(Sorry for the long wait. I am finally at a place where I can start writing again. Please don't expect me to update a lot. I'm not always at a place where I can sit down and write. I hope you all enjoy this chapter.)

Chapter Five: Team Seven

Naruto dipped his brush into the ink catching the scent of his blood mixed in. He brought the fine bristles and drew the last stroke in the seal. His traps were set and all he had to do now was eat a small breakfast and wait for the others. The sun was starting to rise. The darkness of night was giving way to the first rays of day.

He yawned and leaned against one of the three thick poles in the training ground. He had been up all night learning a new seal and setting traps all around the training ground. Many of the trees had seals on them. Some explosive, others structure altering seals, and there were a few of the new ones. He wasn't sure they would be completely sound though. He hadn't had much time to actually work on them.

Many of the seals he had put up were incomplete. They would act as decoys. If Kakashi-sensei caught on it would be hard to find the real ones from the fake ones. There were only minor differences in them. If all went to plan Kakashi wouldn't have the time to stop and see if it was real or not.

With a loud yawn Naruto slipped into his mindscape. "Hey, Kurama-sensei?" The fox sage looked at him and nodded letting him know he could go on. "Well I was wondering, if you're the Nine Tailed Fox then why do you look like a human?"

Kurama blinked a few times. He sat up straight and sighed, "This is an illusion. I took on this form so I wouldn't frighten you so you could trust me easier. But... if you would like I can take on my true form. Just be warned I am terrifying."

Naruto snorted, "I'm not afraid of you fox."

The great nine tails's eye twitched at that comment. "Little brat." He growled. "Behold my true glory!" In a puff of hot smoke Kurama returned to normal. He eclipsed Naruto ten fold. His massive tails swayed behind his foxy form. Naruto stared in awe as he beheld the beautiful terror that Kurama truly was. His rustic orange fur covered his whole body. His teeth were like massive swords. He was a monster. Naruto understood now. If he had seen this form at first he would never have trusted Kurama so easily. He swallowed then smiled. "Awe-some!"

A deep chuckle left the fox, it was booming to Naruto. "Now you know." He stretched out and sighed. "Ah, that's much better. Wretched human form."

Some time later Sasuke and Sakura arrived. Naruto was slouched sleeping against a tree. Sasuke looked down at him curiously. This was one of the few nights he hadn't actually stalked him. But as it was close to the meeting time he had to wake Naruto. He approached the jinchuriki and kicked his leg.

Naruto sprung up and looked around like a crazy animal only with a kunai in hand. Sasuke had to jump back in order to avoid injury. "Hey dobe! Stop it, it's just me."

Naruto rubs his eyes, "Oh sorry Sasuke." He yawns loudly. "What time is it?"

"Six thirty." Sakura said. "Kakashi said to meet here at seven. How long have you been here?" She was hovering around Sasuke like a tired love sick puppy. They both looked tired.

Naruto yawned again. "All night." He stretched his arms letting them pop in places. He noticed the surprised looks of his new teammates. "What? I had to set up some traps. In fact I need to tell you about my plan."

Sasuke almost scoffed at Naruto until he remembered the way they fought against Mizuki. "Did you set up those weird seals?"

Naruto looked around and leaned in close. "Yeah, I have a new one that you guys should avoid. I don't have full control over it yet... I probably shouldn't be using it but... Well I'm sure Kakashi-sensei can take it. He is a jonin." He scratched his head. He hoped he didn't hurt anyone. "Anyway, we should have some time before he shows up. So I'll show you where I've hidden some of the traps. Not all of them just in case he is watching. I'll be careful not to get you stuck in them."

There were many things running through Sasuke's and Sakura's minds. Sasuke wasn't too surprised as he had a general idea of what Naruto could do. Sakura on the other hand was rather baffled. She had never paid much attention to him. His quiet attitude near the end of the semester was welcomed in her mind and of no concern. Now she was seeing his true colors. He wasn't as stupid as she first believed.

Sasuke, as they followed Naruto through the forested area, wondered if Naruto's stupid front was all a front. A facade created to mask a greater understanding of the shinobi arts. His mind wondered through what he had witnessed throughout the years. He narrowed his eyes, this development was only recent. Something had changed within the blond kid. He still wasn't up to his level as far as smarts and skill went. But there was no denying that he was skilled in what he did know.

He gazed at Naruto as they sat back down to wait for their sensei. The closer he got to Naruto the more he would learn. He should keep him in his sight.

Kakashi watched the little brats sit and talk to each other. He had come early to visit the memorial stone like he always does. It was early in the morning so he wasn't expecting any of the little genin to be here. So it was a big surprise when he heard someone in the trees. Using every bit of stealth training he had under his belt; Kakashi suppressed his chakra and hid in the tree branches.

What he saw was rather, interesting. In the report the Hokage had given him it had said Naruto had skill with seals. He was able to detect the one he had placed on the floor at the academy. But seeing the skill of the young Uzumaki was enlightening. It brought a flood of memories, of his sensei working on his own various creations. Naruto was an Uzumaki so it shouldn't be to surprising.

What didn't quite add up was the amount of preparation Naruto was putting into this. The kid wasn't even supposed to know what the challenge was. He said it was survival. Not a fight. Maybe the kid had done some research.

Kakashi scratched his chin over the mask. He was curious to see how good Naruto was. From the reports from the academy Naruto had a horrible track record. It made him wonder how he could have improved so drastically over the last few months.

After briefing the others and showing them where his traps where Naruto escaped into his mind. He sat down and closed his eyes to enter a meditative state. Kurama appeared before him. The giant fox's tails were swaying behind him like branches of a tree. "So... do you think we can do it?"

Kurama let out a deep humming sound that shook Naruto's mindscape. "There is a chance, if you work together." Naruto folded his arms and narrowed his eyes in thought. "Is something wrong Naruto?"

"Kurama-sensei... How do you know so much about this test?"

The great fox chuckled, "well Naruto, my last jinchuriki was close to your sensei's sensei. She was told all about it by him."

"Oh."

Some time passed, Naruto meditated the whole time. When he realized his sensei was late his eyes flashed open. "Where is he? Is he always going to be late?"

Sasuke looked over at him. "Hn." Naruto's eye twitched slightly. That smug bastard.

His eyes fell on Sakura who looked as annoyed as Naruto felt. "Jeez what is his deal?" She said.

Another twenty minutes passed. The another ten. And finally the silver haired jonin arrived. "Yo."

"You're Late!" Sakura and Naruto both bellowed at him. He seemed unabashed.

"You see a black cat crossed my path. I had to take the long way around."

Kurama stirred in Naruto's mind. "What a load of crap." He mumbled as Kakashi went over the rules and brushed off the uproar when he said only two could pass, or none at all.

Naruto thought back to what Kurama had been saying. The Fox knew a lot more then he was telling him. Oh well, he had a bell to get. His fingers itched towards his kunai. Kakashi waved his hand, "you can start." Naruto pulled out his kunai and jumped towards his new sensei while Sasuke and Sakura jumped away and concealed themselves in the bushes. Kakashi-sensei countered him with blinding speed and Naruto ended up with his own weapon pointed at his head.

"Shinobi lesson number one, taijutsu." Kakashi threw the weapon aside and pushed Naruto forward. Naruto jumped away right away. Kurama's voice invaded his mind to tell him to look for a weak spot in Kakashi's defense.

Naruto eyed Kakashi. The jonin reached back into his weapons pouch. Naruto tensed expecting him to draw a kunai. Instead he dramatically pulled out an orange covered book. Naruto raised an eyebrow. "what? What's with the book?"

Kakashi looked at him like the answer was obvious. "Well, to find out what happens next."

'He's underestimating me Kurama-sensei.' Naruto thought towards his biju. He could feel the fox shift in his cage.

'Don't let it get to you Naruto. Stay calm, remember you have a plan of attack. Draw him towards your seals and the other two. You need to push him into the new one.' Kurama said. His voice was calming and helped Naruto take a deep breath. His eyes focused on Kakashi. On the way he stood and moved. He seemed content to let Naruto make the first move.

Naruto's muscles tensed up, he attacked, engaging Kakashi in a taijutsu fight. Every single one of his attacks was stopped by a single hand. Naruto knew now that Kakashi, even with a book out, was not going to be easy. He went to strike again... but a split second later Kakashi was not there. 'Behind you!' Naruto didn't have time to counter.

He looked behind himself. "Never let your opponent get behind you." Kakashi struck his fingers going right up Naruto's ass. He yelled out and jumped away right into the small lake.

The chilly water surrounded him. He closed his eyes. 'This isn't good sensei.'

Kurama warmed Naruto up. 'You can't defeat him on your own.' he said. Naruto agreed and swam towards the tree line. He got out of the water and looked over at Kakashi who had noticed him. He retreated into the trees as fast as he could. He stopped by one of his traps. 'I'm going to dry you off. Try not to be to alarmed by the heat.' The next moment steam rose off of himself. His body heated up but an instant later his cloths were dry and toasty.

He strained his ears to listen for his sensei. He looked in all direction's even up and down. No sign of him. Then he heard Sakura scream. 'He's picking us off one by one...' this was bad. He needed to gather them up. Sneakily he made his way deeper into the trees. He avoided his traps. He found Sakura on the ground basically passed up.

'She's under a genjutsu.' Kurama's voice entered his mind. He directed Naruto on how to break it. A few seconds later Sakura slowly woke up. Naruto helped her up.

"Are you okay Sakura?"

"Yeah... That must have been a genjutsu. Where's Sasuke?"

Naruto shook his head. "I don't know but we have to find him." he stood up and looked around. "Follow me and stay close, remember that I rigged this place with traps."

He guided her through the trees. It took them a minute but they found Sasuke, buried to his neck in the ground. Naruto smirked. "Hey, you're going six feet under a bit prematurely right?" He narrowly dodged the hit Sakura sent his way. "Lets did him out."

Sasuke was glaring at him. "Naruto, I thought you set up traps, why aren't any of them going off?"

Naruto blinked, "Kakashi-sensei is really good. He avoided my trap at the academy he could have already found them. We need to lure him into it."

The last Uchiha bit his lip. "Why are we working together? Only two of us will get through."

"Well... um..." Naruto thought for a moment. "none of us will pass if we don't work together. He's to strong and smart. I need your help." He was reluctant to say it. But there was no other way. Sasuke considered his words for a bit before he accepted them. Sakura was weak but Naruto could at least do something.

"Fine, what's your plan."

Kakashi was watching them and listening to their plan. In his mind they had already passed the test. They were working as a team. But he needed to see how they could pull off the trap. He already knew where all the traps were he had sent a clone to find every one of them and deactivate them. He had to admit that Naruto was surprisingly good a seals for how young he was. He also had the foresight to make fake seals to distract from the real ones. Then again... Kakashi knew who his parents were.

He could already tell who the weakest link was. Sakura, she had book smarts but she was to consumed with Sasuke. She was hardly even listening to Naruto's plan. If this were a real mission she could be putting them both in danger. Naruto came next, he had remarkable budding skills that he could develop further. Sasuke was full of natural talent but he was too conceited. They needed to find their balance.

Kakashi narrowed his eyes. Naruto was drawing something in the dirt but he had moved so he was blocking it from sight. Their voices had also lowered. Had they spotted him. Naruto wiped away what he was drawing and stood. He nodded to the other two then took off towards the clearing. Sasuke stood and looked right up at him. So they had noticed, how unfortunate. He dodged the fireball sent his way by Sasuke.

A quick water canon put out the fire and he escaped in the steam. Sasuke and Sakura were hot on his heals. He could easily outrun them but decided to give them a chance. He noticed pretty early on that they were leading him towards Naruto. He jumped the opposite way over their heads to see if they could easily adjust their strategy.

Sasuke was the first to recover. He instantly tried to get him to go back towards the clearing. Kakashi narrowed his eyes, "you're going to have to try harder Sasuke." He went on the offensive and kicked the Uchiha back. He had to dodge the kunai Sakura threw at him. Diverted a kick from Sasuke. They were keeping him on the defensive. Good in this case.

Slowly they backed him into the clearing. His foot snagged on something. Suddenly he felt heavy. His one eye looked down. There was a small seal only big enough for his foot. It felt like it was trying to pull him to the ground. He jumped out of that one. But there was another larger and stronger one. He stopped moving and looked around.

There were dozens of the small seals. From what he could tell at a glance they all had various strengths. They had managed to get him in the trap. Naruto reached out and grabbed the bells before rolling away from him. He smirks at him. "got them sensei."

It was a faulty strategy but it had worked well enough. He gave them an eye smile. "Congratulations. You all pass."

Naruto stared at the ceiling of his room. He had not been expecting what their sensei had told them. About the marmoreal stone and the test they took. Teamwork was important to their new sensei. It seems he had done the right thing. He entered his mindscape. Walking down the flooded corridors was easy. The dim massive room came to him. The comforting red glow of Kurama's cage greeted him along with the foxy grin on Kurama's face.

"You did amazing today Naruto." he lowered his body so he could be face to face with Naruto. "Though you are aware that he went incredibly easy on you, right?"

Naruto grinned. "Yeah, I could tell he is way better then he made it seem... I'm just glad we passed." He sat down in the water. He looked at the cage, the rustic bars seemed so much more meaningful now that he knew what Kurama truly was. But it also mad him sad. He did think Kurama deserved that. He reached out and touched one of the thick bars. "Don't you hate being behind there?"

Kurama chuckled. It sent ripples through the low water. Kurama smiled at Naruto. Even in the past with the right persuasion Naruto was still kindhearted. "I don't like being locked up. But for now it is all we can do." He sat back up and swayed his nine tails about.

Naruto let go of the bar. "Can't I remove it?"

"Not yet. You don't have the means to release me from the cage. Besides you would need very special training in order to control my chakra easily." Naruto thought it over for a bit.

"So I can control your chakra?"

Kurama nodded, "Yes but it will be hard and you are not at the right point yet." His tails laid flat behind himself. "Naruto, we should continue to work on your seals. The gravity altering seals aren't complete yet. Neither are your structure seals. We will perfect those before we move onto anything else. Besides you can use the gravity seals for training."

Naruto blinked a few times, "really?" He asked.

"Yes you can use them cause extra drag on yourself to build up your endurance and strength faster. Basically the same concept as leg weights. I've seen it done with the Uzumaki before."

"Cool, dattebayo! lets get started!" He left his mindscape and went right back to studying the seals.

The weeks went by fast. Between intense training, by himself and with his team, and missions Naruto felt like the time flew by. He had to be careful with showing how much knowledge he really had. He felt a lot smarter then he used to be. His skills in sealing had become amazing on an armature level. He had barely been able to perfect his two main seals, well the only two Kurama had taught him so far.

He could now make his gravity seals make everything lighter to varying degrees as well as heavier. He had trapped Sasuke in on and the Uchiha couldn't even stand up because of the strength of the seal. He had been very satisfied with those results and had laughed a lot at him. After Sasuke had thoroughly kicked his ass showing him that he still wasn't on par with Sasuke's fighting skills.

Naruto tried even harder after his defeat to become better. Day after day he would practice, often times with Sasuke. Sometimes the Uchiha's cockiness really got on his nerves. But what did he expect?

All training aside, now they were heading to the Hokage's office. Soon to receive their first C-Class mission.

A.N. This seriously took me forever. Whenever I had some time I would sit down and write but yeah. Literally like six months later. Hopefully the next chapter doesn't take that long. Let me know what you think.