Chapter two: The exam

"Are you ready kit?"

"Yes Kyuu, I know exactly what I'm gonna do."

"go in keep your head down, get average, then get out."

Naruto rolled his eyes at the worried sound of his adoptive father's voice. Honestly, he was twelve! You'd think the fox would understand how there was a zero percent possibility that he would fail such a simple thing. The genin exams were incredibly easy, he could have passed them when he was seven without problems.

"I got it already, sheesh. I know you're worried, but have a little confidence in your kit."

"Sorry…"

*sigh*

"Look, if you henge into a cat, I'll let you come." Naruto said feeling indulging. After all it was common for his to be seen with the fox in cat form around town.

Kyuubi immediately transformed into a red and white fur-ball, even changing his smell and Chakra to match his new appearance. He then jumped up and nestled into the blonde's hair, thoroughly messing up the wild lock even more.

Naruto smiled as he walked through town intent on being early for the exam. Iruka-sensei would no doubt harp on anyone who was late and there was a rason why the teacher's lectures were legendary.

No one else had arrived yet, meaning Naruto got first pick at where to sit. Years of being randomly pounced on by a red ball of fox taught him to keep all exits in his lin of vision, and make it impossible for someone to sneak up behind him. Therefore, he chose to sit in the back right corner, laving him in direct sight of he doors and the windows. Good thing he was confident about being able to block any attack to hiss person. Otherwise he would stand throughout the whole thing, and that was just weird for some twelve year-old to do.

Knowing that Kyuu would alert him to anything positionally dangerous, Naruto allowed himself to zone out completely, going into stasis mode. He only did this when he wanted time to pass quicker, it essentially focuses all of the energy put into analyzing things, on enhancing the body via strengthening Chakra control. (Most called it meditating if that helps.)

"Nyah."

Naruto opened his eyes to see a young civilian boy walk over and take the seat right in front of the teacher's desk, completely oblivious to his presence in the room. The boy seemed to be the catalyst, causing many other children to show up spaced out over the next twenty minutes. Naruto watched in amusement while all of the fan girls in the room gravitated over to where the youngest Uchiha normally sat. there was no way the stoic twelve year old would sit surrounded by a pack of rabid wolves. Bothe fox/cat and kit sat eagerly awaiting the expression that would adorn the Uchiha's face.

When Kiba showed up, he immediately went and sat by Naruto, grateful that to be away from the perfumes of the screaming fan girls. Being one of the dog tribe meant enhanced smell so they could track right along side their animal counterparts, but the drawback was how disgusting everything really smelled got amplified.

Shino joined their little group when he got through the door, intent on sitting near people who didn't try and make him socialize any more than a a nod. Everyone else in the room seemed hell bent on making him talk, people even started betting on when he'll crack. They'd probably faint if they knew he already talked to a few people. Only ones who wouldn't ell other of course.

Shikamaru showed up nearly dragging his feet in laziness to get up where their seats were. He went the because A) Choji wasn't going to take the test because of his family's vacation taking place on the same week, and B) Their corner was the only one that was silent, leaving it to be the ideal place for a nap.

*Scram/Screech!*

Naruto fought the erge to behead the screaming idiots. Sasuke looked horrified at the twenty something girls surrounding his favorite seat, a shudder escaped him before he could stop it. He too joined Naruto's little group in hopes of escaping the nightmare that was his fan girls. Knowing the boy needed reassurance, Naruto moved to the right one and made room for Sasuke to sit in the desired corner. The two of them had an ongoing agreement. Naruto would protect Sasuke from the fan girls, while Sasuke invited him over to dinner at least once a week. Eating Mrs. Uchiha's cooking was a special treat to the blonde. Kushina hadn't cooked for him in years and eating his own food gets tiring after a while.

"Thanks guys. I swear the banshees multiply like rabbit."

Kiba choked on his laugh.

"…Do you want me to sick them on you?" Sasuke threatened.

Kiba went pale in fear. The last boy that happened to quit the academy and had to go through therapy. Akamaru whimpered at the mere memory of that boy's trauma.

"Stop teasing them Sasuke, they're just as terrified of them as you are."

Sasuke sunk into his seat slightly at the scolding tone. Besides, any guy would be scarred if they had to run from girls every day. I mean, even Itachi shushins away when they get too close.

"Be quiet, you're talking too much." A lazy Nara complained.

Naruto the peace keeper intervened.

"Hai, hai. Take a good nap Shika."

"Alright class settle down! As you all know today is the exam to see if you've learned enough to graduate and become real shinobi of the village!"

A cheer went through the classroom and Iruka had to wait until it died down.

"During the exam you will all be tested on three different categories. The first is a written test that is over everything you have learned in your years at the academy. It's a challenge, but those who pass can move onto the second test. The next one consists of taijutsu and weaponry. You will have to throw ten kuni and twenty shuriken at targets using the delta formation. Then a series of purely hand to hand combat spars. Based on your progress, you will either pass, or fail. The last test will be a ninjutsu challenge. If, for some reason, you haven't been listening to me for the past week, you will be doing three of the standard academy jutsu chosen at random before that section of the test begins."

"He does know he's just repeating the same speech he said yesterday, right?" Kiba whispered.

"He probably memorized it long ago." Naruto whispered back.

"Keep your test face down until I say begin. There is no talking during the test, and cheaters will be booted out of the academy."

"You may turn over your test and begin." Said Iruka while he went and stood guard by his des, looking for any wandering eyes.

Naruto finished his test fairly easily. Most of the questions were on practical work, making it so anyone who practiced or held general knowledge migt pass. The only questions that gave him trouble were the ones like. "Whats the current Hokage's favorite color and why is it so?" and other such things. Besides, Naruto needed to stay average in order to not be under scrutiny. He was already being monitored in his progress by the council like any other academy student, letting them get any closer was dangerous when he was still so young.

When he finished, Naruto flipped his paper over and leaned back, petting the purring kitten sitting in his lap. Akamaru, feeling jealous jumped into his lap next to Kyuu and gave a pitiful whine. Kiba looked at the k-9 as if betrayed, but Akamaru was too caught up in the sensation of having his ears scratched to care. Naruto stuck his tongue out at the Inuzuka, thoroughly surprising the boy with the sudden bout of playfulness.

Kyuu smiled happily like he did every time his kit acted his age for once. They were few and far between, but those moments were what made not killing the village yet worth it.

The blonde didn't notice the stares he received from teasing the other boy, but Kyuubi did. Perhaps they would stay in the mortal realm a little longer than they had first decided on, it might be interesting to figure out how his kit would respond to those looks when he got older. Kyuubi would love to see his kit's expression when he figured it out.

Shino finished his test, confident that he did well and sat back to partake in one of his favorite past times. He looked over everyone's faces, taking note on how well they seemed to think they were doing based on facial expressions. Many had looks of intense concentration,, while others looked confident or hopeless. The Nara had went back to sleep after completing just enough to scrape by with a C. Shino couldn't wait to be put on his own team, and away from most of the children in the room.

"Alright, times up! Akira, why don't you collect the papers."

There were a few groans and relieved sighs from the children as they gave their tests to the boy.

"Go to the training ground where you're going to wait until I come out with the results. Those of you who fail, can redo the class and take the test next semester. It'll take about ten minutes to get these graded, so use your time wisely. NO FIGHTING UNTIL I GET THERE!"

Iruka had to shout the last bit when the children started filing out of the room making chatter as they went. The boys waited until most of the class had already left before walking out the door, two animals trailing behind them all the way.

"Mom wants you over for dinner tonight if you can make it. She's planning on trying something new from grass country. I think she mentioned something about pasta." Sasuke said.

"I would love to. Your mother does seem to get the best recipes."

"You sound like a house wife." Shikamaru commented.

"Nope! I sound like a twelve year-old bachelor who cooks for himself. Oh shit, here come the Uchiha brigade."

Groans came from all the boys as they shielded the pale boy from the crazed fan girls. Luckily for Kiba they were upwind from the noxious fumes emitting from the drooling females.

"Sasuke-kun!" Was the collective yell coming from the mass.

"Go to the trees. Shika and Shino head east, Kiba Sasuke and I will go west. Shika, henge as Sasuke please."

"Troublesome."

"I'll play shogi with you later." Naruto coerced.

Shikamaru sighed and did as asked, grabbing Shino as he ran. Sasuke quickly turned into an exact copy of the Nara and went into the trademark slumping position.

"You know he's going to expect a challenge." Sasuke warned.

"And I'll give him one. We've been playing shogi for two years now and I've yet to hear him complain."

In the end there were three different Sasuke's running around trying to confuse the girls.

"Alright. Line up!"

The class rushed to do as ordered.

"The following names have failed to qualify for the second round. Yuzarah, Kumino, Yoruiske, Yamatsuna, Ryuunaka, Tsunaba, and Nakamoto. Those who's names have been called are asked to vacate the area and consider whether they wish to try again next semester."

Those whose name had been called walked away.

"We'll be starting with throwing weapons. When I all your name, step up and throw them at the targets. The places colored in red are vital areas, worth three points each. The yellow points are… I really don't want to repeat this again. You know the drill, don't blow it. Yamamoto Akira!"

Around half of the people passed. Naruto himself got around a seventy five percent out of a hundred, putting him smack dab in the middle of those who passed. The spars were very anticlimactic. The distance in levels of those who passed and those who didn't were obvious. Only a few people were evenly matched with their opponent. Sad thing really, how far expectations of a ninja have fallen.

"…I will call your names. When you come into the room you will be asked to perform three jutsu chosen before we begin. Any other jutsu than the ones asked of you will not be given any points. Two out of three are needed to pass the exam. Those who's names are not called shall leave and consider their future. Hyuuga Hinata!"

The boys just followed their lazy companion's lead and started cloud gazing. Two of them with small animals on their chests.

"That one looks like onigiri."

"Being eaten by a clown."

"With insane hair."

"Of course it's gonna have insane hair, it's a clown."

"… shut up."

"Ooh, looks like a turtle."

"No a tortoise."

"Is there even a difference?"

"…Environment."

"Aaaahhhhh."

"Is that a …?"

"I think it is."

*Bark*

"Dango in the sky! Damn I'm hungry."

*Snore*

"Famous Nara trademark."

"Wonder when he's gonna remember you owe him a game."

"Probably halfway through eating dinner. By then he'll be too preoccupied to find me."

"…You're evil."

"I prefer the term, "Maniacal genius.""

"If your some crazy bastard then we're all fucked with what you can think up."

The group started laughing when Naruto pouted.

"Uzumaki Naruto!"

Naruto left the group still chuckling and went towards the irritated teacher. Apparently the last child didn't do so well. He suddenly felt sorry for the boy he saw going in earlier. Oh well, if he didn't try hard enough, he didn't need to be a shinobi in the first place.

"Alright then Naruto, the first thing I'm gonna have to ask you to do is the replacement Jutsu. You can use anything found in this room besides myself to replace your body with."

"Replacement Jutsu." Naruto replaced himself with a desk in the back corner.

Iruka smiled slightly as he checked something off on his clipboard.

"Next is a henge. Try looking like me."

Naruto looked at the teacher slowly, memorizing what he could. The way he stands, the quirk of his lips as if highly amused, and what clothes the Chunin wore.

"Henge."

"Nice. The final one is the cloning jutsu. I know you've been having trouble with it, buy why don't you give it a try."

Swallowing his embarrassment, Naruto ignored the snickering kitten by his feet and, "Cloning Jutsu!"

A barely alive clone stood next to him. Feeling a little playful, Kyuubi pawed at the creature, making it fall over and disperse.

"…Well, at least its getting better slightly. (*clears throat*) I am proud to present you with your village head band. Wear it as a symbol to others what you stand for. You village is stronger to have you. Show the enemies of the village that you are not weak, and always have it on you visible for all to see."

Iruka winked after this and slouched back into his normal stance.

"If you want to customize it, you may go to any shinobi supplier in Konoha. Your headband counts as an ID, allowing you entrance into any adult complex and shows you are now an adult in the eyes of the law. Therefore, you are legally emancipated."

Iruka shared a smile with the blonde.

"You may but property or housing without parental consent. The only claim your family has is one that pertains to clan matter. You may change your name if you so wish, or start your own clan. Damn, I've been wanting to tell you that for years Naruto."

"About time to, Ruka-san. I was beginning to think you'd go crazy waiting. Your right eyebrow has been twitching for days."

"Hey." Complained the ninja as he covered the offending brow. "It was not twitching."

"Whatever you say Ruka."

"What do you say we go eat some Ramen to celebrate?"

"Sorry Ruka, Sasuke asked me first. How about tomorrow after we meet the teams. You can give me advise about how to piss off my new sensei."

"Hahaha, you really are something whiskers. Sure, but don't tell them who told you, K?"

"They aren't whiskers, they're birthmarks. We've been over this a thousand times already."

"And as long as you call me Ruka, your name is whiskers. Get going already, I still have half a class to test. Report back here at eight 0'clock tomorrow mourning. Bring any supplies you deem necessary and don't be late."

"Hai, sensei."

Naruto walked down the hallways of the academy with his new leaf symbol glinting on his forehead. Truthfully, he felt no different than he did twenty minutes ago. He's now a shinobi of the leaf, but nothing seemed changed. Wasn't he supposed to feel a sense of accomplishment? He thought so, but all he felt was hunger for dinner. That rations bar just wasn't cutting it anymore. Perhaps the sense of pride he was looking for would come later.

Naruto headed outside and across the road to the par to wait for the youngest Uchiha. He knew that the guys would pass, he took stock of their abilities long ago. Naruto wasn't worried, only impatient.

There were children milling around the small playground. Some he recognized from the academy, no doubt the ones that failed. Some were sitting on the ground thinking or reading. Others ere practicing the things they failed on. Kyuubi jumped over to the swing wet, demanding in his silent language for his kit to have some fun.

"The swings? … Well, at least its better than the sandbox. I had sand in my sandals for days after that."

*meow* voiced a smug fox in disguise.

"Scoot over than Kyuu, if you don't want to be sat on."

Naruto swung back and forth as he waited for his friend to finish. His eyes flitted over those present in boredom, stopping every now and then to watch an student try to improve.

"Ready?"

He turned to see a proud Uchiha walking towards him with a blue Konoha headband on his forehead.

"Yeah. It's been a while since I've seen Mikoto-san."

"Only my mother?"

"I saw Uchiha-sama yesterday on my way home, and Itachi-san was buying kuni Monday while I was in the store."

"Come on, I'm hungry as hell."

"You just want to show off your new status at the compound." Naruto teased lightly.

"Damn right. I might not be a prodigy like nii-san, but I'm still gonna be one of the greatest shinobi the village has ever seen."

"I know you will."

Line break

"How much longer are we gonna have to wait?"

Sasuke flinched at the pinkette's voice. Out of all the teams he just had to be put on the same one with the most crazed fan girl possible. He was terrified that he would end up raped in his sleep on a mission by the insane teammate. If not for the fact that Naruto was a part of the unit, Sasuke might have already ran for it shinobi or not.

"However long it takes until he gets here. Kakashi hatake is notorious for being constantly late, Haruno-san. You might as well get used to it because you're stuck with him."

"Shut up Naruto-baka! I was asking Sasuke-kun, not you!"

"Naruto is right Haruno-san. Kakashi-sensei will always be late. Why do you think we're both working on something?"

Sakura just stared mesmerized at the sound of her crush's voice, barely registering what was said.

"What are you working on anyway?"

"The basics of fuinjutsu. It'll come in hand later on if we can grasp any of it. Being able to make your own exploding tags and sealing scrolls on the spot is rather convenient."

"And resourceful." Naruto added. "Sealing scrolls are expensive, and exploding tags are hard to find I bulk. We'll save money in the long run if we can actually make any without being blown up."

"But isn't your dad a master in seals? Why don't you ask him to help?"

"… Because the last time I asked him for help he turned me down so he and Naruko could watch reruns. I was six then, and not once has he offered me any help. When I needed someone to teach me something new I went to Ruka-sensei.. So no, I'm not going to ask that man for any help."

Naruto went back to reading the beginner's scrolls he filched from Minato's personal library. They were so far in the back that dust started to cover them. Naruto was completely sure the Yondaime wouldn't even notice their absence.

"We do not want to speak Haruno-san, so please leave Naruto and myself to study in piece. If you're worried then you should know it won't be much longer until our new sensei is here. Rarely is the jounin later than three hours, and its already been two and a half."

Sakura sat down with a plop and stared at the Uchiha in total admiration.

Weird.

Naruto shifted his weight until he blocked her view of his friend.

Footsteps echoed down the hallway and reached the trio's ears. Sakura shot back to her feet and turned towards the door.

"You're late!"

The blast of air nearly knocked the silver-haired man backwards.

"My first impression…pinky will get you all killed. Be on the roof in five minutes."*Poof!*

The clone dispersed in a puff of smoke.

Naruto stored away the sealing scrolls and started walking outside.

"Where are you going Naruto-baka? The stair case is by the cafeteria."

"He's taking the highroad. Being inside is confining for someone who wears no shoes. He's tried to explain it to me multiple times, but I just don't understand yet. Come on, we only have four minutes to get to the roof."

Sakura followed her older team member, trying to figure out why the blonde idiot hated being inside for too long.

"Oh good, you're all here." Said the lazy jounin as he put away a very distinguished and familiar book. "Basically I am supposed to get to know you no matter whether or not I care, so state your name, likes dislike, hobbies and dreams."

"Uchiha Sasuke. My likes are training and my friends. Dislikes include fan girls, swooners, fakes, and traitors. My hobbies…sleep I guess. Dreams? I don't know yet."

The jounin smiled slightly behind his mask. The Uchiha seemed much more laid back than what most of his clan was known for.

"You next pinky."

The offended girl opened her mouth and the boys internally cringed.

"Haruno Sakura. My like include… Hobbies are… My dream is… Kyah!"

Sasuke started shaking in horror when every time the banshee paused she looked at him blushing. Kakashi sent his new student his silent condolences.

Finally breaking down, Sasuke pushed his pride away and moved to sit on the other side of the blonde.

"I hate Naruto!"

"Thank you Haruno-san, I assure you my feelings towards you represent nothing more than tolerance."

*Humph*

"Well blonde, why don't you introduce yourself."

*sigh*

"My name is Naruto. Don't call me Uzumaki or honorable son, or any of those other stupid titles. My like include my friends, training, learning, and watching. My dislikes are fake people and hypocrites. My hobbies…are not important. My dream…is to find my home."

*Meow!*

"Oh! This is Kyuu. He likes to sleep a lot and hates when it storms because of the rain."

Kakashi was concerned about the finding a home thing. Minato and Kushina were wonderful parents, so why did Naruto feel unwelcome? There wasn't a day that went by where he didn't see the man boasting about his family to anyone who would listen. Just what happened?

"Tomorrow we will be taking a survival test."

"Survival test?! But we did a ton of those in the Academy." Sakura whined."

"Ah, however, the test we are about to perform has a 66% rate of failure among genin. Of the twenty seven members of your graduating class only nine will be accepted as junior lever shinobi. The other eighteen will be sent back to the academy for more training."

Two faces kept the same exact expressions while one freaked out.

"Aw pooh, I expected a little more panic from you guys. Anyway, meet tomorrow mourning at training field seven. I advise you not to eat any breakfast, you'll only puke it up later on. Show up at six-thirty, and don't be late. Now get going."

Sasuke and Naruto left fairly quickly.

"So what are you going to do?" Questioned a curious duck-assed guy.

"Shika caught me this mourning and forced me to promise him to go wait at his place. Apparently he remembered our agreement and decided he wanted his shogi match today."

"Hmmm, you ever been over to his house?" Sasuke asked as the hid in a alley. The civilian fan girls that failed the exam the day before were trying to sniff out the one they were gaga over.

Knowing they wouldn't be followed by people who couldn't keep up, Naruto grabbed Sasuke and jumped to the roofs. With some releif the two boys watched the girls heading in the opposite direction.

"A few times, but only for a quick game and a meal. Though, today I'll have to leave a little early."

"Why?"

"I promised Ruka we would go get Ramen for dinner."

"Here's my stop. What time do you think we should show up?" Sasuke asked with a smirk.

"Nine-thirty. He'll show up around thirty minutes after if he's on time." Naruto answered amused.

"Pinky's gonna blow a gasket." Sasuke laughed.

"Bring some cotton to stuff in your ears. We can watch Kakashi-sensei cringe." Naruto chuckled.

"Evil mastermind. Get going, I'll see you tomorrow."

"Bye."

Naruto walked to the Nara compound with a sleepy fox/kitten on his head.

The guards at the gates just waved him inside, probably thinking that stopping him was too troublesome.

"Ohayo, Naru-kun. Shika said you can wait in his room. He, Shino, and Kiba shouldn't be much longer. They had to start their meeting the same hour Asuma-sensei met them. Shika barely had enough time to come home and warn me you were coming over before their test started."

Naruto looked at the walking enigma. Unlike most of the Nara clan, the head's wife was upbeat and hyper most of the time.

"Are they coming over as well?"

"Yep, before they left I made them promise to have dinner with us. Do you want to stay?" She asked with a hopeful expression.

"I'm sorry Nara-sama, but Iruka-sensei and I already made arrangements"

"Pooh, and don't call me Nara-sama. You're like a second son to me. How many times am I going to have to remind you to call me mama?" She asked with a pout.

"Sorry…mama, I'm just not used to calling anyone that." Naruto said sheepishly.

Mama smiled.

"Why don't you go wait in Shika's room. I'll bring you a snack in a few minutes. Naru-kun can't fool me about eating all of his meals. Honestly, why am I surrounded by males who forget to eat on a regular basis?" She asked exasperated.

"Because you love taking care of us." Naruto replied with cheek.

He smiled as he walked towards the back of the house. This place was almost as familiar to him as the Uchiha compound. He'd been coming here on and off since he was ten, making it a third home.

Shikamaru's room was a mess as usual. Clothes were scattered across the floor, making it almost impossible to find a clear place to step. Books were piled everywhere, sometimes so high he wondered how they didn't topple to the ground.

The only place that was relatively free of disaster was the four foot of radius around the shogi board. Typical Nara priorities.

Naruto sat ton the bed and took back out the fuinjutsu scroll. There were specific rules and guidelines that needed to be followed. One miss-step of them, and whatever you were working on would blow up in your face. Other than that, your imagination was the limit to what you could accomplish. However, the sure amount of rules deterred just about everyone who tried to fail at the art. Very few people had the patience or drive to learn how to create seals. Naruto was already half way through the scroll, and he was hard pressed to put it down. Unlike a normal person, his emerging Hanyou tendencies added to his large reserves made it fairly easy for him to grasp the content of the scroll.

Maybe he'd try to make his first exploding tag after Kakashi's test.

"Okairi, Shika." Naruto heard through the walls.

Kyuu jumped down from his perch in preparation of what he would do.

The door was opened and a red and white blur hit Shikamaru in the face epically.

"Troublesome."

Yep, today would be a good day.

~end of chapter~

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