Author Note: Thanks a bunch to those that reviewed! Once again, I'd like to hear any comments you've got or any suggestions, it would be extremely appreciated. The next update will most likely come early, as school is about to start (sigh) and I'm leaving the city yet again for another four day trip. Anyways, here is the second chapter of Darkside! Don't forget to review! Enjoy!

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Darkside

Why me?

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Naruto was feeling rather grumpy today. Sakura had stormed into his living quarters, screaming something about training. And on the first day he could sleep in too! Following a few short hours of (in his opinion) boring training exercises, Naruto wandered away in search of Jiraiya to get some real training done.

Of course, he happened to come across both him and Kakashi. It looked to him as if they were discussing something significant. Probably that stupid perverted novel or something, Naruto assumed. Nevertheless, he interrupted them, demanding ramen and, without forgetting, he also added that training was important too. Jiraiya had blinked, not giving into his demands at all but Naruto simply stated that he would tell everyone that he was a big pervert (even though he told many that he was over the years). It had worked!

They were just about to start when Shizune showed up with Ton-Ton in tow. All thoughts of training fled Naruto's mind. Maybe old lady Tsunade finally had a mission for him? So, with those thoughts circulating through his head, Naruto had set off without Shizune even mouthing a word.

The two adults watched the blond's retreating form and found it hard not to smile. When the only indication that Naruto ran off was a cloud of dissipating dust, Shizune turned to Jiraiya and informed him about the prospect of Naruto no longer participating in missions. The happy atmosphere had dropped immediately.

Grinning brightly, oblivious as to what Tsunade's true intentions were for calling on him, Naruto entered the old building that each Hokage had worked in prior to the tragic ending they each received.

Naruto casually strolled through hallways he knew he would never forget. With both his hands resting behind his head, a comfortable habit he liked, the energetic blond stepped in front of Tsunade's office. He could hear incoherent mumbling but decided to pass it off and barged through the wooden door, too excited about his 'possible' next mission to notice the sad and somewhat distant look in the Hokage's eyes.

"Old lady Tsunade! I knew you'd have a good mission for me sooner or later! What took you so long?"

Naruto knew something was wrong the instant he saw no eye twitching or scowling coming from the leader of Konohagakure. She always did something when he addressed her like that... but why not this time?

"Naruto," Tsunade said in a frightening voice. "Please... take a seat." She motioned to the only other chair in the room besides her own. Naruto quickly sat down, afraid of how calm and non-angry Tsunade was being.

"Uhm... uhh...?"

"Naruto... there is something important we need to talk about..." She entwined her hands together and placed them under her chin, leaning forward and making direct eye contact with the blond. "But... you need to understand the situation first. The council has decided.."

"Hokage-sama!"

Shizune burst through the door, a habit she picked up ever since she settled in Konoha. Naruto spun around and wondered what was going on while Tsunade mentally thanked her friend for barging in at the right moment.

"What is it... Shizune?"

"An important businessman has a most excellent deal for Konoha! He needs a group of escorts as soon as possible! This... is extremely important!"

Tsunade sighed in relief; however, it only managed to confuse Naruto even more. He blinked, dumbfounded, and tried to register everything. What's going on here?

Tsunade turned to Naruto, a small smile gracing her lips. "Naruto... I want you to go on this mission. Go round up Hinata and Kiba as well, they will accompany you. This will be a simple mission, you'll have to live with that."

Naruto let a small smirk surface. Though disappointed, his day completely in ruin, and the mission a piece of crap, it was still better than nothing. "Awww! Can't you give me anything... better? Please?"

"No! Now, hurry up before I hand this mission over to someone else!"

"Old lady Tsunade, you would never do anything like that... ne?" Naruto looked innocently at the Hokage. He knew she wasn't kidding, but perhaps this time she was?

Tsunade's right eye twitched in an uncontrolled manner. She glared daggers at the blond and grit her teeth.

"Naruto!"

In a flash of orange, black and yellow, Naruto exited the room as if his life depended on leaving (and in this case it very well did). He left Tsunade behind, who was now a very angry woman yet she couldn't help but smile.

Naruto had such a weird effect on people.

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The forest was incredibly thick. Dark green leaves annexed to thick branches moved in a hypnotic fashion back and forth. The dense foliage blocked out most of the sun, allowing life to flourish in the cooler temperatures the sweet shade offered.

Birds chirped happily to one another as the quiet hum of insects filled the air. The forest was calm and peaceful yet... it was place of danger at the same time. And to those traveling through, it was most certainly a place to be on the look out for anything.

Not many highly important people cared (or even dared) to venture through the forest outside the boundaries of Konohagakure. Gangs of unwanted thieves were constantly looking for new victims and anyone who was wealthy decided to stay at home. But to those who didn't care, they hired escorts. Naruto, Hinata and Kiba were now a group of those said ninjas.

"Where the hell is this guy?" Naruto asked loudly. The question was more directed towards the forest than his team mates. His answer was a small group of neatly dressed men making their appearance down the path Naruto, Hinata and Kiba were currently traveling on. "Hey! Look... it's them! Finally!"

"Way to state the obvious..." Kiba muttered from his spot to the left of Naruto, perched comfortably on Akamaru.

The blond simply ignored Kiba's remark and ran ahead, waving towards the approaching men. He was amazed at how organized and professional they looked. A question sprouted in his mind but before he could say anything Kiba, who had caught up to the blond, announced who they were.

"Konoha's finest, I hope," was the gruff reply Kiba received from the taller of the group. This had to be the important person, his appearance just screamed that he was.

"Oh, you bet!" Naruto reassured happily. He scratched the back of his head and smiled.

"T-this way... p-please." All eyes turned to Hinata, who hadn't spoken a word yet. Her cheeks were instantly stained with an obvious blush as she directed her eyes down the trail nervously.

The businessman nodded his head and began to follow them, his steps perfect and well practiced. All of the other men, four to be exact, had stationed themselves on either side of their boss, each holding a leather bag most likely filled with business papers. Hee, hee. More paperwork for the old lady! Naruto thought childishly.

They were about twenty minutes away from Konohagakure when Naruto began to complain. He was quickly silenced by Kiba, who smacked him roughly over the head, followed by a few woof, woof's from Akamaru. Hinata began to worry over the person she had silently observed as a child but Naruto just smiled and continued to look out for any possible danger lurking in the forest.

After dealing with an annoying noiseless period of time that lasted the entire trip and small amounts of complaining from Naruto, the escort group finally made it back to Konohagakure. They were still alive and well, even though all three of the leaf-nin suffered from immense headaches. It had been an uneventful trip indeed.

They lead the businessmen to one of the best inns Konoha had to offer and were very happy that at last their mission was over. Kiba urged them to report back to the Hokage (much to Naruto's dismay, he wanted ramen first) and within ten minutes they were standing perfectly straight, their stance one of respect (though Naruto preferred to slouch to the side), facing Tsunade.

"Well done," she complimented. "You are all dismissed now... it's good to see you all working so well together." Tsunade waved them off, her eyes closed, a smirk painted on her lips.

Hinata and Kiba left the room silently, both glad (and anxious) to get out of the muggy room. Naruto beamed before he too turned to leave, however, Tsunade stopped him.

She couldn't keep this from him forever.

"Naruto... may I have a word with you?"

That caught his attention. Usually such kind words were never exchanged between the two but they never hated each other. Being formal never came easy for the two of them, especially when they spoke to one another.

"Hm?"

"Sit down." Tsunade watched Naruto sit, slouching lazily so that his back rested against the chair. It was time to tell him everything. Oh God, I can't take this anymore! This was it!

The Hokage reached into the bottom right drawer of her desk and withdrew her secret sake. Pouring it out rather quickly, the older of the two downed the drink then looked at Naruto as if nothing ever happened. She smirked only to find the guilt rising in her heart at a fast rate and felt seriousness playing on her expression.

"Naruto... I completely argued against this... but.."

The curious blond leaned forward in his chair. He could sense something troubling. What is with everything today? What was wrong? Why is everyone acting so... so weird? Naruto studied Tsunade with his bright eyes as she inhaled sharply and braced herself for what was coming next, though he had no clue as to what it was.

"The council, as well as the elders... have decided against me in a very... troubling matter." She paused, pouring herself more sake and downing it within mere seconds. "They... want to exclude you from going on any missions... starting today."

Naruto fell back into his chair, visibly shocked and wounded. He was being excluded from missions? How? But why would they want to do that? Only one word managed to escape through his pursed lips.

"Why?"

"Naruto... please... please don't get too upset. The council is very..."

"Why?"

Tsunade looked away. She felt bad for him... really, really bad. He had been shunned from everything since childhood because of the Kyuubi. This was just too much for her to handle. Instead of reaching for her sake, Tsunade sighed and answered his question.

"The Kyuubi... the council members and elders want to keep an eye on it. Naruto... they fear that the seal on you is weakening... you could cause a lot of.."

"So I'm just a monster again, huh?"

"They fear that Akatsuki will come after you very soon... and with you under watch you can be protected against any attack. Please... Naruto... this is for.."

"Fine. If that's the case then I'll just have to do more training! That way, I'll get Sasuke back a lot sooner, I can prove to everyone that I'm not untrustworthy, and I can protect everyone!"

Tsunade looked directly at Naruto, shocked and dumbfounded. She could see anger and hurt dancing in his eyes yet he looked happy. She smiled and thanked him for understanding.

Naruto left quickly, complaining of an empty stomach. Tsunade looked around the room and sighed. She put her sake away, no longer craving it. Her eyes wandered to the windows behind her, the entire clutter of buildings creating Konoha spreading out for miles greeting her eyes. Off to the side she noticed a black, orange and yellow blur headed towards his favorite ramen venue.

She closed the blinds that hung above the windows and sat back down, placing her head in her hands. Everything was turning out to be great. A great big mess, that was.

Tsunade sighed, once again, facing the chair Naruto had been occupying moments ago. His words were sincere and yet they held so much hidden pain.

"So I'm just a monster again, huh?"

Tsunade closed her eyes briefly before Shizune burst through the door, immediately asking questions, informing her of new missions, and held a huge stack of papers in her arms. Great. More paperwork.

Would the day ever come to an end?

Continued in chapter three!