zervus,

I promised myself, 'If you hit the 50 hits limit tonight you'll spit out the next chap' and here you have it. it's the bell test.

not like it went in the manga or anime, i can promise that. ok, quite some similarities but nothing got just copied word by word.

anyway, comments, questions and ideas what i can throw at Team 7 are appreciated in anyway. i have written the story down to the departure for Wave and up to the first fight with Zabusa is set in stone. after that i have a rough story line but as i said: ideas are very welcome.

i should tell you that i'm not the greatest at action scences so any help or tip is more then welcome

just to remind you: reviews feed my motivation to type so if you want to keep e in the rapid fire mode, you know where you can find the little button.

!-- page { margin: 2cm } P { margin-bottom: 0.21cm } --

ΩΩΩΩ

The next morning Akuma walked towards the training ground shortly before sunrise. 'Let's see how this will turn out.' He noticed that he was the first to arrive and looked for a tree big enough to serve as a good sleeping place while also providing cover and soon found one and settled down in a branch a good 3 meters off the ground. He had no doubts at all that Kakashi would be late again and he would use this time to catch some close eye. But before he could even reach a drowsy state he heard voices drawing closer and briefly turned around. There was Sasuke and sure enough, Sakura right beside him like a trusty dog, for the lack of a better transliteration.

'When will she realize that Sasuke is so not interested in her? I mean it's obvious to anyone but her… and Ino for that matter. Why do I care? It's none of my business.' Once more a new voice caught Akuma's attention and he saw Naruto getting closer, 'The students are ready but where is the teacher? Late as it seems to be his habit. Whatever.' Akuma closed his eyes and soon dozed off, ignoring the bickering below his tree.

Ω

"Yo." "YOU ARE LATE SENSEI!" Sakura's and Naruto's faces were filled with anger as they watched their sensei coming closer, being a total of 2 hours and 42 minutes late. "So, are you ready for the test?" "Akuma is still missing," said Naruto while he tried to calm his anger. "I'm already here." The three other Genin-in-spe quickly turned around and saw Akuma jumping down from his tree branch, stretching his limps after he landed on solid ground.

'If it hadn't been for his slight snoring I too wouldn't have noticed him.' thought Kakashi while eying his trainee, 'He does live up to his name; he can truly be a shadow.' "Alright, listen up you four." The Genin-in-spe turned to face Kakashi who held out three small bells before he attached them to his belt, "Your job is to get one of those bells and achieve the status of a Genin. You have until noon to get one. And as an additional incentive you will get nothing out of this should you fail." He held out two lunch boxes before he placed them on a tree stump along with a clock. "You must fight me with the intent to kill or you can give it up already. Alright: ready, set, GO!" The four disappeared into the woods, for now hiding from their target.

'What is the meaning behind this?' thought Akuma while he watched Naruto charge Kakashi with four Kage Bunshin at his side. 'This task is theoretically too simple. There must be some deeper meaning.' Right now Kakashi had managed to not only cancel all Kage Bunshin but also catch Naruto off guard. Kakashi made a tiger seal and thrust it up Naruto's… ass? Within a split second Naruto took off like a rocket and crashed into the nearby lake. 'Oh My Fucking Goodness,' thought Akuma as he watched the distant look on his sensei's face while said one read the latest volume of the Icha Icha Paradise.

'Hm, he's a pervert alright. Maybe I can use this to my advantage one day.' Suddenly Sasuke charged out of the trees at Kakashi and the two started to trade blows and kicks along with several thrown shuriken and kunai from Sasuke's side and Kakashi actually had to put away his book. "Katon Gakakyu no Jutsu." 'Not bad Sasuke, not bad. No Genin should be able to have that much Charka.' Akuma gave both Sasuke and Naruto credit for their skills and potential. 'Both are above average, no sense in denying that.' Akuma changed his position to get a better look at the whole thing but while he moved Sasuke and Kakashi disappeared into the woods, still fighting. 'Let's see if I can track them down again.'

Ω

Akuma rushed through the woods in search for anyone on his team. By now it was clear to him what this whole thing was about: teamwork; simple as that. Alone no one had a chance of getting a bell from Kakashi as long as he had his guard up. He had tried to approach Sakura but before he could even open his mouth she had sent a hail of shuriken at him, the ultimate sign to say 'Fuck Off'.

Naruto was nowhere to be found so he had to find Sasuke even though he knew the answer already. The day the cocky Uchiha would accept help was the day hell would freeze over. "UAAAAAAAH!!!" 'Sakura?!' With a sharp turn to the right Akuma headed towards the scream and soon reached a very small clearing. In the middle lay Sakura, obviously out cold. The next thing Akuma noticed was a dark shadow a few trees away from his and he smirked knowingly, 'A Genjutsu. He has some dirty tricks up his sleeves.' He slowly followed Kakashi and watched him reading his book. 'Three…. Two…. One…. GO!'

In a split second Akuma bounced off his branch and appeared a couple of meters behind Kakashi, reaching with both hands for kunai pouches. In each hand he held four shuriken and hurled them at his sensei. Kakashi just turned around to see a few sparkling points in the air and dashed to the right avoiding all shuriken except for one that scratched his left arm. 'Hm, he analyzed my movements pretty good.' "Not bad Akuma." "No need for pleasantries sensei. I know that even if I get a bell that I'm screwed in the end." Kakashi's right eyebrow rose in surprise and a little shock was evident in his voice, "You figured it out eh?"

"Not that difficult, is it? None of us is capable of getting a bell alone so we would need to work together to get this thing done but in this group, teamwork is a big empty spot on the map." Akuma dropped his battle stance and headed back into the woods without another glance back. 'This Akuma is one secretive character. The future could be interesting if it wasn't for the problem he already pointed out.' Kakashi returned to read his book and headed back to the memorial stone where he had left the clock. 'Five…. Four…. Three…. Two…. One…. And the time is up.'

Ω

The whole Team 7 was together at the starting point of their test when Kakashi looked down at them with a disappointed look on his face. "It has been a long time since any team did so poorly." "What did you expect sensei," shouted Naruto to drown out his growling stomach and neither Sakura nor Sasuke were better off. "He is right sensei," added Sakura with a weak voice, "We are just Genin so how could we do this?" "If you would have used your head, you would have figured it out."

Kakashi sighed at the two dumb-founded faces before him while the two others were collectively indifferent. "None of you was able to get a bell although Sasuke and Akuma came close or could have gotten close. What is a ninja supposed to do if he can't get his mission done alone, hm?" His ears met silence but Akuma's eyes locked with his, 'Yeah I know: YOU found out. Big deal.'

Suddenly he felt Sasuke's eyes on him and Kakashi turned to the young Uchiha, "What is it Sasuke?" "Sensei…. Where are the bells?" "Right where they belong," said Kakashi while he patted his left hip but suddenly his body froze and a few pearls of sweat broke free on his forehead, 'The bells! They're gone!' "Are you looking for something sensei," a total of seven voices asked from behind him and all eyes turned to the space behind Kakashi. There, with seven identical smirks, stood seven Akuma's, one of them holding three bells between the index finger and thumb of his left hand.

"How did you pull that off?" shouted Naruto while he stared at the Akuma at his right side but said person just smirked and then disappeared in a puff of smoke. 'A clone,' thought Kakashi as he looked back at the other seven Akuma's and six of them puffed out in smoke too, leaving the one with the bells alone. "You fell for one of the oldest tricks in the world sensei." Akuma walked past Kakashi and sat down on a tree stump to the right of Sasuke. "Was that the Kage Bunshin no Jutsu," asked Sakura more to herself then to the audience.

"It was," answered Akuma lazily, "Naruto isn't the only one who can pick up new skills. Thanks to you Naruto; without your headless charge I wouldn't have been able to pull this stunt off." "You picked it up by seeing it just once?" shouted Naruto. "I saw it before but the last performance cleared up the remaining problems." Akuma winked at Naruto and the fox boy caught it, 'Of course, he has seen me train with the Kage Bunshin no Jutsu.'

Kakashi in the meanwhile had leaned against the closest tree, acting like he couldn't care less that Akuma got the bells. "So for what old trick did I fall for?" "The Me that charged you with the shuriken was a clone. While he distracted you, another one managed to slip a small sling of nylon around the strings on the bells and when you left, they merely submitted to the moment of inertia. And the ringing of the clock drowned the chimes from the bells as they fell to the ground." "You planned everything down to the smallest detail, didn't u?" "I wasn't sure it would work; it just seemed too simple. But then again: the simplest solution is often the best."

Akuma suddenly threw the three bells at his teammates who caught them with totally shocked faces and even Kakashi showed some surprise. "What is the meaning of this?" asked Sasuke, eying the bell in his hand carefully. "You can have them. All three of you are determined to get this test done while I have no real problem with returning to the Academy for another year so you can have them." At first all three looked down at the bells once more before Sasuke threw his back at Akuma, "Keep it." After that Naruto and Sakura threw their bells back too, only Sakura avoided eye contact with Akuma. "Well," started Kakashi as he walked up to them, "If that's the case then…... you all pass." "WHAT?!" Sakura and Naruto were once again shocked and even Sasuke and Akuma lost their self control and stared at Kakashi.

"Wh… What do you mean, we all pass?" "You see Akuma, this test was supposed to see if you are willing to suppress your own ambitions and concentrate on the mission alone. You were willing to give up your part for the team's sake, aka letting more then one of you pass, while the others were not willing to take someone else's place and fake them as their own. Self sacrifice and honor are two major traits a ninja must have and those two also are the foundation for teamwork. You must think for your own and all four of you have managed this today, somehow, therefore you all pass."

A short silence before, "YES! I DID IT!" Naruto punched his right hand into the air smiling wide while Sakura looked close to cry out in happiness. Akuma smiled and even Sasuke managed to express his gratification at the whole thing by cracking a smirk. "Alright," said Kakashi while giving them a thumb up, "Tomorrow Team 7 will set out for its first mission."

They started to head back towards Konoha as Akuma caught up with Naruto, "Hey Naruto." "What is it?" Akuma lowered his voice, "You're still kind of grieving over Sakura huh?" At first Naruto glanced around as if to make sure that no one paid them any attention and then shed his mask as he spoke very low, "In a way, yeah." "You know the saying: 'To forget a girl, get to know a new one'?" "What are you hinting at?" "Does the name Hyuuga Hinata ring a bell?" "Sure, she could hardly keep her eyes off me at the Academy, let alone talk straight to me." "If you know that then what are you still doing here?" "What the hell do you mean?" "Are you acting now or are you really that blind? She likes you, a lot I might add." "Your point being?"

Akuma couldn't help the deep groan that came from deep down his throat, "Damn it Naruto; you're really slow today. She likes you and she enjoys being close to you that's a fact. Now do something with this information." "I'm not using anyone as a substitute," shot Naruto back with an ice cold glare. Akuma simply raised his hands in defense, "No one said something about a substitute; I meant it as another cha-!"

Suddenly Akuma stopped dead in his tracks and whirled around while his eyes roamed the surrounding. They were only half way back to Konoha but something was off. "What is it Akuma," asked Naruto loud enough to make everybody turn back too. "Something is off," muttered Akuma while he still searched the trees around them. "What do you mean with 'something is off'?" "That something is defiantly wrong here sensei. I can feel it; I can feel Psyn- something that is so not supposed to be here."

Now all five looked around but no one saw anything and they were about to leave when Akuma sensed something flare up to their right, "ATTACK FROM THE RIGHT!" "ICE MISSLE!" Naruto and Kakashi were fast enough to follow Akuma's words after they heard the second shout and saw those dozen dart-like objects made of ice in the air but not Sakura and Sasuke. Sakura was rooted to the spot while the Uchiha heir was not moving either, but due to two completely different causes. 'Damn Uchiha pride. But he should be able to take care of himself.' "FLARE!"

Sakura suddenly felt a huge source of heat in front of her before someone pulled her forcefully backwards but it was only due to these two things that none of those ice pieces hit her. "GHAAA!" The shout of the Uchiha heir hang in the air as he was hit by several icicles but it was nothing he couldn't take. The impact of all those icicles on the ground had caused a lot of dust rising into the air, wrapping them all in a thick cloud.

"Whirlwind!" Akuma's voice cut through the air as suddenly a small tornado appeared and blew away all the dust so the five ninja's could see again. Sasuke was still on his feet but clutched his right arm that was dripping with blood as was his right side and left leg. Naruto was next to Kakashi, both totally unharmed; Akuma had his left arm around Sakura's waist while he held his Katana in his right hand, holding it protectively in front of his body while he forced Sakura behind him.

"Show yourself!" "Hell no Akuma; I would never give up my advantage willingly." "That voice," muttered Akuma while he franticly searched the area. "It sounds familiar." "Who are you?" shouted Naruto and Sasuke with one voice and both shinobi drew a kunai and some shuriken. "Wouldn't you like to know?" The voice was actually chuckling at them and it seemed like it came from all around them and all of them were tense, even Kakashi seemed to take this serious. "Who is this Akuma? He seems to know you." "I honestly have no idea sensei; I have a few guesses but one is worse then the other." "You honestly don't remember me Akuma? Now that hurts."

"Naruto, watch out for Sakura," muttered Akuma as he walked back to the middle of the path, now holding his Katana like a kunai, the blade parallel to his arm. "Alright, so you won't show yourself but can't you give me a hint on who you are?" "Hmmmm, why not? At least then you can tell the Devil who sent you to his infernal realm. All I should need to tell you is that I know your style better then anyone else does." "Great. Farok, right?" "Yes you are correct Akuma, it is me. Now all you have to do is find me."

Akuma lowered his head towards the ground as Naruto and Sasuke started to form a series of seals each. "Don't interfere! This one is mine to fight and mine alone." Akuma's voice had changed: it was colder and actually it seemed darker then normal too but the cadence didn't fail its purpose: Naruto and Sasuke aborted their Jutsu and settled for a defensive stance. From their angle all the four Konoha ninja's could see was the profile of Akuma's face but suddenly his lips curled up in a kind of evil smirk, "You're right Farok, you knew my style the best but I have improved over the years. I'm no longer the small child who was too scared to fight. I may not be able to see you but all I have to use is… REVEAL!"

Suddenly Akuma's body seemed to pulse and a small wave of energy traveled through the air that made Kakashi shiver and he saw that the rest of his Genin didn't fare any better. This energy had reached directly for his soul. Suddenly Akuma's head jerked around to the left and he smirked even more as he said, "Got ya!" His left hand reached for his kunai pouch and threw a total of four kunai into a tree behind his teammates and sensei. "GHA, you little punk!"

The satisfying sound of at least three kunai hitting their mark and a loud 'thump' indicating that a body had fallen out of a tree were accompanied by this shout and only a second later Akuma stood between this tree and his team. There was some shifting audible in the bushes before a person stepped out onto the pathway. "You have learned to use Reveal, not bad Akuma."

In front of Team 7 stood an old man, approximately in his mid fifties. He basically wore the same clothes as Akuma only his were grey and the coat was open and without any drawings; and this man was not wearing a shirt under it so his well toned chest and abdomen were in the open. He also had a huge sword strapped to his back, at least a good two meters long and forty centimeters wide. "And your aim has gotten better too."

The man pulled all four kunai out of his left arm and let them fall to the ground. "And you even foresaw my attack; another first." "Shut your trap Farok," barked Akuma as he held his Katana in front of his body, the blade pointing downward to the right, "You're surely not here to test my skills in a friendly duel, are you?" "No, you're right. I'm here to kill you." Naruto and Sakura gasped at this, unable to see why anyone would want Akuma dead.

"I thought so," said Akuma as the two started to circle each other. Suddenly Farok charged Akuma throwing a punch at his head. Akuma evaded the attack by bending backwards, landing on his left hand, spinning towards his left, sending a kick at Farok's chest and slashed his Katana at his opponent's legs. Farok managed to dodge the Katana but not the kick and was send flying backwards but even while in the air he launched his next attack, pointing one hand at Akuma, "FROTH SPHERE!" Several huge bubbles of water broke free from Farok's hand and all hit Akuma while he was trying to get back to his feet and they send him flying into a near tree. "Epicenter!" A ray of flames broke free from the ground and shot at Farok hitting him once and passed him by before it made a turn and then hit him once more from above.

While the dust settled the two contestants came back to their feet, both breathing heavier but while Akuma was nearly out of breath Farok seemed to not be all that exhausted. "You really have improved Akuma. I never expected an Epicenter coming from you." Farok's right shoulder had been hit and his coat and his skin had been melted, the bones visible. Suddenly Farok winced at the pain in his shoulder and he brought his left hand to the wound, "Ply Well." Within seconds the flesh regenerated and the wound closed, leaving only slightly paler skin where the wound had been. "D… damn you," breathed Akuma while he kneeled on the ground, supporting his body with his Katana. "Curse all you want but it won't help you."

Farok drew his sword from his back, resting it on his right shoulder as he approached Akuma, "Why don't you just lie down and die? It would make things so much easier." "HAH, and give you the pleasure and the credit that you have killed the last Heir to the Eight? Pull another one, before that happens I will meet the Eight face to face." "Watch it Akuma, that could happen sooner then you think." Suddenly Farok charged Akuma his sword raised above his head.

Akuma, seeing that he would not be able to dodge, placed his free hand on the ground, "Quake." The ground around him began to tremble and soon Farok couldn't keep his footing and had to abort his attack but not for long. "Diamond Berg." Akuma's body was suddenly trapped in a big boulder of ice and he was unable to move or do anything other than watch Farok start to approach him slowly.

The rest of Team 7 in the meanwhile was staring at the clash of elements before them and all four were shocked, even Kakashi couldn't help but shake a bit at the powers displayed before his eyes. Naruto and Sasuke were both itching to help Akuma but his command had been more then clear; if they would step in they would have a raging Akuma at their throats, that was certain. Sakura was probably the most affected out of all of them.

She was shaking violently behind the three males, watching as Farok reached the icy prison and slashed at it several times with his sword, each time hitting Akuma at the inside and destroying the prison bit by bit. With one last mighty slash Farok destroyed the prison totally and send a heavily wounded Akuma flying past a tree and into the next one. 'T… this is… horrible…. He… he has been… telling the truth… all the time…. I… I… what have I done to him?' Sakura's eyes were watering as she saw Akuma staggering back to his feet, his hair covering his face. Blood seeped from his body like water and all color was drained form his skin. 'He… he cant win…. He… he will… die….'

Akuma in the meanwhile had reached his limits. 'I… I can hardly… go on…. All my strength… has left me…. I can't even… cast a simple… Cure. Is this… how it ends…?' Images began to flash before Akuma's inner eye: an image of a pink haired girl, of a village at the food of a mountain, an image of a carving and then… images of a girl with short white hair. "NO! You will not surrender to THEM! You won't let them have their way!"

It was like those pictures had awoken a creature in Akuma's chest that would NOT give up under any circumstances. He felt every cell in his body tremble with unexpected power and his wounds began to close. His vision became less blurry and he felt the grip around his Katana strengthen. "You will not go down without a fight." His hair began to wave in a non existing breeze and he emitted a bright sliver-white light and his whole body was covered with strikes of lightening.

"What is this?" Farok's voice penetrated Akuma's consciousness and the latter looked at his opponent, his eyes sparkling with power and being cold as death itself. "I will not die here," said Akuma with a cold and steady voice as he sheathed his Katana, "not while I still have so much to do in my life. I WILL have my revenge and YOU won't stop me!" Akuma started to form a lot of hand seals in a combination unknown even to Kakashi. 'What kind of Jutsu is this? I have never seen this combination before.'

Akuma finished his series of signs but NOT with any known by Kakashi. Instead he had his palms pressed together while the air around him began to twinkle. "Say hello to hell Farok! SUPERNOVA!" The air around Farok was filled with explosions, burning his skin and forced him backwards. "We are not done yet! INFERNO!" Dozen of fireballs broke free from Akuma's outstretched right hand and headed for Farok. Farok cried out in pain as all hit him, burning him even more. "And now for the grand final! LIQUIFIER!"

Akuma's whole body shot off several spouts of fire into the air before they came down on Farok, covering him with a living layer of fire and his cries intensified even more. Akuma stood there, breathing hard while he watched Farok's body burn, the fire reflecting in his eyes. As the flames died out four people gasped: nothing was left of Farok instead a little puddle of goo. "Rot… in... hell," breathed Akuma while the white glow around him faded as did his vision before he fell to the ground face first and lay there immobile.

After a few moments to recover from their shock Kakashi and Naruto rushed to Akuma while Sakura fell to her knees, still weeping. Sasuke was trembling due to the last minute's occurrences, 'Who is he that he possesses such power?'

"Sensei, what is with Akuma?" "I'm not sure Naruto; it looks like his Chakra is totally depleted but I'm no expert." "We have to get him to the hospital!" "I'll do that; you make sure that Sakura gets home safely," said Kakashi while he scooped Akuma's body up in his arms. Naruto looked over to Sakura and saw her still crying and shaking violently, unable to tear her eyes away from Akuma's body. 'So she does care.'

ΩΩΩΩ

another roughly 4000 words for you. please comment and leave notes.

I'm out. T