Chapter 17

Deep within the forest, in a small clearing, were four people. Three of them, only children, slept peacefully on the ground. They were all huddled together, with two of them surrounding the third. The third seemed to be shivering occasionally, before calming down as he feels another child's touch.

The fourth was a tall man. Dressed in a flak jacket and loose clothing, it was obvious he was a ninja. He, along with the children, all wore a headband with a metal plate on it. On each plate was a leaf.

Kakashi was still sleeping peacefully. Not completely, but peacefully. He still had his ANBU training fresh in his mind. He never let his guard down in foreign places.

It was this fact that he finally decides to speak up. "Come on out, hunter-san. I know you are present."

He hears a woosh of air, then the soft, almost inaudible, sound of someone landing on the ground. Kakashi opens his single uncovered eye and takes in the person in front of them.

They were wearing a long kimono, typical of a simple traveler. It was also loose, and their body was tense, giving him the impression of a ninja. They also had feminine features. If it wasn't for his incredible sense of smell picking up the specific smell, he would've been hard pressed to determine the person's gender.

The girl in front of him smiles calmly and says "I did not mean to startle you ninja-san. I was simply getting herbs for my master."

Kakashi's single eye narrows slightly and he says "Drop the act Haku. You should know the deal already."

The girl, Haku, tenses, then sighs audibly. "It seems that the letter is becoming more authentic." She looks up at Kakashi and says "Is it true? That you will give us a safe refuge in the Leaf?"

Kakashi nods slightly. "Every word. There are no lies within it. Although, we are ninja. My word won't be enough, will it?"

Haku shakes her head. "No, it will not be enough. However, I do have one way of checking."

She pulls out a single senbon, a clear substance dripping slightly off the tip. "This senbon has a truth potion on it. It will not let you tell a lie as long as it is applied. I made this to verify your claims."

Kakashi's eye narrows in suspicion. A truth potion did just as it says, but there were ways to work around it. Half-truths, small details, important things can be left out. Still… this could be a poison for all he knew.

The jonin puts a hand out and says "Let me see it. I need to know it is only a truth serum."

Haku nods and hands him the needle. Kakashi lifts up his headband, then looks at the serum carefully. He could analyze small movements and thickness like this, letting him see what he couldn't smell.

After a couple moments, he pulls down his headband, and twirls the senbon. "It really is a truth serum. No lies, no secret ingredients. Let's begin then."

With that, he slashes the senbon across his arm, making a thin line across his arm. He tosses the senbon back, already feeling the effects.

Haku puts the senbon away, then looks at Kakashi. "First. Was the letter sent by the Hokage?"

Kakashi nods. Haku files the info away, then says "Second. Is the information and deal authentic?"

Kakashi nods once more. Now came the moment of truth. Her eyes narrow and she says "Finally, where did you get the information on me and my master?"

Kakashi freezes ever so slightly, then relaxes again. He knew the answer. "That is an S-classed secret that you will learn when we return. I cannot give away any more information, lest I get executed."

Haku frowns as she hears this. An S-class secret? On them? That didn't make any sense. Sure, her and Zabuza are high-priority targets for Kiri, but not S-class. Something wasn't right here…

Outwardly, she simply nods and says "That will be all then. I assume the plan is still in motion then?"

Kakashi nods once. "Continue following what the letter says. Remember to prepare more for the mob Gato will bring, not my students, even if they will be a pain."

Haku nods, then says "I will take my leave then. I believe your students are waking."

Kakashi glances at the small group in front of him and sees that they were shifting. He looks up again… and Haku was gone. Not a single trace. Kakashi sighs, then turns to his students again. Time to finish things up.

-Flashback End-

That was a few days ago. That was towards the beginning of the week. The 7 day period was coming to a close. Soon, we would have to face Zabuza and Haku. But there was one last thing I needed to do.

I found myself once more in the forest training grounds, alongside Naruto. This was our last day of training, and I had something in plan for the young genin.

I turn around to face Naruto and say "Alright Naruto, it's time for you to learn my secret jutsu."

Naruto's eyes widens, and then his face lights up with a massive grin. I smirk in response and say "You've seen me use it, so I guess it isn't much of a secret. You are going to learn the Fireball jutsu."

Naruto once more lights up and is about to say something, but I put a finger up to stop him. "No comments, just questions, and GOOD questions, got it?" Naruto nods, his mouth closing shut.

I then say "I'm going to do the Fireball jutsu. I just want you to watch what I do. The hand signs, how I mold my chakra, and so forth. Alright?" Naruto once more nods.

With that, I turn around, and begin. I form the hand signs slowly so Naruto can see them clearly. Horse. Tiger. Snake. Ram. Monkey. Boar. Horse. Tiger.

After the hand signs are done, I circulate my chakra. It heats up, the cooled chakra forming a protective coating from the super hot chakra. It flows into my throat, and I inhale deeply.

"Fire style: Fireball Jutsu!" With a mighty bellow, I form a ring in front of my mouth and blow through it. A massive wave of flames forms in front of me, nicking the ground and barely missing the trees.

Eventually, I let it die done and view my work. It was a decent sized area for what I used to do. At this point in time from my previous life though, I was much weaker.

I turn around and say "Did you catch anything Naruto?" Naruto looks at me, then nods his head. He then says "I think I got enough to try it. Can I?"

I eye him, then shrug. "Go ahead. But be warned, you haven't had any fire manipulation training. It's going to be difficult, even with your affinity."

Naruto nods, but otherwise doesn't respond. He walks up to where I once stood as I step to the side. He takes a deep breath, and his eyes narrow in determination.

His hands move slowly, forming the hand signs at a slow pace. He frowns deeply as he tries to form his chakra. He feels it heat up, and he brings it up.

"Fire style: Fireball Jutsu!" Naruto breathes outs, but it wasn't a fireball. It wasn't a wave. It wasn't anything that small. No, this was a TSUNAMI of FIRE.

The flames Naruto spewed out matched Madara's in pure size, and my own in intensity. I can only gape with wide eyes at the rolling wave of red and orange, burning anything it came in contact with.

Naruto finally stops, and I look over the pure devastation that Naruto just put on the forest. For at least a good 100 feet, there was only black. On the outskirts of this were a few flickering flames, strong, but not enough to stay alive.

I shake my head and say "I… I can't believe this. NOt only on your first try, but THIS POWERFUL?! How did you do that Naruto?" I don't hear an answer. Curious, I turn around.

I see Naruto standing there, his eyes shadowed by his bangs. I walk over cautiously. "Naruto?" I frown as Naruto begins to shake.

Then, out of nowhere, he jumps into the air, fire spewing out of his mouth and eyes wide. "HHHHOOOOTTTT!"

Naruto begins to run around like a headless chicken, screaming all the while. I just blink in utter shock and surprise. What… the hell?

Inwardly I can hear Kurama laughing his ass off, making a little too much noise for me. I barely notice though and simply watch as Naruto keeps running around. It took Naruto ramming into a tree face first to snap me out of my stuper.

I shake my head, then laugh loudly. Naruto rubs his head, then growls at me. "What's so funny teme?!"

I just laugh some more, and manage to say "O-Only you Naruto! Only you!"

Naruto raises an eyebrow as I fall on the ground, laughing a storm now. Naruto frowns and crosses his arms, cheeks puffing out childishly. "It's not funny."

Eventually, I manage to reign myself in. After my laughter dims to a few chuckles, I walk over to Naruto. "A-Alright Naruto. I think I know your issue."

I gesture for him to stand up, and he does so. I then say "You didn't protect yourself from the heated chakra. You need to use some unused chakra to form a cool layer around the chakra in your system."

Naruto tilts his head, then seems to realize what I mean. He nods, then turns to his destruction once more. He does the hand signs, then breathes out once more.

The flames were a little smaller, but still much bigger than most shinobi can ever hope to form. This time, as Naruto ends the jutsu, he didn't seem to be burned as much.

I nod in satisfaction and say "Good. Now try again. I'll join in."

Naruto nods eagerly, and we begin practicing our Fireball Jutsu. Good thing too. Tomorrow we would fight Zabuza and Haku. And this time, we are more than enough for those two.

A/N

A bit of a shorter chapter, but I needed to get this out of the way. Next chapter we will begin the bridge fight!

Also for those who read the previous version, Naruto is now learning the Fireball Jutsu instead of the Chidori. Thanks for those correcting me on the mistake.

Please Review if you can! Hope you enjoyed!