Well... A while back, on my author profile and in a few A/Ns, I mentioned several 'side projects'. Since One Hour is going very slowly (contrary to my wishes, believe me) in the whole 'winding up the last arc' thing, I figured I'd give my readers- who have been most patient so far- a teaser of things to come. I don't often post things unless they're nearing completion, except for those truly big projects (like OH). This... is one of those. It's not even 1/10th of the way finished, but it's already at 128 novel-length pages... with another 50 pages of notes. In fact, I'd put this story at about 1/20th'complete', and that's only with the loosest of measurements, simply because I don't know when I will stop this one. It doesn't have a definite 'end point' yet... though there are several goals and milestones a reader who slogs through the thing (though I hope it's not actually a slog so much as an eager page-turner, of course) will be, I think, quite rewarded with said milestones.

Anyway, this chapter is largely set-up... but it's set-up for the whole story, and therefore should not be missed. You will see quickly that it is an AU, but from a point of divergence actually in-story. Any 'past' errors in continuity between things previous to "Chap.1" below and canon as of that date are purely my fault, not the fault of my great beta, Mouse... who deserves far more credit than I give him for not just checking my work for errors (which are frequent), but keeping me motivated... though I wish I could motivate him as much. Lol

A final note: The characters list Naruto and Tenten together for a reason. I hate giving out too many spoilers, but yes, through all the twists and turns, that means Naruto and Tenten will be both the primary protagonists (and antagonists), as well as the primary 'ship'. Any long-time reader of mine will know I treat relationships, especially in my writing, as a serious thing. There will be no 'bashing' of any kind, at least in that respect. There will be several honest, heart-felt admissions, confessions, and other agony/angst that have to deal wtih teenage assassins/etc and their fumbling through romance.

And... well, the biggest prank war I've ever read in Fanfiction, ever... and again, I'm only 1/20th done as of this first post.

Edit2: My apologies again to everyone who has read this in the (night) it's been up before this update: It was FFnet that ate the scene breaks, both times, not me, and not my poor beta. This 'should' be a better copy. There are also a few instances (several) of no spaces after italics that I edited in my hard copy MONTHS ago... but that are still in this copy. I took out what I could, but... probably didn't catch them all. Anyone kind enough to review or PM me with a list will receive a possible internet cookie... or something real, if shipping isn't too much. lol

Chap. 1 Meeting of Tides

"Hey, Ero-Sennin, why're we going this way, anyway? I mean, couldn't we at least have stopped in the town since we're going through Nami no Kuni anyway? Don't you want to see the bridge they named after me?"

The older of the two men snorted, "Kid, if I had a ryo for every time some two-bit bridge was named after me... I'd have about ten koku."

Naruto, the younger of the two, narrowed his eyes, "Okay, first of all, it's not a two-bit bridge. It's about eight kilometers long. Second, name onebridge- that I can prove on a map- named after you, you old pervert."

The white-haired man attempted to smack the blonde on the back of the head, but missed. "I thought I told you not to call me that. I'm a superpervert, not just some run-of-the-mill loser. And we're going this way because I want to. I... used to know people from Uzu."

"Uzu? I didn't know there was a country named Uzu. Or is it a town?"

Again, Jiraiya snorted, "It's neither. Not any more. Uzushiogakure, the Village Hidden in the Maelstrom, or Whirlpool Village, was destroyed about twenty years ago. They were widely regarded as some of the most dangerous ninja in the world, and that made them a lot of enemies. During the Third Great Ninja War, several nations gathered together and wiped them out. There were only a few survivors. I know of... three, I think, and one of them has been dead for fifteen years. That's my old friend."

"Who was he?" Naruto asked, before thinking that it might be a sensitive subject. Jiraiya, while very loose-lipped much of the time (at least about inconsequential things), was very touchy about what he considered off-limits.

"She, actually..." the sage responded wistfully, staring off into the distance over a mountain they were slowly passing.
"She?" Naruto prompted, now thoroughly intrigued, "Is this the one you've been pining over for years?"

Again, the blonde almost got slapped on the head. "No, stupid gaki. She was way too young for me. More like my daughter than anything like that. She was amazing, though, one of the strongest kunoichi I ever knew. On Tsunade's level, if not quite as , maybe stronger, if she really got into it. She was from Uzu, one of the most influential families. She was brought to Konoha a few years before the attack due to... certain events. Maybe twelve? I forget exactly how many years, but she was pretty young. Basically raised there. She was very close to one of my students, too."
"Which one?"

But Jiraiya didn't answer. Fortunately for Naruto, he knew when the old man was lost in his memories, or unwilling to give out that information no matter how much he begged. Still, this was a lot of new information he'd already given out. He must really have liked the woman- whoever she was- to spill this much so easily.

"Hey, Ero-Sennin," he said a few minutes down the trail, "I see a campfire. Should we investigate?"
Jiraiya blinked, "Campfire? Out here? This trail doesn't see much use. I don't see why not- let's check it out."

(O)(O)(O)

Tenten yawned. It had been a very long day. Week, really. At least the mission was over, and they were going home. Now, if only there happened to be a nice Onsen just down the road... but no. They had to make do with sleeping in filthy, bloody clothes. Dirty, sweaty... at least, she rationalized, she didn't have to share a tent with Gai and Lee. Who knewhow much those jumpsuits reeked after the week Team Gai had had? "Poor Neji," she whispered, poking idly at the fire she was about to start cooking dinner on. As soon as the Hyuuga she'd just mentioned returned with fish, anyway.
Speak of the devil... "Here," the stoic Jonin said, handing her a collapsible fishing spear with six trout neatly skewered on it, "there is a small lake not far to the east, toward the larger mountain. The fish are plentiful. Are the others still training?"

Tenten nodded at her teammate, "Yeah, they are. Thanks for these- how do you want yours?"

Neji shrugged, "I find your cooking acceptable regardless. If you don't mind, I'll start setting up the tents. I'd rather get to sleep before those two come back and smell up the interior."

Tenten giggled at the parallel line of thought, "I'd offer for you to stay in mine tonight, but I only brought my small one, sorry. Not enough room for two."

He nodded, "I understand. Thank you for the sentiment. Nonetheless, I would have had to turn the offer down. It would be... improper."
The kunoichi rolled her brown eyes, "Improper? Neji, we've shared tents like fifteen times just this last year. Unless something's changed? Are you finally starting to think of me as more than just a teammate?"

His face immediately turned bright red, much like his younger cousin did when Naruto was too close, and he looked away. She snickered. While she certainly found the Hyuuga attractive (very, if she were honest), she had long since gotten over her infatuation. He was extremely noble, friendly in a distant sort of way, and all-in-all a very good catch... but she'd simply had enough of that. It was like... "Neji, you know I'm never going to ask you out again, right? And I'd say no if you asked me?"

... well, thatdidn't come out exactly as she'd wanted it to. At least the necessary information got across...

The white eyes of his Clan widened slightly, before he looked away and down, still blushing. "I- I don't- I'm afraid I don't have any idea what you mean."

This time, she actually rolled her eyes, "Look, Neji- we both know I had a big crush on you a few years ago. And I think- feel free to correct me if I'm wrong- that you're starting to feel a bit about that way to me, now. But I'm sorry, I've moved on. I just don't think of you that way any more."
Fighting to maintain some semblance of notblushing, Neji stammered, "Th-th-that w-way? You mean, you've, uh- moved on- wait, you've moved on? Who? Who is he?"

Before she could respond that he had misunderstood, a loud cry of "Our beautiful flower, Tenten, has found true love! Can it be, Gai-Sensei? Has the full Power of Youthmade itself known to our favorite female teammate?!"

"I think it has, Lee! Tenten," their Jonin leader called out (far too boisterously) as the two green-clad ninja crashed into the camp, "You must tell us who your admirer is, so that we can ascertain his worthiness!"

A feminine, if very calloused, hand slapped Tenten's face before being drug slowly downward, "Thanks, Neji, just what I needed..." then, turning toward the spandex-clad pair (who she referred to, in her head, as "the ambiguously gay duo" more often than not), "Look, I don't have anyone in particular. I'm just- I don't- I'm over Neji. That's all I meant."

The resulting cries that they would make the other Jonin on the team suffer for whatever he'd done, or that (apparently) were meant to console her 'broken heart' were still going on twenty minutes later, when a highly-amused, if confused, pair of ninja wearing Konoha headbands walked into the camp.

"Hey, you guys! Long time no see!"

Tenten suddenly wanted to burst into tears (well, more than she had already). If she could have chosen anyone in Konoha, anyone, that would have heard that last few second's conversation, it would not have been the one who had. She would have chosen Sakura. Lady Tsunade. Shizune. Hell, she would have chosen Ino, widely considered the biggest gossip in town, over the one boy who could not keep his mouth shut. The one boy who, even though he'd been gone for more than two years, just had to show up, right then, right when she least wanted anyone to overhear.

The one boy who was walking into the clearing, looking taller, more rugged, more manly, than he ever had be- wait. No, no, Tenten was not going to think about that. Not going to think about Uzumaki Naruto, sometime Village pariah, sometime Village hero, that way. He was just a friend- a distant friend, and she'd like him to stay that way. Even if his open expression and sheer happiness made Neji look like... well.. Neji, in comparison.

"Oh... Hi, Naruto. It's been a while. What's up?"

Across the small fire, Neji's eyes closed in what Tenten thought was a combination of suppressed happiness, frustration, and annoyance. A moment later, when they opened, a small smile graced the Hyuuga's face. "Naruto... it's good to see you. Come, sit down."

Apparently, then, the conversation was over. Well, Tenten could live with that. Hell, she was happyabout it. The sooner Neji realized he had no chance with her any more, the happier she'd be. Even if it still hurt her; she was sticking to her guns. She was a kunoichi, a warrior, not a love-sick teenager. She'd made the right decision.

That, if nothing else, she was absolutely sure of.

Well... that, and not wanting Naruto to know anything about the previous conversation, of course.

"So, Naruto," Tenten asked, forcing a vague smile on, "how've you been? I heard you and Jiraiya-sama have been travelling all over while you train."
"We have," said the blonde as he dropped his pack a few feet away with a groan and settled himself next to Neji. As soon as he'd sat, he immediately leaned over and punched the stoic older teen in the shoulder. Fairly hard, if Neji falling off his stone seat was any indication.

"Why did you do that, Naruto," he asked, with a long-suffering sigh.

The blonde grinned, "'Cause I haven't seen you in forever! I wanted to see if you got any stronger, duh!"

Meanwhile, the green-clad duo had fallen completely into repeated "Lee!", "Gai-Sensei!" comments. Fortunately, over the last two years Tenten had learned to essentially ignore this part of the process. And that's what it was, she now knew- a process. They would begin with some random thing that sparked off the "Youth" spiel. Perhaps Gai-Sensei scolding Lee, or Lee doing something nice for someone, or something of that nature. It could be anything, really. It then proceeded to loud screams about the fires of youth. From there, to pronouncements that no sane man would attempt, challenges that even the hardiest would flinch at. After the bets against themselves- it was never just one, if the two were together, they spurred each other on that way- which frequently ascended to the truly ludicrous within minutes, the pair would descend from the heights of volume and 'manliness' to the very depths of hell. Or, as (some) others called it, the heights of every yaoi-fangirl's dreams.

Tenten, being relatively sane and not a member of 'that' faction (she liked the guys who liked the girls, thank you very much- being a girl herself), usually did her best to ignore the sparkling sea, the shining sunset- no matter the time of day or night- when they appeared. The cries of admiration, faith in the other's abilities, and the endless name-repeating were harder to play off, but she did her best.

Naruto, it seemed, had recognized the symptoms as well. He and Lee were, she thought, good friends. They trained together weekly before he'd left,and probably would again. They had been, and probably still were, rivals for the affections of one Haruno Sakura, but hey, nobody was perfect.

Still, the blonde was ignoring Lee and Gai with the best of them. That got him a few points in her book, so he could be forgiven for assaulting her other teammate. Maybe she'd give him a few more if he assaulted the loud ones...

"You could have just asked me, Naruto. Now I'll have a bruise for a few days. Thanks for that."

Naruto had the good grace to look a bit sheepish; he rubbed the back of his head- just like he used to, she noted- before muttering, "Yeah, sorry about that... I'm still used to thinking you're a tough guy. I always forget I beat you last time we fought, so I must be stronger."
Tenten couldn't stop the smile that grew on her face.

Neji, it seemed, couldn't stop the scowl- so Tenten's smile got wider.

"Oh, yeah," she exclaimed, "that fight was awesome. Even Iwas rooting for you by the end, Naruto! And I had the biggest crush on Neji at the time!"
Nothing wrong with letting Naruto know I don't anymore, if he's interested... right? Who knows. Maybe it'd work out? If I can steal him from Hinata's clutches, anyway. Or that ramen girl, Ayaka or whatever her name is. Maybe that'll keep him from gossiping about my lack of a romantic life. Maybe.

"Heh, thanks- but you should've been rooting for your teammate, right, Neji?"

He didn't respond except to climb back onto his rock, but Lee and Gai chose that moment to break from their own 'issues'. In a flash of forest green, the two were on either side of Naruto (Lee crowding in between he and Neji, forcing the white-eyed ninja to move away in disgust at the other's proximity).
"Naruto-kun! How amazing! Your kindness and support of Neji, even after not seeing him for two years, astounds me! You are truly the best of people, Naruto-kun!"

Gai joined in, "Indeed, Lee! Naruto is filled with the power of raging youth! Lee, you shall have to double your efforts! When we arrive home, you will help fifty old ladies cross the street in the first ten minutes!"

"Hai, Gai-Sensei! And if I cannot, I will walk five hundred dogs! I will clean out the Inuzuka kennels for free! I will-"

"Hey, Lee," Naruto said, interrupting the bowl-cut teen. He repeated the gesture of a fist to the shoulder, but the other's reflexes allowed him to not only dodge, but counter with a left hook to Naruto's jaw.

As the blonde sprawled out on the ground, a booming laugh from behind Tenten filled the clearing. "Ha! That's what you get, Gaki! You should know better than to attack one of Gai's students!"

"Oh, I'm so sorry, Naruto-kun!" Lee cried, attempting to help him up.

Laughing, Naruto reached out for the extended arm, but after he'd grasped Lee's wrist, both legs, one after the other, swept the leg-warmer protected ones out from under the older ninja.

In moments, the two were sparring excitedly, both laughing, while they kicked up dust, leaves, and twigs from the edge of the campsite all over the cooking fish."Damn it, Lee, Naruto! Go fight awayfrom the food! I'm giving you two the dirtiest ones!" Tenten yelled with a glare sent in their direction.
"Heh, he never changes," the white-haired, big man said as he slowly sat next to Gai, "Well, some of him did while we were gone, but he's still the same brat I left Konoha with. How're you holding up, Gai? Last I saw, you were still in the hospital watching over Lee's surgery. I can see it was a success, but were there any complications? How's his training and strength been impacted by it? I know there was a lot of damage, Tsunade-hime was pretty worried about even risking the surgery."

The tall man smiled, resuming a respectful position near the Sannin, "It went perfectly. Lady Tsunade performed the surgery without issue, even as complicated as it was. With Shizune-dono's help, it went better than we could have hoped. In fact, Tsunade-sama was able to reinforce the bones so that it will be slightly harder for him to suffer a similar injury again!"

Jiraiya nodded, "That's good to hear. So, what's been going on in Konoha these days? The last message I got from Tsunade-hime mentioned something about the Chunin exams coming up?"

Tenten, knowing it would be rude to interrupt the senior ninja, listened with half an ear while she watched Naruto and Lee spar. The two really were amazing.

Each in their own way were, she thought, better than even Neji, and he was the very best of them in straight-up combat, as far as she knew. At least, in terms of lethality. Without chakra use, Lee would probably flatten the Jyūken style Neji used.

But Naruto... where had he learned that? He wasn't even striking atLee with his hands, but instead was practically flying through the air, legs both spinning. Occasionally they moved together, often separately, and once or twice a minute in totally different orbital planes. In fact, if she counted...
One, two, three... four. Four times, in the space of an entire minute, his feet touched the ground. But Lee, even with all his speed, seemed hard-pressed to hold off Naruto's strange attack. The power and reach of the blonde, who was now as tall as Neji she thought, and his legs easily outmatched the length of Lee's arms. And the unorthodox style...

"-in three months. Suna will be sending three teams this time, five from Kumo, two from Mizu, and I believe three from Iwa as well. Konoha, unfortunately, only has two teams registered this year. The crop from the smaller Hidden Villages seems to have made up for it, however."

Jiraiya nodded, staring at the fire, "I need to find two more Genin. You know any two that're ready to graduate, but don't have a full team that's ready?"

Tenten frowned. Perhaps she should pay more attention to the conversation, because it seemed rather strange that Jiraiya would need two Genin. What could they do that he, or he and Naruto, couldn't handle?

Naruto's right foot jumped off of Lee's outstretched left elbow, spinning him backwards on an axis roughly level with Lee's forehead. The blonde's other foot lashed upward, using the momentum of the spin to fling the heel through an opening in the bushy-eyebrowed youth's defense, straight at his chin. With a resounding crack, he flew across the clearing, landing against a tree several feet away.

Naruto chuckled, "Heh, sorry 'bout that, Lee. You'll probably get me next time, now that you've had a chance to see my new style."

Shaking his head to clear the sudden cobwebs (Tenten, after seeing his neck bend like it had from the side, wondered how he hadn't broken it), Lee staggered forward, smiling widely. "Truly, Naruto, your flames of youth are more powerful than ever! We shall have to train again soon!"

"Heh heh, any time, Bushy-brow!" Naruto replied, before moving over to the fire again. Seeing that his spot had been taken up by Gai, the blonde instead plopped himself down next to Tenten.

Instead of engaging her in conversation, though, he listened to Gai telling his own Sensei about the news in Konohagakure, for which she was grateful- she wanted to hear it, too. Much of what was being discussed was news to her, since she was not a Jonin.

"Anyway, I don't know how everyone else has done, but Naruto's ready, I think. I'd like him to take the exam again, but we need a team. He's not ready to compete alone, after all, even if Konoha's rules allowed it. I guess if we can't find one he can wait six months for the Kumo exams, but..."

"Who's made Chunin now, anyway?" Naruto asked the group at large.

It was Neji who answered, surprisingly, with just a touch of smug gloating in his voice, "Everyone. Everyone but you, that is. Hinata-sama, Inuzuka-san, Aburame-san, Team Ten, Sakura-san, and all of our team have been promoted. I myself just reached the rank of Jonin a month ago."

Naruto's eyes widened, "You're a Jonin? Already? That's awesome, Neji! Congratulations!"

A moment later, though, his eyes fell. Though he didn't say anything, Tenten immediately knew what the problem was. "Don't worry, Naruto," she said soothingly, "You'll make it this time. You've had the very best training in the Elemental Nations for two years, right? How could you fail? Just because you haven't been home to take the exams doesn't mean you're weaker than anyone else. You did just beat Lee in a spar, remember?"

"Oh. Ha ha- yeah, I forgot about that. I guess I am pretty amazing, even if I am just a Genin still... Of course, as long as you guys don't order me around too much, it'll be all right. I can go straight from Genin to Hokage if I have to, right?"

Silence fell over the campsite for a few seconds, before Jiraiya muttered, "Moving right along... So aside from the upcoming exams, what's the news from the Hokage's office? How's the political situation?"

For the next hour, Gai briefed Jiraiya and Naruto on the current goings-on of Konoha, the Hokage's office, and the Ninja Council.

It was quite late when the group of them, having assigned watches between them (meaning that, instead of a two-hour watch, each only had one and a half hours- yay!), Tenten crawled into her tent, grateful to avoid the three tents full of snores, and that she had the last watch- meaning she'd get more sleep than anyone else, even if she had to wake up first.

(O)(O)(O)

"Tenten! Tenten, it is time to wake up! Your watch began five minutes ago!"

Bleary-eyed, the brunette rose to her elbows, looking upward at Lee's bright face. "It's too early for you to be so happy," she groaned. "Fine... give me three minutes to wake up. I won't go back to sleep... you may as well crawl back to bed, though. Actually... you know what, use mine. It's warm... just don't get it dirty or fart in it."

"That is all right, Tenten! I appreciate the offer," he whispered, "but I am quite dirty. I will simply use my own. Enjoy your watch!"

She nodded, grumbling softly to herself, while she put on her sandals, strapped her weapon pouch(es, six of them, counting the four holdout pouches she wore) on, and finished with her headband before crawling out of the small tent.

She caught the end of Lee's sandal moving into the boy's larger tent as she left.

Ten minutes later, she had rolled up her bedroll, taken down the tent, and sealed the whole thing- in a mess, since she could sort it out much more easily during daylight hours at her apartment in two days- and blown the coals from last night's fire back into a small blaze.

She sighed, "Just seventy minutes left... Don't fall asleep, Tenten. It's not that long, just an hour and a half."

But it was no use, and she knew it. Last watch was usually her favorite, but they'd all stayed up late talking, so she'd only gotten about six hour's sleep total, after a long and grueling mission.

"Have to wake up... and I stink. Neji caught fish, should I just go take a bath?"

It took all of a few seconds for her to decide that she could keep watch just as well from a couple dozen feet away through the trees.

She was, after all, Tenten, and it was not hard to rig up a few string-and-bell traps that most Jonin would be unable to detect..

Another ten minutes later, she heard water lapping at stones, and moved more slowly. The clearing had had a little starlight and moonlight filtering in; but later, at the edge of the water, the moon had set, and the forest was more dense. Gingerly, she groped around for her easy-access glow-stick, and cracked it open. Moments later, a soft blue light filled the area, and Tenten grinned.

It wasn't just a stream; the water stretched farther than her light reached. At once, she started depositing her scrolls, weapon pouches, and eventually clothes on the largest patch of horse-tails she could find.

Slipping in, she found the water cold, but not freezing, given that it was mid-summer. "Ah, that feels so nice," she moaned, moving in further. The slope dropped rapidly, and she could feel fish- fish who likely had never learned to fear humans- slipping in between and around her legs as she went. One slithered right through the joint of her legs, but vanished with a splash on the surface when she giggled at the tickling sensation.

The sun was just starting to rise when Tenten decided it was probably a good time to get dressed and head back- but first, she'd wash her clothes a bit. They could dry on the road.

(O)(O)(O)

Naruto woke with a yawn. The hand stretched out across his too-large-for-just-one tent would, on any night previous to the second night of his training trip, gotten him in trouble with Jiraiya- or whoever he was sharing a tent with. Now, though, the Sage had wised up and made sure he slept on his own. He got hit less in the night that way. Both of them did, to be honest, because Jiraiya tossed and turned a lot as well, unless he'd been drinking heavily.

Speaking of drinking heavily... he had to pee. Badly.

With a yawn, he stretched and stepped out of the tent, clad only in his ramen-bowl boxers and frog-had, which was now frayed and worn so badly one eye and one tooth- the opposite- had come completely off. Without pause to think that Tenten had the last watch and that he was wandering around mostly-undressed, he headed toward where Neji had said last night that the fish had come from. Streams meant for safe(r) bathrooms for everyone, right? After all, the water just moved everything away...

No, Naruto at six in the morning was not one to care much for the health of anyone or anything down-stream of his... stream.

He could just see the hint of lightness on the horizon through the trees, beyond the mountain. Yes, he could hear the water splashing now- it must have been a vigorous little stream, though the splashing was irregular.

Not long now, he was almost there, he could almost... ah, hell with it. This tree was as good as any. He'd just have to make sure he didn't step on the wet patch with his bare feet after he'd taken a quick dip to wash the trail-grime off...

(O)(O)(O)

Tenten stood, arched her back, getting it to pop four times, and yawned again. Her clothes were, if not clean, at least cleaner. In a minute or ten, she'd put them on and then head back to camp, hopefully with a few fish in tow. As soon as she unsealed her own fishing spear.

But first, she'd watch the sunrise over the mountain. In the gathering light, she could see this would be an idyllic little spot for fishing. She'd have to remember it if she ever went through Wave again.

Five minutes later, she was still watching the sunrise, having long-since forgotten she was totally nude, standing a little over knee-deep in a large pool, with only a single good-sized tree in arm's reach for cover, from which her clothes were currently hanging.

Why?

Simple, really- Tenten was a sucker for four things. Weapons, sunrises, fortune-telling (hey, everyone needs a hobby!), and ancient ruins. The fact that the sun was currently rising over the most amazingancient ruins she'd ever seen was just the icing on the cake.

"Wow..." she breathed, the first word- the only word- that had entered her brain since the ruins were revealed in all their glory.

Perhaps twenty meters away, a small island in the middle of the lake- not pool- held two gigantic, wooden -orange in the sunrise- structures that must once have been the bracings of a colossal tower.

Another twenty or so meters beyond, a spire of similar make rose into the sky. It was not complete, that much was obvious, but the pilings, or whatever they were, rose more than sixty meters into the sky. It was square, at least on the ground, but leaned slightly to the left, as if it had been nearly pushed over in a titanic battle. To the left, another few pieces, each wider than she was tall, she was sure, lay half-out of the water where they'd landed after being knocked off the nearer structure. The more flimsy walls, roof, and likely framing braces had rotted away, leaving only the strongest parts of the superstructure intact with the passage of years.

She was still admiring it, in fact, when one tall, blonde young man came up behind her.

"Oh, hi Tenten. I just came for a bath. You don't mind if- you... you also came for a bath. I'll... I'll just be going now."
It took a moment for the situation to sink in, distracted as she was.

Even so, she was a member of Team Gai. Naruto made it precisely six steps before her Grand Fireball caught him.

Unfortunately, it also caught her clothes... and her scrolls containing her tent, her backup clothes, and... oh crap. "N- Naaruuutoooooo!"
"I'm sorry, I didn't meantopleasedon'tkillmeEro-SenninhelpmepleaseohKamiI'mtooyoungtodie!"

She caught up to the ninja- who had a singed back and was nearly as naked as she was, though otherwise none the worse for wear- just at the edge of the clearing. Her tackle drove him to the ground face-first, with her on top. Both fists curled into his hair, yanked upwards, and brutally slammed his face into the ground.

Before she could do so again, however, a clapping sound echoed throughout the clearing.

"Nice job, Naruto!" Jiraiya said, beaming at his student, "Not only is she a total babe, but she's rough in the sack, too! You did well, my apprentice, I'm so proud!"

This strange tableau is what Neji, Lee, and Gai all stuck their heads from the shared tent to see.

A moment later, Neji was cursing himself for not scooping up Tenten when he had the chance.

Gai was back in the tent, scrubbing at his eyes, whispering to himself that she was 'his cute student, not his stunning student'.

Lee, being Lee, had blushed furiously and slammed his eyes shut, before shouting to the heavens, "I am so sorry, Tenten! I have closed my eyes! If you would put some clothes on, I will be happy to accept any punishment you want for seeing you in all your youthful glo-"

The last part was cut off by Tenten, who had thrown one of the charred fish-heads from last night straight into his open mouth.

While Lee choked inside the tent, the brunette turned her attention back to the white-haired old man, who was still allowing his eyes to rove all...all over her... naked... body. Oh Kami...

"Jiraiya-sama," she said calmly, slowly standing up from Naruto's- oh no, she'd been sitting on Naruto's ass without so much as her own underwear on... at least he'd had his... "If I find that so much as a hint of this morning's events make it into a page of your... your trash- E.V.E.R.-I'm sure that Lady Tsunade would be most appreciative of your punishment at my hands. Do I make myself clear?"

Naruto watched as, displaying wisdom he would never have guessed the old pervert possessed, Jiraiya assured the furious young woman that he would never write so much as a word of it to anyone. Ever.

Of course, the way the beady little eyes tracked her swaying buttocks as she walked away toward the lake again gave lie to that... but Naruto, having just had a nose broken for nothing worse than stumbling across a naked kunoichi in the woods, was feeling rather unsympathetic. Maybe after he'd straightened it and it healed, he would feel a little worse.

Maybe.

"Heh," Jiraiya said in a low voice after she'd moved out of earshot, "that girl has a nice ass. If I was thirty years younger... I really am proud of ya, kiddo. She's a good catch."

Naruto scowled, "That bith! Fee brot by dose!"

Jiraiya didn't seem to notice. A moment later, his notebook was in Naruto's hands, pencil included. "Write down every word. I'll pay you triple. That scene was gold. Quadruple if you can get the details from before you got here. I heard the fireball before you started running this way, it must have been good."

Grumbling, Naruto acquiesced. After all, quadruple was, at his current going rate with the old pervert, about sixty thousand ryo per book he helped write. And since he'd now helped with two... what was one more? What Tenten didn't know wouldn't hurt her. He'd just change a few details, and no one would be the wiser. Right? Besides, she owed him one for his nose.

Idly, he reached up one hand and cracked it into place once it'd stopped bleeding. Of course, that started it up again, but he was careful to keep the crimson stream off the pages.

Because Jiraiya was right; as crazy as it was, that scene was undoubtedly hot. He could feel everything. He had seen everything. And Tenten? Yeah, she had an amazing ass. He'd been able to look for about a minute before his stupid mouth had, without permission from his conscious mind, opened it's stupid self up with that lame excuse of an announcement and gotten him in trouble.

After all- it wasn't his fault she'd been standing there in the nude. He had just taken the opportunity that had come. It was perfectly justified... right?
Thirty seconds after he'd handed the notebook back, congratulated Jiraiya as to his workaround for 'not writing a word of it', and ducked back into his tent to get dressed (and hopefully wipe the streak of blood from his chest before doing so), Naruto heard a scream. "My clothes!"
He snickered. "You did it, not me, Tenten. Sorry."

(O)(O)(O)

At breakfast, which was nearly an hour late, no one dared to speak a word to the lone kunoichi at the campfire. No one (save Naruto) dared even look in her direction.

Because she had had no clothing survive the fireball.

Naruto? She wouldn't ask for his if her life depended on it, not right then. Jiraiya? No. Just... no.

Neji, curse him, had only brought two pairs, and one was soaked in blood from their earlier battles.

And Lee, or Gai...

But she'd had no choice. So she was wearing a (thankfully freshly laundered and clean) green jumpsuit. She'd foregone, at least, the orange ankle-warmers. But she was still wearing that green spandex travesty.

And she hated it.

Hated Naruto for making her wear it.

Hated herself for the fireball.

No, she was not having a good day.

Neither was Neji, because he was still getting a rather good view of what he's lost his chance at.

Gai and Lee, though, seemed to think this was what they'd been waiting for. There was no doubt in their minds that, now that she'd finally put one of the training suits on, Tenten would join them as the ambassadors of youth to the world.

Jiraiya, being most familiar with the region, had (as senior Jonin present) tasked the group with a side-mission. They would explore the ruins, see what was what, before returning home. After all, neither team was in any particular hurry. They had a day or two to kill before they had to hurry home. And yes, despite the fact that he was three times (truthfully, more) her age, he was eyeing Tenten's figure quite a lot himself.

Naruto, though, was alternating between heaven and hell.

Hell because he was out of ramen- his supply had mysteriously disappeared while Tenten was throwing on the spandex- and Tenten had, rather unnecessarily he thought, 'dropped' his food in the dirt. Then stomped on it, ground it in with her heel, and spat on it for good measure. After that, she'd said, unconvincingly, "Oops. Sorry, Naruto!", bent down and handed over the now-ruined fish. Of course, that just meant he was hungry. Even he wouldn't eat that.

He was really hungry, though, so hell it was.

It was probably a good idea he'd turned and run before Tenten had faced him at the pool. Naruto was fairly certain that, had the brunette noticed the bulge in his trousers her shapely rear had caused, he'd have received far worse a punishment than a weak fireball and ruined breakfast.

... But it had been worth it. Definitely.

Of course, he was also watching Tenten stalk ahead of him in green, form-fitting spandex. And that was a treat, no matter how he looked at it, because, well... not to put too fine a point on it, or beat a dead horse, but she really did have a rather well-shaped posterior. Over-the-top kunoichi training will do that, he supposed.

There were also occasional spikes of increased (though still simultaneous) heaven and hell. Because every once in a while, Tenten would turn and glare at him with a look of utter loathing. That wasn't fun, because she was a fierce lady, and scarier than anyone he knew aside from Sakura.

But there was also the profile view those looks presented of Tenten in green, form-fitting spandex... and that was always nice, too.

How had he never noticed? Tenten, despite not having Sakura's or Hinata's exotic features, or Ino's rather full figure, was easily up there with them in the looks department.

But he certainly noticed now... and it wasn't just because he'd seen her in the buff, either.

Though that had started the process of opening his eyes- very widely- of course.

"Well, well..." Jiraiya said, having stopped at the edge of the lake to look out over the ruins, "I thought this place was gone for good. Naruto, Team Gai- welcome to Uzushiogakure. Or what's left of it, anyway."

Naruto's heart skipped a beat, though he didn't know why.