Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. :-) But I sure love it! ^_^

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**Minashi Namikaze:**
"Naruto Uzumaki!" I hear my brother's name being called out.

It's already his turn to perform the graduation test in the other room. I stand up with him and then walk to the door just as he does.

"Where you goin'? He asks.

"To where you're headed." I reply.

"You do know it's still my turn, right?" He asks, raising an eyebrow.

I give him a side glance, deadpanning. "Yes, I do." I mutter. "I'll just wait outside till you're done. I'll be called out next anyway."

He shrugs. "Okay. Whatever." He says.

In no time, we reach the door of the room where the test is held. I wait out the door, leaning myself on the wall, and letting my twin enter.

"Yo! Iruka-sensei! Mizuki-sensei!" Naruto shouts energetically at the two teachers in front of him.

"Okay, Naruto." Iruka-sensei says seriously. "Earn yourself a head protector."

"YOSH! I will do my best! Believe it!" Naruto exclaims as he prepares himself, hand sign on the ready. "Bunshin no Jutsu!" He yells.

I close my eyes, sensing the events that occur within the room that they are in. That's when I sense Naruto put a little extra chakra into the technique he is performing, resulting with a rather wobbly clone. I smirk. *Well that was unexpected.* It seems he plans to flunk this test.

"Naruto, you fail!" Iruka-sensei says in a disappointed tone.

"B-but, Iruka-sensei!" Naruto shouts in a panicked tone. "I.. I did my best! Believe it!"

Iruka-sensei crosses his arms. "Oh I believe it, Naruto." He says. "But your best wasn't enough."

I hear Naruto heave a frustrated sigh and then grumble something I did not hear.

"Iruka-san, why not give the kid a break?" Mizuki says with concern. This gets my attention.  "He did his best and even made a clone. Why not let him graduate?" He adds, still with feigned concern.

I continue to sense what happens. Iruka-sensei sighs. "No, Mizuki. The others have created at least three clones. Naruto may have created one, but it is useless. " He says. "Now go Naruto. My decision remains the same. You are a failure!" He adds with finality.

*Ouch.* Such harsh words. If only they were true. Naruto comes out the door and walks past me sadly. But I cannot miss the smirk he secretly sends at me. Seems he's enjoying himself.

"Minashi Uzumaki!" I hear my name being called so, I step into the room in an uninterested manner. Once I stop in the middle, I just stare at both Iruka and Mizuki.

"Good Morning, Minashi-san." Mizuki greets, a smile forming on his lips. "How are you today?"

"Sleepy." I mutter sleepily.

"Well. Well." Iruka-sensei says, narrowing his eyes at me. "I hope you've been up late, practicing the test and I hope you'll turn out better than your brother." He adds in a mocking tone.

"If I didn't practice, I'd fail." I tell him. "And that means going through your boring lessons all over again."

This makes Iruka grow an anime vein. "There you go again, getting on my nerves." He says angrily.

"At least I'm not lying." I mutter under my breath.

"What was that?" Iruka asks, raising an eyebrow at me.

"I said, at least I'm not lying." I say out loud.

Iruka groans, another anime vein appearing on his head. "Just perform the test, Minashi." He says while Mizuki, who's watching us this whole time, smiles amusedly. "And make sure to do it right. Having you graduate from my class is indeed a great relief."

I shrug and do a hand sign. "Bunshin no Jutsu!" I say, and in a puff of smoke, three clones of mine appear.

What they don't know, however, is that my clones are Kage Bunshins. I never tried to learn the Bunshin no Jutsu. All it does is create illusions of yourself. Quite useless at times when you are outnumbered and a huge waste of chakra too. However, these clones will have to do. It's not like they'll touch it anyway.

"So, that okay?" I ask both Mizuki and Iruka-sensei.

"Yes." Iruka says, looking quite eager to have me out of his class. "Finally." He mutters under his breath. I heard him though. I just decide not to say anything to him.

"Please get your head protector from the table." Mizuki says, gesturing me to head for the table. "You can choose any of them."

"It's not like it matters." I say in a bored tone. "They all look the same anyway." I add and then grab one of the head protectors from the table before I go out.

~~~

The graduation ends by two o'clock. I wait for everyone else to clear the academy before going out of there. Outside, I see lots of families celebrating the success of their children. But I see no Naruto amongst them.

I scan my eyes on the area but it's no use. So, I close my eyes and use my sensing ability. In a few moments, I sense him sitting on the swing. With him found, and there are many people in between us, I decide to just look around.

"That is him, right?" I suddenly hear from someone just beside me. I turn to look at who said those words. What I see are two women, looking at my brother. Or more like glaring at him.

"Yes, that's him." The other woman says, disgust dripping with every word she says. "The tailed beast."

"I can't believe they let him live and roam around in our village." The other woman says, making me clench my fists in anger. *Who is she to judge?* "He is a threat to our lives! He should be killed."

"I know, right?" The other woman agrees. "What is the Hokage thinking?"

"He's just being a kind-hearted person." I tell them calmly, though I'm quite pissed at them right now. "Unlike both of you." I add.

Both women turn to me out of surprise. "Oh. You heard us." One woman says, not even regretting what she said.

"Well, you're still too young to understand, Kid." The other woman says. "In time, you might."

"Oh I understand completely." I tell them lowly, just so nobody else would hear our conversation. "You hate him because he's a jinchuriki."

"So you know?"

"Who wouldn't hate him, though?" One of them says. "He destroyed our village once. He might try again if we don't put him out of his misery so--"

"Be careful what you say, Lady." I cut her off. "You are talking to his sister."

Their eyes immediately widen out of surprise and as I can see, they are scared as hell.

"There's a rule that forbids you to talk about the kyubi nor harm that said bijou's host. The penalty is death." I tell them calmly. "So, I suggest you shut the hell up before I report you to the Hokage."

"R-right." Both of them say in unison, bowing down slightly. "We're sorry." And then, they leave.

I sigh, unclenching my fists as the women leave my sights. And then, I decide to look at my brother. Most of the people have cleared the area. So, I can see him now, sitting on the swing. I am about to walk to him but I stop myself when Mizuki starts talking to him.

They talk for a few minutes and then leave. To where, I do not know.

"It seems Mizuki is on the move." I hear Gramps' voice say from behind me.

I turn around, facing him and Iruka-sensei who is right beside him. "So my suspicion is right?" I ask Gramps seriously. "He *is* the traitor."

"Yes." Gramps simply replies.

"Then what are we waiting for, Lord Hokage?" I ask him. "Since he's still here, we should have him arrested before be decides to up and leave."

"We have a much bigger problem than just Mizuki." Iruka-sensei suddenly says, handing me a folder. "Our recent Anbu information states that Mizuki had met up with two other suspicious characters in the village last night. It would seem he had given them the scrolls."

"I see." I mutter as I flip through the papers attached to the folder. Once I reach the last page, I raise an eyebrow. "There is nothing here that states their appearance or where they are."

"The Anbu weren't able to see them properly." Iruka says, scratching his head. "Since it was during the night when they found them out. Well, at least that's what they told me."

I roll my eyes. "Excuses." I say, handing the folder back to Iruka-sensei. "Leave it to a bunch of amateurs to give you an incomplete report."

"Well, they're not as good as you.." Iruka says, smiling. "..in terms of detection."

I nod. "I can't agree more." I mutter. "That changes the plan then. We can't take out Mizuki yet. It would only alert his comrades. They might leave the village, share our military secrets to the whole world and that ends our peaceful little lives right there." I turn to Gramps. "You'll need someone to track Mizuki's comrades before they leave the village." I sigh, knowing that *I* am the only one left in the village who's capable of searching the whole village without help. The others are currently on missions.  "I'm awaiting orders, Lord Hokage."

"Sharp as ever, Minashi." Gramps says. "Your mission is to find Mizuki's comrades and take back what is rightfully ours."

With that said, I leap away and start the mission.

~~~

**Iruka Umino:**

I lay on my bed, thinking about what the Hokage said just after Minashi had left for her own mission.

*"Are you sure it is alright to let Minashi do this alone, Hokage-sama?" I ask Hokage-sama.*

*He nods. "Minashi and Naruto are very powerful when working together. Together, they can be chunin or maybe even jounin level. Separated, however, Naruto has too many openings while Minashi lacks the offensive power. But when it comes to detection, Minashi is beyond skilled. She surpasses even a jounin. Combine that with her kekkei genkai and she can take on at least five people of chunin rank."*

***Sugoi.** I can't help but think to myself. **Minashi is indeed strong.**

*"Iruka, I know your parents were killed during the fight against the kyubi." Hokage-sama suddenly says and I can't help but turn to him, surprised.*

*"H-hai." I reply, realizing that I had not answered him yet.*

*"Since Naruto holds the kyubi within him, do you resent him in any way?" He asks.*

*"No!" I say, my voice comes out louder than I expected. But I don't mind that. "I treat him like my sibling, Hokage-sama!"*

*Hokage-sama nods. "Good.." He says with a small smile. "As what you may have already known, Minashi and Naruto are strong for their age. But they still need someone to be there and make them feel that they're not alone."*

*I nod, understanding him. "Don't worry, Hokage-sama." I tell him. "I will be there for them."*

The sound of pounding on my door breaks me from my thoughts. *Who could that be?*

I get off my bed and open the door. What I see behind the door is someone whom I did not expect. Mizuki.

"Mizuki?" I can't help but say, surprised at his presence. "What are you doing here at this hour?"

"NARUTO HAS STOLEN THE SCROLL OF SEALS! YOU NEED TO COME IMMEDIATELY!!" He yells in a panicked tone.

"NANI?!!" I can't help but yell back. If something goes wrong and Naruto has that scroll, he might release the kyubi in the village. And as far as I know, Naruto cannot tame the beast in him.

I run back inside my house and grab my ninja sandals. Mizuki and I then take off to the Hokage tower.

*Naruto.* I can't help but worry for him. I take a secret glance at Mizuki, who's running in front of me. He and Naruto were together a while ago. This must be part of his plan. But I can't take him out now. Not until Minashi is back.

~~~

**Naruto Namikaze:**
I drop to my knees, panting. It's nighttime and here I am, near an abandoned house that's in the south forest of konoha.

It had been hours ever since I got the scroll of seals from Gramps. I got to use my Orioke no Jutsu on him too, when he found me out. I might get scolded later for that but it was totally worth it.

Anyway, there was no sign of Mizuki anywhere, and I got really bored so I decided to learn one really cool jutsu from the Scroll of Seals - the Kage Bunshin.

Minashi already knows this jutsu. But I bet she'll be so impressed to know that I had also mastered it. She knows I'm not good with clones.

The sound of someone leaping on the tree branches that's to my right, breaks me from my thoughts. But I pretend to continue panting.

**Iruka Umino:**
I land just in front of Naruto, feigning anger. "Naruto.." I say through gritted teeth. "You little id--"

"Iruka-sensei!" He interrupts me, grinning from ear to ear. "You found me." He looks around. "Where's Mizuki?"

"Why did you steal the scroll of seals?!" I say, looking at him with urgency. I do hope he'll get the message and continue the façade. "Do you have any idea how much trouble you've caused the village this time?!!"

He pauses, analyzing me with calculating eyes, before he grins widely and stands up energetically. "I learned one really cool jutsu from the scroll!" He exclaims excitedly. "I will show it to you and then you're gonna let me graduate, right?!"

I almost let out a sigh of relief. Thank goodness he got it. But, thinking that Mizuki might be here soon, I immediately feign surprise. "Who told you of such ideas?" I ask.

"Mizuki-sensei did!" He replies, with a huge grin on his face. "He told me that if I mastered all the jutsus in this scroll, you will let me graduate with the best grades!"

**Naruto Namikaze:**
I don't get why Iruka-sensei has to continue acting. But I just played along. There's no harm in doing it anyway.

I sense someone land on one of the branches of the trees just near us. Probably Mizuki. However, I pretend not to know he's there.

Suddenly, he throws kunais at Iruka-sensei and I, and my hand instinctively takes its hold on a mini scroll that I kept under my sleeve. It is in this scroll where I had sealed my weapons.

However, I don't get the chance to unseal my weapons since Iruka-sensei pushes me roughly to the side, making me land on the ground, right on my . I really wasn't expecting the push.

"Ow. Ow. That hurrrrts!" I whine as I rub my sore : something my pretend character would do even in situations like these. Then, I focus back on the events that occur before me.

I see Iruka-sensei is pinned to the wall of the abandoned house. There are some scratches on his arms but none are fatal so far. Mizuki is still perched on a branch of a tree, smirking evilly.

Mizuki then turns to me. "Naruto, give me the scroll!" He commands, gesturing me to give him the scroll. "If you want to live, that is." He adds with a smirk.

I secretly take hold of the mini scroll that I hid in my sleeve again.

"Naruto! Don't!" Iruka-sensei yells, getting my attention. "Don't give him the scroll!"

I can't help but look at Iruka-sensei in a questioning way, clearly confused. Why is he still acting? Mizuki had revealed himself. We can take him on right now.

Instead of saying anything to me, Iruka-sensei faces Mizuki. "Why are you doing this, Mizuki?" He asks. "What purpose do you have to take scrolls from our village?"

"Oh don't take this personally, Iruka." Mizuki answers, still smirking. "My comrades and I, it has become a hobby of ours to collect scrolls with military secrets from different villages. And then we sell it to whoever pays the highest price, which are usually the people who want to see your village collapse."

This gets my attention. *Comrades?* So he is not working alone. Then that means we need to find his comrades too. Before they leave the village and sell the scrolls.

"You won't get away with this!" Iruka-sensei threatens. "We have the best sensory ninja in our village! You will fail!"

I can't help but smirk inwardly. Iruka sounded so sure. And the only best sensory ninja in our village that I know is Minashi. Then that means Minashi is out there, hunting Mizuki's comrades. All I've got to do now is buy her some time.

"W-what's going on?" I ask, pretending that I am trembling in fear. "What a-are you two t-talking about?"

"Just give me the scroll, Naruto." Mizuki says with a roll of his eyes. "No questions asked. Okay?"

"Don't, Naruto!" Iruka-sensei says. "He only used you so he can get the scroll for himself!"

I turn to Mizuki with widened and confused eyes that are almost tearing up. "M-mizuki-sensei?" I call to him.

"Oh please." He says with a scoff and another roll of his eyes. "Grow up, Kid." He says with a glare. "You think the world is all good and kind? Well, it isn't. A demon such as you should know."

"D-demon?" I ask in a frail and confused voice. Although I already know that he's referring to the kyubi that's sealed inside me. "W-what do you mean?"

Mizuki smirks. "Ohhh.. perhaps I should tell you about who you really are!" He says with glee.

"Mizuki, Don't!" Iruka-sensei shouts, now joining into my little façade.

"What do you mean by who I really am?" I ask the question that Mizuki clearly wants me to ask. "Who am I?"

"Twelve years ago, a demon fox attacked the village of Konoha." Mizuki starts. "Many died during that accident. Fortunately the fourth hokage was able to stop the demon by sealing it away in an infant baby."

"Stop it, Mizuki!!" Iruka interrupts to which Mizuki glares at him.

"Nonsense!" Mizuki yells. "He deserves to know."

Mizuki turns back to me. "Then, after that, a rule was made by the third hokage." He says. "But Naruto, only you cannot know that rule."

"Why?" I ask him. "What is that rule?"

"Mizuki, stop it!" Iruka-sensei yells once again but Mizuki ignores him.

"Naruto, you are the host of the demon!" He tells me in an exaggerated way, as if telling a very exciting story. "You are a demon! That's why everyone hates you! Even Iruka, your own teacher hates you!"

I resist the urge to roll my eyes. I know about the kyubi sealed inside me. And yes, there might be people who hate me for being the kyubi's host but I also know that Iruka-sensei is not one of them. He is one among the very few people who care for me.

However, I push my thoughts aside and make myself seem terrified at the new information. "I-I'm the k-kyubi?" I ask in a trembling voice.

"It's sad, isn't it?" Mizuki says. "For having people hate you without knowing the reason why." He then gestures me to hand him the scroll once more. "And now that I told you the truth, why don't you give me the scroll? It's a nice bargain. The truth, for a scroll. Now hand it to me! Or I will make you regret keeping it from me."

I whimper away from him, embracing the gigantic Scroll of Seals.

"Heheh!" He chuckles. "If that's how you want it." He unties one giant shuriken from his back. "NOW DIE!!"

Mizuki-sensei launches the giant shuriken at me. "Naruto, DODGE!!" Iruka-sensei yells.

I immediately roll away, out of the range of the shuriken. But my eyes widen when I see the shuriken's direction had shifted, now targeting me once again. This must be Mizuki's doing. Weapon Manipulation must be his forte.

So, I activate my Bloodline Limit and wait. And on the last second, I roll away once again. This time, I manage to successfully dodge the said shuriken. It pierces the ground where I once was.

"What the!" Mizuki exclaims, wide eyed but he soon recovers and glares at me. "I was going to make it easy for you. But now, I will make you suffer!"

He jumps down from the tree he's on and makes his way to me. I crawl backwards in a helpless manner, still embracing the scroll of seals. I might have no other choice but to fight back if things get out of hand. *Minashi.. you better hurry up.*

But then, Iruka throws shurikens at Mizuki and unfortunately, Mizuki was able to dodge all of it. Not even a scratch.

"Leave the kid alone, Mizuki!" Iruka-sensei says. "I will be your opponent." He looks at me. "Naruto, go. Take the scroll. I will take it from here."

I hesitate for a moment. Iruka-sensei might not match against Mizuki's skills. And I don't ever want him to get hurt badly.

"NOW, NARUTO!" Iruka-sensei yells and I have no choice but to take off, running into the woods with the scroll of seals strapped to my back.

**Iruka Umino:**
I watch as Naruto runs off. And I do hope that Minashi would finish her mission soon. I might not hold for long against Mizuki. There's no telling what this traitor can really do.

"Tsk! Tsk!" Mizuki says, shaking his head in disapproval. "It's a pity, really. I found you to be quite an interesting fellow. I planned to kill you later for old time's sake but now, I just changed my mind."

"I will not let you have the scroll, Mizuki." I tell him. "Nor harm Naruto."

He suddenly cracks up, leaving me quite puzzled at his sudden outburst. "Wow!" He exclaims, now smirking. "You? Protecting the person whom you should hate? How *touching*." He says the last word sarcastically.

"He's just a kid, Mizuki." I say. "And besides, he did not kill my parents."

"Yes. But that thing in him did." He replies. "Which kind of makes him the killer too. You know.. since the demon that killed your parents is kept alive because it is inside him."

"No matter what you say, Mizuki." I tell him. "You will not convince me to side with you."

"Your loyalty to your village will be the death of you." He states, looking a bit irked that he had not convinced me. "Do you really think you can best me, Iruka? I'm giving you a chance here. A chance to live."

"My loyalty is to Konoha." I state with finality. "If I die, then so be it. Besides, I am not the only ninja in this village. There are many more who are far greater. You will be defeated."

"Far greater?!" Mizuki says, looking quite amused. "I've been snooping around your village for three whole months and none of your ninjas were able to catch me."

Then, he takes two kunais from his weapon pouch and let's each hand hold one. "Well, since I can't convince you, we should get on with the fighting." He says.

I do the same thing, taking my own kunais from my weapon pouch. Then, without warning, he slashes at me so fast that all I can see is a blur. But my speed matches to his own and I manage to block a slash that's aimed to cut my neck.

"Tch!" He glares at me before distancing himself by leaping away. "You're fast."

I don't say anything and just keep myself focused at him.

"Can you dodge this?!" He yells before launching the second giant shuriken from his back.

My eyes widen but I am able to dodge the said shuriken by stepping a bit to the right.

"Wow." Mizuki says, clapping his hands and nodding approvingly. But then he smirks. "Or maybe not."

My eyes widen when I feel something huge pierce my back. I gasp, feeling the pain that I now feel from that spot but I find out that I can't breathe. It must have pierced through my lungs. I fall to my knees and try to catch my breath but I end up coughing out blood instead. Lots of it.

I hear Mizuki chuckle and say something. But I don't pay attention and I pull out the giant shuriken from my back. With the last of my strength, I throw the shuriken at Mizuki, hoping that it would at least leave a scratch on him. But he dodges it with ease and my hope of injuring him comes to a halt.

**Mizuki:**
I smirk as I watch Iruka crawl to a tree and lean himself there. He gasps for air and I can tell that he's not getting any.

Weapon Manipulation is the technique that I have mastered. I am able to change a weapon's direction as long as I am able to flow my chakra into it. It's quite handy at times.

"Such a pity." I say, shaking my head in amusement. "Sacrificing your own life to protect a demon. I really had no quarrel with you."

"Well, then." I add. "To show you that I have no form of resentment, I'll end your life quickly."

I take one kunai from my weapon pouch and throw it at him, aiming for his heart. I know it would kill him in an instant.

I turn away, readying myself to leap away and chase after Naruto.

"Leaving so soon, Mizuki?" I suddenly hear someone say. My eyes widen and I turn back around so fast that I almost tripped.

I am met by a sight that I least expect to be here - A certain lazy red-head from my class.

"Minashi?" I ask out of surprise.

"Surprised?" She says, holding up something for me to see, swinging it to and fro. "This yours?" She asks.

My eyes widen once I realize it's the kunai that I threw at Iruka. I immediately look at the injured Iruka who's still leaning on the tree. He's unconscious now. Or maybe dead. Either way, it doesn't really matter.

"He's fine." Minashi suddenly says. "The little trick with your weapon? It did not work."

Just after she says that, Iruka explodes into a puff of smoke and soon I see that a log had taken his place. *Kawarimi?!* I can't believe I fell for that!

Then, Iruka and Naruto both come out from the darkness of the woods, taking their place beside Minashi.

"You're late, Minashi." Naruto says, looking at Minashi in an accusing manner.

Minashi rolls her eyes. "How about you try finding unknown people in the whole village?" She says. "See if you'll fare better than I did."

"Nah." Naruto replies, grinning. "I'm good. I take it you've finished the job then?" He asks Minashi, unstrapping the scroll of seals from his back and handing it to Iruka. "Would you mind holding this for a minute, Iruka-sensei?"

With a nod, Iruka takes the scroll from Naruto and seats himself on an overgrown root of a tree not too far from him.

"Yeah." Minashi says. "Easy as pie."

"Good." Naruto says. "Now let's just get this over with. I want to go home and eat."

"Very well." Minashi replies and they both turn to me.

"Well.. well." I say with a smirk. "You kids are quite brave to stand against me. Did Iruka tell you to fight against me as your final examination?"

"Actually, no." Minashi answers.

"Minashi and I have been observing you, Mizuki." Naruto says. "We suspected that you are responsible of the stolen scrolls. And you better get ready." He adds, taking a fighting stance. "Because Minashi and I will kick your !"

I laugh at his little threat. "You're kidding me, right?" I ask. "I can kill children like you two with a single move!"

"Oh please, Mizuki." Minashi says nonchalantly. "You're giving yourself too much credit. I don't even think you'd last a ten minutes against my brother. How much more the two of us?"

"Tch!" I can't help but clench my fists, irked by what she said. She usually wasn't this annoying. "Oh really? Let's have a go then. See if you can match against me."

**Third Person:**
The traitor throws unending shurikens and kunais at both Naruto and Minashi. However, in a second, Minashi is instantly in front of Naruto.

Golden chains that are made of chakra sprouts from Minashi's back. On the tip of each chain, blades of the same color and are adorned with black swirls, are attached.

Then, without wasting time, Minashi manipulates each of her chains to block each and every weapon that Mizuki throws at them, even the manipulated ones, letting nothing come through. All weapons fall to the ground, harmless.

Seeing what is happening, Mizuki's eyes widen and he fuels himself to launch even more weapons at the Duo. However, it did not make much of a difference.

"Watch this, Sis. You'll be impressed" Naruto says, forming both hands into a hand sign that seems familiar to Minashi. "Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"

The whole area explodes with smoke, making Mizuki stop what he's doing and cough a few times. He then narrows his eyes, trying to see through the smoke. But then his eyes widen and fear seems to take over his whole body once he sees what's in front of him and all around him: hundreds of Naruto's clones that are all ready to beat him up.

"Impressive." Minashi says, giving an approving look towards her brother. "You've learned the Kage Bunshin."

Feeling happy with Minashi's praise, Naruto turns to Mizuki, smirking. "So what will it be, Mizuki?" He asks. "The easy way? Or the hard way?"

"Idiots!" Mizuki yells, trembling in frustration and anger. He knows now that he has lost. "Even if you capture me, my comrades will leave your village and sell the scrolls to your enemies!"

"You mean those two idiots I found hiding in the abandoned Uchiha compound?" Minashi asks.

This makes Mizuki pause. "You're lying. There is no way they could have been found." He says mostly to himself. "They can mask their chakra very well."

"Yeah well, I don't need their chakra to find them." Minashi says. "Seriously, they are hiding in a place where no one is supposed to be. Who wouldn't suspect anything?"

"No.." Mizuki says angrily. "We cannot be defeated!"

He tries to leap away. But one of Minashi's chains circle his foot and flings him back to the ground.

He groans in pain before looking up to the twins in fear and a thought crosses his mind: a story that he used to hear from his fellow criminals. A story about two fearless and mysterious ninjas of Konoha that his fellow criminals fear. They were said to be very strong when they are teamed up together. 

Only few were able to survive their onslaught. But those who do would come to fear them. It is said that one with red hair wields the power over chains and excels in detection. The other who has blonde hair, relies on speed and enormous chakra reserves. They are called the Lethal Duo.

Just as Naruto's clones rain down on Mizuki, only one thought is fixed in his mind: Naruto and Minashi are the Lethal Duo.

***

**Minashi Namikaze:**
I sweat-drop at the twitching Mizuki before me. "I think you overdid it." I say as I turn to my brother.

He scratches his head. "I think I just did." He replies before slowly turning to me. "But did you see that?!" He exclaims, now wearing a huge grin on his face. "I was so COOL!!"

I can't help but sigh and deadpan as Naruto starts to glorify himself to Iruka-sensei, who in turn praises him even more.

I turn away from them and turn to the unconscious Mizuki. He won't be waking up soon. But just to make sure, I unseal a rope from the mini scroll that I keep with me and tie up Mizuki's arms and legs.

Once done, I turn back to Naruto and Iruka-sensei. "Naruto, stop your endless ranting and get over here." I call to my brother.

He stops talking but glares at me all the while walking to me. I, however, just ignore his glare.

"What now, Minashi?" He asks in a bitter tone.

"Keep an eye on Mizuki." I tell him. "I'll scan the forest for people. Perhaps there might be more of Mizuki's comrades."

"Geez. It's not like he'll move anytime soon anyway." Naruto complains.

"Just do what I say." I state before taking off into the forest.

***

In no time, I finish scanning the forest. There are no suspicious characters so far. So, I return to where I left Naruto and Iruka-sensei.

"Finally!" Naruto immediately says once I jump from one last tree branch and land just near them. "You were almost gone for an hour. And I'm really hungry." The sound of his growling stomach proves his point.

I sigh. "We still need to wait for Ibiki." I tell him. "He'll take Mizuki to jail."

Naruto groans, making sure he makes it loud so I can hear. "Oh come on!" He whines. "Can't we just go?"

"No." I state.

"But whyyyyyyy?" He complains yet again.

"Because capturing Mizuki is *our* mission." I tell him. "It is only right that we pass Mizuki to Ibiki ourselves."

"You and your formalities." He grumbles as he sits on a rock. "And what about using Transportation seal?"

"Ibiki-sensei already said he'd come." I tell my brother. "We can't let him come here for nothing. It would be an insult on his part."

Naruto sighs. "Got any food there at least?" He asks, turning to me.

I toss him one of my mini scrolls to which he catches easily but then turns to me in a questioning manner. "What's this?" He asks.

"Food's inside." I say and he immediately grins, dropping his grumpy behavior as he unseals the contents of the scroll.

A puff of smoke erupts from the scroll once my brother does the right unsealing hand signs and says, "Unseal."

"Ramen!" Naruto exclaims and in no time, he is slurping the said food with a happy look on his face. I cant help but smile. I love it when he gets excited over such small things. What can I say? He's my brother. And I love him very much. Though I pretty much don't show it.

"Say, Iruka-sensei.." My brother says. ".. can I come over the classroom when you assign the teams?"

"Ahhh.. why?"

"Because he wants to make our classmates see that he is not who they think he is." I answer for my brother.

He gives a playful glare. "Hey! I know you want to do it too." He exclaims. "Think of the looks on their faces. They would be so surprised."

I sigh. "Well, yes. It would be fun to see how they react." I turn to Iruka-sensei.

"Well, as long as no one is getting hurt, then okay." Iruka replies with a closed-eye smile.

"Yes!!" Naruto jumps up and down in a repeated manner, clearly excited for tomorrow's events. "You're the best, Iruka-sensei! Believe it!"

"You're just saying that because I agreed to something you want to happen."

"No I'm not. You are clearly the best."

I just watch as Naruto and Iruka converse. After a while, I sense someone approaching and I sigh. *Finally!*

"Well, someone was busy." Ibiki-sensei, the said person says, now smirking and looking at the tied up traitor.

"And someone took the long way to get here." I tell him. "You're a bit late, Ibiki-sensei."

He scowls. "It's not my fault there are so many people to interrogate." He defends.

I smile. "I know." I say. "You're always so busy nowadays. Thanks for doing this favor despite your busy schedule. I just hate going to that place. The prison, I mean."

He nods. "It's nothing." He tells us. "Just looking out for my favorite students."

I roll my eyes in a good-natured manner. "You don't have any other students." I state.

"Whatever." He says as he carries the unconscious Mizuki on his shoulder without even struggling. "I'm leaving now."

And just like that, he disappears into a puff of smoke, taking Mizuki with him. He did not even say goodbye. *Same old Ibiki-sensei.*

I then turn back to Naruto and Iruka with a smile. "Let's go home."

And with that, we go home.

---

End..