A/N: Wow, I really didn't expect many readers, let alone followers when I posted this story! My goal had just been to force myself to learn how to polish and share my writing instead of endlessly returning to and editing files on my computer. So many thanks to all of you! Though now that there are readers I feel obligated to apologize for the long wait. I have an unpredictable schedule (long busy periods with long breaks), so I unfortunately can't promise a regular updating schedule. My goal is to write while I'm busy and proofread and post when I'm not.

Anyway, Kisame and Naruto make it to Taki, and Naruto meets Fuu. Thoughts and advice are welcome!


As they near Taki, Naruto has brown hair and has mastered the henge. He's able to perfectly match his clone, and he's even able to hold the henge when Kisame trips him and sends him stumbling. Kisame isn't confident that the kid will be able to hold it forever, but it's a good backup to the hair dye.

Plus, there is the added bonus that apparently when Naruto wants to learn something, his focus is as sharp as a kunai's blade until he's mastered it. The lack of the brat's endless prattling left Kisame in relative peace throughout their journey.

Before they come too close to Takigakure, Kisame stops, grabs Naruto by his collar, and jumps into the canopy where they are concealed by foliage.

"What was that for!" Naruto shouts as he struggles to gain his balance on the branch and re-situate his t-shirt.

Kisame casually leans against the trunk of the tree and observes the annoying brat before him. "There are some rules you have to follow or I'll never take you to see Tobi."

Naruto's scowls at the threat, but it's clear that he's horrified at the thought. "I'll follow all of them," he grumbles.

"Good," Kisame says, channeling the killing intent that gave him the name of the 'Tailless bijuu'. The brat just sticks out his tongue in response. "This is an undercover mission. You can't let anyone find out who you really are. Your last name is now Kyūryū."

"Kyūryū," Naruto mutters with a grimace. "That's not as cool as Uzumaki."

"I don't care. For the sake of this mission and the sake of seeing Tobi-san someday you'll use the name I give you."

Naruto scowls at Kisame, but he doesn't argue. Kisame hopes that means the kid will listen.

"Second, don't get into any combat situations. We do not want to bring attention to ourselves."

"Don't worry about that, Sharkface. Tobi-nii taught me all about how ninjas need to be stealthy. And I'm gonna become the greatest ninja!" Naruto shouts.

Kisame chooses to believe that Naruto didn't just display the extent of his stealth abilities. "Lastly, we're here to learn about a girl who is…special like you."

"Is she going to help me save the world?"

"Sure, brat," Kisame spits through gritted teeth, cursing Madara and the stupid lies he made up. He needs to get rid of this kid so that he can stop feeling like a glorified babysitter. He takes a deep breath (This is all for the success of our plan. I can do this.) and says, "She is imprisoned by the leader of Takigakure, so we need to learn about her and her powers so that we can take her to safety someday."

"If she's a hostage, why aren't we gonna save her right away?"

"These things take time."

"Aw, come on! You're like, super strong! And I'm pretty strong too now that I learned the henge thing. We can save her!"

"No. She's staying until Ma- Tobi is ready for her."

Naruto's clearly not happy with that response, but he seems to grudgingly accept."So what are we going to do?"

"I'm going to learn about her captors' weaknesses. You're going to befriend her and learn as much about her as you can."

Naruto's face lights up. "I've never had a friend before! Except Tobi-nii. I'll be the best undercover ninja friend ever!"

Kisame is, for the hundredth time since he met Naruto, seriously considering whether his allegiance to Madara is worth this torture. Dealing with this kid is more exhausting than any fight. "Good. Don't make me regret bringing you. Now you stay here and stay hidden. I need to find a way to get into the village, and I can't do that with an annoying brat with me."

"You take that back! I'm not an annoying brat!"

"No one can find you," Kisame hisses.

He shunshins away, but even from a distance, he can hear Naruto's shout. "If I'm a brat then you're a creepy old man that smells like stinky fish!"


"Creepy old man," Naruto growls again as he kicks the tree trunk. But as much as he hates the guy, he doesn't want to ruin this mission. He doesn't really have any other way to find Tobi-nii.

So, resigning himself to a boring couple of hours, he dutifully settles against the trunk. And maybe it's kind of comfortable. And maybe he closes his eyes just for a little bit. Sharkface has been working him like crazy the past few days. And maybe…

"Hi, what's your name?"

Naruto startles and nearly falls out of the tree. He must've fallen asleep if someone was able to sneak up on him. And boy, did she sneak up on him. She's crouched on the branch in front of him so close that her orange eyes, wide with unbridled curiosity and excitement, are mere inches from his face.

"Uhhh Uzu— Kyūryū Naruto," he says wiping the sleep from his eyes and scolding himself for the near slip up. He better get ahold of himself or he'll ruin the mission before it even begins!

"My name's Fuu! Do you want to be friends?"

"Uhhh." Naruto has never had a friend. There weren't any other kids around his age in the village, and the adults didn't really like him very much because of the trouble he liked to get into. He really wants to say yes, but he can't abandon his mission. "I, uh, can't. I have to wait here for my…teacher." Naruto cringes at the thought of Sharkface being his real teacher.

"Oh."

Her delight slips away, and Naruto immediately feels guilty. "But we can be friends if you want to hang out here with me! I was pretty bored just waiting around."

"I could tell," she says with a giggle. She nimbly settles onto the branch, straddling it with her legs just inches in front of Naruto. "So where are you from?" she asks.

Naruto hesitates to respond, but Fuu nudges him playfully. "Oh, come on! Friends tell each other things. We can't be friends if I don't know anything about you."

She's right, of course. It probably can't hurt to answer. Sharkface only told him not to tell anyone his really name. "Uzushio."

"What's that?"

"It's an island. There used to be a great civilization there, but now it's just ruins. I used to live in a village with Akari baa-chan."

"Why'd you leave?"

"Well, when baa-chan died, I didn't really have anyone left, so I wanted to find somewhere else to live."

"You don't have parents?"

"Nope. Baa-chan told me they died when I was just a baby."

A sudden sadness overcomes Fuu. For the first time since they met, she pulls away from Naruto and suddenly becomes interested in running her fingers along the bark of the branch. "I don't have any parents either."

"Really?" Naruto has never met another orphan before. All the other kids in the village had at least one parent. "What happened to them?"

Fuu shrugs. "I don't know. Shibuki won't tell me."

Naruto scowls. "We should go find this Shibuki guy and force it out of him!"

Fuu laughs. "I thought you said you have to stay here!" Naruto gives her a sheepish shrug, and she becomes pensive again. When she next speaks, her voice is barely above a whisper. "Sometimes I wonder if they just didn't want me, and Shibuki just doesn't want to say that out loud."

Naruto leans forward, face angled upward so that he can force eye contact. "Hey don't say that. You seem super great. No parents would ever want to leave you."

It's the wrong thing to say. She starts crying, and Naruto pulls away, uncertain how to deal with that. He's never talked to anyone who cried before. Baa-chan would get quiet when she was sad, and Tobi-nii never got sad.

"Uhh. I meant that as a good thing. Don't cry!"

But it just makes her cry harder, so Naruto backs against the tree trunk and waits fearfully until she's finished.

"Sorry," she finally says, wiping the last of the tears from her eyes. "It's just well, I'm…different."

Naruto perks up at that, and he can't help a grin stretching across his face. He hasn't forgotten their mission to find a girl like him. He has to find out whether this is the target.

"Really?" Naruto says, trying to keep his excitement in check. "Me too!"

Fuu looks away. "I don't think we're different in the same way. I'm like really different."

"I bet you we are! I'll tell you why I'm different, and then you can tell me." He waits for her to give him a hesitant nod before he jumps up and lifts his shirt to reveal his unblemished stomach. "See, I've got this monster stuck in my belly. It's really strong and apparently it can destroy the whole world if I let it out. So I'm keeping it inside to protect everybody!" Naruto channels chakra into his stomach and the black lines of his seal appear. "Look, this is what's keeping it in."

Fuu is staring at him with wide eyes and an expression that Naruto can't quite place. He waits for her to say something, but when she doesn't, he becomes worried that maybe he shouldn't have told her. "Uh, I promise I'm just a normal kid. We can still be friends."

"You were right," Fuu whispers so quietly that he can hardly hear. Then she leaps to her feet in a sudden burst of energy. "We're the same. I've got a monster in me too! It's called a bijuu. That's why people don't like me. They don't trust me to protect them since I'm so young. But I'm super strong. I'm already a genin!"

Naruto can't contain the grin that stretches across his face. This is the girl Sharkface was talking about! I found her without even trying. I'm the best undercover ninja ever! She doesn't look very imprisoned, but maybe she escaped or something. Then they won't even need to do the mission, and Naruto can go see Tobi-nii even sooner!

"But you're a hero, Fuu! There's actually a whole bunch of us, and Tobi-nii told me that someday we're all gonna save the world!"

"How?"

Naruto pauses, suddenly thoughtful. "I don't know. Tobi-nii hasn't told me yet. He says I'm too young. But I know for sure that all of us are going to be friends. Wanna help me find them?"

"Yes!"

"Awesome! Let's go!

"Wait," Fuu says. Her body seems to deflate as her enthusiasm rushes out. "I can't leave right now."

"But don't you want to escape?"

"No! I mean…I do. But I know Shibuki will be really upset if I do, and he'll probably send a lot of ninja out to come find me."

Ohhh, Naruto realizes. She is imprisoned, but she's not sitting in a cell. It's more like a mental imprisonment. And Shibuki must be the guy that's doing it. Sharkface must know about everything, and that's why he wants Naruto to be friends with Fuu instead of taking her away.

So Naruto will do the mission, both for Tobi-nii and his new friend. "That's okay then! Maybe I can hang out in the village for a bit so that we can become real friends?"

"But I thought you had to wait for your teacher."

Naruto sends a dismissive wave in the direction that Sharkface had disappeared to. "Pfft, that creepy guy. I'll be glad to be rid of him. Let's go!" Naruto hopes that Sharkface is a good enough ninja that he'll find him eventually.

Fuu seems suspicious for a moment, but she can't seem to resist Naruto's enthusiasm. With a little more coaxing from Naruto, she's soon bouncing with excitement alongside him. "Okay!"

So they head into Takigakure together. As they walk through a complex network of underground tunnels, Fuu chatters about her favorite things to do and her favorite places in the village. She tells Naruto about how she's an expert of the cave systems, and she knows all the ways in and out of the village. Most of the ninja don't even know them. They eventually climb out of what turns out to be a small, nondescript hole at the base of a cliffside to a beautiful view of Takigakure.

Naruto is in awe of the place. He's never seen a hidden village before. A waterfall that seems to stretch into the sky comes crashing down a gargantuan cliff. The water pounds the ground so hard that a spray bursts into the sky, misting the houses closest to the waterfall's base. Like home, the buildings cluster against the edge of the water, and boats litter the river's banks. But here there are so many buildings.

The streets are bustling as they walk along them, but people give them space to pass, casting wary looks at Fuu. Neither child is bothered. In fact, Fuu doesn't even seem to notice. She grabs Naruto's hand and shows him food stalls that sell takoyaki, mochi, taiyaki, and ramen. Naruto's stomach grumbles longingly at the ramen stand. It's been too long since he's had Baa-chan's ramen, an Uzumaki secret recipe that was perfected over generations. Fuu laughs. Naruto doesn't have any money, and Fuu doesn't have enough to buy them both ramen, so instead, she buys them each a taiyaki, which they munch on as they walk.

Fuu leads him to an ornate wooden building that sits atop a hill overlooking the village. It has a big porch on the front that reminds Naruto of the porch on Baa-chan's house where they used to watch storms roll over the ocean. Baa-chan loved closing her eyes and breathing in the ocean tang that got stirred up by the wind. Naruto loved shouting in excitement each time a bolt of lightning shattered the sky.

Thinking of Baa-chan reminds Naruto of everything he's lost, and he keeps his gaze on the guards on either side of the door to the building so that no more memories sneak into his mind.

"This is where Shibuki works," Fuu says with a flippant wave to the guards. They let her pass without question. When Naruto hesitates to follow, she hurriedly beckons him along, and when he gets close, she whispers, "Don't worry. They all know me super well here. We can do whatever we want."

She leads him along the hallway, and at the end, there is as large door and two more guards on either side of it.

"Is Shibuki free?" she asks the guards.

"Yes," one says. "But he has a meeting in twenty minutes."

Without waiting for them to usher them in, Fuu bursts through the doors. "Hi Shibuki-san!" she cries.

Naruto follows her into the simple, wooden room. It is empty aside from a platform on the other end where a man sits cross-legged behind a small table covered in scrolls. He looks up from the one that he is writing in, and it takes a moment for the surprise to register on his face as he notices Naruto.

"Fuu-chan," he says, "who have you brought to me?"

"This is Kyūryū Naruto. He wants to become a ninja of the Hidden Waterfall."

As Naruto tries to hide his surprise, Shibuki's eyes narrow. "Is that so?" he asks Naruto. "And why's that?"

"Uh, well…" While still cursing Fuu for surprising him like that, Naruto desperately scans his brain for a good reason why he'd want to be a ninja of Takigakure. It's not a terrible idea. If he's going to get to know Fuu for his mission, what better way to do so that to become a ninja of her village? He's never been a very good liar, though, so he decides to go for the truth. "I don't really have a home anymore. I'm from a really tiny village. My Baa-chan died, and I don't have any parents. I was kind of trying to figure out what to do, and then I met Fuu. She showed me how awesome Takigakure is."

"Do you have ninja training?"

"Yup! Baa-chan and Tobi-nii taught me!"

"Tobi-nii?"

"He's a really nice person that checks in on me sometimes."

"Are they both ninjas?"

"Baa-chan isn't, but I think she learned a whole bunch from her husband who was a ninja before he died. Tobi-nii is a super awesome ninja!"

"And you don't want to go live with this Tobi?"

At the suspicious tone in Shibuki's voice, Naruto suddenly realizes that Takigakure might not let him live here if he has another option. He also worries he might have already blown his cover on his super secret spy mission, so he gives the village leader the most convincing answer he can.

"Well, that'd be pretty cool, but I don't think Tobi-nii lives anywhere. And a kid's gotta live somewhere."

"And what ninja specialties did this Tobi teach you?"

"Tobi-nii taught me ninjutsu, taijutsu, and some kenjutsu. And Baa-chan taught me fuuinjutsu."

At this information, Shibuki leans back in thought, a sharp gleam in his eye. "Interesting. We could use a fuuinjutsu master."

"I'm not a master yet, but I'm gonna be the best someday!"

The man nods. "Kyūryū Naruto, we will consider allowing you to be a ninja of Takigakure. Tomorrow we will conduct some tests on your skills, and until we make a decision, I will provide you with housing. Maki, please take Naruto to his quarters."

One of the guards on either side of the door beckons Naruto to follow him out. Fuu goes to follow, but Shibuki stops her. "Fuu, allow Naruto to settle in. I'd like to speak with you."

Fuu groans, but Naruto simply shouts, "Byu Fuu! I'll see ya tomorrow!"


When they're gone, the village leader says, "Where did you meet him?"

Fuu looks at the ground and taps her toes on the wood, her telltale sign that she was going against his orders and is trying to hide it. Surprisingly, though, she tells him what he presumes to be the truth. "I found him out in the forest. He was waiting for his teacher, and I decided to wait with him."

"And why would he want to be a ninja of Takigakure if he has a teacher waiting for him?"

A hard gleam shines in Fuu's eyes. "Shibuki-san, I don't think he was waiting for his teacher. I think he was kidnapped. The guy clearly made him nervous, and he called him a creepy old man. I, uh, brought him here because I was worried for him."

This is interesting news. Fuu has always had a big heart, even though it's rarely reciprocated. He's not surprised that she'd go out of her way to protect the boy since it's clear he's very friendly towards her.

She continues. "It was also my suggestion that he become a ninja." Ah, that explains why the boy was so thrown off by the suggestion. "I'd really like him to stay, Shibuki-san. We're the same, you know. He- he also has a bijuu in him."

Shibuki's eyes light up in surprise, and he leans over his desk. "He's a jinchuuriki like you?" That could explain Naruto's odd situation. As a jinchuuriki, it wouldn't be a surprise if he was kidnapped, especially if he just lost his home.

Fuu nods, still not meeting his eyes.

"Do you know which bijuu he has?"

"I don't think he even knows."

Shibuki considers what he knows about the jinchuuriki. Lighting has the Nibi and the Hachibi. Sand has the Ichibi. Mist has the Rokubi, and the Sanbi must have been released with the death of the Mizukage. The jinchuuriki of the Yonbi and Gobi were last reported to be roaming but have not been seen in quite awhile. And there has been no news about the Kyuubi jinchuuriki since her disappearance twelve years ago. So the kid must hold the Sanbi, Yonbi, Gobi, or Kyuubi. But which? Shibuki contemplates the value of each. Certainly the Kyuubi would be the most powerful but also the least likely to tame. Any one of them would be valuable, giving him the leverage necessary to negotiate on equal terms with the Five Great Nations. Any one of them could also cause an international disaster if Kiri, Iwa, or Konoha discovered that Taki had their missing bijuu in its possession.

But if he doesn't know which bijuu Naruto holds, it's likely none of the other nations know ether. The benefits Naruto could bring Taki as the other nations scramble to discover whether Naruto has their missing bijuu will be worth the risks.

"Umm," Fuu says, fidgeting in the face of the village leader's sudden introspection. "If you're worried about Naruto being a bad guy. I promise he's not. He's got a really powerful seal keeping the beast in, and he wants to use his power to protect everyone." Then she adds in a small voice, "And I want to help him."

"No, Fuu, don't worry. I actually want to thank you. If Naruto isn't lying, he could prove to be the greatest asset this village has ever had."


Kisame returns to the tree where he left Naruto. He had been able to find a dry tunnel into Takigakure that he can sneak Naruto through. It's tight in places but easier to navigate than if he dragged Naruto along his usual route, which is underwater for miles.

He's cursing the trouble that the damn brat makes him go through when he finds the tree where he left Naruto empty.

"Argh." Where could the brat have gotten to? He glances back at Samehada even though he already knows that Naruto can't be nearby. He hasn't felt Samehada's telltale movements when there is a chakra signature nearby, and Samehada loves Naruto's immense chakra reserves.

Does he delay the Taki mission to search for Naruto? Or does he just accept that he lost the jinchuuriki, pretend he never met Naruto, and move on with his life?

One jinchuuriki is safe in her home. The other is loose in the wild, fending for himself.

"Argh," he groans again. Somehow the brat is annoying even when he's not around.


Naruto's room is awesome. There is a huge window that overlooks the rooftops of the town spread throughout the valley. It's bright and roomy, the complete opposite of Baa-chan's house, which was dark and filled to the brim with a lifetime of possessions.

When he wakes up the next morning for his test, the bright sun is shining through the huge window. He opens it to let a breeze in, and it brings spray from the giant waterfall in with it. It reminds Naruto of home, but when he licks the spray from his lips it doesn't taste salty.

In the beams of sunlight, Naruto races around the fresh room, eating a quick breakfast of rice, miso soup, and vegetables that was delivered to his door and pulling on his red and black jumpsuit that he wears for ninja practice. He tries not to think about how Akari baa-chan made it, insisting that since he didn't have the signature Uzumaki red hair, he had to represent his clan through his clothing.

He'd hated it when she first gave it to him. He'd begged her to make him something cooler, but now he dreads the day that he'll outgrow it.

Once he's ready, a chuunin guides him through the village and along the river to a training field on its banks. He is surprised to see both Shibuki and Fuu waiting in addition to a small group of ninja and elderly people.

"Welcome, Naruto," Shibuki says. "I trust you slept well."

"Yep! Thanks for the room, Old Man!"

If Shibuki is insulted by the nickname, he doesn't show it. "Good. Today I'll ask you to fight against two of our ninja standing here today. I would like to gauge your competency in kenjutsu, taijutsu, ninjutsu, and fuuinjutsu. You'll spar one at a time with Kaito and Rika. There are no rules to your engagement."

"Yessir!"

"Good. The council and I will observe your spars. Both ninja are jounin level and will assess your abilities as you fight. You will spar with Rika first. Though you are welcome to use any type of jutsu, she is a kenjutsu expert and will test your skills in swordplay."

A woman steps forward with two katana in her hands. She hands Naruto the smaller one and steps into the training field, katana held in front of her, waiting for him to attack.

Naruto gulps. He's never used a real katana before. Tobi-nii always made him practice with sticks. But what a thrill to have his first time be during a real duel!

He's a little off balance and struggles to move as fluidly as he does with his stick, but he's able to take advantage of a few openings. Rika always stops him before he hits her, but he can see her satisfaction that he sees them. She's obviously moving more slowly than usual and giving him the openings on purpose.

The fight ends when Naruto sneakily slaps storage a seal on the blade of his katana that sucks in anything the blade touches. When their blades next clash, Rika's gets channeled into the seal, like water. She's forced to let go or follow it. Naruto's glad she lets go. He doesn't know what happens to humans when they go into storage seals.

After a few seconds in which Riku blinks at her now empty hands, he pulls the katana back out and hands it to her. When the hilt touches her palms, she suddenly bursts out laughing.

"No way I could have expected that! Good strategy for taking advantage of a stronger opponent." She winks at him.

Naruto beams.

"Kaito, you may approach Naruto and begin," Shibuki says from the sidelines. He's shown no reaction to Naruto's cheeky win.

The other ninja replaces Riku on the training field, and Naruto goes to join him. They face each other, and Kaito does something with his hands and bows. Naruto is a little confused at the action, but after a moment , he returns the gesture. Satisfied, Kaito steps away, assuming a ready position.

Kaito lets Naruto make the first move.

Naruto races towards his opponent and pulls a kunai from his pouch. He swipes the kunai low and to the right, but Kaito easily dodges.

Naruto pivots and counters Kaito's movement with a swing of his left leg, and again the jounin dodges. He allows Naruto to remain on the offensive for a few moments, nimbly dodging everything Naruto throws at him. Then, assuming he's seen enough, he switches to the offensive, first kicking high and forcing Naruto to duck, then swiping low in quick succession.

He's extremely fast, even faster than Tobi-nii was the few times that he agreed to spar with Naruto. And it's clear that Kaito is holding back to accommodate for Naruto's skill level. Still, Naruto can barely keep up. He takes a punch to the stomach which sends him sliding across the ground, and he just barely manages to recover and avoid a kick to the head.

His taijutsu isn't strong enough to gain any sort of advantage over the jounin, so the next time the jounin attacks, Naruto rolls behind him, putting plenty of space between them. Then, before Kaito turns, Naruto brings his fingers together in a cross before him, and six Narutos burst into existence.

Three of them attack together while two others throw about exploding tags that Naruto has transformed into pebbles (He sends a quick thanks to Sharkface, wherever he is, for teaching him that henge technique). Meanwhile, the real Naruto climbs up a tree, and the final clone hides himself underground directly under Naruto. They just settle in as Kaito dispels the last clone. In the moment of peace after they're gone, he steps back and takes in his surroundings. An exploding tag ignites under his foot. He steps again to avoid the explosion and another goes off. One, after another, invisible tags explode as he dances around the field.

Naruto chuckles from his vantage point. Kaito is coming closer, and it doesn't seem like he's noticed Naruto yet. Naruto readies a kunai and waits until Kaito is almost beneath him. Then he jumps from the tree in an aerial attack at the same time the clone hidden underground bursts up and several exploding tags go off at the contact. The clone grabs the jounin's legs while the real Naruto grabs his head.

They're able to latch on for just a moment before the jounin uses a kawarimi to get away, and from across the field, he grins. "That was extremely clever, Naruto," he says. "I'm impressed."

"Thanks! You're really good too. I could hardly see you, you moved so fast."

"Well, I am a jounin," Kaito says.

"Can you show me that move where you teleport? That was awesome!"

"It's called a kawarimi. And I don't teleport. I switch my body with another object. You've never seen it before?"

"Nope! But you're only the third ninja I've ever met".

Before Kaito can respond, Shibuki clears his throat. "A moment, Kaito."

Naruto goes to wait with Fuu while the adults discuss his performance, but it isn't long before Shibuki returns. "The council and I agree with Riku and Kaito," Shibuki says. "That was quite an impressive display. At your caliber, I am happy to offer you this headband and the rank of genin of Takigakure." Shibuki holds out a headband with a stylized outline of a waterfall on it.

Naruto's eyes grow wide at the sight of the headband, and for some reason he can't bring himself to take it from the village leader. "Is it really for me? Just like that?"

"Yes, Naruto, just like that. You've proven yourself a skilled ninja, and the village would be remiss not to take this opportunity to welcome you to our ranks."

"Wow, thanks!" He gingerly takes the headband from Shibuki and ties it around his head. "Fuu, look! I'm an official ninja now! Just like you!" he says with a big grin and an exaggerated point to his head.

She gives him two thumbs up with an equally large grin.

"Now that you are a ninja of Takigakure," Shibuki continues, "you will join Fuu, who is tutored by one of our jounin, for a strict training regime."

Naruto doesn't care how strict his training will be. He's a real ninja! And he made a friend. His mission for Sharkface almost fades from his mind. Almost.


From the trees, Zetsu watches the interaction with interest. Obito will be intrigued by this new development.


"Why is it that the Kyuubi jinchuuriki seems to be doing your mission in Taki for you?"

Kisame's heart skips a beat at the voice, but luckily his body doesn't visibly respond. The way Zetsu materializes out of nothing at any moment is jarring even for the most experienced shinobi, but he doesn't want Zetsu to have the satisfaction of knowing that.

Kisame grunts but doesn't respond. His mind is whirling. How could he have been such an idiot to assume that Naruto hadn't been able to find a way into Taki on his own?

Because the brat's an idiot, that's why.

A wicked smile stretches across Zetsu's face as if he can read Kisame's mind. "Master will not be happy to hear about this. He was furious when he found out the kid was gone from Uzushio."

"What else would you expect me to do when I find the Kyuubi jinchuuriki wandering through Hi no Kuni while I'm supposed to be accomplishing a mission?"

"Ah, intentional was it?"

"Of course."

"And is it also intentional that you abandoned your mission after planting the brat in Taki?"

The asshole.

Kisame considers abandoning the creature. But to walk away from Zetsu is to walk away from Madara, so through gritted teeth he says, "My mission is not exclusively within the village."

The knowing grin on Zetsu's face doesn't waver. "No, perhaps not, but now there are two unsupervised jinchuuriki in Takigakure. Master won't be happy if the Kyuubi is suddenly no longer under his control."

Before Kisame can respond, Zetsu melts back into the earth, that wicked grin never wavering.

Kisame knows that Zetsu is still here watching him, and though the creature is right, Kisame won't give him the satisfaction by returning to Taki immediately. He'll take a roundabout way back to his usual entrance into the village as if it was always his plan to scope out the surrounding forest. Surely, Naruto can't get into too much trouble in the extra few hours it will take.