"Blah": Talking

'Blah': Demon speaking/Inner Sakura

'Blah': Naruto's thoughts/other people's thoughts

'Blah': Harry talking to Naruto

Here we are! The third part of the Book 2 Finale and end of the second book in the series! Sorry that it took so much time to release this, but school has had me slaved, not to mention the re-write of the Chunin Exams has been so laborious but still fun during free time. So far, the first three chapters are almost done and I will post them one at a time.

Azeroth44: Make sure to tell them the plan so far, dude.

K: Ok then. Here is what I'll do to it; I will first delete the later chapters and then start to re-post all the chapters, starting with the second chapter. You should be notified through email of the additional chapters, so make sure to check them, or check the fanfic anyway for changes or differences from the original.

AZ44: That's makes sense. Go with that.

K: That was the plan. I seriously can't wait to finish it. So far, it looks so much better and it's just the first three chapters.

AZ44: Yeah, I'm sure it'll be bitchin. Now should we move on to the finale?

K: Yes. And I'm pleased that you have done something that involved an explosion or some insane burst of madness.

AZ44: Wait for it.

K: START THE FINALE!

Reviews are welcome and wanted!

Disclaimer: Naruto is the Property of Masashi Kishimoto

Harry Potter is property of JK Rowling and Warner Bros.

Chapter 18: Partners in Crime

{{All I Believe In by The Magic Numbers & Amadou & Mariam}}

About two weeks later after the incident in the woods, Naruto was sitting at the kitchen table in Iruka's apartment, writing down on a small stack of inked white sheets. He seemed to have taken some sort of intelligence test, the freshest one from the Ninja Academy. It would seem that ever since Iruka found out that Naruto had hidden his intelligence under a mask, he wanted to find out where he would have ranked in his class had he not been advised to hold back. So he must have pressured him into taking the test for some harmless fun, so long as he promised that the records would either be well hidden or burned to cinders and ashes.

Iruka was sitting down at the seat next to Naruto while he stared at the pocket watch he inherited from his father until the minute mark reached the end of the time limit. Naruto scribbled down the last of his answers before his time had run out and his older brother clicked the button and ended the session.

"Time," he announced, "Let's see the score."

The chunin took a minute to examine the papers and checked his answer sheet twice to make sure he didn't miss marks. Naruto watched in anticipation as Iruka took a red pen and marked the incorrect answers and did the math in his head once he had doubled-checked the answers. He then took a red pen and wrote down the percentage at the top of the front cover and circled it out of habit. Naruto tried to catch his score but the angle made it difficult, not to mention his terrible vision prevented him from seeing the percentage mark from a distance, even if it was in solid red ink.

"So… Where would I have ranked in the class?" he asked.

Iruka raised his brow and almost dropped his pen once he wrote down the grade and placed the test back onto the table, "Whoa… Five more points and you would have been in second place right behind Sasuke Uchiha. That's incredible, Naruto! Well done!"

"I would have?" he asked as he sweatdropped and his older brother ruffled his blonde hair with a smile, "Isn't that almost weird to know that? It's almost alien. I would have been an above average student…"

The chunin then let out a breath and looked to his small blonde brother with a beckoning expression, "Listen, Naruto… It doesn't have to be like this all the time. It never had to be. You don't have to hide under an idiot's mask forever. With these rumors around town about the Tazuna mission, I think it's about time the real Naruto Uzumaki came out of his shell and shined."

"I suppose… Nii-san agrees a little bit," the blonde shinobi answered with a smile and then a frown, "But I think I should wait a little bit more to be on the safe side. I mean, I can't come out and show the world what I can do all the sudden. It could still raise some questions this soon in. Besides, what would Kakashi-sensei and the others think? How could I tell them about what I can do and how smart I am? When the time is right, then I'll know when to come out. It'll be when it matters the most or when I feel it's best. A time when I'm sure I can handle it and all the friends I have won't be bothered about it… But I don't expect that time to come around the corner, and that sucks."

Iruka shrugged and said in a sarcastic or rather humorous tone, "Unless Kakashi-sensei decides to be insane and enters Team 7 into the Chunin Exams this season. Heh! That would be a laugh!"

{{Shooting the Moon by OK Go}}

Later on in the week, the alarm clock in Iruka Umino's bedroom blasted loud and obnoxious music at around seven o'clock in the morning. The sound forced him to wake up as he reached out his hand through the covers of his bed and slammed his fist onto the button to turn if off. The tan-skinned chunin looked over at his calendar and observed the date he had circled and smiled as he thought about work. Most teachers would dread the idea of returning to school for the new term and so would someone like Iruka. But it wasn't the start of the new semester for at least another month. He was excited because earlier in the week, he finished his résumé to become the new head instructor and turned it in at the main offices at the Administration Building. Iruka was certain that he would have the position and was ecstatic to shake someone's hand and make it official. But he had to be on time, so he slipped out of bed and shook his little brother in the foldout bed beside him, since Naruto still had to set out in search for his wand-related necessities.

"Mmmm…" he moaned as his older brother shook him awake.

Soon, Iruka stormed into his closet, selected the first fresh uniform he could reach, and rushed into the bathroom while Naruto headed towards the kitchen with a sunken face. As soon as Iruka had taken his shower, the blonde shinobi that lived with him had made them both a breakfast that consisted of toast, jams, butter, juice, cooked ham, and eggs. The tan-skinned chunin smiled at his blonde little brother but soon blanched as he saw him levitate the frying pan with his magical powers. Naruto buttered his toaster while he cooked the bacon at the same time, which worried Iruka when he watched him flick his wrist and caused the hot meat to soar high into the air and then land on the plates behind him. The blonde shinobi could have burned his arm or even his face, as he seemed oblivious to the white-hot grease that splattered when he flicked his wrist and used a nonverbal Banishing Charm. Iruka soon relaxed as Naruto lowered the pan and turned off the stove with a wave of his hand as he showed off his remarkable magical talents.

"Thanks, Naruto," he smiled as he stormed into his breakfast, "This looks nice!"

The little blonde wizard looked interested and more awake as he asked, "You're in a rush. Where's the fire?"

"The Ninja Academy," he answered with enthusiasm, "Ever since Mizuki was fired as the head instructor and executed for treason, his previous position has been available to take on for all experienced teachers. For a couple months, I wrote this incredible résumé and turned it in last week. With how much I wrote and with the reputation I earned in the time I've been there at the school, there's a fat chance I can have it. Sure, I'll have a lot more responsibilities, but I'll have an office and some more free time to waste."

Naruto answered him with, "That's sounds brilliant! I hope it turns out well! You're bound to get the job!"

Iruka then checked the clock over the stove and then stuffed the rest of his breakfast into his mouth and swallowed all his juice. He then gathered his satchel once he realized he didn't have much time to waste. Iruka then stormed out of the apartment, with Naruto watching him at the door as he called out to him.

The blonde preteen shouted, "Knock them dead, mate!"

"Will do!" the chunin waved.

Naruto listened to his other older brother for a moment and shouted, "Nii-san shouted good luck!"

"He did?" asked Iruka as he heard him.

The blonde wizard then finished with a loud shout, "Yeah! But I'm not an owl! So, don't expect me to start sending messages now!"

As the chunin vanished down the road and chuckled, Naruto smiled as he turned back into the apartment. But not before he noticed one of the neighbors stare at him when he mentioned the word owls and seemed lost about it. While none of the neighbors had trouble with Naruto while he lived in the estate, it didn't mean that none of them found him to be a bit weird or eccentric to the maximum level, as did most of the citizens in town, mean or nice. The civilian man that lived next door to the two brothers stared at the blonde child for a brief moment, to which Naruto looked back at him and rationalized his earlier statement about owls and went back inside to clean the kitchen.

"Owls," he stated in a matter-of-fact attitude, "Those little beauties are better messengers than hawks. It's true. Ask around."

Several hours later after Naruto had scouted the woods and made corrections to the transmutation circles he made for his wand creation, he returned home to Iruka's house and decided to make some homemade tea for them both and celebrate Iruka's new job once he was home. While the water warmed inside the kettle, he heard the front door open and saw his older brother return home but was shocked to see a dismal look on his face. He looked like he was in a foul mood as it was made clear when Iruka threw his satchel into the couch and fell into a seat and covered his face with his hands as he sat back and moaned like he had a massive headache. Naruto walked out of the kitchen area and looked concerned for his older brother.

"Iruka-aniki? What's the matter?" he asked.

The chunin hesitated while it looked like he was about to burst with rage while he tried to collect his emotions and said with a bitter voice, "That unbelievable son of bitch. You won't believe this, Naruto. But I'm not the head instructor…"

"What," the blonde shinobi outraged for his older brother, "But you said you turned in that résumé! Did someone else take it? What in the world happened?"

Iruka crossed his arms and he stated with a bitter frown, "Daikoku Funeno happened."

{{After the Chase + Donna's Theme by Murray Gold & BBC National Orchestra of Wales}}

Two hours earlier, when Iruka made it to the school, he rushed into the main offices where most of the teachers worked outside their classroom or decided to take their breaks. It was here that he had to wait until the teachers that could have turned in their résumés arrived as well as a representative from Sarutobi's office that would confirm who had earned the position. Iruka sat down in his normal desk, eager to hear that he would not need to sit it in while he had a new office to hide out in. Still, he took some time and twiddled his thumbs until he heard someone come in. He looked over his shoulder and raised his brow when he noticed an unfamiliar face of a fellow chunin arrive.

He was small man in stature, a little bit shorter than Iruka but a little bit taller than Naruto. He wore the standard chunin-level shinobi uniform and headband, he carried a set of glasses that he had clipped to the collar of his vest, and wore his short black hair that looked like it was wanted to reach the heavens. His head was a little bit square in shape with his broad face and innocent beetle-black eyes. The man stumbled into the office and looked over at the other chunin and seemed unsure or lost like he was an innocent child in search of his mother.

"Hello, sir," he said in a formal tone, "I'm a new teacher here. I was transferred from the Mission Assignment Desk after I was called off from missions for a while. The Hokage said it earns more cash, so he let me in without all the experience that's needed here and there and whatnot, I suppose. What a wonderful man, that Hiruzen Sarutobi."

Iruka stood from his seat and shook hands with the fresh meat, "He did tell me someone new would be in this week. You must be Hikaru Furi. Hi, I'm Iruka Umino. I'm a teacher here as well. I've been here for about twelve or so terms."

"Hokage-sama has told me a lot about an Iruka Umino," he said, as he still seemed a little nervous but still remained respectful, "You're one of the best teachers to work here in over a decade."

Iruka smiled and patted his shoulder and checked his watch for the time and assumed he had enough time on his hands, "Well, thanks. I guess I should show you around, then."

The two chunin walked around the office and the areas around the same level for a little bit, where Iruka showed the new teacher the offices and where his new station in the main office was located. But as soon as the two were about to walk around the school for a little tour, another shinobi entered the main office, which was followed with Daikoku Funeno. The older chunin had a wide smug smile on his sunken face that made Iruka a little bit irritated and uncomfortable. Ever since the events he witnessed in the Pensieve, Iruka's hatred for the older man had intensified and his tolerance for him and his obscene behaviors shortened. The first shinobi that entered the room (who was Sarutobi's office representative) beckoned to Iruka while Daikoku continued to smile, like he was the happiest man in the world.

"Umino-san," the man called over, "Please, come over here. We need to talk."

The chunin dismissed Hikaru to check his desk in the office, which was right next to the fire exit door and staircase. As soon as the new teacher was distracted, Iruka turned to the representative and wondered what made Daikoku act so cheerful. The representative from Sarutobi's office cleared his throat while Iruka made sure he was clear and respectful when he asked about the position as the headmaster.

"Morning, sir," he said in a calm and clear voice with a subtle hint that he felt he had the desk, "I take it that the head instructor has been selected?"

"Yes, Umino-san. It's been decided," the representative answered as the tan-skinned chunin smiled in excitement, "that the head instructor will be Daikoku Funeno."

In that one moment, Iruka felt like all the blood inside his head and torso was drained down into his feet while the world around him turned cold and dark. He almost felt like he had been deflated while he continued to maintain his posture, but that didn't stop his smile from turning into a subtle frown while Daikoku continued to smirk as he watched the better chunin looked lost for words. He couldn't take it in at the moment, so his face was frozen in an emotionless mask as he turned to the man from Sarutobi's office and voiced his confusion.

"He's the head instructor now?" he asked as he pointed at the obscene shinobi, "What about me? What about the résumé I handed in a while back?"

Sarutobi's representative answered him, "We never received one. It would seem that no one else was interested in the position except for Funeno-san. That would be the reason no one else is here."

"But I thought more than ten instructors and various chunin that filed for the job and turned in their résumés," the chunin told him, "I know, for a fact, that I was one of those instructors. How is it possible that Daikoku has it and no one else was interested?"

"I believe I'm the boss now," the older and much fatter chunin smiled as he watched Iruka look more and more confused and outraged, "And it's Funeno-san from now on, Umino."

The representative then told the healthier chunin as he decided to leave, "There were no other résumés, Iruka-sensei. I should know, I run those offices and all the files to do with this school. Daikoku is the head instructor now. Get used to it."

With that said, the man stormed out of the offices while Daikoku remained where he stood. Iruka watched as the man left him and his new boss behind, still unable to believe that he wasn't promoted. Once the representative was outside the school and out of earshot, Daikoku almost danced beside the other chunin and smiled at him in an almost evil or diabolical nature.

"Brilliant résumé, Umino," he smiled as he started to leave as well, "It was so creative. I sure as hell needed it."

Iruka stared at the man and he realized then and there that he must have tampered with the applications. He had told him the truth right there. The tan-skinned chunin watched as Daikoku continued to waltz as he left him and Hikaru behind so that he could move into his new and undeserved office. Iruka then clenched his teeth so hard but it didn't show, as he remained tight-lipped until the miserable bastard was out of the offices in that same obnoxious dance. Soon, as Hikaru continued to warm inside his new chair, Iruka's face turned as red as a tomato and he bared his teeth so much that he almost snarled like a wild animal. Steam could have billowed out of his nostrils like a bull as he balled his hands into fists and took in a deep breath so that he could roar out into the heavens.

"I DON'T-BELIEVE THIS!" he roared as he kicked his old chair towards the exit.

The chunin had slammed the chair so hard at the door that it bounced off and slid towards an oblivious Hikaru. The other chunin had slid his own chair back while he was still on it and the chair Iruka kicked slammed into his and sent Hikaru and his chair back towards the fire exit with the stairs on the other side.

"WHOA!" he shouted.

Iruka shouted, "Oh, SHIT!"

Soon, the small chunin fell off his seat and burst through the door and fell down the stairs. Hikaru screamed and Iruka held his breath in shock at what he had done and stormed towards the exit. He looked down and watched as little Hikaru tumbled down the stairs and shouted all the while. He was bruised and hurt as he rolled and tumbled down to the bottom levels of the old school and vanished into the darkness below. Iruka waited until the screams and shouts ceased and then looked down to see if he could see Hikaru down at the basement where it would seem is where he landed.

"HIKARU!" he shouted down, "You ok, Hikaru? HIKARU!"

The older chunin heard a tearful moan from down in the darkness, "Iruka-sensei… WHY?"

Naruto stared at Iruka and couldn't believe what he had heard. His invisible older brother, who in the mindscape, had listened in as well and he too could not believe it when the chunin had told them both about what that horrid instructor had done. The blonde shinobi clenched the cloth on his pants legs as he imagined the look on Daikoku's fat face when he told his older brother what he had done.

"That's so not fair…" he said in a low voice.

Iruka frowned but then he sat back on the couch and mumbled, "Yeah. But I'll work around it. With a little bit of luck and a strict fast-food diet, Daikoku will die of a heart attack soon and I can do it again. But I'll have to endure at least another two terms in order to write another résumé and make it fresh… But for all I know, someone could sneak back into the main offices and burn that one next time…"

The blonde preteen frowned a little bit more while Iruka tried to relax. Soon, Naruto stood on his feet and looked determined and made a decision for his beloved older sibling.

"No." he stated.

Iruka looked a bit bewildered, "What?"

"I said no," the small shinobi told him, "You deserve more than that, aniki."

"Huh?"

The little blonde shinobi cracked his knuckles and looked towards the front door, as he was about to march towards it, "You know… A little Confundus Charm can fix this. I'll be back in about two hours."

"Naruto, no. Don't do that," his older brother held him back and forced him to sit back down with him.

"But, aniki," the child protested at once as he sat back down, "You deserved that promotion, not that miserable lardarse. He cheated!"

The chunin then told him, "Yeah, I know that. But I don't want to steal back a job that was stolen from me. It wouldn't feel right. Please, let's just calm down and… let's have some tea. I need to calm down here too…"

"It's still not right…" he stated as he looked a little bit deflated and started to tend to the tea he made for them both, "That rancid old lardarse doesn't deserve to be headmaster… He deserves to get kicked in the balls. That's what Daikoku-teme deserves. I did it once and I'll do it again, I swear."

Iruka sat back as Naruto returned with the tea and took some to drink to relax, "I couldn't care less about that human shit-bomb. Excuse me for the swearwords."

The chunin drank some sweetened tea and sighed while his little brother sat down next to him and stared at his own hot tea. He listened to his older brother and took in the swearword he used to describe that horrid chunin and reminisced his time back in school and how he dealt with Daikoku when he caused him to feel worthless or furious as Iruka felt at the moment. Naruto started to have flashbacks of his earlier childhood and remembered the first time he had ever become the class clown and how he threw back Daikoku's hostile treatment towards him. He soon froze as the warm tea he drank caused a fire in his chest to rise with its warmth. He then stared out at the mantle clock he had almost broken months ago and started to smile as he saw a picture of Iruka when he was in school, beside the picture of him while Iruka was his mentor.

"That's it…"

Iruka looked to his little brother and asked, "What now?"

"You said it…" he said as he felt his chest burn with excitement and adrenaline, "We… we shouldn't sit here and drink tea and eat biscuits, while he's out there and celebrates. C'mon! Let's head down to Daikoku's house and do what we did back when we were dumb little kids in school."

The chunin asked his brother, "What's that?"

"You should come with me this time," he shouted with more excitement as he looked over at Iruka's school picture, "We can do it together! Class Clowns United!"

Iruka asked him once more, "What is it?"

"I used to do it back when I first started out as the class clown," the blonde child stated.

The older chunin asked him one more time, "What is it?"

"You wanna vandalize Daikoku's house, Iruka-aniki?" he asked him with a mischievous smile that stretched across his face while his older brother looked a little bit shocked or bemused, "C'mon! Let's do it!"

There was a minute's hesitation out of Iruka as he stared at his little brother and then looked back down at his tea and the cookies Naruto had set beside the kettle on the coffee table. The tan-skinned chunin was silent for several more moments as he stared down at his hands, the tea, and then his little brother. He looked down at the tea one more time and soon looked back at Naruto with a determined look on his face. The blonde shinobi felt another rush as Iruka looked back at him and talked to him in a voice he had never heard from him, but he loved it.

"You know what?" he asked and then answered, "Yes, I would love to do that!

Naruto could have died and went to heaven when he heard that, "You're serious, aniki?"

Iruka stood on his feet and marched over to the closet beside the front door and searched for some small black-colored cloth masks that covered most of the head once worn. He then tosses one of the masks over to Naruto and smirked at him.

"Let's do it, Naruto," he stated in a clear and excited voice, "But we'll need these!"

Naruto looked down at his mask and smiled while his other older brother laughed inside his subconscious, "Oh, man. This'll be a riot."

Harry shouted and laughed, 'Ladies and gentlemen, Iruka Umino is alive!'

{{Fish Custard by Murray Gold & BBC National Orchestra of Wales}}

Later on in the late afternoon, two dark shadows soared over roofs and headed towards the western end of town. The civilians below them never noticed as a tall man and a small shinobi that wore masks that covered most of their faces. Naruto and Iruka were on the move towards the house of Daikoku Funeno. The tall chunin was in the lead while the child followed him and matched his speed with the aid of his chakra. The two shadows continued to run and soar until Iruka hid in the shadows around the corner of a modest house and Naruto hid in the shadows beside him and recognized the residence.

The duo stood there, hidden in the darkness, and watched as the kitchen inside the house was lit and saw the obese chunin inside with a wide and victorious smile on his face. Naruto and Iruka both narrowed their eyes and stared at the large shinobi as he stuffed frozen food into his microwave oven and almost started to dance inside his kitchen as he kissed what looked like a check from the school. Iruka cracked his knuckles as he clenched the crowbar in his hands. Meanwhile, Naruto observed his former homeroom instructor and seethed at him under the mask he wore and caused some of the lights in the area to flicker a little bit.

"There he is," the small shinobi said, "All warm inside his warm little home. It's a small house, but as a headmaster he can afford a much better home. You can bet that he'll find another one out there once he's been paid for a while… But let's force him to move out a little bit sooner, aniki…"

Iruka touched his shoulder and said, "Let's do this, kiddo."

"He's so oblivious," the smaller shinobi commented as he searched the area for what he needed, "He won't sense it, until its too late."

The chunin checked the floor around them and then the walls until he found the outline of a small door underneath his feet, "Here it is."

He took the crowbar he taken from his home and forced it into the small metal door. Iruka then started to pull with all his raw strength, until the small but ancient door creaked and then burst as Iruka forced the crowbar back and revealed large pipes that lead into Daikoku's current home. He smirked underneath his dark-cloth mask while his little brother smiled under his and shook Iruka's arm and felt the rock-hard muscle that was hidden underneath his dark sleeves.

"Thanks," said the blonde shinobi and commented, "Such muscles."

"Your welcome, bud," the older brother smiled as he flexed his arm, "And thanks."

Naruto checked over the valves and switches and focused his magic into them and had his other older brother check them over for him as he listened to whatever it was that flowed inside, "Here's the valve… Check to make sure we're not seen, ok?"

"We're clear, otōto," said the chunin as he looked over his shoulders and looked back into the house at his new boss, "Do it."

The blonde shinobi turned some knobs and rested his bare hands on the main valve and talked to his older brother in a sinister voice, "Aniki…it's time to spread the word… And that word is," he paused as he placed his hand upon the cold pipe and finished his sentence with, "Vengeance."

'Hold on tight, Funeno…'

Harry snickered like an evil mastermind as he focused a massive amount of magic into his little blonde vessel and the small shinobi focused it into the main valve. He let it flow and heard a loud noise emanate from inside as he felt the solid concrete beneath him and Iruka rumble. The rumbles continued and flowed towards the feed that went into Daikoku's house. Inside the house, the obese chunin waited for his frozen meal to thaw when he heard the rumble as well. Curious, he followed the source of the noise and it led him into his bathroom. He looked a little bit alarmed when he saw his toilet shake and rumble. Back outside, Naruto held Iruka back in the shadows and shook with anticipation to the results that were to come.

"Wait for it… Wait for it…" he said, 'Oh lord in heaven, here it comes…'

The older shinobi shook as well, "Oh, man… I can hear it… This is almost too much to contain…"

Back inside the house, Daikoku backed off from his toilet and looked more and more alarmed as the toilet shook and the cover over it fell off and shattered on the floor. Back outside the house in the shadows, Naruto and Iruka waited and watched until this loud boom was heard and the window to the bathroom was covered with a dark substance and the two of them heard a loud and miserable scream of sheer horror.

"OH, SWEET MERCIFUL KAMI!"

Naruto and Iruka both smiled and laughed as the bathroom was obscured from view and heard the miserable chunin victim inside scream and shout as he was covered from head to toe with who-knows-what as his bathroom sink was also blown out.

Iruka shouted to the heavens, "WHACK-A-POW!

"DATTEBAYO, BABY!" his little brother shouted.

Soon the duo looked as Daikoku stormed outside his house and started to roll around in his back lawn and search for the hose to be cleaned of whatever it was that he was covered with, all the while the man screamed and shouted as he searched for the hose, "OH MY GOD!"

"C'MON," the blonde shinobi shouted as he and his older brother fled the crime scene, "LET'S BEAT IT!"

Iruka took the lead and led his little brother to Ichiraku Ramen before either of them could smell the stink of their victorious crime.

He smiled under his mask and shouted, "EVASIVE MANUEVERS, OTŌTO!"

Later on in the week, Iruka had discovered that Daikoku was forced out of his home until his bathroom was fixed and the mess was cleaned. So the man was forced to make his current residence inside this miserable old motel that seemed to reflect him well when the other instructors of the school thought about it. So once was free, Iruka decided take Naruto to celebrate their successful little crime over at Ichiraku Ramen and talk. The duo chuckled and celebrated the latest demise of the worst instructor in Konohagakure no Sato with some delicious ramen noodles and meat to eat.

The two of them ordered a ramen mini-marathon and ate bowl after bowl as the two of them recollected their little mission, but were careful not to mention the details in front of Teuchi. After that, Naruto started to tell him all about the other times he had humiliated Daikoku after that miserable man had humiliated him while he was still in school. All the while, Teuchi smiled as he continued to re-fill their bowls with more ramen and listened to some of the most hilarious stories Naruto told them about his countless tricks and antics with his friends Shikamaru Nara and Choji Akimichi. He told him the tale about this one time where he and Shikamaru covered Daikoku with chalk dust and were both chased around in the halls.

Naruto continued his tale while he laughed and smiled, "And then Shikamaru and I were stuck at a dead end in the hall. We were cornered in seconds, so I looked over and him and then I said-"

"-I knew we should have turned left!" the older chunin finished for him, which caused them both to laugh and Teuchi to chuckle while he listened in and cleaned some surfaces.

"Heh," the old man chuckled, "I swear children can be such little criminals sometimes!"

Soon the two shinobi discussed the events of their endeavor, and commented each other on their flawless teamwork and how it led to the ultimate success. Iruka smiled and laughed more than he had done as an adult than he did back when he was still a kid. Teuchi noticed how much more alive he was and smiled as he continued on with his duties with the ramen and the counters while his daughter was in the back and checked their stock. Iruka leaned down towards the counter and smiled as he and Naruto let their laughter die down a bit. He smiled over at his little brother while he shoveled the last of his noodles into his mouth.

He then told said with a warm sigh and then he shook a little bit from the thrill of their extreme act of vandalism, "Oh, Naruto, that was unbelievable. I haven't had so much fun since I was twelve. You have no idea how much I wanted to do that… Oh, man. I still can't believe we did it!"

"I know," the blonde child smiled as he finished his ramen, "That was the worst I've ever done to someone as far as tricks and pranks are concerned… But what's the deal with those masks we wore?"

Iruka smirked at his little brother and told him, "Oh, I used to use them while I was on stealth missions and had to hide in the shadows."

"Is there a chance one of those missions can be discussed tonight, aniki?" the small blonde shinobi asked with excitement.

But the chunin laughed, "Heh! That's another tale for another time, kiddo."

Once the mood had settled down a little bit, Naruto looked out towards the counter and thought more about his ambitions and the transmutation circles he drew in the woods. He had been at work while he rested at Iruka's house and wasted time with him with activities such as the recent crime. The blonde shinobi looked down at his vacant ramen bowl and clicked his fingers as he checked the calendar on the wall and nodded to his invisible older brother. He looked over at Iruka while Teuchi was distracted with the counters and started a more serious conversation.

"Iruka-aniki…" the man looked over at him and he listened, "You remember the Pensieve, right?"

"How can I forget?" the chunin answered him.

Naruto then told him, "Umm… You remember what I was doing in the woods that one time when the three of us sat down and talked?"

"Wait…" he hesitated and then he remembered from the Pensieve, "It was about that wand, right?

Naruto nodded and told him, "Yeah… The transmutation circle I need in order to create it is almost complete… Nii-san and I will do it tomorrow at around dusk…"

"Tomorrow?"

The blonde child answered, "Yeah. We monitored the ANBU for a little bit and found a hole in their patrols patterns where I can use the transmutation circle. This will be the one chance for another month or two where we can make the wand without the risk of attention from the ANBU."

"You two are sure about this?" the chunin asked, "Isn't it a little dangerous?"

Naruto remained frozen for several moments as he was lost in a trance while he conversed with the other wizard inside his head and then he told the concerned chunin, "Nii-san told me it's better we finish this sooner than later. If I had a wand out here in the real world, then I could be so much safer from other shinobi while out on missions. I can be more of an asset to Konoha if I have full access with a wand."

"That sounds reasonable…" hesitated Iruka and then he asked, "But is it safe?

Naruto told him, "I…Um… I suppose so…"

"Well, I want to know now," his older brother stated in a stern voice, "Is it dangerous? Yes or no?"

The blonde wizard was lost in another trance with his ancient companion and then he answered, "Nii-san told me it would be best if you were to meet us out there at the circle tomorrow."

"He did?" the chunin was bemused.

Naruto nodded, "Yeah. He told me it would make you feel better about it if you were there."

"Well…" the tan-skinned chunin hesitated and said, "Alright then… I'll be there tomorrow at dusk…"

The small shinobi then told him, "He also said it's for the best, in case there's trouble in the ritual and I'll need help."

"What kind of trouble?" Iruka asked, as he sounded a little more suspicious.

Naruto tried to work around excuses, but soon told him the truth about the risks, "Well… You know… In case I almost die. Like if a tree falls on me or if I'm burnt or lose consciousness from the intense strain and die with no one to know where I am."

"Well, that makes me feel all warm inside…" the chunin stated in a sarcastic voice.

The blonde shinobi then smiled to reassure the tan chunin, "It comes to show that he cares about us, Iruka-aniki."

The tan-skinned chunin nodded and then froze when he realized what he had blurted out in front of when Teuchi worked around the kitchen over the counter and continued to clean and nod over to him and Naruto. Iruka felt his face flush with blood as he realized that Teuchi could have overheard him as well as Naruto, and not one of them had realized it

He stated, "Naruto."

"Yeah?" he asked.

Iruka told him, "You realize we had an entire conversation about wands, rituals, and Harry's existence in front of Teuchi."

"Oh, I used a Muffliato Charm on him," he said and he checked his ramen bowl for morsels and extra broth, "He couldn't even hear our conversation."

The chunin soon breathed as he relaxed and let the blood flow back down to his torso, "I think I missed that charm in the Pensieve. What does it do?"

"Watch this," the child smiled as he cleared his throat and took a deep breath and then he screamed as loud as he could, "CONSTANT VIGILANCE!"

Teuchi continued to wash the counter while he touched his ears and then washed his hands with sanitation sheets since he had touched his face and hair when he checked his eardrums for what he assumed was earwax. Iruka had to cover his ears when Naruto shouted and he watched in astonishment as Teuchi acted as if there was never even a shout. He was oblivious as he tended to his kitchen and then looked over the counter to see that Naruto was done with his latest bowl of ramen.

He asked the blonde child, "Another round of ramen, Naruto?"

"Nah, I'm fine," he thanked as he smiled.

He turned to the chunin and asked, "You, Iruka?"

"I'm, uh… I'm full, Teuchi. Thanks," he was lost as he watched Teuchi act normal and not once had he even flinched when the blonde shinobi beside him had screamed, so he was forced to ask the old man, "You heard that loud shout about two seconds ago, right?"

The old man looked a little bit puzzled, "Who shouted?"

"Umm… Never mind," the chunin told him back as he sat in his seat.

Naruto told him as he showed his hand, "Private conversation enabler. To him, all he can hear from us is this buzz in his ears. Notice how he touched his eardrums like that? See, it muffles out our conversation no matter how loud we are, and to him he thinks he has earwax."

"Whoa…" he nodded and smiled, as he felt awed with his little brother once more, "Shinobi all over the world would kill to be able to use that on missions."

Naruto then smiled at him, "Imagine what shinobi would do to have a wand?"

{{Beneath Stonehenge + The Pandorica by Murray Gold & BBC National Orchestra of Wales}}

At around dusk, Iruka Umino was dressed in some normal leisure clothes instead of his chunin uniform. Just some jeans and a black t-shirt that showed the world that he had muscles underneath his clothes. The humble chunin then checked his clock in the kitchen and decided to leave his home and set out to the woods. He tried to act casual as he walked down the street and snuck into the same woods where he followed Naruto and remembered where he had created the circle and followed the hidden trail that would take him to it. He turned around corners and followed the marks on the trees until he reached the sizable field that was surrounded with trees. He turned left and right to see a head of blonde hair and the flash of a metallic headband, but there was no one around. Once he was sure that this was where he said he would meet him, he called out.

"Naruto," he reached out one more time, "Naruto!"

He heard a small rustle and turned to see his little brother at last, "Over here, aniki!"

The blonde child was not in his usual tracksuit or headband, and instead wore a normal t-shirt, some shorts for the warm summer weather, but still had his weapons pouch and a small kunai with him for the circles. He waved over at the tan-skinned chunin and motioned toward the vacant field.

"So this is it?" he asked as he walked over to him.

The child nodded as he motioned him towards the circles, "Yeah! This is it. It took me a while, but it's done. Make sure not to stand too close to the outer circle. One touch could activate it on accident."

Iruka looked over at the field one more time and noticed the circle at once as well as the massive severed branch located in the center circle of what could be assumed was at least over one hundred circles and runes. It looked like Naruto's charms that he had surrounded the circles with worked, as Iruka never would have known it was there had Naruto not shown it to him. He nodded, and then looked over to Naruto as he knelt down and sat on a tree stump.

"Ok, then…" he said and then asked, "So what do we have to do?"

Naruto answered him, "Nii-san told me to handle all the work with the ritual."

"So where does that leave me?" he asked.

The small blonde shinobi told him as he showed him the lines, "You should stick around here where it's safe outside the transmutation circle. There shouldn't be trouble. But just in case there is, make sure we're out of here as soon as possible but don't tread over the lines here while the transmutation is still active, this is a hot-zone from here inwards. Nii-san said there would be this light that'll radiate out of the lines when it's hot and active. But once it's faded back into normal dirt, it'll be safe to cross and the circles will be erased from existance."

"Got it," answered and then he asked while he was a little bored, "So, want to show me around a little bit?"

Naruto shrugged and then showed him the materials and the circles he had made, "I suppose there's enough time… that branch over there in the center is what the wand will be made from. It took me forever to find it… Over there's the central circle and that's the core of the transmutation… But the area between that one and the next one outside it is where I'll be able to control the ritual with Nii-san… There's not much else to it than that. All this other stuff with the Latin and the runes is total nonsense to me. I sucked at Ancient Runes class…"

"I remember a phoenix feather mentioned in the Pensieve," the chunin commented as he looked around a little, "Where's that red feather from earlier?

Naruto reached into his pocket and showed him the feather he had obtained while on the beach in the Land of Waves. The chunin stared at the scarlet feather in awe and made a humorous cartoon-like face that showed his fascination towards the magical artifact. It was a trait he inherited but had decided to hide until Harry told him otherwise and he let it out more often as he should.

The blonde preteen showed him, "Here it is. It's still warm to the touch."

"It looks nice," he said.

Naruto smiled at his older brother and offered, "Go on. Touch it."

The chunin reached out and pressed the feather between his fingers and could feel the warm hidden inside, like there was a small fire inside. Still fascinated with the feather, he removed his hand from it and let Naruto have it back for his wand.

"Whoa…" he said, "That's so weird…"

Naruto smiled once more, "But it's so cool, huh?"

"Yeah, a little bit," the chunin told him as he looked down at his watch and checked the time, "Ok. How much time is there left?"

The blonde shinobi checked with his internal clock and answered, "At least a half-hour until the ANBU come close, I think."

"Then there's no time to waste," the tan-skinned shinobi added, "Where should I park it?"

Naruto motioned to the area behind the tree stump, "Over there is fine… But… You're sure about this, because we can hold if off for another month or two."

"It would be better to do it sooner than later," the chunin insisted as he sensed his adopted brother didn't want to force him into these activities, but he wanted to assist him, even if it was a small role, "Let's finish this now while there's still time, Naruto."

The blonde child and his unseen companion both nodded to the chunin. Iruka leaned close to the tree truck while Naruto turned toward the transmutation circle and held the scarlet feather in his hands. He marched towards the entrance to the circle, hesitated, took a breather, and then marched onto the first of countless circle he had carved into the earth.

{{Ship of Fools by Yuki Kaijura}}

From the moment he set his foot down on the transmutation circle, the rest of the formula started to come to life with a bright bluish-white light that radiated with warmth. It stretched out to the rest of the circles and then illuminated the Latin words inscribed into the earth. Naruto continued to march towards the center circle and threw the feather out and watched as it was attracted to the branch he had severed over a week ago. The light that radiated out from the circles then started to create sparks of lightning. At first it looked a lot like static, but then the lightning turned more violent and out-of-control and shot out solid white bolts at random.

Iruka was nervous to the max while Naruto stood at the epicenter of the storm and the wind started to swirl around him and then the circles. He watched as the lightning turned wild but was soon directed towards the branch and struck the feather. The branch started to transform as more and more lighting struck it over and over again. The wooden mass was soon turned into a mass of bluish light and Naruto watched as the phoenix feather was absorbed into the bluish mass and fussed in as the formula was designed to do. Once the feather had been absorbed there was a flash of light and a loud boom that almost caused Iruka to tumble backward. The wind blew harder and harder, which forced the chunin to shield his face with his arms crossed.

The chunin shouted, "NARUTO! YOU ALRIGHT?"

"I'm ok! It's fine in here! It's a little bit bright, but I think I can deal with it!" he heard him comment as he watched the new mass was levitated into the air.

Iruka roared so that Naruto could hear him over the wind, "IT SURE DOES LOOK LIKE IT!"

"Now watch out for those circles, aniki," he shouted so that he could be heard over the wind as the storm increased with violence, "IT'S ABOUT TO GET A LITTLE BIT ROUGH IN HERE!"

The blonde shinobi and his two older brothers watched as the mass above Naruto hovered and the lightning continued to strike it over and over, which caused more and more solid bolts to shoot out from the earth and strike the mass. Naruto held his hands above his head and let the sorcerer inside his head take control over the massive and tilt it, so that the lightning would wear it down until it started to look more and more like a wand. Each time the lightning struck the mass, it lost some of its size and started to become more and more thin. Each second since it was levitated, another bolt would strike the white mass and wear it down some more. Naruto tried to hold his arms above his head and control the mass, but then the bolts zoomed too close to him and almost burned him a little bit as the bolts whizzed close to his arms and ears. He tried to remain levelheaded and make it through to the end, but then one bolt struck into Naruto's side and sent a thousand volts into him.

The blonde wizard screamed when he was hit with the bolt and almost lost consciousness, "DAAAAAHHHHH!

"NARUTO!" he heard Iruka scream from back outside the circle.

But the small shinobi continued to hold his arms above him and stand while he insisted, "I'M FINE! JUST STAY BACK, ANIKI! DON'T TOUCH THE CIRCLE NO MATTER WHAT!"

{{Words Win Wars by Murray Gold & BBC National Orchestra of Wales}}

The blonde shinobi tried his best to stand and held his arms high as he and his invisible brother tried to control the mass and watched as more and more was shaved from it. Within seconds and over one hundred individual bolts, the mass now resembled a wand with a handle carved into it. For one second, Naruto could have sworn that the wand looked like it had elder berries carved into the handle and shaft and almost resembled a wand he was familiar with. But then he blinked and the elder berries on the mass were shaved clean and left the mass with a battered but smooth design to it. Naruto smiled at the mass when he saw it as his wand from the mindscape. He held his arms towards it and he even almost outstretched his hand as if he could reach for it. But then the storm continued to become more and more violent, to the point where Iruka was almost forced into the tree line. He tried to shout for Naruto and have him cancel the transmutation when more bolts shot out from the circles and started to burn the trees around them and almost shock him. The blonde shinobi heard him, and then tried to accelerate the transformation and end the violent storm he had been warned could form.

'We're almost done, Naruto! Give me a little bit more time and it's done!'

Outside the woods and into the village, the civilians and shinobi turned and noticed as random bolts shot down from the clouds and a small wind breezed into the town. Unseen dark clouds started to form above the ritual while it looked like an unanticipated thunderstorm was about to hit Konoha.

Not a lot of shinobi or civilians even noticed there was a storm out there until it started to become a little bit more violent. But not a lot of civilians or shinobi believed it was much more than a small thunderstorm. Some notable civilians and shinobi in town feel a little bit off to those that noticed it. Kakashi Hatake was out to attend to some errands when he noticed the storm, but believed it was a little bit curious. Meanwhile Hiruzen Sarutobi sensed the storm and turned around to the window in his office and stared at the storm with some interest. At the same time Sasuke Uchiha was at home in his room, he looked out and also noticed the storm and felt a shiver run down his back as he stared at it. Sakura Haruno was at home as well, out to deliver some books to her mother and father when she too noticed the storm, but did not want to be near it, as it almost scared her to an instinctual level.

Back inside the woods, Iruka tried to shield his face from the dirt and retreated behind the tree trunk he had rested on as bolts started to shoot out at random. Naruto noticed this and tried to finish the wand as soon as he could. The blonde wizard looked down towards the seal where he had to rest his hand to cancel the ritual. Naruto checked the wand one more time and then let his arms fall to his sides when he heard his mentor shout to him.

'IT'S DONE! Hit the seal to cancel the ritual! IT'S DONE, NARUTO! MAKE IT STOP!'

Naruto reached down into the storm to touch the seal, but then he flinched when another hundred volts shocked his hand.

"OWW!"

He shouted and then he turned to Iruka and saw how violent the storm was now. Naruto reeled his arm back and then thrust his hand onto the seal to cancel the transmutation, before the storm could even touch his hometown. With that one thrust, over one hundred thousand volts were forced into Naruto and he screamed out until the wind died down and the storm was over and the volts had vanished out of thin air.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

The blonde wizard fell down into the earth as the lights from the circles had faded back into normal dirt and erased the circles and the Latin from existence to hide their actions. He had lost consciousness and at the same time, the dark clouds above him had vanished. The civilians and the shinobi that had noticed the storm soon turned their heads from the scene and went about their business, like there was never even a storm to be concerned about. Back inside the woods, Iruka dashed over to his little brother and saw that he was burned from the electrocution he suffered from. He tried to shake him a little and checked to make sure he was still alive.

"Naruto! Naruto! NARUTO! WAKE UP! NARUTO!"

The chunin looked him over and discovered that he couldn't breath. He started to use CPR, but as soon as he had forced the air out of him, the child coughed and was able to breathe once more, but he was so weak. Iruka deduced at once that he would need a doctor and hulled him onto his back. But then he noticed the thin wooden stick that rested on the earth. He stared at it for a moment and reached into his vest for some tissues and handled the stick like it was on fire and had it tucked into his weapons pouch. Once the creation was secure and Naruto was safe on his back with his arms over his shoulders, he tried to coax the child as he stormed back to where he came.

He told the unconscious shinobi on his back, "It's ok, Naruto, we're out of here! Hold on! You'll be all right! You'll be all right!"

Once Iruka had burst out from the woods and back to civilization, he ran as fast as he could towards downtown to find a doctor. While he ran as fast as he could towards the north, he noticed a silver-haired someone that had come out from a store. Kakashi had come out with a large brown bag full of food and other necessities. Iruka stormed towards the man, as he was certain the man would be able to assist them.

He shouted out loud as he landed close to him, "KAKASHI-SENSEI!"

"Iruka-sensei," he asked and then he looked down to see his unconscious student in the chunin's arms, all blackened and burned and he rushed over to the chunin and left his groceries abandoned on the floor, "NARUTO! What the hell has happened to him?"

The chunin told him as fast as he could, "There was this weird storm! I was about to pick him up from one of the training grounds for ramen! He was about to run over to me when he saw me arrive and mention ramen and then he was struck with lightning! I saw it!"

Kakashi checked over Naruto and then felt his pulse. It was slow and weak but he was still with them. The child moaned as Kakashi reached out and removed the child from his older brother and carried him from there on out.

"He needs a hospital," he stated as he carried the child, "I'll take him there. I'm faster."

When Iruka was about to nod to the older shinobi, Kakashi had focused a massive amount of his chakra into his feet and zoomed so fast down the street, he almost looked inhuman or even like a cartoon character as he soared towards the sanatorium and left a trail of dust behind him. Iruka stared at the shinobi that had vanished with his hair blown back from the air that was blasted in his face.

He commented, "Whoa… that is one fast shinobi…" and then he followed, "Oh! Hold on! WAIT UP, KAKASHI!"

Naruto was unconscious for a little bit more than a day and a half and was unable to return to the mindscape. It must have been some time in the afternoon when he started to awaken from his forced slumber. He soon concluded that he was on a bed or a cot, so Naruto assumed he must have been hurt bad once he was sure he was inside a hospital bedroom. While Naruto rested and let his injuries heal as fast as ever, he could have sworn that he could hear voices around him, two voices. Both of them were rather familiar and sounded concerned or worried, once he had heard words that sounded a lot like, 'died or killed'.

Once he started to come to, the voices were so much clearer and he knew one of them was from Iruka. It took some time, but once he saw a sliver of silver hair and a dark facial-mask, he assumed the second voice was his sensei.

"Tell me, Iruka-sensei… What is it… that caused this?" he heard his sensei ask in a bullet-time voice.

All that the blonde child could hear was also in bullet-time, "I dunno… there was this random storm… it came… out of nowhere… Naruto was struck… I ran as fast as I could he… Ran into you..."

Kakashi and Iruka seemed to have a conversation that centered on the storm that had struck the woods at random. It almost sounded like Kakashi wanted to know what Iruka had seen while he was out there. He must have been curious about the sudden storm and asked Iruka if someone else was out there and tried to use a jutsu that created lightning, as he was a little bit worried about a shinobi from Kumo that could have attacked, but Iruka ruled it out as he told him was certain no one was around and that it was a normal, but random natural thunderstorm. Kakashi nodded his head and trusted Iruka as he looked over at Naruto and must have worried about him. Meanwhile, the blonde child started to stir a little bit, which earned both the other two shinobi their attention. Naruto started to open his eyes and moan as he felt the aches from his healed burns and over-stimulated muscles when he was electrocuted. Kakashi and Iruka both looked over at the child and watched as he started to awaken.

"Uhh…" the blonde shinobi moaned as he saw the two adults, "What the hell was that?"

Kakashi answered him with a smile, "That was about a hundred thousand volts, Naruto. It's a miracle for someone to have a shock like that and live to talk about it… You feel ok?"

"Ohhh…" was all he could tell him, "Kill me now…"

Once he was certain his blonde student was still out of it, the masked shinobi turned to the chunin and told him, "The doctors said earlier that he would be fine. Just needs some rest and he'll be back on his feet tomorrow in the afternoon at the latest."

"That's good to hear," sighed the tan-skinned chunin.

Kakashi nodded to the man and waved to him and his student, "Well, I better be off then."

"So soon?" the chunin asked.

Kakashi nodded, "Yeah, I need to see some idiotic friend named Gai tomorrow for some race he wanted me to be in. I'll be back tomorrow to see Naruto."

"Oh, ok," he answered back as the shinobi turned to leave, "Later, Kakashi-sensei."

The masked shinobi nodded to his student and said, "Get well soon, Naruto."

Once the masked sensei closed the door and was downstairs, the blonde child looked over to his concerned older brother and looked a lot more remorseful as the memories of the creation of his wand came back to him. All those bolts and all that wind in his ears must have been awful to be around, as the experience terrified him since he was there in the middle of it. But Naruto was more concerned that the storm had become massive and could have hurt Iruka or someone else out there had it increased in size and reached civilization.

"Oh man…" he started, "Gomenasai, aniki, I tried to cancel it sooner…"

Iruka shook his head and smiled, "No worries, since no one else was hurt…"

"But still…" the child insisted, "You could have been killed. I saw the bolts… Nii-san and I didn't think it would turn out so violent. He knew there would be a small storm, but it was so much more volatile, he said… Well, I checked with him and he has no idea how that storm turned out so violent… Those bolts should have been inside the circle; none of them should have been able to strike outside the outer protective circles… There were at least ten of them made so that the energies would be contained… Gomenasai, Iruka-aniki…"

Still, the chunin let it slide and smiled, "Ah, whatever… But at least we learned a little lesson."

"What's that?" the child asked.

Iruka pointed at his little brother's forehead and told him, "It looks like this scar here can conduct electricity."

"Oh, shut it," the blonde shinobi fumed while he still smiled a little.

The caramel-skinned chunin then asked, "Still, it was worth it in the end, huh?"

"Hmm," the child mused and then it came to him, "Oh… Where is the-"

{{Where I Come From by Passion Pit or Take a Walk by Passion Pit}}

Iruka reached into his vest with a white cloth in his hand and withdrew a thin stick made of wood and showed it to Naruto. The blonde child was stunned and his heart raced as he saw his finished wand and took in its details. It was about fourteen inches in length, a dark wooden color, had a rather battered texture, but it's smoothness and the thick handle on it made it look fit for a fantastic sorcerer to wield, almost like it was an ancient or scared sword trusted to him from an ancestor or a master. Naruto almost couldn't talk as Iruka offered it to him and smiled as he witnessed the sheer happiness on his little one's face. The chunin still offered it to him and watched, as he looked all the more amazed as the stick shined with freshness.

He told him as he offered, "Here we are… Take it…"

Naruto stretched out his hand and touched the thin wooden rod and felt this sudden but familiar warmth in his hand and fingers. He waved it a little bit and at once there was a sudden draft of warm wind as the lights above the two shinobi increased in brightness as it shined down on Naruto as the wind caused his hair to rise and then fall back down as he lowered his wand and the lights above him died down to a reasonable brightness. Iruka was a little bit bemused as his little brother caused the environment around him to be altered and then restored. But he took it well as he was now used to magic and took it, as a humorous man should.

He commented in a humorous tone, "That was… ominous."

"Whoa…" the child answered back as he stared down at his wand and took in the fact that he now had a real one to use and he was still inside the real world, "This is so cool! It feels the same as the one I have in the mindscape! This is too cool! Now it's wands, but tomorrow I'll start on broomsticks!"

"I think we should hold back on the inventions for a little while, Naruto-otōto," the tall and tan chunin sweatdropped a little bit and lowered Naruto's arm when he started to raise his wand above his head as he exclaimed his ambitions out loud, "This world isn't prepared for aerial sports, at least not now…"

Naruto nodded but soon looked back at his wand with uncontrollable excitement, "I have to test it a little bit… I'll use a small harmless charm…"

The blonde child looked around the room in search for an excuse to use his magic now that he had full access to his abilities without the constant strain. He looked around in vain, until he saw a glass of water at the bedside table, which was out of his arm reach. He smiled and gripped his wand as he aimed at the glass.

He annunciated with a clear voice, "Accio water!"

Naruto flicked his wand as he held his other hand out to catch the glass. But it did not soar towards him, as he wanted while he was too excited. Instead the glass had toppled and the water inside flew out and dowsed his entire torso while Iruka flinched backward to avoid a cold dowse. The blonde shinobi didn't react in time as was covered in cold water. His face turned into an emotionless mask while Iruka tried to resist the sudden urge to laugh as his cheeks turned red and a snort echoed out from his nose. Naruto crossed his arms and tried his best not to burst with frustration while he listened to both of his older brothers as the two of them mocked him, albeit it was all out of fun, since no one else was around to see him look foolish.

The small blonde shinobi mumbled, "Shut it."

"Nice aim," he commented.

Naruto insisted with force, "It doesn't count as the first time."

"I dunno. It looks to me like it counts," the chunin smiled as he commented.

His little blonde sibling then insisted, "It doesn't count. I'm still bedridden, so it doesn't count."

The blonde wizard also listened as his invisible companion laughed and reminded him of the first time he used magic when he turned seventeen and the Trace on him was broken. He had also used the Accio Charm on his glasses but was almost blinded when he missed and his glasses hit his face. Harry then told Naruto to take the shame and crack a smile, but the child was stubborn and insisted that it still didn't count. Iruka continued to laugh and smile and shook his shoulder to get him to crack a smile.

"C'mon, Naruto," he and the other older brother said at the same time, "That was hilarious. You know it."

The blonde child then crossed his arms and said as he accepted the shame, "Oh shut it."

Soon, the two went into conversation while Iruka dried Naruto a little bit and turned on his heating to be rid of the intense cold. The two of them chatted for a little bit until the chunin checked the clock and a nurse entered the room and looked like it was time for him to leave. Iruka stretched out in his seat and clicked his back a little bit as he stood and patted little Naruto on his head and reminded him to hide his wand unless he was alone. The blonde wizard smiled at the chunin as the nurse left and Iruka started to march towards the door as he smiled and looked back over the last insane and wonderful two weeks of his adult life.

"Oh, man this whole week has been almost too much fun…" he smiled as he turned to Naruto and continued to smile, "You're bedridden now, so let's make sure we hold back on the magic for a little bit, otōto?"

The blonde wizard nodded and said, "Ok then, Iruka-aniki… I'll tone it down a little until I'm out of here…"

"Get well soon, Naruto," he told him as he left and laughed, "Hahahaha! What a fantastic two weeks, man!"

{{Reunion of Friends by John Williams (Chamber of Secrets Finale}}

Once Naruto was released from the hospital sometime later in the week, he didn't want to wait and return home to Iruka or to his old apartment. Instead, he wanted to set out and test his wand in a random field where he would be alone and free to do as much magic as his heart desired without the risk of being caught. It was the best time, because there was another random summer festival in town, so no one would be able to hear him even if he used a Blasting Curse. So once he had his sandals back on and the tracksuit Iruka brought him while he was still bedridden, he set out towards the eastern woods. It took him several hours to find an exclusive field to train in alone, but once he found one that he liked, it was almost dusk and the festival was about to release the usual fireworks marathon. Even still, he locked the fence and marched into the middle of the field. Once he was sure that he was alone, Naruto withdrew his wand for what he wanted to consider his first time and aimed towards the darkened heavens.

He threw his arm out and then shouted, "Lumos Maxima!"

A bright ball of light shot out from the tip of his wand and illuminated the entire field around him as it circled above him in an endless circle. Naruto smiled at his use of the charm and was amazed that he had used it with such ease. Before he had his wand in the real world, he had to concentrate so much and there was a strain on his arm whenever he used magic, but now it was gone. He had felt the magic shot out like it was a normal function like he had flexed a muscle. Naruto felt so free as he took his beloved instrument and waved it around a little bit. He could feel it as a little bit more magic slid out from the tip and warmed the air around him. Naruto smiled and watched as the illuminated ball above his head continued to hover around the field and show him his environment. Naruto could now see the blackened field around him and stared as the black grass turn into a wondrous shade of emerald, like the field was covered with precious stones. He could have shook with utter excitement as he looked around for objects to test his full abilities on. The blonde shinobi soon found a rock twice his size and then he smirked at it.

He swished and flicked his wand and then announced, "Wingardium Leviosa!"

Naruto raised his wand and then the rock was drawn out of the earth and floated wherever the blonde wizard desired. He turned around and made the rock follow the movement of his wand with such remarkable effortlessness. Had he used his old method to levitate stones once, but the rocks fell back to the earth within seconds, because of the strain. But with his wand, he maintained his control over the barren mass and soon cancelled his hold when he thrust his arm forward and threw the rock against another boulder and shattered it into a thousand stones. Naruto laughed and then acted as if he were in the middle of an intense battle with evil ANBU and malicious Death Eaters. He acted like a shinobi as well as a wizard and dodged invisible kunai and curses meant to kill him. Naruto ran around the field and turned towards another boulder and used the first curse he could think to use as he acted like he aimed it at a massive Death Eater the size of a bear.

He shouted out loud as a firework was released above the village, "Bombarda!"

As the civilians and shinobi cheered in the streets, the rock Naruto had aimed at exploded as solid chunks and hot dust were blown out. The blonde shinobi felt a rush of adrenaline and aimed at the tree he ran close to and used a much more advanced curse that he was unable to use in the real world until now.

He annunciated as white blast came out of his new wand, "Incarcerous Tria!"

Out of the wand came these solid chains made of iron that were soon bound to a tree that could have immobilized a shinobi. Naruto acted like it was a missing-nin and continued to use his wand some more. He looked over at some stones that remained of the boulder he blasted earlier and aimed at the remains.

He flicked his wand and shouted, "Accio stones!"

The stones he aimed at were levitated into the air and then soared towards the blonde wizard almost too fast for him to see. He aimed his new wand at the stones out of instinct and focused an incredible amount of magic into his wand without that horrid strain on his arm that had once made it difficult for him to use his wondrous abilities.

Naruto shouted, "Reducto!"

A blue blast shot out at the stones and disintegrated them all with extreme force. The small stones were reduced to dust as Naruto lowered his arm and watched as the dust settled and he moved on to another stone that he could summon and then blast as he relished in his new abilities. He aimed his wand at the rock and did it one more time.

He annunciated, "Accio!"

As soon as the stone shot out towards his face, Naruto flicked his wand one more time and shouted out, "Expelliarmus!"

The blonde wizard/shinobi caused the stone to soar back into the darkness and hit a wild tanuki on the head. Naruto heard the scream of the wild animal and it almost scared him to death. He then took some time to calm down and breathe while he waited for the animal to run back into the woods or attack him. But soon he was certain that the raccoon had run off, so the blonde preteen took some time to breathe as he looked down at his wand and shook with untold excitement. Harry watched as his little brother went nuts and remembered all the times he had taught Naruto a new spell or charm and he would act like he did now and test his skills until he was tuckered out. While he watched the blonde rascal have fun and then calm down a little bit, he wanted to see if he wanted to use one charm he had invented as he heard the fireworks out in the distance. It wouldn't be hard for Naruto to use on his first time, as the child had a remarkable talent for charms. Not to mention, he wanted to see Naruto act more like he did when he was a small child, back when their secret adventures had first started.

'Naruto, let's test a new little charm this time.'

'You want to teach me a new charm, Nii-san? Hold on! I'll be inside in a second!'

'You don't have to come into the mindscape this time, Naruto.'

'Well, how do I use it then? What's the incantation?'

'Just listen to me, Little one… Trust me, it will be fantastic…'

For several moments, Naruto stood there in the field and willed the ball of light that floated above him to be doused out. For several moments, there was darkness in the field until the blonde preteen learned the new charm and used it almost at once. Naruto swished his wand in the air and created a shower of golden light that was as vibrant as his hair looked in the summer sunshine. He swished it some more and each time he did he created a different vibrant color that filled the field with incredible light. The vibrant colors and lights swirled all around him like the wind as he tested it some more and then shot out a blast towards the heavens and released extreme bursts of colored fire that filled the clouds like the fireworks that blasted back inside the ancient town. The charm blended in well with the festival and went unnoticed to the masses that stared at the skies like mindless but cute little children. At the same time, Naruto acted as the masses did and stared at the skies and smiled while Harry sat back inside the mindscape and watched his little brother shine.

"Like I told him," he said as he sat back in an armchair, "Fantastic…"

Naruto smiled some more as the colors illuminated the field and dowsed him with warmth. But as the little blonde soldier stared as his creation and heard the loud booms out in the distance, he couldn't help but think about Haku and Zabuza. He liked to think that there was a chance he could have saved them both and convinced them to defect to Konoha. Had it all turned out well like it did in his dreams, he and Haku could be out in that same field and watch as the fireworks blasted and the colors he created swam across the skies and entertained the masses.

But soon, he tossed the thought aside and came to terms with the real world as he was still content in the knowledge that she had died as she had wanted and she was with her beloved master in the same skies he released those wondrous colors. In his mind, he was certain as his masked sensei was that those two souls were in complete and utter bliss with each other for all time. So Naruto smiled and created more fireworks of his own and blasted them into the air while his older brother watched him and smiled as well.

All in all, with Haku and Zabuza safe in the heavens, Iruka now knew of his secret and still cared for him, as well as the creation of his wand, and his teammates and sensei were all still alive and well, Naruto Ignotus Uzumaki was content.

When you walk away
You don't hear me say,
"Please, oh baby, don't go."
Simple and clean is the way that you're making me feel tonight
It's hard to let it go

You're giving me too many things
Lately, you're all I need.
You smiled at me and said,

"Don't get me wrong, I love you,
But does that mean I have to meet your father?"
When we are older you'll understand
What I meant when I said,
"No, I don't think life is quite that simple"

When you walk away
You don't hear me say,
"Please, oh baby, don't go."
Simple and clean is the way that you're making me feel tonight
It's hard to let it go

The daily things that keep us all busy
Are confusing me
That's when you came to me and said,

"Wish I could prove I love you,
But does that mean I have to walk on water?"
When we are older you'll understand
It's enough when I say so
And maybe some things are that simple

When you walk away
You don't hear me say,
"Please, oh baby, don't go."
Simple and clean is the way that you're making me feel tonight
It's hard to let it go

Hold me
Whatever lies beyond this morning
Is a little later on
Regardless of warnings the future doesn't scare me at all
Nothing's like before

When you walk away
You don't hear me say,
"Please, oh baby, don't go."
Simple and clean is the way that you're making me feel tonight
It's hard to let it go

Hold me
Whatever lies beyond this morning
Is a little later on
Regardless of warnings the future doesn't scare me at all
Nothing's like before

Hold me
Whatever lies beyond this morning
Is a little later on
Regardless of warnings the future doesn't scare me at all
Nothing's like before

Meet me on the equinox
Meet me halfway
The sun is perched at its highest peak
In the middle of the day

And let me give my love to you
Let me take your hand
And as we walk in the dimming light
Oh darling understand

That everything, everything ends
That everything, everything ends

Meet me on your best behavior
Meet me at your worst
For there will be no stone unturned
Or bubble left to burst
Let me lay beside you darling
Let me be your man
And let our bodies intertwine
But always understand

That everything, everything ends
That everything, everything ends
That everything, everything, everything ends

A window
An open tomb
The sun crawls across your bedroom
A halo
A waning moon
Your last breath moving through you

As everything, everything ends
As everything, everything ends
As everything, everything, everything, everything, everything, everything ends

Meet me on the equinox
Meet me halfway
The sun is perched at its highest peak
In the middle of the day

And let me give my love to you
Let me take your hand
And as we walk in the dimming light
Oh darling understand
That everything, everything ends...

End of Book Two

Naruto, Harry and Iruka will return in Book 3, Naruto Uzumaki and the Chunin Exams. Also, the OC Hikaru-sensei is a little bit based on a character from Fullmetal Alchemist. Let's see if someone out there can figure out who I modeled him after.

Songs Used in End:

Simple & Clean by Utada Hikaru (A tribute to the relationship between Haku and her master Zabuza Momochi, I believe it's a song that represents Haku well)

Meet Me On the Equinox by Death Cab For Cutie (A tribute to Naruto and Haku and the love that could have been)

Unused Songs:

Carrying You by Meja

Always Know Where You Are by John Rzeznik