Reiki sank into the wonderfully warm water of the hot springs at the women's public bath house. She sighed deeply because the water felt so good to her travel weary, sore muscles. Her father would be arriving soon so she had precious little time to get in a relaxing bath. She was sure the bath house would be his first stop after arriving.

A loud disturbance outside caught her attention and that of several of the other women bathing. The voice of a teenage boy yelling the word pervert rang out loud and clear making several of the women shriek and run for their clothes. A hollow thunk that sounded like someone being flung against the wall of the building sounded right before the walls shook. Bedlam started inside from the melee outside the bath house.

"DAMN, OLD PERVERT! THAT'S ONE BIG TOAD!" The same young male's voice screeched.

Damn. Her father had arrived. Relaxation time is over. As the yelling increased outside, Reiki bypassed her clothes to wrap a towel around her body to run outside in hopes of doing damage control swiftly. She barely dodged a Ninja wearing small round lensed sunglasses who was flying through the air. Dropping to her knees and cursing because she was now covered with dirt, she checked him to make sure he was all right. He was alive but unconscious and would have a hell of a headache when he woke up. He also had a nosebleed but she was sure that was unrelated to his recent flight. Her attention turned to the males with the loud, arguing voices. One of them was her father. She watched in mounting horror as he literally drooled over the young blond girl in front him. Where had she come from? She had not seen that girl earlier. Maybe she had run out of the bath house in a panic since she was naked.

"Daddy, no!" Reiki screamed when her father reached for the girl. In a puff of smoke, a young blond boy appeared wearing a hideous orange jumpsuit with whisker marks and a big grin on his face. Whisker marks?

"Whoa!" he exclaimed, after turning his huge blue eyes on her.

'Are his eyes normally that big?' she wondered, staring at the boy. He was not much younger than her but he seemed really immature and childlike. She found herself smiling at him because he was so cute - in a puppy dog sort of way.

Naruto could hardly believe his eyes as he gazed at the half naked girl standing several feet away. She had the most enormous rack he had ever seen. It was obvious that she was a visitor because girls were not built like that in this village. His eyes moved up to her pink lips that were curled into a smile, then to her golden eyes that shone brightly as if they glowed. He saw that her white, platinum blond hair hung in two long braids that were now draped over her shoulders and hung across her huge –

"Ow!" he yelled when a hand came across the back of his head with a forceful slap.

"Don't stare at her like that," the old pervert admonished him.

"Aren't you being a hypocrite? Didn't you call yourself a super pervert?" Naruto asked, receiving another slap.

"Impudent little ass!" the white haired man yelled. "That's my daughter."

"Oh," he mumbled, rubbing his sore head while the words sank in. "Your what?!"

...

Reiki, now fully clothed, sat in the grass watching with unrelenting boredom the pervert and the blonde enduring their first training lesson together. It would be quite comical if they had not been at this for hours already. Apparently Naruto was tired of being soaking wet and she watched with open interest as he stripped down to his boxer shorts. A blush tinted her cheeks when she realized how she was ogling the boy younger than her. She could not help herself – it was her father's fault. Grabbing her backpack, she pulled out a scroll and pretended to read. She kept sneaking glances over the paper at the surprisingly well-built young boy. The little ball of energy stayed quite active and his body showed it. He had the potential of growing up to be a fine specimen of manhood one of these days. Embarrassment heated her cheeks again and she forced her eyes back to the scroll rereading the same line for the tenth time. What did it say? Her mind was having trouble comprehending it.

"Damn distractions," she muttered, unable to keep from looking when she heard a loud splash and howl of frustration. She smiled as the blonde sat in the waist deep water again, slapping at it angrily. Admiring his determination and his defined abdomen, she noticed the markings there around his belly button. Her father noticed them about the same time and crouched down in front of Naruto.

"Reiki!" her father bellowed, intruding on her racing thoughts. "Get over here and tell me what's wrong with this?"

Reiki waited for Naruto to walk out of the water and stand in the grass. She dropped to her knees in front of him, ignoring his sudden intake of air. Her fingers touched the warm, taut skin on his belly, feeling him tremble under her touch.

'Oh, god, I think I might faint,' he thought to himself. Glancing down, he watched her lick her lower lip as she concentrated on the symbols. He swiftly moved his eyes to focus on something behind her.

"Tell me," her father commanded her, having one of his rare, true moments of being a father and teacher.

"Okay, Let me see," she said, tracing the swirl patter from the outside in. "It's a damn mess and poorly done for one thing. Whoever did this either did not know what they were doing yet or were in a really big hurry. The seals are overlapping and diametrically opposed forces have been overlaid to hold something in but it disrupts the whole chakra flow."

'Blah, blah, blah. What the hell is she talking about?' Naruto thought, daring to look down at her again.

"Hey, annoying kid, raise your arms," Jiraiya instructed him, lifting his arms to point his fingers to the sky.

"Raise my arms?" he questioned, mirroring his new sensei's movements.

"Reiki, fix it," he directed her gently.

"What? OH, HELL!" Naruto yelled in pain when it felt like she had punched her fist through his abdomen. He dropped to his knees in front of her.

"I'm sorry," she apologized, kissing his forehead. "I know it hurts, but it will help. I promise."

Naruto felt hot and faint but not from the pain in his gut. It suddenly seemed worth the pain just for the kiss. His bleary eyes attempted to focus on her pretty face to distract him from the burning in his belly.

"Quit grinning like an idiot and get up, boy. Try again," the Pervy Sage commanded him.

Reiki jumped to her feet and hurriedly and walked back to her place under the trees. She watched Naruto feeling nervous and hopeful that he can succeed this time. The kid had loads of resolve and determination; she was sure that alone would get him far in his life. Biting her lower lip, her eyes were on his foot as he took the first tentative step onto the water. One…two…three…four steps. Great! He walked to the other side then started making his way back.

"I did it," he mumbled in startled happiness. "I did it! Hey, hey! I did it!"

Reiki covered her mouth to hide her girlish giggle as she watched the exuberant and elated blonde jump up and down on the water.

"Yes, Naruto. You did it," she said to herself, watching the spirited kid dance on the water.

...

"So what do you think of my new student?" Jiraiya asked his daughter later that night while they were eating dinner.

"He's a fighter. Energetic. Stubborn. He won't give up no matter how much it irritates you. I like him," she answered, poking at the rice in her bowl.

"How much do you like him?" he inquired, raising his eyebrows until they disappeared under his forehead protector.

"Not like that you hopeless pervert," she admonished him, laying down her chopsticks. "He's just a kid."

"And you're such an old lady. A jaded world traveler who is mature beyond her years," her father spoke with a lilt in his voice and a dreamy quality to his eyes. His dark eyes abruptly turned serious and his voice was low when he added, "And you're so full of crap, Reiki."

"Daddy," she whined, sipping her sake.

"Oh, for god's sake, the boy is only three years younger than you. You're only seventeen not seventy!" he exclaimed, chuckling at his solemn daughter as he poured them both more sake.

"Have you heard from Mama?" she inquired, rummaging around in her backpack for the last letter she received from her.

"Not yet. I did tell her we were coming here. You know she's from here don't you? She's the granddaughter of the first Hokage," he stated with a hint of pride in his voice. He still loved her even if they could not be together. He had loved her since they were kids, despite the fact she was once broken several of his bones and nearly killed him for peeping on her. It had been worth it to him.

"What is that weird little grin all about, Dad?" She pointed to his face, giggling. The sake was working.

"Oh, was I smiling?" He blushed.

"And now you're blushing."

"It's the sake, dear. Shut up and drink up."

"You miss her don't you?" she queried, finishing off her drink.

"Yeah. I do," he responded quite glumly.

"Daddy, what – "

"Reiki, don't ask. I don't want to talk about the past right now."

They sat in silence for a long moment before a blonde ball of energy careened into the room. Naruto slid onto the bench next to Reiki nearly knocking her off the end. Grabbing her arm, he pulled her next to him holding her body to his. His eyes met hers and they stared at each other without a word.

"Uh…um…I-I'm sorry. I didn't want you to fall off," he murmured, pink color creeping across his cheeks.

"It's all right. Thank you for not letting me fall," Reiki replied, her lips mere inches from his.

"Oh, damn, I'm in trouble," her father grumbled as he watched the blushing duo. He poured himself another cup of sake.

"I have to go," she announced, virtually disappearing into thin air she left so quickly.

Naruto glanced around in confusion. He felt the Pervy Sage's eyes boring into him before he turned around and met the man's fierce gaze.

"Don't forget. She's my daughter," he reminded his new pupil.

"Y-yes, sir." As if he could forget.

~\..'../~

"No, no, no, no, NO!" Jiraiya yelled in frustration.

Reiki patiently picked up the tadpole and made it disappear. Fifteen days of tadpoles and her father was about to lose his mind. So was she but she hid it better. Both of her parents had passionate and easily provoked tempers. She had made it a point to not be so hot headed and quick tempered. Her patience was wearing thin, however, with this little training exercise.

In a puff of smoke another orange and black tadpole appeared.

"NO DAMMIT THAT'S NOT IT!" Jiraiya hollered at the top of his lungs with aggravation.

"Well, you're the teacher old man! Teach me!" the equally frustrated Naruto shouted back.

~\..'../~

Six days later…

Jiraiya let out a loud barking laugh at the newest creation from Naruto.

"But it has legs this time! Just look!" the defensive blonde yelled, pointing at the adolescent toad he had summoned.

Jiraiya continued laughing loudly and uproariously even when the boy fainted.

"Oh, Daddy, be quiet!" Reiki fussed at him, kneeling down by his unconscious student while he attempted to get his laughter under control.

"The kid's got guts that's for sure. I believe that's the only thing holding him up at this point. He's got the nine-tailed demon in him and that much chakra is just too much for his little body. It can be released by overwhelming emotions or a heightened sense of personal danger. How can we – " He stopped talking all of a sudden and his eyes moved to his daughter.

"You better not be thinking what I think you're thinking," she snapped, crossing her arms over her breasts as if she could hide them.

"Oh, Reiki, please!" he begged shamelessly. "It will be the easiest and least painful way to stimulate the boy and get a reaction out of him."

"Are you sure it will be the reaction you want?" she asked incredulously and deeply offended. "You truly are a super pervert, Dad."

"Hey, kid! Wake up!" he yelled, nudging Naruto in the side with his Geta clad foot.

"Dad," she whined apprehensively.

"It'll be over with before you know it and you'll give this kid the boost he needs," he assured her.

Naruto moaned and sat up, glancing back and forth between them. He unsteadily stood up, rubbing his aching head.

"What happened?" he moaned feeling dizzy.

"You passed out, kid. No big deal. Suck it up and get ready," Jiraiya enthusiastically told him.

Reiki took Naruto's face between her hands, standing close to him. Her amber eyes gazed deeply into his azure blue eyes that seemed so vulnerable and innocent to her despite the rough things he had endured in his short life.

"Naruto, do you like me?" she asked, a dark blushing coloring his cheeks and warming his face in her hands.

"Y-yes," he stammered.

"Do you think I'm pretty?" Her hands slid down his neck and his blush intensified to a crimson red. 'I'm going to kill him. He's going to have a heart attack,' she thought to herself as her hands glided over his shoulders and down his arms. She took his hands in hers, lifting them with the palms facing out in front of him.

"Yes." He gulped hard eyeing his hands uncertainly, unsure of what was about to happen.

"Would you like to touch these?" she inquired, pressing his hands to her breasts before he could answer.

It was like setting off a firework. He released a yell that echoed through the forest and the blast of chakra launched him off the ground.

"Dammit, Dad. I hope you're happy," she muttered, stopping to glare at her father.

"I'm ecstatic. Thank you, dear," he rejoined, gazing up into the sky at the orange rocket.

"What do you hope to accomplish with this?"

"That boy is about to get in touch with his inner self in a whole new way. Or die."

"What do you mean?" Reiki asked apprehensively.

"What I mean is Naruto is going to have to access the power of the nine tailed beast within him or it's going to be one hell of a bad landing," he answered, looking at his daughter. "By the way, your sacrifice to the cause has been noted by the gods. You'll be greatly blessed."

"Yeah, right, you old pervert!"