Naruto:Legends Of Two Jinchuuriki

Chapter 3

Well, here we are at the beginning of the first real arc of the story. It's only three chapters long, and afterwards, Fuu will finally arrive on the scene. Now, without further ado, let's see how Naruto fares on his first mission after leaving Konoha, shall we?

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.

Leaves rustled as a figure leapt from one tree to the next, moving from branch to branch at a speed that the untrained eye couldn't follow. The blur darted up to the treetops, coming to a halt at the highest possible spot to survey the landscape.

Leaning against the trunk of the tree, Naruto placed his free hand above his eyes, shielding them from the sun's rays, and let his gaze roam the countryside, in search of his soon to be charges. It didn't take him more than a moment to spot a dirt road off in the distance, though most of it was hidden behind a small cliff.

"Looks like this is the place." The blond said with a grin, excited to be going on a mission for the first time since he left the village over a month ago.

Once more bursting into motion, the young Jinchuriki quickly made his way to the path, coming to a stop on the limb of a tree hung over the road. His blue orbs searched the road, peering in the direction of the country that had hired him, and in short order he spied a group of people trudging down the otherwise deserted road, pushing along two carts.

Naruto's eager smile widened at the sight, thinking of all the stories he'd have to brag about once he returned to Konoha. He could hardly imagine the looks on the faces of the other members of the Konoha 11 when they learned of his exploits. That being said, this mission sounded pretty boring. According to the message, all he'd have to do is guard this group of merchants as they made their way out of the Land of Vegetables and to the Land of Honey. A simple, if dull job, though the blond did find it slightly odd that he was meeting them. Rather than wait for their escort, they'd set up a rendezvous point, telling him where and when they should be passing at a certain point and requesting he find them there. He dismissed this thought though, thinking they were just in a hurry.

His almost boundless energy and enthusiasm held strong, despite the easy task. A mission was a mission and he was not about to screw up the first one he ever did on his own. He knew enough to know that his grandmother figure, Tsunade was putting a lot of faith in him by letting him go on missions alone and he wasn't about to let her or the Pervy Sage down, even without said man stressing the point before he went off to kami knows where.

A brief flicker of annoyance flashed through his mind as he recalled that his teacher had left him on his own, AGAIN, and was probably out spying on some hot spring somewhere. Sure, it was something of an ego booster that he was trusted to take on a job alone, but his sensei's antics still irritated him to no end.

As the he grew closer to the merchants, he and called out, "Hey! Are you guys coming from the Land of Vegetables?"

This alerted the caravan to his presence and the group came to a stop as Naruto leapt out of a tree and landed before them. Two of the merchants ran forward to meet him, both of average height and build with tan skin, black hair and matching coal colored eyes. The pair resembled one another enough to pass for siblings. Then again, to Naruto's knowledge they could very well be brothers.

One was slightly shorter than his companion and wore a gray coat with orange lining that went down to just below his knees, light green pants and tan work boots, along with a brown hat on his head.

The other peddler had a slightly narrower face with prominent cheekbones and thinner eyelashes than his brown clad counterpart. He wore a light blue shirt with an ice blue hat, white pants with blue lining and brown shoes and kept his hair tied in a short ponytail.