Im so inconsistent, I know ;-; but heres another chapter! I wish i could say updates would be more regular, but alas, its not something i can promise. On another note, How will Naruto get Mokuton?: Its a secret ;) but expect it soon. Hope you few that are still interested enjoy!

Even if it was just for tonight, he would gladly let the weight fall.

And fall it did. Its been three days since that night and its something the redhead still has mixed feelings about. He still remembers thanking the young blonde for her kind words and actions before she left, which was around an hour afterwards. While this is true, Naruto cant help feel disgusting and guilty for it. He felt disgusted for being so weak, especially in front of one of his precious people, and guilty for having her worry about him.

The past few days have proven awkward for the redhead, mostly around Ino. There is a part of him, deep inside, thats telling him to pull away. That he'll just get hurt again. The other part of him knows its not likely the case, but considering he thought the same thing about Sakura… His trust has been broken, and by someone so important to him. Which is exactly why he ceased contact with all his friends and stayed cooped up in his house training. Hes successfully shut everyone out for over a week now.

Which is why this situation terrifies him. Ino was able to break down those walls he placed, and did it so seemingly easy. He doesn't exactly know why, but her words just felt so genuine, sincere, trustworthy. Hence those conflicting feelings making him more awkward, especially due to the fact he sees her every day for team training. The fact that Ino has been nicer, she talks to him regardless of how hard he tries not to, and she has been stopping by his place more and more often over the past few days.

Naruto was suddenly cut off from those thoughts when a voice made itself known "Oi.. Naruto, you might want to focus" Kurama says with a hint of amusement. Blinking, Naruto regained his senses just in time for a fist to smash into his face and sending him sprawling. Groaning and rubbing his cheek he looks up to his offender.

Ino looked down at him questioningly and holds her hand out. Naruto grabs her hand with a nod of appreciation as she helps him up "Are you alright? What happened? I can usually never land anything solid on you" She asked with some worry.

Naruto just waved her off "Its nothing, I was just a bit distracted is all. Lets go again" He says, to which he gets a hesitant nod in response. Yamato and Yugao looked on curiously at the interaction before going about their own training.

That's exactly what the next few days consisted of, more teamwork and personal training. Now about two weeks have passed since the sakura incident, and a week since the begining of anbu training. In that time Naruto has been training his kenjutsu with Yugao and shadow clones. He's by no means a master, but thanks to his shadow clones hes not a novice either, being able to use kenjutsu effectively, but lacking experience.

Hes still been studying fuinjutsu in his free time since before he joined anbu, with the help of shadow clones. This one is what pleasantly surprised him, maybe it was because he finally had the patience for it, or maybe it was because he was actively trying to give it a chance; either way he was taking to it like a fish to water. There are no current sealing masters in Konoha, so he cant say for sure.

In sealing there's considered five levels: Novice, beginner, adept, expert, and master. In just a week and a half, he would consider himself at beginner. It also helps that he has his father's notes.

After another long day of training ended Naruto began to walk home, going at a leisurely pace as he was in no rush. After a few moments his brow began to twitch at the sound of steps following closely behind him. Heaving a sigh he turned to look behind him to see an overly cheerful looking Ino Yamanaka. "Yo" she says with a grin, holding up a peace sign.

Naruto rolled his eyes, but couldnt stop the tug at the corner of his lips. "Yes, Ms. Yamanaka; can I help you?" he drawled. Ino instinctively frowned at the lazy tone, reminding her of a certain pineapple headed teammate. She huffed as she walked beside him "Yes you can, for starters you can be more grateful for my wonderful presence" she says, puffing her cheeks while crossing her arms.

This got a small chuckle from the redhead "Why, im sorry for my insolence; should I call you princess too?" he said sarcastically, which got him a smack in the arm. "You may" she huffed.

Naruto rolled his eyes again "I apologize, princess, it wont happen again" he said with a smile and a chuckle. The way he said it sent sent shivers down the Yamanaka's spine as a small blush adorned her cheeks. "Baka" she said softly while looking away, which only made the redhead chuckle more. It was then she caught a glimpse of it, the grin thats been missing from his face for so long.

Naruto must have noticed too, when the grin vanished as fast as it came. Suddenly the redheads mood shifted and he looked up to the fading orange sky. "Ah, look at the time. I should really get going." He said anxiously as he began to leave.

Suddenly a hand grabbed his arm, looking back he sees Ino with a small frown on her face. "Why do you keep doing that?" she asks looking him in the eyes. Naruto could feel her gaze piercing through him. He could see the confusion, the sadness and accusations in her gaze. He forced a smile "Im not su-" "Dont you lie to me." She cut him off. The fake smile morphed into a look of barely concealed shock. Had he become that easy to see through?

He opened his mouth, then closed it again. He didnt know what to say, and even if he did he didnt know if he could say them with her looking at him the way she was.

Sensing the raising anxiety in his silence Ino sighed, deciding maybe that had been the wrong way to go about it. She looked at him once again and spoke softly "You cant keep running from your problems, thats not the Naruto we all know. Thats not the Naruto I know." she said, looking into his shocked blue eyes with her soft aquamarine orbs. "And you cant keep running from me; I told you before. Im here for you, remember?" she finished, her voice somehow more quiet than before.

Naruto looked down "I know, Ino. I appreciate that, I really do, but this isnt some bad guy I can just beat down, yknow? This is something in my head I cant fight off; I just need time to process everything." he said, now looking in her eyes. She looked back, and somewhere in those deep blue orbs she saw a small spark that had been missing for some time.

Sighing she backed off "Okay, I understand; just remember, the offer is always there alright?" he nodded and offered a small smile in appreciation before saying his goodbyes, leaving the Yamanaka by herself.

'Well, atleast he has the self-awareness to know he needs time' She pauses, self awareness and Naruto in the same sentence sounds very off, but then again, theres a lot she still doesnt know about the mysterious Uzumaki; but that wont be the case for long if she has anything to say about it.

All of that training as been in preparation for when they finally start getting missions, and that is where the day takes them. Naruto, Ino, Yamato, and Yugao are all in the Hokages office in full anbu attire waiting for debrief.

Tsunade looks to the four anbu in front of her with an air of seriousness "Team Inu" She started, making sure to grab all attention "Your mission is as followed: Suna has reported signs of a Bijudama being used in the desert about twenty kilometers east of the village itself, and the Kazekage has requested our assistance. You will travel to Sunagakure to help investigate; report directly to the Kazekage as you arrive for more information." She finished, her eyes falling on all four members.

A collective "Hai" was all she needed before she dismissed them; and they all left in a swirl of leaves.

All four members of team Inu were now jumping through trees in a comfortable silence, but stayed fully alert. "So a bijudama, huh? In suna? Thats got to be the Ichibi (One tails) right?" Ino said, curious of what the others thought.

Without missing a beat the redhead of the group spoke up "Shukaku, and yes, most likely. I do wonder why he would send off a bijudama, though." Naruto corrected and thought outloud. "Well Shukaku has never been a very sane one, has he?" Yamato asked rhetorically with a deadpan. Everyone gave a nod, hes got a point, they thought.

'Be careful' Suddenly Naruto stops dead on a branch and looks around, the group stops ahead "Whats wrong, Kitsune?" Yamato says, confused at the sudden halt. Naruto on his part is searching the surroundings. "Did you guys hear that?" he says with an edge in his voice.

The rest of the group nod their heads in the negative, though all now have their guard up. "Its.. coming" the voice again rings ominously in Narutos head, leaving chills down the redheads spine. A sudden flash of pain sears into his head as he grips his head and falls to his knees. "Kitsune!" Yamato yells as he, Ino and Yugao rush to his side.

Images of a familiar massive beast flash through his head, bringing destruction to everything near it. Smashing mountains and leveling forests with a swish of its tails. Finally, the last thing Naruto sees is a shadowed figure on top of said beast, with its ten tails swaying slowly in the background. The images fade to black with a final flicker of the moon shining a blood red, with ten spinning tomoe.

Regaining his senses the redhead wipes the sweat that formed on his brow. 'Wh-what was that' he thought frantically. Whatever it was, it instilled a fear in him that he hadnt felt since the 4th war. 'Must stop.. him' the same voice from earlier starts again, this time with a clear, familiar voice. 'Beware.. Of Uzumaki Naruto..' the voice trails off as quickly as it came, bidding its last young war heros' eyes widen in recognition 'this is Shukaku!' He thought 'But, Beware of.. Me?' he thinks, still trying to catch his breath.

The rest of the squad were still surrounding the downed redhead in worry as he stood up shakily. "Kitsune, what was that?" Yugao asked with concern. "Im.. Im not sure. I heard a voice in my head, I think it was shukaku, it sounded like him; but it didnt feel like him. Then I saw Images, ones that felt to real, of something I never wanted to see again." Naruto said, trying to regain his composure.

The group remained silent, but they all had one thought; what could have done that to Naruto? 'Kurama? What was that?' He asks, a mild panic in his tone '...Im not entirely sure, kit. Theres something else you should know; I.. cant feel Shukakus' presence. This has never happened before; even when re-forming we still have a connection." Kurama says, some anxiety clear in his tone.

Naruto simply furrowed his brow, what did this mean? Just what is going on? His thoughts were interrupted by a hand on his shoulder. Turning his head he sees Yamato "That look on your face, did you talk to Kurama?" he asked "Yeah, he doesnt know anything either." Naruto says, a frown on his face.

Yamato nods "Alright then, we'll report this to Hokage-sama once we return. Until then, we have a mission to accomplish." Naruto gives a nod and they continue on, albeit at a faster pace and more cautiously than before.

About a day has passed and the group has made it a bit past Sunagakure's (Hidden Sand's) border and they are now setting up camp for the night. It was a fairly quiet affair after the incedent earlier. Naruto was setting up his sleeping bag when he heard a noise behind him, quickly turning around he saw it was only Ino. He relaxed his guard a bit "Neko (Cat), what can I do for you?" He asked, a questioning look on his face (If she could see behind his mask). She sits down next to him "Just checking in on you, you seemed pretty shook up earlier" she said, a bit of concern in her voice.

Naruto leaned back a bit, "It was really weird, if im being honest.. Something Shukaku sai-" He stopped suddenly, jerking his head a bit to the right. She looked at him questioningly and was about to ask him what was wrong when a wave of foul chakra slammed down on her shoulders, almost taking her to a knee. She wasnt the only one who felt it as a moment later Yamato and Yugao appeared next to them. "What the hell was that?! I havent felt anything like that since.." Ino's mind pondered back to the war, standing before the Juubi (Ten Tails). Shaking her head of the thoughts Yugao spoke out "Whatever it was, it was coming from due east of Suna; Taichou(Captain)?"

Yamato nodded "Team, pack up. We're going to investigate. Kitsune (Fox), Taka (Hawk), we will need your sensory abilities on this" He said, his voice deep and commanding. After a chorus of "Hai (Understood/Okay)!" they all packed up and beelined for the chakra source. After an hour of travel the four made it to what seems like the entrance to an underground bunker.

"This.. looks like one of orochimaru's hideouts!" Yamato exclaims in a whisper. The team looks at one another, knowing what horrors could be behind this door. Yamato gave the signal to enter "Tiger formation" He signs in Anbu sign language. The three nod before getting in formation and delving into the bunker.

The team travelled through the seemingly abandoned bunker, searching for any clues that could lead them to shukaku, or the mysterious chakra they had felt earlier. Naruto stopped the group "Taicho, chakra ahead." He said in the standard ANBU sign language. The team nods and makes their way through the corridor towards a large wooden door.

Carefully and quietly cracking the door they see a very large chamber, one that could be akin to an audience hall with torches lit around it. Standing in the middle of the room are two figures talking, just barely shielded from the light of the torches; The group leaned in trying to glean any information.

One of the figures spoke up "Yes, the Ichibi (One tails) has been captured successfully. It is all going according to plan." The sound of the figures voice made all the ANBU's eyes widen. Before the shock could be completely set in, another voice chimes in, their voice somewhat warbled "Very good; it seems I still have use for you yet, Orochimaru." He finishes as the light from the torches reach orochimarus smiling face. Suddenly, the unknown figure almost inperceivably stiffens before letting out a small chuckle. "Ah, it would appear we have company. You may all come out now" He says in that same warbled tone, facing the large wooden door.

The four mutter a small curse before opening the door and walking in, their bodies in stances ready for battle. Yamato speaks up "Orochimaru, its been a while; I havent seen you since the war. And here I thought you turned over a new leaf." He says, sarcasm dripping from his voice. Orochimaru says nothing, but keeps the unnerving smile upon his face. The figure speaks up once again "Oh, dont mind him. Orochimaru isnt.. Home right now." He says, a noticeable mirth in his voice. Upon looking closer at Orochimaru, Naruto notices something.

Orochimaru's eyes arent their usual color, but a blood red with faint tomoes circling around them. "Sharingan!?" Naruto says in surprise, making the others' eyes widen. The figure looks sharply at the redhead before simply chuckling. Soon that chuckle grows into a mad kind of laughter before settling down "No, not quite.. Naruto" he says as he steps into the light. The figure is now shown to have all black shinobi gear, along with a long black cloak, jet black hair and an Oni(Demon) mask with a tag attached to it covering the bottom part of his face.

The group looks at the masked man, alarmed. Naruto looks at the man, eyes wide. "How.. Do I know you?" He asked in shock to which the masked man laughs "No, no, but I know you. Very well in fact. My parents talked very highly of you, before they were slaughtered in cold blood" He says mirthfully. Naruto on his part is shocked "W-what? I dont understand.. Ive never seen you before! Let alone felt your-" Naruto's eyes widen again, realizing he cant feel this mans chakra. "Thats impossible! Your chakra! Its like you dont even have any!" He exclaims. Yamato looks to Yugao, who gives him a nod in affirmation. Before he can speak up the figure begins again "Oh, yeah, that." He points to the tag on his mask. With better inspection the four can now see the tag is in fact a sealing tag. "Here, maybe this will help" He says as he removes the tag.

The effect was immediate, Naruto removed his mask as bile rose to the redheads mouth. He keeled over and released his stomachs contents, he then looks up at the man with a look of absolute shock. The other three rush to his side "Naruto! Are you okay!?" Yamato says in worry, foregoing the codename seeing as his identity has already been compromised. "H-hes.. A damn monster!" Naruto says. Never before has he felt anything so foul before in his life. The negativity radiating off this man has even put Madara to shame.

Yugao furrows her brow "I dont know what you mean, Yes, his chakra is very powerful but-" She was suddenly cut off as the figure spoke up once more "Ah, so you truly are "That" naruto, arent you. Its not my chakra hes feeling, yugao, its my soul!" Her eyes widen at her name, as he pulls out a kunai and charges towards them at breakneck speeds.

Yamato reacts quickly, making handseals "Mokuton: Jubaku Eisō!" (Wood Release: Tree Bind Flourishing Burial) He says as tendrils of wood break from the ground, attempting to bind the figure who then seems to blur out of sight before re-appearing next to the still smiling Orochimaru.

"So close, yet so far" He says before sighing "I would love to kill you all now, however I can tell it isnt your time, yet. There is still more for you to do." He looks at Orochimaru "Get rid of them, continue your mission and meet with me again" He says as one of his eyes morph from black to a familiar blood red design "A mangekyo Sharingan!?" Ino exclaims in shock as the figure starts to spiral into himself, greatly shocking the team, seeing a deadmans technique. "Obito!? Theres no way!" Naruto exclaimed, looking at the masked man who laughed in response "No, heavens no. But close, you may call me Saṃsara, Im positive we'll meet again." he says, some venom now present in his usual condescending tone.

With that, the man now known as Samsara disappeared in a swirl. Without a moment of warning Orochimaru quickly goes through a familiar set of seals, biting his thumb and slamming it in the ground "Kuchiyose no Jutsu!" (Summoning Technique). A large puff of smoke envelopes the room and a loud breaking sound echoes through the chamber as daylight envelopes the four ANBU. Once the smoke clears the four stare in shock at the figure in front of them.

Instead of Manda in front of them what they see sets all of them even more on edge as the ichibi Shukaku stands before them, though a noticeable difference being the sharingan in its eyes. They all get into defensive positions as naruto activates his sage of six paths mode (1) and blurs foreward. Not a moment later Shukaku begins forming a Bijudama (Tailed beast bomb). It was only a moment, but in that moment Naruto took from his previous position to Orochimaru the tailed beast bomb was ready to fire. His eyes widened 'That was too fast! Theres no way it should be ready that quickly' he thought as the Bijudama was sent flying towards his teammates.

Time seemed to move in slow motion as he turned and sped towards them. However, not only was this Bijudama readied quicker, but it was sent much faster than usual as well. Looking towards his teammates he sees Yamato midway through seals, trying to push faster for a justu that could save them. Yugao was standing at the ready staring at Yamato's back hoping he would be ready in time. He looks at ino, who was looking him back dead in his eyes; a look of fear on her face.

Naruto pushes everything he has, every last bit of chakra through his body trying to make it in time. He reaches out his right arm in desperation as suddenly, it all goes black.

(Line Break)

Naruto opens his eyes and quickly closes them again due to the light. He groans as he tries to get up but quickly feels a weight on his chest. Opening his eyes a bit slower his blurry vision slowly focuses to see a mop of blonde hair on his chest. With a slight blush on his face he quickly shakes his head to get his bearings. Looking around he takes in his surroundings, its then he notices all around him seems to be a large trench except for a very large wooden wall. It isnt at all the usual refined Mokuton (Wood style) technique Yamato makes, but full of branches sticking out haphazardly. Taking a closer look around he notices Yamato and Yugao not far away.

Focusing his senses he feels the nearby area, no longer seeing Shukaku nor Orochumaru. Letting out an irritated sigh he tries to shake Ino awake; they got away. Seeing her eyes flutter open he lets out a small breath of relief. "Hey there, princess. Have a good nap?" He says in a chipper tone, trying to lighten the mood. She seems to take a moment to gather her bearings before finally noticing the position they were in. Jumping up quickly, she was about to tell him off when she suddenly almost falls over, now noticing the large lesion on her calf.

She stifles a groan of pain as she feels an arm around her shoulder, balancing her. "Are you okay?" Naruto asks with some concern, to which she gives a deadpan look "Oh yeah, Im doing great Naruto; thanks for asking" Ino says sarcasm dripping from her tone. Naruto rubs the back of his neck with his free arm "Yeah.. stupid question, sorry." He says with a nervous chuckle.

The two slowly make their way towards their two downed teammates "Oi! Taichou!" Naruto says, nudging Yamato who wakes with a start. "Wha!" He says as he jerks awake. The wood user looks around, taking in his surroundings. After waking Yugao Naruto gave a short debrief. "By the way, thanks for the save Taichou!" Ino says while wrapping her wound with a grateful smile, to which Naruto and Yugao also give a nod; all three looking at the massive wooden wall in front of them.

Yamato says nothing in response, he looks to the wall and back to his hands "While I appreciate the vote of confidence… That wasnt me." He says seriously, gaining a look of confusion from the other three. "What do you mean, it wasnt you? Youre the only one who can use Mokuton, Taichou." Yugao says, her brows furrowed.

The wood user looks at her and repeats "It wasnt me. Im not really sure.. The only thing I can think of would be.." Suddenly his eyes widen as he snaps his gaze to the now redead, who simply looks at him confused. "Naruto.. Can you channel yang chakra into your right arm, then direct it outwards?" Now everyone is looking at him, confused.

Naruto did what he was instructed, channeling his Yang chakra into his arm he sent a pulse outward, sending tendrils of wood flying out from his palm. He immediately cuts off the chakra to his arm, detaching the wooden tendrils and looks at his hand in amazement, along with the other two members of the group. "Its just as I suspected, then." Yamato spoke up, getting their attention "It would seem your Yang chakra mixing with Hashirama's cells creates a pseudo form of Mokuton (2) This is very interesting." Yamato says with a hand raised to his mouth in a contemplative gesture.

Naruto on his part was jumping with joy internally "So youre saying Ill be able to use cool wood jutsu like you and the Shodaime (First Hokage)!?" He says with barely contained giddiness in his voice. Yamato just raises his hand "Now, I didnt say that, however; I wont say it isnt a possibility. We will need more testing and training to find out for sure." Yamato says, before the redhead could speak up once again Yamato continues "Before that, though" He points at Ino "We need to get Neko some medical treatment. I know we havent gotten any rest but this is part of being in the ANBU black ops; Are you all ready to head to Sunagakure?" He finishes, his voice free of any previous mith. Naruto, Ino and Yugao all give a nod in affirmative.

"Alright then, then well be off then. Also, Naruto" He says, getting the redheads attention "Please put on your extra mask, Im going to let it slide for now, but anbu may never remove their masks outside of the village." He says, giving the Uzumaki a pointed look. Naruto puts on his spare mask and mutters out an apology. "Alright squad, lets get a move on".

The squad has been on the move for about two hours now, Yamato taking point with Yugao taking the back, leaving the Naruto and ino in the middle. The journey so far has been somewhat slower due to Ino, who currently has an arm wrapped around the redheads shoulder for support. "Sorry for slowing you all down" She mutters, glancing at her bandaged leg "Hey, dont talk like that. Its not your fault, yknow." Naruto says, trying to reassure her. "I know, but I cant help but fee-" She cuts herself off when suddenly, her leg gives out and she almost falls before an arm wraps around her waist.

Looking up she sees the young redhead with a worried look on his face "Hey, is your leg okay?" He asks glancing at the bandages, noticing the red now seeping through them. Without waiting for a response he suddenly grabs ber behind her knees and hoists her up, gaining a surprised yelp in response "Baka (Idiot/Dummy)! Dont just pick me up without warning!" She yells with a small blush adorning her cheeks. With that, a small pang erupts in the redheads chest 'Baka!' He hears again, this time in the voice of his former teammate. Naruto takes a deep breath "Sorry, but your wound is getting worse with all the movement and pressure on it; we need to keep moving." He says, his voice borderlining a monotone.

Ino immediately notices the change and was about to question the young redhead before noticing the blank look on his face. 'Whats with that? Was it something I said? Maybe I was a tad mean.. Either way, niw doesnt seem to be the best time to ask about it.. Ill ask him after we reach Suna' She thinks, somewhat confused.

After the weird mood shift in her teammate the trip was once again rather quiet; it took about another days worth of travel and we now see the group coming up to the entry point of Sunagakure.

Walking up to the guards, Yamato pulls out some papers from his pouch and offers them to the two guards. After a brief pause of looking over the papers the guard hands them back "You seem to be in order; the Kazekage is awaiting your arrival." He says, motioning to let them in. They make it to the kage tower in short fashion, already knowing where it is. Knocking on the door they hear Gaara on the other side "Come in" he says 'as monotone as ever' Naruto thinks with a small smile as the team walks through the door.

(Line Break)

Aaaand, thats it for this chapter. Not the greatest place to end it off and its a tad short, but Ive been wanting to get this chapter out for a while now; that and I wanted to show you all that im not dead lol anyway! Hope yall enjoy, leave me some reviews (Good or bad! Let me know where i can improve!) and I hope I left you all with some questions ;)

(1)- Yes, he still has the 6 paths mode. Its not confirmed if he has it or not still in cannon but I think itd be stupid if he didnt, cause sasuke still has his rinnegan?

(2)- Its been shown in cannon that people with hashirama's cells can produce something similar to Mokuton, so who's to say along with kurama's yang chakra he wouldnt be able to manipulate it to a higher degree, borderlining along true wood release with some practice?