In the village of Konoha at a small ramen stand with a large sign reading 'Ichiraku Ramen' on the front, a loud 'SLUUUUUURRRRRRRRP!'-ing sound could be heard by people within a half kilometer radius. Within the small booth sat a young, blonde teen, happily slurping on the many noodles that littered his massive bowl. Many passersby would give him abhorred looks as he went unscathed by any comments made on his manners. 'I'm hungry damnit!' he thought to himself as he continued to attack the bowl of broth, meat and noodles.

The old man behind the counter approached the teen with a wide grin that matched his customer's. "At the rate you're going at kid, I'll be able to make an early retirement!" he said with a chuckle.

The teen just gave him a grunt as a reply before placing his empty bowl onto the staggering mountain of bowls that rested next to him, grabbing the new one that the old man had placed down. He managed to let a guttural "Thank you" out between his next large slurp.

"If you keep eating like this Naruto," a voice said next to him, "you'll get as large as an Akamichi within the hour!" beyond the pile of empty bowls, in a seat one stool down from the teen sat a brown haired woman with a large grin. She appeared to be a ninja, if her garb was any indication, as she wore a sleeveless black shirt under a red vest. She had on a pair of black shinobi sandals and matching pants, the usual ninja garb as seen by anyone in the village. What was odd though, was that she wore no visible Hitai-ate.

Next to her sat a black haired man who, when looked at, one would think he didn't belong at a ramen stand, rather, he looked like he belonged at a fine dining restaurant. He wore a black dress shirt, pants, socks and jacket. Around his neck was a silver tie which went with the silver handkerchief in his jacket's breast pocket. He had on a pair of shiny two toned shoes and a black fedora. Like the woman, he too wore no visible Hitai-ate, though his wardrobe obviously hadn't hinted that he was a ninja.

Naruto quickly finished his current bowl of ramen and grabbed the next, pausing in order to answer. "I haven't been here in ten years," he said. "I have a lot of food to eat to make up for my absence." With that said, he quickly dove into his new bowl with gusto.

The woman rolled her eyes at the glutinous boy. "What did we tell you about healthy choices?" she asked with an obvious tone of annoyance.

Naruto didn't stop his eating, instead choosing to use one handed sign language to reply, which looked very odd for an outside observer. 'I'll work it off.'

"That's not the point," she replied. "You shouldn't be taking in that much sodium in a single sitting, that crap retains water that you need ya little shit. So the next one is your last. Understood?" she emphasized her growing annoyance by ending the last word with a growl.

Naruto paused for a moment before nodding at his companion, and then returned his attention to his almost finished bowl. While he would have enjoyed more, and he certainly knew he could eat more, he was very hesitant to over aggravate his female guardian. So it was with some trepidation that he finished his current and next bowl quickly so as to reduce her aggravation.

After paying the happy old man, Naruto hopped off his stool to stretch both his legs and stomach. Now that he was in clear view of passersby, some of the civilians couldn't help but notice a strange contrast he held to his company when it came to his garb. It wasn't fancy, nor was it the clothes one would expect a ninja to wear. He just had a vomit green tunic, brown sack pants and brown sandals. He almost looked like a normal civilian, save for five identical items. On his neck, wrists, and ankles were black leather bands with small silver studs. If one observed them however, one would see that each stud had an intricate seal engraved upon it.

"So," he said, turning to his guardians. "When do we meet the Old Man?"

His female companion let out another growl as she stood, fist clenching and unclenching as she was prepared to strike his insubordination. "What was that, gaki?"

Naruto stiffened a bit before correcting himself, "I-I mean… when do we meet Sarutobi-sama?" he asked with obvious anxiousness.

The woman eyed him for a moment before flashing him a small grin. "That's more like it," she said. "And we're supposed to meet him in less than ten minutes, so I'd suggest moving your sluggish ass."

"Leena," The older male of the group spoke up. His voice sounded much younger than his body suggested. "Let's keep the language to a minimum. And Naruto," he turned to the younger male with a stern look. "I suggest not mentioning Sarutobi-sama in public, as his name would no doubt attract unwanted attention. A total of seve- eighteen people have stared at us ever since you mentioned –nineteen– his name."

Naruto scratched the back f his head and gave a nervous laugh. "That's why I referred to him by that old nickname."

The other male shook his head. "That is also –twenty– inappropriate. You should have –twenty one– just asked when our meeting was, without giving context –twenty two– to what it pertained. You just gave away information, which is a large 'DO NOT' as a ninja… twenty three."

Naruto nodded, opting to refrain from arguing further lest he incur another verbal assault from the older male. "May we go then?" he simply asked.

The male stopped his counting and nodded, disappearing in a swirl of leaves, copied by his two companions.

Hokage Tower

Sarutobi was once again "enjoying" one of the "perks" of the title of Hokage. Paperwork. Sadly, this was the time of year when his workload increased, what with the Genin exams tomorrow, followed by the Chunin exams in a few months. It was quite hectic to have to sift through each form concerning different diplomats requesting entrance into the village during the exams, villages sending out a specific number of shinobi, and the travel arrangements for the Kazekage who planned to visit this year.

His work was interrupted when three forms appeared in his peripheral vision, though he did not startle or jump as he had, like many years ago, expected this. After stamping another form with a great big red "APPROVED", the Hokage finally looked up from his work and stood to meet his visitors.

"Victor, Leena, Naruto," he addressed them, walking around his desk to greet them properly. "It's good to see you after all this time."

The older male known as "Victor" bowed with his companions. "It is good to see you once more, Hokage-sama," he rose with a smile. "It has been too long since our last meeting. I do hope things are running smoothly concerning… recent events."

"Ah, you mean the "Great Reveal"?" Sarutobi asked with a small chuckle. "I received quite a few letters from some of the Kages, some of which none too subtly asking if I was untrustworthy for withholding such information, but it seems things have calmed down quite a bit. I've yet to hear any complaints from other villages about having Lycanthropes living and working amongst them. I've gotten word that Iwa has already employed some as ninja, which I must admit is surprising considering their previous detest towards the idea."

Indeed, it had barely been over two years since the existence of a race of beings known as "Lycanthropes" or "Werewolves" was made public knowledge. Naturally, most were either frightened, or felt threatened by the news; however, seeing as the "leader" of the race was quite the well spoken diplomat, as well as having support from the most powerful ninja village within the Elemental countries, things were able to smooth out between Lycans and humans. Even to the point where almost every country had a local "Pack" either as a sign of trust or as extra muscle.

"That's good to hear," Victor said. "I would hate to think that there would be too much ill will towards your village because of us."

The Hokage simply waved the concern off. "It is fine."

There was a moment of awkward silence before Naruto decided to break it. "So… has the academe been teaching the new generation about us?"

Sarutobi looked at the teen and smiled. 'He's certainly grown… a little short for his age though…' "Yes," he nodded. "Though due to how early it was, I believe the newest generation has only been given a short two weeks to study your kind."

Naruto kept himself from making a face at the old man, instead opting to calmly say, "That's not enough time to really learn about our culture or habits… I can see some awkward situations for my team and I in the near future due to this…"

"I'm sure they'll adjust," Sarutobi said. "Now, on to more important matters, namely your training. I take it you have learned much during your absence?"

The teen nodded, though allowed his mentors to answer for him. "We've taught him everything he needs to know and more in order to get set up," Leena said, happy to finally be able to talk. "His attitude was the most difficult to work with, but we've thankfully taught him to change it properly, right, Naruto?"

Said boy remained calm under his superior's harsh gaze, though he was sweating bullets in his mind, as he answered, "Yes, Sobou-sensei," he quickly bowed.

"We've also managed to aid him with the… "Chakra Problem" his father suffered from," Victor said.

Sarutobi's eyes widened slightly at that bit of information. "You mean he knows about his father?"

"We felt it would help inspire him to improve himself," Victor looked down at the thankfully quiet Naruto. "And he's sworn to keep his father's identity a secret, right Naruto?"

Just like with Leena, Naruto bowed with a "Yes, Kokoro-sensei." before returning to his activity of remaining as quiet as possible, his eyes fixed on the Hokage.

"Now," Victor said, returning his gaze to Sarutobi. "I believe Naruto is meant to take the Genin exam tomorrow, correct?" when he received a nod from the Hokage, he continued. "Good, we've made sure to teach him everything he will need as a ninja, as well as quite a few more things, considering his position. We've made sure to grade his progress and left our final assessments on his abilities." With that said, both Victor and Leena took a pair of envelopes from their respective pockets and handed them to the Hokage. "We've summarized his last training session, and have graded him on it appropriately."

Sarutobi nodded once more. "Very good, I look forward to hearing about your progress Naruto. And I also look forward to hearing of the many friends you'll make here with the people of this village, including your fellow shinobi."

Naruto didn't need a translator to understand what that last sentence really meant. 'Treat the humans of this village, especially your fellow shinobi, with respect,' he thought. "Of course, Hokage-sama," Naruto said with a bow.

The Hokage was somewhat surprised that the boy hadn't referred to him as "Jiji" or "Old Man." Though he supposed it was an effect of his upbringing under people as strict as Victor and Leena. He had to marvel at the work they had done. No more was the boy jumping around making rude comments or giving inappropriate nicknames to almost every person he met. Rather, before him stood a calm, albeit obviously energy filled teen, showing proper respect before his superiors and elders. He could only wonder what they had done for his ninja training. "Very well," he said. "I will need you to sign a few forms, especially the forms required for the deed."

Naruto cocked his head to the side at the last part. "Deed? What deed?"

Sarutobi looked over to Victor with mild surprise. "You mean you didn't tell him?"

"Tell me what?"

"Well," Victor cut in. "As you know, many of the Packs have chosen to take up public residence near, or within some hidden villages. Leena and I decided to purchase you a small plot of land to help start off your Pack. It's nothing too big, a few acres of forest next to training ground four along with a small building. We did use a bit of money from your father's old savings; we obviously wouldn't pay for all of it."

Naruto was both surprised, and a bit angry. Angry because he felt he should have expected that from Victor, the bastard held onto a Ryo like a life line at times; and of course surprised because he hadn't expected something like this on his return. He had planned to raise some money as a ninja to purchase a small acre of land, or a few buildings that were located in a more run down part of the village. But now he had the land he would need for his Pack. So it was with mountainous amounts of gratitude that he bowed to Victor, Leena, and the Hokage for this great gift. "Thank you very much. I swear that my Pack will be a thing of great pride for Konoha and its inhabitance."

Sarutobi smiled at the teen and walked back to his desk, sitting in his chair and lacing his fingers together, elbows on the desk as he relaxed. "I'm glad to hear that Naruto," he smiled. He then proceeded to his lowest left desk drawer and pulled out a small stack of forms messily held together by a paperclip.

Naruto held back a sigh of irritation as he walked to the desk, picked up a spare pen, and began signing the numerous papers. "So has anything interesting happened while I was gone?" he asked idly.

Sarutobi hummed in thought as he tried to recall any specifically significant events in the past eight years. "Well, I'm sure you heard of the Uchiha Massacre," he had to shiver at the memory of that day. All those bodies both child and elder, broken, mangled, torn by one of their own in one night. Then of course there was the horror of when one of the ANBU had claimed he found a survivor, only to see a young boy weeping over the twisted bodies of his parents.

Naruto however seemed to be quite calm over the mention of the incident, as he just nodded quietly while scribbling his name for the third time on the same piece of paper. "I heard about that, very sad. Anything else?"

Sarutobi shook his head of his former thoughts before he once again took on a thoughtful expression. "I received a visit from Gary a month ago."

At that, Naruto paused for a moment before continuing his writing. "Gary huh?" he asked quietly. "How's he been since I last saw him?"

"He seems fine; we discussed the idea of having Vampires reveal themselves as well. So far, from what he's told me, his Clan is comfortable with either remaining hidden or revealing themselves, but it seems the Tremer and Ventrue are quite opposed. As well, it appears Markus is still undecided, and as you know his is the final decision for his race."

Naruto nodded as he finished at least half the stack. "The Nosferatu have always been a neutral Clan, Markus could tell them that they'd have to wear dunce caps on missions for a year, and they'd just shrug and accept." He almost laughed at the idea. "They're like the Aburames, only undead."

Sarutobi let out a small chuckle. The boy was right, as the two Clans were similar in the aspect of emotional reaction. Though, where an Aburame would remain placid and barely responsive, a single Nosferatu would have enough insanity, quirks and/or personality to fill a nut house. Their leader was an especially strange one with the way he dressed and acted.

The Hokage was brought out of his musings when a stack of paper was dropped before him. "Done," said Naruto as he moved his wrist about. "I even finished the admittance forms. Is there anything else I should know? Mainly about the Genin exams?"

"They're being held tomorrow," Sarutobi replied. "And the instructors and students have been informed of your late enrollment for the exams. Actually, if I'm not mistaken, the academe should be letting out soon. Would you like to perhaps see some of your fellow students?"

Naruto stepped back and shook his head. "No, it won't really do much good now. Only a handful of students pass the exam, if I was informed correctly. I won't have enough time to properly analyze each one, nor gain any sort of relationship considering I may not see most of them in a year. Besides," at this point Naruto was getting ready to open the door, though remained facing the Hokage. "I'll have time to get a good tour of the academy tomorrow. If that is all?"

Sarutobi nodded, allowing him to leave. "Leena, Victor," said Lycans faced him. "I would like to speak with you two for a little, if that is alright?"

Victor took a seat in one of the chairs facing the desk, Leena shortly copying him. "Of course."

"And Naruto, seeing as you read through the paperwork, can I assume you know where your new home is?"

"Yes, Hokage-sama," Naruto bowed.

"Good," Sarutobi sat back in his seat to relax, opening his middle drawer and took out a rather long pipe. "I'll have my secretary give you the keys. Good day."

With that, Naruto left the room and its occupants to their privet conversations.

Sarutobi waited for a few minutes until he was more than sure that the boy was out of earshot. And considering his hearing, he'd have to have gained quite a distance for them to talk without concern of him hearing. He leaned forward, lacing his fingers as he moved to a more serious demeanor. "I assume things were normal during his trip?"

Victor picked up on the meaning of the question immediately. 'You mean, were there any abnormalities concerning the seal and its contents.' He thought to himself. "Things were kept normal, he knows, as it is his right; however, he did mention a dream in which the inhabitant spoke with him."

The Hokage raised his eyebrows at that. If the Fox was capable of speaking with the boy, it couldn't bode well for his psyche. "Yet you say things were normal…"

"They were," Victor continued. "He told us immediately after waking up. Apparently it asked him a few questions, strange things like what his favorite food was, what he wants to do when he grows up, what he looks for in an ally. Then it offered him the use of its chakra. I assume this was because it believed Naruto would make a rash decision, being only seven at the time."

"And what happened?"

"Well, Naruto woke up and spoke with us about it. We told him both the dangers and advantages of using demonic chakra, and that he'd have to wait at least a few years or so to make a well thought out decision on the matter. He has not said anything of it since then."

Sarutobi lit his pipe, as he felt he needed the addicting tobacco to sooth his sudden stress. He went through numerous possibilities, outcomes and factors as to what the teen would have done. Obviously if the Fox contacted him once, it would have done so again. If there was one thing he knew about demons, it was that they were persistent bastards. He finally broke the silence between them after a few calming drags from his pipe. "Did you ever notice a dramatic change in his personality, chakra and or power?"

Both of them mulled it over, though Victor chose to voice his information first. "Not that I know of. His personality change was gradual, and he never became overly angry at many of the things that occurred that would invoke sever anger. He would get angry if Leena taunted him, but it was more of annoyed than wrathful."

Leena, seeing that her companion was finished, chose to speak herself. "About his power… we believe you should know something about him. First, from what I've observed, he's had no use of demonic chakra. But we did learn something about his… "Ability" that you might find both concerning and interesting."

Sarutobi let a small smoke ring escape his lips before leaning back a little. "Go on…"

Naruto's new home

Naruto couldn't keep the frown that made its way onto his face when he set eyes on his new home. Sure he was happy with the size; he could build a few decent sized buildings and homes in the area and still have some extra room. And sure he enjoyed that it already had a small dojo built in the center. But to put it in a way Leena would say: "The place was a fucking dump."

Trash and withered leaves nearly covered the entire area, and what grass he could see was yellow and burnt or turned out to be a small weed. There was a large rock in front of his dojo that was crumbling, spreading tiny stones and gravel onto and over his trashy lawn. The trees were dead, some fallen over, the rest blackened and thin like in horror novels. There was a pond, but the water was a sickly brown and let off large bubbles that released a noxious gas.

Then there was the dojo itself. What wood wasn't broken was either on its way to breaking or moldy. The sliding paper doors were missing, as was a good portion of the roof. Upon looking inside, Naruto could see that the area was a little better, albeit messy and full of small animals. It seemed that there was an area of the dojo that was used as a living area, which was where he headed. But then there was that smell. He had picked it up halfway here, but it was a lot more potent inside. It seemed to come from beyond a door, one of the few that weren't missing or broken. After breaking the thing down –it's not like he was going to use the moldy thing anyway – Naruto finally realized what it was. There, in the far corner of the room was a small sleeping mat. It was green, though it had a large brown stain in the center, and there was a small slit in the mat in the middle of the stain.

'So someone died here… that would explain why the place was cheaper than I expected. Judging from the blood stain and the slit, it seems the previous occupant was stabbed all the way through. The large bloodstain suggests the weapon cut an artery; it probably went right through the heart actually, considering the position. It most likely went through the aorta, causing instant death, seeing there's no sign of the person moving at all, otherwise the stain would be shaped slightly differently. But why would the mat be left here, or anything non personal like the pots and pans? The mat serves as evidence… maybe this was an assassination from within the village, taken on by a Konoha shinobi. Perhaps the person did something that threatened the village? Perhaps a spy acting as a martial arts instructor? Bah, I'm thinking too much about this. The point is, I'll need to clean not just the outside but the inside as well. This will take a while to do… damnit.'

He was cut from his thoughts when he heard a voice outside. "This place is a fucking dump." He had to smile at the voice, and the choice of words. He almost wanted to say "Called it." after getting through the garbage and avoiding the pieces of floor that he knew would give if he were to step on them, Naruto emerged from his home to see both Leena and Victor standing a few feet from the dojo, the former curiously inspecting the bolder in front of his dojo.

"No place like home," Naruto said as he descended the half broken stairs. "What do you think?"

Leena gave him an incredulous look before returning her gaze to the bolder. "I direct you to my first statement on this place."

"It looks… bucolic," Victor said with obvious fake enthusiasm. "A little… or a lot of rat poison, some hard work, a bit of polish, this place should look… rustic."

"Thanks," Naruto said, rolling his eyes. "At least I'll have something to do when I'm not on missions."

"That is if you pass your Genin exam," Victor quickly corrected. However, his somewhat serious demeanor was brought down when Leena slung an arm around his neck that felt as if it were going to crush him with the force she put into it.

"Oh lighten up. You know, by saying shit like that you're admitting that you and me are terrible teachers, right?"

Victor sighed in discontent. "First, it's "You and I" not "You and me." Second, I was merely keeping him from becoming overzealo-mff." He was stopped when his female companion pressed her lips to his rather forcefully.

Leena pulled away and smiled at Victor. "You talk too much."

"Ah!" Naruto said, turning his head and mimicking scrubbing his arms in a panic. "The disgust! It won't wash off!"

At her student's words Leena growled. "You had no problem when you saw other couples kiss."

"With you two it's different," Naruto said, still refusing to look his guardians in the eyes. "With you two it's weird, so keep that stuff to a minimal."

"I'll do what I want with my mate, gak-"

"Leena," Victor finally decided to speak up and cut the banter. "I have told you that public displays of affection are unwise, as we are currently in a state of awkward peace with the mortals. As Pack Leaders, we must remain dignified and strong before those around us if they are to take us seriously as a race. Thus, showing such displays of affection shows signs of weakness to another being, as well as obvious favoritism towards said being. We cannot act that way before any humans."

Leena unlatched her arm from her mate and had to wonder how he could talk so much, especially since he seemed to barely take in a breath during that entire speech. "But there are no humans around; can't we let our hair down?"

Victor merely shook his head. "No. I will not chance the possibility that anyone could be watching or listening to us. While such ideas may seem paranoid-"

"Or insane," Naruto whispered.

"Being paranoid is what helped stop Uchiha Madura from destroying Konoha. Had the first not been suspicious of the man to an almost questionable degree, he would have not discovered his intentions." Victor quickly straightened his attire, removing the wrinkles Leena's arm added. "Now, moving on to a much more important subject than paranoia, Leena and I have a surprise, or rather surprises, for you."

Naruto refrained from perking up like a pup, though his eyes didn't hide the new found excitement. 'Last time they gave me a surprise, I got to attend a feast with three other Packs and ate a cave full of meat!' Naruto had to keep himself from salivating at the memory of the feast. Not only was the food good, but the Lycans were unbelievingly fun with how they passed jokes around, played some strange games with their food, and talked casually to complete strangers. He was brought out of his fond memories when he noticed Leena and Victor holding two packages. Leena pressed hers out and smiled at her surrogate son. "I got this for when you pass the Genin exams and start your life as a ninja."

Naruto smiled at his guardian before bringing his attention to the heavy, wide package. Without a second's thought, he formed a small set of claws on his fingers and tore the box open. Upon opening it, the teen could only stare wide eyed at the gift. It was a set of leather armor he had set his eyes upon when he was twelve while passing through the capital of Tsuchi no Kuni.

First was the sleeveless vest. Its leather had to be at least an inch thick and was hard enough to protect from most blunt attacks and a few bladed attacks. It was fireproof, to a degree; it couldn't stand up against something like an Amaterasu or a high ranked Katon technique, but it could handle anything below an A rank fire jutsu. Thankfully, it didn't make noise if rubbed together thanks to Iwa's odd understanding of clothing material. One of the best features was that if ripped or cut, the material could be fixed, though it required concentrating a lot of chakra on the afflicted area.

The best feature however, was a tiny seal sewn into the inside of the vest. It was similar to the Akamichi seal that allowed their clothing to change with the person's size; however, while the Akamichi seal was meant for the members of the family that turned into giants, the seal for the vest only allowed a certain amount of growth before becoming too tight. It was a simple looking vest; it was dark brown, almost black. It had quite a few hidden pockets, and went from his neck to just above the waist.

Next were the pants. They included all the features of the vest, including the expanding seal. They reached from his waist to his ankles. Lastly, there was a pair of fingerless leather gloves that rested at the cuffs of the pants. The whole set was made for a Werewolf specializing in stealth or needed to move about quickly. The only problem was that it was ungodly expensive, going well into the million Ryo count.

Naruto looked at the armor, then to his guardians. "I…" he refused to get teary eyed over something like this, so he paused to contain himself. "I thought you said it was too expensive?"

Leena smiled warmly, rather than her normal cheeky grin and said, "I said you couldn't buy it, I didn't say I couldn't. You deserve a good set of armor; and while that set isn't exactly eye pleasing, it's practical and durable."

Naruto couldn't help the wide grin that stretched across his face as he took the set out of the box and began observing it carefully. Sure it wasn't fancy looking, nor was it meant to be for someone who planned to fight up close with a sword wielder, but in Naruto's eyes, it was perfect. "Thank you Kaa-san…"

Leena flinched at the name. He had called her that before, once during training, and she made it clear that he was not to ever call her that in public. But hearing it now sounded… warming. "Heh, don't go getting all teary eyed on me gaki," she said, coughing in order to contain her new found joy towards her surrogate son.

Then Naruto brought his gaze to the ever placid Victor who was awkwardly holding out a rectangular box. "I would… suggest containing any of these… unbecoming emotions for the moment," he said. 'And don't you dare call me Tou-san again…'

Naruto grabbed the box and, like with his armor's packaging, tore it open with vigor. Upon opening it, Naruto had to stop himself from falling on his ass from the shock. Resting in the box were two sheathed katana. He removed the weapons from the box and carefully observed the two sheathes in which the blades remained harmless. One was as black as the sky above them, the other as white as the moon that hovered within the sky. They were made of a fine iron that was forged to keep from reflecting much light and had multiple seals engraved upon the bottoms. The seals, from what he could tell with his low knowledge of the subject, looked to be used to simply keep the sheaths from breaking too easily, though he could tell that with enough abuse they'd break like twigs. Just below the area where the hilt of the blades met the sheath, there were Kanji signs. On the black one was the kanji for 'Claw' or otherwise known as 'Hana.' The white one held the kanji for 'Fang' or 'Tsumi.'

Naruto carefully removed the Hana from its sheath, not at all surprised to see the blade itself was darker than the sheath it was held in. The blade was smooth and its tip looked almost like it curled. The handle was wrapped in black leather, and the guard was made of fine steel, shaped like three spikes or 'claws' attached to one another in a yin-yang fashion. The blade itself was made of a type of metal that Naruto couldn't pronounce, though he knew it was reliable. It was stronger than most well crafted blades, possibly rivaling the weakest of the seven great swords from Kiri, though it wasn't unbreakable. Like the sheaths, enough force and strength behind a few good strikes would make the metal break. Plus, it was ungodly heavy, weighing at least a hundred pounds unsheathed.

Then he removed Tsumi. Unlike Hana -or any katana for that matter- Tsumi had no smooth blade made to slice finely into flesh, bone and cartilage with relative ease. It had a jagged, serrated edge like a saw, though the mini blades were longer and narrower than a saw's, reaching at least two centimeters before the blade collar, to half a centimeter at the tip. To make the blade even more of an opposite of its sibling, Tsumi was a few tints paler than the sheath that held it. It too was made from the same metal as Hana, though its guard was different. The guard was steel, and was shaped as a circle of spikes, or fangs facing the blade.

Both blades were magnificent, shining brightly in the moonlight. Naruto couldn't help inspecting the small seals on the blades themselves, though he already knew what they did, and it only made him smile all the more. "Victor…" he said, idly twisting the blades this way and that so to make sure they were real. "These look like Hana and Tsumi…"

"That's because they are Hana and Tsumi. Do you really think I would give you some cheap replicas?" Victor asked, his tone almost suggested he felt insulted.

The teen looked up to his father figure with obvious disbelief in his features. "But these are Pack Artifacts; they don't even belong to your Pack, or Leena's. How on earth did you obtain them? Last I heard, they were in the possession of-"

"Let's just say that my diplomatic skills and powers of persuasion should not be unappreciated," Victor answered. "I believe that as a new Pack, you should have your own Artifacts, and I could think of nothing better than Hana and Tsumi." His smile however dropped for a second as he stepped closer to Naruto and said sternly, almost threateningly, "But because these are so important, I am trusting you to use them wisely and not break them. If they do shatter… just remember that bone breaks easier than steel."

Naruto nodded, hiding the chill that ran up his spine at how frightening Victor could be sometimes. He quickly sheathed the blades and placed the straps across his chest so the blades would rest against his back in an 'X' shape. "I'll protect them with my life!" he said in a somewhat mocking tone, giving the older Lycan an all too serious salute.

Victor kept from rolling his eyes at the teen's antics. "Anyway, not to bring down the mood-"

"Too late," both Leena and Naruto said in unison, both wearing equally mirthful grins.

"But," Victor continued, an obvious air of annoyance in his tone. "Leena and I must head out. I need to see to the caravan routs that can be altered to come close to my Pack Den, and see that the negotiations between Kumo and The Second's Pack for traveling permits. Then there's the release forms fr-"

"I think he gets that we're going to be busy," Leena interrupted. She pat Naruto on the head, smiling as she said, "We're gonna miss you gaki."

He hadn't realized he was frowning until he had to lift it to smile at the two as they prepared to head out. "Sure… I'll miss you too."

"Train hard, study well, and…try to clean this place up," Victor said.

Naruto smiled more and nodded. And with that, the two disappeared in a swirl of leaves. He stood still for a few moments, letting the situation sink in. for the first time in years, he was alone. Sure that would change once he was put onto a Genin team, but he couldn't remove the niggling feeling at the back of his mind that seemed to invoke… depression. "Well," he whispered to himself, turning to face his new home. "Guess I'll get some sleep." He approached his dojo, but stopped when he saw a small raven flying over head. It carefully landed on his roof, and immediately flew away in a flurry of feathers as the ceiling collapsed under its small weight. Naruto meanwhile, sighed at the condition of his home and rubbed the back of his head, idly thinking, 'I sure got my work cut out for me… if only I could be everywhere at once… but only Victor and his Pack are that fast… oh well, time to sleep.'

Naruto tired rubbed his eyes and yawned, walking up the steps to his home to get some well needed sleep, but stopped when his foot went through the third step and took in his whole leg. "Fuck," he grumbled.

Morning, 4:45 AM

Naruto's internal clock caused him to awaken early in the morning, much to his displeasure. Not that he didn't mind waking up by himself instead of the bucket of cold water Leena would use, but because of her "tactful" waking methods, the teen found that he had now developed an internal clock that woke him up everyday at least fifteen minutes before five, the time Leena chose to wake him up at. He could try to fall back asleep, but his internal clock had no snooze button, and even if he found a way to shut it off, the tiny niggling feeling that she might sneak into his house and help him "relive a fond memory" kept him from getting another wink.

So it was with deep exasperation that Naruto crawled off of his bloodstained mat, and groggily made his way to the kitchen/dining room of his dojo. It was a small place and, through some miracle, the cupboards seemed to escape most of the grasp of father time unlike most of the area since they seemed slightly well kept and finished, albeit dusty. There was a square on the floor against a corner that was a few tints paler than the rest of the yellowed floor that he supposed where a fridge used to be.

There was a dining table, though two of its legs were broken, causing the table to look like some sort of ramp. There were no chairs, though from the scrapes on the floor area around the table, Naruto guessed there used to be. Walking over to the sink, he turned the rusted nozzle, hoping there was some water; however, the tap choked and coughed, and there was a sickening gurgling noise in the wall before a small splash of brown liquid spattered into the sink and slowly slithered down the drain.

Naruto shrugged his shoulders, seeing no point to remain in the dilapidated building any longer and left with his armor and blades underarm. He stepped outside to meet the still dark, though thankfully lightening sky and took in a breath of fresh air. He placed his weapons on the porch and quickly slipped into his armor.

He placed Hana and Tsumi in their 'X' shape on his back and began his morning exorcize. It wasn't as intense as Leena's routine of running ten square miles, doing two hundred and fifty pushups and sit ups and lifting an ungodly amount of weight up a mountain. His muscles would heal rather quickly, but it sadly also removed some of the progress he made with each workout, which aggravated him beyond all belief. Now he could do lighter exorcizes that would hopefully allow him to keep his progress during healing.

After using some of the dead trees as practice targets for Hana and Tsumi - killing two birds with one stone by ridding his home of the trees, and giving most of his body a good exorcize to help prepare for the exams he expected to be quite difficult - Naruto headed towards the academe. He made sure to stop by the bath house on his way, as he understood entering a classroom full of tired to-be ninja while wearing the stench of sweat wouldn't make for a good first impression.

The academe itself was impressive, its yard was optimal for physical activity, and the classrooms were shaped so all seats faced the speaker at the front. There was even a gym with targets, practice dummies and obstacle courses.

The classroom he was meant to take his written test was built like the others, though unlike some of them, this one had occupants. He didn't take the time to study each of them, as it would be awkward standing in the doorway for a few minutes while eyeing people. He did at least see what he believed to be an Inuzuka, if the messy untamed hair, face paint and small white canine laying on the desk were any indicators. He also took notice of a group of women arguing. From what he could make of it, they were disputing over… who would sit next to "Sasuke?" 'Odd conversation piece,' he thought. Naruto considered taking the seat just to see the looks on the faces of Sasuke's fan club, but he knew better than to alienate himself from a good portion of his classmates on his first day. So he opted to sit next to a boy he was genially interested in, namely the young Inuzuka sitting in the back. "Hey," Naruto said, lazily raising a hand in greeting.

The Inuzuka looked at him like he had spoken in another language before sniffing at the air. "You the Werewolf?" he asked.

'I suppose tact isn't well known to the Inuzuka,' Naruto thought. "Yeah, and you're an Inuzuka, right? I mean I figured you were what with the dog and all…"

The other boy eyed Naruto for a few moments before shrugging. "Yeah, that usually tips people off. I'm Kiba," he looked down at his white dog and scratched its ear. "This is Akamaru, my dog partner." He stopped petting Akamaru, causing the pup to let out a soft whine as he turned to face Naruto. "So, you're a Werewolf? What's with the collar and wrist bands?"

"My name's Naruto, the collar and bands are for… decoration, and I thought I already answered that question," he replied, taking a seat next to Kiba.

"Yeah, but you don't look like what I thought Werewolves looked like in human form."

"Oh? What was I supposed to look like?"

Kiba shrugged and rested his elbow on the desk, lazily holding his head up with his hand. "Bigger?"

That comment caused Naruto to twitch. "Hey, I'm tall enough," he grumbled.

Kiba gave a mischievous grin as he realized he had hit a nerve. "Stand up," he said.

"What?"

"Stand up," he repeated, hopping from his seat. "Let's see if you're taller than me."

'Challenge accepted,' Naruto thought as he stood, only to balk at the realization that he was, in fact, at least four inches shorter than Kiba. He briefly thought of sitting back down in hope of saving himself the embarrassment, but the Inuzuka was already wearing that damned shit eating grin like he won the lottery.

"Well well, would you look at that?"

"Shut up."

"What is it, three inches? Four?"

"Shut up."

"You know what makes this sweeter?"

"Shut up!"

"I'm one of the youngest in class."

Naruto fought everything not to club Kiba with a chair or other object within his reach. It wasn't his fault he was a late bloomer… at the age of sixteen. "Hey, I'm due for a growth spurt any day now!"

"Uh-huh, yeah, sure, whatever you say. And I'm gonna pledge my eternal love for Uchiha over there."

'So that's the Uchiha,' Naruto thought, trying to see the dark haired teen beyond the wave of women trying to sit next to him. 'He doesn't look like much, but I wonder how he's done considering his circumstances.' Shrugging, and hopefully ending the argument, Naruto returned his attention to Kiba, who was looking at the Uchiha with what looked like mild distain.

"Man, I don't get how that prick gets every girl in the class swooning over him like that. He doesn't even have to work for it, they just go for him. I don't get women."

Again, Naruto just shrugged and tried to change subjects. "So, what's there to do around here?"

Kiba raised an eyebrow at the question, then smiled as he said, "At the school, anything between jack and shit. In town though… well, there's a few nice, cheap places to eat like the food stands in the market district, or the Barbeque restaurant. There's the training grounds, can't remember how many there are, but they're nice enough to hang around in. Oh, and there's the hot springs," Kiba's grin grew more wicked as he leaned forward to whisper, "I hear there's a hole somewhere between the male and female baths that you can see through to the other bath."

Naruto returned the grin; he was going to like it here.

Before they could continue their conversation, the door to the classroom slid open and the room fell silent as a man with brown hair tied into a ponytail and a scar running across his face, wearing a Chunin vest entered the classroom with a silver haired man carrying a large stack of papers. 'Obviously the teacher,' Naruto thought as he turned his chair towards the chalkboard.

"Good morning everyone," said the brown haired man.

"Good morning Iruka-sensei," everyone but Naruto said. "Good morning Mizuke-sensei."

Iruka looked directly at Naruto and smiled. "As we said yesterday, we have a late comer. Would you please come down and introduce yourself, please?"

Naruto shrugged and stood up, walking down the small steps towards the chalk board and gave Iruka a fake smile. He carefully wrote his name on the board, and turned to face the class. "My name is Naruto Uzumaki, it is nice to meet you all. I look forward to getting to know everyone and working with them on missions." He gave a short bow before returning to his seat.

"Kind of formal, don't you think?" Kiba whispered.

The other boy shrugged at him and replied. "It's not like I'm going to have time to know everyone here. After this, most of us will be busy working."

"As you all know," Iruka began, ceasing the conversation between Naruto and Kiba. "Today's a special day for everyone here. Today you will receive the chance to walk out of the academe doors with a Konoha Hitai-ate tied around your head, proud of the knowledge you've gained here to prepare you for the life of a ninja. I've seen so many of you grow both physically and mentally over the years, and I'm proud to know I've taught you everything you'll need to be successful. I, and Mizuke, wish each of you the best of luck in the exams, and hope to see you doing your best as ninja." He turned to Mizuke and nodded.

The silver haired man began passing the sheets out to the students as he announced, "Please sit five feet apart so as to prevent unwanted eyes from your work." At which the room was filled with the irritating sound of chair legs scraping against wooden floors.

Naruto and Kiba both pressed their hands to their ears in hope to block out the horrid noise, the former suppressing the need to growl angrily. 'What the fuck!' he thought. After sweet silence finally came to the room, Naruto relaxed and began examining his test. It was all pretty basic stuff. 'Village history, proper use of Ninjutsu and Genjutsu, team formations… seems kind of simple…' he shrugged and began writing.

Just as he had thought, the test had been very simple, and from what he could tell off the looks other students gave, they thought so as well. Some questions would stump him, like the one asking what Summoning Jutsu the Sandaime Hokage was famous for and what hand formations were involved in a simple Katon Jutsu. After writing down how to properly use the Bunshin in combat, which was silly since no ninja would fall for a regular Bunshin, Naruto placed his pencil down and waited. He noticed a few students had finished before him, students like the Uchiha and the pink haired girl that had been fawning over him earlier and who, coincidentally, happened to be sitting next to him. 'Maybe people want to sit next to him to copy off his work?' Naruto entertained the thought that there was an ulterior motive the women in the class had for wanting to sit next to the Uchiha. It would be rather amusing, and frightening, if they all turned out to be manipulative liars that faked love for specific people to gain something from them, but that was just Victor's paranoia rubbing off on Naruto.

"Pencils down," called Iruka, nodding to Mizuke to get him to retrieve the tests.

"Maaaan," Kiba whined. "That was harder than I thought. How'd you do?"

Naruto looked away from the Uchiha and the pink girl to look at Kiba. He shrugged as he said, "Eh, it was pretty basic. I think the answers were sort of obvious. Besides, the written part shouldn't be too important." He knew if Victor heard him say that he'd receive a swift hand to the back of his head. "The written portion is probably used to make sure we understand the basic knowledge, the physical portion is what really counts."

"Yeah," Kiba sighed with some relief. "I just hope my mom doesn't grill me for screwing up on the written part."

Naruto gave his friend a smile as he stood to stretch. "I'm sure you did fine," he reassured, watching Mizuki take his and Kiba's papers. "I just can't wait for the sparring match."

The other boy gave Naruto a confused look. "Uh… they don't do that anymore."

Naruto paused mid stretch, looking over the classroom while asking, "What?"

"Yeah," the other continued boredly. "They stopped doing that a few years back. Apparently some kid killed his sparring partner, so they quit letting us fight each other at graduation. We still spar in the first years," he looked over to the stoic boy in the corner whom he and Naruto had been discussing earlier and shot a glare his way. "I had to go up against Sasuke, and he kicked my ass pretty hard, the guy's kinda hardcore like that. Thing is, we were using plastic kunai in the fights, and after he tossed me to the ground, he "stabbed" me several times. It was pretty fucked up."

Naruto brought his gaze back to the Uchiha across the room and nearly jumped out of his skin when he saw he was staring back at him a little too intently for his comfort. It took Kiba waving his hand in front of his face to break the staring contest they seemed to have gotten into, and when Naruto finally blinked, the Uchiha had turned to look outside. "Yeah, he looks like a buzz kill. If I'm lucky, I'll get some teammates who can relax."

"Maybe they'll put us on a team together," Kiba said with a grin. "We could raise all kinds of hell, am I right?" his grin widened to show off a set of slightly large canines, which Naruto mirrored as he agreed.

"We'd get into some serious shit, but I guess that's all part of the fun. Ever run through the forest with a Werewolf in the dead of night? It's pretty fun, especially when the full moon is only a few nights away, that's when we get really wild."

"Oh?" Kiba perked up at that and leaned in closer to whisper.

"Not like that, dumbass," Naruto refrained from barking in laughter as he realized that he made it sound like Werewolves were like animals in heat under the full moon. "You ever meet a female Werewolf under the full moon, the last thing you'd want is to get down and dirty. I'm not saying some wouldn't be up for it," he recalled a specifically… interesting female Lycan who had thing for trees who had made him an offer. While it would be natural for a boy his age to jump at something like that, she was too damn scary for him to consider it. "I'd advise against such a course of action."

"Eh," the Inuzuka shrugged, standing to stretch his legs out. "I tend to turn most things people say into some sort of joke."

"That's pretty smart," Naruto said. "It demoralizes your enemies if they see you joking and acting like a fight is fun, and it can even boost the morale of your allies. I actually do the same thing in battle, and it's worked a few times." He laughed as a memory came to him. "There was this group of mercenaries hired by my sensei to attack me, it was part of my training to be on my guard at all times. One of them managed to get in close and shoved a tanto through my left lung and made this face when I got up to keep fighting." By now Naruto had to pause to hold in his laughter as the man's face appeared in his mind. "I couldn't stop laughing after that. The whole battle was one sided, since I couldn't concentrate while laughing. After they ran a katana through me, they ran off saying I was a demon. I think I sat there for about five minutes laughing until my wounds healed up."

Kiba had to admit that the idea of someone laughing uncontrollably through an entire fight was both hilarious and frightening depending on who you were. "So you can take a sword to the lung?" he asked. He knew he was changing subjects rather bluntly, but he had become generally interested in the damage a Werewolf could take.

"It hurt like hell," Naruto admitted. He pointed to a spot on his chest covered by his armor. "And it left a pretty bad scare that took year or so to fade. I guess he could have killed me if he ripped my brain out… though one of my sensei claims she had her head separated from her body for three days and managed to survive, but I think she was just bullshitting me. Anyway," now it was his turn to change subjects. He didn't really want to talk about himself all that much. "Since they removed the final exam spar, what do we do for our physical portion?"

"I hear they just get you to perform some basic Jutsu, since they've seen how well our aim is and how we fight during the school years." He sat back down and leaned back as he tried to remember something his sister told him. "My sister says they used to have to understand at least one elemental Jutsu along with a non Bunshin clone."

"None of you know your elements?" Naruto had expected the exams to be less intense than they were in his dad's time, but he at least expected they'd teach them how to use some elemental Jutsu! "You're shitting me, right?" the other teen shook his head and Naruto almost wanted to scream. 'I've been itching for a fight from a Konoha shinobi ever since I can remember.'

"Actually," Kiba looked over to the Uchiha once more. "I think Sasuke knows some Katon Jutsu."

'I guess it makes sense that an Uchiha would know Fire Release… maybe I can get a sparring match with him after all this…'

"Alright, class," Iruka stood up from his desk and handed Mizuke a pile of marked sheets. "Mizuke will hand back your tests, then we'll get ready for the physical portion of the exams."

Naruto sat back down in his seat and patiently waited for his test to be returned while the teen next to him seemed to be praying to Kami to let him pass. As soon as their sheets were placed in front of them, the two boys flipped them over and scanned them for their marks. 'Seventy five percent,' Naruto read. 'Well, how the hell was I supposed to know you're not supposed to throw kunai at a bush if it suddenly rustles?! And why the hell do I need to know how much water can be held by a three by three foot tarp?!'

"Yes!" Kiba exclaimed, an action that earned him a series of glares/strange looks from the other occupants of the classroom. He leaned over to look at Naruto's work and barked with laughter.

The other teen looked at Kiba with a mixture of annoyance and curiosity before looking at the Inuzuka's test. "Seventy six percent?!" he nearly fall backwards from the shock. "How the hell did you score higher than me?"

Kiba kept on laughing as he shrugged. "I donno, but I guessed most of the questions."

Naruto was just about ready attack the other boy if he kept it up. "Alright, smart ass," he growled. "How about a sparring match after we get our Hitai-ates?"

The other teen stopped laughing long enough to make eye contact with Naruto and could have sworn he saw his eyes flash yellow. "Yeah," he nodded, leaning back and kicking his feet up. "Sounds like fun, when and where?"

"Outside my dojo at seven."

Kiba stopped grinning and took on a more confused expression. "You have a dojo?" he asked.

"Of sorts… it's next to training ground four, now can you make it?"

The other boy shrugged. "Eh, I'll see."

"Alright," Iruka once more brought the class' attention back to him as he and Mizuki stood, the latter moving to open the classroom door. "We'll be starting the physical portion of the exam. Students will come one at a time to the classroom across the hall, once finished with their examination, they will be informed as to whether or not they have passed and will be given their Hitai-ate upon passing. Afterwards, the student will come back here and announce who is going to be next and so on. First up… Aburame Shino." A tall boy with prickly brown hair stood up quietly and followed the teachers out the classroom.

Seeing as they were going in alphabetical order based off last names, Naruto Uzumaki assumed he'd be sitting in the classroom for some time. "Well, this is gonna take some time," he sighed, leaning back to look at the ceiling. "Wake me up when someone calls my name." his nap was, however, halted when he felt Kiba tap his shoulder. "What?" he returned to a normal sitting position, ready to complain that the Inuzuka shouldn't have kept him from a few more sweet minutes of sleep, when he noticed they were not alone. Next to him stood the Sasuke, who seemed to be looking him over like a specimen. "Can I… help you?

"You're the Werewolf," he stated plainly. It was at this moment that Naruto took notice of the sets of eyes staring at him and Sasuke, namely everyone in the class.

"You figure that out on your own?" Naruto asked smarmily.

Sasuke ignored the comment and continued. "I heard your kind can shatter trees with your raw strength."

"Yeah," Naruto grinned. "And we piss acid and shit thunder." That got a few sniggers from some students, including Kiba. "There a point to these statements? Because I was kind of busy getting some sleep."

"I'd like to see how good you are," Sasuke replied.

Naruto had to suppress jumping at the chance to say yes, as he didn't want to lose his "cool" in front of the others. "I'm still not hearing the point."

"I'd like to fight you after I get my Hitai-ate."

It was hard not to agree to it, after all, Naruto would kill to have a good challenging fight against the last Uchiha of Konoha, especially since he was the only one in the class besides Naruto to know elemental Jutsu; however, he knew he'd have to wait. He already had plans with Kiba, and he wasn't one to flake out on a fight. Still… it was pretty damn tempting. "Sorry, I've got a sparring match with Kiba today. Maybe some other time, huh?"

Sasuke broke eye contact with Naruto to look at the boy next to him. Kiba reacted to being stared at the same way most people would in the class, by trying not to meet eyes with the Uchiha. "He's not that strong, cancel it."

'Ok,' Naruto mentally growled. 'This guy's pissing me off quite a bit.' He finally stood to meet Sasuke, doing his best to ignore the fact that he was a bit shorter than the Uchiha. "I'm fine, thanks, now could you please stop staring at me like that, it's kind of weird."

The Uchiha continued staring at Naruto for a while. He only ended it when the class door slid open and Shino pointed to a large, brown haired boy whom Naruto assumed to be an Akamichi. Once eye contact between them was broken, Sasuke tucked his hands in his pockets and walked back to his desk. "Sure, whatever," he called back.

Naruto finally relaxed and sat back down. "That guy's a prick," he whispered. With no more interruptions, he returned to his leaning back position and got some much desired sleep.

When he was eventually woken up by Kiba, he was tempted to ask for five more minutes. Once the other boy actually managed to get him out of his seat, he wished Naruto good luck as he made his way to the other classroom. The other room itself was much barer compared to the other classroom. There were only two desks at the far end, one which Iruka and Mizuki sat at with a series of papers no doubt meant for marking, and the other held several Konoha Hitai-ates. He closed the door behind him and bowed to the two teachers. "Hello, Iruka-sensei, Mizuki-sensei."

The other two men nodded at him and Iruka spoke up. "Good Morning, Naruto-san, how are you finding the village thus far?"

Naruto rose from his bow and smiled. "Well," he began. "It's certainly big, I don't know how anyone can get around in this place without getting lost." 'Let's just get this exam over with, please?' he thought.

Iruka let out a soft chuckle at the remark and nodded. "Yes, it certainly can be a lot to take in. Anyway, we've had time to look over the notes made by your senseis, and we're pleased to see that you've managed to understand the basics and beyond. As for this part of the examination, we'll need you to perform a Bunshin Jutsu, we'll need to see about two clones."

Naruto kept from sighing at the request. It wasn't that he couldn't perform a Bunshin, he could, but he was hoping for something a bit more challenging. 'I guess things get less difficult for every generation,' he thought morosely. "Alright, one second," he said, moving his hands up in preparation. 'Ram… snake… tiger.' The metal studs on his collar, wristbands and ankle braces let of a light blue glow as he focused. "Bunshin no Jutsu!" He felt a shiver go through him as he felt two mirage versions of him left his body to stand at his sides.

"Very good," Mizuki said. He and Iruka looked at their notes and began jotting things down. "Alright, Mr. Uzumaki, we're happy to say you've passed. Grab a Hitai-ate on the table and inform Yamanaka Ino that she is up."

The teen nearly fell over from shock at that. "That's it?"

Iruka and Mizuki nodded while the former answered, "Yes, you have what it takes to be a ninja, congratulations, you are now a Genin."

It took some time for everything to fully register with Naruto that he had passed in such a simple way. "But," he couldn't think of anything polite to say in protest. Sure, he had a few ideas of what he'd like to say, like, "Are you fucking kidding me?!" or, "You can't possibly be serious!" but it wouldn't bode well for him if he said anything against it. So with a dejected sigh, he nodded and walked to the table. He didn't even think about which one to grab, he just dropped his hand on the desk and grasped at the first bit of cloth he felt. "Thank you very much," he drawled as he walked outside the room. Once he made it back into the other classroom, he looked up at the students. "Ino Yamanaka." A girl with a blonde ponytail and dark purple clothing walked past him as he ascended the stairs to his seat. Naruto fell into his chair and slumped down to hide himself.

"Shit man," Kiba said in concern. "You failed?"

Naruto didn't have the strength to snap at the idea that he would fail at something so simple. Instead, he just shook his head and placed a red Hitai-ate on the desk in front of him."

"Huh… then what's got you so down?"

He sighed once more and looked at his new friend with half lidded eyes. "I don't know man," he said. "I just… my senseis always told me stories of how the ninjas of Konohagakure were the best of the best, rivaled only by the other five hidden villages. I was sorta hoping I'd find some challenge here, you know? Like every ninja here could go toe-to-toe with me and give me a good fight, or even an ass whopping with their sheer power. I'm not saying everyone graduating is weak… it's just… well, the Bunshin no Jutsu is so easy and shitty for a final examination Jutsu."

Kiba nodded as he listened, then patted Naruto on the head reassuringly. "Don't worry, man, I'll give you an ass whopping later on, I'm one of the top Taijutsu users in the school."

That got Naruto to at least smile a bit. "Yeah, now I can't wait for seven."

The door to the class opened once more and instead of the one student, both Iruka and Mizuki entered the room as well. The former of the two looked the class over before smiling. "Well, it seems you've all managed to pass with flying colors! I can't tell you how proud I am. It'll take us a week to assign you to your Jonin senseis. In the mean time, I'd suggest getting some well deserved rest. I look forward to seeing you all again soon. Class dismissed."

The classroom was quickly emptied as the students headed to their respective homes to show their new headbands to their families. Naruto opted to sit at the swing set that hung from a tree a few yards from the schoolhouse. Eventually, the loud and bustling students cleared off, leaving him with the calming silence of the schoolyard after class. His calm sit down was short lived, as a familiar silver haired teacher stood next to Naruto. "Mizuke-sensei?"

The older man looked down at Naruto and asked, "You didn't really seem to like the physical portion of the exams, any reason why?"

Naruto shrugged and let himself relax more into the seat. "I guess I just expected more than a simple Bunshin Jutsu."

Mizuke offered an understanding smile. "Yeah, I know what you mean. They were pretty easy in my day too. That's why I took the extra credit assignment after I got my Hitai-ate."

"Extra credit assignment?" Naruto perked up a bit. "There's another test you can take after passing?"

The other man's smile widened a bit. "Let me tell you about the scroll of seals."

Author's Note: Alright, that should hold you over until I can start and finish the next chapter. I was debating whether or not I should have cut this in half and make it into two chapters, but I decided to leave it as it is. Also, as for why everyone are teenagers in this as opposed to twelve, well, I find it rather idiotic for a village to send kids out on missions meant for ninjas. I know they usually perform D-ranked missions for a year before actually leaving the village, but thirteen is still hardly an appropriate age for someone to be placed in a situation where they have to kill or be killed. That, and it's weird shipping twelve-thirteen year old kids… just… no. anyway, I'll be working on the almost finished third chapter of True Monsters and starting the next chapter of this… I may need a Beta Reader seeing as I'm kind of shitty at this. Thanks for reading.