Finally! It's been a while since I updated this one! I guess I got kind of discouraged at the lack of reviews this story got as well as being distracted by the other stories I've come up with.

Yes, now that Kushina is back, the Uzumaki family is ready for action! Even Anko is now a full member of the family, if you'll read back a chapter. Please enjoy this chapter.

3 MONTHS LATER

Three months. Three months had passed by ever so quickly, but left their mark. Kushina had re-adjusted quite well into the village, but she had to work on restraining her temper where her youngest was concerned. One man commented that the Fox Brat should just die and leave them in peace, and she nearly took his head off. She was about to show this fool why she was known as the Benihime, or the Crimson Princess, when Ichigo showed up to hold her back.

Even with Kushina back and Naruto under an even tighter guard, people still attempted to harm him and even try to kill him. Kushina nearly killed an errant Chunnin for coming at her youngest baby with a kunai until Anko dragged him off to her 'play room' at the T & I offices where she worked. Ichigo beat another offending Jounin within an inch of his life before turning him in.

Naruto's training was coming along well, as Kushina took an active role in it. She learned that Ichigo was a swordsman and she challanged him to a spar, in which she wiped the floor with him. You see, she's has always had a natural gift for swordsmanship and even though Ichigo held an immense advantage in power and speed, she was able to defeat him with sheer skill and ability. This made him have an even healthier respect for his adoptive mother and led him to teach the styles needed to use the other swords that he had made.

The fiery red-head took to fencing quite well and she particularly favored the Espada Ropera, a sword of Spanish make that was usually a thrusting blade, but it was double edged, swift and deadly. The grace required to wield it effectively was something she had naturally. Her fighting style with it looked more like she was dancing, with an elegance and grace that seemed supernatural. From that point on, carried one at her side at all times.

When it came to training with her boys, she took to it with a gusto that could have put Gai to shame, meaning that she ran the pair of blondes into the ground without mercy. Luckily, Rin was around alot, so they didn't stay beat up for long. Rin's friend, Airi, was a regular at the Uzumaki house, due to the two medics never being all that far apart. Sometimes, he thought they were attached at the hip.

As for how Team 8 was doing, they were mainly practicing and doing D-Rank missions. He managed to teach them several chakra control exercises and made sure they could do them efficiently. Ichigo quickly found out that the D in D-Rank stood for dreadful, dreary, and draining. After the first few times catching that damn Tora, he felt like putting that stupid cat out of his misery and everyone else's.

The task of one mission was to replace the serving staff of a wealthy restaurant. Naturally, they dressed into the staff uniforms and set to work. All was going well until Hinata noticed that their sensei was missing. One would think it would be easy to spot their sensei, because a 6 foot tall blond with different colored eyes should have stood out like a sore thumb. After 30 minutes of searching, they finally found him...snoozing in the freezer of all places. The one who tipped them off was none other than Sakuhime, she came out, noticed him sleeping, and called out to them.

As for getting them to not tell on him to Kushina and Rin, he took Naruto out for a ramen binge and his two kunoichi students made him their pack mule for a shopping spree, on his dime, and he couldn't use his Bunshin Jutsu's to help him. He was still recovering from the last time Rin and Airi dragged him and Naruto on one of their splurging sprees and the two younger kunoichi proved to be no slouches in that department, almost turning the trip into a death march.

The girls felt a little bad afterwards, so they took their exhausted sensei over to Haruno-ya and Mrs. Haruno pepped him back up with some of her personally made Sachertorte, one of his all time favorites. Miho remembered that his favorite snack was Strawberries. The pink-haired woman saw him as a nephew of sorts and he is the sensei of her daughter, not to mention her daughter is formally engaged to his little brother, but she liked him just the same.

Ino, Sakura, and Hinata were also getting adjusted to the quirky woman who turned out to be their sensei's and their betrothed's mother. Ino had to admit that she like Kushina's spunk and pluck. She was easily the type of woman she could look up to not only as a senior kunoichi, but as a mother-in-law. The ways that she kept her small family going and dealt with the ignorance of the villagers was awe-inspiring to the girl.

Sakura was getting to know her recently returned Godmother. She was surprized when she first found out from her mother who her godparents were, but was dismayed when she found that they were dead. Now that Kushina was back in their lives, she wanted to get to know her possible future mother in law as well as possible.

Hinata wasn't so sure about Kushina at first. She seemed a little scary, but after the woman took her and the other girls aside to a day, she warmed up to her quickly, addressing her as Auntie Kushina. She admired the woman's strength, knowing that her sensei and her finacee came by theirs honestly.

Kushina was quickly proving to be a very...attentive mother. Ichigo had a patrol mission with a team of Chuunin to lead in between his Genin team's assignments and was just about to leave from the Main Gate of the village when the red-haired woman came pelting around a corner and barreled into her much taller son, bearing a wrapped package.

"Here you go, Icchan!" She told him in a perky tone as she thrust the aforementioned parcel into his hands.

"Uh, what's this?" He asked.

"It's your lunch, silly boy!" She replied, getting on her toes to kiss her 'baby' on his cheek. "Have a good day, sweetie! I love you!" She called out to him as he and his team left the gates, failing miserably to hold in her laughter at his embarrassment. Almost.

He blushed brightly as he whined out. "Aw, mom...come on!" He wished that he could filter out the snickering of the Chuunins behind him, especially the two he swore up and down shared the same brain, Kotetsu and Izumo.

He truly loved the short red-head as if she were his real mother. After growing up without parents, he welcomed the idea, relishing in it. He now has a nearly full family, a doting mother in Kushina, a smart-assed older sister in Anko, a gullible yet loveable little brother in Naruto, and a loyal friend in Sakuhime. He has a wonderful girlfriend in Rin, one who he was planning on asking to be his wife someday, soon hopefully. He vowed that he would protect his new found loved ones with every scrap of power he had, consequences be damned.

Kushina looked upon her family with barely contained pride. All three of her children, even if the elder two weren't hers by blood she still loved them as much as she gave birth to them herself. If you asked her, she had a beautiful daughter and two handsome sons, all three of which she was very proud of and looked out for one another.

Anko was a Special Jounin, Ichigo a full Jounin and sensei, and Naruto was now a Genin. All three were very affectionate with her and to them, she was the center of their worlds, their hearts. She missed out on her babies growing up, but she would rip the council apart if they tried to take them away from her again, no matter what the consequences might be.

Anko had been scorned and alone for many years, but having her adoptive mother back in her life and now having an honest to god family breathed some purpose and happiness back into her life. She adored Naruto in the first place and then Ichigo came, filling another empty slot in her family. When Kushina came back, she finally felt whole. The Snake Princess had even taken up the Uzumaki name, becoming Anko Uzumaki to signify that she now had somewhere that she belonged. She now lived for her family, who lived for her as well.

Naruto was in shock for the first few days after his mother returned. He was enraged at her at first, because he thought that she abandoned him. After he found out the truth behind why she left from the Hokage, he was beyond pissed at the council for tearing his family apart. Thankfully, he had his new family, friends and the girls who helped to calm him down and stopped him from doing something rash, which was going in and wrecking the civilian council or worse, letting the power of the Kyuubi loose.

END FLASHBACK

AUGUST 13TH 0715 HRS

Ichigo woke up slowly in his room to the smell of breakfast cooking, a sleepy grin spreading across his face as he slips on his uniform and made his way down to the dining room, wondering what kind of culinary delight awaited him next.

When he got down to the dining room, he found that his siblings were already sitting down, Anko going through a dossier for one of her 'victims' and Naruto working on a chakra exercise, spinning a spoon in his hand.

"Mornin', y'all." He yawned as he ventured into the kitchen, the source of the lure out of his cave, to find his mother cooking up some pancakes and eggs for breakfast. He walked up behind her, hugged her and gave her a kiss in the cheek. "Morning mom." He told her with obvious affection.

"Finally up, lazy bones?" She chuckled as she turned for face her eldest son. "Could you take these out to the table for me, sweetie?" She asked him as she handed him a platter filled with pancakes to bring out to the dining room.

He nodded as he did as she asked. A few moments later, the Uzumaki family sat down to eat breakfast and began to go over their agendas for the day. Anko told them she had a rather tough nut to crack down in the 'play room' in the T and I office's basement, but she was actually looking forward to the challenge.

Naruto's business was tied to whatever Ichigo set out for the team, so he was pretty much spoken for. As for Kushina, she had since gotten a job teaching the Kunoichi classes at the Academy. She made it her personal mission to take those starry-eyed fan girls and tune them into reality after she saw the kinds of girls that were in her youngest son's class and the classes after him. She felt that fan girls were a disgrace to serious kunoichi everywhere and she wouldn't have it under her watch...

FLASHBACK : 1 MONTH AGO

Kushina waited on a bench outside of the Hokage's office, awaiting her turn to be seen. After around 10 minutes later, the secretary waved her inside.

"Ah, Kushina-chan. I understand that you wanted to talk with me about something. May I ask what that may be?" He inquired.

Kushina sported a wide grin that her kids and husband were famous for and it usually led to something out of the ordinary. He could almost feel a headache coming on but he let her continue.

"Yeah, I saw that there was an opening for a sensei to teach the kunoichi classes at the academy and I'd like to apply for the job. My kids are all working hard, so it only seems fair that I do the same." She stated firmly, slapping down her application for the position.

Sarutobi blinked in disbelief. 'I never could get anyone to teach those classes and the ones I do find are horrible, neglecting their practcal skills for theory. If I know her well enough, Kami help us, she might be the answer to the problem.' He mused, puffing his pipe lightly.

"Very interesting, Shina-chan. However, I would like to hear some more of your reasons for taking on such a, demanding assingment. Not that I'm doubting a kunoichi of your calibre, mind you. Just bear in mind that the council set forth the curriculum for those classes." He asked her honestly

"To start with, the number of satisfactory kunoichi has taken a nose dive in recent years. These, requirements, do little to nothing in preparing those girls for the life of a kunoichi. I noticed that there were no rape counciling classes and not one single sensei has taught the contraceptive jutsu to use as a defense against unwanted pregnancies. I asked the most recent graduates and they had absolutely no idea what I was talking about. One top of all that, the number of fangirls in the program is disappointing. I thought that they would had been dissuaded or weeded out by their 3rd year in. That is just down right disgraceful, Old Man." Kushina railed into him soundly, getting her point across.

Sarutobi tried to defend the council's decsions, but remembering back to Naruto's situation, the defenses he mounted crumbled like so much dust. "Yes, I see your point. If you would draw up a rough lesson plan for me to present to the council, you've got the job." He told her, to her delight.

The next day, she and Sarutobi went before the council and presented the plan to both sides of the council. The shinobi side, especially Tsume Inuzuka, wholeheartedly supported the new lesson plan that Kushina thought of. The Inuzuka head thought back to the kunoichi classes she went through when she was a young girl and nearly got the dry heaves.

"Those classes are so outdated that its not even a joke anymore. They never taught anything worthwhile in them that a Jounin Kunoichi, their parents or friends couldn't teach them." She told the council as she told them of the first time she went into the field and was in complete shock to learn that her classes accounted for nothing beyond the village walls.

Inoichi Yamanaka concurred with her, saying that he wished that they had snapped his daughter out of her fan girl phase much sooner. Ino's eye opening experience nearly cost the girl her life, and Naruto was also almost killed due to it, as well.

However, the civilian side of the council rejected the plan, saying that the current plan in place was just fine and no changes were needed. They had come up with that plan as a way to get some of their children into the ninja ranks much more easily, but it dragged down the quality to said ninja at the same time.

Sarutobi wasn't ready to budge on the matter, as he knew that Kushina's plan would raise the quality of the kunoichi being trained at the Academy and make them much stronger in the long run. The measure was put to a vote.

Now, with how the numbers were on the opposing sides, they almost always ended in a tie, at least with the Uchiha gone. Now with the Uzumaki on the council, they got the lesson plan passed and would be put into effect upon the start of the next school season in one week.

That week went by quickly, seeing her inside a classroom on the other side to the desk this time. One of the only other sensei she got along with was Iruka, due to the others snubbing her because of Naruto. Upon the first few minutes of class, the kunoichi hopefuls piled in and just began to treat her class as a chance to catch up on the latest gossip.

Infuriated, her kind and patient facade gave way to the serious kunoichi that was feared far and wide as the Benihime no Konoha. "SHUT UP!" She roared as she sliced clean through her desk and actually gouging the ground before her.

THIS got their attention very quickly, scaring the crap out of them and silencing them for the day. The next day, the girls all came back to class with a very healthy respect for the red haired kunoichi. The first reason was because they learned that her son was none other than Ichigo Uzumaki, who taught the highest scoring class in the history of the Academy. The second was due to the fact that their parents told their daughters who she REALLY was, the Crimson Princess, the Red Death, not to mention the rest of her active family's monikers, Ichigo the Angel of Death and Anko the Snake Mistress. She further reinforced her lessons by having Anko and Kurenai drop by the class to show them what a proper kunoichi looks like and tell them what to expect outside the village walls.

Kushina's plans met with resistance from the council, who believed that all that was being taught was meant to weed their children out. That was quickly stopped by Sarutobi, who simply regarded it as a shinobi matter and ruled that the classes would continue as planned without interference from the civilian council. Kushina further explained that she was trying to raise the quality of kunoichi that came out of the Academy, as well as raising their chances of survival beyond the village walls.

FLASHBACK END

Classes were going well and she had no serious complaints, other than the other sensei giving her the cold shoulder except to make passes at her which Ichigo and Anko dealt with, with extreme prejudice.

After breakfast was over, the clean up was rediculously easy. Kage Bunshin tended to do that and the whole family knew that jutsu and had the reserves to make the most use of it. Within moments, they were done and out the door, bound for their respective occupations.

"Hey, aniki?" Naruto asked his brother. On the clock, Naruto knew to address him as sensei since the man took his job very seriously. However, since the team wasn't there, he could get away with it.

"Yeah? What's up?"

"What're we doing today?" Naruto asked, dreading another bout with D-Rank missions.

Ichigo didn't really have a solid plan for the day. He was just planning on doing a D-rank or two, hold some training for a while and call it a day. Afterwards, he wanted to spend some time with Rin, maybe take her out to dinner.

"Well, we'll see what's up after we see what missions are available today." He replied.

"I heard that Team 7 got a C-rank mission last week. I wonder when we can get one?" Naruto wondered aloud.

"Maybe soon. I just want to make sure you and the girls are ready for some of the things that can happen out there."

Naruto wasn't completely satisfied with that answer, but it would do for now. When it came to things like that, Ichigo was just as subborn, if not more so, than himself. Besides, he trusted his brother's judgement to steer them right and keep them safe. They simply increased their pace on their way to Team 8's meeting spot.

TRAINING GROUND #8 0830 HRS

Sakura and Hinata had arrived a few moments prior to the designated meeting time and passed it by with simple conversation. "Naruto's Angels", as they had been referred to by the senseis, had grown quite close dispite the fact that they were all fiancees of Naruto by chance, but his friends and loved ones by choice.

Their banter was cut short when their sensei and Naruto both arrived at the field and the Genin fell into ranks, awaiting the paln of the day. "Alright, my little chickadees. We're gonna start things off with another mission, then some taijutsu training after lunch, and we'll see how we feel after that." He stated to his students.

The three genin sighed at the thought of getting ANOTHER D-Rank mission. They all wanted to get a higher ranking mission and actually leave the village for once because it was getting boring for them.

HOKAGE TOWER : MISSION HALL 0900 HRS

Ichigo lead Team 8 into the mission hall and began to grumble as he reached for a D-Rank scroll. Suddenly, the Sandaime called out to him.

"Uzumaki-san, if you would, I have a mission for your team already." He told them, holding a different scroll.

"As you know, Team 7 left on a C-Rank mission to Wave Country on an escort mission. But this mission has gotten to be too much for them to handle alone, so I am going to have your team be their backup. You have two hours to make preperations and depart. You must make all haste to the client home, where they are currently recovering from a very harsh battle."

"Casualties?"

"None, thankfully. Kakashi is wounded and is suffering from chakra exhaustion, Sasuke has some broken ribs, Kiba and Akamaru and banged up but okay, Shino has some minor injuries as well. The daughter of Tazuna, Tsunami, was a former nurse and has been able to render medical care. Now, please. Go and save Team 7. Dismissed."

As they marched out of the mission hall, the three genin were almost exploding with anticipation. Their first REAL mission and in a foregin land, too. They all calmed down as their sensei addressed them. "Alright. Go and inform your folks, pack the gear you'll need and meet me at the East gate in two hours. Fall out!" He ordered as they all left to prepare.

Ichigo sighed. "Their first mission beyond the village walls...I hope I can keep them safe. I don't even want to think about losing one of them." He told himself as he left to go tell Rin that ther plans for the night would have to wait.

KONOHA EASTERN GATE 1130 HRS

Team 8 had assembled at the East gate of the village and Ichigo had them go over their gear for one final check. "The piece of gear that you forget could have been the one that saved your life." He instructed them. They wouldn't ever dream of doubting him, as he was a proven survival expert.

After some tearful goodbyes (From the parents, anyway), Team 8 commenced their mission immeadiately. Since they didn't have a client in tow like Team 7 did, they were able to make much better time and made to the docks where Team 7 had shoved off from in a day's time.

"All right! We're gonna set up camp here for the night and ford the waters tomorrow morning!" Their tall sensei instructed as he began to pitch his tent for the night. The rest of the team followed suit and set up a fire pit, as well. After they were all done, he called them together again.

"Okay, kids. I'm going to show you how to hunt for food if you run out of rations. This is a vital survival skill and it can allow you to live off of the land if need be." He told them as he made a Kage Bunshin to watch over the camp, taking his genin into the forest to hunt for game.

One hour saw them come out of the woods with two rabbits for supper. "Now, the next step is the preperation." He instructed once again as he showed them how to skin and prep the meat for cooking. He also showed them how to spot the best parts of meat to pull and then how to cook it over a flame.

The girls were understandably a little squeamish about the whole process, but got down to functions and learned what they could. After the meat was ready, the team dug into their meal, savoring the taste. When they were done, they discovered that there was still some meat left.

Ichigo popped a small grin, as he found another thing to teach them, how to dry out the meat into jerky and make it last. "This is another useful thing to learn to do, make jerky. It will dry out the meat and make it last longer, thus making your supplies stretch further. They make excellent and nutritious trail rations that can be eaten on the move."

After he was done, he put the jerky into his pouch and stored it away. "Okay team! We've got a busy day tomorrow, so let's all get some sleep. I'll take first watch." He told them as he bade them all goodnight. He moved into a tree whose branches spanned over their campsite and posted there.

Sakuhime decided that it was a good time to come out and converse with her host. She could sense that something was bothering him, so she tried to help out. "Ichigo-kun, what's the matter? Is something wrong?" She inquired in her usual soft voice while she put her hand on his shoulder.

Ichigo sighed deeply. "I don't know...I just get the feeling that we're walking into a hornet's nest of trouble, that Kakashi left something out. I trust him, but I can't help but fear for the safety of the students that I've been entrusted with." He confided in his angelic friend and companion.

Hime sighed but still had a smile for him. "Whatever happens, I know you can handle it. I've been with you for too long to start doubting you now. I believe in you." She told him comfortingly as she faded away again.

"Thanks, Hime." He whispered as he got up to patrol around a bit.

Down in the girl's tent, Hinata and Sakura were chatting until they fell asleep, their main topic was their blonde teammate. The past 15 months have been a real whirlwind for them and saw many changes in their lives, one of the most important being the fire at the Academy and the subsequent revelations about Naruto's true heritage, coupled with marriage arrangements.

Ino, Sakura, and Hinata all believed that only one would get to marry Naruto in the end, but they had also bonded with each other very closely, almost like a sisterhood of sorts. They had vowed that they wouldn't let their goal to be with Naruto in the end wreck their friendship, but they really wondered if they could do it. They all loved him for their own reasons. This isn't to say that one's reasons are better than the others, as they all love Naruto very much, truly and honestly.

THE NEXT MORNING

The team roused themselves and ate the jerky that their sensei had made the previous night for breakfast. It went down easy and seemed to get them going. After clearing away any remains of their campsite, Ichigo got his team moving across the water using the water walking technique.

Once they made it across, he checked them over for any hints of chakra exhaustion and gave them quick shots of his own to bolster them before moving on. The team traveled on for another 6 hours until they made it to the client Tazuna's house before dusk.

Ichigo was greeted at the door by Tazuna himself and ushered his team inside. He immeadiately began to assess the condition of Team 7 and it was actually worse than what was reported. Tazuna's daughter, Tsunami, had been administering medical care for the team and she had done a wonderful job.

The ex-nurse went over the list of injuries with the second team's sensei, knowing that he was probably now in charge. Kakashi had multiple lacerations, broken right forearm, four cracked ribs and chakra exhaustion. The chakra exhaustion he could help with, but the injuries were beyond him.

'At least with his chakra levels back up to snuff, he'll heal quicker.' He reasoned.

Kiba and Akamaru looked worse for wear. Kiba also had multiple lacerations but they weren't as deep as Kakashi's, thankfully. He also had a broken arm, to boot. Akamaru's front right leg was broken and he had a few cuts that had been expertly bandaged.

Shino was pretty badly hurt. He was conscious and was able to relate how he sustained his injuries. He had a mild case of poisoning from some of the weapons that their shinobi enemies wielded, some cuts and bruises and a broken ankle. His most serious condition was that over half of his Kikai colony had been wiped out in the attempt to purge to the poison, so he would be out of action for a while, as well.

Sasuke had the least amount of physical injuries, suffering only from a few bruised ribs, sprained ankle, and mild chakra exhaustion. His real problem was that he was badly outclassed and his pride suffered a major blow. He had spent the past couple of days sulking around the house and ignoring everyone.

Ichigo became tense, as his gut feeling about this mission was starting to come true, but he shoved the thought aside for the moment and got his team settled in. Hinata and Sakura both offered assisstance to Tsunami as they had been taught some more advanced first aid by Rin and Airi, to which the overworked woman gladly accepted. Ichigo also lent a hand by cooking dinner for the night and had Naruto hunt for supper, bringing back a couple of rabbits and some fish from a nearby stream.

After dinner, sleeping arrangements were worked out. Kakashi and Ichigo were bunked with Tazuna. The girls stayed with Tsunami and the boys stayed with her son, Inari. While getting ready for bed, Kakashi awoke and began to relate what happened to his team.

"We were escorting Taznua-san here to his home when we were ambushed by at least 4 enemy nins. Three were from Kiri, but one was from Ame, and he was waving around a Konoha national treasure. He was once a Konoha Chuunin named Aoi Rokusho, who was passed over for Jounin and decided to turn against the village, stealing the Raijin and several classified scrolls."

Ichigo's eyes widened when he heard mention of the Raijin. When he was newly commissioned as a Jounin, he made it a habit to study up on the history of the village and through that he learned who the Nidai Hokage was. Stealing the Raijin Blade was a serious crime, not to mention giving away sercets to a hostile village.

"The strongest of the group was Zabuza Momochi, the Demon of the Mist and one of the Seven Shinobi Swordsmen. He nearly wiped out our team single handedly, but we barely managed to drive them off. It was no small miracle that we survived at all. Tazuna managed to drag us here to his home to recover and that's the end of that."

Ichigo took it all in, but there were still some glaring holes in his story. "What is the total enemy strength? What types of jutsu did they use? What weapons did they have?"

"Two Chuunin level and two Jounin level. Mainly Suiton jutsu. Aoi used an umbrella loaded with senbon as well as the Raijin, but he didn't look like he was very skilled with it. The two Chuunin used a chain-like weapon that was coated with a particularly nasty poison, as well as gauntlets that were coated with more of the same. Zabuza is the biggest threat. He is very skilled with his zanbatou, favors using his Kirigakure jutsu to shroud himself in a thick mist and strike from there, but is also a very powerful Suiton user and could take me head on with my Sharingan active." Kakashi warned.

The blonde haired Jounin took in all of the information with a grim look on his face. "Just great...Walked right into a shit storm. I know that I can handle Zabuza, but my team..." He muttered, pausing to think of his Genin.

"I hope they're ready for this, 'cause it's gonna be a baptism by fire." He stated, more to himself than Kakashi. The two Jounin settled down and got some badly needed sleep.

In with the boys, Kiba was pressing Naruto for details about how his 4-way relationship was going. The Inuzuka heir was a bit of a horn ball at heart, wondering what kind of steamy situations Naruto might have already found himself in. Shino was being his usual quiet self, but this was because he was trying to rest and recover from the loss of a majority of his colony and injuries.

Sasuke's reactions would have been textbook, but his usual dismissals were laden with jealousy and resentment. He felt that he should have gotten a powerful teacher and be learning powerful jutsu, on top of having a personal harem of his own. More than once, he had tried to make passes at the three fiancee's of Naruto only to go down in flames. After what he pulled over a year ago, they wanted nothing to do with him and were disgusted by his mere presence. The brooding Uchiha sliently vowed to take everything that Naruto had for himself and have everyone bow to him as he felt they should.

While he was at it, he also wanted to take away his family. He found Kushina to be quite attractive and powerful, making her the perfect candidate to bear an Uchiha child. His brother Ichigo's sword and jutsu were other things that he was deluded enough to believe that he deserved. So far, however, all of his attempts to get what he wanted were shot down, as they fell under the juristiction of the Shinobi council, not his puppet civilian council.

'Just you wait, dobe. I'll have everything that you cherish and you'll grovel at my feet.' He thought darkly as he glared at Naruto with intense hatred.

TIMESKIP : ONE WEEK

Team 8 took over the duties of Team 7 while they let their wounds heal. This included guarding Tazuna at the bridge, guarding the house and playing bodyguard when they went into town. Ichigo couldn't follow them into town unless he was under a henge, due to his unusual eyes. They made him stand out too much.

Ichigo also took over training when Kiba and Sasuke were feeling better and able to get around. He took his team and the others out to a clearing in the nearby forest.

"Okay, today I'll show you all a chakra control exercise to help you get more efficient use of you stores and build them up at the same time."

Kiba listened intently to what he had to say. He remembered the classes that Ichigo taught in the Academy and that he made learning fun and easy. He really envied Naruto for having a brother like him. He liked his sister Hana well enough, but there was just that appeal of having an older male to look up to that Kiba liked.

Sasuke was barely even listening to the lesson. All he really wanted was power and he wanted it now. He despised Ichigo from the first time he saw him and that first day of class with him as the sensei. He felt that Ichigo insulted him by not giving in to him and actually fighting back. The beatdown that he received still picked away at his pride, along with Naruto's rapid improvement and nearly taking Rookie of the year away from him.

His angry gaze shifted from Ichigo to Naruto. Things never went his way when HE was involved. First, he lost his popularity in the Academy, with many of his fan girls turning to Naruto instead. Next, was the improvement. Then came his mother coming back and his family gained more influence on the shinobi council and made allies of the other ninja clans.

He was snapped out of his mental rantings when Ichigo got his attention. "YO! Eyes front!" The towering strawberry blonde commanded.

After getting his attention, he continued on. "Now the exercise in question is the Tree Climbing technique." He told them with a grin.

Sasuke scoffed. "Climb trees? Even a moron like you and the dobe can do that." He sneered.

Ichigo bristled at the moron comment, but smirked to himself. He walked over to a nearby tree and walked up the tree and onto a limb like he was walking down the street.

"I didn't say with you hands, did I?" He retorted.

Kiba was gobsmacked. "That...was freaking cool! I wanna try that!" He shouted in excitement.

Sasuke was stewing with anger. Nobody showed him up, not even the sensei's. He ran at the tree he used and made it up a couple of steps before plummeting down to the ground in an ungraceful heap, gatting some laughs from the rest of the Genin and a chuckle from Ichigo.

"Easy there, tiger. I haven't shown you what to do yet..." He told the two Team 7 members as he explained the mechanics behind the technique. After he showed them how he set them to work. Sasuke stopped to notice that his own team wasn't doing the exercise.

"Hey loser. You and your little whores can't handle the exercise?" He jeered at Team 8.

Sakura and Hinata were getting ready to go and kick the crap out of him, but surprizingly enough, Naruto held them back. "Easy there, girls. That dumbass isn't worth the effort." He soothed their tempers as he turned back to Sasuke.

"The reason why we aren't doing this is because sensei taught this to us already." He countered the smug Uchiha cooly. With a nod from their sensei, they demonstrated the fact that the knew it already and were quite good at it, making the Uchiha seeth with rage and embarrassment.

Kiba let out an impressed whistle before walking over to where Team 8 was. "Hey, um...do you have any tips for this?" He asked them awkwardly.

Naruto grinned and and he and the girls coached him through the exercise. Little by little, he got the hang of it and after two hours, he finally got it down pat. His teammate, however, was having some problems. Due to his anger, he couldn't focus his chakra properly and he continued to fail over and over again.

Hinata and Sakura tried to offer some advice, but he snarled at them, called them worthless losers, and continued his series of failures.

After another hour, Ichigo took his team to a nearby stream to practice their water walking while sparring at the same time. Sasuke came over to Kiba and asked for what they told him. After Kiba told him, he began to master it at a rapid pace and completed the exercise. He was about to walk off after Team 8 but Kiba spoke up.

"Hey! Ichigo-sensei told us to keep working on this for the day!"

Sasuke sneered at his teammate. "I already completed this waste of time trick. This won't make me stronger! I need jutsu to get more power! That baka-sensei has that power and he WILL give it to me!" He yelled as he tore off after Team 8.

He found Team 8 at the stream, training on top of the water. 'How did they do that?! Why does everyone else have something that I don't?!' He thought venomously until he saw the large blade that Ichigo always had strapped to his back plunged into the ground a few yards away from him.

Sasuke gave a dark grin as he made his way over to the scared blade. The owner was otherwise occupied, performing an intricate Kenjutsu and Taijutsu kata on the waters surface with the smaller blade he always had on him.

Sakuhime felt his presense and sought to warn her host. 'Ichigo-kun! Someone is trying to steal the Ensis Celesti!' She warned him.

Ichigo smirked. 'Let him try it. Remember that it won't anyone but me pick it up? Besides, I think I know who it is. That Uchiha brat. He never could take no for an answer.' He replied.

He silently called his team over to observe this as well. They watched as Sasuke thought he was being sneaky and touched the handle of the sword and tried to lift it...only to find that it wouldn't budge. After 5 minutes of futile pulling and swearing, he so angry that he launched a fireball at the blade, hoping to destroy it or damage it somehow. The end result was that the fireball parted around the blade, as if it shielded itself from harm. He then tried to use kunai on it only to have them break on the first swing.

His only result was that he was now out of weapons and completely exhausted. He trudged over to the team and gave them a scathing glare.

"What is it, Uchiha-kun? Do you require something of me?" The blond sensei inquired cheekily.

Sasuke gave him a glare with all the Ki he could muster, which was pretty pathetic, trying to intimidate him. "Give me that blade. I want it now!" He demanded loudly.

Ichigo couldn't help but egg him on a little more. "Or else what, Sasuke-chan?"

The boy now wore a cruel grin. "I'll go to the council and have them make you give it to me, along with all of your jutsu and family possessions. Then, I'll take the dobe's wenches for my own personal harem. After that, I'll take your dear mother, and make her writhe beneath me as she helps bring about the next generation of the Uchiha!" He shouted as he began to laugh manaically.

Ichigo's mirth came to a violent, screeching halt upon hearing that. He knew that it was an empty threat, but just having the gual to say was bad enough to spur him into action. Before he could even move to put the arrogant little bastard in his place, his team was already in motion and thouroughly kicking the shit out of the Uchiha heir.

Naruto was the most angry of them all. "You son of a bitch! I'll never let you even BREATHE near my mother or the girls! I'll kill you first!" He roared as he rained blows down on Sasuke.

Ichigo noticed wisps of red starting to emerge from Naruto as his rage climbed higher and higher, alarming him greatly as well as Sakuhime.

"That chakra...It's the Kyuubi's! We need to stop him!" The seraph cried as she began to use her powers to suppress the demon's power. After a few minutes, she managed to suppress it completely, but Naruto fell slack when the demonic energy left him so suddenly.

"I'm...glad that...Naruto...chan is okay now." Hime panted tiredly.

"Hime? Are you alright?" Her host asked her with no small amount of concern.

"I'll be...okay. I just need to rest...Ichigo-kun." She reassured her long time friend and partner as she let herself regain her strength.

Meanwhile, Hinata and Sakura rushed over to where Naruto fell, forgetting all about the red aura that flared to life moments before. Their only concern was the blond boy they both cared for so much. Hinata used her Byakugan to scan for any abnomalities in his system, to her relief there were none. Sakura bandaged up his knuckles and loaded him onto her own back to carry back to Tazuna's place.

Ichigo watched his genin with pride as they relied on one another and showed true teamwork. He looked over to where the Uchiha lay and scowled. He was sorely tempted to just leave him there, but made a Mizu Bunshin to drag him back while he himself reholstered his zanbatou on his back and had his team return to Tazuna's place.

A/N: There we go, another chapter down. Team 8 is now in Wave Country and I hope you liked the survival lessons Ichigo taught to his team. Jerky is actually a very good and nurishing trail ration and can keep longer than most other foods. Also, yes Sasuke is a collossal asshole and he made that awful threat, but the Uzumaki's would kill him and the council before they let it come to pass. As for Sakuhime, her Holy Charka can hold back that of the Kyuubi, keeping it in check somewhat like that Mokuton can, only more effective. Also, point to whom ever can guess where I got the phrase "The piece of gear that you forget could have been the one that saved your life." from.

On one final note, please leave reviews if you add this to a favorites or alert list. If you like it so much, tell me so.