Last of the Namikaze

"N-Naruto?" stuttered Hinata as she stared at the dazed blonde.

"Damn Hinata! You really know how to knock out your boyfriend! What is this number three?" asked Kiba as he was laughing.

"I believe it is now number 4." Stated Shino with a smirk.

"Well good thing I wasn't asking you Shino!" responded Kiba as he took Shino's bait to yet another argument between the two.

Meanwhile, Hinata was holding Naruto's head in her lap as he ran her fingers through his blonde hair. A soft sigh escaped Naruto's lips as he slowly opened his eyes and looked at Hinata.

"You sure do know how to make my pains go away." Said Naruto with a big smile.

"If you would stop sneaking up on me I would stop attacking you." Stated Hinata with an annoyed tone.

"But then you wouldn't be here holding my head in your lap, running your fingers through my hair. I won't lie it is worth taking a blow like that just to be here." Said Naruto with a small smile as Hinata giggled.

"Yeah, but I feel so bad when I hit you like that." Said Hinata as she looked at Naruto.

"Fine…next time I may warn you that I will be coming. So how long have you guys been training? I just back from my mission to bring the new Hokage so I haven't done any real sparring." Asked Naruto as he left out his fight with Kabuto.

"We have only been here for a few minutes Uzumaki. If you would like I can spar with you." Stated Shino as he walked up with a red faced Kiba following behind.

"That's great Shino!" said Naruto as he jumped up.

"You can't fight for too long. The Hokage was going to announce your heritage as soon as he got the new Hokage up to speed." Stated Hinata.

"Yeah, but Granny Tsunade is too lazy to get things done that quickly!" exclaimed Naruto as the three gennin looked at him.

"So our new Hokage is going to be perhaps one of the strongest kuinoichi of all time and you call her a Granny? Man! Even I don't have balls as big as yours!" laughed Kiba as Hinata went red at the word balls.

"Well let's get this underway! I hope you can keep up Shino!" said Naruto as he slid into his stance.

"If I don't provide enough of a challenge Kiba can come in and back me up. However, I do advise you not to underestimate me." Stated Shino.

"Wouldn't even think it Shino." Smirked Naruto as he charged at the Aburame.

Shino jumped back and threw five kunai at Naruto forcing him to roll to the side. Naruto continued on his path and reached Shino as the two engaged in a taijutsu battle.

It was here that Naruto had the advantage and was pushing back Shino. However after landing a punch to Shino's ribs Naruto heard buzzing come from behind and blinked away to avoid the mass of insects that had converged on his previous location.

"That is a very handy trick." Stated Shino as he sent his bugs at Naruto.

'These ones are quicker than I remember.' Thought Naruto as he quickly ran to the side to avoid the bugs. Naruto couldn't do much to the bugs, besides disperse them using wind jutsu. So he kept weaving through the attacks and closed in on Shino.

Just before they Naruto go into a perfect position he was nailed by a punch to his face courtesy of Kiba.

"We know that you're a chuunin now Naruto. It wouldn't be fair if you fought against any one of us in single combat." Yelled Kiba who was sporting a feral smile as his dog barked in agreement.

"I guess you're right, but I will have to take this up another level." Stated Naruto as three shadows formed in front of him.

"Let's do this Akamaru! Gatsuga!" yelled Kiba as both him and his dog started spinning like a drill and heading towards Naruto and his shadows.

Naruto immediately blinked away as his clones all rolled out the way and continued onto Shino trying to get rid of the support quickly. However, Kiba was just fast enough to get back and block an attack from a shadow.

Akamaru also came back and barreled into a shadow that was too distracted by Shino's bugs to dodge the attack. The last was engaging Shino in taijutsu once again with a smile on his face.

"Things aren't looking good Shino." Stated the Shadow as Shino ducked under a left hook from the blond.

"Indeed they aren't…for now." Stated Shino as he sent a kick at the shadow's ankle, but it just jumped over it and retaliated with a kick to Shino's ribs.

"It's over for you Shino." Said the Shadow as Shino suddenly paused when he felt a kunai poised at his spine.

"Checkmate." Stated the real Naruto who was half way out of a shadow.

"Not this time Naruto-kun." Said Hinata as she appeared behind Naruto with a kunai at his neck.

"NO! I was betrayed!" cried Naruto in shock as he blinked away before any damage could be done.

All of Naruto's shadows blinked away and appeared about 25 meters away from Team 8 with the original at the center.

"Hinata! I thought you wouldn't join this fight?" asked Naruto.

"I couldn't just let you beat my team now Naruto." Giggled Hinata as Kiba and Shino both crouched low and Akamaru turned into a clone of Kiba.

"Let's finish this then." Said Naruto with a smirk as he made 50 Shadow clones and had them charge at the 4 members of Team 8.

Hinata quickly activated her Byakugan and met the clones head on and started to tear them apart in the Taijutsu department. Using her flexibility she easily dodged each attack and countered before the clone could react.

One kick came particularly close to her face as she leaned back. She retaliated with a strike to its chest, but the attack didn't destroy the clone like she expected. Instead the area around the hit turned pitch black for a second before the clone attacked again.

'This is one of Naruto's Shadows!" she thought as she was nicked by knuckle from the blonde.

"Sorry Hinata, but if I want to win I can't just go easy on you." Said the shadow with an apologetic smile.

"I understand Naruto…although the same does apply for me too." Replied Hinata with a smile.

'I don't like that smile.' Thought Naruto as he controlled the Shadow fighting Hinata.

"Guess I should join this melee now!" yelled Naruto as he blinked away and reappeared about 25 meters above the battlefield and started to run through seals.

"He's above us!" yelled Hinata as she saw him appear with the Byakugan.

Kiba and Shino tried to spread out, but the clones they were fighting were doing all that they could to keep the two close together. Akamaru was just able to get out of the area, but the poor dog was quickly subdued by two of Naruto's shadows.

"Futon: Great Breakthrough!" yelled Naruto as he pumped a whole lot of chakra into his lungs and shot a gigantic gust of wind down at Team 8.

The effect was immediate as nearly every clone of Naruto's was dispelled. However the powerful gust of wind knocked each member of Team 8 away from each other and off their feet.

The few remaining clones all took advantage of the stunned gennin subdued them quickly with ninja wire. "Well it seems that I won!" laughed Naruto as he sat in front of the three gennin.

Kiba looked pissed that he had lost to Naruto, Shino looked indifferent to the whole thing, and Hinata looked frustrated for a second before smirking at Naruto.

"What are you smirking at Hinata?" asked a completely confused Naruto.

"So are you going to let us out of this Naruto-kun?" asked Hinata in a sweet voice that made Naruto shiver a bit and both of her teammates to look at her in confusion.

"Well I was going to just…uh keep you tied up for awhile." Stated Naruto as he stared at Hinata who had adopted a very sweet, yet pleading look on her face.

"Please don't leave me like this Naruto-kun! How else am I going to get to go to lunch and dinner with you later tonight." She said with a small innocent smile that made Naruto shiver again.

"Well uh…I guess that works…yeah at least I think it does?" 'Damn this women! She is using some type of hypnosis on me!' Naruto raged in his mind.

"It is a curse that all men share alike Naruto. No man can resist the voice of the one he loves when they talk seductively." Said Zeratul in his mind.

'How the hell would you know? Aren't you another race?' asked Naruto.

"All species experience love Naruto…not just humanity." Explained Zeratul in a saddened voice.

(Look up the Matriarch Raszagal on the StarCraft wiki if you want to know what I'm talking about. Don't worry it won't be a major plot device in the story.)

'I will remember that Zeratul.' Answered Naruto in small voice.

"Please let me go Naruto." Asked Hinata once more a bit more pleadingly.

"Fine!" exclaimed Naruto as he went over and cut her free.

"Thanks Naruto! Now lets go eat!" laughed Hinata as she dragged Naruto away from her still bound team.

"Are they just going to leave us here trapped like this?" asked Kiba.

"Not really." Stated Shino as his binds snapped and a few insects returned to his jacket.

"Aren't you going to help man?" asked Kiba as Shino looked at him for a brief second.

"No." stated Shino as he walked away.

"What the hell man! What are we going to do Akamaru?" asked Kiba as he looked at his dog, who was still cloned to look like him.

Akamaru looked at Kiba before he poofed into smoke and returned to his normal size. Akamaru looked at Kiba for a second before running off to join Shino.

"Akamaru!" yelled Kiba in shock.

"So what are we going to do Hinata?" asked Naruto as he was being pulled by Hinata.

"I have no idea! I just want some time with you." Stated Hinata with a bright smile.

"I can live with that." Replied Naruto with a smile of his own. But it fell as he saw many of the villagers glaring at him and Hinata, while muttering insults under their breath.

"Don't worry about them Naruto! They don't know you like I do." Said Hinata as they made it to a park in the village.

"I know I shouldn't worry, but I want them to accept me. I hate that they can't see me for anything else, but the fox. I'm actually kind of scared of the outcome of learning my heritage. Will they deny it and hate me more or will they start loving me just because of my father?" asked Naruto as he sat at a swing with Hinata sitting at the one close to him.

"Does it matter if they accept you Naruto? You have friends who love you. Shouldn't they be the only ones that have an opinion that matters to you?" asked Hinata as Naruto smiled at her.

"You are right Hinata, but my father gave his life for the village. I want to know why? I want to know what made him put so much trust into the villagers." Explained Naruto as he smiled at her.

"That does make sense Naruto, but remember your friends will always be there for you." Said Hinata with a smile.

"I know." Said Naruto as he looked at the many kids playing games in the park.

"Hey Naruto…push me!" demanded Hinata with a smile.

"Push you?" asked Naruto.

"Yep!" said Hinata as Naruto smiled and got up.

"Say please." He whispered into her ear causing her to shake.

"Please Naruto-kun." She said with a hopeful look.

"How can I say no to that." Said Naruto as he started pushing her on the swing.

The two stayed in the park for a few hours just spending time with each other. Naruto enjoyed the day greatly and was saddened that it had to end so he took Hinata home reluctantly and gave her a kiss before leaving for his home.

As he made his way home he suddenly stopped when he sensed a familiar chakra signature. 'I wonder what he wants?' thought Naruto.

"So the rumors are true. They did make you into a chuunin after the exams." Came the voice of Sasuke Uchiha as Naruto turned around and faced his old teammate.

"It wasn't for the chuunin exams. They gave me the rank after my clones helped save hundreds of lives during the invasion." Replied Naruto as Sasuke walked up to him.

"I guess you have gotten stronger…faster than perhaps anyone in the village. Kakashi-sensei said that you were perhaps one of the quickest learners that he had ever met. Why were you not like this in the academy." Asked Sasuke.

"You see it is kind of hard to learn anything when the teachers try and sabotage every attempt that I make at learning. Then you take into the fact that 80 percent of the civilians and about 20 percent of the ninja wanted me dead since the day I was born. It isn't too smart to actually act smart." Said Naruto as Sasuke looked at him weirdly.

"Why did they want you dead?" asked Sasuke as he was a bit confused on the matter. Sure Naruto pranked a lot of people, but if that was the reason why did they want him dead on the day he was born. Did he have a family member that went psycho too?

"I don't trust you Sasuke…not yet at least. I'm don't have the same past as you, I don't have a family member who killed his entire clan. Someone that goes and sends his own brother into a world that see's one's greatest fears." Said Naruto as Sasuke looked at him sharply.

"How did you know that? Only the Hokage and Inoichi know about that! Answer me!" demanded Sasuke as he answered Naruto sharply.

"I know about it because I experienced it during the invasion." Answered Naruto with a sad look on his face as his eyes glazed over in memory of the even.

"What! He was here during the invasion and he attacked you?" asked Sasuke in shock.

"Yes, he did. His partner and him said that he they needed me for something. I don't know what it is, but I do know that this won't be the last time I ever see of Itachi." Said Naruto.

"Well I guess I'm just going to have to hand around you for sometime so that when he comes after you I can kill him." Replied Sasuke with a smirk.

"Is the great all powerful Sasuke Uchiha offering to be my body guard? Hell must have frozen over if something like this is happening! I know I'm just dreaming!" exclaimed Naruto as Sasuke growled and threw a kunai at Naruto.

"You may have gotten stronger, but your still a Dobe." Stated Sasuke with a smirk.

"And you're still a Teme, but at least you're not going to try and kill me. So is this all you wanted to talk to me about?" asked Naruto.

"No, I was going to ask you to spar with me, but I'm not sure if I want to now." Said Sasuke.

"Eh you're just a coward! Let's go to Training Ground 7 and I'll show you how weak you are." Laughed Naruto as they both disappeared and traveled to the training ground.

"I should warn you though. While you were away Kakashi stepped up our training. He focused mostly on speed and strength training for us and Sakura is learning Genjutsu and medical jutsu." Said Sasuke as he got into his intercepter style.

"Interesting…maybe Sakura will begin to become a fine kuinoichi. She always had potential for those two fields and now she is actually training harder." Said Naruto.

"Enough talking, I want to know where I stand." Said Sasuke as he charged at Naruto.

Naruto ducked under a left hook from Sasuke and blocked a right knee with his forearm. He then countered with an elbow to Sasuke's ribs, but the boy just pushed it away with his left.

Naruto ducked low to the ground and swept out at Sasuke's legs, but the boy jumped over it and lashed out with his left fist, but Naruto tilted his head and let the fist go past him. He grabbed it, turned and flipped Sasuke onto his back before smashing his foot on Sasuke's face.

At least that would've been what had happened if Sasuke hadn't rolled to the side and thrown a kunai at Naruto. Naruto brought out his own and blocked the kunai with his before lunging at Sasuke.

The two clashed with kunai for about thirty seconds with neither really having a disadvantage, before Sasuke jumped back with a smirk on his face.

"You really have gotten better Naruto, less than two months ago I wouldn't have needed to use the Sharingan to defeat you. Now is the time when things get interesting." He said with a smirk as his Sharingan activated.

"Don't count me out yet. You aren't the only one with a bloodline." Said Naruto as three shadows formed up around him.

The four Naruto's charged at Sasuke with about three meters between them as they attacked. Sasuke easily ducked under the attack of the first before blocking the 2nd and 3rd attack and kicked the 4th away with ease.

However, by this time the first was already on him again as he blocked a jab at his face only to duck underneath a hook from another clone. Sasuke kicked at the third, but it did little damage as the Naruto just took the hit and latched onto his arm.

Sasuke was unable to move in time to dodge or block the punch that was delievered into his right cheek. The one shadow didn't let him go though and brought him back into the knee of another Naruto driving the air out of his lungs before the last Naruto landed a roundhouse kick to Sasuke which sent him flying across the clearing.

Sasuke got back to his feet and wiped the blood from his mouth before going through hand seals before he shot out a massive ball of fire at the Blonde.

Naruto waited until the last second before he blinked away and appeared behind Sasuke. The Uchiha could do nothing as he was grabbed by two pairs of arms and thrown to the ground before a third jumped on his back and put a kunai to his neck.

"You seem to keep forgetting that my speciality comes from using my clones. You don't just fight me Sasuke, you fight up to 100 of me at a time." Said Naruto with a smirk as Sasuke glared at him a bit.

"With out those clones you wouldn't be doing so good." Said Sasuke.

"We are ninja, anything that gives us an advantage should be used." Responded Naruto as he let Sasuke up.

"True. That's the only reason I am going to allow you to help me face my brother when the time comes." Said Sasuke.

"Until then Sasuke, you are a ninja of Konoha. Don't you forget that I will help you, but not for petty revenge. Itachi has crimes to answer for and I intend to bring him to justice." Said Naruto as Sasuke looked at him for a second before walking away.

"I don't care for that. He killed my entire family and I will have my revenge. He will never again do something like that if I have to die to do so." Growled out Sasuke.

"You do know there are more important things in life than revenge Sasuke." Answered Naruto.

"I have no other reason to exist until he is dead…Naruto." Answered Sasuke before he jumped away leaving Naruto in the field.

"Come on out Kakashi-Sensei! I know you have been watching." Yelled Naruto as Kakashi landed by him.

"He has gotten better with his attitude." Stated Kakashi.

"Yeah, but he needs to realize that revenge isn't everything." Answered Naruto.

"Do you take that to heart when you deal with Kyubi?" asked Kakashi.

"I try to, but the fox is being stubborn. I can see why though, he said that I'm not the first human to ever try and befriend it. I also wouldn't be the last to betray it after I got what I need from it." Said Naruto with a sigh.

"The history between the villages and the Bijuu hasn't always been pretty. I can understand why it is reluctant to trust a human. I came to tell you that the 3rd is announcing your heritage tomorrow before the new Hokage takes the mantle." Said Kakashi.

"Already? Jeeze I was expecting it to be pushed back again. Well let's hope we don't have a civil war soon." Laughed Naruto.

"I doubt it will come to that." Kakashi said with an eye smile.

"Well I better get going. I need to get some sleep for tomorrow morning, Zeratul is going to step up my training." Yelled Naruto as he blinked away.

"That is an awesome way to travel." Said Kakashi as he sighed and Shunshined away.

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"So you're just going to go out on the Balcony and announce me to the whole village?" asked Naruto.

"That's the plan." Smiled the 3rd Hokage.

"This is going to be nuts!" exclaimed Naruto.

"You are the one who wanted your heritage to be known!" responded the 3rd.

"Yeah, but that's only so they stop glaring at me. So I don't have to worry about my precious people being attacked just for associating with me." Responded Naruto.

"Nothing bad will happen with this, you will have about four clans at least willing to fight for you." Said Shikaku Nara as he walked up with his two best friends.

"Four? I thought you three were the only one's I could count on?" asked Naruto as the noise from the gathered crowd got louder.

"I would bet that Hiashi is ready to protect you right now. He may not like you personally, but since you are dating his daughter it will be huge for the Hyuga." Said Chouza as he walked up.

"I wish it would just be Hinata and I with no clans in the mix!" yelled Naruto as the clan heads smiled a bit.

"Well I've kept them waiting long enough! Let's get this over with so I can get home and take a long vacation!" laughed out the Hokage before taking a serious look and stepping out to the crowds.

"Ready for chaos?" asked Naruto as the Hokage began.

"Ladies and Gentlemen of Konohagakure! I stand before you with momentous news! I would like to say something to all of you that I have kept hidden from the world for the past 13 years. Only four people knew of it and today the whole village shall know!" yelled the Hokage as the villagers and ninja all quieted down and waited.

"Our beloved 4th Hokage, Minato Namikaze, did not die with out an heir to his clan!" proclaimed the Hokage as 95% of the gathered people all let out an audible gasp at that news.

Pretty soon many in the village started yelling at the Hokage demanding him to tell them who the son of their hero was, but the Hokage just stared down at them.

"Personally I wish I didn't stand before you to tell you who his Son is. You have all spat on the grave of the 4th by not honoring his last wishes! You attacked an innocent boy for most of his life in hopes of getting petty revenge against a demon." Yelled the Hokage as many people didn't really care about this and were demanding answers.

One particular voice carried above the others to the Hokage and it made his blood run cold. "The demon brat should've been executed years ago! The 4th's last real wish was for that demon to die!"

"Is that what you all believe? That the 4th wanted an innocent child to be murdered by the village that that child was protecting just by being alive. Well let me ask you this…if the 4th had come to your home, demanding your child for that ritual, you would've let him take him?" asked the Hokage as some of the civilians quieted down. Many mothers grabbed their children and pulled them close at that.

"Why does that matter? He grabbed some orphan to be used so we could all live!" yelled another man.

"You really believe that the 4th would take some child off the streets to be used for a such a task? No the 4th would've only trusted one person to contain such power…his son born on that very day. A son that you have all tried to kill in the past on MULTIPLE OCASIONS!" yelled the Hokage as he blasted his killer intent.

"Impossible!" yelled one brave civilian as others started to shout in protest.

"You are all fools! Minato Namikaze choose his son, Naruto Uzumaki Namikaze, to seal the Kyubi into and now you all spit on his grave by saying that Naruto isn't his son? It is the truth…if you want to believe it …that is your problem. I witnessed the marriage of the 4th and saw his wife go into labor." Yelled the Hokage as half the crowd looked ashamed, but the other half looked mutinous.

"Silence all of you! I have sat by and watched this village slander a savior who has been helping the village from the day he was born! You have scorned both him and his father for over 13 years. Naruto has accepted his role as the Heir of his Clan and I expect all of you to accept it too! I hope for your sakes that the next Hokage is as forgiving as Naruto, for he has not asked for anything in return for what has been done to him!" yelled the Hokage.

"What could that demon do to us?" yelled another civilian.

"What could he do to you? He could have every single person who ever hurt him in the past executed for your crimes. Naruto is the heir of the Uzumaki clan, who were a family of Daimyo's of Whirlpool Country." Yelled the Hokage as Naruto walked out with the Heads of the Nara, Akimichi, and Yamanaka clans.

"Naruto Uzumaki Namikaze! Do you accept to remain a clan of Konoha? To fight for this village with everything that you have? To give your life if need be?" asked the Hokage as Naruto bowed to him.

"I do accept Hokage-Sama." Stated Naruto as he rose to his feet.

"We as the Nara Clan support the new Namikaze Clan." Announced Shikaku.

"We as the Akimichi Clan support the new Namikaze Clan." Announced Chouza next.

"We as the Yamanaka Clan support the new Namikaze Clan." Announced Inoichi last as Naruto bowed to the three clan heads before facing the crowd.

"My name is Naruto Uzumaki Namikaze. The heir to both the Namikaze and Uzumaki, I know that many of you do not trust me. I understand…you all see me as the Kyubi, a demon sealed into me on my birthday. The laws that protected me are now void; I now embrace my life as Jinchuriki." Said Naruto as he spotted faces in the crowd.

Hinata was there smiling at him with pride and admiration. Shikamaru looked bored, but proud at the same time. Chouji stood by him looking gob smacked, but not angry or disgusted. Shino looked like…well Shino. Kiba was quiet for once, and looked to be thinking. Ino looked ready to cry along with Sakura as their expressions were saddened. Lee was smiling brightly, while crying as he and Guy hugged. Neji looked shocked with realization as he learned about Naruto's past.

Sasuke was the last that he found and his expression was the most surprising. Sasuke had a neutral face and was looking at Naruto questioningly. Naruto had half expected him to go all emo and start yelling about power, but he wasn't.

'Well there's a surprise.' Thought Naruto as he watched the crowd have mixed reactions.

About 1/8 of the civilians were denying it calling Naruto a demon who had tricked their Hokage into believing such lies. 3/8's of the population looked confused and worried at the same time as they tried to process information. Half of the population were now cheering for the return of the Namikaze clan, trying to act like they always honored Naruto.

'Damn civilians! Once they realize I'm basically royalty most of them start to support me! I'm sure I'm going to have my own fan club now too! Too bad for them I'm Hinata's now!' smiled Naruto as he looked at his girlfriend, who was now glaring at a couple of girls who had hearts in their eyes.

"I'm going to start moving things into my compound. Seeya and thanks for the support." Said Naruto as he bowed to the other clan heads and left.

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Naruto was seriously getting pissed off at the whole village right now. It had only been a week since his heritage had been announced and he already wanted to kill himself.

First he had to deal with hundreds of civilians walking up to him and literally begging for forgiveness. He was half tempted to shove a kunai into their skulls for being suck ups, but refrained.

Second, he had to deal with ninja coming up to him basically pleading to be his sensei so they could get some fame. Seriously he already had three people who trained him on a regular basis!

Kakashi trained him in the mornings on Taijutsu and conditioning with the occasional jutsu thrown into the mix. Jiraiya worked on summoning and improving existing techniques like the Rasengan and his Void based Ninjutsu. Zeratul worked with him at night by training him to be more in sync with the Void than he was now.

Overall, there was really no reason for any new sensei's! He had made it to chuunin with the one's he had now and he was more than happy to have them helping him.

The last reason was by far the worst thing about announcing his heritage to the entire village. The only thing he had heard his own father was unable to defeat!

FAN GIRLS….

In the beginning there were only a few that followed him around giggling like crazy when he would do the most mundane tasks. Pretty soon though more and more were attracted to him like a moth to the flame.

They were completely useless and a waste of time in his opinion as he frequently had to avoid them if he wanted to train or spend time with his friends…especially Hinata.

With his new fame in the village many of the girls instantly started to loathe and reject Hinata everywhere. She didn't mind at first, and was happy that Naruto was starting to get the recognition he deserved.

That was until they had both discovered that he was only accepted because of his father, not for what he has done. In essence this lead to Hinata completely being hostile to any girl that came within 15 yards of Naruto…if they were a fan girl.

Of course Naruto didn't see any harm in it as he knew that only one girl liked him for who he was. No matter what happened he couldn't be happier with anyone besides Hinata. A matter of fact he just so happened to be on his way to meet with her.

However first he needed to escape the twenty girls that had been following him for the past hour as he walked through the village. "Well good thing most of them aren't shinobi." Sighed Naruto as he fell into his shadow confusing the girls.

Naruto appeared on the other side of the village with a smile on his face as he walked to the place where he said he would meet Hinata. It didn't take him long to make it their meeting spot where he was to meet her.

"Hey Hinata!" yelled Naruto as he walked up to his girlfriend and gave her kiss before hugging her.

"Hello Naruto." Giggled Hinata.

"Well are you ready to train Hinata?" asked Naruto.

"As ready as I can be Naruto." Answered Naruto as she jumped away from him and got into a stance.

"I won't be going easy Hinata." Said Naruto, but Hinata just smiled and shrugged off her jacket causing Naruto to blush a bit as he never really saw her with out the jacket.

"Are you okay Naruto? I hope me removing my jacket for this spar is alright with you?" asked Hinata sweetly causing Naruto to blush and nod his head a bit.

"No…why would it?" stuttered Naruto as Hinata smiled a bit more before she charged at Naruto.

Right before they reached each other to start their spar an ANBU dropped down in front of the two preventing them from starting.

"Naruto Namikaze and Hinata Hyuga, you two are to report to the Hokage's office immediately for a mission." Said the ANBU before he disappeared.

"Damn!" said Naruto as Hinata smiled at him and walked over to him and kissed him.

"Don't worry Naruto, at least it looks like we will be on the same mission together." Said Hinata as Naruto smiled back.

"True! Race ya!" yelled Naruto as he disappeared.

"Cheater!" yelled Hinata as she struggled to keep up with the faster blonde.

"No I'm not!" yelled Naruto from up ahead.

"It didn't take the two gennin long to reach the Hokage's tower and they soon were inside the Hokage's officer, where Tsunade, was waiting with Sasuke and Rock Lee.

"So what type of mission do you have for us Granny?" asked Naruto as ducked to avoid a stapler thrown at him.

"Brat! You call me Granny again I will castrate you!" yelled Tsunade in anger.

"Excuse me Lady Hokage, what is the mission that we are here to take?" asked Hinata as the Hokage smiled at her.

"I will be explaining the mission when the last team member gets here." Said Tsunade as the doors opened and Sakura walked in.

"Yosh! It seems our last team member has joined us and it is the lovely Sakura!" yelled Lee. (Tsunade already healed him. Also I know that the following arc happens after the Retrieval arc, but I don't care.)

"Well now that everybody is here we can get started. The King of the Crescent Moon Kingdom has paid us to escort his family from our Western Border to an Eastern port, where you will secure transport to the Crescent Moon Island. There you will drop off our client and make your way back to the village." Explained Tsunade.

"Where exactly are we to meet our client?" asked Naruto.

"At the border outpost closest to Suna. Naruto you will be leading the mission, but let me make this clear. If you don't do a satisfactory job on this mission Naruto, you will be demoted back to gennin." Said Tsunade.

"Yeah sure Granny I will do perfect on this mission!" said Naruto as he had to dodge another stapler.

"Well team are you ready?" asked Naruto with a smile as they all nodded.

"Good we will be exiting the village in one hour to meet our clients at the border! Pack for a month long trip at the most." Ordered Naruto as they all left.

"Don't worry Granny I will do this mission to the letter and make the leaf look like the greatest village in the world!" exclaimed Naruto.

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It had taken just two days for the team to make it to the border outpost. The trip alone was enough to call it an adventure. They had sparred a little as they had enough time, talked, and trained a bit.

Due to the heat of the area they were travelling in, they had all decided to go for lighter clothing. Naruto was wearing black cargo shorts with his chuunin vest strapped on and a chain mesh shirt.

Sasuke had a dark blue shirt on with the Uchiha crest on the back and tan cargo pants. Hinata was wearing her normal clothing minus the bulky jacket. Naruto could barely keep his eyes off her as she rarely took the jacket off.

Lee and Sakura were wearing the same thing they wore during the actual movie. I'm sure you can all check it out.

Naruto learned the Sakura had improved greatly in the past month since the Chuunin exams as Kakashi trained both Sasuke and Sakura in their weak points. Sakura now had an arsenal of genjutsu to use along with new taijutsu that worked well for her.

Everything else was just an improvement as she was faster, stronger, and had larger reserves, but not nearly as strong as Naruto or Hinata. Sasuke was stronger too, but still not at Naruto's level, proven earlier in the week when the two had sparred.

Although for once Sasuke didn't seem to mad about it. He had started talking to Sakura normally for once and was actually enjoying himself…to everyone's surprise except Sakura who had gotten used to it as they trained every day.

"So whom are we supposed to protect again?" asked Lee as he stood on wall overlooking the Desert that surrounded them.

"We are to protect Prince Michiru as he and his son travel back home to the Crescent Moon Kingdom. The most we are to expect are bandits on this mission." Explained Naruto.

"So how rich is the Crescent Moon Kingdom?" asked Sasuke.

"Well I did some research and found that despite it's small size the Island is quite wealthy as it is a very popular tourist spot. Other than that I don't really know." Said Naruto.

"I would say that it is quite wealthy, if that is their caravan that we must protect." Stated Lee.

"What do you mean?" asked Naruto as they jumped up and looked at the huge caravan slowly making it's way to the outpost.

"Wow!" said Hinata and Sakura at the same time as they others nodded for it comprised of about 30 wagons.

"How are we supposed to defend the whole thing?" asked Sakura.

"My clones will just have to pull up the slack I guess. Remember though our main mission is to protect Prince Michiru and his son. I should warn you though there were other teams assigned to protect him, but they all quit due to being treated poorly." Stated Naruto as the others nodded.

It didn't take long for the massive convoy to reach them and finally the largest most extravagant carriage pulled up in front of the ninja. When the door was opened out stepped a very large man with a smile on his face.

"Well hello Ninjas! Oh are you the ninja that are supposed to protect me?" asked the man as he finally looked at the kids before him.

"Are you Prince Michiru?" asked Naruto as he stepped forward.

"Why yes I am! Was there a change of plans for my protection?" asked the Prince.

"No there was no change, we are the ones that were selected to protect you. I am Elite Chuunin Naruto Uzumaki Namikaze and these are my teammates. Hinata Hyuga, Sakura Haruno, Sasuke Uchiha, and Rock Lee." Stated Naruto in a professional voice.

"Well it seems the Leaf did send me some good protection! Two ninja from such well-known clans like the Uchiha and Hyuga! My aren't you two so pretty too!" said Michiru loudly as he eyed the two girls in their squad.

'Okay I can see why the other squads wanted to quit. If he lays one finger on Hinata I will feed him to my fox!' thought Naruto as his eyes narrowed at Michiru slightly.

Michiru was quite oblivious to the looks he was receiving and walked over to the two girls with a smile on his face. "I am Prince Michiru! It is a pleasure to meet you!" declared the prince as he stuck his hand out to shake Sakura's hand.

"Nice to meet you Prince!" smiled Sakura as she gripped his hand and squeezed. One didn't have to be a ninja to see that Michiru was in pain from that hand shake.

He looked over at Hinata to see her smiling sweetly at him in a way that just made him shiver. So he wisely backed off and went back to Naruto.

"I'm sure your team will do well." He stated as he nervously glanced at Sakura.

"Trust me. No harm will befall you as long as we are here." Stated Naruto just before he snatched something out of the air.

The thing he snatched out of the air happened to be a toy arrow with suction cup on the end. "Hikari that is no way to treat our Ninja!" scolded Michiru, but the young kid with glasses just humphed and turned away.

"That is okay Prince Michiru. This won't be my first mission dealing with a kid who doesn't like me." Responded Naruto as he turned to his team.

"Okay for the duration of the trip Hinata will stay at guard on top of the Prince's carriage. The rest of us will rotate positions until me make it to the port. Sasuke will take the first day at the front, and Lee will take the rear. Sakura and I will take the Prince's carriage for the first day." Announced Naruto as his team took their positions.

It didn't take long for the caravan to get on their way. The next week would be nothing more than a trip through canyons and desert terrain that marked the borders between Iwa and Konoha.

"Why did you choose this formation Naruto?" asked Sakura curiously.

"Well Sasuke with his Sharingan should be able to spot any traps up ahead and Hinata will be able to keep a 360 degree view of the entire caravan. Lee is at the back for now since he is the fastest and is the most flexible. I'm here for command and support. You're here as back up for now. Remember we will be switching posts." Explained Naruto.

"So any idea who will be taking over my position on Team 7 until you all become chuunin?" asked Naruto.

"Honestly I have no idea right now. I heard Team 8 might split up with them going to different teams, but I've heard the same thing about Sasuke and me." Said Sakura sadly.

"Just because I'm a chuunin now doesn't mean that I'm going to stop being a part of the team. It just means that I won't be able to do the chuunin exams next time." Said Naruto in an effort to cheer her up.

"It doesn't really matter, but enough about me! I want to know how you finally realized that Hinata has liked you for like years now!" asked Sakura causing Hinata to blush brightly and Naruto to look confused.

"Wait what?" asked Naruto.

"He didn't know Hinata?" asked Sakura ignoring Naruto's question.

"Didn't know what?" asked Naruto again, but Hinata just shook her head.

"Baka! You didn't realize that Hinata has liked you for like ever!" yelled Sakura causing Naruto to surprised.

"Wait! You mean I could've had Hinata as a girlfriend years ago? Ugh! Now I feel so stupid! I'm sorry Hinata!" exclaimed Naruto as grabbed the blushing girl and pulled her into a deep hug.

"You idiot…" muttered Sakura as she started to scan the road they were taking. Even though they were guarding the client Hinata and Naruto kept having a silent conversation between them before Naruto kissed her.

"I'll be back. I'm going to see how the rest of the team are doing." Said Naruto as he jumped away.

"Why didn't you ever tell him?" asked Sakura.

"I thought that he would think of me as being weird. I didn't expect him to start apologizing to me claiming that if he had known earlier he would've done something about it. Baka doesn't realize that he has done so much for so many people." Smiled Hinata.

"True…I feel so bad for the way I used to treat him in the academy. He holds the demon inside him and has been protecting us for years. When I first met him I thought he was nice, just a little loud, but when my mom saw him she started to tell me things." Explained Sakura, but was interrupted by Hinata.

"I can see that happening Sakura. Naruto has told me stories about your mother on the council and what she has done to him in the past. Did you know that she basically demanded that Naruto be put on the CRA?" asked Hinata as Sakura looked at her with wide eyes.

"She what? But she has always hated him? Why would she want him to have a large family now? Even if he is the son of the Yondaime it shouldn't really matter!" exclaimed Sakura.

"Come on Sakura! You really think that the village loves Naruto for who he is? Naruto and I know that they only accept him since he is the son of his father. It sickens me that their opinions changed so quickly." Stated Hinata with venom.

"You really love him don't you?" asked Sakura as Hinata blushed, but nodded at her words.

"I believe I have always liked him, but now after knowing true past and what he has done I can honestly say that I do love him. If it weren't for him the village would be destroyed and I would be weak clan heir. He is my light that guides me…I don't think that light will ever darken." Explained Hinata as Sakura smiled.

"I bet that is exactly how he feels about you. Especially now that he knows that you have always liked him." Said Sakura as Hinata looked a bit surprised.

"What makes you say that?" asked Hinata.

"Come on Hinata! Have you seen the way he looks at you? It is exactly the same way you look at him; with such affection it puts movies to shame. Now that you have always felt that way about him just shows that you accepted him before he started to improve…when he was the 'Dead Last'." Explained Sakura as Hinata blushed and smiled a bit.

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With Naruto and Lee

"Hey Lee how are things doing back here?" asked Naruto as he reached his friend.

"Greetings Naruto! Everything's going great now!" yelled Lee with a smile.

"Well that's great! So I know this guy is a prince and everything, but what's up with all this crap?" asked Naruto as he looked at one of the carriages.

"Well from what I have learned the Prince is a bit materialistic and is in the habit of buying whatever he wants for himself and his son." Explained Lee.

"Wow, I kind of hope that the Prince doesn't act like that when he takes the thrown. The people probably won't last long if they have to deal with a person like that as their king." Stated Naruto as Lee nodded.

"What about his son?" asked Lee.

"Probably just as spoiled as his dad. The kid even had the balls to shoot a toy arrow at my head and not even apologize." Grumbled Naruto.

"I'm sure he will apologize before the mission is over. Despite his attitude the boy has the 'Flames of Youth!'" shouted Lee as Naruto chuckled a bit.

"So how's your team been since the exams? Hinata said that Neji has even been acting nicer to her for once. Is this true or some type of joke?" asked Naruto.

"No joke! He has been much better as of late and even encourages the rest of us to work harder in order to become the best that we can be. I haven't heard him mutter one word about fate since the day you beat him!" exclaimed Lee as Naruto smiled a bit.

"How about your injuries? Are they hurting a bit?" asked Naruto.

"No they do not bother me at all anymore! I have even forgiven that Sand Gennin for the damage he has done to me!" said Lee with a smile.

"Really? I wouldn't expect anyone to forgive someone for delivering such an injury to said person. Although Lee I do admire you for that." Said Naruto as Lee smiled.

"Well I heard about what he contained and heard that his story from a friend of mine that heard it from his friend who happened to be a new chuunin. It seems the life of a jinchuriki is indeed hard no matter what village one grows up in." said Lee as he smiled at Naruto.

"Don't need to tell me. Well I'm going to go up and check on Sasuke. Stay vigilant…I doubt we will be attacked this close to the outpost, but you never know." Said Naruto as he traveled to the front of the caravan.

"So Sasuke have you seen anything fishy?" asked Naruto as Sasuke glanced at him.

"A minute ago I spotted a pair of horses in the distance, but they turned around. I believe we will have trouble sooner or later; although I doubt it will be today." Stated Sasuke.

"Well I guess they chose the wrong convoy to attack. So what's up with you and Sakura?" asked Naruto cheekily as Sasuke glared at him.

"What do you mean by that?" asked Sasuke as he managed to regain control of his composure.

"Oh come on! You two have been training like every day for the past month now. Surely something must have happened if you are no longer treating her like she is worthless." Said Naruto with a giant smile.

"It's none of your business Dobe." Stated Sasuke as he turned away.

"I bet she knocked you onto your butt. Ha that's it! The mighty Uchiha has been bested by his pink haired teammate!" exclaimed Naruto as Sasuke glared at him.

"Watch it Naruto…" Sasuke growled out.

"Take a joke Sasuke…besides now Sakura is stronger than before…maybe that's why you look at her when she isn't looking." Laughed Naruto as he blinked away to avoid a kunai thrown by the Uchiha.

Back with Hinata and Sakura the two gave a shriek when Naruto suddenly appeared in front of them in a mass of shadows.

"Yo!" was all he was able to get out before being punched by both girls at the same time!

'Why me?' thought Naruto as he went flying off the carriage.

"Oops…he really needs to stop doing that." Stated Hinata as Sakura smiled in satisfaction.

"That felt good." Stated Sakura with a smile.

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"Well I would like to thank all of you for all the work you have done for us today!" thanked the prince as the convoy was stopped for the night. The ninja's all made a fire separate than all of the Prince's servants.

"You are welcome Prince Michiru." Said Naruto as he bowed at the prince.

"If there are any things that any of you need during the trip. Don't be afraid to ask!" declared the prince as he walked back to the main camp fire where his servants were making a large dinner.

"This mission is going to get on my nerves quickly." Said Naruto as he sat down by Hinata.

"Tell me about it…that Michiru has been leering at me almost all day." Stated Sakura.

"You aren't the only one." Added Hinata as Naruto hugged her.

"They treat their servants like dirt. All that matters to a man like that are material possessions and money." Said Lee.

"Remember we will all have to guard the convoy at night so we will all have to rotate guard for the night. So who wants to pull the first guard?" asked Naruto.

"I will take the first guard." Offered Sakura with a smile.

"I will go second!" offered Lee.

"I guess I can go last then." Said Sasuke at the end.

"Okay well I guess Hinata and I will take guard tomorrow night." Said Naruto with a smile.

"Ninja! I need to speak with you two of you ninja!" yelled the Prince.

"Geeze he can at least learn our names! Want to come with me Hinata?" asked Naruto as he stood up with Hinata following him.

As the two left Sakura's face broke out into a mischievous smile as she got up and travelled to the Hinata's pack.

"What are you doing Sakura?" asked Lee.

"Just playing a small joke on Hinata and Naruto. Aha!" yelled Sakura as she pulled out a scroll.

"What is that Sakura?" asked Lee as she sat down by Sasuke and Lee.

"This my friends Hinata's scroll that contains her tent. With this I will be forcing Hinata to have to stay with someone else tonight!" exclaimed Sakura as both Lee and Sasuke had sweat drops hanging from their face.

"Is that a smart idea?" asked Lee.

"Doesn't really matter." Said Sasuke as Naruto and Hinata returned to the group.

"So what did we miss?" asked Naruto as Sakura smirked.

"Nope, nothing at all Naruto." Said Sakura quickly, but Naruto missed it.

"Well we should all get some sleep now! You have security then Sakura?" asked Naruto as Sakura nodded and disappeared.

With that the four ninja remaining got up and started to search through their equipment to get their tents. Sasuke smirked as he grabbed his tent and walked away with Lee as Naruto helped Hinata look for her tent.

"I'm sure I brought it with me!" cried Hinata as she looked through her stuff.

"Its okay Hinata, it's not that big of a deal." Said Naruto.

"But where am I going to stay tonight?" asked Hinata.

"Well you can stay with me tonight? That's um…if you want to that is." Stuttered Naruto as he blushed furiously.

'Naruto is asking me to sleep with him!' thought Hinata as she blushed too.

"Okay…Naruto, are you sure I won't be a problem?" asked Hinata shyly.

"Not at all." Said Naruto as he unsealed his tent.

"If you are going to change you should do it now." Said Naruto as Hinata smiled and entered the tent, while Naruto waited outside.

"Don't do anything that I wouldn't do Naruto." Said Sasuke as he appeared behind Naruto.

"So who is the one who took her tent? I know for a fact that she always packs everything she needs." Said Naruto as he faced Sasuke.

"Sakura…she thought it would be cute." Said Sasuke as he smirked and disappeared.

"Naruto I'm dressed. You can come in now." Came Hinata's voice as Naruto smiled and walked in to find Hinata dressed in a tight pair of shorts and a lavender t-shirt.

"You sure you don't mind?" asked Hinata.

"Nope! As long as you don't mind that I sleep without a shirt on." Said Naruto as Hinata blushed, but said nothing.

"You know your beautiful…right?" asked Naruto as he hugged Hinata.

"Only in your mind Naruto." Mumbled Hinata.

"We should really get some sleep now." Said Naruto as he pulled out his sleeping bag.

"Yeah, I don't have my sleeping bag either." Said Hinata with a blush.

"No problem." Said Naruto as he took off his shirt causing Hinata to blush brightly.

"Well I'm tired." Said Naruto as he climbed into his sleeping well as Hinata looked unsure of herself.

"Come on Hinata! I don't bite." Said Naruto as Hinata slowly made her way over and climbed in with him.

Naruto wrapped his arms around her thin frame and pulled her close to him. Hinata for her part snuggled up as close as she could to him.

"You're warm Naruto." She said as Naruto kissed her on the forehead.

"Good night Hinata." Replied Naruto with a smile before closing his eyes.

"Good night Naruto." Said Hinata as she drifted off to sleep.

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Three days later in the middle of the journey to the port city. "You guys my clones have reported the bandits moving into position just two miles up the road." Said Naruto as he appeared by Lee, Sasuke, and Hinata.

"Which direction will they most likely attack from and what are the numbers?" asked Sasuke.

"The clone says that there are about 60 bandits in all. Focus on protecting the prince and my clones will handle the majority of the bandits. I'm going to tell Sakura now to get prepared." Said Naruto as the others nodded.

"I will warn the prince." Said Hinata as she jumped down next to the prince's door.

"Prince Michiru we are about to experience trouble from a large group of bandits. We ask that you refrain from leaving this carriage during the battle." Said Hinata as the Prince got a scared look on his face and nodded.

"Are you sure that you will be able to handle the bandits?" asked Hikaru as he looked up from his Gameboy.

"Of course we will be able to handle any bandits that come our way." Said Hinata as the boy still didn't look convinced.

"I don't know…that blonde haired kid looks like he is too cocky for his own good." Retorted the boy rudely.

"Naruto is the strongest ninja our generation and has never failed any of us before. I suggest you get your facts straight before speaking." Said Hinata sharply as she left the carriage.

She appeared on top of the carriage where both Lee and Sasuke looked relaxed, but she could tell that both were ready for a fight at any moment. She then activated her Byakugan to see a large number of bandits on the cliffs above them.

"Get ready they are about to attack." Said Hinata as they all nodded.

"ATTACK!" came the battle cry as 60 bandits all ran down the cliff wall.

"This is going to be easy." Said Sasuke with a smirk as he leaped into the action with Lee close behind. Suddenly the convoy was covered with clones of Naruto all wielding kunai.

"CHARGE!" yelled Naruto from the front of the convoy as his clone army met the bandits head on.

"I thought I might get some practice." Sighed Hinata as she went to provide back up to Sakura.

With Naruto he was cutting his way through the bandits with ease. He would dodge every attack and retaliate with precision ending the bandit's lives before they knew what hit them.

"Damn I can't even use most of my Void techniques due to the damn sun." muttered Naruto as he cut down yet another bandit.

"Katon: Great Fireball!" yelled Sasuke from about 30 meters away. Naruto watched as the ball of fire overtook a group of 6 bandits and 4 clones.

"That's six Sasuke…22 me now." Smiled Naruto as he shot a ball of air at three bandits knocking them down the cliff, breaking their necks in the process.

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Lee was decimating bandits left and right as he swiftly made his way through their numbers. All the bandits saw before being hit was a green blur shouting things about youth.

"Yosh! It is most unyouthful to attack a convoy!" yelled Lee as he punched through a bandits shield knocking the bandit out.

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"Shannaro!" yelled Sakura as she slammed her fist into a bandit sending him flying back into a group of 6 others. While doing so she missed the three arrows flying in her direction courtesy of an archer.

By the time she noticed them it was too late to do much. She watched in slow motion as they approached before being shot out of the air by a narrow beam of chakra.

"Good thing I came in time." Smiled Hinata as she blocked a punch by a bandit and retaliated with a juken to the guy's torso.

"What was that Hinata?" asked Sakura as she blocked a sword with a kunai.

"Just a new jutsu I have been experimenting on. Good thing I just finished it too, or you would probably be dead." Said Hinata as she bent back avoiding another arrow from the same archer.

"We should take out that arch…" started Hinata only to stop when she saw one of Naruto's clones appear from behind the man and break his neck.

"This battle is all but over." Said Sakura as she watched the remaining bandits run away only to be cut down by Naruto's clones.

"Are you two alright?" asked a clone as it dropped down beside them.

"Yes we are Naruto." Said Hinata with a smile before giving the clone a kiss before dispelling it with a slap.

"Were you sure that was a clone?" asked Sakura.

"Not really." Replied Hinata nonchalantly.

Sakura gave Hinata a confused look before shrugging and checking on the prince. 'I hope that this is all that we have to deal with. I would hate to have another C-Rank mission turn into an A-Rank again.' Thought Sakura.

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"What do you mean you are buying the whole circus!" yelled Naruto as he glared at Prince Michiru, who was sporting a merry look.

"Well they were really impressive and they weren't willing to part with the tiger so I just bought everyone!" responded the Prince.

Naruto's eyebrows twitched as his hand slowly made it's way to his kunai holder on his thigh. "You do know that this just makes defending your convoy even harder now?"

The Prince had the decency to blush a bit at that information, but smiled after a few seconds of thought. "Well then I can just pay you even more for the mission!" exclaimed the prince as he walked away to oversee the circus being packed up.

"This man doesn't understand the way we ninja work." Stated Sasuke as he walked up next to Naruto.

Naruto gave Sasuke a No-Shit-Shirlock stare before turning away and heading towards where Hinata, Lee, and Sakura were. "It doesn't matter, we only have a days travel to the port. Then a nights travel to the island before we are done." Stated Naruto.

"True…you know the Prince's son has been looking at you with interest ever since the bandits. I wonder why?" asked Sasuke as Naruto glanced over at the boy trying to sneak in and see the tiger.

"That boy needs to be awakened. He is even worse than his father and treats everything as if it can be bought. I doubt he will have any respect for the living." Grumbled Naruto as they walked away.

"Kind of reminds me of someone I used to know." Responded Sasuke with a smirk.

"Did this person have a 10 foot pole rammed up his rear end and have a duck butt head?" asked Naruto curiously before laughing.

"Keep laughing Namikaze." Stated Sasuke with a smirk as they walked away from the circus, they were unaware of the boy who had been listening to them the whole time.

'Am I really like that?' asked the boy as he ran away.

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"Well I actually like her! She seems to actually know what is important in life." Said Hinata as they walked away from a small cottage down to the docks of the city they were staying in.

"Yeah, and that man is completely oblivious to what she means!" exclaimed Naruto as the others nodded in agreement.

"Well I'm going to go to my room and make sure everything is alright." Said Hinata as Sasuke and Lee smiled before following. Sakura went and started to talk to the crew of the ship

Naruto watched them leave before going down to the docks and sitting at the ledge as he watched the sun set in the horizon. "Your name is Naruto right?"

"What was that?" asked Naruto as turned to look at Prince Hikaru as he walked up to him.

"I asked if your name was Naruto?" asked the prince again, slightly agitated that he wasn't heard the first time.

"Yeah, Naruto Uzumaki Namikaze what do you want kid?" asked Naruto.

"I want you to be my own personal ninja to do whatever I command. I am more than willing to pay whatever amount you demand." Stated boy with a smirk on his face while Naruto just stared at him before laughing.

"That's a good one kid! Haha to think I would actually leave my village to work for you the rest of my life! We may be ninja, but my friends and I are loyal to the leaf. All the money in the world wouldn't ever convince me to leave." Said Naruto as he left the boy.

'I thought money was the only thing people cared about?' thought Hikaru as he watched Naruto walk away.

"Before I leave I want you to ask yourself something. Is money really what is important or is it the people that will one day be looking up to you to lead them?" asked Naruto as blinked away letting the prince think.

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"The storms that rough?" asked Naruto as he was talking to the ship's first mate.

"Yes! We need help from you ninja to help cut the lines lose on some the cargo and bring the animals down below deck!" yelled the man desperately as Naruto sighed.

"Okay I will tell my ninja to make there way above deck to help." Said Naruto as the man nodded and ran to the surface.

Naruto turned around to see Prince Hikaru there staring at him. " You should just let those animals die. It isn't worth risking your lives over. Besides they don't even like me that much." Stated boy.

Naruto looked for shocked for a second before his face contorted to that of rage. "What! You are the one who demanded those animals and now you are just going to let them die!" yelled Naruto as he grabbed Hikaru by his shirt and lifted him up to his face.

"Why does it even matter?" yelled the boy in reply as Naruto promptly threw him to the ground.

"It matters, because they are living beings and never should've even been here in the first place! My team and I are going to rescue those animals no matter what! You are nothing more than trash." Said Naruto as he rushed to get his team.

The five ninja finally made it to the deck to discover a scene of complete chaos. Waves were spilling onto the deck knocking men down and debris was falling everywhere.

"Okay, the mission is to get the animals to safety first. After that we are to help dump some of the stuff into the sea so we don't capsize! Let's go!" commanded Naruto as his team proceded to round up the animals.

They were completely unaware of Prince Hikaru who had managed to get to the deck and was making his way to the animals. However, on his way he got hit by a large wave and crashed into a cage.

Turning to look inside he saw the monkey from the fair trying it's best to release the lock and let out the saber tooth tiger inside. Looking at the tiger he saw that it was looking back at him, but not in the same way as before.

Before it had looked at him with hatred and loathing, but now it's eyes were pleading for Hikaru to help. The prince looked unsure before his eyes hardened and he grabbed the gate and pulled as hard as he could to open the cage.

Finally after giving one last heave the gate broke open and the lion jumped out with the monkey on its back. The lion turned around for Hikaru, but it was too late as a wave crashed into him sending him over the rails.

"Ahhhhhh!" screamed out Hikaru before he was suddenly grabbed by a pair of hands. Suddenly a strange feeling washed over him as if he was being squeezed all around.

As quick as the feeling came it was gone and Hikaru found himself back on the deck of the ship. "Damn kid! Just because I told you to care more about the animals, doesn't mean I wanted you to come out here!" shouted Naruto as Hikaru nodded a bit.

"I just wanted to help…you are right. It isn't my place to just leave the things that depend on me out to rot. I'm sorry." Stated Hikaru as he looked at the ground only for the sabertooth lion to come up and nudge him.

"It seems your friend understands. One who has the responsibility of the people on their shoulders should always care for their well being. It is the kings duty protect and serve them to his best ability." Said Naruto with a smile as Hikaru smiled in response.

"Now get on inside before you fall off again." Said Naruto as he pushed the young prince inside with the Lion gladly following behind him.

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That next day they had finally made it to port and were making their way to the palace while the ship was being unloaded. On the way though the city seemed to be nothing more than a ghost town, but Prince Michiru didn't pay it any mind.

"Something isn't right here." Stated Naruto as Sasuke nodded besides him.

"True, this city is supposed to be packed this time of the year. Where are all the locals, tourists, and shops? It's the middle of June and yet there's no one here." Said Sasuke.

"Hinata use your Byakugan and try to find out where all the people are." Said Naruto as Hinata activated her Byakugan.

"All the people are inside cowering by the looks of things. Some have even barricaded the doors. Also there seems to be a very large bird with a man on it flying overtop of us." Said Hinata as they all looked up and indeed saw the outline of a bird against the sky.

"Driver you are to proceed to the palace no matter what. We will take the princes with us for now. A clones will meet with you to give you our whereabouts." Stated Naruto as he nodded at his team and blinked to the inside of the carriage.

"It seems you two are the targets of an assassination. If I were to guess there was Coup in the this city not long ago and the leader is now targeting you. Before you respond I need to know if there are any safe places that only you and the royal guard know about?" asked Naruto as he watched the panicked faces of both Michiru and Hikaru.

"The-re is one in the mountains by the shore!" exclaimed Prince Michiru in a panicked tone.

"Okay…I will be taking you so that our guest doesn't see you leaving. The ninja won't attack right away, but they will be observing the fight so let's go." Said Naruto as he grabbed both Prince's and blinked away.

They reappeared in the woods surrounding the city. "Where is this hide out at?" asked Naruto.

"Just a few miles down the road in the mountain." Said Prince Michiru as Naruto nodded and grabbed them once more and blinked away onto the mountainside.

"Where is this place at?" asked Naruto.

"Just over here!" said Prince Hikaru as he ran over to the ledge of the mountain and started running down a path. He stopped suddenly as he found himself at the at the edge of a sword being pointed at his chest.

"Prince Hikaru?" asked a man in a uniform as he retracted his blade and stood at attention.

"It seems that I was correct in stating that your father was a victim of a coup." Stated Naruto as he appeared behind Hikaru with a panting Michiru on his back.

"Ninja? Are you here to help us and where are the others?" asked the guard as he looked at Naruto.

"Others? Oh! They must be trying to rescue the face carriage! Don't worry they will be back shortly. Now what has happened here?" asked Naruto as the guard looked at him skeptically.

"Perhaps I should tell your team leader first kid." Stated the guard as Naruto's eyes narrowed.

"I am the team leader now tell me what I need to know." Demanded Naruto as he sent a bit of his killing intent at the guard causing him to sweat.

"Okay Ninja, but first I think we should get inside. The King is inside, but he is injured gravely." Stated the guard as both Hikaru and Michiru's eyes widened as they ran past the guard into the cave.

"My name is not Ninja…it is Naruto Uzumaki Namikaze, Elite Chuunin of Konoha. Now tell me what I need to know about this mission." Stated Naruto as his eye bore into the man.

It should suffice to say that the man told Naruto all he needed to know about the mission. Just as he was finished his team arrived with the rest of the guards all there.

"It seems we have a lot to talk about. Let's go inside and check on the King. Hinata if you can do some healing jutsu." Said Naruto as Hinata nodded.

Naruto waited as the others entered the cave and stopped Sasuke at the entrance. "What are we dealing with here?" asked Naruto.

"I found four ninja…two of them were Chuunin level. One was Elite Chunnin like you and the one on the bird is perhaps Jounin level. He seemed extremely dangerous." Stated Sasuke as Naruto nodded.

"Are we going to help them then?" asked Sasuke.

"Yes we are…now lets go inside and get ready." Said Naruto as both Sasuke and him entered the cave.