Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

A/N: The Naruto is over, by this fanfic certainly isn't, even if it's been awhile. In this chapter, you'll definitely get some of the answers that you're looking for, as will some of the characters, hence the name of the chapter. Sorry for the really long wait, but sometimes life gets in the way, and there is nothing that you can do about it. I wrote when I had the opportunity, and I finally have it finished, though it just doesn't feel that good to me, like it should be better because of how long it took, but I guess it's natural to be worried about it, so I'll let you guys read it and tell me what you think. Be warned: There be fluff.

meltingKage: Don't worry, he's going to have more fighting styles and forms. Keep in mind that he has never trained or been trained in any specialized fighting style before The Vault, and he was just trying out one that he had glanced at while he had been training. He's going to have several styles that he'll switch between, and even one that's original*

Shroud Leonitus Helsing: Your Wish Has Been Granted.

I realize this may seem a bit hypocritical as I asked for your opinions, but I don't like it when I'm told I need to write something a certain way. I've been forced to do that my whole life, and this is where I can write whatever I want. I appreciate criticism and advice, but when you say I need to change it, that means that this probably isn't the story for you. I have realized that some things can be confusing, and if you can help remedy that, then I appreciate it, but sometimes the the story just isn't a match for the reader.

* I haven't seen it anywhere else, but that doesn't mean it isn't out there somewhere.

Chapter 7: Answers

Naruto must have fallen asleep somehow after the Sandaime left, because he was having an odd dream. He was standing in dark tunnel, and he could hear water dripping somewhere in the distance. He had been here before. There were no light sources, but there was still light somehow. The light moved with him as he walked the tunnel, always only allowing him to see a few feet around him. He never got any closer or farther from the dripping. This time after he had been walking for awhile, he had no idea how long, or why he was walking, he came upon a side passage, and he could feel a slight wind blowing from it. He was surprised, as he had never seen any side passages before, just a long endless tunnel. He could also hear a faint breathing, almost like a snore. He turned down the passage, coming closer to the breathing, which, again, startled Naruto. He hadn't been walking for very long before he came upon the end of this passage. It ended at a doorway, with a heavy banded wooden door. As he opened the door, he was surprised to see that, inside the large room ahead of him, the floor was covered in an inch of water. It just stopped at the doorway. He walked forward, and as he did he felt a gust of wind hit him full on, before a strong back draft pushed him in. His foot hit the water, and as the first ripple disappeared into the darkness ahead, two red, slitted eyes appeared in front of him. "Naruto. You have come at last. We must speak."

"You... You're the Demon Fox, aren't you?" Naruto asked, thinking about if he could get back into the tunnel quick enough if he was attacked.

"How astute of you, Warden. You can guess where we are right now, I presume?" the fox blinked slowly at Naruto, "You know, of all of the humans that I have ever known, you are definitely the oddest."

"Well, look who's talking about being odd. You're a giant nine tailed fox. That's not exactly normal." Naruto said, a little miffed.

"I know, that was a compliment. Do you think I'd rather my Warden was a completely average person? That would be too boring. At least with you I get to see some interesting things. You're not very-"

Naruto couldn't see it, but he heard the swish of the tails as they waved behind The Fox. "So, what did you need to talk about, because it definitely wasn't about how odd I am."

"You know, it's not wise to antagonize a thousand year old Demon Fox." The light in the chamber suddenly increased as the Kyuubi stood up. "To answer your question though, I want you to let me out. It's getting a little cramped in here and I-"

Naruto snorted before bursting out laughing. With the increased lights he could see the massive bars that made the Kyuubi's cage. "Like hell I'd do that. The first thing you're gonna do if I let you free is try to destroy Konoha. Besides, I like you where you are, trapped behind those bars like the animal you are. You may know how to speak, and might be a smooth talker, but you're still an animal."

"You little shit! Do you forget? I am the Kyuubi, the strongest of the tailed beasts! You, a mere mortal, can't trap me here forever! I'll get out one day, and you can't stop me!" The Kyuubi roared, shaking the dream world.

Naruto waved away the statements, "Yeah, yeah, big, bad, scary fox. Listen, you are strong, I'll admit that. But you'll never get free if I can help it. I'm going to get stronger and stronger. I'm going to get strong enough to keep you in check, and one day you're going to find that I've become stronger than even you."

"You think it's that easy?! Nothing is stronger than me! Even your beloved Kami kneels at my feet! Come here so I can kill you, just like I killed y-" The Kyuubi's gaze suddenly shifted to a few feet right of Naruto. Naruto turned around to see the little fox cub sitting on top on the water. "So, that's how it is then?" the Kyuubi asked, confusing Naruto. The cub yawned before turning it's head to the side and looking quizzically at the fox. "Fine then. Naruto, I will admit, for you're circumstances, you're not completely pathetic. I suppose that deserves a reward." The Kyuubi tapped one of it's claws against the stone floor, making a ringing sound. Instead of fading though, it got louder. It was soon loud enough that Naruto had to cover his ears. It got louder and louder until there was nothing else. Naruto thought he started screaming, but could never know as oblivion came.

Naruto woke up with a start to the sound of feet on the floor outside his room. Other than that, it was quiet. The first rays of the sun were touching the sky, and the birds had yet to begin their morning song. Naruto brought his hands up to his ears, expecting to feel blood running, but the pain the sound had caused was fading. He suddenly realized there was a weight on his legs. He looked, but couldn't see anything other than the white sheets. Then the two red eyes appeared, causing Naruto to jump a bit. This caused the fox cub to leap onto the foot of the bed, giving Naruto an odd look. That's when he heard the knob being fiddled with. He turned expecting a nurse, or maybe another patient who had come to torture the 'demon' but who he didn't expect was Hinata, sneaking in before closing the door softly. She turned around and jumped when she saw Naruto staring at her. "Oh, s-sorry Naruto, I-I didn't mean to wake you." Hinata did a weird sort of nervous shuffle over to him, twiddling her fingers again.

Naruto nervously smiled, "Oh, you didn't wake me. I've been awake for awhile, just thinking." Naruto lied. He knew it must have been her that was walking out in the hall.

Hinata gave him a nervous smile of her own with a blush. "So Naruto, are f-feeling any better?" she asked, shuffling a little closer.

"Yes, actually, I'm feeling like I could run around the village a hundred times on my hands." Naruto said, gesturing with his hands. This caused Hinata to giggle. "Eh, what's so funny? I'm serious." Naruto said with mock-incredulity.

"Oh, nothing Naruto-kun. You just remind me a lot of my cousin's teammate. He's always so enthusiastic about everything." she said. Then her thoughts turned to that cousin, and her face darkened a bit.

Naruto saw this and decided to cheer her up. "Hey, did you notice Hinata?" she looked at him and shook her head, "You didn't stutter at all there." This caused Hinata to blush even more as she shuffled the final few steps to the bed and sat down. That's when he noticed what she was wearing. She was in a hospital robe, which meant that's all she was wearing. This made Naruto blush himself and look down at his left hand, which Hinata had conveniently just covered with her own left hand. That's when Naruto saw the bandages there. Forgetting his nervousness, he snatched up her arm. She squeaked as he unraveled the bandages. What he found made him angry. There was a puckered wound there, one that would no doubt leave a scar. HE had done this to her. It didn't matter if he was being controlled at the time, it had still been his hand. "Dammit! If only I had my seals. I know I'd be able to make this better, I would-" Naruto quickly let go of her hand as he realized that he was squeezing her arm. He looked to see red marks from the pressure he had been making. "Hinata, I'm so sorry. I should have been more careful. I'm just so stupid! I'm-"

Hinata grabbed his hands which he had placed in his lap with both of hers and squeezed them, "I'm alright Naruto. It's just a scratch. I'm a ninja, and these things happen. Besides, it doesn't hurt anymore and-" Hinata jumped up with an *eep*. The fox had apparently decided to make itself known. It had walked up to Hinata's arm and started sniffing the wound before licking it, which is what had caused her to jump.

"Hey, Byakko, don't sneak up on people like that, it's not nice." This only caused the cub to look at Naruto with a look of confusion.

"N-Naruto-kun, why is there a-, wait, I remember him. W-wasn't he there years ago when you saved me from those b-bullies?"

"Yeah, yeah, I'll tell you more about him later, but right now, I need to take care of your arm. I've been practicing and I think that I can-" Naruto stopped as he heard the sound of running feet out in the hall.

"Good morning brat, rise and shine!" Anko said as she burst through the door. She had a big grin on her face, which turned into a sad frown when she saw Hinata. "Well then, didn't expect either of you to be awake just yet." She walked over to Naruto's bed and threw some of his clothes onto his lap, right where the fox had decided to lay itself again. It jumped up again and gave an annoyed look to Anko, who jumped herself and brought out a kunai. "Whoa, how did that thing get in here?"

"Anko, you do realize that this is a hospital, right. The people people in here really need sleep, and you now doubt just woke some of them up with that racket." Kakashi walked through the doorway, shaking his head. Then he saw the kunai in her hand and Byakko with his fur on end. "Ah, I see the fox has finally decided to show itself. Anko calm down, it's Naruto's... pet." He walked over to her and put his hand around hers that was holding the kunai, lowering it. "Naruto, we've been ordered to take you to the Hokage's office immediately. I think that it'd be best if we brought Hinata and the cub along with us."

"Um, I would, b-but I don't have any c-clothes." Hinata's face went red.

"Hm, that is a probl- actually, I think the cub has it covered." Said Kakashi. Everyone turned to see Byakko jump from the ground between Naruto's bed and the wall, onto Naruto's lap, a scroll in his mouth.

"Oh yeah, I had forgotten that was there. I always get put into this room in the hospital, so after I came back from the mission in the wave, I decided I'd keep a scroll here with some clothes and ninja equipment stored in it underneath the bed." Naruto took the scroll from the fox's mouth and unraveled it. "Sadly, it only has my clothes in it." Naruto said as he unsealed an orange jumpsuit.

"Naruto-kun, I don't mind wearing your clothes." Hinata leaned over and kissed him on the cheek before grabbing the set of clothes and setting off towards the nearest restroom to change.

Naruto blinked when he saw Hinata in his clothes before turning away with a blush. Due to Hinata and Naruto's height difference, and the fact that the clothes weren't exactly the best fit for Naruto either, they were tight on Hinata, and exposed her midriff. "Alright you two, stop delaying. Hokage-sama is waiting for us." Anko said before grabbing Naruto. She dragged him out of the room, forcing Hinata to follow.

It wasn't long before they were at the Hokage Tower, as both it and the Hospital were built up next to the cliff. By now Naruto had gotten free from Anko and was walking hand-in-hand with Hinata. 'Luckily, there wasn't really anybody out on the streets this early, and definitely not enough that they would feel safe threatening me'. The looks Naruto and Hinata were getting seemed more intense than usual, though that may have just been from seeing the Hyuga heiress wearing 'The Demon's' clothes. They got up to The Hokage's office with the only incident being Byakko running off. Naruto reassured them though, "Don't worry, he'll be back. He always comes back."

"Ah, Naruto-kun, I see you brought Hinata along with you." Hiruzen turned towards Anko, "Anko, would you be so kind as to get some better fitting clothes for Hinata from her family's estate, and could you also bring the guardian assigned to Hinata, Ko?"

"Right away Hokage-sama." Anko said before shunshinning away.

Hiruzen brought his pipe out from a drawer before speaking, filling it with tobacco as he did, "Naruto-kun, I realize that you probably want to explain some things to Hinata, and probably have some questions right now." Hiruzen lit the pipe by means that Naruto had never been able to work out. He drew deeply before blowing a smoke ring which drifted out the window. "Naruto-kun, I have also arranged from Teams Seven and Eight to report to my office, though they shouldn't be here for awhile still. Naruto, while we wait, I think it would be best if you were told all of what we know occurred yesterday while you were... out." Hiruzen took out his pipe and gestured it towards Kakashi before putting it back in his mouth and leaning back into his chair.

"Well, Naruto, after you left, me and Sasuke began to run after you while I told Sakura to go and inform Hokage-sama. We hadn't gone far before we heard an explosion from back in the village. I determined that you could wait, as I didn't think that you would just leave the village like that, and I didn't know of any threats to you, so I went to go investigate the explosion. It turned out that someone had broken out from the the third basement in the prison, and had used some odd jutsu to blast a hole straight from their cell to the surface. Several people had been hurt seriously from fallen debris, and the rubble had collapsed enough that by the time we realized it had been Mizuki, Hinata was already returning with you and Iruka. So then-"

"Crap, I had completely forgotten about Iruka! Is he alright?" Naruto burst out, slamming his hands onto The Hokage's desk.

"Relax Naruto, he's fine. He just needs some time to rest. I didn't invite him to this meeting because I have already spoken to him and know what had occurred with him. I will tell you about that when Kakashi is finished." he leaned back in his chair again and sighed.

"As I was saying, then we took you two and Iruka to the hospital, and we determined that it would be best if you were left to heal on your own, like most times, and checked over Hinata. That's pretty much it." Kakashi nodded towards Hiruzen before leaning against the wall.

Hiruzen got up from his seat and stood with one hand behind his back, and the other gesturing with his pipe, "As yesterday was a Sunday, Iruka had not been teaching classes, and was instead grading homework at his home. When he heard the explosion, he immediately donned his ninja attire and made his way to the scene. He had apparently realized who it was that escaped sooner than the rest of us, and went searching for you. He learned from Sasuke that you had ran off, and so he ran to find you. You know the rest." Hiruzen sat back down and put the pipe back in his mouth with the click of wood against teeth.

The entire office was silent before Hiruzen looked towards Hinata, raising an eyebrow, causing an *eep*. "Well, um, I-I had overheard Iruka and Sasuke speaking, and knew that I should go and h-help you, but I also knew that Iruka would tell me to s-stay in the village if I asked to accompany him. So I f-followed him, a-and then I-I heard the sounds of battle, and then that roar. Then I walked into the clearing and c-calmed him down."

Kakashi raised his eyebrow at Hinata, "Hinata, don't you think it would be a good idea to tell us what you did to calm him down, so that we can do it in the future?"

Hinata's face went beet red, "W-well, I, um, I told him- *mumblemumble*"

Kakashi, looked at her quizzically, "What was that Hinata, speak up."

"I-"

Hiruzen burst out laughing, "It's alright, I do believe that whatever she told him would only work if it was her saying it." Hiruzen kept chuckling to himself as the two genin blushed, and Kakashi shook his head, smiling behind his mask.

The elder shinobi's merriment was brought to a stop when Naruto coughed. "Jiji-sama, I appreciate being told about these events, but that wouldn't really require this meeting, as I could have requested access to the official reports. We're skipping around some issues here, ones that I would like to address." Hiruzen nodded for Naruto to continue. "The one I'd like to quickly get out of the way would be Hinata's knowledge of what I am." Naruto turned towards her with a sad look.

"Perhaps you should wait until the rest of your team arrives, so that you can tell them as well. Or do you plan to keep them in the dark?" Hiruzen asked, expressionless.

Naruto hesitated, thinking before he spoke, "No, I'm not close enough to them yet, and I just don't think that it would be wise to tell them. Maybe after that mission we had spoken of earlier."

Kakashi raised an eyebrow, "What mission? Shouldn't I be informed of all missions given to my genin team?"

Hiruzen waved him away, "Relax, we shall speak of this mission later, this mission that I have yet to agree on." Hiruzen let Naruto continue.

Naruto walked over to Hinata and grabbed her right hand between both of his, "Hinata-chan, there's no easy way to put this, so I'll be blunt. Back during the the Kyuubi's attack on Konoha, and the Yondaime defeated it, he didn't kill it, as you were told, but instead sealed it inside of me."

"I know."

"I know it must be- wait what!?" Naruto let go of her hand.

"I knew a long time ago, long before even you knew. I was never told by anybody, b-but, as you know by now, I had, sta- erm, f-followed you for years, and over the course of that time, I was able to piece it together. It's not really that difficult to figure out."

Naruto put his hands on her shoulders, "And you're okay with this, with me having this inside of me?"

"O-okay with it? No! How could the Yondaime have done something so h-horrible to you? No matter w-what you have inside of you though, I love you Naruto, so don't forget that." *hug*

Kakashi spoke up, "Ah, young love." This caused the two genin to stop their hug, blushing, but still held hands.

Naruto wanted to get on with it, "I'm curious about the increased agitation the civilians seemed to be feeling towards me as I came here."

"Yes, I believe that is something we can discuss at this moment." Hiruzen stood up from his chair and walked around it, looking out of the windows, "Naruto-kun, how do you think the villagers would react if they discovered that you had used the chakra of the Kyuubi?"

Naruto's eyes widened, "Oh shit, how'd they find out?"

"Well, several ways really. First, the entire village heard that roar of yours, right after you killed Mizuki, and it no doubt brought back memories of that night. Second, the animosity felt towards you isn't limited to the civilians, as you know. Some sensory type ninja picked up the beast's chakra, and some were stupid enough to let it slip that the huge surge of chakra belonged to the Kyuubi. I haven't been informed yet, but there will no doubt be a meeting called to deal with the issue later today, so keep your schedule clear."

"Double shit!" Naruto slammed his fist into the wall

Hiruzen turned around, "Indeed." Hiruzen tamped some more tobacco into his pipe, blowing several more smoke rings before speaking again, "That is one reason that I believe it wise that you not only tell your teammates of your 'condition', but also anyone that you care for in your class, as it would be better that they hear it from you."

Naruto stood for a moment, pondering, before speaking, "Jiji-sama, your the Hokage, couldn't you gather all shinobi together that have knowledge of me and remind them of the law? Or do you believe that they would be stupid enough to defy your direct order?"

Hiruzen sighed, "I suppose, but the meeting itself ,would probably arouse suspicion from the genin on it's own, and they will no doubt have questions." Hiruzen glanced out the window before blowing out more smoke, and emptying the pipe's bowl. "Naruto, I believe that several of your former classmates will enter into the chunin exams, which are fast approaching. You may not know this, but it is a requirement that all chunin level shinobi know of the kyuubi, so as to be prepared for any possibility. There is the distinct possibility that some if not all your classmates become chunin. If there are any that you care for, it is best that you tell them soon, lest they learn from a more hostile and biased source." Hiruzen sat down, putting his pipe into a small box on his desk. "I believe that we will be having guests soon, and it would be wise if you made up your mind before they arrive."

Naruto shook his head, despair clear in his eyes, "I just can't, not yet. Hopefully soon, but it would be even worse if I told them too soon." Naruto was lost on how he was to get closer to his teammates, and he had tears forming at the thought that he might soon lose those few that he considered precious to him. He gasped when Hinata pulled his hand up between hers and pressed her lips to the back of it. He smiled, knowing that he wouldn't lose everybody.

There was a knock at the door, before the secretary spoke, "Hokage-sama, you have guests."

Hiruzen sighed, before responding, "Let them in, Shoki-san."

The doors opened letting in the rest of Teams Seven, and Eight, along with Ko. Naruto received two glares almost immediately, Ko's at first sight, and from Kiba only when he saw Hinata's hand grasping Naruto's. Ko spoke up first, "Hinata-sama, I have brought a set of clothes for you to wear, something for more appropriate than... that." he said, referring to Naruto's ill fitting jumpsuit and shirt.

Kurenai nodded, "After you get changed, we will head back to your place, and we can talk. I'm sure that your teammates would greatly welcome a chance to make sure you are okay."

Hinata glanced at Naruto before kissing him on the cheek, and walking towards her team, reluctantly letting go of his hand. Kiba instantly walked over and started whispering to her, glancing over at Naruto with barely veiled anger in his eyes. Whatever he said caused Hinata to giggle and pat him on the shoulder be fore she grabbed Akamaru off of his head. He glanced back at Naruto, dejectedly this time, and sighed as he left with the rest of his team and Ko, who had begun hovering at Hinata's shoulder, clearly trying to form a barrier between her and Naruto.

As the door closed behind them, Sakura looked at Naruto with a smirk, "So, now we know this mysterious girl that Naruto's been seeing." This caused Naruto to blush and rub the back of his head, chuckling.

Sasuke gave Naruto a look, "So you've finally realized that she has feelings for you dobe. I was thinking that it'd never get past your thick skull."

They all gaped at Sasuke, excluding Hiruzen who just chuckled. Naruto managed to stammer out a response, "H-how did you know she had feelings for me? In fact, if I didn't know that we all shared the same class, I'd assume the two of you didn't know each other."

"Ch, of course I know her. When I was younger, we used to have play-dates, though she obviously wasn't very keen on playing. She preferred to hide behind her parent's legs, and I was more focused on trying to get stronger. For a while, my parent's..." He trailed off realizing that he was rambling. He sighed, deciding it best to finish the thought, "A betrothal between the two of us was even proposed a few times, but was dropped when it was clear neither of us got along with each other."

Sakura glanced over at Naruto, expecting an explosion from him, but was instead surprised when he nodded, "Yeah, I guess that makes sense. You two are close in age, and a marriage between you two would have meant a very strategic alliance between the Hyuga and Uchiha clans, not to mention that any children would have the possibility of have some new form of Dojutsu, which would be a very powerful weapon for the village."

Sasuke had to close his mouth with everyone else before they saw his broken composure. Even Hiruzen was slightly shocked at Naruto's casualness towards the subject of Sasuke possibly being married to Hinata, Naruto's girlfriend.

Kakashi was about to open his mouth when the secretary called again, "Utatane-sama and Mitokado-sama are here to see you."

The two of them walked in before Hiruzen had a chance to respond, Koharu spoke first, "Hiruzen, it has come to our attention that-" she got that far before noticing the other shinobi in the room, her eyes lingering on Naruto for only a moment. She looked back at The Hokage, "Hiruzen, if would be so kind, I request that you dismiss these shinobi for now."

Naruto began to protest before Hiruzen cut him off with a gesture, "Do not worry Naruto, we may speak another time. Besides, I believe most of what you wish to speak about will be covered in the meeting today, which I believe my two old friends have come to invite me to. I'll send for you when it's time, but while you wait, I think it best if you go home and prepare. You are no doubt hungry, and would probably appreciate a shower at the moment."

Naruto nodded, "Yes, Hokage-sama." before turning and leaving, however, he placed a two scrolls on Hiruzen's desk, "One of those is my report of the events yesterday, the other concerns the matter we spoke of last night.", with that he turned and left, the genin of Team Seven giving him odd looks as they followed.

As they made their way outside, Sasuke spoke up, "So, what happened yesterday?"

Sakura nodded, "And why is Naruto getting called to a meeting, did he get in trouble for running off?"

Naruto spoke up, despite the fact that the questions were directed at their sensei, "That information is classified, and will stay that way depending on how the meeting later today goes."

Kakashi nodded, "What he said." he sighed, "Naruto, I must be going, I have something that needs doing back at my home, but I'll be there to pick you up for the council meeting. Sakura, escort him to his apartment please, I believe it best if he isn't walking the streets alone right now. Bye." he shunshinned away before she could protest.

"Why did he leave me to babysit you Naruto? The least he cold have done is assign Sasuke as well. Wanna come along anyway Sasuke?" Sakura said hopefully.

Sasuke shook his head, "No thanks, there are some cats that need to be fed, I'll catch you tomorrow." He walked off towards the Uchiha Compound, leaving a sulking Haruno along with Naruto.

They began their way back to Naruto's apartment, Sakura muttering and shooting dirty looks at Naruto, who just shrugged them off like he did the looks from all the villagers. "Naruto, why do you need an escort anyway? Does he think that you'll run away again?"

"No, it's more like you're my bodyguard, though honestly, it's more of just my presence with another shinobi that prevents any conflicts, which would no doubt be detrimental for all those involved."

Sakura was even more confused now, and cocked her head, "Eh, that doesn't make any sense. Let me guess, the reason is classified, isn't it?"

Naruto nodded, "Yep, and I didn't tell you outright because I knew you'd be able to figure it out on your own. After all, you weren't the top kunoichi of our class for nothing.

These sudden compliments made Sakura blush, which surprised and embarrassed her, causing her to blush even further. She then got angry, suppressing her inner-self's urge to thank him, "Cha, only Sasuke-kun gets to compliment me like that, Baka!", she then punched him in the back of the head, if admittedly not very hard. Naruto just smiled as he saw the blush still in her cheeks.

As they turned down a wide alley with fences on either side, they began to hear someone following them. Naruto glanced back to see a small box painted to look like rocks. He nodded at Sakura, who looked at him quizically before they continued onward. They turned a corner, and Naruto quickly formed the hand-sign for Kage Bunshin, surprising Sakura as the clone hopped over a nearby fence and they continued walking. Just as they were beginning to round the next corner, they heard a scuffle and turned around to see Konohamaru being held in the air by his arms by the clone, Udon and Moegi looking on in surprise.

"You're slick boss, saw right through my disguise, I'd expect nothing less." He thumped to the ground as Naruto's clone disappeared.

"Listen, Konohamaru, I don't have time for this right now. You can follow me home if you want, but I need to get ready for a council meeting later today, ad that means familiarizing myself with several laws in The Leaf." Naruto turned and began to walk home before, he stopped and looked back, "Listen, if you can wait, I'll have something for you three to do by the time we get home, but you have to promise to let me think as we go, deal?"

"Yes sir, Boss sir!" the three of them said in unison. Sakura just watched all of this deeply confused, especially over the fact that the grandson of the Sandaime was calling Naruto boss.

When they finally reached the apartment, Konohamaru began pestering Naruto, "C'mon, what awesome training did you come up with, huh? Tell us!"

"Okay, first I want you three to take up the B formation around my apartment, and alert me if anyone approaches with signal number five. Second, while doing this, I want you to send chakra to your ears, enhancing your hearing. Be careful not to burst your eardrums. I want you to do this until you can hear each other's heartbeats from each of your posts, got it?"

"Yes sir, Boss sir!" the three of them chanted again. Before they went though, Konohamaru had a question, "Boss, who's this woman your with, huh?" he raised his eyebrow and smirked conspiratorially. "She's your girlfriend, isn't she?"

The two genin looked at him confused and then each other before have two different reactions. Naruto burst out laughing, while Sakura started to get angry. "No, she's not my girlfriend, she's my teammate."

"Oh, that's good. I thought her huge forehead was kinda ugly anyway, and you deserve only the best Boss." he said, grinning, not noticing Naruto's flinch. The he noticed the look on Naruto's face, turning around just in time to get punched in the face full force and set flying breaking down Naruto's apartment door.

Naruto sighed, "Well, he deserved that, but did you have to break my door too?" He looked at Sakura, who just glared back at him. He sighed again, "Well, I guess that's one chunk of my savings gone." He walked into his apartment, stopping only to pick up the blood seal lock he had put on his door, and motioned the two academy students to follow him inside. Sakura stood outside, fuming.

After setting the lock on his dining table, he checked Konohamaru's pulse. It was stable, and there were no obvious signs of a concussion, so he brought him to the couch. He briefly ordered Moegi and Udon to use the C formation, reassuring them that Konohamaru was fine. They left reluctantly, but didn't question him. He had already managed to buy a new shower curtain, taking a quick shower, seeing a still sleeping Konohamaru. He prepared a cup of ramen, and was halfway through it before the ninja-in-training stirred. Naruto set the cup down and moved over to the couch. "How are you feeling?"

"Like my head popped off and someone tried to hammer it back on like a nail."

"Do you remember what happened?"

"Okay, I remember being hit by a powerful force that resembled a fist. After that it's all a blank."

Naruto shook his head, "Never underestimate the power of an extremely pissed off woman."

Konohamaru looked at the doorway, where Sakura's side was barely visible as she leaned against the door frame, "What'd I do to piss her off?"

"Well, first, you insinuated that she was my girlfriend, which is a sore subject with her, as I've been barking up that tree for several years now. Second, you claimed her larger than average forehead was ugly, another sore spot for her. Thirdly, before we even got here, she was angry at me and our sensei, as she likes the other member of our team but was ordered to accompany me until our sensei returned, when she'd rather be with the other guy. Oh, and fourthly, she hates information being kept from her, and there is a classified Konoha secret that I can't tell her. That about sums it up, so it wasn't just, you just gave her an excuse."

"Well she didn't have to hit so hard! My head still hurts." Konohamaru rubbed the back of his head where it had hit the door.

Naruto sighed and pulled a small pill and bottle of water from the belt-pouch he had taken to wearing recently, "Here, take this."

Konohamaru looked at it curiously. Then he began questioning, "What is it? What does it do? Will it make me grow taller? Will I not have to eat or sleep for a week? C'mon, tell me!"

Naruto tried to hide his laughter, but couldn't keep a smile off of his face, "It's aspirin, now just take it." Naruto couldn't stifle the laughter at Konohamaru's pouting, but the small Sarutobi knew to follow orders. Konohamaru made sure to leave through the window to avoid the angry kunoichi when he went to take up position outside the apartment.

It wasn't long before Kakashi showed up looking much more suited to a meeting with the Village Council than he had earlier that morning. What Naruto didn't expect was the ANBU that was accompanying him. The ANBU was wearing a mask that resembles a cat's face covered in green and red markings and an odd face-guard covering his forehead and the sides of his face peeking out from behind the mask. Naruto wasn't entirely surprised, but he expected the old man would have been able to convince them that Kakashi was enough.

"'Sup Sensei, I see you brought company. I'm ready to go when you are."

Kakashi nodded then turned to Sakura, "Sorry for all this, but somebody needed to do it, and I had other things to do. Sasuke probably would have picked a fight with Naruto. You're dismissed.", Kakashi said. Then he noticed the broken door, raising an eyebrow, "What happened there?"

Naruto answered before Sakura could, "Sakura was asked how well her training has been going, so, to demonstrate, she punched him through my door. He's fine now." This got a quizzical look from Kakashi and a slight blush from Sakura. "Don't worry, I have- what are you doing?" Naruto asked as he saw the ANBU examining a piece of the door that was lying on the door.

"Do you still have the hinges and doorknob?", he asked, ignoring Naruto's question.

Naruto frowned, "Sure, why?"

"Could you go get them, please?", this really got Naruto confused. This guy was being both rude and polite at the same time, if that was possible.

Naruto went inside and brought back the requested items, handing them to the masked man. He noticed that while he had been gone, the shattered door had been gathered at the base of the door frame. Before Naruto could respond, the hinges and handle were placed precisely at either side of the pile. The man performed several hand-signs and the pieces began to meld together and grow upward, carrying the metal objects up with it. Naruto jumped backward in surprise at this and the wood began to flatten and fit into the shape of the door frame, shaping itself around the hinges and handle, even screwing the hinge into the frame somehow. Naruto's door was miraculously repaired in a matter of seconds. "H-how did you do that?" Naruto asked, slightly shaken. He had never seen or heard of any jutsu that was able to manipulate wood before.

Ignoring the question again, the man spoke with little emotion, "You'll need to have it painted later, but at least now people won't be able to just walk in and steal whatever they want." He began to walk away before stopping and turning back to look at Naruto, the first time he had done so, "Are you coming, or do I have to drag you?" His tone made Naruto want to shiver, and Sakura actually did. Kakashi, however, just eye-smiled at the genin.

Sakura left towards her house, while Naruto, Kakashi and the ANBU set out for Hokage Tower. They took the rooftops to save time and to avoid any malicious intent towards Naruto. They entered the Meeting Hall, a large room designed for a whisper to be carried from one side to the other. It was designed to be used as both a place for meetings and for court trials. It seemed very much that it's was currently being used for the second purpose. The room was circular with a domed ceiling, a dais in the middle that would be used for someone to speak to those gathered in the hall during meetings, and to display the defendant during trials. It was ringed by benches, getting higher up as they approached the wall. The bottom row of seats was reserved for the fifteen heads of the Shinobi Council, a table ringing the room in front of them. Facing directly towards the main entrance to the room was the seat meant for the Hokage, the leader of the Shinobi Council. It was all arranged so that whoever was on the middle dais would be only a few feet below the the bottom row of seats, but able to be heard and seen by anyone in the room.

As it was, the only people present were the Shinobi Council and the heads of the Citizen Council. In total with about a hundred people, the room wasn't even close to being half full. There were three entrances on the ground floor, though two were only used as exits, and another three for the councilors. Each had two ANBU guards, and with the Shinobi Council, the most powerful and influential shinobi in The Leaf, this room was probably the most secure place in Konoha. Naruto made his way to the top of the dais, Kakashi stood a few steps below and behind him, while the cat ANBU took a position on the ground floor between Naruto and Hiruzen.

Hiruzen cleared his throat to stop any of the remaining chatter among the council members, which admittedly was very little. "Right then, let's get this over with so we can all move on with our lives." This received several nods from around the room, though it was doubtful they all thought Naruto was innocent of wrongdoing. "Naruto Uzumaki several events occurred yesterday, Sunday, June 23, that must be sorted out. You are accused of Conduct Unbecoming of Shinobi, Assaulting a Fellow Shinobi, Threatening Konoha, and... Murder of a Fellow Shinobi? That was never discussed with me. Who did he supposedly kill?" Hiruzen looked around the room, eyebrow raised.

One of the village councilors rose from his seat. "I put forward that he murdered Mizuki, a chunin-level shinobi." the man sat down again, smug.

Hiruzen sighed, wishing he had brought along his pipe, "Let us address that first, as it can be cleared quickly. Naruto killed Mizuki, yes, but it was justified. First, Mizuki had previously committed serious crimes, including Assaulting a Fellow Shinobi, Attempted Theft of Village Secrets, and Attempting to go Rogue. Secondly, he had escaped from prison, and was therefore considered a Rogue Ninja, all shinobi of the leaf being encouraged to capture, and if that is not possible, to kill him when encountered. Thirdly and lastly, Naruto was acting in self-defense and defense of a fellow shinobi, as Mizuki attacked Naruto first, and later attacked Iruka Umino, chunin and school teacher. All in favor of dropping the charge?" Hiruzen looked around at the other councilors. "Aye's" came from most of the Shinobi Council, as they definitely still held their grudge against Mizuki. The rest quickly followed, seeing that it was a futile attempt at causing Naruto more harm.

"On to the next charge, Conduct Unbecoming. You are accused of not only breaking down in the middle of training, but also of running away from your team when confronted with their concern, behavior that is quite unsuitable coming from a shinobi of any rank. However, seeing as it was the first time for this offense, and the fact that no civilians or shinobi from a foreign village witnessed this behavior, I move for the punishment to be a small lap on the wrist in the form of ten hours of unpaid community service. All in favor?" Again, a large consensus from the Shinobi council proved too much for the hate from the village. The shinobi all knew the pressure that a genin faces, especially when training for the chunin exams. After all, they're literally teaching children how to become human weapons. The stress had gotten to all of them at some point, even after they were no longer genin.

"Next, Assaulting a Fellow Shinobi. This one is a bit more serious, and I believe there may actually be some actual evidence to support this accusation. According to the Medic-nin that checked over Hinata Hyuga after the incident, she had bruising and scratches on her wrist consistent with someone gripping it with excessive force, possibly with malicious intent. Later reports from both Hinata Hyuga and Iruka Umino revealed that Naruto, in a violent state brought on by the Kyuubi's chakra, had grabbed Hinata's wrist when she approached him after he killed Mizuki. As someone who has known Naruto his entire life, and along with various testimonies given by people including the victim, who did not press any charges, I believe that he was not in complete control of his faculties, as if possessed by on of the Yamanaka Jutsu, and he should therefore absolved of any crime he may have committed in that state."

Danzo finally spoke up, "Actually, I believe he was still partially in control. Naruto, is it true that, even if you were not possessed by the Kyuubi, you would have still attempted to killed Mizuki, especially after seeing him assault Iruka-san?'

Naruto, knowing there was no use lying, admitted, "Yes, I would have attempted to kill him, despite knowing that it would have been better to let him live to be questioned later. What does that have to do with Hinata?"

"I believe that instead of making Naruto do anything, Kyuubi merely intensifies Naruto's negative feelings, and that he may have intentionally harmed the kunoichi. Of course, I believe he wouldn't have done it without the Kyuubi's influence, and so therefore I believe that he should still be punished, if not quite so severely." All of this brought several murmurs and nods of agreement around the room.

Hiruzen sighed, "Well, I believe that whatever punishment he may get from that crime should be compounded with the next charge, Threatening Konoha." Hiruzen looked around at the disgruntled but accepting council, knowing that this may actually lead to an even harsher punishment. "I believe we all can agree, after reading the various reports, and from our personal experiences, that Naruto was being influenced by the Kyuubi's chakra. We also know that he very well could be a threat to Konoha in that state. The question is whether he intentionally let The Fox's chakra into his system or if it was forced."

This was Naruto's cue, "My memory of all of this may not be the best, but I can assure you that I would never let the Kyuubi have any control over me if I could help it. The chakra was forced on me, which I believe is because I am no yet strong enough to keep it in check. That is why I put forth a request for a special mission of C-rank to be assigned to me." a smirk tugged at Naruto's lips, "I believe that means that this is now official shinobi business, and that any civilian knowledge of which may prove detrimental to the success of the mission. That means that it is time for the Civilian Council to leave." Naruto caught a smirk come from several of the Shinobi, surprisingly even from Danzo.

Several cries of outrage came from the aforementioned civilians, including insults being hurled at Naruto, though nothing he hadn't heard already. They were silenced by Hiruzen, "He is correct. I have read over the details of the scroll, and I believe that not only does it contain matter that is sensitive towards the security of the village, a domain of the shinobi, but that it should also be considered a B-rank. If you will not leave willingly, I will have the ANBU escort you out." He gave them all a hard stare, and the fifteen civilians left, muttering and grumbling. As soon as they had all left the room, most of the ninja let out a collective sigh of relief. Whether they liked Naruto or not, the civilians only made everything that needed to be done, harder to do.

"All right, the mission proposed by Naruto Uzumaki was to be allowed time to train on his own terms, away from his team, until the chunin exam, in an attempt to become strong enough to contain the Kyuubi more effectively, so as the event of yesterday do not repeat themselves. He does not request any compensation for this mission other than a steady payment of 2,000 ryo each week to cover costs of living and any broken equipment that may need repair or replacement." Sarutobi listed off the contents of the scroll as a copy was passed around the room.

Tsume Inuzuka spoke up, "This is ridiculous! What could he possibly gain by training by himself? From everything my son has told me, he's far more likely to start slacking off than train harder."

Kakashi raised his hand, asking permission to speak, as he was not a member of the council, and it was granted with a nod from Hiruzen, "Recently, Naruto has been falling behind his teammates in skill, including Sakura, someone who had never been very good at actually applying her knowledge into ability. He is stagnating right now, and I honestly believe that he needs to find his own training method if he is going to improve, as mine clearly isn't effective for him."

Hiruzen continued the answer to he question, "Besides, I have already decided that he will be supervised during his training. The supervisor will ensure that not only does Naruto not slack off during training, but also be able to incapacitate Naruto should there be any signs that the fox is taking over." Tsume sat down, barely mollified, but knowing that she wasn't going to succeed here. "I move that Naruto Uzumaki's punishment be as follows, and as an addition of requirements for the mission. Naruto Uzumaki is to be under parole until he succeeds with his mission, meaning that he is to not be allowed outside of the village walls, and he is not allowed to take any mission above the rank of D. Naruto Uzumaki is to be under watch 24/7 during the mission, and is to make no attempt to escape his supervisor. Naruto is required, instead of ten hours of community service, to take no less than 100 D-rank missions before the end of the Chunin Exams, in which the use of his shadow clones is only permitted if required to fulfill the mission in a timely manner. All revenue from these missions, exceeding the amount of 2000 ryo each week will, instead of going to Naruto, will go to the village, to assist in the repairs of the damage caused by Mizuki's escape. All in favor?" Hiruzen asked. Surprising many, the first to agree was Hiashi, leading many of the others to concede. In the end, a slim majority of the Shinobi agreed. Hiruzen nodded before turning to Naruto, "One thing left then. Naruto, do you accept this mission?"

"Hai!"

"Then that's settled. Naruto, I want you to be in my office in five minutes. You'll need to meet your supervisor. Dismissed!", and with that, Hiruzen got up and left. Naruto followed Kakashi out of the door he came in by, the cat ANBU following close behind.

Naruto stood in front of Hiruzen's desk, the door to his office clicking shut as the cat ANBU closed the door behind him, "I assume that this ANBU that has been following me around is to be my supervisor. Am I correct?" Naruto inquired, raising an eyebrow.

Hiruzen nodded, glad to have his pipe back, "Yes, that is correct."

Naruto nodded, "I assume as well that he would have been following me around everywhere anyway, whether the council or I excepted the mission or not."

Sarutobi nodded again, "Cat, you can take off your mask now.", the ANBU did as ordered, revealing a placid, plain face, large eyes on Hiruzen, occasionally flicking towards Naruto. The look in his eyes made Naruto recoil a bit, startled, "Cat, you already know your mission. You are going to need a name for this mission."

Kakashi eye-smiled, "May I suggest 'Tenzo' as his name?", Hiruzen raised an eyebrow, and the ANBU sighed and looked at Kakashi with exasperation.

Naruto snickered, "I take it you two already know each other.", this got an eye-smile from Kakashi and another sigh from Tenzo.

Hiruzen blew out a long stream of smoke, "Yes, that will do for now. Naruto, I meant what I said in there. You are to be watched always and everywhere you go, your supervisor must you fail this mission in any way, I doubt I will be able to protect you, and you'll likely be under a constant and much stricter parole, if not imprisoned outright. Do you understand?"

A light of understanding flashed in Naruto's eyes as they widened, they then went impassive as he bowed, "Hai, Jiji-sama."

"You three are dismissed.", they all bowed and turned to leave, "Oh, and Naruto-kun?"

Naruto turned back, eyebrow raised, "Hm?"

"Make sure you teach everyone a few things." Hiruzen smirked.

Naruto smirked right back, "Yes sir."

They made their way along the hall, heading towards the exit. Naruto was wondering about this Tenzo that he would be with for the next several months, if not longer, when he saw Hiashi walking towards him, eyes intent. Naruto stopped and bowed, getting a bit nervous, "Hyuga-sama, I would like to thank you for your support during the meeting. What do you need?"

"Merely a moment of your time, if it is available." Hiashi said, giving pointed look to the two men flanking Naruto.

Naruto nodded, "Of course, that is always available to you should you need it, but I'm afraid Tenzo here is going to have to accompany us."

Hiashi raised his eyebrow, looking over Tenzo, who maintained the same blank expression, "Is he now? Very well then.", Hiashi turned and lead the way, out of the building and towards one of the training areas, leaving Kakashi to his other duties. When they were finally on a secluded path Hiashi slowed down, walking at Naruto's side. "Naruto-san, I wish to speak of the relationship that you share with my daughter. Let us not pretend that you two are not intimate in some way, maybe even courting each other. I do not disapprove, as you do show some natural talent as a shinobi, no matter how others seem to pretend the opposite. I want you to know that I give you my blessing to court her, but only under one condition. You must protect Hinata, no matter the cost, even with your life if you must. But if you ever hurt her again, if you can't control that beast, and it ends up harming her, then not even Hokage-sama will be able to help you."

"U-understood." Naruto managed to stutter out. Hiashi continued facing forward, and his hair hid his face, but Naruto could tell from the shiver up his spine that he was being bored into with the Byakugan.

"Well then, now that that's settled, I have other duties to attend to. Good luck with your mission." Hiashi said as they reached one of the clearings that were used for sparring. He headed off on another path, leaving Naruto in the clearing, feeling far more anxious than the council had ever made him feel, and his only company a man of no emotions.

Naruto had been training for a few hours already, and he was starting to get uncomfortable. It was several days after the incident, and no matter how much he has tried, he hadn't been able to squeeze any emotional response out of Tenzo. He had tried everything, including but not limited to the Sexy Jutsu, pretending to be seriously hurt, and engaging him in a staring contest. He never seemed to sleep, though Naruto guessed that he replaced himself with a clone of some kind, maybe made of wood, when he got sleepy. Naruto taking inspiration from this, began having a clone awake as he sleep. It would read, train, clean, sometimes just keep watch. He regretted this, as he quickly became very mentally tired, as if he was getting half the sleep he really was. He didn't know why it wasn't effecting Tenzo that way, and Naruto wasn't told when he asked. He just assumed sleep was weird, because he wasn't getting so exhausted when he had clones along with him throughout the entire day. Naruto also discovered that his clones would be followed as well, probably by other clones of Tenzo.

Naruto continued with his lessons of the Konohamaru Squad as they called themselves. They're progress was actually a bit impressive, though they were still horrible at disguises. He was ashamed to admit it, but he was starting to have clones teach them their lessons. The start of his mission just happened to coincide with a small break from the academy for them. This made sure that they were almost constantly trying to get him teach them new stuff. Then, with the fickleness that only children could have, would constantly complain about things being to difficult when he gave them tasks. That, along with the missions he was required to carry out, meant that he had little time left to actually train. That's why day after day he'd have at least three clones performing tasks throughout each day. One would be dealing with Konohamaru and gang, another would be doing chakra exercises and various experiments with chakra and seals, while the third would be in the vault reading, categorizing, and recording all of it's contents. It wouldn't read the entirety of each scroll or book, just skim it to find out what it is. That clone along with the one doing chakra exercises were both in the vault, so as to make it easier for Tenzo to keep watch. That irked Naruto as well, as he was forced to share the knowledge of the vault with his supervisor.

All of this, while the original Naruto was doing D-ranks non-stop. He kept his training seals activated the entire time, and would only ever choose the most strenuous and physically challenging tasks given, such as assisting in repairing a section of the wall surrounding the village. Even the simplest tasks became challenging with the seals activated. He decided that he should get the missions out of the way first, as he could get more out of training if he was just doing physical labor. With all of this, it was a week before he had any time to check on Hinata. He had been wondering why she hadn't come to find him, and his assumption had been correct. She had left the village on a political trip with her father, one of the duties as heiress. All of this compounded, it wasn't long before he began to crack under the pressure.

It had been about a month since the incident, and Hinata was supposed to be back within a week's time. Naruto was in the middle of one of his rare sparring sessions that he could have with himself when he had time. Except this one ended oddly. Naruto was attempting one of the jutsu that he had read about, and he had apparently gotten a hand-sign wrong. He began to channel the chakra to attack his clone, who was charging in with a kunai, when the next thing he knows he's flung back against a tree by a blast of wind, causing him to bite his tongue. The jutsu had backfired, and as the memories of that clone came, he winced. The wind had apparently turned the kunai onto the clone, into a very place. He attempted to get up, but as he got to his feet, he collapsed. "Damn it, I shouldn't be this tired. The fox is probably being an ass and refusing to supplement my chakra." That's when Naruto heard the sound of someone panting heavily, getting closer quite slowly in fact. Naruto made another attempt to rise, this time almost managing.

As the panting got closer, Naruto could here the person begin to talk, "Ah, I'm about to reach lap eighty-nine. Yosh, if I can't do one-hundred laps, I must do two-thousand jump ropes." Naruto's eyebrows rose even higher when he saw a teen in a green jumpsuit hand-walk into the clearing. The person stopped when he saw Naruto lying on the ground, "Oh, what is this?", he said as he jumped onto his feet, "It is worth starting over if someone needs help. Hello, yes, do you need help, were you hurt?" the teen walked closer, all the while Naruto's confusion grew. The boy squatted down close to Naruto's face, trying to get a better look, "What is wrong, is there something on my face?"

Naruto stuttered out, "Th-those eyebrows?"

The shinobi looked up, then smirked and looked back at Naruto, "Yes, they are quite youthful, are they not?"

Naruto, despite his inability get up, couldn't help but snicker, "Not quite the word I'd use, but let's go with that. Listen, could you help a fellow shinobi out? I was training, and I guess I was a bit too rough and now I can't seem to stand up."

The odd Konoha Shinobi got a big grin on his face and he gave Naruto a thumbs up, "Yosh, what is more youthful than training until you collapse? The fire of your youth is most certainly burning! I would be glad to assist a comrade as youthful as you." The teen carefully flipped Naruto over before picking him up and carrying him over to a tree in his arms, "I do not mean to be rude, but you are heavier than you look."

Naruto cursed, causing those eyebrows to raise, Naruto was leaning against the tree, waving away the other shinobi, "No, it's not you. I just remembered that I forgot to take off my training weights." Naruto then began to make the hand sign to release the seals before he realized how intently the other shinobi was watching. In a split-second decision, Naruto decided that it couldn't hurt anything if he revealed a little bit. He doubted this teen knew Sasuke at all, so it wasn't likely that the training method would be shared with the Uchiha. Naruto arranged his hands and focused his chakra, letting out a sigh of relief when he felt the pressure on his muscles lift. "There, that's better. I don't think I caught your name."

"Oh, I am Rock Lee, and you?"

"Naruto Uzumaki. I thought I heard you say something about doing laps?"

"Yosh, I was doing one-hundred laps around the village on my hands, but now I must restart, as I had stopped to help you. If I had collapsed, then I would need to do two-thousand jump-ropes. Would you like to join me?" Lee asked, raising one comically large eyebrow.

Naruto laughed, "Sure Bushy Brows, lets get going." Naruto decided to put a little weight back on before he jumped onto his hands, almost losing balance before catching himself. Lee was kind enough to wait, making sure that Naruto was alright before doing the same.

As they began to make their laps, Rock asked a question, "So, you are using some sort of jutsu to add weight while you are training?"

"Yes. Do you want me to teach you? I mean, it's pretty advanced Fuinjutsu, so you might not be able to get it."

"No, I am no good at Ninjutsu or Genjutsu, and my hand has never -hah- held a pen very steady." They walked a while longer in silence, "So, you are training for the chunin exams, are you not?"

Naruto nodded, or at least as close he could get to a nod in his current position, "Yup. Same as you, right?"

"Yes, me and my entire team, though they tend to let me train long after they have gone home."

Again, they made their way around the village, the only sound the soft thumps of their hands on the dirt and the breath of their panting. "So, you can't use any Ninjutsu or Genjutsu?"

"No, I can't. That is why I only practice with Taijutsu."

Naruto smirked, "Well, I've been needing a sparring partner recently, and I also have access to many different fighting styles. It sounds like we both have something to gain here."

Lee grinned, "Yes, yes it does Naruto-kun." Rock Lee looked ahead, "Ah, lap one complete, ninety-nine more to go."

Naruto was walking out of the tailor that he used, his new clothes already stored away in a scroll and made his way towards the Yamanaka Flower Shop. He had decided to dip into the money that he had made from his mission to Wave, as he knew the new clothes would be worth it, especially after so many sets being destroyed in his recent training. As he entered the shop, he hear Ino call from the back, "Be right with you!". Naruto sighed, hoping that she wouldn't try to make him leave when she saw him. She didn't know he had The Fox, but they still weren't exactly on the best terms. He walked over to a set of pale flowers flowers that had caught his eye. They were all the same flower, though some were pure white, others pale pink, and yet others slightly blue or lavender. He bent down and wafted in their scent. These were definitely the flowers he was looking for. As the young Yamanaka came out of the back, hands slightly dirty, she caught sight of Naruto, her eyes narrowing a bit. Despite her opinion of him, she knew she should act cordial, as he was a potential customer. She walked up to him, "Hello Naruto, how may I help you?"

Naruto turned to look at her, and the clearly fake smile on her face. He, in turn, gave her a very genuine smile, as he was genuinely happy today, "Hello Ino, how are you doing today?"

Before she could stop herself, Ino found herself venting her frustration, "Not good at all! I should be with my teammates training for the chunin exam, but instead I'm stuck here and they're probably watching the clouds right now."

Naruto nodded, "Sorry to hear that. I was wondering about this flower here. This is the Spice Viburnum, correct?"

Ino was surprised, "Yes, it is. Are you interested in buying some?" she asked, receiving a nod. "Okay, would you like it as a bouquet, with other flowers, a single snippet, or to plant in a garden?"

"A single snippet please, with a little lavender bow on it, though I may be back for the rest of it tomorrow." Naruto said, his grin making it hard for Ino to know whether he was kidding or not.

Ino took out a small pair of shears from her apron pocket, snipping off one of the bunches. He took out the money that she asked for, and as she was putting the money away and tying it with the lavender ribbon Naruto asked for, Naruto spoke, "I think I may know of a way to convince Shikamaru to get in gear. I'll have a talk with him tomorrow, see if I can get to him." and before she respond, Naruto grabbed what he came for and left, leaving a very confused Ino wondering what had happened to Naruto.

He made his way to the front gate, and seeing that he he still had some time, went to sit in a small cafe at the gates of Konoha, one of the few places that wouldn't kick him out if they saw him. He began reading one of the scrolls from the vault, one that described a special stretch sequence designed to allow the user to have perfect muscle control. Naruto at first wondered why the Yondaime would keep such rubbish, but then he read on, discovering why for himself. Naruto was grimacing at the difficulty in performing such stretches when he saw movement down the road. Rolling the scroll up, he sealed it inside of his storage scroll before walking over to the booth at the gates, manned once again by Izumo and Kotetsu, now arguing over how many shinobi would show up for the exams, Naruto interrupted them with a knock on the counter, "Look sharp guys, we have someone coming."

The two of them raised their eyebrows and looked at each other before looking out the gates, "There's nobody coming." they said in unison before glaring at each other.

Naruto shook his head, "Just wait, you'll see." they did, leaning a bit over the counter to get better looks. It was several minutes before they saw the dust cloud on the road, and several more before they saw the carriage that was creating it. Naruto grinned, seeing the insignia on the side. Just who he had been hoping for. Naruto waited patiently as the carriage drew closer, knowing that he was forbidden from running out to meet them, as that would mean leaving the village proper, and so he stood, watching intently for her face. He could hear the pair whispering behind him, wondering how he knew the carriage was approaching before it was even visible, a question Naruto would dearly like answered himself. Naruto stepped forward as the carriage drove past the threshold, following it as it made it's way towards the Hyuga estate. He could feel one of the guards eyes on him, but he knew he was safe, as Hiashi had made clear he was accepted among the clan.

The carriage stopped in front of the gates to the estate and Naruto made his way to the carriage door. The first one out was Hiashi, as he would be meant to help the women from the carriage. Hiashi acknowledged Naruto with a nod of the head, almost a very small bow, Naruto doing the same with a much deeper bow. The next out was Hisakata, and Naruto held out his hand along with Hiashi to help her out of the carriage, not that she needed the help. She made a small smile when she saw him, her face then turning towards her husband, the two whispering a bit off to the side. Then was Hanabi, her small mint green kimono looking a bit odd on her small frame, and she was clearly not very comfortable in it with the frown on her face and the way she kept adjusting it. Naruto, seeing that Hiashi was preoccupied with his wife, decided to grab her under the arms and swing her around a bit before he set her down, giggling and in a much better mood. Naruto, still with a big grin on his face, bowed even deeper than he had for Hiashi, begging her forgiveness for his improper behavior, which set her giggling again.

Last out was Hinata, also in a Kimono, this one a pale lavender, to compliment her eyes. He held out his hand, and as she reached the ground, he made a leg, lightly kissing the back of her hand, before rising a bit and looking into her eyes, "My lady, it is good to see you again." All of this in tandem caused a great red blush to spread across her face, and she drew back her hand and twiddled her fingers when her mother and sister began giggling at her reaction. A small bunch of small flowers the color of Hinata's eyes suddenly appeared in Naruto's hand as he held it out to Hinata. She took it, using it to hide her blushing face, at the same time sniffing it, the scent of cinnamon wafting from the pollen.

Hiashi walked over to Naruto, "The lady Hisakata would like me to extend an invitation to attend dinner tonight at our estate. If you would like to return home to change into something more formal, the dinner will be at six."

Naruto bowed again, "Send her my thanks, and that I accept her gracious invitation. I already have my clothes with me though, and if you would provide a place to change into them, I need not return home."

Hiashi gave him an odd look, but nodded in assent. Naruto bowed once more to Hinata before he left with one of the branch members who had been ordered to take him to a changing room. Naruto entered into the room, shutting the door behind him. Just as he was about to take off his jumpsuit, he heard a now familiar sound from his left. He turned to see Tenzo's masked face staring at him, growing out of the wood. Naruto sighed, "You know, that is a bit creepy, just growing out of the wood like that. I would like a little privacy so I can change."

Tenzo blinked at him, "I was actually wondering if you needed assistance in putting on the garment you bought earlier today, as I do not think you have ever worn one before."

Naruto was surprised a bit, both that the man seemed to be showing some sort of affection towards him, in some odd way, but also that the man had actually directly responded to something Naruto had said. Naruto nodded, realizing that the ANBU was right, and he had no idea how to put it on himself. The tailor had assisted Naruto, and he had been too busy wondering whether or not Hinata would like it to pay attention to how it was done. Tenzo grew the rest of the way out from the wall, small branches of wood melding into his back as they detached from the wall, which had returned to it's formerly smooth state.

Hinata was sitting on the edge of the walkway surrounding the garden. The flowers that Naruto had given her had been taken to be put into a vase for dinner, excepting one bloom that Hinata had kept herself, the ribbon now tied around her wrist. She heard footsteps approaching, turning her head to see Naruto walking towards her wearing an orange kimono and a black hakama. She stood up as he got near, blushing slightly and spinning the stem of the bloom between her thumb and forefinger, not wanting to let go of it to twiddle her fingers. Naruto held out his arm, and she slipped her hand onto his bicep, and they began walking around the garden. "Thank you, Naruto, for everything." she said, blushing a bit at his grin.

"Hinata, do you remember the discussion we had at Ichiraku?" Naruto asked.

"The ramen shop?" she inquired, raising her eyebrow. Naruto nodded. "W-what about it?" she asked, suddenly nervous.

"Well, I realized that I may not have been very clear with you. After our talk, you seemed more subdued, and your stuttering started to return." Naruto smirked at her blush, "Now, as cute as all of your behavior can be, I want you to be more confident. You need to believe me when I say that you are strong and I didn't mean to suppress your confidence. Just because I didn't want you to stand up for me like that, doesn't mean I didn't like what you were doing." Naruto turned his eyes to her, seeing that she seemed to be at a loss for words. "Hinata. I do not want you to simply act more confident simply because I'm asking you to. I want you to be more confident in yourself, and believe in your strength." They continued walking as Naruto saw her face become more thoughtful, the blush leaving.

Naruto decided to continue, "Hinata, about the other part of our conversation. I have been thinking about things while you were gone, and that got me nowhere. And as the days passed, they began to to stretch, and I realized that very deeply missed you. My life just didn't feel complete when I couldn't come to visit you. In the short time that we have been together, you have impacted my life more than anybody else has, and you provide an affection towards me that nobody else can. I find that you are very precious to me, and that when you're gone, I feel like part of who I- I don't know what to say!" Naruto stopped and pulled his arm up, running it through his hair.

Hinata had a small smile on her face as she turned to Naruto, who in turn turned towards her, a very confused look on is face. "Naruto, I understand that this is difficult for you, and that you probably don't entirely understand what love is. I'm not entirely sure myself, and I've had a family my entire life that I know for a fact loves me. You, who has never had a family, I can't possibly begin to understand how you must feel when you are suddenly receiving love from someone else. I may not entirely know what love is, but I do know for a fact that I love you. I know this because I get the best feeling in the world when you say "Hi", or even smile at me, because I know, even if it's just for a second, that I've crossed your mind. I know I love you because when you give gifts to me, whether it's this flower, or a kiss on the cheek, my heart flutters and I feel happier than anything else can every make me. I know I love you because I don't care how long I have to wait, I'll wait a lifetime, as long as you stand beside me, I just want to hear you say that you love me."

Naruto couldn't hold it back anymore as the tears began to flow. Seeing this, she grabbed his shoulders and pulled him into a hug. Through the smalls sobs, Hinata heard him say "Thank you, thank you." over and over. As he calmed down he reluctantly broke the hug, grabbing her shoulders as well, looking into her eyes, "Thank you."

"Ahem." they both heard from the door they had stopped in front of. They turned to see a young Hyuga standing there, glaring at them, the caged bird seal plain on his face. "Hiashi-sama has ordered me to inform the two of you that dinner is ready."

Hinata bowed to him, "Thank you, Neji nii-san. Would you please go inform him that we will be there shortly?"

He bowed, the frown never leaving his face, "As you command Hinata-sama." he rose from his stiff bow and turned the way he had come, leaving them alone again.

Naruto raised an eyebrow, "Nii-san? I thought you didn't have any brothers, just Hanabi."

Hinata grabbed his arm as she made her way towards the dining hall, "Neji-nii is actually my cousin, but we grew up together, so he always seemed more like an older brother than a cousin. Even after his father died and began to distance himself from everyone, I still call him that, as he is still my family, and I hope to make him realize that some day."

Naruto nodded, trying to wrap his head around the politics that one must experience growing up in such an influential clan. Then it occurred to him, "Hinata, is this the same cousin that you spoke of in the hospital, the one whose teammate you said I sounded like?"

Hinata nodded, "Yes, why?"

Naruto started to chuckle, making Hinata frown, "It's just that I think I met that teammate of his the other day. His name is Rock Lee, and we've started training together, and he constantly talks about this teammate he has that is exceptionally talented in Taijutsu."

Hinata giggled a bit, "That's him alright. He never fails in cheering me up with his enthusiasm." they were almost to the dining room when Hinata remembered something, "Naruto, what ever happened with that little fox, Byakko?"

Naruto waved the question away, "Oh, he's alright. He showed up later and seems to keep on watching me, more than usual actually. I'll constantly see him when I'm training, though he does seem to be keeping more of a distance than usual. We can talk more about him later, because right now, we have a dinner to attend." Naruto said as he opened the doors to the hall. As they sat down, Naruto began to laugh, and as they ate, Naruto began to genuinely feel happy.

A/N: All right then, here it is. The wait was long, and I hope it was worth it. I'm not sure it's my best work, but it's certainly the longest chapter so far, clocking in at just over 14,000 words, so the long wait is a bit balanced by a long chapter, I guess. Oh, and I know Byakko isn't very creative, as it just means White Fox in Japanese, but meh, whatever, I'm not that great with names. That whole speech by Hinata was a bit of a cop-out, as it was a phrase I found on the internet that I edited, and whose original author I could not find. The next chapter is the start of the chunin exams, and hopefully I'll be able to get to the prelims before the end of it, but who knows. I'll try to get the next chapter out before the end of the year, but please don't hold me to that, because sometimes life just won't let you do what you want. Arigato! Sayonara!