"Pfft, you two should worship me like a goddess. If it weren't for me, you'd never have gotten that close."

"Yeah, right. If it weren't for Naruto, you'd have been down and out from the moment Kakashi caught you."

"Well, I think we can all agree with the fact that I am the greatest."

The pair slowly turned their heads to face the blonde boy, who was currently sitting his trade mark way on the far right of Ichiraku's Ramen Shack, with his characteristic, expressionless, dead-serious face, biting his right thumb.

All three burst out in laughter.

"Alright, kids. Time to go. It's getting late, I need to close and you three need to rest if your bandages are anything to go by."

"Ok, o-san..." Naruto climbed off of the chair, taking his hand into his back pouch before pulling out Gama-chan. "I'll cover tonight. How much?"

"Nothing. It's on the house. Congratulations on your graduations. Now do me a favor and go to sleep. If it's true that Kakashi's the one training you, you're going to need it." Old Teuchi Ichiraku begun to bring down the metal fence over the shack as the newly formed Team Seven left.

"Bye, o-san."

"See you, bye, goodnight."

…...

They walked together for a few minutes, their respiration turning white and visible in the cold night. Naruto's grey and black checkered hoodie was pulled up, while Sasuke and Sakura were beginning to consider a cahnge in their outfit.

The three came to a stop in a crossroads. Facing the north road, one could see the Four Hokage' giant busts. To the east, one would head towards the outskirts and slums. To the west, the markets and shops. To the south, the Clan district. They were all standing in a triangle position, giggling and chuckling at an immature joke that the raven-haired boy had thrown out.

"Alright, the old man is right. We all need to rest. If tomorrow's as bad as today, we'll seriously need it." Naruto spoke, crouching down to his signature position one more time. The medic-nin had been able to repair the fractures, but they hadn't been able to repair his head. Bansho Tenin. A powerful technique with painful setbacks. His mind was still numb.

"Agreed." The other two spoke at the same time, quickly facing each other before facing away again, with the girl growing a red blush.

"Alright, see you tomorrow." Naruto rose, breaking off from the group and heading to the west, waving his hand out.

"Good night." Sasuke followed, giving a slight snap of the right hand before turning south, heading for his clan's compound.

Sakura stood where she was for a few seconds before shaking something off of her head and heading to the west.

"Bye..."

The crossroads became deserted. Deprived of all life. Well, not exactly all. All but two dark silhouettes that glared down upon the newly-turned ninja. One with a dog mask. One with a cat mask. Naruto was growing uneasy. His glowing purple eyes were blaring at him. His gut was revolting, telling him to look back. He sated his curiosity, head snapping back and his right eye darting through a specific spot on the rooftop.

Nothing was there.

…...

The sound of metal making contact and being forced to move broke the nocturnal silence, as Naruto inserted his keys in the apartment's front door's lock, turning it slowly.

The world, as mentioned before, was a rather boring thing for Naruto. He new exactly how inserting the key would push a few pins into their specific spots, allowing it to turn the lock as a wheel, sliding the respective metal parts out of the way and allow him to push the door open.

As he entered, he closed and locked the door behind him, knowing full well how tapping and flipping the light-switch would close the electric circuit and supply the lightbulbs with electricity, forcing the small reistance to burn and create a constant, visible source of light.

He also knew how Hinata had used a hairpin and a small tool to force his varanda's door's pins up and to consequently rotate them in order to open it, infiltrate and set it up so that she was now on a full lotus position, meditating downside up on his ceiling.

The world was something extremely boring for Naruto.

"Had fun?"

"Loads of it. My ribs had a blast. Did you not see that kick?"

"How could I? Kurenai was testing me, Shino and Kiba." she responded. Her eyelids were closed, but he was well aware of the fact that she was spying him as he passed below her, throwing his back pouch onto the black leather couch, which was on the left, before hurrying to the fridge, directly to his northeast. Her answer confused him, or rather, sprouted a new variable on his mind, as he was almost certain he had sighted her. However, he did not allow his new-found uncertainty to transpire, deciding to think on it later.

"Shino and Kiba. Aburame and Inuzuka, right?" He questioned as he opened the fridge, taking out a carton of milk.

"Right. I'd guess they're trying to create a few specialized teams." As she spoke, his mind put itself to work, given full concentration as he performed the boringly routine task of filling the bowl with chocolate cereal and pouring milk into it, before taking out a spoon from a drawer.

"Pfft, I hope you enjoy tracking." He replied, throwing himself onto the couch, sitting in his trademark position, eating the cereal at a fast pace.

"Trust me, I won't. I hate having to do these menial tasks. This is all because you insisted I withhold my strength!" Her eyes finally snapped open, glaring at the blonde who gave no corporal response but his expressionless face.

"It is necessary. If your father suddenly decides to take an interest in you thanks to some new-found power or natural talent, all of our research and planning will be cancelled. We can not allow for detection. I've told you this."

"Yes, I know...So, anything interesting happened in your test?" She spoke, shutting her eyes once more, relaxing completely. Her body had been tense, but that was not what she had wanted to calm. Kurenai had meddled with her mind with Genjutsu, and she had to clear it out.

"Good question. I had to use my eyes in the fight to track down and place a Genjutsu on Kakashi. My only guess is that I pushed myself far enough. I've activated some kind of ability. A pulling ability of some sort." As Naruto spoke, his own face changed expressions, recalling the moment. He had sent a strange urge of power and an almost immediate sulk in it as well. He left his cereal unattended as he explained.

"A pulling ability?"

"I myself don't quite understand it. It was a bit instinctive. I rose my hand, fueled it and my eyes with chakra and suddenly Kakashi's leg was pulled back. It was the only thing that let us "win" the match, because Sakura got to punch him after. It was extremely taxing and my head still hurts, but it interests me. If we experiment with it, it might become a valuable trump card in the future." As soon as he stopped speaking, he knew he had messed things up. Hinata's face turned into a frown.

"I'm going to try and ignore the fact that you ignored my advice to be careful. Do you think you can replicate what you did?" She replied, remaining in her position, though opening her eyes. It obviously had him think. Could he replicate it? Perhaps.

He slowly rose his left hand, pointing its palm directly at one of the chairs they had in the small kitchen. His grey eyes shone brightly, glowing with power, something that the Hyuuga noticed with her malice-filled eyes. *

"Bansho Tenin."

Suddenly, the chair glowed as well, giving off a slight warning of what was about to ensue. It took flight, rushing through the air at an insane speed. Naruto only had time to tighten down, crouching as much as he could on the couch, allowing himself to stay directly below the wooden object that continued its trip, smashing into the opposite wall, shattering itself into a thousand pieces.

Hinata had stiffened up at the sudden outburst, but she could very well keep her mind cool to analyze the situation. Naruto's face was dull, however, it was not the normal expressionless face. It was the forced one, which, to someone who knew him, was a sign that he was hiding something.

He truly was. The blonde boy, with a hood over his head, was confused. The "draining" feel was nowhere near as harsh as the first time, and the power was quite obviously a few times more noticeable. Were his abilities developing at such a pace? The variables were by now something that even he couldn't deal with – they were way too much. It could be a sign that his abilities had been awakened, it could be a sign that it was simply an erratic thing, sprouting at times, it could be a sign that only for that specific ability, his capacity and potential was elevating itself, however it could also mean absolutely nothing.

Overall, quite troublesome. However, it did give him on confirmation. His powers were not to be toyed with and, until further notice, used as a last resort.

"I see we have improvement." She spoke, receiving a slight nod in response.

"It seems the stress I was placed under today has managed to awaken it up to a point." Suddenly, he clutched his head, clenching his teeth and shaking slightly, groaning in pain. He couldn't believe he had forgotten about the migraine's backlash.

In a second, Hinata was at his side, hopping over the spilt milk and cereal, crouching by him and holding him tight. She knew that no amount of medical ninjutsu or medication would ever truly silence the headaches.

"You need to calm down. Try to get yourself together. Let's discuss something else. Your team, your future plans, anything. Get your mind off of your eyes."

"Sasuke's unto me." He blurted out, his enormous shaking stopping.

"What?"

…...

Sasuke's POV -

A few lone steps echoed through the vast, deserted space that was now the Uchiha clan's compound. No amount of exorcism, no amount of mourning, no amount of whispered apologies could ever silence the mute cries of horror and pain that constantly inhabited the place. The cries for help proferred by his fellow clan members, the ones who were murdered and put down like animals by Itachi's hands.

The ravenhaired boy did not seem to be bothered by them, anyway. He walked slowly, looking at the ground, stockpiling and organizing all of the daily thoughts and occurences. He had long since decided that if he was to put an end to Itachi's waste of a life and ressuscitate the Uchiha clan, he had to attempt and absorb any kind of power, be it suspicious, harmful or worse. After all, whatever happened to him after these two objectives were put through.

Something that did intrigue him were the blonde's eyes and abilities. His intellect had already proven itself time and time again in the fight against Kakashi. However, that was not transferable, and Sasuke himself had no desire to switch when it came to it. The eyes themselves could be a welcome addition. Did he honestly want to replace his Sharingan with them, though? It could be an awful trade. After all, so far all he knew about the blonde's eyes were their ability to track movement, see chakra and cast Genjutsu.

Well, not just that. There was also that strange pulling ability. Fake clone or not, it had been the only thing that let Sakura smack Kakashi and get them a victory. One thing was for certain, he had to conduct more investigation and research into the mysterious Doujutsu. It was strange on itself that nobody had ever heard of such a thing before.

As he slid the door to his house open, he was immediately greeted by a kneeling, bowing girl in her late teenage years, wearing a plain black kimono with the Uchiha coat of arms on the back. Her hair was red, pulled back into a classic half palm tree tie, while the other half covered her right eye in one long bang. Her skin was fair and creamy, and her eyes were sharp and attentive, much like a hawk's.

"Sasuke-sama, you've come late. I shall heat up the bath and prepare your dinner immediately." she spoke, never once raising her head or eyes. She had been perfectly disciplined and taught in order to become a perfect servant, that much was obvious."

"There is no need for dinner, Asaruy. I am not hungry. Prepare a hot bath and a massage. The day was stressful and I wish to spend the night meditating." As he spoke her name and walked past her, leaving his sandals behind, she slowly rose and followed close behind, with a distance of two people in between them, as the raven-haired boy guided both of them to what he had named as the "rest and relaxation center", formerly their private hot springs and "SPA".

"Surely, Sasuke-sama. Did you manage to discover what you had mentioned?" She asked, hurrying behind the boy with her small feet. She had recalled that her master had spoken of something interesting that he was expecting to occur.

"That, and more. I had to play coy and weak, but I found out that his eyes, much like mine, can see Chakra and activate Genjutsu. He can also track movement and use a strange, "pulling" power."

"Perhaps related to gravity control?"

"I am still not sure. It is definitely worth further investigation, though. Testing may be involved."

"What are the risks of obtaining these results, however? Sasuke-sama?"

"The risks are a completely different story. To be honest, I'm pretty sure he's already caught unto me."

…...

Naruto's POV -

"What do you mean Sasuke's after you?" The Hyuuga, asked staring straight into Naruto's head. He had his left thumb in his mouth and was sitting in the fetal position, staring at a single spot in the ground, at nothing in particular.

"He had a nasty look when he was observing my eyes earlier today. For a split second, sure, but he did have it. When he started asking questions about it, both in the fight and at dinner, he always stopped right before stepping the line, as if he was being extremely careful about it."

"How can you be so sure?"

"Sasuke's one of the two last members of the Uchiha clan. No matter how rational he is, he will always be driven by his hatred and vendetta towards Itachi. I'd guess that no matter how self-destructive it may become, he is in a hunt for power. And just what that is powerful has come to play today?"

"...your eyes."

"Bingo. I bet he sees my eyes as a quick source of power." Naruto took a bite out of the chocolate bar that Hinata had given him. It had always cooled down his headaches. Not killed, but cooled down.

"What will his next step be?"

…...

Sasuke's POV -

"What will your next step be, Sasuke-sama?" Asaruy asked as she used her finger's pressure to work out the stress on the raven-haired boy's upper back. Sasuke liked Asaruy. She had always been a faithful servant, and an extremely intelligent one at that. Ever since Itachi had done what he had, she had been assigned to him. Furthermore, she had volunteered.

"I will stop probing for a small while. Maybe a week, so he doesn't grow suspicious. While that, I'll occasionally train in private sessions as an alibi, using the time to get information in other, more discrete ways. Depending on how things go, and if they're worth it at all, I'll try to get the eyes around the Chuunin Exams."

Asaruy's eyes widened, understanding her master's plan immediately.

…...

Naruto's POV -

"Why will he strike in the Chuunin Exams?" The white-eyed girl wondered as she sat cross-legged, watching the blonde eat peacefully.

"He'll have enough information by then, and it'll be the most "accident-prone time of the entire school year."

"So he can simply attack you and pin it on someone else. But what then? It's not like he can replace his own eyes and stay undercover."

"He won't need to. After that, he will have absorbed all possible knowledge from Kakashi and other mentors he may have found. By then, Konohagakure will have nothing more to offer him, and he will-"

…...

Sasuke's POV -

"By then, I will run from the village and take you with me. I'll have nothing more here to do and can search for power in other places." He finished, smirking for a second, before beginning to laugh. That strange, eerie laugh. The one that would terrorize so many in the future. The laugh of a truly and purely evil individual. The laugh of the insane hilarity that onyl victory could provide.

"Naruto, you're smart. But I am much smarter than you."

Asaruy remained silent. She had always known her master was gifted. How many people could truly and honestly plan that far ahead? He knew that Naruto had caught unto him. He even knew that Naruto was probably thinking the same way he was. The problem? Naruto had no certainties nor did he have any way to prevent anything. Sasuke had planned it so that he was in control, and that was what was going to give him an advantage over the blonde Uzumaki.

…...

Naruto -

Hinata remained silent. Naruto wasn't bleeding. He was in another of his "zones". If she was correct, he had probably been scoping the Uchiha out with his eyes all day. She allowed a smile to flex her face. This was exactly why she trusted on the blonde boy so much. Nobody would ever be able to keep up with him, and that was exactly why nobody would ever even compare.

"Uchiha Sasuke, I promise you..."

…...

Sasuke -

"Uzumaki Naruto, rest assured..."

…...

Naruto and Sasuke -

"...I WILL BEAT YOU!"

…...

Meanwhile, Haruno Sakura -

While all this transpired, a certain pink-haired girl had just finished her own bath, taking extreme care to dry her hair off the way it was supposed to, combing it and overall stylizing it so it kept its fantastic cherry blossom aroma.

She was currently wearing pink pijamas with Sakura trees on them. Everything was going so perfect! She was on a team with one of the best ninja of the village training them, a genius, Naruto, and her beloved Sasuke-kun.

Could life get any better?

Little did she know the storm that threatened their lives from the horizon...

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Alright, Chapter three. I hope you all appreciated it. This time, I had a lot of switches from one side to another in an attempt to try out a new writing style. Tell me what you think. Any suggestions would be fantastic, please follow and favorite if you like it. Any complaints, please send them my way too, that's the only way I can assure the story goes the way you like it.