Namikaze Naruto- The Unpredictable Shinobi

Chapter 19: Revealing half truths...

Naruto understood that she trusted and liked her best friends so much, that it hurt to lie, for them to be impassive with Uzumaki Naruto, while they were close to Mito. She wanted them to be aware of at least the Uzumaki male of the village, if not the Namikaze female of the village. The Chunin exams were two days away, and she decided it was now or never. She took them to her house in the forest for the first time, to say they were curious about this new development was an understatement. She took them to the living room and asked them to turn around, away from her. When she asked them to turn back, she had to try her best to hold in her laughter. At the same time, she was anxious of their reactions.

The two Uchiha teens found in place of their friend, a blonde male with blue eyes, and three whisker marks on each cheek. Deciding to test the waters, Shisui asked, "Naruto-kun?" She tilted her head as response, smiling. "Where is Mito-chan?" he asked. "Right before you." Was the innocent answer. "You mean-" "Allow me to introduce myself. Uzumaki Naruto, but sometimes Mito. And yes, I am Sasuke's teammate." The faces of the two elder teens hardened with an impassive look reserved for all those that did not belong to family. "Explain." Shisui ordered in a voice void of emotion. If it was Itachi, there would've been a hint of anger, but Shisui wasn't one to get angry often.

Naruto nodded as she replied, "Over a cup of tea. Please wait." She brought tea and Dango for them and began explaining, "You do know that I am the vessel of Kyuubi. Thus, I was ostracized by most of the village. To save myself, I disguise myself with some tricks. Once, when I was Mito, I had met you both. I liked you guys, but didn't know if I could trust you enough to let myself be known. When I found myself trusting you, I didn't know how to reveal myself. I didn't know how you would react. I was afraid of being left alone by my only and best friends. Finally, I have courage to stand as myself before you."

After few agonizing seconds, the Uchiha looked at each other and then at her, before Itachi had a small smile and Shisui had a grin as he said, "Nothing changed. Except the identity of our friend. You are not the goofy idiot everyone thinks you are, are you?" Naruto chuckled, "Well, I'm mostly like Mito. It was the only time when I could be myself, though in a disguise. But I guess I have my goofy idiot moments, like Shisui Nii-san, though not as much as him." She smirked with Itachi when Shisui let out an indignant 'Hey!'.

Shisui had a light bulb of an idea. "There is a fair of two days in the village nearby. We can talk more about this there. The three of us haven't had much of our 'friendship time'. We have always been training or having minor picnics." Before Itachi could protest, he put an arm around his neck as he forced him to get up. "Otouto, you better get ready in the evening. Me and Itachi will meet up at the gates. Wouldn't want anyone knowing now, do we?" Shisui teleported away with Itachi, leaving an amused Naruto, who burst into laughter at Itachi's expense.

Shisui was known as the 'Shunshin no Shisui' or 'Shisui of the Body Flicker' or 'Shisui the Teleporter'. He bent the Shunshin no Jutsu, and could leave the place without leave a place without leaving any trace of being there and also not letting anyone know anyone the intended destination. He also created a variation where he left an after image that fooled the enemy that he was still there. The variation was used to create multiple after images that others would believe they were clones. His exploitation of the Body Flicker Technique rivalled the Yondaime Hokage's Hiraishin aided speed, that's what earned him his nickname.

The three of them wore their best Yukatas, Itachi had been forced to, since he was a bit indecisive. They went to the village and the usually stoic Itachi could finally relax and joke around. Shisui and Naruto were scared out of their wits at the unexpected change, before they adjusted to it. They had fun during the two nights, while Naruto told a bit more about herself and her abilities.

When the topic of birthdays came up, Itachi asked Naruto, "Do you remember all your birthdays?" "Yes, not completely, but many details. Why?" she inquired. He hesitated, "Nothing." Naruto sighed, "If you are asking about that night? I remember someone rescued me that night. He helped me unlock my chakra." Itachi simply nodded nonchalantly, trying to look unconcerned, while Shisui was curious. Naruto smirked, "It's funny, his name was Itachi too. And he had a ponytail like yours too." Itachi sighed, "You caught me. I was concerned about you, but with the clan matters, I couldn't ask about you. And when I did, Sandaime-sama only gave vague answers."

Shisui piped his question, "Ne, Naruto? You have your Chunin exams tomorrow, don't you?" She nodded. "How much will you show?" He asked, confusing her. "What do you mean?" "Will you show your true power in the exams? How much will you reveal?" he explained. "Ah, I see. Just enough to pass the exam and get promoted." She replied and gave a foxy grin. "I can't say I am as exceptional as the two of you," Kurama snorted silently at that, "but I am better than what I let on... or maybe worse." They laughed at that. "Well, we hope to see you in the finals." Itachi said. "Thank you." She replied.

They returned to the village past dinner time. The two Uchiha took upon themselves to give some last-minute training and offering her tips she was grateful for. "We should do this again sometime," Shisui said after they finished the training. "Perhaps after the exams?" The other two agreed.

Shisui suddenly gave an evil grin, "We should also go to fairs out of the village often. We can get to see the better side of Itachi more often." Itachi successfully stopped a blush covering his face. Naruto chuckled, "Oh yeah, blackmail material! Next time we go, we should take something to record all his antics." Itachi glared at them, but they only burst in laughter. "Yep, totally. Using the Sharingan won't work every time, moreover, no one will believe us, and consider it a Genjutsu."

Itachi's beloved friends didn't seem so beloved right then. He scoffed at them and ignored them. After some time of the siblings teasing him and him ignoring them in return, they finally took pity on him as Naruto cooed at him. "Aww... Itachi-kun, sorry, we didn't mean to offend you. We were just messing with you. We are sorry, aren't we, Shisui Nii-san?" Shisui nodded enthusiastically, barely concealing his grin, "Yes Itachi. And could you blame us? No one will dare to even to anger the almighty Itachi of the Sharingan. As your best friends, we have taken it upon ourselves to show you the playful side of the world and tease you to death. But of course, we won't let you die. You are too precious to lose."

Itachi smiled at the affection his best friends had for him. He was lucky to have them. However, Shisui had left that night with two hits on his head from Itachi, for the oh-so-friendly choice of his words.

How is it...? :D