A/N: After much deliberation, re-deliberation, tri-deliberation, super-deliberation, Chuck Noris!Deliberation and many meetings with the brain-monkeys that live in my closet I have finally decided that the pairing for this story will be Naru/FemHaku.

Listen to my reasoning.

It's basically a matter of practicality. If I chose FemGaara then I'd have to drastically change many things about the character's looks and personality. Haku's gender in the actual Kishimoto plot, for me at least, is a open choice. It could go either way. Haku may have been simply a highly effeminate boy or a girl pretending to be a boy for her own reasons. It's up to the reader to decide. Also every time I'd try to write a romantic scene involving FemGaara, the male Gaara's image would pop into my head, ruining the whole thing. Haku at least appears female and can honestly be considered as such (And the more effeminate name helps too). The fact that I myself preferred FemHaku and the ease Haku can be thought of as a girl also played a part in my decision but I tried to think beyond that and think of what would make this story the best it could be.

If you were rooting for FemHaku then congrats! If you were rooting for FemGaara them sorry. If you were rooting for any other pairing then sorry. But still, give it a try! Maybe you'll like it. I myself didn't like didn't like NaruFemHaku until I read a fic about the pairing (Can't remember the name of the fic but it was a big one, over 100,000 words and is still going).

Anyway, sorry for the long ramble. I'm going to shut up now as writing this has reduced my brain to mush (I just tried to type "reduced" like fifteen times before I got it right, point made lol).

CHAPTER 9

He crouched low beneath the shadowed cover of a small bush, all but invisible to the world. He remained stock still, his breathing low and regular as he waited for his pursuers to move on. He couldn't see them but he could smell them, hear the rustle of their strange coats and the sound of the occasional moved branch. They wouldn't find him. Not this time. He was sure of it. Many times had he escaped, managing to break away from the torment that he had been forced to endure since he was born, but always did the Hunters manage to capture him and return him to that Hell despite his protests. But not this time. This time he was determined to get his freedom and if he couldn't have that then he would die trying. He would not let them return him to the Fat One alive. He simply had to be patient, use every ounce of skill, guile and cunning he had amassed during his previous escapes and he would be free.

The sound of rustling leaves, far closer this time, reached his keen ears and his eyes narrowed. Was it one of the Hunters? Had they found him? No, he was confident that he was perfectly hidden. So what was it then? It didn't smell like one of the Hunters. In fact, the scent he was getting was strange. It was… exotic and… enticing. It drew him in, filled his senses with a warm fuzziness that left him punch-drunk. What was going on?

He watched, spellbound, as a long and shapely leg stepped through the bushes and his breathing stopped as he took in the… Goddess before him. The first thing he saw was her eyes. Like two shimmering pools of the purest of blue water glittered as she stared at him. Her golden mane seemed to catch fire in the midday sun, the light reflecting of each luxurious strand. She moved with supine grace, each step measured and precise. She cocked her head to the side as she regarded him curiously. Hesitantly and hopefully he inched out from his shelter, all thought of the Hunters perusing him gone from his mind, seemingly taking all conscious thought with them. His entire universe revolved around the beautiful creature before him. She watched him intently for a few more seconds before turning and preparing to leap back into the bushes. He took a quick step forward, a pitiful sound mewing from his thought. He didn't want her to go! But wait. She looked back. She looked back! A slight motion of her head indicated for him to follow her and his heart leapt. With all the speed he possessed he darted fully out from under the bush and ran to her. He was barely a foot from her when it happened. Spiny sticks of bone shot from the ground before him, blocking her from him. What was happening! He quickly back peddled, intent on gaining some distance between him and the bones when more shot from the ground around him, growing and reforming into a cage that surrounded him completely. Terrified, he looked at her, a whine of warning squeaking from his throat.

She vanished in a puff of black smoke and he blinked. What happened? Where did she go! He snapped his head round to the sound of rustling leaves and his eyes narrowed, a his of anger slithering from his throat. A Hunter! Did he have something to do with his love's disappearance? He would have his vengeance, freedom be damned! He thrashed violently against his confines, attempting to reach the Hunter so he could tear him apart. The Hunter just regarded him with faint curiosity. He continued to gnaw, thrash and slam against his prison even as the Hunter pressed a paw to his ear, speaking to the other Hunters.

"Target, Tora the cat, has been captured."


Naruto watched the small ginger cat thrash about inside his Ritsuzen created cage, slightly alarmed by how it slammed against the hard bone bars, unconcerned by the damage it may have been dealing itself. What was wrong with this thing? More importantly, why was the Fire Daimyo's wife asking for its return when obviously the thing was insane?

He heard the rustling of bushes behind him heralding the arrival of his team.

"Good job, Naruto." Kakashi said as he walked up to stand beside the boy. A quickly glance at the ribbon on the cat's ear confirmed that this was indeed the infamous Tora, the Bane of the Genin. "I guess you really can recreate pheromones with your Kekkei Genkai."

"I guess so." Naruto agreed. It was something that he'd never considered before so when they were told that their latest D-rank involved capturing a cat he decided to give it a whirl. He'd heard horror stories from his mom about the original Tora, the current Tora's mother, and deduced that the newest incarnation of the little beast could have been just as, if not more than, skilled as his forebear at evading Genin teams. So he came up with the plan to lure the cat out of hiding with a Ritsuzen created female cat in heat knowing that Tora wouldn't be able to resist and trapped him in a bone cage when he was out in the open. And it worked like a charm.

"Do we have to keep the poor thing in a cage though? Can't we let it out?" Sakura asked.

Kakashi shrugged. "Sure. But you have to carry it."

Sakura glanced back at the small feline who was still slamming against its confines, hissing and spitting up a storm. She stepped back slightly. "I'm good."

Naruto chuckled and went to pick up the cage so they could end this mission. "Whoa!" He leapt back as Tora swiped at his hands, the cat's razor sharp claws missing his fingers by mere millimetres. Naruto was greatly unnerved by the unblinking glare the cat was sending his way as it tried to chew through one of the bones. He was pretty certain he didn't want to be within a few miles of this thing when it was set loose.

Quickly thinking up a solution to his problem he pressed his hands together and from beneath the cage sprouted eight long segmented legs. The cage wobbled slightly for a second before scurrying up to Naruto like some freakish spider.

"Good idea." Kakashi nodded. "Let's report back to the Hokage and tell him mission complete."

So together Team 7 moved back through the village towards the Hokage Tower. They got quite a few strange looks but most were directed towards the psychopathic cat in the weird spider-cage thing following them like a lost puppy. Most just shrugged it off and went back to their business. In a ninja village something weird happened every day.

Once they reached the mission room it wasn't long before they were called.

"Ah, Team 7. Done already?" The Hokage asked as he puffed on his pipe from where he sat behind the desk. He often tried to sit in at the mission hall at least once a week. It helped him keep in touch with his ninja and reminded him that his subordinates were people, not tools. Not that he thought he needed the reminder but it did affect your mindset when you constantly assigned missions where you knew people might not be coming back.

"Yes, Hokage-sama. Naruto came up with a rather ingenious plan and it worked wonderfully." Kakashi said, ignoring the blonde's blush at the praise.

Sarutobi chuckled at the red coating Naruto's face. "I'm sure. Well, just put Tora on the table and I'll call his owner in to collect him."

Naruto looked down at the cage sitting obediently at his side and motioned his head towards the table. The loyal cage scuttled up the side of the table and settled on top of the papers in front of the Hokage. Sarutobi wasn't the only one disconcerted by the cat that still hadn't stopped thrashing around.

"Uh… okay. Iruka, could you call her in?"

"Y-Yes, Hokage-sama." The Chuunin stared at the crazy feline even as he rose from his chair and went to the door. He returned a few moments later with the podgy form of the Daimyo's wife.

"Oh, my baby!" The woman cried as she toddled forward. She was taken aback by the cage containing her little darling. "Oh my! What is that? What's my poor little Tora in?"

"No worries, madam, it was simply a precaution to ensure than nothing happened to him while my ninja brought him back." He gave a faint nod to Naruto to release the cat and the cage vanished in a bloom of black smoke.

The ginger animal was surprised when his prison suddenly vanished but quickly gained his bearings when he noticed that nothing now stood between him and his prey. With a feral hiss he launched himself off the table, claws sliding from the pads of his paws as he prepared to gouge the young boy's eyes out but before he could get there he was intercepted by her! The Fat One!

"Oh, my poor, poor baby!" The woman wailed, clutching the cat to her bosom tightly. "Mommy will never let you out of her sight again, you had me worried sick! Hiruzen, thanks again. I'll tell my husband you were asking for him. Come along you, we're going home."

The ninja watched the woman leave the office, chattering to her cat. Tora seemed to ignore her for the most part and Naruto was particularly disturbed by the intense stare the cat was sending his way. He was sure that if looks could kill he'd be nothing more than a tiny pile of ash at that moment.

He shuddered as the door closed behind her. "Jiji, don't take this the wrong way or anything but if you try to assign me a mission involving that cat again I'm going rogue. I think I'd rather take my chances with the Hunter-nin than with Tora right now."

"Yes, I agree." Sarutobi muttered before shaking his head. You couldn't have the Hokage of all people condoning going AWOL. 'Regardless of how good the reason is.' He thought. Getting back to the matters at hand he produced another scroll from the large D-rank pile. "I have one more for you to do today and then you can take the rest of the night off. It's a simple babysitting mission but the client asked for your team specifically."

Naruto's eyebrows rose. "Who makes a team request for a D-rank?"

"Your mother. She's going on a mission and won't be back until early morning. Asuma will be gone for the rest of the week and I'm stuck here so she wanted you to watch Konohamaru and his friends for the rest of the afternoon then put them to bed, or take them home in Moegi and Udon's cases. Since you've been requested personally you'll get a small bonus in your pay."

Naruto looked dubious. "I'm getting paid with my own family's money?"

"No, any mission below C-rank that the Hokage or any member of his family requests is automatically paid for by the village." He gave a playfully smug smirk. "One of the perks of being the boss."

"We'll accept it." Kakashi said.

"Good." Sarutobi replied and handed the Jounin the scroll. "They should be at the compound right now. Naruto can show you the way."

With that the team bowed and left the mission room. Naruto took the lead, showing them the way. Eventually they entered the mostly deserted districts surrounding the compound. These streets were only starting to become repopulated by residents. The Kyuubi attack then the arrest of all the Naruto-haters had significantly diminished the number of villagers in the village. It would still be many years before the streets would be flowing with life again but it was slowly getting there.

Naruto pushed the gates of the perimeter wall open and led his team up the small gravel path to the main doors of the house.

"Wow, Naruto, you live here?" Sakura asked appreciatively as she looked at the stylish manor before them. "Pretty snazzy."

Naruto nodded. "Yeah, although it's just me, my mom, my little brother and Uncle Asuma. Kind of a big place for just the four of us. Now speaking of brothers, where's Ko?" He asked himself as they walked through the halls. They checked the living room, kitchen, Konohamaru's bedroom and the courtyards but there was no sign of the kids.

"What's that?" Sasuke asked.

"What's what?"

"Listen."

It took them a second but they heard the faint sound of voices coming from somewhere deeper in the compound.

"I think it's coming from the dojo." Naruto said. The followed him through the halls, the sounds of voices becoming louder and clearer as they progressed. They could hear three distinct children's voices and one deeper one. Naruto threw open the doors of the dojo.

"Bro!" Konohamaru shouted in excitement when he noticed his big brother. He ran to the blonde, quickly followed by Moegi and Udon. "Are you done for the day? Can you play with us now?"

"Yeah, brat, I can play. Were on a mission; we've to look after you three for tonight."

"Cool!" The three exuberant kids shouted.

A fifth voice entered the conversation. "Konohamaru, we are not done here, don't run off for no reason. Hello, Naruto."

"Ebisu." Naruto nodded back over the kids, his smile fading. He didn't care much for the Jounin nor did the Jounin care much for him.

Many months back when Naruto entered the academy Sarutobi had to find someone to look after Konohamaru. Since he was at the academy and his mother and uncle were full time Jounin Konohamaru needed a part-time caretaker to watch him until Naruto got home from the academy and that job became even more permanent when he graduated. He didn't like how the man filled Konohamaru's head with all that "quick route to being Hokage" crap and he knew that the man thought he was a vagabond and a ruffian (His words) and told Konohamaru as much. But none of that mattered compared to the crux of Naruto's distain for the shades wearing Jounin.

That was the fact that the self-righteous, pompous closet pervert had the hots for his mom!

Naruto tried not to think about the man's obsession with his mother. The whole topic turned his stomach. That, plus the man's poor attempts at wining Kinome were just awful. It was physically painful to her the poor excuse of a man's chat-up lines, hilarious though they may be. He and Asuma had had many hours of fun tormenting his mom on her fanboy. Kinome always just told them to hush. Apparently she and Ebisu had gone through the academy together and she had been aware of his 'little crush' since day one and told them it was just a phase.

Naruto privately wondered if a ten year obsession could be considered a phase and only hoped it would pass soon. Although given the man's commitment to "the cause" so far he doubted it.

Ebisu nodded respectfully towards Kakashi. "Kakashi-sempai. I was unaware that you and your team would be stopping by."

"We're on a D-rank for Kinome. She wants us to look after the kids until she gets back from her mission."

Ebisu frowned and pushed his shades further up his nose, a furrow between his brows. "I wonder why she didn't ask me to do it. I would have gladly looked after them for her."

"Yeah, I bet you would have." Naruto muttered just loud enough for his team to hear. Forcing his face into some semblance of a polite expression he said, "Well we're here now so I guess there's really no reason for you to stick around any more. Why don't you take the rest of the night off?"

Ebisu merely glanced at the boy. "I don't know. Maybe I should stay. Just to make sure these three are okay."

Sasuke snorted at the Jounin. "You make it sound like the kid's would die in our care."

"Of course I don't. I'm sure they would be fine regardless of who looked after them." It was quick but Naruto saw the Jounin glance at him. The slight wasn't lost on him.

"Then you can leave since they would be fine under our care." The blonde said coolly, his voice straining with the effort of keeping up his civil façade.

Ebisu looked deeply contemplative. "I don't know. I could never live with myself if anything were to befall-"

"Oh for God's sake! My mother is not here and will not be back until tomorrow! There's no need to grandstand for an audience that's not even here so go home!" Naruto snapped, tired of the man's presence. Kakashi, Sakura, Sasuke and the kids just watched the interaction with interest.

Ebisu turned to the boy and peered at him over his shades. Naruto returned the stare unflinchingly. "I think, Genin, that you should remember that I'm a superior officer and that you're still on duty. You should show proper respect."

Naruto's eyes narrowed into icy slits. "And you should remember, Jounin, that I'm the Lord of this House. You should also show proper respect and heed my wishes when you're on my property."

Kakashi felt that it was time to intervene before things began to escalate. "That's enough. Naruto, Ebisu's right, while you're on duty you should show a superior officer respect. Ebisu, Naruto's also right, while his mother and uncle are away Naruto is the Lord of the House and has the rights and respect of one. Go on home, we've got things here."

Ebisu appeared unhappy but nodded nonetheless and took his leave. Naruto watched as the man disappeared around the corner and out of sight.

"Bro?" Konohamaru asked.

Naruto shook his head and turned back to the group. "Sorry about that. Can't stand that guy. Why Jiji keeps him around at all is beyond me. Seriously, how can he be a Jounin."

"Now now, Naruto, Ebisu is a very skilled ninja. He wouldn't be a Jounin if he wasn't." Kakashi chided him.

"Yeah, well I'm starting to think he stole that vest from somewhere." He looked at the three kids. "So what were you four doing in the dojo?"

"Ebisu-sensei was training Konohamaru." Moegi piped up.

He turned to his little brother with a raised brow. Ebisu wasn't actually allowed to train Konohamaru for real but he often lectured the boy under the promise of training. "Really? And what was he 'training' you in today?"

"He was saying that if I listen to him and follow his teachings I'll be Hokage in no time." Konohamaru said excitedly.

Naruto shook his head. That man was a moron, filling the kid's heads with that tripe. "And what do we do when Ebisu-sensei starts 'training' us?" Naruto asked, sounding very much like a first year academy instructor.

"Nod along and ignore every word." The three children answered in perfect unison.

"Very good." Naruto nodded. Behind him Sakura giggled into her hand. It seemed that this was a very well practiced routine. Naruto clapped his hands together loudly, gaining their attention. "Now that Ebisu is gone what's say we get on with things. Have you guys had dinner?" The three shook their heads. "Okay so that's the first order of business. Let's go find us some food."

They went back into the kitchen where the children promptly plopped their butts onto the chairs surrounding the dinner table. Team 7 stood nearby while Naruto looked at what they had in the way of food. They had to admit it was interesting to see how the relatively quiet and reserved boy acted around the three children.

"Okay," Naruto said as he examined the contents of the refrigerator. "We have fish."

"Hmm… no." The kids decided.

"Alight." Naruto muttered. "Fish fingers, mashed potatoes and peas?"

"Uh… no."

"Okay. Onion soup?"

"No."

"Macaroni and cheese?"

"No."

"Brussels sprouts?"

"Ew! No!"

"Broccoli?"

"Eww!"

"Spider eggs?"

"Bro, no gross stuff!" Konohamaru cried, clasping his hands over his ears to block his brother out.

"You sure? I think we've still got some worm and beetle pie in the back." He dug further into the refrigerator to find the imaginary pie.

"Pizza!" Konohamaru declared, thrusting his fist into the air.

"Yeah, pizza!" His friends backed him up.

"Hmm, I don't know." Naruto said unsurely as he thought it over.

"Please?" The three begged, clasping their hands together. Naruto didn't even have to turn around to know that they were trying their patented 'Puppy Eyes' jutsu.

He still wasn't convinced. Although he was hungry and pizza did sound good. He looked at his team. "What do you guys think. Pizza for dinner?"

"You're asking us?" Sasuke asked, surprised.

Naruto shrugged. "Unless you don't want any."

The three members of his team looked at each other and shrugged. "Sure, pizza sounds great." Kakashi agreed.

"Pepperoni good for everybody?" Naruto asked as he set about gathering the ingredients.

"Yeah." They agreed.

"Alright, Ko, Moegi, Udon, you guys go and pick the movie you want to watch tonight. Sasuke go with them and make sure they don't fight. Sakura come here and give me a hand. And Kakashi-sensei since I can't order you around and since it's unlikely you'll offer a hand to help why don't you go wait in the sitting room until we're ready?"

Far from being offended by his student's lack of faith in him Kakashi just shrugged and complied. 'Besides, this means I can get in a few minutes with my book, haha.'

"And don't think about reading that damn book in this house."

Kakashi froze in the doorway to the sitting room and blinked. 'How did he-'

"And don't wonder how I knew just don't do it."

Thoroughly freaked out, Kakashi hastened into the sitting room. Sasuke just followed behind the kids as they went to pick a movie for the night and Sakura helped Naruto with the pizza. She glanced at him out of the side of her eye. Ever since she first saw him at the academy Naruto had always been quiet and withdrawn, rarely saying anything about himself or without anyone talking to him first. Sure, he talked a lot with Shikamaru and Chouji but even then he was reserved, only talking about mundane, unimportant things. Seeing him interact with the kids had been surprising, especially since they had never taken a babysitting mission before. Seeing this side of him was rather endearing and she decided to see if she could find out a little more about her team mate.

"So, Naruto," She said as she chopped up the ingredients. "You seem to be pretty well versed when it comes to taking care of kids. You handled yourself like a pro."

Naruto chuckled as he kneaded the dough. "I don't know about other kids but when it comes to Konohamaru, Moegi and Udon I'm pretty much an expert on the subject."

"So you've done this type of thing before I take it?" Sakura wondered, passing him the chopped up ingredients.

"Oh yeah." He nodded as he set about sprinkling the ingredients on the pizzas. "Pretty much ever since they were born I've been the official babysitter, older brother, protector and "Boss" of the Konohamaru Corps."

Sakura laughed. "The Konohamaru Corps?"

Naruto nodded sagely. "Yes. 'Tis a powerful group consisting of Sarutobi Konohamaru, Mitokado Udon and Utatane Moegi with me as their unofficial Boss. Their true goals are of the utmost secrecy, even from me, but I do know that some of them include Konohamaru defeating Jiji and becoming the Hokage, establishing themselves as the Prank Masters of Konoha and swiping as many cookies from the cookie jar as they can without being caught by any mothers or potential mother sympathisers." He glanced at her, a small grin about his lips. "Like I said, 'tis a powerful group."

Sakura laughed again just as Konohamaru poked his head into the kitchen. "Hey, Bro, can we watch Friday the 13th?"

"No." Naruto rounded on him sharply. "The last time I let you talk me into letting you watch a horror movie I had three angry mothers battering down my door because their young children were up all night too afraid to go to sleep. I spent a month cleaning out the koi ponds because of that. Pick something else."

Konohamaru pouted but knew there was no arguing with him. Not when he used that voice.

Sakura shook her head with a bemused smile. "Amazing. Any other guy would probably have just given them candy for dinner and slapped on the scariest movie he could just to see them scared."

Naruto snorted as he checked the pizzas. "Trust me, if you value your sanity you will never give the Konohamaru Corps sugar after six and I have no intention of going into Ko's room every five minutes tonight to check to see if there are any homicidal hockey mask wearing, machete wielding madmen hiding in his closet. They know I have rules and that I'll stick to them."

She patted his whiskered cheek condescendingly and gave a cheeky smile. "You're going to make a great wife for someone someday."

"I can only hope." He deadpanned, causing her to laugh.

The sound of running feet reached their ears and they turned to see Konohamaru and Udon rush into the kitchen, seemingly racing.

"Bro, isn't the Karate Kid movie a better movie?" The young Sarutobi asked quickly before his friend could get a word out.

"I'm telling you, Toy Soldiers is better!" Udon insisted, sniffling his near constantly dripping nose.

"No it's not!"

"Yes it is!"

"No it isn't!"

"It is!"

"Isn't!"

"Is!"

"Isn't!"

"Brats!" Naruto snapped, instantly breaking them out of their roundabout argument. "I don't care which one is better, the only thing I want you to decide is which one we're going to watch tonight. And you better pick soon before Moegi finds and subjects us to the Princess Diaries!"

Both boys paled at that. When Moegi first got that movie they were forced to watch it three nights in a row before Naruto managed to hide it. Despite their best efforts some of the lovey dovey storyline was actually memorized and no matter how hard they tried they couldn't forget it.

Konohamaru turned to his friend. "So, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles movie?"

"You took the words right out of my mouth."

They vanished back through the door. Naruto shook his head with a chuckle and turned back to the oven when he noticed Sakura smiling at him a little too coyly.

"What's the matter with your face?"

Her smile grew and a pink eyebrow arched teasingly. "The Princess Diaries?"

His eyebrow twitched. "It's Moegi's; she left it here the last time she was over."

"Suuure it is."

"You know, Sakura, it isn't really smart to tease someone when they're preparing your food. I mean anything could accidentally fall in. A laxative… a piece of glass… an exploding tag…"

"Point taken. What's say we get these pizzas onto plates and head on through?"

"Agreed."


The rest of Team 7, even Sasuke, had to admit that this D-rank was probably the best one they had had yet. There was no menial labour. No runaway animals. No grocery lists. There was just sitting down watching an albeit slightly boring movie with three surprisingly quiet kids and some damn fine pizza. They were under no illusions that the reason for the reason for this was anything other than the blonde element of their team who seemed to have a knack for making their D-ranks go by as quickly and smoothly as possible. Kakashi made a mental note to have his team automatically put down for any babysitting missions involving these three kids and maybe see about some others if the blonde proved to be as good with other children as well.

It wasn't long before their charges began to drift off one by one in front of the TV, surrounded by empty plates. The young tykes had claimed the spot as soon as Naruto popped the video in, leaving the Genin to take the couch with Kakashi settling himself comfortably into an armchair.

Hearing a quit snigger, Kakashi glanced over at Naruto who seemed amused by something. The blonde must have felt his gaze on him because he turned amused eyes to him and jerked his head towards the opposite end of the couch. Kakashi followed his gaze passed a half awake Sakura and couldn't stop the snigger of his own that escaped. Sasuke was lying against the armrest with his arms cushioning his head, sound asleep. He looked so cute and there was a small trail of drool running down his cheek. Kakashi wished he had a camera. This was blackmail gold.

Naruto leaned over to speak quietly to Kakashi as not disturb anyone else. "Maybe we should get Moegi and Udon home so they can get some sleep. I'll tuck Ko in and we can call it a night."

Kakashi nodded, stretching his stiff legs. "Sounds good, I was beginning to drift off as well. I'll take the kids home; I know where they stay. Sakura's house and the Uchiha district are in the same direction so I can walk them part way. You need any help tiding this mess up?"

"Nah, leave it. Mom'll most likely be hungry once she gets back so I'm gonna make something for her coming back and maybe watch another movie."

"Aren't you going to bed?"

Naruto looked at him pointedly.

Kakashi's eye closed. "Right. Insomnia. Sorry."

Naruto just waved him off. Together they roused the other half of their team and with a sleeping Moegi and Udon in each arm Kakashi led his students out into the dark streets towards their homes.

Naruto gently picked up his little brother, making sure not to wake him, and carried him through the dark halls of their home. When he reached the young boy's bedroom he slid the door open quietly with his foot. A nostalgic smile touched his lips as he took in what had been, up until Konohamaru had grown old enough to sleep in a bed, his room. Hardly a thing was different since he'd given it over to his little brother. The walls were still painted to resemble a forest and the large round mattress that he remembered fondly was still dunk into the depression in the floor, a pile of pillows at the "top".

He gently set his brother down onto the comfy mattress and pulled the covers over him. Konohamaru mumbled something intelligible in his sleep and rolled over, snuggling deeper into his pillows. Naruto simply sat watching the boy sleep for a few minutes, a small smile on his face. Not fighting the urge for once, he let his head rest on the unimaginably comfortable pillows, sighing wearily as he felt some of the constant tension he carried leave his body. He felt a pang of want and dismay, wanting nothing more than to doze off and rest. To feel that invigorated and rejuvenated feeling that only a good night's sleep could provide.

He brutally quashed that wish and reluctantly lifted his head from the pillow and rose from the bed. He shuffled to the door and rested a hand on the wooden frame. He glanced back at the form of Konohamaru, huddled under the duvet. Tonight had been a good night, he thought. He and his team had gotten along great, had fun and ate pizza and watched a movie with the kids. No barbs. No insults. No needless fighting. All in all it was a good end to a perfect day.

Stepping out of the room, he slid the door closed with a soft thud. His bare feet padding on the smooth wooden floors, Naruto returned to the sitting room where he gathered the plates before carrying them into the kitchen to clean up and prepare a meal for when his mother retuned from her mission.


The next day Team 7 met outside of the Hokage Tower for their daily supplement of D-ranks. As per usual they had to loiter for nearly and hour and a half until their sensei decided to grace them with his presence, his excuse already prepared.

Apparently an alligator was terrorizing the sewers around his neighbourhood and he had to wrestle it.

With resigned sighs the Genin trooped after the eccentric Jounin, wondering when, if ever, he would grow up and show up on time.

"Ah, Team 7. Here for a mission?" Sarutobi asked as he sorted through scrolls.

"Wow, Jiji. At the mission office twice in one week? Having a slow day?" Naruto asked, surprised at seeing his grandfather here again so soon.

Sarutobi nodded. "Yes, what little work I had is done for the day so I decided to come down here and help." He shook his head despairingly. "I spend all day dragging myself through mounds of documents trying to keep up with the workload and when I've actually finished for once what do I do? I go looking for more paperwork to do! I swear this job's turned me into some administrative zombie." He sighed. "But you didn't come here to listen to an old man and his troubles. Looking for a mission?"

"Hai, Hokage-sama." Kakashi nodded.

Sarutobi checked the scrolls and shook his head. "Sorry but they're all gone."

Kakashi's one visible eyebrow arched. "All the D-ranks are gone?"

The Hokage just shrugged. "It's a slow day today, I don't know what's causing it."

Naruto sighed. "I guess we're going to be training today then."

"Well…"

Naruto looked up at his grandfather, his brow quirked. "Well what?"

Sarutobi stared at the team for several long. "I might have a proposition for you." The Sandaime began, his voice even and measured. "If your sensei agrees of course."

Kakashi, although slightly surprised, couldn't curb his own curiosity. "I'm open to suggestions."

Sarutobi plucked a scroll from one of the numerous piles on his desk and handed it to the Jounin. "I received a mission request from the Daimyo of the Land of Festivals. It's been discovered that an assassin plans to make an attempt on the Daimyo's life and he requests a guard to protect him and if possible kill this assassin. It's a C-rank but since your team has been active for just a month I'm not comfortable sending you out on a mission of this level on your own. To that end, if your sensei agrees to take the mission, you'll be going with one of the other Genin teams."

Something was off to Naruto. "An assassin? Wouldn't something like that be more of a mission for Jounin? Why is it a C-rank?"

"It's because the assassin isn't a ninja. He or she is a civilian. It's not as uncommon as you'd think. There are plenty of non-ninja assassins out there. They can't stand up to a ninja in a fight but given sufficient time, knowledge and recourses they can even take down a Jounin if they're lucky."

"What do you say, sensei?" Sasuke asked. "Can we take it?"

Kakashi thought it over for several seconds, his masked face giving away nothing of his inner thoughts. After a few moments he turned to the Hokage and asked in a neutral voice, "Which team would you send if we accepted?"

"Most likely Kurenai's team. With her Genins' special abilities I believe that they would provide a great asset to finding the assassin." Sarutobi said.

Kakashi's head bobbed along as he absorbed the details. "Do we have a time frame for when the attempt on the Daimyo's life will happen."

Sarutobi produced a second scroll from his desk. This one was far more ornate than the mission scroll and Naruto noticed an elaborate crest embossed on its leather skin. "We have several possible over the course of next week but it's believed that the assassin will make his move next Friday."

That triggered something in Naruto's memory and he struggled for several seconds to remember what it was. His ringed eyes widened and he gave an incredulous groan, gaining the attention of his team. "Please tell me this is some kind of poor joke."

Sarutobi just smiled and shook his head. "Believe me it's not. The assassin will most likely try to kill the Daimyo next Friday on Halloween Night. As the name suggests the Land of Festivals is very well known for it's celebrations and nearly every holiday is commemorated every year by village wide festivals. Halloween Night is no exception. The Daimyo will be in hosting a masquerade ball on his private ship in the harbour during the festival. The celebrations would be ample cover for a hit to take place."

"And you want us to go and make sure he makes it through the festival alive?" Sasuke surmised.

Sarutobi nodded. "Ideally you would find and neutralize the assassin so that he doesn't come back later and kill the Daimyo. You should also try to find out who hired the hit and why. This is, of course, if your sensei agrees to take the mission."

Sakura turned to the grey haired Jounin. "Sensei?"

The grey haired Jounin rolled the scroll in his hand as he pondered the proposal. By all intents it was a good deal. A simple mission with a simple goal, his students, while lacking in teamwork so far, were strong individually and in the off chance that anything did go wrong they would have another team there as backup. Plus it might be good for the kids to work alongside the other Genin. While improvements had been made since the team first formed Sasuke and Naruto were still rather distant, to different degrees, and Kurenai's influence might help motivate Sakura a little more. Plus he could pick the Genjutsu expert's brain for tips on training his team. Leading teams was his skill, not training them.

To hell with it. At the very least it would be a good break from the monotony.

"We accept." He said, tucking the scroll into his vest.

"Yes!" Sakura pumped her fist into the air while Naruto just grinned happily and Sasuke smirked his approval.

"Very well. I'll talk to Kurenai later on today and if she agrees she'll meet you with her team at the gates tomorrow morning." Sarutobi said, making a note on a scrap of parchment.

Kakashi turned to his team who were visibly elated at the turn of events. "Since there are no missions for us to do why don't you guys run home and make sure you've got everything ready. Make sure to pack enough clothes and supplies for at least two weeks. We'll meet at the east gate at nine tomorrow."

His students nodded and left the office, each returning to their homes to make sure their gear was packed and ready. Tomorrow would mark a milestone event in their lives.


A/N: Remember to review!