Well, once again, sorry for the late update. I'm sure most of you know that I have started up a new story, Wind Lord. Also, while I was writing this chapter I was also writing BEMB. Then there was the fact that I wanted to end the Sennin arc in Tales of the Fox sage.

With that all said, it turns out that I gave Saki similar powers to Konan. Can you believe that? I was wowed when I found out.

Oh, and with Jiraiya, I would like to say he is being very brave right now. Me, after hearing Pein's plan, I would be "Step away from the crazy man." Ya. Also, what would happen if the others found out about it? I mean the rest of the group thinks that they are going to be taking over the world. I can only hope that they get super pissed. What does the Rinnengan do? And what is Madara's true goal? Is it the same as Pein or does he have his own agenda?

Well, let's get started.

---

Naruto slowly opened his eyes as he regained consciousness. Looking upward, he noticed that he was in a tent. He slowly got into a sitting position and looked out of the opening. Outside there were people sitting around a fire. Some of them were working with dough and others were playing instruments. He then decided to look around in the tent for clues to where he was. The first thing he saw was the backpack that Saki had. It looked empty. He turned his head to the right and saw Saki. She was lying on a mat, covered in bandages. Naruto then turned his head to the left and saw a teen with shoulder length blond hair. Naruto's eyes narrowed when he saw the armor near the boy.

"Ah, you're awake." Naruto turned his head towards the sound of the voice. From behind a curtain, an old man came out. He was dressed in bright colored robes and an odd hat. His skin was wrinkly, had a mustache with a long beard, and a large red nose.

"I guess you saved me," said Naruto. "Thanks old man."

'Of course he did baka,' snickered Kyuubi.

"Yes we did," said the old man as he sat next to Naruto. "You and your friends were lucky we happened to be passing by. If we hadn't then you all would have floated down the river. You and your companion over there (points to the other blond) are healing rather quickly. The girl however…"

"What's wrong with Saki?!" demanded Naruto. The old man just sighed.

"I'm afraid that her injuries were too severe," he said with reluctance. "We did our best, but I'm not sure if she'll make it. Poor girl. The only thing we can do is…hey, what are you doing?"

What Naruto was doing was getting up. There was some pain, but he could deal with that. After all, he had been trained by Zabuza, and because of that he had a high tolerance to pain. Naruto made his way to Saki's bed and knelt beside it, placing his palms face down above her. Then red chakra tentacles came out of them and began to roam over her body, and soon, beneath her bandages, her injuries began to heal.

Little did they know that Temujin was watching them. What is that power, he thought. We could use that to complete our goals.

The next day Naruto and Saki were moving along with the caravan. As it turned out, they were the clients who hired them to find their Nerugui. The client, Kahiko, thought that there was something wrong with it. He claimed that Nerugui didn't like strangers and stayed with their caravan. However, the ferret was staying close to the blond knight. Naruto, of course, didn't care; it only irritated him when the old man would start to cry about it.

Once the caravan stopped, so the animals could get something to eat, Saki and Naruto did their own things. Saki decided to learn more about the caravan's history and to get to know the man who had attacked them. Naruto, on the other hand, had a bone to pick with Kahiko.

"What do you mean you won't pay us the full amount?" asked Naruto slowly as he tried to keep his cool.

"The contract stated that you return Nerugui to us at the village," said Kahiko as he rubbed his beard. "Therefore you didn't fully hold up your end." Naruto's eye twitched.

"It was destroyed," snarled Naruto. "You're lucky that you didn't get there or else you would be dead. Besides, it doesn't matter where we give you your pet; it was just a meeting point." While Naruto was saying this, he was silently reminding himself that he couldn't kill the client. Well, at least not until they got paid and he made sure that it looked like an accident.

"I'm also covering the medical bill," said the old man quickly. "Plus we did fish you and your subordinate out of the water. You owe us. That's why we will only pay you one tenth of what we had agreed upon."

"No chance in hell," said Naruto as he crossed his arms. "I healed myself and Saki. And the contract says to deliver your…err…cat thingy…"

"Ferret," interrupted Kahiko. "And his name is Nerugui!"

"Whatever," cried Naruto as he was getting fed up with this. It was more trouble than it was worth. "We did the job and we are going to get paid. One way or the other." As Naruto finished this sentence his left hand slowly moved towards his blade. "Any questions?" Kahiko gulped.

"N-No," he said quickly.

"Naruto-sensei," cried Saki as she ran to where the two were. Naruto let out a small sigh as his hand returned to his side. He then turned to his panting student.

"What's happened?" asked Naruto.

"Temujin is gone," cried Saki. Naruto just raised an eyebrow. "Oh right, you don't know. That's the name of the guy who attacked us. I saw him earlier putting back on his armor and decided to talk to him. After we introduced ourselves he began to ask about our powers. I told him it was chakra, and then he said he wanted to barrow it. I didn't know what to say because I was confused. Then he left and Nerugui followed him."

"Nerugui left?!" cried the old man. Saki nodded. With that, Kahiko began to cry like a baby. "Nerugui, why have you left us again?" He continued like this for several minutes and then pointed at Naruto. "Go get him!"

"Ah, you haven't paid us for the last time we got him," deadpanned Naruto.

"But you didn't bring him to the site like we agreed upon in the contract," stated Kahiko. Naruto's eyes began to twitch. Here we go again, thought Naruto.

"Like I said earlier, it was destroyed!" yelled Naruto. Once again, the old man began to cry. Only this time it was louder so everyone could hear it.

"So this is what Mist-nins are like," he wailed as he turned his back at them. "I knew I should have hired those Leaf-nins." Naruto's eye began to twitch. "They at least get the job done and make sure that the client is happy."

"Fine," said Naruto with his teeth gritted. Oh, he was not a happy camper. "But when we get back you will pay us the full amount or else I'll be having cat soup."

"Sensei, it's a ferret," corrected Saki.

"WHATEVER!" screamed Naruto as he threw his hands into the air.

---

Over with Raiu and Meiga, they had finally made their way down the side of the cliff.

"Do you see them?" asked Raiu as he looked back and forth.

"No," said Meiga. "Their bodies were most likely taken down stream. It is doubtful that we will find them. We should return to the village so we can report the deaths of sensei and Saki." He then turned around to leave.

"No way," said Raiu as he grabbed Meiga's shoulder. "We should look for them." Meiga was silent as Raiu paused. "Remember that test that sensei gave us. Well I do."

Flashback

"The second part was to get you all to realize something. When people think they are going to die and are offered the chance to live by sacrificing someone else, one of two things happen. They either sacrifice themselves or their teammates. Now, while it is all well and good that you were thinking on how to save your teammates, what I wanted you to realize was that you each contributed to your loss. Saki believes that her being here is an accident. That attitude will not due. Meiga used you two as pawns so that he could analyze me. Sadly for him, we are short on shinobi and need everyone we got. We can't be that wasteful. And Raiu, you let your anger rule you and that path leads to self destruction. You will end the same as he did."

End Flashback

"Remember," said Raiu. "We were selfish back then and I don't want to be like that again. Sensei would look for us and confirm our deaths before marking us off. So let's look for him."

"Very well," said Meiga as he turned to face Raiu.

The two then traveled along the river side for a while until they saw some tracks. Deciding to follow them, they moved away from the river. A little later they came across an old campsite.

"Do you think they came this way?" asked Raiu. Meiga said nothing as he spread his arms to allow his dragonflies to leave his body to search the area. They flew around the area for a bit and then returned to their master.

"My insects have found their sent," said Meiga as he adjusted his glasses. "It seems you were correct, they are indeed alive."

"Of course I was," said Raiu as he crossed his arms, and a smug look appeared on his face. "I am the number one rookie of the year. Now let's go find them." With that, Raiu turned and began to follow the tracks.

I must refrain from complementing him, thought Meiga. His ego is far too massive. I doubt that there is anyone else with one as large as his.

---

"ACHOO," sneezed Sasuke as he woke up. A short while ago the doctor had put him to sleep so that he could be attached to his new body. As Sasuke sat upright, he felt a tingling sensation down his back and…wait, he had a back! He jumped out of his bed and began to look for a full length mirror. He wanted to see his new perfect body. Not finding one in the room he was in, Sasuke went out into the hall and proceeded to check every room. When he finally found one, he screamed.

The body was the right size for his age. The skin tone was a perfect match. In fact, everything was the same except for two things. One was that he had breasts the size of Ino's (how could he not notice that until now?). The other was that his one eyed monster was now the size of a baby carrot.

"It's bigger than my old one," said an amazed Sasuke. Which brings up the question: Was it a scream of joy because of his little buddy "grew" a bit, or one of horror due to the breasts.

(And you all wondered why I brought him back to life. Hehe.)

---

As Raiu and Meiga were leaving the old campground, a large rumble shook the earth. Out of the corner of their eyes they saw birds taking flight from behind a rock formation. Upon turning around they saw it.

They didn't know what it was. It was made of metal. It was tall, going from the bottom of the canyon to the top. Its shape reminded them of the skyscrapers that were found in the major cities, but it was moving. Silently, they decided to check it out.

The inside was easy to get into despite the number of guards. They were the same ones they had seen with the knight. Well, except for two. They were female knights with bright neon colored armor.

Raiu and Meiga were able to hide from them on a ledge above a room that they entered. Luckily for the two Mist-nins there were windows on the ledge that they could look through. Looking inside they saw many tubes. At one end were things that looked like fishbowls with children suspended in a strange liquid inside of them. The other end looked like a faucet above a conveyer belt. The woman in the blue armor walked over to a lever in front of them and kicked it. She then to turn a valve.

"How much longer do I have to take care of these brats," said the blue one. The one in the green armor chuckled.

"It's not good to have a bad temper you know," she said.

"I know that," said the blue one with a huff.

"Don't worry," said the green on. "One we find the Stone of Gelel we will be done with them. We just have to be patient until then." The machine began to do its work as the liquid was emptied from one bowl and then quickly replaced. Then, from the faucet, a putty like substance came out and rolled down the belt. As it did, it took on the shape of one of the soldiers, armor and all. Raiu made a slight movement that caught the attention of the blue knight. The two rushed out of the room and began to search the ledge.

They found nothing.

---

Elsewhere, Saki and Naruto jumped from tree to tree so they could catch the ferret again. As far as missions went, this was getting very annoying for a simple C-ranked mission.

"Sensei," said Saki suddenly, after a mostly silent trip. "I'm sorry about earlier."

"I don't know what you are talking about," said Naruto without turning his head.

"When we first encountered the soldiers I panicked," she said. "I just watched as Raiu and Meiga did all the real work. I didn't do anything. I'm just so…"

"Drop it," said Naruto. "It happens every now and then for rookies on their first real mission. Even with the village graduation exam, it still occurs. The reason is because, in the exam, you are fighting someone who you have some idea what skills they have. Out here, however, you have no idea. In the end you did try to help me and that counts for something. Besides," Naruto turned his head to look at Saki and gave her a grin, "the same thing happened to me on my first mission." Saki felt better after hearing that, but not much.

"I still feel useless," she mumbled.

"Trust me Saki, you have a lot of potential," said Naruto as he turned his head back so he could see where he was going. "The academy teaches the basic skills and stuff that you need to know for life after graduation. However, they have a tendency to overlook strategically minded people like you. When we get back to the village I'll help you refine your skills. Ah, there he is."

Temujin turned as Naruto and Saki landed besides him. In front of them was a mobile fortress.

"I see you both came," said Temujin. "That is good. Haido-sama would be interested in meeting the both of you." With that, he began to walk into the fortress.

Normally, Naruto wouldn't even consider entering an enemy's mobile fortress of doom. Well, unless he was ordered to, or perhaps if there was a lot of ramen inside. Normally, Naruto would have simply demanded the cat (ferret) be handed over to him and left. However, having seen the soldiers and having an invitation to meet with the boss was enough to get him to consider. He could more easily evaluate the enemy and see if they posed a threat.

"Fine," said Naruto as he began to walk forward. "Lets met this Haido person." With that, they entered and the soldiers paid them no mind. They just went along with their business and the group entered an elevator.

When the group reached the top floor there was a ding and the door opened. The three of them left the elevator and stepped into a room that was made of marble. Decorating the walls were painting that looked rather old and valuable. In the middle was a stairway and at the top was a thrown; this room just screamed bosses lair.

Sitting on the thrown was a pudgy middle aged man. He had orangish hair and blue eyes. He wore white robes and had a blue cloak wrapped around his body. On his head was a hat that resembled that of a bishop. As the three entered his sights and Temujin kneeled before him, he put away the book he was reading.

"Ah you're back Temujin," he said. "And these must be the people with the interesting power."

"Yes Haido-sama," said Temujin. "Allow me to show you." With that he pulled out his blade and swung it at Naruto. In response, Naruto grabbed his own sword and easily blocked the attack. Or course, it was like blocking a toothpick with a steak knife. Guess which one Naruto had. "Show Haido-sama your powers!"

"You could have asked," said Naruto with a grin as he put a little more of his strength into the sword.

"That's enough," said Haido as he came down the stairs.

"But Haido-sama," said Temujin.

"Fighting is wrong and should be avoided," said Haido. He then turned to Naruto and Saki. "I am very sorry. We are just a little on edge because we are so close to completing our dream."

"Dream?" questioned Saki.

"Yes," said the blond knight. "The land we come from is a war torn one. Many people have lost their lives in the senseless combat. The Haido-sama came. He had a plan that would end the combat and create a Utopia for us all."

"What's a Utopia?" asked Saki.

"It will be a place where there are no wars or fighting," answered Haido. "Everyone will be able to live their lives in peace."

"That sounds wonderful," exclaimed Saki as she clasped her hands.

"Yes it does," said Haido. "Would you two be interested in helping?"

"Sorry, but no," said Naruto who wasn't sorry at all. "We only work for other groups when they make a request at our village. Besides, if this Utopia ever came true we would be out of a job."

"I see," said Haido as a soldier came and handed him a piece of paper. Haido quickly read the note and looked alarmed. "The unit that was near Wind Country has been whipped out. Temujin, go check it out."

"Yes sir," said Temujin. He turned to leave when Haido spoke up again.

"Temujin, where did you get that ferret?" he asked.

"He followed me from the caravan," said Temujin. "Now I must be off." With that he rushed off.

"We'll help out," said Naruto. "Think of it as a demonstration of my village's strength." Haido nodded as Naruto and Saki left as well.

"Caravan eh," said Haido.

About twenty minutes later they neared the ocean. That's when Saki spoke up.

"Sensei, why did you agree to help?" she asked in a low voice.

"Intel," replied Naruto in an equally low voice. "I want to know what else they got. Besides, I don't trust them. They say they're creating a Utopia but their actions are more like an army slaughtering everything in their path. You know that smoke I went to check on the other day? Well, it turns out it came from the village where we were supposed to drop that cat…"

"Ferret," interrupted Saki.

"Whatever," hissed Naruto. "The point is that the village was destroyed. There were no survivors." Saki did her best to hold back her gasp. "Remember Saki, always be suspicious of everyone. Sometimes the most dangerous enemies are the ones who are smiling at you, waiting for you to let your guard down so they can stab you in the back." When Naruto said this he gritted his teeth. This didn't go unnoticed by Saki.

"Sensei, did that happen to you?"

"A long time ago," replied Naruto as he thought of Heero.

"We're here," said Temujin suddenly as they arrived at the beach. And there it was, the other mobile fortress. Except it was half buried in the sand. Slowly they made their way to it and went inside. There they saw indications of a powerful battle. Floor tiles were bent of missing. Every so often they would see a hole in the wall. All of the soldiers looked crushed.

Finally they came to a room where children lay dead on the floor. They looked like they were trying to get out of large fish bowls but couldn't do it in time.

"Pay no attention to them," said Temujin as Saki went to check for a pulse. "Creating the soldiers was the only thing they were good for."

"Some Utopia," said Naruto as he took off his zanbato. "Now I want the truth. If I like what you say I might only cut off an arm or a leg."

"Naruto," said a new voice. Saki looked up to see a guy in a cat suit wearing make-up. "What are you doing here? You do know you are at the border of River and Sand country, right?"

"Not now Kankuro," said Naruto without looking up. "My mission got complicated." Naruto then turned his full attention on Temujin. "Now I won't ask again. What's going on?"