A:N I hope you enjoy the chapter!

Today has been another abnormal day for Naruto. Now that he's stopped his nonstop missions for the Hokage, the blonde has found a lot of time to himself. Training his genin and taking D-Rank missions with the team didn't occupy too much of his day. Naruto liked the free time he now had. Although he also missed the rush of more complicated missions.

These days he spent even more time alone. He preferred that more than not.

Naruto cleared some dishes from the rack on his counter, putting them away in their appropriate place. He stacked the dishes neatly as he heard a familiar voice.

'What are your thoughts of the runts? You must have an idea on what to train them on individually by now.'

'They're all close range fighters. They'll master tree climbing soon, and they're getting faster. I'm waiting for Satsuki to unlock the Sharingan before I really turn up her training. Hinata's Byakugan is good, but it's not where I think it can be. I'll help her be more efficient with her taijutsu while teaching her to evolve her eyes. And once Sakura masters tree climbing I'm going to help her increase her reserves and teach her my grandmother's chakra technique.'

'Tsunade's chakra technique hm? From what we know Sakura is a genius with chakra control. You can even teach her medical ninjutsu. But her reserves are abysmal in comparison to Hinata and Satsuki's. No doubt from all of the dieting she's done over the years.' Naruto felt more than saw Kurama roll his eyes at his last sentence.

'Exactly, her chakra hasn't been growing properly. I have an idea to dramatically increase it though.'

'Like what exactly? You and I both know a dramatic increase to a person's chakra reserves is more damaging than useful. They wouldn't have a solid foothold on how to control it. It's like going from a pond to a pool, or in more exaggerated cases, a puddle to an ocean. Your idea would have to balance her receiving more chakra while keeping intact her chakra control.'

'Good thing I have something that will do just that then.' Naruto smirked as he sat on the couch to read some of his scrolls. Naruto riffled through his scrolls until he found what he was looking for.

'The idea I have is not something that happens overnight. But it's much quicker than the usual training someone needs to do to increase their pool of chakra.'

'Alright, what is it?'

'It's inspired by grandma's Strength of a Hundred Seal. Except it's solely focused on increasing their base chakra. The user places the seal on their body and attracts nature energy. The nature energy mixes with their chakra and adds on to the person's chakra.'

'It sounds nice in theory, but how would she be able to regulate the nature energy that gets inside her system? You'll just turn your student into a toad.'

'That's why I'M making the seal. I have the seal designed so that there's a barrier between the negative effects of natural energy. The way it should be seen is that it's a purifier. Although it's a complete misuse since nature energy is the purest thing known to man. It's like taking water from the ocean and taking the bad stuff out of it so it can hydrate you. This seal is exactly that.'

'If it's so fullproof then why not have Satsuki and Hinata get a seal just like that?'

'I tried, but right now this seal is only effective with someone with a much smaller pool of chakra. That would mean Sakura and every starting academy student. That's how small her reserves are. If a person's base chakra pool is big enough then the barrier I set in place will collapse. Like a dam that's overflowing with water. So right now until I do more research and experiment with this, then Sakura is the only one in Team 7 that can receive this seal. And let's be real Kurama, Hinata and Satsuki are so far ahead of the poor girl. She needs this.'

'I'll be honest it's damn genius. She won't turn into a toad, but will she get the other benefits? Extra strength, extra speed. and sensory capabilities?'

'I honestly don't know. But it's very likely. My theory is that it correlates with how much chakra she has. Minimal amount of nature energy and she'll feel it but not to an extreme extent. Whereas if her chakra pool catches up to Satsuki's then she'll have a more obvious physical increase.'

'It's worth a try. You're sure it's done?'

'It is. I even have a name for it.'

'What is it?'

'Shizen Yokin.'

'Nature Entrust.. Not bad, very simple. I might daresay it's catchy.'

'Thanks, it was the first thing that came to mind.'

'Of course it was.'

'Now Kura-' There was a knock on Naruto's door.

'..We'll finish this later.' Naruto put down the scroll he was holding and stood up. He rarely had visitors. Only a select few people would go out of their way to actually bother him.

Maito Gai

Jiraiya

Tsunade

Hiruzen

Hiruzen's Anbu

That was it. Even then, Jiraiya and Tsunade didn't even live in the village. So their visits were few and far in between. It wasn't their fault. Jiraiya had spying to do and missions for the village.

Tsunade.. well she used to visit. Until he and her had a fight which resulted in him yelling at her and telling her how he wanted to be alone. She took his words seriously and did exactly that. Leaving with Shizune and Tonton. That was about two years ago.

He hasn't heard from them since.

Naruto shook his head as he opened up his door. It was late at night, so he was curious on why someone would visit him at this time. As Naruto opened up the door the first thing he noticed was that it was raining. Not even a a light drizzle either. It was down pouring, cats and dogs, cows and moos. Naruto blinked, it hasn't rained like this in forever. The second thing he noticed was not a thing at all. More like a person.

That person was,

"Satsuki? What are you doing here?" Naruto saw the little teen and arched an eyebrow at her. Immediately he noticed her state of being.

Absolutely. Soaked.

"Get in here, you're going to catch a cold." Naruto ushered her inside as he noticed she carried more than a few scrolls. She blinked at his unexpected haste. Before she could even say anything Naruto went somewhere else.

Satsuki stood in the middle of the living room awkwardly while scrutinizing her sensei's place.

'A lot of photos. His family.. a man with silver hair and a mask, he had a headband over his eye. Who is he?' Before Satsuki could look at more photographs she was met with the sight of her sensei. Naruto took the scrolls out of her hands and put them on the couch, switching it to give her a pair of orange pajamas with a penguin sleeping cap.

"The hat is optional but the pajamas aren't. They should be your size. Now whatever you visited me for can wait. Go upstairs and take a left. The bathroom is the first door on the right once you turn there. Take a shower, there are clean towels in the bathroom closet. You're not getting sick on my watch." His tone didn't leave any room to barter for argument as she obeyed. She nodded before ascending the stairs, feeling her wet feet leave a trail up the steps.

Meanwhile Naruto examined the scrolls she took in with her.

'They're storage scrolls. I wonder what's in them?'

'Who knows. What I want to know, is why she's even here. This is the first time someone has visited you who wasn't someone who dragged you into a solo suicidal misison.'

'Yes, it's very unusual. It must have something to do with these scrolls at the very least.'

'Most likely. Maybe it's weaponry, secret jutsu.. something like that.'

'Possibly, but why come here?'

'You're her sensei and she's the last Uchiha in the village. There aren't many people she could talk about this with.'

'That's true. I'm just surprised by it.'

'Better get used to it. I'm sure at some point bubblegum and the Hyuuga are gonna come around sooner or later. Perks of being a teacher.' Kurama chuckled seeing Naruto's sweatdrop.

While Naruto and Kurama held conversation, Satsuki was in Naruto's bathroom. She prodded through the bathroom closet, after first noticing how big the bathroom is. It had enough space for a walk-in closet. It had space to freely walk around. There was a shower, a bath, and there was even a shower with a bath. All three of these things were separate devices from each other. Satsuki had enough freedom inside the bathroom to actually explore the area.

She saw robes, kimonos, pajamas, and then found the towels on a nearby shelf. She saw pink, blue, red, orange, and black towels.

'Sensei doesn't seem like the type of person to have a pink towel. I wonder..' Satsuki shook her head before taking a blue towel. She hung it up on a towel wrack by the lone shower. She stood in slight awe as she walked by the bath/shower and then the lone bath to get to the shower at the end of the bathroom.

She stripped of her soaked clothes as she looked at the shower. There were three seals on the wall in front of her, right below the shower head.

'Hot, warm, and cold.. Maybe if I..' Satsuki simply touched the seal that said 'warm' as water came pouring out. The water was perfectly temperatured and she widened her eyes in surprise.

'This by itself is like something from paradise.'

Satsuki very much enjoyed her impromptu shower.

When Satsuki returned wearing the surprisingly comfortable and fitting pajamas, she noticed Naruto in the kitchen in front of a big pot stirring something.

Naruto looked at her from his masked visage. She saw something in his eyes that she couldn't describe. It was look he was judging her, or something about her in particular.

"Hm, it fits you. Come take a seat. Dinner's ready." Naruto presented her with a bowl of noodles with a yellow broth, vegetables and chashu pork had been mixed in.

'It looks like.. miso chashu pork ramen.' Naruto sat down across from Satsuki with his own bowl of ramen.

"I'm not a master chef or anything, but I hope the taste is good." Naruto passed her a pair of chopsticks and she gratefully took them.

"Itadakimasu." She said and Naruto echoed right after her. He watched her eyes and noticed how they stared at him.

"What's the matter?" He asked and Satsuki eyed his facemask.

"You have to take your mask down to eat sensei." Naruto nodded and grabbed his facemask with one hand while his other hand sported his chopsticks.

"I guess you'd be right about that Satsuki." Satsuki couldn't help her unwarranted curiosity. She's seen the blonde in that mask for as long as she's been a student of his. Although it wasn't that long, barely a month at most. However, a month was still long enough for the Uchiha heiress to be curious about how her sensei looked under the mask.

She was an avenger, not an asexual.

So Satsuki couldn't help but watch as Naruto went to pull at his mask. The fabric stretched beneath his fingertips as his wrist motioned as if to go downwards. She waited with bated breath as time itself slowed. If she didn't know any better then she'd thought she would have unlocked her Sharingan. Especially with how slow everything took for him to pull his mask down.

As she saw him pull at his mask a loud boom resounded throughout the household. She turned to look to her back in alert, only to see a bright lightning bolt strike across the skies through the window's glass pane. Satsuki shook her head at her silliness before turning back to her most likely unmasked sensei.

Except..

He wasn't maskless.

Instead, his bowl of ramen was empty.

He looked satisfied as he pushed the bowl away.

'W-WHAT! How did he eat it so fast?!' Satsuki's eyes were open wide at the phenomenon before her. She almost screamed with how furious she was. Her one chance to see the man without his mask and she blew it.

'Stupid thunder, stupid lightning.' She grumbled before she slurped her own noodles.

She was absolutely speechless.

'This is.. this is the best thing I've ever eaten in years! I don't care about ramen, but I might have to ask for seconds.' Satsuki kept her elegance as she ate, but Naruto noticed her pace quicken after the first bite.

The girl even drank the broth.

'This was Naruko's favorite. I guess my little sister wouldn't be the only one who could get addicted to the stuff.' Naruto thought to himself solemnly. Although a small part of him, one that he didn't or couldn't acknowledge, was happy he could cook for someone again.

"Satsuki, although I don't mind.. I want to know what brings you by. It had to be important if you were willing to basically drown in the rain to get here." Naruto said as he took her bowl and chopsticks and washed them, dried them, and put them away. He then sat across from Satsuki again.

The Uchiha teen fiddled with her fingers. She rarely got embarrassed but, it was hard to explain her reasons for being there. It sounded much better in her head about half an hour ago before she showered and ate at the man's house. Now that she replayed it in her head, it was like some stupid joke that kids told.

"The reason I'm here.. is to train under you." Naruto arched a blonde eyebrow in confusion.

"You're already my student, with Sakura and Hinata. What do you-"

"I know. But no. That's not what I mean.. What I mean is, I want to stay here. Live here, and know exactly how you became strong. I figured if I know your lifestyle, the way you train, eat, sleep, live then I can get the strength to beat Itachi." Naruto kept his eyebrow raised from her open declaration. A slight surprise took him just then.

"This is the first time you openly spoke his name." Naruto stated and Satsuki frowned.

"It is. Although I'm sure no one likes talking about their older brother. At least older brothers who betrayed their village and slaughtered their entire clan. It's not something someone can bring up offhandedly." Her remark was snide. The response was deserving as Naruto simply nodded.

'If only you knew the half of it.' Naruto internally scoffed as he examined the teen in front of him. Her nervousness was well hidden, but not impossible to perceive for the likes of him.

"The first thing I'm going to say, as is everything else I'm gonna say, is very blunt. This is the weirdest request I've had from anyone in years. Also, this is very sudden, and I'm astonished by the suggestion." With each thing he said he saw her visibly recoil in shame. He knew she knew that she thought it was a weird thing to ask. But he had to let her ride the wave of guilty shame that comes with her imploring.

"However.. what would this do for me? All I would get is an entitled brat living in my house. Possibly messing up the place and disrespecting my rules." As soon as Naruto finished Satsuki stood up in rage.

"Entitled brat? What's so entitling about being the only survivor of a massacre? What's so bratty about becoming stronger to hunt down the man who did it? What makes you think I'll mess up your home, disrespect you or your rules? Who do you think cleans the compounds everyday?! Who do you think prays for each and everyone that they've lost?! Who do the hell do you think you are to judge me?! Without knowing what I've been through! The things I've seen! The pain I've felt! MY MOM AND DAD WERE KILLED BY MY OWN BROTHER AND EVERYONE I'VE EVER LOVED IS GONE! DON'T YOU DARE CALL ME ENTITLED!" Satsuki breathed heavily and quickly whilst having tears in her eyes. The liquid streamed down her smooth white tinted cheeks. However to Naruto, what was more forthcoming to him..

Was the pair of two tomoe sharingan that her eyes held.

Naruto hummed while the teen in front of him stood silently, glaring her red irises out.

"Well, if I don't know anything about that.. then there is something I'm proud to say I know about that you don't." Satsuki frowned at his words, confused by what he was talking about.

"What do you mean?" Her glare softened but her frown remained as Naruto ruffled inside his pockets.

"Before I tell you, I have to ask you." Naruto took out a small glass as he stared straight into her eyes.

"Let's say you get strong enough to kill Itachi. To avenge your fallen clan, to actually accomplish this goal of yours." Naruto paused to see her clench her eyebrows in frustration and confusion.

"If you, or when you're able to do this. Then what happens after that? What are you going to live for? What is the thing that keeps you going even when everything you know is done with? What will you do after you kill Itachi? Right now you're focusing on getting stronger to kill him, but you're not looking at the aftermath." Satsuki stopped glaring only for her frown to deepen.

"Nothing else matters until I kill Itachi. That's the only thing that matters, the only thing I need to worry about. Everything after that simply doesn't mean anything to me." Naruto mirrored her frown after hearing her words.

'You heard what she said. Everything after that doesn't matter to her. She's much more like you than we realized. Not good.' Kurama's voice echoed in his head like it usually did. Naruto sighed and signaled for her to sit down. He stared into those red orbs of hers, as always mesmerized by a pair of dual sharingan.

"You can stay here. But, if you're going to stay then you'll follow what I say, when I say it. You'll do what I ask, when I ask it. No exceptions, are we clear?" Satsuki nodded in affirmative.

'Maybe this will do her good.' Naruto thought as he pulled out a pocket sized mirror.

"Now as for that thing I know about that you don't.. Here, take a look." Naruto gave her the mirror. looking at her and hearing her gasp in shock. Her eyes had widened and her mouth was left agape.

"My eyes.. they're-!"

"Sharingan. They awoke when you went on your tirade." Naruto pointed out and Satsuki had the surprising decency to blush in embarrassment.

"Now that you finally have them, we can really get into the more advanced segments of your training." Naruto stood up while Satsuki looked into the mirror in awe. Naruto went over to the couch to pick up one of her scrolls.

"Satsuki, what are in these?" Naruto asked while inspecting the scroll. He was tempted to unseal it but didn't for Satsuki's privacy. At the lack of verbal response Naruto swept his eyes from the scroll in his hands to his student's. He saw her looking down with a blush that matched her eyes.

"They're.. my things. I unpacked my room and belongings before I came here." Naruto sighed before he walked over to her.

He poked her in the forehead. She widened her eyes shock as she looked up into his.

"Okay you weirdo. First things first." Naruto jabbed his two fingers at her forehead again.

"Always." Another jab.

"Have." He jabbed again.

"A." Satsuki was getting irritated by his jabs.

"Backup." Naruto jabbed a fourth time.

"Plan." This was his final jab.

"Are we clear?" Naruto still held his two fingers on her forehead as she nodded irritably.

"Yes sensei." She grumbled and Naruto smiled.

'She's stubborn. Just like how Naruko was.' Naruto shook his head as he let his fingers drop from her forehead. She rubbed at the spot his fingers jabbed and scowled.

"Since you're going to be living here, I have to let you know where your room is. There's a room upstairs to the right straight at the end of the hall. Our training starts after our team training, and our team missions tomorrow." Naruto dismissed her as he left for his room.

'You think this is a good idea?' Naruto lied down and closed his eyes.

'It's better than her being alone everyday.'

'Hmph. You're one to talk.'

'I know. Goodnight Kurama.'

'Goodnight Naruto.'

"Okay team, we're going to disperse into individual training." Naruto announced and the three girls nodded. Two Narutos shimmered to life out of nowhere as they lead Satsuki and Hinata to a different area.

'I can put the seal on her now.' Naruto walked up to Sakura who had a gleam in her eye.

"Well, looks like someone's excited today." Naruto remarked and Sakura smirked.

"Damn right sensei! I'm gonna crush whatever you have planned for me!" Naruto raised an eyebrow at her cockiness.

"I hope so." Naruto shrugged as he took out a paintbrush and ink. Sakura arched her pale red eyebrows as he swirled the brush into the ink. Sakura studied his movements as he placed the ink and brush on the ground. Afterwards he flew through hand seals that appeared as blurs to her.

'He's so fast..' Her emerald eyes widened in awe as his hands were now coated in fire. He picked up the items from the ground as the fire transferred to outline both the ink and the brush.

'It's not even burning or melting from the heat. What is he doing?'

"Sensei, what's going on?" Naruto gave her a blank look as she saw his red and blue eyes look at her stomach.

"Lift up your shirt." He said it so bluntly that it caught her off guard in surprise. Before she realized what he said.

It was safe to say, the pinkette exploded with copious amounts of rage.

"WHAT DID YOU SAY SENSEI?! YOU PERVERTED PEDOPHILE!" She was about to walk up to him and slog him in his masked face right before he put his brush in his other hand. He then raised his hand to signal her to stop.

She didn't know why she did, but she stopped to hear what he had to say.

Everyone deserves to leave the Earth with a clearer conscience was the reason she used.

"Okay let's get some things straight. So no hitting me until I say everything I have to say. Got it?" Naruto gave her a blank stare that almost made her feel stupid.

Almost.

She begrudgingly nodded.

"First of all, I'm 17. I turn 18 in a few months.

Secondly, I may be an older teen but naked thirteen year-olds don't do it for me.

Thirdly, and I say this for your benefit and my benefit. You're going to be lifting your shirt to expose your abdomen nothing else. Now, any questions?" Sakura had her mouth slightly agape.

"Wait, you're 17? But in all the stories and rumors about you they're always depicting you as a grown man doing ghostly things! How you're a man-made legend! But in all this time, you've accomplished everything before you even turned 18?!" Naruto shrugged at her astonishment.

"Okay firstly, don't always trust rumors you hear. Secondly, it's not like I gave myself the title of 'Ghost'. I just did my job. Just because my job includes doing things that men double or triple my age have never done in their lifetime isn't my problem." His apathetic explanation left her in wonderment.

She wasn't angry about him being a pedophile anymore. But it still didn't explain exactly what he's doing.

"Okay fine, but why do you need me to lift up my shirt? It's obviously not to take a peek but what are you going to do?" Naruto held up his paintbrush and ink for emphasis.

"I was going to explain my intentions before you jumped the fence and questioned my innocence." He gave her a pointed look that had her sheepish.

"What I'm going to do is give you a 'boost' of sorts." Sakura frowned at that.

"What do you mean by boost? What are you boosting?"

"Don't take this the wrong way, but I'm going to be blunt about it." Sakura clenched her eyebrows in anticipation, or trepidation, or both.

"Compared to Satsuki and Hinata your physical prowess and chakra reserves are abysmal. It's a side effect of the lifestyle you lived until now. Don't beat yourself up for it. Hinata and Satsuki had their clans to lean on while growing up. Or at least in Satsuki's case, as much as she could." The air became full of forlorn at the mention of Satsuki's past.

"This boost is from a fuinjutsu that I drew up for you in particular. The main purpose is to boost your chakra reserves, as well as test out some theories I have." Naruto explained and Sakura nodded.

"How does it work?"

"Good question. So this seal is going to be drawn in the middle of your stomach, where your bellybutton is. Because that's where the most chakra is held, and where all of your chakra passes through. This seal is going to attract something called Nature Energy." Sakura raised her eyebrows at that. She's never heard of Nature Energy before.

"Nature Energy? What's that?" Naruto smiled, at her curiosity.

'Naruko was always full of questions too. Never seemed to run out when you had her going..' Naruto shook his head as he pointed at the trees and bushes nearby.

"You see the forest? The plants and life all around us?" Sakura nodded, easily following along. But puzzled as to where her sensei was going with it.

"Everything on earth holds Natural Energy. But most of it comes from the greenery around us. That's where Natural Energy is most potent. The home of summoning creatures hold the purest and most abundant amounts of Natural Energy. But I'll get into that another time.

This energy I'm telling you about will be attracted to this seal. Since your chakra reserves are small it's going to help find synergy with the Nature Energy. It'll add and mix with your own without you doing anything. Any questions?" Sakura bit her lip at the explanation. This was just so much at once.

"Yeah.. is it gonna hurt?" Naruto got into position in front of her and knelt down on one knee.

"Only if I mess up." He dodged out of the way from a side swipe at his head.

"Sensei! That's not funny!" Naruto smiled beneath his mask.

"Don't worry so much I'm a sealing master. Can't get any better than me." Naruto assured and Sakura bit her lip harder. She was still unsure about one thing.

"Okay.." She grabbed at her shirt as Naruto and his flame outlined tools prepped to draw. However he noticed her hesitation and sighed.

"What's wrong?"

"I know you said you know what you're doing.. but I still.. um.. you know.." Naruto frowned before reaching into his pocket. He took out a black blindfold as he wrapped it around his eyes.

"Is this better?" Sakura almost nodded before realizing that he just put a blinding fabric around his eyes.

"Yes.."

"Good, now I need to find your stomach's exact midpoint. Bear with me on this. Just let me know when it's exposed." Sakura bit her lip to the point of feeling pain as she lifted up her dress.

"Are your sure you're okay with being blindfolded sensei..?" Her uncertainty was starting to get on his nerves. But he reigned it in. He understood how she felt. After all, he had a seal he had to adapt to without knowing the full capabilities of it.

'Not my fault everyone wants to put me in somebody.'

'I know Kurama, I'm just showing my empathy here.'

'Hmph.'

Naruto sweatdropped as he answered Sakura's question.

"Like I said, I'm a sealing master. I can draw this seal in my sleep. Also you're one of my students. I wouldn't risk your well-being on a hunch." Naruto explained and Sakura internally quivered.

'Here goes..' She gulped as she lifted up her dress, feeling the cold wind trace her stomach.

"Okay sensei. Get it over with." Naruto didn't respond with any words as he used his hand to trace her stomach. He found her bellybutton as he placed his palm flat on her abdomen.

'Right there. Hm, at least the training's been doing her well. There's muscle here where it definitely wasn't before.' He hummed as he traced the seals on her stomach. It was small enough to be barely noticeable unless one was about as close as he was. It didn't take even a minute as Naruto speedily and efficiently drew the seals around her bellybutton.

"Hehehe. Sensei! That tickles!" Naruto didn't respond as he finished up the seal, activating it with the flames around his ink and brush. When he felt the last traces of the flame leave his tools he stood up to stand, startling the pinkette.

"I'm done. You can redress." Naruto said and Sakura quickly fixed her dress to cover herself once more.

She felt the effects immediately. If she were to describe it, then she would have said it was like.. feeling clean.

That was the best way she could put it. The energy she felt was so pure, so natural. It felt amazing.

"Hm, just as I suspected." Sakura looked up at him with a grin.

"Sensei! This is.. wow! I don't even know what to say!" She felt full of life, like she can take the brunt and heaviness of the world itself.

"Sensei.. what's it called? This seal?" She tested out a punch and a kick, feeling more energy than she's ever felt before.

"It's my newest masterpiece 'Shizen Yokin.'" Sakura stopped and widened her eyes at the name.

"Nature Entrust.. wow sensei. I'm really honored. This is honestly really cool." Sakura's appreciation didn't go unnoticed as she saw her sensei nod.

"That's good, because now you're gonna spar with me. Taijutsu only." Naruto said and Sakura widened her eyes.

"Are you sure? I mean-"

"What, you think you're gonna hurt me? I'd pay to see that much improvement from you." Naruto taunted and Sakura glared.

"Oh that does it sensei! I'm gonna knock that mask off of your face!" She leapt toward him at a surprising speed.

'Well this is unprecedented. She's faster than I thought she would be. Now, how strong..' Naruto didn't dodge her flying punch as he used his forearm to block it.

'It's heavy, good.' Naruto blocked with his left forearm as he used his right to grab her arm. He threw her away as he watched her backflip in the air.

'This is getting interesting.'

'Wow, sensei took that punch like it was nothing! Even if he's older than us by only four years he's definitely earned that Ghost title of his. Kami I feel amazing!'

"I hope you're ready sensei! There's more where that came from!" Sakura warned as Naruto stood in his stance.

She charged at him as he readied himself for whatever moves she had in store.

'I wonder if she'll be able to perceive this.' Naruto dodged to the side as he came in under her guard. Naruto dipped in with a right hook as he attempted to find her pink head at the other end of it.

However, she dodged right at the last minute.

'This is better than I hoped, she's exhibiting the signs of senjutsu even with just having a brush with Natural Energy. My theory was right after all." Naruto leapt back to look at his opponent. Of course he was holding back, but even for Sakura to dodge that move.. Naruto was truly impressed.

'That seal is much better than we both thought it would be. In a couple years you can even teach her senjutsu.' Naruto definitely agreed with his nine tailed companion as he and Sakura continued to spar.

Naruto was really happy with the results.

She didn't know when to give up, that much was certain. The Hyuuga Heiress stood up on wobbly legs while glaring at her opponent.

'She has Naruko's willpower. My sister never knew when to call it quits.' Naruto shook his head as he dodged to the side of Hinata's lunge. They were improving her taijutsu prowess, until he confirmed his suspicions.

Naruto when he was doing constant S-Rank missions had met many people during his travels. Some of them told stories, some of them miserable, some of them happy, and some of them mythical in nature.

Right now as he trained Hinata, he couldn't help but wonder if she was one of those that were foretold about.

He dodged one of her kicks, leaping to the side and delivering a powerful chop, right where her blind spot was. Naruto grew intimate with the Byakugan during his career, especially with a teammate who used it.

Naruto heard many things about the doujutsu. One of those things included its greatest weakness. Its blind spot. Naruto however believed Hinata's blind spot was only a temporary hindrance.

Under his guidance of course. However as he contemplated on different ways of helping the Hyuuga heiress, he noticed that she stood still. She breathed heavily, just standing there. Her face held contemplation and frustration.

"What's wrong Hinata?" Hinata put her arms to her sides as she frowned.

"I'm just.. confused sensei." Naruto folded his arms as he looked at her.

"What are you confused about?"

"It's just that.. you keep hitting my byakugan's blind spot. I just don't know what the purpose of that is. I'm not going to see it, you're too fast. Faster than I can even turn my head to catch you in the byakugan's peripherals." Naruto sighed as a tree stump sprouted from the ground behind him. He sat on the stump, visibly relaxing. A similar image was showed as he arose a tree stump behind Hinata. She leapt back on instinct as she looked at her sensei.

The doujutsu wielder saw him nod at her to sit, getting her to do so. Once she sat down she hummed.

'This is.. surprisingly comfortable. Smooth, no loose pricks of wood. He must've done that on purpose.' Hinata giggled at the silly thought. The fact that the 1st Hokage's genes ran through the man in front of her was awe-inducing. But the mere thought of Naruto using Hashirama's famous Wood Style to concoct comfortable seating arrangements..

It was just funny to her.

She looked to her sensei as she witnessed him raise his eyebrow.

"What's so funny?" Hinata waved him off at his confusion.

"Just my thoughts sensei. But can you please explain the purpose of our training?"

"Have you heard of the story about the Hyuuga Hundred?" He asked and immediately received a nonverbal answer. He saw her face scrunch up in confusion, her eyebrows clenched and her mouth frowning.

"No.. I haven't. What's the story?"

"Hm. I'm surprised. It was a key part of the formation of the Hyuugas nowadays. So the fact that you, the clan heir hasn't heard of it is surprising." Naruto placed a hand on his masked chin in thought.

"Maybe it's not that surprising now that I think of it. The story is mostly a legend anyways." Naruto shrugged as Hinata shifted on her stump.

"Well, can I hear it? It sounds interesting."

"I'm glad you're interested. Because I believe that this story is the key of you advancing your byakugan." Hinata leaned forward at that, clearly engrossed in his words.

"Really? I'm.. surprised. I have to hear it now." She laughed as Naruto smiled.

"Okay, I'm not that good of a storyteller but I'll try my best." At the end of his sentence Hinata saw that the forested area disappeared, taking its place was a darkened field of open grass, which held hills. There was fire throughout the area, as villages around the field burned. There was an army, wielding swords, bows, shields, maces, anything that was melee based.

'There has to be thousands..' Hinata gasped as the large army marched up the hills. After this scene the visage changed to showcase what looked to be one-hundred men and women with their byakugans activated. They formed in a large circle as the armies surrounded them on the lone hill.

"These one-hundred men and women are the pinnacle and pride of the Hyuuga clan." Naruto's voice rang out, mesmerizing Hinata as it blended with the scene in front of her.

"Their power was so great that the armies surrounding them marched with trepidation. Unlike today, where the Hyuuga clan controls their emotions to use their Byakugan, these men and women embraced their feelings, using them to enhance their power. What came with them utilizing their emotions was the fact that none of these one-hundred Hyuuga had the blind spot the clan has today." The battle began as the Hyuuga tore into the army in front of them, protecting each other with perfect three-hundred-sixty degree vision.

"Wow.." Hinata saw a Hyuuga man catch a stray shuriken that almost impaled him in the back.

"That's where the blind spot should've been!" She gasped as the Hyuuga Hundred defended, assaulted, and protected each other from numerous attacks.

"They make it look so easy.." Hinata saw a few Hyuuga sidestep an attack at the same time, shutting down their opponent's chakra points. She was truly in awe.

"All of them had perfect three-hundred-sixty degree vision, no imperfections whatsoever. However.. some of them were more advanced than others." As Naruto said this, ten Hyuuga started to glow a dark blue. Furious visages overtook their expressions.

"These are the most powerful Hyuuga that had ever lived. Their byakugans were so advanced, and so in tune with their feelings that their bodies took on a form of chakra." Naruto and Hinata watched as the ten Hyuuga split off from the circle formation to run rampant inside the enemies' lines of defense.

"Their speed dramatically increased, their eyes were able to see through anything, and their precise taijutsu had no equal. They were the ultimate needle in a world of hammers." Hinata saw the Hyuuga cut through multiple chakra points in a blur, her byakugan had long since activated. But at this point even she couldn't keep up with them.

"There were rumors that these ten Hyuuga.. could even see the future." As he said this one of the ten Hyuuga looked to their allies and pointed at their enemies line.

"They're going to charge a massive fireball! Get your most powerful wind palms over there!" The woman ordered as she sprinted elsewhere. The enemy puffed up their chest as they were a few seconds away from releasing their fire jutsus.

However before they could, they were hit with multiple and massive winds that tore into each of them. One of the men collapsed, nearly lifeless.

"How.. did.. they.. know..." His eyes turned white as he passed into the other life. Hinata had her mouth agape as she saw the display.

"They fought for five days and nights. But the enemy came too prepared. The Hyuuga Hundred knew this was the best and only outcome they could afford. This was their clan's best line of defense. Their job was to sacrifice their lives to ensure that the armies that marched against them were so thinned out, that the rest of the Hyuuga could flourish.

Without these one-hundred Hyuuga, your clan wouldn't have seen the light of our present days." Hinata looked on somberly as the last remains of the armies finally took down the last Hyuuga. It was the same woman from earlier. She looked up into the moon, reaching her hand out to grasp it. Right before a sword impaled her in the back, ending her life. Hinata had a couple of stray tears leave her eyes at the scene.

"However, what people didn't know was that the last remaining Hyuuga, who is named Nokoribi Hyuuga. The people called her 'The Last Ember of the Heavenly White Eye.' She made a wish that night, as the deaths of her friends and family piled up they each gave her a piece of their souls. While the rest of their fractured souls went on into the afterlife.

As their souls combined and piled up inside of her own, she released the souls into one huge blast of energy, while also asking her wish to their gods." When the sword impaled Nokoribi both Hinata and Naruto saw a huge wave of blue energy come out of her body. A beam of light shot into the sky and reached into the stars as the enemy was vaporized from the shockwaves of the power.

"I wish.. that the 101st.. will come.. when this world.. needs them.. the most..." Nokoribi whispered as her eyes closed, for the final time. Both Naruto and Hinata saw the scenery follow the beam of energy as it swirled around the world, until finally an image appeared in front of them.

"Me?" Hinata gasped as she saw herself become covered in the blue power inside of the scene in front of her. She looked to her sensei who watched with approval.

After that was unveiled, Naruto released the genjutsu and their surroundings became bright and forested once more. Hinata stared at her sensei in absolute shock as he chuckled at her reaction.

'I love telling people things that they didn't know. Teaching is much more fun than I thought it would be.'

'I agree. It's funny to watch.' He heard Kurama laugh as Naruto smiled at the sound. He looked to Hinata who was staring absolute holes into him.

"Yes Hinata, it's you. Or at least that's what I believe." Naruto shrugged and it made Hinata frown.

"How can we know that it's actually me? That this story is actually true? For all we know it could just be a tall tale." Hinata said and she noticed her sensei's blue and red eyes squint at her.

"What?"

"Do you actually believe that?" Hinata thought about it for a split second before sighing.

"No.. I actually think the story is true." Naruto patted her on the head at her words, making her blush.

"I think so too. Besides, I don't think it would hurt to at least hone your Byakugan at least." Naruto shrugged again and Hinata smiled.

"Right! Now, how do we.. get started?" She saw Naruto stand up, she followed suit automatically as the stumps they sat on receded back into the ground. As if they weren't even there in the first place.

"We fight, and you master the feelings of your emotions. The Hyuuga have taught you to control them, to push them deep within yourself. You need to throw those teachings away, and do the exact opposite. When you feel angry, be angry, when you feel sad, be sad, when you feel happy, be happy. Don't let the emotions build up inside. You have to let it out once you feel them." Naruto instructed and Hinata gulped.

It sounded easier than it actually was. Hinata herself is a clam shell, not budging to open up in multiple instances. Being vulnerable is something she never afforded before. Even if she had some confidence boosts recently, she still retained the way of the current Hyuuga.

But in order to change it, she has to change first. She has to be strong enough to be the change that everyone follows. She glared as she got into her taijutsu stance.

"Let's do this, sensei." Hinata charged and Naruto smirked as he met her head on.

Their clash ended like it usually did, with the blonde standing while the bluenette struggled to stand. But she didn't give up, Naruto couldn't help but notice that as she charged him again.

"I'm sure you've noticed by now, but these should look familiar to you." Naruto spread out the targets as Satsuki looked at them in astonishment.

"These are-!"

"Itachi showed this arrangement to me when he did it for the first time." Naruto leapt up into the air with four kunai in each hand. He closed his eyes and let his body do what it was meant to. Once he landed, he looked around to see he hit all the targets perfectly. Even getting the targets behind the rock.

"However, he didn't think I would complete it on the first try." Naruto stared at her blankly while Satsuki widened her eyes in shock.

'He's just like.. maybe even better than Itachi!' Satsuki gripped her shirt tightly, she knew she couldn't do the same thing as Naruto and Itachi. She wasn't that good yet.

She saw Naruto walk toward her and she looked up at his tall frame with a frown.

He then poked her in the forehead.

"Don't beat yourself up. I can see that you are. The only person you should compare yourself with is yourself. Itachi became the shinobi he is because he didn't burden himself with how much stronger or how much smarter he is than other people. When he and I were growing up together he would often spend a lot of time poking inside his own head. He would measure how he performed yesterday, and how he would use today to fix his mistakes.

The reason he's so powerful is that he's the master of his own mind. He knew what he had to offer, and what he could expand on. I'm not going to compare you and him, because it would piss you off more than do you good.

The lesson I want you to take from this, is that you are your own worst enemy. You are also your greatest ally.

Every time you make a mistake, instead of beating yourself up and saying,

'Itachi would've been able to do it. Itachi wouldn't have done that. Or Itachi did it, why can't I?'

You would be defeating yourself every time. So instead of comparing yourself with Itachi, you should compare yourself with yourself. Every mistake that you live through is a lesson that is taught.

Everyday you should ask yourself.

'What can I do to be better than who I was yesterday?' Growth isn't linear, so don't treat it like it is. You're going to fall, but what matters is if you let yourself stay on the ground. Got it?" He saw Satsuki pay rapt attention through his every word, nodding once to answer his question.

"Good. Now you're going to do the same thing I did. Remember, be better than yourself. Nobody else matters when you're training. We're going to keep doing this exercise until you get it down, as well as sparring in between." Satsuki nodded again as she turned on her sharingan while getting herself into position.

"Okay sensei." Naruto saw the determined look in her pair of duo tomoed eyes.

'She has Naruko's no nonsense attitude. As well as her elegance. I think in some weird way.. she would've gotten along with Satsuki the most.' Naruto frowned as he gave the Uchiha a hand signal to begin.

She performed to the best of her ability. Which is commendable as she hit five out of eight targets. Only missing the blind spotted targets behind the rock. He noticed her grit her teeth before she breathed in deeply to calm herself.

"Good, and just remember Satsuki.."

"Yes sensei. Learn from my mistakes, only compare myself with myself. Got it." Naruto slowly nodded as she went to pick up her eight kunai.

'Itachi, you won't know what's coming.' She thought to herself as she plucked the last of her kunai out of the ground.

Naruto gave her the signal to begin again.

"I just have one question Hiruzen." The blonde jonin and Hiruzen stood on the rooftop of the Hokage Tower, looking over the village.

"Why in the hell did you pick out an all female genin team?" Naruto asked and Hiruzen glanced at him before looking back toward the village.

"Well Naruto.. I didn't intentionally pick out female squad members. That would just be unprofessional. It was just happenstance that they were all of the opposite gender of you and I. Those girls were picked because you were the best choice to teach all of them out of anyone else in the village, myself included." Naruto folded his arms at that.

"Really, what makes you say that?"

"I'm sure you've noticed already, but with the way they are now.. You can help them hone themselves into the kunoichi they need to be. Sakura Haruno is clanless, coming from a civilian background. You have a massive repertoire of skills that she can learn from. Which I'm sure you already have her doing. You can even help her adjust her mindset on focusing more on shinobi aspects instead of romance like other girls her age have been doing.

Hinata Hyuuga, the timid heiress of the Hyuuga clan. You can bring out her confidence, and help her improve her Byakugan. I remember you and Itachi had that Hyuuga girl on your team.."

"Ume. Ume Hyuuga."

"Yes.. Ume. She was always a delight to have around."

"Was." Hiruzen heard the edge of Naruto's tone when he said that.

The Hokage decided not to push the subject about her.

"Satsuki Uchiha, the last surviving member of the Massacre. She has a thirst for vengeance, as well as awakening the Sharingan. You can help ease her out of the mindset of only wanting to avenge her clan, as well as help her rapidly growing Sharingan."

Hiruzen turned to Naruto who stared out at the village blankly.

"Do you understand why they were chosen to be in your squad?" Naruto didn't answer as he looked straight at the sky.

"The sun is setting." The blonde simply said, and Hiruzen arched an eyebrow at his lack of answer from his question. Hiruzen shook his head as he turned to look at the sun.

He smiled in awe.

"I never get tired of how the sun looks at this time." The older man admitted. Naruto simply stayed silent as they both stared at the descending sphere of flame.

"Me too." Naruto said simply as Hiruzen smiled at his words.

'I'm just glad he hasn't connected their similarities with Naruko to me choosing those girls. The reasons I gave him were true, just not the whole truth. You don't realize it yet Naruto, but they're slowly breaking you out of the lifeless shell you kept yourself in.' Hiruzen looked at the blonde who lost himself in the atmosphere. Looking the most peaceful he's ever seen the younger man these days.

Hiruzen thought about it, and his decision may have been manipulative.. but it was for the greater good.

A:N Whew! Another chapter down! I hope you liked reading it at least half as much as I liked writing it! Review and let me know what you think! Otherwise I hope you have a good day, afternoon, evening, and night!