Hunter and Hunted

Naruto's POV

"How the hell could a kid our age beat Zabuza?" Sasuke said.

"What do you mean the Anbu captain or the Hunter nin as old as you guys?"

"He meant both….I think." I answered. I slipped in without them noticing. I'm supposed to be stealthy except when I wake up in the morning.

"Well in this world there are kids younger than you…that are stronger than me." Kakashi ruffled his hair. "Let's get going to Tazuna's house."

All of a sudden, Kakashi passed out. "Sensei!" It maybe is the strain of using the Sharingan. I carried him on my back which looks weird because he is taller than me. I'm very strong for my age and it felt like I'm just carrying a sack of potatoes. "No good. His feet are going to drag on the ground." I sighed. Sakura had her mouth open. "Close your mouth. You are going to attract flies that way. Are you at least going to help?" My legs wobbled. I can carry heavy things but not an unconscious jounin while walking a long way.

"Otou-san, when you say you are coming with bodyguards, you come with one of them is nearly unconscious. Are you all right?" Tazuna's daughter put her hands in her hips. "You let the children carry a full grown man on their back!" She turned to Tazuna again.

"Tsunami…" Tazuna laughed nervously.

"I can't move for a week." Kakashi interrupted. He was on the floor and actually is awake.

"We have been tricked. The hunter nin would have disposed the body then and there. When Zabuza looked dead, it must have been momentary death. Which means….Zabuza is still alive."

"Ehhh!" Sakura yelled like it is the end of the world. Actually she would have yelled like that when Sasuke somehow gets a girlfriend. I chuckled at the thought.

"Why are you laughing? This is very serious!" Sakura yelled in my ear. 'Oh god…I wish my ears are not that sensitive!' I nearly passed out cold like Kakashi before.

"We should prepare just incase Gatou hires more ninja." The copy nin went in a sitting position.

"You can barely move! How?"

"You guys will train." The room is silent.

"We train until I get better and don't worry, Zabuza needs to recover too." Kakashi broke the silence.

"Let's hurry up and train now! The more we train, the more things we could get in!" I shouted.

"You are all going to die…." They turned to see a little boy. "You will not win."

"Inari..Don't say that to them!" Tsunami's eyes were full of concern.

"Well…It's true. I'm going to my room." Inari left to his room.

I frowned and looked at the window. "Gomen.." Tazuna said. "..My poor grandson's father was killed by Gatou's men. Everyone considered him a hero."

I got up and went out the door. Silently, I went up the steps. 'Crying?' I didn't have to look in his room to figure things out.

I found a good reason to kill him for all the trouble he caused.

"We are going to do tree climbing but without your hands." Kakashi had crouches but at least he is helping us train. We are in the forest near Tazuna's house training.

"Really?" Sakura asked.

"Just watch and learn." I shot back, annoyed with all the questions.

Kakashi walked vertically up the tree. We all watched in surprise. "You focus chakra on the bottom of your feet. You have to put the right amount of chakra to the right area and you have to maintain it. If you know this you will know the other jutsus."

"Yes!" I yelled. Kakashi threw kunai near our feet while I caught mine by the handle.

"Use them to mark your highest point. Start by running." Kakashi walked back down the tree.

We all ran at the trees. 'I already know this stuff.'

When I hit the tree, I 'slipped' off. I didn't expect falling on my face. Sasuke went on but the wood broke when his foot touched. He marked the spot and landed on his feet. It broke because he put in too much chakra and I put too little. I turned to see Sakura who is sitting on the branch of the tree.

"No fair Sakura-chan!" I don't want to lose to a girl even if I do it on purpose.

"It looks like she is better than the guy who wants to be a hokage and the other with a bloodline."

"Hmph." Both of us crossed our arms. I glared at the tree and ran towards it. I went all the way up. 'Dang! I don't want to show I'm better than the teme.' I put a burst of chakra to my feet and slashed the tree. With the chakra, it had the opposite affect and I flewoff the trunk instead of denting the wood like Sasuke. My back is parallel to the ground so I twisted my body to flip me over in mid air. I caught a branch over my head but it broke at the speed I was going.

'I'm going to get hurt from this height.' A kunai hit the tree next to me and I quickly grabbed it. I was hanging by a kunai forty something feet from the ground.

"You ok Naruto?" Kakashi yelled below. Sakura already went down from the tree.

"Yes!" I frowned. I took out the kunai using my weight to pull it out and fall. To slow myself down, I used the kunai by stabbing the tree. I jumped down when I'm in a good distance.

Sasuke's POV

I felt a pang of jealousy as the blond idiot landed on the ground below. Even if he almost died from the height he fell from. I got another kunai from my pouch since I threw it to him.

His legs were wobbly when he walked towards us. "Gomen, I kind of fell out." He grinned.

"Kind of? You pushed yourself from the tree and you used too much chakra." I said but then choked on my spit. I'm worried about the dobe?

"You jealous, teme?" Naruto stuck his tongue at me. Sakura hit him in the head. "Say that again to Sasuke-kun again and I'll make sure you'll experience flying again." He backed away and then looked eager to do it again.

"Hnn." I ran to the tree with a kunai clutched in my hand ready to scratch the tree.

Naruto's POV…again..

After hours of 'training', we reached the top of the tree. 'The thing that I did earlier is awesome! That could really be useful in jumping very high!' I nearly dropped Sasuke who was leaning on my shoulder thinking about it. We are exshausted from tree climbing.

We barged in the door seeing everyone eating. "I really hope you saved some for us!"

Sasuke sighed and took his seat. I dug in literally. We ate seconds…thirds..and maybe fourths. There was one more piece of fish. I tried to grab it using my chopsticks but Sasuke grabbed it at the same time.

"Are you trying to pick a fight?" I glared at him.

"I touched it first!"

"I don't care I'll eat it!"

"No I want to eat it."

Sakura took it from both of us. I rolled my eyes. "Thanks a lot with you blocking my way!" We barfed from eating too much. "If you eat too much you'll puke guys!" Sakura slammed the table with her fist but then the table fell. "S-sorry!" Sakura said trying to pick up the table. I sighed and put the legs where they belong.

"Sakura you should watch what you are doing." Kakashi said.

"Hnnn…" Sasuke glared at me.

"We should train more so we could get stronger and beat Zabuza!"

"Why do you bother to try so hard?" Inari stood up.

"Huh?" I looked at him questionably. "You mean arguing with him?"

"No I mean why do you bother to train if you will die? You are no match for Gatou's men."

"Whatever kid I'm not like you." I lied my head down on the table so my face isn't showing.

"What do you know? Don't you know how hard life can be?!" He is nearly crying when I raised my head up. I stared at him with anger apparent in my eyes.

"Are you going to keep being a scaredy cat all day and cry?!" I gritted my teeth.

"Naruto enough!" Sakura yelled. I stared at her with cold eyes which made her shut up.

I stood up and bent at his level. "You don't know anything about me either…" Inari was scared at my change of attitude. "…because I'm different from you." I whispered in his ear and headed outside.

I sat in my bed. My team left because I overslept. I didn't want to go this early in the morning even if I am in the Anbu. I am in my Anbu gear but without my mask. I shot up from a sudden chakra signature and another one. "Zabuza…maybe the mist Hunter nin!" I could sense them as far as the bridge. I jumped from the window not bothering to put my mask on. I put it in my pouch and jumped from branch to branch.

I remembered something. 'I left them alone!' "Kage bunshin!" My clone had my orange clothes. We grabbed each others hand and use each other to switch directions.

Switch POV

"Kyyyyaaaa!" Inari heard his mother scream and ran downstairs. He saw his mother on the floor with two men surrounding her. "Run!" Tsunami screamed.

"Should we kill him?" One of them unsheathed his sword.

"Wait if you touch one hair on my son, I'll kill myself!" She said.

"Damn, I wanted to kill something."

"Just kill a rat our something."

"You're no fun." The other sheathed it again.

Inari cried but then wiped his tears. "Stop! Get away from my mom!" He yelled.

The two men got out their katana. "Let's kill the brat!" They charged at him.

When their swords were an inch from his head, Inari disappeared. He opened his eyes to see Naruto in a strange outfit. "Naruto."

"Sorry for the delay." He grinned to cheer him up. "Thanks for distracting them. I managed to get your mom out of there." He gestured to her lying on the floor.

"You! You are going to di-" The two samurai froze up when he turned around. "Anbu!"

"Scaredy cats." They heard from behind them to see him with a katana in his hands. With one slice, the two collapsed dead. Naruto sadly looked at them and then walked towards Inari.

"Can you keep this a secret?"

"Sure." Inari forced it out.

"I'm sorry about yesterday. You are strong Inari…very strong." Naruto ruffled his hair. Inari cried.

"I decided I wasn't going to cry anymore….now you are going to make fun of me again." Inari wiped his face.

"Sometimes you cry when you are happy so that's okay." Naruto put his hand in his hair and turned to the direction of a fight.

Sasuke had a kunai in hand. The hunter nin surrounded him with ice mirrors and attacking him with senbon left and right. 'I don't know how long I can hold this! He is so fast! When I tried to use a fire jutsu, it didn't melt the ice.' Another wave of needles came towards him. When nothing came, he heard the clatter of them falling. He saw orange in front of him. "Naruto?" Sasuke breathed.

'I'm so glad I changed before I left!' "Do I have to save you again teme?" Naruto grabbed the senbon coming at him. Then it hit Sasuke in the neck. He collapsed. He checked his pulse and gritted. 'He's not technically dead but it gave him momentary death. At least I don't have to hold back.'

Naruto picked Sasuke up and shunshined out of the mirrors. He left him outside and went back to the hunter nin. Sakura ran to Sasuke's body and she cried in his chest. Kakashi fought Zabuza in the mist.

"I don't want to call you hunter nin so what's your name?" Naruto dodged some needles.

"My name is Haku." He appeared in another mirror throwing more senbon.

Naruto took shuriken out of his pouch and threw them at them. They both parried each other.

"You are fast!" Naruto's hand was on his custom weapons pouch.

"Yes but to me it looks like you are in slow motion." Haku held senbon in his fingers.

"Let me tell you something! I could see you in slow motion too." Naruto grinned. They vanished and you can hear metal hitting metal. Shuriken and senbon fell in the ground. They reappeared panting.

"How did you find me?" Haku said.

"I used my Teishoku bomb to mark you." Haku noticed a yellow paint spot on his foot. "It is kind of like Yondaime's technique but I follow you by scent andchakra."

"……"

"I can tell you don't want to kill me."

"….That's a lie!"

"You were the one who was picking herbs while I was sleeping in the tree yesterday."

"!"

"You didn't notice?"

"…."

"You didn't want to bother me?"

He threw more senbon but they actually hit their mark. "Forget it! This is getting annoying!" Naruto's right hand had faint red chakra surrounding it and his fingernails grew sharp and claw like.

"Take this!" He slashed the mirrors with his claws and they shattered at his touch.

Haku frantically transferred to other mirrors. Naruto finally cornered him and punched the mirror. When it broke to pieces, Haku was in mid air. The punch continued and hit him in the face. 'This power!'

Haku went flying several feet away with shards of ice and porcelain littered the floor. He landed with a crack. Naruto wiped sweat on his forehead. Haku stood up and the last few pieces fell. He had a girlish face and has dark brown eyes. He wiped blood from the side of his lips with his sleeve. "You are strong. Is it to protect your friends? Or for your own amusement?"

Naruto bit his lip. "To protect my friends….but before…" His hand turned back to normal and he winced when blood dripped on his fingers. 'Damn...my side affects..."

"Very well…Kill me………" Brown eyes stared at blue.

In truth I didn't decide. I know we need some pairings so... let's vote! I AM NOT DOING YAOI! Thanks alot for telling me!

Sakura

Hinata

Tenten

Ino

OC

If there are other characters tell me.

Kame watched Kitsune with sparkles in his eyes. "You are amazing teichou!"

"In what?" Kitsune lifted his mask until his mouth is seen. He stuffed it with noodles.

"You are good at eating ramen like Kakashi-san is good at reading porn."

A vein popped in his forehead. "What's so good about that? You compare me with that baka?"

"It is something that you guys will die for." Kame said.

"It is so not true. I know what you are good at." The captain put money on the counter.

"What?"

"Target practice!" Kitsune dragged the turtle to the private training grounds. You could hear yelling and the villagers sweat dropped.

Please review! Ja Ne!