Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

"Talking"

'Thoughts'

"Tailed Beast"

Chapter 1

Forest Outside of Konoha:

It was calm day. A few Konoha merchants were being escorted out of the village by two chunins as to defend against bandits. Thankfully, they hadn't run into anything for the majority of the day. Due to walking for hours on end, the group decided to take a break to rest their feet.

"Alright, if we keep up this pace, we should be in the next village soon." Said one of the chunins. The other had decided to stand watch to make sure they weren't ambushed.

"That's good to hear." Said a merchant. "Say, how about we use this time to whip up some food?" They all agreed, thinking that some food will help them get through the rest of the trip. They started up a fire and began to cook up some meat they had brought along for the trip.

"That smells great. Let me go grab Tanzo real quick and we'll eat and get back on the road." Said the chunin, referring to the other chunin who was keeping watch from afar. He got up and started to make for him. After walking through the forest for a bit, he spots his friend from behind a tree. "Hey Tanzo. We're about to eat before we go back to the road. C'mon, let's go." He said, but to no response. Confused, he started walking closer to Tanzo. "Tanzo?"

Walking up to him, his eyes widened at the sight. Tanzo was sitting against the tree unconscious, cut and bruises surrounding his body. Strangely enough, there also appeared to be scratches and bite marks on him. 'Was he attacked by some beast?' He wondered as he helped his friend up. 'Whatever it is, it must be really dangerous. I need to get back to the others before-!' Before he could finish his thought, he hears a rustling in the bushes. Turning around, he spots a pair of red glowing eyes glaring right at him.

Whatever it was, it growled viciously before jumping out towards him. He braced for the fight on its way.

Back at Camp:

The merchants had finished cooking the meat and were waiting for the chunin to come back.

"Hm. Those two seem to be taking quite a while to come back. I do hope that they're alright." Said one of the merchants as she cut up some for the two chunins.

"Oh, I'm sure they are fine. They probably just came across something and wanted to make sure it won't harm us." Said another as he started eating.

"I sure hope so. After all, those two are our only protection."

Shortly after saying this, the merchants hear a some coming from the bushes. It sounded like walking. The merchant from before stood up and walked over to it. "See? I told you it was fine. Hey, what took you guys?" He asked as he went to the bush. Suddenly, something was tossed to him, causing him to fall backwards. The other merchants, concerned, rush over to see the two chunins beat up and unconscious on top of the merchant.

"Oh god." Said one in horror.

"What happened?"

"Who did this?"

"Are we next?"

These questions were interrupted by the sound of a low growl coming from the forest around them. They were terrified as they couldn't decipher where the sound was coming from. They felt like their hearts refused to beat, wanting to just stop working as to avoid whatever this... thing, wanted with them.

They were all startled by the sound of something raiding through their bags. They couldn't see what it was. All they knew was that if they didn't stop it, it will go through all of their supplies and stock.

The group slowly approached it together, thinking that they maybe could all take it together. As the got closer and closer, they saw a mess of dirty, muddy blonde hair. Just what kind of creature is this? It didn't seem to notice them as they slowly crept up from the back. Until suddenly, it turned to face them, giving them a clear view of it.

It was... a boy. A young boy with blonde hair reaching to his waist. It was muddy, unkept, and spiky. On his face were three whisker marks on each cheek. He was shirtless and had no shoes with only a roughed up pair of orange pants on his being. This boy looked... feral. As if he had been living in the woods for the majority of his life. His torso was toned, showing that most likely was fairly tough.

The group felt relief at not finding a monster. Although, they did feel curious about this strange boy. Where did he come from? Did the smell of the meat attract him here? How long was he out here for? Questions for later. The group began to walk up to the boy, wanting to help him.

"Hello there." One of them said. "What are you doing out here?" She asked as they approached him. He said nothing as his bangs covered his eyes. "Hello? Is everything alri-" She was cut off by a sudden flash of blonde and red.

xXx

Hokage Tower:

Iruka Umino suddenly rushed through the door of the Hokage's office. "Lord Hokage. We have a big problem."

In his chair, the Hokage turned to face Iruka. "What is it Iruka? Did Konohamaru pull another one of his pranks again?"

"Unfortunately, no." Iruka sighed. "A group of merchants had asked for ninja's to escort them to a nearby time to avoid getting ambushed by bandits. We had sent two chunins as a precaution due to how dangerous the area they were going through was. Everything was going fine until... They were attacked."

"Attacked? Attacked by who? We had sent two chunins to escort them. Were they attacked by another ninja?" The Hokage asked.

"According to them, no. They said they were attacked by some beast disguised as a child. Saying that right when they tried to help him, he attacked them and took their supplies."

The Hokage thought this information over. "This could be troubling. A beast that could disguise itself to look like a child sounds dangerous. We must have this taken care of."

"Should we send a team of jonins to go check it out?"

"Hm... No. I say we send out three teams of a jonin and three genin to go."

"What?! But Lord Hokage, this could put the life's of the genin in danger! They're not ready for this kind of mission. Two chunins were defeated by this creature."

"Are you underestimating your own students?"

"W-what? No it's just that..."

"Listen Iruka, I understand you don't want them to get hurt. But you need to understand that sometimes, a little danger can help. If they see the dangers of this cruel world we live in, then they'll train themselves to make sure that they can survive in it. This has to be done."

Iruka was at a lost of words. He knew deep down, that the Hokage was right. If they don't do this, then when they do eventually get shoved into the real world, they won't know what to expect. And that could cost them their lives.

"I... I understand... Lord Hokage."

"Good. And don't worry, with the teams I'm sending, their jonin instructors will be able to protect them just fine."

Iruka nodded before walking to the door. "Thank you... Lord Yondaime. You truly are one of the best." He said before leaving.

The Hokage sighed before looking to a photo he kept on his desk. Picking it up, the photo showed him along with a redheaded woman smiling happily at the camera. The woman in the photo appeared to be pregnant.

"No... No I am not."

xXx

The Next Day:

Standing in front of the Hokage were three teams. Team 10, comprising of Shikamaru, Ino, and Choji. Team 8, comprising of Hinata, Shino, and Kiba. And finally, Team 7, comprising of Sasuke, Sakura, and Sai. These three teams were known as the Rookie 9, as they had just graduated from ninja academy. The were lead by Asuma of team 10, Kurenai of team 8, and Kakashi of team 7.

"I am glad you all made it. Now, you all may be wondering why I have called all of you here. The reason is for a special mission that I'd like assigned to you all." This surprised the genin. Getting a special mission right off the bat from the Hokage? Just what kind of mission were they being sent on?

"Oh? Did something big happen Sensei?" Kakashi asked his former teacher.

"You could say that. You see, just yesterday, a group of Konoha merchants were attacked. We had sent two chunins, and neither stood a chance." While this was surprising, this wasn't as big as they had expected. It sounded more like they were ambused by some stronger ninja.

"Um Sensei? What's so special about that?"

"Well Kakashi, the merchants have seen what attacked them. And they claim it to be a monster disguised a child." This widened the eyes of everyone in the room. "In fact, based on the description left by the merchants, the child shouldn't be any older than you kids."

Sakura slowly raised up her hand to asked a question. "Um... Lord Hokage... Why are we being sent on this mission? If it could take out two chunins, then wouldn't we genin be in the way?"

"Well, I've noticed something about a few of you here when I looked over your academic grades and performances back in the academy. And overall, quite a few of you need a... Reality shift." This confused the genin. What did he mean by reality shift? "Now, this counts as a B-Rank mission. You are all to set off this afternoon. Afterall, who knows if the creature is still in that area. Here's the information on the location and the creature. Good luck, all of you."

xXx

Outside:

The teams stood outside the Hokage tower to look over the mission files.

"Alright. With our speed, we should be able to reach our destination fairly quickly. The only thing that would keep us there for a while would be trying to locate this creature or whatever it is." Kakashi said as he looked over the files.

"With my team, we should be able to track it pretty quickly." Kurenai said.

"And my team should be good in trapping it so we could catch it." Asuma added.

Kakashi nodded. "Then my team will work on intercepting it so that it doesn't escape from us. Everyone clear on the plan?" Everyone nodded. "Good. Now, pack up supplies to support yourselves for a few days at least and we'll meet up at the gate in two to three hours."

"Better not be late this time." Sakura muttered under her breath.

"What was that Sakura?"

"N-nothing!"

"Alright then. Now let's stop wasting time. This thing could be extremely dangerous if not taken care of quickly." Everyone shared a nod before leaving to pack up their supplies.

xXx

Unknown Location:

The boy could be seen walking into a dark location. Water covered the ground as the boy reached what appeared to be a dark abyss. Stopping in front of it, he sat down cross legged and closed his eyes.

After some time, loud thumping could be heard coming closer and closer. This however, didn't faze the boy, as he awaited for 'it' to arrive. After the thumping stopped, the boy looked up to see a giant pair of red fox-like eyes.

"Hello there kit. Looks like you're finally back. I assume you weren't followed?" The boy shook his head. "Good. No is one is to know of my location. Now, I assume you're here for something?" The boy nodded before reaching into his back pocket. He pulls out what looks to be a Konoha headband. "Hm... This could be troubling. They're getting closer and closer to finding me. Looks like I'll need to take some precautions. Kit, walk forward."

The boy got up and began to walk closer to this new being. Out from the abyss, a giant claw came out before touching the boy's forehead. The claw then began to glow with a blood red aura as it began to seep into the boy. The boy winced, showing that it indeed stung. But he had felt worse. After a while, it stopped, and the claw drew back.

"You'll find this useful in the case that any find you and capture you. Now leave me. I must return to my rest." The voice ordered. The boy nodded before starting to walk off. He was stopped by the voice leaving one more thing. "Oh right. And be on the lookout for more potential mates. Do not forget about your mission."

The boy stood in place for a bit before nodding and leaving.

xXx

Konoha Gate:

"Man, this is gonna be awesome!" Kiba shouted in excitement.

"Calm down mutt breath. Don't you know how dangerous this gonna be?" Ino asked.

"Well yeah. That's why I'm excited!"

Teams 8 and 10 had already arrived at the gate and were waiting on the members of team 7.

"Cool it Kiba. We must stay focused." Shino said.

"Oh come on. You can't tell me you aren't excited for our first B-Rank mission when all we've done have been D-Ranks this past month. Right Hinata?"

"U-um... A-actually Kiba... I-I think S-Shino m-might be right." Hinata stuttered.

"Aw man, not you too."

"Settle down you three." Kurenai said. "You need to work together if you're gonna track down that creature."

"Yes Sensei." All three said.

As they finished up, in the distance, they saw three figures walking towards them. As they got closer, it revealed Sasuke, Sakura, and Sai. Sasuke, having his silent demeanor as always, Sakura, trying to get his attention, and Sai... Having a somewhat disturbing smile the whole time. But that was just how Sai was.

"Sasuke!~" Ino shouted before rushing to his side, similar to Sakura. Her teammates, Shikamaru and Choji, sighed as they watched this. They had just gotten her to, for once, not talk about how great Sasuke was. And now with this mission, she was going to drone on about it later.

"Well, I see the teams are finally all together." They all heard before looking up to the roof of a building. Sitting on the roof, Kakashi could seen reading his oh so familiar book. "Now, shall we get going? Hm?" Looking to Sakura, she has a disturbed expression. "What is it Sakura?"

"Y-You're... on time..." She replied. Because of is usual tardiness, she assumed he wouldn't have shown up until at least two hours later. Was this a sign of the apocalypse?

"Of course I am. Afterall, that creature could be attacking others right as we speak. For once, I cannot afford to be late." Kakashi said as he lept down from the roof. "Now, is everyone ready? Got the supplies you need?" Everyone nodded. "Good... Then lets get going."

And with that, the team started to make their way out of Konoha. None knew what to expect. All they knew, was that whatever creature they were after, was not going to go down without a fight.


AN: Well, this was a fun write. Now I know another NarutoHarem fic may seem... I don't know. But hey, this is my story. I've always had this interesting idea in my mind and I cannot wait to share more with you guys. Leave ideas for possible harem candidates. Later.