Rider: Sup everybody? Ok, quick change of plans before we begin. Originally I said that this would be slightly AU. After a lengthy brainstorming session with my muse, read nap, I've basically got the whole story planned out in my head. And it's going deviate from the main story by a fair amount. Just to let you know up front.

Wraiths: Cool, the more variety the better.

Star: Pairings?

Rider: Read the story to find out. I promise it will be worth it. See you at the end folks.

OOOOO

Potential spoiler warning: This shouldn't really affect anyone but, if you haven't read past the time skip there are references which may contain spoilers. You have been warned.

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. There are days I feel like Naruto, living on cheap ramen and spoiled milk, but I do not own him or anything associated with his personage. So don't sue. Got no money anyway…

OOOOO

A Shinobi's Decision

Chapter Two - A Clan Forgotten

Naruto had just exited the Tower of the Hokage when it hit him. Waves of bloodlust and…something more he couldn't quite nail down. He looked around the village for a moment. "Over there!" Focusing the chakra to his feet he ran up the nearest wall and began bounding over rooftops. Deep in the pit of his stomach, Naruto knew he wasn't going to like what he found when he got to his destination

OOOOO

Daiki's eyes shifted back. "As predicted, you are the first to respond. Though I must admit you are faster than expected."

"Move away from Kakashi. Or prepare to feel the unstoppable power of youth!"

Daiki evaluated the man in the green jumpsuit silently. "It's bad enough that you're interfering, but must you do it in such a loud and gaudy manner."

A second, smaller version of the first man leaned forward and clenched his fist. "Don't address Gai-sensei in such a disrespectful tone!"

"Lee!" Gai pointed dramatically toward Daiki. "Let us show him the power of youth!"

"Hai! Gai-sensei!" The two ninja moved forward in a blur of speed. "Konoha Senpuu!"

Daiki sighed. "Annoying…" He leapt back to avoid the twin spinning kicks and threw his kunai high over Gai's shoulder.

Tenten lifted her own kunai quickly to block the projectile. She grit her teeth as she was forced to interrupt the preparation of her own jutsu to do so. "Lee!"

"Right!" The oddly dress young man charged again. "Konoha…" Lee was cut short as he suddenly found himself face to face with Daiki. "What speed!"

Daiki pulled his hand back and pointed his index and middle finger forward. "Sharingan! He will be the first!"

Kakashi struggled to get up. "Naoki! Don't do it!"

Daiki hand rushed forward. "Shinu."

"Hakkeshou Rokujuu Yonshou!"

Lee fell back as Neji unleashed the sixty four strikes to his attacker's body. "Thanks Neji!" He raised his hand and gave his teammate a giant thumbs up.

Neji looked at the prone form on the ground. "I've sealed your tenketsu. Don't try to struggle. Movement is impossible."

"It would seem that the legendary Byakugan is greatly overrated."

Neji turned and looked up toward the sound of the voice. "Impossible!"

Daiki snapped his fingers and body on the ground vanished in a puff of smoke. "I would have thought that you would have learned to distinguish a clone from the real body after your battle in the Chunin exam." He sighed. "Seems I was wrong. I don't want to waste anymore time." He began to run through a series of seals at blinding speed. "Suiton! Dai Koori Kuriputo no Jutsu!"

"Get away!" Kakashi's warning to Team Gai was to late as the temperature on the street dropped suddenly. The moisture in the air froze instantly and condensed around the four man cell. The ice formed over them and constricted as the temperature continued to fall. Kakashi watched as their skin cracked and split open under the extreme cold, blood splashed in all directions within the ice. He had to act fast. "Hachimon! Nokorimon!" In an instant after the Rest Gate opened he was back on his feet and running through seals. "Katon! Goukakkyuu no Jutsu!"

He aimed just above the frozen victims as he brought his hand to his mouth to release the fireball. The heat of the flame melted the ice, releasing the others from their prison. Kakashi allowed a relived breath to pass his lips. Gai and his team were badly injured, but they'd live. He felt the wind at his back and spun with a kunai in hand. The sharp tip stopped just short of Daiki's throat. He didn't need to look to know that a kunai was at his throat as well.

"Hachimon already?" Daiki asked slowly. "You're in poor condition. Not at all the man I was expecting."

"Don't worry about me." Kakashi replied in similar tone. "You might find I surprise you."

Daiki huffed. "Doubtful." They leapt back at the same time and began preparing seals.

Kakashi frowned beneath his mask. Somehow this boy was avoiding the effects of the Sharingan. "If he really is from Engakure he should have an affinity to fire. But he's already shown an affinity to water as well." He frowned further. "Wind is too risky…and Lightening will kill him."

Daiki finished his seals and focused on Kakashi. "Raiton! Yorozu Mori no Jutsu!"

Kakashi's eyes went wide as the sky darkened above him. "Oh…" He barely had time to dive out of the way as innumerable bolts of lightening rained down from the heavens. There was no time to think however as more bolts began to follow him. He dared not look back as he ran, but his Sharingan allowed him to see the trail of lightening just before the chakra extinguished. His movement stopped suddenly as he felt a sharp pain in his stomach. He looked down to find Daiki standing over a hole in the ground. "Shinjuu Zanshu no Jutsu?"

Daiki's lip twitched ever so slightly as he pushed the kunai further into his opponent's abdomen. He stood as Kakashi jumped back and pointed two fingers at him. "Boom."

Kakashi managed to throw the kunai up into the air just before the exploding tag detonated. He placed his hand over the wound in his stomach. This boy was smart. Even though the attack hadn't killed him outright, the cut was deep and he was loosing blood very quickly. By adding the tag he had been forced to pull out the blade quickly, cutting himself further and removing the only obstacle that might have held the wound partially closed. If he didn't finish this fight now, Naoki was going to succeed in exactly what he had set out to do. He forced his hand from his belly and began to seal. He hadn't wanted it to come to this, but he was left with few options now.

Daiki watched quietly as blue, crackling, chakra began to form in the copy ninja's hand. "When your attack fails…you will die."

It was not a threat, Kakashi could hear that much. Nor was it a promise. He had said it with the same detachment as if he was telling what he ate for breakfast. Naoki had made a simple statement of fact, nothing more. Kakashi locked his sight on his target and sprinted forward. The gap between them closed rapidly, but Naoki made no attempt to move out of the way. "Raikiri!" He felt the contact as he had so many times previously. The chakra cut through skin, muscle, tendon, and bone with ease and he felt the sticky, slick blood roll up over his arm. He looked up into the cold, lifeless eyes of his victim. "I'm sorry Naoki…"

"Not to worry Sharingan." Daiki's voice came from behind. "Body doubles are meant to be expendable."

Kakashi looked back and saw Daiki standing less than five meters away. "Body double?"

"It's a new variation on an old trick." Daiki slowly pulled a kunai from his holster. "I considered using the old one, the one that needs a sacrifice body." He smiled coldly at the wounded man. "The thought of you killing one of your own while hidden by genjutsu seem poetic for a while, but having to drag a body around would complicate things." He moved with purpose toward Kakashi. "Then again, taking out one of your own would be nothing new to you. Would it Sharingan? How are your legs by the way?"

Kakashi stumbled back slightly. The blood loss was beginning to catch up to him. His knees were shaky and he could not longer feel his toes. He'd been expertly played. His attack had failed, and he could not mount another in time. "This won't bring them back Naoki."

"Daiki." The boy nodded. "You are right though. This won't bring them back, it may not even bring me any closure. But…" He shrugged and laughed lightly. "Why bother to explain? Your time is over. Die, Sharingan." He ran forward with his kunai ready.

"Rasengan!"

Daiki jumped back, narrowly avoiding the spiraling ball of chakra. "This was unexpected."

"Daiki!" Naruto stood surrounded by the dust. "What the hell do you think you're doing? Why would you do this?"

"Don't ask questions you are ready know the answer to." Daiki looked around slowly. The once empty street was now surrounded with Chunin, Jounin, and even ANBU.

Naruto's brows furrowed in angry confusion. "How could I know why you're attacking Kakashi-sensei?"

"Because I told you earlier." Daiki's eyes continued to roam over his new opponents slowly, taking in all their numbers. "I know you're an idiot Naruto, but try to remember."

Naruto grit his teeth at the insult. "You said you had a debt to repay! What's that got to do with this?"

"It's no wonder he left this village. Having someone like you for a teammate." Daiki sighed. "Let me make it simple for you Naruto. You assumed not only that the debt was monetary in nature, but also that I owed something." He lifted his hand to pointed behind Naruto and lifted his voice so that the others could here as well. "That man behind you assassinated my family, the would be pillars of my village. He stole the lives of my mother, my father, my sister…" He paused as he saw the look of shock on Kakashi's face. "Yes Sharingan, my mother was pregnant."

Naruto looked back at his teacher. He had always known in the back of his mind, scrambled as it may be at times, that Kakashi had killed other shinobi in battle. It was the nature of their life, kill or be killed. Yet, to hear a victim actually accuse him…

Naruto shook his head. Inside him was the most vicious killer ever known. Under the Kitsune's influence Naruto had come close to taking a life as well. He had no right to judge his Sensei. "I understand what it's like to be alone…"

"Spare me dobe." Daiki cut him off coldly. "He took my family, my village, and my people. I'm just balancing the scales."

Naruto's head jerked at the term. For an instant he could almost see Sasuke's form overlaying Daiki's. "So, you've chosen to live a life for revenge too?"

Daiki huffed. "You know nothing of the life I've chosen for myself. No more than you knew of the life he chose, dobe."

Kakashi was getting dizzy, but he knew what Naoki was trying to do. "Naruto…don't let him goad you…" The warning fell on deaf ears.

"Teme!" Naruto growled as he formed the seal. "I'll show you exactly what I know! Tajuu Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!" He grinned as he prepared to attack, only to find that Daiki had vanished. Naruto searched the area quickly. "Where did he go? Split up! Find him!" It was as the clones spread out in all directions in compliance with his order that Naruto began to realize what happened. He had no chance to act as he watched his clone punch him in the face. He flew through the air and began crashing through walls of nearby buildings. With his concentration disrupted his clones vanished until only one remained.

"First rule of any bunshin jutsu." The clone disappeared in a puff of smoke and Daiki stood ready to attack. "Know how many clones you actually created." His eyes seemed to rotate as the rest of the Konoha ninja began their attack and his hands were already running through seals. "Raiton! Nibou Setsuna no Jutsu!" His hands thrust out to his sides with the right fingers pointed to the sky and his left finger pointed to the ground. The lines of electricity formed a shell all around his body before expelling outward into his enemies a second later.

Kakashi looked on in amazement as every ninja on the street was pushed back until they came in contact with a solid object. When the jutsu ended they seemed unable to move in the slightest. Not that it was for lack of trying, he could see them struggling, but their muscles seemingly wouldn't obey. He made eye contact with Naoki and waited. He had once shot left, if he could rally enough chakra in time. In his current state he would die even if the technique was successful. If he failed, he would be killed anyway. He began to concentrate on raising his chakra as quickly as he could.

Daiki picked up one of the kunai on the ground and moved toward his opponent quicker now. He could sense that something had changed, something that had not been anticipated previously. The Sharingan's reputation was well established as having copied over a thousand jutsu. There were endless combinations, endless strategies he could play. It wasn't humanly possible to plan for every contingency. He was so caught in his train of thought that he failed to see Naruto attack him from the side.

"Eat this!" Naruto put the full weight of his body into his punch add his momentum to power up his blow. He watched as Daiki flew spinning through the air. To say he was annoyed when Daiki landed on his feet was an understatement. The two boys locked eyes then, neither willing to look away.

Finally Daiki broke the tense silence by spitting blood from his mouth. "I see now why you are called Konoha's most unpredictable ninja."

Naruto would have ground his teeth if he could have, but is jaw was already killing him. That last punch had felt like it had come from Tsunade. If he got hit like that again it'd be all over. He really didn't want to do this in front of everyone, but it looked as though he had no choice. He let his consciousness slip deep into himself until he stood before the large iron gate. "Oi! Kitsune no baka! Give me your chakra!" His eyes tinted red, and he felt his teeth sharpen. He gasped as Daiki appeared before him in an instant's time.

"I don't think so." Daiki placed his hand on Naruto's chest so that the fingertips made a rough circle over his heart. "Ninpou. Uzumaki fuujin no Jutsu." He twisted his hand and brought his fingers together into a point where he pushed hard into Naruto's flesh. "Fuuin!"

Naruto screamed as his heart seemed to have a vice wrapped around it. He fell to the ground and clutched at his heart as he wailed in agony.

"I'd release that strange chakra of yours Naruto." Advised Daiki. "Otherwise your heart will explode fairly soon. He turned away as the odd red chakra died away and Naruto fell into a state of unconsciousness. A small sigh passed his lips. The fight at the battle of the end was something he would not forget witnessing any time soon. Even in that state, he felt he could deal with Naruto, provided he had enough time. He shook his head at the thought. He had taken too long already. Words meant nothing at this point, it was time to end this. He broke into an all out sprint toward the kneeling jounin with a kunai in each hand. He broke away as a flash of red and pink suddenly blocked his path. "You?"

Sakura stood between Kakashi and his attacker. "I don't know who you are, but if try to hurt Kakashi-sensei again, I will kill you." The reaction she got was not one she had expected.

"You're not supposed to be here." Daiki's voice was different now. "Get out of here!" Anger over took his expression as he raised his hand just before whipping it forward. A wave green chakra radiated out towards the kunoichi. "I said leave!"

"Sakura!" Kakashi forced himself back to his feet. "Get out of here! It's to dangerous!" He grabbed her and spun her around to shield her from the attack. He watched as the buildings to the sides of their position exploded and crumbled to dust, yet they remained unharmed. "A feign?" His vision at last began to black out, the strain on his body was too much.

"Kakashi-sensei?" Sakura looked back as her teacher slumped to the ground, blood oozing from his belly. "Kakashi-sensei? Answer me!" She checked his pulse quickly, it was faint but present. She quickly formed a series of seals. "Chiyute no Jutsu!" A small ball of warm blue-green chakra formed in her palms and she pressed into the jounin's wound. She looked up as Daiki appeared over her and her patient. "If you hurt him…If he dies…I swear I will…"

"He is truly that important to you?" Daiki's voice was still filled with hate, but now there was also confusion too.

The question startled her, but she nodded. For a moment nothing happened. She tensed as Daiki's hands tightened into fists. Tears formed in the corners of her eyes. All her chakra was being put into healing. If he attacked now she had no chance at stopping him.

With a cry that was more of a roar than anything else Daiki pulled a kunai from his holster before reaching down to cut a chunk of Kakashi's hair. "His wounds are too extensive for Chiyute." He bundled the hair into a small pack and placed it atop Sakura's hands. "Keep pressure on the wound." He began to form the seals, hating himself as he did so. "Nohara Chikatsu Saisei no Jutsu."

Sakura could only look on in wonder as this strange boy placed his hands over her own. His hands surged with healing chakra. Even though the energy was being directed to healing Kakashi, Sakura could feel herself being refreshed simply from the proximity. Beneath her hands, she could feel the wound rapidly growing smaller. She looked over the boy's shoulder and saw Tsunade and a team of ANBU ready for any kind of deception. She made eye contact with her Hokage and shifted ever so slightly.

Tsunade raised a hand and halted her team from moving forward. She had learned that Sakura's intuition was uncannily accurate. She'd wait…for now.

After a few minutes Daiki pulled his hands away, brushing off the few traces of silver-gray hair that remained as if they were most horrid things he could come in contact with. "He'll live. Tend the rest yourselves." He turned away as a team of med-nins rushed in to place Kakashi on a stretcher.

"Why?" Sakura was looking at all the blood on the ground. "Why try to kill him, only to save him at the end?" As she looked up her eyes went wide. "That crest…"

"If you had not showed up…" Daiki looked on at the approaching ANBU unit. "He would be dead." He looked up at the sky. "They will rush me in a moment, move away." He waited until she was out of the line of fire and sighed heavily. "What a waste…" His head snapped down and glared at the ANBU. With a frustrated cry his fist raised and plummeted into the ground beneath his feet.

Tsunade covered her face as the explosion filled the area. When the dust cleared Daiki was gone. In his place was his parting gift, a crater which destroyed everything within a five street radius. "The area was evacuated in time?"

A near by chunin nodded. "Hai, Godaime-sama."

Tsunade nodded. "Get the wounded to the hospital. As free hands become available set up emergency lodgings for anyone who's home has been destroyed. After that…" She paused as she saw Sakura staring at her. "After that, we'll deal with everything else."

Sakura crossed the destruction slowly. "Tsunade-sensei? That boy…"

"Naruto's been badly injured Sakura." Tsunade lifted the boy's shoulders gently. "Help me get him to the hospital."

Sakura knew full well that her teacher was able to carry Naruto by herself. Despite this, she pick up Naruto's legs and began to walk slowly toward the hospital. "Hai Sensei." It would seem her questions would have to wait for now.

OOOOO

Naruto sat in his hospital bed grumpier than ever. His jaw had been reset two days ago, but Tsunade had confined him to bed rest after that. When he'd demanded to know why she had gone into a lengthy explanation that he really didn't understand. Sakura had explained it in simpler terms that his heart had been badly injured somehow and they wanted him to put as little strain on it as possible for a few days. He grumbled and turned to look out the window. Telling him to sit still was like telling Jiraiya not to be a pervert or telling Choji to stop eating. He turned quickly as he heard the door to his room open. "Tsunade-obaa-chan! When are you going to let me out of…" He stopped as the person entered the room. "Oh, it's just you."

"Well excuse me for coming to see you." Kiba shot back quickly. "Clearly you're feeling better to give me attitude."

Naruto pet Akamaru on the head lightly as the little dog jumped onto the bed. "I've been fine since yesterday. The medics are just torturing me for the fun of it."

Shino entered and picked up the chart at the foot of Naruto's bed. "Acute swelling of the pericardia, suspected induced myocardial infarction, considerable edema." He shook his head. "Even without med-nin training one could tell these were serious injuries."

Naruto shrugged. "It wasn't that bad, didn't even hurt."

"Oh?" Kiba grinned playful. "I heard you cried like a little girl." He caught the pillow that Naruto threw at him.

"Shut up Kiba!" Naruto glared at the other boy. He had heard the med-nins talking and had pieced together most of what happened after he'd lost consciousness. "You weren't there! So what the hell do you know?"

Kiba backed off quickly, he hadn't expected this to be such a sore subject for Naruto. He wisely decided not to use his follow up about Sakura having to save him. "Sorry man, it was just a joke."

Naruto's expression softened. "I know, sorry, it's just…" He looked up at them slowly. "Have they told you anything about Kakashi-sensei? They won't tell me anything about him."

"Other than that he's stable?" Shino shook his head. "No."

"That's about to change." Sakura entered the room looking somewhat concerned. "He's awake but…" She looked around the room for a moment and gripped at the bag in her hand. "I'm sorry guys, but could I talk with Naruto alone a moment?"

The three boys exchange glances a moment and nodded. Kiba whistled and Akamaru jumped into his jacket. "See you around Naruto."

Sakura closed the door after they left. Looking at Naruto quietly for a minute before speaking. "Are you feeling better?"

Naruto nodded. "Kakashi-sensei?"

"We're going to go see him now." Sakura handed him the bag. "Get changed." She pulled the separating curtain to give him some privacy.

Naruto pulled his standard orange jumpsuit from the bag and hurriedly dressed. "Sakura-chan? Did something bad happen?" He watched her silhouette shift uncomfortably against the screen.

"I'm not sure." She finally admitted. "Tsunade-sama asked me to get you before going to see him."

Naruto pulled back the curtain and moved for the door. "Let's go then." He pulled open the door and ran face first into a bouquet of flowers.

"Na-na-Naruto-kun?" The timid voice seemed scared. "I…That is…Aren't you…"

Naruto pulled back slightly before brushing some stray pollen from his face, sneezing as he did so. "Hinata? Why are you here?"

Hinata fidgeted nervously. "I…I wanted to see if you…you were feeling better." She looked around. "K-Kiba-kun and Shino-kun…"

"You just missed them." Sakura supplied.

Naruto nodded. "I'm glad you stopped by, but we really have to go see Kakashi-sensei."

"Oh…I'm sorry." Hinata moved out of the door way to let Naruto and Sakura pass. She felt her face become hot as Naruto waved goodbye to her as he ran down the hospital hallway. She looked down at the flowers in her hand once before turning away.

A few minutes later Sakura knocked on the door of Kakashi's room.

"Come in!" Tsunade's voice ordered. She waited as Sakura and Naruto entered the room and the door was closed again. "After talking with Kakashi…"

"There's something you two need to know. About the boy from two days ago." Kakashi paused. "My connection to him…and yours Sakura."

"Then it wasn't a coincidence that he had the same crest."

Kakashi nodded. "Does the name Misaki mean anything to you?" He sighed as his charge shook her head. "That will make things difficult then."

"She was your mother's twin sister." Tsunade stated flatly.

Sakura blinked in surprise as the statement sunk in. "My mother's sister?"

Kakashi nodded. "I'll keep this as short as possible, but you need to hear this." He looked away as if attempting to think of the words. "When Sandaime-sama was Hokage relations were tense with many of the other villages and their countries. Many missions were assassinations designed to improve our likelihood to survive as a village."

"And one of the target's were Daiki's parents." Naruto interrupted.

"No, they were…" Kakashi sighed. "The story really has to be told in order. Misaki was a field med-nin, and one of the best we had at that. I worked with her many times and became good friends with her. She was assigned to my team for one such mission. We were to take out a team of ANBU from Grass that had been seen inside our border. Along the way we ran across another team of shinobi from a village we'd never heard of."

"What does this have to do with Daiki?" Naruto asked impatiently.

Kakashi sighed. "I'm getting to it Naruto. The cell was tracking the same Grass ninja that we were for attacking their home. Since we were after the same target we entered into a temporary truce to team up. The battle was long but we finally emerged victorious. It seemed our new allies were from a relatively new village with little actual combat experience. Misaki treated them as best she could, but we ended up bringing them back to Konoha with us for more advanced techniques that could not be done in the field."

"I'm still not…" Naruto was cut short as Sakura punched him into the wall.

Sakura turned back to her teachers. "Please continue."

"Long story short…" Kakashi shrugged slightly. "Misaki fell in love with one of her patients. Through them the two villages entered into an official treaty. What Engakure lacked in experience it made up for in numbers and other resources. Everyone benefited from the treaty." He looked away from his students. "The war went on, and so did life. A few years later Misaki gave birth."

A few minutes passed in silence and Tsunade realized that Kakashi was at a loss for words. "There were reports a few years later, near the end of the war, that Engakure was going to betray us. Sarutobi-sensei…Sandaime-sama decided there was enough merit to these reports to act on them." She paused for a moment. "Misaki fought long and hard to convince the council otherwise, but in the end it made no difference and ties were cut between the Leaf and the Flame."

"The decision devastated Misaki, to no longer be able to see the man she loved." Kakashi continued. "Two nights after the order went out Misaki and her son were added to the list of missing-nin. By this point in the war I had receive a field promotion into ANBU."

Sakura could only stare in shock as the implication was made. Even Naruto was silent.

"I was given the mission of returning Misaki and Naoki to Konoha and eliminating any possible leaks of our secrets to outside sources." Kakashi continued before they had a chance to ask questions. "Tsuchi wasn't about to let me take his family away knowing what would be facing them. I tried to disable him without hurting him, but the war had made him a lot stronger." Without realizing it he lifted his hand to his cheek. "In the end I ended up killing him. Misaki broke down and attack me. I tried to use a genjutsu to sedate her, but her system was so unstable because of the emotional stress it ended up killing her." He paused as he remember Naoki's statement from the other day. "It may have been something else as well, but the fact remained I had killed them both. Tsuchi was next in line to be named Enkage, the village didn't take his death lightly. I killed many of them simply to be able to escape, losing track of Naoki in the process."

"Naoki…" Sakura spoke the name slowly. "Misaki's son…my cousin." She looked over at Tsunade. "Then the reason he didn't attack me…"

"I can't say for certain." The older woman leaned back against the wall. "But it does seem to be the most likely reason."

"But the guy who attacked us was named Daiki." Naruto pointed out. "Not Naoki."

"Shinobi sometimes change names for different reasons." Kakashi replied softly. "He told me that Naoki might return after our debt was settled. I suspect that is what he meant."

Naruto considered this. "He must have trained really hard to become as strong as he is."

"His heritage partially explains that as well." Tsunade looked over at her apprentice. "Do you know what your crest means?"

"I asked my mother once." Sakura nodded. "A continuous flow, to move things in a way that promotes harmony."

"That's only part of it." Tsunade frowned. "I'm hesitant to do this before speaking with your family but…"

"Please tell me."

"Simplicity and the promotion of whole." Tsunade spoke softly. "Does that sound familiar?"

"It was in one of the texts you gave me to read…" Sakura's eyes went wide.

Tsunade nodded. "Your clan is small now, but long ago it held a status like that of the Uchiha or the Hyuuga. They were renown for their knowledge of medical jutsu and chakra control. There are many techniques that I was planning to teach you outside of medical techniques. Techniques that it would appear that your cousin has taught himself already."

Sakura stood quietly. "I have to go after him. Talk with him."

Tsunade shook her head. "Even if we could find him, I wouldn't allow it. Just because he backed off once is no guarantee that he would let you go again."

"But…"

"He won't attack Sakura-chan." Naruto stated quietly.

Kakashi turned. "Why do you say that?"

"He doesn't want to hurt her…in any way." Naruto looked to each of them. "He could have killed Kakashi-sensei, but healed him instead. He tried to scare Sakura-chan into running with a false attack. He doesn't want to hurt her at all." He paused. "I'm not sure why, but he could have killed me too and didn't."

The argument was superficial at best, but Kakashi was forced to admit that Naruto's assessment was uncharacteristically insightful, except for on part. "He would have killed you if you hadn't stopped molding chakra though."

Naruto touched his chest gingerly where the strange seal which prevented him from summoning the Kyuubi's chakra lay dormant. "But he left the choice to me rather than kill me outright." He looked down. "I think I understand him just a little. The confusion, the anger, the need for revenge."

Tsunade closed her eyes, knowing whom he was referring to. Daiki did share more than a few traits with Team Seven's final, missing, member. "Even if what you say is right in the end, it's a moot point. When he ran he left no way for us to track him." She looked over at Sakura and Naruto. "We wanted you two to be aware of the situation in case he came back." She waited in case there were questions but nothing was said. "In that case, the two of you can go home."

The two gennin bowed and left the room. Once they were suitably far enough away from the room Naruto turned and looked at Sakura. He'd been around her enough that he felt he could tell what she was thinking. Namely, she wanted to talk with Daiki. "Sakura-chan."

"Hai?"

"Meet me tomorrow at the repair site." He turned and ran down the hallway.

Sakura stared in confusion at Naruto's back. "What? Why?" He was already gone however, leaving Sakura to wonder what kind of scheme Naruto was planning this time.

OOOOO

Back in the room Kakashi and Tsunade looked at each other. The Hokage spoke first. "I can understand why you wanted to tell Sakura, but why Naruto? He had no need to know all this."

Kakashi kept his gaze steady. "Not yet." He waited to see if Tsunade understood. He continued when he realized that she didn't. "Sandaime-sama only gave me one order."

"Yondaime-sama?" Tsunade pinched at the corner of her eyes as Kakashi nodded. "Damn…"

OOOOO

Sakura stood just outside the construction area where repairs were taking place. "You better not be playing around Naruto."

"Sakura-chan!" Naruto called out as he landed beside her. "Good! You made it."

"Why are we here?" Sakura looked around at the damage.

Naruto grinned. "We're going to find something that lets us track Daiki."

Sakura jerked slightly. Tsunade had already denied that request. "But how?"

"I think that's where we come in."

Sakura turned to see Kiba, Shino, and Hinata coming up the street.

Kiba grinned. "Scent, sight, or…" He paused. "Whatever the hell Shino uses."

Shino's eyebrow twitched.

"If there's anything usable to track him, we'll find it." Kiba let Akamaru jump to the ground and began to sniff the air.

"He said he passed through Wave Country." Naruto supplied as he began to examine the area. "If anything smells like Wave County let us know."

"You can't reduce a whole country to a single scent. Idiot." Kiba growled under his breath.

"Byakugan!" Hinata began to search the area. "Shino?" Her teammate nodded.

"The destruction bugs picked it up as well." Shino informed them.

Kiba turned. "You guys get it too?"

Sakura looked on expectantly. "Well?"

"We may have missed it if Naruto hadn't mentioned Wave Country." Shino held out his hand as the bugs returned. "There is an unusually high content of salt in the ground for this area."

Hinata pointed down the street. "There's a trail of footprints with lots of salt in that direction."

Naruto looked. "That's toward the gate…" He thought for a moment. "Shino? Can one of your bugs lead us the rest of the way?"

Shino nodded.

Kiba looked confused. "We can lead you to him though."

Shino raised his hand, halting his partner. "Our part is done." He lifted his finger and one of his larger beetles came forward. After a moment of silent communication the bug flew off. "As long as there's a trail, it will lead you."

Sakura looked around at the other three. "Thanks guys." She turned to follow after the bug before it got out of sight.

"If Tsunade-obaa-chan asks…" Naruto turned. "Just tell her I forced you to do this." He paused, remembering the orders Tsunade had given him. "And thanks a lot you guys." He ran off after Sakura to find their target.

Kiba put his hands in his pockets. "He forced us? That's the alibi we're supposed to use? Man he's dumb."

Hinata pressed her fingers together nervously. "Maybe none of us will get caught."

Shino said nothing and turned to walk back the way they'd come.

OOOOO

Sakura was beginning to doubt the tracking skills of Shino's bug. As far as she could tell they were running in circles. She remembered having to cover his tracks when tracking Garra and Sasuke during the Chunin exam, she assumed that Daiki was likely doing the same.

"Shino's bug doesn't know where the hell it's going!" Naruto complained as he leapt to the next tree.

"It's not the bug's fault or Shino's!" Sakura called back. Still, she was starting to get tired after hours of searching. As if to respond to Sakura's thought, the destruction bug landed on the next branch.

Naruto landed on the branch next to the beetle. "Why did it stop?"

"So long as there's a trail…" Sakura looked around the forest. "It will lead you."

"Then this is the end of the trail." Naruto began to look around as well. "But no sign of Daiki."

"He covered his tracks too well." Sakura sighed. "Come on. Let's go home." She turned and saw Daiki rushing toward them. She didn't even have time to call out a warning to Naruto as her world went black.

End Chapter Two

OOOOO

Rider: So what did everyone think? Please leave a little something if you have time. All help is greatly appreciated.

Star: Later people.

Wraiths: See ya.

Rider: Till the next, live well all.

OOOOO

Jutsu Glossary - Just incase you really want to know

I figure that most know the techniques used in the series, but new characters always seem to bring new jutsu with them. Daiki is no exception, here's what he's shown so far.

"Suiton: Dai Koori Kuriputo no Jutsu" - "Water style: Great Ice crypt"

Moisture in the air is cooled at a rapid temperature forming ice around the target. Temperature can be lowered further to force the ice to constrict further crushing trapped victim. Rapid temperature change can induce hypothermia if exposed long enough.

"Raiton: Yorozu Mori no Jutsu" - "Lightening Style:

Ten thousand lances" Chakra mixes with static electricity in the air and rains down on a target. Extra chakra can be used to have the bolts follow after a moving target.

"Raiton: Nibou Setsuna no Jutsu" - "Lightening Style: Dipole moment"

Electricity moves out in all direction causing an ionization field that blocks any attackers from movement by statically bonding them to the nearest object. (A/N: I'm not a chem major, I don't pretend to understand all the bonds. It simply works for the story.)

"Ninpou: Uzumaki fuujin no Jutsu." - "Ninja Arts: Whirlpool Seal"

The exact nature of this seal is still under review. - ANBU Investigation Unit

"Chiyute no Jutsu" - "Healing hands"

While not used by Daiki, it is not well known. A medical jutsu used to heal small wounds.

"Nohara Chikatsu Saisei no Jutsu" - "Field healings resuscitation regeneration Technique"

A fast and dirty version of the true Chikatsu Saisei no Jutsu that was used to heal Neji after his battle with Kidomaru. Used to heal extensive wounds.