Well, Johnny strikes again. Hope you liked it so far, because now Naruto and Team 7 are on an A-rank mission.

Uzumaki Naruto was a strong ninja. At 15, he was one of the youngest to be promoted to jonin. Hatake Kakashi had been promoted at 13 and Uchiha Itachi had achieved the feat at the young age of 8. Naruto had already mastered two of the Yondaime Hokage's signature jutsus: Rasengan and Hiraishin no Jutsu. Tsunade knew who she wanted on this mission. Team 7. She'd talk to them tomorrow.

"What are we here for, obaa-chan?" asked the said jonin. Normally Tsunade would have threatened to demote him back to genin, but she was too tired. She settled for sighing miserably, and swigging a bottle of sake. I hope Naruto will be able to handle this, she thought.

"Well…" started the Godaime Hokage, talking to the assembled Team 7, "It's been three years since Orochimaru possessed his last victim. This is our last chance to retrieve Uchiha Sasuke. The base is 50 kilometers north of Suna."

"Well, I'm not gonna waste it," said Naruto. He had wanted to bring back Sasuke for Sakura, but he realized that the teme had been like a brother to him.

"This will be an A-ranked mission. You will definitely meet Orochimaru, Sound-nin and the Uchiha himself. Akatsuki may also strike, seeing as they are after the Kyuubi," said Tsunade.

"Good," said Sakura, "We should take them out, so they can't hurt Naruto-kun or any of us." Naruto had rubbed off on her, through their dating.

"Kakashi is also assigned to this mission," said Tsunade. "He would be a great help," observed Yamato.

"You are to leave tonight at 8:00," said the Godaime. "This is your last chance to retrieve Sasuke."

2 hours after 8:00

"Does Kakashi-sensei always have to be late!" exploded Naruto. "It's enough when he's late for training, but an A-ranked MISSION!!"

"Calm down, Naruto," said Sakura. "Kakashi-sensei always does this. He'll come soon."

"Yeah, you're right," said the fox-boy. "Still, be nice if he was on time."

"Yo!" said a familiar voice.

"KAKASHI-SENSEI! YOU'RE LATE!!" yelled Naruto, frightening a few frogs and crickets into silence.

"I got lost on the road of life," replied the silver-haired jonin.

"Sorry, sensei," said Naruto sheepishly. "This is a very important mission, though."

"Yeah, I know," said Kakashi.

"Well, time to go, everyone," said Yamato.

"Alright, Yamato-taichou," said Naruto, "Let's go."

From their first day on, whenever they were not traveling, Naruto trained almost all the time. He had sharpened his mind by playing games of shogi with Kakashi, since the jonin had an IQ over 200. He had also created a number of variations on his favorite technique, the Rasengan.

"Rasengan: Fuuma Shuriken!" (Rasengan: Demon Wind Shuriken) yelled Naruto, creating a Rasengan with large blades of chakra protruding from it. He threw it at a target on the training course Yamato had set up. He jumped from branch to branch (since Yamato can use Mokuton jutsu, it has a lot of trees). Another target appeared right in front of him. "Rasengan no Yaiba!" (Rasengan Blade), he said, concentrating the chakra in his forearm into a blade of wind. He sliced the target neatly in two.

"Naruto-kun!" said Sakura. "You've been training all day. Why don't you relax?"

"OK," he said, knowing if he didn't, she would beat him to a pulp. "Sakura-chan, I'm gonna need the training if I want to face teme."

"But if you train too much, you'll exhaust yourself," she said. "Already, you are heavily injured."

Sai looked up from the sidelines, where he was drawing a picture.

"Chiyute no Jutsu!" (Healing Hands Technique), said Sakura. A ball of healing chakra emanated from Sakura's hands and healed Naruto's injuries.

"You should go and relax, and you need food," said Sakura.

"Don't worry about me, worry about Orochimaru-teme," said Naruto. "He's gonna get his tail handed to him if I have anything to say about it."

"I should go with you," she said.

"Heh heh," snickered Kakashi, "They're probably going to do it."

"Come on, Ero-Wolf," said Yamato. "They just started dating last week."

"Yeah, true, Yamato," replied Kakashi.

"What is this 'it' you speak of?" questioned Sai.

Yamato and Kakashi anime fall. "It isn't something you should hear from us," said Kakashi, sweatdropping.

Naruto and Sakura were sitting down inside a tent. He had his arm around her.

"Naruto-kun, what's going to happen to Sasuke?" asked Sakura.

"Teme'll be all right," said Naruto. She doesn't call him Sasuke-kun anymore, he thought. He ate a cup of the instant ramen he had packed. "I'm bored. Want to spar?"

"Naruto-kun, you just trained," she said.

"Please!" he begged. "Come on, I need as much help as I can get."

"OK, OK," she laughed, unable to resist him. They went outside to a training field that had been set up in the camp.

"Let's go!" yelled Naruto. Sakura threw a haymaker at him. He dodged and threw a sweep kick at her legs, barely missing. "Kage Bunshin!" (Shadow Clone) he yelled, creating a clone behind her. The clone sweep kicked her in the legs, and missed again.

"Naruto, you really are the number one most surprising ninja," she laughed. "But here's more pain!" she yelled, jumping into the air and aiming a kick at him. Wow, he thought, same monster strength, and she's got me on the ropes. "I never thought I'd say this, but you're thinking too much," she said.

The force of the kick sent him flying a few meters. "Kage Bunshin!" (Shadow Clone) he said, creating a shadow clone. Henge! (Transformation) thought the clone simultaneously, transforming into a shuriken. He threw it at Sakura, who dodged. "Cornered," said the clone, which had transformed back, and now held a kunai to her neck. The original Naruto drew his own kunai.

"Nice try," said the real Sakura, stepping out of the woods. "But I created a bunshin, and used Kawarimi (Body Replacement) with it." The clone poofed away in a cloud of smoke.

"When did you use Kawarimi, Sakura-chan?" asked Naruto, dispelling his own clone. He wondered when she would have the time to use a jutsu like that.

"When you were dazed from that kick I gave you," she explained. "Now try getting the real me."

"Okay, you're on!" yelled Naruto. What he didn't notice was Sakura making a few hand seals.

Magen: Jubaku Satsu! (Demonic Illusion: Tree Bind Death) thought Sakura.

Sakura suddenly disappeared. "Sakura-chan?" he asked uncertainly. He suddenly heard what sounded like a tree growing behind him.

It's just a genjutsu! It is, Kyuubi? Yeah, now dispel it or that girl will kick you in the head. She's right behind you…

I got it, fox. Naruto stabbed himself in the stomach with a kunai. Kyuubi quickly began to heal him, and the illusion disappeared. He turned around swiftly and caught Sakura's foot, knocking her down. "Rasengan no Yaiba!" he yelled, pointing the blade at Sakura's throat. His clone did the same. "Now you're cornered," smirked the jonin.

"Not bad, Naruto," said his silver-haired sensei, poking his head out of the ground.

"Ah…so that is the copy-nin," smirked a ninja hidden in the bushes. "He's gonna get it."

Cliffhanger! Yeah, I know I'm evil. Please review. Also, for anyone who is gonna accuse me of copying, I came out with a Rasengan shuriken long before Kishimoto-sensei.