A/N: I'm glad (and quite surprised) I managed to get this done quickly :) I even got the fanart up (link on my profile). The new Naruto Shippuuden movie is out but my computer wont let me watch it!! (-sits in a depressed little corner-) But my reviews keep me happy and sane, so thank you again to those that support me and keep a critical eye out :) Arghhh! The whole story kept going centered D:(

Disclaimer: Masashi Kishimoto allowed a slight SasuHina moment in the movie (from the tiny amount I managed to see) and I absolutely love him for it. He owns Naruto and all associated.

Claimer: All things not related to the Naruto manga/anime belong to me.

Warning!

Some scenes are slightly violent, please read at own risk. My sense of violence is pretty bad as I wach too many horror films :)

Watashiha Tsuyokunaru

I Will Get Stronger!

-----x-----

They would train, so they would no longer be afraid,

And so when the time came they would have the strength

To protect themselves, each other, and those precious to them

-----x-----

"Don't hurt her!" Sasuke hollered, his hands in tight fists. With his eyes wide in anxiety you could clearly see how he was still a thirteen year old boy.

"Memory…?" Kari repeated cautiously. Itachi's Sharingan seemed to gleam before what felt like a static charge ran through her brain causing her to choke on her breath. Images flashed in her mind, of that place. She was a ghost there, able to see, able to be seen, but powerless to do anything.

"Kari-chan?" Naruto asked, seeing her freeze.

"Kashi…" Kari whispered, her throat becoming tight and her eyes beginning to sting.

"With such a fragile heart, you can never be a shinobi," Itachi said. It held no emotion, it was simply a statement.

"If she's not worth it leave her be! I'm your opponent!" Sasuke said coldly. He couldn't shout, not after seeing her expression. A horrified sorrow, where she looked like a lost little girl that no one would help.

"You seem… attached to her," Itachi said, not taking his eyes off Kari's as she viciously fought back her tears. Sasuke felt his heart constrict in terror. His older brother seemed to be regarding her, taking her in and deciding his opinions on her. "Bonds are foolish."

Kari watched as the three tomoe in his Sharingan span once, making her feel drowsy, her body heavy. What he did next… caused a piece of Sasuke to decay and die. His eyes locked on hers, hypnotising her, he moved forward and captured her mouth with his. Even dazed and hypnotised he felt her body stiffen, and grasped her unbroken wrist when he noticed it twitch violently out of his peripheral vision. To make his point clear, he added pressure to her wrist, distracting her, before forcing his tongue into her mouth.

Jiraiya stood speechless, Naruto gave a muffled roar behind Jiraiya's large hand and even Kisame, Itachi's partner, seemed shocked, the tip of his Samehada crashing to the ground due to his loosened grip. Sasuke had too many emotions of pain and anger to comprehend, but knew without being told, that Itachi's actions were a direct stab at him. He was taunting Sasuke for being soft, for getting too close to Kari. He was stronger than her, and made her seem weak and pathetic.

Meanwhile, the sudden pressure in her mouth seemed to shock Kari to her senses. Her eyes widened before they narrowed and she realised she was being used to hurt Sasuke. So she did what her instinct told her to do, she bit down on the foreign object invading her mouth. She felt a slight shudder run through Itachi at the sudden unexpected pain. He drew back, but she still bit down on his tongue, a metal taste covering her tongue. It was different to the taste of her own blood, and sent chills through her whole body.

Sasuke sat speechless. Kari had just bitten his bother. But he felt relieved and a slight pride that she had fought back, that she had realised what he was doing and had stopped him. He added pressure to her wrist, making it feel like it too would break, and her mouth opened to breathe through the pain, releasing his tongue. Releasing her wrist he went to grab her throat, but she reacted entirely on instinct and bit into his arm.

With a flick of his wrist that caught Kari off guard he threw her into the wall Sasuke was leaning against. Blood spurted out her mouth and she crumpled to the floor, wincing at the pain that shot through her. Sasuke went to go to her, but was distracted by the sound of Itachi's feet against the floor, and watched as his brother came closer.

"Bring it on then!!" Sasuke shouted enraged, jumping up and preparing to attack, but Itachi's knee collided with his torso, winding him and forcing another mouthful of blood to rise up his throat. As he doubled over, an elbow struck the back of his neck and the same knee as before struck him under his chin, sending him up, his feet leaving the ground. He felt numerous punches collide with his gut before he felt the wall behind his back, Itachi's fist feeling as though it would go straight through his stomach and into the wall behind him.

'Why…? The difference between us has not shrunk since then… What is this difference?' Sasuke collapsed to the ground, wincing at the bruises spreading across his body.

"You're not going easy on him at all," Kisame said smirking.

'What have I been doing up until now?' Sasuke asked himself as he lay at Itachi's feet. 'What have I…?' He turned his face to the floor in shame. Itachi pulled him up by his collar and slammed him up against the wall, holding him by his throat. Sasuke looked to the side, now able to see Kari. 'I failed to protect you again…' He could see her body twitching as she tried to move, her fingers painting streaks through the small puddle of blood as she tried to force herself up. Her stab wounds seemed to have been torn open, and she had tears sliding across her face and onto the floor. He knew those tears were for him, because she so desperately wanted to help him, but she couldn't.

"You are weak," Itachi said simply. "Why are you weak? Because you lack…" he bent closer to Sasuke to whisper in his ear. "Hatred." He pulled away slightly activating his Sharingan.

"Not again…!" Kari choked out.

-----x-----

Everything was black and white negative, Sasuke could see a reflection of himself at a different angle, but other than that, it was a vast black emptiness. 'Where am I?' Then he was falling, falling and falling, spinning faster and faster.

Then there was red, the sky was red, the black clouds racing across it, too thin to cover the moon. Sasuke looked round to see he was in that room again… that room where…

"Is this… Could it be…" and he was a child again, he was the same eight year old boy he was back then. He brought his hand close to his chest as he shivered with fear.

"That's correct." Sasuke looked up at the sound of his brothers voice to see his parents sitting together, his father facing him, his mother facing to the left. "This is our house."

"Otousan! Okaasan!!" Sasuke shouted. He gasped seeing Itachi's figure behind them.

"You are weak…" Itachi's voice said from behind him. "For the next 24 hours…"

"Yamete…"

"…You will wander around hopelessly within that day."

"YAMETEEE!!!" Sasuke screamed grabbing hold of his head as the thirteen year old Itachi's katana came down on his parents, blood splattering across the floor.

"She'll be forced to watch helplessly. And whenever she tries to help you…"

"Sasuke!!" he could hear Kari's voice, but he couldn't tell where from.

"Kari?! KARI!!"

"I'll take her away." Sasuke saw Kari running towards him, but then Itachi appeared behind her, a katana in hand.

"IIE!!! KARI!!!" Sasuke screamed as the end of Itachi's katana appeared out the front of her chest. White blood running down her body and flooding out of her mouth. Her knees collapsed underneath her and she fell forward, just like his parents into a pool of her own blood, her eyes lifeless. "KARI!! YAMETE!! YEMETEEE!!!"

-----x-----

Naruto's eyes widened in horror as simultaneously screams erupted from Sasuke and Kari. Kita whimpered in terror at hearing her mother's pain.

-----x-----

Bodies fell all around Sasuke's small form, almost falling on top of him.

"Ojisan, Obasan!!" Sasuke cried before his aunt and uncle were both cut down.

"You are not even worth killing…" Itachi said as he stood over the bodies of his dead parents. "Otokana otouto… If you wish to kill me, hate me, detest me and survive in an unsightly way. Nigete, nigete and cling to life…" Kari appeared in front of him, staring blankly at Sasuke as she was pulled into a standing position by her hair. Itachi's katana pierced her collarbone, a disgusting crack following the sound of metal cutting through flesh before the katana ripped down, slowly cutting her in half…

-----x-----

"Being cruel as usual," Kisame mused through Sasuke's and Kari's screams. "He used Tsukuyomi on his otouto, which seemed to have triggered Kari to be put under it as well."

Jiraiya could feel Naruto's tears dripping down his hand. To see someone strong and cocky, someone you admire yet strive to beat, your comrade, your rival breaking down and screaming it was… it was terrible… And Kari… in Jiraiya's opinion, there was nothing worse to hear than the screaming of a young girl. Naruto was half screaming himself, almost replying to Kari's screams as she writhed in a state of half consciousness, clutching her head and crying her eyes out.

The Sannin was horrified, someone so strong willed, that refused to show physical pain, was reduced to screaming her heart out in whatever nightmare her mind was showing her. Finally, Sasuke's screams died and he fell limp. Kari's screams also silenced, but she stayed awake, eyes wide in horror, heavily bloodshot as she trembled, causing slight ripples in the red puddle beside her.

"Cut it you already you temee!!" Naruto hollered, pulling Jiraiya's hand away from his mouth and shooting forward, Kisame racing after him. Jiraiya quickly made hand signs. Both Naruto and Kisame stopped as the walls ceiling and floor were covered by some strange, reddish substance. "Nan de, dattebayou?"

"Ninpou, Gamaguchi Shibari," Jiraiya said. Sasuke sank slightly into the wall, and Itachi let go of him. Kisame looked down as his foot began to sink. "You're out of luck, Itachi, Kisame. You're inside my stomach now. I summoned the oesophagus of a giant frog from the Myouboku Mountain's rock inn. You two are wanted criminals anyway, I'll turn you into food for this rock frog." Kita squeaked and jumped on Jiraiya's head for safety.

"What is this dattebayou?" Naruto asked, looking around.

"Naruto! You stay still," Jiraiya ordered. "Don't worry, this is my technique."

"Kisame, koi," Itachi instructed. Kisame broke free and rushed towards Itachi.

"It's useless!" Jiraiya shouted. "No one has ever escaped from this before!" They paid no attention to him and simply ran.

"The wall of meat is closing in on us," Kisame said as the wall began to catch up, extending past them. "The wall is faster than us. At this rate…" Itachi activated his eyes.

-----x-----

"Nani?" Jiraiya cried as a loud bang was heard. He got up and raced in the direction Itachi and Kisame had gone.

"Eh? Ero-sennin!" Naruto cried, rushing after him.

"Doushita, dattebayou!" Naruto cried, skidding round the corner to see a massive hole, which the S-class criminals had obviously escaped through. "They're gone…"

'I can't believe they broke through these walls…' Jiraiya thought seriously.

-----x-----

"Why must we retreat?" Kisame asked as he and Itachi raced across the water in large leaps. "You could've…"

"There is no hurry with Naruto at his current level. And when we do get Naruto, Kari will follow," Itachi replied. "Also, I must rest myself somewhere for a while. I had to use Tsukuyomi, and was even forced to use Amaterasu." His eyes narrowed as he felt his Sharingan deactivate, his eyes turning onyx.

"I still can't believe you kissed that kid… You're practically a paedophile," Kisame said.

"It was necessary to show Sasuke his weakness," Itachi stated emotionlessly.

"And you got bit," Kisame couldn't hold in all off his laugh and let out a small chuckle. Itachi didn't reply, and simply increased his speed.

-----x-----

"What's this fire?" Naruto asked, having approached the hole to investigate. "It's black…"

"Don't go near it!!" Jiraiya shouted. causing Naruto to take a huge leap back with a slight squeal. 'How did they escape? Also… What is that black flame? A rock frog breathes fire, but its internal organ was burned.' The Sannin wondered. He pulled out a scroll and quickly drew a seal. "Fuuinjutsu Fuukahouin!" Chakra came out of the scroll and surrounded the fire before returning to the scroll, the fire having become a part of the Chakra. Jiraiya rolled up the scroll and tied it securely, putting it inside his haori. "Yosh, this should do for now. Now we have to look at Sasuke and Kari-chan."

"Kari-chan!" Naruto cried, rushing back around the corner, Kita quickly jumping off Jiraiya's head and following his lead. Jiraiya followed, and felt his heartstrings pull tightly. Kari had somehow managed to crawl over to Sasuke and pull him out of the wall. She had pulled him to her, his head resting in the crook of her neck and her unbroken arm wrapped across his stomach, the other laying limp behind him. Her head was against his chest, looking blank and still terribly upset. Sasuke's eyes were open and looking blankly ahead, his body completely limp. Naruto crouched beside Kari, gently reaching out to her, but she flinched and he sadly put his hand back to his side. Jiraiya walked around and stood in front of them. He was surprised when a kunai flew in front of him.

"DYNAMIC ENTRY!!" Gai cried as Jiraiya turned.

"Gai?" the Sannin managed to ask before Gai's large foot embedded itself in Jiraiya's face. Gai grinned at his direct hit and then his face fell realising it was Jiraiya. Jiraiya shoved a tissue up his bleeding nose, his eye twitching violently, causing the bruise on the side of his face to throb unpleasantly.

"I'm sorry I hit you… I was in a hurry and forgot my mirror," Gai said, rubbing the back of his head awkwardly, grinning all the while. "I used my hitai-ate as a mirror but it was blurry, and I mistook your rugged face as that of an enemy, and I let my burning youthful spirit take over and I carelessly… Sumimasen!"

"Is that supposed to be an apology?" Jiraiya seethed.

"I'm not good with words…" Gai explained embarrassed.

"Forget about that for now, take Sasuke to a medical squad," Jiraiya said. "Kari's accepted a mission with me, so we'll take her from here. Sasuke's arm and ribs are broken. Also, he took a psychological attack from a doujutsu and was knocked unconscious."

'So he suffered from that technique too?' Gai thought looking down at Sasuke. 'That means Kari-hime's had two doses…'

"But they're eyes are open, aren't they awake?" Kita asked.

"Ero-sennin, are they going to be ok?" Naruto asked worriedly, his arm along Kari's back.

"It looks like they've taken heavy psychological damage," Jiraiya said as gently as he could. Naruto looked down as the beatings were replayed in his head. He'd never known them to be in so much pain… Sasuke and Kari were amongst the strongest people he knew and that guy had practically broken them…

"Chikusho… What the hell…?" Naruto thought as he shook, fists clenched. He wrapped his arms around Kari, careful not to hurt her. "What the hell did that guy do to Sasuke and Kari-chan, Ero-sennin?!" Naruto demanded. "We have a change of plans… I was scared back there, but I'm going to find those black coat guys and beat them to a pulp this time!!" Naruto shouted. "They want me, right?! Then I'll go to them!"

"Hn, if you go to them now, you're just going to get killed, and from what Kakashi's told me, that means Kari-chan will also die," Jiraiya said knowing that Kari was a very important, sensitive topic with Naruto. "Their level and yours are too different. I barely managed to get them away from you back there."

"Are you suggesting we run and hide from them?! You want me to shiver in fear everyday?!" Naruto shouted.

"Shut up!" Jiraiya shouted, causing Naruto to fall silent. "You are weak." Naruto rested his head on Kari's other shoulder, feeling like a failure. "I'm sorry Gai. I thought I was taking his feelings into consideration, but I should've helped him earlier."

"Kakashi was affected by the same technique and he is unconscious now. We don't know when he will regain consciousness. Kurenai believes Kari sensed Kakashi's distress and rushed to his aid and then attacked the criminals when I arrived. Kisame injured her back with his sword. She was knocked out for a few minutes with a mild Genjutsu which made her lose her memory of the fight. With Sasuke and Kakashi, that was Kari-hime's second attack with that jutsu," Gai said grimly.

"Kakashi-sensei ka?!"

"When a student is injured… From the bottom of my heart, I wish… that she, the medical specialist were still here," Gai said sadly.

"That's why we're going to look for her," Jiraiya replied.

"Eh? Her?" Gai said shocked. "Are you talking about…"

"Sou, I'm talking about her," Jiraiya said with a smirk. "A Sannin like me, the healing specialist and slug tamer… The woman with the word 'gamble' on her back… Tsunade-hime."

-----x-----

"We're off now Gai, take care of Sasuke for me," Jiraiya said, as they stood at the gate for Konoha. Gai had piggybacked Sasuke, while Naruto had happily piggybacked Kari, despite Jiraiya offering to carry her. The Sannin got abuse hurled at him from his student about how he was a pervert. Kita reappeared, Kari's bag in her mouth. Naruto flung it over his shoulder, and shifted Kari so he was comfortable. Kita then jumped onto Jiraiya's broad shoulder, making herself comfortable.

"Jiraiya-sama, please find Tsunade-sama and bring her back," Gai said with a smile.

"We'll find her and bring her back here for sure dattebayou!" Naruto cried. Jiraiya chuckled and ruffled Naruto's hair.

"Naruto-kun, I like kids with guts like you, you're a lot like Kari-hime," Gai said. "I have a gift for you. Lee became strong with this."

"Eh? Nani? Nani?" Naruto asked excitedly.

"This!!" Gai cried, pulling out a green latex outfit, identical to the ones he and Lee wore. Jiraiya looked horrified, Kita looked puzzled and Naruto looked amazed. "It's splendid at maintaining moisture and allowing air to pass through, it is also designed for maximum movement, is perfect in form and has beautiful curves!" Gai cried, waving the latex clothing about. "Wear it during your training and you'll be able to tell the difference right away! And you'll become addicted to it; you'll wear it all the time like Lee. I wear it all the time as well! I gave one to Kari-hime but she never wears it! It's probably just that phase girls go through, but I know she'll come around eventually!"

Jiraiya watched depressed as Gai and Naruto gave each other a thumbs up and grinned, teeth sparkling. He was going to have nightmares… 'If you carry something like that with you all the time, carry a mirror too baka!' they waved good bye to Gai, Naruto happily holding his gift.

"Will it look good on me? I'll have to ask Kari-chan when she wakes up!" Naruto said happily.

"Don't. Look at the guy in front of you," Jiraiya said pointing at Gai's backside, where the material was a little saggy. "It looks really crappy." Gai turned round and grinned at them.

-----x-----

They walked quietly down the dirt path, lost in their own thoughts. Naruto looked at the ground, trying to make sense of the earlier events. Kita, was dozing, half asleep but still aware of her surroundings.

"So you're after Naruto after all… And after Kari as well…"

"It is an urgent order by our organisation, Akatsuki, to take Naruto-kun and Kari with us."

"Doushita?" Jiraiya asked, noticing Naruto had stopped. "Is Kari-chan getting heavy?"

"Na, Ero-sennin… Why did they come after me and Kari-chan?" Naruto asked. "You know, right, Ero-sennin?"

"They're not really after you… they're after the thing inside you."

"What is this thing anyway?" Naruto asked. "This guy is the one who attacked Konoha right? That's why everyone fears it… So why do they want such a thing?"

"It's true that the Kyuubi has appeared periodically in history; a mystic beat that destroys everything in its path. That's why people in the past thought of the Kyuubi as a natural disaster. I'm not sure exactly what they're planning to do with the Kyuubi, but as long as the Kyuubi is sealed inside you, perhaps they wish to put its power under their control. It may be cruel to have those guys after you, but that's fate. Maa, I'll protect you so don't worr—"

"I need to be stronger then to protect me and Kari-chan!" Naruto interrupted. "Yosha! Let's find this Tsunade person, have her heal Kari-chan and Sasuke and start training!"

'I expected to hear something like that from him,' Jiraiya thought with a chuckle.

"Hmm…" Naruto said as they resumed walking.

"What is it?"

"Is that really beautiful person you want to see, that Tsunade person?" Naruto asked.

"Oho! You're pretty sharp!" Jiraiya said with a grin. "What about it?"

"She's one of those Sannin things that you're a part of right, Ero-sennin?"

"So what about it?" Jiraiya asked.

"How old is she?" Naruto asked.

"Same as me," Jiraiya said happily.

'She's an old lady then…' Naruto thought grimacing. "So what kind of person is this Tsunade person?" Naruto asked.

"Hm? Interested?"

"Mm."

"Let's see… In a word she's unpleasant. And she likes to gamble a lot, and is well known in various countries."

"Then we can find her easily since she's famous!" Naruto said happily.

"It's true that she's famous, since she's the legendary… sucker. But even if she's the legendary sucker, we probably can't find her immediately."

"Nande dattebayou?" Naruto said grumpily.

"She doesn't like aging so she has probably changed her appearance with some kid of technique," Jiraiya explained. "She's in her fifties, but she likes to look around twenty or so. On top of that, according to some rumours she changes her appearance to look in her teens, twenties, thirties, forties depending on the situation to run away from moneylenders."

"What's up with that? Sounds horrible," Naruto said.

"Tsunade has liked to gamble ever since she was young," Jiraiya said. "But her luck and skills just plain suck. She's known by that name since she's been duped out of money her by everyone. So she borrows money and runs." Jiraiya stopped, chuckling and shaking his head. "That brings back memories."

"Oi! Stop enjoying your old memories!" Naruto cried. "So how are we supposed to find her dattebayou?"

"I'm not sure," Jiraiya said simply. "We'll probably have to take things slowly, but there are many ways of doing it."

"Then we don't know how long it will take!" Naruto whined.

"Heh, you just don't want to lag Kari-chan along for a long time," Jiraiya said with a grin.

"Kari-chan is light and I like carrying her dattebayou!" Naruto said defensively. To be honest, he really did like carrying her while she rested, it made him feel helpful, and warm… really warm.

"The time won't be wasted though," Jiraiya continued, starting to walk again. "I'll use my time on you as we travel."

"On me?"

"The time to make you strong… Training!" Jiraiya declared.

"Yosh!!" Naruto grinned and slipped off his bag, trying not to disturb Kari. After a bit of rummaging with one hand (the other keeping Kari steady) he pulled out the green latex thing Gai had given him.

"Matte, matte, matte, don't wear that, come on…" Jiraiya mumbled, crouching in front of Naruto, Kita jumping sleepily onto Jiraiya's head and making a nest out of his spiky white hair. "I don't want to walk with a guy wearing something like that…" Naruto felt Kari stir and was immediately distracted.

"Kari-chan!" Jiraiya took this opportunity to snatch the horrible green latex and shove it into Naruto's bag, zipping up and out of sight.

"She's awake?" Jiraiya asked, as Naruto set her down, Kita jumping sown and rushing to Kari's side.

"Kari-chan daijoubu ka, dattebayou?" Naruto asked quietly. She didn't answer and just stared directly in front of her. After a long minute she blinked.

"Where's Sasuke?" she asked, her voice croaky. She looked up at Jiraiya and then slowly round at Naruto, her eyes dim and dark.

"We're going to find this Tsunade lady and she's going to make you both better!" Naruto cried while Kita nodded.

"Sou ka…" she placed her hands on the ground to push herself up but was stopped by sharp pains.

"You didn't wrap her?" Jiraiya scolded.

"You didn't tell me to! You're the adult dattebayou!" Naruto retorted.

"If I'd tried to I would've been accused of being a pervert wouldn't I!" Jiraiya snapped back.

"Turn around Ero-sennin!" Naruto demanded, pointing behind Jiraiya. The Sannin grumbled and walked a little ways away, sitting on a rock and sulking like a child.

"Gaki." Jiraiya scoffed, Kita bounding after him to console the upset man.

"This might hurt a little Kari-chan, Ero-sennin said your arm and ribs are broken and Gai-sensei said you'd hurt your back," Naruto said gently, rummaging in his bag and pulling out a large roll of bandages. He pulled off her gloves and carefully wrapped her arm, upset by the dark bruising that spread from her wrist which had swollen to twice its size. He could see where each of Itachi's fingers had been on Sasuke's wrist. With that done, he lifted her shirt and wrapped her from the waist up to her collarbone, Kari not making a sound.

"Are you done yet?" Jiraiya called, not turning round.

"Urusai!" Naruto retorted. "Does anything else hurt Kari-chan?" Naruto asked eying the bruises around her throat. She shook her head, and though he didn't believe her, he let it drop, knowing she was very fragile right now. He pulled his bag back on and lifted her onto his back, trudging towards his grumpy sensei.

"Arigatou… Naruto…" Those simple words cheered him up slightly, but his heart stung at how sad her voice was.

-----x----

"Ne, ne, Ero-sennin dattebayou! Let's start training dattebayou!" Naruto said to his sensei.

"Don't be so hasty, give Kari-chan a chance to rest a little more before you train," Jiraiya said simply. "This journey will be pointless if we don't ask around for information on Tsunade as we train."

"Ask around for information?"

"At his city," Jiraiya said as Naruto ran over to the fence.

"Woaaaah! Look Kari-chan!!" he cried looking down at all the people. He grinned at her and she managed a weak smile. She reached into her bag and pulled out the ribbon the Hokage had given her, wrapping it around her ears. They wasted no time heading into the city, Naruto looking around at everything. "Wow I've never been to a place like this before!" Kita looked around amazed from the top of Jiraiya's head.

"Playing is important too. Get plenty of rest and then we can move on to training," Jiraiya said with a grin. "The festival is going to last a while, so we're going to stay here while it goes on. We're going to do our training here too. Maybe get Kari a kimono so she'll be more comfortable, you know how girls love that sort of stuff."

"Yatta!" Naruto cried in delight, pulling off his bag and pulling out his frog… purse. He was a guy… with a purse. Only Naruto could get away with that…

"Oho! You're pretty rich!" Jiraiya cried pointing at the very fat frog. "You're as rich as a millionaire!"

"I have a lot of money since I saved up little by little with my missions," Naruto said looking at his purse adoringly. "Ja mata!"

"Matte! Naruto!" Jiraiya cried, grabbing hold of him, careful not to hurt Kari.

"Eh?! Na! Na! What are you doing dattebayou!" Naruto cried, trying to grab it back. "You can use this much."

"Nani?! Only 300 ryou?! You said I could buy Kari-chan a kimono!!" Naruto whined.

"Fine, here's some for the kimono. And don't 'Naniiii?!' me! You know there's something called the three taboos of a ninja right?" Jiraiya asked.

"Three taboo's of a ninja? What are those?" Naruto asked suspiciously.

"You don't know? The three taboos of the ninja are the three desires that make ninja go bad. The three desires are alcohol, money and women." Kari shot him an offended look.

"Then it doesn't have much to do with me!" Naruto cried. "I'm not twenty, so I can't drink alcohol. And I'm not really sure about this desire for women." Kari smiled, finding his innocence adorable. "And it took a lot of effort to save up that money, I don't want to use a lot of it."

"Baka! Don't take the desire for money lightly!" Jiraiya scolded. "Once you start using it, you'll begin to use more! The magical power of money is quite scary. The person we're looking for, Tsunade, has nearly ruined her life because of it."

"You're easily tempted by the desire for women Ero-sennin," Naruto said grumpily.

"I'm going to go ask around now, here take my pack," He gave Naruto his bag. "Even if you get lost, a pursuing-purpose frog summon will follow my scent. Or you can use Kita." Naruto huffed and stuck his tongue out. Kari got down from his back and Naruto grabbed her hand running off, Kita quickly following.

'Ha, they're still kids,' Jiraiya thought fondly. 'You might not know much about the desire of women Naruto, but I think you'll realise it with Kari-chan in the future…'

-----x-----

"Ne, what do you want to do first Kari-chan?" Naruto asked excitedly. The buzz of the festival seemed to have cheered her up, for the most part.

"I don't know, I've never been to a festival before. Whatever you want to do," Kari said simply, looking around at everything.

"Let's go get your kimono then, give you a real festival experience!" Naruto said with a grin.

"You don't have to—Wah! Naru!" Kari cried as she was dragged into a shop.

"Obachan! I need a pretty kimono for my friend here!" Naruto cried to the lady at the desk. The middle age woman peered at Kari through her glasses and then beamed quite scarily.

"Yosh! Please follow me!" the lady cried, grabbing Kari's unbroken wrist and dragging her along. Kari was horrified as she was stripped of her outer clothes and shoved onto a stool. She felt like she was getting a freaking wedding dress! "You're awfully lucky having a boyfriend that wants to buy you a nice kimono," the lady said, making conversation as she held up various colours.

"Naru?" Kari asked, before giggling (and slightly wheezing due to her ribs). "Wait I have an idea!"

"Yes dear?"

-----x-----

"Kari-chan! Look! Look!" Naruto cried, rushing over to her in his orange and black male kimono. The member of staff behind him was grumbling about the orange.

"You look great Naru," Kari said, ruffling his hair fondly.

"You look pretty too dattebayou, Kari-chan," Naruto said, blushing slightly. She smiled embarrassed, her rosy cheeks darkening. She wore a sky blue kimono with a sunny yellow obi, the blue material with some slightly darker swirls in it.

"It matches you see, the blue for your eyes, and the yellow for your blonde hair," Kari said causing Naruto to grin.

"It really brings out the blue in her eyes don't you think young man? Yet at the same time brings out the green and grey shades, and the colours work so well don't you think?" the woman asked, her slightly scary smile back in place. They both nodded so not to upset her and paid for the others kimono and the sandals they needed to go with it.

-----x-----

"It feels like a real festival now, ne Kari-chan?" Naruto said happily. Their hitai-ate were in their bags for the festival, Kita trotting along behind them taking in the sights.

"Hai, you didn't have to pay for my kimono though," Kari replied, still embarrassed yet touched by the gesture.

"It's your first festival, it has to be special! And I'm your first date, to your first festival dattebayou!" Naruto said with a grin. "When I'm Hokage I'm going to make a festival just for you."

"Naruto, you can't do that!" Kari said blushing.

"I can and I will," Naruto said with a wider grin. Luckily, Kari was saved by a growl from Naruto's stomach. "Next up, food!!" Kari giggled and Kita's ears perked. He ran up to the nearest stall, dragging her by the hand, Kita quickly following after them, being rather hungry herself. "Ojiichan! Three takiyaki please!" Naruto darted to the next place, ordering three of everything. "Potato with butter!" He darted to the next place. "I want a chocolate coated banana!" Naruto cried. Kari go chocolate coated strawberries (she hated bananas) and Kita didn't have any, as she was a small pup and doubted she'd be able to eat that with everything else. "Three loads of apricot candy!" And finally they reached the last place. "Three Okonomiyaki!" Wait, no Naruto found another place. "Ojiichan! Three big yakisoba!"

"Yosh! You seem to have bought a lot there kiddo, you're not going to eat all that between the three of you are you?"

"Hm? Yeah we're going to eat it all ourselves," Naruto said, not seeing the problem with the large amount of food he and Kari were carrying.

"Here you go," the man said simply. Naruto grabbed it and shoved it in his bag. He thanked the man and took Kari's hand again. They found a field with a slight hill.

"Let's have a picnic dattebayou!" Naruto cried in delight.

"Yosha!" Kari and Kita cried in delight as they all sat down and dug in to their food with a happy 'Ittadekimasu!!'

-----x-----

"Ughh, I think I ate too much," Naruto said, holding his round belly. It was a good thing they had their kimonos on…

Kari leaned against his shoulder. She too had over indulged and was slightly bloated, which was surprising due to her usually very small appetite (not including sweet stuff of course) but when she slowed down, Naruto protested and picked up some of his own food with his chopsticks, feeding her himself. She had giggled and they ended up feeding each other most of the rest of their meal, feeding Kita too. Kari couldn't help but find it absolutely adorable how round Kita's tummy currently was. She was lying on her back, her front paws resting on her bloated stomach.

"I wonder how everyone's doing…" Kari said, her expression saddening. She felt bad that she was having a wonderful time without them. As if by instinct, Naruto wrapped his arm around her, pulling her closer to his side.

"Kakashi-sensei, Sasuke, Sakura-chan… I'm going to train everyday and come home strong!" Naruto declared.

"Me too," Kari said with a slight smile, resting her head on his chest.

"But before that, I have to work off the food," Naruto said with a grin. "How can you eat all that and stay skinny Kari-chan?"

"Ninja have fast metabolisms, you don't seem to put on any weight either," Kari said with a giggle.

"Let's go play games!!"

"But your so comfy…" Kari whined.

-----x-----

"Yosha!! Perfect!" Kari and Naruto cried as they hit their targets dead on. They grinned as the people watching them applauded. Shuriken training made these games pretty easy.

-----x-----

"Haaa! Kid you suck!" the man said as Naruto once again failed to catch a fish, breaking the net each time. Kita watched amazed as the little fish swam about, determined to escape capture.

"You just watch!" Naruto cried quickly making hand signs but the man stopped him and pointed to a sign. "To ninja's… The use of ninja techniques is prohibited?"

"Leave it to me Naru," Kari said confidently. "So kiddo, which one was it you wanted?" Kari asked to the little girl crouched beside her. She smiled and plumped to a plump fish, with black, orange and white splotches. With a swift dip of the paper net, she caught the fish with ease causing her to be applauded. Naruto stuck his tongue out at her and she giggled handing the girl her fish.

-----x-----

"Ne! Ne! Let's get masks!" Naruto cried happily. He ran over to the man and bought three masks, immediately, putting his on. Kari put Kita's round her neck, so it sat at the side and wasn't uncomfortable. Kari put her to the side of her head so she could still see. Naruto started walking and tripped over a rock, falling flat on his face.

"You shouldn't walk with the mask on," the man said simply.

"Ite-e, Naruto grumbled, putting the mask to the side of his head before looking up. His eyes widened as he noticed a book lying in front of him. "It's Ero-sennin's check book…" Naruto said picking it up, Kari crouching beside him to see if he was hurt. "One, ten, hundred, thousand… There are a lot of zero's dattebayou!!" Naruto squeaked his mouth falling open. "He could've treated us to something if he had this much! Cheapskate!"

"Naruto-kun, you shouldn't look through Jiraiya-sama's stuff, it could scar you," Kari scolded, poking him in the side of the head as he put everything back in the bag. They stood up and Naruto dug into his pocket.

"I only have a little left… I guess the next stand will be our last…" Naruto sighed. Kari had paid for half of everything, but he didn't want her to pay for him. Naruto grinned and ran up to a stand.

"Me and Kita can't eat anything else Naru, we're stuffed," Kari said grinning awkwardly.

"Ojiichan! Give me two grilled squids, and make one a large adult size!" Naruto cried.

"Kid, buying something for your parents? Good boy!" the man cried. "I'll give you th kid size for free!"

"Arigatou Ojiichan! You're great!" Naruto cried in delight.

"Arigatou gozaimasu!" Kari said from next to him.

"Yosh! Fifty percent off the adult one too!"

"Thank you!!"

-----x-----

"Geez, where did he go?" Naruto grumbled as they looked around, Kari carrying Kita who was snoring lightly. They heard a deep slightly insane laugh. "Is that Ero-sennin?" They lifted the flap and went inside.

"Ha ha! I just love the young girls!" Jiraiya chuckled in delight, a pretty woman either side of him. "Oh? Naruto, Kari-chan? You've enjoyed all the festival already?" Jiraiya asked taking a sip of sake. Naruto looked down depressed at his completely empty frog purse.

"Say the three taboos of the ninja to yourself again dattebayou!!" Naruto screeched in Jiraiya's face as Kari let Kita down and padded over to the table, lifting up the sake. She sniffed it and cringed. She wondered what it tasted like… "You broke all three in one go!! BAKA!!" The girls squealed and ran away from the angry boy.

"Matte, Naruto!" Jiraiya cried.

"I'm not going to wait dattebayou!! You spent all the money I worked so hard to save!!" Naruto cried, pounding Jiraiya on the head while Kari decided to give into her curiosity and try the sake. "Baka, baka, baka, baka, baka, baka, baka!! You made my frog wallet flat!!"

"Yamete! I'll pay you back!" Jiraiya whined. Naruto was so busy pounding him he didn't realise a grilled squid flew out of his hand.

"What the hell?! Whatcha doing, fool?!" a man cried causing Kari to snigger before hiccoughing.

"Eh?" Naruto asked looking around.

"You put a stain on Bro's brand-name suit!" the hysterical man cried beside his stony looking boss. "Pay for it! Get 100,000 ryou!!"

"HA?! Clothes like that cost 100,000 ryou?!" Naruto screeched.

"That stupid looking thing costs 100,000? That's a little on the high side don't you think?" Jiraiya asked, causing Kari to giggle again.

"What are you trying to pick a fight? You shouldn't for your own sake," the one that seemed to be the boss said.

"Bro is a former Chuunin from the Hidden village of Rock, he's the killer ninja who was feared as a legendary Yaminin!" the other man piped up.

"Heh? Legendary? What?" Jiraiya scoffed.

"It looks like you wanna get hurt!" the boss cried angrily. He glanced at Kari, who was still giggling. "If you don't want to die, hand over that girl as payment!" Kari scoffed and then giggled madly. Jiraiya stood up.

"Naruto, Kari. This is a good opportunity to show you a technique," Jiraiya said.

"Can't I zap –hic- 'em?" Kari asked.

"EH?! Did you drink that sake?!" Jiraiya squeaked. Kari shrugged and Jiraiya turned his attention back to the men. "Watch carefully." Jiraiya held his hand out and a swirling ball of Chakra formed in his hand.

"BASTARD!" the man shouted, lunging at Jiraiya. The Sannin thrust his hand into the mans middle sending him spinning backwards like a windmill into the other man, out the shop and into an old mans stall.

"Sugoii!!" Naruto cried.

"I went easy on you, but you guys sure are weak," Jiraiya said, looking at the two men lying on the ruined stall. The man gasped, struggling to sit up.

"A-are you the legendary…?!" the man choked out.

"I'm sorry I broke your stall," Jiraiya apologised.

"Take this for repairs…" the boss man said, handing Jiraiya his wallet before collapsing again.

"Oyaji, I'm going to take all the water balloons and regular ones too, is that okay with you?" Jiraiya said, handing the puzzled man the money.

"I don't mind," the man replied warily.

"That wasn't just a palm thrust… What was that technique dattebayou?" Naruto said slowly to Kari, eying the boss mans wound which was like a swirl.

"It was pretty…" Kari said thoughtfully and then giggled.

"Daijoubu ka?" Naruto asked while Kita tilted her head at her mothers perculiar behaviour.

"Hai! But I can't use my arm, so you'll have to hold this hand!" Kari said grabbing his hand while smiling rather dopily.

"Eh… she had some sake, and that was pretty strong stuff…" Jiraiya said awkwardly as Kari simply grinned at him. "Come on you three, we're going to train."

"Hai!" they all cried.

-----x-----

"Yosh! We're finally in training mode dattebayou!" Naruto cried in delight.

"Here's a water balloon," Jiraiya said, handing one to both Naruto and Kari. Kita fished one out the bag and started pushing it with her nose and paws.

"What about it, dattebayou?" Naruto asked as Kari looked at hers happily, throwing it in the air and catching it with her right hand.

"You watched that technique carefully right?" Jiraiya asked. Both nodded as Kita chased the escaping water balloon. "What kind of technique did it look like?"

"Hm, I think the enemy was rotating a lot…" Naruto said puzzled.

'He wasn't looking at the right place…' Jiraiya thought with a strained grin. 'But I guess that's good enough.'

"Hai, rotation is involved," Jiraiya said, holding up his own water balloon where it was like the water was trying to push through it, making the balloon look like it was quickly growing and retracting spikes.

'He's making the water in the balloon rotate without moving his hand?' Naruto thought balloon exploded causing Naruto to gasp.

"With the tree climbing exercise, you accumulated and maintained Chakra in one specific area. With the water walk exercise, you released a constant amount of Chakra. You did those two previously correct? Oi! Kari-chan stop looking at butterflies!" Jiraiya said with a slight whine, noticing Kari was distracted by the brightly coloured insect. He sighed as she giggled and turned her attention back to him. He should have watched his sake…

"You were saying?" Kari prompted.

"This time, for the water balloon exercise, you're going to create a flow with Chakra. Simply put, a rotation." Jiraiya said.

"A flow with Chakra?" Naruto asked.

"I'll tell you the details of the technique once you're able to complete the basics," Jiraiya said. "First, you accumulate and maintain Chakra in your hand, like you did in the tree climbing exercise. Next, you release a constant amount of Chakra like in the water walk exercise. Finally, you push and rotate the water inside the balloon. These are the things you must do in this exercise."

"Wakatta dattebayou!" Naruto cried happily and Kari just grinned, "This training is to create a fast rotation inside the balloon and make it pop, right?"

"You're getting sharper," Jiraiya complimented. Kita yelped when her balloon exploded, covering her in cold water. She shook herself off and dove into Jiraiya's bag for another one. "Yosh! We're going to train until night!"

"Yes sir!!"

And their training began.