And the second chapter is here! You've all wanted it, and now you got it!

In response to some questions:

No, Naruto will not use the Shadow Clones, he will use my upgraded version, the Darkness Clones. Much stronger and no puff of smoke, but quite sensitive to light, and a much higher per-unit cost in chakra.

The only pairings I have decided on are NaruxfemKyuubi, NaruxHina, and NaruxfemHaku. Pairings won't come in until later chapters, so I'll start up a voting poll when romance starts to become a major aspect of the story.

This IS a harem fic, and no amount of whining or protesting is going to change that. Haven't had much in the way of whining, yet, but if you've got a problem with harems, I don't want to hear about it.

Anyway, on with the fic!

XXXX

Naruto's uncanny ability to shut people up never ceased to amaze Iruka. What took him and other instructors minutes to do, took Naruto only seconds. Before Naruto became unofficial ruler of the classroom, Iruka had thought of asking Ibiki to come down to the class and put the "fear of Kami" into the kids.

However, once the other students knew that Naruto wasn't going to kill anyone, they would start right back up again. So, just as he did every morning, Iruka made like a good shinobi and took full advantage of the momentary silence.

"Alright then, now that the last student is here, we can begin with the exam!"

Iruka looked around the class and happily noted that most students were paying close attention to his every word, even Shikamaru. Everyone except for our favorite masked demon child, Naruto Uzumaki.

Iruka just sighed; there was nothing he could do for the child now. "Now then, you will all be called by alphabetical order to the front of the class. Here you will perform three techniques: a Henge of the Sandaime Hokage, three standard clones, and another Henge of your choice. First; Aburame Shino." and so, the class went on like this.

"Next up: Uchiha Sasuke." the Sasuke Fanclub instantly went crazy.

"Go, Sasuke-kun, you can do it!" one girl shouted.

"Yeah! I'll bet Sasuke-kun can do over a hundred clones!" yelled another.

"Sasuke-kun, you're the best!" and yet another.

Needless to say, Sasuke was soaking up all the attention like a sponge.

"Alright, Sasuke, let's see how good your Henge is." Iruka said.

Sasuke nodded and did the proper seals. A muttering of "Henge" later, and a perfect copy of the Sandaime stood at the front of the class, though he lacked a pipe and seemed to carry an air of arrogance and contempt. It didn't change when the boy released the illusion.

"Good. Now the clones." Sasuke nodded again.

He made the seals and muttered "Clone Technique" and ten perfect clones poofed into existence, then poofed out again. The Sasuke Fanclub went wild at the display of "power".

"Very nice. Now for the Henge of your choice."

Sasuke thought for a second, then did the hand seals while muttering again. In a puff of smoke there stood a perfect replica of Sasuke's late father, Fugaku Uchiha.

"Very well done, Sasuke! You pass!" Sasuke just smirked as Mizuki handed him his forehead protector.

"Next up: Uzumaki Naruto." Iruka called and the ever-silent masked boy walked to the front of the class.

"Okay, Naruto, just a simple Henge...And no freaky stuff." Naruto had a habit of screwing up his Henge on purpose just to see what kind of abomination would spawn from it. The class got a big kick out of seeing an Iruka look-alike dressed as a Geisha, make-up and all. And sure, Iruka often found himself laughing when it was Mizuki's turn to be the butt of the joke, but if there was ever a time for absolute seriousness in a classroom, today was it.

Naruto crossed his arms under his cloak, then there was a puff of smoke. Where Naruto once stood, there was now a perfect copy of the Hokage, but with one difference: the eyes. The cold, unfeeling eyes. It wasn't right for the Hokage to have them, and it creeped everyone out to no end.

"A-Alright, Naruto, dispel the Henge." Iruka shuddered. "Clones, please...And no shenanigans!"

Naruto cocked his head to the side a bit. "...What about-"

"No!" Iruka interrupted the boy's question. "Standard clones, nothing more, nothing less."

The Jinchuuriki grunted an affirmative, then took his hands out of his cloak and began checking his fingernails as thirty perfect Naruto clones appeared in puffs of smoke.

Everyone was stunned. Naruto had just created three times as many clones as Sasuke, and he'd done it without the use of handseals! They would have been even more stunned if they had known that these were actually Shadow Clones, not standard ones.

'What the hell?' was the collective thought of all that had watched the display. Sasuke clenched his fists and his jaw, there was someone stronger than him now, by a considerable margin, and he couldn't have that.

'Where did he get that kind of power? I must know, I'll beat it out of him if I have to!' the "last" Uchiha thought angrily.

Every student in the class knew that Naruto was powerful, but that wasn't the main reason they gave him such a wide birth. Maybe it was because he was tremendously creepy; or maybe it was because he became quite violent when sufficiently irritated, as Kiba found out the hard way...numerous times. Had they given it more thought, they'd have realized that it was something akin to an instinctual fear. Naruto, in school, was something like a large crocodile sunning itself on a riverbank. He just wanted to be left alone so he could go about his day. Sure, he looked mean and scary, but as long as you kept your distance, you were fine. And it was your natural instincts that made you keep your distance. However, if you chose to ignore those instincts and get too close, then you were just begging to get a limb torn off.

But Naruto had never done anything, beyond beating Kiba up a few times, to suggest that he was that dangerous or that strong. Until today, that is. Apparently, Naruto had chosen today to give his classmates a small taste of just how far ahead of them he was.

Iruka was the first to break the silence. "V-Very good...Naruto. Time for the final part of the test...I'm curious to see who you'd chose as a Henge." the instructor cracked a small smile, figuring that a Naruto's final school prank was coming.

It only took a split second for Naruto to decide what to do. There was a puff of smoke that covered the boy. When it cleared, everyone gasped; Naruto had turned into a perfect clone of the Fourth! But he still had the soulless eyes that creeped everyone out.

"You pass, dispel the Henge." Mizuki said with a growling undertone.

Naruto just took his forehead protector from Iruka and sat back down.

After Naruto took his seat, Iruka began dividing up teams.

"Team Eleven: Asojo Kira, Tobako Rahchi, Cariko Bara. Your Jōnin sensei will be Mitarashi Anko...!" Iruka was amazed that the sadistic Jōnin would even be allowed to have a Genin team. 'Especially after that one time...'

"Team Ten: Nara Shikamaru, Yamanaka Ino, Akimichi Chouji. Your Jōnin sensei will be Sarutobi Asuma." Ino groaned softly when she was teamed with the lazy bum and the fatass, though she dare not verbalize her dismay in front of Chouji.

"Team Eight: Hyūga Hinata, Inuzuka Kiba, Aburame Shino. Your Jōnin sensei will be Yūhi Kurenai." Iruka and Mizuki both blushed a little at the thought of the beautiful rookie Jōnin.

"Team Seven: Haruno Sakura, Uchiha Sasuke-" Sakura squealed and jumped up.

Sakura turned to Ino and stuck out her tongue. "Take that, Ino-pig!" she taunted.

"Shut up, Forehead Girl!" Ino sneered.

Iruka cleared his throat loudly to get the two kunoichi to stop bickering. "Thank you. The final member of Team Seven is Uzumaki Naruto. Your Jōnin sensei will be Hatake Kakashi." Sakura spared a frightened glance at Naruto and noticed that he was staring at her.

As Iruka sounded off the rest of the teams, the members of Team Seven were having a stare-down. Well, at least Sasuke was, Naruto was just holding Sasuke's glare unflinchingly, and Sakura was caught in the crossfire.

Sasuke 'hn'ed and turned back to his window gazing/brooding. Naruto glanced at Sakura one last time before looking out the window as well.

'Great,' thought Naruto, 'I get stuck with the Emo-King and his number one fangirl. Well I suppose it could be worse...though I don't see how.'

As the Jōnin appeared to take their assigned students, the teams left one by one until Team Seven were the only ones left. Right now it was just them and Iruka in the classroom at the time, but then Iruka had to leave for a mission briefing and it was just Team Seven.

"Argh! How can a ninja be so late? It's been TWO HOURS!" Sakura raged.

"Well, if our sensei's reputation is anything to go by, we have about another hour of this." Naruto said, not really paying attention to his teammate's ranting.

"What?!" this time it was both Sasuke and Sakura that yelled as they turned to Naruto.

"Hatake Kakashi is infamous for his tardiness. As far as I know, he's never shown up for anything, barring direct orders from the Hokage, less than two hours late. So, he's either going to be another hour late, or he's going to walk in the door in three...two...one...now." Naruto pointed offhandedly at the door just as a silver haired man poked his head into the room.

"Are you guys Team Seven?" he asked, already knowing the answer.

"YOU'RE LATE!" Sakura screamed. Sasuke glared, and Naruto just continued to stare out the window.

Kakashi just smiled under his mask. "My first impression is...I hate you. Meet me on the roof in one minute." with that, the man left.

Naruto disappeared in a puff of black smoke, and the other two just took the stairs.

Sasuke walked onto the roof a minute later followed by Sakura. They saw their third teammate and their sensei already waiting for them.

"Alright then. Let's get to know each other! Likes, dislikes, hobbies, goals. You go first, Pinky." Kakashi pointed at Sakura, who took slight offense at the nickname.

"My name is Haruno Sakura, I like..." she glanced at Sasuke and giggled. "I dislike Ino-pig and creepy people..." she tossed a slightly frightened glance at Naruto, who stared right back, his head cocked a little to his right. "My hobbies are..." she glanced at Sasuke and giggled again. "My goal is..." she glanced at Sasuke again and squealed loudly.

'A fangirl, great.' "Okay. You, the Brooder." Kakashi said, pointing at Sasuke.

"Hmph. My name is Uchiha Sasuke, I like training and tomatoes. I dislike weak people and those who don't pull their own weight. I have no real hobbies. My goal...No, my ambition is to kill a certain man, and revive my clan." Sasuke could feel his pink-haired teammate staring at him, and it was making him uncomfortable.

He was never one to shun admiration and/or praise, but he wasn't ashamed to admit that fangirls scared him sometimes.

'An avenger, too, eh? Doesn't look like much...But I can work with that.' "Good to know. Now you, Creepy." Kakashi pointed at Naruto.

"My name is Uzumaki Naruto. My likes…I suppose just training and learning new techniques. My dislikes…People. I suppose my only 'hobby' would be…collecting. As for my goals, I can't say I really have any." Naruto said, staring right into his new teacher's lone expose eye.

Kakashi sweatdropped lightly. "If you have no goals, then…why are you here?"

Naruto cocked his head slightly to the left. "Isn't that a question that everyone asks themselves at some point? I asked that question sooner than most...And I'm here because I feel that this is the path that will lead me to an answer."

'So, I have a rabid fangirl, and fledgling avenger, and an unfeeling machine. Oh, joy.' Kakashi mentally sighed. "Alrighty then, meet at Training Ground Seven for your first assignment tomorrow morning, 7:00am sharp. See ya' then! Oh, and don't eat breakfast, you'll just puke." the masked Jōnin then disappeared in a puff of smoke before anyone could say anything.

"Wait! Dammit, we didn't get any info on him at all!" Sakura screamed.

Sasuke just scoffed and went back to his brooding, but he was interrupted by Sakura asking him if he wanted to go out and get some food.

"So, how about it, Sasuke-kun?" the pink haired girl asked hopefully.

"No." Sasuke replied flatly.

Naruto didn't find this at all amusing, so he took off, leaping from rooftop to rooftop. He decided to open a mind link with Kyuubi.

'Hey, Kyuu-chan, you awake?'

"Yeah, what do you need, Kit?"

'Nothing really, just wanted someone to talk to that wasn't a complete moron.'

Kyuubi giggled, a strange sound for a demon to make. "So, what do you want to talk about?"

Naruto shrugged. 'I don't know, anything a guess.' Naruto didn't really analyze the situation, if he had he wouldn't have said that.

Kyuubi grinned. "Anything eh? Well, Kit, I think it's about time we had...'The Talk'."

Naruto groaned loudly. 'Haven't we already have that conversation before?'

"Yes, but you passed out before I even got ten minutes into it." Kyuubi giggled.

'I was nine years old for crying out loud! That was highly inappropriate.'

"Oh, and having sexual fantasies about me, the snake women, and the white-eyed girl isn't?"

Naruto's eyes widened and he almost faltered in his jumps, nearly crashing into a building.

'Those were all your fault, you know. When you keep sending me perverted images, how am I not supposed to think about it? I AM a guy after all...but that doesn't mean I am a pervert.'

"Aww, you're no fun." Kyuubi mock-pouted.

Naruto shook his head. 'So, we gonna have "The Talk" or what?'

Kyuubi grinned like the fox she was. "Sure Kit, if you think you're ready for it. I won't hold anything back, not even the weird stuff."

'I think I've already proven that I can take anything you throw at me...Just let me find a place to stop.'

(3 hours later)

Naruto sat on the floor of his apartment, blankly staring into space. It took his brain a while to process what Kyuubi had told him, as it kept stopping to analyze certain sections of the talk...mostly to figure out if they were physically possible.

"Well?" Kyuubi was trying to keep from laughing her ass off at Naruto's reaction to her little "Sex-Ed" speech.

"...Some aspects of that sound...unpleasant." Naruto wasn't sure if he had even blinked in the three hours since the speech started.

"Some of them are, like the initial penetration of a virgin girl. But most of it, if not all of it in some cases, is quite...pleasant, I assure you." in secret, Kyuubi had begun to see Naruto as more than a little brother or a kit. He was quickly becoming potential mate material.

"Anyway, I'm glad they have birth control technique, the last thing I want is kids." Naruto sighed heavily.

Kyuubi's heart sank a little at the boy's statement. "Why not?"

"I don't want my kids living the same horrible life I have. I don't want them to forever be known 'the children of the demon' or something like that. If I ever do have children, they certainly won't be born in this village." semi-emotionless, though he was, Naruto still wouldn't wish his childhood on anyone, let alone his own children.

"Well, you'll have a long time to think about it." Kyuubi said.

Indeed Naruto would have a long time to think. Kyuubi had told him that when he and herself merged partially four years ago that Naruto was now a half demon. And with his extensive training, he was on his way to full demon status. And one of the many perks of that status was a very, very long life. Immortality, as far as most mortals would be concerned.

Kyuubi had thought Naruto would've been happy with the news, so she was taken completely by surprise when he had freaked out, as if she had told him he was going to die in a week. There were parts of the Forest of Death that still hadn't recovered from his rampage. But Naruto eventually calmed down, though he never explained why he had thrown such a tantrum in the first place. Perhaps he didn't even know why he'd done it himself.

But with the knowledge that quasi-infinite longevity was within his grasp, plans began to form. Plans more grandiose than anything he had dared to dream of before. Things like learning every technique. Traveling the entire world, especially the unexplored West. And finding a way to undo the seal that held Kyuubi captive within him. She had given him so much, more than he had ever thought he'd be able to repay, but now there was a chance. A chance for him to give her the ultimate gift in return for all she had done for him: freedom.

Kyuubi didn't have the heart to tell him that, quite frankly, she probably didn't need him for that. If she truly wanted it, and really put her mind to it, she had no doubt that she could get out. But the chances of Naruto surviving the event were dismally low. She couldn't do that to him. Before, it was because her soft spot for children and her own moral code wouldn't allow for it, regardless of how strong her thirst for vengeance was. And now, she was simply too attached to her vessel. Her student. Her friend…and more. That was a sacrifice she was not willing to make, even for the sake of freedom.

Fortunately, unbeknownst to Naruto, things had changed within the seal, coinciding with the changes in him. Kyuubi, though still captive, was far less restricted than before. She was no longer confined to her cage, and was free to wander around Naruto's mind nearly unhindered. Some areas she avoided because her presence there would certainly alert Naruto, and other places were blocked off entirely. She could force her way through, but she would never risk it, not knowing what kind of damage such a thing might do.

She hadn't told Naruto, but she often found herself imagining his reaction to the news. The one that kept popping up was enough to make her hold off on telling him. Fear of what she could do to his mind, giving such free reign, and suspicion about what she may have already done. Neither of them needed any of that.

"I guess." Naruto sighed. "So, should I train, or take the day off?"

Kyuubi snorted. "Do whatever you want. Train, sleep, get laid, whatever." Kyuubi giggled at the last part.

Naruto rolled his eyes, he had been dealing with this for years, but he had never really known what she had meant until now.

"Hmm, sleeping sounds tempting, but I'm not tired at all...Maybe I should see what my...teammates are up to." Naruto walked out of his apartment, not bothering to lock his door. He had set some traps that were undetectable to the normal human eye, though the Byakugan or the Sharingan could see them.

Kyuubi had told Naruto about some especially effective traps, and Naruto wanted to try them out. As such, this may have been the one time in his short life that he wanted someone to break into his apartment and try to trash it. One trap used chakra-charged fire to burn anything that wasn't protected by a special seal. A seal that was drawn or carved into everything Naruto possessed in the apartment. Naruto was almost expecting to come home to a charred corpse, or pile of ashes, and an apartment that smelled like barbeque.

Naruto decided to just wander around the village, ignoring the cold, hate-filled glares from civilians and shinobi alike. If Naruto's mind hadn't been broken all those years ago, he most likely would have snapped and destroyed the village, or would have been killed in the process. Kyuubi knew this, which is why she didn't even attempt to try and fix it, which she probably couldn't, since the Fourth's seal prevented Kyuubi's chakra from directly affecting Naruto's mind in any way.

Meanwhile, the Uchiha we all love to hate was desperately trying to shake off his number one fangirl: Sakura Haruno. She had been on his back ever since their new sensei and their creepy teammate had left them alone.

'Come to think of it, I didn't even feel Creepshow leave. Dammit!' Sasuke clenched his fists tightly. 'He can't be stronger than me! I'll show him, I'll show everybody what it means to be an Uchiha!'

At this exact moment Sasuke and his pink-haired parasite came to a crossroad and someone walked in front of them. He had on a white Hunter-like mask with the kanji for three elements carved into it. His hood was up, hiding the rest of his head, and his black cloak seemed to flutter in a non-existent breeze.

Naruto turned to the people who were watching him, seeing none other than his new teammates; the Uchiha bastard and his rabid fangirl.

"Uchiha-san, Haruno-san." Naruto nodded to them and proceeded to walk off, content to find that his teammates weren't doing anything of interest, but a voice behind him stopped him.

"Wait!" Naruto turned to face a seemingly angry Sasuke.

"What do you want? I'm busy." it was sort of true, Naruto did have something to do...and that was to find something to do.

Naruto's response seemed to have angered the Uchiha even more.

"Fight me! Right now!" Sasuke demanded. Almost instantaneously a crowd gathered, most, if not all, wanting to see the Last Uchiha beat the crap out of the Demon Brat.

Naruto just sighed. "And why should I do that?"

"Because I demand it! Fight me!" Sasuke yelled.

Naruto scoffed. "You are nothing but a spoiled brat, always expecting to get your way because you are the 'last' Uchiha. You have absolutely no power over me, so I don't have to do anything you ask or 'order' me to. You are nothing to me." Naruto turned away from the enraged black-haired boy.

The crowd cheered the Uchiha on, which included the Official Sasuke Fanclub.

"Come on, Sasuke, kick his ass!" one girl yelled, which was echoed by others.

"Beat the demon boy!" shouted one of the adult members of the Fanclub.

"Ha! That little monster could never defeat an Uchiha!"

Naruto didn't let the shouts and insults get to him. He just shrugged and continued on his way, not stopping even when Sasuke insulted him.

"What's wrong, are you scared?" Sasuke smirked, that line worked on damn near every male, but not the masked freak. He just kept walking.

Sasuke growled and got ready to charge the cloaked boy, but Sakura stopped him.

"Come on, Sasuke-kun, you shouldn't beat up teammates...no matter how creepy they are." the young kunoichi said while standing in front of Sasuke.

Sasuke just growled louder and pushed her aside before lunging at Naruto.

To Naruto, Sasuke couldn't have been more obvious even if he'd been wielding a chainsaw.. 'I don't have time for this.'

"Yes you do. There is always time to knock an asshole off his high-horse." Kyuubi chimed in.

'Hm, good point.' Naruto agreed.

Just as Sasuke's flying kick was about to connect with the back of Naruto's head, the boy whirled with speed that no Genin should possess and caught Sasuke by the ankle. Naruto then swung the Uchiha over his head and smashed him into the ground, shattering the hard surface dirt. Naruto then held his "rival" up by the same ankle and, after seeing that he was out cold, carelessly flung the boy into a patch of thorn bushes at the side of the street.

Kyuubi laughed in Naruto's head. "Hahahaha! He'll probably spend two hours picking thorns out of his ass!" the fox continued to laugh.

Naruto just shook his head as the Sasuke Fanclub ran to the aid of their obsession.

"Sasuke-kun! Sasuke-kun, speak to me!" Sakura glared at Naruto. "What was that for?!"

Naruto shrugged. "He attacked me first, I tried to walk away. Don't blame me if he was too weak to take a hit...He shouldn't start fights that he has no hope of winning." with that Naruto disappeared in a puff of black smoke.

(Hours Later)

Sarutobi sighed, the Council was on his back again. Of course, demanding the death of the "Kyuubi Brat", Naruto Uzumaki, or at least severe punishment. Currently in his office, the masked Genin himself, along with his team.

"So Naruto, it says here that you viciously assaulted Sasuke Uchiha. Is this true?" the Sandaime already knew it wasn't, but he was obligated to ask regardless.

Naruto shook his head. "No, Hokage-sama. The Uchiha instigated the altercation by challenging me. I tried to walk away, but he attacked me from behind. I merely defended myself." he left out the part about the thorn bush, knowing the Hokage was already aware of it.

Sarutobi nodded. "Alright, that's your story, but I cannot ask Sasuke, as he his currently in the hospital having...um..." the Hokage didn't know how to continue without offending the boy.

But Naruto didn't have such worries. "He's currently having the thorns removed from his ass, correct?"

Sarutobi just sighed and nodded. "Since he is not here, I'll have to ask someone that was present for the...fight." he was reluctant to actually call that a fight. He had seen the entire thing on his scrying orb and had laughed quite hard when the Uchiha was tossed into the bushes. But he couldn't tell the Council this, as they would just say that he was defending Naruto because he had a soft spot for the boy.

The Third turned to Sakura. "Haruno Sakura, was it?" he asked.

Sakura nodded. "That it correct, Hokage-sama."

"You were present for the fight, correct? May I have your side of the story?"

Sakura instantly cast an angry glare at Naruto. "Sasuke-kun was injured by this monster for no reason!" she hissed.

Naruto clenched his fists hard, crushing the armrests on the chair he was sitting on. Who the hell was she to call him a monster based on one account of self defense?! Naruto wanted to yell in outrage, but he knew that it would do no good and make him look like a fool. Plus, Naruto knew that the Hokage had been watching the fight, as he constantly felt like he was being watched by someone or something that he couldn't quite identify. Naruto had felt this many times before, but it had taken him all of ten years to figure out exactly what, or rather who, it was.

Sarutobi narrowed his eyes for a split second. "But how can it be Naruto's fault if Sasuke initiated the attack in the first place? Wouldn't that count as self defense on Naruto's part?" Sarutobi made it sound like he was talking to a five year old, but even a child would know the difference between self defense and an outright unprovoked attack.

Sakura gulped hard, she had absolutely no way to back up her statement, having no proof that Naruto had actually attacked Sasuke.

This did not go unnoticed by the Sandaime. "I suppose you have proof of your statement, then?" he raised an old eyebrow.

Sakura just sank down into her seat. "N-no sir, I have no proof."

Sarutobi nodded, then turned to Kakashi. "And what did you see Hatake-san?"

Kakashi had been feeling kind of left out of the conversation, so he did what he always did when he was bored; he pulled out his porno book and started reading. But when his name was called it was like the book never existed.

"I heard Sasuke yell out 'fight me' and I saw a large crowd gather around Naruto and Sasuke, so I went to check it out. I would have stopped it, but…I was kind of hoping to see some of Naruto's abilities, since I have absolutely no idea what he is capable of. I didn't get to see much, though. Naruto walked out of the crowd, Sasuke came out after him and, as Naruto said, attempted to blindside him. Naruto countered the attack and slammed Sasuke into the ground, rendering him unconscious on impact, then tossed him into a patch of thorn bushes. He said something to Sakura, then disappeared." Kakashi finished his formal report, all traces of the slacker from this morning gone for the moment.

Sarutobi nodded. "Thank you, Hatake-san." then he turned to Naruto. "Well, it seems that you were not at fault, so there will be no charges leveled against you." Sarutobi smiled at little.

With Kakashi's report, the Council had nothing.

Naruto just nodded, then looked at his new sensei. "Is there anything else, Hatake-sensei?"

The masked Jōnin contemplated his answer for a second, then shook his head. "No, your training doesn't start until tomorrow. So you all have the rest of the day off."

Naruto nodded and stood to leave, then turned to Sakura and made his eyes glow while using a small amount of heavily concentrated killing intent on the girl, leaving her unable to look away. "The next time you see the Uchiha, give him this message: Do not start what you cannot finish...You'll live longer." with that Naruto walked out of the Hokage's office.

Sarutobi chuckled. 'Words to live by.' he turned to Kakashi. "If there is nothing else, you are dismissed."

Kakashi bowed and grabbed a still frozen Sakura, then exited the Hokage's office while dragging the girl behind him.

As Naruto exited the Hokage tower, one of his greatest enemies struck: boredom. Yes, Naruto Uzumaki, vessel and apprentice of the greatest demon in existence, was bored out of his mind.

"What to do, what to do, what to do..." Naruto began his boredom chant.

Kyuubi began to sweat, she knew this chant well. When Naruto said "what to do" thirty times in a row, he usually started pestering her, followed by acts of random destruction. He was sometimes joined in his rampage by the insane snake women, Anko.

'I have to figure out a way to stop him! ...And fast, he's already at twenty-two!' Kyuubi thought frantically, the closer Naruto got to thirty, the closer something got to oblivion.

Kyuubi knew that the villagers used any and all excuses to call for Naruto's execution, exile, or severe public punishment. And with the things he may do in his state of mind-numbing boredom, the villagers may very well get their wishes.

'Come on Kyuubi! Think, think THINK!' Kyuubi was poking herself in the forehead with one of her tails, the a proverbial light bulb went off in her head. "That's it!" she shouted out, but not meaning to.

Naruto stopped walking and chanting, stopping right at twenty-nine. 'Hm, what's it?' he asked Kyuubi, willing to listen to almost anything to get rid of his boredom.

Kyuubi grinned evilly. "You could always get a date for the evening."

Naruto would have choked on the air he was breathing...if he was normal. But, being not-so-normal, he just cocked his head to the side slightly.

'What now?'

Kyuubi sweatdropped. "A date you know? Find a girl and go out with her, take her someplace nice. The movie theater, a restaurant, something like that."

Naruto sighed a little. 'Kyuubi, you know I'm not allowed in those places. And even if I was, who wants to go out with the "freak"?' Naruto wasn't at all fazed by this, but Kyuubi was.

'Sometimes I wonder how he can take all of this and still stay loyal to Konoha. I would've gone on a killing spree a long time ago, or at least left the village, but that's just me. He doesn't know of his father yet, so why does he stay? He says that he has no one to protect here, so why does he stay? He says he has nothing here but the hatred of the village, SO WHY THE FUCK DOES HE STAY?!' Kyuubi began the growl without knowing it.

Naruto paused his walk and cocked his head again. 'Kyuu-chan, are you alright?'

Kyuubi smiled a little at her nickname. "Yeah, Kit, just thinking about that snake bastard, Orochimaru, and what I'm going to do to him when we meet him." Kyuubi began to cackle madly, making Naruto sweatdrop lightly.

'Okaaay. Moving on, do you have any other ideas besides a date? If not, I know a new restaurant in the village that's could use a skylight and a new paint job.' Naruto, being the great "artist" that he was, always thought that the interior color scheme of "Fuji's" was quite dull. And he'd be all too eager to add a...splash of color to the inside...EVERYTHING on the inside.

Kyuubi snickered at the thought of enraged and panicked humans covered in paint and not knowing who did it. "Well Kit, I suggest you learn more about your armor, the cloak to be specific. There are certain techniques that you can do with the cloak to make them more effective."

Naruto nodded and headed for his training area outside the village. He used his Shadow Walk technique to jump from shadow to shadow. It actually took longer than it would've with the Body Flicker, but Naruto wanted as much practice with the Shadow Walk as he could get.

"You're getting much better." Kyuubi commented. "You went three-quarters of a mile with that last one."

'I can go a full mile with the Body Flicker, so that's the benchmark to beat. So, you said something about techniques that can be enhanced with the cloak?'

"Do you remember a technique called 'Thousand Eyes'?"

"Vaguely. You only mentioned it in passing, and that was a month ago."

"It was originally created so humans could literally have eyes in the backs of their heads, but you can put them anywhere you like. You can even put them on objects, as long as they can hold chakra to keep the technique going. The cloak would be a prime example. It's also perfect for Genjutsu that require eye contact, like the Tsukuyomi of the Mangekyo Sharingan."

"Now there's a technique I wish I could use."

"Well, I can't give you the Sharingan, but with the Thousand Eyes technique, you can create things just as terrible. You see, those types of Genjutsu use eye-contact to transfer small chakra 'seeds' directly into your opponent's brain. If these 'seeds' are allowed to grow and spread, things like the Tsukuyomi are the result. A single seed can be planted in only a fraction of a second, but, unless the user is extremely proficient with these Genjutsu and can transfer much more powerful seeds, one is normally not enough. This is why some Genjutsu may require prolonged eye-contact.

This is where the Thousand Eyes comes in. Each eye can be used to transfer a seed, and if your opponent's focus jumps from one eye to another, as it often does, you've got the potential for several seeds to be planted in the space of a few seconds, dramatically increasing the power of the Genjutsu will have over the opponent's mind."

Naruto nodded, absorbing the knowledge like a sponge. But there was one small problem. Naruto had never bothered to learn any Genjutsu beyond the fairly basic ones, like the Hell Viewing Technique and Tree Binding Death, neither of which worked using eye-contact.

Of course, Kyuubi knew that. "I've got a couple of illusions that pack quite a punch, but I'll show them to you later. You know, when we have an…expendable guinea pig. For now, let's just concentrate on the Thousand Eyes technique."

(The Next Morning)

Naruto instantly sat straight up when he heard his alarm clock go off. He smirked under his mask; today would be a good day. And a good day for Naruto was fighting a challenging opponent and/or blowing things up...Preferably several-hundred things. Something came to Naruto last night for his potential fight with Kakashi. He could use many different technique without hand seals, and a ordinary human could not learn Demon Skills. And since Kakashi was just a human and the Sharingan could only copy hand seals and chakra flow, if Naruto stuck with his Fire, Wind and Darkness techniques, he'd be just fine. But Kyuubi had also told him not to show off too much, so he couldn't do something like "Fire Dragon Flame Missile" without seals, unless he wanted to attract attention to himself

And then there was the Uchiha. It was obvious that he was extremely power-hungry, and if Naruto showed just how large the gap between their powers was, the Uchiha would be furious and demand a fight or something else ridiculous.

Naruto warped his armor to his normal attire, he wouldn't need real armor since it was only training. And he was pretty certain that the cloak would be protection enough. Naruto checked to see if his traps were still set, then walked out the door. Naruto would have used the Shadow Walk if not for one important detail: he had no idea where Training Ground Seven was.

Naruto eventually found the clearing with a small stream going through it and a small red bridge going across it. He decided to have a little fun and used the cloak to mask his chakra, then his used the Shadow Walk to sink into the ground. Not enough to travel to the world known as the "Shadow Realm", but he stood right on the border between the two worlds, and he waited for his teammates to arrive.

It had been ten minutes, and Naruto was getting tired of waiting. But, just as he was about to come to the surface, he felt the Uchiha and the Banshee's chakra. He could hear them talking. Well, the girl was talking. The Uchiha was just trying his damnedest to ignore her. And failing, if his twitching left eye was any indication.

'Well, they are finally here, but I'll probably have to wait another couple of hours for Hatake-sensei. Hmmm...' Naruto thought for a second and came up with a plan.

Naruto made a Darkness Clone and sent it out to find the masked Jōnin's chakra signature.

The clone had found Kakashi staring at the memorial stone. The stone that held the names of all the most respected ninja to die in battle. The clone used the Thousand Eyes and extended part of its cloak, which was really just an extension of its own body, so he could look at the stone without getting too close. He found that Kakashi seemed to be staring at three names in particular: Obito Uchiha, Rin and Arashi Kazama. His old team and sensei.

'So, this is why he's late all the time. It's unhealthy to dwell on the past too much.' Naruto decided to give Kakashi a little push to get him to move.

He told the clone to use a voice displacement technique to whisper in Kakashi's ear and tell him to get moving.

Meanwhile Kakashi continued to stare at the memorial stone that held the names of his best friend, his first love, and his old sensei.

'I'm sorry I couldn't be there for you guys. I'm sorry I was so weak at the time. But never again...As long as I'm still breathing, I'll never abandon another teammate.' the silver-haired shinobi thought sadly, but with determination.

He then heard a whisper. It was so faint that he could barely hear it, but it was there.

"Go to your new team. Your students need a teacher, otherwise they will die. Without you they will never be prepared for real missions. Dwelling on the past too much is not good for you, and in your case, for those around you as well. What if they are being brutally tortured and dying right now? Calling out to you for help? But you're too busy staring at a rock to notice anything. Someone is watching you right now, and could have killed you in a hundred ways by now. You call yourself a shinobi? Hah! You try to play it cool and aloof all the time, but on the inside you are nothing but a little wimp who still blames himself for something that happened over a decade ago. Get over it! It wasn't your fault. Now move your ass and show this new generation how to be proper ninjas!" the whisper stopped.

Kakashi whipped around, frantically looking for the owner of the voice and the person it said was watching him. He neither saw nor felt anyone or anything, the area was completely empty of human life besides himself. He looked back at the rock with wide eyes. For some reason that voice reminded him of the Fourth.

'Hmmm, that certainly was odd...' he thought.

Then the whisper came back, sounding enraged this time. "MOVE!" this time it really did sound like the Yondaime and Kakashi kicked into high gear, making a b-line for the training ground where his new Genin team was.

Sasuke was about one more "How about it, Sasuke-kun?" from strangling the pink-haired banshee. He was mentally praying for anyone to show up, especially Naruto, he had a way of shutting up almost anyone by just being there. And that was an ability that Sasuke desperately needed right now.

Just then a familiar scarecrow-like ninja appeared before them. "Yo." he greeted, not looking up from his little orange book.

Sakura's attention was momentarily wrenched from Sasuke. "YOU'RE LATE!" she shrieked, making Sasuke cover his ears.

Kakashi sweatdropped. 'Such a loud Genin...' he then looked around for his third Genin. "Hm? Where's Naruto?"

Meanwhile, said ninja was still underground, and slowly sneaking up on the Jōnin. He then used his the Jōnin's shadow to appear behind him.

"I was here ten minutes before the others." Naruto said in his normal monotone.

Kakashi jumped slightly, he hadn't felt the kid's chakra at all! "How did you-"

"Every ninja has his secrets." Naruto cut off Kakashi with a simple answer.

Kakashi nodded and walked away from Naruto, he wanted a little more distance between himself and the creepy Jinchuuriki.

He turned to face his new team with a hidden smile. "Alright, team, we will now begin your survival training!"

Sakura groaned while Sasuke merely intensified the scowl that had been on his face ever since he woke up. Naruto just shrugged.

"But we already did that in the academy!" Sakura protested.

Kakashi merely smiled. "Yes, but not this kind of survival training." Kakashi then took out two gold bells attached to a piece of string. "You have to take these from me." he then took out a timer and sat it on a stump. "You have until noon to do it. Those who can't get a bell will not eat lunch for today...And they'll also be send back to the academy for another year."

Sakura looked horrified. "B-but there's only two bells...and THREE of us!" Kakashi simply smiled.

"Exactly." you could almost see the question mark above Sakura's head. "Remember to come at me with the intent to kill, or else you won't get anywhere."

"But won't you get hurt sensei?" if Naruto could laugh normally, he would have been on the floor by now. Sakura was one of the weakest people he had ever seen, civilian or otherwise, and she thought she could hurt a Jōnin?

Kakashi just eye smiled. "BEGIN!" he shouted. Instantly, Sasuke and Sakura jumped away and into the trees to hide. But Naruto stayed where he was, just staring at Kakashi.

"Um...Naruto?" Naruto began snoring and Kakashi sweatdropped, along with boy's teammates.

'What the hell is that idiot doing?' Sasuke wondered to himself.

Kakashi shrugged and walked over to the boy and poked him in the forehead. Only then did he realize his mistake.

Naruto grabbed his arm and looked up into his face. "Gotcha." Kakashi seemed to phase right through Naruto's hands, slipping out of his grip and leaving a log in his place.

As he jumped back, Kakashi prepared an admonishing speech for his, he believed, overzealous student. Unfortunately, he was kicked in the ribs by a second Naruto before he even landed.

'What the hell?! Clones aren't supposed to be able to make physical contact!' these same thoughts were shared by Kakashi, Sasuke and Sakura.

Naruto simply smirked and removed his cloak, tossing it away. It quickly became apparent that he had to make a conscious effort to keep the cloak from lashing out at the Jōnin, and he couldn't afford to split his focus on this occasion. Besides, he had a plan for the cloak that required a bit of subtlety.

"What's wrong Kakashi-sensei? Having trouble with mere clones?" Naruto mocked.

Kakashi responded with a hard right hook to the face of a clone. He was completely caught off guard when the clone didn't disappear, but instead hit him back even harder, sending him into a tree.

"Was that the real one?" he wondered out loud.

Another Naruto came out of the tree behind him. "Nope, but I am." he kicked Kakashi, only to have his boot make contact with another log, shattering it into splinters.

Naruto looked at the Jōnin that was now fifty feet away and holding a kunai in a battle position.

"Hn, these are not normal clones, nor are they Shadow Clones. They are something on a whole new level; Darkness Clones."

Naruto crossed his arms over his chest and mumbled, "Fire Release: Fire Dragon Flame Missile." he took a deep breath, then unleashed a torrent of flames from his mouth, which took the form of a large dragon and sped towards its target.

"What did I tell you about showing off?" Kyuubi sighed.

'WHAT?! How did he do that without seals? How could he do it in the first place? How does he even know that technique?!' Kakashi thought frantically, barely avoiding the burning dragon. 'What is this boy?'

Naruto smirked under his mask. "Kakashi-sensei, don't you dare run from me! Stand and FIGHT!" Naruto roared as he charged forward with his easily Jōnin-level speed.

He seemed to disappear before his sensei. Kakashi didn't even have time to lift up his forehead protector before Naruto was on him. He blocked a powerful blow with is forearm, nearly breaking it in the process.

'What the hell?!' Kakashi thought, this boy was way too powerful to be completely human, let alone a mere Genin!

Things really began to pick up when Naruto began close range combat. He went for a kick to Kakashi's head, which was, as he predicted, blocked. He used the recoil of his strike to spin in the opposite direction with tremendous speed, catching Kakashi off guard and nailing him in the head with a knee.

Kakashi rolled along the ground a couple of times from the force of the blow, his head feeling like it had been used to forge a sword. As he rolled back to his feet he saw Naruto and his clones were gone. He heard a low whistling noise and he ducked on instinct alone.

Just as he did this something flew over his head, shaving a bit of hair off the top. Kakashi immediately took out a kunai and slashed out at whoever was behind him, but he cut nothing but air. Apparently, the air didn't like that, as it seemed to retaliate with a slash of its own, putting a rather deep gash in the Jōnin's forearm.

Kakashi looked back for a split second and saw Naruto behind him with his right arm held up like a sword. There was an obvious distortion in the air around his arm, from which the odd whistling noise was coming.

The Jōnin rocketed forward as Naruto drove his arm into the ground where Kakashi had been milliseconds before.

Naruto saw Kakashi prepare to throw a couple shuriken, but he knew he couldn't pull his arm back and jump away in time. So, he released to air from its chakra prison and it surged outwards, causing the ground around Naruto to explode into the air, creating a cloud of dust and sand.

Kakashi, startled by the sudden explosion, missed his target completely. The deadly pieces of metal sliced through the air and lodged in a tree, right by Sasuke and Sakura's faces. This caused one to scream and fall out of the tree, and one to just stare at the other and shake his head.

Kakashi tried to use this opportunity to lift his forehead protector, but he was once again interrupted by something. This time, it was a black tentacle that came out of the ground and tried to grab him. Kakashi jumped back, only to have another one sprout out right in front of him. The two tentacles did all they could to crush the scarecrow, but couldn't match his speed.

'Hm, he's fast. I can see why he was an ANBU Captain. But let's see how he deals with this.' Naruto thought as he watched his new human sensei avoid the tentacles.

The writhing appendages suddenly stopped moving, prompting Kakashi to do the same and watch them from, he believed, a safe distance. He wasn't even going to chance trying to lift his forehead protector, as it seemed something bad happened everytime he went for it.

The ends of the tentacles split opened up to reveal grotesque mouths with vicious-looking teeth, spiny miniature tentacles, and copious amounts of drool.

'Oh shit.' Kakashi thought.

The tentacles shot a yellow-ish green slime out of their mouths, thus forcing Kakashi to resume the deadly game of cat and mouse.

One of the slime balls hit the base of the tree that Sasuke and Sakura, who had only just climbed back into her previous perch, were watching the fight from. It began to eat through the trunk at an alarming rate, burning halfway through the tree in mere seconds. The tree leaned the to side and began to fall, Sasuke and Sakura still in it.

Sasuke immediately darted out of the tree and into another one, while Sakura just followed her crush as best she could.

Kakashi took out two kunai and charged the tentacles, dodging globs of acid as he ran at tremendous speed. When he reached them, they lashed out, trying to sink those jagged teeth into the human's flesh. Kakashi twirled in mid-air to avoid the jaws of one tentacle and he cut it deeply with his kunai as it sailed by him. The creature roared loudly as it spewed disgusting, thick, purple blood all over the Jōnin. It fell to the ground and dissolved into black dust, which sank into the dirt.

"This is just sick." Kakashi said as he tried to wipe some of the slimy blood off, but only succeeded in smearing it. "You're getting a kick out of this, aren't you, Naruto?" he muttered.

The remaining tentacle lunged at him, but he jumped at the last second. Executing a picture-perfect corkscrew back flip over the creature, Kakashi drove both kunai into it as he came down, using gravity to aid him in pinning the creature to the ground. Kakashi found that the tentacle was quite...squishy. He jumped back to avoid another spray of viscous purple blood, then he flashed through a sequence of handseals and took a deep breath.

"Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique!" Kakashi unleashed a massive fireball on the pinned beast, burning it to a crisp.

Up in his new tree, Sasuke was seething more than usual. 'That's an Uchiha technique! Why does he know it?'

Kakashi looked around for Naruto, but found no trace of him at all. His eye widened when he felt the ground beneath his feet rumble and shake. He jumped into the air just as five Naruto replicas launched out of the ground below him.

The clones followed the Jōnin up and one by one they engaged him in Taijutsu.

Kakashi was not accustomed to fighting in mid-air, as it was hard to concentrate when you're falling.

The clone Kakashi was currently facing threw a horizontal kick at his head, but he tilted back to avoid it and caught the clone with a solid kick to the chin. Kakashi righted himself as he hit the ground and the clones were instantly on him. He dodged a punch from one of them and drove his elbow into the back of its head as it passed, sending it into the ground.

Another clone went for a sweeping kick, but Kakashi jumped over its leg and spun around to deliver a vicious kick to its temple. This would have counted as a fatal blow, affecting the large chakra storage unit located in the clone's head just as it would a real brain. But, instead of rupturing blood vessels and the like, the storage unit ruptured, leaving the clone unable to retain its form and causing it to dissolve into black dust.

Yet another Naruto used its own body to produce a rather long kunai and tried to stab Kakashi with a downward strike, but the Jōnin used a replacement at the last second and the clone ended up staking a log to the ground. Kakashi appeared behind the clone and grabbed it by its chin and the back of its head, then twisted hard. After a sickening snap/crunch, the clone twitched a little and Kakashi feared that he had killed the real Naruto. But "Naruto" then fell limp and dissolved, showing that it was indeed a clone.

Kakashi around and noticed that he still had three more clones to deal with. The one he had kicked in the air was back, and the one that he had elbowed was getting back up. Kakashi noticed that the last clone was hanging back slightly, and he deduced that it was the real Naruto.

Before he could say anything, the "Naruto" that he had driven into the ground earlier was in front of him in the blink of an eye. The clone threw a hard right hook at the masked ninja, but he blocked it with his forearm and winced a little, as it was still bruised from when he blocked the real Naruto's kick. The clone was strong, but nowhere near strong enough to be the real Naruto. Kakashi grabbed the clone's arm, then grabbed the other one when the clone tried to retaliate. The clone struggled for a bit, then leaned back and swung its upper body forward, headbutting Kakashi. Said shinobi let go of the clone, which then hooked its foot around the back of Kakashi's neck and kicked downward from its position, driving Kakashi into the ground, where he went "poof".

"A Shadow Clone?" Naruto mumble from his position. He had used his cloak to disguise himself as a large rock near the edge of the training ground.

Kakashi blurred into existence behind the Naruto clone and prepared to break its neck like he did with the other one. But the clone caught on to him and black spikes sprouted from its back, nearly impaling Kakashi.

Kakashi jumped back, only to run into another clone and be kicked in the back and sent flying forward into the spiked back of the other clone. Just before he was made into a human pincushion he used a replacement and a log was skewered instead. But this log had two explosive notes attached to it and it blew up before the clone could even register what had happened. It was blown into a tree, where it impacted head-first, leading to its "death".

'One more clone to go.' Kakashi thought as he looked at the two remaining Narutos, one of which he assumed was the real one.

Both Narutos looked at each other and nodded, then charged forward at amazing speeds. That was when Kakashi knew that neither of them was the real Naruto, as his speed was around mid-Jōnin, but these Narutos were both at high Chūnin. In other words, nothing he couldn't handle.

The clone went for a tandem attack, one jumping and going for the head and chest, the other going for the legs. Kakashi smacked one away with a hard backfist, then went for a roundhouse kick to the other's head. But the clone grabbed his foot at the ankle, spun over it one-hundred and eighty degrees and pulled him forward while extending its right leg and kicking backwards, planting its foot in Kakashi's face. The clone then threw a disoriented Kakashi at the other clone, which had recovered from Kakashi's strike.

Said clone was charging towards the airborne Jōnin with an Air Cutter ready to slice him in two. Kakashi saw this and he knew what that wind blade could do, but he couldn't counter it in his position, so he decided to take a big risk, one that could cost him his arm, or worse.

Just when the clone was about to chop him into confetti, he grabbed the clone by its bicep. The clone tried to cut him to get free, but Kakashi spun and flipped the clone over his shoulder and smashed it into the ground. Kakashi kept his grip on the deadly arm and placed his foot on the clone's armpit, then jerk its arm up, dislocating the shoulder and making the clone deactivate the wind blade. But the clone did not scream out in pain, it just looked at Kakashi, accepting defeat and waiting for his next move.

Kakashi looked over and saw the last clone coming at him with another wind blade and he put the clone he was still gripping in front of him as a shield. The other clone cut through its companion without hesitation, and it split at the waist before dissolving. But the horizontal swipe left the clone open for an attack, which is exactly what Kakashi had planned. He used something he had copied from the legendary medic, Tsunade, and gathered chakra into his fist and punched the clone while releasing the built up chakra. Its face caved in slightly and it flew into a large rock near the edge of the training ground.

Kakashi followed the clone when he noticed that it was still "alive", as it hadn't dissolved yet, and readied another "Tsunade God Punch". He sent the fist through the clone's head and finally reduced it to dust, but Kakashi knew something wasn't right. His fist had also gone through the rock, but not how it should have. It was like it sank into the rock, then he noticed that he couldn't pull his arm out.

A section of the rock pulsated, the only warning Kakashi received before a fist flew out of it and hit him square in the jaw, nearly breaking it. The "rock" released him and he flew back nearly fifty feet, then tumbled along the ground for another thirty. Kakashi knew that it was the real Naruto this time, only five people had ever punched him like that: The Yondaime, Tsunade, Gai, Rin, and Naruto. And as far as he knew only one of them was here at the time.

Naruto stepped out of the "rock", which proved to really be his cloak, and clapped.

"Good, very good, Hatake-san. You have beaten the clones, but would you like to see how you fare against the real thing?" Naruto said as he held out his arms, beckoning Kakashi.

Kakashi had two reasons he was not using the Sharingan in this battle. One: He would never live it down if it got out that he had used his secret weapon against an academy graduate, no matter how powerful he was. Two: Everytime he went to uncover the eye, something bad would happen. But Kakashi decided that things were only going to get worse if he didn't use the Sharingan, and Naruto had some interesting moves that he may be able to use in the future.

'Screw it, my reputation will driven into the ground anyway if I get beaten by someone fresh out of the academy.'

Just when Kakashi was about to lift up his forehead protector, he noticed that he couldn't move his arm.

"What?" he looked down only to see a black mass covering his hand and forearm. As he stared at it, several eyes opened up all throughout the mass, each one staring right back at him.

'What is this? A Genjutsu?' Kakashi though about trying to break it, but then the mass began to move further up his arm, the he noticed, this thing had weight to it. Whatever the hell this thing was, it was real!

Kakashi fought hard to regain control of his body, but then another black mass latched onto his other arm and slowly moved up like its counterpart. Then Kakashi noticed his shadow seemed to be gradually growing darker. Two more black masses encased his feet and moved up his legs, a little faster than the ones on his arms.

'Shit, shit, shit, SHIT!' Kakashi thought frantically when not a single plan of escape coming into his mind.

Naruto suddenly appeared before him. "Tsk, tsk, Kakashi-sensei. Such a simple trick, at least for me, but you still fell for it. And don't bother with trying to break this, it's not a Genjutsu." Naruto emphasized his statement by having the dark masses squeeze Kakashi's arms and legs, making him grunt in slight pain.

The mass had finally covered Kakashi's arms and legs completely, but stopped there. Then Naruto's cloak reappeared on his body and began to shift and morph. It grew a mouth with hundreds of razor-sharp fangs, all moving around inside its jaws in a similar fashion to teeth on a chainsaw. It released a low growl and extended from the cloak to rise high above Kakashi's head. The silver-haired ninja idly noticed that the thing resembled the tentacles that he had fought earlier in the battle.

"So, do you give up?" Naruto asked.

Even with the mask, Kakashi could tell that the boy had a glint in his eyes. And it told him that the wrong answer would mean a shitload of pain.

"...Never. I will protect my comrades, no matter what. I will never abandon them." Kakashi answered.

Naruto smirked under his mask. "Good. If you had answered differently, you would have never had children." Kakashi cringed.

The masses that held Kakashi receded back into Naruto's own shadow, and the cloak resumed its facade as a harmless, though creepy, accessory.

It was then that the timer rang. "Well, it looks like you all fail." Kakashi dusted himself off, but while doing it he noticed two things. First: the bells were missing. Second: his Icha Icha Paradise book was missing as well.

He looked alarmed for a second then he looked at Naruto, who reading the book with one hand while spinning the bells with the other.

"I don't understand you adults. As far as I can tell, you're all perverts." Naruto closed the book with a snap and tossed it to Kakashi, who caught is and checked for damages, then put it in his pocket again.

"So, when did you get the bells?" Kakashi was genuinely curious, he hadn't even felt him get the things.

"Hm? Oh these, I got them right after Uchiha-san and Haruno-san went into the trees and you poked me in the forehead." Naruto continued to toy with the bells.

Kakashi's visible eye widened. "What, how? I didn't even feel it. And if you had them, why did you continue to fight me?"

Naruto looked at him. "What's the one shadow no man is ever suspicious of?"

Kakashi thought for a second, then it hit him, literally, something hit him in the leg. He looked down to see a tentacle coming out of his own shadow. It "waved" at him then went back in.

Kakashi looked back at Naruto. "His own."

Naruto nodded. "Correct. The reason I kept fighting you was so that I could see if you were worthy of your Bingo Book status. A test if you will."

Kakashi was shocked, no one below Chūnin in rank should have had access to a Bingo Book. But he shrugged it off. From now on, nothing that Naruto did would surprise him.

"And?" he asked.

"You passed."

Kakashi nodded, then Sasuke and Sakura appeared from their hiding places. Sasuke glared at Naruto while Sakura just moved behind Sasuke, hiding from Naruto, who she now labeled as some sort of demon.

"Well, team...you failed." Kakashi deadpanned.

'WHAT?!" both Sasuke and Sakura yelled, Naruto just smirked, he saw Kakashi's game.

"Hold it, sensei." Naruto then tossed both bells to his teammates, parted his cloak, and got into a fighting stance. "Now that they're safe, we will continue our fight so that I may earn my position."

Kakashi smiled. "Well, in light of new developments...you pass!" Sasuke and Sakura facefaulted.

"WHAT?!" they both screamed again.

Kakashi's smile widened. "This test was to promote teamwork, and it's obvious that Naruto was the only one who got that. This was a simulation, of sorts. If you were on a real mission, the bells may have been important scrolls or something, and I would have been a enemy ninja. What he just did would be the same as passing you two the scrolls and staying behind to fight the enemy and keep them from catching up to you. He would have made a tough decision for the good of the team and the mission." he explained to his two confused students. "Even though it is against protocol to 'play hero', remember this: Those who don't follow the rules are trash, but those who abandon their comrades are worse than trash."

It was then that Sasuke decided to start his "How'd you get so powerful" rant. He walked up to Naruto and grabbed his cloak.

"Where did you get that kind of power?" he hissed.

Naruto just looked at the Uchiha. "You'll never be able to get it, so why bother asking?" Naruto's cloak then shoved Sasuke to the ground. "And don't touch my cloak...You might not get that arm back next time."

Sasuke jumped to his feet and yelled. "I will find out how you got so strong, even if I have to beat it out of you!" he charged at Naruto like the arrogant fool that he was.

Naruto just sighed and grabbed his wrist, flipped Sasuke over his head and slammed him into the ground again.

As his vision swam and consciousness slowly faded, Sasuke heard Naruto say these words: "You need to stop that 'I'm better than you because I'm an Uchiha' bullshit. Your clan name and your bloodline don't mean shit to me, nor will it mean much to most of your future opponents. You want the power to beat your brother? Then do as everyone else does, and work for it." then Sasuke was out like a light. Naruto turned to Sakura. "Haruno-san, take him to the hospital." the girl nodded, picked up Sasuke and ran. Normally, she would've struggled just to get Sasuke onto her shoulders, let alone run with his added weight. But fear caused the body to produce adrenaline, and adrenaline was awesome like that.

Kakashi sighed and shook his head. "Well, someone doesn't play well with others."

"Is there any reason I should? If I need some extra bodies, I've got clones. Those two are useless." Naruto scoffed.

"They are still your comrades, regardless of what you think of them."

"You and your 'comrade' bullshit. If you aren't the biggest hypocrite I've ever laid eyes on, I don't know who could possibly rank higher than you." Naruto all but snarled.

"Excuse me?" Kakashi's eye narrowed as he turned to full face his student. He began to subconsciously radiate a bit of killing intent as his anger rose.

"You heard me. You say those who would abandon their comrades are worse than trash, but I have to wonder if there aren't some exceptions in your mind. Afterall, you had no problem abondoning me six years ago." Naruto said, completely unfazed by the man's glare or his killing intent.

Kakashi recoiled as if physically struck by the words. "Wha-What?" he stammered, his mind reeling with the implications.

"Perhaps you should see a doctor, as it would appear that you're going deaf." and with that, Naruto vanished in a puff of black smoke, leaving Kakashi to stroll down memory lane by himself.

XXXX

And it's done!

Yeah, there's a bit of bashing, and there will be more, but you've gotta admit that I'm not as bad as some. Plus, my bashing is far from senseless. If a character is being dragged through the dirt, there's a reason for it. And many of them will get their chance at redemption.

Also, tell me what you thought of my fight scene. I don't write those a lot. In fact, the fight scenes in the original Tamer of the Hazard were some of my first, at least of that kind. My specialty lies more with firefights than fistfights. That might seem kinda odd, considering I'm into MMA, but that's actually the problem. When you're watching it, MMA isn't really that exciting. Every once in a while, you'll see something cool and unique, but those moments are few and far between. Trust me, when you're in the ring, you are NOT thinking about theatrics and giving the fans a good show. That's what pro wrestling is for, pure entertainment. You're thinking about the quickest way to take your opponent down, and keep him down, while taking minimal damage yourself.

With that kind of mindset, it's pretty difficult to make an exciting hand-to-hand fight scene. That's why the ones I've written before were more "Saving Private Ryan", less "Gorgeous"(relatively old Jackie Chan movie with some of the best hand-to-hand fight scenes I've ever seen).

Chapter three coming whenever I get some more free time and get my arm to work properly again!

Jason Out!