As The Kyuubi no Yoko in Naruto

A week had passed since the "incident," as the hospital staff carefully referred to it.

Naruto had been released under strict supervision, with regular check-ins required from both medical nin and the Yamanaka clan's external evaluators.

The Uchiha compound felt different now. ANBU watched from carefully concealed positions, monitoring every movement, every conversation. But they couldn't see everything.

Breakfast was a quiet affair, as it had been since their return home. Naruto would occasionally pause, spoon halfway to his mouth, eyes tracking something invisible.

The ANBU noted these moments in their reports, seeing exactly what they expected to see - a child struggling with fractured reality.

"Your ramen's getting cold," Sasuke said, maintaining their public dynamic.

Naruto blinked, seeming to return to the present. "Sorry. Sometimes it's hard to... to focus." His voice carried that careful edge of confusion they'd perfected over the past week.

The morning light streamed through the kitchen windows, casting shadows that seemed to move independently of any source. To the ANBU watching, it was just another sign of their charge's unstable chakra. They couldn't see the imprints gathering, preparing.

But for now, they maintained their performance - two boys trying to find normalcy in an increasingly complicated situation.

"Your team assignment came," Sasuke mentioned casually, sliding a scroll across the table. The ANBU had delivered it earlier that morning, along with a stack of medical evaluation forms - better to let them know beforehand what team they'll be assigned to.

There needs to be as little amount of surprises as possible till they know all that affects the boy.

Naruto picked up the scroll with carefully trembling hands. "Team Seven," he read slowly. "Under Kakashi Hatake. With you and..." He paused, letting his eyes drift to a corner of the room before continuing, "Sakura Haruno."

The Third had made several adjustments to the usual process. The secondary genin test had been waived - no one wanted to risk putting an "unstable jinchūriki" under additional stress. Instead, they'd focused on creating what they considered a stable team dynamic.

Sasuke, the top graduate, would continue his role as Naruto's emotional anchor. Sakura, with her perfect chakra control and analytical mind, was likely chosen as a potential moderating influence. And Kakashi... well, his Sharingan made the choice obvious.

"We start tomorrow," Sasuke said, watching as Naruto's hand shook slightly setting down the scroll. To the ANBU observers, it would look like another moment of internal struggle.

"Tomorrow," Naruto repeated, his voice distant. "More people to watch me. To wait for me to..." He let the sentence hang.

"They're just being cautious," Sasuke replied, "This Kakashi-sensei is supposed to be an elite jōnin."

Naruto nodded, visibly trying to focus on his breakfast. His hands still shook slightly, but he made an obvious effort to steady them. "Right. New sensei. And Sakura from class." He took a deliberate breath. "I can... I can handle this."

The attempt at self-control, the visible effort to appear stable - it was exactly what the observers would expect from someone trying to maintain their grip on reality.

"The ramen will help," Sasuke said, his voice carrying its usual calm. "You always think clearer after eating."

Naruto managed a small smile, almost normal, before taking another careful bite. The morning continued quietly, peacefully, as they prepared for whatever tomorrow would bring.

---------------------------------

The academy classroom felt different now. Other students watched Naruto with a mixture of confusion and uncertainty, picking up on their parents' sudden intense wariness but not understanding why.

Sakura sat alone, fidgeting slightly as her new teammates approached.

She'd noticed how the adults had been acting strangely around Naruto lately - teachers speaking in hushed tones, parents pulling their children aside when he passed - more obviously than usual, with barely disguised fear.

"Good morning, Sasuke-kun," she managed, then glanced uncertainly at Naruto. Something had happened in the forest - something that made the adults nervous, though no one would explain exactly what.

Naruto took his seat quietly, focusing on keeping his movements steady, controlled. He could sense the ANBU watchers outside, their presence a constant reminder of whatever had spooked the village's leadership.

"Just breathe," the warmth guided internally. "Let them see what they expect to see."

The wait for their new sensei stretched on. Other teams left with their jōnin instructors, their curious glances lingering on Naruto's unusually subdued behavior.

Through it all, Naruto sat still, occasionally closing his eyes as if centering himself. Sakura kept stealing confused looks between him and what she knew, trying to piece together a puzzle she didn't have all the parts to.

The silence stretched uncomfortably. Sakura shifted in her seat, clearly wanting to ask questions but unsure how to begin. The rumors about what happened in the forest varied wildly, and the adults' strange behavior only added to the mystery.

"He's late," Sasuke finally said, breaking the tension.

"Maybe he forgot?" Sakura suggested, eager for any normal conversation. "Or got lost?"

Naruto remained quiet, his usual loud personality notably absent. That, more than anything, seemed to unsettle Sakura. The class troublemaker, the one who always had something to say, now sat in unnatural stillness.

"Are you... okay, Naruto?" she finally ventured, her curiosity overcoming her uncertainty.

"I'm fine," he replied softly, not meeting her eyes. "Just... trying to focus."

The answer, vague as it was, only added to her confusion. She opened her mouth to ask more, but the classroom door finally slid open.

A tall jōnin with silver hair and a masked face peered in, his single visible eye taking in the scene before him. His gaze lingered briefly on Naruto, carrying the same careful assessment all the adults seemed to show lately.

"My first impression..." the jōnin began, as his voice drawled, "is that you're all rather gloomy. Meet me on the roof."

He disappeared in a swirl of leaves, leaving the three genin alone again.

Sakura stood first, hesitating as she looked between her teammates.

The dynamic felt off to her - Naruto should be jumping up, shouting about racing to the roof - something he did unknown to him encouraged by Kurama's influence. A mighty cover the Fox thought internally.

Instead, he rose slowly, deliberately, as if measuring each movement.

Sasuke stayed close to Naruto as they climbed the stairs, a fact that didn't escape Sakura's notice. The last Uchiha had always kept his distance from everyone, except Naruto, but they were more obvious about it than usual.

The rooftop was bright in the afternoon sun. Their new sensei leaned against the railing, his posture casual but his visible eye sharp as he watched them approach and settle onto the steps.

"Well then," he said, "why don't we start with introductions? Likes, dislikes, dreams for the future - that sort of thing."

Sakura glanced at Naruto again, noting how he seemed to be looking at something just past their sensei's shoulder, his expression distant in a way that made her uncomfortable without knowing why.

"Why don't you go first, sensei?" Sakura suggested, still stealing glances at her unusually quiet teammate.

"Me? Well... I'm Kakashi Hatake. I have many likes and dislikes... Dreams for the future? Hmm... never really thought about it." His eye crinkled in what might have been a smile. "You next, pinky."

Sakura bristled slightly at the nickname but straightened up. "I'm Sakura Haruno. I like..." she glanced at Sasuke, her cheeks pinking slightly. "My dreams for the future..." Another glance at Sasuke, her blush deepening.

"And dislikes?" Kakashi prompted.

"Ino-pig!" she declared firmly, then hesitated, clearly uncertain if her usual enthusiasm was appropriate given the strange atmosphere.

"Next," Kakashi nodded toward Sasuke.

"Sasuke Uchiha. I have few likes, many dislikes. My dream..." he paused, his words carefully measured, "is to protect what's important to me."

Kakashi's eye lingered on him for a moment before turning to Naruto. "And finally..."

Naruto seemed to focus with visible effort, his gaze drawing back from whatever distant point had held his attention. "Naruto Uzumaki. I like..." he paused, as if considering his words carefully, "ramen. And..." his eyes flickered briefly to Sasuke. "My precious people."

The controlled nature of his response, so different from his usual boisterous personality, made Sakura shift uncomfortably.

"Well then," Kakashi's voice remained deliberately casual, though his eye noted every detail of Naruto's controlled behavior. "Normally, this would be where I tell you about tomorrow's survival test. However..."

He let the word hang, and Sakura noticed how both her new teammates tensed slightly.

"Given certain... circumstances, we'll be starting with team-building exercises instead. Meet at Training Ground Three tomorrow at 8 AM." His eye crinkled again. "And try to eat breakfast."

As he disappeared in another swirl of leaves, Sakura found herself caught between curiosity and uncertainty. Something was obviously different about this team arrangement, but no one would explain what.

"We should go," Sasuke said quietly to Naruto, who nodded without his usual protest about getting ramen first.

"Wait!" Sakura called as they turned to leave. "Maybe we could... I mean, since we're a team now..."

She trailed off as both boys paused. Naruto's eyes seemed to focus on something behind her, making her resist the urge to turn and look.

"Another time," Sasuke replied, his tone brooking no argument. "Naruto needs to rest."

As she watched them leave, Sakura couldn't shake the feeling that she was missing something important - something that everyone else seemed to understand but wouldn't explain.