A/N: I'mmmm BACK! This is the one…the story that'll answer certain questions that arose in Quest For/Returning With Mama. It takes place in the same universe that the previous stories occurred in, so it's not completely part of the Naruto canon. However, this isn't exactly part of that series. Just read and have fun. And review! Do that, too!
Disclaimer: Kishimoto owns Naruto
Naruto and the Dragon Belt
Opening theme: Kinnikuman Go Fight (1st opening theme for Kinnikuman)
Chapter 1: The Challenge
To the unfocused eye, mornings in the Hidden Leaf Village might seem peaceful. And sometimes they are, in the houses of certain families.
Other families weren't so lucky.
One of those families was the Uzumaki family. Originally consisting of one very lonely boy, it eventually broadened up to include friends and fellow Leaf Ninja. But until recently, something was missing. A blood relation.
"WAKE UP!"
And there she was.
BONG!
"Gah!" Naruto leapt out of bed, terrified out of his wits. His eyes darted around, until they came upon the source of his wake-up call; His long-lost mother and a gong.
"Good morning, son!" Kushina greeted, smiling the family smile. "Now drop and give me fifty!"
No one could say Naruto was a disobedient son. But by the time he was one his twenty-seventh push-up, he was starting to have second thoughts.
"Mommmm, it's supposed to be my day off…" he whined, going up and down.
"Not today it's not!" Kushina yelled from the kitchen.
Still a little bleary, and now with numb arms, Naruto slumped into the kitchen and sat down at the table. There was a plate of breakfast before him. Naruto was too shell-shocked and exhausted to really tell what it was.
"Mom…" He asked, mustering enough strength to eat. "What's all this about?"
"From this day forward, you're in training." Kushina announced, "So get ready for this sort of thing!"
"Training?" Naruto asked, his curiosity now piqued, "Training for what?"
"The Dragon Belt Championship," Kushina explained, "It's the premier tournament."
"Dragon Belt?" Naruto asked, getting more interested by the second.
"It's the perfect way to cement your position as the next Hokage," Kushina added, "Especially now that the world's so peaceful."
Naruto blinked. What?
"Now finish your breakfast," Kushina ordered, "The training begins at the Forest of Death…" She checked the clocked, "Ten minutes ago! Eat up!"
Naruto began to chow down. Whatever Mama had in mind, he needed a full-stomach for!
Dattebayo
Outside the Forest of Death, Naruto was now in his jumpsuit. He saluted Kushina.
"Ready to begin training, Mama-sensei!" He announced.
Kushina giggled at her son's enthusiasm. "Glad to hear it." She was wearing an outfit very much like the kind Might Guy and Rock Lee wore, except hers was red, and the sleeves were missing. She also wore a sash that had a detailed image of an serpentine dragon on.
"So, what do I have to do to win this thing?" Naruto asked.
"Well, the Championship is mostly a taijutsu competition," Kushina began, "You can use Ninjutsu, but the preliminaries focus mostly on physical ability."
Naruto thought about it. "Sooooo, how are going to prepare for that?"
"By bulking you up!" Kushina declared, "Your physical power is above average, but that won't be enough! And you're fighting skills could use some polishing, too." She clapped her hands together. "So! We'll spend have the day exercising, and the other half sparring!"
Naruto grinned, excited. "So, what do we do first?" He asked, eager.
"By jogging!" Kushina jumped over the fence surrounding the Forest. "Keep up!"
"No fair!" Naruto yelled, scrambling after her.
Dattebayo
Kushina might have called it jogging, but Naruto decided it was more like a race against the natives of the Forest- especially after Naruto accidentally knocked over a hornet's nest.
"So, Mama," Naruto yelled, ducking a stray hornet that got ahead of the swarm, "What else can you tell me about the Dragon Belt?"
"Well," Kushina replied, swatting another hornet into a rock, "The tournament occurs every six years, and is always based in the Land of Dragons." At this point, she zipped around a tree. "Practically each nation sends some representatives," She continued, "So it's always a diverse competition."
"Ninja from every nation?" Naruto asked, amazed.
"Not just ninja, but samurai, sumo wrestler, and every other style!" Kushina replied, "They'll let anyone enter, and anyone will. You don't have to be part of a Hidden Village!"
A thought occurred to Naruto. "Does the Leaf Village have representatives?"
Kushina nodded. "They always send in three. Don't worry about that, I already took care of that."
The day before, at a meeting of the Leaf Village…
"So, if there's no other business, we have one more item," Tsunade said, "The Dragon Belt. Any volunteers?"
"I recommend Hatake Kakashi, Might Guy, and Mitarashi Anko," Mitokado Homura said, "They are our best Jonin."
"I second," Replied Utane Koharu.
"Are there any objections?" Tsunade asked.
Kakashi stood up. "Right here."
"You're objecting your own nomination?" Tsunade asked, confused.
"As am I!" Guy announced, standing up.
"Ditto!" Anko chimed in.
Everyone was flummoxed. "Can I ask why?" Tsunade demanded.
"We've already entered the last time," Kakashi answered, "The world might think we have no other ninja to enter."
"Exactly!" Guy burst out, "We need to show that the Village has new blood! And that we won't be relying on the obsolete heroes of old!" Guy realized who he was talking to, and shrank under the elders' glare. "Uh, no offense."
"As for me, I already bought tickets, so I can't enter." Anko replied. She held up the aforementioned admission passes and gave them a wave.
Tsunade opened her mouth to say something, but was interrupted by Guy.
"You got tickets?!" Guy asked, amazed. "How!? I've been trying for ages!"
"Eh, I know someone."
"Who-"
"If you three aren't entering," Tsunade cut in, re-taking control of the meeting, "Then who?"
"I think I know someone who might want to enter," Kakashi said vaguely.
Tsunade realized who he was talking about, and smirked. "You might be right. Good idea."
The elders figured out who Kakashi was talking about, and weren't happy about it.
"That's a terrible idea!" Homura protested, "I won't allow it!"
"Don't be so cranky just because your idea was shot down," Tsunade replied, "He's done more for the Village than you have, including restoring our ties with other countries."
Homura and Koharu growled. Formal alliances and treaties were one thing, but what kind of fool made friends with people one their enemies?
Iruka stood up. "I think…"
CRASH!
"Damn it, Kushina!" Tsunade yelled, "Would it kill you to not enter like that!? Who do you think cleans up these messes?!"
Kushina glanced at the large hole where the door used to be. Various shinobi were scattered all over the place, having dove for cover as she blasted in.
"Carpenters?" She guessed innocently.
Tsunade did a face-palm. The worst part was that she was right. "What is it, Kushina?" She asked instead of commenting the retort.
"I've come to announce that my son, your next Hokage, will not be able to go on missions for at least fifty days!" Kushina declared. After returning to the Village, Kushina had made it clear that she fully expected Naruto to succeed Tsunade, and was doing everything in her power to help Naruto in his quest for Hokage-dom.
"I'll be busy too, so if you don't see me, that's why!" Kushina added on the way out. She created another hole to leave through, ignoring the first hole she made.
Everyone stared.
"She barged in, told us what's what, and left…" Guy gaped, "It all happened so fast."
Flustered, but otherwise pleased, the elders turned to Tsunade.
"Well, as Uzumaki Naruto won't be available," Koharu said, not bothering to keep the glee out of her voice, "Do we have any other nominations?"
As Kushina thought about that meeting, she couldn't help but wonder: What were they talking about, anyway?
"Mama! Pick it up!" Naruto yelled, snapping her out of her voice. "The bees are catching!"
Kushina looked behind her and realized Naruto's error; the swarm wasn't catching up, it had gotten new recruits. "Crap! Into the river!"
Dattebayo
After about two hours of running around the Forest of Death, and getting a variety of dangerous animals to chase them, the Uzumaki Family eventually left, and high-tailed it to the edge of a waterfall near the Village.
"What are gonna do here, Mama?" Naruto asked, scratching a few welts.
"Well," Kushina explained, applying ointment on some of her own welts, "With jogging, we exercised mostly your legs. So now, we'll work on your arm strength with some swimming!" She pointed at the water. "Get in there!"
Naruto nodded and began to take of his outer clothing. As he began to enter the water, he asked, "So, how long am I gonna have to do this?"
Kushina looked up at the sun. "For about…three hours," She decided. "Or until you reach the top of the waterfall. Whichever comes first."
"What!" Naruto blanched. "You want me to climb the waterfall!?"
"I'm so glad you understand," Kushina smiled, "Now, get wet!"
With a splash, the training continued…
Dattebayo
A/N: Annnnd I add the most important thing to the Naruto universe! A tournament arc! The closest the canon's had to a tournament arc was the chunin exam, which kinda got sidetracked by Orochimaru's invasion. This time, nothing's gonna stop the race for the title...though I can't guarantee that it'll be a straightforward ride…
Oh, yeah, and I'm gonna stop giving theme songs to each chapters…I'll change it every few chapters, it's just that I'm running out of appropriate music. Later!