Kakashi took in a deep breath. Composing himself, he studied Naruto closely and sighed. It's been one surprise after another with him. Being hokage for the sake of another's dreams and to inherit a will of those who sacrificed their lives huh...

Naruto sat down and drew his gaze towards the village. After a few minutes of silence, Kakashi resumed, "Alright then since we have introduced ourselves, I will tell you some good news, we got a C-rank mission. The main objective of this mission is to escort a certain individual to the Land of Waves. We will be briefed tomorrow at 11 am on specifics of the mission so be prepared. Any questions?"

"Are we assume that we might leave tomorrow?" Naruto questioned. Kakashi replied while rubbing his chin, "I would like you to assume that we are indeed leaving tomorrow. Therefore be prepared for a journey of at least a week. Anymore questions? Seeing none, you are dismissed and gather at the mission assignment desk at 11 am."

Naruto spent the afternoon getting his supplies together. Satisfied with his purchases, he went to the training ground to test out his 'Wind style: Shinatobe's Blessing ' as he calls his newly discovered wind armor. After a week of discovering it, Naruto could focus his armor around individual body parts; this is faster than creating a full body armor, which will be helpful in tight situation where time is of the essence.

After three hours, he walked back to his apartment. As he stepped inside, suddenly a blinding white flash illuminated the room. Feeling dazed, he fell backwards. Scrambling onto his feet and trying to find his bearings as he opened his eyes, he realised he wasn't in the Academy anymore. He was in a space much like his dream world however instead of green, it was white. He looked around for any presence, however he could find none. Instead he found a scroll. It did not seem to have any sort inscription, in fact it was just a plain scroll without anything exquisite about it. Fearing it to be a trap he utilised his shadow clones to check it while he observes from afar.

Noticing nothing out of the ordinary, Naruto checked the contents of the scroll. However instead of seeing any jutsu or anything of the sorts, he saw a letter. It read:

Dear Naruto/Steve,

Do not panic as I intend no harm. I am the "white image" as you so eloquently put it. I shall give you few pieces of limited information. One Naruto and Steve, while having differing personas, is not what you would think it is. You are no ordinary soul who has been thrust into the middle of nowhere. However due to a contract I have made, I shall not reveal how; when the time is right you shall eventually get to know of it. Secondly you have already noticed certain abnormalities in this certain version of Naruto. Again due to certain restrictions I am not allowed give you the exact details of the dangers that lie ahead of you.

What I can tell is to beware of a black aura giving a similar presence to your white aura; the other objectives that I can give you is not to let the girl with Hamura's bloodline die; you will eventually learn or rather notice who she is. Your next objective is to prevent the death of the Third Hokage without revealing any sort of detail about the future. Furthermore you are not allowed to speak of the future with anyone; doing so would cause far too much attention for you right now. . With that being said, good luck with your endeavors, until next time.

Regards,

"White Image".

P.S- Once you finish reading this letter you will fall back to sleep and will be unable to access the "dream world" for today. This message will cease to exist once you leave this space.

Soon as he finished reading the last sentence, darkness enveloped the room and he soon fell asleep.

.......

Naruto woke up, feeling groggy and stiff. He had fallen asleep sprawled across floor last night. Slowly coming back to his senses, he tried to recall last night's events. He then remembered the contents of the letter. So I received some more vague hints about my presence here. However he now says he cannot reveal any more details. Furthermore now I got to watch out for someone with a black aura. Hamura's bloodline..... so apparently I will recognise who she is but how... again I could only conclude it has to with either the white or green energies. Next it says about saving the Third without revealing anything about his death and also a warning of not to speak about the future.

Naruto got up and slowly dragged himself to the shower. After refreshing himself, he noted that he still has a couple hours left for the briefing. Making himself some breakfast, he sat down and frowned while eating. This is starting to make less sense the more I think of it. If I am to not use my knowledge of the future, what is the point of me even being here? Thank god I didn't tell anyone, well not that they would believe me anyway. Now my woes don't end there, I might have to even confront Orochimaru. Looking at the many uncertain factors in play, Orochimaru might even be more powerful and besides if he resurrects the two previous hokage, even if they are only able to use a fraction of their power, I am in quite a difficult situation. He massaged his temples, frustrated with the current situation. He then got ready to leave in silence, still feeling frustrated of his situation.

Once he made his to the mission assignment desk, the rest of the team were gathered inside seemingly waiting for him. However as he entered the room, he also noted the foreign presence inside. Must be our client. The hokage cleared his throat and said "Team 7 your mission is to escort this man right here to the Land of Waves. You are to leave within the next hour. Tazuna would you please introduce yourself to your team?"

The client looked like a man in his sixties, wearing a pointed hat and towel wrapped around his neck. He cleared his throat and spoke, "My name is Tazuna of the Land of Waves, I am an architect who came here to gather some supplies. Could I count on you to escort me to my village?"

Kakashi studied the man carefully for a few minutes. He nodded and replied, "We will, we shall meet at the main gate in one hour." The Hokage closed his eyes and said, "Everyone else but Kakashi leave the room now."

Suspiciously eying the two Naruto left the room.

Mission assignment room...

Once everyone left, the Hokage opened his eyes and stared at Kakashi. He chuckled and smiled. "Isn't that lad pretty interesting?" He got up from his seat and walked over to the window and gazed at the village. "Kakashi beware, this isn't just another C-rank mission. My sources tell me there is a conflict going on in the Land of Waves centered around a bridge which being built. It could probably be a B rank or even A rank mission" he warned.

Surprised by the hokage's sudden warning, " If that is so Lord Hokage, then why you are sending team 7 then?"

"I have my reasons Kakashi. Now get going, you don't have time to waste"

Bowing to the Hokage, Kakashi left the room.

Naruto and Sasuke, let me see how much you have grown. Naruto show me your resolve to become the guardian of this village. Sasuke let me see your intent, is it to embrace hatred and the lust for power or to truly overcome it all. Show me your intent, the last of the Uchiha and Uzumaki. The hokage reached for his drawer and withdrew two books. Naruto show me you are ready to inherit their legacy.

......

Naruto got back to his apartment and started packing up for the mission. He then walked over to the gate. Looks like I have twenty minutes left. Well better not wander around. He leaned against a wall in shade, waiting for the other to show up. At this point Hinata saw Naruto leaning against the wall and noted the backpack with him. Slowly walking up to him she asked, "Umm are you going anywhere? I'm sorry if I am bothering you...." she dropped her gaze as she blushed.

Smiling at the gesture, he patted her head as he felt her flinch and watched her countenance glow with different shades of red. Why do I feel so much more comfortable when I am with her? He then replied, "Yes I am, team 7 got a mission to escort a client to the Land of Waves. It would take a bit more than a week I guess. Sorry that I couldn't tell earlier."

Clearly saddened by his sudden departure, her eyes drooped further. Then she reached for her pocket in her jacket and took out a white handkerchief.

"Could you give me your hand?"

He nodded and stretched his arm out arm. She then tied it around his upper arm. Her face looked like it was about to explode with embarrassment. Unable to take it anymore she ran away towards the inner part of the village.

He smiled and continued to hold his gaze in the direction she ran towards.

.....

Ten minutes later, the rest of the group gathered at the gate.

Kakashi looking at his team and his client said "Well then since everyone is here, let us depart."

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Areima