Kin's POV

I walked up to the gates of Konoha, Gaara's bloodthirsty gaze still trained on my back. It had been a constant on the journey here. Along with the wary gazes of Baki and the confused ones from Kankuro. Temari had refused to look at me at all, instead choosing to stare single mindedly in front of her.

I didn't recognize the two chunnin guarding the gates, so I stepped past the entrance and up to the guard booth.

"I was wondering if you could tell the Hokage that there's someone who wants to speak with him about their participation in the chunnin exams."

"The Hokage doesn't speak with just anyone."

"I'll go with chakra cuffs and an ANBU escort if he's that scared." I mentally prodded the chunnins' village pride.

"I'll contact him immediately. The rest of you show me your passports."

I waited while the Sand nin were allowed in and one of the chunnin leapt off over the rooftops to speak with the Hokage. It didn't take long for me to feel the prickly sensation of being watched. I smiled waved and henged into the form of a small cat. A very familiar small cat.

The prickly sensation vanished and the chunnin soon returned with orders directly from the Hokage to guide me to the Hokage tower and treat me as an honored guest. My escort and I leapt across the rooftops to the tower and while the chunnin jumped down to the door. I tapped on the window.

"Old man."

"I see you found your way back."

"Cats are known for their sense of direction."

"Are you who I think you are?"

"Chibi, human form."

"You look different than Shisui reported."

"I had to make a new body. So I look different than I looked before I was a cat. You can call me Kin."

"So what do you need, if I can I'll help you."

"I want a sponsor for the chunnin exams."

"Do you have a team?"

"No, that's the problem."

"Will you be participating as a Kohoha shinobi?"

"No, as a wandering nin."

He took a puff on his pipe ,his expression betraying nothing as he stared at me. I compared him to the old woman who had gifted me with my neko-te. Same all-seeing eyes.

"I'll see what I can do, in the meanwhile I'm placing you under the care of Team 7. Feel free to run them as much as you want, sensei included. In the meanwhile I'll have to speak with the council and the clan heads."

"If possible could you avoid revealing my identity? Especially to the Uchiha clan."

"I will avoid telling anyone if I can. The council might be hesitant however."

"Thanks."

There was a loud scuffling outside before the door to the Hokage's office slammed open to reveal an orange and yellow blur.

"Gramps! What's this really important mission you wanted us for!"

"NARUTO! Be more respectful to the Hokage!" shrieked Sakura.

"Hn."

There was silence for a moment, filled only by the turning of a page in Icha-Icha Paradise. Then I turned to the Hokage.

"Old man? I can spar with them right?"

"Yes. Just don't destroy the village."

"I'll avoid it if at all possible." He gave me a hard look and I gave him a wink as I turned to face the group with one raised eyebrow.

"Gramps? Who's this?"

"This is an acquaintance of mine that has saved the lives of many of our shinobi. She's here to take the chunnin exams as a wandering nin."

"Wait she's a missing nin?"

"Naruto! Didn't you pay any attention to the teacher while we were at the academy? A missing nin is a ninja who has left their village, making them a criminal! A wandering nin is a ninja who never had a village in the first place, meaning they are just as legal as you or I!"

"Oh."

"Kin, this is Team 7. You will be joining them for their everyday training and you have permission to participate in their missions. Is there anything else you need before you leave?"

"No. Thanks though. I'll see you later old man."

I stepped through Team 7 and made my way down the stairs, my coat fluttering behind me. Not even bothering to look behind me to see if they were following I leapt easily to the nearest roof. Sasuke was the first to follow me up, balancing carefully on the loose tiles. Naruto, not to be outdone, bounced happily on the edge of the building. Sakura was more hesitant as she cautiously walked up the side of the building before jumping up onto the roof.

"Which way to the usual training grounds Kakashi-san?"

The jounin dropped onto the roof from the ledge outside of the Hokage's window, a shining key dangling from the hand not holding his literature.

"I'm sure the gennin can show you the way. And this is from the Hokage. He said you should know where this is." He held out the key.

I snatched it and took a look at the mirror like surface. Engraved on the back of the key was the number twenty nine.

"Naruto, what's your apartment number?"

"Eh? Thirty, why?"

"Seems we're neighbors. "

"Oh."

"Training grounds?"

"Follow us." Said a now confident Sakura, her long hair swishing as she turned around

The three gennin scurried off at top speed and I followed easily behind them. The buildings quickly changed into trees as they approached the training grounds, and when team seven jumped down to the ground I saw the memorial stone in the distance.

"Sensei won't be here for a while. He's always late." Said Sakura.

"Sasuke! Let's spar!"

"No."

"WHAT!"

"How about this?" I interrupted, "Three on one, your team against me. That way your sensei, whose in that tree by the way,"I gestured to an old maple that stood by the pathway leading up to the memorial stone, "can see what I can do and you get practice against a different fighting style."

"You wanna fight! Alright! When do we start!"

"Hn."

"Sure, I guess."

"Excellent. We start now."

I smirked from my hiding place next to Kakashi. He was watching my clone with fascination while I crouched on a branch next to him, using tightly controlled heat waves to bend the light and conceal my location. Plus it wasn't a genjutsu that would be easily detected by the sharingan.

I watched as the members of team seven assaulted my clone, which dissolved in a splash of water over one of Sasuke's kunai, much to his surprise. Sasuke's sharingan activated as he scanned the surrounding area before he danced off after another clone.

Kakashi pulled his headband off of his sharingan and stared off into the trees surrounding his students, looking for chakra signatures large enough to not be clones. He didn't find them so he began scanning the trees around himself.

He didn't see me. I chuckled and allowed the heat surrounding my body to disperse into the air. His eyes widened with surprise as I faced him a small smile on my face.

"You know sensei, if the old man really wanted to put ANBU on watch around me I wouldn't have protested. It's not like I couldn't get away from them if I tried."

"You are stronger than chunnin level."

It was not a question.

"I'm much stronger than chunnin. I could beat you if I wanted to. But I don't want to. Konoha is my favorite of the ninja villages. I won't betray it."

"You are not loyal to Konoha in the first place."

"True. But the person I am loyal to is. I will protect that persons interests, thus I will protect Konoha."

"And who is that?"

"Not answering. Now I have information for you to relay to the Third. Danzo has spies in his office so it would be best to avoid reporting to him there. The Kazekage is not the Kazekage and the Sound village must be watched."

"Do you have any more detail?"

"Not yet. But I believe the Sound has at least one informant in Konoha. So keep an eye out."

"The Third will be informed."

"Excellent. I'm going to go relieve the gennin of their frustration. That's the sixth clone they've destroyed. Later Sensei."

He nodded once as I dropped off the edge of the branch and ran across the clearing towards the teams location. This would be fun, it had been a long time since I had messed with gennin.

…

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Sety