Chapter One: Secrets

Naruto was deathly bored. The dirt was brown, the sky was blue, the wall he was leaning against was rough and tarred black, and there was nothing to look at. Letter from the Hokage coming or not, he was beginning to think this extended stop was all so his sensei could peep at naked girls. Hey, he was seventeen and more than able to appreciate feminine beauty. But there was training he could be doing! Besides….

Be quiet, brat.

…. Naruto could hear it much more clearly when he wasn't doing anything.

Only if you go away, nine-tailed headache.

Come to think of it, its voice had been much clearer in general lately, a constant murmur at the back of his mind that he barely had to focus on to hear anymore. It was troubling, a little frightening, and Naruto found himself working past exhaustion in an attempt to drown out the presence nestled in his brain. If only Ero-sennin would train him! Lately he had him doing meditation, spouting crap about how 'a true warrior is calm at heart'. It was making the Kyuubi's voice worse…louder…

I don't like your voice much either you little—

Would you just shut up!

Naruto grimaced, rubbing his face vigorously and shaking his head, while firmly ignoring the taunting murmurs from inside his skull. Pushing himself off the wall and standing straight, he decided he had been patient enough with Jiraya. It was past time to spoil his fun. All it took was a feminine henge and a scream of pervert!, and soon Jiraya was dodging wooden buckets and female fists. As his sensei leapt over the thick log walls, Naruto finished his genjutsu and was treated to the sight of his harried teacher falling for a pit trap jutsu-

-Literally.

Colorful curses blossomed from the pit, demanding that he stop and reverse his trick or something anatomically impossible was sure to happen in his near future, but Naruto wasn't stupid. He waited until he was a good mile away before dropping the henge, safely ensconced in a tall, sturdy tree. He took a moment to survey the area for a sign of his probably pissed off sensei before collapsing on his perch in helpless gales of laughter. The look on Jiraya's face as he tumbled into that hole was price-

"Naruto!"

He barely had time to gasp in a breath for a fresh set of giggles before his teacher appeared on his lofty tree branch. Jiraya's fist came within inches of his face before Naruto let his laughter carry him off the branch. He twisted, catlike, in mid-air and landed lightly on his feet. Even then, he could barely stand, bent double and snickering so hard he almost fell on his face twice. It really wasn't that funny, but he was so glad to be moving, doing something, that his glee kept spilling over and out of control.

Jiraya came down the non-suicidal way, hopping from branch to branch until he landed on the ground. His pitiful excuse of a student had not even attempted to hide from his wrath, choosing instead to continue chortling, trying- and failing- to speak.

"You…that was….I can't…air!..."

More laughter. A vein pulsed in his forehead.

Nothing he had seen or heard so far was enough to stop Jiraya from stalking up to his student and lifting him off the ground by the lapels of his orange and black jacket, his voice low and threatening. "Naruto…"

The boy…really almost a man now, looked down at him, blue eyes bright and clear as sapphires, still chuckling and so obviously unafraid of him that Jiraya found he could not hit him now that he was finally caught. Instead the laughter became infectious, and he put down his student, so much and yet so little like one he'd had before, and laughed along with him. Truly, it had been a well executed prank, and if Jiraya was so foolish an enemy, he would have lost that fight before it even had the chance to begin.

However, he kept one hand firmly on his apprentice, and after a moment of comfortable silence, tightened his grip.

"So you want to train huh? Well, you got it."

Naruto whooped and sank into a ready stance.

"Bring it on gramps!"

Jiraya sputtered for moment, outraged, then smiled broadly.

"Who said we were going to spar? You'll train… the hard way."

250 push-ups, 173 sit-ups, and several thousand complaints liberally sprinkled with curses later, a sharp shriek rebounded through the air.

Jiraya stilled, looking up from a panting Naruto to scan the sky, and saw what they had been loitering around this backwater village waiting for. The bird whistle was on a cord hanging from his neck, and he fished it out and blew it sharply, three times. Within moments, a fierce looking falcon with a deadly hooked beak had landed on his raised arm.

The note tied on its leg was quickly removed, and Jiraya passed the bird to his student before unrolling the thin, small note, and reading the sparse characters inked on it.

While Jiraya had used a subtle chakra to strengthen his skin so the raptor's claws would not pierce him, Naruto didn't bother. The slight puncture wounds would heal within minutes. His sensei motioned toward him, and Naruto easily launched the bird back into the air.

"So?"

Jiraya grinned, and it was somehow sharp and dangerous under the carefree gesture.

"Looks like we're going home."

Toad-

The seal is loosening.

Come back now.

A/N: As I said in the summary, this is AU. Expect things to start getting different. I will be taking liberties. This fic starts around the time Naruto: Shippunden did.

Disclaimer: I own absolutely nothing except this plot idea, and maybe? a few OC's.