the ramen stand was quite happy that his favorite customer had returned. "Anyway-" Finally, he stopped complaining about his loss of money. "-Who are we gonna see first?"

"I'm not sure about everyone else, but I know one person who is in the village. Surely, he's still there," Sasuke stated. "I'd imagine you want to see him first." Before Naruto could question who exactly it was that his teammate was talking about, the Uchiha veered to the left. Without a word, he opened the door to a familiar business establishment. The blond ninja blinked. Of course, he had never been in here before. He never had a use for flowers before, after all. Besides, he was certain that Yamanaka Ino worked here when she wasn't doing anything else important. But Sasuke had said 'him,' didn't he? Why were they here? The bell rang as they entered the shop.

The store looked as though he expected—flowers were everywhere. They weren't the same flowers either. They were all different in colors, shades, and sizes. Naruto blinked again, moving to stand by Sasuke's side. Since when did Ino cut and dye her hair red? "AH?!" He pointed a finger, just as the worker finished saying a greeting. "Gaara?!"

"Naruto…?" The red head suddenly smiled. It was small, but there. "You're back." The excited shinobi dashed over to the counter as Gaara moved from behind it. "When did you get back?"

"A few hours ago," he answered, grinning. "What are you doing here? Your punishment isn't over yet?"

"No, my punishment has been over for a while now," Gaara stated. "I work here."

"Quit yanking my chain! You're working in a flower shop?"

"Naruto." Sasuke finally spoke up, stepping by his side. "Gaara is not a ninja." The grin faltered on the blonde's face. "Once his punishment was officially over, he decided he didn't want the life of a ninja. He's just a regular civilian now."

"No way!" Naruto cried. His blue eyes turned back to Gaara, looking for confirmation. "Is that true, Gaara?"

"Indeed it is," he replied. Naruto, about to comment, was interrupted by the sound of the bell chiming. "Good afternoon, and welcome to Yamanaka Flower Shop!" The blond reared his head back. He had never heard Gaara speak with such enthusiasm. Then again, he was in the customer service world of business. Knowing Ino, she probably had forced him to speak this way to customers. Speaking of the customer, a surprised gasp caused Naruto and Sasuke to turn. Violet eyes blinked rapidly at them. The Uchiha raised an eyebrow. Was that recognition? It couldn't be. He didn't know any girl with fiery red hair.

The girl, looking to be in their age group, hastily shook her head, and then cleared her throat. "S-Sorry about that," she murmured. She put on a smile and walked forward. "I was expecting a woman to be working here."

"Yamanaka-san usually works in the mornings. But I assure you that I am capable of servicing you as well," Gaara said. "How may I help you?" Both Naruto and Sasuke parted, allowing the young woman to step up to the counter.

"Um… Let's see… I'm looking for a flower that means friendship." The customer grinned.

"I see," the red head responded. "May I ask what the relation is? Close? Distant? New? Old?"

"Friends..." A thoughtful look crossed the girl's face. "I'd say we're pretty close, though it has been awhile since I've seen them."

"Just a moment—we have several types of flowers with the meaning you speak of." Gaara guided the customer away from the counter and the two shinobi, and over to a glass case. As employee and customer discussed the flowers, Naruto and Sasuke had their own little hushed conversation. According to Naruto, he was getting a weird feeling from the girl, too. It wasn't necessarily a strange feeling. It was almost as if this wasn't the first time he had seen her. Sasuke watched her carefully. However, he was still convinced that he hadn't come into contact with her before.

The two shinobi watched the exchange until the girl was ready to buy. In Gaara's hand there were two single flowers. Both were mixed in color, but the bases of the flowers were orange. Sasuke had overheard Gaara call them Zinnia. They meant thinking of a friend or something like that. The girl gave him a polite smile, causing his brow to rise. However, she merely looked away to pass the money to Gaara. The flowers were wrapped and given to her. "Thank you. Please come again."

"Will do!" The girl took her flowers and left the store.

Naruto waited a few seconds before questioning why Gaara didn't want to be a ninja, anymore. This discussion—or rather debate—lasted more than an hour. The blond had not been convinced that someone as strong as the red head could want a life without fighting. Exasperated, Gaara finally sent the two away. Well, Naruto had been kicked out while Sasuke had calmly followed after. Rubbing his head, the shinobi dusted the sand from the back of his pants. "He didn't have to use his sand like that!" he grumbled. Naruto had literally been kicked out.

"You shouldn't be too surprised," Sasuke remarked. "After all, Gaara has been with the Yamanaka family for a while now." Naruto grumbled some more. Something about sand and flowers not mixing. The Uchiha smirked. "I know someone else who's in the village."

"Someone else…?" Naruto repeated. He groaned. "Why aren't any full teams here? I should have gotten a red carpet or something!"

"Your fault for coming back so early."

"I could leave and not come back!"

"Right, right."

"I see you guys are still troublesome," a familiar, yet slightly different, voice caught their attention, effectively stopping their banter. "Good to see you back, Naruto." The two shinobi stopped walking and turned to see who had spoken. They were met with the bored expression of Nara Shikamaru. He had grown taller, but otherwise, he looked the same. Still had a chuunin jacket, too. His headband was sewed into the left sleeve of his black shirt. "When did you get back?"

"Hours ago. What about you?"

The chuunin stopped in front of them. "A minute ago, actually. I'm on my way to the Hokage." Shikamaru sighed and rolled his eyes. "The Kazekage is as troublesome as ever."

"Hm? The Kazekage?" Naruto blinked in confusion. What's a guy like Shikamaru being in association with the leader of Sand village? Seeing his teammate's perplexed expression, Sasuke spoke to explain.

"Shikamaru is the liaison between Leaf and Sand. He goes there frequently because of it," he stated.

"It's a pain taking orders from such bossy women." The chuunin dug his hands into his pockets and yawned. "After I hand in my report, I think I'll take a well-deserved nap."

"You're still so lazy," Naruto muttered. "I can't believe you made it to chuunin at the same time as me." Shikamaru almost rolled his eyes, and would have if it had not been too taxing.

"Everyone's a chuunin in our age group now," he grumbled, instead. Surprised, Naruto turned to his teammate and asked if it was true. "Of course it's true," Shikamaru answered for him. "In fact, I'm pretty sure Mayu made it to chuunin, too."

"How do you know that?" Naruto demanded to know.

"I helped out with last year's chuunin exam, too. It was hosted in the Sand village. Her name showed up on the list of new chuunin." The lazy ninja finished his explanation with a yawn. Naruto sighed heavily. "Sasuke should have become a jounin like Neji, but he gave up in the middle of it."

"What?!" Naruto nearly exploded. "You could've gotten promoted to jounin?!"

"Thanks for telling my business, Shikamaru," Sasuke mumbled. The Nara shrugged, uncaringly. "Yeah, I gave up. I didn't want to leave you and Mayu too far behind." The blond crossed his arms and frowned. To him, it sounded as if the Uchiha was teasing him. He then blinked. A thought suddenly occurred to him. They had switched topics so quickly, but he still remembered something Shikamaru had said.

"Wait… The Kazekage's a woman?"

"You didn't know that?" Sasuke questioned. "You're the one that's been out of the village!"

"Well, I didn't exactly go to any of the major villages, okay? Jeez…" Naruto nervously rubbed the back of his head. His teammate sighed and shook his head.

"You're hopeless," he said. "The Kazekage is Temari."

"Temari…? Why does that sound familiar?"

"She's Gaara's older sister."

"…"

"…" Shikamaru rolled his eyes.

"…" Sasuke shook his head again.

"EHHHHHH?!"

0~0

The two young teens finally came to a halt. Unfortunately, there were no other members of the Rookie 9 in the village. Team Gai was also out on a mission. Naruto had to settle for the familiar scenery instead. They had visited the Hokage Monument and his old apartment. It had gotten quite dusty since the last time he had been there. When asked why his friend and teammate hadn't taken care of the place, Sasuke merely shrugged and replied that he had better things to do. So after opening the windows to his apartment and leaving his things, the two shinobi had left and winded up here. "This place hasn't changed at all," Naruto remarked. Beside him, Sasuke nodded.

Their current location was the place where Team 7 had actually become a team. Naruto smiled as memories of this place flooded his mind. His blue eyes stared at the three stumps. A chuckle bypassed his lips. If he could go back, he wouldn't change a thing. Well, actually, he would rather not be tied to the middle stump again. That had been humiliating, especially when his teammates and sensei had forgotten about him, too. Luckily, his female teammate had come back—a few hours later—and released him, smiling apologetically all the while. Looking back now, he couldn't believe that he believed the girl to be Haruno Sakura.

"Hey, Sasuke!" Naruto suddenly exclaimed. The Uchiha looked his way. "You remember that song Mayu sang when we officially became a team? What was it again?" Sasuke crossed his arms and scoffed.

"Ridiculous?" he murmured. "Don't tell me you want to sing it?"

"What are you—a mind reader now?" His teammate merely rolled his eyes, causing Naruto to huff. "It was a cool song, damn it!"

"I would rather not hear it again."

Naruto huffed again, feeling his eyebrow twitch. Sasuke hadn't changed at all. Well, his appearance was a little different. For instance, he had gotten taller, too. It was a bit disappointing to realize that Sasuke was still taller than him, though. His hair was the same style, yet it had grown. The part of hair that roughly framed his cheeks had gotten longer, but one of them was longer than the other—so much that the end touched his collarbone. As per usual, his dark blue short-sleeved jacket had a large collar, which hid both sides, and the back, of his neck. The jacket had two silver buckles that held it together at his lower torso. His family's crest was on the right shoulder's sleeve. His forehead protector was loosely tied around his neck. Underneath the jacket, he wore a mesh shirt—the sleeves were longer than his jacket's sleeves, reaching his elbows. His pants were black. The bottoms were tucked into his black boots. Unlike Naruto, Sasuke chose to wear all four of the silver bracelets on his arms—two on each.

The blond shinobi shifted his gaze away from his teammate and focused his eyes above. The sun had already begun to set, making the sky a mixture of blue, orange, and yellow. He sighed. Less than a day away and his team—his family—would be reunited. Well, if Kakashi would show up, that is. "Hey, Sasuke—where is Kakashi-sensei? Haven't seen him since I've been back."

"I don't really know. I didn't think Master Tsunade sent him out on any missions lately." He sighed. "But I haven't seen much of him since our team split up." He uncrossed his arms and walked forward. Sitting, he pressed his back against the first stump. "It's been awhile, hasn't it, Naruto?" The blond nodded his head and copied Sasuke's movements. "I remember a time when I was indifferent towards everyone. For years, that's how I felt about pretty much everything." The Uchiha draped his right arm over his right knee. "And then in less than a year of being on a team, I completely changed."

"No the hell you didn't! You were still a douche!"

"I meant my outlook, jackass. Don't make me hit you."

"Still a douche, too…"

"Anyway, I'm saying it'd be good to get back together," Sasuke continued. Naruto noticed his eyebrow twitching and silently chuckled. He could tell his teammate's patience had increased while he was gone. His training with the Fifth Hokage must have been hell. For someone like Sasuke, who loved things in order and despised tardiness and alterations to routines, he must have endured quite a bit. The Pervy Sage had told him many things about his former female teammate. Apparently, her poor gambling skill was not the only problem. "And it's a chance for me to separate from that woman's hectic training." That only confirmed it. Naruto openly grinned, moving his hands behind his head.

"I can't wait!" he suddenly exclaimed. Sasuke looked at him as if he was insane, but the blond ninja didn't care. It was great being back, and it would be even greater once he met up with everyone. But above all else, he definitely wanted to see how much further he and teammates had come since the separation. "I wonder if Mayu's gotten more…" Sasuke eyed him. Naruto's grin widened. "You know~!" He moved his eyebrows up and down as he his hands moved as though he was shaping pottery.

The Uchiha rolled his eyes. He almost couldn't believe how much more perverted Naruto had become. Well, he supposed, at his age, it was normal to notice the female part of the population. Still, his sudden interest in the opposite sex seemed as though it was more than it should be. Sasuke silently sighed, already foreseeing trouble—and possibly pain—in the future. Naruto had probably developed his Sexy Jutsu further. No. Definitely was the right word.

"Do I have to scream and shout in order for you guys to notice me?" Sasuke's eyes expanded upon hearing the new voice. Sharply he turned his head and looked up. Violet eyes stared down at him. The smirk on the stranger's face caught his attention next. The young ninja quickly jumped away from the stump. To his left, Naruto stood, staring at the newcomer as well. It was her hair that he noticed the third time. Red. She was the girl from the flower shop. She stood up from her crouched position and placed her hands on her hips. "I've been following you guys for hours. Do you suck at detection or am I just that good?"

"What is this?" Sasuke thought, fingers clenching. "I can't sense her presence even though she right there in front of me!" A ghost…? The shinobi quickly wiped the thought from his head. He didn't believe in that. Still, what was up with this red-haired chick? Ninja were trained to be silent. That was a given. However, no one could be completely silent. Sasuke, himself, had learned many detection tactics in his time in the village. This person—he didn't hear anything from her, though. He couldn't sense her except with his eyes.

"What do you mean following us for hours?!" Naruto pointed a finger. "Who are you?!" Judging from the headband tied to her around her forehead—though her bangs partially covered the symbol—she was a kunoichi of the Leaf. However, she hadn't worn it the first time he had seen her. That, or the hip pouch and the shuriken holster on her left thigh. Sasuke narrowed his eyes. Suspicious. Besides all that, she had stated that she had been following them. If that was true, he really couldn't detect her presence. That thought made him frown.

Instead of answering Naruto's question, the kunoichi swiftly moved her arm. She had thrown… flowers at them. Sasuke had caught the single flower with his index and middle finger. Naruto had caught his with his teeth. Both shinobi blinked. These were the flowers she had bought earlier. Her scoff was heard. "You still don't know?" she questioned. "Well allow me to fill you in." Her hand rose, palm forward. "Copying Power! Makeup!"

… What?

Immediately following the teenager's exclamation, she began moving her arms around and twirling on top of the stump. She was humming, too… Sasuke and Naruto exchanged a 'WTF' look. The blond poked his temple several times with his index finger, and then crossed his eyes and stuck out his tongue after he removed the flower from his teeth, implying that the girl had escaped the mental asylum. From the way she was behaving, the Uchiha wanted to agree. It was when the two turned back to the performing kunoichi did they realize that she was changing. The red hair was turning black. Her fair skin was changing to a warm shade of brown. She finished her performance by forming a half circle with her arms, and then posing in a really ridiculous way. This… could only be one person. Her eyes snapped opened, revealing blue.

"I am the kunoichi warrior of cats and fire—Ishikari Mayu! In the name of the feline, I will punish you!"

Sasuke's eye twitched. He should have known. Only Ishikari Mayu would come up with such a silly returning debut. It was worse than Naruto expecting a red carpet. The kunoichi jumped down from the stump without making a sound. Ah, he understood now. She was as stealthy as a cat—maybe even more so. Mayu stood up to her full height again and smiled. "MAYU!" Naruto shouted in glee. He rushed towards her, arms open wide. She could not stop the fierce embrace even if she had tried. After a few moments, he released her. "Squishy," he commented.

"… I see you're no better at tact," Mayu chuckled lightly. Naruto's twisted personality was going to be fun to get used to. Her eyes turned to Uchiha Sasuke. Her arms fell from her blond teammate's body, and then she walked over to her other male teammate. "Sasuke…" Smiling, she hugged the young Uchiha and closed her eyes. It felt so good to be back with her teammates. "I missed you guys," Mayu murmured. She felt Sasuke's arms slowly come around her as well. Stupid cocoon, he remarked. Her eyebrow twitched, but she suppressed her irritation. He was not going to ruin this reunion by pissing her off. Finally, the kunoichi released him and grinned. "You missed me, too, right?"

"What the hell was that?" Sasuke had ignored her question completely. His finger pointed to the stump she had performed on. The kunoichi shrugged, and then grinned.

"Cute, wasn't it?"

"Borderline retarded, actually."

"Why are you such a jerk?" Mayu crossed her arms and pouted. "Sure it was spontaneous-"

"That was obviously planned," Sasuke stated, twirling the flower's stem between his fingers. He was ignored.

"-And I just wanted to show you guys a good time, but honestly I'm feeling so attacked right now! That's the last time I try to entertain!"

"That's a lie," Naruto remarked. He placed a hand on her shoulder, causing her blue eyes to turn his way. "Good to have you back, Mayu! You look good."

"You think so…?" She smiled brightly. Her blue eyes shifted down for a moment. A deep purple tube top covered her chest and the top half of her belly. On top of that was a long-sleeved mesh shirt, tucked into her shorts. Matching the tube top in color, she wore a sleeveless unzipped jacket. The hem of the jacket reached her mid back. Her black fingerless gloves extended pass her elbows. However, on the right glove her index and middle fingers were covered. Her uncle had been gracious enough to sew some black fabric because of how much she trained with her bow. Her black shorts stopped mid-thigh with her shuriken holster strapped to her left leg. On her feet, she wore black ninja sandals. Regarding her hair, it had become longer, and so to deal with that, she gave herself a long braid and left her bangs to frame her face. The silver bracelets were around her ankles and right wrist. One on each leg and two on her wrist.

"Were you really following us for hours?" Sasuke questioned.

"Please…! I have more important things to do than to follow two teenage boys around for hours on end." Mayu rolled her eyes. The Uchiha scowled. "When I realized that you two were just visiting old places, I went back to my apartment and took a nap. I heard you guys when you dropped Naruto's stuff off, and then I followed you again. My uncle stayed to have a chat with the Hokage."

"Where'd you get the look from?" Naruto asked.

"Oh, we passed a village on the way here. An ex-samurai in that village is associated with my uncle. They sparred. As an assessment of my abilities, Uncle Mori made me fight the guy," Mayu explained.

"Was he strong?"

"In all my life, I have never fought against a samurai… I rather not do it again if they're like him," she muttered, flatly. "He acted all sweet, but once he started fighting—scary business, man." The kunoichi placed her hands on her hips. "I probably wouldn't have survived if it hadn't been for uncle's training."

"How was his training?" Sasuke raised a curious brow. "Did you learn more things about your clan?" Mayu suddenly frowned, eyes turning to the ground. "What?"

"First rule of Uncle Mori's training… Don't talk about Uncle Mori's training," she murmured, body twitching. Her teammates blinked twice at her words. That was weird. "What about you guys?" Naruto grinned and gave a thumbs up.

"My training was awesome! I learned so much stuff!" he boasted. Sasuke, though, shifted his eyes.

"I'd rather not talk about my training with that woman," he frowned. Naruto and Mayu chuckled, causing the Uchiha's eyebrow to twitch. "Besides, the training doesn't matter. It's the results that are important." The two ninja smirked and nodded.

"Ah, you're right about that, Sasuke," Mayu agreed.

"The only way to really know it… is to see it," Naruto stated.

"And how do you suppose we do that?" The kunoichi crossed her arms, already having an idea.

"I say we find that guy and-" Naruto began.

"-Demonstrate the results of our training," Sasuke finished.

"You guys just read my mind," Mayu grinned. "Let's go track down that guy."

0~0

Finished July 1, 2014

There you have it! The first chapter to Team 7: Evolution! Now, obviously things are going to be quite different from canon, so please, don't expect too much canon in this story. Circumstances and characters will be different from their canon counterparts. If you do not like this, do not continue reading. Major events that you, the fans, know will not take place in order.

Clothes: As you've read in this chapter, some characters are going to have different outfits and I will do my best to describe them, even though I pretty much suck at it. :D However, some characters clothes will remain the same. Like Kakashi. Yeah, he's probably going to stay the same.

Other characters: I can't wait until everyone else comes in. It's going to be a blast… and funny. If you truly enjoyed the prequel, you'll definitely enjoy this one as well. The development of the other characters based on what happened in the last story is vital to how things play out.

Manga VS Anime based: Uh… Honestly, it's probably going to have both elements, but definitely won't have the fillers. If it does contain filler, it will be of my own creation, and even then, they'll somehow tie in with the story. Somehow.

Just a fair warning, though. I'm older. As the story progresses, it's going to contain darker themes, mature situations, and probably some pretty off the wall shit. The characters are ninja, teenagers, and mostly everyone they come across, in canon too, are insane in some form or another. So if you're here to just laugh, this is not the story for you. Sure, there will be humorous moments, as I can't contain myself, but it's gonna get dark.

Anyway, that's about it for now.

Next time: Test Your Might

Questions? Comments? Concerns? Constructive criticism? FIRE AWAY!