Chapter Four:

What Naruto had prepared for his team was actually a little complicated version of the Bell test, since he thought it best to go with tradition (Sandaime-Jiraiya-Minato-Kakashi-now him). It involved traps that would land you thirty feet under the ground with no way of walking up unless someone from the outside helped or you knew how to climb without using your hands, traps that would blow up in your face and traps that would put you in a humiliating position (Like with your body under the ground with only your head sticking up). All these traps would involve an outsider's help to avoid or escape once caught.

Naruto was surprised to find Katashi already there when he got to the Training Ground, and he had set out early!

"Katashi? I didn't think you would be early." Naruto said with an easy grin.

Katashi responded with a contemplative frown, "Sensei, I'm…"

Katashi paused, hesitating.

"Confused." Naruto put in, "It's all right to admit your weakness. Nobody's perfect. Is confused the word you were looking for?"

"Hai." Katashi replied seriously, "I don't… I think I don't really understand what you meant by…"

"I thought so." But Naruto smiled gently, sitting down in front of Katashi, "Let me ask you this, Katashi. You intended to become a ninja to protect your sister, right?"

Katashi nodded, looking uncomfortable.

"She's the one who drives you to become stronger."

Katashi nodded again.

"Has there ever been a time when you were trying and trying and trying to get something done, but you couldn't do it?"

"Of course."

"And did you end up doing that thing?"

"Hai."

"How?" Naruto asked softly, "You thought you would never be able to accomplish that. How did you manage?"

"Because… I had to… I had to help my sister."

Naruto nodded, "When you become a shinobi, many times you find that people dear to you are put in danger. If you get a reputation as a good shinobi, people might target your sister. Times like that are rare now, Thank God, but it was pretty common a short while ago. Hatred is an awful thing."

"A person once told me that I was truly strong. I was just a genin then, with zero skills, constantly beaten by my teammate in everything I did. Do you know what he said made me truly strong?"

Katashi shrugged, but Naruto could see he was catching the principle. It would take him a while to bring the concept into his life, but he could at least clear his concepts till then.

"I had someone I loved." Naruto gazed at the ground absentmindedly, "I was in a near-death situation and I had almost zero-chakra. But because my enemy had supposedly killed my friend, I was able to draw out enormous chakra and break the S-Class jutsu a ninja-prodigy hadn't been able to break."

"The reason I sit in front of you now, despite facing SS-class Akatsuki nins, is because I had so many people to protect. I defeated enemies every time because of the urge to protect my friends, my teachers, and my mentors."

Naruto paused for a minute, "It's not easy. You don't succeed every time. Sometimes you have to see the people dearest to you die. But strength is to not avenge their deaths, but prevent more like those. That's why I want to end the cycle of hatred. Peace is slowly spreading. There are still uprisings, still missing-nins out there. But you have to try. If someone close to you dies, you have to think not of taking revenge, but to prevent more loved ones, yours and those of others, from dying."

Then he smiled, "I'm glad you to attended the speech too."

Katashi looked at him, puzzled.

"Darn it!" Hanako yelled, "Why can't I ever sneak up on you!?"

Naruto laughed, "Hinata-chan says I have eyes in the back of my head."

"Hinata-chan?" Hanako repeated, "Hyuuga Hinata?"

Naruto nodded, "All right. Now that you guys are here, we can start the test."

His team apprehensively nodded.

"It's simple, actually." Naruto took out a clock and set it, "You have until noon to find me and take these bells from me. The bells are two, so one of you is going to have to suffer Academy for another year while I'll take on another genin."

"What!?" The three yelled together.

Naruto pinned the bells to his belt, "Tough luck. The one who fails gets tied up and has no lunch. If you all fail, you get tied up and watch me have dinner."

"So that's why you told us not to eat breakfast!"

"You finally realized." Naruto smirked, "Your time starts… NOW!"

And he disappeared.

Katashi almost fell into the trap. It was a good thing Hanako had already disclosed the expertly covered deep hole in the ground. Disclosed, meaning got caught in, of course.

"Katashi! Help me out of here!" Hanako yelled.

"Not so smug are we now?" He smirked down at her.

"Please, help me out." She sounded uncomfortable.

"Nope. Not a chance, banshee." He turned away, and…

Found himself buried underneath the ground with his butt sticking out.

"Kuso." Cursing, he flushed at the embarrassing position he was in.

Then he heard Fumio's voice.

"Katashi-san, I can get you out."

"Then get me out already!"

"On one condition. We work together."

"Fine, fine! Just do it already!"

Within minutes the three stood together, Fumio having helped Hanako too.

"I have a plan, but we need to work together."

"There are two bells." Hanako reminded him.

He nodded, "We'll figure that part out once we get to it. Besides, no matter what sensei might say, we're a team. We should start acting like one."

Naruto smiled as Hanako leapt out of the bushes, straight at him, her sword out. His shadow clone had managed to see them plotting together, but unfortunately could not hear their plan.

"I'm not going back to the Academy, ya got that!?" She screamed as she swung.

Naruto dodged the strike, and saw Katashi out of the corner of his eye, making hand signs. Before he knew it, he was surrounded in smoke.

Then out of nowhere, he was paralyzed.

'What the hell!?" He thought desperately.

Hanako leapt at him, and he could feel a cut on his thigh.

'She is wicked with that sword.'

Then he smirked, 'Though her aim is still off.'

"We have your bells, sensei." Hanako announced as soon as he could move again.

"What!?" Naruto's eyes widened and his hand went to his belt. Instead of the bells hung two tiny rocks.

Fumio held out three identical bells.

"That's impossible! I had only two!"

"I did a copy. But you can't tell which one is a copy, so we all pass." Fumio replied, "It's the only low-class jutsu I can pull off successfully."

"How did you guys get the bells?" Naruto narrowed his eyes at them.

"Fumio got us out of the traps on the condition that we work together. He said, 'We're a team, so we better start acting like one'." Hanako's tone was praising.

"Hanako and I were distractions. Hanako cut the string of the bells, and before you could notice, he replaced them with rocks of the same weight. Then he did a copy."

"Awesome!" Naruto hollered, "So. What was the purpose of this test?"

Surprisingly, all three answered together. Hanako and especially Katashi looked a little shamefaced.

"Teamwork."

"Excellent. Now, you all pass."

They sighed with relief.

"Listen up. I don't know if you've noticed, but I've been completely frank with you guys. Anything you'll ask me, I'll answer honestly and frankly. I'll keep no secrets from you, and I expect the same from you. In time, I hope you guys become great friends, but I want absolutely no secrets in my team. If you guys need advice or counseling, you can even come see me at my place. I'm pretty sure you know the way. Namikaze Compound. Hell, you can come even just to chill out. We'll start training after lunch, and we'll go for our first mission tomorrow. Got that?"

They nodded, "Hai, sensei."

"Now come on. I'm treating you guys to Ichiraku's."

"All right!" Hanako yelled, "Konohamaru-nii-san's always going on and on about Ichiraku's."

Naruto grinned, "Great stuff."

They were stuffing Ichiraku's when Akira passed by.

"Naruto! You passed my lunch for Ichiraku's again!" She said, "Oh."

Naruto smiled, "Yeah, I'm here with my team. Akira-ne-san, say hi to Team Naruto! Katashi, Hanako and Fumio, this is Akira-ne-san."

"Hi guys." Akira smiled, ruffling Naruto's head, "I'll have you know, you have the best sensei ever. He'll do anything to see you guys get stronger. Besides, you guys are a lot like him. You even have similar problems! He's gonna protect you with his life."

"Ne-san." Naruto protested, grinning despite the faint blush on his cheeks.

Akira smiled, "See ya around, kids."

"I hope that didn't include me." Naruto glared at her.

"That specifically included you." She responded sweetly.

Naruto huffed, "I'm an eighteen-year-old jonin, for your information."

"With the brain of an academically-challenged five year old."

Laughing, Akira walked away.

Ayame and Teuchi were chuckling too.

"Always the same." Ayame laughed, "You two can't resist fighting, can you?"

"Not my fault she always teases me!" Naruto defended, but he smiled along, "Another one, old man."

"You ate, like, fifteen!" Hanako gasped, halfway through just her second.

"Sixteen. Don't worry, Hanako-san, this is usual for everyone who's seen Naruto eat ramen." Ayame responded.

"Teuchi-san, some vegetable soup, please." A soft voice called.

Naruto turned his head immediately, his face lighting up.

"Hinata-chan!"

Hinata turned her head, "Naruto-kun!"

"Naruto-nii-san!"

Hanabi was sitting beside Hinata. She had taken to calling Naruto nii-san a while after the start of their relationship.

As usual, Hinata blushed on hearing her boyfriend being called 'nii-san' by her sister.

"Hey, Hanabi." Naruto said with a grin, "What are you guys doing here?"

"Remember I applied at the Academy since tou-san said that as clan heiress I shouldn't attend missions?"

Naruto nodded.

She smiled wider, "I got the job."

Naruto grinned, "All right, Hinata-chan!"

He leaned over to her (She was sitting one stool on his right) and kissed her cheek.

Hinata blushed, "Your team, Naruto-kun?"

"Yep. Katashi, Hanako, and Fumio. Guys, this is Hyuuga Hinata, my girlfriend. And that's her sister Hanabi."

"Hi." Hinata smiled at them.

"You guys have a super-cool sensei. Konohamaru-kun would kill to have your position."

"Trust me, I know." Hanako rolled her eyes.

"She's his cousin." Naruto explained, finishing his seventeenth bowl of ramen, "If you guys are done, let's go."

They got up, and Naruto gave Hinata another peck before walking away with his team.

"How about we make this training ground our personal ground?" Naruto asked once they got to Ground Seven.

"Like, nobody else is allowed here?"

"No, no. See, I had a training ground where I trained all the time with my team. That ground holds a lot of memories for me."

"Oh."

"So, how about it? You guys just decide that you're gonna train here only from now on. It'll give you a better chance to bond."

"Do you train here, Naruto-sensei?" Fumio asked.

"Sometimes. I train in my compound training ground frequently, but yes I train here too."

"This is so my training ground from now." Hanako said with a grin.

"Yeah, mine too." Fumio added a little shyly.

Katashi grunted in agreement.

"So, team? Want to start training?" Naruto asked.

They nodded excitedly.

"All right. Let's start with you, Fumio. You have, I've heard, so large chakra reserves, that you can't do the low-level jutsus."

Fumio nodded, "I can hardly make a decent clone."

"I'm gonna teach you one of my… um… signature moves. The shadow clone technique."

Naruto created two shadow clones.

"One of them is gonna teach you how to do the shadow clone jutsu."

Fumio nodded, and he and the clone moved off.

"All right. First of all, neither of you gets miffed if you get taught by a clone, okay? Because they're exactly the same as me. Hanako, you have great speed and stealth, huh? I'm gonna teach you something my master taught me. The frog kata. Okay?"

(A/N: I don't know if that exists, so just bear with me)

"After some chakra-control exercises and some missions, I might even teach you guys senjutsu."

"Get working, you two. And listen, try to think of traps and ways to use your creativeness. Katashi, you have great stamina, and you know a lot of ninjutsu, right? We're gonna spar until you black out."

"All right. Let's get started!"

The sun had set long back, yet Team Naruto continued training, until finally Naruto's stomach convinced him to end the session.

"Great work, guys. You really made progress today. Tomorrow we're gonna train some more, and then we can go on a mission." He said proudly, "Now listen. For my team, we have positions. Katashi, long-range, since I get the feeling you know a lot of long-range jutsus. Hanako, our distraction and short-range tai-justu specialist. Fumio, with your brains, you're our strategist. Plus you can be short and long range too."

Naruto now became serious, "I want absolutely no ill-feeling and jealousy in my team. You think I'm favoring one of you, you come and tell me. Got that?"

The three nodded.

"Great. Can you guys walk home?"

Wearily, they nodded.

"How about we go to my place for dinner, and then you guys can go home?" Naruto asked.

"YES!" Hanako yelled.

Naruto laughed, "Come along then. You guys hold on to my arm."

After they had gripped his arm, Naruto used Hiraishin to go home.

"Naruto-sensei, I forgot…" Katashi looked a little afraid.

Just then they heard a voice yell, "Nii-san!"

They turned around.

Standing next to Akira was a young seven-year-old girl baring a strong resemblance to Katashi. She had her hair done in two cute pigtails, and was wearing a long blue frock with white leggings.

"Katashi-nii-san!" She leapt at Katashi, hugging him tightly.

"Fumiko, what are you doing here?!" Katashi hugged her back, his face lighting up immediately.

"She got worried, and wanted to know the way to Tsunade-sama's office to ask her where you were. I brought her home, figuring Naruto would bring you here." Akira answered.

"Arigatou, ne-san." Naruto told her.

She nodded, "Dinner's ready."

"Don't jump like that again." Katashi told his sister gently, "You know you're still weak."

"Sakura-san said I'm fine!"

"Sakura-san?" Naruto asked.

"Yep!"

"How do you know her?" Naruto asked curiously.

Katashi hesitated, then answered.

"Fumiko became paralyzed after the war. When we came to Konoha, Sakura-san tended to her. We go to her for regular checkups after every two weeks."

"Oh."

"We already know Sakura-san's your teammate."

Naruto laughed, scratching the back of his head.

"Dinner's ready, you guys." Akira smiled.

They went in the kitchen and after a hearty yell of "Itadakimasu", Naruto told Akira about Hinata's new job.

"The food's really good, Akira-san." Fumio told her between mouthfuls.

She smiled, "I'm glad you like it."

After dinner, exhausted, Team Naruto was teleported to their respective homes by their sensei.