A shrill, stentorian banging called the half-brothers back into reality.

"Get up, make your bed, and get out!" Hayate called, hitting what looked to be a trash can lid with a baton. Naruto was just able to make out his form with blurry eyesight. He and Nagato crawled out of bed, zipped up the sides of their sleeping bags, and centered the pillow before standing up straight and facing their sensei with exhaustion-ridden faces. Although the room was windowless, Naruto could clearly see the time on Hayate's analog timepiece: 4:30.

"You're making us get up at, like-"

"I'm sorry, who are you talking to?" Hayate interrupted, readjusting his sheath while gazing into space. The blonde scoffed quietly,

"Sir, why are we getting up so early...sir?" His sensei continued as if nothing had happened.

"For reasons of training, of course. Now, go outside and eat your breakfast. Remember to sit before the Kamimizu."

The two walked outside without another word, and were utterly shocked to see a rather large, diversified breakfast laid out for each of them at the foot of the squared-off water. They both heavily salivated as they slid on their knees directly into the plates. Naruto counted two whole potatoes, a four egg omelette with onions and peppers, and a large, thin-cut slab of steak.

"Woah, this is awesome!" they chanted in unison, searching for utensils. Unfortunately, they were both too hungry to feel Hayate practically breathing down their necks.

"You will eat with at least a shred of respect," he said as he threw forks and knives into their steaks with what Naruto thought to be unnecessary velocity.

Naruto didn't waste a second in grabbing his utensils and digging into the succulent breakfast, content with the overwhelming bursts of flavor.

"Sir, did you make this, sir?" Nagato quietly asked, already half-way through his omelette.

"I did, indeed," Hayate replied in a monotone voice, sitting at the other side of the Kamimizu (Naruto believed that was what he'd called it) and closing his eyes.

Shoving one last, delicious bite of potato into his mouth, Naruto exhaled happily, his stomach filled to the absolute brink.

"Oh boy, I am stuffed," he laughed, patting his stomach through his orange jacket.

"Follow me," Hayate ordered. Coughing yet again, the young Jonin arose and casually began to walk out the front door of the dojo, and into the subzero temperatures of the mountaintop. Naruto too rose to his feet, sighing as he understood the futility in fighting. Nagato followed apprehensively, wondering if they were about to be forced to exercise in such extreme conditions..

They were led into the middle of the outside courtyard, where Hayate knelt down in the snow, digging his kneecaps into the ground until the white, slushy powder reached his thighs. The siblings followed accordingly, much to their dismay. "Now, it's time to begin your training, but we must address a few matters beforehand."

"Sir, for Jashin's sake, make it snappy, sir," Naruto declared, rubbing his palms together ferociously. Almost as soon as the words had left his mouth, he rued them.

"Naruto-kun, am I correct in assuming that I am your teacher?"

"Sir, yes, sir."

"Why, thank you very much! Can I be in charge for a while?"

"Sir, yes, sir!" Naruto didn't like the way he had to address his sensei, though he thanked whatever deity that had granted him to ability to remember how to do so.
"Good, now for an important question." Nagato spoke excitedly,

"Sir, what is it, sir?"

"Do either of you truly wish to follow this regimen?"

Naruto laughed a little, wondering if his sensei had, indeed, been serious.

"Sir, I guess, sir," he answered indecisively, wondering if there was a correct answer.

"I will not stand for 'I guess.' If you two desire my tutelage, I require your full, unflagging loyalty. You must obey my commands without question, even if it means death," Hayate firmly declared, betraying his cold and emotionless mien.

"Sir, we don't 'desire' your tutelage, we were forced into it, sir!" Naruto chanted. Hayate nodded, apparently taking Naruto's answer as a no, and turned to Nagato expecting him to politely agree. Instead, the redhead shyly inquired,

"Sir, will I benefit more from your training, or Kakashi-sensei's training, sir?" For the first time since Naruto had met him, the ends of Hayate's thin lips faintly curved upward.

"That depends on you entirely. Train with me, and you will become men of iron, men without fear. You will be as silent as the night, and as deadly as the creatures it hides." Hayate's pupils flickered for a second, as if he were remembering the time when he had been given the exact same speech. "Above all, you will be men of chivalry and gallantry. People will honor, respect, and fear you." Naruto hadn't noticed it himself, but he had been so closely listening to Hayate, clinging to his every word, that he hadn't noticed his mouth hanging open. His sensei noticed this and said with a grin, "I'll take that as a yes?"

Naruto held his breath for a solid five seconds. The choice was right there before him, and he was completely indecisive. He wanted to run back home, curl up in bed, and sleep until noon; he also wanted to be Hokage, and even he knew that was no easy feat.

"Uhh..." he groaned, looking toward his half-brother, who nodded furtively, as if to say Please don't leave me alone! "Sir, yes, sir!" Hayate slowly rose to his feet and cracked his neck, readjusting his sheath before saying,

"Well, let's get started then, shall we?"

The group stood some hundred and fifty feet away from the dojo, seated at the lip of an ice-caked precipice. Fortunately, the sun had somewhat risen by then, so falling didn't feel to be a threat. Naruto couldn't exactly tell what exercise they were about to conduct, but shimmying along the edge of a cliff seemed a bit extreme for their first day.

"Before we begin with physical exercise, each day, we shall prepare our bodies for such tasks in a manner that is efficient, express, and simple. For years, the Kaathian monks utilized the ancient art of Kindendo, which, in more simplified terms, is to kindle the seven key kin, or major Chakra points, by donating more Chakra than what is necessary to them." Naruto readjusted his knees, which were now soggy and heavy, attempting to soak in all of the new information (not something he was particularly good at) Hayate continued on, "When at rest, your body normally uses about six percent of your Chakra. When exercising, about thirteen percent. Twenty-two percent is in usage when you are on a mission, or in combat. However," he began, lifting his sleeve and revealing his right arm, which was not very muscular, but extremely defined, "by kindling your Chakra points, you not only triple your Chakra output, but you may also expedite the process of any goals in training; weight loss, muscle gain, and conditioning, for some." Pinching himself, Naruto tried his hardest to stay awake, but four thirty was way out of his time zone.

Rising to his feet, Hayate commanded his students to do the same and then faced outward, staring at the barely visible horizon. "Now, do not rush these actions, for it might kill you." Naruto could easily hear his half-brother gulp. "Envision a calm, blue stream, with water as smooth as velvet." Naruto closed his eyes as he painted the picture in his mind.

"Blue stream. Nice, calm blue stream with icy smooth water, with four busty girls washing—WAIT! NO!" It took quite a few tries, but Naruto was finally able to imagine the stream, minus any naked women, just as Hayate started again,

"Now, imagine that stream flowing to your fingertips." The two did so, with only minimal setbacks. "Now look at your fingers." Naruto did so, and was confused, to say the least. Nothing was any different. Nagato, however, exclaimed in fear. Holding his palm forward, his fingertips were a bright teal. Hayate raised his eyebrows, clearly impressed with Nagato's actions. Naruto concentrated as hard as he possibly could, furrowing his brow in frustration as he imagined a deluge of cyan energy coursing through his circulatory system.

"Oh," Hayate blurted out, "Naruto-kun, imagine something more like a volcano. Perhaps a bourn of flame-colored magma."

"Hayate-sensei is real good at description," Naruto thought with a determined countenance, clenching his fists until his knuckles lost color and visualizing lava running through his bloodstream. Lifting his palms, he cracked a small smile as he saw a rather faint red glow emanating from underneath his dirty fingernails.

"Good, now, both of you: place your fingers on the base of your spine, and push." As he spoke, Hayate lifted the back of his shirt and demonstrated the action, softly pressing his back until it glowed, illuminating his blood vessels. The sight brought Naruto out of his state of dreariness. He excitedly copied, exposing his stomach as he lifted his shirt and forcing his hand against his back. "If you press too softly, you will not be able to put forth any energy. Too strong, and you'll be paralyzed from the waist down." Again, Nagato gulped loudly, unsure of his skills.

"Sir, I think I've got it, sir!" Naruto chanted with confidence, wearing a smug smirk. Hayate calmly sighed before strutting behind his student and coughing out,

"I'm fairly surprised you aren't dead." Naruto jumped in fright, imagining the river of lava flowing away from his hand. "Or, at least foaming at the mouth."

"Sir, I can't help it, sir!" he muttered, still trying to suppress his power output.

"No, it's quite alright. If your body can handle the power, what's the point in holding back, hmm?" Naruto considered the thought for a moment before exhaling and again redirecting the flow of his Chakra to his palms. Surprisingly, he felt quite a lot more...revitalized. "Now, remember," Hayate began, "this is your second most important Chakra point, after Crown Chakra, which I'll explain later. The point you're pressing on right now is the location of your Root Chakra, which represents stability, survival, vigor, and vitality."

"Sir, it's just those two, right?" Naruto asked tentatively, doing his best to not kill himself, though the burst of energy seemed to raise his body temperature, and he needed that above everything else.

"Oh, not even close. Now, press your fingers just below your navel."

Naruto sighed. It was going to be a long day.

The pain in Naruto's skull gave him the impression that his brain was being kneaded into assorted shapes. A loud groan escaped his lips as he pressed his palms against his ears.

"What did I say about being extra careful with Crown Chakra, Nagato-kun?" Hayate sighed, as if it were a mere inconvenience for his student to be writhing in pain on the ground.

"Sir, you said to be extremely careful, as any overdose of Chakra in the brain could cause aneurysms, sir."

"But I did!" Naruto screamed, digging his feet into the snow. Hayate sighed. He continued to kneel and hold his straightened palm in front of his face, focusing his Chakra until a large cloud of cobalt surrounded his hand. Without warning, he slammed his palm into Naruto's stomach, sending his body into a near catatonic state. Naruto felt like he was burning to death, but he was freezing. Oddly enough, the pain in his skull subsided rather quickly. After a minute or two, he rose to his feet, wobbling as if he were intoxicated.
"Now," Hayate said slowly, coughing lightly at the end of his sentence, "let's review, shall we? Root." Naruto wearily forced his Chakra into his fingers and softly pressed them against the small of his back, at the base of his spine. "Good. Sacral." He pressed his fingers directly below his belly button, and felt a small warmth inside his stomach, like he was content with being treated like an infantry in ANBU. "Solar Plexus." Naruto just above punched himself four inches above his navel. "Do the rest." In three quick movements, Naruto poked the center of his chest, representing the Heart Chakra, the top of his head, Crown Chakra, and the middle of his throat, which was a Chakra in and of itself. "You're missing one!" Hayate shouted, seemingly to Naruto. The blonde risked a quick glance at his brother, who had his digits pressed softly against his temple. He repeated the action. Unsurprisingly, Hayate was not pleased.

"Get on your face and give me twenty-five push-ups, Naruto-kun," he spat, breaking his usual stoic manner. The Genin scoffed as he dropped to his knees, pressed his bare palms into frosty powder, and kicked his legs out, his elbows jutting out at a forty-five degree angle. "I don't have a clue as to what the hell you think you're doing, but you are definitely not doing a push-up," Hayate growled, pressing his foot into Naruto's spine until it felt as stiff and straight as a board. "Now, do a push-up." With a heavy exhale, Naruto lowered himself until his arms pained him, at which point he pushed right back up. Of course, Hayate was vexed. He lay on the ground and placed an overturned fist under Naruto's chest. "Touch my hand before you push back up."

Needless to say, the rule of touching his sensei's fist made Naruto's meager amount of push-ups feel like an hour of hard physical labor, which definitely did not help his body prepare for their next object of activity. "Now, since your bodies are now primed and prepared to learn, let us begin with simple Taijutsu."

Nagato was the first to collapse, needing a few seconds to recuperate. "By the Hokage," Hayate sighed, holding Nagato lazily in a half-nelson, "do you two honestly expect to get anywhere with Ju Mae?"

"Sir, what's wrong with Ju Mae, sir?" Naruto called, thankful that he wasn't the one being trapped in a hold, especially coming from Hayate.

"That travesty of a martial art is unnecessarily large and horribly telegraphed." Suddenly, he cried out in exasperation. "By Jashin, what did they teach you at the Academy?" he roared, astounded by their lack of knowledge in the realm of combat. Quite honestly, Naruto hadn't paid any attention to ninety percent of the lessons in the Academy, so he couldn't tell his sensei if he'd tried. "Fine," the swordsman mumbled, "I guess I have to do that too."

Releasing Nagato and stepping back until he was about six inches away from a rather precipitous cliff coated with a thick layer of ice, Hayate explained, "I want you two to forget everything you know about Taijutsu, because it's all wrong. Taijutsu is not just a tool used for setting up Ninjutsu; it is an art in and of itself. In fact, Ninjutsu should be used sparingly." He took up a slow pace as he spoke, circling the boys who now stood side-by-side. "When confronting a combatant, your arms and legs are the most dangerous weapons you have; only if properly utilized, of course." He then began to flail his arms violently, as if he were some type of rampaging ceiling fan. "You are a complete and utter fool if you try to wave your arms and try to score a direct hit. As I was taught, hand-to-hand combat should be up close, personal, and uncomfortable for your opponent. Now, get up, and let's start practicing."

Naruto's entire body trembled as he finally sat down inside the dojo, his entire body sweaty, his muscles screaming in agony, and his undershirt drenched. Taijutsu training had not gone as planned. Naruto had gone in with the mindset of, "I'm gonna learn a bunch of techniques, then I'm gonna kick ass!" Of course, he could not have been more wrong. "Who the hell does chin-up burpee combos at thirteen? Lunatics, that's who."

Nagato stood at his side, in a similar physical condition, save the few scrapes and gashes that lined his collarbone and cheeks.

"Now, after you two eat, you are to report to Kakashi-senpai in Training Ground Three. Is that understood?"

"Sir, yes, sir!" the boys mumbled.

"I can't hear you! Sound off like you've got a pair!"

"Sir, yes, sir!" they chanted back in a much louder, more high-pitched tone.

"Good." Hayate weaved a small number of hand seals before slamming his palms together and making a small plate of two ham and cheese sandwiches as well as an two apples and a small mound of baby carrots. The boys dug in without a second thought.

As soon as Naruto sunk his teeth into the first sandwich, an ethereal sensation of relief and calm washed over his body.

"Man," he thought, "I was really hungry, wasn't I?" Naruto turned his attention to Nagato, who was already halfway through his first sandwich, and shook his head with a smile, happy to see his half-brother eating a steady diet.

After eating, digesting, and throwing a minor fit, Naruto stepped outside of the dojo, with Nagato at his heels. His half-brother instantly formed a small sphere of flame Chakra in his palms and held it close to his chest, breathing on it calmly and slowly as the duo took off from the direction in which they'd come and into the raging blizzard that always plagued the land.

When the duo arrived coughing and panting at Training Ground Three, they were, to say the least, content with the climate. The air was warm and humid, which oddly helped Naruto's dry-as-a-desert throat. All around him, trees dotted the land, and for the first time in his life, he was ecstatic to see leftover dew on mid-summer experience was short-lived, however, as Hinata came walking them, softly calling for them to follow her. While she stammered and stumbled in her speech, Naruto looked at her as if he'd never seen her before. Her short navy hair was oddly appealing, and complemented her pencil-thin eyebrows, which matched her roots. In a weird, semi-creepy fashion, Naruto thought she was weird...in a good way. As his teammates departed, it didn't take him long to pull his mind out of the gutter.

Hinata's leadership found the group lost, in the middle of the forest area of the Training Ground.

"Erm...I'm sorry! I...erm...believe Kakashi-sensei is over this way." She pointed eastward, just below the high noon sun. Naruto's eyes tracked her movement, watching her hips turn as she walked, and her hair get ruffled by the wind, though she didn't seem to care; he appreciated the almost unseen natural aura this girl had. He and Nagato, whose pure mind kept him from having his eyes glued on his teammate, mindlessly followed, leading them ever-farther away from their starting point. Thankfully, Kakashi, in all of his sly, handsome glory, along with Kiba and Shikamaru (whose overabundant joy shone clearly on their faces...not), appeared in a tree fifteen steps in front of them after about two/three minutes, standing atop a rather thin branch.

"Thank the Sage, where have you been?" Kiba exploded upon sight of them, disturbing a previously sleeping Akamaru.

"Now, now, quiet down, Kiba-kun," Kakashi laughed, his nose glued to a book with a rather defined circe-backslash symbol on the front cover, accompanied by a pair of what appeared to be hands.

"Please, Kakashi-sensei," Nagato interjected, "may we have ten minute break, or...something like that?" He sounded exasperated, exhausted, enervated...just about everything except energetic.

"Oh, but I don't think Naruto-kun will want to wait for this one." Naruto's ears perked up as he spoke,

"Why? What are we doing today?" Kakashi did not even look at Naruto as he turned the page of his book and began to walk down the tree's trunk. As his feet hit the solid, fertile dirt, he looked around, noting all of their shocked expressions, and laughed. "Trust me. It'll be fine."