A/N:

Don't skip the post-chap A/n :)

I don't own Naruto.

"So, what did Kakashi have you do today?" Tori asked warmly as Naruto burst through her door, interrupting her current task of tending to an operative's burns.

"I learned a new jutsu!" Naruto shouted proudly. Tori chuckled at his energy.

"And what new jutsu did Kakashi teach you today?" she asked, wrapping the treated wound with gauze.

"Futon: Daitoppa!" Naruto said proudly. Tori's hands stayed before she sighed.

"Someone is getting some tenketsu sealed," she muttered before looking up at the operative. "What did you learn?"

"Don't piss of the Uchiha?" he guessed sheepishly. Tori nodded seriously.

"Good boy. Now go get a lollipop and stop angering ninja clans. At least any with bloodlines," Tori said tiredly. After all, the man was there just that morning with sealed tenketsu, courtesy of some scorned Hyuuga.

"H-Hai," he said, embarrassed. Naruto snatched a lollipop and climbed to the examination table.

"So what are we doing today, sensei?" he asked excitedly. She tossed a medical scroll towards him. He caught it easily, unrolling it to reveal... "Human Anatomy For Beginners?" Naruto asked, sounding disappointed. Tori chuckled.

"Anatomy isn't just good for medical ninjutsu, you know," she told her young pupil. "It is very important for regular shinobi too. After all, if you know how the human body works, you can do minimal damage to incapacitate your enemies. That's important if you're running low on chakra and weapons."

"What if-"

"Just because you have a lot of chakra doesn't mean you can't run out," Tori said, smiling. Naruto closed his mouth, his question answered. He looked down at the scroll, unfurling it more to reveal a seal... and another... and another... and a final seal.

"Why are-"

"The human body is a complicated thing. This scroll is separated into the skeletal system, muscles, the circulatory system, and the chakra network. When you've finished reading these, I have some more for you... Don't give me that look, Naruto," Tori chuckled at her horrorstruck student. "The faster you get this done, the sooner it will be over."

Naruto's gloom was not to be lifted. Tori sighed, knowing she'd regret what she was about to recommend.

"I'll have Kakashi teach you a technique to cut down on time you're stuck reading."

"Really? What technique?" Naruto asked, suddenly hyper once more. Tori smiled warmly at her charge.

"It's called Kage Bunshin no Jutsu."

"But I can't do Bunshin," Naruto said, confused. Tori nodded.

"That's because you have too much chakra and not enough control. The Kage Bunshin should be much easier for you to learn. Your mother had trouble with the regular Bunshin but she got the Kage Bunshin right on her fourth try."

"Really?" Naruto asked, intrigued by the new information. Tori nodded and Naruto beamed. "Awesome!"

"But," Tori emphasized, "you have to promise that you'll only use this technique if Kakashi or I are there, okay? If you overdo it on this jutsu, you could be in a lot of trouble, and I don't mean with me. You could get really sick with chakra exhaustion."

"Okay," Naruto said, nodding seriously. Tori smiled.

"Then go get started on the reading. You should start with the skeletal system. Fractures, sprains, and breaks are very common in our field of work. It's important to know how to-"

But Naruto had already ran out of the room, grabbing another lollipop on his way out.

"Treat them," Tori finished, sighing. She looked up at the ceiling. You'd be proud... Kushina.

Naruto's eyes began to glaze over the passage he was reading about chakra gates. Limited to only six shadow clones when unsupervised, it was taking him longer than he had expected to finish the medical scrolls Tori had assigned him. Of course, six clones were better than none, so he pushed forwards in the task.

Forcing his mind to concentrate, he realized he had been staring at the same paragraph for over ten minutes. Sighing, he dispelled his clones, knowing he wouldn't get much more reading down that night.

"Night, neesan," Naruto murmured, happily aware that the medic could hear him through the thin wall separating their rooms.

A/N:

I sort of wimped out with this story. I kept trying to write, but my mind always drifted off to what would happen once this Naruto was out of the Academy and beyond... So, I've made a big decision: This story is now finished at 12 chapters. I will upload each of the remaining chapters today, mostly to get it out of the way and partly because I'm going camping over the weekend to celebrate my 16th birthday.

Yes, I'm going camping for my Sweet Sixteen ;) I hate cliches, so I avoided them as much as possible.

Please review the chapters individually, even if I'm uploading a bunch tonight. I know it seems kind of worthless, seeing as you are kind enough to leave a review at the end, but I appreciate even really short notes just to say that you cared enough about it to say something.

Thanks~

^.^ Susie ^.^