Wow, here was me pressing for time and yet somehow I managed to batter out a longer chapter than what I've been giving out recently. I noticed that Naruto was seeming a little downhearted, which is the reason behind this chapter, it was completely out of the blue. Got a couple of ideas as to where this is going, so don't go pegging this as a Naruto/OC pairing just yet.

Disclaimer: No riddles, no one's guessing... now I'm back to blind stabs at humour and exclamations about canon... ITACHI!!!!!!!!!!! HIYA!!!!!!!

Self interest

"Wha?!" Naruto exclaimed at the sight before him.

In his room, just by his window, there stood a girl with her bare back to him. It looked like she was in the process of putting her clothes back on, her shirt coming down over her head. Lavender hair fell down her back, at least offering moderate coverage. She had a very fair and slender form, which Naruto embarrassedly noticed closely. He got as far as her lilac panties before she reacted to his cry, turning around in shock.

"AHHH!!!" she screamed, grabbing the closest thing she could, which were Naruto's goggles. They struck his head and sent him reeling back, falling to the ground in an unceremonious heap. He then heard his door slam shut, before silence rang out.

"Uhh…" he sighed, pushing himself to a sitting position. He glanced to his left, noticing Gaara had disappeared completely.

"What just happened?"

"I got no idea." Naruto replied, rubbing the back of his head. He grabbed his goggles before getting back to his feet, hesitating outside his room.

Gingerly, he reached out and knocked lightly on his door, waiting nervously for a reply. He could hear movement inside, though it was a while before he got an answer. About a minute later, the door opened, with the girl looking at him from behind the door angrily.

"Why are you still here?" she demanded, glaring with her deep blue eyes. Naruto faltered for a moment as confusion set in, before replying.

"Well uh, you are in my room." he explained clumsily. The girl's eyes widened in shock, she looked behind her to the room she was in, before looking back at Naruto.

"This is your place?" she asked, with a bewildered look.

"Yeah, it is." Naruto replied, with a dumbfounded expression.

"Oh! Sorry!" the girl hastily said, opening the door. Naruto almost averted his gaze, stupidly worrying she might still be naked. But she was dressed, wearing a simple white t-shirt with long purple sleeves and a tight denim skirt. She stepped out of the way, an apologetic look on her face, "You can come in- I mean, well…"

Naruto nodded in thanks, stepping inside. She closed the door behind her, pressing her back to it as she looked at Naruto with shy anxiety. Now that he could get a better look, he realised her hair was a little wet, had she been using his shower?

"Gah, don't think about that!" he thought, resisting shaking his head. He then realised the girl's eyes were locked on his, and there was a red tint to her cheeks.

"I'm sorry, I didn't know anyone lived here." she said, bowing her head nervously. Naruto quickly looked away, this girl was pretty cute.

"Uh, I guess… I can understand that." he replied. This place was hardly residential, she probably thought this was a place for workers to rest or something, "So uh… who are you?"

"Oh, of course!" the girl exclaimed, holding her hands before her and bowing, "My name's Rika, Sakai Rika."

"Uzumaki Naruto." Naruto replied, glad to get introductions out of the way. Of course, it was then replaced with awkward silence, something Naruto really hated, "Uh… so what are you doing here?"

"Oh, it's my dad." Rika replied, brushing some hair out of her face, "He was supposed to accompany me home, you know what it's like down there. Problem is, he had to take another shift at the last minute, so I'm stuck here until he finishes."

To be honest, Naruto didn't really know what it was like. Then again, he recalled that man he'd had to fight as a "test" for Kisame. Were people like that common here?

"I was sort of wandering around when I found this room." Rika continued, "I needed a shower, so I wasn't really thinking."

"Don't worry about it." Naruto replied, deciding now would be a good time to grin, "So you're stuck here for a while huh?"

"Yeah…" Rika said, dropping her gaze, "Well, I guess I'll be going now. Sorry again."

She turned around and opened the door, making to leave. But on a strange impulse, Naruto stepped forward, calling out to her.

"Hey, uh…" he said, as he tried to think of something to say. He then got an idea, and embarrassedly started rubbing the back of his head, "You don't have to leave. It'll probably be boring on your own, you can hang around here… I mean, if you want."

Rika paused, looking at Naruto in surprise. Naruto glanced at her, but averted his gaze again, feeling his cheeks reddening.

"Are you sure?" she asked, half through the doorway, "I don't want to intrude any more than I already have."

"It's no problem." Naruto replied, with a edgy grin. Rika hesitated for a moment, before smiling back at him, causing Naruto to look away again. She came back into the room and closed the door, resuming her position against it. Naruto blinked as he realised she was waiting for something, "Uh, you want a drink or something?"

Rika nodded, still wearing her smile.

"Yes please." she replied in a sweet tone that was a little too much for Naruto to handle. He turned away quickly, hiding his reddening face.

"Well, come on then." he mumbled, as he made his way to the kitchen. She followed him closely, shutting the door behind her.

Naruto grabbed the kettle and filled it with enough water for two cups. He then replaced it and turned it on, before turning around.

"Gah!" he yelped, realising Rika was literally right in front of him. but at his cry she steppe back, a worried look on her face.

"Sorry, was I too close?" she asked, raising her finger to her lips.

"Oh, no." Naruto replied, holding his hands up, "It's my bad."

Rika continued to look uncertainly at him, but after a moment she relaxed.

"Sit down, this'll be ready in a minute." Naruto said, turning back around and taking a couple of mugs from the cupboard.

Rika did just that, taking a seat on the stool nearest the door. Naruto could feel her eyes on his back as he worked, it made him feel a little anxious.

"Closest you'll ever get."

Naruto resisted telling Eko to shut up, he didn't want to alarm Rika unnecessarily. The kettle finished boiling and he picked it up, pouring the water into the mugs. Half a minute later, he had two steaming cups of tea in his hands. He handed one to Rika, who gratefully accepted. He then took a seat down next to her, looking out the window to the rainless village. But just outside his peripheral vision, he could see that Rika was still watching him. He glanced round to her, and realised that her eyes weren't fixed on him, but Ekokaeten.

"Something up?" he asked, startling Rika.

"Oh, nothing!" she hastily replied, before nodding at Eko, "Is that a sword?"

"Well, more like a big knife." Naruto replied with a shrug, "I usually just use it for food and stuff."

Rika gave him a strange look as Eko burned with contempt. Naruto looked over his shoulder with a self satisfied smirk. At least there was one way he could get his own back. But Rika caught his smirk and misinterpreted it. Next thing he knew, she'd punched him in the arm.

"Ah!" he exclaimed, she gave quite a punch.

"Don't make fun of me!" Rika ordered, with a huffy expression.

"What?" Naruto asked, before realising what happened. He started laughing, even while rubbing his arm. Rika looked at him confused, but after a moment she was laughing too.

"What's so funny?" she asked, placing a hand on the counter for balance. Naruto shrugged, he was already gripping the surface tight.

"Nothing!" he replied, as the laughter died down. He looked into his mug with a warm smile on his face. Rika quietened down too, shaking her head in exasperation.

"So how come you've got a sword?" she asked, sitting back in a relaxed position. Naruto looked up at her with a raised brow, she seemed pretty interested.

"Yeah, it's a katana." he explained, "I've had it for about a month and a half now, so I'm still pretty inexperienced."

"Can I see it?" Rika asked, with a curious smile. Naruto blinked, before nodding.

"Sure." he replied, undoing the straps on his chest. He then took the sheath off and laid it out on the counter in front of the two of them.

Rika leant forward, looking up and down the crimson sheath in wonder. There was a mystified look in her eyes, as if she wasn't quite able to comprehend what was lying before her. It wasn't definite, but she almost had a look of wanting in her eyes, a strange desire that forced her eyes to widen and her sapphires to shine. But it was odd, for there seemed to also be an unsettled attribute, she was apparently unable to settle on a particular spot to look at. Naruto watched her closely, it was quite an awestruck expression she wore.

"Its name is Ekokaeten." he said, with a small smile as he watched her face.

"Ekokaeten?" she repeated, looking up at Naruto, "That's a weird name."

"Yeah, I just call it "Eko"." Naruto agreed, with a laugh at the end. He could sense Eko's displeasure, maybe it was time to end the joke, "Yeah, but he's gotten me outta more trouble than you could imagine."

"Oh, you're a ninja, aren't you?" Rika asked as she suddenly spotted Naruto's headband, "Looks like it needs fixing up though."

Naruto blinked, before removing his headband. She had probably meant the long score through the Ame emblem, though upon closer inspection he realised it was pretty dirty. He did a small brow shrug before placing the headband down on the counter and taking a sip from his cup. When he put it back down, he spotted Rika's uncertain look.

"You ok?" he asked, leaning on the countertop.

"Well, I'm still sort of feeling guilty about before." Rika admitted, hesitantly, "So, I was thinking… my uncle owns a weapon shop down in the streets, and I work part time there at the weekends."

"Yeah?" Naruto asked, with a look of interest. He hadn't seen her during their… interesting visit, though he wasn't really sure about what day it was anymore. He was only given the number of days he had to train and stuff, he no longer knew of concepts such as "weekends".

"Yeah, so I was just wondering…" Rika continued, looking down at the blade, "To make it up to you… I could fix them up if you like."

Naruto gave her a surprised look, he hadn't been expecting an offer like that. It had certainly caught him off guard, he wasn't really sure how to react.

"Uh… ok…" he replied, with a dazed look, "You sure about that?"

"Yeah." Rika said, with a swift nod. She then grabbed Eko's sheath and Naruto's headband before getting to her feet, "Just give me a minute, you'll be stunned, I promise!"

She then hurried out of the kitchen and into Naruto's room, leaving the blond boy wondering what had just happened. How did this go from a strange girl changing in his room to a sudden offer for blade and headband maintenance?

He shook his head, sighing to himself. Maybe it was best he didn't look the gift horse in the mouth, he needed to learn to just roll with some things. He just picked his cup back up and took another sip, before smirking to himself. Eko hadn't said a word about Rika's offer, far from any sort of protest, he had seemed amazed by it.

"My katana's a pervert." he thought, shaking his head. He then glanced up at the door, as he suddenly thought of something, "Does she even have anything to clean those with?"

He mentally shrugged before taking another drink from his tea. He rested his arms on the counter as he looked out the window. It really was strangely clear, considering it had been raining heavily only minutes ago.

"How the hell did I forget that?!" he then thought, remembering that he was in fact soaked to the skin.

He got up off the stool and headed into the bathroom. The room was a little damp, proving that Rika had been in here, though he didn't really doubt it. He took off his cloak and dropped it down the laundry chute, before taking his jacket off an putting it in there as well. He shook his head wildly, getting the worst of the water out of his hair. He then looked at himself in the mirror, before sighing.

"How pathetic am I?" he thought, as he pushed the door open and left the bathroom. He headed through the kitchen and placed his hand on the door to his bedroom, pulling it and stepping through, "Huh?"

He looked around his room with a confused look on his face. Rika was nowhere to be seen, she had completely disappeared. He stepped forward, looking at the door and wondering if maybe she'd taken Eko and his headband down to her uncles workshop. That was more than he'd been expecting, but he wasn't going to-

"Wait a minute." he thought, as his eyes locked onto the window. He knew for a fact that it had been closed, and even if he didn't, there was no reason for it to be that wide open, "She didn't!"

He ran over to his window, leaning out it as he looked around. He couldn't see her down below, so he looked up. But there was still no signs, she couldn't have gotten away that fast could she? He turned his gaze once again to the ground, before spotting her lavender hair. She was running across the rooftops!

"I'm such an idiot!" Naruto cursed himself, as he pressed his foot on the sill.

He let himself fall out the window, placing his feet upon the pipes as he descended. He bolted down the wall as fast as he could manage, the ground was coming up fast. He reached a projection of the pipes and bounded off of it, leaping to the building Rika must have leapt to. He now ran on the same level as her, but she still had quite a lead.

There was no doubt in his mind, Rika had to be a Kunoichi. There was no way a civilian could have covered this much ground without painting the road. She definitely had chakra control. That meant she also had other training too. Just what was she up to? Why was she stealing his headband, when surely she had her own?

Rika looked behind her, checking the window she had escaped from. She had probably been wondering if Naruto had noticed yet. It was for that reason that she cried out in shock when she realised he was only about a street behind her.

"RIKA!" Naruto yelled, not bothering with manners. He hadn't expected her to stop, and he had been correct. She just turned back to looking where she was going, and upped her pace. Naruto watched her in surprise, how fast was she?

He could see that she was clutching Eko's sheath tight, the hilt was jutting from her right side. That told him that Eko couldn't stop her if he wanted, since she was only holding the sheath. At this distance, he could only vaguely sense the blade's presence, but if Eko was calling out he couldn't hear. But he was getting a bad feeling, didn't Kisame say that when the swords were removed from their owners, they lost all their memories?

"I gotta get him back now!" he thought, as he clasped his hands together. Then, in a moment of inspiration, he was struck with an idea. Instead of putting his hands in front, he leapt into the air, thrusting his palms back, "Futon: Reppusho!"

He channelled as much power as he could into the Jutsu, making it as strong as possible. The ensuing blast of wind shot him forward at a speed so far unprecedented by him. It was like he had taken a giant leap in the air, he was now at least two stories above Rika. The girl looked back when she saw his shadow, and shrieked as he descended upon her. Because of her fright, she failed to keep track of her footing and tripped, falling off the rooftop and down to the alley before.

"RIKA!" Naruto yelled again, as he straightened his body out and fell down after her. He reached her and wrapped his arms around her small body, turning in the air before his back slammed into the ground. He didn't even feel pain, just numbness as he passed out.

* * * * *

"Wherever did you find that girl?" Pein asked, as he watched Naruto and Rika from his perch. He wore a bemused frown, studying Naruto with interest as he used the Jutsu Pein had taught him only earlier that day, "A boosted jump, ingenious."

"She is the daughter of one of the guards." Konan explained, but flinched as the two teenagers disappeared into the alleyway, "Should we help him?"

"He isn't a Jinchuriki for nothing." Pein replied, sitting back, "So who is she?"

"Her name is Sakai Rika." Konan said.

"Ah, Kohaku-san's daughter then?"

"Yes, she is his only child." Konan replied with a nod, "He was quick to make the suggestion, he seemed almost eager."

"Is that so?" Pein asked, looking up at his partner, "She seems rather well trained, but judging from her age I would guess she graduated only recently."

"Actually, she didn't graduate at all." Konan replied, "For some reason, she pulled out before the exam started."

Pein frowned, his smirk dropping. This was news to him, and a large uncertainty. That wouldn't do at all.

"Bring Kohaku-san up here." he said, "I wish to speak with him."

Konan bowed her head, before turning and leaving. When she was gone, Pein leant forward, staring at the thin line Naruto had vanished through.

"Sakai Rika…" he thought, "Did I perhaps make a mistake?"

* * * * *

Naruto wasn't out of it for very long. In fact, he woke just in time to hear the sound of puddles splashing as Rika's footsteps faded away.

He groaned, rolling over and pushing himself to his feet. His back was killing him, but nothing seemed to be broken. He looked in the direction he'd heard Rika leaving, before shaking his pain off and running after her.

It seemed she knew her way around the intricate side streets of Amegakure. More than once Naruto had been forced to stop to listen for her, he was lucky that there were very few people around. He decided to take to the rooftops again, and ran in a steady ascent along the walls. But once he'd made it to the roofs, he realised hearing her would only be harder. That meant he had no other choice than to up his numbers.

"Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!" he called, summoning six clones behind him. They all leapt down and scattered through the labyrinth of sub streets and alleyways, listening intently for Rika. The real Naruto kept to the roofs, in case one of them dispersed and he would need to head to that position quickly. However, it seemed it wouldn't be necessary.

"Over here!" one of the clones cried, and Naruto was instantly alerted. He ran from building to building towards the point where he'd heard the cry. He could also see the other clones head there too, they all converged on the announcers position.

Together, they all gathered in what looked like someone's garden. It was unusual, a small square in amongst the buildings, with wooden columns holding up the slated awnings around it. Faded white trellis' were positioned partway down from the awnings, with slithers of ivy hung here and there. On the small grassy square, there was a faded white plant pot, large and round. Several weeds poked out of it, only partially obscuring Rika's form.

Her eyes darted across the seven Naruto's surrounding her. She was cornered, there was nowhere to run. But she wasn't scared. In fact, she seemed even angrier than Naruto.

"Why the hell are you following me?!" she demanded, glaring up at them. She gripped the reason tight to her chest, Eko was completely silent.

"Why do you think?!" the real Naruto countered, stepping forward, "You stole Eko, give him back!"

"Why should I?" Rika snapped, locking eyes with him, "You were stupid enough to leave me alone with it, you don't deserve a blade like this!"

"You're right, I was stupid!" Naruto replied, "I can't believe I trusted you, you're nothing but a thief!"

"Don't you call me that!" Rika yelled, standing. She glowered at Naruto, who returned her look unafraid, "Take it back!"

"You are!" he shouted back, "You took Eko and ran away with him, what else does that make you?!"

"Shut up!" Rika cleverly countered, "I need this, and I need the headband!"

"Why?" Naruto asked, with an uncomprehending look, "You gotta be a ninja, no way could you have moved that fast!"

"Well I'm not!" Rika yelled.

"Bullshit!" Naruto spat out, "How could you have gotten out of the building that fast then?"

Rika opened her mouth to shout out an answer, but faltered. She looked away, glaring at the wall to her right. Naruto stared hard at her, waiting for an answer. She glanced at him from the corner of her eye, before snapping away again.

"My dad." she said, "He didn't want me to become a Kunoichi. He made me drop out before graduation."

Naruto's glare reduced to a frown, and he straightened up. Rika noticed this and looked at him, though she still looked angry.

"He says it's because he doesn't want me to get hurt, but I know he's lying." she said, "He thinks because I'm a girl that I won't be any good as a ninja, so he made me drop out."

Naruto watched her closely, studying her face. He kind of knew where she was coming from, there were quite a few people who hadn't wanted him to become a Shinobi, so he could relate in a sense.

"So your dad…" he said, but wasn't really sure how he would end his sentence.

"He wanted a son." Rika replied, dropping her gaze. Naruto kept his eyes on her, he could see through her anger, there was a flicker of sadness.

Rika looked up in surprise as the clones all dispersed into puffs of smoke. She looked at Naruto again, demanding an answer without speaking.

"But what does that have to do with this?" Naruto asked, as delicately as he could. Rika hesitated for only a moment, before answering.

"If I can steal the prized possessions of a real ninja, I can prove to my dad that I can be every bit the ninja he is." she replied, holding Eko and Naruto's headband further up her chest, "I've got your headband, and this sword looks pretty valuable. There's no way he can turn me down now."

She fixed her eyes on Naruto's waiting for a response form him. But he just stared dumbly back at her, taking in what she had said. After several moments of silence, he slowly nodded his head. He then turned around, looking over his shoulder.

"Come on." he said, gesturing for her to follow. Rika looked at him incredulously, tightening her grip on the items she held.

"Why should I?" she demanded, taking a step back.

"Your dad's that way, right?" Naruto asked, pointing at the tower, "I dunno where you were going."

Rika blinked, looking from the tower to Naruto.

"Uh…" she muttered, before she realised something, "Wait a minute, you're not gonna try and take these back?"

"I'll get them later." Naruto replied, "Once you've proven to your dad that you can be a ninja, you won't need them anymore."

Rika blinked again, looking at Naruto with a confused frown. Naruto just looked plainly back at her, waiting for her to follow him. She stood for only a few seconds longer, before begrudgingly joining him.

They walked out from the alleys into the main street, and the two of them headed in a straight course for the tower. The streets were lit by lamps and the bars, the only open business at this hour. The only people in the streets were adults, children seemed to be hushed away by this hour. Rika kept close to Naruto, glancing at the people around distrustfully. She looked up at Naruto, who seemed surprisingly peaceable for someone walking beside the person who had just stolen from him.

"What's going on here?" she asked, with a creased brow, "Why are you doing this?"

"Why not?" was Naruto's obscure reply.

"You thinking you're gonna get something from this?" Rika asked, narrowing her eyes. Naruto looked at her in alarm, clearly shocked by her question.

"What's that supposed to mean?" he demanded, "What kinda person do you think I am?"

"How should I know?!" was Rika's heated reply. But that was exactly what she was thinking, she just couldn't work Naruto out.

Naruto continued to watch her for a few moments later, before mentally shrugging. He looked ahead, and his expression was soon relaxed again. Rika continued to stare accusingly at him, but soon grew tired of it, dropping her gaze as well.

"So how come you wanna be a ninja?" Naruto asked, as they passed a drunk arguing with a barkeep.

Rika seemed to ignore his question, and instead adjusted her hold on Ekokaeten. Naruto glanced at her from the corner of his eye, before looking ahead again.

"You wanna use my shower again?" he asked. He'd noticed that Rika was filthy, probably from the fall. She realised this too, but hadn't said anything.

"I don't have anything to change into." she replied, pouting to herself.

"Well, we're about the same size." Naruto said, with a sideward glance, "So you could borrow some of mine for a while."

Rika looked at him in surprise. Naruto was beginning to wonder if her brow would ever unfurrow.

"What kind of offer is that?!" she demanded, "I can't wear your clothes!"

"Well I guess I could buy something." Naruto offered, spotting a small clothes store which was still open, "But it might give people the wrong impression."

Rika looked at the clothing store, her cheeks reddened as she caught Naruto's meaning. She buried her chin into her chest, looking like a small child.

"Fine, I'll wear your clothes." she conceded, to her own displeasure, "But my dad's gonna flip."

"I think he's gonna be a little more concerned that you stole from his boss's subordinate." Naruto replied, with a cheeky smirk.

"What?!" Rika exclaimed, looking at Naruto in disbelief, "You mean you're…?"

"Sorta." Naruto said, with a shrug. He then wore a troubled look as if he had just realised something, "Man, I hope my boss doesn't find out about this. I don't know what he'll do. Hey, your dad's job is important, right? He's not like a guard or anything?"

Rika stared at Naruto, her mouth hanging open. She scanned his face, praying that this was a joke. She suddenly blinked, realising she'd hit the nail on the head.

"Quit screwing with me!" she ordered, with yet another glare, "There's no way you're that important, why should I believe you?!"

"You don't have to." Naruto replied, "You can find out for yourself."

Rika fell silent, staring at Naruto again. He glanced at her, giving a questioning shrug. She averted her gaze, looking down at the ground.

"I… I don't want my dad to lose his job." she said, to her own annoyance, "It's not worth it."

Naruto raised his brow in surprise as she suddenly handed Ekokaeten and his headband over. He took them back, but kept his eyes on Rika. She looked at him from the corner of her eyes, but broke contact almost immediately. A few seconds later however, she looked up again. She lifted her head as she looked confusedly at Naruto, why was he smiling?

"What?" she asked, tucking herself in.

"Nothing." Naruto replied, as he strapped Eko on. He tied the forehead protector back on, before looking over his shoulder. Eko was still silent, he couldn't help but wonder why.

"Let me ask you something." Rika said, looking straight at Naruto, "Why didn't you just take your sword back when you had the chance?"

Naruto turned his eyes to Rika, his expression turning settled and calm.

"Because I know what it's like to want someone's approval." he said, "And I know how bad it feels when people don't wanna accept you for who you are."

Rika's brow raised, and she finally looked like the girl Naruto had met not long ago. She kept her eyes on his, quietly surprised by his words.

"You do?" she asked, her tone suggesting that she hoped so.

"Yeah." Naruto replied with a nod, "I do."

Rika kept her eyes on him for a moment, longer, before quickly looking away. Naruto still watched her though, and thought he could see her cheeks reddening.

"I'm sorry." she muttered, "For taking them."

She waited for a response, but didn't look. Naruto remained silent however, and curiosity proved too strong for her. She almost jumped when she realised how close he was, especially with the big smile he was wearing.

"Hey, you like ramen?" he asked.