Summary: Follow the adventures of a certain blond haired kunoichi and be amazed! She's going to become the first Kirakage in over two hundred years! Watch as she sprints through the path of life, dealing with hardships and battles, friends and love, to achieve her dream! Enter: Uzumaki Rukia! NejixOC

A/N: This was actually my first story as a writer. I had written this years ago, abandoned it, then pursued it again, then decided to rewrite the entire thing! This was originally on my quizilla account (mynarose88) and the way I had written it before was terrible so I didn't bother posting it here on but since I'm rewriting the story, I've decided to post it here.

I am an extreme Neji fan girl, and no, I do not hate Tenten (or Hinata for that matter) for being his unofficial canon match (seriously, they're bound to be together!). In any case, there is Tenten bashing in this and yes, she completely breaks character – BUT! It is a must!

I need some sort of witchy person who insults Rukia (main character) and is a complete fan girl and Tenten was the only one available. In any case, to avoid nasty flames, I'll tell you this, using my amazing author future-reading powers: Tenten will improve. I am going to make her improve. And I will show you her change from an immature fangirl to a mature, strong kunoichi. It will come gradually but she will change and possibly become even more lovable.

In addition to Tenten bashing, Sakura and Ino shall also be bashed up until (and again, I'm using my stupendous future reading powers (comes with being the author)) the Chuunin Exams because, let's face it: that was basically the point where they became much more likable people. So up until that point, I'm writing them as I used to see them.

I just needed to tell you all this before we got started so there is a warning beforehand to the flamers. Criticism is appreciated, flames shall be laughed at accordingly.

XoXoMaya-chanXoXo
And secretly editing,
XoXoMimi-chanXoXo

P.S. Advisable that you don't go to my quizilla account and read the unedited chapters as they will spoil the edited ones. Seriously, I was truly horrible back then. Now I think I've gotten better! ^-^

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~*~*~The Ten-Tails Keeper and The Byakugan Genius~*~*~

Chapter 1: Enter Uzumaki Rukia

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Sluuuuuurp!

Delicious! You thought, rubbing your enlarged satisfied stomach from on top on your black training shirt and leaning back on the hard, somewhat uncomfortable, stool of your favorite ramen stand: Ichiraku's. Throughout your entire fifteen years of life, you had never tasted food as good as the one served at Ichiraku's. For a dizzyingly old man, he wasn't a half bad cook. Definitely better than you.

You sighed dreamily, remembering the taste of the miso ramen you had just devoured a few moments ago. Looking to your left and seeing the empty stool that should've been occupied by your best friend; you pursed your lips, wondering what to do whilst awaiting her arrival. I know!

"Hey old man!" You called rudely, waving your hand rapidly in the air. "Another miso over here!"

But the clever old man was already prepared as he slid a bowl of steamy hot miso ramen across the counter to you. Delighted, you used one hand to hold back your light blond bangs back and the other to shovel noodles into your wide mouth, slurping noisily.

Normally people would place their bangs behind their ears but you didn't; better phrased: you couldn't. Instead of normal ears like everyone else, one of your five senses was replaced by fox ears with smooth reddish orange fur grown only in that area. These freakish ears placed inches above the area normal ears should be located caused many civilians to glare at you with a strange knowing look in their eyes. As if they knew something you didn't, which they probably did considering all the scarring words and cruel stares.

"Rukia-chan?"

You recognized that voice immediately and, gulping a dangerous amount of noodles at once to speak, you choked out. "H-Hey, Hinata-chan…!"

The pale eyed girl looked worriedly at you before taking the seat you had gestured at her. Hinata turned slowly to look at you after ordering a miso ramen for herself. She tilted her head with concern and whispered to you. "A-are y-you okay, Rukia-chan?"

You looked reassuringly at Hinata, swallowing the last bit of noodles that had obstructed your throat. Your sapphire eyes gazed at Hinata's face, taking in every feature etched with concern.

Your best and only friend: Hyuuga Hinata. About nine years ago, when you had just turned six, you had met Hinata in beautiful flower field hidden deep within a forest on the west side of Konoha. Her eyes had frightened you at first glance but after seeing the soft sheen held within them, you had grown an attraction to her. She didn't seem to mind you; in fact, she had occasionally beckoned you over when you just stood in the background, watching her.

Hinata had told you many things about her life: her father, being the heir, the Byakugan, and much more. She also once said that she was too shy to make friends. You remembered asking then:

"Why aren't you shy with me, then?"

"Because you make me feel comfortable…" You muttered under your breath, reminiscing.

Hinata looked at you strangely, wondering what you had said. But you just smiled it off, flicking your wrist over your should as if to say it was nothing important.

Hinata shifted uncomfortably on the stool, not really used to such common seating's. Being a Hyuuga, and the heir at that, she more often than not received the best of the best and somehow managed to retain her humility. The young Hyuuga, positioned as comfortably as possible, looked meekly over to you, curling her small hands into loose fists in her lap. "Ano… why did you ask me to meet you here?"

"Ah!" You exclaimed, raising your dripping chopsticks into the air dramatically. "I needed to talk to you about something important! And I was hungry so I thought meeting at Ichiraku's was the best idea!"

"B-but what if Na-Naruto-kun-" blush "-c-comes…?" Hinata stammered, pressing her index fingers together.

You waved it off. "Nah! He's off training somewhere."

Your one and only brother: Uzumaki Naruto. You and Naruto were often seen crisscrossing the roof tops, running away from angry Chuunin. Pranks, ramen, inability to accept defeat, and seemingly impossible dreams; this is what you had in common with Naruto. Both of you also looked very similar; big blue eyes, blond hair, orange clothing, and cold foreheads in need of a Konoha forehead protector. You and Naruto have been through many hardships involving the citizens of beautiful Konoha; some of which included vicious beatings and many cold words. But both you and Naruto would cast it off with a shrug and a smile. But you knew that, much like yourself, Naruto has never fully gotten over it… Many thought of you as a girl version of Naruto (since he was older than you… only by five minute!) but you begged to differ. You were your own person and that's how you liked it!

"He… he's very determined, isn't he…" Hinata stated dreamily, staring at her hot miso ramen with a small smile.

You rolled your eyes. "I'm just like that…" You muttered indignantly. A devilish smile plants itself on your face. "So when will you tell him you love him?"

Hinata waved her hands frantically in the air all the while spluttering out random objections. She only calmed down after you gave her a knowing smirk. Sighing in relief, she snapped her chopsticks and carefully lifted hot noodles dripping with soup to her mouth.

"No, seriously, when will you?"

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

"Just take a deep breath and give the trash can a little break." You gently cooed, rubbing Hinata's back soothingly.

Hinata, caught off guard by your sudden interruption of her consumption of ramen-y goodness, had choked and began throwing up all over the place. You were currently sitting on the park bench whilst Hinata continued to puke out the last of her guts… Seriously, it was like she was throwing out her organs through her mouth.

You shuddered. That was truly a gross thought…

"W-water…" Hinata gasped, clutching the edges of the rather unfortunate trash can in a death grip. Her short midnight blue hair was matted with sweat and framed her sickly pale face. She took the bottle of water you offered her with shaky hands before gulping done the contents greedily; ignoring the voice that sounded oddly like her father's which continuously reprimanded her about drinking in such a dishonorable way.

The night air blew your bangs and pig-tailed blond hair around your face as you looked over at her with concern. "Are you okay?"

Sweat dripped slowly from Hinata's brow. She shook her head tiredly and closed her eyes. "I'm fine… Rukia-chan…"

"Hinata!"

"Oh!" Hinata gasped. She had fallen asleep. Who knew barfing continuously for so long could make a person so tired?

"Go home and rest." You quietly suggested, flashing a reassuring smile when she looked at you worriedly.

"H-hai… We'll talk later…" Hinata mumbled, wiping her mouth with a napkin and hesitantly getting to her feet. She was still curious as to why you wanted to meet up with her but let that slide for now, seeing as though Hinata hardly had enough energy to walk let alone converse seriously. "Bye…"

"Hmm…" You said, absentmindedly gazing at a purple flower as it closed it petals for the night. "Bye."

Truly, you wished you could have walked Hinata home. She looked pretty bad and you were worried about her trip home. But you knew better. Hinata's father, Hyuuga Hiashi, disliked you deeply. He refused to let Hinata come near you and he even went as far as declaring that you were banned from every setting foot in the Hyuuga Compound. Because of this, you and Hinata constantly met outside the Compound.

…teme… You thought, narrowing your eyes at the sleeping flower. You abruptly pushed yourself off the bench and shoving your hands into your pockets, you slouched while doing so. With a sigh and a quick glance at the flower, you made to walk home.

This whole trip out was mainly because you wanted to speak to Hinata about the strange dreams – correction: nightmares you've been experiencing every night.

A black looming figure in a strange tract of dry land would say indecipherable words.

That was your dream. Not much, but it haunted you continuously. It was the same thing every night; leaving you restless and somewhat cranky in the morning. But not only that, it seemed as though these nightmares were becoming more and more detailed as they continued. Like every night, you were drawing nearer and nearer to something unexplainably horrible. Like some key event was going to take place and you were slowly discovering it beforehand.

You shook your head. This was silly. You were behaving as though it was some kind of premonition.

"Hah!" You called out into the night. "Why would I get premonitions?"

You smiled bitterly and continued walking, only to pause three seconds later. "What the hell is a premonition?"

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

BRRRRING!

BRRRRING!

BRRRI-!

You groggily pushed yourself up, rubbing your eyes and glancing at the remains of your broken alarm clock. I'll get it fixed later…

Mornings were never really your thing; especially with that nightmare bothering you every night. You made an elective to inform Hinata about it today during lessons. You never really liked going to the Academy for several reasons.

First: All your classmates were idiots! Seriously, half of them hated you because they thought you were an attention seeking, freak eared, loud mouthed, failure with surgically altered breasts too big for your body – you glanced at your reflection, They're not that big… – and the other half only liked you because you would fool around, crack jokes, and make fun of the teacher. Second: Segregation. Boys and girls were divided and placed in separate classrooms with separate teachers and a separate curriculum with the occasional integrated lessons. While the boys learned cool Taijutsu stances and moves; the girls were brought out to a flower field to learn… flower arranging!? You were found constantly complaining about this; disobeying the teacher's orders and going off on your own usually to train by yourself. And in the end, you would fail the lesson when the practical exam – you snorted – was to be taken. It was just a waste of time! But thankfully, today was Thursday so today's lesson was mixed. You could actually learn something useful!

Third: You had to put up with the constant stupidity of others continuously picking on you. It drove you insane how they would act like they were better than you! Like they could just pick on you and get away with it! But… but every time you tried to stand up for yourself, the teacher… she would just make a snide little comment of her own and tell you to stay quiet! They… tho-

"R-Rukia…?" Naruto called softly from the doorway of your bedroom. You snapped out of your thoughts and looked over at him to see he was still clad in his penguin pajamas. You giggled, seeing his ruffled hair peek out from his lopsided penguin cap as he dozed off right there.

"Naruto…!"

"Ah!" Naruto promptly woke up, blinking a couple times before waving dumbly at you.

"What is it?" You asked, walking over to a small table and grabbing your hairbrush.

"Breakfast…" He muttered, trying his best to keep his eyes open. Mornings weren't his thing either.

"Well…" You began, focusing your eyes on your reflection in the large mirror placed above your table. You furrowed your eyebrows. "I'll just put some ramen in the microwave and we'll eat that…" You trailed off with uncertainty.

Naruto sensed this and stood up straighter. "I'll do it." He stated, exiting your room and tumbling down the stairs.

You sighed. You knew very well that Naruto hated cooking but since you practically ruined every dish you tried to prepare – including microwave types – he had no choice. A part of you felt bad making him do this. You could always try to learn from Hinata…

A sharp shout erupted from the kitchen, signaling that Naruto was finally up. You wondered whether it was the shock of the microwave as he plugged it in or the spread of tacks you had left lying around for no apparent reason.

You trudged reluctantly to the bathroom, quickly grabbing a set of clothes. You peeled off your kitty cat pajamas and stepped into the shower, grabbing your tooth brush and some toothpaste with you.

Fifteen minutes later, you were fresh and ready to go!

You cleared your throat, examining your look in the mirror whilst fixing your hair into pig-tails using two worn out rubber bands.

Your sleeveless orange jacket left open revealed a typical black figure-hugging training shirt donning your upper body. On the back of your jacket was a blue kanji reading "Water". You loved that kanji; you couldn't explain why but you felt really… attached to it.

On your arms, there were pieces of orange cloth very loose near your hands but tightened as they slid on your upper arm with a small white ribbon wound in and out like sewed thread tied neatly and securely. A pair of matching orange shorts stopping three inches above your knee with a thin black belt holding it securely on your waist; your right short leg being held down shapely against your thigh with a white bandage and your kunai holster.

You smiled at your appearance. Trying to sound the least bit shallow – which was quite hard considering your rather self-praising personality – you happily fasten your weapons pouch and skip down for breakfast, I do look quite excellent today!

Upon entering the kitchen, you see Naruto's black body laid disturbingly on the kitchen floor, twitching unnervingly occasionally. You swore you saw a small flicker of blue lightening passing over his body as he twitched again.

The microwave I guess… You mused, walking over to the said thought kitchen appliance and pulled out a bowl of ramen. You glanced over at Naruto before dipping your chopsticks into the bowl of ramen and pulling a single noodle. Dangling it in front of Naruto's face, his eyes suddenly popped open and he shot up, closing his mouth around the noodle in the process. You smiled at him. "Nice to see you're finally awake."

"Mmmm. Mmm mm mmmm!"

You frowned. He continued to grasp on your chopsticks with his mouth and seemed to be refusing to let go. You glare at him and wave the chopsticks around, trying to let gravity take its toll. But alas, it was in vain as Naruto continued his amazing hold on the ends of your chopsticks. Your face darkened and you lowered your bangs over your eyes. Your fox ears perked up when you heard Naruto gulping in fright.

"You want the chopsticks?" You asked rhetorically, lifting your head to face Naruto with a scary glint in your eyes. He nodded with uncertainty. "Here! Have them!"

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

"What should we do now?" You asked, sliding your foot into your blue ninja sandals. You looked over at Naruto who continued to glare at you. Rolling your eyes, you leaned against the wall and slipped your finger into your sandal, adjusting them to your comfort. "Look, you were behaving badly so I punished you accordingly."

"You shoved those chopsticks down my throat!"

"In your mouth Naruto, not your throat. There's a difference." You replied casually, unlocking the front door of your apartment.

Naruto continued glaring at you, muttering things like 'you could've killed me' under his breath as he walked out the door. You rolled your eyes again before following him outside; he was acting like a drama queen!

You quickly locked the door and pocketed the key with Naruto waiting patiently behind yo-

"Hurry up!"

- with Naruto waiting impatiently behind you.

"Alright, alright! Jeez…" You mumbled, shoving your hands in your pockets and following Naruto out onto the busy streets of Konoha. Like Naruto, you looked straight ahead, ignoring the glances and whispers of contempt. You shuffled along behind Naruto uncomfortably. "Uh, Naruto? What do you want to do now?"

Naruto looked around, wondering exactly what they could do before going to the Academy. His eyes stopped on the Hokage faces and grinned. You bit your lip in anticipation; you knew exactly what he was thinking.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

"Get back here you two!" a Chuunin yelled, thumping his feet on the rooftops of different houses in his pursuit of the two hooligans who painted the Hokage's faces.

"You want us…" Naruto began, smirking and increasing his speed.

"Come and get us!" You yelled, throwing the bucket of hot pink paint in your hands towards the Chuunin. His face disappeared within the bucket as he swore loudly before swerving to the side in confusion, almost knocking down the other Chuunin chasing you. What a loser!

You laughed heartily, having the time of your life as you crisscrossed the rooftops with Naruto. You spotted a T-junction in the road and instinctively dashed right when you approached it. You quickly looked over your shoulder to see the disappearing figure of Naruto; he had immediately dashed left as well. You smiled mischievously and jumped on the dirt road, running as fast as you could. Glancing over your shoulder again, you noticed that no one was following you. That meant only one thing: They must be chasing Naruto… I hope he's alright…

With this distraction, you failed to notice someone obstructing you path until it was too late…

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Hyuuga Neji walked slowly on his way to the academy he had never set foot in two years. He remembered being given instructions by Gai-sensei to take this white important looking scroll Neji held loosely in his hand to Iruka-sensei before classes had commenced because interrupting classes – Neji's eye twitched in annoyance – is "unyouthful".

Neji sighed and glanced around. That small group of idiotic fan girls that kept screaming every time they saw him wasn't around. He could not have been more thankful; they annoyed him to no end with their constant screeching with hearts in their eyes and their petty declarations of love.

He snorted disdainfully. They didn't really love him, he knew that much. They were just superficial girls who would settle for chasing Uchiha Sasuke if Neji wasn't around. If they truly cared for as much as they claimed, they wouldn't ditch him every time Sasuke's chicken butt-like hair came into view. But Neji didn't care. He had no time to waste on relationships and other emotional games.

Neji sighed again out of boredom. The only good thing about delivering this scroll was that he could be away from Lee and Gai-sensei's stupidity and Tenten's constantly whining about how Neji should become nicer.

Neji snorted again for good measure.

Little did he know that there was another good thing about delivering this scroll. Because he was on the road towards the Academy, Neji got a sneak glimpse of his future love interest.

Correction: Neji got to get painfully slammed to the ground by his future love interest.

"Ow…" You moaned, placing your palms on the rather shapely chest of the person underneath you and push yourself up. Your eyes screwed shut tightly as another surge of pain hit your head. You moaned again.

"Get off of me!" A muffled voice beneath you ordered. Hands suddenly clasped around your waist and in a split second, you were pushed to the ground with an "Umpff!"

"Hey, what the-!" You stopped mid sentence, staring up at the person you knocked over.

He wore a beige short sleeved jacket and black trousers with bandages covering his right arm and leg. Dark brown, almost black, hair flowed down his back, tied by a beige hair band with a couple loose strands framing his face. His unusually pale skin and patrician features gave him a type of upper class elegant look. But what really caught your eyes… was his.

Hard pale lavender orbs stared back at you condescendingly in an unwavering gaze. A look of superiority naturally filled his eyes as he narrowed them.

"What where you're going, failure."

"E-excuse me?" You gasped out, shocked by the sudden labeling. Who was this guy? And why the hell did he just call you a failure!?

"I said: What where you're going, failure." He smirked contemptuously, stressing the word 'failure' as he did.

"Why you…!" You hissed, hoisting yourself off of the ground and attempting to make eye level with him. Damn it! You thought, standing on the tips of your toes. Even so, you only managed to glare at his smirking mouth. A sudden desire to rip those perfectly kissable lips welled up inside of you. But just as you reached up with your twitching hands, he turned and walked away.

You growled angrily. "Get back here, coward!"

He ignored you but you could have sworn you heard him smirk.

You continued to glower at his retreating back, not noticing the looming figure behind you.

"Uzumaki Rukia!"

Your eyes flung wide open as you shakily turned to face your favorite teacher glaring at you with an over inflated head filled with anger. To the side, you could vaguely make out the disappointed and frightened figure of your twin brother shuffling with obvious discomfort.

"H-hai, Iruka-sensei?"

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The classroom door flung open suddenly, startling most of the students. In a matter of seconds, both your and Naruto's bodies, tied together by a strong brown rope, were thrown haphazardly inside the room.

The students sighed. More stupidity by none other than the Uzumaki Twins.

Iruka-sensei, with his head finally deflated but his eyes with angrily glaring, stomped into the classroom, waving the students a quick 'hello'.

He turned his attention back to the two frightened Academy students in front of him. "You two had better be well practiced for the Genin exams tomorrow!"

"Uh… well…" Both you and Naruto trail off with uncertainty.

Iruka-sensei sighed with exasperation. "I'm at the end of the line here! You two failed the graduation pretests four times already!" He stressed the number four. Furrowing his eyebrows in irritation, Iruka-sensei placed his palm on his head and rested his other hand against his hip. "Tomorrow is the actual test! Fail it and you two will be forced to repeat the entire curriculum!"

"Hn!" You and Naruto turn to stare defiantly at the walls in front of you.

Iruka-sensei made a sound of annoyance in the back of his throat. "Fine! Because you two miss it, everyone will be reviewing Henge No Jutsu!"

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