A/N: Thank you so much for all your support!

There are probably going to be two updates (meaning next week and the week after that) before I run out of material, and then I'll update whenever I get around to writing more. (Just a heads up)

Also, I haven't actually finished the manga or anime, so my knowledge of canon is slightly lacking. I'll do my research, though, if we get farther in the timeline than what I've seen.

Hope you like this chapter!


(754)

Naruto was wrong. Apparently there was a chance of Kakashi signing them up, because the man did so. Naruto can't understand how he could possibly think that it's a good idea.

Later, the boy questions Kakashi's sanity in the safety of his mind, and Kurama feels is just as incredulous. He also reminds the boy that his teacher may very well have some plan in his mind, so he should be on his guard. Naruto sticks his tongue out, then, and tells the Kyuubi that he's not stupid. Kurama grins and says that he is aware of that, but he also feels like Naruto isn't the sanest person. Naruto can't come up with a good comeback to that considering that he's at that moment bantering with a tailed beast.

So now there are chuunin exams coming up, and Naruto couldn't be more pumped up. This was his second step in becoming someone significant. He stops doing extra D-ranks and starts training to his fullest. He knows that people are likely to question where he learnt his techniques, but he's pretty sure that 'the library' would shock those questioners enough to derail them. And it's partly the truth, too; he did learn some of the jutsu from library scrolls, but some Kurama had taught to him. Naruto wonders how people would react to that revelation and cackles maniacally in his mind, causing Kurama to look at him in fond exasperation and chuckle to himself.

Neither of them wants to admit it, but they're more worried than they're letting on. If Naruto fails these exams, he could technically participate in the next ones; but in reality, if their teamwork sucks too much, Kakashi isn't likely to nominate them any time soon again. And while Naruto can train to his heart's contents, he can't exactly force Sasuke or Sakura to work with him. (Kurama stops at that thought, because actually, Naruto could do precisely that, but then sighs when he realizes that the boy would never agree to using threats against his teammates.)

Naruto wakes up on the morning of the exam feeling both excited and incredibly worried. Kurama greets him with a mental 'good luck, kit' and doesn't say anything else. He knows it wouldn't be welcome, since any reassurances would be lies and the last thing Naruto needs is for Kurama, who the boy trusts implicitly, to lie to him.

Breakfast is ramen that day since it's Naruto's comfort food and he knows that Kurama won't criticize it when they're both worried. The boy dresses on autopilot and takes a huge gulp of air before making it out the door and to the exam building.

There he meets his teammates, and is pleasantly surprised that even Sakura showed up. (Because according to the research he did on the exams, they require all three members of a team and at least one stage is based on teamwork.) They enter the building together and are met with a huge crowd.

After some incidents – mainly, a green being that proclaimed its love to Sakura, and Sasuke announcing to everyone that there was a genjutsu on the second floor door – they make it to the room where the first stage of the exam is being held. Gaara and his team are there already, as are the other Konoha rookie teams. (And boy didn't Naruto just feel like going up to the Hokage and demanding to know why he let insane people become teachers. Kurama agrees with him; it doesn't sound like a good idea to have genin, who have been real ninjas only for a few months, participate in an exam in which people have died.)

They meet Kabuto, and Naruto is instantly distrustful. He has had experience with people lying to him, and the silver haired genin is coming off as fake. Plus there's the matter with those cards; there's no way that much information about ninjas, even genin, is available to just anyone looking for it. Thus, Kabuto is either not a genin and is probably planted there by the Hokage, or he has somehow stolen the information from the archives.

Naruto doesn't say anything though. It's not like he has proof, and Iruka would be the only one to take his concerns even slightly seriously. So he keeps quiet and tries to sink to the background; a feat made much easier by the fact that everyone seems to be focused on Sasuke.

Then the exam itself starts. Ibiki doesn't scare Naruto as he has seen the man before, and he hadn't glared at Naruto or anything. That is probably why Naruto even likes the proctor.

He doesn't like the exam, though. He hates theory, and while history can be interesting, Naruto would much prefer to focus on the future. Plus, Kurama's stories about the past are much better and accurate than whatever is written in some books. Thus Naruto has no idea what to answer to most of the questions.

As he's starting to panic, Kurama speaks up. The Kyuubi doesn't really know the answers to them – he doesn't need or want the same kinds of knowledge people do – but he reminds Naruto to think, to use his brains and try to solve the problem; not the questions, but the problem of how to answer them. So Naruto looks around, realizes that half the people there couldn't possibly know the answers to these either, and figures out that they are meant to cheat; a deduction supported by the rules of the exam.

They won't be disqualified if they are spotted cheating; they lose points. So Naruto can afford to be seen cheating at least two times, but of course, he'd much rather get the answers with others remaining oblivious. He doesn't have a good jutsu for a situation like this, however; on a real mission, he'd have created a few kage bunshin to help him before entering enemy territory.

Now that chance is out. Naruto sweats slightly as he tries to think of something else. Kurama is quiet, giving the boy the chance to figure out a solution himself, but he'd speak up if Naruto couldn't think of anything. He didn't care that the genin were not supposed to receive help; Naruto's advancement was far more important as he might not have another chance. (Kurama cringes slightly at that thought, reminded again of the boy's impending death.)

But Naruto isn't stupid. He could come up with dozens of different methods of acquiring the answers: going to the bathroom and creating a clone there; creating a distraction, such as a gust of wind; or disguising himself as Ibiki with a henge and switching their places with kawarimi. None of those appeal to Naruto, however, so he chooses the one that's the easiest.

He creates a clone. Right there, in the middle of the exam room, and then sits back while the clone made his way to the front. Ibiki and the other chuunin/jounin stare at the clone and Naruto incredulously, and one of them goes to grab the fake. It evades capture, however, and ignores Ibiki's shouting about losing points as it leafs through the papers on the desk – managing to avoid being caught – and chooses one of them before jumping back to the original Naruto. By then, all the other genin in the room are also staring at Naruto.

After the clone popped out, Naruto starts copying the answers from the paper to his own questionnaire. There is silence in the room, but Naruto's mind is filled with cackling from both the boy and Kurama, who finds the whole debacle absolutely hilarious.

When Ibiki finally asks Naruto what the hell the brat thought he was doing, Naruto answers that he's cheating, isn't it obvious? There is silence after that proclamation, and the genin look like they expect someone to kick Naruto out, but the proctors know that Naruto had done nothing to get himself disqualified. He simply lost some points for his 'attempt' at cheating.

That doesn't stop the proctors from looking at Naruto incredulously, however, especially with the way Ibiki is glaring at the boy. There's no one else in the room crazy enough to do anything to bring Ibiki's displeasure onto themselves; well, except Gaara, but the Suna jinchuuriki is pretty much the only one who seems indifferent as to what had transpired. (So maybe being indifferent to Ibiki's Glare of Doom was a jinchuuriki thing.)

Suddenly Ibiki transfers his glare upon the other genin, most of whom gulp audibly before rushing to focus their tests. No one copies Naruto, as they aren't quite brave enough to oppose that horrible, angry stare.

Naruto is grinning happily inside despite his outwardly oblivious expression. Sometimes it pays to have a Kyuubi glare at you frequently. (Because no matter how well Kurama and Naruto usually got along, the Kyuubi often became exasperated or irritated with his little kit; likewise, Naruto often became upset when Kurama mentioned not caring about humanity.)

(747)

The second stage of the exam is nicer. Well, nicer in Naruto's opinion; he'd much rather spend time in the 'Forest of Death' than do a written exam. And in any case, he highly doubts that there's anything more dangerous or scary than a tailed beast in there. Kurama snorts at that before smirking smugly, and Naruto shakes his head at the Kyuubi's odd ideas of what to be proud of.

Neither Naruto nor Kurama like the proctor lady. She gives off a crazy air, and Naruto is rather sure that she doesn't care about any of their lives at all. The boy can't help but ponder at the sanity of the person who appointed the people looking after the genin – again.

When they enter the forest, Sasuke immediately takes point. No surprise there, but Naruto knows that the Uchiha has no idea how to find the centre, either. In fact, he's pretty sure that he'd find it much faster with the help of his kage bunshin, but, well, if Sasuke is so determined to do everything on his own, Naruto might just let him.

At least they stop to decide code words. It's kind of ridiculous, though, since someone could be eavesdropping on them right now. Thus, Naruto suggests asking questions that only the three of them know the answers to. Unsurprisingly, Sasuke and Sakura dismiss his idea; Kurama rages inside the boy's head because it was honestly a great plan, but the two of them just can't accept the fact that Naruto is not a total idiot.

Their team encounters some trouble, and finally, when it's getting quite late, Naruto sighs loudly and informs his teammates that he's sending his clones out to get a sense of which way to go and see if there are other teams nearby. He creates the clones before either of them can protest, and ignores Sasuke's glare.

After the clones slowly pop and return the information to Naruto, he points them to the right direction and recommends that they try to catch a nearby team tomorrow. The idea is met with some resistance, but since only Naruto knows where said team is, they continue on a bit before stopping for the night. Naruto can't help but roll his eyes when Sasuke insists on them taking turns in staying up and taking watch; Naruto's clones could easily do that and they could all just sleep for the whole night. Oh well, if the Uchiha wants to unnecessarily bother himself, who's Naruto to stop him.

Naruto doesn't manage to fall asleep for a while. His thoughts turn to the Uchiha who is currently sitting and glaring suspiciously around them. Naruto just can't figure Sasuke out; sometimes it seems like the other boy considers him a friend, and sometimes it's like he hates Naruto with a passion. There's jealousy and envy and irritation and fondness and exasperation and smugness and pride involved, and Naruto can't unbundle the mess they make.

Kurama offers a simple 'he's not worth the headache figuring him out would give', and that's that. Naruto falls asleep wondering whether or not Sasuke is his friend, but when he wakes up, he dismisses all thoughts about the other boy.

(746)

Stealing the scroll from one of the Suna teams is surprisingly easy, and soon they are running full speed towards the centre of the forest. Unfortunately, someone stops them.

Or rather, it's a something first. Naruto doesn't appreciate being eaten by a giant snake, nope, not at all. Kurama and he both shudder in disgust and the Kyuubi shouts at the boy to blow it apart. A simple wind jutsu takes care of it, and soon Naruto is on his way to rescue his teammates.

He was exaggerating by the 'rescue', because he fully believed them to be able to take care of themselves, but wow, apparently it is rather accurate. Sasuke is pretty much frozen in fear as another giant snake tries to eat him. Only Naruto's rather timely appearance saves the Uchiha from that fate.

It doesn't help much, however, since the guy they are fighting is incredibly strong. When the guy does something to Sasuke's neck with his mouth, it's not really Naruto's fault that he shouts about paedophiles. Unsurprisingly, this prompts increasing attacks on Naruto.

Even though he manages to hold on for a little while, Sasuke's screams disturbed him enough to put him far off his game. Kurama's calming presence in the back of his mind is the only reason he doesn't get swallowed by the anger completely and let the Kyuubi's chakra to take over; as it is, he's only slightly 'leaking' the chakra. (And Kurama calming him is the opposite of what everyone would assume would happen, but when have the two of them ever lived up to others' expectations?)

Finally, the guy pushes his fingers against his stomach and suddenly it's hurting and something is tearing him apart and his limbs feel like they're on fire and he can't hear Kurama but he knows the Kyuubi is shouting and there's something wrong so inherently wrong that he can't even say what it is but it hurts more than the physical pain because it goes against everything he has ever known and he has known pain but not by this magnitude and – –

(745)

When he comes to, Sakura immediately jumps to his side and tears of relief flow down her cheeks. Naruto blinks stupidly for a second, because it doesn't quite feel real yet he can't put his finger on why. Then he offers a hesitant grin that makes Sakura bump his head carefully.

She asks him what he remembers, and suddenly everything comes back to him. He glances at Sasuke, and at Sakura's quiet 'he's still out of it, but not getting worse' he turns his attention inside himself. The realization comes quickly.

He can't hear Kurama.

He can't hear him, even though he has heard the Kyuubi for weeks now.

He closes his eyes and wanders into his own mind, but the room where Kurama's cage is is sealed shut. He tries to desperately peel the seal off, but it doesn't work. He runs down the corridor and tears the other doors open – doors that he has never opened before as there hasn't been any need for it. Yet they are simply filled with floating memories, and none of them have the feeling of Kurama, so he goes back and tries to destroy the seals again.

It still doesn't work, and now Naruto is beginning to panic.

Sakura shouts his name suddenly, though, so he's jolted back into the real world and he dismisses her worries over his panicked breathing and tries to find his chakra.

He does, but it's not normal. There are no traces of the Kyuubi's chakra in it, and while that might seem like a good thing as he might not die so quickly then, his own chakra is messed up as well. It twitches occasionally, and there are holes in it. Naruto's not quite sure how they can exist, but exist they do, and then he all at once becomes aware of the pain still inhabiting his body.

Sakura is still crouching over him so Naruto warns her before he tries to get up. He's not successful, and his arms feel like they are in fire when he moves them. He groans in pain, and wonders if this is the price to pay for trying to save his teammate.

He doesn't take too long to bemoan his fate, however, because there's something much important. Namely, Kurama.

He doesn't have the slightest clue about seals and he can't get the seals off. He worries over the Kyuubi, hoping that he's not in as much pain as he himself is, and that Kurama hasn't been hurt in any other way either. He sends a mental prayer for the Kyuubi's wellbeing before forcing himself to focus on getting out of the forest; that way he can get actual help.

Moving hurts. Everything hurts, really, but moving makes everything hurt more. Even so, Naruto pushes himself upright and creates clones – or tries to, anyway, as none appear. Forcing his chakra to obey him he tries again, and this time manages to create fifteen clones instead of the three he was aiming for. Still, it is a relief that his chakra works somewhat, and he and Sakura quickly agree that they should try to get to the building as fast as possible.

So one of the clones pick up Sasuke – they are more adept than the real thing in ignoring pain, or maybe they don't feel it; Naruto's not quite sure – and the others start a patrol around the three real ninjas. Sakura sends him a thankful look, and Naruto takes a moment to feel sorry for the worry the girl must have experienced.

Sasuke wakes up sometime before they make it to the centre, and demands that he is put down as he can walk on his own. Unsurprisingly, the clone refuses. When Sakura's eyes start to droop, one of the clones pick up her as well, and she falls asleep quite quickly. Naruto and his clones never stop because Naruto is too worried to sleep or rest and he needs to know if Kurama is okay.


A/N: Yes, I know that Naruto's method of passing that first test is kind of ridiculous - but so are the rules, so that's pretty much what I would have done in that situation.

Feedback is very welcome (and highly appreciated)!