Disclaimer: I hold no ownership over Naruto and Infinite Stratos (IS). They belong to their respective creators and publishers.

Hey all! Sorry for the lateness. I have nothing much to say except that you might read the prologue if you hadn't yet. I gave it a proper one now instead of the teaser. Most importantly though, make sure to READ THE AUTHORS NOTE at the end of THIS chapter. It's in your best interest to. You'll like it (I hope.)

Naruto Infinite: Neo Dawn

Chapter 1: "Hello I-S Academy"

The past several days after his "lively" departure from home went by relatively quick. He barely recalled stepping inside Chifuyu's humble abode before being whisked away by events nearly too blurry and hectic to comprehend. He attributed this particular problem to a certain purpled haired scientist, dubbed 'Bunny' for his own amusement, and her ridiculous schemes involving flashy adventures in a dangerous James Bond fashion.

When he agreed—with much reluctance—to her offer, he hadn't expected his work to begin so soon. The bubbly scientist had literally kidnapped him from Chifuyu's care and immediately set about a list of 'chores' they needed to do. Of course those so called 'chores' were anything but an easy stroll in the park. Quite literally, he had found himself scaling tall buildings in hopes of evading night patrols of some Yakuza group; giving piggy back rides for his employer during an intense chase; fighting off some mutant beasts found in an underground laboratory complex and then escorting her and her mountain of hardware/software bounty proved to be pretty troublesome. Considering these were all done in a span of two days, Naruto was downright exhausted—mentally that is—by the time he returned to his temporary home.

Don't get him wrong, he was a boundless bundle of energy and had the stamina to spare any number of missions that required hard labor, however, even he had his mental limits. Especially if you count the talkative and ever playful employer of his whose job was to accompany him in every dangerous task he undertook.

Thankfully enough, Chifuyu intervened and gave him a much needed reprieve from work. She spent a couple days observing his capabilities with an I-S as well as schooling him on rules and regulations of the Academy he was entering. There was a lot of information to take in, but he endured it. For one thing, Chifuyu wasn't the giddy affectionate type like Tabane and thus was considerably more tolerable. Her strict attitude reminded him of his old sensei, Iruka, in some levels when he was teaching him back then, albeit Chifuyu was more on the cold side of things when it came to instructing him on certain I-S operations. Despite this, she had a soft side hidden behind her façade of indifference and allowed him time for his own activities once everything was finalized.

Naruto had then eagerly tackled his sensei's scroll the final day before he made his I-S debut, and discovered an immense load of instructions and assignments of varying details awaiting him. Some involved reminders of certain dates and events that required his attendance, while others pertained to deeply coded messages meant to be disposed of later once he had committed them to memory. It was tedious, but a requirement in his line of work. When those had been settled he spent the remainder of the night chatting with an old friend who he was eager to see once more.

The next day came soon enough, with clear blue skies accompanied by cool winds just as he stepped out onto the empty streets. Chifuyu had left earlier for a meeting with some government officials and thus left him in the care of his bubbly scientist/boss. He was just getting ready to wonder around the neighborhood when she appeared out of thin air in a dazzling array of colors and habitually clung to his arm.

"It's still too early for you to go, Na-kun~!" She said in her usual cheery tone. "Why don't we spend a bit of time together?"

The teen let out a mental groan and ran a hand through his blonde hair. "Haven't we done enough of that already?"

"Don't be a party pooper." She pouted playfully and pulled him along. "That was that and this is this. I'm not going to send you on another errand just because Chi-chan isn't here, but I do plan on making sure you spend lots of time with me. I won't be seeing much of you so play with me some."

Jerking him to the direction of the tallest buildings found within the city, Naruto fell into steps with her and pointed out: "You'll stick out like sort thumb if we hang out as you are. Can't you do something about you're appearance?"

Softly humming, Tabane swiped a hand across the air and watched as a blue tinged screen popped into view. Her fingers glided through transparent keys with graceful ease before punching in the 'enter' button. In a blink of an eye, her usual attire was replaced with a long dark grey sweater and dark knee-length socks that were a snug fit. It was the type of clothes that accentuated her well endowed figure and begged any onlookers the question of whether she was wearing shorts, a skirt, or nothing at all down below. And at the top of her head sat a matching black cap; large in size with stylish badges decorating part of one side. They almost matched the ones hanging on her leather boots.

"Good enough?" She asked, peering at him from beneath her cap. The blonde was tempted to admit she was cute with the look she fostered, but let out a light cough instead.

"Better." He allowed. "But before we go, you gotta remember that I need to be at the academy no later than two. I still got to unpack and stuff for tomorrow's classes."

Truth be told, while he was officially an I-S pilot in the records, his status has yet to be publicized. This was the setup that Chifuyu managed to manipulate with what little influence she had over the media and government (capable as she is.) The main idea behind this was to ensure his safety from certain groups and allow him some time to prepare himself—'a calm before the storm' sort of thing.

He could already feel the upcoming confrontations with the other major underground Organizations existing around the world. It won't be pretty.

"We'll just shop a bit and check out some of the local stores near the southern district. That shouldn't take more than two hours at most and allow us time to grab some lunch at Momoyamas."

His watch read 7:00 am so if he factored in traveling time and estimated the shopping she's going to do… "I guess that's alright. Lead the way."

Sometime later the pair stepped out of a clothing store carrying a few bags on each hand, sporting looks of satisfaction and mild amusement, respectively. Naruto plopped down a nearby bench and set his own bags next to him while Tabane stood standing just to the side. They were surrounded by busy shoppers and students alike that were headed to the various stores that crowded the street of the shopping district they were in. He spotted some guys at a corner giving Tabane a rather 'admiring' look, but didn't place much thought in their intentions. He'll set them straight if they did try anything beyond just looking.

As he glanced around for anything suitable to cure his growing boredom, the purple haired woman reached out to tug at his sleeves. He affixed his gaze to her ever present smile and tilted his head to the side in silent askance.

"You feeling hungry, Na-kun?"

"A little bit." He admitted with a shrug. "Do you want to break now and grab a bite to eat?"

Tabane shook her head. "Not yet. I was hoping we can stop by that store over there to grab some books." Her slender hand gestured to a store sitting by the corner some yards away; the one that had posters of anime and popular manga decorating it's windows and glass door. "Volume 4 of Icha-Icha: Pleasure Island came out a couple days ago, so I've been dying to get my hands on a copy."

Her following squeal of excitement accompanied Naruto's comical trip to the floor at her admittance, and it took a long moment to compose himself onto his seat. He really should have seen that coming. "Do I have to come with you? I can just watch our stuff here while you go ahead and buy that… thing."

"What are you saying? Of course you have to! Don't you want to honor you're sensei's greatest work of art and get yourself one?" She asked eagerly.

The blonde snorted in return. Like hell he'd buy that smut. He helped create those novels by means of editing and revisions—he practically co-authored the entirely new series, even. So what's the point in getting one when he already knew the plot and such?

Tabane was disturbingly silent for a moment before breaking into the biggest smile he's ever seen on anyone. "Really? You helped write Icha-Icha: Pleasure Island??"

Apparently he said his thoughts aloud… that was supposed to be a secret!

"Oh man…" He moaned into his hands. "Me and my big mouth."

The purpled haired woman whooped with joy as she gleefully plotted herself onto his lap. She rubbed cheeks with his several times while showering him with questions about her favorite series and appraising him for his collaborated work. Naruto had to practically pry her off to stem the pitiful excuse of Killing-Intent wafting off of the few single-males eying them enviously.

"Okay, okay!" He agreed. "Let's go buy your smut."

"Oh, but you already got your own Copy, right? Right?" She asked. "Let me have that so you don't have to waste money."

"Now you want me to conserve money after buying all these clothes?" He shook his head exasperatedly before letting out a tired sigh. "Sorry to disappoint you, Usagi-chan, but Ero-sennin still has the original and I don't plan on buying the actual book. That'll be at your expense, not mines. I've already spent enough today than I ever had in my entire life. Even Rin and Hinata's shopping wasn't this bad!"

He patted his back pocket glumly and felt his deflated Gama-chan through the tough fabric. What was once a bulky and happy looking toad wallet was now a flattened version of Frogger when he failed to cross the street. He had just enough left to pay for his ticket to the Academy, a quick lunch somewhere and perhaps a cake from a confectionary for Rin.

A book will do too… He mentally added.

"Okies, I'll pay for my own." Tabane agreed cheerfully. "Now carry me there!"

Naruto came very close to taking a page from Chifuyu's book and dumping the woman from where he sat, but decided against it. He instead carefully placed her on her feet and gathered there stuff in one arm. The sooner he got this over with the sooner he can chow down on some ramen. That always cheered him up.

"After this let's head down to Momoyamas for lunch." Naruto announced as he took her hand and guided her through the maze of people.

"Of course!"

They walked through the glass door of the store a minute later and welcomed the cool air saturating the room. The bookstore was a relatively large place compared to some of the other buildings in the area with two additional floors to explore; the second floor and the bottom basement. All around there were shelves of the typical anime and visual light novels stacked side by side according to popularity, genre or title. Magazines racks occupied one side of the building with the visual novels taking up the other. The center was dedicated to manga and regular books for those looking for something different from the country's norm.

Naruto agreed to browse separately and took to reading the magazines while Tabane headed to the front desk to purchase her book, and maybe look around a bit afterwards. He skimmed over some I-S magazines that had coincidentally been placed at a corner near the window (in a very flashy fashion), before sorting through the magazines dedicate to popular games.

"World of Warcraft… Battlefield 3…Bayonetta—sexy…. Erhm, Asura's Wrath… Vanquish, a good game…Aha~! Ninja Gaiden!" The blonde grinned and settled into one of the store's comfy bean bags for a relaxing read.

The Ninja Gaiden series developed by Team Ninja was very popular among his fellow gamers and RL friends. As an avid fan and enthusiast himself, he owned a life-size plush pillow of his favorite Kunoichis; Momiji and Ayane, a Scroll Poster of Ryu Hayabusa that hung on one wall of his room, and he even bought other Ninja Gaiden Merchandise ranging from Chibi handheld plushies to pencil casings. He wasn't an Otaku, but he did try to support the creators anyway he could.

Admittedly, the other reason behind his enthusiasm for the game was also because of its relation to his occupation.

In this futuristic world of high-tech and I-S, just about most legends found in Japan have slowly disappeared from history. While it's a good thing for his Organization, he felt put off by that fact. Things like vampires, werewolves and especially ghosts can vanish for all he cared, but forgetting about ninjas ever existing? That's total blasphemy! He might as well rename his occupation into "assassin" or "Hired Mercenary" at this rate.

So Naruto was quite relieved to find that Ninjas remained ever popular in this modern era, and have become influential enough to not only establish worldwide Clandestine Organization like his own, but also helped make a very successful game. Of course some of the stuff that Ryu Hayabusa did were altered versions of the ninja art he knew of, Naruto was none the less content. So long as the world was still aware of Ninjas still existing he'll be a happy camper.

Relishing in the rumor of a "Ninja Gaiden 4" coming out, Naruto happily took the magazine to be bought.

"Will that be all, Sir?" The friendly cashier asked.

"Pretty much." He looked around for his companion, but couldn't find her anywhere. "Say… did you happen to see a friend of mines around here? She wore a dark grayish sweater and black cap. Had long purple hair and seemed pretty high looking."

"I think I saw her heading down to the basement level a few minutes ago." The woman said. "Now, that'll be 1380 yen for your purchase. Would it be Cash or credit?"

"Cash, please. Thanks."

After bidding her goodbye and his magazine safely tucked away in one of his shopping bags, Naruto headed downstairs in search of the bubbly woman.

He didn't need to look around too far to actually find her. Tabane had coincidentally poked her head out from a behind a bookshelf some distance away and beckoned him over with an energetic wave.

"Na-kun, over here! Hurry!"

"Alright, alright. I'm coming."

He navigated around a few shoppers and some other shelves before rounding the corner to face Tabane.

"Did you find something you like down here?" He asked.

She smiled up at him and waved around a familiar orange book. "I sure have! But guess what else I found?"

He jerked his head to the side questioningly. "What?"

"Me."

In the split second that word had been uttered, Naruto had thrust Tabane behind him and leveled a polished Kunai threateningly against the speaker's neck. It took the remainder of the second to identify the person and come to a startling realization: The grayish gravity defying hair and white facemask was unmistakably familiar.

"Kakashi-sensei?"

The masked man eye-smiled in return. "Good to see your reaction time has improved, Naruto. Although you might want to rethink on your methods of engagement for these types of situations. Particularly out here in public."

"Are you surprised?" Tabane piped up, feigning ignorance to the momentary tension. "I found him reading some of the books down here."

"Of course." Naruto withdrew his weapon and glanced around for any witnesses. "Sorry about that, Sensei. I wasn't expecting you here."

"It's a good lesson for you to remember: Expect the unexpected." The older man replied sagely. "Now, why don't we grab something to eat somewhere and chat for a bit? We've got quite a few things to talk about."

"Sure." The purpled haired woman agreed. "We were about to head out to do just that, right Na-kun?

The blonded nodded. "I've never been to Momoyama's before, but Chifuyu-neesan and Usagi over here, recommended it."

"Good. I'm craving for some miso soup with mushrooms right about now."

They quickly made their way out of the bookstore and onto the bustling streets. Momoyama was several blocks from where they were and thus they made some small talk as they walked. They're topics varied from the weather to news from foreign countries, as well as the usual I-S business between Tabane and their Organization. Naruto had excluded himself from that particular conversation and only took note of his sensei's silent signal for an important discussion when given the opportunity.

By the time they got to the traditional Japanese bar and settled in, Kakashi had fished out his favorite book from and was diligently reading it as Tabane engaged Naruto in a light talked about future plans. Naruto had wanted to actually be silent for once, but couldn't quite get that chance. The infamous scientist had taken his attention when she mentioned about a personal I-S for him. He felt giddy about the idea and enthusiastically answered her questions.

It was not until after they made their order that Tabane excused herself from the table to use the restroom. Her timing was impeccable and allowed Naruto to confront his sensei about his earlier signal.

"So what's up, sensei?" He began. "You popped up without a call or text. Did something happen back home?"

Kakashi lifted a single hand and blurred through a set of one-handed seals. The change around them was immediate as a near imperceptible blanket of energy encompassed their space. The grey haired man remained glued to his book throughout the entire process and only spoke up when he regained the blonde's attention.

"Konoha is fine. ROOT hasn't caused us much trouble since the last confrontation." Kakashi said, easing back on his seat to peer at him from above his book. "I actually came to give you a personal mission…"

Naruto perked up and not so subtly leaned forward with an eager grin plastered across his face. "Don't beat around the bush! Spill! Is it an S-rank mission to save the world? I knew pestering her for 4 months straight would do the trick!"

"Haha, it's not that extravagant." The older man chuckled and placed his book down. "You're pretty good in protecting clients from what we've observed during those trial missions back then, so this mission is appropriate for your skills as a chunin… Yea, you heard right. You've been promoted, Naruto. Congratulations."

Naruto froze and ran through a mix of emotions before blurting out, "I'M PROMOTED!" very loudly. If it weren't for the privacy array erected by his sensei they would've caught the attention of the entire establishment. Of course Kakashi wasn't exactly thrilled to be sitting in front of his loud pupil at this time. He swore that the boy was like a freak'n megaphone when prompted…

"Keep it down, Naruto." He scolded. "It's not that surprising."

Kakashi took a discreet look around him to see if anyone had caught any interest on them. He saw nothing so far.

"But, but I'm promoted! I mean, how—why? Not that I'm grateful or anything, but seriously? Why so sudden?"

"Honestly? This had been a long time coming. Tsunade-sama had planned to promote you months ago after you've returned from your training trip with Jiraiya-sama. It just got postponed several times because of the I-S incident. You should thank him for recommending you, by the way—including Iruka's efforts and my own personal tutelage."

Throwing away whatever questions he had, Naruto kept his smile as he bowed to his sensei in gratitude. "Thanks a lot then, sensei. I appreciate your continued support and guidance."

He was rewarded with an affectionate pat on the shoulder and a tussle of his blonde hair. "Anytime, Naruto, anytime." Relaxing back into his seat, Kakashi resumed his reading. "Make sure you remember to call up Iruka later. He's been anxious about your enrollment and has pestered me about you're whereabouts ever since you've left. The man can be a handful at times if Anko's not around to distract him."

Naruto had the decency to look sheepishly at this. Could he be blamed if a certain someone kept monopolizing his time? He thought about it. "…I guess I have been putting off those calls…"

Kakashi hummed in reply.

"Well, I'll contact him for sure, sensei." Naruto promised before eagerly returning to their previous topic. "Now, about that mission for me…?"

"Hmm? Oh, right, the mission." His teacher paused and then let out a shrug a minute later—as if deciding on something. "You've already started it from what I've observed, so just keep up the good work."

"…Huh?" was Naruto's intelligent reply.

"Serving and protecting Shinonono Tabane-sama." Kakashi clarified. "That's the mission that both the council and Hokage-sama had agreed to give you."

"HUH?"

"Come off it, Naruto. Don't give me that look—you're doing a wonderful job so far. The pay should be good too since you'll be receiving extra funds from Tsunade-sama and Jiraiya-sama. That's good enough, right? No? Then perhaps enlightening you with the news of your TCS arriving in a few days…?"

Naruto ignored his sensei's effort in appeasing him and let reality of the news sink in instead. He just wasn't feeling so sure about his job anymore. He thought he only needed to work for the cheerful woman for another few months as per their agreement, and so tried to get along with her (which was pretty okay, admittedly…), but after hearing this…

"Is this negotiable?" He warily asked.

Kakashi didn't help him when he simply gave an eye-smile.

Naruto's head hit the table. "How long…?"

"Mm… it depends on Shinonono-dono." The older man replied. "You will still receive some missions from us, if you're wondering, so don't be too down about it."

"Well, if it gets me away from her from time to time…" The blonde looked up hopefully as he trailed off.

"Do you think someone who's stuck to you like glue lately will be hampered by this?"

"…damnit…"

"Heyas! Did I miss anything?" Tabane asked upon returning to her seat.

Kakashi shook his head. "Nope, nothing at all, right Naruto?"

"Where's my ramen?" The boy groaned and looked around in a depressive mood. "I really need some right now."

The moment the bell tolled for an afternoon break, one Haung Linying—affectionately called "Rin" by others—raced through the crowded corridors of the school building and out onto the front yard where blooming rainbow flowers and the scent of green trees greeted her. The sun was making its sluggish descent from its earlier perch above the sky and allowed the young brunette to take in the magnificent view of the blue sky as ran.

She had a momentary urge to kick off into the air and fly amongst the few clouds drifting about, but quickly shoved that aside. It wouldn't do her any good if one of the teachers spotted her abusing her I-S privileges and get caught skipping class at the same time. No, that won't do at all. Not when she had someone waiting for her at the Island's shuttle station.

Uzumaki Naruto, a childhood friend and fellow ramen addict, was coming to I-S Academy.

Rin was skeptical at first considering the likelihood of another male pilot, but after some convincing images he sent her through her phone and some personal investigation on her part, she accepted it wholeheartedly and had been eagerly awaiting his arrival. To say she was excited was an understatement. The brunette was practically bouncing on her shoes since yesterday when she first got here.

Finding out that welcoming news prior to her transfer to the Academy brought much expectation for her high school life. Two childhood friends in one place, and the fact they're male I-S pilot? She felt herself pretty damn lucky if not a little superior to the other girls of the school. She wasn't smug about it, but simply reasoned to be blessed by lady-luck.

"Hehe, I'm really looking forward to my life here." She said aloud as she crossed the gate to the school campus.

There was still about a 15 minute run to the shuttle station so she relaxed into a jog and took her time reminiscing about her childhood friend.

Naruto was one of the only males she's gotten along with pretty well. The other was Ichika, her crush. But of the two, she would have to say that the blonde haired youth was her closest friend of some seven years or so. He met her back in China during his travels and had stayed with her family for about several months. They at first hadn't gotten along so well with him being rather annoying and pretty dumb most of the time. She reasoned it had to do with the language barrier between them and the fact that he was always out working for one reason or another.

Rin recalled a time when his sensei, a tall and rather imposing old man with white hair and genuinely playful character allowed her to watch them work. They were some sort of mercenary or freelancers that took on a lot of different kinds of jobs, and so she witness them doing manual labor for one of her neighbors. Naruto had shown her that he could be quite cunning and fun when he enlisted her help without her knowing until she was enjoying herself lifting bricks and painting the fences a bright orange. Sure, that particular job ended for nothing after his sensei's perverted antiques brought them trouble, but she couldn't deny that she had a pleasant time.

Little by little she began hanging around the blonde boy and his sensei, generally curious and drawn to their rather vague origins. They were very secretive at times and the old man, Jiraiya, never really gave a clear explanation about their chosen occupation. Some of their neighbors were wary of them and yet her parents seemed to encourage her association with them. So she went a step further from merely observing them and going to full on interaction. She spent time trying to communicate with the blonde for about several weeks, but with little success. She was encouraged, however, when Naruto took it upon himself to return the favor and demonstrated a few formal greetings in her language. Needless to say, his botched way of speaking left her laughing for quite some time.

Nonetheless, his gesture was sweet and well appreciated.

Once they've gotten over that particular hurdle—after a long period of intense studying—the two discovered a genuine friendship between them. They found out each other's likes and dislikes, learned life lessons together, shared the same interest in ramen, and held quite a number of things in common. Rin was quite pleased to make a good friend.

The following years continued to build up on that friendship and eventually helped her get through the tough times when she moved to Japan for a couple years. He remained a close friend—best friend even, to this day. She could count on him if her days here in I-S Academy ever becomes bad.

Acknowledging that little fact, Rin slowed to a walk. She had reached her destination and lucked out upon seeing the object of her thoughts examining a fountain near the entrance of shuttle station. He had changed in the last nine or so months they've been apart; He grew a little taller, had a bit more tamed hair and good fashion with a white shirt underneath a grayish/darkish double-zipped jacket and similar colored jeans, albeit a bit faded around knees down. She couldn't help but note the orange color he cherished so much was one of the chosen jacket he wore—just between the shirt and outer jacket.

Smirking, she held out a hand and shouted. "OI, Blondie! Longtime no see!"

Rin let out a small laugh at his clumsy reaction. Naruto nearly fell into the fountain he was observing if not for his firm grip on the bars that lined it. He then looked around sharply before grinning like mad upon spotting her.

"Hey!" He greeted with a wave and trotted over with his orange duffel bag slung over one shoulder.

"Good to see you, Shorty!" He laughed, enveloping her in a warm hug and squeezing her smaller frame gently. "How've you been?"

Rin returned the favor just as enthusiastically before pulling away. "Same old, same old. Did you just get here? I was expecting you to be late."

"I almost was if I didn't set my watch earlier." He tapped the black gadget wrapped around his left wrist. "You wouldn't believe how many times this thing has saved me from missing important stuff."

The brunette tiled her head cutely to the side. "Did you get caught up with work or something?"

"You can say that." Naruto shuddered. "I'm not really looking forward to my job right now though."

"How come? I thought you always wanted to be an official "Konoha Operative"? You never stopped going on about it since we were kids." She teased then added. "Congrats on your promotion by the way. I just wish you contacted me sooner about it so I could prepare a cake or something to celebrate with."

"I appreciate the thought." He replied sincerely. "But you should save that when I actually take over the entire organization. Better to do all that partying and eating sweets when it's really, really a big deal for me—birthdays and other special occasions aside, of course."

Rin chuckled in agreement as they began their long walk to the office. She planned to take the long path in order to let their reunion last until school went out. Then she would need to track down her other childhood friend/crush and tell him the good news.

"So," She began. "What type of job are you doing this time? The usual grunt work? Selling shirts at a mall? A long-term D-rank mission?"

"I wantto label it a D-rank." Naruto admitted. "But it's not that. I'm stuck babysitting—" He abruptly stopped and sheepishly scratched his head. "Ah, sorry Rin. Its top secret, I can't say anything else about it."

The twin-tailed brunette snapped her fingers together with a 'tsk.' She hadn't intended to actually pry into his private business, but darn was she close. Even up till now he remained secretive. One of these days she would have to find a way to get more involved with his so called 'missions.' It seemed like a pretty interesting experience to go through.

"You sure you don't want to share those 'top secret' missions with your Best friend?" She gave her most impressionable pretty girl face to try and coax him to spill.

Predicatively, he just laughed it off.

Pouting, she spun away with a sniff. "Fine, be that way."

"Sorry, Rin, but that was the most weakest attempt of persuasion I've ever seen you do. Try a little harder." He chuckled. "You almost had me a minute ago."

"Nah, forget it. You'll tell me eventually. I just need to wait a little longer."

They converse some more, enjoying each other's company, until they passed through a path covered by trees and into an open field. They found themselves standing in front of the large I-S stadium that Rin remembered seeing during her brief tour yesterday. Naruto gave her a quizzical look, but she waved it off and gestured for him to follow her inside. She had her reasons for leading him here. One was to test him and the other was to simply waste some time.

She grinned mischievously once they stopped at the center of the barren field.

"What are we doing here?" Naruto asked, glancing around. "I thought we were headed to the office?"

"I'll take you there." She assured. "But first let me see you pilot an I-S."

Rin smiled prettily when she saw a grin of approval and mischief dancing across his lips after a momentary pause of confusion. She had prepared a standard I-S through some connections the other night and so was eager to toy around with her best friend.

A little payback for all those spars they did as Tai-chi practitioners was also in order.

"You up for the challenge?" She asked as her I-S, Shenlong, began materializing over her.

Naruto loosened his neck with a hand and dropped his duffel bag. "I'm game. Just give me an I-S."

Chifuyu raised a brow at the groaning blonde before her. She had expected the blonde to arrive at the Academy hours ago in perfect condition—not looking like he came from running a marathon.

"Do I want to know what you've been up to?" She asked with a frown.

Naruto shook his head to regain some focus and said. "I met up with an old friend of mines and we ended up going at it for a few hours…Honestly, I'm exhausted, Chifuyu-sensei."

Words nearly failed her at that. She wanted to confirm his statement, but instead gain an uncontrollable twitch in her right eye. This had to be a misunderstanding.

"It must've been fun…" She commented neutrally.

"Hell yea!" The blonde replied somewhat more energetically. "She was awesome, a real pro! Even though I have more stamina than her—by a large margin—she lasted pretty long."

She was tapping her foot really hard now. It's still a misunderstanding she continued to reason.

"I mean, I didn't know I-S pilots like her can be that strong and flexible in—"

Alright, that did it.

Chifuyu smacked him on the head before he could finish his sentence. Her face was a slightly aglow from her anger—not embarrassment, she reasoned. Her charge's explicit activity should have taken a backseat before coming here to her office. How she wished he hadn't answered her inquiry.

The blonde recovered quickly enough and let out an indignant protest. "What the hell was that for?"

The former I-S champion took deep breathes and calmly spoke to him. "Uzumaki, you really need to set your priorities straight."

"What?" The blonde asked in puzzlement.

"I have no right to deny you of your… needs." She began slowly with a serious look. "But you must learn to control yourself and prioritize important engagements."

"W-what're you going on about, Chifuyu-sensei?"

She ignored him. "You should have reported to me first and got yourself settled in before you decided to 'party' with your friend."

"Huh?"

"You're a healthy male with much 'tension,' I understand that, so I'll let this incident slide. I just hoped you and your friend remembered to clean up afterwards."

The blonde scratched his cheek unsurely of her statement, but answered honestly. "Uh, well, we did… But there wasn't really much to clean up, really. We weren't that rough when we went at it. In fact, the I-S stadium was pretty spacious so we limited our shots around the middle area."

Chifuyu turned eerily quiet and did not face him.

"Sensei?"

"…You guys did it…where…?"

"The I-S stadium, where else?"

She began shaking with rage and just barely contained it enough to speak properly. "Uzumaki."

"Yes?" He squeaked, probably sensing her mood, she guessed.

"Go walk around the campus for a few. I'll have your class schedule and uniform ready when you come back…"

"Err…"

"GO!" She barked.

"Yes, ma'am!"

A few clumsy shuffling of feet later, her office was once more quite.

She let out a tired sigh and fell limp into her seat, drained by the current events. The first day he was here and already this happens? What did she do wrong when she explained the rules to him and everything the other day?

"You're more troublesome than I remembered…" Chifuyu muttered as she took some of the papers from her desk and began working on his class schedule.

Hopefully this will keep her mind off of things. She was frustrated enough as it was with all the stuff she had to do to get him here. Now where the hell did Tabane go? She was supposed to be here as well…

The blonde paused at the door to his room. It took him nearly two hours to get to here after his strange discussion with Chifuyu. As it turns out, it was she who was assigning the rooms of the third floor rather than Yamada-sensei. How she failed to remember that tidbit, He would never know. She just seemed mad about something…

Admittedly, a large chunk of time was also spent exploring the bottom floor when Naruto first arrived. He had ventured around the building for a time, giving passing greetings to some curious residents, and discovered quite a few places of interest that he'd investigate later and perhaps use when he had the spare time. Those public baths and recreation rooms he'd passed by looked really appealing to him.

Now standing in front of his room, Naruto wondered who he would be rooming with and if they'd get along. Of course, this drew attention to his childhood friend's own living arrangement. Rin mentioned earlier, during their I-S activity, that she was already living at the dorm but didn't specify exactly where inside. Chifuyu didn't budge when he asked about it during their brief conversation and instead socked his head in reply. She warned him that anymore of his nonsense would earn him a punishment far worse than just a simple knock on the head.

She'd probably pull out a bokken and threaten me with it. And if her punches hurt then that wooden blade will definitely hurt a lot more.

After rubbing the throbbing spot on his head he gave the door a knock. When no answered he checked to see if it was locked before stepping inside.

Setting his stuff down, Naruto gave the room a once over.

'Stylish' can best fit the room's description; a hybrid of classical and futuristic ingenuity. It was certainly wide and spacious with the necessary living comforts visibly placed about. There was a pair of comfortable looking beds neatly placed on one side of the room with the typical lamp and nightstand combo sitting idly beside each one. Decorating the side of the bed—the one closest to the balcony—was a long polished drawer for storing clothes and other personal items. It sat against the wall just under the window to the outside and was equipped with a special locking mechanism.

At least that's what Naruto assumed it was upon noticing the glowing green pads embedded on its wooden center. What else could that type of tech do for a drawer?

Standing opposite of the beds were a pair of refined conjoined wooden-desk, long in design yet sturdy looking in structure, holding one of many highly advance pieces of technology that IS Academy had to offer; a holographic pad fixed on the wooden surface that was no doubt connected to their respective monitors hovering above the desk. The blonde was sure to try that piece of tech later, as well as browse the bookshelf on the wall between them. There's bound to be something interesting there…

Even if he wasn't exactly the type to read often he did get those urges sometimes.

In addition to that piece of equipment and a few other interesting objects found in the room, there was a delightfully spacious bathroom—futuristic in both appearance and functions, near the door and a small kitchen equipped with the usual stove and sink. Shining cups and plates were neatly sorted inside the cupboards hanging above the counter, giving Naruto the impression of some French design with its style of placement. And topping this already impressive kitchen were the preplaced items and snacks decorating its smooth granite surface, as if welcoming him with its enticing presentation.

Overall, the room was to his liking and wouldn't require any personal modifications… yet.

Striding towards the large window that acted as a door to the balcony, Naruto pulled the curtains open to gaze at the darkening sky outside. The stars were already peeking mischievously down on him with an array of soft colors still staining its calming beauty; painting the scenery of twilight.

Tonight will certainly be a beautiful one and, quite frankly, he found it rather nostalgic to look at. They invoked fond memories from many years past when he was still just a child. Back to a time where ninja training occurred on a daily basis and countless hours were spent amongst seasonal friends. Those good old days that kept his childhood life somewhat bearable and pleasant.

DoK! DoK! DoK!

"Come in." He called, forcing his attention away from the outside to acknowledge his visitor.

The door opened with a 'click' and a familiar voice sounded through.

"Hiya, Roommate! The name's Lingyin Haung, though you can call me Rin. It's a pleasure to meet you...Naruto?"

There was an audible 'thud' that rang out as her duffel bag hit the floor. The blonde masked his own stunned surprise and grinned widely at his long time friend.

"Sup, Rin! How did negotiations go?"

The petite brunette shook her head briefly and thought to voice her delight, but paused upon registering his question. Her shoulders sagged in depression as her gaze met the floor.

"No dice… That stupid Houki girl got in the way!" Fuming, Rin trudged to the nearest bed and unceremoniously plopped down on it. "Just because she's the first childhood friend she gets his attention and treatment. That dummy-Ichika…"

Naruto watched as she grumbled moodily then buried her face on the pillow to let out her frustration. His trained senses clearly recognized some foul languages mixed in with complimenting threats of chopping something into pieces. He figured his fellow male I-S Pilot, Ichika, was on the receiving end of her ire.

The blonde shook his head and went over to retrieve her belongings from the floor in the hall. He set them aside next to his own before grabbing a pair of cups from the cupboard and then boiling some water for tea. He figured this will help improve his roommate's mood.

It worked quite often in the past before…

"Cheer up!" Naruto chirped, happily seating himself beside her form. "It's not like he's living far away. Ichika's like what… down the hall?"

"He's on the second floor, three doors down the right side… Room 1025." Rin corrected, albeit muffled by the pillow.

"There you go! You can see him any time you want so smile, will ya'?"

The twin-tailed brunette rubbed her face briefly over the soft cushion before peeking up at him. Naruto sported an idiotic grin while waving 'hello' as if greeting her for the first time. It was a goofy act that elicited small giggles from her.

"Besides, you should be glad that I'm you roommate." The blonde continued in a matter of fact tone. "I can make the best home cooked Ramen around…"

Drawn to the word 'Ramen,' Rin listened attentively.

"… Just give me a kettle, a stove and some water, and I'll have your Ramen ready in no time!" He winked. "Of course, I'll need my most important ingredient for that…"

"Oh?" She asked amusedly, already predicting his answer. "What would that be?"

"Instant Cup Ramen!"

His jovial response had the brunette giggling further as she twisted around to clutch her sides.

Leave it to him to crack a simple joke like that while holding up the aforementioned object in a fashion similar to those TV commercials about shampoos; the one where a woman would hold up the product in one hand while striking an alluring pose in hopes of garnering popularity. Having a male perform it—like what Naruto just did—really brought out the laughs.

"I guess today didn't turn out so bad." Rin admitted while drying the tears of laughter from her eyes. "Rooming with you has always been fun. And at the very least you actually keep your promises…"

As if those words were a switch, her amiable mood turned dour.

"I take it Ichika messed up…?" Naruto questioned curiously although it sounded more like a statement halfway to the end.

Rin sighed with a nod as a light scowl marred her cute features. She crossed her arms firmly over her chest and elaborated further.

"He's a real dense idiot, that guy. All he remembered was food! I mean, he didn't even focus on the most important part of what I said."

"Um, Rin…? I think you should give him some slack." Naruto cut in, hoping to give reason for his male friend's poor memory. "I mean, food is one of a man's most sacred treasures in life. Even back then as kids we would forget things relating to promises if we were offered cookies or cake as promises. Oh Kami, even I would admit in doing the same."

"Mm-hmm… I highly doubt that, Naruto."

"I'm serious!"

"But you've kept your promises to me before, and some of it did involve food." Rin insisted. "So what do you have to say to that?"

Naruto scratched his right cheek and said. "Sweet and sour pork isn't exactly my favorite dish, Rin. You gotta take preferences into account, you know?—and besides, your cooking back then wasn't very… good…"

Rin pouted. "It wasn't that bad either—I improved in the end!"

"Yea, like after a thousand times of poisoning me." Naruto held his neck in a choking motion. "Blurgh!"

SMACK!

"OW! That actually hurt!"

The blonded rubbed his tender head gently.

"Geez, it was you who volunteered to help with my cooking, remember?" She reminded with a grumble as she nursed her bruised knuckle. "So that was your fault for offering to be my test subject before I gave Ichika the better ones."

"And I regret not eating those meant for him. Lucky Bastard." Naruto mumbled to the side.

The young Chinese girl blinked curiously at him, as if asking him to repeat what he just said, most likely not catching the last part. He shook his head in return and waved it off. She didn't need to hear it twice.

It wasn't that important anyways.

"Well, if you want, you can taste my cooking some time." She offered while watching her childhood friend walk off to relieve the kettle and return the instant cup ramen he held. "We just got to stock the fridge sometime…"

Checking the aforementioned object at her comment, the blonde found himself eyeing the various food and ingredients piled inside. There was just enough to last them a month or two at most with plenty of balanced meals they can cook.

He whistled appreciatively and gestured for her to take a look.

"We won't have to worry about food for a while, this fridge is packed. The academy must've gotten these for us ahead of time… most of the vegetables look fresh from the market."

While he rummaged through the other compartments found within, Rin took to verifying his statement by reading the milk's expiration date. When she was satisfied she placed it back inside and snatched the wrapped up slices of pork he procured.

"How about it?" She asked with a toothed grin. "Want me to cook something up tonight?"

After a thoughtful moment, Naruto shook his head and placed the meat back inside before closing it. While he was curious on how much her cooking had improved, he decided to save the offer for later.

"Let's eat at the cafeteria for now. I wanna see what they can offer us."

Rin pouted, but shrugged nevertheless. "Suit yourself…"

Laughing, he poured her a cup of tea and leaned back on the edge of the counter to sip his own. He allowed her a moment to enjoy hers before continuing on with their previous conversation. Given her personality, she wouldn't just leave Ichika alone for his clueless mistake. There had to be something she had in mind, a punishment of sorts.

"So, back on topic, what do you plan on doing with our 'Forgetful' friend?"

An all too familiar grin made its way across the brunette's lips.

"Nothing too bad…" She confessed innocently. "I'm just going to beat the living crap out of him in the I-S inter-class tournament and then make him my boyfriend."

The blonde blinked. "What?"

"I made a bet with him to see which of us would win." She explained after another sip of her drink. "Whoever ends up top gets bragging rights with the loser granting the winner a wish. Naturally, I'll have him take me out on a date after I've won."

"You can't be serious, Rin!" Naruto cried out. "That fight will be too one-sided, wouldn't it?"

"It'll be fine. He's beaten an instructor in an I-S duel before, right? He'll survive."

He stared incredulously at her offhanded remark before placing a hand on her shoulder and giving her a stern look. This forced the petite brunette to lean back quite a bit.

" Rin… you've got the I-S, skill and experience in spades while he has nothing but his personal I-S. How's that fine to you!"

"H-he already agreed to it so it can't be helped…" She reasoned lamely. "Wouldn't you do the same if you were in his shoes?"

Naruto wanted to retort but found that he couldn't. Regretfully, she was right. Given possible circumstances, he would admittedly accept the challenge. That was one of the few traits he shared with Ichika, and, quite frankly, it was rather depressing in a way…

Still, he just couldn't let his fellow pilot get beat up. There must be another solution to this… even if it's to lessen the supposed 'punishment' to a certain degree.

"Okay, how about giving him a good old slap on the face instead?" He suggested hopefully.

"Done that already."

Well, there goes that plan.

"I… I guess, just… just don't be too hard on him." Naruto relented.

Hey, at least he made an effort to help. There's nothing else he can do now for his fellow male.

"Don't worry, Naruto, I'll give him a handicap. He needs to be healthy for our date, after all. Speaking of which…" It was her turn to regard him sternly. "You'll still help me, right?"

"… Huh?"

"You know…" The brunette twiddled with her fingers shyly as her cheeks suddenly colored a cute pink. "W-with the whole 'supporting my love' thing. You'll help me out, right?"

She glanced at him hesitantly with an uncertain grin and held up a clenched fist; a sign that they were both familiar with. Officially, it's a gesture of greeting and rarely was it used for these occasions, so it surprised him when she brought it up. However, Naruto didn't break a moment and bumped his fist with hers. Even if he felt a little depressed and somewhat amused, the blonde was never the type to break his vows. Especially the ones made to this girl; his one and only childhood friend.

"Of course," He finally said, grinning like he always did. "I made a promised, didn't I? And you know me…"

"…You don't go back on your words." Rin finished with a giggle. "Of course I know you."

Naruto didn't doubt that. With a best friend like him, how could she not forget? They've known each other since they were little and lived under the same roof for several years. There were so many instances that he's repeated his oaths that she had probably taken to memorize most of them. Keeping promises was probably one of his strong points to her.

Both grins widened in unisons as their traditional greeting turned into a formal handshake.

"Please take care of me from today onwards then, Mr. Uzumaki," Rin smiled cutely at him with her tiny fang gleaming against the light. "I look forward to rooming with you."

Naruto chuckled in return and completed their exchange with a last shake.

"The same to you, Ms. Huang. The same to you."

Inside his head his chibi persona waved up a white flag. Ichika… I'm really sorry, my friend. But you're on your own! I wish you luck.

"Now how should I deal with that stupid Ichika? Maybe something like this… or this… or even this?"

The numerous moves that Rin performed with her Partial-Deployment gave Naruto a very bad feeling about next week's tournament. Those blades were huge no matter how many times he's seen it thus far. They also looked freshly sharpened and polished like they had never been used…

On second thought, I'll pray for your safety instead.

Just below their floor, and in a certain room, the aforementioned I-S pilot shivered unpleasantly.

"What's wrong, Ichika?" Houki asked, glancing at him from her bed.

The boy looked around and shook his head for a moment. "I don't know… I felt chilly all of a sudden."

"Maybe the A/C is on too high. I'll go turn it down."

"Yea, thanks." He pulled the covers over himself and snuggled his pillow. "… Though, I don't think it has to do much with the temperature …"

"What was that?"

"Nothing, nothing…"

The next day was one of pure excitement for I-S academy with the arrival of some unexpected news.

Various students gossiped amongst themselves about the rumors found just last night. Their voices rang loudly in some groups while in others they were but whispers—barely capable of carrying words through the halls. Not one broke from the morning's hot topic as the bell rang for class, sending them to their respective rooms.

So it was to Yamada-sensei's great distress to find her class deep in conversations when she first stepped in to greet them. They paid little heed to her presence and instead went about chatting in voices that seemed to grow louder by the minute.

"E-everyone, please listen!" Yamada meekly called out.

The busty teacher tried gathering their attention a second time, but to no avail. Her soft voice, coupled with her shy character, just didn't have the forceful authority that her fellow teacher and friend, Chifuyu, was known to exhibit. Even Ichika had more luck getting some of the students to listen to her albeit only a handful actually stayed quiet.

A clapping sound soon permeated throughout the room, silencing conversations almost immediately. The students glanced up front and quickly straightened upon seeing the older Orimura frowning in disapproval. She had somehow magically appeared inside, eluding some of the most alert and observant students like Shinonono Houki.

"Settle down!" She barked. "You've all already wasted 10 minutes of your class time. Quickly now, take your seats. There is still attendance and some announcements we need to go over before we start."

The students wordlessly hurried to their assigned seats while Chifuyu relieved her friend's teaching post and settled herself behind the front desk.

After all was said and done with the roll call, Chifuyu placed the roster aside and glanced at her students. As expected, the majority was dedicated to their studies while a fair few were far less so; the usual jadedness and sluggish postures commonly seen in most students remained ever present.

Chifuyu frowned and made sure to set a good example of what would happen if they didn't shape up.

"Orimura, pay attention!" She barked sharply, hurling a pen to his head.

"OW!"

The pain-filled cry from the resident male sent the rest of the class in a fit of giggles. Ichika, for his part, clutched his now aching forehead while muttering some light curses directed at his sister. Despite being in I-S academy for a while now he was still getting picked on by her.

"Is this what they call 'tough sibling love'?"

Upon realizing he had spoken out loud, Ichika nervously peeked at his sister. Comments like that insured swift retribution of the physical sorts, so he was very fortunate to see her ignore him altogether in favor of addressing the rest of the class.

"As you all know the inter-class tournament is coming up and there are many preparations taking place around the academy. You may have noticed some areas that were previously accessible before have now become restricted if not closed entirely. This is due in part to the security measurements that the Student Council and the I-S Board of Education recently implemented."

Murmurs broke out among the females as a number of them raised a hand. Chifuyu shook her head and silence them with a look.

"Hold your questions until the end. We won't be able to get through today's lessons if I have to answer them after each one of my announcements…" She paused for a moment to bring up a holoscreen that listed the names and pictures of people native and foreign to the country. "As I was saying, this level of security has its reasons. This year I-S Academy will be hosting a large sum of government officials from around the globe—far bigger than the ones we've received from previous years. Most will be from foreign countries such as China, the US, Russia, New Zealand, South Korea, England, Rwanda, Australia, and many others, that'll be seeking results of the academy's efforts in developing I-S pilots. A few of them may even arrive ahead of schedule and stay for a short period during and after the tournament. Thus the restrictions on some places like the nearby park and the southern ports.

"Worry not, however, this is only temporary and would likely last for a month at most. During that time I expect everyone here to be at their best behavior. You're all not kids anymore, but adults representing your respective country as proud students of this academy. I needn't tell you what you should and shouldn't do… you all know better. Is that clear?"

A collective nod and a loud 'hai' came her reply. They figured that these government officials would need certain places for special gatherings or just recreational activities during their stay. It was understandable. I-S Academy was like an island city with plenty of space to accommodate their business needs. Limiting certain places around the academy for just those purposes was enough to satisfy their curiosity.

"Good. Be sure to keep that in mind." She gave them a stern yet prideful look before continuing on. "Now regarding the coming tournament…

"Many of you have expressed great interest in participating in it during last week's assembly. Although only a select few may participate this year, namely the class representatives, the student council had decided to create a special event for those who didn't make the list. This will be held a couple months from now and will allow a class from each year to participate in a broadcasted project sponsored by the Yukihiro R&D Corporation. I don't know the entire details regarding this, but the student council should provide a full explanation about it in this Friday's assembly."

Another wave of excitement quickly stirred amongst the females. This time they talked freely with Chifuyu's consent.

"Oh! Do you think it'll be a shooting for some sort of I-S movie?" One girl asked out loud.

"I doubt it. The Yukihiro Group is the owner of that corporation–the one that manufactures those I-S toys and collectable products. My guess is it'll be another toy advertisement for the kids."

"But I heard that there particular group also helped develop models!"

"Are you serious?"

"Really? They did?"

The squeals that followed had Ichika burying his ears between his hands. They were bearable before but now they're too loud!

"Uwah~ I always wanted to model for the 'I-S Girls' monthly magazine!" A girl with droopy eyes stated enthusiastically, followed by the shouts of agreement from her fellow classmates.

"I second that thought!"

"Me too!"

"Neh, Orimura-sensei, does this also mean that there'll be another tournament to decide the classes participating?"

The noise died down as the girls turned to their teacher. Chifuyu was conversing with the other green-haired I-S instructor about something and only stopped to answer after sending her away on an errand. She coughed lightly into her fist and took her post in front of them once more.

"Yes," She explained after a brief moment. "It's very likely that they'll include an I-S tournament and perhaps some extra others. Like I've stated before, I'm unclear of the details, so you'll have to wait till the assembly to find out. Or, if you'd like, you can speak directly to the Student Council Vice-President about it. She proposed this idea after all."

"Eh? My sister…?" The sleepy-eyed girl asked in surprise.

"You didn't know, Nohotoke-san?" One of her classmates questioned from behind.

"Yea, this is news to me. I've been so busy with Council duties lately that I haven't gone to a proper meeting in weeks." Nohotoke Honne was genuinely confused as she scratched the back of her head with a sleeve-covered hand. "I assumed this was the President's idea since Onee-chan never mentioned it before. I'll see if I can talk to her during today's Budget meeting."

"Good idea, we're counting on you then!"

The class quickly shifted towards more speculations about the special event coming up. Ichika was even thrown into the conversation by some random comment that pertained to possible rewards for that particular tournament. He would never come to understand why he was unanimously voted for such a thing. Girls were just as confusing as he had thought, once upon a time...

"What am I, some kind of prize?"

One of his classmates giggled. "Nope, you're the consolation prize!"

"They're the same thing!" The male cried out. "Wait, I thought I was the first place prize?"

Chifuyu watched silently before regarding the time.

Class was nearly 30 minutes in and Yamada had yet to return. Whether this is due to some unexplained situation that the green haired klutz can sometimes find herself in, or if the busty teacher was truly having trouble with her task, Chifuyu didn't know. But more importantly, the fact that the subject of her final announcement wasn't here meant that she'll need to skip it and begin class. She'll just have to make do when he arrives.

And hopefully his delay isn't something similar as yesterday...

Chifuyu shifted her attention to the noisy crowd of students and clapped her hands loudly.

"Alright, that's enough! You can continue your discussions after class so return to your seats and let's begin today's lessons. When you're ready, open to page 157 of your 'I-S Fundamentals' text book…"

Naruto didn't know what to think of his current predicament. On one side, he's stuck between two voluptuous women squishing their assets on him, and on the other, his manly pride is in danger of getting flattened by this pink haired woman's knee. And to top things off they're all tangled up in thick white strings and dangling ten-feet above the ground. Should he be happy or afraid about this?

I'm definitely not happy! The blonde mentally screamed.

Today was supposed to be his big day as an I-S pilot in training and a full fledge Konoha Operative performing his first S-rank mission (or at least that's what he wanted to believe.) Just how the hell did he wind up in this mess?

"…Oh yea, it's because Ms. Bunny over here brought out her crazy gadget!"

The woman pouted in response, metallic bunny ears flattening ever so slightly. "There was just a minor malfunction during the deployment sequence, Na-kun. No need to be mad, I'll get it fixed in a sec."

"Like hell you will! You'll just make it worse! I'll get us out…"

The other endowed woman nodded her head vigorously in agreement. Not only was this very uncomfortable, she also lacked the necessary senses to grasp the situation. Was this even Naruto's back in front of her? Why does it look so odd?

"Okay, just scoot your arm over a bit Usagi, and—HELLO!"

Naruto jerked his head to the side and stiffened.

"Y-Yamada-sensei!" He squeaked out. "That's my butt you're touching!"

"!"

The teacher, blushing from embarrassment, flinched away as if stung. This wasn't her fault, she didn't know!

"Don't struggle you two!"

"Ah~n!" A moan suddenly escaped from the purple haired woman. "Naughty Na-kun, we haven't started dating yet."

"You did that yourself damn it! Don't act like I purposely did it!"

After a furious tussle with the other victims of this contraption, Naruto managed to cut them free with his hidden Kunai. Predicatively, they fell on the sidewalk with a grunt, and in Naruto's case, a face full of cement. That's what happens when he was stuck upside down with little room to maneuver and any coherent thoughts blocked by these distracting women. The end-result was unavoidable.

"Such misfortune." He grumbled out as he struggled to rise. "…Can you two get off me?"

"Eep~!" The green haired instructor leaped away and began bowing rapidly… in the opposite direction. "I'm so sorry, Uzumaki-kun!"

The other woman, now clearly identified as the illusive, yet famous scientist, Shinonono Tabane took her sweet time in helping him up.

"There we go! Now wasn't that a pleasant experience?"

Naruto gave her a look. "Usagi-san, I worry about you. Do you have a screw lose or something, 'cause who would find that pleasant?"

"I thought you liked being sandwiched by these?"

The emphasis of her breast caused the blonde to blush and sputter.

"I-I DO NOT!"

Off to the side, the green haired instructor had begun searching for her missing glasses and was desperately feeling the ground for them. With her vision impaired and her distress gone unnoticed—or ignored, which was probably the case here—Yamada was left with little choice but to struggle by herself.

Eventually, she found them near the bushes and was just in time to see the famous scientist make off with the blonde. The good doctor was talking about some experiments and missions for the young teen to do. Yamada didn't quite understand what the woman was going on about, but nevertheless followed suit.

"W-wait, Shinonono-sensei!" She called out. "Where are you taking Uzumaki-kun? He has classes to attend right now!"

They paused with Tabane glancing at her curiously before questioning the blonde. "Is this true, Na-kun?"

Naruto simply pulled out his crumpled schedule and handed it to her.

After a brief look, Tabane released him and pouted. It seemed her plans would have to wait for later. Education does take precedence over her own personal agenda. Likewise, the blonde didn't look too happy about getting dragged around like some ragged doll, so it was best to concede and try again some other time.

Naruto dusted his white uniform and warily regarded the woman next to him. Tabane may have complied with his sensei's unsaid demands, but she had yet to take her leave.

This posed a problem.

The cheery scientist was a trouble magnet whenever he was around, and it's made much worst when she wanted to 'help' him with anything. This often brought him to one question many times before: How the hell did he manage to attract someone like her in the first place? Was he that charming? Was it all those times he's played her personal knight in shining armor during her scientific excursions—those ridiculous missions that should be considered S-rank instead of C? Or was it because he's weirdly attractive…?

The blonde pondered over this thought briefly before reality drew him back. Tabane had taken hold of his uniform and was partly busying herself with a blue holoscreen…

…Wait a tick… a blue holoscreen?

"…What are you doing?" He hesitantly asked, previous experiences already fueling his suspicion.

Tabane's carefree smile was unsettling, leaving him feeling anxious and—to a certain extent—dreadful of the anonymous intentions lurking behind her placid eyes. After all, there's always trouble following smiles directed at him, most especially when it came from this particular woman. It practically painted one of his friends' favorite words: 'troublesome,' in bright neon colors—except this one promised either humiliation or pure pain of sorts. He just knew it!

The blonde turned to the only sensible person in their little group and mouthed a silent cry of 'Help me, sensei!'

"Don't worry Uzumaki-kun, Shinonono-sensei has given us the honor of using an experimental porting device she's created." Her face colored in pleasure as whatever fantasy she conjured overtook reasoning. "I can't believe I'm taking part of an actual experiment ~kya! I'm helping achieve scientific advancement. This is so exciting!"

The blonde's mouth hung open. Did these two come to some kind of agreement with something while I was out of it? Whatever happened to getting to class?

With his last salvation crumbling before him in fits of girlish squeals, Naruto reluctantly braced his problem with the only tactic he knew best…

"Exit stage right!" He abruptly cried out and attempted to bolt towards the school building.

He didn't get very far…

Tabane's surprisingly iron-like grip allowed him two-feet of freedom before he was pulled back to her side. This time he wouldn't be able to escape with any of the techniques he had mind. Not unless he was willing to sacrifice his dignity and quite possibly inflict unintentional harm upon her, then there were no other alternatives he could think of. There's also the fact that he is held in such a way that escape is rather impossible, believe it or not. This doesn't include his lack of subtlety in escaping or his inability to modify memories like his sensei, Kakashi. He's still trying to gain practical experience, damnit! Those missions and training back home weren't thorough enough! Rather, he still had trouble understanding some concepts of the ninja art.

It's a wonder why his senseis; Kakashi and Jiraiya, and even his Baa-chan allowed him to be promoted to his current rank.

But, besides those, Naruto also did not want to look like a pervert in the eyes of the green haired woman who was still off in her own little world. Yamada-sensei was just too darn innocent in his eyes for any of that—his first impression of her being too much of a klutzy house wife.

Really, that Kawarimi no Jutsu should have been perfected ages ago…

Sighing, he glanced up at the sky and asked. "Kami… Do you hate me?"

Not everyone is a pervert waiting for a chance to fulfill their twisted fantasy. Some are actually quite innocent and just end up in very unfortunate situations with the fairer sex due to the unthinkable actions of others (and perhaps some unforeseen circumstances.)

Naruto is one such a person.

The subsequent porting method used not a minute earlier proved to be too accurate and successful for its own good. He now found himself straddling one very red-looking Chifuyu Orimura on the ground, with his hands firmly planted on her ample breasts and sporting a look fostering enough fear to turn his usual tanned skin a pale white.

And yes… it looked like she didn't wear a bra today judging by the feeling beneath his palm.

"I… take it I'm in trouble, huh…?" The blonde managed to croak out.

"You…"

Naruto flinched and braced for the anticipated punch to connect, but, to his found surprise, it never came. In fact, Chifuyu had closed her eyes and looked to be maintaining her composure.

"Um…"

"Get off me Uzumaki." She calmly commanded.

Naruto complied almost instantly, scrambling to his feet and then helping her up. He looked sheepish and guilty for a moment until the deafening silence caught his attention.

"?"

Turning slightly, he finally took notice of the numerous students gaping at him with mixtures of surprise and disbelief. Given his involuntary entrance, Naruto understood why they'd look the way they did, although Ichika's own look of hostility became painfully apparent amongst them. It was like seeing a black wolf sitting in a crowd of bewildered sheep….

"…"

Okay. Make that a disgruntled looking black wolf in a crowd of innocently bewildered sheep.

Scratching his head, he grinned apologetically. This was Usagi-san's fault, not his!

Thankfully, the young Orimura was interrupted before he could reprimand him for molesting his beloved older sister, despite the obvious misunderstanding and/or accidental misfortune…

…Or was it fortune?

"Everyone," Chifuyu called out loudly, shaking them out of their stupor. "It's rather late, but I'd like you all to meet your new classmate who just arrived here yesterday."

Taking that as his cue, Naruto hesitantly stepped forward.

"Um, Yo! Hehe…" He greeted with an awkward laugh. "The name's Uzumaki Naruto, it's uh, a pleasure to meet you all."

And so with his impromptu introduction, Naruto, the "Konoha Operative" and I-S pilot in training, finally began his life in I-S Academy. Whatever adventure awaits him, no one knows. However, one thing is for certain, Orimura Ichika will definitely be waiting for him during break. And Naruto had a feeling he won't be receiving your typical 'warm welcome' between old friends.

Great… just great…

Authors Note:

Alright, that wraps up my first chapter for this story. Hope you all had a good read!

Now to address a few things.

1.)OOCness on some of the characters? They're intentional and it's just for this chapter since I wanted to have some fun with them. Don't hate it, I'll try to set their character straight and develop them properly. Just read and wait.

2.)The special note I mentioned. Well, I've kindly made something uber nice for you readers of mine. Similar to fellow author L33t Horo, I also do my own art, but unlike him I do my fanfics uber slow lol. Sorry about that. But anyways, FANART anyone? Check out my profile and copy/paste the URL I've set in my Naruto/Infinite Stratos Crossover of the fanart section—the one that says COMPLETE. Enjoy the pic of Rin and Naruto I made just for you all to view… well mostly because it was on my mind, but yea, I thought I'd share some visual illustrations :3!

3.)Don't expect an update anytime soon. I'm a slow guy and prefer to work on my own pace. A little bit of encouragement will go along way though… support the other authors of this section and give them some love too xD!

I'd like to thank the following people for submitting stories to this section.

Krimzon-8… DUDE! Hey, thanks for joining in man! Appreciate it! Uh, I also got some problems with some stuff so that thing you requested will take a bit more time, I think.

I-Took-An-Arrow-To-The-Knee... LOL, dude, that's a funny name xD! I like it.

Axel Yamamoto… don't get discouraged, yea? Keep up the updates!

LIGHTNING THIEF… awesome fic man, update soon!

Kur0kishi… I know I've seen you somewhere, but I can't remember… I'll check out your other stories, maybe it'll refresh my memories.

Alchemists19… one of my first reviewers here and now a fellow author of the section. SWEEET :D! I've read a couple chapters before I had to stop and bookmark it for later. I'll leave a review soon!

Imperium Rhomania... welcome to the section bro! Looking forward to your story ;3

Thanks guys! Total awesomeness for your contribution the section. Let's get some more people to join in, yea? Thanks again!

And lastly, Read and Review please! Have a good day.