Pearl: Ah, chapter four. It just came in the mail this morning.

(sniff, sniff) Yup, smelling fresh and new.

Pearl: No owner of Naruto. --

Chapter Four: Training

The Jounin left to their assigned duties and some to train their students. Naomi took a walk outside in Hokage's garden, and the Hokage himself accompanied her. They shuffled by red roses and yellow tulips. Their fresh scent swept up in the air and into their noses. A warm breeze gently drifted across the many flowers and plants, and Naomi would occasionally stop next to some of the vegetation to mention which were medicinal herbs and what they cured.

They wandered on for some time until Naomi spoke, "Lord Hokage," she began, " "Your village teaches ninjutsu."

Hokage nodded his head and said, "Yes, I assume that your home town also teaches some basics of ninjustu for self defense. You've been taught some basic skills have you not?"

Naomi nodded. "I know many skills including the basics, but I was wondering if there was more to learn from your village."

He chuckled and walked past Naomi.

"I wanted you to learn some of my village's skills. It may be something different and useful to you, and it makes it much more easier for me now that I know you want to learn."

Naomi's face beamed with delight, and she began thanking Hokage repeatedly.

"I trust you already picked the teacher you want?" Hokage asked then raised a hand to stop Naomi from saying. "Kakashi, will be very honored."

Naomi laughed and then remembered about Naruto's invitation.

"Uh oh, looks like I'm a bit late, but at least I'll be training with him." she thought and then said, "Lord Hokage, is there any way to let Kakashi…eh, sensei know that you gave him permission?"

"I've already prepared it," he said handing Naomi yet another rolled piece of paper tied with the dark, green ribbon.

"Thank you," she said bowing and then running off.

"Do it again, and this time do it right." Kakashi said with a sigh.

Naruto was lying face down on the floor gasping for air through the dirt. "Maybe that crystal really wasn't on my mind, and I really was focusing because…I'm doing just as bad as I did yesterday! Ah! Why can't I get this right?" Naruto thought angrily.

Today, they trained in another forest clearing, and this one also had a river running by. It was the same river, but not the same location as where Naruto and Naomi talked. He pushed himself off the floor and he looked up at Sakura who rested on the bough of a tree. Her back leaned against the tree as she looked sleepily at the leaves. She had already passed this part of training and is just relaxing and waiting on Naruto. Naruto was swept away by Sakura and stood staring in a daze.

"Hey, Naruto, what are you doing?" a voice asked.

"Mm" was Naruto's answer.

The laughter of the voice pulled him out of his daze, and he turned his head. It was Naomi!

A grin appeared on his face and he exclaimed happily, "Hey, so you came after all!"

"Oh yeah, sorry about being late. I hope you forgive me." She said.

"Nah, it's fine with me, Naomi. As long as you're here now you can see how strong I am! Believe it!" Naruto proclaimed in his enthusiasm.

Kakashi began walking over.

"You look pretty battered up, Naruto." Naomi said observing him.

Then her eyes examined Sasuke who was sitting down against the trunk of a tree. He also looked a little worn out.

"Yeah, it's training." Naruto replied scratching his head. "But it's no big deal!"

"What are you doing here…eh, Healer?" Kakashi asked uncertainly.

"Please, just call me Naomi," she said.

"Healer?" Naruto asked out loud.

Sakura and Sasuke's attention turned to Naomi. Then she handed Kakashi the rolled up paper she held in her hands. "Hmm?" Kakashi wondered. Unrolling the paper, Kakashi read the writing inside. When he finished, he rolled up the paper again, and looked at Naomi with a smile from under his mask.

"I'm very honored. I guess our little encounter the other day was actually a good thing." he said. A grin from Naomi was Kakashi's reply.

"What's up?" Naruto asked his curiosity about to burst within him. Sakura leapt down from the tree and Sasuke stood up. They both walked near Naomi, Kakashi, and Naruto.

"Eh…well, guys, I'd like you to meet your new teammate."

"WHAT?" They all exclaimed.

"Nice to meet you, too." Naomi teased.

The situation and Naomi's position of the village was explained to the three teammates. Naruto's confusion, questions, and quarrels with Sakura stretched the time. Afterwards, the training began for Naomi.

"I'm going to need to train you alone, Naomi, so you guys just sit on the grass and keep watch." Kakashi directed. They sat a few feet away in the grass, and Naruto began flirting with Sakura.

"Wow…he can't even sit still for a few minutes with her." Naomi thought as she watched Naruto.

Then she turned to Kakashi and asked uneasily, "Okay, so what do I need to do…eh, Kakashi…sensei?"

"Yup, that's me!" He exclaimed then continued, "Well, I need you to show me the basics you already know."

"Eh, right." Naomi said and began walking towards the trees. She kept walking forward, and soon she was walking on the side of the tree. Naomi stopped and stood there with her ponytail hanging straight down.

"I know this already!" She called out to Kakashi.

"That's great! I can see that you can control your chakra very well." He called back.

Naomi hopped off and landed gracefully.

When she straightened up, her hands were placed in front of her, and Naomi's eyes focused on them. She shouted, "Clone Justu!" Poof! Puffs of clouds floated around Naomi and several other Naomi's appeared next to her.

"I know this, too." They all said in unison.

"Well, I didn't really need to see that. Controlling her chakra was enough for me to know that she'd pass the academy and become a Genin anyway." Kakashi thought quietly to himself.

"Well, okay, you know enough to become a Genin." Kakashi called out. "That's all I need to see of your basics. Hmm…let's see how well you are in battle."

With that said, Kakashi threw a kunai knife at Naomi.

"AAHH!!!" she screamed and hastily ducked. Sakura, Naruto, and Sasuke blinked twice then burst out laughing.

"Um…well then," Kakashi uttered. Scratching his head, he said, "I think we need to work on that."

"Okay! Let's do work on it right now!" Naomi said confidently after popping out from hiding.

Kakashi pulled out several kunai knives and held them between his fingers. Soon they were whirling straight towards Naomi. "AAHH!!!" she screamed again and one by one she dodged them clumsily. Her foot went up in the air, then she ducked down, then she hopped to one side, and the other. She just went all over the place! When all the kunai knives stopped themselves in the tree behind Naomi, they traced all around her body forcing Naomi to stand in a foolish way.

His eyebrow twitching, Kakashi was speechless. Only the laughter of Sakura, Naruto, and even a small chuckle from Sasuke was heard. Sakura and Naruto held their stomachs and tears came from their eyes. Naomi eased herself out carefully. Embarrassed, she gave a smile and blushed. "Eh, heh, heh." she chuckled nervously.

"We'll work on that later." Kakashi forced himself to say. "Okay…I haven't seen you in hand-to-hand combat so I guess your opponent is…Sasuke." Kakashi said gesturing to the black-haired boy who blinked.

"Uh, Kakashi-sensei, is that really necessary?" Sakura asked in worry for Sasuke's safety.

"Ah, fine. Then your opponent will be…me." Kakashi said as the thought entered his mind.

"What?! No, wait, Kakashi-sensei, I didn't want that to happen!" Sakura blurted out.

"Why can't it be me, Kakashi-sensei?" Naruto asked with disappointment.

Kakashi replied, "I'm afraid you'll get soft and not fight in a real situation. After all, you've met Naomi, but you know her a little more than we do, and you, Sakura, you wouldn't want to hurt someone who came from Chrysalis, right?."

"Hmph!" Naruto snorted with his arms crossed as Sakura sat with a sweat drop rolling down her head.

"What's THAT supposed to mean?"Sakura's Inner Sakura boomed.

"Oh, crap." Naomi thought horrified. Shakily, she asked, "Is-is this really…fair, Kakashi-sensei?"

"Sure, it is. Now, let's get this over with." He finished.

"But Kakashi-sensei…." Sakura said.

"It's alright." Kakashi reassured. "Besides, the way I see it," he thought, "If I fight Naomi, I might even have some time to read some Icha Icha Paradise."

A small grinned stretched beneath his mask as he concluded his thought.

"Remember, Naomi, this is hand-in-hand combat so no weapons. You also have a minor goal that you need to accomplish so that we won't have to eliminate one another."

"How can you say that?" Sakura shouted when Kakashi's words entered her ear. Partly hearing what Sakura said, Kakashi pulled out two gold bells from his side pocket and held them out. Then he tied them to his belt.

"You'll need to get these bells from me."

"I remember that." Naruto said. "I wonder if Naomi could do this alone."

"I doubt it!" Sakura replied. "Sasuke couldn't even get them. He only touched them, and he's the best one out of the three of us. The key word for us was teamwork, and with Naomi alone, come on! Think of the odds, Naruto! Have you no brain at all?"

Naruto grumbled for a moment, but blew off his anger.

"You're right, but are you willing to bet, Sakura? If you're right then you get a date with me. If you're wrong, you'll still get a date with me! Believe it!"

Sakura turned her attention away from Naomi for a moment to punch Naruto.

"You'll also have a limited amount of time to accomplish your goal." Kakashi finished pulling out a portable timer and placing it on a stump.

He turned the dial and it started ticking. Then he withdrew the small orange book he carried in his back pocket, and began reading. Bewildered, Naomi stood there, but she shook it off and asked aloud.

"What's with the book?"

"That's his perverted book about naked people!" Naruto shouted.

"What?" Naomi exclaimed her eyebrow twitching.

She stood there staring speechlessly until she realized that she was wasting time. Kakashi just continued reading. His lazy eye seemed to be glued into the book.

"Ah, well." Naomi said. "I've got a goal to complete so I'll just…uh, shrug this off."

With that, she headed straight towards Kakashi and thrust out a fist. He blocked it with his arm, but Naomi's leg rose for a kick. Kakashi leapt into the air and landed away from Naomi.

"Damn it! He's on the defense." She cursed.

Then Naomi vanished and reappeared in front of Kakashi's book.

"Whoa! She's fast!" Naruto said as he watched in awe.

Kakashi surprisingly glanced up from his book and looked into the glare of Naomi's glasses. Naomi managed to snatch the book and hurry away. Immediately, Kakashi chased after her.

"Hey!" Kakashi shouted. "You didn't let me finish a sentence!"

His response was a giggle. They jumped and swerved everywhere until Naomi finally, tripped on a small but strong root hidden in the grass. Kakashi jerked the back collar of Naomi's t-shirt and pulled her back. She stumbled and gave a small gasped, but kept hold of the book. Naomi leaned back and rested safely on Kakashi's arm. His face didn't show any expression when Naomi's eyes turned to it. He seemed to just want the book back. Stretching his hand out in front of him, he gestured for the book. As his eye looked down on Naomi, behind her glasses, he saw part of her eyes: her blue sapphire eyes. Then those eyes closed and seemed to have disappeared.

Suddenly, Naomi departed into the familiar puffs of smoke and a log replaced her. "Illusions." Kakashi realized as he held the log. "Interesting." he thought viewing his surroundings. This surprised Naruto, Sakura and Sasuke who watched intently. "Where's the real one?" Sakura thought. It was not long before he finally found Naomi sitting in the tree, thumbing through his book.

"That book isn't suited for you!" He shouted.

Naomi lifted her head and bounded off the tree to Kakashi.

"Hmm…Icha Icha Paradise…don't you think that's a bit strong for you?" Naomi asked reading the title.

"Um, you know I could ask the same to you." Kakashi said with a small hint of annoyance.

Then he seized for the book. Naomi dodged him and stuck out her tongue.

"Catch me if you can!" She called out her giggle following after.

"I'm not falling for that one again." said Kakashi who reached out quickly grasping Naomi's collar again, and jerked her back.

The threads let loose and part of the collar along with part of the back of the shirt tore off. The three teammates heard the loud tear of the shirt. Stammering for a moment, Naomi fell on the grass. Kakashi blundered back, but caught his balance. He held up the torn piece of cloth and blushed at the sight of Naomi's bare shoulder.

"Eh…s-sorry…" he uttered with embarrassment.

"Ah, Naomi! Are you okay?" Naruto asked in alarmed.

Naomi pulled her torn shirt over her shoulder and nodded towards Naruto.

"Yeah, I'm alright. I guess that's the reason why I bought this shirt for five hundred yen." (about five dollars)

Patting the dirt from her shorts, Naomi stood up.

"Wow, you're pretty cheap, Naomi." Naruto said.

Kakashi watched Naomi make a face at Naruto then turn her attention towards him. She handed out the book to him and said, "Here."

Casually, Kakashi took the book from Naomi and placed it back in his back pocket.

Surprised, Naomi asked, "Eh? You knew that I wasn't going to use any tricks, Kakashi-sensei?"

Pausing, Kakashi scratched his head before he responded. "It's a natural thing I sense."

Suddenly, the timer rang loudly, and Kakashi walked over to turn it off. "Well, there goes the timer. You wasted all that time aiming for the book and not my bells, Naomi. I thought you'd be a better student."

Kakashi reached for the bells that hung from his belt, and received a surprise to find that there were no bells. "Hmm…" He glanced over at Naomi and studied her through his lazy eye. In return, a smile formed on Naomi's lips.

"Okay, okay, I have the bells," Naomi gave in as she pulled out the gold jingling bells.

"What?" Naruto, Sakura, and Sasuke said staring dumbfound at Naomi.

"She-she got the…bells." Naruto stuttered in his astonishment.

"Unbelievable. Sasuke…only touched them, but how…how did she…." Sakura added.

There was nothing Sasuke could say, but to only stare.

"Eh, what's everyone gaping at?" Naomi asked noticing their ghastly faces. "I'm sure you guys got the bells, too, right?"

Slowly, the three shook their heads.

"Uh…Oh." Naomi thought frozen up in guilt and disappointment in herself.

Her heart pounced wildly inside her body as she angrily cursed herself.

Kakashi straightened his body up and said, "Alright, Naomi. We need an explanation."

"Well eh, Kakashi-sensei…uh, um, um, um…" Naomi stuttered. "I'll tell you this: If I could get your book away from you then…eh, I can definitely get these bells from you, too." There was a slight pause before Naomi began again. When a lie hit her mind, she blurted it out. "Remember when you caught me in your arms? You seemed to just want the book back when I saw your face." Naomi explained. "You didn't seem to notice the bells a whole lot so that time when you tore my shirt, I stumbled a little before I fell. It was an opportunity to snatch the bells. I reached for them quickly like I was just falling so…eh, I guess you didn't see it."

Kakashi thought for a moment, not having any memory of what Naomi said. "I don't recall anything like that. I better pay closer attention next time. After all, I did want my book back." Kakashi concluded with a shrug.

Naruto and Sakura came up to Naomi from the side lines. Sakura gave her a pat on the back, and Naruto received a high-five. Apparently, Naomi's lie was a good enough explanation for them…but not Sasuke.

Kakashi laughed to himself and thought, "Well, I guess Naomi's a much more interesting student than I thought. She could get my bells, but not exactly dodge kunais so well. This will be interesting." Sasuke who still stood off to the side had the same thoughts.

"Come on!" Kakashi said with a sudden change of attitude.

"Huh?" Naomi wondered. "Let's go eat! My treat!"

"Alright!" exclaimed Sakura.

"Are we going for Ramen? Please, Kakashi-sensei! I want Ramen!" Naruto begged.

"Uh, sure, Naruto. We'll go for Ramen." replied Kakashi.

Naomi laughed at Naruto and she followed behind everyone. Before they ate, Naomi had to run home and change into another T-shirt. She should have brought some extra money with her too because it turns out that Kakashi forgot his wallet, and his students each had to pitch in to pay.

Pearl: Ah, a much longer chapter.

Kakashi: Hmm…are you saying something about me?

Pearl: Oh, no, no!

Kakashi: (returns to Icha Icha Paradise)

Pearl: (sighs)

Sakura: I thought a five hundred yen shirt would do better than that.

Naomi: Well, apparently not.

Naruto: It's five american dollars, eh? Let's see...I think you can buy a lot with five dollars...like ramen! YEAH! You can buy lots of ramen!

Pearl: (smacks forehead)