This story is not related to the General Naruto timeline in anyway. The protagonist of the character is from konohagakure and takes charge of the story instead of the blonde shinobi. It takes place 12 years after the Kyubi's attack on konoha and the storyline will have a different direction.

Strolling through the streets of konoha was always fun. There was the food market where you could see people fighting to get at the better end of the bargain, the playground where children played, and of course the ever present hokage monument at which no matter how many times you looked, the mountain will still surprise you. Life as it goes for Yoshi, can never been any cheerful. Or as he said to himself. There have been ups and downs in life for him too. Hey, if you are the only puppeteer shinobi in all of konoha and the fact that puppetry is an art from Sunagakure, Konoha's fiercest rivals, people will have more than enough reasons to lookdown on you. Yet he decided to take a walk.

Walking through the streets carrying a night blue colored back pack with five scrolls protruding from one end, he wore a whitish blue overcoat that went down up to his knees .He was a slender boy of medium height and his brown curly hair made people kind of think maybe he used yogurt instead of oil, which would be rather funny. He wore a jet black pant with bandages covering the lower half of his legs and wooden sandals for foot wear. There were people staring at him, but he didn't mind. It had been always like that for him, he always knew he was different. Just when he was going to turn back and head home he heard someone shouting his name. "Yoshi Araki", the blonde shouted, "I am going to get you this time. You left me there all alone, I had to wash all the dishes by myself." She was halfway through the street before she even finished saying that, closing in on him faster than he could run away. He tried to escape but he had no way to go. In a desperate attempt, he tried to jump over a wooden stall and get into the other street and he ALMOST succeeded in it had it not been for the man with the noodle soup bowl he crashed upon, the noodles spilling all over Yoshi's special place and then falling face first into the ground. By that time, the girl had already reached there with a clenched fist Yoshi knew was as strong as a hammer. Before he could get up, he was punched once more into the ground, the expression of WHY, WHY? Evident in his face. Then she spoke, "That's for making me do all the work.", she continued,"Now we're are even."

Yoshi got up, his hands clawing the air. The girl asked,"Come on Yoshi. Are you crying? I didn't punch you that hard, not this time." "It wasn't your punch, Ino", Yoshi said, "You remember the noodles. It was hot, very, very hot."

Two weeks later ….

The genin exams were over and some how even without having almost no skills in taijutsu or bunshin no jutsu, he had passed. Thanks to his skills at Kawarimi and Henge and Ino helping him in the written exam he had somehow passed. Besides he wasn't aware of the fact that the he was passed taking his puppeteering skills into consideration as well. However, like all other fellow genins he was excited as hell as he had no idea with whom he was going to be teamed up with.

"Okay that's it", Yoshi spoke in a frustrated tone," How much time do they need to call out the teams anyway. It's not like we are asking them to make love with trees." "SHUT UP YOSHI!", the man with the scar said as he entered the room," you call yourself a ninja but you don't have a speck of patience in you. We only were out for fifteen minutes, you fool." A girl in the back with white eyes seemed to smirk at that.

"Come on Iruka sensei. We have been waiting for so long." , Yoshi said, "When are you going to name out the teams." Iruka had already seemed frustrated about that 'tree' remark and it was visible on his face as the twitch over his right eye. Yet he continued, "Alright Yoshi, we are going to call out the teams now. So for now try to shut up and listen." He really stressed on the last remark and Yoshi knew if he did not shut up, he could lose a dozen teeth, like he lost each time Iruka sensei punched him in the face when he made him angry.

Mizuki started calling out the names,

Yoshi started to think who was he going to be teamed up with.

Would it be Ino, Oh please don't be Ino, I would hate to wake up each morning being punched in the face. There was a reason Yoshi called Ino the human alarm clock, correction-the painful human alarm clock.

Team 8 Kiba Inuzuka, Shino Aburame and Hinata Hyuga.

'Oh, thank God Kiba is not in my team' Yoshi thought. He had no problems with the guy but his mutt always got a bladder problem around him and the stink was unbearable, trust me. He never liked that Shino as well. That kid had I AM THE KING OF THE WORLD expression printed all over his face. He was only unhappy that the Hyuga girl had to be teamed up with them. Unknown to everybody, Yoshi had always liked Hinata.

Team 7 Sakura Haruno, Yoshi Araki …

Alright, okay, Sakura Haruno, don't panic, so what she's in my team, How bad can it go now..HA, HA, HA…

And Neji Hyuga

I am sorry. My bad. It just got a lot worse.

Why did it have to be smarty pants and fate-mate rolled into this team. God, I asked you for two good team members last night. But instead you gave me a pink haired duckling and a white eyed baboon. I want to be a ninja, not a zookeeper.

The rest of the teams were called out. Ino was in team 10 with Shikamaru and Chouji. Now I really regretted not having her in my team. I would rather get punched and woken up each morning rather than be with these two. That was how much he hated his new team mates right now.

GOD, if you are holding a grudge, then you have really bad timing.

"Okay Genins, Your jounin senseis will be here tomorrow at 6 to meet you. Have a good life and make your village proud. Dismissed." ,Iruka said in an unusually mild tone. Perhaps spending so many years together can make you feel attached, Yoshi thought looking outside the window.

Whatever the case was, he was happy that finally he will be out in the field. Circumstances didn't favor him right now, but that won't stop him from becoming the strongest shinobi of Konhagakure, that was his dream of course. A dream he had clinged to too long to let go although rest of his friends had forsaken that dream after turning 10. He looked at Sakura, who was happy that Neji was on the same team but as soon as he saw Yoshi, let's just say her reaction was not that optimistic. When he looked at Neji, well he was doing what he did best….. brood over fate.

Yoshi went home hoping that the next day may be better than this one.

The next day….

Yoshi got up early and dreesed up as fast as he could. He was sure that he would be the first one to reach class before Sakura and Neji . But when he entered the room both of them were already there.

"Hey. You guys are here already. Where is everybody?" Sakura spoke, "All have left. We are the last ones." Yoshi was really angry at that statement. "Come on. Our sensei's a jounin and has no sense of timing. What kind of a shinobi is he. I bet he is just a crappy idiot. I WOKE UP SO EARLY FOR THIS DAY AND HE HASN'T EVEN SHOWED UP."He put some stress on the last statement. Just when he was about to continue, Neji interjected, "Shut up, you fool. We three were waiting for you."

'Three'. What did he mean by…. 'three'. Just then he realized, "He is standing behind me. Isn't he?"

"So much for first impressions" ,a tall white haired guy with his headband covering one of his eyes and a mask covering his face spoke. In a standard konoha jounin attire, he looked terribly untidy." To be frank, I don't like you either, any of you. Meet me at the school grounds in an hour. Don't be late."

"Why? What's going to happen there?" Sakura asked.

Kakashi eye smiled on that question. Before shunshinning away, he said, "We are going to have a test."

Okay, there weren't any fights in this chapter but I promise there will be a nice battle in the next one.