Wow, I have renewed vigor to keep going guys, thx for all the reviews and encouragement, it really gets me motivated. Sorry about the late post, omg, I've been swamped with college crap and homework…

Well, enjoy!

Revelations

Naruto looked up at the cracked ceiling tiles in his bedroom. He had been up almost all night. He was able to drift off to sleep for short periods of time, but would always wake up from the excitement. So, he had been just lying in bed staring at the ceiling for the past three hours.

Every time he actually did drift off, his sleep would be filled with strange dreams. The dream would always be the same. In his dream, he was surrounded by darkness, and only his friends were with him in the small beam of light that surrounded him. All of the rookie nine were there, as well as his other precious people, Iruka, Jiraiya, Tsunade, even Kakashi. However, one by one, no matter how hard Naruto tried to save them, they were pulled into the darkness, crying out for Naruto to save them. First it was Asuma and his team. Naruto was always able to grab a hold of Shikamaru's hand, but would lose his grip. Next would be Shino and Kiba, both fighting it until they too were engulfed by darkness. Both Tsunade and Jiraiya were back to back, trying to stay in the light, but they too were pulled away from him. Sasuke was pulled in with Sakura hanging on to his hand. Hinata and Iruka began to drift away and Naruto fell to his knees. He sat in the light, alone, crying. At this point, Naruto would always wake up, sweating and dried tears on his face.

Naruto finally decided that he would get out of bed and prepare. He would not leave on his training mission until later that afternoon, so he had all morning to suffer in anticipation. He donned his new, darker attire, pulled up his mask, and put on his hiate. He leapt out his window and began to walk around the village. It was not yet dawn, and there were very few people out and about. So Naruto walked around aimlessly until he reached the many training grounds of Konoha. He instinctively walked to Team Seven's favorite training grounds and thought of all the great times they had there. He reached out and touched the post where he had been tied up by Kakashi after the bell test.

However, his thoughts were interrupted by the rhythmic sounds coming from the training ground adjacent to his. He began to walk through the forest and peered through the foliage.

"Four-thousand five hundred and seventy one, four-thousand five hundred and seventy two, four thousand seven hundred and seventy three…." Each count out was accompanied by a loud thump.

Rock Lee was in the middle of his morning warm up for his mid morning warm up. He started out with two thousand pushups, six thousand punches, and five thousand kicks. He was almost done when he noticed a flash of gold in the green forest.

He immediately ceased his warm-up and stood in his ready position. "Friend or foe, come and test my youth!" he yelled as a challenge.

Naruto stepped out of the relatively hidden bushes into the open.

"Ah, Naruto-san. Have you come to spar?!"

"Uh…actually Lee, I was just passing and…" Naruto suddenly flinched and dropped straight back, dodging the kick aimed for his head by inches.

Geez, he's quick Naruto thought frantically.

"Yosh! You are faster than I had imagined! The fountain of youth surely overflows in you!"

"Riiight…." Both nins settled down in their ready positions. Lee's was much more structured than Naruto's, because Naruto had never really learned the proper stances, brawling rather than fighting his opponents. He was uncoordinated, not having learned the correct footings or counters, but he was still a decent match for most genins. Lee, however, was no ordinary genin.

Lee disappeared in a blur, and appeared in front of Naruto, in the air, his leg swinging in a long sweeping kick.

"Konoha Senpuu!" He foot made contact, but Naruto was able to cross his arms in a block. However, the force of the kick still knocked him backwards, sprawling on the ground.

Naruto slowly got back up, rubbing his rear, and held up his hands.

"Okok, I surrender, I can't beat that"

It then occurred to Naruto that out of the rookie nine and Gai's team, Rock Lee was the best person to learn from. Kurenai's team was very specialized, and had special talents that Naruto could not even hope to copy. Asuma's team too had very specialized techniques, family techniques that were not supposed to be given to other ninjas. Sasuke definitely wouldn't help him and Sakura was still mad at him. Neji was a Hyuuga and had the same problems as Sasuke in the social skills. So that left Ten-ten and Lee to learn from, and projectiles weren't Naruto's favorite thing to use in a fight.

"Say, Lee, I'm leaving later today. Think you could give me some pointers before I leave on my mission?" Naruto asked hopefully.

"Yosh! I will teach you all of the ways of the genius of hard work! Then you too will be in the springtime of youth!"

"Yeah! Springtime of youth!" Naruto yelled halfheartedly. What's wrong with this guy?

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6 Hours later

Both genin lie prostrate on the ground, with red faces and gasping for air.

"Whew…that…was…a great…training…session…Lee" Naruto managed to say in between his gulps of air.

"Yosh!" was all Lee could get out before he too had to focus on breathing.

Naruto slowly and gingerly rolled over and squinted his eyes as the sun was high in the sky, as it was midday already. However, he soon got a little shade as the silhouette of a familiar profile filled his gaze.

"Yo"

"Neh? Kakashi-sensei? What brings you here?" asked Naruto, a puzzled expression on his face. "You hear about my new mission?" he asked, a grin widening across his face.

"Actually, yes, but that's not why I'm here. I want to talk to you," Kakashi stated dully, his nose still in his little orange book.

"Ok, well, talk"

"In private"

Lee took the hint and said something about doing 500 one handed pushups, and if he couldn't do that, running 5 laps around Konoha. He limped away and Kakashi snapped his book shut. Naruto, knowing that if the book shut, it was serious, sat up and looked at Kakashi attentively.

"Naruto…listen, it's about the Valley of the End…I…I…"

"You what, Kakashi-sensei?"

"Naruto, I always taught you that those who don't follow the rules are trash, but those who turn their backs on their teammates are worse than trash. Naruto, I am lower than trash. I left you alone when you needed me. All I cared about was Sasuke…and ignored you. Naruto…I want to just say how sorry I am for that…"

"…"

"Listen, Naruto, I understand if you hate me, I deserve it. I understand if you want to kill me for what I did, I deserve it. I just wanted…needed to apologize"

"…"

Kakashi stood there, looking down at Naruto who was sitting cross legged. The wind blew, causing the grass to sway and their clothes to flutter. The trees created a moving background, as they all swayed to the wind and time seemed to stand still. Kakashi stood there for what seemed to be an hour.

"Naruto?"

Kakashi was getting nervous when Naruto suddenly fell over, his eyes wide open, but snoring soundly. A large sweat drop appeared oh Kakashi's head and he gently nudged Naruto's slumbering form.

"Agh! Wha-…Kakashi-sensei?"

"Naruto, did you hear me?"

"Uh, about the Valley of the End stuff?"

"Yes"

"Yeah, I heard you"

"And?"

"And what? The past is the past. Kakashi-sensei, I don't hold grudges. The only thing we can do is learn from our mistakes and move on. You seem to have learned from your mistake, and I forgive you"

Kakashi stood there, awestruck at this boy. Here was a child, barely thirteen years of age, who suffered so much at the hands of so many. Yet his nature gave him the ability to forgive even the worst things that people can do to another human being. He looked at those who abused him not with hate, but with love, vying not for revenge, but for acknowledgement, unlike a certain Uchiha. A lone tear welled up in Kakashi's good eye, but he squelched it with a quick forearm to the affected eye.

"Kakashi-sensei, what good is it to hate someone for something they did in the past? Will it change what they did? Kakashi, what you did was hurtful to me, but I understand that Sasuke is more important…"

"Naruto," Kakashi interrupted, "I don't think you understand. Sasuke isn't as important as you. I thought he was, but now I see the truth. You said that you will be Hokage one day, right? I believe in you, Naruto. One day, you will be Hokage"

Naruto blinked, thinking about all the times that he asked Kakashi to train him, and how he had been brushed off and stuck with the closet pervert Ebisu. At least he had met Jiraiya; otherwise Naruto was sure he would be dead by now. So, everything had worked out, hadn't it?

"…Thank you Kakashi-sensei" Naruto said, making eye contact and standing up in front of Kakashi.

"Well, good luck on you mission Naruto"

"Yeah! I'm going to kick its ass!"

"Naruto…a mission doesn't have an ass for you to kick"

"Well…well…I'll kick all the bad guys' asses then!"

Kakashi smiled, showing his emotions only through his eyes. "I'm sure you will Naruto, I have no doubt"

Naruto turned to leave and called over his shoulder, "Watch over that Uchiha-bastard while I'm gone, okay Kakashi?"

And with that, Naruto disappeared, flying across rooftops, making his way to his favorite place in the world.

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Asuma's team had been lounging around the barbecue restaurant peacefully before a pink haired shinobi interrupted their quiet.

"Hey! Ino! Chouji, Shikamaru!" Sakura called as she ran towards them.

"Sigh, this is so troublesome," sighed Shikamaru as he moved a piece in his chess game against Asuma.

Chouji's only response was to continue eating at the same rate he was eating before. Alarmingly fast.

"Forehead girl!" Ino waved as Sakura came closer.

"INO PIG!" yelled Sakura as she pointed at Ino, clenching her hands into fists.

"Sigh. What is it Sakura?" asked Asuma as he moved knight into Shikamaru's territory.

"Huh? Oh, right! Naruto is leaving today for a training mission and I thought that we should all say goodbye to him!" Sakura replied innocently, a smile plastered on her face.

"Naruto…what a troublesome guy…" Shikamaru countered Asuma's knight gambit moving a pawn up to threaten it.

"Will Sasuke-kun be there?" asked Ino, very interested suddenly.

"Sure! He is Naruto's teammate after all, right?"

"Sasuke is even more troublesome than Naruto…" drawled Shikamaru as Asuma moved his knight even farther into Shikamaru's territory, evading the pawn attack.

"WHAT?!" screamed the two girls, leaping at him, only to fall on their faces, unable to move.

"Heh. Kagemane no jutsu, success"

"Let me out right now Shikamaru!" screamed Ino, burning holes into Shikamaru's head with her eyes.

"Fine, fine, just calm down. Geez, women are so troublesome"

"WHAT?!" screamed the two recently released girls, preparing to leap on him again. However, they again found themselves face down on the ground.

"You should really learn from you mistakes," muttered Shikamaru, as he brought out his own queen to defend against the knight's intrusion.

"LET US GO!" they both screamed. Shikamaru winced and his shadow returned to his body.

"Sigh, we'll be there Sakura," Asuma said, trying to act as the peacekeeper of the team. He narrowed his eyes, and moved his knight yet again, this time to the relative safety of his side of the board.

"Good! He'll be at the gates at four, don't be late!" Sakura chirped happily as she ran down the road. She had other people to see.

Shikamaru moved his bishop forward, into Asuma's side of the board, taking the offensive and attacking the knight yet again. "So troublesome…"

"Now now Shikamaru, aren't you on friendly terms with Naruto?" Asuma glanced at Shikamaru sneakily and sent his queen out of its position and set up an attack that would end it next turn. He could afford to lose his knight.

"Tsk. Asuma-sensei, checkmate," Shikamaru yawned, as he ignored the knight completely and moved his queen in, protected by his bishop.

"Sigh. I don't even know why I even try…" muttered Asuma, as he reached for a piece of barbecue, only to find it all gone.

"Gulp, sorry sensei, I need to build up my energy!"

"Sigh. This is so troublesome" whined Asuma, taking Shikamaru's line.

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Sakura ran through the streets, looking for a certain black haired genin. So far, she'd gotten all of the rookie nine, except Sasuke, to come see Naruto off. Also, she'd gotten Gai's team to come, knowing how Gai and Lee would want to see Naruto off and wish him a journey filled with training.

Sakura glanced through the crowd, seeing a glimpse of black hair and she made her way through the masses of people, finally getting close enough to grab his shoulder.

He turned around violently and grabbed her wrist, bringing her close and holding her from behind, a kunai that he had brought out on instinct at her throat.

"Sakura" he acknowledged.

Sakura was a little shocked by the sudden capture, yet kind of comfortable as she was held very tightly to Sasuke's body. She imagined all of the girls in Konoha being jealous of her position right now and sighed in comfort. But, just as suddenly as she had been put into the position, she was released from the position.

"What do you want Sakura" stated Sasuke in a gloomy voice, walking away from her, hands in his pockets.

Sakura froze for a second before chasing him from behind him, struggling to catch up, as the streets were full of villagers. Finally, she stepped beside him, and kept stride.

"Sasuke, Naruto is going on a training mission today"

"Why should I care that that baka is going on a mission? Are you trying to make me feel jealous because I'm on probation?" Sasuke coldly said. He was devoid of all emotion, yet one could still feel that he was slightly annoyed at Sakura's disturbance.

"No no! Nothing like that! It's just…I wanted to know if you would go to the gates and see him off…I know it's kind of dumb, it's just…I wanted to make sure everyone was all together for one last time…"

Noting the stress in her voice, Sasuke mentally cursed. Why does she always make me feel this way? I can't care for anyone! Not until I've killed Itachi can I make bonds…

"Alright. I'll come."

"Really?! Great! Meet there at four o'clock! Seeya Sasuke-kun!" she yelled over her shoulder as she waved goodbye, running off.

I'm whipped…

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Well, four o'clock. Guess it's time to go… Naruto thought, a little sadly, as he had not been able to wish everyone farewell. He had only been able to find Lee, and after that, went to say goodbye to Old Man Ichiraku. After an extra big lunch, he bought some ninja supplies from Ten-Ten's shop, and was disappointed he didn't see her there.

Naruto made his way to the gates of Konoha, whipping his head around, searching for any sign of his friends. Alas, he saw no one he recognized, and walked the rest of the trip with his head down. When he finally arrived, he was shocked by the scene there. There were all his friends, the rookie nine, and even Maito Gai's team.

"Naruto! There you are! You're late!" cried Sakura, grabbing his arm and pulling him towards the crowd.

"Late?! It's only six minutes after four! At least I'm not like Kakashi-sensei!"

"Six minutes, three hours, late's late" she declared, as she plopped him down in front of the waiting shinobi.

An Anbu walked up to Naruto. "Naruto-san, Jiraiya says that he will be waiting for you in the village down the road"

"Hai!" And with that, the Anbu disappeared in a blur.

"So…why are you all here?" asked Naruto quizzically.

"Because the women made us" Shikamaru replied sarcastically. Ino then crushed her fist down into his skull. "So…troublesome…" he was able to get out, right before he fell unconscious.

"Sorry about him Naruto. I think he's the one who's troublesome after all…" she said, glaring at the motionless form of the shadow user.

"Ok…well, I guess you guys are here because you know about my ultra cool super awesome mission!" he said, giving them the thumbs up.

"Yosh! Naruto-san is surely full of youthful energy! We must use that energy to train!"

"Shut up Lee"

"Let's spar Neji!"

"What did I just say?"

"That…you want to spar?"

"No. I don't want to spar. Leave me alone."

"My rival is as cool as ever!"

At this point, Sakura stepped forward.

"Hey Naruto, I got everyone to come and see you off!"

"Hey, thanks Sakura-chan! I always knew you cared about me!" he declared, as he ran towards her, arms opened wide.

"Baka!" she screamed, as she punched him in the head, knocking him to the floor in a similar fashion as Shikamaru.

"Look at all the pretty colors…"

Sakura straightened her dress out. "I have an important thing to tell you all! That's why I called you all here. It's about…Naruto."

"Wha?!" he yelled quizzically, springing back up to his feet.

"It's about the Nine Tailed Demon, Kyuubi no Kitsune"

"Sakura! How do you…you…you can't!"

"Hush Naruto. It's ok!"

"Sakrua, don't! You don't understand!"

"Naruto! Trust me!"

"Sakura, it's forbidden! You can't!"

The remaining genin, and the one chunnin (Shikamaru, I just remembered is a chunnin, my bad) looked on, confused.

"What's going on?" asked Kiba.

"Hm" replied Shino, expressing his apparent confusion as well.

"SAKURA!"

"CALM DOWN NARUTO!"

Naruto leapt at Sakura, pinning her arms behind her and covered her mouth.

"Sakura. Please. Don't."

"Mph!" Sakura continued to struggle until she made a solid contact with his shin.

"Gasp! Theyondaimedidn'tkillkyuubihecouldonlysealitintoanewbornbabyandthatbabyis Naruto!"

All of the ninja assembled there froze, trying to put together all the information they just received. After a shocked silence, they all turned their heads towards Naruto. He was frozen, staring at Sakura, as if he were dreaming.

"But guys! He's not the Kyuubi! He's just the container, so he's still the same guy!" Sakura continued, oblivious to the things happening around her. Kiba kept opening his mouth as if to say something, but nothing would come out. Hinata kept looking at the ground, Lee was confused, Neji stared at Naruto, and Shino remained silent, his emotions unreadable. The rest of the shinobi had similar reactions, except for Naruto. His emotions changed, from shock, to anger, to realization, to fear.

Fear is one of the most powerful emotions. It can cause someone to run away, to freeze, or to even lose control of their body. It is more powerful than happiness, lust, confusion, or even anger. In Naruto's eyes, all anyone could see was fear.

Suddenly, as if broken out of a trance, Naruto blinked, shook his head, and ran out of the gates. The rest of the ninjas there could only watch as he ran.

"Sakura…what have you done?" Ino asked gently, placing her hand on Sakura's shoulder. Sakura was more shocked than anyone, believing with all her heart that it would be better if Naruto's secret was known. She knew that no one would hate him for what he had inside him, but she didn't predict what Naruto's reaction would be. As she watched him run, she began to walk towards the gates.

"I…I need to go after him…to explain. I really didn't mean for him…I…" she stammered, tears running down her face. "I mean, how could he…how could I…but…"

She broke down, falling on her knees, as she saw Naruto in the distance, still running. All eyes watched the scene of a small image of Naruto ran away from the village he loved.

And then all eyes saw nothing but a flash of light and smoke as the landscape in front of them exploded into a massive fireball.

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Hey! I finished my longest chapter ever! I tried to make it longer, by popular request so…yeah! Read and review as always!