Good evening, my fellow readers. It's been a few months, but I've finally found time to start working on the second chapter of Eternal Legends! Although I was expecting much higher than ten reviews, still, it's better than some people get.

Anyhow, a lot of you have been asking me about what's going on with From Red to Black, my Bleach/Naruto crossover. The thing is, I have a bit of writer's block for that fic, and I may end up just abandoning it altogether. But, I will be replacing it with another fic, one that is bound to be loved, so don't fret.

Next, some people have been asking me why I chose the Naruto/Sakura pairing for this particular story. Actually, there are several reasons for this. For one, I want to be one of the authors that truly did the pairing justice (the only one I could think of off the top of my head is Training for the Job, by Desaix) and create a believable relationship. Secondly, most Naruto/Sakura fics start out after the three-year time skip, which I dislike for some strange reason. I want to show their relationship progress from friendship to romance to lovers from the time they meet, until they graduate. It's not going to be some "instant love" crap that you commonly see in most fics (*coughNaruHinacough*). In fact, it will be a LONG time before they even say the "L" word. It's not going to be perfect, ever. Finally, I wanted to bring in a good action fiction with a side of believable romance that won't make you utterly gag.

Anyhow, let's get on with the show! My plan is for this to be the best Friendship! Team 7 fic in the entire Naruto section. Hopefully, I will surpass Desaix's fic. Wish me luck!

Full Summary: Three people meet under the oddest of circumstances during one troubled night: a loudmouthed troublemaker, a lost voice within his clan, and a young civilian from a broken home. They never knew that their impromptu gathering would bring a revolution to the shinobi world. This is their story.

Disclaimer: Naruto is the property of Masashi Kishimoto, Shonen Jump, and all related companies. I claim no ownership of anything except my original characters.

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(Naruto's Apartment, 0830 hours)

Naruto stood wide awake on his bed. He was watching the ceiling fan spin counterclockwise and its sound was the only noise in the entire complex. His hands were on the back of his head as his bright cerulean eyes pierced through the building, as if he could see all things now. Normally, Naruto would've woken up very cranky and, honestly, not really feeling the day ahead of him as it was almost the same bullshit every day.

Not today, however.

Naruto, for the first time in years practically, was smiling. Not one of those plastered grins he used around Iruka-sensei, the Old Man Hokage, and the village in general. No, this was a true, honest-to-Amaterasu smile.

He had thought he had become Fortune's fool when he learned of the existence of the Kyuubi. But, in an almost less than an hour, he not only turned it into an advantage, he got new friends to boot. He sat up in an upright position grinning from ear to ear.

"Everything is so much…clearer now. It's amazing; I can calculate plans in my head in mere seconds where I used to not even think about using strategy. This is truly riveting…" Naruto froze. Since when the hell did he use words like riveting?

He sat on the side of the bed and interlocked his fingers as he started to think seriously with his newfound "intelligence." He had several things to think about after all that happened through last night's sequence of events. He sighed and took a deep breath.

Firstly, there was the Kyuubi no Youko, itself. To say Naruto wasn't expecting that revelation would be a gross understatement. If he was perfectly honest with himself, it was utterly infuriating to know that, seemingly at random, he was chosen to house a creature of pure malevolence and had no say in the matter. In that sense, he utterly despised the Fourth Hokage for what he had done to him.

He then grunted as a realization that deflated his pride came to him. What else could the Yellow Flash had done? By all accounts, a Bijuu was practically immortal to mere humans, who were nothing more than specks in the universe, if that. So, in that sense, he really had no other alternative. But then there was the million ryou question….

"Why me?" Naruto wondered aloud. Was he an orphan? Naruto mentally smacked himself. Of course he was….now, at least. Did his parents abandon him? Give him to the Fourth Hokage willingly? Or did the Fourth pick him at random in the hospital while the village was attacked on a whim?

That last thought made him wince a bit. What a screwed-up way to save the village, if that was the case. He let loose a shaky huff as he rose from the bed to the bathroom. 'What's done is done. No use crying about it.'

"Heh, it's not like crying approved my situation, anyhow, eh?" Naruto mused out loud, with silence answering back from his mirror's reflection. It was at that point he figured it'd be nice to know why the Fourth chose him for this life of despair and loneliness, but in the grand scheme of things, especially after last night, it didn't matter. He absolutely refused to use that as a crutch and an excuse. He'd use his newfound mind to tear the sky asunder to reach his goals.

Speaking of his mind…

"Just who the hell put that seal on me? And for what reason? The Fourth? No….he didn't have enough time to design two complex seals in that short of a time period," Naruto deduced as his eyes sharpened. He stood, bare-chested, and looked at the Shiki Fuujin in the mirror, and from he read of seals, it was ludicrously complex. While it was true that the Fourth Hokage was a Seal Master, this…suppression seal…as the furball called it, it was just as intricate. Assuming he had written the seal as he performed the technique, in Naruto's mind, he had no reason to put it on him.

Naruto's eyes then narrowed. "Hm…Judging from the way it looked, this seal was put on me after the fox was sealed. Had it been done before, the suppression seal would've been overwritten and destroyed. That would mean it was after the Fourth Hokage died. The question was….who would?"

Naruto smirked to himself. "Heh, guess this new thing has got me thinking out loud…Guess that's a side effect," he ruminated. Finally, his thoughts came to his newfound friends, Sasuke and Sakura.

They were….different. Sasuke….he was an enigma. His mind traveled back to how he carried himself—all the way down to his mannerisms and his personality. Naruto figured he had to have a huge chip on his shoulder. It was the only way to explain it. His eyes held pain, loneliness, and most of all, rejection. Rejection from what, the blond had no idea. The Uchiha was one of the four noble families, the other three being the Aburame, Akimichi, and Hyuuga, so it couldn't have been a rejection from society. Despite their….less than stellar past, the Uchiha were well respected by most of the civilians and a good number of the shinobi. So in that respect, he couldn't be rejected by society…at least, not like he was.

Then there was the rosette-haired Sakura. Something just seemed off about her. Not in a way that made her presence off-putting, but he was almost sure that she was hiding something. And from what the blond could tell, it was nothing to laugh at. If something made an eight-year-old girl come all the way out into the outskirts of Konoha…something terrible must've happened. Hundreds of possibilities ran through his mind, but he didn't have sufficient enough evidence to lean one way or the other.

"Ugh! None of it makes sense!" he growled in frustration. Then, he stopped himself as his mind started to reason with logic, yet again. Of course it didn't make sense. He had just met them yesterday. What, were they supposed to tell them their life story or something? Tell him all their secrets just like that?

"I guess not," he murmured as he shut off the light and plopped back into his bed. "Considering what secret I hold, I wouldn't blame them." He didn't exactly want them to find out about the Fox. That was on a need-to-know basis…for now, at least. Until he trusted them, fully, and utterly, as far as they were concerned, the Kyuubi was just a legend who was slain by the Yondaime Hokage.

"In hindsight, how the hell did we ever fall for such bullshit?" Naruto pondered amid thin air before looking at his clock. It digitally read eight fifty-five. Naruto's eyes bulged.

"Oh, crap! I'm going to be late!" he exclaimed while jumping up from his bed. By some act of the Kami, he had managed to brush his teeth, put on his garish, orange outfit, wash his face, and be out the door within two-and-a-half minutes. He was in such a rush; he nearly forgot to lock the door. He fled down the streets of Konohagakure like a bat out of hell.

(Konoha Library 3rd district, 0859 hours)

Outside of the Konoha Library, Sasuke and Sakura waited for the presumably late blond to show up. Sasuke couldn't help but smirk. Barely a day in knowing the guy and he could already tell when the guy was going to run afoul with Father Time.

"So, how much you want to bet that he's probably rushing his ass off right now?" Sasuke smarmily asked his pink haired female friend.

"It's hard to say," she responded, looking at a nearby clock. "Technically, he's not late. It's about a minute or so until nine." She was thankful that she was able to get out of the house this early. But then again, she didn't care if they did say no. She would've snuck out, regardless.

Sasuke grunted, "I suppose you're right. He isn't technically late. I'm sure he'll be here."

As if on cue, a blur of orange ran past them skidding to a stop, and there was Naruto Uzumaki grinning from ear to ear. Sakura smirked. "I told you he'd be here."

Sasuke waved her off with a dismissive gesture. "Yeah, yeah, yeah…"

Naruto, however, was a bit confused. "Um…why wouldn't I be here?" he questioned a bit dumbly.

"Oh, nothing. Sasuke here thought you'd show up late," she answered, smiling sweetly at her victory.

"Asshole…" Naruto simply rolled his eyes.

"Shall we?" Sasuke asked, completely ignoring Naruto's comment, as all three of them turned to the entrance of the library. Naruto and Sakura nodded as the trio traveled up the steps. Naruto gulped a bit and looked at the both of them. They all nodded to each other and he pushed the door open and they entered.

(Hokage's Tower, 0905 hours)

Hiruzen Sarutobi, the Sandaime Hokage, watched the three younglings as they walked into the library. He couldn't place his finger on it but something felt…different about Naruto. He was….serious. The boy could claim he hated mornings all he wanted, but this was around the time he routinely pulled off his pranks, which was why he was using his crystal ball to monitor him. What he didn't expect was to find the son of Fugaku, and a rosette-haired young lady.

"My, Naruto, just what has happened to you?" the aged Hokage mulled over, voicing his curiosity to an audience of none. Of course he wanted the boy to make friends. In fact, that was the sole reason he made that law so many years ago. It was in order for Naruto to have somewhat of a normal life despite his…extraordinary circumstances.

He looked over at the picture of Minato on the right wall hanging.

"You bastard," he clipped without a hint of venom in his tone, "why couldn't you have let me do the sealing? Leaving your own son to the fate of a Jinchuuriki?"

Truth be told, Hiruzen wasn't the one who told the village about Naruto's secret. It was some imbecile ANBU who had stretched the truth about the boy, and the rumors spread through the village faster than a forest fire. He clenched his fists. The ANBU thought he was clever, but he couldn't escape the deductive and inquisitive retired Hokage. He wasn't called the "Professor" for nothing. He executed him….personally.

"I guess what's done is done," he dejectedly commented as a knock came on his door. He smiled. He had been expecting this one. "Come in, Iruka." The aged senior took off his hat as the intended guest crossed the threshold. A tanned, brunet man with a somewhat droopy ponytail tied back opened the door and closed it from behind. The true defining feature on the man's face was the noticeable scar that ran deep across the bridge of his nose.

"You wanted to see me, Hokage-sama?" Per usual custom, Iruka Umino always asked tersely, professionally, and succinctly. Hiruzen motioned for the head instructor to sit down, which he did so.

"Yes, I'm here to discuss Naruto," Hiruzen mentioned without preamble. Iruka was surprised. What could be so important that about Naruto that the Hokage wanted to personally see him?

Hiruzen continued, before Iruka could voice his question. "I've been keeping an eye on him, for the past few weeks. As you know, he'll be eligible to enter the Academy six months from now, coincidently, along with the other heirs to the clans within the village."

Iruka frowned. "Are you saying you're worried that Naruto will cause trouble for them? Because—"

Hiruzen held up a hand indicating silence. "No. That's not at all what I'm implying. Iruka….I think you may be in for a shock when Naruto enters the Academy when the time comes."

Now, the aptly named "Kindred Dolphin" was entirely confused. "What do you mean, Hokage-sama?" He was not afraid to admit ignorance, if he didn't understand.

Hiruzen smiled, and motioned for him to come and look into his crystal ball. Iruka raised an eyebrow, but complied with the old man's request. His eyes widened.

"Is that…?" He asked, unsure if his eyes were deceiving him.

"Yes," he declared, confirming his suspicions," that would be none other than Sasuke Uchiha, second son of the Konoha Keimu Butai (Leaf Military Police Force) Captain, Fugaku."

"Wow..." was all Iruka could say. Naruto…befriended an Uchiha? He'd honestly expected if Naruto were to befriend someone, it'd be a Nara or an Akimichi…but an Uchiha? The son of the Captain of the Police Forces, no less?

Not in a million years!

After getting over his initial shock, he finally noticed a pink-haired girl.

"Who's the girl?"

"If my memory serves me correctly, she is a Haruno…a civilian family. But not for long, considering the two she's mingling with."

"What does this all mean?"

Hiruzen smiled. He'd asked the million-ryou question. Someone was bound to get paid. "It means Iruka, that the Academy is about to become a hell of a lot more interesting. Something tells me these three will go on to become legends."

The younger ninja blinked at the man. "Legends? How do you figure that?" Surely, he must've had some logical reason to make a proclaimed statement like that.

"Iruka, do you not remember who I trained and who trained me?" Hiruzen asked semi-rhetorically.

Who didn't know? Hiruzen Sarutobi, the Shinobi no Kami, who trained the Legendary Three Ninja, and fought in all Three Great Shinobi World Wars. He was trained by Hashirama Senju, the Shodai Hokage, and Tobirama Senju, the Nidaime Hokage. He was a shinobi whose name was known to virtually every shinobi in existence. If anyone was qualified to say who had potential to be legends, it was him.

Iruka chose not to respond.

"Call it a hunch, gut feeling, prophetic vision, I don't care. These three….they have amazing potential," he began before his gaze hardened on Iruka, who was beginning to sweat at the stare. "I warn you now, Iruka: I will not allow your assistants to impede their—mostly Naruto's—progress. Keep them in line to show fairness despite how they no doubt feel about Naruto's status as a Jinchuuriki." He definitely was not sugarcoating there.

The even-mannered Chuunin winced, but nodded. "I understand, sir. I will do my best."

Hiruzen bobbed his head once. "Good. Keep them on a good leash….otherwise I may have to put them down." The tone in his voice was ice cold and dead serious, and Iruka couldn't help but dumbly nod, yet again. Kind the old man was, but when needed, he could scare the ever living shit out of anyone if he wanted to.

Iruka felt apprehensive to speak at the moment. And just as his demeanor became cold, it was gone in an instant and replaced with the same warm smile that radiated the Will of Fire. He smiled again at his Hokage's reassurance.

Hiruzen stood up and looked outside the window where nearly all of Konoha was in view. He took a puff of his pipe.

"Iruka…I never got a chance to say this, but…thank you…" he cordially stated.

"Hokage-sama?" Iruka asked, confused, but the wizened Fire Shadow continued on, uninterrupted.

"…for showing Naruto kindness, when few would even give him the time of day," the Professor explained. Iruka nodded in understanding as Hiruzen continued. "I love this village with all of my heart and would gladly give my life if it meant we saw another sunrise. However, at times, I grow impatient with their…less than stellar response to Naruto's status as a Jinchuuriki."

"You feel they are ungrateful?" Iruka asked quizzically.

Hiruzen smiled, even though Iruka couldn't see it with his back turned. The Chunin was far more insightful than most gave him credit for. Then again, growing close to Naruto over the years, he'd sort of had to figure out people since it'd been tough for the instructor to gain the boy's trust….what little he had, anyhow.

"You're insightful as ever, Iruka," the Hokage praised, causing said person to blush in embarrassment. "The Yondaime gave his life for this village…asked Naruto to be treated as a hero…and yet…they simply don't acknowledge his existence." Hiruzen's voice was neutral, but even Iruka could detect the subtle undercurrent of desolation that the Hokage tried to hide.

"Well…at the very least, they don't treat him like some other villages treat their Jinchuuriki," Iruka countered, not sure if he was trying to reassure himself or the Hokage.

Hiruzen frowned. "Ah, yes. Indeed. As much as I feel sorry for Naruto, he's still considered human for the most part. Hell, even Danzo thought it beneath him to try to turn him into a weapon…"

Iruka stood up suddenly. "Whoa, Hokage-sama…Please, forgive me if I'm rude, but are you sure to trust me with such sensitive information?" While Iruka knew he could keep a secret, he was only a chuunin for Heaven's sake! Most shinobi would kill for the "juicy details" or the S-Class Village secrets, but he didn't want to carry the burden of having awareness of those clandestine bits of intelligence. Plausible deniability went a long way in the shinobi world.

Hiruzen didn't even bat an eyelash. "Yes…I am. I feel like I can trust you…and my gut has never steered me wrong." The Kindred Dolphin still wasn't convinced, but he wasn't about to argue otherwise. He simply sighed.

"We shall continue this talk later. For now, monitor the boy…and his new group of friends. From afar, of course. I don't want Naruto know I'm keeping an eye on him."

Iruka couldn't help but smirk. "Is that an order or a request?"

"Consider it both," the Professor said with a smirk of his own. "You're dismissed." With a nod, Iruka sat up and took his leave, feeling slightly better after talking with his Hokage.

When Iruka left, Hiruzen immediately turned to his right, as a voice came from the shadows.

"You know it's not polite to talk about others behind their backs," the voice was deep, showed signs of age, yet it still commanded an aura of respect and fear to match even the Sandaime, himself.

Hiruzen scoffed at the eavesdropper, wooden cane and all. "Coming from you, Danzo? How hypocritical of you," Hiruzen spitefully chided. The newly named Danzo stepped out from the shadows. Judging from his appearance, he was a man that had seen enough battle no man should see in several lifetimes. He was old, and sickly, and leaned on a cane for support. His right eye was covered in bandages as were a part of his head.

"But, in any case, I'm glad you're here. We have much to discuss."

"Yes, Hiruzen…we do."

(Konoha Library, 0949 hours)

"Good call, Naruto. Honestly, I wasn't expecting you to suggest we read up on our history first," Sakura praised. Sasuke pursed his lips as a silent acknowledgment. Even he was impressed. At first, he was against it, but Naruto's reasoning certainly made a hell of a lot of sense.

The trio was currently sitting in a corner on cushions, triangularly, with several scrolls and traditional books near them. They chose a place as far away from where people normally went so they could talk in peace and private.

Naruto grinned sheepishly. "Oh, come on, Sakura, you know I can't take all the credit. You're the one who found the book first. Otherwise, I'd have gone straight to the jutsu on impulse."

The rosette-haired girl simply shook her head. "You know, Naruto, you're humble almost to the point of being annoying."

Naruto stared at both of them seriously. "Pride is before the fall. We should know our limits so we can surpass them. That's what Hokage-jijii told me, when I asked him some of the things I needed to do to become a great shinobi."

"Naruto's right," the dark-eyed Uchiha spoke up. "I've read some of my clan history…and as much as it hurts my pride, my clan's number one weakness is our arrogance." He looked down as if ashamed. "I've seen how prideful and arrogant my father has been…thinking himself superior to everyone because he's simply an Uchiha. I disagree…"

"….." Naruto and Sakura said nothing, but intently listened to the Uchiha as he let his personal feelings out.

He looked back at the fellow male and female of their group. "So…let's start with the basics…so we'll have a head start when we enter the Academy, and to expand our knowledge of how everything works." Naruto and Sakura smirked.

"Let's do this!" Sakura delicately shouted, unrolling a scroll and laying it down in the middle so they all could see.

"Okay, basic understanding of how our world works…" Naruto said aloud. "Five Great Shinobi Villages…Konohagakure, that's us, obviously, Kumogakure, Kirigakure, Sunagakure, and Iwagakure."

Sakura thought for a moment. "What else do they say about them? I wonder if there are any weaknesses we can discover…"

"Weaknesses? Why?" Naruto asked.

"Think about it…if we know what their general weaknesses are, we can better be prepared if, heaven forbid, we ever go to war," Sakura explained in a scholarly fashion.

"Or for the Chunin Exams," Sasuke added, looking at the scroll.

"Huh?" they both said in response.

Sasuke simply unrolled a part that of the scroll that caught his eye so he could detail further. "Look at this, 'As a tradition rather than an actual international law, the Chunin Exams are held twice every year in a different shinobi village to show off each village's promising genin.'"

"I see," Naruto uttered while beginning to understand. He blinked once for good measure. "This is a replacement for war. Quite ingenious, when you think about it.

Sasuke nodded. "If the villages can't show deterrence by war, why not do the next best thing? Show off your most talented genin in front of all the villages, to see what kind of potential they have."

Naruto frowned. "There's a problem with that." Logic started to circulate through his mind again. "Not all five villages are present at any one Chunin Exam."

"Well, Naruto-kun, that's why there's rotation…see here?" Sakura interjected as she pointed to a diagram that seemed to show how the host village was chosen. According to it, it alternated with Konohagakure at the top to Kumo, then Suna, then Kiri, and finally Iwa. "Now, then, think about it…what about this order suggests that all five won't attend at the same time?" Sakura asked while anticipating no other questions.

Naruto stood there thinking about the implications of all this. Not at Sakura's question, no. But they were each challenging each other. Testing each other's wits. Most importantly of all, learning from each other, in ways no instructor could ever teach them.

"Geographical locations," Sasuke said aloud as he sat back in disbelief. It was so simple, yet so hidden at the same time! Sakura smirked. He had hit the nail on the head!

"Naruto, give me a map," Sasuke politely, but sternly, requested. Naruto shrugged and he showed him a scroll with a map of the Elemental nations. The minute it opened, everything clicked in Naruto's mind.

"Wow…"

Of course! Depending on which village was hosting the exams, certain villages couldn't make the journey simply because it was too long, along with crossing other smaller village's territory, which was a goddamned mess politically. This year the exams were to be held in Kumo, which prevented Suna and Iwa from participating , simply due to it not being worth the journey and mess involved.

"You guys catch on quick," Sakura said as if proud of herself for her achievement.

Naruto smirked. "Didn't think we'd be able to keep up with you mentally, did you?"

Sasuke looked at her funnily. "Is that so?"

"Oh, hush, you two. You know I was just teaching you guys…as well as you guys are teaching me."

"Heh, bet your mom must be proud to have such a smart daughter," Sasuke commented without thinking, laughing a bit, and Sakura's mood immediately deflated.

"Yeah…soooo proud," she said solemnly.

Naruto's eyes narrowed. 'As I suspected…something is wrong. Is that how she hides it? When she can show of her intelligence? When he mentioned her mom…'

"Sakura, you okay?" Sasuke asked, seeing her dejected look. She shook her head.

"Don't worry about me, Sasuke. I'm f-fine," she cracked. Sasuke frowned, but said nothing more. Naruto sighed, deciding now was a great time to change the subject. He reached for another piece of parchment.

"History of Konoha?" Sasuke read the kanji. Naruto shrugged his shoulders in response. "Better now, than later, eh?" In response, they both groaned. Naruto simply grinned in response. Oh, boy, was this going to be fun.

(Unknown location)

"Are you sure of this information, Zetsu?" A tall, spiky-haired figure in a dark cave inquired in a monotone voice.

"Yes, I'm positive, Leader-sama," Zetsu replied. Zetsu was truly a strange shinobi. He was more plant, than anything. Half of his body was black, and the other half, white. He seemed to have a dual personality, with the ebony side of him being more malevolent.

"Well, then. Things are about to become interesting once the world learns of this," the 'Leader' replied, his face still masked by the darkness. The only thing that was visible in his silhouette was his hypnotic vortex shaped eyes.

"Leader-sama, such sensitive information could—" A quick glare shut Zetsu up.

"Don't question me ever again, Zetsu…do I make myself clear?"

"Yes, sir," he responded meekly.

"Good…now, get out of my sight," he commanded dismissively with a flick of his hand. Zetsu nodded and vanished from his leader's sight.

The Leader felt a presence behind him. "Shall we accept the deal?" the voice was soft…and feminine.

"Of course, Konan. It's not every day Akatsuki is hired by those within a village to assassinate a Kage for a Jinchuuriki."

"So, then…." Konan began.

"Yes…in exchange for the Eight Tails…we shall eliminate the Raikage….permanently."

(End.)

Oh, snap! What could possibly be going in the Hidden Cloud to where the Raikage is wanted dead? Find out next chapter!

I'm really sorry for waiting an ENTIRE year for chapter two. I have no excuses, whatsoever. Only that I have been extremely lazy and unwilling to get off my ass and write. However, if you keep the reviews coming, and I'll keep the chapters being pumped out at a reasonable pace.

I'd like to thank DarkHeroOrion, for being an awesome beta for this chapter, fixing any and all mistakes. :P Thanks, buddy.

(DHO: No problem! :P)

Until Next time guys, PEACE

Arashi.