The white blade crashed against the enemy sword, causing sparks to fly. A quick slash came around, aiming for Naruto's neck. Quickly, Naruto, throwing his sword into the air, rolled underneath the swing, and grabbed the sword as it fell back to earth.

Suddenly, another swing came at him, lower this time. Naruto jumped and flipped over the blade, before slicing at the opponent with his own, making a cut so clean that a hair would have been sliced.

Another blade came at him from behind. Suddenly, the white blade was behind him, stopping the attack. Suddenly, a large hammer dropped from above, trying to smash the blond swordsman. With a quick spin, Naruto just made it out of the path of the large weapon, only to get it the way of a chain whip.

The chain wrapped around the sword, locking it in place. Suddenly, another hammer rose up above his head.

Naruto quickly threw the sword, before spinning out of the way of the second hammer. He quickly pulled out two kunai, and used them to block any more strikes that came at him.

"Alright, Naruto that's enough for today." Vara said as he stopped turning a wheel next to him. The swords began to stop striking, the hammers stopped falling, and the wooden "enemies" stopped spinning.

"What? Already?" Naruto asked as he retrieved his sword from the chain whip.

"Do you have any idea how hard it is to keep this stupid machine running for an hour and a half?"

"Oh, you're just being a big baby." Naruto said, freeing the Hoshiken from the chain. It didn't change too much from when Tenten gave it to him. It still had the ornate, black-and-gold handle, carefully crafted with the thinnest black thread to give it a grip, the gold hand guard was still in good condition, showing the dragon that had been carefully etched into it.

The blade though, had been completely replaced. After a small accident that broke the blade off, Naruto had come across what he believed to be a shooting star. When he saw that it was made of some kind of metal, he immediately began to move it back to the Haven to Touken's shop.

The blacksmith immediately began to work on the metal. Unfortunately, the metal didn't even turn red after four hours in the fire, so Touken began to heat the flames of the forge by using red coral as fuel. Finally, after three hours of the monstrous heat, the metal began to glow a warm red. After another three hours, Touken got to work, giving the blade a double edge, he began working the blade to perfect keenness.

Finally, after six days, the sword was done, complete with a few decorative touches, like the words "Exiled Star" etched in the blade, and the finger guard made from the left over metal.

So far, through all the experimentation made, nothing could dull the blade, much less break it.

In fact there was a running bet that not even Kusanagai could put a dent in it.

The perfectly white blade shone in the sun, reflecting the light perfectly.

Naruto checked his reflection quickly, and noticed a small cut on his cheek. "I'm still too slow."He thought, before sheathing the blade. "So what's you plan for lunch, Vara?"

"I'm going to go home and eat some curry."

"Haven't you had curry for the last eight days in a row?"

"Yeah, so?"

Naruto shook his head, "Can you say addiction?"

Vara's eyes turned a steel blue, like Naruto's "Can you say Ramen obsession?"

"It is not an obsession!"

"Is too!"

"Is not!"

"Is too!"

"Is not!"

"Is too!"

"Is-. Hang on a second, am I really that annoying?"

Vara smiled, "You have your moments."

Naruto shrugged, "I can live with that. Now, where was I? Oh yeah, is not!"

"Is too!"

"Is not!"

"Is too!"

"Shut up!"

"Never!"

"Shut up or I'll shut you up myself!"

"I'd love to see you try!"

"Well then come here!"

"Make me!"

"Fine! I will!" Naruto said before jumping up to the balcony where Vara stood.

Vara crouched, readying himself for an attack.

Naruto landed on the balcony and then jumped towards Vara, tackling him. They rolled across the balcony, laughing as they playfully punched each other. When they finished their mock fight, Naruto got up and helped Vara up with a helping hand. "So what's the report on the Kumo movements?"

Vara's eye color changed again, this time to a light green. "Well, according to the latest reports, roughly three teams have penetrated our line of defense and have made it into Earth and Fire country."

"Hm." Naruto said. "Have we sent anyone after these teams?"

"No sir. They didn't seem worth it. Why?"

Naruto smiled, "I feel like a hunt."

"Who would you like to join you?"

"Well, I need a good tracker. What do you think of Felicia?"

"An excellent choice, sir."

"What about Itachi? Do you think it's a wise choice to bring him along?"

"Only if you leave no survivors, sir."

"Hm, I'll think about it." He said before going silent to think. "Who else should I bring with me?"

"Well, according to our spy network, Miss Hyuuga is a very skilled at Taijutsu."

"Do you really think I should bring her?"

"Why not? I'm sure she would like to see the Outcast in action."

"You think so?"

"I'm sure."

"Alright." Naruto said standing up, "Bring Miss Hyuuga, Mr. Uchiha, and Madam Felicia to my office."

"Yes sir." Vara said, before disappearing.

Hinata

, Itachi, and Felicia all walked into Naruto's office.

"Nice new look, Itachi." Naruto said as he checked over Itachi's new clothes.

The new Exile was dressed in a black trench coat, with grey trimmings and large pockets. His board-brimmed, black hat sat tilted forward on his head so it just hid his eyes. Underneath his trench coat, he wore a black shirt and a pair of black pants. Around his waist he wore two criss-crossing belts that came together at a single, silver belt buckle. "Much obliged, Outcast-sama." Itachi said.

"Much obliged?" Naruto asked, confused "What's that all about?"

"I'm just trying out a new way of talking."

"Well don't, it's freaky." Naruto said.

Felicia got a big smile on her face and she turned to Itachi.

"Not a word." He said.

Felicia turned back around, the smile still on her lips.

"Anyways," Naruto said, standing up, "We've gotten news of three Kumo teams that have gotten past our line of defense and entered Fire territory, and while they are just three teams, I won't have Konoha think we're slaking off. So I have chosen you three to accompany me on a search and destroy mission. No survivors."

"Isn't that a little harsh?" Felicia asked.

"No, not considering I want to test Itachi and keep him secret at the same time." Naruto replied.

"Then if you want to test Itachi, then why did you choose us too?" Hinata asked.

"Because both you and Felicia have superb tracking abilities and according to a few of our spies, you have greatly imported in Taijutsu and I want to see what you've got."

"Oh…Thank you."

"I'm in." Itachi said.

"Ditto." Felicia said.

Hinata was the only one who hesitated. She didn't really want to leave at the moment, but she really wanted to impress Naruto. No, she reeeeaaaallllllyyy wanted to impress Naruto. But she didn't want to leave the Haven and enter a world of war and violence. "I-I'll go." She said, finally conceding to her urge to impress him.

"Great, meet me at the dock in twenty minutes." Naruto said, before he got up and headed to the stairs that led to his room.

The four ninjas stood at the dock, Naruto was dressed in full gear, complete with his mask, hood, Hoshiken, and a scroll.

Itachi stood in his heavy boots, trench coat and hat.

Felicia was now dressed in a black vest, steel-plated braces, complete with the mark of the Exile, and a black skirt that came down to her knees.

Hinata wore her usual clothes along with her twin Katars hanging by her side in two custom made sheaths.

"Ready to move out?" Naruto asked.

"Yup." Felicia said.

"Alright, we'll head eastward," Naruto said, "according to the recon nins, they are planning a northern infiltration of Konoha. So we should run into them, and if we don't, then you guys will pick up their trail." He said, pointing to Hinata and Felicia.

"Sounds like a plan." Itachi said, pulling his hat lower over his eyes.

Naruto

jumped silently among the trees. It was almost like he no longer had a corporal form, it was as if he was only wind that had taken Naruto's shape.

Felicia was almost as quiet.

Itachi and Hinata weren't as quiet. Every time a noise over a decibel originated from the two, Felicia would look back and give them a strict but silent "Sshh."

Suddenly, Naruto held up his hand.

Everyone stopped.

With a deafening silence, Naruto dropped to the forest floor. He crouched against the floor, staying there silently until he stuck two fingers in the air and brought them down and forward, signaling the others to come down.

Felicia was first, she jumped from her perch, falling to the ground in spread eagle, before landing without a sound. She crawled over to where Naruto was and looked at where he was pointing.

Itachi and Hinata landed beside her.

"Yup," Felicia said, "Regulation Kumo ninja sandals, available at any hardware store."

"How old is the trail?" Naruto asked.

Felicia took several short sniffs. "A half a day at most."

"Alright, let's move out." Naruto said, before blurring.

The rest followed shortly.

Dusk settled over the forest, a wind blew through the clearing, causing the leaves to dance around the campsite. The three Kumo nins just sat in the silence. One of them sat at the fire, poking at the flaming wood with a long stick. Another sat near the first, eating a fowl leg. The third was pacing nervously. "How can you sit there so calm, Kain (Cause of Trouble)? Don't you know the Outcast lives in this territory?"

"I'm telling you, Kentou (Be found), The Outcast is a myth made by the Exiles for a scare tactic, there is no Outcast, why else would we have not seen him on the battlefield?"

Kentou continued his pacing, all the while fingering the kunai holster on his leg.

In the darkness outside the clearing, four figures smiled.

After a good ten minutes of pacing, Kentou finally calmed down enough to sit, where he tried to enjoy a meal.

Suddenly, movement in front of him caugh his attention.

He and the others looked up to find a man wearing a black trench coat, a broad-brimmed hat, a black shirt and pants, two criss-crossing belts, and two heavy black-leather boots.

"Howdy." The man said.

Kain slowly pulled out a kunai. "Who are you and what are you doing here?"

"Me? Oh, just taking a stroll."

The three nins looked at each other, cautiously and stealthily moving for their weapons. "We were just checking things out."

"I see." The man said. "Well I'm gonna hafta ask you to leave."

"Why?" One of the Kumo nins asked.

"Because the landowner don't want you here, so git."

"Well I'm afraid -."the Kumo nin said, suddenly throwing a kunai at the man.

The man suddenly moved, dogging the kunai, and pulling out one of his own. He threw his own kunai at the man, and began running behind it, so as soon as the Kumo nin dodged, the man in the black coat hit him with a powerful kick.

Suddenly another man moved, holding his kunai in a reverse grip, he charged the coat wearing man, hoping to stab him in the throat. The Kumo nin was stopped by a feline woman with cat ears and a tail, and a swift kick to the gut. "I'm sorry but your request to kill my partner is denied."

Then the third one, Kentou, tried to make his move, only to be stopped by a Hyuuga wielding two katars, her Byakugan was active, and her glare was fierce. "Leave, now."

"Who's going to make me?" Kentou asked.

Hinata didn't respond, but she slipped into her Jyuuken stance.

Naruto

watched them from a distance, smiling. Itachi had these guys when he first entered the field. He could see it in the way Itachi held himself. It was relaxed, and yet at the same time, ready for anything.

He then shifted his gaze to Hinata. Her quick, agile slices was leaving her opponent in slices. Her fast strikes, paired with unpredictable movements showed her to be quiet proficient. Her katar were proving quiet dangerous and deadly, and her strikes were no doubt powerful.

Suddenly a thought hit him. He checked over everything he had just thought. "Fast, unpredictable, agile, dangerous, deadly, powerful."

Naruto's eyes suddenly widened.

He had just found the Raiken's stance.

Hinata

finished her opponent with a quick thrust to the intestine, so the bile would slowly poison his own blood, before knocking him out cold. She turned in time to see Felicia use her nails, now extended into six-inch claws, to slice at a mans throat. He fell with only the gurgle of blood in his wind-pipe. She then turned to Itachi, who had his opponent against a tree, with his old ANBU sword at the man's neck.

"Hold." A voice said from the trees.

Itachi nodded and backed away slightly.

The Outcast suddenly dropped from the trees, his white coat flowing around him. His stood, his green armor barely visible. Hoshiken sparkled in its sheath. The Outcast slowly walked to the opponent. And smiled under his mask. "So you don't believe in me?"

"Please, you're not The Outcast." Kain said.

"Why do you say that?"

"Because no one as powerful as 'the Outcast' would care for those shi-." Kain's explanation was cut off by Hoshiken slicing through his throat.

"Unless he was one." Naruto said, before turning to his teammates, "Come on, we have two more teams to catch."

Itachi

cleaned his sword on the clothes of his victim. This team was a little too easy, they weren't prepared for anything, it was almost as if they weren't expecting any attack whatsoever. Obviously they were new Chuunins who needed a serious lesson in detection. Or did they? Itachi took a quick look around, left, right, up, behind, that left down, but Kumo nins weren't known for their earth jutsu, so the possibility of them burying in the ground was small, but still. He turned to Hinata, "Miss Hyuuga, could you check the area for us?" He said, pointing downwards.

"Right away." Hinata said, activating her Byakugan. She first looked straight down into the ground.

A chakra signature.

"No, there's nothing there." She said, nodding her head.

Itachi nodded, before jumping in the air, just as a Kumo nin broke from the ground. He got three feet in the air before six shuriken seemed to grow from his chest. The man fell to the ground dead.

"Alright, I'm bored." Felicia said as she began to gather her shuriken.

Hinata

quickly spun out of the way of another strike made by the Kumo nin, who had obviously never fought against anything other than a training dummy. "Stop moving you d****ed whore."

"Hey, don't you know your manners?" Felicia asked as she kicked the man. "Never use curse words in front of a lady."

"Arg! You B***h!" The man said as he took another swing.

"B***h? I'm a cat, not a dog, moron."

"Shut up!" The Kumo nin said, throwing a kunai at her, which just scratched her cheek.

Suddenly he felt smothered by a heavy Killing intent. The man turned to see a man with a black trench coat and a braod-brimmed hat. "Did you just hurt my friend? And call her a b***h?"

"Uh."

"That's what I thought." Itachi said before slicing the man's head off.

"So how did you like the hunting trip?" Naruto asked as the four of them sat around a campfire.

"I'm a little disappointed." Itachi said, "I was hoping Kumo would send something better."

"Well their problem is that their trying to break through our wall," Naruto said, "Their hard pressed for Shinobi so they're probably promoting everyone and anyone they can."

"That's still no excuse for the shody work." Itachi mumbled.

"I rather enjoyed it," Felicia said, "Of course, I love to mess with people's minds and I needed the exercise." Felicia said as she stretched before wrapping herself into a ball near the fire.

Itachi couldn't help himself and began scratching the back of her ear.

Felicia purred.

"So what about you Hinata?"

She looked up at him and grinned, but the grin faded as soon as she looked away.

"I thought so." Naruto said, standing up, "Hinata, why don't you take a walk with me?" He asked.

She looked up at him before nodding and standing up.

Naruto led her into the woods, where the moon was shining brightly. Naruto went a ways before stopping. "You did excellent today." He said.

"I did?"

"Absolutely, in fact, watching you today has finally given me a way to complete the Soshiken (element fist)."

"Really?"

"Yes, and so," he said turning to her and bowing, "I ask you to train me in the ways of the Jyuuken."

She blinked.

Naruto looked up and smiled, "Just the physical stances, you can keep the chakra attacks."

She blinked again.

"So do you accept to train me, Hinata-sensei?"

"I…uh…sure?"

"Excellent!" Naruto said, "We begin tomorrow!"

End chapter!