First of all, I would like to thank everyone who reviewed and played a part in motivating me. The response from readers was quite heart warming. I love you guys. I really do.

Now, after putting my nose to the grindstone, writing three different missions and deleting them in frustration, here is my attempt at a First mission. I hope Naruto's cherry was popped satisfactorily.

I have tried to reply to all the reviews, but if I missed someone's, please forgive me.

Now I have something special to say to Antonoir, a guest reviewer who actually uses Google Translate to read my fic in french,

Antonoir: I'm using Google translate as well, so forgive any mistake : Merci beaucoup pour votre commentaire. Vos paroles m'ont vraiment motivés.

So, here we go... Ladies and Gentlemen, I give you, The next Chapter... [Cue drumroll...]

Chapter 14: The First Mission

Naruto was almost bursting with excitement. Zabuza-sensei had come back to base late last night. After asking him and Haku if they were up for a trip, he had told them about the client. Initially, the man had tried to bargain but after a small dose of potent Killing Intent from Zabuza, the man had finally agreed to twenty percent of any sales he made in the Mizujin swamp as their fee. Even though it was an escort mission, only a C-rank one, Naruto couldn't believe that he was finally going on a real mission. He was still young, and had no idea that a C-rank was not much for high level ninja. All he knew was that he was going on a mission, outside his base. He would be protecting the client with his awesome skills. He was excitement personified right now. By now, he had checked his equipment three times, cleaned the Deshi no ken, strapped it to his back and was pacing at the meeting place. Beside him, on the rails of the bridge, Haku sat and watched him.

"Don't tire yourself out before we move out, Naruto-kun. Conserve your energy." The boy smiled as he spoke. Naruto turned to him and grinned. "I can't. I'm too excited. This is my first real mission, dattebayo." He stopped pacing for a few seconds. "No way I can sit still." He started pacing again. "How long before sensei comes back?" he asked Haku.

Haku glanced at the other end of the bridge. "Any time now. He has gone to pick the client up." Haku glanced at the boy again. "You remember what Zabuza-sama told you ,right?"

"Yeah." Naruto nodded. "We're going to be travelling on foot as the client is an ordinary civilian. We'll travel in a single file, with you at the front, me in the middle with the client and sensei taking the back."

Haku nodded. "And what else?" he asked.

Naruto stopped to remember. His face scrunched as he tried to remember. "That if we do get attacked, I'm not supposed to rush in. I must always stay with the client, protecting him." He recited.

Haku nodded. Naruto held up his hand. "Wait, there was more." He bit his lip trying to remember. Finally he sighed and his shoulder sagged. "I don't remember."

Haku smiled at his friend's antics. "You are not to make loud noises or laugh loudly or yell at the client." Haku reminded him. Naruto's eyes widened as he remembered. He punched his palm with the other fist. "Now I remember." He glanced at Haku, who was looking very amused. "Heh heh heh… thanks."

Haku was amused at the blonde's behavior. He had gone on enough missions with Zabuza to know that the mission would be a slow, boring journey to their destination. If everything went well, the most that could happen was they run into bandits. If that happened, Naruto may get a chance to fight, otherwise this would be a regular mission. Haku himself had never done an escort mission. He usually assisted Zabuza in missions like assassinations or stealing something by acting either as a distraction or backup. He didn't tell the blonde that as it would only cause Naruto to feel deflated. So, for now, he just chose to stay silent, smiling. Naruto always managed to make him smile.

Haku nodded. Then he felt Zabuza-sama's presence approaching. He turned to see Zabuza-sama and a seedy looking guy with a large bag pack walking towards them. "They're here." He informed his teammate.

Naruto turned swiftly and grinned at the approaching men. The client was a little thrown off by the two boys. He turned Zabuza. "Will these children be enough?" Zabuza merely glanced at the man and he shut up, apologizing .

"Are you ready?" Zabuza asked his students. "Hell Yeah!" Naruto threw his fist into the air. Zabuza smirked. "Let's go then." Haku nodded and took the forward position. Naruto slid right next to the client. Zabuza passed an eye over their surroundings.

They began walking.

As they walked, Naruto talked with their client. Initially, the client was too scared of Zabuza to properly talk, other than a 'yes' or a 'no' and a few 'Hmmm' but as time passed on, Naruto's curiosity about the items the client had with him managed to open the man up. It was easy to see that the client was an enthusiast when it came to his items. He not only sold them, but took great joy in hunting them down.

Naruto, on the other hand was very interested in these relics of the great men of the past. Their client was also enjoying talking about his passion. By the second day of their trip, the client even began showing the items to Naruto.

"And THIS," the client, whose name was Kou, whipped out a small bottle, filled with a crimson liquid. "Is a vial of blood of Murai Hansou, Second leader of the Kusagakure no sato."

Naruto watched wide eyed. "Woah!" He reached out to touch the bottle but Kou pulled it back.

"No touching. This a very rare item."

Naruto nodded. Then he looked a little curious. "How did you get it?" Kou laughed. "I found it during my travels, when the Goddess of luck was smiling down upon me." He told Naruto. "I met an old drunkard outside a bar he had just been thrown out of for not having any money." Naruto listened. Zabuza and Haku listened as well. "He was shouting about how they couldn't do this to him as he was the bodyguard of the late Murai. Nobody believed him so he took out this bottle." Kou patted the bulge in his cloak pocket. "I found it interesting and Bought it for the price of ten bottles of sake."

Naruto regarded the man with confusion. "How did you know it was the real deal?" but Kou laughed. "Back then, I didn't. I bought it because the price was easily affordable."

He glanced down next to him at Naruto. "That's how it is, boy. Sometimes I win, sometimes I lose. I later had it tested and it was the real thing."

"Ano se, do you have anything from Konoha?" Naruto asked, interested. Kou nodded.

"I do." He shifted his bag to his front and opened its many pockets. "Many things. I'll show you one of the prize pieces of my collection." He rummaged in it for a few minutes. "Here it is." He pulled out a small rectangular box. He opened it show Naruto its contents. "It is the Kunai used by the Yondaime Hokage."

Naruto's eyes widened as his gaze fell upon the three pronged Kunai resting on the soft material. "I tried to sell it many times but people don't want to buy this."

Naruto's gaze jerked up. "Why not?"

Kou sighed. "People are still afraid. Apparently someone else also found some of these and sold them to different people. One of them bragged about it in public, wielding it like a toy. Konoha didn't like that. Within the week all of the buyers ended up dead, along with the man who sold it, their throats slit. Ever since then, no one wants this little piece."

"I'll buy it." Naruto said, eyeing the shiny weapon with reverence. This was once a Hokage's weapon. To top it off, his favorite Hokage's weapon. He yearned for it, like his soul was reaching out for it.

Kou laughed. "Can you meet my price?"

Naruto shrugged as he took his eyes off the Kunai. "you just said that no one wants to buy it, and if Konoha got wind that you were trying to sell it, they won't be pleased."

Zabuza grinned as the boy bargained like a pro. "I will never let anyone know who sold it to me." The blonde pointed out.

Kou still had reservations. "But this way, you'll never end up selling it." Naruto pushed the man a little further. Kou sighed and gave in. "Fine." He glanced back at Zabuza, "I'll give it to you if you reduce your fee to sixteen percent." Zabuza narrowed his eyes. Ku gulped. "Seventeen?" Zabuza growled. "Eighteen?" Kou seemed to shrink a little. Zabuza nodded.

"YAY!" Naruto jumped as he claimed the box and its contents as his own. "Oye brat." Zabuza growled. "I thought I told you. No yelling." Zabuza looked around alert. "We are nearing the water country border. Keep it quiet from here onwards." He had a bad feeling.

"Sorry." Naruto grinned. The blonde turned to the client. "So, you have anything from Uzushiogakure no sato?" he asked, a gleam in his eyes.

Twenty minutes later, Naruto was the proud owner of an Uzushiogakure metal protector plate of a hitai-ate. There had been no cloth attached to it or Naruto would have worn that right then and there. Also, there was a torn glove with a metal bracer with the clan symbol on it and a metal amulet of the Uzumaki symbol that now hung around his neck. However, his prize jewel was a small storage scroll, now safely in his ninja pouch, that held a very large scroll, in fact, the largest he had seen. It was the family tree of his ancestors. Kou was also satisfied. He had managed to reduce the fee to fourteen percent because those three items had been all he had of the fallen village and hence, very rare. Zabuza hadn't really minded as he hadn't taken this mission for the pay, but rather to give his disciple the experience of a real mission.

Haku was smiling at his friend's happiness at finding some connection to his ancestors when he first sensed something was wrong.

They were walking pretty close to the coastline, the sea visible from here and because of that, plenty of sea gulls were flying overhead. Suddenly, there were a lot less as most of them flew away. His hand flew towards his senbon.

Instantly, Zabuza-sama was at his side, barking orders to Naruto as a hail of kunai flew towards them. Zabuza swung Kubikiribōchō to deflect most of them while Haku dealt with the rest. Zabuza watched with narrowed eyes as their attackers appeared around them.

Ninja wearing white masks, decorated with swirls and other shapes. What really caught attention was the markings on their forehead.

Hidden Mist Hunters. Zabuza cursed.

There were six of them. Two teams Zabuza saw. Zabuza tried to discern whether he knew anyone among them. He watched as the hunters took positions.

Textbook containment formation, he observed. As far as he could see, there was no one from his time in the SMOG, (Special Missions and Operations Group.)kiri's version of special forces, like Konoha's ANBU. This was both a good and a bad thing. Good, because back then the members had been very strong. The newer generation of Kiri shinobi under the rule of Yagura were less disciplined, growing in a volatile environment where everyone was jumpy.

Simultaneously, it was bad as he had no idea of their skills. All said and done, you didn't rise to SMOG unless you were an accomplished jounin, which meant that he was facing six unknown variables. Haku could probably take one of them and keep him busy until Zabuza took care of three or if he tried really hard, four. That still left one hunter. Naruto was in no condition to handle Hunters yet.

Haku backed up next to him, covering the client and Naruto from another side. The leader of the Hunter nin group chuckled. "Well well. None of us woke up today with the feeling that we would be returning to our village as heroes today."

The mask hid the man's face but couldn't hide the smugness that oozed out of the ninja. "After we kill you here, we will be rewarded by Yagura-sama with untold riches."

"Like that's going to happen." Naruto gave the hunters the finger.

The leader laughed along with a few others. "Mouthy little brat, aren't you?" the man sneered. "I'll let this slide brat, since you're the one that helped us find this traitor." He jerked his thumb towards Zabuza. "Your piss poor orange excuse for clothes acted like a beacon for our scout. He," the man motioned towards another masked ninja, "became curious and decided to check your group out and what he saw made our day."

Naruto's eyes widened as he heard this. It's my fault.

"It's not your fault." Zabuza said, as if he could hear Naruto's thoughts. "We are nukenin, boy. Every day has a chance that we run into these fools." He grinned. Even if his face was hidden behind the bandages, it was still a very frightening sight.

A slight chill descended upon the clearing and all Hunter nin who had been standing confidently suddenly became very alert. Naruto watched, awed. In all his time with Zabuza, he had never seen Zabuza-sansei emit such a dense wave of Killing intent. Even his knees were shaking, even though he knew that he was in no danger from the man. Naruto wondered what the Hunters were feeling.

"Draw weapons. Stay alert." The leader of the Hunters commanded his men to draw weapons as he himself unsheathed his katana from his back. Unlike before, his voice wasn't glib, but tense.

"Brat." Zabuza called out. "When it begins, your job is to protect the client, understand?" Naruto nodded. "Use your favorite jutsu to create a confusion." , he commanded, referring to Kage Bunshin. "Use that to lose yourself and the client in the confusion. Get it?" Zabuza instructed, not taking his eyes away from his opponents. He would have to ensure that none of them went after the boy.

Naruto grinned as he understood. He withdrew all chakra from his weight bands to remove the excess weights. Then, he brought his hands together in a cross shaped seal and the hunters stiffened. Naruto gave them all a huge grin and mumbled. "Tajuu Kage Bunshin no jutsu." Instantly, the whole area was filled with hundreds and hundreds of Orange clad ninja wielding swords. Half of them formed the Ram seal. "HENGE!" they yelled. In another burst of smoke, they turned into perfect copies of their client. A few of the hunters thought this was an illusion and tried to dispel it, without any success. With a loud war cry, all the clones rushed madly about, zigzagging everywhere.

Zabuza and Haku used this opportunity to begin their own attacks. The hunters realized that the battle had begun and started fighting as well. In this confusion, around a hundred clones ran away, the originals mixed somewhere in them.

"One of you follow them." The leader ordered, parrying a nasty slash from Zabuza. Zabuza tried to stop the hunter but two more attacked him from behind and he had to dodge. Over his shoulder, he saw that Haku was trying to defend against his opponent. Satisfied, he attacked his own opponents to push them back.

Right now, the contest was more of swordsmanship rather than a jutsu battle. While the hunters were quite proficient with their swords, they had nothing on one of the Seven Swordsmen of the Mist. Steel met steel as all of them lunged, feinted and slashed.

Every time, Zabuza managed to block and attack them at the same time. It became apparent who was the better swordsman among them. Zabuza slashed one hunter and managed to connect. Blood splashed as Kubikiribōchō left a deep gash in the man's side.

All hunters jumped back. In a pre-determined combination, they launched their ninjutsu at the nukenin. Zabuza leapt away.

Meanwhile, Haku was slowly getting pushed back. He could have managed to defend against a single hunter but two were just too strong for him. He was currently trying very hard to dodge both of them as they attacked in formation. Haku threw senbon, trying to hit pressure points to hinder their mobility but the hunters were too fast. They wove in and out, attacking him from different sides, cornering him between them.

Lucky for him, they had decided that the many orange wearing clones, running around them, yelling like mad men were just for distraction.

Boy, were they wrong.

The clones noticed that Haku was in trouble. All of them who were disguised dropped their henge, grabbing their swords. The hunters found themselves being swarmed by hundreds of clones trying to cut them in half. The clones didn't attack them directly, instead, they started dashing in and out of the sword range of the hunters, using hit and run tactics. The clones were fast enough to dodge sword slashes as they never stayed too close to the hunters for long, causing confusion.

In that confusion, Haku henged into Naruto as well. Suddenly, there was no sign of the ice user. However, ice spikes attacked them from below. They jumped up to avoid them, only to find clones already in the air, swinging their swords at the incoming hunters. They used jutsu to save themselves.

As water bullets flew through the air, many clones poofed out of existence. The bullets couldn't take out all of them, some clones managed to nick the hunters. Twenty more clones jumped up to replace the ones that dispelled. This time, the hunters didn't underestimate them. They brought out the big guns. One of them made the hand seals and a Huge water dragon missile rose from the sea and swept them aside.

Zabuza glanced at the boys for a millisecond, but in that millisecond, one of the hunters managed to hit him with a smaller water dragon.

Shit. He cursed.

Even with five of them here, one Hunter had gone after Naruto. I hope you had the sense to keep running, brat….. Zabuza thought as he re-doubled his attacks.

The hunter that was following Naruto cursed as his Kunai dispelled another clone. This was the twentieth clone he had killed. To make matters worse, all the retreating clones had used the Kirigakure no jutsu. He had no visibility and was completely relying on the use of his other senses. As a result, the small task of tracking one small brat was starting to get rather difficult. He didn't even know whether he was going in the right direction. He was still jumping from a rock back to the ground when he heard someone yelling that they were going to die. He stopped to listen. It wasn't the brat's voice. The client, then. Up until now, whenever he had come across the clones, the client had also been a clone and thus, quiet and calm. Behind his mask, the hunter grinned It seems that their client is a coward…. He made his way towards the sound.

As he reached them, he attacked with his sword. Naruto spun quickly as he sensed the enemy closing in on his position. Zabuza sensei had upped his silent killing and Kenjutsu training after Itachi and Kisame had left, saying that Naruto was first and foremost his disciple and hence needed to practice what he taught before other jutsu. Right now, Naruto was grateful for that as he blocked the incoming sword with his own.

Too strong. Naruto jumped back. He cursed. I can't defend against his strength. He glanced at the hunter as he jumped towards the masked ninja. I can manage if I'm the one attacking.

Naruto dodged the incoming slash as he ducked low and spun, just like he had been trained by Zabuza. Using the force of his spin, he slashed at his opponent, forcing the hunter to jump back. Naruto didn't give the hunter any time to rest or think. He jumped right back at his opponent, forcing him back. He knew that Deshi no ken was heavier and hence would make a larger impact even if the man parried the sword strikes. Maybe, if the hunter was careless enough, or if he underestimated the blonde, Naruto could dish out a crippling wound.

The hunter cursed as he parried the continuous attacks from the boy. He had not expected his opponent to be skilled. He had underestimated the boy because of his size. Now, the small size was working against him.

He pulled his leg back as the little devil slashed at it. Because the boy was so small, he was slipping inside the defense the hunter was putting up. Sparks flew as the two swords came in contact again.

"Eat this." the hunter yelled and slashed, but in vain.

The blonde somersaulted back into the air and swung his sword while upside down in the air. The hunter leaned back and kicked the boy in the face. He felt a satisfying crunch as blood erupted from the blonde's nose.

"AAArrghhh!" Naruto yelled out as he slid back onto the ground. "That hurt, damn it!" He yelled at his opponent. He winced as his nose throbbed in pain. The hunter stopped to look at him.

"You know, you would have become quite good if you had more time." He remarked in an condescending tone. "Too bad that will never happen."

He charged at Naruto, his sword tight in his grip. Fast as a blur, he appeared behind Naruto and slid his blade into the blonde's back. The blonde yelled out, blood spurting from the wound, only to suddenly be replaced by a log of wood. Behind the mask, the hunter's eyes widened.

Kawarimi? He sensed a presence behind him and spun around. Naruto rammed feet first into the Hunter's mask.

"Hah! Take that." Naruto yelled as the hunter slid back, his mask cracked at the point of impact. Naruto was sure the hunter's nose must also be bleeding. Naruto touched the ground and entered a defensive stance. The hunter's hand went towards his face, still covered by the mask, so he couldn't touch his injured nose. He glared at Naruto and Naruto gave him a feral grin. Naruto's blue eyes burned into the hunter's as he gave the hunter the finger. " I don't think you would have been any better even if you had more time. You suck, dattebayo!"

"You little piece of shit." The hunter growled. "That's it. I was playing with you till now. But no more." The hunter straightened and sheathed his katana. Naruto tensed a little. He wasn't sure how he would do in a ninjutsu battle. He only knew a few jutsu. He jumped back as the hunter began forming seals. "Suiton: Water dragon missile." The hunter yelled. Over the rocks near the sea, a dragon rose and roared as it rushed towards Naruto.

Crap. Naruto cursed as he saw that if he dodged, Kou-san would get it.

The client had crawled to a large boulder and was hiding near it. No choice. Naruto made the cross seal. "Kage bunshin no jutsu." Instantly, clones appeared in front of him and braced each other. As the water dragon hit them, the clones in the front dispelled. The force of the attack also drew them back, but all of the Narutos dug their heels into the ground to stand their ground. They managed to stop the attack, but they did lose their footing and were thrown back. This is bad. Naruto wheezed as he stood up after being washed away. All the remaining clones rushed at the hunter, swinging their swords. Even though they were complimenting each other's attacks like taught by Itachi, the clones couldn't land a hit.

Naruto decided to change tactics. He took out his shuriken. Next to him, his clones seemed to understand as well. The took out their shuriken as well.

"Let's see you dodge this." Naruto taunted as he threw the pointed stars. He made a quick series of hand seals. "KAGE SHURIKEN JUTSU!" he yelled. All his clones imitated his actions. In a flash, a literal rain of steel fell on the Hunter.

Cursing, the hunter made hand seals of his own. "Suiton: Suijinheki." He said and the water around them rose to make a protective wall. The water stopped most of the shuriken aimed at the man.

As Naruto tried to think of a plan, the hunter burst out from behind the water, running at him too quickly for Naruto's liking. Naruto knew that he wasn't fast like Haku or Zabuza, but the speed with which the hunter appeared next to him and dealt a hard punch to his jaw, he was just about to curse about the unfairness of it all.

Naruto stood up, his hand on his jaw. His eyes narrowed with calculation. It seems the hunter hadn't been bragging when he said he was playing up till now. Naruto cursed. His opponent was an elite, after all, while he was a beginner.

Still, he didn't let himself get down. He was Uzumaki Naruto, dammit.

Naruto smiled as he thought of a plan. He made three new clones. They nodded to their creator and ran at their opponent. Unlike their other counterparts, they weren't swinging swords. This allowed them to go faster. The Hunter smirked as he saw three clones trying to engage him in Hand to Hand combat.

He is a fool if he thinks he can take me with his bare hands. He immediately started attacking them. As he threw a punch, he expected the clone to duck and then was planning on kneeing the brat in the face. Instead, the clone smiled and said, "Boom."

The hunter yelled as his hand got caught in the explosion as the clone performed his jutsu. A few clones also dispelled from the force. He was about to jump back when he felt another clone latch himself on his leg. The hunter felt a stab of fear as that clone smiled too. The Hunter reached for his Katana, using his remaining good hand but instead felt another clone jump on his shoulders.

"Bye-Bye shinobi-san.", the second one said and waved.

"Wait, no don't –"

The blast forced Naruto to cover his eyes to keep the dust away as the sound of the explosion reverberated in the air. He relaxed and turned to Kou who was sighing in relief. Naruto grinned. "See, Kou-san. I told you I'd protect you."

"Is that so?"

A voice asked from behind Naruto. Naruto spun around but the owner of the voice was quicker.

"Suiton: Suirō no Jutsu." Water that was in the ground, brought by the large water dragon, rushed at Naruto and began to envelop him in a sphere. Naruto cursed for letting himself getting caught in the water prison.

He took a deep breath as the water sphere covered him from all sides. Naruto glared at the user.

The user of the jutsu glanced at the broken form of his team member on the ground. "Damn. You took his head off." He observed. He looked down into the sphere at an angry Naruto who was glaring daggers at him. "I was waiting in the shadows, enjoying the show. When I came here, I didn't think you would actually be able to do anything." Naruto kept glaring. The newcomer sighed. "I guess I was wrong." He glanced at the body of the dead ninja again. "He should have been more careful."

A small bubble escaped from Naruto's nostril. The hunter smirked behind his mask. "Still, for a brat like you to take a SMOG down, you're good kid." The hunter glanced at Kou, who was watching wide-eyed. "I have nothing against that man. We are only here for the traitor and his followers." Naruto glanced at Kou and an expression of relief crossed his features. "BUT," the hunter continued, cruelly. "You killed my friend. It is only fair I kill yours."

Naruto's eyes widened as he shook his head. Kou started shaking as the hunter turned towards the man. Huge bubbles came out from Naruto's mouth as he yelled. The hunter brought his free hand behind his ear.

"What are you saying, kid? I can't hear you." He said in a pseudo-polite voice. "HAHAHAHA…." He laughed as Naruto looked at Kou in panic, willing for him to run, knowing that the hunter couldn't follow him as he had to maintain the water prison with one of his hands. Naruto tried to bring his hands together to form a seal but the dense water didn't allow him any movement in his arms. He watched in horror as the hunter withdrew a Kunai from his holster. Naruto tried to scream at the man to run. Only bubbles came out again.

The hunter tilted his head a little and looked at Kou. It was a very eerie sight, a expressionless mask peering straight into the eyes of a man scared to the point of immobility. Naruto fought tears as he watched the hunter flick the Kunai at Kou- san. Kou didn't even had time to react. The Kunai buried itself deep between Kou's eyebrows. Kou's body swayed for a moment and dropped to the ground in a lifeless heap.

NO! Naruto yelled in his mind as he watched the man he was supposed to protect die right before his eyes. His eyes widened in rage. The hunter nin laughed at the boy's reaction. He glanced down at the boy, taking joy in the boy's helpless rage. He stopped laughing and stared at the boy.

I could have sworn his eye turned red for a moment… he thought as he peered closely.

But when Naruto turned to glare at him, his eyes dancing with rage, the boy's eyes were as blue as the sea. Maybe a trick of light. The ninja decided. The hunter grinned at the boy. "You know, you have around a few more minutes before you drown in there." He cackled sadistically as the boy struggled inside the water sphere. Let's have some fun with you…. The hunter planned to completely destroy the boy before he drowned. Behind his mask, the hunter smirked and cast a genjutsu.

Naruto was seething inside the water sphere, trying his best to get away. He had read in his scroll on chakra after Haku had returned it that it was possible to get a boost by layering chakra over his muscles. He needed to focus for that. He was so angry that he was digging his teeth into his lips to focus himself. He wanted to kill this hunter, even if it was the last thing he did. As he was cursing at the hunter in his mind, he saw three more hunters appear. All of them looked a little beat up. His eyes widened in disbelief as he saw what they were carrying. Over their shoulder, two of them had Zabuza sensei and Haku, their hands bound. No, sensei. Haku. Naruto tried his best, using all his strength to try and crawl out of the sphere.

The hunter who had him captive grinned at him. "Heh Heh…. Looks like we got them, eh brat?" the hunter taunted the blonde. Naruto used chakra, straining his muscles to breaking point to escape. I have to get out of here by any means. I have to save my precious people.

"Hnnnn…" Naruto used every last bit of chakra he had to reinforce his muscles. The veins in his arms and neck protruded out as he struggled against the water prison. The hunters all laughed. "It's pointless brat. You can't escape." He signaled to the other newcomers.

The other hunters threw their captives down. Naruto watched in horror as he struggled as they pulled his teacher and friend to their knees. Two hunters took position behind them, their swords raised. The hunter next to him cackled again. "Say goodbye to them kid."

Inside the water prison, Naruto's skin started to tear along his arms as Naruto overloaded his muscles with chakra. "NOOO!" Naruto yelled as the swords descended. For Naruto, it seemed that the swords took almost an eternity to fall. Blood sprayed out from the wounds on Zabuza's neck as he slumped to the ground. Right beside him, Haku slid to the floor as well, blood pouring out from his mouth.

Deep inside Naruto's mind, in a dark cage, located in a sewer, two large eyes opened and a large feral grin shone in the dark.

Zabuza was dispatching the last of the hunters when he felt it. The foulest chakra he had ever felt. Haku, clutching his injured arm as he rested against a rock, shuddered as the powerful feeling engulfed him. Even the hunter nin felt his hair rising on his neck, his primitive instincts kicking in. Zabuza wasted no time and he cut his last opponent down, taking advantage of his carelessness.

"What is that, Zabuza sama?" Haku asked as he heaved himself up from the ground. Zabuza frowned as he glanced in the direction this ominous feeling was coming from. "I don't know."

The hunter who had Naruto in a water prison watched with wide eyes as red chakra started oozing out of the boy, slowly wrapping him inside it. The boy's eyes had closed. He watched in horror as the marks on the boy's face started to get wider, more pronounced. slowly the red chakra started compressing around him. Then, without any warning, it exploded outwards in a large pulse, destroying the water prison. The blonde opened his eyes and the hunter gasped. The boy's eyes were red, with slits as pupils. He stood intimidated as the blonde roared. The red chakra spiraled towards the sky as a very foul chakra rained down on his senses. The hunter tried to bolt but fear paralyzed him. The hunter had no choice but to watch in rising terror as the red chakra formed a huge fox head in the sky. The hunter felt his heart stop as the blonde lunged at him

Zabuza and Haku raced to the spot from where the heavy chakra was coming. A large burst of chakra erupted And they had to shield their eyes with their arms. Both ninja ran quickly, worried for the blonde.

I hope it isn't what I think it is... Zabuza thought as he ran.

"Zabuza sama, look." Haku pointed to the sky. Zabuza followed Haku's finger and his eyes widened at the sight that met his eyes. A large chakra manifestation swayed in the sky. The manifestation was in the form of a red Fox head.

Damn it. Zabuza cursed. It looks like the beast is awakening.

"Haku." Zabuza called his follower's attention. Haku shifted an alert pair of eyes to the man. "If it looks like that the brat is out of control, don't go near him. An enraged jinchuuriki is very unpredictable. He may kill you as easily as those he is angry at." Zabuza warned the ice user. Haku nodded. Both of them steeled themselves and sped up.

As they reached the spot, the first thing that came to Zabuza's mind was Holy – .

Haku was also visibly disturbed.

Naruto, covered in a coat of red chakra and blood, was sitting on the chest of a hunter who was obviously dead, if the gaping hole where his heart should have been was any indication.

To complete the horrible picture, Naruto held the above mentioned organ in his hand and was attempting to ram it down the, now unmasked, dead ninja's throat. When that did not go as he planned. He threw the heart away and began slashing at the corpse of his enemy, using his claws. The younger ninja was about to go to his friend but the mist nukenin stopped him, barring his path by raising an arm.

"Let him calm down a bit."

Haku nodded and clenched his fist. Naruto-kun….

He watched as mist of red flew from the dead hunters chest as the claws tore him open. The air was soon filled with the metallic smell of blood. Haku and Zabuza waited from a distance as Naruto kept slashing until the corpse was not even recognizable anymore. Then, he stopped and let out a loud roar, looking at the sky. Zabuza tensed as a large pulse of chakra burst forth from the blonde. He and Haku readied themselves for action, but as soon as he stopped roaring, the chakra around Naruto vanished and the blonde slumped forward, unconscious.

Haku and Zabuza waited for a few seconds before rushing to the boy. As Haku searched for Kou, Zabuza turned Naruto over onto his back and began diagnosing him for any wounds. He couldn't find any. He was puzzled. If Naruto wasn't badly wounded, why did he lose control?

"Zabuza-sama." Haku called out from next to a big boulder. Zabuza walked over and saw Kou's lifeless body on the ground, a kunai lodged between his eyes. Zabuza glanced at the unconscious form of his disciple.

He understood now. The client getting killed in front of his eyes would have done it….He nodded to Haku and the boy took out a scroll. Haku unrolled the scroll and used it to store Kou's body and his belongings. Zabuza walked back to Naruto and tried to wake him. He prodded, poked and slapped the boy, but to no avail. To check, Zabuza slid the blonde's eyelids open. His eyes met Naruto's, but instead of the blue he was accustomed to, Zabuza was staring into red, slitted eyes.

The rocky hills were a shortcut between the land of water and wind country, where the mist group was currently staying. As the path didn't have many wide passages, it was not favored by civilians. Shinobi, however, found this stretch of land a nice time saver. Hence, the sight of shinobi jumping over the rocks was not out of place.

The small group of two, with the blonde on Zabuza's back, raced towards their destination. It had been almost seven hours since they began their journey. Both were getting a little worried. After all this time, Naruto hadn't even moved a single muscle. This was very different from their earlier experiences. Naruto always managed to come around in a few hours, no matter how bad the injury.

The blonde was sweating like crazy as well. They kept running for another two hours until they reached the base hidden in the sands of the dessert. The other members were surprised to see them return so early.

Zabuza's gruff grunt of "Hunters" received some understanding nods. Even the other members were surprised to learn that Naruto hadn't woken in nine hours.

Zabuza took Naruto to his room and lay him down on the bed. He and Haku tried every medicine known to them to try and revive the boy, but to no avail. Zabuza was still debating on what to do when he sensed movement in the halls. He peeped outside and saw one of his men running towards him.

"Zabuza-sama." The ninja bowed, "Hoshigaki Kisame and a companion have arrived to meet you." Zabuza nodded as the ninja withdrew. He walked outside and found Kisame and Itachi standing outside the base. He gestured them to follow him and they did.

"How is the brat?" Kisame grinned. Itachi was curious to see Naruto's growth as well. Zabuza's silence and tense demeanor alerted both nukenin that something was amiss.

"What happened?" Itachi asked, worrying inwardly, as they walked into Naruto's room and saw his lying in bed, sweating.

"We were on a mission." Zabuza began as Haku stood up to acknowledge the newcomers. He glanced down at his disciple. "We were ambushed by two teams of Kiri Hunter nin."

Kisame and Itachi listened attentively. They glanced at Zabuza and Haku. Kisame noticed that Haku's arm was in a sling.

Zabuza growled. "One of them went after Naruto, who had run off with the client to keep him out of danger." He glanced at Haku. "One of the hunters who was fighting Haku also followed after a while. We finished up our fight and were about to follow when we felt a burst of potent chakra." He glanced at Itachi whose eyes widened for the tiniest of moments.

It seems he understands Zabuza thought and continued. "We reached him to find both Hunters dead just as he collapsed as well." Itachi moved up to Naruto and took his pulse. Zabuza watched. "As our client was dead, we returned here, but he hasn't come around since then."

Itachi turned and glanced at Zabuza. "How long ago was that?"

Zabuza gritted his teeth. "Almost nine hours ago." Itachi stiffened as he heard the mist nukenin's reply. All of them present there knew that Naruto recovered from almost everything in that duration. Itachi saw Zabuza discreetly looking at him. Once Zabuza saw that he was watching him, Zabuza shifted his gaze and looked pointedly at Naruto's closed eyes. Kisame was standing behind the both men, so he didn't see any of this.

Itachi turned to look at the blonde. On the pretext of putting his hand on Naruto's forehead, Itachi discreetly lifted one of the blonde's closed eyelids. He watched in shock as the eyes that were normally blue, were red with slits for irises. He let the eyelid go and it closed on the boy's eyes.

This is bad. Itachi decided. He glanced back at his partner. Kisame doesn't know about Naruto's situation. I can't try my method with him here. He glanced at Zabuza and a silent conversation ensued. In the end, Zabuza turned and Beckoned Kisame, taking his sword off his back. "Come outside. I need to get my mind off this." Kisame nodded and after a glance at the blonde, followed his fellow swordsman outside.

As soon as they left, Itachi called Haku to his side. Haku hurried forward. "I need you to assist me, Haku-kun." Itachi rolled his cloak off his shoulders. Haku nodded and waited for instructions. "I need you to keep Naruto's eyes open." Itachi activated his sharingan as the Ice user performed his task. Itachi gazed into the blonde's unconscious eyes and started his jutsu.

A/N:

All in all, I'm pretty pleased with the first mission. It had all the good ingredients in it. A little bit of humor, some action, some tragedy and a whole lot of cliffhanger possibilities... heheh *Evil grin*

The story will now pick up it's pace. More danger, more friends, more Naruto-ness.

Once again. Reviews make me write... so they are always welcome.