Naruto stared down at the scroll in her hands as she sat on the edge of her orange-sheeted bed, ignoring the soreness from afterschool training. She didn't bother to switch on the lights, making the sunset the only available light source. One hand peeled the edge of the scroll off slowly.

Her eyes scanned the words with such seriousness that, if possible, it would have pierced through the thin, long paper.

"So Kyuubi was right." Not that she doubted him in the first place. Her lips set in a grim line as she summarized the information.

The user of the jutsu steals a very large amount of the victim's chakra, and while doing so they push some of theirs into the seal. The seal functions by altering the user's chakra and multiplying it, and sending it throughout the victim's entire body; first around it―usually at the stomach, like hers―then spreading to the chest and thighs. After that, the invading chakra stretches through the rest of the victim's limbs. It takes over the physical chakra first, making the body numb before literally shrinking it. It then moves onto the spiritual chakra, which weakens the victim and makes them lose their body's 'memory'.

While the user's chakra is still fighting off the victim's, a little of it spreads and works both around the brain and surrounding it. However, this takes a lot of time, because there's not enough chakra to literally consume the victim's physical chakra. When the user's chakra is done with everything below the head, it goes up to support its 'comrades'.

They eat on the physical chakra, making the brain and head smaller. But the spiritual chakra is a lot tougher than the brain, so the invading chakra would take much longer.

To avoid 'dying off' it would return to the seal and, to simply put, get renewed before going back (explained in the instructions below). Because the body is much smaller and the chakra had already fought off the victim's, it would take less time to get back to the brain.

Because of this, the victim will have frequent but short, painful headaches. Naruto read on, horror marring her face when her eyes looked over the estimated time left for the victim written.

For the knowledge and memories, it would take roughly one and a half years. For the victim to die, slowly and painfully, would be half a year after that.

In conclusion, if she didn't do something about it soon, her memories will fade completely and she would die in two years.

She had skimmed through this part when she was in the chamber with the Hokage, so she had missed the vital information. Her eyes grew round in shock, her breath quickening and hitching as she clutched her head. Her head had started hurting again, feeling as if an arrow had pierced through making her drop the scroll. She missed the padding of feet walking right outside her door before it was knocked on.

"Naruto? What happened?" Minato's worried voice came through, "Are you alright?"

Her breathing had been erratic enough to be heard, she realized. Mentally calming herself down, she squeaked out. "Yeah, I just…" Naruto quickly picked up and rolled the scroll closed, "… had a small nightmare." She stuffed it under the pillow before ruffling the sheets and falling back, just in time for the man to enter.

Minato's face was slightly scrunched in worry, but loosened into a soft, fatherly look as he gently sat beside her. "Are you sure you're alright?"

She nodded, forcing a smile. "I can't even remember it anymore, so it probably wasn't that bad." She faked a yawn, "And I'm still sleepy. How much longer 'til dinner?"

"Your mother says half an hour, so do you want me to wake you up then?"

"Yeah, thanks, Tou-chan." He smiled as he draped the blanket over her, before pecking her cheek.

"Mm. Alright, see you later. If you have another nightmare, just come down, alright?"
"Yup." Naruto said sleepily, closing her eyes, waiting for him to go out.

She peeked, and noticed that the room was already empty with the door closed. I didn't even hear him, she thought in amazement. Shaking her head, the blonde quickly threw back the covers and snatched the scroll from under her pillow. If it shows what order to write the parts of the seal to activate it, then it should be easy to find out how to deactivate it!

Her hands traced through the words she read carefully, her brows furrowed in deep concentration. The kanji characters are written and literally squished into a spiral, like the Uzumaki swirl… she frowned, the user has to start from writing the center―the beginning of the spiral―and when done, has to write another layer on top of it. The second layer is what multiplies the chakra, while the first makes it longer lasting. She scowled, so that's how the user's chakra can last as long as even one year.

Naruto's lips set into a grim line; the jutsu is really just two complicated seals packed into one. They're not even mixed together. If she had dissolved the second layer, she'll be able to access the first, which would mean that she can stop the Whirlpool zombie kunoichi's chakra from cycling around her body.

But, her brows knit together; wouldn't her chakra disrupt the flow of mine?

Scanning her eyes over the contents of the scroll again, she found the line she was looking for. Yes, because the user's chakra should be unfamiliar with the victim, in addition to the loss of experience, it should make them unable to even mold chakra.

So why? Naruto rolled up her shirt enough to see her stomach, and molded her chakra. While doing so, she noticed that her reserves were smaller than it should be at her current age, though during training she had thought it was because she shrunk and all. A lot more than Kakashi's though.

She thought for a minute, before blinking. "Oh."

It was most likely because they were related; their chakra would be somewhat similar. So the older kunoichi's chakra must have also been converted into her own. Knowing that, Kabuto must have made the zombie force more chakra into the seal.

She leaned against the headboard and brought her legs to her chest, staring at the now closed scroll she held with one hand, while the other rubbed her temple. It was starting to hurt from how much thinking she had done. "Ugh, I might as well sleep it off."

She waited in the shadows, and watched him jump down from his window, the moonlight reflecting on his silver hair. His head turned side to side, looking for her, and she stepped out of the darkness with a smirk.

"So you came out on time. I was worried you'd oversleep, Scarecrow."

Though she couldn't see through his mask, she could somehow tell his lips curled downwards into a scowl. "I'm not you, Kamaboko."

"Didn't I tell you to quit with that nickname and start calling me 'Naruto'?"

"Must have slipped my mind." He turned away from her, "Where are we going to train?"

"At the river. Come on."

She grabbed his hand tightly so he couldn't pull it out, and popped away with him.

Naruto applied chakra to her feet just in time, the soles of her sandals made contact with the water's surface, before she all but threw her (reluctant) friend onto the grassy land. Kakashi yelped when his behind crashed onto the ground. "Sorry about that," the girl apologized, but both knew she hadn't really meant it.

With a glare he got up, and hopped onto the river as well.

"Remember, Scarecrow, ninjutsu's also an option!"

Without warning he attacked, fist raised and heading straight for her cheek. Naruto ducked and caught it with ease, before using the force of his attempted hit to her advantage. She stood back up, and pulled his hand behind her, making him lose his momentum. She rammed her knee into his stomach, knocking the breath out of him before using her other leg to kick his side.

Kakashi skidded back onto the grass and refrained from groaning in pain. Despite his annoyance at being so easily thrown off, he had a smirk. Taijutsu had been her strongest point after vigorous training, no doubt, and she wasn't holding back at all. While she did have strength (though he had more, Kakashi smugly noted), what made her hand-to-hand combat skills superb was her speed.

He watched her determinedly; though she did say he can use ninjutsu, Kakashi didn't want to―not yet, when they're just beginning. Naruto noticed this, and had a grin.

"I've noticed this the day I met you, but you're really competitive, Scarecrow." She crouched, her hands balling to fists. "Come on!"

She blocked, dodged, and countered many of his attacks, but the ones that did manage to reach her had slightly slowed her down. However, she was still a tad bit faster than him. Growing deeply frustrated, he jumped back a few meters to think.

A wide smirk appeared under his mask, and he waited for the other to go on offensive. She didn't disappoint, running to him with both fists kept by her sides. While he jumped back, he noticed her peculiar style of fighting, but pushed the thought back for later.

When she was close enough, he took a step back, before dipping one foot into the water.

She saw it, but didn't have time to react when he kicked a large amount of water towards her, using chakra to expand the wave. Realizing what he was planning, she leaped back, but was too late. "Dammit," she muttered, wishing she had worn waterproof clothes, or at least took off her jacket first. Now, her cotton outfit hung heavily.

He charged, not wasting even a split second, making her avoid and block every one of his attacks. She didn't have time to unzip her jacket, never mind taking it off. Her clothes and his attempted hits were starting to affect the chakra to flowing to her feet.

I'm not going to be the first to use ninjutsu, dammit! She smirked, since I'm already like this… Naruto ducked from Kakashi's kick before diving into the water and moving behind him, catching the boy by surprise.

Before he understood her intentions, she grabbed hold of his ankles and tugged forcefully, knowing that his brief moment of shock had disrupted the chakra supporting him up. As he fell, Naruto applied chakra to her hands to push herself to the surface. He did the same a few seconds after, but Naruto slyly shoved him back in (though after making sure he had took in enough air―she didn't want to drown her future sensei, of course).

He swam away this time, but she was faster than him. He glared, attempting to pull her down like she did to him, but Naruto merely hopped out of his way. "Give up?" She mouthed, knowing he couldn't hear her in the water.

He seemed to contemplate his options, before nodding, clearly unhappy. She walked to the land, not offering a hand because she knew he would just pull her in as revenge.

She turned to seem him ring out the water from his shirt and grinned. "I win." She said in a singsong tone.

"Shuddap." He sneezed.

Frowning in worry, Naruto hopped down to him. "Hey, are you okay?" Her question was answered with a glare. "Alright, alright. But just so you know, you were the one who started using water as a weapon."

They both sat down, waiting for their hair and clothes to dry. Eventually, they were lying down on the thankfully warm grass, and Naruto noticed that Kakashi had curled up, back facing her. Is he sleeping? She sneaked around, and saw that his eyes were closed, and his breathing let her know that he was. Sighing, she gently pulled him onto her back, and used the Body Flicker technique.

Reaching the front of his house, Naruto slightly bounced to stop the boy from falling off. She stared up at his window, and wondered how the hell she was supposed to get up there without dropping him.

She contemplated on leaving the boy at the doorstep, but quickly crossed out that idea.

Sighing, she put him down before picking him up again, this time holding him in front of her. God he was heavy. Testing her foot onto the wall and deeming her the constant flow of her chakra safe, she used chakra on one of her hands to keep her up before using her other foot. She tried not to think how hard it was to keep holding on to the wall while holding Kakashi, who was roughly the same size as her.

Eventually she reached the window, sweating profusely as she soundlessly opened it (thank god the idiot didn't lock it!), and contemplated on throwing the boy in.

No, Sakumo-sensei was going to rush up and realize that they were sneaking around at midnight. Groaning, she stepped in, making sure she didn't make a sound. The floor creaked so she put the boy onto her shoulders again before crouching on all fours. Scurrying to his bed, she pulled off the blanket before slowly getting up and placing him there. Naruto softly moves the cover on top of him and was about to get out before something caught her eye.

A picture?

The moonlight seeping in reflected off the glass of the frame, so she picked it up from Kakashi's bedside table. It was a photograph of three people; Sakumo-sensei with a mask-less Kakashi on his shoulders, and a beautiful woman. She was laughing along with the father as Kakashi reached for her, still holding on to Sakumo's hair for dear life.

That must be Kakashi's mother, Naruto realized, and smiled softly. Who would of thought this cute little boy would be that sulking, broody brat?

She put the photo frame back on the table and watched the sleeping Hatake. A serene smile reached her face as she combed her hand through his hair and whispered, "She's surely proud of you up there. Though, it probably wouldn't hurt to make some friends, Kakashi."

She walked to the window, looked back once more at the boy, and jumped out.

Good night.

The Hokage sighed, leaning back into his chair as he reflected back on what Naruto informed him. "I see. So we'll have to call Jiraiya here immediately then―is what I'd like to say, but he has some very important spying to do a long way away from here." His lips set in a grim line, "It looks like we'll have to wait a few months."
"But Hokage-sama! My memories－"

"I know, we'll have to do something about that." The man frowned, "we'll have no other choice but to seal them away."

Panic was clear in her features and her voice, "But if we do that I won't remember almost everything until I remove the seal!"

"I apologize, let me rephrase. I'll use a special type of seal that copies and preserves your memories. The copy might not be clear, but memories you remember the best would be."

"Oh, okay."

"I warn you though, it will be painful."

She grinned, "I'm sure I have experienced worse."

Later, down in a dark, dim-lit chamber (they wind up in there often these days, don't they?), Naruto was struggling from muffling her screams. The sealing process felt as if something sharp was piercing through her forehead where the Hokage's palm was, and scrambling her brain around.

If only she knew it would hurt this fucking much! Tears had tracked down her cheeks just as violently as her cries tried to escape through her lips. She bit into her shirt to keep herself from biting her tongue. Naruto restrained from grabbing the man's hand off of her and instead clenched her shorts tightly as she tried to keep still in her sitting position.

Enduring the unbelievable pain for who knows how long, the Sarutobi finally moved his hand away and Naruto fell back, writhing as she all but slapped her hands over the burning mark on her forehead.

"I'm sorry, Naruto, I wish I could lessen the pain, but…" Hiruzen trailed off as he looked away from her in guilt. Waiting several moments, Naruto finally calmed down, but still breathed heavily as she slowly sat up, sweating profusely and relief wafting over her now that the pain was nearly gone.

"It's not your fault, Hokage-sama, so please don't look like that." She tried to laugh, but instead winced; the muscles around her cheeks hurt from her jaw clenching so hard on her orange shirt.

"Still, Naruto, I'm sorry for what you have to endure." Using his sleeves to wipe the sweat off his face, he sighed. "You'll have to hide that seal―though I don't think you can from your parents, though."

"Oh…" Naruto touched the mark on her forehead; the color of dried blood, it took on the shape of what seemed to be a triangle with a circle inside, a line slashing over both. "Does it look weird?" she smiled sheepishly; her muscles seemed to have loosened.

He chuckled, ruffling and not minding her damp hair. "I'd say it looks… unusual."

"Same thing as weird, Jijii."

He laughed now, a fond smile on his face. "You should call me that more. It makes me feel human." She raised a brow, before grinning.

"I'll insult you all I want then!"

"Ah, no, Naruto, I've never said that…"

"Naruto! Wake up!"

Said girl shot straight up from her desk, noticed that she was in the classroom and laughed as she scratched the back of her head sheepishly. "Sorry, Sensei!"

The class giggled and laughed at her antics, while the man only sighed. "It's only been half a year since you entered the academy, yet you're already slacking off!" He frowned, "I do hope you're preparing properly for the exams, Naruto."

"But Sensei," she whined, "that's like, another six months away!" Her classmates hooted and shouted in agreement, Mika and Kippei the loudest in particular.

It had been that long, and Jiraiya has yet to return; the mission had a few miscalculations, and his spy network had a few problems. He should be back around now, though, to Naruto and the Hokage's relief.

"Quiet!" The chuunin yelled, silencing the room immediately. "Yes, it's another six months away, but it is what decides your future holds! The better you do, the more likely you'll get a better team sensei!"

"Hai, Sensei…" She sat back down, yawning. Kakashi stared at her in distain.

"Do you not care about your grades?"

"Of course I do," she began, drawing a stickman figure. "But I'm not worried; I'm confident I'll get a good score on the exams even without trying to shove books in my head." She then proceeded to add hair, a moustache, and a beard. To him, they looked like mere scribbles.

"Well, at least your drawings are getting decent." He wrinkled his nose, "still sucks though."

"Why, thank you." Naruto rolled her eyes, before writing an arrow and 'the jerk sitting next to me' next to the drawing.

Kakashi scoffed, and ruined her masterpiece by scribbling all over it. "You're welcome."

She was about to shout in indignation, but noticed the teacher glaring at them. Plastering a smile she waved, and pretended to write notes vigorously into her book.

Peeking up, she noticed he sighed and went back to the blackboard, and turned to Kakashi, "You nearly got us in trouble!"

"I nearly got you in trouble."

"He would have known you were partly to blame anyways."

"But to him it would look like you're the one pestering me, wouldn't it? That's the truth, after all."

Naruto glared, but he did have a point. She sighed, before her mind drifted back to the seal she had hidden underneath some bandage, saying it was a cut she got from training alone. But she needed to find a new cover up soon; a cut would heal, and that would also mean she'll lose her excuse for hiding the mark from her parents. What should I say then? She slowly frowned in thought, before rubbing the bridge of her nose tiredly. I've been doing too much thinking.

She stared outside through the window at the birds. Lucky them. Flying so freely without a care in the world, she scowled, while I'm cooped up here drowning in my thoughts.

"Everyone, come down here and work on your Bunshin. I hope you all were paying attention."

Naruto frowned. Bunshin? She raised her hand. "Sensei!"

He raised a brow, "Yes Naruto?"

"Um, I know how to do the cloning jutsu, but I have some… conditions that prevent me from actually doing it."

Kakashi turned back to her, silently questioning. Now that he looked back on it, she always did use the solid versions of the Bunshin jutsu. He watched the teacher's bemused face, before sighing. "Sensei, her version's different from the normal one. I've seen it many times before, and as much as I hate to admit it, it's a lot more effective." He grumbled, wondering why he was even helping her explain. "She probably picked it up outside of Konoha."

The girl whipped her head back at him with wide eyes, before a grin settled on her face. He turned away stubbornly, glaring at nothing in particular as the chuunin nodded. "Very well, Naruto, come down and show us your Bunshin jutsu first."

Hopping down, though a little pressured by the stares and whispers, she stopped next to the desk so both the class and the teacher can see her properly. A grin stretched her face, and she formed her favorite hand seal. "Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"

The man's eyes widened, "Wait―"

Two clones appeared in front of her, perfect and in different poses from their original. The teacher's mouth opened and closed, not quite able to say anything as he walked up to them. He reached a hand out to their shoulder, before recoiling in shock. "That's―how do you know the Kage Bunshin?" He took a deep breath, trying to get in his head that a five year old was able to conduct such a jutsu. "It's―it's forbidden for the amount of chakra it needs, Naruto!"

"Yeah, that's why I can only do about ten." She laughed, "For some reason, I can't perform the basic clone technique." Well, she can because of the numerous chakra exercises she practiced, but it wouldn't last very long.

"Does Hokage-sama know about this?" Now there were small, confused whispers from the students as they watched their teacher internally freak out.

"Yep."

"Alright, dispel your clones and get back to your seat."

Naruto was about to shrug and do so, before a brilliant plan popped in her mind. The clones seemed to understand the smirk she sent them, before one stood behind the other. The copy at the front popped away, and the cloud covered the left over clone and creator. Wasting no time, the original Naruto disappeared via Body Flicker, leaving her copy behind to parade as her.

Nonchalantly, it bounced back to her desk.

Naruto smirked as she landed right outside her classroom. Crouching, she crawled outside so she wouldn't be seen through the windows and headed for the exit of the building.

Its official, she thought with a smirk, I'm a genius. She frowned, jumping over the gates as she pondered on what to do. If I go too far, the clone I left would pop away.

Blinking, she grinned; of course. Training!

She headed for the river, making sure she avoided being found out by using various illusions over herself, of course. Naruto rolled up her knee-length pants once reaching there, and hopped onto the water surface. I might as well run the whole line. And, of course, with a little trick.

Applying chakra to also her muscles, she took off.

Halfway through her training, Naruto noticed a familiar brown-haired boy walking not too far away from her, and her brows furrowed in confusion. What was Genma doing there?

Remembering that the trio she was familiar with wasn't at class, she grinned. They're skipping now are they? She hopped off of her jogging route and landed soundlessly on the grass. I guess I'll see where he's going. Most likely to meet up with Shizuka and Mika.

Sneakily she followed him, eyeing the alley walls she now crept in warily before jumping on them. Just where is he going? Maybe it was the three's own little 'hideout' of sorts that she shouldn't enter?

Well, I followed him all the way here, so I don't think I can back out now, she reasoned, and continued to crawl on the wall. A grin full of mischief crept up her face. Maybe she can mess with him a little bit?

Climbing up higher in precaution, she took out a crumpled note in her pocket. Grabbing a pencil from her pouch, she crossed out the previous words before writing, 'I'm watching you.' Crushing it to a ball, she threw it to his feet hard.

He started, looking back before down at it and picking it up. He stared at it, glanced back once more, before unfolding it.

He whipped his head back and looked around, eyes wide. Naruto grinned, knowing that he wouldn't look up at her. Genma frowned, shrugged, and tossed the note away nonchalantly.

Naruto felt slightly nostalgic as she stalked the boy. She would skip school and walk around town freely back when she was in her academy all the time. Though not so often, Shikamaru, Chouji and Kiba would go with her when they were bored enough. A memory of the three brought a small laugh out of her lips.

Despite it not being very loud, Genma heard it sharp and clear, and his head shot up. His eyes found her wide ones and blinked in surprise, before a smirk was on his lips. "Oops," was all she could utter.

"I never knew you stalked people, Naruto."

Blushing in embarrassment, she glared weakly. "I'm not stalking you! I was just wondering what you were up to…"

"Well, I can see you're up on a wall." He said incredulously. "How did you get up there?"

"Oh, this?" Naruto grinned proudly, "Ain't it awesome? I can walk up here as long as I―" her feet lost contact with the wall with a loud 'pop.' "Gyah!"

A grunt of pain was released, but it wasn't hers. Realizing she wasn't hurt as she expected, Naruto peeked, before her blue eyes widened immediately.

She all but jumped off of Genma, before going in a frenzy, "Gah―Genma, I'm so sorry! I didn't―I didn't mean to fall on you!" She fussed all over him and helped the boy sit up.

"For a small girl, you sure are heavy…"

"Blame gravity!" She growled, cheeks flaming.

"I'm kidding." He rolled his eyes, and shoved his hand in front of her expectantly.

Naruto took a moment to understand. "Oh!" She grabbed it and pulled him up to his feet. "Sorry."

"It's fine," he sighed, before patting the dust off his pants. "So are you coming with me?"

"Yeah! I don't have anything else to do." Naruto grinned, hopping next to him. "Where're you heading?"
"Nowhere in particular. I'm just killing time."

"Eh? I thought you were going to meet up with the others."

"You mean Shizuka and Mika?" At her nod, he waved his hand dismissively. "Mika's sick, and I think Shizuka has some family business or something."

"Oh. I thought they were skipping like us."

"Anyways, come on."

They had settled on a bridge over the river, where not many people cross. "You're going to buy your lunch?"

Naruto blinked as she looked up from her wallet, before smiling at Genma. "Yeah, my parents had an early mission so they couldn't make my lunch. And they said that everything but the microwave and fridge in the kitchen is off limits."

As she skipped to the convenience store, Naruto pondered. The clone she made hadn't popped away despite her being so far; she knew that because she didn't have a memory rush. Maybe she had pushed in more chakra in that clone? Shrugging, she put on a henge and entered the shop.

When she got back, Genma raised a brow before sighing exasperatedly. "Weren't you only going to buy an onigiri and drink?"

Naruto held a rice ball, a packet of chips, two cans of grape flavored Fanta, and two melonpans in both arms. "I thought you'd want to share…" She pouted, "You don't want any? I bought the drink for you too."

"I like grape…"

"Great!" She beamed, before putting everything down and throwing him his can, which he caught with ease. "Nice catch."

He merely nodded, before pointedly staring at something behind her. She followed his gaze, before scrambling to her feet to catch her rolling away drink.

It fell in the river with a plop. She jumped over, making Genma's eyes round in shock, "Oi!"

He jumped and leaned over the bridge's red handle, before letting a breath out in relief. "You should tell me you can walk on water before you do something like that."

"Heh, sorry 'bout that! But you should have warned me earlier rather than just staring!"

When they settled down Naruto suddenly grinned. At Genma's raised brow, she explained. "You know, you're a lot like Kakashi, though a whole lot nicer and stuff."

"… How am I supposed to take that as?"
"Compliment. You're much better than him in terms of sociality."

He hummed monotonously, staring at nothing in particular, before saying, "You're pretty good with words. You don't sound like a five year old at all."
"Thank you." Naruto grinned, biting into her onigiri.

"You're around him a lot. Doesn't his personality bother you?"

"Foo, Gagahi?"She asked through a full mouth. He nodded, before she gulped down her food. "Sometimes, but when I retort back so does he, so it's all good. Better than when he's all silent and gloomy, y' know?"

"… You're thoughtful."

"I know, I'm a kind soul, aren't I?" She boasted, laughing at herself.

He nodded, almost as if because he was expected to. Resting his head on his palm, elbow on knee, he stared at her, and looked to be in deep thought.

"What?"

"I've thought about this before, but you should be glad you're wordy."

Naruto's brows furrowed in confusion, and she asked, "Why?"

"Because you would have seemed like an idiot if you weren't."

They got back when lunch time had just started, and Naruto looked for her clone while staying out of the other students' sight. There I am! She saw it head for the toilets. Perfect timing. She Body Flickered at the corner nearby it, looked around, and entered in after the clone. She dispelled it, saw flashes of Kakashi stuffing insults to her head, and stormed off.

Naruto ran into the boys' bathroom door and fell back, clutching her nose in pain.

"What are you doing, Kamaboko?"
Her eyes snapped open at the nickname and voice, groaning at the sight of the boy who she was just cursing a mere moment ago. "Kakashi! Don't just suddenly open the door like that!"

He held out his hand for her to grab it reluctantly. "It's your fault for not seeing where you're going, Usuratonkachi."

His eyes flashed at the blood gushing out from her wound, and they looked directly in hers with anger and… worry? Was he worried for her? "Don't be so reckless, Usuratonkachi!"

Her eyes widened at the familiar insult. Slapping his hand away, she snarled, "Don't say that!" She stood up, glared at him once more, and stalked off.

Kakashi raised a brow. Did he strike a nerve? By using a name like 'Usuratonkachi'?

"What's up with her?"

Elsewhere, Naruto sulked on a tree branch, using a kunai to scratch marks on the bark. Knowing him, the blonde was sure he would start using the same nickname because it affected her so much. I'm an idiot; "Just like what Genma told me."

"Naruto?" A quiet girl's voice startled her. She moved behind her and looked down.

"Oh, Shizuka! I thought you were absent today?"

"Yeah, but my father made me go after we settled some things. What did Genma tell you?"

"That I would look like an idiot if it weren't for my great vocabulary."

"… That's not true."

"Oh yeah? Then why'd you hesitate there, huh?" Naruto grumbled, "I know you agree with him!"

The Hyuuga hummed thoughtfully, before staring up at the younger girl's face. "But still," She began, took a small chunk of her rice with her chopsticks. "It's rare for him to tease someone," Shizuka didn't elaborate, and chomped on her lunch.

"Huh?" The blonde scoffed, "He seems like the type to bully someone with just a few words."

"No, usually he would just listen and not talk to the people he likes or cares about."

"What if he doesn't like me? What if, deep, deep down inside, he actually hates me?"

"No, that's impossible. We all―including the class―think of you as a little sister. Kippei seems to like you since you help him and Mika set pranks on the teacher." She smiled softly, "I think Genma just treats you differently because he couldn't help it."

Naruto blushed, looking down at her fidgeting fingers. "Oh…" She trailed off, before wearing a thankful grin, "You're like an awesome older sis, Shizuka-chan!"

The girl giggled, bringing her hand up and signaled for the other to come down. Curiously, Naruto obliged, jumping down using chakra to cushion her fall. "I've always wanted a little sister," the Hyuuga admitted softly, and the blue eyes widened as she planted a kiss on the blonde's forehead.

Naruto touched it, and gazed up at Shizuka's rare wide smile.

Mika growled, "There's a pervert spying on the women's side!"

"Eh―What…" Naruto stared up at the tall man in absolute shock. She had recognized that white hair outside the bathhouse and knew who it was. The location another dead giveaway. "Oh, so now he appears?" She sighed, looking back at her older friend apologetically. "You can go home first."

"Eh, Naruto, you know that person…?"

"Sadly, yes I do."

"Oh… well, good luck with him."

The blonde forced a laugh as she waved her friend off, "Yeah, see ya tomorrow." She turned to the man peeking through a hole on the wood. "Hey, you!" She growled, making him snap to her in surprise. "Whaddya think you're doing!"

"Hmm… a girl who looks like Minato and Kushina put together, eh?" Jiraiya smirked, "So you're the little squirt the old man was desperate for me to see."

Naruto didn't say anything, eyeing him warily. He chuckled, rubbing his chin thoughtfully as he surveyed her. "The similarities are shocking… Are you their daughter? I never knew they had―"

"No, I'm not." She rushed, before tugging at his clothes, "Come on. We have to get to Jijii's office quickly."

"Alright, alright, no need to be so anxious." He raised a brow, "There's nothing wrong with you is there?"

"Yes, there is something horribly wrong with me. So come on, you pervy sage."

"Wha―"
"No time to explain, Ero-sennin." Naruto grinned as she walked in front of him, not showing her old mentor the pure joy she was experiencing at seeing him again.

"Gah! Kids have no respect these days do they?"

She raised a brow, "Why'd you take so long anyways?"

"Classified, especially from brats like you, kid."

"The name's Naruto."

"Hmph. How would I know that? My name's Jiraiya, the Great Toad Sage!" He had already pulled away from her and, before she knew it, gotten into his dramatic pose, arms raised and fingers outstretched. "Remember the name and remember it well!"

"Yeah, yeah, Ero-sennin, I already knew all that."

"… You're never going to drop that nickname are you?"

And so, Jiraiya appears~

How was this chapter? I was trying to add some bonding with the characters. Feedback would be awesome!

Thank you to the people who took the time to review! I'm glad people enjoy what I write :D I tried to balance the last chapter and I'm happy some people found it funny at times TvT Yup, Kakashi's shouldering a lot...

What I'm worried about most is the mini fighting scene in this chapter... Was it bad? Horrible? Absolutely boring? I have no confidence when it comes to fighting scenes...

Well, this chapter was pretty long O.O I didn't think I could write so much in just a few days... Anways, please inform me of any minor or major mistakes I've made! I have a feeling I'm missing out something, but I might just be paranoid ^^"

Edit: Ugh, something went wrong and I only realized it after posting this chapter up. Some of the sentences were messed up, and I think I fixed most of them but I might have missed some. Please tell me if you spot something off or anything!