Ch.7- Eyes like mine

Naruto and Anko stood before the Third Hokage, the older of the two filled with a giddy sense of hope while the other was left with curiosity. After all, what would it mean for his training if the elderly leader said 'no' to Anko's request?

'I suppose I could always go back to my original methods, but increase the intensity this time around,' the blonde rationalized. 'But I honestly don't want it to come to that; I'm actually a little hopeful the old man says yes, just so I can have some time outside the village if nothing else.'

As if reading the young genin's thoughts the Sarutobi Clan head pulled his pipe away and finally answered the purple-haired Jounin's request.

"Before I even think of agreeing to this, I want you to explain the reason you've chosen Naruto out of all the genin who, not just made it to the finals, but also reside within the village. What makes him so special?"

Seeing her Hokage so serious cooled Anko's eager mood, and as she settled down and stood straight, the beautiful woman answered the white-robed man that sat before her. "For starters Hokage-sama I owe him a debt; during my run-in with Orochimaru I was incapacitated, and rather than leave me there to chase him, young Uzumaki stayed behind and made sure I arrived at the tower safely.

I can't possibly let something like that go, not when I know the number of genin willing to perform such an act is something I believe I could count on one hand. But, aside from that, after hearing his report back at the tower and seeing him in action during the preliminaries I feel that Naruto Uzumaki has an unrivaled amount of potential that has yet to fully be explored...and I'd like to be the first person to try."

Hiruzen gave his subordinate a curious gaze as he asked her how she felt about the young boy's time under Kakashi. "Are you saying he hasn't already done a good job in tapping into this 'unrivaled potential'?"

"Of course not Hokage-Sama," Anko immediately replied, "I meant no offense to my fellow Leaf shinobi. All I was trying to say is that much of the boy's training has been in brute force; and although using three affinities at his age is impressive, I feel that Naruto Uzumaki should be instructed in the subtle arts of our profession along with the loud."

"And you believe yourself to be the ideal teacher." It wasn't a question. Hiruzen Sarutobi knew that Anko never did anything without being sure first, it was why she had never bothered to chose any students, as she had not meat any that made her certain that they would succeed under her care.

The woman's shrewd mind, and passionate words, made Hiruzen feel more secure about placing Naruto in her care. "Very well then, I grant you permission to be his temporary instructor. Once the finals are over, if he is not promoted to chunin, he will once again be assigned to Team 7 and placed under the care of Kakashi."

Anko's face split into a wide, happy grin. One that stretched so far that her warm, brown eyes were forced to close giving her the impression of a kid in a candy store. Bowing low she thanked her Hokage before coming back up and inquiring about her mission. "So does this mean I can take him with me to the Land of Sea?"

This threw Hiruzen for a loop, the smoke he'd just sucked down from his pipe catching in his lungs from the shock. Sputtering through a coughing fit the elderly Kage gave his subordinate a very watery stare of disbelief.

"W-What? Anko, didn't you just get me to agree to letting you train Naruto for the month? I thought you would want a reduction in missions during this time, not more."

Anko gave the old Fire Shadow a rapid shake of her head to indicate that wasn't the case. "Of course I still want the mission Lord Hokage, it's imperative to my teaching style; I want the kid to see what I intend to teach him in action, so he'll see how it's applied in a real-life situation.

I don't wanna jut have him learn and practice something in a field, then take it into the real world blindly, I want him to truly understand what it means to be a shinobi...and that includes the assassination aspect of the job too."

This bit of information made Naruto turn sharply in his temporary sensei's direction. Assassination? What kind of mission was Anko trying to get him into?

The head of the Sarutobi Clan saw this and asked Anko if she was serious. "He's only thirteen years old, what makes you think he's ready for assassination?"

"He tore a hole right through that Sound genin in the very first match of the preliminaries didn't he? What's wrong with having him experience the art of silent killing too?"

"Because in the case of assassination the target is generally asleep, unarmed, or otherwise unaware of the act. Naruto's kill was during a match, against someone who was trying to kill him, it's completely different."

Anko's gaze hardened a little; she wasn't going to budge. "That doesn't change the fact that, Naruto Uzumaki is a shinobi; a ninja. He will at some point in his career perform an assassination, why not now? I went on my first mission when I was only a year older than him-"

"But those were different times," Hiruzen cut her off. "The number of needed assassinations has dropped significantly since you were a genin Anko, and the few that are needed now usually get done by my Anbu members. I gave this one to you because of the delicate subject it involved...and the hope that it would help with your memory."

Curious about it, but choosing to ignore the bit about Anko's memory, Naruto rose his hand as an indicator her wished to speak. When his Hokage acknowledged him the blonde pleaded his new senseie's case as well.

"Actually old man, I'm okay with being sent on the mission with Anko-sensei. In case you forgot, I do still intend to take that hat from you some day, and what kind of Hokage would I be if I was unable to relate and be open to discuss an assassination with one of my subordinates? You know of the dangers and psychological damage due to performing them yourself, so you're able to be a sort of council for those you send out...should an aspiring Kage not need the same ability?"

Hearing the younger shinobi's words, and the level of seriousness laced with every word, made the elderly Hokage proud. The Naruto in front of him was nothing like the one from his academy days. The young genin that stood before him was a true, budding ninja; one that he felt was worth being given this chance.

"Very well then," Hiruzen relented while steepling his fingers, "I'll allow you to take genin Uzumaki on this mission Anko. But only because I trust your ability to bring him back alive; if you return to the village without him, or his career is brought to an end by this in any other way, then be prepared to hand over your headband."

Anko nodded firmly, her usual lackadaisical attitude switched off in the face of this condition.

Seeing that his subordinate understood the elderly Hokage began to relay the mission specs to both Anko and Naruto.

"Alright then, now that we've got that settled let's get on with it. Jounin Anko Mitarashi and genin Naruto Uzumaki your mission is an A-ranked assassination mission; your target is a man that goes solely by the name Amachi. The target resides in the Land of Sea and is reported to be a scientist under the employ of Orochimaru. His heinous crimes against humanity, through way of his 'experiments', have caused the abduction and disappearance of over thirty people. Your primary mission is the assassination of this individual, however, if possible you are to collect and return with as much of this man's notes as possible. Anything we can use against Orochimaru in the future is information too valuable to ignore."

Once he finished explaining their objectives Anko and her blonde psudo-student gave silent confirmation that they accepted the mission. From there the elderly shinobi handed them the file to go over before dismissing them.

xXx

Naruto walked from his apartment towards the main gate of the village. Anko had instructed him to do a double check to make sure he'd had everything necessary for their mission. She'd told him to think hard, because while something may seem trivial, like say a pack of explosive tags, you never know what you'll find on a mission and that ' I don't need it' thought could cause major casualties.

So, the blonde made sure to go over everything he had at home and pack whatever tools he might need.

Once he finished Naruto found himself walking the back roads towards the gate where he'd be meeting Anko, his reason being that using this route gave him time to think without risking bumping into anyone he knew.

And thinking was something the blonde felt was needed, to plan out his next steps. Because, while he had chosen to take up Zabuza's mantle and ultimately surpass the man, was that it? Was that all there was going to be to his ninja career? Naruto felt his eyes itch with the desire to turn and look back at the Hokage Monument, to be reminded of his original goal in life. Did he still want that?

If he was being honest with himself?

Yes.

In spite of his promise to the dead Demon of Kiri Naruto never actually let go of his first dream, all that changed was his reason for wanting the hat. His time with Haku helped open his eyes to the truth; he didn't need the acknowledgment from every person in the village, no, he just needed the love of those he held close. It was for them that he would get stronger, and become the Hokage, so that he'd be better able to protect those he considered precious.

The only thing was...Naruto could probably count on both hands who that list included. And for a moment it made the young Uzumaki wonder if his strength would be enough to make his dream come true.

'No,' Naruto shook his head in denial, 'I'm just being hard on myself again. Haku only had Zabuza and he was able to get so strong protecting just him, but even still, I'm taking his words the wrong way. It's not about the number of people, it's the principal. I've got to remember that, I can't ever forget or think less of my precious people like that again. I'll get stronger for them and become the next Hokage so I'll be better able to protect them; it's my promise to them, and myself.'

By the end of his declaration Naruto noticed he'd made it to the meeting spot. His blue eyes scanned the area in search of his temporary sensei and he felt annoyance build up inside at not finding the woman anywhere nearby.

"Oh come on," he complained, "don't tell me all Jounin are late. I was hoping it was just Kakashi-sensei but I guess I was wrong." He crossed his arms in frustration as he muttered, "If I would have known about this earlier I would have stopped and had some ramen at least."

"But then you'd be late my little hatchling, and that would have been a terrible impression to make on your first mission with me."

The voice came from seemingly everywhere at once and Naruto snapped his head up to search for the source. It was Anko's voice, of that the blonde had no doubt, but he couldn't pinpoint the older woman's position.

Anko obviously saw his fruitless search though because she laughed from her position before standing up from her place by the guard post to show that she had been there the whole time.

Naruto's eyes widened at this realization because it meant that, had she been an enemy, he would have been dead. "So this is another difference between a genin and a Jounin; those guys in the forest were pretty easy to sniff out, but you, I couldn't even hear you breath."

"I know, but that's a nice little trick you've got there hachling, there aren't very many ninja who think to do what you did trying to find me. Or rather, they can't focus their chakra that way." Anko explained, but when she saw the light that began to glint in her psudo students eye she decided to bring the genin back to reality. 'Gotta remember he's still a kid, despite his talent,' she thought before moving to speak again.

"But don't let that go to your head kid, because just as you saw, you haven't even mastered that skill yet and I could have easily slit your throat without you ever even knowing. There's still a long way for you to go before your Jounin level, but, I'll make sure that by the end of the month you're going to be chunin level without a doubt."

While initially a bit let down by her assessment Naruto perked up at hearing the beautiful woman say that she wasn't going to give up on him, and better yet, she was going to make him a chunin! In spite of himself Naruto couldn't help imagining the way it'd feel wearing the flack jacket that signified he was no longer a genin.

His thoughts were cut short when Anko tapped him on the head and said, "And now that lesson one is over, it's time we get going my little hatchling. We wouldn't want our target moving and getting away now would we?"

Naruto shook his head and rubbed the spot the older woman had caused to itch before he began to follow her; surprisingly, they were running through the trees.

"We're tree-hopping? Usually when my squad has a mission we don't rush it."

Anko looked beside her to the blonde youth she'd taken under her wing and explained that, that's because his team had been doing escort missions and glorified errands. "This is an assassination, a real-life mission with a time frame. We need to get there as soon as possible, which means there's no time for sight seeing."

Naruto pondered his for a moment before decided she had a point before remembering another thing he was curious about. "Why are you calling me 'hatchling'?"

At this Anko gave the younger shinobi a playful pout. "What, can't I give my student a nickname? I'm sure Kakashi does it too...or do you just not like me?"

When Anko turned her head away and pretended to start crying Naruto could feel his head drop in disbelief; sometimes it was hard to remember Anko was a Jounin. "N-No, it's nothing like that Anko-sensei, I was just curious is all. You see Kakashi-sensei doesn't actually give us nicknames, so it's new to me. I-I really don't mind the name, honest."

"Really!?" Anko's face whipped back around with a ridiculous, obviously fake, hopeful expression.

"Y-Yeah...really."

'Maybe it's not too late to turn around and forget this whole thing,' Naruto thought as he listened to the woman beside him laugh at his annoyed face.

While Naruto was on his way to aid in his first assassination, many of his fellow genin were busy with their own kind of training.

At the Hyuga compound Hinata stood before her father, Hiashi, in the man's study. He was looking over a series of papers while his eldest daughter waited for him to address her.

After making the young girl wait for five minutes, and seeing she wasn't going to break down in nervousness, Hiashi asked what the girl wanted.

"F-Father I...I wish to ask for you to resume instructing me in our Gentle Fist,' she answered with a bow. "I've managed to make it through the preliminaries of the chunin selection exams and wish to represent our family properly during the finals. A-As acting heiress I feel that anything less than perfection is unacceptable to present to the many foreign prospects coming to our village. I ask this, not as your daughter, but as the next head of our family...help me to not embarrass then Hyuga Clan."

Hiashi sat and stared at his daughter. Internally he felt surprise at the young girl's words, as he knew Hinata to be terribly shy, and usually his daughter couldn't speak more than two or three words to him. Where did this come from?

'And then there's her words; she's deliberately pointing out her flaws, but Hinata's bringing them up in such a way that she's letting me know she doesn't wish to project those weakness during the finals.'

It was these points that helped the Hyuga clan leader make his decision.

"Very well Hinata, I will resume your training. However, I reserve the right to pull out of this arrangement if I feel you aren't making enough progress within a reasonable time."

Years of living in the compound helped the young heiress hide her joy at her fathers words, and instead just replied with a bow and quiet thank you. Although her pearl-like eyes widened when her father said they were going to start now.

But Hinata wasn't the only one in Konoha who was gearing up for the finals.

On the other end of the village, far from the clan compounds and hidden among the homes of average civilians, Ten-Ten could be found in her backyard staring down a man equal in height to Hiashi. And in the man's daughter's opinion, equal in prowess as well.

His name was Sanosuke Sagara; he was Ten-Ten's father, and a skilled swordsman.

Like Naruto the man used a large-style weapon, but instead of a broadsword, Sanosuke wielded a zanbato. However, the swords immense weight did nothing to impede his ability with the weapon; as demonstrated by the way he easily blocked his daughter's diagonal swing.

"You'll need to do better than that if you wanna have any hopes of beating that Uzumaki kid; at least from the things you've told me anyway." Sanosuke instructed before pushing Ten-Ten back and using his zanbato as a springboard so he could switch into an areal kick. He was proud when the bun-haired girl managed to dodge it, but frowned when she immediately charged back in.

"Wrong!" Sanosuke alerted his daughter before planting both feet into her chest with a double-kick.

As his daughter lay gasping for breath, the former mercenary explained what she had done wrong. "You need to stop rushing things Ten-Ten, don't always be so prone to act first. It's okay to take time and move away from your opponent to strategize; if you don't, and all you do is attack, you become predictable. And from what I understand, predictability in your line of work gets you killed...right?"

The man's daughter hung her head in shame. He was right, she was acting foolish.

'But that's what this is all for,' the weapon mistress thought as she hauled herself to her feet for round two, 'so that I can fix the mistakes that caused me to lose out to Naruto in the first place.' Smiling as she thought of facing the blonde again in the finals Ten-Ten readied herself for her father's next attack.

And it wasn't just the kunoichi who were busy training either. Miles away from the village Sasuke Uchiha was desperately trying to dodge Kakashi's fierce taijutsu assault.

They had tried reactivating the inverted eye that the young genin had used against Kiba, but were unsuccessful, so instead they worked to get Sasukse used to not only his lack of vision, but also working to increase the boy's speed.

"You're going to need to be even faster than Lee if you hope to stand any chance against Garra in the finals." Kakashi had told him. "Because when this month is over, if you haven't at least managed to match his speed, then you will die."

As he got hit by another kick to the chest Sasuke felt his anger, but also his resolve, strengthen. He would surpass Lee, he would defeat Gaara, and then he would use his new found strength to help him reach his goal.

He would make Itachi pay, no matter what it took or where he was forced to go, Sasuke would avenge his mother's death.

xXx

It took them most of the first day, but Naruto and Anko managed to reach the closest port before nightfall. But where Naruto thought they would now wait and rest, his temporary sensei proved him wrong again.

"Nope," the snake mistress said with a shake of her head, "we're boarding tonight so that we'll be there by morning."

"But Kakashi-sensei didn't-"

"Kakashi wasn't taking you guys on real missions gaki; you had time to rest. But when you're with me, you better be ready to play hard ball because I guarantee there's gonna be nights were we won't even sleep."

Naruto saw the series look in Anko's pupil-less brown eyes and it made him realize that there was a reason such high-ranking missions were saved for Jounin level and above shinobi. They weren't just dangerous, but taxing on the body as well, something no ordinary genin would be able to handle.

'But Zabuza wasn't an ordinary genin, and if I'm going to honor him then I can't afford to be either.'

Looking back at Anko the blonde could see that she was waiting to see what he'd do. With his head on straight again, Naruto nodded firmly as a signal he was ready.

This brought a smile to the woman's face as she lead him to where they would purchase their tickets for the boat. And even though the boy had hesitated a moment ago, Anko had no doubt in her mind he would continue the mission. She'd chosen right, now she just had to hope he'd be able to be there when it mattered.

'I guess I'll start by teaching him the Striking Shadow-Snakewhile we wait to dock again.' The woman thought as they made their way to their ride.

Because something told Anko this mission wasn't going to turn out anything like she planned.

Soft, light-brown eyes shot open as years of instinct took over. As a shinobi who often took dangerous missions on foreign soil, Anko Mitarashi had learned to be a light sleeper. And that's why, when she heard the floorboards creak outside her cabin door, the woman was out of bed and against the wall with a kunai in hand waiting to see if they would finally make their move.

'This is the third time since we left the port,' Anko thought as she steadied her breathing, 'whoever it is has stopped in front of my room each time, just to leave after standing there for ten minutes.'

To Anko, she believed Naruto and her had been tagged early on in their mission, right before or as they bought their ferry tickets. She believed that their assassination target had expected their imminent arrival, and had planned to have his pursuers killed off before they got to him.

'Well good luck trying to get rid of me,' the snake mistress growled internally, 'because there's no way I'm letting anybody get in my way on this mission!'

Having had enough of the waiting game, Anko steeled her conviction and shouldered down her door. She could hear the person on the opposite side gasp in surprise, clearly caught off-guard, and she felt warm skin under her fingers as she slammed them against the hallway wall.

But just before Anko could deliver a killing blow, she heard a familiar voice yell out for her to stop.

"Wait, sensei, it's me!"

Brown met blue as sensei and student locked eyes, and for a moment everything stopped. Neither shinobi even realized they'd stopped breathing.

Finally though, Anko's brain registered that she wasn't in any danger, and she let Naruto drop to the floor. Relaxing her shoulders just slightly, in case the blonde before her was really an impostor, Anko eyed the boy on the floor and asked what he was doing.

"And has it been you I've felt standing outside my door?"

Naruto for his part just turned his eyes away, unable to look his temporary teacher in the eye as he shook his head yes.

"Why?" Was Anko's simple, and yet complicated question.

Complicated because the genin at her feet didn't really know how to answer her. Naruto didn't think he'd be having this conversation with anyone, let alone the woman in front of him, but the past few nights had just been so hard.

"I-I can't sleep."

It was only three little words; words parents heard all the time from their children. But for Anko it resonated deep down to her core and pushed forth a memory she'd kept locked away.

One where, a young girl a little younger than Naruto stood before her own sensei and whispered those very same words. A memory where that sensei, still kind and understanding, wrapped his charge in his arms and comforted a young Anko who was feeling scared after her first kill.

And, without meaning to, Anko found herself repeating those same words to her own student.

"It doesn't make you a monster Naruto. In fact, just by the way your kills are bothering you shows how human you are...it's only when you feel nothing for the lives of others that you become a monster."

Naruto still looked away as he replied, "But I took their lives so easily; I-I didn't even think about it. I just did what my instincts said, and I killed those guys."

The blonde on the floor heard the boards creak so he turned his head, only to find that Anko had knelt down so they were eye-to-eye; a hold Naruto found he couldn't break. Not even when she placed her hand on his head and ran her fingers through his hair.

"And if you hadn't done those things, if you hadn't killed them, then they would have killed you. Difference is, they would have enjoyed it; those guys were the monsters Naruto, you're just a ninja trying to stay alive."

But even as she said this, and Naruto felt some of his guilt wash away, he couldn't help thinking about his desire to honor Zabuza...and for the first time, he really questioned whether or not he could do it.

xXx

And Naruto wasn't the only one suffering from an emotional storm. Back in Konoha, Kiba Inuzuka couldn't sleep either.

Tossing and turning in his bed, the shaggy-haired genin just couldn't get comfortable. It was either too hot, too cold, or something itched liked crazy until finally Kiba just gave up and got out of bed. Leaving his room, the Inuzuka walked the hall that led to the bathroom and flipped on the light.

What he saw in the mirror didn't surprise him. In fact, he'd been expecting it.

His hair, like all Inuzuka, grew fast and now was a wild mess down to his shoulders. His eyes were blood-shot and drooped from lack of sleep. Reaching a clawed hand up, the brunette scratched an itch in his tangled mane...only to stop, and stare at his hand.

Seeing those claws reminded him of why he couldn't sleep.

Akamaru. His best friend, his companion, his familiar, was dead.

'No,' Kiba growled low in his throat, 'not dead. That bastard Uchiha killed him! He murdered my best friend in cold blood!'

A lack of sleep, and pain from Akamaru's death clouded Kiba's mind, leaving him in a fog of rage. One only made stronger by memories of the meeting his mother had held with the Hokage about the incident.

By law, there was nothing that could be done. Killing was allowed during the chunin exams, and every participant signed a waver stating they understood death was a possibility; even Akamaru. The pups paw-print was stamped right beside Kiba's own handwriting.

The only thing the Hokage could really do was offer reparations in the form of payment.

Something Kiba vehemently refused, as no amount of money would replace what he'd lost, or return Akamaru to him.

No, Kiba knew there was only one thing that would satisfy him now. And as he stared at his reflection in the mirror and watched as his eyes turned to slits, he thought about how good revenge was going to feel.

Sasuke Uchiha was going to pay.

xXx

The morning after their talk, Naruto and Anko found themselves seated in her room talking about how to continue the blonde's training; in this case, summoning.

"It's a rare and useful tool," Anko started, "something not many shinobi are capable of that could give you the advantage you need during a fight. I myself use snakes."

"Like Orochimaru?" Naruto questioned.

"Yes, but only because it was the contract he chose to sign. Not saying that I don't love being able to summon snakes, but now they've gotten a bad reputation for being his signature, so I try not to do it too often."

Something she said caught the blonde's attention. "Wait, contract?"

"Well yeah," Anko looked at her student funny, "how else did you think it was done?"

Naruto quirked an eyebrow as he answered her. "I thought it had something to do with changing your chakra to look like an animal; I didn't think it was as easy as signing a piece of paper."

The blonde's response got an unexpected reaction from Anko. She laughed. She laughed for a few minutes before finally calming down, and when she did, the pony-tailed kunoichi saw the confused look her psudo-student was giving her. So, Anko decided to answer Naruto's unasked question.

"Sorry about that gaki, it's just, hearing you say summoning is easy was more than I could take. In fact, if anything, summoning is one of the hardest skills to master."

"But...why?"

Anko just sat back and smirked before rolling up her sleeve. With her arm revealed, not only did Naruto's eyes get a glimpse of her unexpectedly smooth skin, but he also noticed the tattoo that was painted on her forearm.

It was a snake wrapped around a scythe.

"This was given to me on the day I proved myself to the snake summons. They bit me here," at this Anko showed Naruto the tips of the snakes fangs. There were two puncture scars. "And the venom burned this into my skin from the inside."

Naruto cringed at the thought, but couldn't help be intrigued about one thing. "You said you had to prove yourself; what did you mean by that?"

"I had to show the snake boss, Manda, that I was worthy to be his summoner." Was Anko's reply.

But there was something about this darkness that flashed in Anko's eye as the kunoichi spoke that made Naruto ask, "And how did you do that? What did this Manda have you do?"

At this, Anko's shoulders slumped in a tired motion, as if she'd just gotten done carrying a heavy load for miles. This was more than enough for Naruto to realize, whatever it was, Anko wasn't proud of it.

And this made him pull back. "Or, if it's uncomfortable, you don't have to-"

"No," Anko cut him off, "It's okay. If we're gonna do this I...I have to open up a little too. When Orochimaru had me sign the snake contract, Manda's personal test was to have me bring him a hundred sacrifices...and then I had to watch as he ate them."

This news shocked Naruto and he looked on at Anko in sympathy. He couldn't imagine having to go through something so terrible; having to listen to all those screams and pleas for mercy. Just as he was about to reach over to take her hand though she spoke again.

"It was one of the worst sights I've ever seen; there was so much blood. But after it was over I was allowed to summon any snake on the contract other than Manda...although I never would even if I could."

After hearing what this Manda's test was Naruto shuttered to think of what kind of damage such a monster would do once unleashed.

This thought process resulted in another question springing from the blonde shinobi's lips. " So am I right in guessing you aren't going to have me sign the same contact as you?"

Anko answered him with a shake of her head. "Nah...at least not now that I'm remembering when I signed it. I mean, before we boarded the boat I'd thought of having you sign it, but I wouldn't feel right putting you through that."

"Then why all this talk about summoning," Naruto questioned with a quirked eyebrow.

His answer was a smack to the head.

Anko eyed the smart-mouthed blonde before growling out, "Maybe because I thought it'd be a good lesson for you to learn gaki!"

"Ouch!" Naruto grunted in pain before sending Anko an irritated look. "Well if you aren't gonna teach me summoning what am I going to learn?"

At this the blonde's temporary sensei leaned back against the wall and casually crossed her arms yet even in her usual trench coat, it was easy for Naruto to notice the way the woman's arms pushed out her chest, something the blonde youth's budding hormones were excited for.

And that was something Anko noticed.

Smirking like her namesake, Anko leaned forward and eyed her psudo-student. "Well, maybe I can start by teaching you the 'look-and-turn'. This is the second time I've caught you staring and I'm starting to wonder if there's something here you like."

Her teasing snapped Naruto out of his trance, and as he turned his eyes up from her tempting cleavage, the Uzumaki boy could feel his cheeks heating up from the embarrassment.

Shaking his head to rid himself of any impure thoughts, Naruto fumbled passed his tongue to offer a reply. "N-No, that's okay, I don't need it. A-And I'm sorry, i-it's just that...um, well..."

But Anko waved him off and relaxed her posture; this had the effect of letting up on the pressure to her chest. Smirking at Naruto good-naturdely she said, "I was only kidding. Actually, with the whole summoning thing going out the window for now I suppose I can teach you something a little simpler; how does a new stealth technique sound?"

This got Naruto's attention.

"What kind of technique?"

"It's called the Chameleon's Shadow, and it allows the user to become invisible for as long as they ca provide the chakra; a pretty good option for someone like you, but someone with a powerful dojutsu or great enough tracker ability will still be able to find you." As she finished her explanation of what the move was Anko could tell her temporary student was indeed interested.

On his end, Naruto was already coming up with an interesting combo he could make with a technique like that, and couldn't wait to learn it so he could try it out.

'One thing's for sure, it would make infiltration a whole lot easier,' he thought with an air of excitement about him. Eager to get started, the young blonde leaned forward a bit and asked when she was going to start teaching him.

"After breakfast," the female shinobi answered, "you can't learn on an empty stomach; and I won't be able to focus until I get a bite in me."

While at first Naruto was going to protest, as he wanted to get started as soon as possible, any argument was silenced by the loud rumbling of his stomach. Laughing sheepishly, the young Uzumaki let his words die on his tongue and motioned for Anko to lead the way.

Breakfast was a small affair, considering their budget, and once it was finished the two shinobi were ready for some training. They headed back to Anko's room; where she'd told Naruto this particular training would take place.

"We can do more once the mission has been completed, and we're on our way back to Konoha. With the importance of this assignment though I'd rather we tried to stay a bit more focused; okay?"

Naruto nodded in understanding as she answered his unasked question. Once back in the privacy of the Jounin's room Anko motioned for her blonde companion to take a seat on the bed, while she herself moved to stand towards the center of the floor.

Placing her hands in a 'ram' sign before gathering her chakra for the technique. Being as in-tuned as she was with her control, and her extensive use of the technique, it was only a moment before her body began to fade out of sight. Naruto watched in rapt attention, blue eyes wide with excitement, as his pseudo-sensei vanished right in front of him.

That excitement soon turned to anger though when he felt a sharp whack against the back of his head a moment later.

"Hey!" Naruto sputtered. "What the hell was that for!?"

Breaking out into laughter, Anko let her technique drop before letting herself calm down. Turning her mirth-filled eyes on her blonde companion though, she answered the angry youth with a bit of wisdom.

"To get your head out of the clouds gaki; you were so focused on the technique, that you forgot about me. You can't afford to do that out in the field."

Naruto eyed the woman curiously. "Can't do what in the field; what did I do?"

"You got distracted by a technique you've never seen before, you can't do that, no matter what you may see out there I need you to keep your head in the game." Was Anko's reply.

The blonde genin looked at the Jounin with understanding in his eyes, grasping the seriousness of what she'd told him, and filing it away so as to keep from making the same mistake again. His perception did not go unnoticed, and when she saw it, Anko showed the younger shinobi the proper signs used to activate the technique he'd just been shown.

Eager to learn, Naruto payed close attention, his mind soaking up the lesson like a sponge.

The Chameleon's Shadow was the only technique the Uzumaki had time to learn in the four day boat ride, as the first three were spent going over information they had and making plans for how to accomplish their objective; the termination of a man named Amachi.

Anko explained that, since the man worked for Orochimaru, there was a good chance they'd run into some very strange, as well as dangerous, characters if they weren't careful.

"That's why I wanted us to spend so much time going over our action plan and escape routes," the older woman spoke quietly as they walked off the boat. "Like I said on board; we'll have more time for skill training once this is over."

Naruto just nodded his head in understanding, but before he could bring up another topic of discussion his attention was drawn away by laughter. However, it wasn't a happy kind of laughter, no this was one of cruelty. Something the blonde knew all too well about. Turning his blue eyes in the sounds direction, Naruto felt his anger spark at what he saw.

Kids, four of them, were chasing a girl covered in bandages. Their laughter was mingled with harsh words as they pelted the obviously distressed girl with small rocks.

Sharp eyes caught sight of the stone that was hidden by the beach sand, and within moments Naruto watched as the girl's foot hit it, causing her to trip. Now, with her face full of dirt, the girl was quickly surrounded by her assailants and forced to suffer further harm as they started to kick her.

It was when he heard the girls cry for help that Naruto snapped.

Before Anko could think to stop him, the younger shinobi vanished from her side, only to reappear behind the ring of boys.

Not even bothering to say a word of warning, Naruto reached out and gripped the closest shoulder, before jerking his arm back and sending that kid stumbling into the dirt in surprise.

This got the attention of the other three; and they didn't like what they saw.

"What the heck did you do that for!?" One of them yelled out. He grit his teeth in anger at the treatment of his friend, showing off his missing front teeth.

"Yeah," shouted another wearing a cap, "don't you know what that thing is?"

Hearing how that kid addressed the girl on the ground made Naruto see red. How many times had the same thing been said about him? He wasn't about to stand by, and let some sot nosed punks treat someone else that way, especially not a girl.

"I don't care who she is," the blonde growled through clenched teeth, making sure to point out that he did not share their choice of category. "All I care about is the fact that I see four guys picking on one girl...now I suggest you apologize before I lose my temper."

The smug looks on the boys faces confirmed the sounds Naruto heard from behind him. So when the one he'd shoved yelled out, the blonde was more than ready to teach him a lesson for trying to surprise a ninja.

Side-stepping the first attack, which turned out to be an attempt to smash a rock over his head, Naruto threw his elbow back and slammed it into the kid's nose. The force of the blow knocked the attacker unconscious, and with his downfall, the other three quickly understood that the blonde was someone to fear. They swiftly picked up their fallen leader and made a mad dash for the town nearby.

After watching the group scramble away, and making sure they weren't just coming back with more bullies, Naruto turned his attention to the bandaged girl who was still laying with her face in the sand.

"They're gone, you can get up now." The Uzumaki said softly as he took a knee beside her.

When it looked like she hadn't heard him Naruto reached out a hand and placed it on the downed girls shoulder. The blonde genin shook her lightly, but when the bandaged victim didn't show any response Naruto started to worry.

"H-Hey, come on, get up now." Naruto hurriedly shook the same shoulder, a tone of worry lacing his voice now, a voice that hitched in his throat when he finally rolled the girl over and found there was blood oozing from her head.

Turning sharply, the blue-eyed blonde yelled to Anko that he needed her.

"This girl's bleeding, we have to do something!"

xXx

Black, pupil-less eyes snapped open while their owner gasped for breath, reeling from the nightmare she'd just had. Isaribi let her body jolt from the futon she slept against so as to put herself in a more upright position. However, before the frightened girl could pull herself up completely she was wracked with pain, as her forehead smacked against something hard.

Dropping like a sack of potatoes back to the bedding, Isaribi howled in pain; only to choke on her voice when her ears were assaulted with someone else screaming...and a woman's laughter.

Fighting the throbbing knot on the front of her skull Isaribi managed to flutter one of her eyes open and get a look around. What she saw shocked her: it was the blonde from her dream!

'Which means, i-it wasn't really a dream,' the violet-haired girl thought in surprise. 'Someone really did chase those bullies away.' Then, noticing that the uproarious laughter from before had quieted to a snicker fit Isaribi's squinting eyes canvased the room, until finally, they landed on an older woman leaning against the wall of the hut she was laying in.

It was the realization that she, an eight-year-old child, was alone with two older strangers that caused Isaribi to scream again in fright before attempting to scramble to her feet. And while normally this may work the scared young girl's previous collision had aggravated her wounded head, which had been pelted by one of the stones thrown by a bully, and this caused Isaribi to become dizzy. She would have fallen, but a pair of strong arms had shot out and caught her.

Her head swimming now, Isaribi's fluttering lashes allowed her a hazy glimpse of her savior. The blonde teen from before. Only this time, from her closer position, the young girl managed to get a look at his striking blue eyes. Her brain still rattled from all the trauma, coupled with her lack of nourishment the past few day, Isaribi could feel herself slipping back into unconsciousness. However, before the encroaching darkness took her once more, one thought managed to push its way to the forefront of her mind:

'His eyes are just like mine.'

When she next opened her eyes Isaribi managed to keep herself from freaking out; although it helped that her nose was first assaulted by the strong aroma of delicious food. The violet-haired girl slowly propped herself up with her elbows, using the time to get used to the now shadow-filled hut; it seems night had fallen while she was out. Isaribi gasped.

'I-It's already night time!? Oh no, Dr. Amachi isn't gonna be happy once he finds out I didn't practice with my Kaimaform,' the young girl hung her head as her eyes squeezed shut. 'It's gonna be another week without food; I just know it!'

Just as the child was beginning to spiral into a resigned form of acceptance though, a voice called out to her from across the hut; where Isaribi could see there was a fire going, and a pot of food was being cooked. It explained the smell, but the young girl's attention was drawn more towards the direction of that voice. It sounded like a boy. Seeing a head of unruly, blonde hair in her peripheral vision drew Isaribi's attention and she was proved correct. There, sitting in the corner, was an older boy who looked to be a few years her senior; and while the large sword he was cleaning scared the wits out of her, Isaribi couldn't help the gasp that escaped her when she looked into his eyes.

"It was you," she whispered.

The blonde looked at her funny, an eyebrow raised in confusion, which made the younger girl blush in embarrassment. Her eyes immediately darted down, breaking the eye contact, only to widen in fear when she realized the bandages on her arm were gone and the scales they hid were in plain sight. First, Isaribi's breath caught in her throat, and then she started to hyperventilate. The older boy in the corner must have seen her scales!

However, he must have been able to see the despair on her face, because just as Isaribi was scrambling to get up and bolt for the exit the blonde suddenly appeared before her in a shocking display of speed.

Taking hold of her upper-arm the masked teen started to speak, his tone rushed by quiet, as if he were trying to calm a wild animal as he tried to calm her down.

'Animal,' Were the girl's morose thoughts. 'Just like me'.

"Now wait a minute," the blonde diverged from his original speech. "Stop moping and listen to me, yes I saw your scales but I'm not afraid. Look, my name is Naruto, why don't you tell me your name and we can go from there; we can even have some of the noodles boiling in the pot over there, you look like you could use something to eat."

Eat! Hearing the offer of food made Isaribi think about Dr. Amachi and her promise to help him with his work, as well as her inevitable punishment for not returning before her guardian's set curfew. Recalling the punishments from the past, and imagining what awaited her, the violet-haired girl couldn't help but begin to once again sink into despair.

Or at least, she would have, had a pair of worried blue eyes not bent down to stare into her own onyx-black pair. Startled, Isaribi squeaked and jerked away. The boy, Naruto as he'd introduced himself, gazed at her with worry and confusion mixed in his sapphire eyes.

"Hey, what's wrong now? If you really don't like noodles that much we can go get something else; anything you want, I just really wanna make sure you eat something."

Naruto watched as the girl shuffled her legs underneath her while simultaneously turning her head and trying to pull her arm back: she wanted to hide her scales. Seeing this proved the young genin's earlier theory that the scales he and Anko had found weren't from a bloodline trait, and instead, were more than likely connected with their target Amachi. Making sure to keep his tone light, so as not to scare her, the young Uzumaki began to speak again.

"Wait a second, what's wrong? If you're worried about your scales you shouldn't be; I saw them a while ago when my sensei and I were taking care of that nasty cut on your forehead." Carefully, with a gentleness many would think the blonde incapable of, Naruto cupped the younger girl's chin and turned her so their eyes met. "I've been watching over you all day, do you think if I'd been afraid, or disgusted, I'd be able to even talk to you let alone get this close?"

Isaribi's shoulders shuddered and her bottom lip trembled as she felt tears start to well in the corners of her eyes. The eight-year-old diverted her eyes, choosing instead to stare at the far wall, she whispered 'yes'.

Blue eyes widened in horror before narrowing in outrage over the history the girl's response reflected. Someone had offered this child kindness as a ruse, and after taking advantage of her trust obviously did something terrible. For Naruto this was the last straw. The young Uzumaki had realized almost immediately after removing her bandages that this girl was involved with his target, and had honestly felt a bit of anger towards her for siding with the man, but now, seeing the despair in her eyes, Naruto realized that nothing was as he'd thought. There was much more to this girl than meets the eyes...just like him.

In an effort to calm the now sobbing girl Naruto reached out his other hand, the one not gripping her upper-arm, and let his fingers run through her violet locks. When she flinched, his face twitched in an effort to scowl, but the blonde forced the muscles to form instead into what he hoped was a kind grin. Then, in a voice he didn't know he was capable of, Naruto whispered out for the girl to look at him.

Isaribi hesitated when the blonde, Naruto, whispered to her but she had steadily felt her tense body beginning to relax under his lulling fingers as they swam through her hair. Eventually, she was unable to help herself, and the resident orphan of Sea Country let her onyx eyes swivel to meet the ocean-blue pair that waited for them.

"W-Who are you?"

While he may have come s long way from the bumbling buffoon of days past, Naruto still had to catch himself from re-stating his name. That wasn't what she'd meant, he realized. The girl was asking why he was willing to be so kind to her, to help her, when everyone else in the village despised and degraded her.

"I'm a ninja, a shinobi, from the village of Konoha, and while I've come to your village on a mission with my sensei that doesn't mean I'll ignore someone in need. It may sound strange to you, but I want you to know that, while I'm here, I'll do everything I can to make sure what happened this morning never happens again; now, who are you?"

Hearing that Naruto was a shinobi made Isaribi's eyes widen in surprise as well as amazement. She'd never met a real ninja before; sure, Amachi had those two goons that liked to think they were ninja, but Isaribi could tell this guy was the real deal. 'I mean, who other than a ninja could carry around a sword like his!?'

Seeing the girl's eyes stray to Kubikiribocho Naruto came up with an idea. Grinning wide enough that it could be seen from beneath his bandages, the blonde offered a trade: her name, for the story of how he'd gotten his sword. "And trust me, it's a good one."

Isaribi took the bait almost instantly; she loved stories. Although she'd been young when they died, the now eight-year-old girl could still easily recall the many bedtime stories her mother and father would either read to her or make up together. It was these very stories that filled her dreams at night, of places far away from her boring, and now cruel, little fishing village. It was these stories that made her believe Mr. Amachi would really fix her, and, it was the thought of these stories that lead her to answer Naruto's question.

"M-My name is Isaribi; Isaribi Raito."

xXx

Anko felt ready to snap. After Naruto had insisted on watching over that strange girl the Special-Jounin noticed almost immediately that something was going on; especially when they removed her bandages and found her body littered with scales. There had been multiple patches, scattered from her face all the way to the tops of both feet.

And while part of her wanted to pass it off as some weird kekkei-genkai, the experienced kunoichi knew that was wishful thinking, as there had never been such a trait been recorded before. No, this girl definitely had something to do with Amachi, which Anko became more certain of when she'd attempted asking around about her. Whenever the scaly child was brought up, no matter who she spoke with, they shut down or suddenly remembered an errand they had to attend to. It got to the point where no one in the village would speak to her; it was infuriating!

'Although none of these morons were much help on the mission-front either' the grumbling woman thought as she marched back to the small hut she'd acquired for shelter. And it was true, these people knew next to nothing about the man she sought, her time in the T&I department coming in handy to make sure no information was being withheld.

No, the only thing anyone had to tell her was about the disappearances a couple of years ago that ranged from small children to a few grown men and women. The people would go out like normal to fish but never came back, and when villagers went to search for them, there was never any trace; like they just vanished.

'But that doesn't tell me anything other than what I already knew!' Anko growled mentally before kicking up a bit of sand in a huff.

Anko's pupil-less brown eyes could see her rented shelter a short distance away. This helped quell the burning anger inside as thoughts of food and a nights rest made there way into her mind; the sun had already set, and she was more than ready to let her tired legs rest. A shinobi she may be, but being on her feet all day still wasn't something the woman enjoyed doing.

"Especially when it all turns out to be for nothing." She grouched again.

However, before the battle-hardened kunoichi could take another step her instincts kicked in, and she leaped to the side so as to avoid being skewered from below.

The Special-Jounin narrowed her eyes as she watched a body rocket up from beneath the sand, spear-in-hand, before it landed and settled into a fighting stance in front of her. Anko flicked her wrists, and felt the cool steel of her kunai as they fell into her hands.

Only to drop them in shock when two arms came from behind and locked her in an arm-bar.

"Good work Shui," the spear wielder congratulated as he walked up to the captured Anko. With the moon shone bright in the sky, even without being full, Anko was able to make out the look of one of her captors. He was tall, at least Kakashi's height, with the build of a man who had spent many hours doing hard labor. He had a head of feathery brunette hair and a face that could almost be called handsome, if not for the cruel and disgusting smile that twisted the visage. His upper-body was bare, but his lower half was hidden beneath common black pants and shinobi sandals; with no headband, it was easy to conclude this guy, and more than likely his partner too, were just wash outs from their original ninja village who later became mercenaries.

'Which makes me wonder how they got the drop on me,' Anko growled mentally to herself.

As if answering her unspoken question, the one holding her captive opened his mouth to reply to his partner. "It wasn't nothin'," he spoke in a rough and uneducated manner. "That trick gets 'em every time Tai."

"Maybe on those weak housewives we snatch from the village, but this one here's a kunoichi, a female ninja, so I'd say we got lucky," the one known as Tai told Shui in a cocky but cautious tone. But that melted away when the man was within inches of his prey; by then his look had morphed into a leering grin. "But maybe this is just our reward for doing such a good job working for the good doctor—rah!"

The mercenary snatched his had back, inspecting the new, bloody bite mark before clocking Anko with his uninjured fist. "You bitch!"

Despite the throbbing in her left cheek Anko gave a smug grin to the man in front of her; he had attempted to caress her face, but the woman wasn't having it. "Careful boys, I bite."

In a flash, the Special-Jounin threw her head back and smashed Shui's nose. The man behind her howled in pain, his hands immediately letting go of Anko to clutch at his bloody nose. Then, with her body free, Anko snapped her left leg back and planted her foot in the man's stomach. She followed this up by ducking low to avoid a kunai to the throat from the mercenary known as Tai.

Years of training kicked in next as Anko gripped his outstretched forearm, and slammed her right palm into her enemy's elbow; sounds of bone breaking were intermingled with cries of pain.

Thinking quick, Anko struck like a serpent and swiftly tore open Tai's throat with the kunai she'd kicked up from the sand. Not even blinking as the man's blood squirt from the new opening, Anko turned her attention to her second would-be rapist. The man known as Shui was just now managing to blink through the pain of having his nose broken, and through teary eyes saw his partner crumple to his knees.

"You fucking slut; you killed him!" Seeing nothing but red, Shui barely managed to take his first step in Anko's direction before she vanished from sight, appeared behind him, and knocked the fool unconscious.

'This one should be easy to break,' the T&I expert thought peering down at Shui. With her years in the field Anko learned quickly that, normally, every pair had a brain and a brawn type; the brain taking longer to interrogate. However, if one were to separate the two, the dumb one would break quickly without the support of his companion.

So, taking a length of ninja wire from her coat pocket, Anko went to work stringing up her prisoner before hoisting him over her shoulder. It was as she was finishing the trek to her rented shelter that the woman wondered if these two were connected to the girl Naruto had insisted on watching over.

'One thing's for sure though, they definitely have a connection to Amachi if what they said earlier is true.'

xXx

Upon returning to their shared dwelling Anko was surprised to find Naruto regaling the amused looking girl with a story about one of the many pranks he'd pulled during his time a the academy.

Or at least, he had been, but once he noticed her entrance the blonde stopped. Then, seeing the man she had slung over her shoulder, Naruto rocketed to his feet in attention. His abrupt silence, followed by the sudden movement, caused the plum-haired girl to turn her own attention towards the door...only to gasp in fright when her own eyes landed on the bound mercenary.

Seeing her reaction was all the answer Anko needed. "I take it then that you know who he is?"

Hearing this Naruto turned his eyes from his sensei, over to Isaribi, before asking if it was true. "Is this the guy who gave you those scales Isaribi?"

Flinching at the mention of her condition Isaribi couldn't keep from folding in on herself, arms hugging around her small frame, as her dark eyes turned to look at the floor. Worrying her bottom lip for a moment, the eight-year-old chanced a look at the blonde beside her. Seeing the same outreaching look from before, the one that urged her to trust him, she couldn't help but believe that just maybe he could help her.

"N-No, that's not Dr. Amachi, his name is Shui; one of the doctor's guards." For a second she battled with herself about continuing, but the hope of freeing herself from the feeling of loneliness Isaribi had felt under Amachi convinced the girl to keep going. "I-If he's here then Dr. Amachi must have gotten impatient with my lateness...which means he's furious."

Naruto saw the way Isaribi's eyes squeezed shut as she hissed out that last word; it worried him. What he didn't see though, was that it worried Anko as well, especially when her trained eye didn't see any form of past abuse on the young girl.

Pupil-less brown eyes narrowed into slits as their owner forced down the animalistic growl that threatened to rumble in Anko's throat. Leveling her tone, so as not to scare Isaribi, and hopping she was wrong the kunoichi asked, "And what happens when Dr. Amachi gets furious?"

The answer was plain for someone like Anko to see. The way Isaribi's whole body trembled as her knees turned in on each other, closing her thighs, as bone-white knuckles pushed down the hem of her t-shirt. Even Naruto, with no real experience in the subtleties of body language, knew not to probe the question any further.

It was clear what sort of punishment the man known as Dr. Amachi dealt out.

Seeing how shaken Isaribi looked now Naruto moved into her space and, reaching out, drew the younger girl into a hug. With his shaggy blonde hair covering his eyes one couldn't see their expression, but all someone had to do was look at the teen's own shaking form to know Naruto Uzumaki was close to flying into a rampage.

For Isaribi, the moment she was enveloped in the warmth and safety of the hug, she broke down in tears. Sobs wracked through her body, sending her shoulders into a frenzy as memories of those horrid nights played back in her mind. Burying herself as deep as possible in Naruto's arms Isaribi wailed in despair, "P-Please, don't make me go back! Onii-san, please, I-I'll be good, just—just please don't m-make me go back!"

Hearing the younger girl's plea only made Naruto hold her closer. For one so young to feel such fear, to know this kind of pain, should be impossible. Memories of the blonde's own childhood played through his mind like a slideshow; and yet, Naruto knew nothing he'd felt was anything like Isaribi's pain. He may have been alone, but the girl in his arms had been trapped. Caged like a rat, knowing only twisted, perverted versions of affection. It was enough that Naruto felt the same wall shatter from when he'd thought Haku killed Sasuke; the Kyubi's chakra slowly leaked through his body as Naruto vowed to slit Amachi's throat himself.

"Don't worry Isa-chan; you aren't ever going back there again. Tonight, Anko-sensei and I are going to make sure that bastard Amachi won't ever be able to hurt you again."

The protective, assuring tone Isaribi heard was enough to help stop the trembling of her body and allowed the eight-year-old girl to gather enough of herself so as to look up into her saviors eyes. What she saw, normally something that would be found in nightmares, only further cemented Isaribi's belief her 'Onii-san' had been sent specifically to save her.

Naruto's eyes were cast in the shaggy shadow of his blonde hair, making their now crimson color glow eerily, while his slit pupils stared down at the girl in his arms with a glint of something primal in their vulpine depths. With the lower-half of his face bandaged none could see his new set of fangs, or thickened whiskers, but by the way his jaw was fixed they could tell the young Uzumaki was gritting his teeth in an attempt to keep his emotions in check.

Knowing her young charge needed to be reigned in, lest he lose himself, Anko stepped further into the hut and told Naruto that they still needed to interrogate their captive. "Because in spite of your new strength, and even having me at your side, we don't know what to expect from this Dr. Amachi. I'd rather not have us run in their half-cocked only to fall into some trap that can easily be avoided with a few minutes of thinking ahead; if we aren't smart about this, you won't be able to keep your promise to young Isaribi here."

At the thought of the young girl in his arms falling back into the hands of her tormentor was enough to get Naruto under control. He'd never broken a promise before, and now definitely wasn't the time to start.

Peering down his nose at Isaribi one more time Naruto combed his clawed fingers through her violet tresses a few times before stepping back from her and, hand still atop Isaribi's head, asked his sensei what she needed from him.

"Since I don't really think you're ready to perform your first torture session I just need you to take your new friend outside—I know it's a bit odd, considering what just happened to me, but unless Isaribi thinks she can stomach watching me work it's the only other option," Anko explained, having further explained her thoughts when Naruto looked at her like the Special-Jounin was crazy.

Blowing an unsure breath through his nose Naruto took Isaribi's hand with the intent to follow orders, only to look at the aforementioned girl when she refused to start walking. "Isa-chan, what's wrong?"

Isaribi's onyx-black eyes looked from the man she knew was Shui, who the woman known as Anko had dropped into the far corner, then looked to the blonde holding her hand. Her gaze was hesitant for a moment before, after taking one last look to Shui, the child whispered that she wanted to stay; she wanted to watch.

On his end Naruto was shocked. She wanted to watch someone be tortured? Eyeing her wearily the blonde asked if she was sure, saying he wouldn't think any less of her either way, and sighing softly in agreement when Isaribi reaffirmed her decision to stay. Something that, while he didn't understand, would honor if Anko said it was okay.

And she did.

Because while Naruto didn't understand Isaribi's thoughts, the older shinobi did. She'd seen cases like this a few times before; she herself being one of them. It tended to happen to those who had suffered at the hands of of someone else; made worse when it's a person they believed could be trusted. Thoughts would begin to form during the torment, usually after accepting the reality of their situation, about the positions being reversed and the tormentor becoming the victim.

'This filth must have taken part in that bastard Amachi's punishments,' Anko summarized before letting Naruto know he and Isaribi were allowed to stay, as well as leave, should watching become to hard. Neither the blonde, nor the young girl who wound up in his lap left the hut that night, and both watched, unblinking as Anko went to work.

But the screams of pain, which helped lull Isaribi to sleep mixed with Naruto's heartbeat, would ring in the Uzumaki's ears and bring back memories of the final battle at the Great Naruto Bridge.

Only this time, it wasn't Zabuza doing the killing, but Naruto himself.

Anko's hypothesis proved true, and in just about an hour and a half of starting in on her prey, the ninja had everything they needed to plan their final move. Then Naruto watched as Anko killed their captive.

"There's no redeeming scum like him, so there was no reason to let him live," she'd explained upon seeing his questioning look. "Something you need to understand Naruto is that there really is such a thing as evil in this life; and that it won't always be easy to spot like Orochimaru. Because, honestly, can you tell me you'd have pegged this man for a monster had you both just been walking down the street?"

Naruto could honestly shake his head no.

"Exactly," was Anko's firm reply. "Remember that lesson Naruto, because it's important, don't ever just blindly trust anyone, because you never know who's really a wolf waiting to take a bite out of you."

Leaving her temporary student with that last bit of advice the former apprentice to Orochimaru bid goodnight to her blonde charge before sealing the dead Shui inside a scroll and laying down in her sleeping bag. Naruto was only up a few minutes longer, letting his eyes linger on the spot their dead captive had been bound in, before letting his eyes drift shut.

That night his dreams were filled with thoughts of if he would have been able to torture Shui.

When next he awoke, Naruto was surprised only a moment at the weight against his chest before recalling the previous days events. Upon the recollection however his blue eyes steeled into a cold cobalt as his memory pulled forth the plan he and Anko had come up with.

Today was the day.

Seeing the absence of a sleeping bag and deducing that Anko must be standing outside on the shore Naruto carefully shifted Isaribi in his arms, cradling her against his chest, before making his exit from the fishing cabin.

Sure enough, upon his exit, the blonde Uzumaki's eyes quickly found his pseudo-sensei staring out at a speck of an island among the vast ocean. Being sure not to wake the still-sleeping girl in his arms Naruto made his way over and asked, "That's our target isn't it; that island over there."

Anko's response was a silent nod of her head. Naruto could see out of the corner of his eye that there was something on the older kunoichi's mind; the far away look in her normally light eyes let the blonde know the woman was reliving a memory.

That's when the blonde remembered the mission briefing the Hokage had given them in his office: Dr. Amachi worked for Orochimaru.

Turning so he could properly see his partner Naruto asked if the woman was okay. "You can be the one to take his life if it helps Anko-sensei."

Hearing her student's offer broke the woman from her fuzzy recollection of the island that lay before her, she'd just begun to recall being woken up on a cold medical table by an Anbu, and caused the violet-haired kunoichi to blink rapidly so as to bring herself back to the present. Shaking her head in the negative, Anko told Naruto that wasn't necessary. "If you see a chance to take the bastard out I want you to jump on it; we can't afford to let this creep keep up his twisted science projects."

A whimper drew both ninja's attention to the now awake child Naruto was arms full of. It seems the crashing of the waves had woken the little girl and she'd caught the last of their talk. Thinking of herself as one of those 'twisted science projects', Isaribi felt her heart clench. Only her Onii-san's comforting embrace, matched by his hushed words helped calm the distraught girl's worries.

That is, at least, until Isaribi heard Anko's next words.

"Sorry to tell you both this, but Isaribi's gonna need to play a part in our getting inside."

xXx

Dark, watery eyes looked up fearfully at the equally black camera lens that allowed Dr. Amachi to see who was at the entrance to his lab. Isaribi knew this wasn't the only one either, the man had cameras all over the island as well as inside. The girl shuddered thinking of some of the places she'd found those cameras.

The tremors of disgust must have been mistaken for ones of fear, because once she finished Isaribi heard the telltale buzzing that preceded the unlocking of the large iron doors before her. After this the eight-year-old was blasted with a gust of cold air as the entrance slid open, both doors sinking into the rocks around them.

Seeing her path clear, Isaribi entered, and began the long trek down the main corridor. Straw sandals slapped against the tiled floor and their owner thanked the heavens that she wasn't forced to make the journey in bare feet; that would have been torture, thinking about how ice-like the floor must feel.

It took about fifteen minutes, the girl having shuffled along slowly, for Isaribi to reach the break off point. Three doors now stood before her. One she knew was the main security room where all the camera feeds were sent, while the other two were a mystery. The lab was accessed through the floor she now stood on.

Except, Isaribi wasn't taken to the lab.

"Where are Shui and Tai," came Amachi's voice through the intercom system, "I sent them to collect you hours ago and yet you have arrived alone. Explain."

Hearing the man's voice, and the veiled rage underneath, made Isaribi nauseous. To her it felt like her stomach had just hit the floor, while her heart had jumped into her throat, but thinking about what consequences awaited not answering the question she managed to croak out a response. "I-I don't need a babysitter Dr., as you can see, I've returned all on my own. I just w-wanted some time to feel...normal."

A single, heavy breath was let out over the intercom before the gears in the floor sprang to life and Isaribi was slowly lowered into the floor.

"Do normal girls steal Isaribi," came the now mocking voice over the intercom. Dr. Amachi had been referring to the girl's new state of dress. Gone was the stitch-laden, brown robe the girl wore like a dress held together by a lighter tan sash. In its place the young child now wore a sky-blue kimono and a white obi to hold it closed. While simple in its design, a girl like Isaribi would have been unable to pay for it.

Knowing this, and shoving away Amachi's attempts to break her spirit, Isaribi lowered her gaze and shook her head. "N-No, but I took it in hopes that i-it would...please you."

Just getting the words past her lips made the girl want to puke.

But they worked. The next thing to pass through the speakers was an appraising, but approving, hum. From there the rest of Isaribi's ride was filled with silence; which the girl was thankful for. Her stomach was in knots and she wasn't sure how much longer she could go on talking without trowing up. Now though, the violet-haired child could focus on breathing.

When the drop finally reached the laboratory Isaribi was greeted with the eerie smile of Dr. Amachi. He was a thin man with a head of straw-blonde hair. He wore a lab coat over a set of average clothes and was fitted into a pair of shinobi sandals. His beady black eyes were trained solely on Isaribi.

"Well now, seeing it in person I must say your new look is quite lovely Isaribi, why don't come closer so I can get get a...better look at you."

The man's gaze frightened the young swimmer; it was a mix of animalistic hunger and anger. A combination she unfortunately knew well. She also knew what would happen if she denied him. So, swallowing the bile that rose in her throat, Isaribi shuffled over to the man in front of her.

Once she was within arms reach Amachi knelt down to be at eye-level with her...only to shoot a hand out and wrap it around her throat.

As the child struggled to breath Amachi reached out his other hand and tightly gripped her wrist. Bringing her hand up the man asked, "Did you really think I wouldn't notice this?" With her arm raised the sleeve of her kimono dropped to reveal Isaribi had a kunai in her hand.

Slapping the girl to the floor, the pain knocking the weapon loose, the enraged scientist then went on to kick Isaribi in the ribs. "Stupid girl! After everything I've done for you, this is the thanks I get!? You filthy bitch; it seems you need to be reminded of your place—hrgh!"

While Amachi was busy berating his whimpering charge he failed to notice the shimmer of movement as blue eyes circled around him. So wrapped up in his rant was he, that the fool hadn't noticed his assassin get in position behind him. The shock of having his throat slit didn't fully register until Amachi crumpled to the floor and watched as two pairs of shinobi sandals shimmered into existence in front of him.

Managing to lift his dimming sight, Amachi's last image of the living world was of a blonde teen standing next to a woman he recognized as Anko Mitarashi.

Once Naruto was sure the life had left his target the blonde felt his rage subside. It had taken every ounce of his self control not to rush the man the moment he laid eyes on him, but Isaribi's plea for a chance to do the deed herself halted him. At least until she was discovered. Then it became personal, and Naruto used his newly acquired stealth technique to deliver the killing blow.

It wasn't fancy, and there was no great battle to proceed the man's demise.

It was as a ninja assassination should be: unexpected and silent.

While Anko moved over to the man's computer to begin extracting files, Naruto went and scooped Isaribi into his arms to help assure her that everything was finished. "He can't hurt you anymore Isa-chan, it's over."

It took an expert like Anko only minutes to move every file on Amachi's computer onto a mini drive, but while she told Naruto he and Isaribi were free to head back, she herself had business in the lab. Knowing what type the woman meant. The blonde genin allowed Anko her privacy before exiting the lab and walking into the fresh air outside; mentally noting, for Isaribi at least, it was like finally walking into the light after fighting her way through a dark tunnel.

xXx