Hi, I'm back with a new story! Since you all were so nice with my other story (Going Back) I decided I'd start this one earlier than planned. Originally, this was supposed to be published in a month or two, as I don't have all the chaps planned out yet. But! I have enough of the first couple of chapters thought out to publish. So enjoy! I'll also be using Japanese (romaji) in the chapters, so the translations will be at the end of the chapter. (And if anyone knows a good translator for me to use, I'd really appreciate it if you message me about it. Arigato!)

Summary:

Team Seven, also known as Team Ayatsuru of the Hangyaku, was a force to be reckoned with. And when they are assigned an important mission to go back and stop nuke-nin Orochimaru from killing the Sandaime Hokage of Konohagakure, how will the trio change the fabrics of time? Will the three be able to stop the reoccurring pattern of past Team Seven's? Tight-bonded Team Seven (brother-sister relationship), minus Kakashi. 100% chance of no yaoi. So relax.

Also, I'm trying to make the chapters longer, so bear with me if they seem to drag along (and tell me if they do, please).

0o0-0o0-0o0

Team Seven, also known as Team Ayatsuru of the Hangyaku, was known for their powerful combination: a Gifted Healer, a genius Fighter, and the one who was behind the works of the team, a Manipulator. An extremely dangerous group of people who you'd prefer to be your ally rather than your enemy. This was what was going on through the Council's mind as they decided who would accomplish this next mission. They knew that Team Ayatsuru would be able to accomplish this mission; but would they do it was the question all had on their mind.

"There's no choice but to ask them," The leader of the Council decided. The leader turned to one of the guards on duty. "Go collect Team Ayatsuru. They should be back from their recent mission by now."

"Hai." The guard bowed at a forty-five degree angle before leaving to collect the team.

The leader sighed, looking outside the tent. "We can only pray that they'll accept." The other Council members nodded solemnly in agreement, awaiting their subordinates' arrival.

0o0-0o0-0o0

Sighing in content, Naruto strolled back to his tent at a leisurely pace with Sasuke right next to him, who shared the same expression as the blonde. You may think this a strange happening, but it was so. The two finally got tired of fighting, and, with his baa-chan's approval, joined the Hangyaku, no longer shinobi of Konohagakure. Ever since, the two had shared a tight bond that was shared with one other person. Said person was waiting at Naruto's tent, a cheerful smile on her face.

"Naru! Sake!" She called, using their nicknames. The tow didn't even bat an eye at the names, already used to the names of endearment she gave them.

"Hi, Saku," Naruto replied cheerfully, though with not as much energy. He had mellowed out considerably since he left the village.

"Hey," Sasuke greeted. Naruto and Sakura had managed to make the Uchiha more conversational, even if it was only with them.

"Where've you been?" Sakura asked, entering Naruto's tent.

"We went to go get some takoyaki from Kenchii. I swear he makes the best takoyaki ever!" Naruto exclaimed, drooling at thought of food. Sakura just laughed.

"You think all food from Kenchii is the best ever, Naru," Sasuke told his blonde friend, who merely grinned.

"Its true," Naruto said, taking a seat on his bed. "If only they had Ichiraku's here, then it'd be perfect. Sasuke and Sakura sweat-dropped at their friend. Some things would never change with their blonde friend.

"So, what are we going to do tomorrow? Leader gave us tomorrow off at the briefing." Sakura mentioned, bringing up the main reason why she was outside waiting for them.

"You're right!" Naruto said with a smile on his face. "We haven't had a day off in a while, have we?" Naruto asked, getting nods of agreement in reply before they went over their options. It wasn't until a few minutes of thinking where Naruto had an idea.

"I know! What about going to the Tanima ni Miken Kessho for a picnic!" Naruto offered, a large grin on his face.

"That's a great idea, Naru!" Sakura exclaimed, clasping her hands together. Sasuke nodded in agreement, smiling slightly. "We'll go tomorrow!" The two boys nodded their agreement just as there was a knock on Naruto's tent door.

"Excuse me, Naruto-sama," The guard who was sent by the leader stepped inside. Naruto frowned at the formality but let the guard continue.

"Leader wants your team in the Council tent." The guard relayed the message before bowing again and leaving the tent.

A frown made its way on to the just smiling face. 'I hope it's not another mission,' Naruto thought. 'Those two seriously need a break.' With that in mind, Naruto stood up from his bed and walked out of his tent, Sasuke and Sakura flanking him.

The trio was greeted with bows and greetings. Though they didn't much care for the formalities the members of Hangyaku gave them, they knew why they were given such respect. As the strongest team of Hangyaku, people gave them the respect they thought the trio deserved. After all, power comes with responsibility, and with responsibility, you grow wiser.

Reaching the Council tent, Naruto rapped on the door twice. "Leader, we have arrived." Naruto announced his team's presence, and the leader called for them to enter.

The three stood facing the Council. Naruto stood in the middle signifying he was the leader of the team. On his right stood Sakura, and on his left, Sasuke. Calmly observing the Council, Naruto tried to read their intentions. While he did trust his leader, he didn't trust the Council as much. Living with a council of people against you for fifteen years of your life did not help his trust issues at all.

"Is there a reason you called upon us, Leader?" Naruto asked. "It is to be our time off at the moment." Naruto's face was calm, and his eyes were void of any emotions.

"Yes, there is a reason I have called you here." The leader said. Naruto picked up on the weariness of his voice and tensed. He had a bad feeling about this. "We have a new mission for team Ayatsuru." Leader threw a scroll to Naruto who caught it with ease. Opening the scroll and reading its contents, Naruto paled. Sakura became worried and looked over Naruto's shoulder, as did Sasuke. They both became pale.

"Are you kidding me?" Naruto asked, rereading the contents again.

Mission: You are to go back and stop nuke-nin Orochimaru from killing the Sandaime Hokage of Konohagakure.

Time requirements: Once stationed there, you will not return. You are to leave at dawn with everything packed.

"Why us?" Naruto asked, his blue eyes filled with sadness. "How come it's my team that has to go back?"

Leader had a look of sadness on his face as well. "You three are the only ones who are able to do it; you know that Naruto." Naruto's eyes met his leaders, and the blonde knew that his leader would've preferred to send another team.

"I will do it," Naruto agreed after contemplating the consequences. "But," Naruto's tone grew sharp. "Sakura and Sasuke must agree as well, and it can't be a forced decision. Also, if we do this mission, I require money for new clothes." Naruto's nose scrunched up. "That orange was disgusting."

Sakura laughed at her teammate and leader. She would have gone, even if they had forced her; she would follow Naruto anywhere, and was ready to give her life up for him.

Sasuke was having similar thoughts, and while he didn't laugh, he smiled at his best friend. He, too, would go with Naruto, the only one he knew who could understand him so well.

"We'll go." The two shinobi stated, and Leader nodded.

"Very well," Leader nodded, and pulled out a scroll. Opening the seal with his blood, he pulled out a little sack of money. "This," He explained, "will be for your clothing. And this," Leader pulled out a larger sack, four times the size of the smaller one. "Is for the mission. Know that we will miss you dearly at Hangyaku, Naruto, Sakura, Sasuke." The Leader said their names with a sad smile. The three teenage shinobi saluted their leader before exiting the tent.

"Well," Naruto said as he headed towards his tent. "Looks like we've managed to get ourselves an adventure." The blonde smiled a foxy grin, reminding the other two shinobi of the whisker marks that were no longer there.

The three separated as they went to go pack their belongings up. A sense of excitement welled up inside each of the three; this was their chance to change things, to make things the way they were supposed to be.

0o0-0o0-0o0

Like the mission scroll stated, the three left at dawn. None of them had bothered dressing in anything fancy, seeing as how, when the jutsu was cast, they would be back in their clothes of then. They all wore standard black ANBU pants, and had on form-fitting tank tops (Naruto black, Sasuke dark blue and Sakura forest green).

Standing in front of their leader, he did the needed seals before announcing the name of the jutsu. "Shuho: yutori ryoko no jutsu!" A rip in the air stood before Team Ayatsuru.

"Go on ahead," Naruto told his two friends, who nodded and started walking towards the rip.

"That should take you where you need to go, Naruto." The leader said, walking towards Naruto.

Naruto smiled a sad smile. "Looks like this'll be the last time I'll see you on these terms." Naruto commented, holding out his hand. The leader nodded and took it, though he surprised Naruto by pulling him into a hug.

"Take care of him for me, will you?" The leader asked, and Naruto nodded, knowing who his leader was referring to.

"Hai. I will, Itachi." Naruto whispered his reply before being released. He gave one final look to those who were there to see them off. The entirety of Hangyaku had come to see them off, and they were all bowing.

"Sayonara," Naruto told them, his golden locks gently whipping due to the breeze. With one last look, he turned around and walked towards his two teammates and entered the rip. He didn't look back.

0o0-0o0-0o0

When the three landed back in the past, they cursed their luck. They were in the Forest of Death, facing Orochimaru, who was about to put the Curse Seal on Sasuke for the second time. Reacting quickly, Naruto shot out his ninja wire and connected them to Orochimaru's limbs, and pulled backwards. This seemed to work, for Orochimaru was suddenly yanked back by what seemed to be an invisible force.

Naruto released the wires on Orochimaru's limbs, and said man was thrown through the trees. A large dust cloud appeared where the trio assumed Orochimaru landed.

"He shouldn't be getting up for a while. I used chakra draining wires." Naruto explained to his two teammates. Said two nodded sharply. "Moving on to more important matters," Naruto continued, walking over towards the area Orochimaru had been standing before being yanked back by Naruto's wires. "You have the Heaven Scroll, Saku?" He asked. Sakura produced a Heaven Scroll and tossed it to Naruto. Grinning like to kitsune he was, he held up the Earth Scroll.

"Let's head to the Tower. We have both scrolls now." Naruto ordered.

"Hai!" Sasuke and Sakura replied, flanking the now running Naruto. They kept on running until they reached the tower. Walking in, Naruto opened the two scrolls, and a smoke screen appeared. All of them were tense until they heard the familiar voice of their Academy Sensei.

"Well done you three," Iruka congratulated them before being jumped by Naruto. Iruka barely managed to stay on his feet, though he was used to it by now.

"Aren't we awesome, Iruka-Sensei?" Naruto asked, slipping back into his idiot mask perfectly.

"You three did very well. There are rooms available for you to use, so why don't you go and clean up? There are two more days until the time limit is up, so rest well." Iruka gave a smile before shun shining away again.

"Let's get going then," Sakura said, heading towards the stairs. "I'd like to clean up before we get something to eat." Naruto and Sasuke nodded before heading to their rooms.

0o0-0o0-0o0

Over the next two days, Team Ayatsuru relaxed and made sure they were prepared for the preliminaries. If all went according to the original timeline, the three knew who they would be facing, but this time, they all planned on getting through to the finals.

Having spare time, the three altered their attire to some degree. Even though they had been able to bring all their possessions with them from the future, they believed it a better idea to wait until the one month training period to put on their original gear. Sakura had changed her dress into a tank top and the pair of green shorts she had always worn could now be seen. She had Sasuke cut her hair short for her, as she preferred it this way over her old hair.

Sasuke himself hadn't done anything drastic, though he made some minor changes. He cut off the collar to his shirt, and made it a sleeveless tank top (at that time, it was blue, if you remember from the anime). The Uchiha had put wrappings on his wrists and ankles, the way he preferred it.

Naruto had gotten rid of his orange coat, leaving him with his horrendously ugly orange pants, and the black tank top he usually wore under his orange coat. He cut off the white part at the end of each pant leg, making the orange pants now fit him better. The blonde, who had liked how long his hair was in the future, kept it that way, though he had Sasuke cut a little bit off so that it was to a little above his shoulders.

At the end of two days, Naruto silently observed his friends talking about something random. Right now, the sun had already gone down, and the three were in their pajamas. Naruto looked at his friends again, and noticed something on their arms. With wide eyes, he noticed the tattoos the two had on their right shoulders. The tattoo was built for three people: the first part was the handles and string to control the puppet (Sakura). After that, the second part was the puppet itself (Sasuke) which contained a puppet with three faces: a joyous face, a saddened face, and an angered face.

The third part of the tattoo was the first and second parts put together to create a puppet, which was on Naruto's right shoulder as well. When the tattoo was designed, it was designed for their team, and the one who had the completed puppet was considered the Leader.

Sasuke seemed to catch Naruto's stare, and followed it to his right shoulder. He sighed before walking towards Naruto. Sakura followed him, a small smile on her face.

"Why are you two still wearing those tattoos?" Naruto asked. "I'm not the Leader any-" The blonde was cut off by Sasuke.

"We're wearing them because we want to, Naru," Sasuke told him, using the nickname they had made for him. Naruto's eyes widened; Sasuke usually didn't use the nickname with him. If he was saying it now, he was serious.

"He's right, Naruto," Sakura said, putting a reassuring hand on Naruto's shoulder. "The tow of us are going to follow you to the end, whether you like it or not." She smiled at the blonde.

Naruto smiled a warm smile, gazing at the two who were his family. "Arigato." He thanked them softly, closing his eyes, falling asleep against the window. Sasuke smiled as well before lifting the boy he considered a younger brother to his bed to sleep.

Sakura bid Sasuke before going back to her room- there was a door that connected the two rooms. Sasuke turned off the light in his and Naruto's room before sliding into bed. The Uchiha took one more glance at his Leader before closing his eyes and falling asleep as well.

0o0-0o00-0o0

When the trio awoke the next morning, they ate their breakfasts before going to pack their things again. The second part of the Chuunin Exams was up today; those who didn't make it would be later retrieved and healed by other Konoha shinobi before being sent back to their countries.

Just as the trio had finished packing, the announcement was made that all Genin who had passed the second round were to report to the field area. Naruto looked to his two teammates who nodded before he opened the door and walked out. Sasuke (right) and Sakura (left) flanked him as the trio journeyed to the practice area. An aura commanding respect and one that held power made the other Genin teams stop and stare at the team.

As Team Ayatsuru walked into the practice field, all eyes were upon them. Some were shocked by the power rolling off the teens (Genin and Chuunin) while others stared at the trio (most Jounin). On the other hand, the Hokage narrowed his eyes slightly. 'Since when did Team Seven become that powerful?' Sarutobi wondered, and noticed how they were standing. Uchiha Sasuke and Haruno were flanking Naruto as if he was their leader…

Sarutobi pushed that away to another part of his mind for the time being, "Congratulations to all those who have passed. As there is a larger number this year, we will need to hold a preliminary before we continue onto the finals." Whispers went around the Genin, not expecting to have to fight to make it to the finals.

"We will randomly pair you up against someone else, so everything is fair. If there is anyone who wishes to leave, please raise your hand." Sarutobi finished, and a few hands, including Kabuto's went up. When there were no more hands in the air, the Sandaime began the preliminaries.

The Genin and their instructors went up to observe from the railings. The Rookie Nine and their instructors (including Kakashi) took this time to interrogate Team Seven. But alas, they didn't get the chance to do so.

"Wake me up when its time for your match," Naruto told Sakura, who merely nodded as Naruto lay against the wall and went to sleep. Sakura went closed her eyes and meditated to pass the time by. Sasuke was already having his match, and beating the crap out of his opponent, as Naruto knew he would.

The Rookie Nine could only sigh as they had lost their chance at finding out what was wrong with their comrades. Little did they know that the problem with the team was not something bad, but was something that, when realized, changes others opinions of you. And for some reason, no one noticed the fact that Naruto didn't have any whisker marks on his cheeks…

0o0-0o0-0o0

Well, how'd you like I? As I said earlier, I am trying to make it longer. Please review with your thoughts!

Word Guide- In the order of when it showed up

Arigato- thanks, thank you

Ayatsuru- Manipulate

Hangyaku- Rebellion

Hai- Yes

Tanima no miken kessho- I believe it means Valley of Hidden Crystals. I'm not a hundred percent sure, but if you know what it means, please tell me.

Shuho: yutori ryoko no jutsu- Technique: Time Travel jutsu.