Disclaimer: I don't own anything.

Legend:

"Someone is talking."
'Someone is thinking.'
"A technique is being used."

Gas X:

At the moment, Team Yamato could be found standing before one of the forty-four entrances into Konohagakure's Forest of Death. The team was oddly quiet as their resident loudmouth, for once, wasn't talking. Naruto was simply staring ahead at the gate with an unusually serious expression. Fuki and Sasuke shared an uncertain glance but didn't say anything.

What could they say?

The information that Kabuto had handed out had undoubtedly affected Naruto. And they didn't know what to say. What could they say to their friend who had found out that he might've had a family after having come to accept that he might never know about them? And, worse, to learn that family was gone immediately afterwards? They had no words.

Still... that didn't mean that they wouldn't try to help Naruto. Kabuto had mentioned that the Uzumaki Clan had been related to both the Senju Clan and the Uchiha Clan. Surely there would be mentions of the Uzumaki Clan within those clan's records—records that Sasuke had access to as the last member of Uchiha Clan. They could also search through the public records to see if there was any mention of another Uzumaki.

An alarm blared and, suddenly, the gate opened.

Team Yamato plunged into the forest.

XXXXXX

It was Team Yamato's second day in the Forest of Death when they were ambushed. It wasn't unexpected as they were aware that other teams would be gunning after them based on Naruto's display before the first exam, but they could never have suspected just who would ambush them.

The ambush itself happened while they were in mid-leap and consisted of a sudden gust of wind. The gust knocked the air out of their lungs and sent them flying backwards, slamming them into the thick branches of a tree. Their attacker laughed as he appeared out of a nearby tree.

It was a single Kusagakure shinobi with long, black hair and brown eyes. The shinobi was wearing plain grey garbs with a black polo shirt underneath, a pair of black pants, and a thick purple rope belt tied in a large knot behind his back. "I believe that you three have the Earth Scroll that I need. And I have the Heaven Scroll you need." He brought up the aforementioned scroll to his mouth, wrapped his tongue around it, and swallowed it whole. "So let's battle for them with our lives on the line!"

Team Yamato was more-than happy to oblige.

Sasuke made a single hand-seal and watched as the Kusagakure shinobi froze. "Kanashibari no Jutsu (Temporary Paralysis Technique)."

"Konbijutsu: Kyūsoku reitō (Collaboration Technique: Flash Frozen)!" When Naruto and Fuki's Konbijutsu hit the enemy, he was immediately flash-frozen in a thick layer of ice. It was a noticeable improvement from their last demonstration of the technique as they had worked together and refined it.

Fuki flew back as Sasuke stepped forward, rushing through hand-seals three seconds behind Naruto's own. Naruto unleashed a burst of white-tinged gas with his Breath of Air Technique which Sasuke then ignited with his own Fire Stream Technique. The result was a massive explosion that enveloped their frozen enemy and sent pieces of his body flying in every direction.

It was gross, but that Kusagakure shinobi had wanted them to battle with "their lives on the line".

"... Do you think we should see if we can find his scroll?"

"He did have a Heaven Scroll. If we can find it before another team shows up, we can head straight towards the tower." Judging on the size of the explosion, however... "If we can't find it in five minutes, we have to assume its destroyed and go."

"Alright."

XXXXXX

After finding the scroll, it had been decided that they would get away on Naruto's Gas Raft™. They might have been able to escape from the area on foot before another team had shown up but they didn't want to take the chance. They had gotten the scroll they needed, so there wasn't a need to stay and fight. All that they needed to do was get to the tower without losing their scrolls. So... flying towards the tower in a raft and avoiding ground-bound enemies sounded amazing.

Still...

Who did that Kusagakure shinobi think he was? He had engaged them without any form of backup and, judging from his tone, had expected to be able to take on all three of them at once. That Fūton Ninjutsu that the shinobi had used had been powerful... but the shinobi hadn't taken advantage of the situation. He hadn't gone in for the kill when he should have. If he had, they would've probably been the ones that died and he would be the one that lived.

Lesson learned; never hesitate to go in for the kill against shinobi of unknown skill.

More than that, however, the encounter had given the team something they needed.

"Did you see how powerful our Konbijutsu were?! I know Yamato-sensei helped us out with them... but I never thought that they would be so cool!" Naruto commented with an excited grin and matching arm movements as he went over the battle again. "They were super-cool! And Yamato-sensei said that we could make better techniques...?!"

It had brought Naruto back to them.

Techniques:

1. Kanashibari no Jutsu (Temporary Paralysis Technique): A technique that physically restrains an opponent, as if the opponent had been tied in invisible steel ropes. It debilitates the victim for a short period of time, which allows the user to either strike again, or take the target into custody. D-Rank, Supplementary, Short to Mid-Range.

A/N; Author's Note:

Chash123:Hey guys! Just a short little Gas Release! Naruto chapter to tide everyone over until the next one (which will feature each member of Team Yamato vs. other shinobi that managed to survive the Forest of Death). Can you guess who they will "randomly" fight and what I might've done to them... I gave you a huge hint in chapter Buki no Tenten that other shinobi had been changed due to a "ripple effect". Bonus points if you can guess who caused that "ripple" was. :P

Fuki: *Flies up and lands behind the author* Hello Author-san~!

Chash123: W-What are you doing here?! I mean, I-I... Hi...?

Fuki: *Smiles* You have some explaining to do.