Chapter one: The Pathway to Power Part I

Inuzuka Kiba was frustrated. Naruto beat him at every Genjutsu, Ninjutsu, and Taijutsu. Every time Kiba learned a new jutsu, Naruto learned a new one. Naruto had even beat him in the Chuuin Exam Preliminaries and Kiba was desperate to get better…

Kiba sighs. "I need some new techniques!"

Yuuhi Sensei shook her head. "You can't rush these things Kiba. If Naruto is better then you, you must get better, but by training yourself, not finding new jutsu to learn."

Kiba grumbled and stalked out of the field Hinata and Shino were training in followed by Akamaru. In the shadows of the forest, Kiba turned to Akamaru. "Lets do Gatsuga Akamaru!" Akamaru growls and starts using Jujin Bunshin, making Akamaru turn into a copy of Kiba, both of them having long teeth.

"Gatsuga!" Kiba yells. Akamaru and Kiba both start turning at once, and start spiraling into the trees at an amazing rate of speed. Drilling through the trees was free for Kiba. It helped him reduce his pressure after the past few missions, but using Gatsuga for a long time would drain all his chakra.

Suddenly, Kiba slammed into something hard enough to stop him and Akamaru. Stopping in mid-spin, they both drop on the ground and examine the curious barrier in front of him. It appeared to be made out of chakra and peering intently inside, Kiba could see a hunched unmoving figure examining a scroll on the ground. Unsure what to do, Kiba backed away while Akamaru jumped into his coat. But suddenly, the figure raised its head.

"You boy! Come over here!" the figure snapped. Kiba, frozen in fear doesn't move but suddenly, his body moves toward the figure while Akamaru whimpers. Stopping in front of the "thing", the figure raises its head and Kiba gasps at the face he sees staring back at him

The figure was a man in his twenties. He had two scars running across his face and was wearing a Konoha forehead protector with a slash across it. The man had brown hair the was cut messily and had deep, dark intense eyes. The one thing the Kiba noticed that this man had Sharigan in is right eye, like Kakashi-Sensei.

"Do you want to be powerful boy?" the man asks. Kiba felt his body release. "I-I don't really know who you are so how can I answer your question?"

The man smiles. "I am the all-powerful Ibuki, the master of ice and shadows that got kicked out of this village after I joined Akatsuki, but left." Kiba slowly nods. I want to be powerful, more powerful then many of my teammates but I'm not sure how…"

Ibuki nods. "I would train you…but I don't have the time. This is not the place."

Kiba shook his head. "I desperately need help!" Ibuki chuckled. "You are asking a complete stranger to help you…Even if I did help, all my techniques are to hard for a Genin to learn."

Akamaru growled. Instantly, Ibuki perked up. "Are you part of the Inukuka clan?"

Kiba nodded. Ibuki smiled. "Having an animal companion to help you mold and use chakra correctly would make things easier for a Genin like you…but first you need to retrieve the Ancient Scroll of the Elders, A scroll with a jutsu I desperately need."

Kiba, desperate to learn from this master of ninja, nodded vigorously. Akamaru growled softly but he ignored him. "Where can I find it?"

Ibuki smiled. "Why, in the personal library of the Fifth Hokage of course."

Kiba gasped. It was nigh impossible to steal something from the fifth hokage!

Ibuki gathered the worse from Kiba's face. "It's a one time deal kid. If you don't get it, I'll get it myself. Meet me two days from now, in this exact spot. Bring the scroll, and some of your belongings. We'll be leaving once you get it." With a twinkle in his eye, Ibuki disappeared.

Kiba, stunned at this outburst of information, sat on the ground and thought for a while, while Akamaru jumped out of his jacket and ran around him, barking.