A/N -I don't have anything to say other than Ttongsul; a traditional Korean wine which is made from faeces, particularly that of humans. On a side note, I don't own Naruto.

Now that I've made you gag and I'm ineligible for copyright, enjoy the chapter.

Chapter Five - Oh It's a Setup

Bland white walls decorated the plain square room, he really couldn't tell what they thinking when designing this place; it held no colour, no personality and quite ironically, no life. That thought made him grimace as he realised a frightening fact, most people to enter this room would never leave it; that was alive at least.

The Jounin-sensei took his eyes off his orange backed book for a quick second as he glanced at the only other person in the room; he sighed and shook his head at his unmoving form before his one visible eye darted back to the book, obvious stress precedent on his usually calm face. 'To think, one punch did that much damage.' He was feeling guilty about the whole thing as it was completely his fault, that being said, the situation wasn't as serious as he first thought.

It had been three years since he had actually fought another person. While training it was always his clone that received the brunt of his new abilities, however now he had realised that was a very bad idea. Since he had started training he knew his strength had greatly increased, but the fact that he wasn't able to control his own punch shocked him. You would think it would be like riding a bike, that once he had learned it he would always know the skill but apparently not.

After training alone for so long with his punching bag being rocks and clones he didn't know much meaning of the phrase 'holding back.' When trying to deliver a firm punch to Naruto he dealt one that was close to impaling the boy.

He could only compare the feeling to lifting heavy weights. Once you lift something heavy, anything slightly lighter feels like a feather only this time instead of that feather being a thirty foot boulder it was a fragile pre-teen that had only just graduated from the academy.

He again looked down at the sleeping blond, this time taking in the visible wound in the centre of his stomach. The fact that a wound was still visible on a Jinchuuriki's body after three days was a testament on its own at how much damage he had done. The fact that Naruto hadn't as much as moved a muscle in the three days was another.

Thinking about that was a rather scary feeling for the experienced Ninja, not many people could survive a wound like that; if the initial blow didn't kill you then the internal damage or blood loss certainly would.

The whole situation he had landed himself into was very negative. Most of the council weren't happy, that in itself was the understatement of the year; the Hokage definitely wasn't and he had a feeling Jiraiya would want a talk with him shortly. He resisted a shudder; the only positive thing to come out of it was that Ino or Sasuke wasn't the victim. Unlike Naruto they didn't have abnormal healing, if odds weren't in his favour then they would have received the blow and only one outcome would come from that.

A low groan snapped him out of his thoughts, head darting up he took in the form of a disgruntled Naruto, his eyes were scrunched tight and hands unconsciously gripping the bed sheets, a clear sign that he was in pain.

As if on protective instinct he slowly reached his hand forward grabbing Naruto on the shoulder; giving him a light shake trying to find some way to bring him out of his now uncontrollable shiver. "Naruto, Naruto! Hey wake up, it's okay-" His panicked voice was caught dead in his throat when the blonde's cold blue eyes snapped open and his hand darted forward grabbing Kakashi by the throat.

As quick as the hand shot out it retracted immediately with Naruto sitting bolt upright. Looking around the room his glazed over eyes came into focus; his mind immediately took in everything. It wasn't training ground seven, white walls could only mean the oh-so familiar hospital and Kakashi was sitting opposite him trying to catch his knocked out breath. "What the hell are you doing?"

Kakashi rubbed his throat in pain before glancing back, "I could ask you the same thing."

Naruto leaned back in his pillow before speaking in a deadpan tone, although obvious pain was still present in his face, "I live alone in a village that hates me, don't you think it would be a little obvious how I react when being waken up in quite a rough manner. Reflexes Kakashi, reflexes." While speaking he crunched his hand to emphasize his point.

Kakashi had a lot to say and explain, healing factors and all, Naruto probably wouldn't be able to keep consciousness for long but he wanted to get one thing out of the way at least, "Naruto, I'd just like to say sorry for what I did; it was an accident but as a sensei-"

Naruto just waved his hand, "Meh, don't sweat," He pulled off the bed sheets and hopped out of the bed to give his arms a few swings not noticing that Kakashi's eyes were that of saucers, "I'm good as new anyway, although what did happen?"

Kakashi really didn't know what was going on right now, 'He shouldn't be awake let alone standing. The doctor said it would be two weeks at least before he could be up and moving.' He shook his head and answered the question, "I sort of punched you with too much force."

Naruto had walked over to the far side of the room obviously looking for something, "You punched me? Oh yeah, that. By the way, you have a hell of a punch; it really hurt."

Kakashi shook his head, "You shouldn't be moving Naruto or you'll reopen the wound, I punched you so hard that it pierced you; I broke a few of your ribs and they tell me that the internal bleeding was bad." Again, that was an understatement, regardless of his healing factor, the boy shouldn't be awake.

Back turned to Kakashi, Naruto just looked down at his stomach and shrugged, "Doesn't look that bad," He found and grabbed a stray jug of water and foregoing a glass started to drink.

Kakashi just watched his new student with interest as Naruto didn't stop, instead choosing to forget oxygen and lowering the two litre jug. Instead of disrupting him he observed. Naruto set the jug down before he saw the back of his head again searching for something else, 'You have just survived an injury that would kill any normal person; you have taken part in a test to decide the future of your career and not to mention you're in hospital. All of these things and you're worried about food.' His internal thoughts weren't that of frustration, just bafflement.

Naruto had detected the silence and turned around, mouth now full of treats he swallowed before asking, "So I'm free to leave." Without waiting for an answer he started walking away only to be grabbed by Kakashi and forcefully dragged back to the bed.

With Naruto back in station he again sat down opposite him, "Now, it's clear you have no interest or you're just plain stupid but I'm here to tell you about how you got on with your test."

Naruto just scratched the back of his head in confusion, "Isn't it obvious, I'm being paired with the only loyal Uchiha and a Yamanaka clan heir, even if we failed your test you would have passed us. You want to get Sasuke strong and quickly so he can defend himself while maybe having a child or two. Having a clan heir rejected into the life of a Ninja by the mandatory task of a Genin exam would not only be an insult to the clan but it would be declaring that the Yamanaka's next generation aren't up to scratch with the rest. No matter what happened I knew we would pass." He finished with a yawn making it all to clear what he thought about the farce.

During the explanation Kakashi's shoulders just shrunk further and further. Just the thought of having to teach someone with a mind like sensei while also having the mannerisms and brashness of Kushina was a frightening thought. "Although it's a sad truth, you are correct," All Ninja villages, not just Konoha showed their golden surface and kept the dagger, cloak and filth out of view; even then it was still capable of siphoning through and in this case you had children being given distinct advantages over others despite the so called fairness and prestige of Konoha's academy.

He pushed Naruto back down onto the bed when he again tried to make his leave, "However, for the record you would have passed anyway."

Naruto showed confusion, "How so?"

This time Kakashi eye smiled, he had finally gained the boy's interest. "At the start of the test I told you three words; endure to persevere. In my opinion this phrase is the basis of being a Ninja. At the end of the task, you three had performed well; you were able to use teamwork, you were able to use communication and most importantly, you were able to survive."

Naruto gave him a blunt stare, "Elaborate."

Doing just that he continued, "At the start of the test you were all able to recognise that I was an opponent that couldn't be beat. If the team were to stay and fight I would call you stupid, if some members were to flee and one stay I would have just finished him or her there and then, thankfully you all tried to escape as a team."

Naruto understood were his sensei was coming from, "I get it. It was a test to see if our initial reaction was to fight as a team, split up or run."

He nodded his head, "Exactly. If you ever remember anything it's that survival is the most important. It's better to fail the mission and fight another day than die a needless death. After that it was pretty straightforward, you all impressed me with your actions; you and Sasuke both were able to realise that you couldn't complete the task alone, this was an arrogant flaw that I was afraid you would possess but it appears not." It was as simple as that, they were never going to beat him and complete the task, it just wasn't possible. That being said, they put up a very good fight that impressed him; they did the right thing, they communicated and they didn't give in so in his mind they had passed with flying colours.

Naruto squinted his eyes; it was obvious that he had unanswered questions, "What about Sasuke? He left Ino when you confronted her." If that wasn't a fail then what was.

Kakashi was more than ready for the explanation, "Ino wasn't able to keep up with the pace that was required. She had fallen behind, and by the time Sasuke realised she had already been captured. It was a good decision on his part to try and regroup with you rather than get himself knocked out of the game trying to perform a needless rescue."

Naruto nodded his head; it did make sense however it just raised another question. "If you fought Ino first, how come I was the guinea pig when it came to the punches, when I found her she was in pretty good shape despite being up to the neck in dirt and here I am sitting in hospital with you freaking out that I should be dead or something?" As usual, his descriptions were blunt.

Kakashi just chuckled nervously, "You see that's why I was so thankful. It just so happened that the only one out of the three that could somewhat shrug it off received it."

Naruto looked at him incredulously and shook his head, "Shrug it off. You're an asshole, you know that...you also didn't answer the question."

Kakashi shrugged, "When I fought Ino it wasn't one of my clones, it was me. I decided to see what she could do and let her come at me. She actually knows a few Jutsu and she impressed me. Whenever I had seen enough I trapped her with that Jutsu."

Naruto blinked in realization, "So the only reason she isn't in comatose is out of sheer luck and chance."

"Hai."

He again blinked incredulously, "Do you realise how stupid you are, I understand not being able to control your strength and all but there's a difference between a friendly punch and impaling somebody with your fist." He lifted his hospital gown revealing a large scab which was the size and shape of a fist to emphasize his point.

He could only shake his head before he thought of another problem, "And what of Sasuke, I take it you didn't impale him either?"

Kakashi tried to laugh it off but Naruto's disapproving glare was one that was eerily familiar, "By the time I fought him you had already destroyed the Shadow clone that hit you-"

"Ah right, that makes sense," Before he got to finish Naruto cut across him, "The memories transferred over and you were able to correct the mistake."

Between the entire dilemma that he had gotten into and the then the fuss that was another thing that surprised him, Naruto could use the Kage Bunshin no Jutsu and by the sounds of things had already learned of its unique ability. "I'm impressed, you figured out its usefulness already; you really are a prodigy for your age."

Naruto ignored the comment and rested his hands behind his head, "The word prodigy gets thrown around too often these days, anyone that is slightly better than the others in their year is looked upon as the Yondaime Hokage's secret love child," His brow quirked as an amusing thought came across him, "Come to think of it, if there was one they would be around my ag-"

"So Naruto don't you want to hear about your teammates?" Kakashi's voice cut across Naruto's rambling, he now understand what Lord Third meant when he said Naruto had a very open mind. Naruto acted like anything was possible and nothing was fact.

Now that he thought about it, Naruto had a few qualities from most people he was related too. Mash every bad quality about his relatives together and add a dash of prodigal and you had the delinquent that was Naruto Uzumaki, hell; in a way there was even a little of an Itachi persona in him. The one bad quality that the teen ever displayed before the massacre was overconfidence, he would outright sit down and close his eyes in the midst of battle because it didn't faze him, he could already tell Naruto was the same.

Naruto ignored him, instead sporting a slight grin. "You know how easy that would be for me. I have blue eyes, I suppose I pass as a kid genius; hell I even have the same hair colour." Fame, money and leisure would be in abundance and his less than desirable reputation would be all but demolished and replaced as Konoha's golden boy.

Kakashi read his students thoughts with slight amusement, between the glazed over eyes, the small smile and that far off look he had a pretty good idea what he was thinking. "Don't forget the fan-girls, the paparazzi and you'd probably have the two out of the five elemental nations wanting your head." The remark was enough to snap the blonde out of his self induced trance.

"Now, that I've got your attention again I'll let you know what they told me so I can get going. The doctor treating you says that your not to be doing anything for a long time, considering he said that when it was likely you would..." he just scratched the back of his head while looking at the floor nervously, "I'm pretty sure you can be back to action shortly" He already knew that Naruto wouldn't listen but still, as a sensei it was his duty to tell him.

As expected Naruto let off another yawn, "So when am I allowed outa here?" Having a second thought he added, "And where's my clothes, this thing is way too loose?" Seriously, who would design a hospital gown like this? Any major movement and he would be revealing the family jewels and it was like wearing thin cardboard, a major no-no and he wanted his clothes back.

Kakashi deadpanned at Naruto, "You're not. Weren't you listening to me, you're supposed to out cold, incapable of movement. Any of this registering." His scolding tone apparently counted for nothing nowadays. It had once been the nightmare for Anbu recruits and thus still was to the current generation of Anbu. Naruto's drowsy face and half lidded eyes just stared at him, clearly unimpressed.

Naruto stretched his neck and quelled an itch in his ear with his pinkie, "I could pretend to nod my head in obedience but we both know you'd see right through it. I hate hospitals so when you leave I'll probably find a way out too. Now where are my clothes?" Whether his words came off rude or just being a smart ass he didn't really know; he was just telling the truth.

Kakashi's shoulders yet again slumped along with his pride. With a mellow voice he said, "They were destroyed," Before Naruto got a chance to complain he continued, "And the money for new gear is on the table." It was a hell of a lot more than what was necessary for some clothes but it wasn't like he didn't owe the boy some interest.

Naruto just nodded in acceptance like anything, finding the money to buy clothes would be a pain but if it was provided for him he couldn't complain. After some quick conversation and minor details like Team Seven's meeting place and time a rather humbled Kakashi was about to leave the building. It wasn't like he was rude or even disrespectful but he had a slight feeling some of his actions irked the man; he would think about it later because now he had a far greater problem. "How am I going to get from the hospital to a Shinobi shop while remaining decent in a hospital gown?"

Having already refused to give the boy a hand in getting out Kakashi shook his head in mild amusement, as he was just about to leave though his pondering mind did have one more question. "Say, Naruto. The other day I asked you three to tell me your dream. You never answered the question."

Naruto grabbed the money pouch by the table before jumping to his feet, "What is with you guys and dreams," His tone abrupt yet questioning, "Were Ninja. We kill, lie and pillage for the sake of money. Sasuke can kill his brother, Ino can water her flowers and you can do whatever the hell you want and that's it. There shouldn't just be one goal or dream for each person because what are you going to do when you achieve it, it would just be boring." He didn't disagree with dreams; dreams were important, if you didn't have a goal or something to strive for then what was the point in doing so in the first place. That being said, he just didn't deem it necessary to shout out loud and let the world know about your reason for living like so many others seemed to do.

Call him a kill joy but it just wasn't his style.

Kakashi thought he understood what Naruto meant, "So you don't believe in limiting yourself, you just want to live and see what happens." The statement was received with a shaking head. He briefly considered asking Naruto what he meant but he decided against it. "Well then, what is the so called dream of the prodigal enigma that is Naruto Uzumaki?"

Naruto just smirked having the perfect answer prepared, "I see nothing wrong with being able to lie in bed all day with a beautiful women, watching good movies and eating junk food; then probably have get it on every now and then to put the day in." He saw Kakashi's reaction, "What? I'm a simple guy."

It wasn't his dream, but from a male to another male, it was a damn good one.

Kakashi had all but bolted from the hospital after his weird yet believable lie had been spoken; believable because it was him that said it and weird because it was a twelve year old kid's goal. Either or, it was something that only someone with an unpredictable nature verging on bat-shit insane could get away with.

Walking down the middle of Konoha's market district with nothing but the thin hospital robes clinging to his skin Naruto could be seen adopting a thoughtful impression, 'Who knew being me could be beneficial.'

He was a bit of a freak; not a freak in the sense that he enjoyed cannibalism or other sick acts despite what the populace probably thought, but in that he was different. Just right now for example he had to return looks of apathy and annoyance to the villagers that gave them. It was clear to anyone that he didn't care what other people thought of him but this lead to another thing; it was clear to anyone with a conscious that he knew he was hated and right now he must be really hated because the looks he was receiving was way worse than normal.

Adding all this up is what really had Naruto's mind confused right now.

He wasn't selfish, just defensive. He wasn't, to put it plainly, an asshole; just fair. Despite all this his sensei had been somewhat worried about him when he woke up; he could see that he was quite relieved when he was fine and he could also tell that he didn't mind talking to him which was an unfamiliar experience.

The rustle of Kakashi's money pouch in his hand only implemented his decision that he liked Kakashi. The guy may have nearly killed him but sure, mistakes happen and he wasn't one to hold a grudge.

For once in his life being the hated and despised village scapegoat actually paid off. He had met someone that treated him fairly and even provided him funds for destruction of property; on top of that this guy just happened to be his new sensei. All the worries of being mistreated and neglected just because of who he was were instantly knocked from his mind. With one less thing to worry about the standard scowl on his face lightened.

Naruto kept wandering through the market district looking around. While he had been here before it didn't stop him from checking every place out trying to find out the best place to shop so he wouldn't get ripped off. Being broke meant he was careful with money so even if he was able to save a little it was always something. Strolling past shops his roaming eyes were able to point out ones that had done him in, 'Shinobi Goods and Wears, they charge double. Konoha's Best, they don't let me in to charge double and then there's the General Shinobi; they charge triple...'

Naruto outright refused to get done in by one of them so the search continued until he stopped at a rather plain looking shop with the simple sign reading Higurashi's above, he'd never been there before so he opted to give it a shot.

Tenten let out a yawn as she sat at the counter of the weapons shop her family owned. It had been a long week so far, add the fact that her one day off was being spent working at the family business and she wasn't in the best of moods. Considering her team had been formed for just over a year and this had been one of her only ever days off she had good reason too, Guy-sensei was a slave-driver, Lee was happy to be the slave and Neji was Neji. If he was annoyed at being trained so hard he wouldn't voice it; of course, this was because that was very un-Hyuga like and Neji was the embodiment of a Hyuga.

Things never seem to work out huh?

Considering that Guy-sensei wanted to go on another training trip it definitely had her spirits down. Last time they did that they travelled to Suna in a record three days; that was record time for a group of Genin but to make it all worse they didn't stop. As soon as they reached to village gates their sensei had declared that they must show the power of youth by running straight back to Konoha. Set aside the fact that they weren't supposed to be in wind country and that they nearly started a war it was quite a tiring experience to say the least.

Then there was the most recent annoyance being one Naruto Uzumaki. It wasn't really his fault but she needed somebody to blame, didn't she?

There sensei had recited the same boring speech about his rival Kakashi Hatake for the past year. His so called eternal rival then decided to do the very thing that she so wished he wouldn't, the man had decided to take on a Genin team of his own. This would have been fine and dandy but Guy was determined to outmatch him in this youthful dual of apprentices as he called it.

That was only the start of it though.

Guy-sensei gave them a small description on the team, There was Ino, the clan heir to the Yamanaka and Sasuke, the last loyal Uchiha. Though prestigious and rare, these titles meant nothing to the three; even Lee had no want to fight new Genin just for the sake of it. That's when the last name was told, Naruto Uzumaki, the new Rookie of the Year.

That was all that needed to be said. Neji wanted to fight his younger counterpart as he had previously held the title, Lee had wanted to fight somebody of similar strength to Neji when they had first graduated; needless to say, both boys were foaming at the mouth to fight this Uzumaki so Guy had stepped up their training regime receiving no complaints.

Yep, it had been a long week and it was sure to get longer; with Uzumaki receiving a training accident this harder regime would probably go on for longer than expected.

The bell to the store rang, signifying a potential customer, "Hello, welcome to-"

As Tenten's over relaxed form straightened her eyes drifted to the door where she saw a blond kid that she'd never seen before, she quickly took in his form which made her eyes widen, it fit the description. She then looked at his attire and quickly put two and two together, "Hey!" She pointed at him wearily, "Are you Naruto Uzumaki."

Naruto turned to face her curiously. He'd never seen this girl before so the fact that she knew his name was strange, add on the fact that she was an evidently older, pretty girl with cute styled buns and his curiosity had been spiked, "Yeah, that's me."

She took a few more moments to take in his strange appearance, her eyes lingering on his hair were it would slowly fade from bright blonde to red at the tips, huh, that's weird, she had never seen anyone like that. She leaned her hand over the counter before resting her head on it in a questioning manner, "What are you doing here?"

The tone of her voice stated it like he had committed the greatest of crimes which made him look at her questioningly, "Don't look so shocked, this is a shop, people come in here too, I don't know, buy things, do they not? Ya-know; if it's a problem I can leave?"

Tenten was taken aback by the calm answer but even more so by the answer itself, "No, no. That's not what I mean. You are Naruto Uzumaki right, "She received a nod, "So then why are you not in hospital?"

The strange girl left it at that. 'Damn Kakashi, what have you gotten me into.' He's knocked out for three days and when he comes back his hard earned clothes are destroyed, the villagers glare at him even more and now he had strangers asking him questions who somehow knew his name, on the bright side said stranger is a young teenage beau-. He cut his thoughts before they unravelled; there was no bright side, this was just bad and it was best it stayed that way until he got answers. "How did you know I was in the hospital?"

Tenten locked eyes with him, clear shock on her face, "Wait you don't know. Didn't the medics tell you?"

He rubbed the back of his head in an uncaring manner, "Nah I woke up a few hours ago then left before anyone came to talk to me, you would be surprised how hard it is too break out of there too. I tried blasting through one of the walls and it didn't break so I had to sneak out and damn it was a bitch." Considering he was locked in he pressed the help button by his bed, when an old doctor came to check on him he knocked him out and used a simple henge. Then it was just a matter of walking out; if you called him heartless you'd probably be right.

She chose not to hear the profanity, too shocked by what was previously said before a small smirk appeared on her face along with the proverbial light bulb, she had formed an idea, "Well I need to get you back to the hospital. You're obviously not okay." In her mind it was simple, the sooner she got him back to hospital the further away a gruelling team fight would be. Although the training was bad, if even one of them managed to lose against a member of the newly formed Team Seven it would get ten times worse, something she wasn't willing to risk. Call her whatever; it wasn't a risk she was willing to take.

With a voice that sounded overly worried she continued, "I bet all those pain reliefs they've gave you screwed you up like they did Lee, come on, I'll take back to the hospital." Naruto looked at her strangely making it clear that he wasn't to be persuaded.

Out of everything that Tenten said Naruto wisely chose to comment on the last bit, "whose Lee?" He shook his head and cursed his reflex, "Wait, and screw it. You sell Shinobi cloths don't you?

The way he just ignored her words made it all too clear that he didn't care about what she said. Releasing a sign she went back to her relaxed position before nodding and pointing to the other corner of the shop. "What the customer wants the customer's gets," She muttered the family motto under her breath clearly fed up with her run of luck.

Turning his head Naruto gave a word of thanks before heading over unaware of the low mutterings of depression.

Tenten watched silently as he walked over to the clothing section of her store and rifled through the selection, it was quite comical watching a preteen rummage through the bundles of cloths, add on the fact that it was a drug induced hospital patient wearing the standard uniform and she would have chucked if her long term future regarding training didn't look quite so grave.

She decided to find out more about this strange character, "By the way, how'd a fresh Genin like you manage to wind up with such a bad injury? I heard Kakashi gave it to you." She made sure to put emphasis in the fresh part, she liked rubbing in the fact that she was stronger than him.

Naruto poked his head out from behind a clothes rack before waving her question off, "Kakashi gave it to me by accident and it wasn't so bad; I've had worse." He also caught the tone which only raised smirk.

Tenten took a moment to look at him, clear doubt on her face, "I don't believe you. From what I hear you were nearly impaled." No way could a fresh Genin receive injuries worse than that; considering he was lucky to be alive if he received worse then he would be dead.

This time Naruto didn't bother lifting out his head to look at her, "I said it before and I'll say it again; I've had worse. How do you know so much about me anyway..." He didn't show any annoyance at being called out as a liar, that's because there was none.

She finished it for him, "Tenten. And to answer your question; you were Rookie of the Year. That alone makes your name well known to the village, not just the Shinobi side either, then your sensei is Kakashi Hatake, the only surviving student of the Fourth Hokage, when you get a life threatening injury on your first day it's pretty likely that people will know about it." Well that would be the reason for anybody else; she simply had Guy to tell her.

Naruto walked out from behind the clothes rack holding a few pairs of pants and shirts clearly heading to the changing room, "Hmm, I didn't know I was so famous." Clear sarcasm was in his voice; he wasn't too happy at being known for getting an injury on his first day, regardless of the circumstances.

Having already accepted that she wouldn't be preventing the fight between her team mates and Naruto she decided to let him know, "As a Shinobi fame isn't what you want, because of it you've already got your hands full; my two teammates for example already want to fight you and trust me when I say that you won't be able to beat them." The more she thought about it the more it made her relax. Under Guy's vigorous and inhuman training Lee had went from dead last to unbeatable, that was a fact only to be by passed by Neji himself. It was true that a win could never be guaranteed as a Shinobi battle could end in any victor but how could some fresh Genin beat two seasoned ones?

Although it was unseen Naruto smirked, maybe getting his ass beat did have some advantages, "Ehh, I'm sure they won't be that bad. Tell them that I'm down for a spar any time."

She didn't let herself be offended by the words towards her teammates, "It's not the first time and it won't be the last," Her voice sarcastic, "Another Genin that doesn't know his place and is overconfident."

Naruto opened the changing room curtain before heading towards the counter in his new attire. Dark blue loose pants tied at the ankles with white wraps complimented black Shinobi sandals well, along with that he had a white and blue Ninja pouch tied around his right leg. Coming to his upper body was quite detailed, he wore a high collar black shirt and to make up for the lack of a sleeve he had one thin pauldron on his left shoulder; it wasn't large and looked little different than a regular T-shirt, the only difference being that it was a little more circular and cuffed out a little compared to his other arm. To finish off his love of accessories he had two dark blue bracers that went from his wrist to half way up his forearm, these would be perfect for seals.

Ignoring the small blush that Tenten was currently trying to hide he responded, "Self-confidence is the most attractive quality a person can have," He set his money pouch on the counter, "How can anyone see how great you are if you can't see it yourself?" If the glazed over eyes of Tenten was anything to go by, he had really nailed that one.

He ignored the small glare he was getting before asking, "So how much is all of this?" He seemingly gave her a set, appraising look as she did the calculations.

Tenten grabbed the money pouch before he could do anything and emptied its contents on the counter, "Well the sandals, pants and shirt are 42000 ryo," She pulled away about a quarter of his sum, "Then there's the accessories, that pauldron is unique, that means it's pricey so the overall cost is 136000 ryo." She all but laughed when his stone cold eyes resembled that of a crying puppy but thankfully she was trained at dealing with this, "Uhh please. I've already broke this type of news three times today."

Naruto checked over the price tags and ensured that he wasn't being ripped off, giving a weak smile he said, "Well at least that's one thing to be happy for. I've finally found a place I can shop."

Before Tenten had a chance to ask anything on the matter he continued, "Well I guess that'll be it." He scooped the little left of Kakashi's money into his wallet, "I was hoping to have enough for a sword or something but sure, it was necessary." He could have went for cheaper stuff but he wanted something that made him unique but more importantly that was good quality. Kakashi had given him more money than he had ever had and while the smart thing to do would be save it he had bought the highest quality the store offered so he wouldn't have to spend money like that again. It was a necessary evil in his book.

Tenten's eyes brightened, "You know how to use a sword." If another person her age could use a sword then this was the start of a friendship.

Naruto started to walk towards the exit, "Course I do, stick-em with the pointy end." As he opened the door he gave a one hand wave without looking back, "Thanks Tenten, I'll cya around."

She smiled at his laid back innocence, something about it was fun to be around, "Don't be a stranger Naruto, call round to training ground eight if you have the time and I'll let Lee and Neji know what you said." She never got a reply but as he walked past the shop window she could see a small smile on his face, something about that made her happy.

Naruto sat in his apartment meditating silently, it was too late to head to the training ground, and Ino and Sasuke were most likely at home getting ready for bed so he didn't have the slightest idea of what he could do. Kakashi had told them that the last three days had just been basic training and that the real thing would get started the day he arrived so that was something at least. He didn't want to miss out on some training because right now he needed it.

So what does the lonesome pre teen do in times of boredom? It was too late to train, and he didn't exactly own any forms of entertainment so that just left him with his thoughts.

Despite what one may think, being left to your thoughts is a terrible thing, but over time you get used to it and it can become a great weapon.

That's what Naruto found out at least; however long it took, he found that if he thought hard enough then he could theorise most problems.

Now that he was older and more of the initial innocence that every child has had left him he was currently pondering his status in the village, he was hated, that much was certain; but the question was why?

Somebody didn't just get despised for any reason; in fact he was pretty sure he was the only person in the village that had this predicament. That was something he would have to do some research on, his predicament had to have had a reason so he would find it out.

He opened his eyes briefly and took a few glances around the apartment; it was far nicer nowadays, albeit it wasn't any better, the equipment was still broke but the place had received a new coat of paint so that was a start.

While taking in his place his thoughts roamed free to another problem that would have to be dealt with, if that was even possible. Making sure he wasn't screwed over.

Today had been a good day, his new sensei seemed to be fair and thoughtful and on top of that he found a place to shop; those two problems alone where nice reliefs to his eternal worries but that's not like he still didn't have a few, the main one being his treatment now that he was a Shinobi. He knew full well that with his prompt to Genin that he was a tool, a resource to be used and expended if necessary. He had the Hokage to cover for him and a sensei that would, in realistic terms, hold his hand until he could fend for himself.

That being said there were still threats. There were elders; they held a significant amount of power, especially that guy Danzo. He was allowed to host his own entire squadron on Anbu, and that's was what creped him out. It was unlikely, but if the hate that seemed to surround him intensified because of one wrong move then he could be cut of the problems list.

At the end of the day he was an orphan. Worse yet, he was a no name orphan; he might hold the name Uzumaki but that didn't mean anything, he didn't hold the blood of an Uzumaki which Sarutobi had made sure to tell him and that was what counted, he was the definition of expendable and in another's eyes resulted in nothing more that fodder.

He continued these line of thoughts for some time, in his mind it was like a puzzle that all linked back to one thing, slowly but surely he was approaching the centre through different paths, he was pushing his boundaries and edging nearer which pleased him.

The calm breath that he exuded stopped mid-flow, eyes snapping open his hand darted towards his newly acquired Ninja pouch and he flung two kunai just in time for a grunt and a scream to go off in his house.

"Hn, Naruto you should really be more careful with these things." Sasuke appeared holding two kunai, twirling one in his finger and holding the other outright in his arm, not a second later Ino appeared from behind him, a skin shade of pale white on her face. "You're lucky I managed to catch both kunai."

Naruto motioned for them to have a seat before he leaned back, "Or unlucky, it depends on the view point you see." He ignored Sasuke's deadpan face before he gave an eye smile to Ino, "What are you two doing here, it's nearly midnight and I was about to go to sleep."

Ino made herself at home straight away by sprawling over the couch; this of course left Sasuke no room so he had no choice but to sit cross legged on the floor.

Ino responded, "Sure thing, the straight back, serious demeanour and new clothes made that real clear." While talking she kicked of her sandals and got comfortable.

It's nearly midnight, "He couldn't believe these people, "The only sleep I've had has been drug induced so..." He made shoeing actions with his hands which only resulted in the other two laughing.

After a few moments of silence it was made clear they weren't going to respond. He couldn't see Ino as he was behind the couch but he was pretty sure she was wearing a smirk similar to Sasuke's.

"Hum, why are you still here?" His voice was a little more impatient, "At least you pair aren't freaking out, and everyone else acts like I've come back from the dead." He didn't realise how ironic his words were.

Before Sasuke could answer another figure puffed into the room, "The reason there here is because I told them too; the reason they're not freaking out is because I explained what happened to them," Albeit it was in a much less truthful form.

Naruto just put his head in his hands when he saw Kakashi pop into the room, "You can't be serious."

"Deadly," Kakashi gave the typical eye smile, "We need to have a meeting and since you were so keen for doing the real test I thought we'd get this done too." Before Naruto could complain Kakashi continued, "Were having it here because if it was anywhere else you wouldn't bother coming..."

Naruto raised his arm in the air about to protest before it was slowly lowered. No way would he go to some random ass meeting at midnight.

Sasuke failed to suppress a laugh, "You look like a puppy that was just denied a treat."

Kakashi let off an eye smile when Ino chuckled. It was great that the team was getting along already as that was a major worry; Sasuke had matured greatly since the incident and with Naruto and Ino by his side he would learn to move on, "Sasuke, the amount of fucks I give about that comment is equal to your number of living relatives."

Just like that chaos ensued.

Ino let off an uncontrollable laugh; she didn't find the words themselves funny, just the fact that Naruto had the balls to say it.

Naruto sat stretched out on the floor, head leaning on one hand with one eye cracked open, that eye single eye dancing in amusement.

Sasuke... Sasuke was running through hand-signs no doubt preparing a Jutsu.

Maybe this whole sensei thing would be harder than he thought.

A/N - Okay that's it, introduction Arc is over. Next chapter will be a little training montage/overview and then Naruto's heading off on a mission. I'm really excited about writing it too as its pretty unique; I've never seen anyone do anything like it so there's that.

The mission itself is gonah be fun to write, I'm getting a few characters introduced that are important and it will give me plenty of opportunities to build Naruto's character. At the moment it's hard to get a proper grip on who he is because there's not much happening. He's a smartass, troubled prodigy and that's all you really know; the next few chaps will fix that while providing a little humour and action.

As you can probably tell, Naruto's outfit is similar to that of Cloud Strife's in Advent Children. The upper body is basically the exact same without the wolf, gloves and left sleeve. The lower body is more Shinobi like, very similar to Minato's only a darker blue and to those that really care, his Sandals are styled in the shape of Sasuke's in Shippuden.

There. All the people with a detail fetish can be happy :)

As always questions and reviews are welcome and please feel free to give me any ideas for the story.

Later.