So this is my first Fan Fiction on this site, and my first Naruto one ever. It was hard for me to start a story not from the beginning. But when I started writing it, I found that I wanted to get past the Chuunin exam quickly. So I've made a prologue to the story, that is split into 6 parts. I will update the story each time I get new chapters. And I promise from here the chapters will be longer and there will be a slower pace to the story. Comments and Suggestions are welcome just keep them positive.

DISCLAIMER: I do not own, or even know anyone who owns, Naruto...

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Part 1

In the beginning of Narutos' life he would never have imagined what was in store for him when he began to understand what life was truly about.

Naruto lived with the Third Hokage. And he had been doing so since as long as he can remember. Naruto had always found it odd that no one except him called him Sarutobi that often. He was the closest thing that Naruto had ever known to a father. And for the last two years he had also been his master.

It all started when Naruto was six years old. After being passed from house to house for six years as an orphane, Naruto was finally adopted by The Third Hokage. Naruto would never forget that day.

"Naruto, there are many who don't think that you should know the true events that have caused you to be an orphan, the same events that have caused your loneliness and suffering these last few years. However I think that you will be able to understand, and with my teaching, I'm confident that you will reach the potential that I see in you. Are you still with me?"

Naruto gazed into the old mans face. Not really an old face, just older than most. And warn, Naruto could see the countless scars that laid his thick, tan, leather like skin. He could tell by the way the old man spoke that he needed to pay attention. After a few seconds Naruto replied, "yes."

"Good, I knew that you were smart. Come with me Naruto, we will go home and I'm going to tell you a story." The Third Hokage said, letting only a flash of a frown appear on his face.

Naruto had often walked passed The Hokages' mansion, and liked to pretend he lived there too. Thinking about the endless hallways, and countless rooms. His lips seemed to double in length as he smiled wide mouthed taking small steps into his room.

Much nicer than his old rooms had been, which was usually a broom closet, or small pantry. He couldn't wait to see the kitchen.

"Have a seat Naruto," The Third Hokage began, as Naruto sat in a chair across from him. "A few years ago there was a devastating war amongst the ninja nations. Many lives were lost as the countries ragged on changing the landscape. During this fight, a monster called the Kyuubi was summoned. A giant nine tailed fox, whose temper, and rage could not be controlled. At that time I was no longer Hokage. There was another. The Fourth Hokage, was believed the be the most powerful of all the Hokage's to date. The Fourth Hokage was killed sealing the Kyuubi into a newly born infant. That infant was you Naruto. You hold the Kyuubi."

At first Sarutobi thought that Naruto had not understood what he had told him. But when he looked closer the old man could see the concentration on his face. Like he was thinking really hard about something.

"Old man, can that thing come out again?" Naruto asked looking slightly concerned.

"Yes Naruto, it can take over your body. However, together we will make you strong, and you will be able to control the beast inside of you. If all goes well, you will never have to fear it getting loose. Because it is sealed inside, and only you can let that seal be removed." The old man answered. Naruto I don' think that you will fully comprehend what has happened to you, but as you get older, more things will start to make sense, and your life will have meaning."

"When will we start training?" Naruto stated after a long moment.

"You can't enter the academy until you reach the age of at least 8. So it will be a while before that. But I will start teaching you some of the basics in a few weeks, once your used to living here. So why don't we both get some sleep, you look tired and I could use a nap." The Third Hokage stated.

Naruto climbed into bed and closed his eyes as the lights went out. Before he could count to ten he was asleep.

Part 2

After a few weeks Naruto began to learn the basics of being a ninja. He grasped tthings easily and was quickly learning how to use Taijitsu. The first step in the art form that is a ninja battle.

It was hard for The Third to train Naruto personally everyday. So he often had high level Jounins teach him instead. The Third wanted Naruto to develope extensive skills in many areas. He wasn't sure when Naruto may really need them.

For the most part Naruto learned Taijitsu for the first six months, spending countless hours training with Master Gai. A green spandex wairing spaz. But there was no one that could contend with his hand to hand skills. Naruto trained with extremely heavy weights that he wore all the time. Causing him to become quicker and faster then most his age.

After six months The Third decided that Naruto should start learning another set of skills. His Taijitsu was well above genin level, and he was soaking up information like a sponge. The Third chose Kakashi as a new teacher for Naruto. And today was their first traning session.

They met in one of Naruto's favorite places in the city. A medium sized training grounds located deep in a forest next to a large lake. Naruto loved to fight on top of water. The reflections dazzled him.

"Naruto, I want you to come at me, like you want to kill me, and try to punch me." Kakashi instructed.

Naruto showed no hesitation in his actions as his figure's form blured. A blink of an eye later kakashi swiftly dodged a blow to the face, and jumped back. Within an instand Naruto was on him again, this time going for his legs with a low sweep kick, quickly changing to a full force upper cut hoping to catch him in the air. Naruto was puzzled when his hand connected with a section of brown dry log instead of flesh.

"You have some skill Naruto. I think that it's time to move onto something a little newer. You have been taught very well in your chakra control. Now it's time that you use it for something other than walking on water and sticking to tree branches."

"What are you going to teach me Master?" Naruto replied, his eyes brightening with each jump.

"I am going to teach you Ninjitsu. The main fighting force of a ninja. Now every person has an affinity to one of the elements. At least most do. Have you been able to figure out what yours is?" Kakashi began.

"No, The Third thought that it was going to be wind, but I haven't tried anything to know." Naruto replied.

"Well then let's start with something that isn't too tough. Your first move with be Bunshin No Jitsu. Every person must learn this technique in order to graduate from the academy. It's fairly easy if you can control your chakra correctly. Here are the hand seals." Kakashi instructed.

Naruto watched Kakashi trying hard to not miss anything he was doing. After he had been shown, Naruto tried doing the technique. He managed a weak one the first try, a good resemblance of himself, but it didn't have much power to stay with. Through out the day it improved however, and by lunch time he had come close to mastering the technique.

This is how his days went. He would train with Kakashi until lunch and then go and train with The Third afterwards. Within no time they had him trained to a genin level in his Taijitsu, he had learned a decent amount of Ninjitsu techniques for his age, and was going to soon start work on Genjitsu. But wasn't hoping to accomplish much more then being able to despell one. As he was not that battle type of a ninja.

Naruto only had two more weeks before he would enter the academy, and be take his first step towards being a ninja. And The Third had decided to let him take the time off to start meeting his classmates. So Naruto left the mansion and walked the streets looking for a familiar face to talk to for a while.

He liked walking in crowds. Able to observe the people around him without looking like he was doing it. For some reason he felt safe in Konoha. A safe that he hoped would stay.

Naruto saw people that were most likely going to be his classmates, a few that he already knew. there was Hyuuga Neji, and Hinata. Rock Lee, who from what people were saying couldn't do ninjitsu. A pink haired girl, who he later found out was named Sakura. And right before he got home he saw Uchiha Sasuke.

Naruto saw Sasuke often. He was always by himself, and never looked happy. However, Naruto didn't think he would be happy either if everyone he knew had been murdered by his own brother. It was amazing to Naruto how well Sasuke seemed to contain himself.

Naruto did not know who his mother or his father was. But he often dreamed of it being The Fourth himself who was his father. He saw a slight similarity to the figure in the cliff. And pretended to have conversations with his father in his head. He decided that pretending to fill what you don't know is better than only remembering what you won't have anymore.

Naruto spent that rest of the two weeks doing close to the same thing day to day. Training himself in the morning, just doing muscular and cardio workouts, to maintain the body that he had built. Then walking the town and talking to whoever was willing, it made him happy to talk to people he didn't know.

Before he knew it it was time for him to enter the Academy. He started the next morning, and he was laying in bed, unable to sleep because of the excitement that he felt.

Part 3

Neji stayed silent as stone as he creeped around a corner of a cliff side. They were getting closer to the top of the mountain and he knew that there could be traps anywhere. The people they were after had gone through a lot of trouble to hide and weren't going to like to be found.

"Byakugen." Neji stated. Naruto always grinned when he saw the veins in Nejis' white eye's buldge out.

"Hopefully we are getting close to the roundevous point. I'm not sure where Sensai is coming from." Sasuke stated.

They had just sighted the last turn in the mountain. After this the fighting would start. Once they turned the corner it was two hundred feet to a large stone building, inside was the person they were after. Some VIP's daughter had been kidnapped to hold randsom, they had to get her out.

"He's coming, we're just about in place, just another hundred feet," Neji stated. "Ok, stop, now wait for my signal. Kakashi is almost ready. On go. GO!"

Naruto, Sasuke, Neji, and Kakashi all dissapeared and reappeared on different sides of the structure. Covering the back and the front entrances. The plan was for Kakashi to enter in the back after Naruto and the others created a diversion in the front. Then he would attack penetrate teh structure, get the girl and give the sign for retreat.

They rushed through the rooms of the building knocking out everyone they came across. Since there were no ninja in the building they didn't want too many casualties.

Finally Neji saw the signal Kakashi was giving them from outisde, and the group quickly exited the building. Fifteen yards away from the building Kakashi waited with the now rescued woman. The mission was a success. Which was fortunate because it was their first mission outside of the city since they graduated the academy.

The five of them met up and headed back towards Konoha.

Luckily the mission hadn't taken them far from Konoha and they were home by nightfall. To celebrate their success the Hokage invited them to dinner with him, as well as another team that had just had a similar accomplishment.

It wasn't long before everyone had arrived and was seated at the table. Before them sat a beautiful meal constructed to each of their tastes. But they all got the feeling that this was not what it seemed. The Third had looked gloomy all night and hadn't said a word so far.

"I want to congradulate you on your successful mission. I was thoroughly pleased that you had such ease. However as I'm sure that you've guessed this dinner was not simply for that purpose. Konoha is in trouble. We have received information that something is going to happen at the chuunin exam. Although the details are lacking, including actual battle plans, who is involved, and to what extent, it comes from an accurate source of information. Therefore we are going to treat it as if were a code red threat." The Third began.

Naruto could tell something had been wrong for a few days, Sarutobi had been keeping to himself, and spent more time than normal in meetings. He wondered what had happened, and if they were somehow part of the solution.

"You three are the strongest from our village that are entering the chuunin exam in a few months. And we fear that the attack is going to have something to do with the parts of the exam that we can't control. Therefore we are going to seperate your team. And give you each your own sensai's until the time has arrived for the exams. Kakashi is going to be training Sasuke, since he has the Sharingan. Naruto you will be training with me. And Neji you will be training with Hyuuga Hiashi." The Third continued.

"Hokage-sama, I don't think that he will train me, he has never accepted me as an equal and I am not allowed to be trained by a main branch family member." Neji said calmly, yet you could sense a small amount of emotion on his face. But not what it was.

"I have already spoken to him, and informed him that in times of war I will not tolerate petty problems amongst the villagers elders. Do not worry, he completely understand that he is to treat you with respect, but I warn you to treat him the same. The Third replied, "if you don't I can't say what may happen."

Neji just nodded his head in agreement.

The training was to start the next morning, so all of them went home after they ate. Naruto couldn't sleep, he didn't like that there was no information about the attack, and worried if that was going ot be their undoing.

Part 4

At dawn Sarutobi woke Naruto up to begin his training. They went to a special place on top of the stone faces of the past Hokage's. Only a few people were allowed to train here now, as it caused a lot of damage to the carvings.

"Naruto you have become strongly quiclky. Because your team consists of Konoha's strongest graduates your team has grown fast. You however have the most to worry about in this upcoming suituation. People will always be after the Kyuubi inside of you. And you must always be ready. Today I will teach you a new technique. Kirigakure No Jutsu." The Third began.

"I have heard of that before. Kakashi told me that it is a concealment technique. Seems a little simple to be useful." Naruto replied.

"In most respects you are right Naruto, it is usually dispelled quickly, or seen through immediately. But it will give you a moment to hide, and to prepare. Or it may just give you an advantage for a weaker ninja. Another problem with this is that you usually have to have water around to use this technique. But a powerful ninja will be able to do it anyway." The Third continued. "First I will show you the hand seals."

The Third moved slowly and deliberately to ensure that Naruto caught them all the first time.

"Kirigakure No Jutsu." He said.

Naruto watched as a thick mist covered the area, and The Third slowly dissapeared. Before he knew it The Third was right in front of him, with a kunai placed directly in front of his throat.

"Now how would I counter this move?" Naruto asked.

"You have always thought that way Naruto, and it's good that you know you must protect yourself. A few things can counter this, either a bloodline like the Sharingan, or Byakugan. Or by dissolving the mist with a fire technique. Such as Katon: Housenka No Jutsu. You already know that one, you just can't use it very much. So Naruto I want you to try this technique." The Third instructed.

Naruto first did the hand seals slowly, making sure to get each one perfect. Then he concentrated very hard and said, "Kirigakure No Jutsu."

It took longer than would be useful, but it slowly came and covered the area. Naruto and The Third sat up there and worked on this technique for the whole day, going over the many uses and counters for the move.

Most of the training done with Naruto wasn't to make him more powerful. Many of the moves were too powerful for him to use effectively, especially if he was going to need to attack again. The Third was showing Naruto many moves so that he would know what to do under many many attacks. His training went on like this for the first month.

Sasuke, Neji, and Naruto had all been training hard for one month. Preparing for whatever problem they were expecting to encounter. The first month had been mostly preperation. And now they were going to see how it went.

"You three are now going to have a match to see if you are ready. If you are ready then you will have the next month to prepare and train as you see fit. You will be facing Kakashis' bell test. From the time we say go, you have til sunrise to take your bells." The Third stated. "START!"

With a flash of smoke Naruto, Neji, Sasuke, and Kakashi all dissapeared. Heading in what seemed like the same direction.

Naruto who was not ever one to wait went straight after Kakashi. Within moments they were engaged in a serious set of Taijitsu moves. Naruto dove to the side barely dodging a kick from Kakashi, at the same time he threw two kunai from only five feet away, but Kakashi deflected one with his kunai and dodged the other one.

Sasuke and Neji had both found spots on either side of the two fighting, waiting for a moment to take advantage of. They had worked with Naruto long enough to know that he would go straight after him and they both had plans of their own.

After a few minutes the two seperated and were breathing heavily. They had been blow for blow the whole time, neither one able to find an opening.

"I'm impressed Naruto you were always quick, but you've gotten faster, The Third must have worked you hard." Kakashi complimented.

Neji and Sasuke took this as their time to unleash their plan. Sasuke rushed at kakashi making symbols as he went. He only had one shot at this, as Kakashi had left his sharingan covered. So he wouldn't be able to guess what was going on.

"Katon: Housenka No Jutsu!" Sasuke roared as he fired multiple fireballs out of his mouth hurling towards Kakashi.

Kakashi evaded each one as he slowly backed up, he knew Sasuke had awakened his Sharingan during his training and was already better then him at Taijitsu, so he did not want him getting too close.

I can't go half ass with these guys anymore, I better use my Sharingan. Kakashi thought to himself.

But right as he moved his hand to lift up his forehead protector. Neji chose that time to finish the plan, he dropped down on Kakashi with his eyes bulging and starting going after Kakashi with his Gentle Fist attacks. It only took a few moves for him to connect a blow to each of his legs, making him unable to move. Neji grabbed all three bells right before Kakashi went to the ground. The test was over.

"Congratulations you three, that is the fastest time you guys have gotten the bells from him. You three are ready, so take some time off. I know you will all train but keep it light, we need you as fresh as possible during the exams." The Third instructed.

Part 5

Naruto had spent the last month working on his chakra stamina and control with some of the new techniques that he had used. And now it was time for the exams.

Naruto met with Sasuke and Neji right outside the classroom where they were to take the first test. They both looked good, from what he had been told the few times they had met up to train they had all been doing pretty much the same thing. Sasuke had worked on his stamina and reserves so that he could use the sharingan longer. And Neji had been working hard with the Hyuuga head to become better with his Gentle Fist technique and other things. They were pretty confident that they were going to do ok.

Once they walked inside they were surprised to see so many people in the room. They sat quietly in the corner of the room waiting for the instructor to enter.

Out of the corner of his eye Naruto found someone that he knew. Hyuuga Hinata. She had just bumped into a rather large male. Who didn't look too friendly when he turned around.

Naruto moved without thinking, someone from his village was about to be attacked, and she had no way of stopping it. He got there right in time and blocked the attack.

"You have guts to interfere with us boy. You better watch your back." The tall ninja said. The symbol on his forehead protector was that of the sound. Naruto would remember that.

Only a moment or two later the instructor entered the room and guided them all into the testing area. Where each team was seperated from each other and given a seat, a pencil and a test sheet.

"On the board in front of you there are nine questions, you have forty five minutes for these questions. After that I will reveal the tenth question, and you will have another forty five minutes to answer that one. There are moderators watching you all and anyone caught cheating three times will be disqualified, and so will their team members. Ready begin." Ibiki stated.

Naruto couldn't help but look at all the scars on the instructors face for a moment before he started. Just a glance at the questions was enough to know that these questions were too hard for most Genin to know the answers. But Naruto had spent much time training his mind as well as his body. And he had no problem with the first nine questions.

He sat and waited patiently, looking at the other ninjas in the room, trying to figure out how they were getting the answeres. He had found several interesting ideas. One strange boy from the Sand had created an eye with to see with. One was using mirrors on the ceiling. And he was pretty sure at some point he saw Ino take over Sakura's mind.

After a little while time ran up and Ibiki stopped the examinees.

"It is now time for the last question. But first I must give you all a warning. If you do not answer this question right you will fail, and you will not be able to take the exam again. You or your team mates. Please raise your hand if you wish to leave." Ibiki finished.

Naruto watched as a few teams walked out of the doors, knowing that they were not qualified to be in the exam anyway. After a few minutes everyone that was going to leave had done so.

"I congratulate all of you who were brave enough and confident enough to take this last question on. I also congratulate you because you all pass the first test. The whole thing was a diversion, a way of making you use tactics to obtain information that you do not have and need. If you were able to not get caught, you did well enough to pass. Wait here and your next instructor will be with you to explain the next part of the exam." Ibiki explained.

Just as he finished there was a crash and a woman sprang through the window, and stood in front of them all.

Ibiki just stood and shook his head at the flamboyent entrance.

"My name Is Anko, I will be the instructor for the next part of the exam. Everyone follow me." Anko said.

They all followed her out of the building and down a path, that all of them knew, but none of them had walked. It led to a forest that struck fear into even the Jounin that entered it.

"Each of you will enter as your teams. Each team will have one of these two scrolls, either the earth scroll of the heaven scroll. You must not open it until you reach the end. Once inside you have three days to obtain the opposite scroll from what you have been given. This is the part of the exam where people start to die. Take this seriously as no one will enter the forest to help you or to stop anything going on. I am going to pass out this consent form to you all. Please fill it out and return it to the tent to receive your scroll and gate number." Anko instructed.

Naruto, Neji, and Sasuke gathered together away from everyone else to fill there's out. They wanted to start strategizing as soon as possible.

But while they were doing so The Third came up to them to speak with them one last time before they entered.

"Please gather close as we do not want anyone to hear us. You three have a mission while you are doing this. Keep an eye out for anyone too strong to be in the exam, and above all else make it out alive. Because if they don't attack now, then it will be during the last part. And we can't afford to not have you three participate." The Third instructed, and then disappeared in smoke back to his observation point.

Naruto and his team worked towards their gate, as they worked out a strategy.

"This makes things slightly more difficult for us. Having to do this mission while we take this test will be distracting. But it must be done, either of you have any suggestions." Sasuke asked.

"Well, I think that above all else we should try to pass the test. Because as The Third said we are needed in the next part. Also by obtaining another scroll we can measure at least one other teams capabilities, if we just survey the battles going around and wait until we find a team that we think should be investigated, then we can accomplish the mission as well as the exam." Neji suggested.

"I think that's a good idea. Why don't we head towards the tower and set up and ambush. Then we can leur whatever team we wish into it?" Naruto added.

Neji and Sasuke nodded in agreement. And with that the test was started the gates were open and the teams were free to enter. Naruto and his team dashed into the field and quickly moved towards the next gate location, hoping to spot the team that was entering closest to them. Each gate was roughly thirty yards away from each other. So there was plenty of time to get away from the gate. Thus they all moved at a thirty degree angle to the gate they moved in, and decided to go that way til they hit a wall or found another team.

They traveled fast for almost a mile before the found their first signs of another team. But they quickly found they were already in battle. It is dishonorable to engage ninja already in a battle. So for now they waited. Staying hidden so that they could watch the battle unfold.

Three of the ninja fighting were from Konoha, Lee, Sakura, and Kiba. The other three they did not recognize. The battle had already been underway when they arrived. The three from Konoha were fighting against a team that they did not know. But the battle seemed to be even. Kiba had just taken one out with a distraction from Akimaru. Sakura and Lee were engaged in a raged Taijitsu battle. Both of them seemed to be doing alright.

"I think that we should move on. Those shinobi are from the Hidden Village of the Rain. They usually stay out of world affairs. If they are trouble, we will find out later." Neji stated.

"I agree I'm feeling vulnerable sitting here for too long." Sasuke replied.

And with that they left the area, searching for another team to observe. After going around the area the battle was taking place in they continued on their line until they reached a fence containing the forest. From there they climbed up a tree and looked out on the forest. Not too far away was another set of teams engaging in battle. They decided to head over and see what was happening there.

However when they got there they realized this wasn't the case. Naruto watched as Neji talked to them with hand signals. They were about fifty yards away from them, and there were only three of them. Naruto wondered if they had simply already killed the team they were fighting.

They crept silently the last fifty yards til finally they could see the three Shinobi they were after. From what they could tell the three of them were arguing about something. It looked like two of them had started to fight each other and the third had stopped it. From the injuries on the one with the painted face, it looked good that she had.

All three were from the sand. There were two males and one female. The tallest of the males had a red pattern on his face, and was dressed in all black, covering even his head in a hood. The other male was much shorter then the first. And had on brown clothing. His red hair matching a red tattoo on his forehead that said love. On his back he carried a huge container, with a cork at the top to seal it off. It looked odd sitting on his back, it looked like it was huge compared to the small body of the boy.

The girl was short as well, and wore a black shirt and skirt, with fishnets underneath both. On her back she carried a long wide black object. It looked like it would open up, but Naruto wasn't willing to guess yet what it was for. The girl was now in between the other two. And they were now all talking loud enough to be heard.

"Gaara, we must be careful in here, we can't cause too much suspicion before the last exam. We do not need to fight everyone we run across. Especially if they have the same scroll as us. You can not get out of control before the plan can unravel. So lets keep moving towards the tower. We'll take the first people who have the earth scroll and then go straight to the tower. You may be powerful Gaara, but not even you can withstand the rage of the Kazekage." The female Shinobi yelled at the red headed kid.

"Kankurou, Temari, no one will ever know what really happened if I kill you both in here. Be careful the way you talk to me." Gaara replied.

With that Gaara walked off away from Naruto and his teams hiding spot. Temari and Kankurou followed behind him. Naruto sat and waited patiently for them to get far enough away before they talked again.

"That was intense. I wonder what that was about." Sasuke started.

"I'm not sure but the one they called Gaara looked scary, he looked like he had no problem with killing anyone with whom he didn't like. And it seems like we have found the trouble makers. But we should keep an eye out for more of them." Neji stated.

Naruto started in a course staying aware of the projected courses of the three they just saw. They wanted to stay close to them so they could check on their activity but not be too close to attract attention, or miss someone on the other side of a row of ferns. Slowly they kept moving in a pattern closer and closer to the tower in the center. Eventually they had it in sight. However something didn't seem right. It seemed that there must be something else going on. Neji had told Naruto earlier that he felt an extremely large chakra source somewhere in the forest. Also that it wasn't Gaaras'.

As they neared the clearing Naruto knew who the chakra belonged to. He was standing in front of the door to the tower waiting for the first person to get to it. It was time to make a plan.

"I think that person is the person that we were sent in to look for. I don't think that we were supposed to engage them right now though. Do you think there is a chakra barrier around the tower so that you can't fight once your inside?" Sasuke asked.

"I don't think so, most people wouldn't be dumb enough to try, there are people in there that are supervising. That is the only place they are at." Naruto informed them. The Third had told him about the Chuunin Exam a long time ago, sort of something to shoot for.

"Well then what are we going to do about him, I don't think even we three combined can take that man. Maybe we can wait for someone else to come along for him to fight, and then slip in while he's distracted." Naruto suggested.

"I think that would potentially harm one of our friends. Like Sakuras' team, or Hinatas'." Sasuke retorted.

"Maybe we will have to take him on, possibly causing a big enough disturbance right outside of the tower would attract the Jounins upstairs." Naruto said.

"Maybe we can take him guys, I mean we are pretty strong, I think if we could come up with a good enough plan we could do it. It's not like we're really as low as a Genin in skill anymore." Sasuke stated.

"Perhaps your right, I mean if I can get in close enough to stop his tenketsu, then we can even possibly capture him and bring him in to The Third." Neji replied looking somewhat positive about the situation now.

"That's pretty risky if he catches you that close you could be dead in an instant if he is powerful enough. Or even lucky enough." Sasuke stated.

"It's our only plan, and we do have to get inside of that tower and soon. It's going to get ugly in this forest if we're out here when the sun goes all the way down. How do you think we should go about it?" Naruto decided. He thought that if one of them would just commit the rest would follow.

"Well, how about this. Naruto use Kage Bunshin No Jutsu, and hide yourself, sending the clones to die, hopefully keep one or two alive and then the rest will be used to test his skills. Maybe have one go in obviously to see if he's even going to attack. Then as your testing him and making him concentrate on you. Hopefully Neji and I can sneak to opposite sides, and do what we did to Kakashi to him, I mean it worked once, hopefully it can work again." Sasuke offered, but knew it was a weak idea, it was never good to repeat a strategy for a different opponent, they knew that Kakashi had taken it somewhat easy on them.

"I think it's good once, but not twice, we should come up with something else." Neji said, as much as they let Naruto think he was the leader Neji was the best Shinobi on the team right now, his mental awareness and his physical strength made him a unique asset to the team.

Naruto noticed that the guy was now looking in their directions, and it was possibly that they had been spotted already. Meaning it would be hard to surprise him like that.

"I have an idea, but lets stop talking before he hears us, some Shinobi can hear like Kakashi can smell. Just follow my lead and we'll just see from there, this could end up way easier than it's seeming to be." Naruto stated. "Sasuke, activate your Sharingan, and keep an eye out for anything major, if we can catch him trying something long we can hit him while he's concentrating from all around. Head over to the top of that tree over there, it somewhat closer to him then we are. And good for distance attacks like you have. Neji, head over to the right a little bit, and get in the bushes, that will line you up behind him if he charges me. If we're agreed move out."

No one said anything, but all three of them disappeared as they went to their assigned spots. Naruto stood behind a big rock. He formed three shadow clones and then made them look like the three of them.

"Doton: Shinjuu Zanshu No Jutsu." Naruto said quietly as he sank into the ground. Once there he moved through it until he was just about twenty meters below the man by the door. From here he used Kirigakure No Jutsu. Hopefully this would be enough for them to work with.

Sasuke sat hidden in the upper part of a tree that looked out just barely away from directly in front of the door. He could see three of Narutos' clones approaching the Shinobi. To his surprise there was a copy of each of them. Getting an idea of what was going on, Sasuke bagan to prepare to attack. He would be the second piece of bait on the hook. Just what to do.

As Neji watched the clearing from his bush, he wasn't surprised to see a copy of himself approaching the tower. It was however curios that mist was covering the clearing, and they now couldn't see anything.

"Byakugan." Neji whispered, feeling stupid for saying something with no one around to hear it.

Now he could see through the mist just fine. Luckily he could see that the clones had already engaged in a Taijitsu war with the opposing Shinobi, this was his sign to look for Sasuke. He appeared in the corner of his eye, moving trees towards the other side of the man. It was close to attack time.

Naruto's clones were slowly getting stopped one by one. After his initial clones were killed he just kept one from dying and kept making clones. Waiting for the right moment to come back up. Finally his original clone was killed by a kunai. And there was no one left. And Sasuke picked the perfect time to strike.

It seemed like the Shinobi they were fighting had just ignored the mist, hoping the use it as an advantage if needed. So he didn't notice Sasuke had gotten right up close to him.

"Katon: Ryuuka no Jutsu!" Sasuke shouted as a fire lept from his mouth and sprang towards the Shiobi blasting away the mist in the process.

The powerful ninjas' hands were too fast to see as he formed seals with both hands and said, "Doton: Doryuuheki. Before him a huge rock wall was standing blocking the entire flame shot out at him by Sasuke. Luckily this had caused his back to be completely turned. Just as Neji was within feet of the Shinobi he turned around. Dodged to the right and Neji and him were soon locked into another Taijitsu battle. However Neji was much better than Naruto could ever be. He matched the man blow for blow even sealing a few of his teketsu points. Causing great pain, and a lack of chakra. Also making it harder to control his chakra.

Finally the jumped away from each other for a moments reprise. As a distraction to get away Neji threw a single Kunai towards the man.

This by no means was a hard thing to dodge, but as the ninja tried to move his feet he found that they were being held still by some sort of force. When he looked down to see what it was the kunai hit him straight in the chest. Naruto came the rest of the way our of the ground and used a good amount of strength to toss the man in teh direction of Neji who hit it hard one time one the back of the head.

Naruto, Sasuke, and Neji watched as the man fell to the ground and then turned slowly into mud. It was a clone. At some point he had created a clone. Where was he now?

Part 6

Neji was looking around everywhere for the mysterious Shinobi, but it was too late. By the time he found him he was mid attack. His neck was stretching out towards Sasuke. His head bit down hard on teh back of Sasuke's shoulder and then the neck shrunk back down. Before you could even blink the man was right behind Sasuke holding a kunai to his throat.

"Sasuke, I know who you are, and I know what you want. More than friends, more than money, more than fame. You want revenge, against the brother that killed your whole family. Surely you must know that you do not have the strength to do that now. But I can give it to you Sasuke. All you have to do is join me, and I will give you all the power that you want." The man whispered in his ear.

"What is your name Shinobi?" Sasuke replied.

"Orochimaru." The pale man replied, only this close could Sasuke see how pale his skin was, it almost seemed wet, like snake skin. And his eyes were a dark green with slits like a snakes. Sasuke felt fear for the first time since he lost his parents.

"I will not join you Orochimaru. My loyalty will always lie with Konoha." Sasuke replied smugly.

The happy look on Orochimarus' face disappeared. Replacing it was an evil grin, a split tongue briefly stuck out from his lips. He didn't look angry. He looked like someone who knew the battle was already over. "You will come to eventually Sasuke, they always do."

With that Orochimaru disappeared. Leaving no trace of his visit behind. Naruto and his team ran into the tower and followed the directions for opening the scrolls finally. When they were opened Kakashi suddenly appeared in front of them.

"Congratulations you three, you did well making it this far. How did your mission go." Kakashi asked casually when the smoke had cleared.

"We have a lot to report, but if at all possible, I think it would be best to tell to the Hokage himself. It is pretty urgent." Naruto insisted.

Neji had never seen Kakashi get serious faster. What was once the lines of a smile were the lines of a frown. Kakashi replied, "he had already asked me to take you straight there, lets go."

The three of them ran in front of their Jounin leader. Within a few moments they had left the forest and were back in the city. Kakashis' mind was racing while he ran.

What could have happened that Naruto would want to go straight there. I figured they would find something. Could someone be trying to sabotage the exams. Had anyone died from their village.

By the time he looked around Kakashi was standing in front of the Hokages' mansion. The four of them entered and ran through the halls towards The Thirds office. On the way they passed Anko, who had been getting ready to head to the tower to take her night shift.

Why are they in such a hurry, those three must be exhausted. The sun is just about down, and they are already done. From what I had been told they were supposed to try and stay in all three days to observe what was going on. Could they have already found something?

Anko pushed the thought aside and headed towards the tower, it was going to be a long night, and she needed to keep her mind on what she as doing.

A few moments later the four Shinobi entered The Thirds' office. He was startled to see them coming in so fast, and all out of breath. Especially since they weren't supposed to meet until the end of the third day. Something must have happened.

"Hokage-same, Orochimaru is in the forest!" Naruto burst out.

"What happened Naruto I need to know everything?" The Third replied quickly. He was right things were about to take a turn for the worse.

Naruto, along with the help of Neji, and Sasuke described what had happened in the forest, starting with the Shinobi from the sand and ending with their run in at the tower. The Third did not say one word the whole time. When they were done he sat silently for a moment, trying to keep his mind for going to fast.

"We must assume that he came for more than just Sasuke. Especially with those sand Shinobi talking about plans for teh next part of the exam. It's probably safe to assume that Orochimaru has left the city though. He wouldn't have shown his face this early if he wasn't leaving. He won't strike until the next exam. That gives us one month to plan. Kakashi, alert the tactical squad that I need them up here immediately, the rest of you go home and get some sleep not a word about this to anyone. Naruto you stay here." The Third stated.

Naruto watched as Kakashi, Neji, and Sasuke left the room and headed in their own directions. Then he sat in silence with The Third. Wondering why he had been asked to stay.

"Naruto, we can not stop the Chuunin exam, it would be too big of a give away that we had found something out. So things must continue as they are. But with these new events happening we need to be more careful then ever. As you know next will be the one on one matches. This is the perfect time to attack since if they wait most of the Konoha Shinobi will have had their matches already, and the others will be spectators watching. There are three teams left from Konoha in the forest, hopefully two of them will make it out. I want you to take it easy for a month and keep yourself occupied. I'm going to send Kakashi and Sasuke away for a month to train."

"Why?" Naruto asked, somewhat surprised.

"Orochimaru promised Sasuke power, and if that is what Sasuke really does want than we need to prove that he does not have to leave to gain it. And that the only power he can get from him will cause his downfall. Kakashi will be able to teach him some things that no one else can, and help him to master his Sharingan. I've noticed that he has been doing research in the library on mastering it. Hopefully that will satisfy him for a while so we can get through this in one piece." The Third replied.

"I trust in your judgment Sarutobi-sama. I will work my mind out for the next month to stay sharp. Maybe get some new ideas. I've always wanted to create my own technique, maybe I can do the research for it." Naruto replied, somewhat irritated that Sasuke was going to get special treatment. But he knew he had been his whole life, so there was no reason to be upset.

Once Naruto had finished the tactical team had arrived. So Naruto left and headed to his room. It had been a long day and he was glad to get some rest. And the next month was going to be a tough one. Naruto had never had free time since he decided to be a Shinobi. He didn't know what to do with himself. After he had a cup of tea he passed out in his bed.

Kakashi woke Sasuke up early the next morning. First they went to the edge of town where they reported in to the gate patrol that they were going to be leaving on a one month training mission. That way no one could try and pass of as them while they were gone. Then they headed to a remote part of Konoha, usually not used for anything. There Kakashi sealed the seal on Sasukes' shoulder. Hoping that it would keep it from activating before they knew what to do about it.

They traveled all day and most of the night til they reached the edge of a vast desert mountain range. Where they made camp for the night. When the woke up the next morning Kakashi took them on a path that led deep into the mountains. A back way into the land surrounding the Hidden Village of the Sand. Here they would train, and here Sasuke would get a taste of the power that only Konoha could give him.

"Sasuke, it seems like Orochimaru is after you, we're not sure what he wants yet, but we know he wants you. So The Third felt that we should prepare you for anything. That is why I have brought you out here. I am going to teach you a move that I created, my only original technique, called Chidori. This move is extremely dangerous not only for the person using it, but the person who get his with it." Kakashi began.

"What's so dangerous about it?" Sasuke asked.

"It uses a lot of chakra to use it, and can easily zap all of your energy, leaving you for dead. To do this move you must practice a lot, and you must use the Sharingan. That's another reason why it is dangerous, because using your Sharingan will also drain your chakra, as you know. First watch me do it, and then I will show you how." Kakashi instructed.

Sasuke watched as Kakashi revealed his right eye and stood in a fighting position holding his left arm with his right. Sasuke could see the chakra gathering as Kakashi gathered more and more chakra into his hand, before too long it was a blue crackling wave of energy giving off the sound of birds. Kakashi rushed towards a rock pillar about three yards away and slammed his hand into it. When the smoke cleared there was a giant whole in the pillar going all the way through.

"Ok, so first you assume the fighting position that I was in, you must support your arm with the other one because the weight and power of the chakra in your hand will weigh it down. Then you gather chakra..." Kakashi was cut off.

"With all respect Kakashi-sama, I also have Sharingan and watched you do it the first time, I think I've got it." Sasuke stated bluntly.

"Well then go ahead and try it then if your so tough." Kakashi replied.

Sasuke stood in position and starting to gather the chakra in his palm. After a long few minutes the chakra finally started to show its self and make that chirping sound he was looking for. Sasuke rushed towards the rock in front of him and slammed his fist in to hard. When the smoke had cleared he had caused damage, but not as much as Kakashi had.

"Well you've got it in basics, now we will spend the next three days building your stamina to the attack, and making it so that you can do it more and more. Our goal is to get your limit up to three, that's what mine is." Kakashi informed.

"What happens if you use it more than three times?" Sasuke asked.

"You don't use it more than three times, do you understand me Sasuke." Kakashi said, his voice had gotten really serious and Sasuke knew to listen to his words.

"I personally was not sure if you were ready for this move or not, but the higher ups decided that my opinion didn't matter. So we are going to be very careful with it. Do not use it during your match unless you absolutely have to. The only one I think you would need to use it for is Gaara." Kakashi replied.

"What if I face Naruto?" Sasuke asked.

"If your facing Naruto you will not have a chance to use this move, you may not think it of him, but Naruto is stronger than anyone in the village. He just doesn't know it yet." Kakashi replied.

The training went on for the whole month. The final exams were the next day and finally Sasuke and Kakashi were headed home.

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So there it is the prologue to the story. I decided that I wanted to spend some time on the matches for the last exam and that is going to be my first maybe even the first few chapters in the story. But expect a lot of twists and turns, I'm going to introduce some romances and some other little twists. Let me know what you think.