If you're reading this, I assume you keep up with Naruto enough to know things, like certain signature Jutsus and such. I assume you know Naruto canon, at least up to the Fourth Shinobi War(or at least know that it happens) anyway, I'm getting off track. This story starts just before Team Seven's first Chunin exam, and it'll go from there, permitting you guys like it and all...

Disclaimer: I don't do yaoi. This is a NaruHina fic, partly, and I would prefer to stick to canon as much as possible. So pairings are going to mostly follow what kishimoto has set out...aka no KakashixKurenai , at least until Shippuden era, sorry folks... When it comes to the undecided ones, like Ino, I'm open to suggestions. I do have opinions on what I want, but il incorporate as much of what you guys and girls want as I can. That being said, this is close to canon, so be reasonable. I'm not going to pair Naruto and Sasuke no matter how often you ask, for example. I find that a disturbing pairing in the least considering Naruto looks to Sasuke as a brother, making it a form of incest for them to have a relationship. The other main pairing of this story is...well, you'll see. It is going to be really obvious, and I'm hoping you guys will be surprised, and I'm really hoping you like it, though I'm not so sure you'll care...

Oh, fair warning, I might use words you don't know, so I've taken a page from kingkakashi and have a vocab section in my authors note at the bottom of each chapter for any words I think you might not know. Also, if I say anything in Japanese that I am not certain you'll know, I'll put the English definition next to it in parenthesis. For example: "Kage Bushin no Jutsu(shadow clone jutsu)"

Sorry for the obnoxiously long intro, this won't be a common thing.

If it wasn't obvious earlier, I'm not kishimoto, because if I was I wouldn't talk about myself in third person. Ergo, I don't own Naruto, because if I did Naruto would have kissed Hinata by now.

Ok, I've talked too much, on with the first chapter!

Prologue

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Takigakure, a month before the Chunin Exams

"We have to send a team if we are ever going to gain the respect of the other villages!"

"But we don't have any teams ready! None of the senseis approved their team for the exam this year, and sending an unprepared team would embarrass us more than not sending one at all!"

Shichiro, the leader of Takigakure, the village hidden in the waterfall, sighed and massaged his temples, trying to ease the headache he had gained from listening to the village elders repeat the same arguments for the past hour and a half. His council, made up of fourteen respected people from the village, was split evenly down the middle on this subject, and, as leader, he was going to have to make a decision soon. He almost wished his son Shibuki was still a genin, so that he and his teammates could be sent as representatives. The problem was they had all made Chunin after the last exam, and none of the genin teams from this year showed half as much potential. The only team remotely capable was Team 4, but due to the distrust shown to one of its members by the rest, Shichiro wasn't sure about choosing them.

His contemplations were soon interrupted as his closest advisor leaned over and whispered in his ear, "You know, Shichro-sama, if we send Team 4 there's no question they would make it to at least the second part. And if they made it that far, I know a certain genin who would represent us strongly in the fights. After all, isn't it better to show that we have one strong ninja rather than show we have none because the rest are weak?"

As he considered this, the debate raged on between the rest of the council, unaware of what had just transpired. Needless to say, they were quite shocked when Shichiro loudly stated "If you would all be quiet, I could give you my decision!"

The room was filled with wide eyes and silent mouths as he cleared his throat and continued. "Thank you. Now, as I said, I have come to a decision. We will send genin Team four to the Chunin exams in Konoha this year, as they are our most promising candidates. Yes, I know" he held up his hand as he spoke to cut off the angry rebukes, " team four was deemed unqualified by their sensei because of their lack of teamwork. However, it is my opinion that it would be better to show that we have at least a few strong shinobi rather than come off as weak by sending none, inviting the other villages to come attack us for profit. And before you dare bring up the condition of that girl, let me point out that my father 'suffered' from the same condition and was still strong enough to lead this village for over 40 years. I'm confident that she will be a good example of just how strong the people of this village are to the rest of the ninja world. As leader, this is my decision, and it shall be carried out. I now adjourn this meeting."

With that, the council members stood and shuffled out of the small room where the meeting was held, some satisfied and prideful with the results, others upset and irritated. As they did, few noticed the young boy who slipped in the room, slowly approaching Shichiro, who had sat down with his head in his hands, tired if dealing with the self righteous members of his villages council.

"Tousan, what's wrong?" Asked the boy as he knelt down in front of the older man.

"Ah, Shibuki, I didn't hear you come in." He said as he looked up at his son. Noticing his hair was getting long, he thought to himself He looks more like his mother every day, with those dark eyes and that dark hair of his. Coming back to the present before he distracted himself further, Shichiro gave his son a tired smile and said " It's nothing, Shibuki. your old man just has to go do some unpleasant things now."

Giving him a concerned look, the boy asked "What kind of things Tousan?"

"Well, for starters, I have to go tell Team 4 to prepare for the Chunin exams"

"But- Tousan! SHE'S on that team!" Shibuki stated, the fear and disgust obvious in his voice.

"Are you so closed minded, musuko(son), that you would view her as everyone else in this village does?! Don't you know of your own heritage?" Shichiro was shocked at his son's words. After all, if the my own son treats her like a pariah, how badly must others treat her?

"Gomensai(sorry), Tousan... I just- I don't see it wise to send her of all people to the exams. You know of her, well, her 'problem' perhaps better than anyone alive here. Why are you taking such risks?"

"Because, musuko, if this village is ever to gain respect, we will have to risk something to get it." With that, Shichiro got up and went to get his tasks over with, leaving a troubled Shibuki to his thoughts.

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Konoha, two weeks later

"Are there any overseeing our newest junior ninja that would like to recommend their students for this Chunin selection exam?" Asked the Sandaime(third) Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, as he looked around at the gathered Jonin and Chunin.

"I recommend Naruto Uzumaki, Sakura Haruno, and Sasuke Uchiha from team 7 for the Chunin selection exam." Kakashi declared, stepping forward towards the Hokage from the throng of people behind him.

Next, Kurenai came forward and stated, "I recommend Shino Aburame, Kiba Inuzuka, and Hinata Hyuuga from team 8 for the Chunin exam."

Asuma joined the two, taking a drag on his cigarette before saying "I recommend Ino Yamanaka, Shikamaru Nara, and Choji Akimichi from team 10 for the Chunin exam."

The shocked silence that followed was broken as Iruka, the genins' old teacher, burst forward from the crowd inside the Hokage's meeting room. "Wait a moment! Hokage-sama, if I could speak, please!"

At a nod from the Sandiame, he continued. " I knew and taught most of these kids at the academy... I know full well that they are gifted ninja, but this is too soon! They need more time to mature and gain experience! I don't understand how their senseis can't see this but-"

"I was six years younger than them when I became Chunin, Iruka." Kakashi pointed out, glancing back at the scarred instructor. "I doubt that they need more time than they already have had."

"Do you want to crush them!?" Iruka shouted back. "You know just what those exams are like, and, besides, none of those kids are a damned prodigy like you, Kakashi!"

"Be that as it may, there's something you fail to grasp here. You see, those 'kids' are no longer your students. They're soldiers, and they're under our command. I can't speak for the two beside me, but I stand by my recommendation. I'm sorry if it upsets you."

"Kakashi is right, Iruka" Kurenai said gently, but firmly. "As much as you want to protect them, they're not yours to protect anymore. They're going to go out there, take risks, and get hurt sometimes. But that's part of life, and you need to accept it. I too stand by my decision, and won't be changing it."

Iruka looked to Asuma, hoping to find some sanity from the Sarutobi. However, Asuma simply took his cig out from him mouth and sighed, releasing a cloud of smoke as he did. "They're right, kid. Just give it up and go back to your school," he said, a tone of condescension present in his words.

Finding no support, Iruka lowered his head and turned his back, walking away from where he felt the death warrants of nine innocent kids had been signed.

Taking a puff of his pipe, the Hokage continued,

"Now then, are there any overseeing the older genin teams who would like to recommend..."

Meanwhile, at Konoha's gates:

Four travelers walked into Konoha at the same time. As the guard looked closer, he saw that each of them had a forehead protector signaling that they came from Takigakure. Odd, we don't get many visitors from the Hidden Waterfall Village, he thought to himself

The lead figure, a tall man with light brown hair, turned around and motioned the three smaller people to him. Once they were close, he knelt down so as to be eye level with the three genin, looking the front two in the eye before saying, "Ok, this is a big deal you guys. Everything you do here reflects back on the entire village, so do your best and show them all what you're made of! Be sure that..."

To the casual observer, this rousing speech was being given to all three kids in front of him. However, if one looked closely, they would notice that no eye contact was made with the genin in the back. In fact, it looked as if she could care less about what the man said, looking off into the trees at the bugs buzzing in the late afternoon sun.

As he wrapped up his speech, the man finally focused on the girl in the back, his eyes narrowing as he noticed her distracted expression. "And You," he said, the cold tone of his voice in stark contrast to the warm manner he had just been speaking in,"You be sure to behave. Don't be stupid, don't break anything, don't talk to anyone. In fact, it would be best if you just acted like you weren't here. Got it?"

"Yes, sensei," the young girl responded, her voice acerbic and full of disdain as she replied. How I wish I could beat that bastard up, but if I do, il never get anything other than D-ranked missions. For the sake of my future, I have to endure his bitchy attitude just a little while longer...

As if he could read her thoughts, he finished with, "I'll be watching you, you freak." With that, he stood up and resumed his path into the village. The two genin beside him sneered at her befor following suit, running a little to catch up with him. The girl took a moment to control her trembling body, holding back the rage that threatened to break free, a rage that didn't come from her own feelings alone. "Just a little while longer, Fu," she said to herself. "Just a little fucking longer..." Once she had calmed down, she walked in to the Hidden Leaf Village, unaware of just how quickly her life was going to change.

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Sorry for the lame first chapter, I just wanted to get some backstory established and see if you guys are ok with how I write...hopefully it isn't too terrible and you can appreciate the story despite my inability to write :P I promise it will get much better once I actually start the story! I just needed to set up some things and I would rather do it now than as a filler chapter later (I have mild OCD, sue me).

If there's a pairing you would like me to try to work in, let me know. So far, I have NaruHina set. I would like to do NejiTen, ShikaTema, and AnkoIruka for sure, but they'll just be minor side arcs unless I get reviews really wanting them to be important features of the story. If there is another pairing you want, or if you can come up with a good enough argument to swing me on an existing one (besides NaruHina that won't change) il try to work it in.

to clarify: NaruHina is going to be a major pairing! Sorry I didn't feel necessary to give their backstories because everyone already knows them and I don't find it necessary to change them :P next chapter il start with Naruto and Hinata no worries :)

I want to thank roamer79, Kingkakashi, Hektols, Tyr'amun, JadedRen, MehaandIruka, DeisuiNeko, KittyKatChan96, CherryxButterfly, brown phantom, YungHime, and Shinigami-Zelda-Sama for inspiring me, messaging me back, and for being awesome people in general. If you haven't read any of the aforementioned authors, pick one and go check them out! They're all worth it, in my opinion.

Please, review! Being my first fic, I would greatly appreciate feedback. I get that this chapter wasn't that great, mostly I am setting up for the rest of the story here. Next chapter I'll actually get into things, establishing main characters and such. It shouldn't be long before I do that, so just bear with me please. Six AP classes plus honor band plus church plus a girlfriend make it hard to find time to write, but I will try my best to get you something you'll actually enjoy soon!

Live long and prosper,

Phiver

Vocab!

Incest- sexual or romantic relationship with a close family member

Pariah- outcast from society

Acerbic- biting and sarcastic