Naruto was paying rapt attention to the teacher today. At first, his behaviour had caused many side glances to be thrown at him, but eventually, the rest of the second-years decided that it was just Naruto being Naruto.

Of course, Naruto had his own motivation: if he did well in school, the Kyuubi had promised to tell him about his family! Naturally, he still hated that damn fox for all it had done, but it was worth it if he could just get a glimpse of his parents, a sister-anything!

And so, when Naruto had a question, instead of shouting out loudly, trying to get noticed, he had whispered his questions to Hinata, who would ask for him-and, of course, the teachers would all answer Hinata.

It came as a surprise to everyone when Naruto's written grades shot up from dead last to sixth place when they took their second-to-last normal test before the final exam; only behind Sakura, Hinata, Sasuke, and three others that Naruto didn't know. Even the teachers picked up on this, and decided that since Naruto was apparently a scholar now, they would criticize him over every small error, any errant twitch of the pencil, any lapse in concentration. The idea was to make school so hard on him that he just gave up-after all, if they pressured him, overloaded him with information, and made him unable to keep up with their level of learning, he would flunk and fail.

Naruto promptly gave them a psychological middle finger by getting second place on the last test of the year, five days before the second-year final exam.

Of course, the teachers still accused him of trickery, and kept his grades intentionally low. Nobody bothered to point out that the whole point of being a ninja was to do anything to complete the mission, regardless of tactics used.

Of course, he would still shout and pitch fits and play pranks, but only outside of school. When he was inside the walls of the Academy, it was like he was a different person.

And Naruto didn't even notice the hateful glares anymore. He was going to get to learn about his family! Even if he hated that damn fox, he wasn't going to let himself feel angry at all, since there was nothing to be angry about. He expected to hear back from the fox on the day of the final exam.

That was why it was a surprise when, in the middle of the day, after Naruto had just finished discreetly placing a "kick me" sign on a random villager's back, he heard a voice. "Runt, it's time."

Naruto nearly tripped and gave himself away to the civilian, but caught his balance and immediately set a course for home, to maybe try and get back to that sewer place that was his mind and speak face-to-face. "Stupid fox, the school year isn't over yet! It's not time yet!" He thought out loud. It was a weird concept, he admitted-that is, thinking things to say them-but it wasn't anything that Naruto couldn't handle. After all, he WAS going to be the most badass ninja ever.

"Your meaningless human education system holds no meaning to The Lord of Demons. I only needed proof that you could improve, should you put effort into it. Look, you haven't even changed your abysmal training schedule at all, and you've already become a rather smart being-for a human, that is. In this week alone, I've gained about a twentieth of a tail's worth of spiritual chakra-that is more than I received over the course of last year."

Naruto scowled. "But-"

"I am the most powerful of the tailed beasts. Your argument is invalid." Ok, so that fox was still arrogant. Good to know things hadn't changed, Naruto thought wryly. "Go to one of the training grounds. I want to talk to you about terms of enlightenment." And still bossy, apparently.

Naruto frowned. "Englightenment? What's that?"

The Kyuubi conveyed a feeling of annoyance and displeasure over their mental link. "Your training, idiot, the subject matter that I'm going to teach you. I've been thinking about under what conditions I actually give you instruction."

Naruto wasn't sure whether to shout at it for calling him an idiot or thank it for thinking about his proposal. Either way, he went to the nearest training field, which was close to the village walls, away from everyone else. He stood in the middle of he field, feeling like an idiot just standing there. "Now what?"

"Now, we talk."

Naruto felt a little surprised at how civil his prisoner was sounding, but wasn't about to complain. "Ok. Wasn't the deal you teach me cool justus and stuff in order to raise my chances of living, and in return you tell me about my family?"

"It's more complicated than that, boy. I want more."

Naruto felt the anger rising in his chest. "I'm not releasing you, if that's what you want!"

The Kyuubi mentally snorted. "That's not it. There are a few things that I want. While freedom is one of them, it's obvious that I'm not going to get it any time soon. So, I'll settle for all of the others."

"And that would be?"

"I want my former glory returned to me: my power, my reputation, and most importantly, bloodlust."

Naruto couldn't help but question that last one. It seemed so out of place with the other two. He asked the Kyuubi to elaborate.

"I want you to kill any opponent you meet who is explicitly your enemy." Naruto's eyes nearly popped out of his head. "It is a reasonable request. I do not expect you to kill your friends, and I do not expect you to go all out against someone who concedes to you. But if you defeat someone, and they do not beg for mercy, you WILL kill them. Otherwise, our deal is null and void."

Naruto hesitated. That was a moral quandary that he hadn't expected to run into so soon-at least until he was out of the academy. He knew killing was part of the job, but it hasn't seemed real to him. It would probably seem even more real when he was actually about to do it, he realized with a start. Of course he'd be killing when he became a ninja, but he never thought about it in terms of taking another man's life. "Brat, do you want me to tell you about your family or not?"

Well, family outweighed complete strangers. That decided that. "Fine, I agree. What about your power and reputation?"

"Power is something I already explained to you. I want my tails to recover, so that I may return to the peak of my strength. That is inherent in you accepting my training. But the third may be the most difficult for you to accept: I want you to establish yourself as my disciple, publicly."

If Naruto had been in his mindscape at the time, he would've done a double-take at the fox. "What? What does that mean?!"

"Become the demon in human form that everyone thinks you are, at least on the field of battle." The Kyuubi sounded both dramatic and proud, with a note of longing in its voice. "I was the bane of existence itself, the most powerful of any demon to walk the earth. I did not leave any trace of existence in my wake. I had the touch of Death, almost literally..." The Kyuubi trailed off for a moment, probably remembering some of his more potent carnages. "Then, long ago, I was sealed into a human, and every time I escaped, there would be another to take its place. It has been nearly four hundred years since I have been in my own body for any significant amount of time, and people have forgotten my true potential for destruction."

Naruto felt a pang of sympathy for the beast-if the people had just given him a chance to try, a chance to grow, he would prove that he COULD be the Godaime, or the Rokudaime. Just like the Kyuubi, his potential was being squandered due to fear of what he could become. The only difference between the two was that the Kyuubi wanted to use its power for destruction, while Naruto wanted to use his power to protect.

Then, the moment passed and Naruto realized just how much of an asshole he was dealing with. "But what does that have to do with me?" Naruto asked.

"Make it known that you received your power from me. When your name is written in history books, even bingo books, make one of the reasons for it being there the sheer destruction you bring to your enemies, and make it well known that you were gifted with the power of the nine-tailed fox."

Naruto was more than a little hesitant. He wanted to be remembered for protecting his friends (once he made some), for protecting the village (once he became Hokage). He didn't want to be known for destroying all he touched. "But you won't have to," the fox interjected after reading his thoughts once more. "Protect your friends by crushing your enemies. You won't be able to become allies with everyone, and you won't be able to protect everyone if you show mercy!"

The Kyuubi's words stung, but Naruto could see a grain of truth in them. But... Something about them just didn't sit right with his view of the world. Even if the fox was a little bit right, to hell if he was going to agree with what it said. "Maybe you're right that I can't protect everyone. And maybe you're right that I can't be everyone's friend. But not trying is worse than trying and failing, cause you never gave the guy a chance to become your friend in the first place!" Naruto waited for an angry outburst from the fox, but it never came. Encouraged by the lack of a retort, Naruto continued. "If I try to make friends with someone and succeed, I have a new friend. If I try and fail, then I'm no further than my goal from when I started. I'll destroy my enemies, fine. But not before I try to convince them that they're wrong!"

Naruto had said the last part out loud, and was breathing a little hard, his mind preparing itself for the Kyuubi's anger. But it never came. "Fine. Those are terms I can work with. Just remember: We have a contract now, an oath that is sealed by the unseen forces that be. I will be your sensei, your teacher. I will tell you about your family. And you will spread my reputation. You will help me regain my power. You will satisfy my bloodlust in my place. Are these terms agreeable to you, boy?"

Naruto nodded.

"Then let's start with the basic stuff. Sit down on the ground, so we can talk. Later, you'll learn how to visit your mindscape, where I reside."

Naruto frowned angrily. "You said you would train me! If I just wanted to talk, I would have just forced you to listen to me! And we had just started, too!"

"Nobody could force me to do anything, brat. And knowing what to do is just as important as doing it. If you don't know what you're doing, you won't be able to do it. Do you understand that?"

Naruto nodded sourly. He really wanted to learn how to kick someone's ass... "How long is this gonna take? I have a bunch of pranks I want to do in my free time." It wasn't as if he valued the pranks more than the training, but he didn't want to burn himself out or get tired of it.

The Kyuubi laughed harshly. "What free time?"

Naruto frowned, confused. "Well, after I get out of the academy, I'll-"

"I said," the Kyuubi interrupted angrily. "WHAT free time?" And Naruto understood. He was going to train day in and day out, all summer long. Of course, that didn't mean he liked it-he could still burn himself out if he wasn't careful. The Kyuubi seemed to have read his thoughts again, because it said, "My regeneration abilities will make sure you don't suffer any internal damage from training. Your only limits are your stamina, which has been augmented by my mere presence, and your will to continue. Tell me, Naruto, do you have a weak will?"

Naruto's fist automatically clenched at the implication that he was weak, and scowled. "What's first on your list?"

"For starters, you need to learn how to make use of the enhanced senses that my presence grants you."

"Huh?"

"Enhanced senses, boy, every demon has them. We hear more, our eyesight is sharper, our sense of smell is stronger, and so on. For example, allow me to force some of my chakra to your eyes."

Naruto frowned. "How am I supposed to do that? Chakra control is something you start to learn in third year."

The Kyuubi nearly laughed. This was the limit of Naruto's intelligence? The beast could've sworn that its host was smarter than that, especially after last week. "All you need to do is create a bit of chakra from your stamina-you know how to do that, right? I'll take it from there."

Naruto did as he was told...

And suddenly every color was a thousand times more vivid than they had been a moment ago. Naruto actually had to shut his eyes for a few seconds due to sensory overload. "Holy shit! This is so cool!" And it was. His eyes saw everything in much sharper detail, and the contrast between colors was much sharper. That also meant that Naruto could see farther-because of the contrast, the horizon seemed to fade away at a further point in the distance, and he could make out more shapes in detail before the horizon line. "Heh, this is how I see things NORMALLY, boy. I don't even need to actively try to see what you're seeing." There was a not-so-subtle hint of pride in the fox's voice.

"This is amazing!" Naruto felt overwhelmed with awe, unable to do anything else other than simply LOOK. It was as if there was a veil in front of his face that the Kyuubi had suddenly lifted, and the world was new again. The Kyuubi allowed Naruto to revel in his newfound ability for only the barest of moments before growing bored and speaking up. "If I focus a little bit MORE of my chakra to your eyes, you'll be able to see chakra signatures."

Naruto blinked. "Really? Let me see it!" So the Kyuubi did.

And Naruto saw. He could now see faint glows of all colors all around him-the signatures of thousands of tiny insects and somewhat small animals in the trees. But the most surprising thing was the faint green glow that seemed to emanate from the entire landscape. When questioned, the Kyuubi responded, "It's the plants, boy," as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

Naruto frowned. "But I thought only humans and animals had chakra."

He was rewarded for the remark by a pounding headache, when the Kyuubi slammed itself against the cage bars in his mind. "Fool! Anything that lives has chakra. It is a fallacious assumption to assume something is true merely because it looks that way on the surface! Anyone worth existing must learn to look underneath the surface, and truly transcendent beings must learn to see what lies beneath even that!"

Naruto scratched his head, trying to banish the pain. "Ok, ok, fine, I was wrong. Did you feel the need to do that?"

"Anything that causes you pain is necessary, so long as it is not unwarranted."

Naruto scowled and returned to watching the world. "Hey, fox, what's that light brown glow the trees have that the rest of the plants don't?"

"A wood release. With one notable exception, only plants can have it."

Naruto's head tilted to the side. "A wood release? I've never heard of it before. What does it do?"

"Boy, it allows you to control wood." The Kyuubi spoke in a patronizing voice that made Naruto mad. Good. If Naruto were mad, he would listen to the fox more and more. "Don't bother trying to learn how to use it; it's impossible to do. You would need the bloodline of Hashirama Senju." Naruto felt his vision blur a little, and the colors all faded. Apparently, the Kyuubi was done teaching him how to use demon sight. "I fought him once before, and for a human, he is nothing to scoff at."

Naruto wondered how strong the wood release had to be in order to put such pressure on such a great fox, but then the name caught him. Senju... Wasn't that the surname name of the first and second Hokages? "Hey, fox, can you-"

"No. I do not talk about that man. I despise him, for he was trying to destroy hatred. He cannot change human nature, and as long as humans exist, so will hate."

"But-" Naruto tried to prod the fox a little more, but the demon was done talking.

"Enough. Practice channeling chakra to your eyes. I will not always be willing to expend my own chakra to give you the sight, so you must learn how to do it on your own. It takes practice to do hold the technique without thinking about it, so I'll continue your training tomorrow. I'll be instructing you on the various nuances of this skill, how to control the intensity of your gaze. Then, the day after that, we begin chakra control training. I will not be able to instruct you in taijutsu until you have found yourself a partner, so make finding one of those the priority of your academy time."

Naruto frowned. "But how would they react to knowing about you? I don't want people to look at me and see YOU. How can I tell anyone without making them hate me?"

The Kyuubi snorted. "That's your problem, boy, not mine." And with that, the fox withdrew itself into Naruto's mind.

That left Naruto in a dilemma, which involved what to do for the rest of the afternoon. He was hoping the Kyuubi would have told him what to do. He slowly thought, placing his hand on his chin and thinking. He guessed the fox would tell him when it was good and ready. Now... What did the fox say about chakra? Channel it to your eyes? Sounded simple enough... Except, it took Naruto seven tries before he actually managed to get results. When his vision enhanced itself, Naruto felt himself go giddy. That was actually the first jutsu he had performed before, seeing as they were only just being taught how to mold chakra, and hadn't learned any of the seals necessary for the "Academy Three," as they were called-Henge, Clone, and Kawarimi.

After the moment for letting himself feel like the badass he was, Naruto released his hold on the sight and began to practice turning the eyes on and off. He did that for the rest of the afternoon.

Five hours and tons of training later, Naruto collapsed onto his bed, sighing in satisfaction. For once, he actually felt tired-he realized that such an eye technique was probably really draining on his chakra, and he had been turning it on and off for hours, trying to get used to it. It must be impossible for someone with low chakra reserves, he thought. He grinned-just another way he was badass, he supposed.

"Hey Kyuubi?" No response. "Thanks for doing this. I mean, if you just left it at an eye technique, that would have been enough, but you're gonna be teaching me so many cool jutsus, I don't even think I'll be able to thank you properly later on." Still no response. Naruto continued. "I'm not sure how I'll be able to do that eye trick without concentrating really hard, but it's cool. And you know what? I think you're a pretty cool guy for showing it to me."

Naruto didn't really expect the fox to respond, as it was supposed to be taking a nap, so he rolled over and went to sleep.

Deep within the recesses of his mind, the fox smiled just a bit at the praise.

Two weeks later

Naruto wasn't particularly worried about the final exam for the second-years. A mere two weeks ago, he would be scared out of his mind, but since he tried pulling himself together, he found that he actually KNEW stuff. Apparently, listening in class made the teachers hate him just a little bit less! Could you imagine?

Not only that, but Naruto found the Demon Sight to be invaluable during the exam, and he wasn't above using it to see what Sasuke-teme was writing on his exam, five rows up. Of course, Naruto wasn't stupid, contrary to popular belief, so he purposely left various questions blank in order to make himself believable. Granted, the teachers would still accuse him of cheating, but without proof, they wouldn't be able to hold him back.

Naruto sighed with contentment as he dropped his pencil and raised his hand, indicating he was done.

One of the instructors-Mizuki-raised an eyebrow at the whisker-marked boy, but took the paper without complaint. "Fine. Leave the room; we don't want you causing trouble for the people who are actually trying."

Naruto stuck his tongue out at the man, but did as he was told, going out and fully intending to run straight to Ichiraku's for a quick snack of three bowls. At least, that was the plan, until Naruto felt two hands grab him and push him up against a wall.

When Naruto regained his orientation, he saw Sasuke, a suspicious look in his eyes. "Oh, Sasuke-teme. What do you want?"

The look in the boy's eyes seemed to grow harder. "Who's your teacher?"

Naruto froze up for just a moment before he pushed the Uchiha away. "What's it to ya, teme?" He asked, feigning anger-which wasn't hard, since the sight of the Uchiha generally made his blood boil anyways. "Why do you think I have a teacher? Even if I did, I wouldn't tell you!"

Sasuke growled. "Don't play games with me, Dobe! I've seen your improvement! The instructors might have everyone else fooled because they keep your grades low, but not me. My eyes see everything."

Naruto paused to appreciate the irony in Sasuke-teme's statement before responding. "Fine, I have a teacher, but I'm not telling you anything about him."

Sasuke growled slightly. "I WILL learn about your teacher, and I have two months to do so. Someone who can actually help YOU must be someone of immeasurable talent. Imagine what they could do for someone who's worth it."

Naruto swung wildly at Sasuke. "Say that to my face!"

Sasuke hn'd. "I just did... But, this isn't the place for a fight. Meet me at training ground thirty-two as soon as you can. If I win, you tell me about your teacher."

Naruto briefly considered it. There was no way he would lose to such a bastard, anyways, but this was a secret he couldn't afford to give up. "What's in it for me?"

Sasuke let loose a conceited grin. "If you win, I'll consent to let you train with me sometimes."

Naruto paused for a moment. To an onlooker, it may have seemed like Naruto was genuinely interested, and Sasuke's grin turned triumphant as a result, but it was for a completely different reason.

'You want me to WHAT?!' Naruto thought furiously to the Kyuubi.

"Throw the match. Tell him about me. He's a worthy sparring partner; I've seen his style. And the stronger your sparring partner, the more beneficial it is to both of us. Additionally, it will be good practice in case you ever need to kill any Uchihas in the future."

Naruto thought for a second. "Isn't Sasuke-teme the last of them?"

"No." And the Kyuubi refused to elaborate any more.

Naruto internally growled, but outside he managed to keep a composed and thoughtful look. Sasuke tapped his foot impatiently. "Well, Dobe?"

"Shut up, I'm thinking, Teme!" Naruto snapped. After a brief moment, he nodded his head. "Fine. But don't think I'm gonna lose, bastard!"

Sasuke turned and began to walk away. Over his shoulder, he called, "As soon as you can, Dobe! And make sure you remember everything you can. I'm gonna enjoy learning what your teacher knows."

Naruto failed to respond, only because he was otherwise engaged. "I'm not throwing the match, you know. I'm gonna beat that bastard down before I tell him about you."

The Kyuubi snorted. "Either way, it'll speed up your training. I merely wished for you to tell him the burden you carry, so that you are not alone... It's detrimental to your mind, and therefore your spiritual chakra, no matter how much physical chakra you have. Additionally, you are unable to learn my envisioned taijutsu style without a partner, and to become the best, you must train with the best. And that is detrimental to me." Privately, the fox was reluctant to praise the thrice-blasted Uchiha, but he needed Naruto at his best, or there wouldn't be nearly enough blood for his liking later on. The farsighted pursuits took precedence over ephemeral hatreds, and it wasn't as if the Uchiha was going to live for that long, anyways.

Naruto couldn't help a comment. "It almost sounds like you care about me, Mr. I-shall-destroy-the-village."

The Kyuubi was silent for just a small moment. It had only been a couple of days. Surely the boy hadn't reached a point where he could openly make light of a huge threat to the village, had he? It made the Kyuubi angry-how dare this boy mock the killing intent of the great nine-tails?! In an attempt to avoid looking ill-composed, the Kyuubi adopted its favorite non-angry tone of voice: snide. "You doubt my abilities?"

Naruto chuckled a bit, grinning confidently. "Not at all. I just think you wouldn't do it. Nobody is pure evil; there's always at least a kernel of good somewhere. Some day, I intend to draw that out."

The Kyuubi snorted derisively. "Brat, I am literally 75-25 split of chakra and hatred. That doesn't leave any room for good in me. If you want to test my resolve, why don't you come in here and rip that seal off my cage?"

Naruto didn't fall for the taunt, and instead opted to bring up another subject: Food. "You know, I'd say we could keep the bastard waiting for an hour, don't you think? And one hour leaves us time for some ramen before we meet up. Any preferences?"

The Kyuubi decided to close off the link, with a few parting words. "Do I sound like I care?" And then it was gone.

Naruto began walking off the grounds. "Alright then, Miso Pork it is!"

Sasuke Uchiha was not a patient child. Even for a kid only a decade old, he expected getting he wanted, when he wanted it-as he should, obviously, given his family's power and status.

So what was taking that goddamned Dobe so long to show up?!

"Hey, Sasuke-teme! Sorry I'm late!" Obviously, it was Naruto, a fake grin plastered on his face. And he didn't sound sorry to be late at all.

Sasuke didn't want to waste any time. "I see you didn't bring your teacher," he stated bluntly. "Are you backing out?"

Naruto cracked his knuckles. "I could ask you the same question!"

"That doesn't even make any sense! I wasn't supposed to bring anything to begin with. Of course, a dobe like you WOULD forget that."

Naruto growled, obviously angry. "Well I'm sick of seeing you up on your high horse, Teme! Let's get fightin'!"

Sasuke was only too happy to oblige, and initiated conflict.

The last Uchiha charged straight forward, hoping to catch Naruto off-guard, but the blond had reflexes that were over-developed from years of avoiding villager sneak attacks. He dodged under a punch, and returned a low sweeping kick. Sasuke jumped lightly, and tried to grab Naruto's jumpsuit, but Naruto did a quick backflip away, and charged forward, initiating offense as the Uchiha dodged everything Naruto threw at him, easily.

Sasuke had to admit, Naruto was fast, and he had no doubt that the orange idiot could keep it up all afternoon. But what was the use of being durable if you couldn't do anything useful while you lasted?

Sasuke smirked at the thought and was immediately treated to a fist to the face. He scowled and shot a fist out at Naruto's head, and connected as the latter of the two's forward momentum from his attacks lessened the five behind his body. An audible "pop!" was heard, and Sasuke couldn't help but feel immense satisfaction as he saw Naruto on the ground, holding a hand to his nose.

"What's wrong Dobe? Had enough?"

Naruto then removed his hand from his face, revealing a lot of blood, and a completely normal-looking nose.

What?

"I'm just getting started, Teme!" Sasuke froze for a second, and was quickly pushed on the defensive. Of course, he could have obviously taken control of the fight again at any time, but he needed to think, and he couldn't strike and think at the same time.

What had just happened? Sasuke definitely had seen, felt, and heard his fist connect with the inferior child who was valiantly trying to break his guard using such poor taijutsu, so why was his nose fine? And the blood! That couldn't be explained, unless he HAD broken Naruto's nose. So, a healing technique? Sasuke grinned. He would definitely ask Naruto's teacher to teach him that one!

Sasuke could have chosen any number of holes in Naruto's guard to exploit, but arbitrarily chose the one near his gut, knocking the wind out of him, sending him to the ground.

Naruto didn't even pause before getting up again.

Sasuke's perpetual frown (which was only ever replaced by his conceited smile) deepened. How quickly did this healing jutsu of Naruto's work? Did he cast it prior to the fight? If so, he would have to wait until the jutsu wore off... Or, he thought, it was possible to just beat him up so quickly and efficiently, he didn't get a chance to heal until he was already knocked out.

Yes. Sasuke liked that second option very much.

Naruto took a punch to the gut, And as he fell to the ground, he immediately felt the Kyuubi open their link, giving him easier access to his high-speed regeneration. Naruto thanked the fox silently and jumped back up, his quickened healing rate allowing him to ignore the rapidly fading aches in his gut and nose.

It was interesting, actually, fighting Sasuke-teme. The boy was obviously arrogant, and a bastard, and stuck-up, yadda yadda yadda... But something felt different about this fight, as opposed to their countless other schoolyard squabbles. Naruto couldn't tell what.

"It's a fight for pride," the Kyuubi monotoned. "Someone refusing to make themselves known to him, while openly teaching you? It makes his blood boil. He has nothing but his studies left, and he doesn't care enough about anyone else to wonder what his actions do to them."

Naruto faltered in his attack barrage for a moment, and Sasuke scored another direct hit to his right arm, making it feel numb for a moment before the Kyuubi banished the feeling. That was right; Sasuke didn't have a family or friends either. With how stuck-up and bastard-ish he acted all the time, Naruto had nearly forgotten their similar burdens. The difference was that the villagers fed the Uchiha's pride like a hungry infant, crying and screaming when it didn't get what it wanted. Naruto was more like the child who was too malnourished to have the energy to ask for food.

Sasuke pressed his advantage, striking Naruto repeatedly, definitely trying to break bones, and Naruto shook himself out of the Kyuubi-induced reverie just in time to receive an uppercut to the jaw.

Naruto caught himself falling, but heard Sasuke say, "Katon: Goukakyu no Jutsu!"

Naruto swore loudly, almost enough to be heard over the sudden, roaring fireball that was about to envelop him. He looked up just in time to see an orb of red and orange envelop him.

Sasuke smirked as he watched Naruto ignite. Oh, sure, he might be toasted, but he wouldn't die, and he would definitely be out cold after taking an attack like that.

That's when he heard that loud battle cry from inside the fireball, and was more than a little surprised when Naruto shot out of the Katon, looking remarkably like a bat out of hell, fists ready.

Sasuke sidestepped the telegraphed attack and elbowed Naruto's exposed back, slamming him to the ground. He delivered a quick jab to the side of the boy's head, finally keeping him down.

Sasuke watched with mild fascination as Naruto's skin bubbled like boiling water with a faint red glow, completely healing the few second-degree burns Naruto had taken from the Goukakyu. He looked up and began to walk away, wondering what could possibly have possessed someone to teach the Dobe a skill that powerful, yet keep it a secret from him, the last Uchiha!

Sasuke glanced over at Naruto, and found, to his surprise, the boy was sitting up, rubbing his head! "Oooowwww, Sasuke-teme! Why'd you go and hit me that hard? Bastard!"

Sasuke crossed his arms. Secretly, he was impressed; that blow should've kept Naruto down and out for at least five minutes!

... As if he would ever tell the Idiot that. "Hm. As if you could EVER manage to measure up to the power of the Uchiha clan. Now, pay up."

"Why, you..."

"Don't act so surprised. You knew when you made the bet that if you lost, this would happen."

"But I didn't plan on losing!"

"But you did, as you obviously would."

Naruto made an angry face "Why, you..." Really, the Dobe didn't exactly have a large repertoire of comebacks.

Sasuke made an annoyed and apathetic face (yes, at the same time). "Quit stalling," he said.

Naruto suddenly looked very uncomfortable, and Sasuke couldn't help but wonder why. "Well, you see, my teacher, as far as the village is concerned, doesn't exist."

Sasuke tried to work out the possible implications of that. Was the Dobe training by himself? No, too much of an improvement. Was the teacher a civilian? No, too skilled with stamina and speed to be so. Ninja who wasn't on record in Konoha? Maybe...

"Did you accept training from a Missing-nin?!" Sasuke demanded. THAT kind of social stigma would be a little much for the Uchiha.

"NO!" Naruto shouted back, quickly-but not too quickly, Sasuke noted. The boy was telling the truth. "My teacher can ONLY teach me, is what I mean. My sensei only exists in my mind."

Sasuke crossed his arms, not letting his confusion show on his face. "Dobe, you aren't making sense. Are you really as stupid as you look?"

Naruto began to twiddle his thumbs, and Sasuke was off-put by the lack of violent response. "No, but..." Naruto paused and cocked his head to the side, eyes unfocusing. He suddenly scowled. "I'm not stalling! And I'm not trying to get out of it either!"

Sasuke raised an eyebrow. "Dobe, you're not making any sense," he repeated. "Please tell me that there's actually a brain in there. Otherwise, I might never find your teacher."

Naruto suddenly focused on Sasuke, looking almost apprehensive. "I didn't say that out loud, did I?" Without letting the duck-haired boy answer, Naruto continued. "I guess it doesn't matter, though, since I'm about to tell you anyways... The reason you can't meet my teacher is because..." Naruto drew a breath. "Sasuke, my sensei is the Kyuubi no Kitsune."

Naruto held his breath, waiting for Sasuke's response. After a solid three minutes of nothing but Sasuke staring nondescriptly at him, the teme said, in a voice that contained a hint of humour, "So let me get this straight: even with an ancient demon on your side, you still lost to me. My god, you're pathetic." Sasuke's faint grin, for once, didn't seem so mocking anymore.

Naruto's face brightened. "Tem-I mean, Sasuke!"

The Uchiha waved a hand nonchalantly and dropped the grin. "Don't think we're friends, Naruto. Knowing a certain fact about you doesn't change who or what you are, so why should I care? To me, you're still the dead-last loser, and your little passenger doesn't change that. All that's changed is that I know you're going to be getting better, eventually, so I might need to grace you with my presence for a spar every once in a while."

Naruto couldn't believe it. Sasuke was just accepting what he said at face value? And he didn't think any less of him for it?! Granted, it would be hard for the relationship between the two of them to get any worse, but Naruto sure as hell didn't expect it to get BETTER. "You're just gonna believe me, just like that?" He asked, incredulously.

Sasuke shrugged. "No. I had to think about it, first. But, it makes sense. The villagers hate you for a reason that no one knew before now, and it's only the older ones, about twenty-four and older, who are actively hostile to you. That would put them at about twelve or older when the Kyuubi attacked, which is about as old as the average chuunin who would have to have fought the demon fox. Then, we have the Yondaime supposedly killing it, but Iruka-sensei told us in class that only a natural force of nature can kill a demon of any strength, which conflicts with the official story of that night. Additionally, your birthday is the same day as the attack, from what you said that one day in class, so your story matches. Finally, I can't see you being able to think up a lie like that so quickly, not with your limited brainpower. You must either be telling the truth, or think you're telling the truth."

Naruto didn't even care about the insult, and wrapped a very surprised Sasuke in a hug ("Dobe, stop!"). "Sasuke, I knew you couldn't be a bastard ALL the way through!"

Sasuke pulled away, disgusted. "Just because you have a demon, doesn't mean that our bet is off. I want to learn everything it teaches you. Jutsu, abilities, everything."

Naruto nodded. "Right, I'll pass along every lesson I get from it... You know, as soon as it actually teaches me something, that is." Sasuke nodded, apparently satisfied. "And, you'll need to meet me here every Saturday and Monday, so I can learn my taijutsu style. Apparently, the Kyuubi picked up some moves over the years, and I need a partner to test it on."

Sasuke turned on his heel and began walking away. "I suppose I can bear working with you twice a week," he called. "I don't think you'll rub off on me, if I keep my guard up. See you then, Dobe."

Naruto called a goodbye to the retreating figure, and turned his attention inward to the voice he had been ignoring. "Now, Kyuubi, what am I learning today?"

In a tone that suggested that it was extremely happy to have the Uchiha gone, the Kyuubi said, "Right. So, boy, it's about time we started on chakra control. The more control you have, the more jutsu you can do. It lets you create just the right amount of chakra, meaning that you can use more jutsu and not get tired as fast." Naruto nodded, paying rapt attention. "Now, in your case, you will probably never run out of chakra, thanks to me. What you need to learn it for is mostly... Practical reasons."

Naruto tilted his head. "Practical?"

"Yes, brat, that's what I said. You got cotton in your ears? Chakra control gives you abilities that non-ninja would otherwise attribute to deities or spirits. Now, go climb that tree without using your hands."

Naruto fell backwards. "What? That's impossible! Gravity will pull me down!"

The fox sighed. "Not if you focus your chakra to your feet. It acts like an attraction, forcing your feet to stick. But be careful. Too much and you'll crack the bark. Too little and you fall off." The fox snickered. "Fall off a lot so I can laugh at your pain."

Naruto laughed. This wouldn't take him more than a day or two to master... Or so he thought.

It was going to be a long summer.

END CHAPTER 2

Happy thanksgiving, everyone! Alright, here it is, two weeks later, just like I promised. And you'll get another one in another two weeks. To be honest, I forgot that Thanksgiving fell on the 27th-didn't realize I'd be giving you an update today.

Anyways, what'd ya think? Reviews are always nice, and they let me know what the public opinion is, what you guys are thinking, etc…

Anyways, I have a situation that I want your help with: The next pre-written bit I have is nothing but a filler that explains what goes on in the two months that Naruto has off for summer. Alone, that's not a problem. BUT… The next pre-written bit I have after THAT comes after a timeskip to the end of the third year, and I don't want to have filler, followed directly by a timeskip. There's nothing wrong with that, in theory, it just doesn't sit well with my writing style. I don't like doing it.

So, which should I do? Upload the two pre-written bits together and don't worry about it, or upload only the timeskip, and leave out the info-filler? In the end, only my decision will matter, no matter what you say, but I'm unsure at the moment, and a vote would help sway my decision one way or another.

Anyways, anybody like what I did with Sasuke's character? He and Naruto could become friends, never to become enemies! Or, it could set them up for an even bigger falling out. Or maybe it's some third option that no one's ever thought about before! Who knows? Only time will tell.