A/N: I would like to thank everyone that added this story to their favourite and follows as well as everyone reviewed the last chapter.

It is a beautiful evening.

Naruto let out a small sigh as the gentle breeze from the sea swept her hair up in the wind, blowing it in all directions. The evening skies were painted so beautifully in shades of red, orange and even shade of gold, which almost tempted the blond-haired girl to sit down and sketch the scene before her. But sadly she didn't think of bringing a piece of scroll for her to paint.

Another sigh escaped from her lips and Naruto darted her eyes to Iroh. The old man stood right beside her in his armor, eyes focused on Zuko who knelt right before them. The usual glint of humor and amusement in Iroh's eyes were gone, replaced with a seriousness that made even Naruto squirm.

Not even the first round of the Chunin Exams made her squirm this much and that had been a paper test.

Dear god, she hated exams that needed her to write.

She shook her head and stared at Zuko. The exiled prince wore a deep red shroud that perfectly highlighted the fact the prince wasn't skin and bones. If Sakura-chan was here, she might tell me that he had a fit body. She allowed her eyes to lower to his muscles before darting back to the shroud on his shoulders.

What was the purpose of having it?

Did it offer some form of protection? Or was it only for show?

She wouldn't know until it was time for the whole Agni Kai to begin.

"Prince Zuko, you should remember the basics of your firebending training," Iroh said, darting his eyes to Zhao. "It will be your greatest weapon."

Zuko hunched his back and closed his eyes. "I'm not going to let him win."

"Whatever shit he is going to say to you, don't listen to it." Both Zuko and Iroh turned their heads at her and the blonde focused her eyes on Zhao. "Bastards like Zhao know how to play with people's mind. He probably knows how to rile you up so whatever shit he says to you will be the shit that pulls you down. Shit that isn't true."

"You are a disappointment to the Hyuga Clan."

Those words made Hinata falter.

"You are a fool if you think you can defeat me. Everyone knows that you are a loser and that you will always be a loser because that is your destiny."

If it were not for Hinata's words before her match with Neji, those words would have affected her even more.

"I won't allow him to get to me." Zuko gritted those words out with amber eyes filled with determination. Naruto stared at him for a long time, lips curling into a smile. She shoved her hands into her parka, holding back the urge to pat his cheek and nodding her head before teasing him about his determination.

They weren't friends nor were they close.

She had no right to do any of those actions even if there was a chance for her to be his friend. A few days with him and I think we can be friends. She must be going insane. Friends couldn't be form only after a few days. Sasuke had been different. They had been six. He had been her first friend, not caring one bit that the people around them thought she was a monster.

Zuko and her would never have that kind of connection.

Tearing her eyes away from Zuko, she focused her attention on the metal walls surrounding them. Four walls, just like a prison. It might become a prison if Zuko doesn't win. A small frown played on Naruto's lips at the thought. Even though she made the deal with Angry Pants, she had been hoping to travel the world and understand the strangeness that was the Four Nation.

If Zuko lose, she would never get the opportunity.

"What do we do while they fight?" Naruto whispered, leaning her body closer to the chubby old man. A drumstick smashed against the gong and the bell echoed throughout the arena. Birds flew in a v-like wave, looking so free that Naruto longed to follow them. She shook her head as Zuko turned to face Zhao, dropping the shoulder covering from his shoulders.

Naruto felt her whole face burning up, almost like she was being hit by one of Sasuke's fireball jutsu, and let out a tiny squeak before looking away from them. She just presumed they were going to fight with the shrouds. My poor innocent eyes. She rubbed the back of her neck.

"We can only watch." Iroh commented, darting his eyes back at her. The old man blinked and leaned his body closer, his eyes fixated on her flushed cheeks. A single eyebrow was raised and the blonde paused, uncertain of what the old man was silently asking her. "Naruto, have you never seen a shirtless man? I presumed with your occupation that this would have been a normal occurrence for you."

The words hung in the air and the only sound that could be heard was the sound of the gong being stuck again. It echoed against her ears, vibrating and stung her ears so much that Naruto nearly flinched. Does he know what is my job? But how? Her hand reached up to the headband tied around her forehead as Iroh stared at her with curious eyes.

"And what is my occupation?" Naruto whispered.

Iroh eyed her. "That Hitai-ate on your forehead symbolizes that you are a kunoichi, does it not?"

Naruto hunched her shoulders as the smiling face of Iruka flashed before her eyes. Congratulations, Naruto…you are now a proud kunoichi of Konoha. Another image flashed before her and it was Sakura-chan and Sasuke eating ramen with her as they planned how to get rid of Kakashi-sensei mask. She sucked in another breath, feeling her ribs stretch till it cracked.

"How did you know?" She asked softly as Zhao began the fight. Her blue eyes focused on the older man, noticing the way his mucles flex and how he whipped his hand around, blasting fire everywhere. Why doesn't he use his breath? From what Naruto understood from Sasuke about fire jutsu, it was always about the breath. But Zhao didn't seem to use his breath, more like he was using his hands in a wave of fury.

Maybe that was firebending.

Iroh kept his eyes focused on Zuko. "There was a time when I travelled the world and by luck, I ended up seeing a world where everything was different. A world where people could bend more than two elements."

"Do you know how you ended up there?" She allowed her desperation to leak out into her tone. Nearly three years now and she was still no closer to going home than when she came. "Is my home connected to here? How did you get there?"

The old man pressed his lips into a thin line and darted his eyes to her right side. "For you to go back to your home would be a dangerous journey. A journey that would lead to your death if you aren't careful."

Death.

That single word numbed her as Zuko raised his hand to produce a firey shield. Going home means there is a chance I could die. Her knees buckled and her throat tightened. You are quite lucky to have survived. That had been Kanna's words when she woke up. Her hands began to tremble as the picture of Team Seven began to crack.

Am I really willing to throw my life away just to go back home?

Hinata, Hanabi, Sasuke, Sakura, Kakashi-sensei and Iruka-sensei flashed before her eyes as Naruto stared blankly at the dangerous blows being sent by both opponents. The Fourth Hokage chose you as the jinchuuriki of the Kyuubi because he had faith in you. How could she prove the Third and Fourth Hokage had been right about her if she died going back home? She chewed on her bottom lip.

What would happen to the Kyuubi if she died?

"I will simply reform." The Kyuubi answered and Naruto hunched her shoulder. She could hear the glee and annoyance in his voice at the thought of reforming again. Isn't that weird? She chewed on her lips as her breath hitched at the sight of Zhao overpowering Zuko. "If you were to die crossing through the Spirit World, I will simply reform and bring chaos to that disgusting village of yours."

She grinded her teeth.

There was no option for her when it came her next choice of action. She would have to learn how to live in this world and find a nation that suited her once this war was over. I can't be a shinobi here. But what would she do once this war was over? Open a ramen stand? Sasuke did like her cooking and the bastard was quite picky when he eat.

It wouldn't be hard for her to open a restaurant and get a lot of money.

What the hell happened? Naruto jerked her head away from the side and focused on the fact that Zuko had fallen down. His body must have hit the metal if the blood stains on the metal was of any indication. She balled her hands into a fist as Zhao lunged with eyes burning with excitement and bloodlust.

"Oi! Don't just lie there!" Naruto screamed at Zuko. "Roll over and show that asshole who is the damn Prince of the Fire Nation!"

Zuko blinked and rolled away to the right as a wave of flames burned the ground right beside himself. That was close. Naruto relaxed her shoulders as her blue eyes took in the sweat clinging to his body. A lot of people would look away. This is just cruel. That would have been Sakura-chan's words if she was here. Her friend would look away, body hunching at this cruelty.

Naruto could never look away, not when she could see how much Zuko was pushing himself to the limit. His breaths kept coming out in short bursts and there was so much sweat coming out of his body that the whole ground was covered it. He is fighting for his acknowledgment. A smile played on her lips as Zhao's words echoed in her ears.

"In the eyes of the Fire Lord, you are a failure."

She could only imagine how those words hurt him.

"Show that asshole that he is fucking idiot for underestimating you!" Naruto bounced in her spot and waved her fist up and down as the other spectators looked at her like she was insane. Maybe she was. Cheering was probably not something that these people liked but this was a match and she was going to root for Prince Angry Pants. "Show him that you are the most powerful firebender!"

Zuko's eyes strayed towards her and Naruto stared back at him with bright blue eyes flaring with confidence. The boy snorted, almost nearly smirked as he gathered the flames around his feet. Blue eyes widened as the boy spun up in the air, creating an arc of flames that made Zhao stumble back a few steps.

She grinned. "Hit him where it hurts! Break his damn pride! Show him that failures can rise up!"

"She is annoying!" The words were too low for a normal person to hear but Naruto heard the words as clear as day. Her smile widened as the teen focused his attacks on Zhao's feet. She bounced even higher in her spot, pumping her fist as Iroh stared at her with such strange eyes.

If Naruto didn't know any better, she would think he was up to something.

The sun was now starting to set halfway into the horizon, making the brilliant sunrays even less beautiful, but that was fine for Naruto. If Zuko won when the sun had finally set then it would be a perfect symbolism. It would mean the start of something new or so Naruto would like to think as Zhao tried to go for the defensive attack.

Iroh shifted his body to the right and chuckled. "You know Naruto if you keep cheering like this then people would think that you might have a crush on my bad-tempered nephew."

"Then they are stupid." Naruto deadpanned as Zuku ducked and whipped his leg under Zhao, causing the man to fall backwards. "A girl can cheer for someone because she liked the guy more than his opponent."

She let out another cheer as Zhao's head collided with the metal. From where Naruto stood, she could make out the anger and loathing in Zhao's eyes as he stared up at Zuko with a bitterness that made her stop her cheers. He is the idiot that riled up Angry Pants! He should be a man and take his defeat with a grace of a soldier! She clenched her hands into a fist as her eyes focused on Zuko.

Was he going to give the man the same scar on his face?

She couldn't picture him even killing this man.

And I'm right. A smile played on her lips as Zuko angled his hand away and shot a burst of flames that missed Zhao's face by inches. Her hands itched to hug the teen and to poke her tongue at Zhao but Naruto held back the urge. They weren't friends. They were probably never really going to be friends. But damn did she want to sing him praises for beating that guy up.

"Next time, just stay out of my way." Zuko whispered as his eyes focused on Zhao.

With those words, Zuko clicked his heels and walked over to Iroh and her. His eyes focused on his uncle for a good couple of seconds before shifting to her. Naruto beamed, lips curled into a large smile, and the boy stumbled as if taken back by something. She tilted her head. Did I do something weird? She shrugged and opened her mouth to say something, only to pause at the intense rage being directed at them.

Blue eyes widened when she saw the rage burning through Commander Zhao's eyes. He raised his body up, hand curled into a fist as if ready to launch another fire ball. Not on my watch. With a frown, Naruto channelled her chakra to her legs and launched herself at the man.

She grabbed hold of his fist, twisted it around till it was over his back, and kicked his lower legs. She straddled the man's back as everyone stared at her with wide eyes. Only Iroh's eyes widened with understanding. He knows what I am. Her eyes focused on Zuko and the boy stared at her with unreadable eyes.

"And who do you think you are to handle me in this manner?" Zhao snarled, amber eyes flaring with irritation as he tried to squirm under her legs.

Naruto snarled. "A proper solider unlike you! How dare you call yourself a solider when you were willing to attack someone that won fair and square while fighting you? Even the lowest shinobi wouldn't have done what you have done! If anyone in this place has no honour then it is you! Zuko has more honor than you ever dream to have."

With those words, she smashed his face against the ground and walked back to Zuko and Iroh. She kept her head up high as whispers broke out from the soliders. She glanced at them and the men flinched, looking at her with a mixture of admiration and fear. Cowards. She grunted before taking her place beside Iroh and Zuko.

"Why?"

Naruto stared at Zuko before flickering her eyes at Iroh. The man did not stare at her, only focusing on her left side. The blonde hunched her shoulders as her eyes focused on Zuko. His eyes were filled with irritation, curiosity and bewilderment as if he was not certain of why she would make such a claim.

Oh right, we have only been around each other a few days.

"Because I don't like sitting around when someone insults my employer," Naruto shrugged and let out a wide smile as pale eyes flashed before her mind. "And it would look terrible if your pretty boy face get even more burn up because some asshole is a sore loser."

Iroh snorted while Zuko growled, not looking one bit amused by her words. C'mon I'm giving him a compliment about his looks! Not everyone could get a compliment from her about their looks. She chuckled. Not even in her last days of Konoha, did she ever admit out loud that Sasuke had been good-looking.

"Why the hell would you say those words when you don't know me!" He snarled. "Why the hell did you cheer so loudly instead of being quiet like the others?"

Naruto blinked. "So that you know I was rooting for you the whole time, idiot."

"What did you call me?" He snarled. "I'm not the one wearing a parka in a warm place!"

Oh, she was not going to let him off for that.

"And I wouldn't be wearing a parka if we landed on a port with a market for me to buy clothes!" she screamed right back. "Did you expect me to walk out of here in my underwear or in that Fire Nation uniform when the weather is so damn hot—what would have been the difference?"

Zuko flushed a bright shade of red, spluttering while Iroh let out a huge, booming laugh. Naruto sighed and lowered her hoodie, blue eyes focusing on the flushed boy before her. Why the hell did I defend him? She curled her lips into a tiny smile as various memories of her childhood flashed before her eyes.

"I don't think you are a monster! I think you are a really nice person! You're more fun than the other girls!"

She guessed everything would go back to that day.

"And to answer your question…it is because I don't think you are someone who lost your honour and doesn't deserve to have his honour questioned by assholes like him."

There was probably another reason too but Naruto wasn't going to try and figured out what was the other reason. She had to think now of what her new plan should be for when this war was over. After all if she couldn't go back home, then she needed to think of a new occupation and a new home for herself.

A/N: Please review and tell me what you think about this chapter.