Those Who Rules Over Dragons

Author's Note: I'd like to start off by answering a few questions and taking care of some misunderstandings.

1. A Guest asked if the other characters will get dragoon spirits and the answer is yes, but until Shippuden only Naruto and Meru will be the only ones. Luckily I don't plan for there to be many chapters before the switch to Shippuden timeline. I think there are possibly three; maybe four including this chapter before the time skip.

2. I had placed an example in my previous AN mentioning Naruto being arrogant. That was simply an example of a chain of events. Naruto in this story won't be arrogant. He'll stay fairly the same except be a bit more responsible due to his status as a dragoon and Meru's presence.

3. Another guest reviewer joked about writing blue prints to plan how to get Naruto and Meru into a relationship. I want to stop any misunderstanding; there will not be a romantic relationship of any kind between them. Meru is one of Naruto's heroes. He will seek to impress her, ask her advice, and feel shame when he does something that makes her lose respect towards him. At best they will become friends but Naruto will always look up to her. This is a NaruHina story and as I mentioned before I don't do harems.

Chapter 3:Doubt and Survival

"So he really runs this late everyday?"

"Yep, always."

Sakura and Sasuke watched as Naruto conversed with the platinum haired woman. The Uchiha avenger acted as though he wasn't watching, using his peripheral vision to watch. It had been odd when Naruto showed up at their designated meeting place for their team with the older woman but they didn't question it, mostly because the two didn't seem to acknowledge them.

"How doesn't he get punished?" Meru asked.

Naruto gave her a confused look. "Why would he?"

Meru took a second to think how exactly she should word things. Ever since becoming associated with Naruto nearly two weeks ago the ancient Wingly learned several things about Naruto. Not all the questions she asked Naruto were answered, but the answers she did get helped her figure out what kind of person Naruto was well enough. Since then she had learned even more about the boy, one of the things was that he wasn't very bright when it came to certain aspects of life. Another thing she discovered was that Naruto acted very much like she did when younger; which made it easier to explain things to him.

"Your sensei, Kakashi, is a very known and respected military officer. He is someone who holds a high rank that demands responsibility. Because of his status in the village he is someone people look up to and should give a good example of what a soldier of the village should be."

Naruto's face scrunched up as he listened. "I didn't think he was that popular."

Meru nodded her head. "Not only is he well known within his own village, but many others outside of this village know of him as well."

"I wonder why?" Naruto asked with annoyance, disbelief clear in his mind.

Meru giggled from how he asked his question. 'Yep, very much like I was when young.' "He fought in the most recent shinobi world war, his father was Konoha's white fang, and he is one of the last Sharingan users that exist. But back to my main point. Someone like him shouldn't be allowed to just arrive as late as he wants, it sets too much of a bad example."

"Eh I still don't follow." Naruto stated.

The platinum haired woman sighed at Naruto's thick head. Her mind tinkered for a few seconds before she came up with an answer that would properly explain her statement. "Imagine if your hero was late all the time."

"You wouldn't do that." Naruto said.

This got the others to give a curious look towards Meru. The Wingly chuckled as she forgot about Naruto's admiration for her.

"True I wouldn't but imagine if I did. After being late to important meetings and events, you would begin to believe that tardiness was excusable and you wouldn't bother with arriving on time."

Understanding crossed Naruto's face before it scrunched up again. "I hope not many people look up to Kakashi then, it will make my time as Hokage miserable."

The last Wingly lost it there and began openly laughing. She wiped a tear away as her laughter died down. "Let's hope for your sake that many don't."

Just then Meru looked towards the space in between herself, Naruto, and the other two occupants. A whirlwind of leaves dispersed to reveal Kakashi. The Jounin gave Meru a curious look.

'She sensed me before my body flicker finished.'

Kakashi put his thoughts aside. "Well hello team, and who might you be?"

Meru wasn't quick to respond, boredom lacing her voice. "People are supposed to introduce themselves before asking the same of another."

Naruto and the rest of team seven looked towards Meru, confused at her switch of attitude.

The white haired nin chuckled at the response. "Alright. I'm Kakashi Hatake, Jounin sensei of this team. Nice to meet you Miss?" He held out a hand.

Meru's hand slowly raised up towards Kakashi's outstretched hand. Just as her hand met his she yanked it back out of reach and brushed one of her bangs back. The callous action caused everyone's eyes to widen.

"Make no mistake Hatake. To give ones name is a courtesy, which you've shown very little."

Meru continued talking before any questions could be asked. "Showing up late, eavesdropping on us, and then lying to our faces as if you weren't listening in. Yes I know you showed up ten minutes ago. Why you didn't simply approach us is beyond me."

The platinum haired girl began walking away, stopping only to address Naruto. "I'm going to get a bite to eat. Be sure to find me once you and your team are done."

"Sure thing!" Naruto shouted to Meru's retreating form.

Kakashi turned to Naruto once Meru was out of sight. "Who was she, your girlfriend?"

"Nah, she's just a friend." Naruto calmly responded.

The way Naruto handled the question earned him a few raised brows. He didn't sputter, blush, or loudly deny the claim.

"That's a lie. A second ago you referred to her as your hero." Sasuke said.

"So who is she?" Kakashi asked again.

Naruto scratched his head, not sure how to answer. "Well she doesn't seem to want you to know and it would be rude for me tell what she doesn't want said."

Deciding to drop the subject, Kakashi moved towards his original intentions for the meeting.

Seventeen minutes later

With a newly acquired form in hand, Naruto ran towards one of the restaurants Meru frequented. A few hops across rooftops and Naruto found himself before the dango shop.

A quick scope of the dumpling eatery and the blonde found his friend sitting at a booth around the corner.

Meru spotted him and patted the cushion space next to her, offering the spot as a place to sit. The hyperactive blonde happily accepted the seat.

"That didn't last long." Meru stated. "Was it just a short meeting or did you skip out." she said playfully towards the end.

Naruto fervently shook his head from side to side. "Nah, Kakashi just wanted to give us these forms." Electricity crept into his voice. "We are given a chance to participate in the Chuunin exams!"

Meru took the form, looking it over before handing it back to the blonde. "So are you going to participate?"

"Of course!" he happily stated.

Her look turned stern as she spoke her next words in a hushed whisper, pulling her new friend closer to ensure no one else heard. "When you participate next week, be sure not to transform into a dragoon."

Naruto pulled back, whining with his next words. "Oooh come on Meru. Why can't I?"

No longer needing to whisper, Meru spoke at a normal volume while keeping the stern edge to her voice. "Remember what we talked about? You shouldn't go off using your power whenever you want."

Naruto slouched, though he nodded his head in understanding. He remembered how Meru warned him how many hidden villages worked. How power, in any shape and form was sought for and abused. She explained how many jinchuuriki were raised and how dragoons would be treated similar if they were discovered. He did not want his power dictated by others. It was one thing to be a soldier for his village; it was not ok to be forced to become something others thought best. He recalled how he shuddered when Meru stated that if certain higher ups decided that his power would do better in another's hands that he'd be stripped of his dragoon stone.

Meru sighed as she couldn't take his sad face anymore. "Alright… you can use your power if, and I do mean if your life is in danger."

Naruto quickly smiled. "Thank you Meru!"

She simply shook her head. "Your welcome kid."

A quick ruffle of his spiky hair from Meru placed a sour expression on Naruto's face, but was replaced with curiosity when Naruto thought about another question on his mind.

"Why were you so cold to Kakashi?"

"Hmmm, well… I just don't trust him." was Meru's response.

Naruto gave her a puzzled look. "Why not?"

"Wellllll… Where to start?" she asked herself. "There is the fact that he signed up for a Jounin sensei position and has failed so many teams. Then there is the required test he gives which insures that any Genin taking it fails without proper explanation."

"But Kakashi passed us." Naruto interjected.

Meru agreed with him. "That's true, but also suspicious. Think of it. The test is only passable if either a team knows each other well enough to fight together or you already know the trick to the test. Unfortunately even if your team did understand the true meaning to the test, chances of getting a bell is highly unlikely. Your team just graduated, you have no clue which team you will be on till the last day, which gives you little experience in working with them. You could be on a team full of strangers, have no clue in how they fight and possibly even get in their way when trying to help. This is a test meant to determine the cohesiveness of an experienced team yet Kakashi has made Genin, newly minted kids take it as a final exam. What Kakashi expects out of Genin is something gained over the course of your career. But despite all this Kakashi not only gave you a second chance, but passed you by simply using a small demonstration of care from your teammates, not team work between all of you."

Naruto stared at Meru for several seconds before speaking. "When you say it like that it does seem suspicious. What does it all mean?"

"That's what I'm trying to figure out. He probably has an ulterior motive. I don't like it but my best guess is that he wants to train Sasuke due to him having a Sharingan. It's also possible that some higher ups have asked him to watch over you because of your 'special' status."

This caused a frown to spread on Naruto's face. His left hand rested against his stomach.

"But don't let it bother you, just keep a close eye on those around you." Meru advised.

Naruto's mood didn't brighten. Meru felt bad for depressing the usually energetic boy. At the same time she didn't want him to be fooled by those around him. Better he suspect something now than to find out after several long years.

An arm slung around his shoulders and pulled him closer to the platinum haired woman. "Come on, you just found out that you'll be participating in the Chuunin exams. Let's celebrate!" Meru said before ordering a waiter to bring her another plate of dango.

Her tactic worked though it left Naruto blushing from their close proximity.

A Week Later

Naruto was unsure whether he should call the first part of the Chuunin exams terrorizing or interesting.

'One thing I'm certain about is that I'm glad it's over.'

The first section had been presented as a written test, something Naruto loathed. He had easily spent the entire time freaking out, unaware of the goal behind the test. Naruto had not answered a single question on his test while others cheated to gain theirs. Luckily the answers were not as important as not being caught cheating, something many failed to do.

At the moment he, his team, and several other teams, both foreign and local, stood before an ominous forest. Tall iron fences surrounded the gigantic woods.

The last proctor for the exam held a menacing physique whose scars gave him an even more fearful aura, but the current one held the Chuunin hopefuls on edge with just her blood loving attitude alone.

A tan trench coat covered the majority of her body, stretching from her neck to her knees. The coat gave way to a nearly see-through mesh shirt and orange mini-skirt. A snake fang necklace dangled between her ample breasts. Grey shin guards rested above her sandals, though they would garner the least attention from anyone looking at her. A wicked smile covered her lightly tanned face, hazel eyes leering at the participating Genin. Violet hair was pulled into a wild top pony tail while the bangs framed her face.

Naruto didn't really pay attention to her appearance or the rules she was shouting off. He caught something about scrolls, five days, and surviving, but nothing else as his mind was preoccupied by what Meru had told him. The idea that his teams only reason for passing was thanks to Sasuke being the last 'loyal' Uchiha bothered him deeply. After being initially told about Kakashi's possible double agenda, he just couldn't stop questioning things around him. Everything Meru told him had made perfect sense to him. The overly difficult test, Kakashi's disinterest as a teacher, everything made sense. Naruto had tried to defend his teacher and even thought about the time Kakashi had declared he'd protect them no matter what during their first confrontation with Zabuza.

"But if he truly cared about our safety then why hasn't he taught us anything else." Naruto spoke out loud.

Sakura gave Naruto a curious look. "What are you talking about?"

"N-Nothing." Naruto quickly mumbled.

Her look turned worried. "Are you ok Naruto? You haven't been yourself for nearly a week."

He scratched the back of his head and laughed, feigning a good will. "Hahaha I'm perfectly ok, just thinking about how awesome the Chuunin exams are!"

"Ok." she said, though the worried look on the pink haired Genin didn't disappear.

The final member of Team Seven approached with a scroll with the sign for heaven carried in his hand. "Alright we're posted at gate fifteen. I'll hold onto the scroll while inside the Forest of Death."

Sasuke gave Naruto an expecting look, waiting for the blonde to challenge his authority.

When he didn't receive any backtalk he questioned his teammate. "Did you hear all of that, Naruto?"

The blonde gave the briefest nod. Sakura walked closer to Sasuke before whispering to him. "Something's wrong with Naruto but he doesn't want to talk about it."

"Hn, then that's his problem. Besides this is an improvement from his normally screaming attitude and we could use the extra stealth." Sasuke said, not even bothering to hide it from Naruto.

Sakura looked back towards Naruto, whether he registered the words or not she couldn't tell.

Sakura shook, her nerves strained while she held onto what little courage she had left. Twice someone had tried to attack them under the guise of their fellow teammate when he wasn't present. The first had been when Naruto had gone to relieve his bladder. Sasuke had quickly noticed the incorrect placing of Naruto's equipment and drove away the intruder. After a password had been created to prevent further enemies from attempting the same stunt, they continued on.

The second time a strong torrent of wind blew across the forest, tearing weak patches of earth from the ground along with Naruto and sent them hurtling away. Naruto seemingly regrouped with his team and spoke the password Sasuke demanded of him, word for word.

Once more Sasuke attacked the fake member, proudly stating that Naruto would not have been able to remember the password. But things didn't occur like last time. Sasuke had attacked, and they had been forced to flee. This new enemy was unlike any other they had even met in the past. Fighting against Zabuza seemed easy in comparison.

They threw everything they had at him yet nothing worked. Sakura looked towards Sasuke and saw exhaustion mixed with fear. A look of finality crossed the Uchiha's face as he reached back into one of his pouches and retrieved the scroll of heaven.

"Here, this is what you want correct."

Sakura's head snapped towards Sasuke, shocked that he even considered bargaining for their life.

Their foe chuckled dryly. "Distracting the hunter with another prey in order to escape. A good strategy Sasuke."

It disturbed them how the man talked to Sasuke in an overly familiar tone.

"Here!" Sasuke said, tossing the white scroll.

The scroll flew through the air for only a few feet before a green blur swiped it from the air.

All eyes widened at the speed of which the person moved. The figure hovered in between the grass nin and her prey, his dragonish wings flapping as they supported him and his emerald armor. The identity of the person remained a secret thanks to the torn black cloth wrapped around his head.

Sasuke and Sakura took steps back as the green clad knight flew towards them and landed on a branch ahead. The tension lifted when he turned and took a protective stance in front of them. With the fear of a new threat gone, Sasuke joined him on the branch.

"What are you doing? We were handing that over so he would let us go!"

Little of what Sasuke said was understood by Naruto. He was simply too focused on the grass nin standing several feet away. The grass nin shared in his focus, his eyes scanning him with complete fascination and curiosity.

'Can't take this lightly. First the giant snake, now this guy who's emitting this large murderous intent. I'm just lucky my plan of taking off my tee before transforming worked or I wouldn't have a way to hide my face.'

"Are you listening to me? Give me that scroll!" Sasuke said as he reached towards the scroll Naruto was holding.

A swift lift of Naruto arm removed the scroll from Sasuke's reach. Using the same arm as before Naruto back handed the Uchiha. Sasuke was lifted off his feet with his back hitting the bark.

"Why, so you can just hand it over again? He's still going to kill you afterwards." Naruto said with anger evident in his voice.

The grass nin chuckled at this. "He's right Sasuke." he said while still using the friendly tone from earlier. "Why should I accept the scroll when I can kill you and still have the scroll?"

Pulling one of his sleeves back, the grass nin swiped a trail of blood down a tattoo. A declaration of summoning and a cloud of smoke introduced a monstrous sized snake that twisted around the abnormally large trees.

Naruto reached back towards his weapon pouch, now taking on a dark green color.

'That looks like the same snake that attacked me!'

He retrieved two kunai and held them in a reversed grip. The kunai's caught the grass nin's interest. Much like the rest of Naruto, his weapons had changed as well. The blade of each weapon was shaped like a leaf while taking on the same shade of green as Naruto's armor. The hilts of each kunai looked as if they were once roots to a tree.

"Well… isn't this interesting." the grass nin stated. "What are you? Are there more of your kind?"

Naruto prepared himself to take flight. "I am a dragoon." A powerful swing of his wings launched himself towards the enemy nin. "And I'm the last one you'll ever see!"

The grass nin jumped off his snake summon while the reptile stood it's ground. Naruto flew over the snakes mouth after it attempted to swallow him. Twisting his body to the right, Naruto buried one of his kunai into the summon's left eye.

It flailed from the intense pain, forcing Naruto to take flight once more. The young Uzumaki held his other kunai and channeled magic to it. A flick of his wrist switched the weapon to the normal grip and he sent the sharp projectile soaring towards the snake's head. It sunk through the skull easily, continuing almost undisturbed through its midsection, only to exit the snake again and pierce through its tail. The snake collapsed as quickly as the kunai ran through it.

'Where did that other guy go?' Naruto thought as he looked around.

He didn't have to look long as several snakes erupted from a grouping of foliage above Naruto. He instantly flew back, adjusting himself to soar higher. The snakes didn't give up their pursuit as they twisted their body to chase after him.

Naruto retrieved another kunai and flipped himself in order to face his pursuers. An arc formed from his weapon severed the snakes' head from their body. Unfortunately Naruto figured out far too late that the grass nin had never intended to harm him with the snake, instead forcing him towards the area he occupied now.

A vicious kick sent him spiraling towards the ground. A branch stopped Naruto's plummet, allowing him to take a defensive stance in preparation for any oncoming attacks. Sure enough several kunai flew towards him. He only had mere seconds to throw his arms up to protect his face. The kunai bounced off his armor but the grass nin simply landed next to him, continuing the offensive strikes.

The narrow space of the tree trunk gave Naruto little room to properly defend himself, making it almost impossible to not be struck. He'd have tried to fly away but he didn't have enough time in between attacks to do so. Luckily his armor softened many of the blows and after a minute more of the one sided battle Naruto leapt towards the forest floor, floating down with ease. The grass nin stared down towards Naruto for several seconds, chuckling all the while.

"How is it that one with wings has become the prey?" the snake nin goaded.

Naruto lifted his arm before flexing it back twice. "Let's see how tough you are down here."

The grass nin accepted his challenge and dropped down towards the ground. Normally with his wings Naruto would have had an advantage in the air, but with all the trees, branches and foliage it gave too many areas for his opponent to hide and leap off of. On the ground and in the open area there were fewer obstructions, less hiding spots as well.

Naruto's wings began flapping again as he flew towards the grass nin. Indeed the fight was not as one sided as last time. Though the young dragoon was able to better defend himself, his inexperience began to show and the effort put in to fight back dwindled his stamina.

A punch stunned him momentarily, given his opponent enough time to form a few hand seals and blow a torrent of wind similar to the first that sent him flying.

Again Naruto was lifted off the ground and thrown through the air, only thanks to his ability to fly he was able to balance himself before flying out of the winds reach. He hovered in place for several minutes, staring the grass nin down while his wings flexed up and down.

'This guy is unreal. I've barely managed to land three hits on him. I don't know enough of my dragoon powers to use them right. How am I supposed to beat him if I can't bring out my best attacks?' Naruto desperately thought.

"Your interesting but too green." the grass nin stated.

Naruto growled. "Oh yeah? I'll show you who's green!"

He focused, trying to draw on the magic needed to perform an attack. But a problem occurred; he didn't know how to draw upon magic. He didn't know what it felt like nor did he remember how he felt when attacking Haku with wing blaster, the attack he destroyed Haku's mirrors with.

'Dammit what am I supposed to do?'

A vision suddenly came to Naruto's mind. Suddenly he was in a cave standing next to a tusked dragoon. He recognized the forms of Dart, Lavitz, Rose and Shana staring at him while taking a defensive front before him.

"Greham!" Lavitze shouted.

Naruto was shocked when his body moved on its own, even more when a voice he didn't recognized flowed from his mouth. It suddenly occurred to him that he was seeing an event from Greham's past, the past of a previous dragoon of the emerald dragon.

He watched, and more importantly felt how Greham drew upon the magic stored within each dragoon.

The vision ended and Naruto smiled. Repeating the action witnessed mere seconds ago, Naruto gathered the power he sought.

The grass nin eyes widened as he felt the energy Naruto gathered while the other two members of Team Seven watched on in curiosity.

'What is he doing?' seemed to be the thought on everyone's minds.

The magic flowed through Naruto easily. 'This feels amazing! I always have to struggle to gather chakra but with magic it's a whole different story!'

Having gathered his magic, Naruto threw his remaining kunai at the grass nin. The projectile landed in between his feet, disappearing beneath the earth.

The snake summoner only looked towards Naruto, a humor tinted insult ready to leave his lips.

"O-" he didn't get further than that as the ground beneath him crumbled and a large spear like tower rouse up.

Pieces of the spear caught the grass nin, the wooden pieces warping around him and trapping him.

'Is this the first Hokage's technique?'

The spear stopped its growth own it had reach the height that Naruto hovered at. The young dragoon clasped his hands together, a light purple orb forming around his joined hands. As he split them apart the energy followed both hands before forming twin spikes from either side of the orbs.

Taking aim, Naruto threw his hands towards the grass nin four quick successions, sending javelins of purple energy towards his enemy. Each projectile pierced a limb, forcing a gritted snarl of pain. Gathering the remaining energy in one hand, Naruto formed one last javelin before making it soar with one final thrust. The javelin hit the trapped nin directly in the center of his chest, tearing through his ribcage. The force behind the final javelin broke the spear head and sent the grass nin crashing towards the ground. With the attack finished, the remaining pieces of the spear crumbled.

Shaky breathes left Naruto's mouth. Despite his exhaustion he continued to stare on and observe the destruction he created. He could hear Sakura shouting her happiness at surviving the ordeal. He smiled, happy that he was able to do as Haku told him and protect those dear to him.

Naruto's body suddenly flew back. Looking towards a pressure he felt on his chest revealed that he was being pushed by a long sword that continued to increase in length. Following the sword to its origin revealed the grass nin, unharmed.

Naruto caught a glimpse of a mud clone dissolving near the remains of the giant spear before his back crashed into one of the trees scattered through the forest. The pressure from the sword increased despite Naruto's strong armor. Unable to pierce the arcane metal, the sword slipped to the side, lacerating the muscle in Naruto's arm before imbedding itself in the tree behind him.

With nothing holding him up, Naruto fell to the ground. It took his remaining strength to stand, trembling all the while.

"Well it seems I've tired you out. Good. Now stay there while I deal with my original target, I'll come back for you later." the grass nin said after retracting his sword.

"Stay… away from them." Naruto spoke weakly.

The grass nin merely chuckled in response.

Despite the anger he felt, Naruto began retreating in order to prevent himself from transforming in front of his team and the enemy nin.

'I hope Naruto's ok.'

This single caring thought repeated in Hinata's head as she and her teammates continued traveling towards the center of the forest. They had gained their opposite scroll thanks to their bug using teammate, Shino. The Aburame stood a few inches taller than Hinata, wearing a grey jacket with a raise collar that covered his lower face. Black circular glasses hid his eyes and brown pants covered his legs. Standard blue sandals were strapped to his feet and his leaf headband helped his brown shaggy hair from falling in front of his eyes.

"Hinata can you see if we're close to the tower?" Kiba, the dog partner nin, asked

The Inuzuka wore a light grey hoodie with black fur lining the hem of his sleeves and hood. His head band was barely visible from underneath his hood and two red fang marks were located on his cheeks. A darker shade of grey pants than his hoodie hung from his waist and a similar pair of blue sandals rested comfortable on his feet. A white puppy was found leaping by his side.

"S-Sure Kiba. Just give me a sec." she stated.

The Hyuga heir began focusing chakra towards her eyes when a green flash caught all three of their attention.

"Hmm.. odd. I wonder what that could be?" Shino stoically wondered.

Kiba stared in the direction the flash originated from for a moment before speaking. "Maybe a fight! Change of plans Hinata. See if you can find anything over there?"

Hinata nodded before channeling chakra to her eyes once more. The veins around her eyes bulged, giving her the special vision her family was born with. Looking through the surrounding foliage, she increased the distance she could see until it rested on a lone figure in orange.

"I-It's N-Naruto."

Kiba rolled his eyes. "Really, is that all?"

"That doesn't explain the light we saw." Shino stated.

Hinata didn't pay her teammates much attention and continued to watch her crush. She saw him gripping his left arm, pulling his right away after several seconds and unzipping this jacket. He weakly shrugged the orange coat off.

The sight of Naruto's injured arm caused Hinata to gasp. His arm was covered in blood that was steadily leaking from a savage cut. The injury itself seemed infected, turning a coloration unnatural for the human body. Reaching towards his face, he removed his tee and began weakly tying it around his arm in a desperate attempt to stop the blood.

"Hinata what's wrong?" Kiba asked, concerned over the look of fear etched onto her face.

"Na-Naruto is hurt. He needs our help!"

Kiba gave a confused face. "But he's the competition, shouldn't we avoid him."

"P-please Kiba, his injury l-looks horrible!" Hinata pleaded.

The Inuzuka thought over it, doubting that saving another team's member was a wise decision. Fed up with Kiba's hesitation, Shino decided to speak.

"Naruto maybe opposition, but he is also a leaf ninja and our old fellow classmate. We should offer a helping hand."

Kiba sighed. "I guess your right. Ok let's hurry before someone tries to make Naruto an easy target."

The three ran off towards Naruto's location, only taking a few minutes to arrive. The two male members of Team Eight froze at the sight of Naruto. Dark lines had formed under his eyes, his skin was deathly pale, and the blood on his arm had yet to decrease.

Naruto barely made out their forms from his decreasing vision. Having already dealt with her shock from witnessing his horrid condition before, Hinata continued towards Naruto undeterred. He slumped forward and barely registered someone catching him before he lost consciousness.

Hinata stood glued in place, shaking as she held onto Naruto.

"Kiba. Shino. Help me please."

Night had come and team eight had been forced to stop their travel and set up camp. Even if they wanted to continue moving towards the center of the forest, Naruto's bed ridden state left them with little option. Speaking of the Uzumaki, he rested his head on a pillow formed from his orange jacket. His injury had been treated and wrapped in bandages, another article of clothing placed beneath the arm to prevent any dirt from attaching to the bandages or worse.

"I can't believe how bad Naruto looked. I know that chick had us sign wavers, but I didn't think anyone from Konoha would have come so close to dying." Kiba said while he and the others were gathered around a camp fire.

Shino nodded his head. "Indeed. The poison my insects withdrew from Naruto's wound was highly toxic. Had we not found him when we did his organs would have begun shutting down one after the other, a most agonizing death would have awaited him."

Hinata shivered before glancing towards Naruto's sleeping form.

"Yeah Shino, he's also lucky that Hinata knows a thing or two about first aid or he'd have bled to death even after your miracle." Kiba stated.

"I was impressed by how quickly his wound began closing up after Hinata began applying her medical cream. Should we find ourselves injured in the future we will be most fortunate for to have someone we can truly rely on to heal our injuries."

Hinata remained quiet despite Shino's compliment. Her teammates began to worry about her, and soon began trying to discern a way to ease her mind.

"Hey Hinata." Kiba said to get her attention. She turned her head to look towards him. "We need to decide on watch shifts. Me and Shino think you should take the last shift."

The young Hyuga shook her head in kind protest. "I-I'm ok. I would like to keep watch, Naruto will need someone to check his bandage and lower his temperature should he get a fever."

"We are capable of that." Shino idly stated.

"And besides, you have to be the most tired out of all of us. You have been using your Byakugan to help us avoid ambushes for a while. We know it puts a strain on you after long use." Kiba pointed out.

Hinata smiled at her teams concern. "Thank you but I'm really ok. I-I'll take the first shift and wake you after it's over."

'No you won't.' were the similar thoughts that ran through Shino's and Kiba's heads.

Shino decided on a different approach. "I'll take the first shift and then wake you for the second shift."

Hinata looked like she was about to decline and Kiba decided to end the conversation.

"It's either that or I tie you up and keep you inside the tent till our shifts are over."

"O-Ok." Hinata weakly replied.

Shino kept his word and woke Hinata after his shift was over. Once up Hinata immediately made her way next to Naruto and checked his bandages. Afterwards she checked his temperature, her hand hesitant as she reached for his bare forehead. Though warm it was nothing to worry about. Her hand left his forehead with just as much hesitance and she continued to watch over him.

With the threat against Naruto's life soundly removed the situation began to dawn on her. She was sitting closer to her crush than she'd ever accomplished and he was shirtless. A blush took over her faces as she looked him over and explored the new sight.

'I'm pathetic.' she thought. 'It took Naruto being gravely injured for me to get this close to him. Why can't I approach him on my own?'

Her low self esteem stayed present though her thoughts drifted to other areas.

'He looks so calm, it's so rare to see him not being hyperactive. His hair almost looks like fur.'

Her tiny fingers slowly moved towards the blonde strands before disappearing among the mass of yellow.

'It's so soft!'

Hinata continued to explore the jungle of his hair, only stopping when his face scrunched. The speed her fingers exited nearly tore a few hairs out. Naruto's uninjured arm mechanically moved and his hand rubbed his face before flopping gracelessly to the ground. His last action before going still again was the disgruntled mumble that left his lips.

Hinata couldn't help but giggle at his sleep antic. Once she was certain that Naruto wouldn't be waking up Hinata decided to take a more serious post as watch. She didn't leave Naruto's side, but she did activate her Byakugan eyes every now and then to check her surroundings.

A green glow caught her eyes once during her periodically searches. Turning towards its origin she found it to be from Naruto's special stone.

'It seems different.' she pointed out to herself before slipping a shy hand into his pocket to retrieve the stone.

Its glow decreased as it left Naruto's side, a fact that wasn't missed by Hinata. Though the glow decreased, the light that still emanated from the stone was indeed stronger than when Hinata first saw it.

'I wonder why Naruto cherishes this. It's pretty, but this seems like something a girl would like more. What is this energy I see with my Byakugan? And why does it grow bigger when closer to Naruto?'

These thoughts ran through Hinata's mind throughout the night. She eventually returned the stone to Naruto's pocket before returning to being a more diligent watch.

At first opening his eyes only brought the sting of light. A few seconds adjusting to the bright morning brought green leaves and brown bark to his surrounding vision, reminding him that he was still in the forest of death. Another site caught his eyes. Hinata Hyuga, sitting next to his prone forming, eyes drooping as she fought to not descend into unconsciousness.

"H..Hi.. Hi-na-ta." he forced out of his parched throat.

The Hyuga snapped up right when she heard Naruto speak. Her entire demeanor brightened.

"Na-Naruto, are you o-ok now?"

His face scrunched up as he tried to respond. "…he..s…." in the end nothing but air escaped his lips.

Understanding what the problem was, Hinata walked off. "I-I-I'll be back with s-some water."

Naruto took the time of Hinata's absence to study the rest of his situations. He noticed that his shirt was missing, that he was lying on his jacket, and a pat on his pants pocket revealed the lump created from his dragoon stone. Lazy eyes looked over his arm before resting on the bandages wrapped around his bicep. The memory of the battle came back to him and panic rouse up.

He jerked forward and attempted to stand only to crumble to his knees. Coughs ripped from his throat, nearly causing him to gag from the lack of liquid in his throat.

"Naruto!" he heard Hinata actually yell his name with concern.

In seconds she was by his side, offering a canteen. He gratefully accepted the container and chugged the cool liquid.

"Where's the rest of my team?" Naruto desperately asked once he had his fill.

Hinata didn't know how to answer. She had merely assumed that Naruto had been separated and attacked; it never occurred to her that their team as a whole may have been assaulted.

"I… I-I'm not s-sure. Y-You were the only o-one w-we found."

He began pulling on her jacket and attempted to get up again, unsuccessful in the standing part.

"I've got to go look for them." he said, unwilling to accept the fact that it was highly possible that his team died.

Naruto attempted to get up once more but found Hinata's hands attempted to push him back to the ground.

"Naruto. Y-you're in no c-condition to be moving around."

A swift curse came from the tent nearby, catching both Naruto's and Hinata's attention. The tent shook a little before Kiba burst out with a worried look on his face before finally resting on the only other people nearby. He bore a lazy glare at Hinata, making her uncomfortable with the stare.

"You were supposed to wake me up for my shift Hinata. Look at you! You're about to fall over!"

Hinata mumbled an apology while still trying to hold down Naruto, something she was honestly only able to do thanks to gravity in her tired state.

"Get some sleep, I'll watch over the grouchy patient." Kiba said

Hinata didn't bother trying to protest, she could tell Kiba was already upset and wasn't going to budge.

Kiba lazily sat down, insuring that Naruto was his seat.

"Kiba!" Naruto growled. "Get your ass off me!"

After Hinata had gotten a sufficient amount of sleep Kiba helped make a meal with her that Shino had gathered. Naruto had joined in their meal, having accepted his situation and calmed down enough to realize that Hinata was right. After eating a decent meal he felt better even able to move properly without stumbling. He knew he wasn't back to one hundred percent health but it would have to do.

Naruto waited for Team Eight to finish packing before preparing to search for his teammates or their remains.

"Thanks again guys, especially you Hinata." Naruto said, fully dressed minus his black tee that had been deemed unusable.

Hinata blushed from the attention. "It was n-nothing. You would have done the s-same for us."

"Yeah but Kiba told me about you spotting me and your miracle cream, oh and how you watched over me all night."

"Y-Y-You're w-welcome Naruto." Hinata stuttered.

Naruto reached back and pulled out the scroll he stopped Sasuke from handing over. "Here, I owe you something for all you've done." he held it out. "Go on, take it."

'Sasuke was just going to hand over anyway, might as well give it to someone like Hinata.'

Hinata shook her head. "It's o-ok, w-we've already gotten b-both scrolls."

Kiba proudly brandished both scrolls.

"Oh I see. I guess I owe you twice now." Naruto stated.

Hinata's eyes drifted to the ground. "N-Naruto you d-don't have to owe me a-anything."

Naruto shook his head. "Nope! I'll find some way to repay you. Well, see you later!"

With that Naruto said good bye and began his search.

Author's Note: I'd like to apologize for the long update, I was having a hard time getting around the fight scene with Orochimaru. In the end I'm glad I took my time with it because it came out better than I could have hoped, normally I don't feel so confident writing fight scenes but here I felt ok. Afterwards I just had to look over the chapter to capture any grammar mistakes and more importantly make sure the chapter felt comfortable as I read through it.