1. This was to be a story about Naruto in ANBU while pretending to be much weaker, for appearances. He honed (and still hones) his skills on random ninjas and people at night.
2.
The Ninja's Pocket Book of Jutsus: Kage Bunshin no Jutsu is a rare and powerful technique, similar to all clone techniques and superior to most in all but chakra cost. This technique requires no materials from the surrounding, instead creating a clone out of shadow. This jutsu uses an advanced form of chakra manipulation to do without elements, and so requires more chakra. The shadow clone is unique in that the user's chakra is divided equally among the clones, whereas most clone techniques give only the chakra necessary to animate the element they use. This allows shadow clones to last longer, to exist far away from the original, and to use the original's techniques with the chakra they have. Because of this, there are many variation on the Shadow Clone technique, which are listed below...
Iruka sighed. Naruto was asleep in class. Again. Just like every day. To be sure, it was almost better than when the boy was awake and shouting demands for training and techniques and declaring that he would be Hokage someday. But the boy couldn't learn anything if he slept through class. After failing two years in a row, it was obvious that Naruto was not absorbing the lessons in his sleep.
"NARUTO!!! Wake up!"
The blonde jerked off the desk, and quickly wiped the drool from his mouth. "I was awake the whole time, Iruka!"
"Damn it, Naruto, if you don't pay attention, you'll never graduate from the Academy!"
"I'm gonna be Hokage, of course I'll graduate!"
"Not if you don't learn what I'm teaching you!"
"You're only teaching the boring stuff! We need to learn more than this... this stuff!" Naruto waved his hand wildly at the board, which was covered in diagrams showing ambush tactics.
"This STUFF will keep you from getting killed!"
"I wanna learn a powerful technique to blow away enemy ninjas, I don't wanna sit around in bushes for them to walk into a spike trap!"
"NARUTO!!! The exam is tomorrow and if you don't pass it you'll have to stay ANOTHER YEAR at the academy!"
"I can't fail! I'm gonna be Hokage!"
Iruka rubbed the bridge of his nose, feeling another migraine coming.
Deep in the forests of Konoha:
The ANBU code-named Dog checked the wires and explosive tags one last time. There were enough tags to level a city block, but they were only the distraction. Dog signaled the OK to Deer, who had just finished his wire traps. Deer turned and signaled to Ox. Ox put the final touches on his genjutsu ambush, and signaled to the final member of their team, Fox, who sat some distance away from the traps.
Fox acknowledged the signal and melted into the ground. The other three moved away into some trees to watch.
Soon the targets, three Stone-nin scouted too far into Leaf territory, came jogging north, unsuspecting. But suddenly they stopped, seeing the wire traps, which were not well-hidden. They turned to the west to go around it and ran into the genjutsu Ox had prepared. But these Stone-nin were obviously of a higher caliber than most, probably jounin ro special jounin, and they quickly and silently dispelled the genjutsu and moved to the east hoping to avoid the other genjutsus they sensed ahead.
As they passed over a tree, they heard a loud hissing sound, and the stone ninja sprinted forward to avoid the tags they could hear. All around them, they heard tags burning.
They got out of range just in time as an entire section of the forest exploded in fire. Then more explosions, each just barely too far behind the stone ninja to harm them. Soon the last tags detonated and the stone nin breathed an audible sigh of relief.
Dog saw how they had escaped, and smiled. Everything was working perfectly.
A gloved hand grabbed one of the stone-nin from underground and zapped the ninja with several thousand volts. The charred body started to fall but was blown away as Fox leapt at the two remaining ninja.
The two ninja drew kunai and blocked the wild punches and kicks the ANBU threw out. They two worked in unison, then both attacked from opposite sides. Fox couldn't block, and took a kunai to the back.
But instead of dying, he grabbed a stone-nin in each hand as his eyes and mouth glowed with a brighter and brighter light.
Then he exploded.
When the smoke cleared, the Dog, Deer and Ox leaped down to inspect the bodies. All of them were dead. Fox rose from underground, and picked the scroll from the first ninja he had killed. He inspected it while the other three check the bodies for anything else of value.
Dog finished and stood to face Fox. "Is that what we needed?"
Fox nodded in the affirmative. "This is the scroll we were looking for. Let us return quickly to Konoha."
They responded in unison, "Yes, captain."
As they reached the gates of Konoha, the ANBU relaxed. Another successful mission. But then, every mission they ever sent Fox on was successful.
Dog was pleased to see Fox doing so well. About a five years ago, the blonde ANBU known as Fox had once been weakest ninja ever to enter ANBU, and had been allowed in mostly because of a shortage of ninja at the time. But after a year of struggling and constant reprimands from command, Fox seemed to change overnight. Suddenly he was powerful, fast, strong, smart. He rose in stature and reputation among the ANBU, until now he led them all.
Dog was glad that Fox had decided to finally apply himself. In many of the most dangerous missions, Fox had been the one to complete the mission and save the lives of his teams. Enemies could never touch him, because every time they finally got a hit in, it turned out to be a clone. Sometimes they found out because of the cloud of ninja smoke. Sometimes they found out because it dissolved into a cloud of poison gas, or was revealed to be a teammate under genjutsu, or because it dispelled with a violent electrical shock.
But Fox was most famous among Konoha's ANBU for the clones he used most often. The ones that enemies discovered because they exploded. These exploding clones became more and more effective as Fox continued to improve. Because the better he fought, the more ninja that would gang up on him, and the more ninja that Fox could kill with a single clone.
And no one ever expected it, because no enemy had seen it and lived to tell others about it. Fox only used it when he needed to kill, and so it was his most effective weapon. Dog felt honored to have seen it in action. He and the other two teams that Fox led were the only ones that got to witness this amazing technique.
As they entered Konoha, Fox stopped and turned to face his team. "You may all go home. I will report the results to Hokage-sama and give him the scroll."
Dog smiled underneath his mask. This was the other reason that Fox was popular. Fox usually took care of paperwork and tedious mission stuff himself, and let his teams go home much earlier than they could have otherwise. No one was gonna argue with that.
Iruka watched Naruto walk out of the schoolyard. The blonde was never going to graduate at this rate, but Iruka didn't know what it would take to motivate him. Maybe he should ask Mizuki...
Naruto arrived at his house, walked inside, and sat on the edge of his bed, waiting patiently. It was now four in the afternoon.
On his way to the Hokage tower, Fox stopped by library of scrolls. No one there questioned his presence. He pulled out a scroll, looked at the label, and put it back haphazardly, where it still stuck out of the shelves. The guards paid no mind, and didn't notice.
Fox continued on his way to the tower.
Naruto heard the shouts outside, and was not surprised when a brick came flying in the window. Catching it with ease, he stacked it with the others in the corner, then returned to sitting on the edge of his bed. It was six in the evening. 14 more hours to go.
Fox stepped into the Hokage's office and handed the captured scroll to the old man. As Sarutobi looked it over, Fox waited in silence.
The Hokage nodded. "Excellent job, Yagami, although it smells a little singed. Next time be a little more careful with the Raiton jutsus, or you might burn the scroll.
Fox nodded, his expression hidden behind the mask he still hadn't taken off.
The Hokage sighed. "You're off duty now, Yagami. Go ahead and take the mask off."
Yagami pulled of the mask revealing his smirking grin which made his eyes almost shut. "Of course, Hokage-sama. It was getting hot anyway." Yagami's long blonde hair, pulled back in a ponytail, framed his average, though friendly face, and made his gray, nondescript eyes even duller from the contrast. The ANBU waited patiently for the elder man's response.
The Hokage rolled his eyes openly. They went through this every time Yagami got back from a mission. At least, ever since Yagami had started applying himself. Before then, the man was unreliable, and made pathetic homage to the Hokage every time he came into the office for any reason. Sarutobi had only tolerated it because he hoped for improvement in Yagami, and because he pitied the blonde, who had been orphaned by the Kyuubi. All things considered, the Hokage rather liked this new Yagami.
"There was nothing special to report about the mission, I suppose?" Sarutobi inquired.
"Nothing worth mentioning. The relevant details are in this report, if you care to look it over." The off-duty ANBU placed a sheet of paper on the Hokage's desk. "Will that be all, Hokage-sama?"
The old man nodded. "That is all for now. Please report back tomorrow for the briefing on your next mission. With Cat and Tiger, this time."
Yagami inclined his head in the affirmative. "Of course, Hokage-sama."
Sarutobi smiled as the young man walked out of the room. He was a nice man, and an excellent shinobi. If only there were more like him.
Mizuki groaned aloud, but inwardly rejoiced at being placed on guard duty for the scroll library. He would have more time to look for the scroll that Lord Orochimaru wanted. And, his conversation with Iruka fresh in mind, he knew just how to get it once he found it.
The boy would do anything to graduate, and Mizuki would make him an offer that the boy wouldn't refuse.
Upon arriving, Mizuki went on his appointed rounds for a few minutes, and memorized how all the other sentries moved. Once he was sure he would have a minute or two alone with the scrolls, he began to look.
He noticed a scroll sticking out, and glanced at the title. A maniacal grin split his face. What luck was this, that the scroll he sought all this time should be waiting here for him, on the very day that he had discovered the means by which to take it without risk?
Obviously he was fated to succeed. Mizuki hummed merrily as he went on patrol again.
Hidden in the shadows, the unseen Yagami smirked, and his eyes flickered with a dangerous light.
Night fell. The shadow stalked the night, and claimed two more. The criminal duo were found lying dead in the streets the next morning by a chuunin on his way to work. The ninja immediately reported the killing, but no one was surprised. The serial killer, whoever it was, targeted mostly criminals, and the few that weren't criminals were scum anyway, men whom no one liked.
It was better than several nearby cities, which had serial killers as well, but over there anybody could be a target. At least in Konoha, the killer was looking out for the people. No one minded his work, and so no one investigated the killing very far.
Which was fine for the shadow. It needed the practice anyway. Kept it in shape. Nothing worse than a feeble body, it thought as it's eyes glowed in the shadows.
It was morning again. At precisely eight o'clock, Naruto rose from where he was seated on the edge of the bed and began preparations for the Academy. Class started at 7:30, and needed to be at least another few minutes late. He looked at his outfit in the mirror, and unzipped the jacket a little, and ruffled and wrinkled the pants until they looked slept in. He rubbed his hair into greater disarray, and then walked to the door of his house.
He opened the door and immediately came to life. "Kuso! I'm gonna be late!" The villagers laughed at the idiot demon child as he passed.
"Alright, Naruto, make three bunshin"
Iruka hoped against all hope than Naruto had miraculously improved overnight. Alas, it was not so.
One bunshin exploded from an overload of chakra, one paled and faded where it stood from lack of chakra, and one was correct in every aspect, except that all of the colors on it were inverted.
Iruka stared at the strange negative copy, which changed as he watched until it turned grey in the light, and vanished.
"Naruto, you fail."
"WHAT!!! I HAD THREE BUNSHIN! YOU SAW THEM!"
"Those were the worst bunshin I have ever seen! They are not enough to pass this exam."
Mizuki looked over at Iruka. "Maybe we could let him pass this year? He's tried so hard, and maybe he would learn more quickly out in the real world."
Iruka sighed, and shook his head. "I can't do that. Naruto needs to demonstrate an aptitude for ninja skills before he can graduate. Until then, he's stuck here."
Naruto slumped and walked away, towards the Hokage monument. Sometime this evening, probably. That's what the master said.
The shadow laughed silently. Learn more quickly in the real world, indeed. That was exactly how the shadow had learned. Spying on others, then stealing techniques, then practice, practice, practice. Every night, he had to practice. But it was well worth it. The night time practices made up for what he could not do in the daytime practices. Which reminded the shadow that he was late for the practice today. Not that it mattered today, since his partner would be even later.
Yagami fought his clones viscously, doing his best to get them all without taking a hit. A rather difficult task, as they were just as skilled as he was. Every time he finished practice, he was a little better, and so the next time he made his clones to fight against, they were even better than before. And the clones never took it easy.
Yagami dodged a fireball a clone had flung towards him, then Kawarimi'd away from a shower of kunai that would have skewered him if he had continued moving in the direction of his dodge.
He saw a clone put its hands together is a cross-shaped seal, but the other clones were keeping him busy with taijutsu, and he could not prevent the clone from creating another 20 clones. Though these new clones each had one twentieth of the original clones chakra, they were more than sufficient to use a single jutsu and then engage in taijutsu.
Yagami tried his new experimental jutsu, hoping for the best, and formed a seal. Before he could move, a clone came up and punch him from behind, grinning from ear to ear with its victory.
Yagami exploded, and his new jutsu, the Exploding Shadow Kunai Clone, blasted a crater in the ground and fired shadow kunai in all directions. His unsuspecting clones took heavy casualties, though many kawarimi'd out of the way.
Yagami leapt from his cover in a nearby tree and took out a clone before he was seen by the others. The clones launched kunai in his direction, forcing Yagami to dodge to the side.
A clone waited for him there and finished its seals. Lightning crackled around one arm, and the clone prepared to lauched what Yagami recognized as the Lightning Missile Technique. Thinking quickly, Yagami reached out with his mind and trapped the clone in a genjutsu. The clone began attacking other clones, who promptly annihilated him with a barrage of kunai.
Yagami continued to dodge and dodge the clones, but he was getting bored with this, and his sparring partner would be arriving any minute now. Deciding he might as well try another of his current experimental jutsus, he formed a long sequence of seals, and then pushed his chakra into a new technique.
Fire spouted from his tenketsu, and a sudden wind whipped the flames into a furious inferno that raged over the area. The clones, who had no knowledge of this technique since Yagami had never performed it before, perished in an instant.
Yagami waited for a few moments and expanded his senses to make sure there were no clones left. There were none. A perfect trial run of his new jutsu.
Just then his partner arrived, giving a pathetic excuse as usual. "Hey, Yagami, sorry I'm late, but there was this woman whose purse had just been stolen, and I just couldn't rest until I found it for her..."
Yagami grinned and rolled his eyes. "Glad you could make it, despite your difficulties, Kakashi. This will probably be our last spar in a while, since you got put of the list for a genin team, right?"
The masked jounin smiled with his visible eye. "Don't worry. I've never passed a team yet, and I'm sure the next batch won't be any better. After a few days I'll do the bell test and then we can spar some more."
Yagami nodded. "Sounds good to me."
Kakashi dropped in to a fighting stance. "In the meantime, let's make this fight worthwhile, since it will be a few days until we can practice again."
Yagami grinned and summoned a dozen clones without using hand seals. Kakashi rolled his visible eye. Yagami obviously used clones way too often if he was so practiced that he could do them without seals. Kakashi tested the clones by throwing a kunai at one.
The clone dodged, but didn't see the second kunai hidden in the shadow of the first. The clone burst and a sent tiny bolts of lighting randomly around, one of which nearly struck Kakashi.
Kakashi frowned under his mask. He hated Raiton clones.
As evening fell, Naruto still sat alone on top of the Hokage monument, a sad expression on his face. Suddenly Mizuki dropped and landed right next to him, causing the boy to scream in surprise.
Mizuki smiled, but didn't laugh at Naruto's obvious failure to detect his approach. "Hey Naruto, since you didn't do so well in the test earlier, I found another way for you to pass the academy."
Naruto's eyes lit up. Mizuki explained, "Although you didn't do well on the jutsu test, I made a practical test for you to do instead. This will require stealth and speed, which are just as important to a ninja as jutsus, if not more so. You need to sneak into the scroll library next to the Hokage tower, and get a scroll which I put there. It's labeled Forbidden Jutsu, because this test is like a mission where you have to steal enemy's scroll. Get that scroll, and then go wait about a quarter mile into the forest west of Konoha."
"Shouldn't there be, like, a place for us to meet that's easier to find, Mizuki-sensei?"
"Don't worry Naruto. I'll find you out there. Oh, and you have until midnight to get the scroll."
Naruto jumped up immediately. "Right! I won't fail this time, Mizuki-sensei!" And then the blonde sprinted off toward the library.
Mizuki chuckled. If the kid got the scroll, then Mizuki could give it to Orochimaru. If the kid failed, who would they believe, the demon child who said his teacher told him to steal a scroll, or the teacher?
Yagami avoided Kakashi's half-hearted punch. "Hey one-eye, let's call it quits for today. You're obviously tired, and I've got stuff to do tonight."
Kakashi sighed and stood facing the gray-eyed ANBU. "I guess you're right. Hey, what are you doing tonight anyway? You're single aren't you?"
The blonde grinned from ear to ear. "Precisely."
Kakashi raised his eyebrows. "Oh, I see. Well, I'll get in touch when I can spar again. Don't exhaust yourself too much tonight, I expect you to be just as formidable after I've failed this team."
Yagami laughed as Kakashi turned and left. Tonight wouldn't be exhausting, it was just a chuunin, and an unsuspecting one at that.
Yagami hummed to himself as he wandered into the woods, and waited at the place he knew that blonde idiot would show up. After tonight, everything would be perfect, and he would be able to explain anything that came up.
Naruto leapt into the window of the scroll library and landed with cat-like grace. Staying motionless in the shadows, he waited until the patrolling guards on this side of the library were both out of sight.
Naruto crept over to the shelves, grabbed the correct scroll, and leapt back out the window. Looking at a clock hung in a shop window, he judged that it would be about an hour until the Hokage showed up to the library on his walk, or at least the master had said that it would be so, and therefore the blonde crouched in the shadows to wait a while. As he waited, Naruto decided he might as well read the scroll a bit now. He was getting replaced soon, anyway.
Yagami relaxed in a tree branch until he heard the alarm sound from in the village. Smiling to himself underneath his mask, he jogged to appointed meeting spot.
Within moments Naruto cam running in, and handed the scroll over. The young boy saluted, and vanished in a cloud of smoke.
Yagami smiled at the new knowledge he had just gained, and created a single clone, using tons of extra chakra. With any luck, this clone would not have to be replaced for another few weeks.
As soon as the clone appeared, naturally looking like Yagami, it henged itself into an obnoxious orange jumpsuit and ruffled blonde hair, complete with the sparkling blue eyes. Yagami nodded, and began reading the Forbidden Scroll.
A little knowledge wouldn't hurt anybody. Except his enemies.
Mizuki jumped into the clearing, and, as he had hoped, found Naruto sitting with the scroll. Mizuki chuckled inwardly. It was just too easy.
"Great job, Naruto! Toss the scroll over here so I can make sure it's the right one, and then we can head back to the village to get you registered as a ninja!"
"NO! Whatever you do, Naruto, don't give him that scroll!"
Mizuki scowled. Damn, so close. "What are you doing here, Iruka?"
'I followed you here, Mizuki. There's no way I will let you have that scroll. Naruto, run!"
But the young blonde seemed frozen. Mizuki, hoping to end this quickly, flung a large shuriken at Naruto. But at the last possible moment, Iruka jumped into the way, and took the blow in the back.
"Run... Naruto..."
The small blonde's face formed into a mask of rage. "You hurt Iruka sensei! You'll pay for that!"
Mizuki couldn't help but laugh out loud. "Oh, really? You're gonnna make me pay? Hahaha!!! You and what army?"
Naruto formed a single seal.
Mizuki suddenly wished he hadn't asked.
The screams continued long into the night. Yagami rather enjoyed it. And now, with Iruka as a witness, Naruto could claim to have learned the shadow clone from the forbidden scroll. Yagami no longer had to have his replacement avoid every single hit. If his clone took a hit and vanished, Naruto could claim it was a shadow clone, and no one would think twice.
Perfect. And because everyone knew that Naruto was the host for the Kyuubi, no one would think to look for the demon in ANBU. Yagami's slitted red eyes glittered in delight. After all his preparation, things were finally in place.
Flashback
A four-year old Naruto watched jealously from the shadows of the bushes as the academy students practiced their kunai throwing skills. Taking care to hear everything the instructors told the kids, Naruto returned to the same place late, late at night, and practiced by himself.
If he wanted to be able to stand up to the villagers, he needed to be able to defend himself. Stealth was easy to learn, and as he got better, he could 'attend' more classes at the academy, some of which dealt with stealth, and further improved Naruto's skill.
Naruto had even stolen a textbook, and learned everything he could. Knowing that he would be hiding the rest of his life from the angry villagers who beat him as often as they found him, he studied genjutsu until the academy books could no longer help him. Using what he learned, he was able to sneak in to the library under henges to get more books, and to become better at genjutsu and other skills. By the time he enrolled in the Academy, Naruto could cast simple genjutsu without effort, and maintain them for as long as he was conscious. He had taught himself
Thanks to his benefactor, this was for as long as he needed, because his benefactor made it so that he did not need sleep. The same benefactor who had told him how to learn, the same benefactor who had taught him how to steal, and how to hide, and how to survive in a place where everyone hated him.
The Kyuubi helped him through everything, mostly out of self-interest, but all the same, Naruto was grateful.
3. This story was then going to go on, and either have Naruto set everything up for revenge on Konoha, become Hokage and make Konoha a haven for jinkuurichi, take out Akatsuki, or some combination thereof. I don't really remember all that well. This story has been sittingin my hard drive for about a year or so now.
4. I stopped writing this because I ran out of motivation. Gets so old typing this stuff up, and constantly hit the wrong keys, and have to go back and fix it, and I was bored with the story, anyway.