Chapter 1: The Contest
"Naruto-kun wake-up, you'll be late!" Hinata screamed as she tugged and tore at the snoring blonde ninja. "Wake-up! WAKE-UP!" Her screams were futile. The blond was dead to the world. "Oooh, I'm truly sorry about this Naruto-kun." She raised her left hand and stuck out her index and middle fingers. "Byakugan! Eight-Trigrams…" Chakra pooled in her hand. "Wake-up slap jutsu!"
Shmack!
"Yow!" Naruto screamed. The slap was so shocking it caused Naruto to leap from the bed and crash into the ceiling, from whence he dropped and crashed into the bed again.
"Grah, Hinata! What the hell was that for!?" Naruto screamed furiously.
Hinata began to whimper and blush. "I'm so sorry Naruto-kun, but I couldn't wake you up otherwise. You're going to be late."
"Huh?" He was confused until he looked at the clock and understood what she meant; it was seven forty-five. "Crap. The selection's in fifteen minutes!"
"Hurry or you'll be late!"
Naruto dashed into the bathroom while Hinata picked out his clothes. Naruto emerged from the bathroom in under a minute and a half. He was in such a rush he forgot to take his toothbrush out of his mouth before leaving the bathroom. Fortunately, Hinata caught it as she handed him his clothes. Getting dressed took more doing than necessary, Naruto found himself hopping on one foot as he struggled into his pants, a piece of buffoonery that made Hinata giggle slightly before she went over to help him get dressed. Now fully equipped in jacket, pants, and headband, Naruto was ready to seize the day. He jumped out the window without a second thought.
Hinata looked out the window sheepishly; she was under the impression that she and Naruto were going to leave together. "Oh, well perhaps its better if we don't arrive together, we haven't told the others about our relationship yet, so it wouldn't do to have them asking weird questions."
Hinata made for the apartment door. Just as she was about to leave Naruto jumped right back into the apartment. Hinata eyes widened in surprise at the blond nin's sudden re-entrance, giving Naruto the perfect opening. Quick as the wind he wrapped an arm around her waist, used his other hand to guide her soft, porcelain face, and pressed his lips to hers. They stood there for a moment, allowing their warmth and love to pass to each other as their lips intertwined, and then gently breathed apart from each other.
"I'm sorry Hinata, I almost forgot you," he smiled apologetically.
"That's ok, but it's a good thing you remembered though. Afterall, you promised we'd go together."
"Whoa, I can't forget my promises, that's a direct violation of my nindou. Remember Naruto Uzumaki-"
"-Never goes back on his word," she giggled and kissed him again. Naruto shifted his hand to her back and legs and started carrying her bridal style.
Hinata protested, "Naruto! I can walk. This isn't necessary!"
"Are you kidding? It's absolutely necessary! We said we were gonna tell everyone about us. And what better way to announce our love to the world, then by me charging in carrying you in my arms like a romantic hero?"
Hinata began to blush, "That's ok, Naruto-kun. I don't want to burden you."
"Hinata."He gave her another kiss, it softened the redness in her cheeks instantly. "You're not a burden. You're a gift."
She nuzzled into his chest. "Oh, Naruto-kun."
"In fact, you're the best birthday present I've ever gotten," he joked happily.
"Oh? What about the gift your father gave you?" she asked coyly.
Naruto's mood turned grim, his face darkened and he became completely silent. Hinata immediately realized she said something she shouldn't have. "Oh no, Naruto I'm so sorry. That was careless and insensitive, I shouldn't have…" Her eyes began to tear.
He spoke before she cried. "It's ok Hinata. I know you didn't mean anything by it." He spoke somberly. "Besides, I've got no right to be upset, this is my second time being an orphan, I know how to deal with it. A lot of other people in the village are orphans for the first time because of that war. And besides, even if it was only for a few hours, I got to spend quality time with my dad, and you're right, he did give me a pretty awesome birthday present."
Hinata didn't need her byakugan to see through his words, regardless of his convictions, she knew that he couldn't help but be sad at having lost his father a second time. "Naruto?"
"Hmm?" he responded.
She spoke nervously at first, but gradually gained confidence. "Listen, the bond between a parent and child is something special that can never be replaced. I know that it saddens you that you can't have that bond with your father anymore, but you will feel that connection again."
"What do you mean?"
"You know what I mean."
"Hmm?" He was confused for a moment before it clicked. "Oh, right! Which reminds me, should we tell that bit of news to the others as well?"
Hinata thought about it for a moment. "Let's see how well they respond to us being together."
"Very well, anyway let's get going, it starts in . . ." He looked at the clock. "CRAP! We have two minutes left!" Naruto's body glowed with yellow-orange chakra, initiating the Kyuubi chakra mode. "We're gonna need to make this one fast. Hold on tight Hinata!" Hinata wrapped her arms around Naruto's neck, and they dashed out the window leaving only a yellow flash in their wake.
Elsewhere, Sasuke was lying in bed staring up at the ceiling. His bed partner groaned in her sleep as she turned next to him, one of her arms strayed to his bare chest. He regarded the limb rather nonchalantly, simply sliding it off of him without waking her. He looked at the clock. It was time to get going.
He got out of bed, naked as the day he was so, today was a new day for him, a new chapter of his life. He thought to himself, "I've been consumed by darkness for so long. Now that I've transcended the curse of hatred I feel, weightless. I suppose it just goes to show, you don't know how heavy your burdens are until they're lifted off of you. Brother, I wonder what you would think of me now, entering a contest to become Hokage. I'm going to change this cruel world we live in brother, I just regret you won't be here to see it."
He went to the wardrobe and took out his new outfit. He pulled on his underwear, followed by his new indigo track pants, and a crimson shirt. Next came his new long coat, its outside was indigo to match the pants, and its interior was crimson to match the shirt. It had a high collar that went up to his ears, and its length was all the way down to his ankles. Lined within the coat's interior were a series of fuinjutsu seals, the kind typically used for storing weapons and tools. He slid his arms into the coat's sleeves and arched his back to fit in the rest, the Uchiha crest on the small of the coats back showed proudly. He reached into the wardrobe to pull out the final piece of his ensemble, a shiny new leaf headband. He closed the wardrobe and looked at himself in the mirror on its door as he tied the band to his head. "It's been years since I've worn one of these."
"It looks good on you," said a feminine voice.
He turned his attention back to the bed. Karin was sitting up pulling the bed covers to cover her nakedness. "I'm heading out now," he said.
"Just like that? Don't you at least want to eat something?" she asked. "No time and no food," he answered coldly.
"Oh, well okay then." She was flustered, her normal aggressive attitude was melted for the moment. "Um, should I go with you, or do you want to meet up later?"
"Do as you please." He started walking towards the door.
"Um Sasuke."
"Hmm?" he answered.
"Um, you were really great last night, I had a great time."
He looked back at her nonchalantly. "Hmm, glad you enjoyed it."
He walked out the door.
SPLANK CRASH! went the vase after Karin hurled it at the closed door.
"STUPID SASUKE! DOES HE THINK HE CAN JUST TOSS ME ASIDE AFTER A NIGHT OF HOT STEAMY PASSION! HELL NO! I'M NOT THAT KIND OF GIRL! DAMMIT THAT'S IT, I'M DONE LETTING HIM USE ME! If I'm going to hold onto any self-respect I have to get away from him as fast as possible." She got out of bed and began to pick her clothes back up. As she did so she thought more about Sasuke. "Dammit, just what do I see in that guy? Sure he's really cool, and he has beautiful chakra, not to mention the fact that he's hot as hell. But he's also cold-hearted, manipulative, and an all around jerk ass." Her mind wandered to last night. Suddenly she saw it again, Sasuke's cold steely eyes piercing into her, leaving her more exposed than her nakedness. The way his body fused with hers, as he took her, again, and again, and again. "He's a horrible human being who cares for no one but himself," she tried to remind herself, but then she found herself laying down in the bed again and smelling his pillow. "But dammit, it felt so fucking good!" She was vaguely aware of one of her hands snaking down her belly until she saw a patch of red in the center of the bed. Upon closer inspection she realized it was blood, her blood. "I do so much for him. I find his enemies, I heal his wounds, I fight for him, I risk my life for him, and now I've given him the last precious thing I had left." She clutched the pillow and began to cry. "Why doesn't he love me?"
Naruto and Hinata flashed into the training fields. Most of their friends had already arrived. Pink-haired Sakura was chatting amicably with her girlfriend, Ino. Shino was crouched down combing through the grass, probably looking for some more bugs to add to his collection. Shikamaru was propped to a nearby tree with his eyes closed, attempting to nap, but couldn't do so because Choji was standing right next to him making annoying crunching sounds as he stuffed his face with BBQ chips. Kiba was running around playing with his canine companion Akamaru, they were chasing after a discus that was apparently thrown by the nearby weapons mistress TenTen. Gray-faced Sai sat on a nearby rock painting what would undoubtedly be his next masterpiece.
Naruto smiled as he greeted them. "Hey guys, if you're already here does that mean we're late?"
"Naw, you're on time," Kiba said. "We all just sort of got here early 'cause we were tense."
"Tense?" Naruto asked, "What's there to be tense over?"
Shikamaru answered him, "Naruto, you do understand the full magnitude of this contest don't you?"
"Of course I do," Naruto answered, "this contest was my idea."
"Then you should know what has us on edge here. What happens today could determine the fate of the village, maybe even the ninja world."
"Relax guys, as long Sasuke and I are around, the village and the ninja world will be just fine."
Kiba spoke up, "But Naruto if Sasuke wins this contest, then he'll become Hokage."
"So?" Naruto quipped.
Kiba's eyes widened in shock. "So?! Naruto, are you giving up on your dreams!?"
"Not a chance! I'm more determined to become Hokage than ever. However, I trust Sasuke and I understand the vision he has. In my opinion, if he were to become Hokage then I'd be okay with that. It's not that I'm letting him become Hokage, it's just that I don't have a problem with the idea of it."
"Well I do have a problem with it, we all do," Kiba said.
Choji spoke up. "I know it's been a long time, but Sasuke still betrayed us. We fought tooth and nail to bring him back all those years ago, some of us almost died, and he just left without a second thought."
"Guys come on, that was a long time ago, and you have to admit that mission was a big coming of age moment for all of us. That was the first mission you ever lead, remember Shikamaru?"
"I remember it turning into disaster that gave me a broken finger and nearly got Neji, Choji and Kiba killed," Shikamaru said.
"Well…yeah that happened, but you also beat opponents who were way stronger than you, and you all continued to get stronger afterward. I mean be honest would you trade the experiences you gained from that mission and dozens afterward for anything?"
Shikamaru answered him with a sigh. "Admitting it is troublesome, but you got a point. None of us ever would have gotten to the level we're at now if Sasuke hadn't left."
Shikamaru's statement seemed to simmer everyone down, until Sai made a quick observation. Sai asked, "Naruto, why are you carrying Hinata bridal style?"
Naruto's forehead rose almost as though he'd forgotten that he was carrying Hinata in his arms in front of everyone. "Oh, um right, guys we have an announcement. Hinata and I are together now. We are now lovers."
They all looked at the couple passively."We know," Shikamaru said.
"Wait all of you already know?" Naruto asked.
"I noticed Hinata kept sneaking off," Shino said.
"And did you really think I wouldn't figure out what you were buying those flowers for Naruto?" Ino asked sarcastically.
"I noticed you were extra happy lately, and you stopped asking me for a date," Sakura added.
Shikamaru finished, "And I noticed the two of you were sharing a bowl of ramen at ichiraku a couple days back. There is no chance you would share your ramen with anybody, unless...well you get the idea."
Shino said, "Sakura and Ino mentioned it to me in passing, then I told Kiba. All of us know Hinata has had a crush on Naruto since we were kids, even when Naruto didn't, so it wasn't that much of a shock."
Sai sighed. "Hmm, it seems I was the only one who wasn't informed."
Hinata smiled then got down from Naruto's arms, Naruto gently helped her to her feet. "I'm glad you're all taking this so well," Hinata said.
"Yeah well, you guys deserve each other after all that you've been through," Ten Ten said, smiling. Everyone nodded in agreement, except for Kiba, who was still sulking.
Hinata smiled at them. "I'm glad you feel that way, because we have another announcement to make."
"Huh?" they all said in unison, Kiba in particular had his ears on end.
"Another piece of news?" Kiba thought, "What do they mean? Wait no…they can't be."
Naruto wrapped his arm around Hinata's waist, and his hand came to rest on her stomach.
Kiba's eyes widened, "No! They can't be…"
Naruto opened his mouth, "Hinata and I are..."
Poof!
The white smoke blinded everyone for a moment. It quickly dissipated to reveal Lady Tsunade and her assistant Shizune holding the ninja teacup piggy Tonton. "Ah good you're all here," Tsunade said happily."The rest of the jounin should be arriving right about now."
Almost as if on cue multiple Leaf Ninja dashed onto the field, most of them were jounin with their genin squads, with a few notable chunin such as Iruka being present. A little bit away Sasuke could be seen speaking to Lee and Gai. "That's odd,Naruto thought,I don't recall Sasuke ever being friends with bushy brow, and bushier brow-sensei."
Kiba interrupted his train of thought."What were you about to say Naruto?" heasked.
"Oh, uhmm, it'll have to wait till later. This takes priority," Naruto answered.
Kiba conceded. "Fine. It just better not be bad news."
"Well I think that'll depend on what you consider to be bad news."
"So help me Naruto if you..."
"BRING THE GENIN FORWARD!" Tsunade ordered.
The genin parted from their sensei's to present themselves in front of the Hokage. They all appeared to be within the range of twelve to fourteen years old, but they gave off a general aura of experience.
"I count fifteen," Shikamaru said. "That's five cells worth ofcandidates."
"Hmm, it's a shame Sasuke and I are only taking one each," Naruto said.
"So why choose from an existing pool of genin? Why not get your own team fresh out of the academy?" Shikamaru asked.
"Well the thing is I already know who I want to train, and that person is in that group of genin right now. So if I trained him, and Sasuke got started with an academy student than my student would have an unfair advantage over Sasuke's. On top of that,Sasuke and I are a bit too advanced for academy graduates, it'd be better if we worked with people who already have a little experience. Basically we're going to become to two of these kids what the Pervy Sage and Orochimaru were to me and Sasuke."
Shikamaru nodded. "Hmm, makes sense.Still this whole contest . . . getting kids involved . . . greh, it's all just so troublesome."
Tsunade began to address the crowd. "Alright, first I would like to thank everyone for gathering here today. I'm sure you've already heard the rumors so I will put everything down plainly. We have here today Sasuke Uchiha and Naruto Uzumaki, the two strongest ninja in the Hidden Leaf. Those of you who were present during the final battle of the war can attest to their strength and valor. Both of them have the desire to become Hokage, and in terms of skill they are both equals. The village council and feudal lord cannot come to a clear decision on who is fit to become the next Hokage. However Naruto brought up a good point: a great Hokage is not only a great warrior, he is a great leader and teacher. And for that reason this contest has been established. Naruto and Sasuke will each choose an apprentice from the fifteen students present and train them. The one who trains the most skilled ninja is the one who becomes the next Hokage."
"YEAHHH!" the genin began to cheer, many began to cry and shout.
"Pick me I'm really strong! My sensei recommended me for the chunin exams," one ofthem yelled.
"So was I!" yelled another. "Pick me I'll make you Hokage no problem."
"Please! Getting recommended for the exams is nothing, I've already been on a B-ranked mission."
"Hmm, a lot of them seem to quite sure of themselves," Shikamaru noted.
"They ought to be. Baa-chan told me that all these kids were recommended by their jounin for the exams, in theory these are the best genin in the village," Naruto said.
"They're weaklings, all of them," came a cold voice.
Naruto turned to address it."I wouldn't look down on them if I were you. Remember only five years ago we were at the same level as them. Remember, Sasuke?"
Sasuke sneered at him, and gave him a smug grin. "Cheh, well, you were at the same level as them, dobe."
Naruto grimaced at Sasuke and bore his fangs at him. "You wanna go teme?"
He smirked."I'd be happy to. I'll kill you now and save us all the trouble of whipping these brats into shape."
Naruto and Sasuke prepared to charge at each other, until Shikamaru got in between them. "Ok, break it up you two. We're supposed to be adults now. If you two started brawling here it would set a bad example for the kids."
Sasuke backed down. "Cheh,whatever. I'll put the beatdown on Naruto eventually. Doesn'tmatter if it's today or tomorrow."
"We'll see whose getting the beat down after you go a few rounds with my Kyubbi chakra mode," promised Naruto.
"You know as well as I do that the sussanoo is more than a match for your silly fox cloak."
"Oh yeah well when I..."
Slam!
"Focus you idiots!" Sakura yelled. Apparently while the two of them were arguing Sakura had snuck up behind them and banged their heads together.
"Ow!" Naruto complained as he nursed the bump on his head, "Sakura-chan was that really necessary?"
"Yes it was. You guys are supposed to be picking which genin will be your apprentice."
"Huh? I thought I mentioned I already picked mine. Yo, Konohamaru get over here."
"Roger!" A young boy of about thirteen years of age leaped out of the crowd of genin and landed before Naruto. He had short spiky brown hair, black eyes, and wore a long blue scarf. "So are you going to teach me how to make the rasengan bigger Naruto-niichan?" the boy asked happily.
"Sure will, but first things first. From this day forward you are going to be my apprentice."
"Like when I was kid?"
"No, this timeit's for real. So that means you can't call me niichan anymore, from now on call me Naruto-sensei."
"Hai, Naruto-niichan," Konohamaru teased.
"Hey, hey, hey," Naruto was about to scold him when the crowd of genin began to complain.
"That's not fair!" one of them shouted.
"You can't go ahead and pick someone before you know what the rest of us can do!"
"SILENCE!" Tsunade commanded, releasing a wave of killing intent to get the genin back in line.
"It seems Naruto has made his decision," Tsunade declared.
"Sorry guys," Naruto said, "but I decided I wanted to train Konohamaru a long time ago. There's nothing that'll change my mind on this, but listen Sasuke doesn't have his mind made up yet, I'm sure he'd love to see you guys show off your talent."
The crowd turned its attention to Sasuke who was scanning the genin up and down with his sharingan. "Hmm . . . toolow. All of you have low chakra. None of you brats can cut it with me."
A genin complained again. "Hey that's not fair, you're judging us before you've seen what we can do." It was the same genin who made the same complaint earlier, a girl with oversized auburn hair that was pulled into two fat pigtails that stood straight up and split back into a sort of v-shape.
A boy standing next to her also pitched in. "And besides isn't the point of you guys training is so that we can become stronger?"
Rustle dash!
In an instant Sasuke was standing over them with his sword in hand poised horizontally at the napes of their necks. "If I finished this swing both of you would be short a head."
Everyone had frozen in place. Tension rose at Sasuke's sudden brashness until Naruto noticed something and called, "Hey Sasuke look down."
Sasuke looked, and he saw that the two genin each had kunai pointed at his torso, only a hair's width away from his kidneys. The boy and girl both smirked. The boy said, "If you finished that swing, you'd never be able to drink again."
Shikamaru's eyebrows rose. "Sasuke was on those kids instantly. It took him no more than five seconds to dash, summon his chokuto from the seals in his clothes, and trap those kids. And yet, their reflexes were quick enough for them to reach into their packs and pull out their weapons. These kids have had excellent training."
Konohamaru heard this and smiled. "Well of course they did, how else could my teammates keep up with me?"
Sasuke lowered his blade and backed away from the genin. "That was pretty good, what are your names?"
The boy lowered his kunai, then adjusted his glasses, "Udon Shimura" he answered.
The auburn haired girl tucked her kunai into her gigantic hair. "Moegi Senju," she answered.
"Shimura and Senju, both of you are from some very notable clans. Hmm, you know you're right I should give you the chance to demonstrate your skills. How bout we settle this quickly with a battle royale?"
A/N: I just want to make clear that no there is no cannon data to indicate the Udon and Moegi are from the Shimura or Senju clan. In fact very little is known about them at all. Which is why I'm working the angle that there's no reason not to make them part of those famous clans. Furthermore data on both of those clans current state is also unavailable which gives me a great deal of creative space to do what I want with them.