Chapter seven:

The first day(s)-Lee style.

Far away, in a large field, a boy stood with his hands outstretched. Both were bandaged and wrapped around his arms, effectively covering a small portion of the eye smarting green jumpsuit he was wearing. At the moment, the boys large round eyes were searching for the man who was teaching him Taijustu-the ninja way of hand to hand combat. It was widely known that his chakra coils had been damaged and he would never be able to utilize the extremely precise balance of cultivating his chakra. When he had been younger he had been picked on by those he thought would be his friends, now though he had actual friends-Naru, a small girl with a love for the color orange and pranks and Hinata, a shy girl who with her gentle nature and great cooking skills. Both of them were a year younger then he was, but to him it didn't matter how much of an age difference there could have been so long as he was able to see them everyday for the rest of his time on earth.

But back to training. Gai-sensei had given him a task to work on his awareness to the things around him, and so far he was confused as hell. His task was to find his sensei's turtle-Ningame then report back to Gai-sensei. gah, I wish Naru was, she could have done that weird technique where she locates a person by their feelings and emotion. Huh, no matter, I must find Ningame and then go home and eat. Ahh, I miss Hinata-chans cooking. No focus Lee, I have a job to do and I will complete it and then Naru and Hinata-chan will come back home stronger and I refuse to be left behind again!

Somewhere, on the other side of the training grounds, a older man wearing a green jumpsuit, orange leg warmers and a jonin flak jacket with big bushy eyebrows and bowl cut, suddenly stood up in a tree congratulating his student on lighting the flames of youth within himself, before the branch he was standing on broke and he fell-screaming about how he would do four hundred chin ups with his hands tied behind his back for failing to stand up in the tree.

Lee calmly concentrated on what his past sensei, Crane had taught him about trying to sense chakra when the person wanted to remain hidden.

Flashback of youth.

Lee was changing in the anbu changing room, and was the only one in there as both Naru and Hinata had already donned their masks and went to meet some of their other sensei's-mostly for tactics and field medicine and covert operations.

Lee rarely cursed as he found it distasteful, it was another thing that sadly outlined his differences to the girls-Hinata usually fainted if someone besides him or Naru said anything remotely vulgar, while Naru came up with more swear words then any sailor knew how to say or understand. But in this exception Lee was seriously debating taking a page out of Naru's colorful language book. Already he was extremely late to lessons-something that was bad in of itself, but he could find his right sandal and showing up without his stuff was gonna make everything worse.

Grumbling about no good sandals that left perfectly handsome young boys to search on their hands and knees for them, he crawled around in loose figure eights and soon realized that he was getting nowhere and he looked like and idiot.

Sitting up on one of the benches in the room, he leaned back until his head made a very satisfying whack on the lockers behind. So caught up in his little depression, he failed to realize that someone was in the room with him, until the spoke out.

"self-punishment may work for some people, but for you, Turtle…I believe it will only cause more problems."

Looking up at the man with the Crane mask, Lee felt even more ashamed that he had acted like a fool in front of his new sensei, obviously this day couldn't get any worse.

Laughing he rubbed the back of his head in embarrassment as his sensei walked over to the bench and sat down with him, a quizzical air surrounding them both. Clearing his throat, Lee looked over at Crane-sensei. "Crane-sensei…I didn't think you came down here often. Forgive me for not paying attention, I was busy…"

Interrupting him, Crane spoke. "looking for you right sandal if I'm not mistaken…don't level that surprised look at me boy, I have been around for quite a long time and should know if you were looking for something…also you are not wearing your right sandal."

Lee grinned at the subtle joke before he grew curious. "Crane-sensei…how did you sneak up on me?" really he should have noticed if someone else had walked in the same vicinity as himself.

He watched as his sensei went more serious-mostly in the posture and aura, before glancing at him. "when someone wishes to remain hidden-especially shinobi, they usually use a technique that represses the feel of their chakra. This doesn't stop the natural flow of their chakra, but in fact it just erases the pulse of the energy. With out this feel of the chakra, sensory-nin cant track someone who is hiding, though this leaves them open to other attacks as it takes a lot of energy to hold the technique for any length of time." he paused and then continued. "sadly one such as you, with your… particular disabilities will not be able fully utilize this technique without bringing harm to yourself. But you may be able to track someone better with this new lesson."

Lee smiled in readiness. Oh this would be fun.

Flashback end.

Lee calmly settled into a familiar stance-arms outstretched and legs bent at the knees before he shot off across the training ground. He was moving so fast that he left no footprints on the ground as he practically flew into a small wooded area-he was nearly positive that Ningame was trying to his in a place with more cover. Dogging branches and leaping over tree roots, Lee ran towards a small glade that had a tiny stream going through it.

Stopping unsteadily, Lee looked around in overly wide circles as he tried to clear his equilibrium. Traveling so fast had some consequences such as dizziness, fatigue and a general unbalance. Thus when Gai-sensei taught him the technique, he was told to do so only when he felt it was truly needed as it caused a supreme disadvantage in any battle situation.

Calmly he came to a halt as he noticed the absence of anything living in the area. The ground was covered in still bleeding carcasses of animals and the smell was overpowering his senses. It was a bloodbath and it was sad. Who would kill the animals in the glade, whatever it was it seemed to be gone now but who was to say it wouldn't come back and attack the Konoha shinobi who came to train here. Lee paused and then followed a nefarious odor wafting in from the east, he knew it was going against the tasks set for him but he, at the moment could care less. With a small jog east, he noticed the smell of old blood, rotting meat, and mold was growing stronger the farther he traveled and boy did it reek, if he hadn't conditioned his body in anbu, he probably would've lost his lunch by now or passed out from the fumes alone.

With absolutely no knowledge of what was ahead of him he sped up, he had to find out what was in Konoha and how to get it subdued so they could place it under lock and key. Not only was it his duty as a genin of Konoha to report all mysterious activity to his superiors, but he had to sate his own curiosity before the girls came home.

Thinking about his friends made him falter, how could he even think about rushing in head first without a plan, not only would Hinata cry and more then likely curse him to the deepest layer of hell but Naru would actually kick him where it hurts and then drag him down to the deepest layer f hell. No he couldn't be selfish, his friends meant more to him then being an idiot and better yet a dead idiot. Shuddering at what his friends would do to him if he failed he started running again, more determined then ever to hurry up this little venture.

0-0-0-0-0

One week into Naru, Lee and Hinata's training.

In the jonin lounge, two figures were talking about the newest batch of academy meat that had filtered in as of late. The first jonin was tall and had dark features and his face was pale, chalky white and covered in scars. He was more lean then muscular, but he carried an obvious build and held the calm readiness of someone who could fight for days if the need arose. His partner was a younger man of his late twenties with a extremely skinny body and grey, saggy features. He carried dark bruises under his eyes and the skin seemed to become baggy underneath that as if the muscle lost all of its strength and just dropped. His gave off a uncomfortable aura which made everyone in the immediate vicinity drop dignity and run for cover. Hollow cheeks lead to prominent cheek bones and then to his soulless dead eyes.

The fist man looked around to check as if anyone was near by before speaking in a much softer tone to his younger companion, "have you heard, the Hokage has let some kids graduate early-apparently they showed considerable skill and strength in order to become genin several years early."

The second man simply stared for a moment before speaking in a dead, nasally voice, "Untoku, control yourself. We have been dispatched by him to find those children, so I already know what it is that you have heard, besides it matters not what you have heard but what you are going to do about it to make this mission just a little bit easier for me and the whiney bitch we call teammate." the mans voice became more irritated by the end, no doubt remembering botched missions from the past.

Untoku glared balefully at his sickly looking teammate, what gave him the right to say anything bad about Ioku and him. Wasn't he the one who always screwed up the missions because his bloodlust took control and killed off the ones they were delivering, wasn't it he who always never sat on watch, wasn't it he who always wined when it wasn't going his way. "Kintaro, stop while you are ahead."

Both men scowled and glared at each other, their hatred for the other man shining through as noticeable as the sun at noon before the huffed and continued where they had left off.

Kintaro hated the other man ever since they had been teamed up together when they were young but even he could admit that Untoku was the best at close combat as both he and Ioku were seriously lacking in that area. "Untoku, you will be handling the young girl named Uzumaki Naru. According to my network she has already left for her training somewhere out of fire country, your job is to find out what her purpose is, what skills she has and will acquire and to lastly kidnap her and bring her back to master. Do you think your underdeveloped brain can handle that."

Untoku glared and snarled before he walked out of the lounge to prepare for his journey, leaving Kintaro to prepare for his own mission- to learn about the boy the girls called Rock Lee and take him hostage for his teams master. He only hoped Ioku would be able to handle the ex-Hyuuga heiress, Hinata.

The lounge was empty of all life and if walls could talk they would have screamed warnings to the three children who were on their own-this was the beginning to the end.

0-0-0-0-0

Late at night, somewhere in the forests surrounding Konoha.

Lee considered himself to be a capable shinobi, sadly this did not excuse the fact that he was a boy and only seven in a dark, scary forest that so far showed no signs of life and reeked to high heaven with the smell of death. Yeah not the best place for a developing child who for all intents and purpose should actually be at home trying to sleep. This day had been so bad it deserved one of Naru's patented swear outs and several kicks in the place where the sun don't shine. Lee was tired, hungry, dirty and from being in contact with the disgusting odor all day had given him a smell that caused the hairs in his nose to burn, he wasn't even sure he would be able to ever feel clean even if he took a thousand and one showers.

After about sundown he had resorted to walking because the continues jogging and running would wear him out before he even got to the fight. Sadly he thought tracking would be much easier until he realized that he had chosen the night of the new moon and there for there was no light to be guided by. All he knew was he that whatever he was tracking was close by as the smell had reached any even greater stage. Walking among the dark trees, Lee saw phantom shapes moving around the darkened spectators, it was nerve-wracking and though it freaked him out, he finally realized why most shinobi had extreme paranoia.

While he was walking some sixth sense told him to drop and not one to question instincts did as he was instructed. It was a miracle he managed to survive as something large and rank flew over him. A hollow laughter, even more scary then maniacal laughter, suddenly rang out in the still , stale air. "well, well, well… I'm quite surprised you pursued me this long, Lee-kun. Really you have peeked my interests, what with being unable to do chakra and keep your friends safe from harm…you are really the definition of being a idiot and a failure, hmm Lee-kun."

Lee looked around and saw a young man wearing ugly robes over his body-more then likely to ward off the cold air. Odd, Lee scrunched up his face in concentration, I never noticed how cold it was. Wasn't it really hot just a minute ago. shaking off his distracting thoughts, he once again resumed looking over the young man. His nose scrunched up in a attempt to ward off the smell of decay that wafted off the other man, it was so bad Lee was hard pressed to even name the closest thing to the repulsive stink.

He gritted his teeth at the teasing tone of the other man but that wasn't what made him angry-no what made him angry was the little tidbit of information that stated people of like mind were going after Naru and Hinata-chan. A low growl vibrated in his throat as he felt more helpless, how could he even think of fighting when his friends were in danger as well. He quickly rolled to the side as a shadow suddenly attacked him point blank, he gave a yelp of surprise as his right arm seared white hot with pain. Running, after he regained his footing, he hid behind a twisted oak and concentrated on not screaming. Looking down at his arm showed a mangled, bloody form of flesh that hung basically useless at his side. It burned fiercely and he suddenly wondered if what ever hit him had dirty claws, if so he needed to hurry to a hospital and get the wound cleaned, if left untreated it could be cause for amputation.

He listened carefully to the area surrounding him and growled as he soon realized that whatever hit him would be able to smell his blood and pinpoint him, so him sitting and hiding was useless as that man was just toying with him before he made his move.

Getting up, he let his arm fall from his other hand and walked calmly forward, "how do you know who I am, let alone those of my teammates?" he watched as the robed figure materialized out of the shadows, he gave a grim smile, he had went to academy with a arrogant, stuck up asshole-Neji-and had caught on to the guys attitude-he couldn't refuse a challenge once given. If he was lucky somebody would find him before he passed out from blood loss or he died, and would end the fight for him.

Already he was feeling dizzy and nauseas.

The man walked in to the center of the clearing about ten feet away from Lee and grinned, "Lee-kun, what a smart boy you want to be. Sadly it will never happen, as for your question just know that my master and my teammates know who you are and have expressed an interest in all of you kids and your abilities."

Lee felt a rage of epic proportions hit him like a tidal wave. How dare this man and his teammates attempt to kidnap the girls and him, by what right did he think this would work? With a deep cleansing breathe he felt rationality calm the torrent of righteous anger. He knew he needed a calm mind and sound judgment in order to keep his assailant at bay, unfortunately he needed to riel him up first-he had to play the part of a antagonistic, fiery, sarcastic shinobi, so in other words he was going to act like Naru on a good day.

"ha-ha, you are going to capture me and the girls, what a crack. Listen asshole and listen well, nobody is gonna harm my friends or my village, so get this self-righteous notion out of your head and get your head out of your ass and do something…unless your scared." he felt proud at copying Naru's attitude down and even more impressed that his voice hadn't wavered while talking to the man who in all reality wanted to murder him if he was judging the sallow face that burned neon red in the shadows correctly.

0-0-0-0-0

Kintaro had faced death at many turns in his young life and had danced to its alluring tune since he became a shinobi yet there was one thing that set him apart from his comrades- while they feared death for their sins, he reveled in the knowledge that he was the one to kill them. He was abandoned at a young age by his parents who had feared his psychotic tendencies, he was found a year later by the leaf shinobi and was placed in the academy-this was where he met Untoku and Ioku both were also orphans in this harsh world. It was several years after being placed on the same team did all of them meet their master and begin to serve him.

Yes he had been in numerous battles, conquered deaths hand, and managed to remain a Konoha shinobi in the opposition of his treachery and through all of that he never showed his true emotion, never felt the need to release the force that he felt was a waste of human time and brain power. But now, this slip of a boy-child had the nerve to bait him and then flaunt a truly apparent lie in front of him.

He grinned. This boy truly was a gem in the rough, he not only taunted him but his confidence seemed to grow a mile a minute. His grin only seemed to grow, his master would be pleased for some fight in his new students-he just loved making examples.

He still felt pissed though, how was this kid able to get under his skin and even make him feel rage. It was almost…unreal. "Lee-kun, I assure you, I will fight you…just not right now, Jokiu attack the snot-nosed brat but make sure he lives." with that he faded away in to the darkness to watch the impending fight. This would be good.

0-0-0-0-0

Lee felt confused on the basis of the mans cryptic message but he definitely understood who Jokiu was and had no desire to fight the thing that had neatly shredded his arm into mincemeat. He finally was piecing together the information he had gathered and was only mildly shocked when he was right. In front of him, flying low enough to make the repulsive smell waft off its wings, was a bird like form with all the looks of a eagle, with one minor difference-it had the voice of a old women.

It screamed threats to him about what she was going to do once her talons locked on his skinny throat. It had a ragged, screeching voice that looked as sharp as its clawed talons. "so you are the boy who has made my summoned so upset, we'll have to remedy that, now won't we."

A shallow updraft was all he had before he threw himself done on the springy grass, he gasped as his injured arm was thumped painfully beneath his body. The pain made it hard to concentrate, but he some how managed, with a heave that made him want to scream, he rolled his body down a well concealed hill on the side of the clearing closest to him and nearly tore his lips to shreds to match his arm in a attempt to keep quiet.

He finally stopped rolling as he hit the cold water of a small pond, it also shocked him enough to unfreeze his mind so he could think on his escape. He was far away from Konoha, without food, water and shelter. His weapons consisted of a few practice kunai and shuriken, so in other words he was screwed. Up at the top of the hill, Lee had to plug his ears at the screamed curses that flew from the harpy's beaked mouth. Shelter, he decided was the first thing he needed and it had to be well hidden or else his pursuers would find him. Water and food could come later, he just needed to get out of sight and out of mind.

With a pained groan he started heading west, with only the curses of a pissed off bird to keep him company.