Alright, so this is the beginning of what I hope to be a very large and comprehensive set of challenges for authors to partake in for the Naruto Fanfiction community.

This first chapter is going to be dedicated to the general rules for all the challenges, which will only be overridden if indicated in each challenge's chapter.

First, the unbendable rules.

All those wishing to take on one of my challenges must ask me first. This serves two purposes. One is so that I can keep track of who is doing what and read the story in question. The second is so that I can check the quality of the person's previous writing so that I can tell whether they can handle the particular challenge they requested. These are not going to be easy challenges necessarily, and I don't want someone getting started and feeling overwhelmed by it.

No Yaoi/Yuri as a main point of the plot. It can be with two characters that are not in most chapters, but the main characters must be straight. My reasoning for this is twofold. One, I have gay relatives. I don't want to think about what they do. Two, there's already a crap-ton of yaoi on Naruto Fanfic. Enough said.

No Harems. This, by my definition, involved there being more than 3 people in a pairing. This rule is here mainly because, quite frankly, very few people can actually write good fics with this being a part of it. The reason I allowed for 3 instead of 2 is because its more common for this to work out fine (in terms of quality writing) than anything more. In addition to this, some people have trouble moving away from their preferred pairing. In this way, it allows them to keep their most loved pairing while adding in an unusual one to change things up. That being said, I would prefer it to be only two people in the pairing. This is because it is practically impossible to write a three person pairing without including Yuri/Yaoi. I can handle Yuri better than Yaoi, but still, I would rather not have to.

NO BASHING. This one might receive a lot of flak, mainly because some people just have that one character they love to hate. I don't care. Don't do it. The only bashing allowed is when it is used to create character development. Which means it can't last half of the fic. I would say keep it limited to the beginning, and make the person being bashed grow from it.

No Naru/Saku. I know this may seem like an oddball thing to say right after my no bashing comment, but I put it here for a reason. I personally do not like them as a pairing, simply because of how she treats him. That being said, I do not dislike her as a character. Meaning, don't take this as permission to bash her.

No overpowered characters. If there is one thing that ruins a story for me, it's a character that's never challenged. If theres no challenge, there is no growth. And growth is essential to a good character. I expect all fics under these challenges to be balanced in terms of how powerful someone is. A good rule of thumb is to remember that for every incredibly powerful ability, there is a weakness. For example, someone who could use lightning chakra like second nature might be at an incredible disadvantage against a wind user. Or a super powerful jutsu might have a particular range or time when it doesn't work properly. Anything like that. Keep it balanced. No one is perfect, and I want that to be reflected in these stories.

Highly Recommended

So, this is where things get a bit tricky. Each of the following is not entirely necessary for the challenges. I would not take that as blatant permission to just ignore them however, as incorporating one or more of these will almost guarantee my interest in the story as long as the writing quality is at a good level.

Unusual pairings. And I'm talking people at least close to Naruto's age (assuming this a pairing with Naruto of course) and NOT from the village. The latter half can be changed if I am given enough reasoning. The one thing I will say is that it cannot be a girl from the original Rookies. The only exception to this is a change in gender that is not just known by everyone. But that's a much more tricky subject, and as such I will discuss it on an individual basis. I will also post a preferred pairing in the case of some fics. These are not blatant requirements, but pretty damn close. If you can convince me to take a different pairing for the situation, fine. But don't expect it to be easy.

Grey characters. I want moral ambiguity, not the black/white mindset that a lot of people seem to have. Give me a grey Orochimaru, or a realist Danzo. I love fics that have these, mainly because it allows for so much more growth in character.

Rinnegan Naruto. Ok, so I know this seems to contradict a rule earlier for no OP Naruto. This is not the case. It is pretty easy to make Naruto OP with the Rinnegan, and that is the ONLY reason its not a full on requirement. And that is why it turns out so much better when someone manages to keep him realistic with these powers. If anyone chooses to do this, I want some different things going on besides just using the powers shown in the manga/anime. Perhaps delving more into the manipulation of gravity as a whole rather than just using specific techniques? There's tons of room for creativity here. If you need some ideas just ask me, I have tons when it comes to the Rinnegan.

A more military outlook in the hidden villages. I want more detail on the mission systems, the inter village politics and tactical info. I WANT TO SEE JIRAIYA ACTUALLY SPYING! I want to see what a ninja village would really look like underneath the surface. The interrogations, the spies, the assassinations in politics, all of it.

Number 4 goes hand in hand with this one; a more stealth based ninja. You can keep the flashy jutsus and the big explosions, but I want a bigger emphasis on stealth as being one of the most important things. If you have a choice between fighting and possible getting wounded or killed, or slitting the enemy's throat in their sleep, do the latter. Its easy to find ways around the stealth to bring out those big battles too, so don't worry about that. Just make sure that the first thing they want to attempt is to get in quietly without being seen. It makes for great tension and sets a good atmosphere.

After notes

I know this seems like a pretty long and stringent list of requirements, especially since this is overarching for my challenges, but its not really that bad once you get down to it. I don't ask any of these because I like to make things difficult, I ask them because I want to inspire you to write original and interesting content for me and the rest of the community to enjoy. I am simply basing my requests off of what I believe will be most enjoyable.

With that, I wish you luck! Move on through the next chapters to find a challenge that catches your fancy! And if you have a suggestion for a challenge that you want expanded upon, feel free to ask!