Charter 6

New Team 7

„The team is only as good as the members trust each other. Without a trust, there can be no team."- Kakashi Hatake

"Did you just call me weak?" Naruto growled. This guy had some nerve stating he is weak despite their positions. Uzumaki pressed harder, forcing the pale skinned man to kneel. He could not believe this strength. He fought with everything he had, trying to push the opponent back. But there was no result. And finally he gave in. Naruto broke through his defense.

Only to find him turn into ink.

'Ink clone?' Naruto thought. He was fighting a clone all this time? Then his danger sense kicked in. He turned around to see three ink lions leaping onto him. They were quite close already. '…dammit!' Naruto thought, knowing he wouldn't dodge in time, unless… 'I have to use it.' The blond made a hand sign to build up some chakra.

But he never had the chance to do anything. An arm wielding a naginata came out of the wall, piercing the lions like stuffed pigs for a roast. Naruto was confused for a while, just as the man who created these lions. But then the wall crumbled, revealing the one holding the weapon. A man sporting baggy pants and ninja boots, who had bandages wrapped around torso up to the chest. His unzipped, sleeveless, ragged, black leather jacket was matching his overall savage appearance, especially his feline features. The bald man turned to face the blond, giving him a death promising grin.

"Hey, Naruto. Haven't seen you for a while." The man said.

"Kuromaru-sensei." Naruto greeted the weapons master with awe in his voice.

The gigantic man stopped smiling and turned to face the pale-skinned ninja, who quickly vanished. Then he faced Naruto again. "Guess I scared your fight away. Sorry 'bout that." He sealed his weapon away into a scroll and helped Uzumaki get on his feet.

Some distance away, the pale ninja was watching the blond who was now having a friendly talk with his friends. He narrowed his eyes a bit. 'I thought I had the advantage.' He thought. 'However, not only he nearly crushed me with his brute strength, he was also about to use some other ability. If it wasn't for the enforcer, I could've learned of his actual level. Despite it all, I'd better report to Master Danzo.' He backed away a few steps, before vanishing in a puff of smoke.

Leaf Hospital

The busty blonde was looking at the silver-haired jonin, who was badly fatigued after the mission. The mangekyo sharingan's abilities were clearly more tiring for Kakashi due to not being an Uchiha. Luckily his life was not in danger. But it's not something to take lightly. If Kakashi was to use more chakra, he would've died. Hatake opened his right eye, slowly, trying to register where he was. He looked around as much as he could. His body felt heavy like a boulder. A sign he was so weak after using his mangekyo sharingan. His body ached. No doubt he wasn't used to that power, at least yet. After a few groans, he finally looked at his visitors.

"Lady Tsunade? Lord Jiraiya?" he looked towards the window, where the Toad Hermit was sitting, as if ready to jump out. "Is…?"

"I don't think you'll be moving any time soon, Kakashi." Tsunade spoke, clearly letting the jonin know in how poor shape he was. "This is not so good considering Sakura told me about an Akatsuki spy in Orochimaru's lair." She paused to see Kakashi narrowing his eye. She wondered why. "Something wrong, Kakashi?"

"Tell me you're not sending Naruto on this one." Kakashi said in a serious manner. This perked the female kage's interest. After all, Kakashi was serious only when fighting a strong opponent.

"Why not? I'm certain he's more than strong enough to look after himself. After all, he DID beat you up pretty good 5 years ago while starting his self-proclaimed exile." She smirked remembering how beaten up the jonin was. Kakashi turned his gaze away, not wanting to be reminded of that time.

"That's not really it." Kakashi looked at Tsunade again. "When we were fighting the Akatsuki, I saw Naruto use the Nine-tails' power. If I remember correctly, whenever he does that, his darker persona tends to take over."

This got both her and Jiraiya's concern. Jiraiya jumped over to Kakashi's side. "How many tails did Naruto call?" he asked seriously. Very seriously.

"Jiraiya? Is there something that worries you?" Tsunade asked. For some reason, she felt she was going to hit him for the answer. But the perverted hermit, despite guessing it, didn't seem worried. What's more- he seemed willing to take the punch. He just sighed heavily.

"Remember how you found me and Naruto just a few days before Naruto's promotion to chunin rank?" he asked seriously and worried. Tsunade figured there must've been a connection.

"Yes. To be honest I feared neither one of you would survive. You only mentioned the Psychotic Naruto taking over."

"I only said that because I feared some of the council's lackeys would hear it and tell their superiors to use as something against Naruto. The full story is: Naruto asked me to help him train to better control the Nine-tails chakra."

"He WHAT?!" Tsunade roared.

"I had the same reaction then. But the kid's alter ego taking over was exactly the reason why he asked me for this training- to be able to use it's chakra without the Other One taking over. At the start everything seemed fine. However, when Naruto reached this certain point, HE took over. For the worst part, it seemed as if he was waiting for Naruto to reach a certain point."

"How's that, Lord Jiraiya?" Kakashi asked, fully confused.

"The Nine-tails' chakra is linked to Naruto's anger, as is, as it appears, his darker self. The angrier Naruto is, not only the more of Fox's chakra he draws but Dark Naruto also has greater power to take over his body. After Tsunade patched us up, I got a bit concerned about the seal. And I was right." he looked down.

"Jiraiya? What happened? Don't tell me…" Tsunade's eyes were filling with fear. She didn't want to hear another word…

"Naruto's seal has weakened." The hermit said, shocking the two. "Of course, I didn't leave it like that. It took me some time but I managed to find a way to restore it. Tough I had no delusions it would weaken again some time later. Although, I did not think it would be this soon. I hoped it would last for at least another five years."

"Still, you didn't take the chances. That's why you gave me that seal." Kakashi realized. But then something came to his mind. "Lord Jiraiya. Mind if I ask how many tails did Naruto have back then?"

Tsunade's face got dead serious. This got her concern. Just how serious was it?

Jiraiya growled for a second. "Only three times have I actually faced death. The first time was when I peeked at Tsunade in the hot spring. I ended up with a cracked skull, two right and all left-side ribs broken along with my both arms and internal bleeding." Tsunade just 'hmphed'. Then Jiraiya started removing his clothing. "Second time was when I got drunk and entered a woman's bath house. I ended up beaten by Fourth Hokage's wife, literally send flying through the roof and landing on the heated coal." At that point the middle aged man removed his chainmail, showing big scars on his torso. One looked as if there was a hole, the other as if a huge animal tried to cut him in half. "And the third time was back then, while training with Naruto. At that point Naruto reached…"

Tsunade narrowed her eyes as her teammate paused. She saw him close his eyes. Whatever happened back then must've caused him to experienced paralyzing fear. Something an experienced ninja like her and him would not fall for so easily now.

"Reached what, Jiraiya?" Tsunade asked calmly, yet with a demanding tone.

Jiraiya opened his eyes and looked at her. If fear was contagious, then it now reached her. "Four tails." He said emotionlessly. Tsunade and Kakashi's eyes widened in terror.

Leaf Village streets

Naruto put down another bowl of ramen. Now he waited with a smile for another bowl. Well, twenty bowls wouldn't satisfy him now. He had a long and happy conversation with Ayame and Teuchi. The two were more than happy to see the blond again and all grown up at that. Ayame couldn't help but keep blushing, which had her old man continuously tease her. Despite his incredible perception, Naruto seemed oblivious towards their act. Well, whatever, it sure is nice to be back here.

After a good meal, Naruto decided to go to his apartment. He wasn't there for years. He wondered if anyone was looking after the place. He was ready to open the door, when someone opened them. Naruto was so surprised by it he didn't notice who came out, pumping into him. For now he could only tell it was someone far shorter than him. Then he realized that he fell, with the other person on top of him. And there was also some strange sensation on his torso. Something big and soft. He looked to see who pumped into him, finding a pair of pearl-white eyes analyzing him. It was a beautiful girl with indigo hair seemingly hime-cut style, but with long bangs and some tied into a tight-long ponytail. Still, her face, which had gentle features… Wait a minute. He KNEW that innocent, polite look in these eyes.

"Hinata?" Naruto asked.

The Hyuga heiress seemed to recognize the man, as she turned impossibly red. "N-N-N-N-Na-Naruto?" She finally managed to say his name. And when she realized in what position they were… she fainted with a somewhat cute grin.

Naruto was about to freak out, when he heard some familiar voices. "Hinata? What's wrong?" A woman's voice called out. And judging by the bit of bossiness in it, the blond knew right away who it was. And fair enough he was right. "I heard your voice. Did something… ha…ppen…?" She paused, seeing her friend and the blond lying on the floor.

"Are you just gonna stand there or help me get her inside, Ino?" Naruto asked with disbelieve.

"PERVERT!" Ino yelled, ready to stomp on the guy's head. She clearly put a lot of strength into it, as the floor cracked. However, there was no sign of the man. 'He's fast.' Ino thought. That guy disappeared before her very eyes. She had no idea where he disappeared to. Until her senses told her to look up. Fair enough, the guy was hanging upside-down on the ceiling, in a crouched position, holding Hinata in his strong arms. She was about to attack again, when the male blond caught her shoulder. She knew immediately it was a shadow clone.

"Now is that any way to welcome someone home, Ino? Besides, what are you doing in my apartment?" Naruto asked.

It took her a while, but she finally took a good look at the guy before recognizing him. "Naruto?" she asked. When he nodded, she seemed to freak out. "Oh my kami! I'm so sorry! I so didn't recognize you! Wow, look at you!"

"Yeah, yeah. I know. I got taller and all that. Now tell me what are you doing in my apartment?" Naruto asked.

"Well… Anko and Hinata come here at least once a month to clean up. Today I just decided to help her out." Ino explained.

"Hey, Ino? What's with the noise?" an unenthusiastic voice called. Clearly Shikamaru, was looked the same as Naruto remembered.

"Yeah. Is everything alright? Did you just kill another molester?" now a powerful voice asked. When the owner of the voice came into view, Naruto couldn't believe it. Choji was like a giant with shoulder long hair, dressed in a green clothe under some armor with the Akimichi clan crest on the chest piece.

The two teammates noticed the blond and blinked a few times. "Hi, Naruto." was all Shikamaru said, before returning to into the apartment.

*WHAM*

"C'mon, Naruto. What are you standing around for? You said to help with Hinata, right?" Ino lead Naruto inside, pulling him by his arms, while Uzumaki, with a sweat drop, looked at the poor Nara, who was lying on the floor with a gigantic lump on the head, steaming.

Hokage Tower

Tsunade was sitting behind her desk, waiting for Sakura and Naruto. However, she was furious about something. About what? As soon as she left the hospital, she was called to the council chamber. As soon as she got there, she was surprised to find Shizune already there. It was not that much of a surprise when Koharu and Homura told her Shizune told them about Naruto. What surprised her was she insisted to talk the female hokage into limiting Naruto's leaves from the village. While the Slug Princess could understand the concern with the Akatsuki now taking action, she couldn't agree to keep him within the village. Not only was Naruto a shinobi, but also no longer a kid. She had faith he could look after himself. He was doing so for the past 5 years.

She returned to reality when she heard a knock on the door. And she calmed down when she saw it was just who she was waiting for.

"You called for us, Lady Tsunade?" Sakura asked.

"Well, it's about that information about the spy. I decided that since it involves Sasuke, you guys will go on a mission to intercept him." She informed them. Sakura seemed ready to dance in joy, while Naruto seemed to feel a bit troubled. "You'll go as soon as the others arrive."

"Others?" Naruto asked with pure confusion. "What others?"

"You didn't think I'll let you go all alone. Luckily I found someone to take over for Kakashi." She said. At the exact time, a man with short brown hair and a plate around his face entered.

"Yamato reporting in, Lady Hokage." The man bowed in respect.

"This is Yamato. He will be your team leader for the mission." Tsunade said. As soon as the original members shook hands with the jonin, she continued. "Also, we have someone to complete the team." She said.

"Don't tell me it's Ganju. I beg you." Sakura begged. She was with the guy on several missions after Naruto left and, well… let's just say she'd rather fight Orochimaru herself rather than be with that guy. Although, he was actually out. Ever since everyone from Team 12 got promoted, the team was disbanded. And that nuts-job was now in a Research Department. With that, he rarely really left the village for missions. Than who would…?

Her train of thoughts stopped when the door opened, revealing a pale-skinned man. Naruto's eyes widened, as he unleashed his killer intend. "YOU…?" he growled, shooting towards the man in a blinding speed, ready to punch him through the wall.

However, Tsunade managed to stop him just before he could land a punch. At the same time, Yamato held the newcomer by the wrist, as he was reaching for his blade.

"You show yourself after how you attacked me earlier this morning, bastard?" Naruto growled. With just that, he answered a question Lady Hokage was about to ask.

"Sai? Is what he said true? You attacked him?" Tsunade asked with authority in her voice. Sai relaxed.

"Yes. I wanted to see how strong he is." He answered plainly.

"You chose the wrong way, Ink-brain." Naruto growled, taking deep breathes to calm down.

"Putting that aside… I say Team 7 is now ready to go. Your mission is to head to the Heaven and Earth Bridge. The Akatsuki spy was to meet the one named Sasori there. You will, if possible, capture and bring him here. Is that understood?" Tsunade asked.

"Ma'am, yes ma'am!" Sakura and Yamato replied.

"As you wish, Lady Hokage." Sai answered.

"Let's do this already before I grow old." Naruto said in his usual fashion. While Tsunade felt like hitting him, it quickly passed.

'I don't know whether to be happy he's back or kick his ass to Earth Country.' The female kage thought.

"Meet me at the North Gate in one hour." Yamato instructed the team. Everyone dispersed.

One hour later, North Gate

Sai, Sakura and Naruto were waiting for the team leader. All of them were occupied with something else. Sakura pretty much just watched her two teammates, wondering how they will perform in the upcoming mission. Sai was sitting on the ground, drawing something in a small book, always emotionless. It somehow disturbed her, as she had a feeling he was soulless. Naruto was just leaning against a wall, trying hard to stay calm. But it was pretty obvious he was loosing his patience quickly. Not that she could blame him. He did complain about Yamato being late a minute ago. She wondered if the guy was any different from Kakashi-sensei then.

"Where is that guy?!" Naruto yelled, walking as if wanting to kill someone. Sakura just couldn't stand it anymore and punched him in the face, sending him flying to the wall.

"Calm down already, Naruto, you idiot!" she screeched. "Yelling won't bring him any faster!"

"But I did get here the minute I felt his killer intend." Yamato's voice came from behind her.

Sakura turned around to find the man walking up to them, holding something in his hand. "Captain Yamato? I'm so sorry for my friend here." Sakura started apologizing, picking Naruto up by the collar and started to struggle him. "You are sorry, aren't you, Naruto." She said, tightening her grip. Naruto felt as if she was rather trying to force her superiority over him. That however was a mistake.

Naruto grabbed the pink haired kunoichi by the face and tossed her to the ground with a loud thud, cracking the ground. "I'll apologize to him after I hear why he is late. And it better not involve the path of life."

Yamato scratched the back of his head. "Well… the thing is, Lady Tsunade briefed me on something related to the mission. It took longer than I thought it would." He said.

Naruto was giving the man a hard look. It felt as if he was looking for his soul to rip out. Only two seconds past, yet it felt as if hours were passing. "Whatever. Let's just get goin' already. Can we?" the blond commented. Yamato just chuckled and noted the team to move out. In the blink of an eye they disappeared.

To be continued…

Omake

Hinata finally opened her eyes. She felt still so light headed. Well no wonder. She had a feeling she saw Naruto. But it couldn't be. She promised herself she wouldn't faint around him ever again. She looked around to find she was in his apartment. Yes, she came here today to clean it for him.

Her eye turned to Ino, who was looking at her with a mischievous grin. "So you're finally awake I see." She stated.

"I-Ino? W-what happened?" the Hyuga girl asked.

"Don't you recall?" Shikamaru asked.

"You pumped into Naruto." Choji explained.

"I- WHAT?!" Hinata was shocked to say the least. So it wasn't a dream.

"You looked so cute." Ino teased her. "Especially when he carried you inside."

"N-Naru-Naruto… Ca-carried me… in his arms… I was… in…. his…. Arms…?" Hinata tried to process it all, fighting the blush. Ino seemed trouble seeing this, while her teammates had a confused look on their faces.

"What's with her?" Choji asked.

Just then, Hinata turned red. And… BOOM! She overheated. While the bluish-haired Hyuga lost her conscious, Team 10 looked as if they barely survived an explosion.

"What just happened?" Shikamaru asked. Ino just sighed in disbelieve. How could boys be so oblivious?

Omake end

My cast:

Choji Akimichi- Kevin Michael Richardson

Shikamaru Nara- Tony Oliver

Kiba Inuzuka- Fred Tatasciore