Hello FanFiction! This is pain17ification posting the next chapter of "Mai's Teacher"!

AN1: I have a poll concerning Zhao's demise up on my profile! Please vote!

AN2: A few people reminded me that the Sharingan can cast simple genjutsu on its own. Honestly, I forgot all about that and will rectify it!

Please note: pain17ification doesn't own Naruto or Avatar the Last AirBender

"Speech"

'Thoughts'

"Higher Being Speech"

'Higher Being Thoughts'

"Jutsu"

(Technique Translations)

Scene or Time Change/Chapter Name

Chapter 7: Threats and Omashu

"Long ago," Naruto began, "centuries before the founding of the Hidden Shinobi Villages, the Rikudo Sennin saved the world from the Juubi. He managed to subdue the beast and seal it within his own body, becoming the first Jinchuriki, or Human Sacrifice. However, this offered merely a temporary solution to the great beast. In the event of his death, the seal would dissolve and the Juubi would once again be unleashed upon the world."

"So, what did he do?" asked Aang while the others listened quietly.

"The Sage searched for a more permanent solution to seal it away. Ultimately, he succeeded by using his 'Creation of All Things' ability to separate the Juubi's energy from its body and divide it into nine separate constructs that would later become known as the Bijuu, or tailed beasts. The Kyuubi is one of those constructs that is sealed away within me."

"But sensei, if only the energy was removed, then what happened to the body of the Juubi?" asked the Nara descendant.

"Patience Mai; I was getting to that. As a final precaution, using Chibaku Tensei, or 'Heavenly Body Bursting from the Earth', the Sage entombed the physical remains of the Juubi within a colossal stone prison and hurled it into the heavens," Naruto waved his hand to the sky, "creating the moon. The astonishing feat of not only successfully sealing the great beast, but also suppressing it, made the Sage a deified hero throughout the shinobi world."

Katara looked to him in complete shock. "So, the power we WaterBenders draw upon wasn't the moon, but the Juubi?"

"No, the power you draw upon is still the moon; or rather its spirit. The Rikudo Sennin unknowingly assisted in the creation of the many Spirits that watch over our world today. The Moon Spirit is perhaps the most vital and important one of them all now. If anything happens to it, or the moon itself, the Juubi's power will begin to leak out and spread across the world."

"Then that means that it's even more important that we get to the North Pole as fast as we can," Sokka commented. "Gran-Gran told us stories of how the Northern Water Tribe was closest to the Moon and Ocean Spirits. It'd probably be easier for us to protect the Moon Spirit there."

"Exactly… Avatar-"

"My name is Aang."

"Fine then… Aang, it's plain to see that you are far from being a fully realized Avatar, like Roku was when he was the Avatar. However, that doesn't mean that there isn't time to fix that. You have a duty to the world now and you can't waste your time messing around. I realize you are still young, but I started out that way as well."

"How old were you when you became a shinobi?" Aang asked.

"What is a shinobi anyway? And what is chakra and jutsu and all the other things you mentioned?" questioned Sokka.

"In that order: I started out at 14, shinobi, also known as ninja, are people who can utilize the inner energy known as chakra. Chakra is the balance of chi (physical energy) and reiryoku (spiritual energy), and jutsu are the abilities that shinobi are capable with chakra. Any more questions or can I continue?"

Katara gave her brother a stern look before Sokka could open his mouth. "I think we're good. Please continue."

Naruto and Mai gave small smirks at how the WaterBender easily controlled her brother. "As I was saying, you may be young, but the world is need of you now more than ever."

"What about you though? I mean, you said you were the peacekeeper of your time… Why can't you help the world now?" asked the AirBender.

"Who said I wouldn't? All I am saying is that the greatest threat is in the Spirit World; a place only the Avatar can go to."

Aang nodded before he moved to Appa's head and grabbed the reins. As he steered the bison through the air, he asked, "So, how am I supposed to prepare for the Juubi? I mean, you said the Sage sealed into the moon, but nothing about defeating it."

"That's because he physically battled it. You need to spiritually do so. The only way I truly think you can stand a chance is if you master your Avatar abilities; like the power you used back at the Air temple."

"You saw that?"

"Yes and I know that you were not using your own strength then. Your past lives were offering their strength to you back then. When you master your own Avatar power, it will no doubt be much more powerful."

"So, how do I do that? How do I master my Avatar State?" Aang asked him and the others.

Naruto and Mai closed their eyes in thought while Katara and Sokka looked lost on any type of answer. "Sensei?"

"Yes, Mai?"

"What if we talked to someone who was knowledgeable on things spiritually related; someone who was old enough to know?"

"It wouldn't be a bad idea; however I doubt anyone like that would be easy to find. Maybe if we had a place that stored information of past events and people…"

"Like a library?" asked Katara.

"Yes, or something like that…"

"There's a pretty big library in the Earth Kingdom city of Omashu," Aang offered. "There are all kinds of information there; or at least there should be. I used to hang out there with my friend Bumi a hundred years ago."

Naruto nodded. "Then to Omashu we go."

It took a few days to arrive to the outskirts of the city of Omashu, and during the times of day when the group allowed Appa to rest, Naruto continued Mai's training in Raiton techniques and she was getting the hang of using the Chidori. It wouldn't be long before Naruto felt her ready for the variants of the jutsu that Sasuke had ingeniously come up with. Naruto may dislike the Uchiha, but he couldn't deny that Sasuke had a talent for jutsu creation.

Aang spent the times between flying in thought over all of what Naruto had told him. It was nerve wracking hearing of the Juubi and its high chance of returning. Not to mention that he'd have to learn how to access the Spirit World in order to confront it.

Katara was worried for Aang, but she knew that he needed time to think things through. She couldn't blame him in the slightest for being afraid or worried seeing as he already had quite a lot on his plate. She spent the breaks practicing her Bending and making sure there was food for everyone. She was the second best cook they had; Naruto being the first, but he had a clone teaching her some cooking techniques.

Sokka decided to let Aang try and deal with his problems on his own. It was too much for the Water Tribe Warrior to fully comprehend anyway. Granted, he was worried about Aang slightly, but he had faith that the AirBender would pull through. He spent the breaks looking over the map Aang had and thinking of quicker routes to the North Pole. He also practiced with his machete and boomerang as well as other physical exercises.

Another thing Naruto did was reflect on his actions during the past years. He realized that he was dwelling on his past still and had a good, long look at his reflection in the water one day. 'Kami-sama, look at me… I look like an Avatar of Death, not a shinobi of Konoha… Kurama, I think it's time for one last change...'

'Well it's about time. I was wondering when you'd finally lose the Madara look…'

'Yea… His image is definitely not something I want to pass down to the world…' He then pulled out a kunai and a worn out sealing scroll before a small smile came to his face. 'Time for the real Naruto Uzumaki to make his grand reappearance...'

When he returned to the group, they were surprised to see his new appearance; especially Mai since she was so used to his Madara-like look. Naruto stood before them with his hair cut down to the length he had it during the 4th Great War, and he wore black sandals, orange pants, an orange jacket with black coloring on the upper torso and arms, his Sennin Cloak over his jacket, and his Uzu hiate on his forehead. The group saw his whiskered, slightly scarred face and dual colored eyes completely and it amazed Mai that her teacher could look so attractive, yet also have an air of power and authority. (1)

The view of Omashu was incredible to the Gaang. The tall mountain peak on which Omashu was founded was located in the Kolau Mountains in the southwestern Earth Kingdom. The city was built high out of a deep chasm and was created in the shape of mountain peaks. Naruto saw this as a clever form of camouflage and noticed that being built on the mountain provided the city with one of its best defenses; the only way to reach the gates of Omashu was across a long narrow bridge of stone that spanned the sheer gorge.

"Welcome to the Earth Kingdom city of Omashu!" Aang exclaimed with a smile.

"It's amazing!" Katara commented.

"Definitely the biggest city I've ever seen," Sokka added.

"It certainly is interesting seeing a mountain peak styled city. It reminds me of Kumogakure somewhat," Naruto stated while Mai simply stayed quiet.

"Well, c'mon let's go in already!" Aang said as he made his way to the gates.

"Hold on, Aang. I think you should wear a disguise while we're in the city. There might be some people who dislike the Avatar since you were frozen during the war," Katara advised.

"That's a good idea, but he won't need a disguise," Naruto said with a small smirk. At their confused stares, he elaborated by flowing chakra into his implanted eye and focusing it on Aang. Before everyone's eyes, the AirBender faded away into nothingness.

"Aang, where are you?" Katara asked worriedly.

"I didn't move," his voice replied.

"You won't be able to see him since I've placed a simple illusion over his form. To those who are not experienced with chakra, they can hear him and feel him; however, they will not be able to see him."

Sokka poked at the 'empty' space where Aang was and felt his finger hit clothed flesh. He kept poking before Aang had enough and sidestepped, making Sokka's hand stretch out with no resistance.

"Now that he is unseen to the normal eye, we can easily enter the city," Naruto said while gently pushing Aang forward. He needed his Sharingan to stay focused on the boy or else the illusion would drop.

The guards at the gates gave them a little trouble since Naruto and Mai wore colors of the Fire Nation, but Katara assured them that they meant no harm, making the two shinobi and sealed Bijuu mentally scoff. Once they made it into the city, Naruto tweaked his genjutsu so that Aang could be visible, but be seen as an average brunette with brown eyes.

As they traversed the city, Aang was able to lead the group to the library by his old memories of the city. They had to 'persuade' the guards into letting them in, but it was nothing a little 'suggestive' illusion couldn't handle. Once inside, they saw it was divided into an Eastern and Western wing.

"We should split up," Naruto commented. "You three go down the East Wing while Mai and I go down the West Wing. We'll meet back here in one hour."

The others nodded before they separated. Naruto and Mai went west and perused through the many shelves of books. Their use of KageBunshin was extremely efficient in cutting down the time needed.

Mai was lucky enough to come across a book that held documentation of Avatar Kyoshi's exploits during her time as peacekeeper. One of the documents told of her path to self-enlightenment which resulted in her control of her Avatar State. She pulled out a scroll and had a clone seal the documents before she continued her search.

Naruto and his many clones were not only looking for references for Aang to use, but were also studying the history of the world in general. It amazed him that the world practically started over after he sealed himself away. He also believed that the people going this far already without the use of chakra or jutsu was nothing short of impressive. Naruto continued skimming through books before his fingers traced an extremely worn out book and he pulled it out. It was dusty, the spine was missing, and the pages were barely kept together, but he still found it legible. Blowing off the dust, he read the title.

"The Sacrificed Hero… Interesting name for this…" He flipped through a few pages before a familiar name was seen on the pages. "Jiraiya… Hehe… Sensei, what would you think of my actions if you were alive? Would you have been accepting of my choices, or disappointed?"

He shook his head out of those thoughts before he sealed away the book into a scroll and continued his perusing. The two shinobi were interrupted by the sound of crashing and a faint cry of, "My cabbages!"

Naruto sighed in annoyance while Mai muttered her clan's famous catchphrase. "We better go make sure they haven't caused too much of a ruckus," Naruto said before he and Mai made their way out of the library just in time to see some EarthBender guards leading the bound Gaang towards the Palace. "Excuse me, sir," Naruto called out to them, making them stop and look at him. "Those three are with me. Did they do something wrong?" He mentally thought of how ridiculous he sounded since he knew they did do something wrong.

"Yes, they took a joyride on one of the carts of our mailing system and caused multiple amounts of property damage to the city."

Naruto gave the bald monk a pointed look while Aang merely looked sheepish. "I see… If you don't mind, I'd like to come with you so that I may assess the consequences and see if I may do something about them."

The guard was silent in thought before he slowly nodded. "Very well… However, you are to be silent unless spoken to. Is that clear?"

"Crystal…"

Throne Room

Then sight of the King of Omashu was quite surprising to the Gaang and shinobi. He looked like a frail and extremely elderly man, but Naruto sensed his power and felt it was easily near Kage level. 'Not bad for an old man… He looks older than Ōnoki…'

"Your highness, these three are charged with vandalism, destruction of property, and…malicious destruction of cabbages. What do you want us to do sir?"

The King took a good long look at Aang, making him fidget slightly, and Naruto was surprised to find that he couldn't get a good empathic reading on the man. "Throw them," he began, making the trio look worried, "…a feast!"

Naruto and Mai sweat-dropped while everyone else looked incredibly confused. The guards hesitantly nodded before a feast was prepared for the group of three while Naruto and Mai were graciously invited to sit and eat as well, much to their suspicion.

"So young man, where do you come from?" asked the King to Aang.

"I uh… I come from Kangaroo Island!"

"Oh, Kangaroo Island huh? I hear that place is really hopping."

The room was silent except for Sokka who laughed at the joke. When the others turned to him, he grew embarrassed. "What? It was funny…"

The King then made a slightly exaggerated yawn as he stood from the table. "Well, these old bones of mine are quite tired… I guess it's time to…hit the hay!" he cried while hurling a drumstick of chicken at Aang who caught it instinctively with the use of AirBending. The guards looked on in surprise while the King continued, "There's an AirBender in our presence, and not just any AirBender; the Avatar."

After the revelation of Aang's true identity, the Gaang tried to leave but were halted by the guards. Naruto contemplated stepping in, but he decided against it since he was curious as to where the King was going with his actions. The King had Katara and Sokka wear rings made of gemanite, which was also known as the 'creeping crystal'. He then told Aang that he'd free them after the AirBender performed three 'tests' for him before the dawn of the following morning.

Aang readily agreed to them and was led to an underground cavern for his first test. The cavern was filled with stalagmites and stalactites while a waterfall raged down on a ladder and a key hanging on a chain. "Your first test is to get that key. It belongs to by lunchbox and I'm quite famished," said the King with a slightly crazed grin.

Aang narrowed his eyes in determination before he rushed toward the waterfall and attempted to climb it by using AirBending. Naruto shook his head and commented next to Mai, "That won't work. No matter how much air he uses, the waterfall's power is too great."

Naruto was proven correct when Aang was blasted out of the rushing water. Not willing to give up, he jumped up the ceiling of the cavern before he dove at the waterfall in an AirBending drill-like spin. He was once again unsuccessful and thrown away from the water, much to the King's amusement and the Water Tribe members' worry.

As Aang hung on to a stalactite, an idea came to him. He sliced off the top half of it and threw it at the chain before he shot a wave of air to increase its speed. Naruto smirked at the kid's plan and was pleased to see that the earthen projectile cut through the chain and stabbed it into the wall with the key dangling in front of the King's face.

"There, you can have your lunch!" Aang yelled. "I want my friends back now!"

"Not yet, Avatar. I need another favor. It seems that I've lost my dear pet, Flopsy."

Aang groaned before he ran through the palace in search of the pet, though he had no idea what it was. He then spotted a rabbit with incredibly long ears sniffing around in an arena-like area. "Okay, I found him!"

"Bring him to me!" ordered the King. "Daddy wants a kiss from Flopsy!"

Aang was about to grab the rabbit before a large goat-gorilla landed behind him and initiated a chase. The gorilla chased Aang, who chased the rabbit, who ran like hell. The rabbit soon dove into a hole, making Aang grow worried before a thought came to him.

"Wait a minute…" he said as he turned to the goat-gorilla. "Flopsy?" he asked, making the beast stop and turn incredibly docile.

The King whistled for his 'found' pet and began to affectionately rub its belly while gushing over it. He was interrupted by Aang approaching him.

"C'mon, I'm ready for the last challenge," he said, making the King smirk.

The group was led to a large arena where Aang was to battle an opponent. He was allowed to choose which opponent to fight, with the King warning him to choose carefully. He was able pick one of two nasty-looking gladiator-like warriors who entered the arena, but he realized that he could choose to fight the king.

"I choose you," Aang stated, pointing to him.

The King smiled and chuckled at the AirBender's decision. "Wrong choice," he commented while removing his robes to reveal a surprisingly muscular physique in stark contrast to his incredible age.

The king immediately began the duel by launching several boulders at Aang. The Avatar dodged, but the king taunts him for such a predictable AirBender tactic. He continued launching multiple pieces of earth, forcing Aang to dodge, as he continued to taunt Aang for his unwillingness to fight back.

Aang grew irritated and began to counter the King with AirBending strikes, but the EarthBender easily blocked them with raised walls of earth and even joked about a draft in the room.

He then decided to end it and, with tremendous effort, the king tore a massive chunk of earth out of the ground and held it over his head. Aang gaped in terror and began to run in circles, AirBending a tornado within the arena. The king threw the massive mound, but the tornado stopped it, spun it around, and redirected it back at him. Shocked at the reversal of his technique, the King bisected it neatly in two, but Aang appeared out of the dust and pinned the king with his staff.

The King smiled and gave a small laugh at his loss. "Well done, Avatar. You fight with much fire in your heart." He then used EarthBending to move himself underground and appear next to the Water Tribe members. "You've completed my tasks, but now you must answer one question."

"That's no fair! You said you'd let my friends go after I completed your tests!"

"Oh, but what's the point of tests if you don't learn anything?"

"Oh come on!" Sokka complained.

"Answer this one question correctly, and I'll let your friends go. What…is my name?" Aang gaped in surprise at the question, making the King chuckle. "By the looks of your friends, I'd say that you only have about an hour or so before they're completely crystallized. Better get a move on."

"Oh man… What could his name be?" asked Aang worriedly.

"Think about the tests!" Katara offered. "Maybe they have clues as to what his name is."

"I got it!" Sokka exclaimed. "He's an EarthBender, right? Rocky!" He was met with silence. "Y'know, because of all the rocks…"

'We're gonna keep trying but that is a good fallback," Katara said.

"Okay, back to the tests. I got a key from a waterfall, found his pet, and I had a duel…"

"And what did you figure out from them?"

"Well, none of them were straightforward and made me think differently…"

"And?" Katara urged as the gemanite grew slowly.

"Well, I had to come at them much more differently than when I was used to; which required me to think outside of the box…" He then had a look of realization before he smiled. "I know his name!"

"Good," Naruto commented. "Now you can find him, tell him his name, and we can get out of here. I mean, you still have to go to the North Pole, remember?"

"Right, I'll go find him now!"

Throne Room

"Bumi," Aang said as he walked up to the King, "you're a mad genius!"

The newly named King laughed heartily before he was embrace by his old friend. "Oh Aang, it's good to see you! You haven't changed a bit; literally!"

After releasing his friends, Bumi told Aang that the world has changed since he was gone. He urged him to master the other elements and that he hoped that Aang would fight like a 'mad genius' when he confronted Ozai.

Naruto smirked at the reunion before his face turned serious and he stepped up to Bumi. "Your highness, we have a couple of questions to ask of you."

Bumi gave a small smile and replied, "Ask away, my ancient friend."

Naruto's eye twitched slightly before he asked, "We were wondering if you knew of a way for Aang to get a better understanding of the spiritual aspect of his role in the world?"

"Hmm… It may not be what you were hoping for, but if you go to Jade Peak Island, you may find something in the temples there. Many of our EarthBending Avatars were able to draw wisdom from that place. I don't know if it will work for Aang, but it could be worth a shot."

Naruto turned to Aang, who nodded in acceptance, before he said, "We appreciate the help. One last thing…" He then pulled out the worn out book and presented it to Bumi. "Who wrote this?"

Bumi gently took the book and skimmed through the pages before a look of realization made its way to his face. "Ah yes, I recognize this writing style… You're looking for a man who goes by the name 'Rooted Tree'. He stayed here ages ago and gave it to the library while saying that it was an heirloom from his family. He should know who wrote it."

Naruto took the book back and stored it away before he thanked Bumi. Before the Gaang left the city, Aang and Bumi took one last ride on the mailing system, much to the horror of the Cabbage Merchant who had his cart destroyed once again.

That Night

As Appa flew through the evening skies, everyone but Naruto and Aang slept; Aang due to steering his friend, and Naruto because he couldn't sleep.

Just earlier, he tried to get some rest, but had the same vision as the one he had at the South Pole. It was clearer this time though since he was able to see the color of the figures' eyes. The older woman had amber eyes while the young girl had eyes of different colors. Her left eye was amber, but her right was a bright blue. By looking into their eyes, he was able to see love and joy as they waved to him. The surprise of it all caused him to wake up in a cold sweat once again before he took calming breaths.

'That dream again… What could it mean? Why do those two make me feel such joy, yet also such sadness?' he thought to himself.

So lost in his thoughts, he was not able to sense Mai wake up and look to him in worry. She didn't like seeing her teacher and friend look so confused and knew that he was slightly worried about the dreams he was having. She slowly stood up and made her way to him before he was hugged from behind by her. It surprised him that she was able to get though his senses, but his surprise was cut short by her words.

"I don't know what you see in those dreams of yours, but I want you to know that I'm here if you want to talk about them…Naruto."

The last Uzumaki gave a small smile before he turned his gaze to the starlit skies. "Thank you, Mai…"

(End)

1~ This will be the final time Naruto has a wardrobe change. Just picture him in his Sennin attire, except the hiate is Uzu, he has Sharingan in his scarred right eye, and his hair is slightly spikier.

And that was chapter seven! I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter and the future chapters to come! If you have any questions or concerns, PM me!

Now please: Review! Review! Review!

Current ages:

Naruto: (physical) 26; (actual) 5116

Mai: 17

Aang: (physical) 12; (actual) 112

Ozai: 45

Ursa: 42

Iroh: 64

Zuko: 18

Azula: 17

Ty Lee: 17

Lo and Li: 81

Katara: 16

Sokka: 17

Suki: 17

Bumi: 112

Next Time: The Gaang heads to Jade Peak Island in search of answers! Stay Tuned!

-pain17ification