A/N: I'm sorry guys! I'm back, though some of you might not be... Here you go, the next chapter! And my condolences to whoever is still following. Again, sorry!

Chapter 10: Beginning of Mist Arc

Naruto ran ahead of the rest of his team, his new capture in tow. It was purring gently in his arms, and tried to snuggle closer and closer into him. It knew where it was going, and it knew what was going to happen to it once it reached there. It didn't like it very much, but it assumed that it was inevitable, so it was going to have to enjoy being free while it could.

Naruto's tow was none other than the notoriously hard to catch cat, Tora. It belonged to the wife of the Fire Daimyo. What was unique about Tora was that she ran away from her home every single week, and was the bane of all genin teams everywhere. After a while the cat had gained so much skill at running away that it became a real challenge for genins to catch her without some serious teamwork… and microphones. For Naruto and Team Seven, however, catching Tora was about as simple as finding where the cat was hiding at the time. After that, Naruto would simply walk up to her and pet her gently, and she would practically jump into the young jinchuuriki's arms. Tora had taken a liking to Naruto after their third attempt to capture it. Naruto had started to go on a rant about how annoying this was becoming and how the Fire Daimyo's wife should be treating her pets better… and Tora couldn't agree more. After that they became quick friends, and the two would talk on their way back to the Hokage Tower to return the poor cat to its prison…er… home.

As they strode into the tower, Naruto could feel Tora clench up in his arms. By now Naruto could tell that Tora could feel a disturbance in the air, as the fur on its back stood up on end. Tora hissed lightly and its eyes took on a feral nature… She was coming…

As if on cue, a loud shriek rang through the hallway before the breaking of walls could be heard and the wife of the Fire Daimyo could be seen in a dead sprint coming down the hallway. A cloud of dust could be seen being kicked up behind her as she made a beeline for Naruto, or more importantly, her lost cat Tora.

Instinctively Tora jumped out of Naruto's arms and using her hind claws pushed him out of the way. The next scene happened in slow motion. As Naruto fell to the ground he could see Tora turn her head in midair and look at him. As the arms of her owner wrapped around him, Naruto smiled a sad smile back at Tora, who closed her eyes and with a smile accepted her fate. Tora was almost crushed to death by the Fire Daimyo's wife's embrace. She paid the Hokage handsomely for the quick capture as she left with a less than content Tora in her arms.

XxX

Naruto and the rest of his Team walked triumphantly into the office of the Third Hokage. Naruto was smiling broadly while the rest of his team shared his feelings. Even Sasuke couldn't help but smirk at the atmosphere. This was their third mission that day and noon had just recently passed.

Sakura was similarly pleased. After he saved her a while ago, Sasuke stopped being such a stick in the mud. He was still arrogant, and a prick, but at least he was starting to come out of his shell.

"Ne, old man! We caught Tora again! We're awesome aren't we?" Naruto asked with a look of mirth on his face. The old man smiled, there was nothing he liked more than seeing the smile on the face of the kid he valued as a grandson.

"Yes yes Naruto. I believe your team has beaten the record for catching Tora… Ms. Fire Daimyo made sure to pay you all a little extra for your troubles." Hiruzen chuckled, an air of amusement in his voice. He went to pull out the payment cards for them when Naruto started speaking again.

"Ne, old man! When are we going to stop doing all the grunt work and go on a real mission?" Naruto asked, his finger in his ear. Iruka moved to scold the young boy but Hiruzen put his hand up, quieting the teacher.

"And what makes you think you are ready for a higher ranked mission, Naruto? From what I hear your teamwork isn't up to par with what it should be. That is the whole point of D-rank missions. They are here so that you and your team could learn to work together without being put in any real danger. While I understand that each of you has some degree of strength, I cannot allow you to leave the village with your team in such disarray", Hiruzen replied, pulling out the mission payments and handing them each to Sasuke, Sakura and Kakashi. He threw Naruto's at him, who caught it. Naruto looked at the envelope with his pay in it before crushing it and throwing it behind him.

"But we're never gonna get any stronger this way! If D-ranked missions were all we needed to come together as a team then we would be done by now! This was like our millionth D mission and absolutely nothing has changed since the first!" Naruto yelled back. Hiruzen rose from his seat, his anger starting to grow.

"Well with that attitude Naruto, I'm not surprised that your team hasn't grown together." He answered calmly, not wanting to play to Naruto's game, "You are not deemed ready to leave the village with a temper like that. You could get your entire team killed! Even if it is just a C-ranked mission!"

Naruto was mad, and was about to retort when he heard a voice from the side of the room.

"Maybe if he can't go with his usual team, maybe he could go with us?"

Naruto and company averted their gaze to the boy who was leaning in a corner in the side of the room. He wore a black sweater with a hood and black pants and sneakers. He had spikey red hair and a smile on his face, next to him stood Hinata.

Naruto was the first to recognize him, "Hey! You're that Yoshi kid from the Academy!" He yelled, pointing to the boy. Yoshi just laughed, and ran his hand through his hair.

"You sure are a loud one, aren't you? The old man and I were actually in a meeting about a C-rank mission before you busted in here. At first I was annoyed, but now I'm kinda glad, you see…"

"And why do you have Hinata with you?" Naruto cut him off, his voice getting louder

"Actually, I don't really have much of an answer for that." The boy responded.

Hiruzen took this time to speak up, "Naruto, this boy's name is Yoshi Red. He arrived here shortly before you did asking for exactly the same thing… in exactly the same way" Hiruzen added with a grumble, "I was thinking of giving him a try at one before I-"

"Wait… how come he gets a C-rank and I don't?" Naruto continued, little caring for the rest of the story.

"Let me finish Naruto… Anyway, I was thinking of giving him a try at one before I remembered that Hiashi made a request of me. He wanted Hinata to go on a C-ranked mission, but her teammates did not feel ready to go as of yet. He asked to put her on the first team ready, but as of yet no genin teams have stepped up to the plate. That is… until your team… and Yoshi's team…"

At this the people present started to look around. Besides Team 7, the Hokage and Iruka, there was no one else in the room to speak of.

"Um, excuse me Hokage-sama, where are Red's teammates anyway? I can understand why Team 8 isn't here, but shouldn't Yoshi's teammates be here as well if they're requesting a mission?" Sakura asked.

"That's the thing actually, Yoshi's team is a solo cell. That is, he has been working by himself the entire time. We couldn't even give him a sensei, so he's been doing all of his missions by himself" the Hokage chuckled, "he has done almost as much as you guys have."

The people in the room were astonished, as they looked back and forth between the boy and the Hokage. The boy just chuckled in a way similar to Hiruzen, and started to talk to break the ambiance.

"It's no big deal, D-ranks are nothing much. That's exactly why I want to get out, do something that gives me a little more of a challenge. Too bad gramps here…" Yoshi then pointed over his shoulder at the Hokage, "thinks that going it alone would be too much of a hassle for me. Since Hino-"

"Her name is Hinata" Naruto growled.

"Right… since Hinata wants to come along, and your team obviously isn't ready, how about we just take you along with us? You can even bring your sensei with you if you want to. I think we need one of those too…"

Naruto fidgeted in his spot. On one hand he really wanted to take this chance to go along with them… This could be his chance to finally get out of the village, and away from the emo duckling… He would even get to spend more time with Hina-chan and bring along Kakashi as well. Extra training would mean he would be even more prepared for his fight with Sasuke… whenever that came around…

But on the other hand… There was something about this kid that Naruto just didn't like. The way he moved… the way he talked… there was just something about him that reminded him of someone… He didn't know who, but whoever it was, was really familiar…

Naruto was debating whether or not to accept the offer, when Hiruzen cut him off.

"Hold up. What makes you think that just because you might be getting a mission that you can call shots? If Naruto can't cooperate with people he's been working with for a while now, what makes you think that working with people he barely knows would make things better?"

"Hmph", Yoshi grunted, turning his attention to the aged Hokage, "well it couldn't do any harm either, now could it?" he then turned to look at Hinata, "besides… I think Naruto gets along pretty well with his girlfriend"

Everyone in the room gasped, excluding Hinata. No, Hinata did the only thing she knew how to do at a time like that. She blushed a deep shade of red, hyperventilated, and then promptly fainted. Before she could reach the ground, however, she was caught by Naruto and laid to rest on the sofa nearby.

"What'd you do that for?" Naruto screamed, "Now she won't wake up for at least an hour!" Naruto paused, "Oh! And she's not my girlfriend!"

"Curious how you know so much about her fainting spells then, if she's not your girlfriend." Yoshi teased, but turned back towards the Hokage, "I think Naruto would be a perfect last addition to our team. We need a free range specialist anyway. Hinata is a great scout, and a great close combat fighter, being a Hyuuga, and I specialize in long range. We need someone who can cover us in that middle area, and best of all, we can bring their sensei!" he yelled enthusiastically in the end, almost jumping on the balls of his feet. His red hair shook with his movements, and it strangely reminded Naruto of something… something almost dear to him…

Hiruzen just watched in light humor at the boy in front of him. He reminded him so much of Naruto that it got confusing seeing the two in the same room. He felt almost sad to have to deny the mission when something clicked in his head. A wicked smile came to the Hokage's face… His plan was just as wicked…

"Hmm, well I suppose that this would be a good idea…" Hiruzen muttered. This didn't stop everyone in the room from hearing it though. Their reactions were a mixture of joy and shock.

"Say what?" Naruto yelled, not yet ready to make his decision. He was jumping up and down in his spot in the room. The rest of team seven looked equally as shocked, but decided not to say anything.

"It would be unwise to send you along with a group that you have no compatibility with, but you and Hinata work really well together, if Hiashi's words mean anything" Naruto gulped, knowing exactly what Hiruzen meant. Over time their teamwork became almost astounding.

"And I'm sure with someone as talented as Yoshi here" Hiruzen continued, "your teamwork will become so much better." Hiruzen motioned Kakashi over. In a flash, the silver haired jonin was at his side. Naruto could see Hiruzen whisper something, but wasn't quite sure what it was. Whatever it was, however, made Naruto nervous, as the wicked smile that was previously on the Hokage's face found its way on to Kakashi's.

"Yes, sir. I will do everything in my power to make sure they get along… swimmingly…" Kakashi chanted, almost too happily. Naruto flinched, Kakashi should never smile… Naruto backed up slowly until he reached near Yoshi was.

"Ne… I don't like the way Kakashi-sensei and the old man are smiling…"

"Me neither, it's too damn creepy, think they're up to something?"

"I dunno… but it wouldn't be too far a stretch to say that they are… Stay on your toes"

"Aye, Naruto-san"

"So, Naruto, do you accept the mission?" the Hokage asked, a slight glimmer in his eye. Naruto was seriously creeped out. He would refuse, but he wasn't sure if that was even an option anymore.

"Um… sure… I guess…"

"Perfect! You will be leaving tomorrow at around 5. You will meet your client, Tazuna, at the gates. Have fun!" the Hokage ended with flair. He seemed so happy that Naruto almost lost his breakfast.

"Um, Hokage-sama… what about us?" Sakura asked.

"Oh? You and Uchiha are free to do whatever you want until the mission is over." The Hokage said, before taking a puff from his pipe, "I suggest that you work on your teamwork while Naruto is gone, no?"

"Hmph" was the only reply from Sasuke about his new predicament before he turned to leave. On his way out he stopped near Naruto.

"Good luck… dobe…"

"You too, teme…" Naruto answered, and with that, Sasuke left the room. Sakura eagerly followed behind him.

"See ya Naruto!" she yelled back before running ahead to Sasuke, "Wait up Sasuke-kun!"

XxX

Naruto sat on the head of the fourth Hokage. The sun was just starting to set, and the entire village had a tint of orange. No matter what happened to him, whenever he came up to the Hokage Monument and looked over the village as it was, he would instantly forgive it. Today, however, he came up to the monument for some rest and privacy from the village.

Naruto rubbed his head frantically. In front of him sat a scroll and some ink. He was trying all day, right after the mission briefing, to improve on the explosion tags. He thought he was making progress, but he only ended up with a few scribbles here and there from the original design.

"Ne, why is this so damn hard!" he screamed, before taking out a scroll and unrolling it. He channeled some chakra into the scroll, and several books on sealing popped out. Naruto started flipping to various pages in the different books, and by the time he found what he was looking for, the head of the Hokage was a mess.

"Now I see why there haven't been any improvements to this thing… No one can understand it!" he screamed again. He started drawing more lines on the scroll, but in the end only had a little more progress than he had before. Naruto was getting mad. The whole thing seemed impossible. The art of sealing involved so much intricate designs and slight tunings that the whole thing seemed like something you needed to master to do the simplest of things. Naruto knew he was very gifted, but things like finesse were something he knew he lacked experience and talent in. He was about to put his fingers together to do the kage bunshin, when he heard someone coming from behind him. With speed befitting a Namikaze, he hid the stuff he had in a scroll that went straight in his jacket.

The bushes rustled and from the thicket popped the Hyuuga heiress, Hinata. She wore brown cargo pants and lavender and white sneakers. Her hair was done back into a short ponytail that hung on the side of her head, and she had slight bangs that covered her eyes. She still wore her large coat, but it was slightly zipped down at the top. She walked slowly over to Naruto, who was now looking at her in wonder. She fidgeted her hands behind her back, before finally speaking.

"H-hi there… N-naruto-kun…" she stuttered, looking off to the side. Naruto was puzzled; he thought she got over that weird stutter.

"What's the matter Hina-chan?" he asked. Hinata shivered… His pet name for her always sent shivers down her spine, but more so now than ever. She would have to tell him now… She already came so far! She couldn't spy on him anymore either… his talents as a ninja was growing at a rate equal to her own; he would sense her long before she started to stalk him.

"Well… N-naruto-kun…. I-I-I wanted t-to tell you th-that I…" she started. Her hands were becoming clammy. She couldn't do it… She had managed to grow so close to him. They had become the best of friends ever since that day when they bumped into each other. She had grown to admire him, look up to him… even… to like him… She decided that this was the day she would tell him… but… now she wasn't so sure… Would he accept her feelings? What if she didn't? Her life would be over… her best friend would be gone forever and it would never be the same again!

Hinata started to tear up as her lips started to quiver. She wanted to tell him but… why would he choose her? He would be better off with someone like Ino… she was much prettier than him…

The tears in her eyes stopped her from noticing as Naruto stood up from his place on the ground, or head as it was.

Hinata clenched her fists so tight she almost drew blood. She was so caught up in her thoughts that the world around her seemed to melt away.

'Or what about Sakura? She had the top grades in the class… surely a better match for Naruto' she thought, her doubts and fears making it seem like the most undeniable truth.

By this point in her thoughts, she let the tears flow. She couldn't hold back anymore, as she started to whimper softly. Hinata pulled up the collar of her jacket to wipe her face, before turning around.

"S-sorry Naruto-kun… I have to go" she whispered, barely audible. She was about to run away, when her wrist was grabbed, preventing her escape. She tried to squirm free, but the grip was too strong.

"Let go Naruto-kun!" she yelled, before doing a jump and letting loose a round-house kick. The attack impacted Naruto head on, sending him flying into a tree before he poofed out of existence.

'Shadow Clone' she thought. Hinata looked around. There was no one else to see on the mountain at the current time.

"Byakugan!" she yelled. Veins emerged from around her eyes as her doujutsu activated. Now she could see several chakra signatures in the woods just around her, all of them similar. He was probably using Shadow Clones.

'If that's how it is, Naruto-kun, then come at me!'

On cue, several Naruto's popped out of the forest clearing in a beeline for Hinata. The ones closer to Hinata jumped in the air and brandished kunai, while the ones just behind them kept running in a straight line.

"With the jutsu you helped me to perfect… Clan Jutsu: Kaiten!" at once, Hinata began spinning while exuding chakra. This created a dome of blue chakra that formed around her. One by one the Naruto clones slammed into the barrier, before poofing away.

"Tajuu Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!" came a yell in the woods not too far off. Hinata gulped… that could only mean…

Birds chirped as thousands of Naruto's flooded the air and ground, in an almost race to Hinata, who was still using Kaiten. The air soon filled with smoke as Naruto after Naruto was extinguished by Hinata's technique. Inside the dome, Hinata spun randomly, no longer able to see outside her own technique; through the sound of the shadow clones being dispersed, Hinata could faintly make out Naruto's voice.

'Hina-chan… what's wrong…'

Hinata shook her head… fatigue was finally getting to her. She ignored it as she took out a dozen more Naruto's.

'Hina-chan… tell me…'

"No… I can't…" she whispered to herself as she doubled her resolve. The shadow clones started to thin out. The constant barrage that was a couple seconds before was now about ten at a time. The whispers she heard only seemed to increase as they were extinguished though.

'Hina-chan, you can trust me'

'Hina-chan, we're friends…'

'Hina-chan, tell me…'

'Hina-chan!'

"No… no! I can't tell you! Leave me alone!" she yelled back at the voices, her Kaiten spinning faster than was before. The last of the Naruto's now extinguished, Hinata kept spinning, and her eyes closed and cut off from the world… Wherever he was… he was still out there, and right now she wanted him to stay out. Deep down she knew, however, that this was a fight she wasn't going to win.

True to her suspicions, a large ring started to glow on the ground around her, the word "Inescapable" sprawled across its features. Hinata opened her eyes, and saw all at once, via her Byukugan, that she was trapped. Out of the forest, Naruto jumped from a tree and high into the air, a tag in his hand.

"I WILL NEVER LEAVE MY PRECIOUS FRIENDS ALONE!" he screamed, before tossing the now glowing tag straight at her. Hinata tried to block it with her Kaiten, but it somehow phased right through and to the now eroded ground right below her. She quickly read what was on the tag, before smiling, recognizing her loss.

The tag said "Seal Art: Gentle Fist Explosion"

The blast right after knocked Hinata out as all of her chakra points was sealed off at the same time.

XxX

Naruto looked at Hinata sleeping peacefully against a tree, his new orange jacket draped over her like a cover. She usually looked so pretty sleeping, but every so often her features would become distressed, which hurt him a little inside. He wished he could help her… He wished he knew what was wrong.

"DAMMIT!" Naruto yelled, before smacking himself in the head, trying to think. He hated being unable to help his friends, especially when they were sitting right in front of him… What was he missing?

The woods around him rustled again, and sitting in the branch of the tree Hinata was under, sat the kid from earlier, Yoshi.

"Ne, what do you want…" Naruto asked, annoyed.

"Nothing… nothing…" the boy answered swinging his legs while humming. He looked off into the sunlight over the village and smiled, before jumping down. He landed right in front of Hinata, missing her by inches.

"Hey you baka! Watch it!" Naruto screamed, tensing his muscles in preparation for a fight. The other boy responded by shrugging his shoulders and walking past Naruto, before sitting on the head of the Third.

"I came to check up on my new team, but if you and your girlfriend is having alone time then…" before the boy was able to finish, Naruto tossed a tag at the boy, which landed right before him.

The tag read 'Seal Art: Instant Seal: Inescapable' and immediately the circle from before appeared around Yoshi, trapping him. Not wasting a second, Naruto made several shadow clones which flew at the boy with far more speed than before. The boy didn't flinch, as he dodged some with slight movements. The ones he couldn't dodge he blocked, before kicking them out of existence.

"I'm no close range fighter, but no clone would be able to beat me, either." He said, before going through hand signs.

"Lightning Release: Ten Songbird Jutsu!" he yelled, before ten musical notes appeared around him, just outside the circle. Three flew to the remaining clones he had dodged. When they got in range of them, they exploded, sending out electricity that took out the clones. The other seven flew to the original Naruto, who just finished removing the weight seals on his body, whose weight increased. With a blur of orange and black, Naruto disappeared and the notes just floated there.

'He's fast… too fast for even my jutsu' Yoshi thought, before going into a fighting stance. He bended his knees and placed his hands in front of himself, palms out.

"Gah" Yoshi gasped, as cuts appeared all over his body, almost at once. Blood seeped out onto his hands and clothes. His eye became blurry. Yoshi warily did hand signs for his next jutsu.

"Ring of… a Thousand… Deaths…" he chanted, out of breath. The air in the area right around Yoshi stilled, and the boy seemed to stop moving.

XxX

Naruto was breezing through the trees, not having stopped once after removing the seals. If he stopped for even a second, the jutsu with the notes would find him and he would have to dodge the annoying things as well. He managed to cut the boy a few times with his kunai, but Naruto knew that almost no one fell for the same attack twice, even if thrown from high speeds.

Naruto was now bouncing closer and closer to the boy trapped in his seal. Naruto was confused… why did it appear that he had stopped moving? He didn't trust whatever jutsu the boy had used, so he threw a kunai, at his face. It sailed straight and true, before stopping right as it entered his seal. It fell to the ground, rattling a bit before settling.

'What the hell was that?' Naruto asked himself, 'that jutsu of his stopped my kunai!'

Naruto threw several more kunai from several directions. Half of them flew past, never entering the boundaries of his seal. The rest stopped as soon as it entered the boundaries of the seal.

'Dammit! What does he want to do? Trap me in my own seal? What good would that do him? We would both be trapped!' he thought, before looking at the notes still floating in the air. 'Crap, there's still that.'

Naruto sped up, before making seven shadow clones, which moved as fast as he did. They all entered the circle at equal intervals on its edges. When the notes came after them, the electric explosion engulfed the area. When Naruto finally stopped moving to look into the debris, Yoshi stood there unaffected.

"You didn't think I would be hurt by my own jutsu, did you?" he asked; his tone calm and collected. The wounds on him seemed to have closed up, now only the rips in his clothes remained.

"A little, I really wanted you to stop using that insane jutsu." Naruto answered, in the same tone of voice.

"I'm still in the seal" Yoshi continued, shuffling his feet a little, showing he couldn't really move them.

"I'm still free and really fast", Naruto followed suit. Jumping a little to show off, "so why are you still so…"

"… calm?" He finished for Naruto. Flexing his fingers, he stretched his arms, showing off his physique, which matched Naruto's, "it's because the name of the first jutsu I did is a little off"

"First jutsu… what are you talking about…" he asked, before realization hit his face. He spun around to another note flying at him. He was blasted back into a tree, his body tingling before he passed out.

XxX

Naruto woke up in a sewer like room with a large gate in front of him.

"Fox-baka wants to talk…"

XxX

Naruto jumped up from the tree alarmed. He looked around to see Yoshi laying down on the fourth's head.

"How did you get out the seal?" Naruto asked while walking over and sitting down next to the red headed boy.

Yoshi groaned, and rubbed his head before answering, "Seals only work on me for five minutes. The fight lasted one minute, while you were out for about six."

Naruto nodded his head, not really caring about the details, "but why is that?"

"I don't really know…"

"Ne… you did a good job back there. You're lucky I got careless."

Yoshi laughed, "and you're lucky I let you catch me in that seal!"

The two boys laughed a bit together as they talked. They both loved ramen and pulling pranks, and each of them loved jokes. They became quick friends, and laughed until the sun finally went down. When the last ray of light disappeared from the horizon is when Yoshi's expression returned to its seriousness.

"Hey, Naruto-baka…" he started.

"Ne… what Yoshi-baka…"

"Why is Hino asleep?" he asked.

"Long story"

"Maybe you're thinking too hard about it" Yoshi spat

"Maybe… maybe…" Naruto followed suit.

"Just calm down about it; it's probably not as serious as you think it is."

"I'll keep that in mind" Naruto answered. He could feel the wind blowing past his hair, signaling the departure of his new friend. Naruto then stood up and walked over to the now conscious Hyuuga.

"Hey"

"H-hey…" Hinata stammered, looking at her feet in front of her.

"How are you feeling Hina-" Naruto started before he was cut off.

"I'm doing fine! It's just that… I… don't know what to say… I want to tell you Naruto-kun, but I can't… not yet… but you deserve to know and…" Hinata stopped talking as she was hugged by Naruto. His embrace brought her close to his chest, and Hinata couldn't help but return the hug.

"Whatever it is that you want to tell me Hina-chan… You can tell me when you want to. I trust you, and I can wait a little longer for you to tell me." He ended, whispering into her ear. This sent shivers down her spine again, and would have made her faint had she not just woke up. It didn't stop her face from turning red though.

They hugged like that for a while before Naruto let go and stood up. Neither wanted to leave the comfort of the embrace, but they both knew what happened when you were late for Hiashi's standards. Naruto held out his hand to help Hinata up, which she took happily. As she stood up, Naruto's jacket fell to the ground.

"Oh…" Hinata said surprised, just noticing it was on her. She quickly picked it up with her free hand and handed it back to Naruto. Naruto looked at it, before draping it over her shoulders.

"B-but, then you'll be…" she started, looking into his eyes.

Naruto laughed, "I'll be okay"

Haha, so how was it? My first deviation from the story canon... review, please!