Without giving them a way to open their mouth, Naruto began his lecture.

"Let's start with you, Haruna: I'd like that you explain to Ako, that surely doesn't know, the "beautiful" technique that you were going to use against her. Come on, we're listening. "

The teenager knew she made a big, big mistake. She was frustrated, angry, and she could not conceive that not only the teacher, but even her own teammates were enemies! This, however, and she knew it, did not justify "the experiment" that she wanted to do: she hoped that would pass unnoticed. Instead, on the contrary, Naruto understood right off the bat... Haruna feared that she had seriously compromised her chances of finally becoming a ninja. Bowing her head and trying to suppress the flow of tears that started as soon as she realized her impending end, said in a weak voice: "Well, that should be the Sen'ei Tajashu... That would be a technique, ahem, not exactly legal..."

"Let's just say prohibited. You learned it from Anko-san? "

"N-no sensei... I just seen her doing that. Come on, is not so dangerous... It doesn't do so much, it's just a matter of shooting lotsa snakes from an arm..."

Pathetic attempt to apologize, she realized herself.

"Very bad description. Probably I'm not the best ninja around concerning the study and the description of jutsu... No, to be precise I believed to be the worst one... till now. You are worse than me! The shadow snake hands it 's like an evocation ... No, it IS an evocation. And you know what happens when a summoner does not have enough experience to control what goddamn creature he evokes? "

"Ahem, well... Dunno .."

Usually it ends badly. Veeeery badly. Haruna couldn't make a positive guess about the details, but surely, she would be in a huge pile of s**it... Obviously, she had not the courage to say that.

"I'll give you a brief summary for all I know: the frogs laugh at you, or make you realize that you have disturbed them. Maybe, while jeering, they give you a full and healthy ration of punches, out of gratitude. In snails' case, they look at you, then shake their antennas and just go, brooding about the insensitiveness of youngsters. For the subjects of prince Aoda, who rules the snakes from Manda's death, try to guess what they do to you when you find them on a bad day? You have three chances out of four that they will try to eat you alive... DAMN! BAKA! YOU SCARED ME TO DEATH! I WAS AFRAID THAT SOMETHING MIGHT HAPPEN TO YOU! YOU UNDERSTAND THAT?!"

Naruto shouted increasingly louder. He was so riled up that he did not noticed that the girl was trying to retain some rebellious tears. There was no need to insist further... But he didn't finish. It was time to remove that spiteful know-it-all smile "I had nothing to do with her", of the other two.

"Don't even start to think that you are oh so good and oh so pure, miladies! You arrived to block each other; no, my mistake... what I saw wans't just blocking... That was killing intent for heaven's sake! What did you have in mind? YOU MAKE ME SICK!"

Finally, he managed to disrupt the certainties of the other two, clearly dumbfounded.

He continued: "Have you by chance heard, vaguely, maybe in some of your dreams, of teamwork? The first requirement, in battle, is to have blind belief that, whatever the goal, your mates will never betray you. Hanabi! If in the battle with the juubi, your sister, let's say for example, was in difficulty and I had had to choose between saving her and charge against the enemy? You, in my place, what would you have done? Ako! Suppose that instead of Hinata there was your cousin Genma. Would you really have acted only after ruthlessly evaluating pros and cons, little cynical brat? You know what Kakashi-san said to me, exactly when I was your age, exactly in this same place? In the world of ninja who does not respect the rules and laws it is considered scum. But who does not take account of their peers is the worst kind of scum... I made myself clear? "

"Yes, sensei...": dejected answer.

"I really hope so."

The rumbling belly of all three, warned that while shouting to them, the girls were dying of hunger. He relaxed for a moment, then said, pointing to the three bento boxes: "Well, I give you a second chance, but before you have to eat. You have an hour break. Ah, not you Haruna. Reflect on your actions with an empty stomach."
After concluding sentence, he took with him, with a very eloquent gesture, one of the three boxes.

The girl tried to argue without conviction "S-sensei, to tell you the truth, even now I cannot even move a muscle..."

"You should have thought about it before trying to kill yourself with that damned technique, my beauty. Now I hafta go, I have some business to attend to. C'ya later."

Hanabi and Ako began to eat, slowly and quietly. Both, despite not wanting to admit it, definitely were shocked, especially after the "you make me sick!" of their sensei. Well, sensei not for long, to be honest. After seeing what Naruto was able to do, and without even asking a hand to the fox, they were quite demoralized.

They were diverted from their thoughts by the mighty roar of Haruna's stomach, which was in serious danger of eating itself. Trying, without much success, to make it stop hardening her abs, she timidly justified: "Anko finished the red bean soup last night, so well, that is to say, I skipped dinner as well..."

Ako looked up at the sky and, as Sasuke did long ago, said the last famous words: "Keep my leftovers, baka with a metabolical disease...", offering her bento.
Hanabi started to say something, but Shiranui stopped her: "How do we do teamwork if that one doesn't even stand up, Hanabi? In this way we will have one more chance, however miserable as it may appear. "

"True", the Hyuga had to admit. "But let me first turn on byakugan, maybe Naruto sensei is spying on us ..."

At that moment Haruna coughed heavily. Hanabi, turned to her with byakugan activated. And she saw a few things that she did not like at all.

"Haruna... You're not weak just because you're hungry, right?"

Ako, hearing that phrase was startled. Isn't possbile... Abruptly she said: "Lemme see your goddamn arm!" Without even giving her time to reply, she pulled up the sleeve of Haruna's sweatshirt.

The sign of a bite.

"Naruto sensei wasn't able to stop that technique? No, it's strange..."

Haruna stammered: "I don't know how to explain it... I mean, I 'heard' something biting me and then that 'something' was driven back by a strange force..."

Ako, calmly rummaged in his pockets and pulled out a bottle. Acidly she commented: "Lucky you, today I prepared for the worst... Bland generic antidote. family trademark. "

Then she took one of his trusted Senbon, dipped it in liquid, and without a moment's hesitation, thrusted it violently in Haruna's arm.

"OUCH! Do ya really want to kill me, bitch? "

"BAKA! Do you prefer suffer now or die later? "Retorted dryly Ako.

"Okay, okay, sorry..." Haruna said, putting a kind of pout.

Ako, then, vaguely worried, turned to Hanabi: "Hyuuga, tell me you have not stopped giving a look with your shiny magical eyes to see if Naruto sensei's around!"

Hanabi, calmly retorted: "Do not worry... He is still far aw-..."

She didn't have time to finish the sentence that Naruto appeared suddenly, with a smile and a sign of victory: "Yeah... just like Kakashi did with the old team seven, I was really spying you! In the hope that you did EXACTLY what you have done. Compliments. You are promoted. All three. You put the situation of your teammate before orders. Just like I had 'advised' you to do. "

The teenagers looked at their master incredulous, then, one after the other, breathed a sigh of relief. Haruna was the one that pulled the strongest of all.

From another part of the world, indeed, not exactly in the "world," a horrible and gigantic hairy monster, full of scars, crouching on a silk pillow smiled eerily as she watched the scene from a crystal ball. Addressing her fellow (albeit much smaller) that remained in the shadows said, hoarsely: "prrr... Great job, Maneki... with that bite of yours Aoda and his offspring were definitely driven away from that cute puppy... That girl is really promising ... If the Kurama boy trains her properly, within a year, or even less, I will find time to go to pay her a little visit... The next human war promises to be interesting... Meow! "

Much closer, but still out of reach of prying eyes, a second pair looked, seemingly annoyed, to the combat. One had a Anbu mask, the other was a boy with unusually sharp teeth.

The latter, sarcastic, said first: "Konoha... just a village of people with a too soft heart... If I were them I would have at least put you under house arrest, and forbidden you to be a ninja again! Although, most probably, I would have sentenced you to death for treason... And instead, here you are, without trial, without anything at all, even promoted to captain of a team of Anbu... This thing is so absurd it almost makes me laugh... "

"Tender heart has nothing to do with it, Suigetsu. I used the hypnotic Sharingan on some ninja in the village for months... Indeed, for years now. And I also had to be discreet, since byakugan reveals the illusion. Changes had to be continuous and imperceptible. The only ones that on which I didn't do anything is that dobe over there and few others. "

"Too much trouble. I would be deadly tired just by thinking about it. Why, then, do so much efforts? "

"You know."

"Yeah, yeah ... You and your complex plans lasting years... But my hand are itching and my sword are rearing to have some fun... What if I spoil your broth? Nope? Come oooon... Wait man, don't glare to me like that, I'm joking! Anyway, I hope that the mushy air of Konoha isn't starting to get into your brain. No more than usual, at least... Okay, now I'm going. See you next time Sasuke... Ah, no, now your Anbu name is Garuda, right...

Xan corner

As usual I ask for fogiveness for eventual typos, grammar and syntactic errors. Despite them I hope you will enjoy this chap.

C'ya and thanks

Ah, I almost forgot: the 'models'(ONLY graphically speaking) of the trio are(more or less):

Yuuki Mikan (from To love Ru) for Haruna

Onodera Haru (from Nisekoi) for the 13yo Hanabi

Kyoyama Hanna (from Shaman King) for Ako

But, lucky you, I suck at drawing...