Disclaimer: I am Kishimoto...okay, so I'm not. I'm also not JKR. Number of multimillion dollar franchises I own: zero. Don't sue.

A/N: Thanks to all those who took the time to review! Please continue to provide me with concrit. It feeds my brain.

Audrey, as always, you rock! All hail my beta reader.

Uzumaki Naruto and the Goblet of Fire

Chapter Three: The Sharingan

"Iruka, are you sure you're up to this?" questioned Tsunade, Headmistress of Konoha Academy, as she halfheartedly straightened the various curios littering her mahogany desk. Glancing up at the young man before her, she smiled and ran her hand along the top of her head, smoothing her silky blond hair.

The two were in the Headmistress's office, Tsunade perched behind her desk, and Iruka standing before it. He had been called in to see her during his lunch, as he had been preparing to dig in. Having gone without breakfast, he was now feeling quite hungry, although nothing on his face belied this weakness.

"It's not that I don't think you can do it—I'm just wondering if you actually want to," the Fifth continued, a wane smile still gracing her lips. "Running the whole school, plus teaching all the First Years. It's a difficult job; you'll be pretty exhausted. Are you sure you don't want me to call Jiraya in? The bastard owes me a favor, anyway, so I'm sure I could convince him to give you a hand, at least."

Putting his hands out in front of him, palms forward, Iruka replied kindly, "No, no. It's alright, really. Besides, I doubt Jiraya would be too pleased. Everyone knows how much he hates positions of leadership, and the only student he can even remotely stand is Naruto." He chuckled amicably, ignoring the slight discomfort of his empty stomach.

"True enough. I'm sure you'll do fine. The rest of the staff is more than happy to help out, and Shizune will be here to help things along."

"You're not bringing her with you?" Iruka asked, with some surprise. Everyone knew how heavily the Fifth relied on her personal secretary.

Tsunade shook her head. "I'd like to. However, we've discussed it, and we both feel she's more needed here. She'll be writing biweekly reports on how things are going, and also—"

"—assessments of my performance?" Iruka interjected, raising an eyebrow questioningly.

Carefully, Tsunade responded, as she fiddled with a quill on her desk, "You are in line for a nice promotion Iruka. My health…isn't what it used to be. I guess that's what you get when you're vain. A few anti-aging potions too many, huh? I'll be retiring in a few more years, I'm almost sure of it." She sighed heavily, her shoulders sagging.

"Tsunade...?" Iruka said, looking slightly uncomfortable as he addressed his boss.

"Oh, nothing. I don't know why I bother reminiscing—it really does no good." Her forced laughter fell flat. "In any case, Iruka, I'm sure you'll do fine running Konoha."

"Yes, I will. This year."

"What?" Her voice was distant, far away, as if she was only half-listening to Iruka.

"This year," Iruka said plainly, "I will run the school. But, next year, you will come back, and be Headmistress again." To her confused expression, as she focused on him once again, he said, reverting to a formality he was rarely required to take up with the Fifth, "I'm sorry, Professor Tsunade, but I don't want a promotion. The job I have is the job that I desire."

She stared at him for a long moment, but, despite all his discomfort, he did not squirm under her inspection. Finally, she stood, leaning over her desk and extending her hand, which he quickly grasped and shook. "Very well. I can't begrudge you for loving what you do." Dropping Iruka's hand, she planted her own on her hips. "So," she said, lowering her voice a bit, "who do you think ought to replace me?"

Tapping his chin thoughtfully, Iruka said, slowly forming the words, "Hm. Perhaps—"

"Kakashi? Kakashi is a genius, but he has no sense of punctuality," said Tsunade dismissively. "Besides, I think he's like you—happy terrorizing the students in the role of a professor. Being the Headmaster would take all the fun out of it."

"Actually, I was going to say, perhaps Naruto." Iruka tried not to laugh at the Headmistress's reaction.

"Naruto? Naruto? He hasn't even graduated yet!"

Iruka smiled gently. "That's a good point. But he's as much a genius as Kakashi. He's on time more often than Kakashi. And, for as long as I've known Naruto, he's wanted to be the Headmaster of this school."

"He may very well be a genius, but he's not even seventeen years old, Iruka!"

"He will be in October. Besides, you've promised him a position teaching, haven't you?" Iruka reminded her. He added, in a placating tone, "I'm not saying that you immediately make him the Headmaster. I've not deluded myself into thinking Naruto is ready for anything of the sort. True, I may play favorites when it comes to him, but I do understand the difference between a good idea and a bad one."

Tsunade paused in her tirade, dropping tiredly to her wooden seat and letting her shoulders slump with exhaustion. "Then what are you suggesting?"

"Stay on as Headmistress until you think Naruto is fit to replace you. That's all I ask."

With a frustrated sigh, Tsunade said, "Who knows how long that could take? Ten years—more, even. You think I have the time, or the energy, for ten more years in this job?"

Iruka didn't blink, didn't look away, didn't say a word. All he didn't was continue to stare at her.

"Iruka!" Groaning, Tsunade finally relented. "Okay, I'll think about it. I'm making no promises."

Hiding his satisfaction, he replied, "That's all I have any right to ask."

"You have no right to ask me any of this, actually," she said, opening the door, and gesturing for him to exit.

"I can take a hint. I've got to get back to my class, anyway."

"Go, go." Waving him away, she added, voice light, "And, Iruka…when it comes to Naruto, I think we're all guilty of playing favorites."

He continued walking, showing no sign that he had heard her, save the small grin on his face—and even that quickly vanished as his stomach began to growl.

Naruto was getting sick of being surrounded by perverts.

First, he had spent his summer with Jiraya. Naruto did appreciate all that the old man had taught him, but Jiraya's lecherous ways when it came to a pretty—or even just a mildly attractive—woman were extremely irritating.

Now, he was back at school, and his cell leader, Professor Hatake Kakashi, revered genius, was once again reading Make-Out Paradise. And while Sasuke, Sakura, and he, Naruto, trained, too. The unfairness of it all never ceased to frustrate the sixteen-year-old wizard.

"Kakashi!" Naruto whined, as his shadow clones began to burst. He folded his arms across his chest stubbornly; he wasn't taking another second of this inattention. "Aren't you supposed to be watching us?" he asked pointedly.

Sakura sighed loudly and returned to forming the seal of the tiger. Many times she had made this very point to their cell leader, and she had never been paid any heed. It was clear that she doubted Naruto's complaints would receive any more of an acknowledgement.

"I'm more than capable of multitasking, Naruto," the professor said, his eyes never leaving the pages of the book. "Which reminds me," he added, turning the page with a flick of his thumb, "Sasuke, did you, in addition to enjoying your summer, do as I asked?"

Sasuke visibly stiffened. Turning slowly away from Sakura, whom he'd been quietly advising on her still-weak technique, he said, voice low, "Yes, Professor."

"You mean that secret technique you learned?" Naruto asked immediately, whirling to face Sasuke. He'd been pondering over Sasuke's new technique since he had found out that it existed. Part of Naruto that was simply curious; another was unnecessarily jealous, fearing that the other boy had finally surpassed him in power; and a final part, a part Naruto didn't want to exist, was almost hurt. He couldn't understand why that jerk always had to keep everything to himself. Hadn't Sasuke realized by now that Naruto was his friend? Turning accusatory eyes on the inky-haired boy, he said, "You better tell us!"

"It's not a secret," Sasuke snapped. It was evident—both in his features and his voice—that he did not want this conversation to continue.

Naruto didn't give a damn what Sasuke wanted. "Well, then, what did you learn?" the blond asked, looking smug. To rile his friend up, he added, "I bet it's not all that cool."

Sakura, who, Naruto had noticed, had been unusually quiet the previous few days, merely nodded her encouragement towards Sasuke, her hands clasped in front of her. "Yes, what?" she asked.

The Uchiha looked away, frowning. Dark eyes downcast, he muttered, "I've finally managed to master the Sharingan Spell."

Naruto arched his eyebrow at Sasuke's tone, one heavy with some intangible feeling the younger boy could not understand, while Sakura gasped, unable to hide how impressed she was. "Wow, Sasuke, that's amazing," she breathed, the familiar faint light of adoration shining in her eyes.

There came no reply from Sasuke. His eyes were turned to his companions, but something in them made it clear that he was not seeing them. Naruto dreaded to think what it was Sasuke was thinking of, though, if he knew the other boy at all, he was fairly certain he could guess. Sasuke's thoughts were never far from his family—either those who had died so long ago, or he who still lived and walked the earth.

"Well," Naruto said finally, shattering the awkward silence. "What I learned was so much cooler than that!"

"Then," Kakashi said, also sensing the tension, as he slipped his book into the folds of his robes and stepping forward. "Then, I'd say that a demonstration is in order, Naruto."

"Sure!" exclaimed Naruto, beaming. Proudly, he stepped forward, moving in front of the other three as they backed away, allowing him room to demonstrate. He ignored the faint clenching in his stomach—a strange anxiety he could only logically attribute to nervousness; his pride protested against that estimation, however, and he simply settled for focusing on gathering his chakra around him.

Glowing a fierce red-orange, the chakra began to swirl around his body, as it fashioned itself into the form of a large, clawed arm, which shadowed his own right arm. He felt the slight transformation in his body as well—the changes in his face, eyes, fingernails. He was allowing the Kyuubi a dangerous amount of reign over his body. The power it afforded him was both a gift and a curse; and in either case, he knew he had to be careful.

He glanced up, letting his concentration begin to slip. The looks on his companions faces were not what he expected: Kakashi looked surprised; Sakura looked worried; Sasuke looked completely passive. Naruto resisted the urge to growl at the last of the three. Couldn't he show a little emotion, something?

Sakura's wide eyes caught his attention.

His friends had seen him before in his part-transformation. He supposed they probably knew, or at least almost knew, what was in him. It was impossible that they had repeatedly missed his occasionally fox-like appearance, or the form his chakra would sometimes take. But they had never seen him with such a controlled use of this mysterious red chakra.

Hesitantly, he explained, "I can kind of direct where the arm goes. It's a great use in a fight." The corners of his mouth lifted in what he imagined was a smile, as he proved his words true.

The very picture of tranquility, Kakashi finally nodded. "I can imagine. That's very impressive, Naruto."

Shaking herself, Sakura said, "Professor Kakashi's right. You're getting very strong. That's…wow, Naruto."

Naruto looked expectantly to Sasuke, but the other boy was already turning away. "Alright," the Uchiha was saying. "That's enough of that. Let's return to training."

Dropping to the ground tiredly, Naruto sighed. The others were slowly shuffling away, returning to their own training, and he could already feel the effects of the fox beginning to disappear.

"Sasuke," Sakura whispered hesitantly to the Uchiha. He glanced sharply at her, tacitly warning her to remain silent, but, while she once might have heeded his command, her every action was no longer ruled by him. "You know, you really ought to have given Naruto a little praise. That technique was—"

"—amazing?" Sasuke guessed, voice flat.

Blushing a little, she said, "Well, yes. I just…do you realize how much he's grown these past few years? From when he was twelve years old and we all hated him, to now? He's strong, Sasuke."

"Is he stronger than me, then?"

Sakura froze, surprised. She ought to have expected it, that, eventually, it would all come back around to Sasuke's skills and Sasuke's failings—it usually did. Fumbling for words, she stuttered, "No. No. He's just…you've got different strengths." With a sigh, she added, "And it's not like you didn't learn anything this summer. You mastered the Sharingan Spell, Sasuke! Naruto will never be able to say that."

His eyes flashed. "By the time he was my age, he'd long since mastered it." Voice dropping even lower, he growled, "I'll never catch up to him."

There was no mistaking the "him" Sasuke was referring to. Sakura knew of her friend's bloody past, had learned about it at the beginning of her third year with no small amount of horror. Everyone else seemed to know, Naruto included (for he'd been the one who told her)—he'd even had a run-in with the devious Itachi. After hearing the story, her heart had broken for the Sasuke, and she'd been forced to face her own helplessness when it came to comforting the young prodigy with a heart so cold.

"Professor Tsunade?" Sakura remembered tentatively asking one chilly day, shortly after becoming the Headmistress's student. "Does healing only work on the flesh? Or…is it possible to heal someone who's emotionally damaged?"

The Headmistress had known what—who­—Sakura was speaking of, which is why she'd looked so sad as she delivered a reply in the negative.

At present, Sakura didn't know what to say to Sasuke. She never knew what to say to Sasuke, but that didn't stop her from trying. She settled for putting a gentle hand to his arm.

In a flash, he pulled away from her, not even glancing back to see her dismayed face. "I will get stronger," he vowed under his breath. "Whatever it takes, I'll get stronger."

Sakura tried to ignore the fear those words instilled within her.

The Sharingan Spell was the creation of Uchiha Kazuki, a wizard who had lived some four hundred years before Sasuke. Kazuki life had not been long—only a scant twenty-eight years—but every moment of that time had been well-spent.

Academic by nature, Kazuki devoted his entire early childhood to studying magic. At first, he studied all of the usual subjects—transfiguration, charms, potions. However, he soon found himself fascinated by the magic behind the creation of a spell, a technique very few knew. At only thirteen years old, he roamed Japan, searching for someone who knew the ancient magic; and then, still dissatisfied with what he had learned, Kazuki left the country, seeking whatever knowledge he could gain.

It was on a small island off the coast of China that Kazuki finally found a mage well-versed in the art of spell construction. The mage was a wizened creature, skin leathery and wrinkled, body frighteningly frail, but when he spoke, his voice was strong: "I will show you, Uchiha, the way of construction. But you must promise not to falter or resign—you must be sure in your choice now, and then I will become your teacher."

Kazuki had been traveling for months, and, at the mage's words, he felt his legs give out beneath him. Fighting his exhaustion, Kazuki settled himself on the ground, knowing he didn't have the energy to move. For many hours, he sat in contemplation, understanding the gravity of the situation. Finally, he stood, turned to the mage, who had been meditating beside him, and said significantly, "Teacher, I am certain that this is what I want."

Kazuki lived on the tiny isle until the mage died of old age. Distraught that his teacher had expired so unexpectedly, Kazuki had despaired over what he ought to do next. It finally occurred to him that now was the time to return to Japan.

The trip was arduous, but, with his strengthened skills in magic, he survived, and, at the seventeen years old, Kazuki arrived home. His first action was to marry a young witch, who bore his heir. His legacy secured, he set himself to the task of constructing his own spell. He succeeded, but died very soon thereafter, leaving the Sharingan as his gift to his son and the future generations of Uchihas.

Kazuki's blood had been a primary component of the spell, which meant that only those who shared his blood—in other words, Uchihas—could perform and master the spell. However, full mastery was very difficult to achieve, and those who did so were few and far between, wizards who'd spent decades working with the Sharingan.

For this reason, one young wizard, long after Kazuki's time, was considered such a genius. He mastered the Sharingan Spell at only eight years old. His name was Uchiha Itachi.

Author's Note: Sorry it took so long to update! This chapter isn't nearly as long as I'd like, but I decided something was better than nothing. I'm hoping this chapter answered some of the questions people had regarding the Kyuubi, as well as a bit about Sasuke and Itachi.

Oh, and...just to clarify, Sasuke didn't just learn the Sharingan. He mastered it, which is a whole different story. The idea is that learning it is fairly difficult (so Sasuke is a genius for having just done that at a young age), but mastery is something that takes years and years and years. Our dear Sasuke mastered it when he was 17, which is a huge achievement in and of itself. He really ought to be like "holy hell, that's awesome, go me," but, since Itachi mastered it at eight, Sasuke's more like, "holy hell, why I am so weak?" Of course, Sasuke's hasn't figured out the Mangekyou Sharingan—or if he has, he's not quite ready to kill his best friend to get it. Thanks to Orochimaru being conveniently absent (shifts eyes What, me screwing around with the story a ridiculous amount? Never…), Sasuke's evilness has yet to be fully ripened.

Next time: "I'll be the champion, you just wait and see!" Naruto boasted loudly to Sasuke, who merely snorted into his bowl of ramen, muttering "idiot" under his breath.