CHAPTER – 3

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the Anime.

AN: I am getting almost negligible follows, favourites and other stuff for this story and I don't feel like writing it anymore, even then, I will keep writing a few more chapters.

This is just a minor grammar update…and also, a guest suggested me that I should change my paragraph style. I don't get it, but thanks for the compliment anyway. Could you explain in a more brief way?

"There Look! I see a cave!" "Alright! Let's go" "Hai!" "Haku, is there any sign of them" Haku closed his eyes and concentrated "No, I don't sense anyone" "That's good" they arrived at the cave and went inside "Hey Naruto, it's a good place. Not too deep and definitely wide" "Seems we can rest a few days here…alright then Tayuya, get some wood, Haku, come with me, we will go hunting. It's starting to get dark. We will all meet here in an hour." "Hai!" and they dispersed

An Hour Later:-

"Hey Tayuya, you are early" "We are still near the border, I got wood easily. What about you guys?" "We got enough; a wild boar" "Cool, I'll get the fire going" "Okay, but first; Tayuya, your Genjutsu is strong right?" "No doubt" "Can you…cover the cave entrance or something?" "Yeah, I've just enough chakra left" She walked to the entrance and started forming a few quick hand-seals "False Surroundings Technique!" The entrance lit a dim yellow for a few moments and then returned to normal again. Haku walked outside the cave and looked at the entrance "Whoa! I can't see you guys at all. That's quite a technique" "Heh, as expected from Tayuya!" the subject of conversation simply smirked.

"Guys, I have something in mind" started Naruto "And?" asked Haku "Well, I was thinking…ever since we left the village, we haven't been getting any time to train. And now, we have a great place to train and stay for a long time. If we have to farther, we need to get stronger. What do you guys say?" "Great idea Naruto" "I approve Naruto-sama" "Great then. Ever since we were travelling together, I have been watching you guys' skills, and I'm sure you both have been too" they both nodded "Alright. Then this is the conclusion I came up with; Haku is a strong Ninjutsu user, but lacks proper Taijutsu, and maybe can use a few more jutsus. Tayuya has a strong Genjutsu, but lacks both Ninjutsu, Taijutsu and a decent Chakra Reserve, due to over-dependence on the Cursed Seal" the aforementioned redhead smiled sheepishly "So, I guess Haku will work on Taijutsu and learning a few Jutsus, and Tayuya will work on Taijutsu and Chakra Reserves" they both nodded and Naruto reached his backpack and took out a scroll. He tossed it to Haku "Naruto-sama, is this the scroll Kakashi-san gave you?" "Yup" "Are you…sure…you want us to learn from it?" "What are you talking about? We are a team now, and I'm willing to help my team in any way I can" both of them smiled.

"Haku, look up for any jutsus that suit you, and I believe that you can train yourself?" "Of course Naruto-sama" "Great. Tayuya, I believe that you don't know about Water-walking?" "Nope, what is it?" "Alright then, follow me!"

For the next two months, the team spent their days hiding in the cave and preparing themselves for the journey ahead.

Two Months Later (Morning):-

"Wake up sleepy head…I said Wake up!" "Huh? What? Tayuya?" She tossed the blonde a roll of paper "Here, that's the local map" "Reassuring…wait, how did you get it?" "There's a town nearby" "You went in town?!" "Jeez relax, it's alright, there were no ninjas there, we went in and out really fast" "We? You went with Haku?!" "I said relax already!" "Where's Haku?" "Right there" the redhead stepped aside to reveal the third teammate "Good morning Naruto-sama" "*phew* morning Haku…so, any news?" "I have found out something Naruto-sama" "Let's hear it" "As we all know, Sunagakure is located somewhere in the bottom-right of Wind Country, and we are almost at the border, so there's almost no ninjas in the place we are in. Our early encounter with the Suna-nins was merely a co-incidence because Sunagakure sends a patrol team fortnightly to check the border, which is not enough. Also, they don't pay any attention to this part of the country, hence the people we met were hardly Chunin level" "I see, but what's your point" "The town I just sneaked in along with Tayuya is captured under a group of weak missing-nins. All of them are Chunins and are taking advantage of the lack of authority." "And what does it has to do with us?" asked the redhead "Well, while you were busy stealing the map and the clothes-" "You stole it?!" the blonde burst. Tayuya simple shrugged "What? We are criminals anyway! Be grateful, I brought you some clothes. Get rid of that disgusting orange!" "Fine…but Haku, I still don't see your point" "It's because your aren't letting me finish" Naruto rubbed his neck sheepishly "Heh…please continue"

"As I said, while she" he pointed towards the redhead "was busy stealing, I was talking to the general people, gathering information. It seems that a group of Suna-nins, most probably a team of Chunins are coming here to help the town and get rid of the missing-nins. And I heard them they are leaded by Kankuro-san" "Kankuro?! That's great! We will have to meet him. He can help us!" "Precisely" "Uhh…who is this Kankuro guy?" "I will tell you later, but first, when are they coming Haku?" "Sometime tonight" "Great! We will just hide in the town and wait for the right situation to meet him, we are missing-nins after all" "Right" "Okay"

Later that night:-

"Are everyone in position?" came a voice over the radio buzzing "Hai" came two voices "Alright. These radios are great Tayuya. You sure are a good thief" "…" "Jokes aside, stay alert guys" "Naruto-sama, I can sense them, about a few kilometres away. There are three of them" "Good. Tayuya, are you ready?" "Of course" "Alright then, ready to intercept"

"Secret Genjutsu: Blackout!" the three running shinobi suddenly fell to the ground, completely unconscious "Whoa…I never imagined it to be that effective. Alright guys, let's go!" The shinobi nodded and jumped out of their respective Genjutsu-hidden spot. They quickly picked up the fallen shinobi and left.

"Hey, wake up…come on, wake up" "Huh, where am I? Where- Naruto! What are you doing here?!" "Shut up! Don't yell. It's me, Naruto. Nice to see you" "What? What are you doing here anyway? The last I remembered, it was some kind of intense Genjutsu…" "That would be me" the redhead stepped forward "Nice to meet you Kankuro" "Hey! Aren't you that girl from Sound-four!...and you! You are that Konoha Chunin!" "Nice to see you again Kankuro-san" Kankuro immediately stretched his hand for a kunai, but it was caught in mid-air "No need Kankuro, we are not here to hurt you, and I think you know that well. As for your teammates, there they are" the blonde pointed a finger towards the end of the cave they were in. Kankuro could see their teammates passed out in the firelight "Fine, but why are you guys here anyway? And why are you with that girl?"

For the next few minutes, Naruto told Kankuro everything that happened; from his leave from the Village, to the present day. "I understand Naruto. What do you need my help for?" "As I told you, we have been here for the past two months. It's time for us to move on to somewhere else, and if possible, can you help us get out of the Wind Country safely? It was not a problem in the Fire Country, since I knew it well, but the Wind Country is a foreign land." "Of course I will help you Naruto." "Really?" "That's right" "Thanks Kankuro. I really appreciate it" "Not a problem. And, if you haven't heard yet, Gaara has been chosen as the next Kazekage" "Really?! That's good for him!" "Yeah. But for now, we have a mission to complete" "Yeah, I'm sorry about knocking out your team, but I couldn't risk them seeing that you are friends with a missing-nin" "It's alright. But, where exactly are we?" "Not too far from the town you need to go. Come on, let's wake up your teammates and we will guide you there" "Sure" "Haku, Tayuya, wear your masks, we are leaving"

After a while:-

"That's the place" "Right, I see it. Thanks Naruto" Kankuro stretched his hand, and Naruto took it "I should be thanking you" said the blonde. Just when Kankuro was about to say something, someone interrupted "Oh, there you are. I have been waiting Suna-shinobi! You dare to end my reign!...and you must be the brats who have been sneaking in the village for a few months. Time to end this!" the voice came from atop a tree branch not too far away. The source was a man of medium built, and with a cocky smirk. All of them got in a fighting stance "Shit! They found us! Kuro! Hito! Are you ready?" "Hai Taichou!" "Good. I'm sorry I dragged you into this Naruto" "What are you talking about? Let's just kick their ass! Let's go Haku, Tayuya!" "Hai!" "You are too cocky brats!" said the man "Let's go boys!" he said and a dozen of Shinobi came out of the bushes and trees. The two parties charged at each other with all their might.

As soon as the battle erupted, Naruto formed a cross-shaped hand-seal "Multi Shadow Clone Jutsu!" the jutsu gave life to two dozen battle-ready clones. Half of the clones rushed forward towards the enemies, while the other half, along with Naruto lagged behind and stretched their palms. Slowly but surely, Rasengan began swirling on the clones' palms, while the other half of the clones were holding the enemies from marching ahead. Though the clones were barely able to keep up with the enemies 'Shit! There's no way in hell these guys are low Chunin! My one-handed Rasengans are still too slow…there, it's done!' "Eat this. Clone Rasengan Barrage!" the clones charged forward towards the crowd. The clones hit only two of the enemies, who were instantly knocked out from the technique. Others managed to dodge Naruto's mass area Jutsu and after puffing away and the few clones that were left, they advanced forward. Naruto left them, trusting in his team's strength and threw a few shurikens towards their leader.

The man easily dodged them "You bastard! You have enough guts to attack me! I will demolish you!" the man took out a kunai and rushed towards the blonde with great speed. Naruto quickly formed the same hand-seal as earlier "Multi Shadow Clone Jutsu!" and this time, a hundred clones came out. For a moment, the man hesitated, but then charged towards the crowd. He used his kunai expertly and began dissipating the clones. A few of the clones made Rasengan and charged at him, but to no avail. The clones vanished alarmingly and at the end, only the man and Naruto were left. The clones had managed to get a few minor cuts on the man, but nothing much. "A brat like you could never defeat me!" he charged towards Naruto and they engaged in a fierce Taijutsu fight.

Naruto was barely able to keep up with him, but he managed to dodge most of the attacks 'Shit he is fast! Think! Think! I can't rely on quantity in this fight. He is fast, he can easily dodge my Rasengans. Moreover, earlier, giving the clones that much chakra for that Rasengan Barrage was exhausting. I can only win by surprising him. That's it! But it'll take much chakra. I have no other choice' Thinking of a plan, the Blonde once again formed the hand-seal "Multi Shadow Clone Jutsu!" and ten clones answered the call. The clones surrounded the man in a circle. "You can't hide brat!" the man began running towards one of them "I don't intend to" came a voice from behind him. When the enemy turned his head towards the source, Naruto had already finished a short series of hand-seals "Wind Style: Great Breakthrough!" he clapped his hands together and wide, horizontal wave of wind rushed at the enemy. Having been caught by surprise, the Jutsu hit him head-on and the man was sent flying "You think you can defeat me with this pathetic jutsu?!" just as he was about to land, he sensed a presence below him "I don't" and Naruto kicked the man in the back with all his might.

He was sent flying straight upwards, where he was intercepted in mid-air with one more clone, who kicked him on the side, changing his direction and severing a couple ribs. While in mid-air, several of the clones, one by one jumped in the air and kicked the man, tossing him like a pinball among themselves. At last, Naruto himself charged a Rasengan and jumped up 'He can't dodge in mid-air, I'll jam him head-on!' Just as he was about to hit the man on the chest, the moment before the Rasengan connected, the man with all his might stabbed a kunai on Naruto's left shoulder. He cried out in pain and jammed the Rasengan on the man's chest. The enemy leader drove straight down and died the moment his body crashed on the ground. Naruto fell beside him and lost consciousness from Chakra Exhaustion.

When she heard his scream, Tayuya stiffened "Naruto!" 'Shit! That asshole! Running straight at the leader!' She had already taken out one enemy, and was on the verge of taking out another. She gathered her attention and concentrated in the fight. Her Demons, in her command, were fiercely fighting the enemy. Pissed off, she quickly changed her flute's tune, in an attempt to quickly end the fight, which she did when her opponent was impaled by one of her Demon's claw. She put away the flute and rushed at Naruto's side, who was already unconscious 'He's losing a lot of blood!' she quickly unrolled a bandage to provide first-aid.

Hearing Naruto scream, Haku glanced at his side and saw him falling to the ground "Naruto-sama!" He quickly went through a short series of hand-seals "Water Style: Water Dragon!" and collecting water from the nearby well, a water dragon rose in his full might. Haku directed the dragon towards his opponent. The dragon raced forward and caught him in his jaws. The dragon rose in full height and crashed down, head first, with full speed, thus dissipating himself and knocking down the opponent. Haku took out a senbon and threw it at the unconscious enemy's neck, killing him instantly, and thus putting an end to his third opponent. He glanced towards Naruto, only to find Tayuya applying him first-aid. He sighed and looked at Kankuro, who along with his team, was on the verge of killing the last enemy standing.

Seeing the fight finish, Tayuya picked up Naruto on his back and walked towards Haku "How is he Tayuya-san?" just as she was about to speak, Kankuro came rushing "Is Naruto alright?" she nodded "He's alright, out from Chakra Exhaustion" "Okay then, let's go to the base" they all nodded. Haku and Tayuya let them to the cave, started a fire and began cooking some meat left from the previous hunt. They all ate, except Naruto and slept to get a much needed rest.

The Next Day:-

When Haku woke up, he glanced around to see Tayuya and Kankuro's teammates still sleeping. He looked towards the entrance and saw Naruto and Kankuro talking. He got up, woke Tayuya up and walked towards Naruto "I'm sorry if I'm intruding anything Naruto-sama, Kankuro-san" "Oh Haku! How are you? Are you hurt?" "No, I'm fine. What about you?" "I'm all set!" "That's good. You were lucky that it was a flesh wound" said Haku "I guess…well, you guys get ready" "Where're we going?" asked Tayuya as she came walking by "The guys we killed last night, it seems that they had a prisoner. He was trying to fight for the village and those guys locked him up. He too, is a missing-nin, like you guys. Naruto said that he wanted to rescue him" replied Kankuro "Are there any more of those assholes?" said the redhead "None" "Alright then, let's get going Haku, Tayuya" "See you later then Naruto. Thanks to you guys for helping us there. We would have been killed if not for you. My team will leave in an hour. Meet me at the spot one week later and I will handle after that" "Thanks Kankuro. See you later" they both shook hands and Naruto, along with team, departed shortly after.

"So Naruto, why the sudden interest in this guy?" "I don't know. This guy just fought for the sake of a town which wasn't even his home. Kankuro was saying that he heard this guy was living here for only a year. I think that maybe, we can make him come with us" "Seriously Naruto?! You wanna make a guy your comrade whom you will just meet?! Haku, please explain him" "I agree with whatever Naruto-sama says" "Seriously?! How did I get myself here?!" "Relax Tayuya, I just know he is a good guy" "Alright. If you are going to continue expanding our team, we need a name for the team" "A name?" "That's right. How will people know who we are?" "Whoa, we are nowhere that strong that we will get famous" "But still…and you are already the acting leader of the team" "Hey! I never vouched for it!" "You are our leader Naruto, and we respect you as a Leader." Haku nodded and Tayuya continued "If the team has a leader, they will have to respect him, or else the team falls apart. You already have earned our respect, but the others who are gonna join, you haven't. You need to start acting like a Leader Naruto. Understood?!" "Ye-Yeah. I understand" 'Scary!'

Naruto and his team arrived in front of a moderate looking house. Naruto knocked and a woman opened the door "Yes?" The woman was in her twenties and she was wearing a simple kimono "Umm we are with the Sand shinobi. We came to meet the prisoner" "Oh! Please come in" She stepped aside to let Naruto and company inside "I'm the Town's Elder's daughter, Aiko. Nice to meet you…" "I'm Fukuro. Nice to meet you Aiko-san" ( AN: Fukuro = Owl. It's a codename, since Naruto can't reveal his real one.) "Please follow me Fukuro-san" the blonde nodded and followed the lady.

"My father is a doctor. He is looking after the man. We are very grateful to him, for the bravery and passion he showed for the town by trying to fight against them" "But he is alright now, right?" "Yes. I and my father immediately freed him after those ninjas were defeated by you all. He was in a very bad condition, but we took utmost care in treating him" "That's very kind of you" "It's nothing Fukuro-san" She stopped and pointed towards a room "He is right there." "Thank you Aiko-san" she nodded and left.

The trio opened the door and went inside. The room was dimly lit by a few candles. In the middle was a bed, on which a boy was sitting. He immediately stiffed when the team entered the room "Who are you?!" "Relax, we aren't going to hurt you" the boy spread his senses and was immediately shocked when he sensed chakra from his visitors, and in a large amount too. He scanned them quickly but couldn't see any forehead protector. He hastily went to grab a nearby kunai. A moment later, he felt cold steel touching his neck, which immediately stopped his actions "As he said, we aren't here to hurt you" said the girl gripping him "Wh-Who are you guys?!" the blonde who seemed to be the leader walked towards him "I'm Fukuro, and I believe you are Kisuke?" ( AN: Sounds Familiar? I'm changing the timeline as per my convenience. I'm sure you don't mind…) "H-How do you know my name?!" "Oh trust me, we know a lot more than that"

"…and that's it. Everything I told you from me leaving the village till we met you, it's all true and that's the story" "So, you are the Jinchuriki of the Kyuubi Naruto-san?" Naruto nodded "That's right" "I get it…but…why did you come to meet me?" "Oh…it's just that since you are a missing-nin like us…and since I've already seen your persona…and since you have nowhere else to go…I wanted to invite you to join our team!" "Oh!" Kisuke nodded subconsciously "So?" "Huh?" "Will you join us then?" "…Of course!" Naruto grinned "Yes!" his teammates too welcomed him in the team "Now, let me introduce myself formally…I'm Kisuke 'The Swift' and I pledge my loyalty to my Leader, Naruto-san!" "Great! Welcome aboard Kisuke!"

At the same time, Kisuke thought 'I don't have anywhere to go…there's always trouble everywhere I go…maybe if I stay with these guys, I can be safe…they defeated those assholes, they are definitely strong. For now, I'll stay with them…let's wait out and see'

One Week Later (At Sunrise):-

Naruto kept his finger at a certain spot "This is where we have to meet Kankuro at noon" the team, comprising Naruto, Haku, Tayuya and Kisuke where sitting in a circle with the local map in the centre "And what after that?" inquired Tayuya "Kankuro said that he knows a path that the Suna ANBU uses to travel through Wind Country. He will get us an un-official escort through the country" "Wow…" "Can we really trust this guy that much Leader?" asked Kisuke "Of course! There's no doubt about it" "Alright then Naruto-sama, let's leave" said Haku. They all nodded, picked up their already packed backpack and left their temporary hideout after wearing their respective masks.

(AN: I would like to describe their clothing at this point.

Their masks are pure white, with an exception being Naruto's, which is purple. The masks have no design and are perfectly simple, with two eyeholes and nothing else.

Naruto wears dark-grey pants and black sandals, purple short sleeved T-shirt, and dark-grey full-sleeved long-coat, which is open and dangles till his knees; much like Yondaime's. He also wears black leather gloves. And inside his clothing, is a fishnet armor.

Haku wears more subtle colors, consisting of a white T-shirt, light-grey pants, bandaged palms, black shinobi sandals, and a crème-coloured open jacket. Feel free to imagine a little variation in his hairstyle that goes with the clothing. Also, feel free to imagine Haku more…manly…. As usual, under all the clothing is a fishnet armor.

Tayuya wears black pants (not full-length, three-fourths), blood-red V-neck top, black shinobi sandals, blood-red leather gloves, completed with a black open jacket with folded sleeves. Also, a fishnet armor underneath.

Kisuke…if you don't remember him yet, just google him. He is wearing brown coloured pants, blue T-shirt, blue shinobi sandals, blue leather gloves and a closed full-sleeved brown jacket. Also, a fishnet armor underneath.

And that, my friends was a description of their physical appearance. Any other character that has a role, will be wearing their canon attire unless stated otherwise.

I would also like to give you all a little description of team's abilities.

All of them can be easily considered Chunin-level. Considering that they did two months of pure training, with no missions or village duties to bother with. They all have the jutsus that they had in the canon. They will also learn new jutsus as the story progresses, which will be revealed gradually. And about Kisuke, he can be considered at the same level as the team. Till now, he has no specialties, other than being faster than average. He will get some specialties eventually.

And that was a short description on their abilities. They will continue getting stronger gradually.)

The team travelled at a brisk pace and arrived at the spot a few minutes before scheduled. Kankuro, along with two Suna ANBU was already waiting for them there. "You made it in time Fukuro" "How could I not Kankuro" They both nodded. The puppet master turned towards the ANBU "Alright guys, you already know the mission. As the Kazekage instructed, we have to get these guys out of the Wind Country swiftly and effectively. Let's go" the ANBU nodded and left. Kankuro turned towards the team "They are gonna stay a little ahead to look out for trouble" "Alright. Thanks Kankuro" "No problem. Gaara felt bad that he couldn't meet you personally. He wanted to come but he's the Kazekage now" "I understand. He has done more than enough already. We will sure meet one day" "Yeah…alright then, shall we go?" "Sure. Let's go team!" "Hai!" and all the five shinobis left.

AN: So Naruto has already became the official leader of the group, but he still has a long way to go. In the next chapter, they would have already crossed the Wind Country, to reach the Country of Rivers.

If you have questions regarding the geography, Naruto and group crossed the border between Amegakure (Hidden Rain) and Sunagakure to enter Wind Country. From there on, they are currently travelling to the bottom-most part and after that, they will travel east. Later, they will cross the sea and then cross the little part of Fire Country that is in between. Finally, they will reach the open sea.

Here is a list of simple translations for the unfortunate people who don't know them, but they should.

Konoha/Konohagakure/Konohagakure No Sato = Leaf/Hidden Leaf/Hidden Leaf Village

Suna/Sunagakure/Sunagakure No Sato = Sand/Hidden Sand/Hidden Sand Village

Kumo/Kumogakure/Kumogakure No Sato = Cloud/Hidden Cloud/Hidden Cloud Village

Kiri/Kirigakure/Kirigakure No Sato = Mist/Hidden Mist/Hidden Mist Village

Iwa/Iwagakure/Iwagakure No Sato = Stone/Hidden Stone/Hidden Stone Village

Also, I will be using some words and codenames in Japanese, because it delivers more feel.

If you find any mistakes or plot-holes, feel free to correct me. REVIEW!