Author's Note: Strap yourselves in, this is a long one!

Okay, so I might have gone a little bit overboard with the bell test but I really love detail in the things I read, so I like to replicate it in the things I write. I don't like stories that are simply dialogue with little to no descriptive qualities, you know? It has to feel immersive, it has to feel real enough to care about and really invest in. Okay, so I might not be making any sense right now, but don't worry about it.

Anyway, I finished this chapter for you guys and I really hope you enjoy it. Thanks!

Disclaimer: Spider-Man and all related characters are owned by Marvel and in turn, Disney. Naruto and all related characters are owned by Masashi Kishimoto, I own nothing.


Ring-A-Ding-Ding (Bell-Test Arc)

"Pīta! Pīta Pāka!" A mature, feminine voice called out, echoing throughout the entire Pāka household.

Mei Pāka waited patiently at the bottom of a creaky, wooden staircase, leading up to the second floor of the house. The woman was blonde, her golden locks flowing down to the middle of her back and possessed crystal blue eyes. She was in her late thirties, but didn't look a day over twenty and received apt attention from a good number of admirers in the village.

But looking over at one of the pictures hanging in the long hallway, she conceded that there had only ever been one man for her. "I'm up, I'm up!" The widowed woman heard through the ceiling, as loud and clumsy footsteps crashed and banged around.

She folded her arms over chest, waiting for her nephew to come into view, hearing the sliding of his bedroom door. "It's four am… why is it four am and what am I doing up this late… early… whatever." An exhausted Pīta tiredly questioned, yawning heavily as he descended the stairs… on the ceiling.

Mei had to refrain from face palming before she replied, her eyebrows narrowing in annoyance. "How many times are we going to have this argument, Pīta? Off the ceiling, now." She ordered him, watching him rub his eyes profusely as he shrugged.

With a quick movement, even as tired as he was, Pīta's bare feet left the ceiling. "I don't boss you around," he muttered, landing deftly like it was the most natural thing in the world.

His guardian scowled at him, as if wordlessly telling him to watch his attitude. "Sorry, Aunt Mei, not exactly a morning person." Pīta meekly responded, moving past his sometimes scary aunt to head down the hallway.

Mei followed after him, noticing him drag his adhesive feet along the floor. "I can see that, you look like you've been hibernating up there." She mocked, drawing a completely unintelligible groan from the lad.

He shuffled into the kitchen, his motions sloppy as he pulled out a chair at the kitchen table. "Breakfast?" Pīta asked, not seeing any dish prepared at the table or being able to smell anything cooking in the air.

Mei sat down opposite him, an expectant look on her face as Pīta eyed her in confusion. "You know, I didn't think you'd forget but I guess he proved me wrong." She cryptically stated, bringing Pīta out of his sleep drunk stupor inch by inch.

He scrunched his eyebrows up, as if she'd just presented some kind of riddle to him. "What? Who proved you wrong? Am I still unconscious?" Pīta jested, his dull eyes slowly adjusting to waking at such an early hour.

His aunt saw that he was coming around, so she wouldn't have to deal with the grouch that replaced Pīta every morning. "Your new sensei, Kakashi. He dropped by, woke me up at three am to do it, but wanted to let me know that I wasn't allowed to let you eat any breakfast. Strange man, very—" Mei was about to describe him but found herself cut off by increasingly acute Pīta.

"Vague about everything?" He queried, expectant eyes and raised eyebrows waiting for an answer.

Mei provided one with a quick nod, already used to how impatient Pīta could be. "It was like he answered my questions with even more questions," she related, looking on as her spider-powered nephew leaned his head back and groaned.

The woman that raised him knew full well how straightforward Pīta was and preferred other people to be, it was one of the many reasons they got on so well. They were both straightforward kinds of people, never to dance around a subject for too long because it simply wasted everybody's time. And talking to Pīta's new sensei had hit that point home for her; she simply discussed a few things with him for a few minutes.

It must have been killing Pīta to have such a mysterious and enigmatic teacher, the boy had a constant thirst for knowledge and not the kind of knowledge that spoke of patience, virtue and finding one's self but actual, tangible, logistical knowledge. That was simply the kind of person her nephew was, he didn't look for the whys, he looked for the hows.

"Sounds about right," Pīta mumbled, staring ahead at his aunt only to find her on her feet and bringing him a refreshing glass of milk.

Mei reassumed her seat as Pīta downed the white beverage, a satisfied smile etched into his features. His loving guardian was about to continue the conversation, when an unceremonious knock came at the front door of the Pāka household. Mei arched a curious eyebrow, while her nephew simply shrugged as he removed himself from his seat.

The blonde thirty something watched as Pīta pulled the loose dark blue fabric hanging around his neck up, and his mouth and nose were gone, just like that. "For you or for me?" Mei questioned, knowing full well that Pīta knew who was at the door.

Not because he was expecting someone, but because he heard them standing on the other side of the wooden barrier, just being alive. The boy could hear whoever it was breathing slow and steady bouts of oxygen, could hear their heart thump away in a consistent rhythmic melody. Mei didn't question it, hadn't since he'd displayed his powers at a very young age.

And suddenly, the thought of young baby Pīta crawling along the ceiling before learning to walk brought back exhausting memories of sleepless nights. "For me," the adolescent spider claimed, before moving around the table towards his aunt.

She perked up as for once, her all over the place nephew hadn't forgotten to bid her goodbye. "I'll kick some butt in your honour," Pīta mocked, pulling his dark blue mask down to peck her on the cheek.

Mei smiled as she watched him leave, as growing up; Pīta had always had a hard time showing affection. Because he was just so flippant about everything, and rarely shared his feelings with anyone. But she seemed to be the only exception, the woman that raised him never failed to get him to open up and act like a regular kid.

"Love you too, kiddo." She let him know, rising out of her seat at the kitchen table to start her own day.


Outside of the Pāka home, situated directly underneath her parents' apartment actually, was one freezing pink haired Kunoichi. Sakura hadn't been crazy over the idea of getting up so early, just like she hadn't liked the idea of knocking on Pīta's door.

'It'll be nice to walk with your friend', her mother had insisted.

'You two used to be so close', she'd remind her.

And they had been close, once upon a time. Before she'd managed to grow up and think rationally, Sakura used to spend quite a lot of time around Pīta. She'd tell herself that it was just because their parents were friendly with one another, or that it was simply because they weren't allowed off their road at the tender age of five, save for the Academy.

But then Sakura recalled just why she stopped playing with Pīta, stopped being friends with Ino too. Those days were before a certain dark haired heartthrob entered her life, before she even knew who Sasuke Uchiha was. Before she threw away every competent thought in her head and started to pursue the boy, it was all about him as soon as he waltzed into the picture.

That was a tough image to let go off, Sasuke waltzing toward her before offering his hand, right in front of her, right for the taking. A dreamy smile found its way to her face, and she clasped her hands together in the hopes that it might one day become a reality.

And then she almost jumped out of her skin, almost suffered an enormous heart attack, when something hit the ground with the subtlety of a bull in a china shop, literally right behind her. With her hand clutching her chest, Sakura whipped around with grinding teeth, finding… no, she'd been expecting him to just be standing there like nothing was wrong.

Like nothing had happened, like he was at no fault for the action. "You seem a little jumpy," Pīta Pāka spoke, a smug smile clearly visible on his lips, even underneath his damn mask.

Sakura knew what he was doing; he knew what he was doing. He was being his smart-aleck self and claiming innocence, hands stuffed in his pants pockets and mischief dancing in his brown eyes. The girl had to compose herself, just one action, one perfectly timed sentence and he had already nearly flown her into a red coloured rage.

It was almost like an art form for him, a new challenge every day.

'What can I do to annoy the heck out of everyone today?' She bet he'd ask himself, rubbing his hands together like some kind of maniacal villain in a fairy tale.

'Or better yet, how can I bug the hell out of Sakura today?' Even imagining the boy planning every stunt he'd ever pulled on her was infuriating in itself, she needed to meditate or something.

Twelve years old and already stressed out beyond belief, Pīta and Naruto both were going to take years off of her expected lifespan. "I thought I told you to knock that off," Sakura spoke through the slight space in her gritted teeth.

Pīta cocked his head, looking at her as the rest of the village seemed almost dead at such an early hour. "You're the one who came calling, could've saved yourself a nervous breakdown had you not bothered." She almost couldn't believe him, somehow twisting the situation in such a way that made her fault.

She narrowed her eyes at him, those soft green eyes that betrayed the anger boiling beneath the surface. "I thought I was being nice, Pīta." Sakura responded, ready to punch him so hard, he'd end up seeing stars.

He moved by her, leaving his front door with a laugh. "Well aren't you just a basket of kittens," the arachnid mocked, expecting her to follow him soon after.

Sakura sighed, heavily debating whether she was mentally and psychologically ready to be on a team with an incessant prankster and a boy that was the master of getting under someone's skin. "You're lucky we're teammates, bug boy." She mumbled, though heard Pīta chuckle some distance away as she followed after him.

Pīta turned his gaze towards the shorter girl as she caught up with him and matched his slow and steady pace, strolling in the general direction of the other third of their team's apartment building. "Luck… I have a sort of strained relationship with luck," he addressed her with a surprisingly cynical response.

Sakura seemed sceptical but piqued up anyway, she seemed interested for the most part. "Yeah… how so?" She asked, watching the boy raise his eyebrows and laugh.

"In that it's always bad," he answered, clearly finding his words humorous but actually telling nothing but the truth.

Sakura nodded, by some miracle managing to forget about the irritation she had felt towards the superhuman Shinobi. "They say everything happens for a reason, Pīta." She imparted a slice of wisdom on her comrade, though wasn't fully sure whether she believed it herself.

As if he were somehow able to read her mind, Pīta tested her on the matter. "And you buy that? That everything's pre-determined? On some kind of fixed path? Also, more to the point, who's 'they'?" He pressed, noticing Sakura's emerald eyes glance away.

She appeared to be in deep thought, and rightly so too. It was a tough question, an old and common question. Was there such a thing as fate? Could people actually make choices in their life or did everything go according to some kind of plan? Some kind of grand design that couldn't be changed or altered?

Sakura honestly didn't know what she believed, she was twelve and it wasn't everyday someone casually questioned her entire belief system. "This is getting a little too deep for me," she meekly admitted, prompting a genuine laugh out of her companion.

The brunette rubbed the back of his head, shrugging in the meantime. "Sorry, I kind of tend to lose my mind this early in the morning… how do people even function so early? There doesn't seem to be anyone else around, maybe people aren't supposed to operate without a certain amount of sleep. What do you think?" Pīta rambled incoherently, slowly spinning around and taking in the sights of the so-called ghost town.

Sakura had trouble actually listening to him, fading in and out of the nonsense that continued to flow out of his mouth. "I think you should stop talking," she mocked, a little tired but still able to add a hint of humour to her voice.

Pīta's eyebrows shot up but he smiled despite it, he didn't mind if somebody was honest with him. "You're a real peach, you know that?" He jested, watching turn to him and smirk.

"Cherry blossom actually," she shot back, actually managing to joke around with the wall-crawler.

Pīta was a little stunned for a moment; it could've either been Sakura willing to pal around with him or the fact that she had been so quick with her response. "Touché, Haruno." He congratulated, smirking at the proud smile she held on her face.


The duo found themselves standing outside of Naruto's apartment door, the male of the two leaning against the wooden barrier as Sakura knocked. They waited in silence, Sakura trying to keep her eyes on the plan brown of the door as Pīta chose to continuously stare at her. She glanced at him out of the corner of her eyes but immediately brought her attention back to the door, like a magnet zoning on a piece of metal, when Pīta winked at her.

He must have been bored, trying to see if he could start an argument just for the sake of having it out with her. "Naruto! Hurry up and open the door!" Sakura yelled, as she proceeded to bang on the door like a crazed lunatic.

Pīta left his relaxed stance and moved away from the door, his enhanced hearing unable to pick up any form of sound on the other side. "He's not coming, probably still wrapped up in his bed sheets. Though how he slept through that little display is beyond me, sounded like a gorilla beating another gorilla half to death." He spoke, not exactly using the most flattering terms in reference to his teammate.

She turned to him, hands balled into fists as she'd given up on the door. "Just give me a reason, Pāka." Sakura warned him, emerald eyes narrowed and voice dripping with subdued anger.

Pīta stuffed his hands back into his pockets, spinning around and leaving her stood at Naruto's front door. "I plan to, buttercup." He snarked back, rendering her clueless for a moment.

"Wait, you're leaving? All three of us are supposed to meet up with Kakashi-Sensei, what are you doing?" Sakura called after him, watching him stroll further and further away.

He was just about to turn a corner, when he replied. "Improvising, don't worry about it." The distinct red and blue of his spider ensemble disappeared from sight as he turned a corner, leaving the red-dressed Kunoichi all by her lonesome.

Seconds passed before Sakura began to hear movement on the other side of the door, with curiosity swelling up inside her, she pressed her ear against the solid yet cold material. The door unceremoniously swung open and Pīta Pāka quirked an eyebrow, wondering what the heck the girl was doing.

"Eavesdropping on someone?" The brunette web-slinger queried, watching with subtle mirth as Sakura composed herself.

But then she realized that she hadn't done anything wrong, and Pīta had been the one to break into Naruto's apartment. "What are you doing?!" She whispered but somehow raised her voice at the same time, it was really weird.

Pīta shrugged, not seeing what the big deal was. "Improvising, I literally told you not to worry about it like six seconds ago." He explained, though it didn't do anything to help the situation.

She leaned into the apartment and gripped the front of Pīta's red flak jacket, attempting to remove him from the crime scene. "Get out of there! You can't just barge into another person's house uninvited! That's illegal!" Sakura once again whispered angrily, though found herself unable to move Pīta a single inch.

Instead, he opted to lightly grip her arm before pulling her inside. "Oh, give me a break. You said it yourself; all three of us have to be there. The kid's asleep; he's not getting up anytime soon. Should I have busted down his door instead? Or would you just scream at me louder?" He mocked, moving past the extremely uncomfortable girl to head into the kitchen of the place.

Sakura was having something of an internal crisis, she knew Pīta was right but didn't exactly agree with his methods. "Okay, fine—let's just… just wake him up and let's go already." She conceded, rubbing the exposed skin of arm in slight discomfort.

Pīta was too busy having a good look around to really pay heed to what she was saying, he strolled over to the kitchen and found an open milk carton, just sitting there in the open. The Genin-in-training arched an inquisitive eyebrow before he picked the carton up, bringing it close enough to his nose to get a good whiff of the beverage.

He immediately recoiled, almost dropping the milk in the process. "Ugh! That's—that is disgusting! How long has this been sitting out?! That's not milk, it's practically cheese now!" Pīta had to bring his fist to his mouth, the urge to gag growing exponentially.

Sakura felt queasy herself and she hadn't even been the one subjected to the scent, but judging by Pīta's outburst, she guessed it didn't smell of roses. "At least that solves the mystery of his stomach problems," she mumbled, offering the suffering spider some sort of silver lining.

"He's been drinking this for how long? Has he seen a doctor lately? How is he even still breathing?" Pīta joked, not bothering to put the milk back as it had long since expired.

Instead, he opted to do Naruto a favour and dropped it in the trashcan by the kitchen sink. "Now can we go?" Sakura pestered him, but this time, Pīta reluctantly agreed.

He moved past her to find a long bedroom door, slightly ajar but nothing was visible on the other side. Even Pīta with his enhanced senses could not see in the dark, so he diligently pushed the door open bit by bit. It creaked and Sakura instinctively flinched, earning a muffled laugh from the brunette by her side.

She elbowed him hard in the arm but also cursed when it hurt her more than it did him, glaring at the lad as she rubbed her elbow as if it were somehow his fault. Pīta didn't even seem to notice the contact, crossing the threshold and moving into Naruto's bedroom to find the unconscious blonde snoring away in bed.

Luckily for Sakura, Pīta didn't have to cover her eyes as Naruto was lounging in a white shirt and blue shorts. Actually, to the girl's surprise, Naruto's room wasn't as messy as she'd expected it to be. The only real stand out thing was a few piles of bowls and discarded chopsticks on his dresser, but that was honestly to be expected considering his near obsession with ramen.

Pīta picked up the boy's bedside clock, and found himself shaking his head. "No wonder he's out, his clock's broken. Alarm's set but the hands are stuck… wow, I actually thought he just forgot about today." The boy admitted, though was pleased that it wasn't Naruto's fault.

Sakura joined Pīta in quite possibly the weirdest moment of her entire life, standing over a sleeping Naruto after breaking into his home. "So… how should we do this exactly?" She whispered, still a little miffed at Pīta for not bothering to.

He didn't see the point, the kid was out like a light and if Sakura's assault on his door wasn't going to wake him then nothing was. "Well, you seem to be pretty adept with the whole 'loud' thing. Why not just scream in his ear? I'll pin him down just in case his brain explodes and you just really let him have it, then—" Pīta blabbed, was about to keep going if Sakura hadn't interrupted him.

"Stop talking, stop talking right now." She practically ordered him, prompting Pīta to quickly zip it.

He rubbed the back of his head, trying to figure out some other way to wake the boy. "I could just slap him awake," Pīta reasoned, though quickly found Sakura gripping his hands as though he were actually about to do it.

She was right in his face, voice still hushed but taking a turn for the worse. "Are you insane? Seriously, do you have something psychologically wrong with you? You are not slapping him; with your freaky spider-strength you might just slap his head off his shoulders." Sakura pointed out, hurriedly shoving Pīta back towards the door.

He raised a finger, trying to come up with some sort of point to hit back with. "Well, not intentionally, no but… that is a valid concern, yes." The almost thirteen year old relented, only moving because he let her move him.

Content that Pīta wasn't going to possibly kill a member of their team, Sakura turned away from him and back towards a still slumbering Naruto. "I'll handle this, okay? I'll wake him up, he can get dressed and then we can finally head out to meet Kakashi-Sensei. Just stay there, don't move a single muscle." The fair skinned girl ordered the acrobatic Shinobi, unable to see him fold his arms and roll his brown eyes.

Ever so slowly, both out of sheer awkwardness and not wanting to scare Naruto awake, Sakura nudged his arm. "Naruto… you need to wake up," she spoke in a somewhat soft tone, slightly betrayed by her growing impatience on the matter.

He seemed to stir a little bit, stupefying Pīta for a moment. The kid was actually responding to Sakura's voice, like he could hear it even when unconscious. Even Sakura was a little caught off-guard herself, the boy could sleep through an earthquake but was susceptible to her quite tone.

She tried her luck again, shaking his arm a little a harder this time. "If you don't get up, we'll be late, Naruto. You won't be able to become a ninja… no Hokage hat for you," he stirred louder, shifting around in his bed as Sakura frowned.

She glanced back at Pīta, wondering what on Earth they should try next. "Man, this is painful to watch… we're getting ramen, whiskers!" Pīta abruptly yelled, shocking Sakura but rousing a sleeping Naruto.

"Ramen! Where?!" He shouted, causing Sakura to leap back in fear.

She was steadied by Pīta, who seemed to be on the verge of full-on laughing. With her hand clutching her heart, Sakura had to wonder just why she had been stuck with two of the biggest idiots on the planet, as that had been the second time in the space of an hour she had almost had a heart attack.

Naruto rubbed his eyes, clearing away the fatigue as he unexpectedly found his two friends standing in his room. "Pīta, Sakura… what are you two doing here? Am I still dreaming? Because Sakura's usually here but Pīta being here… well, that's a first." The clueless jinchūriki blurted out, pushing Pīta over the comedic edge.

He doubled over as Sakura stood there, staring at a confused Naruto with a deadpan expression. "What's so funny?" The spikey haired child inquired, total innocence and perplexity on the matter.

The girl of the trio, meanwhile, was really starting to resent whoever thought it had been a good idea teaming her with the class clown and the resident self-proclaimed funny boy. "I hate you both," she murmured, ignoring the puzzled stare of Naruto and the incoherent howling of Pīta.


Sunrise had yet to break as the trio finally managed to reach their desired destination, the lack of sunlight ensured the forest around them held a dim and moody hue. After having quite the morning, the rookies were relatively alert. Naruto had been practically yelled at to get dressed for the test; Sakura wasn't in the best of moods for whatever reason and Pīta… well, Pīta simply stood with his arms folded, sharply watching the trees around them as though he were expecting something.

And so, they waited. They had no clue where their new sensei was or what was taking him so long, but he had told them to meet up at this exact spot, in a large clearing surrounded by towering pine and oak trees. Irritant seconds turned into painful minutes, and before long, the team had been waiting there for several hours.

Just how many hours were unclear to them, none of them were wearing a watch. But the sun had risen a few hours after they had arrived, so they assumed they'd been waiting long enough. All Pīta had to do was take one look at his friends and drowsiness almost began to set in for him too, Naruto was practically falling asleep, fading in and out of consciousness as he muttered something about ramen. Sakura on the other hand, was trying to keep herself awake, the skin beneath her eyes darkening as she yawned every now and then.

Pīta suppressed his yawn, blinking rapidly as he couldn't deny a perfectly natural reaction. Yawning was contagious, he just had to think about yawning and he already felt like he was going to collapse. Even he, with his superhuman abilities, needed an appropriate amount of sleep. He was actually contemplating going back to bed after the whole test was over, celebrate passing it with some much needed rest.

Finally, as Team 7 were on the brink of passing out, Pīta heard movement in front of him. His eyes fluttered open and he found himself still standing, with his arms folded and everything. The boy had no clue as to when he'd fallen asleep; in fact, he barely remembered what he did just a few hours earlier.

Their sensei, the silver haired Jōnin known as Kakashi Hatake, strolled up to the trio with his hands hidden in his pockets. Once again, just like the previous day, his expression remained unreadable. His one exposed eye scanned the three students, and he found pretty much what he expected to find.

All three of them, barely tethered to reality as their eyes refused to stay open. "Lovely morning, wouldn't you say?" Kakashi indirectly greeted his pupils with a question, whether rhetorical or not, he didn't expect an answer.

Sakura and Naruto shakily rose to their feet, having sat down some time ago as they'd begun to drift off. "You said five am, sensei." The girl yawned, but managed to shoot a tired glare towards her teacher.

Kakashi nodded, ignoring the fact that Pīta was staring at him. "Five am for you, not for me. I had some important errands to run, I assumed you'd understand." He responded, earning an annoyed glower out of Sakura.

Naruto seemed to share his teammate's disposition though, his crystal blue eyes barely open as he addressed his teacher. "We've been waiting here for hours!" He yelled, though it did nothing to faze Kakashi.

He raised his eyebrows, the one they could see anyway, and replied. "Then it's good to know that you can obey a simple order, think of it as a much smaller test to start the day." Kakashi reasoned, prompting Naruto to quiet down and Pīta to finally speak up.

"Should we expect more of these hidden tests, sensei?" The boy queried, garnering the veteran ninja's attention.

Kakashi gave a slight nod, though appeared to be on the fence regarding the matter. "I think you'd be a fool not to, Pīta. Now, enough chit chat. Let's get started, shall we?" He asked his students, though didn't exactly give them any choice either.

Their elder waltzed up to a nearby lone tree stump, the wood had been cut cleanly so the rookies had to guess that Kakashi had been preparing for their arrival. A singular alarm clock sat in the middle of the stump, perched precariously as if its numbered face was somehow staring at them.

Pīta had noticed it and rightly assumed it to be part of the test, so he didn't question why it was there. "We're being timed?" Sakura however, felt the need to.

Kakashi fiddled with the clock before throwing a glance her way, eye still as vague as ever. "Indeed you are, worried?" He challenged the three, not bothering to stare at them long enough to see Naruto take a step forward.

He shouted, predictively. "No way we're worried! Timed or not, we'll destroy your crummy test, believe it!" The blonde vouched for himself as well as his teammates, gesturing to both vastly different members with a confident grin.

Sakura still seemed unsure, eyebrows knotted and lips unable to smile. "Umm…" she meekly mumbled, though was overshadowed by a smirking Pīta.

The web-head shrugged, not seeing the harm in bragging a little bit. "What he said… only, you know, without the 'believe it' part." The brunette remarked, off-handed in his delivery.

Kakashi however, chose to ignore the pair for the meantime, instead focusing on the least confident of the squad. "A little confidence never hurt anybody, Sakura. Don't be afraid to speak your mind… provided it doesn't get you killed, of course." He added, warranting a shaky nod out of the Kunoichi.

"Yes, Kakashi-Sensei." She agreed, glancing in her teammates directions to receive nods of encouragement.

Despite their goofball and smart-guy nature, it was something Sakura secretly appreciated. The duo of ninja really grated on her nerves sometimes, and it was almost as if they had made it their sworn mission to bug her every day for the rest of her life. But then they did things like this, dropped the prankster and jokester façade for a single moment and did everything they could to elevate her.

For all of her adolescent years pining after Sasuke, she'd never once experienced such a feeling. The feeling someone got when a friend would tell them 'I believe in you', it was indescribable to her. But she felt it, a smile forming on her lips as Naruto's grin and Pīta's eyes simply exuded confidence, it was practically infectious to her.

Kakashi saw this, saw this as clear as day. "Attention, please. This is your assignment; take a long, hard look at these bells." The man ordered, requesting all eyes on him as he held up a pair of small, sleek and silver bells.

He gave them a shake, the tell-tale jingle chiming through the ears of each student. "You're going to take them from me, that's all there is to it. There are a few conditions however; otherwise, this would be an incredibly easy task and in all honesty, where's the excitement in that?" The Jōnin explained, waiting for the inevitability that Naruto would interrupt him.

As predicted, the blonde haired boy folded his arms and scowled at their teacher. "What sort of conditions?" Surprisingly for all present, the rookie chose not to bellow his words.

Kakashi gestured to a set of three red posts some distance away in the clearing, with his enhanced vision, Pīta saw that there were three packs of food laid in front of each post. "If you can't take these bells from me by noon, you don't eat. I'll restrain you and tie you to those posts, all the while eating my lunch in front of you." He revealed, earning nothing but utter dead silence from the trio.

Sakura frowned and clutched her stomach as it began to churn and growl, Naruto's forehead was practically amassing sweat as his mind raced. Pīta on the other hand, ran a hand through his thick brunette hair, confident that he could've gone all day without eating.

"Nothing too extreme then," Pīta mocked, unable to see the smirk forming underneath his sensei's mask.

Kakashi watched them; waiting quietly for one of them to notice something was amiss. They were sharp, all of them were, with Pīta arguably the sharpest of the bunch. But while he was too busy being funny, Sakura was the first one to figure it out, her expression morphing from one of hesitance and reluctance to one of realization.

"There're two pairs of bells… how come there're only two sets of bells when there're three of us, sensei?" She pointed out, causing Pīta and Naruto to glance at one another in mute dread.

Kakashi shrugged, eyebrows raised but eyes still incredibly disinterested. "To ensure that at least one of you won't get one, stakes are higher that way. Whichever one of you doesn't get a set of bells, that student will be tied to a post and ultimately disqualified for failing to complete the mission. Furthermore, they'll go back to the Academy and have to 'graduate' all over again. Of course, all three of you could flunk out too, that's always a possibility." He stated flippantly, greatly pouring on the pressure for the kids a few words.

They had to get those bells, being forced back to the Academy was not an option for any of them. "This isn't playtime, children. In my game, anything goes. Shuriken, kunai, whatever else you can throw at me, use it. If you're not prepared to kill me then I assure you, you won't be able to take these bells." He told them, spoken like it was fact, as if it had been pre-determined in some way.

Pīta didn't know what to make of it, so opted for his usual go-to response. "A teacher ordering us to kill him? Opposite Day's not for another month, at least." He quipped, humouring no-one but himself as Sakura pondered the act of attacking a sensei with such lethal force.

She raised a hand to make a point, even speaking out of term in a bid to be heard. "But sensei—" She attempted, but was cut down as Kakashi spoke up and immediately silenced her.

"No buts, Sakura. I tell you to do something and you do it, that's how this student/teacher thing works. Am I understood?" His voice spiked an octave, his eyes hardening for once in order to make himself clear.

The three Genin gave resolute nods, not bothering to question his agenda on the matter. "That'll have to do, I suppose. Now, get ready for a long day. When I say start, you can begin." Kakashi explained, though arched an eyebrow at Naruto.

The boy was sweating, almost jumpy in a way that told Kakashi he may have been scared. But that thought was thrown out of the window when Naruto whipped out a kunai, spinning it around his finger to grip its hilt, and charged at him.

Kakashi was quite pleased, actually. He'd expected them to take a more indirect route of attack and while it was admirable to see such bravery, charging in blindly was still very, very stupid. Sakura blinked for a moment, a third of a second gone and the Jōnin had already managed to get behind Naruto, twist his arm behind his back and hold the kunai's pointed blade to his blonde head.

She gasped in sheer astonishment; save for Pīta, the girl had never been witness to such speed before. Her hands were covering her mouth, clearly disproving the idea that she could've cared less about Naruto. She watched the boy struggle as Kakashi held him in place with ease, looking down on him like he was a minor annoyance instead of a full-scale threat.

Pīta on the other hand, had seen the entire thing. One of the advantages his powers granted him was enhanced senses, and in all honesty, to him… it appeared as if Kakashi had been moving in slow motion. He was fast; there was no doubt about that. But he'd seen the Jōnin move and manoeuvre his way around Naruto, so it didn't shock him the way it did Sakura.

He just… saw things in a different way to that of his teammates, being blessed with not one but multiple kekkei genkai. "That could've gone better," Pīta muttered, witnessing Naruto completely helpless in their sensei's grasp.

"You're an impatient one, I didn't say start yet." Kakashi relinquished his grip on the boy, allowing him some distance as he re-joined his teammates, while rubbing his wrist in slight pain.

"But you did carry out my orders, and came at me with the full intention of destroying me. There's no easy way to say this, because I initially thought you three to be pains in the neck, but I think I'm actually starting to like you guys." Kakashi expressed, surprising the trio with his fond words.

Pīta furrowed his brow for a moment, before speaking up and addressing the elite ninja. "Do you like us or… like-like us? Because they're completely different things, dude." He joked, earning a snicker out of Naruto and an embarrassed glare from the only female of the team.

Sakura voiced her disapproval like that of a scolding mother, tone surprised as she lambasted him. "Pīta!" The boy turned to her with both hands raised in defence, not seeing the harm in such a gag.

He played it off, though secretly enjoyed riling her up. "What? Just curious," he excused himself, a smug smirk hidden beneath his dark blue mask.

Kakashi ignored the angry pout Sakura was directing towards Pīta, he chose to ignore the bickering completely, accepting it as part of the package. "Well, staying away from that, I think the time for talk is over. When I say start… start!" He ordered, shifting to a defensive stance as his three students mimicked him.

It happened in the space of a second, more like a third of a second as Naruto and Sakura leapt away and into the surrounding cover of nearby trees. Kakashi had been fully expecting that, for them to play the defence card and wait for him to show some kind of opening that they could exploit. It was a smart move, except he wouldn't exhibit an opening because he wasn't a rookie.

But he hadn't expected for one of the Genin-in-training to go straight for him, like a predator going for the throat of its prey. The last surviving member of the Shukeikō-Clan made a bee-line in his direction, closing the moderate distance between them with surprising speed. Kakashi knew that spiders were fast, heck, they're speed was one of the most notable things about them. But he didn't expect such a thing from someone so young, it didn't happen often but it was just enough to catch the veteran off-guard.

The silver haired sensei just barely had the time to register an attack and evaded, managing to breeze by the boy's adolescent fist. He watched with his arms raised, ready to guard against any Taijutsu the boy had to offer. No time passed, not even seconds, and Kakashi had to lean away from a sandal-clad foot sweeping straight for his head.

"Didn't see that coming?" Pīta questioned, hitting the grass ground hands first.

Kakashi had to gain some distance, leaping backwards as the spider narrowly missed him with two sandal soles to the chin. "Truthfully, I didn't. But out of the three of you, you are by far the most confident. I wonder if there's a reason for that," the kid hadn't yet been able to tag him but the speed in which he was pressing his attacks was fairly impressive.

Especially for a boy of his age, with his Academy level skill set. "I'm wearing my lucky underwear today," Pīta jested, righting himself in the air before he employed a little bit of superhuman strength and launched a pair of kunai at his teacher.

Kakashi darted out of the way of the first, rolling on the floor before being forced to halt himself by the second metal weapon. "Well, that's as good a reason as any. But there's a fine line between bravery and stupidity, you seem to enjoy walking it quite often." The man informed the young ninja, not being able to figure out how he had predicted his movements.

With a shadow descending upon him, Kakashi looked skyward just in time to roll forward and dodge a set of sandals, aimed squarely at his chest. "Lookie here, the personification of a fortune cookie!" Pīta jabbed, landing before flipping in order to narrowly evade a sweep of the leg.

Kakashi saw the boy bring his leg around mid-air, but wasn't in any position to dodge, raising his arm to take the force of the blow. The result was clear, the force behind the attack strong enough to send the man sliding some distance away, coming to a slow and steady halt as Pīta landed with pristine and fluid agility.

Kakashi had to hold his arm for a moment; it felt tender but definitely not broken. "You're not like your friends, are you?" Although the move had clearly connected, Kakashi felt as if it hadn't done as much damage as it should have.

He came to a conclusion there and then, easily deducing with just one look at the boy that he was holding back, restraining himself from using too much force. "Friends in the loosest of terms," Pīta quipped, rising out of his spider-like crouch to stand.

Kakashi mimicked him, his usually vague expression slowly morphing into one of abject interest. He knew how powerful and varied spiders were, their Kekkei Genkai gifted them with many useful abilities in the art of ninja. Superhuman strength, speed, agility and durability chief among them. He'd seen the abilities in action thanks to the two previous spiders of Konoha, Pīta's father and uncle. They were fast, unimaginably fast. And Kakashi had rarely ever seen such strength, the name 'Lady Tsunade' coming to mind immediately. When he received word that he'd be mentoring not just the host of the Nine-Tailed Fox but a spider too, he was convinced he was going to have his hands full.

Pīta was simply proving him right, and while Kakashi wasn't exactly going in for the kill himself, the boy impressed him. "You like to talk a lot," the eldest present told the brunette; presenting it as though it was new information.

Pīta responded by cocking his head, eyebrows raised humorously. "You don't say," he chided, actually enjoying himself thus far.

Kakashi shrugged, attempting to appear his usual casual and aloof self in order to throw the boy off. "Just making an observation," he flippantly said, prompting Pīta to follow up.

"I'm surprised you can, what with the whole 'one eye' gimmick and stuff. Seriously, how is your depth perception not thrown all out of whack?" The boy questioned, genuine curiosity lost within a joke.

Kakashi obliged, indulging the boy's inquiry. "Three simple words; training, training and more training." He explained, earning an unconvinced look out of the child.

With an eyebrow arched, Pīta pressed his luck. "That's five words," the red and blue Shinobi stated, his spider-sense screaming in his skull for a moment.

He brought his hand up to catch a kunai, the razor-sharp edge inches away from his face. "Nobody likes a know-it-all," Kakashi deadpanned, having tested Pīta's reflexes with that kunai.

He'd been expecting the outcome; Pīta was simply too fast for ranged attacks. "Sound advice for Sakura then," Pīta hit back, twirling the projectile around his fingers before he threw it back with spider-strength.

Kakashi didn't even bother trying to catch it, the kunai whistling past his head as he ducked and sprinted straight for Pīta. For the first time since the two of them had met, Kakashi saw that Pīta was caught off-guard. He hadn't been expecting the Jōnin to simply rush him head on, the man straying away from defence to surprise the boy.

He closed the distance between them fast, and intended to test Pīta fully. He lashed out, fist hitting nothing but air as Pīta had already moved, already manoeuvred his way around him. He was behind him, reaching for a set of bells and Kakashi had to immediately swing back with his arm, forcing Pīta to abandon them and spring into the air. The silver haired veteran had observed the boy airborne; he was much less versatile when off the ground.

A pair of sandals came at Kakashi's masked face, only to be caught as the Shinobi planned to swing Pīta and throw him away. His expression morphed from determination into one of realization however, as upon the point of throwing the boy, Kakashi found that he couldn't let go of his sandals. Pīta took the minute moment, less than a second of time, to anchor himself to the ground with his hands and use that leverage to fling his teacher with his legs.

Kakashi flailed for a moment, before gaining some semblance of his bearings as he flipped and righted himself, landing deftly by the base of a lone tree. "Good idea with the whole 'human hammer throw' thing, too bad I tend to stick to things, huh?" Pīta challenged, approaching the enigmatic ninja with a growing air of confidence.

His sensei nodded, remaining steadfast by the tree. "Much like a bad penny, I can't seem to get rid of you." Kakashi decided to play the young Genin's game because as he'd noticed during their fight, Pīta seemed to enjoy toying with his opponent.

It was a smart tactic; there was no doubt about that. But it was much more effective against Academy-level ninja, due to their age and inexperience. One wise enough could simply choose to ignore it, block out his voice and focus solely on the fight. His ability to talk whilst simultaneously trading blows with an opponent was an impressive one, the boy joked and conversed without missing a beat, as though it were as natural as breathing.

Kakashi didn't mind either way, he wasn't gullible enough to actually fall for any of it. In truth, it provided a good chance to study the boy's various techniques and abilities. Though he had to wonder just what Naruto and Sakura were doing, perhaps biding their time and waiting for the perfect opportunity to strike.

Those thoughts quickly vacated Kakashi's mind as he lured Pīta closer and closer, waiting in anticipation for the Shinobi to make a move. "Imagine how my teammates feel," the brunette quipped, ready to dart ahead and tackle his teacher head on.

Had it not been for his spider-sense, he would have. But he halted himself, listening to it for a moment. The way Kakashi was waiting for him, almost as if he were luring him into some form of a trap. The look on the man's face, what he could see of it anyway, said it all. The disappointment was clear as Pīta refused to take another step forward. But there was also… curiosity, dashes of intrigue.

"Something wrong? Having second thoughts about fighting me?" Kakashi challenged, hoping to play to the boy's ego as Pīta appeared to be pondering something.

The pre-teen smirked beneath his mask, with the aid of his spider-sense, he'd seen past his sensei's game. He didn't answer, and it only served to fuel Kakashi's interest as for once, the talkative ninja consciously chose to hold his tongue.

Kakashi relented, shrugging his shoulders in flippant defeat as he approached Pīta calmly. "Well, it was worth a shot." A little disheartened that the rope trap he'd set up had gone to waste.

Still though, he couldn't figure out how Pīta had known not to walk into it. "If it's any consolation, you sold it really well." Pīta remarked, feeling fairly in control of the situation.

Of course, that was before Kakashi raised his hands and formed a hand sign. "Umm…" The boy mumbled, watching as his teacher exploded into a plume of smoke, leaving behind nothing but a solid wooden log.

It dropped to the floor unceremoniously, forcing Pīta to assume an immediate defensive stance. "When did you—?" The spider began but held his tongue when his spider-sense once again blared, igniting the synapses in his brain.

The danger was below him and he leapt high into the air, avoiding two hands reaching and grabbing for his ankles. Pīta back flipped, hitting the grass in a three-point stance and watching in mild confusion as Kakashi climbed his way out of the ground. A small crater was left in the dirt, and Pīta deduced that Kakashi was quite strong, he had to be in order to power his way through solid Earth.

"Substitution Jutsu? How'd you pull that off? I had my eyes on you the entire time, sensei." Pīta questioned, as for the first time since the start of the fight, his curiosity had gotten the better of him.

Kakashi stared back at bewildered brown eyes, his own thirst for knowledge taking hold. "I'm a ninja, Pīta… my secrets have secrets." He evasively answered, receiving a disdained roll of the eyes for his troubles.

They seemed to be an impasse for the time being, Kakashi most likely had at least ten more back-up tricks up his sleeve but Pīta was somehow able to predict and avoid everything he threw at him. There was more to him than met the eyes, something that went beyond his physical capabilities and he was convinced it had nothing to do with the use of chakra.

It was too quick, too instant to be related to the natural energy of the body. Pīta had a hidden weapon up his sleeve; it wasn't in his eyes like the Sharingan or the Byakugan and was undetectable to Kakashi. Whatever it was, it made tagging the kid extremely difficult and no doubt virtually neutralized the possibility of stealth.

Not even an hour into the test and he was already having trouble with just one of the trio… in fact, he'd gotten so interested in the conflict, Kakashi had completely forgotten about Sakura and Naruto. Just where were they?


Elsewhere in the clearing, the subject of Kakashi's thoughts had been watching and waiting for the perfect time to intervene and aid their teammate. The duo were quite surprised, Pīta seemed to be faring quite well, even against a vastly experienced opponent such as Kakashi.

Whilst Naruto was growing impatient and fidgety, hating the fact that they were sitting on the side-lines, Sakura figured that it was a great way to study their new mentor. He was smart, extremely sharp despite his relaxed demeanour and although unable to tag Pīta successfully, it felt like he was testing the boy more than actually fighting him, seeing what he was capable of.

Sakura had to admit, she'd seen Pīta fight before but because of his speed, reflexes and sheer strength, his Taijutsu vastly overpowered any of the Academy rookies. Even Sasuke, her future husband and number one rookie, had trouble just reading Pīta's unpredictable movements.

He was sporadic, off the wall and never kept to any specific fighting style. While one could argue that it was a weakness, Pīta made good use of his abilities and employed them in the way he fought, seamlessly weaving them into every aspect of his Taijutsu.

Sakura's green eyes left the ongoing conflict to linger on Naruto, his arms folded and a frown clearly present on his lips. "I was gonna go one-on-one with Kakashi-Sensei," he quietly complained, blues eyes squinted as he too spectated.

"Don't be such a whiner, Naruto. Kakashi-Sensei's defence is pretty strong; Pīta's looking for an opening we can use... I think." Sakura reasoned, though actually had no clue what her friend was up to.

When Kakashi had given them the green light, she'd fully expected Pīta to join them in the safety the trees had to offer. But the brash ninja had chosen to go head on with an elite Jōnin, not a smart move even with all that he could do. It was almost as if he were testing himself, seeing how far he could take it with someone of such a high rank.

If it had been a real fight, Sakura could've argued that Pīta had a severe death wish. "He's not even hitting him! They're talking like they're old friends, not fighting!" Naruto voiced his frustration on the matter, kunai in hand to show how prepared he was to join the scrap.

Sakura wasn't exactly as proactive as her comrades, but she too was beginning to feel a little left out. "You should know by now that Pīta likes to talk, it's what he does. He's trying to get inside Kakashi-Sensei's head, but I don't think it's working. It's a smart tactic against rookie ninja like us, but used against a veteran like him, I just don't see Pīta pulling it off." The pink haired Kunoichi admitted, admiring Pīta's clever but misplaced tact.

Naruto seemed a little confused on the matter, as if he'd missed something in Sakura's words. "But… I thought Pīta's bloodline made him faster and stronger, what gives?" He pressed, prompting Sakura to shrug her petit shoulders.

"Strength and speed don't dictate a fight, Naruto. Pīta's clan were once a powerful family of ninja, their abilities alone made them a force to be reckoned with. But even the most powerful can fall, that's why Pīta's the only one left. His powers might be an advantage, but against someone as skilled as our new sensei, I don't think he has a chance." She concluded, seemingly igniting something in her blonde companion.

Naruto practically sprang to life, an eager grin forming on his face as Sakura almost fell out of the tree they were perched in. "Then what're we waiting for?! We're supposed to be a team, let's get down there and help our teammate out!" He exclaimed, pushing past the branches and foliage of the tree to leap back into the clearing.

Sakura reached for him, grabbing nothing but thin air. "Naruto, wait! Ugh! Impulsive idiots, the both of them!" She yelled in annoyance, jumping after the orange-clad boy.

They hit the ground and rolled, the soft blades of grass providing enough cushion for them to do so without any discomfort, and the pair took off into a sprint. They saw that Pīta had Kakashi relatively distracted, bouncing around him like red and blue pinball. Sakura took the opportunity to get directly involved in the fight, whipping out a handful of kunai and launching them at the sliver haired Jōnin.

Pīta abruptly landed in their path with his back to them, using both forearms to shield against a roundhouse kick. Sakura gasped, and Naruto attempted to speed up, almost as if he were trying to save Pīta from the impending danger. Kakashi on the other hand, saw the projectiles slicing through the air, headed right for the oblivious boy and did nothing to stop it.

Just as the man had predicted, Pīta didn't have to see the danger to avoid it, corkscrewing into the air and over the sailing kunai blades. Kakashi was the one now in their path, but simply brought up a kunai of his own and batted them away with blurred and practiced motions.

Pīta landed, standing but in a low stance as Sakura and Naruto finally joined him. "Took you long enough," he snidely remarked, glancing between both his friends.

Sakura was about to point out and question the fact that Pīta had somehow dodged an attack he didn't even see coming, but thought better of it. "Spare us the attitude, bug breath. Do you have a plan or are you just gonna hit nothing for the next couple of hours?" She hit back, employing a no-nonsense tone where the boy was concerned.

Naruto gave a nod in agreement, remembering that the trio were being timed. "All this standing around and talking is getting us nowhere, we only have until noon!" He urged, his tone growing in volume once again.

Pīta raised his hands in defence, quickly racking his brain for any useful methods and tactics that they could employ against their teacher. "I have bits and pieces, maybe… twenty percent of a plan." He meekly answered, drawing a look of astonishment out of Naruto and a sigh of disappointment from Sakura.

"Twenty percent?! Where's the other eighty?!" Naruto yelled, a little too frantically for Pīta's taste.

Luckily, Sakura butted in before Pīta yelled back. "It'll have to do; we don't have the time to argue about it. What's the plan, Pīta?" She questioned, garnering a frown and fold of the arms out of Naruto.

Pīta directed his gaze to the still-waiting Kakashi, the skilled Shinobi watching him right back. "We outnumber him three to one, if we rush him and try working together, we might stand a chance of getting those bells. I know it's not much of plan, whiskers, but it's all I have." The boy told his friend, drawing a sigh from him in the meantime.

Naruto couldn't be mad at him, he hadn't been able to come up with anything either. "It's a longshot but… it still might work," Sakura chipped in, the three Genin facing their teacher as they prepared to tackle him head on.

"We're ninja; losing's not an option, guys." Pīta firmly stated, hands balling into fists as Sakura brushed a stray strand of long pink hair out of her face, and Naruto gritted his teeth.

Kakashi himself stood ready, though didn't exhibit the same amount of urgency as his pupils. "I'll be the judge of that," because for as talented as they were, they were still just Genin and he could've honestly gone at it with them all day long.

His three charges bolted at him, a clear goal in each of their minds. "Naruto, you and I go low! Sakura, go high!" Pīta barked orders at his teammates, both of them too preoccupied and caught up in the moment to really question it.

Naruto simply nodded, but Sakura didn't even have time to register the jester's words as she was lifted off of the ground and sent sailing right at Kakashi. "Pīta! Wait!" She cried too late, instead leaning into the momentum of the flight.

She flipped in mid-air, slowing her speed dramatically as she aimed both feet directly at the Jōnin's padded chest. Predictively, Kakashi evaded the human projectile with ease but was kept on his toes as Pīta reached him within seconds. The boy leapt at him, fist cocked and ready to strike. Kakashi snapped to the left and brought a knee up, slamming it into Pīta's stomach.

If the boy was winded or hurt in anyway, he didn't show it, pushing the knee away from him. Kakashi was sent spinning due to the force but went with it, using the momentum to spin around and deliver a devastating kick, aiming squarely for Pīta's masked head. The red and blue spider brought his arm up and simply blocked it, before planting both his open palms on Kakashi's ears.

All the Jōnin heard was ringing for a moment, feeling a little dazed as he shook his head and attempted to power through the sensation. "We got him on the ropes!" He heard Pīta yell, though it sounded muffled and disjointed.

Before he could react, he felt his legs being swept out from under him and found himself staring up at a grinning Naruto. "I'm going for a bell!" The boy shouted, reaching down to pluck a pair of the silver musical chimes from Kakashi's person.

Kakashi was coherent enough to grip the kid's wrist and hurl him a few feet away, not idling on the ground by any means as a pair of sandals broke the Earth not a moment later. "He's back on his feet; keep him on his toes, Sakura!" Pīta once again ordered, watching Kakashi do his best to duck and weave out of the path of several kunai Sakura had pelted his way, his hearing still a little off.

Sakura pressed her advantage to tackle Kakashi hand-to-hand for the first time, her adolescent fist reaching up to just barely miss his jaw by inches. With her teeth grinding together and green eyes full of youthful determination, the man saw that the Kunoichi clearly wanted it. Wanted a chance to prove herself, to who he wasn't quite sure, but the fact that she was trying pleased him greatly.

There were a lot of ninja out in the world that still held onto the forgotten ideals of ancient history, the usual nonsense of females being inferior to males. The fact that they weren't as strong or as fast as the opposite gender, that they weren't as driven. Kakashi was content to see that with each new generation of graduates, there were more and more Kunoichi to prove those ninja wrong.

As a matter of fact, the sheer spirit Sakura was showcasing impressed Kakashi; he hadn't seen such ferocity in a student in a long time. He pushed away an elbow that would've landed on his stomach and was about to catch the predictable fist that was sure to follow, but had to lean back as Sakura whipped out a kunai as if from nowhere.

He felt Pīta leap at him from behind, just had a hunch that the young ninja would take the chance to capitalize and actually caught him. Before Pīta could overpower and break away from him, Kakashi had already put him in the path of Sakura's razor sharp blade. Sakura held the weapons steadfast, she wasn't able to react fast enough to drop it and could only watch in silent horror as she was about to stab Pīta.

She felt herself hit the ground; the soft surface the grass provided causing no discomfort or injury. The girl had to wonder just what the heck happened, feeling a foreign weight lying on top of her as she lay there in wonder.

Naruto's cheeks blazed a fierce shade of red as he stared down at a stupefied Sakura, before he grinned sheepishly. "Fancy meeting you here," the boy nervously joked, having joined the fight just in time to spear Sakura out of the path of a wrestling Kakashi and Pīta.

Sakura pushed the boy off of her, was about to round all over him and beat him into oblivion for even trying such a stunt. But noticed the kunai she'd been holding was lying still on the dirt ground, clean as a whistle, with no red stains in sight. Realization hit her and for once, Sakura was glad that Naruto had… tackled her, for lack of a better word.

He'd stopped her from stabbing her own teammate, being in the right place at the right time for once. "Thanks for stopping me," Sakura meekly responded, rising to stand as Naruto joined her.

Rubbing the back of his neck in embarrassment, Naruto still couldn't help grinning. "Hey, what're friends for?" He answered, unable to stop himself from blushing.

As the moment subsided, Sakura felt that she had to make herself clear though. "You know what'll happen if you do that again though, right?" She queried, completely deadpan and serious.

Naruto nodded profusely, his face heating up like a damn furnace. "Doesn't make it not worth it though," he felt brave enough to mock back, prompting a vein on Sakura's forehead to start throbbing.

"Little help here, guys?" The duo heard Pīta call, prompting them to abandon their conversation and dart towards the on-going fight.

Kakashi had the spider heir backed up against the solid bark of a tree, forcing Pīta to work defensively as he slammed fist after fist his way. He ducked, dodged and weaved, his body moving fluidly enough to remain untouched. Noticing Naruto and Sakura flanking the Jōnin, Pīta sprang skyward, hitting a branch with his feet as he defied gravity and took aim at Kakashi.

Both hands formed a familiar sign to the man and he found himself pinned against the jagged surface of the tree, struggling as much as he could manage but to no avail. "Spider-silk… stronger than steel," Kakashi mumbled as Pīta landed in a low, predatory crouch.

The man had expected the kid to employ it at some point, but had honestly forgotten about it. Pīta had been taking him on like that of a regular ninja, and the natural webbing he spun from his wrists had honestly slipped the Jōnin's mind. Naruto and Sakura joined Pīta, standing on either side of him with triumphant smiles.

"We did it! There's no way he can get outta that, Jōnin or not!" Naruto practically cheered, spying the Genin's ultimate goal jingling on Kakashi's person.

Pīta and Sakura stood silently as Naruto approached the helpless man and hesitantly reached for the bells, even as Kakashi appeared less concerned than he should've been. "Did we really do it? Is the test really over? That almost seemed—" Sakura began to air her doubts, but was cut off as Pīta narrowed his brown eyes at their stuck teacher.

"A little too easy," Pīta muttered suspiciously, before his spider-sense blared at the base of his skull.

Danger from all sides, the world slowed down around Pīta as he caught wind of shuriken searing through the crisp air, headed straight for him and Sakura. "Down!" He yelled, gripping her slender arm and pulling her to the ground with him, being careful not to yank it right out of the socket in the meantime.

Luckily, Naruto hadn't been in the line of fire as Pīta raised his head as the coast was clear. "Uh… guys… Kakashi-Sensei's gone…" He practically whispered, appearing dumbfounded as the Jōnin had been there not but two seconds ago.

Sakura wasn't too happy, noticing that the only thing pinned beneath Pīta's silver webbing was now a useless wooden log. "Substitution Jutsu… can't believe I fell for that," she lamented, the form of Ninjutsu being E-Rank, Academy level stuff.

Pīta aided her to her feet, watching as she patted down her red qipao with a frown. "Don't be so hard on yourself, we all fell for it." He told her, but was a little frustrated with himself too.

Naruto joined the duo, standing back to back with them as they circled and surveyed the wooded area. "Be on guard, eyes open and cover each other. I have your backs, you have mine?" Pīta questioned, his sharp vision scanning for any and all signs of a silver haired ninja.

Sakura nodded, her back pressed against the two boys. "Definitely," she stated, unwavering and resolute in her response.

Naruto felt an air of confidence flow through him, a determined smile decorating his lips in place of a mischievous grin. "Believe it," he spoke, conviction and certainty lacing his voice.

Kakashi was watching from afar, back pressed against the trunk of a tree as he had elected to gain some altitude, standing high above the forest floor. So far, they were doing rather well. They seemed to understand that teamwork was the way to go, and going it alone was simply a fool's errand.

He'd been fully expecting Naruto to be the one to disappoint him, as he initially seemed nothing more than a class clown. The information he'd read on the boy suggested that he was incredibly cocksure, and assumed that he was the greatest ninja this side of the Fire Nation. But it was safe to say that the former ANBU member had been pleasantly surprised, the boy appeared a little more restrained than usual.

Perhaps it was his teammates, anchoring him a little bit and forcing him to keep a clear goal in mind. There was certainly a balance there of some kind, and Sakura and Pīta seemed to be the best thing for the lad.

Moving onto the only female of Team 7, Kakashi was pleased with the progress Sakura was making. Being the girl's former sensei, Iruka had noticed that most of the aspiring Kunoichi in his class had had some kind of adolescent infatuation with the Uchiha heir.

The plan had been for Kakashi to have received him but they'd made a conscious decision to hand him over to Genma Shiranui and his team, removing the distraction that would have prevented Sakura and for that matter, Ino from making any real progress in their abilities.

With Naruto and Pīta, a more commanding presence, she seemed to be performing rather comfortably. As far as Kakashi was concerned, the Shukeikō boy was a natural born leader. When he wasn't so preoccupied with acting the comedian, there was a tactical mind at work and seemed to get the gist of the overall teamwork concept.

The entire team was rough around the edges, as was the case with any Genin-level team, but Kakashi was confident that he'd smooth them out and really make something of them. It was almost as if he'd decided to pass them right then and there, but he believed they had a little more time to kill before noon and he wanted to see if the rookies would actually be able to manage to take a bell from him.

But… what would've happened had the team become distracted, specifically the only girl on the rookie team.

It was quiet for a moment; everything remained painfully still, almost as if frozen in time. Trees seemed to cease their swaying, the sweet song of birds overhead appeared to die in their avian throats and the last thing that the three students heard was their own breathing.

Not strained or ragged, relatively calm actually. But there was trepidation in there somewhere, the mute anticipation that something was going to happen, something bad.

Pīta heard it first and the feeling of dread hit him in full force, but Sakura was the first to actually recognize what the sound was. "Sasuke?" She questioned, her meek voice splitting the sombre air for the first time in what felt like eons.

Grunts and groans of pain grew louder in volume, and it wasn't long before an injured and bloodied Uchiha lumbered out of nearby bush, almost collapsing beside the base of a tall, towering tree. Pīta and Naruto glance at one another in what could only be described as fear, the fear that the inevitable was going to happen.

The look on Sakura's face said it all, the colour draining from her complexion to resemble a chalky white. Tears threatened to burst and spill, the girl's heart practically breaking in two as she shook with fear. Pīta watched her take a step closer to the supposed boy, breaking the circle of three they had formed.

"Sakura… please, help me." Sasuke breathed out, actually coughing up crimson blood as he shuddered in pain.

It was the last straw for Sakura, who in all honesty, felt like fainting there and then. "I'm coming, Sasuke!" She called out, about to bolt right for her true love.

Had something solid and unwavering not gripped her shoulder, stopping her from reaching the boy. "Sakura. Don't." Pīta demanded, prompting Sakura to spin around and grip Pīta's wrist.

She attempted to remove it from her shoulder with all her youthful might but found that no matter how hard she pulled, there was no budging it. "Let go of me! Please, I have to help Sasuke!" She cried, practically begged as her teammate denied her request.

Pīta understood what that kind of imagery would've done to someone, using a person that meant so much to them against them. "He's not there, Sakura. More to the point, why would he be?" He really didn't want to see an injured Aunt Mei during the test.

Sakura was still trying to fight against Pīta's vice-like grip, a step shy of scratching his wrist with her nails. "I… I don't know, but—he needs my help and that's all that matters!" She yelled, getting more and more agitated to the point that Pīta had to physically restrain her.

It was an odd sight, one that Naruto wasn't exactly comfortable with but he understood that it was necessary. "We need you too, Sakura. Pīta's right, it's a trick, it's gotta be." Still, it was a nasty move hitting so close to home.

Pīta didn't have any trouble with the girl, if anything, her screaming was more of an issue than her kicking and thrashing about. "He wants you to take that bait, Sakura. He wants to get you on your own, isolated and cut off from us. Why? Because you'll be easier to pick off, we'll all be easier to pick off if we don't stick together. You with us?" He explained to the girl, having to overpower her shouting with a forceful tone.

The pink haired Kunoichi nodded, still unable to tear her emerald eyes away from Sasuke's sorry looking state. "Say the words, Sakura." Pīta reinforced, refusing to let her go until she was sound in both mind and body.

Naruto nodded in agreement, they needed know that she wouldn't just run off and wreck the whole test for them. "We have to hear you say them," he added, the two boys desperately trying to appeal to her common sense.

It took a few minutes for her to fully calm down, for her tears to dry and stain her pale cheeks. But eventually, her breathing evened out in Pīta's embrace and she had a moment to think logically and clear her head. It was a dirty trick; using someone she held so close to her heart against her. The only way it could've been more devastating was if her parents had been used, broken and bleeding beyond repair.

"I'm with you," Sakura whispered, her tone caught somewhere between a strained cry and a startled choke.

Pīta glanced at Naruto for a little confirmation; the blonde haired ninja seemed convinced and replied with a silent nod of satisfaction. Ever so slowly, Pīta relinquished his bear hug on the girl's petit frame and took a step away from her. Sakura had to severely fight the overwhelming urge to just sprint at Sasuke and embrace him, tell him that everything was going to be okay.

Both shocking and impressing Pīta and Naruto, Sakura turned away from the dark haired boy and offered a nod of the head to her teammates, a thin and serious line present on her lips. She was good to go, having literally turned her back on her one true love. It was a great feat of accomplishment, conquering something so emotionally disturbing.

But she'd done it, and her comrades couldn't have been happier.

Without a moment's notice, Sasuke exploded into a plume of swirling smoke behind the trio. "Shame, I really thought I had you with that Illusion Jutsu. You're lucky your teammates were here to support you, Sakura." Kakashi had revealed himself to the kids once more, lazily leaning against the wide body of a tree and oddly enough, reading a book of all things.

Sakura nodded, almost admonishing herself in the process. "I know, sensei." She admitted, well aware how badly she'd have screwed up had it not been for Naruto and Pīta.

Kakashi appreciated the fact that could own up to her faults, wasn't blind to her own misgivings. "Teamwork is vital, students. But you must also learn independence, as ninja, there will be times that call for you to rely on no-one but yourselves." He addressed all three of them, but Sakura still felt as though he was only talking to her.

Pīta arched an eyebrow and gestured to the book in his teacher's hand, a littler perturbed by the fact that he had chosen such an inconvenient time to read. "What's with the book, slappy?" He insulted, though it failed to break through Kakashi's cool and collected demeanour.

The silver haired Shinobi shrugged, appearing his usual emotionally deserted self. "A little light reading always sets me at ease; try not to let it bother you too much." He appeased, though the small show of serenity seemed to anger Naruto somewhat.

The blonde prankster couldn't believe his eyes, the three of them were working their absolute hardest to prove themselves and he was acting as if they weren't even worth his time. "You're reading?! What, we're just not that interesting to you?! Is that it?! Are you trying to insult us?!" The boy bellowed, though the outburst did nothing to crack Kakashi's hard exterior.

Pīta was a little surprised it had offended Naruto so much; he reasoned the boy must have held pride close to his heart. "I don't know whether to feel insulted or… befuddled," he murmured, drawing no-one but Sakura's attention.

She piqued a pink eyebrow, unsure what the boy was talking about. "Befuddled?" Sakura queried, prompting Pīta to chuckle lightly.

"Funny word, right?" He replied with a hidden grin, causing the girl to offer him a completely blank expression.

Naruto broke away from his friends and performed a hand sign, confusing all those present. "I've had it! One way or another, I'm getting those bells! Shadow Clone Jutsu!" Plumes of white smoke exploded around him, stunning Sakura and Pīta to the point of speechlessness.

Naruto was flanked by six other versions of himself, all wearing a determined smirk as they faced down Kakashi. "Don't worry, guys, I'll beat this test for all three of us!" The boy boasted, before he and his minor army of Narutos charged the Jōnin.

Kakashi appeared to be vaguely interested at best, his lone exposed eye widening slightly upon seeing such a technique. Sakura and Pīta on the other hand, were bewildered beyond belief. They had no idea that Naruto was able to perform such an advanced jutsu, especially since it was supposed to be a forbidden technique, created by the Second Hokage.

Pīta didn't bother turning to look at the Kunoichi next to him, his brown eyes fixed on all seven blonde lads. "Did you—?" He began to ask but was cut off mid-sentence, Sakura just managing to overcome the lump in her throat.

"Know he could do that? Do I look like I knew?" She answered, appearing just as clueless as her teammate on the matter.

Just when did the boy find the time to learn such a move? More to the point, how? What was even more impressive was that he seemed to wield it fairly well, all seven orange-clad boys appearing in perfect sync with one another as they sprinted towards Kakashi.

Pīta was lost, scratching the back of his head in the meantime. "Didn't he suck at that trick back at the Academy?" The boy aired his thoughts, glancing at Sakura to see that she was having a hard time taking her eyes off of the many Narutos.

She had to admit, she was impressed. "Looks like he got better, those aren't just illusions either, they're solid clones." Sakura informed the brunette, all the while wondering if the jutsu was enough to even challenge Kakashi-Sensei.

The Shinobi didn't appear to look worried; he'd only just managed to yank his eye away from his book to gaze upon the strange sight headed straight for him. The stories were true then, the demon host had indeed learnt a forbidden technique. The very same skill he'd used to defeat the Konoha traitor, Mizuki.

"Colour me mildly impressed," Kakashi muttered, ready to react as the seven variations of the boy came flying at him.

Truthfully, it made no difference to him how many of the boy there were. He was still just a Genin-level ninja, and he was fully aware that the Shadow Clone Jutsu divided the user's chakra up into each clone, giving them a fraction of the user's full power and strength. When wielded by someone like the Second Hokage, it presented a massive threat.

But when wielded by a rookie, it was more of an annoyance. That is, until Kakashi felt himself grabbed from behind, realizing that the boy had a few clones sneak up on him. Four Narutos held Kakashi, using every ounce of their strength to keep him rooted to the spot. He wasn't entirely sure which one was the real Naruto now, his eye darting between each and every one of them to see that they were all wearing that smug grin.

"You snuck up on me," Kakashi stated, though said it as though he were saying it to himself, clarifying that the boy had gotten the drop on him.

One of the Narutos holding his arms behind his back replied, he still wasn't sure whether it was the real deal or a carbon copy. "It's what ninja do, sensei." He mocked, redirecting his ocean blue gaze to see Pīta and Sakura waiting on the side-lines.

Pīta pondered for a moment, watching the events unfold. "You know, this would make for a really good distraction." He reasoned, throwing a side-ways glance at Sakura as his mind went to work.

She nodded, about to agree with his musings but let out a startled yelp when she felt herself hoisted off the grass ground. "Pīta! What're you doing?!" She cried, her pale cheeks deepening to a more reddish hue.

"I know, we really should have a name for this move. I'll worry about that later, right now, I'm gonna throw you. Be sure to grab those bells!" Pīta explained, aiming with her in hand before he launched her like a human missile.

Kakashi had no idea what had happened, the constant blonde hair and blue eyes in his face obstructing his vision. Something breezed by his torso, almost slamming into his left side. He fought the grip the group of Narutos had on him and managed to turn his head, his eye widening as he witnessed Sakura make a crash landing some distance away.

On her knees in the dirt, Sakura held something high in her hand and gave a triumphant beaming grin. "I got one! I actually got one!" She cheered, a distinct jingling of a bell heard as she waved it around in an excited frenzy.

Kakashi was stock still for moment, before his lips began to move beneath his mask. "A set of bells… she got one… the Shadow Clones were never meant as an attack, you used them to distract me and left me open for… whatever just happened." The man walked himself through it, silently impressed that the Genin had managed to pull the wool over his eyes… eye, singular.

Pīta himself was impressed, he just figured that Naruto was going to charge their teacher with a small battalion, kicking and screaming. "Raise your hand if you're as confused as I am," he called over to Kakashi and the blonde children surrounding him.

Naruto simply smiled, allowing himself to appear a little conceited on the matter. "I totally got you, sensei." The boy boasted, repeated the very same sentence he'd spoken when he'd tricked Kakashi with the blackboard eraser.

Kakashi fought the urge to smile; the boy's resourcefulness was commendable. "I suppose I won't be able to read Make-Out Paradise now," he lamented, feigning disappointment.

With one swift motion, the Jōnin overpowered the four clones holding his arms in place and threw the remaining three holding his legs high into the air. They sprawled for a moment before balancing themselves out as one of the many blonde pranksters formed a hand sign, prompting six of the seven Narutos to disappear in puffs of smoke.

The original Uzumaki landed beside Pīta, the boys exchanged brief nods before facing down Kakashi once more. "Tick tock, only one set of bells left. Who's it going to be, boys?" The man challenged the pair, hoping to maybe pit the two against one another.

But even Naruto, for all of his brashness and hard headedness, wasn't dumb enough to fall for it. He simply charged Kakashi, wordlessly sprinting at the veteran ninja as Pīta gave chase, bolting after him. Due to his superior speed, Pīta reached their ultimate target first, pouncing into the air and straight for Kakashi.

The silver haired instructor weaved to one side, evading Pīta literally slamming both feet into the Earth beneath. The ground cracked and fractured, but Kakashi didn't have time to dwell on it, another fist breezing by him, only this one had a kunai in hand. Just barely avoiding the blade's sharp edge, Kakashi gripped Naruto's wrist and swept his legs, but had to duck as Pīta's legs whirl-winded over him.

Naruto attempted to drive his kunai into Kakashi's leg, merely obeying his sensei's orders to attack him with the intention to kill. It proved fruitless as the man was already in the air, doing his best to keep pace with the incredible dexterous Pīta. The brunette summersaulted mid-air and brought his foot down towards Kakashi, unable to dodge so nimbly whilst airborne, the teacher hastily threw his arm up to guard against the blow.

He winced as it connected, feeling the arm-guard hidden under his sleeves dent, giving under the sheer force of the attack. Kakashi acted quickly and gripped Pīta's ankle, spinning the Genin away from him and trying to see where Naruto was, just in time to catch a shuriken slicing its way towards him. He let it fly towards a descending Pīta, watching as the boy twisted his body, allowing the projectile to pass him by harmlessly.

The duo landed, Kakashi low to the ground but Pīta even lower, poised in a spider-like crouch. "This is getting old, patchy." Pīta mocked, raising his hand to fire off an organic stream of strong spider-silk.

Distracted by Naruto, pressing him with a few more shuriken, Kakashi failed to dodge and the web-line hit its mark. With the remaining set of bells a simple tug of the line away, Pīta's heart skipped a beat when Kakashi swiftly gripped the sticky substance.

"You need to be quicker to pull something like that," Kakashi spoke, his tone calm and even despite the circumstances.

It was tense for a moment, a lone eye locked with two brown ones, narrowing as if challenging one another. Kakashi gave the line a tug but found Pīta held it steadfast, like an anchor refusing to let go. Naruto eventually joined Pīta, with Sakura arriving not long after, witnessing the small stand-off, unsure just who was going to give first.

Pīta turned to Naruto, holding the line slack. "You wanna get those bells, whiskers? Here's the plan," the boy whispered as Kakashi simply arched an eyebrow, wondering just what his students had up their sleeve.

Naruto appeared to be on board, grinning like an idiot as he gave a thumbs up. "Got it!" He yelled enthusiastically, before leaping onto the tightrope-life web-line between Genin and Jōnin.

Kakashi failed to deduce just what was going to happen, when Pīta raised his hand and cracked the line like a whip, the veteran Shinobi just barely able to keep hold on his end. Naruto was sent spiralling into the air, a grin clear on his face that told Kakashi all he needed to know, they were going to try an aerial attack.

With his eye on the orange and blue object in the sky, Kakashi's vision suddenly went dark, unable to see that Pīta had nailed him with a bolt of steel webbing. Instinctively, the man was forced to let go, his fingers slipping from the silk-strand as he attempted to pry the organic material from his face. With no resistance to stop him, Pīta simply whiplashed the last pair of bells skyward, delivering them into the waiting arms of one Naruto Uzumaki.

He landed hard, bracing himself for impact with a forward roll along the soft grass. "I did it! I got the bells! Now I can be a real ninja!" Naruto celebrated, eyes shut and pearly whites on show as he raised his prize high into the air.

Sakura didn't know what to say, Pīta simply clapped a few times with a hidden smirk. Kakashi had to opt for a kunai as he sawed through the webbing on his face carefully, unable to remove it through brute force alone.

His vision was greeted by a cheering Naruto, holding the last set of bells in his possession and signalling the end of the test. "Another diversionary tactic, very clever. Unfortunately, it cost you the bell, Pīta. Sakura and Naruto completed the mission I set them, you did not." Kakashi addressed his students, strolling over to stand over them.

Pīta nodded but shrugged all the same, throwing his hands up dismissively. "Ah, maybe next year." He muttered, not quite prepared when Sakura forced him aside and began arguing with the Jonin.

"Wait a minute, you're sending him back to the Academy? That's not fair, sensei!" Sakura yelled at the man, and he was suddenly very aware of the adolescent finger being pointed up at him.

He was about to respond when Naruto piqued up, agreeing with Sakura just as passionately. "Yeah! I mean, I did most of the work but Pīta helped out a lot!" He claimed, receiving daggers from Sakura as he chuckled meekly.

The subject of their discussion glanced from the nervous boy to the no-nonsense girl, before he felt he had to cut in. "Guys, look—" The spider began, trying to get them to calm down and see sense.

Sakura was having any of it, interrupting Pīta for his own benefit. "No, Pīta, this is wrong. You clearly knew what you were doing during the entire test; you never once lost face and helped us out every step of the way." She argued, silencing him immediately.

It rendered him speechless, practically stupefied to see them, specifically Sakura, defend him so passionately. With such a display, you'd be forgiven to have thought that the three had been teammates for years, not a single day.

Sakura held a pair of silver bells in her hands, staring at them intently. "Which is why… you deserve these so much more than I do, Pīta. You have so much more to offer Konoha; you'd be able to help so many people. The things you can do… you'd be invaluable as a ninja," she expressed, unable to look the lad in the eye as she offered the bells to him.

Pīta was about to flat out reject them when Naruto sighed, taking a long and hard look at the balls he possessed. "I really wanna be a ninja but… if it means leaving you guys behind, then I don't want these stupid bells." The boy spoke, mimicking Sakura's action and offering the pair to Pīta.

The red and blue Shinobi raised his hands, refusing to take them from his comrades. "Listen, sensei, they have no idea what they're talking about." Pīta attempted to convince the Jōnin, who simply stared at his three pupils in wonder.

His expression lit up, his eyes closed and cheery. "You pass," Kakashi simply stated, liking his three pupils more and more.

The trio gazed stone-faced at him for a solid minute, before they glanced at one another, emerald, ocean and chocolate eyes meeting for a fleeting second. "We pass?" Naruto questioned, the group looking back their teacher's way.

Kakashi nodded, smiling beneath his mask and somewhat pleased that he could drop the whole 'stone-cold sensei' attitude. "You pass," he repeated, it seemed they were having a hard time believing the man.

That was understandable; he wasn't exactly the poster boy for truth and honesty. "All three of us?" Sakura queried sceptically, her eyes narrow and full of suspicion.

The silver haired instructor gave a short chuckle; it was almost too good to be true for them. "Is there an echo? Yes, all three of you pass." Kakashi joked, attempting to alleviate some of the tension.

He saw as the colour slowly returned to Sakura and Naruto's cheeks, the realization taking hold of them. "Why?" Pīta on the other hand, simply arched an eyebrow and posed yet another question.

Kakashi was happy to satiate his curiosity, shed some light on the matter. "Why? Because you worked together in perfect tandem, you strengthened each other's weaknesses and stuck together, no matter what. There were a few bumps here and there, but nobody's perfect. Out of all of the Academy graduates I've ever been given, you are the only three I've ever passed." He revealed, catching the three actual Genin off guard.

They hadn't realized just how big of a deal it was, they weren't aware of Kakashi's impossibly high standards and as such, were pretty much blown away by the revelation. "You understood the fundamentals of teamwork, and employed them successfully. It may seem trivial to you right now but trust me, it's invaluable to your future as ninja of Konoha." Their senior continued to explain, watching their shoulder slump as they relaxed.

"So… we did it? We actually did it? No more tests, we're… we're ninja now?" Naruto asked openly, willing to accept an answer from anyone.

Sakura obliged, clear relief present on her own face as she closed her eyes and smiled. "We're ninja… real life ninja," she almost whispered, perfectly content but also completely exhausted, both emotionally and physically.

Pīta folded his arms, his natural bravado returning to him bit by bit. "So… the bells were just a trick, a ploy of some kind to get us to work together. Can't say I'm not relieved," he admitted, he had honestly thought that he'd failed the task Kakashi had given him.

The former ANBU captain nodded, stuffing his hands into his pockets as he looked over his students. "A ninja must see through deception, this was a pretty good start. Sakura, Naruto, having completed your goal, with your future as ninja right there for the taking, you chose to forsake that and stayed by your friend's side when he needed you most. I believe the word I'm looking for is 'nobility'; you both have it in spades." Kakashi congratulated them, earning a blush out of Sakura and a confident smirk from Naruto.

The man directed his attention towards Pīta, the boy who 'just wanted to help people'. "Pīta, you encouraged your friends and reinforced the very meaning of the word 'teamwork'. As such, you elevated them to all new heights and aided them in achieving their goal of becoming ninja." He praised, earning a nod from the spider heir.

Naruto pumped his fist high into the air, unable to contain his excitement and pure glee on the matter. "Team 7 sticks together no matter what, believe it!" He exclaimed, drawing a wary smirk out of the only female present.

"For once, Naruto's right." She admitted, pure happiness bubbling just beneath the surface.

Kakashi gave a short and hearty laugh, which sounded much less creepy than before. "You worked exceedingly well together, all three of you. The exercise is over, everybody passes. Squad 7 starts its first real mission tomorrow," he threw out an encouraging thumbs up and for the first time since the previous day, the kids felt like they could breathe again.

Pīta was about to say something, most likely something snarky, when a very familiar sound split the air around them. "Finally! We can eat again!" The boy cheered, his stomach growling like that of a wild animal.

Sakura had to hold the bridge of her nose as Pīta simply rubbed the back of his neck, finding the outburst kind of funny. "That's what he's excited about?" The pink haired Kunoichi deadpanned, earning a peak of the eyebrow from her brunette friend.

"You're somehow surprised?" He hit right back, having known Naruto long enough to expect that kind of thing.

Sakura was about to argue, raising her finger to accentuate her point. "I… good point," she caved, having been waiting for Naruto to mention something about food.

Specifically ramen, his professed all-time favourite. "So, we did it! We passed! I'm starving, so let's celebrate with some delicious ramen! Last one there… ah, you know the rest!" Naruto bellowed before bolting off, running like a mad man back towards the village.

Pīta and Sakura weren't in any hurry to catch up with him; they knew full-well where they'd find him. "I could go for some ramen," Pīta admitted, being hungry enough that he honestly didn't care what was on the menu.

Sakura shrugged, still wearing a content smile on her lips. "Usually, I'd say no but… my stomach's been growling all day." She complied, starving enough to eat anything, even if it was ramen.

Pīta's brown eyes left Sakura and spied their elder, still standing with his hands stuffed in his pockets. "How about you, oh wise one? Care to join us?" The boy offered, fully expecting Kakashi to turn him down.

Truthfully, Kakashi was about to. But he felt the need to say yes, because he actually wanted to get to know his brand new team… his very first team. It was so surreal to him; he'd never had a team before. In all his years as an instructor, no pupil had ever been good enough for him. And there he was, the leader of his own Genin squad and everything.

Kakashi Hatake could best be described as a loner, and nobody, especially himself, considered him to be the 'mentoring' type. But he'd finally found a team that met his lofty expectations, that actually knew the basics of the whole 'team' concept. They held a lot of potential, all three of them, not just the spider and the Nine-Tails host.

The man slowly nodded, joining his two more level-headed students as they strolled back towards Konoha. "I suppose it couldn't hurt… sure. Lead on, students." For the first time since meeting them, he addressed them without any hidden agenda.

After a long, drawn out morning of tests, both psychological and physical, the trio of kids had taken a big step towards achieving their ultimate dreams. Lowly Genin, sure, but everyone had to start somewhere. They'd proved themselves to a notoriously strict sensei, who knew what else lay ahead of them on their path to become legends of the ninja world.

Even the most mythic of Shinobi were once their age…


Author's Note: There you have it, the test is over and now, onto the dangerous stuff!

So, for the sake of progress, for now on I'm going to write the more important parts of the story. There's a lot of filler in the anime, like a lot, and I really want to cut that down and focus on the things that matter much like the manga. So the next chapter won't be Team 7 setting off to protect Tazuna, the bridge builder. It'll be the end of the Land of Waves arc, Zabuza abd Haku against Team 7.

I just want to avoid a lot of what has been done before, retreading old ground and all that jazz. Plus, it allows me to really progress and further the story, without all of the expiatory stuff the anime often throws at you. The bell test was neccassary because it shows Team 7's beginnings and how they learnt to work together and stuff, it also displays the bedrock of what will be a lasting friendship between Naruto, Sakura and Pīta.

Just wanted to let you guys know, thanks!

P.S. For those of you that play Fallout 4 out there, I was just curious, do any of you guys have a favourite companion? Because I fell head over heels in love with Curie :P

Guest Reviews:

Aztec 13: Marvel Mangaverse was where I actually got a lot of inspiration from, such as the Spider-Clan and so on :)

Spiderman Fan: You forgot the hyphen! Blasphemy! Just kidding :P On the subject of a harem, I understand that a lot of authors tend to do that with Naruto but I'm not one of them. I write a story where Peter Parker hits it off with most females in fiction if that's your thing, it's not a harem, there short contained stories featuring alternate versions of Spider-Man.

There might be a mention down the line that the village wants Pīta to... continue his bloodline with a few families, but Pīta's not the kind of person to do what others tell him too. Unless they're his sensei, like Kakashi. A few female characters will show some interest, but there won't be any romance until after the time-skip, right now, Pīta's almost thirteen, dude :P

Guest1: A few classic Spider-Man rogues will appear in the story in some capacity, one will be popping up during the Chūnin Exams and will give Pīta a run for his money. Pairings aren't really a concern right now, but they will be in the future. I'll keep Yugito in mind, thanks.

Guest2: Pīta will grow stronger like that of the Naruto cast, yes. It'll have something to do with his spider heritage and birthright but he won't be transforming into a giant Man-Spider, sorry :P

atom king: Those are great ideas to adapt, I think Grim Hunt might be the most fitting one. Kraven and his family should slot into the Narutoverse quite nicely. Thanks for the suggestion :)

Guest3: That's definitely the idea, I want to leave things open right now so I'm free to choose later on, romance isn't a primary concern for young Pīta at the moment.

Darkknight421993: Well, I hope you'll stick around. Thanks for the review!