Nindo: Way of the Twelve

Preliminary Author's Spiel: Well, considering the number of alert lists this story was added to as well as the gist of the reviews, I suppose I might as well continue the story. Besides, I really want to write the spar. I forgot to mention last time, but that 'chakra knife' mentioned last chapter is based on the Pattern 2 Fairbain-Sykes Fighting Knife, in case you're curious. The only real differences are the ring on the pommel and the fact that the blade's made of higher-quality steel. As in Damascus-level. Anyway, enough about that! Let's get to the punching!
Konoha Ninja Academy

Era of the Twelve's Testing

Team Assignment Day

Schools all over the world were witness to playground brawls. It was just the way of things. Older persons watching would simply shake their heads, perhaps muttering the worn chestnut: "Boys will be boys." A pair of young children, or perhaps teenagers, rolling around in the dirt, punching each other to prove some point or another, with a jeering mob around them, watching the two 'innocent youths' beat the ever-loving 'innocent' crap out of each other. Ah, the jungle law of the playground.

Konoha Ninja Academy was witness to something very similar on that day. Two boys were doing their best to beat the other into submission, while a group cheered on the fight around them. Of course, the two innocent youths were both graduated genin, and their fighting styles were perfectly good for life-and-death struggle. The two 'boys' rolling around in the dirt at a normal school would be unconscious before they realized they were in a fight, were they put up against these two combatants. And there wasn't a point being 'proven' here. It was just for fun and practice. Yes, boys will be boys…but ninja will be ninja.

Kiba's starting lunge was shorter than Naruto's. As Akamaru's bark echoed back, his feet hit the ground side by side, his fists up and held under and a bit to the outside of his eyes. He held his elbows a little out from his torso to defend against kicks from the side. Bending his left leg, he pistoned his right out in a pushing kick, meant to repel Naruto's leap.

The kick's timing was perfect, and most of the crowd cheered as Kiba's sandal slammed sole-first into Naruto's stomach. The blonde had tightened his muscles just before impact, though, shielding his organs from the worst of the impact. He subtly flexed his body, adding to the force pushing him backwards. The blonde genin knew that he had gotten careless, jumping ahead like that at the beginning of the match, fists cocked. Now he landed, body turned towards Kiba with feet in line, left leg advanced. His weight was shifted more towards his right leg, and he held his hands half-fisted, left hand forward, and elbows down to protect the body.

Kiba didn't bother with looking sorry. "Whoops. Looks like my foot and your stomach just made friends."

Naruto just grinned. "Yeah, whoops." He turned his left hand slightly, and beckoned Kiba to the attack. The Inuzuka boy obliged him, taking a large step forward and bringing up his right leg into a high roundhouse kick, aiming for the side of Naruto's head. The blonde stepped into the blow, letting his left hand drift backwards, turning his wrist to catch Kiba's calf. His right hand shot forward to the other boy's leading shoulder, latching on before Naruto twisted his body backwards, applying downwards force as he went. Up on one leg as he was, Kiba couldn't compensate and was dragged into the arcing slam. Instead of capitalizing on the momentary window after the slam, Naruto used it to retreat out of range, reestablishing his stance and smirking at Kiba. "Whoops."

The bigger boy shook his head to clear it, before hopping to his feet. "Oh, my ass. Come on. Let's get some real striking done." He stepped forward in sync with Naruto, leading with his right. The blonde's left arm aggressively blocked it, punching Kiba's power arm out of the fight for a few seconds as Naruto's right blasted in at his stomach. Air blasted out of the Inuzuka's lungs. He hadn't been quite prepared for that, having missed the block, but he was far from finished. A shoulder twist recovered his out-wide arm, bringing it in as a hammerfist to the top of Naruto's left, stripping his main guard. As he occupied Naruto's right with his left, he pistoned forward his right fist at the blonde's chin. To his surprise, Naruto was faster on the recovery than he expected, and the smaller boy's left arm partially deflected the blow high, combined with a slight twist that had his fist impacting on the edge of the metal band of Naruto's hitai-ate.

Note to self, thought Kiba. Never strike for the hitai-ate. It makes your fist and jaw hurt. Wait…jaw?

Kiba hadn't noticed, but Naruto's twist wasn't defensive in nature. He would have taken the hit on his hitai-ate in any case, and the metal and cloth actually meant something when you were fighting without chakra channeling to make your speed and power truly 'ninja-level'. The twist had helped him add power to a rising elbow spear that tagged Kiba right under the jaw line, actually popping him off the ground, just a bit. Naruto's grin grew a bit wider. It looked like he would be winning their last spar, the way the exchange was going. It was a satisfying thought. Kiba had both the advantages of weight and reach on him, even if Naruto edged him out a bit on speed when it came to pure non-chakra enhanced taijutsu. Naruto also had a positive genius for infighting and tactical maneuvering, things which most of the taijutsu instructors looked down on.

Recoiling just a bit, Naruto laid into Kiba's torso with a combination of punches and curled finger palm strikes, every once in a while grabbing at Kiba's jacket to prevent him from getting back far enough to mount an effective counter. Just as Kiba adapted enough to start swinging a few hooks at Naruto's unprotected sides, the blonde hit him with a textbook straight punch to the sternum, complete with step-through and wrist snap, following up with a turning back kick to the stomach, using the recovery time from the straight punch to cover the set-up.

Kiba just barely tensed his muscles as the kick impacted, flying back to the roar of the crowd and falling on his ass. The kids might not have liked Naruto all that much, but they did like taijutsu, and this was a good match. Better, since Kiba wasn't done yet, climbing to his feet and taking a more crouched stance, looking to take the fight to the ground. Both the fighting genin had huge smiles on their faces, and were just about to go at it again when…

"WHAT IN THE NAME OF THE KAMI DO YOU TWO THINK YOU'RE DOING?"

The entire crowd jumped to see Iruka-sensei standing there, face red. The majority of the crowd found good reasons to scamper, some of them going so far as to pull full-on kawarimi no jutsu to escape. Kiba and Naruto, obviously the two being yelled at, swore and jumped together, putting arms around shoulders. "Just getting in one final spar, Iruka-sensei," explained Naruto, elbowing Kiba in the stomach.

"Yeah, since we're on different teams and all," agreed Kiba, punching Naruto in the shoulder.

Iruka laughed. It was even the truth, hard as it was to believe from those two. He brought his attention back to the two of them, who looked ready to start up the spar again, what with all the shoves, elbows and punches he saw going about. "Well, I guess that's okay then. But get inside. It's time for you to meet your new sensei."

The two smiled, relieved at being let off the hook, and joined the crowd of students heading back into the building.

o0o0o0o

Naruto nearly jumped out of his skin when a neutral voice spoke up behind him. "You favor infighting." Aburame Shino, though not the year's number one student, was an exceedingly competent shinobi. It probably didn't hurt that Naruto was wrapped up in two trains of thought, one happy…the spar, and the other depressed…the team assignments. Blue eyes looked up from the desk to meet a sunglasses-obscured gaze.

"Uh, yeah," agreed Naruto, not exactly sure what to say to the enigmatic Aburame boy, who had just slid the seat on one side of him out and proceeded to sit next to Naruto. It was something Naruto could never remember happening previously. But with them being assigned to the same team, he supposed that it wasn't so strange. The blonde scratched the back of his head. What had prompted this, he couldn't say.

"Why?" Shino's face remained as impassive as ever, eyes and mouth hidden behind his trademark outfit.

Naruto shrugged, becoming a bit defensive. "I don't know, I just do. It works, you know…and the old man always said one of my strengths was that I'm not afraid to get in close…" he paused for a second, then shot a glare at the enigmatic boy. "Why, you got a problem with…" He caught himself. "Wait. You're an infighter too, aren't you?"

The Aburame boy gave an imperceptible nod. "The Aburame clan taijutsu style focus heavily on infighting. I was merely curious as to why you had chosen infighting as your specialty."

"Blame the old man," said Naruto, referring to the Academy taijutsu instructor, one of the few people who actually treated him decently. He was a bit of an Academy mystery, to be honest. Rumors abounded about him, particularly about his eyes, which were very obviously not blind, but had the hazy look of some forms of blindness. Some even suspected him of being an outcast Hyuuga, owing to his odd eyes and knowledge of the Jyuuken. Speaking of Hyuugas…Hinata was standing in the doorway, looking around for a seat. Well, if Shino was going to sit next to him, he might as well get the third member of their team over there as well. "Oi, Hinata, over here!" he yelled, waving the girl over.

Her blush and timid approach set Naruto to wondering just what was up with the girl. Honestly, what a weird girl. As she sat down on his other side, poking her fingers together, he turned back to Shino, continuing with the conversation. "Yeah, he kept me after class the first time and started going on and on about how I had real potential as an infighter, even if that Uchiha bastard kicked my ass. Ended up teaching me some style that was 'near and dear' to his heart or something. Never could pronounce the name he gave it."

"Interesting," temporized Shino, who was honestly surprised at the fact that any Academy teacher would go so far as to teach a unique style to Naruto. It was common knowledge that the blonde child was not well liked by the majority of the adults in the village. Shino had noted the neglect and harsh words that followed in the boy's wake. It seemed that the taijutsu instructor had not taken the common path.

Hinata drew in a surprised breath. "Suteru-sama taught you Sessen?"

Naruto looked over to Hinata in surprise. Even he didn't know the old man's name. Maybe there was some truth to the rumors of him being an outcast Hyuuga. He'd definitely have to ask her later. "No, he called it…Kurabu Maga, I think. Like I said, I could never pronounce it." Naruto looked around the room, noting that all but a few teams had come in to take their seats. He glared at the back of Uchiha's head, hoping that Kiba would show the icy bastard up in the real world. He turned looked back at his new team, opening his mouth to say something, but shut it as he heard the door slide open, and saw Iruka-sensei walk in behind the last straggling graduates.

"Okay, everyone settle down. Your teams' jounin sensei will be here soon. I wish you all the best of luck in your careers as Shinobi of the Leaf." The scarred man smiled at the lot of them, then exited the door.

A dark-haired woman with red eyes was the first in the door, wearing an outfit that seemed made up of white bandages with black markings, and completed by a red sleeve.

"Team 8!"

Naruto and his new teammates stood and followed the lady out of the classroom.

o0o0o0o

Team 8's jounin sensei had led them to a nearby park, then turned and gave them a smile. "Well then, why don't we get to know each other? I'll start. I'm Yuuhei Kurenai, and you guys are my first genin team. My specialty is genjutsu, both passive and active. I enjoy the study of psychology, and to learn in general. I dislike people who dismiss me either because of my gender or because of my specialty. My ambition is to make you three into the best long-range recon raider team in Konoha's history, and to help you accomplish your ambitions. You next." She gestured towards Naruto.

"My name's Uzumaki Naruto. I like ramen and sparring. I hate the three minutes I have to wait for instant ramen, and stuck up bastards who act like they're better than everyone. My ambition is to become Hokage and make the whole village respect me!" His fists clenched as he yelled out the last.

Kurenai nodded with a small smile on her face. Heart counted for a lot in Konoha, and drive as well. The boy was unfortunately weak on a number of areas, but he had an incredible amount of latent potential, far more than any normal ninja, bloodline holder or not, could hold. That was just they way of things with jinchuriki. And Kurenai had meant what she said about helping her genin accomplish their ambitions. She would do everything in her power to make him the best candidate for the office of the Hokage that she could. Satisfied with the blonde, she looked at the Aburame boy.

"I am Aburame Shino," he began. "I enjoy studying insects and cataloguing species that my family has yet to find. I dislike people who make uninformed judgments, as well as people who carelessly kill insects. My ambition is to master and expand the Aburame clan's jutsu, and to serve Konoha in the tradition of the finest shinobi."

Kurenai nodded at this. The Aburame boy was certainly the closest of the three to being truly ready to be placed on a recon raider team, but then, what fresh genin was truly ready? It was her job to shape them into ninja worthy of the position. His attitude and mindset was a good one. The jounin just hoped that he was willing to learn skills outside of the Aburame clan's specialized jutsu. Nodding again, she turned to Hinata.

"Ah…I am Hyuuga Hinata. I like kind and determined people…and enjoy gardening. I dislike senseless cruelty…and people being forced into roles by something not their fault. My ambition is to gain the acceptance of my clan…as well as the acknowledgement of someone else." She poked her fingers together at this last bit, looking over, just for a second, at Naruto.

The female jounin had expected this. She had, when still a chuunin, been assigned to escort the girl to her first day at the Academy. Suicidal as it would have been, she had been hard pressed to keep from assaulting Hyuuga Hiashi. Hinata was not held in high regard by the Hyuuga clan, despite her place as the eldest child of the clan head. As for her crush on Naruto…well, that was obvious to anyone with eyes. It was a wonder that even Naruto, perhaps the most situationally dense ninja on the planet, hadn't picked up on the fact that she carried a torch for him. "Okay then. Now that we all know a little about each other, I think that we need to get acquainted with each others' skills. Your first order as Team 8 is to move to Training Ground 17 with all speed. Okay…GO!" She disappeared with a Shunshin no jutsu, masking her departure with a simple Bunshin no jutsu. The clone just watched them for a few brief seconds before they came to their senses, channeled chakra into their limbs and shot off in an orange and two tan blurs.

Kurenai looked over her shoulder as she completed another body flicker teleport, depositing herself on a rooftop near the base of the Hokage monument. The orange flash was certainly out in front, with the two tan ones in line behind it. She supposed it was only to be expected. Naruto would have spent most of his efforts on the physical training and the chakra arts that benefited taijutsu, given the way he was treated by Academy instructors. And with his chakra 'situation', the benefits he could reap from in-body channeling were honestly rather frightening. He could be an unholy terror in close combat, with plenty of available chakra for ninjutsu. A small smile edged onto Kurenai's lips. Naruto might not seem it at the moment, but he was probably going to end up the heart of Team 8's combat power. And that with a Hyuuga in the squad.

The dark-haired jounin took off in the more normal ninja dash, hopping rooftops as her students were behind her. Unless she missed her guess, the first tan streak would be Shino. The dark-haired boy didn't stand out at the Academy, but he was a solid shinobi, the kind that you wanted at your back when you were in trouble. Kurenai also suspected that a good deal of his not scoring higher than he did had something to do with the fact that he was an Aburame. The bug thing was admittedly rather creepy, and Aburame were not noted for an abundance of social graces. Beyond that, the Aburame specialized in recon and support skills. While they were the kind of thing ninja needed, especially in teams, the fact remained that combat skills still impressed most people.

Kurenai shook her head as she crouched, then uncoiled in a chakra-assisted spring that took her up towards the bare cliff near the Shodaime Hokage's image. Slapping her hands flat against the rock, she glued herself there with chakra, hanging on like a fly before tensing and hurling her self upwards, releasing the chakra hold and turning it into a repulsive effect, boosting her flight. She couldn't let her preconceptions shape how she viewed her team. She only had the information she had gleaned watching them in their Academy days, along with the Academy files. It wasn't much to go on. The Aburame boy could turn out to be complete scrub in the field for example. Things like that were unlikely, but possible. She would have to keep an open mind.

Another chakra-palm pull-up and she found herself landing at the lip of the cliff. Tensing, she sprang forward in a dash, arms trailing behind her. It wasn't much further to Training Ground 17.

o0o0o0o

Naruto winced as he approached the base of the Hokage Monument. There was no way that he could duplicate Kurenai's ascent. What had looked like simple climbing was revealed to be advanced chakra use up close. The cliff was much too sheer for it to be anything else. He altered his course on his next roofhop, heading for the stairs cut into the cliff. That would lose him time, but what else could he do?

An out-of place circular chimney loomed up in front of him, with no convenient roof in front of it. He winced, throwing his weight to the side and tucking his legs in. His sandals scraped against the side of the chimney before he let his legs fire, aiming his course for the crown of a pine tree. The tree bent as he hit it feet-first, snapping back in a shower of needles to send him back on course. Angry squawks and cries of 'demon child' floated up behind him, but he was on too much of a rush to care. A one-legged recovery put him back on course with a minimum of fuss, even though he had lost even more ground, as he confirmed by looking over his shoulder. His teammates were noticeably closer than they had been before. It beat smashing dead-on into the chimney, though.

Naruto grinned and let his chakra flow into his legs, doing his best to re-open the gap. This was FUN! Almost like running from the victims of one of his pranks, but without the trouble that inevitably caught up to him. It did lack a certain spice, but the act of roofhopping was exhilarating in and of itself, and it wasn't often that a ninja got the chance to really experience it. Normally, they would be occupied with something else while they roofhopped.

The blonde 'eeped' as he flung his legs into the splits, just barely clearing a TV antenna. He hadn't heard any pants rippage, but that was too close. Another roof and he landed on the winding steps that led up to the top of the Hokage monument. The smooth stones had him skidding crouched across the first landing, springing up two more before he hit the wall. He repeated this pattern up the stairs, making the best time he could without taking the cliff face itself. Near the top, he looked down to see Shino partway up and Hinata just starting her climb. A convenient branch made itself available as he cleared the top, so Naruto grabbed on, spinning around it to convert his upwards momentum into forwards movement. He raised a dust cloud as his sandals hit the bare ground inwards of the tree and skidded. He took only a second to gather his wits before he reinforced his internal chakra flow and bounded off into the trees, heading for the general direction of Training Ground 17. It wasn't much further now.

Author's ending spiel: Sorry this took so long. I know the ending of this chapter's a little rough, and that's because...well, I just had to end it. No good place to stop, you know?

For a few technical notes, the AU divergence point for this fic was a decree made by the Yondaime Hokage shortly before his death sealing the Kyuubi to reform the basic ninja academy, a decree that the Sandaime continued. So things are a little shook up from the original series. Also, as a writing exercise, I've decided to assign all of the main ninja real martial arts to pattern their taijutsu after. You've seen two so far. Kiba is patterned after MMA, though he'll still have the beast imitation style. Naruto...well, I'm not going to just say it, but I'll put down the clues so far: One of it's given names, Sessen, translates to 'close combat'. Kurabu Maga is the real name formed entirely out of Japanese sounds. Finally, it's awfully ironic that I gave it to a blonde haired, blue eyed character.

Anyway, tell me what you like, tell me what you hate, tell me if you want more glimpses of the 'future' like in the first chapter...just TELL me. Constructive criticism helps me become a better writer, and nets you a better story. See you for now, and happy reading.