Chapter 2 Suna and Sealing

As the group left Konoha, Duke, Scarlet and the rest of the Joes couldn't help but chuckle at the antics of the hyperactive blonde who was bouncing around his two new senseis like a kangaroo on crack while Anko tried to calm him down. Emphasis on tried because all Naruto wanted to do was learn a few new jutsus.

"But otouto,w e have to work on your chakra control and endurance first." After finishing her mini-lecture, Duke tapped her on the shoulder.

"Don't worry about his strength and endurance training, we have someone for that job, and I promise that you'll like him."

(GI JOE BASE)

Sgt. Slaughter sneezed, causing him to spill his coffee all over his pants. General Hawk simply chuckled at his predicament

"You know they say that when you sneeze it means somebody is talking about you," he said in between his chuckles.

"Well if that's true then somebody owes me a new cup of coffee," Slaughter grumbled in reply, causing the general's chuckles to turn into laughter.

Back with the Group

This time, it was Duke's turn to sneeze, causing the others to shrug and think it was his allergies.

"So what is the first thing you are going to teach me neechan?" Naruto stated looking up at Anko who was busy dreaming about Itachi. "Neechan, are you there?" Naruto questioned while he was poking Anko.

"Uh…what oh Naruto, sorry I spaced out there for a moment." Her reply had the blonde child smirking.

"OH, was it about Itac…mphhh," Anko quickly covered his mouth but unbeknownst to her, Itachi had heard him and realized what he was about to say. Not for the first time, he blushed when he thought about Anko.

'She likes me too! That's great, but I just have to tell her how I feel.' The sharingan warrior had to keep his face hidden to hide the blush. He wasn't quite ready to let his crush know of his feelings. A small frown marred his face. 'But what should I do about father? Not only does he dislike her because of her former sensei, he won't want me to be in a relationship with anyone outside of the clan in fears of "tainting" our bloodline.' Itachi looked over at Anko who was laughing at Naruto, who had accidentally run into a tree. Her smile and laughter warmed his heart and a smile replaced his frown. 'Fuck him and the clan; I will marry who I love...I don't give a shit about the consequences.' He smiled as he imagined living with Anko and Naruto. When he started imagining Naruto running around a house with purple-haired kids who had their sharingan activated, he had to shake his head to clear the images. He didn't want to start thinking that far ahead…at least, not yet.

"Well Naruto-niisan, the first and most basic chakra control exercise is to keep this leaf floating just above your forehead using your chakra," Anko stated as she held up a single leaf and handed it to him.

"This will be easy," the blond stated confidently. He placed the leaf just above his forehead and concentrated his chakra. When he removed his hand, the leaf fell to the ground. "Hold on, that wasn't right," he stated as he picked the leaf up. When he repeated the exercise, the leaf fell again. Anko started giggle. Soon, Itachi joined in which caused the group to stop until Duke spoke.

"Was it just me or did the unemotional Itachi just giggle?" The entire group just stared at Itachi until he glared back.

"What, just because I don't normally show emotions, doesn't mean that I can't laugh at your son's antics," he stated. "Hell, I'm human even though I have to wear a mask to cover my emotions, both literally and figuratively, when I work. I just decided to drop both masks for this mission. I don't really need my Anbu mask to cover my face, nor do I need another one to cover my emotions. You don't know how nice it is to be able to drop both masks." He smiled at the end of his statement, causing Anko to blush.

"Damn, he not only looks hot but has a great smile to match. That's it, I'm going to get him,' she thought while she licked her lips.

"Well, it's about time! It only took me six whole years of hanging around with you to make you laugh Itachi-niisan," Naruto stated.

"On the contrary, you always made me laugh with the pranks you played on the village Naruto. I just had to act emotionless for my job. When I was in my room or Anbu locker rooms, my squad and I would laugh our asses off." He smiled at the blonde who smiled back.

Soon the group had reached the border of Fire and Wind Country. Waiting for them was a man wearing brown desert camouflage and a hat. The hat was like no other hat Naruto had ever seen before. This hat had a little cape-like attachment that covered the back of his neck.

"Duke, it's good to see you. I take it this is your new son," he stated with a kind voice, the whole time looking at Naruto with a bright smile. The blonde just smiled back."Yes this is my son and these two will train him in the ways of the shinobi," Duke replied motioning to Anko and Itachi who in return bowed. Dusty nodded and his smile disappeared as he took a more serious face and looked Duke in the eyes.

"Sir, we should start moving my sources state that there will be another assassination attempt on the boy's life. His father, the Kazekage, doesn't care that I want to adopt his son. The child's name is Gaara." Duke nodded and turned to the rest of the Joes.

"Joes, lets move out we have a kid to save!" Waving his arm forward, a rumbling noise was heard, which immediately caused the group to go into a defensive formation. The Joes relaxed when they heard the music of only one person they all knew. They liked the person, but they hated his preference in music. It was so bad that Naruto had to cover his ears. A Havoc rolled up and the cockpit opened. A man who looked to be in his late twenty's stepped out.

"Howdy Duke, the General heard about the predicament that Dusty here was having and sent me with this havoc to get you guys there sooner," he stated as the country music played in the background (for those who like country I do too, it's only the others in the story that don't like it).

"Well, I have to thank him when we get back. However, we are not listening to your music during the ride," Scarlet stated as she climbed into the vehicle. "I don't want my new son to become another country-lover; one of you is enough," she smirked which got a chuckle from the Joes in the group. Everybody got into the vehicle in moments.

(Couple of hours later)

The vehicle stopped at the gate when two Suna shinobi approached them.

"Halt who goes there?" Dusty got out and approached them.

"Hi there, my name is Dusty. I'm here to see the Kazekage about a possible adoption of a child." At this point, the shinobi stiffened; they had heard that somebody wanted to adopt Gaara. During the confrontation, everybody else got out of the vehicle. Immediately after Naruto got out, his eyes glazed. No one noticed because they had to had their documents over to the guards.

"Kit sorry to call you like this but I sense my best friend, Shukaku. Before being sealed inside a child, a crazy monk merged with him in order to create the 'ultimate weapon'," she stated.

"So there's a person like me, but crazier," Naruto replied.

"Yes, but I know how to fix the seal and destroy the spirit of the crazy monk within the child," Kyuubi stated. She started to hone in on the child's location.

(Not far from the gate where they were)

Gaara was having a somewhat normal day. If you call getting called demon and having threats thrown at him in the day and assassination attempts at night normal. He was walking down near the gate where Naruto was when Shukaku made his presence known to Gaara. In actuality, it wasn't Shukaku speaking but the monk.

"Child, the container of the Kyuubi is near! I want its blood, give me its blood now!" Gaara grabbed his head in an attempt to stop the voice.

"No, I don't want to! I won't follow your commands anymore," Gaara shouted back.

"You have no choice in the matter!"

Sand began to swirl around Gaara as he slumped over unconscious. The sand started to take the form of a raccoon. The commotion caused people to scream and run in terror as it started to destroy homes near it.

(With the Joes)

Naruto and the others heard the commotion and rushed into Suna, leaving stunned guards in their wake. Naruto turned to the others with a serious look in his eyes. "I must get to Gaara, I am the only one who can fix his seal and destroy the crazy monk's spirit that Gaara's own father did in order to make him into a weapon," he stated. "I need you to help get the people to safety." They nodded and started to help with the evacuation. Naruto stood there and channeled some of Kyuubi's chakra to get the raccoon's attention. Needless to say, it worked like a charm.

The monster turned toward the source of power he felt to see a child standing tall in front of him. "Shukaku" couldn't help but laugh.

"This is the mighty vessel of the Kyuubi?! Hahaha, what a joke! I'll crush you!" he said as he raised his large foot. Naruto stood firm, but internally he was shaking until he felt Kyuubi's comforting voice in his head.

"Kit, let me have control. I can only do this, but you will be in a deep sleep for at least a day after this." Naruto nodded and closed his eyes. When they re-opened, red eyes with slit-pupils were visible. There was a burst of red chakra around Naruto which took the form a fox with three tails. "SHUKAKU, how dare you attack the people you swore to protect!"

"HAHA Shukaku isn't here little fox. I am Yokoshima (evil), the monk that was given complete control over this boy," he laughed as he went to stomp Naruto flat.Kyuubi/Naruto dashed out of the way and ran up the leg of the ferocious monster to where Gaara was slumped over. "Shakaku, I thought you were tougher than this! You're letting a little pathetic human soul take you over!" she shouted in the boy's ear, which seemed to get the desired result. The monster grabbed his head and screamed in pain.

"No, I just came out! You have no power…NOOOOOOOOOO!" The sand raccoon dispersed and went back to the ground. As the sand fell to the ground, a boy stood up with a gourd on his back. When he looked Naruto in the eyes, Naruto saw that Gaara's eyes had a gold cross with four blue orbs in each corner. Instead of hate or anger, the eyes were filled with kindness. "Kyuubi, set up the barrier and get this bastard out of me! My container has a pure heart, but he is not in control. I can only keep the monk out for so long, and he's getting stronger! Hurry!"

Before Shukaku finished his statement, Kyuubi started flashing through hand seals. No shinobi nearby recognized the sequence. "Demonic Barrier Jutsu!" as soon as Kyuubi/Naruto said this, a red barrier formed around the two boys shielding them from view.

On a corner Itachi and Anko watched the event unfold. Anko turned to face Itachi when she heard him growl, and was surprised to see his sharigan active.

"What is wrong Itachi?" she asked with worry clear in her voice and face.

"I can't copy that jutsu," he replied making the snake kunoichi facefault.

"WHAT!!!! You mean to say you weren't worried one bit about Naruto, who is now trapped in that barrier and probably in danger!" her rant ended when Itachi held up his hand.

"I just like adding to my jutsu library. Besides, I know Naruto; he's tough, but that's not him. Kyuubi's in control; I read his lips earlier. Kyuubi is going to fix the seal and get rid of the crazy monk." Anko's eyes widened as she turned back to the orb in the street that covered the two boys.

'Please be careful otouto'

(Inside the orb)

Naruto appeared and looked around the orb. Half of it was a lush forest while the other half was a barren desert.

"What do you think Naruto-kun?" a female voice called out. He turned to meet Kyuubi who was dressed in a simple crimson battle kimono, but she was still in the cage.

"Where are we Kyuubi?" he asked in confusion tilting his head.

"We are in a mindscape merge. When I performed the jutsu, it threw us into a mindscape composed of half our minds," she answered as she walked in between the bars. Naruto jumped back and pointed at her.

"How the hell did you escape?" he yelled at her, causing her to chuckle.

"Oh Naruto, haven't you realized that it's only your willpower that keeps me in here? Don't try to release me, or we will both die," she replied changing her voice to one of seriousness. They heard crying and looked across the mindscape to see a boy crying. Without a word, they both walked over to him.

"Gaara, don't cry," Naruto said with kindness while the young redhead looked up. He tried to move away but he couldn't because Kyuubi had wrapped him in a hug. "We are here for you Gaara. I promise that I will make everything right. You should know that Shukaku isn't the one who has been causing you this pain and loneliness. It was an evil monk, who will soon be kicked out of your head." Kyuubi kept hold of the child until he smiled and drifted off to sleep in his own mind. Soon Naruto and Kyuubi heard howling as the sand swirled around them. They turned to their left to see a sand raccoon flailing side to side holding his head. Kyuubi got up and proceeded to walk toward her friend who was in pain.

"Naruto, I want you to stay with Gaara. Protect him while I deal with this monk and save my friend," she stated as she walked towards the flailing tanuki. Naruto nodded and looked at the sleeping Gaara.

'I promise to protect you with my life…brother,' he mentallypromised. Since they both held demons and were treated in similar ways, Naruto figured that they were family.

Kyuubi started flashing through hand seals that Naruto had never seen before. He made a mental note to ask her about them after this was all over. When she had reached the tanuki, she had finished the signs and called "Tainted soul extraction!" She plunged her hand into the raccoon and starting to slowly pull out the tainted monk."Nooo, you can't do this to me! I control this demon! His power is mine, you can not be able to do this!" he screamed trying to force himself back in to the bijuu's body. He failed miserably and his spirit hung in the grip of the fox demon herself. She started to do one-handed seals with her free hand, even as the monk still struggled to break free.

"Soul purification jutsu!" she shouted as she thrust two fingers into the monk's forehead.

"NOOOOO!" the spirit screamed as a white light engulfed him. A few moments later, the light disappeared, revealing Kyuubi with an empty hand.

"Well, that is one spirit we shall never see again," she said as she turned to the recovering tanuki. "You ok there Shukaku?" She smiled as the sand fell away to reveal a boy around Naruto and Gaara's age wearing a red robe with a large gourd on his back. He stared up at Kyuubi with a warm smile.

"Yes Kyuu-chan, I'm fine. Now I have to fix this flawed seal they used," the tanuki spirit stated as he got up and turned to face the seal. Flashing through numerous hand seals faster than Kyuubi had did during her fight with the monk, he channeled chakra into his hand before placing it on the seal shouting, "Seal Reconstruction jutsu!" The seal immediately started to glow and change form. When the light died down, Kyuubi saw that the seal looked just like Naruto's. "Finally, my vessel will be able to sleep and have somewhat normal life," he turned and bowed to Kyuubi. "Thank you my friend, I am afraid what would have happened if you did not intervene when you did."

Kyuubi just waved him off. "What are friends for? Besides, you saved my butt in the past. Lets just say we're even as long as you take care of your vessel." Shukaku nodded as they looked at the two sleeping boys and smiled as the mindscape disappeared.

Outside the barrier, Anko and Itachi stood there preparing for the worst. As soon as the barrier dropped and revealed the two unconscious boys, Anko was next to the two boys faster than the hirashin no jutsu allowed the Yondaime to move. Anko was checking the health of both of the boys. Itachi calmly walked up, even though he was a nervous wreck internally.

"What is their status?"

"Chakra exhaustion. They'll both be out for at least a day, two at the most," sighing Anko looked up at Itachi and smiled. "Kami, he always knows how to makes us worry, eh Itachi?" she smiled and got a nod in return. Suddenly, a girl with blonde hair in four pigtails ran up to the two jounin.

"GAARA!!" she screamed as she ran over to the fallen boy. "What happened to him? Wake up Gaara! He shouldn't be sleeping or unconscious!" she yelled in a worried tone. Anko waved her hands to calm the young girl down.

"Don't worry they only passed out from chakra exhaustion," she explained.

"But if Gaara's asleep, then what's stopping Shukaku from possessing him?" To answer the young girl's question, Anko lifted the red-heads shirt and pointed to the seal. The young girl looked at the seal and gasped.

"It…it's complete…and the berserker seal is gone!" Tears came to her eyes as she looked at the snake kunoichi. "How…w…why?"

"Eh, I'm not really sure on the how, you'd need to ask him," said Anko pointing towards Naruto. "As for why, well my otouto doesn't like to see others in pain, especially people like him." Hearing Anko's explanation, the girl look at the blonde and mouthed a 'thank you' to his unconscious form. Anko smiled and picked up Naruto while the young girl picked up Gaara. "By the way, what's your name gaki?"

"Temari, I'm Gaara's older sister," she smiled back. "Why don't you guys stay at our place while those two recover? It's the least I can do for you guys." Anko nodded eagerly; it would be nice to stay in a Kage's house. On the way to Temari's house the trio met up with the rest of the Joes. Duke and Scarlet let out a sigh of relief after hearing the events that their new son had gotten involved in. When they reached Temari's house, introductions were made while everyone had a cup of tea. Their conversation was interrupted when a furious Kazekage and exasperated Dusty walked in.

"What have you done to my weapon?" the Kazekage questioned. Temari stood up with a smile and ran to her father.

"They fixed Gaara's seal! Now he can sleep without fear of being possessed! Isn't that wonderful?" Instead of answering her, the Kazekage backhanded her. "Father… why… why did you hit me?"

"Pathetic girl, the seal was made incomplete on purpose, just like the berserker seal was place don him at my orders," he smiled evilly before continuing. "I wanted the ultimate weapon, so I made it by sacrificing that worthless mother of yours."

With tears in her eyes, Temari ran out of the house. Seeing the girl in such distress caused Scarlet and Anko ran out after. After Anko placed a well deserved kick to the groin of the Kazekage of course. Dusty walked up to the Kazekage who was on his knees holding his crushed jewels and squatted down to his level.

"Here is my offer Mister Kazekage; I take both Gaara and Temari off of your hands. Before you protest, I suggest that you agree to our terms. We happen to have a rather significant amount of garbage on you that you wouldn't want leaked to the rest of the village," he finished with a smirk. The Kazekage could only nod; there was nothing he could do, the Joes held all the cards. Dusty walked out of the house followed by Falcon to find Anko, Scarlet, and Temari, leaving Duke and Itachi to protect the two containers.

Anko and Scarlet ran in the direction that Temari was running and found the teary-eyed girl by a palm tree crying her eye out. She stiffened when she felt a pair of arms around her before she realized that she was being hugged. The last time she could remember getting a hug was when her mother was still alive. She let out even more tears when she realized that she was being hugged by a complete stranger while her own father wouldn't hug her.

"W…why did he do such horrible thing to my baby brother?" she cried out into Scarlet's shoulder. Scarlet was doing her best to comfort the poor girl, but it had been a while since she had been in this situation.

"I don't know hun, but think of the good things that happened today; Gaara's seal is fixed and he probably made his first friend today." Unbeknownst to them, the little girl knew that Dusty was trying to adopt Gaara.

"But…you're going to adopt him and take him away from me! I had hoped that father would start to love Gaara once his seal was fixed so he wouldn't want to give him up." Temari started to cry even harder until a voice called out.

"That is not exactly true." The three females looked up to find Dusty smiling at Temari. "I made a slight…modification to the offer. You're now part of the deal…that is, if you want to be part of my family," he stated smiling.

Temari stared at the man in amazement. She couldn't help but voice her question, "But…why would you want me? I'm not strong like Gaara, I'm worthless and weak, just as my father said."

"I don't believe that for a second. Anyone that meets you can tell that you got a lot of spunk in you." As if to prove Dusty's point, Scarlet and Anko nodded in agreement. "So, how would you like to become part of my family and train to become a Joe with your brother?" as soon as he was finished his statement, he was tackled by Temari who was screaming "Yes!" and "Thank you!" over and over, the whole time sobbing into the man's shoulder. Scarlet and Anko smiled at the scene before them; it seemed that their group had just got a bit bigger and a lot happier.

(Back in Konoha)

"What you mean Duke was here and he adopted Naruto as his son?!" a silver hair jounin shouted. "Why didn't you even bother to tell me?!" Sarutobi looked the jounin in his only visible eye.

"And why would you care? You barely watched over him. As I recall, you were always on missions when I wanted to schedule you to be his guard," he stated sternly.

"Not out of choice! I was given the missions by the fucking council whenever you were going to assign me to guard duty!" he replied, returning the Hokage's glare. The aged Hokage paled as he realized the implications of what he was being told.

"So…you don't hate Naruto for what he holds and for the death of your sensei, Minato?" he questioned stroking his beard.

"Kami-sama, no!! Hokage–sama even though you never said anything, I know that Naruto is sensei's son! If it weren't for the whisker marks, one would think they were clones," he proclaimed. Standing up and looking the smiling old man in the eyes he continued. "The least you could have done was let me say goodbye to the kid." The two were then interrupted by a cigarette smoking jounin who busted through the doors.

"POPS! I heard that Falcon was here a few hours ago, is he still here?" Seeing his father shake his head, the jounin slammed his fist into the wall.

"Why did you want to meet Falcon Asuma?" Kakashi asked lazily looking at the smoking jounin.

"That bastard owes me two hundred dollars from our poker game a few years back," he sneered, making the Hokage chuckle.

"You are one of two people with the worst gambling luck that I know of, son." The elder Sarutobi chuckled at his son, who was currently blushing from embarrassment

"I wonder what they're doing now," the silver-haired jounin said, interrupting the father-son moment. As a matter of fact, the Sandaime had been wondering the same thing just before he had talked to Kakashi and Asuma had walked in.

(Back In Suna)

Dusty, who was walking to the Kazekage's residence, was carrying a sleeping Temari, who fell asleep shortly after agreeing to the adoption. Behind him, Anko and Scarlet were having their own conversation.

"So, how much father potential does Dusty have?" Anko whispered to the redheaded archer.

"Along with Duke, those two are pretty much perfect father and husband material. You saw how Duke acted around Naruto; strict, but understanding…just like always," she whispered back smiling. "With the life that Gaara and Temari have had they deserve Dusty; these two will finally feel the love that their real father never gave them." Anko smiled and nodded, silently agreeing with Scarlet's assessment.

Dusty, who had heard the two ladies whispering, turned his head to face them. "So girls, before we were interrupted at the house Duke was going to tell me how you guys got the adoptation past the Konoha council." The two women smirked.

"That is a very interesting story," Scarlet stated.

(Flashback)

Duke and the othesr stood in front the "almighty" council; a majority of them were against the adoption. However, they couldn't stop it because the Hokage had final say in the matter and already approved the papers it. Danzo immediately stood up, thinking that he had a way to stop them from taking his weapon.

"If you take that boy out of this village, then you will be taking a citizen of Konoha. Should that occur, then we would have no choice but to arrest you for kidnapping a Konoha citizen!" As if on cue, ROOT Anbu surrounded the Joes who took gathered in a battle formation, ready to fight. All of a sudden, the Hokage spoke up."Danzo, you have overstepped your boundaries! As such, I hereby ban you from this council and your Root Anbu will be disassembled…again, and for the last time." The Sandaime waved his hand and the room was immediately filled with Anbu who started to arrest the Root members. When they went for Danzo, he disappeared from the room. "We'll worry about him later; for now, does anyone else have any objections?" No one was surprised when Hiashi stood up in protest.

"Yes, I forbid that little monster to leave the village until he apologizes to the entire Hyuuga clan for the pranks he pulled on us!" Hearing Hiashi's reasons, everyone face-faulted.

"Wait a second! You don't hate Naruto because you think that he's a demon?" Anko stated while she struggled to pull herself up from the ground.

"Oh Kami-sama no, Naruto is the hero of the village…but a prankster from hell!" he replied, holding up a picture. "This is his most recent prank on my clan," in the picture, Hiashi and the other Hyuuga were wearing rainbow colored robes. The only difference in Hiashi's apparel were the words, "Lord Hiashi of the fruity people." Hinata looked extremely happy with her lavender robe, but she must have been the only Hyuuga. The rest of the clan hated the difference between their normally beige robes and their now bright and varied robes.

When everyone got a good look at the photo, they were all laughing while Hiashi was fuming. "Yes, you find it funny, don't you? To me, this is an insult to my clan," before continuing, he looked around. "Don't tell anyone this, but I let Hinata keep this robe the same color because she really liked it. I just told her not to wear around the manor," which got a chuckle out of the council and the Joes.

"Well, I'll have my son write an apology letter since we are pressed for time. He'll make a formal and public apology when we return for the exams," Duke said between chuckles. He received a nod from the Hyuuga head.

(Flashback end)

"So Hiashi hated Naruto because of the pranks and not the demon he holds?" Getting a nod in reply, Dusty shook his head. "Who would have figured that the 'all-powerful' Hyuuga Hiashi would let something as trivial as pranks get under his skin?" The others couldn't help but laugh as Dusty worded it. When they entered the house, they saw Duke and Itachi talking over some coffee. The two men turned to face the trio and smiled when they saw Dusty holding Temari.

"Hey, we were starting to worry about you guys," Duke stated smiling. Scarlet sat down nest to him while Anko sat next to Itachi. Anko had to fight to hide her blush, which was very difficult, considering how bright it was.

"So you guys were worried about us?" Scarlet questioned sweetly. "You know, we can take care of ourselves, right Anko?" Anko simply nodded with a challenge in her eyes.

"Yeah, well we are in a foreign land so I was just worried about how the natives would treat you girls," Duke replied which earned him a kiss from the red head.

(Next Day)

The next morning the group woke up to a heart-warming sight at the breakfast table; Gaara, Naruto, and Temari were eating and chatting. The most noticeable thing on the table…or rather on someone…was the slight blush on Temari's face. Anko leaned closer to Itachi.

"Seems like little Ino has some competition for Naruto's heart," she giggled, causing the Uchiha to blush.

"Indeed, but I believe that Ino knows how to win Naruto's heart," he smirked. They were brought out of their private conversation when Naruto interrupted them.

"About time you sleepy-heads woke up! When are we leaving for our new home?" Naruto questioned as he smiled at the group.

"Right after breakfast son." Hearing Duke call him son brought a tear to Naruto's eye. The rest of the group say his tear and with the exception of Itachi, Anko, Temari, and Gaara, they all had one thing on their mind: 'Was his life in Konoha really that bad?' They turned to face Itachi and Anko who nodded and mouthed 'Tell you later.' It wouldn't do to depress Naruto when he should be happy.

While they were walking to the gate, they spotted some Suna Anbu following them. When they reached the gate, they met the Kazekage who had a large scowl on his face.

"You must be here to see us off, how sweet of you," Dusty said sarcastically.

"To see you off? In a way; I'm just here to make sure that you get my worthless excuse for a weapon and pathetic daughter out of my sight." His statement earned him a glare filled with killing intent from the two boys who were trying to comfort the sobbing girl.

Naruto walked up to the Kazekage. "Listen here you old buzzard. Temari is not pathetic. If anyone here is, it would be you. She is the nicest girl I know, not to say the one of the best sisters that anybody would love to have. You on the other hand, are just a stubborn old prune that can't see anything past your own nose!" To make his point, Naruto punched the Wind Shadow in his still cracked jewels. Everyone was wide eyed at the display while Temari stared at him as if he were Kami-sama himself.

"Well, let's get going," Duke called out. When everybody boarded the transport, he gave the kneeling Kazekage a one fingered salute before calling out, "JOES ROLL OUT!"

The group soon had to switch transportation methods from a ground-vehicle to a plane. When they landed at the Joe base, they were greeted by multiple people, like Sergeant Slaughter, General Hawk, and Flint with his girlfriend Lady Jaye.

"So Duke, Dusty, are these the brats that I'm going to train?" Sergeant Slaughter said walking up to Naruto and his friends. Receiving a nod in affirmative, he heard snickers from the adults and received glares from the children.

"Hey, you better watch it mister! I'm going to be the next Hokage!" The drill sergeant couldn't help but chuckle.

"Well, not without my training you won't. It's late and I'm sure that Duke and the others will want to show you around tomorrow. BUT…after tomorrow, you three are mine, all mine," he said with a sinister smile. The three children couldn't help but gulp. Gaara and Temari looked at Naruto. Their look said, "What did you get us into?" which he sheepishly smiled while he rubbed the back of his head. It was going to be a painful six years for the three young children..

(Outside Konoha)

Danzo was standing in the forest. His posture made it obvious that he was waiting for someone. He heard a rustle in the bushes to his left and turned to face a man in a blue suit with a red cobra on it. He had a cloth over his face, which was much larger than Kakashi's.

"Well, well, well, if it isn't Danzzzo. It is a pleassssure to finally meet you," the man hissed.

"Cobra Commander, I assure you that the feeling is mutual. I hope you can and will help me take over the leaf village," he smiled handing over the security plans for the village.

"Yessss, but for now we cannot since the Joesssss are crawling all over thissss place," the commander stated while he took the plans and started looking over them."So how long until we can make our move?" the aged shinobi questioned.

"Sssssix yearssssss. We will have to plan this very well so no one can, not event he combined force of the Joes and Konoha shinobi can stop us," he evilly laughed along with Danzo. They both disappeared into the night to go back to their hideout.

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Well there's the second chapter. I might put up a short Christmas chapter, but only if I can find ideas for it. Anyways, I have a challenge for any of my readers. It's a crossover between Naruto and The Punisher. It takes place at the Valley of the End. Sasuke tells Naruto that Kakashi was holding him back on purpose and that Sakura knew about the Kyuubi from her mom and was told to be mean and hit the blonde every chance she got. After the Naruto's defeat, Frank Castle comes out of hiding and reveals to Kakashi that he is the first seat of the Seven Swordsman of the Mist. He also plans on training Naruto for three years. He takes him to a cabin where Kushina, Naruto's mother, is in a coma. Frank sends out a message to the other six swordsman, which include Zabuza, Kisame, Riagra, and three other O.C.'s of your choice. Haku must be a girl. When Tsunade hears of what happens, she runs out to find our young blonde hero. On her way out, she runs into the rest of the rookie nine who were not injured and tell them what has happened. They all give her letters to give to Naruto, in which they plead for him to return. This is a harem fic; I plan to write my own, but not for a while. If you want to write this, pm me or state it in your review.

Beta's Notes: Hey, I'm Naruto 21's beta, taintedlegacy. I decided to try my hand at writing after becoming Naruto 21's beta. It would mean a lot to me if you would check out my fic, Spirit of the Prodigy Realm. Thanks a lot!