from Academy to Anbu by theriku260

chapter 2

"Yeah, a special assignment. Ninja stuff, can't talk about it." He grinned at her and she relaxed.

"Oh ho ho. That must mean you're closer to being Hokage, right Naruto, and where's your head band?" She smiled brightly, as did Teuchi. Naruto frowned slightly, and their smiles turned to confusion.

"Heh heh, see, I don't really want to be Hokage anymore. The paperwork, councils- bah, too much work for an awesome ninja like me!" He said cheekily, only to yelp when, despite his captain being on a mission, a jolt shoots up his spine for every bragging word he spoke. "Oh, and I'm trying to keep my passing status a secret so if you could not say anything please?" Father and Daughter soften their eyes and nod, understanding.

Kakashi was somewhat shocked at Naruto's life-long ambition changing but realized he shouldn't be. It was common knowledge in the jonin and ANBU circles that the Third and Naruto had a sort of falling out after Naruto learned of his tenant. Since that night the Hokage looked even older than normal and cringed every time he gazed at the pictures of a younger, smiling Naruto wearing his hat. Rumor was the boy had even taken to calling the Hokage by his proper name, scaring many.

If Naruto called some one by their proper title and they never had a 'Naru-nickname', then Naruto respected them as a person and authority figure. An example of this would be Iruka or Kakashi, neither ever receiving a playful butchering. But, if Naruto gave someone a personalized nick name and said person betrayed him enough to lose said nickname, it was the equivlant to being spit in the face and peed on by Naruto. So much like his mother.

"Oh? Then what is your dream, o awesome ninja?" Ayame giggled, breaking Kakashi out of his musings.

"To be strong enough to protect those precious to me! And maybe get a ninja animal." He added absentmindedly. Kakashi perked at this.

"A ninja animal? What kind?" Was his little brother trying to emulate him, to become a dog summoner? If so, Kakashi's private dreams of his own Mini me would be realized! He could rub it into Gai that his look a like lived next door.

"Yeah, a cat, though ninja cats cost the pay of an S-rank mission so it will take a about a year before I can afford one. Still, cats are so cool!" And there goes that dream, for cats were the opposite of Kakashi's 'hip and cool'. Unless…

"Say, Naruto. Try this on." Naruto slurps a noodle and grabs the cloth shoved his way.

"A…mask?" Naruto was hesitant- it almost felt like Kakashi wanted a clone but surely the man wasn't that desperate to one up Gai, was he?

Kakashi eye smiled. "Just try it on, okay? It makes you look cool." He shrugs and slides it over his face. Ayame pulls out a hand mirror and lets him look. He had to admit; he did look cool.

"I like it." Naruto says after a minute more of admiring himself. Kakashi's eye smile somehow got larger.

"Good, good. Phase one complete." He muttered, too low for Naruto to hear. Within a year Naruto would have a dog- not some smelly cat.

"Well I have to get going- early training tomorrow and wall patrol." Naruto slid out from the bar and bolted across the rooftops at speeds unheard of for a fresh graduate. Kakashi couldn't be prouder as his sensei's son already resembled a well trained shinobi.

A cough brings Kakashi back to the ramen bar and he blanches at the bill.

"F-fifty seven bowels?!" Teuchi cackled and had dollar signs at the money he just made.

Six weeks later…

Hiruzen puffed on his pipe, groaning at his jonin's stupidity. A simple C-rank, turned into a B or A rank one after the group was attacked by the 'Demon Brothers', missing ninja from Kiri. Normally the procedure was to kill missing ninja and take their bounties, as interrogating every renegade genin and chunin wasted resources.