Hello there! Welcome to Chapter two! I did end up changing the name after all, I kinda like this one better.
As I'm writing this I haven't had anybody tell me they wanna see more of the younger Team 7 (Last minute side note, someone actually said they wanted to see the younger characters doing stuff, but I already had this mostly written when I saw it, sorry!), so I guess we'll skip ahead a bit to Naruto canon. I'm going to try and take more time with this chapter, the last one was lacking in character development in my opinion, I just wanted to get all the ideas on paper before they went away. So this one will be more introducing the characters as they'll be for a while, and fleshing out some details.
In case I forget to mention, the Konoha twelve are all in their Shippuden outfits. Also, a bit of clarification on the advanced Genin test, it only goes into action if a Jonin finds a whole team of kids strong enough to graduate early. So, while Kakashi and Itachi graduated from the academy way early, there weren't enough kids at that level or close to it to make a full team, so they weren't put on an advanced Genin team.
As a last note before we get started, I'm thinking of adding omakes to the ends of the chapters, just simple scenes I wanted to put in but couldn't fit into the chapter. Maybe they could have scenes with the younger team? They're still in the works though, there probably won't be one this chapter.
Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any other characters or Media that may appear in this story.
Chapter 2: The years have been kind.
-Konohagakure no Sato-
Naruto had been hunting his prey for a while now, stalking through the streets and keeping his eyes open for any candidate. Then, after what seemed like hours, he found the perfect mark, so he set to work. He pulled out a scroll and unsealed it's contents, carefully crafting his tools and making his plan. He walked over to the edge of a building, calculating his approach, and after seeing his quarry distracted, decided to act. He created a clone and made it Henge into a random form, sending it along with it's supplies. Naruto held his own weapon and waited for his time.
A particularly arrogant merchant was strolling through the Konoha market district as if he owned it, pushing people out of his way and degrading the local stores. He would get his comeuppance though, of that Naruto was sure. Once everything was in place, his clone acted. The merchant yelped in fright as someone threw a balloon filled with neon blue paint at him, covering his back, "Ah! Who did that!? I demand to know!" However, he found everyone was just as surprised as he was. He took a step to track down the vandal, but stepped on a conveniently placed rake, comically flying up and smacking him in the face. He reeled and ended up falling over onto his back.
Naruto could barely hold his grin in place as he hefted the pie in his hands, carelessly tossing it into the air, "For the final touch!" There was silence in the market as everyone watched the merchant groan in pain. All was dead silent for a few seconds, before a pie fell from the sky and landed square on his face.
That did it, the entire market erupted into laughter, Naruto himself having to hold his sides as he cackled like a madman, "The pie to the face always gets 'em! I don't care how old it is that shit's funny!" Naruto spent the next few minutes rolling around on the rooftop, before lying on bis back, watching the clouds as the last few laughs left him. He'd originally started pranking on Kakashi's orders, he called it stealth/sabotage training. Really he just wanted them to help him get back at a guy who'd given him a raw deal, but Naruto discovered he had a taste for it. Whenever he had a day off and needed some laughter he'd go looking for some asshole to prank.
He had changed a lot in the last four years of his Genin career. For one thing he'd grown taller, now standing at an even six feet tall, and his hair had also grown. His white spiky locks now fell down over his forehead, with the back falling to the back of his neck. (Imagine Dangai Ichigo's hair from Bleach as a base.) He was wearing a simple white long sleeved shirt under an open navy blue zip up jacket with red trim, his hitai-ate still tied around his arm. On his lower half, he wore black shinobi pants tucked into a pair of black shinobi sandals. (Basically his "Naruto: The Last" outfit, with the mentioned color changes and relocated headband.) To finish off his outfit, wrapped around his neck outside the jacket, was the white cloth he was wrapped in when he was left in the orphanage. He'd used some of his mission money to have it turned into a scarf, Naruto supposed he wanted to keep the thing because it was the only link to whatever family he had, at least he thought it was...
As Naruto stared up at the clouds, he heard someone clear their voice beside him. Naruto sat up and turned to see Hinata standing there with her 12 year old little sister, Hanabi. The Hyuga heiress had certainly grown up, all three of the girls had become more womanly over the years, but Hinata certainly had more luck. She stood at 5' 5", and her hair was now longer, reaching down to mid-back in a hime style cut. She was wearing a black and yellow outfit, consisting of a sleeveless martial arts top, calf length black pants, and black shinobi sandals. To top it all off, she was wearing a white jacket with blue trim an the Hyuga emblem sewn onto the right shoulder, her hitai-ate around her neck, and black gloves. (Her outfit is like Fei from Digimon Cyber Sleuth, just midriff covered, the sandals, and not as... conforming to her assets.) Hanabi was wearing a simple green Yukata as she tried to stifle her own laughter.
Hinata gave Naruto a deadpan look, "Imagine my surprise when I was taking Hanabi-can to the market on my day off and I see you pulling another prank."
Naruto gained a sheepish grin, "Ah come on Hinata-chan, if you'd seen this ass-" He was cut off as Hinata appeared in front of him and hit him in the chest, "Ow! What was that for!?" He moaned, rubbing the spot she'd hit.
A light glare was what answered him as Hinata held her finger up, like she was talking to a child, "No swearing in front of Hanabi-chan! How many times do I have to tell you that?"
Hanabi giggled a bit at their antics, "It's not like I don't know what they're saying Onee-chan, plus Yasaka-nee is a lot worse than Naruto-nii. Last time she took me to lunch, she taught me a ton of curse words!" She then stiffened as Hinata rounded on her with her patented 'Big Sister Glare'.
Hinata stood up and placed her hands on her hips, "Well, you aren't going to repeat any of them, are you?" Hanabi quickly shook her head, "Good! Now then, after we get done at the market today, I need to go have a talk with Yasaka-chan about teaching you to curse." Hinata seemed to realize something as she turned back to Naruto, "Where is Yasaka-chan anyway? Doesn't she like to help you with these?"
"She went to go talk to Jiji, she wanted to know if her Kaa-san left behind any tips on how to use their chains. She's trying to figure out more creative ways to use them." Naruto answered as he resealed his pranking supplies, "We're gonna meet at home, then start our little party once Yuuko brings the food, you remembered right?"
"Of course! I wouldn't forget our monthly get together!" After saying that, Hinata felt a tug on her sleeve and looked down to see Hanabi with a hesitant smile.
Hinata didn't have a chance to speak before Naruto, "Of course you're invited too Hanabi-chan, we wouldn't leave you all alone in that stuffy compound!" The young Hyuga nodded with an excited smile, "Maybe next time you and me have some time I can teach you how to pull off stuff like this!" Hanabi cheered with a pumped fist as Hinata sighed, rubbing her temples.
"Well at least you didn't paint the Hokage monument again..." She conceded, that was a mess, ninja chasing him and Yasaka all over the village, and the Hokage giving them a stern talking to about vandalizing a tribute to the village's heroes.
Naruto shrugged, "Yeah, that one didn't pan out as well as I'd hoped it would. I like seeing the faces of the people I prank, and the people around it. When we did that, I didn't get to savor the faces of all the people who looked at it for the first time! ...Granted the guys chasing us were pretty hilarious but it got old real quick."
"I see... I've been thinking of them as just chains, meant for restraining, but I could use them to stab, defend... Maybe I should think of them more like spears than chains..." Yasaka said to herself, she was currently standing in the Hokage's office, and had just finished listening to Hiruzen talk about some of the ways her mother had used her chains.
Yasaka had grown in height the least of her friends, standing at 5'2". Her blonde hair now reached down to her butt, and her features had gained a sharp elegance to them. Her temper had more than grown though, it had become legendary to the people who knew her. It took quite a bit to get her completely steamed, but when she was everything within a five mile radius got the hell away. She was wearing a modified Miko outfit with the metal plate from her hitai-ate sewed onto the right side of the chest, and the Uzumaki spiral sewn onto the left. Instead of a pair of hakama, she was wearing a mid-thigh length red pleated skirt with a pair of bicycle shorts of equal length, white open toed stockings that went up to just below the knee, black fingerless gloves, and a pair of sandals like Naruto's. Lastly, Yume rested on her left side, secured with an orange sash.
The aged Hokage smiled fondly at her, "I have no doubt you'll figure out how to make those chains a valuable weapon. The Kongo Fusa is an incredibly versatile technique, and mastering it won't be easy, but I have faith you can do it."
The blonde bowed to Hiruzen and was about to leave, until someone burst through the door, tossing a kunai at the Hokage. Yasaka quickly drew Yume and sliced it out of the air, then realized it was just made of wood, and not even sharp. Then a young boy, about 12, ran into the room, "This time I've got you old man!" Yasaka was about to interfere, but he got tripped up on his scarf and fell face-first into the ground. Yasaka blinked a few times wondering what was happening before he got up. The boy looked around in embarrassment before his eyes landed on Yasaka, who was just sheathing Yume, "Hey, you tripped me! Don't you know not to interfere in a one on one battle!?"
Yasaka took Yume from her sash and bopped him on the head with it's sheath, "You tripped over your own scarf, kid. What are you even doing here? Shouldn't you be in school or something?"
As she spoke, a Jonin appeared in the doorway, wearing the standard uniform minus the flack jacket, a bandanna, and round black glasses, "Honorable Grandson, please don't run off like that!" He quickly bowed to Hiruzen, who was somewhere between amused and exasperated, "I am terribly sorry Hokage-sama, I'll endeavor to keep your grandson in line in the future."
A delicate eyebrow rose as Yasaka eyed the kid before looking to Hiruzen, "This kid's your grandson Jiji?"
Hiruzen nodded, "Yes, he is. Yasaka Uzumaki, meet Konohamaru Sarutobi. Who I believe should be in class right now..."
The now named Konohamaru crossed his arms, 'Great, now that she knows who I am, I'm gonna have to deal with the bowing and the apologizing and the-' His thoughts were cut off as he felt himself get bopped on the head by Yume once more, this time with a bit more force.
Yasaka ignored the Jonin's shocked panic, "If Hokage-sama is your grandfather then you should understand the importance of his job. Don't go bothering him with pointless interruptions." She turned back to Hiruzen with a little bow, "Thank you for your time Jiji, I'll see you later." With that, the blonde Jinchuriki headed out, leaving the three in the office, though Konohamaru's eyes followed her with curiosity.
The Jonin bowed to Hiruzen repeatedly, "I am so sorry about this Hokage-sama, I assure you I will take full responsibility for everything and will not let that girl go unpunished for laying hands on the Honorable Grandson!" He rambled for a bit before Hiruzen stopped him.
"Ebisu, I appreciate the enthusiasm, but..." Ebisu followed his gaze, finding Konohamaru missing, as he freaked out for a second, Hiruzen sighed, "I believe he went out after Yasaka-chan." The now panicking man promptly bolted out of the room.
Hiruzen let out a little chuckle, "Well at least my days are never boring, maybe Yasaka will be good to Konohamaru-kun..." His head was then filled with visions of Konohamaru insulting Yasaka, and the angry sword-wielding blonde chasing him through the village like a cat with a mouse, "Well... at least he'll survive."
As Yasaka walked through the village, she became increasingly aware of someone following her, badly. She sighed, she still had a few hours before she was to meet Naruto and Yuuko, so what the hell? She turned around and walked over to a box painted like a rock with two eye holes and promptly kicked it over, revealing a surprised Konohamaru, "Rocks aren't square, nor do they have eye holes. Now why are you following me?"
Konohamaru got over his surprise and stood, giving her a smirk, "You're just as strong as I thought! I want you to train me, and I won't take no for an answer!"
"No." He face-faulted as Yasaka walked away, not even sparing him a glance.
He quickly got up and followed her, "Come on, please? I don't want you to train me all the time, just teach me a few things, please?"
Yasaka pinched the bridge of her nose, "Why do you want me to teach you? Don't you have that Jonin as a private tutor or something?" She was starting to think this was one of those arrogant kid situations...
"Because you're the only person who doesn't look at me differently!" Okay, maybe she was wrong, "Everyone treats me like royalty or something because the Hokage is my grandfather, but I hate it! People don't see me as Konohamaru, they just see the Hokage's grandson... You didn't though! You knew who I was but you treated me like you would've anyone else! I wanna get strong enough and become the Hokage so people will know who I am, not who my family is. Ebisu goes easy on me and coddles me, so I need you to train me, please!"
Yasaka stopped and turned to him, there was certainly a fire in his eyes. She stared at him for a minute before continuing her walk, Konohamaru looked down in defeat until he heard Yasaka's voice, "Are you coming? We can't very well train in the middle of the street." Konohamaru looked back up with surprise, before it was replaced with a smile and he ran to catch up to her.
- Training Ground 7 -
When the two arrived at the training ground, Yasaka turned to her new student, "First things first, a piece of advice from someone who knows a bit of what you're going through. I won't tell you why, but a large number of people in this village think of me as a monster, and they have since the day I was born." Konohamaru's eyes widened, "While I don't know exactly how you feel, it's close enough, people don't see Yasaka Uzumaki when they look at me." After seeing his nod and making sure he was listening, Yasaka continued, "There will always be people who see you as your grandfather's grandson, and not you. People will see what they want to see and you can't change their mind. Even if you become Hokage, some will continue to compare you to Hokage-sama."
Konohamaru didn't look happy with what she said, but he was still listening, "The key to dealing with them, is to say simply, fuck 'em." He was clearly taken aback at her choice of words, "If they refuse to see you for who you are, then you don't need them in your life, and they don't deserve your attention. Instead of trying to make everyone acknowledge you, find the special people in your life who do know you, friends, family, they are the ones you need. As long as you have those few precious people, then you will be more than fulfilled. Do you understand what I'm trying to say?"
He nodded, then looked up at her with a determined look, "Yeah, I do, but I still want to be the Hokage! Even if people don't acknowledge me, I want to protect my home!"
Yasaka gained a small smile, "There's nothing wrong with that, it's a fine dream. Still, being Hokage is much more difficult than you know, it's not all about strength. Sandaime-sama is the Hokage not just because he's strong, but because he's wise, intelligent, and knows that he needs to do whatever it takes to protect the village. Just keep what I said in mind, okay?" She then turned to the treeline, "You can come out now, I know you're there."
Konohamaru jumped as Ebisu dropped into the training ground, "I suppose I shouldn't be surprised you noticed me, many Shinobi in this village have been talking about your team's exploits." He said with a small smile before looking to Konohamaru, "I would like to apologize Honor- Konohamaru. I had thought I was just showing proper respect, and I didn't notice how much you disliked it. I suppose I wasn't training you to the best of my ability because I was afraid of pushing you too far... How about we start over? My name is Ebisu." He said as he held out his hand.
Konohamaru grasped it and shook with a smile, "Konohamaru Sarutobi! Nice to meet you!"
Yasaka smirked to herself, "Well, looks like my work here is done." As she walked away, she called over her shoulder with a wave, "I expect you to have that hat on soon Konohamaru!"
Konohamaru waved back at her, "Thanks Aneki! I'll make you proud!"
Yasaka stopped walking for a second, "Oh, by the way, my team and I are having a little party tonight, you wanna come?" Konohamaru talked with Ebisu for a minute before running over to her.
The blonde jinchuriki headed through the forest toward her home with konohamaru, content with how her day had gone so far, "Aw, is the kit the kit getting soft?"
The blonde girl grimaced as the demonic voice entered her ear, "I have nothing to say to you, Kyuubi. I thought we'd established our relationship last time. You are stuck inside me, and will allow me the use of your chakra when I need it to ensure our continued survival. We don't need to banter."
"Humph, you're no fun... At least I could get a rise out of your mother... I remember out deal perfectly well kit. I have no wish to die, I promise you... But just remember, if you slip, I'll be right here, all to happy to take over." Kyuubi said from the seal, clearly annoyed at not getting her angry.
"You remember, fox. If you ever try to take me over or hurt my friends, then I'll come into that seal and kill you myself." Yasaka said with a steel edge to her voice
Kyuubi's resulting chuckle was sinister, "I look forward to it..."
"Um... You okay, Aneki?" Konohamaru asked, he'd seen her face become hard and serious as the grave.
Yasaka shook her head and gave a small smile, "Sorry, just had some unpleasant thoughts drift through my head."
Yuuko Uchiha was in a pickle... hmm, pickle sounded good... She was currently sitting at a small table and staring at the menu of the Akimichi family barbecue restaurant. There were so many choices, each one looking more enticing than the last, "Hmm..."
Yuuko's manerisms hadn't changed much, she still didn't talk much and when she did, it was in a soft, low tone. She had grown to a respectable 5'6", her hair was hanging down to between her shoulder blades, and her features had only improved. Yuuko's new outfit consisted of a black and white sleeveless dress with a white fur collar that went down to mid-thigh, with black skintight pants underneath. She was also wearing black fingerless gloves, a black and white ribbon around each arm, black ninja sandals, and her hitai-ate around her waist like a belt. (Her looks are still based on Yuuko Kamishiro from Digimon: Cyber Sleuth, I just really like the designs in it. I tried to rethink her normal outfit into something more befitting a shinobi, since I couldn't picture her in my head wearing anything else, hopefully it works, might change it later if it doesn't though.)
Her musings were interrupted as Choza walked over to her with a knowing smile, "Having trouble choosing again Yuuko-san?" Seeing her dejected nod, he chuckled, "If you want we can do party orders, they have a bit of everything on them, so you don't have to decide between anything."
"Ah! That sounds great, thank you Choza-sama." She said as her eyes sparkled.
Choza laughed and put a hand on her shoulder, "No problem, and please, just Choza when we're out of the official setting." He took on a joking tone as he walked back toward the kitchen, "If I didn't know better, I'd swear you were a secret Akimichi!"
Yuuko smiled at the joke before looking around the room while she walked over to the counter near the entrance to wait. Soon however, she heard a small group enter the restaurant, "I still don't see why we have to celebrate like this... It's too troublesome..." A lazy voice drawled.
The last female Uchiha turned to the entrance and saw who could only be the second generation Ino-Shika-Cho walk into the restaurant, now sporting brand new hitai-ate. It was very surreal for her, to know that they probably just passed their Genin exams, yet she'd been one for four years. Maybe she should go and congratulate Sasuke? Soon, one of the team members noticed her and walked over, "Hello Yuuko! Getting lunch like us?" Choji asked with a friendly smile, he had met Yuuko a little less than a year ago while she was having dinner, and instantly challenged her to an eating match, which he then lost. After that, he seemed to have a bit of a crush on the black haired girl, though it went away after a bit and they were now on pretty friendly terms.
Yuuko nodded, "Hello Choji, I'm just waiting for a party order, my team and I are having a little get-together tonight." While he knew she was a Genin, he assumed she graduated a year before them, and Yuuko simply didn't correct him. She hated to seem like she was bragging, "Are these the members of your new team?"
Choji nodded and waved them over, "Yeah, the three of us are team 10 as of today! We just got out of class and headed here to celebrate, this is Shikamaru Nara and Ino Yamanaka."
"It's a pleasure to meet you, and I look forward to working with you in the future." Yuuko said with a little bow.
Ino, who had been looking between them for a few minutes, decided to speak up, "So, how do you two know each other?" She asked with a conspiratory gleam in her eye.
"I first met Yuuko when she was in here getting lunch about a year ago, and when I saw her skill, I had to challenge her to an eating competition!" Choji explained with a fond smile.
Ino seemed mortified, and even Shikamaru was surprised, "You challenged her to an eating competition!? Choji what were you thinking! I mean, look at her, that figure is to die for, why would you do that!?" She then turned to Yuuko, "Speaking of which, what kind of diet are you on, because it must be amazing!"
Choji lowered his head shame, "She bested me..."
Shikamaru's head snapped up as he stared disbelievingly at Choji, Ino's face much the same, "I'm sorry... What was that Choji?" The Nara heir asked.
The Akimichi heir's fist was clenched, "She ate me under the table, I never stood a chance..." He picked his head up and with fire in his eyes pointed dramatically at Yuuko, "However, I have been training! I challenge you once again Yuuko, and this time I shall not lose!"
Yuuko merely nodded, "Okay."
- Fifteen minutes later -
Shikamaru Nara was a smart guy, hell most people would call him a genius, his ability to process information was second to none in his class. However, the sight that lay before him sent his mind reeling, he couldn't fathom what he'd just witnessed. Choji had fallen back, staring up at the ceiling, barely able to move from the sheer amount of food he'd eaten.
However, that wasn't what stunned him, no what got him was the fact that Yuuko was still eating! The revenette finished off another plate of barbecue, and put it at the top of a two foot tall stack next to her, "I think I'm full now."
Ino's jaw was on the floor as she stared at Yuuko, who didn't even look like she'd gained anything from it! She couldn't hold it anymore, "How in the hell can you possibly eat that much!? What kind of insane workout plan do you put yourself through to eat that much and keep that figure!?"
Yuuko shrugged, "I don't know, I've always eaten like that. I don't do anything extreme in my training, I guess I just have good genes."
Ino's eye twitched as she turned away and pouted. Shikamaru sighed, "Troublesome... Sorry about that, she gets this way about her appearance."
Choza walked over with a large doggy bag, setting it down next to Yuuko, "There you are Yuuko! I have to say, even I'm impressed with how much you can put away!"
Yuuko smiled in thanks and stood up, grabbing the bag, "Thank you Choza-san, please put the bill for this and the contest on my tab. It was nice meeting you, Shikamaru-san, Ino-san." She gave them a wave as she left, waving to Choza.
On her way back to the apartment, she passed the Uchiha compound. As she walked past, the door opened and Sasuke walked out, wearing his new headband, "Oh, Sasuke! I wanted to congratulate you on graduating! My friends and I are having a party, do you want to come?" She asked with a genuine smile.
Sasuke didn't spare her a glance and jumped to the rooftops, clearly intent on getting away from her. Yuuko sighed, after their little altercation four years ago and she'd moved in with Naruto and Yasaka, they'd grown even more apart. Yuuko tried to talk to Sasuke, but he always ignored her and refused to acknowledge her presence, because of that, he never saw her hitai-ate, which would at least made him talk to her. Yuuko knew it wasn't entirely his fault though... She should've told him about the advanced Genin program, she should've dragged him to therapy with her. He always seemed so strong when they were kids, she thought he just needed time and he'd be alright.
She tried to talk to him whenever she saw him, and visited him in the compound from time to time, but to no avail. She would've pushed harder to get closer to him, but there was a reason she didn't. She'd tried, she tried to talk to him and be there for him, even before she told him she wasn't going to the academy, but he wouldn't have it. She tried to get back into his life, but he wasn't letting her in, and she wasn't going to force her way in if he didn't want her there. Still, she was going to try talking to him whenever she saw him, and if he decided he wanted to be a family again, she'd accept it with open arms.
Yuuko shook her head, she needed to get these sad thoughts out of her head, she had a party to get to!
"Why do I have to do this?" Naruto asked as he was forced to carry tons of bags from dozens of stores throughout Konoha. He was currently weighed down as Hinata picked through a clothes rack, taking her time in picking different outfits.
"Two reasons, firstly you need to be taught a lesson for trying to pass on your pranking ways to Hanabi-chan. Secondly, you agreed to help us as we went shopping. She said as she held out a dress for Hanabi to look at, "What do you think?"
Hanabi thought for a minute, "Hmm, I don't think orange is your color... That's probably more Yasaka-nee's thing." The smaller Hyuga answered.
Hinata looked at the dress for a second before putting it back, "Yeah, I suppose you're right there..."
Naruto cleared his throat, "I remember agreeing to help you look for some things, but not to be the damn pack mule!" He yelped as Hinata appeared next to him and chopped his head, "Ow! Come on, damn isn't even a real curse!" Another chop greeted him as he wisely decided to stop talking.
The Hyuga princess looked at all the bags and sighed, "Alright, let's take pity on poor Naruto-kun and pay, then we'll drop this stuff at home and head to the apartment." Naruto let out a sigh of relief as Hinata walked over to the counter with Hanabi.
'Thank god for my durability and freakish strength, or my back might be broken...' Naruto thought to himself as he carried the massive amount of bags to the Hyuga compound. When the three arrived, the guards sent him sympathetic looks and let them in.
He set the bags down in Hinata's room as Hiashi walked past, "What did he do this time?"
Hanabi giggled as Naruto rolled his shoulders, "He pulled a prank on someone and started cursing." Naruto turned and gave her a mock-glare.
Hinata patted Naruto on the shoulder, "Well, not so much for the prank, I agree the man deserved it, more for trying to teach those things to Hanabi-chan. Now what have we learned Naruto-kun?"
Naruto grumbled to himself, but answered, "Don't curse around Hanabi-chan or try to turn her to the path of pranking..."
Hinata smiled and patted his head. before turning to her father, "Is it alright if Hanabi-chan goes with us to our party tonight?" The smaller girl pulled out her Puppy-dog eyes technique.
Hiashi rolled his eyes, "You don't have to do that Hanabi-chan, you're free to go. Just remember to call me if she stays the night." He said, with his last comment directed to Naruto and Hinata.
"Don't worry Tou-san, we'll have her home on time if she's not too tired." With that, the three headed off to meet Yasaka and Yuuko, or at least they would have, if they weren't stopped by someone.
"Having fun with your friends, Hinata-sama? If only we could all be so lucky." Hinata stopped and turned toward the voice, seeing her cousin, Neji Hyuga.
Naruto growled, "You got something to say Neji, you can say it to-"
Hinata placed her hand on his chest, stopping him, "Please Naruto, take Hanabi-chan and head to the apartment without me." She gave him a pleading look. Naruto sighed and gave Neji a glare before leaving with Hanabi.
Neji raised an eyebrow, "Sending your attack dog off, how things have changed."
"Neji-nii, must we always do this? I've said it more times than I can count, I'm sorry for what happened to Hizashi-Oji, but I was six years old!" Hinata pleaded.
"I don't care how old you were, you were weak and you always will be weak. It's your fate, just like my fate is to be branded by this seal. I don't know how you lucked out in passing the advanced Genin test, but someday we'll see which of us fate favors, and I assure, you, I will not be holding back." Neji said coldly as he turned to walk away.
"Neither will I." Hinata's soft voice barely reached his ears, but when he turned around, she was gone.
As Hinata left the compound, she saw Naruto and Hanabi waiting by the wall, "I thought you two were heading to the apartment?"
Naruto shrugged, "I wanted to make sure you were okay."
"Well, thank you. I know you don't like Neji, but he wouldn't just attack me like that. I don't care how long it takes me, I will help him out of that delusion of fate, and heal my family." Hinata said with determination.
She felt a hand land on her shoulder and looked over to see a smiling Naruto, "Well then I'll be right there with you!"
Hinata nodded, a small blush staining her face, Hanabi then grabbed their sleeves, "Come on guys, we're gonna be late!" The two rolled their eyes as they headed off. On the way, Hanabi let go of them and Naruto fell a bit behind the group, opting to take his time.
He stopped as a sharp pain entered his chest, Naruto grit his teeth and put a hand on his chest, 'Damn... It's happening again? They're getting more frequent..." He held his chest for a minute before the pain subsided. Naruto shook his head, taking a few deep breaths before catching up with his teammate.
- Team 7's apartment, 30 minutes later -
"Cheers!" Chorused out as the six people tapped their glasses together. Team 7, along with Konohamaru and Hanabi were all taking various spots on the large couch, with the food all spread out along their coffee table, with a couple extra folding trays brought out to hold it all. After they all arrived, they got right to work getting everything all laid out for their little party, by the time they got started, the sun was starting to set.
Al of them were wearing what they'd call their 'mission casual clothes', Naruto and Hinata had ditched their jackets, Yasaka set Yume on it's rack in their room, and they'd all removed their sandals and gloves, if they had any. Konohamaru seemed nervous at first, but quickly found that Yasaka's team were more than welcoming to him.
Naruto sighed to himself as he drank down a few gulps of soda, "Shame Kakashi-sensei couldn't be here tonight, that Jonin meeting came outta nowhere..."
Yasaka waved it off, "We'll make it up to him another night, plus you know he's not too much of a party guy."
That caught Konohamaru's attention, "Your Sensei? He must be really strong if he taught you. Ebisu said a lot of Shinobi know you guys."
Naruto nodded with a grin, "Oh yeah, sensei is really tough. We've been training with him for about 10 years now and none of us can beat him!"
Hinata chuckled at Konohamaru's face, "Well it's to be expected, he is a Jonin after all. When we team up on him he has to take us seriously, but he still manages to pull out a win every time."
The younger Hyuga took a sip of her juice and picked up a piece of barbecue, "I saw one of their spars once, it was intense! I nearly got sent flying!" They spent the next few hours talking about the academy, and Konohamaru eventually asked about some missions they'd been on.
Yuuko looked up from her piled high plate, "We haven't done anything glamorous if that's what you're wondering."
Yasaka leaned back in her seat with a sigh, "We've done escort missions, delivery missions, bodyguard duty, but nothing really dangerous happened, other than the odd bandit attack every now and again, but they're child's play for us now."
Popping a piece of takoyki into her mouth, Hinata took over for her, "Hokage-sama said he wanted to give us low-profile missions until our age group became Genin as well. If we did higher profile missions while we were still young, we would've had every power hungry jerk from here to Iwa after us."
Konohamaru took on a thinking expression, "What do you mean, 'while you were still young'? Didn't you guys graduate last year or something?"
Naruto sat back down, "Nope, we've been Genin since we were 12, took the advanced Genin test."
"WHAAAAAT!?" Konohamaru screamed as he stared, bug-eyed at them, "We talked about that in class a while ago! That test is supposed to be super strict! Nobody's done it in years because no Jonin could find kids with enough potential!"
Yasaka bopped Konohamaru with her hand, "Stop screaming, you're gonna give me a headache. Kakashi-sensei met us when we were six, and after teaching us a few things, decided to make it a regular thing. When we turned 12, we took the test and the council approved us." She thought for a minute, "Speaking of which, does Iruka-Sensei teach your class?"
The boy nodded with a bit of a surprised look, "Yeah, do you know him?"
The resident Uchiha answered that one, "Yes, he was in charge of teaching us stuff like math, history, and geography. Every day after the academy got out, we'd finish out training with Sensei and head there to meet Iruka-sensei for a couple hours of school."
Konohamaru was silent for a few minutes, then got up with stars in his eyes, "YOU GUYS HAVE TO TEACH ME! PLEASE SHOW ME SOME TRICKS!"
Another hand slammed into his hear, Yasaka's smile was a bit strained as a smoking dent appeared in Konohamaru's skull, "What did I tell you about yelling Kono-kun?"
Hanabi was barely able to contain her giggles as Hinata shook her head at their antics, "You guys have a lot of fun Onee-chan!"
Hinata gave her a nod, "That we do, Hanabi-chan!"
- A few hours later -
"I rolled out a couple spare futons for 'em, they're out like lights..." Naruto said as he made two pairs of clones, two to take the sleeping Konohamaru and Hanabi and set them down on a spare pair of futons in their room, and two to tell their parents. The white-headed boy plopped down on the sofa and sighed in relaxation, "It sure had been a wild ride, hasn't it?"
Hinata took a sip of her tea, "If you mean our unique training and careers, then yes, it certainly has."
The blonde of the group put an arm around Hinata and poked her cheek, "You've certainly grown up, haven't you Hinata-chan? You were so cute when we first met, always blushing and stuttering!"
The Hyuga heiress' eye twitched as she turned to Yasaka with a sweet smile, "What about you? If I remember correctly you rarely left Naruto-kun's shadow, I always thought it was adorable how you held onto him ever so tightly!" Lightning seemed to flash between them as they stared at each other.
Naruto sweatdropped as Yuuko sat back down next to him, a freshly made plate of food in her lap, "I'll never understand why they do that... They can be best of friends one second, then be arguing and competing the next..."
"It's just how they are." Yuuko said with a small smile.
"Yeah... So, how was Sasuke?" Naruto chuckled as Yuuko turned to him in surprise, "You had that look in your eye when you got here."
Yuuko sighed, "He still won't talk to me, but I'm not going to give up on him."
"I wasn't going to tell you to. Just remember, if he says anything unfriendly to you again, then come to me and I'll teach him how to speak to his big sister." Naruto growled.
"Naruto, I'm not even that much older than him, it's only 5 minutes." Yuuko said with an amused look, "Also, thank you." She always felt nice knowing how protective he was of them.
Naruto leaned back with a grin, "No problem!"
"Bad." Yuuko snapped as she smacked his hand, which had been moving toward her plate. She finished her food, then walked over to her girlfriends, chopping them on their heads.
Yasaka blinked and groaned a bit, "Ya know, for all you do, Hinata... I think Yuuko is the real mom of the group..." The Uchiha was always breaking up their arguments, with a Sharingan enhanced glare if need be.
Hinata looked indignant, "I don't try to be the mom, but someone has to be the responsible teammate!"
Yuuko looked around at her teammates, "What should we do now, we ate all the food..."
Yasaka walked into the kitchen and patted Yuuko's shoulder, "You ate all the food Yuuko-chan. But I know something we can do..."" She gained a mischievous smirk and channeled some chakra into a seal on her wrist, creating a small puff of smoke, "If you guys aren't ready to go to sleep, I have these!" She said with a flourish as she held up two large bottles of Sake.
Hinata stood up and stomped over to Yasaka, "Absolutely not! We aren't drinking! Where did you even get that anyway!?"
The blonde shrugged, "Old enough to kill, old enough to buy booze." She then quickly set them down and pulled out four saucers, "Now come on, now that the kids are asleep, let's get the real party started!"
"How about we don't! Drinking like this is completely irresponsible! Yuuko-chan, Naruto-kun, please help me convince her!" Her eye twitched violently as she saw Naruto and Hinata pick up a saucer.
Naruto grinned at Hinata, "You don't have to if you don't want to Hinata-chan, we'll have some and put the rest away, it'll be fine!"
Hinata sighed, "Fine, but I am not having this! I want you three to know that I am completely against this and very disappointed in all of you!" She scolded and sat down on the couch, crossing her arms and legs.
- One hour later -
"Ya know Yasaka-chan... You're one of my bestest friends in the world..." Hinata slurred as she leaned against Yasaka, who was equally sloshed, "I really love you Yasaka-chan, and Naruto-kun too, and Yuuko-chan..."
Yasaka nodded, "I love you too, HInata-chan, I may give you a hard time, but I love you like a sister!"
Yuuko, who had her head in the refrigerator, looked up, and wobbled over to Naruto, "Naruto-kun, we're out of food! We're all gonna starve to death!"
"Alright... Yuuko-chan go find some food, you always seem to find some when there isn't any around! Other Yuuko-chan, inform Jiji of this disaster!" Naruto said as he pointed to Yuuko and an empty space next to her.
Yuuko gave a shaky salute, and went back to the kitchen.
Soon, Hinata looked around the apartment, "Hey... Where'd Yuuko-chan go!?"
Yasaka stood up on shaky legs, dragging Hinata with her, "I don't know... Yuuuko-chaaan!?" Yasaka called out into the apartment, she then gasped, "What if she was captured!? Naruto-kun, help us look for Yuuko, she's missin'!"
Naruto downed another saucer of Sake and hauled himself up, "Missing!? Well what're we waitin for? Let's go find 'er!" He took a step and fell onto the floor.
The two girls burst into laughter as they held each other up, "Naruto-kun, you're sooooo drunk!" Yasaka got out through her giggles.
"No I'm not! I'm not drunk, I'll prove it!" Naruto stood up, and his eye caught something on the floor, "There!" He yelled with an audible gasp, "Yuuko-chan's saucer... She must be close!"
Hinata's eyes widened as she saw it, "Wow, he's right! Naruto-kun, you're so amazing at this!" She then took a long swig straight from the bottle, before passing it to Yasaka, who drank her own large helping.
The three drunken Genin stumbled over toward the kitchen, "Yuuuuuuuko-chaaaaaan?" Yasaka called into the kitchen.
Naruto finally turned around the counter, "I've found her!" He called to his companions, who walked over to see Yuuko curled up in a ball on the floor, sleeping soundly with a smile and a blush on her face as she cuddled a loaf of bread.
The male of the group leaned down, "Yuuko-chan... We've been searching for you for HOURS! Come on, we're gettin you home girl!" Just after Naruto finished speaking, he fell forward onto his face, soon the sound of snoring was audible.
"Wow, what a lightweight!" Hinata said as she poked Naruto with her foot.
Yasaka nodded, "Yeah, well more booze for us Hinata-chan! We'll drink all night long!"
"YEAH!" The two called in unison.
- One Hour Later -
Kakashi Hatake looked around the apartment, surveying the damage. Yuuko was peacefully snoozing with a loaf of bread in the kitchen, her legs huddled up to her chest, Naruto was on his knees with his face planted in the floor next to her, well the kitchen was in one piece. He turned his eye to the living room, Yasaka was lying on her stomach over the back of the couch, and Hinata was lying peacefully on her back, covered up and sleeping like a kitten, the only thing to tell you she was hammered was that her 'blanket' was the overturned coffee table.
He sighed to himself, "Well, at least the only thing out of place is the coffee table. Should I take them back to their room? ...Nah, I'll let them sleep like this, maybe they'll learn to drink responsibly." He walked over to the door, passing the one remaining Sake bottle, which was still half-full. He blinked before picking it up and leaving with it. When his friend Anko had informed him she'd seen Yasaka buying to large bottles of strong Sake, he decided that he'd head to the party after the meeting after all. Of course, he'd let them all get sufficiently smashed before going to see the hilarity. Unfortunately he missed it, and was berating himself.
-The next morning -
"Never again..." Naruto and Yuuko were walking to their training ground after dropping Konohamaru off, "I swear, I'll never drink like that again..." Naruto said to himself as he held his head, Hinata, bless her soul, had gotten rid of most of their hangovers with some medical ninjutsu after they'd gotten dressed.
Yuuko nodded, "It was pretty bad. I just remember getting tired and going to sleep, I thought I was in my bed."
They walked in a comfortable silence until they reached training ground 7, where Yasaka and Hinata were waiting, "Hey! You guys drop Hanabi off okay?"
Yasaka smirked, "Oh yeah, and Hiashi-sama had a pretty long talk with his daughter about the consequences of drinking."
Hinata turned to her with an indignant glare on her face, "Excuse me, I spoke out against us drinking!"
"Yeah, and fifteen minutes later you were chugging that Sake like it was the water of life! Don't go playing innocent with me you pale-eyed drunkard!" Before it devolved into a full on catfight, Yuuko appeared and gave the both of them her rare Sharingan-enhanced glare. They both settled down as Naruto sweatdropped.
He shook his head, times like this were always entertaining... Suddenly, he felt a sharp pain in his chest, he shook for a second before he dropped down to his knees and gripped his shirt. The girls all noticed and ran over to him, "Naruto-kun, what's happening?" Yuuko asked as Hinata activated her Byakugan and Mystic Palm.
Naruto grunted and started breathing heavily, "D-don't worry, I'm fine... It'll pass soon enough..."
Yasaka got down next to him and looked at him with worry plain on her face, "This has happened before!? Why didn't you tell any of us!?"
"I-I didn't want to worry you all... It's never been this bad before, it usually just hits and goes away after a few seconds... Ah!" He suddenly fell over, the pain spreading to his legs and arms. This was definitely the worst pain he'd felt, it was like his very bones were on fire!
Hinata shook her head with a growl, "I can't figure out what's wrong with him!"
"Yuuko, Hinata, go alert the hospital that they've got an emergency patient coming in, Yasaka, inform the Hokage, I'll take Naruto to the hospital." The girls all looked up to see Kakashi standing there, he quickly grabbed Naruto and placed him over his shoulders, "What are you waiting for, move!" They all scattered as Kakashi jumped way with Naruto, "Hang in there, we'll get you better..."
"Wh-whole body hurts... C-can't move..." Naruto got out through grit teeth.
When he got to the hospital, Yuuko, Hinata, and a doctor were already there with a gurney, "Place him here." Kakashi set him down and the three followed the doctor down the hallway, "What happened and what are his symptoms?
Hinata was the one who answered, "It started as a chest pain, he was unable to stand after it hit and fell to his knees, I used the Mystic Palm and Byakugan, but I couldn't find anything wrong. He said this has happened before but nothing like this"
"When I put him on my shoulders he managed to say it spread to his whole body, and he couldn't move." Kakashi finished as they arrived at an open room. The doctor grabbed a few nurses and informed Team 7 they'd have to stay outside. They didn't like it, but they complied.
After a few minutes, a worried Yasaka and serious Hiruzen arrived, "Kakashi, report."
"Sir, Naruto collapsed after experiencing unexplained pain, it started in his chest and spread throughout the rest of his body. The doctors took him into an exam room a few minutes ago. We haven't heard anything since." Kakashi said in a professional manner.
Hiruzen sent a worried look at the girls, who were all sitting down staring at the door, "Well then, I suppose all we can do is wait until the doctor returns..."
Wait they did, for what seemed like hours. Truthfully only one had passed before the doctor opened the door and walked out. Everyone looked to him expectantly, "We have no idea what in the hell it was... We used every single diagnostic jutsu, healing jutsu, and everything else we could think of. There were no abnormalities in his blood, he was free of any sickness or disease, there was no poison in his system, he had no injuries..." He turned to the Hokage, "I'm sorry Hokage-sama, but we have no idea what caused this. About twenty minutes ago, his pain just stopped, he went straight to sleep so we performed more tests, we still found nothing. He's awake now if you wish to see him."
The poor doctor was instantly trampled by three worried young women. Kakashi breathed a sigh of relief as he and the Hokage followed the girls into the room, seeing Naruto on the receiving end of three glares, "Come on girls, I'm in the hospital, remember?" He'd been stripped down to just his pants, and was currently shielding himself from the girls.
"We know, and that's the only reason we aren't beating the hell out of you!" Yasaka said as she bashed her fist into her palm.
Hinata was giving him a Byakugan enhanced glare, "Next time something like this happens, you will tell us immediately!"
Even Yuuko was glaring at him, the tomoe in her Sharingan spinning angrily, "Don't ever make us worry like that again."
Naruto leaned away from them, his hands in front of his face, "Okay, I'll be more careful I promise!"
After the girls calmed down, Hiruzen walked up and gave Naruto a smile, "You gave is quite the scare Naruto-kun. How do you feel?"
"Eh, I'm alright, I told you guys it'd pass eventually!"
They spent the next few hours talking and relaxing in Naruto's room, with the girls eventually leaving for the night at Naruto's insistence. After they'd gone, Naruto turned to Hiruzen and Kakashi, "Alright you two, now that they're gone give it to me straight. Am I dying?"
The room took on a somber air as Hiruzen sighed, "We don't know. The doctor wasn't able to find anything wrong with you, whatever this is, it's never been documented, at least not here." The room was silent as Naruto digested the information.
"Well, whatever this thing is, I'm not gonna let it kill me, I plan on having a long, healthy life! I'm not gonna get killed by some chest pains..."
Kakashi put a hand on Naruto's shoulder, "Well then you'd better rest, you're gonna stay here for a while until they clear you to leave. So you be good and don't get into any trouble, understand?"
"Come on, sensei! What kinda trouble could I get into in a hospital?"
- That Midnight, Konoha forest -
"Are you sure they're this way Yasaka?" Yuuko asked as the three jumped through the trees.
"I'm sure, I can sense them clear as day!" Yasaka said back. It was only an hour ago that a call had gone out for all available Shinobi to mobilize, the forbidden scroll had been stolen. Apparently it was taken by a group of four, one of which was Mizuki, oh how Yasaka would enjoy taking that prick down... Whenever they went to the academy for Iruka's teaching, Mizuki would always try to sabotage her in some way.
Hinata gave a small gasp, her Byakugan blazing, "I see them, there's only three... Let's split them up and take them out individually." Mizuki's accomplices were a few reserve Shinobi who got tired of being on the back burner.
Yuuko nodded, "I'll interrogate one of them."
They eventually came upon the group of traitors, sitting around, clearly waiting for something, possibly their last teammate. Yasaka looked to Hinata and motioned to the left, and Yuuko to the right. She then went through a few handsigns, taking a deep breath, "Futon: Daitoppa!" A large blast of air struck the ground in the middle of them, sending two of them flying away into the woods while Mizuki was thrown back into a tree.
As he rubbed his head, Yasaka dropped down in front of him, "Hello Mizuki, I'll be taking that scroll back to Jiji."
He seemed to gain a bit of glee in his eyes as he realized who was in front of him, "Well, well, if it isn't the demon... Speaking of, did anyone ever tell you why-"
"Kyuubi, I know, you're about four years too late asshole." Yasaka said with a smirk. Mizuki had the wind taken out of his sails, but he still pulled out a kunai and charged her. Yasaka sighed and drew Yume, when Mizuki reached her, she deflected all of his blows with practiced ease, "Are you sure you're a chunin?" She taunted as she coated her blade in Futon chakra and sliced clean through his kunai.
"Aw, what's the matter, big, bad Mizuki can't beat the little Kyuubi bitch?" Yasaka had discovered a talent for getting under people's skin, her natural cocky nature seemed to throw people off, make them angry. Mizuki circled her, then grabbed one of the giant shruriken on his back and threw it, arcing through the air toward Yasaka. She quickly gripped Yume, channeling more Futon chakra and slicing it in half as it reached her. She raised an eyebrow at seeing Mizuki charging her again, clearly thinking she wouldn't have time to block him after getting rid of the Shruriken.
He clearly knew nothing about Yasaka, as she moved faster than his eye could see, she deflected his second kunai and quickly thrust her blade into his neck. Mizuki's eyes widened, before the life left his eyes. Yasaka pushed him off her sword, flicked the blood off, then sheathed it, she picked up the forbidden scroll and started on her way back to the Hokage tower, "Good riddance."
Meanwhile, Hinata was dodging the clumsy strikes of one of Mizuki's comrades, "Are you sure about this? Taking on a Hyuga in taijutsu?" He paused for a second, and regretted it as Hinata sent a quick strike to his arm, disabling it. He then made the wise decision to run, unfortunately, Hinata was faster. She appeared above him and struck him in the back of the head with a palm strike, killing him instantly, "I refuse to believe these guys are chunin... Here I wanted to test my ability..."
As Mizuki's other unnamed associat shook the cobwebs from his head, he heard a soft voice, "Please don't resist. It'll be much less painful if you simply surrender." Yuuko said as she stood on a tree branch, small waves of heat rolling off her body.
He grit his teeth and threw a brace of shruriken at her, Yuuko rolled her eyes and dropped off the tree, landing on the ground and sprinting toward him. His eyes widened as Yuuko appeared in front of him before she threw a kick, hitting him in the face and sending him spinning through the air. When he landed, he yelped in pain as he realized his face was burned, he pulled himself to his feet and was about to continue, but made the mistake of looking Yuuko in the eyes.
"I'm sorry, but I have to make this quick." Yuuko said as her Sharingan spun lazily, "Now, where is your last teammate?"
The traitor had a glazed look in his eye as he answered, "He went to the hospital to steal some blood samples as a peace offering to Orochimaru... He was the one we were going to see after defecting. We were waiting for him here..."
Yuuko nodded, chopping him in the back of the head to knock him out, "The hospital, well I suppose there's nothing to worry about then.
"Don't worry sensei, I'll stay out of trouble in the hospital, I promise! Should've known that wouldn't happen..." Naruto said to himself as he hopped out of a window. He'd heard someone snaking through the hallway and decided to investigate, finding someone littered with ill intent. Deciding to throw caution to the wind, he threw the guy out a window.
As Naruto landed on the ground, his opponent had picked himself up and was settling into his combat stance. Naruto cracked his neck and rolled his shoulders, before disappearing in a burst of speed. His opponent didn't even have time to react as Naruto appeared in front of him and threw a punch at his face, then grabbed his ankle as he was flying and threw him into the wall that surrounded hospital grounds.
The traitor pulled himself out of the wall, and started throwing shruriken at Naruto, who simply made a single handsign, and thrust his other hand forward, Futon: Reppusho!" a blast of wind flew from his hand and reversed the direction of the shruriken, forcing the traitor to dodge.
After doing so, he noticed that Naruto was gone, he frantically looked around, and only realized where Naruto was when a hand popped out of the ground. "Doton: Shinju Zanshu no Jutsu!" Was heard, muffled through the ground as the traitor was pulled underground, with only his head sticking out. Naruto pulled himself out of the ground with a small smirk, "Well, that was a nice little warm-up..." A few ANBU dropped down, prepared to storm the hospital, "Oh, hey! So I assume this guy's who you're looking for?" The ANBU started for a second before turning and leaving.
Kakashi then appeared in a Shunshin and looked around the area, "At least you kept the damage to a minimum, well for you at least. You couldn't just stay in bed, could you?"
Naruto shrugged, "What was I supposed to do? I saw this guy sneaking through the place and decided to see what he was doing."
"Well, I suppose it figures. The others took out the other three traitors, and Hokage-sama sent us to stop him. Knowing your ability to get into trouble, Hokage-sama authorized A-rank pay in case you took him out." Kakashi eye smiled as Naruto cheered, "Now, back to bed with you."
"Aw, come on Sensei!" Kakashi shook his head and turned Naruto around, pushing him back into the hospital, "Alright, alright, I'm going!"
"Are you sure you're alright Naruto-kun?" Yasaka asked as Team 7 walked toward the Hokage tower for a mission.
"For the last time, Yasaka-chan, I'm fine!" Naruto exclaimed as he patted his chest, "Fit as a fiddle, not gonna get put down any time soon."
Hinata shook her head, "We just worry about you Naruto-kun, and you can be damn sure I'm going to be watching you like a hawk from now on!" Her Byakugan was at full blast, and Naruto could tell she was looking over his insides for anything.
Naruto jumped as he felt someone poke his chest. He turned back to the front to see Yuuko in front of him, staring at his chest while walking backward, "You too, Yuuko-chan?"
The revenette poked him again before moving back to her position beside them, "I don't want you to get hurt either, Naruto-kun."
They continued their walk in silence, none of them wanting to keep their thoughts on the topic of Naruto's problem. Naruto himself took a deep breath, whatever this was, he wouldn't let it kill him, end of discussion. As they reached the tower, they saw Kakashi waiting for them, "There you are, ready for a mission?" They all nodded and he led them inside.
Minutes later, they stood in front of the Hokage, who was looking through the pile of missions, "Hm... We'll need to keep the easier ones for the new graduates once they start missions... I do have a C-rank that should be simple enough, I feel like your team is more than equipped to handle it."
Kakashi nodded and chuckled internally as his teem pouted, "We'll take it Hokage-sama."
"Alright then, it's an escort mission, but I want you all to be wary, something seems off about it..." Hiruzen said as he tossed Kakashi the scroll.
The one-eyed Jonin rolled it open and studied it, his students looking over his shoulder, "Nami no Kuni, huh? Should be interesting..."
Chapter End!
Well, I like the way this chapter turned out, and hopefully it gave some development to their characters. So, next chapter will be the start of the Nami mission, and I have something very special planned for it! For those wondering about Naruto's condition, there is a hint in the chapter as to what's happening, but if you figure it out, or think you have, then I don't care if you wanna tell me, but please don't put it in a review! Wouldn't wanna ruin the surprise for those who don't.
As an ending thought, while I don't want this story to become one of those ones where Naruto and the girls are the idols of the village and are hounded by date requests wherever they go... Full disclosure, I'm not saying those stories are bad, they're very good when done right, I just don't want this story to be like that.
I would be lying, however, if I said I didn't wanna put in some 'arrogant lady's man' situations with the girls where they have to lay down the law. Or the reverse, where Naruto has to deal with a woman not leaving him alone. These scenes would more than likely be purely comedic, and nothing too serious, so hopefully I can do them right...
Anyway, tell me what you thought of the chapter and I'll see you next time!