Naruto: Shadowed Light

By Stone Shield

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of the characters involved, though I wish I did.

AN: Yes, I know that this is very late, but exams are Hell. And with the new class load I have...Nevermind. The detail will be better in later chapters, as I've never been much of a fan of the Wave Mission part of the series. It only got better as the Chunin Exams began. Thank you for waiting and, please, enjoy.

Hello/Normal Speech

Hello/Thought

Hello/Demon or Summon Speech

Hello/Demon or Summon Thought

Chapter 8

Trees whizzed by, branches even cutting his face. He was moving fast, safety wasn't at the top of his mind. It had been an unsaid promise that he would protect his team, even if he didn't know if they would do the same for him. "You'll get there when you get there," Kyubi reprimanded, as she was on edge, as well. Even still, he did his utmost to double his pace, ignoring the burn of chakra through his legs.

Currently At the Bridge: As far as Kakashi could think, things could be worse, but just the same they could have been better. Ducking under a horizontal slash from Zabuza's sword, he made a swipe at the man's kidneys before rebounding back, getting clear of the massive cleaver. "What's the matter, Kakashi? You need to pay attention to our fight, let the brats take care of themselves. "Sasuke is more than prepared for your friend." Zabuza laughed as he went on the offensive. "Haha, Haku's skill is far greater. As my tool, I know so." The copynin was beginning to sweat. Worried thoughts for his students passed through his mind in a flurry. He didn't doubt Sasuke's skill, but they knew so very little about the girl, Haku, as Zabuza had called her. Still, he couldn't let himself be distracted. Gritting his teeth, he rolled into Zabuza's attack, under his guard and went back on the offensive himself.

With Sasuke and Haku: "Crystal Ice Mirrors!" Haku intoned, and called upon her kekkai genkai to form slick sheets of mirrored ice from the very water in the mist and fog. In seconds, Sasuke was surrounded by a dome of multiple mirrors of ice. "What…is this?" he couldn't help but wonder, as they encircled him. He was unaware until it was too late that Haku had moved to one of the mirrors and seemed to melt into it. He did notice though, when images of the faux hunter-nin appeared on each and every mirror. The leaf gennin's moment of rest was gone as soon as it had arrived, as senbon began to rain down upon him from the mirror figures, leaving him to dodge as best he could. Running through a few seals, "That's just ice, it'll melt easy enough. Fireball Jutsu!" and released a massive ball of flames mid leap. To his dismay, once the smouldering fires subsided, the mirrors remained as they were, solid and showing no sign of melting.

2 Minutes Later: He wasn't very surprised at what he saw upon arriving, it had actually been what he expected. He could see that Kakashi and Zabuza were fighting evenly enough, but more to the point they were in a battle of skill he couldn't interfere in. So his default option…was Haku. And where else could she be but inside the gigantic ice dome. "Subtle," he couldn't help but think. Sprinting, he passed Sakura and Tazuna, doing several things. First, he left a contingent of clones to help guard Tazuna, and second, preformed one of his favorite jutsus. "Wind Style: Great Breakthrough!" in attempts to clear the thick mist to give Kakashi a hand. In seconds, he was at the exterior of the ice mirrors, and slid under the barrier, taking in what he saw. Sasuke, the human pincussion, was falling to the ground, a pair of red, unevenly tomoed sharingan eyes blazing. Several thoughts passed through his head at seeing this. "He didn't even try the Stone Shield jutsu." "Knowing that brat, he probably just kept throwing fireball after puny fireball," spat his sister in annoyance at the other boy's foolishness. "I will admit, she does have good aim. For all the needles in him, none are life threatening." "Indeed," he agreed. Snapping her head in his direction, Haku noticed the figure she'd been dreading. "…Naruto…" "Haku"

Kakashi and Zabuza: Kakashi was holding off the giant sword with a kunai, his arms straining against the leverage that Zabuza had over him. They were both fairly well matched as any blow one received was traded with a blow to the other. It seemed to be a never ending battle. "Hehe, the gaki over there is gonna die, Kakashi." "I wouldn't count Sasuke out yet, he comes from a powerful clan." "Clan or no, Haku is easily Jonin level." Kakashi couldn't help but sweat at that statement. "Jonin level?" he mused silently. "Then…I need to finish this so I can help." Seeming to sense the copynin's thoughts, Zabuza laughed evilly. "I don't think so, Kakashi. You'll be too busy with me to help your student." At that moment though, both shinobi could sense the approaching chakra signature. "Good, he can help Sasuke," thought a relieved Kakashi. "Oh, I thought your group was shy a member. So he shows up now. It's really too bad. I saw the look in that kid's eyes. He's got more potential than anyone I've ever seen before," spoke Zabuza begrudgingly as he swung his massive cleaver in a rising vertical slash at the Konoha Jonin's left side. Kakashi was barely able to escape death but was still caught across the chest by the massive blade, leaving a long cut across his upper torso. "Sasuke, Naruto," he thought, for once not thinking of Kyubi. "I'm counting on you two to protect them." And dodging another strike, he launched a counter attack, trying to knock away the sword and get in close.

Back With Naruto And Haku: Naruto stood stiffly, facing his opponent. There was nothing to be done, they had to fight. "Haku" "Naruto" "I…wish you the best of luck in protecting your precious person." Haku understood what he was really saying though. Like her, he didn't want to fight a friend, but had no choice. They both had people to protect. "…And I wish you the same luck, Naruto-san," she answered softly, tears falling behind the mask she was wearing. "Please don't hold back, Naruto-san." "I won't," he replied in finality. An ominous wind blew through the mirrored dome, echoing with the unspoken words, "I'm sorry."

He disappeared in a blur, attempting to get behind her. Only, instead of Haku being there, she was at the nearest mirror, disappearing into its smooth surface leaving hardly a ripple. "That can't be good," he mused to himself. Haku had spoken to him about her bloodline limit, but this was the first he'd seen of it. Somehow, he doubted any simple fire jutsu would melt the ice. Especially since he knew the Uchiha had a fetish for flame jutsus. Then again, many of the fire jutsus he knew were more powerful than the unconscious Uchiha's…some by several orders of magnitude. But with his teammate's sleeping form in the dome he didn't relish the thought of using one.

Haku was silent as she gracefully threw volley after volley of senbon. She wanted to knock him out like she had his teammate, but he wouldn't stay still long enough. And deep down, she knew that, like her, he wouldn't stop unless through death.

Fifteen Minutes Later: Both battles, between Zabuza and Kakashi as well as Naruto and Haku, were dragging out becoming fights of skill instead of power. As their strength faded the winners would be the ones of greater skill and endurance.

Naruto bit his lip from the sharp pain as his back was peppered in senbon. Haku was fast. And with the help of her mirrors she was moving between Chunin and Jonin speeds. He'd already resorted to losing his leg weights just to keep up with her. He'd quite harshly rejected Kyubi's offer to help. In this fight, he wanted Haku to have a chance, and to him using the massive youkai would be cheating in the worst way. Feeling a change in the wind around him, he swung his right arm around in a savage haymaker. Haku, attempting to attack him from behind, was caught full in the mask by the iron-like appendage. She was tired, he could tell now. There were few who could match his stamina, but he too felt a level of fatigue. Twitching from the porcupine coverage she'd given him, he walked slowly to the kneeling kunoichi.

"Please, Haku-san, give up," he whispered out as he looked down on her. Her mask was in pieces, the entire right side of her face visible as only the mask's left side was intact. Her lip bled from a small cut from the blow. Shakily, she stood, shoulders bowed, "I cannot, Naruto-san, you know that." Her body shook as she could barely see straight. Trying to move forward, her legs gave out beneath her. This was it, she knew it. This was the end. As sad as she was that she had failed, she was glad that it was at his hands. "Do it," she whispered, eyes downcast.

Naruto's hand shook as it retrieved the wakizashi from it's holster on his leg. But from there he was unable to move. Inside his mind, he was at war with himself. He was a ninja, jisan had taught him well about what ninja were. But as much as he'd accepted the idea and what it implied, he hated it. Killing was necessary, he knew it, but needless killing was an abomination in and of itself. He had come to terms with the fact that he would be the one to end Haku's life, but did he think he would feel nothing?

Time passed, and wondering what was wrong Haku looked up. The boy's eyes shone with sadness, and pain. Her whisper broke the silence, "Please do it, Naruto-san. I have failed Zabuza-sama, my purpose is ended." "It's not right," his deep voice answered laced in pain. "Forgive me, Haku-chan," he whispered, raising the small blade, a lone tear falling. Haku smiled sadly, "There is nothing to forgive. It has been an honor, Naruto-kun," she answered back. Preparing the final strike, he caught the sight of bright light reflected in Haku's visible wide eye. Hesitating, his hand was caught, "I'm sorry, Naruto-kun, I can't die just yet," and forming several ice senbon stabbed them into his knees. Grunting against the cold pain, he fell to the ground, legs useless beneath him. The dome of ice had faded as Haku had disappeared. His head shot around as he located her chakra signature. "No," he thought as he saw what she planned. But his legs were dead beneath him. He had to watch as she intercepted the lightning covered hand meant for her master, at the same time interrupting the Copynin's summoning, releasing Zabuza. And the seconds that it took for the hand to enter her chest were as years to him, every second, every sound, heightened to its maximum. All he could do was stare as she was pierced by the Jonin's attack. But for the briefest moment, her eyes drifted back to him, and he saw the lights fade from the eyes of his first true friend.

Normal Point Of View: Zabuza laughed maniacally. Haku, even in death had served him to her fullest as her grip relentlessly held the Konoha Jonin in place. "Kami truly was smiling down on me when I found you, Haku. I never would have thought that having a tool like you would have saved me like this." His laughter was coarse and uncaring towards the dead girl who had been so devoted to him. Raising his now free arms, he brought kubikiri houcho up ready to slice through Kakashi, and her at the same time. "Now just hold him right there, Haku," and down came the massive blade. Fortunately for Kakashi, he was able to jump back, taking the Hunter nin's body with him until he could remove his hand from her. Once he'd gained enough distance, he lay the dead girl down, and was able to release his hand from her grip, said appendage coming out with a horrible squishing sound.

He watched in stunned silence as the two Jonin continued to fight regardless. Soon enough though the fight turned once more in Kakashi's favor as he disabled both of the former Mist ninja's arms, one after the other. And it looked like he was about to join Haku in death when a voice from the other side of the bridge broke up the fight. "Well, well, some 'Demon of the Mist' you are. Can't even handle an old bridge builder. How very disappointing." Pissed to have his fight interrupted, "Gato. What are you doing here?!" spat Zabuza angrily. The fat pig of a man laughed cheekily, "I'm here to check on my investment. But it looks like you've failed again." Zabuza'a eyes narrowed dangerously. "And now that you're all too tired to do anything, I can have you all killed." "Gato, we had a deal," growled the Demon of the Mist. Gato laughed heartily, "Hahahaha, you're a fool, Zabuza. I can have you all killed now and only pay a fraction of what I was going to pay you!" The shipping magnate's eyes turned to the lifeless form of Haku. "Oh, what's this? I guess I get to get a little revenge after all." And walking over to her body, proceeded to kick in her ribs. "That's for nearly breaking my arm, bitch!" he chortled evilly.

Naruto could feel his fingernails and canines itch as they lengthened and sharpened; that familiar sensation of when he used his nechan's chakra. His fist, balled in fury at everything that had happened, was already bleeding where the nails were digging in. Most people would describe him as cold or distanced. But to the rare few, he was passionate and very protective. Haku had been one of those people. He didn't think he could ever wholly forgive Kakashi for striking her down, but he would not allow Gato to further hurt her body.

During the diatribe that Gato had started, he'd managed to drag himself over to Kakashi and Zabuza, knowing the situation had changed just as he and Kyubi had expected. It would have been easier had he been able to remove the needles, but Haku had hit several nerves that, even at the rate he healed, would take the better part of a day to correct. Pulling himself into a sitting position, he looked at the back of the former Mist-nin, and former enemy. "How can you allow Gato to continue, Zabuza?" he asked, a hint of venom to his voice. Not even turning around, "What's the point, kid? Haku is dead, that's just a corpse." "Bastard-" "Naruto!" chastised Kakashi, but the blonde continued. "Haku is dead, nothing can change that, but you would allow Gato to further defile it?" "…kid-" "She thought of you like you were her father. She loved and cared for you like she was your own daughter. And now you simply abandon her?!" "That cuts deep, kid," spoke Zabuza quietly. It was then that Naruto could hear the faint sound of tear droplets falling from the missing-nin's face hit the concrete. The man was crying. "Haku…she always was too soft…never wanting to kill, but she did it anyway because I told her to." Using his teeth to remove the bandages from his face and mouth, "It looks as if I'm no longer your enemy…Kakashi, a kunai." Sighing, the Copynin retrieved his remaining weapon from his waist-side satchel and tossing it to the man. "Here." Zabuza, catching the weapon in his teeth, fixed the masked blonde with a hard stare before turning to face Gato and the horde of thugs gathering behind him. Without a single word he hurled himself at the small army of mercenaries. His only goal was Gato and he diodn't care how cut up he had to get to get to him, and drag him to Hell. The mercenaries, formerly secure in their belief that they would win, screamed in fear at the blazing eyes of a Demon that was cutting through their ranks, unstopping no matter how many weapons hit him. And for every weapon that struck he came ever closer to the cowering form of Gato. "Kill him! KILL HIM!!" the man shrieked in terror at the demonic visage bearing down on him. Appearing behind the pig-man, "What's wrong Gato?" Zabuza growled into his ear words slurring around the kunai in his mouth. Turning his head, Gato met blazing eyes radiating pure death. Through clenched teeth he delivered his last message. "Come on, Gato, the Devil's waiting." And in a quick motion, used the kunai in his mouth to slash at the man's neck, opening a shallow wound. Gato, struggling with the pain, clapped his hand to his throat only to cry out in pain as the 'Demon' once more buried the weapon in him, this time in his chest. This wasn't a man, it was a monster! Those were his last thoughts as the world went black and he felt himself fall from the bridge.

Everyone stared in awe and terror at the figure of Zabuza ghosted them all to kill Gato. Zabuza, vision becoming tunnel-like staggered back to the form of Haku, but hit the ground several yards away. The mercenaries though, snapped out of their confusion and fear as he fell. "Hey, that was our meal ticket?" one shouted angrily. Disgruntled shouts arose from the crowd at what had just happened. "Let's raid the fucking village! At least then we get something!" another suggested. The idea seemed agreeable as all the mercenaries yelled approval before starting to move across the bridge.

Kakashi was worried. He'd wasted too much chakra fighting Zabuza, and now this…They couldn't fight them all. "This was what I planned for, Kakashi-sensei," he heard from the ground bellow him. Looking down, he saw his masked student pulling senbon from the pincushions that were his legs. "Your 'Plan B'?" "Yes." Slicing his hand with a kunai in preference to lowering his mask and biting his thumb, he went through several hand seals. Hand seals Kakashi immediately recognized. Slamming his hand to the concrete, he let out a muffled "Summoning Jutsu!" Kakashi was at a loss. "How-Where did he-". A large cloud of smoke billowed out encompassing their portion of the bridge. Soon enough though, it cleared, and Kakashi's shock was exceeded only by the fear felt by the bandits and mercenaries. There, in front of Naruto were a pair of foxes, that alone was worthy of interest. What really got his attention was that each was the size of an elephant. This could either be really bad, or really good. Time would tell.

The key to summoning was being able to focus on the summon that you wanted. The greatest determinant was the amount of chakra put into it, but if you didn't focus on a specific summoning you got potluck. So, at this time, Naruto had tried to summon the equivalent of two Jonin. He ended up with a large male, silver fox and a smaller, yet equally large black female fox. The two vulpine summons twisted their necks looking at the people behind them, first at Kakashi before settling on Naruto. "You are our summoner? The one known as Naruto Uzumaki?" the female asked. "I am," he answered. "What are your orders, Naruto-sama?" they both asked in unison, bowing their heads. Naruto pointed to the mercenaries at the opposite end of the bridge, currently frozen in surprise. "Them. Kill them. If they retreat, let them go." The two foxes smiled toothily at him before bounding at the crowd of bandits, who soon began screaming in fear and pain at the attacking foxes. Kakashi, as surprised and worried as he was at this particular summoning, couldn't fault his blonde students logic. The bandits needed to be dealt with. And with Naruto's legs currently disabled and himself low on chakra, the summons would have to do.

Once their work was done, the two summons trotted back to their summoner, the bridge shaking somewhat under their combined weight. Stopping in front of him they sat back on their haunches, before licking the blood from their fur. "Do you require any further assistance, Naruto-sama?" the female asked. Her curious eyes looking him over. The male, silent the whole time, bent down to look closer at his needled legs. "Are you alright, Naruto-sama?" he asked in a scratchy, growling voice. Naruto nodded, saying "I will be fine. Please, do not use 'sama' with my name though. You are my partners, not my subordinates. I was just unable to assist you this time." "As you wish, Naruto-san/kun," they responded together before disappearing in twin clouds of smoke with 'poofs' of displaced air. Sighing, Naruto went back to his current task, de-needling his legs. So far, he'd managed to remove them down to his knees but there were still many left in his calves.

"Naruto." Naruto sighed. He'd expected this. "I know, Kakashi-sensei. I know." Kakashi undoubtedly wanted to question him about his summoning foxes in relation to him carrying the Kyubi. "I should remind you that I told you I was working on a project. And that I had Sandaime-ojisan's permission. But can we talk about this later? We have company." On cue, the entire village showed up armed to the teeth with any and all improvised weapons. Inari, armed with a crossbow, stood in front as the leader. And to his sides were the fox squad that he'd left to look after him and Tsunami. "Umm, are we late?" he asked.

For the rest of the day, and into the night, the village celebrated there newfound freedom from Gato's tyranny. It wasn't until that night though that Naruto was fully recovered from the needles. Sasuke was bedridden as he had no means to speed his recovery, and Sakura was sticking to his bedside like a true fangirl. And Kakashi, as tired as he was, pushed it off as long as he could so he could have a 'chat' with the masked blonde about the summons he'd used. But he wouldn't see the blonde again until the middle of the night. When he did return, Naruto was followed by a clone. The original and the copy were each carrying a wrapped body which he treated with the reverence of a loved one. Thinking about it, Kakashi could only think of two people. "Zabuza and Haku?" Naruto nodded before placing the two in a spare room until he could give them a proper burial. Returning to the dining room, he sat at the table. "My clones are cleaning off the bridge," he said quietly.

Kakashi nodded in understanding. "Naruto, about your summons." "A few years ago, Kyubi-nechan gave me the idea and I went to the Hokage with it. He gave me permission to continue as long as I gave him frequent updates on our progress." "So Kyubi helped you to design the contract?" Kakashi asked suspiciously. Knowing where Kakashi was going with this, "Yes, she did. And so you know, she has my utmost confidence and trust, and-" "But it's a demon!" Naruto narrowed his eyes, "She may be a demon, but after explaining why she attacked, the Hokage trusts us both." Kakashi blinked. There was a reason behind the attack that had gotten the Sandaime to give Kyubi leniency? "What was the reason?" The blonde paused thoughtfully for several seconds before answering quietly, nearly whispering. "That is a truth you are not yet ready to hear, Kakashi." Shaking his head in agitation at the conversation, "The creation of this contract was sanctioned by the Hokage, as have all my projects." "Projects?" Feeling somewhat secretive, "Ask Sandaime-ojisan," he replied stiffly before getting up and making his way to the room he shared with his emo teammate, leaving Kakashi to dwell on the recent things he'd learned about him.

It wouldn't be another two and a half weeks before the bridge would be complete, allowing Team 7 to leave. But before they did, they made a last stop at the graves of Haku and Zabuza. Naruto had been able to acquire headstones for each of the graves. For Haku's though, he'd had it engraved with the name Haku Momoichi, honoring her with what she really wanted, to be Zabuza'a daughter.

Unfortunately, Sasuke in his ever blunt attitude couldn't help but let out a derogatory remark about how they were 'weak'. "Why'd you even give them a decent burial anyway, Mute-baka," Sakura asked. Naruto waited several seconds before answering. "An enemy in battle is not a true enemy. Zabuza and Haku fought to follow their dreams, we were simply in their way. We were opponents, obstacles: never truly being enemies. Just as they were never our enemies. Either way, they were, at heart, good people, deserving a decent resting spot," he whispered respectfully. "They were weak, and they died, that's all there is to it." Naruto shook his head. "I pity you Uchiha, you don't understand. I hope that someday you do. Until then, show some respect before I make you," spitting the last part out through clenched teeth. Sensing the rising KI from his masked student, Kakashi felt it wise to end the argument before it began. "Ma, ma, let's go. We've got a lot of distance to cover before the day is out." Taking one last look to the two graves, Naruto turned and followed the others.

Later that afternoon, the Team was in for a shock when a 'poof' and a cloud of smoke erupted from next to their blonde member. Once it had cleared, it revealed a familiar horse-sized silver fox. Breaking the silence, "Kado?" Naruto asked in confusion. "Who else?" the fox asked sarcastically. "Why are you here?" "You promised you'd summon me and show me the human world…and I guess I got bored, hehehe" chuckled the massive fox, managing to look embarrassed. Both Kakashi and Naruto sweat dropped at the casual nature of this summons. Sakura stared in awe. And Sasuke…Sasuke looked envious. Shaking his head, "Team 7, I'd like to introduce Kado. Kado, this is Kakashi…sensei, Sasuke Uchiha, and Sakura Haruno," he spoke, introducing them. "Kado is something of a liaison between me and my fox summons." "Yeah, he wanted the most badass fox as his representative, and well…I had nothing else to do at the time," spoke the silver fox, puffing out his chest and absentmindedly examining his claws. Naruto resisted the urge to smack the summons upside its head, though he couldn't tell if it came from his nechan, himself, or both. Kakashi, after a period of nervousness, struck up several amiable conversations with the fox. Trying to get information about their trustworthiness, he asked about the fox summons in general, at least at first. Often he'd discuss his relationship with his nindogs which would lead to an argument between the two over which were better, dogs or foxes. "Don't ever introduce him to that Inuzukza boy," Kyubi suggested. "Agreed."

For the entire trip, Sasuke was contemplating the enigma that was Naruto Uzumaki. Kakshi had told him that he trained himself extensively. And he'd apparently been able to create a summoning contract. Create one! One needed years of experience in seals even to attempt such a thing! And not only that but the creator of the contract as well as all users needed to be accepted by the summoned animals. The dobe, he was hiding his true strength. He had from the start and still was! There was no way he should have this strength when he, an Uchiha, deserved it more! After his loss to the female Hunter-nin, someone that his teammate was able to defeat, he felt so very frustrated. He trained himself hard, and it seemed that still wasn't enough. Especially if this…loser still outclassed him…him! His fists clenched, joints creaking, as emotions like anger and jealousy played across his face. Not that he, Sasuke Uchiha, Rookie of the Year, would ever admit to being jealous of anyone. He needed to get stronger. Then a thought came to mind. Perhaps, if he proved himself stronger than the blonde, his summons would take him as their summoner instead. They were strong, he could tell. A summons worthy of the Uchiha name as memories of the Kyubi struck fear into everyone. He smirked, the dobe's power would be taken and made his own, soon.

Kado stuck around just until they got within the forests surrounding Konoha. Sensing that this was a secret best kept such for now, he had Kado return. Sulking, the fox left, giving him a respectful bow. Soon enough though, the massive gates of Konoha came into sight. At which time Sakura made the point of whining about how much of a pain it was, going so long away from family, her home and her own bed. No one said anything in response, choosing to let her get it out of her system, which was a hell of a lot easier than making themselves targets of conversation. Though in Sasuke's case, he didn't have much say in the matter as she continually tried to start a conversation with him. "As emo as he is, I think…I think I actually pity that little bastard," muttered a shocked Kyubi. Though that feeling was short lived when the last Uchiha sneered at him. "Then again, I hope she rots his brain," she muttered, crossing her arms over her chest in annoyance at the person she would from that point on dub 'the emo bastard'. "Come on," spoke Kakashi lazily as they entered the gates. "We need to report to Hokage-sama." He said it with the utmost sincerity before his voice immediately took on a girlish quality and giggled when he turned to a new page in his book.

Naruto couldn't help but think about what Sakura had said. "Home…" Would he ever be able to call it that? He knew the darker side of Konoha that few ever saw. As such, it was hard to think of the place he'd grown up in as 'home'. To him, home was an unknown. He didn't fight for his home…he fought for the people in it…the people who had been kind to him. Someday though, he hoped to call Konoha home. "Home is where the heart is, little one," supplied Kyubi supportively. "As long as there are people you feel protective over, where they are, that is your home." "I understand, nechan."

Soon enough, they'd entered the Kage tower and were given notice by the Sandaime's secretary that he could see them immediately. Pushing the doors open for his team, Kakashi let out a lazy "Yo" to the Hokage before getting to all the formal details. "Hokage-sama, Team 7 reporting a successful mission."

The Hokage smiled in relief at the Jonin and his team of genin. "That's good news indeed, Kakashi. I must say, I was worried when our ANBU picked up the two missing-nin outside of Konoha." "Well, there were several changes to the mission, Hokage-sama. Instead of being a C, or even a B rank what with the attack of those two Mist Chunin, it turned out to be an A rank." The Sandaime's eyes widened in surprise, "Tell me everything," he ordered in a serious tone. Kakashi managed to tell the entire tale of their mission without reading his book, though it seemed he couldn't do so without his usual bored tone of voice. Finishing up, Kakashi decided to point out something he needed to talk about. "And at the end, with Sasuke unconscious, Sakura guarding Tazuna, Naruto disabled at the legs, and myself too low on chakra, the mercenaries tried to pillage the town. Fortunately, Naruto's summoned foxes managed to deal with them quickly enough." Sarutobi caught the emphasis on 'foxes' and understood what he was getting at. He had informed Kakashi that Naruto was a bit of a wild card, but not in any detail. Now it seemed that the Jonin was in need of some answers. Sighing to himself, "Very well, Team 7 you are dismissed," he spoke waving them off. "Kakashi…Naruto…stay behind for a minute will you." Sakura and Sasuke paused questioningly only for the Copynin to eye-smile at them, "It's okay. You have tomorrow off. We'll meet on the bridge Thursday at 8AM sharp." Sakura left to head home immediately, but Sasuke dragged his feet, looking murderous at missing what would undoubtedly be an informative conversation.

Once the doors had closed, the Sandaime turned his gaze onto the two shinobi before him. "I sense you have a great many questions, Kakashi." "Yes, Hokage-sama." "About Naruto," he said, nodding to the blonde in his cloth mask, blue eyes showing attentive boredom. "Yes, sir." "And do you object, Naruto?" the old man asked only for the blonde to shake his head to the negative before vanishing in a puff of smoke. "Very well, Kakashi, ask." "Sir, what is his real level?" "Chunin…at the very least," answered back the aged leader. "After 'the incident', he dove into his studies. It's amazing really, the boy has a knack, if you will, for learning, modifying, and even improving jutsus. Whereas many would try to learn as many jutsus as possible, he chose to learn one at a time, breaking it down and examining each and every angle of it before learning another. And, often enough, he can take what he learned from looking at a previous jutsu and create a completely new version." Sarutobi smiled thoughtfully. In that way, he always reminded him of Jiraiya and Minato as both chose to master a jutsu over just learning it. "So he creates jutsus?" "Indeed. It's a hobby of his. Unfortunately, the ones he does create aren't for anyone below Jonin level." "Sir?" "The majority of the jutsus he's created are B Class and up." Kakashi's eyes widened in shock. That was…incredible. "After he recovered from the trauma of what had been done to him, he dove into jutsu studies, a world of things that he could control, a world with rules. In fact, the R and D department have been trying to recruit him for the last year and a half. Fortunately, he still takes up the odd project here and there for them." Kakashi was shocked. R and D wanted him? They were a division of ANBU that specialized in research and creation of jutsus, and they wanted to recruit someone who hadn't even been a Genin at the time! Kakashi shuffled to the chair next to him, sitting heavily in it. "So he's a genius." Sarutobi frowned, "I wouldn't say that. He just never gives up on something until it's finished. And then there is Kyubi. She is a crafty vixen. I don't doubt that he bounces amny ideas off her." "Then you do trust Kyubi?" Nodding to the affirmative, "I learned the truth behind the attack…and no, I can't tell you. All I can say is that she was a victim as well and that I trust her and Naruto." "Hokage-sama, I just have one question left." Relieved, the aged leader waved the younger of them on. "The summon contract he created." "Ahh, I was waiting to hear about that!" the Sandaime replied, stuffing his newly cleaned pipe with his favorite tobacco. Lighting it with a small fire jutsu, he took a long drag before letting out a deep sigh. "The Fox Contract was originally something that was brought up by Kyubi and Naruto. And was confirmed by discussing it with Enma. He mentioned that the Foxes had never had a summoning contract, and further discussing it with Naruto and Kyubi, we came to the conclusion that it would be worth attempting. It took several years though for young Naruto to learn enough about summoning seals to even attempt it though. I really wish he'd finished it when I was around though," he finished, somewhat annoyed. "Then there is no problem with it?" "Well I will have to look over the contract myself before I answer that, but from what you've said, it seems to have gone along splendidly. Kyubi surmised that with her youkai in Naruto's system that they would immediately recognize him, allowing him to be their summoner. Though their loyalty to anyone other than him is a question…" "But sir, that much power-" "I trust that boy with my life and the lives in this village, Kakashi." "But such a contract is a match for-" "For either of the Sannin's contracts, I know. Again, I trust the boy not to abuse its power, as such a thing just is not in him." "Very well. Thank you, Hokage-sama." His questions appeased, for the most part, Kakashi turned an left, though questions still lingered in his thoughts. He made a mental note to see some of his blonde student's work.

Leaning back the Sandaime puffed aimlessly at his pipe for nearly a minute before speaking up to the empty room, "Minato-kun, you'll never know the potential he has…" It wouldn't be for several hours, long into the night, that the relative peace would be broken by a shriek from the Hokage's Tower. Hands shaking, he refolded the paper and put it into his desk. He'd been reading the rsvp's to the upcoming Chunin Exam when his eyes fell on a letter from the land of Whirlpools. It wasn't a truly strange occurrence. Whirlpool was small, though its shinobi were strong, preferring quality over quantity. And it had been a while since Whirlpool had sent any ninja, nearly two decade, at least. But this latest letter…bearing a name he never expected to see again. A name that worried him to read…Kushina Uzumaki, Jonin sensei to Whirlpool. After his initial shock filled scream, he had immediately ordered a squad of ANBU to track down his student, and told to look specifically around all onsen in Fire Country. "Oh Kami, what does this mean?" he wondered, his head in his hands. That night…that horrible night…she had been reported dead due to complications in childbirth…Naruto's birth. And she was alive all this time! Oh gods! This was the kind of thing that could kill the blonde, if not drive him over the edge!

AN: I'm not much for cliffhangers after reading several stories that had them. Chapters including the Chunin Exams and later should have greater detail. I'm also writing somewhere around a dozen other stories, at the moment mostly Naruto crossovers. Thanks for reading!