A/N: Well my peoples, this is the last chapter for this story. The next one will be along the same lines, with two chapters from each of the boys, and a brief timeskip between them. *bows deeply* Thank you all for reading!

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10 Years Old - Part Two

-.o.-.o.-.o.-.o.-

Naruto

Naruto tilted his head slightly as Minato caught his eye, and nodded. It was time.

They began to melt into the crowd of the capital, and Naruto saw Sasuke and Gaara glance at them. Sasuke rolled his eyes and then trotted up to Itachi, grabbed his arm, and started to drag him away into some shop or another. Gaara nodded to them before following the brothers. He would keep tabs on the twins. He knew what they were doing, and needed to make sure he was close for when they finished.

Grinning at each other, the blonds melted into the crowd, searching and ducking until they found an abandoned alley, quickly moving into it.

"We can't be gone for that long," Minato whispered, and Naruto rolled his eyes.

"I know Minato. So let's do this and get it done."

"Right."

He used the barest hint of Princess's chakra, and brought his hands together into the classic Kage Bunshin seal. What no one else would know except for Minato was that inside him, Princess was in her human form, performing her own set of seals with speed and precision. Hers were nearly 150 signs long though.

"Ready brat?"

"Ready."

"Kitsune Bunshin."

The twins and the Kyuu's said it at the same time, and two forms shimmered into existence as the Kyuubi's jutsu streamed through them. They looked exactly like the twins, just with red hair and eyes. The abrupt dip in their chakra made them both stagger slightly as the forms solidified, and they were left dizzy as nearly half their chakra was gone. Taking a deep breath Naruto steadied himself, and examined the two standing in front of him.

They would only be able to deal with this for eight hours. Having been in close contact with the Kyuu's chakra since birth, any longer then that would break their minds. Then they would have an hour or two where they would go berserk, kill anything and everything around them, then die. However, the Kyuu's could mask their chakra perfectly, which made them the perfect tools for this job.

"You two need Henges, or this'll never work," he said with a nod, and they sneered at him.

They both performed the necessary hand seals, and were transformed into two women with only average looks and somewhat scraggly black hair and eyes.

"Is this better?"

Naruto smirked and nodded...then realized that probably wasn't a good idea when the dizziness increased into nausea. "Yep. That's good Princess."

"You two know what to do?" Minato asked hoarsely, and they nodded. "You have until sunup to get the information we need. I want at least two contacts here by the time you're done, got it?"

They rolled their eyes but nodded, and Laz held out her hand. "Money?"

Minato snorted and handed her a pouch, and Princess grinned.

"No spending it on clothes unless you already have two contacts," Naruto said sternly, and she pouted at him.

"That's just not fair brat."

He shrugged. "We need the contacts more then you need clothing. Or do you not want to keep tabs on Madara?" She snarled at him, and he only shrugged again. "Your choice Princess."

"Fine fine," she said airily, waving her hand. Laz rolled her eyes and grabbed her twin's hand, dragging her off into the street.

"See you at sunrise."

They waved, and the two women were gone in the crowd. It wasn't until then that they sagged against the wall, panting slightly through the dizziness that was swimming through them.

"I hate that jutsu," he muttered, and Minato nodded.

"Even so, it's useful."

"Yea, but I don't know if the side effects are worth it."

Minato took a deep breath and pushed off the wall, and Naruto followed. "Maybe, but at least they can't be sensed. We need to find Gaara before this gets worse."

"Yea," Naruto returned as he staggered away from the wall, draping an arm around Minato's waist. Hopefully they would only seem like a pair of drunks.

As luck would have it, as soon as they got onto the main street, they were stopped by none other than Gaara. He gave them a quick glance over, and shook his head knowingly. Gaara was the only one who knew the true origin of their "disease". Sighing – and ignoring the gasps and screams of alarm – he picked them up in his sand, fashioning a sort of bed that floated behind him.

It was actually quite amusing to see the reactions of people as Gaara walked stately down the street, a thin stream of sand from the gourd the only thing that connected him to the floating bed. Then there was the twins, completely comfortable curled up around each other on the sand, concentrating only on breathing past the nausea that the dizziness was causing.

Naruto didn't realize he dozed, but when a gentle hand was put on his shoulder, he opened blurry eyes and looked up. Gaara was frowning, and indicated the building behind him with a tilt of his head.

"Come on. Let's get you into bed before Itachi comes back," he whispered and Naruto nodded. He would never admit it, but he was happy Sasuke was there as well. As soon as the sand deposited him on his feet, he pitched forward. Sasuke caught him with a grunt.

"Damn dobe. You're heavier then you look."

"Shu'p teme," he slurred, the world spinning around him. He had enough sense to stagger up the stairs, Gaara and Minato right behind him, and fall bonelessly on the bed. Minato was deposited right next to him, and with shaky arms, he reached out and gathered his twin close. Minato pressed his face against his chest, body trembling freely now that they were safe.

Naruto barely heard the words that Minato said.

"I hate this 'Ruto…"

"I know Min. Let's try to sleep, neh?"

"Yea…"

They fell into a light, fitful doze, waking when Itachi walked in from his shopping. The blanket was up to their chins by that point, and chills racked them both. Naruto watched warily through tunnel vision, body tense as Itachi set down the bags and walked over to them. He was stopped by two pairs of small hands, just as Naruto snarled drunkenly and pulled Minato protectively closer to him.

Mentally he knew there was no reason to be worried about Itachi harming them, just like he knew neither Gaara nor Sasuke would. That didn't stop his instincts, and in his current state, instincts won.

"Don't go near them Itachi," Gaara said quietly, drawing the man back. Naruto felt the loss of the predatory focus almost as keenly as his twisting, utterly distorted perception.

"They're both really sick, and only Jiraiya can approach them when they're this bad," Sasuke muttered, sighing quietly.

Naruto bit hard on his cheek as nausea clawed up his throat, using the pain to shove it down, giving him something else to focus on. The symptoms always got worse the longer time went on, eventually evolving into pure, unadulterated torture. Dawn would be the limit they had experimented with that would allow them to keep their sanity in check.

And keep everyone around them safe. Naruto could still remember when they first experimented with these clones. Jiraiya still had scars from it.

"What's wrong with them?" Itachi asked quietly.

"No one knows. This happens randomly. This is only the third time I've seen it." Gaara's voice was quiet, thoughtful. "Not even Tsunade-hime could figure out what was wrong. You don't need to worry though. Around dawn they should be back to normal."

Naruto snickered silently as he watched and listened to the exchange. Baa-chan couldn't find anything wrong because when they had been with her, nothing had been wrong. So far, they had been able to keep the secret of the clone from everyone but Gaara, since no one could tell the difference when the Kyuu's weren't inside them. Seeing the look of surprise on Itachi's face when he heard about baa-chan was priceless.

"How do you know Tsunade-hime? And are you sure they'll be fine?"

Gaara shrugged and sat down, leaning against his gourd. "We received training from her some years ago. Yes, I am sure. It passes rather quickly, and once it's gone, they are instantly back to normal."

Itachi absorbed this, and nodded. "What did she train you in?"

Gaara just looked at Itachi blankly, but his eyes flickered over when Naruto choked on laughter. "Itachi, you're supposed to be a genius. Are you telling me that you cannot make the connections between what you know of Tsunade-hime and us?"

Itachi blushed at the condescending tone, but didn't reply immediately. After a moment, "So that's where Minato learned healing. And how you three developed your team dynamic."

The short claps coming from Gaara were dripping with sarcasm, as was his sneer. "Congratulations. You deserve a cookie."

Naruto did snort audibly then. It was a testament to how uneasy Gaara was when they were like this that he unleashed his tongue on Itachi. Gaara immediately walked a short ways to them, stopping when Naruto tensed once again.

"Do you want anything?" he asked quietly. Naruto shook his head, breathing shallowly as pain began to shoot up his spine.

"No…just, don't go anywhere, neh?"

It took everything he had to hold completely still as Gaara used a damp washcloth to bath their sweaty faces. Each movement was carefully controlled, and that was the only reason Naruto didn't lash out.

"Try to sleep 'Ruto," Gaara muttered, drawing back with narrowed, concerned eyes. Naruto was able to relax then, and did fall into broken sleep after awhile.

Dawn came, and thankfully while everyone was asleep. Naruto was just about to open his mouth to scream as a bloody, zombified Jiraiya shuffled towards their bed, milky eyes intent on killing them, when he felt the Kyuu's return.

The hallucination faded quickly, and he felt Minato's trembling slow, then stop as their coils were refilled with the blending of their and the Kyuu's chakra. Minato glanced up groggily at him, and he nodded. With deep breaths, they hit the trigger in their minds, and were instantly transported into the shared mindscape they had created.

Naruto blinked rapidly to clear his vision, and then smirked at what he was seeing. Princess was twirling around in her cage, wearing the human form she preferred. She stopped when she saw them, and Laz laughed as she bounced to the bars, grinning.

"Do you like it? Hmm? I love this yellow color! It's so pretty!"

Naruto just shook his head, grinning, and the other twins were doing the same.

"Heh. It is beautiful Princess. Did you guys get the contacts?"

"Yes we did." Laz answered, and Princess pouted at being ignored. "One of them knows about the Akatsuki, the group Madara leads, and supplies them occasionally. The other can help us keep tabs on Orochimaru since it seems he is a part of Akatsuki, but not."

They frowned. "What do you mean by that?"

The demon shrugged, and answered as she began to shimmer into her full nine tails body. "From what he said, I believe that Orochimaru is more of an employee then a member."

"Did you get anything else?" Naruto asked, looking between them. Princess was in her natural body now too.

"No, but here are the faces of them."

There was a short flare of chakra from them, and two faces swam into their minds. One of a plain woman, and another of what looked like a male merchant.

"Do they expect us, or you?" Minato asked.

"Both."

They nodded. "Alright. We're going to get some sleep."

With another touch to the chakra trigger, they were back in their own minds, and without even a thought, they fell into a deep sleep.

~o~o~o~o~

Naruto cracked his knuckles in anticipation as Gaara stopped, much to the confusion of Itachi. They were halfway back in the middle of the woods. A perfect place to finish their game.

"What are you doing Gaara?" Itachi asked, but all four glared at him slightly as Gaara deposited the five men on the ground.

"Neh, Min, there's an odd number this time," he said, cracking his neck as red began to bleed into his eyes.

Laughing devilishly, Minato walked over to him. "Hai. And I think Itachi-sensei will refuse to participate in our game."

Now Sasuke chuckled, looking askance at his older brother. "I agree."

"I might if you tell me what this 'game' is," Itachi said coldly, glaring at them.

Minato and Gaara exchanged looks, and Gaara was the one to speak. "We only need one to take back to Konoha."

The area was quiet for a long moment as Itachi's eyes started to widen. "What exactly does this game entail?"

"We hunt them," he said happily, eyes glittering with bloody anticipation. "If they can reach Konoha before we do, we'll give them to Interrogation. If we catch up to them…" His wide grin sharpened as he shrugged. "Like Gaara said, we only need one."

"That's…cruel," Itachi whispered, and Naruto didn't miss the disgust in his eyes. He scowled as Minato flinched, putting his hands on his hips to face their sensei.

"It may be cruel, Itachi-sensei," he said coldly, not realizing that he was mimicking Minato perfectly, "but it's also a good way to soften those that make it to Konoha for Interrogation. Those that don't, well…" He shrugged. "The world won't miss them."

"You know of this game Sasuke?"

Naruto hid a smirk as Sasuke returned the glare with a bored look that fairly screamed 'What the hell do you think?'

Of course Sasuke knew. While they hadn't played this game with humans before, there were several large predators in the woods around Konoha that were perfect for it. Granted they never killed the animals like they were planning on doing with the humans, but…

"We are shinobi, Itachi-sensei," Minato said coldly, eyes glittering like blue diamonds and just as hard. "Why is it surprising to find that we participate in things like this? We were made, trained, born to be killers." No one said anything as he advanced on Itachi, but Naruto could feel his twin's emotions.

Anger, shame, disgust…anticipation, adrenaline, the desire of a kill.

"We do have control, Itachi-sensei," Naruto said calmly, a hint of red creeping farther onto the edges of blue. Princess was inching her way into his mind and power, and he let her, only a little for now. "But we are Jinchuuriki. The beasts held inside of us are beings of death and destruction, regardless of their intelligence. Did you not stop to think that those emotions would feed into our own, especially with how we are tied to the Bijuu?" He pulled out a kunai slowly, idly twisting it around his fingers, eyes steely.

"We are hunters, Uchiha Itachi. This is what we do best."

Naruto watched as everything clicked into high gear in their sensei's mind, watched him don the emotionless mask. We'll have to deal with his issues later. Right now we have a game to finish.

He growled softly, Princess echoing it at a deeper pitch when Itachi turned to Sasuke, disbelief flashing in his eyes for a moment.

"You're taking part in this…game, Sasuke?"

Sasuke calmly returned the look, but a small smirk appeared at the corner of his mouth. "Hai, onii-san."

Itachi's mask broke slightly at the words. "Why otouto?"

Sasuke just sighed and walked over to them, tucking his right arm through Gaara's. "Their way of seeing things makes sense to me." He didn't even bother to elaborate, just returned the stare coolly.

Itachi shook his head slightly and the mask was back to being perfect. "Very well. I'll take one of them back to Konoha, and I expect the four of you back alone." He hesitated, staring at each one of them intently for a moment, searching, probing their resolve. None of them flinched, and his eyes hardened. "Very well. I also expect a full report on what all of them knew. You have until sunset tomorrow before I come looking for you."

He bent, picked up a man, and was gone through the woods. It left the four of them standing there glaring the way he went, before Sasuke snickered.

"I wonder if they'll be able to wake him up?"

Just like that the tense atmosphere shifted as in unison they blinked, grinned, and started laughing.

"Oh shit," Naruto muttered, one hand wiping his eyes while the other propped himself up on a knee. "I forgot Minato had put that sleep jutsu on them! They'll have to wait until we get back!"

Even Minato and Gaara were wiping wet eyes, and Minato spoke next. "So, how do we want to track them?"

Naruto shook his head and walked over to the men, pushing or pulling each man until they were on their backs. Princess cooed happily as he allowed her to slip deeper into his psyche, changing his fingers to spindly claws. He delicately cut off their shirts, and by the last one, found himself humming a quiet tune.

Shaking his head and grinning, he started the pattern for permanently sealing chakra on the first man. Minato moved to the second, and soon all four of them were busy cutting the seal deep into the skin.

It was a special seal that they shouldn't have known at their age and rank, but the man they had gotten it from didn't even remember. Granted Jiraiya had bet them at a game of cards, but he had been drunk. Very drunk. With saké provided by the twins.

Naruto snickered and activated it. Ah that had been a fun night.

Even with the jutsu holding him in sleep, the man whimpered in pain. It was unfair of them to seal all their chakra, and normally probably wouldn't. But they were too close to home, and there was no way they could let them escape.

Minato healed them and Naruto stood, dusting off his hands – even though there was nothing there but blood.

"Alright, since we sealed their chakra, it's only fair that we don't use ours."

Princess snarled. "Naruto! We want to participate!"

"Hmm…well, you two can merge with us. We still don't plan on using chakra through."

She purred even as she snickered. It was a weird combination that he had only heard the two of them use. "Oh Shukaku is going to be pissed. Then again, if he wasn't such a little bitch with Gaara, the kid would probably let him out to play."

"True."

He opened his mouth to tell Minato, and then closed it when he got a good look at his twin. He must have already talked to Laz, because he was meditating on the ground. The red cloak of chakra was already condensing into a single blond fox tail with nine black rings, the underside cinnamon red and blond ears with red inside. As he sat down, he knew that soon he would be sporting a tail and ears of his own.

Princess hummed softly in comfort as she slithered through his veins and chakra coils, because despite what they did, it hurt. Even for them, who had dealt with their chakra their entire lives, it was still nearly acidic. It twisted and pulsed, and only training kept him from twitching and whimpering in pain.

Finally she settled down, and began cooing softly in apology as he blinked opened his eyes. He immediately had to shut them to slits as the light seared them, forgetting how much better his eyesight was when they were merged. He concentrated on the smells and sounds around them as his eyes adjusted.

Sasuke's and Gaara's heartbeats, their unique smells, the mouse that was scurrying in the underbrush to their right. There was a feral cat stalking it, but it ran off as soon as it caught their scent. The mouse didn't, but then again mice were stupid creatures.

He finally opened his eyes completely, and blinked back tears as he looked into Minato's. He grinned sheepishly and reached out, touching the corner of one eye.

"I forgot how beautiful they look like this," he whispered, and his twin smiled back. It was true. With the Kyuubi's looking out from their eyes, there were flecks of iridescent red floating in the irises, constantly moving. Their pupil didn't change into the slit ones of the Kyuubi's, but it always looked as though there was a red flame burning in their depths. It was a pool of the Kyuu's chakra inside their eyes that made them sharper, instead of changing the shape and muscle structure of their eyes.

Grinning he jumped to his feet, ears and tail twitching as he bounced around from tree to tree, getting used to the extra appendage. Minato was doing the same, and they started an impromptu game of tag between them while Gaara and Sasuke laughed. They were the only two besides Jiraiya who had seen this form, and they were hoping to keep it that way.

Well, maybe Kakashi would see it. His Cyclops was a lot more understanding then Itachi was.

Landing by the still sleeping men, he nodded to Minato, and his twin whispered the release jutsu. All four of them blinked slowly, but then they proved that they were missing-nin. Their eyes sharpened and they all jumped up, ready to flee, but Gaara and Sasuke were already there. Lines of wire and sand wrapped around the men, keeping them in place.

"We're going to make you a deal," Minato said as Naruto started to stalk around them, Princess's purr of anticipation coming from his mouth. The men alternated looking from one twin to the other, but finally one spoke.

"So you're going to let us go?"

Minato smiled, a gesture full of sharp teeth. "No. I don't know what gave you that idea. Never said it was that kind of deal."

Now all the men were staring at Minato, as his blond tail weaved elegantly behind him. In contrast, Naruto stood next to his twin, his tail lashing back and forth, wanting to get the show on the road.

"So what the hell is this deal?"

Naruto took up the explanation. "Your chakra is sealed permanently, and you have no weapons." His head tilted to the side, ears flickering. "The deal is this. If you tell us everything you know now, we won't be forced to break into your minds to get it."

They all paled at that. It probably didn't help that Naruto knew he was sporting a bloodthirsty grin on his face. Or that Gaara and Sasuke – who were now standing behind them – were being the epitome of calm, cruel shinobi.

"If…if we don't?"

Naruto shrugged, and Minato spoke. "Either way we are going to hunt you. This way, all you have to worry about is dying with your mind intact, instead of being raving lunatics."

They all started struggling ferociously against the bonds, but were easily subdued by a pulse of lightning chakra Sasuke fired down the wires and sand.

"Now that you're all quiet again…" Naruto purred, taking a step closer to them. "Which is it?"

The one that had been speaking glared at them with sick resignation in his eyes. "We're going to die, aren't we? And you'll get the information regardless."

All four new Genin nodded, and so did he. "Very well."

"That was too easy," Naruto muttered to Minato about an hour later, as Gaara and Sasuke finished with the last man.

Minato snorted, and tapped his forehead. "Should we?"

"Naw. I don't want to waste the chakra to break into their minds." He cracked his knuckles then his neck. "What we have is good enough for now. Besides, we shouldn't use that technique against small fry's like them. It does too much damage."

Minato hummed in agreement. "True."

Naruto turned to the two, absently stroking the black tip of his tail. "Oi! You two done?"

"Just about," Sasuke muttered as he was rolling up the scroll that contained all the information. Sasuke looked up, and Naruto grinned toothily as onyx swirled into the two tomoe Sharingan. "We're good."

"Perfect." Naruto cracked his knuckles and neck, before walking over to one of the men, looking him over, assessing his strengths and weaknesses. The man flinched and averted his gaze, and Naruto moved onto the next one. Hmm…who to pick, who to pick…

"Go with him my fleshy cage," Princess purred, and Naruto found his gaze drawn to the biggest guy, who also refused to look away from his two-toned gaze.

"I think you're right, Princess." Smirking, he stood in front of the man and looked around. Minato walked up calmly and took the small mouse of a man, but the muddy green eyes were flashing with an odd, manic light. Gaara had the beefy guy, and Sasuke was staring intently at the last one.

"Are we ready?" he called out, and the other nodded even as the big guy with Gaara whimpered slightly. "Alright, we have until sundown tomorrow, and when you're done, go to the west entrance of Konoha. We'll all meet there. Agreed?"

"Agreed." "Hai." "Hn."

Naruto rolled his eyes, and with a devilish grin, he quickly snapped the wire that was holding the man. He smiled jaggedly, eyes flashing. "Run."

With a blink and a snarl, the man did just that. Naruto gave him a head start of a couple minutes, still able to pick up his movements with his twitching fox ears. He shared an anticipatory glance with his twin, and then he was off.

Within a second, the clearing was devoid of life.

~o~o~o~o~

Naruto hissed silently in laughter, his tail twitching as he watched the man vainly try to mould chakra with his bloody, abused body. The seal that they had gotten from Jiraiya was different from the others they had learned. For this one, there was no possibility of breaking it.

"Neh, brat. It's almost sundown."

Naruto blinked then cursed as he looked into the western sky. "Shit! I was having too much fun playing with him." He sighed as Princess laughed. "Ah well. I guess it's time to end the game."

He dropped down from his tree right in front of the man, relishing the scream of pure fear as he scrambled back. Princess swam closer to the surface, so she was able to look through his eyes, feel was he was feeling. The unfortunate part of that was that it allowed him to feel her emotions all the better. While the bloodlust and anticipation were nothing new, he was always slightly put off by her almost sexual excitement as the time for shedding blood became closer.

"Did you really think I wouldn't find you?" He clicked his tongue, and shook his head. "You poor stupid man."

"You're a monster! A – a demon! Leave me alone! Why are you doing this? What the hell did I ever do to you?" The man screamed the words, but luckily he was so lost in his own fear and pain, that he didn't notice Naruto flinch slightly at the 'monster' and 'demon' comment.

He hated those words. It reminded him of when they first came to Konoha, and how they had been treated by some of the people there. Still were, sometimes. Shaking it off, he snarled.

"You tried to interfere with our mission. Plus, you're a missing-nin."

The man laughed bitterly, still trying to crab walk away as Naruto steadily stalked closer to him. "You're no different! What are shinobi if not paid killers?"

Naruto paused at that, and nodded. "That's true." Then he continued forward as the man gaped.

"If you agree, why the fuck are you doing this?" he screamed.

Naruto gave him a gentle, terrible smile and crouched down next to him, reaching out slowly and encircling the thick neck with his small hand.

"Because I want to."

The dark brown eyes widened only a moment before claws ripped through his throat, and he collapsed backwards, gurgling through his ruined windpipe.

Naruto stood and stared down, panting as his skin sensitized, heating up with the adrenaline that was flowing through him. The blood rolled slowly down his skin as he watched intently, nearly purring when the last living light disappeared from those brown eyes. Hands shaking and with a bloody, insane grin stretched across his face, he started to rip the man limb from limb. Itachi said he didn't want any evidence…well, there wouldn't be.

When the man was scattered across the small clearing, Naruto tilted his head back and howled, lacing it with just the right amount of Princess's chakra. Calling. Summoning.

It didn't take long for all sorts of meat eaters to ring the clearing, and as he looked around, he could see wolves, cats, but the majority were foxes.

He stepped back towards the edge, and he indicated the pieces of the man with a bow. "Enjoy yourselves guys!"

Whistling a happy tune, he took off into the trees, his grin growing darker as the sounds of snarling and fighting over the meat reached his ears.

He was only a few minutes from the gate when Princess smacked him mentally. "You need to go back to being completely human baka."

"Oh shit. Thanks Princess."

"Hn."

"Damnit, not you too! I get enough of that from that teme!"

"Hn."

Naruto snarled at the smug sound, and closed his eyes as he sat down on a branch. Taking a deep breath, he slowly began to absorb Princess's chakra from his body, channeling it back into the cage where the majority of it still rested. It hurt just as much going in reverse as it did filling him, and he allowed a quiet hiss of pain since he was alone.

Finally, after minutes of painful skin twisting and bones popping, he was human again. Sighing, he stood and stretched, hating these few minutes after the transformation. His hearing felt muted, as did his sense of smell and hearing. Snarling quietly, he leapt through the trees, muttering to himself darkly.

He landed on the wall where the others were waiting, Itachi included. Straightening, he gave everyone else a bright smile, and it was returned in their various ways. Except for Itachi, but he was inspecting them with a disapproving glare.

"Is everything finished?" Their sensei asked, and they all bowed. Sasuke reached into his pouch and pulled out the scroll. Naruto smirked as Sasuke did, when Itachi recoiled slightly from the bloody paper.

"Apologizes Itachi-sensei, for getting it bloody. I couldn't stop it."

For the first time, Naruto really looked at his teammates. All of them were bloody, and it was no surprise that he and Minato were the two that were the worst. Gaara had his Coffin, which got blood on him, but not that much. Sasuke had the least, since he had probably just slit the guys' throat and was done with it. He and Minato though…they were hands on types. It would explain their liberally coated bodies, where their claws had ripped through flesh…

He shivered, and Minato gave him a knowing look. He returned it with a cocky grin, and Minato snorted in amusement. Itachi just glared at them, then sighed.

"Alright. You're already paid for this mission; just go to the accountant and withdraw it. I will see you all at 5 tomorrow morning, training ground 15."

"Hai, Itachi-sensei," they all chorused. Itachi paused, and then sighed again.

"Kakashi, Jiraiya, and Sarutobi are going to be over for dinner tonight. Make sure you're cleaned up by 8."

They all bowed once again, and Itachi disappeared. It was a long moment before anyone spoke, and Naruto was the one to break the silence by yawning.

"Well, that was fun for a first mission." He paused, and then cursed. "Damnit! I was going to go for ramen. Meh, oh well. Let's go!"

They all leapt from the wall and raced over the tops of the Village, laughing the entire way.

Not a bad way to start their lives as official Konoha shinobi.

A/N2: Happy New Year to everyone, and once again, thanks for reading. ~Sarissa Diablo