"There you are!" Yoshino called out the moment Naruto stepped through the front door, slipping his shoes off quietly. The older woman stood up hastily from the dinner table before making her way toward him, concern on her face. "Are you alright?" She checked him for anything wrong.

He rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly, "I'm really sorry about being so late, Yoshino-san. My sensei was, um... he was a little tardy."

"You're three hours late!" She huffed, ushering him towards the kitchen, "Gah! I might just have to give that sensei of yours a piece of my mind! Doesn't he know that you're still recovering from chakra poisoning?!"

Shikamaru turned around in his seat, mouth completely stuffed with dumplings. He tried to smile around the mouthful, grateful to see his best friend had returned home safely, but he nearly choked. He finished chewing his food thoroughly before finally trying to speak, "So? How was your team?"

Yoshino moved the blond-haired genin until he was seated beside her son. Naruto practically shuddered at the thought of his team, "I, um... they're... okay?"

"Just okay?" Shikaku snorted, motioning for the boy to help himself to the food on the table, "Nothing extraordinary? Nothing odd?" There was a knowing smirk on his face,

"Odd doesn't even begin to describe them." The blond-haired medic-in-training huffed out an exasperated laugh, Shikamaru scooting his chair towards him, "Well, between an extremely tardy sensei and a teammate who's obsessed with my other teammate who wants to seek revenge out on someone... I don't know what other words I would use to describe them. I mean, at least they seemed... honest?"

"And how 'honest' was Kakashi Hatake?" The older Nara clan leader raised an eyebrow, sipping at the jasmine tea his wife had provided him with earlier.

"I mean, he didn't lie, but he didn't tell the truth either. He gave us nothing but his name! I mean, how does that benefit anyone?!" Naruto's hands jumped in the air just as Shikamaru passed over a small dumpling with his chopsticks, "Oh, thank you." He leaned forward, taking a large bite out of the vegetable dumpling. He chewed carefully, smiling slightly as he looked over at Yoshino, "These are really good!"

"Thank you." She smiled.

"But, as I was saying," He began again, "So, I didn't get to learn anything about Kakashi-sensei and Sasuke didn't say much other than the thing about revenge. Among all my teammates, Sakura was the most animated, at least, when she was talking about Sasuke... and I guess she likes reading, too. Still, though, not much to go with."

"Hm, that reminds me of my ninja days." Yoshino shook her head, a hand pressed against her cheek in remembrance, "Gah, I couldn't stand my genin team. By the time the chunin exams were coming around, I knew I couldn't spend one more day with my teammates." She turned to her son, a woeful face being displayed. She wagged a finger at him, "And then your father just had to win our preliminary match, ruining my chance of getting away from my team." Yoshino turned her head to look at the Nara clan leader, flicking a piece of rice at him, pouting slightly.

Shikaku laughed heartily, shaking his head in exasperation. He leaned over to press a chaste kiss to the older woman's temple, "I only meant for you to fall in love with me, not fall into my trap."

"Ugh!" Yoshino barked out a laugh, lightly slapping him on the shoulder.

Naruto watched with a large grin on his face as his best friend fed him another dumpling. There was always something so comforting about sitting at a table full of people all laughing and telling stories. "I wonder if Iruka-sensei is eating alone right now..." His eyes dulled at the thought, fidgeting anxiously in his seat, "Maybe after I'm cleared by Dr. Teruya in a few days, I'll invite him out for some ramen... No, he must be tired of ramen. He liked that furikake dish I brought him for lunch once. Maybe I'll just make him a dinner..."

He lifted his head, tapping his fingers against the table, "Um, Yoshino-san?"

"What is it, honey?" She pushed the palm of her hand over Shikaku's lips, preventing the man from doting kisses on her while she listened to the blond-haired teen.

"Could you help me make, um, this dish... for Iruka-sensei tomorrow?" He whispered shyly, Shikamaru staring at him in awe, "I just... I don't think he's had a proper meal since he's been released from the hospital. I... I just think he would, you know, appreciate it... having a homecooked meal, you know?"

Yoshino chuckled, a warm look on her face, "Oh, Naruto, did you even have to ask? Why don't we make him a few dishes so he can choose what he'd like for breakfast, lunch, and dinner?"

"Really?!"

"Of course, who do you take me for?" The older woman stood up from her chair, a hand on her hip, "I'm going to work on some desserts since I like for those to sit overnight before being served and I'm sure Iruka-san misses chocolate. I heard from the other moms that he never turned down anything with chocolate." She laughed at the memory.

"Oh, then, please, let me help." Naruto moved to get out of his chair, but the Nara woman gave him a stern look, pinning him to his chair.

"No need. Please, relax. From the sounds of it, you had a rough day even before you met your... team." There was a bitterness in her words, "Ugh, that Hatake."

"Mom, maybe he just had something going on that caused him to be late." Shikamaru tried, trying to give his friend's teacher some credit.

"No," Shikaku interjected, clearing the table of empty plates, leaving only the container with the dumplings in it, his son still feeding the blond-haired teen, "Kakashi Hatake is notorious for many things, being late is, unfortunately, one of those things. So, I would just say take every time frame he gives you with a grain of salt, Naruto."

"So... if he tells me to meet him for training at five in the morning... be there later?" He tried.

"Try three hours later."

"Great." Naruto tipped his head back with a groan of annoyance - he hated being late to anything.

Yoshino dropped a pot onto the stove, "One day, I'm going to give that man an earful. How many meetings has he held up due to his tardiness?! Shikaku used to get home at eleven at night! That was before Kakashi opted to have the meetings written out for him and he'd pick it up, oh yeah, three hours later! That man, I swear!!!" She ranted.

"Alright, no more talk about Kakashi." Shikaku snorted, dropping the dishes off in the sink before reaching for some soap to clean them with, "Otherwise, I'm going to keep hearing about it for the rest of the evening."

"If you don't quit with the comments, you'll be getting an earful as well!" She huffed, turning away from him to work on the desserts she had started.

The group laughed well into the night.

"Well?" Shikamaru's voice was laced in concern, having been frantically tapping his foot against the hardwood floors of the hospital, worrying his lip. His mother had already swatted him once for the tapping, but it didn't quell his anxiety in the least.

Kaiya hummed in thought, the Nara heir practically leaning in closer, desperate to hear his friend's diagnosis. She lifted her head from where she had been examining Naruto's hands, "Well..."

"Well, what?" The black-haired genin whined, getting a smack to his arm from Yoshino, "Ow!"

"Will you just let the woman speak?" She huffed, equally anxious.

If there was one thing Naruto had learned in his time around the Naras, it's that Naras do not do well when they're worried about something.

"It's alright, Yoshino-san." The doctor smiled, leaning back in her seat before moving to throw away the used bandaging, "It seems that all is well with your hands and feet. The cuts have healed nicely, though, the scarring might give you some issues down the line as you get older. Scar tissue tends to tighten muscles and can get in the way of ligaments. I would suggest taking massaging the tissue to prolong the side effects for as long as possible."

Naruto absorbed the information carefully, humming in thought, "I see. And the chakra poisoning?"

Kaiya folded her arms over her chest, "Well, although it's been a week since you've woken up, there isn't a good way to test whether someone's chakra poisoning is 'over', in a sense."

He blinked, "Are... Are you suggesting that the only way to figure out if it's gone is to use chakra?"

"Yes." She rubbed the back of her neck sheepishly, "While chakra poisoning is easy to identify when it's there, it's much more difficult to tell if it's gone or not. I'm sorry. I would suggest you use it at your own discretion. Test the waters, maybe try out those chakra control exercises you used to do."

"And... if the chakra poisoning isn't gone?"

The older woman looked down at her lap, "Then, I will see you back here and you will be back on bed rest."

Naruto groaned, huffing in frustration. He was tired of resting. He was tired of relying on people to do everything for him. He was tired of making people wait on him - his teammates' test being pushed back until tomorrow being the thing laying heavier on his conscious right now. And Shikamaru...

He lifted his head, dark eyes already boring holes into him, staring right back. Kaiya coughed gently, trying to gather their attention. "Naruto," She started, "Even though we can't test for it, I'm good at gauging time frames for healing. It's what I get for being in this field for so many years. I assure you that you will be... ninety percent okay enough to use your chakra."

He ran a hand through his hair, "I... Alright." Naruto bit his lip, eyes searching the ground in front of him. If there was one person - or rather, a creature who'd know the inner workings of his body... "Kyuubi?" He tried. But there was only silence, something that did not give Naruto much hope in terms of overcoming his chakra poisoning.

"Alright, Dr. Teruya." Yoshino's voice filled the room, "Thank you for your time." She moved to stand up, the other woman following quickly after. They exchanged a short handshake one another. The Nara woman ushered the two boys out of the hospital room, Kaiya giving Naruto a smile of sorts, hoping it would lift his spirits.

It did not.

:::^^^^^:::

It was late into the evening when Yoshino lifted her head, looking at the kitchen clock. She was standing over the sink, washing their dinner dishes from their mini-celebration, grateful that Naruto was in the all-clear with Kaiya. "Alright, boys," She called out, Naruto and Shikamaru's heads lifted from their shogi game, "It's getting pretty late. Shikamaru, you have a meeting with your team tomorrow, correct?" The Nara heir nodded quietly. The woman turned to stare at them, "Well, then, you two should probably wash up and head to bed, don't you think?"

"Yes, ma'am." They both coursed, heading for the Nara heir's bedroom.

They had been in each other's presence, sharing one bedroom for over a week now that neither genin needed to say much for their actions. Naruto moved carefully around the room, grabbing some of his best friend's spare clothes his mother had pulled out for him before going to the bathroom attached to Shikamaru's bedroom to change. They were close, but not that close. By the time he'd gotten on his nightshirt and shorts on, the other teen was already making himself comfy in bed.

Shikamaru shifted against the wall, throwing the covers over himself until they were covering much of his face. Naruto snickered, the blond-haired genin stretching quietly before moving to flick off the lights before climbing into bed as well. They shifted close together, practically chest to chest, their arms and legs folding over one another with practiced ease; it didn't take them long to figure out the best way to share a small bed.

Naruto shut his eyes, a yawn being pulled from his lips. He shifted his arms, feeling the now bare appendages rubbing against the covers. His scars - or rather scabs, Kaiya had jokingly called them; scars took time to form - itched underneath the blanket. The blond's mind drifted to the marks. Despite it having been almost exactly a week since the trauma he'd sustained from Mizuki's attack against him, Naruto couldn't help but think that the time had practically flown by in the blink of an eye. Granted, most of that time he'd been resting, recovering.

The blond-haired teen pressed against Shikamaru unconsciously, seeking comfort to distract him from the sudden painful feeling in his chest. Mizuki still causes that reaction out of his body despite the man being well dead by now, a rotting corpse in grass and dirt. "That was probably the scariest thing I've ever had to endure..." Naruto thought to himself, a shiver running down his back. Especially the hill he'd been thrown down.

He recalled with poor clarity what it felt like, phantom pains running up and down his back as if Naruto could still feel every rock and tree that hit him on his way down. Shikamaru, sensing his discomfort, cuddled up against the Jinchuuriki. The blond-haired genin sighed into the other teen's body, drowsiness filtering in slightly, Naruto almost falling asleep.

"Naruto! RUN!" Iruka's voice called out to him, panicked brown eyes boring into his soul as the blond scrambled away from the oncoming battle.

"I'll kill him!" Mizuki howled from somewhere behind him, the clash of kunai following shortly after.

But Naruto ran, faster than he had ever run in his entire life. Anything to get away from Mizuki. His legs burned from exertion and his lungs felt like they would collapse at any moment the more he ran. He couldn't make out anything in these woods, eyes blurry with bruises, tears, and blood. But he kept running, and running, and running-

Until he ran into a tree.

Naruto can't recall anything like the world turning inside out, darkness clouding his vision and his mind. He rolled onto his side, crawling over to where the scroll of sealing had rolled out of his hands. The paper unfolded itself to him, open for the world to see. He only had a single thought: get the scroll and get away from Mizuki.

He swiped his eyes of the blood leaking from the cuts on his forehead before pulling himself up over the opened scroll, eyes blankly staring at it in his concussed state. Words are shouting at him, practically crawling off the scroll and planting themselves in his mind. But he could read them. And so, he read.

Red eyes seemed to pierce through him as a thought shook him to his core. His eyes flew open, sitting up hastily with a fearful hiss on his lips, realization coursing through him. "Holy shit..." Naruto's eyes were wide, breath coming out in panicked waves.

The Nara heir was quick to sit up as well, having not been able to fall asleep yet. "What?!" He called out, "What's wrong?!" Kaiya's words about his chakra poisoning plagued Shikamaru's mind at that moment.

"Oh, Kami!" Naruto groaned lowly, hand clamping in his hair in panic, "I learned a forbidden jutsu on accident!"

"What?!"

The door opened quickly, the light flicking on in the bedroom, Shikaku standing in the doorway with a concerned look on his face, "Why are you both screaming?!"

"I learned a forbidden jutsu on accident!" The blond-haired teen repeated, voice urgent and fearful. He was on the verge of tears.

Shikaku blinked slowly, surprise coursing through him as he took a few steps into the room, "What... are you talking about?" He moved to sit on the edge of the bed, and rest a hand on the boy's knee in hopes of calming him down.

Shikamaru's hand appeared on his friend's back, rubbing it soothingly. Naruto took a deep breath to settle his nerves, "When Iruka showed up, he... he told me to run, so- so I did. But... I had a lot of damage to my h-head, and I... I fell? The- um, the scroll had rolled out of my hands and opened up on its own. I... I can't remember much, just that... when I finally could feel my head again, I... I was reading the forbidden scroll and I... memorized what I read on accident..."

"So... in your concussed state, you memorized a forbidden jutsu?" The Nara clan leader asked slowly.

"Yes!" He practically wailed, "Am I going to get in trouble?!"

The dark-haired man shook his head, holding his chin in thought, "No, I don't think so. It was an accident. Do you know which one it was?"

Naruto thought for a few moments before shaking his head, "I... don't remember. I just know the hand signs - or, um, sign."

"Only one hand sign?" Shikaku paused to recall the scroll, "Well, if it rolled out of your hands, the only jutsus you most likely read - while they're still forbidden, they aren't as dangerous or as life-threatening as the other ones. I don't think you need to worry too much, though."

"But... what do I do with this knowledge? What if I accidentally do the hand sign while I'm on a mission and use a forbidden jutsu?" He was panicking, the two Naras knew.

Shikaku raised his hands in hopes of calming the boy yet again, "Naruto, it's okay. And I doubt that would ever happen. Still, though, I think we need to know which forbidden jutsu you know to keep you safe, okay?" The blond-haired genin nodded quickly, sniffling quietly. "Let's head outside and you go through the seals, okay? I'll be there if anything goes wrong." He stated, standing up from where he sat before motioning for both of the boys to follow him.

"But, Dad!" Shikamaru called out as Naruto was getting out of the bed, "Dr. Teruya said there was a chance his chakra poisoning isn't completely gone! They can't test it! W-What if..." His words died down in his throat, shifting out of the bed as well.

"Dr.Teruya is a good doctor. If she said it would be gone in a week, then let us trust her words that the chakra poisoning is, in fact, gone." Shikaku tried before disappearing out of the bedroom. The three made their way outside quietly, Naruto anxiously fiddling with his shirt, or rather, Shikamaru's shirt. The Nara heir beside him gave him an anxious look but didn't say anything.

"So..." Naruto tried, looking up at where Shikaku stood in front of both of them.

The Nara clan leader motioned for his son to stand beside him in case the jutsu was a large-scale one. "Alright, Naruto, go ahead and perform the jutsu. If I recognize the seal and know it's a dangerous one, I'll stop you okay." He explained loosely, hands readying in a seal of his own. Shikamaru recognized it as one of their shadow manipulation jutsus.

The blond-haired teen nodded, practically shaking to his core. He lifted his hands over his face, his index and middle fingers pressing close together on both his hands while the other fingers curled over one another. He lifted his hands over his face, his fingers making a cross over his face as Naruto called his chakra forth. Shikaku couldn't recognize the technique.

And then, in a heavy plum of smoke, several hundreds worth of clones all identical to Naruto exploded throughout the entirety of the Nara's backyard.

"Holy shit!" Shikamaru shouted out, eyes wide and mouth gaped open. Naruto, too, was staring in shock as well.

Shikaku, for his part, had his face pale significantly, rushing over the the blond in worry. "Are you okay?!" He hissed out, "Dispel them! All of them! Now!"

"Y-Yes, sir!" Naruto stuttered, using the same seal to dispel the clones.

The Nara clan leader looked clammy by now as if he'd pass out with the change of the wind. He reached for the boy's shoulders, clasping them tightly in his hands. "Are you okay?" He asked again.

"I... I feel fine?" He blinked slowly, "I mean, at least we know that I can use chakra again."

Shikaku deflated slightly, releasing the blond-haired boy. Shikamaru stared between the two, stuck between relief and worry, "Dad, what was that?"

"That was the multi-shadow clone jutsu, an extremely dangerous technique." Naruto paled at the man's words, "It allows the user to create dozens of clones. It's similar to the clone jutsu the academy teaches, however, while those clones are mainly used as bluffs and used in illusionary techniques, the multi-shadow clone jutsu is tangible. They're able to move on their own and fight as if they were the real shinobi, all with their own chakra and capabilities."

"So, it would be able to fight like a regular ninja?" Shikamaru asked.

"Yes. However, the reason it's so dangerous is that when someone uses this technique, it takes an extreme toll on the user's chakra reserves. It also causes an extreme mental strain as the clones can remember everything they've witnessed in their time." Shikaku explained, eyeing Naruto, "And you summoned hundreds of them..." Both father and son stared at the blond in shock.

"And I didn't feel anything..." He murmured in awe before a thought dawned on him, "Does... that mean it's... safe for me to use?"

Shikaku thought long and hard, "Let's... Before you go to your team on Friday, I would like to train with you a little bit tomorrow on this technique. If I don't notice anything odd or anything unsafe with it, especially after your chakra poisoning had just lifted, then I... I would say, yes, you can use it. If not, then I will get Inoichi to erase the jutsu from your memory so you're not tempted to use it again."

"Okay... thank you."

"And..." Shikaku breathed, "Don't tell Yoshino I let you use a forbidden technique."

"Too late." A voice behind the group huffed out, the three turned around to see Yoshino standing with her hands on her hips and a stern look on her face.

:::^^^^^:::

Friday was quick to approach. Naruto had spent all of Thursday morning and afternoon with Shikaku who helped him with the new jutsu he'd... accidentally learned while Shikamaru stood off to the sidelines, keeping an eye on his best friend. Despite having only recently recovered from his chakra poisoning, it was remarkable what he could still accomplish. The multi-shadow clone jutsu didn't even feel like it took up too much of his chakra. Granted, he had a lot.

Still, though, they learned a whole lot about the jutsu and exactly what Naruto could use it for.

The information transferring was still a bit much on his already strained mind, but it was kind of cool he could read two books at once if he wanted and still retain the information. Or information sharing, that one was a close second. Naruto had a clone talk to Shikaku and Shikamaru at the same time before dispelling both, regaining the knowledge they'd told him and being able to utilize it. It was a highly effective jutsu.

Hell, his clones could even use medical ninjutsu as well!

Shikamaru had tripped and skinned his knee on a rock in the backyard. One of Naruto's clones had rushed to his aid without being told to do so, hopping down on one knee before moving to heal his best friend's skinned knee. It was definitely cool, the two genin had to admit.

But it was Friday now, and Naruto was anxious to finally work with his team.

Naruto found himself walking through the woods of training grounds seven - apparently, all the genin teams had their designated training grounds. Heeding Shikaku's words, he showed up two hours late, having decided to eat a hearty breakfast Yoshino had cooked up before playing a short game of shogi with Shikamaru before leaving the Nara residence. Energy seemed more important than throwing up, to him at least.

He appeared in the clearing, noticing three logs standing up vertically in the center. To the left, the blond-haired medic-in-training could see both of his teammates sitting against a rather large tree. While Sasuke looked completely annoyed, Sakura continued to talk his ear off which caused Naruto to chuckle to himself quietly. "Good morning." He greeted with a smile, closing the distance between them before moving to sit down in front of them, "How'd you two sleep last night?"

"Naruto!" Sakura squeaked in surprise, "You're two hours late!"

He nodded, "I noticed."

"Why?!"

"Well, I took the time to eat something before coming here. What about you two?" The twelve-year-old asked them, tilting his head when he got weird looks, "Did either of you eat anything or did you come here on empty stomachs?"

"Kakashi-sensei told us not to eat." Sasuke stated suddenly, arms crossed over his chest as he eyed the blond, "You claim to be a medic, but he's a jounin teacher. I feel as though we must heed his words to a higher degree than... yours."

Sakura stared between the two, "And he also said we'd throw up if we did... I don't want to throw up." She made a face.

Naruto sighed deeply, pulling out two boxes from his bag, "You guys need to eat something."

"Excuse me?" The Uchiha's shocked voice flooded the area, offended at being told what to do.

"I suspected that you two wouldn't eat anything." He moved to put a bento box in each of their laps, "Yoshino-san helped me make you both something to eat. Not only will it fill you up, but it will give you plenty of nutrients to kick ass today! It passes through your system easily so the likeliness of you puking with this in your system is unlikely. Plus, Yoshino-san's cooking always makes me feel better. Trust me."

Sakura was the first to pull back the lid to her bento box, the content's aroma filling her nose and making her mouth water. Her stomach made an undignified noise, a blush appearing on her face. "This... smells really good." She stated with a smile, grabbing the wooden chopsticks that were placed on the side of the container. Pulling them apart, the pink-haired kunoichi started to eat slowly.

Sasuke glanced at his teammates before looking down at his bento. After a few seconds, he sighed in defeat and started to work on eating his own. Sensing eyes on him, he lifted his head to stare up at Naruto, seeing a soft smile on his face. "What?" He asked with a harsh tone.

"Nothing." The blond-haired genin put his hands up in defense, the smile never leaving his face.

The Uchiha rolled his eyes, going back to eating, "Whatever."

"So... we won't throw up after eating this?" Sakura asked, mouth full but still wary, "Right?"

"Nope. I put a little bit of turmeric in it when Yoshino-san was mixing the spices so that you will have a smooth digestive ride and have more than enough nutrients to keep you going." Naruto grinned, motioning loosely at her bento box.

The raven-haired teen raised an eyebrow, "Turmeric? What the hell is that?"

"Turmeric is a special type of herb that's found in countries like Water and Lightning. It needs lots of heat and rain to be sustained. It's been imported into Konoha about... forty years ago for medicinal and culinary uses." Naruto tapped his chin in thought, "At least, that's what Dr. Hana was telling me when he brought it over from his recent trip to Lightning country. I had it lying around in my apartment and Shikaku-san was nice enough to get it for me."

"How can it be used for medicinal purposes?" Sakura questioned, nearly halfway done with her food by then.

"Well," He started, leaning back on his hands from where he sat, "Tumeric is supposedly the most powerful herb on the planet - but don't take my word for it, I haven't done my research on it, but this information is coming from the head medic of Konoha. So... do with that as you will." The two other genins shared a look. "It can help fight and potentially reverse disease symptoms or, at least, lessen them."

"Okay?" She raised an eyebrow

"The things that turmeric can be used for are just astounding!" He suddenly brightened up, "Dr. Hana said it helped one of his patients who had anterior uveitis - it's basically swelling in the middle layer of the eye - and, apparently, the patient's symptoms had cleared up in a day! He says it can help with long-term arthritis and most bypass surgeries. Taking a little bit with food like a hot soup can supposedly help someone with a cold or the flu."

"Don't most herbs do something similar to that?" Sasuke practically scoffed.

Naruto shook his head, "Not many herbs can help with jaundice or joint pain. They certainly can't reduce lung infections or stomach ulcers. Tumeric can help with liver problems, skin inflammation, stomach bloating and pain, systemic lupus erythematosus - that's an autoimmune disease - and possibly even tuberculosis."

His two teammates blinked in surprise. Sasuke glanced at the pink-haired kunoichi beside him before staring wide-eyed at the blond, "What are you? A walking encyclopedia?"

"I take that as a compliment." Naruto barked out a laugh, "Did you know that you can apply turmeric to the skin? When using it like this, it can help with acne, bruising, eye infections, and inflammatory skin conditions. Dr. Hana claims it helped him with this leech bite he got in Water country, but I don't believe him."

"What about side effects? Most things have those, you know?" Sakura asked, waving her chopsticks at him before moving to take the last few bites of her bent. She's not even going to ask why Naruto knows all this stuff about this herb she's never heard anything about.

"Well, yeah, most things do have side effects and turmeric does have some, however, you two won't experience them since I gave you such a small dose of it in your food." The two nodded in relief as the boy continued with his knowledge about the herb, "There have been some reported cases where patients have had allergic reactions to it, but it's quite mild - maybe an itchy rash at most, but you two seem fine."

Sakura smiled, "Well, that's goo-"

"If I had given you a higher dose of turmeric, it would have likely caused you diarrhea, hypotension may be caused your gallbladder to become hyperactive, increase your risk of bleeding, and even bouts of nausea." He interrupted, looking at the two with a smile on his face.

"You could have warned us about that before we started eating," Sasuke grunted, his food gone and his stomach doing flips. It was anxiety, he tried to tell himself.

The blond-haired teen sighed in exasperation, waving off the strange looks the two gave him, "I just said that you'll be fine. I didn't give you a high dosage."

The Uchiha glared at him, "And why should we believe you? You could be pulling this out of your ass."

Naruto's grin slid off his face, "Sasuke. I am only going to say this once. I may have only been doing this for... three years, but it's three years that I've worked my ass off, okay? I know what I'm doing, mostly." Sakura looked between her two teammates. "The only time you should ever doubt my abilities is if you're dying and I decide to leave you to the crows." An angry and shocked expression filled Sasuke's face.

"Naruto, I don't think that's appropriate..." The pink-haired kunoichi tried.

"You look like a brawler." The medic-in-training continued, "Therefore, you're going to get hurt, a lot, and you're going to need someone to help heal you when the battle is over. When it comes to this stuff, you're right about me being a walking encyclopedia. I know what I'm doing. You'd do well to remember not to doubt someone before they've even gotten to show what they can do."

"You're such a dobe." Sasuke huffed in frustration, shoving his empty bento box away.

He blinked, his shoulder sagging slightly, "Look, if we're going to be on a team together, we've got to come to an agreement of sorts. We don't have to be friends, but we should know that we've got each other's back, right? That goes for you too, Sakura." She stared back in shock. "I know that you'll always be there for Sasuke because you're in love with him-"

"Naruto!"

"However, we haven't had a proper conversation in a long time so I don't know if you'd be there for me if I need you. You should know that as a medic-in-training, it is my duty to keep my comrades alive and well before even myself." Naruto gave the two a flashing smile, "That means that I will always have both of your backs, no matter what."

The Uchiha sighed, "Fine. Whatever this survival exercise is, I'll keep an eye out for you two... I guess"

"And I'll help you two out however I can!" Sakura stated excitedly, fist-pumping the air

"Good." Naruto nodded, approvingly, giving them a thumbs up, "I promise that I won't let you down."

From a distance, high up in the treetops, Kakashi watched with an unconscious grin hidden behind his mask. "They've already decided to use teamwork and I haven't even said what the test will be." He internally chuckled, "We've definitely got a prodigy team this year."

A/N - I'm not deaaad! Why does it always take me so long to write chapters? Ugh! And it wasn't even a good chapter. I felt like it was all over the place, but there were just too many things I had to wrap up from the Mizuki arc before we could start the Team 7 arc, things I had forgotten about... or neglected hehe. My bad.

So, I was surprised a lot of you had guessed that I wouldn't be giving Naruto the multi-shadow clone jutsu. I mean, he read it when he was running away during the Mizuki incident. I have plans for it, don't you worry. My original The Great Medic readers know what I'm talking about - hopefully, I can do that plot point jutsu this time around. Because, fuck, was that whole thing all over the place.

Oh, and we're officially reached chapter twenty. To say I'm shocked is an understatement. I am... baffled. I was baffled when I had written up to ten chapters of the rewrite. To think, in the original The Great Medic, chapter twenty had the plot already in the Wave arc. I guess I just had too much to write this time around. I'm sorry that this chapter is lacking so much after you all had to wait so long for it. My bad, again.

I'm going on vacation for a few days, just wanted to post this before I skedaddled. I hope you enjoyed it though! Until next time!