Konoha's Silver Shinobi

by Konerok Hadorak

Ichimaru Gin isn't known for his sympathy, nor for his empathy. But when he finds a bloodied boy along the side of the road, he can't help but stop to help. But that one act of compassion will change the Shinobi world forever. Follow them both as he guides Naruto on his way to greatness!

11. Chapter 11: Happenings

A/N: Wow, school kicks butt, and not in a good way. What with League of Legends buddies wanting me to play and Modern Warfare 3 distracting me, ATOP school work, I've had to kick my own toosh in gear. Took me long enough, but I amanged to finish this chapter. YAY! Let me tell you, I had ZERO motivation to do this one. It just... bored me. THere was so much I DIDN'T want to do, but I knew I HAD to do do do the things I DID want to do. Yeah. Like that. Anyway, nothing in my personal life at the moment to comment about, so let's move on.

Thank you, EVA- Saiyajin, Orchamus, yukicrewger2, Tikitorch559, NorthSouthGorem, Chewie Cookies, pyromania101, Zaralann, CracktheSkye, Hypothetical Spiritual Entity, cmcwiki, Skelo, SpeeDemon, reven228, Hee-Ho Master, GuardianOfTheMist, KitElizaKing, Furionknight, The-lazy-bum, RisingSolstice, Lich Kings True Demon, Eirdaru, Archmagelite2000yrs, RElarax, ZeroLink21, KantonKageX, The Infamous Man, angel61991, Just passing by, Kogane1087, darkhollow93, and Leaf Ranger for taking the time to review this story. Its your words of both critisim and encouragement that keeps me going.

That said and done, lets get to the main event shall we? Oh and I thought it might be worth mentioning; If I touch on a subject, but don't go into much detal or elaboration on it, I probably know that. Odds are, I'll refer back to it in more detail later on in the story via flash-backs or internal monologues. If you feel the need to point out something you want more information on, I'll probably have already planned to work on it later. However, that doesn't mean I don't want you to point it out; there may be something I missed and need to adress. That's somthing I'd like to know :P

Be forwarned, this chapter isn't very exciting, and is basically a buffer chapter to transition from the Wave Arc to the Chunin Exams Arc. Also, know that I HATE buffer chapters. Usually. I just don't get ito them, which means slow update times. With them out of the way, chapters will usually come faster. Key word: "usually."

That said, let's move onto the story. Shall we?

Enjoy!

---

Chapter 11: Happening

The morning came all too quickly for everyone, as the sun slowly rose and peaked through the single large window in each room. Sasuke slowly woke up, blinking away the sand in his eyes as the light poured into the room. Groaning as he sat up, he looked over and saw his two teammates sleeping quietly in their beds. He sighed, picked up a shoe from beside his bed and threw it at the boy next to him. "Oi, get up, it time to get dressed."

The shoe landed with a thump and was received by an accompanying groan from beneath the covers. The blonde drew the sheets back with a glare and sat up tiredly. A quick stretch of his back, and a few pops later, he fell back onto the bed as his muscles woke up as well.

"Oiii… Hina-chan… time to get up…" though he meant for it to be a soothing wake-up call, it came out as almost an annoyed, or tired, mumble. Fortunately, she didn't pick up on it and simply yawned as she sat up in bed, pulling the covers around her protectively, trying to keep some of the accumulated warmth from the night from escaping her body in the room's cool air.

Sasuke slipped out of the bed quietly and ambled into the bathroom without another word, and Naruto looked over to Hinata with a grin. She likewise smiled back at him and let the blanket fall, revealing her revealing, and extremely sexy nightgown still adorned. In the light, with the golden luminous element dancing across her skin, she looked perfectly angelic to him.

She blushed under his admiring gaze, her hands reflexively moving to cover up her chest. She stopped herself halfway though, knowing that it was just Naruto with her.

However, Naruto saw this and looked at her seriously. "Hey, if you don't feel comfortable, you don't have to go the extra mile just to show me your tits. I-I mean sure they're awesome and all, but if you're uncomfortable, it's fine if you cover up."

She blushed again and smiled at him. 'He's always so considerate.' Nevertheless, she kept her arms down as she got out of bed and turned away from her love, slipping her gown off and putting on her pants and bra. Naruto watched her the entire time, regardless of his impeded bad view, which he wasn't sure was purposeful on Hinata's part. Either she was great at teasing or still shy. 'Probably both actually.'

She slipped her thread-mail shirt on and pulled her jacket over it, zipping it up quietly. At last she turned around and noticed, with a deeper blush, that Naruto hadn't been unaffected by her unintentional show.

"N-Naruto-kun, you need to g-get dressed too."

Naruto sighed and nodded pulling the covers aside as swung his legs over the bed. Immediately he blushed as he noticed his lil' soldier standing at attention, embarrassingly straining against his constricting boxers.

Hinata's eyes widened as she saw him, now in proper lighting, and realized that from the way he was pushing against his undergarment, there must be much more than she could see just waiting to be relieved of its confining constraints.

She blushed at the knowledge; she filed it away internally. It wasn't information she needed right now, but eventually, 'hopefully,' it might be useful to remember later.

Naruto blushed and stood, his boxers shifting awkwardly as their prisoner twitched uncomfortably. Even so, Naruto didn't ask her to look away. For as honest as he was, he was a bit of a hypocrite; he might tell Hinata not to try so hard to please him, but he was doing the exact same thing for her. He wasn't sure if that was a good thing or a bad thing. 'Tou-san said that doing something without the intention of being rewarded is a good thing, so… I guess it's good…?'

He turned around and repositioned himself within his pants, knowing full well that Hinata probably knew what he was doing. He ignored that little fact and grabbed his pants, pulling them on quickly. Once done, he felt much better. He had no problem being shirtless, since he'd done it many times before in public areas, but pantless… that was another story entirely.

Slowly Hinata came to realize that Naruto was actually more embarrassed about it than she was. Sure she'd shown him her breasts last night and this morning, though only because her gown was so thin, but for guys, who can't hide their arousal as easily as girls can, it was far more awkward for them, and more directly, Naruto.

She confirmed that much when he immediately calmed down once his pants were on. She smiled at him sweetly, though he didn't see it. 'He's such a sweetheart; there's not a selfish bone in his body.'

She came back to earth as he put his green vest over his black T-shirt and fixed his little sword onto his hip.

The bathroom door opened suddenly and Hinata instantly rushed to hide her secret outfit in her bag. Sasuke walked out, fully dressed, backpack in hand before sitting on the bed. He paid his teammates no heed as she slipped on his shoes.

Naruto, seeing as how Sasuke didn't seem to notice anything amiss, and thereby confirming in Naruto's eyes that their secret was safe, likewise slipped on his shoes. It had been early in the morning when Naruto had woken up and suggested that Hinata should probably go back to her own bed in case any of the adults came in or Sasuke woke up. Gin was lenient and supportive of their relationship, but he wasn't sure how the man would view… this.

So, for the sake of safety, Hinata went back to her own bed and finished off her morning slumber.

Hinata followed suit and put on her shoes as well, before all three packed up whatever they had strewn about and left for the breakfast bar, closing the door behind them.

To their surprise, they arrived only to find the three adults had beaten them to it. "Well, well, well, guess who finally showed up to eat?" Kakashi asked rhetorically to no one in particular. "What took you three so long?"

None of them answered as they grabbed some food before sitting down. The adults continued their conversations as the kids quietly ate. "So glad we're finally heading back to the village today. It'll be great to finally sleep in my own bed again. Oh yeah, and Ichiraku ramen too! Yeaaahh…" Naruto nearly salivated as he thought of the moment he'd slurp up a whole bowl of the glorious food.

Sasuke gave an ambiguous "hmh," before sipping on his orange juice. Hinata, for her part, resisted the urge to literally inhale her cinnamon roll.

After a while of quiet eating for the kids, and idle chatter for the adults, Kakashi stood up and announced it was time to leave. Grabbing a few extra treats for the road from their tables, they slid their packs onto their shoulders and headed out.

Their journey was pleasant for several hours after leaving the hot-springs. They talked about this and that, passing the time through conversation as the traveled the beaten path back to the village. Surprisingly, Rangiku managed to work herself into the dialogue with simple comments and interjections. It was a good thing, in Gin's yes. The sooner she learn to be friendly with his team the better; he didn't want to bitterness she felt over hurting Naruto to linger. He didn't worry about the boy holding a grudge, since that just wasn't him, but he knew that she'd feel awkward around him for a while, regardless of the previous night's seeming return to normalcy.

As time passed on, the sun began to set, and it was that time when the village gates came into sight. With expressions of joy, the three genin practically ran the rest of the way to the village, passing by Kotetsu and Izumo with a wave or two (not three since Sasuke doesn't wave), and continued on heading to the Ichiraku Ramen stand as per the usual routine.

Naruto had long since established a habit of eating at Ichiraku's after a mission before going to report to the Hokage. That had no changed since it began.

"Oooii! Old man! Three miso ramens, stat!" he yelled as he dove under the stand's privacy flaps and sat at the counter's stools, Hinata following after him along with Sasuke. It wasn't the Uchiha's favorite meal, but it was ok every once in a while.

"Oh, just for you?" Teuchi said as he smiled at the blonde, glad to see him back after so long. "Surely you're going to share right?"

Naruto simply rolled his eyes and cocked his thumb at the two behind him as they took up flanking seats beside him. "Fine, they can have three bowls too."

The man laughed nodded. "Fine fine, three miso ramens for you, and what will the lady have?"

"M-miso ramen is ok with me too," Hinata said as she placed her hands on the counter.

"Mhm, and you Sasuke?"

The Uchiha shrugged. He didn't have any particular preference. "Surprise me."

"Haha, will do then." He turned around to begin fixing their meals as Kakashi and Gin stepped in behind them. "Oh, Kakashi-san! And Gin-san too! Here for my ramen too are you?"

They both waved him off lightly. "No thanks, we're good. By the way Naruto, Kotetsu and Izumo said to tell you you need to give them more than just a passing glance. They get lonely sitting there all day you know."

Naruto shrugged. "That's the first I've heard of them actually caring whether I talk to them or not. The only reason I began waving at them in the first place was out of common courtesy, then it became a habit."

Kakashi sat beside Hinata on Naruto's right, as Gin sat beside Sasuke on his left. "Well, you never gave them a chance to talk with you. You never know someone 'till you get to know them."

Naruto scrunched his face up slightly before shrugging indifferently. "Meh, I'll talk to them sometime."

"It'll have to wait until after you eat; here's your food!" Teuchi placed the bowls in front of them one by three by one.

"Awesome! Hey, where's Ayame-chan? She's usually here."

"Oh she's been feeling a bit under the weather the past few days. Just a small cold, nothing to worry about."

"Oh well, I hope she gets over it soon. And on that note, ITADAKIMASU!" And without a word more, he dug into the first bowl of ramen, slurping loudly and satisfactorily. The sound was echoed, though with considerably fewer decibels by Hinata and Sasuke.

Teuchi shook his head. "I'll never know where he puts it all. Or where he gets the money to eat as much as he does."

"I can answer that," Gin said with a smirk as he handed over a roll of bills. "Hopefully that'll cover this and his next few meals here."

Teuchi smiled at him and accepted it. "Paying up front huh? Being our best customer has its perks, wouldn't you say Naruto?"

"Yeah! The foods great!"

He laughed as he watched the blonde devour his food.

They ate quickly, but leisurely as well. When they'd finished, Kakashi sighed and looked down the main road to the Hokage tower.

"Well, I guess we'd better go report in mission successful."

The three genin look at each other before slumping at their leader. "Aww, c'mon sensei! It can wait until tomorrow right? We're all tired now."

Kakashi was about to insist when he looked at his watch. 'Wow, that time already? Never mind then.'

With a sigh, he waved them off. "I guess it couldn't hurt. Get outa here."

They all smiled as they looked amongst each other happily. "Yes! See ya later Sasuke!" Naruto called as he waved goodbye to the Uchiha, receiving only the briefest of waves in return.

As he and Kakashi turned to leave for their own homes, the three left began their small walk to Hinata's house where they'd drop her off before heading to their own home. They didn't talk much, though Naruto's hand itched to reach out and grab Hinata's from where it swung idly at her side. But he knew he couldn't risk it. First of all he didn't know if he was "allowed" to do so by those stuck up Hyuuga elders, and he didn't know if they were already being watched. Sure they'd only just gotten back from the mission, but they never knew if a Hyuuga had spotted them.

With his ability to detect reiatsu, it was easy to pinpoint their Hyuuga watchers when they were alone (or at least semi-secluded on team outings and such) because he could detect any foreign reiatsu. Here in the heavily populated parts of the village, it was impossible to tell.

He'd need to be careful from now on; they both would.

Little did he know she was resisting an equally compulsive urge to take his hand where it was folded with his other behind his head.

'This isn't going to be easy,' she realize silently. She knew that from the beginning, but only now did she actually realize how difficult it would be.

Soon, they came to the front gates of the compound. A lone guard stood by them, and his eyes lit up as he saw the three approach. "Hinata-sama! Your back! Your father will be pleased to know you've returned safely!"

Hinata gave a hollow nod. If he was pleased, it would only be because they completed the mission successfully.

The guard opened the gate as she stepped forward. She approached and took one last look behind her; one last look at the source of so much joy in her life and waved goodbye. Naruto smiled and waved back, waiting until the door closed behind her and her family member before heading off to their apartment complex, Gin beside him.

"Think she'll be ok? From what I've heard, her dad isn't the nicest person." Naruto looked to his father worriedly. Hinata hadn't exactly painted to prettiest picture of him during their conversations. He hated every day when he was forced to leave her at the door of her family's residence and watch her disappear inside it. He dreaded any hurt she might suffer within without him there to protect her.

Gin was silent for a minute before he responded. "Hiashi ain't hard ta figure out, but at th' same time, he can be hard ta predict. Odds 're he'll be happy we got the mission done alright. What mood comes after that is up ta him."

Naruto frowned. He didn't like that. Not one bit. But there was nothing he could do; his hands were tied. The only thing he could do is go home, sleep, and meet Hinata as early as possible in the morning. 'The sooner I can get her away from her family, the happier we'll both be.'

They both approached the building Naruto had lived in since before he could remember and leapt up to their level, unlocking the door with a key from his back pocket. Walking in, he kicked off his shoes as he closed the door behind him. He and Gin had two separate apartments, both nright next to each other for ease of access, since one was simply too small for two people. Ignoring where he deposited his clothes as he stripped down to his boxors, he turned off the lights and flopped ont the bed, willing sleep to come and accelerate the night away.

His first sign that it wouldn't happen was the slight tingling he felt in his eyes before he closed them.

---

Eight hours later:

"GAAAAAAAAAHH!"

The cry was painful, not just to imagine the pain of the one screaming, but also to even hear.

Naruto gripped his eyes tightly, straining against the pain that sought to rip his orbs from their sockets. "Ghh…! GrrraaHH!" He threw his head back in tormented pain against a thick tree trunk, no longer able to control himself. He didn't know then the episodes started; they just… happened. If he looked back on it, it had started out with only a slight pain in his eyes, and had progressively gotten stronger and stronger until… now.

He smashed his head into the tree's hardened bark… he didn't even know how many times before the pain began to vanish. The ache in his skull remained, though whether it was from his eyes or his head-banging, he wasn't sure. Nor did he entirely care. His head hurt, and he was intent on nursing it as best he could.

He hadn't told anyone. At first he thought it was just a migraine and it would pass in a day or so. But it had only gotten worse, and he didn't want to admit something was wrong with him. Gin knew; he figured it anyway. The man knew just about everything, but even so, hadn't said anything to him directly. Gin had been there during the beginnings of one of his episodes, and seemed both concerned and suspicious of Naruto. But he hadn't said anything about it since then.

Naruto assumed that meant he didn't know what to do about it, so it was probably best just to not mention anything. At the very least, he'd visit the hospital if things got really out of hand. So far, he was still far from that point. In his own opinion anyway

It may have felt like he was about to die, but he knew it was only a feeling. It would pass in time. Soon, the pain dimmed low enough for him to ignore the throbbing in his ocular organs. He held his head tightly as he fell to his knees, leaning against the tree for support. His fingers pressed against the lids of his eyes, as if desiring to simply rip out the source of the pain through unnecessary force. His breaths came out staggered and heavy.

"Tha… That's probably all… for now…" he said quietly to himself as he struggled back to his feet. Pushing himself off the trunk of the tree, he forced his body back through the woods and back to his apartment. 'Why? At first it was only once a week, but ever since I awakened Shinsō, its gotten more and more frequent. If it had something to do with heightened spiritual activity, dad would have said something, warned me, something. I wonder…' He paused in his step and looked up at the moon peeking out from behind the clouds, casting its sullen light across his face. '…Could it have something to do with me?'

He smiled despite himself. He didn't know if the Kyuubi had anything to do with it. From what he knew, the Kyuubi was a being of pure energy. Chakra energy, but energy nonetheless. Could the fox be trying to push its own chakra through him? The seal on his stomach was made to hold it in, but even Naruto knew that all things age and wither. A seal made of chakra thirteen-fourteen years ago was bound to fail at some point.

"Well, no point in worrying about it. Besides, even if I say something, the villagers will just get up in arms abou-"

He couldn't continue.

Unannounced, the worst kind of brain-slashing, skull-cracking, skin-tearing pain screamed inside him. He couldn't move. He couldn't speak. He couldn't even get his jaw to close from its open-hinged position. His eyes felt like they were about to burst, and a small trickle of thick liquid slid slowly down his cheeks. Finally, his body caught up with his brain and his vocal chords gave voice to the feelings welled up inside him.

He screamed. Not a loud shout, or shrill cry, but a sound of the most pure agony, the likes of which he'd never heard before, raced from his throat, echoing about the forest and out of it, traveling into the city, bouncing back and forth from building to building, growing fainter with each rebound, but no less potent. Even those who could only hear it as the trill of some songbird couldn't help but feel their backs stiffen and the hair on the back of their necks rise.

And the worst part about it… as strange as it was, as unnatural as it felt… it seemed all too familiar; far too human.

The waves of sound bounced their way back to their progenitor, ringing like tortured metal bells that wailed against his skull. He couldn't think. Everything was pain. His skin, his muscles, his bones… Every layer of his flesh cried out against him, like it was their joy to bring him the most torturous types of agony. It was only when darkness seeped into his vision, despite his eyes being wide open, that the pain ended.

---

When he woke up, he felt like he had died. Every part of his body refused to move. Well, not willingly. Every nerve tingled with vague, but stinging reminders of the ordeal he'd just suffered through. 'What… was that…?' He didn't get an answer, and he felt cheated. He'd half-way expected one.

He flexed the muscles all over his body, and found, to expecting discomfort, they did not want to move. They were tensed and frozen in place. 'I… I must have strained them… somehow…'

His eyes wouldn't open. But he felt himself blink lethargically. Why couldn't he see? No, there was light there. Just a speck. He rolled the small spheres around in their sockets, trying to look around him. The darkness slowly crawled away from his vision, only to be replaced by the late-twilight of night. The moon was far from where he'd seen it before he collapsed, and the faint light of the sun was lighting the sky.

It was dawn. He'd been out for several hours. He blinked, his eyelids feeling like they were hooked to five-pound weights. Groaning, he pushed his arms underneath him, driving himself to an upright position.

All pain aside, he felt strange. He looked at his hand, dirtied from the wet earth of early morning ground. But… it wasn't just dirty. Every speck of brown, green and yellow soil and vegetation… every crease and fold of the skin that was his palm-print… every twitch and spasm of the muscle beneath…

He could see it. It was like… like he wasn't even him; like he was looking at someone else's hand. He blinked and felt a moist something fall down his cheek. Brushing off the strange sensation, and his hand of the junk on it, he reached up and wiped his face of the tear. Then his eyes caught something. First of all, it was rare for him to cry for or to anything, be it pain or sadness. More so, it had never happened that he'd cried tears of blood. With his other hand, he wiped the other cheek, coming back with the same material on the back of his palm.

'Is this… blood? I've never heard of this before. Tears of blood?'

Confused, he cleaned his hands on his shirt and cleaned his eyes of the life-giving liquid. Shaking his head, he looked up to see the sky brightening more and more. The sun was rising.

Grunting with effort, he pulled himself up from the forest floor, noting idly that his body had been lying there long enough to make a nice impression of his unconscious form. His legs tightened, the muscle tissue within tired and protesting their use.

He ignored it and pushed on, his bones creaking with every flat-footed step he made back to his home. But the sensations of his body were negligible compared to what he was seeing with his eyes.

The fine details of the moss on the north side of the trees. The fluttering, confused wings of a butterfly as it woke up from its slumber. The minute form of ants marching in and out of their hard-built hills. The most miniscule flit of a baby bird's head as it looked out of its nest. A rustle of leaves, and the caterpillars on the underside of them, chewing on its breakfast. The impossibly slow opening of early morning, multicolored flower petals.

It was all so… surreal. So detailed, it wasn't even his eyes that were seeing them. And the colors, oh, the colors! Shades of crimson petals, golden blades of grass, and of rising sun, verdant leaves and needles, cerulean sky and bleached clouds floating amidst its expanse…

It was like nothing he'd ever experienced.

A snap of a twig beneath his feet, and he looked down. As he removed his foot and placed it forward, he could see with almost painful detail the slow rebound of the pressed vegetation and wood as it was removed from the pressure of his step.

His eyes narrowed, and then winced. It hurt to do that. But it didn't stop him from wondering. What was going on with his body, and what had happened during those few hours he'd been out?

It was now officially, "out of hand." He needed to talk to Gin about this, and soon.

The time flew by as he walked, his heightened perception distracting him from the pain in his body that was slowly ebbing away. His shadow became more and more pronounced as the sun rose behind him. It was halfway atop the horizon by the time he made it home.

He climbed in his window the same way he'd climbed out, the frame still open from earlier for easier access upon his, now belated, return.

Getting inside, he looked around. Nothing had changed, per say, but everything was different. Clearer… more defined. He blinked tiredly and ignored the strange sensation. He needed sleep. His muscles ached for slumber. He stepped over to his bed and he fell down on it, falling sleep before he even finished falling.

If only he'd looked in a mirror…

---

"Alright. When all's said and done, you five did a great job handling the mission, in spite of the troubles encountered and general outclassing of enemy shinobi. Under the circumstances, though the mission was officially labeled a C-rank, I think I'll allow the record to show you all successfully completed your first A-rank mission! Congratulations! In all honesty we were beginning to worry about you all."

Had Naruto been there, the celebration would have had much more fanfare. But with it only being Gin, Kakashi, Sasuke and Hinata, all of whom had a silent disposition anyway, the news was received without much outward expression. Hinata smiled excitedly, and also proudly at having completed an A-ranked mission. Sasuke gave one of those strange smirks and looked away, though the old Hokage assumed it was in pride. Gin and Kakashi were as unreadable as ever. Gin's expression was a blank slate, and Kakashi had his nose in that book of his.

"Now don't let this go to your heads. From now on I'll be doing more thorough background checks on our clients so we don't have this issue again. So don't think you guys will be getting this much action from C-ranks in the future."

He smiled at them as the nodded affirmably. "Good. Now I think that's everything, so you're free to go!"

The two children nodded and bowed their heads to the old man before leaving in a paced, but excited manner. Kakashi watched them leave from the corner of his eye. When the door had shut behind them, he sighed.

"Sorry about Naruto not being here. Apparently he didn't sleep at all last night."

The old man nodded in acceptance. "I figured as much. The only thing that would keep him away from here is either the severe lack of sleep or ramen."

"In this case, it was th' former. When I went ta get 'im up, 'e wouldn't budge. He's out like a light." Gin explained appologetically.

Hiruzen let out a long sigh and leaned back in his chair, puffing on his pipe lightly. "I'm sorry about how the mission went. You were completely unprepared to face opponents like Zabuza and that boy."

Kakashi waved off his concern. "In the end, we accomplished what was meant to be accomplished, and no one died on our side. And besides, personally, I think it was a good thing for them to get a taste of the true nature of the shinobi world so young. It may be a bit of a disillusionment, but it's better that they have a little experience."

Hiruzen nodded. "I agree completely. However, I also don't think it's a good idea to send fresh genin out on jounin level missions either. This was a fluke, nothing more."

Gin rubbed his neck nervously. "Yeah, well, you'll have a hard time explainin' that to Naru. He'll want a break from heavy missions for a while, but soon I c'n guarantee he'll be back 'n here beggin' fer 'nother."

Sarutobi let out a low, exasperated breath. "Don't remind me…" He looked back at Gin. "By the way, how is his training?"

Gin's smile took on a more sincere look. "Goin' great actually. He learned Shikai durin' the mission, so his power level has increased immensely."

Kakashi eyed his partner curiously. "Shikai… that's the first stage in releasing his undead powers, right?"

"Yup (though ya make it sound like 'e's a zombie er somthin'). Shikai, then Bankai. But I wouldn't expect Bankai from him for a while. Most Shinigami can't even dream of achievin' it, and those who can are one in a million. Naru's got the potential. Now he just needs the time."

"For those who can, how long does it take to reach this, 'Bankai' level?" the Cyclops asked again.

Gin huffed. "Normally? From rookie to Bankai, it can take a hundred years, then ten years of practicing with Bankai before hittin' the its power ceilin'."

Both Kakashi and the Hokage looked at Gin with surprised eyes. "A hundred years? How could he ever expect to reach that stage in this life then?"

Gin waved off their concern. "Well, there is a way ta force yourself to get Bankai. It's not the conventional way though. The process involves ya fighting your own Zanpakutō spirit in a life-er-death duel. You win, you get Bankai. You lose, well…"

He left the comment hang in the air, certain they understood what he meant. "But I wouldn't worry 'bout it too much. It prolly wouldn't even take him a hundred years ta learn it normally. I ain't seen anyone progress so fast in my life, save one fella, only a bit older than 'im."

"So… How long do you figure it'll take him to reach Bankai?" Hiruzen asked curiously.

Gin shrugged. "Can't say fer sure. Naruto's got lots more potential than I did when I was his age. It took me twenty years to learn Bankai."

Kakashi whistled quietly. "So Naruto could reach Bankai in less than twenty years… Doesn't sound bad for how powerful it sounds, though granted that's only because that's most of his early years. The time ratio for you spirits makes that actually a bit slow, right?"

"Yup. Somethin' like that would be unheard of in Soul Society."

"But, knowing Naruto, he'd probably take the shorter method over taking the time to learn it the normal way." Kakashi laughed lightly and cocked his head toward Gin who subtly rolled his eyes, knowing the he was right.

"I don't think any of us would disagree with you." Sarutobi smiled and rubbed his temples wearily. "Oh, since you two are here, I might as well go ahead and mention it." He looked at the two and a knowing grin. "The chunin exams are coming up in a few weeks. Think your team is up to the challenge?"

Kakashi took on a contemplative look, as opposed to Gin's curious expression. "Chunin exams? I've heard a lil' about them. Heard it's easy ta get killed in 'em."

"It is, which is why the whole team must agree to participate, knowing the risks."

Kakashi eyes the old man carefully. "And you're mentioning it because you think they can participate. But I have to wonder if they really are. Sure, the last mission has shown they have what it takes to fight a straight up fight, but the chunin exams are more than just fights. Survival, teamwork, communication, coordination… I want to believe they do, but I can't ignore that little voice in the back of my head." He sighed lightly as he placed his book back in his pocket.

Gin was silent as he listened, but at length, shrugged. "The hell. Why not? If we don't put our confidence in 'em, we'll never be able ta trust 'em."

Kakashi smirked at his colleague. "Speaking from a father's perspective are we?"

The ex-captain scratched the back of his neck and shrugged again innocently. The two others laughed lightly at the silver haired man's expense. When he'd finished with his amusement, Kakashi turned back to the Hokage. "Well, I guess he does have a point. Give us the forms and we'll see if they're up to it."

Hiruzen smiled and raised his hands before offering the necessary documents over. "That's all I can ask. Oh and Gin, we'll talk about, and with your girlfriend another time, seeing as she's not here. Just so you know. Bring her with you after lunch sometime today. Say, four o'clock."

Gin sheepishly stroked the back of his neck nervously. "H-hai."

---

"So Hinata, what did your dad say when he found out you completed an A-rank mission?" Sasuke's voice was laced with pride that they'd achieved something so unheard of. Currently they were walking back from the Hokage tower down the main road that went from the gates straight to the tower.

"Oh, um… I'm pretty sure he was surprised. I don't know what he thought though. He said good job, b-but…"

Sasuke smirked and shoved his hands into his pockets. "If I were Naruto, I think I'd probably say something like, 'he just doesn't know how to express himself' and to 'not let it worry you,' or something."

The young Hyuuga looked to her team mate curiously. That, actually, did sound like something he would say, though, even after the amount of time they'd spent together, she was always surprised by how well Sasuke and Naruto knew each other. Well, Sasuke was easy to figure out, at least to her. He didn't have a whole lot of depth to him, though he couldn't be blamed for it; his whole family was murdered by his brother in cold blood. Something like that was sure to stump someone's social growth.

But she knew Naruto more than she knew Sasuke. And it made her slightly worried that the Uchiha boy knew so much about her and Naruto. In hindsight, she knew it was unfounded. They we're teammates after all. Even someone as uninteresting as Sasuke could decipher the personalities of those he knew.

But since Naruto was absent, for whatever reason, she could only accept his words as likely fact. In reality, she also knew that he was right regardless. Hiashi had never been the most affectionate, nor particularly skilled at showing what affection he did have. He probably just didn't know what to say, or maybe how to say it.

Regardless, she was proud of herself; something that Naruto had taught her to be while they were together the past month.

They walked on aimlessly, waiting for their teachers to catch up to them. They'd probably go to a nice restaurant and grill up some food in celebration.

"So Hinata, any idea why Naruto wasn't there today?" Sasuke asked the Hyuuga. The girl shook her head sadly. "No I don't. W-why ask me though? "

Sasuke smiled at her; a real smile. Not a teasing smirk or playful glance, but an actual humorous smile. Rarely had she ever seen that from Sasuke, and especially not directed at her. "Well, I just naturally assumed you knew everything about Naruto. But if you don't know, then I guess we'll just have to ask Gin-sensei when he gets here."

Hinata didn't know how to respond to his joke (she assumed it was a joke anyway) and so she remained silent.

"Still though, the way he always skips out on team stuff and wanders off on his own... He pisses me off." He looked away, his eyes narrowed at nothing in particular. Immediately though, Hinata was at Naruto's defense.

"Th-that's not fair Sasuke-kun! Naruto always has a g-good reason for whatever he does!"

Sasuke gave her a skeptical glance. "A good reason, or a good excuse? I've never once heard an actual legit reason for why he was gone."

"Give 'em some time. He'll open up ta ya." The sudden voice made the both jump.

They both turned at the sound of Gin's voice and saw him approach with Kakashi beside him. "He don't open up ta everyone ya know."

Sasuke rolled his eyes at the pathetic attempt to defend his adopted son. 'He opened up to you and Hinata easily enough.' He wanted to voice it, but that would probably seem hurtful and spiteful. It wasn't the time for that conversation.

"Well, in celebration of a job well done, we're all going out for food!" Kakashi said in a chipper tone before adding in a lower, more somber voice, "and I'll buy this one time..."

The effect was somewhat lost without Naruto there. Sasuke was always mono-expressional, and Hinata, while she looked excited at the announcement, just didn't have the pervading energy to excite everyone around them like Naruto did.

Regardless, despite the lack of visible enthusiasm, he knew for a fact they all loved grilled meat, whether they showed it or not.

"Gin-sensei, i-is Naruto going to join us?" Hinata asked, turning to her sensei hopefully. Gin gave her a sympathetic, unknowing shrug. "Depends on if he gets up 'r not. He wouldn't budge when I tried ta wake 'im up."

Hinata frowned slightly hearing that. She didn't want to celebrate without Naruto being there; that would be leaving him out. But then she had to wonder why he was so tired. Maybe it was just the fact that he'd slept in his own bed for the first time in a month. She hadn't wanted to get up either this morning for the same reason, so she could understand if that was the case.

But still, for Naruto to not show up to a planned group event, like turning in the mission and the obvious celebration afterward… It wasn't like him.

They continued on, Hinata falling silent as they walked. After a few minutes of walking Sasuke turned to his silver haired sensei and addressed him. "Oi, Gin, don't think I didn't notice how you got away with not telling me who you were at the springs." Hinata felt a rosy blush spread across her cheeks at the mention of that night and ahppy smile split her face. She hid both of them.

"The only reason I let it go was because your girlfriend showed up."

Gin gave the Uchiha a slight smirk. "Let it go, ya say? I thought you were too distracted by Rangiku's body ta remember what'cha were sayin'."

Sasuke turned away comically as a small stripe of pink hit his face. "S-shut up!"

Gin and Kakashi laughed at the expense. "Well, I can't say I blame ya. I mean she is a hot piece o' ass aft'r all," he said as he waved his hand dismissively.

"Stop saying it like that! She's not my type at all!" Sasuke yelled at his senior. Gin, ignoring his protests, placed a hand on his shoulder and pulled him over to him. "Oh c'mon, if ya say my girlfriend ain't attractive, I'll get really sad and-"

"-I hope you get pissed then!" the Uchiha cut in, giving his teacher a punch to the ribs. Gin didn't seem to have noticed the strike at all as he let the boy stomp off in humorous indignation.

Hinata would have laughed at the scene, but she caught sight of a golden color in her peripherals. Turning her pale eyes toward it, she saw the form of Naruto tiredly picking his way through the crowd of people cluttering the main street as he made his way toward them.

"Naruto-kun!" she cried as she rushed over to meet him. "You made it!"

Naruto gave a tired nod as he rubbed his eyes. They itched like hell. "Well I couldn't miss the celebration for our first A-rank mission now could I?" She smiled at him, knowing he was sacrificing his sleep to be with the team, and her. But then she saw something in his eyes. Something was different about them.

It was hard to tell with him rubbing one eye and the other one half closed, but from what she could see, his eyes were darker than usual. It might have been the bags under his eyes, but his blue orbs seemed to appear… dimmer. Not only that, but his sclera were also a bit darker. "N-Naruto, is s-something wrong with your eyes?"

He nodded irritably. "Yeah, they keep itching like crazy. It just started this morning too. Gah… it's so annoying!"

Kakashi stepped forward and leaned down slightly, pulling Naruto's hands away from his eyes. "Here, let me check. It may be an infection." Naruto relented in his assault on his vision-giving organs and allowed the man to look at them. Though, it was difficult, with how much they were itching, to keep his eyes open for any amount of time.

"Th-they look a little d-dark to me sensei…" Hinata commented as Kakashi looked on carefully.

"Well, that could mean it's time to get a new boyfriend. They say you can always read a man's intentions by his eyes anyway." He laughed with an eye-smile and looked back to Hinata jokingly. Hinata knew he was kidding, but instinctively made to respond regardless. Only when Naruto gave his teacher a sideways glance of irritation did she hold her tongue.

She saw something. Something that shouldn't be there. "N-Naruto-kun… open your eyes again." Naruto looked at her strangely but rubbed his eyes one last time before resisting as much as he could not to move them. Her hands rose to his cheeks, her index and thumbs on both hands pulling his eyelids open from where they struggled against his will to crease shut.

Now, she might not have been a doctor, nor been particularly skilled in detecting anomalies in the body at first glance, but she knew for a fact that eyes were only supposed to have one ring.

Her eyes widened as she saw them. With hesitant hands, she stepped to the side, keeping his face in her hands, forcing him to face her as she moved, the bright sunlight streaming across his face and lighting up his eyes.

That was the first time she saw them.

Pristine rings circling in hypnotizing loops that rippled out from the pupil, like a stone dropped into water, the waves of black repeated in sequence, emanating all the way around the sphere of his eyes. That was the first thing she noticed; the next thing she noticed wasn't so much a visual observation, but felt more like a shivering sensation.

Power. Authority. Command. Pulses of idle strength could be detected within the rippling patterns; each ring shifted independently, both wider and smaller in miniscule measurements as they collected the light from the sun and the depth of his immediate vision. The dull grey color she had seen before gave way to a dim purple, but even as she peered into them in flabbergasted astonishment, her passive, innate, Byakugan-sharp vision could detect slight hints of cerulean blue hidden within the edges of the dark rings and around the small pupil.

"What's wrong… Hinata?"

She blinked, unaware she'd been staring at his eyes with such astonishment that her mouth hung limply and her own eyes stood wide with disbelief. "K-K-Kakashi-sensei! C-c-come look!"

Kakashi, alarmed by the concern in her worried voice, quickly came to her side and looked Naruto straight in the face. He blinked once. Then twice. Then his lone visible eye nearly exploded from his skull in astounded exclamation. "T-this is…!"

Naruto blinked as well, his pupils expanding and shrinking ever so slightly, like normal. Unable to speak, though both concerned and curious about what was going on with his eyes that he didn't know about. The recent bouts of extreme pain he'd been having recently still fresh in his mind, he suddenly felt nervous about what they were seeing.

"What? What is it?" receiving no answer from the, quite literally, stunned Kakashi, he pried the man's hands form his face and untied his headband from around his neck and used it as a vague mirror. What he saw left his mouth wide as well. "What… the hell?"

Sasuke and Gin, completely left out of the loop, simply stood there like a third wheel, unsure of whether to be concerned or wait for an explanation.

Again, Naruto demanded to know what had happened, looking at his one-eyed sensei for an answer. Kakashi could only stutter out, in utter disbelief, "Impossible… Rinnegan?"

"Rinnegan? What the hell's a Rinnegan?" Sasuke asked from his position beside Gin. Kakashi pulled the young Uchiha over, as well as Hinata and had them look into each other's eyes.

"The Byakugan and Sharingan are two of the world's strongest doujutsu, but they are a part of the Three Great Doujutsu. The third… is the Rinnegan."

All four of them felt their hearts stop for only a second before they began beating again. Sasuke's eyes widened. "What? How? I know the Sharingan is passed down through the Uchiha and the Byakugan through the Hyuuga. So how could Naruto have this… Rinnegan?" He said the name as if he were unsure of how to use it. He'd certainly never heard of it before. Sure he'd heard about the Three Great Doujutsu before, but he'd never spared more than a passing neuron for the thought of what that third technique might be.

"Y-Yeah! How the hell can I have something like that? I'm nobody! I'm not from a clan; I'm not even from a noble family!"

Kakashi shook his head almost at a loss for words. "I don't know. Perhaps it has something to do with your recent… awakening," he said referring to Naruto's capability to use Shikai. "Though if that's the case, Gin would know more than I would."

They turned to the man, only to see him shake his head, equally as bewildered (and visibly so) as everyone else. "I ain't got a clue. I've never heard of the Rinnegan before. What's it do?"

Kakashi made to speak, but stopped short. All of them looked at him, waiting with baited breath. "Actually, I don't know. It's one of the rarest doujutsu in the world, and even I've never met someone who'se had it. I honestly have no idea."

Naruto frowned. "Well… I didn't tell anyone, but after I got Shinsō to work, my eyes have started hurting every couple days. Last night I…" he trailed off, looking away; away from anyone's eyes. To him, it was embarrassing to admit pain and suffering. "It was really bad, and I passed out. But when I woke up I went straight home, I swear!"

"Relax Naruto, you're not in trouble or anything," the white haired man placated calmly. "Do you remember anything about when you woke up? Anything out of place?"

Naruto blinked a time or two in thought, but at last shook his head. "I was so tired, I don't really remember much."

"S-So that means e-each of us has a s-special doujutsu of our own." They all turned to Hinata who was trying to get a better look at his eyes. At first she'd looked at them like something was wrong, but now she wanted to look at them knowing they were something special.

They were silent for several seconds, until Sasuke, who'd been stewing in a slight boil of jealousy, began laughing and looked to his silver haired teacher. "Looks like you're the only one without a special set of eyes! Or… eye in Kakashi'scase."

They all looked at Gin, who simply shrugged indifferently. "Well shucks, looks like yer right."

"But still, I can't help but wonder how he got something like that," the Uchiha mumbled as he looked at Naruto, who looked back at him. Truly, his eyes had changed. They seemed almost out of place on his face. "…and what it does."

Naruto looked at the palms of his hands. 'I guess this explains why I can see things so much clearer now.' Nothing felt particularly different than usual, not in any other part of his body. So, so far, they knew of only one ability the apparently famous Rinnegan gave; built-in glasses. Kind of a buzz-kill. But he also knew that likely wouldn't be all it could do; it must have been famous for a reason… right?

"Well, this has been quite the exciting little rabbit trail, but how about we get some food, hm? For both a job well done, and now for Naruto's mysterious gift."

They all nodded at the prospect of food. If there was one thing they all loved it was food. Especially when they weren't paying for it. Kakashi could almost hear his wallet crying out to him what lunacy he was getting himself into, but he knew the kids would enjoy it.

Plus, it was a nice change of subject. Truly, the appearance of a Rinnegan, in Naruto of all people, was something of a big deal. Like Sasuke being the last of the Uchiha, and consequently that last man to carry the Sharingan-bearing blood in his body, he was something of an icon; an individual to be trained only by the best. The elite.

The Hyuuga were no different. Both of them were being trained by the best. Kakashi, the only other Sharingan user in Konoha (and thought he wouldn't brag about it) likely the strongest jounin in all of the village. And Gin, the mysterious enigma that everyone not only feared, but respectfully feared. Like one would be respectfully afraid of God. And Gin was a god after all; one of many, but one of them all the same. A God of Death.

Now with the heirs of two prestigious clans on the same team, with two of the strongest and most intelligent teachers in the village training them, that only left Naruto as the underappreciated "third wheel" in the eyes of the world. But with this recent revelation, that would change. He'd never heard of an Uzumaki gaining the Rinnegan, but it probably wouldn't be something they'd brag about either; they were a relatively humble clan after all. And of course he couldn't rule out some effect training in spiritual energy could have had on him. Perhaps extensive reiatsu exposure awaked some underlying gene in his body?

Who knew for sure? But now that it had happened, however the hell it had happened, he would also become an icon. An icon that would hold much sway in political agreements in the future.

Suddenly, Kakashi realized how many worms were going to spill out of the can they'd opened. 'No, the can was opened for us. But by who or what power opened it in the first place?'

Of course, a question like that couldn't be answered by mere mortal men, and so he filed it away for later contemplation.

Gesturing them all forward, they made their way through the throngs of pedestrians on the main road. It was right after the start of lunch-hour, so it was no doubt going to be busy. Presently though, they arrived to a restaurant and walked in, this being their favorite place to grill steak.

Of course Naruto still preferred ramen over anything else, but Gin had done a good job with diversifying the boy's diet. At least he'd learned to enjoy the meat, which was more than Kakashi could say he'd expected.

Upon walking in, they were met with only a few hateful glares. Normally, The majority of the village would send said glares Naruto's way, but over time, they'd begun to stop, if only because they felt it might be impolite to make it look like they also were glaring at, and subsequently hating as well, his teammates, when they really held no hostility toward the unfortunate children and adults. But if the boy was alone, then they'd glare to their heart's content.

Even so, the three kids were still glared at by association, which Sasuke had simply shrugged off indifferently, and Hinata had learned to ignore them, as Naruto had done. Thankfully though, one look from either jounin sent the offenders glancing away.

Seating themselves at their usual spot, they ordered some chicken and steak slices and waited for them to be brought out. They were only all too eager to eat everything they could manage to stuff down their throats, since Kakashi was buying.

It took a while, but once they'd begun to slow down, Kakashi cleared his throat and got their three genin's attention.

When they all looked at him, their now assorted eyes looking almost comical, he began. "Well, I thought I'd just let you all know, I've nominated you for the chunin exams. I have your passes here… somewhere..." He rummaged around in his pocket until he retrieved three small slips of paper. The three genin looked at himwith astounded eyes. The chunin exams? Already?

"Ah, here we go." He pulled them out and handed one to each of them. "Though, this is just a nomination. You have to decide for yourselves whether you want to participate or not. But it needs to be unanimous. Now, that also means that you don't have to do it too. If you want to wait until you think you're more adequately prepared, that's fine. No one will think any less of you."

Naruto took his and nodded, feeling in his gut he was ready for something like this. Plus, he still had his dream to become Hokage, the only position even close to that of his father's. Becoming chunin was just another step closer to that goal.

Sasuke smirked as he glanced over and saw Naruto's face. Of course the blonde was up to it. And he couldn't let himself look bad in front of the Uzumaki. Besides, he too had a goal, one more self-serving, but no less important to him. Becoming chunin was just another way to grow stronger. It was a means to an end.

But then, they both look to Hinata. Feeling their eyes, she glanced up from her paper to the boys on either side of her. To her surprise, instead of expectant gazes pleading her to agree, she saw only mildly interested looks, as if it would be nothing lost to them if she disagreed. Like they really didn't care about it.

But even so, she wasn't sure about it. They had just come back from an A-rank mission, and though she'd done well on it, even in her own eyes, she didn't know if she was ready for something like the chunin exams. They'd all heard the stories about them; nasty rumors that they all knew were over exaggerated, but no less intimidating. But it was a fact that people had died in them. Was she really prepared for something like that?

But as she sat there, it must have been all the testosterone from the four males around her, because she felt a sense of… excitement at the prospect of competition. That in and of itself told her she needed more girlfriends, but it didn't diminish the compulsion to compete. And even as she thought about it, she realized that the rewards of success would far outweigh the consequences of failure. Very few rookies made chunin, but those who did were often revered as geniuses of their generation, and brought honor to their families. And even if she didn't become chunin, there was always the next exam.

Her confident self-assurance must have exuded out into a facial expression, because she nearly jumped when she felt a hand slide around her back and grip her waist, and another hand from the other side wrap around her shoulders. She came back to reality to see Naruto smiling at her with that foxlike smile of his, arm around her waist, and on the other side, Sasuke with his Uchiha smirk and his arm around her shoulders. It was a strange feeling; their mutual expressions of confidence, not only in themselves, but also in her.

None of them needed to even say a word; they all just grinned at each other and then back to their teachers. Kakashi smiled beneath his mask, his visible eye making a U in the process. "Well alright then." He didn't say it, but he was proud of them.

"In that case, sign on the dotted line and don't lose them. I, uh… kind of got them earlier than I should have, so the actual nomination ceremony (it a jounin thing, so you can't come) isn't for a few more days." He scratched his cheek in absent timidity. "When I do announce it at the meeting, I'll tell you and we'll sort out the details."

The three genin nodded eagerly and ordered another round of meat in celebration. When they'd finally finished thoroughly filling their stomachs and emptying Kakashi's wallet, they got up, stretched, and left, heading back out to enjoy their well-earned day off.

Well, everyone except Gin, who had an imposed appointment to keep with the Hokage. Loking at his watch, it read three. He had an hour. 'Oh well, best ta be prompt.'

---

Sarutobi was pleasantly surprised when he heard knocking on his door. After dealing with Kakashi for so long and his chronic tardiness, it was refreshing to a member of his team arrive on time for something.

"Come in."

The door opened and in came Gin, followed by the woman who was no doubt Rangiku. True to his prediction, she was beautiful, proving that Gin's taste in women had definately rubbed off on Naruto, since Hinata was a beautiful girl for her age. Most boys were just too immature to recognize it.

"Ah, you're early. I half expected you to be here around five."

Gin gave the man a look as if to say, "do I look like Kakashi? No, I don't. Thank you." But he remained silent as he approached, Rangiku standing behind and to the left of him, her posture, not that of a lover, but of a subordinate. If he remembered correctly, the man was technically of higher rank than her, even if he wasn't from her division.

"So, you must be Rangiku, hm?" he asked her, seeing as she didn't look like she'd just start talking on her own.

She gave a nod. "Hai. Tenth division vice-captain, Matsumoto Rangiku. It an honor to meet you," she stated matter-of-factly.

Old man Hiruzen seemed to perk up and smiled at her. "Oh, vice-captain? I wouldn't have guessed you were that high up the chain. Just a step below captain if I'm correct."

She blinked in surprise. Honestly, she hadn't expected him to understand her introduction at all, and had planned to use it to start out the explanation of who and what she was. Apparently Gin had already taken care of the second part.

"So tell me about yourself, Matsumoto-san; about you, and about why you're here."

"Actually," she began hesitantly throwing a glance to Gin. "I was kind of wondering about that myself."

---

Three days passed. Three days of preparation, each in their own way, for the chunin exams. Sasuke was probably training at the training grounds, Naruto was either off on his own or with Hinata, and she would either be at home preparing or with Naruto. Then there was the possibility of them all preparing together at the training grounds. It wasn't common, but they did get together on their own outside of training sessions. It just wasn't the likeliest occurrence.

Kakashi turned his head to the side to see if Gin would (as if he did any other time) give off any facial hint that he was thinking the same thing. He didn't. At the moment, they were flanked by the numerous jounin teachers and several chunin Academy teachers. In front of them was the Hokage at his desk, puffing lightly on his pipe, the sweet smell of its smoke wafting through the noses of all present. Of course, it was muddled somewhat by the straight cigarette that Asuma was smoking beside him. He was lucky none of them had asthma.

They were all just milling about, talking amongst one another until the meeting officially began. Both he and Gin were silent, as usual. Gin, in all likelihood was quiet because he didn't know anyone there. Sure he may have known of them, or seen them in passing, but he didn't know any of them. Also, no one else knew him. And he seemed content to leave it that way.

Every once in a while though, Kakashi would see a cautious glance from one of the other teachers, their eyes examining Gin supposedly unaware form. Not all of their gazes were in interest either; some of them were jealous.

The reason was because it was an amazing rarity for someone outside the village to enter and immediately gain the status of jounin. There were bound to be trust issues between the appointed and the appointee, so it was usually put off until they had proven themselves, or something. But Gin had gotten his rank virtually immediately after he arrived.

"So Kakashi, think your kids'll be up to the challenge?" Asuma asked from the side, eyeing his ally in amusement.

Kakashi let a sigh escape his lips. "Well, they're all extremely strong, now more than ever." The idea that they now had a team comprised of the three most power eye techniques in the world practically assured them victory in the exams. But at the same time, Sasuke had only recently activated his Sharingan and was far from a master, and Naruto had just gained the Rinnegan (however the hell he did that) three days prior. Hinata was by far the most versed in her doujutsu, but she hadn't completely mastered it either, though she was still better than the other two.

'Hmm, I wonder if they'll get better at them during the exams… Nothing like a little live combat to hone your skills,' he thought with a smile.

"Oi Kakashi, you awake over there?"

"Yeah yeah, they're ready. They'll kick your teams butt any day."

Asuma let out a small laugh. "I don't doubt it. Shikmaru's lazy, but smart; Chouji's also kind of lazy, but he's loyal; and Ino's… well…"

"…a Sasuke-obsessed pubescent girl?" Kakashi finished for his friend.

"Haha, yeah, something like that. But she's got her family's jutsu. They all do. That in and of itself is a force to be reckoned with."

"I could say the same thing about mine. Even if you have one more clan member than me." He decided he'd leave Naruto's recent acquirement a secret. No need to give away anything unnecessary.

"Goodness, you two boasting already?"

They both turned to see Kurenai, one of the few female jounin teachers walking up to join them. "You should really learn to keep it to yourselves; saying too much will get your students in trouble if any of the other jounin here you. You're lucky I'm how I am."

Kakashi smirked. "You're also wary. You're very well aware that we could be spreading misinformation knowing others are listening."

"True, but the only good misinformation would be to say they were weak, which they can't be if you're actually going to enter them into the exam."

Asuma and Kakashi chuckled, knowing she was right. After spending so much time with kids and kid-logic, it was nice to speak with someone who was on the same intellectual level. Gin didn't count since, honestly, Kakashi was fairly sure the man was even smarter than him.

"Either way, if you guys are going to talk about your teams, it can't hurt to speak of mine…"

"You got the Inuzuka, Aburame and Haruno girl right? Two clan members and a nobody?" Asuma inquired as he placed a hand on his hip.

"Hey hey, careful, I also have a 'nobody' on my team too," Kakashi cautioned lightly. "Don't go bragging because you have three clan members."

Asuma threw and exasperated look his way. "Who's bragging? I already told you, they have their quirks."

"Yeah I heard. Anyway, how's your team doing Kurenai?"

She let out a sigh and shook her head. "Well, they work well together and all, but they're slow learners, except for Shino I guess. He smart but doesn't talk a lot."

"Sounds like someone I know," Kakashi said, throwing a discreet glance Gin's way. As desired, the man simply crossed is arms and looked away.

Kurenai blinked as a thought rose to the forefront of her mind. "Oh, that's right. Your team has two sensei doesn't it? I'd heard something about that a while ago. How come?"

"Well, Naruto has… 'special needs,' so the Hokage thought it best to place another jounin on our team to help train him separately. Like an extra tutor."

Kurenai cocked her head at him. "That boy? I don't deny he probably would need help, but is that a wise decision? And anyway, who is it?"

Kakashi didn't answer, and as expected he heard the sound of shifting from behind him and Gin stepped closer. "That'd be me."

Asuma and Kurenai both blinked in surprise. Who was he? "And you are?"

Gin's smile didn't falter. He was surprised though; it seemed some jounin knew who he was and others didn't. He would have expected the rumors to spread, but it looks like they didn't include his appearance. They probably thought he was some random chunin.

"Co-sensei o' team seven, Ichimaru Gin. Pleased ta make yer acquaintance."

"Gin, huh? Nice name," Asuma complimented with a smile, despite the way he was smiling was creeping him out. "So how's the training? Kid still as dense as I heard he was in the academy?"

Gin smiled. "Well, he can be, sometimes, in some cases. But th' truth is, he c'n prolly beat the shit outa yer team one V three."

Both jounin smirked, not taking him seriously, but accepting the challenge. Little did they know that Gin wasn't kidding.

"Hehe, that's some confidence you got there. By the way, Kurenai, didn't you say that the Hokage made a last minute switch with your two's teams?" Asuma ask curiously, turning his head to address her.

"Yes he did. I was originally going to have Hyuuga Hinata, and he was going to have Haruna Sakura." She nodded to Kakashi at the last part. "But…"

"Apparently he thought it better to switch the two. Sakura has a talent for genjutsu, but I'd never be able to teach her the things Kurenai could, so we switched," Kakashi finished for her. "In all honesty, it was good decision. I doubt Hinata would have been as strong as she is now under your care, no offence." It was a straight fact; without Naruto's constant influence, he didn't even want to think how much weaker she'd be right now.

"None taken. There would be little I could teach her besides the basics, since all of her techniques would revolve around her clan. How is she doing anyway?"

"Happy as a peach if I say so myself," Gin answered. "She's a quick learner."

The woman nodded approvingly before the Hokage cleared his throat and began the meeting. He waited until everyone was silent before continuing. When he was sure he had everyone's attention, he began.

"Now, first we'll hear from those who are watching over the new genin. Kurenai, Kakashi, Asuma, Gin…" he looked to the four jounin in front of him, the other jounin and chunin standing in a crowd behind them. "…are there any genin you would like to enter into this chunin selection exam? I don't have to tell you, but after a genin has properly completed at least 8 missions, they may take the exam if nominated by their sensei. Of course, completing more than that is the norm. Now, starting with Kakashi and Gin…"

He looked at the two men expectantly, already knowing their likely answer. Behind them, Iruka stood watching, a serious look on his face. 'He shouldn't even need to ask the question; none of them are ready.' That was his thinking anyway, and it should have been the thinking of all the jounin in front. Which was why he was completely blindsided by their answered.

"As co-leader of team seven, I, Hatake Kakashi nominate Uchiha Sasuke, Hyuuga Hinata and Uzumaki Naruto for this bi-annual chunin exam." Followed by, "This is an agreed position from both parties, an' as co-leader o' team seven, I also approve."

This was followed by the loud, but ignorable "WHAT?" from Iruka. But they continued on despite him. The Hokage nodded to them both and looked to the next two jounin.

"I, Yuhi Kurenai nominate Inuzuka Kiba, Aburame Shino and Haruno Sakura to take this chunin exam."

"I, Sarutobi Asuma approve of the entering of Yamanaka Ino, Nara Shikamaru and Akimichi Chouji for the exams."

Sarutobi let out a small smile. "All of them… how rare."

"Hold on a second!" They all turned at Iruka's outburst.

"What's wrong Iruka?" the old man asked, though he already knew what it was.

"Hokage-sama, please let me have a word! I may be speaking out of place, but most of those nine were my students at the academy. Of course they are all talented, but it's too early for them to take the exam! They need more experience; I can't understand the jounin's reasoning!"

Kakashi shrugged lightly. "I became a chunin when I was six years younger than Naruto."

"Naruto is different from you!" he shouted back. "You know how the chunin exams are! How dangerous they can be! How can-"

"-Iruka."

He was silenced by the dark tone in Kakashi's voice. "I understand how you feel, but they're no longer your students." He fixed the scarred man with a level stare. "They are now my soldiers."

"While yer concern is in th' right spot, yer reasonin' isn't," Gin interjected as he stepped forward. "To me, it almost sounds like you've got no faith in them at all."

The grinding of Iruka's teeth was nearly audible, but he knew they were right. They weren't his students any longer, and he could understand how he might have not been completely supportive of them, but at the same time, he could just as easily say that they were placing a bit too much faith in them. Overestimation could be just as deadly as underestimation.

So where was the happy medium?

"Very well then, you may leave to speak with your teams any time." Sarutobi said, ending the argument. "Now let's move on to last year's rookie-team jounin…"

Kakashi turned and left, Gin following beside him. Asuma shared a look with Kurenai, who simply closed her eyes in resignation.

---

"Pheew… I hadn't expected you to be so tough Hinata, even after all that 'special training' you were getting during the Wave mission."

Hinata panted happily at the Uchiha's praise. Though she wondered what he meant by his emphasis on "special training." She got her answer when he sent her a sly smirk, consequently sending her into a deep blush. "S-Sasuke…!"

He chuckled but waved off her embarrassment as he walked over to one of the three training posts and leaned against it. "Still, that move you used earlier… the fast one. What was that?"

Hinata paused as she contemplated answering it. Was it really her place to explain it? She looked to Naruto who was meditating atop the post to Sasuke's right. He must have been deep in it, since he didn't even flinch under her gaze. Usually he knew if she needed something and would respond. The only times he wouldn't was when he was deep in meditation.

"W-well, it's called Shunpō. T-think of shunshin and its p-pretty close."

Sasuke looked at her for a long moment, almost studying her as he contemplated her words. "Teach it to me."

She blinked. Her? Train him? Was she even allowed to? She knew from using her Byakugan Sasuke had a fair amount of innate reiatsu, but he had no idea how to harness it. "I-I… I don't know if I c-can do that…"

Sasuke seemed to frown at this, glaring at her sharply. "If you know it, then you likely learned it from Naruto, and him from Ichimaru. That leaves me being the only one on this team doesn't know it."

"Kakashi-sensei d-doesn't know it either."

"He also doesn't need to. I saw something when you used it; something I could barely catch, even with my Sharingan. Like chakra, but different… more encompassing. You need that power to use it right? So how do I use that power, firstly, and how do I use that technique?"

She shrunk slightly under his gaze, but it wasn't because he seemed verbally invasive; he had every right to know. To him, it was probably like he was being left out of an exclusive club that everyone else could join but him.

"O…O-Ok… I'll teach you."

Sasuke smiled and pushed off the post to move closer. She sighed as he stood across from her. She didn't feel comfortable with this at all. "Ok, f-first of all, you need to gather your reiryoku to your feet-"

"Reiryoku?"

She hesitated as she realized he still didn't know what that was. "Oh… w-well, it's-"

"-Spiritual energy. The same kind used by me and tou-san."

They both turned as Naruto hopped off the post, Hinata in relief and Sasuke in curiosity.

"How do use it?" Sasuke asked, his interest growing by the second. Truth be told, he'd long been able to see his two teammates use the power, either passively or in combat training, and even see and copy their movements with his Sharingan. But he couldn't do it the same way they did. Obviously he was missing something.

"Yes. Unlike chakra, which uses both physical and spiritual energy, reiryoku eliminates the physical aspect and focuses only on spiritual energy. With that as a basis, it's fairly easy to separate the two. It'll take some practice, but you'll have to do it before we can teach the move to you." Naruto's face was impassive, and Hinata couldn't tell whether he was happy to teach Sasuke, or unhappy that she'd put him in a position where he had to reveal something about himself.

Personally, for the last three days, she'd begun to get the impression Naruto was being much more serious than usual. She attributed it to his new eyes and the way they looked from a distance. However, when she got close, she could still see the warmth they held for her, and they sparkled playfully in the light.

Even so, sometimes…

'…sometimes Naruto looks scary.' Of course there was nothing to be scared of, and she knew it, but it didn't stop her from unconsciously flinching whenever he looked at her suddenly. And she knew it hurt Naruto to see it. It hurt him to know it was his new power; his new "gift." He would look away sadly, as if to say he was sorry, even though he himself didn't know what he was sorry for.

"…just keep doing that, and when the time comes, we'll teach it to you." She zoned back into what Naruto was saying only to catch the tail end of his explanation. No doubt it was the same on he'd given her.

Naruto gave her a short look before turning away. Now that definitely wasn't like him.

"N-Naruto-kun…!" She reached out to him only for him to Shunpō away. Thankfully she'd seen where he was heading and dashed after him.

Sasuke simply watched them both go enviously. 'Hmph, show offs.'

---

"Naruto, wait!" she called after him as they traveled further away from the training grounds. He finally came to a stop on the ground in the middle of a large field, the verdant grass rustling in the wind and the warm golden sun shining on them both. She landed behind him and jogged up to him worriedly. Had she offended him?

"Naruto-kun, what's wrong?"

He turned to face her, doing so only for a second before looking away. "…Nothing." He offered nothing more.

But she knew better, and she approached even closer, ending right behind him, not a foot from his back. "I-if it's about Sasuke, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have used one of those techniques around him…"

She looked down sorrowfully. She'd obviously hurt him somehow.

"…No."

She looked up at him. He let out a deep sigh. "…You didn't do anything wrong. It's just…" he looked away again, not wanting to say it.

But she knew he needed to; for his own sake if not for hers. She raised her hands and placed them on his sides, resting her forehead on his back, her pale eyes closed as she spoke. "Please… what's wrong?"

She didn't want any hurt to pass between them, especially not when they could do without. If they ever became separated because of something she'd said or done, she'd never forgive herself, and do something drastic that she probably wouldn't have time to regret. It wasn't exaggeration; it was a fact. She couldn't live without him, and she wouldn't live without him.

Slowly, she felt the tension in his muscles relax slightly and he sighed again. "It's not your fault Hinata. I… It's just… "

She gripped his sides tighter and pressed her brow into him more firmly. She was there for him, no matter the problem.

"…For so long I've always considered this power to be exclusive; it made me feel special. Different… but in a good way. I didn't mind you learning it because, well, it's you. But Sasuke… I don't know. I always thought it gave me a leg up on him. If he learns it too then…"

He fell silent, and she remained so for several seconds after, trying to decipher his feelings. "Do… do you feel… jealous?"

She felt him stiffen in her arms. Her guess hit true. "Yess…" he hissed out, like poison. "Yes, I do."

She remained silent, hoping he would continue. "I'm stronger than Sasuke right now. And I guess… I guess I've taken pride in that. I know that if he learns our techniques he'll be stronger than me and that-"

He suddenly fell silent. As if he were about to utter some unspeakable evil, or had just connected the dots to some unspeakable truth. His fists clenched hard and his bottom lip was clamped between his teeth. "It-"

She could feel his body trembling in her grasp, and she couldn't stop herself from wrapping her arms about his waist, pulling him close and refusing to let go.

"-It scares me!" She felt her eyes widen as the words left his mouth. Naruto? Scared? "I know it's stupid, but I'm scared that if he becomes stronger than me, I'll never be able to recover the distance!"

Ahh, so that was it. Naruto was scared of falling behind Sasuke. "Naruto, even if Sasuke does get stronger than you, he's our friend, and more like a brother to both of us than anyone could ever hope to be. We should be happy for him and encourage him, not be afraid of him because of his strength."

She felt the boy in her arms slowly calm down, the trembling subsiding, for the most part. "And even if he does become more powerful, you'll never be far behind. Just like how I chase you, you'd chase him forever until you caught him."

"I know." She blinked. He did? "That's the problem."

He turned in her arms, her face lifting to look into his. Their eyes met; his subtly cerulean rings gazing deep into her lavender orbs. "If I keep chasing him, I'll leave you behind. I don't want to leave you behind, ever."

She didn't feel her eyes widen, or her face freeze in surprise. She didn't feel her arms suddenly loosen around his waist in shock. She didn't feel the rebound of loving emotion surge through her. She didn't feel herself leap into his embrace. She didn't feel herself assuring him that he'd never lose her. She didn't feel her throat swell and her eyes brim with tears. And she most certainly didn't feel the worry she'd felt before.

Her soul was fixed on an emotion much greater than all of that.

She didn't know how long they stayed like that, him mumbling apologies and her whispering words of love and affection. She didn't know when there embrace of comfort turned into an embrace of much, much more.

But she knew when it ended. And she knew something she hadn't before.

He was just as focused on holding onto her as she was on holding on to him. To her, he was as vulnerable as a child. His worries laid bare, his emotions revealed…

And she knew neither of them would ever be able to even consider them separating.

It was out of the question.

It wasn't even a question.

Sasuke was well into his first lesson when the two love-birds returned. What surprised him was he felt them long before he actually saw them. Whatever this power was… this… reiryoku, provided a sense of awareness beyond anything he'd ever felt before. What's more, he could feel two familiar presences approaching form the village. Could he be sensing Gin and Kakashi? 'Is this how they feel all the time?'

Sure enough, after the two had returned, hand in hand (a noted rarity within the village's walls, he'd learned), they were followed minutes after by their two jounin teachers. They all looked at them expectantly.

"Well?" Sasuke asked excitedly, half-knowing their answer.

Kakashi smirked under his mask. "Tomorrow, Academy, four pm. Room 301." He waved them off. "Don't be late now~"

They all smiled back, committing the time and place to memory. "So we're accepted?" Naruto asked excitedly.

"Yup! Nominated you three just a few minutes ago. Apparently the other rookie teams are also participating."

"So we'll be fighting our classmates. Kind of makes me anxious."

Naruto looked askance at his Uchiha teammate curiously. "Getting' scared Sasuke? That's not like you."

"Hmph, anxious with excitement, idiot. Nothing scares me." He smirked and looked away. Naruto simply smiled and let him be.

"W-we'll do our best, for sure!" Hinata said resolutely as she looked between her too teammates, the prospect of being able to prove her strength bringing a smile to her face. True, she didn't like fighting, but that didn't mean she'd let her friends, or even more importantly, herself down by not. She was a shinobi after all. And she knew both Naruto and Sasuke; they competed over everything, and would no doubt hurt themselves trying to exceed their own limits.

And when they got hurt, she'd definitely be there to protect them both.

"Oh, by the way Naruto, since we want to keep your Rinnegan a secret, we got something special for you." Kakashi fished around in his pocket for a small box and held it out to the blonde.

"What's this?" he asked, taking the box from his hand.

"Contacts. They'll hide yer eyes 'til ya decide ta take em off."

Naruto looked at the box strangely. "But, I can't really do anything with it yet, and even if I could, I doubt many people know what the Rinnegan is."

"Eh, you'd be surprised. But it's always best to be prepared anyway. Who knows, you might be glad you have 'em."

Naruto looked at the box skeptically before opening it and seeing a couple sets of contact cases. Taking one case out and handing the box to the Hyuuga beside him, he opened it and placed the contacts in his eyes, blinking away the feeling of a foreign object touching his ringed lenses. "They're kinda itchy."

"That'll go away as you get used to them. So, give us a look."

Naruto blinked his eyes open and looked at the grey haired man. Kakashi smiled. "Looks good! But perhaps Hinata should be the judge of that, since she knows your eyes best."

Hinata felt her cheeks redden ever so slightly, but she couldn't deny the truth. She probably did know his eyes better than anyone, because she spent whatever time she could just gazing into them. Naruto turned to her, eyes wide as he tried to give her the best view he could offer.

After a few seconds, she nodded approvingly. "They're perfect. They don't look exactly the same, but I'm… probably the only one who'd notice." She looked away shyly at the end and smiled.

"Well alright then." Kakashi gave an eye-smile and nodded. "Remember, this is a team exam; you enter it as a team, and you leave it as a team. Anything less than success from you three is unacceptable. Understood?"

The three looked at him and nodded in unison. "Hai!"

"Wha's that? Can't hear ya."

"HAI!" The determination in their eyes was palpable.

"Hmhm, that's more like it."

---

A/N: And there we are! Twnety-eight Microsoft Word pages of filler! BUt, we did get to see Naruto obtain the Rinnegan, so YAY! Honestly that was the biggest thing I wanted to do with this chapter, so most of the rest was structured around what I knew needed to happen and what I wanted to happen. And don't worry if you think I'm just pulling ideasout of mallet-space; I have a plan, and i never enact a plan without backstory and facts to back it up. In other wors, I already have planned out HOW Naruto got the Rinnegan, and NO he won't be getting any more particularly awesome power boosts in the near future. Bankai won't happen untill AFTER the Time-Skip.

After all, I can't progress the characters too fast. That would be unrealistic XP

Also, like I said at the beginning of the chapter, I know you feel cheated because I inclued Rangiku so little in this chapter, but I WILL elaborate on the meeting later, though I don't think it was very important anyway besides a meet-and-greet session.

I have to confess though, because of my lack of motivation to finish this chapter, the Naru-Hina moments might have seemed distant, and Sasuke's interaction with them seem equally as cold. I didn't MEAN for it to be like that, so sorry if it did. It had nothing to do with the character progression in that sense.

Anyway, I hope you all liked it and are looking forward to the next one where we'll begin the chunin exam! Yippie-ki-ay! Now this one I'm looking forward to writing, what with the genin interactions, the new Team Seven (the "EYE" team, lol), more Naru-Hina moments, aaaand all that wonderfull stuff. :D DUnno if it'll bleed into the Forest of Death section or not, and I doubt it'll hit the pre-Stage Three part, but you never know with me.

Leave your trash in the nearest receptical, get up and give your eyes a break, and leave your comments on the way out! :)

Later all!