Well, this is it. The 'meat' of what I've written is now posted. What I have left is a basic outline of the direction where I want to go and some fleshed out parts here and there. I would love to hear your opinions! About what I've written so far and what could be.

Please review!

AveonThorn

Chapter 21

Trust Fall

The shadows in the wild forest had grown deeper when the two teams finally stopped to rest. They huddled together against the chilly fall air as they ate a simple meal of gathered vegetations and berries. Naruto rubbed at her arms in an attempted to keep warm. "Why's it so cold?" The disguised girl regretted not packing her old orange jacket. As thin as it was, it had apparently kept her warm in her first run through the dangerous training ground.

"It wouldn't be that bad if it wasn't so humid," Sakura stated as she packed away the last of her rations. "Why can't we light a fire again?"

"Because we're close enough to the tower that we'll be easily spotted," Shikamaru said lazily even as a shiver ran through his body. The boy was sitting back to back with Ino who was having the hardest time with the chill. Not only because of the summer outfit she wore but because of the lack of fat on her body.

Naruto rubbed at her nose, fighting back the itch that had started. Her eyes widened slightly. 'No!' a light growl rumbled in her chest as she pulled out one of her storage scrolls. She could not afford to get sick! There was too much to do. Too much at stake!

Sasuke had heard the blonde from his spot nearby and watch as Naruto unsealed a sturdy leather-bound book. It was the same one he had seen the blonde working from in Wave. The 'girl' (he still questioned his sanity at the thought) began to mutter to herself as she leafed through the yellowed pages in the dimming light.

"Aha!" The shout startled the whole group as Naruto leaped to her feet and started gathering dry twigs and branches from the bushes around them.

"What are you doing, dobe?" Sasuke picked up the book that the blonde had left on the ground and turned it over in his hands. The swirled symbol, often seen on the backs of the Leaf shinobi, was prominently placed on the front of the book's cover.

"Can't afford to get sick…" the blonde said over her shoulder as she pulled hard on a larger branch. "I assume Y'all feel the same." She strode back to the boy as she dropped the gathered wood in the middle of the small clearing. Grabbing the book, she flipped back to the required page. "Besides" she looked to the others in the group "Weren't ya interested in my 'growing interest in fuinjutsu'?"

Sakura moved first, quickly gathering more wood for the fire. Team ten looked on in confusion for a moment as the blonde knelt near a patch of dirt and started carving a rigid design into the ground. Ino and Choji began to look for more wood as Shikamaru moved closer to watch as Naruto coped the design from the book in her hand.

Shikamaru's eyes narrowed as he watched her work, analyzing the well-practiced movements of her script. It was odd seeing this from the girl. He knew she was smart and had guessed that she must have been holding back for some reason, but he had also watched her in the academy. He remembered that the girl had struggled with writing simple notes, hands shaky and unsure.

Where had she learned this? The way she scored the earth told of years of work and absolute confidence in her ability. Yet, it hadn't even been a year since they'd graduated. The brown eyed-boy glanced at the disguised girl's face. She was almost serene in her concentration. 'Well, Naruto is always one to turn logic on its head when it doesn't suit her.' The boy began to wonder how much the girl was actually holding back 'Who exactly is the real Uzumaki Naruto?'

It only took a few minutes for the design to be completed and the blonde straitened from her bent position. She breathed in deeply before channeling chakra into the scored earth. The moment the fuinjutsu completed, the two teams felt a dome of energy curve over them.

Ino gasped in astonishment as she gripped Choji's arm. "What was that just now?"

"Is this like the one you make in Wave?" Sakura asked as she reached out to touch the wall of energy. The unseen barrier felt sort of buzzy as she pushed her fingers through it.

Naruto scratched her cheek as she thought for a moment. "I guess ya could say that the base structure is the same." She started slowly. Leaning back as the watched Ino and Choji stack the wood. "But the main components are reversed. Not to mention, the other one was focused on eliminating physical entities from outside. While this one" she pointed lazily to her work "is focused on absorbing light," she ticked off with her fingers "retaining heat, and safely dealing with the smoke produced by a fire."

The group stared at her oddly. "What? Is it that hard to think that I could say something smart now?" Naruto rolled her eyes as she put her mother's book away. "It should be safe to light a fire now." She sat with a grin. "Smoke and light won't be seen past the barrier. Though, it doesn't do much for sound. So be careful with that. Unless you'd rather die of smoke inhalation, I can make the adjustments."

After the group of young teens recovered from their shock, a fire was lit, and they all basked in the warmth of it. Sasuke watched the smoke rise from the fire, fluctuating until it reached the dome of energy above them. The captured particles swirled like ink in water and followed the curve of the barrier down to the forest floor where it remained with the rest of the dirt.

"Hey, Naruto…" he said lazily despite the desperate need for answers from his teammate. "Where'd you get that book?"

This made Shikamaru sit up as well. "I was wondering the same thing. It looked handmade and old."

Naruto remained laying by the fire, watching the smoke touch the seal's barrier. What should she say? She had never had the chance to tell any of her friends about her family before. It had never come up in conversation in the few peaceful times they had. And the rest of the time, well, there were far more important things to think about.

"It was my mother's." She found herself saying. "Hokage Jiji… He gave it to me after graduation."

"She must have been amazing at fuinjutsu to have written a whole book on it," Sakura stated.

This drew a light chuckle from the disguised girl. If only they knew who her dad was. "Mom didn't make the book, though she's added to it." As did her father. "I believe this particular one" she inclined her head towards the carved earth "was created by a great uncle of mine."

"So, it was passed down in your family or something?" Naruto looked over to her fellow blonde and hummed in confirmation. Her eyes drifting slowly closed.

"The Uzumaki were well known for two things; their mastery of the art of fuinjutsu and their fiery red hair…" She yawned. "…at least that's what I was told. I've also been told I look more like my dad." She finished as she allowed herself to drift off to sleep.

…

The light rhythmic sound of metal against stone mingled with the soft breathing of sleeping genin. Sasuke had volunteered to take first watch alongside team ten's largest member. The Uchiha couldn't sleep anyway with the way his mind was running.

So, he occupied himself by sharpening his small supply of kunai as he followed the follow his thoughts led. Thoughts that revolved around a certain dobe. He searched his memories. Looking for anything that might have hinted that the boy he thought he knew was, in fact, a girl he knew nothing about. He tried remembering everything the blonde had said to him. Looking for the hidden meanings behind the worlds.

He found there wasn't much. Not because Naruto said little. No. That was quite the opposite. The blonde never shut up in his opinion. He found that there was so little because, at the time, he just didn't care. At all.

Could he have seen past the mask that his classmate, now teammate, held if he had just carried enough to pay attention? What else had he missed with his mind focused fully on reaching his brother?

The boy's hand slowed its work till the blade hung loosely in its grip. 'What have I missed?'

'You're not the only one, ya know.' The blonde's statement from their first day as a team came to the forefront of his mind. 'Everyone has different experiences, Sasuke. Everyone has different pains.'

So, what are her pains? Are they similar to the boy she portrayed? Or is the real Uzumaki Naruto a completely different person? The boy sighed as he passed a hand through his slightly greasy hair. What he would give for a bath right now. Maybe if he was clean and well rested, he could think more properly on the subject.

'Uzumaki' his mind began to run again, and his hands began to work the edge of the blade again. Naruto spoke as if they were… a clan. 'Fuinjutsu and red hair…' The boy's eyes widened slightly as he remembered a question the girl had asked earlier that day. A question she had directed toward a red-headed genin.

Was it fate that they had come across the struggling Grass team? Sasuke had stepped back alongside his teammates as the others in their group fought and captured the opposing team. Allowing them the glory of capturing their own second scroll.

After the three unfortunate genin were securely tied up, he and his team joined the others to celebrate a bit. Sasuke had stayed close to Naruto as he had done since he pulled her out of the river. Not that it was obvious that he was doing it. He just didn't want the dobe to die before he could get his answers.

The look in the disguised girl's blue eyes as she saw the hanging red-head had captured his interest and he listened closely as she spoke lowly. "Could you be… an Uzumaki?"

It had surprised him then but now he understood way. Naruto wasn't just an orphan with an unknown past. Naruto was an orphan from a clan that was supposedly dying out. Or even in hiding. A clan that had a connection to the Leaf, but no one seems to know about. A clan important enough that every Leaf shinobi wore a symbol that appeared to be connected to that clan. If the familiar swirl within a circle on the Uzumaki family tome was any indication.

'Who are you, Naruto?'

…

'Kit, I think you should wake.'

The blonde continued to sleep soundly. Reassured, not only by the presence of her friends with her but also because the great fox demon sealed within her was also able to keep watch as she slept.

'Brat, wake up!'

Naruto did not stir as she woke. Her mind immediately turning to her tenant. 'What is it Ku?' she asked sleepily, knowing that if they were in any danger the old fox would have woken her in an entirely different manner.

Kurama growled at the butchering of his name but let it slide. 'Do you smell that?' he questioned instead. The girl turned her focus outside of her mind. Breathing in the world around her. There. Past the soot from the fire and numerous plants that surrounded them, she caught the sent that had alerted the old fox. It was a sent she knew well. A sent she had followed in secret for a full week as she tested and experimented, her new fuinjutsu. A low rumble in her mind echoed with amusement. 'It's your little Gini pig'.

She shifted the hand that rested on her belly to her side, resting it near the pouch secured to her thigh. 'Wonder what he's here for.' She listened to the light snores of her friends and turned her head to see Sasuke quietly sharpening a kunai. His back faced her, so she couldn't see if he had noticed their… visitor.

She turned her attention back to the white-haired teen. He sat in a tree a respectable distance away, hidden well. Naruto turned to her other side and saw Choji sitting by the fire. The larger boy glanced at her when she moved and saw the meaningful look in her eyes.

The blonde glanced to her hand and back to the boy's eyes. He, in turn, looked to her hand laying in the dirt and saw it moving. His eyes narrowed wondering… 'oh, that's the sign language they taught in the academy'.

The movements repeated again and Choji's eyes widened. He settled back and pulled out a snack from the inner pocket of his shirt. Anyone watching would just think that he was eating, as was to be expected, but an outsider wouldn't know that Choji had run out of his favorite chips yesterday. The crinkling of the bag woke his two teammates. They remained still, listening for any signal from the larger boy.

Choji looked back to the 'slumbering' blonde. Her lips twitched into a faint grin just before a yelp of surprise erupted in the trees around them. A thump of something hitting the ground hard sent the whole group to their feet. Team ten already had their weapons ready.

"What's going on?" Sakura had stepped closer to Naruto. The blonde was the only one still sitting on the ground but was staring intently into the brush.

"Who's there?" Sasuke asked in a low warning.

The next moment the unknown voice sounded again in alarm and panic. The underbrush began to rustle, coming closer to the group. Sasuke rose his freshly sharpened kunai, his eyes swirling red.

No one expected to see the invader burst through the bushes foot first. And then proceed to dangle upside-down in the air with nothing visible holding him.

Six genin blinked in surprise, unable to process what had just happened. "Ha!" The silence broke with the pearls of laughter that feel from a certain blonde's lips. "You should see your faces!"

The white-haired teen began to struggle to free himself, flailing enough for his glasses to fall to the ground beneath him.

"Hey, its that guy with the cards." Ino stepped closer "Ya know? Without the specs, you're kind of cute."

Shikamaru sent Ino and annoyed look. "What I want to know, is why someone is hanging in the air to begin with." By this point, Sasuke had already stepped up to the captive and began to bind his hands and feet. Not even questioning how it happened. He knew and so did Sakura. They had firsthand experience with… well, whatever it was Naruto was doing.

They both looked to the giggling blonde as Sakura kicked Naruto lightly in the side. "Care to explain?"

"Ah! Did'ga have to kick that rib?" the disguised girl had leaped to her feet rubbing her sore side. "Explain what?"

"I can see it coming out of your back, Naruto."

"Wha?" she looked over to the boy, his eyes swirling red as he watched her. She repressed the urge to flinch away. "You can?" She sighed, lowering her head in defeat, at least in this topic. Everyone was staring at her. Including the tied-up Gini pig. Her eyes narrowed. Nope. No defeat. Not now. "Well, I'll tell you about it later." She didn't like the way Kabuto was looking at her with unveiled interest.

The group wanted to protest. The sunny blonde they once thought they knew was now diapering in a cloud cover of unanswered questions and promises of 'later'. Naruto began to fidget as she sensed the beginnings of distrust rolling off her peers. The realization that her secrecy was starting to push them away hit her hard.

Naruto looked to her captive again, face contorted in frustration. Why'd he have to show up anyway? "Fine!" the girl furiously passed he fingers through her hair, tugging knots and bits of debris out as they passed through the golden strands. She released her hold on the white-haired teen. Purposely lifting him a bit higher before letting him fall, head first. "I get it from my mom." She spoke lowly "Chakra chains. It's an Uzumaki thing." She hopped that Kabuto wouldn't catch her rushed worlds.

"What! Like a kekkei-genkai?" Sakura almost shouted this in surprise, electing curious glances from team ten. And a visible cringe from Naruto.

"You didn't know?" Ino asked

By this time Kabuto had managed to sit up, despite his bindings, and was letting his discomfort be known. Naruto knew it was an act. The same way she knew he could heal almost instantly.

"We'll talk about this later." Everyone turned to look at Sasuke as he continued. "It's just like Naruto said before. Besides, it's late. We need to rest. And we still have to deal with him." The Uchiha had seen the tension and utter discomfort in the blonde and surprised himself when he repeated the words he hated hearing from her the most. But the grateful look she sent him before she crouched in front of the white-haired teen was enough to lift the counters of his lips as a warmth settled in his chest.

…

He had never been anywhere near the little Jinchuuriki until the opening day of the chunin exams. He had seen the blonde head on passing but only showed interested in the child once he figured out his status within the village. It was not hard to figure it out. With all the whispers that followed the child, he was surprised the Hokage's edict did not send more men to the gallows for speaking of what should not be spoken.

His interest grew when he saw the child running from a team of ANBU that seemed to be covered in paint. But it was around that time that his first order from Orochimaru arrived and he began his work. Gathering information and passing it along like the good little spy he was trained to be. It was in this search that he came across a tidbit of information that interested him greatly.

An obscure and buried medical record of a civilian orphan.

And with it, his interest in the blonde grew beyond the use that he... no, she could be to his master. It was information he kept to himself.

So, when he finally met her for the first time he was thrilled by the fact that he knew more about her that the group of 'friends' that surrounded her. And then she looked into his eyes. There was a calculating intelligence he saw behind that boyish exterior she kept.

The KI that radiated off her.

The fluid movements as she deflected his attacker.

The touch of her hand across his jaw.

The bite of her blade at his neck…

He could not forget her sweetly spoken words that hid threats of unspeakable pain. Nor did he want to.

A tremor ran up his spine again as the bespectacled teen heard the very voice that hadn't left his mind from the moment of their first meeting. The girl spoke lightly to her female teammate, who sat on the early morning watch with the Nara boy. The quite exchange ended, and Kabuto listened intently to the rustling of fabric, the shuffle of dirt. And then nothing.

He cracked an eye open from his bound sleeping position. The little Jinchuuriki sat near the dwindling fire, eyes closed, and legs crossed. It surprised him to see the blonde meditating, but this only added another facet to the intriguing gem that she was. A treasure that he suddenly realized he wanted.

The Leaf group, plus one, woke at twilight and a small cold meal was eaten from the last of their gathered supply.

It had been decided, upon hearing Kabuto's explanation, that they would release the older boy. Apparently, he was separated from his team and had no interest in their scrolls as his other two teammates held their own and would meet him at the tower.

When the teen finally stood from the position he had slept the night before, he stumbled forward and fell to his knee. Naruto looked up from her work deactivating and distorting her seal. Her gaze narrowed. 'What's his game?'

In her past, Kabuto didn't show up until the fifth day of the exam when he had helped them out with an attacking team. But this time she found him watching from a distance. A shiver ran down her spine as she realized the possible reasons for him following her team. He was sent to watch and help if needed. By Orochimaru.

She was so deep in her thoughts that she hadn't realized what the others were saying before it was too late. So, the disguised girl found herself volunteered as the teen's support as they walked. Because she was the one who apparently "hurt his leg" the night before.

The boy pressed himself to her side as he loosely hung his arm over her shoulder. "I appreciate the help, Naruto-san." The blonde help back a cringe in response.

In her past, she had supported him like this with no problem. Happily helping the older boy who had saved her skin. He was just fellow Leaf shinobi taking the same test as she was. But now, she knew he would betray them all.

She felt… uncomfortable. Though, she would not show it.

He was marked.

He was her pray.

But the sidelong looks he kept giving her spoke otherwise. She had never seen such a look from him before. From anyone for that matter. And it unnerved her.

Conversation was kept to a minimum as they continued. By Naruto's estimate, they had about an hour left at the pace they were going. No one asked why she knew it. Halfway to their goal, they stopped for a short break and the blonde gladly stepped away from the white-haired boy.

"Naruto-san" he called as she walked away. "I didn't notice before but the back of your shirt leaves little for the imagination." The boy lightly pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose when the disguised girl whirled around to stare at him in shock. "And here I thought you valued your secrets."

How she wanted to rip him apart. Why hasn't she done it yet? Why was he still alive?

The growl that emitted from her chest was loud enough to capture the attention of the whole group. The words that followed felt rough and dangerous. "And what do you mean by that, Yakushi san?"

She saw the visible shiver that ran through his body as she questioned him. "Only that you spent so many years keeping it hidden. And now your very body is betraying you." She saw red. And had Shikamaru not stepped between the two. She might have added another death to the long list of regrets she was working so hard to amend.

"I think that's enough." The lazy boy said to the sitting teen before he pulled his open over-shirt off to hand it to his enraged friend. This caught the blonde of guard enough to calm her slightly as she saw the boy now only had his mesh under-shirt covering his torso. He deposited the fabric in her hands before turning again to Kabuto.

The teen had his hand up in surrender. "It was only an observation. I meant no harm." He pled innocently. Yet, there was nothing innocent about the type of comment he made.

"What is this all about?" Ino interjected. It was then that Naruto realized what a spectacle the whole situation was turning out to be. "What are you talking about?"

The blonde groaned in displeased as she buried her face in her hands as a means to remove herself from the problem, if only for a minute. She breathed in a calming breath, only to be surrounded by her friend's scent. She pulled her face away from the fabric a moment later, slightly embarrassed.

"We should get going" Choji put it quickly. "I'm starving, and I want to get to some real food!"

"I don't get what's going on" Sakura stepped up beside Naruto. Placing her hand on her friend's shoulder. "Naruto, are you ok?"

And that was it. The young Uzumaki knew what she had to do. The tension that had taken over her body was suddenly gone, and she dropped her hand to her side. "I suppose it's only fair that I should tell you now." She directed this to her pink haired friend. "I was planning on telling you after this exam but…"

The blonde stopped and turned to the still sitting teen. "I don't know how you figured it out or who you've told, but if you mention a word of this to anybody…" she stepped closer for emphases as she leaked a bit of KI "I will rip your balls off and stuff them down your throat." She finished with a radiant smile. "Ok!?"

The boy gulped in fear as he nodded his compliance. There was no healing from something like that. The other boys in the group stepping back unconsciously, looks of horror on their faces from the very mention of such on an act.

"Now" Naruto turned back the others, feeling a bit satisfied. They were all staring at her again. 'Am I really going to do this?' She bit her lip in thought as to how to word it. "So…" she looked up to the sky. "I had my reasons, which I can't tell you right now." She looked down to the grown. "but Hokage Jiji has been supporting me in it. For reasons I can't explain."

"Dobe, your delaying." Up to this point, the brunet boy had remained quiet. Don't get him wrong, he was angry. At the four-eyes' words. At Naruto's reaction. At the fact that the laziest member of the group stepped in before he, himself could. And at the fact that it annoyed him so much! But the blonde was about to give some answers and he/she was delaying!

"Yay, yay. Ok!" Naruto pouted. "So…" She turned to the side and crossed her arms over her chest. "Ya know how people all think I'm a boy?" She chanced a glance toward the others and saw a mix of confusion and eagerness. "It's not true." She rushed out. "Can we go now? I've spent enough time in this forest already."

"What do you mean 'it's not true'?" Ino spat. "How can that 'not be true'?"

"Ino" Shikamaru put his hand on her shoulder as Choji stepped between his teammate and Naruto. "Quiet down. You don't want to attract another team. Do you?"

Sakura stood quietly as Ino reacted in her normal way. Loudly. She looked to Naruto. The blonde was not looking at anyone. Instead of looking into the trees, most likely toward the tower. "Naruto" the pink haired girl paused as guarded blue eyes turned to her. "You're... a girl?" The blonde's head tipped forward in a single nod. She should be yelling like Ino. Threatening Naruto with her fist. Angry!

Why wasn't she angry?

Sakura looked to Sasuke who was also studying the… girl. What does he think of this? Did he know just like it seemed that the other boys did?

A scream in the distance reminded the group that this was no time to argue about gender. "Alright, let's get moving," Sakura spoke first. "Naruto, we'll talk about this later."

"Yeah, ok." The girl said, obviously relieved.

"Sakura, you can't be serious." Ino stepped towards her.

Sakura held up her hand in a motion to stop the verbal tirade coming to her. "I've trusted him… her" she corrected "this far. And I'll trust her now." The girl found herself being pulled into a tight hug.

"Thank you, Sakura!"

The group continued on toward the tower. This time Choji took on the task of helping the 'injured' Kabuto along. Sasuke had grabbed the shit from Naruto's hand and tossed it back to its owner. Stating that the shirt was to short to cover the damage anyway and it was a bother to see Shikamaru as he was. That elected a little laughter from the group as they walked.

The genin separated when they reached the enormous building and went to their assigned entrances. Leaving their tagalong to wait for his team outside.

And so, team seven entered the tower seventy-nine hours after the second exam began.

…

The observation office was located near the top of the forest tower. There the participants of the second stage of the chunin exam were watched. Monitors were situated in the center of the large room, showing footage of strategic spots around the massive building. While the walls of the room were lined with reinforced windows, perfect for viewing the surrounding forest.

Within this room, a man leaned back with a sigh as he sat down on a wooden chair. He had been pacing for the last hour as he observed the land from his viewpoint, waited for the summoning tag he wore to activate. It was one of his duties as a chunin during the exams and he had been on shift since that morning.

He sighed again before leaning forward to grab his cup of tea, but his hand veered to the side instead to pick up the list of genin teams that had entered the dangerous grounds a few days before. He flipped through the pages. Seeing many names he did not recognize, a few he had heard of from the older teachers at the academy, and then there were his names. His students.

The man huffed and leaned back, remembering what Hatake san had said when the exams were announced. 'They are no longer your students.'

It stung. The plainly spoken words left the young teacher feeling a little hollow. He lifted the list again to note which teams had succeeded, failed, or had yet to finish. His dark eyes stalled on one name and the man dropped his hand as his head fell back.

She wasn't back yet.

He smiled, remembering the last time he saw his golden-haired imouto. It was embarrassing. He had insisted on testing her team, unsure about how well the three children would work together. He had legitimate reasons to worry! The three were like oil and water.

His backside still ached from the three's teamwork.

So, disguising himself and kidnaping one of Naru's fan club wasn't one of his finest moments. But the smile she gave him afterword's when he offered to treat the team and children to Ichiraku ramen was worth having to eat standing up.

He didn't know how long he sat there, staring up at the ceiling before he felt the seal activate. A tingling enveloped him before pulling the man into one of the forty-four entry rooms for the exam. The chakra mist cleared, and the man stood atop two open scrolls.

Before him, stood team seven, wide-eyed and battle worn. And just like the night he went into the blonde's home for the first time, the young teacher was surprised to feel a set of thin arms wrap around him.

"Iruka Nissan!"

And there he felt it. That hollow feeling that had been plaguing him for days, filling with warmth.