Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or Star Wars.

Chapter 6: Team Gai

1.5 Years Later: 36.5 BBY (Naruto Age: 11)

The village had hardly changed in the short amount of time that had passed, but for some it felt like things had become much better as they'd progressed a great deal in the small amount of time. For those few, they'd made sure to go and tell those they were closest too some of the different things that they'd gone through and how their lives had changed because of them.

One such person was sitting beneath a tree near their front yard, leaning against it as they watched their friend move about in short, sharp, staccato-like blurs. After going through a set, they would then reset, and repeat it slower, ensuring that each motion was correctly moving into the next before blurring into the next set while they listened to the first person speak.

"And so my sensei had us do this ridiculous bell test, and I swear he was running circles around us. On his hands!

"Uh-huh."

"And don't get me wrong, my teams' pretty good, but this guy was just insane. Who learns how to jump around without their feet touching the ground like that? What purpose could it serve in the future?"

"The hundred-yard handstand dash?"

"Very funny Naruto."

Tenten huffed softly, watching as Naruto continued to practice his swordsman forms. Why he kept coming back, she didn't know; he'd caught on so fast after she'd first started teaching him that the rest was basically minor hints as to how to improve. And sometimes he'd shift into some other style to go through, moving much slower since it was clear he hadn't practiced it that often, but she could tell from the footwork that it wasn't something she'd taught him.

She reached up and brushed a hand against her new headband, the metal glinting in the light with the leaf symbol carved into it standing proudly for all to see. She'd just recently graduated, and was finally a ninja like Naruto, though for some reason she still felt he was ahead of her somehow. Like he'd not only graduated earlier, but had learned something amazing and was keeping it up his sleeve.

They'd continued to meet up occasionally when he wasn't going on missions with his new sensei, Torune. She didn't quite know if she liked him or not; Aburame were always a hard group to get a bead on. The rest of his team was nice though, and Shin had become a very fun sparring partner when he wasn't sparring one-on-two with Sai against Naruto.

Watching Naruto move, she could idly see how they'd have issues. Naruto rarely wasted a motion if he could help it. Each move looked as calculated as it would eventually be, and his eyes never seemed to blink during a fight. Constantly processing, grinding information, then spitting out the best possible outcome. Often involving him somehow getting through their best efforts to keep him at a distance and knock the hell out of them in close quarters.

How someone got that good at taijutsu, she didn't know. Then again, it seemed her sensei wasn't much better that department seeing how his idea of 'training' himself was to challenge his students to a survival training, where he'd then proclaimed that he would do the entire thing while doing a handstand. Then he'd rambled about other workouts or some such thing, but just the idea of him being so confident had perplexed her. She'd thought it was just Naruto acting arrogant; she hadn't realized it was a trait that more powerful members of the village also shared.

Thinking about that, she realized that she'd somehow ended up on a team that seemed to focus and specialize around more physical arts than other techniques. Neji was a Hyuuga, known for being practitioners of the Gentle Fist fighting style. She was known for hitting 100/100 on any target, now with increasing amounts of exotic materials thrown into the mix with the same efficiency. And Lee…

She'd rather not think about Lee.

"You seem troubled." Naruto said, suddenly cutting into her thoughts. Spinning his wooden blade in his hands a few times, he laid it on his shoulder and turned to her. "Ryo for your thoughts?

That was another thing he did sometimes that startled the hell out of her. How could he just know things like that? She hadn't seen him glance at her once, he hadn't started any conversation up until this point, and yet when she had issues or worries that came to mind he was right there picking her apart until she admitted and opened up about it. It was maddening; helpful, and often stress relieving, but still maddening.

"Well, it's just my team." She said slowly, rubbing her hands together slowly. The Hokage himself had helped to organize the team, and she didn't want to seem she was questioning his choices; even if that's exactly what she was doing. "We seem like a very physically oriented composed team, but one of our members can't even use chakra."

Naruto's brows lifted at that, suddenly quite interested as he moved over to sit next to her. "Oh? Is that even possible?"

Tenten shrugged. "I guess anything's possible. From what I heard, he has a genetic defect that stunted the growth of his chakra coils."

"His…chakra coils?"

The confusion was clearly evident in his voice, and it spread across his face quickly. She couldn't help but smile as she watched his eyes dart about as his thoughts raced; a trait that was a rare occurrence as he appeared to be able to know most of what was placed before him before he even had it come near him. The idea that she had introduced a new concept to him made her want to enjoy every second of it that she could.

"You mean you don't know?" She asked, leaning on her palm in amusement. "And here I thought you knew everything."

"No, never everything." Naruto said dismissively, as though he were all to use to saying it by this point. She wouldn't be surprised if that was true. "There's always more to learn…but I swear that 'chakra coils' would have been something I'd have heard about before."

"Probably any hunter-ninja classes." Tenten said, getting another twitch from Naruto.

It was something she vaguely remembered discussing with him a few months ago. He'd openly admitted that hunting ninja from their own village seemed a pointless endeavor in his mind as most of those who were able to escape the village were far too powerful to be brought back under reign. Death was the only option for them, and he hated looking at things with one solution. As such, he'd focused more on what had multiple options; like subterfuge, sabotage, and assaults.

"Right~" Naruto rubbed his forehead, groaning as he tried to call up any information from those classes. He'd usually spent that time writing down plans for what he'd wanted to look into once he'd gotten to the galaxy at large – in Rakata of course, he wasn't dumb enough to just write his plans in the open. He found he had difficulty bringing up any information that he could use though, and found himself slowly turning to face Tenten fully. "Alright, educate me."

Tenten grinned, relishing the moment for a moment. She'd lose that soon as Naruto absorbed the information and no longer needed her to teach him, but she had it for now and she'd relish it while she could. "Alright, where do you want me to begin?"

I=-x-=I

Rock Lee was a very enthusiastic person. He had many shortcomings, many things that held him back, but he persevered. He had no skill in ninjutsu or genjutsu, as his stunted chakra coils causing him to be unable to mold chakra. However, he was certain that he could become a splendid ninja using only taijutsu. He didn't know anyone who stood apart for doing something like that before him, but that was fine. He would be the first then, and show the world that he could do that.

His teacher though, Gai Might, seemed to be quite proficient with taijutsu though. He didn't use any genjutsu or ninjutsu that he'd seen so far, so maybe he'd help him achieve his goals if he asked? He didn't know. He was somewhat nervous about asking him for help, as friendly as the man was.

Hearing someone approaching, he brightened as he recalled that team practice was going to begin soon. Neji was already here, and they were just waiting on Tenten to show up. Holding up his hand, he waved as Tenten approached. "Tenten! Hi…"

He paused as he noted that Tenten wasn't alone. A young man, maybe a year younger than they were stepped out with her. His hair wasn't as long as his own which came down to the small of his back, but it was just past shoulder length and tied loosely at the base of his neck. He wore a loose black shirt with a belt strap across his chest with his hiate to hold a tanto that was centered on his back. He wore loose black pants with bandages wrapped around his ankles with a pair of dark grey shin guards. The boy tugged on a pair of gloves, staring around the field before locking eyes with Lee.

Suddenly he found himself leaning forwards, eyes wide with anticipation. This boy, this stranger…there was something about him. He didn't know what, but he would keep both eyes open.

"Hey guys!" Tenten called out, smiling brightly as she caught sight of them. Motioning to the boy, she introduced him to them. "Naruto, this is my team. That's Lee, and over there that's Neji."

Naruto looked between them, blinking before a sly smile crossed his face. "So the Hyuuga and the interesting guy. I don't know why, but I imagined something…more from him." Seeing Lee frown at that, Naruto turned to Neji and continued. "I mean really, all pale colors? Come on, why not throw some colors in there?"

Neji, who'd just been minding his own business off to the side, turned and glared at Naruto. Lee was aghast, startled and shocked by the brash statement. Didn't he know who Neji was? Wait, no, he wouldn't know. Lee had never seen Naruto in their class or any other classes at the Academy, so it was unlikely he would have any idea.

"Because these are the standard colors of the Hyuuga house." Neji said, looking Naruto over for a moment before snorting softly. "What about you? Isn't it hypocritical for you to say that when all of your clothes are dark?"

"These are colored." Naruto gripped his shirt, tugging it gently with a smirk. "Can't you see? It's dark, dark red. You know, from the blood of my enemies."

Neji stared at the shirt, skeptical of his claim. Lee, who was closer, was able to see that, somewhat surprisingly, it was a dark maroon color that only could be seen as being red when it caught the light a certain way. Whether or not it was made with the blood of his enemies was debatable.

"…anyways," Tenten said, rolling her eyes at the silliness of everyone here. "Naruto's helped me train before, and was curious to meet my team. He's…a little odd, but you get used to it."

"Usually." Naruto said, shrugging. Walking over to Lee, he began walking around him curiously. "So, you're the one with stunted coils?"

Lee winced, looking at Tenten accusingly. He was a proud failure, yes, but he preferred to keep his condition to himself if he could. Usually it would come out eventually, but he preferred it to come from him when it came up. Tenten shrugged, looking quite sheepish. He knew she didn't know that about him yet, seeing how they were only recently made teammates, but he wished that she hadn't all the same.

Turning to Naruto, Lee tried to straighten himself more, asserting himself somewhat as he felt Naruto's eyes looking him over. His mouth pressed into a line, flinching as Naruto poked his ponytail before stepping up in front of him.

"Just as I thought, you're not like everyone else." Naruto said, nodding sagely. There was a glint in his eyes; something that seemed extremely excited. "I like it! How long have you been like this? Have you really had it all your life? How is it an advantage? Tell me more!"

Lee blinked, suddenly a bit uncomfortable under the sudden intense scrutiny. He'd had doctors who looked him over, the instructors who looked down at him, and his teammates who gave him passing glances. Not even his team yet understood how much their looks affected him, how terrible he felt, how little he thought of himself.

Naruto didn't look at him like that though. He seemed to see something in him, deeper, beyond what anyone else could see. He was intrigued, interested, and seemed to genuinely think there was some potential in him. Something that perhaps Lee himself couldn't see.

Neji scoffed, getting Naruto's attention back on him. "Not like everyone else? Of course he is." Neji smirked, staring at Lee with the same 'all-knowing' smirk that he'd shown after the few times they'd sparred. "Everyone is bound by fate. There's no advantages to having a deformity when your purpose is already clear for anyone with eyes to see."

The field was silent for a moment, Lee's fists slowly clenching as stared down Neji. He knew he couldn't fight Neji, couldn't show him and prove just how much he was improving, how hard he was trying. Every time he tried he ended up sore and immobile as Neji shut him down and left him to struggle in humiliation.

Naruto however, was smiling widely. "Oh really? And you think you think that you know what fate has in store for everyone?"

"Yes." Neji said. There was no hesitation, no hint of doubt in his voice as he scowled at Naruto. "You cannot escape what you were born into, what you were born as. You can only accept it, and move out of the way for those who actually will matter."

"Alright then." Naruto said, walking up to Neji. Getting as close to face-to-face with him (curse his youth and his body's inability to grow taller faster), Naruto stared up at Neji defiantly. "Move out of the way."

Tenten winced as she saw the two stare each other down. In all honesty, she didn't know how well this would turn out, seeing how she'd never thought of this to end in a confrontation. That was likely do to her trying to remain blissfully ignorant of just how polar opposite their personalities were, so as to not have to choose between two people she admired.

Neji she admired because he was talented. He was smart, skilled, and wasted little to no effort where he didn't have to. He was quick, efficient, and most certainly earned his place as Rookie of the Year for their class. Plus, being from the Hyuuga clan's branch house and struggling through all that he had, she felt she understood him a bit better than those who didn't pay attention to minor political movements amongst the clans.

Naruto was different though; unique, spirited, and had a spark of something unfamiliar to her. There was intelligence beyond what a boy his age should know; as though he'd seen a thousand lives and was still searching for answers to things he didn't understand. He was reckless and had a high amount of energy, but had the precision and deadliness to back up anything he said.

In all honesty, between the two of them it was Neji she slowly began feeling worried for if this broke into a fight.

"Guys, come on." Tenten said, trying to help disarm the tension between the two. "There's no need for this."

"Oh I think there is." Naruto said, eyes not moving from Neji's. "You see, if I don't do this now, I'm going to hate coming here and spending time with you and Lee, and I don't feel like letting a long haired, pale eyed, fate kissing Hyuuga ruin my downtime." Stepping back, he moved over to the center of the field, stretching his arms before glancing back to them. "So, on a scale from one to ten, how maimed can I make him?"

It was a confident boast, but Tenten had seen just how difficult it was for his teammates to hit him and found herself glancing between the two nervously. Lee however, had a clearer mind than his teammates gave him credit for. "Ah, Naruto-san, is ten or one the high amount?"

"…yes." Naruto said, grinning widely as Lee blinked in confusion. "I haven't decided yet, and honestly I don't know how far he'll push me. So, you know, better safe than sorry."

Tenten frowned, realizing that Naruto was trying to force them to take the middle ground. It would be the only option that wouldn't force Neji to be hurt too much to take missions, while allowing Naruto to have time to do what he felt was needed. Biting her lip, she tried to analyze the situation faster.

"One." Lee said, almost getting Tenten to smack the boy at his brash behavior. Couldn't he understand just how dangerous this fight could get? "But, it's first blow only."

Both Naruto and Neji stared at him, waiting for him to explain. Staring Neji in the eye, Lee slowly nodded. "Yes, to first blow. Each time I have faced off against Neji, I have never beaten him, and found that even landing a single blow on him to be a challenge. And, with the Gentle Fist style, one blow can be enough to cripple even one of a high rank should he strike in the right place. Therefore, it is the only fair option."

His teammates seemed to consider that, understanding just how wise his choice truly was. It would prevent Naruto from getting more than one hit to maim Neji – which Tenten had seen him come close to doing against his own teammates. However, it also allowed Neji an 'out' seeing how one blow could literally end the fight if Neji landed the blow in such a way that could incapacitate Naruto.

Naruto for his part seemed to merely let his grin grow wider. "Oh we're going to have a lot of fun you and I. A lot indeed." Glancing to Neji, he smirked. "So how about it, Highbrow? Scared I'll land first blow?'

Neji slowly let his Byakugan, the bloodline limit of the Hyuuga clan that caused the veins around his pale eyes, to activate as he stared Naruto down. "…as you wish."

I=-x-=I

Naruto found himself enjoying this far more than he should. Admittedly, part of it was due to how easily Neji was provoked, but the other part was because of Lee.

Lee was different, weird, and most certainly someone who would otherwise be considered 'weak in the Force'. However, that wasn't because he was truly weak in the Force, but rather it was because all of his energy had been going towards attempting to make chakra. It wouldn't work, apparently, due to his medical condition, but it was a valiant effort.

As he'd looked Lee over, he'd searched him idly with the Force. There was potential there, stunted coils ignored, and it would be untainted by too many of the teachings of the Leaf. Were he to have come maybe a month later, perhaps he would have found a boy who'd decided to follow in the ways of his sensei, or a boy so broken he could have been drawn away by anyone. No, this was the perfect time to strike; when he had enough confidence in himself to act on his own, while at the same time having enough doubt to listen to another who offered advice and judgements.

Neji on the other hand hadn't been kicked around enough as a child it seemed. Or perhaps, he'd been kicked around, just not physically. The way one went about such kicking could change the way a person changed themselves, which could cause quite a spectacular variety of personalities to develop. It was like choosing where to cut someone; depending on how you cut, where you cut, and with how much force you applied, you got a wide variety of results.

Based on what Naruto could tell from his attitude, Neji had been kicked around emotionally primarily. Maybe a little bit mentally, but never directly so since he held himself to proudly. Were he attacked mentally or emotionally directly, whoever was doing so would've had to beat their message through his thick skull in order to get his point across.

Naruto preferred to just kick him in the skull to get his point across. He felt it was a much faster way of doing so.

Holding himself in a somewhat lazy stance, he tensed up his muscles in his legs and stomach, watching Neji as he moved into the Gentle Fist starting stance. Glancing to the side, Naruto grinned. "Lee, Tenten, either of you want to judge?"

Tenten winced, clearly not liking the idea, but she nodded before Lee did. "I'll do it."

"Good. Wouldn't want someone to try and cheat their way through this." Naruto rolled his shoulders, pretending to be oblivious to the rage rolling his way from Neji. "You'll have to start it too. Otherwise Neji will be disqualified for attacking before the fight begins."

"Oh, um…begin?"

Neji rushed in, ducking low and slamming a palm outwards towards Naruto's gut. Naruto eyed the hand, hopping backwards with his feet millimeters above the ground, skimming the grass warily as Neji stepped into his next assault. His hands flew, a dance of jabs and thrusts that were filled with potent chakra that, were it to strike Naruto, could incapacitate him in an instant.

The only things he knew about the Gentle Fist style was from what Tenten had told him, and even that wasn't much. Mainly she'd just said that the Byakugan could see through a person's body – gross, but useful – and see their chakra coils. On the coils, were a series of points from which chakra could be expelled to form a ninja's jutsu. Since most chakra ran through ones' hands, there were dozens of those points there which, when pressed together in a certain way, were what caused their chakra to be molded and manipulated.

Naruto had a theory from that, one which he sadly couldn't put to the test until he had some bodies to work with, or a willing Hyuuga. In his mind, he could envision those same points constantly expelling and drawing in the Force, allowing the person to use the circulation of energy more efficiently. The original purpose of the coils though eluded him.

Kaxn hadn't noticed the change in the people of the world during his tens of thousands of years sitting on the planet. He honestly couldn't have if he'd tried seeing how the stronger points of dark side energy were in pockets across the world, but didn't consume the world himself.

However, the lack of certain information was information in and of itself; for example, no other species in the galaxy had chakra coils. It was unique to this planet, and therefore it was something that they may have evolved to have over all those years. For what purpose, he could only speculate, but that speculation sent shivers of excitement through the mad scientist part of him.

Bouncing around Neji's attacks, Naruto hummed softly. The Force allowed him a great deal more control of the battle than Neji had, though the young man had some way to keep up with Naruto's precognitive abilities, if just barely. He was always just 'that much' off, which Naruto could attribute to the minor pushed and pulls on Neji's hands. It wasn't much, and often came to close to even a glancing blow, but it was enough to allow him to observe his style with some safety.

Neji for his part was scowling and striking with increasing frustration. He could see the ways that Naruto's muscles twitched, and swore he should've came closer to overcoming and hitting him more than once now. However, part of the problem was not with him not being able to guess where Naruto moved based on his muscles, but on the lack of chakra for him to read.

Oh he had chakra, however it was all being drawn in as it was released and mixed into the air around him. It made something like a cloud of chakra around him, which didn't block Neji's view of Naruto's tenketsu thankfully, but it did make it near impossible for him to follow him based on his chakra as normally a person's chakra would move with the way he intended to go, giving him an indication of where his opponent would be going. Lee, for all the faults with his chakra coils, still had chakra flowing through them that gave him away during their spars.

The insult to injury thought was that Naruto was just dodging.

"Fight back already!" Neji scowled, losing his cool as Naruto jumped back a few step. "Or was all your talk just fluff from someone who can't back it up?"

"Hm? Oh I will, I just wanted to see if you were even worth beating up." Naruto said, smirking at Neji's face as he scowled. "And to be honest, you're really not. It's almost a shame to have to waste even one punch on you."

Shifting back into his stance, Neji took a few breaths as he glared Naruto down. He needed focus, control. If he allowed Naruto to get under skin, he'd lose for certain.

Before he could finish getting his breath back fully, Naruto was suddenly upon him. His strikes were a blur, seemingly stronger and faster than his initial movements would have indicated. Pushed to the defensive, Neji smirked as he began using his defensive to try to go into a counter attack. Aiming for Naruto's arms, he attempted to hit and disable his arms.

As soon as he began to switch tactics, Naruto's actions suddenly shifted as well. Each blow that should have struck his arms missed as Naruto moved back to dodge before diving back in. Repeating the actions, trying to keep his actions discreet, he became frustrated as each movement was predicted, countered, and used against him.

He was being herded, guided, circled and played with. In his arrogance, he forgot about one of the biggest questions to ask Tenten before even thinking to start this fight; how much experience did Naruto have over him? With close to three years of training, fighting experience, and having been forced to constantly fight enemies who were most certainly taller and physically stronger than he was the entire time, Naruto held those over Neji as his advantage.

Striking upwards to deal a blow to Naruto's arm again, he winced as he overextended and was left with an opening he hadn't intended. Having been taught to take an opening when he felt he could do so without consequence, Naruto gathered the Force to his heel and used it to propel it into a devastating roundhouse kick to Neji's side that sent him flying towards the edge of the clearing.

Lee and Tenten watched in awe, unable to fully comprehend what they'd seen. To them, Neji had been a genius of taijutsu, a near unstoppable force of a genin who – with a bit of polish – could be considered one of the most powerful of the Hyuuga.

And yet, despite all that behind him, he'd been played with and knocked aside by a boy a year under them.

It was crazy in some ways, but not so much when they thought about it. They underestimated him, and should they fight again the outcome likely could have been different. However, as Tenten watched how casually Naruto walked over to Neji, she worried that the outcome would have been worse for Neji if he had taken him seriously from the beginning.

Lee stared at his downed rival, eyes narrowed as he tried to process what he'd just seen. Part of him wanted to say that Naruto had been playing with Neji in the beginning, but the more he thought it over the more he realized that it was when Neji had gotten serious that Naruto had begun playing with him. Because by the time Neji had gotten serious, Naruto already knew how to beat him.

It was a startling thought, to imaging that for all the strength of the Gentle Fist style Naruto had apparently dissected and exploited it. He'd fought Neji and knew how dangerous him taking out his arms could be, and idly he wondered if those would count as a blow if he'd actually had landed one. They'd have to think on that later, seeing how they didn't need to right now.

Naruto stood over Neji, rolling his shoulders idly as he smirked down at him. "So, was this defeat was fated?"

Neji glared up at him, biting his tongue as he tried to keep his eyes with Naruto. After a few moments, Neji relented, letting his gaze fall to the side. "Clearly, it must have been. I underestimated you and –"

He was cut off as Naruto yanked him to his feet, wincing as he had to hold his bruised side. To his surprise though, Naruto suddenly began dusting him off with a grin. Lifting his shirt, he looked over his side, clicking his tongue before letting it drop with a nod. "Don't worry, you'll be fine. To be honest, you put up a good fight all things considered."

Neji frowned, the tone sounding close to being condescending, but at the same time his expression seemed to be genuine. It was a paradox; a conflict between two sides of a spectrum, on the same coin yet left for the interpretation of those involved. It was a paradox, the likes of which Neji had never experienced before.

"That being said, as long as we both agree that we know who's the better among the two of us, we can get along just fine. Right?" Naruto asked, holding his arms out to the side in what seemed an open and inviting gesture. However, there was a small undertone to his smile, promising further pain and frustrations should he say no.

"…of course." Neji said, though it was apparent that he was reluctant to do so. He'd been beaten, 'fair and square' and would submit for the time being.

Clenching his fists, Neji silently promised himself that he would get stronger than Naruto. He would not allow himself to be forced to kneel before an inferior, even if he was proven to be stronger than him. For a time, he'd have to allow it, but soon…soon he would rise.

Naruto's lips twitched and curled upwards in a dark smile. Neji obviously didn't know Naruto could skim those thoughts, to feel the turmoil and shadows that were lurking behind those pale white eyes. And anger was something that he could use, that he could manipulate.

Inwardly he thought about delving into his mind to attempt to add thoughts, to twist and manipulate that way, but he restrained himself. After spending more time with Shin and Sai, he realized that while most of their actions could be dismissed, eventually someone would begin questioning why they followed Naruto so loyally. What was it that he wanted to inspire in people? A sense that they had no control of themselves? The idea that they were weak beneath him, and should submit and subject themselves? Or more?

Luckily, Naruto now had several people to test on. Science was about testing theories. The 'control' group that he had was from Kaxn; specifically, the Dark Hounds, seeing how they'd all been trained by Kaxn himself. While they had shown a variety of reactions to the training, there was usually some form of consistency to them.

Shin and Sai were given two different forms of input. Shin a less direct thought to simply have him consider the possibility of looking towards the stars. Sai was a more direct thought to follow Naruto and Shin, desiring to see as much as possible along the way.

Now, for some further variety, he had Neji, Lee, and Tenten.

Neji was the easiest in his mind. He knew anger, he knew rage, and he knew how to guide and push him to becoming stronger; something that could give Naruto a much needed challenge. Both in terms of mental fortitude, and in physical skill. He had pushed himself more than he showed them, and the exercise would keep him from thinking himself to high and mighty. Overextending himself was something he'd found himself doing quite a bit recently, and each time he had it had reminded him of how much he still needed to grow before he could utilize the dark side in its fullness.

Lee was an open book. If he could, he'd try to see if Lee could use the Force, or if his coils could prevent him from utilizing it. Naruto himself knew how to switch between the Force and chakra, but since Lee didn't need to use chakra for obvious reasons, he could be an interesting subject to test some of his theories on. He wouldn't be able to teach him fully till he left the planet, but with a little bit of work he could get Lee to at the very least begin training to see what would happen.

And Tenten…

He didn't know what exactly he was trying with her. With Neji it was manipulation, Lee he'd be utilizing a student-teacher bond, and Sai and Shin were more of a teammates/familial-like bond. Tenten was just there, someone to form a different bond. It was…friendship, perhaps? Testing and pushing the limits of how far a person would be willing to follow another.

Grinning at the three, he nodded to himself. Yes. Yes, this would do nicely.

I=-x-=I

Hiruzen Sarutobi, the Third Hokage of the Village Hidden in the Leaf of the Land of Fire, was not having an amazing day.

After all that had happened as of late, he'd thought things would be going better. Things had finally begun to die down from the aftermaths of the Uchiha Massacre. Despite it being three years since its occurrence, it still had caused to many changes throughout the village. From the Military Police requiring alterations, as the Uchiha clan had filled most of it, the void caused by the loss of a clan, to the disbanding of Root.

That last hadn't hurt so much as he'd thought to himself personally, however it had caused the village to suffer a bit more than he might've initially expected. With the lack of intelligence that had come in from their group, the village had found themselves occasionally going in blind as they made decisions since they didn't know the movements of the other villages. He had hated to even ignore their presence, but as things had gone so sour with the Uchiha Massacre that he couldn't in good consciousness allow himself to.

Now though, he was finding breadcrumbs. Tiny things, but things he knew to be old tricks that he knew Danzo had used in the past. Files placed in among the normal folders he'd received from other people, genin who'd suddenly received sensei's, and mission folders that had gone missing.

Those last ones had been something that had him furious and enraged. When he finally found the files, he had calmed slightly, but only somewhat. They weren't incredibly important missions, mainly ones that seemed to be based around surveillance. Just to observe and report. Each one was detailed, but there were some Root phrases hidden within.

"There appears to be a thinning of the forest near the edge." He muttered, noting the phrase as being, 'one or more Leaf ninja were killed close to or across the border'. Stroking his chin, he scowled and pressed the page down. "Root lives."

He knew that, he'd been certain of that; even if he couldn't prove it, Danzo was too wily to simply leave well enough alone. He'd built it from the ground up, from the shadows and the darkness and had built something that perhaps could have been incredible, had he not sent Itachi to kill his clan.

There was, however, something else that was perhaps even worse for him to see. "Naruto Uzumaki."

He knew the boy was still there, he knew that he'd been in the reserves, but now he wasn't so certain. Somewhere along the line he might've missed Naruto's placement into a team, hidden away by Danzo as he silently pushed for Naruto to…do what?

"This doesn't make sense." Hiruzen muttered, digging through the files before him. "Have you found anything Kakashi?"

"Nothing." Kakashi said, single eye slowly moving across the pages before setting it to the side. "I don't understand. How did he slip through the cracks? He's not that unnoticeable, was he?"

"I can't say for sure." Hiruzen muttered, looking at the one file he could find. Naruto's registration page, showing his youthful face smiling at the camera. Or, smirking. There was something hidden behind those eyes, and the more he stared at them, the more he realized that he didn't know what it was. "The only reason I discovered this much was due to his registration image being updated."

"Ah." Kakashi nodded, setting the next page down. "I never would have imagined such a small thing would bring all this to your attention. When did you even begin enforcing that rule?"

"When you were a genin." Hiruzen said, a wry smile on his face. "You were a young man, growing too fast for your own good. We needed to ensure that any and all changes to your physical form were constantly written so that medics would be able to identify you."

"Well, we were also in the midst of a war as well." Kakashi muttered, frowning at the page he read. "The idea that Danzo is treating Naruto as though he were a soldier in the middle of a war, even during this time of peace…I guessed he was continuing, but to take such a high priority target and attempt to hide him?"

"That's just the thing. I don't think he's trying to hide him. Mostly because he doesn't have to." Hiruzen tapped his finger on Naruto's file, which was still remarkably empty despite the fact that he'd been made a genin of the reserves for several years. "By being in the reserves, all of his chosen missions are done so at his own request. He doesn't need to log any of them with the mission headquarters, just with the reserves desk. They don't log those who perform the missions, simply that they've been accomplished. It allows them to cycle the missions faster, and clear those that do not need to be brought to my own attention."

"So in other words, he's a ghost who's able to walk around in plain daylight." Kakashi muttered. Setting down his file, he crossed his arms. "Do we have anything for him? Some way to keep an eye out for where he'll be so we can talk to him? Maybe we can convince him that what's happening with Danzo is wrong."

"You know that's doubtful Kakashi." Hiruzen winced, tapping his cheek knowingly. "He's gotten very good at hiding his members and preventing them from speaking of his activities. You of all people should remember that."

"Why do you think I've been pushing so hard?"

That caused the aged Hokage to drop his head slightly. In shame? No, not in shame. But regret, most certainly. He had ordered Kakashi to allow himself to be confronted by Danzo after the Nine-Tails had attacked the village, reporting back until he'd had enough grounds to confront him. If there was anyone who understood the depths of Danzo's manipulations and machinations, it was Kakashi.

Feeling a sudden chill, the both of them paused and glanced to one another. The security seal Hiruzen had set on the door was being interrupted by someone knocking. Setting his work down, he released the seal's hold on the door. "Come in."

"Yosh!"

Gai Might, in all his green jumpsuit glory, opened the door open and strode in. How he managed to do so with a shine to his teeth and sparkles in the air no one ever seemed to know. Of course, the smart ones never bothered to ask either.

"Hokage-sama, it is good to speak with you!" Gai said, glancing to Kakashi and suddenly jumping into a playfully ready stance. "Ah, Kakashi! It is good to see you again my eternal rival! It is good to see you as well. What brings you here on this most splendid of days?"

"I had business with the HOkage."

"Ah, but of course." Gai nodded sagely. "I myself needed to speak with him as well, though I imagine you would be quite helpful in this as well. You have a great deal of insight into matters such as the conundrum I currently feel myself in. Would it be alright if I asked for that Hookage-sama?"

The two of them glanced to one another, somewhat startled by Gai's openness with an issue. Generally, he seemed to just power though issues, working himself to the bone, then continued past that. For him to speak up, and to ask for assistance, was new.

"What is it Gai?"

"Well…" Gai frowned, crossing his arms with a somewhat distant look on his face as he seemed to be struggling to find the right words to say. "I find myself at a loss with my students, as when I went to oversee their training, I found them speaking with one Naruto Uzumaki instead."

Both men had been giving him their full and undivided attention, but now they gave him a wide eyed look. "What?"

"As I said, he showed up and was speaking with them. It appeared he is friendly with them, or at least somewhat so. Neji Hyuuga still seems to be the sort who is holding him at a distance, however from the short time I observed them he was at the very least listening to what the boy was saying. While I wouldn't have thought much of it, Lee appeared to be listening with the most rapt of attentions."

"And…what was he saying?" Kakashi asked, eye narrowing slightly in concern.

"From what I could tell…" Gai said, sounding grave for a second before he began comically sobbing. "He was offering to help Lee become a splendid ninja! I was so moved, but at the same time I am his sensei. What do I do?!"

The two others in the room deadpanned at that, unsure what to think of that. They'd expected him to be more serious, to bring up something that they would be able to use. Instead, it seemed he was just upset that Naruto was 'stealing' his student away to train him. Still, perhaps they could still use that.

"What was he going to teach him? Were you close enough to hear?" Hiruzen asked, eyes narrowing as he silently hoped that whatever Gai told him would be enough to give them a reason to call Naruto in to come in and speak with them. A secret jutsu, something that only Root could have taught him maybe.

"Nearest I could tell, he was offering to teaching him weapon handling." Gai frowned. "There was nothing about it that seemed off, though from the way he mentioned it, he seemed…evasive. Likely he'd mentioned something before and this training was meant to supplement the technique. However, I've not heard of a technique that requires any specific weapon training needed for such techniques."

"Me either." Hiruzen scowled. Weapon training was not something that he able to use as an excuse to bring Naruto in to speak with him, and until they found out more he was for all intents and purposes immune to conventional methods. And he wasn't one who would sink down to the level of Danzo just to get the information he wanted. "However, I don't want to be left in the dark either. Gai, can I ask you to watch over their training as much as you can?"

Gai crossed his arms, staring at the floor silently. Hiruzen felt a clenching in his gut, already having an idea as to what he would say. "Hokage-sama, you know that I should not. As a sensei, I need to show my students trust and faith, to believe in them. I am good at stealth, but Neji alone would cause issues with his Byakugan." Letting out a slow, disgruntled breath, he finally looked up at Hiruzen. "I will do what I can, but I cannot promise anything consistent. Most of my report will have to come by word of mouth from Lee himself should he be willing to offer up details as to what he's been learning."

Hiruzen slowly nodded. It was better than what he could have expected, and to be fair, it was more fair than some might've given him. He knew the laws that the First had placed on such things, and while he'd have wished to change the law long ago, it was something the clans had unanimously agreed to and wouldn't just idly allow that.

"I expect a report as soon as you can get any information." Hiruzen nodded to Gai, a disappointed smile on his face. "Anything else?"

"No sir. I was just…" Gai shifted before bowing. "No. It's nothing. Good day."

Kakashi watched him leave, narrowing his eye for a moment before he sighed. "He's not used to having a team of his own. He's practiced, learnt a lot from leading in Anbu, but having genin who need a mix between taking care of themselves and constant watching is not an easy task."

"Is that why you fail all your teams?" Hiruzen asked, getting a small laugh from Kakashi.

"No, you know why I fail them."

"Of course." He picked up another file. "You are dismissed for the time being. I'll look over the rest of this myself later."

"…I can come back later if you need."

"Still feeling guilt?"

Kakashi shrugged, neither confirming or denying the accusation. He'd notice that Naruto was put in the reserve corps when it had first happened and considered taking him on as an apprentice rather than taking on a full team. However, he didn't want to deprive him of the experiences that only a team could provide, and he'd allowed it to slip by. Now, years later, he was wishing that he'd at least looked into it, or offered it to the boy. Who knows, maybe he'd have taken it.

"Good day Hokage-sama."

"…good day Kakashi."

I=-x-=I

Torune sparred with Fu, making certain to keep his mind focused and impaired by the thoughts that seemed to be running through his head thus far. Both of them knew better than to hold back against one another, but that was only because they were both equally trusting in the skills of the other in that they would be capable of fending off any assault.

Fu was a longtime companion of Torune, having come to Root when they were both young. Fu was actually considered an older member simply because he'd been recruited first. However, they'd developed a close friendship, despite the rigorous personality training they were put through. Their personalities had changed, but that friendship hadn't diminished.

There was one small problem though, that Fu would occasionally bring up. Today was one such day when he decided to speak up and ask his friend. "Torune."

"Yes Fu."

"What is going on with you?"

Torune didn't wince, though some part of him wished to do so. Each time he was asked, he found himself more uncertain himself. What was going on with him?

Despite everything that had happened, what with him being put in charge of the youth team as its sensei, he'd had relatively little changes that should've been made in his life. However, what Fu referred to was not his personality or his feelings; it was the strange feeling coming from his Destruction Insects.

While his Phosphorus Destruction Insects were unaffected so far as he knew, he had a second 'hive' of Parasitic Destruction Bugs as well for when he didn't need to use his primary swarm. However, after the first part of his instructing Naruto, having sent out small insects to spy on him and report what little they could, things had begun to change.

The biggest change was the third 'hive' that had suddenly formed. It had taken some times to form, almost seven months, but from the first few bugs that had returned to him, a mutation had begun. How and why, he didn't know. All he knew was that these insects were different, strange, and –

Darkness swept forwards like a tidal wave, coming from beyond the moon to crash upon the world. From its shadow, a figure stood upon a spearhead shaped shadow and stood before it. Reaching out, they gripped the darkness, bending it to their will around and away from their world. They pulled upon the tide until it became their cloak and the shadow dropped low, the figures face flashing as bolts of lightning began to arc from the cloak to strike down those who dared to stand against he who stood in the shadows.

- that happened occasionally.

"I don't know." Torune admitted, dodging back as Fu slashed at him with his tanto. Diving in, he shoved against his friend with a frown before deciding to speak his thoughts. "Fu, do you believe in prophecy?"

"Prophecy?" Fu took the question at face value, though were they younger he'd have imagined Fu to have scoffed at it. "No. Those who peak into the future can't possibly know what is truly to come. The only way for that to be is for people to live it. That is why we are part of Root; to act, and preserve the Leaf village, and defend it against though who believe in things like prophecy and fate."

"That's not exactly what I meant." Torune shifted, bringing up his knee to knock Fu back. Fu seemed to accept this, allowing the two of them some space. "I'm speaking more of warnings. Of possibilities of things that might come."

"…that might be different." Fu admitted, thumb running along where the blade met his tanto's hilt. "Warnings shouldn't be taken at face value, but it also shouldn't be ignored. Although, I never would have imagined the Aburame to be so prophetic. What sort of warning are you hearing?"

"Not always hearing. Sometimes I see it." Torune sheathed his blade, crossing his arms in front of him as he continued. "Sometimes I see someone, a figure, dragging the Elemental Nations into the sky before dropping them back to their destruction when they fight back. Other times I see something beyond the moon, coming for us. In this case, the figure is our protector, cloaking itself like one of Root might to keep it from coming here."

"And you believe that whatever it is, it's a danger to the Leaf?"

"Whatever it is, it's already here." Torune corrected, shaking his head slightly. "I think there's something I'm supposed to do; a choice I have to make. One choice will bring destruction to the Leaf, and the rest of the Elemental Nations. The other will force someone to become strong enough to fight against an enemy that can do that as well."

Fu nodded slowly. It was times like this he was grateful for Danzo's training; as illogical as he might have sounded, Fu was willing to look at the words with a logical mindset. "So, in some ways, what you're describing is the resurgence of someone like Madara Uchiha or the First Hokage. Someone who could destroy us all, or save us all. But you believe it is based off a choice that solely you can make?"

"No," He admitted begrudgingly, slowly shrugging as he continued. "There are likely other factors, but I feel that I have a role in one of them. Something I choose will cause the person to destroy the world or save it."

"Isn't there some kind of savior? The sort of person who helps stop him if that person goes out of control?" Fu asked, eyes narrowing suspiciously. "Warnings in prophecy depict it, so if it's not following the pattern others do, perhaps it's something else?"

"No, there was no one else who was able to stand up to them so far as I could tell."

"I see." Fu frowned. "Have you spoken with Danzo-sama about it?"

"…no. I don't want to worry him about things that I have no factual resources to give him. I know better than to present information without basis."

"Of course." Fu nodded, having had similar instances where he'd tried to pursue a lead based on a rumor alone. He'd been allowed to, but it had turned into a lesson on seeking more information before diving into fact-less rumors.

Torune held up a hand, staring at it as he felt the insects moving beneath his skin. Unlike the Phosphorus and Parasitic insects, which were relatively small, these ones were slightly larger, with blood red carapace and sickly yellow compound eyes. They were smart though, having a connection to each other and to something else that he couldn't quite understand. They were more content to remain within him, followed his commands, and were otherwise just like any other insect.

Except they weren't.

They were unlike any other insect he knew. He'd checked, cross-referenced, and sought out further help to identify them. All sources and resources he'd looked at and each person he'd discussed them with had said they appeared to be some kind of mutation of the Parasitic Destruction Insects.

They ate others chakra faster, and more voraciously than the regular ones, without requiring a great deal from him. With wing speed that outpaced them, and resilience to boot, they seemed an Aburame's dream bug. Or at least, they would be, if it weren't for the visions…and their apparent connection to Naruto.

Whenever he was around the vision were worse, more persistent, though thankfully they didn't occur more often than before. He felt he could see it more clearly, a face amid the shadows. There was also something else, like…whispers in his mind. No, more like a song, playing out in a silent tune that sung out and spoke in a language he had never heard before.

Frowning again, he thought again about that. It was after he'd attempted to spy on Naruto and the rats that they'd begun to change. They'd gotten drunk off of his energy – they'd insisted it wasn't chakra – and had seemed extremely pleased with it. And then, almost suddenly, they had changed. When one of them had become a queen he did not know, but as soon as it had, they'd formed a bond with his other insects and established themselves as the hive leader. The others had spoken of the Spawn of Shadows, and as they feared them, they allowed them to do as they pleased for now. He didn't like it, but his insects assured him that they would not harm him.

Saying his goodbyes to Fu for now, he went back to his room and sat on the edge of his bed. Dragging his fingers across his skin, he stared at where he felt them moving about and slowly sighed. Laying back on his bed, he let his mind focus on what he knew.

No, no he didn't like it, but he didn't have a choice in the matter. Somehow he was already infected with this virus, this…poison. And yet he might be the only cure for it as well. Closing his eyes, he covered his face and exhaled sharply.

He had a lot of thinking to do.

AN: I don't think I've said this much, but I LOVE Team Gai. Like, seriously, they're so awesome. It's a shame Neji needed to be kicked off his high horse, but then the faster the better…though admittedly I doubt he'd like me much for things planned for his possible future.

In fact, this is something I abandoned in Naruto: The Flame Soldier as I didn't have a founded ending for it or direction to take it, and didn't enjoy writing it. However, one thing I know is that I wanted to have Lee be taken in by a samurai and learn kenjutsu. Since I didn't ever use that there, I've decided to utilize that for Lee. Plus, Lee can't use chakra in the way ninja do, but the Force is used differently, and so while he will struggle with certain techniques, he'll have advantages elsewhere.

Also, as 2 funny notes; Rock is his first name, but everyone calls him Lee, which is his last name. And when I checked Boruto to check to see who Metal Lee's mother was, thus far (when I'm writing this) it doesn't show her. This implies to me at, somehow, Lee somehow spontaneously replicated. And I have decided that is quite possibly the funniest idea to ever imagine. Just "Oh god he's replicating! What do we do? Pray to the log boys…pray to the log."

Hopefully I explained the chakra coils facts well enough. That's something that my From Darkness fans will note I did not go over when Naruto went home. Here, where he's lived here, I can explain a bit more. To help simplify, I'll try to write it out in a few bulletpoints:

1. Chakra Coils are only found in people from Ibonihs, or Kaguya's race. That's why Naruto reacted the way he had; he hadn't studied chakra coils, and Kaxn had no information on it either since it's literally something that's not in galaxy.

2. For those who'd like an image to understand the difference between the Force and Jutsu, here's my explanation. The Force is like lightning, needing control and guidance to use but having near infinite possibilities and potential at one's fingertips. Jutsu is like a generator and a switchboard; the tenketsu are used as the switchboard to funnel the power from the generator where it needs to in order to get a specific result – still near infinite, but fairly easy for anyone to learn the same techniques since it's easier to see what one needs to do in some ways.

3. Fuinjutsu, or sealing techniques, in my story are based on Sith/Dark Runes. They are fundamentally different, and can do different things, but with enough work, one could replicate either or using the other. So, for example, the Hiraishin? A Sith could possibly do that. However, it would be far more difficult for them to do as they'd have to figure out the formula and would need to carve them in each time, while the Forth didn't have to after a certain point.

If there are any other questions about the differences between chakra and the Force, or other things, please feel free to ask!

So, things are rolling along, and Naruto is going to take an (oddly enough an older) apprentice to teach the starting points of the Force and kenjutsu/saber forms. What all will happen? Find out in the next chapter of A New Era!