Two days later found Kakashi still standing in front of the memorial stone. He had gone home to sleep, of course. But every waking moment he found himself gravitating towards the damned rock. He didn't know what to think, so he came here.

"Hey Minato-sensei, Kushina-san, Obito," he greeted. "I know I've been here a lot for the past few days but…" he looked down at his shoes. "Sensei, Kushina, your son. He's done something unimaginable. Hell, I'm still having a hard time wrapping my head around it." He paused, letting out a long breath before continuing. "I don't know what to do with him. Or any of them for that matter. They say they're from the future, they know things they shouldn't… I can't find any reason not to believe them."

The warm summer breeze rustled through the forest around him. If he tried, he could pretend for a moment that it was his dead sensei and friends giving him reassurance. As it was though, he was an ex-Anbu commander and a jonin sensei. He didn't believe in such nonsense.

"Anyway," he continued, "They said they were releasing Naruto today, so I have to bring them all to Lord Hokage so they can finally give their report. Which was due a week ago." Kakashi heard himself let out a dry laugh. "Guess that makes me like you, Obito. Late with everything."

Again, the only response he got was the wind.

Sighing in defeat, Kakashi let his chin drop to his chest. He was getting nowhere with this. His students needed help and here he was talking to a stone.

He still wasn't sure what to do with them though. Should he go to the hokage with it, or let them keep their cover? On the one hand it would make his life simpler and he wouldn't have to deal with any more headaches. On the other hand they would probably be thrown straight into prison for not coming forward sooner and never let out of sight again.

Decisions, decisions.

Making up his mind, Kakashi straightened up and shoved his hands in his pockets. He had some genin to pick up.


When Kakashi-sensei came to pick him up from the hospital, Naruto wasn't really sure what to expect. Anger, frustration, maybe even distant wasn't one of them.

"Come on," his sensei said as soon as Naruto finished signing the release papers. "We have to drop Karin off at your apartment before picking Sakura and Sasuke up."

Oh, right. He had to give his report to the Hokage today. Sakura and Sasuke had probably already figured something out for that. Unfortunately he hadn't been around to hear it. Maybe they could squeeze it in on the way to the tower?

"Okay," Naruto nodded. Turning to his cousin, he asked, "You okay with that?"

Karin offered a nod back. "Sure."

The three left the hospital in uncomfortable silence. Karin knew something had happened between the team and their sensei, but didn't know what. Naruto hadn't offered an explanation, so she hadn't badgered him for one. Naruto knew this and was grateful. He didn't know how he would have explained it to her.

After dropping her off at his apartment (which was looking suspiciously cleaner), they continued on to Sasuke's place.

They didn't expect it to be empty.

"Maybe he's training?" Naruto offered weakly. Kakashi-sensei just snorted.

"He's on bedrest. He's not supposed to even leave the house."

Naruto didn't know what to say to that. Instead, he gave a halfhearted shrug, which didn't really work because of the sling and cast still on his arm.

Sighing, Kakashi-sensei backed away from the door and started heading down the hall. "Come on, we should at least get Sakura."

Sighing, Naruto trotted after him. Why did his legs have to be so short?

After almost ten minutes of walking (jogging on Naruto's part) the duo arrived at Sakura's house. Not wasting any time, Kakashi-sensei rapped his knuckle on the door before stepping back to wait.

What the two of them weren't expecting was for a certain Uchiha to open to the door instead.

Standing in the doorway was none other than Sasuke Uchiha himself. He was wearing a large sleep shirt and rubbing a towel through still-wet hair. Had he showered here?

"Uh, Sasuke?" Naruto puzzled. "What are you doing here?"

"Doing where?" was his deadpan response.

Lucky for him he was saved by Sakura's mom. "Sasuke dear, who is it?" the woman asked, rounding the corner. Upon seeing the two in the doorway, she nodded in understanding.

"Sakura, honey," she called into the house. "Your sensei's here to pick you up!"

"Alright mom!" they heard her respond.

Turning back to the Uchiha, Sakura's mom said, "Your clothes should be dry. Go on and get ready too."

In the doorway, Kakashi-sensei and Naruto watched in stunned silence as Sasuke listened to an adult and went back into the house to get changed.

What the hell.

Five minutes later when Sakura and Sasuke were pulling their sandals on, Sakura asked, "What's up with you two?"

Neither decided to comment.


The four man group had been walking for five minutes in uncomfortable silence when Kakashi-sensei finally snapped.

"Okay," he hissed, dragging them in an alley. "We don't have a lot of time because Lord Third is expecting us, so let's make this quick."

Sakura frowned up at him. "Sensei?"

"Look, I need us all to be on the same page before we all go up that tower." He pointed in the direction of the Hokage's tower. "I need to know everything you can tell me about your little mishap so I can help cover for you."

"Wait, you'll cover for us-"

Naruto was quickly shushed by a hand being slapped over his mouth.

"Yes," their sensei hissed, gloved hand still held over the blonde's mouth. "But I need to know everything you can possibly tell me so I know this is the right decision."

"And what if you decide it isn't?" Sasuke challenged. "Why should we tell you anything?"

Apparently that was the wrong thing to say, as their sensei's lone eye narrowed dangerously. In a low voice, he replied, "Because currently I am the only thing standing between you three, and our lovely T&I force. Not to mention prison, based on how many rules I'm assuming you've broken. So in my educated opinion, I suggest you cooperate with me."

Behind his hand, Naruto gulped nervously.

The three genin all exchanged nervous glances, seeming to be having a silent debate. A stern look from Sasuke though had them come to a consensus.

"We'll tell you," Sasuke announced.

"Wasn't really an option."

Letting out a weary sigh, Sakura removed their sensei's hand from Naruto's mouth and started speaking. "We didn't mean to come back here. It was a fluke," she explained. "We were fighting someone stronger than anything you could imagine. Someone horrible. We were about to beat her when suddenly we were shot back in time. It wasn't our fault, I swear."

In front of them, their sensei rose a disbelieving eyebrow. "How could someone possibly be so strong?" he challenged.

"You can if you're the juubi's jinchuuriki," Sasuke announced.

That got their sensei's attention. Narrowing his eye, he looked the three of them over with newfound scrutiny.

"You have five minutes," he finally announced. "Go."


"So to get this straight," their sensei started, "a group called the Akatsuki was stealing bijuu so as to put the whole world in a genjutsu, but instead it just brought a chakra goddess back?"

The three gennin in front of him nodded.

"And then she tried to steal everyone's chakra," he continued. The three nodded again. "So you three fought her and then…"

"Got shot back here, yes," Sasuke finished.

Letting out a heavy sigh, Kakashi-sensei dropped his head into his hand. "Jeez, you three."

Growling in frustration, Naruto stepped forward towards their sensei. "Look, it's not like we meant to travel back in time!" he cried. "We were winning!"

"So why did you decide to change things?" Kakashi-sensei shot back.

"Because I'm not letting my friends die for me again! Wouldn't you do the same?"

That made him freeze. Sakura, Sasuke, and Naruto watched as their sensei's eye glazed over, not seeming to see them. For a moment, Sakura was afraid he was going to have a panic attack again.

But at the last moment he snapped himself out of it, eye hardening and shoulders squared. "Okay," he finally said. "I'll back you up." The three let out a unanimous sigh. "But afterwards," he continued, "you're going to explain everything to me."

The three genin of team 7 all exchanged a quick glance. Yes, they would tell. But not everything.

Not Obito.


"Ah, Kakashi," the Third said as their team entered the Hokage's office. "Good of you to finally show up." The sarcasm was not lost to them. Behind him stood the two crones who supposedly aided him, as well as Shikamaru's dad, the jonin commander.

"Sorry," he said. "Naruto was still tired, so we had to go extra slow for him." The boy in question shot an angry look up at the jonin, which went ignored. It didn't seem to convince anyone else either, but the Hokage let it slide regardless.

"As you're aware, Kakashi, your team has yet to give their report on what happened in training ground 44. As Kotetsu was only there for part off it, we still have yet to learn what all happened."

"Didn't the snake bastard say anything?" Naruto piped up in confusion.

"Sadly, no," Hiruzen replied. "He refuses to speak no matter what we do."

Unbeknownst to the higher ups in the room, all three time travellers felt an instant wave of relief wash over them. Good. At least they didn't have to contend with another recount of events.

"Now," the Hokage said, "if you would start from the beginning."

Taking a breath, the three began.

"We had been setting traps to catch other teams when he showed up," Sakura started. Her voice was level and calm, exactly how a shinobi was expected to deliver reports. "He attacked us with a powerful wind jutsu. We tried to run away but he chased us, triggering some traps in the process."

"They didn't hold him," Sasuke added on. "Barely even slowed him down."

The Hokage nodded along. "As expected of a sannin," he sighed.

"Then, realizing running wasn't an option, we tried our best to hold our ground," Sakura continued. "But then he summoned a giant snake, and well…" she trailed off, eyes dropping toward the floor. She was trying her best to appear as though she was remembering something awful. Something a normal twelve year old wouldn't want to talk about.

They'd barely had time to fill Naruto in on the plan, but luckily he remembered that this was where he came in.

"After he summoned the snake," Naruto picked up. His voice wavered just the right amount to sound like he felt guilty. "I, um. My chakra, it…"

"It turned orange," Sasuke finished.

Every face in the room paled. The office seemed to grow colder as well, the teens noticed. Clearly even after nearly thirteen years any mention of the fox was despised.

Ignoring the obvious shift in the room, Naruto spoke up again. "I don't really remember what I did," he lied. "But I know I was fighting Orochimaru. And then he hit me with something and the orange chakra went away. Then I broke my arm." He held up his arm for emphasis.

"Sakura and I stayed back while they fought," Sasuke added on. "Once Naruto broke his arm though and lost the cloak, we knew we had to think quick."

"And what did you do," Hiruzen asked.

Sakura gulped faux nervously and exchanged a glance with Sasuke. "We, uh, we knew that if we opened the scroll it'd summoned a proctor," she admitted. Then, to avoid suspicion, added, "We saw it happen to another group."

The elders in the room weren't too pleased by her last comment, but the rest of it they didn't seem to question. It was too soon to tell, but all four of them started to feel as though they'd pulled it off.

Finally, turning to their sensei, the Hokage asked, "And all of this lines up with what they've told you?"

Kakashi-sensei didn't even hesitate before nodding.

"Good," the man sighed. "Alright then, your team can go now, Kakashi. And Naruto." The boy froze "I want to see you later to discuss that orange chakra."

Gulping nervously, Naruto nodded.

"Alright then, you are dismissed."

After offering respectful bows, the four were ushered out of the office so the higher ups could talk.

As soon as the door was shut behind them, their sensei gave them all a leveling stare. "My house," he announced. "Now."

They didn't argue.

AN: Happy new year!