This is all edited and then some, once again you should read it. Even if it's a review. There are minor changes besides grammar and such. (:

- -} Baby steps {- -

Naruto exhaled as she pulled on her ninja sandals. She paused at the door to look at her reflection in a mirror. Her hair was in a French braid that reached the bottom of her shoulder blades. She wore a basic navy blue tank top, black ANBU pants that were taped. She also wore a long navy blue cloak, she decided to wait to put on her face mask until she left Suna. It funnily reminded her of her previous senseis'. If you could even call Kakashi that but whatever. She shook her head and left her hotel room, backpack on her shoulders.

After the walk to the gates, she smiled when she saw the Gaara and Temari there. The coppery head walked up to them and decided that the sooner she finished her goodbyes, the less time she would need to spend in this scorching heat.

"Hey guys!" They both smiled, "Where's Kankuro?" She asked after a few minutes. Gaara glared into the endless sand as Temari sighed, "He said that it was too early to get up. But, he asked us to give this to you. I guess he had extra wood from his dolls or something." She said as she handed the package to the younger blond nearly hesitantly. Naruto however only snorted, she would agree if she didn't need to get a move on.

Naruto made a face of confusion as she grabbed the package. She felt around the box and shook it, but she couldn't figure out what it was. She tore away the paper and opened the box. She smiled softly as she took it out.

Inside was a mask similar to an ANBUs but it was a fox. It was a dusty white and the whiskers were red.

"I-I told him not to do-" Temari started but was cut off by a hug. "It's great. Tell him I love it okay?"

Naruto stated as she pulled away from the hug. Temari didn't even bother to show her surprise from the hug, "I'm glad you like it, I'll tell him." She smiled, nodding when she turned back to Gaara.

They stayed for a minute until Gaara spoke up, "Temari can you give us a minute?" She nodded, smiling at her friends before heading back. Naruto willed away tears as she knew that she was about to part from yet another friend, but she knew it was for the best. They just stared at each other for a while, "Naruto," He started, making sure that he had her attention. She nodded, seeming to hold her breath.

"You changed me those years ago. If not for you I don't know where I would be now. I am the Kage of my village, I have a family, people to protect and people who admire me. You gave me what I have never thought to be possible. You changed my life for the better. But now yours was taken. I'm sorry this happened to you, I really am. Is there anything I can do before you go?" He said quietly yet sincerely, never breaking eye contact. She took a shaky breath as she stepped up to hug him goodbye.

"You deserve it. I just need some time. I'm glad you changed, you always had this. You just never realized it. Thank you, I'll come by again don't worry." He nodded reluctantly. They talked for a few minutes until it was time for Garra to go. (Stupid paper work. *Tsunade sneezes.*)

Naruto stared out of the gates for a minute. Gold, it was just like individual grains of the rare substance. She looked down at her face mask, it was black. When she put it on it pulled up till the bridge of her nose, masking her mouth, nose and more importantly her whiskers. She put on the ANBU mask that now shielded her oceanic eyes. She finally pulled on the hood to her cloak that hid the last vital piece of her identification. Golden hair, bluest eyes and whiskers no longer visible. Nobody could tell that this figure was Naruto, good that was the point.

She started her journey, just walking with no destination in mind.

XXX

|One Year Later. Naruto is now sixteen|

A cloaked figure sighed as she stepped foot in the bar. She ignored the curious yet cautious looks as she made her way to a table in the back. She politely waited for the waiter as she scanned the area. Hiding a frown when she felt eyes on her. The person watching her was good. But she couldn't help but wonder thinking why they would be watching her of all people. There was no way that anybody could have any knowledge of who she was. Unless they have been monitoring her for a while. The frown deepened, this person had to be good at concealing themselves. 'Most likely a genjutsu specialist' she mused to herself.

"Hello, what can I get for you, uh... Sir?" The waitress asked. Naruto managed to stop herself from groaning. Why did it matter? It wasn't her job to stress over her gender. Her job was to fricken' take her order!? Kami, people these days.

"A bottle of stronger sake and some rice please." She said quietly. Her waitress' eyes widened, "O-oh I'm so sorry miss. I'll get that right away." She hurried off just in time to miss Naruto's whine. She looked down at her lap in thought.

Too busy talking with the fox about what to do next she missed the waitress bring her order. Having a few bites of rice, keeping her face masked through genjutsu she leaned back. The presence she felt earlier was back. She didn't know if they were hostile or not. If they were, wouldn't they stay hidden until her guard was down? She finished her bottle of sake and left the money on the wooden table.

She sighed contently when she stepped outside. The wind caressed her cloak. She frowned when she looked down. All of those missing nins really did a number on her apparel. She fought the urge do whine, this was what she wore when she was with Ero-sannin when she was younger. Of course, it would wear down over the many years but this was her favorite. As she walked to her hotel room she figured it be best if she got some new clothes.

XXX

She inserted the key to the hotel room that would be hers for the next week. She loved this town. While she was with Jiraiya she discovered that she actually had a bit of skill with gambling unlike Tsunade. She was currently in a popular gambling town located in Spring Country. She grimaced at the thought of how she helped the Damaiyo. While bandits were more than easy to take down, the group was huge. But it was worth it, after all here she was.

She opened the door and looked around. It was a pretty basic room. The bed was near the wall, opposite of the wall with a dresser. In one of the corners there was a T.V. Next to the small desk there was the bathroom. She resisted the urge to squeal at the sight of the soaker tub. She hasn't had a hot bath for a few months now. Only the showers and the rivers.

Going back to make sure the door was locked, she also put up a few privacy seals. When she was happy with her lonesomeness she took off her cloak and threw it on the desk. Both of her masks soon followed. She rubbed her neck tiredly as she stepped back into the bathroom. Turning on the water so that it was hot she took off her clothes.

Slipping into the steaming water she relaxed as the water soothed her tense muscles. It felt so nice. After a couple hours later, she slipped back out. Wrapping a towel around her hair she dried off the rest of her body. Grabbing another fluffy towel, she wrapped herself. She secured it and stepped out of the room.

Only to stop in her tracks based on two things. First off, she was no longer alone. And two, there was a kunai at her throat. She cursed herself for not being more careful. This was the same presence that she felt on and off all day. She never even sensed the intruder. She tried to talk to the fox, only to cry internally when she found him either ignoring her or sleeping. Either way she would get the fox back for this, assuming she made it out of this alive.

Clearing her throat she slowly started to raise her hands, to tell them she meant no harm. She gasped when she felt a strong arm come around her side, through her waist so her arms were pulled back down. The arms were surprisingly warm considering that the room grew colder since she discovered that there was an intruder. She frowned when she still couldn't get an exact chakra signature.

"Ok you win, what do you want?" She asked stoically. The body behind her relaxed a bit but still didn't put down the kunai. She barley suppressed a shudder when the voice came, ghosting across her neck and ear. "Just came to say hello. Where's the harm in that, Naru?" She froze.

When it all registered she ignored the kunai and spun around, backing up. " 'Hells your problem?! What are you even doing here?" She hissed. The man in question stayed in the shadows but you could see his silhouette shrug. "Like I said before just came to say hello. I mean It's not like I had anything better to do. I also wanted to come see my best friend again, was I wrong to do that?" He asked raising an eyebrow.

She stayed put trying to stay calm on the outside, which was the complete opposite of what she was on the inside. "I don't know are you gonna go join another secret organization? Just leave again?" She asked evenly. The man in question sighed. "No, are you?" He replied.

She rose an eyebrow, "Leave? I got kicked out, I didn't leave on my own terms." The man nodded, this wasn't exactly how he planned this little reunion to go. They stayed quiet for a minute. Naruto sighed and sat down on the bed, "Are you going to explain why you're here or not."

The man sighed, "Well since my little 'secret organization' was ruined thanks to a little fox I decided to travel on my own. Then I got wind of an exceptional fighter that popped out of nowhere about a year ago. Just decided to see if they knew who my friend was. I missed her, you know after almost 10 years." He said light-heartedly. He sighed when he saw Naruto glare, this really wasn't going how he wanted.

"Well you never answered my question. Are you just going to leave after all of this?" She said trying not to yell. "I promise I'm here to stay. At least not until you go with me." He replied. It was quiet for a few seconds. They both tried not to cry. He didn't know that she would be this upset. She was just so mad at the moment. She nodded and stood up, walking across the room and giving the other a fierce hug that he returned.

She wrapped her arms around his neck, the towel holding her hair having fell off when she sat down on the bed, her hair was still wet. He wrapped his bigger arms around her waist, picking her up a few inches. Naruto buried her head in the guys chest.

"Thank kami your back. I missed you so much Itachi." She whispered. The other nodded and they only held each other. Itachi nuzzled his best friends neck, tears springing to his eyes.

Too long. Far too long.