If the first paragraph or so seems rushed, well, it is. I hate writing for the prelims when I can just skim over them like I'm doing… Plus the fact that I have plot points I want to get to AND have people vying for blood about my updating this and another fic… Blame writer's block.

Yeah. Nidaime. I just went about it like I do with everything I'm not sure about, and went with how it sounded… Sorry for the confusion.

Also, it has come to my attention that quite a few of you are rather irked that I have Naruto sexually active at 12. I'm only being realistic… Recent studies (In the REAL WORLD) have shown that the average age of puberty (and thus, the average age kids start getting horny) is decreasing by the year. It is not uncommon to see REAL kids (male at least) who have had, or at least tried to have had sex. In fact, several of these studies have shown that male children as young as eight or less may very well be sexually active. Thus theorizing that Naruto had both the means (being a big-shot in Oto by a young age) and the hormones (Due not only to this development, but the fact that his maturation was slightly accelerated due to his healthy lifestyle and physical therapy such as daily training; this means he may not just look 15, but he may have the libido of a 15-year-old. And trust me, boys of 15 years WANT TO HAVE SEX. Being male, I know from experience) he may very well have been sexually active long before 12. And, at the level of mental maturity shown in the canon series, I don't doubt that several of them already knew what sex was, and were trying for it, libido or no. (Like Sakura and Ino. At a word form Sasuke, either of them would've had sex with him)

FYI, I research nearly EVERY aspect of a fic before I even start writing it; or when it comes up in the fic. I am well known for my 'evolving plot' writing strategy, and additional research is an inevitable necessity.

Naruto was bored… bored out of his mind. He'd spent the last two days holed up in the tower with the other Genin, and nearly fell asleep between the Hokage's speech and 'phase two' of Orochimaru's plan. Even the fights were uninteresting… Sasuke against one of Kabuto's goons, Dosu taking down the Akimichi boy with ease, he'd started watching the fight between an Inuzuka and an Aburame when he'd been called away. After entirely missing the fights between Temari and a kunoichi weapons master, and the fight between Zaku and Sakura, which according to him lasted about ten seconds, Naruto had gotten back in time to catch most of the match between Kankuro and Kabuto's other henchman. Overall, rather boring since he knew both of their abilities beforehand due to the intelligence reports he'd read on Suna and the fact that he was one of the other man's superiors.

Then it came time for his fight. When he saw the name, he knew it would be over in an instant. Leaping down to face his opponent, he turned to the other blond and announced; "You can't beat me Yamanaka."

As Kakashi looked down on the fight, he remembered back only a short while ago…

"So then, you're here for Sasuke?" Kakashi asked; kunai in hand.

"How very astute of you… But you see, my apprentice far overpowers yours in nearly every way… so I'll just take him off your hands now, and train him myself."Orochimaru said, chuckling.

"You'll have to go through me…" Kakashi said, his stance shifting. He knew he couldn't win.

"Kukuku, you underestimate me… and what's worse, you underestimate my young student…" The Snake Sannin said, pointing over Kakashi's shoulder. As the copy ninja turned, he saw his student had disappeared, and when he faced Orochimaru once more, the snake was already melting away into mud.

Kakashi watched as Ino took up a fighting stance, even if she knew she'd lose, she was at least going to try. This boy… Kanjin… he was missing when Sasuke was abducted… I need to watch him closely. He thought.

"You've got spunk, I'll admit that much…" Naruto said, dropping into his own fighting stance. "But spunky doesn't cut it in the real world, princess."

Ino simply stood, whether she was rooted to the spot out of determination or fear, Naruto couldn't tell. "Begin…" Hayate said with a cough, and in the blink of an eye, Naruto had closed the distance between them.

Throwing Ino into the nearest wall with a palm strike to her stomach, he then pinned her up against the wall, holding her off the ground with only his left forearm under her chin. "Forfeit…" Naruto said, pulling his right arm back as if to drive his balled fist through her into the wall. "Now…"

With a firm voice, she declared; "No…" causing Naruto to cringe. His right arm shook as he stared up at her face, at the determination in her eyes. He couldn't kill her. In deciding this, he failed to notice her hands coming together into a unique sign. "Shintenshin no Jutsu…"

Naruto felt a presence creep over him, slowly enveloping and pushing him from consciousness as the girl in his arms went limp. Falling down to his knees and slowly making his way towards the center of the arena, a pain swiftly growing within his skull. Before he could make it halfway to the starting point of the match, he fell to the ground, screaming in pain as he clutched his head.

---

Ino found herself in a dark, dank place, the sound of dripping water everywhere. Looking up, she saw the boy she'd been fighting sitting, curled into a ball in front of her, clutching his head as if in pain. She started backing away when she saw chains wrapped around him, linking him to a dark entity behind him, writhing in pain. Although it held a human shape, it was far from thus…

As she continued her slow retreat, a massive resonance boomed from behind her. "NARUTO!!!"

She whipped around in shock, falling backwards and crawling towards the blonde boy, her gaze never straying from what she saw. A massive cage… with two feral eyes glaring back at her. "W-what are you?" She asked feebly.

"KILL THE GIRL NARUTO!" It bellowed. "You don't know what you've done, wench… LEAVE! NOW!"

Without realizing how far she'd gone backward, she ran into the boy it was addressing, who held her shoulders in a vice-like grip. "Yama…naka…" He said, his voice strained, "How do you get back?"

She looked at him, and then behind him. She definitely wanted to leave… "I-I don't know! This wasn't supposed to happen! What the hell are these things!?"

"Kill her or I will!"Kyuubi roared.

"Try… to leave..." Naruto said, loosening his grip to put a hand back on his head.

She nodded, forming her hands into a Ram seal, focusing what chakra she had in this state, and said firmly; "KAI!"

Naruto watched as the girl slowly faded away, and the pain in his head subsided. "Boy, you know what she was trying to do… if she had taken control, the imbalance could have broken one of the seals!"

"Tch… you're more worried about your seal than Orochimaru's…" Naruto said, berating the giant fox as the specter behind him grew limp and dormant, hanging in the air. "You just didn't want to risk your life since the great Kyuubi doesn't know what the fuck would happen if SHE broke your seal..."

The fox never liked this boy, he'd considered not hating him, but never went so far as like. Now, he simply wanted something dead. Preferably crushed to a bloody pulp in his jaws, or sheared open with his claws. Unfortunately, the single thing on the top of his 'to kill' list was the very boy he was housed in.

---

Naruto found himself waking up in the temporary infirmary used during the matches. He could still hear the distant sounds of combat through the door to the hallway and the concrete walls. Glancing over, he saw Ino unconscious in the bed next to his. Apparently, they, along with Chouji and Sakura, were in their own private 'quiet' room, as all four of them had fallen unconscious as a result of each of their respective matches.

Naruto slid out of his bed and walked between the two girls beds. Looking from one to the other, he smirked slightly. The scrapes and bruised he'd given Sakura were already healing, and he hadn't done any noticeable damage to Ino's body. That's when he noticed what she was wearing; a standard medical gown. Then he looked down at his own light-blue smock, and cursed, immediately rummaging through the room to find his clothes. Luckily, he'd still had his boxers on underneath, so he didn't feel any shame in dressing himself in such an open place.

Afterword, he walked back over to give the girls a final farewell before he left, and brushed Sakura's hair away from her face and forehead. Chuckling as he rested his right palm just above her eyebrows, he said; "Sorry about the other day…" and thought, she really is stronger than I thought she was… as he leaned down and kissed her forehead.

Turning to Ino, he leaned down to kiss her cheek, when he heard something… "Na…ru…"

He slowly righted himself, pinching his furled brow in frustration. She knows my name…

Picking her up bridal style, Naruto glanced down sadly at the girl. "I'm sorry… but you know too much." He said, before they disappeared in a puff of smoke. Arriving at an abandoned building in Konoha, Naruto slipped Ino onto his left shoulder, and slung an unconscious Sasuke over his right. The Uchiha was drugged, bound, and gagged so that even if the sedatives didn't work, he still couldn't escape. Jumping up out of a high window, and dashing out of the darkening village, he sprinted through the trees with the setting sun behind him…

If Kakashi can use Shunshin without hand seals, then a kid (ANY kid, not just a Jinchuuriki) trained by OROCHIMARU for a decade can too dammit!!!

Otogakure is North of Konoha. The sun sets in the west. Naruto is heading east because if people know to look for him, they'd head north since he's from Oto, or west since long-distance travel is easier going towards the setting sun, as at ninja-speed, they can keep up pretty well, and give themselves a good hour or so more light to work with. Naruto went east because it was the logical choice, as most people searching would head north or west, while south took him further from his intended destination.

Also, just in case anyone has a notion to ask, no way in fucking hell am I ending the story here. Next chapter is Ino-centric (I hope I got the terminology with that right... not so good with termonology...) and has to deal with just how bad she (and possibly Sasuke) freaks out after waking up in Otogakure.