I apologize for taking a while to update, but I've been getting increasingly busy recently. I'll try to update at least once a week.

But anyway, thank you to everyone who reads and everyone who leaves reviews! Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I don't own Hunter x Hunter or Naruto.

Team x or x Trash

"Good morning my sweet genin!"

"YOU'RE LATE!"

While Sakura and Naruto made their indignance known loudly, Sasuke sent a murderous glare Kakashi's way.

Kakashi eye-smiled at them and placed an alarm clock on one of the training logs in the middle of the field.

"I've set this alarm to go off at noon..." As he saw the questioning looks on his student's faces, he continued. "I have here..." he held up two bells, "...two small bells. Your test is to steal these from me before the time runs out. Anyone who fails, doesn't get any lunch. You'll be tied to one of these logs while I eat your lunch in front of you."

While Naruto looked betrayed and Sasuke was annoyed, Sakura was slightly relieved. "So that's why he didn't want us to eat breakfast... it's a good thing my father forced me to at least eat an apple before I left..."

"All you need is just one bell... for each of you," Kakashi said. "But since there are only two bells and three of you, one of you will definitely fail." An ominous breeze accompanied his words, chilling the three kids. "In other words, one of you will be sent back to the academy and will be looked on with disgrace. Who will it be, I wonder?"

Sakura narrowed her eyes. "Wait... huh? That doesn't sound right..." She already knew that it was common for genin to act in teams of three. Why would one of them be sent back? That would leave only two genin and a sensei... Would they get a replacement? What was going on? She looked over at Sasuke, who seemed to have forgotten about the three genin to a team rule and was instead trying to kill Kakashi with his eyes.

"You can use shuriken, kunai and any jutsu or technique you wish against me," Kakashi continued. "Attack with the intent to kill. If you don't, you won't get far against me."

Gon and Killua had helped Sakura practice her weapon aim a few times, so she wasn't as afraid to use lethal weapons against Kakashi. If two kids could dodge her weapons with ease, she had no doubt her sensei, who had years of experience, could dodge them too. Instead of worrying about the danger, her mind was trying to process exactly what was going on with this test.

"HA! You couldn't even dodge a simple classroom prank," Naruto taunted, chuckling. "You're gonna get yourself killed!"

"Only the weak speak loudly."

That little comment from Kakashi was enough to set Naruto off.

"Anyway, ignoring the fool, let's start on my signal," the man continued.

"There seems like there's some type of catch to this... Kakashi says the test is about stealing bells but is it really?... How the hell are we even going to get the bells from him? I figured we would have to compete against him in someway, but this is suggesting we work individually to steal something off a jounin…" Before Sakura could continue down this train of thought, she was snapped out of her mind by a pissed Naruto charging at Kakashi, kunai in hand. "Wait! Naruto!"

Quicker than they could see Kakashi move, he suddenly appeared behind Naruto and twisted the boy's arm back so his kunai was pointed at the back of his own head.

"Woah... I didn't even see him move!" She had never seen anyone move so fast. That just confirmed that this man was far more skilled than her team could handle. "And we're supposed to steal bells from him? When he's expecting it?" Even with the tactics her and Naruto developed, she wasn't confident in their chances. She glanced over at Sasuke and he seemed surprised, but had a bit of an excited smirk too. "Boys are weird!"

"At least you struck to kill..." Kakashi said to Naruto, whose head he was patting lightly. "Seems you've begun to respect me. I think... I'm starting to like you three. Just a bit."

Naruto blushed at being patted on the head and had a happy smile on his face. Sakura was still nervous, now more than ever. Sasuke just smirked in anticipation.

Kakashi released Naruto, who walked back over to his teammates with a spring in his step. He gave Sakura a sheepish grin for his hasty actions. She just shook her head in exasperation. This boy would be a real handful.

"And now..." Kakashi started.

The three genin got on guard.

"Ready..."

They tensed.

"Set..."

Sakura channeled Chakra into her legs. There was no turning back.

"GO!"

"BBQ!"

Gon, Killua, Bisky, and Kite all watched as Choji ran screaming from all the way down the street and rushed into the restaurant with a crazed face.

They were silent for a moment, all squinting at the restaurant doors.

"...Well, saw that coming from a mile away," Killua commented.

"Literally," Bisky said. They saw the boy running from multiple blocks down.

Choji's team had just managed to catch up and arrived in front the shop, with Asuma looking slightly worried and Shikamaru and Ino looking exhausted.

"What... a drag..." Shikamaru panted. "Damn test... made him all tired... he gets hungry when he's tired..."

Ino scoffed, trying to suck in air. "Yeah? Well he... must be even more tired... after that long ass run!" She was furiously wiping at all the sweat dripping down her skin. It was clear she didn't like looking or feeling dirty.

Asuma just sighed. "Language Ino." He nodded at Kite and the kids (plus Bisky) before walking in the restaurant to see what was up with Choji. From what he heard about Choji's father as a kid, he had a feeling this student would be a lot to deal with.

Shikamaru looked over at Gon and Killua. "Figures we meet you here..." he said. "Passed your test?"

"Yeah... you?" Killua asked with a raised eyebrow. Shikamaru nodded. Killua noted from the corner of his eye that Ino was staring at him, but he ignored it.

Shikamaru's eyes lingered for a moment on Gon, who wasn't saying much and was hanging in the back of the group with his eyes trained on a nearby building. After a moment, Shikamaru sighed. "Well... let's go inside and see what type of hell Choji is unleashing in there." He gestured for Ino to follow him and he momentarily made eye contact with Killua, seeming to ask a wordless question.

Killua, who wasn't that good with social interaction yet, didn't quite understand what Shikamaru was trying to ask him. But, after they entered the restaurant, he glanced back at Gon and saw that the boy had a neutral expression and there was no optimistic aura about him like usual. Gon met his eyes and gave him a small smile before looking up at the food that was on the menu. Killua figured that Shikamaru wanted to know what was up with Gon.

If only Killua knew.

Before long, the two teams had gotten booths right next to each other and ordered their food, starting to engage in conversation. Asuma and Kite spoke to each other, apparently knowing each other from when Kite used to be in the village more often. Bisky spoke to Kite whenever he wasn't talking to Asuma and bickered wit Killua a bit, amusing those around them. Shikamaru and Ino tried to get Choji to slow down his eating but to no avail. Killua spoke to Bisky and Shikamaru, but for the most part he just listened and ignored a staring Ino.

The only one who seemed mostly detached from the others at the table was Gon. Despite the sad looks from Killua, concerned looks from Bisky, inquiring looks Shikamaru, and unreadable gazes from Kite, Gon barely said a word, just listening in on others' conversations and laughing lightly here and there. Even with the small smile he had plastered on his face, there was an invisible wall up around him.

And for all his strength and smarts, Killua didn't know how to break it.

"IT'S TIME FOR THE BATTLE TO BEGIN!"

"..."

"LET'S MAKE IT A REAL MATCH, WORTHY OF THE GREATEST WARRIORS!"

".."

"MAY THE BEST MAN WIN!"

"."

Kakashi could do nothing but blankly stare at the blonde boy.

Sasuke's eye twitched as he watched from atop a tree branch. "That idiot..."

Sakura, who was hiding in the bushes, had to stifle her laughter.

After silently staring for a while, Kakashi sighed. "You're a strange kid."

Naruto dashed towards Kakashi. "Only thing strange is your hairstyle!"

Kakashi watched him approach and reached his hand into his back pouch, making Naruto halt in his tracks. "Let me teach you..." Kakashi started, "The first skill you need to be a ninja. Lesson 1: Taijutsu."

Naruto, who flashed back to the fight with Mizuki, watched the man warily. "Taijutsu? That's hand-to-hand combat... so why is he reaching for a weapon?"

When Kakashi pulled out a book and started reading, Naruto was thrown for a loop. "What's wrong?" Kakashi asked, not even looking his way. "Weren't you going to come at me?"

"Why the hell are you reading a book at a time like this?" Naruto demanded.

"Well, for one thing, I've been dying to find out how the story ends," Kakashi replied. "Besides, it won't make any difference, considering who I'm up against."

Naruto face slowly twisted in outrage.

"A simple psychological tactic..." Sakura thought as she looked at Kakashi. "Seems he's using mind games to test our ability to keep composure..."

"I'M GONNA FLATTEN YOU!" Naruto raged, charging at Kakashi.

"Of course this idiot would fall for it..." Sasuke thought. Well, at least it was already clear to him who the first person to fail would be.

After Kakashi easily maneuvered out of the way of each of his attacks, Naruto finally lost sight of the man. "Huh..? Where'd he..."

"Your taijutsu style is terrible..." Kakashi's voice in his ear made Naruto tense, unable to turn around to confront the man. "You just randomly throw out formless, slow attacks like a brawler and constantly show your back to your opponent..." Naruto felt a wave of harmful intent that stopped him from moving. "You seem to have a death wish."

Sakura focused in on the hand seal Kakashi had formed. "Tiger seal...? He's willing to go that far against students?" She wondered.

"Konohagakure Secret Jutsu!" Kakashi announced. "A Thousand Years of Death!" As soon as he hit Naruto with the powerful butt poke, the boy burst in a cloud of smoke. "Huh...?" His thoughts were cut off when he felt a kunai imbedded in his leg. "Oh...? One of them got me huh?" The kunai had struck right below where the bells were, so he figured they were probably aiming to cut the string. "Whoever threw it timed it at the exact moment I went to attack the clone so I would be less focused on my surroundings. Clever. Seems I underestimated them too much and let my guard down. But..." He looked towards a specific area of trees, "...now I know where they are."

Sasuke was shocked. "Did Sakura throw that?" He recalled telling her to improve her weapons use a few weeks ago, but he didn't expect her to actually be able to hit Kakashi, much less this early in the test. Maybe their sensei just wasn't that good? He scrutinized the man with narrowed eyes.

Meanwhile, Sakura was thinking something completely different. "Nice, Naruto!" She quickly got up and started running in the direction that the kunai was thrown from. "Now might be our chance!"

"Wow... You can make solid clones?"

"Yeah! Amazing huh?" Naruto said cheekily as Sakura inspected one of his clones. They had just left Ichiraku Ramen, and Sakura had brought them to the training ground that she usually went to with Gon and Killua. "I can make up to about 100 at once, but I can't maintain them for a long time." He paused, before continuing. "It makes me realllllly tired after a little while too... I even passed out from it."

Sakura was shocked at the large number, but hummed in contemplation. "100 is the max clones you can create and maintain at the same time or you can only make 100 clones before you run out of chakra?" It was either he passed out from chakra depletion or there was some type of other drawback from the jutsu. She wondered where he even learned something like this.

Naruto put his finger on his chin and squinted in thought. "Well, I'm pretty sure I have chakra for way more than 100 clones, but I'm only able to have 100 at once. If I try to make anymore, my head will probably explode..." He winced. Sakura hoped the boy was just exaggerating. "Even when I was practicing with making just a few, like around 20 or 30, I got a headache. A really bad headache! The more I make the worse the headache gets."

Sakura's eye twitched. 'Just a few' he says? How much energy did this boy even have? She studied him for a moment... "Yeah... I don't think this is a chakra depletion problem..." She thought, nodding to herself. "How long did it take for you to pass out after you summoned the clones?"

"Uh..." Naruto said, humming and squinting hard at a nearby tree. "Well I only passed out when I made 100 at once, and I had them for like a minute before I lost my hold on them and they disappeared. About a minute or two after that, I passed out."

"Chakra depletion can cause headache and mental fatigue... but if it was a chakra depletion problem... it wouldn't have a delayed effect like that. He would've passed out while he was still trying to maintain the clones." Sakura thought, coming to a conclusion. "Ok, so it seems to be a drawback of the jutsu. Summoning a lot of clones and maintaining them puts strain on your mind... and it seems like you get hit with backlashes even after the clones go away." Naruto nodded, following what she was saying. "Wait... mental strain... why would there be mental strain? Unless..." She looked at Naruto. "Do your clones work with your direct control?"

Naruto looked at her incredulously. "No way I could control 100 clones at once!" He said. "They think like me, act like me and all that, so they end up doing what I would do. But that's all. I can tell them what to do, but I can't make them do anything."

"Can you speak to them telepathically?"

"Tele-what?"

"Can you speak to them from your mind?" Sakura asked with patience.

"Oh... nah. I can only talk to them out loud. But..." He paused in thought. "The day after I passed out, I woke up remembering the same things I was doing, but in different ways. Like... uh... I don't know how to explain it." He huffed in annoyance, and sat down on the ground cross-legged. Sakura sat down with him, waiting patiently for him to explain. "It's like, I saw the same things from different... angles? The memories are still kinda hazy so I can't look into them too much but... I think..."

"They're your clone's memories," Sakura finished. Naruto nodded, seeming satisfied with that conclusion. "I don't know if that's one of the purposes of the jutsu or a side-effect, but it seems like you'll have to get used to it. That's most likely what's causing all the mental strain and backlash. Your mind probably can't handle getting the memories of so many clones." This was all very interesting to Sakura. "You probably have to dispel the clone to get the memory... wait! Can your clones make their own clones?"

Naruto looked over at his clone, who had been very silent, and said. "Well, can you?"

The clone made the hand seal for the jutsu. "Shadow Clone Jutsu!" A clone popped into existence.

"Did you lose any chakra from that Naruto?" Sakura asked.

"Uh... I don't think so."

"I did though," The first clone said. "And I felt a slight weight drop on my head. That's what Naruto feels whenever he makes clones." He paused, before adding. "But I can't make that many. I'm just a clone, so I don't have the chakra to make a lot."

Sakura's eyes lit up. "This is amazing Naruto!" Naruto and his clones all looked stunned. "Your clones can make clones and that won't cause immediate backlash on you! And you'll probably still get all of those memories! Do you realize what this means?" Naruto looked at her in confusion. "Remember, pretend we're planning a prank. Gathering information will important."

Naruto thought for a minute before he snapped his fingers and grinned. "Oh! So you want me to send clones around the training field, then get them to make another clone before they release themselves?" That way, Naruto would get the memories of the first clone, but there would still be a second clone there to keep watching for anything that may happen.

"Exactly!" Sakura said. "This jutsu could be the key to helping us pass the exam!" Whatever the exam was. "It can be used so many ways! Who knew you had such an amazing technique under your belt?"

Naruto blushed and scratched his cheek. "Thanks, Sakura-chan..." He stood up. "But anyway, I've got some ideas."

Sakura made it to the approximate location of where the clone threw the kunai from. There was a kunai left on the ground, which was supposed to be a sign for her to know that it was still around here hiding somewhere.

"Clone!" she called out, whisper-shouting. When she saw him peek his head out from a tree high above, she continued. "Naruto needs to go find Sasuke, I doubt we'll be able to steal the bells from sensei without his help. We all need to work together. Make another clone and dispel yourself so Naruto can get the message." The clone nodded and quickly made another clone before poofing out of existence.

So, she picked up the kunai and hid in the bushes, going back to watching Kakashi. She was surprised he didn't take the bait and start coming in this direction to look for the person who threw the kunai. She felt Inner prodding in her mind, but she pushed her down. She didn't have time to deal with her right now.

After a bit of watching him sitting in the middle of the field reading, she got anxious. "He's not going to come?" Inner kept prodding, and she kept pushing her down. "This could buy us some time for Naruto or one of his clones to find Sasuke, but still... Is he trying to draw us out?" Inner prodded some more, and Sakura had to put more focus into ignoring her. "Maybe this is a good thing. He's already distracting himself by reading after all..."

After a while, Inner finally broke through. "IT'S A GENJUTSU DUMBASS!"

"What?" Sakura urgently formed a hand seal. "Release!"

Kakashi's form in the middle of the clearing phased out of existence, and Sakura heard clapping coming from behind her.

She whipped around and tossed a kunai, but Kakashi dodged easily.

"How rude," he said, taking out his book again. "Here I am trying to teach you Shinobi Lesson 2: Genjutsu, and you try to kill me. Where are your manners Sakura-chan?" Sakura narrowed her eyes at him and got in a ready stance with a kunai. "Nice job hitting me with that kunai before though. You waited for the perfect moment, and erased all traces of your attack, by timing it with my attack towards Naruto's clone."

Sakura said nothing, but in her head, she was pleased to know that Kakashi thought she was the one who threw the kunai. It would make it easier to keep his attention on her, buying time for Naruto to find Sasuke. She doubted just her and Naruto would be able to steal the bells from Kakashi. She was pretty sure the man would have no problem taking out an army of clones.

"Nice job dispelling the genjutsu too... even if it took you a while to notice. Seems you have good chakra control and intelligence, just like the academy reports said about you."

Sakura still said nothing, only watching Kakashi carefully. She just hoped he had arrived after she spoke to the clone.

Kakashi turned a page in his book. "Not much of a talker?"

Sakura tightened her hold on her kunai. "We're not exactly here for idle chat sensei..."

Kakashi sighed and closed the book, placing it back in his pouch. "Shame. I like idle chat." He started walking towards Sakura slowly. "Oh well."

The tension was built the closer Kakashi got, and Sakura was faced with the reality that she was up alone against a jounin. Even if he wasn't trying to seriously hurt her.

"Wait! I'm not alone!" Naruto's clone was still hiding somewhere, watching. It seems Kakashi doesn't know it's there either. If she starts losing too much, the clone can help her escape. And if Kakashi changes targets, it can dispel itself to alert Naruto.

"This..." Sakura thought, reaching into her weapon holster. "...is all I can do right now!" She threw shuriken at Kakashi, knowing they wouldn't hit.

Kakashi dodged to the left, before his eye spotted wire attached to the shuriken.

"Ninja wire?"

Sakura swung the shuriken at him and Kakashi was forced to jump over them.

She kept swinging the shuriken at Kakashi, forcing him to jump around to dodge.

Sakura smirked right as Kakashi landed and his foot hit a tripwire.

Kakashi had no choice but to jump high up to dodge the paint balls that were launched at him from multiple directions, putting him in position for the next trap.

Sakura cut a wire behind her, and a large tree branch swung from behind Kakashi, knocking him out of the air.

Before Sakura could try to grab the bells, Kakashi disappeared in smoke. "A clone?"

"Nice traps." Sakura tensed and swung her kunai behind her, but Kakashi was too fast. "You made those yourself?"

She got into a fighting stance. "It was my idea to set the traps this morning and the wires were mine. But Naruto helped me set them up. It's a skill of his." She was good at making academy level traps and had been practicing with more intricate ones after her trip to the weapons shop with Sasuke, but the way Naruto made traps was unorthodox. It was unlike anything she had seen in the academy, but very creative. She would have to learn more from him later on.

Kakashi's eye lit up slightly in interest. "Oh? You two took the time before I got here to set up these traps? Together?" He asked, in a voice that sounded delighted. "Way to take initiative!" He eye smiled at her and Sakura almost laughed. This man, despite his skill, was getting hard to take serious. "But what will you do now? Any more tricks up your sleeves?"

"Now would be really good timing to jump in and help, clone!" She thought. After a moment, nothing happened. "So much for that," She made up her mind. "Kakashi-sensei..." She said, going through hand seals. "A good ninja should always have a trick up their sleeve." She made two clones.

"Clone jutsu? That's a pretty basic trick," He commented. "These aren't even real clones like with Naruto, just illusions."

Her and her clones started walking in a circle around Kakashi. Sakura slowly reached into her weapon holster and pulled out a kunai.

"We can't all be like Naruto," Sakura said. "But that doesn't mean I can't do anything!"

In one quick motion, she jumped in the air and flung the kunai at Kakashi, who sidestepped easily.

As soon as the kunai hit the ground, the small smoke bomb that was attached activated, obscuring Kakashi's view.

He saw Sakura from the corner of his eye trying to grab a bell and instinctively reacted, jumping out of her range and out of the smoke cloud.

When he no longer felt her presence in the clearing, he realized her strategy at once.

"Smart..." He thought. "She used smoke and sent her clones in to occupy me for a second to give herself a diversion to escape."

Kakashi was impressed. From the reports he read about this girl, she was booksmart with great chakra control but had questionable motivation to be a ninja and seemed to only care about boys and her looks. But from what he's personally assessed of her, those last two points didn't seem to be the case (at least not during test). She displayed patience, good observation skills, preparation, level-headedness in the face of a threat, and just a lot of potential overall.

"I'll let her go for now..." Kakashi thought. "So far, she seems promising... "

He wondered why the person in the trees which had been there the whole time, didn't make a move to help Sakura. When the presence suddenly disappeared, he had his answer. "Naruto's clone... He probably has clones around and is using the shared memories aspect for reconnaissance."

Naruto, too, showed a lot of promise. He had heard about how the boy had managed to learn the shadow clone jutsu in one night and beat Mizuki with it. Despite knowing that Mizuki wasn't at full strength and was caught of guard, Kakashi had been impressed. Now, he was even more impressed by the tactics the boy displayed with his shadow clones, especially when he just learned to use the jutsu two days ago. Not to mention it seemed like him and Sakura had developed a friendship, or at least a healthy teammate bond.

"Those two haven't quite passed... but they're close... I won't go after them..." He jumped into the trees. "Instead, there's someone else I need to pay a visit..."

"Damn it, bastard! Why are you always so difficult?"

"I already told you I have no intention of working with you."

Naruto gritted his teeth. "Sakura-chan could be facing Kakashi-sensei alone right now!" Meanwhile, they were in the middle of a clearing, arguing for no reason. They weren't even keeping their voices down.

"And?" Sasuke asked. He looked at Naruto with indifference. "You're acting like Kakashi means to kill us. This is a test. If she doesn't do well, she'll fail, and that'll be that."

Naruto's fists were gripped tightly as he remembered the conversation him and Sakura had yesterday.

"I know it's a pain, but shouldn't we try to get Sasuke-bastard to help?" Naruto had asked back at Ichiraku Ramen.

Sakura's face got slightly downcast as she played with her food. "...I don't think he'll even listen to us."

"I'll make him listen... I'll take that stick straight out of his ass!" Sakura slowly raised an eyebrow at him and he flushed in embarrassment. "...Or maybe you could try again? I mean, he seems to like you way more than me anyway..."

Sakura shook her head with a sad smile. "No... I don't think he does..."

Naruto marched up to Sasuke. "Listen you asshole... I don't know what your issue is, but Sakura sees something in you! If it were up to me, I wouldn't even try to deal with you!" He paused when Sasuke turned his back on him. He took a deep breath before continuing on in determination. "But we're supposed to be a team! Even if there's the threat of one of us being sent back, I'm sure we can prove sensei wrong! If we show him that the three of us can work together, he might change his mind! Think about it! The three of us could be unstoppable, the best genin squad there is!" Naruto put his hand on Sasuke's shoulder. "So work with us Sasuke. Please."

There was a long pause. Long enough that Naruto actually thought there was hope.

There wasn't.

Sasuke shrugged Naruto's hand off his shoulder and said nothing. But the silence spoke volumes.

Naruto glared at the back of his head. "Ok... I see how it is..." he turned his back on Sasuke. "When me and Sakura pass and you're sent back to the academy, I don't wanna hear shit from you."

Sasuke said nothing, even as Naruto marched away to go look for Sakura. He was too lost in thought.

"Wow. That was quite cold of you Sasuke."

Sasuke had felt when the man walked up behind him, so he wasn't surprised by his voice.

"You didn't have to blow him off like that," Kakashi commented, leaning on a tree and reading his book. "Why didn't you just work with them?"

"...I'm different from them." Sasuke didn't even turn to face Kakashi as he spoke.

Kakashi hummed. "Well, I wouldn't know about that. Then again, maybe you are different them. After all, those two have actually done well so far." Sasuke flinched. "In terms who I predict will fail, you're the one that seems the most likely."

Sasuke turned to face him with a glare. "Lies. You read academy reports right? You should know I'm far beyond those two and everyone else in the academy. They aren't on my level."

"Perhaps." Kakashi started walking over to him. "But you still lack something. Something crucial. But yet, the two you're 'far beyond' seem to have it. Ironic, isn't it?"

Sasuke narrowed his eyes in confusion. "What could those two have that I lack? They're both clanless, one of them is an idiot with no skill, and the other is just a book-smart fangirl."

That's how it had been for years. Sasuke didn't know when had they upgraded to anything else. But lately, he had seen signs of them beginning to change, which kind of threw him off. That white-haired boy had even said that Naruto managed to defeat Mizuki, even though Sasuke didn't believe it. Kakashi basically saying that they're better than him was downright disrespectful in Sasuke's eyes. "I'm an Uchiha... and I've been training for years now while those two barely take shinobi life seriously. Get real."

"Ah... right." Kakashi looked up at him from his book. "One of Konoha's most elite clans, the Uchiha." Sasuke glared at him, a nerve being touched. "How about... you show me what the Uchiha has to offer then."

"Naruto!"

Naruto halted his run through the forest and looked above him to see Sakura on a tree branch waving at him.

He smiled. "Sakura-chan! I've been looking for you!"

Sakura smiled back and jumped down to land in front of him. She looked behind him and her smile dimmed slightly. "No Sasuke, huh?"

"Nah," Naruto sighed, "He won't listen no matter what I say. It's like talking to a damn brick wall..." He huffed.

She sighed. "Yeah... I figured it would be like that..."

Naruto knew sadness when he saw it. "Sakura-chan... you okay?"

She snapped out of her thoughts and nodded. "Yeah, yeah... I just... have to accept the fact that this team probably won't work..."

He looked at her closely. "...You wish you were on a team with Gon and Killua don't you?"

Slowly, Sakura took a deep breath. "Sorry Naruto... it's nothing against you... because you're honestly not what everyone made you out to be—including me." She smiled at him, making Naruto blush slightly and his chest warm. "I thought you were just some troublemaker who liked messing with people... but I was wrong. I should've tried to understand you better." Her smiled dimmed again. "But... it's clear that Sasuke-kun doesn't really like us, and there's just a lot of tension. If I was with Gon and Killua… I'd already be comfortable, you know?"

Naruto put a hand on her shoulder. "Don't let Sasuke make you uncomfortable! He doesn't own this team! If he doesn't wanna work with us, so be it!" He told her. "Remember yesterday? How we had fun without Sasuke? How we came up with ideas and everything without him? How we set traps today without him?" Sakura nodded slowly. "Kakashi said he was sending one of us back to the academy. If Sasuke gets sent back, we'll be fine! I promise!"

Sakura nodded at him but looked away. "But I don't want him to get sent back..." She shook those thoughts out of her head and turned back to the boy with renewed determination. "Okay. But let's try a little bit more to see if this team can work." She rubbed her chin in thought, a habit she picked up from Killua. "Technically, Sasuke is the only one of us that Kakashi hasn't confronted individually yet. I thought it was strange that he didn't follow me when I ran, but I figured he was still searching for me. But now..."

Naruto's eyes widened in realization. "You think he went for Sasuke after I left?"

"Most likely. And I don't think Sasuke is the type to try and run away, even if he knows he's outclassed." She knew Sasuke was skilled, but they were up against a jounin. If the man's experience alone wasn't enough of a threat, he also casually displayed a lot of skill in the brief time since the test began. "If that's the case, we'll have to go with Tactic S."

Naruto made a face. "You know the he's gonna be pissed right?"

Sakura nodded and started walking in the direction Naruto came from. "I know. But what choice do we have? It's already been about an hour since we started the test. We've barely gotten anything done and there's only one hour left." She paused in her tracks. "One hour left..."

"Sakura?" Naruto asked in confusion.

Sakura looked at him with a contemplative look on her face. "Naruto... why would we only have two hours to steal bells from a jounin?"

Naruto crossed his arms and thought hard. "Well... I guess to make it difficult? To see how well we do when we're under pressure?"

She shook her head. "No... I don't think that's it..." She looked away. "Ever since we found out what the test was, I felt something was wrong. It just felt too unfair. And since Kakashi-sensei was three hours late, I didn't realize how little time we actually had..." She looked back at Naruto. "Three genin to a squad. Why is that? Because missions are more successful when done by a team, which makes teamwork important for ninja. This is about teamwork Naruto!" Naruto's eyes lit up in understanding. "Everything is practically pointing towards Kakashi-sensei wanting us to work together against him. The two bells are just a diversion to split us up. I don't think he even cares much if we get the bells. He even seemed pleased when he found out you helped me set up the traps..."

Naruto gazed at her in admiration. "Wow... you're so smart Sakura-chan! No wonder you always got the highest grades!" Sakura blushed, but waved a hand at him as if to say 'im not that special.' Naruto paused and his eyebrows furrowed in annoyance. "The only problem is that our team includes the number one bastard."

Sakura had to nod in agreement, but she was determined for things to work out okay. "Which is why we're going with Tactic S." She started walking away with Naruto hot on your trails. "After that, you distract Kakashi-sensei and I'll try one more time to convince Sasuke. Then, we can switch to Tactic I."

Naruto groaned. "Let's just hope he doesn't mess everything up."

Once again, Sakura had to agree.

Meanwhile, back with Kakashi and Sasuke, Kakashi was looking down at a panting Sasuke. "I admit it. You're more skilled than the others. The only one who managed to touch the bell too."

Sasuke smirked. He started making hand signs for a jutsu when suddenly, both males heard a shout.

"WAIT!"

Kakashi and Sasuke turned their heads to see a panting Sakura, looking at them in distress.

"Oh? What for?" Kakashi asked. Sasuke glared at her in annoyance but had a hint of confusion in his expression.

"Stop fighting," Sakura said. She turned to Kakashi. "Look, Sensei, this test is unfair! We don't have much time left... can't we get more time? At least a break?" She pointed at Sasuke. "Sasuke's been fighting you head on and he's tired too. Can't we eat?"

Kakashi sighed and pulled out his book again. "No, that would defeat the purpose of the test. How you overcome the obstacles is all on you."

"I'm not tired, and I don't need any break," Sasuke said, focusing his eyes back on Kakashi. "If you and the idiot are so tired, you can just take a seat and let me be the only one who passes this test."

Sakura started walking closer to Kakashi. "Pllleeease sensei? We're reallllly hungry!"

Sasuke narrowed his eyes. "She never ignores me like that..."

Kakashi fixed his single eye on her in disinterest. "You can eat after the test. If you're not tied to a log, that is. So if I were you I would try to make a better impression."

Sakura stared blankly for a bit before smirking. "Better than this?"

Kakashi just barely registered the sound of a paper bomb burning before his body reacted.

Sakura exploded and Kakashi leaped away in the nick of time.

Sasuke took a step back, looking on in shock and confusion.

Before Kakashi could get his bearings, several dozens of Naruto clones launched at him from the forest behind him.

"HA!"

"YOU FELL FOR IT!"

"THE OLD SWITCHEROO!"

"WAS THAT GOOD SENSEI?!"

"WERE YOU IMPRESSED?!"

"DID YA LIKE IT?!"

Kakashi, while skillfully dodging and dispelling over forty hyperactive shadow clones, managed to utter out... "It was decent."

In all honesty, he was impressed. Whether Naruto knew it or not, he had modified his chakra signature so it would feel like Sakura's, a trait of an advanced transformation jutsu. Once again, he underestimated the genin and let his guard down too much.

Sasuke, on the other hand, was tense and jerked in surprise when someone tapped on his shoulder. He almost hit the person until he saw who it was. "Sakura...? But you..."

"Naruto clone," she explained. "One of his shadow clones transformed into me. He hid a paper bomb on it to throw Kakashi off focus."

The way she had to explain a basic strategy that the two of them used not only annoyed Sasuke, but just downright pissed him off. His confusion quickly vanished and he looked back at the fight with a glare. "Whatever. No one asked for your help."

Sakura narrowed her eyes at his back. This was starting to annoy her. "Look, Sasuke. You aren't the only one taking this exam. Me and Naruto want to pass too. And since you want to pass so bad, you should know that the main thing Kakashi is looking at is teamwork! Not skill!"

Sasuke said nothing for a moment, but then looked back at her in slight interest. "How do you know?"

Sakura was pleased he was actually willing to listen. "Three genin are put to a squad for a reason. To work together as a team." Sasuke scoffed, but Sakura continued on. "Even if that's not what you want to hear, it's the truth. Teamwork is what gets missions done, teamwork is what's helped win wars, teamwork is what keeps the village as a whole together. Cooperation is key. Nobody can do everything on their own."

"But yet that man did everything by himself..." Sasuke muttered, a bitter tone in his voice. Sakura guessed that he probably didn't mean to say that out loud, so she focused back on topic.

"Look! We're genin, but yet we're expected to steal bells from an experienced jounin in only two hours... doesn't that seem funny? Plus, if genin are usually three to a team, why would he send back one? The two bells is just to trick us into turning against each other. I'm telling you Sasuke, this has to be what it is!"

Sasuke saw the truth in her logic, and he was annoyed at himself for not putting it all together. He remembered what Kakashi had said to him.

"But you still lack something. Something crucial. But yet, the two you're 'far beyond' have it."

"Damn it," Sasuke thought. He watched as Naruto had to keep creating more clones to occupy Kakashi. A few more explosions went off, probably from more explosive tags. He turned back to Sakura and swallowed his pride for the time being. "Do you have a plan?"

Sakura didn't expect things to go nearly as well, but smiled in happiness and nodded, telling him what to do.

Back with Naruto, the boy was starting to feel the toll of his clones weigh heavily on his mind. He made about sixty so far, and only ten were left.

"Is this strategy all you had Naruto?" Kakashi asked, looking around at the eleven Narutos that surrounded him. He purposely ignored Sakura and Sasuke talking in the distance, hoping the three would launch a plan together. "You should know that even with clones, you're still no match for me in a head on fight."

Naruto grinned. "I know, don't worry. We have things in store for you." Kakashi's eye perked up slightly at 'we.' "It might seem pointless right now, but I'll make you proud by the end of this sensei. Believe it!"

"By the end of this? Naruto... I'm already quite proud of you. You in particular," Kakashi said, no hint of a lie in his tone.

Naruto had to hold back the happy smile and push down the warm feeling in his chest from the acknowledgement and focus on his objective. "You'll be even more proud then!"

"Naruto!" Sakura shouted. All the clones and Kakashi all looked in her direction, Sasuke no longer anywhere to be found. "Ichiraku!"

"That's the codeword!" All the Naruto's thought.

Kakashi just hummed as he saw one of the Narutos pulling out something from his back pouch.

The same Naruto, probably the real one, swung his arm forward and threw a smoke bomb. "Take this!"

Kakashi stood completely still in the smoke, expecting some type of team attack but nothing came.

Then, he felt it.

The heat coming from directly above him.

"Fire style!" He thought.

He launched himself out of the range of the attack and smoke, bringing him into an open clearing surrounded by multiple Narutos, Sasukes, and Sakuras.

"How do you like me and Sakura's Ichiraku formation?" They all asked with smirks. "Pretty neat huh?"

Kakashi eye smiled. "Delightful." He would have to try his hardest to hold back his attacks, lest he actually kill one of his real students.

As they all dived at him, he found himself fighting off multiple assailants.

After about a minute, with four attackers left, he sensed something coming at him from his left and instinctively jumped back.

He saw a demon wind shuriken fly by, and turned his head to see Sasuke, possibly the real one, with his arm extended.

Before he could go after Sasuke, he sensed someone try to come up behind him.

He reacted, kicking out a leg to knock them back, but was surprised when Sakura managed to take the hit and grab his leg.

"Wha—"

As soon as he began to pull his leg back, she breezed through handsigns. Just as he escaped and did a backflip, he saw a plume of smoke where Sakura previously was, but now there was Sasuke left in her place.

"Sasuke transformed into her...?" He thought. "No but those hand signs were—!"

Momentarily baffled by what just happened, Kakashi wasn't able to react to the kunai swipe that cut the strings on the bells.

The bells dropped on the floor and Kakashi swung a powerful kick back at the offender, not having the presence of mind to hold back his strength enough. When he saw Sakura, the real Sakura, fly back and then clutch her stomach in pain, he realized what happened and instantly felt guilty.

"Sasuke threw a demon wind shuriken to get me to jump back where Sakura was waiting for me. When she grabbed my leg, she used the substitution to switch places with Sasuke, so that when I jumped away she would be right behind me to get a chance at the bells..."

So focused on processing, he was taken off guard when Sakura shouted hoarsely, "Sasuke! Now!"

Kakashi turned back and saw Sasuke with his hands resting in the Tiger seal. "Fire Style: Fire Ball Jutsu!"

The jounin leaped into the air, straight over where the stream of fire was aimed, and landed behind Sasuke.

He sweeped the boys legs out from under him, and put him in a chokehold. "Nice job burning the bells. Now none of you pass."

Sasuke smirked. "Oh yeah?"

Kakashi looked up and saw Sakura holding up a bell and smiling, with a fatigued but happy looking Naruto walking out of the forest holding the other bell.

"Naruto probably had two clones switch places with one bell each, so Sakura and Naruto would be able to get them without the bells being burned by the fire… Naruto's clones are proving to be very useful in their plans and diversions. Even if he won't always be able to rely on them." He thought.

"Looks like we pass sensei," Sakura said, proud smile on her face. "We all worked together to get the bells. After all, teamwork was the most important factor, right?"

Kakashi said nothing for a while before he smiled at her. "I should've known a smart girl like you would figure it out. But yes, you're correct. You pass..." He then looked down at Sasuke. "At least you and Naruto do."

Sasuke glared up at him while both Naruto and Sakura looked shocked.

"What the hell do you mean..." Sasuke growled. "I helped out too! They only got the bells because of me!"

The man hummed in response. "Well, that's true... But the thing is, these two have been trying to get you to work with them and you've been purposely denying to cooperate, even insulting them. I imagine you only helped because Sakura told you that was the point of the test, correct?" He looked at Sakura for confirmation and the girl avoided his eyes, only further confirming his suspicions. He looked down at Sasuke with a serious gleam in his eye. "That's not how a team should operate. That's not how my team will operate."

"Kakashi-sensei it's fine, right?" Sakura asked. "I mean, the fact is Sasuke-kun did work with us and he is the reason we were able to get the bells. He even added on to the original plan. If he showed that he can work with us, doesn't that mean he can improve his cooperation? He just needs time..."

Naruto nodded. "Yeah, even if he is kind of an ass, we couldn't have pulled off getting the bells without him! Give him a chance sensei!"

Kakashi looked at them for a moment and nodded. "Nice job you two, for standing up for a fellow teammate." He released Sasuke and stood up. "Sasuke's demeanor can be improved a lot, so I'll give him a chance. I've seen his type before."

Sasuke gritted his teeth. He didn't like being talked about like he wasn't there. "Don't talk like you know me!" He got up and glanced at Naruto and Sakura. "And I don't need others speaking for me."

Before Naruto could yell at the boy, Kakashi spoke up first. "You really need to get a handle on that pride of yours. The anger too. Those two things will get you into a lot of problems. Not just as a shinobi, but as a person."

Only Sakura picked up that it sounded like he was speaking from experience.

Sasuke just huffed and reigned himself in, looking away from them.

Naruto perked up and ran towards Kakashi, inadvertently getting in his personal space. "Kakashi-sensei! Can we eat lunch now? I'm hungry!"

Kakashi looked down at Naruto and smiled fondly under his mask. The boy truly was the perfect combination of both his parents. He could be clever and take initiative like his father, but still had lots of energy and positive vibes like his mother. "Yeah, of course Naruto." He awkwardly patted the boy on the head and began walking off. "Let's go then. We can talk more while eating."

Sakura noted how Naruto had a red face and happy grin as he followed after Kakashi. It was almost like Naruto wasn't used to being treated nicely by adults, and from what she knows about him, it's probably the case. She had seen how teachers in the academy hate him, but she thought it was just because he was a troublemaker. When they had went to Ichiraku yesterday though, he was getting a lot of dirty looks from the villagers that seemed to be for much more than just pranks. On the other hand, she just got looks that said, 'why the hell are you, the nice merchant man's daughter, with this abomination?' It was annoying.

She made a mental note to make sure she keeps being nice to Naruto, even if sometimes he gets on her nerves. Him being hyperactive and stirring up mischief now and then didn't mean he deserved hatred. She walked after them and, after a moment, she saw Sasuke following from the corner of her eye. She looked back at him in surprise. The boy had his hands in his pockets and was looking down, seemingly deep thought.

He met her eye after a moment before looking away. "I'm just coming for the lunch. Don't get the wrong idea."

Sakura watched him for a moment and nodded, turning back to the front.

There was silence for a bit between her and Sasuke. Kakashi was walking quite far ahead of them, with Naruto next to him and excitedly chatting about something.

"Thanks." Sakura turned back around so quick, thinking she was hearing things. Sasuke was still looking away, but seemed slightly sheepish. "You were right about the test." He looked her in the eye. "Don't get too full of yourself though." At that, he trained his eyes up ahead with a light smirk.

It seems like even though Sasuke has his issues, he was making an attempt to get situated with the team. Or at least, with her.

Sakura giggled and nodded, which seemed to slightly irk him. Oops.

"Oh and one more thing guys," Kakashi said, stopping in his tracks. "As of today, you are official members of team seven." Before the kids could rejoice(minus Sasuke), Kakashi continued. "There is one main rule that you should take into account and abide by as members of my team." He looked into the distance, over in the direction where the memorial stone was.

"Those who break the rules are trash..." He looked back at them, and they felt a chill at the seriousness of his gaze. "...But those who abandon their comrades are lower than trash."

The words lingered in the genins' minds throughout their meal, particularly a certain raven-haired Uchiha's.

Chapter 10 End