A/N: Big thanks to all those who took the time to read, and more thanks to my reviewers! Maybe I will get back to those 15 chapters after all! Let the story continue...

"How hard could it be I said," Revan mentally grumbled at the sight in front of him.

He had brought Naruto directly to the hideout after their conversation with the Hokage. The boy, to his credit, did have enthusiasm, but as soon as they arrived he did not stop talking, did not stop asking questions, and certainly did not leave the droids alone. Speaking of which...

"Distressed inquiries: Master, why is this child on my shoulders? Why is sticking his fingers in my view ports? Why does he constantly kick my chassis and yell gideeyup?"

"Come on you big metal thing, go faster!"

Revan pinched the bridge of his nose and groaned. "Naruto, get off him."

"Awwww!" whined the blonde.

"HK is not a toy, you'll have plenty of other things to keep busy, now get down."

Grumbling, the child complied and hopped off, much to the droid's relief. "You're no fun, Revan-sensei." The jedi shook his head and motioned for him to follow. The pair walked through the halls towards the dormitories, with Revan filling him in on small details.

"An old friend and I had planned on making this an academy, but never got around to it. Consider yourself its first actual student."

"Academy, like where the ninjas go?"

"In a manner of speaking. Unlike the Shinobi Academy, this one was meant to be a permanent residence. Not only was there to be classrooms and training areas, but bedrooms for the students, common areas to rest and play, and a cafeteria to feed everyone. As you can see though, we never finished. For the time being, I have the droids renovating and improving on key areas, but it will be some time before this place will really be ready."

They took a turn into a smaller hallway, which was lined with six doors on either side. It stretched to accommodate the rooms and came to an abrupt stop with a rough wall.

"Pick any room you want. The door will open when you get closer. I know you'll probably be awake for most of the night considering what has happened, but we start training tomorrow morning, and you'll need your strength."

Bidding him good night, the Jedi turned and left as Naruto went straight to the first door on his right. Just as Revan had said, the door slid open with a hiss, displaying the small and almost spartan room. On his right and along the wall was a single size bed with a pair of brown boots and a dresser at the foot. In front of him was a wooden desk and chair along with a reading lamp. Left of that was another door, this one leading to a private bathroom and shower. Still, despite the sparse furnishings, Naruto couldn't have been any happier. He had his own room, his own bed, even his own toilet and bath! After a quick and hot shower, the boy took a look in the dresser for some clothes. What he found, even though he himself didn't recognize them, were the robes worn by customary younglings of the Jedi Order. Deciding to leave most of it for the morning, he simply threw on the shit and shorts and jumped into his bed. His bed. That was going to take some getting used to, but he would gladly get used to it. Naruto smiled as he let his eyes droop shut, not bothering to think about the changes his life had taken. Oh yes, he couldn't wait to get used to it.

The morning came quickly with Revan knocking on the door, but he grumbled when he got no answer. He slid it open, expecting to find his apprentice still passed out in his bed, but was surprised to see an empty room. The only evidence of an occupant were Naruto's old clothes lying in a pile in the bathroom, and the drawers of the dresser left open. Revan smiled when he noticed the padawan robes and boots were gone. That kid caught on quick. He left the room and headed to the mess hall, expecting to find him there. That was empty too, but he grabbed an apple for good measure. As he continued his search, the familiar hum of a lightsaber reached his ears.

"Already? I never showed him the sparring ring. And how did he find a saber?"

He followed the sounds to a large training hall, complete with all the equipment a jedi would be expected to use; training sabers, blasters, mesh armors, helmets, you name it. In the center was Naruto, swinging around a blue training saber at an HK droid. T3, Revan noticed, had settled onto the sidelines and was recording the whole match. Revan stood by as he watched the two combatants. The droid was similarly armed but resigned to just block the child's wild swings. More than once the blonde toppled over or stumbled, the lack of a counterweight messing with his balance. Fed up with his lack of progress, Naruto yelled and jumped at the droid, the saber held high over his head and ready to cleave the droid in two. HK simply lifted his own and blocked the attack with no effort. He then side stepped and tapped the blonde on the back of the neck with his blade, causing him to yelp at the stinging sensation.

"How long have you two been at it?" asked the jedi.

"Ah, Revan-sensei! HK was teaching me to fight!" said Naruto.

"Explanation: Master, Apprentice Naruto found his way here after breakfast and immediately asked me to train him. He has been doing lightsaber drills for approximately 57 minutes and... 28 seconds."

"More like keeps blocking me and stinging me..." grumbled the boy.

"Well, that's to show you openings in your form. Besides, you won't learn anything just by swinging the thing like a club. Now, let's get started the proper way." Revan called a training blade of his own from the table and stepped up next to Naruto.

For the next few hours, he guided him through the motions and katas of the first lightsaber form, Shii-cho. Now with proper instruction, Naruto was easily grasping the simple strikes, blocks, and parries that were associated with Form 1. Deliberately, he slowly swung his saber to mimic Revan. A horizontal slash was quickly followed by a low block, a parry high and to the right had him stepping forward to counter. Throughout the whole lesson, Revan explained to him the fine details to the form.

"Shii-Cho, the Determination Form, is the first of seven styles you will be learning. As you have noticed, the movements themselves are basic and straight forward. It is meant to be an all around style to combat when no other form would be effective. The deliberate blocks and strikes are to familiarize yourself with the feel of a lightsaber. If applied to combat, it is only used as a fall back option. An experienced opponent would easily counter the simple, and often wild strikes of a Shii-Cho user. Keep in mind that the style was based off of traditional sword fighting, or kenjutsu as shinobi would call it. If you want to succeed in melee combat, application of the next six styles will be needed, something that ninja have no knowledge of."

"If it's so easy to beat, then why teach it?" asked Naruto as they continued to trade blows.

"As I said before, the form is meant to get you used to the unique feel of a lightsaber. As we move forward in your training, I will teach you the other styles. Now, think fast."

Without warning, Revan maneuvered out of a lock and nicked him in the side of the neck. The boy yelped and grasp at the small burn.

"No fair," he groaned. Revan only smirked.

"Don't worry we're just getting started."

They followed up their sparring with lunch and what Naruto was quickly finding to be the more boring part of training. They sat on the head of the First Hokage by the waterfall as Revan tried to teach him meditation.

"A jedi's strength comes from what we call the Force. In order to learn what I am trying to teach you, you must feel and command the Force as you would any other tool or weapon. When you get into your chakra training at the academy, you're going to see similarities."

"How am I supposed to do that if I can't feel anything?"

"Close your eyes."

"Why? We've been at it for an hour now!"

"Close... your eyes," repeated the Jedi, this time much more firmly. Naruto sighed but closed them anyway.

"Now, I want you to focus on your breathing. Only your breathing. Let its rhythm fill your mind, forget anything else."

"I wonder what dinner is going to be," thought the blonde.

"Naruto, I said focus on your breathing, not your stomach." The boy's eyes shot open.

"How-"

"Did I know? You'll learn in time. Now, try again."

Naruto quickly got over his alarm. Like his sensei had instructed, he tried his best to block out everything else, from random thoughts to the roar of the waterfall. Easier said than done. Time crawled by, and more than once he dozed off. Each time he did, however, he received a mental prod from Revan, and it was back to business. By now, the sun was setting and Naruto was getting even more agitated. Try as he might, he couldn't hone in on this "force" Revan kept telling him about. Time and time again, his mind grasped out for something, but nothing came.

"This is dumb, I'm never gonna find it."

"Yes you will, now try one more time. Forget your emotions, forget the sun, forget the grumbling in your stomach. Your mind has to be calm for it to work."

Naruto sighed in frustration. He tried again, but the insistent rumbling from his belly would not stop. Finally, he shook his head and stood up. "I can't do it anymore today."

Revan understood why, and stood as well. "I'm not expecting you to get it the first try. That would take a miracle. But do you understand the basic idea of it?"

"Yeah, I just need time I guess."

"You'll find it. And when you do, everything will become much clearer. Now, let's eat. You're not the only one starving!"

This was his new life. Every day, they would follow the same basic routine; their mornings were physical, with them doing either lightsaber combat, taijutsu, or simple physical conditioning in the morning, with meditation and academic classes in the afternoon. Revan hadn't forgotten that Naruto needed basic schooling anyway, and easily worked it into their regimen. Everything the Jedi taught him, Naruto soaked it up like a sponge. He loved learning about the Jedi history, their wars and their place as protectors in the galaxy. He couldn't wait till Revan took him off planet, something he never imagined even in his wildest dreams. Over the next two years, his physical ability had improved by leaps and bounds. His body became stronger and he had put on an extra few inches. Compared to other kids his age, he would be considered fairly tall. Steadily, his connection to the Force had strengthened as well, but the inability to meditate properly had hampered that progress. Once again, the pair found themselves at the waterfall, trying for the umpteenth time to get some kind of positive results.

"This is bullshit!"

"I'm not even going to bother asking where you learned that word," replied the Jedi, seemingly unfazed by the child's language as he continued his own meditations.

"How long has it been since we started? A year? Two? What's it going to take to finally get this?" he yelled.

Revan opened his eyes to see his young apprentice fuming.

"Meditation is not an art driven by emotion. It is derived from peace of mind and body. The more you frustrate yourself, the harder it will become to make a proper connection."

Naruto wasn't buying it. He had enough.

"I'm going for a walk, or to the arena or something. I need to blow off some steam."

"Try not to wander too far. It'll just be harder on yourself getting back."

"Yeah yeah..." the blonde grumbled as he left.

Revan sighed as he watched the boy leave. He'd have to try a different approach if their training was going to continue. In all honesty, he could understand his trouble. He was in the same boat when he was that age. No, conventional methods weren't going to work. He'd need a trigger, but it would have to be delicate. As he closed his eyes once more, his mind started sifting through possibilities. He enjoyed a challenge, but they needed progress, and a standstill was something they could not afford.

In the mean time, the very boy Revan was focusing his life on had marched into the surrounding forests, turning this way and that with no real sense of direction. At this point, he didn't even care how far he had gone or how low the sun was sitting. All that mattered to him at the moment was punching or hitting something, anything, to vent his anger.

"Stupid sensei, stupid meditation, stupid Force!" he continued to gripe to no one in particular. "I'm never gonna get anywhere at this rate!"

His right hand fell to the training saber he wore on his belt out of habit. Why did he have to learn this damn breathing and clearing your mind crap anyway? He could hold his own just fine in a fight. His skill with a lightsaber only got better with time, and his body was conditioned to a point that even teenagers would have trouble achieving. So why couldn't he do it? He ignited the blade and ran through some drills to calm himself, but it didn't help. So he resigned to simply smacking random foliage with the blade.

That was when he felt a tugging in the back of his mind. He stopped what he was doing and sheathed the saber. It wasn't familiar. It didn't have the calming power that was Revan, nor was it anything like a welcoming warmth akin to the Light Side he had read about. It felt odd, alien... almost like... a warning. He moved. He moved on instinct. In a flash, the blade ignited once more. Naruto spun on his heel and lifted his lightsaber high. Something made contact. A resounding crash and sparks flew from the clash, the lightsaber hissing and crackling as it fought against another force. Pushing back in defiance, he threw his attacker off him and quickly fell into that familiar ready stance, his lightsaber held out in front of him.

"What the hell was that?" he said aloud as his eyes bore into the long shadows of a tree. Something was wrong though. This shadow was much darker than the rest, much more foreboding... sinister. Naruto yelped in surprise as red bolts of energy shot out from the darkness. He rolled out of the way just in time. Blaster bolts; Revan had warned him of such weapons when he practiced with the little round drones that liked to stun you.

"Show yourself!" he yelled. He tried to sound brave and strong, but couldn't mask the cracking in his voice.

As if on cue, a dark figure stepped out from his hiding place. Naruto shivered as he watched. It was clearly human shape, but whatever it was, it certainly didn't feel human. The figure was skinny and small, barely five feet, but its size masked the danger it represented. It was garbed in mostly in tight and black, but also gray, robes. The sleeves and pant legs were tucked into the black leather gloves and boots, the sheer black vest covering its torso. What truly unnerved Naruto, however, was the mask that fully encased the figure's head, and those eyes. The big, round, red eyes. In its left hand was a familiar, cylindrical glint of silver.

A cold shiver ran down Naruto's spine as he carefully asked, "What... are you?"

The figure gave no response. For the first time in two years, Naruto was afraid. He was truly terrified, and that fear only grew when a snap-hiss echoed throughout the trees, and they became bathed in red light.

A/N: I feel like this is a good cut-off point. I wanted to throw in a little time-skip to keep a good pacing. The day-by-day retelling of two years of basics would bore any reader. Let me know how it's coming along so far. As for our blonde baka, what's going to happen next...? Haha, review!