Naruto:Death's Second Chance

by Le loup de Kaiser

Ever since the attack of the Kyubi, Naruto was shunned as ‘Konoha’s Demon’ when he was born with the Kyubi sealed in him. His life was miserable beyond grief. NaruHina, Naruto/Bleach Crossover.

17. The First Encounter

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Ever since the attack of the Kyuubi, Naruto was shunned as 'Konoha's Demon' when he was born with the Kyuubi sealed in him. His life was miserable beyond grief. Time passed by and he has slowly proven himself as its jailer instead of its incarnate. But despite this, love never truly touched the young jinchuuriki's heart until death came over him.

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A/N: I do not own Naruto, Bleach or any other canonical characters. If I did, I wouldn't be here in FF now would I?

A/N: Zabuza's fight scene is here and Ichigo finally meets Naruto again.

Talking
'thinking/flashback'
Kyuubi Talking/Jutsu
'Kyuubi Thinking'

Chapter 17

The First Encounter

As they enter the mist….

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The joint team had finally arrived at the mist covered bay as they peered into the mist that fogged the eerie waters they would soon tread upon to reach the shore on the other side. Tazuna quickly told the boat man that had been waiting for his arrival about the current situation and gladly let the team aboard so that they can further the distance between them and whoever that Gato probably have sent to tail them.

The boat quickly became crowded as the entire team entered it and set sail. It was slow moving due to their combined weight, but at least it didn't break and completely halted. The genins of team eight and seven looked out into the fog to keep watch of any movement in the mist, all to no avail since the mist was far too thick to really see anything at all. Kurenai however was keeping an eye out of the boatman since he could not be completely trusted. Kakashi, who stopped reading his book for the meantime, asked Tazuna.

"So Tazuna-san, exactly what kind of man is Gato and why is he in Wave? I've only heard rumors about him so I'm not certain about details."

Tazuna who had a downcast look in his eyes then replied,

"I'm sure you've heard of him already about how he's the richest man in the world because of the Gato Company. But that's just a cover up. Underneath that, he's an extremely terrible man who hires shinobi and thugs to take over small countries and industries. A year ago, he set his sights on the Country of Wave. He entered this country using violence and wealth as his shield and he quickly took over the island's sea traffic and transportation. On islands like the Country of Wave, controlling the sea means ruling over the wealth, politics, and people of this island."

Naruto then turned around to face the old man and said,

"No wonder Gato is afraid of you. It makes sense that if the bridge is complete, he won't be able to control the people from entering and leaving. He'd be at a total disadvantage and lose his chokehold on your people."

Tazuna nodded in defeat as they saw the unfinished bridge come into view at the right side of the boat. It was huge and magnificent in its grand size. They all awed at the size of the bridge that Tazuna was building. The old builder wasn't extravagant in his words about the bridge because it was the only way to describe it.

Kakashi then asked of Tazuna,

"You knew that Gato sent shinobi to do his dirty work so why did you request for the C-rank mission?

Tazuna looked downcast again as he replied,

"The Country of Wave is poor. Even the Daimyo have no money. We don't have the money to request for an expensive B-rank or above mission.

The boat had finally reached is destination as they entered the arch of the stone steps on the other side of the bridge. The boatman then said,

"It looks like they haven't noticed yet."

"Arigato."

Tazuna replied as they entered the arch. It was a tunnel like structure especially made for boats to traverse. When they exited, they saw the beautiful country of Wave. Mangrove trees grew here and there from the waters that the wood and metal rummaged built houses were built upon. If it were not for the poor state of the country, it would have been a great place to visit. The entire team including Tazuna left as the old builder gave his friend the boatman thanks and continued on their merry way.

As they traveled back on the dirt road leading to Tazuna's home, Naruto was on edge as he took to the front rather quickly. Kakashi took note of this and went out front as well. Soon, the young blonde was able to spot clearly what he spotted before, the location of Zabuza who had been waiting by the bushes. The young blonde sharply threw the kunai from his right sleeve at the bush. His brash act startled his team. Kakashi and Sasuke were on edge at this point until a snow hare appeared from the bushes. Naruto received a huge fist on his head as Sakura said,

"Stop showing off! There was nothing there!"

Naruto then took the bunny by its ears as he recoiled his kunai and said to his team,

"Anyone recognize anything different about this rabbit?"

They all looked puzzled at first, until Hinata said,

"Its fur color is white."

Kakashi and Kurenai were hit with realization hard as Naruto nodded and said,

"Exactly. Rabbits at this time of year have the color of their fur change as the seasons do. But this bunny's fur color hasn't changed meaning it didn't come from around here. I know this stuff since I've done some hunting outside the village walls. Can Akamaru come and sniff the scent of the bunny? It'd be best if we can find out who's been trailing us."

Kiba agreed as he and Akamaru went over and smelled the rabbit. The dog-boy and his companion then said,

"Naruto's right, they're not from around here. The rabbit smells like rain water meaning he's not from around here since it's the middle of summer."

The team then understood that they were to face another enemy up ahead and most likely someone who is of Jounin level or higher. Kakashi and Kurenai took to the front this time while Shino stayed behind Tazuna with Hinata as Kiba took to Tazuna's right and Sasuke his left leaving Sakura to the front with Naruto. The young blonde however didn't let go of his grip on the bunny. He then looked at his teammates and said,

"We haven't really eaten breakfast so who wants rabbit for an early lunch?"

They shook their heads urging the blonde to let go of the rabbit. Naruto, who was hungrier than a tired horse, broke the rabbit's neck and devoured it raw. Sakura was vomiting as she saw the barbaric blonde eat like an animal as he tore through flesh with his teeth. Kiba and his loyal companion were disturbed by the young blonde's beastly way of eating the rabbit. Hinata wasn't doing so well either as she tried hard not to look at the way her blonde lover was eating his meal. Even she could not handle seeing such barbaric ways of eating. When Naruto had finished consuming his catch, Kakashi then said,

"Everyone, duck!"

A huge cleaver sword as tall as a man came swishing in attempting to decapitate them. Hinata then tackled Tazuna into the ground as everyone ducked for cover from the swishing blade. Naruto rolled to the side as he drew his hidden kunai in both hands and quickly stood up in a battle ready stance. The rest of the team got up in a battle ready formation as they saw a man standing on top of the hilt of the giant cleaver sword that had gotten stuck on the tree during its mid flight.

The man had snow camouflage leg warmers over his blue pants that covered his navy blue shinobi sandals. He also had arm warmers of the same pattern that blended with his dark skin that could be seen on his hands and upper body as he wore no shirt. He also had a blue belt buckled over his neck and upper body and bandages over his lower face making it impossible to see his mouth underneath. He also wore a hitai-ate that slanted like Kakashi's except it was on the other side and did not cover his right eye as the shining metal on it that indicated he was from Kirigakure as the wind blew over his dark brown hair while his eyes of the same color stared at the team below with bloodlust.

Kurenai and Kakashi stood in front while Hinata and Sakura stood beside Tazuna to guard him. Kiba and Shino took to their stances while Sasuke stood with kunai in hand. Naruto on the other hand, was prepared as he had planned for this day when it came. Kakashi then eyed the mist nin warily as he said,

"Oh, my, my, you are Momochi Zabuza, the exiled shinobi of Kirigakure no Soto."

Kurenai then looked back at the team and commanded,

"Stay back everyone! He's a dangerous criminal of Jounin level. He's too much for any of you to handle."

Naruto smirked as he then said to his team,

"You heard the lady! Everyone gather around Tazuna he's the number one priority now."

The genins then surrounded Tazuna as they prepared to defend the old builder with their lives. Kakashi was marveled once again at the way Naruto had tackled the situation. The one eyed jounin then thought to himself,

'He quickly rolled to the side after he ducked for cover and drew his weapons as he went into battle mode. Without flinching or getting ahead of himself, he listened properly and then ordered his team to focus on their objective while keeping levelheaded at all times. It was the same with the Demon Brothers. He took time to assess the situation before acting when the situation became critical and turned the tide of the battle with ease by taking advantage of that critical instance where they would be caught off guard. All in all, he acts like an experienced chuunin. At least if things get worse, we can rely on Naruto to keep Tazuna safe and get them to safety.'

Kakashi then lifted his headband for his scared left eyelid to be seen. Zabuza smirked as he said,

"I'm guessing you are Kakashi the Sharingan user and the woman beside you is Kurenai the Genjutsu mistress."

The entire team except Hinata and Naruto were wide eyed at what they heard especially Sasuke. Kakashi was not an Uchiha yet the title he was given said he had a sharingan. The ex-mist nin then turned to face his opponents and said,

"I'm sorry, but I'll need you to hand over the geezer."

Kakashi then told his team,

"Everyone, don't join the battle. Only Kurenai and I am a match for him. If things get dangerous, I want you guys to get Tazuna to safety. He's the number one priority."

Kakashi then completely lifted his hitai-ate and revealed the crimson, triple tomoe eye that was the sharingan. Sasuke wasn't thrilled at the realization that his sensei contained a doujutsu of his family when he clearly wasn't an Uchiha. Zabuza smiled under his bandaged lower face and said,

"I'm honored that I can see the Sharingan that I've heard about."

Kiba, who was confused by all of this, then let out his frustration as he said,

"What the hell are you guys talking about?! Sharingan this and that, what the hell is it!"

Sasuke then calmly replied,

"Sharingan…the eye creates it, and it is the power that the pupil generates. Ones who use doujutsu are said to have eye powers that can see through all genjutsu, taijutsu and ninjutsu and cancel their effects. Sharingan is one of those various types of eyes that doujutsu users possess."

Kiba then got the point as he said,

"So it's kinda like Hinata's Byakugan in that sense."

Sasuke nodded as he continued.

"But that's not the only ability the Sharingan possesses."

Zabuza who was amused by all this then said,

"Correct. That isn't it. The scary part is the Sharingan can understand how an opponent's techniques work and copy it."

Mist began to form heavily around the area as Sakura marveled at the fact that her sensei had such a power. Zabuza who was enjoying the moment then said,

"When I was in the Kirigakure assassination squad, your information was listed in the BINGO book I carried asking for your capture, it also noted this, 'the man who copied more than one thousand jutsus, Kakashi the copy ninja. I haven't seen your lady friend's name in the book but I've heard stories of an expert Genjutsu master who could kill you without having to touch you and counter your genjutsu with her own. She was called Kurenai the Genjutsu Mistress."

Kurenai then looked over to her colleague and said,

"Seems you're more famous than the Hokage gives you credit for."

"Same to you."

Kakashi replied as he scratched his head in embarrassment as the entire team except for Naruto marveled at the Jounins in front of them. Kakashi was a lazy ass pervert and yet he was also one of the most dangerous people around from the ex-mist nin's description. And from the sound of Kurenai's description, she was also a force to be reckoned with. Good thing they were on their side. Sakura began to have a new respect for her sensei as Sasuke eyed him warily while Hinata smiled proudly knowing her sensei was a powerful kunoichi. Naruto then, without keeping his eyes away from the bloodthirsty mist nin, said to his team,

"Hinata, I heared Kiba mention something about the Byakugan. What does it do?"

The lavender eyed girl got the subtle hint from her man as she replied,

"Aside from what Sasuke-kun mentioned about doujutsus, My Byakugan can see in a three-hundred sixty degree vision. It also allows me to see chakra coils and its tenketsus or its chakra points making hiding unreliable against my Byakugan. The Juuken style was created to directly compliment this advantage so we can use our Byakugan to its greatest efficiency and strike the opponent's tenketsus and stop their flow of chakra."

Sakura then replied,

"So your doujutsu is just as powerful as Kakashi-sensei's. How do you develop such abilities?"

Hinata then shook her head and said,

"They're inborn so they can't be developed by just anyone. They are what we call a Kekkei Genkai. My Byakugan is a Kekkei Genkai of the Hyuuga clan while the Sharingan if I recall, is of the Uchiha clan. Am I correct Sasuke-kun?"

Sasuke then nodded as he said,

"Which is what I'm confused about. He's not an Uchiha so how did he get a Sharingan?"

Sakura was astonished by what she heard. Not only was her sensei capable of great feats, but that it originated from Sasuke's family meaning Sasuke was capable of the Sharingan and more. Despite her feelings of elation pouring in her soul, she still was in a battle situation.

Hinata then went through some handseals and activated her Byakugan as she took Naruto's advice and searched around for any other nins in hiding. She located the nin near the trees fifty meters away from Zabuza's location. It was a bit faint since the nin was at the edge of Hinata's Byakugan sight range. Shino then noticed the veins bulging over her eyes and knew what she was up to. Kiba had the same feeling as he saw his teammate and began sniffing the air with Akamaru. He then whispered,

"I can smell another nin in the air. He must be his backup just in case."

Sakura and Sasuke looked at Kiba wondering what he meant. Naruto then said,

"Do you think Zabuza would get out here by himself after having two of Gato's chuunins killed easily?"

"Let's warn Kakashi and Kurenai-sensei."

Sakura said to the team. Shino then held out his hand to her in protest and monotonously said,

"Let us not interfere just yet. I don't think that his companion notices that we know yet. If we interfere right away, Zabuza's friend might head back for backup to make sure that Tazuna-san dies and it might involve something far worse than just killing Tazuna-san. If all goes well, we could ambush him after they take down Zabuza."

Sakura and Sasuke returned gazing at their senseis with utmost focus as they took deeper stances. It didn't make a lot of sense to them at first, but they managed to get the idea as the mist became thicker. The young blonde then focused his chakra and reiatsu as he coated himself with a constant flow of chakra and a consant flow of reiatsu to layer over the chakra. His tenant then grinned and said,

Using the same method your mother taught you. I believe you've solved our Zanpakuto release problem as well. But remember, someone else is watching from a distance our battle so make it look good.

The ex-mist nin, perched on his sword stuck on the tree, knelt down and said,

"Let's cut the chit-chat here. I have to kill that geezer right away. But Kakashi, it seems that I have to defeat you and the Genjutsu mistress first."

Kurenai then took a step back and drew her kunai as did Kakashi. The other genins took a much deeper stance as Zabuza withdrew his sword and ran into the middle of the lake astonishing the other genins aside from Hinata and Naruto as the mist nin began forming a one-handed seal. Water began to spiral around the nin and evaporate into mist. The ex-mist nin then said,

"Kiri gakure no Jutsu!"

The nin then disappeared in without a trace leaving a thick fog of mist. Kurenai then asked her fellow colleague,

"You've been out on the field long enough Kakashi. What exactly is Zabuza?"

Kakashi then replied,

"Momochi Zabuza, he was in the Kirigakure ANBU, and was known for his 'silent killing' techniques. Just as the name implies, it's a killing technique that's executed in a flash and carried out in absolute silence making it possible that you'll be dead before you realize it. Another thing…I can't use my Sharingan to its fullest potential in this mist. So don't let your guard down."

Kurenai nodded as she began making handseals and disappeared in a blaze of cherry blossom petals. The thickening of the mist provided no comfort for the genins as they felt a spike of killing intent leak out of the mist. Hinata mustered all her strength to calm down as she located Kurenai in the tree branch where Zabuza was once perched. Naruto, who was beside his beloved princess, then said,

"Don't worry everyone. As long as we keep together we'll make it through."

Soon, the mist thickened enough that they completely lost sight of the white haired jounin and Hinata could no longer see Kurenai with her Byakugan. Sasuke could feel the tension rise as the mist grew in thickness. And like a knife to their hearts, Zabuza's voice echoed through the mist.

"Eight points…the larynx, spine, liver, jugular, vein, collarbone, kidney and heart. Now which vital organ do you want to get struck at?"

Sakura was trembling with fear as her other companions were no better. But as she looked at the young blonde, her thoughts began to tell a different description about him.

'Look at him. He's not even scared one bit. He's completely calm like it was an everyday happening. It was the same with the two chuunins he killed earlier…without remorse or emotion. It's as if he's done this sort of thing before…what is he?'

Kakashi could feel the tension rise very abruptly and then placed his hands in a handseal as his chakra flared out and blew away the mist. His killing intent radiated as it cancelled Zabuza's. Naruto just smirked at the sudden breeze of killing intent while Sasuke was inwardly panicking as his thoughts raged in his broken mind.

'What an intense thirst for blood…one breathing motion or one eye movement will be detected, and it'll get me killed…that is the atmosphere I feel. If I stay here for an hour, I'll lose my mind. The murderous intent of these two Jounins clashing…the feeling that my life is in someone's hands…No…I would rather kill myself to escape this feeling!'

The raven haired Uchiha nervously brought his hand wielding kunai in a reverse grip as he brought the black blade close to his chest to end his suffering. His other teammates aside from Naruto panicked as they saw him motioning to end his life while they stood there helplessly watching him attempt seppuku.

"Sasuke…"

Kakashi shouted at the raven haired boy as his eyes turned into u shape. He then continued to calm the boy as he said,

"Don't worry. I'll protect you the six of you with my life. I won't let anyone on my team die."

The entire team felt the warmth of Kakashi's words as they recomposed themselves. Naruto then looked behind him and saw Zabuza there with his cleaver sword in a reverse left hand grip as the man crouched low and said,

"I don't know about that… This is the end."

Kakashi gazed back at the man with Sharingan ablaze. The ex-mist nin then raised his sword to strike them all in one blow. Suddenly, he was caught in a tree that grew over his body leaving his arms and legs tied to the trunk while his head lay on the trunk as well. Kurenai's upper half then emerged from the tree with kunai in hand as she slit the man's neck. But instead of the crimson color of blood that normally painted the ground after such an attack, instead, it was the transparent color of water that poured out as the form of the nin collapsed into water effectively dispelling the genjutsu.

The genins leaped back for some leg room while Hinata, who was the closest to Tazuna, stood by the man to guard him. Kakashi then ran and stood by Kurenai to check if she was alright until he heard Kiba scream,

"Kakashi-sensei, behind you!"

Kakashi was then sliced in two as the cleaver sword of Zabuza cleanly lacerated his body. Zabuza smirked until the remains of Kakashi transformed into water and splashed the ground.

"Mizu Bunshin?!"

Zabuza said in astonishment until he felt the cold steel of a kunai close to his neck and a familiar voice say,

"Don't move. This is the end."

The expressions of the genins brightened up as they saw how quickly and effortlessly their sensei had subdued the ex-mist nin. Zabuza however, stayed calm through the entire ordeal and smiled under his mask.

"I see that you've copied my Mizu Bunshin no Jutsu when you said, 'I won't let anyone on my team die.' By making your clone speak as if it was the real one, you diverted my attention to the clone while the real one used the Kiri gakure no Jutsu to hide and observe my movements….However…"

Another clone of Zabuza appeared behind Kakashi.

"I'm not that easy to defeat."

The ex-mist nin struck him with the cleaver sword in a side slash from left to right, as both the white haired jounin and the ex-mist nin's clone was sliced in two leaving a puddle of water behind. Kakashi then reappeared behind Zabuza as he attempted to stab his left side. Zabuza then used the momentum of his initial swing to swerve to the right while the sword came behind the white haired jounin only for him to jump above the blade and disperse into water as Kurenai came charging at Zabuza in attempts to stab his chest. The ex-mist nin then caught her kunai wielding arm by the wrist and gave her a kick to the stomach sending her flying towards Kiba who she fell upon.

"His taijutsu skills are superb…"

Shino said as he helped up Kiba and Kurenai. The ex-mist nin then made a break for the lake. Kakashi then emerged from the lake and said,

"What's with this water? It's heavy for some reason."

Kurenai then ran to the lake to help out Kakashi from his predicament only to get suddenly kicked into the lake by a Mizu Bunshin of the ex mist nin. Then three more Zabuzas appeared behind the two jounins and quickly formed handseals and simultaneously said,

"Suiro no Jutsu!"

The two Jounins were trapped in spheres of water with one clone's left hand in the sphere of Kakashi and another clone's right hand in the sphere of Kurenai with the remaining Zabuza in the middle. Kakashi inwardly cursed himself for his incompetence.

"I'm sorry I got you in this mess Kurenai."

Kakashi said as he bowed his head in defeat. Kurenai then shook her head and said,

"It's alright. But they need to get out of here as quickly as possible since we've been defeated already."

Zabuza chuckled darkly while the genins could only look in horror as their senseis were kept in a watery prison to which they cannot attack or defend. Zabuza then told his prisoners,

"You idiots fell for it. This is a special prison that you can't escape from. Both of you gave me a hard time when you're moving. Now then, Kakashi and Kurenai… I'm going to finish you off later. First I'm going to get rid of them."

Both jounins grew wide eyed when they heard what Zabuza was going to do as the remaining clone on land began to approach the genins. They were frightened by the sudden turn of events. Naruto however didn't lose his cool as the ex-mist nin said,

"The six of you have forehead protectors on as if you think you're ninjas. But ninja refers to someone who has gone through numerous life and death situations. In other words, you can call yourselves a ninja when you appear in my BINGO book. You six aren't ninjas."

The clone then once again made a handseal and mist covered the area once more. Kurenai then yelped in fear.

"Run everyone! Get Tazuna to safety as quickly as possible!"

Naruto then smiled as the mist finally covered the genins from view. Kakashi was very worried at this point. He knew that they were skilled but against Zabuza they didn't stand a chance.

The young blonde then looked at his fellow genins and said,

"Alright, since Kakashi-sensei and Kurenai-sensei are out of commission, we have to rescue them and protect Tazuna."

Kiba then retorted back,

"Like saving their butts will save our skins. I'm not an idiot like you Naruto! We should get the heck out of here!"

Shino then adjusted his shades and said,

"Wrong Kiba. Naruto is right. If we wish to live to see another day and effectively protect Tazuna-san, we need to save our senseis."

Kiba got the point rather quickly as Akamaru whined to his master in agreement. Hinata then approached the young blonde and said,

"Naruto-kun, we will do as you ask of us. How do we save them?"

Sakura and Sasuke had a similar appeal as they nodded at the young blonde. Naruto's eyes became a flaming cyan as confidence emanated from him which tore apart the gloom that lurked in their hearts. He then recoiled his hidden kunai and faced towards the lake and said,

"Sakura keep guard of Tazuna. Hinata, you're our eyes so keep track of Zabuza's movements. Shino, we need you to be the element of surprise so stay with Sakura and find that hidden nin. Kiba and Sasuke you're with me. We'll need to keep an eye out for counter attacks."

Just as Naruto gave his orders, Zabuza's foot smacked the young blonde in the face. While still in midair, Naruto then reflexively made a one-handed seal as two bunshins appeared next to him. The bunshin on his left transformed into a large shuriken which he held as the other bunshin grabbed him by the shoulders and threw him back towards Zabuza. Sasuke and Kiba saw this coming and immediately grabbed Zabuza's free hand while Kiba grabbed the armed hand of Zabuza. The water clone then swatted away the two genins on his arms just in time to block the shuriken tossed at him with his cleaver sword. But it was too late for him to notice the exploding tag on the shuriken as it blew up and eradicated the clone along with the mist.

Kakashi and Kurenai were surprised when they heard the noise but were relieved when they saw their teams unharmed. Kakashi then said to the teams,

"Everyone run! Don't worry about us. Get Tazuna-san out of here!"

"Kakashi's right. Get out of here! What are you waiting for?"

Kurenai then replied to them. The genins however didn't flinch one bit as determination filled their eyes. Naruto then spoke to his senseis with courage in his heart as he said,

"We're not leaving you! If one of us goes, we all go. Besides, it's pointless to run since he'll be after us once he's through with you guys clone or not! If he can get you guys in that position, then how much more us!"

Unfortunately, he had a point. It was the worst battle scenario and Zabuza himself knew it. The ex-mist nin then smirked as he said,

"You're just kids who think that playing ninja is fun and games. Why when I was your age, my hands were already soaked in blood."

His words caused the genins to stiffen once again while Naruto inwardly rolled his eyes.

"The Demon Zabuza."

Kakashi said from his prison. Kurenai then said to her imprisoned companion,

"What do you mean 'The Demon Zabuza'?"

Zabuza then looked at the white haired Jounin and said,

"It looks like you've heard of me?"

Naruto then said to Kakashi,

"What are you talking about?" 'That should rile things up to give Shino some cover. It looks like Haku hasn't decided to move in yet meaning Shino has all the time to get his bugs in place and find Haku.'

Kakashi then explained to them about Zabuza's infamous title.

"A long time ago, Kirigakure was known as the Village of the Bloody Mist. In that village, there was an obstacle that existed to become a shinobi"

"So you also know about the final test there."

And repeating his past, Naruto then said,

"Hey what is that 'final test'?"

Zabuza chuckled darkly causing the genins to feel uneasiness once more as the ex-mist nin then said,

"Students killing each other."

They gasped in distress at what they heard as Zabuza continued.

"Friends who have eaten from the same pot are separated into groups of two and forced to fight each other…Until one of them is killed. This is done with friends that have helped each other, shared their dreams, and competed together."

Sakura's knees were about to give way in fright as she nervously said,

"That's awful."

Kakashi saw the distressed look on their faces and said,

"Ten years ago, Kirigakure had to go through a reformation because in the previous year, a monster appeared that finally decided it after it killed over a hundred of the candidates without mercy or hesitation."

The genins and Kurenai didn't like were things were going with this conversation. Zabuza smirked as he said,

"That was fun."

They were utterly horrified by what they heard. Naruto then shouted out to his team,

"Demon or not, we have no choice but to move forward. I don't know about you, but I don't let my past bring me down nor do I let any obstacle in my path stop me from moving forward. That is my nindo and I will never back down especially to a guy like you!"

Naruto's words shook his friends from their stupor as their morale rose once more. The Zabuza clone in front of them then said,

"Baka. After all that you still want to run to your death. Well allow me to be your executioner. Mizu Bunshin no Jutsu!"

The clone then made two more water clones and charged at the genins. Suddenly, a wall of bugs erupted from the ground and hindered the path of the three Zabuza clones and the line of sight of the original holding the two jounins in place allowing the genins to burst through and give the clones a surprise attack. Kiba and Hinata attacked the two clones while Akamaru attacked the third allowing Naruto and Sasuke to move towards the lake with two large shuriken in both the hands of Naruto and one in Sasuke's.

The raven haired boy threw the shuriken at the Zabuza in the right side and quickly threw Naruto in the same direction.

"Baka. It won't make any difference."

Zabuza said as he saw the shuriken approaching with Naruto close behind. The shuriken in flight suddenly transformed into Naruto and threw the original at Zabuza, increasing the flight speed of the blonde as the clone dispelled itself. The young blonde then threw the two shuriken at the Zabuza clones on the side as they hit dead on and killed the two clones as they continued their spinning path while the original was headed straight for the original Zabuza with kunai drawn in both hands ready to skewer through the ex-mist nin. The nin had no choice but to leap back and duck just as the young blonde passed him.

"Kuso! He missed!"

Kiba said as Hinata managed to kill the clone she was fighting. Sasuke however smirked knowing what the young blonde was doing. The original Naruto was about to hit the water until the shuriken that traveled slightly ahead of the blonde, transformed back into clones of Naruto with the original in between them. The clones then latched on to the original and the clone on the right quickly threw back the other two at Zabuza before it dispelled itself. The clone still latched on Naruto then threw the original at Zabuza before dispelling itself making the velocity of the original twice as fast as Naruto lunged his two kunai at the shoulder blades of the mist nin causing the onlookers to be wide eyed as the force of the impact caused the mist nin to skim on the surface of the water before hitting the shore's edge hard with Naruto still latched on the nin's back.

"Yatta! That was awesome!" 'Hell yeah Shannaro!'

Sakura exclaimed in delight as Tazuna managed to breathe normally once again. As the ex-mist nin stood up he felt the electrifying pain of the kunai embedded in his shoulder blades as the kunai dug deep into his back with only the young blonde's gripping hands outside the wound as Naruto latched himself on the ex-mist nin. With anger boiling in Zabuza's veins, he then yelped,

"I'll get you for that gaki you'll—"

"I think that's far enough Zabuza."

Kakashi said as he interrupted with his kunai drawn at the neck of Zabuza and Kurenai as well with the tip of the kunai pricking his heart area as a trickle of blood began to pour on the blade. There was no room left for him to run to as he stood there, bleeding on his back, while the blades of the two jounins intimidated his death at his front.

The remaining on looking genins kept their guard up despite having Zabuza in a dangerous predicament. The ex-mist nin however, wasn't planning on giving up as he raised his arms behind his back and snappily grabbed the young blonde and threw him at the crimson eyed woman and kicked Kakashi to the side as he ran back on top of the lake. The white haired jounin then took off after him until they both stood at the center of the lake face to face.

"Those were impressive moves. But I won't go down as easily."

The ex-mist nin said with sarcasm in his words. Kakashi, with his Sharingan still active, then said,

"The same technique won't work on me twice Zabuza. What are you going to do now?"

Zabuza narrowed his eyes at the white haired jounin as he leaped back and began performing handseals. Kakashi did the same moves simultaneously. Handseal after handseal were performed in congruence without a loss of rhythm or accuracy as the water in the center began to bubble. By the time the handseals were performed, they both then shouted,

"Suiton Suiryuudan no Jutsu!"

Two dragons made of water came out from the bubbling center of the lake and charged at each other canceling what would have been a powerful aquatic attack. Zabuza was amazed at how fast he was able to reproduce the seals and perform the move rather quickly. The genins were amazed by the show of force that Kakashi was able to peform under the circumstances as Sakura exclaimed,

"Sugoi! Kakashi-sensei is dead even with him now!"

Naruto got up and retracted his bloody kunais as Hinata went to his aid. He immediately told her that he was fine she then looked over the tree closest to the roadside and looked back at the blonde. Naruto got the hint as Shino was nowhere to be found. With all eyes on the battlefield, no one could help but look upon the fight between the two ninjutsu powerhouses as the water flooded the banks before receding back into the lake.

'He formed that many seals in just a few seconds, and copied them perfectly.'

Sasuke thought as he saw the two jounins still standing like an exact copy of the other.

"That's a shinobi technique?!"

Kiba exclaimed in delusion not knowing what to say after seeing the two serpentines of water crash into each other. However, as the water receded, they were astonished to see Kakashi guarding Zabuza's cleaver sword with his kunai using two hands as they pushed each other in the center of the lake with rain from the receding water of the water attack to pour upon them. Neither one gave way as they stubbornly fought for dominance. However, only Zabuza knew what was really going on in that fight as he thought,

'Something's weird…what's going on? Sharingan is supposed to be an ability where the user memorizes the opponent's technique and copies it. But…the technique was executed at the same time…could it be…'

While Zabuza was consumed in his thoughts, a young boy with long black hair tied in a bun on the back and parted in the middle at the front and a mask was perched close to the tree branch near the lake as he watched the battlefield from afar. He wore sandals and a green hakama trousers and a blue mist medic nin kimono over a dark green cotton, longsleeved sweater tied with a brown obi sash. He kept ever vigilant of the battle as he prepared his senbons just in case the fight became too drastic for his companion.

Feeling that he could not gain ground in close combat any longer, Zabuza leaped back as he sheathed his sword on his back while Kakashi did the same thing as well. They both ran around each other as they stood where the former opponent stood. Even in movement the white haired jounin copied it perfectly. Zabuza then made the handseal for the Kiri gakure no Jutsu only for Kakashi to have simultaneously copy his movements. He was wide eyed by what he saw.

"He's moving just like him with such perfect timing."

Tazuna said as he finally regained the ability to talk from all the stress of the adrenaline that coursed in his veins from the battle. Zabuza was nowhere near able in comprehending what was going on as he thought,

'This guy…my movement is being perfectly…'

"Predicted by him."

Kakashi said mimicking Zabuza's movements as the ex-mist nin placed his hands down. Zabuza was stirred by this as a cold sweat poured down his face as he thought once more,

'What? He read what I was going to say in my mind?'

Zabuza then lifted his hands in another handseal as he gazed into Kakashi's eyes with spite as he thought,

'Damn it. This guy…'

"Has such unpleasant eyes, right?"

Kakashi said as he mimicked Zabuza's movements.

"What you're doing is just copying."

Zabuza said with hate in his voice as he formed another handseal for Kakashi to mirror as they simultaneously said,

"You can't beat me you monkey!"

The ex-mist nin was really pissed as he began forming handseals once more and said,

"I'll make it so that you'll never open that copycat mouth of yours again!"

Zabuza was even more panicked when he saw the copycat nin mimic his moves perfectly. He began to become delusional as he saw a clone of himself standing in Kakashi's place as it overshadowed the white haired jounin before the ex-mist nin. While he was stunned, Kakashi finished the last set of the handseals of the jutsu and said,

"Suiton Daibakufu no Jutsu!"

Kakashi's three tomoes spun counterclockwise around his pupil further scaring the ex-mist nin as the water of the lake erupted and began flowing in gigantic proportions as it exploded upon the ex-msit nin effectively sending him to a tree as four kunais, thrown from Kurenai, pinned Zabuza to a tree as the water receded with Kakashi standing from one of the branches as he looked upon his prey and said,

"This is the end. My Sharingan has the ability to partially see the future. And right now, what I see is that you're going to die."

Kakashi then drew his kunai ready to stab the man until three senbons struck the nin in the neck rendering him dead as the ex-mist nin's body fell upon the damp ground. The entire team looked upon the direction of where the senbons were thrown from and saw a mist hunter-nin. Kurenai and Kakashi were relieved when they saw the hunter nin. Naruto however, knew better that this nin was a missing nin alongside Zabuza. Kiba then took position with his kunai at the ready and Akamaru growling as the dog-boy then said,

"Great! Another enemy for us to fight. He must be Zabuza's backup just in case something like this would happen."

Sakura stood guard in front of Tazuna while Shino already had a kunai at the hunter nin's neck and Hinata was ready once again in her Juuken stance while Naruto kept steady. Kakashi, who was surprised nonetheless by Shino's stealth ability then said to his team.

"It's alright. He's a hunter-nin. It's his job to clean up the corpse of a shinobi when the shinobi dies to prevent any secrets of the village from being leaked out to the outside world because the corpse was left to be examined. Put the kunai down Shino." 'Kurenai's students are capable. I didn't even notice Shino move during the fight. That boy's stealth skills are superb. But that's to be expected of every Aburame.'

Shino looked at his sensei for guidance to which she gave him a nod allowing Shino to let go of the nin. The hunter-nin was unnerved by what just happened but regained his composure as he leaped down from the branch and kneeled down by the body of Zabuza and said,

"It was true with your prediction. He did die. Thank you very much. I was looking for a chance to kill Zabuza."

Kakashi then leaped down from his branch as he took a closer look of the body and checked its pulse. He then sighed in relief allowing the genins to do the same. Naruto just made a weak smile as he saw the event play out once more except with more people and a suspicious other individual near the shades of the forest watching them.

The hunter-nin then took the corpse of Zabuza over his shoulder as he said,

"Your battle ends here for now. I must go dispose of this corpse. It's a body filled with secrets. If you'll excuse me."

"Wait a minute."

Naruto said interrupting the nin. They all looked at him questioningly as a confident smirk was seen on his face. With his flaming azure eyes ablaze, the young blonde then continued.

"Why not deal with it here? I feel much safer knowing that he's been taken cared of permanently where I can confirm it."

The other genins were a bit worried about seeing a hunter-nin take care of a dead corpse but they knew it's better to be safe than sorry. However, to Kurenai and Kakashi, the thought triggered something else from their memory as they got what Naruto was implying and eyed the nin carefully without giving any hints of their knowledge. The hunter-nin was taken aback by those words as he trembled slightly until his sharp mind then clicked in when he casually said,

"It wouldn't be appropriate to dispose of the corpse in front of your team since your still in shock from what had just happened. Especially since most of you are genins and disposal can be rough for your conscience."

"But then you would be going against the rules of your job. I remember clearly what Iruka-sensei beat into my head about hunter-nins. He said that hunter-nins will dispose of the body in the place it lay regardless of who is there to witness it. If he needs to bring evidence about his success, he needs only to take the head so he can burn the body where it fell. It took me ten freakin' days to get it in my head right so don't make me repeat myself."

Naruto quickly replied causing the hunter-nin's nervousness to become more apparent as the rest of the genins remembered that rule from their academy days. And to add to the already present tension, Kurenai then said,

"Naruto is right. The genins don't have to see the disposal process, but you still have your duty to do. It's not like your going to betray your oath as a hunter-nin now would you?"

The hunter-nin could not take it any longer and quickly shunsined himself and Zabuza away causing Kakashi and Kurenai to confirm their suspicions of the boy. Shino then leaped down from the tree and adjusted his shades as he said,

"I already placed a bug on him when Hinata and Kiba located him earlier after Naruto had a hunch that Zabuza wasn't alone."

Kakashi then approached the team as he said,

"Good work Shino you did great. So did the rest of you. But I'm afraid things are going to get rougher now that they managed to escape. Those senbon needles that he threw at Zabuza were lethal in the sense that they can kill if they hit the right place but with their low chances of killing and a skilled hand, they can just paralyze or in this case, create a temporary death state where the body sleeps to the point of almost dying which is why I couldn't feel a pulse on Zabuza. But overall you did well especially you Naruto. You among all the other genins in this group was the most calm and decisive person during this mission. It's almost as if you've done things like this before. Are you sure you're just a genin?"

Kakashi said as he looked on the blonde while many curious looks followed suit. Hinata inwardly stiffened in shock realizing that they must have been discovered but let no outward manifestation of her feelings take place as the young blonde scratched his head and said with a grin,

"You bet! I can't believe I just got praised for doing what comes natural to me when I get serious. Maybe I should get serious every time were on a mission."

Kakashi still had his suspicions but with everything that just occurred, it wouldn't be the best of times to ask directly. The white haired Jounin then placed his hitai-ate over his left eye once more as he cooled down from the battle. Kurenai then asked the genins,

"Is everyone alright?"

They all nodded as they dusted themselves off as Kurenai then replied,

"It's good to see that most of you just suffered bruises and cuts. We should get moving. Our mission is still far from over."

Sakura then turned to the old builder and asked of him,

"How far is it until we get to your house Tazuna-san?"

Tazuna then tipped his straw hat upward as he said,

"It's not too far now. Sorry about that everyone!"

Kakashi then turned around to face the road and said,

"All right, let's cheer up and go! We can rest in Tazuna's house for the meantime to recover."

As they began to walk once more, Kakashi then began to collapse as his body waned from all the fatigue. Naruto then ran and held on to the white haired Jounin before he hit the ground and said,

"Kakashi-sensei! Are you alright?"

Kurenai then went to support Kakashi's other arm as he weakly replied,

"Chakra…depletion…need….rest…."

And like that, the white haired jounin went out like a light as he fainted from the immense fatigue.

----------o)0(o----------

Daylight struck through window where the now conscious one-eyed Jounin lay in his futon as he gazed into the ceiling. Just then, a black haired young woman still in her mid-twenties came in and looked at the man with worry as she asked him,

"Are you okay sensei?"

Kakashi then replied,

"No, I'll barely be able to move for a week."

He exhausted all of his strength using the Sharingan for such a long period of time plus using high level ninjutsus as well. It is a wonder how he can still talk from such exhaustion. However, being a stubborn man at times attempted to sit up as the woman protested saying with her hands on her hips,

"Then you shouldn't move around for a while, then."

Kakashi then lay his head back on his pillow just as the genins and Kurenai arrive at the open doorway and greet him. Kurenai then knelt down beside him and asked,

"How are you feeling? We got worried when you collapsed back there."

He then stuck his thumb out causing the joint team to sigh in relief as they sat around the white haired Jounin. Sakura then said to the prone Jounin,

"Sharingan is amazing, but it puts a lot of strain on the body. I'm not sure if that's good or bad."

Naruto then said as he crossed his arms,

"Anyway, by the looks of it, you're in no shape to be fighting. Lucky for us, neither does that bloodthirsty killer if what you said is true about him being paralyzed. So what should we do now?"

Kakashi struggled a bit before he managed to sit up properly. He then said,

"We can start by telling me what happened after I passed out."

Kiba then pet his partner, Akamaru before replying to the white haired Jounin's question.

"After you passed out, we brought you here to Tazuna's house so we can get everyone's wounds treated. We all got pretty beat up except for Sakura. Shino tried to locate them with his bugs but he couldn't get a trace on them. Those bastards must have killed the planted bug so we can't go after them. After we got you here, we all just rested and waited for you to wake up the next day."

Kakashi nodded at what he heard while Sakura felt some guilt in her heart for not being able to fight alongside her companions throughout the whole mission. As Tazuna entered the room, Kurenai then said,

"This mission will not be complete until that bridge is finished so we better help out in it's completion. I just strolled over there a while ago and there aren't many workers left in constructing the bridge. But aside from that, we have to be prepared for the battles up ahead. Zabuza may be down, but Gato isn't so you never know when we have to fight again."

Then genins pondered at the situation that had unraveled at their feet. They barely were able to fight the clones of Zabuza let alone the original. All they managed to do was wound the man. Hinata knew that Naruto could've easily defeated Zabuza if he wanted to, but it would seriously blow his cover had he done so making it harder for him when they return back to Konoha. Especially since Ichigo was still hot on the young blonde's trail.

Naruto then sighed as he said,

"Well there's only one thing we can do….Train so we can be strong enough to survive."

Sasuke nodded at that as did Kakashi as he said,

"Looks like we have some training to do."

Sakura was panicked at what she heard. Kiba too had the same thoughts as Sakura said,

"Wait! Even if we train, it's not going to be helpful at all since the enemy shinobi that you, Kakashi-sensei the Sharingan user and Kurenai-sensei the Genjutsu mistress, had a hard time with." 'Kuso! Are you trying to kill us?!'

Kiba then added to her statement as he said,

"I'd love to train and beat the shit out of him. But there's no way we can have a chance to win. He took on the both of you with ease! How much more with us? He probably was toying with us the whole time if he wasn't holding the both of you prisoner. He might even be looking for us now after yesterday and brought a couple of his friends to make sure we die in our own shit."

Kurenai then berated the fowl mouthed boy as they listened to what Kakashi had to say.

"Relax Kiba. After regaining consciousness from the near death state, you can only regain fighting strength after a couple of weeks or so meaning we have plenty of time. And besides Sakura, who helped Kurenai and I when we had a difficult time? You six are growing at a rapid rate especially you Naruto. Had I known better, your fighting spirit and levelheaded mind during the entire mission are of an experienced Chuunin. If Kurenai and I aren't around, I can feel safe knowing you and Shino are leading the team."

Hinata smiled when she heard that her blonde protector was getting the praise he so rightfully deserved however, Sasuke wasn't all too happy as he thought,

'Naruto was the dead last in the academy. How can he be this cunning? No matter. I'll get stronger and prove to everyone that I can defeat that mist nin and his friend. I will surpass him and get closer to HIS level.'

Kurenai then said to her team,

"The same goes for you Hinata. You fought bravely without fear. I'm glad that you finally learned to take initiative when the situation calls for it. The same goes to you too Kiba. You supported Naruto and Sasuke well allowing Shino to get to the fake hunter-nin with ease. But we will have to train hard and work hard in order to accomplish this mission without anyone dying. This is a real life or death mission were how you fight will determine whether you or your comrades live or not so take this training we're going to give you seriously."

"It won't matter."

A young boy said from behind the group as he stood by the doorway. He wore a white short hat with two blue, horizontal stripes that ringed around it over his short brown hair. He also wore green suspenders over his rusty yellow shirt. The young boy then ran towards his grandfather, Tazuna the builder, as he gave him a big hug. His mother, the black haired woman, then scolded him for not greeting the team of shinobi that escorted his grandfather to safety. The young boy then looked at them and said in a monotone voice,

"Mom, they're going to die. There's no way a person can win by going against Gato."

His melanchony, irritated Kiba as the dog-boy stood up and approached the boy and shouted,

"What the hell did you say gaki?! You think we ain't a match for that scumbag and his mob of thugs?! I oughta—"

"That's enough Kiba. One more word and you're off this mission. You better learn how to control your temper or else."

Kurenai said to the dog-boy as Akamaru pulled on the end of his pants. Kiba bitterly swallowed his pride, as he sat back down in a corner. Inari then turned his back to them as he began to walk out of the room. He then said before leaving,

"If you want to live, you'd better go home. I'm going to watch the ocean."

Naruto couldn't keep his emotions in check either as some old memories refused to remain detached from the heart. As he marched over to Inari's room and stopped right at the door as he saw through the small opening of the half-opened door and heard the poor boy sob his heart out. Naruto remembered how painful it was for him at this time before he came and changed his life forever. As Naruto turned away to leave, he saw Hinata waiting for him at the bottom of the stairs.

"Hina-hime? What's wrong?"

Naruto said as he walked down the stairs to meet her. Her eyes told him that she needed to see him about something of great importance. Without delay she then said,

"I'm still amazed at how calm you were the past two days. It was so hard to believe all this even after we've known each other for six years now. But after yesterday and all our days in training, I can readily accept it as the truth kitsune."

It was hard to believe from the very beginning and Naruto knew that. He had jumped the gun at the right time but he should have told her little by little in order for her to have no doubts in her mind unlike what had occurred the past weeks until this point. The young blonde then sheepishly replied,

"I guess I should have taken it slow when I told you the truth instead of telling you everything right off the bat. But anyway, I think we should head outside to do some training with Kurenai sensei. Don't worry about shocking them with you're ability to do tree walking already. But after doing the tree walking, lets train in water walking with reiatsu instead of chakra so we can master the art of reiatsu control."

Hinata nodded as Naruto took her by the hand and they walked into the forest where they were to train. Luckily for them, there was more than one way for the team to get out of Tazuna's house and into the forest so they were able to completely evade being seen by the rest of the group as they rendezvoused with the rest of the team in the forest. Kurenai saw the happy expression of Hinata and was glad she was able to get along with Naruto much better than before.

The entire joint team stood in that clearing as Kakashi, who was leaning on a crutch, then said,

"Alright. Let's begin the training."

"Cool! So do we lean how to do the jutsus you guys just used on Zabuza yesterday?"

Naruto exclaimed reminding his team of the nature of his persona allowing them to relax more knowing that Naruto hadn't completely changed. Kakashi and Kurenai sweatdropped as did the other man hiding in the shades when they heard what he just said. Kurenai then turned to her fellow Jounin and said,

"Is he always like this? "

"Isn't Kiba the same?"

Kakashi replied as he looked at the team with a sad thought as he missed reading his favorite book. But without further delay, he explained the training.

"Were going to be climbing trees….without using our hands."

"WHAT?!"

Kiba roared at the man.

"But is that even possible?"

Sakura said in confusion. Kakashi then walked up to the tree and formed a handseal and began walking up the tree until he was upside down on one of its branches astonishing the genins below. Kurenai then said,

"The object of this exercise is to maximize your Chakra control so you can gather the right amount of chakra in the right location. By simply performing jutsu, you use energy. However, without enough control, you tend to waste more energy than needed and are unable to effectively perform the jutsu or perform it again with the same intensity as the first one because you used up too much energy in performing it the first time giving you a disadvantage in a battle situation."

Seeing them nod in understanding Shino then spoke up,

"So this will help us control our energy so we can use our chakra wisely and effectively by pouring chakra to our feet to stick to the tree."

Kakashi then said as he walked back down to the ground,

"You catch on fast Shino. Technically, you distribute chakra under your feet, which is considered the hardest place to gather chakra even by expert shinobis, evenly so that you can stick to the tree. Remember, it has to be evenly distributed. Too little chakra, and you will not stick. Too much and you will be repelled from the tree. If you can master this, then you can learn any jutsu in theory."

When the jounin reached the grass, he then gave them each a kunai and said,

"Use this to mark where you are able to climb up to with your current ability. Then try to make a new mark above that mark."

The genins got ready as they picked up the kunai to begin their training. Kiba smirked as he said,

"This is gonna be a cinch. Akamaru and I are gonna get to the top first. You wanna bet Naruto?"

The young blonde however was too heavily concentrated on the task ahead as determination once again lit up in his flaming azure eyes. Kakashi and Kurenai saw the determination in their eyes as the white haired jounin said,

"Ready…hajime."

All of the genins began molding their chakra as the placed their hands in the ram seal while still clutching their kunais. Then, the genins except Naruto began running up the tree to give themselves a boost.

Kiba was the first one to fall as he made it pass three steps before landing on his back as he threw the kunai to the tree.

"Naturally, Kiba would be the first to fall since he's more of a taijutsu user with his family jutsus and most of them don't require that kind of control to execute properly."

Kakashi said as he saw the boy struggle to his feet.

Sasuke climbed up pretty high until he accidentally used too much and nicked the tree before landing back to the ground making him the second one to fall as a dent in the shape of a foot was seen just below the marking. Kurenai then said to Kakashi.

"Good thing we decided to give them the chakra control excercises. I was about to give them the exercise two days ago if it hadn't been for this mission. But it seems that Sasuke has a decent grasp of Chakra control if it wasn't for his larger reserves that he needs to control."

Kakashi then said,

"Well that's Sasuke. He's a genius so naturally he'd learn things easily. But even he needs practice and this should help him learn a bit of hard work."

Soon, Shino was the next to land back on solid ground as he managed to nick the tree before he fell. Kiba then angrily said,

"Kuso! How come Shino and Sasuke got that far and I didn't?"

Kakashi could only chuckle as he saw them and thought,

'Looks like it'll be a long time before he can get things right. Naruto hasn't tried to climb yet. Most likely it's because he's still feeling for his chakra. Most of the techniques he's used so far are either academy level or jounin level meaning he has a hard time in the control department. But what about Sakura and Hinata?'

They all looked at where Sakura was and saw her sitting on top of the first low branch of the tall tree she ran up to. Kakashi then said to Kurenai,

"It looks like Sakura seems to be the best in controlling her chakra. But with her low stamina and chakra reserves, she couldn't get any higher so she's stuck there at that branch. Now what about Hinata?"

Kurenai looked at the top of the tree and was amazed at what she saw. In fact, they all were as they saw her at the very top of the tree. Naruto then exclaimed,

"That's great Hinata-chan! You got there in one go!"

Kurenai then chuckled as she replied to Kakashi,

"You were saying?"

The one-eyed jounin then said to the two girls,

"Looks like you've mastered it already. How about you two come down and help guard Tazuna on the bridge today."

Both girls walked back down the same way they came as they handed the kunais back to Kakashi. Sakura then approached Sasuke and said,

"Did you see that Sasuke? I did it! I'm not as good as Hinata, but I got up the tree nonetheless."

Sasuke smirked causing Sakura to squeal in delight as Sasuke ignored her and began climbing once again. Hinata then approached Naruto and smiled as she said,

"I really did it Naruto-kun. But why haven't you tried to climb yet?" 'Maybe he's not using chakra to try to climb the tree. He must be using reiatsu instead so he can practice like he said he would.'

Naruto then smiled back and said,

"Yup! You're awesome Hinata-chan! All the way to the top in one go! I really can't climb yet since I need to gather both of them to my feet and it can be tricky."

The lavander-eyed girl got the message. He wasn't just using chakra, but reiatsu and chakra together for this exercise. She saw him perform it once as he placed chakra in his right foot and reiatsu in his left and alternated between the two as he walked up the tree.

Naruto returned to his concentration until he managed to gather the right amount of chakra and reiatsu to his feet. Kakashi began to eye the blonde carefully as he placed his right foot first. Feeling that he got his foot to stick, the young blonde then placed his left foot up. When he had gotten his feet to stick he then alternated the flow of energy as chakra flowed in his left while reiatsu in the right as he took the next two steps. He continued this alternation until he got to the very top of the tree as he stood on its tip causing Sasuke and Kiba to burn with envy. Kakashi and Kurenai were awed by what they saw. Once again he proved to them that he is more than able to fight above genin level. Naruto then walked back down until he stood on the solid ground.

"You never cease to amaze me Naruto. You can go with Sakura and Hinata to watch over the bridge."

Kakashi said to the young blonde. Naruto shook his head and said,

"No thanks Kakashi-sensei. I want to stay here and help out everyone else so that we can all be able to perform it properly. What use is it if only one of us can go while the others have a hard time figuring it out by themselves?"

"I admire your wish to help your fellow shinobi, but they do need to learn on their own as well. If you want, you can continue training until you feel like you have completely mastered it."

Kakashi replied seeing the love and developing leadership of the young blonde. Kurenai then looked at Hinata and said,

"What about you Hinata? Are you going to help guard the bridge with Sakura?"

"I'd prefer to stay and train some more Kurenai-sensei. I want to see how far I can really go."

Kurenai nodded as she and Sakura went on their way to the bridge. Naruto kept training with Hinata, Kiba and Shino. After several hours of training, they returned back to Tazuna's house for dinner and sleep. They did this for several days until Kiba managed to get halfway up the tree and Shino to be able to climb close to the top with Sasuke just behind him.

The raven-haired boy pushed himself hard as he fought his way up to the tree in hopes of surpassing his peers. Kiba did everything he could and with a little help from Naruto and Hinata, he was able to climb to the top.

Naruto and Hinata however, trained in a different way than them as they focused on learning how to control chakra and reiatsu on the fly with the tree climbing exercise. It was hard at first for the lavander-eyed girl, but eventually she was able to master it while Naruto on the other hand was going for stamina control as he ran back and forth on the tree using the same alternating method until he could not run anymore because he was out of chakra and reiatsu.

To those who have never seen or knew about reiatsu, it would seem that he was performing the exercise normally with chakra as the sticking medium. But for the young blonde, it was a definite struggle as he had to learn how to apply chakra and reiatsu quickly and efficiently without using too little or too much making it complicated because of the alternating method he was performing.

After training till sunset, Naruto wiped the sweat off his face and said to Kiba and Sasuke,

"I'm done for the day. I'll be heading back now."

"Wait…"

Sasuke replied as he approached the young blonde. The raven-haired boy looked at the young blonde fiercely as he asked,

"How did you get up so quickly?"

Naruto then replied as he walked away,

"Instead of rushing upwards, take things one step at a time. Feel the pressure before trying to get it all at once. You won't get there faster by just running all the time."

Kiba then scratched his head as he gave Akamaru a small treat for the small dog to feast upon before the two tried once again.

As the young blonde entered the house, he saw Kurenai and Kakashi at the table with Tsunami, Inari's mother, looking through the cupboards.

"Where's Sakura-san and Hinata-chan and Shino?"

Naruto asked to which Kurenai replied,

"They're back at the bridge guarding it with Tazuna. How was your training with Sasuke and Kiba? It's been a few days now."

"They're alright. Kiba finally got it down right thanks to Hinata-chan's help. Sasuke didn't want my help so I decided to help Kiba more. Sasuke can be such an ass."

Naruto replied back as he crossed his arms. Tsunami closed the cupboards as she whined saying,

"We're out of food again. Can someone head off to the store and buy some groceries?"

Naruto stood up and took a nearby basket as he left in search for food. However, being the cunning kitsune he is, he shunpo'd to the forest and transformed into his three-tailed white kitsune form. He used his skills as a kitsune and made clones of himself as he scoured the entire forest for any animal that was edible.

Meanwhile, the door at Tazuna's house opened to reveal a tired and depressed old man and two exhausted girls enter the house and sit down on the table with a fatigued expression on their faces.

"Kami-sama….how much longer?"

Sakura whined as she buried her chin in her arms on the table. Hinata was just as tired until two more people came in through the door.

"Guess that means you're done."

Kakashi said to the two boys arm in arm as they sat at the table as well while Akamaru sat upon the floor next to Kiba.

"So what happened today at the bridge?"

Kiba asked Sakura. The pink haired girl exhaustedly replied,

"Not too good. Another worker decided to quit and Hinata, Shino and I ended up doing some work as well. I really wished Naruto could make a couple hundred Kage Bunshins so that it would progress faster."

Hinata then gazed at the pink haired girl and said,

"Naruto-kun could do that, but he was busy training so we have to do it ourselves. Besides, he already did that a day ago."

"So where is Naruto?"

Kiba asked as Shino finally entered and sat at the table as well. And just in time, the young blonde had arrived with a basketful of fish, a rabbit and some vegetables. They wondered how on earth Naruto was able to find such produce in a poor country like Wave.

"Where have you been and how did you get all that food?"

Sakura asked the young blonde as he placed them in the kitchen. Naruto then replied,

"There wasn't much food in the stores so I went to the nearby forest and river and foraged for some food."

They were amazed at how unpredictable the blonde's way of thinking was as he slaughtered the rabbit and gutted the fish as he drained them of their blood and inedible parts in a basin as he began cutting and cleaning their meat and the vegetables as he took to the kitchen with Tsunami as his helper. Kurenai then said to Kakashi,

"Let's hope his cooking is better than yours Kakashi. But has that boy ever cooked before?"

"The only thing I've seen him cook is instant ramen."

Sakura said, as they smelled the aroma of freshly cooked meat and vegetables coming from the kitchen. And after an hour and thirty minutes of cooking, the two chefs came in with a several plates of food that pleased the eye.

"Good thing they still had spices and rice in the cupboards. Everyone, dig in!"

They were awed at the spread before them. There was sukiyaki of rabbit meat, Bok Choy, Chinja Rosu, Sushi made from the fish that inhabited the river, and fried rice made from the remaining rice and vegetables.

The mouths of Kiba, Sakura, Akamaru and surprisingly, Sasuke began to water as they hungrily gazed upon the dishes served before them. Kurenai was amazed at the food that was served and even more the one who served it.

"I'm amazed at his knowledge of cooking. With just the food he foraged, he was able to make a full course meal that we've never been able to eat in our entire lives. So please…begin eating."

Tsunami said as she poured the soy sauce in a serving cup while the aroma filled the room. However, amidst the hungry wolves, Naruto was worried about what Hinata would think about the food. Would she love it or would she hate it?

The lavander-eyed girl was nervous as a faint blush formed on her face.

'Naruto-kun cooked all this for us! I have to try it. But what if it tastes bad? How should I react? No, he made this especially for us. It doesn't matter if it tastes bad or not, as long as he made it, I wll try it. We can do this Hinata.'

The lavander-eyed girl thought as her heart began to beat sporadically. She began with the Chinja Rosu as she placed some on her plate gaining several stares at her. She began to blush even further as she took her chopsticks and said,

"Itadakimasu."

And made the first bite as she took some of the stir fried vegetables of the Chinja Rosu and ate it. Naruto swallowed hard as a faint blush appeared on his face. Everyone knew how much she loved the young blonde but can she overlook whatever taste the food had and praise him for his efforts?

The Hyuga heiress' face brightened up as she smiled and said,

"Sugoi! It's really good!"

Hinata said as she happily ate the food while Naruto blushed as he grinned and said,

"I'm glad you liked it. Well who else wants to eat?"

The rest of the people at that table began to dig in and find that the food was exquisite. Kiba ate like a madman, as did Sasuke as they replenished their lost energy with Naruto and Tsunami's cooking. Eventually, the plates were stripped clean as the full bellies of the team and Tazuna's family and several happy faces filled the room. Hinata then asked the blonde,

"Where did you learn how to cook like this Naruto-kun?"

Naruto then sheepishly replied,

"I found a cookbook entitled, Szechuan cooking: Kikkaro restaurant style once and decided to try out my hand at cooking so I can eat the same food as the ones I see in restaurants. It was hard at first but it was well worth it. I'm really glad you loved it." 'Actually, Okaa-san taught me how to cook back in Soul Society. I never could get any of her own creations down aside from the cookbook she had. But the best part in cooking is seeing the happy faces of your loved ones when they eat your cooking and after eating. I'm glad she loved it.'

His tenant decided to comment as the Kyuubi said,

I think you're constant cooking of food in that tree house of yours paid off. But what about the strawberry lurking about in the woods? You didn't give him any of your cooking? What a good friend you are.

Naruto paid his tenant's cynical reply any heed as he gazed upon their happy faces. Hinata was even happier than the rest since she actually enjoyed his cooking making her burn with passion to learn how to cook food like this as well. Kakashi however, sighed knowing he was outdone by a twelve year-old genin. Kurenai on the other hand casually, but subtly glanced at the young blonde and the lavander-eyed girl's expressions as a faint blush appeared on their faces.

"This was really fun! It's been a while since we ate with this many people!"

Tazuna commented as he rubbed his belly to emphasize his point. As they took a minute to rest from all the food that they consumed, the lavander-eyed girl felt her mouth dry up in thirst. She then took a nearby glass filled with what seems like water and drank from it. Kakashi then noticed the glass she took and worriedly said,

"Hinata, that cup…"

"What's wrong Kakashi-sensei?"

Hinata replied the moment she finished the glass much to the one-eyed jounin's chagrin. Kakashi then sheepishly said,

"Naruto drank from that cup."

Everyone who was seated around that table was caught speechless as the Hyuuga heiress began to bloom in the color crimson. Naruto's eyes danced around the room as he said,

"What's wrong about drinking from the same cup?"

The young blonde was then caught in a headlock from Kiba's arms as the dog-boy said,

"Baka! Drinking from another person's cup is like indirect kissing!"

Kakashi began to giggle at the Hyuuga heiress' predicament as her blush refused to wear off as Kurenai had no idea how to deal with such a situation as Naruto, more confused as ever, said,

"How on earth is that kissing? "

Kiba then face faulted on the floor before getting back up and saying,

"It's called backwash Naruto. Some of your saliva is in the cup from drinking. And she drank from that cup by accident meaning she drank some of your saliva. Kuso! My head is aching from all the thinking you made me do. Now I'm paranoid of touching anyone's cup!"

Naruto still had a puzzled expression on his face making everyone else face fault and sweatdrop. As the blush on Hinata's face began to submerge, a blush on Sakura's face began to emerge as she gazed at the raven-haired boy. Sasuke then gazed back and said to her coldly,

"Don't even think about it."

Shino then decided to break up the humor and said,

"We should get some rest now so we can prepare for tomorrow. You never know when Zabuza will strike and we have to be ready."

Inari, who had just come into the dining room, had heard what Shino said and monotonously said,

"As if it'll matter. All of you will die anyway."

Naruto couldn't stand to see cowards in all his lifetime. To him, running away without trying wasn't a real option but a futile attempt at escape. Many times he saw his men from his division do so when the numbers of the enemy grew too large for them to handle during the war with Aizen and it cost many lives both human and shinigami. Naruto was clear and precise with his plans and orders however, his men weren't ready to perform such tasks under that pressure and casualties would pile up because of their weak willed hearts that he could once again see in Inari at this time.

The young blonde then walked out the door and ran into the woods to displace his frustration as the worried Kakashi ran out to follow him. Hinata then stood up and said to the melancholic boy,

"We are all trying our best Inari so you shouldn't say such things. What would your father have said if he heard you now?"

Tazuna and Tsunami's faces became downcast as Inari ran back into his room as he slammed the door behind him. Feeling that she had struck a nerve, Hinata was about to apologize until Tazuna raised his hand up to her and said,

"Please forgive my grandson. Tsunami, would you calm down Inari first?"

When the black haired mother left to attend to the sad boy, Tazuna began his tale of Inari's father and how he had saved the village once before Gato arrived and took his life away.

----------o)0(o----------

The young blonde finally stopped running as he made it into the clearing where he would meet Haku the next morning.

"This looks like a good spot. Better start now while I still have time."

Naruto said to himself as wind began to circulate around his hand before he sliced a small tree leaving a stump behind for him to work on top of as he made a one-handed seal and thirty Kage Bunshins went to work on carving a bokken for the twenty eight of them to use while the remaining two began carving the remaining wood from the tree into two wooden katanas complete with sheath and guard. As the clones went to work, Naruto's tenant then said,

That act you just pulled back there was worthy of a kitsune. But we still have someone on our tail. One has just arrived and isn't making his move while the other is coming into sight range. Are you sure about training your zanjutsu here?

Naruto then replied to his tenant,

"I'm positive about this. It's the only way to vent out my frustration without making an ass out of myself. If I want to vent out my emotions, training is the only way to do it. We still have to fight Zabuza and I need to be sharp. Shiranui-ryu is a physically engaging zanjutsu style and I can't allow myself to stay idle in order to be able to perform any techniques of the style when I need it the most."

The young blonde looked at the bokken and wooden katana he had carved out and inspected it before ordering his clones to stab their bokkens into the ground around him as he lay the three wooden katanas on the stump as he took his postion in the center of the clearing with his bokken pointing the ground as he stood erect and unemotional while his clones stood around him with agitated expressions on their faces.

Kakashi had finally arrived at the clearing as he landed near some bushes while he peered through the shrub and watched the blonde with care. Knowing his reaction a while ago, it wouldn't be the best time to approach. That was until Naruto then looked at the bush where Kakashi was hiding behind him and said,

"Kakashi-sensei. Why don't you come out of there and help me in my training. I need a Zanjutsu training partner so that I can sharpen my sword skills."

Since his cover was blown, Kakashi then stood up from his well concealed position and said,

"I'm not very good with a sword Naruto. Although I've had one once when I was in ANBU, but I don't think I'd be much of help. Why don't you try it out with your clones first until you've completely calmed down that hot head of yours."

Naruto nodded in acknowledgement as he returned to his stance while Kakashi leaned on a nearby tree and watched the fight that would commence. His clones then picked up their bokkens as they encircled the blonde. Poised and ready, one of the clones behind him, charged with an overhead vertical attack. When the clone got in range to strike, Naruto quickly spun to the right as his sword struck the clone's neck cleanly before it disappeared into smoke. This marked the beginning of the battle.

Another clone without falter charged the young blonde at his open left side attempting to make a diagonal downward slice from right to lower left. Naruto saw this coming and moved closer to the clone before giving him a left elbow to the face causing the clone to disappear from existence as the original swung his right arm to follow the momentum just in time to give a diagonal downward slash to two clones behind the clone he gave an elbow strike to as the rest attacked him in unison. Naruto danced around their wooden blades as he parried and struck with quick succession leaving no room for counterattacks from all sides.

Kakashi was amazed by the skill Naruto was showing with his clones as the white haired jounin mentally said to himself,

'I never knew he was a kenjutsu type of fighter. But with all the other surprises he's pulled so far, it's pretty clear that he has a lot of tricks up those sleeves of his and he doesn't want to show things all at once. With the passive ability of experience accumulation of the Kage Bunshin no Jutsu that he learned from the Forbidden Scroll, he's going to grow fast and his skills will reach a level of mastery that would normally take a lifetime to achieve in a few short weeks. I wonder what else he's been doing without my knowledge? And why did he say zanjutsu instead of kenjutsu? I haven't heard of that word except in history books or legends. I guess we won't really know until the Hokage and I interrogate him and that would hurt our relationship.'

Naruto was quickly dispatching one clone after another as he hacked his way through with his bokken. He gracefully fought the clones without breaking a sweat as their bokkens dropped to the ground with each clone that was defeated. Naruto was able to vent out his frustration easily this way as he cut through each clone in his path. He didn't show his full zanjutsu prowess, but he did show that he was more capable with a sword than any other weapon making Kakashi think of how he can find a good sword for the blonde to use as Naruto dispatched the last of the twenty eight bokken wielding clones. The last two then took the wooden katanas from the stump as they tossed the third one to Naruto as the original young blonde dropped his bokken and grabbed the katana as he took of his white sleeveless jacket and used it as a make-shift sash around his waist for him to equip the wodden blade in his left side as he took a battou stance and shifted his hitai-ate to cover his eyes while his clones did the same making Kakashi's visible eye widen as he thought,

'Battou stance? So he's going for an iaiken attack while his eyes are closed. I've heard it's difficult to master such techniques making it almost impossible to perform in battle situations but the benefits of this type of training are excellent for sharpening your mind, senses and reflexes. He sure is reckless. But it will be nice to see this fight.'

The two remaining clones inched closer to the blonde in front of them as they never left their stance. When they got within fifteen feet of the original blonde, they charged until they got within range to slice the blonde in one fluid motion from unsheathing their wooden blades. As the wodden blades came close to the young blonde, Naruto then quickly attacked in the same way allowing him to guard the two sword strikes. However, the clones didn't notice the scabbard of the young blonde swat the head of the on of the clones as Naruto swat them with such an unexpected attack with his left hand in a reverse grip. While still in one fluid motion, he spun causing his sword wielding arm to smash the back of the clones neck before the wooden blade was sheathed back in the wooden scabbard as the smoke from the remaining two clones disappeared.

Kakashi clapped his hands in applause as Naruto lifted his hitai-ate and dropped the wodden katana while putting back on his jacket.

"That was an amazing display of skill. Where did you learn how to do that?"

Kakashi inquired of the young blonde. Naruto then grinned as he said,

"I trained in all sorts of weapons until I found out that holding a sword came naturally for me. You have no idea how many times I got scratches, bruises and cuts from trying to use other weapons aside from a kunai and shuriken."

Kakashi then replied,

"So I take it you did all that experimental training until you found your weapon of choice behind my back. What else have you been doing that we don't know of hmm?"

The one-eyed jounin asked as he tried to pry the information out of Naruto. The young blonde then nodded and replied,

"Well aside from that, I tried relearning the academy jutsus and train my body more in taijutsu since I barely know any ninjutsu aside from Kage Bunshin. By the way, can you find me a good zanjutsu teacher when we get back Kakashi-sensei?"

Kakashi then replied,

"I'm afraid not Naruto. From now on Naruto, we'll be training as a team so that we can better be familiar with our jutsus so that we can coordinate them much better and that includes not using bunshins to play as a stand in during those days. Otherwise it's no ramen for a month. I'm sure the Hokage would understand if it meant teambuilding."

Naruto began to chase Kakashi as he shouted,

"KUSO! YOU BASTARD! I'LL GET YOU FOR THAT! JUST BECAUSE YOU LOST YOUR PERVERTED BOOK DOESN'T MEAN I HAVE TO SUFFER TOO!"

Kakashi ran for his life until Naruto got tired of the game of cat and mouse and walked back to the clearing as the white haired jounin left knowing he was all right. And just when one problem was solved, another came flying into the young blonde's face as he saw the one man he didn't need to see back at the clearing.

"You've got a lot of nice friends Naruto. No wonder you didn't head back Soul Society."

The orange haired man said as he turned around and faced Naruto with a smile on his face. Naruto grinned and said,

"Yare, yare. Looks like you've caught me Ichigo. How's everyone doing?"

Ichigo replied by sending a fist on Naruto's head and screamed,

"Baka! You left right in the middle of battle! How do you think everyone's doing? And what's with the gigai you're using right now? Everything's a mess so you better clean it up for all our sakes."

Naruto then rubbed the bump on his head and screamed back,

"Kuso! You didn't have to hit me! Sheesh. Fine I'll tell you everything just calm down."

The young blonde sighed as he retold his story to Ichigo from where they left off during the day of Aizen's last stand. When Ichigo finally understood he said,

"So if that's the case, why didn't you tell us in the first place?"

"I already told you, it would make things harder if I did and I wouldn't be able to fix my past properly if suddenly the entire Gotei thirteen showed up in Konoha or any other place for that matter. I'm on a Kami class mission for crying out loud! And one more thing, it seems you've been doing your share of interfering. How did you find me and what have you been doing lately?"

The irritated Naruto said. Ichigo then replied,

"When we found out that you've gone missing, we decided to split up and search for you. It became an official mission when the old man found out that at the same time of your disappearance, many souls that came from your world disappeared and returned to your world. Rukia and Inoue ran through Soul Society looking for you while Chad and Ishida returned back to Karakura Town to look for you there. I went to Urahara-san to see if he could open a portal to your world and here I am. Lately, I've been having the time of my life searching through deserts, gathering info on your whereabouts and slaying missing nins on the way."

"So you thought that if you couldn't find me, you'd make a way so that I'd find you by killing all those missing nins. How many have you killed?"

Naruto asked as he began burning up all the bokkens and wooden katanas with a simple fire jutsu. Ichigo then replied cynically.

"I killed a about twenty or so. They sure were as challenging as beating the crap out of Kon from time to time. Anyway, how long do I have to stay hidden? You should contact everyone else soon or else they'd really send an army out here."

The young blonde managed to burn the last bokken and faced Ichigo as he replied,

"Just until the Chuunin Exams. I know you're growing impatient, but we have to do things the right way or else everything will fall apart. So don't do anything rash unless needed to."

Ichigo sighed in defeat. What Naruto was saying was true. Soul Society would not rest upon this case lightly once they know that the elemental gods are reawakening. Sure, they knew to a certain extent that they would have to deal with sooner or later, but with the sudden twist of events, there was no choice in the matter since Kami himself sanctioned and requested the mission. Naruto then widened his stance as he concentrated chakra in one hand and reiatsu in the other. He then clasped his hands together as the two energies began to repel each other. The young blonde held fast knowing once he got through this stage, it would be a lot easier in the future. Eventually, the repulsion stopped until the chakra and reiatsu flowed together in harmony as he let go allowing the new energy to flow before changing into a red color as the energy shaped itself into a katana before the light faded revealing Naruto's zanpakuto in its sealed form. Ichigo then said,

"How did you do that? You brought out your zanpakuto in the real world with your body."

Naruto made his infamous foxy grin as he grasped the sword and gazed at the gleaming blade.

"It works by using your chakra and reiatsu to flow together. Normally, chakra flows outside while reiatsu flows inside because the soul is within the body. But when you reverse the process, the opposite becomes true. I don't really understand it too well since I just learned how to do it now, but in theory, you can bring out your shinigami form in your real body with enough chakra and reiatsu control. If you can manage to find the balance between the two energies, then any technique can be performed without the normal restrictions."

Ichigo scratched his head at first, but managed to understand it eventually. He then said to Naruto,

"Anyway, I need to contact Rukia and the others. Do you have your GPS?"

Naruto then did three one-handed handseals, and his black book appeared as it landed in his hands. He quickly opened to the passage and unlocked the seal on his GPS. He then handed the GPS to Ichigo. The orange haired man clad in a black hakama and kimono said thanks and shunpo'd out of sight.

The young blonde then returned to the clearing and lay down on the grass as he slept peacefully in that forest. Unknowingly to the young blonde, the forest dwellers that slinked in the night, began to approach the young blonde warily. But out of all the animals that approached, only a few actually approached close enough and slept with the young blonde as several curls of orange fur slept with the young blonde as they felt security in his presence.

As the young blonde slept in perfect harmony with the forest, his fellow genins had fallen asleep waiting for the young blonde with weapons drawn and traps set. However, only one did not sleep in that house as she ventured forth and saw the young blonde sleeping peacefully with several foxes surrounding him. She chuckled lightly as she lay to rest next to him with kunai still in hand.

For the sleeping young blonde, it was just another night till another fight. But to his fellow genins, it was their first experience on a real mission and a real battle. For the unprepared green shinobi, it was their first encounter.

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I am terribly sorry for the extremely late update. With Christmas coming soon, I got busy preparing for the occasion and finding presents for my family. It ain't easy to find good presents. I hope I did well on this chapter since I had more than a week to complete it. I just hope that I can update the next chapter much faster. Anyway, the next chapter will involve Haku's choice. Can you guess where I got the food recipes from and Naruto's zanjutsu style? Till then, Ja ne!