Technicalities Chapter 4: Define Squad Relate Synonym to Team, a naruto fanfic

Title: Technicalities

Rating: T

Character(s): Naruto Uzumaki

Summary: Ninja's technology had to come from somewhere, even it was the very distant past. Because they weren't the ones who created it, they obviously couldn't be familiar with everything. How disastrous could it be if Naruto was raised by someone who was?

Disclaimer: I own no one but my OC. You'll know her when you see her.

Warnings: Maybe a little OOC. You'll have to be the judge. And there's a bit of a hint to Naruto crushing on a certain guy. Just a heads up, it's not going anywhere.

xXx Chapter Four: Define Squad. Relate Synonym to Team. xXx

Naruto, despite his attitude the day before, greeted his teammates with a smile and a chipper good morning. They glared at him with unamused and impatient looks of distain. Undaunted, he continued his training in his tessen jutsu to waste the five hours he knew their teacher would take to show himself. He really liked his tessen. It was made of dark grey metal for the frame. The fan section was orange and black with a pattern of swirling flames. The border tip and outer ribs were thinly outlined on bright light blue. Naruto really liked his fan.

After the test started, Naruto disappeared. Having seen past recording of Kakashi's test via satellite, he wasn't surprised when the man had shown his two bells. He had just the plan to make the man give it to them. Hopefully. No plan in foolproof, after all. History says so.

"Tolerance," Naruto said quietly as Kakashi engaged in combat with Sasuke. "Initiate hypnotism..."

Kakashi was greatly disappointed today. He had such high hopes for his team, for once. But they all lacked in grasping the concept of teamwork. Sasuke was well known for his overall roundness of abilities. Saskura was the best kunoichi of her class, grade-wise. That had to count for something. And while Naruto had the poorest grades of all, he had shown amazing promise yesterday and, if Kakashi were to be honest with himself – which he was – he would say that he was placing most of his hopes on the interesting blond. He seemed to be extremely well informed, despite his track record, and Kakashi was hoping the boy would find the answer and thus tell his teammates to ensure real placement as genin.

Except Sasuke was far too headstrong, Sakura had no motivation whatsoever, and Naruto was nowhere to be seen.

The alarm chimed in the distance. Sasuke scowled and stopped attacking, completely out of breath.

"Well then, let's go find your team." Kakashi said lightly, thoroughly disappointed. Sasuke helped wake Sakura up and she immediately started crying before becoming completely quiet in melancholy when she was told their time was up. Naruto wandered into the clearing just as they did and was the one to shut off the clock. He was looking at it blankly as they all gathered around the lunches. Kakashi stood in front of the three before sighing deeply.

"Well, now I have to ask. What, exactly, were you three thinking?" The group was quiet, Naruto still looking at the clock in his hands. Sasuke started with a scowl Kakashi was liking less and less.

"I didn't need them. If I just had more time-"

"Well, you didn't, so turns out you did need help, huh?" Kakashi interrupted quickly. He was beginning to notice that the last Uchiha wasn't so well rounded after all. He failed. Kakashi couldn't even imagine what he'd have to do to make the boy realize that teamwork was the best way to complete missions.

"Sasuke-kun..." Sakura paused and unclenched her fist before looking at her fingers clasped in her lap. "I wasn't thinking of passing at all. I was just wanting to be near Sasuke-kun." She admit quietly. Kakashi gave her kudos for admitting that. She seemed about to revert to a fangirl type of personality at the beginning. There was hope for her, but Kakashi wasn't going to deal with her as a student. She failed.

"That's a very big thing to admit. I'm glad you can see that, Sakura. What about you, Naruto?" Kakashi didn't even bother to hide the disappointment in his tone. Naruto looked up from the clock.

"Well, I was thinking I just had to wait till I got everyone together. Then I could grab the bells without you noticing and give them to Uchiha-san and Haruno-san. I did say something about teamwork yesterday, and I'm pretty sure that's what the test is about, right?"

"Right. So, where were you and when were you planning to tell your teammates about that plan?" Kakashi asked, mildly amused at the impossible chance Naruto was counting on without even letting the other two genin know what he was planning.

"Right before we passed! After all, when we all came together, we still had seven minutes before the real alarm sounded! Surprise!" Naruto showed the clock to them all just as it counted down to noon and started ringing. Naruto tensed and dropped a smoke bomb at his feet. Without thinking, Kakashi jumped away to dodge the obviously charging genin. The alarm meant they all failed, but an attack was still an attack. Kakashi couldn't quite turn off such an instinctive reaction.

The smoke cleared and Naruto was revealed where he had been standing, still holding the ringing clock. He was grinning widely as he turned it off, everyone hearing the clicking that the first alarm lacked. Kakashi glanced at his belt and saw the bells were still there. The other two genin were coughing at the smoke.

"Maa, Naruto-kun... You still failed." The jounin said as he carefully relaxed his body.

"Nuh-uh. Touch the bells, Kakashi-sensei." Kakashi did, and didn't feel them. He could see them, but his hand was going right through them.

'Genjutsu? I don't sense any chakra. Kai! ...What?' Kakashi looked at Naruto expectantly.

"Check your pockets, guys." Naruto said as his maniac smile relaxed. The other two did cautiously and quickly pulled out two jingling bells in surprise. Kakashi stared. His brain didn't quite know what to think. "So, Kakashi-sensei, are we going to be a team from now on?" Kakashi pointed at his hips, which were still jingling as he walked closer.

"Explain." Was Naruto a genjutsu protege ? That was a scary thought. He couldn't even tell if he was actually under an illusion.

"It'll wear off." Naruto waved his hand in unconcern.

"Details. What did you do, Naruto? This isn't a genjutsu." Naruto pulled out his tessen and fanned himself. His red sunglasses glinted in an unreadable way.

"Well, I suppose you'll find out eventually... But, not now. I can't exactly explain it. It's just my special ability."

"You have a kekkai genkai?" Sakura asked, holding the bell up as if she wasn't sure it was real. Kakashi wondered if that was a scarier thought than the genjutsu idea.

"Nope. None I know, anyway. This is something I can just do." He grinned teasingly to Kakashi. "Want to know how I know you're wearing blue underwear with yellow polka dots? How Uchiha-san is wearing a pair of boring black briefs? How Haruno-san is wearing pink lacey panties and a white training bra? Same thing. Can't tell you now, but maybe later."

Kakashi could feel his brain melting out of his ears.

Sasuke was glaring enough to burn hotter than a hell on the sun.

Sakura was red in rage and mortification. She couldn't even breathe enough to yell.

"Of course, that's only a possibility if we're an official team. Congratulations, Kakashi-sensei! You're a sensei to three!" Naruto handed him the clock as he passed him. "Just so you know, I'm a very impressionable little boy. If you read porn in front of me, who knows what I'll end up doing. As it stands, you're probably going to find a surprise on your bookshelf. The one under your bed anyway. Thanks for the lunch by the way. I'll have to eat it later, though. I had a pretty big breakfast."

Kakashi was speechless and numb. He didn't know if he should feel exited at such a promising student, or horrified that someone could find out so much information so easily. Or even terrified that the boy knew of his secret shelf of books under his bed.

"You all pass..." He managed to say before walking away as well. The clock in his hands was unnoticed as the fake bells still chimed together as he walked. He could have made them quiet, like he'd done during the whole test – which wasn't really a test in the first place, apparently – but he needed verification that he wasn't just imagining them there. He still couldn't feel them though.

Sakura and Sasuke were still standing in place, nerves slowly cooling off.

"Ano, Sasuke-kun," Sakura didn't know where to start. "See you tomorrow." She had to look for bugs in her room. And tell her mom and dad she's a real ninja. And figure out what to do to Naruto when she saw him next. And get a punching bag installed in her room, that way she could pummel it into the first floor after drawing Naruto's face in it. Maybe later ask Sasuke out on a date, but that punching bag came first. Forget lunch, she was going to attack something until she couldn't move. Shannaro~! How dare Naruto peek at her panties!

Sasuke narrowed his eyes as he started walking home, glaring at the ground. Naruto was definitely different than he was at school. Could it be possible he was lying the whole year? He admit to himself, yes. It just might be possible. A memory surfaced, and he scowled as he continued to his house.

Sasuke walked the route to his house with thoughts so loud he couldn't hear any of them. A part of him was worried about his obvious depression since the death of his family, but he really didn't care. As he passed the pier of the lake, he saw a flash of yellow in the red sunset.

A woman was darting around on the water, laughing at the shore at the side. Her long blond hair swept her body as she moved, and Sasuke could see the ripples at her feet were not from her. A schoolmate of his, being in a higher year, was throwing rocks at her. Uzumaki Naruto. His own blond hair was dripping with water, and his overly-large orange clothes made him look like a wet cat. Definitely more pathetic than normal.

"Try again!" The woman encouraged.

"-a-an!" Naruto warbled in frustration, his voice cracking undistinguishingly.

"Uzumaki, has a mother?" Sasuke asked himself. He could remember hearing teachers, and even other parents, say the blond was a nuisance and an orphan. The tall woman nimbly dodged the stones being thrown at her, a small black block in her hand being waved around.

"Get out here and get it, my little baby!"

"I'm not a baby!" Most of the words were still hard to hear, but Sasuke could easily understand the statement. Then, to his amazement, Naruto huffed and cautiously approached the water. He couldn't care less that the younger boy was getting closer to the water he'd been in earlier, but the fact that the blond was walking on the water was more the reason he stared and gapped. Naruto's feet dipped waveringly into the surface with each step, but he stayed up as he made his way to the woman who was his mother. He slowly reached to her when he got closer and she gently gave him the small black block. He beamed at her, and promptly fell. The woman laughed.

"Great job, my wonderful little boy!"

"I'm no- or- ful-oy! And I'm not little!" Sasuke snorted. He watched with a pang of loss as the woman picked Naruto up and gave him a hug, walking to the shore with him in her arms. She was getting soaked by the second, but she was taking her time as she spoke to Naruto. The blond glowed, both of them.

Sasuke suddenly started walking away, wiping tears as he missed his own kaa-san. He wondered, would his mom have taught him to walk on water if she lived? Would she be proud when he learned it, like Naruto's mom?

Kakashi walked into the meeting room, on time. No one commented on it, figuring someone must have told him a false time, early. Kakashi was obviously happy – no doubt for failing his team – and they weren't going to spoil it and risk his wrath of trading gate duty, as he was wont to do.

Damn Kakashi's ability at poker...

"Eh-hem! Now, let us get started. Team one, pass or fail?"

"Fail. They could have passed, but they must have cheated the Academy somehow because none of their skills are close to genin." Kakashi crowed in his head. His students were the best! He supposed the real losers had to go somewhere.

"Team two?"

"Fail."

"Team three?"

"Fail." Kakashi continued to look at his little orange book, spying inconspicuously at everyone.

"Team four?"

"Fail."

"Team five?" Kakashi briefly wondered how everyone would look when he dropped the ball.

"Fail, Hokage-sama." He decided they might not even hear him at first.

"Team six?" He did have a reputation of never passing students, after all.

"Fail, sir." He wanted to do an evil laugh.

"Team seven?" But not now.

"Pass." Kakashi supposed he'd have to settle for an eye smile.

"Team eight?"

"Pa-?" Kurenai choked on her words as she turned to look at him with startled red eyes. "Did you say 'pass' Kakashi?" She asked, incredulous. All eyes were on him.

"Oh, yeah. They're actually pretty good. Especially Naruto." Mwahahahaha! Kakashi slowly grinned as the Hokage tried to fix his mistaken recording without anyone noticing.

"Naruto?" Hagane asked, scratching the bandage on his nose as a way to look less impressed than he was. Kakashi could see right through it. Mwahahahaha!

"Hai." Kakashi confirmed with a voice of complete unconcern. He turned a page in his book when he realized he was looking at it too long.

"Uzumaki Naruto?" Kamizuki tried to clarify.

"Hai." Kakashi almost snickered out loud when the two looked at each other uncomprehendingly. "If wasn't for him, I wouldn't even have passed the three."

"Uchiha Sasuke wasn't the reason you passed them?" Asuma asked. His cigarette was sticking limply to the corner of his mouth.

"Ah, no. He's almost not ready for shinobi life, but I'm certain Naruto will help him out." The room looked as if everyone may have a stroke at any moment.

"Haruno Sakura, the brightest girl in the class, wasn't the deciding factor in your decision?" Kurenai asked, looking almost personally indignant. She always was something of a feminist. Sort of.

"No, not really." Mwahahahaha! "In fact she fainted within ten minutes of the test." Kurenai's face shadowed.

"You're serious? Team seven passed?" The Hokage asked, just to be sure.

"Yup! I'm very happy to take them." Kakashi said, truthfully.

Somewhere, a little blond boy shuddered in premonition. That boy blamed his new sensei, who was known to be creepy and downright weird. He figured he'd have to be weirder in retaliation, but not now.

Mwahahaha! Kakashi blinked at everyone's startled looks and realized he accidently let that one out loud. Oh well. "Mwahahaha!"

He walked out calmly.

Naruto stared determinedly at his Flip Book. His files painted a whole new picture of Konoha, and it was a rather dark and oppressive picture to see. So this was history? Naruto supposed that was the best way to describe it; it must be why history is the answer to everything for Tarisha-chan.

"What are you learning, Naruto?"

"Tari-chan... is there a symbolism to a red moon?" Tari looked at him with one eye, drinking a can of juice.

"Historically, technically, or religiously?"

"All?" Tari hummed, glancing at Tolerance in consideration before moving to sit at her table with the small blond.

"Well, light is a spectrum of various wavelengths, right?" Thrown off topic, it took Naruto a moment to answer with a nod. "Red is longest reaching wavelength a human eye can detect. When particles in the atmosphere of the planet obstruct light, if any light remains, it will be tinted in red. This generally takes something like a volcanic eruption of great proportions or even a solar eclipse."

"Yeah, I know. What about symbolic meaning? Not the how's and what-have-you's." Naruto tried to direct her. She always was very technical. She smiled at him as she sipped her juice.

"If you want to look at it differently, then the rays of light are fighting through the darkness, and the one remaining victor of light and dark will still be bloody red. It is a battle all for nothing as night time will end eventually anyway. Red moons used to be seen as an end of days, where everything will be destroyed in an apocalypse. This is usually because a red moon on land meant a storm would be approaching soon because of it. Though, if you were a sailor, there was a poem about a red sky; Red skies in the morning, sailors take warning. Red skies in the night, sailors delight. Obviously, there was or wasn't a storm approaching depending on when exactly a red sky was seen. Um, red moons are also called blood moons and were seen as a symbol of war and destruction either impending or current."

"I wish you just told me the last part." Naruto mumbled good naturedly. She tipped her can to him.

"Why do you ask?" Tari-chan asked as she looked at Tolerance's back curiously. Naruto wasn't sure how to start as he nibbled his lip in contemplation.

"Ano, there's a group trying to get all the bijuu and jinchuuriki." He said quietly. Since graduation, Naruto was terrified of his best friend – the same woman who pretty much raised him – finding out about him being a demon. He didn't want her to turn her face away like the rest of the villagers. Instead, she was skeptical when she found out. She didn't believe in demons. Thus the two researched with the satellites and land computers and even the databases in the village. They found out what Naruto was, a jinchuuriki, and the following ramifications of his life thereof. To know there was a group hunting these demons and containers was disturbing.

"Are they worth looking out for?" Naruto glanced at his Flip Book.

"I think they were the real reason for the Uchiha Massacre. They're called Akatsuki." Tari frowned before taking out her own Flip Book. It wasn't the one she used to have, and she mourned the loss of all that information accumulated in her life, but she was using it more often now. It did have more capabilities than her wrist band, and she was very determined to hack into her own backup system. Eventually.

"Faith, connect current screen to Tolerance of Uzu Naru."

Connecting…

Naruto listened closely with a mental note. He didn't know this was possible. Then again, he shouldn't be surprised anymore. Tari-chan knew everything about her computers. A ding echoed from both computers, and Naruto saw in his top left corner a red bar blinking yellow dots along the strip. 'Religion of Tari-chan connected' was noted underneath.

"Uchiha Madara..." She said quietly in an odd tone as she speed read. Naruto was surprised when his screen started scrolling through text without him doing anything. Tari-chan was messing with his computer remotely. A part of him was amazed, the rest was indignant. She was hacking into HIS computer! "Interesting. Naruto, I'll go ahead and look into this. You just train and get stronger with your team. If I find anything interesting and/or important, I'll give you a heads up. Now, hand me your tessen."

"What!" She snorted at him in amusement. Naruto clutched at his fan protectively.

"Please? I found an interesting seal array and I know your baby is barely out of its box, but I think it'll help. It's a protection thing that will keep it sharp, nick-free, and easy to clean. Best put it on when still minty new. What do you say?"

"Oh, okay. But be careful." Naruto ordered reluctantly. The blue border was the most that could be see as he handed it over closed. The many sectioned edges were slid close together and still remained sharp enough to slice a block of wood if dragged across a face.

Naruto knew this because he tested it. Repeatedly. Proudly.

"I'll be back in ten minutes. Finish your lunch and then go meet your team."

"Will I have my tessen back?"

"Of course. You'll get it before you leave."

"Okay." Naruto ate with a worried gut. His computers were like a lifeline and an extension of himself. His fan was his baby. It was much more important therefore.

Naruto waited patiently outside his old apartment. Kakashi-sensei didn't say where to meet after passing his team, so Naruto figured the man would be using the shinobi records to find his students' addresses. As Tari-chan didn't technically exist in person, though she did in records – finally – Naruto couldn't expect the man to be waiting for him at the alleyway leading to Tari-chan's home.

Naruto fought a blush when his mind wandered and gave the thought that it was rather like a date to be picked up at his home for the day. Tari-chan would probably say it was hormones, so he was glad she didn't know telepathy. That was a scary thought...

He studied his tessen to switch his train of thought and pass time. Opening and closing it, he melded his chakra into the motion to fire small blades of wind to the concrete wall of the outdoor hall. Thin scratches were littered in front of him, eventually forming characters, letters, symbols and words.

Prestigious... A B C... biochemist warrior... blue frogs...

"I wonder what he's doing?" Naruto finally said when his wrist popped from the repeated motions. Pulsing his chakra, he tentatively searched the area that others could see or hear him in. Feeling no matured chakra from shinobi, as civilians didn't quite count, he took out his computer. "Tolerance, search satellite footages for current activities of Hatake Kakashi of Konohagakure no Sato."

Satellite feed of Hatake Kakashi running without sound.

Without sound? He could listen in with the satellites? That was a great idea! He probably could have learned this earlier during the Mizuki incident instead of going with the suggestion of tracing anything he spoke outloud...

"Tolerance, initiate sound feed with previous command."

Running satellite feed of Hatake Kakashi with sound.

Both screens of Tolerance showed a side of his sensei. One showed more of the man's front, the other more of his back. Naruto allowed himself the guilty pleasure of admiring his sensei before focusing on what he was doing.

Kakashi was kneeling in a tree, peeking through the branches predatorily. The complete attention was shaded with a little concern. Naruto could hear talking in the background, and impulsively put two fingers on his screen and pinched. He amazed himself when the image zoomed out and cleared itself into focus. He was even more amazed when he could hear Sakura more clearly.

"-late! I don't believe it! I still need to kick Naruto's ass!" Naruto cringed. Maybe waiting for his sensei wasn't the way to go. His other teammates were obviously able to deduct where and when to meet today. He wondered if they arrived at 0500.

Kakashi glanced at the sun, judging the time. Naruto looked at the corner of the screen. 1028. Kakashi normally showed up around 1030 or 1100. Well, he'd best be off.

With one last slash to the wall from his fan, Naruto stood up and leapt towards the roof.

Sasuke was annoyed. Not only was half of his team late, one being his sensei, but his other teammate insisted on being annoying. Just when he was ready to snap at the only girl on his team, a small flash of gold glinted in the sunlight – Naruto's bangs peaking through his bandana. A part of him expected to relax. Most of him only grew more annoyed.

"You're late." He said as soon as Naruto was close enough.

"You dirty bastard!" Sakura yelled as she tried to punch Naruto in the head. Naruto swiftly ducked and dodged.

"Oi! I'm here before sensei, aren't I? I wouldn't call that late, especially since no one mentioned a meeting time or place to begin with." Naruto pouted. "Eek!" He dodged another swipe from Sakura. "Hey, that almost hit me! Besides, your stance is too forward and punch is lacking. Try straightening your shoulders and hips."

"Rah!" Sakura yelled as she prepared to kick. A cloud of smoke disrupted her and caused the three to scatter a few feet.

"Hi Kakashi-sensei! Great afternoon, huh?" Naruto greeted before the smoke cleared. He was grateful the man interrupted Sakura before the girl could kick his ass. Literally.

"You're late!" Sakura screamed. "We've been here since five this morning! Where have you been!"

"Great way to talk to your superior, by the way." Naruto stated. Sakura slapped her hands to her mouth in mortification. "As to where he's been," He pointed to the tree Kakashi was in. "he's been in that tree." Sakura glowered at him.

"How do you know that?" Sasuke challenged him. Kakashi took out his book and relaxed to watch the show. He was even willing to admit that he was very curious at Naruto's abilities also, but that was only if someone asked really really nice. Naruto opened his shiny fan and hid half of his face. The rest of the team could easily tell he was smiling at them regardless.

"I specialize in information. Personal, secret, rare, obscure, and forgotten. Especially forgotten. I have fun with that."

"You spy on people for personal information?" Naruto nodded happily. "What happened to personal privacy?" Sakura asked, trying visibly to restrain herself from punching at the blond again.

"Privacy is the ability of an individual to exercise control over the collection, use, and dissemination of personal information." Naruto beamed happily, not caring what everyone else thought. This was his prided ability.

"What?" Sakura asked, the rest looking likewise puzzled. Naruto forgave them for their ignorance, after all, not everyone was monolingual in layman terms. And that was putting it nicely.

"It's the freedom from unauthorized intrusion. Thus, of privacy, you have none! If I can get to it, it isn't secure enough." He chirped proudly with a point of his fan. "I am a ninja, after all." He added when Sakura glared. She turned away, knowing that he was partially right. That didn't mean she had to like it though. Sasuke remained quiet, unable to help but wonder exactly what Naruto knew that no one else knew. Kakashi broke the silence, as it was obvious none of the children were going to say anything else.

"Well, Naruto, can you use your nifty powers of information gathering to tell your teammates what we'll be doing today?" Naruto didn't move, wondering himself.

"Er, chores or training?" He gambled. It was as educated a guess as he could make.

"Right!" Kakashi praised, privately a little creeped out by this point. "First we'll pick up a mission request and when we're done with that mission, we'll be doing some basic training steps so I can see where everyone is. Come along my little minions."

"Yes master!" Naruto obeyed with more verbal enthusiasm than facial expression. Sakura looked interested in her first real mission and Sasuke wondered about Naruto's sudden lack of enthusiasm.

He got his answer when Kakashi read the mission statement out loud in front of their client's house.

"We're doing what?" He asked, unamused. If this was a joke...

"Weeding Tadeki-san's garden." Naruto supplied helpfully. He was glared at.

"But, that's not a real mission." Sakura noted, partially relieved and partially insulted.

"We'll that's what the scroll says." Kakashi said firmly. "Now, hop to it chibi-minions. It says our deadline is... in one hour."

"Hai, Kakashi-sensei!" Naruto chirped before looking over the large garden blankly. Sakura and Sasuke grimaced at messy garden. The three thought the same thing.

'If Kakashi-senesi had arrived earlier, we'd have had more time.'

Kakashi watched closely. He hadn't explained to his team the importance of D-rank missions intentionally. Naruto seemed to know just how the team should be, and even seemed to have a plan on how to get his own team to that level of teamwork. Kakashi wanted to see what the blond would do. What he saw made him even more curious.

Naruto created some Kage Bushin and spread them out for more coverage than just the three genin. He asked Sakura on confirmation tips on how to tell a weed from a desirable flower. He said her best friend worked at a flower shop, so she would have gleaned something, right? She did. He suggested Sasuke stick close to Sakura for that reason of her being a quick reference. The way he suggested it was very long and would have been confusing, but Sasuke didn't know that the idea wasn't his own. He was playing the other two on their prides and personalities so the three could work together without stepping on any egos. The three finished in thirty minutes. Kakashi was expecting to have to do a quick cleanup with his own Kage Bushin so they didn't fail their first D-rank mission.

He was very proud.

He was a little less proud in their skills. After having the three battle his Shadow Clones, he called a halt after twenty-five minutes.

"Okay, here's my progress report. Haruno Sakura." Sakura panted from her spot in the grass. "You only have the basic Academy Style in taijutsu, and you should have your own style. Being a qualified shinobi gives you access to the Shinobi Archives, you know. I suggest you glance through that library for a style and I'll see what I can do to help you out. You should try a few genjutsu as well, and perhaps some chakra exercises before trying to get a repertoire of ninjutsu. Understand?" Sakura nodded, not looking up from the ground. "I know you're very intelligent, your scores in the Academy said so. I don't expect you to have any troubles adding to your knowledge in these fields. You are a genin. You're main mission for now is to grow."

"Yeah, Haruno-san. Don't sweat it. I'll even help you look!" Naruto said, looking relaxed and confident in his rock. He had tripped on the side of it and decided to make it his throne as retribution. Sakura looked less confident at his suggestion.

"Uchiha Sasuke." Sasuke grunted from his own seat on the other side of Naruto. He was shredding a blade of grass. "You're ninjutsu is above average for your age group, as is your taijutsu. You have certainly kept up with your family's techniques, but it is obvious that they are incomplete. I would ask that you let me see the scrolls you are studying so I can help you, but that is your decision. Your genjutsu is also lacking, as you haven't attempted to create one. Tell me now, is breaking a genjutsu the only thing you can do in the field?"

Sasuke and Sakura both nodded reluctantly. Naruto didn't look away from the sky.

"Naruto?"

"Hm? Oh. I can't create simple genjutsu, and the really elaborate ones I can do take longer than normal. But, most lesser level genjutsu don't even effect me and I suck at getting out of higher level ones. I have a way around it all, though."

Kakashi blinked. He decided to think about that later and backtrack for now.

"Right. Sasuke, I want you to look at other ninjutsu and taijustu and see what interests you for a wider variety of attacks. I know Uchiha do not normally add genjutsu to their abilities, so try to look into kenjutsu or even something more obscure. Become unpredictable and all that." Naruto snorted.

"Maybe you should be our medic nin." He chuckled. Sasuke wasn't sure if the blond was serious and Kakashi tried valiantly not to let his own humor show.

"And, Uzumaki Naruto." Naruto gave him his full attention. "I honestly have no idea what to say to you. Your taijustu is unpredictable and sloppy, yet you managed to hit me more than I you. You're ninjutsu is rarely aimed towards me and instead to the surrounding terrain. I've noticed the aftereffects are always towards your advantage, so I don't know if you're a genius or incredibly lucky. I've tried trapping you in genjutsu and I've eventually noticed it always rebounds on me before I know what's happening. Your skill with your tessen is low grade, but perfected. Not only that, but you're the only genin of mine who is not visibly tired. What do you think I should tell you?"

"That I'm awesome and we should get a B-rank mission tomorrow to celebrate?" Kakashi wasn't amused. Really. That smile under his mask didn't exist.

"I'm thinking refine the movements of your taijustu, add more focused ninjutsu to your list, and maybe I should find you a tessen instructor."

"In my defense, Kakashi-sensei, if I started out of sight. I would have had you unconscious in one minute and I think that's all that matters." Kakashi gave him a patronizing eye smile.

"Then perhaps you should find a genjutsu to make yourself scarce." Naruto looked about ready to argue, but then took a contemplative expression.

'A genjustu to hide my actions with Tolerance? That's an idea I like.' Naruto thought to himself. He grinned, and Kakashi regretted the suggestion. He just didn't know why.

"Saa, regardless, tomorrow morning we'll all start the day with an hour and a half of exercise before heading to pick up a mission and seeing what sort of training you all decided to find. We'll use the rest of today to find those techniques that interest you. Come along, minions. We're going to the Shinobi Archives."

Kakashi vaguely wondered if this paternal feeling is what Minato-sensei felt about his own team seven. He figured it came mostly from the fact that his cute little genin were trailing behind him like little ducklings the way proper minions should. Mwahahaha!

xXx TBC… xXx

HK: I added a little humor at the beginning for this one. Kakashi was just tempting me to mess with him. You got to forgive him, though, he'd gotten excited last chapter after Naruto's stunt. Does it seem like I relaxed on Sasuke and Sakura? It's so easy to bash them...

Posted:28Feb11