A/N: I present to you: chapter 7! Sorry this update took an extra day, I wasn't expecting to write this much. But once I started writing this chapter. I just kinda went until I found a good stopping point.

I don't own Naruto.


Chapter VII: The First Step

Konan sat on the bed in her cell, holding her knees to her chest. Her Akatsuki cloak sat folded on the foot of the bed. The only source of light was a single dangling lightbulb in the center of the small stone cell. The cell, like the rest of the complex, had been carved out of the rock forming the cliff face which held the Great Stone Faces. There was no way to tell what time it was; the sun didn't warm the rock this far underground, so it was always cold compared to outside.

Sleep eluded her. She was exhausted, but her mind wouldn't quiet for even the briefest moment. Her evaluation was necessary, but she cursed the man known as Inoichi Yamanaka for invading her mind; for digging through her thoughts and memories. The scar-faced one with the bandana named Ibiki was no better. He had a cold presence about him that made her shudder, despite his polite tone at the time.

To be treated as a prisoner was expected, but it still wasn't the most pleasant experience. But she had been through worse, as the Yamanaka had seen. Konan sighed as she rested her forehead against her knees. Flying all the way from Ame to Konoha had been more taxing than she had thought. Not that flying was particularly taxing in the first place, but flying for an extended period while avoiding being spotted after a bitter fight was tiring, to say the least. She had collapsed after she surrendered to the guards at the front gate and was barely conscious as she was carried by ANBU to the interrogation room where she met Naruto.

A sigh escaped her as she thought of the blond-haired young man. Of all the people in the world, Nagato had chosen him to bear the Rinnegan. Her thoughts returned to the man she had fought on the lake surrounding Amegakure: the masked man that called himself Madara Uchiha. She had a feeling he would show himself, but when he told her the reason, her blood ran cold. Konan had little idea that he would come for Nagato's eyes, and in that moment, she regarded her late friend with awe at his foresight. He must have known that the masked man's arrival would come to pass and must have known that giving Naruto his eyes was the best way to keep them safe. It was unexpected, to say the least. Even Konan, who was calculating by nature, hadn't considered that option.

The azure-haired woman shut her eyes as she remembered her fight with the Uchiha after she refused to let him desecrate Nagato's body. He seemed untouchable; every attack she threw had literally passed right through him. She had tried to sacrifice herself to kill him at first, but he had used a strange teleportation jutsu to warp most of the explosion away. Konan was unharmed, but part of his orange mask had broken. In that moment, she vowed to end the man and his darkness, declaring her loyalty to the good in the world, along with her apostasy from the current Akatsuki.

Immediately after her declaration, she parted the lake that they stood upon, revealing a canyon of billions of sheets of paper: paper bombs. Six hundred billion, to be exact. Konan was glad that she had revised the detonation system. Normally, detonating all the bombs would leave her exhausted from the sheer amount of chakra that it would take. Fortunately, she had found a way to light all the bombs using a system of chain reactions that cost a fraction of the chakra. Her lack of chakra exhaustion had let her fly away from Ame towards Konoha, certain that her opponent was nothing more than a scattering of soot in the lake surrounding Amegakure. She knew she would need to return to Ame before it fell into disarray, but she first needed to fulfill Nagato's wishes.

Konan let out another sigh as she thought of her home. Her history in Ame was a troubled one, and she had become one of its protectors after Nagato eliminated Hanzō. After returning to bury her friends, however, she felt out of place. She was not "God," as the people of Ame had come to know Pain, and she was not "God's Angel" either. She was Konan: a compassionate and empathetic woman who had suffered a traumatic childhood. She didn't feel like she could take up the mantle of leading Ame as Nagato had. She was just as calm and level-headed as Nagato had been, but she knew within herself that she couldn't be what Ame wanted her to be, much less what the war-torn village needed.

She had done quite a bit of thinking during her journey to Konoha, and had wondered if she should just leave Ame to let it stand on its own two feet. Konoha was the primary aggressor when it came to all the wars that had used Ame as their battlegrounds. Maybe now she could advocate for recognizing Ame's sovereignty as a hidden village. But what future did she have in Konoha? What would happen once she exhausted her usefulness as an informant on the Akatsuki and their movements? What would happen once she helped Naruto as much as she knew how to? Would she decide to lead a civilian life or try to be a kunoichi? Would she even be allowed to be a shinobi again?

The blue-haired woman laid down on the bed, her amber eyes staring at the stone ceiling, questions upon questions roiling in her head. Her thoughts eventually meandered back to Naruto. His chakra signature was unique, which was to be expected as the jinchūriki of the Nine-Tailed Fox. But there was something else to it besides the underlying influence of the beast: a benevolent warmth. His chakra wasn't like that of the masked man or of the other members of the new Akatsuki. It was neutral; peaceful, even. It reminded her of Nagato's and Yahiko's chakra in some ways. She could sense his determination when she first met him, and saw it in his purple eyes when she spoke to him in the interrogation room.

She yawned as she rolled onto her side, tucking a wayward lock behind her ear. She plucked her paper rose from its perch, gazing into its petals as she cradled it in her hands. Konan knew she would fulfill Nagato's wish and help Naruto. Beyond that, she was uncertain, but she had a feeling that she should let Ame go. There wasn't much for her there aside from the corpses of her friends. Maybe she would return there, if only to set them up to stand on their own. She laid the paper rose next to her pillow as a dreamless sleep took her.


In a surprising turn of events, Naruto was up before Sasuke this morning. Interestingly, the blond ninja had no hankering for ramen this morning. He decided to make some toast with sweet bean jam, opting to slice a tomato for Sasuke after setting a kettle to heat for some tea. His roommate hated sweet things for whatever reason, which stood in stark contrast to Naruto's growing sweet tooth. The blond swore he would get Sasuke to eat at least one sweet thing of his own free will; at least a semi-sweet skewer of dango.

The kettle whistled as the toaster popped out four perfectly toasted slices of bread. Naruto set the tea on the table, letting it steep as he sliced a tomato before spreading the sweet bean jam on his toast.

Sasuke made his way into the kitchen as Naruto was setting the plates down. The Uchiha gave a small yawn, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. He examined the simple breakfast laid before him.

"Hell must have frozen over for there not to be instant ramen on the table," he quipped.

"Stuff it, Uchiha. Look, there's even tomatoes. I know for a fact you can't resist those."

Sasuke grumbled, shooting the snickering blond a dirty look as he sat down to offer his gratitude before digging in. Naruto only smiled before doing the same. He had to admit, the jam tasted good. It wasn't cloyingly sweet like he had expected, and it didn't taste like congealed red bean soup either. It even went well with the toast and tea. Sasuke was surprised that Naruto had taken it upon himself to slice a tomato just for him. He took it as a return of his own gesture of picking up soy sauce flavored instant ramen the night of Naruto's awakening.

"So, you think that lady with the blue hair will show up?" Sasuke queried.

Naruto shrugged as he sipped his tea.

Sasuke pondered as he took a bite of his tomato toast. "Maybe sensei will teach you Chidori or something. You're probably fast enough by now, and your Rinnegan gives you enhanced perception like our Sharingan."

"Maybe. It'll probably be a bitch and a half to learn since lightning isn't my primary affinity."

"True. But your shadow clones should make it at least a little easier, right?"

Naruto nodded as he chewed on another bite of toast.

A moment of silence passed before Sasuke spoke again. "Have you ever considered changing your wardrobe up a bit?"

Naruto froze, his teeth sunken into his second piece of toast, looking at his roommate like he had grown a second head.

"Oh, come on. You can't just wear bright orange forever, can you? That cloak you were wearing looked cool, why not try and, I dunno, go for a look that suits it?"

"Hey! Don't rag on the orange! It's my favorite color, ya know! Plus, it looks good on me! It's my signature color!" Naruto squawked, brandishing his half-bitten toast. "Besides, your clothes haven't changed much, either. You still wear high-collared shirts! Matter of fact, the most that's changed is the fact you wear a skirt with that stupid rope around your waist!"

"The high-collared shirts are an Uchiha thing and you know it, whiskers. Also, it's not a skirt. And the rope at least looks cool, plus it holds my ninjato in place," Sasuke retorted. "Besides, you have a powerful dōjutsu, you're a sage, and you're a strong shinobi. Why not update your look to be a little more serious?"

Naruto took a bite out of the toast, considering his friend's suggestion. He had to admit, looking cooler or more intimidating would be nice. Especially since people tended to underestimate him from how he looked and acted. Plus, the sunglasses were kind of throwing his outfit off; they didn't really fit in with the orange and black tracksuit.

"I guess I could use a wardrobe update," the blond grumbled. "Maybe we can ask Ino and Sakura? They seem like they would know a thing or two about how to look good."

"You sure you're not just trying to hit on Sakura some more?"

Naruto nearly choked on the tea he was drinking as he blushed furiously. "The fuck's that supposed to mean? I'm just— ya know because girls are— and Sakura and Ino— you know what I mean!"

Sasuke threw his head back as he laughed. "Don't sweat it, blondie, I'm just screwing with you. But you do have a point, Ino especially has an eye for fashion. Maybe it's worth checking if they're free after training?"

Naruto nodded as his cheeks returned to their normal sun-kissed color. The two sat for a little while more before getting ready for the day.


Sakura woke to the smell of coffee. She sat up in her bed, blearily eyeing the clock. Ino was up early, as always. The pink-haired kunoichi let out a yawn as she inwardly wondered how her roommate was able to get herself out of bed so early. She stood up and stretched before going through her morning routine.

After hearing from Sasuke that he and Naruto were roommates, Sakura had mentioned it to Ino during a conversation, who in turn suggested that they move in together also. Sakura was surprised by her friend's idea, but she had agreed after giving it some thought. Up until now, Sakura and Ino were both living with their respective families. It was nice, comfortable even, but they both felt that they should take a step towards independence. Both of their families agreed after hearing that they would be rooming with each other's best friend, so there was very little by way of pushback.

The two had grown accustomed to living with each other, which wasn't surprising to either, since they had been friends since their days in the academy. Sakura remembered her friendship with Ino fondly as she brushed her bubblegum pink locks. She kept her hair shoulder-length ever since the Chūnin Exams, and she rather liked it that way. Ino had mixed feelings about it at first, but it had grown on her, commenting once that it made her look cute.

Sakura, of course, wasn't particularly concerned about her appearance as much as she was the practicality of having her hair short. Her practical line of thinking showed in her choice of clothing, as well. Whenever she was doing work at the hospital or just around the village, she stuck with rather comfortable clothes. Such was her ensemble of choice for today: a red top with cream-colored short sleeves that bore the Haruno crest on its back, and a navy-blue pencil skirt that stopped above her knees. Her hair, unsecured by her headband, framed her face and hung just past her shoulders. Black knee-high sandals would complete her outfit.

The medic regarded herself in the mirror. She wasn't the picture of feminine beauty like her roommate was, but she was pretty, she was strong, she was smart, and she had a good figure. She was never one for caking on makeup like civilians, and wore less makeup than Ino. For her, all that was needed was some mascara and a bit of eyeliner. Ino had tried to give her a makeover a few times, but she never felt like herself afterwards.

Sakura was about to head over to the kitchen to have her cup of coffee when she remembered what was laying on top of her dresser: Naruto's sage cloak. She had found it after his bitter fight with Pain. It had been damaged from the corrosive nature of the Nine-Tails' chakra, but she was able to put her skills in sewing to good use and repair it with Ino's help. She tucked it under her arm as she went to meet Ino for breakfast.

"Morning, Ino."

The platinum blonde turned from preparing their eggs over rice. "Oh, good morning, Sakura," she returned with a smile, catching sight of the red and black cloak tucked under Sakura's arm. "You planning on giving it to him today?"

Sakura nodded as she sat down. Ino set their food down, sliding a plate of three umeboshi over to the pink-haired kunoichi. Both offered their gratitude for the food before digging in.

"Hey, Ino. I had an idea," Sakura started, earning a hum from her roommate. "You think one of these days we could go shopping with the boys?"

"By boys, do you mean your boys or my boys?"

"My boys. I think they're both due for a wardrobe update. And uh…I was also kinda hoping you could help me pick some clothes, too," Sakura said sheepishly as she took a sip of her coffee.

Ino let out an exaggerated sigh. "Forehead, I thought you'd never ask! You have no idea how much I've been dying to help you pick out clothes!"

Sakura's eye twitched ever so slightly at the implications behind her roommate's excitement. "My outfits aren't ugly by any means, Pig."

"Your words, not mine. I just think you could stand to have some cuter outfits for when you're not wearing your shinobi gear. Come to think of it, you could even get some cuter shinobi gear."

"My outfits are cute!" Sakura squawked.

"I never said they weren't! I just said you could stand to have some cute-er outfits," Ino corrected. "You know, cute enough to impress Sasuke," she said as she waggled her eyebrows.

A light blush adorned Sakura's cheeks. "That's not why I want other outfits, Pig," she muttered. While it was true that Sakura still held onto her childhood crush, she wasn't ignorant to the possibility of others stealing her heart. The only thing was that nobody had done so, at least not yet. "Maybe I just want to look as pretty as you do." The pink-haired kunoichi took another sip of coffee.

Ino regarded her friend with a smile. "Well aren't you sweet. Don't worry, I was just teasing. Truth be told, I think Naruto needs more help than Sasuke. How many times have we both told him that orange is not a color that ninja wear?"

Sakura snorted. "Too many to count, that's for sure."

"You think Sasuke would be able to convince him to change things up?"

"Knowing him, just maybe. I think once he sees this cloak, the gears might start turning. Naruto might be a doofus sometimes but he's not stupid."

Ino nodded as she chewed some of her rice. "Hard to believe he's the same one we used to make fun of, isn't it?"

"He's definitely changed, especially after that trip he took. He's a bit more mature but still a blockhead. But there's something about him that makes you wonder how much he's really capable of." Sakura had been one of the people who had poked fun at Naruto for his lack of academic proficiency and his overall goofiness. Once everyone at the academy had found out he and Sasuke were best friends, even Naruto had earned a fan club. The cherry on top was when he and Sasuke had painted the Great Stone Faces. While some were in complete shock that the Sasuke Uchiha was in league with the village prankster, the fangirls had all squealed about how he and Naruto were so cunning and how their senses of humor were so similar. She cringed at the memory of her and Ino being among those fangirls.

Sakura was pulled out of her reminiscing by Ino. "Well, I think we'd better get going. Lady Tsunade will probably have a lot for us to do today now that the hospital is in working condition."

Sakura nodded as they both set out to meet with their master.


As always, Kakashi was late. Naruto and Sasuke were both sprawled out on the grass, watching clouds pass over them in silence. They could see why Shikamaru enjoyed this so much; it was quite relaxing. Sasuke had sworn he heard snoring coming from Naruto and poked him to make sure he was conscious. Sure enough, he had dozed off and grumbled when Sasuke woke him up.

Their cloud-watching was interrupted by dampened footsteps in the grass. The two chūnin rose to their feet in unison and were greeted by their sensei and a familiar head of blue hair.

Naruto examined the newcomers. "Kakashi-sensei and…Konan? What're you doing here?"

Sasuke's face was twisted in puzzlement, eyeing the woman who was clad in her Akatsuki cloak. "And why are you wearing that cloak?"

"Konan is going to be helping you with your Rinnegan starting today," Kakashi began.

"As for why I'm wearing this cloak; it's simply because these are the only clothes I have for now. I don't want to be wearing this any more than you want to see it, but until I get others, this is what I have," Konan finished.

Naruto and Sasuke studied the woman, looking for any hint of deceptive body language. They sighed and nodded when they found none.

"Now then. Naruto, why don't you bring Konan up to speed on your progress so far?" Kakashi suggested. His blond student gave a quick nod before he explained his newfound ability with his shadow clones to an attentive Konan.

Naruto hesitated for a moment, debating whether he should mention what had happened when he first tried to form the Rasengan. He figured it couldn't hurt; Kakashi was his sensei, after all. "There was one more thing that happened that was, uh, kinda weird," he started, earning raised eyebrows from both Kakashi and Konan. Naruto cleared his throat. "Well, when I tried the Rasengan yesterday, it uh, sort of exploded the first time."

Kakashi was about to speak when Konan beat him to it. "What exactly do you mean 'exploded'?" She questioned; her eyebrow still cocked upwards.

"Well, I made a small Rasengan, and as soon as I added some chakra to make it bigger, I felt my control slip, and it blew up. It dispelled my clone and knocked me onto my butt." He rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly.

Kakashi stepped forward with a quizzical look in his eye. "I know this isn't the most ideal course of action, but do you think you could replicate what happened?"

Naruto frowned before nodding and creating a single shadow clone. He formed a small Rasengan at first, adding more chakra to increase the size slightly but not focusing as hard as he did yesterday. His control slipped, and sure enough, the spinning orb exploded. The shadow clone was dispelled, and Naruto was once again knocked onto his rear as everyone shielded their faces from the shockwave.

Konan peered down at Naruto, her face set in her ever-stoic expression. The Rinnegan bearer rose to his feet, swearing he saw a small glint in the woman's eye. Kakashi meandered closer to where Konan and Naruto stood, with Sasuke following close behind.

Kakashi was about to ask Konan for her input when he saw her tense. "Someone's here," the Ame woman muttered. The men of Team 7 put their heads on a swivel, scanning for anyone who could be watching.

"Hey, look!" Naruto pointed at a head of bubblegum pink hair making their way towards them. They saw Sakura freeze and start running full speed. Kakashi quickly flickered in front of her, causing her to skid to a stop. The trio that was left heard the pink-haired kunoichi shrieking about Konan's Akatsuki cloak, interspersed with Kakashi's calm voice explaining why she was here. Konan studied the grass at her feet as the silver-haired jōnin brought his female student up to speed. Sakura glared at the former Akatsuki member as she walked past her.

After greeting Sasuke, Sakura presented a folded article of clothing to her blond-haired teammate.

Naruto cocked his head to the side. "Uh, thanks, Sakura. But uh, what is it exactly?"

"Take it and find out, dummy."

Naruto took the red square and watched it unfurl into the sage cloak he thought he had lost. It was the same red with black flames adorning the bottom, except now the kanji for 'oil' was emblazoned on the back. A face-splitting smile took over his face. "No way! You found it! And you fixed it?! This is amazing! Thank you so much, Sakura!"

Sakura found herself on the receiving end of a crushing embrace. She returned the hug, a light blush painted on her cheeks. Naruto always gave the best, warmest hugs of anyone she knew.

"It's no problem, Naruto. I figured you'd want it since you're a sage now and all," she said as Naruto released her, slipping into the cloak. 'Now if only we could do something about the orange,' she mused to herself.

"Wait a second, aren't you supposed to be helping Lady Tsunade?" Sasuke asked.

"Ah, well, I was helping her out today, but she sent me home early since I took care of a lot of things yesterday with Shizune. She even sent Ino and Haku home early."

Their exchange was cut short by Kakashi clearing his throat. "As good as that cloak looks on Naruto, what say we get back to making him an even stronger sage?" He asked rhetorically with one of his signature masked smiles. The trio nodded sheepishly as Kakashi gestured to Konan, signaling for her to give her input on Naruto's peculiar Rasengan.

"From what I can tell, Naruto let one of the Rinnegan's abilities slip when he first tried to perform the Rasengan." All heads snapped to the blue-haired woman, wide eyes staring at her and Naruto.

"And which ability would that be?" Kakashi asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Before I answer that, I should probably explain something about Nagato and how he used his Pain bodies," Konan began. Kakashi considered the woman's offer before nodding.

"If you remember, Nagato, or Pain, had six bodies. Each one with different sets of abilities, corresponding to what are known as paths: Tendō, Shuradō, Ningendō, Chikushōdō, Gakidō, and Jigokudō. The body that you fought before you found my paper tree was Tendō, which was his primary and most favored. He used Yahiko's body for that one," she finished sadly. Naruto sighed inwardly at the mention of her departed friend. He couldn't help but feel some amount of pity for her losing both of her closest people. "Tendō has the ability to manipulate attractive and repulsive forces," Konan began before Kakashi chimed in.

"Like how he pushed and pulled his opponents away with that unseen force." Konan nodded.

"Exactly. Shuradō is a weapon and armor-centered path, and could also grow four extra arms and two additional faces, further enhancing its field of vision. Ningendō," she shuddered at the mention of its name. "It…well it always disturbed me the most. It lets you read the mind of anyone whose head or chest you touch, similar to the Yamanaka's abilities. What curdles my blood is the fact that Ningendō must literally pull someone's soul from their body to read the target's mind." A collective gasp emerged from the three chūnin. Konan shivered once more before she continued. "Chikushōdō had the ability to summon various creatures without the need for a summoning contract. Gakidō can absorb chakra in any form, including elemental ninjutsu or ninjutsu that use pure chakra like your Rasengan." Konan paused as she took a moment to consider her next words. "The last one is Jigokudō. Frankly, I'm not entirely sure of its full abilities aside from its ability to interrogate and restore using the King of Hell."

Team 7 collectively flinched. "Did you just say the King of Hell?" Sasuke asked incredulously. Konan simply nodded as a moment of pregnant silence passed before Naruto spoke up.

"Wait. Nagato had six bodies to control the six paths or whatever they're called right? Does that mean that I need to have six bodies or something to be able to use all those abilities?" His teammates nodded, wondering the same thing.

"Not necessarily. Nagato used the bodies because he was crippled and in relatively poor health," she began. Naruto nodded, remembering how Nagato was nearly skin and bone when he had met him. "Someone who was in better condition, like yourself, could utilize all the abilities of each path without the need for separate bodies or clones."

Naruto scratched his cheek, processing the information. It was quite a bit to take in; he never figured that each of the abilities of the bodies of Pain were all from the Rinnegan. Not only that, but because he was in better physical condition, Naruto would have access to the abilities of each of the paths, with time and training. He shuddered at the thought of sprouting extra arms and extra faces.

The blond Rinnegan bearer turned his attention back to Konan as she spoke. "As far as what happened with your Rasengan, it seems as though you unconsciously let loose an ability belonging to Tendō. It's called Shinra Tensei."

Naruto cocked his head. "Shinra Tensei? What exactly does it do?"

"It's a technique that manipulates repulsive forces. It can be used on people or objects: meaning it can repel things like incoming kunai or shuriken, or even push someone back who's charging you."

The blond ninja cupped his chin, his face contorted into an exaggeratedly pensive expression. "So, how do I do it?"

Everyone's ears perked up as Konan began. "From what Nagato told me, it's like flaring your chakra to dispel a genjutsu. Except instead of just flaring it like a gust of wind, you focus it within yourself before you force it out. Try it."

Naruto nodded, his hands forming the Ram seal as he focused on gathering and concentrating his chakra. He was never very good at dispelling genjutsu, but since this was different, he figured he might have a better chance at getting it down. He felt the chakra reach a point that it fought against him, and he forced it out of himself. As he did, he felt the air pulse all around him; it was weak, but it was something.

He looked to catch his team and Konan lowering their hands from shielding themselves. Sasuke's Sharingan had activated, while Sakura's face was one of surprise. Kakashi, as usual, maintained his half-lidded look, while Konan looked just as passive.

"Not bad. You catch on quick," Konan remarked. "The power behind it is dependent upon how much chakra you pour into it, and how much you focus. Try it again, but put more force behind it." As she finished, she gestured for everyone to get back.

Naruto nodded before gathering his chakra again. He molded more, trying to keep it contained, fighting the feeling of it wanting to burst out. Just as he couldn't hold it, he forced the chakra outward, extending his open palm. "Shinra Tensei!" This time he felt more than just a pulse; this time he felt the same unseen force that Kakashi had mentioned radiate outwards all around him. After he felt it dissipate, he turned to see his audience recovering from the shockwave, shielding their faces with their arms.

Konan walked toward Naruto. "Very good. A couple of things to keep in mind: as you likely remember, there's a minimum five second interval between uses. The more power behind Shinra Tensei, the longer you'll need to wait before you can use it again. Additionally, with training you'll be able to perform it quicker, and without the use of hand seals."

Naruto gave a single, quick nod, his jaw set in determination. Kakashi stepped forward, nodding in agreement with Naruto's blue-haired instructor. "Given your training technique using shadow clones, I think you'll get the hang of this in no time."

Konan turned and eyed the jōnin. "Training technique? Shadow clones?"

Naruto spoke up, gesturing towards his sensei. "Kakashi-sensei taught me a way to learn things faster using shadow clones. Basically: every time a shadow clone dispels, I get its memories, so if I set a bunch of shadow clones to practice a jutsu like Shinra Tensei…"

Konan put the pieces together. "All the experience the clones get from practicing the jutsu comes back to you once you dispel them," she finished. She nodded slowly, turning back to the silver-haired jōnin. "I'd heard of your prowess as a ninja, Mr. Hatake, but I must admit you seem to be a fine teacher if you helped him develop a training method that efficient," she said evenly. A light blush once again dusted Kakashi's visible cheek before he regained his composure.

Naruto looked at Konan with an expectantly. She created a paper clone before she spoke. "Now, before you start practicing with shadow clones, I want you to try knocking my paper clone back. It doesn't need to be spectacular since we're just getting started, but try to knock it off its feet." Naruto nodded as his two instructors stepped back once again. They and Naruto's teammates watched; the air thick with anticipation.

The paper clone stood unmoving as Naruto closed his eyes. This time, he tried focusing and molding his chakra without using a hand seal. He felt the familiar sensation of the chakra wanting to burst out as he added more. The dam was about to break, and he opened his eyes and raised an open hand towards the paper clone, forcing the chakra outwards with a shout. "Shinra Tensei!" For a split second, there was a deafening silence. Naruto felt the unseen force radiate outwards from him once again, but it felt even stronger this time. He watched as the paper clone was sent flying back at least twenty feet, landing on its back.

Naruto took a deep breath as he looked at his trembling right hand. A smile crept its way onto his face. His head snapped back up as the paper clone dissolved into individual sheets. Said sheets returned to Konan, who was making her way towards him, Kakashi and his teammates in tow. Sasuke and Sakura both wore expressions of awe, while Kakashi and Konan retained their stoicism.

A moment of silence passed as everyone was left speechless after what they had just seen. Konan found her voice first, speaking quietly and with a hint of awe. "Naruto, as you might have guessed, I was with Nagato when he discovered and honed his abilities. He was smart, and a very quick learner, but even he took longer than you to perform Shinra Tensei at the level you just did."

Team 7 turned to stare at Konan. Even Sakura's scowl was absent from her face as she eyed the Ame woman. All eyes turned back to Naruto, who fidgeted at the amount of attention that was on him. Leaves rustling in the breeze was the only sound heard for a few moments.

"So…what's next?" Naruto asked, trying to hide his excitement.

Konan pondered for a moment. "I think now would be a good time to put that shadow clone training to good use. Kakashi?" She asked, turning to said jōnin.

Kakashi gave a small nod. "I think that's a good idea. Just be sure to cut the visual link so you don't overload yourself." Naruto flashed a toothy grin before he created twenty shadow clones, sending half to practice molding the chakra quickly with no hand seals, while the other half was sent to practice controlling the size and power of the gravity wave.

The blond ninja turned his attention back to Konan. "So, Miss Konan—"

"Just Konan is fine, Naruto," she interrupted.

Naruto nodded sheepishly. "Right. Uh. So, Konan. About the other paths or whatever they're called. Well, just one, specifically. Which was the one that has a bunch of weapons?"

"Shuradō? What about it?"

"Well…you said it could grow extra arms and extra faces. Is that really true?"

Konan raised a brow as Kakashi cleared his throat. "Based on what I saw, it is. After all, that was the body that I fought with Chōza and Chōji. Well, that and the one that could push and pull things at will."

Naruto cupped his chin, thinking through his next words. "But could I really do that? It just doesn't seem physically possible. The closest thing to that I saw was this guy that worked for Orochimaru that could grow bones and use them as weapons and stuff."

Konan nodded in understanding. "One of the Kaguya. Well. To answer your question, I'm not sure if you could grow extra arms and extra faces, since the only time I've seen it happen is with the corpse that Nagato used for Shuradō. However, anything is possible."

Naruto nodded. By this point, everyone could feel the dark cloud hanging over Sakura's head. Naruto shot Sasuke a look, which was answered by a nod. The pink-haired kunoichi was quietly led away by Sasuke to try and calm her down, leaving Kakashi and Konan to discuss training with their blond teammate.

Once they were a fair distance away, Sasuke stopped, turning to face his female teammate. "Look, I know you don't like thi—"

"You've got that right! What the hell is an Akatsuki member doing here training Naruto?! Shouldn't he be getting help from, well, anyone but her?!" She hissed.

Sasuke let out a sigh. "Don't get me wrong, I think it's pretty shady, too. But she said she's not part of the Akatsuki anymore. Plus, think about it: you heard yourself that she was with the guy controlling Pain when he honed his abilities with the Rinnegan. Don't you think that counts for something?"

Sakura glowered at her raven-haired teammate. "This has 'suspicious' written all over it and you know it."

"Maybe it does. But Naruto seems to trust her enough to let her help, and the Hokage let her in in the first place. If I know Lady Tsunade, she'll nip any kind of trouble in the bud before it gets too out of control," Sasuke reasoned.

Sakura let out a sigh; he had a point. The Hokage was nothing if not cautious. Naruto also had a habit of seeing the good in people, and he hadn't been wrong about Haku or Gaara, so she decided to trust his judgment as Sasuke did. Still, she would be wary of the blue-haired woman. The duo walked back to their teammate and his older companions, who were discussing the time frames regarding Naruto's training.

"I think this is a good place to call it for today. I'd better go deliver my report to the Hokage. Naruto, if you want to continue training using shadow clones, you can, but don't push yourself too much," Kakashi began.

Konan nodded in agreement. "The techniques that the Rinnegan grants you can be taxing on your chakra reserves. As your sensei said, be careful that you don't push yourself to the point of chakra exhaustion." Naruto gave a firm nod. He knew that he would likely start drawing on the Nine-Tails' chakra if he or his clones went for too long, so he would dispel them in a little while.

"Take the day off tomorrow. Train a little on your own if you'd like, but I have some matters to attend to with the Hokage. So, let's try and meet here the day after tomorrow, same time." He finished with his signature masked smile. Not a moment later, an ANBU operative appeared next to Konan, and the trio flickered away.

Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura stood for a moment. The female of Team 7 turned to her boys, bringing her hands together in a single clap.

"So, I have a suggestion for tomorrow, since you're both free, and Lady Tsunade gave me, Ino, and Haku the day off," she began as Naruto and Sasuke eyed her curiously. "I say we do something about each of your wardrobes." She gestured to their clothes, which were largely unchanged from the time they were genin.

Sure, Naruto's orange track jacket had more black now, and he had the sage cloak, but his pants were still the same shade of orange that he always wore. Sasuke had changed his wardrobe somewhat as well. He still wore a high-collared shirt like when he was a genin, but this one was grey and had long sleeves. He had also started wearing a blue garment that covered him from his stomach to his knees around his waist. Said garment was secured by a thick purple rope, the ends of which hung off his left hip, while his ninjato was secured to his right hip by the rope. He had also taken to wearing high-topped sandals that stopped just below his knees.

Naruto and Sasuke stared at their pink-haired friend, their mouths agape. The two sputtered incoherently, managing to get a few words in about how their clothes were fine. Sakura could only giggle and shake her head. "Come on, you two. Your clothes aren't too different from when you were genin. Yours especially, Naruto. No offense," she said with a commiserating smile. Naruto grumbled at the irony, having had this exact conversation with Sasuke.

"Well. Maybe I could use a bit of an update, too," Sasuke conceded. He had to admit, maybe he ought to try something other than his signature high-collared shirt. "Do you know if Ino will be coming? She has a good eye for things like this," the Uchiha started, noticing Sakura's glare. "Not that you don't, but Ino, well, she's Ino." He raised his hands in a placating gesture.

Naruto shrugged his shoulders. "Well, regardless. As long as I get something that will look just as good if not better than my orange, I'll be alright."

Sakura huffed. "Yes, Ino will be coming. Wait, did I tell you two yet?" Both young men cocked their heads at her question. "I guess not. Ino and I are roommates now, it was her idea. Speaking of roommates. Naruto, you didn't put up as much of a fight about your orange as I thought you would have," she pointed out.

Naruto groaned. "Believe it or not, Sasuke actually suggested I change my clothes up a bit this morning."

"I take it he convinced you?" Sakura prompted.

"Of course not! I made the decision myself." The blond pointed at himself with his thumb, his chest puffed out.

Sasuke chimed in. "You made the decision after I gave you good reason to."

"So he did convince you!"

Naruto groaned in exasperation as his haughty posture deflated. "Fine, yes, he convinced me. But you did say that both of us needed better clothes, which includes Sasuke," he sneered.

Sakura sighed and gave her blond teammate a small smile, silently acknowledging the truth in his words. Sasuke only groaned. As much as he liked Naruto, he got on his last nerve sometimes. Naruto's only response was to flash his raven-haired friend his signature grin.

"Anyway, like I was saying. We can go shopping for clothes tomorrow since we'll have time off, and some merchants have reopened. I was thinking along with Ino we could bring Haku. Maybe we'll run into some of our other friends, too," Sakura offered.

Naruto's grin stretched to a full ear-to-ear smile as he nodded excitedly. He hadn't seen Haku since returning from his training trip with Jiraiya. Sasuke offered his own small smile; the thought of seeing his friends and classmates was a welcome one.

"So, I'll come get you two in the morning. It won't be too early; I wanna sleep in, too. I'll see you both tomorrow," Sakura finished with a smile. She was about to turn and head home before she froze mid-stride and turned to Naruto over her shoulder. "Hey Naruto?" The blond snapped his head towards the pink-haired kunoichi. "Great work today," she said warmly before turning and heading back towards the village. Naruto responded in kind with his foxy grin, though a light blush dusting his cheeks.

"Yo, you gonna dispel your clones? I was thinking we could head to the Uchiha Shrine before we head home for dinner," Sasuke told his blond friend. Naruto gave a single nod, the clones one group at a time with a hand seal. All the memories flooded into his mind; every success, every failure, every incremental improvement.

Naruto turned to his friend; his brows set in a determined expression. "Let's go."


It had been a while since Naruto had set foot in the Uchiha compound. He felt uneasy as he followed Sasuke through the ghost town. Being on the outskirts of Konoha meant that it was one of the only things aside from the training grounds to survive Pain's attack. Naruto knew the place was empty, but the events of the past lingered like a fog; filling the air with an eerie silence. He didn't want to imagine what it would be like to have seen the gruesome aftermath of that fateful night.

Sasuke led them to the far side of the compound, where the Naka Shrine stood. The duo beheld a red torii adorned with an Uchiha crest. Just beyond it stood the shrine itself, bearing the same Uchiha crest above the door. Prayer beads hung from the doorframe. All the exposed wood was painted the same shade of red as the torii.

Naruto was led inside by a silent Sasuke. The entryway was flanked by two large fans, bearing the same crest as before. Stepping through another sliding door, they were greeted by an altar. The candles hadn't seen the spark of a flame for many years, and prayers sat undisturbed. Similar fans bearing the Uchiha crest were hung on the wall on either side of the altar. In the very center was an old painting of a figure Naruto didn't recognize.

"This shrine is to the patron deity of the Uchiha clan," Sasuke said quietly, placing his hands together in silent prayer before bowing to the shrine. Naruto did the same as a show of respect.

"To be honest, I forgot the name of the deity, but I know that in the past, faith and worship of it was a big part of the clan's culture," he said, gesturing for Naruto to follow. Sasuke walked to the right of the shrine, stopping once he approached the corner. Naruto looked on with quiet puzzlement. The Uchiha knelt, lifting the tatami mat and setting it aside.

Hidden beneath the tatami mat was a stone slab bearing a seal, the likes of which Naruto had never seen. In the middle of the slab was an icon that looked like a Sharingan: three tomoe connected by a ring, with a small circle in the middle. Surrounding the Sharingan-like icon was a string of symbols and characters that extended outwards towards each side of the slab, forming a cross-shaped pattern.

"Sasuke…what am I looking at?" The blond asked quietly.

Sasuke remained silent as he wove hand seals faster than Naruto had seen from him before. The Uchiha finished on Dragon. A moment passed before Naruto felt a thrum of energy from the slab. No sooner did the seal glow a bright blue as the slab levitated from its resting place, moving off to the side and floating back down to the ground. The nearly two-foot-thick stone slab had concealed a stone staircase that led underground. Naruto gazed into the abyss. He was never one to back down from the unknown, but something about this chilled him to his bones.

Sasuke started down the staircase, pausing to call back to his friend. "Come on, let's see if we can find some answers down here." Naruto swallowed, taking a trepidatious step onto the first step. He trusted his friend, and despite feeling apprehensive about walking down a dark staircase underground, he trusted that Sasuke would guide him.

At the end of a dark hallway at the bottom of the staircase, a light shone in a room. Naruto could tell by the shadows that the light source was a torch or sconce of some kind. His heartbeat thumped in his ears as he followed Sasuke; his palms felt clammy, and he tried to keep his breathing regular.

The duo crossed a red brick threshold into a square, fire-lit room. Two braziers sat on the floor opposite two walls that bore paintings of the same being in the painting upstairs. These murals looked to be slightly more colorful. However, what caught Naruto's eye was the stone tablet sitting in the middle of the wall opposite the threshold. The stone was about three-and-a-half feet tall, he reckoned. Above it was a framed piece of paper with the name "Uchiha" written on it in large characters. Flanking said frame were two Uchiha crests painted onto the wall. Naruto stared at the stone, unable to even begin to decipher the symbols and characters carved onto it. The place felt ancient, and once again Naruto felt a shiver run down his spine.

"Sasuke…what…is this?" Naruto asked, his voice barely above a whisper.

"I've only ever heard of this being referred to as the 'Stone Tablet,'" Sasuke began. "The most that I know is that you can only read it if you have the Sharingan. Even then, you can only read part of it. I've never tried reading it with my Mangekyō, but hopefully I can find something that might be helpful to you, or both of us."

Naruto nodded; his eyes glued to the tablet. Sasuke's Sharingan blazed to life as he began to read. "In the quest for peace, god divided things into yin and yang…" Naruto turned and watched as Sasuke's eyes morphed into their Mangekyō form. The Uchiha studied the stone for a few moments, trying to decipher what it said. "The…opposing forces…worked…with each other…and, in turn…gave us the universe…" Sasuke sighed as his eyes returned to normal. "There's some other stuff there regarding the Mangekyō, like how to obtain it and stuff, but that's about all I can read."

Naruto hummed, studying the tablet in a futile attempt to try and understand even a single character. An idea popped into his head as he thought aloud. "I wonder…"

Sasuke turned to his friend, an eyebrow cocked quizzically. "What're you thinking?"

Naruto removed his sunglasses, turning to meet Sasuke's onyx gaze with his own purple one. "I'm thinking I should try channeling chakra into my eyes and see if I can read anything. Kakashi-sensei did say that it gave me enhanced perception like your Sharingan, after all."

Sasuke brought a hand to his chin before giving a single silent nod. Naruto turned back to the stone tablet. He channeled chakra to his eyes, and the previously incomprehensible symbols and characters formed words and sentences. His purple rippled eyes widened as he started to piece together what he could now read.

"What do you see?" Sasuke asked.

Naruto's mouth opened, but his words died in his throat as he tried to decipher what he saw. The etchings on the tablet looked like they were moving constantly, which made reading difficult. His mouth closed as he gathered his thoughts before he spoke again. "I see what you saw: 'In the quest for peace, god divided things into yin and yang. The opposing forces worked with each other and, in turn gave us the universe,'" Naruto recited as he squinted. "But there's something else here…" Sasuke stared at his Rinnegan-bearing friend with bated breath. "When someone who possesses the power of Samsāra approaches the moon, an eye will open that is reflected on the moon to grant the eternal dream…"

Naruto cut the flow of chakra to his eyes as he screwed them shut and clutched his temple. A throbbing pain had set in, and he nearly doubled over. Sasuke approached the blond, setting a hand on his shoulder.

"I'm fine, don't worry. Looking at that thing for too long gave me a headache," Naruto said as he felt the pain begin to subside. Sasuke's grip on his friend's shoulder tightened slightly as Naruto stood up straight. The Uzumaki cracked his eyes open and beheld the stone tablet, its etchings unintelligible once again.

"I know what you mean. I remember getting a hell of a headache when I first deciphered that first part. It takes a lot out of you. You sure you're alright?" Sasuke asked, looking over his friend with concern.

Naruto nodded. "I'm fine, really. I'm more interested in what I saw than my headache. What do you think that last line meant?"

"I…don't know. I've only ever been able to read what I told you earlier, not including what I saw with my Mangekyō. I'm not sure what all that stuff is about the moon and an eternal dream, but it sounded like it was talking about your Rinnegan," Sasuke answered quietly.

The two stood in silence, staring at the stone tablet. The only sound was the low rumble of the fire from the braziers. Who could they turn to for answers? Even Tsunade's knowledge on the inner workings of the Uchiha had to be limited. Sure, Kakashi possessed a Sharingan, but he wasn't an Uchiha. Truth be told, he never talked about how he had gotten a Sharingan in the first place. The only others who might have answers were Itachi, Jiraiya, and Orochimaru. Two of them were dead, and the other had slaughtered his clan. Naruto let out a sigh; he had gained a considerable amount of ground in honing one of his abilities today, but was no closer to finding out what his eyes really meant outside of being powerful.

Sasuke's footsteps brought Naruto out of his ruminations. The Uchiha heir turned to his friend. "I think we've gotten what we could out of that stone. Come on, let's go home." Naruto blinked at his friend before replacing his sunglasses on his face and following Sasuke out of the underground room. The large stone slab and tatami mat were replaced, and Sasuke and Naruto once more offered their respect to the altar.

They walked home in silence. Naruto was still processing what had just happened. Not just what he had read on the tablet, but the fact that Sasuke had taken him to one of his clan's most sacred places. He felt undeserving of such a privilege, especially since he wasn't born with his dōjutsu like Sasuke was.

They had dinner in relative quiet; only idle conversation was made as they ate the leftover curry from last night. Both Naruto and Sasuke's sleep that night was dreamless.


A/N: Whew! That was my longest chapter yet. A couple things I want to kind of preemptively address: In my mind, it makes sense that Nagato explained a lot of his abilities to Konan since they were best friends and around each other pretty much 24/7, which is why she's a veritable treasure trove of information. I tried to limit her knowledge to what Nagato was able to explain, and I hope this comes across in this and later chapters. As far as Konan's fight with "Madara" goes. Well, quite simply I think she got done pretty dirty in canon, and being a fanfic author, I pulled a couple of strings. Finally, regarding the Uchiha shrine. I know what the wiki page says, and while I strongly dislike the idea of the Rinnegan being just an evolved Sharingan, I think it makes sense that Naruto would be able to read at least some of the stone. Now that that's out of the way, thanks so much for reading! Fav/follow if you enjoyed, and as always, feel free to leave a review! Chapter 8 in the works!