I'm back. Sorry for the long wait everyone. I kind of threw this chapter together so there may be some spelling errors and other problems. Sorry about that. I just had to update something or else I was going to go nuts.

When everyone caught their breath, they walked underneath a shady tree just a few feet from the creek. Ino immediately collapsed and rolled onto her back with eyes clothes, taking several deep breaths. Shino leaned against the tree and slowly sat down, sighing with relief when he felt the pressure leave his legs. Naruto pulled off his sweatshirt, knelt beside the creek and dunked his whole head into the water, getting all the sweat from his hair. After remaining underwater for a few seconds, he rose up with a groan of relief and collapsed beside Ino.

"I've never felt so tired in my life," Ino groaned.

"That's a sign you worked your hardest Ino," Naruto chuckled. "Feels great, don't it?"

Ino chuckled lightly. "It does, actually."

"I think we better get used to it," Shino muttered. "Since we passed, feeling this tired will most likely is a factor from now on."

"That's right. We passed," Naruto cheered weakly.

"Yah," Ino groaned, slowly rising her arms into the air.

"Shino's right, team," announced Shikaku. Unlike them, he still looked fresh and ready for another fight. Any trace of ramen from Naruto's attack was gone. And in his hands, he had four large bentos. "Who's hungry?"

Ino immediately leapt up and grabbed the top box. She sat back down, ripped the package open and began scarfing down her lunch. Her chopsticks were a blur as she ate.

Shino, his eyebrows raised at Ino, gradually took his box and began eating at a much slower pace than Ino. Naruto just smirked at Ino's new eating habits as he took his bento from his sensei.

Everyone ate in silence for the next minutes. Naruto felt his energy being slowly restored with each bite. By the time he finished, all of his aches and weariness was gone. Too bad he couldn't say the same for his teammates. Ino was lying on her back, rubbing her full stomach while Shino was nodding off as he leaned against the tree.

"Okay, team. You have officially become genins of the Hidden Leaf village," said Shikaku. "As much of accomplishment as that is, you must know that from here on out, your lives are now devoted to your village. Any ideas of switching allegiance with another village will most likely have the consequence of being named a missing nin. Not only that, you will also been in constant danger. Each mission you take for the village has the possibility of becoming your last. If you can get it through your thick skulls, you are not indestructible. There is always going to be someone stronger, faster, and more intelligent than you. Understand?"

"Yes, Shikaku-sensei," Team 10 chorused together.

"We knew the consequences when we signed up for the academy," said Naruto.

"We wouldn't be here now if we didn't consider the possibilities of one us perishing early in our lives," Shino explained.

"We are no longer children, but soldiers and weapons for our village," Ino said.

Shikaku nodded. He was proud of his students for accepting their fates so earlier in a young age. When he was a genin, he was surrounded by several newbie's who were so sure of themselves and bragged about how they were indestructible. Each one who bragged had perished before they even made chunins.

"I'm glad you all have accepted this fact," Shikaku admitted to his team. "But I'll be damned if that will happen on my watch."

Team 10 looked up at their sensei with confusion on their faces. Shikaku smiled and sat down on the grass.

"You guys are not just my students; you're my comrades. Teammates. For now on, we will become a family who will protect each other from our enemies with all of our strength and will. We will never abandon each other, never leave one behind, and always be there for one another in the darkest of times."

Naruto looked at his team. He knew Shikaku would keep his work. His duty as a sensei to his students would always be true, but Naruto knew it would be deeper than that. From the stories Shikamaru told his friends, Shikaku and his friends were the most loyalist jonin in the village. Shikamaru said the battle scars on his dad's face were from defending his comrades during the Third Ninja War.

Naruto turned to Shino and saw that he completely agreed with Shikaku's lecture. His posture was stiff, but Naruto could see from his visible facial expression that he was determined as his sensei to defend his friends. Shino caught Naruto's gaze and gave him a small, but firm nod. Naruto grinned and nodded back.

When Naruto turned to Ino, he was surprised to see such strong expression on her face. During the academy years, he usually saw a look of indifference on her face during Iruka's lectures. But now, she seemed so determined and focused that is startled him. When Ino saw him staring, she grinned at him, letting him know she now serious about her ninja career. Naruto returned her grin and then turned back to Shikaku.

"I know that were given a specific team specialty, but I think that's a bad idea. We're going to try something else."
"What do you mean sensei?" asked Naruto. "I thought you said that the teams were divided up into specific groups because of ability? That our team was a T.I.A.T. team?"

"We will keep that rank; however, I believe that is a disaster waiting to happen. I plan on making you fully-fledged shinobi, as troublesome as it is."

"Can you explain sensei?" asked Ino.

"Sure. Like Naruto pointed out, we were paired up specifically for our abilities. However, I believe in the philosophy of 'Expect the Unexpected'. With our status, we'll most likely be given missions that will be within our abilities. But what happens when we end up in a situation that is out of our league? What will we do then? Believe it or not, many shinobi deaths were not from losing to a stronger opponent, but from being ill-equipped for a situation."

"So you plan on training us in every possible ninja category," stated Shino.

Shikaku smiled. "Right on one. During our training sessions, I plan on training you in every possible element I can. Taijutsu, Genjutsu, Ninjutsu, Medical Ninjutsu, Kenjutsu, Tracking, Stealth and Assassination, Torture and Interrogation, Sealing, Summoning, Element manipulation, and more."

Ino gaped. "Is it possible to learn all of that?"

"We're going to try," chuckled Shikaku. "I plan on turning you guys into the next sannin."

Shikamaru actually snorted. "I think that might be a little impossible Shikaku-sensei. We could never hope to amount to making Sannin level."

This caused Shikaku to smirk. "We'll just have to see then. Now, tomorrow is an off day. You three used up a lot of energy and almost ran out of chakra during our fight. So use tomorrow to recuperate. However, I still want to show up. We'll have a quick ten-minute meeting at noon before I'll let you go for the rest of the day."
"Why sensei?" asked Ino.

"You'll see. Now, go home, get some rest and then come to my clan's house for dinner tonight."

"What?" asked Naruto and Ino.

"My wife wants to meet you guys," groaned Shikaku. "Then, she got this brilliant idea to invite all of the three teams that passed tonight over for a giant BBQ. Choza and Inoichi will be there as well along with their kids so feel free to bring your family as well Shino."

Shino nodded, but then saw the look sadness on Naruto's face. All three of them saw it.

"Feel free to bring your girlfriend and your Pop along as well, Naruto."

Naruto quickly switched to a smile. This would the perfect opportunity to bring his family to a gathering where they won't be brought down for his burden.

Shikaku got up from the ground and brushed the grass off his pants. "Party starts at 7. Be sure to bring your appetites." And with that, he shushined away.

Naruto groaned as he pulled himself up. "Well, I'm going to go home and change. Kami knows I could use a shower." He held out his hand to Shino. He grabbed it and pulled himself up.

"Same here," Ino muttered. "Can I have some help?"

Naruto and Shino each grabbed one of her hand and pulled her up. Ino groaned as her sore muscles stretched. "I'm so glad Shikaku-sensei gave us the day off tomorrow."

"I wonder why we still have to meet him tomorrow though," asked Naruto.

"Who knows? Right now, I'm going home and taking a bath. I'll see you boys tonight," Ino said as she limped off, leaving Naruto and Shino watching her go.

"She has changed, right?" Naruto asked.

Shino held a finger in the air. "I believe she has. Give her time Naruto. Konoha wasn't built in a day." After a few seconds, a female kikaichu flew onto his finger.

"If Ino knew we put an insect on her without her permission, we probably be buried six feet into the ground," Naruto stated.

"Maybe, but we needed a way to find her if the situation needed us to separate," explained Shino. A second later, another kikaichu landed on Shino's finger. Naruto shivered.

"I'm sorry Shino, but it was extremely uncomfortable knowing one of your insects was one me without knowing where it was."

"I understand. But it was necessary," said Shino.

"I know."

The two genins walked back to the village, both of them too tired to carry on a conversation. They stopped when they came to Shino's compound.

"See you tonight Shino," Naruto said holding out his hand.

Shino nodded and shook his friend's hand. "You too." Shino turned around and walked through the gates to his family's compound. Naruto turned to head to the Ichiraku's when an ANBU guard appeared in front of him. Naruto saw the long purple hair and knew it was one of the guards who treated him like a friend. As best as a guard can anyway.

"Yes, Neko-san?"

"Uzumaki, you're presence is required at the Hokage's office," she stated.

Naruto nodded. "Thank you. If you have time, can you report to Teuchi Ichiraku about my delay?"

The woman nodded. "Off course."

"Arigotou," he bowed as the woman shushined away.

Naruto slowly walked down the Hokage's hallway. Even from a distance, he could hear the Third's loud voice along with several others. He though best to come back later when the door opened. Homura and Koharu were the first to step out when a third joined them. He was a tall man with scraggly black hair and tape wrapped around one of his eyes. He was clad in white robes and carried a walking stick with his good arm. The trio spotted Naruto in the hallway. Homura scowled while the Koharu just nodded.

The other man just gave Naruto a steely gaze. The boy saw the look, but also saw the hint of interest in the man's eyes as well.

"Good afternoon, Uzumaki. We had just gotten word from your sensei that you passed your genin examination. Congratulations."

Naruto, not wanting to be rude, bowed. "Thank you…um."
"Danzo. Shimura Danzo. I am an advisor to the Sandaime along with my colleagues."

Naruto froze. The Third told him to avoid this man at all costs. The Sandaime never fully trusted Danzo as a member of the council because of his previous dealings with an organization known as the Foundation. The third couldn't fully prove the existence of the hidden organization and had not trusted Danzo sense.

"We'll leave you to your meeting with my old teammate. I'll be sure to keep an eye on your future, Uzumaki," said Danzo.

I'm sure you will. Nevertheless, Naruto bowed and quickly walked by them to the Sandaime's office. When he opened the door, he saw the man pacing back and forth in front of his window and trying to light his pipe.

"Jiji, you okay?" Naruto asked.

The Third looked up and smiled at the boy. "I'm fine, Naruto."

Naruto walked in and sat down in front of his desk. "Jiji, you're antsy and muttering. Something's got you riled up."

The Third sighed and sat down. "I'm guessing you met Danzo on your way up here."

Naruto nodded. "Yeah. Charming guy," he said sarcastically.

The Hokage chuckled, but then turned serious. "I'm afraid he knows about your heritage as well as my colleagues. In fact, I believe he was the one who originally found out that night we discussed it with the Ichiraku's. However, I am unable to prove it."

"So what did he want?" asked Naruto.

"To accept your lineage," answered the Third, waiting for Naruto to scowl and say forget it. He was surprised when he saw the boy frown and look down at his feet.

To be honest, Naruto had begun to have his doubts. Kohari's question kept buzzing through his mind whenever he had a moment to think. What would he have done he was given the choice of sealing a biju into a newborn to save the sake of this village. True to his word, he would give his life instantly if it meant saving all that he loved. But to burden a child when he was given no option, was that really the right direction to go?

"Something wrong Naruto?" asked the Sandaime.

Naruto took a deep breath before answering. "Jiji, if you were the Hokage during Kyubi attack, would have followed the same course as the Fourth and sealed the biju into me?"

The Third's eyes widened with surprise and the pipe in his mouth fell out. Then the man's eyes saddened and he begun to stare at his own feet. It was several moments before the Hokage answered.

"Yes. Being the Hokage means doing whatever was necessary to save the village."

Naruto felt tears begin to leak from his eyes. Even another leader admitted he would have sealed the biju into him if given the chance.

"Why, though?" asked Naruto. "Why me?"

The Third took a moment to re-light his pipe before answering. "Because the Nine-Tailed demon was too strong for just anyone to volunteer and become a jinchuriki."

"What?" asked a now perplexed Naruto.

"You've read the scroll I gave you right?" Naruto nodded. "Well, that sealing process was not the only way to seal a tailed beast. There are many kinds of seals out there, but that one was the most effective. Some sealings only require a seal and an object for it to be successful."

"You mean of Shukaku," said Naruto. He read how the tanuki spirit was sealed into a teapot.

The Third nodded. "But the only reason that worked because Shukaku was significantly weaker than the Kyubi. Kyubi was a force of nature that could not be stopped. Only a few ninja have faced him and lived."

"Who?" asked an eager Naruto.

"One was the First Hokage, Hashirama Senju." The Third smiled at Naruto's dropped jaw. "Yes. He was one of the few. Not only did he fight the demon, he won."

"He…won?"

"Yes. It was a battle so great that it carved the Earth. Not even the Great Shinobi Wars had seen that much carnage."

"So what happen to the Kyubi?"

"The demon was sealed away into its first jinchuriki. Since that time, there have been three jinchurikis for the Nine-Tails. You are the third Naruto."

Naruto rose an eyebrow. "Who were the other two?"

The Third stood from his seat and walked towards a painting on the other side of the room. "It's one of the reasons I called you here Naruto." He removed the painting, revealing a locked safe. The old man twisted the knob quickly and opened the door. He pulled two leather-bound books from the safe.

"What are those?" asked Naruto.

The Third presented them to Naruto. "These are your mother's journals."

Naruto's eyes widened as he read the name on the cover of the first book. Kushina Uzumaki.

"I'm sorry I kept these from you Naruto, but the information in these journals is just as rare as a forbidden scroll. And when you read them, you will know why you were chosen to be the next jinchuriki.

Naruto slowly grabbed the books with trembling hands. After being alone for all of these years, he finally had a connection to his mother. When he was younger, when he was staring at kids at the playground, the only thing he wanted most to have a mother watch over him. One who would treat him with kindness when introducing him to other kids. Treat him with gentleness for ever scrapped knee or elbow. Scold him for not eating his vegetables. And hug him tightly every night.

He instantly become protective of them and clutched them to his chest. Then looked up with a smile at his adoptive grandfather's face.

"Thanks, Jiji."

The Third smiled and patted his shoulder. Then he sat back down in his seat. "You're welcome Naruto. Now you better get going if you're going to meet your teammates for Shikaku's BBQ tonight."

"Are you going?"

The old man sighed and waved his hand at the stack of papers in a tray labeled 'process'. "I'm afraid not. Konohamaru is though."

Naruto struggled not to smile. "I understand. And you're right. The next sannin needs to get to his teacher's house in time."

The Third's head snapped up with an unreadable expression on his face. "What?" he asked.

"Shikaku-sensei told his he's going to turn us into the next sannin. Shino thought the idea was impossible but sensei said that wasn't going to stop him."

The Third didn't say anything. Naruto saw him look at the desk with an expression of immeasurable sadness.

"Jiji, are you okay?"

Sarutobi snapped back to reality and put on a smile Naruto knew was false. "I'm great, Naruto. Now, you should get going to your sensei's complex if you want to beat the Akimichi's to the food. Hurry along now," he said while waving a dismissive hand.

Naruto knew when a meeting was over when he saw that hand and got up to leave. But he had never heard the Third sound like that when he was talking. It was almost like he was struggling to keep his emotions in check.

As Naruto closed the door, he thought he heard the lightest sound of single drop of water hitting the desk with his sensitive hearing.

As Naruto, Teuchi and Ayame entered into the Nara Clan's compound, the smell of smoke and meat was already heavy in the air. The Nara's front yard was nearly ten acres with several scattered trees providing shade. The building was a traditional two-story home nearly 100 meters long. But the real deal was the behind the compound, where the Nara's deer roamed in forests. The Naras didn't have the biggest clan building, but they did have the biggest selection of land. Their compound stretched nearly halfway to the Land of Wind.

"Hey, Naruto!" yelled Choji from underneath a tree. He, Shikamaru, Hinata, Ino, Shino, and Konohamaru were eating in a group with a plate in their laps.

Naruto waved back and went to go place the pot of Miso ramen he brought to the party onto the table with the other food before fixing himself a plate and joining his friends. Ayame placed the desert she brought and joined him. From the corner of his eye, he saw that Shikaku, Choza, Inoichi, Shibi, Kurenai, the Third's son and Konohamaru's uncle, Asuma, Tsume and Ebisu standing next to a giant grill filled with every single meat you can have at a BBQ. Another group, featuring everyone's wife or mom, was at a table next to the food. Jahara, Choji's mom, Inacha, Ino's mom, Yoshino, Shikamaru's mom, Hana, Kiba's sister, Karai, Shino's mom, and Rana, Konohamaru's mom.

"Go to your friends, Naru-kun," Ayame told Naruto. "I need to get involved with some gossip with my fellow girls."

Naruto suppressed a shudder and grinned. "Okay, Aya-chan." Shino and Hinata made room for him as he sat down with his friends.

"Glad you could join us," Kiba grinned. He had a plate in his lap while Akamaru ate from a small bowl on the ground beside him.

"I'm glad I could be here. We better enjoy this day while we can," said Naruto. Then he looked around, confused. "Where are your teammates, Kiba?"

The ninken user rolled his eyes. "Sasuke's probably wondering if it's worth damaging his pride by mingling with the commoners while Sakura is patiently waiting for him to get out of the house."

Everyone had a chuckle at this, while Shino just grinned. Surprisingly, he was the next one to speak. "We were just discussing our genin tests."

"So each jonin gave a different test?" asked Naruto.

"With the same objective," answered Shikamaru. "Our sensei gave us three tests, each one with a different objective. At first, she put us into a genjutsu to separate us and then fought us one-on-one. My test was to capture her while the two of us was surrounded in mist."

Choji swallowed his food before speaking. "My test was to simply to find her, but she somehow led me to a dark, secluded part of the training ground where I couldn't see more than a foot in front of my face. What was worse, the ground was extremely rocky so I couldn't use my Human Boulder technique. Also, there too many trees in area as well so my expansion technique would have only caused a bigger mess."

Hinata took a breath before giving her version. "My test was to simply to incapacitate her with brute force. She told to come at her with the intent to kill."

Naruto felt a rush of sympathy for Hinata, who knew she had trouble attack others. It may have been a little barbaric of Kurenai to force Hinata into that situation, but Naruto knew it was a necessary tactic for breaking Hinata out of her shell.

"I spent nearly thirty seconds looking for her when I realized that I needed Hinata to help me see through this mist and find sensei," continued Shikamaru. "When I tried to escape and look for her, I realized I was in a genjutsu. I dispelled it and immediately found Hinata and Choji beside me with their eyes glazed over."

"Meanwhile, I was blindly searching for sensei when all of a sudden, I feel this rush of chakra and Shikamaru is standing in front of me. He explained what happened and I was kicking myself while he woke up Hinata," added Choji.

"During my genjutsu, I couldn't strike back," Hinata admitted. "Kurenai-sensei was attacking me mercilessly. I was about to give up when everything around me faded and Shikamaru and Choji were standing in front of me." Hinata then bowed her head with a few tears leaking from her eyes.

Naruto was about to comfort her when Choji grabbed her hand and patted it. Hinata looked up and smiled gratefully at Choji who smiled back. Naruto turned to Shikamaru with a raised eyebrow. The boy just smirked back.

"After we woke up Hinata, she was able to use her Byakugan and find Kurenai-sensei for us. She was in a clearing on the other side of the training field we were using," Shikamaru continued. "Choji was able to engage into battle easily while Hinata watched from the shadows, waiting to disengage any genjutsu Kurenai-sensei threw at Choji."

Hinata rose her head just enough to see everyone beaming at her. She immediately turned red and focused on her feet again. Everyone laughed.

"Yeah, Hinata was a real trooper, all right," smiled Choji. "I could barely feel the genjutsus she put on me. But Hinata told me later sensei tried nearly seven times to trap me with illusions, but she was there to stop them."

"In the end, we were able to capture Kurenai-sensei with my Shadow Possession technique," finished Shikamaru.

"Wow, you guy are really amazing," gushed Konohamaru.

"Maybe, but if it wasn't for Hinata, we wouldn't have been able to pass," smiled Choji.

"Amen," agreed Shikamaru.

Meanwhile, Hinata just blushed brighter. But she had a Cheshire grin on her face as well.

Naruto turned to Kiba. "What about your test?"

Kiba answered by rolling his eyes. "Well…."

"You let yourself get captured?" asked a bewildered Choza.

Shikaku nodded and took a swig of sake. "Shino and Ino were on the borderline of using all of their chakra, but they were still willing to keep fighting. If I prolonged the fight anymore, I would have most likely have a couple of chakra exhausted students. Luckily, Naruto's newest technique was a perfect excuse to get captured."

This caused everyone else to chuckle.

"Who knew the kid could actually do something with ramen dough? He's got to be a creative genius," admitted Tsume.

"How does he do it?" Kurenai asked Teuchi, who joined them at the grill.

"I'm not sure," the ramen cook admitted. "He just told me he kneads the dough with his chakra and goes with that. It can't be too difficult if Konohamaru can do it."

"It is," said Shikaku. "I've tried and all I get is a mess that Yoshino yells at me for making. Troublesome."

"So what's the secret?" asked Kurenai.

"The answer is logical," spoke Shibi, who surprised everybody by actually speaking. "We all know what village his ancestors dwelled in. With the chakra the village hidden in Whirlpools mastered, is it really impossible for Naruto to create something like this?"

There was a moment of silence before everyone smiled.

"No, it's not impossible," grinned Shikaku.

Then Tsume scared everyone by bursting out laughing like a maniac, causing everyone to stare at her.

"What's so funny?" asked Inoichi.

"I just realized who would have loved Naruto creating a Ramen Jutsu," Tsume struggled to say.

"Who?" asked Asuma.

Everyone waited for Tsume to quit laughing when Shikaku started laughing as well. When he realized everyone was staring at him with confusion, he took a deep breath.

"Come on, you know. A certain Red Habanero we all know."

With that, everyone realized who and started laughing as well.

"Kakashi-sensei tied Sakura to a stump?" laughed Ino.

Kiba nodded. "She was the one the failed the most at our exercise when she fell for a genjutsu sensei put on her. He then lectured us on the importance of teamwork, saying that supporting your comrades was more important than following the Shinobi rules. He also said that if he had to pass anyone, it would be me and Akamaru."

"Because you two work as a team already," Naruto filled in.

"Yeah. Anyway, sensei told us he would give us another chance to pass. But he told me and Sasuke not to give any of our lunch to Sakura, who said it was her punishment for being easily influenced by a simple illusion."

"What a jerk," said Choji. Actually, everyone noticed he was kind of teary.

"So me and Sasuke are eating while listening to Sakura's stomach growl nonstop. I heard her mumble that she was stupid for not eating dinner last night."

"Last night? Why the hell didn't she eat dinner?" asked Naruto.

"Diet," Ino said miserably. Naruto looked at her, noticing she had two empty plates at her feet. He felt himself swell with pride when Ino begun to take her metabolism seriously and eat more.

"Well, I wasn't about to let her starve so I gave her my plate," continued Kiba. "She looked at me like I was crazy and said we'll get in trouble for disobeying sensei's orders. I told her to just shut up and eat because I wasn't about to let my teammate starve."

"Wow, so you put Sakura in her place, huh?"

"More or less. Then, Sasuke handed her his plate and said she would need her strength to continue on. I cut her ropes so she could eat on her own when Kakashi appeared before us.

"What he do?" gasped Ino.

"Aw, man. There were storm clouds around him, his eyes were white with rage and his voice had become demonic. He demanded to know what Sasuke and I were doing disobeying his orders. We told him we were not about to let a teammate suffer just because he said so. Then sensei smiled and said we passed."

"What?" exclaimed everybody.

"Yeah, I know," Kiba laughed. "Anyway, he lectured us again on the importance of teamwork and to always look out for one another. Then we left."

There were a few moments of silence before Naruto broke it. "Is it just me, or are we going to be kept on our toes for the rest of our genin years?"

"It's just you," said a male voice behind him. Everyone looked to see Sasuke and Sakura joining them.

"Hey, Forehead. Took you long enough to get here," said Ino.

"Shut up, Pig," scowled Sakura.

"Yo," said Kakashi as he joined his fellow adults.

"Took you long enough, Kakashi. What happened this time?" asked Kurenai.

Kakashi grinned sheepishly. "You see, this new guy in the village needed directions to the Hokage tower and I-"

"Stop it," said everyone at once, causing Kakashi to sweat drop.

"I'm actually shocked that you finally passed a team," Tsume said.

"Well, they're a little rough but I believe they can shape up to be compatible shinobi when I'm through with them," explained Kakashi.

"Really?" asked Asuma.

Kakashi didn't answer, but instead opened his usual 'Make-out book-of-the-week and started reading.

"What about your team, Kurenai?" asked Asuma while throwing glares at Kakashi.

"I'm looking for to teaching them," smiled Kurenai. "Sure, Shikamaru's lazy, Choji eats all the time, and Hinata needs help with her confidence, but that's exactly why I choose them. Shikamaru has already proven himself a capable leader and immediately watches out for comrades. Choji has established himself as the attack force of the team and can take on his opponents without fear as long as he's got his teammates beside him."

"That's my boy," smirked Choza.

"Hinata…well, she needs the most work, but I can already tell she cares about her teammates without question. She's proven herself a valuable member of her team and that's lifted her confidence up. Give them enough time and I'll mold them into something special."

Everyone nodded and then turned to Shikaku. When he saw their stares, he sighed.

"Well…."

"Let me guess," interrupted Tsume. "It's 'troublesome', right?"

"Actually, I'm really looking forward to it." He saw the disbelief and scoffs on his friend's faces. "I'm serious. The techniques and teamwork I saw today: it was unbelievable. Ino rose incredibly in her abilities after been given a pep talk from Naruto and Shino and worked extremely well together. Shino was able to organize many of the attacks on me and kept me on my toes a lot better than many chunin I've faced."

"And Naruto?" asked Teuchi.

Shikaku smiled. "I don't think any of what Ino and Shino could have been done if it wasn't for Naruto. His unpredictability and spirit kept the team going and made my jaw drop a couple of times. He's already got a grasp of his chakra control along with a good head to becoming team leader."

"That boy has already changed my daughter," Inoichi smiled. "First thing she tells me after she passed today is she wants to learn more of the clan's jutsus. Oh, she asked this with a several plates of food around her as well. When I asked her about her diet, she scowled and said nothing."

"Naruto has made a tremendous impact on my son as well," said Shibi. "He's a lot more open with talking about his day and also wants to learn more about his clan's techniques as well. More importantly, he smiles when he mentions his friends."

"It seems Naruto has been helping everyone out," smiled Choza. "Choji spends every day at Ichiraku's with Shikamaru, Naruto and Hinata. Then training with them later in the day when they were at the academy."

"Dad doesn't stop talking about him either," grinned Asuma. "He says he's been a good influence on Konohamaru."

"My son said it's troublesome, but he enjoys spending more time with his friends than watching clouds."

"It looks like Kiba's enjoying his time with the group as well," said Tsume as he watched his son laugh the kids.

"It seems like you raised him up pretty well," Kakashi said towards Teuchi.

"Yeah," smiled Teuchi. "He's had a big impact on Ayame and I. Ever since he walked into the shop all those years ago."

Later in the evening, everyone had gathered along a giant bonfire in the middle of the compound. Rana had Ebisu take an exhausted Konohamaru home while Hana left to check on the animals at her clinic. Kakashi left to do….whatever. Each family sat with each other on a separate log. Hinata sat with Kurenai and Asuma while Naruto sat with the Ichirakus. Sasuke left early and Sakura looked like she was going to follow, but instead sat down on the same log as Kiba and his mother.

"So what do we do now?" asked Shikaku.

"We could tell ghost stories," grinned Kiba.

Naruto shivered. "Uh…maybe not." He was leaning against the log while Ayame sat on it with Naruto leaning against her legs.

"You're not scared of ghosts, are you Naruto?" asked Choji.

"Umm….well….no, but I don't want scare Ayame," he sheepishly lied.

"Are you still scared of the ramen ghost told you about when we were kids?" teased Ayame. Everyone laughed out loud while Naruto scowled at his girlfriend.

"A ramen ghost? Are you serious?" laughed Shikamaru.

"Please tell us, Ayame. I'm eager to hear this," Shino actually snickered.

"Ok. You see, on a night very much like this, two young genins were walking down the street…" began Ayame. Everyone leaned in to hear the story while Naruto hugged his knees in fear.

Yes, the story was pathetically simple and childish, but Naruto was only a kid when he heard first heard it. It didn't help with his friends snickering around him at his childhood fear. And even though he was older, he still felt scared the more Ayame progressed with the story.

"….all that was left were two empty ramen bowls," Ayame ended the story dramatically.

"No. No! NOOOOO!" yelled Naruto as he huddled in the fetal position at Ayame's feet. Meanwhile, everyone else was laughing at Naruto's fear.

"Aw, man. How can you be scared of that?" laughed Kiba.

All the adults were smiling at Naruto with sympathy and hilarity. Choji, Kiba, Shikamaru, Ino, and Sakura were laughing nonstop. Hinata had turned bright red in effort to silence her giggles. Shino's shoulders were slight shaking as laughed.

Ayame giggled as she pulled Naruto up and hugged him from behind. "I'm sorry, Naru-kun."

"See if I rescue you again," mumbled the blonde.

"Anybody got another story?" asked Choza.

Naruto suddenly brightened and dug a hand into his pockets. "How about a song?"

"NO! No campfire songs!" Ino demanded.

Naruto rolled his eyes and pulled out his ocarina. "Not that. How about I play a song on this?"

Ayame clapped her hands together. "I've always wanted to hear to you play."

"Where did you get that?" asked Shikaku.

"Iruka-sensei gave it to me," said Naruto. "Here's a new song I just learned." With that, he put the flute to his lips and began to play.

The eerie, haunting sound of the flute began to echo through the air around the campfire. It was a song he learned from a music book he got in the library. It's about a warrior who sacrificed himself to save his comrades by using an evil power. When the evil began to take over, he asked his comrades to seal himself away to so he wouldn't cause any harm.

Naruto didn't know how long he played, but when he was done, he felt better than he did earlier. He opened his eyes to see everyone staring at him. The second he stopped playing, everyone heard a wolf howl in the distance.

"Wow, that was actually kind of….chilling," admitted Sakura.

"The song was so freaky, but sorrowful at the same time," said Choji.

"Yes, it was very sad," Hinata whispered.

"What was the name of the song?" asked Kurenai.

"The Curse of Zen Aku," said Naruto.

A slight breeze wafted through the campfire, causing everyone to shiver. Naruto smiled as he felt Ayame hug him tighter.

"Wow, you didn't need a story to scare us. You needed a song," Kiba said.

"Do you know any others?" asked Yoshino. "Any non-scary songs?"

Naruto smiled and began to play Lugia's Song.

It seems that Naruto wasn't the only one to succumb to the lullaby as the sleepy parents growled their sarcastic thanks to the blonde as they carried their sleeping kids back homes. Naruto thought he got his revenge for laughing at them earlier when Teuchi yawned and asked him to carry Ayame home.

Carrying her piggyback, Naruto was eager to get back home and begin reading his mother's journals. He told Teuchi all about it as they made their way back.

"So you see, the reason the Fourth sealed me away is in the journals," he explained.

"Wow, that's very interesting," said Teuchi.

Naruto was silent for a few moments before asking the same question he asked earlier. "Hey, Pops? If you were the Hokage during the attack, would have you sealed the Fox Spirit into Ayame."

Teuchi turned to Naruto with a tense look. "That's a very strong and personal question to ask, Naruto."

"I know and I'm sorry for asking," Naruto apologized. "But it's just a question that has been bugging me for the past few days."

"Well I'm lucky to say that I have never been given that responsibility," Teuchi admitted. Then the man bowed his head and stared at his feet. "But I too have thought of situations where the possibility has been present."

"What?"

Teuchi took a deep breath. "Every since Ayame's mother passed away, I was always plagued with the question 'what would I do to protect Ayame?'. It's a question every father asks himself when he starts a family. Of course, the answer is always the same."

"What is it?" asked Naruto.

Teuchi turned to Naruto with a small smile. "That I would do anything, even giving my life, to protect that which I love most."

Naruto chuckled. "You sound like a Hokage to me."

"Maybe, but I couldn't handle the responsibility of so many people," Teuchi grinned. "Having a family that big would be too troublesome."

"Family? Did Jiji give you the Will of Fire speech too?"

"Hiruzen told me something of the sort." Then Teuchi stopped and looked at Naruto. "When you become Hokage, will the village be your family as well?"

"Of course it will," said Naruto.

"Then you have to consider what the Fourth thought as he stared at the Nine-Tails twelve years ago. Not what he would do to protect his village, but to protect his family. If by keeping the village and you alive was to seal the demon into you, would that be the correct choice? Is that worth dying for? To protect those you love?"

Naruto was stunned for a few moments. He had thought about giving his life to protect the village, but not the way the Fourth did. Now looking back, Naruto realized the stress and fatigue the Third suffered even after doing the job for nearly 30 years and having nearly twelve years of peace.

Maybe sealing the Kyubi into Naruto wasn't the correct choice, but the Fourth's only choice.

"Yeah," said Naruto. "I think I'm beginning to understand."

"About time," said Teuchi as he ruffled up Naruto's hair.

Naruto gently placed Ayame onto her bed and sat down beside her.

"Sorry about the early bedtime," said Naruto.

"Sorry? I should be thanking you," yawned Teuchi. "I haven't had a good night's sleep in a long time."

"Well, I better get-" Naruto started before Ayame wrapped her arms around Naruto's waist and pulled him back down. He began to panic, thinking that Teuchi would kick his ass like a father should, but was annoyed when Teuchi smirked.

"Good night, son," he snickered as he walked out of the room.

Naruto grumbled and tried to get in a comfortable position with Ayame's death grip around his middle. But he couldn't fall asleep. While being snuggled warmly against his girlfriend was something he would never pass up, he was a little bummed that he would have to wait until tomorrow to start on his mom's journals. He reached into his pocket and pulled out the object that fell out of the books earlier on.

It was a picture of his mother when she entered the academy at the age of eight. The picture was faded, but still had color. She was wearing a formal kimono for ceremonial events. She had a round face with violet eyes and bright red hair. When he first saw her face, he thought he was looking at a mirror when he realized they had the same eye and facial structure.

He smiled when he saw the frown on her face and he could probably understand why. Her hair was done in a way was shaped like a tomato. He would probably be frowning too.

Naruto stared at the picture for a few minutes before placing it back into his pocket.

"So…what are we doing here?" asked Naruto. He and Shino were waiting underneath the same as yesterday at the training grounds. They arrived on time and were waiting on Shikaku.

"I don't know, although I know why gave us the day off," grumbled Shino.

"You're sore, aren't you," grinned Naruto.

"Of course. I thought the academy trained us within the limits of genin stamina. Yesterday was insane."

"Well, like you said, better get used to it." Naruto then looked around for his other teammate. "Where's Ino."

Shino shrugged. A few minutes later, a new sound came announced Ino's presence.

"Ow. Ow. Ow. Ow. Ow. Ow. Ow. Ow. Ow. Ow."

Ino came into view, walking stiffly towards them. Each of her steps was gradually taken with ease.

"Hey, Ino! Want to train a little?" Naruto yelled.

"Shut the f*%k up!" she yelled back, causing Naruto to flinch.

"I'm sorry."

"No, no, I shouldn't have snapped," Ino muttered. "I've just never been this sore before."

"Is that not a good thing? It means you have begun to take this seriously," explained Shino.

Ino stared at him for a moment before smiling. "Yeah, it is."

A moment later, a puff of smoke enveloped them and Shikaku was standing there with a leather bag to his belt.

"Good morning, Team Ten."

"Good morning, sensei," they chorused.

"Now, I know you're tired and sore," he chuckled. Ino scowled. "So we'll make this quick. I want to do two things. First." He pulled three pieces of paper from his pocket and handed one to each of his students.

"What are these," asked Naruto.

"Chakra papers. These papers were grown from the trees that use a special kind of chakra to grow. By channeling your chakra into this paper, I'll be able to tell what your elemental chakra is."

"Seriously?" asked Ino.

"Yes. Why don't you go first?"

Ino took the paper in her hands, closed her eyes and focused. A moment later, her paper erupted in flames causing her to drop it in surprise.

"A fire element. How appropriate for a hot-tempered blond," said Shikaku.

"Bite me, sensei," Ino muttered while rubbing her burnt fingers.

"Your turn, Shino."

Shino held his between the tips of his fingers. After Ino's demonstration, he didn't want to have the same incident. However, his paper crumbled in his hands.

"Lightning. Huh, I guess that means you're a lightning bug," snickered Shikaku.

Shino didn't say anything as he put his paper in his pocket. But Naruto saw from his posture and eyebrows that he was annoyed with the nickname.

"And finally."

Naruto placed the paper in his fingertips and focused his chakra. A moment later, the paper split into two pieces.

"Wind. Well that makes sense. You're full of hot air anyway."

"Hey!"

"Ok, ok. I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said those things."

"Damn straight," muttered Naruto.

"Anyway, know that you know your elements, I'll make arrangements for you to meet up with other shinobi who have the same elements during our training sessions. But they will only be able to give you the basics. Learning elemental jutsus will be up to you. Understand?"

"Yes, sensei," Team ten chorused.

"Now for the final part of our meeting." Shikaku reached into the bag and pulled out a camera. "Team photo time!"

A moment later, Team ten face-faulted.

"You brought us here for a picture?" asked Naruto.

"I don't even have my hair done," complained Ino.

"Well, too bad. This is my wife's camera and this was the only time I could sneak it away from the house. I need to get it back before noon so she won't notice I took it."

Shikaku placed the camera on a stump and adjusted the settings. Meanwhile, Ino was desperately trying to fix her hair.

"Don't worry, Ino. Your hair looks nice," said Shino.

Ino froze for a moment before smiling gently. "Thank you Shino." Naruto grinned as noticed Shino turn the slightest pink.

"Ok, now we got ten seconds!" interrupted Shikaku. He pushed the kids forward and in front of the camera. "Pick a cool pose and say cheese!"

Naruto stood on the left. He gave an eye-closed smile while giving two peace sign hands. Shino stood on the right. His glasses and high collar didn't exactly give him an expression. Ino stood in the middle. She gave a peace sign while giving the camera a wink. Shikaku stood behind them. His arms were crossed with a grin on his face.

"Cheese!"

Well, what do you think? Yes, there are some parts I didn't stick to the original canon, but hey, this is a fanfiction website. Canon rules don't apply. That's why the title says 'Unleash your Imagination'.