Chapter 20

It's Rough

It was simple. They did say that the best plans were the ones that were the most simple, less chance of error.

Sarutobi's aged, yet keen, eyes inspected the impassive face of the silver haired Jonin slouching before him. He took his time putting more tobacco in his pipe. Once it was re-lit and firmly in his mouth, he said, "Are you clear on what you have to do Kakashi?"

"Yes, sir. I'll go inform him." With a bright flash, the one-eyed shinobi disappeared from the private office of the Hokage and re-appeared before an expectant blond boy.

Unable to contain his anxiousness, Naruto launched into a series of questions upon his arrival.

"What did the old man say? Are we gonna go catch him?"

Raising his gloved hands in a placating manner, Kakashi waited until the blond settled down enough for him to begin his explanation.

"The Hokage decided to lay out a plan to catch your so-called instructor red handed so to speak." Seeing the blond nod in understanding, Kakashi continued, "I'm to go disguised as you to carry out what Mizuki told you, but instead of taking the actual scroll I'll take a fake replication of it."

Again, he waited until he saw the nod of blond hair before finishing, "From there, I'll need for you to point out the exact location Mizuki is expecting you with the scroll on this map." He pulled out a rolled up parchment with the lay out of Konoha and memorized the location in which Naruto indicated was the meeting point.

"Finally, once he shows up, I'll try and weasel out of him whatever I can about his true purpose by any means necessary." Kakashi was about to say more, but was surprised to see the look of absolute relief on the blond's whiskered face.

Naruto saw the look of surprise on the Jonin's masked face. He realized what probably caused it and blushed slightly before admitting, "I guess I'm just glad that I won't have to face him and that the old man believed me."

Understanding the situation now, Kakashi placed a gentle hand on the blond's mop of hair.

"There's no shame in not wishing to harm a fellow leaf shinobi, yet if the need arises like it does now. Then we must do what has to be done for the safety of our village."

There was something in his voice Naruto could not identify. He sounded almost as if he had resigned himself to something, yet the blond wasn't so sure Kakashi was talking about the traitor anymore. Unsure how to properly respond, the whiskered boy nodded slowly.

Shaking himself out of his melancholy, Kakashi created a Shadow Clone.

Confused by the sudden appearance of the Jonin's clone, Naruto gazed up with a questioning look towards the tall man.

"My clone will take you to the estate. You are to wait there with Gaara until I return. Can I trust you to remain there and wait for me?"

The blond took a deep breath. "Yeah, I can do that."

Kakashi smiled gently at the sullen looking whiskered cheeked boy. "Don't look so down. After this is done, we're getting ramen aren't we?"

Naruto's eyes brightened immediately with renewed excitement. "Hell yeah!"

The silver haired Jonin looked at the boy humorously, "Alright, I'll see you back home."

A puff of smoke and in the room stood two identical blond haired twelve year old boys.

Seeing his doppelganger brought a smirk to the original whiskered pre-teen's face.

"Man, do I always look this good?"

"No, not really. Today is actually quite a surprise," said Kakashi flatly.

Naruto shot a simmering glare directed toward his smug looking copy.

The annoyed blond scratched his chin and muttered a string of curses. "Whatever, lets go already." He grumbled at the silver headed shadow clone.

A flash of bright silver and yellow light announced his companions departure to the estate.

Kakashi chuckled at the young Namikaze's antics before jumping out the window, making sure that the so-called academy instructor watched as he moved in the direction of the Hokage Tower. Like a dog with a bone, the silver haired Chunnin followed after the disguised Kakashi. It was time to set this plan into motion

The alarm was called. Every able bodied Chunnin and Jonin was on the hunt for the renown blond haired prankster. One particular Chunnin, an academy instructor, was fervently searching for the so called thief.

"Naruto, where are you?" Iruka whispered harshly under his breath as he raced through the numerous treetops, the thick foliage which before had been a protective blessing was now a very frustrating roadblock in the search of his wayward student. If I had passed him, he wouldn't have felt the need to commit such an act.

A flash of yellow, a blurred movement, caught the distressed shinobi's attention.

He stopped on a tree branch, and squinted his eye's, filled with hope. His brown orbs had caught another flicker of movement, a small patch of color that stood from the surrounding nightscape.

He recognized the signature jacket and fell into chase after the fleeting blond haired figure.

Just as he was about to call out, he saw his student halt in the middle of a small clearing next to an old worn shack. Puzzled, Iruka perched himself on a higher limb and waited to see what the boy would do next.

A few minutes passed in complete silence, even the wildlife had fallen to stand still. No sound, no movements. It was as if the world was watching the blond boy who held in his hands a piece of parchment that could be his condemnation.

Iruka swore under his breath when he caught sight of the scroll. At first, when he heard the debriefing on the burglary, he was skeptical. Yet, now before him stood the very proof of the boys thievery. Naruto, what have you done?

Some more time passed, and Iruka was beginning to feel restless. What was the boy doing just standing there, almost as if he were waiting for someone... At that sudden thought, a cold chill gripped at his very core. Naruto, wouldn't do something like that... would he?

A rustle of foliage captured the attention of both student and teacher. Another figure appeared before the blond boy. A figure Iruka knew all too well. Mizuki? What's he doing here? I thought he was searching in the other area with his team?

Striving to be silent, the brown haired Chunnin strained his ears to hear what the man was saying to the blond. What he heard and saw shocked him.

Mizuki gestured for Naruto to hand over the scroll, which the boy did without hesitation, before asking, "Did anyone follow you here?"

"No, they didn't. Now can I be a ninja?" The Naruto disguised Kakashi responded readily, keeping in script of the situation. He had noticed Iruka long before the young man himself did, now it was time to put on a little show.

A cruel sneer appeared on the silver haired shinobi. "Oh, I'm sorry brat, but you won't be a ninja for a very long time. I mean, who would allow a demon such as yourself to defend the village he himself destroyed twelve years top of that, you just stole from the Hokage himself."

At the sudden declaration, Iruka jumped down and stood defensively in-front of the blond academy student.

"Mizuki? What do you think you're doing? That is an S-rank secret with the penalty of death. What are exactly are you plotting?" The scarred Chunnin demanded.

Neither Chunnin in their stare-down, noticed the calculative gaze of the blond boy behind them. Let's see if we can make this birdie sing.

Stepping out from behind the brown haired man, the blond raised a heated glare toward the silver headed man before him.

"What are you talking about Mizuki-sensei? You told me if I got you that scroll, that I'll be a ninja just like all my classmates."

Again that gruesome sneer appeared, "Yeah and just like a fool you believed me. Anyone with any brains would have seen through that ruse, but not you because you are a naive demon child. Didn't you ever once wonder why everyone in the village hated you?"

A chilling laugh escaped the insane looking shinobi, "Well, I'll tell you why. It's because you are the Kyuubi. The very beast that killed so many people and ruin the lives of many more. You even killed the Yondaime Hokage." Mizuki chuckled coldly. "That is why we all hate you. Even your precious Iruka-sensei here. Did you know that you also killed his parents? He was an orphan just like you because of you!"

The man was planning on continuing, but he never saw the kunai that tore through his right leg. In a cry of pain, the silver haired Chunnin fell down.

Frozen in shock, Iruka looked toward his side and saw the blond's arm extended.

With wide eyes, he saw as the blond stalked toward the bleeding shinobi, like a predator toward his prey. Shivers ran down his spine as he felt the traces of a lethal deadly intent in the air. Naruto?

"Why did you ask me to take that scroll then?" The blond boy asked. His voice calm and with no trace of any emotion. It was frightening.

Mizuki glanced at the boy towering over him with eyes of pain and confusion.

"W-What?"

Oceanic orbs narrowed and held a steel edge that had the traitor cower under his gaze.

"I will not repeat myself again. Why did you ask for the scroll?"

At hearing no response, he leaned closer and sneered, "You better answer or the next Kunai will hit a very vital male organ."

For the first time since being the whiskered boys presence, Mizuki felt fear. Utter, horrifying fear. The boy wouldn't, he couldn't... Right?

Not risking the chance, Mizuki spoke. "I was ordered to. That's all I'll say brat. Besides you won't be able to fend me off, if I do this to your precious teacher."

Mizuki threw several shuriken, aimed right towards the brown haired chunnin who in his shock failed to notice them in time and was only able to deter the paths of a few of them. Two still managed to tear into his arm.

Expecting the boy to rush toward his injured teacher, Mizuki tried to make a run for it. In his haste, he never saw the blond disappear in a flash of silver light until he reappeared before him and knocked him to the ground with a powerful punch to the face.

A steady stream of crimson fell from his broken nose. Trying to contain the bleeding, the Chunnin held his battered nose and glared hatefully at the blond standing before him.

"You've gotten faster brat, I'll give you that. But you are no match for a Chunnin!"

Again, the man hurled two kunai in his direction, but the Naruto disguised Kakashi dodged them with ease. It was child's play.

"A normal academy student or even a Genin wouldn't be a match for a Chunnin, but Naruto is more than enough to take care of someone like you. However, he isn't here at the moment and so that duty falls to me." The blond began to explain to the confused shinobi.

Breaking the henge in a cloud of white smoke, a tall, imposing figure was revealed from the dissipating smoke. It was an infamous figure. One Mizuki knew all too well.

"Kakashi Hatake?"

A humorless eye-smile failed to betrayed the rage inside the Jonin. "Hello, Mizuki-sensei. That is what Naruto called you wasn't it?"

Seeing the alarm and fear in his fellow silver head's eyes, Kakashi stepped closer to the injured man. "You should have picked an idiot to do this job. Naruto indeed did see right through your ruse. He went immediately to the Hokage and informed him of your little deeds. Your actions have condemned you to imprisonment and execution. You revealed an S-ranked secret that was punishable by death and plotted in the robbery of the Scroll of Seals."

A dark orb narrowed in morbid delight, "Plus, there is reason to suspect you are a traitor to the village." Mizuki was stunned. The brat had ratted him out. But when did he? He had personally followed him to his apartment. He never once saw him leave until he headed for the Hokage Tower. Was it then? Must have been. I'll get you for this demon brat. This isn't the last you'll hear of me!

"Take him to Ibiki. It's time for this little birdie to sing."

At the Jonin's command, four ANBU fell from the treetops and surrounded the down Chunnin, who at their sudden appearance tried desperately to get away when wooden binds held him to the ground.

"Even if you had somehow managed to escape me, which you wouldn't have had any chance of doing so, these ANBU have been following us since we left the Hokage Tower. There was never a chance of escape." Kakashi enlightened the stone-shocked shinobi held to the ground by a tree root.

Mizuki was tied and knocked out by a swift hit to the back of his neck, courtesy of Kakashi. Once the ANBU disappeared once again into the night with their prisoner, the silver haired Jonin turned to his side and smiled towards the frozen brown haired Chunnin.

"You should go get yourself taken care of. Those wounds need to be treated." He advised the man before bounding away in the direction of the village.

When he could no longer feel any other presence nearby, Iruka allowed himself to fall to his knees and leaned against the rough bark of a tree. His legs could no longer support him and his arms were throbbing with pain, but one reoccurring thought echoed in his stunned mind, What just happened?

In a bright flash, they reappeared in a familiar living room. The Kakashi clone didn't release himself, but instead went and sat down on one of the couches and turned on the TV. Surprised, Naruto stepped closer and asked, "What are you doing? Aren't you suppose to pop and let Kakashi know I'm here?"

The clone raised an eyebrow and eyed the boy evenly, "No, I'm to ensure that you don't leave the estate. If you try and pop me anyway, the original will know immediately and when he returns shall deliver your punishment."

With a face drained of blood, the blond nodded quickly and hurried to his room. He did not want to be on the receiving end of one Kakashi's punishments again. Those things were brutal. Memories of ramen starved days and vegetables flashed through his mind. Nothing was worth going through that again.

Upon entry of his man-cave as he liked to think of it, Naruto realized with a sense of doom that he needed to clean it. Normally, he never let it get so bad and was kept pretty orderly, maybe not Gaara's level of clean, but it did meet Kakashi's standards so it worked, but with all his training for the exam, he had really let his room go to hell.

May as well clean this place up. I failed the test anyway, no need to live like a pig. The blond thought glumly as he started to sort through all his dirty clothes.

Half an hour passed, and his room was as pristine as it would ever get. With a usage of shadow clone's, one could really get many things done. I wonder why the old man doesn't use these to get that paperwork he's always nagging about done. The whiskered pre-teen mused as he laid down on his bed and covered himself with green sheets that had bouncing orange frogs on them. He took out his favorite book from his bedside table and began to read, which ironically was the only book he ever read for leisure, "Tales of the Gutsy Shinobi".

He had only managed to finish a chapter when a mass of spiky silver hair hurled into his room.

"Naruto! You here?"

"Gar? What's up?" The blond asked startled by the sudden appearance of the masked boy.

A flash of relief passed over the haggard ten year old.

"I've been looking for you. Where have you been?"

Scratching the back of his head sheepishly, he shot Gaara the infamous Uzumaki grin. "Oh, you know doing stuff. So what ya need me for?"

Gaara eyed the nervous looking blond with suspicion, but waved off until further notice. "Your friends have been searching for you. They came to ask me where you were and since then I've also looked for you in your usual places."

Naruto nodded absentmindedly, as he placed his cherished book back on his night stand and rose to his feet.

"Yeah, figures the guys are looking for me. I sorta left the academy before telling them. Did they tell you if they passed the exam?"

"I know that Shikamaru, Kiba, and Chouji had their headbands. What about you? Where's yours? May I see it?"

His innocent question caused the whiskered boy to stiffen and turn his head away. Naruto cursed himself again for being so stupid and careless, yet he knew he had no choice, but tell his little brother about the strange events of the day. Man, I'm seriously going to need a bucket load of ramen after this is all over.

"The traitor has been taken to Ibiki, sir. There were no causalities, but Iruka, one of the academy instructors, was injured and has been give the proper medical attention." Kakashi informed the solemn looking elder sitting before him.

"Good job, Kakashi. That will be all, but before you go please send Naruto to see me immediately."

"Yes, Hokage, sir." The masked Jonin inclined his head in respect, before disappearing through one of the open windows.

One could hear a pin drop after his long over due confession.

"You failed? What... No... You're joking right?" Gaara asked in disbelief.

The blond shook his head with clear shame and dismay. All that time spent training and studying gone to waste. His father would be ashamed of him if he knew. The son of one of the most powerful men whoever lived couldn't pass the Genin exam. How pathetic.

"But you only failed because of Mizuki-sensei. The Hokage has to let you pass, especially since you helped uncover a traitor to Konoha."

Naruto shrugged his shoulders in uncharacteristic defeat as he walked downstairs with the silver haired masked boy at his side.

"There's nothing left for me to do. Kakashi's out there, taking that cheating bastard down. The exam is final. Iruka-sensei didn't pass me. At this point, nothing short of a miracle will allow me to become a ninja."

Just as the pair entered the spacious kitchen, a bright flash of light revealed a smiling masked Jonin.

"Hello boys. How are you guys this nice evening?"

"Lousy." Naruto grumbled as he sat down on one of the chairs by the dining table.

Kakashi chuckled in amusement seeing the whiskered boy so miserable. He had to take pleasure in the little things.

"Well, I suggest you get a little more pep in you before you go see the Hokage. He's expecting you, immediately."

Blond brows shot up in surprise. Wide blue eyes, glanced at the slouching man before him.

"Like right now? What about Mizuki-sensei? What happened to him?"

At the mention of the traitors name, Kakashi scowled in anger.

"Do not refer to that man in such a manner any longer. He has been taken care of, there's no need to worry about him any longer."

The blond nodded stiffly, shocked to have seen the normally composed Jonin so angry.

Sighing, Kakashi clasped a reassuring hand on the boy's shoulder. "A man such as that does not the deserve the title of a teacher. Now before you go, there's something I must give you. I'll be right back."

The confused pair of boys watched the eldest among them leave the dining room and head in the direction of the den and study.

"What was that about?" Naruto whispered to Gaara once the Jonin was out hearing range.

"Hn."

A twitch developed in his right eye at the response.

"No, don't go doing that! You sound just like that bastard Sasuke. I will not have any brother of mine sound like that prick! Believe it!"

A smirk wormed its way to the silver headed boy's face at the expected reaction.

The blond huffed in annoyance as he crossed his arms, realizing he had been once again played by the young boy. Instead of retaliating as his inner self demanded to do, Naruto led the way to the entrance to wait for Kakashi and to prevent himself from attacking the smart-ass.

They didn't have to wait for long and the one-eyed shinobi returned with a white envelope in his hand. He gave it to the baffled blond.

"Promise me you won't open that until after your meeting with the Hokage."

Naruto nodded, but at the hard gaze directed at him said, "Okay I promise, I won't look at it until after seeing the old man."

Kakashi smiled fondly at the blond and ruffled his spiky hair. "Alright, get going. We still have to go get ramen afterwards."

"Awesome!"

Once the blond figure disappeared into the surrounding forest, the cheerful demeanor in the Jonin vanished. Gaara noticed the abrupt change and quietly gasped at the sorrowful look in Kakashi's dark eye as he continued to gaze in the direction Naruto had disappeared. He looked almost heartbroken. What was going on...?

Before he could ask, Kakashi turned his sad eye towards him.

"Gaara, it's about time you knew and I'm going to need your help."

Naruto had pocketed the mysterious envelope in his black jacket before dashing towards the Hokage Tower. There was something ominous about it all. He could almost feel the tension in the air. It seems as if something was about to happen.

Brushing off his troubling thoughts, the blond picked up his already surprising speed once he saw in the distance the familiar building.

Opting to enter in the similar fashion as his makeshift family's perverts, Naruto arrived at the elder Hokage's office.

An exasperated sigh escaped the fearsome shinobi at the blond's entry. It seemed bad habits spread fast. Stupid window hopping shinobi.

"Naruto, I've been expecting you."

"Yeah, Kakashi already told me. So what's this all about old man?"

Sarutobi with held another sigh and mumbled under his breath, "The youth of this generation, no respect." He reached into his desk and pulled out a brand new leaf headband with a black cloth.

"Because of these past events, you were unfairly given a chance to successful graduate, but as Hokage I can give anyone I deem fit the status of a shinobi of Konoha. I believe you have more than earned the right to wear this headband. Wear it with pride Naruto. I know your father would have been proud of you and all you have accomplished."

Naruto stood awestruck at the silver plate held in front of him. Oceanic eyes searched the beaming face of the elder Hokage for any signs of it being a trick. Nothing, but pure pride was reflected in those brown orbs.

"I passed? I'm really a Genin now? For real?" Naruto asked hesitantly, still in disbelief of the sudden turn of events.

Chuckling, Hiruzen nodded and motioned for the boy to take the cloth still in his extended hand. Quickly latching on to it, the blond marveled at the significance held within that metal engraved headband. He was a ninja of the Leaf now. A protector of Konoha.

"You have team assignments next week. We're having to delay it because of tonight's events, but all should be ready to go by the time the assignments come. You are dismissed now, young shinobi."

With a short bow, the blond left as he arrived except with the addition of the gleaming silver headband now adorning his forehead.

In his excitement to tell his makeshift family about his promotion, Naruto had almost forgotten about the envelope tucked away in his pocket. A rustling of paper alerted the blond to the envelope's existence.

Seeing the Hokage mountain just over a few buildings, Naruto headed toward it to inform his father about the night's events and to read in quiet what exactly was within the mysterious parchment.

A/N: Next chapter to be up within the next week if not sooner! Hope you enjoyed.

Until next time dear readers!