edited 11/27/12

"They don't attack the cars?" Naruto asked.

"No. They used to, but the Guards are learning. All it took was one assault and now they stay away. Long story short, the power of these things could outclass a cannon," Kakashi seemed to grin under the mask.

They continued their orientation around the base. Naruto was finally learning what color hallway was meant for what. He even had a neat little orientation booklet he had every intention of never reading, a whole set of army fatigues and some more gadgets and gizmos sitting patiently in his assigned room. He was told not to worry about the lack of experience in the military – Konoha ran things less formally and what was expected of him would be taught anyway.

Kakashi brought him back to earth. "So training begins tomorrow. I'm to introduce you to your cell members today. Three man cells are the norm, under the direction of their director. In your case, myself."

Finally they arrived at the mouth of a large red corridor. The man observed Naruto seriously as they strode forward. "This is the training and equipment sector. Our room is T07, and we are Cell Seven. We meet at seven in the morning, but I expect you to be up much earlier to eat and prepare. I am your superior and will be your teacher until your training is complete. I know you're new to this, but in the army when I tell you to jump, you ask how high. Understood?"

Naruto grit his teeth. "Crystal."

Kakashi grunted his approval. He pulled open a door and Naruto walked in bravely, apprehensive but definitely not expecting -

"You!" Naruto snarled, and dodged another kick by sidestepping awkwardly.

The boy grunted and righted himself to launch a punch. Guessing he would feint, Naruto clumsily flipped backwards to avoid it altogether. Furious, he planted his feet and threw himself at his opponent.

"Oh, you've met," Kakashi noted happily.

"Kakashi!" The black haired boy yelled as he grappled with Naruto on the floor, "What -the – hell - is the meaning of this!"

Naruto unleashed a snarl after taking yet another punch to the gut. He firmly pinned the other beneath him and, before he could find a way to avoid it, brutally rammed his head against the other boy's. He slumped back liquidly, eyes glazed and mouth open. Naruto grimaced and picked himself up. As he squeezed his midsection to check for damage, the door flew open.

"What the hell!" Sakura exclaimed, breathing heavily as if she had run here. She took in the situation and fixed her gaze on Kakashi. "What kind of initiation is this?"

Kakashi peered at her over his suddenly present book. "Well, they seemed so eager to jump into each other's arms, who was I to stop true love?"

A snarl sounded from the floor, and the boy carefully rose to his feet. He glared in disgust at the other three. "He's barely worth the attention of a dung beetle. Why the hell is he in our cell?"

The man in question shook his head and his cheery voice grew cold. "Sasuke, that's enough. Cell assignments are not taken lightly." He looked at Sakura, leaving Sasuke to fume. "You already knew about this?"

The girl nodded and fixed some hair behind her ear. "Yes, Sir Tsunade informed me and sent me here just minutes ago." She turned to Naruto and smiled, holding out her hand. "I know we've met before, but… hi, I'm Sakura of cell seven – combat and medical specialist. Also one of Sir Tsunade's aides. Nice to re-meet you."

Naruto's lips stretched to a wide smile and he shook her hand maybe too enthusiastically. "Well, in that case – I'm Naruto, and, err, I was in college."

The girl laughed and it was a pretty sound. "We contacted your school and placed your studies under hiatus, to be continued again without trouble once you return."

Naruto's eyes grew large. "Whoa, she can do that? And I'm not in any trouble or anything? Really?"

Sakura smiled again. "We are a government entity, with more say than a school. Also, in case you were not already informed, your guardian has been notified and expresses his well-wishes."

Naruto grinned, one hand behind his head. "Ah, strange, Orochimaru's not usually the lenient type. What a nice change."

Sakura shrugged and kept smiling. Maybe she really did have no clue that Naruto suspected Orochimaru was really not complying with his absence at all. He doubted it.

"Well, how nice." Kakashi drawled. "Sasuke - introduce yourself to your new teammate."

Sasuke did not.

Kakashi heaved a great sigh. It was a I-forgot-I-worked-with-toddlers kind of sigh. "Sasuke. Blah blah blah, order."

Naruto smirked.

Sasuke could not correct the twitch of his jaw as he stated through grated teeth and as though speaking to a wall, "Sasuke of cell seven. Combat, analysis and strategy, and special forces specialist." Then he held Naruto's eyes in a deadlock.

Naruto bristled. "Bet I'll be twice as good as you."

Sasuke smirked and crossed his arms. "Incompetents aren't allowed near the weapons."

"Hey! Wait and see, asshole!"

"Boys!" Sakura cried, coming to stand in between them. She faced Sasuke angrily, but her confidence seemed to have dissolved when she was confronted with his gaze. "Um, try to get along. We're the one of the most elite cells of Konoha, we should be proud Naruto was placed in our group. Right, Sir Kakashi?"

Their mentor smiled – Naruto was getting pretty good at reading this - angelically. "Yes, we'll be teaching Naruto all that we know. Once he's capable, he'll become a full-fledged member of our cell."

Hands on his hips, Naruto cocked an eyebrow. "You bet I will. So what do you specialize in? Eh, Kakashi, sir?"

The man's eye curved again. "Artillery, reconnaissance, combat, analysis & strategy, and special forces."

"Did you have to memorize that in order to repeat it when introducing yourself?" Naruto whistled.

Sakura actually smacked him upside the head, lightly but meaningfully. "No, we're only telling you because you need to know. You don't go around screaming your techniques to enemies any more than you would wear orange during recon."

Naruto crossed his arms in a huff. "Hey, if you wear orange for stealth it means you're that much more capable."

"What a stupid risk," the darker boy spat, taking Naruto's joke seriously. "It figures an idiot like y-" He bit himself off at his mentor's raised hand.

"An idiot like who?" Naruto turned swiftly, limbs clicking into an aggressive position. "Go on, finish that sentence." What, was this kid's switch stuck on 'douchebag or something?

Kakashi whistled – actually whistled – for their attention. "Children! Focus!"

The teens faced him, sullen at the title. Naruto pouted and shifted away from Sasuke.

"Alright, so we'll be getting a little break from our regular missions – for now we'll be focusing on Naruto, training ourselves by teaching him. We need to start at the beginning."

The mood of his cell members seemed to be darkening as Kakashi's enthusiasm brightened. "So! What's the most important quality in a cell?"

"Teamwork," Sasuke grumbled and Sakura replied, simultaneously.

"And what does teamwork require?" Kakashi continued in a singsong voice.

"Trust," they repeated. Naruto observed this all silently.

"So who knows what's coming up next?" Kakashi clapped his hands in glee.

The other two groaned. Naruto cocked his head.

Kakashi seemed to be grinning like a madman beneath his mask. From his right hand dangled two small bells.

LATER

"What the hell is wrong with this place!" Naruto fumed, shoveling noodles down his throat at unnerving speed.

Iruka regarded him with amusement, deciding to identify the question as rhetorical for now. "Kakashi? He's a little eccentric, but it's not so bad. Cell Seven is the most prestigious team, you know?" he said lightly. "So obviously he's doing something right - and don't slurp your dinner."

Ignoring him, Naruto grimaced with broth dripping from his chin. "Yeah, if he's after beating us to death." He put down his bowl and shoved back the sleeve from his arm, revealing soft bruises. "One hour into meeting my new team and he had us kicking the crap out of each other. And he made me miss lunch!"

Naruto knew he shouldn't be whining like a freshman but no man made Naruto Uzumaki miss a mealtime. No man.

The other man smiled. "He's probably just happy he's finally found the final member for his team."

Naruto looked at him, startled. "Huh?"

With the bustle of the first dinner rush around them, Iruka explained. "Cells are three-men teams, not including the mentor. The third appointed soldier for cell seven was, after a trial period, not deemed adequate for the team and sent to another branch of Konoha. That's part of how cell seven earned their reputation as elite – no one placed with them could last longer than a week. They're simply too good at what they do."

Naruto thought back in awe, also recalling the source of most of his aches. "Wow, that means Sakura's really, really smart, on top of being freakishly strong as hell! She's too good to be that old lady's assistant!"

"Yes, well… Hey! First of all, curb that disregard for authority. I couldn't think of anyone more capable than Sir Tsunade. She was a member of the most impressive cell Konoha ever had."

"Yeah?" Naruto raised an eyebrow, and slurped down the rest of his noodles.

"Mmhm. Anyway, Kakashi must see a lot of promise in you to have you placed in his own cell."

"Well, naturally." Naruto grinned, noticing. "I'll be the best in this whole place, you'll see. I'll even be good enough to take that old bag's position!"

Iruka frowned at him, but then chuckled quietly as Naruto made a show of flexing his muscles. Safe to say the two had taken a liking to each other.

"Hey, but Kakashi's so strange. He had us attack him to get some bells while he stood and read a book! In the library! The librarian doesn't even know my name yet I'm banned from there. Just because I might have destroyed, you know, a book. Or twelve. In self-defense."

"Uh-huh." The older man didn't bother raising his eyebrow. Naruto was still mumbling "A library!" under his breath in disbelief.

"Well, everyone here knows Kakashi is a little…" he made a circling motion with his finger to his head, "touched."

"You mean completely whacked! And he just giggles while he reads that book of his, that he pulls out of nowhere." Naruto grumbled. "I bet it's porn. He should meet this guy I know, Jiraiya. I bet they'd have a great big pervy shindig together."

"Jiraiya, huh?" Iruka smiled. "Whatever you say. When you're done I'll show you the training center."

"Sweet! Okay, I'm - ! Hack, aaaaack, arhr…" Naruto coughed violently.

"I told you not to slurp your food."

ELSEWHERE

"You know, he knows we're lying." Kakashi said offhandedly, flipping a page.

Tsunade glanced at him and took a swig right from the bottle. "About what?"

"Orochimaru. He knows him too well."

The busty woman shrugged. "What does it matter? It shouldn't make Naruto change his mind. Orochimaru won't affect anything now, as long as he stays away."

Kakashi hummed. "I doubt he will. He'll complicate things."

"…Oh, I know." Sighing, Tsunade leaned back in her special-order, ultra-comfort office chair. God, she would have snapped long ago without this chair. "But for now, we're okay."

"He acts a little slow, but he's rather clever. He'll find out something, everything – somehow."

Tsunade grimaced and toyed with an object on her desk. She didn't have an answer, so the bottle filled her silence.

"We need his trust, Tsunade. You cannot send him to do this, put him in harm's way…"

"…Again." Tsunade rested her forehead on the bottle mouth, closing her eyes.