NARUTO

Nox Noctis Ingredior

Land of the Uzumakis

Three weeks later…

After the moving of Naruto Uzumaki's apartment to the new home behind Konoha's Central Mountain, basic routine seemed to return to the lives of everyone in Konohagakure. Team 7 went on several more D-Rank and C-Rank missions, rallying up wanted personnel, performing meaningful tasks for the community, such as clearing up gardens, walking dogs and babysitting, not to mention training.

Anko decided to put her team through a more rigorous training regime, so to increase their strength, and power them up, big time. She got them to individually fight her using only taijutsu, which put a lot of pressure on them, including Naruto. Sakura, not really as strong in taijutsu as her teammate, Hinata, had quite a bit of trouble getting to their level, whereas Hinata and Naruto barely managed to measure up to Anko's standards. She also got them to perform various chakra exercises, the most common of which was carrying a large boulder up and down the Konoha River right next to the water fall, where they could easily plummet over the side.

She figured the harder the better, and even got them to do the cliff-marching exercise with the boulder. The three of them ended up dead-tired at the end of the day, and would fall asleep wherever they fell.

On top of the missions and the extra tough training Naruto, Sakura and Hinata were put through, Zabuza and Haku, the new members of the Uzumaki family, had to adjust to their new life in Konoha. Haku seemed to cope well, and with encouragement from Sakura and Hinata, began to interact more with the civilians, and the rest of the Nine Genin graduates of the year. His application to become a ninja of Konoha was also filed through the Hokage, who slowly made plans for him to become a Genin of the ninja forces.

Zabuza, however, was not having such a good time, especially in the beginning.

Sure a lot of the ninja he met didn't trust him completely at first, and a lot of the people became terrified at the sight of him, but they all became used to seeing him over the next few days. He had the pleasure of meeting Kakashi and Asuma, and was rather creeped out when he was introduced to Anko, whose first words to him were, 'hello meat-sack…'

He was a bit deterred by those words, and from that day forth learned to be wearier of the purple haired Jonin. But that wasn't the worst of it; the worst came when he got to Naruto's new place of residence and after taking a nice, long, hot shower in the second floor bathroom, while he was walking out with just a towel on, received a horrifying sight.

The mighty swordsman froze when he saw Ryoko standing right at the entrance, leaning against the doorframe with her sword in hand. Examining her fingernails, she then glanced over at the flabbergasted Zabuza and grinned.

"Why, long time no see, meat-sack…"

"Oh God… please tell me this is a Genjutsu!" Zabuza almost cried, slapping his hands together and attempting to defuse an illusion several times over. When his attempts failed, he slapped himself in the face, and pointed accusingly at the red-haired woman. "Naruto, if that is you, I swear…"

"Shut your mouth, corned-beef," Ryoko replied, standing up off of the frame and walking right up to the much taller man. Zabuza, unmasked, unarmed and wearing close to nothing, backed up in fear when she came right up to him. The woman twirled her sword around and brought it up to her old partner, prodding the tip of her blade right under his chin. "It's me… your one and only dear Ryoko, and your worst nightmare…"

Zabuza gulped. "If it is you t-then… prove it…"

"Oooh… daring words," the woman replied with a grin. "Alright, I'll prove it…" she withdrew the sword and twirled it so that the blade pointed downwards this time, and showed the man the handle of her sword. "Say hi, Aries…"

"Hello, meat-sack!" the sword exclaimed, the metal rattling as it spoke. "Long time no see, Zabuza: Demon of the Hidden Mist! Ha… the way you look now, you look nothing like a demon! More like a guy caught with his pants down!"

"Kami… it is you!" Zabuza said. "I recognize that sword's voice."

"You better believe it!" Ryoko replied with a smirk. Withdrawing her weapon, she sheathed it back onto her back and glared hard at her old comrade. "Either way… it's great to see you again." With a swipe of her finger across his chin, she grabbed his towel and, turning on her heel, walked out of the bathroom, leaving Zabuza naked where he stood. "Always a pleasure, meat-sack…"

After watching the woman walk out of the room, the swordsman relinquished the air from his longs and collapsed against the nearest structure. Gripping his heart in his hand, the man let out a groan and turned around, heading back into the shower cubicle.

"Ugh… now I need a cold shower…"

After that encounter, from then on in, Zabuza carried around at least one kunai wherever he went, whether it was the hot springs or a formal.

Days went by as everyone adjusted to new life styles and daily patterns, not to mention becoming acquainted with one another. Things seemed to return to normal…

…until…

Later at night…

In a familiar apartment, somewhere in sight of the Hokage Tower of Konohagakure, Anko woke with a cry of anguish, and sat straight up in her bed. Sweating streams and panting, the woman reached up and grabbed the area of her neck where Orochimaru bit her, and implanted the mark, poisoning the rest of her body. Shaking like mad, the Jonin gritted her teeth and clenched her eyes shut, reaching up with a hand and pressing it over her forehead.

"When will these nightmares end?" Anko wondered, rattling her brain for an answer. "All of them are fragments of repressed memories… they just keep surfacing at random…I can't make out any of it!"

"Rough night, sensei?" a voice spoke from next to the woman. Anko literally jumped and looked to her right to her window, where she saw the silhouette of a small figure leaning against the frame of her window, arms folded and eyes glaring at her through a pale white mask.

Of course, despite the half-red, half-white mask with eye-slot holes being the only identifiable trait of the person the purple haired woman could recognize, Anko also noted that the figure was wearing a large dish, straw hat with a metal plate sewn around the top, a light brown scarf worn around his neck, concealing the mouth area of the mask, and also wore a fur jacket, with orange shoulder areas, and black for the rest of it, including the pants and sandals, with white gauze wrapped around the ankle areas.

Anko blinked when she saw the young man, the bands of his headband waving in the wind, with the moon glowing brightly behind him, giving him a very mysterious and awesome appearance.

"Yeah… for the past couple of nights actually…" the Jonin replied to the question. She then raised an eyebrow at him. "You've changed your outfit, gaki…"

The short figure nodded, and tilted his head at the woman. Anko then realized she was alone in her room with the young teen and blushed, also noting she was only wearing a white singlet top and panties, and tried to cover herself. The blond however only scrutinized the mark on the apex between her shoulder and neck, and furrowed his brow.

"If the mark is beginning to burn again that means the time is drawing nearer," Naruto stated, hopping off of the window sill and landing in the middle of the room. He turned and walked up to the side of her bed, hands in his pockets. "Memories of the past are not only attempting to resurface, but Orochimaru is also planning something big, and I believe it will be of consequence to you and to those you are associated with if he comes to the village now. If the mark remains, it will cause great harm…"

"But I can't get rid of it," Anko stated, looking at the boy with certainty and a hint of fear. Perhaps the only time she was really herself was when she was alone with the boy. "Even the Third Hokage couldn't get rid of it! There are only a few ways to get rid of the Curse Mark; either have the owner remove it, have the source of the mark destroyed, or kill the one possessed by the mark!"

"The Curse Mark, although it is a juinjutsu, it is also a type of fuinjutsu in itself, which seals dark chakra inside of a person, and like all sealing jutsu, it must have come with a removal key," Naruto stated, surprising Anko with his statement. He turned a bit and gestured out her bedroom door. "I have an idea, but I want to talk this with you person to person…" He offered her a hand, and Anko, hesitant at first, took it, and was lead out of her room.

The pair took the conversation to the kitchen, and after making themselves some toasted ham and cheese sandwiches, sat down around the coffee table in the lounge room. Removing his mask and lowering his scarf, Naruto looked up at Anko as she nibbled on one of the toasty delights, and picked one up as well.

"So… what did you have in mind, Naruto?" Anko asked, looking at him curiously.

"You remember what old man Hokage said about the seals around my new home, right?" Naruto said, taking a bite out of his bread and swallowing it. "And you know the seal on my stomach that keeps my…umm… resident… inside me?"

"Yeah. If it counts for anything, I also knew your parents quite well, and I also know a lot about the techniques they used to use," Anko replied. "I was a Genin along with Kakashi when Minato and Kushina were Jonin. What's your point?"

"Let's start from here," Naruto stated. "I met them a couple weeks ago on our way back from Wave."

"Wait! You met the Forth Hokage and Kushina? That's impossible… I thought they were dead!" Anko said, taken aback by the Genin's statement.

"They aren't dead. Not yet," Naruto said, before placing a hand over his stomach, "The seal that keeps the Kyuubi safe inside me was made from their own chakra, and by extension, their life force. They insured that I could keep the demon in check by molding a part of their life force along with their chakra into the seal. Because of this, to this day they are both still looking out for me and preventing the Kyuubi from taking me over… even though I was able to fix it and improve the seal, they're still around."

"Isn't it a bit…uncomfortable for you to know that they can see everything you go through like… every day?" Anko asked, raising an eyebrow at him.

"They're not around that often," Naruto replied, looking up at the woman through glowing blue eyes. That dead-man's look he usually had on in these moments was pretty much gone, and it made him look more human now. "They stay attached to this world by the chakra they left behind. The small doses they use allow them to pop in and out… basically like old memories… but they manage to keep in tune with everything that is going on. But in this world, the dead can't interfere with the lives of other people… it's unnatural…"

"I see…" Anko replied, looking down at the table in front of her. "But as long as we hold onto their memories, the ones we have lost aren't really gone… they survive with us. That's the only way the dead can communicate with the living."

"Well… when they came to see me, they told me of a solution to the Cursed Seal on your shoulder," Naruto said, earning a surprised glance from the woman. "I don't really know what it is, but if you want to find out, then we have to return to my mom's homelands…"

"You don't mean…?"

"Uzushiogakure… my Clan's Village…"

"But isn't that long gone now?" Anko asked. "The last I heard, the country was destroyed after the last couple of Great Wars. The only survivors disappeared to the farthest corners of the Elemental Nations. Heck, even a few of them went overseas to the East to explore the lands beyond…"

"Yeah, but the ruins are still there," Naruto replied. "The village held many secrets in its days. My parents said I can find an answer in there and maybe something more…"

"Like what?"

"My father spoke of a great event that will befall the lands, one that could destroy the village, and perhaps doom the world," the blond said, thinking hard about what his father meant. "Dad was a smart man; he wouldn't do or say anything without good reason. He has been known to even set out plans that could be activated several years into the future, even in his absence. I believe there are a few things he left lying around that he knew, and he is trying to tell me…mom too."

Anko blinked, looking at Naruto with great thought and consideration. Right now, a great battle was going on inside of her head, a battle of memories, beliefs, ideals and present thought. Naruto watched this take place in her eyes, and in the time it took for Anko to reach a decision, a good quarter of an hour passed them by. It was after finishing her toast, the woman smiled through closed eyes, and set her sights back on her young student.

"I trusted your parents beyond anyone else, your father in particular," Anko exclaimed. "I had only wished he was still around to face Orochimaru…" She nodded her head, tilting her head at him. "Whatever plan you have, I'll follow you with it, gaki…"

"Good…" Naruto stood up. "Pack your bags, we head off now…"

He walked around the table and, stopping beside the woman, crouched next to her. He smiled at her, giving the woman a rather friendly gaze… too friendly. Anko blinked in confusion, only to shiver in response to his warm hand pressing against her cheek.

"If only I was a little older…" Naruto grinned. "You truly are a strong woman, Anko-sensei."

Without another word, he slipped his mask over his face. With that, he slipped out of sight, heading towards the hallway, and the entrance to the apartment. Anko was speechless, a light coloration of red growing on her cheeks, and she remained seated there for a good five minutes before she got up to go pack.

Naruto, reaching the front door, unlocked it and removed the seal over the lock, and opened it. When he did, he found Sakura, Rock Lee, and Ino standing outside, hands in pockets and waiting patiently, well… most of them anyway.

"YOSH! NARUTO! MY GOOD FRIEND! HOW ARE YOU THIS LOVELY MORNING!" Lee exclaimed happily, raising a hand in a show of his positive mood. Sakura and Ino sighed in exasperation at the boy, before gesturing toward him.

"Naruto-kun… who is this weird guy and why is he with us?" Ino asked.

"Oh, don't look so surprised, Ino… Naruto-kun knows a lot of strange people, you should be used to it by now," Sakura said, folding her arms.

"Well, unlike you, I'm not on his team!" Ino grumbled, before turning back to the blond and smiling. "What did you wake us up for that was so important Naruto-kun? I mean, I don't mind seeing your face first thing in the middle of the night, it is rather pleasant… not to mention quite a bit intimate but… what prompted you to break into my room so suddenly?"

"I'm no Romeo, although I did improve that little maneuver of his," the boy replied, stepping out into the corridor outside of Anko's apartment. He noted the fact that all three of them had brought along with them their bags, just as he had instructed. This was a great start. "It's a super secret S-Rank mission that I myself got the Hokage to approve. We are heading for the Land of Eddies… otherwise known as the Land of Whirlpools, on an Intel mission to Uzushiogakure…"

"Sounds like a pretty big job, Naruto-kun!" Lee exclaimed, smiling. "I heard that village was wiped off of the map!"

"Sure… on everybody else's map!" Naruto said, smiling under his mask. "But certainly not on mine."

"The purpose of the mission?" Sakura queried.

"To help our sensei… and save the village from a future danger."

"Who from?" Ino asked.

"Orochimaru…"

"You see, it's that kind of stuff that is classified," Ino said with a sigh, rubbing the back of her head. "You really are something else, Naruto-kun. You know so much more about these places, yet not enough at the same time."

"Well, let's take a look at my faults," Naruto began, leaning up against the doorframe, and holding up a hand to count on his fingers. "I suck at Genjutsu, I don't know any long-range Ninjutsu, I hate vegetables, I was terrible in most history lessons back in the Academy, not to mention Mathematics and Science, and I don't like oranges, but for some reason I wear orange!" The boy pinched the scruff of his jacket at the shoulder. "I mean… it's a light-bulb in the dark… I can really suck at these things sometimes."

"Try to keep your head up high, Naruto-kun!" Lee said, giving him the thumbs up and grinning. "After all, it is unyouthful to point out your flaws so thoroughly!"

"Okay, seriously, who are you?" Ino asked, turning to the boy, who gave her a friendly smile. "I've never even seen you before in my life; just what team are you on?"

"Oh, sorry," Naruto said, stepping into the middle of the small, obviously befuddled group. He lightly took Ino's hand, and gestured to the bowl-head boy with the big eyebrows. "This is Rock Lee, taijutsu specialist and local squad-member of Team Gai, also one of the best guys I know. He's a year older then us, but definitely a great friend to have around when you're in a bit of a pinch…"

"Nice to meet you!" Lee exclaimed, bowing so low Sakura and Ino were actually worried he might snap his spine. "Yosh! Your shoes look excellent tonight!"

"Okay, maybe I should make a point that coffee isn't good for us at this age," Sakura said, smiling a bit in amusement.

"This mission isn't just an opportunity for us to get to know each other, but it's a mission where we can learn," Naruto stated affirmatively, looking between his friends one after the other. "Learn from experience, learn from each other, and learn from the world. This is going to be great, I know it!"

"Yes it will be!" Lee replied happily, bumping fists with Naruto and looping his arm around the blond and Ino. Both of them smiled up at the very hyperactive shinobi. "An excellent bonding experience! Like Gai-sensei always says, 'keep your friends close, and spread the heart and soul of youth to everyone around you, for it is eternal!'"

"Right… heh-heh…" Ino chuckled nervously.

Sakura suddenly came in and wrapped her arms around Naruto's arm in a love-filled embrace. She affectionately rubbed her cheek against his shoulder and grinned at him.

"That's plenty of time for us to spend together…" she exclaimed. She was then shoved aside a little, and Ino came in to embrace Naruto as well, hopping onto his back.

"That's right… just you and me and a tent, Naruto-kun!" Ino whispered, directing it to the Genin in particular. Naruto groaned and whimpered under the attention, and almost let out a wail when both the girls started grabbing his arms and attempted to pull him apart… metaphorically.

"That is the positive energy I am talking about!" Lee said, thumping Naruto in the shoulder. "Awesome!"

"Geez what is going on out here?" Anko's voice came through the door, followed by the woman herself, who frowned down at the kids. "If I didn't know any better, I've got the loud-mouths joining me on this mission…"

Naruto, Sakura, Ino and Lee grinned at her at the same time, and with a shake of the head, Anko rubbed her right eye clear.

"Give me a break… this is going to be the longest assignment ever… (sigh)…"

Somewhere in the Land of Fire

By the time the sun was rising above the mountains on the horizon, the specially formed Team 7 for this mission was already outside of the village boarders, and heading for the Land of Waves again. However, they trekked a few degrees northwards, following an old path on the map that would surely lead them to the coastline across from the Land of Whirlpools. This route took them off of the main road and down another one that lead into the lowlands that hasn't been used in decades.

The forests around this particular path were thicker, and the trees were much larger, giving the team more scope on the situation as to the environment they were more than likely to encounter.

Due to the very early wake-up call and morning, the members of the team were set in different moods. While Lee was really cheery and marching along without any complaints, Ino was trying not to fall asleep where she stood, and Sakura was still rubbing the sand out of her eyes. Anko was used to long shifts, and was currently having breakfast on the move; a pack of dango she took from her fridge. Naruto was the same, snacking on a protein bar, but having a bit of negative reaction to it.

"Bleh… how can people eat this?" Naruto groaned, swallowing whatever was in his mouth. "It's like… coconut cake mixed with gravel that's been left outside for a month… or two, and gone stale! Yuck!"

"It's a standard nutritious snack, C-Ration from the pack," Anko exclaimed. "I admit it's not tasty, but it fills you up."

"I don't usually carry one with me… but… yuck!" Naruto shook his head. "I decided to try it for this journey, so I guess I should finish it."

"Waste not, what not, Naruto!" Lee exclaimed, giving him the thumbs-up.

When the team stopped on top of a hill overlooking the coast lands below, they were able to get a great view of the late morning, as well as where the ocean met the earth. The sight overlooking the lowlands was almost like standing atop of a plateau, and looking over a lush, untouched landscape. As they gazed out across the wide open countryside and over the horizon, Sakura saw something in the distance and nudged Naruto next to her. When he turned, she pointed towards the object of her attention.

"Hey, look at that bridge, Naruto!" Sakura exclaimed. "It's huge!"

"Heh! Yeah, it really is!" Naruto replied, placing his hands on his hips and smiling at the sight. "They sure have put a lot of work into it…" "And it's busy too." The blond concluded in his thoughts, seeing a convoy of carriages moving back and forth across the bridge leading into the Wave Country, as well as the amount of ships passing through.

"Wow…" Lee exclaimed, putting his hand on the bridge of his brow and leaning forward to get a better look. "What a thriving community!"

"It was a completely different place a few weeks ago," Anko exclaimed, smiling down at her spiky haired student standing beside her. "Guess they have you to thank for that…"

Naruto grinned up at his sensei and rubbed the back of his head, acting bashful. "Aww…shucks…"

After admiring the view of Wave Country that was south down the coastline, the group then averted their gaze up the coast towards the north. Pulling out a pair of binoculars, Anko began inspecting the horizon. Along with coordinates retrieved from the map, she took note of the various landmarks, and then looked further out over the ocean to locate the island. Through the mist that hung over the area of calm, blue water she was looking over, she spotted the Land of Eddies. Lowering her goggles, she judged the distance, and nodded her head.

"Found it," Anko said, slipping her binoculars into her pocket, "the Land of Whirlpools; neighboring country to the Land of Wave, which also used to be a provenance of the country, mind you. It should only take us about half-an-hour to reach the land by boat…"

"That's cool," Ino exclaimed, placing her hands on her hips. "I can't wait to see what the land is like. I bet it's breathtaking."

"Oh yes… so the history books say," Anko replied, smirking. "But there is more to the Land of Eddies then meets the eye. It's not just an island dominated by hillsides, with great channels of rivers and what not; it also takes in the mists known to form around the Land of Waves. Not to mention the island of Whirlpool has magnificent swirls forming at its coast… hence its name."

"Hmm… wouldn't mind a surf on its beach if we've got time," Sakura suggested, shrugging her shoulders.

"Maybe if we finish early," Anko said. "Come on kids, we've got a mission to complete…"

Together, the group then began their march downhill towards the coastline. It didn't take them that long, and soon they were standing outside a small fishing port beside a small village. Wandering about the markets a bit just for the heck of it, specifically on Naruto's behalf, who was looking to wash the bad taste protein bar out of his mouth with some good apples or water melons. He eventually found a reasonably priced booth, and started buying out some of the fruit. Anko, Lee, Ino and Sakura fanned out around the open air store, and also looked through some of the exotic fruits being sold.

Most of them veered away from the durian section, which was stinking up one heck of a storm on the left side of the stand.

"Seriously… you can't get anywhere near that stuff!" Sakura groaned, waving a hand in front of her face. "How on earth can you even eat that?" Ino nodded in agreement, while Anko just scrunched her face up a bit in displeasure. Naruto snorted and walked over to the spiky fruit.

"Easy… watch!" Naruto exclaimed, looking over the durian and checking their ripeness.

He bought a couple of apples to go with the durian he bought, and walking over to the rest of his team, who were pinching their noses, ripped open one of the fruit with his bare hands and took a bite out of the fleshy core. Sakura and Ino looked on with shocked expressions as the blond groaned in delight and smiled at his astonished friends.

"It's like a freshly cooked chicken stuffed with sweet raspberries…"

"Oh! Let me try some, Naruto!" Lee exclaimed. Naruto handed him a fruit and the fuzzy-browed Genin ripped it open as well. He took a bite, and the moment the taste hit the boy's tongue, it was as though he had found a new love. "WOW! Such an exquisite taste! What a wonderful delight! It's like a series of fruits bursting inside my mouth!" The bowl-haired ninja danced on the spot, hugging the fruit. "AMAZING!"

"Honestly, you are too much," Ino said, staring oddly at the sight of the spandex wearing, green beast, before looking over at Naruto. Her face turned a series of blue, green and pale when she unexpectedly came nose-to-surface with the fruit Naruto was holding out to her, and she literally leaned back at a 90 Degree angle away from the fruit and the visible odor lines it gave off.

"Come on, Ino… trust me… it's really good," Naruto said with a smile, watching as the girl stared at the fruit with a mixed horrified and sick expression.

"Uhh…n-no thanks…" Ino replied through a pinched nose.

"Hey… it's okay…honest," Naruto chuckled, holding a hand out to her and pulling her back towards him. He literally pulled her so close that she was chest to chest with him. The bleach blond blinked and blushed when her face came right up to his, causing Sakura to fluster furiously behind them in jealousy.

Naruto leaned in and whispered to the girl. "Hey… have I ever given you a reason not to trust me before?" he asked, smiling. Ino blinked, the words he was giving her at that moment meant for her and her alone, and she was hearing every syllable. The blond grinned at her and placed his forehead against her, the action seen only by Sakura standing beside her, while Lee was still consuming the durian in his hands and Anko looking around, taking interest in the other sites. "This way is the best way you can develop trust between comrades, for extremely dangerous missions. When you know no one else is going to help you, you can always depend on your teammate."

The pale blond considered his words for a full minute, then looked down at the fruit he held her. Clenching her nose and taking the fruit, the girl risked it all, and took a bite. Expecting to regurgitate the moment the fruit hit her lips, Ino got quite a surprise when she found that when she ignored the smell, the fruit was actually really good.

The girl let out a happy exclamation and looked up at Naruto.

"Hey! This isn't half bad!"

"I told you so…" Naruto said, nudging her and stepping back. "You can never know if it's good if you don't try it…" Swinging around Ino, he walked over to Sakura, who was still looking a bit flustered from the moment. However, she seemed to cool down when Naruto began shining attention on her again.

"You know, Naruto-kun," Sakura began, watching as Naruto returned with an apple in hand. He offered it to her, and the pink haired kunoichi took it with a smile of gratitude. "I'm starting to think you're developing a thing for Ino…"

"I'm just trying to make nice," the spiky haired ninja replied, smirking. "What? Jealous?"

"Yeah…right!" Sakura leapt at him and glomped him. "As long as I'm your number one, I'm willing to share!"

"Right…sure…" Naruto wheezed, face turning blue from the tightening hug of his pink haired teammate. Anko snorted when he saw the boy's expression, and shook her head. "Can't… breathe…"

"Oh… sorry!" Sakura released her, and watched him stagger and gasp for air in amusement. "Are you okay?"

"Y-Yeah… just fine, Sakura-chan!" Naruto waved, stretching straight up again, his back audibly cracking. "Wow… you're getting incredibly strong. Guess the training with Anko is really working out for you."

"Damn right it is!" Sakura said, clenching a fist and flexing her arm. "I can crack boulders in two with my strength…"

"If that's the case… then I'd better avoid making her angry," Naruto thought while grinning sheepishly at his pink-haired teammate. He looked at her with more then just admiration and lovingness in his eyes, but also respect for the girl. Like Hinata, he had watched as the girl trained hard with them in an effort to improve herself, getting stronger each day, catching up with him. The blond couldn't help but notice this more and more, and felt even more drawn to her then ever for the strength she displayed. "She's a really remarkable girl…"

After standing around for a bit longer, Anko gave them quick verbal directions and they headed toward the docks, where they hoped they could hire out a boat. But just as they started moving, Naruto noticed something out of place over at the fruit stand, and stopped in his tracks. Ino glanced behind her and fell back from the others, who continued on for the jetty.

"Naruto-kun? What's wrong?"

"You guys go on ahead, I'll catch up," Naruto said, waving a hand at her.

Blinking, the pale blond nodded in response, and followed after the rest of the team, leaving Naruto to observe the scene before him.

The blond stood by as he watched a young girl trying to buy food from the fruit stand. Sure, Naruto saw her buy her supplies, but she ended up receiving too little change for the usual rates being charged. The man told her to 'move along' so to speak in a not-so-friendly manner, with Naruto also catching the words 'I don't do business with monsters', which really made the blond frown in distaste. He looked on silently as the purple haired girl wearing blue, tattered clothes and wrapped in bandages walked off, head low and looking really hurt.

When she was out of ear shot of the store clerk, Naruto marched over to the booth. Just as the stand owner was getting back to his business, the young shinobi silently leapt up onto the counter and without a show of restraint, grabbed the man by his shirt and pulled him towards him, lifting him up a couple of feet off of the ground.

Naruto glared kunai at the terrified man from behind the shadows of his wide-brimmed armored hat and over his highly worn scarf. The store clerk was shaking where he dangled from the boy's grip.

"What the hell was that?" the boy roared at the man.

"I…I… whe… I don't know… what you mean… young man…" the middle-aged man stammered, now beginning to sweat bullets.

"You know full well what I mean, shit-eater!" Naruto shouted, now throttling the man by the scruff of his neck. "That poor girl… you charged her way too much for those fruit, and you fucking ridicule her further! Who the hell do you think you are?"

"I…she…you see… she's not normal! S-She's not even human…" the man replied.

Naruto growled through his canines and brought his free hand up. With a jerk of his wrist, his hidden blade flew out, and shone in the light right in front of the man's face.

"There are only two kinds of people on this planet: people, and shit-stains who hate the others who are different from everybody else!" Naruto hissed. "Nothing gives you the right to treat a person like that, or say things to hurt them! Just who is she that makes her so different?"

"S-She… that girl … is… a monster!" the man stuttered. "Those bandages she w-wears… hides her true self! The s-skin of poison…"

"SHUT UP! Where does she live!"

"A shack down on the beach…"

Having enough, Naruto took the man by the collar and tossed him outside of his stall, where he landed hard on the ground several feet away. The blond hopped off of the counter and walked by the dazed and pretty much unconscious fruit salesman, and while he passed him, reached into his back pocket and took out the small bag of ryu he had on him.

"I'll take this as compensation, and I hope you will take the time to reflect on what I've said to you today," the Genin replied, and quickly headed on after the girl, leaving the store clerk behind, eating dust.

The young ninja took a different route to the rest of Team 7, with Anko bartering a small boat from a local fisherman, and along with Sakura, Ino and Rock Lee, began preparations to set off for the Land of Whirlpools. For everything she knew about her roguish student, she knew that other tasks often called him away from time to time. Like she said to Kakashi last month, 'Naruto is like that'.

Elsewhere…

Up high on a cliff overlooking the Eastern Coast…

The actions of the socializing Team 7, as well as their preparations to set off, did not go unnoticed by a small number of onlookers, looking out over the ocean towards the Land of Eddies. Grouped in an uneven formation, or more like scattered around the pinnacle of the cliff, there sat a group of what appeared to be Kumogakure ninja.

The three Genin sat or stood around the very edge, watching Team 7 intently as they took the boat out to see and headed for the island. The head of the young group, who was standing behind the other two sitting on the edge, was a fair-skinned, blond, short-haired girl, who wore a grayish, low cut outfit, with ninja mesh underneath, a short skirt of the same color, and red wrist bands and leg bands, which she wore like stockings. She also had a visibly sizable bust (similar to Hinata in Shippuden), and a large machete sheathed behind her at her waist. Her female teammate sat directly in front of her, a dark-skinned girl who had red hair and yellow eyes, wore a dark grey robe that stopped just above her ankles, with a khaki fabric belt, and a white flak vest worn over it. She also had kunai pouch, and a katana strapped on her back. Their last teammate, who sat next to the red-haired girl, was also of dark complexion, had white, short spiky hair, a dark green hooded jumper with black track pants, a white flak jacket, and shin guards over a pair of boots. He also had a katana sheathed on his back, and had a lollipop in his mouth.

The kids, wearing the forehead protectors of Kumogakure ninja, watched as Team 7 sailed away on the small vessel, while their sensei stood over them, watching through a pair of binoculars. Their Jonin sensei was dark-skinned like his other two students, was well built, clean shaven, and had tattoos on both his shoulders, had whitish hair combed and held back by a forehead protector, wore a light-brown scarf, a khaki Jonin vest, black trousers strapped down by white gauze, and wore a red belt sheathed with six, tanto blades around his waist. He also had five katanas strapped to his back, wore black combat boots, and a pair of sunglasses.

With a murmur, he lowered his binoculars.

"Their go them Konoha fools, over to the Land of Whirlpools," he recited from the top of his head to himself, smirking and glancing over to his left. "So how do we make the throw down today, if I may ask?"

Seemingly appearing out of nowhere, a cloaked figure stood by them, also watching Team 7 row out toward the island. This person wasn't a part of the Kumogakure team, and was certainly no local. The figure was about two thirds the size of the Jonin leader, much shorter in comparison, and had an appearance masked completely by the black cloak, which had red cloud patterns outlined in white on several parts of it. Furthermore, the hood and higher collar completely masked the face from the sunlight, the only visible skin being the nose.

The figure turned and looked up at the Jonin; whether the person was frowning or smiling, was unknown.

"Complete discretion… you are to perform your task as I have instructed," the figure, whose calm, collected voice was revealed to be female, spoke, at the same time, she held out a scroll to the taller individual. The Jonin took it, and continued to listen to their identity withheld client for further information. "The scroll will tell you. Remember… do not kill them. You are to engage them and attempt to disarm or incapacitate them until such time the Nightwalker reveals himself…"

"And… what do we do from their?" the shinobi asked curiously. "Do we leave them to your care, yo?"

"Read the scroll," the woman replied, reaching up from under the collar of her cloak and lifting up her hood a little bit. "However…if I was to take them off your hands, my identity and well-being would be in jeopardy." When she raised her hood enough to let some light in, the Jonin was able to see the young female's left eye clearly, and when he glanced at it, saw the unmistakable sight of a Sharingan. However, instead of a red iris and black tomoes, he saw the reverse, a black iris with a red pupil and red tomoes circling it. "The Nightwalker has seen me before… and recognition is something I cannot allow…"

The tall Jonin smiled. "Yo… that is one funky eye you have got. That 'ought to win yah the fight on the spot!"

"It is a handicap… yes," the woman replied, lowering her hood. "But it is an accursed bloodline." She turned on her heel, and headed off for the shadows of the woods behind them, leaving the Jonin following after her with his eyes. "You've got your mission… so if you please… complete it…"

"Hey yo! Miss!" the Kumogakure ninja said, turning towards her. "What's yer name, sis?"

The cloaked woman stopped in her tracks and glanced behind her. However, she only spared the young male a glance, before turning away and staring ahead of her.

"I've let my name lie long ago…" she replied, before smiling underneath her collar. "Oh… by the way… I love your rapping…" The ninja flickered away into the win, vanishing through a fade out effect.

Killer Bee grinned and fisted his hand around the mission scroll. "Right on!"

"Sensei… the Hidden Leaf ninjas are nearly out of sight!" Samui said, glancing behind her at their teacher. "Should we pursue?"

"With all due haste, students!" Killer Bee exclaimed, pointing at them. "Omoi, Karui, Samui… move out!"

"Yes, sensei…"

TO BE CONTINUED…